#Holiday Miracle | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

princessmisery666 · 1 year ago

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It's always a cute time when Dean has to take care of a baby, because he's ridiculously good at it. 🥰

Loved this chapter.

The Girlfriend Who Remade Christmas

Part Nine: A Babe So Dear

Square: Holiday Miracle ~ spnchristmasbingo (2022)

Song: Carol of the Bells ~BarlowGirl

Pairing: Dean x Nicole {Nico/Nic} OFC

Summary: The investigation to uncover the mystery surrounding the abandoned child is surprisingly uneventful but brings about an interesting revelation.

Warnings: Fluff; A teeny bit of angst; Implied sex; Canon divergence

Word Count: 4,153

Beta: princessmisery666

The Road So Far https://forgottenworld.travelmap.net/ - no update for this chapter

"It’s a baby, Dean, not a monster.” She calls over her shoulder as she crouches near the car seat.

“Hang on, don’t touch it,” he admonishes, catching up to her, holding out a flask pulled from his back pocket.

“Is that really necessary?” He arches a brow at her, and she reluctantly concedes, huffing, “Fine! But just a couple of drops.” Nic breathes a relieved sigh when a tiny foot flinches, startled by the cool liquid, but nothing else happens. Wide, watery eyes hold hers, and she reaches for the small outstretched hands.

“Stop!”

With a heavy sigh she turns an exasperated look to Dean, only to find him pulling out the small silver knife he keeps stashed in his boot. “I’m not cutting a baby!”

“What?! Geezus, do you really think I want you to slice into a kid?” he huffs indignantly, twirling the weapon so the hilt is pointed at her.

Nic’s cheeks warm with embarrassment, “N-no,” but Dean’s expression clearly indicates he doesn’t believe her. “I’m sorry.” She juts out her bottom lip, features morphing into her best impression of a sad puppy. “Forgive me?”

Rolling his eyes, Dean shakes his head, but he can’t hide the quirk of his lips. She shifts toward the child, but he grips her forearm. “Remember me telling you about the shifter baby?”

Understanding spreads across her features, and she looks back at the infant. “Oh yeah. That was before you let me officially become part of the team.” Reminded of the night after a rough hunt where they’d had to bandage each other up, which led to sharing a bed and the start of their more than friends relationship, she gives him a teasing smile.

Dean hums, teeth sinking into his bottom lip, obviously recalling their first night together as well. A soft cry brings their attention back to the matter at hand. Countenance soft but determined, he gently twists her arm and places the weapon in her hand.

“Alright, alright.” Nic carefully places the flat end of the blade against the child’s foot. Once again, the baby startles, eyes wide and body stiff, but there’s no sizzling of skin or other indications of a supernatural being, and they both exhale in relief.

Apparently, having had enough of their shenanigans, the tiny human emits a loud wail, body trembling, legs kicking, arms thrown out, and hands balled into fists. Nic quickly releases the buckle and lifts the baby from the car seat, standing as she bounces the child in her arms. The wails turn to whimpers, but the small face remains red, and tears flow from the corners of scrunched eyes.

When the infant continues to fuss despite Nic’s best efforts, she finally gives up and hands the little outraged bundle to Dean. As soon as the child is resting against his shoulder, silence surrounds them. “Of course,” she huffs, rolling her eyes when Dean flashes her a smug smile and a wink.

Cautiously looking around, Dean says. “We should probably take her to the hospital. Make sure she’s not hurt.”

“No!” Nic emphatically cries. “If we do that, they’ll want to question us and then call CPS.”

“Nicole.” Dean understands her resistance to the idea. Nic was thrown into the system a few weeks before Christmas at an age where she could remember everything that happened. He also isn’t thrilled about the prospect of dealing with the police or child services. However, they’re not equipped to take care of a child. “She might need-”

“No!” Bottom lip trembling, eyes tearing up, she begs, “Please. She can move all her limbs, her eyes are bright, and her lungs are obviously fine. This close to the holidays, CPS is even more overwhelmed. Who knows what will happen.” She gently places a hand on the baby’s back, “or where this cutey will end up.”

“Nico.” She glares at him, but he continues, knowing that he may be risking life and limb, attempting to make her see reason. “I get it, I really do, but we don’t have even one of the million items it takes to care for a baby. It’s probably best-”

Quickly cutting him off, voice edged with determination but eyes pleading, she argues, “We have a car seat. We’ll stop at the store on the way back to the hotel. If we find any signs of injuries once we’re safe, then we’ll take her to the hospital.” She grips the edge of his jacket with her free hand. “W-we can call Jody to see if she can help us. Please.”

