The Cookie Caper
"You can buy the lemon kind or the oatmeal kind or the mint kind or the ones with the icky coconut or those plain ones or....." Brenna stood before him in her little brown uniform her beanie a bit crooked as she explained about the cookies.
"Let me look at that, sweetie." He took the pamphlet from the little girl, "Lots of cookies here."
"Yep, whichever troop sells the most gets a prize." She grinned at him, "So can we just order a whole bunch of them?"
He laughed softly, "I don't know about that, pet. We can order some though and then maybe your mom can take you to some of the neighbors."
"Okay, I really want to win though. It's a pizza party for our troop."
A week later.....
"How are you doing with the cookie sales?" Spike asked Brenna over supper.
The little girl sighed, "We're in second place and we have to turn in our orders day after tomorrow."
"Second place, huh?"
"Yeah, guess we won't get the prize." Brenna pushed her peas around on her plate.
"It's not over yet, sweet." Spike grinned at her over his plate and winked.
Buffy raised her eyebrows at him as if to ask what he had up his sleeve. He gave her a secretive smile.
After the girls were in bed he picked up the order form and kissed Buffy's cheek, "I'm going out for a bit, I'll be back."
"Spike, where are you going?" She asked suspiciously.
"I'm gonna help Brenna." He told her as he walked out the door.
An hour later he returnd a huge grin on his face, "I think Brenna's troop is in first place now." He waved a napkin with writing on it in front of Buffy's face.
"What did you do?" She asked as she looked at the napkin, "Spike, you went to a demon bar and sold cookies?" She asked incredously.
"She wanted to win and I wanted to help." His smile was full of satisfaction, "Now we have to give these guys normal names on the order form, I know where to deliver them and they all paid upfront." He handed her the cash with a flourish.
Buffy began to laugh, "I can't believe you did this."
"It was worth it if her troop wins." He smiled shyly and shook his head "I guess there isn't even a trace of the Big Bad left is there?"
"Maybe, a trace. You're a good daddy, you know that?" She kissed him.
"It just seems like this a little thing and it will make her happy. I like my girls happy."
Buffy took his hand, "You want to make me happy, follow me." She winked at him suggestively as she led him down the hallway.
***********
Matter of Trust
"I don't think this is a good idea at all." Spike shook his head at Angel.
"Spike, I can do this. I can help." Buffy put her hand on his arm.
"Nah, you haven't done this kind of thing in a long time." Spike shook his head again.
"Spike we could use Buffy's help on this. I wouldn't ask if I didn't think she could do it." Angel shrugged his shoulders.
"I don't like it at all." Spike lips sealed in a tight line.
"I think I'm going back to my hotel, let you two talk about this. Call me when you've reached a decision." Angel stood and went to the door.
"Angel, I really think that I can do this, it's really not a problem." She closed her eyes briefly took a deep breath and glanced at Spike. Although he appeared calm, she could feel his anger radiating as she spoke the words.
"Whatever, it's her decision, I suppose." Spike stood and went to the kitchen.
Angel and Buffy cringed at the sound of slammng cabinet doors. "Buffy are you sure?" Angel asked as he opened the door.
"He'll be okay, I'll talk to him." She gave him an unconvincing smile as she closed the door.
Buffy took another deep breath as she walked into the kitchen, "Those cabinet door misbehaving again?" She asked with no small amount of sarcasm.
"Yeah, that's it." Spike slammed another door for emphasis.
"You're going to wake the girls up if you don't stop that." She shrugged her shoulders, "Then you can explain why their daddy is slamming doors."
He sighed as he sat down at the table, "Buffy, I really don't want you involved with anything remotely connected to slaying anymore, it's too dangerous for you."
"So you think I'm not up to a little undercover work?" She sat down across from him, "Or is it that you think I'm out of shape, can't handle a fight?"
"I know you can handle a fight, I'm the one who still works out with you in the basement. That's not the reason, Buffy - you have two children to worry about now. What if something were to happen to you? What would the girls do? What would I do without you?" He reached across the table covering her hands with his.
"First, nothing is going to happen to me. Secondly if it did, you would take care of the girls," She paused at the pained look on his face, "Wouldn't you?"
