Title: Living In Danger
Author: MSKBSwedish
Rating: Mature
Summery: Set four years after the first story 'Midnight Sun'. Buffy and Spike's daughter Linn is now four years old and it's up to Spike and Buffy to protect their little girl from demons and other sorts of evil when the word gets out that the Slayer and the Slayer of Slayers have a child together. Set as M for heavy adult themes at times.
Note: I own nothing of the Buffyverse.

Chapter Four – Stigmata Martyr

Later that night, Buffy was preparing to go on patrol. Spike hadn't really talked to her much at all that day. It upset her that Spike would honestly think that she wanted to upset their little girl. Buffy never wanted any harm to come to their daughter and especially not at her or Spike's expense.

Buffy pulled her long blond hair back into a pony tail and adjusted her jacket as Spike walked into the room. She didn't turn her body or look back at him. Buffy didn't even acknowledge his presence in the room. She simply continued to check to make sure she had everything she needed.

Arms wrapped around the slayer from behind, pulling her against his chest.

Buffy rolled her eyes and ground her teeth together. She glanced down at the hands resting on her belly.

"I'm sorry." Spike whispered. His lips planted light fluttering kisses around Buffy's neck as he tried to apologize.

"Not now, Spike." Buffy said, shrugging him away.

Spike pulled away and looked at Buffy. He could tell she was bothered by this morning.

Running a hand through his hair, "Look, I don't know what came over me this morning, Buffy." Spike tried to explain.

Buffy grabbed a stake from her chest that she kept locked so Linn couldn't get into it. "You were protecting our daughter. I'm not mad at your for it." Buffy was telling the truth. What upset her was the fact that he believed she wanted to upset Linn.

"Then will you at least tell me what's wrong?" Spike asked the blond. He wouldn't admit it aloud but he would have hated if something bad happened to her while she was out patrolling and they weren't speaking or on bad terms.

Buffy stood up and pulled one of her cross necklaces around her neck. Seconds later she turned to look up at Spike.

"This morning you assumed that I wanted to scare, Linn." Buffy pushed Spike away physically. "You made me feel so guilty. I didn't mean to freeze up when she came into the room okay? I had a nightmare and she was in it. I wasn't even completely awake and I was frightened. Do you think that I-I want her to see that? Do you think for one second that I want my daughter to know fear so early on in life? Absolutely not!" Buffy let out a puff of air from her lungs. She turned back around to grab something else from the chest.

"Then you should have said so, Buffy. I can't just read your mind. You never once pulled me aside today to explain anything to me. You just let me be angry with you all day. I mean bloody hell, slayer. If you wanted me to apologize then why didn't you say anything earlier?" Spike asked, throwing his hands in the air.

"Because you were right. I did upset her. But I didn't do it on purpose." Buffy looked over her shoulder at Spike.

"That's bollocks. I never said you did it on purpose." Spike defended himself.

Buffy turned and looked at him. "No but you implemented that I did." Buffy said almost shouting at him.

The slayer shook her head and turned back around. She shut the chest and locked it with the key.

"You know what, we will deal with this later. I need to go and I will not risk waking our child up to screaming parents like my parents did to Dawn and I." Buffy said sternly.

With that, before Spike could say another word, Buffy had gone out of their bedroom door and shut it firmly behind her.

Buffy had spent hours patrolling around Sunnydale and especially the graveyard. She was doing everything she could to take her mind off of the fight she had with Spike. Problem was, no one was taking her bait. It was causing her to think about what had happened.

It wasn't often that the vampire and the slayer would fight but when they did, it blew completely out of proportion. Honestly, that was the one thing that Buffy would change about her relationship with Spike. Their arguments were always heated and quite intense. Hell they always had been. They could never just have a "simple" argument. It was always big.

After a few hours, Buffy needed to get home. The ache to talk to Spike had grown stronger. She felt pure guilt. She shouldn't have blown up like that at him. He was only doing what was in his nature and she just wanted to go home, crawl in bed, pull his arms around her body and tell him how much she loved him and that she wanted this fight to be over with.

When Buffy got back to the house, she could see her bedroom light was still on. She furrowed her brow in confusion before walking up the steps and quietly into the house. She made her way up the steps and into the bedroom where she slept with Spike. Slowly she opened the door to see him sitting on the edge of the bed. He hadn't even laid in the bed yet. His head was resting on his fingertips.

"Spike?" Buffy asked softly.

Spike looked up at the slayer standing in the doorway before she moved in and shut the door quietly behind her.

"Buffy." Spike stood up and walked over to her.

Spike wrapped his arms around Buffy and hugged her tight, Buffy returned the hug. She needed it.

"I'm sorry." Spike whispered.

"Me too." Buffy whispered back.

They stood there for what felt like an eternity in that embrace before Spike pulled back and looked into Buffy's eyes.

"I know you would never do anything to upset Linn on purpose or give her any reason to be afraid. I overreacted." Spike explained.

"I should have told you about that dream I had, Spike. She scared the shit out of me." Buffy admitted finally.

"What happened?" Spike asked, rubbing Buffy's arms with his hands.

"I was warming up a cup of blood for her, like normal and suddenly she looked like a vampire and she just bared right into my neck without a second thought. It was like in that moment it wasn't Linn. It was just a cold blooded killer." Buffy's body trembled as those feelings of fear came back into Buffy's thoughts.

"Shh." Spike pulled Buffy close again and kissed the crown of her head. "I know you're scared. I know you're afraid that while right now she seems more normal but as she grows you fear so will the vampire in her. I know that, love. But you can't prepare yourself fully for what she is. We don't have that sort of knowledge yet. For all we know she will be more human than anything." Spike tried to reassure Buffy while he rubbed her back.

"I know. I know that we don't know what's to come but I just.. I feel like we should try and find someone who might have an idea" Buffy pulled away slightly and looked up at Spike. "Parenthood is the scariest thing I've ever had to do, Spike. I've never had to worry or prepare so much in my life." Buffy blurted out.

Spike nodded and rubbed her back still. "But you are not alone, Buffy. I'm right here and I promise you that I'm not going anywhere. It's up to me to protect you and the bit." Spike leaned in and placed a kiss softly on Buffy's lips. "We are in this together." He whispered with his lips inches from her own.

Buffy simply nodded her head in agreement.

"Come. Let's get some rest. Tomorrow is another day." Spike grinned.

Pulling Buffy gently toward the bed, Spike took it upon himself to help the slayer undress before the two of them climbed into the bed together. He wrapped his arms protectively around Buffy's body. She laid her cheek against Spike's chest and found solace in the cool embrace.

"Buffy! Spike!" Dawn cried out as she burst into the bed room to wake the couple from their deep slumber.

"Dawn? What is it?" Buffy asked groggily.

Spike's eyes flashed opened. He looked over at Dawn to see the tears streaming down her face.

"She's gone!" Dawn cried.

Buffy sat up in bed. "What?" Buffy's asked as alarm filled her.

"Linn! She's gone! She's nowhere in the house or outside! I-I-I looked everywhere!" Dawn cried.

Buffy's eyes widened as fear froze her in place.

'My baby.' Buffy thought to herself.

...TBC...