Life has its ups and downs, as well as unpredicted events circumstances. In a world of
anthropomorphic animals that act much like Earth humans, any new half-breed races can exist without
any reproductive restriction, for average cisgender, trans, and intersex individuals alike. And in the case
of this one blonde canine by the name of Austin, he and his wife Crystal still felt blessed to have
children, even through a generally uncommon way of reproduction. This story discusses the origin of
the two's great life as parents.
         On the weekends, the two would hang out and, on occasion, have a small party, with and
without other individuals. Of course, they were just good friends back then, but they grew closer and
closer over time. Their last weekend excapaide as friends was a dating mixer held at a bar amongst
friends, which ended with the both of them being unable to find someone. As a result, they asked each
other out. A male canid with female genitalia and an intersex half-breed between a wolf and a dragon
who both liked art, video games, TV shows, and quiet walks among other things, seemed like an
unlikely pair at first, but they would soon realize how perfect they were for each other.
         Two months later, after a romantic dinner at the local fancy restaurant, they later went back to
Austin's apartment to spend the night together. He was dressed in a sky-blue dress shirt and pink neck
tie with blue jeans, whereas Crystal wore a tight, dark purple dress with a short skirt.
         "Well, it ain't all that much," informed Austin as he opened the door, "but at least it's better than
nothing."
         "Yeah, I just love being here," replied Crystal. "It's so simple and cozy."
         "But it's nothing compared to your house, Crys. Your castle has five big bedrooms and closets
all around."
         "Maybe, but there's not enough room over there to hang more than five ink drawings on the
same wall."
         They both shared a good laugh. Crystal continued, "well, that pasta wasn't that good, but I had
fun tonight."
         "The night's still young, Crys," Austin replied. "Wanna play something to pass the time?"
         "Sure," Crystal answered eagerly. "Ya still have Woofenstein: Youngblood? Haven't played that
in a while."
         "Oh, Crys, you know I wouldn't get rid of a good multiplayer shooter we both enjoy. Now, let's
blast some robots."
         Austin handed Crystal a controller and pressed the home button on his, causing the Xfox One
underneath the Rooku flatscreen television to start. They both signed into their Live profiles and the
game began.
         Five levels later, the two bragged to one another about their new character statistics and
levelups.
         After the friendly exchange, Crystal opened her mouth wide as she let out a soft yawn and
stretched her arms. As the full canine with blonde and brown hair gazed upon the beauty of his blue and
grey hybrid girl, she stood up in front of the couch and stretched a bit. She said, "man, I enjoy playing
games with you. Too bad we can't to it all night, though. What do ya say we go and rest soon?"
         "If you want to, you can sleep in my bed and I'll take the couch," he said in a partial daze.
         "No worries, Austin," replied Crystal. "I'll sleep with you, if YOU want me to."
         "Well, uh, sure. Sure thing. Let's go."
         And so, Austin went into his room to change into a T-shirt and pyjama bottoms and met Crystal
in the living room again. Crystal didn't want to ruin her dress, so Austin offered one of his shirts, as
well as a spare shirt out of a handful that Crystal kept just in case she decided to stay over and forgot to
pack. Too tired to be picky with what to wear to bed, the hybrid declined and let her dress hit the floor
and laid it out on the back of the couch in the living area, all before the two of them going into the
bedroom. All that was left were most of her natural, slender body and a pair of black panties that had
completely covered the bulge of her testicles and sheath. Austin had the urge to pet the fin of hair
between Crystal's shoulder blades, but controlled himself. For the moment, that is. The next thing he
knew, Crystal was growing slightly hard one way or another. Must have been the pheromones in the air.
Or the idea of them spooning, perhaps. Either way, her bulge grew larger, but Austin didn't notice it
directly as he gazed upon his girlfriend's body. In hopes of keeping the sexual tensions low, Crystal
decided to just sit down on the bed with Austin and let the both of them simply take control of the
night.
         "Well," Crystal broke the silence, "this might sound weird, and I don't mean to be forceful, but I
feel as though we should... do... something else tonight. Anything that comes naturally, in the 'after a
date' sense, that is."
