I just want to apologize for taking so long with this chapter. I've been very busy with school and work (I have rent to pay and a cat to support.) I also have been struggling with this chapter. There's been a combination of wanting it to be perfect plus computer glitches. But this is the finished product. I hope that you enjoy it!

Chapter Seventy: Wonderful and New

No one spoke. They all just stared at Buffy, trying to process what she had just said. If the situation hadn't been so serious Spike would have enjoyed seeing all the Scoobies speechless for once.

"Ah....Are..are you sure?" Xander asked, the first to recover his voice

Buffy glared at him and then gestured to her damp clothes and spreading wetness on the van floor.

"Ew," Andrew said. "That's going to stain isn't it?"

"Yeah," Jonathan said. "Amniotic fluid never comes out."

Spike glanced at Andrew and Jonathan, vamped out and then went back to normal. The sight of Spike's vampire face shut Andrew and Jonathan up completely. With them taken care of he turned his attention back to Buffy.

"When did the contractions start?" asked Tara, moving forward and kneeling in front of Buffy.

Buffy hesitated, then said, "At the Magic Box, while you guys were looking for stuff on Dante."

"Why didn't you anything?" Giles asked, cleaning his glasses. He'd been cleaning his glasses non-stop since Buffy had announced that her water had broken.

"When would have been a good time?" Buffy asked. "We're in the middle of....Ah," Buffy wasn't about to stifle a cry when a contraction caught her off guard. She shut her eyes and held onto Spike's hand as tightly as she could.

"Easy luv," Spike said, trying to ignore his crushed hand. He used his other hand to brush her hair back from her face. "Just breathe."

Everyone just watched awkwardly, not sure of what to do, except Tara. She looked at her watch and once the contraction eased asked Buffy, "How far apart are they?"

Buffy shook her head. Timing the contractions had not been her job. Spike answered, "Seven minutes now."

Buffy glanced up at him, "They're coming really fast," She gasped. She looked around at the van, "And I am not having my baby in this van."

"The nearest town is four miles away," Xander said, looking at the map. "One of us could walk there and get help."

"Good idea," Giles said. "We can get gas for the van and the town might have a doctor."

"Go now then," Buffy said, leaning back against Spike, her hands on her stomach. "Because I don't know if this baby's going's to wait much longer."

"I'll go," Giles said. "You need Willow and Tara here for protection. Dawn's too young, Anya's not up to it and Spike can't walk that far in daylight."

"What about me?" Xander asked. "I can go."

Giles eyed him, "I thought that you'd want to stay with your wife." He gestured to Anya. She was sitting up but still pale.

"One of you just go," Buffy snapped. "I told you that this baby is not going to wait."

Giles got out of the car, "I'll be back as quickly as I can," He told them and then he was gone.

"What now?" Willow asked. "What if Giles doesn't get back in time and where is the baby going to be born. You said that you don't want him born in this van and who's going to deliver him and..."

"I will," Tara said, interrupting Willow's nervous babble.

"What?" Buffy asked. "You can't deliver a baby."

"While you were gone I talked to some...legitimate midwife friends. I read everything I could find and sat in on a birth," Tara explained. "I thought that something like this might happen and I wanted to be prepared."

"Good," Buffy said. "But I still don't want to have my baby in this van." She glared at Andrew and Jonathan who were still cowering in the corner. "Who knows what's been in this thing."

Xander pointed out the van window, "I think there's a cave there," He pointed to the rock formation that they'd nearly crashed into. Xander jumped out of the van, was gone for a minute and then returned. "There's a cave in there, big enough for all of us."

"Can you still walk?" Tara asked, eying the distance from the van to the cave entrance. Buffy could probably make it. Even if she couldn't walk, Spike could carry her.

"I think so," Buffy said. She started to feel the now familiar ache in her back that signaled the start of a contraction. She was still holding Spike's hand and she tightened her grip as the contraction hit full force. She bit her lip, trying to stifle a scream.

"Don't try to be brave," Spike said, softly. "Yell all you want."

"Shut up," Buffy gasped, her eyes squeezed shut. "Just shut up!"

Spike obeyed and didn't say another word until the contraction passed. Once it did Buffy fell back against him, gasping.

"Okay," Tara said. "Let's go." She wanted to get Buffy settled in the cave before the next contraction and Tara wasn't sure how long they had.

With Spike's help Buffy was able to get out of the van and walk as best she could towards the cave. Spike was able to avoid the sun by staying in the van and cave's shadows. He also had covered his head with his blanket. Once they were inside the cave Spike spread his blanket on the floor and helped Buffy to lay down on it before he sat down next to her.

"Nice cave," Andrew said, entering the cave with Jonathan. "Are there bats here?"

Buffy looked up at them, "Get out."

"Buffy," Jonathan started to say. "We're so sorry....."

"Shut up," Buffy snapped, sitting up with Spike's help and leaning against the cave wall for support. "And get out."

"But.." Andrew started to say.

"You heard the lady," Xander said, helping Anya walk into the cave. "Wait with the van."

"And hope Dante doesn't find you," Willow said, glaring at them.

Andrew and Jonathan quickly hurried out as everyone else settled into the cave. The cave was not large but enough to hold all of them. Willow quickly cast a blocking and protection spell and stood at the mouth of the cave to maintain it and keep watch. Dawn stood near the entrance of the cave, helping Willow to keep watch. Anya sat down on the cave floor across from Buffy, her hands resting on her stomach. Xander sat down next to her and she rested her head on his shoulder. Tara set down several bottles of water that she'd taken from the van's small fridge and knelt in front of Buffy.

