March 2003

Buffy and Willow stood in their pajamas together 
cramped into the small bathroom of their shabby 
college apartment. They were both concentrating very 
hard on the counter surrounding the sink. Or to be 
more precise a small white stick laying upon it. 

"Uh, Will?" Buffy asked hesitantly, "What does two 
lines mean again?" Buffy was certain she must have 
read the box wrong. Everything was happening way too 
fast. First thing this morning Willow had woken her 
up, dragged her into the bathroom and pointed white 
faced at the small plastic stick on the counter top. 
It became apparent that Buffy had no idea what was 
going on Willow handed her a box that had once 
contained a home pregnancy test. Buffy looked at the 
box, then down to the stick, to the box, then once 
more to the stick completely dumbfounded. 

"Will," she tried again, "This box says that two 
lines mean pregnant." 

Will hadn't moved, she stood still, starring. Buffy 
was beginning to wonder if she was planning to do this 
all day. Slowly she took Willow's shoulders and 
turned her friend to face her. "You're pregnant?" 
Willow finally raised her face so she could meet 
Buffy's eyes. Her face was even paler than usual. 

"Apparently," she said in little more than a whisper. 

"But Willow?" things just weren't adding up in 
Buffy's brain, "How did this happen?" Willow flushed. 
"I know how these things happen, but. . .but. . .you 
haven't. .." Willow's flush grew deeper. 

"Yes, actually, I have." 

"But when? Who?!?" Willow tore herself away from 
her friend and fled out of the room. 

"I have to sit down," was all she said. Buffy 
followed her and sat down beside her on the couch. 

"Well?" Buffy urged. Willow stopped wringing her 
hands together long enough to tuck her hair behind her 
ear. Buffy could see that she was no longer blushing 
and had resumed her previous shade of white. 

"Do you remember the frat party we went to a few 
months ago?" 

"Which frat party?" 

"The Pi Kapps--just before Christmas break." Willow 
watched as the realization became apparent on Buffy's 
face, which was followed by a look of sadness. 

"You mean the party that was on the anniversary of 
Oz's. . ." she left the sentence hanging. Willow 
looked at her gently, but her own pain was apparent. 

"Death. It's OK you can say it." Buffy saw the hurt 
in best friend's eyes. The news of Oz's death just a 
few short months after he had left Sunnydale at the 
hands of a werewolf hunter had hit them all pretty 
hard, but none as hard as Willow. 

"Yeah, I remember that night. We all got pretty 
fucked up that night. Anya could only get me and 
Xander all the way to Giles's. She said that you told 
her you wanted to stay and refused to come with us. 
You told me you just fell asleep on the frat house 
couch." Willow's eyes were once again focused on her 
hands. Buffy covered her hands with her own. "What 
happened that night Will?" When Buffy looked at her 
friend she could see tears that had started to flow 
freely down her face. 

"I was missing Oz so much. And I was so drunk and 
then I ran into Adam. You remember him, right?" 

"Yeah, he was the drummer in Oz's band," Buffy 
responded quietly. 

"Yeah, well, we started talking about Oz. I told him 
how stupid I felt. . .still missing Oz so much after 
four years. Adam seemed to understand, I. . .I wanted 
to feel like I was with Oz again. So we just kept 
talking, swapping stories about how important Oz was 
to everyone and everything. But I still felt sad and 
lonely. . .we. . .we just started kissing and one 
thing led to another and we ended up in bed together. 
I hadn't slept with anyone since Oz, and when Adam was 
kissing me I just pretended it was him." The blush 
came flooding back into her cheeks. "I know it was 
stupid, but I just needed to feel. . ." Willow 
couldn't finish the sentence, but Buffy understood. 

"You needed to feel loved and wanted again," Buffy 
finished for her. 

"Yeah." Willow stayed silent for several minutes, 
then she deliberately wiped her face. "When we woke 
up in the morning, we realized the mistake we'd made. 
We told each other it didn't mean a thing and I left. 
I'm sorry I lied to you, but it was just so stupid." 
Willow's voiced became panicked and her gaze shot back 
to the bathroom. 

"We were too drunk to even think of protection. 
Buffy, what am I going to do?" Willow collapsed in 
tears onto Buffy lap. Buffy stroked her hair and made 
comforting noises, telling her that everything was 
going to be all right. However, she knew she was 
lying. Buffy had no idea what they were going to do 
about this. Demons, she could handle. This was a 
baby. She had never faced anything this scary. 

Buffy held Willow until her shoulder stopped shaking 
and her breathing became even. <The poor baby cried 
herself to sleep> she thought. Slowly, she untangled 
herself from her sleeping friend, threw an afghan over 
her, and headed for the phone. She dialed from 
memory. 

"Yeah Xander, I know it's early, but you have to wake 
up. Roll over and wake up Anya too. We've got a 
problem, a big one. We'll meet you at Giles's at 
three. Yes, I know that's in the afternoon and I 
could have called you at noon and you still could have 
gotten there on time. Xander, SHUT UP!! This is 
important and we're going to busy this morning. Yes, 
Xander there are things in this world more important 
than your sleep. BYE!" She then got out the phone 
book, searched frantically for a few minutes and 
dialed another number. 

************************************* 

By eleven Willow was sitting on an examining table of 
the local Planned Parenthood clinic. Buffy sat 
beside her holding her hand, apparently trying to 
commit everything the nurse practitioner said to 
memory. 

"You are about fourteen weeks along, which is early 
enough to leave you with several options." The nurse 
snapped off her gloves, threw them into the trash and 
looked compassionately into Willow's face. "I am 
guessing that this was not a planned pregnancy." 
Willow silently shook her head. "OK, so, as I was 
saying, options. I'm going to give you some pamphlets 
on abortion," at the word *abortion* Buffy's eyes shot 
up to Willow's face, but her hair was shielding her 
from view, "adoption and single parenting. Do you 
know if your parent's insurance will cover your 
expenses?" Again Willow shook her head. "OK then, 
I'll also give you some Medicaid forms to fill out. 
They should cover all of the medical expenses of the 
pregnancy if you decided to carry to term." Once 
again Buffy looked at Willow for some sort of 
response, but again there was nothing to be seen. 

The nurse also noticed Willow's lack of reaction. 
She leaned down in her chair, so she could look up 
Willow's hair and into her face. "Have you thought 
about what you want to do?" No response. "If you are 
considering abortion, you should know that you only 
have a few weeks before that's no longer an option. . 
.Willow," the nurse said tenderly, "do you want me to 
set you up an appointment with one of our counselor's. 
They'll discuss all of your options with you. It's 
completely confidential and free of charge." After 
still another non-response, the nurse turned her eyes 
silently to Buffy. 

"Willow? Do you know what you want to do?" She 
wasn't having any more luck than the nurse. Then a 
thought struck her. Buffy thought it a horrible 
thought, but it was Willow's body and choice. "Will, 
if you want to get an abortion I'll understand. I'll 
support you." 

Only then did Willow slowly lift her head. Her face 
was no longer pale and her expression determined. 
"I'm keeping the baby. No adoption. No abortion. 
This is my baby and I'm going to raise it myself. . . 
Somehow." Her voice was strangely calm and Buffy knew 
there would be no changing Willow's mind when she knew 
what she wanted. 

"OK," the nurse said smiling warmly at Willow. "Let 
me get you all the forms you'll need," and with that 
she left the room leaving Buffy and Willow alone. 
Buffy stood up and reached out to hug her friend. 
Willow accepted her embrace and for a few moments they 
held each other. Finally, Buffy spoke, 

"It will be OK. We are going to meet everyone at 
Giles's this afternoon and we'll figure out what we 
are going to do." Willow stared at her blankly. 

