THE GIFT

by kinoa

Angel is given his family. Connor decides to stand by Angels side and learn the family business. (Follow up to The PTB's Boss Sends Help)

1. Default Chapter

THE GIFT

Chapter 1

"You 'must' be pregnant Cordy. What other reason could their possibly be for you being sick morning, noon, and night. Thank goodness Spike isn't here. He would be making jokes about me every time I got sick also." Angel was laying on the bed with an ice pack on his forehead. Cordelia was sitting at the table munching on crackers. She had awakened just an hour ago and had jumped up to run into the bathroom. Five minutes later Angel had run to the bathroom. Fortunately his food was mostly liquid these days so he could use the bathroom sink.

The part Angel didn't like was that Cordelia got over it a lot easier then he did. She didn't seem to be in any rush to make an appointment with Dr. Thompson so he thought he would try some of her tactics that she used on him when she wanted something and he didn't give in fast enough. He went over to her and got on his knees and pulled her chair over so he could lay his head on her lap.

"Please Cordy, call Dr. Thompson. It's dangerous for me to be weak like this. What if you had a vision and I was too weak to help someone. Or what if we had an actual client and Wesley and Gunn had to handle it because I was to weak from constantly throwing up. You wouldn't want that to happen would you?" Angel used his puppy dog eyes, as Cordy called them. That always made her heart melt and he would get exactly what he wanted.

"Phfffft! Please, you have used that on me so many times I ran out of fingers and toes to count on. I got your number mister." She turned back to her crackers and the newspaper she was reading. Angel got up from the floor disappointed that it didn't work. He went to the refrigerator to get a container of blood. He was so hungry he drank it right from the container. These days he found that the cold blood made his stomach feel good. It was a lot like a person that drank cold milk, it just tasted so good going down and was so soothing. He just leaned against the counter and drank the cold blood.

"Besides I took a home test this morning and it was positive and I made an appointment with Dr. Thompson for 6 p.m. tonight so you could go with me if you want." She looked at him out of the corner of her eye. It took him awhile to realize what she had said.

"You vixen. You were letting me carry on when you had already done what I had wanted you to." He was by her side in two steps. He picked her up and kissed her. When he pulled away from her he licked his lips. "Mmmm, you taste salty and full of crackers." "They settle my stomach, and if you don't want me to get sick again you had better lay off of the wise cracks about my crackers." He backed up. "Yes Mam. In fact we can stop at the store tonight and buy all the crackers you'll need for the next few months." Angel said with a smile.

"I'm serious Angel. This baby will have a hard enough time. I don't want to take any risk with drugs that are supposed to make me feel better. We will just have to weather this storm and hope it gets better as I go along in this pregnancy. Let's go downstairs now I'm getting hungry and it's only 12 o'clock so we have a long time before we have to leave." Angel put his container of blood back into the refrigerator and they both went downstairs.

Fred was at the counter reading a magazine and hoping that someone would call for help. It's not that she wanted someone to be in trouble because that would be wrong but it would me nice to have something to do. She had dusted and cleaned floors several times this week all by herself because Cordelia was always to sick to help. But even with all of the cleaning to do by herself she still had time on her hands.

Fred perked up a little when she heard Angel and Cordelia coming down stairs. Cordelia was munching on crackers all the time it took them to walk to the kitchen.

"Good afternoon. How are we feeling this morning?" Both Angel and Cordelia replied at the same time on the same subject but each replying a little differently. Cordelia answered with "We are okay as long as I constantly have something in my stomach." Angel answered with "As long as she constantly has something in her stomach I am okay."

"Have some protein Cordelia, it takes longer to digest." Fred yelled.

"I have to figure out something to do because if I continue like this I'm going to weigh 200 pounds by the time this baby is born." Cordelia didn't notice Connor and Wesley sitting at the dining room table when she said it. Her mind was on getting something to eat. Angel saw them though. Wesley and Connor were both looking at them with their mouths open.

"Uh, she isn't sure, uh she just took a home pregnancy test this morning." Angel said.

"And was it positive or negative?" Wesley asked.

"Uh, she said it was positive." Angel said. A big grin slowly spread across his face.

Wesley jumped up and congratulated Angel. "Well done old man, well done." Wesley said as he hugged Angel and patted him on the back." Angel responded by hugging him back. "It's only a home pregnancy test which isn't 100% correct but were going to Dr. Thompson's tonight to make sure that she is pregnant and I hope give her something for this constant morning sickness."

"You mean you really are feeling everything that she is going thru?" Wesley asked. Unfortunately for Angel, Cordelia had heard him. "I heard that, I told you that I am not going to take any drugs. So be brave and act like the man that I know you are."

Angel just looked at Wesley. "What am I going to do Wesley. I can't continue to be throwing up all of the time. I'm getting weak from the lack of food."

"Well why don't you just wait to see what Mike says. In the mean time I'll call Willow and ask her if there is an herbal tea that Cordelia can drink to help you two." Wesley said.

"Thanks Wesley." Angel said. Wesley went back to the table where Connor was still staring at Angel with his mouth open. "Well Connor it looks like you are going to become a sibling." "What's a sibling?" "A sibling is a brother or sister." Wesley said.

"I can hardly wait to tell grandma." Connor said.

"You really do love having Dr. Martin as a Grandmother don't you?" Wesley asked.

"Yeah, I do. Holtz used to talk to me about his parents and how they would just love it when they would see his kids. He said it was funny to hear his parents being called grandma and grandpa. He said his mother changed when she was around his children. She was no longer the stern mother that was constantly after him for one thing or another. She softened when she was with his kids. If they didn't keep their clothes clean, it was okay with grandma and if they didn't complete their chores, it was okay with grandpa. That's why I guess I was happy when Angel said that they had, had a mutual adoption between them. All I can think about is that everything I do will be okay with Grandma. Plus I can always tell Grandma what Angel is doing or not doing." Wesley was laughing at the thought. Unfortunately Connor was so involved with talking to Wesley that he didn't realize that Angel was standing behind him.

"You know I can tell Grandma about you to." Angel said as he drank a glass of cold blood.

"I haven't done anything wrong lately so what could you possibly have to tell her?"

"As I recall she told you to go to school and not to waste your mind. You still have a semester of school left in the school year. Have you investigated what you can do about what she told you. Have you talked to Wesley or Fred about what they think you should do?" Angel said. Cordelia walked in with a plate full of scrambled eggs and 4 pieces of wheat toast and a 2 inch steak cooked medium rare. She put the steak in front of Angel and cut out part of it and put it in the plate with the scrambled eggs then put 2 slices of toast on his plate then some of the scrambled eggs. She went back into the kitchen and came out with a big glass of whole milk then sat down and hungrily attacked the plate full of food. Angel dug into his steak. He was just as hungry. Connor and Wesley just watched them. Angel felt their eyes on him.

"What's the matter?" Angel asked Connor and Wesley.

"Angel, Cordelia is the one eating for 2." Wesley said.

"I told you that I feel everything that she does." Angel said as he continued to shovel the food in his mouth.

Wesley noticed how when Cordelia stopped to drink some of her milk that Angel would stop and drink some of his blood.

"I wonder how it's going to affect you when the baby starts getting big enough to press on her bladder all of the time. I remember a friend of mine when she was pregnant in her last trimester she was constantly going to the bathroom. I can just see it now, one night we'll be fighting a bunch of demons or vampires and Angel will take his demon and put him on a hook so that he can't get away and he tells him, I'll be right back I have to take a leak." Wesley and Connor cracked up at the thought.

Angel just looked at Cordelia, Wesley and Connor. "If you guys don't let up on teasing me I am going to make life just as unpleasant for you two." Angel was finished with his breakfast so he got up and walked over behind Wesley and Connor and put his arms around their shoulder's. "Don't forget the hormone fed mood swings. Now Cordelia is probably going to make life hard on me which means I am going to make life hard on you people. So we will all get to go through this pregnancy together." He grabbed Connor and Wesley around the neck and gave each one a kiss on their forehead. Then walked over to his office laughing a wicked laugh.

The two men looked at Cordelia imploringly. "Don't look at me guys. You're the ones that are digging your own graves, one shovel full at a time. If you consider Gunn a friend you will tell him what just happened so that Angel doesn't have to go through the same speech again. And we all know how Gunn loves to tease Angel." Cordelia picked up hers and Angels dishes and went to the kitchen.

Angel stayed in his office for the next 3 hours working on nothing in particular. All of a sudden he heard a voice other then Angelus. It kept on repeating to him a question. "Have you called Morgan lately like you promised you would?" If he continued doing whatever he was doing he heard the voice again. "Have you called Morgan lately like you promised you would?" After about the fifth time of hearing it he knew what it was. It was a guilty conscience that his new Mom had instilled in his mind on the particular subject of Morgan. He bowed to the inevitable and called Morgan.

