Trinity Blood Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Shadows of Time ❯ Chapter 24

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Title: The Shadows of Time

Author: Ryukotsusei

Fandom: Inuyasha and Trinity Blood

Rating: NC 17

Warnings: Violence, torture, language, lemons, spoilers for the entire series just to be safe, and the possibility of out of character characterizations. Read at your own risk.

Pairings: Tres Iqus x Kagome Higurashi x Abel Nightroad

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or Trinity Blood. The series belong to Rumiko Takahashi, and the late Sunao Yoshido. I make no money off of this fan fiction.

Author's Note: Finally, we've reached the end of the story and I want to thank everyone who has stuck with me throughout it's entirety. At some point I intend to go back and expand upon it; but for now I must lay this particular story to rest. For those who are interested in what's next, I have an Inuyasha/Dark-Hunter crossover in the works and I'm looking for a reliable beta who is either familiar with the series or who is willing to read the books. Interested parties can contact me through email at Eclipsekitsune @ aol. com or review, thank you :)

Epilogue

The grass was soft beneath her feet, but unlike most of the time that she walked barefoot, she didn't notice. Instead she was hunting for a certain someone, or rather two certain someones and her mood was far from lighthearted and pleasant.

Two years had passed since Daichi had been born and he'd surpassed any expectations that she'd had for her child at this young age. Where most children were lucky to say their first word by six months old, he had already begun to string words together, even if he wasn't exactly articulate about it back then. Walking was also another milestone that had been passed long before it was actually due. By eight months she was wondering if she was going to have to build a fence to keep him corralled.

“Or a leash, but I can imagine how well that would go over,” Kagome muttered to herself as she walked. 'Now where are they?'

The two males she was currently searching for had offered to take Daichi out for the day and allow her to have something of a day off. Fortunately she knew they weren't likely to be far considering how neither of them liked to be that far away from the house. Not to mention that Daichi was very much a momma's boy, in spite of the way Abel lavished attention on the child. Tres too, to a certain extent. That particular male was far more stoic than his partner and while he enjoyed spending time with Daichi, he was quieter about how he did so. Any reservations she'd held about how he'd accept Abel's son had been dispelled the first time he'd held the child and she'd had gotten the feeling that at some point he'd be wanting one of his own, even if he hadn't said anything.

'Oh who am I kidding?' Kagome thought with a snort. 'The poor guy looked terrified. It was like he was afraid he was going to drop him or something.' It hadn't taken long for the redhead to hand the baby back to her, but she could tell that he was curious about the new addition, even if he wasn't confident enough to hold him at the time.

Well, it was a damned good thing that he'd gotten over himself with that one, because he was going to need that experience. 'And I need my head examined.' The uncharitable thought was because she'd mistakenly believed that something would actually work for once. 'What was I saying about disliking surprises? And I thought breastfeeding was supposed to keep things like this from happening? The books, they lied to me.'

Of course, that's what Kaede had thought as well, even though Kagome had continued taking the tea. It made things doubly safe for her right? Nervously she bit her lip, wondering how she was going to handle this new development. It wouldn't be so bad if Daichi wasn't still nursing occasionally, even if it was more for comfort than anything else. It would be even better if her son had already been potty trained, but he was being rather difficult on that front. It meant having two children in diapers at once and that was one thing she'd been hoping to avoid. 'I know a certain Crusnik that had better get over his fear of changing diapers real fast.' At least Tres hadn't been particularly squeamish on that front and she could count on him to give her a hand when needed.

The thing that flustered her the most though, was that this had hit her completely out of the blue. She hadn't even missed her period yet for heaven's sakes and to have a certain dog eared hanyou come up and start giving her a hard time for no damned reason had caught her off guard. 'It figures the idiot would find this funny. It's not him who has to carry it and since there's no worries this time, he's more than happy to get his kicks at my expense.'

So help her, if he cracked even one more fat joke or brought up the fact that she waddled when she was pregnant one more time, he was going to have to find a hole to hide in. Or she was going to help him create one with that rosary around his neck.

The sound of high pitched laughter caught her attention and Kagome immediately began walking that direction, intent on finding the person responsible. Most likely though, that particular male would be thrilled at the prospect since there were times she knew that he felt left out. This time there was no question in her mind just who the father was, simply because a certain Crusnik had been off in another village when her fertile time had rolled around and Tres had been more than happy to take the opportunity to enjoy some quality alone time with her.