"WE'RE MEETING EVERYONE AT GILES'S!" she nearly 
screamed. 

"Well, yeah, that's what we always do when one of us 
has a problem." 

Willow shook her head, "This is not your average 
problem, Buffy! This is my problem. The Scooby gang 
can not have a research session and figure out a way 
to fix this. I'm pregnant. It's my problem." Buffy 
stared at her. 

"But Willow-" 

"Don't 'but Willow' me! This has nothing to do with 
anyone else but me!" It was Buffy's turn to shake her 
head. 

"But that's where you're wrong. We *are* a family 
Willow, and we love you. This affects all of us 
*because* it effects you. You are not the only one 
having a baby. We all are. Aunt Buffy, Uncle Xander, 
and . . .well, whatever you want to call Giles. We 
all love you and we will all want to be there for you, 
especially since you are keeping the baby." She 
finally paused to take a breath. "And you're not 
going to be able to keep it exactly a secret for much 
longer." 

Willow looked at her sternly for a moment and then it 
all seemed to melt away into tears. Willow threw 
herself into Buffy's arms. 

"I love you," was all she could say between sobs. 
Buffy stroked her back. 

"I know. I love you, too," was all she said, but in 
her minds her thoughts were racing. <God, if you're 
up there, PLEASE, let everyone feel the way I think 
they will. Please, make them stand by her.> 

************************************ 

Willow and Buffy spent the last part of the morning 
and the early part of the afternoon going to different 
government offices so Willow could fill out her 
applications for Medicaid and WIC. 

As the hour crept closer to three Willow started to 
get nervous. Part of her was still mad at Buffy for 
calling the Scooby gang together, but she figured it 
would be better to get them all over with at once, 
rather than one at a time. Especially since she was 
keeping the baby. 

Willow had to admit to herself that she had no idea 
what she was planning to do until the nurse forced the 
question upon her. It was then that Willow realized 
that there was no way she could give up this baby. It 
didn't matter how it was conceived or who the father 
was. This baby deserved a chance and she deserved the 
chance to be its mother. <Wow, *mother.*> She 
shuddered a little at the thought. She, Willow 
Rosenburg, was going to be--no, is a mother. It was a 
chilling thought. 

After their little meeting at Giles's she wouldn't 
have anyone left but her parents. . . Oh, God! Her 
parents! She hadn't even thought about telling them 
yet. <That's going to be fun.> 

"Are you hungry?" Buffy asked, drawing her out of her 
thoughts. "It is almost three and you are supposed to 
be eating for two now." Willow smiled at her friend's 
concern. 

"I know, but I don't think I could eat right now. 
I'm too nervous." Buffy accepted this and they headed 
to face the music. 

******************************* 

Xander was pacing up and down Giles's living room. 
After he had gotten over the initial shock of Buffy's 
early morning phone call, he had started to worry. 
What was wrong and what had Buffy and Willow been 
doing all morning? He had become so concerned that he 
showed up at Giles's about a quarter past two and had 
been pacing ever since. 

Xander could tell that Giles was worried, too, but he 
occupied his mind by making tea instead of pacing. 
Anya was sitting on the couch leafing through the 
latest Cosmo, probably trying to find new and 
different things for the two of them to do in bed. 
Which, on many levels, Xander didn't have a problem 
with, but right now her calm was infuriating. He 
started to say something to her and stopped himself. 
There was no reason to start a fight at a time like 
this. 

Giles was far more worried than he let on. He had 
been stirring the same cup of tea for ten whole 
minutes. Whenever Willow or Buffy kept a secret for 
any length of time, it was bad. But he had a sinking 
feeling in his stomach that something was really 
wrong. . .something he wouldn't be able to fix. He 
shook his head, moved to put the now cold tea on the 
counter and took off his glasses to rub his forehead, 
then the front door open and Willow and Buffy solemnly 
entered. Xander ran over to them. 

"OK, you're finally here. What's the evil? Where's 
the evil? How do we stop it? And why did we have to 
wait till three to hear about?" While Xander stared at 
them waiting for an answer, Giles came to stand behind 
him studying the two women. They were looking 
intently at one another and Buffy motioned with her 
hand for Willow to say something, but she remained 
silent. Buffy heaved a big sigh. 

"There's no evil," Buffy began and was cut off by 
Xander. 

"What do you mean there's no evil!" he exclaimed. 
Giles looked at Willow and saw that tears were 
beginning to form in her eyes. He laid his hand on 
Xander's shoulder to stop him. Buffy began again. 

"As I said, there's no evil, but there is a problem, 
well not exactly a problem, just kind of a sit--" 

"I'm pregnant!" Willow announced. Everyone stared 
at her dumbfounded. Xander was the first to speak. 

"What? How?" 

To which Anya looked up and said, "Oh, OK," and 
returned to her magazine. 

Buffy was about to jump in to answer Xander, but 
Willow stopped her. She held her head high and spoke 
slowly. 

"I'm pregnant and how is not important. So don't ask 
me." Xander was silent. "I am keeping the baby." 
This announcement was followed by even more silence. 
Giles cleared his throat. 

"When?" he asked. Willow looked up at him. His eyes 
were full of caring and compassion There was no trace 
of anger anywhere. Willow smiled up at him. 

"September," she answered cautiously. "In about five 
and a half months." Xander's few rare moments of 
silence ended. 

"And you are just telling us about this now?" he was 
obviously hurt. Buffy stepped in to defend Willow's 
actions. 

"She only just found out for sure this morning." 
Once again Willow stopped her. 

"I suspected for awhile, but I didn't want to think 
it was true. But, it is, and other than Buffy, you 
guys are the first to know." This seemed to pacify 
Xander. Another long silence leaked into the room. 
Xander and Giles were staring at Willow. 

Willow turned to Giles. Other than a one-word 
question he hadn't said anything. 

"Giles, don't you have anything to say to me?" 
Silently Giles walked over to stand in front of her. 

"No," he said simply and embraced her. "Actually," he 
said still hugging her, "yes, I do. Congratulations, 
Willow. You are going to be a wonderful mother." At 
this Willow started to cry and hugged him back as hard 
as she could. 

"Thank you," she whispered into his shirt. Xander 
reached over and rubbed his hand along Willow's back. 

"Yeah," he smiled at Giles. If it hadn't been for 
Giles he would have forgotten to do this. "Congrats 
Will. I can't believe it. I'm going to be an Uncle. 
Uncle Xander." 

Willow giggled against Giles's shirt. <Buffy was 
right.> 

<Thank God> Buffy said to herself and joined the 
other three in a group hug with Willow at the center. 
Anya looked over at the four of them for a moment, 
smiled, and went back to her magazine. 

<We *are* a family.> Willow thought as she found 
herself surrounded by love. May 2003 

The next few of months were a whirlwind to Willow. 
She spent most of her time concentrating on school. 
If she was going to support herself and her child she 
needed to graduate and have some sort of plan for the 
future. Especially after Willow's parents had been 
more than clear on how they felt about Willow's 
decision to become a single mother. If she was going 
to bring this kind of shame to herself, she would be 
doing it with out them. Their reaction had stung, but 
Buffy had convinced she would always have her *real* 
family to support and everything would be fine. 

As always, Willow's grades were extraordinary, and 
the Psychology department at UC-Sunnydale had offered 
her a job as a TA (a paid position) and a full 
scholarship if she stayed to get her Master's degree. 
Realizing she could continue her education, qualify 
for benefits and maternity leave, Willow accpeted 
their offer gratefully. 

