Three Days Later.
The Scoobies were dressed solemnly, standing around a hole in the ground that now held their departed comrade. Xander held Buffy and Willow close to him, Willow's hand clasped in Tara's. Pike, and even Spike, came out for the nighttime ceremony. Standing at the foot of the grave, those two were dressed as normal, but their mood was somber as well. Giles stood at the head of the gravesite. Faith stood across the grave from her fellow Scoobies, a frown on her face. Faith's eyes were dry, as she had no more tears to shed.
Giles spoke.
"He died as he lived: protecting those around him and giving the best that he had for everyone else. He helped us, in truth, more than we probably gave him credit for. He saved us more than we knew, and he will be missed. A comrade in arms, as well as... as a friend. There will never be another like him."
Xander leaned over and kissed Buffy on the top of her head. She looked up at him and smiled sadly. Xander released his hold on both her and Willow, picked up a shovel and began refill the hole he had dug.
"I don't get it," Riley said. He sat in his wheelchair on the porch, next to Joyce and Dawn. "I mean, it's a stick."
Buffy and Willow looked up at him harshly.
"Mr. Pointy was more than just a stick," Willow said.
"He was my favorite stake," Buffy explained.
"You don't want to go insulting a favorite stake," Faith said, turning and walking to her boyfriend. "It's a special thing."
"Kendra gave me that stake," Buffy said. "He was the last thing I had to remember her by."
"Taken away by being slammed into a random crypt. It's tragic," Xander said. "You know, I still can't believe you went patrolling last night,"
"And making me say a bloody eulogy," Giles said, moving over and wrapping his arm around Joyce's waist. "That is positively the most ridiculous thing I have ever done."
"I was touched, Rupert," Spike said, following the much younger man over to the porch and heading inside. "Thought it was deeply moving."
Giles rolled his eyes at the vampire.
"Kids, if you're almost done out here, dinner should be ready in about five minutes," Joyce said.
A chorus of acknowledgements answered her, and Giles and Joyce walked back into the house.
"How are you feeling?" Dawn asked Riley.
"Better," he said, his hand going involuntarily to his stomach. "I was just lucky your sister got to me in time, and was still all pumped up with all of Xander's power."
"That was pretty good timing," Buffy said as she, Willow and Tara headed inside. Buffy paused next to Faith for a second. "I wasn't the only one who had good timing, though."
Faith smiled at her sister Slayer and looked over at Pike, still standing at the foot of the hole. She reached down and took Riley's hand in hers. He smiled up at her and nodded.
"Help me inside, Dawn?" Riley asked the young girl.
"Sure!" she said. Dawn had felt closer to the older man since they both had serious stomach wounds. And she liked pushing his chair.
Faith wandered out into the yard, and stopped next to Pike, who was still looking into the grave.
"All right, I think we're done here," Xander said. He looked up and noticed that only Faith and Pike were still outside. Xander shook his head. "Always out of the loop," he muttered before walking into the house, leaving the shovel on the porch.
Pike and Faith stood there, silent.
"Hit you hard, Mr. Pointy's death?" Faith asked after a minute.
Pike looked up and smiled at her. "No," he said. "Just a good time to take stock of everything."
Faith nodded. "Listen," she said. "I gotta –"
"You're welcome," Pike interrupted.
"No. I mean don't just... I need to say this. Okay?"
Pike nodded.
Faith sighed. "I killed this guy before," she said. "It was an accident, but I still killed him. And it haunted me. I kept thinking, maybe if I had been a little faster, or a little better or... well, the point is, I wasn't intending to kill him."
"Didn't, uh... didn't you kill two people?" Pike asked.
"Yeah," Faith said. "The second guy... some kinda scientist, I didn't care about. I was tryin' to keep Wilkins happy, he was the first guy who – the first person who ever seemed to care about me for a long time, you know? So, yeah, I did kill two guys. But neither of those guys... I didn't kill them because of a personal reason."
"You wanted Walsh to die," Pike said.
"Not just die," Faith said. "I wanted to kill her. I wanted her to die by my hand, for what she had done. To Riley. To me." She shook her head. "I don't know what that would have done to me."
Pike stayed silent.
"I don't know how you're dealing with killing her," Faith said. "I know how I am, and it's not good. I haven't slept very good since then. The... the guys have all been great, doing whatever, whenever, you know, and now Riley's out of the hospital... well, I'm gettin' better. Whether or not I actually killed her, I'm responsible for Maggie Walsh's death, but I've got all the Scoobs to back me up, to help me deal."
