Summary: Hearing about Angel's baby, Eve brings Allison back to help. But
reunions aren't always happy.
Spoilers: Through "Lullaby"
*~*~*
Dry and warm, snug in a soft fleece blanket, Angel's son gazed up at him with his mother's eyes. The baby had been silent once out of the rain. Darla's selfless sacrifice had left him with this warm-blooded baby boy. He was a father. Daddy.
Fred smiled and handed him a bottle of formula. "He's a beautiful baby."
Angel nodded. "I. I don't know where to start."
She chuckled. "You love him. You take care of him."
A voice spoke from behind them, toward the entrance. "You get a little help."
Angel and Fred turned to the door where the voice had come from. Eve smiled and stepped into the lobby, holding the hand of her daughter, Allison, who now looked about ten or eleven.
He stood, holding the baby and the bottle. "Eve."
Eve smiled and looked to Fred. "Who have we here? A new one besides the babe?" She held out her hand. "I am Eve."
Fred smiled. "Fred." She shook her hand tightly. "Are you a friend of Angel's?"
She gave him a sad glance. "I hope so." She sighed. "Where are my manners?" She placed her hand on her daughter's back and nudged her forward. "Allison, say hello to your Uncle Angel."
The little girl smiled and timidly let out: "Hello." She had her mother's eyes and lips, but her nose, the shape of her face, the grin she gave. she resembled her father.
Angel smiled. "Hello, Allison."
Eve motioned to the baby. "Have you thought of a name yet?"
He looked down.
She nodded to her daughter. "Fred, would you mind terribly taking Allison to get something to drink?"
Fred took the hint and led the little pixie away.
Once they were gone, Eve held out her hands. "Let me see the babe."
He knew it was perfectly safe and handed her the miracle child. "Do you know how he was born?"
She nodded as she gazed down at the sleeping baby. "I also know that he and Allison will be very close. She was born to protect him."
"Huh?"
*~*~*
Allison sipped on the chocolate milk and looked up at Fred. "You haven't been here long have you?"
"Me? Well now, that depends on what you mean by long."
"Uncle Angel saved you, didn't he?"
Fred blinked. "Yes. How did you know?"
"It is what I do. I help and I see some things. My mother is teaching me how to use my powers to help." She played with a pigtail of dark hair.
"Powers?"
She smiled. "You do not know? Mother and I are pixies."
*~*~*
Gunn, Wesley and Cordelia walked into the lobby of the Hyperian with bags of take-out and worn faces. Upon arriving back at the hotel it was discovered that the scrolls, the explanation for Angel's baby were indeed gone.
Cordelia sat out some tacos and burritos. "Angel! Fred! We're back!"
Gunn flopped back on the couch and sighed. "Now what?"
Wesley tossed him a burrito. "For now, we eat, we rest, and we find out what Holtz is planning to do next."
Fred came out holding the hand of a little brunette girl. "Got some extra?"
All eyes fell on the little girl. In some strange way she seemed familiar to them all. She was dressed in a pair of overalls and a pale blue tee underneath. Her long brown hair was pulled up into pigtails. She batted her lashes over her crystal blue eyes.
Cordelia knelt in front of her. "Hello there. I'm Cordelia. What's your name?"
The girl smiled. "My name is Allison."
Wesley dropped the food in his hand as memories of what were thought to be dream came rushing back to him. "A-A-Allison?" Slowly, he dropped to his knee next to the girl and touched her hair. "Are you really alive?"
Allison scrunched her nose. "Of course I am." She smiled. "You are quite silly."
He wrapped his arms around her as tears rolled down his cheeks. "I thought you were a dream."
Allison took a step back. "A dream?"
Gunn stood up. "Yo English, what's up?"
He smiled to the others. "This is my daughter."
Allison's eyes widened. "What? But... but my father died..."
Fred looked from Wesley to the girl and back. "You do kinda look like him." She picked up the food he had dropped.
