Disclaimer: I do not own any characters portrayed or mentioned in this work of fiction, all belong to Joss Whedon and his merry band of cohorts. Please don't sue me, I really own nothing except my computer, and a wonderful cold I've developed (well, you can take the cold.). Besides, I'm a minor. My mom doesn't really have anything either. Oh! But Cynthia is mine ^^V. Not that anyone cares, but. . .
Spoilers: Let's just say "I'm pretty sure, yeah." I remember thinking 'that's a spoiler' when I wrote something, but I don't remember what, and I don't feel like reading through the whole thing to find it. So let's say: Minor to major spoilers from 'Welcome to the Hellmouth' up through 'Older and Far Away', at which point it becomes A/U. Oh! That reminds me --
Props: To Joss Whedon, for centering an entire episode of 'Buffy' around alternate dimensions. I took that as permission to write fanfiction, since all fanfiction is is one alternate universe after another breaking away from the 'canon' dimension of the show. So 'Yay!'
Notes: I'm sick. VERY sick. So sick that I'm asleep more than I am awake, and when I'm awake, I feel like I should be sleeping. This happened about half-way through my writing this chapter - I'm sure you can figure out where, because my writing sort of goes downhill. I'd apologize for that, as well as the sort-of cliffhanger ending - but I don't want to. I feel I did a pretty darn good job, considering I feel like crap. So please review, wish me better, tell me I'm awesome (you'd be surprised at what good medicine ego-boosts are), whatever. Or e-mail me at 'sailor_silver_fox@hotmail.com' . I really like getting e-mail, and talking to people. I like getting something in my in-box other than junkmail, too. Okay, read the story now.
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Something was poking her in the back. It was hard, and right below her shoulder blades. Reaching an arm behind her, she pulled it out and stared at it. A boot. Her boot, she realized somewhat dimly. ((I was sure I got those off before we made it downstairs.)) Remembering the previous night made Buffy grin happily. Somehow, they'd made it to Spike's bed sometime during the night . . . or morning, she wasn't sure. Now, she clutched the sheet to her chest as she sat up, searching for Spike. He lay at the other end of the bed, his head barely resting on the edge. She took a moment to appreciate his lean, muscular body, completely devoid of any covers, then decided that she could appreciate it much better when he was awake.
She lightly scraped the bottom of the foot closest to her, making her way slowly up his leg, just barely brushing the underside of his knee, running her fingertips along his thigh, around to the front . . . .
Her hand was inches from its goal when Spike grabbed her by the wrist and yanked, making her topple and lay spread over him. "You break it, you buy it," he murmured, lazily kissing the sensitive skin behind her ear.
Buffy frowned. "You break it, you buy it? That's the best you can come up with?" She pulled back to look him in the eye. Spike merely smiled unabashedly. "Give us a minute, luv. Witty comebacks only work when I can think them up. Thanks to last night, I don't imagine I'll be doing much of anything for a while."
Buffy grinned happily. "It was fun, wasn't it?" Spike simply chuckled his agreement. Sighing contentedly, Buffy raised her arm to glance at her watch - which had miraculously made it through the night. What she saw made her groan. "It's almost eleven! We were supposed to meet at the Magic Box almost an hour ago!" Fortunately, it was a Saturday, so she wouldn't have the double guilt of not getting Dawn off to school on time. Still, she was going to show up at the shop and all of her friends were going to know exactly what she'd been doing all night. She hoped Xander didn't spend the whole time glaring.
She got off the bed, rummaging around the room for her clothes. She still wasn't as casual about being naked as Spike was ((but then, a hundred years of having the same body would make me confident too)) she thought. Pulling on her shirt, she glanced at him surreptitiously. ((And what a fine body it is.)) She waited until he too was dressed, then explained, "I'm gonna go home and take a quick shower. You go to the Magic Box and tell them. . . well, maybe not about last night. Just tell them I'm on my way."
Spike made a stern face and gave her a mock-salute. She was about to head upstairs when he grabbed her arm, spun her around and kissed her, quickly but deeply. "See ya later," he said huskily. Before Buffy could decide to jump him right there, Spike headed off to the tunnels under Sunnydale.
