I DO NOT OWN INUYASHA!

CHAPTER 34

Chiharu, Izumi, and Takashi stood listening to Lord Sesshomaru speak. Shippo had been sent to play in his room with one of the young maids until the tailor arrived. Inuyasha looked through a stack of papers Chiharu had brought for Sesshomaru to look over. The neko had raised her eyebrows when Sesshomaru had handed them to the hanyo. Their lord had then proceeded to tell them about how he was an uke and that Inuyasha had taken him as his mate, thus making the hanyo the new Lord of the Western Lands.

Izumi smiled down at Sesshomaru. "It's about time you took a mate. And how wonderful that it is Lord Inuyasha. Your father would be pleased."

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow. "You knew?"

"Of course I knew. I have cared for you since the day you were born. I made a vow to your father that when the time came, I would help you deliver your own children and care for them as well."

Sesshomaru felt an unfamiliar emotion well inside him. "I would have no one else help me care for my children, Izumi." He absentmindedly rubbed his belly and frowned. "Help me deliver though?"

She nodded. "After your first heat, your father had me visit the demon Lord of the Southern Lands. His mate is an uke. I learned to be your midwife. Your father thought it would be best to have someone you trust know how to aide you. So that you won't have the added stress of having a stranger in your birthing room."

Sesshomaru felt his face warm. He hadn't even thought of the actual birth until that moment. "That was wise of him."

"Your father was a wise man." Sesshomaru could only nod to that.

"My Lord, if I may ask. Will I continue to serve as your groom or will my duties now fall to Lord Inuyasha?" The man, Takashi, spoke in a quiet voice.

"You serve the Lord of the Castle, Takashi. It will likely take Inuyasha a while to get used to it, but you will serve him."

Takashi bowed. "Yes, My Lord."

Inuyasha had signed all but one of the forms. He pulled a paper from the stack and gave the signed ones to Sesshomaru. "Those are fine but I have a question about this one."

Chiharu bowed. "What is the question, Lord Inuyasha?"

"All it says is a request to pay a mason that needs to be hired. Hire a mason for what? What job will the mason be doing?"

Chiharu gave a sour sort of smile. "Lord Sesshomaru trusts me to do any outside hiring that needs to be done."

"Well, I'm not Sesshomaru. If I'm going to allow a stranger into this castle I want to know what he is coming in for." His eyes flashed and Sesshomaru winced at a flash of anger. "Look at me like at again, neko, and I will rip out your eyes and feed them to you."

The woman narrowed her eyes and bowed her head. "The smaller of the two hot springs on the east wall has a leak in the drainage system. A mason is needed for the repair."

"Was that so hard? Is it necessary for the repairs to be done now?"

"The leak is causing the area around the hot spring to flood and make it unusable. It is the hot spring the castle employees use to bathe."

"Alright. From now on, put the reason for an outside hire on the request forms. I want to approve all hires." He signed the paper and handed it to Sesshomaru.

Sesshomaru had looked over the others and nodded before handing them all to Chiharu. "These are routine payments for ongoing services and supplies." He turned a smile on Inuyasha. "Typical monthly payments."

Inuyasha nodded and sat back. "I know it will likely be a burden, but I want a written report of all of your responsibilities and duties by the end of the week. I'll decide what you can continue to do on your own and what I want you to bring to me before they are done."

"Lord Sesshomaru has given me free rein of making household decisions. He has only asked to approve any payments that need to be made."

"I'm not Sesshomaru. I am Lord now. And if you talk back to me again you will find yourself out of a job. I don't give a fuck how long you have loyally worked for Sesshomaru. And if you don't learn to school your face so you aren't looking at me like I disgust you, I will relieve you of that burden by banishing you from this castle."

Chiharu grit her teeth and bowed deeply. "As you wish, my Lord. My apologies." She turned on her heel and left.

Sesshomaru lifted an eyebrow when he heard Izumi snicker. "Is something funny?"

The woman smiled broadly. "It's just about time someone put that woman in her place."

Sesshomaru frowned. "What do you mean?"

Izumi cleared her throat. "Forgive me, my Lord, for saying so, I know you have put your trust in her, and she does her job well, but she is a very rude woman. She believes that because she is head of the household the rest of us are her personal servants to do her bidding when she demands something done. She has fired three maids this past year alone."

Sesshomaru turned to look at Inuyasha. "You're Lord now." He pulled up the blanket Izumi had brought him and settled back into the mound of pillows, closing his eyes. "You handle this. I'm tired."

