They had sheltered in the dark of the boarded up diner for a couple of hours while Hera tried to do something to help Tara. While she did that, Willow filled Spike in on all that had happened in the last few weeks. Of their flight to save Dawn once Glory knew who it was that she wanted. She tentatively asked Spike what had happened to him, how he had survived.
Even though he knew Buffy was listening, Spike spoke to the red headed witch and told her of waking up on Olympus, of Hera telling him about his so called destiny. Of the gift of walking in the day light, of his ability to hit humans again. He told her about the wait to discover if he were to carry a demon or a human to term. And he even told her about his delight when he realised he could hear her heartbeat, before even Hera could confirm that she was human and a girl. He at least knew she was human. And that he wouldn't have to carry the child to term just to have to kill it if born a demon.
A profound silence followed that statement, even the normally chatty Willow fell silent, unable to find something even remotely chipper to say in response to that.
"So what are you going to call her?" Buffy finally risked a question, a neutral question, or so she hoped. She so desperately wanted his forgiveness and knew with such crushing surety that she would never get it.
Spike looked at her, he took in the tired, haggard look, the loss of so much over so little time had certainly taken its toll on her. He also saw the ghosts of guilt and responsibility that now haunted her. That feeling was one he knew in his heart would never leave her. It was the hardest and most changing lesson the world had to offer. And usually came with such a painful price tag it was hard to impart that kind of knowledge to another. He didn't forgive her, would never forgive her, certainly couldn't ever forget what she had done to him.
"If it's even any of your business, I will name her Alicia Beatrice Mansfield." He swung back to face Willow and smiled almost shyly at her. "After my mother."
"It's a nice name." Willow smiled rather sadly at the vampire. Knowing his history as she now did, she knew he wanted his mother to approve his choice of names, to approve his decision to keep the baby. "I imagine she would blush at being the baby's name sake, and also be as proud as punch that you chose her name for your daughter."
"I'd like to believe so." Spike smiled sadly and pushed away from the table around which they had been sitting. "Excuse me." He nodded to the red head and stood up, slowly he walked away, exploring their current hide out.
A staccato of hurrying steps sounded right behind him, heralding yet another intrusion in his life. He wished that the Slayer would just leave him alone. Just go away and bother some other poor fool mad enough to fancy himself in love with her. Turning to snap at her he was pulled up short by the surprise at seeing Dawn behind him, not her sister.
"Dawn? What can I do for you?" He didn't smile, he was beyond being pleasant for the moment. Willow had received the last iota of politeness in his soul for the foreseeable future.
"Don't hate her, she can't take it any more. She's not as strong as she used to be. See, the friend she thought she had, turned evil. And the enemy she thought she knew, well he turned out to be more of her friend than the other one." Dawn watched for a reaction to her words and sighed when the only response Spike gave her was one of deliberately adopted confusion.
"I think you've got me confused with someone who cares." He spoke softly, slowly, as if to an idiot. Once done he turned his back on her again. "Please leave me alone."
Dismissed, politely but still dismissed, Dawn walked slowly back to her sister and friends. It was such a gentle way for Spike to dismiss anyone, not least her. Glancing back at the vampire she had to think that he wasn't as cut off from them as he thought he was, or that he wanted to be. Maybe ther was hope after all. Just maybe.
"Let's just head back to LA, you can loose an army in that bleedin' city, let alone a small group of mortals!" Spike called out from his dark enshrouded hidey hole. "Hera can ride in the damned mobile home with Tara, let's not make ourselves sitting targets any longer than we need to."
"You ride with me then," Hera wanted Spike where she could keep an eye on him, also where she could watch how he related, or failed to, with the Slayer.
After a brief battle of wills that Spike knew he'd lost even before he started he gave in, as lacking in grace as the mortals would normally expect of him.
"Okay, Xander can ride with Oz in the car. That way he won't throw up in the RV and he won't say the wrong thing to anyone about anything!" Anya certainly understood her boy friend.
"Whatever! Just move!" And Spike swept out and headed for the hideous vehicle the Slayer had chosen to escape in.
"Where are we going, exactly?" Buffy asked, not losing sight of Spike until he boarded the RV.
"Our place. And before anyone comments, Spike will just have to live with it. Tomorrow we'll reassess our options and find you somewhere better to hide out." Hera lead Tara to the vehicle and knew that the others were straggling out behind her. Her first priority was going to be getting Tara to Olympus and to Apollo and Asclepius. The damage was certainly proving to be beyond her limited abilities to help.