"Of course I would want to take care of the girls.....but I doubt that I could. I'm sure if you weren't around that there would be people who wouldn't want the girls with me." He hung his head and began to play with the fringe on a placemat.
"You think...." It hit her suddenly, "You think that Xander and Giles...they would try to take the girls?" She shook her head at him, "No, Spike. You are Brenna and Tierney's daddy now."
"I know that, but I can't bear the thought of losing you and losing my girls too and it doesn't matter how much your friends make nice with me now, they will never truly trust me." He sighed, "I love you Buffy, I just ...I had never thought much about this until Angel asked you for help with this case."
"I'm glad you told me what was bothering you. You have to trust me to make the right decision about helping Angel though, I still like to think I can help out." She stood and went to his side, leaning over she kissed the top of his hair, "And don't worry about the others okay."
ONE WEEK LATER
"Spike, could you come here?" Buffy called as she walked through the door with the mail. She was opening a thick manila envelope with an LA address. Yes - Angel had come through she thought happily as she looked at the contents.
"Be right, there." He walked down the hallway, "Had to finish up my turn at Hi Ho Cherry O" He noticed the large envelope, "Is that good news or bad news?"
"I think it's good news, I hope you'll agree." She smiled brightly as she handed him the envelope and papers it held.
He quickly scanned the paperwork, "This is.....it's the paperwork for me to adopt the girls.....all nice and legal....no questions about my background. When? Why?" He sat down on the couch.
"It's time for you to be more then their daddy in name, what you said last week it made me think, if something did happen - I just thought you're adopting the girls would be the next step for our family." She began to chew on her bottom lip nervously, "If you don't want to......."
He was off the couch in seconds pressing her close to him, "Don't want to? I want to, I would love to! I can't believe you did this......" He kissed her soundly, "Guess we should ask the girls?"
"Brenna, Tierney..." Buffy called the little girls into the livingroom and tried to explain what the adoption meant.
A half hour later the little girls sat on either side of their daddy watching tv as he explained how to spell thier new last name........
********
You Drive Me Crazy
"Brakes! Brakes!" Spike yelled as the car skidded to a stop on the deserted parking lot.
"You don't have to yell, daddy." Tierney turned to him with her mother's pout.
"It seems to be the only way to get your attention." He answered with a frown.
"I stopped didn't I? We didn't hit anything." She smiled sweetly at him.
"Not this time, but how about last night - the Sanders trash cans?" He cut his eyes at her.
"They shouldn't have been that close to the road." She answered with her father's smirk.
"It was trash night, they were on the curb." He answered with roll of his eyes.
"I know you weren't this hard on Brenna." She pouted again.
"That's not going to work, Tierney Anne. If you want me to teach you to drive you have to pay attention, this has nothing to do with your sister."
"Cause she's perfect." Tierney sulked.
"She is not perfect, Tierney. Brenna makes mistakes too."
"But everyone thinks she's perfect, she makes great grades, she's on all kinds of committees at school, the teachers are all "this is Brenna's little sister, she'll never live up to her." Tierney whined.
"They really say that?" Spike asked his eyebrow raised.
"Well no not all of it , but yeah, I'm always gonna be perfect Brenna's sister." Tierney sighed.
"So you want another sister - someone that nobody likes?"
"No, I love her she's just hard to follow sometimes at school and even now with this driving thing."
I'll tell you a secret, she's the one that took out that pretty tulip bed your mom had in the front yard." Spike grinned conspiratorily at his daughter.
"Really?" Tierney grinned.
"Yeah, but you can't tell that I told you. It's our secret." He straightened out his seatbelt, "Now are you ready to go again?"
**********************
You Always Hurt the One You Love
Brenna unlocked the kitchen door quiet and cautiiously. She was feeling a bit tipsy and was sure if she could just get to her bedroom she'd be okay.
As she felt her way through the dark livingroom a lamp suddenly switched on, "You're getting in a bit late aren't you?" Spike asked from his place on the couch.
"Daddy? Why are you sitting here in the dark?" She replied trying to sound perky and innocent.
"Waiting for you. You're a half hour late." He sniffed the air wrinkling his nose, "And you've been drinking?"
"It was just one wine cooler, maybe three." She tried to sound mature, "And I am seventeen now."
