When the Time Has Passed
Title: When the Time Has Passed
Rating : PG-13
Genre: Drama, or something like it. Also, a complete one-shot.
Summary: The Oracles gave Angel back the day he asked for when he finally found the one thing he'd ever wanted. The problem was, they refused to destroy the human life inside of her. B/A One-timer.
Grand Summary: Angel asked the Oracles to give him back the perfect day he had with Buffy. The only problem was, they didn't want to give up the life inside of her. Now eighteen and pregnant, Buffy is forced to find out what happened to her and why she can't remember. And Angel is forced to come clean about why he did what he did.
Settings: Angel, Season 1; Buffy, Season 4, set after "Pangs" and "I Will Remember You". None of the events that happened after "Pangs" on Buffy-side or "I Will Remember You" Angel-side happened.
Disclaimer: Joss Whedon owns Buffy and her universe; Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt own Angel and his universe.
Author's Note: This story, while short, uses some conversation and stuff from the Angel episode, "I Will Remember You" and a bit of the conversation from "Hero". I wrote this a while back. I'm just posting it now that I have my old hard drive back. I don't think it'll ever be extended, but it was fun to write. Un-beta-ed.
- - - - -
When the Time Has Passed
- - - - -
Her voice just kept echoing inside of his head. "You. You alone will carry the memory of this day. Can you carry that burden?"
It had been nearly an hour since Buffy had left his apartment, walking out of his life, just as he'd so nonchalantly left hers just a few months before. He'd been going over the conversations from the past twenty four hours in his mind. He was going to drive himself literally insane if he kept it up.
How was he going to live with himself if he kept pretending that it didn't happen? It had happened. She had been in his arms. He had enjoyed ice cream and chocolate for the first time this century. He'd been able to look her in the eye and tell her how much he loved her.
And now he had to forget this had ever happened. He had to forget their entire day together. He had to forget the sweetness of mortality and taste the bitterness of once again being turned into the en-souled living dead.
He had to forget.
- - - - -
Six Weeks Later
"Buffy! We're going to be late!"
Buffy glanced up from the sink she'd been hovering over for the past five minutes. For some odd reason, the cafeteria food wasn't agreeing with her lately. Pressing a hand to her stomach, she listened as Willow knocked on the door to their dormitory bathroom again.
"Buffy, if you don't come out soon, we're going to miss Psych!"
She turned on the faucet and ducked her head, quickly cupping a handful of water into her mouth and swallowing it.
It hadn't been just today, either. The past two weeks had been downright miserable for her. Maybe she had the flu or something. Whatever it was, it wasn't fun.
She hadn't felt right since she'd returned from her mini-vacation in Los Angeles. It really had been her Father telling her he was off and running to London that forced her to realize that he sucked beyond anything she knew. He wasn't really acting like a Father. He was probably the reason why she had so much trouble with any Father figures. Except Giles, of course.
She caught her reflection in the mirror and moved to her makeup bag, quickly adding some concealer under her eyes to hide her exhaustion. Running a brush rapidly through her hair, she decided the time had come for her to face civilization again. Smoothing her slightly wrinkled blouse, she stepped out of the bathroom and returned to her room, picked up her book bag, and joined Willow downstairs for the walk across campus.
"Your stomach still all poo-ey?" Willow asked in concern as the two left Stevenson Hall.
"A little," Buffy said, shaking her hair out and drawing in deep breaths of warm air. "I don't know what's wrong with me."
"Maybe it's time that you go to see the Doctor," Willow suggested.
"Oh, that's going to happen," Buffy said sarcastically. "There are certain things in this world that don't mix. Buffy and Doctors are one of them."
"There might be something seriously wrong with you, though," Willow protested.
"If there is, it's nothing I can't handle," Buffy said breezily. "You remember that fever? I got over it."
"Not before it nearly killed you," Willow pointed out.
"I still got over it. I've had the chicken pox and I survived that. A little bout of stomach flu isn't anything to really be concerned about."
"I won't bug you again if you promise to at least try to rest," Willow said, watching as Buffy rolled her eyes. "I mean it. No more annoying Spike or patrolling while you're sick. I'll go patrolling with Xander tonight."
