Unexpected Blessings
 Parts 9-12


Written by: Pattyanne
 Author's Website





Summary: What can I say...Spike and Buffy have a baby...
Disclaimer: The show Buffy the Vampire Slayer and all of it's characters belong to Joss, Mutant Enemy, & Fox Prod.
A/N: I wrote this a while ago, but the recent baby fics being posted made me want to toss my hat in, as it were. This is the "prequel" to 'Daddy's Girl', which is not finished yet.
Feedback: snapkik@yahoo.com





The Ninth Month


The evening sun had finally set, and Spike was stretched out on the sofa with a cold glass of beer and a novel he'd been looking forward to reading.

Ever since Buffy's pregnancy, he had rediscovered his love of the printed word, something he had lost right about the same time he lost his mortality.

But after reading up on every baby advice manual he could lay his hands on, he had found himself missing the pleasure of just sitting quietly with an interesting book and losing yourself in the words.

So, he had tagged along with his wife to the Sunnydale Public Library one night, and walked out with a card of his own, and a stack of books he'd heard about over the years, but never bothered with.

Taking a sip of beer, he set the glass down on the coffee table and propped his feet up, then opened the book.

He hadn't gotten halfway through the third page when Buffy's voice interrupted him. "Honey, please! I just polished that table a little while ago."

He looked over the top of his book, and saw his wife standing over him. She looked absolutely adorable in a pair of denim overalls that almost completely disguised her "nearly ready to pop" tummy, and she had her hair in two long braids.

In her hand, she held a bucket stuffed full of cleaning solutions and sponges, paper towels and dust cloths.

"Oh...I'm sorry, love." He removed his feet and placed them on the floor, then glanced up for her approval...but didn't see any. "Something else?" he asked.

"The glass. Please..use a coaster," she asked sweetly, whipping one out of her pocket and handing it to him.

"Sure, love...anything you...." His voice disappeared when he picked up the glass and saw the very large ring of moisture on the table. "Oh, I'm really sorry...I just...I didn't know...I wasn't thinking..."

She shook her head like a country school marm, then extracted a clean cloth and re-polished the coffee table. He made sure the coaster was under the glass, which earned him a "thank you, sweetie" and a brief kiss brushed across his forehead, before she went on her way.

Keeping his feet on the floor, he sat back again and re-opened his book. A page and a half later, he was startled out of his seat at the sudden roar of the Hoover a few feet away from him.

"Lift your feet!" Buffy shouted over the clamor of the engine. He levitated them a few feet in the air as she pushed the vaccum back and forth many more times than she actually needed to.

"Sweetheart.." he yelled. "The carpet isn't exactly covered in filth! I think that's enough! "

"What?!" she yelled back.

"Can you turn that off, darling?!"

She nodded. "I'm almost done in here!"

He waited, as patiently as he could, until she toddled out of the room, heading down the hallway. The hum of the motor faded a little, and he went back to his book.

The story was just beginning to really peak his interest when he heard a loud thump from the stairs, and looked up in time to see Buffy hauling the heavy vaccum cleaner from one step up to the next, intending to lift the thing all the way up the staircase.

"Stop that!" he yelped, tossing the book aside and leaping to his feet.

"What? I'm fine!" she insisted, one hand on the machine and the other on her hip.

"Buffy, please call me when you want something heavy lifted," he begged for what felt like the hundredth time. "I know you're the slayer and all...but you're pregnant, love. I don't want anything to happen to you or the little one."

There was really only one argument that worked with her when it came to this issue, and he wasn't above using it. "Baby, please...you know I like doing these things for you. Please let me." Those words, along with the most earnest and pleading look he could summon up, usually got him his way.

He hauled the Hoover upstairs and waited for her to join him. "Will you let me do this for you?"

"No, honey...go read your book. I can push the vaccum, it's not hard to push. And I'll be careful," she promised.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"I'm positive...go. Read. Relax," she pushed him out the door.

When he was back on the sofa, he picked up his book and waited for a moment, listening to the even back and forth motions of the vaccum.

