"In giving birth to our babies, we may find that we give birth to new possibilities within ourselves." Myla and Jon Kabat-Zinn, Everyday Blessings: The Inner Work of Mindful Parenting

-15-

The nurse leads Keitaro down an adjacent hall and into what appears to be a locker room. She stops at a floor to ceiling cabinet and opens it, reaching in and grabbing a bag that contains several items. She turns and hands them to the Kanrinin. "Here, put these on over your clothes. There is a buzzer next to the door, hit that when you are done." When Keitaro nods in understanding, she opens the door and steps out.

The dark-haired man looks over the garments that he was handed. They are neatly folded inside of a clear bag. He opens it, removes the contents, then begins to unfold them. Peering at the blue-green item, it looks more like a robe than anything else. He starts to put it on, but then notices that the package has instructions on it. "Backwards," he mutters to himself as he removes it again and starts to put it on correctly, glad that the nurse was not there to see it. Quickly, he steps over and presses the call button.

The nurse opens the door almost immediately and after a quick, appraising glance, she hands him a hair net and surgical mask, which he quickly puts on. "Follow me please," she says, and steps past. They walk through the locker room and into another room that has several wash basins. "Wash your hands, then we can go in."

Keitaro does as instructed, then turns to the nurse, who is standing by another door opposite the one he entered through. "Congratulations," she says with a smile, then opens it and beckons him to enter. The dark-haired man swallows a lump that had formed in his throat, then steps through the door.

What he finds is his wife laying on her back on a table. At least he assumes she is as he can only see her head. A massive shroud of blue cloth blocks off most of the operating theater. However, he can see several nurses scurrying about on the fringes. Naru, who is also wearing a hairnet, is staring straight up. Barely audible, he can hear her chanting.

"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you."

"You will need to stay on this side of the partition," instructs a man who is setting by Naru's head. He is covered from head to toe by a surgical smock similar to Keitaro's.

"Is that Keitaro?" asks Naru as she tries to crane her head to see him. When she does, a pleasant smile forms on her face. The nurse gestures to a chair sitting at the head of the bed, and Keitaro takes it and sits down. He reaches up and caresses Naru's forehead, then leans in for a quick kiss.

"This is really happening, isn't it," he says.

"Baka," replies Naru. While there was a little mirth in her voice, Keitaro gets the distinct impression that she would bop him on the head if her arms were available to her. As such, they are safely ensconced on the opposite side of the large blue cloth that is separating him and her head from where the real work is being performed. "It's happening to me, you're just a spectator right now." A smile spreads across her face

"Yeah, you're right," says Keitaro as he leans in and kisses her on the forehead again. Just as he pulls away, Naru lets out a long hiss. "Are you ok?"

"Just a lot of pressure," she says through her clenched teeth.

"The doctor is making the incision now, so you will start feeling a lot more," says the nurse. "You might try your breathing exercises."

"OK," Naru grits out as she starts to breath.

Keitaro remembers this from some of the early pregnancy classes they attended before she found out about Shinobu. Scooting his chair a little closer, he starts to breath with Naru in order to help keep a good rhythm. "Just concentrate on me," he says.

"Where did you go?" asks Naru after a few moments between breaths.

Keitaro shifts uncomfortably in his chair. "America," he says sheepishly, which causes Naru to turn and give him a sharp look. They had dreamed of taking a vacation there at some point, so for him to have gone without her… Well, at this point, he was doomed anyway, so he might as well tell her everything. "Met up with some friends from the dig teams in San Diego. Spent some time there, then headed to Las Vegas."

The look on Naru's face reminds him so much of how she used to look at him just before she punched him out of the Hinata Sou, and he starts to pull back. In his imagination, he pictures her getting up right then and there and sending him into orbit, even in spite of the situation she finds herself. However, instead she turns her head away and stares at the ceiling. "We WILL be having a discussion about that later."

Keitaro sighs dejectedly, wondering if anything has really changed. This immediately catches Naru's attention, and she turns to face him again. "Don't be like that. I don't blame you for leaving, I would have as well after what I said to you. I had actually tried to call you many times, but then Kanako sent me that video and… OH!" The brunette lets out a long hiss in reaction to something the doctor was doing.

The nurse leans in and places a comforting hand on her forehead. "We're almost there, you're doing great!"

Naru leans her head and locks the man in a death stare. "Yeah, tell that to the man rummaging around in my uterus right now! Oh... WOW!"

