The Beginning

Temari looked at her image in the mirror and felt oddly detached from it.

Her hands gripped the edge of the sink. Her reflection's eyes were wide and dazed.

Only when she noticed the paling of her double's face did she open her mouth and take in a large shaky inhale. It felt like her stomach was in her chest. Once again, she let her gaze slip down to test - or rather tests -that lay in the sink.

Every single one, even though there were different brands, indicated one thing; positive.

Without a shadow of a doubt, she was pregnant.

How was this even possible? She rolled her eyes at that first initial thought. Of course she knew it was feasible, she had done the only thing one needed to do in order to get pregnant.

It hadn't been an accident either. The two of them always had a plan and this was no exception. Temari was merely baffled by the timing of everything.

She had heard doctors lecture and other girls joke 'one time is all it takes'. Temari had done her studying and knew that, for a lot of people, it actually took months. Not for her though. Her mother had three children in very short succession to one another, so maybe fertility ran in the family.

She gave a snort at the ridiculousness of it all. She looked no different but the knowledge she held made her feel like a new person.

Temari lightly pressed a palm to her flat stomach and felt a little dizzy.

There was a baby growing in there; a little one night wonder.

Right after that night, Shikamaru had gone away on a mission, so she was certain of the conception date. Temari couldn't explain why she had felt this gut instinct telling her to buy a test to see if she was pregnant; maternal instinct? Despite her mind telling her it was too soon, she had drank several glasses of water and proved her brain wrong. A rattling on the bathroom door nearly made her jump out of her skin.

"Temari?" A whole flurry of emotions took her at the sound of his voice; nervousness, excitement, fear and delight.

"Yeah?" her voice was high and noticeably on edge.

"Is everything all right?" He was stopped outside the door now; she could see the shadow of his feet. And Temari knew he wasn't going anywhere until he knew what was going on. With unsteady hand, she twisted the doorknob. She was fully aware of how stupefied her expression still was. When she swung open the door she watched his eyes widen.

"Are you sure you're alright?"

He felt her forehead for signs of fever. Temari opened her mouth to speak; the words were right on her tongue. Steeling her resolve she gathered up some courage.

This was good news.

"I'm pregnant."

The words sound too loud in the silence of the moment. And it's Shikamaru's turn to stare blankly.

He's processing the information and she can practically see his mind counting back the number of days. Just like her, his mouth opens and closes a couple of times before he questions her.

"Are you sure?"

Temari wants to sigh. As if the amount of time she had spent in there and the stunned look on her face wasn't enough, she knew her body. Nevertheless, she twisted around and grabbed what was in the sink.

"About six tests sure."

Time drags on as Shikamaru continues to sort out what she's telling him. She placed the sticks back into the sink and was about to ask him if he was okay before the corner of his lip twitched up.

Temari feels instantly relieved. His pleasure finally allows her to properly enjoy this. She's so astoundingly happy that the less graceful parts of pregnancy don't even register in her mind.

Shikamaru's arms wrap around her torso and hers wind round his neck. They're going to be parents.

The First Month

There was no refined way to say it. The first month of pregnancy was just like a serious case of PMS.

There were no visible changes in her body but she felt bloated. From time to time she would also experience mild cramping in her stomach. At first it startled her but the doctor had told them it was normal at this stage. On top of that, she became quickly irritated by the people she was working with.

Even so, Temari was determined to stick it out and work for as long as she could before taking time off in preparation for the baby.

How had she not noticed how dense the people there were? That was probably just the hormones speaking.

While on the subject of hormones, hers were driving her absolutely mad. And it was embarrassing.

Temari was known for being stern so her elevated irritation went pretty much unnoticed by most. What people didn't often see was her elated smile and carefree laughter, things that were reserved for her family and loved ones.

Even rarer were tears.

And Temari had a newfound respect for the phrase 'cry me a river' because she probably could have.

Right now, Shikamaru was telling her a story of some stupid thing Naruto had done recently. It was funny, truly it was. And she started laughing exuberantly before feeling a tear run down her face.

There was no rhyme or reason for it but quickly her eyes weren't just watery.

She was full out sobbing. Shikamaru looked scared straight.

"Oh gosh," was all he managed to say, somehow mistaking her breakdown to be caused by himself.

He was at a loss for what to do momentarily before he pulled her into his arms. Somehow, this managed to make her cry even harder. Temari couldn't believe she was such a mess right now. She didn't even know why she was bawling in the first place!

"I – I –I'm sorry."

There was a sensation reminiscent of childhood as he slightly swayed her back and forth. Not once did he try to hush or tease her. He simply allowed her to let out her emotions.

"It's okay." She wanted to argue that it wasn't. Grown woman shouldn't just blubber for nothing, pregnant or not.

