Elizabeth returned to New York until Meredith's due date was imminent, insisting that she didn't want to infringe on Derek and Meredith's time alone together before the babies were due to arrive. Having her there for the shower was an unexpected gift to both of them, and Meredith used the few days following to ask her mother-in-law every question she could think of that hadn't been sufficiently answered from books or her own medical knowledge.

Elizabeth returned to New York, promising to return closer to the due date, but was back in Seattle sooner than any of them had expected. Meredith had woken in the middle of the night wracked with contractions. Derek was sleeping soundly next to her and she breathed through her contractions, not wanting to wake him. But eventually, she could no longer convince herself that it was a false alarm and she nudged him awake.

"Derek," she murmured, and then squeezed her eyes shut to deal with the tightening in her lower body.

His eyes opened slowly.

"Mer?" he asked sleepily.

After that, everything was a blur. Meredith tried to push down her fear: it was earlier than either of them would have liked, but she knew that at seven months, the twins had a good chance at survival. Derek drove as though he was at Indy – too fast, she'd tell him later – and took advantage of his premium parking spot at the hospital, before coming around to help her out of the car.

Ordinarily, Meredith would have felt guilty about being pushed through to the head of the line, but between the physical pain, and the more terrifying emotional trauma, she hardly noticed anyone else in the hospital, ignoring the room full of patients, the admitting nurse, and even fellow co-workers. Her eyes remained on Derek, relying on him to take charge while she focussed on the babies.

It wasn't long before she was in the maternity ward, and Dr. Briscombe was entering the room smiling at her encouragingly.

"Good morning," she greeted them.

"It's morning?" Meredith asked, panting.

"A little past three, actually," Lauren said, consulting her watch. "It seems that your boys are taking after the two of you in your schedules."

Despite this, the twins didn't seem to be in any hurry to arrive, and while they waited, Meredith urged Derek to call his mom. After Elizabeth had been informed, he stayed at Meredith's side, soothing and encouraging her. Hours passed and she told him to go home and get some sleep, after Lauren informed that they still had some way to go.

"I'm not leaving," Derek insisted stubbornly.

"Then at least go find an empty on-call room," Meredith urged him.

"No. I'm staying right here."

"Derek…"

"Meredith," he returned. "No."

She sighed, and paged a nurse; she asked for a cot to be brought in to the room.

"You worry too much," Derek grumbled when she insisted.

"Practice," Meredith told him.

Derek dozed off and on for a few hours, but gave up when Meredith kept letting out soft whimpers of pain.

"I'm sorry," she apologized.

Derek shook his head. "You have nothing to apologize for."

Meredith bit her lip. "It's so early, still."

"It's not that early," Derek argued. "And they're developing perfectly. They're going to be fine, Mer."

"I've just tried so hard, not to worry, and I was finally starting to feel like we've turned a corner and everything was going to happen the way it should be, and then this happens. It's too soon, Derek. It's too soon, and I can't imagine losing …"

"Shhh," he cut her off. "We're not going to lose them. Everything will be fine."

"You don't know that!" she snapped. "You thought that everything would be fine last time, but I knew. Didn't I?"

Derek sighed, but he sat up and inched off the cot before he moved over to her bed. "Move over," he said.

"What?"

"Meredith," he sighed. "Please."

She looked at him warily, but slid over enough to allow him room. He squeezed onto the bed beside her and wrapped his arms around her.

"I know you're scared," he said. "And I know that you think you know something that the rest of us don't. I know you think you feel something that we don't. But I feel something, too."

She looked up at him, her eyes still wary.

"I feel our babies," he said. He let her go and took her hands in his, sliding them down to her abdomen. When they were over their children, he kept his hands on top of hers and brought his mouth to her ear.

"They're there, Meredith. And they're safe, and in a few hours, they'll be here. They'll be small and they'll need some help for a while, but they're going to be just fine. They have a whole family waiting for them. Izzie and Alex are making sure everything is ready for them, and Cristina is sitting out in the waiting room. She was working all night, but she's waiting for our babies. George is on his way back in, and Bailey and the Chief are waiting for news, too. They're all here. Mom is probably halfway here by now, and my sisters have all left messages wishing us luck – yes, even Nancy – and I'm here, right beside you. Everything is going to be fine."