She turned to him. "You've got a vampire and alcohol."
"Works surprisingly well," Pike said with a chuckle.
"Listen, I appreciate the fact that you stopped me from killing Walsh, even if you did it by killing her yourself. It's kind of stupid, but just that amount of difference... it's big, is what I'm saying."
Pike nodded. "You're —"
"Anyway," Faith said. "I do want to thank you. For what you did... for being there for me. And... I don't know what your plans are, if you and bleachboy are sticking around or whatever, now that Adam's done with... but if you do... even if you don't, actually. If you ever need anything, just ask. I'll help. We all will. I owe you... a lot. Maybe more than I know. So... thank you. For everything."
Pike looked at her. Faith laughed and nodded.
"You're welcome," Pike said.
"Hey!" Xander yelled from the open kitchen door. "Are you guys gonna look at dirt all night, or are you planning to eat some? Buffy made her specialty!"
"Hey!" Buffy yelled.
Faith laughed. Pike frowned
"Buffy didn't actually cook, right?" Pike asked.
"No," said Faith. "Don't worry, this food will all be slay-free."
Thus reassured, Pike accompanied his friend back inside the house.
* * * * *
"So what did Riley say about the army?" Buffy asked after she and Xander had returned to their apartment that night. She had been too busy discussing clothes and make-up to pay attention to Riley's important life news.
"Oh, the higher ups are still deciding what to do," Xander said. "They've retrieved that battery thing you so spiffily ripped out of Adam, and they're still figuring everything else out. Riley's on temporary leave while he heals up. I think he said it has been indicated to him that he will be reprimanded with a slap on the wrist and given a general discharge with honor."
"So he'll be sticking around?" Buffy asked.
"Well, he'll probably have to go somewhere for a hearing or something, but yeah, he's gonna be moving here."
"What about the guy who shot Dawn?" Buffy asked.
"Court martial, for that whole crew, actually," he said. "The Initiative had a looser code than most groups, but taking out civilian targets is still a big no-no. That entire crew is gonna be on trial. They were following orders, but the order was illegal, and they should have known that."
Xander paused.
"I got an idea," Xander said from the kitchen where he was cleaning a few dishes. "Let's take a break from all this. Let's go away. Let's leave."
"What, now?" Buffy asked. "I've still got school. You've still got work, which you've been missing way too much of recently. We can't take a break."
"I know," Xander said. "I didn't mean now. But eventually. You know, just you and me."
"Well, a vacation does sound fun," Buffy said. "I haven't had a break from this for a while."
"I was thinking less of a vacation," said Xander. He walked up behind her and held up a black, velvet coated box with the lid flipped up. "I was thinking... more of a honeymoon."
Buffy's hand rushed up to her mouth as she gasped. Xander hopped over the couch and dropped down on one knee.
"Buffy Anne Summers, you are the most important person in my life. I love you more than I ever thought I could love anybody, and I can't imagine ever spending my life with anybody other than you. Will you marry me?"
Buffy's grin was a mile wide as she nodded her assent. Xander took the ring out of the box and slipped it onto her petite hand. Buffy threw her arms around Xander's neck, and they shared a passionate kiss.
"Oh my god," Buffy said, holding her hand out at a distance and wiping her eyes of joyous tears with her other hand. "Baby... oh, I love you so much."
"I love you, too," Xander said.
There was a knock at the door.
"Who's that?" Buffy asked.
"No idea," Xander said, standing up. He kissed his now-fiancée one more time and went to open the door.
"Giles," he said. "Hi. Now's not really –"
"I'm glad you're here," Giles said, brushing past the young man and entering the apartment.
"Sure, come on in, why not?" Xander said, sarcastically.
Giles walked in into the living room and looked at Buffy, noticing her puffy eyes. "Are you all right?" he asked.
"I'm incredible," she said, grinning ear to ear.
"Ah, good," Giles said.
"So, what can we do for you?" Xander asked, sitting down next to Buffy.
"I have just, um, been speaking with Wesley," Giles said. "He's been doing some research for Angel, and he ran across... something that I think, or rather that I am certain is relevant to our... situation here."
There was another knock at the door.
"Oh, Jesus," Xander said. He stood back up and re-opened the door. "Oh," he said when he saw who was on the other side.
"Hi," said the man. "I uh..."
"How did you find me?" Xander asked.
