Part 4

"Once more you ooooopen the door," Willow sang at the top of her lungs to the CD player as she sprinkled seasonings into the stewpot on the stove. "Okay, are the vegetables ready?"

"Carrots and potatoes chopped," Tara grinned tossing them into the pot.

"Onions and celery diced," Buffy replied, wiping her eyes on a paper towel. "And you owe me one."

"Okay," the red-head laughed as she added them to the meat and water. "Mmmm....okay. Now we add the tomato sauce and let it simmer."

"Are you *sure* you know what you're doing?" Buffy asked teasingly. "I mean, this isn't going to make us float around the room or anything if it's not mixed right is it?"

"I don't think so," Willow joked back. "But it might make us expand if ingested in large quantities."

"Then I don't think it'll effect me much," the Slayer replied, straightening her shirt so it fell properly around her stomach. "At least no one would notice. How long til it's ready? I'm starving!"

"It needs to simmer for about thirty minutes. Then I add the green beans and let it cook another twenty minutes or so," Willow replied as she put the seasonings back in the cupboard. "I'm going to start cleaning up this mess. Someone needs to set the table." In all reality, the table was a wide counter that cut across the front of the kitchen, separating it from the living room. It had six bar stools set around it for sitting on.

"I'll do it," Buffy said pulling the plates out of the cupboard by the sink and placing four on the table. She went to get the glasses, which were up higher, and found herself stretching to reach them. "Okay, who was the Amazon who's brilliant idea this was?" she asked, leaning farther over the counter, her stomach resting on it just slightly.

"Sorry," Tara blushed and got them down for her. "That was the only place left for them."

"That's okay," the lighter blonde replied. "How about you get the silverware."

"Sure," she smiled.

Dinner was almost ready when the door opened and Anya stumbled in with two bags loaded down with books for her first semester of college. She was straining under the weight as she dropped them on the couch. "Why can't school books be made of something lighter than paper...like feathers," she complained.

"Because then it would be too easy for students to say their books floated away," Willow replied walking over to her. "What are you taking anyway?" She pulled out the first book in the stack. "Survey of World Plagues? That's a course?"

"Yeah," Anya pulled out her schedule. "It counts as a history course."

The witch shook her head and pulled out the other books. "Women in History, Women's Literature, Freudian Psychology. These sound really... interesting."

"Fascinating," Buffy nodded, hiding the sarcasm in her voice.

"They'll be fun," Tara agreed. None of them wanted to hurt Anya's feelings. This was a weird collection of classes. But then, this was Anya.

Willow pulled out the last book. "The Philosophy of Sex."

"My elective," Anya replied. "I flipped through the book earlier. It looks really interesting. If anyone wants to borrow it feel free. We're reading the Kama Sutra later in the semester."

The other girls just looked at each other.

"Thanks," Willow said, putting the book back down. "Umm...dinner's ready."

"Great!" Anya smiled. "I haven't eaten since I saw Xander earlier and I'm famished!"

No one bothered to ask what she and Xander had been doing. Instead they just sat down to what turned out to be a great stew and hot garlic bread. After they finished, Anya and Buffy washed the dishes while Tara dried and put them away, and Willow put what little food remained uneaten in the fridge. "What's on tonight?"

Buffy grabbed the TV Guide and started flipping through it. "Well, let's see. Angst. Romance. Angst. Angst. Bad comedy. Angst. Romance. War Documentary."

"Doesn't sound very exciting," Anya commented.

"Monty Python marathon," Buffy read.

"It's weird," Willow nodded. "There's lots of amusing views on magic and religion."

"And funny," Tara agreed. "I love the parrot sketch."

"It'll have plagues and sex," Anya looked happy.

"And it's British comedy," Buffy finished. "Perfect. We've got ten minutes. I'll make the popcorn! Will, get the sodas." *Riley's not here. I'm going to eat what I want if it kills him.*

Nine minutes and forty-three seconds later all four college girls piled in front of the television on the couch or floor in their pajamas with snacks to watch the most amusing works of popular culture on the planet. They laughed through the "Search for the Holy Grail," "And Now for Something Completely Different," and "The Life of Brian." They chuckled, groaned, and made dirty jokes through "The Meaning of Life," and half-watched half-slept through an episode of "Flying Circus" before they all finally fell asleep right there in the living room with the television on. They were all exhausted, but it was the perfect way to celebrate the end of their summer.

