Author Notes: Thank you so much to everyone who has commented, you guys are just amazing. Things are probably going to speed up a little more from here. The problem with writing pregnancy is the storyline is spread across so many months, rather than days and weeks. I hope it'll be a little closer in time over the coming chapters.

To everyone who has asked if this story will be a Jane/Maura story, well, you'll have to keep reading. ;)


"What are we doing, Maura?" Jane asked, kicking up a small plume of dust as they walked along a track away from the road. They'd driven just out of the city, a journey which Maura told her nothing about. She was tired, hungry, and as a result, a little grumpy.

"I'll tell you when we get there," said Maura, struggling to lift her leg over a fallen tree. She stopped momentarily and took a slow, deep breath.

"You're too pregnant for this," Jane said, reaching out and helping her step over. She followed close behind. More worried about Maura than the impromptu visit to the middle of a reservation.

"Okay, we're here," said Maura.

She stepping out of the other side of the woodland and into a large, open space. Jane stopped at her side and stared out across the skyline. With the city in the distance and wooded trails surrounding them, Jane took a moment to bask in the glorious day. In all of the year's she'd lived in Boston she'd never stood on that specific spot. Every camping trip, every hike, and this was the first time she'd seen the city from this view.

"Wow," she whispered, lifting a hand to her eyes to block out the sun. She lowered it again, turning to Maura. "You brought me out here to look at a view when you're about to pop?"

Maura shook her head and slipped the bag she'd insisted on carrying off her back. "I thought we could do something to remember your baby by."

A lump settled in the back of Jane's throat. Her hands shook. Every time she thought she'd moved past her grief, it flooded back. She took a deep breath in, then out as Maura unpacked the bag.

"I spoke to a memorial forest and the man I spoke to was rather rude, when I remembered this spot I thought it would be the perfect place to add another tree. There won't be a plaque but it's far enough away from the every day world that it should be protected."

Jane tilted her head to one side, her shoulders sunk, and tears pricked at the corners of her eyes. She swallowed the lump and allowed a couple of tears to take their preferred path down her cheeks. They brushed away under her fingers. The peace of the day settled her further and she reached out to Maura's hand, interlinking their fingers for comfort.

"Thank you," she whispered.

"I'll dig the hole and you can plant the sapling."

Before Jane could say anything, Maura held up the trowel and went to dig a hole on the edge of the woodland. The temptation to stop her didn't win over the desire to watch Maura struggle to get anywhere near the ground. Her enlarged abdomen was just too large.

"Don't be ridiculous, Maura," said Jane, snatching the trowel from her hands and quickly digging a hole.

"I would have done it."

"We don't have til next year, Maura, you're too pregnant."

"How can someone be too pregnant?"

"Very easily," Jane said, motioning to Maura's bump.

Once the hole was large enough, Maura retrieved the carefully packaged small sapling from the bag and handed it over. It was larger than Jane expected, which made her think it was probably heavier too. She frowned at Maura, but refrained from commenting. The action was seeped in generosity, and the exertion in making it happen even more so. After covering the tree's roots, Jane stood back and looked at the tree. It looked a little limp, like it probably wouldn't make it through a storm, but it almost didn't matter. She didn't know if she'd ever come back to visit. The act of planting the tree was enough.

"Aren't you going to say a few words?" Maura asked when Jane started to clear up.

"I don't know what to say," she said, staring at the floor.

"Can I?"

Jane scuffed the ground with her shoes. She didn't want to appear rude, or ungrateful, but she didn't know how to thank her either. "Do what you want, Maur."

"When we lose someone that matters to us," she began, spreading her palms across her body. "We can feel a great sadness that I don't think ever goes away. It's no different whether it's an elderly relative or an unborn child. The only thing that's different is how greatly we feel it. I've never lost a child, so I can't even begin to understand this. But I do know what it's like to love one, to want to protect him or her from the world when they're still in the protection of the womb. I know how hard this has been."

Tears filled her eyes again, Jane let her hands fall down at her sides, her shoulders sunk. A heavy weight shifted from her shoulders until she felt a sense of relief. Maura's fingers connected with Jane's and tears slid down her cheeks. She swiped them away with her other hand.

"I know how much Jane loved you before you even came to be, and I know how greatly she feels your absence. We plant this tree for you, a life for a life. A new tree can grow in place of a child we don't get to see grow up. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust."

The tense, sad atmosphere they'd created broke apart when Jane let out a laugh. She covered her mouth quickly and attempted to stem the noise but it was too hard.

"Why are you laughing?" Maura asked.

"Ashes to ashes?" Jane shook her head. "Really, Maura?"

"It's what is said at funerals."

"When they're burying a body."

"So are we, metaphorically," said Maura. She closed her eyes and bent forwards. "Ow."

"Maur?" Jane asked, resting a hand on her shoulder. An overwhelming sense of panic hit her.

"I'm okay," Maura said, taking a methodical breath. Her facial expressions eased, though Jane's anxiety stayed the same.

"You don't look okay."

"I am," said Maura, rubbing her bump with both hands. "It's normal."

"Doesn't look normal."

"Well, it is. Most women have some sort of contractions before labour, along with swollen ankles and breathlessness."

"Before labour, or during labour?"

"Both."

"So, which is it?"

"This is not labour," said Maura, struggling to pick the trowel up from the ground. She squatted down and reached for it again, successfully lifting it up. Jane rushed to her side and helped her back to her feet. "You don't need to fuss."

"You're heavily pregnant and you were told to rest, not go around digging holes in the ground," said Jane. "You are going to stop pushing yourself and we are going to go back to the city before you give birth out in the woods."

"It's how women have been giving birth for centuries," Maura said, but Jane wasn't convinced.

