Hey readers!

The final chapter is up. I thought about writing an epilogue for this, but right now, I have no good ideas for it. The last few weeks of writing had been a bit of a struggle, I changed a lot of plans and I edited much more than I actually wrote, as my head was filled with so many new, fresh, awesome projects and this one got a little on the backburner. I hope it didn't end awfully and I did it justice.

Back to business, I'll ramble a lot more in the end, the latest song is by Iron & Wine, Tree By The River. It's a full circle. I began with Sam Beam, it ends with Sam Beam. Might be a first, probably.

Okay, enjoy this, I go cry a little in that corner, since it's over!

Chapter 46 – A Pair Of Blue-Eyed Birds

"Oh, he's here, he's here!" Meredith said a little overexcited, when the nurse appeared at the door again carrying Liam, a huge smile on her face as she turned to Derek and he couldn't help but laugh at her new found energy.

She had slept for the past four hours and she seemed a whole new person at this point, eagerly spreading her arms wide to welcome Liam there.

"Hi baby" she whispered, kissing the top of the baby's head softly, her fingers moving to lift up the tiny blue hat, uncovering the mop of dark hair already there. "Derek..." she sighed,unable to add anything more, just lifting up her gaze and meeting his.

Derek simply moved closer to them, sitting on the bed next to his wife and just admiring Liam.

"Hey little man" he almost chocked on his words when Liam's eyes fixated on his, almost trying to stare at him.

"Would you hold him for a second?" Meredith then said, her voice wavering a little as she handed him the little bundle.

Derek welcomed Liam happily, even though frowned a little when Meredith began unwrapping him from the blanket into which he was snuggled.

"What are you doing?"

"Just..." she trailed off, holding between her thumb and index finger Liam's left hand, stroking it gently, her fingernail almost as big as his whole fist she was cradling.

"Mer" Derek pressed, but Meredith seemed too wrapped up in her little world to hear him. Was this her first motherly freakout? He couldn't tell, but she found her adorable nonetheless as she picked up Liam's tiny feet and simply stared at them.

Then it dawned on him and he couldn't help but chuckle.

"Ten fingers, ten toes?" he smiled amused.

Meredith lifted up her gaze and her smile was so soft he thought he could get lost in that expression forever. She nodded imperceptibly then, her eyes filling with emotional tears when she said "Look," simply holding up Liam's left foot.

Derek tilted his head to the side and he noticed a birthmark, right over Meredith's finger, exactly in the middle of the sole. He couldn't help but tickle it and see the neurological response to his gesture, a huge grin spreading on his lips.

"Doesn't it look like a L?"

"It's a heart for me" Meredith voiced "It's corny, I know, but if you tilt slightly to the side and..."

Derek chuckled and she blushed, stealing Liam from his arms and cuddling him closer.

"He's perfect, Mer" he said, kissing her temple, then cradling her closer to his chest. She leaned her head against his shoulder as they both stared at Liam in wonder, still unable to understand what was going on.

Their bubble was burst when the door opened with a slam and two little feet could be heard thumping around.

"I have a brother!" a very excited yelp reached their ears, before Eden could appear in front of them after a mad dash to the bed.

Lexie trailed behind her catching her breath, closing the door and whispering "Sorry guys, she just..."

Liam clearly didn't enjoyed the high-pitched voices, because his quiet whimpering became a full blown cry as soon as Eden moved closer.

"Hi baby bother, what's going on?" Eden asked casually as Meredith tried to calm down the baby, cradling him closer and rocking him.

"Eden, please, keep the voice down" Derek intimated, standing up and moving to sit on the couch, bringing Eden along.

"My baby brother hates me" Eden whispered, fat tears ready to come out of her glistening eyes as she stepped away

"Oh no Eden" Derek pulled her in a hug "It's just that he's scared of loud noises. He has never heard them and so they scare him"

"I'm sorry I scared him" she sniffed.

"When he stops crying you can say to Liam that you are sorry, okay?"

"Okay" she nodded

"His name is Liam? That's so cute guys..." Lexie piped in, a wide smile directed to Meredith, who was still cradling Liam closer, their faces mere inches apart, his dark hair contrasting with her pale complexion and light hair.

Liam's head was resting right over Meredith's heart, her whole hand cradling his head as she slightly rocked back and fort, her eyes closed, her lips forming a calming whisper next to Liam's head.

Eden was staring at them curiously, her head a little tilted to the side in a telltale pensive pose. "Do you think I can go to see Liam now?" she whispered then, turning to Derek.

Derek waited for Meredith to open her eyes again and when their gazes locked her pushed Eden a little forward, intimating "Go on," an encouraging smile on his lips as he turned amused to see Lexie standing there with a smile.

"Hi Liam" Eden said, approaching the bed tentatively and waiving from a distance. "Hi Mommy" she said a little more confidently.

"Hey Eden" Meredith replied. "Climb up here" she said, shifting Liam to her opposite arm as she held out her hand for Eden.

With a slight effort Eden was able to holster herself up on the bed and sit next to Meredith. "Oh" was the only sound that came out of her heart-shaped mouth as she studied the baby closely.

"Liam, this is your big sister Eden" Meredith said to the baby, cradling Eden closer to her as the little girl peeked to the baby in her arms.

"He's very little, Mommy"

"He is, isn't he?"

"Can I touch him?"

