Alright, people, here we go. First things first, I am so sorry to be like three months late putting this out. And I also apologize for posting this without getting it to my beta first I so want to put this story to rest (see la mistakes!) As you'll see on my profile page, I had some family issues and I am now back on track and free on midterm vacation (though I'm supposed to be studying for some important exams, but they can wait a while!). BLOOD HERITAGE WILL GO AHEAD IMMEDIATELY AS PLANNED, I'm just tying up the loose ends in this story here.

And in answer to Wolfgirl21, I'm so glad I stuck with this to the end, despite the long wait we've just come out of. I'll do the same for the next two stories I have planned. BY THE WAY, ANYTHING, ANYTHING AT ALL YOU WANT TO SEE IN BLOOD HERITAGE, LET ME KNOW IN A PM OR A REVIEW, I'M SO EXCITED ABOUT IT!

Also, in response to Inuyasha Lover 813, Déjà vu, by Beyonce and Jay Z is the little backing track in the chapter where the gang is getting chased by trannies in Milan!!!!! I thought it was the smartest idea (or maybe I'm just being blonde!) Congratulate her for it!

Be warned, this is a lot shorter than my other chapter's, cause's it's really just a nice way to close this off!

So, for the last time, and very quickly, here is:

The Epilogue (imaginatively named, I know):

"Fuck off, already!" Inuyasha bellowed, feeling yet another water balloon burst all over his t-shirt.

"You just can't take it, fuckface!" Miroku chuckled back, peering over the sunny balcony again as he sent a purple one flying Inuyasha's way.

"Oh yeah? Is that your defence? I can't take the heat? Mr. I-can't-take-my-pregnant-fiancee-anymore-so-I-bullied-my-friends-into-coming-to-New York-on-an-extended-bachelor-party!" Inuyasha retorted, bounding up to the balcony to meet Miroku!

"Eh he he…I thought we promised we wouldn't mention that while we were here?" Miroku tried, chuckling nervously at his friend towering over him.

"Yeah, I lied." Inuyasha commented lightly, delving into Miroku's pail for a balloon. Somehow, his t-shirt message today seemed appropriate: Friendly fire - isn't.

No way in hell Miroku missed that one.

"I thought you were going to call your wife and child!" Miroku quickly answered backing slowly away, bucket in hand.

"I am, and besides, I'm gonna use the video screen. And I don't know, I reckon your goddaughter might like to see you all wet." Inuyasha replied menacingly, a wide grin spreading across his handsome features.

"But…I helped in your little scheme for the Armani deal! Does that mean NOTHING to you????" Miroku pleaded, desperate not to have to see Sango soaking wet.

"Nah, not right now!" Inuyasha cackled, soundly bursting the huge green balloon on Miroku's short hair.

A booming chuckle joined Inuyasha's as Miroku inhaled, sweeping his wet hair out of his eyes, cursing under his breath.

"For once, mutt, that's actually funny!" Kouga choked out, leaning his hands on his knees as he laughed.

"I'm plenty funny, just wait and see what I have in store for you and Ayame when we get back!" Inuyasha threatened.

He didn't really think it was necessary for Kouga to know that he didn't have the least intention or idea of what the hell he was supposed to do to him. It was the menace that counted, right?

"Oi, baka, don't you have a mate to be calling?" Sesshoumaru demanded, Gucci shades and crumpled black jeans standing out in the sun.

"And what are you in such a hurry for me to do it for? Anxious to see Rin, Oprah?" Inuyasha taunted, remembering his advice from a few years back.

"Fuck off. I know of no such thing. I just like the screen, is all." Sesshoumaru grunted, turning away to hide his cherry blush.

So what if he missed his mate a little? Was it a crime? God, he really had to stop stealing Rin's Cosmo…

"Fine, if we're gonna call, we might as well all be here. Where's the runt?" Inuyasha groused, not realizing everyone had wanted to get in on his phone call. Again.

Memo to self, he thought, remember to buy Kagome, Yuri and I another estate. Ours has been overrun by psychos.

