AUTHOR'S NOTES: Well, this is it. I did my best to tie up the loose ends, but I am leaving some of the suspense for the next installment. YEP! I'm writing another one. I'll talk about it more at the end but for now, enjoy.

Chapter 18- Many Happy Returns

Gus collapsed on the Psych couch with a groan. It was 4am and he was dog tired. He'd originally stopped by the office to clean up after the long drive home. Despite being worn out, he figured he'd never get to sleep after what happened. After a few minutes of picking up though, he realized the office wasn't actually that dirty. Shawn hadn't been there in over a week, so there was nothing to clean. That's when he'd decided to sit down and relax.

Henry and Juliet had opted to stay in LA for the night, but he and Carlton decided to drive the couple hours back to Santa Barbara. The drive wasn't all bad though. They actually talked, Carlton knew more about what Shawn would have to do, and Gus was surprised that the gruff detective had answered his questions. Both of them had been relieved at the decision regarding Shawn and if Gus knew his best friend, he'd do whatever he had to do to get better. Shawn was never one to stay down for long.

Gus must have fallen asleep on the couch, because the next thing he remembered was knocking at the office door. His head foggy from exhaustion, he answered it and it took him a moment to register that Coraline was standing in front of him.

"Coraline?" He said through squinted and sleepy eyes. "What are you doing here?"

She was dressed in a purple blouse and jeans, with her hair down in curls. He loved her hair like that. "Josef called me. You weren't at your apartment, so I figured you'd be here." When Gus continued to stare at her she asked tentatively, "Can I come in?"

Embarrassed, Gus nodded, "Yeah, sure." He moved out of the way and gestured for her to enter. "So, what all did Josef tell you?" Gus knew the two were friends, and talked often. Josef was also the reason Coraline heard of Psych in the first place.

"He told me you found Shawn and he was going to stay with him while he recovered." Gus nodded. With a sympathetic expression, Coraline approached him and touched his face tenderly. "I'm sorry I couldn't be there. I got to town a few hours after you called me but you'd already left for LA."

Surprised, but definitely needing comfort after what he'd witnessed and been through, Gus didn't move away. "It worked out as well as it could have I suppose. I mean, he's still alive right?"

"Yeah," Coraline's eyes fell and Gus felt like a complete asshole. She'd lost her best friend just a few months before after being blown up by Lance, Coraline's own brother.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't've…"

She shook her head and gave him a small smile. "It's okay to be happy you have your friend."

Gus huffed out a frustrated breath. "I just don't know what I can do for him. I've always been there to help, but I don't think I can this time."

"He knows you care Gus. In my considerable experience, that's what matters. He has more people that are there for him then he realizes. Oh, that reminds me." Coraline reached into her purse and pulled out a vial with ivory colored liquid inside.

Gus looked at her, confused. "What's that?"

"A breakthrough." Coraline grinned. "I was going to tell you about it later, but with everything that was going on, I figured you needed some good news."

"A cure?!" Gus asked excitedly. If Shawn can be given the cure, he might be alright!

"Not quite. It only lasts for about an hour before our metabolism pushes it out of our system." She explained. ""It isn't anywhere near where we were, but it's a step in the right direction." She put it back in her bag carefully before taking Gus by the hand and moving closer to him. "I couldn't have done it without you."

Gus' eyes widened and he gulped. This was probably the closest they'd ever been. Things between them the last few months had been complicated at best. She was Mick's ex, and a vampire. Not to mention Mick didn't seem happy when the prospect was even mentioned, but she seemed to be different from the cold person that he'd made her out to be. "I don't know if we…" His words were cut off when her lips met his. He'd been crushing on Coraline since they'd met, but he never thought a beautiful woman like her would ever fall for him.

When they broke apart, Coraline was all grins. She wrapped her arms around the back of his neck. "I've been wanting to do that for ages."

"You know that's right." Gus dived in for another kiss before asking, "What are we going to tell them?"

"About us, or the cure?"

"Both."

Coraline thought for a moment. "It's too soon to tell anyone about the cure again."

Gus' face fell, "What about Shawn? If we give him the cure, won't he be okay as long as he keeps taking it?"

"No, he needs to work through this as a vampire. Taking the cure would make him temporarily human, but he'd still have the same problem if it ever wore off."