"All right," Buffy agreed, only because she was far too tired to argue. If she was honest with herself, she was worried. She'd been sick before, but not like this. It was the most persistent flu she ever recalled having.
By later that evening, Buffy chose to go to Giles' and wait to hear from the patrolling party. Spike was still sitting chained in his chair, glowering at her. She didn't stay to bicker with him, though. The tomato soup she'd forced down at dinner was coming up and she ran passed him, while he snickered, and dove into the bathroom just in time.
When she came out, she saw Giles look at her in concern. "I'm okay," she said with a weak smile. "Really, I'm fine."
"You're looking pretty green, Slayer," Spike spoke dryly from his seat in the middle of the living area floor. "Are you going to yak on me?"
"No," she said shortly, sitting down on the couch and trying to take deep breaths. Why did tomato soup, one of her favorite foods, affect her stomach like this?
"Buffy, perhaps you should consider going to a Doctor," Giles said quickly.
"Did Willow tell you?"
"She has expressed her concerns about you, yes," Giles replied, glaring at Spike as he opened his mouth to say something. Spike's mouth snapped shut and he glared at the ceiling instead. "We're all concerned, Buffy."
"If it lasts another week, I'll go see a Doctor," Buffy said by means of a compromise. But Giles wasn't about to buy it.
"Willow told us that you've been sick for a few weeks now," Giles said quietly, trying to block Spike from the conversation. "It might be a better idea to get it over with now."
"I'll go see the campus doctors in the morning," Buffy sighed in resignation. She really didn't have the energy to fight this.
But when Willow and Xander returned, they had some explaining to do.
Xander, although he wasn't a student, accompanied Buffy to the campus health center the next morning. Buffy was slightly irritated by the bright, brassy room.
A young nurse sat at the desk and glanced up when they walked in.
"Hi, I was wondering if you had a Doctor on-call," Buffy said, trying to keep her voice low and speaking quickly. She really didn't want to be there.
"I'll page her for you. Have a seat, Miss--"
"Summers. It's Buffy Summers."
"Of course, Bunny. We'll call you when we're ready."
Buffy and Xander walked over and sat down in the bright sunshine. As much as she hated to admit it, Buffy was glad she'd finally agreed to come. It was not as scary as the hospital in town, and hopefully the doctor in this health center was adequate enough to help her.
She ended up waiting for nearly twenty minutes before a young woman in a long white coat approached her with her hand extended outwards. "Miss Summers? I'm Doctor Nadja Larkin. I'll see you now."
Buffy rose and followed the Doctor into one of the examination rooms. Doctor Larkin closed the door and turned to face Buffy, who had sat down on the bed uneasily, looking nervous.
"There really isn't any reason to be nervous," Doctor Larkin said hurriedly. "We're not all evil, needle-loving psychotics."
"Thanks," Buffy said with a short smile.
"Can I ask what is bothering you?" Doctor Larkin said, reaching for a clipboard that had what looked like a checklist attached.
"I've been having problems with the flu lately," Buffy admitted. "I've been throwing up a lot and I've been tired lately. Not that I get tired easily, because I usually have a lot of energy, and I--"
Doctor Larkin was looking up at her. She had just written down a few words, but the rest of the time she had been looking up at the young blonde sitting on the bed in front of her. "I see," she said, blinking and looking away. "How long have you had these symptoms?"
"Just over two weeks," Buffy said, making a face. "Not fun, I'll tell you."
"No, I don't imagine they would be very fun," Doctor Larkin said, her smile slightly strained as she glanced down at her list. "Do you recall when you had your last period?"
At this, Buffy's heart skipped a beat. She hadn't thought at all about that. Blinking, she remembered the last time she'd had it. It had been almost ten weeks ago... or sooner...
Bloody hell.
"It's been over two months," Buffy replied, glancing at the physician in concern. "Is there a problem?"
"I'd like to do a blood sample and, if we can manage it, an ultrasound before we jump to any conclusions. I also want you to take a pregnancy test."