It was a soothing sort of sound, something called "white noise" if he remembered his earlier baby info correctly.

The peaceful back and forth swish was suddenly accompanied by a distinct thud that could only mean one thing...she was lifting furniture.

"Damn it!" he shouted, flinging the book down with a splat! He took the stairs three at a time, and found Buffy on her hands and knees in the nursery, dragging the heavy rocking chair back into place. The crib was completely pulled away from the wall, and the solid oak changing table was slightly out of place.

"Buffy!"

She jumped, whirling around with a guilty flush on her face. "There was so much dust down there...you wouldn't believe it," she began, but he cut her off by grabbing her hand and tugging her out of the room.

"That's it!" he said loudly. "No more cleaning..no more nesting..consider yourself nested until this baby is born."

He dragged her downstairs and forced her to sit on the sofa next to him. Picking up the book, he turned it back to page one and began to read out loud.

It wasn't long before she was curled up next to him like a kitten, listening intently as he read. Her attention spurred him on to make the story more enjoyable for her, and he employed his entire vocal range to entertain her.

After taking a break for her to go to the bathroom, he brought her a glass of orange juice and a bag of chocolate chip cookies. She sat peacefully beside him, only stopping him once to tell him that being "nested" was a lot more fun than working to get there.

Five chapters into the book, he closed it up for the night, resisting her pleas for him to continue.

"No. Time for you to have a bath and get some sleep." He was firm on the subject, and he knew by how easily she let herself be persuaded, that she must be tired out.

She undressed in the bedroom as he ran a tub of luke warm water for her. He helped her step in to the tub and sit down, then he lathered up a soft sponge with bath gel and ran it over the wet silk of her skin, working up a creamy, fragrant lather.

He stripped and climbed into the tub behind her, making her lean back against him as he plied the soapy sponge over and over the hard drum of her pregnant belly. The baby moved beneath his touch, seeming to want to play with her daddy already as she kicked and rolled, making her mommy gasp and request that she settle herself down.

"See, she's not gonna do that, love," he informed Buffy with a cocky grin. "That's my little girl in there, and she knows her own mind."

Buffy smiled, cupping his cheek in her wet hand. "I think you're right," she said. "She sure isn't listening to me. In fact," she oomphed after a hearty kick in the ribs, "I was hoping maybe you could have...a talk with..her."

Obligingly, he placed both his hands on her tummy and stroked it gently. "All right now, little girl," he murmured softly. "Mummy wants a little rest now. Be my Princess and settle down for Daddy, hmm? You'll be here with us soon, baby, and I promise you we'll have wonderful adventures together, the three of us. That's my good girl...you sleep now, and Daddy and Mummy will make everything ready for you."

Miraculously, the baby stopped her incessant flip- flopping about and settled into one position, with just an occasional little tap of one tiny foot to let her parents know she was still around.

"You're amazing," Buffy sighed. "The things you can do with your voice..."

He chuckled. "Just don't ask me to sing."





Labor Pains? What Labor Pains?


"I think I'm in labor."

Buffy stood at the kitchen sink, one hand on her belly and an uncertain expression on her face.

Dawn and Willow turned and looked at her, then at each other, then back at her.

"What?" Buffy asked them.

"Uh...you don't really look like you're in labor," Wil- low explained tentatively.

"Yeah," Dawn agreed. "Aren't women in labor all sweaty and screamy and...stuff?"

"Not at the beginning," Buffy said, rolling her eyes.

Willow gave her a sympathetic smile. "Why do you think you're in labor?" she asked.

"Well..it's only two days till my due date, and I feel kind of...funny."

Now, Willow looked concerned, "Funny strange...or funny ha-ha?"

"I don't know," Buffy sighed.

Dawn spoke up. "Are you in pain? Labor means pain, right?"

Buffy sat down at the table and opened the cookie jar. "Not really pain," she said, grabbing a handful of Oreos and pulling them open to lick the cream out. "I mean...not serious pain, anyhow."

"Buffy" Willow said seriously. "Are you in ANY pain at all?"