He grinned as he recalled how their living conditions were all set out, and pouted when he realized how Kagome had bullied him into it.

He, Kagome and Yuri all lived in the big house in the center of the estate. Sango and Miroku had had their own house built pretty much down the street from them, in order to stay close to Yuri soon after she was born. However, with the expense of the gorgeous little house Sango and Miroku had built, they were finding the mortgage for the land a little bit of a stretch to pay. So, good old Inuyasha (after not getting any for two weeks from Kagome) had bought the land himself (in absolute desperation for his beautiful mate) and now they paid him a miniscule mortgage for it, in return for extending the grounds outwards to include their house.

Kouga and Ayame had cleared on out to the ancient servants' quarters from way back in the Feudal Era, deep in the estate's woods, renovating it themselves over the course of a few months. Now they had it as a huge (if a little creaky) manor house and loved it. Plus, Inuyasha got to take money from Kouga, which was always fun!

Sesshoumaru and Rin had also taken over an old outbuilding on the estate, an old, old, old, well house called the Bone Eater's Well close to a tree called Goshinboku forming the centrepiece. They too had constructed a huge house, the size of Inuyasha's, over the well site, and as of right now, both brothers were currently involved in a battle to see who could build the biggest house. Put it this way, right now, Inuyasha had three poker rooms, Yuri had a fairy room and Kagome had a room where she was supposed to tweeze her eyebrows…(needless to say, she never used it!) And Sesshoumaru had five exercise ball rooms, with nothing but the one exercise ball in it, and four music rooms, each one with an instrument no one knew how to play inside it. And they said they weren't being petty…

Kikyou had been the only one to not actually live on Mireshi property, but it wasn't as though she didn't live down the street. Cause she did. With the money Naraku had left her in the will, (which turned out to be plenty), she had bought a big apartment close to their estate, gotten a job as a counsellor for the sexually abused and had made major changes in her life. What mattered now was that she was back on track, happy, had a family, and one, very important, fluffy reason for living.

Inuyasha grabbed the cordless phone from the cradle as he sauntered into the hotel room, grabbing the orange attachment lead from the table the phone sat on.

"Shippou!" he bellowed into the air, knowing his mate would want to see him.

He dropped to the floor and reached into the duffel bag he had brought with him for the surprise he had in store for Kagome. He grinned as he unrolled the five foot tall poster and gazed at it.

As he connected the phone to the white screen in front of him, he sat on the bed as he dialed home.

"Everybody in here!" Inuyasha yelled, prepared to shock the pants off his wife. Preferably literally.

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"Auntie Sango, waddle faster!!!!" A little's girl's voice pleaded as she clutched her godmother's hand tightly, pulling her along the hall.

"I'm WALKING, not WADDLING, Yuri sweetie, and remind me to hit your parents for telling you that!" Sango griped good-naturedly, hurrying as fast as she could on feet she couldn't see.

With her loose "Big Momma" t-shirt and a miniskirt and flipflops on, Sango absolutely glowed at five months pregnant.

"I don't know, Auntie Sango, Mommy said she did it when I was in her tummy too, so I guess you do too!" Yuri chirped innocently, shooting an adorable smile up at Sango.

"Oh the intelligent logic of a four-year-old," Sango sighed theatrically.

Suddenly, Yuri stopped abruptly pink ribbon tied bunches bouncing.

"Don't you think I'm smart, Auntie Sango?" Yuri asked, her large golden eyes filling up swiftly.

"Sweetie, of course I do, I was just-" Sango began, feeling the tears coming on.

"Cause like, yest-…yestra…the day before I went to sleep last night, Mommy was mad at Daddy, for not…for not… I think she said fixing the Marani contr…contr…piece of paper and she called him stupid, and a whole bunch of other stuff I'm not s'posed to say, and she said that she hoped I didn't get his smarts, cause I wouldn't get much!!!! Does that mean I'm stupid Auntie Sango???" Yuri asked, working herself into a frenzy, silver ears flattening on her head.