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"I don't think Buffy's gonna be here for a while," Willow said to no one in particular. It had been twenty minutes and Buffy hadn't shown up. She would have been worried, except Spike was missing, too. Giles had told her the other night that Spike had dragged Buffy off to patrol, and had seemed rather impatient about it. It wasn't too hard to add Buffy plus Spike and equal . . . well, what they were researching. Obviously, the whole baby thing wasn't going to put a cramp in Buffy and Spike's sex life. ((Buffy and Spike //have// a sex life. I didn't want to think about that.))
"Okay then," Anya said, pulling a white cardboard package closer to her on the table. Xander had arrived carrying them for her, and she had happily announced that they were the bridesmaids' dresses. Willow was afraid to see them. She liked looking pretty, but even if - miraculously - Anya had picked out nice-looking dresses, she didn't like getting //that// dressed up. And standing in front of people: still not one of her strong-suits. "Just because Buffy isn't here doesn't mean we can't do research."
Anya pouted. "But, I want to make sure everything's ready for the wedding!"
Giles frowned. "When is the wedding, exactly?" He refrained from saying that he hadn't gotten an invitation. Technically, he wasn't supposed to be in the States anymore.
"A week," Anya stated. Giles rose his eyebrows. "Why so soon? You only got engaged . . . well, you only //announced// your engagement a few months ago."
"Five!" Anya declared vehemently. "We announced it five months ago, and we've actually been engaged for almost a year. That's not soon. That is an incredibly long time! I have already wasted a year of my life waiting to marry Xander, I don't want to waste anymore!"
Xander was a bit more calm when he told Giles, "She's trying to catch up with Buffy." At Giles confused look, he elaborated, "Buffy's already . . . starting a family," he said distainfully, "and Anya doesn't want to be left behind. Something to that effect."
"You make it sound like a bad thing to want that," Anya sniffed.
"Okay, research?" Willow interrupted the possible argument. "Remember: friend who got pregnant by a vampire? Looking for reasons 'how', or possibly 'why'."
Giles dutifully picked up an older volume. He decided to send for some of his books, in the likelihood that these weren't enough. "Do you have any theories, of how this...this happened?"
Willow shook her head. "Buffy's pretty sure it happened at the beginning of January, um, the..." she pulled out a small piece of paper from her purse, "the eighth of January. So we've been looking up any prophecies that happen around then. I already checked the Almanac, and it was a regular moon that night, not even full. Just, anything that catches your attention, really," she said with an apologetic shrug. It was a pretty broad category, with many books to sift through, but it was all they had. She was probably the only one really working hard at it - not that she blamed the others for being bored. But the more she worked at the mystery, the more useful she felt, and it had been such a long time since she'd felt useful, really useful. She hadn't been able to do anything to get them out of the house on Buffy's birthday - she hadn't even tried. She'd felt ashamed that she had hidden those supplies away in the attic. She had figured out that the doublemeat burgers were vegetables, but that had been negated because she'd felt Amy's magick coursing through her the entire time. The only time she'd felt really useful was when she'd found out that the Nerd Trio had been the ones to make Buffy invisible, and how many months ago had that been?
Giles paused in his perusal of the book laid out in front of him. He frowned, then looked up at Willow. "Do you have Tara's phone number?"
Willow frowned, but nodded. "Sure, uh, why?" she asked as she shuffled through her purse.
"I think she may have some information that could be useful," he said as he took the piece of paper, then headed for the phone by the cash register. "I spoke with Buffy last night, and she told me... a few things. It's really her business, but I would like to speak to Tara about it anyway." He held a brief conversation with Tara, who agreed to come and speak with him about the research she'd done on Buffy's resurrection.
"Hello, all!" Spike called jauntily as he emerged through the basement door.
"Where's Buffy?" Dawn asked, thankful that Spike was there. Now she'd have an excuse to goof off. She liked doing research, but this was so //incredibly// boring.
Spike shrugged as he grabbed the back of the chair beside Dawn and spun it so he could straddle it backwards. "She's probably at home, or on her way here. Said she wanted a shower." He rose an inquisitive eyebrow at Xander's dirty look. It wasn't his fault Harris couldn't handle the fact that Buffy was his. The whelp was just like that Riley bloke - he didn't understand that Buffy needed someone who wasn't normal, because she wasn't normal, and what she //needed// was someone who understood her, as well as her role as Slayer. Stupid mortal boys, anyway.
