The Salvatore Saga, Part Four: My new Life

Damon turned to Mariella and expressed his exhaustion and frustration, saying, "I'm incredibly tired and fed up. Part of me just wants to give up and say, 'That's it, let's send them to the magic house.' This is not what I expected."

Mariella rolled her eyes at Damon's tired rant. She was tired too, and their cubs had recently gained immortality. Their teaching consisted mainly of entertaining the cubs with cartoons and conversation. They fed them twice a day and the cubs slept for long periods of time.

Damon was exhausted because all the females, except for Mimi, constantly demanded his attention. Their questions were not particularly insightful; they were simply hormonal females wanting him to cuddle them.

Mariella snapped, "Pull yourself together. Today, we're going spying. Let's observe how our alpha female handles things. Why is it that all I sense from her is excitement, happiness, and satisfaction? Why isn't she struggling like the rest of us? There must be something we're missing."

Damon grunted in agreement and replied, "Fine, Alaric can watch over these cubs. Not that they do much anyway."

Mariella shared Damon's frustration. This was difficult and they felt like they were stumbling in the dark without a clear plan. She realized that she hadn't prepared properly for this time and the cubs would continue to grow. She wanted to learn and gather ideas. It wasn't too late, but there was always room for improvement.

I was with Wulfe, Magnum, number two, and three, just finished the morning feeding for our students. We were directing them to use the bathroom, which was equipped with enchanted peepads on the floor. These peepads would teleport waste outside. After that, we would head into another room to watch some cartoons.

I was surprised when Damon and Mariella walked in. They looked at our classroom and then saw us in the dining room, guiding the cubs.

I said to the cubs, "Now, do you remember how we do this?"

They nodded, and number three activated our choice buttons, which were part of our lesson in democracy. I had seen these buttons before, when I was human. Some people use them to teach their dogs to talk. I had shared this idea with number two, and together we devised three buttons and three choices.

The cubs would have to say what they wanted to watch. Each cub had one chance to press the button for their choice, and the option with the most votes would win. We had a monitor ready to display the results so that the first ones to vote could see which option was the most popular. It was a simple yet effective way to practice democracy.

I said, "Today we have the choices of Pokemon, Marvel, or He-Man. Do you remember which button is which?"

Jax, my cheeky leopard, said, "Yellow is Pokemon, red is Marvel, and green is He-Man."

He pointed to each color with his nose.

Magnum said, "Good lad, that's it. Go on, make your choice."

Jax pressed a button and walked into the other room. In there, we had a lot of beanbag chairs, enchanted for durability. For us, there were four inflatable chairs, perfect for lounging. One by one, the cubs filed out of the room. Each of them made their choice and went to see what they had voted for. Of course, they enjoyed each option, but this was part of our lesson.

Damon walked near me and muttered, "Yeah, democracy. I see it now. Damn, baby..."

I smiled and said, "I just gave the idea, and number two was the one who actually made it happen."

Damon looked at number two sharply, but he seemed unfazed.

Mariella said, "I want that for us too. God damn it, Mimi, I have a feeling that this is not all you've come up with."

I just chuckled. But as possessive as Wulfe was, he came over, pulled me into him, and wrapped his arm around my shoulders, keeping his expression neutral.

Number three directed the cubs to their places while Wulfe and I watched over the rest of them. They had a little spell that showed when they were done with their bathroom business, so they could go to the other side. Sometimes they were too hasty, but this taught them a little patience. I saw Damon and Mariella walk to another room.

Rosie was sleeping; she had gotten her meal first and then her painkiller. It wouldn't be too many days until they would scan and help her. I couldn't help but sigh when I saw her curled up form. The other kittens and cubs were busily choosing where to go.

There were so many little Sphynxes soon ready as they looked at the monitor to see who would win. After the last of the cubs had eaten, we walked with Wulfe to the classroom, and it was evident that this time the winner was Pokemon. Fine.

I went to sit on my own comfy chair. Damon and Mariella were still standing, and Wulfe lazily gestured for two more chairs to appear.

He said, "No need to stand, sit down. Now it is time to watch Pokemon."

Jax said, "Yeah, Daddy, it is."

