Title: "His Father's Son"
Author: tj thwaites
E-mail: tjthw8s@telusplanet.net
Archive: mailing list archives, anyone else please ask first.
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: none
Summary: Futurefic. Willow's OB-GYN is in for a surprise in the delivery
room. Feedback: Please, I live for feedback.
Disclaimer: The great God Joss owns these wonderful characters, I'm just
taking a quick dip in his pool.
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[She couldn't have waited another couple of hours?] Buffy thought as she hurried down the hallway toward Delivery Room 4, [Oz is going to be *so* upset he missed this. Being chained up in your basement while your first child is being born is a real down side to being a werewolf.]
Buffy pushed open the correct door and rushed to Willow's side. A quick look around the room showed Buffy that things were definitely well under way. Willow sat propped up on the delivery table, her legs already spread, as the doctor prepared to greet a brand new life.
Buffy took Willow's hand in hers, her other hand reaching out to brush the redhead's sweaty bangs out of her eyes. After a reassuring squeeze, Buffy whispered:
"How're you doing, Will?"
"I'm okay, Buffy," Willow replied, her voice tired, "I just wish Oz was here."
"Where is Mr. Osbourne?" Doctor Lewis asked, "I thought you had planned for him to be in attendance."
"He's kind of....um...tied up right now," Buffy answered, exchanging a look with Willow, "Unavoidably detained for several more hours."
"That's a shame. Having the father present at such a joyous occasion is a wonderful experience," Doctor Lewis said, continuing under his breath, "At least the ones who leave the video camera at home are."
Both Buffy and Willow giggled a little when they caught the doctor's qualification. Then Willow hissed as another contraction hit. Buffy felt her hand being crushed in her friend's grip.
"C'mon, Will," Buffy encouraged, "Remember those Lamaze classes. Do your breathing."
"It won't be long now, Mrs. Osbourne," the doctor added, "You're fully dialated now. It's almost time for you to start pushing."
"Please call me Willow," she requested, "Every time someone calls me 'Mrs. Osbourne', I still expect my mother-in-law to be standing behind me."
Doctor Lewis and the nurses chuckled, glad that their patient was able to maintain her sense of humour despite the pain involved with a natural childbirth. Buffy smiled at Willow, using a handy cloth to wipe some of the perspiration from her friend's forehead.
"You've been married for three years, Will," Buffy commented, "You should be used to it by now. And I seem to remember you going around for two weeks after your honeymoon saying how wonderful it was to be 'Mrs. Osbourne'. Making your hubby blush with pleasure every time."
Willow's laugh was cut short by another hiss of pain. The contractions were becoming extremely urgent now. The baby must be getting impatient.
"All right, Willow," the doctor instructed, "When the next contraction starts, take a deep breath and push."
=====
Doctor Lewis kept his clinically detatched mask in place as the wriggling, blood-slick infant emerged from its mother. The nurse standing ready with a warm blanket wasn't so in control. She gasped loudly. Buffy let go of Willow's hand and stepped closer to the action. She relieved the wide-eyed nurse of the blanket and hurriedly wrapped up the baby.
"Don't freak out, doc," she hissed into the doctor's ear, "Just keep going, cut the cord or whatever comes next."
"What's wrong, Buffy?" Willow squeaked, starting to panic.
"Nothing's wrong, Will," Buffy replied, "Relax, everything's going to be okay."
"What is it, Buffy?" Willow demanded; the nurses' shocked looks told her something was seriously wrong with her baby.
"It's a boy," Buffy proudly announced, stepping over to the bassinette and beginning to give the baby its first bath. Willow could hear the sounds her son was beginning to make. And they weren't very babyish.
"Buffy!" Willow practically shrieked, "He's not....deformed, is he?"
"Nope," Buffy claimed, earning disbelieving looks from the nurses, "He's just....very much his father's son."
Willow collapsed back against the pillows, her eyes wide and her mouth open in a silent "Oh". She glanced at the pale faced nurses who were keeping their distance from the blonde woman calmly washing the squirming, furry bundle. Willow looked down at the doctor, who refused to meet her eyes.
