Buffy walked into Giles' magic shop after putting Spike to bed to find that everyone was still assembled there, wearing the same clothes as last night with the addition of one more.
"Hey B." The chestnut beauty smiled wistfully at Buffy and clasped her hands in front of her.
"Faith."
Even though Faith had admitted that she had a problem, even though Faith had turned herself in, even though, as hard as it was, Buffy had managed to accept if not forgive her actions, it was difficult for her to say the other Slayer's name without a touch of loathing.
Faith flinched a little bit and stepped back. "What, no hug?" she joked.
Buffy looked to her friends, whose faces reflected the range of emotions from hope, to concern to what she hoped wasn't on her face. "What is she doing here?"
Giles spoke up, "Angel called, Buffy. He explained everything."
So that's how Spike knew, Buffy thought to herself. "But that doesn't explain why Faith isn't still in jail."
Willow smiled, "Faith _is_ in jail Buffy. Or, at least her guards think so." Buffy looked puzzled so she continued, "Angel thought that you might not be able to fulfill your Slayer duties in a few months - "
"If the Miss Slayer of the Century is unable to fulfill her duties during her reign--" Xander piped up.
Willow continued again after a small curve of her lips in Xander's direction. "We did a little research and me and Tara did a little witchiness, and summoned a friendly doppelganger to take Faith's place in jail until you're due. When are you due by the way?"
"A what?" Buffy asked, still a little confused.
"You know a demon that can take on form and function of any living thing? We summoned a friendly one so that Faith can do the Slayer stuff. The doppelganger is in jail and Faith is here." Willow concluded as she clasped Tara's hand.
Tara smiled at Buffy slightly, and looked away again.
Faith looked at Buffy with such a look of hope. "Let me do this for you, B. It's the least I could do, and as soon as those two are born, I'll go back, I promise. So, how long am I paroled, by the way?" she asked shyly.
Buffy didn't know what to think. She was seething at the fact that they had released Faith without even telling her. She was angry that Angel hadn't told her that this is what he meant by protection. Well she couldn't slay when she was as big as a whale after all. Angel. He had an affect on Faith. She almost believed her. Buffy decided to give her a chance. "Faith - I - Thank you."
Faith smiled and put her hands behind her back and said, "Thanks B. I won't let you down again."
You better not, Buffy thought to herself. Buffy did her best to put on a cheerier face and said idly. "Actually, I don't know when I'm due. I probably have to go to the doctor and -- Oh my God! I haven't told my mother!" Buffy covered her mouth in shock. "I have to go!"
Buffy's House
Buffy walked into her kitchen and went to the fridge and stared at the contents. She selected a bottle of water waved at Dawn who was on her way to the shower.
"Oh, Buffy, good you're home. I have to go to the gallery before the big show tonight and since I've been out for the past few weeks, I need to make sure everything is ok. I need you to stay here with Dawn." Joyce Summers breezed through the kitchen. "There's some lasagna in the fridge, you just need to heat it up--"
"Mom, I'm pregnant."
"Oh good. Make sure that Dawn doesn't-- You're what?"
Buffy toyed with her water, looked down. She reached into her pocket and showed her mother the white stick. The plus sign had faded since yesterday morning, but it was still visible. Joyce took it from her, sat down and peered at it as if it were a fascinating specimen. She frowned and began "Buffy--"
Buffy huffed and gently brought her head down on the table. "Mom. I know, but this is different." She peeked up from behind her arms.
Joyce folded her arms and leaned back from the table and raised her eyebrows. It took about an hour and a little censorship but Buffy relayed the story about the lost day, the Oracles, The Powers That Be and the prophecy.
Joyce sighed and reached out her hand to take Buffy's. "Oh honey....Sometimes I wish I knew who called on you to do this job so I could tell them to stop interfering with your life."
"So you're ok with this?" Buffy asked in a small voice.
"As ok as I can be with becoming a grandmother at forty-three." Joyce laughed.
Dawn peeked her head around the doorjamb and looked from her mother to her sister. Buffy was always doing stuff that made their mother pay more attention to her. "Grandmother?" she asked timidly.
Buffy got up and hugged her little sister, who she knew wasn't really. "Oh, Dawn. I was going to tell you next. You're going to be an aunt." Buffy held her out at arms length to gage her reaction. Surprise, then smugness, then a true smile and another hug.