"Do you want to hold him, instead?" Meredith smiled widely and Eden beamed "You are five years old, after all" she winked and Eden giggled happily. "Okay, put your arms like mine and don't move much, alright? Remember to hold his head"

"Okay Mommy" Eden nodded and waited expectantly for the baby to land in her arms. Her eyes widened immediately when Liam began wriggling to fit in the new set of hands.

"He's heavy" she pondered "And he has the hair like Daddy" she smiled, turning to look at Derek, who was silently crying. His whole life he had dreamed a moment like this, from the birth of Eden he had always wanted to give her a sibling and now she has a brother and he has a son.

Meredith looked at Eden holding Liam and she wondered for a second how could her life of a workaholic turn out this perfect. It seemed almost too perfect to be real, but it was.

"Can you take him, Mommy, I'm tired" Eden sighed and Meredith welcomed Liam back in her arms. When she snuggled him closer she could feel his body relax.

"He has blue eyes Mommy!" Eden almost squealed, then tuned down when she remembered that her brother wasn't a fan of loud noises.

"Oh, he does. They can fade away, though" Meredith said when she met her son's intense stare, then noticed Eden's puzzled face looking back at her. "All babies when they are born can't see very well, so they all have blue eyes, then they can change. But since you and your Daddy have blue eyes he can probably have them as well"

"But your eyes are very pretty too, Mommy, I don't mind Liam having your eyes, I have Daddy's already" she shrugged off and all the occupants of the room chuckled.

"Okay silly goose, let's go eat lunch and leave your Mommy and Daddy alone" Lexie said, shaking her head amused.

"What about Liam, do we need to bring him a sandwich too?"

"Oh no baby, Mommy's gonna feed him with milk" Derek explained, helping Eden down from the bed and crouching to be at her level as he explained, placing a kiss on her nose

"But he needs food"

"Mommy's milk is very special, he's gonna like it, believe me" he winked

"Can I come back later?"

"Of course you can" both Meredith and Derek said almost together.

"Bye Daddy" Eden said then, kissing Derek's cheek, then she trotted again to the bed, climbed on it and kissed Meredith's cheek as well "Bye Mommy, bye Liam" she concluded, waiving at him.

"You can kiss him, Ladybug" Meredith intimated, when she saw Eden hesitate.

Eden studied her brother for a second more, then ducked down to place a soft kiss on his cheek, while Liam reached out to touch her nose.

"He's tickling me" she giggled as she pulled away

"See, he likes you" Derek said matter-of-factly

"I like him too, he's my baby brother" she shrugged it, then trudged down the bed and outside the room, grabbing Lexie's hand.

"That went well" Derek sighed, closing the door behind them.

When he turned to Meredith, she had tears in her eyes.

"I know, I'm an emotional mess" she sniffed, cradling Liam close and, almost as he sensed that she was upset, he began whimpering. "Oh, baby, I'm just so happy that you are here" she sighed.

When it was clear that the baby wanted to be fed, Derek immediately asked "Do you need anything?"

"A pillow, maybe?" she frowned, but noticed that it came in handy when she leaned Liam there "Oh and please, untie my gown".

Derek had to smirk at this "You know, if it wasn't for our son crying in your arms, I'd say that it sounded very dirty"

"Oh, those six weeks are going to be extremely long for you, Derek" she smiled, grabbing his hand and kissing his knuckles as Liam latched to her nipple, sucking contentedly his first meal as Derek kept his hand on Meredith's bare shoulder, rubbing soft circles as they both stared down at Liam.

"Does it feel real to you?"

"Not a little bit" Derek chuckled. "I know we are going to be just fine, though"

"I know. And not Meredith's fine either"

AN: So, this is it. The End. Fin.

Thoughts? Questions? Complaints? Feel free to PM me, review -also anonymously- and talk about this, sharing it. Seriously, I'll answer you as soon as I can. Even if it's something stupid or trivial, just ask.

Speaking of asking, requests for a sequel had been advanced, but I can easily tell you that no, there will not be one. I think what I wrote above is motivation enough. Eden and Liam will be dear characters, so maybe you can hope for a few one-shots set in this universe, if the muse will strike, but not much more.

In any case, I have to thank all of you who read this story from the first chapter, those who hopped on the train mid-journey, even those who discovered it just yesterday or right now. I appreciated every single visit you paid to this story. It feels good to be read by so many people. This is by far my most successful story and I have to thank you only.

Oh and my beta, sparkxx, who has done a really good job of editing this since the long lost chapter 6. It was really helpful to have such consultations.

A special mention to SweetLala92, who had supported even my most crazy ideas and is a really good end for me to ramble freely. Thanks! And to merderfan1 for always reading my stories and leaving kind comments.

Uh, who else? The National, 'cause they're great and amazing and they helped me write most of this chapters as they played their amazing notes. Also Iron & Wine for the wonderful -and absolutely complicated- lyrics.

This wonderful journey is over -yes, for me a story is a journey-, but I have some more ideas up my sleeve. First and foremost, the so-called Adjectives Series, but whose actual title is L Is For The Way You Look At Me, which is up and running at letter K and L will be published hopefully before Easter. Then there's more, maybe a couple more projects I'm developing, two long stories, another AU (which is set in summer, so it has to wait) and one closer to the show, but with a twist, probably set a little bit back in time. Oh and the promised sequel to You See All My Light And You Love My Dark, which is almost wholly planned so it will be up probably after my exams in May/June (or during, I tend to use stories as a stress-reliever).

Anyway, I think I thanked everybody, readers and reviewers, public and anonymous, so yeah, that's all folks!

Stay tuned for the next story!

~Irene