***
Mother's Arms
***
Buffy watched her child cry. She held her daughter close. Her daughter had grown up in her arms. There had been more scrapes and bruises for Laura than for the entire neighborhood of children. Laura insisted on following Alex Harris, even though he had a good fifty pounds on her. She would climb trees much to the great fear of her father and his phobia of wood. She would go up anything that was climbable and usually fall, she was built like her mother.
Whenever she would be hurt she had found her mother's arms.
After the traumatic young days there were the teen years on the Hellmouth. After broken hearts over Alex Harris and through the two car accident she had cried herself to sleep in her arms.
Then there were the days of slayage. She didn't quite have the healing powers of her parents and bruises always appeared next to nasty scrapes.
Through all of these young ordeals there was always mommy's arms to run to when everything hurt. Mommy always made every one of the hurts that Laura had felt go away.
And Laura had never been hurting more than she was right now.
So Laura found the solace of her mother's arms. Hoping that all the pain in her heart would disappear. She couldn't bear it. She had danced. She had allowed these two people to be torn away from her. The two people who not only gave her life, but showed her how to make the most out of every second.
With the patience of infinity Buffy held her child, her own flesh, in her arms. It was real. This was no dream.
Laura looked up at her mother with those really blue eyes. The eyes that were simply mesmerizing. The eyes that Buffy had fallen for. The eyes that had found Buffy when she was returned back down to earth. The eyes that she looked to as a partner.
"I'm sorry mom," Laura said.
Buffy had all of the time in the world. She didn't have to rush. There was no wasting time, because time no longer existed for Buffy.
Buffy stood up and took Laura's hands. The room shifted and suddenly there was a vanity. Laura wrinkled her nose. She had been a tomboy as a child, she had once hated this.
Buffy laughed at the look on her face, "C'mon you little tangle, let's make you pretty."
Laura had heard these words many many times. It was routine. It was a routine that had slowly grown into something that Laura had adored.
"I'm already pretty," Laura pouted, but she was already in the chair in front of the mirror. Buffy picked up a brush and began to bush the long blonde locks of her daughter's hair.
"Do you know I always imagined this when I learned that I had a daughter. I did this for Maggie, the Slayer I trained in Mexico before I knew what the hell I was going to do with your and your father, I would do this for her. I mean I was barely ten years older than her, but there I was being her mother. I taught her how to fight and I taught her how to do her hair so it would stay out of her face in a fight. It was in those two moments that I realized not only did I want to give you life, but I wanted to do this to you."
Laura's eyes began to mist. She had heard this story before, but it now tugged at her heart.
Buffy hit her with the blunt side of a brush.
"No more crying missy. You're crying tears of self-pity. You know that doesn't fly."
"Mother I kind of played a big role in ending your life."
Buffy snickered. Laura looked up at her. In the ethereal world of the home of the oracles one said oracle snickered, in a very unladylike manner.
"Honey we taught you better than that. Life sucks and it is dramatic and eventually you die. I had the advantage of dying three times and this was your father's second. As for your role in our deaths." Buffy looked at her daughter scornfully, "Please, don't go on about that. I mean I killed Angel. I think there was a hundred years of hell that he endured and you know we still get along fine."
"Mother, you have not spoken to Angel in twenty years."
"See that is what you know. I call him once or twice a month. We chat. He keeps me up on his life. I tell him some things about you, some things about me and Spike."
Laura rolled her eyes, "And then you hang up. I've seen the statements on the phone bills. You guys talk for like five minutes."
"Good I'm glad you are in better spirits. You all sad just doesn't really fit you. It's like Spike doing ballet."
Laura attempted to picture her father in a tutu.
Buffy had always made Laura feel better.
"Now you have to go on, you have to go with Angel. You have to find your destiny."
Laura's tears began to form in her eyes again.
Buffy took her daughter's face in her hands, "We may be dead, but as your father proves, that means nothing. We're your guardian angels."
"I can come to visit right?" Laura asked hopefully.
"Of course. Your father and I make our own rules and we deem that you can come anytime you want."
Laura smiled and allowed herself to be led into the light. She followed Angel home in a glow.
Buffy and Spike watched them go.
"Do you think that he knows that she is his champion?" Spike asked putting his arm around Buffy.
Buffy shook her head, "He hasn't a clue."