As Damon's expression hardened, I said to him in my mind, "You know, Tim and Taylor taught me this. I will not deny my cubs anything, not mummy and not daddy. You know, the Boys had stepdads, daddies, and they loved them. It does not take a biological connection to be a father. You are clearly too busy to even visit, so I don't bother with you. I give my cubs dads. Besides, those two are more or less copies of you, their dads, so don't even start frowning and telling me that you are their father. For me, you are nothing but a breeder. You might be a daddy for other cubs, but not for these."

His eyes flashed, and he looked elsewhere. I put Pokemon on, and soon our big TV was filled with color and Pokemon. The cubs talked about them from time to time, commenting on this and that.

It was two hours later when Rosie woke up. She was still a little dizzy, but she crawled to me as usual, climbed up my chest, and trembled from pain. Damon, who was sitting next to me, turned his head and raised his brow as he saw her pink wings trembling and contracting, her tight muscles, and her overall demeanor showing how much pain she was in.

She is such a cutie, black as night, a lion with a pink nose, pink paw pads, and bright pink wings. But now she was in pain. I gently massaged her, feeling her hard muscles trembling in pain. It took time to get her to relax at all, and it still didn't take all of the ache away. 

I gently massaged her wings and her back, hoping it would provide some relief. It pained me to feel so powerless in helping her. She still trembled in agony, and each little grunt of pain broke my heart.

Number two informed Damon about Rosie's wings and how nothing seemed to make the pain go away. Now she was suffering, and it seemed like an operation might be necessary, even if it meant amputating her wings.

Mariella objected, saying, "No, let Damon help."

Number two, exhausted, explained that healing magic had been ineffective despite attempts from numbers four, ten, and nine. We were hesitant to remove any more wings, fearing it would worsen the situation.

Damon turned to me and said, "Baby, can I hold her and try to help? Maybe my fangs can do something. Besides, as an empath, I can feel her pain."

I asked Rosie, "Rosie, would it be okay if Dad holds you for a while? Does it still hurt?"

She nodded and replied, "Yes, Mommy, it still hurts."

Damon reached over and gently probed her wings. I saw a golden glow emanating from his palms, but unfortunately, it only provided temporary relief.

He soon massaged his temples and told me telepathically, "Baby, you're my protector. You should see what I'm doing."

I furrowed my brow, took his radar, and found the section explaining the effects of his fangs. "Oh, I see. You're administering a local anesthetic for her wings, a potent one."

Mariella also expressed her frustration, saying, "Damn it, my radar, my savior radar! Wait, I have a solution for this."

She explained to Damon through telepathy, "First, we need to put her under with velvet. You should be able to create velvet for her. Then we can numb her wings so she won't feel the pain anymore. I also have a new type of wings off drop that should take care of her wings and bind her chaos. You have a miniature version of Mimi on your lap, which means she can feel her wings. Her mind blocks the effects of those drops. Just like how you kept Mimi under longer without her knowing she was drugged, we can apply the same principle here. Her mind will disconnect from her wings as they're numbed, and you can use telepathy to help ease her pain and erase the memory of her wings. And voila!"

Damon nodded and said, "I've sent my formula to number five. He'll be here soon to take her and we can continue our surveillance."

As Damon explained their plan for Rosie, I nodded in agreement. He gently bit into her paw to administer a sedative, Velvet. Soon, Number Five came and gently picked her up, marveling at her pawpads. Others were not amazed because they knew Rosie had sore wings and slept a lot. But maybe, just maybe, this would help.

The cubs were constantly moving and competing to be on top of mommy. I was pretty covered by cubs, both big and small. As they purred to their unborn siblings in my belly, there was purring coming from inside me too.

Damon softly said, "Come on, I won't bite unless you want Daddy to nibble you. But I can also be your mattress. I am much better than mommy. Come and test."

He was jealous, just like Wulfe, Magnum Number Two, and Three, who had already been covered. So, the cubs who hadn't found a spot yet went to cover Damon and Mariella too.

After two hours, Jax, who had draped himself over my neck, asked me, "Mommy, I'm hungry. When is it time to eat?"

I replied gently, "Look at the clock, remember?"

Jax's little voice piped up, "The big red pointer is in the blue."

