[Lovebite]

((Hell yeah. Let's do it. ))

The human was grinning as his selkie held him close and he was so relieved to have him near again, he hadn't realized before then but he loved him so much that it hurt to imagine him away from his side. He held him tightly with his good arm best he could and sniffing as he was brought up into the others arms finally and carried out of the cave towards the ocean. Silent as he just listened to Max's voice and the sound of his heart beat against his face, shutting his eyes and making sure not to breathe through his nose. They shared their breaths together and he relaxed at the intimacy, they would be safe soon enough, he held on tight to the other. As they swam and swam until he was being lifted up out of the water and into the boat, he collapsed on the floor of the sail boat and panted. He lifted his head and pushed himself up with the help of the railing, looking to Max and reaching for him to help as best he could to bring the large man up onto the boat with him. It wasn't that large of a boat but it did have a place for them to put their supplies and rest their heads so it was good enough.

He struggled to stand up, his clothes were soaked and he felt heavier than usual as he leaned against the sail and kept himself from falling,"Do you know how to sail?" He asked Max and pushed his wet hair from his eyes, moving to the ancor and starting to crank to lift it back up out of the water.

[bhdire8]

Max was rather happy he was reunited with his mate, and the moment they shared their first breath was remarkable. Max had never done this before, but surely he could enjoy some of these intimate moments with Irwin, perhaps when they were less threatened by humans and could really enjoy their time together. with their pups.

He joined Irwin on the deck and shook himself like a dog to dry himself. He gave Irwin a hand when he wobbled around the boat, shaking his head sheepishly. "No i don't know how to operate this thing... i, i just swim underneath it and pushed it all the way here jut now. To let the anchor down was all i knew.. i remember seeing that myself. And all sea creatures were aware of that heavy thing that would drop through water - and we better not stay close to it." he said scratching his head.

"let me do this... you go get changed. the clean clothes are in the bag. you will have to teach me how to control the boat. i am going to be the first seklie captain!' the selkie beamed.

[Lovebite]

Irwin looked to Max with a comfortable smile,"It's okay. I'll teach you." He said and he chuckled lightly, nodding at him,"Alright, set up the sail, pull this rope right here and it should come open, don't be rough with it." He pushed his hair out of his face again and leaned up to kiss his lover softly, wrapping his arms around him for a few moments. Relaxing against his warmth, before he pulled away and waddled his way around to the steps down to the common area. He held his belly and rubbed gently with his thumb, he hummed lightly and moved to grab a towel to dry himself off then dig into the bag to see what Max put in. Keeping himself from crying as he thought about all the new things they would gather to fill their home, and children to distract them from the way humans had treated them.

He got dressed in a sweater and some sweatpants, warm for the cool sea, he shivered a bit and he supported his belly. Smiling softly instead of crying, he would find the happiness in things instead of being sad, their children didn't deserve sadness. "You'll be the happiest children, me and your father will give you the best lives we can." He spoke softly and tugged down his shirt again as he walked back up to the deck.

[bhdire8]

Max nodded, hearing carefully what Irwin had said while pointing at the diferent devices on the deck. He continued rolling the anchor up until he heard the clink that said it was back in its place, then smiled cheekily at the hug initiated by the little human. He squeezed him tight and pressed a kiss on his cheeks before letting him go. "i will be good with the sail... put it in the way of the iwnd right? i hmm, i should know." the selkie frowned looking, not entirely sure how he would handle it , but he headed towards it anyway. he will figure something out.

He watched his mate descending the stairs and went to the sail. He pulled and was able to get the sail up. he was looking at the unfurled sail. "So we are going to let the wind take us forward? we will have to head to the northwest.. " he heard footsteps and came to the stairs to help his mate with the last few steps, giving him a hand. "he smiled at the choice of garment - the selkie had an inexplicalbe interest with sweaters that reminded him of his own fur when he was in his seal form. He rubbed Irwin's arms a few times and hugged him close.

