A/N : Here is the third and final story in this mini series. Thanx for the reviews on the second story; kargrif, spikespet2002, Freezyboncoolipants, TammyDevil666, Spuffyfan4eva, Moluvsnumber17, I'm really glad you all enjoyed it, and I hope you like this one too. Please not that the actual story Our Little Family is set in May 2016, therefore this little fic is actually in the future from that story, hence the title - Christmas Yet To Come. Hope all that makes sense, it did in my head! Here's the last Xmas fic...
(For disclaimer, etc. - see Chapter 1 and 'Our Little Family')

Story 3 of 3 : Christmas Yet To Come December 2016

"Well, that's all the gifts unwrapped" Buffy smiled, before changing her mind and frowning as she glanced towards the kitchen "I guess I better go check on that turkey..."

Spike moved to get up from the floor and follow her (Buffy should not be allowed near cooking food by herself) when Becky called them back.

"Wait Mom, there's still one more" she said, reaching under the tree and pulling a small brightly wrapped box out into the open. Buffy looked puzzled as she picked up the gift that seemed to have suddenly appeared. She shared a glance with Spike as they sat down once again and she read aloud from the tag on the box.

"For Mom and Dad, A Christmas wish come true (I hope) All my love Becky"

"What's this about, Little Bit?" her father asked as he leaned in next to Buffy to see what she held in her hands.

"Open it and find out" Becky urged, practically bouncing up and down and finally her mother conceded and pulled off he red wrapping. Opening up the small box inside she still looked confused by what she found.

"It's a ring" she announced, turning the box so Spike could see.

"Bloody hell, is that what I think it is?" he gasped, ripping it from Buffy's hands without thinking.

"What?" the Slayer leaned over his shoulder to inspect the ring again "I mean it kinda looks like...but, it can't be, can it?" her brow creased as she looked between the ring, Spike, and Rebecca.

"The Gem of Amara?" the vampire dared to speak the words that had been spinning in his head for the past two minutes since the box was opened, "Looks like it, but Peaches smashed that up years ago, right?"

When he looked to Buffy for a reply she only nodded dumbly and so both turned to their daughter for explanation.

"Angel smashed up the original" she agreed "so I kinda made a new one" her voice disappeared towards the end, she was both embarrassed now and also worried that maybe this hadn't been such a good idea. She just wanted her Dad to be more free and by association her Mom too. They did so much for her, ensuring her happiness as much as they could, she just wanted to give something back. Now she wondered if she'd made the wrong decision. Was she sending out the message that she wanted her father to change because she really hadn't meant to...

"You made this?" Spike couldn't believe what he was hearing or seeing right now, and had to pinch himself to ensure it wasn't a highly vivid dream.

"Well, not just me" Becky admitted "Aunt Willow and Aunt Tara helped a whole lot obviously..." she trailed off when her parents looked away "Merry Christmas?" she tried hoping to get the joyful response she'd expected.

"Rebecca, sweetheart, you can't just re-make the Gem of Amara it's one of a kind" Spike told her "the magicks involved are beyond anything..."

"Not beyond my witchy Aunts" she grinned "although it took a lot of time and effort to get this right. I researched for months before I even told them about my idea and between the three of us it took just a few more weeks to conjure up this little baby" she smirked much like her father always did and Buffy nearly laughed it was all so unbelievable.

"I can't believe it" she shook her head as a grin took over her face. It truly was amazing and like a real wish come true.

"Bit, this is..." Spike stumbled over what he meant to say, clearly even more moved by the occasion than Buffy "I can't even tell you, I..." the words just wouldn't come, but the tears did, though he made a valiant effort to hide them.

"Dad, are you crying?" Becky was stunned to see it. As far as she could recall her father had never shed a tear in her presence, Uncle Xander had and even Grandpa Giles that one time, but never her Dad.

"No I'm bloody not" he argued, looking not quite mad at her for noticing "just, something in my eye is all" he said, rubbing away the stray droplets. Buffy's eyes were fixed on the box in his hands as she put her arm around him.

"Are you going to put it on, Spike?" she asked and he nodded as he got to his feet.

He seemed to make a big deal of getting out the box and putting it on his finger, but then as Buffy realised this was probably the one thing that would rival their not-quite-a-wedding in importance. Today, if this ring did what it was supposed to, it would change all their lives.

"Do you feel...different?" Becky asked, not really certain whether he would or not. There were very few existing records of vampires using the real Gem of Amara and even fewer written from the vamp's perspective.

"Can't say as I do" Spike told her, absently flexing the hand that bore the special ring "but then if memory serves I didn't last time either" he said thoughtfully "Guess the only real way to tell is..." he walked towards the window but Buffy dived in front of him, putting her hands on his chest to keep him back.