         "I know; I'm getting some tensions, too" Austin blurted out, feeling self-concious afterward.
         "Well, me too, but if we're going to go out and then all the way, we should first show each other
how much we love one another. I'd do anything in the world for you, Austin, but I feel as though words
aren't enough to descrbe my feelings."
         "I feel the same exact way, Crys."
         The two leaned closer towards each other and kissed. A little while in, Crystal put her hand on
Austin's chest as he finally rubbed her hair fin. The half-dragon girl glowed all around as she fingered
her canine boyfriend's vagina and he did hers, causing her to become fully erect. Some sensual foreplay
later, Austin found himself on top of Crystal, the both of them panting hard and sweating quite a bit. As
their love transitioned to pheromones suddenly, they got it on without thinking twice and cuddled once
exhausted.
         -
         The next morning, Austin awoke to his 6:30 morning alarm and used the nearby bathroom.
After he finished, he decided to limber up and do his weekly exercise routine of toe-touches and floor
squats. On the sixth toe-touch, just before he bent over all the way, he felt a churning in the bottom of
his stomach. As soon as he knelt by the toilet, he had vomited most of his dinner from last night.
Crystal woke up to the sound and found him on the edge of the toilet, both knees now on the floor. As a
result, she offered a paper towel to help wipe his mouth.
         "You ok?" she asked as she wiped off his muzzle.
         Austin replied with a slight pant, "I don't mean to sound rude, but given the fact I just
upchucked, I feel a little crappy."
         "Well, just take it easy today, drink plenty of cool fluid, and just stick to making soup. If it gets
worse, I'm taking you to the doctor tomorrow. Deal?"
         "Deal," Austin chuckled lightly. "Oh, by the way, I don't know what all happened last night, but
it sure was fun, huh?"
         Crystal stopped dead in her tracks before leaving the bathroom to get dressed again. Wait a
minute, she thought to herself. Did we get it on last night? Did I knock my boyfriend up?
         "Ya alright, Crys?" asked Austin.
         "Uh, change of plans. Let's get dressed and leave for the doctor's office today."
         A hesitant Austin agreed with a short "... ok" upon getting back up and putting on socks and
underwear, followed by blue jeans and a T-shirt. Crystal chose from two similar sets of clothes that
were in the bottom drawer of Austin's bedroom dresser. As they drove to the general hospital main
building, Crystal could not help but feel nervous about the fifty-fifty chance of Austin having a baby.
After the canine had signed in, he and his dragon-dog sweetheart sat down in the lobby. Surprisingly
enough, there was only one other person sitting in the middle of the lobby: a wolf with a slight cough.
When the white-tail doe doctor called out for a Howlstein and mispronounced the second syllable of
the wolf fellow's surname, Austin instincively sat straigh up in his chair and immediately realized that it
was someone else's turn currently. Two minutes of boredom went by until Crystal decided to break the
silence by inquiring "how do you feel right now?"
         Austin flipped a page in the magazine he started reading not long after the wolf was called in
and answered, "kinda hungry. I could use a fruit, perhaps."
         Crystal was hesitant to confess what she was thinking the whole time since the trip to the
hospital, but she started by saying "I don't think it could be a food illness, but maybe, um..."
         Austin looked up at her. "Yeah? What could it be?"
         "Well, remember what we did last night?"
         "Vaguely."
         "I hate to say it, but I, uh, think I might... have gotten you pregnant?"
         As a result of hearing what the hybrid woman just said, Austin just burst out in laughter prior to
considering that possibility. "You sure?" he asked.
         Crystal stood up and told him, "let's go to my place. I just remembered I've got some pregnancy
tests in my downstairs bathroom." She walked over to the cheetah lady receptionist and told her that
their visit was a false alarm, then she and the male canid walked back to the car.
