Epilogue

"Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!" the 5-year-old boy called happily as he bounded through the front door, jumping into the tall strawberry blonde man's arms.

"Hey sport," the man grinned cheekily as he ruffled the young boy's hair, "How was preschool today?"

"It was fun!" the boy chirped as the man swung him back onto the floor, "I drew pictures and played on the playground and I pooped!"

"You pooped?" the man asked in an amused tone as he raised an eyebrow.

The little boy puffed out his chest in pride, "Yup! And I did it without any help!"

"That's great! You're becoming a big boy now. I remember as if it were just a few days ago when I held you in my arms." the man sighed wistfully.

"Iggy, what are you teaching my kid?" Fang growled as he stepped in the house. "Why is he calling you daddy?"

Iggy immediately held out the little boy in front of him. "Human shield! Nick! Use a stink bomb fart on your dad!"

The boy giggled at his silly uncle's actions. "Daddy, I'm not like Uncle Gazzy."

"But your farts are pretty high ranked, if you ask me," the Gasman admitted as he entered the house. "Igster, why's Max and Fang's kid calling you Daddy?"

"That's what I'd like to know," Fang shot Iggy a glare, to which the pyro replied by shaking his son around. "I still have a human hostage! Don't come near me!"

"Why is Iggy holding my son hostage?" Max asked as she walked through the door and kissed Fang's cheek. Gazzy faked a gag and Nick covered his eyes with his hands, squealing 'Ew!'

"Omigosh! Is that Nick? It's only been like a week but he's totally gotten cuter! Sorry I'm late I was on a date with Garret and I took the bus so Angel had to pick me up on the way and-" Nudge's chattering was stopped by Angel, who was standing behind her. "We get it Nudge. Come on, Iggy and Mackenzie have an announcement to make."

"Angel!" Iggy exclaimed as he set Nick back on the floor. "You weren't supposed to say it yet!"

"Say what yet?" Max asked, an eyebrow raised. Iggy turned to her, a panicked look on his face. "Nothing, nothing. Hey, I know, let's go eat dinner, how about that? Come on Nick."

He scooped the 5-year-old up and threw him over his shoulder, saying, "I'm the Tickle Iggy! You'll never escape!"

The little boy giggled as he pounded his tiny fist's on Iggy's back and reached for Fang, who was walking behind them. "Nooo! Daddy save me!"

"I thought Uncle Iggy was your new 'Daddy'." Fang said, glancing back at his wife with an amused face. He wasn't jealous of the once-blind pyro. Ever since Nick had been born, Iggy and Mackenzie were always there, babysitting him or playing with him when Fang and Max were busy. Over the years, being with Mackenzie had brought out an unexpected, tender and loving side of Iggy, shocking everyone in the Flock who were used to his joking fun personality. Nick's birth had only amplified the feeling. Every time Fang saw Iggy with his son, he smiled (on the inside; he was supposed to be the emotional wall after all), knowing that Iggy would become a great father someday with Mackenzie by his side.

Fang suddenly felt a jolt as someone jabbed his sides at the same time. He flinched, and spun around to find Mackenzie.

"I finally snuck up on you without you noticing!" she said happily. "You're losing your touch Sheepy."

Fang rolled his eyes. Ever since Mackenzie found out the name Fang meant 'from the sheep pen' in Scottish, no matter how many times he tried to explain that wasn't why he chose that name, she'd made it a little joke to call him Sheepy and always buy him sheep related gifts on holidays, including a pair of cartoon sheep print boxers, which Iggy had found on sale at K-Mart. Fang would never admit it to them, but he wore them quite often because they were comfortable. Max had always teased him about it, saying he actually enjoyed all the sheep things he got because they weren't black. While Iggy had become more caring under the influence of Mackenzie, Mackenzie had become happier and more lighthearted compared to the shy and serious girl they had first met after she and Iggy had gotten married. Fang had unexpectedly become close with Mackenzie, like an overprotective brother, and Iggy had actually asked Fang for permission to ask for Mackenzie's hand in marriage before he did it. Of course, Mackenzie, who was similar to Max, got angry, saying she could marry whoever she wanted to, and then disappeared for a week, giving both him and Iggy heart attacks.

Fang smirked and ruffled Mackenzie's hair, "Let you sneak up on me. Heard you a mile away."

