1 My Immortal


Buffy walked out onto the balcony and looked down on the sleeping city. She had always loved Rome at night... for months she had sat on the balcony every night, waiting for him to come back to her. At some point, she wasn’t sure when, she had finally realized that he wasn’t coming. He was gone, forever. Now this was her place, this was where she could be alone with her memories, where no-one would disturb her... She still came out here every night, after everyone else went to sleep. Sometimes she sat there for fifteen minutes, sometimes for hours... tonight would be one of the later...

She sat down in the armchair she had put out there after going through days of back ache from sitting on the plastic garden chair she used before. On the table next to the chair was a CD-player, an ash tray and a pack of cigarettes... his cigarettes... well, not exactly. But it was the brand that he used to smoke. She had stumbled on them in a tiny Italian tobacco store almost two years ago, and remembered the smell... his smell...

Buffy sighed to herself as she pulled the lighter out of her pocket. His lighter... she stroked the cold metal with her thumb before lighting a cigarette. She didn’t smoke it, just placed it in the ash tray and inhaled the smell. Then she reached out and pressed the play button on the CD-player. When the music started she closed her eyes and let the music and the memories wash over her. The first line hit her, as it always did, and the tears started rolling down her cheeks...


I'm so tired of being here
Suppressed by all my childish fears


The first time she had heard the song had been in the motel in LA. They had gone there after the battle to get everyone patched up before moving on. Buffy had decided to stay until she knew all of the girls were OK. She, Dawn, Giles, Willow, Kennedy, Xander and Andrew had checked into a motel off the highway. Buffy had been looking through a magazine when Dawn had turned the radio on. When the song floated through the room, it had finally hit Buffy that he was gone.


And if you have to leave
I wish that you would just leave
Cause your presence still lingers here
And it won't leave me alone


The basement. The last night before... the last night – period. That was the way it felt. Even now, after three long years, it felt like her life had ended right there, with him. Only it didn’t. She had to go on with her life, without him. Something she hadn’t even thought about before. He was a vampire, supposed to be immortal. Right?


These wounds won't seem to heal
This pain is just too real
There's just too much that time cannot erase


She walked down the stairs. She could feel his eyes upon her, but didn’t look up. Not until she reached the bottom of the stairs. His eyes caught hers and they were locked together for what felt like an eternity, when it was in fact only a second or two. That second changed everything, that was when she knew.


When you cried I'd wipe away all of your tears
When you'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears
I held your hand through all of these years
But you still have
All of me


He asked her what she was doing there.

“What, I need a reason to be here now?” She got defensive.

“No, it’s just... big fight coming up, thought you’d be giving the wannaslays one of your pep talks, y’know, preparing them.” He had the amulet in his hand, letting in turn on its chain, reflecting the dim light of the basement.

“I think we’ve done everything we can. Either they’re ready or they’re not. We’ll know tomorrow.” She sat down on the bed next to him.

“You think it’s gonna work?”

“God, I hope so. Giles seems to think it will. Willow’s... well, you know how she can get... she doesn’t think she can do it.” Buffy looked at the amulet.

“Can she?”

“She’s our best hope, Spike.” Buffy sighed. “If she can’t do it, then everything will be lost.”

“Maybe not. We’ve still got my pretty little necklace.”

“We still don’t know exactly what it does. I’m not even sure I’m comfortable with you wearing it.”

“Why? You don’t think I can cut it? That I don’t have what it takes to be a champion?” She could hear the anger in his voice, the disappointment.

“That’s not what I mean. I’m just so scared of loosing you.”


You used to captivate me
By your resonating light
Now I'm bound by the life you left behind
Your face it haunts
My once pleasant dreams
Your voice it chased away
All the sanity in me


He looked at her, maybe trying to figure out what she meant, and then she kissed him.

Whatever he had expected, it wasn’t that. She could tell she caught him off guard, and that just excited her more. The kiss deepened and she turned around, placing herself in his lap, keeping him pressed against the wall.

“No.”


These wounds won't seem to heal
This pain is just too real
There's just too much that time cannot erase


He tried to push her away.

“What?” She stared at him.

“I said no.”

“No as in eventually?” she was teasing him, repeating his own words.

“No, just no. Not after what I...” he turned from her, couldn’t face her.

“It’s OK.” She put one hand on his cheek and made him face her, then she kissed him again. “Everything’s different now.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed herself against him. “You’re different...” she kissed him once more “...and I’m different. And you should know I don’t usually stop before I get what I want. And right now, I want you.”


When you cried I'd wipe away all of your tears
When you'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears
I held your hand through all of these years
But you still have
All of me


She pulled back and looked him in the eyes. She could see doubt there, still. She wasn’t sure what else to do. But then something changed, and he turned her around, laying her down on the small bed, then covering her body with his own.


I've tried so hard to tell myself that you're gone
But though you're still with me
I've been alone all along


Afterwords, they laid still, not wanting to move out of fear that it was just a dream. It had been different from anything they had ever done before, so full of tenderness and... love. She wished now that she had known, somehow sensed what had happened. Wished she could have told him... he had deserved to know. Maybe then he could have believed her...


When you cried I'd wipe away all of your tears
When you'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears
I held your hand through all of these years
But you still have


“I love you”

“No, you don’t. But thanks for saying it”


All of me


Buffy woke from her daydream by cries from the apartment. She dried her eyes, turned the music off and went inside.

AN: The song in this chapter is “My Immortal” by Evanescence. It’s a great song.

2 Going home


Buffy walked through the doors to the balcony. Dawn entered through the doors to the hallway at the same time.

“She wake you?” Buffy asked and Dawn nodded.

“Yeah. No big, it’s not like I’m getting up in the morning anyway. You know, Saturday and all. I thought since you were out on the balcony, you’d be, you know, not so reachable.”

Buffy walked over to the crib and picked up Tara who was standing up, her hands tightly gripping the edge of the crib.

“I didn’t think you knew what I did out there...” Buffy looked down.

“I’d have to be blind, deaf and dumb not to. You’re out there every night, listening to that song. Plus, the smell kinda stays with you.” Dawn wrinkled her nose.

“It does?” Buffy sniffed her clothes. It did. “I didn’t realize that.”

“It’s OK. I kind of miss the smell too. Plus, now Tara will know it. I think she will appreciate that later on, you know, having something...” Buffy looked down on her daughter, who had already fallen asleep again.

“I just wish he could have know.”

“I think he does. Wherever he is, I think he’s watching over you. Both of you.”

Buffy put the sleeping girl back in the crib. She and Dawn left the room, not closing the door in case Tara woke up again. They sat down on the couch in the living room. Buffy turned on the TV, but didn’t turn the sound up. Dawn spoke first.

“Andrew said that, and I quote, ‘G.I. Joe’ stopped by yesterday. Was it who I think it was?”

“Yeah.” Buffy didn’t have the energy to explain right now.

“So, what did he want?” Dawn took the remote from her sister and started flipping through channels, stopping on a rerun of Friends.

“He wanted to make me an offer.” Buffy thought back to Riley’s visit.

“What kind of an offer?”

“A job-offer.”

“You’re not going to join the initiative, or whatever they’re called these days, again, are you? Cause, we all know how well that went last time.” Dawn turned on the couch to face Buffy.

“No. It was a different kind of job. Look, we’re having a meeting tomorrow, I’ll tell you then.” Buffy avoided her sister gaze.

“A meeting? But, Andrew’s just sleeping, I’ll wake him up and we’ll have the meeting right now.” Dawn got up and headed for Andrew’s bedroom

“It’s not just us. Will is flying in in the morning, Xander’s coming by boat a little later and Giles...” she looked at her watch “...is landing in about half an hour. I should go pick him up. Will you be OK here?”