The moment lost, Gus sat down hard on the couch. "Have you ever seen anyone come back from that?"

"Once or twice." She sat down next to him, still holding his hands. "It may take a while though. It took me three hundred years to realize how lucky humans really are. How precious you are."

Gus cast her a wry smile. "You need to tell Mick about us if we are really gonna do this. You can't keep avoiding him either."

Coraline sighed and nodded. "Okay, we'll find a way to make this work." She leaned on his shoulder contently. "We'll keep working on the cure and I'll tell Mick about us. I promise."

"Huh," Gus made an amused sound.

"What?" Coraline raised her head to look at him.

"Just wondering what to put on my facebook relationship status, because 'It's Complicated' doesn't do this situation any justice."

Three and a half months later:

Shawn leaned his head against the cool glass of tinted windows on Mick's black Mercedes. His eyes tracked the passing vehicles and scenery lazily. In the driver's seat, Mick kept casting him apprehensive glances out of the corner of his eye every couple miles. Having put up with it for almost an hour and a half, Shawn sighed and called him out on it.

"Dude, I can practically hear your eyes moving. What?"

"Are you sure you're up for this? You don't think you need some more time, because…"

"Look," Shawn rolled his eyes and explained, "I've been away long enough. I've barely seen Jules and Gus. I haven't seen my dad. If I'm going to really get better, I can't live in a bubble." He hadn't been completely isolated per se, and he'd seen his friends semi-regularly, but LA wasn't home. "I already told Josef this. As much as I appreciate everything you guys have done for me, I have to live my life because, as much as you love reminding me about it, it's going to last a while…hopefully." He'd been through too much to fall into actually thinking vampires were truly immortal.

Mick smirked, "You know they're going to kill you for this right?"

Shawn hadn't told anyone he was coming back except his dad, and he'd only told him about it because he had to have somewhere to lay low until his appearance. He wanted to make it a surprise for everyone. Juliet had told him on her last visit that the SBPD was having its grand re-opening and it was going to be a big party. He'd never been one to miss a party.

"I think they'll forgive me eventually." He shrugged. "Maybe in a decade or so."

Mick snorted, and Shawn let his mind wander again, feeling for the two pulls on his consciousness. Carlton was content, probably because he was with Marlowe at the time, and he couldn't feel Adam very well, which didn't suck. Pierre had come to visit and said he'd be heading out of the country again with Adam, so that was probably why the feeling was so faint. Pierre had said he'd forgive his fledgling eventually, but it had been three months and Shawn could say the anger hadn't faded... at all. The young man had helped steal his sanity and life away. It wasn't an easy thing to forgive.

They pulled into Santa Barbara minutes later. Shawn rolled down the window and stuck his head out, smelling the familiar sea air. He suppressed the urge to hop out of the car and run down the street as fast as he could, feeling the wind on his face. It was times like these he missed his motorcycle, but then remembered it was what had gotten him into this whole situation in the first place. He pushed away the thought before the memory of smashing into a car could replay in his head, panoramic view style.

"You have enough blood?" Mick asked and Shawn rolled his eyes. He felt like kid going on a field trip.

"Yeah, I called Woody. He has a stockpile for me." Even if it tastes like crap. Shawn curled his lip. One thing that had changed after his kidnapping was the craving for fresh blood. Shawn had fresh blood before then, but it was never more than a novelty. Bagged blood had been just fine for him. After being starved and draining two humans though, the craving had come on full force. It was like finally tasting Filet Mignon after a life time of eating microwavable Salisbury steak meals, and unfortunately for him, the Filet Mignon were everywhere.

One of the most important things he'd had to work on, besides managing his cravings, was his behavior. His moves had become too predatory, animalistic. The way he turned his head, the way he stood, and even looked at people, tended to unnerve if he wasn't careful. He'd found that out the hard way when he'd gone to a crowded mall for the first time in two months and ended up making a child cry and had security called on him, twice, all before he even got to the other side of the building.

He pulled his head back inside the car and rolled up the window again with a sigh as they drove up to his dad's house. Shawn's eyes narrowed as he noticed a rental car in the driveway. The only one he knew that would need a rental car was his mom. What's she doing here? Last thing he heard she was out of the country again. His father must have told her he was coming.

Sure enough, before Shawn could even get out of the car, his mother had exited the house and hurried up to him. "Goose!" She gave him a big hug, and started crying.

