One moment she was comfortably perched on her Papa's hip, held firmly in his strong arms and surrounded by the comforting scent of leather and cigarettes (of which Mama does not approve). The next moment, she found herself alone on the hard soil of an alien landscape. Joy blinked hard and then reached around to feel for her backpack and the reassuring presence of Mr. Pig. She took her bottom lip firmly between her teeth and thought very hard. Something had gone wrong on the way to California. She was lost, but she knew who and what her parents were, and they would never rest until they found her. Her job was simple. She had to stay safe until they did.
Joy looked around. Shelter of some sort was her first priority. She found a low outcropping of rock and stooped down to crawl under it. Nestled in the tight space, she surveyed her surroundings. This was not a friendly place. The ground was largely barren, only a few scraggly shrubs visible from her refuge. A thick fog blanketed as far as she could see. She heard something moving not far away. As the sound grew closer, Joy removed her backpack as quietly as she could and pressed even farther against the hollow recess of stone. When she saw a huge four-legged creature lumber into sight, she was glad she had retreated. It stood at least eight feet tall and was covered with thick fur. Joy held her breath and stayed absolutely still until it had passed.
When the creature was gone, Joy listened very carefully to see if any others were nearby. Fortunately, she had played hide and seek with her father many times. At first, he always found her in a matter of seconds, using his acute hearing and sense of smell. But Joy had learned to elude him, sometimes for a quarter of an hour or more, by hiding near the washing machine when it was running to mask her heartbeat or wearing her mother's dressing gown to cover her scent. When he did finally find her, Spike was always very proud of his little girl for managing to stay hidden as long as she had. If he had ever intended these games to teach Joy an important survival skill, he'd never said so. But Joy was very smart, and she'd already learned something about the creatures occupying this dimension: they didn't have vampire hearing and they didn’t seem to be very good at sniffing out little girls. Her observations appeared to be confirmed when she noticed several smaller animals scampering around in the open.
Over the next hour, Joy watched as several of the large, furry creatures moved in and out of the open area in front of her hiding place. The creatures moved about waving their long fleshy snouts in the air and largely ignored the small, rodent-like animals squeaking and scuffling underfoot. Joy didn't move from her sanctuary, but she did relax a little. She untied Mr. Pig from the top of her backpack and held him close under her chin. She remembered what her father had told her when they had gone to the zoo. "Widget," he said, "If we get separated, just stay where you are. It's easier to find something that stays in one place." Joy was ready to stay put as long as she had to, but her hiding space was cramped and boring. It didn't take long for the novelty to wear off; fear quickly took its place.
“It will be okay,” she whispered to Mr. Pig. “Mama and Papa will find us. I’ll protect you until they get here.”
*******
The little Spike knew about the first dimension on his list would have been enough to make his blood run cold, if it didn’t already. The Council had already lost two human agents in this forbidding place. The only good news was both survivors of those missions were demons. Spike hoped that being a vampire would give him at least a fighting chance. What it meant if Joy was there, he didn’t want to think about.
Emerging from the portal, he quickly focused his senses, especially his magically enhanced hearing. What he heard brought a smile instantly to his lips, and he started sprinting towards its source.
Even while hurtling at top speed toward his goal, Spike still managed to survey his surroundings for potential threats. The stark landscape was anything but welcoming, and while the vibrations he recognized as Joy's voice stood out, Spike could also hear unseen creatures moving ominously in the thick mist. The fog obscured his vision, so Spike slowed his pace and assumed a more stealthy approach as he neared what he hoped was his lost daughter. Sheltered by a scraggly shrub, Spike took a moment to assess the immediate danger. He watched one of the large, hairy creatures lumber into view, its snout in the air, and immediately recognized the animal’s behavior as that of one who relies heavily upon his sense of smell.
