(A/N: Hey there. Betcha all thought I'd died, right? Well think again. It's just I've been wroking myself silly on...DUN-DUN-DUN- my very own MANGA! -SQUEEEE!- Pretty soon, My website should be up and running so I'll be posting it online, as well as attempting to get it published.
On another note, in about a day or so, I shall be changing my pen name to Hisa-me Kurai, my nom de plum when I'm doing my manga, so if you're looking for my fics, now you know where t' go. And with out further adieu, READ ON!)
"Thanks for coming today, Dad." Mimiru said with an exasperated sigh as she collapsed into the chair. "I've only been away from work a about two weeks and I'm going completely nuts."
She reached up and pushed a stray strand of honey colored hair out of her eyes, glared menacingly at the nursery door a moment before offering a meek smile.
After ten months of pregnancy a week at the hospital and a week at home, she had no doubt of the love she held for the infants that slept upstairs - Duo's children, her children, their firsts - but there were moments, such as this scorching hot June day, and the night before, when she subconsciously wished the blasted things would develop some debilitating disease that would sever their vocal chords.
Hatake smiled sympathetically at his eldest daughter and pulled a chair over from the dining room table. Instead of sitting on it, though, he placed it in front of Mimiru and gestured for her to put up her feet. The petite woman smiled gratefully and obliged.
"No trouble at all, dear heart." he replied with a twinkle from his bright blue eyes. "Duo asked all of us to stop in when we could; it was the only way we could convince him to go deliver that shipment to Greece with Howard."
Mimiru's face went detached for a moment. She knew Duo was working for someone who had helped him out a great deal during war times and that he really enjoyed working with his hands…but that didn't prevent her from missing him terribly.
"I know that look." Hatake smiled, patting his daughter's hand, "If you get bluer, poor Mitsuki will think you've been hiding Yolohama jerseys in your closet (1)."
"What's up with the soccer reference?" a teasing voice asked, the owner of said voice dropping a bag of pastries into Mimiru's lap.
Snapping her head upwards, Mimiru cried:
"DUO! I thought your trip was extended through next week!"
Planting a light kiss on the tip of her nose, Duo smirked and replied, "Our flight got in early so Howard shipped me home early."
As if on cue, the baby monitor on the table began to crackle and a mournful wail split the air.
"I'll deal with my gran-babies." Hatake said genially, "You to catch up."
"Thanks Dad." Duo smiled as the emperor rose to his feet and went to answer the cries of his grandchildren.
"I keep telling you it wasn't what it looked like!" Trowa yelled as he ran down the stairs after his incensed wife.
"Wasn't what it-YOU CALL TRYING TO SUCK THE LIPS OFF ANOTHER WOMAN'S FACE 'NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE?'" Mikura screamed back pausing in the middle of the stairway to shriek at him.
"I was giving her artificial respiration!" Trowa cried, throwing his hands into the airspace above his head, "She was having an asthma att-!"
"You know what?" Mikura snapped, eyes flashing in blind fury, "You can call it whatever the hell you want, but artificial respiration does NOT require tongue!"
"I DIDN'T FRENCH AN UNCONSCIOUS WOMAN!" Trowa bellowed, slamming the side of his fist against the wall.
"Oh-HO! So now you're admitting it!" Mikura yelled back, glaring daggers at him, tears pricking at the corners of her eyes.
"I am not owning up to something I didn't do!" Trowa shot back frustratedly, "Lord, I never took you for the jealous type, but I was obviously mistaken. If I can't assist even single person without you going off the-!"
"You call working over another woman's tonsils ASSISTING HER?" Mikura shrieked, stamping her foot furiously, tears finally falling down her cheeks.
Anger gave way to a wave of incredible despair as Mikura slid to the floor, totally numb to the fact that she was even crying.
"Uh…am I interrupting something?" Trowa turned wearily to find the woman he had giving mouth to mouth giving him a light tap on the back.
"Um, I just wanted to thank you for..you know, saving me." The woman said awkward, noting Mikura, doubled over on the floor, bawling hysterically, "Uh...is…is she gonna be okay?"
Mikura lifted her head, taking several deep shuddering breaths, lower lip quivering violently, cheeks streaked with tears and nose dripping mucus (eeeeeww)
"I'm fuh-hic-fuh-hic-fiiiinnne." She blubbered, hiccupping several times, wiping her eyes as a few remaining tears fought their way out.
Mitsuki scowled into the office, blowing a wisp of honey blond hair away from her mouth. It was already ten minutes past the meeting time Quatre had agreed to, but he seemed to be in no particular hurry to end his conversation with the curvaceous brunette in his office.
Her frowned deepened as the brunette had the audacity to brush some non-existent dirt off his cheek.
Mitsuki knew it was probably nothing, that it was probably just newlywed paranoia…and the added fact that Quatre was very easy on the eyes only added to matters.
But…there was just something about the familiarity of the contact the two were sharing that she just didn't like; that woman was sitting far too close and her body language simply screamed, check out my smokin' bod-you know you want it.
The straw that broke the camel's back finally came when the brunette, seated up Quatre desk, swooped in and gave him a quick kiss on the side of the mouth.