"Last time I heard the legal age to drink was twenty one, sometimes I do get behind on the news, did they change that ?" He asked his tone calm.
"No....but daddy, all the other girls were having them and they said it wasn't like real alcohol." Brenna defended.
"You're a smart girl, Brenna, did you really believe that?" He asked shaking his head.
"Okay, no I didn't believe it. But no harm done, I'm home safe and sound. Good ole' dependable Brenna." She marched angrily past him towards the hallway.
"You're grounded for two weeks, to school and home only. We'll talk about phone tomorrow." He stood up to follow her.
"You are being completely unfair!!! I never get in trouble, I do what I'm supposed to and one time... one time I decide to do something and you act like I'm a criminal! Let 's talk about your mistakes, when you were young, I think they are far worse then mine, at least I didn't end up a vampire, who killed hundreds of people." She threw the words at him like a dagger.
Spike stood silent as he listened to the hateful rant, his face fell as he tried to battle his warring emotions and hurt.
She knew as soon as she had said the words that it was wrong....but she wanted to hurt him like he had hurt her. She'd never seen him look so beaten in her whole life, "Daddy, I didn't mean...."
She started to apologize but he walked past her to his and Buffy's room.
"Daddy!" She called after him.
"I don't want to talk now, Brenna. Just go to bed." He told her as he opened his bedroom door and went inside.
"But I didn't mean it...." She softly told the closed door.
Buffy was sitting on the edge of the bed, "What's wrong?I woke up and you were gone and then I heard voices? Was it Brenna?"
"She came in late from curfew and she'd been drinking." Spike pulled off his sweat pants and climbed into the bed next to his wife.
"Drinking? Is she okay? That's not like Brenna." Buffy started to leave the bed, "Maybe I should check on her."
He took her hand and pulled her back towards the bed, "Give her some time, you can have your go at her tomorrow. I grounded her two weeks, to school and home only, told her we would discuss the phone options tomorrow."
Buffy climbed back into the bed and lay her head on his chest, "That sounds fair. I don't know what could have gotten into her though."
"Reckon she's just being seventeen." He put his arm around her waist, "She doesn't think it's fair, said I treated her like a criminal. Brought up the fact that I had done dumb things like become a vampire, killing people etc." His voice cracked slightly.
"She didn't mean that Spike. She was angry, she was lashing out at you. I'm sorry." Buffy kissed his lip softly,then pulled away to look at him, "She loves you, you're her dad, really and truly or she wouldn't have known which buttons to push so well."
"There was some truth to what she said." Spike sighed as he pushed a stray hair behind her ear.
"A long time ago, but she knows you aren't that person any more. It will be okay, she was in the wrong and she deserves the grounding. You'll talk tomorrow." Buffy rubbed his arm comfortingly.
THE NEXT DAY
Spike was up early, he'd not been able to rest all night. He sat at his desk going over some paperwork from the latest case Angel had sent to him. A soft knock on his door interrupted his attempt at work. "Come in."
Brenna's petite form entered the room cautiously, her wavy brown hair pulled back in a ponytail.
"Daddy?"
"You feeling better this morning?" He asked as he closed the folder in front of him.
"A little." She stood across from the desk.
"Good, I guess you want to talk me out of the grounding?" He clasped his hands together and stared intently at her.
"No." The word was so soft that even his enhanced hearing almost missed it.
"No?" He looked slightly confused.
"No, I deserve the grounding and I want to apologize for last night." Her eyes began to water.
"Apology accepted just don't drink again."
"The apology isn't for that, well it is, but I really wanted to say I'm sorry for what I said about you."
The tears began to run freely down her cheeks as she walked around the desk, he met her halfway and pulled her into a fierce hug, "I love you, Daddy."
"Apology accepted, sweet bit." She pulled away from him."You aren't mad at me?" She asked, unsure that it could be this easy.
"No, you just proved you loved me." He told her with a smile.
"How?"
"You always hurt the ones you love."
*********
Public Displays
"This is just embarrassing." Brenna told Tierney as they watched thier parents dancing much closer then anyone elses parents. At twelve years old she had begun to notice just how "lovey dovey" her parents really were.