Shawn's eyes widened and he looked down at her, surprised at her actions. Especially surprised since last time she'd seen him she practically called him a monster. Apparently almost four months was enough to come to terms with what he was. "It's okay mom." He hugged her back and looked up to see his dad coming out of the house too. He gave him an acknowledging head nod.

"I'm here for another few days. We'll talk more later okay?" Madeline stated.

"Okay, ma." Shawn grabbed his bags and peeked in the car door. "I'll meet you at the ceremony." Mick wanted to be the fly on the wall when he showed up and surprised his friends.

"Okay, good luck." Mick put his sunglasses back on and headed out.

"Took you long enough to get here." Henry was carrying a large bowl of potato salad to the truck. Most likely for the station picnic taking place after the main ceremony. "I was almost about to leave without you."

"Missed you too dad." Shawn deadpanned.

Henry snorted and rolled his eyes, but Shawn caught the smile and knew his father was happy to see him. "Make yourself useful, there are steaks in the house that need to be carried out."

Shawn quickly ascended the steps, happy to be out of the sun for the time being. He made his way into the kitchen and saw the stakes were sitting ready to go on the table, wrapped in butcher's paper. He smiled, remembering the taste of his dad's grilled steaks. The officers were in for a huge treat. When he grabbed the stack of meat, one fell out of a poorly sealed side of the package. He used his vampiric reflexes to easily catch it.

As soon as Shawn's fingers touched the bloody meat, he froze and stared at it. He watched the blood drip through his fingers and suddenly the corpse of one of the vagrants was in front of him. The man's neck was torn apart, resembling ground hamburger, having been shredded apart by his fledglings before they'd given him the scraps. Most of the bodies were so drained Shawn had to rip into them as well, to get any blood at all.

Shawn wanted to vomit, and closed his eyes, taking deep calming breaths. It's not there, it's not real. Remember, breathe in and out... Suddenly, the protective bubble he'd been stuck in for months, didn't seem all that bad after all.

Henry waited impatiently out near the truck. Maddie had already left for the ceremony, which would be starting in less than fifteen minutes. "Damn that kid still loves to push it to the last minute." He grumbled and walked into the house.

"Shawn if you can remove wooden stakes from your chest, you can sure bring some of the food kind out to the car!" Henry complained as he walked into the kitchen, stopping suddenly as he caught sight of his son.

Shawn was standing rigid, holding one of the raw steaks. Henry briefly thought Shawn had tried to eat it, until he saw how hard he was squeezing the piece of meat. His eyes were closed and sweat had broken out on his brow. He was also mumbling something Henry couldn't quite hear.

"Kid?" Henry asked tentatively, unsure of his son's mental state. When Shawn had told him he was coming home, Henry was elated, then concerned, but after some assurances by Josef that Shawn was ready, Henry had agreed to help with Shawn's ruse.

His son's eyes shot open and for an instant, Henry could have sworn they were white, but he'd blinked and they were back to hazel and his son was smiling at him. "Sorry, almost dropped one. Figures you would get steaks so fresh they start jumping out of the package." Shawn wrapped the steak up separately from the others, "I'm sure Gus will eat that one."

Henry's brow furrowed, not buying the upbeat attitude after what he'd seen. His suspicions increased as Shawn turned to the sink and washed his hands more vigorously than Henry thought necessary. "Shawn, you don't have to go..."

"I'm fine!" Shawn said harshly, gripping the sink. "I want to surprise Jules and Gus. I already feel bad enough about missing so much of Jules' pregnancy, but Gus having a serious girlfriend... Lassie getting engaged? How could I miss that?"

Henry could understand. A lot had happened in the past few months. When Gus had dropped the news he was dating Coraline, everyone was concerned but... Gus seemed genuinely happy and, after meeting her a few times, Henry was starting to get used to her. Even Gus' parents, after some vetting, had warmed up to the woman.

Carlton and Marlowe's announcement the month before hadn't been as unexpected. They were having problems with Marlowe's parole due to some kind of connection Carlton had with her parole officer. The bad blood had been taken out on Marlowe and she was currently staying with Juliet, who didn't mind the company since the house was too empty without Shawn there. The wedding was in two weeks.

"They understand kid." Henry tried to comfort his son, and put a hand on his shoulder, trying to ignore the flinch as his hand touched his son.