Gunn stood up. "Wait a minute. I remember. Eve was here. The pix. "
Cordelia looked to nothing. "I remember. We saved Eve and her baby from Wolfram and Hart." She looked to the little girl. "But it was a dream."
Allison sniffled, her eyes brimming with tears. "My mother told me that my father died. That he was killed saving me."
Wesley shook his head, tears in his own eyes. "I'm right here." He smiled and wrapped her in his arms.
She hugged him back reluctantly. "She lied to me."
"Shh, it's all okay now. You're here. You're real." He smiled and let tears fall.
*~*~*
"How about Liam?" Eve cooed to the baby as she fed him by bottle. "After your human name maybe?"
He shook his head. "I don't really want to name him after a drunk womanizer." He chuckled. "What about." He trailed off as he looked to the door were Wesley stood with Allison. "Wesley."
Eve had not noticed them yet. "Wesley? Well, if you want to name him that."
"No. Look."
Eve turned to Wesley's upset face. "Wesley." She handed the baby back to Angel and went to the door. "Wesley, I can explain."
Allison held on to his hand. "You said he was dead." The younger pixie's eyes flashed purple. "You told me I didn't have a father."
Eve looked down. "I didn't know we would be coming back. And I didn't want anyone to get hurt." She sniffled. "I'm sorry."
"Sorry?" Allison snapped. "You're sorry?" Her eyes began to glow. "I don't think that's enough." She focused her gaze on her mother and watched as Eve grabbed her throat, her eyes wide.
"Allison, no," Wesley said in a calm voice. "Don't do that. Please."
She stopped and looked up to her father. "She betrayed."
He nodded. "And she's sorry. So we should forgive her." He glanced at Eve. "For now."
Eve took air into her lungs gratefully and looked in shock to her daughter. "Please do not be mad at me, my little one."
Angel stepped forward. "Allison? Do you want to help me with the baby?"
The girl nodded and followed Angel downstairs, leaving Wesley and Eve alone.
Eve kept her eyes down. "I never intended on this."
"No, you simply intended on keeping me out of the lives of the two girls that I love."
"That is irrelevant now. Allison is here and she will protect the child." She stood and walked over to him slowly. "You look well."
He scowled.
*~*~*
Angel smiled to Allison as she held the baby carefully and rocked it back and forth. "You do that well."
The pixie smiled. "He's my responsibility."
"That's what your mother said."
She cooed to the baby. "What is his name?"
Angel sighed. "Why don't you name him?"
She giggled. "Justin."
He furrowed his brow. "Justin? Why that?"
"Because he is just. He is true. He will bring the light."
A gravely voice came from behind her. "And he will die."
Angel and Allison both turned to look at Holtz.
*~*~*
Gasping for air, Wesley pulled his lips from Eve's. "We. should. check on the others." He kept his arms around her.
She nodded, her lips swollen. "Yeah." Pausing briefly she crushed her lips to his.
*~*~*
Fred came back out of her room after having grabbed a sweater and looked around the empty lobby. "Cordelia? Gunn?" She poked her head around the corner. "Where'd you guys go?" Cautiously, she walked over to Wesley's office and gasped when she found them tied and gagged.
*~*~*
Allison stood and handed the baby to Angel. "You must be Holtz," she mused.
He looked to her. "And you, child. Are you Angelus' as well?"
She shook her head. "They call me Allison." She looked at the crossbow in his hands. "You will not hurt the child."
He grinned. "You're right. I will make the death painless. Only the father is to suffer."
"But he does. Every moment when he relives the pain he caused people like you." She took a step closer. "Please let the baby live. Your heart is good and I don't want to have to hurt you."
Holtz looked over this small girl in pigtails. Her eyes were slightly violet. She looked innocent as could be. "You? Hurt me, little one?"
She smiled. "I can see her in your eyes. She was pretty." She lost her smile. "You did the right thing. The sunlight freed her."
He frowned. "What have you heard?"
"It is not what I heard. It is what I see in your eyes. You loved your daughter and you set her free. You sent her to Heaven to be with her mother."
Holtz's eyes began to water. "I loved them. And he killed them."
