Hey Kittens! Sorry for the wait, but here is the next update. Thank you all for reading and leaving feedback, or just reading
I appreciate it! I don't know when the next update will be, but hopefully soon, things are busy around here.
Anyhoo, enjoy!
Title: Baby, There’s Always Tomorrow
Author: Holly aka Taras Shadow
Disclaimer: All characters belong to Joss Whedon, ME, UPN with the exception of Tori, Hadley, Libby, Orlando, Mikey, Lily and Emelia and other non-Buffy characters.
Feedback: Yes please, everything is welcome.
Pairings: W/T, B/F, X/A, D/Tori
Rating: PG-13 to NC-17
Summary: The Rosenberg-Maclay family get settled into their new life as they and all the Scoobies are sure to face rough roads ahead. Each day will be challenging in the everyday life of Sunnydale, California and the gang will either become closer than ever, or drift apart.
~Chapter 5~~*~*~*~*~
"Breathe Mrs. Rosenberg," Doctor Greene smiled at the redhead.
Willow was scared as she lay back on the examining table. Her hand instantly reached out for her wife’s as the nurse prepared the set up for checking the baby. "It’s Mrs. Rosenberg-Maclay," she whispered, her green eyes darted at the nurse.
Willow huffed.
"It’s okay Will, just relax," Tara soothed in her lover’s ear. The pad of her thumb stroked the soft skin on the back of Willow’s hand.
"My apologies," the doctor smiled warmly. "How long have you two been married?"
"A little over three months," Tara answered, looking at Willow adoringly.
"I know I got myself the most beautiful woman on earth," Willow grinned and kissed Tara’s hand.
Doctor Greene smiled and started Willow’s check up.
Tara’s fingers tickled Willow’s palm softly, keeping her calm and whispered loving words into her ear. They watched closely at what the doctor was doing and saying. After Doctor Greene finished her procedure, she took off her gloves and sat down on a stool next to Willow.
"Am I pregnant?" Willow asked the wide curious eyes.
The short blonde doctor smiled and wrote her observations down on her clip board. "I’m sure you know the answer to that," she looked up and placed the clip board over her chest as she studied the couple intently. "Yes, you are pregnant."
Tara beamed and leaned forward, kissing her wife on the forehead. "Hear that Willow? It’s official."
Willow sighed and caressed her lover’s cheek. "Yay," she giggled.
"I do however, have some concerns," Doctor Greene glanced around the room and found what she was looking for.
"Wh-what concerns?" Tara stuttered, her grip tightened on Willow’s hand.
"Nothing to be worried about," the doctor got up and grabbed a small pregnant woman sculpture. "My only concerns are the future concerns," she placed the plastic model in front of the two women.
"Future concerns?" Willow eyed up the sculpture in front of her and smiled when she noticed you could open the belly and a tiny plastic baby pops out.
Tara smiled and placed her hand on her lover’s shoulder. "Don’t break the pregnant woman."
"I’d never!" Willow jerked her hands back and pouted.
Doctor Greene smiled fondly at the couple and cleared her throat. "It’s just you’re a small built person Mrs. Rosenberg-Maclay," she moved her hands to Willow’s hips.
"You can call me Willow," the redhead grinned. "Cause Tara is also Mrs. Rosenberg-Maclay, and she has lovely hips," she waggled her eyebrows at her blonde lover.
"Willow!" Tara blushed and bit her lip.
The doctor shook her head and smiled. "It’s a normal concern, but most of the time it isn’t a problem. I’m just thinking about your career."
"My career?"
"Modelling," Doctor Greene checked over her clipboard. "If you were to have the baby naturally, without any problems, great...however, it’s also possible you may need a caesarean, which does leave a scar."
Willow just smiled and squeezed her wife’s hand as she kept her eyes on the doctors. "You know, some other models or actresses may have a problem with that, but I’m a family woman, and as long as our baby is healthy, I honestly don’t care how she’s born."
Doctor Greene grinned and put her pen down. "Well, I guess that about covers it, I mean, I’ll still be concerned, seeing as I am your doctor. Why don’t we set up an appointment for now?"
"Sure, anytime." Willow sat up and tugged on her hospital gown. "Do I still look sexy now?" she grumbled at Tara.
"Oh yea," Tara smirked and ran her hand down Willow’s back, caressing the freckled skin with her finger tips.
Willow blushed and squirmed a bit, shifting her gaze anywhere around the room but at the young doctor.
"I’ll set the appointment up...say, three weeks from now?" Doctor Greene watched Willow and Tara nod. "Okay, I’ll schedule it with the receptionist, I’ll let you get changed."
Tara smiled her thanks and watched the other woman step out quietly. "I like her," she helped Willow with the strings on her gown. "She’s nice."