"You did not!" she protested hotly, "You're a crappy liar and we all know it."

Fang sent a look at Max, who had stayed behind and was watching them from the doorway. "You told her about my lying tendencies didn't you?"

His wife simply shrugged before turning to leave and said, "A secret makes a woman, woman."

"That's right, Sheepy," Mackenzie hummed as she strolled past Fang, "Let women do what women do."

"C'mere pipsqueak," he growled as he grabbed her by the waist, intending to throw her over his shoulder, like he often did when they quarreled with each other. But this time, she suddenly resisted, and pushed away before he picked her up. "You can't! You'll hurt the-"

Mackenzie covered both hands with her mouth, realizing she had almost let the secret out. However, Fang caught on, his eyes widening to the size of saucers. "Iggy, I'm gonna kick your scrawny as-"

"Language." Mackenzie said firmly, "And he's my husband. We're allowed to. There will be no butt kicking in this house tonight."

Before Fang could say anything else, a voice interrupted their conversation. "Aunt Kenzie!"

Nick ran up jumped in Mackenzie's arms, and she hugged him tightly. "Hey little man. Where have you been?"

The 5-year-old turned his puppy eyes on his auntie. "The Tickle Iggy was after me. You have to help me."

As if on cue, her husband walked over, that goofy smile she loved so much spread across his face, his hands in front of him like a zombie. "The Tickle Iggy is still hungry for more tickling!"

Nick hid behind Mackenzie, hugging her legs from the back. "Save me Aunt Kenzie!"

Mackenzie couldn't help but smile at the interaction between the two. "Don't worry Nick. The Tickle Iggy won't get you today."

"That's okay," Iggy said as he made his way toward them, before grabbing one of Mackenzie's hands and pulling her into his arms. "I'll take this young lady as my victim instead!"

"No! Don't take her! I'll save you Aunt Kenzie!" Nick ran up to his uncle and pounded his little fists again the pyro's legs.

Iggy chuckled and feigned swaying under Nick's attack, taking the chance to steal a kiss from Mackenzie's cheek. He suddenly noticed the look Fang was giving him and froze.

"Kenzie," he muttered nervously in her ear, "You wouldn't have told Fang about it, would you? Or does he normally give me looks of rage and I'm just oblivious?"

"He figured it out by himself," she murmured back, "after I stopped him from throwing me over his shoulder."

"Crap," Iggy broke out into a cold sweat, "he was supposed to be the last to know. I was at least hoping to live through dinner."

"Oi!" Max's voice called from the dining room, "get your butts over here, I'm hungry!"

"Coming!" Mackenzie yelled back, before scooping Nick up in her arms and looking at Fang and Iggy, sending them a glance that said, 'We'll talk about this later'. "C'mon Nick let's go eat Uncle Iggy's yummy food."

"Food!" The young boy cheered as she carried him to where the others were.

"Gazzy, I swear if you throw one more pea in my direction I'll hack into your grades and make sure you spend another year in college!"

"If you do that I'll set a stink bomb off on your next date with Garret!"

"Don't even think about it!"

"Can't we all just eat dinner calmly like a normal-"

"NO!"

"We're not a dysfunctional family at all."

"Dysfunctional!" Nick cheered.

"Stop teaching my son such weird vocabulary! It's bad enough Iggy spent the entire summer teaching him pick-up lines when I was out."

"I said I was sorry about that!"

"Can't I just enjoy my husband's amazing cooking in peace?" Mackenzie sighed.

"You eat his food everyday anyway, it's not like it matters," Angel pointed out.

"I have no problem with her complimenting my awesomesauce culinary skills." Iggy objected.

"As if your ego wasn't big enough," Nudge scoffed. She turned to Nick, who had stopped shoveling food in his mouth as usual and was staring at his plate. "Nick, honey what's wrong?"

"You didn't steal from the chocolate chip stash in my office did you?" Max asked. At the look everyone gave her, she said, "What? A person can't have a cookie stash in their work area?"

"Not with your self control when it comes to chocolate chip cookies," Gazzy muttered.

"So," Iggy started as he ruffled the troubled looking Nick's hair, "What's bothering my favorite nephew?"

"He's your only nephew," Fang said in an exasperated tone.

"Which makes him all the more special," Mackenzie added as she walked up to his chair and crouched by his seat. "what's bothering you?"