Buffy watched her child cry. She held her daughter close. Her daughter had grown up in her arms. There had been more scrapes and bruises for Laura than for the entire neighborhood of children. Laura insisted on following Alex Harris, even though he had a good fifty pounds on her. She would climb trees much to the great fear of her father and his phobia of wood. She would go up anything that was climbable and usually fall, she was built like her mother.
Whenever she would be hurt she had found her mother's arms.
After the traumatic young days there were the teen years on the Hellmouth. After broken hearts over Alex Harris and through the two car accident she had cried herself to sleep in her arms.
Then there were the days of slayage. She didn't quite have the healing powers of her parents and bruises always appeared next to nasty scrapes.
Through all of these young ordeals there was always mommy's arms to run to when everything hurt. Mommy always made every one of the hurts that Laura had felt go away.
And Laura had never been hurting more than she was right now.
So Laura found the solace of her mother's arms. Hoping that all the pain in her heart would disappear. She couldn't bear it. She had danced. She had allowed these two people to be torn away from her. The two people who not only gave her life, but showed her how to make the most out of every second.
With the patience of infinity Buffy held her child, her own flesh, in her arms. It was real. This was no dream.
Laura looked up at her mother with those really blue eyes. The eyes that were simply mesmerizing. The eyes that Buffy had fallen for. The eyes that had found Buffy when she was returned back down to earth. The eyes that she looked to as a partner.
"I'm sorry mom," Laura said.
Buffy had all of the time in the world. She didn't have to rush. There was no wasting time, because time no longer existed for Buffy.
Buffy stood up and took Laura's hands. The room shifted and suddenly there was a vanity. Laura wrinkled her nose. She had been a tomboy as a child, she had once hated this.
Buffy laughed at the look on her face, "C'mon you little tangle, let's make you pretty."
Laura had heard these words many many times. It was routine. It was a routine that had slowly grown into something that Laura had adored.
"I'm already pretty," Laura pouted, but she was already in the chair in front of the mirror. Buffy picked up a brush and began to bush the long blonde locks of her daughter's hair.
"Do you know I always imagined this when I learned that I had a daughter. I did this for Maggie, the Slayer I trained in Mexico before I knew what the hell I was going to do with your and your father, I would do this for her. I mean I was barely ten years older than her, but there I was being her mother. I taught her how to fight and I taught her how to do her hair so it would stay out of her face in a fight. It was in those two moments that I realized not only did I want to give you life, but I wanted to do this to you."
Laura's eyes began to mist. She had heard this story before, but it now tugged at her heart.
Buffy hit her with the blunt side of a brush.
"No more crying missy. You're crying tears of self-pity. You know that doesn't fly."
"Mother I kind of played a big role in ending your life."
Buffy snickered. Laura looked up at her. In the ethereal world of the home of the oracles one said oracle snickered, in a very unladylike manner.
"Honey we taught you better than that. Life sucks and it is dramatic and eventually you die. I had the advantage of dying three times and this was your father's second. As for your role in our deaths." Buffy looked at her daughter scornfully, "Please, don't go on about that. I mean I killed Angel. I think there was a hundred years of hell that he endured and you know we still get along fine."
"Mother, you have not spoken to Angel in twenty years."
"See that is what you know. I call him once or twice a month. We chat. He keeps me up on his life. I tell him some things about you, some things about me and Spike."
Laura rolled her eyes, "And then you hang up. I've seen the statements on the phone bills. You guys talk for like five minutes."
"Good I'm glad you are in better spirits. You all sad just doesn't really fit you. It's like Spike doing ballet."
Laura attempted to picture her father in a tutu.
Buffy had always made Laura feel better.
"Now you have to go on, you have to go with Angel. You have to find your destiny."
Laura's tears began to form in her eyes again.
Buffy took her daughter's face in her hands, "We may be dead, but as your father proves, that means nothing. We're your guardian angels."
"I can come to visit right?" Laura asked hopefully.
"Of course. Your father and I make our own rules and we deem that you can come anytime you want."
Laura smiled and allowed herself to be led into the light. She followed Angel home in a glow.
Buffy and Spike watched them go.
"Do you think that he knows that she is his champion?" Spike asked putting his arm around Buffy.
Buffy shook her head, "He hasn't a clue."