"Yea, and she didn’t ask any questions about how the baby was conceived." Willow frowned, getting dressed from the waist up and then took her bra from Tara’s hand.
Tara couldn’t resist half-naked Willow and pulled her close, placing soft kisses along her shoulders. "And if she does?" She whispered.
"We’ll lie," Willow furrowed her brow. "I mean, we can’t exactly tell her the truth."
"True," Tara murmured and wrapped her arms around her lover’s waist. "So do we tell Hadley now?"
"Well not now," Willow playfully rolled her eyes. "I’d like to be fully dressed thank you very much."
The blonde chuckled and rubbed noses with her wife. "Well, let’s get you changed into your shirt, find out our appointment, go for a nice lunch and then find the girls."
"Sounds good," Willow smiled and leaned in to kiss Tara softly on the lips, before getting her shirt on with very little distraction from her wife.
~*~*~*~*~
"So honestly, how was your first night all alone in your dorm room?" Dawn asked her girlfriend, kissing the brunette’s fingertips.
Tori smiled and tugged Dawn close so they were only a breath away. "Lonely without you."
Dawn sighed and brushed her lips over Tori’s softly.
"Um, you’re dripping ice cream Aunt Dawn," Hadley smiled, skipping with her skipping rope at the park.
Dawn scowled and pulled back the hand that was holding her ice cream cone, as it slowly started dripping over her fingers. "Thanks Had."
"No problem," Hadley said, getting out of breath from jumping up and down. "Aunt Faith said that I get to exorcist with her tonight," she grinned.
"Exorcist?" Tori raised an eyebrow at her niece.
"Yea, at the Magic Box in the training room," Hadley smiled even wider, feeling a very big girl.
"Exercise?" Tori questioned again.
"Yea, that’s what I said," the little blonde grumbled. "Don’t you listen?"
"I think she thought you meant exorcist," Dawn started to explain. "Like, when someone gets possessed, an evil spirit inside of them, they perform this ritual or whatever, to get rid of it."
"Oh," Hadley’s big blue eyes went wide. "Scary."
Tori scooped her niece in her lap and kissed her cheek. "Nothing to be afraid of if you’re just exercising," she giggled and tickled Hadley’s sides a bit, making her squirm slightly.
"Who wants to have a nice filling lunch?" Dawn asked, standing up and throwing the remaining ice cream cone away.
"Me!" Hadley jumped off her Aunt’s lap.
Tori laced her fingers with her girlfriend as they walked behind the energetic little girl. "Don’t waste all your energy, Had...we still have to explore the mall."
"Oh yea!" Hadley jumped even more with excitement. She started to slow down a bit and began to hum a tune, leading the older couple through the park.
"Classes start in two days, I can’t believe how fast the summer went by," Tori said, taking in the scenery.
"I know...how is it being a senior?" Dawn raised an eyebrow.
"Not that different," Tori laughed and wrapped an arm around Dawn’s waist. "Just that you get a bit more privileges when it comes to breaks and early dismissal," she turned and looked at her girlfriend. "Are you dreading at being a senior?"
Dawn shook her head and smiled lightly. "Nah, I’m just curious."
Tori returned the light smile and took a deep breath. "Dawnie?" she waited for her girlfriend’s attention. "Does it really bother you that I’m now in college and you’re still in high school?"
Dawn shrugged and kicked a rock in her pathway. "It’s undescribable what I feel," she whispered.
"What do you mean?"
"Tori, you’re college gal now, you have so much more in store for you, no limitations when it comes to living, you know? You have no one to tell you what to do or when to go to bed or be home-"
"You think I’m going to leave you?" Tori stopped, she looked ahead at Hadley and noticed the little girl stopped to pick some flowers, then her attention turned back to Dawn. "Dawn, you know me, at least I’d like to think you do, why on earth would I break up with you just because I’m in college?"
Dawn noticed the hurt look on her girlfriend’s face, and the trace of it in her words. "I’m sorry, it’s no big deal."
Tori looked concerned and frowned. "Yes, it is a big deal if it’s bugging you this much."
"Really, let’s not do this now," Dawn smiled and kissed Tori gently on the lips.
Tori smiled weakly as the caught up with Hadley.
"I picked some flowers for Mama and Mommy!" Hadley smiled.
"That’s awesome," Tori grinned and ran her fingers through her niece’s long curly hair.
Hadley shifted her gaze on Dawn’s, then back to Tori’s. She noticed something wasn’t right, something didn’t feel right, but decided not to question it. "Where are we going to eat?"
"I was thinking we’d try that new little restaurant that opened up right beside the mall."
"Oh, yea, Buffy and Faith said they serve the best pastas," Dawn grinned.
Tori bumped shoulders with her girl and laced their fingers tighter together. "Maybe I can take you there for dinner, say Friday night?"