The slayer shrugged. "Every now and then I get a little cramp. Kind of like I get near the end of my period."

"And that's all?"

"Pretty much, yeah."

"What should we do?" Dawn asked nervously. "Should we call the doctor?"

Willow thought for a moment. "Maybe we should," she finally said. "Buffy..you have a pretty high tolerance for pain. Maybe you're in serious labor and just not feeling it."

"Neat!" Buffy grinned, crumbling up chocolate cookie bits in a glass of milk. "Wow..if this is serious labor then childbirth will be a walk in the park. Not MY walks in parks," she amended, "because mine are scary and dangerous...but other people's walks in...in other people's parks."

"Okay...so what do we do first?" Dawn asked again, her voice high pitched.

Willow turned and looked right at her. "We don't panic!"

Buffy nodded. "Thash my moddo" she said, speaking through a mouthful of soggy cookies bits.

Spike walked into the kitchen, stopping short when three pairs of eyes fixed on him. "What did I do?"

"Hi, honey!" Buffy said brightly. "I'm in labor!"

He just stared at her for a moment as she sat there with milk clinging to her upper lip, then chuckled as though she had told him a mildly funny joke. "You are not," he said, shaking his head.

Buffy's eyebrows arched. "I reeeallly think I am" she sing-songed.

"No," he said firmly. "You're not."

Exasperated, Buffy glared at him. "How the hell do YOU know? Are YOU in here with me?"

"Buffy, you're not in...."

"You're pissing me off, Spike! I don't..." She struggled to stand up. "Get me out of this chair!"

He took her hands and pulled her up. When she was back on her feet, she placed her hands on her hips and confronted her husband. "I don't think you're the best judge of my condition!"

Willow spoke up, hoping to calm the fracas before it really got rolling. "We were just thinking that Buffy might be in labor, and just not feel it all that much..her being the slayer and all. She can take a lot of pain before she says ouch."

Spike just shook his head. "She's not in labor," he said doggedly.

"You can say it until the cows come home," Buffy snapped. "And it still don't make it true!"

"Look, sweetheart," he began reasonably, "..you can't be in labor."

"Why the hell not?" she asked shrilly. "For crying out loud, Spike...you always knew this day would come!"

"Buffy..."

"And WHY are you so damn positive that I'm not in labor?" she demanded. "Did you graduate from medical school when I wasn't looking?"

"Because," he blurted out, "I'm not ready for it!"

Buffy didn't know whether to laugh or scream. Not ready for it? Like THAT was the deciding factor!

"Well, WHY didn't you say so?" she asked sarcas- tically. "I'm sure if you ask her that the baby won't mind staying where she is until you're ready for it!"

"Buffy..."

"Maybe you can give me a rough of when you THINK you'll be good to go. Nothing definite, just ball park, what do you think? Two weeks? Three? Couple of years?"

"Funny, Slayer...real funny." Spike looked at Will- ow. "She been like this all day?"

"Like what?" Willow asked innocently.

Spike didn't reply, just looked back at his wife. "You really think you're in labor?" he asked.

Buffy folded her arms across her chest. "Well...YOU tell ME!"

Grabbing her hand, he pulled her towards the back door. "You," he said, pointing at Dawn. "Run upstairs and get your sister's bag. It's right inside our bedroom door. And you," he turned to Willow. "You call her doctor...number's by the phone."

"Gee, he must be ready," Buffy muttered.

"And YOU!" Spike added. "Shut up and get your ass in the car."

She stared up at him, fully prepared to give him the rough side of her tongue, then stopped when she saw the look on his face.

Waiting until Dawn and Willow were gone, she slipped one hand behind his neck. "Don't be scared," she said softly. "Everything will be fine...and you ARE ready for it."

He just looked at her, his eyes filled with doubt and worry. "You think?"

She smiled. "I KNOW," she whispered, pulling him down until his lips touched hers. After a long kiss, she cupped his face in her hands and said the one thing she knew would calm him down and fire him up at the same time.

"Spike...I need you to take care of me. I'm count- ing on you, baby."