"Was it Riley?" she asked and then wished she didn't. Buffy's face fell and she looked away.
"No, Dawn. It's really complicated, but the twins are Angel's."
"Twins? Angel?" Dawn hugged her sister again, really happy. "I really liked Angel. He didn't talk to me as much, but he was so much cooler than Riley."
Buffy looked at her mother over Dawn's shoulder, and cast her glance skyward.
Dr. Everhart's Office
"Well, Buffy, despite the fact that you haven't visited me since you moved to Sunnydale, and even though you've had numerous visits to the emergency room, I'm pleased to say that you are in the best of health."
Buffy laughed inwardly. She played with the strings of the dressing gown and asked "And the babies?"
Dr. Everhart looked up from her chart and said "How did you know--Well never mind, they're doing really well too. Two very strong heartbeats. Judging from what you told me and the presence of the heartbeats, you are about nine weeks along. If it were only one, you would be due in July. But twins are usually early, and you're in excellent health, so we're going to see if we can hold out for June."
Later that evening
Buffy retched behind a tombstone as she did her nightly patrol through the cemetery. Morning sickness, she groaned. It's not supposed to last all day! They don't call it _evening_ sickness. Nothing she ate would stay down. She would have to try out those mega vitamins Dr. Everhart gave her tomorrow. Maybe then it would have a chance to stay put. She retched again, this time hearing some rustling in the bushes. Concluding that it was not the occupant of the grave, she pulled herself into a fighting stance.
Eight vampires jumped at her from all directions, and as she fought them, she fought the urge to throw up again.
The fight moved across the cemetery, with her backpedaling as she fought. She only dusted three out of the eight and she was starting to break a sweat.
The door to a mausoleum banged open and a voice thundered, "What the bloody hell is goin' on out 'ere? Tabitha was about to sacrifice that editor to the demons in the basement!"
Spike had woken up after sundown with a splitting headache, that for once wasn't caused by that bleedin' chip in his head. After an hour or so of searching the telly for something good, he saw the light on his VCR blinking. So he had remembered to set the timer for Passions. As he placed his black laquered fingertips to his forehead in an attempt to soothe out the pain, he remembered. Slayer - Buffy brought him in last night, before he could do himself in. And she had kissed him right there. That thought brought the throbbing in his head to a slightly more tolerable level. The tape rewound, he sat down to watch just as the noises outside began.
Spike looked around and saw Buffy surrounded. The fight had gone on for a while, and it usually didn't take her so long to deal with a few of his brethren. Itching to fight, and to be near her again, Spike jumped into the fray.
They worked together to fight the remaining vampires. Spike put on his game face and went to town, relishing the ability to inflict pain, even if it was on his fellow vampires. As the last one sifted into a pile of ash in front of her, Buffy collapsed.
"Buffy!" Spike's human features returned and he rushed over to her and held her wrist tenderly. He never noticed how small she really was compared to him or any of the other demons she had faced over the years. Good, her pulse was still there, but faintly. Gently, he scooped her up and carried her into his crypt.
Once inside, he laid her down on his couch as she had laid him there the night before. He sat on his table watching her until her eyes fluttered open. "Spike," she whispered weakly, and then quickly turned her head to the floor and retched. This time nothing came out at all.
"Didn't know I quite had that affect on you Slayer." he said, grinning madly, helping her to sit up a bit.
She frowned at him and said, "I thought you knew."
"About Angel's real children? I can hear their hearts from here. I stopped by the herbal chop shop last night and Red told me all about it."
Buffy looked down at her hands. Spike stopped grinning and noticed that Buffy had begun to cry. "Oh, hey there, love, there's no need for that."
He gave her a hug which she returned ferociously. She mastered her sobs and broken bits of speech came out in between them. "We can't be--....Angel.... and I--...Powers That--...Too much...It's all too much....."
She pulled away and her tears began to subside. Spike's face was just inches from hers. She looked into his eyes, smiled a little and turned away. "The worst part is, my mom makes the best lasagna in the world and the only one who knows it right now is the ground. Nothing that I eat stays in."
Spike got up quickly, and shook off the the eager puppy dog look on his face that had once charcterized William the Bloody Awful Poet and said. "Well we can't have that, love. I know just the thing. Let me get you something to eat."
With that, he extended his pale arm to her and she clasped his hand in return and they left the crypt together.