As his wife hisses and tries to control her breathing, Keitaro lets out another sigh. Knowing that his sister's antics had prevented them from reconciling earlier is something he had not considered until now. If Naru had called, how come he did not get the messages or even see in the call history? Had she really sabotaged him to that extent? It is something that he does not even want to consider, but after the video and the way she acted before he left, he cannot quite squelch the idea that she played some sort of a hand in this.

But that is between him and his sister. There are other things much more important right now. His attention is returned to his wife as she lets out another hiss. Then, an additional noise joins the beeping of machines, the hissing of his wife, and the idle chatter of the staff as they worked on Naru. Its starts as a tiny squeak, then grows in intensity to an outright wail.

It is a baby crying.

He hears Naru sob. "Oh, she's here."

Looking down at his wife, he wonders idly how she knows what the sex of the baby is before even the doctor can announce that it's a girl. The full-on scream from his new daughter as she protests whatever tests they may have been running on her distracts him from such thoughts. Keitaro feels a warmth flow through him as he listens to the baby. A warmth fueled by the new love he is feeling for the new life that had just arrived. A lump forms in his throat as his eyes water, a single tear flowing down his face. The dark-haired man looks down at his wife, whose face is a mask of joy.

"You did it," he says as he leans in and kisses her.

The radiant smile she gives back in return completes the melting of his heart that had started with his daughter's cries. He won't ever leave again.

XXX

Sitting in the waiting room, Motoko notes that it is nearly empty, save for two of the three other long time Hinata Sou residents. Shinobu had earlier excused herself to the bathroom. That left Kaolla Su and Kitsune, who are sitting on either side of the sword maiden. While the mood lightened considerably when Keitaro arrived and Naru agreed to the caesarian, the wait has weighed heavily on both as indicated by the dejected looks on their faces. She can rightfully guess what might be on the blonde foreigner's mind, but Kitsune's mood is something of an enigma. "What's wrong," she asks finally after getting tired of listening to the television that is on in the background.

Kitsune shifts uncomfortably in her seat. "I-I don't want to talk about it," she replies.

Motoko furrows her brow in frustration. The silence from the duo is disconcerting considering how boisterous they can be. But rather than confront the brunette, she decides to allow her to open up on her own. "If you need to-"

"This is my fault!" exclaims Kitsune as she sobs into her hands. "I-I tried to talk to her today about the plan, but we ended up in an argument!" She begins crying in earnest. Motoko places an arm around her friend, who leans into the raven-haired woman for support. It takes her a moment, then she continues. "If only I had just kept my mouth shut," she whimpers through her tears.

"Tsk," say Kaolla Su, garnering the attention of both of her companions. "Looks like we both share in the blame, then."

The blonde foreigner's acerbic tone grates on the sword maiden's nerves. "Both of you need to stop this right now," she says as she stands. Motoko turns and kneels down in front of them so as not to seem like she is trying to lecture them. Yelling will not do anyone any good at this point. "Listen, it does not matter whose fault this is. The fact is that we are here now, and that baby is going to be born. Now, it's up to you whether you want to greet it with these crappy attitudes or show it the enthusiasm and love that I know you both are capable of."

Kaolla blinks and nods in response to Motoko's urging, which she takes as the foreigner's agreement. Kitsune sniffs and wipes a few tears out of her eyes. "You're right," she replies with a half-smile.

"Good," says the sword maiden. She reaches over to one of the tables that is close by and snags a tissue and hands it to the fox woman. "Now, Keitaro is going to come through that door any minute, and when he does, we need to be ready for the good news!"

Almost on cue, a click of the door brings everyone's attention. They all turn in anticipation, only to find Shinobu closing it lightly behind her. When she turns and finds everyone staring intently at her, she lets out a small eeep. "Sorry," she says as she starts to waddle over to one of the chairs next to the other women.

All of them watch as she goes, but only Motoko can voice the question that all three of then want to ask. "Are you ok?"

The blue haired cook's eyes go wide for a moment, but before she can respond or sit, the door opens again. This time, it is Keitaro, and he has a huge smile on his face. The three women who were sitting or kneeling immediately bolt up and surround the kanrinin. Shinobu, is a little slower. A small tear escapes his eyes as he opens his arms and invites the other residents in for a hug. "It's a girl!"

All three of the girls rush in and glomp on to Keitaro.

"Oh my god! Congratulations!"

"How big is she?"

"Can we see her?"

"Can she have a banana?"

Keitaro chuckles as he steadies himself against the onslaught. "Thank you, she's just a shade under three kilos, no bananas yet, and I came out here to get you guys. Naru is waiting in her room and the nurses should be bringing the baby out any minute!"

