Chapter Text
It was a cold winter day.
The training yard outside of the tree house was covered in snow and Mane didn't see a reason to clean it off considering there was likely a sheet of ice under it all. Plus the snow was still steadily falling, meaning whatever progress was made would be covered within minutes.
Flame was mourning the loss of his entertainment. He loved training and since Mane refused to let the 18 year old tiger out in the cold snowstorm, he was going to have to listen to the younger mans whining.
"Can't we just spar in here?" Flame complained, his tail swing behind him in irritation.
Mane sighed, "No, Flame. You are not destroying my living room."
Flame continued to whine, slinging his body over the back of the couch and flopping down onto his older brother. Mane laughed a little, even as an adult Flame still acted the same way he did as a kid. The lion's gaze swung around to the stairs, his instincts whining about Wemmbu not being down there with them.
Wemmbu was a little out of it at breakfast. He didn't seem to really be aware of where he was or what he was doing. After the boy had just stared at his full plate for a whole 10 minutes, Mane guided his youngest brother back upstairs and tucked the boy into the nest in the lions own room.
He hoped the boy didn't catch a cold, they didn't have a lot of cold medicine in the house and Mane didn't want to drug Wemmbu with health potions.
Flame's full body weight falling onto his legs brought Mane's thoughts back to the present, "Maaaaaaane! I'm bored!"
Mane shoved the tiger off of him and snickered as he hit the carpeted floor with an exaggerated groan, "Why can't you just take a day to rest?"
"Rest?!" Flame huffed in offense, "Why would I rest when I could train my skills?!"
Mane rolled his eyes, "You are such a dic-!"
Mane was cut off by another familiar warmth wrapping itself around his shoulders from over the back of the couch, a soft purring in his ear. His fluffy lion ear twitched as a soft smile fell over his face and he turned his head to look at Wemmbu.
Their youngest brother was flushed and his eyes were hazy. His hair was loose and messy from sleep and he felt warm to the touch.
Mane frowned in concern and pulled Wemmbu over and into his lap, placing the back of his hand on the boys forehead. He winced at the heat coming from his brother and brushed his sweaty hair back, pulling Wemmbu into a hug with a comforting purr.
"Is he alright?" Flame asked, tilting his head and sitting next to them on the couch.
"A fever," Mane muttered, his hand reaching up to rub against Wemmbu's back, "He'll need to take some medicine and probably a cold compress-"
Wemmbu's yelp of pain cut him off, Mane's hand freezing where it brushed against his back. Flame's eyes widened as he leaned forward, concern covering his face in a way it usually never did. Wemmbu whined in pain and buried his face into Mane's shoulder before starting to cry.
"What's wrong, Lilac?" Mane tried to keep his voice calm, not wanting either brother to start to get upset.
"Hurts." Wemmbu whispered around tears.
"What hurts?" Flame purred soothingly, rubbing his cheek against his younger brothers.
Wemmbu shook his head, "Call Egg."
"Egg?" Mane raised an eyebrow in confusion, "Why Egg?"
Wemmbu whined, "Back hurts. Something's trying to come out. Wings."
Mane and Flame both paled, "You think you're growing wings?!"
Wemmbu nodded and began to sob, the pain becoming unbearable, "Hurts!"
Flame picked up his communicator and began messaging who Mane hoped was Wemmbu's angel friend while Mane busied himself with comforting his crying brother. He hushed and purred, hoping to calm the boy down a little. The comfort must have helped as Wemmbu stopped sobbing and just sniffled into his shoulder.
At least Mane was well used to the snot a child could bring.
Flame passed his communicator to Mane before running off upstairs. Mane scrolled through the conversation.
Flame: Yo Wemm thinks hes growingg wings
Flame: hellp
Egg: Oh damn, I won't be able to get there through the snow.
Egg: Get a lot of towels, there's going to be so much blood.
Egg: See if you've got any weakness potions, it'll help with numbing the pain.
Egg: He's going to scream, try to stay calm otherwise you could set him off with your panicking.
Egg: Have some hot water nearby for cleaning after the wings finally come out, it could be a few hours before they fully come out.
Egg: They will look like fleshy blobs, don't worry about it. The feathers or scales will grow in during the next few days.
Egg: He'll likely pass out after they are fully out of his back, after they're cleaned you can take him up to Mane's nest and stay with him there, he'll be very clingy.
Egg: He'll also be hungry, so stock up for that.
Egg: Otherwise you guys should be good to just do whatever, I'll come by when the snow's let up and help with anything else.
Mane sighed at the sight of Flame leaving the boy on read and began to type out a response.
Flame: Hey it's Mane.
Flame: Do you think the cold is going to affect this?
Egg: Yeah, probably.
Egg: If you guys are downstairs, move him by the fireplace. The cold could slow down the process and just put him in more pain.
Flame: Awesome, thanks for the help, Egg.
Egg: No problem!
Mane put the device down on the coffee table and gathered Wemmbu into his arms, standing up to move by the fireplace. He kept his instincts in check as they screamed to put him in the nest right then and there. He had to stop himself from changing course to the stairs multiple times.
Flame ran down with what looked like every towel they owned, dumping them on a pile next to where Mane and Wemmbu were settled by the fire. He was off again, running to the kitchen to get some potions and hot water.
Wemmbu suddenly shook violently in his arms, screaming in pain and pushing himself out on Mane's hold. Mane gasped as his brother thumped onto the floor, reaching to pull him back. Mane positioned Wemmbu's head into his lap, laying the boy of his stomach and pulling his shirt off.
He's going to have to mend all of Wemmbu's clothes to fit wings later.