I nodded, and he sighed, "It's not yet... My tummy gurgles."

I rubbed his tummy as he loved it. Snack time would be soon, followed by a walk to learn directions. Later in the evening, we would meet and greet others. We had planned two outings for them, at least in the beginning.

Now, I asked Jax, "Do you remember what comes after snack?"

He replied, "Treasure hunt."

I nodded. We made learning fun, and Damon looked at us sharply.

In my mind, he asked, "Do you mind, baby? Can you explain the day's schedule?"

I looked at Number Two, who quickly sent the information to Damon.

He raised his brow and said in my mind, "That's quite a packed day. Are you sure it's not too much?"

I replied, "Nope. In time, there will be more, but as you can see, they nap a lot. So, we have plenty of time to watch cartoons, and it's not a big deal if they take a nap."

As the clock's pointer moved to the blue area, Jax became restless, but I gently reminded him, "Remember, we watch the episode until the end. We have to be patient."

He rolled his eyes, just like I did, but had the patience to wait and see the episode through, and then it was time for treats.

We have created sticks for the cubs, which consist of crushed seeds, nuts, berries, and other ingredients that are then baked into sticks. These sticks vary in hardness and size, taking into account the cubs' growth.

Damon took one of the sticks and chewed on it thoughtfully. His expression remained neutral while I smirked confidently. It felt great to introduce these little treats to him. This snowball had been rolling for quite some time, and I wasn't in the mood to play nice.

Numbers two and three explained the technical details to him and Mariella, sparking Mariella's desire to have some of her own. She was always a copycat, but our ideas were too good to be ignored. Damon observed how eagerly the cubs chewed on the sticks.

We carefully selected sticks that provided a challenge but were still easy enough for the cubs to chew. Taste was crucial, so they had to be as delicious as possible. Damon walked over to me, his voice clearly irritated, making my already smug expression even more pronounced.

"What else have you been hiding, baby? You should learn to share," he said.

As the alpha, I had to assert myself and replied, "Oh, my husband, can't you see? I have shared. Many know about my treats, almost everyone except you and Mariella. Being the alpha, I am stronger and more dedicated, so they keep things from you. Don't be a sore loser."

Damon grunted and went to join Mariella, who had been talking with Wulfe. I had no idea what they were discussing.

Mariella turned to Damon and said, "Wulfe shared an interesting anecdote about Mimi, and it perfectly describes her. She sees herself as a snowball rolling down a hill."

Damon raised an eyebrow, clearly confused about the snowball analogy.

Mariella continued, "Just like a small snowball that grows in size as it rolls, Mimi becomes more powerful with each person she pushes away. She has literally run over everyone in her path."

Damon pondered for a moment before asking, "I understand, but what can I do?"

Mariella said, "Well, Missy told Wulfe that there's only one person who can be a persistent obstacle in the way of that snowball, but that obstacle must stay put. You've been that obstacle a few times, but the snowball is cunning. It wants to roll and grow, fueled by her alpha power."

Damon remained silent, his gaze shifting towards the smug Mimi and Wulfe, as well as the few Salvatores. He realized just how accurate Missy's assessment was, and now it was crucial for him to make up his mind. If he chose to be that unyielding obstacle, it would require a long-term commitment.

However, he could justify it as being in line with his promise to Mariella, knowing that it would greatly benefit her as well. He yearned to be the alpha male, and he desperately wanted to witness Mimi's expression of disbelief when the snowball hit him with full force, allowing it no more to roll down the hill.

Time would bring about change, and soon Mimi would see him as one of their own, no longer an outsider but a loving husband, raising their powerful cubs together and sharing everything.

Mariella smiled happily, as a certain large white cat had appeared in her dream, urging her to push Damon towards becoming the alpha for Mimi. Now, it was all coming to fruition.

She watched as Damon walked towards Mimi with the grace of a jungle cat. Mimi held her newest coffee cup, which had an edgy phrase like "fucking hard life" printed on it. Damon often had the same taste in coffee as Mimi, so he took the mug from her hand, leaned against the wall, raised an eyebrow, and happily took a sip. Mimi looked irritated, and this was just the beginning of things.