InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ As Fate Would Have It ❯ Chapter 26

Chapter 26

 

Inuyasha exchanged a glance with Kagome, who shrugged as if to say “You explain it.”

 

He looked down at his adorable adopted daughter and twitched his ears nervously. “Well, pup,” he began, “a hanyou… well, a hanyou is…”

 

Kagome snorted.

 

Giving his mate a glare that promised retribution later, he took a deep breath and started again. “A hanyou is someone who is half youkai and half human.”

 

Innocent blue eyes blinked up at him. “Yoo-kai?”

 

Shippou chortled.

 

Thinking quickly, Inuyasha grabbed the kitsune by his tail and held him up to Minako. “Here, pup. Shippou is a youkai, okay?” Shippou squirmed and protested, trying to punch Inuyasha in vain.

 

Brisk nod. “Okay.”

 

“And you know what humans are, right?” He dropped Shippou on his head unceremoniously. The poor kit glared at Inuyasha before hiding on the other side of Kagome, away from the violent hanyou.

 

Grin. “Yup.”

 

“Well, when a youkai and a human have a baby, it's called a hanyou.”

 

Minako scrunched up her little face in concentration as she digested this new information, her little ears twitching like radars. “Yoo-kai and hoo-man have be-be. Be-be is hanyoo.”

 

“You got it.” Inuyasha smirked, looking quite proud of himself.

 

“How yoo-kai and hoo-man make be-be?”

 

Inuyasha fell over.

 

Kagome decided it was time to step in. “Sweetie, hanyous are very special because they were chosen by their parents to be made. No hanyou is born that wasn't planned.”

 

Minako looked thoughtfully at her mother. “Mina is special? Mina is hanyoo?”

 

Inuyasha recovered. “Hai, pup. Mina is very special. Not only were you chosen by the ones who gave you life, but Mama and I chose you for our very own.”

 

Tears sprung into the bright blue eyes gazing at him. “Papa wanted Mina?”

 

“Very much, pup.”

 

The little hanyou glomped her father and gave him a big wet kiss on the cheek, leaving a wet mark on his pale lavender crest. “I love you, Papa.”

 

Inuyasha had to blink back uncharacteristic tears. He had never heard those words from his little girl before. “I love you too, wolf-girl,” he replied gruffly, calling her by his special endearment intended just for her.

 

Kagome wiped away a tear. Shippou snorted in disgust. “He's really gone soft,” the little kit muttered.

 

The silver-haired hanyou glared daggers at the kitsune. “Say that again and I'll reacquaint you with Tetsusaiga.” Shippou yelped and hid behind Kagome again.

 

Kaede handed the bundle that was Izayoi into Inuyasha's arms. “Here, boy. Take care of your other daughter- it will keep ye from beating the poor kit senseless.”

 

“Keh!” But Inuyasha accepted his other daughter willingly. Mina scooted over enough to let her baby sister share her father's lap.

 

“Iza be-be?” she asked, gazing into wide golden eyes of the baby.

 

“Izayoi,” he corrected. Minako scrunched up her nose at him.

 

“Iza.”

 

“Izayoi.”

 

“Iza.”

 

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. Kagome chuckled as she finished burping their son. “She won't say Inusouta, either.”

 

Minako grinned at her mother. “Inu.”

 

Her father snorted lightly. “Inusouta.”

 

“Inu.”

 

“Inusouta.”

 

She giggled. “My Inu!”

 

Inuyasha sighed in defeat. Kagome laughed out loud. “Give her time, Inuyasha. She'll get it.”

 

“Can't believe she's calling her own brother Dog…” he muttered under his breath.

 

-------------------

 

Miroku slammed into the hut, making all of the residents jump a good six inches in the air. Seven pairs of eyes stared at the ex-monk in wonder and confusion.

 

“What's wrong?” Kagome asked, suddenly concerned. Inuyasha could smell panic and excitement radiating from the monk.

 

“S-Sango,” he stammered. His violet eyes were wide. “Baby…”

 

Kagome immediately stood up. “What? Is she okay? Is she bleeding?”

 

Miroku managed to shake his head slightly. His gaze was still a little wild. “The baby… it's coming… now.”

 

“NANI?” Kagome cried. She thought Sango would still have another month to go at least. “Are you sure?”

 

The flustered man nodded shakily. “Pain… she's hurting… and there's some sort of liquid…”

 

The young miko handed Inusouta over to Inuyasha and raced out the door, heading for Miroku and Sango's hut. Inuyasha glanced down at his now-full arms. He had Inusouta in his right arm, Izayoi in his left, and Minako was nestled comfortably between them on his lap.

 

Miroku was gazing after Kagome as if in shock. “You might consider following her,” Inuyasha pointed out wryly. “After all, it is your pup being born.”

 

The poor man snapped out of his stupor. “Of course! Sango!” he cried as he followed Kagome to their hut. “Sango, I'm coming!”

 

Inuyasha shook his head. “This is going to be one hell of a day.”

 

-------------------------

 

Kagome checked on Sango as best she could. There was almost no blood- a very good sign- but it was quite obvious she was in active labor. Her contractions were intense and very close together and her water had broken almost half an hour ago.