“Sure.”

“If she wakes up again, give her Piglet, that should calm her down. And if she gets hungry there’s food in the fridge, just...”

“Buffy, I’ve been alone with Tara before. I think I can handle it.”

“I know, it’s just... I always hate leaving her, like someones gonna come and take her away when I’m not looking...”

“Look, it’s not gonna happen. Now go, you don’t wanna be late.” She pushed Buffy toward the front door.

“OK, OK, I’m going.” Buffy managed to grab her car keyes and jacket before the door slammed shut behind her.

*****

Buffy looked at the people around the table. The people she now considered family, because they were all she had. Xander and Willow, who had been there from the beginning, who had gone through pretty much everything with her. Giles, who had guided her through the slaying and her life, who had taught her basically everything she knew. Dawn, her not so little sister anymore. She’d be starting her second year in college next fall... Andrew. Even Andrew was family now. He had been through the last big fight with them, it was almost a given. She started talking.

“So. I guess you all wanna know why I called this emergency meeting. I’m just gonna cut to the chase, whatever that means. The day before yesterday, I had a visit from an old friend of ours... Riley. He wanted to make me an offer, make us an offer. Since the big Slayer change, Riley and whatever government branch he’s working for at the moment, have been gathering Slayers from all over the world, a little like us, but they’ve found a little more of them. About 2000 to be exact.” She let this sink in before she continued.

“They’re keeping them in an old warehouse in LA at the moment. They’ve been trying to train them, but most of them don’t trust the government. Riley thinks that they need someone that’s like them, someone who would understand. So he wants me to train them. He also wants to set up a new Watcher’s Council, and that’s why I called you guys. They have jobs for all of you, if you choose to come with me. They will get us places to live, everything we need, and we will be paid for the work we do.” She looked around at them again.

“Look, I know this is a big decision to make. I’m gonna give you all the time you need, but I’m leaving tomorrow. Whoever wants to go with me, that’s fine. If you need more time, you can always join us later. Or not at all. It’s all up to you.”

She got up and left them, went into her bedroom to check on Tara. She was asleep, so Buffy sat down in the rocking chair next to the crib and watched her.

*****

After a while, it could have been a couple of minutes, could have been an hour, Buffy didn’t know, Willow entered the room.

“How’s my favorite god-daughter?”

“She’s your only god-daughter, Will.” Buffy smiled at her best friend.

“But she’s still my favorite.” Willow stroke Tara’s cheek before turning back to Buffy. “I think everyones ready.”

They went back into the living room. Buffy looked around the room, trying to figure out what they were thinking, but couldn’t.

“So...” She stated, not knowing what to say.

“I’m going with you.” Willow started.

“Me too.” Xander and Andrew said simultaneous.

“If you truly think you need my help, I’d be happy to come.” Giles continued.

That left Dawn.

“I guess I don’t have much of a choice, do I?”

“Of course you do. You’re 18, and if you want to stay here, I’m sure we can figure something out. But I would like you too come with me.”

“I guess you could use my help.” Dawn smiled at Buffy and she smiled back. It had been a while since the last time she smiled. It felt nice.

“So, I guess that settles it. Looks like we’re going home.” Buffy tasted the word for a moment. Home. It felt right.

3 Back from the dead


“Dawn, come on! We’re gonna miss the plane!”

“I’m coming!”

Dawn ran after Buffy who was headed for their gate. The others had already boarded the plane, and now the girl at the desk started to get up to close the doors.

“Wait! Wait!” Buffy managed to reach the desk before the doors were closed. She would have gotten there sooner, but not even a Slayer could run that fast while holding a small child.

She gave the girl her boarding pass at the same moment that Dawn reached the desk too. They got on the plane together and found the others in the first row of the coach section.

“I really didn’t think we were gonna make it.” Buffy sighed and sat down, putting Tara down in the seat next to her and put her seat belt on for the take-off.

“Ladies and gentlemen. We are about to take off, so please take your seats and fasten your seat belts. To fasten your seat belt...” a voice in the speakers started to go through the safety procedures. Buffy fastened her seat belt and tuned the vice out. She had heard it enough times.

After a couple of minutes, the plane started moving and soon they were in the air, overlooking the city of Rome. Buffy pulled the plastic window cover up and looked down on the city she had lived in for almost three years. She had a feeling this was the last she saw of it. She was going home.

*****

At the same time, another plane was taking off from another airport, halfway around the world. The morning sun was shining in through the small windows. It was almost blinding the man inside the airplane, but he didn’t care. God, he’d missed the sunlight. He hadn’t thought about it much for the first hundred years or so, but after he got a taste of it while wearing that gem-thing, he’d realized just what he was missing. So he wasn’t going to miss a single moment of it, now that he had it back. He wasn’t going to miss a single moment, period.

“I’m coming for you... just hoping you’ll still have me...”

Spike sighed and closed his eyes, feeling the warm sunlight on his face. What if she didn’t?

*****

Buffy slept through most of the plane ride. Dreaming, as she always did, of him. Of moments that happened, moments that could have happened, and sometimes, like now, about moments that never would. The future that was impossible. The two of them together at Tara’s birthday, walking her to her first day of school, her first date...

Buffy woke from her dreams when Dawn shook her a little too violent.

“We’re here.”

“Already? How long did I sleep?” Buffy rubbed her eyes.

“About six hours. Did you sleep at all last night? Or the night before?”

“I... I think so... I’m not sure...” Buffy admitted.

“Maybe you should start taking the pills again? At least then you could sleep...” Buffy cut Dawn off.

“I’m fine. Really. You know, Slayer strength and all. Don’t need a lot of sleep.”

“OK. Come on then, the others are already off the plane.”

That’s when Buffy realized she and Dawn were the only ones left on the plane. She got up and they both left the plane. When they walked through the tunnel thing that connected the plane to the airport, Buffy looked through the glass walls, though she couldn’t see anything as it was the middle of the night. She was home.

*****

“We there yet?”

“God, you’re like a kid.” Angel gave up and went to talk to the pilot. “We’ll be there in about an hour.” He announced as he came back.

“Great.” Spike looked out the window, where the night had settled.

“Why are you so anxious to get there anyway? It’s not like anybody’s waiting for you.” Angel sat back down in his seat.

“I just want to get back so I can...” Spike didn’t finish the sentence, but Angel knew what he was thinking about.

“You’re going to look her up, aren’t you?”

Spike didn’t answer.

“I thought you were the one to say ‘Get over her’ last time?” Angel recalled.

“Well, a guy has a right to change his mind, doesn’t he?” Spike snapped.

“I just hope you know what you’re doing.”

Spike sighed and returned to looking out through the window. So did he.

*****

“So” Xander was the first to say what they all were thinking. “Where we going? You said Riley needed a couple of weeks to fix up our new homes.”

“Yeah. I guess we could stay at a hotel in the mean time, but I thought that would be too expensive, so I called... Angel.” Buffy waited for Xander’s reaction.

“Angel?” Xander knew he shouldn’t be surprised, but he was. “The I’m-running-an-evil-law-firm-that-kills-people-Angel?”

“Xander, please not now.” Buffy let out a deep sigh and rubbed her eyes.

“According to some of Giles’s sources, Angel’s not working for them anymore. In fact, there was a big apocalypse two years ago when he and some other people defeated Wolfram & Hart, or something like that. He’s good now.” Buffy was trying to convince herself as much as Xander.

“And you think this why? Because he told you?” Xander said in doubt.