"I asked around... Sheila told me... after giving me an earful," the man said.
"You deserve it," Xander said.
Buffy and Giles were intrigued. Giles mouthed a silent 'Sheila?' to Buffy, who responded with a silent 'Willow's mom.'
"Listen," the man said. "Can I come in?"
Xander was silent for a minute, staring at the man. Then he sighed and stepped back and allowed the man entry, and followed him back into the living room.
"I uh... didn't know you had company," the man said.
Xander sighed. "This is Rupert Giles," he said. "He's... sort of our mentor and, well, he's a really strong father figure. Best I've had in my life."
The other man winced and nodded solemnly.
"This is Buffy Summers," Xander said, pointing to Buffy. "She lives here with me."
The man looked at Xander. "Still sluttin' it up, huh?"
As Giles and Buffy raised their eyebrows in shock and outrage, Xander reacted physically, thrusting his elbow into the man's stomach, knocking the wind out of him and sending him to the floor.
Xander rounded on the man and looked down on him from above. "You will not speak to anybody like that in my house," he said, with as much conviction as either Giles or Buffy had ever heard in his voice. "You will never speak in that tone about any of my friends ever, do you understand me? Especially not about my fiancée."
Giles looked to Buffy in surprise, and she held up her left hand and showed him the ring.
"In fact," Xander said, "you can just get the hell out right now."
"Listen, Alex," he said as he climbed to his feet.
"My name is Xander. Maybe you'd know that if you were ever sober enough to pay attention."
"Your mother and I –"
"Left town without telling me," Xander said. "And now you're back. And it's an even-odds bet you want something."
Understanding dawned on both Giles and Buffy. Buffy saw Giles' expression darken as soon as he realized who Xander was dealing with.
"We've got this kind of money problem, see," the man said.
"Leave my home," Xander said. "You come here, you insult the woman I love and then you have the gall to ask for money? That's not how it works, Tony."
"But, we're family," he said.
"Family does not abandon each other," Giles said, stepping up. "Family does not run out in the night and leave their youth to fend for themselves."
"Listen, you prissy Brit," Tony Harris said. "I will not be –"
Xander reached out, grabbed his father by the lapels, picked him up and slammed him against the wall, the older man's feet dangling above the floor. "I told you once not to speak like that in my home," Xander said, dropping his father back to the ground. "I will not tell you that again. Leave now, and don't come back here."
Tony Harris looked into his son's eyes, and was scared. He nodded to his son and went to let himself out of the apartment. Xander sighed.
"Dad," he said.
Tony stopped.
"How bad is it?" Xander asked.
"I'm in for a few grand. Six."
"I work on a construction site downtown, across from the China King. Meet me for lunch at noon on Monday, and we'll talk."
Tony sighed, relieved. "Thank you," he said.
"Be there at noon, sober, or don't be there at all," Xander said. "And send Mom my love."
Tony walked out of the room, and shut the door behind him.
Buffy stood and walked up to Xander, taking his hand in hers.
"I'm okay," he said, turning to face both her and Giles. She stood there.
"No, that's a lie," he said. "I'm upset and I'm angry, but I'll get over it."
"Love you," Buffy said, pressing a tender kiss to his chest.
"Love you, too," he said. He shook his head as he and Buffy sat back down on the couch. "Sorry. Giles, you were saying something."
"Yes. I was, wasn't I? Um... right, as I said, I was speaking with Wesley, and he ran across—"
"Giles, I'm a little worn out right now," Xander said. "Not trying to be rude, I just –"
"No, no, I understand," Giles said. "It's... it's just a matter of some delicacy, and I don't –"
"Giles!" Buffy said. "Come on, it can't be that bad, whatever it is."
"Bad? Um, no. Not exactly."
The couple looked at him, waiting.
"The spell we cast, or that Willow and Tara and Amy cast, the one that transferred your power," Giles said. "It has come to our attention that when people in your particular situation employ that spell, there are some added... side effects."
"Our situation?" Xander asked.
"Soulmates, to put it simply," Giles said.
"What side effects?" Buffy asked.
Giles looked to her. Then to Xander. And back to Buffy.
"So, you're engaged?" he asked.
"Just tonight," Buffy said, grinning up at Xander, who grinned back down at her.
"Good, that's good," Giles said.
The newly engaged couple looked up at the man they thought of as their father, waiting expectantly.
"Buffy," Giles said. "You're pregnant."