"Why give birth against a tree when you can do it in a hospital?"

"I'm not in labour," she repeated.

Once the few items they'd brought were packed back into the bag, Jane slipped it over a shoulder and guided Maura back along the trail. The sun had disappeared behind an angry cloud; the thick, dark loom of rain.

"Ahh," Maura shouted, resting a hand against a tree. She breathed slowly, moderating her breathing as she placed her other hand on her bump.

"This isn't normal," said Jane, rubbing her back until the pain subsided. "We need to get back to the car before you give birth in the rain."

"I told you, I'm not," Maura said, but Jane cut her off.

"Whether you are or not, we are leaving, now."

Quickening her pace was practically impossible with Maura by her side. The desire to leave was only stemmed by her desire to stay with Maura until they were both safely in a vehicle that could take them to the nearest hospital. When they saw the road Jane rushed ahead to open the doors and helped Maura into the passenger seat. The moment she'd climbed into the driver's side, a loud crack of thunder sounded overhead before a continuous pouring of rain fell onto the car.

Jane started the engine and sped off towards the city. She ignored the speed signs, utilising her police training to get them back to the city. She wracked her brain for the nearest hospital and only stopped driving when they got there.

"No, Jane," said Maura when she opened her door. "I'm not in labour."

"You have high blood pressure, Maura, the doctor said you're more at risk of further complications. I'm not taking any risks. I love you too much to let you call the shots. Now get out of the car and get in the hospital."

Rolling her eyes, Maura slipped out of the car at Jane's request. If she wasn't at least twenty-five pounds heavier, Jane would have lifted Maura into her arms again and carried her there herself.

In the waiting area, they provided Maura with a wheelchair. Jane sat impatiently beside her, tapping her foot as they waited for someone to come. After half an hour, Jane stood up and approached the nearest medical professional, a young woman in scrubs.

"You do realise she's only thirty-four weeks, don't you?" Jane asked.

She opened her mouth to say something else when Maura screamed behind her.

"Maur!" She turned around.

"I, I think," Maura said, her voice smaller. "I think my water's just broke."

"Now will you do something?" Jane asked, turning back to the woman.

They admitted her immediately, wheeling Maura off to a delivery room whilst Jane phoned her mother. When she entered the room, Maura was lay on a bed, her face contorted with the pain of being in the middle of a contraction. Jane rushed to her side and wrapped both hands around Maura's.

Several hours later, Jane had barely moved from Maura's side. She still clung to her hand, a comfort for herself, as well as an offering of comfort to Maura. The contractions were getting closer together but they still weren't close enough for birth.

"Does it usually take this long?" Jane asked, rubbing her eyes. The sun was starting to set, the world outside the window disappeared into the darkness.

"Longer," said Maura, rubbing the side of her bump. She closed her eyes, then when a contraction gripped hold of her, Maura sat forwards a little. She squeezed her eyes together as she crushed Jane's fingers and panted her way through the pain.

"I'm gonna need to give my hand a break soon," said Jane, taking it back once Maura's fingers loosened. "If I knew I'd lose them, I wouldn't have agreed to be your birthing partner."

Maura tried to smile. She looked exhausted. If Jane could have traded places with her, she would have done. Jane had been through enough physical pain in her career as a detective that she knew she'd be able to handle it. Watching Maura struggle with each contraction left her helpless.

"How are we doing in here?" one of the nurses asked, stepping into the room.

"I don't feel well," said Maura. Jane frowned. She hadn't said anything before. "My head is pounding."

"How long has this been going on for?" the nurse asked, feeling her forehead and checking the blood pressure monitor.

"Not long," said Maura, closing her eyes.

"You've had high blood pressure throughout the pregnancy?" she asked, checking Maura's notes.

"For most of it," Jane said, staring at the woman. "Why? What's wrong?"

"Have we tested a urine sample?"

Maura nodded. "I think Doctor Brady."

"I'll be right back," the nurse said, disappearing out of the room.

Jane held tightly to Maura's hand again. She rested her other hand on her bump and rubbed it slowly. "You sure this is normal?"

"I don't," Maura whispered, squeezing her eyes together tightly. "I think the baby's coming."

"Well, duh," said Jane. "You're in labour."

"No," said Maura, panting. "I need to push."

Jane stood up and rushed to the doorway, she shouted for help and when a couple of people rushed towards her, she returned to hold Maura's hand.

"Okay, Maura," the midwife said, placing a hand on each of her legs. "It looks like baby wants to come out. As soon as you're ready for it, I need you to give us a really big push."

The moment Maura started to push, Jane could feel the pressure as she wrapped her fingers tightly around Jane's hand. She stood beside her, stroking her hair back from her face as sweat gathered on her forehead. Maura let out a long, guttural scream as her whole body tensed up. If she didn't know it was childbirth, Jane would probably have been petrified that she was about to die.

"Come on Maur," she said, running her hand across Maura's cheek.

"As soon as you're ready you need to push again," the man said. "I can already see the head. Your baby is ready to come and meet us."

Another contraction brought another crushing of the bones in her hand, Jane whispered things to Maura, hoping it would comfort her as she pressed on through the most painful thing a woman could do. After a couple more contractions, the baby started crying as he slipped out and into the midwife's arms. Jane turned to the sound of the baby crying, a huge smile spread across her face. An overwhelming feeling of love filled her, something that she couldn't quite explain, but she'd never felt before. When Jane turned back to Maura, she dropped her hand and her heart started to race.

Maura's eyes rolled back in their sockets, her arms tensed at her sides as she convulsed violently.


Author Notes: So, thanks for reading. That's the end of the story. Just kidding. Any medical mistakes are my own, Google can only do so much when you have never experienced certain things. Any and all comments, etc. are appreciated.