He dialed the number and sat back in his chair and put his feet up on the desk. The phone on the other end rang 5 times before it was picked up. "Morgan residence." The butler had answered the phone. "Hello, this is Angel, may I speak to either Mr. Morgan or Mrs. Morgan?" "I'm sorry but Mr. Morgan is busy right now and is unable to come to the phone at this time. Please wait one moment while I see if Mrs. Morgan is available." The butler put the phone on hold and went upstairs. He knocked on the door. "Yes Edward." Mrs. Morgan said when she opened the door. "I'm sorry to bother you Mrs. Morgan but Mr. Angel Martin is on the phone." "Thank you Edward I'll take it up here." Marissa picked up the phone. "Angel, hi this is Marissa." "Hi Marissa I was just calling to check on Morgan. How is he doing?" Angel asked. He was surprised at how happy Marissa sounded. It had only been a little over 8 weeks since he had arranged for Morgan to get his soul back.

"He's doing a little better Angel. By the way, Bobby and I took your advice and we chained David up downstairs in the wine cellar. He did like you warned us he might do. Several weeks ago Bobby and I were keeping an eye on him up in the bedroom. It was 3 in the afternoon and David had been in the closet in his usual corner. While Bobby and I were playing cards we didn't notice David walking out of the closet. I had the drapes to the balcony closed. We saw him just as he started to go through the curtains. The sun was pointing directly at the balcony. Bobby tackled him just as he was about to go out onto the balcony and commit suicide. When Bobby tackled David he pulled the curtains down with him and fortunately they covered both David and Bobby completely. David continued to fight with Bobby and Bobby had to hit him over the head with his gun. Ever since then we have had him chained up in the wine cellar during daylight hours. We only let him up here during the evening."

"How is he able to carry on with his business?" Angel asked.

"That is what is so weird Angel. I don't know if you know this but David takes care of most of his business during the evening hours for obvious reasons. Bobby and David have become glued at the hip and I swear if I didn't put my foot down he would be in there when David and I are in bed. Anyway Bobby and another guard take him to his office at 3 p.m. every day. Bobby says that as soon as the limo enters the underground parking lot he becomes his old self and it's business as usual. At first Bobby would go into the office with David until one day David told him that he would be okay and Bobby didn't have to stay with him. When he leaves the office he continues to discuss business with his secretary and other people that usually ride home with him. When they get to the house they all just leave in a van that follows them and are either dropped off at their own places or back to the office where they get their own cars. As soon as David comes back home he changes and we have to keep a constant eye on him."

"Where is he getting his blood from these days?"

"I fix him animal blood the same way Cordelia does for you. He likes it so much that the only time he has human blood is when he takes it from me. Angel why don't you and Cordelia come out here for dinner tonight. David won't be working and I am very sure that he would love to see you and Cordelia. In fact why don't you bring the rest also. David said that he would like to be able to talk with Wesley."

"I think we can do that. I'll have to get back with you though and let you know how many will be coming. The others are not here so as soon as they come back I'll give you a call. I have to tell you though that we won't be able to come until probably after 7 or 8 o'clock tonight. Cordy and I have an appointment to keep with Dr. Thompson. As soon as we are done we'll be out there." "Okay Angel I'll wait for your call. Bye." Marissa hung up and went to talk to David downstairs.

Angel hung up. He leaned back in his chair. "Why did I have to get stuck with you Angelus? Every one else that gets their soul back gets over the guilt phase in just a few months. You make me suffer for years." "Like I've always told you and Dr. Martin, I have to get my kicks somehow and you're the only one I can torture." Angelus answered in Angels mind as he laughed.

Cordelia had approached Angels office door. She heard him talking so she waited a bit. At first she thought he was on the phone. Then she heard him say Angelus. She walked in at that point.

"Who are you talking to?" "Angelus." Angel answered.

"Is he bothering you more than usual?" Cordelia asked. "No, I was just on the phone with Marissa. I was asking her how Morgan was doing." "And?" Cordelia asked.

"He's doing okay. In fact Marissa asked all of us to come for dinner tonight. I told her it would be late because we had a Doctors appointment. It seems that Morgan goes back to his normal self during the evening when he usually goes to work, but during the day they have to chain him up in the wine cellar. Here I get Willow to return his soul so that he could suffer like we did and it turns out to be a gift of the good kind. It looks like he'll have as easy a time as Spike had. So I was asking Angelus why I had to get stuck with a mean bastard like him." "And what did he say?" Cordelia asked. "He said the same as he always does. 'I have to get my kicks somehow and you're the most convenient one around.'" Angel stood up and beat his chest like a big gorilla. "What are you doing?" "I wish I could get my hands on him for just a few minutes so that I could beat his ass good. But unfortunately his ass is mine." Angel smiled as he started to walk out of his office.

Wesley had been in his office during the afternoon also. When he heard Angel and Cordelia he came out of his office also.

"I'm glad your both here. I've been busy looking up herbal remedies for morning sickness. Everything I've found so far can have possible side affects and I am sure you don't want any of that. I didn't want to call Willow until you received an official confirmation of your pregnancy by Dr. Thompson. If you get an affirmative from him then I'll call her tomorrow if that's okay with you?" "Yeah, that's okay. But why don't we go to Sunnydale though?" Cordelia looked at Angel and Wesley. "It's been quiet and I've only had 2 visions since Dr. Martin left and we only had 2 clients which you already took care of. So how about it?"

Angel just looked at Wesley and Cordelia. "You know that Spike is going to be laughing at me all the time I'm there if you don't get your morning sickness under control."

"I promise you that Spike will be a good boy. I'll talk to Buffy about it, okay?" Cordelia looked at Angel. She walked up to him and took his hands and pulled him back into his office and closed the door behind them. She put his hands on her body and guided them over her breasts and down over her stomach and then around to her back. "This will be a nice vacation for us before our time is taken up by our little girl or boy starts taking over our lives." Cordelia had put her hands under his shirt and was rubbing them over his chest. She pulled her hands out from under his shirt and reached up and pulled his head down into a kiss. He responded with a gentle kiss. Then pulled away. Then he did to her the same thing she had done to him that morning.

"Pffft! It's not going to work missy. You've done that to me so many times that I lost count."

"Did it work?" Cordelia asked as she flashed her million dollar smile at him.

Angel let her go and walked out of the office. He was going to take his time at answering her. He walked over to Wesley's office. "Cordelia and I are going to Morgans when we leave Dr. Thompson's office. Marissa invited us all to dinner. Do you want to go?" "Yes I would. I would like to see how he is doing." Wesley said.

"Check with Fred and I'll see if I can locate Gunn and Connor." Angel started to leave then saw Cordelia standing outside of his office with her arms across her chest and giving him 'THE LOOK.' Angel turned back to Wesley, "Oh also we are going to be going to Sunnydale for a couple of weeks. Let me know who wants to go so I can tell Buffy to hire someone to clean the mansion and supply it and get everything else turned on before we get there." When Angel turned back towards Cordelia he just gave her a smile. He put his arms around her waist and pulled her close to him. "Anything for the mother of my children." She smiled at him and gave him a kiss then pushed him away. "I have to get ready to go to Dr. Thompson. Since I've never been there before we had better get there early so that I can fill out any paper work." "Okay, I am going to see if I can find Connor and Gunn." Angel said.

Angel went into his office and called Gunn first. Gunn answered his cell phone. "Hello, this is Gunn." "Gunn this is Angel, we've been invited to go to Morgan and Marissa's for dinner around 8 tonight. Can you make it?" "Sorry boss, I'm going to be helping out my boys tonight. Connors with me also. We're going to be checking on a group that has taken over one of the houses in my old neighborhood." Gunn answered. "If you need any help just give us a call. Wesley and I think Fred will be coming with Cordy and I. Be careful." Angel said, then hung up. Angel wasn't one for doing a lot of talking on the phone. He usually got right to the point of the call then hung up. After hanging up with Gunn he went looking for Wesley and found him upstairs. Angel could hear him in Fred's room. He went over to Fred's room and knocked on the door. Fred answered it. "Hi Angel, Wesley told me about tonight and I'll be coming with you guys." "That's good. I know Wesley is in here can I ask you two to take Cordy to Dr. Thompson's? It's too early for me to go out and she wants to go early so she can fill out any paperwork that they may want from her. I'll meet you there as soon as I can go out." Wesley came over to the door. His face was red from his embarrassment at being caught in Fred's room.

"I'll be happy to do it Angel. When does she want to leave?" Wesley asked. "I don't know. Do you have any idea Fred as to how early Cordy should be their before the 6 o'clock appointment?" Angel asked. "I think we should be their at least 45 minutes early." "It will take at least 30 minutes to get there and I will be waiting on 2 women to get ready to go so I think I'll add on at least 15 minutes on to that which means we should tell them we have to leave by 4:15." Wesley said. Somehow he sensed that now was the time to duck. He was right because Fred swung at him.