Wemmbu screamed again, his claws digging into the wooden floor. Flame ran in and place a bucket of water by the fireplace before passing a weakness potion to Mane. The oldest brother brushed his hand gently along Wemmbu's face, drawing the boys attention to him.
Wemmbu whimpered but turned his watery gaze up to where Mane was smiling softly.
"Hey, Lilac," Mane cooed sweetly, trying really hard to keep himself calm, "You need to drink this, it'll help with the pain."
Mane wasn't sure how much Wemmbu really understood, but at least he seemed to get the hint when Mane pressed the bottle gently against his lips. He slowly drunk half the bottle before Mane pulled it away.
Wemmbu's face scrunched up again and Mane couldn't tell if it was the pain or the taste of the potion. He brushed a hand through the boys head, Flames own clawed hand grabbing one of Wemmbu's.
It was going to be a long day.
~
Mane was trying his hardest to stay calm.
Over the last few hours, Wemmbu had screamed himself hoarse. The pain peaking around hour two. The sheer amount of blood was ridiculous and the lion worried about blood loss.
Flame had to remove himself from the room multiple times, his ears pressed tightly against his head and his tail curled around his leg in a way Mane hadn't seen in years. It made the lion want to snatch both of his babies and shove them into the nest.
But he had to be patient.
Wemmbu was no longer screaming and Mane would have been relieved if it wasn't for the fact that he had only stopped screaming because his voice had given out. But it seemed like they were on the last stretch, as the fleshy blobs on his brothers back had stopped getting bigger.
It seemed he was right, as Wemmbu finally collapsed, passing out. Flame used a rag and the bucket of water - kept hot by the fire next to them - to clean up their brothers back. Mane moved the bloodied towel out of the way, using fresh ones to help Flame clean their brother.
After about half an hour of cleaning, the brothers were ready to haul themselves into the nest. Mane pulled Wemmbu up carefully, placing him in Flame's arms.
Flame stuttered, "I-I need to clean up!"
Mane smiled tiredly, "I'll do it, go rest in the nest with Lilac."
Mane purred encouragingly, Flame finally moving up the stairs and out of sight. Once Mane was sure Flame was in the den, he flung himself into the kitchen and leaned over the sink to hurl his guts out, the image of his babies bloodied back and phantom sounds of screams echoing in his mind.
This was probably the worst experience Mane had ever had. He was used to seeing blood and guts, often raiding outposts and slaughtering anyone in his way, it had never bothered him before. But this was different. This was his baby. And Mane just couldn't hold his stomach anymore.
But he had to stay strong for his brothers.
That's why he sent Flame off up to the den. Mane needed time alone to calm himself down. Tears ran down his face as he stifled his sobs, not wanting to draw Flame's attention to him. He breathed deeply, counting up and down from ten just to detract himself, finally calming himself down enough to actually clean up the mess.
Some of the towels would need to be burned, there was nothing Mane could do to save them. The floor - although clean and dry - would need to be replaced at a later date, the bloodied stains of the floorboards to stubborn to fully come out. The bucket of red water was tipped down the sink, the bucket itself being put with the pile of towels to be thrown away.
Mane washed his hands and face, taking deep and calming breathes before turning to the stairs and letting his instincts lead him to the den. Opening the door, Mane let out a sigh of pure relief at the sight of both of his cubs cuddled together in his nest. They were fast asleep, both purring (although Wemmbu's purrs were a little weak, his throat was probably still sore) happily together.
Mane pulled out some extra blankets and pilled them on top of his boys before finally climbing in with them, carefully maneuvering around Wemmbu and his sensitive new wings. After laying down and letting his body relax, Mane purred along with his brothers, falling into a deep sleep after such a long day.
~
Wemmbu ended up sleeping through the snowstorm.
Egg had entered the den to the sight of Wemmbu yawning around a spoonful of soup, his head not even bothering to leave Mane's shoulder. Flame was typing away on his communicator, probably giving Lomedy an update.
"How are they feeling?" Egg asked from the doorway, waiting for Mane to wave him over.
Egg was not about to be jumped by an overprotective lion.
"Bitches…" Wemmbu muttered as he tried to stay awake long enough to fill his empty stomach.
"He means that they're still sore." Mane translated, urging another spoonful into the boys mouth.
Egg nodded in sympathy, "Yeah, it do be like that with new wings."
Egg began to look over the fleshy limbs, stretching them out and checking the progress of the growing feathers. He relayed his findings to the brothers.
"They're growing in great, especially for his size. I had worried that they wouldn't grown in properly because he was so small."
"Bitch…" Wemmbu's weak voice was muffled around his soup.
Egg snickered, "I'll show you guys some of the exercises you'll need to do to make sure the wings build up enough strength and muscle. I've also got a book on preening and another on wing care at all stages of growth for you to look over for later."
Mane sighed in relief, "Thank you, Egg. Truly, you're a life saver."
Egg grinned, "Anything to help a friend. This was actually the best case scenario for all of this to happen."
"What do you mean?" Flame's gaze shifted to the angel.
"It's best that this happened at home, with people he trust nearby for the whole process," Egg explained, "it takes away a lot of extra stress that being in an unknown environment can bring."
Mane sighed as he continued to shovel soup into his sleepy brother, "I'm just glad that this is over."
"You do know he's going to be so much more clingy for the next few months, right?" Egg teased.
Flame chuckled, "Like that's a problem for Mane. He's probably going to enjoy every second of it."
Mane purred, "Is it so bad to want to be near my baby?"
Wemmbu purred up at Mane, "Tired…"
Mane rubbed his head as the boy fell asleep, finally finished his bowl of soup.
Recovering was a long road ahead, however it was made easier with all the people Wemmbu cared about surrounding him.
He felt warm and comfortable, ignoring the ache on his back.
This was perfect.