"Sorry," Temari sniffled once more, pulling away. She was just overwhelmed.

"Temari, you don't have to apologize."

After releasing so many emotions, she felt utterly drained. She nodded numbly. Sensing her exhaustion, Shikamaru led her over to the couch, lied down and pulled her on top.

The last thing she was aware of before losing consciousness was his hand rubbing calming circles on her back.

The Second Month

When she read the neon blue numbers on the alarm clock Temari felt disappointed that she had woken up so early.

For the first time ever, her dreams had been strange enough to disturb her sleep. It wasn't a nightmare per se but it wasn't pleasant either.

Thinking of discomfort, Temari began to realize that it wasn't just in her head but her body as well, particularly her stomach. There was an odd sense of pressure there which was not entirely unfamiliar.

Then, her insides rolled.

She jumped out of bed and in record speed ran into the bathroom.

Temari couldn't ever remember a time she had been this sick. And she felt completely helpless here on her knees, spilling her insides out into the bowl. It wasn't long before sweat started to form on her brow.

The feeling of cool fingers, well, cold relative to her skin, against her forehead brought some relief. She was thankful that her hair was being pulled out of her face.

When her nausea finally passed she put the pieces of the puzzle together and realized that this was definitely the infamous morning sickness.

And for something called morning sickness, she quickly found that it happened all. the. time.

Temari quickly found that walking around the market was a big mistake. Her queasy stomach and sensitive sense of smell made the onslaught of different aromas wafting from the stalls unbearable. She wondered if this was how the Inuzukas felt, bombarded by scents all day.

In addition to the queasiness, midway through her second month, Temari was hit with intense and sporadic food cravings. One day she would get an unbearable craving for plums and the next day the very sight of the fruit made her sick.

It was also apparent to her that Shikamaru was quickly getting tired of seeing her in misery.

From the hospital she had gotten pre-natal vitamins and some other pills for nausea, but those did nothing for her unsettled stomach. Her husband just couldn't understand why she kept refusing to accept some of the Nara clan's medicinal herbs. Honestly, Temari had nothing against the medicine itself.

"Shikamaru, you know those women are always sticking their nose in other people's business."

Of course, she was referring to the ancient ladies of the clan who were pretty much the overseers of the Nara's extensive collection of medicines.

"It will be so much worse with us."

Secrets never stayed underground for long in this family. And being the leader of the clan, people were always extra interested in any news related to Shikamaru and by extension herself. From the day they got married, Temari had people asking when they were going to have children.

"Is that really a reason to keep suffering?" To prove his point, she yet again found her stomach twisting in knots and was promptly sick for the umpteenth time that day.

Temari ignored Shikamaru's sigh of frustration. She was getting pretty tired of this as well.

When she finished brushing her teeth she conceded.

"Okay, you win. We'll go but we should tell your mother first. She'll be enraged if she finds out she wasn't the first to know." The look on his face told her that he hadn't even thought of that.

She had just saved him from the lecture of his life.

The Third Month

Temari looked in the mirror disapprovingly before she left the house. In the last couple of weeks she had been gaining weight and, frustratingly, not all of it on her stomach.

She was someone who had always been lean. Her strict training regimen never allowed her to sit around in any one place for too long.

Temari frowned, thinking she just looked heavier as opposed to looking pregnant.

Her hands dropped down to support the small bump that had formed there.

She was happy to be meeting up with Sakura today. The two of them had planned to go for a run. Naturally, she had spoken about an exercise routine by her doctor, who had said it was fine. Many kunoichi, wanted to remain active for as long as possible during pregnancy so her doctor had sympathy.

Of course, that hadn't been quite enough to appease Shikamaru, who would have felt much better if she were to simply take walks instead. But if the doctor said that it was safe and that she only needed to avoid falls, then she wasn't about to sacrifice her running.

"You ready to go?" her friend smiled as she approached.

Temari tried not to feel too bitter when she looked at her friend's slight body. Sakura had always had delicate, birdlike features. Temari was perfectly comfortable and proud of her own athletic build but at this point in time she was feeling slightly envious.

"Yeah, let's go."

It was almost like Temari could let her mind escape to a different place when she ran. She could forget about bodily insecurities and how her legs had been cramping. All she was concentrating on was her pace and the sound of her labored breathing.

It was nice and cold out today. She relished in the chill wind on her face.

Exercising in Suna was never a pleasant thing, though it did build character. Sand and sweat were not really a fantastic combination.

They had only been going for around half an hour when Temari started to feel like something was wrong.

When her vision began to get blurry, she knew she had to stop.

"Sakura," she called out to the other woman who was a good few paces ahead of her. Being a medic ninja, Sakura could instantly tell that something was up, especially since Temari usually had high stamina.

