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Chapter 22 – Father to Daughter


Closing her eyes for a moment as she tried to control her emotions, she slowly reopened them to look at Spike.

“I’m guessing this wasn’t a planned visit,” Buffy finally said in a tight voice, narrowing her eyes on Spike as she spoke to her father. “Did you get a phone call?”

“I did,” Angel said in a cold voice, slowly walking toward her.

Spinning around to face the larger man, she saw the anger in his gaze but refused to back down. “What’s the matter?” she asked, forcing a smile on her lips. “Not happy to see me?”

“Where the hell have you been?” he growled, his shoulders hunched as he visibly refrained from attacking his own daughter.

“Here,” she replied in a light voice before looking around the alley with a smile. “Well…not here here. I live around the corner. Cozy little place, maybe you should drop by sometime.”

Her patronizing tone of voice nearly sent Angel over the edge as his fists clenched at his sides.

“Don’t mock me, little girl,” he said in a low tone.

“Go mock yourself,” she replied, her smile falling, revealing the anger that was boiling, barely contained below the surface. “You two think you can just dictate my life,” she continued, turning her gaze to Spike. “Thanks for calling him, by the way. Really makes me want to trust you again.”

“Buffy, pet, I di-”

“And you,” she said, turning to Angel and narrowing her eyes. “Shouldn’t you be huddled up in a hotel somewhere? Doing your part to keep me safe? I mean, we’re in an alley for crying out loud. Anyone could see us and put it together. Anyone can hear me call you father.”

Fighting the tears that entered her eyes when Angel looked around, Buffy took a deep breath, trying to control her breathing.

“You know,” she said in a soft voice. “Just once, it might be a good idea to actually pretend to care about me. Keeping me alive is one thing- proving you’re actually a father is another story entirely.”

“Fine,” Angel replied, crossing his arms over his chest until he had circled around her, standing a few feet away from Spike. “You want me to play the father card? Then why the hell did you run away?”

Seeing the panic in Spike’s eyes, Buffy briefly smiled in his direction, deciding to let him worry for a moment longer.

“You mean you don’t know?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest, mimicking Angel’s stance as she looked between the two vampires in front of her. “I thought you were an investigator, Angel,” she said, spitting out his name as if it was poison. “Seems to me that after a year, you could have figured it out.”

“What’s that?” he asked, taking a step forward as neither made a move to back down from the battle of wills.

Buffy could practically feel the nerves radiating off Spike as he prepared himself for the attack he was sure would happen.

“There were certain…developments…that made me want to leave.”

“And they would be?” Angel asked, not giving an inch as Buffy’s gaze briefly flitted over to Spike again. She was suddenly glad he didn’t have a heartbeat- she was sure that Angel would have heard it and figured something out.

“Let’s just say…there were certain things that led to the ultimate, climactic decision to leave,” she replied sarcastically. Worried for a moment that she might have taken it too far with that comment, she prepared to step in and separate a possible fight, but Angel didn’t pick up on it.

“You scared the hell out of all of us. Do you not even care?”

Letting the mask fall away for a moment, Buffy looked at him with a soft expression. “I’m sorry for that. Really, I am. But it was necessary.”

“And why the hell is that?” Angel asked, his voice rising as his temper grew.

“What did you expect?” she asked, throwing her arms out to her sides as she grew more frustrated. “Did you think I would just sit around and let everything pass me by?” Noticing the tightening of Angel’s jaw, Buffy continued, “I was escorted everywhere for seventeen years! I was never allowed to actually have a life, and now that I have that, you all are mad at me for actually going out and trying to live! Well, I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I worried Wills and Tara. I’m sorry that I was selfish and conceited for wanting to see who I was and what it was like to live on my own. I’m sorry that everyone felt like they had to look for me, even though I told them not to. But I’m not sorry for leaving- I’m sorry that you found me.”

Turning around and walking through the alley, Buffy sighed.

‘Should have known that would be too easy,’ she thought when both Spike and Angel appeared in front of her. ‘Great. They disagree on everything from blood to women for hundreds of years, but the overprotecting of Buffy, they both agree on.’

Locked in a staring contest with Angel once again, Buffy soon rolled her eyes. “You’re not taking me back there,” she said, crossing her arms and shaking her head to prove her point. “This is my home now and I’m not leaving.”

“Don’t be too sure,” he said in a low voice.

“I’m eighteen,” Buffy replied, not backing down. “Even if you wanted to, you couldn’t do anything legally. And you’d be surprised how much of a workout a single girl gets in Las Vegas when she goes out alone. I’ve dusted more vamps here than I ever did in Sunnydale, so I wouldn’t advise picking a fight with me.”