“We can’t-” A soft coo reaches his ear, and tiny fingers brush against his neck as Nic tilts her head, a tear slipping from the corner of her eye. “Fine,” he sighs in resignation, “but we’re calling Jody as soon as we get back to the hotel.”

“Thank you!” she gleefully cries, throwing her arms around him, careful not to squish the baby between them. Pulling away, a flash of bright color catches her eye. “What’s that?” She takes a step toward the tree line, but Dean grips her elbow. Patting his hand, she smiles. “It’s alright. It looks like a diaper bag.”

After a meltdown in the store, where, again, Dean was the only one able to quiet the infant, they made it safely back to the hotel room without further incident. While Nic gets a squirmy Kara into a clean diaper and a footed onesie they found in her bag, Dean calls Jody to ask for help identifying the child and hopefully finding her parents.

“Yeah, we did all the tests. Seems to be a normal kid. Doesn’t appear to have any injuries either.” Dean paces the room, listening to Jody reiterate all the scenarios he’s already run through. “I know. I already went through all of that with her, but you know why she wouldn’t leave the kid with CPS, especially this time of year.”

Stopping at the window, he stares into the starry darkness beyond his reflection, “No, no last name. The only thing written on the back was ‘Nana and Kara - 5 months’. It’s a close-up, can’t see much of the room. Nothing to indicate where they live. I’ll send ya a copy of the photo.” A series of tiny cries echo from the bedroom along with a frustrated ‘Seriously?’ and Dean chuckles. “Listen, Jody, I gotta go. Thanks for helping. We’ll call you in the morning.”

Dean enters the bedroom to find the faces of both female occupants adorably scrunched—one in fitful unhappiness, the other in dejected exasperation. “Why doesn’t she like me?” Nic pouts as Dean steps up behind her. She tosses aside the stuffed reindeer she’d been trying to engage the little girl with.

“Aww, she’s just scared and probably tired.” Dean reaches around her to lightly tickle Kara’s belly. “Aren’t you, sweetie.” As soon as the words leave his mouth, tiny eyes pop open, and the crying morphs into a soft cooing.

Nic throws her hands in the air with a grunt. “Oh, for Pete’s sake. It doesn’t matter how old they are.” Pointing a finger at the little girl, she teases, “He’s mine, missy. Don’t get any ideas.”

Kara blinks at Nic and then grips one of Dean’s fingers in her tiny hand, kicking her legs with a happy gurgle.

“Oh my god!”

Dean laughs, wrapping an arm around Nic as he kisses the top of her head. “Don’t worry, gorgeous, you’re still my number one.”

“Hmph.” Nic pushes against his chest. “Maybe we should run some more tests on her. Make sure she’s not some ancient deity or something posing as a baby.”

Smiling, when Nic narrows her eyes at Kara, he attempts to allay her doubts. “We’ve done every test we could with what we have. Pretty sure she’s human.”

“Yeah, well, you can put her to bed. I’ll clean up.”

Carefully lifting the little girl to his shoulder, he gently bounces, patting her back, and whispers, “You’re going to be good, right? No more fussing?” Humming, he makes his way over to the portable playpen they bought, rocking in place for a moment.

She looks to be already half asleep when he lays her down, so he continues to hum until her eyes fall closed, a tiny fist pressed to her mouth. As he turns, he sees Nic exit the room and follows her, grabbing the baby monitor before closing the door behind him.

Nic’s standing at the window, the tenseness in her shoulders telling him all he needs to know. Hearing her sniff as he draws closer, he turns her to face him. The tears he knew would be there stream down her face. Pulling her into a tight hug, he tries to reassure her. “Don’t worry, honey, we’ll do everything we can to find her family.”

Dean wakes to a whimper from the area of the sleeping baby and an empty spot next to him. As he quickly sits up, Nic exits the bathroom in a simple but expensive-looking suit and heels he’s never seen before. Confused, he looks around the room, catching the time on the clock—9 am.

They’d gotten up twice during the night with Kara, once to change her diaper and once to feed her. The last one had taken some time to get her back to sleep, but they finally got her settled around seven. He’s not familiar with a baby’s sleep schedule, but he feels like it’s kind of late in the morning for her to still be sleeping. Although, the poor kid’s probably exhausted from her recent adventure.