Showing no trace of the melancholy that had been gripping them earlier, Kaolla and Kitsune squeal in delight as Keitaro disengages from the group, turns, and opens the door, holding it open for the women to enter. "Naru is in the last room on the right," he calls after them as the file past. Shinobu waddles along behind the others, pauses for a moment as she sucks in a breath, then continues. Keitaro watches her pass with a mild bit of concern. "Are you all right?"

The blue haired cook stops and glances over her shoulder. "I'm fine, just a bit of heartburn." She then quickly moves off after the other three women. The dark-haired man frowns a bit but decides to take her at her word and trots after her to catch up. When he rounds the corner into his wife's room, he finds chaos has erupted in full force. Kaolla Su and Kitsune both have crawled into Naru's bed and have latched on to either side of her. Both are crying.

"I'm so sorry!"

"I didn't mean for this to happen!"

Keitaro rushes forward and grabs ahold of Kaolla Su, a possibly futile gesture given the foreign woman's propensity to tightly latch on to people, especially during sleep. He is about to try to yank her away when he notes Motoko's presence over Kitsune on the other side. Reaching in, the Kendo woman grabs the freelance writer by the earlobe and starts to pull. The reaction is instant.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow…" repeats Kitsune over and over as she releases Naru and moves with Motoko, lest her ear get pulled off. Deciding it was worth a shot, he does the same to Kaolla Su, and much to his surprise, he gets the same result.

As both wayward residents are corralled and brought under control, someone clears their throat. Not recognizing who it was, everyone's attention is brought to the door. Standing there pushing what appears to be a small cart is the male nurse that had coached the pair during the procedure. On top of the cart is a clear, plastic basinet that contains a small but precious bundle. The entire gang immediately drops what they were doing or who they had a hold of and focus their undivided attention on the new arrival.

Smiling, the man starts to wheel the cart in as the Hinata residents make way. Stopping at Naru's bedside, he gently reaches in and picks up the small package the basinet contains and transfers it into the waiting arms of the mother. "Oh, hi!" squeaks out Naru in a much higher than normal pitch as the male nurse retreats. The baby in her arms, whose eyes are wide open and seemingly taking in everything, turns towards her as if recognizing her voice. "So you were the one causing me all this fuss, weren't you!" she says as the other women start to crowd in. A single tear streaks down her cheek.

In fact, there are very few dry eyes amongst the women of the Hinata Sou.

"She's so adorable!" coos Kitsune as she wipes her own tear.

Kaolla Su sniffs to clear her nose. "Where's all her hair?"

Motoko frowns at the comment but cannot consider herself surprised. "Not all babies are born with hair, Su."

"Looks weird to me."

"No she's not, she's precious!" exclaims the fox woman as she reaches out and caresses the baby's head, who tries to turn her head to look at whatever it was that was touching her.

"Whatever," replies the foreign woman as she shrugs. Still, despite her seeming indifference, she does not move, preferring to stick by the new life that had just been brought into this world.

Everyone just shakes their head.

Naru looks around at the group and smiles. She turns the baby slightly so that everyone can get a good look at her. "Everyone, I would like you to meet Keiko. She is my lucky child as this might not have been possible without your aunts here." Despite a distracting sound that suspiciously resembles dripping water, Motoko, Kitsune, and Su crowd closer. Naru points to each of the residents as she introduces them. "Keiko, this is Aunty Motoko, Aunty Mitsume who you can call Kitsune, Aunty Su, and over there is your Aunty Shinobu, who is going to have your little brother or sister aaaaaany day now!"

The significance of Naru referring to Shibobu's baby in such a matter is not lost on Keitaro. However, that thought is fleeting due to a growing distraction as the background noise turns from a drip to a gush, like someone had poured a glass of liquid on the floor. Slowly, everyone's attention turns to the source of the sound, which happens to be where the blue haired cook is standing. "Shinobu, did your water just break?" asks Keitaro as he steps closer, only to slip, fall, and miraculously not expose anyone.

"I'm sorry," says Shinobu as she sheepishly smiles, embarrassment etched across her face. "I will clean it up right away!"

"Like hell you will!" roars Naru as she grabs her nurses' call button and yanks it out of the wall. While simply pushing the button might have sufficed, the antennae haired woman has also been told that the act of pulling it out would initiate an emergency. A shrill alarm starts to sound, and before the cord can hit the floor, the first nurse has arrived.

"What's wrong?" she demands as she heads straight for Naru.

"She's pregnant and her water just broke!" replies the new mother while pointing at Shinobu. Keitaro, having recovered from his fall, is already trying to get her to move towards the door.