"But he is bringing this baby into the world to help. This child is justice."
He looked down. "I did not want to come back as a monster."
"You are not a monster." Allison stepped up to him and put her tiny hand on his. "Would you like to see your wife and children again?"
He nodded. "But I must avenge."
"Vengeance leads to a cycle of hate. You do not want that. You need to forgive and know that a higher power is handling it."
Her words seemed to sink in as Holtz looked to Angel holding his child. "Do you really suffer, vampire?"
Angel nodded. "And I try to do good."
Holtz again looked to Allison. "I want to see them again."
She nodded and tugged on his coat. "Kneel."
He knelt in front of the child and closed his eyes. She brought her hands up to the sides of his head and Angel watched in awe as a purple jolt was sent through Holtz's head, killing him. He sank slowly till he lay on the ground looking peaceful.
Cordelia, Gunn and Fred came to a screeching halt behind the body. Their eyes went from him to Allison.
"So, I guess you don't need our help on this one?" Fred asked.
*~*~*
Eve shuddered and backed away from Wesley. "Something happened." Her eyes grew wide. "Dear Goddess, Allison!" She tore down the stairs to the kitchen where Allison was fixing a sheet over a body. "Allison?"
She looked to her mother. "I'm fine. My first assignment is done."
Gunn shuddered. "I wouldn't want that job."
"She freed him," Angel explained. "He was brought here under a veil of lies. He's free now. Home with his family." He looked at Justin. "And family is the most important thing."
*~*~*
Lilah sighed heavily as she picked up her phone. "What?"
"Miss Morgan?" It was a light feminine voice.
"Yes. Who is this?"
"They call me Eve. I have a message for you."
Eve. A pixie. It was coming back to her. "And what is that?"
"You try to harm the baby and you'll die. You try and take the baby and you'll die. You keep your distance and help keep him safe and you'll live. Are we clear?"
She smirked. "Right."
"You really don't want to end up in a processing plant as dog food now do you?"
Lilah shuddered. "I get the point."
"See that you do. Because I'd hate for you to have to meet my daughter."
Spoilers: Through "Lullaby"
*~*~*
Dry and warm, snug in a soft fleece blanket, Angel's son gazed up at him with his mother's eyes. The baby had been silent once out of the rain. Darla's selfless sacrifice had left him with this warm-blooded baby boy. He was a father. Daddy.
Fred smiled and handed him a bottle of formula. "He's a beautiful baby."
Angel nodded. "I. I don't know where to start."
She chuckled. "You love him. You take care of him."
A voice spoke from behind them, toward the entrance. "You get a little help."
Angel and Fred turned to the door where the voice had come from. Eve smiled and stepped into the lobby, holding the hand of her daughter, Allison, who now looked about ten or eleven.
He stood, holding the baby and the bottle. "Eve."
Eve smiled and looked to Fred. "Who have we here? A new one besides the babe?" She held out her hand. "I am Eve."
Fred smiled. "Fred." She shook her hand tightly. "Are you a friend of Angel's?"
She gave him a sad glance. "I hope so." She sighed. "Where are my manners?" She placed her hand on her daughter's back and nudged her forward. "Allison, say hello to your Uncle Angel."
The little girl smiled and timidly let out: "Hello." She had her mother's eyes and lips, but her nose, the shape of her face, the grin she gave. she resembled her father.
Angel smiled. "Hello, Allison."
Eve motioned to the baby. "Have you thought of a name yet?"
He looked down.
She nodded to her daughter. "Fred, would you mind terribly taking Allison to get something to drink?"
Fred took the hint and led the little pixie away.
Once they were gone, Eve held out her hands. "Let me see the babe."
He knew it was perfectly safe and handed her the miracle child. "Do you know how he was born?"
She nodded as she gazed down at the sleeping baby. "I also know that he and Allison will be very close. She was born to protect him."
"Huh?"
*~*~*
Allison sipped on the chocolate milk and looked up at Fred. "You haven't been here long have you?"
"Me? Well now, that depends on what you mean by long."