However, she still had to graduate, and last part of 
the semester had not been an easy one. Morning 
sickness was hitting her hard. Even though she was in 
her fifth month of pregnancy there was barely a 
morning when she didn't wake up feeling queasy. She 
was working hard on her senior project, finishing her 
classes, and juggling doctor's appointments. It 
wasn't easy. She seemed to be tired all the time and 
the more her stomach grew the more uncomfortable she 
became. Her protruding belly didn't seem to fit on 
her tiny frame, but she was so in love with her baby 
she didn't care. 

The hardest thing she had to deal with was the way 
her life itself had changed. Before she was pregnant 
her life revolved around Buffy, the Scooby gang, and 
fighting evil, but now things were different. None of 
the others or herself for that matter felt comfortable 
putting the baby in any kind of danger. Buffy and 
Xander were still full time fighters of evil, but not 
Willow. 

About the only thing she could do was research. At 
first she still felt like an active member of the 
group. She and Giles spent hours on end over dusty 
old books trying to figure out how to stop the latest 
evil. But as her pregnancy grew more and more obvious 
Giles wouldn't let her stay up half the night reading. 
He always told her he could handle everything, not to 
worry and sent her home to sleep. 

And there were still nights where Giles was out 
fighting for the cause and then she became the one who 
stayed home and worried. In a lot of ways, this was 
harder than fighting had been. At times it was 
excruciating, especially when Buffy or Xander came 
home injured. Those nights were the worst. 

Willow even had to restrict what magic she practiced 
on Giles's insistence. There were just certain types 
of spells that weren't safe. So, Willow had to resign 
herself to practicing "safe" magic, most of which was 
tedious and boring. However, every time she started 
to feel bad or left out, the child inside of her would 
stir or kick and remind her why she was making all 
these sacrifices. Willow knew that having a healthy 
baby was her number one priority right now, and would 
make everything worth it. But still. . . 

Here it was, Saturday, and she had spent the entire 
day at the library. She only had the last section of 
her big senior project to write and was trying to 
complete the research. Classes were going to be over 
next week and she needed to have everything done. She 
straightened up and adjusted her back and neck. The 
larger her belly grew, the more the pain in her neck 
and back grew as well. The baby stirred restlessly. 
She gently rubbed a hand over stomach as if to calm 
it. Willow's eyes started to drift shut. She was 
just SO tired. <Just another week> she silently told 
the baby, <and then Mommy will make sure we both get 
more than enough rest. I promise.> 

Pain shot sharply up her back and she reached down to 
massage the base of her spine. It seemed to be worse 
today. She shook her head and looked at her watch. 
"Shit!" she said aloud. It was ten till seven, and 
she was supposed to be at Giles's by seven for dinner. 
Giles had started making dinner for her, Xander, Anya 
and Buffy about four times a week. He said it was 
healthy for them to spend time together when not 
slaying, but Willow saw straight through his ulterior 
motives. She knew he wanted her to still feel 
connected to everyone and it gave him peace of mind to 
know for a fact Willow was eating at least a few well 
balanced meals every week. 

If she ran the entire way, that is if she could still 
run, she would be at least fifteen minutes late. 
Lately, if she was even five minutes late everyone 
started to freak. She heaved a heavy sigh, gathered 
her books together and headed toward the library's pay 
phone. She dialed Giles's number and when Buffy 
answered informed her she would be a little late. As 
she hung up pain shot once again up her spine. She 
headed out of the library absently rubbing her back as 
she walked. 

******************************** 

"That was Willow," Buffy announced, "She lost track 
of time at the library, so she'll be a little late." 
Giles looked up from the pot roast in the oven. 

"That's fine. The roast won't be done for at least 
another twenty minutes anyway." Giles saw Xander and 
Anya busy setting the table and Buffy nit picking at 
all the food already on the table. They all knew why 
Giles really had these dinner, but didn't mind the 
intrusion into their schedules. Hey, it was free 
food. 

Giles appreciated their humoring him. He was 
becoming more and more worried about Willow. She 
still had four months left to go and already any 
outsider could tell the added weight on her fragile 
body was becoming a strain. She also worked too hard, 
Giles knew. Willow put everything she had into her 
schoolwork and what ever was left over was devoted to 
her friends and fighting evil. Giles had long 
believed that being Buffy's right hand woman was far 
too much strain for such a tiny girl, even when she 
wasn't pregnant. Now, he worried. . .all the time. 

He knew that every time he sent her home to sleep: to 
keep her from exerting herself, she'd simply turned to 
her own library and continued researching. Giles also 
knew, up close and personal, the pain that came with 
waiting for the people you loved to come home from 
facing the horrors they knew were out there. He knew 
that all this tension and stress was going to build up 
in the tiny girl he had grown to admire so much in the 
last seven years. Giles was scared for Willow. He 
wished there was something he could do for her, but he 
didn't know what. 

Buffy, Anya, and Xander wasted the time until Willow 
got there by critiquing videos on MTV. They had 
coerced Giles into getting cable Buffy and Willow's 
second year of college. They told him they all spent 
too much time over here to live without at least a few 
more channels. Plus, Giles was the only one who 
could afford it. 

Giles waited impatiently, he gaze going from the door 
to his watch in equal measure. He hated it when she 
was late. Finally, the door opened and Willow was 
framed in the doorway. 

"Hi guys," she greeted them, "Sorry, I'm late." <She 
looks awful.> Giles thought to himself. Her face was 
even paler than usual and the dark circles under her 
eyes were more prominent than ever. She looked 
exhausted. 

Xander turned off the TV. "It's a good thing you got 
here Will. Giles was about to call in the National 
Guard." Willow looked over at Giles who was blushing 
slightly. She grinned. He had been so supportive of 
her. It was just *so cute.* 

"Come on!" Xander interrupted her thoughts, "Let's 
eat!" 

"Yes," Buffy agreed, "Some food-age would definitely 
be good." Anya turned to glance at them both. 

"Remember, Giles cooked. Don't get too excited." 
They all shot her dirty looks. Anya merely shrugged 
and sat down in her usual seat. 

"I happen to like Giles's cooking," Willow was quick 
to defend looking up at Giles fondly. Suddenly 
another pain in her back racked her. Giles saw the 
pained expression and was instantly at her side 
placing a hand gently on her shoulder. 

"Willow?" he asked concerned, "Are you alright?" 
Willow nodded wearily. 

"I'm fine. The baby weight is doing a number on my 
back." 

"Are you sure that's all it is?" Xander asked. Willow 
looked into the concerned faces of all her friends, 
even Anya's. <I guess Xander is right> she thought, 
<she really does give a shit.> She was about to smile 
again and reassure them everything was fine when 
another pain ripped through her body. 

Willow staggered for a second and sat down. 

"You are no place in the area code of *fine*," Buffy 
exclaimed. Willow turned to Giles with a face full of 
panic and fear. Giles placed a hand on Willow's 
stomach. Willow flinched. Giles barely touched 
anyone, much less something as intimate as this. 
Giles's face turned stoic. Willow's stomach was as 
hard as a rock. She wasn't just having back pain she 
was having contractions. 

"Buffy," Giles snapped never taking his eyes off 
Willow, "Dial 911." Buffy looked completely confused. 

"But, Giles, what's wron--," she was cut off by Giles 
screaming. "Do it now!" Buffy flinched. Giles never 
yelled. <Something must really be wrong.> Buffy ran 
for the phone and frantically dialed. 

"We need an ambulance," she said to the operator, 
"I'm not sure. She's pregnant and we need an 
ambulance. Do I have to spell this out to you?! WE 
NEED AN AMBULANCE!" Buffy calmed down enough to give 
the address and hung up. She ran over to Willow whose 
eyes hadn't left Giles's face. "Will, what's 
happening?" 