"A date?" Hadley’s eyes grew wide and she burst into giggles. "You two just wanna kiss," she made kissing sounds.
"And?" Tori shot Hadley a smirk before bringing her eyes up to meet Dawn’s. "So?"
"I’d love that," Dawn smiled.
"Great, it’s a date."
"You want to kiiiss her, you want maaaarry her, you want to daaa-" Hadley mouth was clamped shut by both Dawn and Tori.
~*~*~*~*~
Faith stretched out on the couch, she closed her eyes and yawned. She just finished an early shift at the Magic Box and was feeling rather exhausted. Groaning, she realized she had to go back there and train after Buffy got back from her own job at a local radio station, working as an assistant and fill-in DJ.
"Hey," a voice came through the hallway and Faith immediately opened her eyes.
"B, you’re off early," she smiled and sat up so Buffy could cuddle up beside her.
"Early?" Buffy raised an eyebrow. "Baby, I’m an hour late."
Faith frowned and looked over at the side clock. It was just after three in the afternoon. "Oh, I must’ve drifted off when I layed down three hours ago."
Buffy smiled and cupped Faith’s face, pressing her lips tightly against hers. "Hey," she whispered, giving her wife a proper hello kiss.
"Mmm," Faith smiled into the kiss and tried to deepen it, but instead, she felt Buffy pull back. "Is everything okay?" she asked.
"Of course," Buffy said honestly. "I’m just wondering about when we’re going to tell the others that we’re hitched."
Faith sat back and began to trace soft circles on Buffy’s stomach. "Well, we could always have Tara and Willow spill their secret about being pregnant first, then subtly mention that we tied the knot during our two weeks away a couple of months ago."
"Somehow I don’t think that’ll work," Buffy smiled softly. "But good try."
"What’s the big deal of just telling them the truth?" Faith asked.
"You know these people," Buffy sighed and threw herself back, lacing her fingers with Faith’s. "We’re all family, and you and I did something huge...without them. Are they really gonna forgive us?"
"If they understand," Faith replied. "B, you’re right, they are family, and they’ll stick by us no matter what decisions we’ve made."
"I guess you’re right."
"I know I am," the brunette smirked and moved Buffy so that she was straddling her. "Now, how about you and I have our own little training session before we pick up Hadley and head to the Magic Box," she waggled her eyebrows suggestively.
Buffy grinned and wrapped her arms around Faith’s neck, leaning in for a small kiss. "Okay, only if you promise to not tear my shirt off this time... it’ll be the fourth one this week."
Chuckling, Faith threw Buffy down on her back, on the couch and kissed her thoroughly. "Don’t worry B, I’ll get you new shirts."
Buffy was about to say something when Faith ripped open her buttoned shirt, latching her mouth onto the blonde’s neck. "Oh...kay, new shirts are good..." she breathed.
~*~*~*~*~
"Brady!" Willow grumbled, leaning down to pick up the cup that was swiped off the coffee table by Brady’s tail.
"Oh sweetie, let me get that," Tara came into the room and leaned down beside her wife.
"No, it’s okay," Willow smiled and picked up the plastic cup. "Really, I’m not broken."
Tara blushed and stepped back. "I never said you were..."
"Oh baby, I know you never said that," Willow dropped the cup again and immediately went to her wife’s side. "Sorry, I’m just, I don’t mean to be all snappy."
Tara smiled and brushed her fingertips over the other woman’s soft features. "I get it, Will," she whispered. "I just don’t want to crowd you, yet I want to protect and take care of you."
"I know," Willow smiled and kissed Tara’s lips softly. "She’s our baby," she placed her hand on her own stomach.
"I have to get Hadley ready before Buffy and Faith pick her up," Tara whispered.
"Okay, I’m just gonna lay down, I’m not feeling too well," Willow pouted.
"How about I come up and join you for a nice snuggle in a bit," Tara kissed Willow’s cheek.
"Please?" the redhead’s eyes looked at her wife sadly.
"Yes, give me fifteen minutes, and I’ll join you."
"Kay!" Willow smiled and grabbed Tara and kissed her hard before skipping up the stairs.
"Snuggles Willow! Not witch-y love!" Tara smirked and set off to call her daughter in from outside, to get her ready before the slayers arrived.
A voice shot back in her mind,
~*~*~*~*~
Hope you enjoyed.
I'm off to eat supper now.
~Holly~
ETA: I'm stupid and I forgot which chapter I was on.
Thanks Marina for pointing it out!
"I was born 'normal'...life made me strange." - Marina
"I am a tongue whore...you gave me tongue, what am I supposed to do...sit back and keep my mouth shut?" -Me-
"I know who you really are...you're the one who cries when you're alone." - Where Will You Go? - Evanescence
Edited by: Taras Shadow

at: 3/2/04 7:53 pm