TITLE: Destiny's Child
AUTHOR: sugarwater
E-MAIL: DISCLAIMER: I own nothing, all bow down to the mighty Joss
TIMELINE: Begins mid Season 2
SPOILERS: Probably just about everything
SYNOPSIS: B/A! The Powers That Be have a surprise in store for Buffy and Angel. Btvs re-write – Angel doesn't leave. Whole lot of Fluff and little bit of Angst.
DISTRIBUTION: Anywhere, if you want it, take it, just let me know!
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Very very long epic type story, Chapter 8 takes place in time of "Dead Mans Party"
FEEDBACK: Craved, oh please, please, please, REVIEW! Constructive crit very welcome
RATING: T
Buffy and Willow sat curled up on the sofa in Buffy's apartment watching a cheesy horror film and eating popcorn. Both girls were enjoying each other's company as they hadn't seen each other in months. Willow knew that Buffy was depressed and thought the best thing to do was spend this Friday night in the way they used to, only this time without Xander. Willow felt guilty that he didn't know, it was the first time in her life she had had to lie to him. She told him that she was going to visit her cousin for the weekend and he had bought it.
Buffy was grateful for the sense of normality that Willow had brought her. It was keeping her mind off Angel and the baby. She had missed Willow so much as she'd had no one to confide in for months about everything that was going on. At the time she thought she didn't need anyone, didn't want anyone to talk to but now she realised that she did.
"I missed this" Buffy said sincerely, turning to Willow.
"Me too. I missed you so much Buffy" Willow replied to her friend.
"I'm so sorry I ran away, I should have at least let you know where I was" Buffy said feeling guilty for her disappearance.
"No, It's ok Buffy, I get it. You had a lot to deal with. I'm sorry I couldn't cure Angel in time. If I had then maybe…" Willow said choking back tears.
"It's fine. It just wasn't meant to be. Angel is gone, I'm just gonna have to accept it." Buffy said as her eyes welled up with tears.
The two friends began to cry and hugged each other. "I'm so sorry you lost him Buffy" Willow said to her friend.
Buffy fought back the tears and pulled back.
"Ow" Buffy said and winced with the pain.
"What? What is it? Are you ok?" Willow asked worriedly.
"Oh I'm fine, it's just the baby is kicking me really hard" Buffy said as she shifted slightly.
"What's it feel like" Willow asked curiously.
"Well, its kinda sore, but…it's amazing." Buffy said smiling warmly. "It's hard to believe that this kid is mine and Angel's." she said as the smile left her face and tears welled up in her eyes again. As she wiped them away she tried to look happy again. "Here, give me your hand" Buffy said to her friend.
Buffy took Willow's hand and placed it where the baby was kicking. "Do you feel that?" Buffy asked.
Willow paused for a second before her eyes widened in shock "Yeah! I felt it! Oh! Hi Buffy's baby!" Willow laughed. The slayer smiled.
"So do you definitely have to give her up for adoption? Is there no other way?" Willow asked tentatively.
Buffy sighed, "I don't know. Giles seems convinced that if I keep her I'd be putting her in danger and he's probably right. Especially after what happened last week. I wish more than anything in the world that there was some other way but if I kept her and she was found and killed I'd never be able to live with myself. She's special. I want her to have a good chance in life, have a normal life. Or as normal as possible with whatever purpose it is she has to serve. Who knows, maybe I'll see her again in 16 sixteen years or whatever if I'm still alive." Buffy told her friend.
Willow looked sadly at Buffy "I wish there was something I could do" she said honestly.
Giles walked out of the kitchen with a cup of tea in his hand and sat down on one of the chairs.
"Hey Giles, how's the research going" the red head asked.
"Terrible. I've yet to find anything even remotely linked to you or your baby." Giles said miserably.
"We'll find something eventually, I know we will. Do you want me to help?" she asked.
"No, no, I'm fine. You two carry on watching your film, I'll be fine" he responded.
"Thanks Giles" Buffy said.
It was Sunday morning and Giles and Willow had spent the past two days at Buffy's apartment. Willow and Buffy had stayed up all night talking and Giles had continued researching all weekend.
As Buffy's eyes fluttered open she could see cartoons on the television, it was 6am. Willow lay snoozing at the other end of the couch. Buffy pulled herself into a sitting position and turned off the TV with the remote. As she got up to get a drink she felt a strange pain in her back. She wondered for a minute if this was a contraction but thought it was too early and shrugged it off.
Buffy went to lie down in her bed after she had had a drink and lay there for half an hour. The pains seemed to come every 10 minutes or so and last for about 40 seconds. She was now convinced that they were contractions and she was in labour. Rather than wake everyone up, she ran herself a hot bath and relaxed. She was excited but also scared, nervous and quite sad at the thought that she would be losing her baby sooner than she thought.
