A/N:Here we are at the penultimate chapter of this saga. I hope you enjoy the little surprise that's hidden here for you all. Thanks again for all of your reviews and support.

A huge hug and thank you to my bestest beta, Jewels. None of this would be possible without your unfailing support, patience and enthusiasm. *hugs* You're the best!

Sonographic

The next few days were thankfully devoid of the constant engagement party phone calls from Emily Gilmore. Lorelai was even more grateful for their absence than she usually would have been. The symptoms of her pregnancy were beginning to rear their ugly heads and Lorelai was suddenly spending more time in the bathroom than any other room in the house.

Early Monday morning, Luke was once again awakened by Lorelai springing out of bed and dashing from the room. Concerned by the increased frequency of her visits to the porcelain gods, Luke padded after her and waited anxiously outside the door, just as he had every time her stomach had turned on her that weekend. Several moments later, she emerged, her skin pale and her eyes sallow.

Luke reached for her, feeling helpless as she shrugged away. "Lorelai," he choked out, "Are you sure this is normal?"

Lorelai turned back to him, trying to smile when she noticed the fear in his eyes. She went to him, the faint echo of amusement playing on her lips. "Haven't you ever heard of morning sickness before? It's common during the first months of pregnancy."

Luke sighed. "I know that. But it's happening all day long. You've barely eaten anything all weekend. You even turned down a cheeseburger... and coffee. That's not like you." He reached out and brushed a stray curl from her cheek. He kept his hand in place, his thumb grazing her cheek as he studied her, worry etched across his furrowed brow.

Lorelai moved in and kissed him lightly on the lips. "This is worse than what I had with Rory, but I'm sure it'll pass. Little Hector must be a pickier eater."

Luke rolled his eyes at the name. She'd been throwing out bizarre suggestions all weekend. "You sure you're okay?"

Lorelai nodded. "You worry too much." She took his hand and pulled him back toward the bedroom. "Come on, let's snuggle before it's time to get up for real."

xxxxx

By Wednesday, Lorelai's list of foods that made her want to hurl had grown large enough to be a category on The Family Feud. In addition to cheeseburgers and coffee, her list now included: French fries, bacon, pancakes, and waffles. The only thing she could keep down for longer than 5 minutes was the thick oatmeal that Luke had managed to convince her to try.

Luke arrived at the Dragonfly Inn early to pick her up for their first doctor's appointment. He expected to find her bustling around like usual, laughing with Sookie and mocking Michel. Instead, he found her slumped in the chair behind her desk, her chin resting on the palm of her hand.

"Lorelai?" he inquired softly, startled when she suddenly burst into tears, a torrent of words flooding from her lips.

"Oh Luke, I'm so glad you're here. Michel hates all the guests, Sookie keeps calling to change the dinner menu, I haven't had coffee since Friday, Rory has barely been home, I can't eat any of the foods that I like without doing an Exorcist impersonation and now I have to pee really badly but I can't."

Luke blinked. "Why can't you pee?" he asked stupidly.

"Because of the sonogram," she wailed, grabbing a Kleenex and blowing her nose noisily.

Luke looked around the empty room hoping to find the answer to how to deal with Lorelai's yo-yo-ing emotions. When no answer was forthcoming, he strode to her and helped her up, pulling her into his arms. She sobbed into his shoulder and Luke rubbed her back lightly as she gradually calmed down.

"I'm sorry, I'm such a mess." She grabbed another Kleenex and dabbed at her face. Then she turned back to him, smiling. "We should go," she said brightly. "We have a date to meet our baby." She tugged on his hand and led him through the lobby. "I'll be back in a bit, Michel," she called out without stopping.

xxxxx

"Are you ready to meet your baby?" Dr. Ferguson asked.

Lorelai looked lovingly at Luke, her eyes brimming with tears again as he grasped her hand tightly and returned her look of affection. She nodded, her voice breaking as she said, "We're ready."

Dr. Ferguson smiled. "This may be cold." She squeezed blue gel onto Lorelai's belly and pressed the wand of the sonogram machine to it, moving it around until she found the correct position. An image appeared on the screen and a funny swishing sound filled the room.

"That's your baby." Dr. Ferguson pointed to a tiny, grey image on the screen. "It's still too small to see more than a mass of cells, but the baby looks normal and healthy so far."