"What's wrong?" Sakura had run back, taking most of Temari's weight as she continued to feel dizzy. "Temari, sit down for a moment." She faintly recognized the glowing blue of Sakura's ninjutsu as her friend starting to check her vitals.

"Oh my god, Temari!" She was startled out of her disorientation by Sakura's change of tone.

"What is it?" she demanded, fearing that something was seriously wrong with the baby.

"You," she stuttered, "you're pregnant!" she exclaimed absolutely gobsmacked.

"Yeah, I know." Temari smiled sheepishly.

She and Shikamaru had agreed to tell everyone at a later date now that she was three months along. Never mind that now. At least, she was sure that Sakura could keep this quiet for a little while longer. She was a doctor after all so confidentiality was something she should be used to.

"Why are we out here running then?" Sakura sputtered. "Oh gosh, you probably have low blood sugar. Come on, we're getting you something to eat."

Temari didn't put up a fight and followed Sakura. All the while, the girl mumbled about what a horrible medic she was that she couldn't even recognize such a change in her friend.

As the two of them were sitting down, Temari drinking her orange juice as if it were the elixir of life, Sakura got another strange expression on her face.

"Hmm, Sakura what's up?"

"Shikamaru knows that you were doing this right?" Somehow the pink haired girl looked...scared? But that couldn't be right.

"Sakura, are you honestly frightened of him?"

Temari couldn't help herself from laughing. Sakura instantly took offense and started to defend herself.

"Hey, you probably haven't been on the other end of his glares."

Temari couldn't help but snort at that comment.

"Trust me, I've been on the end of pretty much every angry, frustrated, sarcastic look Shikamaru has."

"I'm not sure about that." Sakura was generally an observant person and she had come to realize that, when it came to Temari, her lazy friend had a whole assortment of expressions that no one had ever seen on him. When he was happy and looked at her it was very sweet.

But when someone did something that hurt her, intentional or not, the look in his eyes was fierce and something Sakura wanted to avoid.

"Whatever," Temari said smirking, "I wasn't going to rat you out. It wasn't even your fault."

"I just feel bad," Sakura protested, "you need to watch out for yourself more now that you're pregnant."

An exhilarated shriek made both Sakura and Temari jump and twist around. Ino, who it looked like had been shopping, had dropped all of her grocery bags on the street and was looking at them with wide eyes.

"YOU'RE PREGNANT?"

Temari supposed that it wasn't a secret anymore.

The Fourth Month

In the fourth month, something magical happens.

Temari no longer feels nauseous, just that in itself was enough to lift her spirits. She promised herself that she would be enjoying all the foods she had missed out on in the past few months.

In addition to feeling great, she looks great. The hormones running wild in her body have made her hair thicker and shinier. She can also thank them for giving her skin pregnancy glow. When she sees her reflection now, she feels confident. As if Mother Nature wasn't already being kind enough, her chest, which was always a modest C cup, was more in the D range.

However, while she was admiring her new appearance, she also had a serious case of pregnancy brain.

She truly felt like the stereotypical dumb blonde.

It took her just a few seconds longer to compute what people were saying to her. She kept forgetting where she left things. And sometimes even stringing a sentence together took a lot of effort.

With her obliviousness, hair, chest and skin, Temari knows she would have been getting a lot more male attention had it not been for the fact that Shikamaru was pretty much attached to her by the hip. This simultaneously pleased and frustrated her.

Of course she was happy that Shikamaru was here but recently her hormones had made it impossible to be in the same room with him and not want to rip his clothes off. So, she was not even paying attention to what other men were thinking about her.

Furthermore, her tummy had finally decided to 'pop'. Thus, advertising to everyone that she was clearly pregnant and clearly unavailable.

"You didn't have to come with me," Temari protested, although she smiled brightly.

"Well, I wouldn't be able to go about my day thinking that you might be lost somewhere." Temari pouted.

A couple days ago she had somehow managed to lose her way around Konoha and had to call Shikamaru to come get her. Ever since then, he had been reluctant let her stray too far from their home without tagging along.

It was a strange feeling for the Nara. Temari often got on his case for being too protective, even though she was equally so in her own way, now he actually had reason to be. She was so defenceless at the moment, with her usual quick wit out of order.

He lets out an exaggerated sigh with a smirk on his face as Temari gets distracted by something and starts to walk down the completely wrong road.

He follows her leisurely, a few steps behind. He's enjoying the contented look on her face too much to inform her of her mistake. Temari stops to talk to some merchants and he hangs back to appreciate her.

The older female shopkeeper says something and Temari laughs, placing her hands on her stomach; a stomach growing perfectly round with his child.

She's incredibly beautiful, that scary wife of his.