"Just another couple of pushes," the doctor said, his voice quavering slightly, "To deliver the afterbirth and then we'll be finished here. You had a very clean delivery, no tearing of the birth canal, so you should be recovered enough to go home this afternoon."
Willow nodded numbly at him before turning back to Buffy.
"You wanna hold your son?" Buffy asked, approaching the new mother.
"Please," Willow's answer fell into the stunned silence as the nurses and the doctor stared in shock.
Buffy stepped up beside Willow and gently placed the baby in his mother's waiting arms. The two women bent close over the blanket-wrapped bundle, ignoring the other people present. Willow extended one finger and gently prodded the tiny snout.
"He is kind of cute," Willow whispered, "But are you sure that he'll...well...change when the moon sets?"
"Of course," Buffy replied, her voice more confident than she really felt.
She hoped that the baby would revert to human form once the moon did set. She and Giles had looked at everything they could find on werewolves when Willow and Oz had announced the pregnancy, but they hadn't been able to find much on the offspring of one. Oz had also confided his own worries about it to Buffy, after making her promise not to mention it to his wife.
All of the information Buffy had waded through was centered on werewolf bites as the means to become a werewolf. There was nothing on what hereditary effects, if any, being a werewolf might have. So the tension had mounted as Willow's due date got closer, even if no one had wanted to voice any doubts. Willow going into labour a week early, on the night just after the full moon had cranked Buffy's concern up another notch, but she had buried it deep in order to be there for her friend. Buffy was certain that Giles and the rest of the Slayerettes were pacing the waiting room, hoping word would come that the baby was normal.
"It's a good thing Xander's not here," Willow said, interrupting Buffy's thoughts.
"Oh, yeah," Buffy agreed, "After he finished wigging, he'd probably say something really stupid and piss us all off."
"Like how I'll have to housebreak my own son," Willow remarked, starting to giggle, "Or how I'll spend my time digging up the back yard looking for buried rattles."
"Whether he should bring a teething ring or a rawhide chewtoy," Buffy offered and both women broke up, laughing hysterically. The doctor and the two nurses watched the exchange in utter disbelief.
"I think he's hungry," Willow whispered as the tiny being in her arms began to whine softly.
Buffy was a little surprised when Willow unhesitatingly pulled the hospital gown from her shoulder and cradled her son to her bared breast. The action caused one of the nurses to faint dead away. The other nurse darted from the room, her hand over her mouth.
"Will?" Buffy asked quietly, "Are you sure that's a good idea?"
"A baby *needs* to suckle," Willow avowed, "I promised myself when I became pregnant that my child would *not* be a bottle baby. And I'm not about to change my mind."
"Willow," Buffy protested.
"Resolve face," Willow cut Buffy off, using her free hand to point at her determined expression.
The baby released the nipple he had been greedily suckling. He squirmed frantically, a painful whimper escaping in gasps. Willow clutched worriedly at him while Buffy looked on, deeply concerned. Both women watched as the child's face began shifting, the snout flattening out and the points of the ears retracting. The downy hair covering his body and face disappeared. In only a few minutes, the wolfy features were gone and Willow held a redfaced baby with a thatch of chesnut coloured hair covering its head.
The cries now emerging from the baby's mouth were so very human. Willow grabbed one tiny little fist and shifted her arm to bring the baby's face back into contact with the nipple he had abandoned when the change began. Willow looked up from her son and beamed at Buffy, who returned the grin happily.
"Incredible!" Doctor Lewis remarked from the other side of the bed.
He leaned over and reached out to draw the blanket away from the child a little. He gazed down in wonder at the so normal appearing infant, awed.
"Congratulations, Mrs. Osbourne," he offered belatedly, "If you will wait just a moment, I'll fetch a wheelchair and we'll transport you and your son to your room. I'll have a bassinette set up beside your bed so the two of you can remain together. You may have visitors for the next hour or so, but then I want you to get some rest. If no complications develop, I'm certain we can release you to return home by four o'clock or so."
