Thanks for all the reviews. A total of 16. That was spiffeh. I don't think I've gotten so many for one chapter. I guess y'all like this, and I guess I'll keep writing as you keep reading.
The boy grinned, "Hi Wes." Andy sat on Wesley's couch, shoes off, guitar in hand. Hs head was bent over the strings; he strummed them gently.
Before he could think, he blurted out, "What are you doing here?" Wesley's voice sounded harsh, even to his own ears. Andy's face fell and Wesley started to curse himself silently. "Andy-Boy. I didn't mean it like that." The man sighed tiredly. "I just didn't expect you. While talking to Mum and Father, they didn't say anything about a visit."
Andy grinned widely. The previous crestfallen look was forgotten. "It was a surprise!" he said gleefully as he stood and walked over. "I'm in between tutors at the moment, and since Mum and Father are away in Rome for the next month, we all thought it would be a great surprise for you."
Wesley found himself smiling. "It's good to have you," he said, wrapping his arms around the teenage boy.
To his surprise, Andy accepted the hug, and even hugged back. "It's good be here," he whispered and then stood back.
"My you've grown," Wesley stepped back and looked down at his teenage brother. His hair had darkened from a pale blonde to a chestnut hue. It curled around the sides of his face, giving the teen an innocent look. Some pieces of hair fell into blue-grey eyes that peeked out under long lashes. The boy stood right to under Wesley's chin.
"It's good to be here," Andy repeated, but Wesley didn't even bother to correct him.
"Are you hungry, thirsty, tired?" the older man wanted to know.
Andy shook his head, "I'm
good," he announced.
"And they settled in the woods in a commune based on mutual respect," Spike finished looked back down at Tara, who was curled up, thumb in her mouth, sleeping.
"What was that?" Angel hissed softly as he lifted Tara up into his arms. She moaned a little bit at being disturbed, but once she became comfortable, she quieted.
"What was what?" Spike asked, still sitting on Angel's bed.
"The politically correct bedtime story?" Angel clarified, his voice still harsh. "Usually you're the a big softy hiding behind your Big Bad exterior." Angel waited for a moment. "Casper."
"She's got to grow up sometime," Spike explained. "We're living in a liberal time." He too waited for a second. "Peaches."
"What?" Angel asked. "We're
not going to keep her!" He looked down at the little blonde girl
that slept in his arms. When he looked up, Spike was gone.
"Charles, I don't know if you want to, but would you like to go out and help me pick up a few things for Tara?" Fred leaned on the door jam of Gunn's office.
The black man sat at his desk, typing on his shiny new laptop. "Who?" he looked up. "Oh, the little blonde girl? Wait a moment and we'll go."
Fred nodded silently, and watched as he finished up his work. She had never really noticed it before, but he looked different in the suit he was wearing. It was a real change from the usual baggy clothes. It wasn't good, nor was it bad, just...different.
"Ready," Gunn stood, while closing the top of his computer. Throwing on a sport coat, they walked out of his office. "So what's the plan?" he asked as they waited for the elevator to take them to where Fred's car was parked.
"Some clothes, toys, and perhaps a video or two," Fred shrugged. They stepped into the elevator, and Fred hit the button for the correct parking garage. "I really don't know what to get her."
"She's supposed to be about Cordy's age, right?" Gunn asked. The pair were silent for a while. They both missed the straight talking part-demon seer. "You know if she hadn't been pulled out of time?"
Fred nodded as the doors opened. There was an uneasy silence as they walked to her car. "So, do you think there is anything we really need to get her?"
Gunn rattled off a few things
and the two talked about trivial things for the rest of the trip.
Tara blinked as she wandered the halls of the Wolfram and Hart building. They were dark and deserted. She shivered slightly; she didn't like the dark.
Turning the corner, the four-year-old
was faced with a door. Pushing it open, she found a woman lying in a bed.
She reminded the four-year-old of Princess Buttercup from the Princess
Bride, her favorite movie. "Hello Pretty Lady," she whispered. The giant
had been another favorite character.
"The Exalted One needs his strength," Delia called as they entered the city of Los Angeles. A female by the name of Anna was driving; Dimitri was in the passenger's seat. Behind the two of them, Delia and another sat behind them. Antonio and two others sat behind the.
"A sacrifice!" Antonio cheered from the way back. His hands were balled into fists and they were raised as he cheered.
"Stop that," Anna snapped. "You're distracting me. Unless you want to start waking in he nice crispy sun, there will be no distractions."
"But Antonio is right, the
Exalted One will need his strength," Dimitri agreed. "There will be a sacrifice."
"So what do you think of this?" Gunn held up a pink ruffled dress.
Fred eyed it critically. "She's four years old and wearing a yellow sundress. Somehow I don't think she's much for the pink ruffles." Gunn shrugged and went to go find something else.
The cart they had was already half filled with various children's items. There were crayons, markers, coloring books, stuffed animals, puzzles, board games, a couple of Disney videos, dolls, and Barbies. Fred had a sneaking suspicion that Gunn had put a plastic warrior-armor set, complete with plastic shield and sword.
"What about this?" Gunn held up a white dress with little green flowers all over it. Though it wasn't as frilly as the last dress, there was lace around the hem. Fred shrugged. The little girl needed clothes, but some how, Tara didn't really seem like the child that would want to wear a dress 24/7.
"How about some jeans and
tee-shirts?" Fred suggested as Gunn dropped the dress into cart.
"How are you Andy?" Wesley asked as the two of them sat down at a close fast food joint. Wesley wasn't much of a cook past throwing something in the microwave, and he didn't have anything in the freezer.
"Good," the teenager said as he took a sip of the chocolate milkshake that he had gotten. "Medication works most of the time. If not, I've got drums and other stuff."
"Mum made you bring it with you, right?" Wesley asked reproachfully.
Andy nodded, "I'm pretty sure I packed it." Inwardly he groaned. He had forgotten that. This was going to be a trip for sure.
"I haven't seen you in the last five and a half years, so what are you doing now. You're very different at age fourteen than age nine," Wesley looked at his teenage brother.
Andy shrugged, "I still play the piano, but not as much as Mum would like. My guitar is my baby, and I have a drum set sitting in my room."
"Do you still ride?" Wesley asked.
Again, Andy shrugged. "Not so much now. Appointments to various doctors keep us busy, along with the blow up of the watcher's council. It's a nasty business. Father wasn't very happy when he found out that the Sunnydale Slayer, Bunny, activated all potential slayers. People are doing damage control."
"Buffy," Wesley corrected.
"What?" Andy looked up from his cheeseburger.
"Buffy, her name was Buffy," Wesley clarified.
"Oh," Andy took another bite of the hamburger, chewed, and swallowed. "Whatever."