“Are you saying you’d dust your own father?” he asked with a sardonic grin, already knowing that she wouldn’t.

“No,” Buffy replied, shaking her head as she continued to look at him with an indifferent expression. “But I am saying I’d kick your ass without thinking twice.”

Seeing the smirk on Spike’s face as he turned away from Angel to hide it, Buffy felt a smile pull at her own lips but quickly swallowed the urge when she saw her father’s expression darken.

Rolling her eyes, Buffy shook her head before turning to look back at the two men in front of her, deciding to try a different tactic.

“I’m not going anywhere,” she said softly, shaking her head. “You know where I am. You knew the day would come when I wanted to leave and it’s here. I’m sorry if you’re not ready for that,” she continued, directing the statement at Spike. “And believe it or not, I am sorry that I worried everyone.”

“If you think I’m going to leave now that I’ve found you, you’re-”

“Dad,” she whispered, cutting him off with her soft words as she looked into his eyes, letting her expression soften to prove that she was still just a girl. “Go back to L.A. You said it yourself- I’m not safe when you’re near me. So, go home.”

The indecision was plain in Angel’s eyes when he realized what she was saying was true.

Waiting for his decision, Buffy nervously reached up, preparing to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear before she saw Spike’s eyes widen. Remembering the swollen bite mark on her neck, she quickly smoothed her hair into place, hoping Angel hadn’t noticed the flash of panic on her face.

Seeing Angel glance around the alley as if he was waiting for an ambush to jump out at them, she knew that she’d won this battle.

“Here,” he said, reaching into his pocket and extracting a cell phone. Buffy took it with a confused expression, looking between the small object and her father. “Keep it on you at all times.”

“Why? So you can keep track of me all the time?” she asked, trying to smile at him.

“Basically,” he replied, his expression finally softening as he gave her a smile of his own, obviously not comfortable with the idea of leaving, but not comfortable with staying, either.

Stepping forward and wrapping his daughter in a strong embrace, Angel held her in a bruising hold. Closing her eyes to try and battle the tears that were forming, Buffy made sure to position herself so he wouldn’t smell Spike’s scent on her neck. She had done her best to clean the bite mark, but knowing her father, he would still notice if he got particularly close to that side of her.

Battling the tears as he pulled away, Buffy offered him a tentative smile, trying not to cry as he stepped back. Yes, she wanted to be independent and have her own life, but it still didn’t fill the void that the absence of her father had left. She wanted a father, not a guardian.

“Don’t be surprised if Cordy moves here for a few months,” Angel said with a smile, seeing the distress on her face and trying to lighten the mood. “She’s been worried sick, and I’m sure she’d want to check out the stores in this city.”

Buffy giggled, relieved that she would be able to hold the tears back as she nodded. “No complaints here.” Pausing for a moment as she looked at the ground, she ignored the fact that Spike was still watching the entire conversation and probably still expecting there to be a surprise attack if the wrong information came out. Looking up at Angel, she let a smile play on her lips. “I missed you, Dad.”

“Missed you, too,” he replied, running his hand over her hair before stepping away. “I’m just a phone call away.”

“I know,” she said with a nod before turning her gaze to Spike. “And I am sorry.”

Both men watched her turn to walk away before Angel turned to the blonde. “And why didn’t you call me when you found her?” he asked with a slight growl in his voice.

“Because I just found her,” Spike replied. “I was trying to figure things out, make sure she wouldn’t run again.”

“And this has nothing to do with any feelings that might be there between the two of you?”

Resisting the urge to shift his weight from foot to foot or avoid the older vampire’s eyes, Spike shook his head. “You know how I feel about her,” he said, hoping that would be enough to appease his grandsire. “I want her to be safe.”

“Speaking of which- I should get out of here,” Angel said, looking toward the colorful lights of the city before turning his gaze back to Spike. “You know she’s not going to want you to stick around, right?”

Feeling the pain in his heart multiply, Spike glanced in the direction Buffy had walked in. His whispered words seemed to drift through the alley. “I know.”




Thanks so much to: Adriana, Erin, Cordykitten, spuffette, PK, Charlene, Brunettepet, Melissa, Jessica, Franchesca, starhawk, shelly, Amanda, Tasha, daisy, Caitie, Revello_1620, Kimber, melissa g, willowmouse, stace, Kitten, BuffyandSpikeForever, sandradee, phantomwriter, pj, blondiebear, jade2099, gypsy_jin, BuffyRat, PassionFish, Panta_Rei, baby spikes, Sevvy_O, Crystal Pegasus, & VamptasticA for reviewing!





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