The nurse turns back to the door and yells out, "Aiko, Ichika, Sam! Get in here! We got live one!" Like a well drilled platoon, three more nurses, including the man that had brought Keiko to her mother, storm into the room.

As they start to herd Shinobu out, the soon to be mother starts protesting. "No, really, I'm fine!" she says as they move her along.

"Shinobu!" yells Naru, getting everyone's' attention and causing the procession to stop. She gives the bluenette a radiant smile. "Keiko can't wait to see her little brother or sister."

Shinobu blinks, then smiles. What seems to be a weight is lifted from her as she allows the nurses to take her out of the room. The rest of the residents wave their goodbyes and good lucks as Naru's husband comes up next to her. The new mother, whose antennae are no longer present due to all that has happened in the past number of hours, looks up to him. "Keitaro, why are you still here?" she asks politely but firmly.

The dark-haired man looks at Naru with a puzzled look. "But I-"

Naru immediately admonishes him. "Baka! You need to be there for the birth of your next child!"

Keitaro stares at his wife in stunned silence for a moment. "Right," he says as he quickly gets up and heads out the door, trying to catch up with Shinobu and her entourage.

Naru looks to the remaining residents. Motoko, Kitsune, and Su have smiles on their faces. There is an additional look on the fox woman and the sword maiden that seems to indicate a longing for something more, which Naru can understand. She looks down at Keiko, who has fallen asleep in her arms and hugs her closer, causing the baby to let out a contented sigh. What are these women to you? Naru asks herself as she remembers her dream. She smiles as she recalls how happy the house seemed with all the children running around.

Are they Aunts? Or something more?

The new mother clears her throat to get the attention of the others in the room. The trio, who has been conversing with each other while Naru was lost in thought, turns to her with questioning looks. "I have… ah," starts Naru, but must stop to recollect her thoughts.

"I have something I need to discuss with you."

XXX

From the diary of Naru Urashima

November 15, 2007

It's pretty late in the evening, and the nurses have taken Keiko to weigh her and do some other things. She has obviously had a long day like I have. They should be bringing her back in a half hour or so. I will feed her and then we will try to get some sleep. The nurses suggested I keep her in the basinet next to my bed, but I am not sure I can do that. She may just have to sleep with me tonight.

In all the excitement, I never got a chance to call my parents to let them know the good news. Needless to say that when I did, they were worried when I told them what had happened and rushed to the hospital. Mom practically gushed over Keiko when she got there. I don't think I have ever seen her like that. To be honest, it was as scary as it was funny to watch. My step-dad sat back and watched the whole thing unfold as well. That is, until it was his turn to hold Keiko. He won't admit it, but there was a tear in his eye.

Unfortunately, it was then that he noticed that Keiko has her father's eyes. He made some snide remark about it, which did not sit to well with me. It was then that I told him that Keitaro was back. I think I might as well have thrown a live grenade in the room. He got real upset, especially when I told him that I still loved him and intended to raise Keiko with him. Eventually he stormed out.

As for mom, she kissed me on the forehead and told me to do whatever I thought was right, as long as I also thought it was right for Keiko as well. I told her I would, which seemed to satisfy her, so she left to go after dad. It's probably a good thing that I did not tell him Keitaro was probably next door with Shinobu. He hasn't been back since Shinobu's water broke. I hope everything is going ok.

XXX

The sun is just barely peaking over the horizon as Motoko gets off the bus at Hinata General. Like the other three residents, she had decided to leave when she heard that Naru's parents were coming. She did not want to be there when they were there, especially the stepfather after he had punched Keitaro and threatened Shinobu the last time she had seen him. It would be hard to hold herself back if he decided to show a similar lack of control.

She was alone on this trip, having left Kitsune and Kaolla Su back at the apartments. It was no use waking either up this early in the morning anyway, so she decided to make the trek here alone. As she entered the hospital, she noted how quiet it was. The hustle and bustle she had noticed the previous day had yet to get started. She navigated the corridors with ease until she reached the birthing center, where she stood in front of a camera and identified herself and who she was visiting.

After a moment, which she assumed was for them to confirm with Naru that it was ok to let her in, the doors parted, and she entered. She followed a short corridor that opened into a central nurses' station. From there, the hallways where the patent rooms were located spoked out. At the desk, two women she did not recognize were at their computers where she assumed they were entering notes on the patients.

"Excuse me," says the sword maiden, getting the attention of the closest nurse. She knows where Naru's room is, but there is someone else she wants to check in on first. "What room is Shinobu Maehara in?" When the nurse gives her a funny look, understandable since she had stated originally that she was here to see Naru, she adds, "Shinobu is also a friend of mine."