Willow ignored her questioning. "Giles," her voiced 
quavered. 

Giles forced himself to smile. "I'm sure it will be 
alright," he told her and leaned down to kiss her 
forehead, "I'm sure everything will be alright." He 
could no longer face her scared expression and looked 
away. <She's only five months along. She's shouldn't 
be having even small contractions yet. If she 
delivers now the baby won't> he shuddered <survive.> 
They waited in horror for the ambulance to arrive. Xander paced up and down 
the emergency room's waiting 
area. Anya was fairly certain that when he stopped a 
groove would be firmly set in the floor. She needed 
to say something. 

"Xander, baby, maybe Willow just wasn't meant to have 
a baby right now." By look on Xander's face she could 
tell that wasn't the something she needed to say. 

"How can you say that?" he exclaimed, "Willow loves 
this baby!" 

"I know honey." 

"Actually, no I don't think you do. I love this 
baby, too. Just last week Will let me feel it kick. 
It was so cool. It was just a little flutter under 
her skin, but I knew it was the baby. A little, 
helpless, perfect baby." He sat down next to Anya. 
"It was a miracle." Anya took his hand. She then 
realized there was nothing she could say. 

Buffy was coping by stopping every doctor, nurse and 
orderly that looked like they might have been close to 
Willow's room and demanded that they tell her what was 
going on. 

Giles was not coping at all. He just cleaned his 
glasses over and over and over again. Willow was in 
pain and there was nothing he could do to help her. 
He would do anything he had to do, to keep her and the 
baby safe, anything. If only there was something he 
could do. . . 

Willow's doctor finally appeared. Buffy, of course 
was the first to confront him followed quickly by 
Xander, Anya and Giles. 

"Doctor! What happened? How's Willow? And the 
baby?" Buffy was breathless with anticipation. 

"Willow's going to be fine--," he began. 

"And the baby?" Buffy interrupted. 

"The baby's going to be fine too--" 

"THANK GOD!!!" Buffy exclaimed interrupting again. 

"They are going to be fine," the doctor continued, 
"IF Willow makes a few adjustments." 

"Adjustments?" Xander asked. The doctor was about to 
explain when Giles butted in. 

"But doctor, what happened?" 

"Willow was having premature labor. Most likely 
begun by stress. I've stopped the contractions and 
given her a sedative so she'll get some sleep, but she 
has to change some things to make sure this doesn't 
happen again. Next time we might not be able to stop 
it." Everyone looked on the doctor with an expression 
of equal relief and worry. 

"What kind of changes?" asked Buffy. 

"Well, first of all she'll be on bed rest for the 
next few weeks just to guarantee the contractions 
won't start up again. Once her OB/GYN has determined 
everything's fine she'll be allowed some restricted 
activity, but she'll *have* to take it easy." 

They all looked at one another. They all had been 
trying to make Willow take it easy for over two months 
now, and no one had had much luck yet. 

"But Willow has to finish school," Anya spoke up to 
everyone's surprise. "How's she supposed to do that 
on bed rest?" 

"I'll talk to her teachers," Buffy said. "They all 
love her. I'm sure they'll understand." Xander 
remained silent his face white with fear and concern. 

Giles turned back to the doctor, "What do we need to 
do?" 

The doctor looked uncomfortable. "I should really be 
discussing this with her family." 

"We ARE her family," Xander piped up, "Now tell us 
what we need to do for her." The doctor looked 
resigned at all their determined faces. 

"Well, preferably she should have constant 
supervision, and someone around to make sure she has 
everything she needs. Does she live alone?" 

"No," Buffy said, "She lives with me." Giles 
considered this for a moment. 

"Yes, Buffy, she does live with you, but you aren't 
home a great deal. What is Willow supposed to do when 
you are out sla--I mean when you're out?" Buffy 
looked worried. He was right. She wasn't home a lot, 
and if some big evil should happen, she wouldn't be 
able to take care of Willow. 

"Is there someone else she could stay with?" the 
doctor asked, "Maybe her parents or maybe the father?" 
Xander and Buffy exchanged looks. 

"No," Xander said, "Those aren't options. Willow can 
move in with us," he continued putting his arm around 
Anya's shoulders. But Anya ducked under his arm. 

"WHAT!!!!" she exclaimed. 

"Anya! What are we supposed to do? We have to do 
everything for Willow that we can." 

"I know you want to help her, honey, but we have 
one--ONE--bedroom. Is Willow supposed to sleep on the 
couch? That couldn't be good for her. Especially 
with our couch." Xander nodded, knowing she was 
right, hung his head and embraced her. 

"I know. It's just. . .it's just that I'm scared for 
her." 

"She can stay with me." Everyone turned to Giles in 
amazement. Buffy knew how much he valued his privacy, 
and because of that knew how much he really did care 
about Willow. 

"Giles. . .?" she began. 

"It's the only solution that makes any sense, Buffy. 
I have two bedrooms and I'm home almost always. It 
will work." They all looked at each other. 

"Well, if that's settled," said the doctor, "then I 
need to give you some information." 

"Doctor, can we see her?" Xander asked. 

"She'll be sleeping by now. We're going to keep her 
here for observation tonight. You can come and see 
her tomorrow morning." He turned to Giles, "Come with 
me and I'll get you all the information you need." 

"You had better go," Giles told Buffy and Xander, 
"We'll see her in the morning." They weren't happy 
about it, but they left and Giles followed the doctor. 

<No matter what I have to do> he said to himself 
<Willow and her baby are going to be fine.> 

********************************** 

After Giles received the information regarding 
Willow's care from the doctor he snuck quietly into 
her room. He was taken aback by the sight. Machines 
were beeping and humming all around her, and an IV was 
stuck into Willow's arm. She looked so small and pale 
in the stark white room. Giles leaned in close to her 
and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear as he 
had seen her do so many times before. She was so 
beautiful, even like this, it nearly took his breath 
way. Over the past few years he would scarcely admit 
to himself how he really felt about her, but after 
this crisis there was no denying it. He loved her. 
His hand drifted down her arm and traveled to rest on 
her belly. And he loved this baby. He didn't care 
how it was conceived. It was part of Willow and he 
loved it, and he would do all he could for both of 
them. 

Under his touched Willow stirred. Drearily her eyes 
opened. 

"Giles," she said sleepily, "What are you doing 
here?" 

"Just checking up on you." Willow grinned. 

"As always." She yawned hugely. "I know I count on 
you." Giles thought she was about to fall back as 
sleep when she took his hand and murmured, "It's a 
girl, Giles." 

"A girl," he responded startled, "How do you know?" 

"An ultrasounded thingy. The nurse told me." Willow 
fell back asleep. 

<A girl> Giles marveled. Soon there would be a small 
version of Willow running around. He could not think 
of anything more beautiful. He gave her belly an 
affectionate rub and left the room. 

********************************* 

Willow came out of her haze to see Buffy's face 
smiling down upon her. 

"Oh good, you're awake, finally. I thought you were 
going to sleep all day." Willow shook her head. 

"All day?" she said her brain foggy. "What time is 
it?" 

"A little after two." Willow sat straight up. 

"TWO!!! I've got to get out of here. I have to get 
to my pske of serial killers review." She tried to 
sit up further, but Buffy stopped her. 

"Hold it there a minute, Wonder Woman. The doctor 
said that you need bed rest, which means you only get 
out of bed to leave this hospital and pee," Buffy 
instead. 

"But, I have classes. I have finals. . .I. . .I have 
to graduate!" 

