Title: Odd Couples 16/16
Author: Gileswench
Feedback: Constructive criticism always welcome. Praise abjectly sought.
Disclaimer: It all belongs to Joss, Mutant Enemy, etc., etc., etc. I
just let them have all the fun Joss won't. I own nothing except my
twisted mind which you really don't want. Please don't sue.
While the doctor examined Buffy, Giles went to the payphone to call the Scoobies. He fumbled slightly with a quarter, but soon found the slot. He was just about to dial when he turned to find Willow and Anya coming through the doors. He hung up the phone and strode over to them.
"How did you know to be here?" he asked in a stunned tone of voice.
"Xander called," Willow explained. "Hey, I thought you and Buffy were, y'know, doing the timeless. How did you know to be here?"
"What are you talking about? I'm here because Buffy's in there," he pointed to the delivery rooms, "giving birth right now."
"So's Joyce," Anya said bluntly. "We should have a bet about which one has her baby first. I think it will be Joyce. after all, this is her second child. That loosens things up a bit. What do you think, Giles?"
He stared in blank horror.
"An," Willow admonished, "maybe this isn't the time to talk about bets and looseness." She looked up at Giles. "Well? What are you standing here for? Go! Be with Buffy." As he left, she turned back to her girlfriend. "I think it'll be Buffy first. 'Cause of the powers and stuff."
"Twenty says you're wrong."
"Done."
The girls shook hands and sat down to wait.
*****
Hours passed. Daphne and Ernest had arrived in the first half hour. Now Ernest paced nervously while Daphne knitted something small and fluffy and green.
"What's that?" Willow asked.
"Oh, it's a little something for the baby."
"Oh. A little what for the baby?"
"A sweater. I know it won't be needed just yet, but I like to keep busy while I'm waiting."
"Too damn calm by half," Ernest grumped.
"At least it's productive," Daphne said serenely. "Certainly better than wearing holes in the carpet. Do sit down, Ernest."
He followed orders with a snort of frustration.
*****
"You're doing fine," the doctor told Buffy. "Now when the next pain hits, I want you to push for me, okay?"
"Okay," she nodded grimly. "I can do that."
The nurse looked oddly when the father strapped a protective pad over his wrist and hand before presenting it to his wife.
"Merely a precaution," he explained. "She...um...she works out."
His self-deprecating grin dazzled the nurse. She sighed and wished she had a man like this to come home to.
"Oh boy," Buffy said, "here it comes."
She squeezed her eyes shut and grabbed Giles' hand convulsively as she bore down. He yelled in pain almost as loudly as she did.
*****
"Remember the breathing, Honey? We're gonna breathe that pain away," Xander urged. "Short pants, then..."
"It doesn't work," Joyce gritted out. "It's just as painful as I remember. Don't give me this breathe the pain away crap."
Xander looked at the doctor in panic.
"Is it too late to change my mind about drugs?"
"That's up to the patient," the doctor reminded him.
"Not for her; for me. 'Cause she's gonna make me hurt pretty soon, and I'd rather not feel it, please."
*****
"Please, let me have a look at it," the nurse coaxed Giles. "If you're in that much pain, it might be seriously injured. I've seen a couple men leave the delivery room with broken fingers before."
"It's quite alright," he said through gritted teeth. "I'll have it seen to when this is done."
"You know it could be hours before the baby gets here," the doctor reminded him. "Why don't you get it checked out now?"
Buffy yelled again.
"That's why," Giles told them. In a flash, he was with her, holding her and whispering encouraging words in her ear. "It's going to be fine, dearest," he told her. "You're doing wonderfully."
The doctor and the nurse both sighed inwardly. This truly was the perfect man.
*****
"Okay, Honey," Xander said. "It won't be long now. Just a couple more pushes and she'll be here."
"I know," Joyce gritted out through another contraction.
"It's gonna be worth it, really. Just think; our little girl. We could call her Delenn. That's a nice name, isn't it?"
"Doctor, could you put my husband under? Now?"
"Believe me, I was already considering it."
*****
Daphne was the first to notice her son coming into the waiting room. He had a huge grin on his face and a nurse anxiously following him.
As soon as Daphne was on her feet, everyone else got up, too, crowding around Giles.
"It's a boy," he announced. "Eight pounds, ten ounces. Mother and child are both doing extremely well."
"But the father needs an x-ray right now," the nurse insisted. "Mr. Giles, we need to find out if that wrist is broken."
"She...Buffy broke you?" Willow asked.
"I'm used to it," Giles grinned. "Don't concern yourself, Willow. I've had worse. I'll be fine."
"At least he's feeling no pain," Ernest chuckled. "Take him down and get him looked after, Nurse. You'll never see him more cooperative than he is this moment."