Inuyasha smiled and gave him a light, playful shove. "Thanks a lot. You're the one that hired her."

"The woman is good at her job, my Lord. She keeps things in the castle running smoothly and works well with the outside suppliers. She just has a habit of speaking to other castle employees as if they are beneath her."

"I'll speak to her about it. And she will no longer have the power to fire others. I want you two to tell the others here to report to me if he abuses them in any way. I won't have that happening in my castle. She will treat everyone with the respect they deserve or I'll demote her to stable mucker and give her job to someone else."

It was Sesshomaru's turn to snicker. "Stable mucker? You're cruel." He turned to Izumi. "Who did he fire?"

"The Yuki sisters. The first because she refused to be Chiharu's personal groom. The other two because they had the audacity to complain about their sister losing her job."

"Why wasn't this brought to me? The sisters have been in employ of this castle since my father was alive." Sesshomaru sat up, a concerned look on his face. "Where did they go? Do you know?"

Izumi sighed. "The tailor in town took pity on them and took them in. They have been doing odd jobs in the village and helping on the farms."

Inuyasha had been watching Sesshomaru during the exchange. It was very subtle, but he could see the distress in his mate's eyes. "Takashi. Go to the village and bring the sister back with you please. I think Sesshomaru and the children will need their own personal servants." Sesshomaru turned to him and he could see the relief in his eyes. "If Chiharu bitches about it, tell her to come talk to me."

Takashi bowed. "At once, my Lord." He left the room, closing the door silently.

"That is very kind of you, Lord Inuyasha. Your father took the sisters in when they were little girls. Their parents were killed, leaving them alone and defenseless. They grew up with Sesshomaru. They are very loyal to him."

Inuyasha shook his head in annoyance and stood, stretching his back. "Chiharu needs a lesson in remembering that she herself is a hired servant of this castle." He bent and kisses Sesshomaru on the forehead. "I'm going to have a guard show me around and tell me about the security. You can decide what to do with the Yuki sisters."

Sesshomaru smiled. "Alright. Don't be gone too long."

"I won't." Sesshomaru watched him leave and leaned back again with a sigh, burrowing under the blanket again.

"He seems to be taking well to being Lord." Izumi sat near Sesshomaru and gently stroked his hair. "How are you taking to being mated?"

Sesshomaru closed his eyes. "Better now than I was at first. I was angry. It was an accident." He sighed and let go of his final worry. "I didn't know how he would react to suddenly being Lord. But it seems he will be good at it. Honestly, I think him becoming my mate is the best thing that ever happened to me." He felt a tear roll down his cheek. He couldn't help the emotions that suddenly overwhelmed him when Izumi pulled him into her arms and held him. She hadn't held him since he was a very small child.

Izumi rocked the man she still thought of as her own child and let him cry. She hadn't seen him express emotion since well before his father had died. It didn't last long before he calmed and just lay with his head on her lap. "How long has it been since you have cried, Sessy?"

He gave a small laugh. "You are the only person who has ever called me that."

She pinched his ear. "I asked you a question."

"I don't know. Since I was a child. I have since I was mated but that was because of Inuyasha. This was just me."

Izumi smiled. "He does seem to feel things intensely."

"You have no idea. It can be overwhelming."

"I felt the same way when Takashi and I first mated. It is difficult enough feeling your own emotions at times. But add in those of another person," She shook her head. "It can be very difficult at first." She smiled and laid a gentle hand over Sesshomaru's where it lay protectively on his belly. "Especially when you add in the changes your body is currently going through."

"I still don't quite believe there is anything in there. I know that there is, because that's what happens when one is newly mated, and Inuyasha says he can small the baby. And the sickness is pure hell. But I just don't…I don't know."

"You just don't feel it yet?" When he nodded she gathered his hair and slowly began to play with it, like she did to calm him as a child. "I felt the same with my first. It wasn't quite real for me until the first time I felt that little flutter inside of me."

Sesshomaru frowned and looked up at her. "Flutter?"

"The first time I felt the baby moving. When it is big enough, you will first feel it as a little flutter. It's a strange feeling. But you will feel it a few times a day at first. As it grows, you will feel it more and more. And stronger. Until it feels like it is using your insides for combat practice."

"That sounds unpleasant."

"It can be. Physically anyways. But those kicks let you know that your child is growing strong. And that knowledge is worth any pain you might feel."

"You make it sound like such a wonderful thing."

"It is. You will see. And then the baby will be born. And you will love it more than you have ever loved anything in your life. And then you will want to have another one."

Sesshomaru laughed. "Let's see how well I can handle one of them first, shall we?"