“Well, I haven’t exactly talked to him, not since... well you know. He wasn’t there when I called yesterday. I talked to a guy named Connor, and he said that Angel wouldn’t mind if we stayed there for a while. He wasn’t even sure that he would be there at all. Apparently he’s out on some mission and no-one knows when he’ll be back.” She followed the rest of the group that were heading for two taxis.

“Well, that sounds good.” Xander got into the front seat of the taxi with Buffy, Dawn and Tara in the back. “I say, the less we see of him, the better.”

“The less we see of who?” Dawn cut in.

“Angel.” Buffy fastened her seat belt and put Tara in her lap for the short car ride. “He’s out on some mission, and the guy I talked to did’t know when he was coming back.” She leaned forward to tell the driver their destination.

*****

“Wow.” Dawn looked around the lobby of Wolfram and Hart. “This place is huge.”

The others followed her into the hotel where they were met by a woman in her twenties, a green demon and a boy in his late teens.

“Hey.” The boy gave the group a suspicious look. “Who’re you?”

Buffy extracted her hand, and the boy took it.

“I’m Buffy, you must be Connor. We spoke on the phone.” Connor took her hand. “This is my sister Dawn, Willow, Xander, Giles and Andrew.”

“Of course. Welcome to Wolfram and Hart. I’m Connor. This is Nina, and that’s Lorne.” He indicated the woman and the demon. The demon, apparently called Lorne, came up and offered Buffy his hand.

“Hello there, sweetcheeks. I’ve heard so much about you!” He spotted Willow. “Hey there, girl!” He gave Willow a hug. “Long time no see!” He turned his attention to Tara, who was partially hiding behind Buffy’s legs, carefully peeking out from behind her mother. “And who’s this adorable little person?”

”This is Tara.” Buffy smiled at Lorne. “She’s a little shy around new people... and she hasn’t actually seen anyone who’s...” She considered saying demon, but changed her mind. “...green before.”

“She’s a cutie. She yours?”

“Well, yeah. Angel never said anything about her?” Buffy was a little surprised.

“Not that I know. Should he?” Lorne gave her a confused look.

“I guess he’s not to happy with her existence at all, so maybe not. Listen, can I put her to bed somewhere? She’s tired from the plane ride.” Buffy picked up Tara.

“Sure. Just take the elevator to the top floor, that’s Angel’s apartment.” Connor indicated a set of elevator doors.

“Thanks. Dawn, you wanna take her? You look like you could use some sleep yourself. I want to fix the rest of the sleeping arrangements.”

“OK.” Dawn took Tara from Buffy and headed for the elevator. “Wanna go sleep with auntie Dawn, sweetie?” They got in the elevator and Dawn pushed the button for the top floor.

*****

Dawn suddenly woke up. She rubbed her eyes. She must have fallen asleep. She had only laid down next to Tara for a minute, but now the clock on the wall showed 9.30 P.M. She had been asleep for nearly an hour. She could hear a voice from the other side of the door. Must have been what woke her. Checking that Tara was still asleep, she got up and opened the door to see who it was.

*****

Spike went straight to the phone when he reached the penthouse. After a couple of rings someone answered.

“Yes, I would like to reserve a plane ticket to Rome.” He looked around the apartment. Something was different. A smell, that was it. A new, yet familiar smell. He shook the feeling.

“As soon as possible, if there’s anything tomorrow I’d...” A sound made him look up. He slowly put the phone down. “Hello, Bit.”

“No...”

4 Surprises


Connor met them in the lobby.

“You’re back.”

“Seems that way.” Angel rubbed his neck, he was beginning to feel tired from not sleeping in... he didn’t remember the last time he slept. Couldn’t have been that long, though.

“I’m going to head upstairs, take care of some things.” Spike left the two in the lobby and got in the elevator.

“We have guests.” Connor said as he turned and started to way back towards the Angel’s office.

“Who?” Angel followed.

“You’ll see.”

Angel stopped dead in his tracks right inside the door, looking at the people inside the room, but only seeing one. Her.

“Buffy.”

“Angel.” She didn’t move. He closed the door behind him.

“What are you doing here?”

“We need a place to stay, just for a week or two. You weren’t here and Connor said it would be OK.” She sounded defensive. He couldn’t blame her. Last time they’d talked... let’s just say they hadn’t exactly parted as friends. That had been almost three years ago.

“I didn’t mean here. I meant LA. Last time I checked you were in Rome.”

“You’re spying on me now? Is that it?” Buffy crossed her arms in front of her chest.

“You make it sound a lot worse than it is. I just want to keep an eye on you, make sure everything was OK.” Angel tried to justify.

“Oh, that’s a good one.” She laughed. “You know, a phone call would have been good. Hey, Buffy, how are you? How’s Dawn? Tara? Oops, I forgot. You don’t care about her, do you?”

“Buffy, I’m sorry about last time, what I said. I was just... hurt, I guess. Shocked, surprised... I don’t know why I said what I did, but I know I’ve been sorry ever since.”

“Then why didn’t you say something?” She looked sad now. “It’s been over two and a half years.”

“I know. I guess there’s just been... too many things to deal with here. Demons, the apocalypse, stuff like that... I’ve been really busy, I guess.” He pleaded with her for some understanding.

“Oh, well that makes everything OK, doesn’t it?” She started pacing the room. “We’re moving here.”

“What?”

“You asked what we were doing here. That’s it. We’re moving here. The military’s setting up a new Watcher’s Council and a Slayer training school. We’re running them.” Buffy was tired of explaining everything.

“Just the five of you? Doesn’t seem like much of a staff.” Angel surveyed the group in the room.

“Faith and Robin are coming down from Cleveland as soon as the school opens, along with some of the more experienced Slayers. Some people from the military are helping too. I was supposed to offer you a job too, if you want it. And Dawn, of course.” Buffy finally stopped pacing the room and sat down next to Willow on the couch.

“Where is Dawn?” Angel scanned the room, but the only ones there were Buffy, Xander, Willow, Giles and the boy, the one who had come to get the rouge Slayer... Andrew, that was it, along with Connor, Nina and Lorne.

“She put Tara to bed upstairs. I hope that’s OK.”

“She’s where?” Angel’s heart skipped a beat. So, that’s what it felt like.

*****

“Dawn.” Was the only thing he could say when he saw her. She wasn’t supposed to be there.

“No. No. No. No.” Her voice turned into a whimper as he got up and carefully walked towards her, ready to stop at any moment.

“Don’t come near me!” She yelled at him. “I thought we got rid of you at the Hellmouth, that we wouldn’t have to see them... not him... not anymore...” She was crying now, her voice barely more than a whisper. He took this opportunity and with a few last steps he pulled her into an embrace.

“It’s me, Bit, not it... just me.”

She pulled away from him and he could see the questions in her eyes.

“Don’t really know what happened. Just kind of, poof, and here I was. Something about the medallion and the Powers that Be... anyway, I came back.”

“When?” She dried her tears.

“A couple of weeks after the big fight.” He awaited the reaction.

“You’ve been back ever since then? And you didn’t come to find us?”

“Just listen, please. There were circumstances...”

“There better be! You know what you put her through? All of us?” He could hear the pain in her voice.

“Look, I’m sorry, I really am. Would you just let me finish?”

She seemed to accept this. They sat down on the couch and he started talking.

“So, I came back. But I was a ghost for a while, incorporeal. And I knew I couldn’t see you like that. Plus, I couldn’t leave LA for some reason. Then, when I regained my body, there was this thing with an Old One taking over Fred’s body, and I had to help her. Then, Angel got word about the Immortal stalking Buffy, and we went to Rome...”

