The funeral was the day after Christmas, in Santa Barbara. Henry, Madeline, and Logan had teamed up to make the arrangements. Generally, he let them decide everything and footed the bill, but he did bring the dress he wanted her to be buried in, and he had a heavy hand in designing the grave stone. Beautiful black marble with a photo of her etched into it. It read,

'TESLA R. SPENCER-ECHOLLS. FEBRUARY 1988-DECEMBER 2010. BELOVED WIFE, MOTHER AND DAUGHTER.'

Etched in smaller lettering below the main parts, "In your name I find meaning. So I'm holdin' on."

They would bury her with her wedding ring, a baby blanket, if God forbid their son be found dead, he could be buried with her, and copies of all of his ultrasounds, in case he was alive, so she could take a part of him with her. The funeral home was rough. It smelled like formaldehyde, and Logan was nauseated the moment they opened the chapel doors to reveal her. Pale, and beautiful, in a lilac dress that had made her eyes beam with life before. It was an eerily suitable way to commend her to death.

Her parents kissed her a lot, and touched her face. Madeline begged for her to wake up and Henry held her, tears running down his face. Shawn stayed at the far end of the room the entire service while family sat in the little chairs and cried. He kept his eyes on his shoes, and his hand tightly wrapped in Veronica's. She stared at Logan the entire time.

He was sitting in the front, with a program in his hands. His face was blotchy from crying, although he had done all of that privately. Once the extended family and friends were all gone he set the program on the chair and walked over to the casket to stare down at her. The funeral directors made sure all the windows were shaded and the doors locked. He stared down at her for a long moment, at the peaceful smile on her face and the way her scarlet hair curled down her shoulders. They'd done a lovely job. Even just with the way the blanket covered her to hide her previously round tummy's distorted shape.

And so he bent and pressed his lips to her cool forehead. She was largely just like Tess. She smelled differently, and she was so quiet and still, but she was still soft and she was still his. Logan brushed his fingers across her cheek and then reached to touch her hand, stroking her wedding ring before he smiled down at her gently. "You…were…You were it. And I just want you to know no matter where I go in life, you made my life better than I ever thought it would be. Because you were the path I took away from becoming a monster." A softer kiss to her lips. "I will love you forever, Tesla Rose."

He gave one last lingering look, and then he stepped back. Madeline and Henry were bawled up together, trying to draw comfort, and so Shawn released his girlfriend's hand with trembling fingers, and walked to the casket. His memories of Tess were so different, compared to Logan's. His were of always being ten years ahead. He had a running start so he could protect her, and when she was most vulnerable he had let her down. He remembered a little girl with a head covered in fire and Henry's big blue eyes. Madeline's smile, and his mischievous side.

And here she was, in death. She looked like someone he had hoped to get to know her as. Tesla the mom. With her hands crossed delicately and her lips in a little, sleepy grin. It broke him, and his knees nearly gave out. Seeing him stumble, Veronica and Henry both hurried to steady him, and watched his tears flood him. "It was never supposed to be this way I…Tess…Tess, I'm so sorry, kid sister. I am SO sorry for this."

He managed to pat her hand gently, but he couldn't bring himself to kiss her. She knew, wherever she was. Henry turned him to hold his son to his chest, and Shawn burst into tears that he otherwise never would have let Henry see him cry. Madeline came to hug them both, and the funeral director moved to shut the casket to move it to the hearse waiting outside when there was a knock at the chapel door, just as he reached for the cover. Everyone looked at one another, not sure who else would be coming so late after the public service, but they allowed him to open the door.

And Veronica gasped out loud when the opening revealed Parker, in black dress suit and hat, with a baby cradled in a bundle of blankets in her arms. She moved down the aisle of chairs to the front and frowned down at the casket, looking to the Spencer's. "I am so sorry for your loss. I can't imagine…Tess was such a wonderful, sweet girl."

"Parker…" Logan's voice was nearly a growl, and somehow Henry held him back with Shawn and Veronica turned to mouth for him to play along.

Parker frowned more at Logan. "I'm sorry, Logan. I know you loved her." She dropped her gaze into her arms with a tender little smile.

"Hey," Veronica approached her. "Her Park. What uh, whatcha got there?"

"Oh! I almost forgot, I haven't seen you all in a while," She beamed up at them. "The doctor was wrong, Veronica. He didn't die. He's right here."

Veronica felt a wave of nausea shake her at the thought of what Parker would have had to do with no knowledge of the human body to get that baby out of Tess….and she managed to swallow it back for a moment, but her tears were too overwhelming. "Parker, I'm so happy for you…"

Madeline had caught on, and was cautiously approaching her from an angle. "He looks a little pale," She told her. Parker jumped and turned to look at her with slightly narrow eyes. "What did the doctor that delivered him say about his health?"

"He's perfect," Parker assured softly.

"I bet," Madeline said gently, easing forward still. "Parker, I'm a doctor. If you wouldn't mind I'd like to look at him. Just to take a peak."

Parker looked at her, then Veronica, then the men and cleared her throat. "Well I suppose that it couldn't hurt. Just to be sure. Besides, you've suffered such a great loss…" She was slowly shifting him to hand to Madeline. "Be careful with his head…"

"Oh," Madeline was fighting tears herself as he was slowly transferred to her. "I know, I had two myself."

Once he was safely in her arms, he opened his little eyes, and Tess' startling blues were looking back at her. She nodded to Henry, and he and Shawn both dove to grab one of Parker's arms, and she began to scream as Madeline carried the baby to Logan.

"No, stop! What are you! She's stealing my baby, bring him back!"

Madeline approached Logan as the funeral director moved to call the police and the Neptune Sheriff's office. Logan stared in amazement as his son came into view, his mother's eyes and fuzzy dark hair on his head. He gurgled a little and Logan looked at his former mother-in-law. "Is he ok?"

She was unsaddling him to check him for any accidental cuts, and aside from a sloppily cut umbilical cord, he was fine. She nodded and smiled at him. "Nothing wrong with him." The grief that had broken them all briefly forgotten in the joy of meeting Cody. Madeline slowly sifted him into his father's arms, and guided Logan to hold him properly.

And Logan smiled down into his face. "Hi, Cody." He was skinnier than Logan had pictured, but he assumed Parker didn't know fuck all about feeding a newborn. "Oh, you gave me a very, very big scare, young man." Stroking his little cheek he smiled a little. "Don't worry, buddy. Mom's not here anymore," His eyes darted to Tess in the purple dress in the casket. "But I'm gonna take good care of you, I promise."

He moved over to Tess' one more time to gently brush Cody's fingers across the back of her hand, so mother and son had one singular moment of contact after his birth, however violent it was, and wherever she might be now. And then he took him to go sit in the hallway away from Parker's screaming as they waited for the cops.

Sorry it's shorter. I tied it up as neatly as I could, and I'm happy with that.

But my question for all of you is, would you prefer a LoVe ending, aVawn ending, or shall I write both just to overindulge you guys?