Hello my fellow readers! Well, the reveal is in this chapter, and I think y'all are going to be happy! I had an idea on how to start this, but another idea just popped up and ran away from me and it turned into this beautiful chapter I had fun writing, not going to lie!

A/N: I was made aware that according to Rumiko herself, Kagome has remained 18 years since returning to the feudal era, so therefore she is and will remain Eighteen. And yes, I'm aware of stating Kagome was in her thirties in an earlier chapter and will be changing it in the future.

Thanks to all who favorited, followed, and reviewed this story so far! Each and every one is always appreciated!

Enjoy!


Chapter 7

The warm, comfortable breezes of summer gave way to the cool, windy weather of autumn. Summer vegetables were harvested, animals were slaughtered to keep families fed over the coming cold season, and firewood was aplenty to keep the home fires burning.

In one such home, near the outskirts of the village and to the forest that bear her husband's name, the young priestess of the village rested by the fire. In her hands she was sorting out the last of the herbs she knew would be needed for fevers, colds, and common illnesses that winter would bring. And in all honesty, Kagome felt at peace.

Her husband and daughter had recently been hunting more frequently, not just for them for winter but for the villagers who physically couldn't. Despite his rough and gruff exterior, her hanyou made sure no one suffered in the village they called home if he could help it. And she loved him even more for it.

She set the last of the herbs aside and rested her hands on her swollen belly. Over her womb that protected two little ones….

Twins… She was overjoyed.

A month or so after InuYasha's suspicions, it was confirmed when he woke her up one night and pressed an ear to her belly. She remained silent, holding her breath. And after a while, he lifted his head with a wide grin.

"I heard it."

"Heard it?" She whispered back.

"The second heartbeat." His hand caressed her now present baby bump. "I hear both loud and clear."

Tears sprung to her eyes at the news. "We're having two?" She cupped her husband's face. "Two babies?"

"Two pups." He confirmed. He wiped a tear from her cheek before leaning down and kissed her deeply.

She remembered the next morning- their daughter slept through the whole revelation. Moroha woke up and found them both smiling.

"What's going on?" Her eldest asked.

Rubbing her stomach, she answered, "We found out last night- we're having twins!"

The young mother recalled how happy her daughter was. She was becoming a big sister to TWO siblings! This was so exciting! She couldn't wait! Her hugs to both she and InuYasha were powerful yet loving!

She suspected she was more than halfway through her pregnancy, about 5 months or so. Sango and Rin warned and advised her of carrying twins, and boy were they right! And since they had their father's powerful inu youkai blood, she was feeling twice as much. The stretch marks were more-which InuYasha didn't seem to mind one bit. Even when she carried Moroha and was insecure about her changing figure, her husband would soothe her worries by kissing each and every mark that appeared. And that didn't change with this pregnancy. Luckily, her morning sickness stopped after the third month as well as the fatigue, but that didn't mean she was sleeping any better.

No, she felt her two pups waking her up multiple times a night. They were active, that was for sure. She remarked to her hanyou that they had his energy -which he proudly took responsible for, the arrogant jerk! She tried not to wake her husband and daughter most nights, but with their sensitive hearing it was for naught. Moroha was understanding for the most part but eventually she offered to stay in the main room, to give her parents privacy. And Kagome suspected, a full night's sleep but not saying so for fearing of making her feel guilty. Her half-demon husband she knew didn't say anything, in fact all he did was try to soothe her back to sleep. Having gone through this once before, he knew what to say and what not to for fear of his wife's wrath and the many subjugations that followed. Same as before, when she woke up from her baby's movements, InuYasha would listen to the heartbeat(s) and she in turn would run her hands through his soft, luscious silver hair and they would fall asleep again.

Lately as the days grew shorter and her stomach expanded with her twin's growth, Kagome knew her time of traveling would be as well. If InuYasha or Moroha weren't accompanying her, either Kaede, Rin or both would. But her symptoms were making traveling, even around the village, very tiring. And with the colder weather, it was inevitable. Lately Rin began accompanying her and was poised to take over for her once she was house-and bed bound. So much so that Sesshomaru and Rin settled close by the village, along with their twin daughters when they weren't traveling. Kagome knew that her brother-in-law was in no way leaving his wife alone after just getting her back. They settled on the opposite side of the village from her and InuYasha, that way both sides would be guarded.

And what timing because there were multiple reports of bandits over the last few months. Never reaching the village, thank Kami, but enough to be on alert. Since the weather was taking a turn for the worse, according to InuYasha, humans wouldn't dare attack a well-defended farming community, especially with two powerful demons-himself and his brother, a former demon slayer, a monk, and the feared demon slaying group led by Sango's brother, Kohaku. According to Kohaku and his nephew Hisui-Sango and Miroku's youngest and only son, the group was quite large, perhaps a few hundred at last count. Right now, they were many, many miles away in the mountains, obviously settled there for the coming autumn and winter months, with no sign of moving any time soon. But Kohaku would have his team continue to monitor them. While equipped to vanquish evil youkai, bandits were a different matter altogether.