         At Crystal's neighbourhood residence, Austin helped himself to a banana as Crystal searched the
medicine cabinet in the front bathroom for a pregnancy test. Not halfway through the banana, Crystal
announced "found one," to which Austin shot up and nervously walked over to Crystal as she held out a
packet. He took it, stepped into the bathroom, and closed the door.
         Five munutes later, the canine stepped out with a blank expression. He looked over at his
girlfriend, who was seated at the table, and said, "it's positive."
         Crystal asked, "so, you ARE pregnant?"
         Austin sat down and nodded. "And I don't know if I'm ready to commit to being a full-time
parent just yet, Crys. Although, I have thought about having a kid for a little while now. But not so
suddenly, though."
         "Well, in a surprise situation like this, it's always helpful to weigh the pros and cons of all the
options."
         "What?! I don't want to give it up! I want this, but if we break up, how am I gonna stay afloat?
Or if we don't break up, would it bother you to have two more people in your house all of a sudden?"
         "Are you thinking about asking to move in with me, Austin?"
         "Are you inviting me to?"
         "Of course. Truth is, I do get a little lonely when no one else is around, and I also wouldn't mind
having a kid."
         "Oh, Crys. I, uh, don't know what to say. I...- My mind is just spinning right now."
         "Well, mine certainly was last night." The two chuckled and held each other. "Don't worry,"
assured Crystal. "We're in this together, babe. I won't let anything happen to you or our kid."
         "Thanks, Crys," said Austin, shedding tears of joy. "And would you like to marry me?"
         "Yes," cried Crystal in response. "Yes, I will."
         The two shared a kiss and later planned out the moving of Austin's things from his small
apartment into his girl's spacious house.
         -
         The month after, Austin and Crystal finally got married as soon as the now-pregnant canid
moved in with his new hybrid wife. Four more months went by, and Austin had progressed in his
pregnancy quite a bit. One weekend, he awoke at 7:01 in the morning in the master bedroom and made
himself breakfast downstairs with leftover fried fish and mint-flavored frozen yogurt. After that
satisfying and short cravings trip, Austin walked over to his Xfox One in the living room, turned it on,
hooked up a controller, and sat in a reddish-pink beanbag chair. While playing one of his favorite
games, Austin felt his babies move and had to take a moment to enjoy feeling them moving inside him.
As he rubbed his belly around where he saw some smooth little kicks, he closed his eyes and took a
deep breath.
         "Good morning, little guys," he said, looking down at his bump. "We got a busy day ahead of
us, you two. At midday, I go to the hospital for a checkup and see how you're both doing."
        Crystal got up not long after and took a shower. After she was done, she also ate leftovers for
breakfast. She looked in the living room about halfway through her breakfast and walked in there to
greet her pregnant canine husband. "Good morning, you three," said Crystal. She kissed Austin on the
cheek and squatted beside him to say good morning to the babies. She kissed Austin's belly and stroked
it with one finger.
        "Guess they're doing good so far, mama," said Austin, "although I do get another ultrasound
today."
        "Good, good. You just take it easy and I'll go buy some more food and batteries."
        "Take care, Crys. I'll be here another four hours."
        And at 11:40, Austin walked down to the hospital, checked in, and sat in one of the chairs facing
the pharmacy opposite to the front desk. Over his right shoulder was an owl/dragon hybrid with red
feathers and some sandy tan feahters, a tuft of dark blue and light red hair around the bottom of their
neck, and semi-scaley arms and legs in the same shade of tan as their face and horns. The owl-dragon
individual was wearing a dark green turtleneck sweater with sweatpants and suddenly sneezed with a
quiet, high-pitched "'choo," to which Austin responded with "bless you."
        "Austin?" asked the half-owl person in a feminine voice. Austin immediately asked out loud
"Al?"
        The hybrid woman turned her head at least ten degrees past her left shoulder, revealing herself
to be none other than Baroness Alexandra, a close friend to Austin and Crystal. Of course, she wasn't
technically born into nobility, but with her old-fashioned everyday clothing style, her friends and
coworkers came up with the nickname and it just stuck. And she didn't mind, even though she was
dating a German shepherd count and would become his countess if she married him.
