Mongooselings

Rikki-tikki had been overjoyed to learn that he was going to be a father. Avíá had first told him she was pregnant a few weeks after their wedding. He felt that fatherhood would be a task perhaps as difficult as fighting the Cobra Queen. Yet he was willing to face it head on.

Avíá had put on some weight, her middle growing. She exercised a ton for she wanted to stay quick and thin. "Hey Rikki, do I look fat?" she asked her husband. "No." he replied. She smiled. "You look like an elephant." he said. She hit him on the shoulder. "Ouch!" he said, rubbing it in pain.

As the time drew near for Avíá to give birth, she and Rikki had agreed to rub mango juice on her to help ease the delivery. One day, Rikki and Avíá were talking to Darzee and his wife. "How soon?" Darzee asked. "Any day now." said Rikki. "Very soon." said Avíá. "I've been eating a lot more. I've managed to keep my weight in check." said Avíá. "That's good." said Biwi. Avíá and Rikki had been planning and planning on how best to handle children. They figured that setting some boundaries right away would ensure that they could be watched easier, for they knew how fast a mongoose could move and didn't want to be exhausted chasing them in different directions.

"Ouch!" said Avíá. She went into labor pains. Her water broke. "Rikki-tikki-tavi! It's time! Oh dear! Oh dear! What to do!" said Avíá-tía-tárá in a panic. Rikki-tikki felt nervous, but he kept his head. "Oh dear!" said Darzee. "Come on Avíá!" Rikki said to his wife. He supported Avíá and brought her under the veranda. He brought her some leaves and made them into a pile. "Lie down." he told his wife. She lay down, resting on her back, her head on the pile of leaves. Her breathing increased. "Keep calm." he said, trying to reassure her.

She cried out. "It can't hurt that bad." he said. She bit him. "Ow!" he yelled. "Neither can that!" she said. He got her a stick to bite down on. He applied the mango juice to her underside. "I need you to push now." he said. "Ow, it hurts!" said Avíá. "Relax." he told her, rubbing her neck. "Relax?! I'm having a baby!" she said angrily. "Come on Avíá, it'll be over soon." he said. He pressed around her lower stomach. "I need you to push now." he said. She pushed. "Deep breaths." he told her. She yelped as she gave birth to their first child. She licked the baby clean. It was a boy.

"You have a son Rikki-tikki." she said to him. The baby mongoose had pink eyes like Rikki but had a nose similar in appearance to Avíá's. He thought that, apart from Avíá, he had never seen anything so beautiful. "What should we call him?" he asked her. "After his father. Rikki-tikki-tavi Jr. RJ." she said. Rikki-tikki-tavi stroked the fur of his new son. "You know son, you are lucky to have such a wonderful mother. I'd be nothing without her." he told RJ. Avíá blushed. "I don't know who you two are, but you seem really nice." said Rikki-tikki-tavi Jr. "I'll explain." said his father.

Half an hour later, she began to feel more pain. She lay back down and her breathing increased. "More?" Rikki-tikki-tavi asked her. She nodded. "Oh my!" he said. After moaning and pushing, she gave birth to a girl and a boy. "You have a daughter Rikki-tikki." said Avíá before licking clean her newest offspring. They both had blue eyes like Avíá. "What are you going to name them?" Avíá asked him. He thought, and immediately settled on names for the two. "I'll call him Avála after your brother and her Arda after your sister." he said. "I love you." said young Rikki Jr., hugging the legs of his father and mother. Avála and Arda nuzzled up to their parents too, eager to make sure that RJ didn't get all of the attention. Rikki and Avíá thought they were all adorable.

A short time later, Avíá once more began to breathe more. "Oh my!" said Rikki-tikki. He helped comfort her. She gave birth to two more mongooses, another boy and girl The boy had blue eyes and the girl had pink eyes. They named them Alánda and Amíra after Avíá's fallen parents. "So adorable!" said Avíá. "Yes, I am pretty, aren't I?" said Amíra. "No." said Alánda. Amíra hit him. "Ow!" said Alánda. "Stop it!" said Rikki. "He started it!" said Amíra. Rikki groaned. "Dear, um, do you think there are any more?" he asked. Avíá shook her head.

