Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha. Props to Rumiko Takahashi, she's brilliant and came up with this amazing manga/anime.

Chapter 9

In the still night, the moon shone brightly on the landscape and a soft smell of impending fall assaulted the noses of every creature out so late. It was in the warm air of that quiet night that Sesshoumaru slept, until his eyes snapped wide open and he was on the move.

He'd barely processed his own thoughts as he walked toward the small hut from which he could still hear the scribble of pencil on paper and the sound of pages flipping. And even as he continued his brisk pace, he knew she was there. It was just a dream, he knew, just a dream. He almost laughed at himself for having to repeat it over and over again even when he knew it was just a dream. Hell, he could hear her move around and mumble as she studied. And yet, the image of her mangled body lying motionless on the ground in a tangle while being feasted upon by savage beasts stayed in his mind. A nightmare…

So before Kagome knew it, he was standing in her doorway with a slightly panicked look in his eyes as he looked straight at her. Then suddenly, in the blink of an eye, he was out of her line of vision and she was being pulled back into his warm embrace. She tensed in her sitting position as his legs took their place on either side of her body, his arms winding tightly around her mid-section. His forehead fell to a resting position on her shoulder and he took his time in breathing in her scent. The taiyoukai knew it had just been a dream yet there he was, clinging to her like a hopeless lost puppy in need of affection. Finally, after a minute, she relaxed in his hold.

"I had not realized just how quickly and foolishly I had become attached to you, little miko. Can one as mighty as I truly become this clingy in such a short period of time?" To Kagome, it sounded as if he was speaking to himself rather than to her. For that reason, she neglected to answer his practically rhetorical question, focusing instead on his first sentence.

"Is liking me really that bad? I thought I was pretty neat there for a while. Thanks for knocking me off of my high horse." She tried teasing him in an effort to make him go back to being his usual self. It wasn't like the stoic inu to be so shaken up or even this touchy. What could have possibly happened?

"Developing dependence on the mere existence of another being is foolish. I should not have to touch you to understand that you are really alive. I am a fool." He spoke against her skin, his warm breath making a shiver travel up her spine. The priestess stared in wonderment at the strand of his silver hair that had fallen over her shoulder as if it was her own, the lock mingling with hers that were as dark as the night itself. She sighed as he loosened his hold around her waist a little, not wanting him to let go just yet. She felt so comfortable, so safe in his arms.

"But you're a cute fool, fool. My cute fool. Now tell me what happened or I'll just go back to studying while you're pressed up against me like that." His golden eyes finally opened back up and he lifted his face to look at her, the tip of his nose trailing up from her shoulder blade until it rested at the crook of her neck. She sent him a curious side look, barely able to even see his face in her peripheral vision since he was so close.

"Study on then, Kagome. I was never here," He whispered the last part as if he was fading away with his words but he stayed firmly in place, his hold not wavering and his nose still caressing the skin at the dip between her neck and shoulder. She shuddered at the feeling his breath on her skin was causing but tried to brush it off by reaching out and pulling her books closer. Too bad she wouldn't be able to study with him so…there.

"On second thought," she started after a minute of staring blankly at the pages in front of her while his breath caressed her sensitive skin, "I think I've had enough English literature for one night. I should get some sleep." She giggled nervously as the heat of his body only seemed to intensify at her back and where his arms were wound around her rounded stomach. That seemed to jostle him back to reality as he pulled away, quite reluctantly, from his hold on the beautiful brown eyed girl. He'd forgotten it was the middle of the night for a moment there…

"Right," He stood, leaving her feeling open and lonely on the floor. "Inuyasha should be back by sunrise in any case." It was as his back turned to her that her voice began working again.

"You could stay…if you want. I mean, I don't think Inuyasha would mind if you were to take his vacant spot for the night." Kagome blushed with her words, even if they were completely innocent. Inside the hut, it felt like a completely different world where only the two of them existed and she felt that by walking out, he'd be leaving her alone in the world her mind had created for them.