"Listen here," Buffy's voice took a sharp edge to it, 
"You aren't going to do *anything* your doctor says 
you can't do." Willow looked taken aback by her tone, 
so Buffy gentled herself. "Think about your baby. 
Your beautiful little girl. You have to do what's 
right for her." 

Willow knew she was right. Then a thought struck 
her, "How do you know it's a girl?" 

"Giles told me this morning when he stopped by the 
apartment." 

"Giles?" Willow asked confused, "How did Giles know?" 

"You told him last night." Willow continued to look 
lost, so Buffy added, "He saw you last night, but you 
were really doped up." 

"Why was Giles at our apartment?" Buffy swallowed. 
She wasn't looking forward to being the person that 
informed her they had made all of her life decisions 
for her, but no one else seemed to be around to pass 
the task to. 

"He and Xander are moving all of your stuff this 
morning." 

"Moving my stuff? Where?" 

"Well, the doctor said you needed to live somewhere 
with someone who could take the time to watch over 
you. He said we should ask your parents--" 

"I am NOT moving in with my parents!" Willow 
exclaimed horrified. 

"It's OK," Buffy reassured her, "That's what we told 
the doctor and why you're moving in with Giles." She 
waited for a reaction, but none came. Finally, Willow 
spoke, 

"I'm moving in with Giles?" 

"Yes." 

"With Giles?" 

"Yes, right after you're discharged." 

Willow slumped back into her pillows. "Buffy can you 
give me some time alone." Buffy was confused but 
complied. 

"OK Will. The nurse said you could leave after you 
woke up and they got to check on you. I'll be back 
with some clothes for you and stuff in a little bit. 
I'll see you later." 

Willow never looked up at her. Buffy was worried. 
<She should have fought me on this, but she didn't. I 
hope she's OK.> 

Willow listened for Buffy to leave and turned all her 
attention to her belly. 

"Well, baby, things are going to be changing a little 
for us. We're going to be moving in with Uncle Giles. 
Mommy's not very happy about it, but it's OK. Mommy 
will do anything to make sure you come out healthy." 
Both of her hands rubbed over her stomach. "It does 
make some sense, but don't tell Aunt Buffy I said so. 
Giles is sweet and nice, and he'll take care of us. 
He's always taken care of Mommy before, so he'll 
probably be even better now that he's taking care of 
you, too." 

Willow's thoughts began to drift to all the times in 
the past seven-year Giles had taken care of her. He 
was there for her when she was a stupid little 
teen-ager crying over Xander. She smiled at thought 
<Imagine that. Me and Xander Harris.> She nearly 
laughed out loud. 

Giles fussed over her constantly when she first 
started practicing magic. He was so worried she would 
hurt herself, but she always did it anyway. 

He was there when Oz had left her and she couldn't 
even count the hours Giles had spent holding her after 
Oz died. She shook her head as she remembered how 
sick she had gotten on her twenty-first birthday. 
<That was so stupid> she thought. But Giles never 
once reprimanded her or even mentioned it after that 
night. 

Giles was never overt about it, but he was *always* 
there when she needed someone. 

She smiled again as she thought about the night 
before her last Arabic exam. Giles had stayed up with 
her until five in the morning quizzing her on verb 
conjugation and obscure vocab words. She would never 
have passed the test or the class without him. 

Giles would do anything for her and she knew it. And 
she loved him for it. . . Wait a minute. . . Did she? 
Did she really love Giles? 

"Sweetie," she said turning back to her belly, "This 
is going to be interesting." 

*********************************** 

Willow laid propped up on what seems like a million 
pillows in Giles's spare bedroom watching all the 
commotion. Buffy was arranging the flowers Joyce had 
sent on the bedside table. Xander was running in and 
out of the room carrying boxes full of books, and 
Giles was unloading them into the newly purchased book 
cases (all of his were already full.) 

"Will, I have decided something," Xander announced. 

"What?" 

"Your reading habit is destructive and unhealthy." 
He stretched his back. "To me. Do you have any idea 
how many books you have?" Willow giggled, and Xander 
smiled. This was the reaction he was hoping for. 
Xander needed to know that Willow *could* still smile 
after the last twenty-four hours' events. "That's all 
of them. Did you actually read all of those?" 

"Oh, at least a page or two, then they become dust 
collectors." 

"Ah Ha! That's what I suspected all along." 

Giles stopped shelving to study the pair. Their 
relationship had changed so much since he had met 
them. They had both started out as children with 
infatuations firmly implanted in people they could not 
have. They had loved and lost and loved again. They 
had grown up and grown older, but no matter how much 
time had past, the friendly banter never changed. 
Giles knew it was how the pair of them, and Buffy, 
expressed their affection for one another, but he 
would never really understand it. 

He finished the last box and turned to Willow. 

"Is there anything you need? Are you comfortable 
enough? Perhaps another pillow?" Willow laughed 
again, and Giles let himself marvel for a moment at 
the beauty of the sound. 

"If you try to put another pillow on this bed I won't 
fit." She didn't lift her eyes to meet his. After 
her realization in the hospital, Willow didn't know 
how to face him. 

Buffy stopped arranging the flowers and joined the 
rest. 

"All right, everybody out. The doctor prescribed 
rest and relaxation. You can't get either with all of 
us hanging around." She ushered Xander and Giles out 
of the room. "Holler if you need anything, OK?" She 
turned off the light as she left. 

Willow rolled over and readjusted the pillows around 
her stomach. <If I feel this way now, how am I going 
to manage in a few months.> She tried to push the 
thought out of her mind and get some rest, but it just 
didn't work. Her eyes fell the flowers on the table 
and then to something she hadn't seen before. There 
was a book laying beside them. It hadn't been there 
before. She was sure of it. She reached over, turned 
on the reading lamp, and picked it up. <The Magic 
Circle: A Study of Modern Witches and Their Children> 
she read. <Where did this come from?> She opened the 
cover and a piece of paper fell onto one of her many 
pillows. She picked it up and read. 

Willow, 

I know you are not happy about this arrangement. I 
don't think I've ever seen you remain in bed for an 
entire day, much less a few weeks. I hope this 
alleviates the boredom a bit. 

Giles 

<This is why I love him. He's so sweet and he thinks 
of me all the time. He'd make a great father. Now 
where did that thought come from? You only admitted 
you loved him, what, like three hours ago!?! And now 
you're thinking of him as a possible daddy material. 
Get over yourself.> 

Willow turned back to her book and began to read. Mid May. Six weeks later. 

The next few weeks were pure torture for Giles. 

After Willow had finished all of her finals (from 
home of course) he and Willow had settled into a 
routine. He would bring her breakfast, and they would 
talk about what she had read before bed. He would sit 
next to her as she watched the morning cartoons. 
Willow would update him on the plots of Pokemon, 
Gargoyles, and Batman Forever. He would bring her 
lunch and they would discuss what they would be 
researching that afternoon. 

After lunch Willow would nap. About three Giles 
returned to her room with their research material. By 
five thirty they would have to hide everything before 
Buffy and Xander came over at six. Buffy had turned 
into the Nazi nurse from hell. She would stride into 
the room and proclaim Willow wasn't getting enough 
rest or calcium or beta-carotene or whatever else she 
had read Willow needed the day before in What to 
Expect When You're Expecting. Xander would lean over 
Willow's belly and tell the baby to pay no attention 
to her crazy Aunt Buffy. 

They would all eat dinner in Willow's room while 
Buffy and Xander talked about their day or the latest 
evil. By eight Buffy would shoo everyone out saying 
it was Willow's bedtime. After Giles was sure she 
were gone he would go back up to Willow's room, they 
would recap what they had researched or discuss the 
novel she would be continuing that night, and Giles 
would wish her well and go to bed. 

