Author Note: We're getting so close to the truth coming out, and everything becoming clear, but still not there quite yet. Thanks to everyone who's stuck with the story so far.

Chapter Fourteen

One by one, Dawn, Spike, and Jonathan all turned to Buffy in shock. Then they all went to talk at the same time: Spike to voice his complaints, Dawn to make known her confusion, and Jonathan to express thanks. Silencing all of them, Buffy said, "Go to your room," to Dawn again, before turning to the other two and stating, "We'll talk about this in the other room."

Meanwhile, at the hospital, Giles finally tracked down the doctor he was hoping to have a word with.

The doctor, who had just entered the corridor, looked flustered as he peered over the stack of reports in his arms.

"We have an appointment," he was told.

"Right, Mr…?"

"Giles."

The doctor nodded. "Mr Giles. I remember now. You're the patient's father, is that right?"

"Well, no," replied Giles, rather regretfully.

"Oh," said the doctor, now giving him is full attention. "I was under the impression you were a family member."

"So was I," Giles muttered under his breath.

The doctor looked at him then with pity.

"I'm sorry," he said, "But I can't discuss anything if you're not related."

After a brief pause, Giles then asked if he could have some general advice, on a hypothetical basis.

"You see," he explained. "Buffy is like a daughter to me, and I'm terribly concerned for her. It seems she doesn't fully understand the situation."

Seemingly against his better judgment, the doctor asked him, "What is it you want to know?"

"We'll keep you safe," Buffy told Jonathan. "But you're gonna earn your place here, and help us take down Warren."

"Hold on a minute," Spike interrupted. "You can't seriously-"

Buffy glared at him, momentarily halting his argument.

"Should I give you two a moment?" asked Jonathan, awkwardly.

"No," said Buffy.

"Now hold on," said Spike, "You said we could talk about this, but you're not listenin' to what I have to say."

"I already know what you're gonna say."

"Is that right?" there was danger written in his eyes, but Buffy didn't back down.

"This is my house," she stated.

"Stuff the house, we need to worry about Dawn's safety."

"I'm on top of Dawn's safety!" Buffy yelled at Spike.

"No, you're being reckless!" Spike accused, to which Buffy looked as if she'd been slapped.

"Don't you dare!" she said, as once more Jonathan considered leaving the room for a bit.

Holding up his hands Spike said, "I didn't mean that. You are a good Mum, like I've been tellin' you . Take right good care of Dawn, you do. I just think that-"

"Stop," said Buffy. "Please just, stop."

Annoyed that the brief peace she and Spike had found was ruined, Buffy forced herself to be calm.

"I need you to trust my judgment on this. If someone needs help, I'm gonna give it."

"But what about the help you need?" Spike countered. "You've already got more than enough on yer plate."

"Please," said Buffy again. It was a simple plea, but an effective one.

Spike's eyes closed for a moment, as he took in a series of unneeded breaths.

He'd hear her out. It was the least he could do.

"I've known Jonathan a long time," she said, evenly. "He's not dangerous. Stupid, yes, but not risky." When Spike still looked unconvinced she got a little louder again and said, "He's Jonathan for Pete's sake! Idiot loser boy!"

"Umm," Jonathan murmured, shifting uncomfortably on his feet.

"No offense," Buffy added.

He closed his mouth again.

"You may know him, but his cronies ain't so innocent," Spike pointed out. "I know boys, an' the seedy things that go on in their heads."

Buffy pouted. She didn't know what a crony was and she didn't care to find out. The argument was exhausting, and she had been tired before it even began.

"Look," she said, finally, as she turned to the boy in question. It was weird how she considered him to be a boy, seeing as they were both the same year in High School. "If you do anything to hurt my sister, or endanger her in any way, Spike has my permission to eat you."

Going from offended to contemplative, Jonathan enquired, "Do you mean that in like a… gay way?"

Spike rolled his eyes skyward. He was beginning to at least agree with Buffy on the 'stupid idiot' part.

"I'm a vampire," he affirmed. "Grr, nasty. With the murder and the sucking of blood!"

"Right, right," said Jonathan. "That's also, y'know… kinda gross. I mean, not that gayness is gross, or anything, it's just not that I ever found it appealing and, I'm making this worse. Are you sure I shouldn't go?"

Buffy and Spike looked at each other for a long moment, at the end of which Spike gave in and repeated Buffy's earlier sentiment: "It's her house."

With that settled, they all set off towards the basement, where Buffy was going to set up a spare camping bed they had stored down there.

On her way out the living room door, as she passed Spike, she gave his hand a squeeze, which he took to mean as thank you, for thinking of Dawn but also respecting her decision. And there it was again: hope that things would get better if they stuck together.

"Buffy confided in me that her baby apparently has no heartbeat," said Giles. "Beyond that, she doesn't know much more. Could you tell me, so that I might explain it better to her, what has occurred? Do you think it likely she'll have a stillborn child?"

The doctor looked somewhat horrified at these questions.

"I told Miss Summers that the test she took likely gave her a false reading," he said.

"So you don't believe her to be pregnant?" Giles pressed, determined for complete clarity.

"I know she's not," said the doctor. "There wasn't a heartbeat. There wasn't anything. I'm sorry if she got the impression that she maybe had conceived but the child had not survived, but as far as I could tell from the ultrasound, there hadn't been anything growing there."

Giles pondered this, wondering why there had been so much confusion when simply asking the doctor for clarification could have explained everything. By the time he came out of his reverie, the doctor had left to go speak with someone else.

The watcher concluded that there must be something he was missing. Surely Buffy had some cause for concern, to make her believe that a sterile vampire had made her pregnant.

More research was needed but, disinclined as he was to ask Buffy any more questions until he'd answered some of his own, his first instinct was to go to Willow for more help. With that option not available, he did the next best thing…