Chapter 3

Okay, So my pregnancy facts may be wrong, but gimme a break. I'm 14, so I've never been pregnant, and I'm lazy, so I don't wanna do research.

"You're Michael's mother?"

"Yes, dear. Don't sound so surprised."

"I'm sorry, Amelie, I didn't mean to, but-"

"You want to know how I know who you are."

Sydney smiled sheepishly. "Yes, actually."

"Michael's told me all about you for probably four years now. I've seen pictures, too."

"Ah. I see." Sydney then noticed Amelie eyeing the engagement ring on her left ring finger.

"Is that...?"

"From Va-Michael? Yes, it is."

"But didn't he just recently divorce that blonde? I don't really know the details, but..."

"Amelie, I assume you know what Michael does for a living."

"Yes, of course."

"Well then, I believe that it would be better if he told you in a less public place."

Amelie smiled once more and nodded. The smile faltered slightly when she noticed the curve of Sydney's belly. Sydney followed her gaze and laughed silently when she thought of what must be going through the poor woman's mind.

"It's not his," she whispered.

"Well then who-"

"His name was Milo Rambaldi."

"Who?"

"He was a 15th century prophet."

Amelie gaped once more. "I expect Michael will tell me more. Well, it's been nice talking to you!"

"Au revoir, Amelie."

"Au revoir, Sydney."

Sydney watched Amelie walk away, waving slightly. She turned back to Carrie and said, "Well that was weird."

"You're telling me. I think she almost had a heart attack when you told her about the whole Rambaldi thing."

Sydney smiled a little. "Me too. Shall we get shopping?"

Carrie grinned. "Most definitely."

"Where have you been?" Weiss looked up at Vaughn, eyebrows knitted in confusion.

"Just, uh, talking to Sydney."

"So Sydney's a big fat creepy guy now?"

"Oh. Him."

"Duh. Are you gonna tell me what you talked about or not?"

"Yes, but not here." At Weiss' inquisitory look Vaughn simply shook his head. "Later. So, you ready to play another game?"

A small smile spread across Weiss' face. "No. Not pool anyway. How about pinball?"

"You're on." They each grabbed another beer and headed toward the machines. "Which one? We have Indiana Jones, Star Wars, or Spaceballs."

"Spaceballs, definitely."

"Hm. Balls of Steel is playing Spaceballs pinball. Did you do that on purpose, Weiss?"

"No, actually. Just coincidence." He added, "I promise!" at Vaughn's doubting glare.

"Whatever. Quarters ready?"

"Yep."

"Alright, let's go!"

Half an hour later Weiss called truce. "I'm running out of quarters. We'll finish this later."

Vaughn grinned. "Sounds good. I gotta get home. If I'm lucky, I might beat Syd. I'm sure she's going to need help with all of the stuff she probably bought."

"Okay. Hey, what about Fat Creepy Guy?"

"Just, uh, just look up the name Adam McKenzie, will you?"

"Yeah, okay. See you later."

"Bye, Weiss." Vaughn grabbed his jacket and walked out into the fading orange glow that hung over LA. He got into his car and began to head home. A smile crept across his face as he drove by the home improvement store. He and Sydney were going to have to start with the nursery soon.

Sydney looked at her watch and gave a small yelp of surprise. "Carrie! It's almost 6:30!"

"Seriously?! Wow, we better get going."

"Yeah." Sydney grunted slightly as she pushed against her overloaded cart. "I'm glad that my time as Julia earned me a pay raise. I was, after all, working for Kendall; despite my status as dead to society."

Carrie laughed. "Hey, you know, Julia is a pretty name."

Sydney's smile flickered. "Yeah, I guess," she said slowly.

"Maybe if your baby is a girl you could name her Julia."

Sydney turned cold, the darkness in her eyes swirling like storm clouds. "No," she said firmly. "Not after what happened when I had that name."

Carrie was taken aback at this sudden change. "I'm sorry, Sydney." She paused. "Wait a minute. I thought you didn't remember."

"I do now, more or less. During my surgery, I-I had flashbacks. Carrie, I saw my own funeral."