To the mens surprise the women were ready by 4. Wesley ushered the women out the door and Angel went to his office to wait until the sun went down far enough so that he could go to his car. Since this was winter the sun went down far enough by 5 p.m. and Angel got up to lock all of the doors and then exited out of the back to go to his car. This was Friday so he had to deal with the traffic, but he was still able to make it to Dr. Thompson's office by 5:30. He went in through the front this time and found Cordy, Fred and Wesley sitting in the waiting room. Cordy was still filling out the paper work. He saw Fred filling out paper work also. He stared at Fred for a minute, wondering why she was filling out papers also. He looked at Wesley. Wesley made a motion for Angel to follow him outside for a minute.

Angel followed him outside. "Why is Fred filling out papers also?" Angel asked.

"I don't know but I have a feeling that I nailed her the first time we had sex. I don't know if you know this or not Angel but for some reason, and no one knows why, women that live or work together tend to start having their menstrual cycle at the same time. Remember that morning that we were making fun of Buffy and Spike and how they were making so much noise when they were having sex in the morning?" "Yes." Angel answered. "Well that same morning Fred came over to my room and said 'Listening to those two is like smelling popcorn. You just have to have it also, so if you still want me Wesley here I am.' That was shortly before you must have nailed Cordelia."

Angel was watching Wesley walk back and forth. "What are you so nervous about and what makes you think that Fred is pregnant?" Angel asked. "Fred and Cordelia were in the back seats and they were talking about the dates of their last period. They were just talking away as though they were the only ones in the vehicle. My face must have been as red as a beet. I've never been very comfortable when women are talking about such things to each other."

Cordelia stuck her head out the door at that time. "Come on Angel they are ready for me now." "I'm coming." Angel answered. Wesley followed him in. Wesley was so nervous that if he smoked he probably would have been lighting one cigarette with the last one. Wesley went in and sat next to Fred. Fred looked at Wesley, his leg must have been shaking a mile a minute. "What's wrong Wesley? You look so nervous." Fred asked. Wesley took a deep breath and tried to make his voice sound as calm as possible. "Fred are you pregnant?" Fred looked at him. "What makes you think I'm pregnant?" "Because of the way you and Cordelia were talking in the back seat and the fact your filling out papers and have made an appointment to see Dr. Thompson." Wesley took another deep breath. He was glad he finally got the nerve up to ask her. Fred just stared at him with her mouth open. Then she thought about it and decided to handle it calmly. "No Wesley I don't think I'm pregnant. I just have to be careful. The women in my family have a history of cervical cancer so I have to have regular checkups. I haven't had a checkup since I came back from Pylea." Wesley leaned back in his chair. He took his handkerchief out of his pocket and cleaned his glasses then wiped his forehead.

"You had me worried there for a minute Fred." "Why, don't you want to have children someday. Don't forget that Dr. Martin said that we had to hurry up and start having our family."

"I know but let's at least get married first." Fred just looked at Wesley. Wesley saw the look she was giving him. He thought to himself 'Oh shit, that was a mistake. I don't know what was wrong with what I said but I think I'll be sleeping on the proverbial couch for awhile.' Fred didn't say anything more though. She just took her paperwork up to the receptionist and then returned to her seat beside Wesley. She picked up a magazine and started flipping through the magazine.

One of the nurses escorted Angel back to the examination room that Cordelia was in. When he entered he found Cordelia in a hospital gown and sitting on the examination table. The nurse was taking some blood from her and also told her that they would need a urine donation. She had already taken her blood pressure and temperature. "I'll be right back Angel." Angel took a seat next to the examination bed. Cordelia was back in a few minutes. He helped her to get back up on the bed. Cordelia was the last patient for the day so it was quiet in the building. Except for one nurse Dr. Thompson had let everyone else go. He walked in after about 15 minutes.

"Hello Mr. and Mrs. Martin. You two certainly didn't waste time. I'm sorry it took me so long to get to you but I was taking a look at your blood to see if I could see anything unusual under a microscope. I didn't want to send your blood to a lab and have them send back a weird report accompanied with a lot of questions. Dr. Martin had told me that something had been done to you so that you didn't suffer so much from the visions you had to help Angel. She didn't explain what was done so I thought it would be better if I just check it, but it looks fine to me so we will just send it to the lab. Okay, lets check you out Cordelia. Would you put your feet up in the stirrups. Dr. Thompson called the nurse in and he put his gloves on and examined Cordelia. When he was done he told her to put her legs down. The nurse came in and prepared the samples that he had taken to send to the lab. He finished examining the rest of her. He showed Angel how to help Cordelia check her breasts for any lumps. While examining them he noticed the two red spots on either side of her nipples and on each breast. He was just about to ask about them when he looked up to Angel. Angels face rarely showed that he was blushing but this time he was so embarrassed that he couldn't help but turn beet red. Angel looked at Dr. Thompson and a big grin went across his face. "I'll explain later." Angel said. "I'll be looking forward to your explanation but no matter what the explanation is you have to stop doing it as she gets into her last trimester." Dr. Thompson said. He continued with the examination and also checked the area where they had performed the surgery. He could barely tell that anything had been done. How are you feeling now when you and Angel have intercourse? Does it hurt anymore and can he go all the way inside of you?" "No more problems." Cordelia looked at Angel and told Dr. Thompson 'the first time we did it after the surgery was the most painful one but I think that was partly because of when I was raped. Dr. Martin told me to control the whole thing and I took him very slowly because of the pain but I didn't leave any blood on him and everything was better each time we did it after that." "That's good. Well Cordelia I am about 99.9% sure that you are pregnant. Everything that I have seen while examining you tells me that there is definitely a bun in the oven and your body has already started to take care of your baby. I'll call you though as soon as I have the confirmation from the lab that you are pregnant. When I get the lab results I will also be able to tell you what kind of vitamins to take. Why don't you get up and get dressed now and I'll have some reading material for you before you leave." "I hate to bother you but I don't suppose you have any crackers here?" Cordelia said. Her stomach was empty and she was starting to get sick.

"Yes, I do. Follow me." Dr. Thompson said as he walked down the hall and over to the break room. He opened the cabinet over the counter. There must have been 20 or 30 boxes of crackers. He stepped back and said "After all this is where we get 10 to 15 pregnant women a day." Cordelia laughed. "I am in cracker heaven." She pulled down a box. There was 4 packages in the box and she took one and opened it right away and started eating. Dr. Thompson looked at Angel. He noticed that he was looking a little green around the gills.

"Don't tell me your feeling everything Cordelia is Angel?" "Yes I am." Angel said as he was leaning over with his hands on his knees. "Eat faster Cordelia or I am going to let it go right here." Cordelia tried eating faster.

"Since you haven't asked me for anything for morning sickness I take it you don't want to take a chance with any drugs?" "Yup, you got that right." Cordelia said around a mouth full of crackers.

Cordelia sat down for a minute after she got a can of 7 UP from the machine in the kitchen. "Have you seen a Marissa Morgan within the last month Dr. Thompson?" Cordelia said as soon as she could swallow her last mouth full of crackers. "Yes I saw her just last week. Do you know her?" "Yes, we're going to they're house for dinner tonight, would you like to go? I don't think she would mind. Have you met her husband yet?" "No, he didn't come with her, but yes I think it would be nice going out after a long day. I'll be ready to go as soon as you are."

Angel started feeling a little better now that Cordelia had some crackers in her. Let's go then. He started walking toward the front.

Cordelia and Angel headed for the front of the office. Angel was a little wobbly but he became more steady on his feet as they started to walk out. He saw Wesley and Fred. Fred had taken a seat on the other side of the office. Cordelia whispered to Angel. "First lovers quarrel."

"Let's go. We invited Dr. Thompson to go with us. Dr. Thompson do you want to ride with Cordelia and I or drive your own car and follow us." Angel asked.

"I'll drive my own. I don't want to leave my car here." Dr. Thompson said. As they all went out of the door Dr. Thompson handed Cordelia some reading material and a list of books she could buy that would explain exactly what her body would be going through in the next few months. He handed Angel some reading material also then turned the lights out and set the security alarm on then locked the door. Angel and Wesley waited for Dr. Thompson to get his car and come to the front so he could follow Angel to the Morgans house. Angels eyes almost fell out when he saw the red Viper he came out with.

"Angel close your mouth and lets get going. I'll call Marissa to let her know we are on our way with Dr. Thompson." Cordelia said as she pulled her cell phone out.

They made it to the Morgans in only 40 minutes. They pulled up to the front gate and Angel pressed the button on the security box. A voice came out of the box. "May I help you?" "This is Angel. The Morgans are expecting us." "Oh hi Angel, this is Bobby. I'll see you when you get to the front." The gates started to open and Angel drove through to the front of the house. Dr. Thompson pulled up behind him and Wesley after Dr. Thompson. Marissa met them at the door. She gave Cordelia and Fred a hug and acknowledged Angel with a bow. She shook Dr. Thompson and Wesley's hand.