At 8.30am her contractions were a little more frequent and she decided to wake Willow up. Buffy sat down on the couch where her friend was sleeping and gently shook her arm.
"Will, Will, wake up" Buffy whispered.
"Don't trust them! The monkey's caught in the lamp!" Willow moaned in her sleep.
"Huh? Willow! Wake up!" Buffy said a little louder.
Willow gradually opened her eyes. "Hey Buffy, sorry, oh, when did it get light?" Willow asked drowsily.
"A while ago, Willow the baby's coming" Buffy said calmly.
"Hmm? WHAT?" Willow shouted, suddenly wide awake. "But-but how is that possible? You still have two weeks left" the red head argued.
"Try telling her that" Buffy said quietly, not wanting to wake Giles, but he was already wakening.
"Are you ok!" Willow asked worriedly.
"I'm fine, there's still a while to go yet though, do you want to come to the hospital with me? Or do you have to go home?" the slayer asked hesitantly.
"No! As long as I'm back by tonight it's fine, try and stop me coming with you! Just try and have the baby before 9pm" Willow joked.
Buffy smiled and hugged Willow. "I'm so glad you're here. I don't want to do this alone. I'm scared" Buffy admitted.
"Don't worry Buffy everything will be fine!" Willow reassured her.
Giles entered the living room and yawned.
"Giles! Buffy is having a baby" Willow said excitedly.
"Yes, I'm well aware of that" Giles said as he put his glasses on.
"I meant now!" Willow corrected.
"What? Oh, really? But I thought it was too early" Giles asked walking over to Buffy.
"Well she probably got bored just waiting around. Like mother like daughter huh" Buffy quipped with a look of sadness in her eyes.
"We should go to the hospital, are you ready? Do you have your bag?" he asked hurriedly.
"Giles relax, yes I'm ready but you two should have breakfast first. There's plenty of time." Buffy said.
"If you're sure?" Giles asked hesitantly.
"I'm way sure. Besides I hate hospitals, I want to spend as little time as possible there." She replied.
Hours later, Buffy sat, drenched in sweat on her hospital bed with Willow at her side, mopping her forehead.
"I can't do it, I can't do it Will" Buffy groaned exhaustedly.
"Yes you can! Don't say that! Of course you can" Willow vehemently corrected.
"I can see the head! Just one more push and you'll have your baby" the midwife coaxed.
Buffy had refused all pain medication and was finding it difficult to get through the last part of the birth. As she pushed with all her strength one last time her baby was born.
"It's a girl" the midwife said as she quickly handed the messy bundle to Buffy.
Buffy stared in awe at the baby girl she was holding and began to cry. "Hi baby" she said lovingly.
Willow was moved to tears by the sight before her and watched as her best friend was introduced to her daughter.
The midwife took the baby from Buffy. "We'll just get her cleaned up for you" she said as she carried the little girl away.
"Oh Buffy she's perfect!" Willow gushed as she sat beside her friend and the new baby a while later. They had both been cleaned up and the baby had been given a clean bill of health.
Buffy's baby was tiny since she was two weeks early and had a tiny crop of very fine dark hair. She had the cutest little button nose and deep chocolate brown eyes, just like her father.
"What are you gonna call her?" Willow asked gently.
Buffy smiled at her friend and then looked back at the baby in her arms. "Well, I figured since Angel was Irish that I should pick something Celtic. So I went with Breanna. It means strong and virtuous. Seemed to fit." Buffy explained sadly.
"Breanna…It's beautiful" Willow said smiling.
"Her adoptive parents will change it, but I figured I had to name her, right?" Buffy said as she began to cry.
"Oh Buffy" Willow said, placing her hand on her arm supportively.
There was a knock on the door and Giles entered the room.
"How are you feeling Buffy?" he asked cautiously.
"I'm just peachy" Buffy replied, not taking her eyes off her daughter.
"She's beautiful Buffy" he said sincerely as he walked round to the other side of the bed.
"Thank you" the slayer responded distantly.
"I'm afraid it's time" he eventually told her.
"What? Already?" Buffy asked, surprised as she held her baby tighter.
The door opened again and Mrs. Philips, the woman from the adoption agency entered the room.
"Hi Buffy, we met last week" the woman said smiling.
"No, no, it's too soon, not yet" Buffy argued.
The woman walked towards Buffy and smiled sadly "It's best if you don't get attached dear" she advised her, reaching for the baby.
Buffy turned away instantly "No, I said no. Please, just give me five minutes alone with her. Giles please" she said, turning to her watcher and pleading.
Giles and Mrs. Philips exchanged a look before slowly leaving the room. Willow was finding it unbearable to watch her friend in so much pain and got up to leave the room. She gave Buffy a hug and then closed the door behind her.