Once in awhile the monotony would be broken by a 
surprise visit from Buffy during the day, which was 
promptly followed by a tantrum on her part after 
interrupting their research. Once a week Giles 
brought Willow to the doctor. He would wait outside 
while Willow's doctor examined her and announce she 
was doing fine, but didn't want her out of bed just 
yet. 

This schedule didn't seem exhausting, but every night 
he went to bed completely drained. Maybe it was the 
closeness to Willow. They spent hours everyday 
talking and never seemed to run out of conversation, 
even with so many subjects being banned. They did not 
talk about Willow's health or doctors or her 
parents--all of these at Willow's request. 

They also never discussed their relationships with 
anyone, but this wasn't normal rule. Neither had 
brought it up. Giles definitely hadn't. The more 
time they spent together the more he fell in love with 
her. <What am I going to do with her? The woman I 
love spends twenty-four hours a day in the bedroom 
next to mine, and I can't even tell her. What a child 
I am. But then, how would she react to knowing a man 
twice her age, whom she's known for seven years, was 
in love with her? Willow doesn't need that stress 
right now.> So, Giles was resigned to stay silent and 
pine from afar. 

*************************************** 

"Good morning, Willow," Giles said as he entered her 
room the next morning carrying her breakfast tray. 
Willow sat up, so he could place the tray on her lap. 

"Morning, Giles." 

"Did you sleep well?" 

"I would have, if the little one hadn't been 
practicing goal kicks all night." She gently rubbed 
her belly as she spoke smiling fondly. 

"She's active?" Giles sat down beside her as she 
reached for a cantaloupe wedge. 

"More than ever. I think she's getting crowded in 
there." 

"She'll be getting more crowded in the next thirteen 
weeks I believe." 

"That's for sure. I don't know how either of us are 
going to fit in here soon." She started slightly and 
smiled. Willow reached over and grabbed Giles hand 
and placed in on her belly. 

"See? Can you feel that?" She looked over at Giles. 
Giles's face had turned white and his eyes were wide 
in amazement. The only time he had ever touched 
Willow was like this was when she was passed out in 
the hospital. The feeling of his hand between 
Willow's and her baby was overwhelming. 

"Yes, I feel it," he murmured looking up in to her 
eyes. For moment they just looked at one another, and 
then slowly, so slowly, then moved closer and closer 
towards one another until their lips touched ever so 
slightly. 

They jumped back burnt. 

"Uh. . .um," stammered Giles. 

"Yeah," replied Willow, her fingertips where Giles's 
lips had been. 

"That was. . .was. . ." Giles continued to stammer. 
Willow saw him struggling to explain away what 
happened and decided to not give him the opportunity. 
Willow grabbed Giles's face between her hands and 
pulled him down to kiss him properly. 

Giles resisted at first, but soon he was sitting on 
the bed with his arms around her returning the kiss 
passionately. The hours upon hours of tension they 
had collectively built up in the last few weeks 
exploded between them. Willow's hands knotted into 
Giles's hair and his hands roamed up and down her back 
massaging her. They seemed they would never break 
away from each other until. 

"Hey Giles, Willow? Are you guys up?" Buffy called 
as she walked up the stairs. They sprang away from 
one another instantly. 

Giles stood up, "In more ways than one," he said 
under his breath as he went to open the door. "We're 
in here, Buffy." She strode into the room. 

"Hey Giles. . .did you just get up? Your hair's a 
mess." Giles smoothed down the hair Willow has mussed 
seconds before. 

"Hey Buff," Willow said haltingly, "Watcha doin' here 
this early?" Buffy sat down on the bed beside her. 

"I thought I'd take you to the doctor this morning, 
so Giles wouldn't have to do it, and to give you 
this." She reached into her bag and brought out a 
book of baby names and handed it to Willow. Willow 
took it. 

"Thanks, that's really sweet," there was an 
uncomfortable pause, " But I've already picked out her 
name." 

"Really?" said Buffy. 

"Really," echoed Giles. 

"Why haven't you told me? What is it?" 

"Kessem." Buff scrunched her nose. 

"That's an *interesting* choice." 

"It means "magic" in Hebrew. I thought it was 
appropriate. From what I've read there's a really 
good chance she'll be a witch, too. Magic flows 
especially strong from mother to daughter. I figure 
we can call her "Emmy" for short." Willow looked to 
Buffy for some sign of approval. Buffy grinned at 
her. 

"It's perfect, Will," and she reached over to hug her 
friend. 

"Yes, Willow," said Giles, "It's a beautiful name." 
Willow looked at Giles over Buffy's shoulder. His 
expression was one of gentleness and confusion. 

"Why didn't you tell me?" Buffy asked. 

"Well," Willow said uncomfortably, "I wasn't sure 
everything was going to be OK until a few weeks ago, 
and the doctor still won't let me out of bed. If 
something did happen, I thought if I didn't name her 
it would be easier or something." Buffy leaned over 
to hug Willow again. 

"Everything's going to be fine. The doctor is just 
being cautious." 

"I know." 

"Plus, with Giles taking care of you nothing can go 
wrong. He's our honorary Scooby gang dad." Willow 
blushed at this statement, but Buffy was looking at 
Giles, so she didn't notice. Giles took of his 
glasses, 

"Quite," was all he said trying not to look at 
Willow. Buffy turned back to Willow. 

"We've got to book if little Emmy's going to make 
that doctor's appointment. Get dressed." And with 
that she left, leaving Giles and Willow staring at one 
another. 

"Willow. . ." Giles tried to begin. 

"Buffy's right. I have to get dressed." Giles 
didn't move. 

"Giles, if I get undressed with you still in here 
it's pretty much guaranteed I won't make my doctor's 
appointment." 

Giles left with visions of Willow's naked body 
running through his head. <As if it wasn't hard 
enough before> he thought to himself shaking his head. 

******************************** 

Willow sat shivering on the examination table in her 
paper gown. <Why don't they turn on the heat in this 
place.> 

Soon Willow's doctor entered. She was a tall, dark 
haired, statuesque woman. She was nice and gentle, 
and Willow adored her. 

"Hello, Willow." 

"Hey, Dr. Truman." The doctor took a moment to 
examine Willow's charts. 

"How are you feeling?" 

"Good, but restless. I think Emmy is, too, she's 
been moving non-stop." 

"Emmy?" Dr. Truman asked, "Is that the name you 
decided on?" 

"Yeah, what do you think?" 

"It's beautiful," she smiled and turned her attention 
to Willow's chart. "Well, let's get down to business. 
If everything checks out your bed rest will be a 
thing of the past." 

"Really!" Willow squealed. 

"Everything has been perfect for five weeks now, and 
if I keep you in bed any longer it will probably be 
considered cruel and unusual punishment." 

"I've been fine," Willow said completely furious, 
"for five weeks and you've been making me stay in bed 
anyway?" 

"I was being cautious, Willow. You are little woman 
with a tiny frame under a lot of stress. You needed 
the chance to relax for a while and focus on your 
baby. That happened, didn't it?" 

Willow had to admit she was right. "Yeah," she 
mumbled. 

"I'm a doctor Willow. I am an expert in manipulation. 
There are special classes in med school focused on 
it. I have to be careful with my mommy and my babies, 
now lay down so we can get started." Willow resigned 
herself and laid back. 

The doctor finished her exam quickly, snapped off her 
gloves and waited for Willow to sit up. "Everything 
checks out, so you can go back to having a basically 
normal life. Now, don't over do it. We don't want 
anything going wrong. I still want you to take naps 
and not exert yourself too much. OK?" 

"OK," Willow was nearly giddy at the thought of being 
able to watch television in the living room. 