“Wha-” he grunts, running a hand through his hair. The baby stirs, and Nic shushes him. Glancing over to Kara and finding her still asleep, he slips from the bed and meets Nic in the other room.

“Hey, sleepyhead,” she greets with a kiss.

Eyes drifting to her open laptop on the narrow island dividing the small kitchen from the living room, he sees a notebook with the visible pages covered in her handwriting lying beside it and shakes his head. “You didn’t go back to sleep.”

“No.”

“What’s going on?”

“I did a little research of my own and then called Jody. I found an Amber Alert associated with a carjacking in Utah. She had, too, but was still concerned there might be something supernatural related and was looking into that further before calling. We discussed options, and after comparing the picture we have to the missing Utah child's photo, we’re pretty sure it’s Kara. Since they’re infants, it’s hard to tell.

Slipping her phone into a skirt pocket, she smiles. “Can’t believe I found a skirt this slim with pockets.” She does a little twirl and asks, “How do I look?”

Dean rakes his eyes over her form, giving her an appreciative grin as she continues. “There’s no mention in the missing person’s report of a birthmark like the one we found on Kara’s leg. They might be holding that back for identification purposes, though. Jody suggested I go to the Sheriff’s office instead of the police department. Figured they might be a little easier to deal with. She offered to call ahead, but since she doesn’t have any contacts there, we decided it would be best I go in cold.”

“Whoa, whoa.” Scrubbing a hand down his face, he shakes his head and blinks, now focusing fully on what she’s saying rather than the form-fitting outfit he’d like to peel from her shapely figure. “I’m going. Where’d you get that suit anyway?”

“No. I am.” Pulling her Fed badge from her bag, she tucks it into the inside jacket pocket. “You are staying with Kara. And I got it from the boutique downstairs.”

“You can’t leave me with a baby?”

“Why not? You took care of a shifter baby. You’re great with kids.” She gives him a teasing smile and pats him on the chest. “Besides, she likes you better.”

Gripping her wrist, he holds her in place. “Nope. I’m going.”

“Look, for whatever reason, she is obviously uncomfortable with me. Are you going to put both of us through what will surely be a stressful situation if left together?”

He knows she’s right, but he still doesn’t like it. Nic runs her free hand down his arm, capturing his hand in hers as she steps closer. Her eyes plead with him as he stares her down. When her lips slip into a little pout, he shakes his head, and she chuckles, knowing she’s won.

“Fine,” he grumbles, letting go of her wrist. “Just make it quick.”

“Love you.”

“Yeah, whatever,” he gripes but leans in for a kiss. “Love you, too,” he grins as he lets her go.

“Oh,” reaching for the door handle, she stops, turning to look back at him, “I ordered you breakfast.” With a final smile and a wink, she leaves him alone with a now awake and, once again, crying baby.

A few hours later, Nic returns to find Dean sleeping on the couch with Kara lying on his chest, one hand cradling the back of her head and the other supporting her bottom. Quickly taking out her phone, she snaps a picture just before his eyes blink open.

Kicking off her shoes and tossing her jacket in the chair, she kneels beside them, whispering, “She’s in my spot.”

Dean glances down at Kara and then back to Nic with a smirk. “You’re jealous of a baby?” he whispers back. Nic pinches his arm, making him grunt and wake Kara. “See what you did.”

The little girl whimpers but remains calm as he sits up. Following suit as Nic stands, he hands the baby to her, laughing at their equally shocked expressions. “I need to pee. I’ll be right back.”

Kara immediately begins to fuss, and Nic sighs. “Listen, I know now why you don’t like me, but still, can’t you cut me a break?”

Not wanting to cause her more agitation, Nic places her on the play mat and slips on the cute little rattle socks they found at the store. Dean must have had them on her earlier. A couple of the other stimulus toys and the stuffed reindeer they’d gotten her are also lying on the mat. Nic smiles wistfully, wishing she could have seen him interact with the 5-month-old. Maybe she’ll get a chance before Kara’s parents arrive.

“Did you say you know why she doesn’t like you?” Running a hand over her hair, he sits beside her on the floor.

Dean reaches over to gently wiggle Kara’s foot, eliciting a rattling noise. A happy chirp escapes the infant with a flailing of limbs before grabbing one of her feet in each of her hands. Nic retrieves her phone from the table, and after pulling up a video clip, she hands it to Dean. Leaning against his shoulder, she watches with him.

