Xander had once again, called ahead and had Joyce gather Buffy, Willow, Faith and Dawn at her place, saying he and Cordelia had news to share with them. Cordelia had called her grandfather, who was currently in NY on business and her parents who were, as usual traveling, both had expressed regret at not getting to meet D.J. and their acceptance of her into the family. They'd been wary of Cordelia dating Xander in High School, largely because of his parents. But he'd proven himself since. Cordelia's grandfather had contacts in the military, while he didn't have the clearance to know about Xander's work, his contacts could tell him how well Xander was doing. And they'd all seen for themselves how happy Cordelia was, which went a long in their opinions. They'd eventually get to meet D.J. themselves, Xander just hoped D.J. had control of her ability by then.

After checking into the Sunnydale Arms, they headed over Joyce's, ready to tell the cover story. They both wondered how D.J. would register on Tara's magical senses. Willow hadn't continued practicing Magic after Giles got help for her when she got addicted. They knocked on Joyce's door and prepared to face the part of their family that didn't and couldn't know their secrets.

Dawn opened the door and with a squeal, threw herself into a hug with Xander. He took a moment to admire the beauty in front of him. Dawn was now twenty one and in her third year at UCLA and doing great. She'd obviously inherited Joyce's height as well. Xander wondered if there were any boys he should pay a big brother visit to, before heading back to Atlantis. Question for another day. They were here about D.J. Dawn went to hug Cordelia as well and saw D.J. in her arms.

"Who this?" She asked, curiously.

"That is why we've called you guys for a meeting." Xander answered. "Come on, let's get inside. We've got alot to tell you and I don't want to repeat myself."

Once inside and everyone was comfortable, Xander began their story.

"Six months ago we found a child, estimated age six months. She'd been abused and abandoned. We've spent the last six months slogging our way thru paperwork and clearances to allow us to adopt her and bring her to the U.S. for a visit. We don't know a whole lot about her life prior to us finding her, but we do know, she has an ability. It's being kept quiet and out of official reports, since some idiot might get what they think is a bright idea to study her. Her ability may relate to the abuse inflicted on her. She has scarring on her chest. In a pattern, kinda like someone kept trying to do a ritual. Maybe they were trying to remove it? I don't know. As of a few days ago, we got permission to bring her to the states and we signed paperwork making her ours. So we're calling that date her birthday. Tara, we know for a fact, that she has an ability, we've seen it. Does she register on your senses?"

"Give me a minute." She said and closed her eyes, reaching out magically. After a moment, she opened her eyes and said. "No, I'm getting nothing from her, I'd have to do an evaluation to determine any ability. Which means it's naturally occurring, like your psychometry."

"I thought so, but I wanted to be sure. She has the ability to heal with a touch. And she currently doesn't have control over it. Just touching her or being touched by her can heal a wound or an illness. Also, because of the abuse, she has some developmental delays. She doesn't talk, she rarely even makes a noise. We have to constantly check to see if she needs a diaper change and keep her on a regular schedule of eating, because she won't cry. She can, she has nightmares. It's just, she learned to be quiet a long time ago. It's taken months to get her comfortable with me and Cordy. Surprisingly, she does well in public. We took her to an amusement park for her birthday and aside from the fact that she wouldn't go near the clowns, she did fine and even enjoyed herself, though she didn't laugh and Cordy took her shopping and she did fine there too. We're hoping to eventually get her comfortable enough to talk and express herself more. She does make her preferences clear. She's not a tomboy, she's a fashionista. She loves wearing dresses and looking pretty. That'll probably change. Our staff psychologist says kids cycle thru different persona until they find one that they feel clearly defines them. So, don't be alarmed if she won't let you touch her or you don't hear her cry if she stubs her toe or something."

"Oh, gods." Joyce said. "Some people shouldn't be allowed children."

"Yeah, but I wouldn't be here if that could be figured out ahead of time." Xander said.

Joyce nodding, understanding.

"So what's her name?" Dawn asked.

"Oh, we gave her a very appropriate name." Xander told her. "Everyone, meet D.J. which is short for Daniela Joyce Chase Harris."

Everyone was silent and then Joyce said. "You named her for me?"

"When I think mother, I think you, Joyce. You flew to Colorado to be at our wedding. My parents couldn't be bothered to even call. If we'd had it here in Sunnydale, they might have come, but most likely, they would have been drunk. You flew to Colorado to help us deal with that drunk stealing the life from our unborn baby. You came to Kendra's funeral and cried, they didn't. I did tell them, they just didn't come and I was grateful, because I was certain they'd use it as an excuse to get drunk. You have taken into your heart, myself, Cordelia, Faith, Tara and Willow, in addition to Buffy and Dawn. Congratulations, Grandma Joyce, it's a girl!"