A/N: I REALLY AM RUNNING LOW ON IDEAS GUYS SO I'LL PROBABLY FINISH THIS SOON, BUT I MIGHT WRITE SOME OTHERS ON DIFFERENT FILMS.

Chapter 8: The Best Day of Their Lives.

Mari was sitting by the fireplace reading one of her books when she suddenly felt her stomach tighten. She pulled herself up and headed for the sink to get a glass of water, but as she raised the glass to her mouth another searing pain ripped through her stomach and the glass fell from her hand and shattered on the floor.

"Hey Jim you hear that?" Bob called putting down his hammer.

"Hear what?" Jim replied looking up from the piece of wood he was measuring.

"I heard a glass smash back up at the house." Bob said shading his eyes from the sun as he looked at Jim.

"Oh god" Jim muttered and threw his measure to the ground and ran to the house with Jesse and Cole close behind.

"Mari" Jesse called as he opened the front door and found Mari crouched on the floor in the kitchen.

"The baby's coming" She groaned and the boys' faces turned white.

"Cole you and Frank go to town and get a doctor. Jim help me get her on a chair." Jesse said after finding his voice.

"Righto Jesse" Cole smiled almost glad to leave.

He ran back outside and called Frank over to the horses and they rode off to the town leaving Bob standing in a cloud of dust oblivious to what was happening.

"Well howdy Bob" A soft voice said from behind the bewildered outlaw.

"Zee" He smiled turning round.

"Where are those two off to?" Zee asked as she jumped down from her horse.

"I have no idea; Jesse and Jim are up in the house with Mari. I think I'll come with ya I wanna know what's going on." Bob sighed throwing his hammer to the floor and tying Zee's horse up with the others before leading the way up to the house. As Zee and Bob entered the kitchen they found Jesse and Jim trying to lift Mari up off the kitchen floor and onto a chair.

"What the devils going on here?" Bob said almost panicking.

"The baby's coming" Jim said smiling slightly.

"Oh my goodness" Zee exclaimed, "Right Jim we need lots of old blankets and hot water." Mari slumped onto the chair breathing heavily and Jim ran to an old chest in the corner and threw it open and pulled out several sheets and stacked them on the table in front of Mari. Jesse and Jim filled a large pot with water and hung it in the fireplace over a glowing flame. Zee had sat herself down on another chair next to Mari and was rubbing her back and dabbing her forehead with a wet cloth. The only sounds that filled the small house for the next hour were the gently crackling of the fire and bubbling of the water, along with Mari's occasional gasps and groaning as her stomach tightened more and more often.

"Jesse is that water boiled yet?" Zee asked and as the words left her mouth the door flew open and in came Cole, Frank and Zee's father Doc Mims.

"Look who we found in town." Cole smiled, "We figured you'd prefer someone you know and trust."

"Well Mari, how long have you been in labour?" Doc Mims asked.

"About an hour" Jesse replied.

"Actually an hour and a half, you only came up when it got worse, but before then it was only little pains I didn't think it was anything to worry about." Mari gasped.

"Well then let's get you settled in the bedroom."

"All the sheets and towels are in the spare room" Jim said as Cole and Jesse helped Mari up and he led the way to the spare bedroom. Mari sank onto the bed with a deep sigh of almost relief which was interrupted by paralyzing shot of pain that ripped through her body and caused her to scream in agony.

"Zee get Mari into her nightdress she'll be more comfortable." Jesse said throwing Mari's nightdress over the room and the boys and Doc Mims left.

A few minutes later Zee called for her father and Doc Mims re-entered the room with Jim.

"I can see the baby's head." Zee smiled.

For the next half an hour Jesse, Frank, Bob and Cole waited anxiously in the kitchen and nervously checking that the water was still boiling.

After checking the water for the second time in as any minutes Cole began to pace the room impatiently and his face let everyone else in the room know that he was getting more worried by the minute. Then suddenly a loud crying filled the air and the boys breathed a sigh of relief as Jim came out holing his beautiful new born daughter wrapped in a thick blanket.

"JIM" Zee called and Jim handed his daughter to Jesse and ran back into the bedroom and closed the door IN Bob's face as he tried to follow him.

Another ten minute passed and then the more crying filled the air and Jim appeared from the bedroom with another blanket wrapped around another tiny baby, his newborn son.

"Twins" He stuttered before a huge grin spread cross his face as his daughter was handed back to him.