A moment later Spike had all the confirmation he needed when he detected a sharp odor hanging in the humid air. Its source, a four-legged animal resembling a goat, came into view when the mist cleared for a moment. Spike watched as the larger creature he’d seen earlier turned, displaying surprising grace, and shot across the clearing with deadly accuracy. The musky goat disappeared down its predator’s gullet in a matter of seconds. ‘That goat was a regular pheromone factory,” thought Spike. ‘I guess I know now why the snout monster doesn’t notice me.’
Initially relieved that he needn’t worry about eluding the one known threat, Spike tensed again when he noticed the sound he’d been following had ceased. Inhaling deeply, he brought his own sensory skills into play and sighed when he recognized traces of Joy’s unique scent nearby, and then heard the reassuring thump of her utterly familiar heartbeat. Unable to wait another moment, Spike drew close to what he believed to be Joy’s hiding place and called out. “Widget, sweetheart, it’s your Papa. You can come out.”
Spike heard some scuffling and then silence. He decided to try again. “Don’t be afraid, Widge,” he said, “It’s really me. I even know the secret code word. It’s Dumbledore.”
“It’s not Dumbledore, you ninny pants,” she responded, while launching herself into Spike’s waiting arms. “The secret code word is Hermione.”
********
“He’s got her,” Willow sang out as she materialized through the portal into Dawn’s living room. Wrapping her arms around Buffy, Joy, and Dawn where they were huddled together on the couch, she beamed at them even as tears streaked her face. “She’s fine, not a scratch on her!”
Soon they were all crying and hugging. Buffy and Dawn had already prepared Joy for the reunion with her lost self. Willow explained that Spike was doing the same with ‘his’ Joy and would arrive soon. When Joy suddenly leapt off the couch, she caught all the adults by surprise.
“What’s the matter, Joy-Joy?” Dawn asked, worry creasing her brow.
“I need to pee!” Joy answered, dashing for the bathroom.
“Oh, my gods,” Buffy laughed. “She hasn’t peed since we got here. I guess she was too scared!”
It was a good twenty minutes before Spike arrived. During the wait, Joy practically bounced off the walls anticipating her father’s return. Buffy had to smile, seeing how happy Joy was to know that Spike was safe. When she fell and skinned her knee or woke up from a bad dream, Joy would run first to Buffy for first aid and comfort. She loved and clearly still needed her mother. But Joy was definitely a daddy’s girl, too. And when it came to fun, it had to be Spike. The two were constantly devising new games with rules that changed so fast Buffy could never keep up. Although they could be fiercely competitive, the play would usually dissolve into an infectious case of the giggles that would leave them both rolling on the floor with laughter. Buffy didn’t even need to understand the joke, just seeing them like that was enough to get her laughing as well. Buffy couldn’t even begin to imagine what it would mean for Joy to lose Spike, just as she couldn’t fathom living without him. Fortunately neither of them had to worry about that, at least not this time.
When Spike finally appeared he stood in the hallway at Dawn’s front door with one arm still in the portal. “Hello, Widget,” he said, smiling broadly. “I’ve got a few new memories for you. But you need to come over here so I can give them to you.”
Joy flew across the room and Spike knelt down just in time to catch her, gathering her into a one-armed hug. She wasted no time burying her face in his chest, clinging to him as if her life depended upon it. Spike nuzzled her hair, breathing in her scent, and planted a kiss on the top of her head before pulling away just enough to look her directly in the eye. “Mama told you what to expect, yeah?” he asked. Joy nodded, but her expression was tight with nerves. “It will be okay, Widg,” he said. “You told me everything that happened. You didn’t get hurt. You weren’t even very scared.” Joy still looked apprehensive. Spike put his finger under Joy’s chin and leveled her with a serious expression. “I promise you, it will be fine.”
That was all it took. Joy visibly relaxed. She knew Spike would never lie to her about anything. “I’m ready, Papa,” she said, smiling up at him.
Spike kissed her on the forehead. “Okay, Widg. Just reach down my arm and feel around until you’ve got her hand.” Joy slid her hand along Spike’s sleeve until it disappeared into the portal. “Have you got her?” he asked. Joy nodded. “Okay, little one, invite her in.”