The bell above the front door jingled as it opened, allowing Tara and Buffy to enter. As they made their way to the table, Buffy was saying, "...hate it! Not, y'know, the actual pregnancy thing, but the whole 'hormones changing' thing. I started crying because my loofa had a hole in it. I cry at the freakiest things, it sucks! One of these days, I'm gonna be shopping, and start crying because they don't have the cereal I want, or something."
Tara nodded as she pulled an extra chair up beside Willow at the already-crowded table. A fact that wasn't lost on Willow, who let herself beam happily for a moment.
Buffy stared at all her friends, looking so cozy together, and frowned, trying to find another chair. ((Great,)) she thought, feeling her chest tighten and her eyes start to burn. ((This really sucks, cryin' 'cause I don't have anyplace to sit.)) Before she started crying though, a hand latched onto her wrist and tugged. The next thing she knew, she was sitting sideways on Spike's lap, an arm wrapped around her waist to support her. She was a little too happy for the small gesture, but she didn't really care. As long as she wasn't crying! She snuggled up against Spike, twining an arm around his neck to secure herself more, then turned to her friends. "So, what's up?"
Giles spoke up. "Ah, Buffy, I - had a thought. Remember what we spoke of last night, after... after Spike went out? I thought perhaps that could have something to do with your... condition." Buffy nodded, but didn't seem to make the connection he wanted. "I thought, you could fill the others in on what you had Tara do for you."
Buffy nodded when she realized what he meant. He wanted everyone to know about what Tara found out about the spell done on her, but first she should explain why she'd had Tara research it. They'd ask anyway, if she didn't tell them. "Well, see, Spike found out that he could hit me--" she held up her hand when everyone looked shocked, "and //only// me. I thought I..." she swallowed, not really wanting to explain how she'd felt, before Tara had told her there was nothing wrong with her. Spike's arm tightened around her waist, giving her silent encouragement - or an apology for his part in that whole drama, she wasn't sure. She took it for both, and continued. "I thought I had come back wrong, somehow. I didn't want Willow to research it, because she'd just stopped using magic and it would be a bad idea to have her looking through all those books... and, I didn't want to tell her that I thought she'd done something wrong. So I had Tara research it for me. Turns out, it's nothing more than some cellular changes."
"Cell phones?" Xander asked doubtfully.
Willow caught Tara's gaze and rolled her eyes, making Tara smile as she explained, "No, cellular, like, her cells? Like I told Buffy, it's basically just like a deep, molecular tan. I mean, Spike's chip was made by scientists who didn't know anything about magic. It's no surprise really that he can hit her. But she didn't come back wrong at all. Just...different."
"Now," Giles took over, "I was wondering if that could have anything to do with Buffy conceiving ... with Spike."
Tara scrunched her face up doubtfully as she reviewed all the things she'd learned of the spell. Finally, she shook her head slowly but certainly. "I, I really don't think so. Because if anything, the spell would have made Buffy incapable to conceive at all, not..."
Buffy waved her free arm in the air to catch their attention. "Hi, yes, I'm still in the room? Please don't act like I'm not, 'kay?" She was satisfied when Tara ducked her head in embarrassment and Giles looked down, rubbing the bridge of his nose, duly chastised.
"So... that brings us back to where we've been for the last, what, two weeks?" Xander asked, he himself not even sure if he was irritated or just trying to keep the score straight.
Spike dropped his head against the back of his chair, holding a hand up and making an 'o' with his thumb and forefinger. "Goose-egg."
"More research?" Dawn asked helplessly. She was afraid if she had to read anymore of these dusty old books, she'd need glasses. She remembered when Spike had helped her get Giles journal, and she'd read some of it before he'd taken over. Even the books that were printed somehow looked like Giles handwriting - small and incredibly hard to decipher the letters. Who ever heard of making 's's look like 'f's, and spelling 'old' o-l-d-e? And they spelled things wrong, like color and smolder and flavor. Maybe she'd been too hasty when she'd asked to be included in the researching...