She sniffled. "I wish…"

"What?" he whispered.

She laughed. "It's kind of funny. My mom was not a baby person at all, but I kind of wish she was here. She wouldn't exactly be comforting, but she'd be reassuring in some way, I guess."

"She's here, too, Mer."

She laughed dryly. "In my heart, right? Ellis Grey didn't live in anyone's heart, Derek."

"No," he said. He kissed her temple. "She's in there. She's fighting against all of these emotional reasons you're coming up with. She's that little voice in your head saying that they're ready, Meredith. You are ready."

"You're not scared?" she asked him.

Derek smiled. "Only that we're going to take them home soon and I'll be their father."

"Oh, great!" she said. "I was thinking that you'd pick up my slack."

"We'll do it for each other," Derek said against her hairline.

Meredith didn't think that time could pass more slowly than it did during the long morning and afternoon after they'd arrived at Seattle Grace. Finally, in the early evening, Dr. Briscombe determined that Meredith had dilated enough to start pushing and she gripped Derek's hand in hers as she began.

Aidan arrived first, tiny and pink and with his father's dark hair sprinkled on his head. Ethan followed, with even less hair, but also less fuss than his brother. They were so small that Meredith's breath caught in her throat, and she insisted that Derek go with them. He looked torn but finally agreed and went to check on the boys. A few minutes later, he was back.

"They're doing okay, Mer," he told her and repeated himself until she nodded in understanding and started breathing normally again. He reached for her hand and curled his fingers around hers. "They're fine, Mer. They're okay. And they're beautiful."

"I want to hold them," she said. "I didn't get to."

"Soon," he promised her.

"Are they taking them up to NICU?" Meredith asked fearfully, imaging her tiny babies inside incubators.

"Just to monitor them right now," he answered. He smoothed back her hair with his free hand and kissed her forehead.

"Derek, I want to see them. I need to… I need to."

"I know," he answered her. He squeezed her hand. "I'm going to find Lauren, okay?"

Meredith nodded. "Derek…"

"I'll be right back," he assured her. He disentangled his fingers from hers and left her side momentarily.

Every time he came back without the babies, Meredith's heart sank. But Derek reassured her that they were doing well, and urged her to rest, a request she found completely ridiculous. Derek moved between his wife and children over and over again, trying to reassure Meredith and be at her side as much as possible. Izzie and Alex took over care of the twins when Dr. Briscombe was paged to another patient, and he made arrangements with them to bring Meredith to the babies as soon as she was able to come.

He returned to the room she'd been moved to and found her asleep. He collapsed in the chair beside her and soon drifted off himself, only to be awakened a short time later when Meredith reached out to comb her fingers through his hair.

"Hi," he greeted her sleepily.

"Derek?" she asked, and he smiled softly, trying to reassure her. "Are they…?"

"They're upstairs," Derek answered her. "With Alex and Izzie. Do you want to go up there?"

She nodded tearfully, and he felt a pang of guilt and sorrow that her friends were there with their sons, and she had yet to see more than a glimpse of them. He helped Meredith out of bed and into a wheelchair, then took her up to the NICU where their boys were waiting. When they were gloved and gowned, they entered the unit.

At the first sight of her babies, Meredith burst into tears and it took Derek a few minutes to calm her down.

"They're so little," she moaned.

"Their weight isn't so bad, Mer," Alex offered.

"I can't hold them?" she asked.

"We're monitoring them," Izzie said regretfully. "But you can touch them."

Meredith nodded tearfully.

"I bet they won't be in there for long," Alex said. "They're strong. They're doing really well."

Meredith gave him a watery smile and Alex and Izzie excused themselves to give Meredith and Derek some time alone with the boys.

"Do you want to see their charts for yourself?" he asked her, unable to keep his eyes off of Aidan and Ethan.

"Not right now," Meredith murmured. "Right now, they're just… I can't think. I just want to feel them, Derek. I want to know that they're real, and they're ours and they're going to be okay. I think…" she swallowed. "I think that if I can just touch them…"

She reached into the first incubator and touched Ethan's soft skin.