A what? Buffy couldn't help but laugh at her recommendation. A pregnancy test? Her? Parker had been so four months ago. And she hadn't been with anyone since. It was laughable, absolutely ridiculous!
Doctor Larkin seemed to sense her discomfort and rose. "We should probably hurry if you want your test results back sometime today."
Buffy nodded and followed behind her, trying to rack her mind for anything that could explain her current situation.
It didn't take them long, either. Buffy and Willow had just returned from dinner when she noticed the little red light blinking on their answering machine. Willow went over to hit it, since Buffy just stared at the phone, as though questioning why it was torturing her so.
There were two messages. One was from Giles, basically whining about his discontent at having Spike around for twenty four hours a day, drinking blood and bloody whining all of the time. The second message was from Doctor Larkin's assistant, who asked that Buffy call the health center immediately.
"They are open all night," Willow told Buffy when she hesitated. "You might as well get it over with."
Buffy gave her a strained smile as she dialed the number the assistant had given her. After a moment, she was transferred to a nurse.
"Have my test results come back in?" Buffy asked once she'd identified herself.
"They have," the nurse said uncertainly. "I am pleased to say that you're pregnant."
Buffy sat down, forgetting the bed was about five feet behind her. As she fell onto the floor, Willow looked at her in alarm. "What?" she mouthed.
"I'm... what?" Buffy choked into the mouthpiece.
"You're pregnant, Buffy. You're about six weeks along."
"I... can't be..."
"Congratulations!"
As the line went dead, the phone fell into her lap as she turned to Willow, who reached down and hung the phone up. "What's up?" she asked, seeing the look of absolute disbelief on Buffy's face.
"You're never going to believe this," Buffy said slowly, looking up at her best friend. "I'm pregnant."
- - - - -
"She's what?"
Angel nearly choked on his mug of blood as Cordelia stood in front of him, the cordless telephone in one hand and an expression of shock on her face.
"I'm just repeating what Willow said. She's on the phone for you. Here." She shoved the phone into his hand and left without another word.
"Angel?" Willow's voice sounded so far away. "Are you there?"
"I'm here, Willow. Please, tell me what's going on."
Willow sounded agitated as she started explaining to him what was happening. Apparently Buffy had been sick for the past two weeks, and when she'd finally gone into the doctor's office and done something about it, she came away discovering she was six weeks pregnant.
His heart, had it been beating, would have stopped.
"She is freaking out, Angel. She doesn't know how it happened. She thinks it may have happened during her trip to Los Angeles, but she was only there for a night. She hasn't done anything with anyone in months. She's really scared."
So was he, should he admit it. After promising to look into Buffy's trip, he hung up the phone.
Everything that had happened six weeks ago was coming back to him now. Every ounce of pain, of misery and of the torture of letting her go. They had slept together. It had been beyond anything he had ever experienced. And he had been mortal.
He felt the overwhelming need to see the Oracles again. He rose and walked out of his office to see Cordelia and Doyle staring at him.
"Is it true?" Cordelia asked him, and Angel knew that she'd been telling Doyle about Willow's call.
"It's true," Angel said, staring at Doyle, who twitched slightly before looking at Cordy.
Doyle knew about what had happened. Angel had told him about it the following day. The flashback played through his mind like a fairy tale.
"I need to see the Oracles, Doyle," he said urgently. Doyle seemed to sense this and turned to Cordelia, who was looking at both of them as though they had lost their minds.
"Would you mind watching the office for a bit?" Doyle asked her as Angel walked straight at his elevator, wanting to take the subterranean route. "If we don't do this now, Angel's going to go loco."
Angel was waiting for him, a contemplative look on his face. "I need to know what the Oracles do," he explained.
"Hey, man, you don't have to explain anything to me," Doyle said quickly. "You told me that Buffy was here for an entire day. And then you gave her back. That's all I asked."
"Then why is she six weeks pregnant six weeks after I let her go, Doyle? Can you answer that riddle?"
"Maybe she went all pelvic once she'd left your office."
"Or maybe what we did carried over and she just doesn't remember," Angel said, now feeling thoroughly disturbed. "The faster we reach that realm, the better."