"Shikamaru!" she calls him urgently and he snaps to attention. He runs up to her and she instantly grabs one of his hands. Temari looks at him expectantly, positioning his hand on the upper left side of her belly. His eyes widen comically. And his face takes on an expression of awe as he feels a soft push against his hand.

"He...he's actually moving."

"Mhmm," she hums in agreement, her face is bright with excitement. The two of them are so wrapped up in their own world that they completely forget about the store owners they're currently ignoring. The older couple don't mind though. They can remember their experiences with their own first child and merely smile along with the two expectant parents in front of them.

The Fifth Month

It was one of the coldest winters on record in Konoha.

There were icicles dangling down from all the rooftops. The ground was covered in a blanket of fluffy white snow and more kept falling from the sky with no immediate signs of stopping. The flakes danced around due to the freezing winds that had most people ducking into their homes for cover.

"Temari, don't you want to come back inside?"

The voice of her mother in law rang out. Yoshino eyed her daughter with concern. Temari was standing in the cold with no more than a thin sweater on. Anyone crazy enough to be out in this weather was sure to catch a cold. She was worried about the repercussions for Temari in her condition.

"Really, I'm okay."

She tried to reassure the older woman. Yoshino did not look convinced and moved to join her out in the winter weather.

Temari sighed, not wanting to be a bother. "I'm coming back in. You don't have to come out here."

The climate in Konoha was usually so mild. Temari knew that Yoshino would not be thick skinned enough to stand out here for too long. As soon as she walked back into the warm house, Temari grimaced.

"I feel like I'm a thousand degrees," she complained.

Yoshino smiled sympathetically at her.

"I know. It's horrible isn't it? Those Nara babies are like a furnace in your stomach."

"Oh, so it's genetic," Temari exclaimed, fanning herself, "I thought I was just going crazy." Temari eyed her mother in law thoughtfully. She was just about the only women, who she felt comfortable enough talking to, who had experience with giving birth to a Nara.

"Any other things I should know about Nara genes?"

"Well," Yoshino thought back, "they're generally very easy babies. They sleep a lot, though that probably comes as no surprise. Thankfully, Shikamaru never had colic so hopefully that won't be an issue for you. You probably won't want to hear this," her mother in law looked particularly apologetic already which made Temari nervous, "It's very common for women in this family to have a longer than average labor. And most deliver at least a few days after their set due date."

No, Temari couldn't say she was particularly excited about that but it had taken her mind off of how hot she had been.

Temari was well read and she knew just how much a baby grew during the last stages of pregnancy. While she thought she was strong enough to stick it out, she was nervous about the size of an overdue baby.

As far as she knew, on her side of the family, she and her siblings had all been quite small. Gaara had been the smallest baby she'd ever seen.

"Um, how much did Shikamaru weigh when he was born?"

The older woman chuckled at Temari. Yoshino could empathize with her anxiety.

"He was six pounds seven ounces but most of our relatives ranged from six to seven." Temari breathed out a sigh of relief.

That seemed...doable.

Poor Hinata, Temari could remember going to the hospital after she had given birth, remembered seeing Boruto and wondering how the small gentile woman had done it. He had been nine pound eleven ounces, just less than ten pounds.

Anyone who said that woman wasn't a hero would have Temari to deal with.

Temari settled herself down on the couch in the living room. She had been standing most of the day and her swollen feet were killing her. She was more than surprised when Yoshino sat down beside her and pulled up her legs so that her feet with in the older woman's lap.

Temari wanted to tell her that she didn't have to do this but when her feet started to get massaged she fell silent.

Temari would have thought that something like this would feel too personal for anyone other than Shikamaru to carry out.

However, she was able to completely relax.

She really shouldn't be so surprised. Yoshino was actually quite nourishing in her own way. The older woman had been quick to accept Temari as her own daughter.

That's really what Yoshino was, not so much an in-law but more so a substitute mother.

If there was ever anything she couldn't say to Shikamaru, which wasn't often, she could tell Yoshino and trust her to give good advice.

A year ago she was asking Yoshino about her son, in a short while she would also be coming to this women for guidance during motherhood.

The Sixth Month

She was lying on the couch reading. Temari had already been up for several hours. She liked to rise with the sun and, now that days were getting longer, it was rising earlier.

Shikamaru was still in bed sleeping.

He was working so hard and she didn't have the heart to wake him even though she wasn't particularly entertained by her novel. Weekends were the only time he could get a decent night's sleep.

And if there was one thing her husband loved it was sleep.

Not to mention, it was getting more and more difficult for her to get up from the couch on her own.

Even if her novel wasn't very interesting there were plenty of other things to entertain her, like the number of books on the shelf in front of her or how many bumps were in the ceiling.

Who was she kidding?

Maybe she would just take a nap.

