Behold I am married! Though I don't feel any different. Oh my god! An update no way. I apologize in advance as with the semester starting again who knows when my next update will be. I will finish this story if it takes me another 4 years.

Chapter (uhhh) 10(I think Unthinkable

He watched her back as she slowly hobbled away Jet supporting her up the stairs. I'm sorry. It held him frozen. She sure wasn't acting like she was sorry. She can't do this. It's not fair. Not after everything, she can't, she just can't.

"Spike, you coming or what kid?" Spikes mind cleared enough to see Jet looking over Faye's hunched form. She didn't look back.

"Yeah" Spike shut the two open car doors and plodded up the stairs behind him. Reaching the others he noticed Faye leaning a bit far back on the stairs and reached up placing his hand on her back to steady her. Faye started to sink into his hand and suddenly stiffened leaning forward the best she could. Spike tried to ignore it and pressed his hand against her harder.

When they reached the top of the stairs the doorway became shadowed by an ape of a man. Without thinking Spike moved himself in front of Faye glowering, with his hand resting lightly on the handle of his gun. Cro-Magnon man just glowered back his arms across his chest.

"Santino, are you trying to scare away guests again?" The voice was high and welcoming, and though slightly breathless with age Faye would have recognized it anywhere. Her head raised with the sound,

"Marcus?!"

"Ling Faye?! Santino for Christ's sake let them in."

The Beast moved aside and held the door open. Spike rushed in knocking into the unstable Faye and causing her to almost loose her footing. A short entry way and then Spike was in a massive room with a window for a wall. The dark mahogany flooring gleamed in the sun that poured through the wall reflecting the valley that stretched out before them. Spike almost gasped at the majestic expanse that was opened before him. The green rows and hills in the distance made the room appear as if it went on forever.

"Do you like my view young man?"

"I didn't realize there was anything this beautiful left on this hunk of a planet" Spike turned nonchalantly to the old man that was standing to his left. He didn't need to let it show that the old man had scared the crap out of him. The man was shorter than him, thin, no, frail was more like it. Still, his eyes had a fire in them, he may not be dangerous, but he was no push over either. Spike thought he would like him.

The old man took hold of Spike's arm, Spike looked down at him wearily.

"You must forgive the old, we can't always support ourselves." He smiled before continuing. "I find what you said hard to believe." He said turning away Spike from the window

"How's that?" Spike asked his eyes taking a moment to a just from looking into the bright landscape.

"Surely this planet still has other beauties that you know of." As Spike's vision cleared he saw Faye taking a few unsupported steps into the room.

"Yeah" She wavered a bit at first like a toddler, but as her eyes came on the men it became stronger.

The old man smiled and spread the arm that was not gripping Spike's. "Ling, you are even more beautiful than I remember."

"Marcus?" she was supporting herself, standing in front of them only slightly unsteadily.

"Si, la mia alba, its me." Faye crashed into the old man leaving Spike to support the both of them. Spike twisted the arm that was held by Marcus and placed it across the old man's back a support beam for the weight of their reunion. The pair didn't even notice him.

Marcus' age bent hand ran over his former wife's back soothing her with a grace and skill that made it hard for Spike to believe that they had been apart for around 60 years. He spoke to her softly in Italian, but what surprised Spike was when she looked back up at the old man she responded, in Italian no less. Wiping at her wet eyes she took a step back, Spike reached out fearing she would fall. His hand grabbed her shoulder, but her quick angry glance caused him to let go just as fast. If she wants to fall on her ass than that's her prerogative, Spike thought bitterly. She swayed slightly, but stood her ground.

Marcus looked at them for a moment. "Why don't we sit Faye, I'm afraid my old bones protest my insistence to rely on them." Marcus smiled to Spike and carefully walked Faye to the couch a few feet away.

"Marcus, tell me where is Alexandria? Is she coming here? When can I see her?"

The old man frowned and griped Faye's hands tighter in his own.

"She died, my dawn, so many years ago."

"Oh." She bit her lip to control her emotions. "I… I…"

Spike felt such an urge to grab her up into his arms, she must be hurting so much. What the hell, has gotten into me? Why am I so over protective of her? She did just about die like two months ago. Probably it.

"I don't und… when? How?"

"It was about 25 years ago. She and her husband had moved to Mars. I told them not to go I tried to explain to them about the threat of other families that had disappeared when she was still very young." The man's head fell into his hands "I'm so sorry Ling Faye I should have kept her safe. I failed her as a father and I failed you."

"Marcus, please. You know that's not true."

"I'm sorry I'm just an old fag who can't even speak in civilized conversations any more."

"Marcus, don't say that." After a moment he pulled himself together again.