Carrie gasped. "You're kidding!"

"I wish I was." The darkness began to ebb away. "But I have Vaughn back now..."

"You really love him, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do. Have you-have you ever felt someone was your soulmate?"

Carrie smiled. "Unfortunately, no. But I do love Marshall."

"I know." Sydney hadn't even been paying attention to where she was going until she nearly knocked over a pacifier display. She groaned when she realized she had inadvertently gone into Kathy's line. Carrie was one checkout over, and it was too late to switch. She braced herself as it came to be her turn.

"Oh, hello again!"

"Hi, Kathy."

"My, my! This is quite the purchase you have here! You got all this into your cart yourself?" She noticed the ring on Sydney's finger. "So, where's daddy?"

Sydney had half a mind to tell her that he died approximately 500 years ago, but decided against it. Instead, she settled for, "He's at the bar with a friend."

Kathy clicked her tongue disapprovingly and muttered something under her breath. No ordinary person would've picked it up, but Sydney was no ordinary person. Her years at SD-6 and the CIA had her so well trained that she heard the words as clearly as if Kathy would've spoken them aloud.

"Never say that again," Sydney growled.

Kathy's forced smile ended up looking like a grimace when she said, "Say what?"

"Never, ever call him a lowlife deadbeat. He's been through more-"

"What I meant," Kathy cut in, "was that he shouldn't be hanging out at the bar when his fiance is out doing things for his child.

"It's not like that," Sydney snarled. Her eyes were flashing and her voice was shaking slightly.

"My dear, don't be so naive!"

This time it was Sydney who cut in. "Just because I'm pregnant doesn't mean I couldn't lay you out."

"Was that a threat?"

"You bet it was. I would have no problem kicking your-"

"Sydney!"

She spun around. "Vaughn?"

As he approached he noticed her flushed face. "Syd, baby, what's wrong?"

"Just-just pay for all of this for me, will you? I'm going out to the car. We'll talk when we get home." With that, she turned and left a dumbfounded Vaughn standing at the cash register. Carrie had no idea what was going on, but she decided it was best to stay behind.

Vaughn watched Sydney storm out the door, his mind reeling. Kathy was now tapping her fingers loudly on the counter.

"Excuse me, but could you please pay for this now?"

"Of course. How much?"

Kathy raised her eyebrows. "Well, perhaps if you had been here while the shopping was done, you would know."

A muscle in Vaughn's neck began to twitch. "How much," he repeated firmly.

"One hundred fifty-two dollars and forty-seven cents."

"Thank you." He wrote a check, noticing how it had both his and Sydney's names on it. A minute later he hastily grabbed all the bags, completely ignoring the cart that had been placed for his convenience.

"Uh, Michael?"

He turned his head to see Carrie sitting on a bench alone. "Oh, hey, Carrie."

"Hi." She motioned to Elena. "I know your hands are full, but do you think you could help me? I can't get her carseat to sit in the cart right."

"Oh, sure. Hold on." He put all of his bags on the ground and moved over to help Carrie.

"Do you think she'll be okay?"

"She'll be fine. Syd's a tough girl."

"I missed most of it, but when they met earlier..."

"What? What about earlier?"

"She was really on edge. Moreso than usual." She paused and giggled.

"What?"

"We met your mom."

"My mother was here? Why?"

"No clue," she said airily. "Well, thanks for your help."

"No problem." Still stunned, he picked up his bags and headed for his car, while Carrie headed for Sydney's.

When Sydney got home she simply collapsed onto the couch. She began to cry almost immediately. Not a dainty weep, but a strangled bawling. Her face became contorted, red, and splotchy. Each time she tried to inhale it was an ugly, snotty gasp. She heard the door open and knew it was Vaughn, but she didn't react. He found her curled into the fetal position, her hands covering her head. The moment he sat down beside her she lunged toward him, wrapping her arms around his neck. He pulled her into his lap fully and began stroking her hair, whispering soothing words in French all the while. They sat there for hours, so close together there was no space between them. After a while, Sydney took a shuddering breath.

