Kenshin arrived at Megumi and Sanosuke's house just after sunset
to walk his wife home. She and Megumi were probably busy talking about
stuff. And Kaoru was mostlikely helping around their house, since Megumi
was due soon.
"Kenshin." Kaoru was sitting on the wooden porch in front of the house.
Shinnosuke sat on her lap, cradled against her, fast asleep. There was
such a warm glow in her eyes. She was full of so much love and understanding.
It was one of the qualities that had drawen him to her. Light and dark.
She looked like an angel. Sessha no tenshi.
"Kaoru." She looked so beautiful, holding Shin-chan against her protectively.
She smiled at him and he felt his heart twist. She had always been able
to make him feel so much at once. From the moment she stopped him in the
middle of the streets of Tokyo so long ago, she became the center of his
life. She was independent and vulnerable, wise and naive. There were so
many sides to her and he loved every one of them.
Kaoru looked so slight. He found it hard to believe that she was carrying
a new life inside of her slim body. The baby inside of her was draining
her energy, tiring her. He wanted to carry her around on a cushion for
the next 8 months. Wrapped in silk. Protected and totally coddled.
"Something amazing happened today." she said with a smile. Shinnosuke
slowly began to awaken, blinking at Kenshin owlishly. He moved to help
her rise from her position with Shinnosuke still in her arms.
"Yeah," said the little boy on a yawn. "Amazn'...." He looked so much
like a chibi-Sanosuke that Kaoru fought hard not to smile at his actions.
She wondered what the baby inside her was going to look like. She was hoping
for a small version of Kenshin.
"Amazing?" Kenshin looked to his wife, who just smiled even more mysteriously.
Suddenly, she reached out with her free hand and grabbed him.
"Come on, Kenshin. You have to see for yourself," she said with a grin,
dragging her husband in her wake.
"Oro~?" gasped Kenshin as he was tugged unceremoniously into the house.
*****
"You gave birth? You went into labor? Today?" he asked Megumi. He couldn't
keep the shock out of his voice. Megumi lay on a futon, looking a touch
paler than usual, but as beautiful as always. "With only Kaoru to help
you?!?"
"Yes, well, she was very helpful," she replied with a small smile. "Gensai-sensei
and I both thought that I had time before I was going to go into labor.
That's why they decided to visit his sister this week," she explained.
"Nothing went wrong?" he asked worriedly.
"No. Everything went well. At least, now Kaoru knows what will happen
when her turn comes."
"Megumi-dono. Omedetou de gozaru."
"Arigatou, Kenshin. Sano should be coming in so we can introduce
you."
As if on cue, Sanosuke came in holding a baby. The infant in his arms
looked very small against his large form. Kenshin was happy for his best
friend.
"Omedetou, Sano."
"Heh. Arigatou, Kenshin." He looked very proud. The grin on his
face was full of pure joy. "Yahiko was right yesterday about Megumi being
ready to burst."
"Yahiko said that?" Kaoru asked, coming in with another baby in her
arms. This one looked just as small as the first. "That boy needs to learn
to be more polite. Tsubame should try to train him, already!"
Kenshin fell over. "Oro~! T-T-Twins? With only Kaoru to help?"
"Believe me, Ken-san... They did not want to wait," said Megumi with
a soft smile. "Since these two surprised us, we have to think of names
for them."
"Kenshin, meet our new daughter and son," Sano ordered with a grin.
"This is our daughter. She's the younger one." The baby in his arms looked
so much like Megumi, it was uncanny.
"And this is the boy," added Kaoru. "He looks like Shin-chan, doesn't
he?"
"Ken-niicha." Shinnosuke pulled at Kenshin's hakama, his face serious
with new responsibility. "Shin's really an oniicha now."
Kenshin kneeled to the same level as the toddler, meeting him eye to
eye. "You are, aren't you? That's a very big responsibility. I'm sure that
you're going to do your best helping your okaasan and otousan and the babies."
"Yeah. Shin's gonna be 'specially 'sponsible," he replied in a serious
tone. "They awre berry smawl. Shin has to pwrotect 'em."
"I'm sure that you're going to do a good job."
"Uh huh. Shin will. Kaoru-neecha says so," Shinnosuke lisped, reaching
his arms out, wrapping them around Kenshin's neck, silently asking to be
carried. Kenshin obliged with a grin. Shinnosuke may be the older brother
now, but every now and then he still wanted to be babied a little.
"She did, huh?"
The little boy nodded vigorously. "Yeah. Kaoru-neecha says so."
"And she's always right?" asked Sanosuke wryly.
The little boy just grinned at his father.
"No comment, huh?" Sano grinned back at his son. "Heh, smart kid."
To that Megumi replied, "He gets that from my side of the family."
******
Kenshin was thinking about babies and births as they walked back to
the dojo. Kaoru seemed so slight and small. Would she be all right? Megumi
was taller and more sturdy than Kaoru. Kenshin began to really worry about
what was going to happen. He didn't want to lose her.
Kenshin seemed to be in deep thought as they walked back to the dojo.
Kaoru, sensing that he was pensive, didn't push for a conversation. They
walked together in silence until they reached home.
"Oi! Kenshin! Kaoru! Where have you guys been?" Yahiko yelled
from the house.
"We were at Megumi and Sanosuke's place. Megumi had the babies today."
"I told you she was ready to explode. Wait a minute. Did you say babies?
Plural?" he ask incredulously.
"Yes," Kenshin replied with a smile. "Kaoru delivered them. By herself."
"She had the babies. And Kaoru delivered them. All by herself..." His
voice trailed off. He thought they were kidding at first, but they were
obviously not. "Two..."
"A girl and a boy. Shinnosuke is really excited. I was worried that
he might get jealous of them. But he's already really protective of them,"
added Kaoru.
"A boy and a girl? Megumi and Sanosuke are going to be run ragged by
all those kids," Yahiko said with a grin. "I can't wait."
"Yahiko!"
"What?" he asked, trying to look innocent.
Kaoru stood over her student, her face looking more than a little threatening.
"Guess who's gonna help out?"
"Heh. I got it," Yahiko conceded defeat quickly. He was only teasing
anyhow. He looked forward to babysitting with Tsubame. "Anyway, I'm off
to bed. Oyasumi."
"Brat," Kaoru said with a soft smile. She turned her attention back
to Kenshin. "Kenshin, what's wrong? Kenshin!" She poked his shoulder to
get his attention.
"Oro~," he mumbled. "Gomen, Kaoru...."
"Kenshin, what's wrong?" she asked, moving closer to him.
"Kaoru." He hugged her close to him, breathing in her scent. "I was
just thinking about you having the baby. Going through labor. Maybe its
silly, but I'm a little scared. Women die during childbirth. Too many times."
"Kenshin. Don't worry. Everything will be fine. I'm really strong. Really.
Women have babies every day. Look at Megumi. She came through just fine."
"I know, but I can't help it." He was shaking. "I'm afraid that I might
lose you."
Kaoru moved forward to kiss him, holding him tightly to her. "Himura
Kenshin, you are never going to lose me. I have you now and I'm not ever
going to let you go."
"Never, huh?"
"Yeah. Never ever." She kissed him again. "Come on, let's go. I feel
like celebrating again." She winked at him as she led him off to bed.