Avíá, though exhausted from giving birth to five mongooselings, came back out with Rikki and their new kids. "How many did you have?" asked Chuchundra. "Five." said Rikki. "That is a lot." said Darzee. "What are their names?" said Chua. "Rikki-tikki-tavi Jr. , Arda, Avála, Amíra, and Alánda." said Rikki-tikki. "Oh boy! Look at this!" said Arda, running off into the garden. "Check this out!" said Avála, heading off in a different direction. "What's that?" said RJ, running off another way. "What's in there?" said Amíra, heading off toward the house. "What's out there?" said Alánda, heading out of the garden. "Oh no!" said Rikki-tikki and Avíá-tía. He headed after Avála. He got him in his mouth and picked him up. Avíá got Arda. They brought them back to Darzee and the others. "Stay!" said the parents. "What's that? It looks pretty! Oops! Ut oh!" said Amíra from inside the house. Avíá ran to go get her. "Ha ha ha! I'm all white!" laughed Amíra from inside the house. Avíá brought her out. Amíra was covered in flour. Rikki-tikki came with both RJ and Alánda in his mouth. "Bad mongooselings!" he said. The young mongooses spent their first few days in the world exploring the house, getting into mischief and having to constantly be scolded by their parents.

Mischievous Mongooses

One day, Arda, Avála, Amíra, Alánda, and Rikki Jr. were in the house, climbing up onto a ledge. They saw an object that peaked their curiosity. "What is this?" asked Arda. "It's a flowerpot." said Avála. "That's what Mother said it was anyway." said Rikki Jr. "What happens if we push it off the ledge? Will it float in midair?" "Only one way to find out." said Avála. "Don't!" said Alánda. Avála ignored him and pushed it off. It fell to the floor and broke with a clatter. "So that's what happens." said Rikki-tikki-tavi Jr. in awe. "Oh no!" moaned Amíra, putting a paw to her head in annoyance.

"Daddy's not going to be happy." said Arda to her brothers Avála and Rikki Jr. "I'm not going to be happy about what?" Rikki asked his daughter, coming up to them from behind, frightening them all. "Avála and RJ smashed the flowerpot." said Arda, eager to watch her brothers get scolded. "We had nothing to do with this." said Alánda and Amíra. "It was Avála's fault!" said Rikki Jr. "Avála." said Rikki, who'd much rather be fighting a snake right now than having to deal with his children, again. "I was trying to figure out what would happen to it if it was pushed from off that ledge. Now it know it'll fall to the floor and break." said Avála innocently. "What have they done now?" asked Avíá, coming toward them at the sound of the commotion. "Avála has broken one of the flowerpots. Now the humans will be quite upset." said Rikki-tikki. "Oh dear." said Avíá-tía. "I know you're curious, but try to think before you act. I've told you that many times. Now please stay out of the house for the rest of the day. It won't do any good to break more things today." said Rikki-tikki-tavi. "But Dad…." complained Avála. "Not another word." chided his mother. Avála stormed off in protest. "Lovely, isn't he?" said Avíá. "He got that from you." said Rikki. "No, I think he got that from you!" said his wife.

"The baby mongooses are so cute!" said Teddy. "Hello there fella!", he said, picking up the disgruntled Avála, who stuck his tongue out at the others while Rikki and Avíá weren't looking, and petting him. "Now that is better." said Avála. "I'm glad somebody loves me!" said Avála in self-pity. "Oh please!" said his father. "You know we love you!" "You won't let me in the house!" said Avála angrily. "You've broken many things. Sometimes, it seems like you'd like to break my heart too. Just be grateful that I'm not tanning your behind, again." said Rikki. "I've had to go in there and give the people the sad eyes so they'll forgive us." said Rikki-tikki. Teddy rubbed Avála's fur the wrong way. "Hey, that hurts! Maybe I should bite him." said Avála. "You do and you won't get any breakfast!" threatened his mother. "He's only a child. Anyway, you're a house mongoose. Now act like one!" chided Avíá. "When do we get to fight snakes?" said RJ. "That depends." said Rikki-tikki. "Depends on what?" said RJ eagerly. 'Depends on if you are unlucky to encounter one before you're in your teens. If not, not before then." said Rikki. "No fair!" pouted RJ. "Perhaps you'd like to get bitten and die!" said Avíá. "No." said RJ. "I didn't mean it that way."