The Oracles didn't look surprised to see them when Angel entered. He carried an old mask in his hand, and it flew into the woman's as she inspected it.
"Fascinating," she said, setting it aside. "Why have you come back to us?"
"I need your help," Angel said. "You gave me back my day and everything that Buffy and I did was erased. Except now she's pregnant and she doesn't know how. All I can come up with is that we..."
"There is a great value to human life," the man said, giving Angel a perturbed look.
"We could hardly give yours back when taking away another."
"You knew this was going to happen?" Angel asked incredulously. It took a lot to surprise him. The fact they knew about it was almost unnerving.
"We returned you to your former self, but were unwilling to take a human life away."
"The girl has little to live for. She will not remember what has happened."
"I have to tell her," Angel said, pacing slightly. "I want to tell her. How is she going to have a child and not be able to tell him or her who their Father was? I know how little she trusts the father figure. She told me that much."
He remembered her parting words to him before the clock had turned back.
"I'll never forget."
Apparently, her body hadn't forgotten. The Oracles had been unwilling to take a human life away from her, even when he'd asked to turn back time. Although the day had been removed, the child hadn't been.
And Buffy was still pregnant.
"I thank you for your help," he said, bowing his head slightly as he walked away.
"If you give her knowledge of this day, you bring her heartbreak," the woman told him.
"We are not sure what you wish to accomplish by telling her," the man said after looking at the female Oracle for a moment.
"Buffy didn't have a Father figure in her life. I'm not about to leave my duty. Not when the time comes."
"You are a champion of the people," the male Oracle said as Angel turned to leave. "If you abandon this now, you can never turn back."
"That decision was made the night we made love," Angel said, feeling as though his heart were breaking. "I know now more than ever how much I truly love her. To abandon her now would be to give her child a death sentence. Is there anything you can do?"
"When the time comes, you will know," said the woman, lifting her hand in the air in dismissal. "Good luck and fortune to you."
Angel blinked as he stumbled backwards.
"What did they say?" Doyle asked after he'd helped Angel straighten up.
"Oh, the usual," Angel said softly. "I was right. She conceived that night. And the Oracles were unwilling to take a second life away."
"Are you going to go up to Sunnydale and tell her?"
"I have to do something, Doyle. She's scared because she thinks something bad happened to her."
"She's not going to appreciate that you've been playing with her memory," Doyle told him gently.
"I don't care. It's about time I set things right. I can't leave her alone in this."
"How exactly are you two going to work it out? She's in college and you're pretty much dust in the daylight."
"Buffy's father hasn't been much of a father at all," Angel said shortly. "I'm not going to let my child live the same way. Even if I'm the living dead."
"You're a hell of a lot braver than I thought, mate," Doyle said, looking at his leader with something like awe in his eyes.
"You told me I'd find my strength when I'm tested. I think right about now I could use some of that strength."
- - - - -
One Week Later
Sunnydale had never looked so pretty after a late night thunderstorm had swept the city, dousing it with rain and hail the size of pebbles. Buffy walked through her usual cemetery, admiring the scenery. The grass even sounded fresher as it crunched beneath her feet. It was a wonderful feeling.
The hairs on the back of her neck stood up and she turned. Someone was watching her.
"You know, now's not the best time to be following me," Buffy said, pulling a stake out of the pocket of her hooded sweatshirt and waving it around in plain sight. "You'll get one seriously hormonal and pissed off Slayer on your back."
"I happen to think you're adorable when you're all pissed off."
Buffy nearly dropped her stake. "Angel?"
He was standing behind one of the large elm trees. He cleanly stepped around it and stood in front of her, smiling.
"How are you feeling?"
"I have my ups and downs. At least the morning sickness is going away," Buffy said with a shrug. "I'm sure by now everyone on the planet knows that Buffy Summers is pregnant by some improbable conception."
"You don't know why?" he asked her.
She shook her head, snorting in the most unlady-like way. "Of course not. Why would Buffy know anything?" She put a hand to her abdomen and winced slightly. "I'm just really hoping and praying that this isn't some demon baby."