Lorelai and Luke both stared at the screen, fixated on the image of the tiny being they had created together. Luke's own eyes brimmed with tears as he leaned over and kissed Lorelai, his love for her stronger than ever.

The doctor continued to move the wand, listening closely to the heartbeat. "The sound you hear is your baby's heartbeat," she explained. Luke held his breath for a moment, captivated by the sound. Dr. Ferguson suddenly frowned and Lorlelai gripped Luke's hand more firmly.

"What's wrong?" she asked frantically.

Dr. Ferguson shook her head. "Nothing is wrong. I just thought I heard a second heart beat." She pulled her stethoscope to her ears and pressed the drum to Lorelai's stomach.

Luke and Lorelai exchanged a confused glance as they watched the doctor listen from many angles. Finally she pulled back, turned off the sonogram machine and turned to them, smiling.

The abrupt silence was deafening and Lorelai felt the need to break it immediately. "A second heartbeat? Does that mean... I mean... am I having twins?" Lorelai's eyes were wide and she felt Luke squeeze her hand again.

Dr. Ferguson's smile broadened. "Well it's very faint, so I can't be 100% certain, but I'm pretty sure I did hear a second heartbeat, and that combined with your severe morning sickness would indicated that yes, you are having twins."

"Twins?" Luke's voice sounded distant. "As in two babies?" He looked at Lorelai, awe stamped across his face.

Lorelai laughed. "Two babies," she confirmed as the doctor slipped from the room. "Oh my God. I don't have enough arms! How am I going to carry, feed and change two babies? I remember being pretty frazzled with just Rory."

"Relax," Luke said softly, releasing her hand and rubbing her back. "You're not alone this time. We'll figure it out together."

"Together," Lorelai echoed smiling up at him. "Wow. Twins."

"Yeah. Wow."

xxxxx

The ride back to town was quiet as they both tried to process the news. They kept glancing at each other, beaming, and looking away. Finally, Lorelai whispered, "I've been thinking about our wedding date."

"Me too," Luke replied. "I think we should get married this summer, before the baby –" he hesitated, "babies, are born."

"What do you think of having it on July 13th?" Lorelai asked softly.

Luke took a sharp breath. "You want to get married on my mother's birthday?"

Lorelai nodded. "I think it would be a nice way to acknowledge your parents... plus, it's on a Wednesday, which will drive my mother nuts. What do you think?"

Luke manoeuvred the truck up the driveway to the Dragonfly, his eyes focused on where he was going. Finally he pulled to a stop and turned to her. "I think that would be nice." He brushed his lips over hers gently. "Thank you."

Before Lorelai could respond, her phone rang and she answered it, not bothering to check the caller id. "Hello?"

"Lorelai," she heard Emily's sharp voice respond. Apparently the freeze-out was over. "The engagement party is in two days and none of your Stars Hollow friends have RSVPed. Are they coming? I need to tell the caterers the final numbers."

Lorelai sighed and mouthed Emily to Luke. "Yes, they are coming, Mom. They RSVPed to me."

"Well, why would they do that? You're not the one throwing the party."

"I know, Mom. But I'm the one they know, so they told me. I was going to call you." Lorelai slid out of the truck and blew a kiss to Luke before walking to the front steps of the Dragonfly and sitting down.

"When? When were you going to call me Lorelai? When ducks fly?"

"You mean when pigs fly? 'Cause technically ducks can fly. They have wings."

"Lorelai." Emily sounded exasperated.

"I'm sorry, Mom. I was going to call you today. Luke and I set our wedding date."

"You did? When? Oh, I hope it's not too late to add it to the engagement announcement."

"We decided today. Just before you called, actually."

"Well?" Emily asked impatiently.

"Well, what?"

"When are you getting married?"

"Oh, July 13th." Lorelai bit her lip the keep from laughing as she heard her mother flipping through her calendar. Wait for it, she thought.

"But that's a Wednesday!"

"Yes, it is."

"But people don't get married on Wednesday's, Lorelai. They get married on the weekend."

"Luke and I aren't people, Mom. And that's the day we chose. Live with it."

Emily sighed. "I have to go, there's another call for me. We'll discuss this further on Friday... that's another 'normal' wedding day."