Joy looked up at her father, perplexed. “Yeah, just ask her to come in. She’ll know what to do.”
Joy took a deep breath and turned slightly to face the portal. “Would you like to come in?” she asked. Spike was right there when she passed out and fell into his arms.
Joy came to on the couch a few minutes later. Buffy and Spike were both holding her hands when she opened her eyes. “Hi Mama, hi Papa,” she said, blinking. “Can we trick-or-treat now?”
Buffy and Spike exchanged a knowing look. They had survived enough apocalyptic events to know that everyone involved would be buzzing with adrenaline for hours. Going out at night to knock on strangers’ doors begging for candy seemed a perfect way to burn off some of that excess energy. Besides, Joy would likely file for a divorce from her parents if she didn’t get to experience her first Halloween in California after all they’d been through. But first they needed to be sure Joy had successfully integrated her dual memories.
“First tell your mum how I found you, Widget,” Spike said. “Then we’ll know you’ve got all your memories.”
“Then I get to trick-or-treat?” Joy asked.
“After you eat some dinner,” he replied.
“Okay. We were hiding in a little cave,” Joy began, turning to face her mother.
“We?” Buffy asked. “Who was with you?”
“Mr. Pig,” Joy said, rolling her eyes. “Remember, I had Mr. Pig with me when we left!”
“Oh, of course,” Buffy said, shooting an amused glance at Spike. “How could I forget?”
“We were hiding from these really big aminals. I knew you and Papa would find us. We just had to wait. I wasn’t scared, but Mr. Pig was. So I pretended it was morning when I wake up, but you and Papa are still playing. Mr. Pig always gets bored waiting for you to finish playing, so I sing to him. Papa heard me singing. That’s how he found me.”
“He heard you singing to Mr. Pig?” Buffy asked.
“U-huh,” Joy nodded. “Can we go now?”
“Not so fast, Widget,” Spike interjected, a smile curving his lips. “Tell your mum what you were singing.”
Joy looked embarrassed. “I guess I was a little bit scared,” she said, looking down. “The only song I could remember was ‘Sedated.’ It’s a silly song, but Mr. Pig didn’t care.”
“You were singing ‘I Want to Be Sedated’ to Mr. Pig?” Buffy asked, incredulous.
“U-huh. Can I put on my costume now?”
Buffy said, “Sure, go ahead. It’s in the bedroom.” Joy jumped up and ran down the hall.
“I guess she’s okay,” Buffy said slowly.
“She’s not just okay,” Spike crowed. “The child is bloody brilliant! She’ll tell you the whole story later, after she’s had her trick-or-treat. She never lost her cool, stayed put like I told her. She even figured out that the creatures couldn’t smell or hear her. So she just stayed out of sight and waited for us to find her. I’m so proud I could burst.”
Willow tried to slink off once she’d seen that Joy was safe, but Buffy and Spike insisted she stay to celebrate with them. It didn’t matter Willow didn’t have a costume; she could conjure up a glamour in a matter of minutes. Dawn announced she had a pot of spaghetti sauce and disappeared into the kitchen to boil water for pasta. Willow excused herself to call the Council and let everyone know the reunion had been a success, leaving Buffy and Spike alone in the living room.
“I guess we were out of our minds to think we could have a ‘normal’ Halloween, love,” Spike said pulling Buffy down on the couch with him. “I’d say ‘I told you so’ but I don’t suppose there’s any point. You still won’t listen to me.”
“I’m not going to bother reminding you that we agreed NOT to come to California for Halloween, fang boy,” Buffy said, smiling broadly. “You’re the one who couldn’t say no to a four year-old.”
“Right, then,” he said, looking discomfited. “So, do you think the bit has any O Negative on hand?”
Tbc….
A/N: We're coming into the home stretch here. I'm a new author and I'm posting these chapters as I finish them. To be perfectly honest , I don't know how many more chapters I'll need to bring this story to a close. But there's definitely a couple left. Please review. You know how I love reviews!!
Sd
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