Shikamaru was bound to sleep for at least a couple more hours. As she lowered herself down on the couch to curl up, Temari was hit with a strange feeling. There was no way to describe it other than weird. Although not painful, all of the muscles in her stomach suddenly became rock hard, as if someone had wrapped a sash around her and was cinching it behind her back.

That sensation disappeared just as quickly as it came. Confused, she cautiously tried to lower herself once more and, this time, felt a stinging sensation that ran down her stomach.

"Ouch?"

Temari was a hardened woman with a high pain threshold so it was often hard for her to measure these things. She was nervous that something really wrong may be happening and she was playing it off as inconsequential. It was very uncomfortable and, although she was worried about the nature of the tensing which seemed a lot like a contraction, it was nothing she couldn't handle.

Sometimes when the baby changed positions, she would get a strange feeling.

However, the fourth tightening had her sucking in a gasp of air. Then she knew this was not the baby moving and this was not just uncomfortable either, it hurt...a lot. And now the added stress seemed to make it worse.

"Shika - ," she called out but her voice was much too quiet to wake him in the other room and she was still trying to catch her breath.

She really felt like panicking.

All she could think about was that she couldn't go into labor. It was way too early and she had been counting on another three months to mentally prepare herself.

She had to get off the couch and get him up so he could figure something out. Her brain was too busy dealing with the pain and dread.

Changing position helped a bit but when she stood up the cramping returned tenfold.

"AAH!" She hadn't even been in control of the volume of her voice.

Giving up, she sat back down on the couch, moaning as she clutched her stomach. Luckily, her outburst had been enough to wake her lazy husband. He walked out to greet her still half asleep until he took in the sight before him.

"What's wrong?" He was by her side in a flash, hand on her back.

Like before, the pain stopped momentarily and she spoke while she still could.

"I don't know. It feels strange."

"Define strange for me," he quipped. Any other time she would have taken offense to his tone but she could clearly see that he was also worried and stressed.

"It's like cramping and tightening and it hurts...oh god...it hurts so much. But it's not time yet so I – I can't be in labour. Something must be wrong."

She bit her lower lip hard at the neck contraction.

"Ugh!" Her eyes were starting to get watery and she looked beseechingly up at him.

"Okay, everything's going to be fine. We'll go to the hospital and check it out. But you're going to be completely fine, okay?" It sounded like he was trying to convince both of them but, looking into his eyes, she felt a little bit calmer.

If it was coming from his mouth she could believe almost anything. She was sure he was just as scared as she was but he hid it well for her sake. Temari was squeezing his hand the tightest she could and he gave no indication that he was in any pain.

The couple couldn't quite believe it when the doctor told them that Temari had been experiencing Braxton Hicks contractions.

The two of them had read about them before. Temari specifically remember that the books had said, "Mild contractions three to six seconds in length." And there had been nothing mild about the contractions she had been experiencing.

According to their doctor, some women found them more painful than others, so Temari assumed she was just one of the lucky few.

The doctor had also been quick to recommend Temari drink more water and try to change positions when she felt these contractions come on.

The two of them left the hospital feeling a little overwhelmed and shaken after the false alarm.

What had made Temari the most afraid was not the thought that she may have to go through childbirth but was the potential complications that such an early birth would most likely bring. She could remember photos of Gaara as a baby. He had been so fragile and small. It was a miracle that he had grown up to be as strong as he was today.

"Are you okay?" Shikamaru squeezed her hand.

"Yeah, I'm fine now. I'm just glad that everything is okay."

Both of them knew what she really meant by that. She was glad that the baby was okay.

Temari was a little amazed that she could grow to love something that she hadn't ever seen or held so much.

The Seventh Month

The sounds of the night were very peaceful as she lay in bed, half perched up on her pillow. Temari enjoyed the quiet right now after a very busy day.

Her friends had thrown her a 'surprise' baby shower at Ino's today. As far as the party was concerned, she wasn't that shocked because her blonde friend had been dropping hints for the past week.

All of her gifts had been very thoughtful. And it was nice to catch up with the girls she didn't see as regularly as Sakura and Ino.

Temari had really enjoyed herself but she was more than ready to rest now.

Shikamaru was reading next to her with all the blankets piled high on top of him.

Temari's temperature was still running higher than usual. Even though it was March, she only wore lightweight pajama bottoms and a t-shirt which was pulled up to reveal her stomach.

Finding a position comfortable to sleep in was near impossible with her stomach the size it was so she figured that the way she was now would be as good as it got.

Subconsciously she walked two fingers across the round expanse of her stomach.

There wasn't really one thing in particular that she was thinking about.

She mulled over the stretch marks that were appearing at the sides of her stomach, despite the intensive moisturizing regime she had.

Looking down, she realized that she could no longer see her toes and wiggled them just for the fun of it.