Cordelia answered the knock on her door immediately, and was startled to find Angel standing there. What surprised her was not that he was there, but the big smile on his face. "Are you feeling okay?" she asked.

"They okayed it," he replied, holding up an opened envelope. "The apartment's mine, and so's the office as soon as they finish remodeling it."

"That's great!" she yelped grabbing the envelope from his hand and running back inside. "Wesley did you hear that?" she called into the kitchen.

"Yes, it's wonderful," he replied with a smile. "I was just getting a drink. Want anything?" he asked his boss.

Angel, still smiling, nodded. "Sure. How about orange juice."

"Branching out and trying non-animal products are we," Cordelia teased. "How adventurous."

"I thought so," the vampire replied with a mostly-straight face. The news was good, and after months of frustration he found that the positive news made it impossible for him to do other than smile. He took his juice and took a seat on the couch.

Cordelia held up her glass. "To Angel Investigations and its new home."

They all clinked their glasses together.

Angel set his cup down on the end table. "So Cordelia, how's your latest job coming?"

The budding-actress's face dropped a little. "Well, I went to the call-backs, and I read for them. I...didn't get a part."

"Well, better luck on the next one," Wesley patted her shoulder. "It's their loss."

"You still have the modeling job," Angel added.

Cordelia shook her head. "Actually, there's something I need to talk to both of you about."

"What?" The two men eyed each other. Cordelia wasn't usually this serious. "I'm... thinking of going back to Sunnydale."

Angel was stunned. "Why?"

Cordelia smiled nervously. "Well, you may find this hard to believe, but I'm not a very good actress."

"But why go home?" Wesley asked gently. "You can always find another job."

"I'm going to enroll in the university and get a degree in acting," she continued. "And if I find I'm really *really* bad at it...well then I'll try something else."

Angel was quiet for a moment. "I think it's a good idea Cordelia. And I want you to have the opportunity to do what you really want."

"Really?" she looked dubious.

"Really," Wesley cut in. "We only want you to be happy."

"Oh good," she breathed a sigh of relief. "I was afraid you'd be disappointed.

"Well, we *will* miss you," Angel smiled. "Who'll do the filing?"

"Oh, I think Wesley can learn that," Cordelia smiled. "It doesn't require too much skill."

"I resemble that remark," the Brit hid his smile behind a sip of iced tea. "When would you be leaving?"

"That's just it," Cordelia said. "I'd have to call and confirm my enrollment tomorrow. And school starts next week."

"That only leaves you a few days to move," Angel commented. "We'll give you all the help we can."

"Thanks you guys," she smiled. "Now, we need to get down to business."

"Which business were you thinking of?" Wesley asked.

"Well, I was thinking of a forest green motif for the main office. It's so... strong yet calming..." and she was off like a rocket on the colors and furnishings for the new office and Angel's new apartment.

Angel got another glass of juice. It was going to be a long day.

Buffy breathed in the fresh evening air as she continued her walk around campus. She'd found that a brisk walk every evening helped her feel less cumbersome and heavy. Aside from her occasional workouts doing the exercises the ob-gyn had said were all right, it was the closest thing she got to her former level of physical activity. She'd never had to worry about keeping in shape before. Slaying and her training had been enough exercise before, but she couldn't do them anymore.

It irked her to no end that four months ago she'd been kicking demon butt, and now, thanks to a night of frantic sex, she had enough trouble bending over to tie her shoes. And she was huge! At least, she felt huge. When she went in for her appointments the other women who were four months pregnant were often only half her size, or even less. A couple of them were barely beginning to show only now.

Riley wasn't helping her feel any better either. Sure he was just trying to be a good lover and father, but more often than not he ended up bugging her with his constant bad jokes, health reminders, and overprotectiveness. She must have tried every kind of salad and health food in creation. But they hardly handled the strange cravings and increased hunger that had come with her second trimester. At least she'd been lucky enough to have hardly any morning sickness during the first three months.