----------
The End.
The Scoobies were dressed solemnly, standing around a hole in the ground that now held their departed comrade. Xander held Buffy and Willow close to him, Willow's hand clasped in Tara's. Pike, and even Spike, came out for the nighttime ceremony. Standing at the foot of the grave, those two were dressed as normal, but their mood was somber as well. Giles stood at the head of the gravesite. Faith stood across the grave from her fellow Scoobies, a frown on her face. Faith's eyes were dry, as she had no more tears to shed.
Giles spoke.
"He died as he lived: protecting those around him and giving the best that he had for everyone else. He helped us, in truth, more than we probably gave him credit for. He saved us more than we knew, and he will be missed. A comrade in arms, as well as... as a friend. There will never be another like him."
Xander leaned over and kissed Buffy on the top of her head. She looked up at him and smiled sadly. Xander released his hold on both her and Willow, picked up a shovel and began refill the hole he had dug.
"I don't get it," Riley said. He sat in his wheelchair on the porch, next to Joyce and Dawn. "I mean, it's a stick."
Buffy and Willow looked up at him harshly.
"Mr. Pointy was more than just a stick," Willow said.
"He was my favorite stake," Buffy explained.
"You don't want to go insulting a favorite stake," Faith said, turning and walking to her boyfriend. "It's a special thing."
"Kendra gave me that stake," Buffy said. "He was the last thing I had to remember her by."
"Taken away by being slammed into a random crypt. It's tragic," Xander said. "You know, I still can't believe you went patrolling last night,"
"And making me say a bloody eulogy," Giles said, moving over and wrapping his arm around Joyce's waist. "That is positively the most ridiculous thing I have ever done."
"I was touched, Rupert," Spike said, following the much younger man over to the porch and heading inside. "Thought it was deeply moving."
Giles rolled his eyes at the vampire.
"Kids, if you're almost done out here, dinner should be ready in about five minutes," Joyce said.
A chorus of acknowledgements answered her, and Giles and Joyce walked back into the house.
"How are you feeling?" Dawn asked Riley.
"Better," he said, his hand going involuntarily to his stomach. "I was just lucky your sister got to me in time, and was still all pumped up with all of Xander's power."
"That was pretty good timing," Buffy said as she, Willow and Tara headed inside. Buffy paused next to Faith for a second. "I wasn't the only one who had good timing, though."
Faith smiled at her sister Slayer and looked over at Pike, still standing at the foot of the hole. She reached down and took Riley's hand in hers. He smiled up at her and nodded.
"Help me inside, Dawn?" Riley asked the young girl.
"Sure!" she said. Dawn had felt closer to the older man since they both had serious stomach wounds. And she liked pushing his chair.
Faith wandered out into the yard, and stopped next to Pike, who was still looking into the grave.
"All right, I think we're done here," Xander said. He looked up and noticed that only Faith and Pike were still outside. Xander shook his head. "Always out of the loop," he muttered before walking into the house, leaving the shovel on the porch.
Pike and Faith stood there, silent.
"Hit you hard, Mr. Pointy's death?" Faith asked after a minute.
Pike looked up and smiled at her. "No," he said. "Just a good time to take stock of everything."
Faith nodded. "Listen," she said. "I gotta –"
"You're welcome," Pike interrupted.
"No. I mean don't just... I need to say this. Okay?"
Pike nodded.
Faith sighed. "I killed this guy before," she said. "It was an accident, but I still killed him. And it haunted me. I kept thinking, maybe if I had been a little faster, or a little better or... well, the point is, I wasn't intending to kill him."
"Didn't, uh... didn't you kill two people?" Pike asked.
"Yeah," Faith said. "The second guy... some kinda scientist, I didn't care about. I was tryin' to keep Wilkins happy, he was the first guy who – the first person who ever seemed to care about me for a long time, you know? So, yeah, I did kill two guys. But neither of those guys... I didn't kill them because of a personal reason."
"You wanted Walsh to die," Pike said.
"Not just die," Faith said. "I wanted to kill her. I wanted her to die by my hand, for what she had done. To Riley. To me." She shook her head. "I don't know what that would have done to me."
Pike stayed silent.
"I don't know how you're dealing with killing her," Faith said. "I know how I am, and it's not good. I haven't slept very good since then. The... the guys have all been great, doing whatever, whenever, you know, and now Riley's out of the hospital... well, I'm gettin' better. Whether or not I actually killed her, I'm responsible for Maggie Walsh's death, but I've got all the Scoobs to back me up, to help me deal."
