One of the quirks of Rufus' job was an inability to wrangle his Slayer into a regular face to face meeting. He'd long since come to terms with it, provided that Shen Lei checked in over the phone every couple of days, but after a couple of months without an eyes on, he had finally pinned her down into coming to their shared office in the city for a debrief. Which was why the sound of his keys in the lock of the house he shared with Miranda on Maple Grove was quite so unexpected. More unexpected still was the note of utter panic in his voice as it reverberated through the house. "Miri! I need you!"

It wasn't unusual for Rufus to leave the house at the Grove on a regular basis. Miranda knew what he did for a living and knew he had "business" to take care of in the city that needed his personal attention. So long as it didn't involve him putting his own life in danger, she was satisfied to let him tend to his own matters without interfering. He tended to keep a lot of it close to his chest so as not to worry her, or so she believed. Now that Kaylee and Taylor were no longer in danger and off on their honeymoon, it gave her a little time to work on some new designs she was planning for a spring gala at the shop. She wasn't expecting him home for some hours yet, so when the shout came from another part of the house, she nearly jumped out of her skin, sucking in a startled breath that was on the verge of a shriek. Thankfully, she recognized the voice as belonging to her beloved husband, but there was something in the tone that worried her. "Rufus?" she queried, heart pounding, as she hurried toward the sound of his voice, looking almost as panicked as he sounded. "What is it' What's wrong?"

She found him standing in the open doorway that led from the porch, mouthing like a fish out of water. He looked pale, that panic definitely clear in his eyes. "I ....there's ..." He gave up, sighing heavily. "This is beyond me." He stepped aside to reveal his companion. Shen Lei offered Miranda a wave from the porch, her usual laconic self despite the rather monumental surprise that wasn't exactly well hidden. Outlined by the hang of her jacket and the very snug fit of her clothes, the Slayer was pregnant. Definitively, unmistakably pregnant. "He only fainted once," she offered, leaning against the doorframe. "So am I coming in, or do I get chained up in the yard until I drop the sprog?"

Miranda looked at him quizzically, cupping his face in her hands and looking him over quickly for injury or some other hurt. "What is it' Are you hurt' What's going on?" she asked, in a bit of a panic herself, touching his forehead to check for a fever and finding none. In fact, she could find nothing physically wrong with him at all. It was only when he stepped aside to reveal his companion that Miranda let out a gasp of surprise. "Oh my goodness!" she exclaimed, glancing to and fro to make sure no other Grangers were lurking about before grabbing them each by a hand and tugging them inside the house. "Get in here. Quick!"

Rufus was only too pleased to be pulled inside. He'd very nearly passed out when Lei had first shown up at the office, babbling nonsense while he pushed her into the car and drove to the Grove, his only thought that Miranda would know what to do. Slayers weren't supposed to reach 25 years old, as Lei had done; they certainly weren't supposed to get pregnant! Dragged in by her Watcher's wife, Lei pushed the door shut behind her, evidently not all that sure what the problem was. "Okay, now you both look like I just dropped a bomb on you," she pointed out. "Is there any coffee here?"

"A bomb?" Miranda laughed, but there wasn't much humor in her voice. She knew enough about what Rufus and Lei did for a living that this wasn't supposed to have happened, and she didn't really need to ask how it had happened either. That much was obvious enough, though she didn't know the particulars. "Coffee" No, no coffee. Not for you. Tea, maybe. With a splash of milk, but no coffee. It's not good for the baby," she informed the young and very pregnant slayer. Her gaze darted to Rufus for an instant before she turned and started toward the kitchen. "Come with me."

"No coffee" What, am I being punished or something?" Lei whined, grumbling under her breath at the older woman's firm insistence on proper beverages. She thumped Rufus in the stomach. "C'mon, dude, your wife's laying down the law." Following after Miranda and Lei, it was safe to say that Rufus was in a state of shock. He had no idea what to do in this situation. It was his fault Lei had virtually no social skills, and now she was breeding. That was utterly beyond him.

"I will not ask how this happened because that much is obvious," Miranda started as she moved about the kitchen preparing not only tea, but sandwiches. Who said she didn't know her way around the kitchen when it was necessary' "Rufus, would you please sit down before you fall over?" she asked her husband pointedly, more worried about him than the slayer, who obviously lacked common sense where birth control was concerned.

"Oh, come on, it's not like I went out of my way to get knocked up," Lei complained, shoving Rufus down into a seat at the table when it became obvious that being in shock had somehow rendered his ability to think and act null for the time being. The man thumped down into a seat, groaned, and dropped his face into his hands. "Oh, this is a disaster ..."

