Buffy had wanted to tell Dawn, about the engagement, as soon as she and Spike got home, from their little trip but he convinced her to hide her ring from her until later that afternoon, when her sister got back from class. They could have a celebratory evening then.
Alice was keen to have her mother around again and started giggling with excitement when she entered her room upstairs, shortly after Dawn had left.
"Hey, princess. You been a good girl for Aunty Dawn?"
Of course, the girl not knowing what was being said, continued to squeak and squeal and was now determined to escape the confines of her cot.
"Alright, little miss impatient." Spike had now stepped forward and was reaching for his daughter.
"That better?", he asked, after lifting her out and sitting her up in his arms. A huge grin spread across her face and she rested her head on his shoulder, enjoying the comfort of his hold.
"I can't believe how lucky I got", Buffy reminisced, stroking Alice's cheek.
Spike turned his head to look at her.
"Me, finally finding happiness, being able to have a child with the man I love."
Spike looked surprised.
"Where's all this coming from, pet?"
She smiled, not taking her eyes off of Alice.
"Nowhere. Just thinking about things I guess."
"I think I should be the one saying I'm lucky. Takes a rare woman to fall for a vampire."
"Not just any vamp. You have a soul. Even when you didn't, you were more human than demon. You loved me, helped me, saved me in every way all without a soul. You changed the rules. So, I'm the lucky one to have won the heart of such a unique, kind man." The slayer was stunned by the poet in her.
"You forgot handsome", he butted in.
A huge smile appeared on her mouth. "That too, obviously." She stood on tiptoes, to guarantee that her next sentence was only heard by his ears.
"Why do you think I'm so desperate to get you into the bedroom right now?"
The vampire glanced at the sunshine shaped clock, on the table next to Alice's clock.
"Dawn's not due back for another hour and a half or so."
Alice looked pretty sleepy in her father's arms, obviously not being disturbed by the voices in the room. They tucked the girl back up in her bed.
"Sweet dreams, kitten", he whispered to the baby...
The pair made sure that they'd finished their activities and were ready in plenty of time of Dawn's arrival.
"How do you think she'll take it?", Buffy asked, tucking in her blouse.
"If I know the niblet, she'll have booked the venue, dress and band before I have you back in that bed again."
"Even by Dawnie's standards, that'd be fast."
He growled and squeezed her waist from behind.
The familiar jangle of keys could be heard from the other side of the main door and in stepped a fed up looking teenager.
"Who's idea was it for me to take Politics?"
Buffy and Spike looked at each other and spoke in unison.
"Yours?"
"Yeah...but you went along with it. Why didn't you warn me about how fucking boring it is?"
Buffy moved away from Spike and started to make her way across the room, speaking as she did.
"Okay. A, I never actually got far enough into College to find out. B, I think Politics was a little different in Spike's time. And C, watch your language."
Dawn typically rolled her eyes.
"Anyway", Buffy continued.
"Me and Spike have something to tell you."
Spike had joined them now and Dawn suddenly forgot about the boring world of Politics, her attention focused on the pair.
"Yuh huh?"
The room stayed quiet for a few seconds.
"Oh my gosh! You're pregnant again aren't you?!"
"Not bloody likely, bit!", Spike confirmed.
Buffy simply held up her ring hand and waggled her fingers.
Neither of them expected the sort of reaction that Dawn had. They knew she'd be excited but damn, she was almost bouncing around all over the room. She was still just a big kid at the end of the day.
After calming her down, all 4 members of the family went out for a meal. It was a rare treat since they didn't have a lot of time to and they couldn't afford to do it on a regular basis. It was Buffy's choice of restaurant, the place where she and Spike ate when first arriving in Tenerife, when she was just a little over 2 months pregnant with Alice. The place held a good memory. They'd first started coming up with potential baby names on the back of a napkin here.
They sat in the exact same booth and in the exact same positions.
"So have you thought of a date yet?", Dawn asked, slurping on a milkshake.
Spike half nodded, his arm around Buffy's shoulders.
"Sort of."
"We've decided next Summer. Not sure of the date yet", Buffy continued in his place.
Dawn looked a little concerned.
"But...what about the sun? You know how scorchio summers can get here."
"We'll work around it. We have done for the last year."
The trio were interrupted by Alice letting them know of the food's imminent arrival.
"Jeez Dawn, did you not feed her today?"
Dawn scowled at her sister.
"Of course I did! I gave her a second helping, she was so hungry."
Either way, the baby's hands dived straight into her food, as soon as the bowl was placed on the tray of her highchair.
"No, sweetie!", Buffy giggled. She shuffled along the seat, around to the highchair and began cleaning up the mess before feeding her.
They were home by 9 and Alice was still wide awake unlike Dawn, who was the sleepy one instead.
"I think we need to stop letting her sleep during the day", Spike suggested, stripping of his shirt. Buffy was already changed and tucked up in bed, Alice still wriggling in her lap.
"Yeah. If she stays with us tonight, do you think she'll keep quiet?"
The vampire joined her under the covers and looked at their baby.
"Guess we'll find out. Bein' parents is all about trying out new things, right?"
The pair snuggled down, Alice now in between them.
"Here goes nothing."
Buffy smirked.
"You've still got work tomorrow, big guy."
"Thanks for the reminder, sweetheart."
They were just about visible to each other, over Alice's body and suddenly, they realised that she had stilled. Her soft breathing was a comfort to them both.
"Shoulda' known. Our girl is a sleeper..."
