Lauren's POV
"Sit up – let's see if anything's wrong."
Taylor complied and heaved herself up, sitting on the edge of the couch. Sasori then got to work and placed a glowing green hand on her forehead. After a moment his eyebrows furrowed.
"What is it?" I questioned, concerned for my friend, but the puppet master didn't answer – instead he took his hand off her forehead and placed it above her chest, soon moving it lower to her abdomen. When Sasori scanned his hand over Taylor's lower abdomen however, he froze and leaned back slightly, eyes wide in shock.
Taylor immediately looked worried.
"Oh shit, am I dying? Should I have gone to the hospital?"
Sasori slowly shook his head and removed his hand from her stomach, looking her directly in the eye.
"Taylor, you're not ill…you're pregnant."
"Wha…I…I'M PREGNANT?!"
For a good minute the house sat in silence, all of us shocked at the sudden news.
"Oh my god," Taylor finally sighed, looking faint as she placed a hand on her abdomen where Sasori's previously had been. "Oh my god, I can't believe it…"
"I can't believe it either," I said slowly along with her, glacing up from the ground. "You and Itachi fucked…goddamn…"
"Lauren!" Taylor shouted at me, grabbing the pillow on the couch beside her. I easily dodged it as she chucked it at my head and started laughing.
"This is serious!" She hissed, and I could see the tears pooling in her eyes. It made me feel a bit bad that she was taking it in such a way, but…
"Taylor!" I responded and kneeled in front of her, taking her face into my hands. The blonde looked almost ready to cry, her bottom lips beginning to wiggle. "This is amazing," I told her seriously, but Taylor shook her head, voice cracking as she responded.
"No, it's…"
"It's a blessing," I tried again, bringing our foreheads together in an attempt to calm her. "Having a child is a blessing."
Taylor closed her eyes as tears started to stream down her cheeks. "I know – but Itachi – he – we-"
"I can't believe you're worried about Itachi at a time like this!" I told with a small laugh, pulling back to wipe her tears with my thumbs. Taylor opened her hazel eyes, questioningly searching mine.
"All Itachi wants is for you to be happy." I continued, shaking her face a bit as a genuine smile made its way onto my lips. "And this child will be a blessing to both you and him both. He's wanted nothing more than to have a family to come home to, and yet you're getting so worried because this wasn't planned. When he finds out he's going to be the happiest man alive!"
Taylor sniffed and pulled back from me, wiping the remainder of her tears. She was quiet for a moment, her eyes scanning the couch below her before she quietly spoke up.
"…do you really think that he'll be happy?"
Laughing, I lunged forward and gave her a giant hug, which she finally responded to.
"Of course he'll be happy!"
Finally, after the two of us hugged it out for another minute, Taylor pulled back and glanced to the side with a small pout.
"Does this mean I have to go to the hospital?"
Behind us Sasori chuckled slightly, rubbing a hand down the side of his face.
"Yes, you should go to the hospital, Taylor."
"But I don't wanna~!" She whined, rolling to the other end to the couch away from me. Sighing, with a small smirk I glanced back at the red head. He understood my intent immediately and rolled his eyes, crossing his arms agitatedly despite his slight smile.
"If you are so against going to the hospital than how about we go to Tsunade directly?" He suggested, and at the end of the couch Taylor paused in kicking her feet like a little brat. In one swift motion she sat up and looked to Sasori with wide brown eyes.
"You mean it? You're not gonna trick me into going to the hospital."
The puppet master rolled his eyes again, mumbling, "I don't know if I could…"
Grinning happily, Taylor then sprung up from the couch and gave me a swift hug before disappearing into the hallway with a call of, "I'll be back down in a minute."
I waited for a minute until the sound of Taylor climbing the stairs up the second floor had stopped before springing up from my spot on the couch and jumping into Sasori's waiting arms. He expected it anyway, because he quickly chuckled and spun in a circle from the momentum, setting me on the ground a moment later.
"I'm so excited!" I exclaimed into his shoulder as he absently hugged me back. "This is so amazing!"
"Yes, this is quite the development," he mused and I pulled back, smacking him in the arm lightly.
"Oh don't even give me that," I said, pointing a finger in his face. "You're fucking happy."