<She needs me...she needs ME...it's my job to take care of her....>

He smiled and kissed her forehead. "You're good...you know that, don't you?"

"I know YOU, baby."

"All right," he said firmly. "Let's..." He stopped when she made a face. "What?"

She shrugged. "Labor pain."

Spike was surprised. "That's IT?"

"I guess so," she said with a cheery smile.

"Well, that doesn't seem so bad."

"Yeah, that's what I thought. Fringe benefit of being a slayer, I guess. Painless childbirth. Lucky me, huh?"


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~



SIX HOURS LATER....



"GET...AWAY...FROM...ME!"

"I need to examine you and see how far you're dilated," the nurse said briskly.

Buffy lay flat on the hospital bed, panting and sweating, and madder than hellfire.

"NO!" She whipped her head around and glared at Spike. "Kill her!" she demanded. "It's the least you can do for me, you rotten son of a..."

Spike looked up and met the nurses eyes. "She's kidding." He leaned over the bed. "Sweetheart...the nurse is here to help you. I know you're in pain, but I can't kill her," he whispered."

Buffy looked at him murderously. "This is YOUR fault," she panted. "You...and your stupid birth- day...I HATE you....I wish you were DEAD!"

Turning on the nurse, she grabbed the front of her uniform. "Bring me...a sharp piece of wood! Any...kind!"

"Buffy!" Spike said loudly. "Let go of the nurse!" He pried her fingers loose and kept her hands locked in his, preventing her from sinking her teeth into his knuckles.

Dr. Beaumont walked into the room, scanning Buffy's chart. "How are things going in..." He stopped short when he saw the looks he was being given by the other three people in the room. "Not well, I take it?" he asked needlessly.

"No!" Spike answered. "You take it damn well right! She's in too much pain. Can't you bloody well give her some- thing for it?"

"Please..." Buffy whined.

"I can do that," the doctor assured them. "How far is she dilated?" he asked the nurse.

"She won't let me examine her and find out!"

Dr. Beaumont smiled. "I'll do it." he washed his hands at the sink, then pulled a pair of rubber gloves from the wall dispenser. "Page Dr. Hulse," he instructed the nurse. "Tell him to get ready for an epidural."

When the door swung closed behind the R.N., the doctor pulled the curtain closed around Buffy's bed.

"Buffy.." he began.

She glared at him suspiciously. "What?"

"I promise to be very gentle and not hurt you, but I have to see how far you're dilated. Then, we'll get you something for the pain. All right?"

Buffy nodded. "Thank you." In the lull between pains, she tried to be pleasant. "You see..this wasn't supposed to hurt."

Dr. Beaumont looked at her, puzzled. "Why did you think that having a baby wouldn't hurt? Didn't you attend the classes and...."

"Yes!" she interjected. "But I'm different from the others!"

"Oh? How's that?"

"I'm a ...."

Spike clapped his hand over her mouth. "Big, brave girl!" he finished for her. "Be quiet now and let the doc examine you, honey. I'll be right back."

She grabbed his shirt sleeve. "Where do you think YOU'RE going?"

"I'm just...just going to tell everyone how you're doing," he explained.

"But I'm doing lousy," she said fretfully.

"No, you're not, love." He loosened her hand and kissed her fingers.

"Hurry up!" she called as he made it out the door.

"Oh, yeah...I will," Spike answered. As the door closed behind him, he paused to collect himself, then headed for the waiting area.

Dawn saw him first and jumped to her feet. "Is it over?"

Spike shook his head. "I wish." He sat down on the couch next to Willow. "The doc is giving her something so it doesn't hurt so much."

Willow smiled and patted his shoulder. "The pain kicked in, huh?"

He nodded. "In a big way."

"Is she being mean?"

"In a BIG way."

Xander appeared in the doorway, three cans of soda in his hands. "So," he said, handing a can to Dawn and Willow. "How's the little mommy doing?"

"She's terrorizing the nurses," Spike replied. "They're all afraid to go near her."

"As well they should be," Xander said, plopping down in an armchair and opening a can of cola. "The only thing more dangerous than a cranky slayer...is a cranky slayer in labor."