        She smiled and said, "I haven't seen you in a while. How's everything?"
        "Pretty good, Baroness," answered Austin as he sat two chairs to her left. "Just here for a
checkup. How about you?"
        "Caught a cold two days ago and I just can't shake it."
        "Well, sorry to hear that, Al. You gonna be okay?"
        "Yeah, I'll survive. By the way, I heard you and Crystal are having a baby. How's that comin'
along?"
        "We'll be getting twins now. I think they have Crys's horns, but they're just little nubs at the
moment."
        "Sweet, man."
        "Oh, yeah! And by the way, how's the spa business going, Al?"
        "It's going smoothly. Next week, we're prepping the staff and complex for the routine oil
workers' appointments. Especially the showers for those who forget to take one before checking in."
        The canine and his owl-dragoness friend shared a laugh as Alexandra coughed into her sweater
sleeve. Austin told his old friend, "it's good to hear everything's good."
        "Same," replied the ill baroness. Right after she coughed into a tissue, the same cheetah
receptionist called out Austin's name. As he got up, he told his friend, "welp, time for the checkup.
Hope you get better soon, Baroness."
        "Thanks, Austin," she replied. "Hope everything's good."
        The white-tail doctor, known as Dr. Boundsen-Horsely, ushered the pregnant canid into a room
and she measured the width of his belly before calculating the height and weight of each baby. After
waiting a good three minutes in another room with an ultrasound machine and new food recipe
magazines, Boundsen-Horsely came in. "So, how are you feeling?" she asked.
        "Not as nauceous as before," Austin answered.
        "Still sticking to that diet?"
        "Yes, ma'am."
        "And are you still experiencing cravings?"
         "Yep. By the way, Julie, how are Ivan and little Jim doin'?"
         "They're doing very good, thank you. Jim's about to start middle school next month."
         "Very good. Can't wait to send MY kids off to school sometime."
         "That's the spirit. Now, just go ahead and lie down and lift your shirt, please."
         "Gladly." And he did so as the doctor readied the lubricant before applying it to his belly. Julie
turned on the machine and the monitor connected to it and slowly ran it across and around the belly.
And it was with that ultrasound feedback that he could confirm that his little boy and girl - who were
identical twins, by the look of it - both shared his bushy tail and Crystal's facial horns. Not much time
later, he was done. The next month would he have to return again, to the date. And as long as
everything stayed the same for a little while longer, everything was going to be just fine.
         -
         Approaching the home stretch of his pregnancy, young Austin was just as excited as ever. Any
day now would he soon give birth and bring his kids into the world. His wife Crystal was on edge,
anxiously awaiting the very moment herself. As strange as it might sound, but for six days, they
practiced on how they would calmly pack some things in a travel briefcase, contact Julie Boundsen-
Horsely, and load up into the car to head to the maternity ward. After all that practice, they got down
the rhythm for their planned trip to the hospital and Crystal was sure to keep a good eye on her car and
make sure it would run.
         Early one morning, Austin woke up to fix himself an early breakfast. Just before he bit into his
food while sitting by the kitchen counter, he felt a strange sensation between his legs; his water had
broken, causing placenta to run down his left leg and onto the floor. Austin then experienced a
contraction immediately after, and dropped the food back onto his plate as he moaned in pain.
         He frantically shouted, "CRYS!" As a result, his hybrid wife shot straight up out of bed and put
her shoes on.
         "I'm coming, sweetie!" she answered, almost running into the dresser by the bedroom door.
"Where you at?!"
         "By the front door," Austin replied slightly more calmly. "It's time, babe. This is it."
         "I'll check the car," Crystal proclaimed as she rushed to the front seat. She attempted to crank
the transmission, but it inexplicably stopped turning over. She grabbed her phone and proceeded to call
Julie as he helped her husband into the master bedroom. She dialed the hospital reception number. A
panther receptionist picked up the receiver and and said, "hospital front desk."
         "Uh, hi, Hank," Crystal began, mainly relaxed. "We're having kids right now, so is Doctor
Boundsen-Horsely available?"