Little does she know she has effectively distracted her husband who has forgotten all about the book he was reading. Temari heard the shuffle of sheets and watched Shikamaru flip around on his side to press his face on her stomach.

"He's not moving, you know," she murmured, running a hand through his hair.

When he didn't reply, Temari figured that he realized it himself and wasn't concerned. Since three months ago, when the baby was able to hear sounds outside the womb, Shikamaru would sometimes position himself by her middle like this and speak quietly to their child. She never strained her ears to listen to what he said.

She figured it was personal.

"Don't you think we should figure out a name?" Shikamaru asked at full volume, startling her a little. "It feels wrong to just keep saying 'the baby' or 'him'."

She rolled her eyes. It wasn't that they had never discussed names; it was that they had yet to agree on something.

The whole naming thing had been a lot easier when they didn't know if the baby was a boy or a girl.

Then, it had been all hypothetical. Even the most ridiculous names had been suggested and laughed at. However, Temari did suppose that they really should be thinking more seriously about it.

The prospect of deciding on a name wasn't as fun to her now as it had been. It was a serious.

Whatever name they chose now, their child would carry for the rest of their life. So it wasn't enough to just pick something on a whim because it sounded good. Temari didn't want it to be common place either.

A good name had some family history to it, a little bit of the parents and their hopes for their child.

"We already have the first half," she joked. "Just call him Shika for now."

Her husband finally removed his head from her stomach and looked up at her moodily.

"Oh, come on. You don't honestly think that we'll ever be able to agree on any name until he's actually here, do you?" From the look in his eyes, she knew that he realized and accepted her point, albeit grudgingly.

"We have time." It was a hard sensation to explain but she felt that, once she saw his face, she'd know. The last thing she wanted was to choose something, see her baby, and then realize that it didn't suit him.

"It won't be that much longer," he lay his head back against her abdomen.

A lump was forming in her throat. She was frightened by the prospect of childbirth but her anticipation to actually meet him outweighed all else.

Looking at sonogram pictures would never amount to the real thing.

The Eight Month

She was tired of being pregnant.

It felt like all the good parts of the process were behind her; seeing the ultrasound, hearing the heartbeat, feeling the baby's first kick.

Now all that was left was general discomfort and nerves resulting from her imminent labour.

All she wanted was to see her baby and be done with the rest of it.

As she was nearing the end of her pregnancy, she tired easily and it was more difficult to get around. This was due to her stomach which, as Kankuro had pointed out when he was visiting earlier this month, was 'gigantic'.

She had smacked him over the head for making such a comment but Temari couldn't say that he was incorrect.

Compared to other pregnant women she had seen, her stomach was indeed on the larger end of the scale. Annoyingly, even though she had another month left, it looked like she could give birth any day.

There was so much pressure at the base of her stomach that it felt like the baby was just about ready drop out.

It didn't seem to matter what position she was in, nothing was comfortable. Sleep was anything but restful. Her swollen feet made walking around for more than half an hour intolerable.

To top everything off, her doctor had essentially sentenced her to bed rest.

There were only so many books she could read, movies she could watch before she went stir crazy. The sole benefit to being home so often was that she had time to finish the preparations for the baby's nursery. A book she had read called this kind of behaviour 'nesting'.

Surely, the baby wouldn't care if the mobile was hung over the crib or if the curtains matched the theme of the room but having these minors things sorted out made Temari feel at least slightly more prepared.

They already had all the clothes their baby would need for the first year thanks to the shower Ino had thrown her. All of her friends had been very kind, visiting her and joining her for short walks now that she was restricted to staying close to home.

It had only been a week since she had gotten the order to not exert herself and she was already extremely bored. From this point on, she still had an entire month left and Temari didn't know how to entertain herself. Too much free time was a dangerous thing for a mind.

With so many hours in a day it was easy for her thoughts to wander, sometimes onto things she'd rather not analyze, like the elders in Suna. Those old crones were essentially like circling vultures, trying to find any possible loophole that may allow them to one day force her son back to Suna.

Gaara had told her of their interest in any children Shikamaru and she may have.

It had unsettled her to say the least.

What was she to them, someone who just pumped out the next generation of Kazekage? Had her accomplishments earned her no respect? Gaara had assured her that the elders would not interfere. And she had done her own research.

As long as their children were born in Konoha, there was no way elders in Suna could make a case for their obligations to the Land of Wind.

Shikamaru had actually been more visibly upset when he heard of the elders' plan than she was.

Temari was usually the one for outward reactions. But she suspected that his noticeable anger was mostly due to how difficult that very same council had been in accepting their marriage. The elders couldn't honestly think that after openly disapproving of their relationship that they had a right to make decisions about their child's future.

A thump from her stomach made her inhale sharply.

She really shouldn't be worrying about such things. Both of her hands came down to caress her abdomen. The odds of something happening to herself, Shikamaru, Gaara and Kankuro were very slim.

