Chapter 3

As water poured into the porcelain tub in Angel's bathroom, Katherine stared in amazement. The bathroom counter was cluttered with pretty much everything Angel had been able to carry from Fred's bathroom. He wasn't sure exactly what he would need so he just grabbed it all. He poured in some bath bubbles as the water ran in and Katherine was ecstatic at the result.

"Wow! They're so pretty! But, once you get it all filled up, how do you get all the water back out?"

Angel was careful not to smile. He didn't want her to think he was making fun of her. This world was bound to prompt endless questions and he never wanted her to be inhibited about asking him about anything.

"Well," he carefully explained, "the tub has a drain that leads down to the sewer system. I'll show it to you sometime. As a matter of fact, you'll probably be seeing it a lot."

"Why?" asked Katherine.

Angel wondered if he should put off the more specific details of his lifestyle. "Do you need help getting undressed?" he stalled.

"No. I can do it myself."

Angel watched as she began struggling out of the crudely sewn skin dress she was wearing. She got it about halfway over her head and got stuck.

"Would you like some help?"

"Yes, please."

Angel freed her arms and tossed the dress aside. She kicked off her moccasin type shoes and stood only in the loose fitting undergarment she was wearing. With a slow sigh, he decided this was probably as good a time as any to begin explaining his complicated life as a vampire and all that it entailed.

"See, part of being a vampire means that I am not able to go out in the sun like most people," he began, "so sometimes I use the sewer tunnels to get places."

She took off the rest of her clothing and he lifted her into the tub. A huge grin came across her face as she settled into the luxurious bubble bath.

"It's warm!" How do you get it so warm?"

Angel pointed behind her. "See those knobs there? One is for hot and one is for cold. You can make the water any temperature you want it."

"Can I take a bubble bath like this again next week?" Katherine asked hopefully.

Angel was getting a better idea of why she looked so dirty. "You can take a bubble bath like this every night if you want."

She smiled up at him. "Every night? Really? Do you take bubble baths?"

Angel reflected again on honesty. Now, the truth was he loved to soak in a nice hot bath with some low music and soft candles. However, that was not the strong paternal image he wanted to portray to his young daughter on their first evening together. He decided honesty could be overrated.

"Nah, guys mostly take showers."

"What are showers?"

Angel decided to risk a little fun. He reached out and pulled the middle knob as the water was pouring in and soft spray from the showerhead rained down on Katherine as she sat in the tub. The little girl squealed and then laughed out loud.

"That," said Angel, "is a shower."

He turned the knob off again and got a towel to wipe up some of the water from the floor. He showed her how to use the sponge and shower gel. Then he washed and rinsed her hair twice. As the layers of dirt were washed away it became clearer by the second that this was indeed the face of his baby girl. Slightly slimmer, but still the same sweet face he had stared into well into the wee hours many nights. He wanted so much to lean down and kiss those soft cheeks again. Would she welcome it? Would she even allow it? He decided it was better to be patient. He didn't want to rush her. Angel looked down at the dingy water in the tub and grabbed a clean towel.

"Here. Stand up for a sec."

Katherine got up and he wrapped the towel around her and lifted her out. He then drained the water from the tub and turned on the shower. "Wanna check it out?"

Katherine nodded, laid the towel down and stepped in.

"I like showers, too! Maybe I'll take a shower one day and a bath the next."

"Whatever you want, sweetheart."

Katherine rinsed herself in the shower for a few minutes until Angel finally turned off the water.

"Okay, ready to get out?"

Angel wrapped the towel back around her and reached for another towel to dry her hair. With that done, he began the arduous task of trying to comb it out.

"Ouch!" Katherine cried out. "Can't we just leave it?"

"I think maybe that's why it's so hard to comb now," Angel said. "Tell you what. We'll just take our time and do it real slow. We can go in the other room and sit down and I'll tell you some things about this world while I comb it, okay?"

Katherine nodded. She hated having her hair combed but she was so curious and full of questions that was willing to bargain.

"What would happen if you went out in the sun?" was her first question.

"I'd catch on fire," he told her.

"Would you burn up?" she asked further.

"Yep."

"Even your bones?"

"Yep."

"Where would your soul go then?" she wanted to know.

Angel didn't answer her. How could he? The fact was, he had spent roughly the past 100 years wondering about the answer to that himself.

"I'm not sure," he finally said. "Somewhere sunny, maybe. Only I wouldn't burn up."

He was making some progress with her hair. One side was completely combed out and he had started on the other.

"What's in there?" Katherine asked, pointing to the little room on the other side of Angel's bed.

"That's where you used to sleep when you were a baby."

"I haven't been a baby for a long time. How come you still keep it like that?"

Angel continued combing as he tried to think of the best way to explain this trick of time.

"I think time must pass differently in different worlds. You were just a baby when you lived here. Then you went to Quor-Toth and six years passed there for you. But here, only a few weeks passed."

Katherine turned around to look at him. "You mean, to you, it's only been a few weeks since I was a baby?"

Angel nodded. She thought this over.

"You mean, to you, it's only been a few weeks since I lived here?"

Angel nodded again.

"So, how did you know it was me?" she asked.

He laid the comb down on the bed and took her face in his hands.

"I would know you anywhere, in any time, in any world, because you are part of me, way down deep inside. On the day you were born, I looked into your beautiful blue eyes and our souls connected. And our souls will stay connected forever."

He couldn't stand it another second. Angel reached out and gathered his child gently in his arms and held her. Thankfully, she didn't try to pull away. Maybe on some level she could feel that connection, too. Holding her gave him a feeling of satisfaction that he had never known before. His Katherine was in his arms. He was holding his little girl again. He had no idea why he was being given this tremendous gift, but he was grateful. Katherine shifted slightly in his arms. With great effort, he willed himself to let her go and tried to sound casual.

"Now, how about if I show you a really cool way to dry your hair?"

"Okay," Katherine replied cheerfully enough and followed him back into the bathroom.