"A grandson," Daphne said shakily. "I never thought I'd see the day...we have a grandson, Ernest." She dabbed at her eyes with a lace-trimmed handkerchief. "I don't know why I'm being such a goose."
"I've always wondered why it is women cry when they claim to be happy," Ernest said gruffly. He cleared his throat in a suspicious manner, then put an arm around his wife's shoulder. "Why don't we go down to the nursery and see our grandson, eh, Old Girl?"
Willow and Anya watched them go. As soon as everyone was out of sight, Willow held out her hand with a smug grin on her face. Anya sighed, reached into her purse and pulled out a twenty dollar bill.
"You win," she grumbled.
Almost as soon as Willow had pocketed the money, Xander appeared in the doorway grinning goofily.
"Will!" he exclaimed, "I'm a daddy!"
He lifted his best friend off the ground and twirled her, laughing merrily. When her feet were back on the ground, he turned to Anya, clearly ready to do the same. They both pulled back at the same time. At last, Xander pulled her into a bear hug. When he let her go, he stepped back.
"Sorry, just...I'd probably hug Snyder now if I saw him, and he's dead. But...not that it's anywhere near that bad. Actually, it was kinda nice, in a totally Platonic way," he babbled.
"Xand, it's okay," Willow said. "You're happy. You want to share the happy. And I want you guys to be friends."
He looked from one girl to the other, takning in their smiles. At last, he grinned and pulled them both into a three-way hug.
"You guys are the best of the best," he told them.
"And in case you're wondering," Anya said, "Buffy had a little boy a few minutes ago."
"A boy? Really? Way to go, Buffster!"
*****
A few hours later, Buffy lay in state in her bed with her husband at her side and her new baby in her arms. She grimaced when she looked at the plaster cast on his right wrist.
"Sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you," she said. "Guess sometimes I don't know my own strength."
"It'll be fine," he assured her. "I've dealt with far worse and carried on. I'm sure I'll have figured out how to change diapers despite my injury inside of a week." With his left hand, he reached out and softly touched his son's face. "He's beautiful. Thank you for my son."
"Funny thing, I was gonna thank you for my son...even if there were moments I felt sure that was a giant watermelon I was giving birth to. He turned out pretty good, didn't he?"
"Wonderfuly well, if I do say so myself."
"Did I tell you I'm getting a roomie in a minute?"
"Oh?"
"Knock knock!" Joyce grinned from the doorway. A nurse wheeled her into the room and helped her into bed. "When Xander found out Buffy was alone, he arranged for us to share a room, which I think was pretty thoughtful of him."
"He's a good guy," Buffy agreed. "Almost as good as mine."
"Is that my grandbaby?"
Buffy handed him off to Giles who carried him to Joyce.
"Here he is: David Christopher Giles."
"David Christopher?"
"Rupert and I both know the heartache of growing up with a dorky name. We want our kid to have a small chance of blending on occasion," Buffy said.
"I really never meant to cause you pain, you know," Joyce said. "I just thought Buffy was a pretty name."
"It's okay, really, but we want our kid to have a normal name. And I hope you've learned your lesson."
"I think so," Joyce chuckled. "Ah, and here she is!"
Xander came into the room bearing his newborn daughter in his arms carefully, as if she were made of glass.
"How's everyone settling in?" he whispered. "I think she's asleep."
"Could I see her while Mom's holding my baby?" Buffy asked.
Xander brought her over and placed her in Buffy's arms.
"This is your big sister," he told the sleeping baby. "She's a great role model, in case you're looking for one."
"So what's my little sister's name?" Buffy asked pointedly.
Joyce and Xander shared a look across the room. By unspoken assent, Xander was the one to speak.
"Buffy, Giles, this is Samantha Dawn Harris."
"Samantha Dawn." Buffy tried it out. "I like it. That's pretty. So what made you decide against all the sci-fi superhero names?"
"Actually...Samantha was my idea," Joyce admitted. "After Sam on Stargate."
"Ohmigod! I got so hooked on that show while we were stuck out of time. Rupert has a million tapes of it."
"I like Dr. Fraiser," he mumbled a bit indistinctly.
"Daniel's the coolest," Buffy averred. "Archeologists are way sexy."
"So is anyone going to ask about the Dawn part?" Xander asked.
"Yes," Giles said, "I did wonder what the significance - if any - was."
"I came up with that part," Xander said. "See, the doc said she showed up right when the sun rose. I figured that was a good sign."
"That's a great sign," Buffy agreed. "The very best."
"An excellent sign," Giles agreed with a warm smile for his friend and father-in-law. "And a very good begninning."
THE END