"Oh, goody."

"What did you say?"

"Nothing. Bye, Mom."

xxxxx

"I just don't understand why they have to rush this engagement," Emily said impatiently as she straightened Richard's tie for the party that night.

"They're in love, Emily. Don't you remember what it was like when we were engaged? I couldn't wait to marry you." Richard pulled his wife into his arms and kissed her tenderly.

Emily kissed him back, and nuzzled against his neck. "I couldn't wait to marry you either, Richard. But still, something seems off about this. July 13th is less than 2 months away. That's hardly enough time to plan a decent ceremony. And that's another thing. Who gets married on a Wednesday? I'll be the laughing stock of the DAR."

Richard hugged her more tightly. "My parents were married on a Thursday. I hardly think it matters. It's their day; they should plan it how they like."

"But, Richard, I'm sure that if Lorelai has her way, the wedding will be crass and unconventional. We can't let that happen."

"Don't intervene," Richard warned, "Remember what happened last time you tried that? We nearly lost our daughter for good."

Emily scoffed. "I still think a two month engagement is ridiculous. If I didn't know better I'd think they were rushing things because the fool got her pregnant..." she trailed off, the puzzle pieces in her brain clicking into place. "Wait. Maybe she is pregnant."

"What?" Richard roared as memories of Lorelai's pregnancy with Rory flooded his mind.

"It makes sense. They've only been back together a short time, and now they're engaged. And Lorelai has been acting strange lately. Pregnancy hormones could account for the way she attacked me at dinner last week. I mean, seriously, all I did was tell her we wanted to give her a gift for her wedding. She didn't have to bite my head off."

"She certainly did overreact, but I don't see how that is evidence of pregnancy," Richard said reasonably as he slipped his suit jacket over his arms and buttoned it into place.

"Maybe not, but I'm going to watch them more closely. There's definitely something up," Emily stated as she marched from the room.

xxxxx

The doorbell rang, and Emily peeked into the foyer, hoping to see her daughter and Luke. Instead, she saw several people from Stars Hollow: a woman with pig-tails whom she vaguely remembered was called Gypsy, a short blond woman who appeared to be with the tall gentleman wearing a top hat and sunglasses, and a heavier set woman Emily had met a few times... Patsy or something.

Emily plastered a smile to her face and walked toward her guests. "Hello there. I'm afraid Lorelai and Luke haven't arrived yet. Please come in."

"Thanks. This is a nice place you got here," the blond woman said in a loud, husky voice. "Have you met my Morey?" She gestured to the tall man.

"I don't believe I've had the pleasure." Emily held out her hand reluctantly and the man took it, shaking enthusiastically.

"Oh, Babette, look at the piano." Patty called, pointing to the room on their right. Babette and Morey wandered over to examine it, leaving Emily alone in the foyer with Gypsy.

"It's nice to see you again, Gypsy," Emily said demurely.

"Uh, yeah. Thanks for inviting me."

"There are drinks in the other room. Please help yourself," Emily offered.

"Thanks, Mrs. Gilmore." Gypsy wandered off, just as the doorbell rang and Luke and Lorelai stepped inside, followed by a lanky man in a misfitted suit and a shy, pleasant looking woman.

Luke looked thoroughly annoyed and Emily thought Lorelai looked rather tired. She added it to the mental list of evidence she was formulating and stepped forward to greet them.

"Oh good, you're here. Your other friends have already arrived," Emily whispered.

"Thank you, Mom. It's nice to see you too." The man behind Luke cleared his throat loudly, causing Luke to grimace. "Oh, Mom, this is Kirk and Lulu." Lorelai stepped aside so they could come forward.

"Thank... you... for... having... us... in... your... beautiful... home..." Kirk stammered.

"What's wrong with him? Is he having a fit?" Emily whispered to Lorelai.

Lorelai bit back another giggle. "No. I think he memorized a script. It's Kirk. He's weird like that. Just go with it."

Emily turned back to Kirk. "You're most welcome."

Kirk gestured to Lulu. "This is Lulu. She's my girlfriend," he said proudly.

"Very nice to meet you." Emily was now trying not to laugh. This man was certainly very strange.

"You too, Mrs. Gilmore. Your home is very impressive. My students would be fascinated," Lulu told her.

