TITLE: No Matter What 9/10
AUTHOR: Goddess Isa
EMAIL: goddessisa@aol.com
SUMMARY: Dum, dum, da-dum, dum, dum, da-dum.....
SPOILER: Pangs, IWRY - Doomed and Hush both took place before Christmas and the New Year and all. You'll see my explanation below.o DISTRIBUTION: Sandee, of course - My site - http://members.aol.com/slaythis99/slay.html - Crystal and Butterfly if they want it - A Soul's Redemption - Anyone else - sure, just email me & lmk where it's going - I like seeing my name in print =)
RATING: TV-14 - for now
DISCLAIMER: Characters you know belong to Poophead Joss. I didn't come up with that name for him, but it's *so* true. Characters you do *not* know are mine. And no, I'm not giving you any names. You've gotta read the fic. =) The song, 'No Matter What' is what the title is derived from and it's by Boyzone. 'Blessed' is by Christina Aguilera and this is *not* the first fic of mine you'll see it in
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is for Ashley - thanks for the kickass challenge idea! And thank you again for sending me the story I was missing. You're the best.
AUTHOR'S NOTES2: Okie, these are the ones that explain the timeline, so you may want to read it to understand. Buffy visited Angel in Los Angeles on November 23rd. Something Blue, Hush and Doomed make up the weeks 'till Christmas, and Buffy *NEVER* kissed Riley. He asked her out but she didn't accept. And now we're at December seventeenth, when all the students are packing up to go home for the holidays.
03/16/00



//No matter if the sun don't shine

Or if the skies are blue

No matter what the ending

My life began with you\\


"Does it hurt?" Angel asked, wincing. He'd known for awhile that Buffy was going to breast feed their daughter, but watching her do it was a whole other story.

"It's not pleasant," she replied dryly. "But I can handle it."

"Do you know how amazing you are?" he asked, just staring at the two of them.

"Oh no," Buffy carefully lifted Ashley up to her shoulder and burped her. "Don't even start that, all right? I look like shit, I'm tired, my breasts hurt, I feel like I've been stuck in bed forever and I'm starving for some chocolate which I can't have because the baby can't have it."

"I'm sorry, baby," Angel took Ashley from her so she could finish the piece of pizza he'd snuck in to her.

"It's okay," she yawned. "I get to go home in the morning, thank goodness. I'm gonna sleep for like half a day, if you don't mind."

"Not at all. I'll take care of Ashley."

"Good," she smiled. "When you get me a piece of this for dinner, bring me breadsticks too, k?"

"Sure. Buffy?"

"Hmm?" she was too busy eating to notice that he'd momentarily put Ashley in her bed and taken something out of his pocket.

"I got you something," he handed her a little velvet box.

"Angel," she wiped her hands on a napkin and took the box. "What is this?"

"Open it." he sat on the side of the bed and watched happily as she opened the box and her mouth dropped.

"Is this what I think this is?"

"If you think it's an engagement ring, then yes." he took it from her hands, got down on his knees and slid the ring on her finger. "Buffy, will you make me the happiest man in the world and marry me?"

She nodded and started to cry. "What took you so long?"

"Nerves," he admitted.

She laughed through her tears. "You were afraid of little ole' me?"

"Hey, little ole' you can kick my ass."

"Hey!" she said defensively. "I only did it once and you deserved it."


*****


Buffy had *no* idea how much planning went into a wedding. They'd decided to have it on the pier where he'd kissed her on November 23rd, the anniversary of Ashley's conception. Her head was spinning with florists, caterers, dress designers, Cordelia wanting to do everything like a huge Hollywood wedding and her mother phoning every few hours and telling her how horrible she was and what a big mistake she was making.

"What about this dress?" Buffy came out of the fitting room in a strapless white gown that was form fitting and had a slim skirt. There was a slit all the way up the thigh and it looked sort of--

"Frumpy." Cordelia said flatly.

"I was gonna say that, but she beat me to it." Anya admitted.

"I thought so too." Buffy laughed.

"It looks like something your mom would wear," Willow added as Buffy pulled the curtain back and started sliding out of the dress.

"Yeah, well we may as well not even go there. She's not coming to the wedding."

"WHAT?" all three girls demanded.

"I mean, you even asked a comatose Faith to come and your own mother isn't attending?" Willow said, shocked.

"Nope. She called and told me this morning. And I've got my cell phone off but the Caller ID on it tells me she's called seven times."

"Why?" Anya asked, opening a bag of M & Ms and not offering to share.

"Who knows." Buffy came out in a sleeveless off-the-shoulder gown with an old fashioned cameo in the center of the bodice and a lace skirt. "I dunno, I kind of like this one."

"It's beautiful, Buffy." Willow said.