"Uncle Angel saved you, didn't he?"
Fred blinked. "Yes. How did you know?"
"It is what I do. I help and I see some things. My mother is teaching me how to use my powers to help." She played with a pigtail of dark hair.
"Powers?"
She smiled. "You do not know? Mother and I are pixies."
*~*~*
Gunn, Wesley and Cordelia walked into the lobby of the Hyperian with bags of take-out and worn faces. Upon arriving back at the hotel it was discovered that the scrolls, the explanation for Angel's baby were indeed gone.
Cordelia sat out some tacos and burritos. "Angel! Fred! We're back!"
Gunn flopped back on the couch and sighed. "Now what?"
Wesley tossed him a burrito. "For now, we eat, we rest, and we find out what Holtz is planning to do next."
Fred came out holding the hand of a little brunette girl. "Got some extra?"
All eyes fell on the little girl. In some strange way she seemed familiar to them all. She was dressed in a pair of overalls and a pale blue tee underneath. Her long brown hair was pulled up into pigtails. She batted her lashes over her crystal blue eyes.
Cordelia knelt in front of her. "Hello there. I'm Cordelia. What's your name?"
The girl smiled. "My name is Allison."
Wesley dropped the food in his hand as memories of what were thought to be dream came rushing back to him. "A-A-Allison?" Slowly, he dropped to his knee next to the girl and touched her hair. "Are you really alive?"
Allison scrunched her nose. "Of course I am." She smiled. "You are quite silly."
He wrapped his arms around her as tears rolled down his cheeks. "I thought you were a dream."
Allison took a step back. "A dream?"
Gunn stood up. "Yo English, what's up?"
He smiled to the others. "This is my daughter."
Allison's eyes widened. "What? But... but my father died..."
Fred looked from Wesley to the girl and back. "You do kinda look like him." She picked up the food he had dropped.
Gunn stood up. "Wait a minute. I remember. Eve was here. The pix. "
Cordelia looked to nothing. "I remember. We saved Eve and her baby from Wolfram and Hart." She looked to the little girl. "But it was a dream."
Allison sniffled, her eyes brimming with tears. "My mother told me that my father died. That he was killed saving me."
Wesley shook his head, tears in his own eyes. "I'm right here." He smiled and wrapped her in his arms.
She hugged him back reluctantly. "She lied to me."
"Shh, it's all okay now. You're here. You're real." He smiled and let tears fall.
*~*~*
"How about Liam?" Eve cooed to the baby as she fed him by bottle. "After your human name maybe?"
He shook his head. "I don't really want to name him after a drunk womanizer." He chuckled. "What about." He trailed off as he looked to the door were Wesley stood with Allison. "Wesley."
Eve had not noticed them yet. "Wesley? Well, if you want to name him that."
"No. Look."
Eve turned to Wesley's upset face. "Wesley." She handed the baby back to Angel and went to the door. "Wesley, I can explain."
Allison held on to his hand. "You said he was dead." The younger pixie's eyes flashed purple. "You told me I didn't have a father."
Eve looked down. "I didn't know we would be coming back. And I didn't want anyone to get hurt." She sniffled. "I'm sorry."
"Sorry?" Allison snapped. "You're sorry?" Her eyes began to glow. "I don't think that's enough." She focused her gaze on her mother and watched as Eve grabbed her throat, her eyes wide.
"Allison, no," Wesley said in a calm voice. "Don't do that. Please."
She stopped and looked up to her father. "She betrayed."
He nodded. "And she's sorry. So we should forgive her." He glanced at Eve. "For now."
Eve took air into her lungs gratefully and looked in shock to her daughter. "Please do not be mad at me, my little one."
Angel stepped forward. "Allison? Do you want to help me with the baby?"
The girl nodded and followed Angel downstairs, leaving Wesley and Eve alone.
Eve kept her eyes down. "I never intended on this."
"No, you simply intended on keeping me out of the lives of the two girls that I love."
"That is irrelevant now. Allison is here and she will protect the child." She stood and walked over to him slowly. "You look well."