"I am so happy you could come Dr. Thompson." Marissa said as she led them into the living room. "Can I get anyone something to drink?" "Yes, do you have any 7UP?" Cordelia asked. "Yes I believe we do. Would anyone else like something?" The rest declined and Marissa went out of the room for a minute. Bobby came in at that time with David Morgan. Morgan was dressed in casual clothes. The men stood up as he came in. Morgan went right to Angel and shook his hand. Then he went to Wesley and shook his hand. Marissa came in with Cordelia's 7UP and then introduced David to Dr. Thompson. "David this is Dr. Thompson. He is the one I went to see last week. Remember Dr. Martin thought their must be a reason why I haven't been able to get pregnant and she gave me a phone number." "Yes I remember." David said. He seemed to be in a kind of fog. His eyes looked like glass and except for his initial greeting he hadn't focused on anyone in particular. "Dr. Thompson is a gynecologist. He is a specialist in taking care of women and he thinks he can help us." As Marissa said this David became more focused. He looked at Dr. Thompson. "So can you tell us why Marissa has been unable to conceive?" "Yes Mr. Morgan I can. It will be a simple procedure to clear up Marissa's problem. For some reason she has scar tissue in her fallopian tubes. All we have to do is clean it up and she should be okay. Then you 2 can be just as lucky and happy as Angel and Cordelia."

Marissa jumped up and went to Cordelia. "Are you really pregnant?" "That's what Dr. Thompson tells me." Cordelia answered with a big smile. Marissa hugged Cordelia. "I am so happy for you."

David went over to Angel. "Congratulations Angel. I am sure it couldn't happen to two more deserving people." David said as he shook Angels hand. Then he went over to Cordelia and gave her a hug and congratulated her as well. Everyone sat down again after all of the congratulations were done.

"I heard you wanted to talk to me Mr. Morgan?" Wesley asked. "Yes I did Wesley, but please call me David." "Okay David." Wesley answered. "If you don't mind though you, Angel,

Dr. Thompson, and I can have a talk after dinner and the ladies can talk by themselves as well." Just as he said that the Butler came in to announce that dinner was served. Everyone got up and Marissa and David led them into the dinning room which was large but cozy. The walls were covered with cabinets and shelves containing plates, glasses, and coffee cups. David and Marissa sat together and Cordelia and Angel sat next to each other. Dr. Thompson sat in between Marissa and Cordelia. Fred and Wesley took the remaining seats. Two women brought in the food. They served liver and onions with mashed potatoes and string beans and salads. Angel and David were given rare steaks and a tall glass of blood warmed to exactly 98 degrees. Angel waited for David to drink some of his and then he took a sip of his glass of blood. "Mmm that's very good. Marissa make sure you let Cordy know what has been put in my drink." "It's not what has been put in the drink Angel it's where it came from." David said. "We keep a small heard of prize winning cattle in the back. So the blood is extra fresh." They all were quiet for a few minutes while they had their dinner. Unfortunately for Cordelia Dr. Thompson was sitting next to her and when the butler started to pour her another glass of wine he put his hand over it. "No more then 1 glass of wine a day Cordelia." He looked at the butler. "Would you get Mrs. Martin a tall glass of milk please." "Yes sir." The butler said. "You have to think of your baby now Cordy. Everything you do from now on and until you deliver, you will have to ask yourself, is this good for my baby?" Cordy looked at Angel who was smiling. "You won't have that grin on your face for very long Daddy because the next time I start feeling sick I'll take just a little bit longer to eat those crackers, and you know how it takes you longer to get over it then I do. So hah!" Angel lost the grin immediately. "I am truly sorry Cordy please forgive me? Please, please forgive me. I don't like being sick." "Okay your forgiven." Cordy said. Angel heard Wesley laughing. "Don't forget what I said Wesley." "Oh please Angel I am truly sorry, please forgive me." Wesley continued to laugh. "The next 8 months are going to be the most fun months I've ever had. But I will confer with my colleague Mr. Gunn and I believe we will be able to set up a schedule where we will be able to plan our teasing so that we aren't coming at you from both sides at the same time." Wesley said. "How kind of you." Angel said.

"Are you telling me that you feel everything Cordy feels?" David asks. "Yes Morgan, every time she gets sick I do to. I just do it a few minutes after she does. Worse yet I take longer to get over it then she does. So now you know how serious her threat is to me." "Are you sure you want to go through this David?" Wesley asked.

"Yes, I will go through anything in order for Marissa and I to have children." David said as he looked at his wife. Marissa bent over to give her husband a kiss of thanks.

"Now Cordelia, don't forget what Dr. Martin told you." Fred said. "What are you talking about?" Cordelia asked. "Remember when you tried playing with Angels mind and told him that it was all of the husbands fault for the choice of the sex of the baby. Remember that she said how fragile mens minds were when it came to such things as procreation. Now here you are playing with him again. He went through hell so that you two could be together and here you are now taking advantage of him again. He is going to go through everything with you Cordy. It's not like he is going to just listen to you complaining about all of your problems but he is going to actually go through everything with you. Now I think you owe Angel an apology and you also need to promise him that you won't ever take advantage of his special situation again. Just think about it Cordy, Angel is going to feel all of the pain that you will as you go through labor and finally push your baby out into the world. It may take as little as 4 hours or as much as 36. He will experience every single contraction along with you." After Fred said that it was quiet for a few seconds, then they heard a crash. Everybody looked at Angel. He wasn't at the end of the table anymore. Cordelia looked down at the floor. Wesley and every one else jumped up and went over to check at what Cordelia was looking at. What they found was Angel. He had fainted while listening to Fred actually say what he was going to have to go through.

Dr. Thompson had knelt down at Angels side to check him. He found his pulse was non existant. He lifted his eyelids and checked his pupils. Then he started laughing. He looked up at the rest and especially Fred. "Apparently you scared Angel so bad that he fainted. Help me get him up Wesley." Wesley was laughing so hard he didn't have the strength to lift Angel up. His laugh was contagious and Dr. Thompson started laughing also. They both sat on the floor. Laughing robs your strength so neither one of them where able to lift him.

"You women have to remember that we, that is us men, have heard you women talk about having babies and all of the pain and suffering that you go through since the beginning of time. I guess now that Angel is going to actually go through the same thing all of the things that he has heard women talk about has him scared. Don't forget that during his time when he was still human women frequently died in childbirth. So what both Cordelia and Fred are doing, although your intentions were pure Fred, all you did was make it worse. Lets pick him up now. Wesley wiped the grin off his face and helped Dr. Thompson lift Angel up. As they lifted him Angel started to regain consciousness.

"What happened?" Angel asked. David gave him a small glass full of some type of liqueur. Angel took it and drank it all at one time. "Thank you." David took the glass from Angel and asked him "How are you feeling?" "Better then I felt a few minutes ago. All of a sudden I felt so light headed then the lights went out." Cordelia kissed him on the forehead and hugged his head to her chest. "I'm sorry Angel I promise that I will never do anything to make you feel sick." "Thank you, I would greatly appreciate it." "Can you stand Angel?" David asked. "Yeah, I'm okay now." "Lets go into the library then. Wesley and Dr. Thompson would you join us please?" All of the men followed David into the Library. David closed the door after them.

David turned around and found Dr. Thompson and Angel laughing. "You picked up on what I was doing right away. Thanks for playing along and adding in that in my youth women frequently died in childbirth. That was perfect." "Don't mention it and I really mean don't mention it. I love them all Angel but we men have to stick together and present a united front sometimes." Dr. Thompson said. "You mean that was all an act?" David asked Angel. "Of course it was David. I can't let her hold that over my head all of the time. She already has me wrapped around her little finger so tightly that if she pulls me any tighter all of my blood will squeeze out of my guts. The little vixen."

"Why did you want to talk to me David?" Wesley asked as he sat down in a luxurious leather chair that he just melted into. "I wanted to ask you if I had a watcher assigned to me, and if I do who is it?"

"No David you don't have a watcher assigned to you. You used to but they are all dead now. Rupert Giles is the only one left. A group of demons blew up the previous council and all of the watchers. Giles was the only one that wasn't there for a meeting and I was fired by the previous council." "Why were you fired?" David asked. "Lets just say that the council and I no longer agreed on certain aspects of being a Watcher. Since the old council was all killed and Giles has taken over he has brought me back into the Watchers. Currently I am Angels Watcher, but I am, shall we say, selective on what I report on." Wesley said.

"Wesley is more of a friend and a colleague then a watcher. Just recently we have learned that

'The Powers that Be' want Fred and Wesley's relationship and future children to be a part of Angel investigation. Gunn and whoever he marries will be with us. Although Lorne doesn't know it yet he will also be a part of Angel investigations also. Friends that we have developed during the past years will be a part in some way also." Angel said.