"Any questions?" A blush came to Willow's cheeks. 

"Actually, I do have one." 

"OK, shoot." 

"Now, you said not to exert myself, but what about. . 
.well. . ." 

"Yes?" Willow squirmed uncomfortably. 

"What about sex?" Willow was fairly certain Giles 
would never think about wanting to have sex with her 
and her distended belly. . .but she wanted to know. . 
.just in case. 

"Well," the doctor said hesitantly, "I don't think it 
should be a problem, but I'd be sure to take it easy." 
Dr. Truman was suddenly curious. As far as she knew 
Willow didn't even have a boyfriend. "Just be sure 
he's gentle." Willow flush depended visibly. 

"OK," the doctor continued, "I won't need to see you 
again for a couple of weeks, but you need to sign up 
for Lamaze soon. The sooner the better." 

"Lamaze?" 

"Yes, you are still interested in natural child 
birth, aren't you?" 

"Yes, it's just scary to think I'm getting that 
close." Dr. Truman patted her leg gently. 

"You'll do fine. You can sign up for the classes 
with the nurse before you leave." With that Dr. 
Truman left the room. Willow dressed quickly and met 
Buffy in the waiting room. 

"Hey. What did the doctor say? Is little Emmy doing 
perfect as always?" 

"Yep, she's great, and Buff," Willow was nearly going 
to explode with excitement, "Dr. Truman gave me my get 
out of jail free card." 

"Really?!" Buffy jumped up to hug her, "That's great 
news!" 

"Yeah, I still have to take it easy but at least I 
can get out of bed." <Or possibly stay in it with 
different motivation.> 

****************************** 

To celebrate Buffy, Xander and Anya took Willow out 
to dinner, saying that after spend six weeks in 
Giles's company she would be anxious to get away from 
him for awhile. Little did they know that the only 
place Willow wanted to be right now was with Giles. 

Willow cut the evening short by feigning tiredness. 
Buffy dropped her off at Giles's and promised to see 
her tomorrow. Willow came into the house to see Giles 
drinking brandy and reading a book. 

"Hey," said Willow, not really knowing what to say. 
Giles set his glass on the coffee table and stood to 
face her. 

"Hello. I trusted you had a pleasant time." 

"Yeah, it was good to get out of the house for 
awhile." Giles looked like he wanted to say something 
and couldn't figure out how to word it. 

Willow decided to take things into her own hands. 
<If he wants me now when I'm all fat and pregnant, 
maybe he has feeling for me, too. I'm so ugly and 
awkward right now that if he finds still me attractive 
it has to mean something.> 

"I wanted to talk to you about this morning," she 
started. 

"Yes, Willow, I wanted to. . ." 

"No," she interrupted him, "You're not talking right 
now. I wanted to talk to you about this morning, and 
tell you how much I wanted to pick up where we left 
off." Giles stood slack jawed and staring. 

Since it didn't appear Giles was going to take the 
initiative Willow took it. She walked up and kissed 
him. Giles arms were immediately around her crushing 
his body to hers. The kiss seemed endless. Their 
hands roamed over one another's bodies in abandon. 
Willow gripped the hem of Giles's shirt and pulled it 
out of his pants, so she could run her hands over his 
bare chest. Her fingers looped into his chest hair 
and Giles groaned. 

Giles followed her example and let his hands journey 
under Willow's shirt. He brought his hands up and 
grazed her breasts. Willow suck in sharply. Giles 
was about to move his hands away thinking he had gone 
too far, when Willow placed her hands over his. 

"Please," she begged. Her pregnancy had made her 
breasts extremely sensitive, and she could think of 
nothing that would bring her closer to ecstasy. Giles 
took the hint and rubbed his hands gently over her 
breasts. Willow head rolled back with overwhelming 
pleasure. This encouraged Giles to bring his hand to 
the front clasp of her bra and release it making her 
breasts spill out into his hands. Willow shuddered as 
his fingers brushed her nipple. Willow was scared she 
was going to lose all feeling in her legs. 

"Giles," she said her breathing heavy, "let's go 
upstairs." Giles's hands froze. 

"Up--stairs," he stammered, "But the baby?" 

<Leave it to Giles to be practical at a time like 
this> she thought. "It's OK. I asked the doctor." 
Willow took Giles's hand and led him upstairs to the 
bedroom. Giles shook his head in amazement at her 
forethought. 

When they reached the room Willow turned timid. 

"Are you sure you want this?" she asked him. 

"Me? Yes. Are you?" he answered confused. 

"Yes, I just wasn't sure you would want to make love 
to me when I look like this." Giles eyes turned 
gentle. He approached Willow and slowly unbuttoned 
her shirt and slid it with her bra onto the floor. 
Giles then stooped down to remove her shoes and socks. 
He reached up to pull down her skirt and panties. 
Giles stepped back and gazed on Willow naked body, 
swollen belly and all. 

"I don't think I've seen anything more beautiful," he 
said and Willow's eyes flooded with tears. Giles 
gently dried her eyes and embraced her. 

They made love to each other sweetly and gently, 
staring straight into one another's eyes the entire 
time. 

Afterwards they spooned together in the bed. Giles's 
arm was draped over her belly stoking it protectively. 
Giles heard her breathing even out. Snuggled into 
her hair and said, 

"I love you Willow. I've loved you for years, but I 
just couldn't admit it to myself. First you were my 
student and then there was Oz, and now. . .and now 
there's the baby, but I love this baby, Kessem," he 
stroked her stomach affectionately, "I will do 
anything I can to keep both of you happy and safe. 
Anything." Willow's shoulders shook slightly. Giles 
rolled her over to face him. Willow was crying. 

"Sweetheart?" Giles said both concerned she was 
crying and terrified that she had heard him. She 
embraced him fiercely. 

"I love you too," she cried into his shoulder. He 
hugged her back marveling at the miracle he just 
received. 

They fell asleep holding one another. 

The end of August. 

The next twelve weeks were a whirlwind for them both. 
They got everything ready for the baby's room in the 
spare room Willow had vacated. They saw no reason to 
keep up the pretense that they slept in separate 
rooms. They were both adults, and everyone would have 
to deal. Which they did, surprising well. Willow and 
Giles both expected to get negative reactions, but 
everyone was OK about it. They seemed to figure it 
would happen sometime, and where surprised it took 
them so long to figure it out for themselves. Xander, 
however, did make a few crude comments about Giles's 
kinky tastes in women, but they were ignored as 
always. 

Willow prepared to go back to school and her new job 
when she got there. She had to get all of her lesson 
plans done, so everything was ready for her maternity 
leave. Willow and Giles went to Lamaze and learned 
how to breathe. They were deliriously happy. They 
talked about the baby, and Giles's plans to write a 
book on demonology, but they never talked about the 
future of their relationship. It seemed to both of 
them if they talked about it they would jinx it, and 
things were going so well. 

Giles, being Giles, couldn't live with this kind of 
indecision in their lives, especially with the baby 
coming. The week after school started Giles had 
everything in place. 

Willow came home from school exhausted and crabby. 
She dumped her bag on the floor immediately and 
waddled to the couch to put her feet up. Giles, 
hearing her entrance, came into the room. 

"Hello, dear," he said and leaned down to kiss her 
cheek before sitting down on the coffee table. "Bad 
day?" He removed her shoes and began to rub her 
swollen feet. 

"No, not really," she sighed, "it's just that it's so 
hot and I'm so fat, and. . .and oh, god that feels 
good." Willow laid her head on the back of couch and 
closed her eyes enjoying the foot massage. 

"I have some news that might brighten your day." 

"Oh really, what?" Willow asked without lifting her 
head or opening her eyes. 