Xander made a quick late-lunch run at about two, and they took a half-hour break to eat and chat about anything trivial. Giles told them about England, and the young woman that had answered Willow's phone call. Cynthia was actually a Watcher, who was still training. Unlike him, she was a first-generation Watcher, but had known a Slayer as a child. She had only known of her friend's alternate life after she was killed, and her death had inspired Cynthia to become a Watcher, and perhaps help some other young girl who was thrust into the strange world of vampires. He described Cynthia as being tall and somewhat willowy, with the traditional Welsh characteristics of pale skin, black hair and blue eyes. He admitted rather embarrassedly that he thought she might have a crush on him, and everyone ribbed him for it for a good five to ten minutes. And then they went back to research, munching on one of several kinds of chips or other munchy things set out on the table.
It was only ten minutes past sunset when Spike decided he needed a cigarette, //right now//. He took hold of Buffy's upper arms and stood her up, then stood up himself. "I need a smoke," he said, not waiting for anyone to reply before heading for the front door. Anya glanced up from her book and called after him, "No loitering! You'll scare away the customers!" Spike's response was to flip her off.
Xander sighed, watching Spike exit the shop like everyone else. "Thank god." He turned to face the others. "If he poked me one more time with that pencil, I was gonna use it on him. Right in the chest!"
Buffy shook her head as she sat in the chair Spike had vacated. "He's just fidgety. I think this whole 'baby' thing is making him more nervous than me."
Willow glanced over at her friend. "You know, it might be a good idea to get some books on pregnancy from the library. You and Spike could read them together even, and figure out what you might be dealing with." She gave a bright smile. "And tonight, I'll even look up some baby sites, to make the research more well-rounded."
Anya glanced up from the book she wasn't really paying attention to, wanting to add her two cents. "Has anyone thought that this baby might just be because this is Buffy?" When everyone looked uncomprehendingly at her, she made a grand gesture of slamming the book shut. "I know, I haven't been part of the whole 'Scooby gang' from the very beginning, but I've heard the stories. Buffy is the first Slayer to have been killed, and yet come back - and I'm not talking by magic. Xander is very proud of bringing Buffy back when she drowned." Buffy shivered involuntarily at the mention of her drowning - she'd had a slight phobia about water ever since then - but Anya continued, unphased. "Buffy is the reason there are two Slayers in the world, where before there was only one. Giles, you're always saying how special Buffy is, how unique a girl and Slayer she is, how extraordinary--"
"Anya, we get it," Xander said, saving Giles from anything more embarrassing - the older man's face was already rather pink because of the words that he had indeed said about Buffy on numerous occassions. He had never really said them around Buffy, though, for fear of her thinking him 'sappy'.
Anya shrugged. "My point is, Buffy IS special - she's done all these things that no Slayer has ever done before. Made two Slayers instead of just the one. She's lived long enough to become lawfully legal. She's defeated a god!" She took a deep breath before continuing more calmly, "Has anyone considered the fact that strange things happen to Buffy all the time? Maybe it's not some mystical prophecy that made Buffy become pregnant. Maybe it's just //her//."
Everyone was silent until Buffy said, "I'm not going to be insulted by that, despite how it sounds. Because she's right." She paused to set her gaze on every one of her friends, old and new. "I'm the first Slayer to tell people about being the Chosen One - which I'm not, anymore. I'm //one of// the Chosen Ones. I'm the first Slayer to go against the Council. I'm the first Slayer to stand up to the Council instead of being cowed by them. Have you ever heard of a Slayer dating a vampire? Have you ever heard of a Slayer dating //period//? And yet on my first try, I somehow find the one vampire in the whole world with a soul! I sent my lover to hell! These aren't Slayer things, they're //Buffy// things! I try to have a normal life, and the Powers make it into some big joke! 'This Slayer thinks she's special'," she imitated what she thought the Powers That Be were saying, "'We'll make her special by putting her through more trials than any other Slayer in history. See how special she feels //then//.'" The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. She and Giles had gone through the Watchers' Diaries on more than one occasion, and never once had any Slayer been through as much as she had.
She was getting ready to go on a major rant, when the bell above the front door rang, signaling Spike's return. She glanced over, more to just reassure herself that he was alright - she was getting paranoid like that lately - and was surprised to see him 'escorting' another person with him. She stood up quickly, the anger from how life was treating her transferring to this man, who seemed to be in cahoots with life. "Jonathan!"