"Then do you also want me to talk with you until you fall asleep?" There was a note of teasing in his rich tone as he sat by her door without argument, glad she'd invited him to stay inside with her. Even after touching her, feeling the life inside of her for a little while, it wasn't enough. He didn't want her out of his sight, for fear that somehow the vision his mind had created would become true. For once, Sesshoumaru was scared. He was scared of losing her and all she'd ever done was tease him and take amusement at his expense.

"I'd love that, actually. I'm so used to it by now that it would feel wrong if you didn't." Under his intense golden gaze, she lied down on her mat and wrapped herself inside her sleeping bag, glad she'd been in her pyjamas long before he'd made an appearance. She was happy he was there. She hadn't noticed just how lonely she felt since they parted after their afternoon together.

After having found a comfortable sleeping position, Kagome shut her eyes and instead took solace in the mighty presence of his powerful aura. At a loss for what to say, the inu waited in silence for her to speak first, knowing that her case of the "night babbles" would get the better of her soon enough. As expected, she was talking before even two minutes could pass.

"What happened today at the river…is that what used to happen when Izayoi was pregnant with Inuyasha?" Sesshoumaru's head snapped up at the defeated note in her voice, suddenly not too fond of the conversation thrust upon him by the privilege of taking part in her nightly talks.

"Izayoi, she…" He cut himself off to intensely think over his next words. He didn't want to scare Kagome or have her stressed for the rest of her pregnancy. "She had quite a few opponents of her own during her pregnancy. Naturally, my father fought her battles for her since she was pupped and she'd been raised as a hime, not a fighter. I think regardless of her physical state, he would have still protected her until his last breath." The taiyoukai wasn't too fond of speaking about his past but he knew that to build a healthy relationship, you had to trust your significant other with your secrets and your demons, no matter how deep you normally hid them. It was one thing he learned from the way his father had been with Inuyasha's mother 250 years ago. Wow, he thought in retrospect, has it been 250 years since Inuyasha's birth already?

"Do people really hate half-demons that much? So much so that they try to kill the mothers while they're pregnant?" The teenager couldn't believe just how cruel life could be and had been for both Izayoi and Inuyasha and all the other hanyou and their families. Jinenji and his mother sure had quite a rough time before we met them…but then again, it must have been worse for them since Jinenji doesn't have a real humanoid form.

"I believe this conversation has traveled down a dark path, my little miko. What do you say you actually try to sleep while I tell you stories of my own past?" Sesshoumaru finally offered when he realized that maybe topics such as these weren't very healthy. But did he have any good stories to tell about himself? Any happy memories at all? Growing up, he was always being taught how to be proper and how to fulfill his duties; he'd only had one friend and he wasn't too keen on speaking about her with Kagome, seeing as he'd rutted with the demoness once before.

Settled for sleep and ready to hear some stories about her seemingly two-dimensional companion, Kagome couldn't wait for him to start becoming more real. She wanted to know his past and share experiences with him and sympathise about his hardships so he'd appear less like just a physical embodiment of neutral life sprinkled with battle tactics. There had to be more to him than that, right? However, she didn't get to hear his stories that night. Outside, she could hear a muffled voice call out with a sudden rush of footfalls coming closer. The dog demon perked up and actually let a nervous smile grace his stiff lips.

"It is the monk." He stated as he stood once more, taking a few steps toward Kagome and bending at the waist so he could extend his hand to her and help her up. She placed her hand into his soft yet calloused one with mild confusion but let him gently pull her to her feet.

"Miroku?" The miko simply asked as she took her hand from his warm one to straighten out her pyjama top that had lifted to expose her midsection while she'd been lying down. What could Miroku want so late at night? And he seemed in a hurry, too…

"The exterminator seems to be in labour," Kagome let Sesshoumaru take her hand again to lead her outside, stopping only a second to slip on her shoes. She had long ago promised Sango that she'd be there for her when she was giving birth so she'd waste no time in reaching her side. A spontaneous feeling of excitement and happiness filled Kagome's heart at the idea of the two babies soon to be here. And if she'd never made the deal with Masuyo, great pain would have befallen her sister after the birthing process. She felt as though in the end, this whole deal she'd made was a complete pro. Two healthy babies were about to be born for Kami's sake!