Once in LA, Buffy had sat back and watched as Hera took Tara to be healed. She stood to the side as Dawn explored Spike's new home. It was far better than his mouldering crypt any day. She spent a good few hours just enjoying the place, enjoying Dawn's obvious enjoyment too. Buffy enjoyed knowing where Spike was in relation to her location. She kept her physical distance, just let her senses settle on him though. The Slayer had given him the space she had promised Hera and Willow and Xander that she would. She had watched him from a distance, not even listening in while he made a phone call while Oz raided the freezer for food. She even smiled as Oz and Xander made a mountain of pizza from the freezer for their evening meal. They had dished out blankets and pillows and settled everyone in for the night. She had even accepted her pillow and blanket with a warm smile.
What no one could take from her was the joy she had watching Spike watch the sun come up. Once assured of a new day the blond vampire had risen from his bed, closed the curtains and finally acknowledged her presence at his open door.
"What do you want?"
"A time machine, even though that really wouldn't be fair." She smiled sadly at Spike.
"Why?" She knew he meant why all of it, and smiled again at his brief, unshouted, question.
"I would go back in time and stop myself from making that stupid phone call. But in doing that, I'd rob you of the day light. You look so good in the day light. All golden and shining, like you're really part of it, not just enjoying it. That wouldn't be fair. But you wouldn't have been hurt, have been..." Her face flushed as rage filled her, yet again. "I'm going to make him pay for what he did. To you, to Dawn, to all of us, but you most of all. I'll have his cold water tank blessed. I'll have all his light bulbs replaced with those daylight wave length ones. I'll coagulate all his blood bags. I'll put crazy glue in all his locks. I'll tranquillise him and remove all his furniture, every stitch of clothing. I'll out him as a demon on the Montel show. I'll paint all his windows black so he won't know it's daylight till he walks out into it. I'll think of something, I will make him pay!" Buffy had to halt her tirade to take a breath before she passed out. Then she grinned, a truly demonic leer if ever Spike saw one. "Or I could just let him see you, and baby Alicia when she's born and tell him, 'hey, this is your daughter, an' this is the last you'll see of her' and just walk away from him." She looked at Spike and caught a rather startled look on his face. "What's wrong?"
"That's one of my dreams, the walking out an' taking the baby one. As for the other ideas you've had, what coin do you want me to pay in? Should I worry about light bulbs and water tanks?" Spike got off his bed and headed for the curtains, closing out the early dawn.
"No, never. I promise." She watched him pull back his blankets and pull his tee shirt over his head.
"Fine." He muttered from within the black cotton. "Good night, Buffy." He added quite pointedly as she watched him undress.
"What?" She asked distracted by the sight of his belly, knowing a baby was in there, she couldn't look away.
"I'm going to bed, and you are no longer welcome in it. Good night!" He was sharper than he intended, but determined to get some privacy. It was his due, at the very least.
"S...s...sorry..." Buffy stammered and dashed back to the sitting room and her pillow and blanket. Sleep was a long time coming to her.
In his room Spike rolled over and fell fast asleep.
***
It was still fairly early, for the City that never sleeps at any rate, the dinner crowd were heading out for clubs and dancing. The early club crowd were off looking for late dinner. In an almost empty hotel a phone rang. A hand snatched it from it's cradle just as the answering machine had cut in. The voice belonging to that hand cursed softly as the caller had to listen to Angel's message over her own cheery greeting.
"...Sorry for that, didn't get here in time. How can Angel Investigations help you?" Cordeilia enquired almost convincingly sweetly.
"Get away from him Cordeilia, before he attacks you too.." And the phone went dead as the caller replaced the receiver on their end.
As she screamed the caller's name into the dead phone line the other inhabitants of the hotel ran to the front desk. She played them the ten word message and stood back.
"He's out there, it's him!" Angel headed for the door and the outside world and the search for his missing, damaged, presumed dead childe. Wesley, Gunn and Cordeilia hot on his heals. Trying to calm him down, to make him think. But Angel didn't want to think, he only wanted to feel And all he wanted to feel was Spike's body against his. Not dust, not gone, not hating him as he knew he so richly deserved.
Into the empty hotel a green skinned alien demon stepped, looking for someone else to deal with his troubles. He called out, looked about. Pushed the button by the blinking light on the answer phone, satisfying his innate nosiness if nothing else.
"Well, Angel, if you're out looking for this hotty, I suppose I'd better deal with my visitors from home myself..." He wanted to meet the owner of that voice. He left a note, but didn't expect Angel to get back to him too quick. He could feel the last traces of the vampire's dash out of there, and the fear and worry in his friends as they dived out after him.
[Reviews - 0] [Kudos - 298]
Download story PDF format or ePUB format or MOBI format
Table of Contents
Download story PDF format or ePUB format or MOBI format
Table of Contents