"What about me Angel? Do you know if they have any plans for me to be included in Angel Investigations?" David asked. "I honestly don't know David. I can call Dr. Martin and ask her if she knows anything. Why are you asking all of these questions anyway?" Angel asked. "Because I want to know if there is a reason for me to continue. During the day I sink into a dark pit where everything that I have ever done as a vampire is thrown at me." Tears were starting to fall down David's face. His emotions were starting to overtake him as they did to Angel when he was going thru sessions with Dr. Martin. "Sometimes it gets so bad Angel that I become like the animal that is inside of me and all I can think of is running into the sun light so that I can end it all. Bobby chains me up in the basement first thing in the morning now. I know that Marissa has told you about why they do it now. At first they just kept watch over me during the day but then I tried committing suicide and that's when they started to chain me up in the wine cellar. The reason I am asking all of these questions Angel is that as soon as I go into work at night I am okay and it's business as usual. But as soon as I come home though I am back to the suffering, accusing myself of all of the people I have killed as a vampire over the years, and the urge to commit suicide. Their must be a reason for why I am being allowed to continue my business and I want to know why. I want a reason to continue Angel. Please help me to find out why." David broke down at that point. He was no longer able to control himself. He just leaned over and covered his face with his hands and was crying uncontrollably.

"Wesley would you please get Marissa." Angel went over to David and got on his knees and put his arm around David's shoulder. "I don't know why this is happening like it is David but my guess is that they have plans for you and that is why you are being allowed to carry on your business as usual. You still have to pay for everything you have done over the years. Your life has been different then mine though and I don't know about how your demon runs your life. I can't give you any words of wisdom but I can tell you that you are more lucky then I was. I went through what you are going through now for over a hundred years and I was all by myself. My sire didn't want anything to do with me after I regained my soul, so I lost the only family I had. I wandered Europe by myself feeding off of criminals and those that fed on the poor of society." The women had come in and Marissa came over to David's side and put her arms around him.

"David this will end soon for you I think. Once Marissa gets pregnant your going to have a new set of problems to deal with. The only thing that I can do for you is to advise you to talk to Spike. He went through this phase quickly and he might be able to help you put everything into perspective. Spike is my only surviving Childe. He is a pain in the ass most of the time but other times he shows himself to be a wise and intelligent person. I am going to have him call you sometime this week. If he can't help you David you can always talk to Dr. Martin. I have to tell you though that she is a Catholic nun. Don't be afraid of her though. She made me realize that we are not the ones that have to fear God, it's our resident demons that are afraid of Him and all that belongs to Him. Cordelia and I wouldn't be together now if it wasn't for her." Angel stood up and went to Cordelia and gave her a hug. David got up and came over to them.

"Angel and Cordelia please let me say this. Of all the people I have hurt over the years you 2 are the only ones that are still alive. Please accept my apology for all the suffering that I made you go through. I know that it's not enough but it may help you to know that I will suffer for it every time that I see you. I hope that by the time you or I leave this world that you will be able to find it in your heart to forgive me. It's getting late now and I always like to spend some time with Marissa before I need to go down to the basement again. So I am going to say goodnight for now. Thank you all for coming. Dr. Thompson, I haven't been able to talk to you about Marissa yet so would you come up to our bedroom with us for a few minutes?" "Yes David, I think that will be best also. We can talk in private." "Angel will you wait for me please. I don't think I'll be able to find my way out of these hills." Angel smiled at him. "I'll be right here waiting when you come down."

"Thanks." Dr. Thompson followed David and Marissa upstairs.

The rest sat back down again to wait for Dr. Thompson. Angel and Wesley were looking at the books in the room. He had some old volumes that Angel and Wesley were practically drooling over. Twenty minutes later Marissa came downstairs. It was still nighttime so she was comfortable with leaving David alone with Dr. Thompson for a few minutes. The butler Edward came over to them as she reached the bottom of the stairs. Marissa had called him before leaving the bedroom. "Did you need something Mrs. Morgan?" "Yes Edward, Mr. Morgan would like a tall glass of warm blood in a glass and he would like you to fix it the way you did last week. He said you would know what he means." "Yes Mam. I know exactly what he means." Edward smiled at the thought and went to fix the drink.

Marissa went into the Library. "Angel Dr. Thompson would like to see you and David together for a minute." Angel went upstairs to David's bedroom. "Is everything okay Marissa?" Cordelia asked.

"Everything is fine now. Dr. Thompson explained everything to David and he understands what has to be done in order for me to be able to conceive. He just wanted to talk to David and Angel at the same time." "I think I know what he's going to talk to them about." Cordelia pulled Marissa a short distance away from Fred and Wesley. "When he was examining me he saw two red dots on either side of my nipple and he asked what they were. Angel turned red and said he would explain later. I think Dr. Thompson has an idea as to what it is because he told Angel that no matter what it was it had to stop during the last trimester." When Cordelia said that they both had a sad look on their face. They both sighed at the same time.

Angel knocked at the door to the bedroom. "Come in Angel." David said. Angel came in and then closed the door behind him. "Marissa said you wanted to see me." "Okay Angel you know exactly why I wanted to see both of you together." Dr. Thompson said. Angel's face was starting to turn red. "Yes I have an idea." Angel said as he looked at David.

"Okay I'll get it started. Since I am taking care of both of your wives I need to know why does both Marissa and Cordelia have two red marks on either side of their nipples?" "Angel will explain since he is the master." David said. Angel had sat on the side of the bed next to David. They looked like two boys getting a scolding for something they did wrong. "Do you still have that tape David?" Angel asked. "Yes it's over here. Do you want me to play it for him?" "Yeah, it will be easier this way." David put the tape in the VCR and turned the TV on. "Have a seat Dr. Thompson." David said. This will explain it.

David watched the tape. He felt like he was watching a porno flick. It was his turn to turn red now. He didn't say anything until it was over. David crossed his legs half way through the tape. He remained seated with his legs crossed for awhile. He tried to keep his mind on the reason why he was asking these two vampires why their wives had similar marks on their breasts. He cleared his throat before talking. "Okay what exactly were you doing when you had your mouth on her breast?"

"Occasionally when we are having sex we give our wives a special Vampire treat. Just to let you know we only do it once in awhile, like once every 2 weeks or so. I am sure you guessed that, that was Cordy and I on our wedding night and no we didn't know that we were being watched. Anyway what I am doing to her is sucking on her breast hard enough to bring the blood to the surface of the skin. I then bite down just hard enough to get to that blood that is near the surface of the skin. Doing that drives the women wild and when we actually take it from their neck they climax so high that I always have to put my hand over her mouth so she doesn't wake up the whole block." Angel laid back on the bed. He heard Dr. Thompson clear his throat again and he knew what he was going to ask next. "No, humans cannot do the same thing. It's not the actual taking of the blood. I think that there is something in our saliva that causes the women to go wild like they do." "Does Dr. Martin know about this?" Dr. Thompson asked. "Yes, she heard me telling the other men about it after Spike tried it the previous night." "Did she take a sample of your saliva?" "No, I really don't think she was interested." "Well I am. Angel don't do that to Cordelia during the next couple of weeks. If she is having an orgasm that is that high I am concerned that it might cause her to have a miscarriage. After that it's okay up until the 3rd trimester then regular sex is ok but not the Vampire special. You can continue to have sex until she is no longer comfortable but I am warning you that she may not want sex at all. Don't forget what I said David because you will probably be going through this also within the next few months. Next time both of you have sex and the Vampire special is on the menu try to give me a sample of your saliva. I need you to bring it to me as soon as possible. Here is my home phone number. Call me when you have it and I'll meet you at my office."

"We can't let you do that Dr. Thompson. It's to dangerous. We have to think of our families. If someone should take the samples they may do something that will hurt or even kill us." Angel told him. "Why Angel? You gave samples of your blood to Dr. Martin." Dr. Thompson said. He was surprised that Angel would refuse his request.

"Yes but I know her quiet well. If you can tell me that you are going to take the samples to a convent and test them then we will comply with your request. If you can't then my refusal will stand." Angel said.

Dr. Thompson smiled. "I see your point. Now though I am going to have to tell you something that Cordelia isn't going to like. You have to stop giving Cordelia the Vampire special. We don't know what kind of an affect your saliva can have on the developing fetus. I'm not telling you this because I want to get back at you, because even if you did give me the sample there is no way that I could be 100% sure that it wouldn't have a detrimental affect on the developing fetus. So just like everything else the best thing to do is abstain completely."

"Yes, I can see your point, but like you said Cordy won't like it at first but she will go through anything to protect our baby." Angel told Dr. Thompson.

"That goes for you also David. Once I clean Marissa up and I give the okay for you two to try to get pregnant you have to abstain from the Vampire special. The first couple of months are very important for the developing fetus. Well I have to get some rest guys. Babies come at all times of the day and night and if I don't get enough sleep when I have the chance I may fall asleep while trying to deliver a baby. I'll see you downstairs Angel." Dr. Thompson got up and left leaving Angel and David together.

When Dr. Thompson left Angel got up and walked over to the balcony. David followed him. They stood just looking at the city lights. David and Marissa's house was in the hills between the Los Angeles basin and the San Fernando valley. The balcony overlooked the Los Angeles basin and on a clear day you could see the Pacific ocean. Most of the time though, especially during the summer, the view was obscured by smog.