"You okay, babe?"

She shook her head. "That woman..."

"Are you going to tell me?"

This time she nodded and began, right from the moment she had walked into the store.

"Oh, Syd," was all Vaughn could say when she finished. "I'm so sorry, babe."

"I know." She stopped for a minute and then began to giggle.

"What?"

"Well, when she asked where the father was I was SO close to telling her he died about 500 years ago."

This time it was Vaughn who laughed. "So, I understand you met my mom?"

"Yeah. She seems nice."

"She is. We should have her over sometime."

Sydney smiled. "Yeah, we should. I think we'd all like that."

"I love you, Sydney."

"I love you, too, Michael."

"Oh, God!"

"Sydney, are you okay?" It was 12:30 AM, about a week and a half after the encounter with Kathy. Sydney had since avoided the baby store.

"Oh, God!" She got up and sprinted to the bathroom, Vaughn at her heels. He found her leaning over the toilet; the room's lights still off. He flipped the switch and kneeled next to Sydney on the floor, pulling her long brown hair away from her face.

"You okay, babe?"

Sydney barely had time to shake her head before she began to retch again. "This really sucks, Vaughn."

"I'm sure it does. I'm gonna start a bath, okay?"

She heaved again before answering. "Thanks. Could you get me a cool washcloth, too?"

"Anything for you, Sydney." He kissed the top of her head as he stood up. It was the third time that week that she had woken up sick. Vaughn knew it was due to the pregnancy, but it still pained him to see her like this.

"Vaughn?" She was now leaning against the wall. He handed her the washcloth and she gave him a weak smile.

"The tub is ready when you are."

"Thanks. I'm sorry I keep waking you up like this."

"Don't be sorry. We're having a baby. Never be sorry for that." He kissed the top of her head again and headed out to the kitchen. Unfortunately for them, they both had work that day, so Vaughn started a pot of coffee. Even though carrying and delivering the Rambaldi baby was Sydney's new mission, it was still required that she go to debriefs.

Vaughn returned to the bathroom to find Sydney relaxing in a tub full of lavender scented suds.

"God Bless Mr. Bubbles, Bath and Body Works, and the genius creation of the bathtub," Sydney laughed. Vaughn put the toilet lid down and sat on it. He gazed at Sydney for a moment before cupping her face with his hand. She sighed and leaned into it. "I love you, Michael."

He gave her a crooked smile and said, "I love you too, Sydney." She kissed his palm gently and saw him smiling.

"What?"

"You called me Michael."

"So?"

"I like it. But..."

Sydney cocked an eyebrow and shifted, the water sloshing around her. "But what?"

"It's two things, really. You never used to call me Michael, so it's just different. And, well, all my other ex-girlfriends, and I guess my ex-wife too, always called me Michael. You were the only one who made me love my last name."

"So, do you not want me to call you Michael?"

"No, I mean, yes... Which works here? Anyhow, I don't care either way. I think even dispersal would work best."

"Mmm." She was tempted to pull him closer and kiss him, but vomit-breath was probably a huge turn-off she concluded. She settled for another light kiss to his palm instead. "I think the coffee's ready."

Dixon looked at the group of people surrounding him with pride. They had all sacrificed so much, but still they remained strong. He also noticed the seating configuration changes. Will Tippin was now a part of the group, and he sat between Weiss and Marshall. Carrie was seated on Marshall's other side, little Elena asleep in her arms. On the other side of the room, Sydney sat between her father and Vaughn, whose hand was being clutched tightly. Next to Jack sat Kendall in a rare appearance. Dixon cleared his throat before starting. "I assume you've noticed Mr. Tippin here. He's been pulled out of Witness Protection due to the fact that Allison Doren and Arvin Sloane are no longer probable threats. He will resume status as an analyst, but will be sitting in during debriefs." He paused to take a breath and realized that Kendall was being carefully scrutinized by nearly everyone in the room. "Mr. Kendall is here to oversee the results of the Rambaldi investigation, as well as the outcome of Agent Bristow's pregnancy."