She turned to him. "You've got a vampire and alcohol."
"Works surprisingly well," Pike said with a chuckle.
"Listen, I appreciate the fact that you stopped me from killing Walsh, even if you did it by killing her yourself. It's kind of stupid, but just that amount of difference... it's big, is what I'm saying."
Pike nodded. "You're —"
"Anyway," Faith said. "I do want to thank you. For what you did... for being there for me. And... I don't know what your plans are, if you and bleachboy are sticking around or whatever, now that Adam's done with... but if you do... even if you don't, actually. If you ever need anything, just ask. I'll help. We all will. I owe you... a lot. Maybe more than I know. So... thank you. For everything."
Pike looked at her. Faith laughed and nodded.
"You're welcome," Pike said.
"Hey!" Xander yelled from the open kitchen door. "Are you guys gonna look at dirt all night, or are you planning to eat some? Buffy made her specialty!"
"Hey!" Buffy yelled.
Faith laughed. Pike frowned
"Buffy didn't actually cook, right?" Pike asked.
"No," said Faith. "Don't worry, this food will all be slay-free."
Thus reassured, Pike accompanied his friend back inside the house.
* * * * *
"So what did Riley say about the army?" Buffy asked after she and Xander had returned to their apartment that night. She had been too busy discussing clothes and make-up to pay attention to Riley's important life news.
"Oh, the higher ups are still deciding what to do," Xander said. "They've retrieved that battery thing you so spiffily ripped out of Adam, and they're still figuring everything else out. Riley's on temporary leave while he heals up. I think he said it has been indicated to him that he will be reprimanded with a slap on the wrist and given a general discharge with honor."
"So he'll be sticking around?" Buffy asked.
"Well, he'll probably have to go somewhere for a hearing or something, but yeah, he's gonna be moving here."
"What about the guy who shot Dawn?" Buffy asked.
"Court martial, for that whole crew, actually," he said. "The Initiative had a looser code than most groups, but taking out civilian targets is still a big no-no. That entire crew is gonna be on trial. They were following orders, but the order was illegal, and they should have known that."
Xander paused.
"I got an idea," Xander said from the kitchen where he was cleaning a few dishes. "Let's take a break from all this. Let's go away. Let's leave."
"What, now?" Buffy asked. "I've still got school. You've still got work, which you've been missing way too much of recently. We can't take a break."
"I know," Xander said. "I didn't mean now. But eventually. You know, just you and me."
"Well, a vacation does sound fun," Buffy said. "I haven't had a break from this for a while."
"I was thinking less of a vacation," said Xander. He walked up behind her and held up a black, velvet coated box with the lid flipped up. "I was thinking... more of a honeymoon."
Buffy's hand rushed up to her mouth as she gasped. Xander hopped over the couch and dropped down on one knee.
"Buffy Anne Summers, you are the most important person in my life. I love you more than I ever thought I could love anybody, and I can't imagine ever spending my life with anybody other than you. Will you marry me?"
Buffy's grin was a mile wide as she nodded her assent. Xander took the ring out of the box and slipped it onto her petite hand. Buffy threw her arms around Xander's neck, and they shared a passionate kiss.
"Oh my god," Buffy said, holding her hand out at a distance and wiping her eyes of joyous tears with her other hand. "Baby... oh, I love you so much."
"I love you, too," Xander said.
There was a knock at the door.
"Who's that?" Buffy asked.
"No idea," Xander said, standing up. He kissed his now-fiancée one more time and went to open the door.
"Giles," he said. "Hi. Now's not really –"
"I'm glad you're here," Giles said, brushing past the young man and entering the apartment.
"Sure, come on in, why not?" Xander said, sarcastically.
Giles walked in into the living room and looked at Buffy, noticing her puffy eyes. "Are you all right?" he asked.
"I'm incredible," she said, grinning ear to ear.
"Ah, good," Giles said.
"So, what can we do for you?" Xander asked, sitting down next to Buffy.
"I have just, um, been speaking with Wesley," Giles said. "He's been doing some research for Angel, and he ran across... something that I think, or rather that I am certain is relevant to our... situation here."
There was another knock at the door.
"Oh, Jesus," Xander said. He stood back up and re-opened the door. "Oh," he said when he saw who was on the other side.
"Hi," said the man. "I uh..."
"How did you find me?" Xander asked.