Seemingly satisfied with that answer, the nurse points down the hallway to the left, which happens to be opposite from where Naru and Keiko are, and says, "She's in three-B."

Motoko bows and gives her thanks and heads that way. It's been at least sixteen hours since they took her away after her water broke. Surely, she has had her baby by now. The lack of any updates was rather unnerving. However, throughout Shinobu's pregnancy there was no indication that there was anything wrong. As far as any of the other residents know, it has been smooth sailing from start to now. The sword maiden reaches up and knocks on the closed door.

Immediately, her senses are assaulted by what felt like a demonic aura emanating from the room. Why the Shinmei-ryu master had failed to notice it before is a mystery to her. She immediately reaches for the doorknob and turns it as she fights down a sense of dread at what she will find when she enters. Any demon that is present would be a formidable opponent without the Hina blade, but she resolves herself to defeat it. She throws the door open and rushes in, ready to do battle.

Dread and fear turn to shock and amusement. Shinobu is sitting up in her bed attached to all manner of instruments that are meant to monitor not only her but the baby as well. The blue haired woman is panting and whistling in a regular rhythm. Sweat is dripping down her forehead, showing obvious exertion. Next to her sits Keitaro. The dark-haired man has a grimace on his face as he tries to keep the beat and give Shinobu something to focus on while she labors. Unfortunately for him, his right hand might be considered a lost cause. It was obvious in the way it was deformed that Shinobu had, at some point in the night, completely crushed it.

Motoko watched for a moment as the bluenette's panting starts to subside, an indication that the contraction she is having is doing the same. She blinks a couple of times as her focus shifts to the newcomer in the room. The sword maiden almost jumps when it appears that Shinobu's eyes flash red for a moment. If it weren't for the fact that she can sense no demons despite the powerful aura being given off by the pregnant woman, Motoko would have acted to contain it. Instead she pauses as she remembers her sister telling her in the past that some women will enter a state that mimics being possessed when they are in labor. While like this, they will do and say many things that they either regret, or in some cases forget altogether when their aura returns to normal.

"GEEEEEET OOOOOOUUUUUT!"

The sound that came from the Hinata Sou's cook sounded nothing like her. It was low, almost a whisper, and sounded feral in nature. Motoko shudders and turns her attention to Keitaro who is trying to mouth something without using his voice, lest he bring attention to herself. While the raven-haired sword master cannot lead lips very well, she gets the message. Save yourself!

Just back away slow, she thinks to herself as she takes a step backwards. Her retreat is blocked, though, when the door opens and another person enters from behind.

"Excuse me!" says one of the nurses as she steps around Motoko. The raven-haired woman remembers the nurse from the day before. She was one of the entourage that escorted Shinobu out of Naru's room. The pink haired woman walks calmly over to the monitors as she smiles at Shinobu. "How are we this morning?"

"GOOOO AWAAAAYYYYY!"

There is that voice again. It gives Motoko chills, and sets her demon senses on edge, which she suppresses as best she can. Since her retreat had been interrupted, she decides to stay and hopefully get an update that she was previously not going to get. With Shinobu's focus now on the Nurse, the sword-maiden slides to the side of the room and finds a chair.

The nurse, who has pink hair, reaches over and wipes Shinobu's head with a washcloth. Motoko is mildly surprised that the bluenette does not snap at the hand as the nurse does her work. A sharp intake from the mother to be, and the resumption of her breathing and whistling tells the story of why as another contraction starts up. The nurse picks up a tape that is running out of one of the machines and examines for a bit as Shinobu's breathing becomes louder. "That's a good one!" she quips as she puts the tape back down.

The look she gets from the mother to be could peel the paint off the room.

"So, it looks like your contractions are about two minutes apart," says the pink haired nurse as she grabs a pair of gloves and steps around to the foot of the bed. "I need to check you to see how you are progressing."

"DOOOOON'T TOOUUUUCH ME!"

Motoko shivers again, but the nurse seems to ignore it as she slips on her gloves. She pulls up the sheet, just exposing Shinobu's feet. She puts her left hand on the bluenette's knee as she reaches under with her right while doing her best to keep Shinobu's modesty intact. It takes just a few seconds before she withdraws her hand and smiles. "Feels like you are finally at ten centimeters!"

"I'LLLL KIIIIIILLLL YYYYUUUUOOO FFFFOOOOR THHHHAAAATTT!"

"Now that wasn't very nice! Especially since you are going to get to see that baby real soon!" Somehow, the pink haired nurse never loses her smile as she walks back over to the monitors. She looks around and then finds Shinobu's nurse's call button and presses it.