[Lovebite]

Irvin thanked Max and he smiled at him as he stepped back onto the deck, he looked up at the sail as it bellowed out with the wind and they went. The boat caught speed and he looked up to his lover while he was hugged,"So you're going to have to keep the wind in the sail at all times when you can. You know the direction we're going?" He asked him, rubbing his side with his thumb, the big man was so warm all the time. He almost didn't want to do anything but lay there in his arms but they had to make good timing if they wanted to get there before the babies came. "I can steer for now until you get the hang of it." He pulled away finally and moved towards the ships wheel, grasping the worn wood as he waited for directions.

[bhdire8]

The selkie nodded, reluctantly letting go of his soft and fluffy mate. "we are heading towards Orion. The stars will lead the direction, and. May the North Sea bless us with clear weather.... " he muttered looking at the clear sky and smiled. He followed irwin like a huge puppy, entering into the partially shielded corner where the wheel was, and hugged Irwin from behind. "I think it's that way." he said, pointing his hand slightly towards their left side. "if we really couldn't use the sail... I guessi could call for my friends. I do have a few acquiantances around, but i'm not sure if the whales had all gone on to thier journeys or not..." he said cupping Irwin's belly from behind, giving it a genlte lift to relieve the pressure on Irwin's back. He had gotten big enough that Max knew he couldn't stay on his feet for tooo long, so he was eager to get the grasp of sailing as soon as possible.

[Lovebite]

"Orion." He nodded, that would help, he looked up to the Selkie and smiled softly at him,"Are you excited to get back home?" He asked him, keeping a good grip on the wheel of the boat while steering them towards the north, it was the end of summer but hopefully it was warm enough for the ice to not hender them. Irwin leaned back into the arms that held him and smiled as he shook his head,"No, its alright, if we're at a standstill we can use the time to our advantage." He glanced back at him, pressing against him slightly and sighing,"Tell me about yourself, your home and family." He looked up at him briefly, though he gasped as his belly was lifted, he closed his eyes at the relief he brought to his back. His big hands holding the weight of their pups and he almost turned to jelly in his hands,"God that feels so damn good, Max. I can breathe again." He laughed and sighed,"You're supposed to be learning, not distracting your teacher." He smiled at him, looking forward at the open water.

[bhdire8]

"yes, it had really been some time..." MAx looked forward with a dreamy look on him. "It is the most beautiful place ever possible. Cold sometimes, and we are a small group, but once in awhile we'd gather for important ceremonies. Even our cousins from afar would join in. I live on my own, but my parents and siblings are all close by. I, hmm, I'm the youngest of all. There's 24 of us there, but I'm the only singlet out of them all." the selkie started introducing his family.

"one of my job is also to keep the teacher happy and relaxed." He smiled cheekily at Irwin, happy to have the human melting into his arms when he did him this small favor. He caressed the big belly, his steady large hands effective in alleviating the weight. "now you can start your lecture, teacher." he pressed a loud kiss on Irwin's cheek and snuggled even closer. "what if i see some obstacles in front, how do i control it?" he bedn forward so he was now more or less at the same eyelevel as Irwin.

[Lovebite]

Irvin was impressed as Max told him about the island where they were heading, the place that would be their home for the rest of their lives and then their childrens. He smiled as he explained the sights there and the weather, he loved the cold, he was born in it, so he would feel right at home there. The human grinned,"I can't wait to meet them." He said and he glanced up at Max,"Do you think your place will be big enough for all of us?" He asked curiously,"I'm sure your family will be so happy to know that you've found a mate."

He relaxed as his back ached much lighter and he leaned into the kiss and his embrace, as they relaxed together on the open sea he told him about how to control the boat. He told him all he knew, just as his father had taught him when he was younger and they made their way slowly towards the island.

((Skip? Maybe to his first contraction and Max maybe having to explain that selkie births aren't as easy as human ones?))

