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Mimi

Mimi awoke to a loud thump and swearing in the hallway.

‘Oh my god, honey? Are you alright?’

‘I tripped on the rug!’

Ah, it was just Isabel and Moon….

‘Loud!’ chirped a small voice from beside Mimi.

‘Loud noise!’

‘What was that?’

‘Big noise!’

‘Isabel fell over,’ Mimi comforted, licking each of her babies in turn. ‘Nothing scary outside! No, no! Just Mama Becky’s auntie! Listen….’

‘Three, two, one— On your feet!’

‘Oh!’

‘Oh!’

‘Oh!’

‘Oh!’

Mimi licked all of her babies again. ‘Come eat, babies.’

‘Eat?’

‘Eat!’

‘Milk?’

‘Yum!’

Mimi’s babies enthusiastically allowed their mother to pull them close into her underbelly, and began to feed.

Mimi stretched out, letting out a long sigh as she relaxed with her babies.

She could hear her Mama Becky snoring in her bed, her breathing broken by mumbles and whispers as she dreamed.

Good dreams, by the sound of it. Which Mimi was very happy about. She hated when her Mama Becky had nightmares. Especially now that she had to look after her babies and she couldn’t always just jump up and comfort her without hesitation…. But that was why her Flamingle was such a good boyfriend—

Husband!

Mimi remembered with a happy chirp.

Don wasn’t just Mimi’s boyfriend anymore! Don was Mimi’s husband!

An extra-special kind of boyfriend that meant their love would be forever and ever!

Mimi liked that thought. Her Flamingle was so special, and she wanted to be with him for even longer than forever and ever!

Today had been a very good day.

‘Done!’

‘All done!’

‘Finished!’

‘Full!’

All of Mimi’s babies gave happy trills and chirps and began to bounce around the carrier. And then, they bounced out of the carrier and into the main part of their pen where they had more room to play.

Blue jumped on the top of Don’s head on its way out, and the mimic woke with a surprised honk! and lifted himself up to watch his babies run around.

‘My brood!’ he trilled, following his babies into the pen. Then, he paused, jumping around and hurrying back into the carrier to nuzzle Mimi. ‘My pretty pink!’

‘Flamingle!’ Mimi cooed back, licking her Flamingle’s head. ‘Mimi loves Flamingle.’

‘I love my pretty pink!’ Don purred, and tapped his feet in joy before ducking back out of the carrier to play with his babies.

Mimi took the opportunity to splay out on her side and stretch her legs. She stretched them aaaaaaall the way out, tapping the other side of the carrier with her little spider toes, and then rolled onto her back and stretched them up to the roof of the carrier.

Big stretch!

Big, big stretch!

Being a mama was hard work!

It was very very hard work!

Wow, it was!

Much harder work than Mimi had thought it was going to be. Mama Becky had always made it look so easy, even when Mimi was being a naughty little stinker and making problems on purpose, Mama Becky always knew the right thing to do.

Mimi was glad that she had so much help with her babies; without her handsome Flamingle and Mama Becky and Pépé Ken and Auntie Isabel and Mémé Isa and Papa Jareth, she wasn’t sure how she would have managed to look after all four of her brood!

Mimi was very glad Becky had been her mama. And very glad to have her Flamingle. She was very glad to have all of her family….

Mimi stopped stretching, and licked her lips.

She was thirsty.

Mimi rolled to her feet and trot out of the carrier, playfully nipping at her babies as she passed them.

The water bowl in the pen was empty; a plush toy had been dropped into it and soaked it all up! So Mimi gave a chirp to Don to get his attention so he would see where she went as she leapt up over the barrier and headed for the kitchen.

The running water fountain that Mama Becky had gotten was still very full, so Mimi had a big drink before skittering into the lounge room and sniffing about.

She leapt onto one of the leather couches and rubbed against it, enjoying the texture, before leaping up her scratching post and gnawing on one of its carpet panels.

‘Bite! Bite! Chew!’ Mimi growled playfully, pulling on a loose group of threads so she could hear that satisfying rr-rrr-rrrRRIP sound. ‘Rip! Tear! Kill! Take that, post! Growl! Rip! Bite!’

Mimi bit and pulled and tore at the scratching post until the piece she was playing with came loose and she stumbled backwards; almost falling off the end but catching the edge so she could lower herself back down to the couch again.

She rubbed her face on it again before picking up the remote and giving it a gentle chew until the television turned on.

The channel was boring, though, so Mimi ignored it and instead sniffed between the couch’s cushions; licking her long tongue down as deep as it could go to see if her pépé had lost more yummy treats inside….

She found a goldfish cracker (which she ate) and the spare car keys that Ken had lost last month (which she dropped on the floor by the coffee table) before deciding that the couch was as boring as the TV and heading back upstairs to her babies and Don.

Her Flamingle was on his back, his legs flailing in the air as the babies climbed around on top of him.

‘Good hunters!’ he honked, pretending that he couldn’t get up, even though it was very clear that he could. ‘You caught me! Yes you have! My very smart brood has hunted me! Oh! Oh! I am caught!’

‘Growl!’ teased the brood.

‘Nip!’

‘Hunt!’

‘Capture!’

Mimi felt herself purring as she watched her family play.

What a good family she had!

She jumped over the barrier into the pen, and her babies all immediately perked up at her presence.

‘Mama!’

‘Mama’s back!’

‘Hello Mama!’

‘Mama! Mama! Mama!’

‘Hello babies!’ Mimi greeted; licking each of her babies on the face. ‘Hello! Good babies! Very good babies!’

After licking her babies, Mimi skittered over to her bed and settled down, nestling in the warm fluffy fabric as her brood bounced around her, playfully growling and nipping each other.

Then she felt the weight of her Flamingle stepping clumsily on her back as he attempted to climb in the bed next to her.

He gave Mimi a lick as he stood over her, and then reached down his little head to look her in the eyes.

‘It is very late,’ he snuffled. ‘I want to check on the family.’

‘Mimi doesn’t mind,’ purred Mimi, nuzzling her Flamingle. ‘Mimi will look after brood! Flamingle can leave.’

Mimi’s Flamingle thanked her with another big, very moist lick, before stumbling off her and over the barrier into the main part of the bedroom.

And Mimi watched as he leapt up for Becky’s bed and missed; landing on his back with a breathless SNUFFK!

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