To Be Continued. . .
Spoilers: Let's just say "I'm pretty sure, yeah." I remember thinking 'that's a spoiler' when I wrote something, but I don't remember what, and I don't feel like reading through the whole thing to find it. So let's say: Minor to major spoilers from 'Welcome to the Hellmouth' up through 'Older and Far Away', at which point it becomes A/U. Oh! That reminds me --
Props: To Joss Whedon, for centering an entire episode of 'Buffy' around alternate dimensions. I took that as permission to write fanfiction, since all fanfiction is is one alternate universe after another breaking away from the 'canon' dimension of the show. So 'Yay!'
Notes: I'm sick. VERY sick. So sick that I'm asleep more than I am awake, and when I'm awake, I feel like I should be sleeping. This happened about half-way through my writing this chapter - I'm sure you can figure out where, because my writing sort of goes downhill. I'd apologize for that, as well as the sort-of cliffhanger ending - but I don't want to. I feel I did a pretty darn good job, considering I feel like crap. So please review, wish me better, tell me I'm awesome (you'd be surprised at what good medicine ego-boosts are), whatever. Or e-mail me at 'sailor_silver_fox@hotmail.com' . I really like getting e-mail, and talking to people. I like getting something in my in-box other than junkmail, too. Okay, read the story now.
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Something was poking her in the back. It was hard, and right below her shoulder blades. Reaching an arm behind her, she pulled it out and stared at it. A boot. Her boot, she realized somewhat dimly. ((I was sure I got those off before we made it downstairs.)) Remembering the previous night made Buffy grin happily. Somehow, they'd made it to Spike's bed sometime during the night . . . or morning, she wasn't sure. Now, she clutched the sheet to her chest as she sat up, searching for Spike. He lay at the other end of the bed, his head barely resting on the edge. She took a moment to appreciate his lean, muscular body, completely devoid of any covers, then decided that she could appreciate it much better when he was awake.
She lightly scraped the bottom of the foot closest to her, making her way slowly up his leg, just barely brushing the underside of his knee, running her fingertips along his thigh, around to the front . . . .
Her hand was inches from its goal when Spike grabbed her by the wrist and yanked, making her topple and lay spread over him. "You break it, you buy it," he murmured, lazily kissing the sensitive skin behind her ear.
Buffy frowned. "You break it, you buy it? That's the best you can come up with?" She pulled back to look him in the eye. Spike merely smiled unabashedly. "Give us a minute, luv. Witty comebacks only work when I can think them up. Thanks to last night, I don't imagine I'll be doing much of anything for a while."
Buffy grinned happily. "It was fun, wasn't it?" Spike simply chuckled his agreement. Sighing contentedly, Buffy raised her arm to glance at her watch - which had miraculously made it through the night. What she saw made her groan. "It's almost eleven! We were supposed to meet at the Magic Box almost an hour ago!" Fortunately, it was a Saturday, so she wouldn't have the double guilt of not getting Dawn off to school on time. Still, she was going to show up at the shop and all of her friends were going to know exactly what she'd been doing all night. She hoped Xander didn't spend the whole time glaring.
She got off the bed, rummaging around the room for her clothes. She still wasn't as casual about being naked as Spike was ((but then, a hundred years of having the same body would make me confident too)) she thought. Pulling on her shirt, she glanced at him surreptitiously. ((And what a fine body it is.)) She waited until he too was dressed, then explained, "I'm gonna go home and take a quick shower. You go to the Magic Box and tell them. . . well, maybe not about last night. Just tell them I'm on my way."
Spike made a stern face and gave her a mock-salute. She was about to head upstairs when he grabbed her arm, spun her around and kissed her, quickly but deeply. "See ya later," he said huskily. Before Buffy could decide to jump him right there, Spike headed off to the tunnels under Sunnydale.