“You were in Rome? When?” Dawn was getting worked up again, so Spike hurried to explain.

“It was in March, two years ago. We were supposed to get a demon head back, and while we were there, we decided to save Buffy from the Immortal, only to find out she was dating him.” Spike huffed. “Andrew told us about how happy she was, that she’d moved on blah blah blah. That’s when I knew what I had to do.”

“But, Angel didn’t tell you? That wasn’t Buffy, she wasn’t even in Rome then, she was in London with Giles. The Immortal had some girl pose as her, and he did some spell on Andrew, Buffy told Angel that as soon as she heard of it...”

“Guess he wasn’t too keen on letting me in on that...” Inwardly, Spike cursed Angel for his decision. “It doesn’t matter, though. I did what I had to do, and now I’m back.”

He told her about everything that had happened since the battle in Sunnydale. She didn’t say anything, didn’t interrupt him, until... a cry reached them on the couch, and Dawn immediately jumped to her feet.

“Oh, God, I forgot! I shouldn’t have left her.”

She disappeared into the bedroom while Spike looked after her in complete confusion. She emerged from the room seconds later holding a little girl, about two years old. She was rocking her slowly, obviously trying to get her to go back to sleep. Spike stared at the image for a second or two. It couldn’t be. Not his Bit, not with a kid... she wouldn’t do that... would she?

Dawn saw his look and realized that he didn’t know. That made her mad. Mad at the world, that had deprived him of over two years of Tara’s life. But more mad at Angel, who obviously hadn’t told him. He deserved to know. But it wasn’t her place to tell him.

“Sorry. New place. She gets scared if no-ones there when she wakes up.”

“That’s OK. I was just surprised. Didn’t expect to...” He gestured to Dawn and then to the little girl.

“What?” Dawn realized what he thought. “Oh. No, it’s not what you think. She’s...”

She didn’t finish the sentence. Spike looked at her, even more confused.

“Look, I have to go. But, don’t go anywhere, OK?”

She was out of the penthouse before he could answer.

*****

“She’s where?” Buffy backed away a little at Angel’s angry voice.

“Upstairs. In one of the suites. You know, where you live.” Buffy looked confused. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, nothing.” He tried to cover. But Andrew understood.

“He’s up there, isn’t he?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Angel avoided Buffy’s eyes.

“Angel, I think it’s time they knew.” Andrew said.

“NO!” Angel practically yelled.

“Knew what? Angel, what is he talking about?” Buffy had a determined look on her face.

“I’m talking about Sp..”

Andrew was interrupted by Dawn, rushing into the room with Tara.

“Dawn, what’s wrong?” Buffy looked scared. Angel didn’t remember ever seeing her scared. Maybe that one time with the Master.

“Nothing, nothing at all. In fact everything’s fine.” She had a big smile on her face. “There’s just... something I think you should see upstairs.”

“What?” The frightened look was replaced by confusion.

“Buffy, don’t.” Angel stepped in front of her, blocking the way out of the room.

“Angel, is there something you don’t want me to see?” Buffy took a step closer to Angel, challenging him.

“Angel, get out of her way.” Dawn was mad now. “You can’t keep it from her forever, you know. She would’ve found out sooner or later anyway.” Andrew had stepped forward also, and the rest of the gang were starting to wonder what was going on.

“Fine.” Angel stepped back and Buffy hurried past him and into the elevator.

“What the devil was that about?” Xander was the first to ask.

“I can’t believe you!” Dawn was yelling at Angel now, not even noticing that Tara had woken up again and was moving in her arms, afraid of the sound.

Willow stepped forward, took the girl from Dawn and sat down on the couch.

“And you!” She turned to Andrew. “You knew all along, and you didn’t say anything! You knew what she was going through, what we were all going through. How could you? I may have expected this from Angel, but never from you!” She was very close to tears now, and had to stop to catch her breath. Andrew saw his opportunity.

“I’m sorry. Really. But he asked me not to tell you.”

“And since when can you keep a secret?” Dawn said in a contemptuous voice.

“Look, I don’t want to spoil the party here, but what on earth are you two talking about?” Xander spoke up again.

“Spike.” Angel walked across the room and sat down in one of the chairs. “He’s back.”

*****

As the elevator started to slow down, Buffy drew a deep breath. She didn’t know what to expect, but Dawn had seemed happy, so it couldn’t be too bad. As the elevator stopped, she drew one final breath and entered the living room.

*****

Spike heard the elevator coming back up. He hoped it was her, but he was too afraid to believe it. What if she didn’t want anything to do with him? He braced himself as the elevator stopped. Then there she was. He forgot to breath for a while, not used to having to do it. Then...

“No.”

Just like the Bit.

“Buffy, love...”

“No. Not him. NEVER him, you hear that! Get out of here! I will not let you do this to him, not now, not ever!” She was very close to tears, he could see it.

“Buffy, it’s me. Look.” He picked up a magazine that was lying on the table. “See. I’m corporeal. Not go-throughable.”

For a couple of seconds, that seemed like years to him, she just stood there, staring at him. Then she took a few steps, and she was back in his arms. Where she belonged.

5 Flesh and blood


Neither of them said anything for a long while. He just held her as her entire body shook from crying, something she hadn’t let anybody do since before the battle in Sunnydale. He placed a gentle kiss on top of her head. Instinctively, she turned her face to his, and met his lips with her own. God, he’d forgotten how good she felt, how soft and warm her lips were against his cold ones. Of course, that was different now...

Buffy let out a deep sigh as their lips met. God, she had missed this. Missed him, all of him. Everything was the same, it was like he never even left... or was it? Something was different. The feel of his warm lips again on hers, his heart beating under the palm of her hand. Hang on... body heat? Heartbeats? She pulled away and stared at him.

“You... your heart... and...”

“Yeah... that. Thing is, I’m kinda human now.”

“But... how... why... never mind... we’ve got time for questions later.”
And once again she turned her face towards his and their lips were locked together again.

*****

Spike woke, hours later. Buffy was asleep in his arms, her head on his chest. He smiled. She’d said that his heartbeat was making her sleepy. Apparently it had worked. They must have been asleep for hours now. It had been past midnight when they finally dosed off. They had talked for hours, every now and then taking a break to make love. He had told her everything, from when he came back to the Shanshu-mission, and everything in between. She had told him about the aftermath of Sunnydale, about Rome, Dawn and the other Scoobies, and about how they were setting up a Slayer/Watcher school here in LA. She hadn’t said anything about the kid, though. Maybe she wanted Dawn to tell him, didn’t think it was her place. But he just couldn’t imagine that Dawn... she was just a kid. There was of course a chance that Red had reformed again, but he didn’t think so. That left Buffy... but he didn’t want to think that. Not Buffy with someone else... she’d told him about the setup with the Immortal, and said that there hadn’t been anybody, but still...

Buffy moved against him, and he raised his hand to remove some stray hair from her face. Even in her sleep she reacted to his touch, she turned to him and somehow managed to find his lips with hers. She moved closer to him, but he pulled away. He wanted her to be awake.

“Buffy? Time to wake up.”

“Mmmm... no... nice dream...”

“I promise this will be nicer.” He tempted her.

“No...” She was still protesting, but her eyes begun to open, slowly. He could see pain and fear in them for a split second, before she realized where she was. Then she hid her face against his chest, and he could feel the tears.

“I thought it was a dream...”

“It’s not. I’m here.” He ran her hand up and down her back, trying to sooth her.

“It felt so real... but it always does... every night...”

“I’m sorry...I’m so sorry...”