[bhdire8]

(yea i guess. HAHA Devying logic, Let's make them have a bit of cuddling time underneath in the cabin - is it how you call the 'indoor' part of the ship LOL - for the night. maybe th efirst one will hit once Max brought up the topic)

"oh yea, everyone' splace's built to be big. Afterall, we all plan to have plenty of children. Our family's unexpectedly small. I knew after that my birth wasn't that smooth, and that had led to my mom eventually unable to get pregnant anymore." Max shrugged. "it was anyway highly unusual for it to be a singlet, so i guess it might have got something to do with how bossy i had been, pulling nurtient from all my potential siblings so in the end only i lived." there was a hint of sadness and self-despise in that, which was very unusual for Max, but it passed jusst as quickly as it appeared, and max returned to his lively self.

Max wasn't the most brilliant student on earth, but he grasped the principles of controlling the vessel soon enough. they were set for the right direction, and irwin was starting to shift on his feet, stretching himself. " i think this should be good for awhile... let's head down. You will need some sleep. You will need a lot of energy for the birth..." he said stroking Irwin's belly. neither of them noted the drop of his bump with the many events of the day. "selkies are... our babies tend to be rather stubborn. and need a lot of time to prepare before they come out. It's not as easy as human births... " he said, escorting Irwin down the stairs. "you said last time human women give birht within a day right? it's easy for them..." he continued to comment on it, not noticing the horrified look on Irwin.

[Lovebite]

((Sure we can do that instead. Get the show on the road lol. Yeah it's called the cabin I'm pretty sure. Poor Irvin will be in for the surprise of his life. ))

"Oh." He didn't know what to say for a moment as he looked up at Max and placed a hand on top of his gently, squeezing but the other man didn't dwell on it. Of course he didn't, he was Max, the human was usually the one worrying so much about things. Not him. Irvin smiled softly up at him and squeezed his hand again, not wanting him to feel sad about anything,"Well we're lucky, you'll have a bunch of pups to play with and your parents will have plenty of grandchildren." He said to him, he was happy to have someone to spend his life with and to have bunches of babies with.

The human was feeling tired after about an hour and Max was right, he should be resting, the selkie could ask him if he had any troubles guiding the boat later. His back was hurting he he knew it was time to lay down,"Yeah. We're on the right course, we should both try and get some rest in." He rose a brow and looked up to Max with a smile,"I think I'm okay for now. The pups are pretty snug in there." He pet his belly, sighing when Max let go of his stomach and he was left holding his own weight again. While waddling down the stairs to the cabin, his brows came together in confusion,"Stubborn?" He almost laughed, though noticed that Max was serious as he looked back at him, moving towards the bed. It would be small for the two of them but it would do for their travels. "So the pregnancy will be longer? I don't think I understand, Max." He sank down onto the bed and laid back slowly, holding his middle, looking up at him in almost disbelief.

[bhdire8]

(HAHA yea... oh well some trivial facts such as someone to control the boat isn't important for our rp i guess xD)

Once Max wasn't holding Irvin's belly, the waddle became much more pronounced and the human's back arched forward to an uncomfortable angle. Max kept a watchful eye on the human as they got down the steep and narrow stairs, settling into the cabin that was tiny. There was barely any space left once both of them got in, one of them being hugely pregnant and the selkie having such a large build. Max removd his shirt once they got in indoor, getting ready to snuggle to sleep with his mate. "they, err, hmm, not exactly the pregnancy. It's the labor process. Our pups would need to work their way slowly down. I don't know what's the physcial rationale behind, but it takes several days of labor for them to be ready. The smaller the mother was, the longer it take.... usually." he said sheepishly, eyeing the much shorter form of Irwin. He would place the labor at a full week, but he'd rather keep it ambiguous so Irwin wouldn't freak out - hopefully? "my mother mentioned something about the inner opening need to dilate? something like that. And it takes rather long, with the pain quite intense. My father had some permanent scars on him when my mom would thrash out being annoyed with the pain."