The boy threw his arms around Mackenzie's neck. "Aunt Kenzie! When am I gonna get to meet Flame-O?"

The atmosphere of the dining room stilled, as everyone turned their confused faces towards Nick and her. "Flame-O?"

Mackenzie stood and glared at Iggy, small flames emitting from the ends of her hair. "Iggy, for the last time, I refuse to name our child Flame-O!"

"Why not," he whined, "Nick thinks it's a cool name too!"

"Which must mean you share the same immaturity as a five year old. Congratulations."

Iggy plastered his hand over his heart. "That hurt! How could you say such a cruel thing to your husband?!"

"Uh, excuse me," Max tried intervening, "but could someone-"

"Because you're under the delusion that we're going to name our kid Flame-O! What type of name is Flame-O?! I refuse to let my child grow up introducing his or herself as Flame-O Griffiths!"

"Are you guys saying that-"

Iggy waved his arms in the air. "I was only suggesting it as an idea! Nick was the one who went along with it!"

"Oh for Christ's sake!" Max stood up, looking at the two arguing. "Would you all care to explain what the hell is going on?!"

Mackenzie and Iggy froze, as if remembering this was a family gathering and not their usual meal for two. They turned to the others, who seemed to have caught on to the situation, save for the Gasman, who was looking at the others with a puzzled look going, "Huh? What's going on? I don't get it…"

"You dolt, Mackenzie's pregnant," Angel said, finally saying the secret out loud. She had found out weeks before this occasion. Although Mackenzie had easily learned how to hide her thoughts from Angel, Iggy had never seemed to find the need to learn and Angel ended up finding out the moment Mackenzie showed him the pregnancy test, also when Angel had been taking her college finals, almost getting kicked out for her excited reaction she had in the middle of the math portion.

Nudge's eyes were bigger than dinner plates. "OH. MY. GAWD. Why didn't you tell us sooner? Mackenzie, how long have you been pregnant? When'd you find out? How did Iggy react? You should've told us sooner! I can't believe it! I'm so excited! When's the baby due? Have you seen a doctor yet? Iggy, have you been taking care of her? Don't you dare do anything bomb-related in the house! You could give the kid AIDS for all we know! I hope it's a girl, and then she and Nick can date! OMG that'd be so cute! I can totally imagine it! This has totally inspired me to do a children's wedding clothing line! Would that be adorbs Angel?"

"I'm sorry, you lost me after the few couple of sentences…"

"Congratulations," Max gave Mackenzie a side hug before turning a sharp look on Iggy. "There will be no pyro projects for the next nine months, I assume?"

"I'll keep it out of the house, but I won't swear it off completely." He replied solemnly.

"Just be careful, okay?" Mackenzie said, "I almost had a heart attack when you came home that one time with half your clothes burned off."

"I'll be fine," he cupped her face and kissed her forehead. "I know you're still sensitive about fire so I'll dim it down."

"That's all I wanted to hear." She smiled.

"So his name isn't Flame-O?" Nick interrupted in a sad tone, his bottom lip wobbling. "And he won't conquer Candy Land like Uncle Iggy said he would?"

Max glared at the pyro who was trying to feign innocence. "What have you been telling my son?!"

Mackenzie's curse echoed down the hallway as the nurse pushed her on the gurney towards the Maternity Ward, Max and Fang following close behind.

"I can't believe this is happening, I mean, I knew Ig was an idiot but this is probably the stupidest thing he's done so far."

"He did manage to keep his promise about making sure his home stayed bomb free for the past nine months."

"Yeah and then he proceeds to get sent to the hospital on some other pyro project he was working on at work and sends Mackenzie into labor from worrying over him. The dude might not even get to see his first kid be born!"

"Never heard you speak at such high volumes Fang. Don't worry, They'll both be fine. Angel just told me that Iggy's out of surgery and Nudge and Gazzy are on their way to pick Nick up from preschool. Mackenzie's strong. She'll pull through."

"Don't talk about me like I'm not here," Mackenzie hissed in pain through clenched teeth. "I'm in labor, not deaf."

"Sorry 'Kenzie. I know you were really upset about Iggy's situation."

"Oh don't be ridiculous," Mackenzie waved her hand airily, "Those were just the pregnancy hormones. I know my husband. He was just being his stupid self. He'll come and find me… Just like he did…. 10….years…ago."