"Derek," she breathed.

"I know," he agreed, watching, rapt.

"I love them," she said.

"I know. I know, Mer. I love them so much that it feels like my heart is going to burst."

"Yeah," she agreed. "That's exactly… yeah."

"They should be together," Meredith decided. "Remember the quints? They did so much better after we put them together. Aidan and Ethan should be together."

"Okay, Mer. We'll tell them."

She shivered and he moved closer to her and wrapped his arms around her. "They're okay, Mer. They're going to be okay."

After a minute, she leaned back against him and closed her eyes. He felt her relax. "Okay," she said.

The boys thrived together and as they gained weight and grew healthier, Meredith grew alternately more relaxed and worried as the date for them to go home came closer. As Derek had promised, Elizabeth arrived hours after the twins were born and after Derek had finally coaxed Meredith to sleep, she woke to find a bouquet of flowers with a card listing the names of all four Shepherd sisters on the table beside her bed. Elizabeth sat quietly across from her flipping through a magazine.

"That Lohan girl," she said, shaking her head. "Personally, I blame that mother of hers. A parasite if I ever saw one." She smiled at Meredith. "Congratulations, sweetheart." She got to her feet and approached Meredith's bed. "I saw the boys. They're absolutely gorgeous."

"They have Derek's hair," Meredith murmured proudly. "Well, kind of," she amended.

Elizabeth laughed. "It will grow in."

On the day that the twins were released from the hospital, Elizabeth stayed at the house so that Derek and Meredith could share the experience on their own, even though they both insisted that it would be anything but.

"We work in that hospital," Derek reminded her. "Half the staff will turn out to send us on our way."

"It's a hospital, Derek," Elizabeth laughed. "Surely they have better things to do?"

"You don't know Seattle Grace," Meredith had said, only half-joking.

But in the end, Elizabeth stayed at the house to prepare dinner and Derek and Meredith had brought the boys home without her.

Over the days and weeks that followed, Meredith was grateful for Elizabeth's presence. Elizabeth was patient and more than willing to answer Meredith's many questions. Derek spent as much time as he could at home, even taking a short leave from work so that he could spend time with his new family. Derek, too, seemed grateful to have his mom staying with them while they adjusted to being a family.

He'd just settled Aidan into his bassinette when he turned to find his mom standing in the doorway to the nursery.

"Finally," he breathed, moving away from his son. He met his mom at the door and she smiled at him.

"Come have some tea with me," she said, and he followed her down to the kitchen.

They sat across from each other at the kitchen table and Elizabeth poured them each a cup of tea.

"I'm going home on Saturday," she announced. Derek stared at her.

"Meredith knows," Elizabeth continued. "It's time. You need time alone as a family."

"Mom, it's fine. We love having you here."

"I know that," she said patiently, giving him a smile. "But it's time to take away the training wheels."

He frowned. "I just… Meredith…"

"She's fine, Derek. She knew it was going to happen sooner or later. She's a little nervous, but she'll be fine. She's ready for this. She's a good mother."

"I know that," he said proudly. He did. He'd seen the change in his wife; how she'd gone from being deathly afraid of doing something wrong, to being something of a pro at juggling the demands of the twins.

"I know she's ready," Derek clarified. "I'm just not sure if I am."

Elizabeth looked surprised and Derek sighed and looked down at his teacup.

"I don't have a clue what I'm doing," he admitted. "I don't know how to be a father."

"You seem to be doing just fine," Elizabeth assured him.

"I'm good at faking it," he said.

"Well, just keep doing that," Elizabeth advised. He nearly choked on his tea.

"Excuse me?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "What's that they say? Fake it 'til you make it?"

"Mom!"

"Darling, I hate to burst your bubble, but you're not going to be the best at everything you do with no effort. I know that everything has always come easy to you, but it's hard work being a parent. Half of the time you're flying blind. You do the best that you can. You do what you think is best. You love them and you support them, and you try to be fair and you try to protect them. It's not a science."

"Great," Derek muttered. "Science, I know."

