Title: Growing Up
Prompt:WILD CARD (Kid Fic)
Medium: Fic
Rating: PG
Warnings:None
Summary:Sometimes you just gotta let your kids grow up.
"Ugh! I hate you!"
The sound of a door slamming ricocheted around the house, and Buffy raised an eyebrow as she watched Spike frown angrily, his arms crossed over his chest as he tried to keep himself from lashing out.
"You really have no idea how to handle a teenager, do you?" Buffy asked curiously with a small smile.
"Course I do." Spike said gruffly, "I was a teenager once too, yah know."
"Yeah – almost three-hundred years ago." Buffy retorted, looking down as their son William tugged impatiently on her top, "What is it, sweetheart?"
"When is Bella gonna come home?" he asked in his soft voice that made Buffy's heart melt every single time.
"She'll be home next week, just in time for your birthday." Buffy said as she leaned down to pick him up – a task most mothers would strain to complete executed easily and without a single grunt. Slayer strength was still in tact after years of letting Faith take over officially.
"See, Bella was completely different." Spike said, "When she was fifteen –"
"But Joyce isn't Bella, Spike." Buffy said firmly, "I know that Bella was a Daddy's girl, but Joyce is a lot like Dawn was at this age. You just gotta be patient."
"I'm plenty patient!" Spike said semi-indignantly, "What made you think I was impatient?"
Buffy gave him a dull look and recited, "'What can I say, I couldn't wait?' or how about, 'No, I messed up you're doilies and stuff, but I got bored'?"
Spike had the decency to look slightly bashful, "Alright, so 'm not that patient."
Buffy nodded, pleased, and absently pushed Williams hand away from her necklace, "Glad you agree with me. Now, I know you think you have this parenting thing down –"
"Oi! How many kids have we had now?"
"but each kid is going to be different, and you're going to have to handle them differently." Buffy glanced up the stairs, where Joyce was no doubt pouting and planning on how to sneak out when she had an immortal-Slayer-mother and an immortal-Vampire-father. "I suggest you go upstairs and let her go out on Saturday with Bobby."
"Bobby's such a stupid name." Spike protested, "He'll probably give their kids stupid names too – like Eugene or Eustace."
"You wanted to name Bella Myrtle." Buffy said dryly. Spike frowned.
"My Gandmums name was Myrtle!" he protested.
"You're grandmother was alive in the eighteenth century. It's the Twenty third century now. Myrtle is out. Bella is in."
Spike bristled for a moment before he visibly deflated and sighed before heading up stairs. "Fine. I'll let her go out with Spongebob."
"Don't call him that in front of her!" Buffy warned. Spike didn't show any signs of listening to her, and when he knocked on his daughters door Buffy sighed and turned her attention back to William.
"You're daddy's silly, did you know that?" she asked in a cutesy voice.
"Oi!"