         "She's currently occupied with another childbirth at the moment. Sorry, Crystal."
         "That's OK, I'll contact Roxy."
         Crystal hung up on Hank at the hospital and called the phone of Roxanne, their intersex possum
gynecologist. The possum girl was just two months pregnant, along with her husband, Chris. Luckily,
she didn't have as busy a work day as Julie did that day, so she was free to drive over and help deliver
the twins. Her phone in her left trouser pocket bleeped and vibrated, reminding her to answer. She
tapped the green button on her smartphone and greeted the caller with a "hiya, Crys! How's the fam?"
         Crystal was growing slightly more frantic as she scrambled arouund the house looking for
towels and drawing cool water into a pot with a washcloth inside. She stuttered, "come quick! Austin's
in labor, and we can't drive to the hospital, and Julie's busy!"
         "Whoa, slow down, Crys," Roxanne intervened. "I'll be there in no time."
         "Oh, thank goodness. We'll be in the master bedroom, and the front door's unlocked for you."
         "Alrighty. See you soon."
         She grabbed her emergency midwife equipment sachel from a drawer in her desk. Lucky I was
a nurse before moving onto gynecology, she thought to herself as she left her office and walked straight
to her car. She drove to Crystal's place and parked behind the wolf-dragon's dysfunctional car and
jogged up the stairs and into the master bedroom, where Austin was on the bed, squatting on his knees
and breathing rapidly with Crystal holding him up under his left arm. There were two towels
underneath him as he prepared to give birth with the help of gravity, since the squatting position can
help for many home births.
        Roxanne assured Austin, "ok, just relax and it'll all be over before you know it."
        As Austin gripped his hybrid wife's left hand with his free right hand, Roxanne instructed him to
breathe by saying, "ok, breath in, ..."
        Austin breathed in.
        "And out," Roxanne continued.
        He exhaled.
        "Now, breathe in and hold it."
        Austin held his breath after deeply inhaling again, slightly questioning the practice in his head.
        "Ok, and push!"
        The canine in labor pushed and yelled out in pain. Pain like he never experienced before. The
head of the first twin came out, and he repeated the breathing and pushing cycle twice, and the first
twin came right out, with the second one following shortly after. Austin heard as both the hybrid
newborns cried and asked Crystal, "is that both of 'em?"
        "Yes, baby," she answered as she helped him recline on the pillows against the wall behind him.
"Great job."
        The possum gynecologist cut the umbilical cords and cleaned off the newborn twin children
upon bundling them in warm baby blankets. "Here's the boy, Austin," she said as she handed him his
and Crystal's son. "And here's the girl."
        Once each parent held a baby, they looked upon their beautiful faces with great happiness. The
fur on their faces were sand tan like Austin's face, and they shared Crystal's nose, ears, and facial horns.
Their tails were fluffy like their father's, but the hair on their tails and their backs were a shade similar
to their mother's. The pads on their palms and feet were black like Crystal's, but with their hands and
forearms, and their feet and knees, sharing the orange-brown shade of hair found on Austin's body.
They were two perfect little angels who changed the lives of their parents for the better.
        "So," Roxanne uttered quietly to break the silence, "have you two thought of any names?"
        "Well, Roxy, not yet," Austin whispered.
        "How about 'Christopher' for the boy?" asked Crystal.
        "Yeah, and 'Alison' for the girl."
        Roxanne smiled, knowing that she had contributed greatly to bringing the two children of her
friends into the world. She then wrote down those names in a notepad to print onto a birth certificate
later.
        "I'm always glad to help friends in need," she told them. "While Chris and I await the arrival of
our kids, we'll help you two out with your little miracles any way we can."
        "Thanks, Roxy," Crystal said. "I love you, Austin."
        "I love you, too, Crys," replied Austin. "And we love you, Alison and Christopher."
        The hybrid and her husband both kissed their children on the forehead. Those beautiful twins
would bring Austin and Crystal years of pride and love, and soon turn their lonely house into a home....