TRYING THIS AGAIN
NOTE: I don't own Angel or Buffy but I will gladly take claim of them if Joss ever takes the big plunge.
A/N: I'd like to thank you guys for the reviews that I have gotten so far. Also I want to thank Pyro Bear for helping me so much with this story. Thanks!
CHAPTER 6The next day in the Magic Charm Anya sat in an armchair across from Cordelia. Spike stood behind the register, allowing Anya to take a break, even though it wasn't much of one, she kept scampering over to the register every few moments. Buffy entered the store with Rachel as Leah and Giles headed down the stairs from the library.
"Hey," Buffy greeted them.
"Hi-yo," Rachel waved.
Spike looked up then. "Where's the poofster?" he asked the slayer.
"Spending time with Connor," Buffy replied, joining Spike behind the register. She looked over at Leah. "You've been around here a lot lately."
The teenager scowled for a moment before brightening. "Nothing like a break from Dad," Leah smiled.
"I thought you said you were here to help us with the new shipments," Giles reminded her.
"Oh... well... no offense, Pop," Leah stumbled, using the nickname all of the kids had picked up on from Rachel. "But a girl can only study so much."
Anya turned to Cordelia. "What's it like being pregnant?" the vengeance demon asked her. Leah smiled at the demon's impecable timing.
Cordelia patted her stomach. "Ever since this kid popped in an apple pie Xander's been so sweet and nurturing. He's been so good through all the mood swing and the bloading and the cramps—"
"And pretty much the way you are all the time?" Buffy chimed in.
Cordelia gave Buffy a dirty look before going back to Anya. "I just love being pregnant. I really need to do it again."
Anya nodded. "Right. It must be wonderful to be a soon to be mother." Cordelia beamed. "Never mind the achingly, agonizing, death preferring pain of producing another living being who will only use your body for nurishment once its born and drain you of all your money and slowly but steadily take away all of your youth and beauty."
Cordelia nodded again. "Right..." She rubbed her stomach and turned away from Anya, her beam replaced with an apprehensive look.
Anya went over to Spike and hugged his arm. "I want us to reproduce," she said.
Spike looked at her, a mixture of confusion and shock on his face. "What?"
Anya pulled him out to look at her eye to eye. She ran a finger down his black t-shirt as she spoke. "I want you to impregnate me so that we may have our own hell spawn running around and wreaking havoc just like we did. Plus it'll give us a huge break at tax time."
Spike just stood there stunned, not knowing what to say.
Leah giggled, as did Buffy.
Giles removed his glassed and mutterance of "Oh, dear," could be heard.
A look of curiosity crossed Rachel's face and she jumped onto the counter and looked at Buffy. "Mommy, what does impregnate mean?"
Buffy quickly picked Rachel up and headed towards the library. "Come on, baby. It's not nice to listen to other people's conversations." Buffy sat down on the couch Anya had been on. Cordelia still looked like a nervous wreck, thanks to Anya.
"Well...?" Anya nudged Spike, waiting on him to answer.
"Anya, luv, it's a nice thought but neither of us know the first thing about children," Spike reminded her, obvious apprehension in his voice.
"Actually I granted the wishes of teenaged girls and you..." Anya thought for a moment. "You slaughtered and molessed them."
Leah shot a nervous look first to Spike and the to Giles. Slowly she inched closer to the former watcher.
Buffy looked over at the demon couple. "Hey, Spike, I got a way you can practice. Why don't you watch Rachel tomorrow? She and Connor haven't been so much with the brother and sister love since he got home."
"Hold it, slayer," Spike started. "I—"
"He'll do it," Anya answered with a bright smile.
"What about you?" Spike asked her.
Anya put a hand on her hip and looked at him. "Hey, I already got what I need to know."
"Come on, Spike," said Buffy. "If Anya wants a baby then you need to bone up on the history a little."
Rachel tapped her mother on the arm. "Mommy, it's not nice to listen to other people's conversations."
Angel sat on a bench with Connor, who instead sat on the back of it. They both faced forward looking out at all the people with their children. Some were laughing, talking, just enjoying their time together. The sun blazed brightly up above, only adding to the beauty of it all.
"Look at it, Connor," Angel whispered. "Isn't it breath taking."
"Yes, it's all... neat," Connor replied dryly. He looked at Angel. "Dad, what the hell are we doing here?"
Angel looked down at him with a raised eyebrow. "Language, Connor. Plus we're here to, you know, be together."
"Is this your way of telling me that you're going to break it down to Rachel that I'm your favorite child?" Connor asked seriously.
"No." Angel shook his head. "Just forget it."
Connor stood up and looked at his father closely. "Look I'm sorry. But you're acting kind of weird."
"I'm sorry," Angel murmured, turning his attention back to the other families in the park. "All of this just seems so new to me."