"Um, doc?" Buffy stopped the man before he could leave the room, "Do you think we could keep the baby's...uh...affliction off the record? Very few people know Willow's husband is a werewolf and we'd like to keep it that way."
"Of course," Doctor Lewis replied, "I'll speak to the nurses personally. Your secret will be safe, Willow. I promise."
"So," Buffy turned to Willow once the doctor was out of the room in his quest for a wheelchair, "Have you and Oz decided on what you're going to name him?"
"Yes, we have," Willow replied, a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth, "May I introduce you to Giles Alexander Osbourne?"
Buffy's eyes widened.
"It was Oz's idea, even," Willow continued, "We wanted to name our child after some of the most important people in our lives. If it had been a girl, we were going to name her Anne Elizabeth. We thought Buffy Cordelia might a bit much."
"Oh, Will," Buffy breathed softly, deeply honoured.
Buffy was still a little surprised that Oz had suggested naming his son after Giles and Xander, well more so the Xander part. The two men still weren't really friends, but they did work at getting along civilly for Willow's sake. But hearing that Oz had also considered naming his daughter with Buffy's and Cordelia's middle names was very touching.
"Don't give up hope, yet," Willow grinned impishly, "Oz and I also think that our child should have a few siblings to play with, so you may get another chance in a couple of years."
"Willow!" Buffy exclaimed just as the doctor returned with the wheel chair.
"Something of concern?" Doctor Lewis asked as he and Buffy helped Willow into the chair for the short trip to her room.
"No," Willow replied, "Just letting my best friend know that if the next one's a girl, she's gonna have a namesake to spoil rotten."
"Next one?" the doctor asked.
"And since you already know about the possible family side effects, I'll be sure to ask for you specifically for the delivery," Willow confirmed, "So we may be doing this again in a few years."
"I'll look forward to it," the doctor replied, smiling down at the remarkable woman in the chair.
As the trio (well foursome, really) proceded down the hall past the waiting room, a crowd joined them. Questions were held back until they reached Willow's room and Buffy began helping her into the bed. The doctor rolled the chair to the door.
"I'll return in a moment with a bassinette for your son," he said over his shoulder as he left the room.
Giles and Xander stood back as Joyce and Cordelia joined Buffy at the bedside and began cooing at the sleeping infant in Willow's arms.
"He's beautiful, Willow," Cordelia said, "Really."
"Yes, he is," Joyce agreed.
"Congratulations, Willow," Giles offered, "I trust there were no complications? The two of you are healthy?"
Willow looked at Buffy and the two women started laughing.
"We're fine, Giles," Willow replied once they got control of their laughter.
"Yeah," Buffy added, "But I think that nurse that fainted is gonna have a nice bump on her head when she comes to."
Several voices competed for attention as everyone demanded an explanation.
"Let's just say," Buffy said, "That young Giles Alexander Osbourne is definitely his father's son. In every way."
"And speaking of his father," Willow added, overriding the others' continued questions, "I think we should call Oz and tell him get his skinny butt down here and say hello to his son."
"Forget the phone," Xander quipped, "I'll go get him. I don't think I want to hear the details, as long as you're all right. Okay, Will?"
When Willow nodded, Xander hurried from the room digging in his pocket for his car keys.
Willow held up her hand to get the others to quiet down, she didn't want the constant stream of questions to wake little Giles.
"Yes," she confirmed, "My son is a werewolf, too. Just like his father. It seems that it is hereditary as well as being transferable through a bite. But I'm telling you, next time I am going to do my damnedest not to deliver under a full moon. I think Doctor Lewis nearly had a heart attack."
"You mean he was all wolfy when he was born?" Cordelia asked with her customary lack of tact, "And then change back to baby form later?"
Willow and Buffy both nodded. Silence filled the room for several minutes after the revelation, then conversation returned to more prosaic topics; diapers, baby clothes, and when Willow and little Giles could go home. Soon, Buffy noticed Willow struggling to keep her eyes open and gently shooed everyone from the room.
Giles and Joyce left together while Cordelia waited with Buffy for Xander to return with Oz. Buffy smiled to herself as Cordelia kept glancing back toward Willow's room, a wistful smile on her lips. Buffy figured it wouldn't be too long before Cordelia managed to get Xander to propose.
