Title: Blessing

Author: Jinni (druscilla@cox.net)

Pairing: W/Legolas

Rated: PG13

Genre: BtVS/LotR Crossover.

Disclaimer: All things BtVS belong to Joss Whedon, et al. All things LotR belong to JRR Tolkien, et al.

Distribution: Anyone that has "Single, Blonde Elf". No one else.

Author’s Note: Sequel to "Single, Blonde Elf"

~*~

Whoever said that being pregnant was a blessing was mistaken.

I wholeheartedly disagree with that theory, one hundred and ten percent.

Ouch, back ache – make that one hundred and twenty percent.

It wasn’t enough that the gods had to let magic play merry havoc with my cells and genes and all sorts of other things that I can’t even begin to comprehend; turning me from ninety-nine percent human to one hundred percent elf in a span of only a few hours. But now they had to go and let me get pregnant.

Now, you may be wondering how this came to pass. After all, the Elven men lost their fertility about a thousand years before their time in Middle Earth came to a close. That’s why there are no little Elven children running around.

Well, it seems as if the One decided that it wasn’t enough that Legolas and I were an anomaly to begin with, we also had to mark a new Era. An Era of the rebirth of Elven kind.

Oh joy.

If I had known that I would most definitely have been using a spell, a condom, or –anything- to prevent this. We’re still in our ‘honeymoon phase’, for Goddess’ sake! Our handfasting just ended two months ago.

And already I’m knocked up.

Technically, I was knocked up a month before the handfasting, though we didn’t know it at the time.

So – yay us. We get to be parents.

Parents.

Dear, sweet, Goddess.

Why on earth are you going to let me bring life into this world? Hello – psycho dark-magic girl here, tried to end all life as we know it. Why would anyone trust me with a child?

The child will be a boy. Lady Galadriel has foretold it.

Though why she couldn’t foresee enough to tell Lego and I to use protection. . .

Well, we won’t get into that.

Don’t get me wrong. I couldn’t be happier. I just have my moments where I’m less happy than others. This being one of those times when I’m only very minutely happy. My body has been taken hostage by another life form. I exist solely to keep it safe and nourished while it grows and develops.

When you put it that way it sounds like I have an alien inside of me. Legolas hasn’t seen the movie ‘Aliens’, so he wouldn’t know what I’m talking about. Needless to say, I’m now entirely weirded out by this whole thing.

Oh look, he brought me some tart.

~*~

The baby kicked me this morning.

Hard.

Woke me up.

Which gave me a chance to allow Legolas to share in the whole pregnancy experience when I woke him up as well with a flailing slap to his arm.

He’s so cute when he jerks awake like there’s an emergency.

I’m starting to get a little more of that mothering feeling that all the other Elven mothers assured me I would get. I still doubt that it will grow to be as strong as they suggest, however. They have to be exaggerating. It’s been how many thousands of years since any of them had kids? Hello – used to be a mortal woman, only recently an Elf. Don’t think I’ll be getting too doting since I never intended to have kids to begin with. Let’s face it; my parents weren’t the most stellar of role models.

Anyway – the baby. Also known as Talaneborn.

I plan on calling him Tal.

~*~

I had no idea that Galadriel knew how to, of all things, knit. She knitted a little sleeper-jumper type thing for Tal. Its cute. She even foresaw that his favorite color shall be green.

Okay, her ‘foresight’ is a little shaky sometimes. I mean – my favorite color is green. Legolas’ favorite color is green. How much guessing does it take to figure out our kid’s favorite color will end up being green as well?

She means well.

I think.

Anyway.

Cute little jumper, all hand-knitted.

The presents keep coming and the baby hasn’t even been born yet. Still another month to go of this whaledom. I fully intend to kill Legolas for putting me through all of this once the child is full-grown and on his own. Not before, mind you, wouldn’t want to deal with single motherhood.

Tal has taken to kicking me repeatedly between three and six in the morning. Not sure if he knows what time it is or if he doesn’t care. Either way he’ll be grounded for the first seven years of his life at this rate.

Back pain is nearly unbearable, even with Legolas devoting a good two hours out of each day just to rub it. Maybe once Tal is born my body can go back to being ‘normal’.

~*~

Oh.

My.

Goddess.

Make the pain stop?

Please?

Oh please.

I’ll do anything. Want me to jump through hoops? Stand on my head? Recite the pledge of allegiance backwards and in Spanish?

I can do that.

Just take the pain away.

Here comes another one.

"Push, love."

Push?

Who does he think he is? My fucking coach?

Wait.

He is.

Damn.

Pushing. . .pushing. . .ah. . . pain goes bye bye.

I have time to look over and give the love of my life a tired smile before that same, throbbing-stabbing pain is back. This cannot possibly be what childbirth is like.

Oh yeah, usually women have drugs for this type of thing. Lucky me that there aren’t any drugs in all of Valinor, right?

Right?

Pushing again. . .Goddess damnit all. . .

I feel something give way inside of me and then there a cry.

Tal?

"He’s beautiful."

Oh good. A beautiful baby boy. Just like his daddy.

My mind isn’t fully functioning when they hand me Tal, wrapped in another of Galadriel’s hand-knitted designs. He’s so small, pink and wrinkly. Are they always like this?

But, Lego is right. He’s beautiful.

I’m feeling that mothering thing the other women were talking about. As I look down into Tal’s face I can’t help it. He’s so unaware, so helpless. I helped create this life and I’ll be damned if anyone ever take it away.

He’s my blessing.

~*~The End~*~