Quatre, much to Mitsuki's horror, seemed completely unfazed by this and merely gave the woman a smile and a backhanded wave over his shoulder after spotting Mitsuki waiting outside his office door.
"Sorry that took so long, Mitsuki." Quatre said sheepishly, acting as though the scene that ha d played before his wife's eyes had not just taken place, "Sadira stopped by to see how I was holding up."
"And who is she to you exactly?" Mitsuki asked, trying her best to force down her suspicions, chanting to herself, "Please don't say co-worker, please don't say co-worker, please don't say-!"
"She's one of my elder sisters." Quatre replied with a smile, picking up on her apprehension instantaneously, "Remember? You met her at Misaki's wedding?"
"Oh-OH!" Mitsuki cried, a little bit more loudly than necessary, "So she's your- ohhhhh god I feel like sucha heel."
"Hey Heero, I wonder if Mikura's okay." Michru said in a wistful tone, running her hand over her engorged stomach, "I just have the weirdest feeling that she's really upset right now."
"Remember…no worrying more than necessary." Heero stated calmly, striding to his pregnant spouse a giving her belly a gentle poke.
Unexpectedly, the belly poked back.
Heero withdrew his hand swiftly, as though it had been burned and stared at Michiru's enlarged stomach. "Is…that normal?"
Michiru laughed merrily, patting her tummy affectionately. "Very. These two are quite intent on doing that whenever they please now. I think that they're starting to run out of room. Mitsuki will be happy. I do believe I have a pair of future soccer players in here by the feel of things."
Heero knelt down in front of Michiru and raised his eyes expectantly towards her. He held his hand a few inches above her belly, "Do you mind if I...?"
Michiru snorted and nodded, a smirk dancing on her lips, "Step right up and visit the wondrous miracle that is my stomach." Heero smiled wryly up at her and placed his hand over her belly again. "Only two thousand yen."
"Only two?" came a voice from the kitchen. "I had no idea that pregnant women were so cheap. I've got enough yen in my pocket for six or seven gropes!"
"Hey there, Sky" Michiru called cheerfully. The bisexual man stepped jauntily into the room, twirled about three times and bowed to her. "And there is no groping going on, just some enthusiastic belly action."
"Enthusiastic?" Heero stated, quirking his eyebrow as he drew his hand away.
"Well, not on your part, dear." Michiru grinned mischievously. "But the house guests in my belly were so pleased to have an audience that they're currently kicking out the theme from the 'Lone Ranger'."
"They're what?" Sky stared at Michiru as if she had gone completely insane.
Michiru heaved a sigh and gestured both of them towards her belly once more.
"Da-da-dum-da-da-dum-da-da-dum-dum-dum-dummm..." intoned Sky in a singsong voice, his pale blue eyes glittering playfully as he counted out the beats.
"I'll be damned...that is most definitely the theme from 'Lone Ranger'," murmured Heero in agreement, a small smirk forming on his lips, "Though, if they were truly prodigies, they would attempt the full 'William Tell Overture'."
"Ooo!" squealed Michiru as she swatted their hands away. "Don't give them any ideas. If they keep this up much longer, I'll have bruises inside and out."
"Plus..." added Sky with a wicked grin, "...I wouldn't want to be in the house when the kiddies come to the horn section."
Michiru reached behind her back and threw one of the many pillows filling the chair at him, causing Sky to laugh, ducking easily out of the way.
It was chaotic. Hospital staff running back and forth trying to get things ready for her, Misaki sitting amid this muddled mess, truly beginning to worry while Wufei did his best to keep her calm as she paced back and forth.
Her oogleh green scrubs swayed back and forth as she paced, taking into account the events that had led to her being in the delivery room, waiting for her epidural.
She couldn't think of anything she head done wrong. She had taken all the proper precautions…yet here she was, about to deliver her baby eight weeks prematurely.
"Hey there." A hakase greeted the two, entering the room with a tray in hand, loaded down with the anesthesia, "Are you all set?"
"Um, not really." Misaki replied weakly, giving a feeble smile as Wufei pushed her towards the table, "Honestly, how does one answer that question given the circumstances?"
"Well given your line of work, frankly I'm really not surprised the is happening at all, Mrs. Chang." The hakase replied, setting up the hypodermic needle as he spoke, "High stress levels sometimes have the tendency to cause premature births and you being on SWAT? Well, it was just a recipe for disaster."
"You see? This is one of the hundreds of reasons why I asked you to take maternity leave." Wufei ground out exasperatedly, massaging his temples, "Let's just pray that our children are alright after all this."
"Oh they'll be fine." the hakase reassured him, pushing Misaki forward as he spoke, "Breathe out. They will need to spend time in oxygen tanks while the rest of their lung tissue develops."
"AIPE!" Misaki yelped as the needle breeched her skin, driving itself into her spine, "Could you be a little more gentle please?"
"Do you prefer slow and painful or quick and relatively painless?" the hakase shot back.
"…I'll be quiet." Misaki mumbled as Wufei shook his head.
(1) Yokohama colors - the Yokohama Efu Marinosu team sport uniforms of blue jerseys and white shorts and black knee pads . Mitsuki's team, the Kyoto Purple Sanga, sport deep purple uniforms.
(A/N: Epilogue)