"Hurry up, Kagome!" Miroku called out to her when he saw her come out of her hut. He was going to fetch her anyway but he was on his way to get Kaede first so it made him happy that she was already up and awake, being half dragged by the young western lord. "Sango needs your support, my friend."

"I'm going, I'm going!" She answered the nervous looking monk with the tousled robes. She understood his anxiousness though and forced herself to be wide awake and take control of the situation. With a new pep to her step, the young priestess quickened her pace toward the hut housing her sister, ending up being the one who was pulling Sesshoumaru along by his hand instead of the other way around. BABIES! She kept repeating it over and over in her mind with the giddiness of a child. She'd be a great godmother!

After what seemed like forever, the duo burst into the hut where Sango lied on her back, grunts of agony escaping her dry lips. Without needless hesitation, Kagome immediately let go of the taiyoukai's clawed and comforting hand to kneel beside her friend, intent on keeping her hydrated. Her water had broken and the contractions were so intense that she was sweating away her hydration. After a few short sips of cool water, Sango sighed in short relief and moistened her lips before smiling at the miko at her side.

"I'm about ready for these little ones to pop out!" The panting slayer admitted sheepishly as Kagome swept her bangs out of her face. Before she could formulate a response, Sesshoumaru confirmed that Miroku and Kaede were coming, Rin bouncing at their heels excitedly. Both pregnant women smiled fondly.

"You hear that? Now all we're missing is Inuyasha to come along and say some stupid things so you can yell at him through your pain." The younger of the two teased, earning a chuckle from Sango. Then another contraction hit and she grit her teeth, her eyes shutting tightly as she blindly searched for Kagome's hand. Kagome grabbed her hand and let her squeeze away her pain, ignoring her own pained hand to rub soothing circles on the taijiya's knuckles with her thumb.

"Uhg, and in a few months the roles will be reversed." Sango reminded, causing Kagome to cringe a little bit. Just then, Kaede and Miroku appeared, taking their places around her bed after placing the tub of hot water and the towels where they needed to be. Rin stayed at Sesshoumaru's side, contented with only watching. It would be the first birth she'd witness and she couldn't wait! She'd love to be a midwife someday!

After some encouraging words and a thorough check up, Kaede announced that Sango was far from ready to give birth. This would be a long and painful labour, unfortunately. After a stressful hour for the group, the crying taijiya had cursed her husband out for doing this to her and had, not so politely, invited him to leave. An hour later, Kagome's exhaustion began catching up to her and she started yawning. Around that time, the sun had started to rise and Inuyasha was back in the village, deciding to stay outside with the monk after overhearing their exterminator friend cry out and complain before vividly describing what exactly she could feel where and how she was going to castrate the houshi if the contractions didn't stop soon. For a strong taijiya with a tough body, she sure was handling the pain badly. To think she'd been stabbed multiple times in her lifetime and hadn't cried once…

Soon enough, the pain had stopped long enough for Sango to fall into a restless sleep. Kaede turned to the people remaining in the hut and calmly told them to go outside. The sun was shining and she felt they all needed a break for various reasons. For instance, the powerful inuyoukai looked a little pale and Kagome needed a good splash of cold water to the face to wake her up. Rin, though interested, unbothered and ready to learn, was starting to complain about being hungry. So the old woman sent them all away to take care of their personal business; she would stay and monitor the taijiya and notify them when she woke up so they could come back. Kagome had trouble wrenching her hand away from her sister's, even in sleep having one of the strongest grips a person could have. She finally managed it though and then was pulled out into the fresh morning air.

"Hey, Kagome!" Inuyasha called out to her, waving as he walked over to join them from where he'd been sitting in the shade of a tree with a sulking Miroku. Kagome waved back with a tired smile and turned to say something to the inu already at her side. She noticed his complexion though and stopped her mouth from shooting off; he was even paler than usual.