"You know David in all the time I've been in Southern California the smog has always covered the valleys. It's not as bad as it was back in the 50's and 60's but it has always been their. Have you ever been at the top of the San Gabriel mountains?" "Yeah, I took Marissa up their for our honeymoon. An associate of mine owns a house up on the mountain by the television towers. I think that was the happiest time of all of my undead life. I wouldn't trade that week for all the tea in China. That's what I think a lot of these days Angel. I ask myself why I was given Marissa after all of the evil things I have done. I don't deserve her. She knows all about me and I've told her all about the things I did before I met her as a little girl and after. I didn't stop killing humans for my meals until after I married her. During the days she is always with me and she hears me talking about and accusing myself of all of the people that I killed. With all that I have told her she still loves me." David started to cry uncontrollably. His body was shaking, he was crying so hard. Angel looked at David. He couldn't help but remember how he felt when he went through the same thing when he first was given his soul back. Except that he didn't have anyone to hold him. Angel wanted to put his arm around David to comfort him, but this is what he wanted for David. He wanted him to suffer just like he had made Cordy suffer. Angel had to admit to himself though that he just couldn't stand seeing him suffer like this no matter what David had done.

"David, listen to me because I am going to say this once and only once." David got control of himself and wiped his tears away with the back of his hand. When Angel saw that he had control of himself again he said "David, I forgive you for what you caused to happen to Cordy and I." David fell to his knees and grabbed Angels hand. "Thank you Angel, thank you." Angel turned to leave. When he turned he felt something hit his back. A second later he felt another one. At first he thought they were some kind of bug that was out at night just waiting for him to turn. Then he heard David's body hitting the floor of the balcony he saw an arrow sticking out of his back. It looked like it had missed his heart by just inches. He then felt a burning sensation going through his chest. It seemed to all be happening in slow motion. He heard guard dogs starting to bark as they ran to the fence at the front of the house. Bright lights went on all over. He felt himself falling forward and when his chest hit the floor the sharp burning pain hit again. Angels eyes rolled up to the back of his head and he lost consciousness."

When the alarms went off Marissa jumped up from the couch and they all heard Bobby come running through the door and running up the stairs. They all ran up the stairs also and followed Bobby and Marissa through the bedroom doors. Cordelia screamed when she saw Angel lying on the floor, face down, with two arrow sticking out of his back. She ran to his side and knelt by him. Dr. Thompson and Wesley did the same. Marissa and Bobby was looking around the room for David. Bobby finally went to the balcony to see if he had fallen over the railing. That is when he found him. Dr. Thompson looked over to David as well. He saw the arrow sticking out of David's back. When he realized where it was he yelled at Bobby "Don't touch him." Bobby jumped back at the sound of Dr. Thompson's voice.

"Marissa get me a pair of scissors and hurry." Marissa went to the desk and grabbed a pair of scissors and gave them to Dr. Thompson. "Hold on to them for a second Marissa. Wesley, come and help us pick up David and put him on the bed." Wesley came over to David. "I want us to pick him up so that his body doesn't bend in anyway so Wesley I want you to put your arms under his waist and support his torso so that it doesn't bend. Does everyone understand? His life depends on us keeping him as straight as possible." Both Bobby and Wesley nodded to him. "Okay, on my count, 1,2,3." They lifted him at the same time and took him to the bed. Dr. Thompson took the scissors from Marissa and started cutting a David's clothes up the back. He carefully cut it away from the arrow then went up the rest of the way. They were then able to pull his jacket and the rest off of him. Dr. Thompson turned to Marissa. "Marissa I think the arrow tip is either right by his heart or right behind it. If it moves a fraction of an inch either way it will either cut into the heart or go into it. I don't believe it has gone through to the other side. If I can determine that it is to the side then I have to push it through so that I can take the tip off and then pull it out. According to what Dr. Martin has told me he should stop bleeding and start healing immediately. I just want you to prepare yourself. Do you understand?" "Yes, please do what you can." Dr. Thompson went back to David. "Bobby, get on the other side and support his body as Wesley and I role him to his side so I can check his chest." Bobby went to the other side of the bed and crawled over it very carefully. When he was in position Dr. Thompson and Wesley rolled him over as carefully as possible. He checked the front of his chest. He couldn't see the tip of the arrow so he carefully examined the front with his hand. Then he felt it. It had gone through and was to the lower right side of his heart. "Okay guys I think were okay. Bobby I want you to break off your end of the arrow then push it through so that I can pull it out through the front." Bobby did as he was told. They saw the arrow break through the skin on his chest and Dr. Thompson pulled it out. Wesley looked at the arrow and took it from the doctor and took it over to the light where he could see better. The arrow had barbs on it that pointed toward the tail end of the arrow. He noticed an odd odor coming from the arrow. He couldn't place where he had smelled it before. Then it hit him. The last time he smelled that odor was when Faith had shot Angel with a poisoned arrow. He went over to Bobby. "Bobby did you get scratched by the arrow when you pushed it through?" "No I don't think so. I used my thumb to push it through." Bobby said. "It's a good thing you did it like that. The arrow has poisoned barbs on it pointing to the back of the arrow. If we had pulled it out of his back the poison would have gotten into his system. The barbs are set in, in such a way that the poison would have been released as it was pulled out. If any of the poison did get into his system it should show the effects with in the next 30 minutes." Wesley went over to Angel. Dr. Thompson had gone into the bathroom and grabbed all of the towels. He put one of them under David's chest and let him down then gave a wash cloth to Bobby and told him to hold it on the wound in his back until it stopped bleeding.

Dr. Thompson went over to Angel and Wesley. Angel still hadn't regained consciousness. Wesley turned Angel over. They all saw that the tips of the arrows had gone all of the way through and had then been pushed back in when he fell on his chest. Wesley looked at Cordelia.

"Cordelia do you have Dr. Martins phone number?" "Yes." Cordelia said. "Call her and let me know when you have her on the phone. Dr. Thompson let's get these arrows out of him. Be very careful in how you handle the arrows. We don't know how the poison will affect humans. Marissa we are going to need a place to put Angel when we take them out." Angel started to regain consciousness. They rolled Angel on his side. Dr. Thompson took one of the hand towels and wrapped it around the end and broke it off of each arrow then pushed them both through rapidly. Wesley took the towel from Dr. Thompson and pulled them out of the front of his chest and put them on the table. Angel cried out in pain. Wesley felt his forehead. Angels temperature was already starting to rise. He had broken out in a sweat as the poison started to invade his body. Wesley felt for Angels pulse, he didn't find one which told him that they might have some time since his heart was only sending the poison through his body at a very slow rate.

"Wesley, I have Dr. Martin on the phone." Wesley got up and went to the phone. He was talking to Dr. Martin for at least 15 minutes. Wesley put the phone to the side of his shoulder as he talked to Marissa and Bobby. "I don't suppose David has a helicopter?" "Yes he does, there is one in the back. The pilot lives in the back as well." Bobby said. Wesley put the phone to his ear again. Yes Dr. Martin he has one. Okay I'll let you know how he is doing when we get back." Wesley hung the phone up and looked to Marissa and Bobby. "Marissa, David and Angel have been shot with arrows that have a mystical poison on them. Angel was shot with this same poison about 4 or 5 years ago. The only thing that will save them is the blood of a Slayer. The only Slayer that we have access to is Buffy in Sunnydale. I need for your pilot to take me over to Sunnydale so I can get some of her blood. We need to do this as fast as possible." "Yes do what ever you have to. Bobby would you call John and have him prepare the helicopter as fast as possible and be prepared to fly to Sunnydale. Wesley will tell him where it is." Marissa told Bobby. Bobby left the room and used the phone downstairs. Wesley turned to Dr. Thomson and Cordelia. "Dr. Martin said that she has been able to determine that Angel doesn't have to drink a large quantity of Buffy's blood just about a half a pint should do. She said that Buffy should be okay if she gives 2 pints at once. Then Spike will replace it. She said the problem is that she doesn't know how fast the poison will work since he has been shot with it before. She said you are to treat them just like you would any patient that has ingested poison."