"I asked around... Sheila told me... after giving me an earful," the man said.
"You deserve it," Xander said.
Buffy and Giles were intrigued. Giles mouthed a silent 'Sheila?' to Buffy, who responded with a silent 'Willow's mom.'
"Listen," the man said. "Can I come in?"
Xander was silent for a minute, staring at the man. Then he sighed and stepped back and allowed the man entry, and followed him back into the living room.
"I uh... didn't know you had company," the man said.
Xander sighed. "This is Rupert Giles," he said. "He's... sort of our mentor and, well, he's a really strong father figure. Best I've had in my life."
The other man winced and nodded solemnly.
"This is Buffy Summers," Xander said, pointing to Buffy. "She lives here with me."
The man looked at Xander. "Still sluttin' it up, huh?"
As Giles and Buffy raised their eyebrows in shock and outrage, Xander reacted physically, thrusting his elbow into the man's stomach, knocking the wind out of him and sending him to the floor.
Xander rounded on the man and looked down on him from above. "You will not speak to anybody like that in my house," he said, with as much conviction as either Giles or Buffy had ever heard in his voice. "You will never speak in that tone about any of my friends ever, do you understand me? Especially not about my fiancée."
Giles looked to Buffy in surprise, and she held up her left hand and showed him the ring.
"In fact," Xander said, "you can just get the hell out right now."
"Listen, Alex," he said as he climbed to his feet.
"My name is Xander. Maybe you'd know that if you were ever sober enough to pay attention."
"Your mother and I –"
"Left town without telling me," Xander said. "And now you're back. And it's an even-odds bet you want something."
Understanding dawned on both Giles and Buffy. Buffy saw Giles' expression darken as soon as he realized who Xander was dealing with.
"We've got this kind of money problem, see," the man said.
"Leave my home," Xander said. "You come here, you insult the woman I love and then you have the gall to ask for money? That's not how it works, Tony."
"But, we're family," he said.
"Family does not abandon each other," Giles said, stepping up. "Family does not run out in the night and leave their youth to fend for themselves."
"Listen, you prissy Brit," Tony Harris said. "I will not be –"
Xander reached out, grabbed his father by the lapels, picked him up and slammed him against the wall, the older man's feet dangling above the floor. "I told you once not to speak like that in my home," Xander said, dropping his father back to the ground. "I will not tell you that again. Leave now, and don't come back here."
Tony Harris looked into his son's eyes, and was scared. He nodded to his son and went to let himself out of the apartment. Xander sighed.
"Dad," he said.
Tony stopped.
"How bad is it?" Xander asked.
"I'm in for a few grand. Six."
"I work on a construction site downtown, across from the China King. Meet me for lunch at noon on Monday, and we'll talk."
Tony sighed, relieved. "Thank you," he said.
"Be there at noon, sober, or don't be there at all," Xander said. "And send Mom my love."
Tony walked out of the room, and shut the door behind him.
Buffy stood and walked up to Xander, taking his hand in hers.
"I'm okay," he said, turning to face both her and Giles. She stood there.
"No, that's a lie," he said. "I'm upset and I'm angry, but I'll get over it."
"Love you," Buffy said, pressing a tender kiss to his chest.
"Love you, too," he said. He shook his head as he and Buffy sat back down on the couch. "Sorry. Giles, you were saying something."
"Yes. I was, wasn't I? Um... right, as I said, I was speaking with Wesley, and he ran across—"
"Giles, I'm a little worn out right now," Xander said. "Not trying to be rude, I just –"
"No, no, I understand," Giles said. "It's... it's just a matter of some delicacy, and I don't –"
"Giles!" Buffy said. "Come on, it can't be that bad, whatever it is."
"Bad? Um, no. Not exactly."
The couple looked at him, waiting.
"The spell we cast, or that Willow and Tara and Amy cast, the one that transferred your power," Giles said. "It has come to our attention that when people in your particular situation employ that spell, there are some added... side effects."
"Our situation?" Xander asked.
"Soulmates, to put it simply," Giles said.
"What side effects?" Buffy asked.
Giles looked to her. Then to Xander. And back to Buffy.
"So, you're engaged?" he asked.
"Just tonight," Buffy said, grinning up at Xander, who grinned back down at her.
"Good, that's good," Giles said.
The newly engaged couple looked up at the man they thought of as their father, waiting expectantly.
"Buffy," Giles said. "You're pregnant."
----------
The End.
