The Only Gift That I Need by Misty Flores

Fandom: All My Children
Pairing/characters: Bianca/Maggie
Rating: Hard R - maybe NC-17Playing card URL (will be supplied): http://invisible-cities.net/images/gsc/femslash/02.jpg

Summary: Bianca's plans for a perfect first Christmas in Paris with Maggie are thwarted a surprise visit home, and the return of some old ghosts.

CHAPTERS

The moment she heard the whispered breath of panic start seeping into her girlfriend’s tone, Maggie’s own urge to suddenly hurl was forced down, head whipping and hand immediately closing over Bianca’s. “Okay-“

“Okay, calm down!” Already reeling her stressed lover in, Maggie made a point of jerking Bianca’s face down so that the wild eyes could concentrate on her. “We’re okay-“

“Yes, we are, okay? Because if she had swallowed the ring and it had done any damage she would have already been choking or crying. She’s FINE, okay?”

Bianca's eyes were so wide they looked like golfballs with spots. "Maggie, not to toot my own horn here, but that diamond on that ring was huge. And Miranda's just a tiny little person-"

"-Who has in her young life already been kidnapped twice, survived a made up helicopter crash, a custody battle, and falling into the Venice Canal."

That particular moment was not something she really ever wanted to bring up, considering the fright it had given her and Bianca when it happened. But it was, after all, proof of Miranda's resilience. After all, no ordinary baby could take a plunge off a gondola, come up sputtering and come out of it just fine, if not a little smellier.

Bianca's grip on her hands was painful, but Maggie kept her voice even and her smile calm. "Now, we can do this. We're not even sure that it's Miranda that swallowed it."

Bianca let out a ragged, nearly squeaky sigh. "Will you still marry me if I told you I really hope your dog did it?"

In a small waiting room, Maggie stood next to her little black puppy, one hand companionably on his rump as he lay down on the cool metal table. Despite having a thermometer stuck up his butt, he seemed in remarkably good spirits, if not a little tired. Wagging his tail when she scratched lightly at the soft fur, he craned his head to give her a small lick before letting out a sigh and settling back down.

Maggie studied the expression. "You and me both, buddy," she told him flatly, managing a grin when he whined softly in response.

Apprehension filled her, and although logically, she knew she couldn't be two places at once, there was something about this that was wrong. Someone had to come to the vet with Noel just to be sure, she knew that. But sitting in a small little room reading facts in French about the various stages of flea infestation and staring at a poster of a doggie's innards wasn't how she wanted to spend the night of her engagement.

Straightening, she considered the irony of that. "Face it, Noel," she told him, as his ears pricked. "There hasn't been much about me and Bianca that has gone by the books, has it?" No, it really hadn't. Not when life seemed determined to make them work for every little bit of happiness they shared. "It's always something. Its either boys or other girls or sisters in crisis or baby stealing tramps."

He sat up on his haunches, paws on her shoulders, pink tongue out to give her a good lick.

"Oomph," she said, craning her neck and shutting one eye, trying her best to restrict the damage. Rubbing vigorously into his fur, she gave him a good squeeze. "Still," she told him, "I'm not bitter. I mean, if you don't fight for what you want how do you know if it's worth it, right?" He gave her a happy yip, little tail wagging furiously. "Yeah," she admitted, giving him a nice pat. "They're worth it easy or hard, huh?"

Logically, she knew her little poodle couldn't really understand her. But he seemed happy enough to agree, stretching his head to try and give her a lick on the tip of her nose, nails clacking against the metal surface.

Balancing him in her arms, Maggie let him play, mouth pressing together as she glanced pensively at her bare left hand. She and Bianca were getting married. Married.. She was going to legally adopt Miranda. She and Bianca - they were going to be together. As legally as they could.

"Oh my God..." she breathed, eyes closing, and shuddering suddenly, overwhelmed with the reality of the situation.

"Oh, come on, Miss, it's not as bad as all that!" Eyes blinking open. Maggie registered a friendly face on an attractive lady vet, holding a clipboard, stepping into the room.

Flushing, Maggie put Noel down, straightening up and offering a timid smile. "Sorry, I um... I was thinking about... are you the vet?"

"Oui. I am Dr. Morey, and I bring good news. Your dog looks perfectly healthy." The words were English, but barely, the French accent thick and overpowering. Still the vet was trying, coming forward with an x-ray, placing it on the light box over head. "See? All clear. The doggie is fine."

It wasn't exactly a relief. Maggie's eyes blinked shut when as if on queue, her cell phone began to buzz and sing a happy melody from her purse. Blowing out her breath, Maggie nodded quickly and smiled her thanks, already reaching for her bag and the dog's leash.

"Thank you, thank you. Um... I have to go." Not even bothering to clip the leash onto Noel's collar, she hugged him around the middle, lifting the squirming little body of the table. "Really, thanks."