There would always be someone here for this little guy.

"You're mom is getting all worked up over nothing, huh?"

The Ninth Month

Temari hadn't been able to understand what was wrong with her husband until now. He had been looking nervous and out of place this whole time, eyes looking around the room as if to find the nearest exit.

She was having their baby right now.

And she had quickly become more and more irritated with his lack of attention.

That was, until a puff of smoke erupted in the room to reveal, not her husband, but Naruto in his place.

As of now, she was staring at the blonde hokage in shock.

This explained the odd behaviour of her 'husband' but her mind couldn't comprehend why Naruto was here or why he had performed a transformation jutsu to appear like Shikamaru in the first place, especially at such a time.

With her next contraction, she broke free from this train of thought.

"Naruto," her voice was low; dangerous. "What are you doing here?"

"Heh, heh, Temari...uhm...well, Shikamaru is covering for me in a meeting right now."

"Why didn't you tell me that when I came into your office? You've been here all this time and never said anything!" she didn't try to hold back her glare. Usually, she always maintained an air of professionalism when talking to high ranking people, even if they were a scatterbrained hokages.

"You came in so suddenly and just grabbed me!" he panicked, trying to defend himself. "Then you really started going into labor and I couldn't just reveal myself. I thought you would kill me."

"Believe me," she gritted her teeth through another wave of pain, "there's still plenty of time for that."

Her hands were gripping the bed rail so tightly that they had turned white. Temari had a hard time believing that Naruto actually had experience with this type of circumstance. Right now, he looked completely clueless. His arms were partially extended, wanting to help but fearful that, if he should, his hands may be crushed.

Briefly she wondered if Hinata had been able to maintain her usual soft demeanor even during childbirth because Naruto looked like it was his first seeing a woman in so much visible pain.

Ironically, it was Temari who still had the sensibility to pull out her phone.

"Call Shikamaru," she ordered.

Naruto looked only too happy to have some direction. The two of them waited as the phone dialed. All too soon, a vibrating sounded throughout the room. The two of them looked down to Naruto's pocket where the sound was emanating from.

"You took his phone?" she gritted out. "What on earth made you do that?"

"I thought it would make the act look more convincing!"

"Well, does he have your phone?" When she saw his sheepish look, her insides burned.

She was going to kill him.

She was going to commit treason and kill their hokage.

She could deal with the consequences later.

"I'm sorry!"

"Sorry isn't going to help me no-Ow!"

Temari was trying really hard not to remain composed but the only thing she could focus on was that this baby was coming and Shikamaru wasn't even here. He didn't even know that she was in labor.

And she needed him here with her now, not Naruto. It was getting harder to hold back screams.

"I'll run and get Shikamaru." Naruto announced after Temari let out a particularly loud yelp.

Sweat had accumulated on her brow. And all of the sudden, the prospect of being alone terrified her.

"Wait! Don't leave me here by myself."

Naruto looked stumped. One minute she was angry at him and the next she didn't want him to leave? He quickly made a shadow clone. The clone disappeared through the door immediately, leaving the hokage and a very distressed kunoichi in its wake.

The shouts of Naruto's shadow clone could be heard from down the hall before it even interrupted the private meeting.

All the participants looked back and forth between each other, wondering how the hokage's voice could be ringing from outside when the man himself was sitting before them.

"Shiiiiiii - kaaaaaaa - maaaaaaa- ruuuuu!" the clone burst through the door, heels squeaking.

The occupants of the board room gasped at the dual image.

Shikamaru, still donning the appearance of his friend, sighed. What was the point of him doing this if Naruto was just going to interrupt and blow their cover?

"Shikamaru," the clone panted, trying to catch its breath after running at such an incredible speed.

"You," inhale, "have to come quick."

Now that the doppelganger had caught his interest, Shikamaru returned to his regular appearance.

"What's wrong?"

He really hoped that this was actually something important and not like the time Naruto had misplaced his bowl of instant ramen and then came running to him to help search for it.

"Temari," he wheezed.

That was all Shikamaru needed to hear before his face blanched.

He shot up from his chair so fast that it fell back towards the ground with a crash. Everyone else in the room was confused.

They knew Temari as the Nara's wife but couldn't connect that with his reaction.

It took Shikamaru less than three seconds to string his thoughts together before he was racing out the door.

"Oh, I know! I know!" The true Naruto anxiously exclaimed back at the hospital. "I'll tell you all about my shinobi way."

He was presently trying to distract Temari from her pain with stories; so far it had not been very successful.

"Anything but that, please stop," she whimpered.

Naruto was more afraid now than he had been earlier. Angry women were common place for him but crying girls was something he had less experience with. And Gaara's sister had always seemed so unflappable to him.