He held her as she cried. After a little while her body relaxed and she was drifting off to sleep again. But then, all of a sudden, she sat up straight in the bed.

“What time is it?”

He turned to look at the digital clock on the bedside table.

“6 in the morning. Way too early to get up, we have plenty of time to... what’s wrong?” Buffy had gotten out of the bed and was getting dressed.

“I left her with Dawn all night! How could I?”

“Buffy, love, what are you talking about?”

“Tara. I left her all night! I’ve never done that before, never.”

Spike held his breath for a moment. So... here it came. The thing he had been fearing all night.

“I was wondering when you were going to bring that up.”

He reached for his t-shirt and put it on.

“Well, it’s not like you asked about her.” Buffy looked mad now.

“What was I supposed to say? Nice to see you, who’s the lucky guy?”

“What?” She stared at him.

“Well, I didn’t exactly expect this, y’know. First I thought that Dawn, but I knew... I guess I was just trying to cover, not wanting to face the truth...”

He ran a hand through his hair and looked up at her.

“I just couldn’t bear the thought of you... with someone...”

Buffy took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Angel never told him. God... it was one thing to not tell her he was back, but this... she couldn’t believe it. Angel couldn’t have been so cruel. Or maybe he could. She sat back down on the bed.

“And then you said that there wasn’t anyone else, but you know, I may have been dead, well undead, for over a century, but I still remember how these things happen.”

“Spike...”

“So, how old is she? Just trying to pinpoint the great event here.”

“She turned two in February.”

“You didn’t wait long, did you?” He gave her a disappointed look.

“What?”

“Well, the big battle was three years ago.”

“I was already pregnant then, I just didn’t know.”

“Oh, so it was before? Well that’s even better, isn’t it?” He got up and started pacing the room.

“So, who is it? The whelp? The principal?” She stared at him in disbelief. “OK, I know, but there’s not a lot of possibilities here. Not Andrew? Please, anyone but Andrew.”

“No. It’s not Xander and it’s not Andrew and it’s definitely not Wood. Look, just listen to me...” She tried to stop his rambling.

“Why? So you can tell me what?”

“Will you just let me finish! I don’t know how it happened; I know it’s not supposed to be possible bu...”

“So, there was a little more that just a ‘hello kiss’ between you and Peaches, wasn’t there? Well, he did it once, why not another one?”

“What are you talking about?” Buffy was the one who was confused now.

“Angel, of course. That’s what you’re saying, isn’t it?”

She just stared at him.

“Were you always this stupid? Or does it have something to do with the Shanshu thing?”

“What?” He gave her a confused look.

“You don’t get it,do you?”

“Get what? What’s to get, you and Angel...”

“She’s yours!”

He stared at her. Well, at least he had stopped walking around. It had made her nervous.

“What?” He kept staring.

“You heard me.” She stared back, challenging him to question her.

“I’m not sure I did. Did you just say...” he didn’t finish.

“Yes.”

“But... that’s not possible... I’m, I mean... I was...”

“Hey, no need to tell me. Already been through the can’ts and hows and whys.” Buffy rested her head in her hands.

“Did you get an answer?” He sat back down on the bed.

“Not really. Giles researched it for a while, but never found anything. And I don’t care.”

“But...”

“It doesn’t matter. Sure, at first I was scared, and shocked and... I don’t know. But when I finally realized what was really happening, I was happy. Because then I had something, a piece of you that...”

“God, Buffy. If I had known...”

“He never told you.” It was a statement, not a question.

“Who?”

“Angel.”

“He knew?” Anger was starting to rise within him.

“Yeah. Dawn told him. I’m still not sure why, maybe she thought he knew something, you know, because of having all those connections with Wolfram and Hart.”

“Did he?”

“Know anything? No. You OK?” He was sitting on the bed, head in his hands.

“No... yes... I don’t know. This is just... it would be an understatement to say ‘surprise’ but that’s all I’ve got for now. Don’t think my minds adjusted yet.”

“It’s a lot to take in. I didn’t really accept it at first either.” Seeing the hurt look on his face, she continued fast. “I mean, I was afraid to accept it and then have it be a dream, or some kind of illusion. I couldn’t lose that. Not after...”

There was the pain again, only for a brief moment, and not as obvious as last time, but still there. She seemed to brush it off and got up from the bed again, heading for the door.

“Where are you going?” Spike got of the bed too.

“I’m going to get our daughter. Don’t you want to see her?”

“Well, of course... but...” He sat back down, staring at the floor. “What if I scare her?”

“Why would you scare her?”

“Well, look at me. I’m not exactly Mr. All American, am I?”

Buffy kneeled in front of him, forcing him to look at her.

“You. Will. Not. Scare. Her. I promise.”

“You can’t know that. She’s just a baby, she’s never seen me before, she doesn’t know who I am. I’m just a stranger to her.”

“No, you’re not!”

“I might as well be.” She could see tears in his eyes now.

“No. She does know you, and she has seen you before.”

He looked confused.

“Remember the video Andrew was making, back in Sunnydale?”

“Yeah?”

“Well, Dawn’s been showing her one of the tapes. Every night, almost since she was born.”

“That tape didn’t exactly capture the best of me.”

“Dawn says that there’s some really nice parts. Apparently, Andrew was filming a lot more than we knew.” She sat down beside him. “I never watched the tapes, I just... couldn’t. It hurt too much.”

“I’m still not sure...”

“It will be fine. Just be... you.”

Buffy got up again and left the room, turning in the doorway to smile at him.

When she had closed the door, Spike got up and started pacing the room again. Was this happening? Was there really something, someone, in the world that was a part of him? His own flesh and blood? He smiled to himself, and sat back down on the bed. Yes. There was. He remembered now, that new but familiar smell in the apartment when he had first entered a couple of hours ago. That had been her. A completely new smell, but still familiar. Because it had part of his own smell in it. And part of hers. Buffy.

*****

“Dawnie?” Buffy shook Dawn carefully.

“Mmm hmm...” She opened one eye.

“I’m gonna take Tara upstairs, OK?”

“Sure.” Dawn turned around and went right back to sleep.

Buffy picked up Tara who was still sleeping and the clothes-food bag, and left the room. In the elevator, the little girl woke up. She didn’t cry or fuss, she just looked at Buffy with her big, blue eyes, so much like his. Those eyes that knew everything.

The ride in the elevator felt like an eternity. Finally, the elevator stopped, and Buffy got out. Spike was apparently still in the bedroom, so she headed for the open door.

*****

Spike sat down on the bed. She had been gone what seemed like an hour, but was in fact only five minutes. As he heard her footsteps approaching the open door, he held his breath. She pushed the door fully open and entered the room. The little girl was almost asleep in her arms, but when Buffy sat down on the bed, she woke up. She looked him straight in the eyes and he could feel the tears starting to form again. She had his eyes, he could see that right away.

“You OK?” Buffy’s voice brought him back to the present.

“Oh. Yeah. Just a bit overwhelmed.” He smiled at her.

“I know the feeling.”

Spike reached out a hand and stroked Tara’s blonde hair. So soft. How could something that he was a part of be so soft, so beautiful? He mover closer, not wanting to miss a single moment of her presence. She reached out her arms, one hand tugging at his shirt. Buffy put her down on the bed between them.

“I think she wants you to hold her.”

He gently picked up the little body, not sure how to hold her. But then everything felt natural and he pulled her tight against his chest, feeling her tiny heart beats next to his. She reached out one hand and took a safe hold on the neck of his shirt, the other hand providing a thumb for her mouth. Then she rested her head against his shoulder and closed her eyes.