"Sit," she ordered Lei, indicating a chair with the table knife she held in her hand, not taking no for an answer and not putting up with her lack of respect for her elders. That was her husband the slayer was shoving around, after all, and if the girl needed a good scolding, Miranda was just the person to give it to her. "As for you," she started, looking to her poor husband. "It isn't anything women haven't been doing since the dawn of time. We will deal with this, just as we did once before," she informed him very matter-of-factly before turning to finish making the sandwiches.

Rolling her eyes, Lei planted herself at the table, letting out a long-suffering sigh. "If I'd known all this was going to happen, I'd have stayed away until the sprog got out of jail free," she muttered, not too quietly. Rufus, however, reminded of what had happened the last time a woman in his life had gotten pregnant, turned anguished eyes onto Miranda. He couldn't send Lei away. He was responsible for her, and a fine hash of things he'd made of it, too. "How, Miri?" he asked, defeated already.

"Yes, and that would solve everything, wouldn't it?" Miranda countered. It was a good thing she didn't see Lei's eye roll or the young woman might have received a good tongue-lashing. While she sympathized with Lei's situation and knew Rufus thought of her as a daughter of sorts, she would not tolerate her disrespect, especially when the two of them were trying to help. "Yes, why don't you disappear for another....how far along are you?" she asked, turning to look at the girl and judge how far along she was just by look. "Five months maybe? And what would you do then" Drop it off on someone's doorstep?" She held up a hand to Rufus to silence him for a moment.

"I can look after a baby," Lei defended herself, her prickly attitude rising in response to Miranda's comments. "I've been looking after myself and it for a few months now, I can handle this. It's not my fault that Rufus went off at the deep end when he saw me!"

Miranda exchanged glances with Rufus, not having to ask him before making her next suggestion, already knowing what he'd say on the matter. "You can stay here with us, if you like, or someplace close by. You'll be safe here. I promise. We can help you figure out the rest later, but what?s important for now is that you and the baby are safe." She gave Lei's hand a final squeeze to let her know she meant what she said, and that all was forgiven.

It was true - Maple Grove was likely the safest place for her right now. Nothing and no one short of an army of zombies was getting through their defenses, and no one had to know she was there but the two of them and maybe Humphrey. And once Humphrey knew, he'd stop at nothing to keep her safe.

"Somewhere close, I think," Rufus offered gently. He knew Lei well enough to know she was a little too proud to accept a room in their home. "Far enough to keep your independence without sacrificing your safety."

Lei nodded, grateful for the help they offered, but utterly at a loss as to how to express that gratitude. "I-I'll pay rent," she offered. "Somehow. I mean, if I'm not working, then I don't really have any money, but I'll work something out."

"We don't need your money, Lei," Miranda countered, but frowning, she realized the young woman was too proud to take what she considered charity without repaying them somehow. "I know you helped Jon, and you have helped us, too. If you insist on paying, we'll work something out. Take it out in trade somehow. I'm sure we can find something for you to do, but we really don't need or want your money." Miranda pulled her hand away so that she could pour them each a cup of tea and offer each a sandwich. "We're a close-knit bunch here at the Grove. We take care of each other."

"I ....I know I'm not easy to get on with," Lei said suddenly, still staring fixedly at her hands. "I'm rude and stubborn and I have a bad attitude. But I do appreciate this. I appreciate everything you and Rufus have done for me, all of it. And this is ....I was trying not to worry you. I thought I could handle it. I'm sorry I can't."

Beside Miranda, Rufus sighed softly. "Lei ....you don't have to handle everything alone," he told her gently. "I've been hard on you, I know. But please, don't hide from me when you need help. I may not be much of a father figure, but I am getting better at it, with Miranda's help. Let her help you, please."

Miranda reached out on instinct for Rufus' hand, closing her fingers about his, a soft smile on her face for both of them. Whether they said so or not, whatever private thoughts each held, Miranda knew they both cared for each other. They had been together a long time, and in truth, Lei had probably spent more time with Rufus over the years than had Miranda, but Miranda felt no jealousy at that fact, only sympathy and a growing desire to become better acquainted with the girl Rufus had raised and trained on his own. "You're not alone, Lei. We're here for you, We'll do this together."

Rufus' grip was the only thing that betrayed how unsettled he was in that moment. He'd grown so accustomed to Lei being the strong one, being the one who had everything under control, it had been a shock to the system to see her so vulnerable. Only Miranda would know that, though; Lei needed him to have answers, and though he didn't have them for her at his fingertips, he'd brought her to the one person he knew would be able to help her.