"Oh noooo, sugar pie, you're not stupid!" Sango cooed, stopping and hugging Yuri's sturdy frame to her. "Mommy was just mad at Daddy, is all. And besides, you can ask him if he's smart yourself, remember?" Sango chirped, hoping this would turn off the waterworks. "We were going to talk to him on the big screen again, weren't we?"

"Oh YEAH!!!" Yuri squealed, grabbing onto Sango's hand once more.

"What the hell did I just do???" Sango asked despairingly.

"Ah! No bad words, Auntie Sango, Mommy tells that to Daddy all the time!" Yuri reprimanded.

8888

Inuyasha scooped Shippou up into his arms as he dialed and his friends leaked into the room, taking their places on the bed.

"Uncle Yash, are you calling Aunt Kagome?" Shippou questioned, wiggling in Inuyasha's firm grip.

"Yeah, runt, hang on a sec." Inuyasha said, waiting for the ringing to start.

8888

"Ayame!!! The wires are hurting my head!" Kagome whined, calling her electric savvy friend to help her with wiring the screen.

"Have no fear, sweetie, Ayame's here!" she quipped, grinning as she sauntered in in a lime green bikini top and denim short-shorts.

"Oh, my hero…" Kagome droned sarcastically, in a red and silver striped bikini top and a fluttery black miniskirt on. Just because she was a mom didn't mean she couldn't still be hot, you know…

"You're welcome!" Rin squeaked, jogging into the bedroom in a yellow cutaway swimsuit and jeans slung low on her round hips.

"You got her to do it?" Kagome asked, eyes lighting up hopefully.

"But of course!" Rin confirmed in a bad French accent.

"YES! We can actually do a bachelorette type activity!!!" Kagome shrieked, glomping Sango as her daughter hauled her into the room.

"Oh really? I'm pregnant, you do remember…" Sango smiled, not really wanting to bring her friend all the way down.

"Oh it's not so hard! You can just baby sit the drunk, and I volunteer to stay sober to help!" Kagome said gallantly.

"No, you liar, you volunteer to stay sober to check in on Yuri five times an hour!" Ayame corrected, muffled from underneath the screen's circuitry.

"I love her." Kagome said simply, blushing deeply.

"Kikyou loves her to smithereens too, you know." Rin commented truthfully.

"And we love Kikyou, but I just want to know my baby is okay!" Kagome replied, pouting defensively.

"It still amazes me how we're all still such good friends after these few years, and how we're friends with Kikyou!" Sango said, yawning as she eased on to the plush bed.

"The past is the past, you know?" Kagome said simply, the small sentence speaking a thousand words. "And frankly, when you all live in the backyard, it's too hard not to be this huge, twisted family." Kagome smiled.

"Twisted? Where?" Kikyou asked, a megawatt grin on her face as she quietly walked in, her understated black bikini top and black Capri pants showing her off to her best.

"I don't see what's twisted about it!" Rin defended.

"Oh yeah?" Kagome challenged. "Inuyasha and Kouga used to hate each other but now don't, we're all paired off and starting the whole baby thing, we're all going to be each other's children's godparents, a few of us are related, we have a huge amount of demonic and miko power between us, we're the most mismatched motley bunch of people EVER, and-"

"We love each other." Sango finished serenely, getting up to hug Kagome.

"Mommy, I want a hug too!" Yuri peeped, tugging on Kagome's skirt.

"Sure, baby!" Kagome agreed, picking Yuri up and holding her close.

She jumped when the phone rang and the screen lit up, pulling a fuzzy picture into focus.

"It's Daddy, sweetie!" Kagome said mock cheerfully. "He has some explaining to do…"

Suddenly, a crystal clear picture of all the guys in their hotel room showed up on the big white screen, with hysterical waves showing they could see them too.

"Hey, babe!" Inuyasha said happily, putting the phone on speaker phone.

"Aw, Inuyasha, what a cute pet name for me!" Rin grinned, batting her eyelashes at the scowling hanyou.