Shawn slowly turned around, his face a mixture of anger and disappointment. "I really tried you know. I thought I was better but every time I think things are going to be okay..." He growled and pursed his lips. Henry was silent, letting his son vent. "When Josef told me it would take years to get back to normal, I didn't want to believe him." He chuckled humorlessly. "I told him he didn't know me. Looks like he knew me better than I know myself..."

Three Months earlier:

Josef peeled Shawn off of Morgan for the fourth time that night. Morgan's nose was bloody and he wiped it away with the back of his hand as he got off the floor. "Man, watch the face!" Being only about twenty minutes from Josef's house, Morgan was a frequent visitor to Shawn, but was beginning to regret it after being pulled into Shawn's "recovery" only to be used as a crash test dummy.

Shawn still hadn't calmed down from the fight. He was breathing heavily and his teeth were bared in a challenge. They'd started with working on Shawn's temper. So far it was to no avail. The instant he got angry he attacked, savagely.

"Okay, I think that's enough for now." Josef let go of Shawn, who stormed out of the room angrily as soon as he was released.

Sniffing and adjusting his nose, Morgan glared at his mentor. "Oh, I'm so glad you've had enough for the day…"

Josef shrugged. "What can I say, I can only stand you having three broken noses before I need to take a break. I can only take so much."

"Ha ha." Morgan replied sarcastically before looking in the direction Shawn went. "It doesn't seem to be helping any."

"No, it doesn't." Josef admitted grumpily. "I'm going to go talk to him."

"Good, it's your turn to be the punching bag."

"What, and mess up my suit?" Josef quipped as he left the room.

Following his nose, Josef found Shawn in the kitchen, staring at a bag of blood with a disgusted look. "Hey."

Shawn's eyes met his for a moment, before going back to the blood. "I heard you guys. I'm not getting any better."

Josef shrugged, "Well, it's not for lack of trying, but I think we need a new tactic. Morgan is getting grumpy. It'll just take more time than we thought."

"I don't have time." Shawn slammed the blood down on the table. "Jules and my baby are counting on me and I can't even take a punch without Hulking out." He let his head fall to the table with a thunk. "Ow."

"Speaking of baby, do you know what you're having?" Josef asked, changing the subject.

Shawn shook his head, still keeping it down on the table. "She won't go without me, and I'm stuck here. I guess it's going to be a surprise for now."

Morgan walking into the kitchen caught his attention and his head shot up and whipped in the spy's direction, as if assessing a threat. "It's messed up how creepy it is when you do that." He said sliding into the table next to them.

Mumbling something akin to "I can't help it." Shawn frowned and turned his attention to poking at the blood bag, watching it squish when he touched it.

"Shawn, we'll keep trying so you can get home. It may take years, but I told you I'd help, and as inconvenient it is to have another dude running around my house chaffing my style, I'm a vampire of my word."

Shawn knew Josef was mostly joking, at least he thought he was, but he stopped poking at the blood and a determined look came over his features. "You don't know me. I can do this. I can go back to being me. I'll show you. You'll see."

Present:

Henry listened as Shawn finished his story, "As Rocky Balboa as the whole thing sounds, it was grueling. I had to practice how to walk for Pete's sake!" Shawn took a deep breath and admitted something hard, "I'm still not all there, but I'm gettin' better. I think the hardest part was being away from you guys though. Knowing what I was missing, and that drove me to do good, ya know?"

Henry nodded, "I know son. It wasn't easy here either. Everyone missed you. Karen asked about you all the time, and McNab came over to my desk and wanted to see how you were too." Even though the dedication of his friends had been proven to him months ago, when they stormed into the power station like superheroes to save him, he was still being amazed at how much people cared about him.

Looking at his watch, Henry grumbled, "Damn it we're late!"

Shawn's eyes widened and he grabbed the pile of steaks and they both hurried out to the vehicle and sped to the station.

Carlton stood on the steps of the brand new SPBD in his shades hoping Karen's speech wouldn't be too long. He had Woody waiting in the wings with some blood, but it didn't make standing in the light of the full summer sun any more bearable. Marlowe caught his eye and gave him a small wave, making him smile. What a woman. She turned to Juliet on her right and whispered something that made both of them laugh.