"No!" she shouted more loudly than she ever meant to. His confused and almost hurt look made her calm down fast "Just stand to the side, hold your hand out and I'll open the drapes just a little" the Slayer told him, before turning to her daughter "It's not that I don't trust you Becky, but..."

"It's okay, Mom" the girl nodded in understanding "I want him to be careful too"

Nothing could be worse than losing either of her parents, and the guilt she would feel if the ring failed and caused her father harm would be tremendous.

"Okay, ready?" Buffy asked nervously as she stood by the window, Spike off to the side, with his arm held out where the sun was about to come in.

"As I'll ever be, pet" he nodded, part of him already planning to dive into the shadows if this all went wrong. For the most part, however, he just had great faith and pride in his little girl, as well as Willow and Tara obviously.

As Buffy pulled the drapes open slightly, a shaft of light fell over Spike's wrist. Instinct told him to immediately pull away but he fought it and grinned all over his face when he realised he wasn't burning or smoking, just being pleasantly warmed by the light. Still a little cautious, he stepped further into the beams and Buffy opened the drapes as wide as they'd go till she saw her vampire love standing in full sunlight.

"Soddin' hell, Bit" Spike laughed "I reckon you've only bloody gone and done it!" he yelled with joy as he grabbed his daughter and spun her around til her feet left the floor. She laughed and screamed to be put down, she was so dizzy.

"I can't believe it" Buffy ran at Spike as soon as his arms were free and he held her tight as tears ran down her cheeks.

"Slayer" he said, pulling away to see her face "God you're even more beautiful in daylight" he told her softly, wiping her tears away. He kissed her then with such a passion, the like of which Rebecca was pleased to say she'd never born witness to before, and hoped to never see again. Though at the same time she was thrilled they were so happy and that she'd played a huge part in that.

"Guys?" she called after a while, but to no avail "Hello? Hey! Breathe already!" she laughed as her parents finally parted, Buffy going a little pink when she realised how long they'd been kissing.

"Don't need to myself, luv, remember?" Spike smirked at his little girl "Come here" he told her, hugging her tightly once again, and it was only at a time like this when Buffy didn't object to not being the girl in Spike's arms "My clever Little Bit" he enthused "you don't know what this means to me"

"I think I kind of do" Becky smiled over his shoulder as he held her tight "but Dad, crushing ribs now, and I kinda need those" she told him jokingly. She was serious again when he looked at her.

"All the stuff I missed when you were growing up" he said sadly "School events, trips to the park and the beach..."

"It doesn't matter" she interrupted "You're still the best Dad a girl could have" she promised as they hugged again.

"Hey" Spike suddenly exclaimed as they parted "Don't you think we should go pick up Red and Glinda? I mean, they shouldn't be walking over here in the sun all by themselves"

"Spike, that makes no sense" Buffy told him, though she laughed when she said it. She couldn't believe how happy he was, like some little kid that just got the gift they really wanted for Christmas, well, in essence he had.

"Stuff bloody sense, Slayer" he told her, still standing in the full on sunshine and loving it "Nothing can hurt me now, not the sun, fire, stakes, I'm impervious to just about every bugger's attack" he grinned with delight "but better than all that" he said more seriously, grabbing both his Slayer and his daughter's hands and pulling them into the light with him "I can see my girls in the daylight. I can walk out into town with the two most beautiful girls in the world on my arms, with the proudest grin on my face when I wish 'em all a Merry bloody Christmas" he said delightedly, making both his girls giggle like idiots.

"I'm gonna go call the Wiccas, make sure they're ready to go and all that" he said, practically bounding over to grab the phone, "Don't go anywhere"

"We won't" Rebecca promised as he disappeared and her mother grabbed hold of her, hugging her tight.

"Oh Becky, I was always proud of you but, what you've done for your father..." she didn't have the words to thank her little girl for what she'd done, or to tell her how proud she truly was, it was just beyond words.

"It was for you too" Becky told her, "I know you love him, but I also know how hard it is sometimes to deal with all the stuff Dad can't do, especially the sun thing, and you guys do so much for me, I wanted to kinda give something back, y'know?" she shrugged, almost as if it were nothing, but they both knew it was an extremely big deal.

"It's not like you owe us anything, sweetheart" Buffy told her, putting her hand to the girl's face "You're our little girl and we love you"

"I love you too, Mom" Rebecca was almost in tears again as she hugged her mother, and that's how Spike found them when he returned to the room.

"Come on you two, no time for messing about" he told them "Let's get out in that winter sun"

- End of Story 3 -

A/N2 : Well, that's it, I'm all done with the writing this side of Christmas. I'll be back afterwards though, hopefully with updates on all my WIPs. In the meantime, please review this last little fic and let me know what you think. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Seasons Greetings, and Best Wishes to all!