Her daughter had all but stopped her bounty missions and teamed up with her father and even her uncle and twin cousins at times to patrol the area. She worried about each member of her family but knew they could handle themselves. Her bow and quiver of arrows were never far away should she sense danger. Looking to the corner where they currently rested, Kagome was assured that she could arm herself quickly, even with her pregnancy.

She heard the wind blow outside and fearing a chilly night, she slowly got up from her kneeling position and grabbed her heavy hooded blanket and traveled to their log pile, which towered over her. With ease, she grabbed enough for dinner and for a warm fire to fall asleep by. She looked around, from her barren gardens to the area where InuYasha and Moroha skinned and cleaned the meat from their hunts, and she saw all was well…


That was until she felt a demon presence.

One she was familiar with…

And then suddenly, a three eyed cow carrying a bug-eyed old demon appeared, carrying a wrapped cloth satchel.

"Totosai, what a pleasant surprise." The miko greeted.

"Hello, Kagome. You're looking as radiant as ever." He eyed her burgeoning belly. "I suspect InuYasha's pups are keeping you busy enough."

"They sure are." She was struggling with her pile of logs. "Forgive me, Totosai but I must go inside. If I'm caught outside for any longer than necessary, my husband will surely give me an earful."

"And rightfully so." Said husband appeared at her side and immediately took her kindling, startling her.

"Oh! InuYasha, you're back early."

"Get inside, woman before you catch cold. "He chastised. His tone was serious, but his eyes conveyed his concern, and with a smile and kiss on his cheek she hurried inside. He then turned to the old demon. "You have them?"

"As you demanded." He tossed the sack to InuYasha, who easily caught it with his empty hand. "I still can't believe you managed to find them."

"Anything's possible if ya want it bad enough." He kept one ear towards the hut, hearing his wife's' and twins' heartbeats. All was well. "I'm just glad to get it before the first snow."

"Which shouldn't be too long now." Totosai looked at the sky, his pinky scratching one of his ears. "I've heard there are bandits roaming about the area. Myoga saw a whole bunch of them on the mountain when he came back from his last visit with you."

"Yeah." The hanyou scowled. "Too close for my liking-even if they're staying put for the time being."

The old demon nodded. "I know with your wife expecting in the early spring, and the incident with the three men this past summer, there's only so much that one can do."

"No one's going to hurt my family! NO ONE!" InuYasha vowed, teeth bared. "I'll make sure of that!"

"I've no doubt you will. Just like your father died protecting you and your mother. You share many similarities with him. " Totosai said solemnly.

InuYasha acknowledged that sentiment, the pain of not knowing his father, is not as hurtful as it once was. Being a father now himself, he liked to believe he made his old man proud.

"Well, I best be off before this storm rolls in." Momo the three eyed cow began to lift off. "Give my best to your wife and pup. And send for Myoga if you need any more assistance." And with a salute, he flew off back to his mountain, as fast as he came.


The husband and father watched for a few seconds before heading into the warmth of his domain.

"Did Totosai take off already?" Kagome remarked as she washed the veggies for their dinner.

"Yeah, he came to drop off something I requested." He answered, dropping the logs in their designated place. "You want fish, rabbit, or deer tonight?"

"Is Moroha on her way home?"

"She should be. When last I checked she was finishing her errand." The rabbit pelts and extra savings for the futon remained secret. "I told her to hurry home before the storm hit."

"How about fish tonight? I know how much you caught before the freezing weather hit."

He quickly went to the shed where they kept their stores of herbs, veggies, and dried meat. Grabbing a little more than usual since his wife's appetite was ever increasing, he was eager to show her the wrapped satchel Totosai dropped off.

"So, what's in the satchel?"

He noted the eagerness in her voice. "A gift."

"A gift?" She repeated. Even though she was almost a mother of three, she couldn't stop reacting like a small child at Christmas.

After placing the fish by the fire, he sat cross-legged beside her, satchel in hand. "When I was certain we were having another pup, I started thinking about how we will protect it once it's born. And when I heard the second heartbeat confirming twins, I did a little side-trip."

"Is that why you sent me to stay with Sango and Miroku?"

He nodded. "Yeah. It didn't take me as long to find what I was looking for, despite the rumors. And with a little help from Myoga, I was successful." He handed the bundle to her. "Go ahead. Open it."

"InuYasha, what could it possibly be?" she asked excitedly as she carefully undid the knot. She knew her husband could be spontaneous, especially when it came to her and Moroha. His gifts were so sentimental it made her heart beat with even more love for him, if that was possible.