"Buffy," Tara said. "Can I check you, to see how dilated you are and if the baby's in the right position?"

Buffy hesitated but nodded. Right now Tara was the only one there with any idea of how to deliver her baby. She let Tara help her undress from the waist down while Spike tore part of the blanket away so that she could drape it over her legs for modesty. Once that was done Tara carefully examined her.

"Okay," Tara said. "The baby's in the right position and you're at eight centimeters, so you have two more to go before you can start pushing."

"How long's that going to be?" Buffy gasped as she tried to breath through a contraction.

Tara shook her head, "It's up to the baby. He'll go at his own pace."

Buffy glared at her but didn't say anything. She just leaned back against the cave wall and shut her eyes, preparing for the next contraction.

They were all silent for a minute and then Anya spoke, "What's it like?"

Buffy opened her eyes, "What?"

"Labor," Anya said. "What's it like? How bad does it hurt and what kind of pain is it? Is it cramping like your period or is it more like someone's stabbing you with a knife or..."

"Shut up!" Willow said, turning from her vigil at the mouth of the cave. Buffy was about to answer Anya but Willow had interrupted her. "Leave her alone."

"I was just asking," Anya protested, tears coming to her eyes.

"Will, it's okay," Buffy said. Talking to Anya might distract her from the pain.

"No, it's not okay," Willow said. "You need to concentrate on having your baby, not on Anya's constant need to know things."

"I just..." Anya started to say, blinking back tears. She looked over at Xander for support.

"Will's right," Xander said. "You can talk to Buffy about what it's like later."

Anya looked around, hoping for some kind of support from the rest but everyone was distracted. Spike and Tara were helping Buffy to breathe through a contraction and Dawn was still watching for any sign of danger or of Giles's return. Anya looked back at Xander, tried to speak, stopped and then moved further back into the cave where she laid down and watched what was going on.

Spike glanced over at Anya and shook his head. When this was over he was going to tell Xander a few things but now wasn't the time. He turned his attention back to Buffy.

"You're doing great," Tara said. "It probably won't be much longer."

"I hope not," Buffy gasped, collapsing back against the cave wall. "Because I want this baby out..now!"

"He'll be here soon enough, luv," Spike said, knowing that whatever he said would be wrong.

Buffy didn't disappoint, "No," She gasped. "I mean right now! I need to push!"

"Don't!" Tara said, quickly. "You're not fully dilated yet and if you push it'll hurt the baby. You just have to hang on a little longer."

"Easy for you to say," Buffy snapped. "And don't you dare say anything," She said, turning her wrath onto Spike. "Or I'll make you beg for death..."

Spike for once in his life kept his mouth shut. He used his free hand to brush her hair back from Buffy's forehead but quickly withdrew it when she ordered him not to touch her.

"You're almost there," Tara soothed.

"I'm there," Buffy gasped, bracing herself against the cave wall, her eyes shut. "It feels different.. there's all this pressure...."

"Okay," Tara said, quickly checking Buffy. "You're fully dilated. On the next contraction I want you to take a deep breath and then push until I tell you to stop."

Buffy nodded and gripped Spike's hand tighter while he slid his arm around her shoulders for support. She could already feel the beginnings of a contraction. She took a deep breath and pushed as hard as she could while Tara counted to ten.

As soon as Tara reached ten, she told Buffy to stop pushing. Buffy fell back against Spike, and gasping.

"You're doing great," Tara assured her. "You're almost there."

Buffy nodded, "I hope so because...." She was cut off as another contraction hit. Buffy let out a scream that ended when a small form slid into Tara's waiting hands.

Buffy collapsed against Spike, gasping for breath and trying to catch a glimpse of the baby as Tara tended to him.

"Is he alright?" Spike asked, also straining for a glimpse of his son. "He's all blue and white....

"He's fine," Tara assured them as she washed the baby. "They all look like that." She quickly wrapped him in a jacket donated by Dawn and handed him to his mother. "He's perfect."

Buffy stared down at her son, not sure of what to do next. She reached over and touched his hand. With quick reflexes he grabbed onto her finger and held tight. Buffy stared into his vivid blue eyes and felt a primitive rush of love and protectiveness that she'd never felt before. Until this moment she hadn't known how much she loved her son. She'd already begun to love him but nothing she'd ever felt compared to this moment.

Buffy turned from her son to look at Spike, to see if he was as stunned as she was. He was staring down at their son with an expression of wonder and disbelief. He reached down and gently touched the baby's cheek. "He's perfect," Spike said, softly.

"Of course he is," Buffy said, blinking back tears as she turned back to her son. Now that she could study him more closely she could easily see that he was the image of his father. He had Spike's blue eyes and as the baby's hair dried it was already beginning to curl. His face was red, his head was pointed, and Spike had been right, he was perfect.

Buffy looked up as Spike and quietly handed him the baby. As much as she hated to have him out of her arms for a second she knew that Spike deserved his chance to hold his son.

Spike stared down at his son, with a slight grin on his face. The baby was also staring up at his father, studying him in the same way. Then he yawned, stretched and closed his eyes. Spike smiled and gently kissed the baby on his forehead, all the time wondering how something he had helped create could be so perfect and wonderful.

He looked back at Buffy, and was about to thank her for this perfect little person when he saw that she'd fallen asleep. Spike leaned down, kissed her on the temple and turned his attention back to the baby. Spike would let her sleep, the others deal with the outside world, for now he just wanted to get acquainted with his son.