"Yeah, well...." Spike stood up. "I have to go back," he said bleakly.

Xander raised his can. "Courage, man."

Willow smiled cheerily. "Tell her that we're here!"

"And that we love her!" Dawn added.

"I will." Spike looked back at them from the doorway. "Good- bye," he said, sounding like a condemned man standing on the top step of the gallows.

Outside of Buffy's room, he waited, listening for her cantankerous tones. After almost a minute of silence, he pushed the door open. "Buffy?"

"Hi, honey" she said sweetly, holding out one hand. "Come here."

Encouraged by her smile, he leaned over the bed. "How you feeling, baby?" he asked, brushing back her damp hair.

"Better," she sighed deeply. "Soooo much better."

Spike smiled. "On drugs, huh?"

"Mm-hmm," she nodded. "Good ones, too."

Doctor Beaumont came in to the room. "How's the pain?" he asked.

"Bearable" Buffy said.

The doctor chuckled. "Hooray for modern medicine." He glanced at her chart. "Good news...you're fully dilated."

"What's that mean?" Spike asked.

The doctor closed the chart with a snap. "Time to push. AFTER we get you into the delivery room."

"Okay," Buffy said, her face determined. "I'm ready."

After summoning the nurse on the intercom, Doctor Beaumont turned back to them. "All right. Let's go deliver this baby."





A Whole New World.....


Dawn nudged the door of Buffy's hospital room open and peeked inside, grinnng at the sight before her eyes.

Buffy was curled up on her side in the bed, sound asleep. Spike was sitting in the chair next to the bed, feet propped up on the bed rail, head back, eyes closed.

They both looked utterly exhausted.

But, it was the other occupant of the room that Dawn most wanted to see. The brand new one.

On top of a small cart next to the bed, a baby wrapped snugly in a pink cotton blanket was sleeping in a glass bassinet.

Dawn was so enraptured at the sight of the baby, she didn't notice that Spike wasn't asleep until he spoke.

"Go ahead," he said quietly. "Get a closer look."

She approached the sleeping infant as quietly as she could. "Oh, God," she whispered. "She's so beautiful."

Spike stood up and stretched, then joined her beside the bassinet. "She's more than beautiful," he said. "She's perfect."

Dawn slipped one arm around him and squeezed. "Proud daddy."

He hugged her back. "You know I am," he agreed. "Watch this." He reached into the bassinet and stroked the baby's tiny hand with one finger. Her little fist uncurled and she instinctively wrapped her own fingers around her father's.

"That's my girl," he whispered.

"And my niece," Dawn added. "Can I...?"

Spike smiled. "Hold her? Sure, you can."

She lifted the baby carefully, cuddling her against her breast.

"Hi Dawnie," a tired voice whispered. Dawn turned and saw Buffy, awake and smiling.

"Hey, big sister...look what I found."

Buffy held out her hands to Spike. "Help." She grimaced slightly as he helped her straighten up in the bed. "So," she said, pushing the button that raised the back of the mattress. "What do you think of your niece?"

"Gee, not much," Dawn said, grinning widely. "Only that she's the most beautiful baby ever!"

"She looks like her mother," Spike said, leaning down and kissing Buffy's forehead. "God, I love you," he whispered in her ear.

"She's so tiny," Dawn marveled.

"Everything but her lungs." Buffy smiled up into Spike's eyes. "Those she gets from her father."

"Very funny," he said, smiling back at her.

Dawn sat down in the bed side chair. "And how are YOU feeling?"

"Like I just went ten rounds with a kangaroo on speed..and lost," Buffy replied.

"So, it WAS painful?"

Buffy thought for a moment. "Put it this way...it wasn't a walk in the park. It was more like a 10k run through the highways of hell...uphill."

Dawn laughed. "But she was worth it."

"Yes, she was," Buffy nodded. "Worth that and ten times more besides."

The door opened and they all turned to look as one of the nurses came in carrying an enormous flower arrangement. "These just came," she informed them, setting the vase down on the night stand.

