Dom watched as his husband, Jerry, paced their front porch in dog form. The pups were growing and Jerry chose to stay in his animal form that he'd be ready when his pups were. Dom looked on amused as he sat on the glider swing with a Corona in hand. Jerry glanced at his lover and let out a quiet bark that Dom learned to interpret as the 'Fuck off' bark. Dom swallowed his beer and put it in the trash can they kept by the swing.

Maya, Jerry's only female dog and secondary leader to the dogs, came over and nudged Jerry's neck with her nose. Jerry let out a bark and Maya sat in front of him and waited out her master's stubbornness, Jerry finally gave in and went to lay with the rest of the pack. The softer carpet area was vacated so Jerry could stretch out his Malamut form and the other dogs curled up around him on alert if someone, or something decided to try and mess with him.

Even Dom knew contact with his husband would be low during this time - Jerry was bonding with the babies and with his own pack even more so. Dom could change into his own
Malamut form at any given time and be allowed to be right next to Jerry's side but Dom also knew the importance of a mama dog reuniting with her pack and babies or in Jerry's case, a male mother. It happened in the shifting community but it was still rare enough that mates protected each other.

Three nights later, Jerry started to whimper into Dom's chest as Dom had changed to his dog form to sleep. Dom was awake and nuzzling Jerry's jaw waking him up and Jerry kept whimpering. Dom helped Jerry off the bed and over to a special room so Jerry could give birth to the babies. Jerry had told Dom that he was expecting three or four pups but couldn't tell him anything else - they'd find out when he gave birth.

Jerry laid on the pallet he made in his human form and let nature take over. It took him thirty minutes to have all three pups and by the time he had them cleaned and feeding he was exhausted. Dom paced the room hearing Jerry's whimpers and yips and not being able to do much. When it looked like Jerry was done, Dom went over and ran his nose through the scruff on his neck and licked at his face and head to show he was there for them. Jerry looked up at Dom and licked at Dom's face and motioned for Dom to lay next to him and their babies.

Dom curled around Jerry and rested his head on his side as he watched his kids feeding for the first time. Dom let a happy noise escape his throat and Jerry let out a quiet laughing bark.

Six months later, Jerry and Dom were getting the hang of dealing with three rambunctious pups/babies when Dom mentioned that his team from LA wanted to see the family. Jerry was curled around the puppies as they'd taken to their dog forms for naps and sleeping at night. Jerry looked at Dom and asked, "When will they be here?"

"Next couple of days. I told them it was up to you."

Jerry motioned Dom over to the bed and said, "They're your family like Katie and Cooper are mine. They're welcome any time." Then Jerry kissed Dom gently on the mouth before he curled back up with the babies while they slept - he used the nap times to rest himself.

"I'll call Mia. She's been wanting to meet her nephews and niece since they were born."

"I know. So has Katie and Cooper. Call them too and we'll have a cookout when they get here."

"Sounds good baby." Dom said and he leaned over and kissed Jerry's cheek.

Dom left Jerry and the pups to their nap and started making phone calls to his team and Katie and Cooper. He set up a weekend cookout so that Jerry would have time to get things ready. Dom himself did a lot of work but Jerry was the quintessential 'mama' dog making sure his home and family were presentable. Dom smiled at the thought of the coming week - but the nights would be the best when it was just Jerry and him in their room with no interruptions.

Dom shook himself out of that fantasy, he had to watch himself or he'd go and pull Jerry out of bed, and with that thought he went out to his garage to work on the car he was going to give Jerry for their anniversary. A nice family car now that they had pups but it still had some racing specs put into it.

As Dom worked on the car he thought about how he came to be where he was - out of the big city and actually liking the country life. When he met Jerry it had been after a short series of truck heists that ended poorly and with an undercover cop named Brian O' Conner. Dom had thought he had found his kindred spirit in Brian, but soon their jobs had them being pulled in different directions and Brian left for Miami Beach and the East Coast. Dom, meanwhile, drowned his sorrows at a small bar in his neighborhood. He was almost at his cutoff limit when he saw 'Brian'. He sniffed the air and definitely smelled something that was distinctly not Brian but had his dog turning over on the inside.

'Brian' stiffened at the bar and he looked around until his gaze landed on Dom. He went over to Dom after he got a beer and sat across from him. Dom didn't know what to think of the stranger in front of him but he'd sobered quickly seeing him head his direction. Dom asked, "Who are you?" He hoped he didn't sound like a complete douche but his insides were playing havoc on his system.

Jerry looked over Dom and said, "I'm Jerry Shepard. Who are you?"

"I'm Dominic Toretto but you can call me Dom." Dom got a better look at Jerry, not Brian, he had to keep reminding himself and asked, "What brings you to LA?"

That one question had them talking the rest of the night and soon right into Dom's bed.

Dom didn't leave his old lifestyle behind completely when he moved to Astoria, Oregon with Jerry and he knew Jerry knew this.

The following weekend the house was spotless except the babies' playroom and as cars started winding down the long driveway the pups waited in the yard while Dom and Jerry watched from the swing. Dom's family came in two cars while Katie had picked up Cooper at his house.
Mia, Letty, Vince, Leon, and Jesse scrambled for the stairs first and Dom pulled Mia into a hug first before he hugged the rest of his team. "It's great to see you guys. The pups are playing in the sandbox."

At the mention of the sandbox, Jesse perked up, and said, "Sandbox?"

"Side of the house Jesse." Dom said and with that Jesse sprinted off in his own golden retriever form. Everyone laughed.

Letty came up beside Jerry and clasped his shoulder. "Lookin' good for being a mama now."

Jerry took it for the compliment it was supposed to be and he said, "Thanks Letty." Seemed like Letty had forgiven them so that took a lot of weight off Jerry's shoulders.

Dom wrapped his arms around Jerry's middle and he nuzzled his mate's neck and brushed his lips gently along his hairline. He whispered, "Let's check on the babies and Jesse."

Jerry leaned his head back on Dom's shoulder and let out a happy yip before he said, "M'kay. We'll give Maya a break and let the aunts and uncles take over for a little bit."

Jerry shifted in Dom's arms and Dom followed and they took off around the house. Everyone followed suit and line of different breeds rounded the corner. Maya stood guard as Jesse played with the puppies and seeing the unfamiliar dogs behind Dom and Jerry had her standing and growling low in her throat. Jerry nudged at Maya and let her know that these animals were okay.

Mia went around the group and over to the sandbox. The babies looked at her and knew she was family but they kept playing with Jesse, pouncing on him and biting his ears and tail. Dom went over and let out his papa dog bark and all the babies settled down to look at their papa. After a few more barks, the babies dropped their heads for a moment before they went over to Mia and nudged her front legs. Mia leaned down and licked the tops of their heads and let out a happy bark.

A few minutes of dealing with their aunt and they were ready to play with Jesse again. Dom barked again and the pups went back to playing. Cooper dived into the box too and the babies yipped and tackled him into the sand. Jerry glanced at the shade and saw the rest of his pack minus Maya because she was beside the sandbox. Jerry looked at the shifters and let a few barks out before he grabbed Dom's scruff with his teeth and pulled on it. With Dom's attention, Jerry walked towards the house after licking the pups' heads, trusting their families to keep his babies safe for an hour or two.

~~Fin~~