After a few moments, a voice comes over the intercom. "Yes?"

"Hey, it's Ichika. Miss Meahara is at ten centimeters," replies the pink haired woman.

"Great, I will have Sam go wake up Doctor Ko. We will be there in a few minutes."

"Sounds good," says Ichika. "I will start getting things ready in here." She turns and immediately addresses Motoko. "I'm going to have to ask you to step out, family only for now."

The raven-haired woman nods and stands. She glances over to Keitaro who appears to be quite relieved at the news that things were moving forward now. For a moment, she wonders about what he may have been going through all night but decides to push that aside. There will be plenty of time to discuss that after things are done. As she steps to the door, she hears Keitaro ask, "Nurse Takeda, could I have an ice pack for my hand?"

"YOOOOUUU SHUUUUUTTT UUUUUUUPPP! YOOOOOOUUUU DIIIIIIIIDDD THIIIIIISSS TOOOOOOO MEEEEEE!" yells Shinobu. "DEEEEEAAAALLL WIIIIIITTTHHHH THEEEEEE PAAAAAAIIINNNN LIIIIIKKKKKE A MAAAAANNNNNN!"

XXX

Assaulted by a hail of insults, profanity, and threats, the three nurses set about to rearranging Shinobu's room. Hidden closets are opened to reveal specialized medical equipment. The bed was transformed from something that looked like it could have been found anywhere in the hospital to something that brought to mind a medieval torture device with stirrups that help keep the expecting mother's legs apart for easy access. Within five minutes, the room is changed from the appearance of a normal hospital room to a make-shift operating theatre.

Through it all, Shinobu never lets up, using language that Keitaro scarcely knew she would ever use. It had actually begun about an hour before Motoko arrived, starting with small comments under her breath that the apartment manager heard but was too shocked to acknowledge. The nurses had instructed her not to push even though she was desperate to do so, telling her she was not quite ready yet. As her labor progressed, Shinobu's language progressed from barely audible, through audible side comments, to active verbal abuse. Aiko, a petite, blue haired nurse that happened to also be putting the finishing touched on the room with the other two nurses, said that it was normal.

As the afore mentioned nurse takes a peek under the sheet covering Shinobu to see what her progression was, a knock came to the door. Without anyone answering, the door opens and Doctor Ko, dressed in a set of blue surgical scrubs, walks in.

"Where is she at?" he asks as he walks around the bed.

"Where do you think?" snaps Shinobu before anyone else can answer.

Doctor Ko looks at the very pregnant woman and smiles. "Oh, we have one of those, I see," he quips. Several of the nurses in the room emphatically nod their heads.

Aiko steps up next to the doctor. "She's at ten centimeter and a hundred percent effaced," she says before walking around him to the side of the bed opposite Keitaro.

"Good, good," he says as he snags a stool and sits down. He then rolls it to the foot of the bed and positions himself between Shinobu's legs. Sam stands at the ready behind the doctor next to a cart filled with all sorts of medieval looking equipment. Ichika stands next to a device the soon to be father (again) recognizes as a warmer.

"Are you ready to start pushing this baby out?" asks the doctor.

Shinobu glares at the man. "Get this thing out of me!"

Ko nods and looks over at the machine monitoring the baby and the contractions. The line for starts to inch upwards, indicating another one is starting. "Ok, take a deep breath and get ready to push when I tell you!"

Shinobu inhales, but then turns to her lover and object of her scorn. "Keitaro?"

"Yes?"

"If you ever touch me again, I will kill you."

XXX

Screaming, crying, and completely naked, the baby is set on Shinobu's chest. Tears leak out of one of her eyes as she grabs on to him and hugs him tight. Doctor Ko had told the couple that he felt it was important to get the baby into contact with the mother as soon as possible after delivery if it was healthy enough. So right after it was delivered, he toweled the baby off, clamped off the umbilical cord, and presented it to the father to cut. The dark-haired man did so with scissors that were handed to him from somewhere. After the infant is handed to the mother, it seems to Keitaro as if everyone in the room fades away, leaving just himself, Shinobu, and the baby.

"Hi!" squeaks out the new mother in a higher than normal pitch of voice.

The baby boy, who has a shock of thin, dark blue hair, quiets down and tries to move his head towards the sound of her voice. "He already recognizes you," says Keitaro as he reaches in and caresses the baby's head. He squirms a little under the contact but does not shy away. Keitaro leans in and puts his head down on the pillow next to Shinobu's

"Oh, he's so beautiful!" cries the bluenette. At first, she leans her head against his, then turns it towards him and is able to kiss Keitaro on the forehead. "I love him so much!" she says before kissing the same spot again. "And I love you, too."