The Slayer nodded in answer to Miranda's words, sighing softly. "I guess I'm gonna have to learn all the diaper stuff, huh?"

"Eventually," Miranda replied with a soft smile. She wasn't sure what Lei was going to decide about the baby, but Miranda would be damned if the child was going to end up in the orphanage with all the other unwanted and lonely children. It hurt her heart to know there were so many - far too many for her to adopt and bring home to Maple Grove. "For now, all you need to worry about is taking care of yourself, and that starts with good nutrition," she said, shoving the sandwich at her. It wasn't anything special, but it was tasty and nutritious enough for herself and the baby. "How do you feel about milk?" she asked curiously.

And judging by how enthusiastically Lei tore into said sandwich, she hadn't been eating properly anyway. She paused at the question put her way, forgetting to swallow before she answered. "I'm supposed to have feelings about milk?" she asked through her mouthful, ignoring the disapproving look she got from Rufus for her lack of table manners.

Miranda only laughed at Lei's enthusiastic approval of her sandwich. "I personally detest milk, but it's good for you and the baby. I opted for chocolate milk myself. At least, you're past the first three months. Have you been to a doctor yet?" she asked, stirring a bit of sugar into her tea.

Swallowing belatedly, Lei nodded, glancing a little shyly at Rufus. One hand fell to her jacket pocket, producing a couple of crumpled envelopes that she pushed across the table toward the couple. Both contained scan pictures - 12 weeks and 20 weeks respectively. "He said it's healthy, and all," she offered warily, not entirely sure how Rufus was going to take knowing she'd been looking after herself and a baby for at least 20 weeks, if not more, without once telling him that was the case.

"Girl or boy?" Miranda asked, as she reached for the scans and looked them over. They likely made more sense to her than to Rufus, with a woman's eye for such things. She'd been to the doctor a few times with Bethany and had seen the scans of the twins often enough. There was only one baby inside Lei, that much was certain, but not even Miranda had a keen enough eye to tell if it was a girl or a boy.

"Uh ..." Lei was still eying Rufus warily as he looked at the scans with Miranda, his expression unreadable. "It's a girl, they said," she said finally. "But they could be wrong. It's not like there's a wiener in there waving at us, right?"

Despite himself, Rufus snorted with laughter, finally producing a smile. "You'd be surprised," he told Lei, his voice warm enough to surprise her in itself. "Bethany had the doctors convinced she was a boy."

"Well, no matter. All that's important is that the baby is healthy," Miranda said, smiling as the tension between the three of them seemed to ease some. She was relieved at least to know the young woman had been to see a doctor, not once, but twice. Maybe she had more sense about this than Miranda or Rufus had given her credit for.

Clearly a little more settled now Rufus had cracked a smile, Lei seemed to relax, slowing down as she finished off her sandwich. "So ....what am I supposed to do?" she asked, turning to the more knowledgeable person in the room.

For all his expertise, Rufus was ever so slightly clueless when it came to babies, as he demonstrated to his wife on a regular basis.

Despite herself, Lei felt a lump in her throat as Miranda spoke, careful not to hold onto the woman's hands too tightly. "I think you're right," she agreed quietly, only just in control of the choked feeling in her chest. "But I don't know how to ask. Because I'm not going to last much longer, Miranda, and it doesn't seem fair, to dump a baby on you and Rufus. But I couldn't get rid of her. I went to the clinic and everything, but I couldn't go through with it. And now I'm just making a bigger mess for everyone."

Miranda latched onto the fact that Lei was calling the child a daughter, though she couldn't possibly know for sure. Her heart was secretly breaking for the poor girl and a fate that somehow seemed impossible to escape, though Miranda would do everything in her power to find a way. For now, though, they needn't worry about that just yet, though Miranda needed Lei to know one thing, hoping she wouldn't take it the wrong way. "I will ask for you, if you wish," she told her, sensing the sadness in the young woman. "And I promise you that if it comes to it, I will not let strangers have her. You are like a daughter to Rufus. Blood or no, that makes you family and your child family. You will both always have a place and a home here with us, for as long as either of you wishes. I promise you she will never know anything but love and she will know who her mother was and of the sacrifice she made for all of us."

For the first time in a very long time, there were tears in Lei's eyes. She hadn't had anyone to really lean on since her parents had died, all too acutely aware that she couldn't let Rufus down. No matter how much she loved the man, she'd never felt worthy of the time and effort he'd put into her through the years. She nodded, swallowing hard. "I'd like that," she admitted in a very small voice. "I'd like that very much."