"Screw – " Inuyasha began, trying hard and failing not to catch Kagome's evil eye.

"I mean, I am sorry, Rin. Please refrain from implying such a thing. I am not allowed to curse in front of my child. God knows why…" Inuyasha said without an ounce of feeling or sincerity.

"Thank you, Daddy, for not…not corrupt…crupt…turning me into you, Daddy!" Yuri thanked from her position in Kagome's arms.

"Sorry, baby, but Kagome, WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN TELLING HER?" Inuyasha asked incredulously.

"Nothing but the truth, koi!" Kagome replied coquettishly.

"Well, then, I won't tell you what I've done about the Armani contract!" Inuyasha huffed, turning away.

"That was what I meaned, Auntie Sango." Yuri whispered.

"Thanks, sweetie pie." Sango whispered back.

"Sango, Inuyasha beat on me with a water balloon!" Miroku whined, digging for pity from his frightening, and currently unpredictable fiancée.

"Well, just good for you! Serves you right for refusing to get out of bed to bring me my chocolate salsa tacos!" Sango retorted, grinning wolfishly.

"I was tired!" Miroku defended.

"And I'm pregnant, does that mean nothing to you???" Sango replied. Amazing, how being pregnant was an excuse for everything these days.

"Of course it does, just-" Miroku started.

"STOP!" Kagome yelled, putting her hands into the universal time-out sign. "We didn't have them call just so you could yell at him some more two days before you get married!"

"Oh yeah…" Sango commented sheepishly, allowing herself to sit back down.

"Now, I believe Inuyasha has some explaining to do, RIGHT?" Kagome threatened, brown eyes narrowing at the screen.

"Me? I don't know, do I?" Inuyasha asked, playing dumb just a little bit longer.

"Would it help if I caged Jeremy for a month?" Kagome asked sweetly. Too sweetly. "Cause I don't have a problem with that!"

All the blood drained from Inuyasha's face.

"You wouldn't dare…" he whispered.

"Mommy, I'm older now, do I get to know who Jeremy is yet?" Yuri piped up, silver ears pricking up and brows wrinkling in confusion.

"Not yet, baby, come your next birthday, ask Daddy." Kagome grinned.

"Okay, look, here's what I've done about it." Inuyasha began, relenting under the gaze of his beautiful mate.

"Well come on, show us, I'm getting impatient!" Kikyou griped.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah…Just finding the fucking disk…"Inuyasha muttered darkly.

"LANGUAGE!" The whole room, on both sides of the country, chorused.

"Alright already…" Inuyasha cringed under the glares of everyone. He didn't realize people valued Yuri's innocence this much.

"Inuyasha, explain first, how have you managed to get pictures of Kagome good enough to use for Armani without her even posing for you?" Rin asked, sweeping her hair back from her face.

"I'll tell all once you see them." Inuyasha winked mysteriously. "Turn the lights off, and prepare for the show!"

"OOOOH, Auntie Kikyou, is this a show like the time we all went to see The Lion King at the big theater place and everyone thought me and Daddy were from the show cause of our ears but we weren't and Daddy said a lot of those bad words and we're not allowed to go back there anymore???" Yuri asked excitedly.

"Not quite, sweetcheeks, but you never know, it could be just as funny!" Kikyou giggled, allowing Yuri to climb down from Kagome onto her lap.

"Goody." Yuri replied, snuggling in.

Suddenly, as the lights switched off, a slideshow of amazing pictures filled the entire screen. Both rooms' jaws dropped. This was…magical. Pictures of Kagome walking, laughing, drinking, dancing. Digital remastery had input candid, amazing pictures of Kagome into background scenes, the ones Armani had wanted. A picture of Kagome swanning down the stairs in her black corset gown. She realized then that it probably wasn't a Vera Wang, as she had thought.

A picture of Kagome wrapped in Inuyasha's embrace as they came into the foyer the night after they mated. A picture of a pregnant Kagome glowing as she sat with her friends. A picture of Kagome the night they found out about Yuri, body and soul lost to the music. Simple ones, pictures from Milan, pictures of her in the chiffon dress from the People's Choice Awards.