"Hey, what's wrong Sesshoumaru?" She decided on asking before they encountered Inuyasha, having already been on their way to the nearby stream so Kagome could wake herself up and relax a little. She was still in her pyjamas for crying out loud!

"Nothing at all, I have simply never been in the presence of a woman in labour and her anxiety is quite overwhelming to my senses. I am fine." He reassured, looking ahead instead of at her, feeling unnervingly nervous himself. If he looked at her, he'd be reminded that she would be in that position herself all too soon. Would she curse him out and throw him out when the time came?

"Why the hell are ya putting yourself through that crap, ya bastard? I ain't going anywhere close to that hut until I hear crying coming from someone who ain't Sango." The hanyou admitted when they reached each other, his lack of sleep apparent. He'd spent the night killing off a bunch of tricky demons and hadn't gotten a wink of sleep the night before either. Kagome sure was tired but he was worse for wear.

"He's probably just preparing himself for when Kagome goes into labour, Inuyasha." Miroku spoke up as he too joined the small group as they walked through the village and toward the nearest water source. The villagers all around paused in their activities to acknowledge the odd group who were now kin, taking joy in watching little Rin run in circles around them while they walked with her arms stretched out on both sides. The group sure was an entertaining sight, despite their drained appearance that day. Of course, nobody looked good when a woman was having a baby except the babies themselves when they came.

"Lord Sesshoumaru, like Miroku-sama, is nervous. You can't really tell but he is, deep inside." Rin stated knowingly as she continued to zip around them like the airplanes from Kagome's time. She received a soft glare from the proud inu but remained oblivious to it as they all finally reached the stream. There, they all set about doing their tasks. Inuyasha and Miroku gathered some wood and made a fire on the waterside while Rin fished and Kagome splashed herself awake with the cold water over and over again in hopes that the feeling would last. Sesshoumaru sat back and watched them all do their thing, sort of happy that he'd sent Jaken to the palace to complete some errands. Admittedly, he'd rather not have the grumpy toad youkai around to sour their moods. Despite the blanket of nervousness and exhaustion that already covered them all, everyone was in a fairly good mood; just as it should be when two little souls were about to come into the world.

"Aw, hell!" The inuhanyou suddenly cried out, his nose wrinkled as if his senses were being assaulted by a foul smell. Just as Kagome was about to ask what was wrong, she saw Sesshoumaru smirk and roll his eyes ever so subtly. Then, everything became oh so clear as a familiar dust cloud came into view with a laughing Ayame running not too far behind. Then, just like that, Kouga burst out of the kicked up dust produced by his feet with a proud grin and a giggling toddled in his arms. Oh, right! Kagome had nearly forgotten that Ayame had been pregnant herself not too long ago. So many babies all of a sudden was almost overwhelming.

"Baby!" Kagome and Rin shouted in unison, rushing forward to observe the little boy of the two very happy wolf demons. The sudden visit, though welcome, had quite bad timing.

"Hey everyone!" Ayame greeted the guys who seemed content with keeping a short distance. "Which one of you got Kagome pregnant?" She winked playfully when they all seemed to pull further away from the conversation she wanted to engage them in. Kagome laughed then, causing everyone to turn and see her holding the cub. He was a little thing with pointy ears like his parents and the green eyes of his mother. He had the skin and hair colour of his father and tiny little fangs showed through his wide smile. His hair was swept over his forehead and seemed to point every which way because of the fast winds he'd experienced in Kouga's arms during the run here. His facial features reminded more of Ayame than Kouga but Kagome had no doubt that he'd grow to be as roguishly handsome as his father was.

"Yeah, who do I have to pummel?" Kouga teased on, snapping the two brothers out of their trances with his rough voice. Miroku broke away from them and went over to see the baby also, sidestepping Rin who'd returned to the fire-side to cook the fish she'd caught for everyone.