“Is this the carjacking?”

“Yeah. There was a CCTV cam at the intersection.”

“Damn, that’s brutal.” The video had reached the point where the father was fighting with the male assailant and trying to get to Kara. “What’s this have to do with you, though?”

“Keep watching.”

“Son of a-” Dean stops himself and quickly glances at Kara.

Despite the situation, Nic can’t help but smile, “She’s too young to understand your potty mouth, Dean.”

“Still.”

Nic squeezes his arm and chuckles at his concern over Kara being corrupted by his cursing.

“Whatever,” he mutters. Looking back to the video, he rewinds it a bit before pausing on what he’d just seen. “Who is that?”

“The female assailant.”

He enlarges the screen and squints at the image. “Whoa, from a distance, she looks like you.”

“Exactly.” Nic looks at Kara, watching as she rolls onto her belly and bats at the wobbler toy nearby. “Caused a bit of a stir at the station after I asked about the case, and they pulled up the file and footage. Thankfully, Garth was home to vouch for my credentials.”

“So now what?”

“Her parents, Daniel and Emily Carter, were contacted, and they’re headed here. To Tucson. Once they arrive, they’ll be interviewed and put through a verification process, then an officer and a CPS Specialist will bring them here to pick Kara up.”

“Here?” Dean gently grips Kara’s chubby thighs, slides her back to the center of the mat she’s nearly rolled herself off of and sets the toys back within her reach. “Why aren’t we taking her to them?”

“Well, since I am a ‘Federal Agent’ on vacation with my ‘husband’. The CPS Specialist agreed it would be less disruptive if she stayed with us for a few more hours. Also, there’s little chance of dealing with the press here versus a more public venue.”

“Smart thinking.” He smiles, squeezing her hand. “Husband, huh?” His gaze turns to Kara, his smile dropping sightly. “When will they be here?”

Nic grips his wrist, turning it to view his watch. “They land in an hour, interview and verification; the drive here won’t take long. I’d say three and a half hours, give or take.”

Dean hums, bobbing his head as he watches the little girl play. He lightly trails a finger over her tiny hand, which she immediately opens to wrap her fingers around. Nic smiles at the gesture. “You getting attached, Winchester?”

“Huh?” His thumb absently strokes Kara’s wrist while she holds tight to his finger, babbling as she stares up at him.

“Dean?” Nic nudges his arm with her shoulder and he pulls his hand back.

“Oh, uh, what?”

“You’re going to miss her, aren’t you.”

“Phfft. No.”

“Yeah, right.” Nic grins at his adorably flustered face. “Come on.” She stands holding out her hand. “It’s about time for her to eat. And I’m starving. Let’s order dinner and get her fed.”

“You switched your ring to your left hand?” She asks as she rearranges the pitcher of holy water and empty drinking glasses on the tray… again.

“Yes.” Mumbling, “for the fifth time.”

Nic stops what she’s doing and sighs. “I’m sorry. I know we don’t have any reason to think so, but I would just feel better if I knew they aren’t secretly demons or some other monster pretending to be her parents.”

“Hey,” walking over, he pulls her into a hug, “I agree. That’s why we made the plan.”

Dean is now wearing the sigil-detailed iron and silver ring she’d gifted him on his 40th birthday as a ‘wedding’ ring. It made the ring’s discrete usefulness during a handshake a little inconvenient, but Dean assured her he’d manage. Nic is wearing her matching ‘wedding’ ring and bracelet. Between them and the holy water, they were confident they’d be able to test everyone in the group.

Now, she can’t help the rising nerves and hopes, with all her heart, that they will be able to safely return Kara to her family. Basking in the reassuring warmth of his embrace, Nic startles when there’s a knock on the door. With a deep breath, she steps back and smooths down her dress.

His warm hand grips her upper arm, “Ready?” and softly squeezes when she nods.

As it turns out, the Carters are so grateful for them finding their daughter and taking care of her that they each hug Dean and Nic, making it easy for the warded jewelry to make contact with their skin in the process. During the flurry, Nic is able to brush her bracelet against the CPS Specialist’s arm.

The holy water and the officer prove to be the sticking point. There hasn’t been an opportunity to shake his hand or make contact, and no one is interested in the water as the conversation falls to reuniting the family.