Scene after scene, memory after memory, glided past Kagome as she watched herself on the screen. And despite her impressive portfolio to date, including the highly successful Milan Swarovski campaign, even she had to say, she had never looked more stunning. Everyone else in the room seemed to disappear.

"But…but how?" she whispered, awestruck at the sheer beauty of Inuyasha's art.

Inuyasha's face and the rest of their dumbstruck room swum back into focus as the incredible slideshow ended.

"Guys, do you mind giving us a minute?" Inuyasha said quietly, loving the expression on his mate's face.

"Sure." Sesshoumaru replied. "Just call us back to say bye."

"Okay." Inuyasha replied, strangely somberly.

Kagome's friends excused themselves too, amidst claims of needing to go find sunscreen, or figure out which pajamas to wear to Auntie Kikyou's sleepover tonight etc. etc.

Soon, it was just the two of them, alone in their darkened rooms.

"How did you do this, Inuyasha?" Kagome asked, tears shimmering in her eyes.

"Remember when I told you, all those years ago, that you were beyond beautiful, and that you should never let anyone tell you otherwise? Or something along those lines, but whatever." Inuyasha asked.

"Yeah…" Kagome replied, the tears threatening to fall.

"Well, I had a few CCTV cameras installed in places they didn't already have them and I took some pictures myself. I picked the best candid ones I could find, put them through the computer editing, and here, is the best campaign I think you or I have ever made." Inuyasha replied matter-of-factly.

"But, aren't I supposed to be wearing Armani?" Kagome asked.

"You are." Inuyasha said, shrugging.

"How?" Kagome asked again, feeling like a parrot.

"Everything Sango has ever given you to wear was straight from the new Armani collection. She just refrained from telling you, is all." Inuyasha winked mischievously.

"SANGO!" Kagome screeched. "You were in on this the whole TIME?!?!?!?"

"Don't hurt me, he's very convincing when he wants to be, and I'm pregnant!" Sango's laughing voice floated back from a few doors down the line.

"You don't like it?" Inuyasha pouted, looking crestfallen.

Kagome took a deep breath before she answered. Before she just yelled at him for his dishonesty, she thought about what she had seen. It was stunning. Beyond that, really. There was no other word for it, but a masterpiece. And how could she yell at him for putting her in it?

"It's fucking amazing, Inuyasha." Kagome replied, the tears coming back in full force, pouring down her cheeks.

"Why the tears, babe?" Inuyasha asked, his grin fading.

"I…I'm just…it's really, really pretty, Inuyasha!" Kagome chuckled wetly.

"Thank you," Inuyasha quipped dryly, highly unimpressed with being called pretty again.

"Hey, do you remember the bargain we were supposed to be working by after we met?" Kagome asked suddenly, recalling the terms.

"Yeah…whatever happened to that?" Inuyasha mocked.

"I don't know, let me see, we hooked up, you ran out on your own proposal, I had to go track your sorry ass down, we ended up in your little cave, I got knocked up, we got married, saved the world and adopted our former nemesis as part of our highly confusing family unit. Is that all?" Kagome asked, pouting sexily.

"Naw, I don't think so," Inuyasha pondered. "You got yourself into an accident, then passed out at a big awards do, I had to save your life, we got chased across Milan by angry trannies, you spent six months making me get up at three in the morning to get you onion flavored donuts, I had to deliver our first born (not a word out of you) AFTER saving the world and THEN we adopted our former nemesis as part of our highly confusing family unit." Inuyasha embellished.

"One day, we should write all that down, when we're famous enough to have an autobiography." Kagome commented.

"Yeah, whenever you think I'm writing a fucking book, you will never see Jeremy again!" Inuyasha threatened. He didn't really think it would work the other way, but it was worth a shot, right?

"Fine by me!" Kagome replied nonchalantly, despite her inner panic at the thought. Shoot, Inuyasha thought.

"All jokes aside Kagome, we've done good, right?" Inuyasha asked.