She was a little over halfway back to the dorm when the attack came from the side, knocking her into a tree. Recovering quickly, the Slayer pulled a stake from the large pocket in her pants and faced her opponent. She was surprised to see it was a lone Vei-rogk demon. Her next thought was *oh, shit!* as it attacked her. While it wasn't very strong, it was more than a match for Buffy in her present condition and without magical aid. Moving as quickly as she could, the blonde moved away from the trees and shrubs into an open area where the demon couldn't throw anything and she wasn't likely to trip. "Come on, I've got stuff to do. Let's get this over with."

"You are dangerous, Slayer. You must be gone," replied the Vei-rogk before lunging. It refused to speak as they continued to battle. It ducked her swings and came back, hitting fairly effectively. Buffy was rather annoyed, and a little panicked, as she realized that she was tiring. Her new shape had thrown her sense of balance completely off in the manner of fighting, which was something she hadn't done lately. So her dodges and leaps became a bunch of near misses and almost-didn't-make-its. The demon fought her back to the edge of the lawn and pinned her against a tree. "Now, you die."

In a moment that Buffy would never be able to forget, she felt pure fear, and a scream echoed so loudly through her head that she was sure the whole campus could hear it. In that last moment she jabbed with the stake, which slipped easily between the demon's ribs. She yanked it back, stunned. It was glowing. *Willow?*

*I'm here,* came the reply. *Your spirit screams quite loudly.*

*I'll remember that,* Buffy replied as she continued to stab the still fighting demon. He staggered once more and fell to the ground, clutching at the grass and pulling itself towards her. She took a step backwards.

"Slayer, will destroy," it croaked. "Must kill..."

"What do you *want* with me anyway?" Buffy asked, getting awkwardly to her knees both to look the demon in the face and because she could hardly stand she was panting so hard.

"Gnak'thoh," the Vei-rogk replied as it expelled it's last breath.

"Well that's helpful," the Slayer sighed. *Did you get that word, Will?*

*I did. Are you okay?*

Buffy carefully got to her feet and dusted herself off. *More or less. This shirt's covered in grass stains, I'm panting like a and I've got a couple of cuts and bruises. No biggie.*

*What about the baby?*

*I have an appointment in the morning. We'll know then. Can you sense anything?* Buffy asked, suddenly worried.

Willow seemed to be pondering. *Well, nothing has a feeling of wrongness. It feels like the baby is the same as it was before. That should mean that she's fine.*

Buffy smiled to herself. All her roommates were placing bets as to the gender of the baby. Willow was sure it was a girl. Both Anya and Tara were betting it was a boy. *Thanks, Will. I'm almost home.*

*I can meet you halfway. It's probably better if you don't walk alone. If there was one demon their could be more.*

The Slayer felt a twinge of stubbornness at the though of needing help, but forced it down with a little common sense. She wasn't in any shape to fight off another one of those things. For small, fairly weak demons, they were still big enough to be trouble. *Sure. I'll see you soon.*

By the time Buffy got to the corner where Willow was waiting, she was glad she has agreed to her friend's request. She still hadn't gotten her full wind back, and her body hurt from the bruises and stinging cuts. Willow helped her home and upstairs.

A few swabs of betodyne and a couple of band-aids later, Buffy felt a lot more like herself. She had gotten home later than she had planned, and Tara was already in her room reading, and Anya had claimed the television. She turned down Willow's offer of a game of spit and decided to turn in for the night. Her bed felt extra soft after the pounding she had taken, and she couldn't help but relax even as she felt embarrassed at how incapable she was at taking on something as physically unintimidating as a Vei-rogk. The shock had shaken her up more than she realized, and she worried about her child as she fell asleep.

"It was alone," Buffy reiterated for the tenth time. "No goons this time. At least not in the immediate area."

"That is extremely odd," Giles replied. "Why would it attack you by itself?"

"Because I'm clumsy and helpless?" the Slayer quipped. "He wanted to kill me. He's a demon. The reason is pretty clear to me."

"It's said Gnak'thoh as it died," Willow cut in before the Slayer and ex-watcher could get into a battle of words. "Does anyone know what that means?"

All eyes turned to Tara. "What?" she looked around, confused.

"Well, you keep having all the answers," Xander replied. "Do you have one this time?"

"Well, not yet," she smiled, abashed. "I found the word in a book. But it's in a language I don't understand very well, and I can't make out the context."

"Let me see," Giles took the book she held out to him. "Here it is. This appears to be an old Declathan dialect. It just so happens that I picked up a dictionary of demon tongues the other day, and I believe Declathan is one of the ones included."