"Oh, dear girl," Miranda said, seeing those tears, and despite their rocky start, she moved closer so that she could wrap her arms around her and hold her close in a hug that could only be described as maternal. She felt a lump in her own throat to know this poor girl's fate, hoping she would not die thinking she had been unloved or uncared for by someone.

For a long moment, Lei was motionless in that embrace, not sure how she was supposed to react. She hadn't been hugged in years - the closest thing to human contact had been head butting Jonathan Granger a few years ago to make him sleep. But slowly she relaxed, her arms rising hesitantly to wrap about Miranda as the baby in her womb shifted. "Thank you," she whispered against the older woman's ear, wishing she had come to Rufus sooner.

Miranda was not asking for or expecting a hug in return. She was perfectly happy to give without receiving anything in return, but it warmed her heart to see Lei make the effort. She smiled as she felt the child shift between them. "To become a mother is both the greatest joy and the greatest agony, Lei," she told her, pulling away and looking to the small bump that had become impossible to hide. "May I?" she asked, not wanting to be one of those people who presumed to touch another one's child without permission.

"Well, I'm used to agony," the younger woman smiled, making a half-hearted attempt at a morbid joke. "A little bit of joy would be kinda welcome." She nodded as Miranda asked for permission to touch the bump that was impossible to mistake for anything but what it was. "You know ....I used to pretend that Rufus was my dad," she admitted, a little embarrassed to be sharing this at all. "And that you were my mom, and your daughter was my sister. And you and Beth had to go away because it was too dangerous to be around us, but that I was helping to keep you safe. It sounds pathetic."

Miranda smiled at Lei's confession, though it saddened her, too. "There's nothing stopping us from making that wish come true, you know, Lei. I'm sure Bethany would welcome a sister. She always hated being an only child." Miranda laughed a little at the thought of that. "You're about the same age, too. It's not inconceivable." She very gently touched her fingers against the bump that was Lei's baby. She could feel movement beneath her hand, but it was still too soon to feel any definite kicks or rolls. "Do you want to talk about how it happened?" she asked, not trying to be nosey, but allowing Lei the chance to get it off her chest, if she wanted to.

The Slayer snorted with laughter, shaking her head once again. "One night stand," she shrugged. "It doesn't happen often, but sometimes I need to pretend, you know? I didn't even get the guy's name. Not that I want to invite anyone into my life, really, just ....if I'd known, I might have tried harder. She's never going to know who her father is. Just that he's human."

"I raised a daughter who didn't know her father until I couldn't keep it from her any longer, and she turned out just fine," Miranda pointed out, though the memory of it saddened her. "Not a day went by that I didn't miss him in my life," she admitted. "You don't know how many times I wanted to call him, wanted to see him, but didn't for Bethany's sake. It was hard in the beginning. I don't know how many nights I cried myself to sleep. Just between us, I had a few one night stands myself. I thought it would make things easier, but it didn't. It only made me miss him more, knowing they weren't him, that they could never take his place, no matter how hard they tried." She sighed, brushing an errant tear from her face. None of that mattered now, she supposed, but she wanted the girl to know she could understand, a little.

"You're together now, that's what matters," Lei said quietly. "And I promise, I won't let anything happen to him. Seriously, not even a paper cut. He's got you; he's got a life outside all the crazy. I won't let anything get in the way of that. I promise."

"Anything happens to him and I'm going to kill him myself," Miranda replied with a smile that was only half-joking. "I lost him once. I'm not going to lose him again." She had been meaning to talk to Rufus about retiring, but she knew he wouldn't hear of it so long as Lei needed him. Maybe this little break of hers would change his mind, change both their minds, though Miranda doubted it. At the very least, it would show them both that there was more to life than kicking vampire ass.

Lei knew enough about that kind of humor to know that it wasn't really a joke, her smile sympathetic with understanding. She would definitely protect Rufus to her last breath, knowing now how important he was to the ones who loved him. "You won't lose him," she promised once again. "No matter the cost, you won't lose him again."

"No, I know I won't," she agreed with a smile. Though she didn't think it quite fair that Lei was so willing to sacrifice her life for his, she had a feeling telling her so would only make her angry. "Well, we've got a lot to do today if we want to get you settled in before dark, unless you'd rather spend the night here and start in the morning. There's a guestroom upstairs without a guest," she suggested, drawing back and returning to her tea.