"It's not," Angel said quickly, hoping to assure her. She glanced up at him. A smile graced her features as she took in his concern.
"You're really sweet to say that Angel, but considering how much I don't remember doing anything to get me into this position in the first place, it's probably stupid to think otherwise." She smiled at look he gave her. "And your concern is really touching, but I think I can handle some demons by myself. It'll get the hormones out."
"Buffy..." he said, catching her arm as she attempted to walk by him.
"I can't keep doing this," she said, looking up at him. "I can't keep seeing you. You're too close." She pulled her arm away from his. "What was it you told me to do... forget? This wasn't part of the plan. I don't need a guardian angel looking over my shoulder."
"That's not why I'm here," he said as she moved away from him. "I... I know what happened to you."
She froze. Very slowly, she turned back to face him. "What happened to me? Was there some deal on the black market to infect me with a demon baby?"
"No," he said, shaking his head. "What do you remember happening two months ago when you were in LA?"
"We talked for about five minutes and then I left," Buffy said, shrugging. "And then I went to see my Dad, got disappointed, came home. Not really much to remember."
"What if I told you that you were there longer than five minutes?"
"It could have been closer to ten, I suppose," Buffy said, looking politely puzzled now. "Why?"
"Because you were there for a whole day and night."
She looked as though she were about ready to laugh. "And the surprises keep on coming," she said, choking into her fist.
"The first time the Mohra demon attacked it got away."
"There was a first time?" Buffy asked, now feeling quite befuddled.
"Look, I tracked it, I killed it, some of its blood mixed with mine. It made me mortal. And that's when we--"
"You're mental," she said, turning away from him, hurrying as though she didn't want to hear anymore. "I was there, Angel. I was there for five, maybe ten minutes when you told me I should start forgetting. It's kind of hard to when you're standing here telling me a fairy tale that doesn't exist."
"I went to the conduits for the Powers That Be, called the Oracles. The Oracles told me that I was released from my duty. I stayed with you and we shared a night... until I realized we couldn't be. So, I went back to the Oracles and I asked them to turn back the clock... as though that day had never happened."
She was staring at him now. There was disbelief in her eyes, but she seriously looked as though she wanted to believe him. "You... you were human?"
"For a whole day and night," he said quietly.
For a moment, they just stared at each other.
"What made you want to change your mind?"
"You," he said, reaching for again and wincing as she pulled away. "And if I had stayed mortal one of us would have winded up dead, maybe both of us. How could we be together if the cost was your life, or the lives of others?"
There were tears in her eyes now as she looked down at the hand cupping her abdomen. "Oh," she said softly as she looked back at him, realization in her eyes. "You and I... we..."
"Several times," he said with a small smile.
She looked as though she were about to start crying. "What happened then?"
"The Oracles gave us back the day, turning back time, so I could kill the Mohra before his blood made me mortal."
"And, why--"
"The Oracles had already taken one human life," Angel told her. "They didn't want to take the other."
Buffy turned around and began walking away from him. "And you thought you could just show up and throw this story in my face?" she asked him forcefully.
"No," Angel said quietly. "But I had to tell you the truth because I know that I am the father."
"Do you have any idea how I used to wish and hope that something like this could happen?" she asked, turning back to face him. "It finally has... and now... there's not a damned thing we can do to change it."
"Things are difficult, but they'll get better."
"How? You going to take Angel Junior on camping trips or midnight patrols? I'm carrying your child, Angel. It means so much to me and yet... it breaks my heart again. Every time I look into his or her face, I'm going to see that the one thing I have always wanted was taken from me again."
"I'm not leaving this time," Angel said boldly.
"You have to," she said, pointing to the sky. "It'll get kind of sunny in about four hours."
"That's not what I meant. I left to go to LA so I could forget about what we had, but the Oracles have given us a sign, a sign that says we're destined for more than just heartbreak and pain. Maybe it's a sign that we may not just belong to the world of fighting."
"What are you saying?"