She finished braiding his hair and set it aside. "You are doing well with the little kitsune."

"He's mature for his age. He has had to grow up quickly being with Inuyasha. Which isn't Inuyasha's fault. He's done the best he can for the kit."

"I'm sure he has. He is healthy and happy."

"And small for his age. Poor thing. Inuyasha eats like a human. He didn't know that Shippo needs a lot to eat. The kit never told him."

"Well, you know. He will be well cared for here."

"I know. You know what he needs better than I do."

"Sesshomaru, you are going to be a wonderful father."

He smiled. "Inuyasha calls me a mother."

"Well, technically, yes. But I thought you might prefer "father.'" She smiled widely when Sesshomaru blushed and turned his face away. "But it's your choice."

"I think it's sweet when Inuyasha says it. It's very odd."

"He's your mate. He will be able to say things to you that if anyone else said you would likely rip their face off."

He chuckled darkly. "Oh yes. The face ripping will happen if anyone else calls me mother. But Inuyasha would likely get their first."

"That would be his protective instincts. From what little I have observed, they are very strong."

"Yes. But oddly enough he doesn't need to hunt for me."

"I noticed. In that respect he has been calm. Takashi was almost feral in needing to hunt for me. All three times I have been pregnant so far."

"I remember." He looked up at her. "So far?"

"Of course. We are still young. You didn't think we were finish having children did you?" When he just shrugged she gave his chest an affectionate pat. "We have actually been talking about having another with my next heat."

"I would like that, Izumi. It would give my child someone her age to play with."

"Her?"

He felt himself blush again. "I think it's a girl. I couldn't tell you why."

"Wishful thinking. I swore up and down that my first was a boy. But she is very much girl. And a girly girl at that. I went back and forth with the other two. One day I would feel it was a boy, the next a girl."

"I don't know what I want it to be."

"The child will be what it is. It won't matter to you either way. It is your child. You will love it fiercely."

"I know." They sat for a while in comfortable silence before he thought of something. "Izumi. Could I ask you something personal?"

"Of course. I'm practically your mother. You can ask me anything."

"You are my mother, Izumi. You may not have borne me, but you are my mother. Don't let anyone tell you differently."

She smiled and brushed away a tear. "What a lovely thing to say."

"I mean it."

"Ask your question, dear." She stroked his head as he flushed again.

"How do you keep from conceiving if you don't want another child with every heat?"

"Your father didn't tell you? I thought he taught you about mating."

"He did. From the Alpha point of view. And then what he could teach me about what being an uke meant."

"It's a simple thing. When the heat starts you drink a contraceptive tea. It prevents conception for that heat."

"That's it?"

"That's it."

"Where do I get the tea?"

"You don't need to worry about that. I will get you a supply after the baby is born. It's my job to take care of you."

He smiled and held her hand. "It's your job to care for the children, Izumi."

"You are one of my children. No matter how old you get, you will always be one of my children."

"I know. But you have Shippo to occupy your time. For the next few months at least."

"I have plenty of time to go around. Besides, Inuyasha just hired the Yuki sisters to help care for you and the children. They are wonderful with children. They cared for my three while I had other duties to attend. You are my focus, Sessy. At least until the baby is born. It is my job as your midwife to ensure yours and the child's health."

Sesshomaru smiled. "Inuyasha has that covered, trust me. He can smell that my health isn't where it needs to be and keeps urging me to eat and sleep."

"He's right. You do need to sleep." She touched the skin under his eyes. "You have shadows."

"I will. But I promised Inuyasha I would sit with Shippo while the tailor is here."

"I can go that."

"I know. But Inuyasha wants me to sit with him. And have a talk with him after. Then I will sleep." There was a knock on the door and Sesshomaru sat up quickly before the door opened.

A guard bowed. "The tailor is here, Lord Sesshomaru. Should I have her shown in?"

"Yes. And have someone fetch Shippo." The door closed and he sighed and rubbed his hands over his face. "This shouldn't take long."

"No." She touched his head again and stood, smoothing her kimono. "Will you want a quick lunch before you sleep?"

He smiled gratefully at her. "Please. Nothing too heavy. And could you bring me a cup of the tea Inuyasha gave you?"

"Of course. I sent to the village midwife for more of the tea since you are running low. How about some chicken soup?" At Sesshomaru's nod she prepared to leave. She stepped aside as Shippo bounced into the room followed by one of the young maids. "You may return to your duties. I will take over care of the kit after the tailor leaves." The maid bowed and she followed her from the room.