"Nobody! Jeez, Kouga, tone it down." The miko laughed as she ruffled the baby's hair before handing him over to his mother who waited patiently for her cub to be returned to her with open arms and a soft smile. "I think you'd be surprised to hear the full story. But we don't have time for all of that right now."

The group had time to sit around the fire and eat a few bites of the cooked fish when Kirara made an appearance in her bigger form, beckoning them back to the village where Sango had woken up and was going through a whole new wave of contractions. Miroku climbed atop the eager nekomata and was followed shortly by Rin. Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru exchanged a few words before Inuyasha took of on his own. Sesshoumaru, who had taken off his armour back in Kagome's hut and had left it there the whole time, went over to the miko with purposeful strides.

"It will be faster and swifter if I carry you instead of Inuyasha. We cannot afford to jostle you around too much now can we?" She nodded in understanding and let him sweep her up into his strong arms and cradle her to his firm chest.

Understanding the situation, Kouga and Ayame followed gladly as the older inu shot toward the village like a bullet. Kirara took off with her charges too and they all quickly caught up to the hanyou who was already halfway to the hut where their slayer was now moaning loudly in pain. Her state had quickly progressed during her sleep and she was very close to giving birth now, despite the original thought that her labour would be a very long one. She tried to keep in mind that she'd be having two babies and that the time between both births couldn't be determined until after the first one was out. How would she possibly survive two consecutive births? She was already in great pain.

Once the now bigger group reached the hut, Ayame handed their child to Kouga and decided that Sango needed the support of a woman who'd given birth not long ago herself to reassure her. With that in mind, she followed Kagome, Sesshoumaru and Rin inside, surprised that the taiyoukai was going in but not the monk who was to be the father. She brushed it off however and knelt on Sango's left side, letting Kagome take the right. With two hands to hold onto, Sango calmed significantly after her initial shock at seeing Ayame.

"Alright, let's do this!" Kagome encouraged with a comforting brush of the taijiya's bangs and a giddy smile. She was ready to hear some crying from two little newborns almost as much as Sango herself was.

"You heard the woman!" Ayame joined in the encouragements. And finally, Kaede announced that she was ready to start pushing, being fully dilated. The panting woman was more than happy to do so, despite the pain intensifying with every push and deep breath. "Sango, you are beautiful and you are strong! You can do it! I did it and now it's your turn so do all of us mother proud and push those little bundles out!"

"Ahhh, I'm trying! It hurts!" The slayer cried as her face scrunched up and she pushed, her grip on her friends' hand only tightening, almost to the point of cutting off their blood circulation. Kagome whispered words of encouragement while Ayame chanted about her beauty and her strength, saying that it was all worth the pain in the end. The process was on an endless loop and caused Sesshoumaru to leave in the end, letting the girls handle the situation on their own, seeing as they were doing such a good, loud job of it as it was.

"If I have to hear one more repeated compliment out of your mate's mouth," he directed to Kouga when he reached the huddle of males in the shade of the nearby tree they'd been stationed at earlier, "I will punch you. Does she always do such a thorough job of encouragement?"

Kouga huffed but joined Inuyasha and Miroku in laughter, knowing just how his mate was. Oh how he'd come to love his fiery red-head!

Author's note:

Hi, it's me again! I'm not very happy with the way I wrote this chapter but I decided that it would have to do for now. I'm sort of out of it because I caught a nasty cold but I'll live through this and be back to my usual self soon! So yeah, Sango having her babies! Who woulda known it would happen so soon?! I sure the hell didn't! Now I have to go about the task of finding her girls and Kouga and Ayame's son names. Hmmm, anyone got any suggestions? If you do and I use them, I'll credit you! Because I seriously have no idea what to name them but I want their names to have meaning and not just sound pretty! Same for when Kagome has her baby! I'm not saying if it's a boy or a girl yet but name suggestions are welcome for both genders in case I change my mind at the last second haha! Thanks for reading and I appreciate the great response this fic is getting! Stay awesome! –Nat :) ^.^