"I'm saying that I gave up what I wanted, but now I'm thinking maybe I didn't. When I made that choice, I gained more. Because now the woman I love is carrying our child, and I didn't have to go evil to get it."
He walked over to her and lifted his hand, pressing it to her stomach. As he did, she was aware of how close he was and rested her face into the chest of his leather jacket.
"It's been so hard to be alone," she said after a moment's silence.
"You won't have to be alone anymore," Angel told her. "I may not be able to take you into the light, but we shared something so incredible..."
"I just wish I could remember," Buffy said sadly as he turned his face to hers. "And it doesn't matter what happens, Angel. It doesn't matter that we can't... because there's other things we can do. And we have our child now, which makes things easier."
"Well, maybe easy for you, but for me, it's no piece of cake," Angel said, snarling suddenly. She jumped back from him as a vampire dove for the spot where she'd been standing moments earlier. As she watched him fight the vampire, she felt a surge of pride for him.
As easy as the concept was of forgetting Angel had ever existed, he'd made his mark permanent.
When the dust settled, Angel turned back to her. "Now, I'm going back to LA in the morning. I know you have school and when that's done, I'm expecting your friends to take good care of you. I don't care if you have to put Spike out to patrol. It'll give fangless something useful to do. I don't want to hear you've been putting your life in any danger."
"I won't," she said with a sly smile. "I promise."
And they sealed it with a kiss.
- - - - -
As the months passed, Buffy found that taking Angel's orders was easier said than done.
By her seventh month, she was already pressuring Giles to find a spell to get the baby out of her. The boredom was almost excessive. Angel called her daily and kept promising he would return to Sunnydale soon.
His words had given her some doubt. She loved him, certainly, but whether or not he would hold true to his word was another thing coming.
She just rested in bed, propped up against a half dozen pillows, watching television in her mother's bedroom. Once Joyce had found out about Buffy's pregnancy, she naturally was very concerned. She even threatened Angel with his life, his job and just about every other thing she could think of until Angel told her what had happened.
That had shut her up immediately.
Since it was summertime, Buffy could hardly be bothered to even care about her appearance. Angel was coming up nearly ever week to check up on her, and when he didn't, Cordelia called to check up on her.
Her mother still complained at least once a week that she was too young to be a grandmother. Buffy just counterattacked and said she was only nineteen and was too young to be a mother.
It was strange being waited on. Usually she was the one and about, saving the world. It wasn't her cup of tea to have others do it for her.
She had been getting regular check-ups, taking her vitamins and taking very good care of herself. Although the Doctor had offered to tell her the gender of their child, she wanted it kept silent, for now.
Joyce had been with her for all of these check-ups, telling Buffy about how young she'd been when Buffy was conceived and born. They were bonding much better than they usually did.
It had been Willow who had planned a baby shower. Buffy had been quite surprised when her friends had walked in, wearing diapers on their heads, drinking vodka from the baby bottles and playing games that involved tossing small, red rubber children in a pie pan for prizes. It had been fun, nonetheless. Just getting all of the adorable yellow and purple sleepers had been worth it.
Even her Father had sent her something. Well, it was just a card with a check inside, but it meant something to her that he even cared.
She was just been helping Willow pick out her classes for fall semester when her water broke and she went into labor. The ambulance ride was scary for her, since she severely mistrusted anything to do with the hospital.
Joyce had ridden with her, with orders for Willow to call Angel.
Twelve hours later, the baby still hadn't really come. She wanted it to be natural. And with her Slayer strength, she figured she could endure the pain. After a half day of it, she refused to believe that anyone should have to endure this.
It was just after midnight when Angel arrived. He was rushed into the delivery room and was given the usual scrubs and gloves. Buffy looked quite relieved to see him. She was trying to smile, but was simply too exhausted. He took over for the nurse, holding her hand and telling her when to breathe.
It was around two in the morning that their daughter was born.
Angel returned twice over the next three days to check up on mother and daughter. The last trip was late at night. He was wheeling Buffy down to see her daughter before the entire family could return home.
As the nurse went inside the nursery to get their child, Buffy and Angel finally had a moment of peace to themselves. He reached down and took her hand. She gave it a rather forceful squeeze back. "You know I love you, right?" he asked.
