bornbored: I apologize profusely for the obscene delay...I'm still getting used to my new workload at school. Thanks so much for the patience, and rest assured the next chapter will be up much, much quicker!

After two days the protests at the hospital ended entirely and as Wanda had promised the facility was re-opened. The first two months of the third trimester were very much the same as her second one, peaceful. With the due date nearing she was now visited by Dr. Hartho weekly and all signs pointed to a healthy delivery. The soon-to-be parents grew more excited each day, and Kurt sent transmissions nearly every day to check on Wanda's condition. Today, he had explained, would be his last transmission for a while, as the X-men embarked on their assault against the peons of Apocalypse. Wanda trusted him and the X-men to be careful and return safely, but anxiety for her unborn child's father took hold of her heart nonetheless.

Two days passed without word from the X-men or Kurt, and it was starting to wear on her nerves. She awoke before the sun the morning of the third day; with a searing pain in her abdomen.

"Agh!" she clutched her stomach where the pain seemed to be emanating from, and as she stared down at her soft cool sheets her heart skipped a beat; they were stained with a warm pool of blood.

"LORNA! BLINK!!" she shrieked, dizziness sweeping over her, "HELP!"

Blink appeared in the room and gasped at the sight of her leader, wasting no time in clambering onto the bed to grasp her by the shoulders as she fell forward. In a split second they had teleported to the hospital, and Wanda fell unconscious. With panicked fervor Blink and Dr. Hartho secured her a room and attended to the bleeding.

Blink stood outside her leader's hospital room; staring in protectively from the doctor's window. She watched as Lorna sat by her sister's side unceasingly, staring into her face and occasionally at her swollen stomach mournfully. The doctor entered and made an additional examination and recording of Wanda's vital signs, if only to comfort her younger sister a bit. When he exited he stood next to Blink, sighing and removing his glasses as he massaged his temples.

"Blink, it should be no surprise to you that Wanda's condition is a grave one for the baby. She's been out for hours now-and with that bleeding there's no way I can tell the child's condition."

"What can I do?" Blink asked miserably, staring into the bleak white room.

"Watch her…if there is any hope of rescuing the baby, I'll need to perform an emergency c-section, and soon." He placed his glasses back on and straightened his white coat,

"I'll have the necessary equipment set up, if she does wake up, alert me at once."

Blink nodded obediently and crossed her arms, her eyes burning with tears. The life of her best friend dangled dangerously before her and she felt powerless to intervene…after all, what could she do against a miscarriage? Suddenly Lorna started within the hospital room; Wanda was stirring and blinking open her eyes.

"Lorna…" she murmured sleepily, "The…the baby-"

"Wanda I'm more worried about you," Lorna flung her arms around her sister, "Oh God I was so worried!"

Blink suddenly teleported into the room, the doctor at her side. He reached Wanda's bedside and took a quick look into each of her eyes, before nodding to a nurse waiting outside the doorway. The nurse wheeled in a small metal cart upon which rested a tray with various medical tools.

"Ms. Wanda, for the safety of the baby, I've decided to perform an emergency caesarian. I'll need you to wait outside please, Ms. Lorna."

"She just woke up! How can you do that already?" Lorna demanded, holding onto Wanda protectively.

"You don't understand," the doctor persisted, pulling on a pair of latex gloves,

"Once her body has tried to miscarry it is almost guaranteed to try again-the baby must be removed!"

Wanda's hand rested longingly on her belly,

"But I…I wanted Kurt to be here for the delivery, can't we wait until he can be contacted?"

Dr. Hartho sighed impatiently and looked Wanda square in the eyes,

"If the procedure is not performed now, you will most likely deliver a stillborn, Wanda."

She made an anguished sound and clutched onto her sister, who blinked back nervous tears,

"Wanda, I'll stay with you-I promise, you won't be alone just because Kurt can't be here."

"Nurse, administer a small general anesthetic," Dr. Hartho tied a mask about the lower half of his face and regarded Wanda once more,

"Wanda Maximoff, do you consent to the procedure?"

"Whatever you have to do for the baby-just see that it's done." She replied stoically as her heart raced with anxiousness, and the doctor nodded obligingly.