“She’s tired. She always has to hold on to something when she goes to sleep. It’s like she thinks that you’re going somewhere if she doesn’t.” Buffy smiled at the image.

“I could never leave her... not ever...” Buffy could hear the pain in his voice, understood what he was feeling, even if she couldn’t possibly know. To have something like this taken away from you... she didn’t want to think about it.

They just sat on the bed for a long time, Spike not wanting to let go what he just got, Buffy not wanting to break the magical moment. But after close to an hour, she was forced to do something to keep herself from falling asleep.

“Spike?” He looked up. “I think she’s asleep, you can put her down on the bed.”

“Can I just... hold her a little longer? Is that OK?” He seemed afraid of what she was going to say, as if he thought she would take it all away again.

She smiled at him, reaching out a hand and running it down the side of his cheek.

“Do you really think you have to ask that? Because you don’t, you know. I’m not going to take her away from you, I could never do that. But I have to get some more sleep.” She crawled under the cover, still keeping her eyes on him. “And I think you do too.”

She was right. He was tired, exhausted. He moved carefully, not wanting to wake the sleeping girl in his arms, and settled against the pillows next to Buffy. Before he knew it, he was asleep.

Buffy watched him for a while, before she was able to go to sleep too. The image of him and her - their - daughter was something she had never thought she would get to see. Still, here it was. She fell asleep with a smile on her face.

6 Prophecies


The sunlight that was shining through the window woke Buffy. For a second she didn’t know where she was, but then the events of the previous night came back, and she smiled to herself. She turned in the bed, realizing that she was alone in it. For a moment, fear hit her as the thought ‘What if it was just a dream?’ went through her mind. But then she heard Tara laughing outside the open bedroom door, and the sound of the TV in the background. She quickly got out off the bed and pulled some clothes on before leaving the room.

In the doorway she stopped for a while, enjoying the scene in front of her. Spike was half lying on the couch with Tara in his lap, watching some children’s show. They were both completely wrapped up in what was going on in the TV and didn’t notice her.

“Morning.” Two identical pairs of blue eyes looked up at her.

“Mommy mommy!” Tara announced, excitedly bouncing up and down.

“Hi baby. You having fun watching the TV?” Buffy made her way across the room and sat down on the couch. Tara nodded before turning her attention back to the TV, allowing Buffy to focus on the third person in the room.

“Morning, Sleeping Beauty.” Spike smirked a little at her. “Thought you’d never wake up.”

“It’s only...” Buffy looked at her watch. “Ten thirty.” She said acting offended. “You could have woken me if you wanted to.”

“No, thought I’d let you sleep. Plus, we were enjoying a little quality time, one on one.” He ran an affectionate hand through Tara’s hair. “Just enjoying the little things.”

“How long have you been up?” Buffy asked, smiling at how easily Spike seemed to have gone into dad mode.

“About an hour or so.”

“She give you any trouble?” Buffy frowned, knowing first hand how Tara’s morning temper could be.

“Of course not. You weren’t any trouble, were you sweetie?” Tara absentmindedly shook her head at Spike’s question. “We had breakfast and got dressed and brushed our teeth.”

“Really?” Buffy asked, a little surprised.

“Sure. I had Nina get some different things, not sure what she would eat. Which reminds, me; Red was up here a few minutes ago wondering if we wanted to go to breakfast with them, said they were leaving in a little while.” He gave Buffy a inquisitive look. “Wanna go?”

“I am pretty hungry, actually.” Buffy replied. “You wanna go? I mean, we could get food and stay here if you want to just stay in.”

“No, we’ll go. I can’t wait to see the look on the whelp’s face when he sees me.” Spike chuckled a little. “We should probably go downstairs, though. Red told me to meet them in the lobby if we wanted to come.”

“OK, let’s go.” Buffy stood up, reaching her arms out for Tara, but she shook her head and snuggled closer to Spike. “Oh, I see. We’ve got ourselves a daddy’s girl, do we?” Buffy said a little amused. Tara put her arms around Spike’s neck as he stood up too.

“Daddy.” They both looked down on the girl, and Buffy could see tears in Spike’s eyes. They were both quiet for a moment.

“Never thought I’d here that.” Spike said. “Didn’t even know I wanted to.” Buffy smiled.

“Kids. They do stuff to you.”

“You telling me?” Spike chuckled and Tara tugged his shirt to get him to put her down on the floor where she took off in a hurry towards the elevator.

“She’s already got you wrapped around her little finger!” Buffy laughed as they walked out of the penthouse.

*****

Buffy heard raised voices as she, Spike and Tara walked out of the elevator in the lobby of Wolfram & Hart. She shot Spike a questioning look, but he just shrugged. As they got closer to one of the offices, Buffy could make out voices.

“I’m not discussing this with you!” She heard Angel yell.

“All I’m saying is maybe you should give her some time.” A female voice countered. “She’s bound to be pretty mad at you right now. Just let her calm down before you go off trying to explain.”

“Nina, you don’t get this, OK. You don’t know Buffy, I do. I need to talk to her as soon as possible, tell her why I did it.” Angel came bursting out of the office, the woman Buffy had seen the night before following in his footsteps. They both froze as they saw the trio in the lobby.

“This should go well.” The woman, Nina, mumbled. Angel took a step closer. Buffy picked Tara, who had taken a strong hold on her leg, up and went over to Spike. “Take her upstairs, get the others. I’m gonna talk to him.” Spike took Tara, who immediately took a strong grip around his neck.

“I should be here too, love.” Spike said, giving Angel a deadly look. “He’s got some explaining to do to me too, y’know.”

“I know. But I don’t want her here, OK. I’ll tell you what happened later.” Buffy gave him a pleading look, and he nodded before heading to the elevator again. When they were safely gone, Buffy turned back to Angel.

“Buffy, please let me...” Angel started, but Buffy cut him off.

“How dare you? You had no right to do this to us!” Her voice was calm, but he would have preferred it if she had been yelling.

“I’m sorry, but I didn’t think it was my place to tell him.” Angel said.

“You’re right, it wasn’t. But you should have told me. You should have given me that choice.” Buffy sat down on one of the couches, and buried her face in her hand. Angel sat down next to her, and Nina saw her cue and went back into the office.

“I can’t believe you would do something like this.” Buffy refused to look in Angel’s eyes.

“I did it for your good. Yours and Tara’s.”

“Oh, don’t give me that!” Buffy spat. “Don’t give me that bullshit again, I heard enough of it seven years ago.”

“This is different. Look, just hear me out, and if you want nothing to do with me when I’m done, I’ll accept that. OK?” Angel waited for a response. When Buffy nodded he continued. “When Dawn told me about the baby, I’ll admit I was mad. Jealous, angry, whatever you wanna call it. But I decided to look into it, and that’s why I didn’t say anything to you about Spike being back, because of what I found.”

“What did you find?” Buffy asked, finally looking up at him.

“There’s a prophecy about the Chosen Child, born in the fourth year of the third millennia. The child will decide the fate of the world, ending the final battle between good and evil.” Angel revealed.

“But that’s good, right?” Buffy asked.

“It doesn’t say which side wins.” Angel said. “I was just afraid that if Spike ever lost his soul, he could turn Tara against you, against the fight for good. I couldn’t let that happen. I was planning on telling him today, actually, since he’s all human now.” Buffy was quiet for a long time before she spoke again.

“I believe you.” At Angel’s smile, she continued. “That doesn’t mean that I forgive you right now. I’m gonna need some time to do that, OK?” Angel nodded. “But I want to try to be friends, if that’s OK with you.”