"Yeah," she replied. "I know."
They watched as all of the nurses behind the thick pane of glass walked over to say goodbye to baby Summers.
"I have a surprise for you," he said suddenly.
She gave him a very suspicious look. "You know how I feel about surprises."
"You'll like this one," he assured her. Once they'd collected their daughter, he drove her to one of the new developments. While Joyce had offered Buffy and her baby a spot in their house, Buffy realized what she wanted was the same sort of freedom people her age desired. So, she decided to get an apartment at the newest development.
What she didn't know is that Angel had been spending all of his hard-earned success money, much to Cordelia's dismay, on decorating it for baby Summers.
He took her bag for her once they'd stopped. She walked next to him, smirking at the black convertible. "That is so you," she often told him. It was the complete truth.
The lights were on in her new apartment. What she didn't expect was the room full of people waiting to welcome her back. No, scratch that. Welcome them back.
"Surprise!" Willow said, rushing forward and taking the baby from Buffy's arms. "Oh, Buffy... she's so pretty!"
"She's got your eyes," Xander said, making a cute face at the baby before giving his best friend a one-armed hug.
"She's got her poof's forehead," Spike said dryly from where he was chained up near the door.
"Spike, that wasn't very nice," Anya, Xander's girlfriend said, slapping the back of his head. Spike growled at her.
"Fine. I hope she grows up looking like her Mother. Was that nice enough?"
"It was better, but not quite as sugar-coated as I would have liked," Anya said, pouting slightly.
"I like it," Buffy said, taking her daughter back.
"Did you finally come up with a name?" Joyce asked as she hugged her daughter and granddaughter tightly.
"We have," Buffy said playfully. It had been something she and Angel had decided the night before. She opened her overnight bag and pulled out the baby's birth certificate with the little footprints all over. It read, very plainly, Hope Elizabeth Summers.
"Hope?" Anya asked, making a face. She had been pressing for something that she thought would suit the baby better, like Aude or Emmanuella. Angel had wanted to pick a virtuous name, so after a lot of talk, they'd come up with Hope. They already had a Faith. And maybe what Faith needed was Hope.
"I like it," Willow said, smiling at her best friend. "It has spark."
"Me, too," Giles said, coming in front the kitchen with a tray of snacks in his arms. "It's very creative."
"Thank you," Buffy said, smiling gratefully at them.
Angel waited until everyone had left before walking into her bedroom. Hope was happily sleeping in Buffy's arms. "How are you doing?"
"We're great," she said, giving him a tired smile.
"How are you planning on patrolling with a newborn?" he asked her half-teasingly.
"I'm sure we can work something out," Buffy said, admiring the way the newborn yellow sleeper looked on their daughter. "What I haven't figured out yet is how we're going to work out."
"Isn't it obvious?" Angel asked.
"Not really, no," she replied, turning back as Hope stirred in her arms.
"I am going to speak with the Oracles and see what else they have planned," he explained.
"Do you think they'd turn you back into a human if you asked?" she asked, with that sweet smile of hers.
"Probably not," he said, sitting down next to her. "But I'm sure something can be worked out. I'm not about to leave you two here alone."
"We're not alone, Angel," Buffy said with a smile. "I'm thinking of asking Anya to move in with us. She loves babies. It'll be perfect."
"Perfect for now, maybe," Angel said, gently touching his daughter's pudgy little cheek. "But it won't work forever."
"Can you believe we made her?" Buffy asked in a voice of wonder as she gently stood up and set her baby in her crib.
"If I had the chance, I'd make many more," Angel said with a teasing smile as she rolled her eyes at him. "Maybe someday we'll have that chance."
"I hope it's something not deadly, too," Buffy said, pouting slightly. "I don't want to be dead and it'll probably take a miracle to turn you human."
"It probably will," Angel said, pulling her into his arms as they relaxed against the bed frame. "But, for now, I'm happy like this."
"Me, too," she said from somewhere underneath his chin.
"Love you."
"I love you, too."
- - - - -
End.