Keitaro smiles, but does not take his eyes off his new son. At nearly four kilograms, the baby is quite a bit larger than expected, especially for a woman as petite as Shinobu is. He even outweighs his 'older sister' by nearly a whole kilo. Still, he's everything that you can expect in a healthy baby. As Shinobu continues to talk to the product of their union almost nine months ago, he finally feels at peace. The decision may have been bad, but the outcome is certainly right in his mind.

After a couple of minutes, Nurse Ichika comes over with another towel. "Sorry," she says as she lays the article over the baby's back. "I need to take him to the warmer and do another assessment." Reluctantly, Shinobu agrees and releases her grip on the boy. The nurse carefully turns him over and loosely wraps him as she picks him up off Shinobu's chest. The baby starts to squirm and cry as she does so. Quickly, she transports him over to the baby warmer and lays him down on a small platform with short plastic walls surrounding it to help prevent anything rolling out. The platform is attached to large pillar that holds a bright light and warming light above the baby.

Two of the other nurses surround the warmer and start performing various duties such as recording his weight, measuring him, putting on his first diaper. Shinobu watches for a moment, then turns to Keitaro. "I-I'm sorry."

Keitaro gives her a puzzled look. "For what?"

"You know," she says sheepishly. "For all the things I said."

The dark-haired man smiles, then leans in and kisses her on her forehead. "There's nothing to apologize for," he says. He then nods his head in the direction of the baby that is now loudly protesting the work that the nurses are doing on him. "It was all worth it." Keitaro then turns back to Shinobu and kisses her again, this time on the lips.

XXX

It took them about an hour for the nurses and the doctor to finish up with the mother and son. Unfortunately for Shinobu, the baby boy was quite large at just over forty-eight centimeters and three and three-quarters kilograms. A larger woman would have fared better, but for the petite cook, a few extra stitches were needed to put things back together. After that was done, Keitaro and Shinobu spent about an hour alone with their new son. Unfortunately, she had not settled on a name yet.

After a bit, they invited all the residents of the Hinata Sou to join them. Every one of them fell in love with the baby boy at first site, marveling at how he favored Keitaro quite a bit in looks. Kaolla Su even commented about how handsome he was with his blue hair, which was obviously a trait he got from his mother.

Eventually, Shinobu and her baby was moved to the same room Naru and her daughter were occupying. It was meant to keep the large group together and not crowd the hallways of the birthing center, but it was also helped along due to Naru's insistence, which was something of a surprise to Shinobu. After the move, the entire group spent the afternoon and early evening talking and fussing over the new arrivals. Eventually, Motoko, Kaolla, and Kitsune left for the night, leaving the remaining residents and the babies to sleep.

As the moonlight filters into the room through the window, Naru turns in her bed to look at her husband. He is sitting in a reclining chair that the nurses had provided for him, snoring lightly. Tucked into his arm that is facing her side of the bed is Keiko. She is swaddled up tightly and sleeping peacefully. In his other arm is Shinobu's baby boy, who struggled mightily after being swaddled before he freed his arms, which are now up on either side of his head. He is also sleeping soundly.

"Shinobu," Naru whispers. "Are you still awake?"

"Yeah," replies the blue haired cook groggily.

Naru carefully and silently slides out onto the floor, grabbing a pillow as she goes, and tiptoes around the foot of her bed, past Keitaro and the babies, and around again to the opposite side of Shinobu's bed. The blue haired woman, who was laying on her side facing the chair, gives Naru a puzzled look, then rolls onto her back and scoots over to make room as the antennae haired woman sits down and carefully begins to pull up the covers so that she can join, wincing as she does so.

"Doesn't that hurt with your stitches and all?" asks Shinobu.

"It pinches a little," replies Naru as she tries to settle in and make herself comfortable. When Shinobu gives her a look that says she does not believe her, she shrugs. "They encouraged me to get up and walk around some." As she settles in, she turns onto her side facing the blue haired woman. She lifts her head up and looks to the man she loves and the children he helped create. "They look so peaceful," says Naru.

Shinobu smiles and reaches over to caress the hair on her son's scalp. "I just can't take my eyes off them," she says.

The pair fall into silence as they watch Keitaro and the babies sleep. After a few moments, its Naru that breaks the quiet. "We need to talk."

Sighing to herself, Shinobu turns to face the brunette woman. "I already know what you are going to say," says the bluenette, resignation seeping into her voice.