"I might get it," she spun around in front of the mirror. "'Cause I like it better than any of the others I've tried."

"Put the one with the roses on." Cordy suggested.

Buffy went back into the room and came out a moment later in another strapless gown. The front of it was all silk and the full skirt gathered in the back with a bunch of simple purple roses.

"It suits you," Anya said.

Buffy stared at her for a moment in surprise and then looked to the others. "What do you think?"

"I like it," Cordy said.

"I like the last one," Willow admitted.

"There's one more," Buffy said. "I don't know how I'll ever decide."

The eleventh turned out to be the charm. Also an off-the-shoulder dress, it was shinier than the other dresses, a brighter white. Tiny Austrian crystals were spread over the bodice of the gown and lightly sprinkled across the big tulle skirt. It was quite full, but not so much that she couldn't really move around in it.

"I love it!" she said enthusiastically.

"It's the perfect dress for you, Buffy." Willow said. "It's all right," Anya allowed.

"It goes nicely with the dress I want to wear." Cordelia said. Buffy rolled her eyes and ignored her.

"I'm getting it." she spun around a few more times before going back to change out of it and Willow sighed. "I guess we should try our dresses on now, make sure they fit."

By the time Buffy was back in her own dress, the girls had changed into their blue silk gowns. Buffy told each of them how pretty they looked and ignored Cordelia's pleas to wear purple instead of blue.

They paid for their dresses and went to TGI Friday's for dinner. On the way out, Buffy saw a shooting star dance across the sky. She took it as a good-luck charm that everything with her wedding would be fine.


*****


"It's pouring!" Buffy complained. She plopped down on Cordelia's bed and started to cry. "We'll never be able to use the pier if it's all wet! Our dresses will get dirty and--"

"Buffy, stop." Cordelia said. "Everything will be fine."

"How do you know?" Buffy demanded.

"Because I said so." she said this as though it made perfect sense. "And also, because I know Willow and Anya aren't really out replacing a pair of nylons."

Buffy sat up. "What are they doing?"

"I dunno." Cordy shrugged.

"Cordelia."

"Buffy."

Smirking, the bride picked up a pillow and walloped Cordelia with it. The brunette grabbed another and they had an all out war. The doorbell rang and Cordy ran off to answer it.

"Antoine, you're here! Great! This is Buffy." she led the hairdresser into the bedroom and when he saw Buffy, he made a face. Her hair was a total mess from the pillow fight.

"Oh. Well, we certainly have our work cut out for us, don't we?"

Buffy smoothed her hair down and then smiled at him. "I'm ready whenever you are."

He pulled a chair over and pointed to it. "Sit. You read, I'll work."

Buffy shrugged, grabbed her copy of Memoirs of a Geisha out of her bag and let him get to work.


*****


"Dum, dum, da-dum," Xander hummed as he watched Buffy walk down the aisle. "Dum, dum, da-dum."

"Stop it." Spike chided.

"Like they can hear me."

"Stop it." they say Giles mouth. It made both guys crack up.

"You guys are sooo immature," Cordelia commented.

Giles gave Buffy a kiss on the cheek and handed her over to Angel. "Take good care of her," he whispered.

Angel nodded and took Buffy's hands in his, their eyes never parting during the entire ceremony. Buffy had asked that Cordy play a couple of songs for Angel, and the last one was one he hadn't heard, although as soon as it started and he listened to the lyrics, he understood the logic behind it.


//When I think

How life used to be

Always walking in the shadows

Then I look

At what you've given me

I feel like dancing on my tiptoes

I must say

Everyday I wake

And realize you're at my side

I know I'm truly

Blessed

For everything you give me

Blessed

For all the tenderness you show
Do my best

With every breath that's in me

Blessed

To make sure you never go

There are times

That test your faith

'Till you feel you might surrender

And baby I'm

I'm not ashamed to say

That my hopes were growing slender

You walked by

In the nick of time

Looking like an answered prayer

I know I'm truly

Blessed

For everything you give me

Blessed

For all the tenderness you show
Do my best

With every breath that's in me

Blessed

To make sure you never go


I'm blessed

With love and understanding

Blessed

When I hear you call my name

I'll do my best

With faith that's never-ending

Blessed

To make sure you feel the same


Deep inside of me"

You fill me with your gentle touch

I know I'm truly

Blessed

For everything you give me

Blessed

For all the tenderness you show

Do my best

With every breath that's in me

Blessed

To make sure you never go\\


It was quick for a wedding, simple too, but Buffy had never wanted a huge affair with tons of relatives she didn't even know. After partying on the beach for hours, she and Angel took a limo to the airport and headed to Hawaii so, as Cordy had said, they could waste a perfectly good beach by making love in their hotel room all week.