"I never said I wasn't," he responded, raising his eyebrow in amusement. I just squealed and hugged Danna once again, evoking another chuckled from him.
A minute later Taylor emerged back into the family room with a thick gray coat adorning her torso, the Uchiha crest clearly present on the breast plate, and a pair of tall boots.
"It's not winter," I told her in a deadpan, but she brushed off my comment with a wave of her hand.
"Whatever, you guys ready?"
Nodding, Sasori and I trailed after the blonde as she opened the front door and stepped out into the cool evening air. I shut the door once we were all out of the house and the three of us then started towards the main part of the leaf village.
As we went along I could tell that Taylor was still taking in all of this, her smile wavering at times, but I couldn't blame her. We'd only lived in this world for two months at this point and were currently just training for the Chuunin exams, which would be taking place in a month or two. With her now being diagnosed as pregnant, I doubted her participation in the event, but didn't want to assume anything at this point. Not even that, but at the moment the Chuunin exams were probably the least of her worries. Knowing Taylor, at this point she was stressing out more about how she'd tell Itachi the news.
I'd talk with her more about it later.
After about 15 more minutes of walking Sasori, Taylor and I approached the Hokage's mansion, but were automatically stopped by the guards at the gate.
"Halt," said a ninja I'd never seen before. He scanned the three of us over quizzically, his eyes lingering on Sasori a bit longer than normal.
Despite the announcement of the Akatsuki being disband and most of the ninja being accepted back into society as full-fledged shinobi, many locals were still skeptical of the previous criminals – which was to be expected.
"State your business," he finally said, and I reached into my pocket, pulling out my Konoha headband. Even though I wasn't on a mission I still carried it around with me anywhere, just in case.
"We need to speak with Tsunade-sama."
The ninja looked just about ready to send us away, before I added, "please, it's very important."
With a quiet sigh the shinobi finally stepped aside and the three of us passed through the gates onto the Hokage's property.
We ascended the stairs of the giant red house and then trailed down the halls towards Tsunade's office. As we got closer I could tell Taylor was being to get nervous again, and placed a hand on her shoulder reassuringly. She weakly smiled back at me.
Just as we rounded the corner, Shizune emerged from Tsunade's office, a stack of papers in her hands.
"Oh, hello," she said in surprise when noticing us. "If you're here to talk to Tsunade I'd suggest you don't unless it's very important." She continued, while shuffling past us. "She's pretty stressed out at the moment."
"Noted," I replied simply, and once she was out of sight I reached my hand forward and raped my hand against the wooden door.
"Come in!" A voice angrily yelled on the other side, and I twisted the handle stepping inside. Taylor and Sasori both followed me in.
Behind the desk filled with multiple stacks of paper was Tsunade, her normal sake bottle and dish nowhere in sight. When Sasori clicked the door shut she snapped her head up at us, brown eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Is there a reason you've chosen to visit me at a time like this?" she questioned angrily, and I pulled Taylor up next to me.
"Taylor has a favor to ask." I stated briefly, looking over to the blonde, and Tsunade lowered her fist onto the desk, leaning forward impatiently.
"I, um," Taylor staggered, and I could tell Tsunade was about ready to snap at her when sudden her eyes widened, attitude changing drastically. Glancing over, I noticed that Taylor had placed a hand on her abdomen once again, and that must've been enough for Tsunade to be able to understand.
"Taylor…," she said slowly, looking the said teenage girl in the eyes, and Taylor nodded, a smile sneaking its way onto her lips. Tsunade suddenly stood from her seat and stomped up to the Uzumaki, hugging her tightly as a large grin overtook her lips.
"Congratulations," she said wholeheartedly and Taylor blushed.
"Thank you, Tsunade-sama," she mumbled embarrassedly, and Tsunade laughed, clasping a hand on her shoulder.
"So, I know you didn't just come here to tell me the news, did you?"
Taylor shook her head, looking back up at the voluptuous lady.
"No, I've been having pretty bad morning sickness for the last few days—"
"And she refuses to go to the hospital," I added in, which landed me a smack in the head from Sasori.
"—so I was wondering if you could just make sure everything was okay…"
Tsunade nodded considerately and knelt down in front of the younger blonde, placing her hand on Taylor's lower abdomen. It soon started to glow green and the Hokage closed her eyes in concentration.