"I thought we could use an evening out away from 
dusty old books, so I made us reservations at La 
Petite," Giles grinned. <Surprises are waiting for 
Willow tonight> he thought to himself. He would take 
Willow to a nice restaurant, tell her again how much 
he loved her, and on the way home stop in the park and 
propose on bended knee. It would be perfect-- 

"Honey, no," Willow insisted. "I'm hot and tired and 
I have too much work to do." Giles's plan came 
crashing down around him. 

"But Willow it will do us good to get out." 

"Giles," she said starting to get upset. "I'm tired. 
I want to rest. Are you the one who is always 
telling me that I don't rest enough?" 

"Yes, sweetheart, but," Giles tried to interrupt, but 
Willow was on a roll with pregnancy hormones blazing. 
She pulled her feet away from his hands and stood up 
so she was looking down on him. 

"Don't try to tell me what to do, Rupert Giles. You 
and Buffy and Xander and Dr. Truman have been trying 
to run my life for months now and I am sick of it! I 
will rest when I want to rest, eat what I want to eat, 
read what I want to read, and whatever the hell else I 
want. For god's sake Giles, I haven't actually seen 
my feet in nearly four months. I deserve some leeway, 
and I DO NOT want to go anywhere tonight!" 

Had Giles been thinking and not focused completely on 
his plan, he would have known not to argue with a 
woman in this condition. 

"Dear, trust me you will have a good time," he 
continued on the same thread, "it's important." 

"Did you not HEAR ME, RUPERT! I am NOT going 
ANYWHERE!" Willow screamed. "Nothing is THAT 
important." Giles hand went into his pocket. He felt 
the small velvet box nestle there. Since, his plan 
was out the window now was a good a time as any. 

"I thought this was rather important," he said as he 
stood up beside her and took the ring from his pocket. 
Slowly he opened the box. 

"Oh, Rupert," Willow murmured. In the box was a 
beautiful platinum ring with a bezel set, square cut 
emerald set in between two smaller diamonds. Giles 
knelt down on one knee and Willow's eyes widened. 
"Willow, I'd be honored if you would marry me. I want 
to spend the rest of my life loving you and being a 
father to your baby." 

"Rupert, I would," she began and then suddenly 
stopped. A curious look crossed her face and her eyes 
grew even wider. "Rupert, I. . ." 

"Yes, Willow?" he was leaning toward her with 
anticipation. 

"I think my water just broke." 

"WHAT!!!!" screamed Giles. 

"I think my water just broke," she repeated. Within 
a seconds Giles was on his feet and sprinting up the 
stairs to get her bag. 

"This wasn't supposed to happen for a few couple more 
weeks!" he exclaimed as he flew back down the stairs. 

"I think Emmy is anxious to get here." Giles looked 
wild eyed and panicked. "Look at it this way," she 
continued, "At least we won't have to put up with 
Buffy's surprise drills anymore." 

******************************* 

Xander, Anya and Buffy ran into the maternity wing to 
see Giles in the hall talking to Dr. Truman. 

"Are we late?" panted Xander. 

"No. Not at all," said Dr. Truman. "Willow is nearly 
eight centimeters dilated and at plus one. She should 
be ready to push in about an hour." She gently laid a 
hand on Giles's arm. "She's doing great." 

Giles was failing to take everything in stride. "But 
she's yelling and cursing and. . .and," he stammered. 

"That's all normal, Rupert. Trust me she's doing 
great." She gave a reassuring smile that failed to 
phase Giles. 

"You'd better get back in there, Giles," said Buffy, 
"She needs you right now." Buffy turned him and 
pushed him toward the rooms. 

The three of them watched him go back into what they 
assumed was Willow's room. 

"Willow never screams or curses," Anya observed. 

"I know," said Xander worried. 

"Why do think I didn't offer to go in," added Buffy. 
Without another word they assumed their positions. 
Xander paced. Anya flipped through the waiting room 
magazines, and Buffy began to accost anyone in scrubs. 

Inside the delivery room Willow was giving a male 
nurse a piece of her mind. 

"IF YOU SO MUCH AS THINK ABOUT TOUCHING ME WITH YOUR 
COLD ASS HANDS AGAIN I WILL MAKE SURE YOU NEVER GET A 
WOMAN INTO THIS POSITION! DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?" 
Giles was about to turn and go from whence he came 
when Willow caught sight of him. 

Her voice was suddenly gentle and tired, "Honey, come 
here and hold my hand." Giles complied cautiously. 
"That was a bad one." She informed him. 

"It's almost over," he whispered and leaned in to 
kiss her forehead, but then another contraction 
gripped Willow. 

"HOW DO YOU KNOW IF IT'S ALMOST OVER? ARE YOU A 
DOCTOR A FORTUNE TELLER OR MAYBE MOTHER FUCKING 
MERLIN? HUH? WHICH IS IT?" Giles was fearful her 
grip was going to break every bone in the hand. 

Dr. Truman walked into the room. 

"I see everything's moving along," she observed. 
"Let's take a look." She tried to get to work, Willow 
stopped her. 

"Dr. Truman, fuck natural child birth. I want drugs. 
Lots of them." 

"It's too late for that," she told her calmly. 

"TOO LATE! I'M IN PAIN! HOW CAN IT BE TOO LATE!" 

"Lay back, Willow, I need to take a look." 

"You don't have to TAKE A MOTHER FUCKING LOOK. I can 
tell you what's happening down there. A baby is 
trying to come out of my body but this MOTHER FUCKING 
NURSE," she pointing toward the nurse with the "cold 
ass hands", "is trying to tell me I can't push. I 
WANT TO PUSH!!!" 

"Lay back, and let me see if it's time," she said 
gently and Willow finally laid back. In about fifteen 
seconds the doctor was shouting orders to everyone in 
the room. 

"She's ten centimeters and fully efaced. It's show 
time people. Well, Willow it looks like you got you 
wish. It's time to push." The pressure Willow was 
applying to Giles's hand was the only thing keeping 
him from passing out. 

In the waiting room all three turned at the sound of 
a blood-curdling scream. Buffy ran to her room, 
knocking over people and equipment as she went. 
Xander caught up with her, and pulled her back before 
she could enter the room. 

"But Xander, she's in pain!" 

"And you running in there is going to solve that 
how?" 

"Plus," Anya added as she reached them, "do you 
really want to see all the blood, fluid and gross 
stuff coming out of Willow with the baby?" They 
looked at each other for a moment and then Buffy sat 
down outside the door. 

"This is close enough," she announced. Xander nodded 
enthusiastically and sat down beside her. Anya 
shrugged and joined them. 

About twenty minutes later they head another scream 
from Willow, but his time it was followed by the sound 
of a crying baby. 

"She did it," marveled Xander, turning to Buffy. 
Buffy embraced him and sobbed into his chest. 

"Yes, she did." 

Inside the room Dr. Truman was placing Kessem on 
Willow's chest. 

"Congratulations, Willow, you have a perfect baby girl. Emmy say hello to Mommy." Tears flowed form Willow's eyes as she looked into the tiny pink face of her daughter for the first time.

"Giles, isn't she beautiful?" Willow turned to see Giles openly crying at the beauty of it all.

"As beautiful as her mother," he said and kissed both mother and baby.

"Yes," Willow said.

"Yes, what?" Giles asked.

"Yes, I will marry you." Giles took the ring box from his pocket, he opened it, and removed the ring and placed it on her finger.

"This is the best day of my life," he told her, "I love you so much."

"I love you, too," she said and touched the baby soft cheek. "Emmy, this is your daddy." Willow and Giles gazed into each other's eyes and know that the best times were yet to come.