Wesley got back on the phone and called Buffy's house. Fortunately they were at home and he asked to talk to Spike. He told him what was going on and what they needed from Buffy and that they would meet them at the high school parking lot. Okay Spike I am guessing that it will take at least 30 minutes to get their. Okay, goodbye." Wesley put the phone down and went over to Cordelia's side. "How's he doing?" "He's burning up Wesley." Cordelia said with tears in her eyes. It had been awhile since she had eaten so her stomach was starting to make her sick. She got up and ran to the bathroom. Dr. Thompson called to Marissa. "Where can we put him Marissa?" Marissa was concerned for Cordelia. Dr. Thompson saw her looking at the bathroom door. "She'll be alright Marissa. After you show us where we can put Angel would you get Cordelia some crackers and a 7UP." "Angel do you think you can stand?" Wesley asked. "I think so but you better let me sit down and give me something to throw up in because dinner is on it's way up." Both Wesley and Dr. Thompson helped him to stand. They put his arms around their shoulders and followed Marissa as she took them to the bedroom next to the one they were in. They sat him on the bed and Marissa gave him a trash can to use. When he seemed to be done vomiting all of his dinner Wesley took the trash can and gave Angel a glass of water so that he could rinse his mouth out. Angel was in a lot of pain and blood was starting to pour out of the wounds in the front of his chest and the back. The pain was making his heart beat faster which was making the wounds bleed even more. Wesley and Dr. Thompson lifted Angel as Marissa turned the lights on and pulled the quilt down from the bed. They sat Angel down on the bed again and helped him take his shoes and shirt off. Marissa brought some towels over and she put them on the bed. Wesley held Angel up while Dr. Thompson doubled up a hand towel and pressed it against Angels back. As he did this they laid Angel down and he put another towel on his chest. Marissa pulled the sheet up and Dr. Thompson continued to apply pressure to the wounds on Angels chest. "You better go Wesley. He feels like he is getting hotter with each passing minute." "I'll be back as soon as possible." Wesley said. "Why don't you call your butler to get Cordelia some crackers and 7UP. When your done come over here and apply pressure to Angels wounds and I'll go and check on David." When Marissa came back she took over from Dr. Thompson and he went next door to David's bedroom. David was regaining consciousness when he came in.

"How are you feeling David?" "Better. What happened? The last thing I remember was Angel and I were on the balcony and we had started to come back in. Then I felt something hit my back and that was it." David said. Dr. Thompson checked his wound. It was almost completely healed. He felt his forehead. It was cool to the touch.

"Mr. Morgan you and Angel were shot with poisoned arrows. We caught the guy that did it but unfortunately he was a vampire and one of the new guards dusted him. He didn't understand what happened when you put wood through a vampires heart. The guy almost got away when the new guard picked up a large branch that was on the ground and threw it at him. He said he had intended to just hit the guy to knock him down. Unfortunately it had a point to it and went right through the guy. You should have seen the look on the guards face." Bobby said. He had been sitting by David's side all this time.

"Bobby I want you to have them run a more thorough check on the new guard. It's too much of a coincidence that this happened when he arrived." David said.

"I'll take care of it right away." Bobby stepped over to the drapes and closed the doors and drapes real good. He then went to the phone and called the head guy for the guards and told him what David wanted.

"How is Angel? Did he get hit also?" David asked. "Yes David. He got hit twice and wasn't as lucky as you. The arrows had barbs on them that if they went backwards the barbs would cut the flesh even more, but the worst thing was that the barbs had a mystical poison on them. When Angel was shot with the arrows they went all the way through and the points came out partway. When Angel fell forward and landed on his chest the arrows were pushed back in which made the poison go into his system. Right now he is a very sick vampire.

"Is their a cure for the poison?" Bobby asked. "Yes, it's the blood of a slayer, according to Wesley. He took your helicopter to Sunnydale. He had called Dr. Martin and she said that they couldn't duplicate chemicals in Buffy's blood but she did determine that the cure would only require about half of a pint of Buffy's blood." Dr. Thompson looked at his watch. "They should be back in about 45 minutes. We just have to watch him and try to keep his body from getting to hot. Bobby can you see if can get 3 or 4 bags of ice?" "I can do better then that Doc, there is a ice machine in the kitchen." "Good, I need a bowl of ice with some water in Angels room." "Sure thing Doc, I'll be back in a few minutes." Bobby said as he ran out the door.

"Will you be alright David? You won't try anything stupid like getting up?" Dr. Thompson asked. "No Doc, I'll be good and stay right here. Go and take care of Angel." Dr. Thompson got up and went over into Angels room. "How's he doing Cordelia?" "He's hot Dr. Thompson. The last time he was sick like this he started to have a seizure." "Okay Cordelia I am going to run down to my car and get my medical bag. I'll be right back." He felt Angels forehead. He was hot, very hot. Dr. Thompson ran downstairs and grabbed his medical bag. He saw 2 big guards in the front. "I may need you 2 in a few minutes. Call your boss and tell him to get replacements for you then come upstairs to the room next to Mr. Morgans bedroom." He then ran back in and back to Angel. He opened up his bag and took out some antibiotics and a syringe. He emptied all of the contents of the bottle into the syringe. "Angel can you hear me?" Dr. Thompson asked Angel. He knew he was conscious. "If you can hear me I want you to roll over onto your side so that I can give you some antibiotics." He waited to see if Angel would respond. Angel slowly rolled over to his left. Dr. Thompson pulled his shorts down a little and gave him the syringe. He helped Angel to lay back again and took his temperature. Angels temperature was up to 107.5. Bobby came in with a large bowl of ice just as he finished with Angel. Cordelia was stuffing crackers in her mouth and drinking the 7UP while Dr. Thompson sat next to Angel. He dipped a large towel in the bowl and rang it out but left a small amount of water still in the towel so that it would stay cold longer. He then took a hand towel and put it on the left side of Angels neck and put ice in it. He was hoping to keep the blood, that went into his brain, cooler so that he wouldn't start to have a seizure. "Cordelia please call Wesley's cell phone and ask him when he thinks he'll get here?" Cordelia made the call using the phone that was by the bed on the other side. "He said he'll be here in 15 minutes." she told Dr. Thompson. "Good, because I don't think this is working." He took Angels temperature again. It was still at 107.5. "Well at least it hasn't gone up anymore. Bobby go and find out where those 2 guards are that were in the front. I asked them to come up here as soon as they got replacements?" Bobby called down to the Captain of the guards. Cordelia get Marissa I think she's with David." Cordelia came back with Marissa in less than a minute. "Did you need something Dr. Thompson?" "Yes Marissa, I need to know if you have a hot tub up here or outside that is big enough for no more than two people? Yes we have one outside in the cabana that is by the pool." "Good. I want you to get as much ice as possible and dump it in there. We are expecting Wesley to get here with the blood in a little less than 15 minutes, but Angels temperature is at 107.5. He could have a seizure at any moment and that could damage his brain." "Okay Dr. Thompson I understand I'll get that going as soon as possible. I'll let you know as soon as it's ready." "Thanks Marissa." Dr. Thompson took the towel off of Angel, it felt hot. He dipped it into the ice again and put it back over his body. He checked the towel by his neck and put some more ice in it. He took Angels temperature again. He knew what the answer would be because Angels hands started shaking. He ran to the balcony. Bobby where are those guards I need them now. In answer he heard heavy foot steps coming through the house. He ran back to Angel and wrapped a couple of tongue depressors with tape and put it in his mouth. Bobby and the guards came in and helped to hold him down. Dr. Thompson told the guards to pick Angel up and take him downstairs to the cabana. They had a hard time holding onto him but the biggest guard picked him up in his arms and took him down to the cabana. Cordelia followed them along with Dr. Thompson and Bobby. When they got to the cabana they found Marissa already had the tub filled with water and almost filled with ice. Dr. Thompson directed the guard to place Angel in the tub. He instructed the guard to hold onto Angels head and let it go part way into the water. Wesley came into the cabana. "Here is the blood." "How are we supposed to give it to him. By mouth or into his arm." Dr. Thompson asked. "He drank it from Buffy last time so I really don't know if he can take it through his arm."

Wesley said. "Well I think we should give it to him to drink since that's the way he took it last time." Angel started to slow down his shaking so Dr. Thompson took his temperature again. It had gone down to 105 degrees. "You say that it works right away right?" "That's what they tell me." Wesley said. "Okay lets get him out of there before we give it to him." The guard that had picked him up before picked him up again and laid him on the lounge chair. Wesley put a hole in the bag of blood and poured the contents into a tall glass.

"Angel, wake up now you need to drink this. It will make you feel better. It will get rid of the poison that is in your system." Wesley lightly slapped Angels face. Angel started to open his eyes. He looked at Wesley. "Buffy's blood?" "Yes, Spike took two pints of her blood then gave 2 pints of blood back to her. She was just fine when I left. She wanted me to give you a message. She said 'You tell Daddy that if he wastes any of it or refuses to drink it I am coming to make his life more miserable then it already is.'" Angel smiled then took the blood when Wesley put the glass to his lips. As soon as he finished the whole glass he started to feel better and stronger. The guard had been standing by all of the time. Angel looked at him. "Would you get me something to put on please?" The guard went over to the closet which held about 10 bathrobes and brought one that he thought would fit Angel. He took the robe and tried to get up but was still took weak from the fever to get up on his own. Wesley took the robe and the guard helped Angel to stand while Wesley helped him put the robe on.

"How is David and does anyone know what happened?" Angel asked Wesley.