Juliet, being eight months pregnant, wasn't able to join the group of officers crowding around the podium, and now that he thought about it, with the Chief just as pregnant, the speech just may be as short as he'd hoped.

Karen stepped towards the microphone, with some help from Buzz getting up the steps. She smiled gratefully and addressed the crowd. "Ladies and gentlemen, investors and workers. On behalf of everyone from on the staff of the Santa Barbara Police Department... and I'm sure the crowded employees of the Sheriff's station..." There were some chuckles, mostly from officers in tan uniforms, "I want to thank you for your contributions and work to rebuild the SBPD to it's former glory!"

Cheers went up from the crowd, and Carlton beamed. Karen was always very good with speeches and PR. As she talked and talked about the new additions of the station, which included state of the art technology, Carlton saw Henry Spencer arrive in his truck. His eyes narrowed in suspicion. Henry was never late, for anything. When they'd gone on their fishing trips years ago, he'd been called late after arriving a half hour earlier than the specified time.

He also noticed that Mick St. John was standing against one of the trees in the shade, smirking. Getting the feeling something was up, Carlton kept an eye on both men as he continued to stand at attention.

Karen continued her speech, "So without any further ado... I present one of the heroes of the SBPD explosion to cut the ribbon." Karen turned to Carlton, presenting the scissors. He stepped up regally and cut the giant red ribbon, unblocking the entrance.

Polite clapping and a few whistles came up from the crowd, dying down till only one person was left clapping, but it wasn't coming up from the audience. The clapping was coming from behind them.

"Woo! Yeah! SBPD!"

Everyone on the stage turned around and there stood Shawn Spencer, clapping wildly. Carlton heard the gasps from the crowd, Juliet's the loudest of all. Stepping away from the other officers, Carton tried to get a better look at him. He looked a bit different from the last time Carlton had seen him. Between the situation with Marlowe and his job as head detective, he'd never gotten the chance to go down to LA to visit. Shawn's residual tan from when he was human was completely gone, and he had a more defined muscle tone. Most likely from the physical training he'd been put through. The haunted look was still there, but hidden firmly behind Shawn's well practiced mask of immaturity.

Smiling from ear to ear, Shawn grabbed the stunned Karen's hand and shook it. "Beautiful speech Chief, and might I say it really touched me right here." Shawn held a hand over his heart.

Karen opened and closed her mouth a few times, her ability to speak now completely out of her reach. "It's okay Chief, I'll take it over from here." As Shawn stepped up to the podium Carlton realized he'd also been stunned into shocked silence.

"Hello everyone, I don't think I need to introduce myself, but I will anyway. Shawn Spencer, Head Psychic of the SBPD. I really do want to thank everyone who came out here today for the sale." Everyone gave each other confused looks. What the hell is he doing? Carlton gaped.

Shawn continued in a serious tone. "Yes, you too can purchase a magnificent building such as this! Do I have any takers?" Shawn pointed to one of the older ladies in the audience, "I know you're interested..." The woman looked taken aback but the officers around her started to smile, knowing now that Shawn was just being his joking self. "Shall we start the bidding at three camels and a beaded necklace? I'll even throw in a bridge..."

Having enough, Carlton grabbed Shawn by the arm and pulled him off stage. He waved and got a few more laughs from the officers that knew him best. Karen had since recovered and continued with the ceremony, although Carlton saw her wipe her eyes at one point.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Even as he asked the question, Juliet was being helped over to him by Gus and Marlowe.

Shawn turned to her and Carlton was surprised to see the goofiness melt away and tenderness take it's place. "Surprise!"

She smacked Shawn on his chest, "You knew you'd be coming back here when I visited you last week didn't you?!" Juliet glared at him accusingly for only a moment before she buried her head in his chest and sobbed.

Shawn mouthed, 'It's the hormones.' and made the "okay" sign when other officers saw the display of emotion.

Grabbing Juliet with one arm, Shawn reached out for a fist bump from Gus. He was dressed in a nicer tux with a purple tie. "Look at you all dressed for the occasion. Where's Coraline?" He'd expected to see Gus' girlfriend with him.

Gus' eyes darted to the side. "She's in LA on business... and I'm going to kill you Shawn. You should have told me you were coming back!"

"That would ruin the surprise wouldn't it."

"I don't care."

"Knock it off!" Carlton glared at the men. "What did you do Spencer? Fly the coop?"