“I’d like that.” Angel tried another smile, and this time Buffy smiled back.

At that moment, the Scoobies along with Spike and Tara came into the lobby.

“Sorry, love, couldn’t keep them away any longer.” Spike gave Buffy an apologetic look.

“It’s OK, we’re done here anyway.” Buffy gave Angel a small smile before leaving the couch and joining her friends. “So, who wants breakfast?”

*****

“So, she’s gonna, like, end all evil or something?” Dawn asked. She, Buffy, Spike, Willow, Xander, Giles and Andrew were sitting in a booth at a diner down the road from the Wolfram & Hart offices. Tara had fallen asleep in Spike’s lap, and Buffy had just told the others what Angel had said about the prophecy.

“Apparently, although, it wasn’t really that clear. Just said she would ‘end the final battle’ or something. That’s why Angel didn’t say anything to us about Spike being back, it didn’t say if it was for good or evil” Buffy explained and Spike huffed.

“He thought I would corrupt her or something?” Buffy put a comforting hand on his arm.

“He was just afraid that if you lost your soul, it would affect her. I kinda understand that.” At Spike’s horrified look she continued. “I’m not saying I forgive him for doing it. I might never. All I’m saying is I understand where he’s coming from, OK?” She gave Spike a pleading look, and his expression softened. Willow decoded it was time to cut in.

“So, what’s gonna happen now?” She asked Spike. “Are you gonna help us with the school?”

Spike gave Buffy a questioning look. She had told him about the school the night before, but they hadn’t discussed him working there. They hadn’t really discussed anything about the future, he realized.

“I’d be happy to help out.” He said, his eyes not leaving Buffy’s. “If you want me to.”

“Of course I want you there. I thought that went without saying.” but gave Spike a reassuring smile and he returned it.

“So, are we going back to Wolfram & Hart?” Willow asked. “You and Angel seemed, I don’t know...”

“I’m not sure. We decided to be friends, but I’m not happy with him right now.” Buffy frowned. “I don’t really want to go back there, but we don’t have anywhere else to go, and Faith and Wood are coming in a couple of days, they’re gonna need a place to stay too.”

“I’ll talk to the poof.” Spike said. “We could probably stay at the Hyperion, he still owns that place. Got a few words to say to him anyway.”

Buffy noticed the determined look on his face and squeezed his hand.

“Be nice. I don’t want you two fighting all the time. He’ll probably be around sometimes.”

“Fine. I’ll play nice with Peaches.” Spike agreed.

*****

Spike didn’t bother to knock before entering Angel’s office. He found his grand-sire at the desk, staring out the window.

“I’ve got something to say to you.” He started and Angel turned the chair around to face him.

“Go ahead. I deserve it.” Spike saw the resigned look on Angel’s face.

“I’m not gonna yell at you, if that’s what you think.” He said, running a hand through his hair. “I’m not really good at this, so don’t cut me off, OK?” Angel nodded and Spike took a deep breath before speaking again. “Thank you.”

“What? Did you just say...” Angel looked confused. Spike nodded.

“Buffy told me about the prophecy, about why you did what you did. Don’t get me wrong, I’m pissed at you for keeping them away from me for the past couple of years. But I understand. And I’m grateful. I never would have forgiven myself if I had done something that could hurt her. So, thank you.”

“You don’t have to thank me. Just promise me one thing.” Spike raised a questioning eyebrow at Angel’s words and he continued. “Keep them safe.”

7 Los Angeles School of Slayers and Watchers


Buffy looked around the large training room amazed. She took a better grip on Tara who had fallen asleep in her arms. They had been walking around the new school for the past hour, and apparently it had been too much for the little girl. Buffy turned to Riley at the same time as Spike came into the room.

“Wow, this is amazing.” Buffy said to Sam, who had come up behind Riley.

“We’ve been working on it since the big Slayer revolution, so it better be.” Sam smiled at Buffy and took Riley’s hand in hers.

Riley had been suspicious when he had seen Spike, but after Buffy talked to him and explained the whole Shanshu thing, he had decided to let the past be the past, him and Spike would never be friends, but for Buffy’s sake they would try to get along.

They had been in LA for almost six weeks now, and were getting ready to start up the school the following week since everything was ready. Faith and Wood had come into town three weeks earlier, and had both been surprised to find Spike at the Hyperion. Faith, who had seen first hand how devastated Buffy had been after Spike had ‘died’ in the Hellmouth, had been supportive of their relationship from the start. Wood, however, had been more cautious around the former vampire, and still was. Buffy didn’t think he would ever completely let go of the past, but as long as he didn’t do something, Buffy would accept it.

The rest of the Scoobies hadn’t said anything about the fact that Buffy and Spike were together again. Even Xander, who had been the one to oppose the most in the past, had told Buffy he was fine with it.

“So, you guys ready to see your new home?” Riley asked as they headed out of the training room and Buffy snapped back to reality. “You’ve seen everything here, we’ve only got the houses left.”

“Yes, please.” Buffy replied and followed Riley and Sam, Spike a little behind her. She slowed down to wait for him. “What do you think?” She asked.

“Seems great.” He replied. “You’ve got everything you could need. Training rooms, library, computer base. Red’ll have a field day, there.”

“So you think we’ll be able to do it?” Spike noticed the hesitation in Buffy’s voice. He knew she was nervous about the school, about being a role model for all the new Slayers. He also knew she could do it.

“I know we will.” He said trying to reassure her. “Do you remember what I told you back in that abandoned house?”

“Of course I do.” Buffy nodded.

“Well, that’s still true. I know you can do this, just like I know you can do anything you set your mind to. OK?” Spike gave Buffy an encouraging look, and she nodded. “Good. Now, let’s go see what kind of place we’re gonna call home.”

*****

“Wow.” Was all Buffy could say as they pulled up outside the house she, Spike and Tara would live in. It was a large, two-storied house with an amazing porch running all the way around it.

“I’ll second that wow.” Spike said as they got out off the car. Riley and Sam came up to them and lead the way to the front door where Riley handed Buffy a key.

“Go ahead.” He said and nodded at the door. Buffy opened it and they walked into the large foyer. It opened up into an open-spaced living room in light colors. To the right was a large kitchen, and to the right a dining room. From the living room, two glass doors led to the back of the porch, which had an amazing view of the ocean. Next to the entrance to the dining room one flight of stairs led to the upper level, and one led to the basement.

“This is the main level.” Sam said where she was standing right inside the front door. “You’ve got living room, kitchen, dining room and there’s a bathroom behind the stairs. Upstairs are four bedrooms with baths and a study. Downstairs you have a training room, fully equipped. There’s also a Jacuzzi out on the deck.”

“We’ll have to check that out later.” Spike said, giving Buffy a knowing look that made her blush. Riley noticed and opened the front door.

“Let’s leave these two to explore their new house, Sam.” He said and Sam followed him out the door, waving a goodbye to the couple inside.

“So, what do you think?” Buffy asked.

“I think we should check out the upstairs, love.” Spike replied and led the way up the stairs, Buffy following with Tara.

The stairs ended in a hallway with two rooms to the right and three to the left, the master bedroom at the end of the hall. The bedroom closest to the master suite had been decorated with pink and purple colors and had a children’s sized, four-poster bed with bars that could be raised surrounding it. Buffy put Tara down and pulled the bar up on all sides before they walked out of the room, leaving the door open in case Tara woke up.

As Spike lead the way, they quickly looked into the remaining rooms before ending up in the master bedroom, which was decorated in a light blue color and had a large bed in the middle of it. A door on the right wall led to a walk-in closet, and a door to the left to a large bathroom with two sinks, a toilet and a tub big enough for two.