Snakes and Breakfast

Just then, seven snakes came into the garden, a krait, three vipers, a king cobra, a cobra, and a dusty brown snakeling. Teddy put Avála down and moved away from them, frightened. "Kill them you guys!" he said to Rikki and Avíá. "They were supposed to be asleep!" said the dusty brown snakeling, frightened. "Hello. Glad you could join us for breakfast!" said Rikki, smiling. "We'll just be going." said one of the vipers. "Yes, we shall go away and never come back." said the krait, starting to flee with the others. "Indeed." said Avíá. The snakes didn't get far and were soon brought down by the two grown-up mongooses. "Wow! A snake fight!" said Arda. "Breakfast anyone? I'm starving! I'm tired of waiting!" said Rikki. "You think with your stomach!" said Avíá, causing them all to laugh.

"I'm not sure if I'll like meat." said Arda. Arda had only wanted to eat vegetables. "Arda, I once didn't either. Then, I tried meat and found that I loved it. I'm not going to make you try it, at least not yet. Someday yes." said Avíá. "Why?" pouted Arda. Avíá told Arda her story of her childhood and her first mouse hunt and how she had found that she loved meat. "I don't think I'd like to kill." said Arda. "Arda, I still don't like to kill. I do it for food." said her mother. Avíá's story had given Arda courage. She tried a bite of snake meat. "Delicious!" she said. "Told you that you'd like it!" said Avíá, patting her on the back. The snake meat gave Arda gas and she tooted. "Ew!" said Rikki Jr., fanning the air. "Oh no!" sad Arda. "Meat sometimes does that. Don't worry Arda." Avíá assured her. They all ate their breakfast.

"That viper was delicious!" said Avála, rubbing his stomach contentedly. "I almost wish I could have more." "Like father, like son." said Avíá, causing the kids to laugh and Rikki to frown. "A full meal makes a slow mongoose. You will want less when you're older. That way the snakes won't get you." said Avíá to Avála. "What were the snakes doing here anyway? I don't think they were here to say hello." said Arda. "No, Nagasta probably sent them." said Avíá. "So it's true, Mother, about the Cobra Queen and all of that?" said RJ. "What? You thought we were lying?" laughed his father. "It sounded hard to believe." said Amíra.

"So, are we safe here?" asked Alánda. "As long as you stay close to us and don't do anything stupid, they won't be able to harm you while we're still breathing." said Avíá to her son. "I think I could fight them." said RJ. "You just might be able to. When you're a bit older. Not now of course." said Rikki. RJ grinned. "However, I care about you too much to gamble with your life. You're not fighting any snake, unless you are forced into it, until you're in your teens. I promise that when the time comes, I will personally show you and be there to help you. I want you to be able to fight snakes. I don't think you'll be able to get a beauty like Avíá if you can't." he said. "You flatter me Rikki." said Avíá.

"Girls? Who needs them? I'll fight alone!" said RJ. "Rikki-tikki Jr., I once thought that too, less than a year ago in fact. But I've found how wrong I was. A mongoose fighting alone all of his life will sooner or later be killed. That's why he needs a lovely companion like your Mother to help him fight. They often can fight several times stronger together than they could have each fighting alone." said Rikki-tikki. "Really?" said Arda. "Avála, Alánda, and Rikki Jr. always tell me that girls will drag them down." "Only when you argue with them. They always seem to think they're right." said Rikki. "That's because I usually am." grinned Avíá. "Right." said Rikki-tikki. "See?" laughed Avíá. Arda and Amíra giggled. "Rikki is often right too." said Avíá. "Thank you." said Rikki-tikki. "I love you!" he said to her. "I love you too!' she said, and the two kissed. "Ick!" said Alánda, covering his eyes.