"Speaking of which," Jack interrupted. "I believe that a celebration is in order? After all, this is a very important child that is to be born."

"Dad, don't, seriously..."

"It's too late, Sydney," Weiss piped up. "It's already planned. You won't know when, and you won't know where, but it's ready. Just don't kick my a if I'm the poor unfortunate soul who has to do the surprise pickup."

Sydney smiled. "Well, I can't make any guarantees, Weiss. Sorry, you just might have to face the wrath."

"But that's no fair," he whined. "You're half Derevko, half Bristow, AND Rambaldi's chosen one? Sorry, Syd, but that kinda scares the crap out of me."

"Save me, Jeebus!" Vaughn muttered. Sydney suppressed a laugh, which instead threw her into a fit of silent giggles.

Weiss rolled his eyes. "What now?"

"Save me, Jeebus," Vaughn repeated; a little louder this time.

"Huh?"

"Come on man, don't you watch the Simpsons?"

"Nope, not really. I'm more of a Futurama person."

Dixon cleared his throat loudly. "That's enough, gentlemen. Mr. Kendall, I believe you have something to share?"

Kendall nodded and stood up. "As you may be aware, Lauren Reed was transferred to Camp Harris roughly one month ago. Up until last week she was stonewalling, but we have made a breakthrough. It appears the Covenant lab is in an abandoned warehouse in Brazil."

"Brazil?" Sydney echoed.

"Rio de Janeiro, to be exact. Weiss, Vaughn, and Sydney, you'll be going to the lab. We would like you to bring back some evidence and destroy the rest."

Jack cocked an eyebrow. "Who is 'we' exactly?"

"DSR." Kendall slid three folders to their owners, each detailing the mission.

"Um, sir?" Kendall looked over at Sydney questioningly.

"Yes, Ms. Bristow?"

"Well, couldn't this be potentially dangerous? If I get into a fight, there is a rather large chance that the baby could get injured."

"That has been taken into account, I assure you. You will have special tactical gear to protect you and the child. And I'm sure Weiss and Vaughn will take good care of you."

"Thank you, sir."

"You're welcome. Well, I have nothing more to say, so with Director Dixon's approval, I assume you are all free to go."

Dixon nodded and opened the door. He didn't like the idea of Sydney on another mission, but in this case he had no control.

"Boy Scout, I'm going after her. You get the other guy."

"Copy that, Mountaineer. Boot Camp, do you copy?"

"Gotcha, Boy Scout. Be careful."

At Weiss' last words, Sydney and Vaughn took off running in opposite directions. Sydney saw the dark hair whip around the corner before hearing the elevator doors slam shut. She came around the corner to see the back of the other woman's head sinking quickly. "Go figure," she muttered. "Let's make the pregnant woman run down the stairs." She heard Weiss' laugh on the other end of her earpiece and took off down the stairs. She stopped on the landing two floors down and hid behind the corner. She was invisible to the woman in the elevator, but she had a perfect view. The elevator stopped and the woman turned around. "No," Sydney gasped. "She should be dead!"

Vaughn's voice crackled over her com. "Syd, what is it?"

"It's Allison," she breathed. "She's alive."

Vaughn stopped in his tracks. "What?! Syd, I'm coming to help."

"No! Get your guy. I'm going after Allison."

Vaughn knew there was no stopping her, so he resumed his chase. He leapt over the stair railing and rounded the corner to find the man trapped at a dead end. Something about his figure and stance was familiar.

"Drop your gun and turn around slowly."

The man dropped his gun, but did not turn around. "Hello again, Mr. Vaughn."

"Turn around," Vaughn repeated. His voice was steely and commanding, so much that it made the hair on the back of Weiss' neck stand on end.

"Okay, Agent Vaughn. If you want me to." He turned around, and Vaughn's eyes widened.

"Adam McKenzie?"

Silently Sydney crept up behind Allison when she yelled, "Allison! Freeze!"

She spun around, looking confused. "Sydney?! Who's Allison?"

Sydney's jaw nearly dropped to the floor. "Francie?!"