"Right, so the tale. She and her husband had moved to Mars just a few years before it happened. I had told them not to go, you know how unsafe Mars is, and you know what kind of people live there." Spike scoffed softly, it was true though he was still slightly insulted. "I had heard that parts of the old syndicates had moved up there and I told them that it would be especially dangerous for people in our family. Alex wouldn't listen; I don't think she ever really understood the nature of our families and what that meant for our lives. I had kept her safe here for so long that she didn't realize that the threats outside were real." He held tightly to Faye's hands. "They had been there about three years when it happened. I had gotten lax, I had had men up there watching them, but after three years I started to believe her when she told me that I was just being paranoid.

He told a deep breath and chocked back a single sob. "When we found them, it was horrible, Brandon and Jasper were in the front hall by the door." Faye looked at him confused. "Oh yes, Brandon was her husband and Jasper was her son."

"She had a son" Faye's face lit in motherly pride.

"She had two. Jasper, the older, was fourteen and Markie was only twelve."

He sighed continuing his tale. "Brandon and Jasper had been shot in the back. Alex, she… she had been in the kitchen. She tried to crawl to Markie's room, but she only made it to the door." He looked at her intently. "I'm sorry Ling if I hadn't been such a stupid food you would have been able to see your daughter again and you would have met your grandchildren. Forgive me Ling."

Spike was surprised when he looked at Faye, he had expected the woman to be crying or something, but she just sat there trying to comfort Marcus.

"There is nothing to forgive. She was the one who wanted to live there in the first place, but then I suppose what are my genes good for if not to make someone foolish and headstrong. To me she has been gone for so long, it's almost a relief to know the truth."

"Let us not dwell on the pain of the past. So, La mia alba they tell me that you have a son."

"Yes," Faye's face visibly brightened and Spike felt his own small swell of pride at the mention of the boy. "His name is Landis, he'll be eight in just a few months."

"Belecimo. Does he have your beautiful eyes my dear?"

" No" she laughed a little, "no he uh" she unconsciously looked up at Spike. Faye, you're an adult start acting like one. His amazing mismatched gaze held her. I hate myself for being like this, what is wrong with me. Why do I act so petty? "he has his father's eyes." Marcus followed her gaze and watched a spellbound Spike.

"I see," Marcus' tone was slow and thoughtful. "Well I wish you would have brought him. I do love children especially if they are related. I feel I never got to spoil my grandchildren enough."

"Oh, well he's with a friend. Life is a little complicated at home right now."

"Oh yes, your home! How is it, not to small I hope? You know you can have as much of a house as you need, money is not an object now that you are back with your family. Oh no, you aren't near one of those meteor zones are you?"

"No, no Its fine, we are fine, we are… safe." She continued to stare at Spike.

"Come now my beauty, you must be hungry and tired. We shall eat and then we will retire to the den to relax."

Spike found himself continuing his role of watcher at dinner as the closeness between the couple began to fill the sixty some year gap that had driven them apart. As the ties reformed more and more stories of their life together flowed between them. After dinner the reunion continued as photographs were produced. The smiling face of young Faye once again presented itself to the crew of the Bebop. Spike feigned indifference forcing himself to only look at pictures when prompted or when no one else would notice. He was not going to show interest in Faye's old life if she was so intent on excluding him from this one. He was making good work of ignoring the photos until Marcus asked him to pull a new album from the shelf for him. Spike grabbed it without a response, but when he went to hand it to the old man he refused to take it.

"No, no my boy. I believe I have promised Mr. Black a chance to look at some old information on Ling and I's fathers. You can hold the album for her she should know what all the pictures are." The two older men stood Jet helping Marcus up, then with a smug look on both of their faces they left the room.

Spike sat on the couch placing the book between him and Faye. She glanced at it then picked it up opening the cover to reveal a young man standing next to a young Faye. They were on a grassy rise that over looked a patch of blue ocean. His breath caught as he saw it, she had never looked so elegant or so timid. She was in a white satin dress that poured over her like white shimmering water. It made her eyes glisten.

"He looks so different now." Faye's voice pulled him from his entrapment.

"Hmm?" He shifted so that he was nearer to her.

"Marcus. He was so beautiful back then, so handsome I suppose. Men aren't beau…" She trailed off staring at him then quickly looked back down. Spike had to wonder if he had just seen a blush on her pale cheeks. His thoughts were interrupted as she spoke again.

"Now he's just old. The only thing that looks the same are his eyes. A misty gray like fog over the vineyard. I always told him that he could keep anything secret in those eyes of his." A sad smile fell on her face. " I should be old like him, old," she ran her hand over the picture, "or dead. Really, I should be dead." She bit her lip and started flipping quickly over sections. She stopped on a page full of pictures of the little girl that Spike had seen a picture of at her house. What was her name again?

"Alexandria." Faye whispered, as she ran her thumb over the pictures desperately trying to feel her lost daughter through them.

"She looks like you." He spoke softly so as not to break the moment that Faye was living in.

She smiled slightly, "not really, only my hair, she had Marcus' eyes and nose." She was silent and he could hear as her tears hit the pages with soft plops. She wiped at her face and the pages and laughed. "I was just thinking how my children never seem to look like me, they always look like their father." She stared at him as if scrutinizing whether or not his looks were good enough for her son.