He scowled.
*~*~*
Angel smiled to Allison as she held the baby carefully and rocked it back and forth. "You do that well."
The pixie smiled. "He's my responsibility."
"That's what your mother said."
She cooed to the baby. "What is his name?"
Angel sighed. "Why don't you name him?"
She giggled. "Justin."
He furrowed his brow. "Justin? Why that?"
"Because he is just. He is true. He will bring the light."
A gravely voice came from behind her. "And he will die."
Angel and Allison both turned to look at Holtz.
*~*~*
Gasping for air, Wesley pulled his lips from Eve's. "We. should. check on the others." He kept his arms around her.
She nodded, her lips swollen. "Yeah." Pausing briefly she crushed her lips to his.
*~*~*
Fred came back out of her room after having grabbed a sweater and looked around the empty lobby. "Cordelia? Gunn?" She poked her head around the corner. "Where'd you guys go?" Cautiously, she walked over to Wesley's office and gasped when she found them tied and gagged.
*~*~*
Allison stood and handed the baby to Angel. "You must be Holtz," she mused.
He looked to her. "And you, child. Are you Angelus' as well?"
She shook her head. "They call me Allison." She looked at the crossbow in his hands. "You will not hurt the child."
He grinned. "You're right. I will make the death painless. Only the father is to suffer."
"But he does. Every moment when he relives the pain he caused people like you." She took a step closer. "Please let the baby live. Your heart is good and I don't want to have to hurt you."
Holtz looked over this small girl in pigtails. Her eyes were slightly violet. She looked innocent as could be. "You? Hurt me, little one?"
She smiled. "I can see her in your eyes. She was pretty." She lost her smile. "You did the right thing. The sunlight freed her."
He frowned. "What have you heard?"
"It is not what I heard. It is what I see in your eyes. You loved your daughter and you set her free. You sent her to Heaven to be with her mother."
Holtz's eyes began to water. "I loved them. And he killed them."
"But he is bringing this baby into the world to help. This child is justice."
He looked down. "I did not want to come back as a monster."
"You are not a monster." Allison stepped up to him and put her tiny hand on his. "Would you like to see your wife and children again?"
He nodded. "But I must avenge."
"Vengeance leads to a cycle of hate. You do not want that. You need to forgive and know that a higher power is handling it."
Her words seemed to sink in as Holtz looked to Angel holding his child. "Do you really suffer, vampire?"
Angel nodded. "And I try to do good."
Holtz again looked to Allison. "I want to see them again."
She nodded and tugged on his coat. "Kneel."
He knelt in front of the child and closed his eyes. She brought her hands up to the sides of his head and Angel watched in awe as a purple jolt was sent through Holtz's head, killing him. He sank slowly till he lay on the ground looking peaceful.
Cordelia, Gunn and Fred came to a screeching halt behind the body. Their eyes went from him to Allison.
"So, I guess you don't need our help on this one?" Fred asked.
*~*~*
Eve shuddered and backed away from Wesley. "Something happened." Her eyes grew wide. "Dear Goddess, Allison!" She tore down the stairs to the kitchen where Allison was fixing a sheet over a body. "Allison?"
She looked to her mother. "I'm fine. My first assignment is done."
Gunn shuddered. "I wouldn't want that job."
"She freed him," Angel explained. "He was brought here under a veil of lies. He's free now. Home with his family." He looked at Justin. "And family is the most important thing."
*~*~*
Lilah sighed heavily as she picked up her phone. "What?"
"Miss Morgan?" It was a light feminine voice.
"Yes. Who is this?"
"They call me Eve. I have a message for you."
Eve. A pixie. It was coming back to her. "And what is that?"
"You try to harm the baby and you'll die. You try and take the baby and you'll die. You keep your distance and help keep him safe and you'll live. Are we clear?"
She smirked. "Right."
"You really don't want to end up in a processing plant as dog food now do you?"
Lilah shuddered. "I get the point."
"See that you do. Because I'd hate for you to have to meet my daughter."