Naruto didn't seem to remember Hinata being in this much pain.

Even if he was completely uncomfortable, he had a large amount of sympathy for Temari.

The doctor had come in a couple of times to check in on her. In those moments, he always changed his appearance back to look like Shikamaru.

He was wondering if he should find the doctor and ask for some stronger medication because whatever she was on, it wasn't helping much anymore.

"AAAAH," Temari didn't even know how her body was still doing this.

She was completely exhausted and hadn't even started to push.

"Naruto," Temari's shaky voice alerted him, "I don't think I can do this."

"Don't say that Temari. You just got to be –

"Where the hell is Shikamaru?"

She cut him off as another contraction swept through her body. They were getting closer and closer together now.

Naruto offered her his hand, something he would probably regret later.

Little did the two of them know, but Shikamaru was already in the hospital and angrily arguing with the nurses who were sure that he was an imposter.

"My wife is having a baby! Let me through."

Shikamaru had entirely lost his patience with the staff working at the hospital today.

"Temari already has her husband in the room with her. Sir, I don't know who you are but you need to leave."

She already had...Naruto, that idiot must still be pretending to look like him.

Shikamaru didn't know how he was going to convince these people that he really was who he said. There were five of them and one of him but he's pretty sure that he'll be able to fight his way through.

Naruto can cover for him later, his friend owed him that much at least.

He was stealing himself to push through the human barricade when he saw his savior.

"Sakura!" he called out to the pink haired medic.

"Shikamaru, what are you doing out here?"

"There's no time to explain everything. What room is Temari in?"

Sakura had respect and seniority at the hospital. Not only did she tell him the room number but she sent one of the nurses, who had originally tried to turn him away, along to assist him. The woman was apologizing the whole time they ran down the hall but he hardly had an ear for it.

Shikamaru barged through the door.

Temari was lying down; eyes squeezed shut, tears running down her face.

Naruto had one of his hands clasped in his own. Shikamaru was only momentarily annoyed as Naruto was occupying the place he should be.

He pushed that feeling aside and went to grab Temari's free hand.

"Hokage-sama?" The nurse who had followed Shikamaru into the room gasped in surprise.

Her outburst had caused Temari to open her eyes. When she looked at him her expression softened for a couple seconds before hardening.

"What took you so long?"

Right now wasn't the time to say he hadn't even known she was in labour or that he had battled the hospital staff.

There was only one acceptable answer.

"I'm so sorry. I'm here now." He rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb and kissed her cheek, pleased that she didn't smack him.

"Uh, I'm sorry to say this Hokage-sama but it's the hospital policy that only family be allowed in the room during delivery."

Naruto was only too relieved to be excused.

Before he left, he was going to wish them luck but then thought better of it. The two of them were talking, completely invested in one another.

She held her son close to her chest with more pride and joy than she had ever felt in her life.

He was so small and fragile and so utterly perfect. It was hard to believe that she had a part in creating something so wonderful.

After nine long months of anticipation, of yearning to meet her baby, see his face, she was holding him and couldn't bear to look away.

His rosy skin, pouty pink lips and the dark fuzz atop his head made her smile. He already looked so much like Shikamaru. Speaking of the father, he seemed just as overwhelmed as she was. The two of them had happy tears in their eyes. Temari knew that his thoughts were similar to hers.

He had an identical look in his eyes; unconditional love.

"He's beautiful."

She's glad that Shikamaru has articulated her thoughts. Her voice is still a little hoarse from all the shouting earlier. And she doesn't want to disturb this moment with her raspy vocal chords.

Their focus is brought back to the bundle in her arms as their son scrunches his face a little. Then he makes the sweetest sound Temari thinks she's ever heard.

It's somewhere in between a yawn and a coo. Shikamaru reaches down and softly runs one finger along their baby's face. Temari becomes even more transfixed when it seems like he's about to open his eyes.

Although their son won't remember his first look at his parents, the two of them will never forget such a moment.

Even though his eyes weren't fully open, Temari could already see that they were the same shape as her own; the corner of the lids winged up.

It was too soon to say what colour his eyes would be. A baby's true eye colour tended to take a while to develop.

As of now, his eyes were a mix between blue and green. She loved seeing that part of herself in her son.

He really was the best combination of her and Shikamaru.

"You want to hold him?"

Temari didn't really need to ask. The answer was obvious.

His hands had already lowered to pick up their son. After a few seconds of manoeuvring – they were both unpracticed and afraid of jostling something so delicate – Shikamaru was holding him.

As much as she wanted to watch this moment and maybe poke some fun at her husband for starting to tear up yet again, she was exhausted.

While she drifted off she thought about her son who was already the most precious thing in her life, of how she was now a mother, she and Shikamaru were parents, they were a family.