"Oh, you do, huh?" replies Naru mirthfully. She can tell that the tone of her voice is throwing off her companion. She was expecting this. It was a not so well-kept secret that Shinobu thought she knew what would happen after her baby was born. At one point, she was right. But not now. Naru smiles and then reaches over to brush a stray hair out of her friend's eyes. "I want you and your son to be a part of my family."

"What?"

Naru looks mischievously into Shinobu's eyes. "You're not seriously going to make me repeat that, are you?"

"No No No!" exclaims Shinobu, a little too loudly as she waves her hands before slapping them over her mouth. Both women glance over as Keitaro snorts before returning to a steady breathing rhythm that indicates that he is still asleep. They breathe a sigh of relief and turn their attention back to each other. "I'm just, ah…" starts Shinobu before stopping to collect her thoughts. "I assumed that I would need to find my own place after this."

Naru raised an eyebrow in question. "Why would you do that?"

"Well, Keitaro is your husband," starts Shinobu as she looks away and begins to nervously poke her index fingers together. "And in truth, I wronged you. Because of that, from the very beginning I made peace with the idea that I was going to have to take my baby, my son, and go somewhere else."

The brunette woman reaches over and gently grabs Shinobu's face with her hands, turning it towards her so that she can look into the younger woman's eyes. "Well, I made my own peace with that as well," she says with a smile. She releases Shinobu and gets serious. "I don't want you to go anywhere. In fact, I am ok with you staying with Keitaro and me and raising your son and my daughter together with the rest of the children of the Hinata Sou."

As her lip begins to quiver, Shinobu holds back tears of joy. Suddenly, she throws her arms around Naru's neck and pulls her in to a tight hug. The older woman smiles as she can tell that the bluenette's sobs are joyful in nature. After a few minutes, Shinobu leans back. Naru notes there is a somewhat confused look on her face. "Wait, you said my son, your daughter, and the rest of the children of the Hinata Sou?"

"Yes," replies the antennae haired woman with a nod.

Shinobu crinkles her brows in thought. "So… that means that…" As realization dawns on her, the bluenette's face starts to pinken. "All of us are…?"

"All of us, including Su, Motoko, Mistune, and Mutsumi, will be with my… I mean eventually our husband."

As the bluenette thinks over the implications of what her best friend had just said, her face turns from pink to a very deep crimson. If it were possible, Naru thought that steam would be coming out of Shinobu's ears. "B-B-B-But I'm not that kind of woman! I mean, I don't like… I mean, it's not that I don't like you, it's that I-I-I just don't, you know, like you!" Bashfully, Shinobu scrunches her shoulders together as she again pokes her fingers together. "Y-Y-You know, in that way."

Naru giggles lightly at Shinobu's sudden bashfulness, recalling how the woman had been in her youth. The only thing missing was her suddenly rushing away. She reaches over and messes up Shinobu's hair. "Neither am I, silly! That does not mean we cannot make this work!"

Shinobu sits there in shock for a moment with her mouth agape. She stares at Keitaro for a moment, scenarios obviously playing in her head. "Okay," she says after a moment, nodding her head. She then repeats herself. "Okay!" This time she makes a fist a lightly pumps it, showing her determination. "Right, I can do this," she says. She turns to Naru and smiles, then lurches forward again and pulls the brunette in to another hug. "Whatever caused you to come to this decision?" she asks into Naru's ear.

Recalling her vivid memory of the dream that she had after her seizure, Naru just smiles. "A lot of soul searching and maybe a vision or two," she says. "And, well, Kaolla Su has a plan. We just need to get Keitaro on board."

Shinobu pulls back a little and the pair settled down on the bed, their heads still touching as they lean back onto the pillow. Both women gaze at the man they both, along with a few others not present, love with all their hearts. "I don't think he will have an issue," replies Shinobu. Naru hums in agreement. "Actually, that gives me an idea for his name."

Naru lightly rubs her head affectionately against Shinobu's. "Oh? What name will you give him?"

"Mikio."

A/N: I think I recall someone suggesting Keiko for a girl's name, and I liked it after looking up its meaning, which is Blessed or Lucky Child. Naru and Keiko were certainly lucky as things could have turned out radically different with preeclampsia. As for Shinobu's baby, I chose Mikio after seeing that it means: "Three Trees Together". To me, that was perfect symbology for the three of them being the start if this new, extended family that is in the process of forming.

I did not have a beta for this chapter. Hopefully the quality is a little better. I reread chapter 14 and cringed a lot at some of the stupid errors that I made. And I do not expect to take 2 years to update this again. There is not much left here, probably one more chapter. Many apologies for the very long delay.