A/N: This is my first Christy fanfic. Based more on the television show than the book. This is after the episode when Christy was kidnapped with Sam Houston by Jarvis Tatum and when David was shot. Christy has accepted David's proposal and the wedding is set for spring. As you can tell this is a Christy/David pairing. The one I thought they should have developed better. All characters belong to Chatherine Marshall and family. I'm only borrowing them for a time.

A Cold Mountain Night

Chapter Four: Birthday!

Spring was Christy's favorite time in the cove. Everything awoke and looked wonderful and green. Of all the things blooming Christy was growing as well. She loved feeling the movement of the baby. She could swear at times that there was two of them in there, with all the movement and kicks she got. Neil now came to check on her more often now that she was getting farther along. He still wouldn't let her do much. He had told her that it was her fluctuating blood pressure that was casuing her fainting spells. If she got too excited she could drop, if she did too much it could drop and take her with it.

David was a prince. He pampered his dear wife with everything. He wrote to both his mother and hers for special gifts. Baby things were slowly taking over the small room in the mission house that Christy and David shared. Unknown to the Grantland's the Spencer, McHone, Holcombe, and Allen families were building the young family a cabin just behind the mission. The children of the families did their best to keep the preacher and his wife blissfully unaware of the project. For the most part it was working. Fairlight Spencer and Mary Allen were working with their girls to make a quilt for the baby.

One afternoon, while Christy was resting, Fairlight came into the parlor of the house. To Christy she was acting very strange. "Is something wrong Fairlight?"

"Nothin' wrong Miz Christy," Fairlight answered. "If you're feeling up to it, would you like to join me on the porch for some tea?"

"I'd like that very much," Christy said, getting to her feet. That task was getting harder every day for her. Fairlight helped her out onto the porch and Christy was greeted with a resounding call of suprise. All the women from the cove that Christy had spent time with had managed to get there. Mary Allen, Swannie O'Teale, Rebecca Holt, Elizabeth Holcombe, Opal McHone and even Granny Barclay. All had gathered to suprise the young schoolteacher with a baby shower.

"Oh this is just wonderful!" Christy gushed. "Thank you all so much!"

The gifts were simple, things that Christy and the baby would need. The Spencers' gave her beeswax candles to burn in the baby's room for the soft honey scent. Mary Allen had knitted four little hats for the baby. It was little things to show Christy how much she meant to all of them. But the gift Christy loved the most was the cradle carved by hand from Tom and Opal McHone. Tom, Uncle Bogg and Isaac had each done a bit. Christy laid all the gifts in it so David could carry it up to their room later.

Later that afternoon when David returned from Lufty Branch most of the families were still gathered at the mission house. The men standing together talking while the women were on the porch fussing over Christy. Little Burl Allen was the first to see David coming up the path.

"Preacher's back Pa!" Little Burl yelled. "Can we tell him now?"

"Hush your mouth boy!" Bob Allen scolded.

"Tell me what?" David asked.

"More like show you," Rob said. "We have something we'd like to show you Preacher and Miz Christy."

Both David and Christy were very confused. David helped Christy down the steps and held her hand as their friends and neighbors led them a ways behind the mission house. They walked for aways and then stopped in front of a large cabin, about the size of the Spencer's place.

"Welcome home, Preacher, Miz Christy," Jeb Spencer said, waving to the house.

Christy took in a breath and about collapsed into David's arms. There was no way that this house was hers and David's. There had to be a joke coming.

"This is our house?" Christy said, trying not to sound as shocked as she wanted to be.

"We all figured that with the young'un comin', y'all would want a place of your own," Uncle Bogg stated. "So we done build you one."

For the first time since David had come to the mountains of Tennesse he was truly blown away and speechless. He was truly thankful for everything that the mountain people had done for them. A house! They had built them a house! Little Burl and Toot McHone wandred over to Christy and tugged on her skirt.

"We painted the shutters and the door, Teacher," they said. "Ain't it purty?"

"Toot, Little Burl it is the finest house I have ever seen!" Christy exclaimed, kneeling down to hug the little boys. "The finest house in all of Cutter Gap. Thank you all so much!"

Toot and Little Burl pulled Christy towards the house. David and the others followed. There wasn't much in the house but it was more than Christy could have ever hoped for. It wasn't a fancy 27 room house in Asheville, it was a simple three room cabin in the Tennesse mountains and Christy loved it.