"I know, I'm sorry, but..." Faltering, she sighed, biting her lip as she turned around. What the hell, why not try it on for size? "But my family needs me."

Arms crossed, Maggie allowed a moment of loving bemusement to wash over her, watching her girlfriend - fiancé - pace the waiting room, in full on neurotic mode. Only love could make this actually cute.

"No, we're not," she answered, purposely keeping her voice low, eyes crossing slightly as Bianca made another u-turn and crossed the few feet to the other side of the room. "We're human, and she's going to be fine."

"No, Maggie! We're bad!" Stomping her feet, Bianca's eyes were wide saucers, hands waving emphatically. "We were engaging in... in... S&M!" The last word was whispered fiercely, and Maggie literally clamped her jaw shut from laughing out loud. "And because of all the sex-"

"That's not the point! The point is Miranda was swallowing rings while we were getting it on! Maggie, she could have choked to death!"

"Bianca..." Sliding off the counter, Maggie came forward, grabbing hold of her lover's hands, stopping her pacing before she wore the color off the tile floor. "It was an accident. It happens. When Frankie and I were kids she swallowed a safety pin."

"Yeah. The way my mom tells it, it was practically stuck in her throat. They had to go in there with pliers and dig it out."

Maggie rolled her eyes, releasing the pale arms to slide hands possessively around the slender waist. "My point, Bianca, is that kids will do stupid things. Do you know why? Because they're mini adults. You can't control it. You are a wonderful mother. And everything is going to be fine." Bianca blew out her breath, eyes drifting closed. "And if you say we're never going to have sex again? I'm taking you right here on this pediatric kid's table." She wrinkled her nose at the thought. "How's that for kinky?"

She was rewarded for that with a light slap on her shoulder and a fragile smile. "Maggie..."

Maggie grinned, squeezing her lightly. "I think the past few weeks have proven we're got a lot more to worry about than a kid swallowing a ring."

Bianca sighed, taking her in with that deep, intense scrutiny that never failed to reach into her soul. Palms reached up and rubbed gently at Maggie's shoulder. "I don't know about that," Bianca murmured. "We're actually really good together." Maggie smiled in response.

"Yeah, not bad. You freak out. I calm you down. I freak out. You buy me stuff. It seems to work out."

"Right," Bianca said, nodding along, mockingly serious. "Good thing I’m rich."

Bianca sighed raggedly, and Maggie arched an eyebrow curiously. "I just... I can't believe that's what's happening. That's what we're doing. Sometimes I still think we're those two nervous girls, sitting at the boat house, eating ice cream and talking about... bands and hair and make up. And now..."

Bianca's eyes darkened. With a shrug, she slid arms around Maggie's shoulders, staring down at her. "You know, those days, I would sit beside you and think I could be with you forever, just like that. Maybe it didn't work out the way I expected it to, but it doesn't matter." One thumb curved around, tracing Maggie's cheekbone. "What matters is that it's you and me - no, better. It's you, me and Miranda." The statement was said with such emotion, a gruff rasp of a statement, and Maggie's own throat clogged in response, eyes stinging as Bianca continued gently, "No matter what happens, that what's it's going to be. I know it, because heaven and hell has tried to pull us apart, and it hasn't yet. And I'm not going to let it. I love you."

In the end, there was nothing for Maggie to say but the obvious. But she said it anyway, hands pressing against her lovely partner's face, staring into a beautiful expression that she could never tire of.

The natural reaction to that statement was a kiss, a long, luxurious kiss with a cool tongue and a moist mouth, expressing their feelings in the lusty act. Of course things never worked the way they were supposed to for them, and because of that, it was that exact moment that Miranda's doctor came in, the babbling baby girl on his hip.

"Mama," Miranda crowed, arms out for them both, nearly pitching forward in an attempt to get to her parents.

"Heeey, sweetie," Bianca murmured, brushing her lips against her baby's forehead. "How are you feeling?"

"-Lollipop-" Miranda said, and gave a sticky smile, slurping the sweet into her mouth, getting sticky sugar over her cheek in the process.

"Madamoiselle, you have a very lucky little girl," Dr. Johnson said matter-of-factly, clipboard out, pen already scribbling. "The item went directly down the esophagus at just the right angle. Your daughter will have an uncomfortable bowel movement in two or three days, but she'll be none worse for the wear."

"Oh, thank God," Bianca breathed, and Maggie matched her relieved grin with one of her own.

"As for the ring," The doctor continued, glancing up through bespectled glasses. "I suggest a 'Poop Watch'. Take turns if you must."

"Poop watch," Maggie repeated, shaking her head morosely as she rubbed up and down Miranda's tiny back. "Sounds lovely."

"Oh... no, that's not necessary," Bianca said immediately, jostling Miranda on her hip. Maggie shot her a sharp glare.

"Well, obviously we'll bleach it, Bianca. But it's my engagement ring. Of course I want it back."

"No, I want that one! That's the one you gave me, that's the one we're getting!" Hands on her hips, she stomped her feet for emphasis.