After placing the tray on the table next to where the officer is standing, Nic pretends to stub her toe and stumble as she turns. In the process, she grips the officer’s forearm for balance, pressing her ring against his flesh, and fake coughs ‘Cristo’ just loud enough for everyone to hear. With no hint of black eyes or anything smoking out, Nic apologizes to the officer as Dean gives her an admiring nod before offering to get Kara.

Forty minutes later—after a river of joyful tears had been shed and another flurry of hugs and heartfelt thanks—the room is eerily silent as the couple sits on the couch holding hands.

Dean’s phone vibrating on the table breaches the stillness. Showing her the caller ID, he grunts, “We forgot to call her,” and answers with a cheerful, “Hey, Jody.”

Nic closes her eyes, tuning out the one-sided conversation as she reflects on the past 24 hours. Soft, plush lips pressed to her temple bring her back to the moment.

“Good news,” he whispers.

“More?” she murmurs, keeping her eyes closed, enjoying the sensation of his thumb caressing the side of her hand.

“Yeah. While everyone here was celebrating, the dickbags were being cuffed and shipped off to County in Colorado Springs. I hope they drop the soap!”

Nic’s eyes snap open to a gleaming smile that she can’t help but return. “No way! That’s awesome.” Shaking her head, she stares at him in wonderment. “You can’t tell me that all of this wasn’t a holiday miracle.”

“Whaddya mean?”

“All the ways it could have gone wrong, the horrible things that could have happened to that adorable little girl. They could have left her anywhere, yet we were in the right place at the right time.” Nic lets go of his hand, draping her arms over his shoulders as she crawls over him to straddle his lap. “The douchebags that hurt that family will be brought to justice. And nothing supernatural involved? That in itself is a miracle.”

Dean nods. “Alright, I’ll give you that.”

Nic grins and falls into him for a hug, her eyes meeting the row of bags filled with baby supplies. “What are we going to do with all this stuff?”

The Carters were thankful for the extra diapers and formula but declined the other items, saying they already had plenty at home. They at least took the stuffed reindeer, saying it would be a wonderful reminder of the people who saved her life.

“I told you not to buy so much.”

Sitting up to face him again, she gives him a stern look. “I seem to recall that you were the one that went and got a second cart to put stuff in.”

“Well, we weren’t sure how long we would need to take care of her,” he tries to defend.

“Hmph.” Kissing his forehead, she wiggles in his lap. “C’mon. I’m exhausted. Let’s go to bed. We can figure it out in the morning.”

“Why don’t we pack it up and have it shipped back home?” he tosses out like he’s asking her what she wants for breakfast.

Strong fingers grip her waist as she leans back, shocked and a little more than curious to read his demeanor. A gleam of—hopefulness?— is quickly replaced with wariness when she catches his gaze. Sometimes, she hates that she knows him so well to know what he’s thinking. Yet, there are still times of uncertainty. Times where she has to carefully peel back the layers to discover what’s truly churning in that clever, complex mind of his. Arching a brow, she asks, “D- do you want to have a baby?”

“Do you want to have a baby?” he quickly deflects.

“I asked first.”

Fingertips curl into the fabric of her dress, and his thigh muscles tense, but the corner of his mouth curves upward. “Well, technically-”

Knowing he’s going for a joke, she crosses her arms over her chest, “Dean.”

The smirk fades. “I, uh, I don’t know.” He gives her a sheepish shrug. “It was never an option before. But now …” Tucking his chin, his voice fades.

Nic’s thoughts reel with his revelation. He shifts on the cushion, and she knows he’s getting ready to try and blow it off. Gripping his chin, she brings his head up, holding it until he looks at her. “We’ll ship it home, but let’s shelve the conversation. We still have a road trip to finish, but when we get back, we’ll talk about it.”

“Yeah?”

“Yes.” The tip of his tongue peaks between his teeth with a cheeky grin, and this time, she’s certain that hope brightens his eyes. “Now can we go to bed?” Wrapping her hands around the back of his neck, she winks. “Nothing to stop us from ‘practicing’ in the meantime.”

Dean chuckles, “Thought you were tired.”

“Suddenly got a second wind.”

He scoots forward on the cushion, shifting his hands to grip her ass and pull her closer. “Well, hang on, gorgeous.”

“Always, handsome.” Nic locks her fingers together at his nape as he stands, squealing when he practically sprints to the bedroom.

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