Connor shrugged. "Those red pills are probably finally getting to you. You do realize that you're only supposed to take them with food and not wine or beer?"
Angel glanced at him, a new instict running through him. He suddenly reached out and grabbed Connor, immediately messing his hair. Connor struggled wildly in Angel's grasp, actually managing to break free, mostly because Angel let him.
"What's in those pills exactly?" Connor asked, trying to fix his hair.
Angel shrugged casually. "Super human reflexes," he told him, then looked over at Connor, a spark of mischief in his eyes.
Connor held up his hands as a way of backing Angel off. "Oh, no... Dad, come on."
"Let's see how well those pills work." Angel smirked and started to grab Connor again.
Connor suddenly turned and bolted away from him. Angel kept his smirk and went after him, allowing Connor to get a good distance away from him. Connor made his way into the wooded area of the park, turning to see if Angel was behind him but saw nothing. As Connor released a relieved sigh he felt a tap on his shoulder.
"Whoa!" Connor gasped, surprised to see Angel.
"Gotcha now." Angel pulled Connor into a head lock and started tossing his hair wildly.
Connor groaned and grunted, trying to hide how funny he thought it was. "Ugh... err... Dad!"
After a couple minutes Angel finally released him. "That was fun."
"You tried to kill me," Connor said. "I'm calling child services when we get home."
"Don't wait," Angel handed his son his cell phone. "They can take you as long as they leave Rachel."
Conner sneered, "See that's not even cute."
"I thought it was," Angel said and started to walk.
Connor followed him. "Of course you also think black in the summertime is a fashion statement." Angel got that look in his eyes again. "Uh-oh." Connor raced off then, Angel playfully running after him.
Connor suddenly stopped running and gasped. His blues eyes flashed in the sunlight, burning brightly. The blue in his eyes started to glow brighter, causing a ray of bright, blue light to come from them. Connor covered his eyes and groaned.
Angel walked up, a look of concern on his face. "Connor?" He put a hand to his back. "Are you all right?" Connor just shook his head, his eyes still covered. "Let me see."
Connor slowly removed his hands, revealing that his eyes had gone back to normal. "What happened?"
"I was going to ask you the same thing. You all right?"
Connor nodded. "Yeah."
"Good," Angel smirked, and grabbed him in another head lock.
"Hey, unfair!" Connor shouted.
"Remember, Spike," Buffy said, going over rules of Rachel with him. "Do not, and I repeat, do not let her have an overload of sweets or anything with sugar related substance."
Spike rolled his eyes. "Buffy, in case you forgot, I have watched this child before."
"Barely," Buffy reminded him. "Plus the last time you did was three months ago. I'm just refreshing you here."
"Why am I doing this again?" Spike asked with a sigh.
"Because you love me," Anya whispered into his ear all too sweetly.
"Of course," Spike sighed again.
Giles gently pulled Buffy aside. "Buffy, do you think it's wise to encourage a child between those two?"
"Giles, come on," said Buffy. "Anya always wants something new and shiny. Plus Spike can't even have kids."
Giles raised an eyebrow. "Like Angel?"
Buffy fidgeted a little. He had a point. "Well, Angel is a different kind of vamp. He's... a little bump to the head will make him all crazy vamp."
Giles looked confused. "What does that have to do with—?"
"Wesley!" Buffy called, getting Giles's attention off her, as the former watcher came in. "Hey, hi, how are you?"
Wesley glanced over at the blonde slayer. "Fine," he replied, slightly suspicious of her friendliness.
Leah headed down the stairs of the library but quickly spotted her father. "Shoot!" She ran back up.
Wesley still looked at Buffy as he said, "I came to get..." He pointed towards the stairs. "Her. Come down here, Leah."
"She's not home!" Leah called.
"Leah Alexandria..." Wesley stretched her name.
Leah groaned and trudged down the stairs. "Hello, Father," she greeted dryly, she tried to stress the slight British accent she had aquired around Spike, Giles, and her father.
"What's going on?" Giles inquired.
"Little Willow here tried to pull a fast one," Wesley said, gesturing towards his daughter.
"No, I didn't!" Leah defended herself. "I said I was coming here. I was so telling the truth. And don't call me that"
"I know how you work," Wesley said, turning to her, totally ignoring his daughter's comment about herself "You stay here for about an hour and then go to the mall or wherever."
"Well..." Leah trailed off. "Yes. But I like that plan. Let's stick with it."
Wesley gave her one of his looks. "Let's not."
Leah groaned and grabbed her jacket. Would her father ever be easy to fool?
A/N: I'm really sorry if this chapter sucked. I don't know why but I was uninspired for it. The next one will be better, promise. It could be even better with the right amount of reviews... *Hint*