Shawn frowned, "No. For your information I was given the okay."

Carlton looked at him incredulously, "So, what? This is like a day trip for you or something?"

Gus and Juliet looked at Shawn with sad expressions, but Shawn only smiled wider. "Nope. I'm home for good."

Gus made a 'WOO!' sound and Juliet planted a kiss right on Shawn's lips in celebration.

Carlton was about to admonish the public display of affection, but a huge grin spread across his feathers as he felt hands wrap around his torso and a purring voice in his ear say, "Hey lover."

When the speech was finally over, the officers disbursed around the front of the station and claimed their spots for the picnic. Henry had already claimed a nice shaded area so Carlton, Mick, and Shawn could sit in relative comfort with the rest of them.

As Henry cooked the steaks, officers who'd known nothing of Shawn's convalescence besides the fact he needed some time after his kidnapping, came up and voiced their sympathies for what he'd gone through, and congratulations for the upcoming baby. Shawn smiled politely and clapped a few of them he was closest to on the back. "I owe you guys quite a few weeks of doughnuts don't I?"

Finally, the crowd around him died down and Shawn noticed Buzz who'd been hanging back. He waved him over and the large officer shyly approached. Mick had told him that he'd found out about vampires during Adam's questioning.

"Hey Shawn." Buzz said timidly. "How are you doing?"

Shawn shrugged, trying to keep the mood light. "Been better, but happy to be home man. What about you? You're looking good. I heard you got an accommodation."

"Yeah." The detective answered simply. Shawn could tell by his body language and scent that he was uncomfortable about something.

"Buzz, buddy. You don't have to talk to me if you don't want to. Believe me, I understand."

Buzz's eyes widened, "No! It's not that at all! It's just... I was wondering, that night in the coroner's office, was that the day you were turned?"

Relieved he hadn't scared his friend away, Shawn answered readily. "Well, it was the day I found out. Was a close one for both of us wasn't it?"

Buzz nodded. "I just wanted to know, ya know. I talked to Lassiter about it, and he said you'd done it to protect me from yourself. You're a strong guy Shawn, and a good one." Buzz extended his hand and Shawn looked at it in disbelief before grabbing it and giving it a good shake.

"Steaks are up!" Henry hollered and most of the people headed for the grill. Buzz cast him one more smile and headed for food. Shawn caught sight of Karen in the throng and she waved. He knew he'd have to say hi to her too, and thank her for all the support she gave everyone in trying to find him.

Shawn turned his head and saw his mom coming back carrying both her and Juliet's plates. "Here you go dear."

Juliet thanked her and started to dig in and Shawn moved to join her on one of the chairs, but stopped, hearing a weird noise. Mick caught it too, Carlton was too busy sitting on a blanket feeding Marlowe potato salad. "What..." Then an overpowering scent flooded the air around them. That didn't escape Carlton's attention.

A second later, Juliet groaned and grabbed her stomach. The animal inside Shawn reared up as he saw his fiance was in pain. He sped over to her and noticed liquid had stained her maternity pants. "Oh. Oh no. Oh God. DAD! GUS!" Both men were there in moments asking what was happening. Shawn looked into Juliet's worried eyes. "We gotta get to the hospital! Jules is having the baby!"

A throng of people followed Juliet's wheelchair down the hallway to the emergency department in Cottage Hospital. Karen included. In a couple weeks she'd be experiencing the same thing and having done it once before, and Juliet could see she could definitely felt for her. It was scary to have a baby, and the only one that had been around to help Karen was an awkward head detective who's idea of helping was to rub her head.

"Shawn!" Juliet cried out as a contraction hit before she got to the delivery room. Gus had been the one to take her to the child birthing classes since Carlton wouldn't step foot in the classroom. They had barely prepared her for the pain she was experiencing. Shawn was instantly there at her cry, his eyes were closed though, and he was murmuring something along the lines of "calm blue ocean." She could see hints of fangs and realized he was trying to calm himself down as much as be there for her.

"O'Hara. How many fingers am I holding up?" Carlton asked pushing to the head of the crowd, holding up three fingers.

"Lassiter! It's a baby! Not a concussion!" She screamed at him. His eyes widened and he backed off.

"Remember what we practiced..." Gus prompted her and made exaggerated breathing noises.