He sat down beside Irwin, fully prepared to get on bed, unaware of the bomb he had just dropped. He looked at Irvin who looked rather stupefied, then hugged him from behind in his favourite position where he got to cradle his belly.

"you alright Irwin?" he said, leaning back so Irwin's reclining on him, allowing more room for his hands to sneak through under the massive bump. 

[Lovebite]

Irvin looked at Max as he took his shirt off and he looked terrified as he laid back slowly and held his belly, noticing the look he gave him and knowing that he was short. Very short in fact, his head came up to Max's chest and barely made it to his chin when he stood on his tiptoes. He paled and looked down to his middle and thought about just how big their pups would be as well as putting on the fact that he was going to have to suffer through who knew how many contractions. "You're lucky I don't lash out now, with you finally telling me this." He pressed his hand into his face and shook his head,"Christ, Max..." He sighed and sank into his partner as he came up to cuddle him, knowing that it wasn't his fault, maybe he should have asked more questions when it first happened. Even then, he would have been stuck with the dread of labor that would last more than a day or even two. With the question, he hadn't realized how silent he had went, he felt nauseous,"This might be our first and last batch of kids, Max. I don't think I could go through this again, willingly."

[bhdire8]

"i... i dunno. it sort of skipped my mind i guess....?" Max scratched on his chin, tilting his head sideways looking rather innocent. "i mean.. my mom tried to hammer that into me, but i never really took that in until, well, now." he confessed pressing closer to his mate who seemed to be still shocked by the revellation. "you are going to be fine... promise. It's going to take long by human standard, but there's rarely real danger to the mother or the babies..." he opened his arms welcoming Irvin's body. As always, Max was very protective and curious of Irvin's bump, already his hand was cupping his bump and stroking it gently.

"this is gonna be our last....?" Max repeated quietly. "that's.... that's fine. I don't m-mind..." he said, but his face fell. "yea, it's fine." he shook his head and pressed himself closer to Irvin. "I would never force you into anything Irvin, you are a free spirit just like me, and we are in this together. So whatever we do, we do it together." he declared solemnly, not wanting Irvin to get the wrong idea. "And there are things that can distract you from the pain. My mother did teach us a few tricks..." he said, though he wasn't entirely sure himself. His siblings probably had a much better idea. His mother hadn't gone thruogh another gestation since his birth, so he had no chance of witnessing how this could be done. As far as he knew, the 'distractions' are usually just rubs on the back and cuddling. He figured they coudl explore possibilites once they started on labor - and Max was fairly confident they would arrive his home before labor really started.

[Lovebite]

Irwin snorted,"Skipped your mind?" He shook his head, looking up at Max and feeling almost sick as he took in a breath,"She should have hammered it in deeper." The human sighed and stroked his belly slowly,"Not weeks before your mate is due." He complained weakly, his heart wasn't really into it, he was tired and Max was all too warm and kind for him to be mad at him. "I'm not worried...not about us, but just the fact that I'm this pregnant and you just now told me about one of the most important facts I should have known by now."

He was getting himself worked up as he thought about it, sitting up carefully again and shifting himself so he turned into the selkie, closing his eyes. Letting himself relaxed to his careful stroking and nuzzling his neck,"I mean, for now. I really just have to wait for the turn out." The human murmured, looking up to him and seeing the light leave from his eyes, he reached to stroke his cheek before nuzzling him again. "But that isn't set in stone. Maybe the pain will be worth popping out as many little ones as we can." He leaned up to kiss his lips, humming,"I think I may have an idea or two too." He smiled at him gently, but shifted once again as he grimaced, there was an pressure at his back but he couldn't relieve it.

Irvin sighed and laid back against him again, his hands meeting Max's on his belly, stroking slowly and groaning lightly in discomfort. Though he settled again for a few moments,"I'll be mad in the morning. For now, I'm sleepy." He murmured, unknowing that soon enough he would be feeling that labor he was now suddenly dreading faster than he thought.