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"I don't think Buffy's gonna be here for a while," Willow said to no one in particular. It had been twenty minutes and Buffy hadn't shown up. She would have been worried, except Spike was missing, too. Giles had told her the other night that Spike had dragged Buffy off to patrol, and had seemed rather impatient about it. It wasn't too hard to add Buffy plus Spike and equal . . . well, what they were researching. Obviously, the whole baby thing wasn't going to put a cramp in Buffy and Spike's sex life. ((Buffy and Spike //have// a sex life. I didn't want to think about that.))
"Okay then," Anya said, pulling a white cardboard package closer to her on the table. Xander had arrived carrying them for her, and she had happily announced that they were the bridesmaids' dresses. Willow was afraid to see them. She liked looking pretty, but even if - miraculously - Anya had picked out nice-looking dresses, she didn't like getting //that// dressed up. And standing in front of people: still not one of her strong-suits. "Just because Buffy isn't here doesn't mean we can't do research."
Anya pouted. "But, I want to make sure everything's ready for the wedding!"
Giles frowned. "When is the wedding, exactly?" He refrained from saying that he hadn't gotten an invitation. Technically, he wasn't supposed to be in the States anymore.
"A week," Anya stated. Giles rose his eyebrows. "Why so soon? You only got engaged . . . well, you only //announced// your engagement a few months ago."
"Five!" Anya declared vehemently. "We announced it five months ago, and we've actually been engaged for almost a year. That's not soon. That is an incredibly long time! I have already wasted a year of my life waiting to marry Xander, I don't want to waste anymore!"
Xander was a bit more calm when he told Giles, "She's trying to catch up with Buffy." At Giles confused look, he elaborated, "Buffy's already . . . starting a family," he said distainfully, "and Anya doesn't want to be left behind. Something to that effect."
"You make it sound like a bad thing to want that," Anya sniffed.
"Okay, research?" Willow interrupted the possible argument. "Remember: friend who got pregnant by a vampire? Looking for reasons 'how', or possibly 'why'."
Giles dutifully picked up an older volume. He decided to send for some of his books, in the likelihood that these weren't enough. "Do you have any theories, of how this...this happened?"
Willow shook her head. "Buffy's pretty sure it happened at the beginning of January, um, the..." she pulled out a small piece of paper from her purse, "the eighth of January. So we've been looking up any prophecies that happen around then. I already checked the Almanac, and it was a regular moon that night, not even full. Just, anything that catches your attention, really," she said with an apologetic shrug. It was a pretty broad category, with many books to sift through, but it was all they had. She was probably the only one really working hard at it - not that she blamed the others for being bored. But the more she worked at the mystery, the more useful she felt, and it had been such a long time since she'd felt useful, really useful. She hadn't been able to do anything to get them out of the house on Buffy's birthday - she hadn't even tried. She'd felt ashamed that she had hidden those supplies away in the attic. She had figured out that the doublemeat burgers were vegetables, but that had been negated because she'd felt Amy's magick coursing through her the entire time. The only time she'd felt really useful was when she'd found out that the Nerd Trio had been the ones to make Buffy invisible, and how many months ago had that been?
Giles paused in his perusal of the book laid out in front of him. He frowned, then looked up at Willow. "Do you have Tara's phone number?"
Willow frowned, but nodded. "Sure, uh, why?" she asked as she shuffled through her purse.
"I think she may have some information that could be useful," he said as he took the piece of paper, then headed for the phone by the cash register. "I spoke with Buffy last night, and she told me... a few things. It's really her business, but I would like to speak to Tara about it anyway." He held a brief conversation with Tara, who agreed to come and speak with him about the research she'd done on Buffy's resurrection.
"Hello, all!" Spike called jauntily as he emerged through the basement door.
"Where's Buffy?" Dawn asked, thankful that Spike was there. Now she'd have an excuse to goof off. She liked doing research, but this was so //incredibly// boring.
Spike shrugged as he grabbed the back of the chair beside Dawn and spun it so he could straddle it backwards. "She's probably at home, or on her way here. Said she wanted a shower." He rose an inquisitive eyebrow at Xander's dirty look. It wasn't his fault Harris couldn't handle the fact that Buffy was his. The whelp was just like that Riley bloke - he didn't understand that Buffy needed someone who wasn't normal, because she wasn't normal, and what she //needed// was someone who understood her, as well as her role as Slayer. Stupid mortal boys, anyway.