"It's funny!" she enunciated. "Come on, it'll be a great story, we can tell Miranda and her friends-"

"Oh, yeah, that'll be great!" Bianca repeated dryly. "Let's tell everyone how I got you a POOP covered ring for our engagement. That's romantic and classy!"

"Ladies?" Dr. Johnson waved his pen, clicking it a couple times for emphasis. Sighing, Maggie dragged her eyes from Bianca to Miranda's doctor. "If we can put that conversation on hold, I can check your daughter out?"

"We're sorry," Maggie said, immediately pulling a tissue out of her purse to try and wipe at Miranda's sticky cheek.

"Thank you," he said, shaking his head and focusing once more on his papers. "Though if you ask me, it is a funny story. I would keep the ring"

Bianca rolled her eyes in response. "Yeah, that's great. Let's keep everything that comes out of Miranda's ass."

"Well," Maggie said, suddenly giggling. "The next time someone says Miranda is so rich she craps gold, they'll be right!"

Maggie and Miranda and Bianca were supposed to spend their first Christmas as a couple together. Maggie was supposed to get proposed to in a beautiful intimate Cabin in a snow covered countryside. There wasn't supposed to be a huge fight that nearly broke them up, and New Years was most definitely not supposed to be invaded by a hot Polish ex.

Bianca and Maggie were supposed to spend the eve of their engagement making love, not in different hospitals with a dog and a baby, and Maggie was not, under any circumstances, supposed to be wearing the 'Poop Ring', as Bianca now deemed it.

"Shit happens," Maggie said once, when Bianca broached the subject, and then because her lover was five, collapsed into giggles beside Miranda and Noel, leaving Bianca to stare down at them with a good glare on her face and hands on her hips.

Bianca had learned she could control precious little in her life, and the things she had, she was lucky for. She knew the odds were against her and Maggie, simply because fate seemed destined to try and pry them apart. But they had managed to stay together and be happy in spite of it, because of it. She wondered if a different path would have made it easier, and then decided it wouldn't, because at least the hard way had made them work for it, want it that much more. Appreciate what they had.

One thing was going to go right, and it was going to be Bianca's symbolic commitment of love for her girlfriend. In that, Bianca was determined.

When Maggie had refused to see reason, holding steadfast to her claim that the poop ring was 'romantic' and not 'gross', Bianca had to resort to sneakiness. That meant going out to Tiffany's and buying an exact replica.

Except when Bianca tried to make the switch, she had been distracted by a too quiet Miranda, and as such, completely lost focus, and as a result, forgot completely which was the poop ring and which was her plant.

At first, she tried to justify the matter by telling herself at least she wouldn't know which was which, and therefore it wouldn't matter which on Maggie wore, because in her head, she could make herself believe it wasn't the poop ring. Except she couldn't ever quite do that, and she lasted a week before she had her assistant call and order another ring.

Since the Babe incident, Maggie had made a point of not rifling through Bianca's desk.

It was really just pure habit now. While thinking about the blonde baby stealing tramp still evoked a rather physical nauseous reaction, Maggie had decided to come to terms with the idea that she would always hate Babe, and even if Bianca couldn't, she could do it just fine for the two of them without having to bring it up to her lover.

Staying away from Bianca's desk was a matter of trust; proof that Maggie was secure enough in Bianca's affections not to worry about it, and although Bianca told her she had no secrets and Maggie didn't have to worry about her 'space', in Maggie's head, it was the decent thing to do.

It was a resolution she fully intended to keep, until one day Bianca asked her to go into her desk and find the massive guest list her mother had faxed over. Bianca had finally managed to get up the courage to tackle narrowing it down, but didn't quite have the courage to get it herself.

Maggie stared at the desk. "Which drawer?" she called out. On the ground beside her, Noelle pricked his ears, as if confused with whether or not she was speaking to him.

Sighing, Maggie pulled it open, rifling through the stacks, pushing aside a small little velvet bag that tinkled and clinked.

The sound stalled her, and frowning, Maggie felt the bag between her fingertips, the dual shapes oddly familiar. Always curious, she pulled the bag open.

"What the..." It was her ring. Her exact ring. Two of them, each engraved with her name, identical to the last detail.

Tugging at her ring, she pulled it off her finger and dropped it in the palm with the others, comparing them.

Maggie continued to stare at them, mystified. "Why do you have two extra copies of my engagement ring in here?!" Dead silence followed that. Turning, Maggie clucked her tongue, closing her fingers around the rings.

"Did you think I'd lose it or something?" She wasn't sure if she should have been insulted or touched. "That I'd need a spare?"

"Umm... Maggie?" Bianca came forward, eyes on her palms. "Please tell me you didn't mix them up."

Her lover rushed forward, and as Maggie's palm opened, she caught sight of three rings, interwoven. It was an odd sight to see, how her lover completely drained of all color.