"Well at least we know that Landis will be a stud when he grows up."

Faye laughed again and shook her head. " It's amazing how you can make me laugh or piss me the hell off with just a few words."

"I'm pretty sure that I have mastered most of your buttons by now."

She laughed again and looked back at the album, turning the page it showed her and her old family on the beach.

Spike watched her look at the pictures. "I'm glad your not dead Faye. I know it sounds dumb, but it was so tangible of an idea recently that I don't like to hear you say that."

"Spike, you don't…"

"No, wait if I'm gonna sit here and act like some kind of love sick kid then let me get it all out of my system at once. Faye I'm glad you're not old cause it means that I have a chance to grow old, you know, uh with you."

"Spike that is the sweetest thing you have ever said to me, but you don't have to say things like that, we both know that isn't really what you want. I'm just some loudmouth tomboy with an attitude problem remember. Just because we have a son and just because we might have thought that we had feelings for each other because of that doesn't mean you need to throw away the rest of your life. All we do is fight, you know that's true, it would only lead to more aggravation and Landis doesn't need to grow up in that kind of environment and neither do we." He hadn't even noticed, but she was holding his hand in both of hers and now she gave it a soft squeeze. "I'm sorry if you didn't see that yet, it will stop hurting I promise. You'll see its better this way."

Spike pulled away from her. "The hell it is." He stood his anger starting to boil up again. " I don't know what the fuck you have convinced yourself of, but you are way wrong. I have put up with this shit since I've seen you again. You want me, you don't, you do, you might, you don't, you just want our son to be happy. That's right Faye our son, not just yours mine too. For some reason you think that he can only be happy if I'm not around, well I think that that is bullshit. He's my son and I'll be damned if you are going to keep him away from me again. Besides making this all about Landis is bullshit anyway. This" he waved his arms between them, "this has jack to do with Landis, this has everything to do with us and you and your God Damned stupid pride. You and me are a strange pairing, I'll admit it, but its one that I've grown attached to. I don't know why you keep trying so hard to keep me out, when if you would just open your eyes you would see that I am already there. And that is exactly where I want to be, so tell me Faye. How can I convince you that everything that used to mean something to me is gone and all I fucking ever think about is you and how much I need to be with you and Landis."

He kneeled in front of her trying to force her to meet his gaze. "Faye, Faye" She looked up at him briefly and looked away again.

"I want to believe you."

He sighed, "then believe me. It's the truth." He leaned in and kissed her capturing her mouth before anything else unwanted could escape from it. She relaxed into him closing her eyes, but was jolted back to reality by a small moan that escaped her own throat. She backed up shaking her head slightly.

"You may think that it's the truth now, but soon you'll get tired of playing house with Landis and I and I don't think I have the strength to heal the heart of my son as well as myself."

"Faye, I won't…" Spike stopped as he heard Jet and Marcus reenter the room.

"Oh dear, we weren't interrupting anything were we?"

"Actually…" Spike growled, he found himself beginning to like the old man less and less.

"No." Faye cut him off. "Spike was just helping me put away this album." She pushed the book at him and he caught her wrist and her eye sharply.

His mind continued fuming as he pushed the album back into its place. A loose photo fluttered to the floor its white back glaring at him. He opened his mouth to ask the annoying old man where he was supposed to put it when he froze. Cold grey eyes glared back at him from the picture. Eyes he knew, and a face that he had convinced himself he would never see again.

"What is this?" The threesome across the room looked up at him. "What the hell is this old man? You think this is some kinda joke?" He walked in quick strides to Marcus who took the glossy paper.

"This," he said matter of factly in a cold tone that Spike hadn't heard him use before, "is the last picture I have of Mark my younger grandson. I had some investigators try to track him down they sent me that and then I stopped hearing from them."

"You're lying old man"

"Lying, why would I lie about such a thing. Really Mr. Speigal you don't make any sense."

"You have to be lying. He can't be your grandson."

"Why is that?"

"Because this man can't be Faye's grandson."

"Well I assure you he is."

"Spike, what's up?" Jet asked as Faye reached for the photo and said,

"Spike what are you…" her voice locked up as she saw the picture.

"Spike…" Jet repeated desperately unnerved by the sight of Faye's voice stopping and her eyes widening.

"It's Vicious!"

"No, no, no no no no." Faye's voice was lost under the ringing left by Spike's shout. As the room was swallowed up by the lack of sound they all looked at Faye. She held the picture as if transfixed. She was still muttering, but it was more air than voice. She was beginning to shake slightly growing from an indistinct tremor to full body quakes. The pressure built up till she exploded, throwing the picture as if it burned her. The color quickly drained from her face and she reached out for Spike. Using him to help her stand she looked up at him tears already streaming down her face.

"Spike." Her voice was still so airy you could hardly hear it.

"Yes" anything. Anything you need what, what do you need of me.

"Take me to the bathroom, I, I think, I'm gonna be sick."