David and the other men went back to the mission house to gather the things that had been given to Christy and brought them to the cabin. They puth them in the second room. Christy could not get over the generousity of the people. To Christy it meant tht she and David were doing something right. Somehow through the feuding, storms and everything else that had happened since Christy and David arrived in Cutter Gap, they had got through to the people. Things now could only get better.

It took a little while to move the rest of David and Christy's things from the mission house to their cabin but Christy was thankful for the help. She knew her mother and father were planning on sending some older furniture that they had replaced in their home. It would make a lovely enhancement to the cabin.

Once everyone had gone, David and Christy were alone at their home. David swept Christy into his arms and carried her up the steps and into their house. "Welcome home, Mrs. Grantland."

"I'm home, wherever you are," Christy replied, softly.

A few weeks later, Christy's father arrived in the cove with a wagon full of household things for his daughter and her husband. There was oil lamps, candels, chairs, a wardrobe, a table and even a new bed for them. The homey items warmed the cabin immensly. Doing just a small amount everyday, Christy made their little house into the Grantland home. Everyone in the cove was welcome to stop by and they did quite often. Christy woke up one morning to find Creed Allen asleep on one of the couches her parents had sent to them.

Then one morning, something felt different. She had a slight stomachache. Then a sharp pain went through her entire system. It was time. David was away, helping a family repair a fence in Raven Gap. Christy gathered what she could and walked very slowly to the mission. She did have to stop every 20 steps or so. She was very tired and in pain when she finally got to the house. Ruby Mae was just getting back from the well when she saw Christy.

"Miz Christy, are you all right?" Ruby Mae asked, as she ran to her teacher.

"Get Miss Alice, Ruby Mae," Christy instructed. "The baby's coming."

Ruby Mae helped Christy to the house all while yelling for Miss Alice. Alice came running from the garden. She took over helping Christy into the house. Miss Alice sent Ruby Mae to run for Dr. MacNeill, just in case Miss Alice needed help.

"David's in Raven Gap," Christy gasped. "He'll want to be here."

"Let us worry about that. All I want thee to be concerned about is this baby," Miss Alice said.

Ruby Mae ran as fast as she could for Dr. MacNeill's cabin. She only slowed to tell passing folk that Teacher was having her baby. Soon word spread all over the cove and the news got to David in Raven Gap. He took off as fast as he could go. Meanwhile back at the mission Christy and Miss Alice were getting along fine. Christy would let out a mournful yell and Miss Alice would tell her that she was doing fine and that it was almost over.

The first person to arrive back at the mission was Neil and Ruby Mae. Ruby Mae was instructed to keep water boiling on the stove and to be ready to fecth anything that Miss Alice or Doc might need. Her main job from Christy was to watch for David. It wasn't a hard job, Ruby Mae considered, but someone had to do it. Neil and Miss Alice bickered a bit before agreeing that he should wait outside until he was needed.

Neil and Ruby Mae watched from the porch as many others from the cove arrived to welcome the new baby. Riding as fast as lightning was David. The smile on his face was brighter than anyone had ever seen. The birth of a first child was always something to beam about. He was allowed inside just long enough to kiss his wife before he was shoved out by Miss Alice. David joined the others in the waiting game. He was pacing so bad that Uncle Bogg almost offered him a swig from his jug. Then the shrill cries of a baby could be heard.

"It's a boy!" they heard Miss Alice yell. Whoops and shouts echoed in the valley as everyone celebrated the first born son of the young preacher and his wife. A few moments later another shrill baby cry could be heard. "It's a girl!" Miss Alice called out again.

Uncle Bogg was filling a cup of his moonshine and offering it to David, who gladly took it. Twins! He and Christy had boy and one girl. They both got what they wanted. Miss Alice appeared at the door with each baby in her arms.

"David, would thee like to meet thy children?" Miss Alice asked.

On shaky feet David walked over to gaze into his childrens' eyes. His daughter was cradled in Miss Alice's left arm while his son was on the right. David could not for an instant believe that these precious gifts were his. It didn't seem possible. He took his daughter from Miss Alice and joined Christy in her room.

"Can you believe it David?" Christy said, as she cooed over her son. "Two of them."

"One baby is always a blessing," Miss Alice said. "Two is the Lord's way of giving thee a welcome shock."

David sat next to Christy not listening to a word that was being said. All they cared about was the two babies in their arms. After the babies had ate and Christy was sleeping along with them David slipped out of the room. He found his family's Bible and entered three new dates to it.

February 23rd, 1914- David Grantland and Christy Rudd Huddleston was added to the marriages page. And under births David wrote: July 6th, 1914 Spencer David and Hannah Joy Grantland.