"He's okay. He got hit with only one arrow. The arrows had barbs on them so that if they stayed in the body and went backwards for any reason like being pulled out by the tail they would cut into the flesh more and a poison would be released into the system. Fortunately for David when the arrow went through his back it was a fraction of an inch from his heart but hit his sternum and was blocked from going all of the way through. Dr. Thompson determined that the arrow could be moved over and around the sternum and then pushed through all of the way. Bobby broke the tail off and pushed them through then Dr. Thompson pulled it out from the front of David's chest. You where hit with two arrows and they went all of the way through and was sticking out of the front of your chest. When you fell forward the arrows were pushed back in and you got all of the poison that was on the barbs."

"Did they find out who did it?" Angel asked Wesley. "From what Bobby told us, the new guard didn't know too much about vampires and when he came across the perpetrator he threw a branch that had fallen from the tree and unfortunately it had a jagged point to the end and it hit the perpetrator right through the heart. So we have no idea why he did it or who he was. David told Bobby to check the new guards background more thoroughly. He said it was too much of a coincidence that this happened just as they have a new guard and for him not to know anything about vampires on property that is loaded with them. So now you know all that I know about what has happened. I think we had better get you home Angel. From what I was told you came out of this a lot faster when you were first shot with the poison, but you appear to still be awfully weak. Here why don't you take more of Buffy's blood. The quantity might have something to do with how fast you recover." Wesley poured the rest of the one bag he already had opened into the glass he had used for him then he opened the other bag and filled the glass to the top. He gave the glass to Angel but he was still weak so Wesley held it for him while he drank the contents down to the last drop. When he was done Angel tried to stand on his own but he couldn't make it. He looked at the big guard. "Can you take me to my car? I don't think I can make it on my own." "Sure thing Mr. Martin." The big guard helped Angel to stand up and then put his arm around his neck. He practically carried Angel to the car in the front and placed him in the back seat. Cordelia got in first and Angel laid down and put his head in her lap.

"Marissa I'll call to let you know how Angel is and to ask how David is doing." Cordelia said. Dr. Thompson came out of the house with his bag and went to Marissa. "I just checked on David Marissa while I was up there. He is sleeping now and as far as I can see it's just normal sleep. He is cold to the touch, I have been told that, that is normal for him, so just keep an eye on him. I think he will be fine though. You have my home phone number so don't hesitate to call me if something should happen, okay?" "Okay Dr. Thompson, and thank you for coming. Goodnight everyone." Marissa went back in and Dr. Thompson went to his car. Fred drove Angels car since Cordelia was in the back with him. As they all drove away Wesley was in front. Fred followed Wesley and Dr. Thompson followed Fred. When they arrived at the bottom of the hill Dr. Thompson pulled out of the little caravan and pulled ahead as he turned towards his own home.

By the time they arrived at the Hotel Angel was able to sit up on his own. He drank the rest of the bag of blood and started to feel stronger. He looked at Cordelia. He could see and feel her starting to get sick. Angel reached over in the front seat and found the bag of crackers. He opened them and gave it to her. Cordelia put one of the crackers in her mouth right away. She thanked God that the crackers were still there. She didn't want Angel to be throwing up all of the blood and get sick again. Angel pulled out his cell phone and called Wesley on his. "Wesley we need to stop and buy some saltine crackers for Cordy." "Okay Angel I will pull into the first market I see open." They both hung up and Angel pulled Cordy over to him. Fred followed Wesley into a Wal-Mart supercenter parking lot. Wesley ran in and came out a few minutes later with 4 boxes of crackers. He put them in Angels car. "I think you have enough now to last you a few days until we get to Sunnydale and Willow can help you two." Wesley said. "Thanks Wesley." Cordelia and Angel said. Wesley got back into his SUV and they headed for the Hotel. They pulled into the back of the hotel and Fred pulled in beside Wesley. Wesley jumped out and ran over to Angels car. Angel had already gotten out of the car and was helping Cordelia out. "Oh good, I was afraid I would have to help you to the hotel. It seems all you needed was a little time." "Yeah, plus I drank the rest of Buffy's blood. Apparently quantity does play a big part in how fast the slayers blood destroys the poison." Angel said. They all went back into the hotel and went directly to bed. Wesley knew he was still in the hot seat when Fred went to her own room. Wesley went into his own room and closed the door. He took a shower then went to bed. He laid there for an hour just thinking about what he had said to Fred. He got up then and put his robe on and went to Fred's door. He knocked on the door lightly and called her name. "Fred can I come in?" He didn't get any answer so he opened the door a little to see if she was in bed. To his surprise she wasn't there. He heard Angels door open. "Wesley, Fred and Cordy are downstairs. I think Fred is telling Cordy about your argument at Dr. Thompson's office. Come in here." Wesley went over to Angels bedroom and he opened up a couple of beers for them. They sat at the table and Wesley started to tell Angel what happened. When he finished Angel leaned back in his chair and told Wesley "You remember what I said when I was telling everyone about what happened when I was having a lot of arguments with Cordelia and I had to talk to Spike before I realized that I had become a Master Vampire." "Yes." Wesley said. "Do you also remember what I said I did when I got off of the phone with Spike?" "Yes, you said you did what any red blooded American would do, you tucked your tail between your legs and went up and apologized to her." Wesley said as he laid his head on the table. "It doesn't make any difference whether you think you are right or wrong Wesley you just have to do it or you are going to be stopped while you are at the starting gate. Remember that we have to get our families started so that means you have to do whatever it takes. So my dear friend learn to tuck that tail in and take a deep breath and tell yourself that you are doing it because you love Fred. If I can go through hell to be with Cordy then you can at least give in to Fred and admit you were wrong. Which to tell you the truth I think you are." Wesley got up and walked to the door with his head hanging. He went downstairs and saw Cordelia and Fred sitting at the dinning room table. He approached the dinning room and just stood there. Cordelia saw Wesley. She put her hand on Fred's and then looked at Wesley. Fred jumped up and ran to Wesley. "I'm sorry Wesley I shouldn't have gotten so mad at you. You were right. She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him. Wesley started to apologize to. "I'm sorry Fred, you were right. I don't know what was going through my mind. I think I just got scared and I was being selfish. I just got you all to myself and I didn't want to share you with anyone yet. Not even our own baby." Cordelia quietly went upstairs and left them alone.

Cordelia went and opened the door quietly. She thought Angel would be asleep but he was still awake. He had the television on and was watching the weather channel so that he could see what the weather was going to be like tomorrow night. Cordelia went into the bathroom and closed the door. When she came out again she went over to her side of the bed and took her robe off and crawled into bed beside Angel. She grabbed one of the crackers that Angel had started putting on the night stand on her side of the bed. "Mission accomplished Angel. The healing process has begun and all is well. Let's go to sleep. I am beat." Angel turned the TV off and pushed his body down further on the bed so that he could put his arm around her.

"Cordy." "Yes." "I told David that I forgave him for all that he caused to happen to us. I did that just before the arrows hit us. He was crying so hard that I could see how bad he felt for what he did." Cordelia didn't say anything for awhile. "I am sorry Angel but it is going to take me a little while longer before I can do the same thing. Do you understand why?" "Yes Cordy, I understand. The rape happened to you. You are the one that actually carried our baby inside of you and you felt them kill him. Are you angry at me for telling him that I forgave him?" "No Angel I'm not. You are just a better person then I am. You have a forgiving heart. It's one of the reasons why I love you so much. When I say our Rosary tomorrow I'll ask God to help me to forgive him. Goodnight." She turned over so that she was looking at him and gave him a kiss goodnight. Then she put her head in the cradle of his arm and went to sleep, it had been a long day and she was dead tired.

The next day Cordelia got up early and took Angels car keys. She left him a note.

I am going to see Father Barris today.

I will let you know when I am leaving him and

heading home. Love Cordy.

Angel got up and took a shower. It was 12 noon when he woke up. He took a shower then went downstairs. Fred was at the counter.

"Where is everyone Fred?" "Wesley, Gunn and Connor went clothes shopping. They asked me to tell you that they will all be going with you to Sunnydale. I'll be going also." "Good, I'll call Buffy and let her know that we are all coming and I need for her to get everything ready. Do you think I should have a Television put in?" He asked Fred. "Ohh yes. The kids will be lost without their games to play with. You better put either satellite or cable in. Satellite will probably be faster. I can take care of all of it if you want?" "Yeah, tell them I'll give them a bonus if they can get it all in by 9 tonight. I think the guys will have more fun if we go shopping for it. I want one of those big screen TVs. Check to see if we can use one of those flat screens in the mansion and get a separate 36 inch TV so we can play the games on. Buffy will take care of everything else. Once you get it all set up let Buffy know that someone will have to be their for the deliveries." Angel stopped and looked at her. "I trust you Fred, I know this is a big order so if you need help ask Cordy. A person that can arrange a wedding in less than 3 days has to know some tricks as to how to get things done. Just remember that money is no object. Now if everything that the boys want isn't there I will just tell them 'Fred was supposed to take care of it, talk to her.'" "I won't let you down Angel." Fred was excited. She took her Sears catalog out and checked to see if their was one in Sunnydale and if they could have everything she wanted delivered by 9 tonight.