"What's embarrassing?" Tierney asked as she shoved a piece of Grandpa Gile's birthday cake into her mouth.
"Look at them!" She pointed at Buffy and Spike just in time to catch a kiss between them, "That! No one else's parents are kissing out there."
"I think it's nice." Tierney smiled at her parents.
"Look at Uncle Xander he's not kissing Aunt Rachel, Grandpa Giles isn't hanging all over Grandma Emma and look even Aunt Dawn and Uncle Shawn aren't dancing that close." Brenna shook her head.
"Whatcha doing?" Willow sat down between the two girls.
"Watching mom and dad." Tierney answered around another mouthful of cake.
"They look happy out there don't they?" Willow grinned as she watched Spike dip Buffy low, both of them laughing happily.
"They do that all the time, touch each other, kiss all the time, no one else's parents do that." Brenna sighed.
Tierney shrugged her shoulders and went to find one of Xander's daughters.
"You're lucky to have parents who love each other like that, Brenna." Willow pointed at the couple as they went to the food table hand in hand. She and Brenna watched while Spike got Buffy's punch and she got cake for both of them. Buffy caught Brenna's eye and blew her a kiss.
Brenna grinned at her mom and returned the kiss rolling her eyes. Willow gave Buffy a wave and a smile before she turned back to Brenna, "See how lucky you are, everyone can see how much they love each other and you know they love you that much too. So yeah, I'd say you were pretty lucky."
"I never thought of it that way." Brenna nodded her head at Willow.
"They went through a lot to get to where they are now, so I think they're allowed a few public displays of affection, don't you?" Willow smiled as she smoothed back Brenna's hair.
"Yeah, I guess it's kind of neat, I mean they are way old and they still like to kiss." Brenna said thoughtfully.
Willow swallowed her laughter, "Yes, it's kind of neat, amazing that they can still dance at thier age, even."
Brenna nodded in agreement, as she watched her parents approaching them. "So what are you two discussing?" Spike asked as took the chair next to Brenna, Buffy on his other side.
Brenna looked at Willow wideeyed. "Just how nice you and Buffy look tonight." Willow answered with a wink at the little girl.
*****************
"You can buy the lemon kind or the oatmeal kind or the mint kind or the ones with the icky coconut or those plain ones or....." Brenna stood before him in her little brown uniform her beanie a bit crooked as she explained about the cookies.
"Let me look at that, sweetie." He took the pamphlet from the little girl, "Lots of cookies here."
"Yep, whichever troop sells the most gets a prize." She grinned at him, "So can we just order a whole bunch of them?"
He laughed softly, "I don't know about that, pet. We can order some though and then maybe your mom can take you to some of the neighbors."
"Okay, I really want to win though. It's a pizza party for our troop."
A week later.....
"How are you doing with the cookie sales?" Spike asked Brenna over supper.
The little girl sighed, "We're in second place and we have to turn in our orders day after tomorrow."
"Second place, huh?"
"Yeah, guess we won't get the prize." Brenna pushed her peas around on her plate.
"It's not over yet, sweet." Spike grinned at her over his plate and winked.
Buffy raised her eyebrows at him as if to ask what he had up his sleeve. He gave her a secretive smile.
After the girls were in bed he picked up the order form and kissed Buffy's cheek, "I'm going out for a bit, I'll be back."
"Spike, where are you going?" She asked suspiciously.
"I'm gonna help Brenna." He told her as he walked out the door.
An hour later he returnd a huge grin on his face, "I think Brenna's troop is in first place now." He waved a napkin with writing on it in front of Buffy's face.
"What did you do?" She asked as she looked at the napkin, "Spike, you went to a demon bar and sold cookies?" She asked incredously.
"She wanted to win and I wanted to help." His smile was full of satisfaction, "Now we have to give these guys normal names on the order form, I know where to deliver them and they all paid upfront." He handed her the cash with a flourish.
Buffy began to laugh, "I can't believe you did this."
"It was worth it if her troop wins." He smiled shyly and shook his head "I guess there isn't even a trace of the Big Bad left is there?"
"Maybe, a trace. You're a good daddy, you know that?" She kissed him.
"It just seems like this a little thing and it will make her happy. I like my girls happy."