The bell above the front door jingled as it opened, allowing Tara and Buffy to enter. As they made their way to the table, Buffy was saying, "...hate it! Not, y'know, the actual pregnancy thing, but the whole 'hormones changing' thing. I started crying because my loofa had a hole in it. I cry at the freakiest things, it sucks! One of these days, I'm gonna be shopping, and start crying because they don't have the cereal I want, or something."
Tara nodded as she pulled an extra chair up beside Willow at the already-crowded table. A fact that wasn't lost on Willow, who let herself beam happily for a moment.
Buffy stared at all her friends, looking so cozy together, and frowned, trying to find another chair. ((Great,)) she thought, feeling her chest tighten and her eyes start to burn. ((This really sucks, cryin' 'cause I don't have anyplace to sit.)) Before she started crying though, a hand latched onto her wrist and tugged. The next thing she knew, she was sitting sideways on Spike's lap, an arm wrapped around her waist to support her. She was a little too happy for the small gesture, but she didn't really care. As long as she wasn't crying! She snuggled up against Spike, twining an arm around his neck to secure herself more, then turned to her friends. "So, what's up?"
Giles spoke up. "Ah, Buffy, I - had a thought. Remember what we spoke of last night, after... after Spike went out? I thought perhaps that could have something to do with your... condition." Buffy nodded, but didn't seem to make the connection he wanted. "I thought, you could fill the others in on what you had Tara do for you."
Buffy nodded when she realized what he meant. He wanted everyone to know about what Tara found out about the spell done on her, but first she should explain why she'd had Tara research it. They'd ask anyway, if she didn't tell them. "Well, see, Spike found out that he could hit me--" she held up her hand when everyone looked shocked, "and //only// me. I thought I..." she swallowed, not really wanting to explain how she'd felt, before Tara had told her there was nothing wrong with her. Spike's arm tightened around her waist, giving her silent encouragement - or an apology for his part in that whole drama, she wasn't sure. She took it for both, and continued. "I thought I had come back wrong, somehow. I didn't want Willow to research it, because she'd just stopped using magic and it would be a bad idea to have her looking through all those books... and, I didn't want to tell her that I thought she'd done something wrong. So I had Tara research it for me. Turns out, it's nothing more than some cellular changes."
"Cell phones?" Xander asked doubtfully.
Willow caught Tara's gaze and rolled her eyes, making Tara smile as she explained, "No, cellular, like, her cells? Like I told Buffy, it's basically just like a deep, molecular tan. I mean, Spike's chip was made by scientists who didn't know anything about magic. It's no surprise really that he can hit her. But she didn't come back wrong at all. Just...different."
"Now," Giles took over, "I was wondering if that could have anything to do with Buffy conceiving ... with Spike."
Tara scrunched her face up doubtfully as she reviewed all the things she'd learned of the spell. Finally, she shook her head slowly but certainly. "I, I really don't think so. Because if anything, the spell would have made Buffy incapable to conceive at all, not..."
Buffy waved her free arm in the air to catch their attention. "Hi, yes, I'm still in the room? Please don't act like I'm not, 'kay?" She was satisfied when Tara ducked her head in embarrassment and Giles looked down, rubbing the bridge of his nose, duly chastised.
"So... that brings us back to where we've been for the last, what, two weeks?" Xander asked, he himself not even sure if he was irritated or just trying to keep the score straight.
Spike dropped his head against the back of his chair, holding a hand up and making an 'o' with his thumb and forefinger. "Goose-egg."
"More research?" Dawn asked helplessly. She was afraid if she had to read anymore of these dusty old books, she'd need glasses. She remembered when Spike had helped her get Giles journal, and she'd read some of it before he'd taken over. Even the books that were printed somehow looked like Giles handwriting - small and incredibly hard to decipher the letters. Who ever heard of making 's's look like 'f's, and spelling 'old' o-l-d-e? And they spelled things wrong, like color and smolder and flavor. Maybe she'd been too hasty when she'd asked to be included in the researching...
