"Okay so let me get this straight, the demon sprayed a purple mist at her and then she turned into an infant, you sure you're not leaving anything out?" Giles asked his Slayer who stood holding a ten month old Faith on her hip.
"Well I didn't actually see her change I was busy exacting my big revenge but when I turned around she wasn't adult Faith anymore," she told him.
"Certainly an unfounded reaction to the demon but I will start researching this as soon as possible so we can see into changing her back," Giles said and Buffy could tell his mind was already wandering to whatever books he would get started with.
"What should we do with her until then?" she asked him pulling him out of his reverie.
"Well she can't stay here," he replied far too quickly. Buffy quirked an eyebrow at him in amusement as he fidgeted under her stare clearly uncomfortable with the prospect of being in charge of a baby, "well I uh I mean she would be more comfortable at your please because o-of all the w-women," he finished lamely.
"Wow Giles sexist much," she smirked at him.
"I'm sorry I just don't have much experience with babies, I mean lifelong bachelor here," he said raising his hands defensively.
"Hello me either my only contact with a baby was when Dawn was little which didn't really happen," Buffy protested.
"If it's any consolation she seems to have taken to you quite nicely," Giles indicated the baby who was resting her head against Buffy's shoulder and playing with the crucifix necklace she wore around her neck.
"Her liking of me aside how long do you think she's going to have to stay like this?" Buffy asked.
"As soon as I research how to reverse the affects of the demon but at the moment I honestly have no idea," Giles sighed rubbing a hand over his forehead.
"Okay okay so not panicking so we have to look after a baby for a couple of days how hard could it be?" she asked clearly looking for affirmation.
"Right people have done it for centuries; I would suggest picking up a few items for her tonight though to make things easier on you," Giles said.
"Right right baby things because I am once again very much aware that she is diaperless and the longer that goes on the more panicky I am getting," Buffy said looking down at Faith who starred back at her with big brown eyes her face splitting into a grin when she realised Buffy was looking at her, "wait wrong I don't want to go walking the streets with a baby she's like a tiny appetiser for vamps."
"There is that twenty four hour mart down the road from here if you give me a moment to change I can drive you there and then drop you home," Giles said and she nodded gratefully as he raced upstairs to change.
*********************************************************************************************
They got some strange looks from the occupants of the mini mart what with the baby dressed in nothing but an adult's tank top, the older man with rumpled bed head and Buffy who still had the remnants of the fight in the graveyard on her clothing.
"I have no idea what we need to get but I'm thinking first stop diapers," Buffy said following Giles down the aisle that held baby items.
"Well this is just incomprehensible," her Watcher muttered throwing his hand up in the air in defeat.
"What's the matter Giles?" she asked him.
"This, there is simply too many choices. How is one supposed to choose the correct type," Giles scowled regarding the rows of different types of diapers in front of him.
"Isn't there some sort of clue on them as to which ones we should have?" Buffy asked leaning forward to take a closer look. She had to pull back however as Faith reached out with chubby fingers and tried to grab at the boxes in front of her.
"Yes of course would you prefer little pictures of a tiny red creature or small smiling clouds," Giles said sarcastically.
"I was thinking more like age and weight," Buffy pointed to the box and her Watcher had the decency to look a little embarrassed.
Buffy followed Giles through the store as they picked up a few pacifiers, bottles, baby formula and a few different coloured onesies for Faith who seemed quite content to go between playing with Buffy's hair, the collar of her shirt and the necklace she wore.
"I think that is all you will need for now, if all goes to plan and we can change Faith back in a day or two, of course i-if it's any longer you may need to get more," Giles said as he carried their items out to his car.
"You really think it will be that long?" Buffy asked as she settled herself in the front passenger seat, Faith on her lap.
"Well to my knowledge this has never occurred before so it may take me longer than usual to find the answers," Giles explained.
"I wonder how she's going to react when she gets turned back? I wonder if she'll remember any of this?" Buffy thought out loud.
"I would suggest she wouldn't, her mental capacity at this age is much smaller than it would be at her proper age including memory. I'd hesitate a guess to say that the memory of this time would be lost in the process of turning her back," Giles said.
Faith took the opportunity to grab a hold of Buffy's hand which had been resting in the infant's lap and stuck two of the older girl's fingers in her mouth.
"Ew gross Faith that's disgusting," Buffy shrieked as she pulled her fingers out of the baby's mouth. Faith gave her a look that could only be described as disgruntled and whined as she reached out for Buffy's fingers again. Reaching around to the backseat Buffy grabbed one of the plastic bags and rummaged around in it till she found one of the pacifiers they had bought.
"Here suck on this, much nicer than Buffy fingers," she said placing the pacifier in the baby's mouth.
Giles stopped the car outside the Summers house and went around the side of the car to open the door for Buffy. He grabbed the bags full of their purchases whilst Buffy lifted Faith and rested her on her hip. The baby was sucking happily away on the pacifier making contented sighs every so often.