[Well he'd better,] Buffy thought, [Or little Giles is going to get *so* spoiled with all of us doting on him.]
THE END
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[She couldn't have waited another couple of hours?] Buffy thought as she hurried down the hallway toward Delivery Room 4, [Oz is going to be *so* upset he missed this. Being chained up in your basement while your first child is being born is a real down side to being a werewolf.]
Buffy pushed open the correct door and rushed to Willow's side. A quick look around the room showed Buffy that things were definitely well under way. Willow sat propped up on the delivery table, her legs already spread, as the doctor prepared to greet a brand new life.
Buffy took Willow's hand in hers, her other hand reaching out to brush the redhead's sweaty bangs out of her eyes. After a reassuring squeeze, Buffy whispered:
"How're you doing, Will?"
"I'm okay, Buffy," Willow replied, her voice tired, "I just wish Oz was here."
"Where is Mr. Osbourne?" Doctor Lewis asked, "I thought you had planned for him to be in attendance."
"He's kind of....um...tied up right now," Buffy answered, exchanging a look with Willow, "Unavoidably detained for several more hours."
"That's a shame. Having the father present at such a joyous occasion is a wonderful experience," Doctor Lewis said, continuing under his breath, "At least the ones who leave the video camera at home are."
Both Buffy and Willow giggled a little when they caught the doctor's qualification. Then Willow hissed as another contraction hit. Buffy felt her hand being crushed in her friend's grip.
"C'mon, Will," Buffy encouraged, "Remember those Lamaze classes. Do your breathing."
"It won't be long now, Mrs. Osbourne," the doctor added, "You're fully dialated now. It's almost time for you to start pushing."
"Please call me Willow," she requested, "Every time someone calls me 'Mrs. Osbourne', I still expect my mother-in-law to be standing behind me."
Doctor Lewis and the nurses chuckled, glad that their patient was able to maintain her sense of humour despite the pain involved with a natural childbirth. Buffy smiled at Willow, using a handy cloth to wipe some of the perspiration from her friend's forehead.
"You've been married for three years, Will," Buffy commented, "You should be used to it by now. And I seem to remember you going around for two weeks after your honeymoon saying how wonderful it was to be 'Mrs. Osbourne'. Making your hubby blush with pleasure every time."
Willow's laugh was cut short by another hiss of pain. The contractions were becoming extremely urgent now. The baby must be getting impatient.
"All right, Willow," the doctor instructed, "When the next contraction starts, take a deep breath and push."
=====
Doctor Lewis kept his clinically detatched mask in place as the wriggling, blood-slick infant emerged from its mother. The nurse standing ready with a warm blanket wasn't so in control. She gasped loudly. Buffy let go of Willow's hand and stepped closer to the action. She relieved the wide-eyed nurse of the blanket and hurriedly wrapped up the baby.
"Don't freak out, doc," she hissed into the doctor's ear, "Just keep going, cut the cord or whatever comes next."
"What's wrong, Buffy?" Willow squeaked, starting to panic.
"Nothing's wrong, Will," Buffy replied, "Relax, everything's going to be okay."
"What is it, Buffy?" Willow demanded; the nurses' shocked looks told her something was seriously wrong with her baby.
"It's a boy," Buffy proudly announced, stepping over to the bassinette and beginning to give the baby its first bath. Willow could hear the sounds her son was beginning to make. And they weren't very babyish.
"Buffy!" Willow practically shrieked, "He's not....deformed, is he?"
"Nope," Buffy claimed, earning disbelieving looks from the nurses, "He's just....very much his father's son."
Willow collapsed back against the pillows, her eyes wide and her mouth open in a silent "Oh". She glanced at the pale faced nurses who were keeping their distance from the blonde woman calmly washing the squirming, furry bundle. Willow looked down at the doctor, who refused to meet her eyes.
"Just another couple of pushes," the doctor said, his voice quavering slightly, "To deliver the afterbirth and then we'll be finished here. You had a very clean delivery, no tearing of the birth canal, so you should be recovered enough to go home this afternoon."