Her eyes suddenly glazed over and she smiled reminiscently. The nurse set the anesthetic needle down before turning and bowing her head toward Fang and Max apologetically. "I'm sorry, but the time between the contractions were coming in faster than we expected. Please wait out here until further notice."

And with that, she wheeled a drowsy and high Mackenzie into a room, leaving Max and Fang to their own worries and prayers in some cramped hospital waiting room.

"How long do you think she'll stay that calm?"

"Not long."

"Crap. Crap. Crap. I am so dead. I'm screwed. Goodbye world." Iggy muttered under his breath as he hobbled as fast as he could toward the Maternity Ward where Max and Fang were waiting. The moment he had woken up under the fifty million things they drugged him with, Iggy shot out of the bed, ignoring the pain in his side and the calls from the nurses and Nudge and the others as he made his way down the hallway, asking for directions along the way to where his wife was.

"You can't miss her, sir," one nurse had commented, "the last screaming session lasted for so long and had so many curses that we've already received several phone calls about it from the buildings next door."

That was when Iggy knew no amount of roses and strawberry ice cream would make up for the mess he made this time. By the time he made it to the maternity ward the "two experienced ones" (they would totally kill him if he said that out loud) were sitting on the plastic chairs and practically dead to the world. Max was dozing off on Fang's shoulder and Fang sent Iggy a look that said, "You're lucky I'm too scared of waking my wife up to beat you into ashes." Iggy waved a hand in gratitude before entering the office.

The nurse hadn't been kidding when she had told him about the screaming sessions. Iggy was pretty sure his wife could've made millions off being an opera singer. The moment he stepped in another scream had let loose and his ear drums were almost blown off. He physically stumbled back from the intensity of the sound waves, grabbing onto the door frame for what his life was worth.

"Uh… Honey, I'm here?" he tried nervously. Completely ignoring him, his wife just continued to scream in pain, clutching the sides of her bed. He crossed his arms, knowing full well what she was doing. On occasions when he sometimes got in trouble and she was mad at him, she'd give him the cold shoulder, knowing scolding him wouldn't do any good and she didn't speak to him until he fully acknowledged and admit his mistakes. The fact that she was doing this even during labor just showed how pissed she was. Sighing and knowing she wouldn't speak to him for a while, he merely sat down in the chair by her bed and took one of her hands and held it, giving what support he could through actions.

If the new screaming session wasn't an indicator of the next contraction, the iron grip that drained all the blood from Iggy's hand sure was. He flinched, the sudden strength crushing his hand overpowering.

"Um, sweetie? You're-my hand is…"

"DON'T YOU DARE SAY YOU'RE IN PAIN IGGY GRIFFITHS OR I'LL SEND YOU BACK TO THE SURGERY SECTION TO GET NEUTERED. THAT WAY WE BOTH WON'T SUFFER ANYMORE IN THE FUTURE, NOW WILL WE?"

Iggy decided that his wife was scary and made note to warn his children as he sat quietly, the hand that had been holding his wife's now numb.

"Hey Kenzie?"

"What?"

"I love you."

"Me too. But if you get me pregnant again you better be prepared to deliver the baby yourself and suffer through nine months of hell."

"As long as I'm with you."

"Forever."

8 years later

"I RAISED YOU ALL THESE YEARS AND IN RETURN YOU EAT MY STRAWBERRY ICE CREAM?!"

"I told you not to make your mommy angry when she's carrying your baby sister in her tummy, Flame-O."

END

Wow... What is this constricting feeling in my chest I feel? Dudes, I worked so hard to make this epilogue awesome. Hope you all enjoyed it.

I was thinking of posting tomorrow but wanted to do it today, 'cause the date's 11-12-13, I mean how cool is that?!

LOOOOOOADS OF THANKS TO ALL MY AWESOME FOLLOWERS, FAVORITERS AND REVIEWERS! IT WAS YOU THAT GAVE ME THE ENERGY AND MOTIVATION TO WRITE THIS STORY. I lurv you allll. ^_^

Please stay tuned for some possible Fax story suggestions. I have several ideas, but can't carry them all out at once due to my schedule so I want all you awesome people to focus me in one direction (not the band, ew, no offense to directioners).

And on that note, at 11 pm on 11-12-13, I end my first fanfiction story, Up In Flames.

Less than three,

PalmerPie