"Time to meet the fam Faithy," Buffy smiled at the infant who reached out for her face.
The door was unlocked so they let themselves in, Giles holding the door open for them. Buffy expected everyone to be in bed as it was a bit later then she had been returning from patrol and was surprised to see Willow and Tara sitting at the dining room table, Willow's laptop open in front of them.
"Buffy, baby," Willow said when she looked up her eyes widening as she took in the infant in her friend's arms.
"Bit of an incident on patrol, Absentitus sprayed Faith with a purple mist and turned her into baby Faith," Buffy explained snorting at the surprised look on both the witches faces.
"That's Faith?" Willow asked standing up from her chair and coming to stare at the baby. The baby regarded the witch for a moment before leaning forward and reaching out her arms. The redhead looked at her in surprise before taking her from Buffy and resting her on her hip.
"Aw she likes you," Buffy smiled and held out her hand to the baby who grabbed a hold of it happily still sucking on her pacifier.
"Was it magic?" Tara asked coming to stand next to her girlfriend and inspecting the baby she held.
"I am not sure of the origin of the transformation but I would much appreciate help in researching if you girls are up to it at some stage," Giles said and Tara nodded.
"Oooh diaperless baby," Buffy suddenly remembered as Giles placed the plastic bags on the table and Willow quickly held the infant out in front of her. Faith gave her an irritated look as she had been comfortable and squirmed in the witches hold.
"Here you go Will," Buffy said holding out the diapers they had bought.
"Oh no no no no no," Willow said backing away from her friend, Faith still held in her outstretched arms, "I'm so not doing that. You're the Slayer Buff you should do it."
"Just because I'm the Slayer doesn't make me any more qualified than you, in fact I think it makes me less because I spend most of my time killing things with my bare hands and therefore I don't know how to be all gentle and caring," Buffy finished still holding the diapers out.
"Well someone better put one on her soon the longer you wait the closer you come to disaster," Giles commented although not volunteering himself for the task.
"Come on Buff she's a ticking time bomb here and you never know when I'm going to hand her back to you it could be just at that moment," Willow said holding Faith close to Buffy.
"God fine but I'm doing this under protest," Buffy said taking the baby from her friend.
"I really hope you remember none of this when you get turned back," she said to Faith as she lay her down on the dining room table. Putting the diaper on hadn't been as hard as she imagined, although Willow did have to nudge her at one point because she realised she had had her eyes closed. Once she had the diaper on she took off the tank top and dressed Faith in one of onesies they had bought.
"And now everyone can breathe a collective sigh of relief that there will be no peeing on anybody and also take a moment to marvel in the awesomeness I just displayed then by totally diapering and dressing a baby, forgetting of course that first attempt when I put it on backwards," Buffy said lifting Faith triumphantly off the table.
Tara entered from the kitchen in all the arguing over whom was to put on the diaper no one had even realised that she left. The blonde witch handed a bottle of warm milk to Buffy and the remaining adult occupants looked at her with mouths open.
"Tara, you know about baby stuff?" Willow asked her girlfriend.
"I-I have a l-lot of younger cousins," the blonde witch said flushing as all the attention was turned to her.
"Well seems like you have everything under control here, I will do what research I can tonight and then reconvene here tomorrow for further reading," Giles said heading towards the door, "have a good night," he added smiling at the uncomfortable look on his Slayer's face as she held Faith in one arm and the bottle in the other.
"I-I thought it would be hard to g-get her to s-sleep after all the excitement a-and m-my aunts a-always used w-warm milk," Tara explained after Giles had left.
"Oh god where is she gonna sleep? I don't want to put her in her bed she might roll off it and I don't want her in mine I might crush her or something," Buffy panicked.
"Did your Mom keep any of the stuff from when you were a baby?" Willow asked.
"Oh maybe, yeah she might have down in the basement," Buffy said.
"O-okay well j-just sit on the c-couch with her and feed her a-and we will go and look," Tara said leading the blonde over to the couch.
"Okay Faith now you're going to have to give me the pacifier back and without any crying because look food," Buffy said waving the bottle in front of Faith's face, "and we all know how much you like food so," Buffy quickly pulled the pacifier out of the infants mouth and switched it for the bottle. Faith wrapped her own hands around the bottle and began to suck on it happily.
"See this isn't so hard," Buffy sat back against the couch.
"Mmmmm," Faith said and Buffy laughed.
"You enjoying that?" she smirked at the infant, "definitely the same Faith," she laughed. The warm milk had the desired effect and soon Buffy was sitting watching the baby sleep in her arms. Even though everything about this whole situation was wrong there was just something about it that felt so right. Adult Faith never let anyone take care of her, never relied on anybody but herself but as a baby she didn't have a choice. Buffy looked up as Tara and Willow came back into the room an old portable cot held out between them.
"God bless Mom and her need to hoard," Buffy smirked at them.
"Well now we just have to figure out how to put it together."