"And your children, you love," Elizabeth smiled. "That's the most important thing. You just love them. You'll figure out the rest as you go along."

Derek shook his head. "How did you do it? With five of us?"

"I don't know," Elizabeth said, shaking her head. They both laughed.

"Especially after…" Derek continued.

"After your father died?" Elizabeth guessed.

"Yeah."

"Well, it helped that Nancy and Kathleen were almost grown. But I had a lot of people around me who loved all of you like you were their own children. I had a lot of support. You know that saying, that it takes a village?"

Derek nodded.

"More like a city when you have five of them, but it's not based on a lie, Derek."

He sighed.

"You aren't alone out here," Elizabeth mused. "I am leaving you in good hands."

Derek frowned. "What? Her friends?"

"They're your friends, too," Elizabeth said.

"No… they tolerate me."

"Nonsense," Elizabeth scoffed. "They look up to you. Okay, maybe not Cristina, but the others do. George and Izzie, they do. And Miranda has a grudging respect for you. Richard Webber has always had a soft spot for you, ever since you met him. You have a family here, Derek. You and Meredith, you have a village. And don't forget, you have Mark."

Derek made a face. "Not anymore."

"Don't be so quick to dismiss him, Derek."

"How can you forgive him?" he asked his mother.

"How can you not?" she asked. "You don't forgive someone to dismiss what they did, Derek. That's not it. But you need to forgive him for yourself. Do you want your boys to grow up feeling like a part of their father will always stay with Mark Sloane and never understand why? You've got to get it back, Derek. You have to take away the hold he has on you and just … forgive him. That doesn't mean that you have to hold him in the same regard that you once did, but maybe he can be something else. He knows you better than anyone else here, except for Meredith. And he was there. He was there when Meredith drowned, and he was there when you lost your girl. He may be selfish and arrogant, but he was there."

Derek sighed. "I'll think about it."

"That's something," Elizabeth smiled, taking what she could get. She took a sip of her tea. "I feel completely comfortable returning home. You and Meredith and the boys need time alone now. You need to be a family. It's time."

Derek sighed. "I'll miss you."

Elizabeth laughed. "I should hope so! But Meredith promised that you'd come and visit as soon as the boys are old enough, so I'll expect you at Christmas, is that understood?"

Derek laughed. "We'll see."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Oh, Meredith will convince you."

He shook his head. "Probably," he agreed.

Elizabeth fixed him with a look.

"Definitely," he sighed resignedly.

As promised by Meredith, at Christmas, the new family travelled to Brooklyn to spend Christmas with the rest of the Shepherd clan, having promised their Seattle family that they'd be back in time for New Year's.

Derek's sisters hovered over the twins, as most of their children were long past the infant stage. Even Nancy seemed much less combative than she'd been during their last visit, even though she spoke primarily to her brother and steered clear of Meredith as much as possible. Still, she was polite and respectful, and Meredith felt grateful for that.

On Christmas Eve, after they'd settled Aidan and Ethan down, they lay together in the dark, listening to the sound of little feet creeping down the stairs.

Derek laughed. "They don't know that Nancy is on watchdog duty this year."

Meredith shook her head. "In a few years, the twins will be down there with their cousins."

"Yeah," he smiled in the dark, closing his eyes.

"And maybe a little sister," Meredith murmured sleepily. Derek's eyes snapped open.

"What?" he rasped. "Mer? Are you….?"

"What?" she asked. "No! No, Derek… I just… well, it's a lot of testosterone, isn't it?" she asked. "I was just thinking that maybe… in a couple of years, when the boys are bigger and a little more independent, maybe…"

"Seriously?" he asked her. He sat up in bed.

"Maybe," she answered noncommittally. "Can we talk about it later?"

"Yeah," he said happily, sliding back down into bed beside her. She snuggled against him.

"Later," he said.

"Soon," she amended. "We'll just … talk."

"We'll talk," he agreed. "Talking is good."

Meredith smiled and closed her eyes. "We'll talk."

Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed and enjoyed this story. I had a wonderful -- albeit sometimes frustrating -- time writing it, and I appreciate all of your encouragement and thought-provoking comments.