"You know what, we have. We've raised a hilarious little girl, who is more like her father than I would like, but then I can't help that. Sango and Miroku are getting married in a couple of days, everyone I love the best lives a stone's throw away and we are gonna be even richer once you show Armani that campaign." Kagome listed.

"And to think, we only ever hooked up because we pretty much got – " Inuyasha started.

"Caught in the flash." They said together.

"How'd you know?" he asked.

"Just a hunch." Kagome smirked.

"Anyways, koi, I gotta run, I mean, I do have a bachelor party to set up. Alcohol to put out, music to order, strippers to choose from…" he smirked, knowing it would rile her up.

"STRIPPERS! What strippers!??!?!?!?!?!?!" Kagome shrieked, fury flashing in her brown eyes.

Her rage dimmed once she saw Inuyasha rolling around on the floor clutching his stomach in mirth.

"ASSHOLE!" Kagome growled. "I'm taking Kikyou's son back from you when you get back here! I will not have another child I love corrupted by you!"

"I am NOT corrupting Yuri! Honest!" Inuyasha protested. "I'm just…teaching her the ways of the world, that's all!"

"Well, I'm sure Kikyou will still kick your ass for ruining her angelic adopted son!" Kagome replied.

"You know what, I am too mature for these childish arguments, babe." Inuyasha said, sitting on the chair abruptly, preparing to hang up.

Suddenly, a noise that sounded suspiciously like a whoopee cushion exploded as he sat down.

"Mature, huh?" Kagome admonished, eyes sparkling.

"Wasn't me!" Inuyasha lied blatantly. "It was Shippou, honest. He learned it from his scheming mother!"

"I heard that!" Kikyou called from a distance.

"Now you see why I call this family twisted???" Kagome said, picking up her own phone.

"I suppose you gotta go have girlish fun without me then," Inuyasha said with mock disappointment.

"Well, I don't know, if you don't do strippers, I won't…you never know what'll be waiting for you when you get back." Kagome flirted, licking her lips.

"Teasing wench." Inuyasha growled.

"I love you too." Kagome waved.

"Pfft. If that's love, I don't know what hatred is…" Inuyasha grizzled as he smiled and hung up.

As she watched her mate's face disappear from the screen, Kagome smiled serenely. In so many ways, she was so incredibly lucky. And she valued every second of her life here.

As she shut the door behind her in search of her friends for the bachelorette party of a lifetime to start (you know, after Yuri had been put somewhere safe, warm and heavily guarded) Kagome thought of a sudden title for that autobiography.

It was: Caught in the Flash. Had a nice ring to it, right?

AN: THAT'S IT. IT'S OVER!!!! OMG you guys, this has been awesome. I want to thank each and every single one of you from the bottom of my heart but I want to thank these guys in particular (in no order) for helping me through my first ever fic!

Inu Youkai Wanna Be (for her truthful and helpful support throughout!)

Jezebelsmua (for the perkiest reviews ever!)

Wolfgirl21 (for unending support that pretty much knocked my socks off!)

Decedi (just for being cool)

All4Inuyasha(ditto)

Laetitia Messi(ditto)

littleduck (funny reviews!)

modelwalk(ditto)

ScariMoi (made me laugh every time)

Angel Food 101 (loved the song ideas)

Archerelf (really cool)

DymondB (ditto)

Ryoko of the Ink (for such an eloquent review, I loved it!)

Pure Rain (just cool)

Inuyasha Lover 813 (cool song idea!)

IF YOU DIDN'T READ THE FIRST AN AT THE TOP, READ IT!

I'm gonna stop there unless I'm gonna bore the pants off you all, but thank you so much for sticking with this so long, and even if your name wasn't up there, know that I read each and every one of your reviews and they each made me laugh and smile, and pretty much cheered me up. This story would be nothing without your input and thoughts, and I love you all for it!

I hope I see you again for Blood Heritage in a few days' time, and for the last time for Caught in the Flash:

CLICK THE DAMN BUTTON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!