How We Got Here

At Peace

  "Puck? Puck, I just got a contraction; I think I'm in labor."

 Puck blinked the sleep out of his eyes and sat up in bed. "Nice try, Grimm, but your due date is in a week."

 Sabrina rolled her eyes. "Puck, nature isn't like term papers. The baby can come outside the due date!" 

 He stared at her, still a little out of it. "Wait, you're serious? The baby's here?" 

 "Yes, genius," she grumbled, already getting up and gathering her prepacked overnight bag. 

 "Oh my--Here, let me help you!" Puck's heart leapt in his chest. He shot out of bed and grabbed their bags. "I'll fly us there--keep you off your feet."

 "Puck, you watch too many movies. We have time to take a cab. Besides, I am not risking a horrible death thanks to Puck Airlines." 

 "You didn't seem to mind it when we first moved here," Puck grumbled. "Now, take my arm. Remember your breathing  exercises, okay? And uh--and don't freak out, because there's nothing to freak out about and--"

 Sabrina cut him off. "Puck, I'm okay."

 "Oh," he said. "That's good, because I'm okay too." He laughed nervously. 

 Once the two were in a taxi and maneuvering through New York traffic, Puck got even more restless.

 "I will give you all the money in my wallet if you get us to the hospital in under half an hour," he called to the driver. The guy grumbled back that he was going as fast as he could.

 Sabrina gritted her teeth and clutched her belly in pain. "Puck, I know for a fact you only have two dollars in your wallet," she said after the contraction had passed. He ignored her and continued giving the driver directions, getting many rude words in response. Finally he was forced to sit back and wait.

 "I'm really proud of you." Puck whispered to his wife as they reached the hospital. He wrapped her hand in his and brought it to his lips. She smiled.

Once they were assigned a room to wait for the delivery, Daphne was the first to show up. 

 "Pinocchio's parking the car. In other news: I brought food!" she announced triumphantly, running down the hall. Even at three in the morning, her outfit looked perfectly planned. 

 "Thank god!" Puck cried, ripping into one of the takeout bags. Sabrina glared at them both.

 "Why do you hate me?" she grumbled, going back to her tiny cup of Jell-o.

 "Sorry," Daphne shrugged, chomping on a fry. "I can't believe we're the first ones here. Red owes me five bucks."

 Everyone else showed up within the next few hours. Veronica seemed to be a calming presence for Sabrina, but the room full of conversing Grimms seemed to wear on her after a while.

 "I need to get out of here before I kill one of them," she whispered to her husband.

One of the nurses went with Puck and Sabrina on a walk down the hallway to help along the labor.  She walked a little behind them while Sabrina's arm rested on Puck's. He tried to ignore the constant, invasive scent of cleanliness surrounding him, which just made his nerves about the upcoming life-changing event worse.

 "Puck, you're fidgeting again," Sabrina pointed out his hands, which had twisted his hoodie drawstrings around his fingers, firmly cutting off the circulation. "Would you calm down?"

 "I can't!" he cried. "I just want this to go well. I mean, what if I mess this kid up somehow? It's not like I ever had a great example of a father. Even after I was banished, all I ever saw was parents ruining their kids. Seriously, you would not believe the daddy issues Berserkers and villains have."

 Sabrina sighed. "Puck, you trust me, right?" 

 "You know I do," he said with a smirk.

 "Then you know I wouldn't have kids with a man I thought would ruin them. We're in this together."

 Puck relaxed immediately. "Okay, fine, I admit defeat."

 "Wait, what was that? I didn't hear you," she said loudly, hand to her ear. 

"Okay, I get it."

"No, really. I think your hearing goes out when you're having a baby. You should repeat yourself."

 Puck rolled his eyes, whispering, "Why did I grow up for you again?" while his wife continued to over-act like she was deaf.

Eight hours later, Alison Relda Grimm was born.  Everything had happened so fast, with the doctor and nurses talking over each other, that before Puck knew it Sabrina was being handed a crying baby wrapped in a pink blanket. Sabrina was covered in sweat, but her face filled with life when she looked into her new daughter's eyes. 

 When Alison was handed to him, Puck felt all his breath leave him. She was so fragile and tiny. Puck felt tears fill his eyes. Now, Puck remembered crying exactly three times in his life: at his father's funeral, at his wedding, and the first time he had ever taken a shower. He did not consider himself emotional, but within minutes he was blubbering in front of a bunch of medical professionals.

 "Puck? You okay?" Sabrina asked him lightly. There were tears in her eyes too.

 "It's just...no one ever told me it would feel like this!" he sobbed. He didn't even complain about Sabrina laughing at him; he was too busy staring at his daughter.

 Then they were able to bring the family into the delivery room to meet her.

 "I'm still mad you didn't use 'Basil' as her middle name," Basil joked. Daphne elbowed him. 

 "She's so adorable! I can't wait to be her fun aunt."

 Canis spoke up next. "Congratulations, you two." 

 "I'm so happy you had a girl!" Red smiled. "I think she has Puck's nose."

 "Oh, that's definitely a Goodfellow nose," Puck agreed.

 A day later, the couple carried Alison into their apartment.

 "How is it that I spent the entire time in the hospital in a bed, but was way more tired there than I am here?" Sabrina joked.

 "Because we're home," Puck answered. They nestled the baby into the crib they'd assembled ahead of time (with much frustrated screaming, mostly on Sabrina's side). Sabrina lay down on the couch in the dimly lit nursery, her head in Puck's lap, and the couple sat in comfortable silence just looking at their sleeping baby.

"I was honestly surprised she didn't have any sign of wings." Sabrina laughed.

 "Half fairy/half human babies is kind of unexplored territory, so I don't even know if she'll have them, at least not before puberty," Puck said, shrugging.

 "Should we tell her about it?" Sabrina wondered aloud. "Not just her being half fairy, but everything?"

 "I don't think we should for a while," Puck whispered. 

 Sabrina looked at her husband. "Really? Are you sure?" 

 "It's just that I remember what it was like growing up with people expecting a lot from me. It'd be kind of nice to keep her from that until she's equipped to handle it," he replied. 

 Sabrina smiled. "I understand that, although I can't promise that she'll take it well either way, not if she's anything like me." 

 "Okay, then," he said, pushing Sabrina's hair back from her face. "Alison's got a surprise coming to her when she grows up a bit. And if she is anything like you, she'll do amazing things with it."

 Puck and Sabrina sat there for the rest of the night, watching Alison's tiny chest rise and fall, until Sabrina fell asleep. And as Puck listened to the slow breathing of the two most important people in his life, he realized he was finally at peace. 

 That is, until the crying started.