[bhdire8]

Max was getting antsy, afraid he might have annoyed Irvin, but then the human pressed himself closer to him and the selkie let out the breath he had been holding, cuddling close to Irvin immeidatey. He smiled at the little space for negotation left out by the human on future babies, and content himself with this vagueness for the future. "it'd be good.." he happily responded to the kiss his mate was giving him, "you will decide. If you think the pain's worth it.... then , welcome to the big family, Irvin." he chirped , all too happpy of this possibility of their future.

he noted the little whine of Irvin, then thought it could have been just the babies squirming again. he rubbed his back a little and soon enough, that tensing up of Irvin died down. he was able "then sleep Irvin. I'll be here with you." The selkie nodded, holding Irvin close to him in a half sitting position. that was what htey had developed over the time when Irvin's belly got too big for him to feel comfortable. Max would hold him until he fell asleep, then he would lower them both to the bed. Of course soemtiems this didn't work, the selkie would often nodded to sleep himself in the process, but it still worked most of the times.

Max watched Irvin closely, a goofy smile appearing on his face even when Irvin was clearly asleep. He felt teh light swaying of the boat and soon enough, eh was relaxing and tilting down towards the bed, ready for the darkeness to consume him....

[Lovebite]

He sank against the others chest as they reclined against the pillows and be held his belly along with Max, sighing as he closed his eyes and laid his head against his shoulder. Slipping into sleep soon enough after he got comfortable, he didn't get much rest though as the pups didn't seem to let him sleep. He was shifting every so often and his breathing was uneven at times, restless and uncomfortable, his back was screaming at him and his belly felt too heavy. It was the worse he's felt in weeks, he groaned in his half sleep as he turned into Max again and held his belly with one hand as the other grasped onto Max's arm. He just wanted to sleep but it seemed he wouldn't be doing that, it was only a few hours before Irvin was waking up again and struggled to sit up. Needing to walk or something, laying down wasn't helping him in the slightest.

[bhdire8]

The squirming on his chest was at first ignored by the larger man. then the familiar weight on his chest was attempting to move away, adn that had startled Max awake. The selkie snapped open his eyes to see Irvin in some sort of distress, struggling to move away from his hold. "Irvin....? where are you going? toilet break?" Max's voice was rusty with sleep, but he knew the drill and held the side of Irvin's waist to help him sit up. "i'll take you towards.... hmm?" he hummed, feeling some tightening on the back of Irvin.

[Lovebite]

Irvin glanced back to Max, he was struggling to escape the others grasped on him to no avail as he couldn't get enough leverage to stand up on his own. He shook his head and stroked the side of his tight belly,"No, I don't have to pee." He complained and his head fell back, panting softly, his hips shifted and he groaned as he stood up, he almost wished it was because he had to relieve himself. No, it was something else, he grimaced and laid his head against the nearest wall as he leaned against it, now on his feet again and it felt better than laying down. He rested his head on his arm and moaned softly as his stomach tightened and tightened slowly, his hips docking slowly from side to side,"Somethings wrong." He complained, but in the back of his mind he knew, he remembered what Max told him and knew that it was natural. It was starting. "Oh no..." He whimpered, closing his eyes.

[bhdire8]

Max let go of Irvin once he had gottne to his feet. He yawned and saw Irvin huddling over to the wall and swayed his hips in a way he never saw the human did, and knew the tightening he had felt wasn't something he had imagined himself.

"The pups are ready." he announced quietly, still sat on the bed. he looked at the sweater covered body of Irvin and knew the true storm was brewing and about to hit, with this just being the prelude. He stood up and pressed his large hands on either side of Irvin's hips, rubbing the sore spots. "Your body's preparing..... i, i thought we would have arrived our home before this, looks like we don't..." he said, there was a tremble in his voice. He had done a bit of work on this, but it couldn't match with the support he could get from not only his mother, but also his numerous siblings that had a lot more experience on this than him, a bachelor selkie before he met Irvin.