Just so's you know, for the purposes of the plot I had to make Hiei and Yukina 99 years old at the end of the series. I don't actually believe that they have reached that age yet, but I didn't want to go too far into the future, as I needed to make sure the other characters were still alive. So I aged them up a bit...from my perspective, as I've said, that is.

I should stop talking now. Enjoy! Please.

Chapter 1

After an exceptionally long day they all retire to the beach for an indeterminate amount of time. They chat about old times, they chat about recent times, they laugh, they joke. They play in the sand, they play in the ocean, they stand and watch each other play, they sit and watch the tide roll back and forth.

By the time the horizon has hidden three quarters of the sun, everyone has finished their business near the water's edge, so they all gather on the beach around an empty fire pit. It isn't cold and no one expects it to become cold, but they busy themselves trying to light a fire anyway. Kuwabara protests, arguing that it will make Yukina uncomfortable, but she says she doesn't mind, so long as she doesn't have to be up close to it. They aren't having much luck lighting the ashy, burnt twigs left by the last person, so Kuwabara is sent to find new ones.

"Why am I the one going? It wasn't my idea!" he says. The question isn't answered because he doesn't stick around to hear a response. He goes back to the log they had been sitting around an hour ago and begins tearing off large splinters and strips of bark. Yukina watches him absentmindedly. The rest of them watch Shizuru mess with her lighter.

"Hiei would be able to get a fire started no problem," Botan observes with a pout, crossing her arms over her chest. "Why does he never join us unless he has to? He's such a killjoy."

"He's probably out killing people right now, that's practically all he ever does." Kuwabara shouts as he returns with his arms full of wood. He empties it into the pit and sits back down next to Yukina,

"He has a job now, which he could be called in for at any time," Kurama explains, and with a small chuckle adds, "not to say he'd want to join us anyway."

"Ah, forget him, he's not even here. Just keep inviting him until he accepts," Yusuke says, lighting a strip of bark as he speaks. He drops it on the pile and within a minute the whole thing is up in flames. "Awesome! That was easy."

"Especially considering before you were trying to light a pile of ashes," Keiko says with a smirk. Yusuke pushes her. She pushes him back.

"No horseplay around the fire!" Shizuru yells. Yusuke flips her off.

Yukina watches everyone laugh with a contented smile, slightly removed from the crowd in her attempt to avoid the smoke. She's having a hard time concentrating on what is being said. She can't quite put her finger on what it is, but she feels sort of strange. She thinks for a moment that the heat is getting to her, but cooling the air around her doesn't change much. She feels somewhat queasy, but not enough that she would call herself sick. Something just seems off. She's never felt anything like it before, and it's distracting her from socializing.

All of a sudden she feels a sort of churning sensation in the pit of her abdomen. It hurts momentarily, but her surprise outlasts the pain. She puts her fingertips over her mouth and stares into the fire, wondering what that was all about.

The sun sets over a forest. Nothing is moving except the wind and the leaves. The birds perch quietly in their branches, ready to fly away at the slightest provocation. The only non-bird or -insect this high up in the trees is Hiei, sleeping in the shadow of a particularly leafy branch.

Until a few minutes ago the birds mostly ignored him, occasionally sparing a passing glance. They had all noticed him when he showed up; none of them had ever seen a creature quite like him before, besides the occasional human wandering on the ground below them. They got used to him shortly and he became part of the background, another animal in a huge forest. He drew their attention again, however, when he started squirming in his sleep. Why is he moving? They wonder. Is he going to attack us?

But Hiei has not noticed any of them. He hasn't noticed he is moving, nor why he is moving. He doesn't notice the weird noises his stomach is making, or the sweat slowly trickling down his face. He is not disturbed by the rustling leaves, the wind that agitates them, the occasional flapping and calling of birds. He doesn't know what he's dreaming about and he won't when he wakes up. He is not conscious of anything.

As if frustrated that nothing has moved him, Hiei's stomach lurches violently and he wakes with a start. The sudden movement startles the birds, and they scatter.

The first to notice Yukina's curious expression was Kurama, generally the most observant of the group. He watches her go from surprised, to contemplative, to excited, staring at the fire all the while. She clasps her hands in her lap and stares, smiling, obviously lost in thought.

Hesistant to interrupt her musing, Kurama continues to watch her, hoping perhaps to guess what's on her mind before asking. He sniffs the air; something smells different. He cannot yet tell what it is, as the scent is obscured by the smoke, but another whiff tells him it's coming from Yukina. Now more than vaguely curious, he decides to ask.

"Yukina, you look happy about something," he says, effectively catching her attention, as well as everyone else's. All conversation stops abruptly, all faces turn toward Yukina. She does not seem put off by the attention; rather, she seems to brighten. She claps her hands together and says "I'm pregnant."

Hiei rubs his eyes and wipes the sweat off his forehead. He holds his hand to his chest and exhales, his heavy breath masked by a gust of wind. His eyes sting and he's still sweaty, so he pulls his scarf off to wipe his face again. He wraps the scarf around his neck again and rests his hand on his abdomen this time, just below his navel.

What the hell? he wonders, eyes darting around as if he expects someone to be there.

A few trees away, a bird caws.

~There you are, thank you for your patronage. You should be receiving the next chapter in a somewhat reasonable amount of time, hopefully. If you'd like to say something, go right ahead. Have a nice day.