Buffy took his hand, "You want to make me happy, follow me." She winked at him suggestively as she led him down the hallway.
***********
Matter of Trust
"I don't think this is a good idea at all." Spike shook his head at Angel.
"Spike, I can do this. I can help." Buffy put her hand on his arm.
"Nah, you haven't done this kind of thing in a long time." Spike shook his head again.
"Spike we could use Buffy's help on this. I wouldn't ask if I didn't think she could do it." Angel shrugged his shoulders.
"I don't like it at all." Spike lips sealed in a tight line.
"I think I'm going back to my hotel, let you two talk about this. Call me when you've reached a decision." Angel stood and went to the door.
"Angel, I really think that I can do this, it's really not a problem." She closed her eyes briefly took a deep breath and glanced at Spike. Although he appeared calm, she could feel his anger radiating as she spoke the words.
"Whatever, it's her decision, I suppose." Spike stood and went to the kitchen.
Angel and Buffy cringed at the sound of slammng cabinet doors. "Buffy are you sure?" Angel asked as he opened the door.
"He'll be okay, I'll talk to him." She gave him an unconvincing smile as she closed the door.
Buffy took another deep breath as she walked into the kitchen, "Those cabinet door misbehaving again?" She asked with no small amount of sarcasm.
"Yeah, that's it." Spike slammed another door for emphasis.
"You're going to wake the girls up if you don't stop that." She shrugged her shoulders, "Then you can explain why their daddy is slamming doors."
He sighed as he sat down at the table, "Buffy, I really don't want you involved with anything remotely connected to slaying anymore, it's too dangerous for you."
"So you think I'm not up to a little undercover work?" She sat down across from him, "Or is it that you think I'm out of shape, can't handle a fight?"
"I know you can handle a fight, I'm the one who still works out with you in the basement. That's not the reason, Buffy - you have two children to worry about now. What if something were to happen to you? What would the girls do? What would I do without you?" He reached across the table covering her hands with his.
"First, nothing is going to happen to me. Secondly if it did, you would take care of the girls," She paused at the pained look on his face, "Wouldn't you?"
"Of course I would want to take care of the girls.....but I doubt that I could. I'm sure if you weren't around that there would be people who wouldn't want the girls with me." He hung his head and began to play with the fringe on a placemat.
"You think...." It hit her suddenly, "You think that Xander and Giles...they would try to take the girls?" She shook her head at him, "No, Spike. You are Brenna and Tierney's daddy now."
"I know that, but I can't bear the thought of losing you and losing my girls too and it doesn't matter how much your friends make nice with me now, they will never truly trust me." He sighed, "I love you Buffy, I just ...I had never thought much about this until Angel asked you for help with this case."
"I'm glad you told me what was bothering you. You have to trust me to make the right decision about helping Angel though, I still like to think I can help out." She stood and went to his side, leaning over she kissed the top of his hair, "And don't worry about the others okay."
ONE WEEK LATER
"Spike, could you come here?" Buffy called as she walked through the door with the mail. She was opening a thick manila envelope with an LA address. Yes - Angel had come through she thought happily as she looked at the contents.
"Be right, there." He walked down the hallway, "Had to finish up my turn at Hi Ho Cherry O" He noticed the large envelope, "Is that good news or bad news?"
"I think it's good news, I hope you'll agree." She smiled brightly as she handed him the envelope and papers it held.
He quickly scanned the paperwork, "This is.....it's the paperwork for me to adopt the girls.....all nice and legal....no questions about my background. When? Why?" He sat down on the couch.
"It's time for you to be more then their daddy in name, what you said last week it made me think, if something did happen - I just thought you're adopting the girls would be the next step for our family." She began to chew on her bottom lip nervously, "If you don't want to......."
He was off the couch in seconds pressing her close to him, "Don't want to? I want to, I would love to! I can't believe you did this......" He kissed her soundly, "Guess we should ask the girls?"
"Brenna, Tierney..." Buffy called the little girls into the livingroom and tried to explain what the adoption meant.
A half hour later the little girls sat on either side of their daddy watching tv as he explained how to spell thier new last name........
********
You Drive Me Crazy
"Brakes! Brakes!" Spike yelled as the car skidded to a stop on the deserted parking lot.