Finally unfolding the cloth, she immediately sensed a familiar aura, one her hanyou wore every day. Her hand felt the familiar texture while her gaze took in the deep rich red of the fire rat. "Oh my god…" She lifted the first small bundle of fur for them to see. "This is amazing!"

"Those bastards are so rare that when Myoga heard about my request, he knew of a herd living deep in a cave impossible for humans to get to, in the depths of Mt. Fuji." He ignored the reprimanding look sent his way, for cursing. He tried to curb his tongue since he knew his twins could now hear voices. "And we gifted Moroha with her own fire rat when she was born, so why not for our unborn pups?"

"Oh InuYasha…." She whispered. Her brown eyes went from the fire rat bundle to her husband. "Just…wow… Oh man, damn pregnancy hormones." She cried, laughing as she tried to stop her tears from falling.

He cradled her head with one hand and kissed her forehead. "There's more; take a look."

'What?" Kagome wiped her eyes and moved the two small pieces of fire rat- she observed they were big enough to swaddle newborns and found a couple of more pieces underneath. "Is this for Moroha?" She pulled out knee leggings similar to what her daughter wore now.

"What's for me?" Said daughter burst in just then, shaking her whole body from leaves and debris at the door. "Whoa, is that fire rat, dad?" She immediately went to her mother's other side.

"Figured you would need some extra protection. Can't have my eldest pup going without." He observed his wife handing them to their daughter. The sparkle in her oaky brown eyes had him puffing up his chest. He knew he did well.

"Wow! This is so cool!" She immediately took off her old ones and put the newer ones on. "And they feel amazing!" After doing some modeling and some small jumps and leaps to test them out, Moroha went to hug her father. "Thanks dad!"

He hugged her back tightly, patting her back. "Keh." Seeing his daughter so happy made him happy.

"Are those for the twins?" The shinhanyou asked as she pulled away to sit back next to her mom.

"Yes, they are. Like yours, they'll grow with the twins as soon as they're born. Right now, they're perfect for swaddling clothes." Kagome remarked. She loved watching her daughter laugh and smile. Like her husband, nothing filled her with more joy. And rubbing her abdomen, it would extend to the two souls resting comfortably in her womb.

"Oh! There's something else." Moroha picked out the last remaining fire rat fur. "What's this for?"

Kagome asked for the fur and held it up. She eyed it, and it looked remarkably like her hakama…

"I know you love wearing my robe, even though you think I'm not looking; I know you do." He relished seeing her blush. "I can't have my mate going around unprotected- even though I know you can protect yourself just fine!" He quickly added, his wife's brown eyes narrowing slightly. "It's just you know, another layer of protection."

'He's so cute when he's flustered.' Even after almost 15 years of marriage and 20 years of knowing each other, it always made her giddy that she could still make him blush. Just like a cute little boy-or puppy in his case. If one of her babies was a boy, she hoped he would take after his father.

"I know what you meant, InuYasha." She grabbed his hand and held it tight. "And I'm not angry. I know my safety- this family's safety is your primary concern. Why wouldn't I be appreciative of such a precious gift from my beloved husband?" His eyes met hers. "It's such a wonderful present. Every. Single One." She lifted his hand to her lips, placing a kiss after each word. "And I love you all the more for it."

"That goes ditto for me, too." Moroha added as she snuggled next to him.

Two swaddling clothes for his unborn babies. One pair of knee leggings for his eldest. One pair of hakama for his Kagome…

Today was a good day. No- it was a fantastic day! Having his family under one roof, enjoying a lovely meal while warmed by the fire as the storm kicked up outside.

And as he lay behind Kagome later that night, both arms cradling and protecting her and their unborn pups while pressing his nose to his sleeping wife's lovely neck, and hearing her slow, steady breathing and of his daughters' in the main room, the hanyou vowed once again to guard his peace, his happiness, his reasons for living.

"Sleep now, pups. Daddy is here. Nothing is going to happen to you." He whispered while caressing Kagome's stomach, sure they could hear him. "Me and your momma will make sure to protect you, always." He stilled when he felt the softer hand of his wife's on his.

"Always." She whispered resolutely, turning over on her back to look up at him.

And with that, he leaned over and lovingly butterfly-kissed her bare stomach. He heard Kagome's low appreciative humming.

And for the first time, they felt a soft kick-one from each pup. The couple was overjoyed at feeling their babies simultaneously, as if responding to their parent's words and touches.

They celebrated with a passionate kiss; their hands still connected on her belly.


So yes, it's official! Kagome is carrying twins! YAY!

A/N: And yes, I'm doing my research and looking at multiple sources for twin pregnancies for this story, plus with youkai and miko blood things might progress a little faster for the pups!

Like I said, I really enjoyed writing this chapter. It's among my favorites thus far! What'd Ya'll think? As always, feel free to review and critique, just don't be mean about it!

Until next time...

Ja Ne