The scene she walked up on solidified the idea that Tres wouldn't have a problem with the news. Currently he was laying on his back in a soft patch of grass, with a certain silver haired child stretched out on his chest. Usually it was Abel in that very position, but this time the Crusnik was leaning against a tree, smiling indulgently down at the two on the ground. That alone was enough to lessen some of the apprehension that had gripped her chest and with a bit more confidence, she walked close enough that they noticed her.

“Momma!” Daichi squealed and scrambled off of Tres' chest. His steps were sure and steady as he made his way over to her and immediately clung to her leg. Usually it was Kagome that came out to play with him in the flowers, but this time he'd missed having her around.

“Hi, Daichi, are you having fun with Daddy and Tres?” Kagome asked while picking the little boy up to set him on her hip.

“Uh huh, Daddy was showing me how to make a... a...” Daichi scrunched his face up, trying to remember exactly what it had been called.

“A what?” Kagome asked suspiciously and cast a dark look over to the man in question. For Abel's sake it had better have been something innocent like a ring of flowers and not what she suspected it was.

“Oh, it was nothing,” Abel replied cheerily, waving his hands to dismiss the question, “I was just showing Daichi some tricks that will be useful for learning to control his abilities in a few years.” Weakly he laughed, hoping that she wasn't going to push the issue. They'd already talked about the fact that Kagome didn't want their son learning how to form any weapons until she was sure that he was old enough not to injure himself. How was he to know that the little boy would pick up on it so quickly that he not only activated the nanomachines in his body, but created his own weapon as well? 'Oh dear lord, please don't let her kill me.'

However Kagome wasn't about to be put off so easily. “We'll talk about that later, Abel,” she huffed and then set Daichi down on the ground again so that he could resume using Tres as a pillow if he wanted. But to her surprise he started poking among the flowers, as if looking for something.

“Is there something that brings you out here, Kagome? I thought you'd be resting right about now?” Abel asked, giving her a curious look in his attempt to distract her from his impending demise. The miko always stayed so busy now, tending to Daichi, so it was a bit surprising to see her searching them out when she could be reading or doing something else she enjoyed. The little boy was quite the handful, but she never complained, even when she seemed unbelievably tired.

“Yeah,” Kagome replied and crossed her arms. Uneasily she stared down at the redhead who was only now sitting up, “Remember that talk we had about giving Daichi a sibling?”

Now it was apparent that she had both men's attention, even if their son was now chasing a butterfly, oblivious to the conversation. While Tres stared curiously at her, Abel looked particularly uneasy which caused her eyes to narrow. “You already know, don't you?”

“Me?” Abel squeaked and shook his head, “Oh no. I know nothing. What is it I'm supposed to know?” He was lying through his teeth in an attempt to avoid her wrath, but the truth of the matter was, he'd been stopped by Inuyasha just this morning. To say that he'd been surprised had been an understatement, but he hadn't said anything to either Tres or Kagome. Since clearly this was his partner's child, he didn't want to spoil the surprise when Kagome told him.

“Right,” Kagome drawled, clearly not believing the man, but choosing not to pursue the issue. It was enough, she supposed, that Tres was baffled by the conversation. 'At least I' wasn't the only one left in the dark.'

“Do you care to elaborate on the situation?” Tres inquired even though he had a suspicion of what they were talking about. Few things flustered Kagome anymore and when she'd brought up the subject of another child, she'd instantly gotten his attention.

“Let's just say that you're gonna have diaper duty at the end of the year, and I don't mean with Daichi,” Kagome said, her lips quirking in amusement. Her smirk only grew when a stunned expression crossed his face that came with the realization of what she meant.

“How soon?” Tres asked at last, a smile lingering over his own lips. He'd wondered occasionally if Kagome would ever want another child after all she'd been through with Daichi, and whether or not the next one would be his own. But now it seemed as if the question had been answered and he couldn't be happier.

“You've got about a little less than nine months to get ready, I hope you're happy with yourself,” Kagome said, relieved that he seemed to be taking it so well.

His answer wasn't a verbal response, but a physical one and in mere moments, he'd swept her off her feet to hold her close. A long lingering kiss was pressed to her lips, silently conveying just how happy he was now.

When Tres finally pulled away, she stared into his eyes, carefully searching the bond between them. To her relief she found no trace of trepidation or uncertainty there. Instead there was only a sense of contentment and acceptance, from both Tres and Abel. That knowledge was enough to allow Kagome to give herself over to the same emotions, to bask in the closeness that they'd found with each other. Only now, when she was certain that everything would be fine, could she feel comfortable in accepting the gift that she'd been given. Finally, after all this time, they were truly a family.

The End.