“We’re gonna have to check that out.” Spike mumbled as he came up behind Buffy, who was standing in the door to the bathroom, and wrapped his arms around her.

“Oh, you bet we are.” Buffy replied as she turned in his arms and their lips found each other. They were interrupted by a cry from Tara’s room, and Buffy broke away. “But not right now.”

*****

Buffy walked through the hallway of the school, greeting students and other teachers as she went. The school had been up and running for over a month now, and so far things were going great. They had a daycare center for staff as well as students, since some of the Slayers and Watchers-to-be had children too. Usually, Buffy picked Tara up during her lunch hour and they joined Spike in the diner across the road. But today, she had told Mrs. Henson, the manager of the daycare center, that Tara would stay for lunch. She needed to talk to Spike alone.

Buffy took a deep breath before opening the door to the diner. She found Spike at their usual table, and sat down opposite him.

“Hey, love. Where’s Tara?” He asked as he realized she wasn’t with Buffy. Spike had gotten a tad... overprotective of Tara in the past two and a half months, and Buffy was really looking forward to when she got to the age when she would be starting to date. That would be fun.

“She’s at the daycare center, I told Mrs. Henson she would be staying over the lunch today.” Buffy said and Spike raised a questioning eyebrow.

“Why?” He asked.

“I kinda need to talk to you.” Buffy said.

“OK, that doesn’t sound good. Should I be worried?” Spike asked, getting a little nervous.

“No, no. At least, I don’t think so. I’m not sure. I mean, maybe you don’t...” Spike cut her off.

“Buffy, love, you’re rambling.”

“I’m sorry. I’m just a little nervous is all.” Buffy took another deep breath before continuing. “You know how we have... you know... since I got to LA.”

“Well, yeah, pet, I was there after all.” Spike smirked a little at her.

“Well, the thing is, we never... used anything.” Buffy continued.

“How do you mean?” Spike asked, not quite sure what she was talking about.

“I mean... protection. You know...” Buffy blushed a little. “It seems when you got back the heartbeat and the breathing, some other parts of your... anatomy started working as well.”

“You mean...” Spike’s eyes widened as he realized what she was saying.

“I’m pregnant.”

“You’re serious?” Spike asked and Buffy nodded. “Why would that be a bad thing?”

“I don’t know, I just wasn’t sure how you’d react. I mean, we never talked about it.” Buffy said, looking down at the table, avoiding eye contact. Spike raised her chin, forcing her to look at him.

“You listen to me. I love you. I love Tara, and I will love this baby just as much. Don’t ever doubt that.” Buffy got tears in her eyes at his words, and he brushed them away. “OK?” Buffy nodded.

“I love you too.”

Epilogue – The final battle


“Are you sure?” Buffy asked in an almost desperate voice. Giles nodded.

“I have cross referenced and double checked several times, Buffy.” He said, looking up at his former Slayer. She had become everything he had ever wished she would be, and more. “This is it.”

Buffy sat down in the chair next to Giles and placed her face in her hands. She had known this day was coming for the past sixteen years, but didn’t want to believe it was finally here. Tara was still just a child. OK, an eighteen-year-old child, but still. She wasn’t ready to face the First.

“OK. We’ll come up with a strategy. I’m not letting her fight alone.” Buffy declared.

“Of course not. We will all be there.” Giles said.

“Oh, no you won’t.” Buffy said. Giles may have been a Watcher for the greater part of his life, but he was still 65 years old. “I will be there, and Spike and Willow, and we’ll get as many Slayers as possible, but you are not going, and neither is Xander or Dawn. I can’t lose any of you.”

“OK. This is up to you.” Giles said. “Just know we will be there if you need us.”

“I know, Giles, I know.” Buffy squeezed Giles’ hand before standing to leave the room.

“When will you talk to them?” Giles asked before she was out the door.

“Tonight.” Buffy responded, not turning around. “After all, it seems like I don’t have a choice.”

*****

“Hello?” Buffy called as she entered the house she had called home for the past sixteen years.

“We’re out on the deck.” She heard Spike call through the open glass doors, and she made her way over there.

“Hey there.” Buffy said, smiling at the sight of her family.

Tara had turned eighteen two weeks earlier, and would be going to college in the fall. They had discovered that she had most of Buffy’s Slayer powers, as well as some vampire attributes, such as good night vision, hearing and smell. She had trained at the school since she was twelve, and Willow was also teaching her the art of white witchcraft.

Will was fifteen, he had been born seven months after Buffy and Spike had gotten married a few weeks after she had revealed her pregnancy. He was also studying at the school, and wanted to be a teacher there when he graduated from college.

Lauren and Christopher had come along six years after Will and were now nine and attending their fourth year in school. They were inseparable, and refused to sleep in separate bedrooms, even after they had made the study into a bedroom for Lauren. None of the other children had the powers Tara had, and Buffy was both grateful and disappointed by that.

“Hey mom.” Came a chorus of voices as Buffy sat down.

“Hey, love.” Spike said, his eyes lingering on Buffy across the table. “What’d the Watcher want?”

“Nothing really, just catch up on some things.” Buffy said, while her eyes told a different story. Spike decided to let it go for the moment. “So, what’s for dinner?”

*****

“What’s really going on?” Spike asked as he helped Buffy clean up in the kitchen. The kids were still out on the deck, so they had some privacy.

“It’s time.” Buffy said, and Spike knew immediately what she was talking about.

“No, it can’t be, she’s not ready.” He tried to argue, but knew it was for nothing.

“You think I want this to happen?” Buffy asked, tears in her eyes. “She’s my baby and I don’t know if I can protect her from this.” Spike pulled his wife into his arms in an attempt to comfort her as much as himself.

“It’s OK, we’ll get through this. Don’t we always?”

*****

“Tara, you wanna stay down here for a little while?” Buffy asked as Tara and Will headed for the stairs to go to bed. Tara nodded and came back to the couch where Buffy and Spike were sitting.

“What’s up?” She asked, looking from her mom to her dad.

“You remember the prophecy we’ve told you about? The one about how you were born?” Buffy asked, taking her daughter’s hand in hers. “About how you will end the final battle between good and evil?” Tara nodded. Buffy tried to continue, but couldn’t hold her tears back any longer. Spike took over.

“Giles says it’s here, baby. It’s time for the battle.”

“OK.” Buffy and Spike were both surprised by their daughter’s calm voice.

“You’re OK?” Buffy asked. “You’re not scared or anything?”

“Well, of course I’m scared.” Tara gave her parents a reassuring look. “But you and grandpa Giles and auntie Willow have been preparing me for this almost my entire life. I’m ready.”

*****

“OK, this is the plan.” Buffy couldn’t stand still, so she was pacing back and forth at the front of the room. “We know where the First is held up, and we know how to make it corporeal.”

“Buffy, honey, please stop walking around.” Willow pleaded. “You’re making me a little dizzy.”

“Sorry.” Buffy stopped pacing and leaned her hands against the table. “Me, Tara, Spike and group A will go in through the front. Group B, lead by Faith, will go in through the back. Willow and the women from the coven will be on the roof, working their magic. Any questions?” Nobody said anything. “Good.”

*****

Buffy stood across the street from the destroyed building, Spike, Tara, Faith and Willow next to her. The First had been defeated, and her loved ones were still alive.

They had lost about a dozen Slayers, but had destroyed the First’s entire army of Bringers, as well as the hoards of demons that had been in the old warehouse. Tara had delivered the final blow and killed the First, which had exterminated every demon in this world, as well as closing the portals to other dimensions. The final battle was over.