"Gus, don't be The Little Engine That Could. She knows how to breathe!" Shawn had opened his eyes and was obviously getting annoyed at the people getting in between them.

Finally, getting through all the people fussing over Juliet, the doctor cleared out everyone but Shawn and Gus and told them to wait in the lobby. Carlton was the last to leave and he looked at her sympathetically, "I'll be right outside."

Thankful for the silence Juliet grabbed Shawn's hand and squeezed hard. "Damn it!" She screamed out and nearly took out Gus with a kick. "Where are the pain killers!"

"Get her pain killers!" Shawn shouted desperately, looking around for something to help her through her pain. Juliet's head cleared for a moment before she realized why Shawn and Carlton were acting weird. They really could feel what she was going through, or at least her emotions, which were completely off the grid right then.

Breathing heavily, she got Shawn's attention. "You... have to calm down okay? I'll be f−fine."

"Sure you will..." He petted her head before yelling at the doctor again. "Uggg..." She made a frustrated noise at her stubborn man.

It went that way the whole two hours she was in labor. Not soon enough, Juliet was finally at the last stretch. She was sweating and groaning loudly, despite the pain meds they'd given her. Shawn couldn't stand seeing her in so much pain. It was getting him worked up, and it wasn't a good thing. Not to mention that the smell of blood permeated everything.

"I can see the head!" Gus had taken out his phone and was holding it up.

"DON'T YOU DARE RECORD THIS!"

Shawn slapped the device out of Gus' hands. "Have some respect man!"

The doctor got in position and nodded at the nurses to get ready. "Alright one more big push!"

"AAaaahhhh!" Juliet screamed loudly as she pushed hard. Shawn turned away just as the baby came out. The blood being too much for him. It's your baby. Remember. It's your blood.

He must have been faced away longer than he thought, because he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Shawn, do you want to look at your little girl?"

"Girl?" Shawn slowly turned around. Juliet was panting, but smiling at him as Gus stood there holding a small pink bundle.

"No... I'll hurt her." Shawn moved to back up.

Gus quickly put her into Shawn's arms before he could get any more skittish. As soon as Shawn touched her, his heart melted. She had a head of hair so blond it was almost white. Her baby blue eyes were dark with brown rings around the pupil, a sure sign they would eventually be hazel like his own. "Oh my God. Gus, I'm a dad."

Suddenly, everything he'd gone through, the pain, misery and uncertainty of ever getting out alive, was all worth having a little piece of his humanity resting in his arms at that very moment. Being surrounded by his family and friends was a huge bonus too.

He walked over to Juliet, and placed their daughter in her arms. "Hey baby." She smiled and gasped as the finger she was using to stroke the baby's cheek was suddenly gripped in a little hand. "She has her daddy's strength."

Shawn laughed and wiped away a tear. Gus bumped his fist before heading out of the room, giving them their privacy and breaking the news to the crowd in the waiting room.

A head peeked around the corner a minute later, and the group filed in to get a good look. Carlton gave Shawn a respectful nod, and he returned it. He felt bad that the detective would never get to experience the happiness he now had but Shawn wasn't against sharing it. He knew his fledgling would protect her with his life too.

"She'll be the safest baby in the world." Juliet stated, looking up at him tiredly, mirroring his thoughts.

"Why?" Karen asked.

"She has five vampires, two detectives, a security company, and Henry Spencer watching over her. Do you think anyone would dare even look at her wrong if they knew?" Shawn smiled at Juliet putting his father into a category all his own.

"That's it?" Shawn raised an eyebrow.

Juliet laughed and leaned against him as he lay down half on the bed, half off, so he could snuggle with his girls. He'd missed so much the last few months, but had come back just in time to see his little miracle come into the world.

"Best day ever." Shawn whispered to Gus as they watched everyone congratulate Juliet and see the baby.

"I hear that." He paused, "You gonna be okay?"

"Yeah, more than you know buddy. More than you know."

END NOTES:

I really hope everyone liked it!

Now, for the next installment of the Moonlighting series!

Click, to Catch a Vampire

A technological wonder has revamped the cell phone industry and it seems everyone needs to have one of the new StarLite smart phones. But when multiple pictures start appearing online with invisible people , being a vampire is about to become a lot harder.

When your life depends on secrecy, what do you do when your secret can be outed with a single click of a phone's camera?

Let me know if you'd like me to drop you a line when I post it!