"You don't have to yell, daddy." Tierney turned to him with her mother's pout.
"It seems to be the only way to get your attention." He answered with a frown.
"I stopped didn't I? We didn't hit anything." She smiled sweetly at him.
"Not this time, but how about last night - the Sanders trash cans?" He cut his eyes at her.
"They shouldn't have been that close to the road." She answered with her father's smirk.
"It was trash night, they were on the curb." He answered with roll of his eyes.
"I know you weren't this hard on Brenna." She pouted again.
"That's not going to work, Tierney Anne. If you want me to teach you to drive you have to pay attention, this has nothing to do with your sister."
"Cause she's perfect." Tierney sulked.
"She is not perfect, Tierney. Brenna makes mistakes too."
"But everyone thinks she's perfect, she makes great grades, she's on all kinds of committees at school, the teachers are all "this is Brenna's little sister, she'll never live up to her." Tierney whined.
"They really say that?" Spike asked his eyebrow raised.
"Well no not all of it , but yeah, I'm always gonna be perfect Brenna's sister." Tierney sighed.
"So you want another sister - someone that nobody likes?"
"No, I love her she's just hard to follow sometimes at school and even now with this driving thing."
I'll tell you a secret, she's the one that took out that pretty tulip bed your mom had in the front yard." Spike grinned conspiratorily at his daughter.
"Really?" Tierney grinned.
"Yeah, but you can't tell that I told you. It's our secret." He straightened out his seatbelt, "Now are you ready to go again?"
**********************
You Always Hurt the One You Love
Brenna unlocked the kitchen door quiet and cautiiously. She was feeling a bit tipsy and was sure if she could just get to her bedroom she'd be okay.
As she felt her way through the dark livingroom a lamp suddenly switched on, "You're getting in a bit late aren't you?" Spike asked from his place on the couch.
"Daddy? Why are you sitting here in the dark?" She replied trying to sound perky and innocent.
"Waiting for you. You're a half hour late." He sniffed the air wrinkling his nose, "And you've been drinking?"
"It was just one wine cooler, maybe three." She tried to sound mature, "And I am seventeen now."
"Last time I heard the legal age to drink was twenty one, sometimes I do get behind on the news, did they change that ?" He asked his tone calm.
"No....but daddy, all the other girls were having them and they said it wasn't like real alcohol." Brenna defended.
"You're a smart girl, Brenna, did you really believe that?" He asked shaking his head.
"Okay, no I didn't believe it. But no harm done, I'm home safe and sound. Good ole' dependable Brenna." She marched angrily past him towards the hallway.
"You're grounded for two weeks, to school and home only. We'll talk about phone tomorrow." He stood up to follow her.
"You are being completely unfair!!! I never get in trouble, I do what I'm supposed to and one time... one time I decide to do something and you act like I'm a criminal! Let 's talk about your mistakes, when you were young, I think they are far worse then mine, at least I didn't end up a vampire, who killed hundreds of people." She threw the words at him like a dagger.
Spike stood silent as he listened to the hateful rant, his face fell as he tried to battle his warring emotions and hurt.
She knew as soon as she had said the words that it was wrong....but she wanted to hurt him like he had hurt her. She'd never seen him look so beaten in her whole life, "Daddy, I didn't mean...."
She started to apologize but he walked past her to his and Buffy's room.
"Daddy!" She called after him.
"I don't want to talk now, Brenna. Just go to bed." He told her as he opened his bedroom door and went inside.
"But I didn't mean it...." She softly told the closed door.
Buffy was sitting on the edge of the bed, "What's wrong?I woke up and you were gone and then I heard voices? Was it Brenna?"
"She came in late from curfew and she'd been drinking." Spike pulled off his sweat pants and climbed into the bed next to his wife.
"Drinking? Is she okay? That's not like Brenna." Buffy started to leave the bed, "Maybe I should check on her."
He took her hand and pulled her back towards the bed, "Give her some time, you can have your go at her tomorrow. I grounded her two weeks, to school and home only, told her we would discuss the phone options tomorrow."
Buffy climbed back into the bed and lay her head on his chest, "That sounds fair. I don't know what could have gotten into her though."