Xander made a quick late-lunch run at about two, and they took a half-hour break to eat and chat about anything trivial. Giles told them about England, and the young woman that had answered Willow's phone call. Cynthia was actually a Watcher, who was still training. Unlike him, she was a first-generation Watcher, but had known a Slayer as a child. She had only known of her friend's alternate life after she was killed, and her death had inspired Cynthia to become a Watcher, and perhaps help some other young girl who was thrust into the strange world of vampires. He described Cynthia as being tall and somewhat willowy, with the traditional Welsh characteristics of pale skin, black hair and blue eyes. He admitted rather embarrassedly that he thought she might have a crush on him, and everyone ribbed him for it for a good five to ten minutes. And then they went back to research, munching on one of several kinds of chips or other munchy things set out on the table.
It was only ten minutes past sunset when Spike decided he needed a cigarette, //right now//. He took hold of Buffy's upper arms and stood her up, then stood up himself. "I need a smoke," he said, not waiting for anyone to reply before heading for the front door. Anya glanced up from her book and called after him, "No loitering! You'll scare away the customers!" Spike's response was to flip her off.
Xander sighed, watching Spike exit the shop like everyone else. "Thank god." He turned to face the others. "If he poked me one more time with that pencil, I was gonna use it on him. Right in the chest!"
Buffy shook her head as she sat in the chair Spike had vacated. "He's just fidgety. I think this whole 'baby' thing is making him more nervous than me."
Willow glanced over at her friend. "You know, it might be a good idea to get some books on pregnancy from the library. You and Spike could read them together even, and figure out what you might be dealing with." She gave a bright smile. "And tonight, I'll even look up some baby sites, to make the research more well-rounded."
Anya glanced up from the book she wasn't really paying attention to, wanting to add her two cents. "Has anyone thought that this baby might just be because this is Buffy?" When everyone looked uncomprehendingly at her, she made a grand gesture of slamming the book shut. "I know, I haven't been part of the whole 'Scooby gang' from the very beginning, but I've heard the stories. Buffy is the first Slayer to have been killed, and yet come back - and I'm not talking by magic. Xander is very proud of bringing Buffy back when she drowned." Buffy shivered involuntarily at the mention of her drowning - she'd had a slight phobia about water ever since then - but Anya continued, unphased. "Buffy is the reason there are two Slayers in the world, where before there was only one. Giles, you're always saying how special Buffy is, how unique a girl and Slayer she is, how extraordinary--"
"Anya, we get it," Xander said, saving Giles from anything more embarrassing - the older man's face was already rather pink because of the words that he had indeed said about Buffy on numerous occassions. He had never really said them around Buffy, though, for fear of her thinking him 'sappy'.
Anya shrugged. "My point is, Buffy IS special - she's done all these things that no Slayer has ever done before. Made two Slayers instead of just the one. She's lived long enough to become lawfully legal. She's defeated a god!" She took a deep breath before continuing more calmly, "Has anyone considered the fact that strange things happen to Buffy all the time? Maybe it's not some mystical prophecy that made Buffy become pregnant. Maybe it's just //her//."
Everyone was silent until Buffy said, "I'm not going to be insulted by that, despite how it sounds. Because she's right." She paused to set her gaze on every one of her friends, old and new. "I'm the first Slayer to tell people about being the Chosen One - which I'm not, anymore. I'm //one of// the Chosen Ones. I'm the first Slayer to go against the Council. I'm the first Slayer to stand up to the Council instead of being cowed by them. Have you ever heard of a Slayer dating a vampire? Have you ever heard of a Slayer dating //period//? And yet on my first try, I somehow find the one vampire in the whole world with a soul! I sent my lover to hell! These aren't Slayer things, they're //Buffy// things! I try to have a normal life, and the Powers make it into some big joke! 'This Slayer thinks she's special'," she imitated what she thought the Powers That Be were saying, "'We'll make her special by putting her through more trials than any other Slayer in history. See how special she feels //then//.'" The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. She and Giles had gone through the Watchers' Diaries on more than one occasion, and never once had any Slayer been through as much as she had.
She was getting ready to go on a major rant, when the bell above the front door rang, signaling Spike's return. She glanced over, more to just reassure herself that he was alright - she was getting paranoid like that lately - and was surprised to see him 'escorting' another person with him. She stood up quickly, the anger from how life was treating her transferring to this man, who seemed to be in cahoots with life. "Jonathan!"
To Be Continued. . .