Willow nodded numbly at him before turning back to Buffy.
"You wanna hold your son?" Buffy asked, approaching the new mother.
"Please," Willow's answer fell into the stunned silence as the nurses and the doctor stared in shock.
Buffy stepped up beside Willow and gently placed the baby in his mother's waiting arms. The two women bent close over the blanket-wrapped bundle, ignoring the other people present. Willow extended one finger and gently prodded the tiny snout.
"He is kind of cute," Willow whispered, "But are you sure that he'll...well...change when the moon sets?"
"Of course," Buffy replied, her voice more confident than she really felt.
She hoped that the baby would revert to human form once the moon did set. She and Giles had looked at everything they could find on werewolves when Willow and Oz had announced the pregnancy, but they hadn't been able to find much on the offspring of one. Oz had also confided his own worries about it to Buffy, after making her promise not to mention it to his wife.
All of the information Buffy had waded through was centered on werewolf bites as the means to become a werewolf. There was nothing on what hereditary effects, if any, being a werewolf might have. So the tension had mounted as Willow's due date got closer, even if no one had wanted to voice any doubts. Willow going into labour a week early, on the night just after the full moon had cranked Buffy's concern up another notch, but she had buried it deep in order to be there for her friend. Buffy was certain that Giles and the rest of the Slayerettes were pacing the waiting room, hoping word would come that the baby was normal.
"It's a good thing Xander's not here," Willow said, interrupting Buffy's thoughts.
"Oh, yeah," Buffy agreed, "After he finished wigging, he'd probably say something really stupid and piss us all off."
"Like how I'll have to housebreak my own son," Willow remarked, starting to giggle, "Or how I'll spend my time digging up the back yard looking for buried rattles."
"Whether he should bring a teething ring or a rawhide chewtoy," Buffy offered and both women broke up, laughing hysterically. The doctor and the two nurses watched the exchange in utter disbelief.
"I think he's hungry," Willow whispered as the tiny being in her arms began to whine softly.
Buffy was a little surprised when Willow unhesitatingly pulled the hospital gown from her shoulder and cradled her son to her bared breast. The action caused one of the nurses to faint dead away. The other nurse darted from the room, her hand over her mouth.
"Will?" Buffy asked quietly, "Are you sure that's a good idea?"
"A baby *needs* to suckle," Willow avowed, "I promised myself when I became pregnant that my child would *not* be a bottle baby. And I'm not about to change my mind."
"Willow," Buffy protested.
"Resolve face," Willow cut Buffy off, using her free hand to point at her determined expression.
The baby released the nipple he had been greedily suckling. He squirmed frantically, a painful whimper escaping in gasps. Willow clutched worriedly at him while Buffy looked on, deeply concerned. Both women watched as the child's face began shifting, the snout flattening out and the points of the ears retracting. The downy hair covering his body and face disappeared. In only a few minutes, the wolfy features were gone and Willow held a redfaced baby with a thatch of chesnut coloured hair covering its head.
The cries now emerging from the baby's mouth were so very human. Willow grabbed one tiny little fist and shifted her arm to bring the baby's face back into contact with the nipple he had abandoned when the change began. Willow looked up from her son and beamed at Buffy, who returned the grin happily.
"Incredible!" Doctor Lewis remarked from the other side of the bed.
He leaned over and reached out to draw the blanket away from the child a little. He gazed down in wonder at the so normal appearing infant, awed.
"Congratulations, Mrs. Osbourne," he offered belatedly, "If you will wait just a moment, I'll fetch a wheelchair and we'll transport you and your son to your room. I'll have a bassinette set up beside your bed so the two of you can remain together. You may have visitors for the next hour or so, but then I want you to get some rest. If no complications develop, I'm certain we can release you to return home by four o'clock or so."
"Um, doc?" Buffy stopped the man before he could leave the room, "Do you think we could keep the baby's...uh...affliction off the record? Very few people know Willow's husband is a werewolf and we'd like to keep it that way."
"Of course," Doctor Lewis replied, "I'll speak to the nurses personally. Your secret will be safe, Willow. I promise."