"Reckon she's just being seventeen." He put his arm around her waist, "She doesn't think it's fair, said I treated her like a criminal. Brought up the fact that I had done dumb things like become a vampire, killing people etc." His voice cracked slightly.
"She didn't mean that Spike. She was angry, she was lashing out at you. I'm sorry." Buffy kissed his lip softly,then pulled away to look at him, "She loves you, you're her dad, really and truly or she wouldn't have known which buttons to push so well."
"There was some truth to what she said." Spike sighed as he pushed a stray hair behind her ear.
"A long time ago, but she knows you aren't that person any more. It will be okay, she was in the wrong and she deserves the grounding. You'll talk tomorrow." Buffy rubbed his arm comfortingly.
THE NEXT DAY
Spike was up early, he'd not been able to rest all night. He sat at his desk going over some paperwork from the latest case Angel had sent to him. A soft knock on his door interrupted his attempt at work. "Come in."
Brenna's petite form entered the room cautiously, her wavy brown hair pulled back in a ponytail.
"Daddy?"
"You feeling better this morning?" He asked as he closed the folder in front of him.
"A little." She stood across from the desk.
"Good, I guess you want to talk me out of the grounding?" He clasped his hands together and stared intently at her.
"No." The word was so soft that even his enhanced hearing almost missed it.
"No?" He looked slightly confused.
"No, I deserve the grounding and I want to apologize for last night." Her eyes began to water.
"Apology accepted just don't drink again."
"The apology isn't for that, well it is, but I really wanted to say I'm sorry for what I said about you."
The tears began to run freely down her cheeks as she walked around the desk, he met her halfway and pulled her into a fierce hug, "I love you, Daddy."
"Apology accepted, sweet bit." She pulled away from him."You aren't mad at me?" She asked, unsure that it could be this easy.
"No, you just proved you loved me." He told her with a smile.
"How?"
"You always hurt the ones you love."
*********
Public Displays
"This is just embarrassing." Brenna told Tierney as they watched thier parents dancing much closer then anyone elses parents. At twelve years old she had begun to notice just how "lovey dovey" her parents really were.
"What's embarrassing?" Tierney asked as she shoved a piece of Grandpa Gile's birthday cake into her mouth.
"Look at them!" She pointed at Buffy and Spike just in time to catch a kiss between them, "That! No one else's parents are kissing out there."
"I think it's nice." Tierney smiled at her parents.
"Look at Uncle Xander he's not kissing Aunt Rachel, Grandpa Giles isn't hanging all over Grandma Emma and look even Aunt Dawn and Uncle Shawn aren't dancing that close." Brenna shook her head.
"Whatcha doing?" Willow sat down between the two girls.
"Watching mom and dad." Tierney answered around another mouthful of cake.
"They look happy out there don't they?" Willow grinned as she watched Spike dip Buffy low, both of them laughing happily.
"They do that all the time, touch each other, kiss all the time, no one else's parents do that." Brenna sighed.
Tierney shrugged her shoulders and went to find one of Xander's daughters.
"You're lucky to have parents who love each other like that, Brenna." Willow pointed at the couple as they went to the food table hand in hand. She and Brenna watched while Spike got Buffy's punch and she got cake for both of them. Buffy caught Brenna's eye and blew her a kiss.
Brenna grinned at her mom and returned the kiss rolling her eyes. Willow gave Buffy a wave and a smile before she turned back to Brenna, "See how lucky you are, everyone can see how much they love each other and you know they love you that much too. So yeah, I'd say you were pretty lucky."
"I never thought of it that way." Brenna nodded her head at Willow.
"They went through a lot to get to where they are now, so I think they're allowed a few public displays of affection, don't you?" Willow smiled as she smoothed back Brenna's hair.
"Yeah, I guess it's kind of neat, I mean they are way old and they still like to kiss." Brenna said thoughtfully.
Willow swallowed her laughter, "Yes, it's kind of neat, amazing that they can still dance at thier age, even."
Brenna nodded in agreement, as she watched her parents approaching them. "So what are you two discussing?" Spike asked as took the chair next to Brenna, Buffy on his other side.
Brenna looked at Willow wideeyed. "Just how nice you and Buffy look tonight." Willow answered with a wink at the little girl.
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