"As far as I can tell you're only about 3 weeks pregnant at this point, and everything looks good," she said, and Taylor sighed with relief. "Concerning the morning sickness you've been having I can prescribe you some pills, but you'll have to go to the hospital to pick them up."
"Hai, thank you so much, Tsunade-sama," Taylor said, bowing deeply, and the Hokage merely chuckled at her.
"No problem – now run along."
"Hai!" she responded happily, and turned towards the door. Sasori opened it for her and Taylor thanked him while skipping to the hallway, the puppet master immediately following after. I hung back for a minute as Tsunade slid back into her chair behind the desk.
"I promise I won't speak of it to anyone," she said after a moment, pulling out a pen and paper from her desk drawer as I approached. "And here is Taylor's prescription," she added in, handing the note she had just scribbled out. With a small smile I bowed to her.
"Arigatou gozaimasu," I responded, bowing to her. Tsunade only reached across the large desk and ruffled my hair.
"You're a very good friend."
I laughed slightly and walked over to an open window, scooting my body into the frame. "Taylor's still in shock at the moment, and I have nothing else to do so…"
With that I stepped onto the tiled roof and propelled myself towards the leaf village hospital, Taylor's prescription in my hand. This was the least I could do for her right now. I owed her for the rest of my life for saving me from Orochimaru anyway.
Taylor's POV
After talking with Tsunade I exited the Hokage Mansion with Sasori and Lauren. There was too much going through my head at the moment – so much; in fact, that I didn't notice Lauren wasn't with us until we had passed into back into the Uchiha district.
"Lauren went to get your prescription for you," Sasori explained before I could get the chance to ask, and I found myself smiling at her considerateness.
A minute later when Sasori and I came to a crossroad, I was surprised when he continued walking along with me.
"Sasori," I said, pausing to point in the other direction. "Your house is that way right?"
"Yes," Sasori nodded, "that is the way to my house."
I rolled my eyes at his hidden sarcasm. "Then go that way – you don't have to walk me home."
Sasori stared at me blatantly. "You think that brat is gonna let me get away with that?"
I laughed and stepped forward, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You're fine – go on home."
The puppet master grinned slightly. "Well then," he said, "I'll leave you with this."
Sasori suddenly grabbed my wrist and pulled me into a brief hug. "Congrats," he said quietly, pulling back to give me a sentimental smirk. "I'm glad I could be there with you today."
I stared at the puppet master in utter shock, not having expected such a reaction from him. "Don't even make me cry again!" I yelled as I spun around and started stomped towards Itachi and I's house. I could hear him chuckle from behind me and glanced back to see him spilt off down the other path, so I quickly yelled, "Bye Sasori!" which he responded to with a silent wave of his hand.
A couple minute later, just as the land was beginning to be overcome by the darkness of night, I stepped onto the porch of the house and slid the front door open. Immediately I slipped my shoes off and headed up stairs, grabbing Itachi's necklace off the nightstand, holding it to my chest.
I was pregnant.
I was pregnant with Itachi's child.
I was pregnant. With Itachi's child.
"Jesus," I breathed, and held the necklace tighter. I mean, yeah, Itachi and I had… "done it" a couple of times, but I had never expected this to happen. I was supposed to be participating in the Chuunin exams in a month or so…I was supposed to become a great ninja and all that!
Sighing, I grabbed a blanket off the bed and then exited the room, heading back downstairs. I traveled through the house until I emerged on the porch surrounding a small garden and pond in the middle of the enclosed yard. Seating myself on the wooden floor, I wrapped the blanket around myself and looked down at the two koi fish swimming around the pond a few feet away.
Breathing in, I took Itachi's necklace from my hand and latched it around my neck before snuggling into the blanket further. How was I supposed to tell him? I was no good at keeping secrets – so as soon as I saw another person beside him I'd want to say something, and the husband was always supposed to be the first to know.
'Husband,' I mused internally, thinking about the word. Itachi and I weren't even married – yet here I was, three weeks pregnant with his child. Sighing again, I suddenly blinked when a bag landed in my lap.
"Here you are madam," Lauren said jokingly, looking down at me with a grin. I rolled my eyes at her and set the back on the ground beside me, patting the deck on my other side. Lauren got the hint eased herself to the ground, allowing her legs to hang off the edge of the deck as I took part of the large blanket and threw it around her shoulder. Lauren smiled and I lovingly placed my head atop her shoulder.