Buffy placed the baby down in front of her on the bed. She lay sleeping, the only movement from her was the hardly noticeable rise and fall of her tiny chest as she breathed steadily. Buffy clasped her hands in hers and the baby wrapped her fist around Buffy's fingers automatically.
"This is the hardest thing I've ever had to do in my life" Buffy told the baby as tears freely flowed from her eyes. "Up until now the hardest thing I'd ever done was kill your father. I loved him more than anything, more than life itself. Just as much as I love you." She said sobbing, as she gently brushed her fingers over Breanna's cheek. "But I had to kill him to save the world, and now I have to give you up to save your life. I hope that's something you'll always know, that I did this because I love you so much. I wish that I could be selfish enough to keep you, but I'd do anything for you, I'd die for you." Buffy whispered, picking up the tiny bundle and wrapping her in her arms again.
"I wish your dad was here to see you. He'd be so proud. And he'd love you just as much as I love you." Buffy said, her voice cracking as she cried harder and kissed the baby on her forehead. "I'm so sorry I have to do this, I'm so sorry" Buffy said as she kissed the baby's cheek. "I'll think about you everyday. I'll never forget you, never." Buffy sobbed.
The door opened again and Mrs. Philips, Giles and Willow returned to the room. Mrs. Philips approached Buffy and once again reached out for the baby.
"I love you so much" Buffy said one last time and kissed her head before allowing Mrs. Philips to take the baby from her arms.
"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, I love you" Buffy called as she watched the woman hurriedly exit the room with her baby. Breanna woke up and began crying for the first time. The baby's crying got louder and could be heard echoing down the hall. This made it even harder for Buffy and she jumped out of bed and tried to follow. "She needs me, my baby needs me" Buffy cried.
Willow held Buffy back and hugged her "No Buffy, it's ok, it's ok" Willow said crying with her friend. Buffy broke down and collapsed on the floor with Willow. The two friends rocked back and forth crying uncontrollably. Eventually, the baby's crying got distant and eventually dissipated as she was carried out of the building. Buffy sat crying with Willow for what seemed like an eternity as she mourned the loss of her baby girl, her heart truly broken.
Willow had to leave a few hours later but Buffy hadn't been discharged just yet. They wanted to keep her in until the next morning. The strange thing was that Buffy hadn't even protested. She hadn't spoken to anyone since that afternoon. Giles came back to visit her that night but she didn't seem in the mood for visitors.
Buffy lay on her side in her hospital bed, staring at the wall and clutching a pair of tiny scratch mittens that Breanna had worn briefly. She heard Giles enter the room but didn't move or say anything. He came to sit beside her and gently reached out to touch her arm but she flinched slightly and he pulled away.
"Buffy I'm so sorry" Giles said, feeling unbelievably guilty. Buffy didn't move and continued to stare straight ahead.
"I know how hard that was for you, but it was the right thing to do" he said softly. A single tear slid down Buffy's face as she clutched the mitten tighter.
"Buffy if there's anything I can do…" he began but it was no use. Buffy turned around so that her back was to him and closed her eyes tightly, trying to suppress her tears.
Giles realised she wanted to be left alone and got up to leave. "I'll see you tomorrow morning and I'll take you back to Sunnydale. Get some rest." He told her gently before leaving the room. Buffy once again began crying uncontrollably and sobbed herself to sleep.
The overjoyed couple drove home, delighted that they had a new member of their family.
"I still can't believe it!" Jess said as she smiled widely at her husband. "We still have to think of a name" she reminded him.
"How about we name her after your grandma, Elizabeth? Then she could be Eliza for short. Or Beth, or Lizzy?" Sean suggested.
"Yeah…I like Elizabeth, I think that would be really sweet to name her after my grandma. So it's settled then, Elizabeth?"
"Yeah, Elizabeth" Sean said smiling at his wife.
Jess turned around to check on the baby in the backseat. Breanna was fast asleep as they drove along the dark road.
"Do you think she's cold?" Jess asked, concerned.
"I don't know…I doubt it…how do we know, does she look cold?" Sean asked with uncertainty.
"I don't think so" Jess replied.
"We're probably worrying about nothing. Relax sweetie, she's fast asleep anyway" Sean reassured his wife.
As the couple continued to discuss plans for their new baby, Breanna woke up. The newborn slowly opened her eyes lazily and looked up through the window of the car. It was pitch black outside and they were driving down a small, tree lined country road. Breanna stared at the line of trees and seemed to focus on them hypnotically.
Suddenly, the tallest tree began to fall onto the road. The couple were so distracted with their conversation that neither one of them noticed the tree as it fell. The car drove into its path just in time to be caught under it. The front half of the vehicle was crushed under the weight of the old tree and Sean and Jess were killed instantly. Miraculously Breanna was unscathed and began to cry…