"So what are we going to do now?" asked Rikki-tikki-tavi Jr. "I could always tell you about our adventures on our trip to Kalindo. I told you parts of it but you can hear it in full. It includes how I met your mother and how we fell in love." said Rikki. "Yes please! Tell us Father!" said Arda. "Tell us too!" said Darzee's three children Avíá, Ricar, and Omír. "All right. All right. We'll tell all of you." said Avíá-tía.

Rikíla and Amos

She was just about to start her tale, when Rikíla came by with her boyfriend Amos. "Hello Rikki and Avíá. Oh, so these are yours?" she asked, looking at the five young mongooses. "Darzee told everyone he could about the new arrivals. He even sang a song about it." said Rikíla. Rikki groaned. "I'll bet Nagasta now knows that I have children! The featherbrain!" said Rikki-tikki in annoyance. "Mom and Dad are so glad to have grandchildren. What are their names by the way?" asked Rikíla. "Rikki Jr., Arda, Amíra, Alánda, and Avála." said Rikki-tikki. "Who's that?" said Arda. "Your Aunt Rikíla." said Avíá. "Hello." said Arda. "Which one are you?" asked Amos. "Arda." said Arda. "Who are you?" Avála asked Amos. "I'm Amos-dac-timi. I'm dating your aunt. Well, more like engaged. I asked her to marry me yesterday and she said yes." he said. "Wondeful!" said Avíá. "Glad you found a nice guy Rikíla." "So what about Ravánti?" Rikki asked. "He's really into that Melissa-daren-alí. I think he's found a mate. He's looking for something to propose with. Hopes to find a nice hard-to-beat snake." said Rikíla. "I hope he's learned what I've told him about snake killing." said Rikki. "He still has time to be sure. Tell him not to rush." said Avíá. "Mom and Dad are thinking of having more kids now that you're married and Ravánti and I have come of age." said Rikíla. "I have to go nurse the babies." said Avíá. RJ, Arda, Amíra, Alánda, and Avála headed off to be nursed by their mother.

"So, any news on Nagasta? She does know that you killed her family now. And she's going to really hate you after Karistan's death." said Rikíla. "Avíá and I are capable of fending them off. We have been across the jungle you know." he said. "How's she taking this? I mean this war." said his sister. "She knew she was going to have plenty of enmity with Nagasta by helping me long before we were married." he said. "We can handle her!"

Nagasta Plans to Get to Rikki and Avíá's Children

Meanwhile, Nagasta's crows brought her some news. "Rikki-tikki and Avíá-tía have had five children." The crows told her all they knew. "Children? Hmmmmm. I have an idea. A wonderful idea. Given what you've told me, it just might work, given the opportunity, though we may have to wait many months. If this goes off right, we might not even have to fight Rikki-tikki and Avíá-tía ourselves. Continue to spy on them." she hissed. "Foolish mongooses! Despite all of your victories, you still haven't killed me! And I shall strike harder than I ever did before!"

Happy Family

Back at the house, Rikki finished talking to his sister. Rikíla and Amos left. Avíá returned with the children. "So, what are we going to do now?" said Arda. "I think we will go explore that forest by the river." said Rikki. "The place where you fought that snake Kinsta?" said Avála. "The very same. I think there are some things there even I haven't found yet." said Rikki. "Maybe we'll get to fight a snake too!" said RJ. "You can wait for your mother and I. We won't let you run the risk of fighting any snakes by yourselves." said Rikki. "Aw man!" said RJ. "Go wait at the garden wall." said Avíá. "Last one there's a rotten egg!" yelled RJ, running off, closely followed by Avála, Arda, Amíra, and Alánda. "At last! Alone!" said Rikki, kissing Avíá, who kissed him back. "They are adorable." said Avíá. "They get that from you." said Rikki. "Let's not keep them waiting." said Avíá. "Indeed." said Rikki. The two went off after their children. For many months, they were unbothered by Nagasta and lived a normal life like they had always wanted.