Later that night most of the X-men had flown back to the mansion, and there Kurt found a transmission from Lorna explaining Wanda's situation. The teleporter wasted no time in urging Ororo back into the jet, and this time Hank and Kitty accompanied them. Kitty couldn't resist trying to comfort her friend, whose nerves rested on the edge of panic, and Hank came along as co-pilot for a tired but willing Ororo.

When they arrived at the hospital Kurt demanded Wanda's location from a startled secretary, who obliged with the room number. Kitty sighed in an exhasperated way; none of her attempts to calm the german X-man seemed to be working. Hank patted her shoulder comfortingly as they followed Kurt to the hospital room,

"It's alright, Kitty, I imagine I wouldn't be able to keep calm either had I received news like that."

Kitty nodded and watched as Kurt located his lover's room and practically tore the door off, rushing inside.

"Vanda, liebe, I'm so sorry I couldn't be here vith you!" he grasped her hands in his, "How are you feeling?"

"Just a bit sore," Wanda smiled up at him in a tired way, "It's so good to see you."

Kurt leaned down and met her mouth with his own, as Hank and Kitty entered the room. Hank cleared his throat ackwardly, and the two pulled apart.

"Dr. McCoy," Wanda smiled and outstretched her hand to the blue-furred X-man, who took it gently in his own,

"It's been too long, Ms. Maximoff. This is Kitty Pryde, a close friend of Kurt's."

"Yes, I remember her," Wanda replied as Kitty offered her a smile and she returned it.

Kurt began to look worriedly about the room, and asked in a subdued voice,

"Vanda, vhere ist ze baby?"

"Don't worry Kurt-she's in incubation with the other pre-mies."

Kurt expressed his excitement along with Wanda at the fact that they both were now parents of a daughter, as Kitty looked to Hank curiously,

"'Pre-mies?'" she echoed.

"Pre-mature infants," he replied matter-of-factly.

"Oh," Kitty nodded and suddenly beamed at a nurse entering the room, clutching a tiny bundle in her arm. She walked to the side of Wanda's bed and smiled, offering the blanket-wrapped baby to her,

"Meet your daughter, Ms. Wanda," she said as Wanda eagerly accepted the child into her arms, cradling her gently against her chest and peering into her small face.

"Oh, Kurt, just look at her!" she exclaimed happily as she pulled back the blanket a bit from the infant's face and took her in-the baby was the spitting image of her father, her skin was colored blue just a bit lighter than the X-man's, almost a robin's-egg shade. Her tiny hands were clutched into fists, but it was evident they contained only two fingers. A small tuft of black hair adorned her head, and when she slowly blinked her eyes open, they were an unmistakable gold.

Kurt and the other X-men looked on with wonder, and Kurt ran a hand nervously through his hair.

"I had hoped she vould look more like you," he said guiltily looking at Wanda, "Zis appearance hasn't exactly made life easy for me..."

"No, she's perfect just the way she is," Wanda said as she smiled down at her daughter lovingly, "Hello Talia," she murmured and pressed a kiss to the baby's forehead. The baby responded with a tiny annoyed grumbling and shut her eyes tight again, clearly preferring sleep to introductions.

"Would you like to hold her?"

Kurt carefully accepted the baby and cradled her against him as if she were made of glass, looking to Wanda for approval. She smiled as he stared tentatively into the baby's face, who responded with a befuddled and sleepy look.

"She's adorable!" Kitty cooed, "What did you say her name was?"

"Talia," Kurt replied, "Talia Josephine..." he paused and looked to Wanda, who added,

"Wagner." She smiled up at him, and Kurt thought she had never looked so beautiful.

"Talia," Kitty echoed admiringly, "Ooh I want to hold her too, Kurt!"

"Settle down, aunt Kitty," Hank replied with a chuckle, "Well you're a father, now, boy," He looked approvingly at the younger X-man, "This will certainly change things."

"I'm not vorried," Kurt replied with a sidelong glance at Wanda, "Ve're family now."

"We've always been a family-this is just a new, cuter addition to it!" Kitty said happily, finally receiving the right to hold the baby.

"Do you mean...you two plan to be married?" Hank asked as Wanda and Kurt tentatively nodded, taking each other's hand.

"That's wonderful!" Hank clapped Kurt on the shoulder with enough force to knock his breath out and beamed, "Wait until the rest of the team hears this!"