 

“I was just making some dinner, when I felt something wet- like I had to go to the bathroom,” she explained breathlessly between contractions. “When I looked down, my clothes were soaked. Miroku panicked and went looking for you.”

 

The young miko looked confused. “Why come and get me? I'm not a midwife.”

 

Sango smiled tiredly at her friend. “Because you've done this before- and I'd much rather have my best friend here than some strange woman I don't know.”

 

Kagome smiled back. “Arigatou, Sango. I'm going to go talk to Kaede and Inuyasha for a moment.” She grinned mischievously. “Don't go anywhere.”

 

Sango snorted wryly. “As if I could.”

 

Miroku paced outside the hut, looking beyond worried. “What's wrong? Is she okay? What's wrong with the baby? Is the baby okay?” he blurted out when he spied Kagome.

 

She patted his arm reassuringly. “Don't worry. She'll be fine. I just need to talk to Kaede and Inuyasha and make sure the kids are okay.” She smiled again and entered Kaede's hut, where Inuyasha sat buried in children.

 

“'Bout time you got back, wench,” he grunted. “I'm drowning in pups.”

 

She chortled. “And you're going to keep drowning- unless you want to do me a favor.”

 

“Anything. Just save me.”

 

“You need to go find the midwife and let her know that Sango is in labor. Bring her here, but don't let her go inside. Sango wants me to help deliver the baby, not the midwife.”

 

“I wouldn't want some strange woman delivering my pups either,” he retorted. “It was bad enough having all those strange women around you when ours were born. At least I knew the one doing the actual work.”

 

“I was the one doing all the work!” she cried indignantly.

 

“Exactly.”

 

Kagome turned to Shippou, who was sitting quietly in the corner furthest from Inuyasha. “Shippou, can you watch the kids for us? The twins should sleep for the next few hours, so they'll be easy, but Minako might be a handful.”

 

The little kit puffed out his chest in pride. “Don't worry about me, Kagome. Minako and I get along great.”

 

Minako giggled as she hopped off her father's lap and glomped Shippou, giving him a huge hug. The poor kitsune flushed deep red. “Mina play with Shippou!” she cried.

 

Inuyasha was now able to lay the twins down on a sleeping mat nearby. “Let's go, then,” he said, turning toward the door. “Oi, runt! Take care of my pups or I'll kill you!” he hollered as Kagome pulled him outside.

 

“I've got to get back to Sango. You go get the midwife.”

 

“Hai, wench. As you command.” He mock-bowed to her and leapt away.

 

She rolled her eyes as she reached Sango's hut. Miroku was nowhere to be seen, so he must have gone inside.

 

Poking her head in, she took in the situation at a glance. Miroku was, for lack of a better term, freaking out in the corner, and Sango looked ready to commit murder- or at least, a neutering.

 

Kagome sighed as she entered completely. He could face down hordes of youkai and the threat of being sucked into his own Kazaana, but he couldn't handle his wife giving birth. “Miroku, you need to calm down. You're making it worse for Sango.”

 

The monk blinked and straightened up immediately. “Hai, Kagome. Gomen nasai.”

 

The young miko lifted Sango's blanket that covered her bare legs and checked the situation. She could see that the baby was starting to crown- it would be born very soon now. “Sango, this is it. Get ready to push, okay?”

 

The sweat-drenched woman nodded wearily. Miroku moved to her shoulders, looking at Kagome somewhat helplessly. “Miroku, you need to prop her shoulders up so she can push better.”

 

Sango looked confused for a moment. “But the women in my village- they would only give birth lying down flat.”

 

Kagome snorted as she pushed Sango's knees up and to the side, giving her room to maneuver. “Trust me- this is much easier.”

 

“Now, I need you to push when the contraction hits, okay? Miroku, count slowly to ten. While he's counting, Sango, you need to hold that pushing, okay? Push for a full ten seconds.” With their nods, she turned her attention back to the baby.

 

“One… two… three… four…” Miroku counted softly in Sango's ear as she lay propped up on his knees.

 

Inuyasha chose that moment to enter the hut. “I got the midwife- she's standing by outside…” he said before he realized what he had walked in on. “Holy dogs…” he muttered, his face going red and his golden eyes glazing over.

 

Miroku glared at the hanyou. “What are you staring at, Inuyasha?!” he yelled.

 

Inuyasha backed up quickly. “Shit- I'm outta here.” He whirled around and ran out of the hut.

 

Kagome sighed. “Sango, again. You're almost there. One, two, three…”

 

With a little whimper, Sango managed to push the baby's head out. Kagome grinned and used a nearby cloth to wipe off the baby's face. She ordered Sango to push again.

 

The tired woman pushed with all her taijiya might, and managed to deliver the rest of her baby with one last effort.

 

Kagome grinned broadly as she gently wiped the newborn in her lap. Then she lifted the crying baby up to show Miroku and Sango.

 

“Congratulations! You have a very healthy daughter.”

 

Sango smiled in tired delight. Miroku inwardly groaned.

 

The new mother looked at her mate in confusion. “I thought you wanted a girl?”

 

“I did, but now I have to baby-sit Kagome and Inuyasha's litter for a night,” he moaned.