After the nurse left, Spike extracted a small white card from the arrangment and handed it to Buffy.

"They're from Giles" she announced, after reading the card.

It was a short, simple message. " I've never been more proud "

She showed Spike the card. "My thoughts exactly," he murmured.

A few minutes later, Dawn rose reluctantly to her feet. "It's getting late," she said, giving the baby to her father. She leaned over and kissed Buffy. "You get some rest. I'll see you tomorrow."

"I'll be here," Buffy promised.

Passing Spike on her way out the door, Dawn gave him a pat on the back.

"Nice work...Daddy."


~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~



"She's right you know."

"Right about what, love?"

"You do nice work."

"Well...I had some help."

Buffy watched as Spike sat down in the chair, holding the baby close, patting her tiny back.

She felt a sudden rush of pure love move through her. Love for her child and for her hus- band. So much love, that she couldn't even imagine ever hating him...wanting to drive a stake into him.

<God....what if I had succeeded?>

It was a horrible and sobering thought, one that she didn't want to examine closely.

<Thank goodness for unanswered prayers.>

She was always amazed at how quickly life could change, how little it took to make it a completely different life from the one you'd been leading. The tiniest, most insignificant circumstance could alter the course of existence as much as a major occurance could.

In a very short period of time, she had gone from a slayer with no family but a "sort of" younger sister, to a wife and a mother. Somehow, in spite of the wrenching twists and turns her early years had put her through, she had come out on the other side with a new world filled with love and hope and endless possibilities.

Everything was different now. She had a husband to love and a child to raise...and she was double damned if she would let anything interfere with that destiny.

"What are you thinking about so seriously?"

Spike's voice brought her out of her thoughts.

"Just that...it's so funny to think that I'm a mother now."

He laughed. "Oh, I can relate," he said. "Imagine my difficulty believing I'm a dad."

Buffy shook her head. "Things have changed so much now. There's so much more to consider."

He nodded. "That's true. It's a whole new world for us now. Isn't it?" he asked the sleeping baby.

Buffy was silent for a long moment, then spoke with complete decisiveness. "I'm through being a slayer."

Spike looked at her. "Say what?"

She met his gaze head on. "I'm through with it. I'm through with risking my life every night. I mean...it was bad enough before, but now...Spike...I can't take a chance on getting killed...on leaving this baby....leaving you."

Although he kept his face composed, inside he was shouting with joy. He'd been planning to bring this up at some point, but had never summoned the nerve during Buffy's pregnancy.

"I'm gonna talk to Giles in the morning," she said firmly. "He's gonna have to bring Faith back from New York, if he wants a slayer in Sunnydale."

"You think she'll do it?"

Buffy nodded. "I think so. I talked to her a few weeks ago and she sounded a little lonesome. You know Faith...she never says it, but I can tell. And she wanted to come and see the baby, anyway."

"When she gets here, we'll shanghai her, not let her leave, then." Spike said. "How does that sound, poppet?" He waited, then looked at Buffy. "She's not talking, but she loves the idea."

"And what does Daddy think?" Buffy asked.

"Daddy...thinks it's the best idea he's heard in a very long time. And he also thinks that it's time he went home and let Mommy rest."

He stood up and kissed the baby's cheek. "Good- night Katherine Rose," he said. "Be a good girl and I'll see you tomorrow." He started to place her in the bassinet, but Buffy stopped him.

"Don't put her back to bed," she protested. "Bring her here."

Spike placed the baby in her mother's arms, then picked up his jacket from the chair and slipped it on. "You get some sleep, love," he said, bending over to kiss her and caress the baby's cheek one more time.

"We will," Buffy promised, leaning back against the pillows.

"See you tomorrow, baby."

"Hey!" Buffy called when he had one hand on the door. "I love you."

Spike turned and looked at her. Unable to resist, he returned to her bedside. "I love you, too," he said, kissing her soundly on the mouth. "Now, go to sleep."

After he'd left, Buffy looked down at the baby in her arms.

"That was your daddy. Isn't he cute?"
 


CONTINUED...

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