"Students?"

"Lulu is an elementary school teacher," Kirk answered for her, now standing abnormally close to Emily. "I got the starring role in her next play. Little Tommy Wilson didn't stand a chance."

Lulu cringed visibly. "Kirk, he has asthma."

"I still won." Kirk crossed his arms and pouted.

Emily shot Lorelai a desperate look. This man was starting to scare her.

Lorelai merely smiled, grabbed Luke's hand and wandered off in search of hors d'oeuvres, leaving Emily to suffer through several more moments of awkward conversation. Lorelai popped a stuffed mushroom cap into her mouth, relieved that her babies seemed to have decided that food was acceptable again. Luke scowled in disgust as she tried to speak with her mouth full. "Theshe are delishush."

Luke was about to respond, when a sudden commotion in the foyer drew his attention.

"Of course I was invited, you dimwit. Why would I be here if I wasn't invited? Who are you? The invitation police?" Lorelai spun around at the familiar voice and nearly choked on the remains of her mushroom cap when she saw Paris staring down a very terrified server.

"Did you know she was coming?" Luke whispered.

Lorelai shook her head, and swallowed. "Not a clue. Rory must have invited her."

Just then, Paris spotted Lorelai and walked over to them. "Oh, Lorelai, good. At least there is someone here with half a brain."

"It's nice to see you too, Paris," Lorelai replied patiently.

Paris was craning her neck, looking for someone. "Isn't Rory here yet? She told me she'd be here at 6. It's 6:10."

"I'm sure she's on her way," Lorelai assured her. She spotted Kirk and Lulu heading in their direction. "Hey, Paris. Have you met Kirk? Kirk is from Stars Hollow. Kirk, this is Paris."

Kirk held out his hand. "Pleased to meet you."

As Paris shook Kirk's hand, Lorelai grabbed Luke's arm and veered him away. They walked toward the sitting area and quickly changed direction when they spotted Aunt Totsy. After several near misses, they managed to avoid being Totsied and Lorelai sunk onto the couch while Luke wandered off in search of beverages. She looked around the room watching with an odd sense of surrealism as people from her Stars Hollow world mingled with the rich fuddy-duddies of her parent's world.

On one side of the room, Babette, Patty and Morey were chatting enthusiastically with a crowd of DAR ladies. Whatever Patty was saying must have been risqué, because they all looked scandalized. Lorelai giggled and shifted her gaze. Paris was still chatting with Kirk and Lulu. Well, really, Paris seemed to be ranting while Kirk and Lulu listened with interest. Something colourful caught her eye, and Lorelai turned her head to see Gypsy laughing as she watched Ellen, the youngest daughter of the Doner family attempt to juggle 5 balls at once. The Doner's had been friends of the Gilmore's for years, and Lorelai had always liked Ellen because she was funny and interesting.

Lorelai was startled out of her reverie by someone flopping onto the couch. She turned to see Sookie settling in beside her. "Oh good, you made it."

"Yup. Jackson and I just arrived. Our sitter cancelled at the last minute but we managed to get a hold of Jackson's mom, so we dropped them off on the way. Jackson went looking for Luke. We can't stay long though, Martha needs to be fed every 2 hours."

"I'm just glad you came," Lorelai told her honestly. "It wouldn't be the same without my best friend here."

"Are you kidding? I wouldn't miss your engagement party. I'm so happy for you. Oh, have you set a date yet?" Sookie practically vibrated with every word.

"Actually, we have. We decided earlier this week. July 13th."

"Isn't that his mom's birth date?" Sookie whispered.

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah."

"Awwwwww," Sookie squealed. "That is so sweet. You two are just so romantic, I can't stand it." She clapped her hands

Lorelai laughed and grabbed a shrimp puff from the server walking past. "Thanks, Sook. You've always been our strongest supporter. I was wondering, will you be my Matron of Honour?"

Sookie yelped, drawing attention from everyone else in the room. She took a deep breath and said calmly, "Of course I will."

"Thank you." Lorelai grinned and shoved the shrimp puff into her mouth. She was happily chewing when her stomach suddenly lurched. "I'll be right back," she managed to mutter to Sookie before jumping up and sprinting to the bathroom. Apparently her reprieve from morning sickness was over almost before it had begun

TBC