Her first clue was the keychain.

Buffy couldn’t find her keys. Somehow, they had jumped out of her purse and run away. After frantically searching for 15 minutes, Riley finally took pity on her and tossed her the spare set he kept hidden from her. She had a habit of losing keys, and he said hiding them from her was a necessary evil.

There was a baby carriage charm on the keyring.

---

"Willow? Are you and Graham…well, have you ever considered having kids?" Buffy asked as she and her best friend ate lunch at the outdoor café that Willow owned.

"Actually…we aren’t thinking about it any more," Willow replied shyly.

"You mean…?"

"Yes, we found out last yesterday!" Willow said happily, a huge smile on her face.

"That’s wonderful! I’m so happy for both of you!" Buffy hugged her, a wistful look on her face.

"I know that look. Are you wondering about having a child with Riley?" Willow asked, sensitive to the problems of a pregnant Slayer.

"Yes. I mean, I don’t even know if it’s something that Riley wants right now, it’s just…how long can I realistically put it off? At least with the Hellmouth being temporarily sealed right now, I’d have a chance at pulling off a pregnancy."

Willow and Giles had managed to find a spell that acted like a lock for the Hellmouth, and the ‘key’, an elaborate spell of their own creation, had been sent to the Council in England for safekeeping. Without the seductive power leaking from the demonic portal, Buffy’s workload had dropped to almost nothing.

Willow smiled secretively as Buffy absently twirled the carriage keychain around on her finger. Riley was setting her up with Willow’s help, and it looked like the first hint was doing its job.

---

All of a sudden, as though Buffy’s thoughts were manifesting themselves in reality, fate conspired to present her with baby reminders wherever she went.

When she and Riley did the grocery shopping, somehow a jar of baby food slipped into their cart.

Buffy’s mom asked her if she could baby-sit for a friend from out of town, and showed up at her door with a six month old angel and a diaper bag.

And Willow grew…and grew…and made Buffy drive her to her monthly checkups. Her doctor let Buffy listen to the baby’s heartbeat, and Graham and Willow invited her and Riley over to watch the videotape of the sonogram.

Her pharmacist gave her a bottle of prenatal vitamins instead of her birth control pills when she went to pick up her monthly prescription.

Buffy was too lost in her own burgeoning desire for a child to remember to go back and exchange them.

And Riley said nothing, waiting for Buffy to make up her mind.

---

"Riley."

They lay in the darkness, cuddling after an emotional session of  love-making. A tear had escaped to slip silently down Buffy’s face as Riley  had slipped a condom on before sliding into her, and she had found herself wishing…

"Yes, Buffy," Riley whispered, dropping a gentle kiss on her head as it lay against his shoulder.

"I want…" she began, then stopped as a choked sob escaped her.

"You want what, baby?" he asked, flipping the side lamp on and turning to face her.

"Can we…do you…I want to have a baby," she finally said, looking up at him hopefully.

"Okay," he said calmly, mentally cheering and doing an end zone dance in his head.

"Really?!" Buffy said excitedly. "You wouldn’t mind?"

"Of course not," he assured her, crossing his fingers behind her back as he added, "I’d never try to talk you into it, but since you’ve brought it up…it would make me very happy to have a mini-Buffy running around here."

"Or a mini-Riley," she joked, poking him with her finger. She leaned over and grabbed the box of condoms off the nightstand, and with a perfect hook-shot, threw them into the trash can by the door. "Won’t be needing *those* anymore!"

He growled playfully and grabbed her after switching off the light. "Let’s make a baby…"

---

"You son of a bitch! This was all your idea!"

Riley paled and glanced at Willow over Buffy’s head, and she shook her head in amusement. "I’ve never said a word to her, Riley," she assured him. "This is just the pain talking."

Buffy glared up at her husband, panting as another contraction slammed into her with the force of a mule’s kick. "My mother warned me that sex led to all sorts of bad things, but did I listen? NO! And now look at what’s happened!"

"Come on, Mrs. Finn, a few more good pushes and it will all be over," the doctor said in a quiet, soothing voice.

"Don’t think I don’t know this…was…a …conspiracy…" Buffy gasped out, squeezing Riley’s hand in a crushing grip that caused his bones to pop. "Willow, you got pregnant just so I’d want one too…and…Aaargh!" she screamed, falling back in exhaustion as the thin wail of a newborn baby echoed through the room.

"Congratulations, it’s a boy!" the doctor said, placing the tiny, red-faced infant in her arms.

---

His first clue was the ballet slipper charm that found its way onto his keychain.

"Buffy!" he shouted, dangling the keys in front of her face when she stuck her head around the corner of the kitchen where she’d been feeding their two year old son, Andrew.

"You knew all along?" he asked as she grinned up at his angry face.

"Of course. So, what do you say? You up for another one?"

 

The End