"So," Buffy turned to Willow once the doctor was out of the room in his quest for a wheelchair, "Have you and Oz decided on what you're going to name him?"
"Yes, we have," Willow replied, a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth, "May I introduce you to Giles Alexander Osbourne?"
Buffy's eyes widened.
"It was Oz's idea, even," Willow continued, "We wanted to name our child after some of the most important people in our lives. If it had been a girl, we were going to name her Anne Elizabeth. We thought Buffy Cordelia might a bit much."
"Oh, Will," Buffy breathed softly, deeply honoured.
Buffy was still a little surprised that Oz had suggested naming his son after Giles and Xander, well more so the Xander part. The two men still weren't really friends, but they did work at getting along civilly for Willow's sake. But hearing that Oz had also considered naming his daughter with Buffy's and Cordelia's middle names was very touching.
"Don't give up hope, yet," Willow grinned impishly, "Oz and I also think that our child should have a few siblings to play with, so you may get another chance in a couple of years."
"Willow!" Buffy exclaimed just as the doctor returned with the wheel chair.
"Something of concern?" Doctor Lewis asked as he and Buffy helped Willow into the chair for the short trip to her room.
"No," Willow replied, "Just letting my best friend know that if the next one's a girl, she's gonna have a namesake to spoil rotten."
"Next one?" the doctor asked.
"And since you already know about the possible family side effects, I'll be sure to ask for you specifically for the delivery," Willow confirmed, "So we may be doing this again in a few years."
"I'll look forward to it," the doctor replied, smiling down at the remarkable woman in the chair.
As the trio (well foursome, really) proceded down the hall past the waiting room, a crowd joined them. Questions were held back until they reached Willow's room and Buffy began helping her into the bed. The doctor rolled the chair to the door.
"I'll return in a moment with a bassinette for your son," he said over his shoulder as he left the room.
Giles and Xander stood back as Joyce and Cordelia joined Buffy at the bedside and began cooing at the sleeping infant in Willow's arms.
"He's beautiful, Willow," Cordelia said, "Really."
"Yes, he is," Joyce agreed.
"Congratulations, Willow," Giles offered, "I trust there were no complications? The two of you are healthy?"
Willow looked at Buffy and the two women started laughing.
"We're fine, Giles," Willow replied once they got control of their laughter.
"Yeah," Buffy added, "But I think that nurse that fainted is gonna have a nice bump on her head when she comes to."
Several voices competed for attention as everyone demanded an explanation.
"Let's just say," Buffy said, "That young Giles Alexander Osbourne is definitely his father's son. In every way."
"And speaking of his father," Willow added, overriding the others' continued questions, "I think we should call Oz and tell him get his skinny butt down here and say hello to his son."
"Forget the phone," Xander quipped, "I'll go get him. I don't think I want to hear the details, as long as you're all right. Okay, Will?"
When Willow nodded, Xander hurried from the room digging in his pocket for his car keys.
Willow held up her hand to get the others to quiet down, she didn't want the constant stream of questions to wake little Giles.
"Yes," she confirmed, "My son is a werewolf, too. Just like his father. It seems that it is hereditary as well as being transferable through a bite. But I'm telling you, next time I am going to do my damnedest not to deliver under a full moon. I think Doctor Lewis nearly had a heart attack."
"You mean he was all wolfy when he was born?" Cordelia asked with her customary lack of tact, "And then change back to baby form later?"
Willow and Buffy both nodded. Silence filled the room for several minutes after the revelation, then conversation returned to more prosaic topics; diapers, baby clothes, and when Willow and little Giles could go home. Soon, Buffy noticed Willow struggling to keep her eyes open and gently shooed everyone from the room.
Giles and Joyce left together while Cordelia waited with Buffy for Xander to return with Oz. Buffy smiled to herself as Cordelia kept glancing back toward Willow's room, a wistful smile on her lips. Buffy figured it wouldn't be too long before Cordelia managed to get Xander to propose.
[Well he'd better,] Buffy thought, [Or little Giles is going to get *so* spoiled with all of us doting on him.]
THE END