"Thanks for getting me those pills," I said, and Lauren placed her head on top of mine in response.
"Don't worry about it," she said, as her body warmth soaked into the blanket. "You've head a rough day anyway."
I laughed. "Yeah…"
The two of us were silent for a minute before Lauren spoke again.
"You're thinking about how you're gonna tell Itachi, right?"
I sighed. "Yeah. You know I'm bad at keeping things a secret and Itachi's not supposed to be back for at least another day…"
"Tell you what then," Lauren said suddenly, and I pulled back to look at her. "How about we send a messenger out to tell him?"
"That'd be terrible!" I replied. "You're not supposed to tell someone you're pregnant via messenger!"
"No!" Lauren laughed. "I mean, why don't we send Itachi a message saying something like "I've got a surprise for you when you get back" or "I've got some big news to tell you", you know? Something not so discreet."
I contemplated the idea. It'd be impossible for me to keep it a secret from everyone for that long, so if I sent him a little message like that then maybe I wouldn't feel like I'd have to keep it entirely hidden. It'd be like half a weight off my chest.
"Alright," I finally agreed, and Lauren grinned.
"So what should I write?" She questioned, pulling a paper and pen out of nowhere. I immediately snatched it from her.
"Give me that!" I said, taking the pen into my hand. "I'm the pregnant one – not you – so I'll write the message!"
Lauren laughed. "Alright, alright!"
Puffing my cheeks out, I quickly scribbled down "I've got a surprise – tell you when you get back" before rolling it up.
"Done?" Lauren questioned, and I nodded. Grinning again, Lauren stood and bit her thumb, slamming her palm to the ground.
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"
With a puff of smoke a mid-sized dog with light brown fur emerged in the middle of the summoning circle. I blinked in surprise.
"Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I signed a pact with Kakashi's dogs when I was training with him a few years ago," she said, glacing over at me, and then quickly knelt down in front of the dog.
"Yo, Bisuke."
The ninken looked up at Lauren and then blinked.
"Oh, if it isn't Lauren!" The dog exclaimed, padding up to her. "I haven't been summoned by you since right after Kakashi had you make the pact!"
Lauren laughed. "Yeah, it's been a while."
"So, what do you need?" The dog questioned, and Lauren motioned over to me.
"My friend needs this letter delivered to her boyfriend," she said, and I blushed, embarrassed.
"Oh?" the dog questioned, sniffing the air. Suddenly his eyes widened. "Oh, it's one of those letters!" he exclaimed and Lauren laughed again.
"That's right; I forgot you've got more heightened senses than the others…anyway, you think you can do this for me?"
"Of course," he said, and motioned back towards his blue pack. "Just put it in there somewhere and I'll get it to…"
"Itachi Uchiha," Lauren said, and the canine looked taken aback.
"You want me to take this to a wanted criminal?"
Lauren blinked in surprise. Kakashi must not have explained to his pact the changes happening yet.
"No, Itachi is no longer a nuke-nin, he's an ally to Konoha," she explained, and the dog instantly relaxed.
"Oh, well, then do you have his scent for me?"
Lauren glanced over at me, and I blinked, instantly looking down.
"I don't have any of his clothes, but I've got his necklace," I exclaimed, and the dog nodded.
"Good enough," he said, and jumped up next to me. I held up the necklace and he sniffed it for a few seconds before turning and hopping back down next to Lauren.
"Once you give him the message you're dismissed," Lauren elaborated, and Bisuke nodded. "I'll treat you to a meal at some point as your reward," she added in, and the dog laughed as he began sprinting away.
"I'll hold you to it!" he howled before disappearing out of sight, and I breathed a sigh of relief, feeling better about the message.
A moment later Lauren placed her hand on my shoulder. "It's getting late," she stated, and I nodded in agreement, allowing her to help pull me up.
"Thanks for all your help today," I told her honestly, pulling her into a hug, and Lauren hugged back tightly.
"No problem. I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Yeah," I agreed, and with one last quick squeeze Lauren hoped over the fence and back towards her house. I rolled my eyes at her as I grabbed the blanket and stepped back into the vicinity. Lauren was always using her ninja powers.
With that all taken care of, I simply walked back up stairs, popped one of the pill Tsunade had prescribed me and climbed into bed, suddenly feeling exhausted. I didn't even get the chance to worry about any possibilities before sleep took over.
When I woke up the next morning light was already flooding into the room – a change compared to the last few days considering they consisted of me waking up early to throw up and feel shitty. Stretching my arms out above my head, I yawned around rolled over, glancing at the clock on my nightstand.
9:45
Geez, I had slept in. It must've been because of the slept I'd been ripped of the last week. However, before I could get completely lost in my thoughts I suddenly noticed a tapping sound.
Sitting up, I glanced around the room, the sound foreign to me, before a bird sitting in the windowsill caught my attention.
A raven.
My heart jumped.
Quickly, I flung the covers off and shuffled over to the window, pushing it open. The raven simply looked at me and then stood still when I noted the paper tied to its leg.
Holding my breath I quickly untied the note and then opened it up, scanning over the words on the page.
"I'll be back this evening, I look forward to hearing it," the note read, and I scanned over it again with wide eyes. Itachi would be back tonight, sooner than I expected.
I didn't know if that was good or bad.
"Oh, you'll be fine," Lauren said, patting me on the shoulder as she and I made our way to the gates. It was around 6 in the evening and Lauren and I had just finished eating at Ichiraku's.
I'd entrusted in the brunette earlier in the day to help keep me calm and collected until Itachi got back tonight, and she was glad to be able to help. So, for the day we cooked, and played games, and gossiped and ate until finally the sun started to turn the horizontal a dark orange - then we knew it was time.
"Yeah, I know I'll be fine, but I'm still nervous!" I hissed back at her, my heart pounding as the large wooden gates came into sight. Lauren only continued to rub soothing circles on my back as we continued to get closer and closer to the inevitable.
A minute later the two of us stood directly under the enterance to the leaf village, and I heaved a big sigh, trying to calm myself. Each minute of waiting was painstaking, but thankfully I didn't have to wait long because soon enough two silhouettes appeared in the distance.
After a couple of seconds Lauren verified with her Sharingan that it was indeed Sasuke and Itachi, and I continued taking deep breathes, trying to keep myself calm.
"You're fine," Lauren told me once again, giving me a reassuring hug. "Itachi loves you, and there's absolutely no way this is a bad thing."
"Yeah," I agreed breathlessly, and a minute later Itachi and Sasuke approached us. The two looked surprised to see us standing there, awaiting their arrival.
"Imouto, Taylor," he said, looking from Lauren to me. "Is something wrong? I didn't expect for you to be greeting us as soon as we returned…"
I glanced over at Lauren, wondering what to do, but got my answer when she suddenly grabbed Sasuke by the wrist and dragged him away with her, shushing him when he began to question her actions. The two stopped a couple feet from Itachi and I, and, drawing a final deep breath, I turned back to Itachi.
"Taylor," he said, and grabbed my hands, looking me in the eye with concern. "Is this about that letter you sent?"
I nodded, my chest constricting with worry as I continued to stare Itachi in the eyes.
"Whatever it is, you can tell me," he said after a moment, squeezing my hands reassuringly. And in that moment, with one swift burst of confidence, I opened my mouth.
"Itachi, I'm pregnant…!"
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
I'M BACK :D IT'S BACK. WE'RE BACK.
YESSSS.
Like, literally I finished up my homework for the weekend and had the inspiration to write this first chapter. I don't have the long term story line planned out at all yet (to be completely honest) but I know what's happening the next few chapters so that's all I really need.
But I'm seriously so happy though! And I hope you guys are too! :D
Hopefully, I've still got a fair amount of people carrying onto this final part of the saga, because I really love all you guys *hug* You're what inspire me to continue writing through tough times.
Tough times, you say? Well yes, besides school, my father recently passes away after battling brain cancer for 20 months. Sad, yes - but I'm doing pretty good, so don't worry too much! lol
Anyway, I don't really have much more to say! I hope you guys are sticking around and are just as excited as me!
See you next time!
Oh oh oh! And if anyone wants to make fanart or anything than I'll definitely consider using it as the cover photo for the story! If not, then I'll just have to find a good picture :P
PLEASE REVIEW :D