"I don't believe this," Xander shook his head. "Isn't that just a *little* coincidency?"

"Is that a word?" Anya looked at her boyfriend. "Cause I don't think so. I mean, I know English is like my fifteenth language, but I'm pretty sur--"

"Anya, hush," Xander exclaimed, kissing her quickly to shut her up. "It doesn't really matter does it?"

"No, I suppose not," she replied, cuddling even closer to him.

"Well," Giles cleared his throat. "I suppose it is rather strange, but things like this *do* happen. This is a very useful book. Here's the word. It means.... "swarm."

"As in bees?" Willow asked.

"Apparently. There isn't much else here."

"Great," Buffy threw up her hands. "We're back where we started. I-- Giles, your phone is ringing."

"I'll get it," Willow bounded up and grabbed it. "Hello? Oh, hi Cordelia."

"Cordelia? What does she want?" Giles asked.

"Mmmhmm," Willow nodded. "She's moving back to Sunnydale to attend the University," she said to the gang whose eyes were all riveted on her expectantly.

"Wow," Xander commented. "The Queen returns."

"Oh, hush," Anya smacked him in the arm.

"Yes, dear."

"And no sarcasm."

"Yes, dear."

"She's coming back in two days and wants to know if there are any apartments available," Willow continued over the lovers' quarrel.

"Well, we could use someone else to help with the rent," Tara said. "I can share a room with somebody."

Buffy and Willow shared a glance. Room with *Cordelia?* Willow just shrugged. "We've got room," she said into the phone. "And the rent's pretty cheap. You will? Great. Okay, see you tomorrow." She put the phone down with a click. "Looks like we have a new roommate."

"This is going to be interesting," Xander chuckled.

"That's an understatement," Buffy commented blandly.

"Oh, come on," Willow chided. "She's not as bad as she used to be. You said so yourself."

"I know," the Slayer replied. "At least we'll have one more person to patrol."

"Speaking of," Giles looked at Buffy. "You look a little the worse for wear today. How did your appointment go this morning?"

Buffy smiled smugly. "Oh, that. The baby's fine and so am I. Don't worry so much. I told you I could handle myself."

"We didn't doubt your abilities, Buffy," her former watcher assured her for the umpteenth time. "But you said yourself that your sense of balance is off because of the change in your center of gravity. You weren't used to fighting in this condition and it nearly got you killed."

The petite blonde wanted to disagree, but she *had* made that comment, and it was true. Even with her Slayer strength and agility she almost hadn't gotten out of there. It was the residual path between Willow's mind and hers from the telepathic link they had used several months earlier that had allowed her mental cry for help to reach Willow as quickly as it had. That and the fact that Willow now knew the spell were all that had saved her from being a splatted pancake on the campus grounds. "You're right," Buffy sighed. "This is really starting to irritate me."

"Only starting?" Xander asked, eliciting a small smile from the Slayer. "You *could* do something other than bitch about the fact that we're doing all the slaying. Like, oh, teach us a few moves so we aren't so completely inadequate."

"Only if you'll play Slayer test dummy for me," she replied, smiling again.

"Oh," suddenly Xander wasn't smiling quite as much. "Sure. Just, don't really stake me. I've been told that hurts."

"Why would we ever want to stake *you,* Xand?" Buffy smiled innocently. "We need comic relief, or the demon-fighting gig would get super-dull really fast."

"I'm sure all the violence and adrenaline must get pretty boring after a while," he quipped. "Somehow, I just don't see it."

"This banter is all very fun and good," Giles cut in. "But we must get back to the topic at hand."

"Which was?" Xander looked at him.

"Bees," Anya said helpfully.

"This swarm thing," Willow said a moment later. "Do you think it might refer to an invasion or plague of some sort?"

"I hope not, but it is possible," the Brit sighed. "Willow, I want you and Tara to look through the books I just picked up yesterday. I'm going out to hunt down some more. When you're finished with those, find another way to track the Vei-rogk. Obviously they are aware that someone could track the minions they collect. So we must find a way to track them, or they will continue to sneak in one at a time. As we've discovered, this is not something we want to happen."

"Right," Buffy nodded. "And I want to work with Xander and Anya on a few moves before patrolling tonight. I think I've worked up a couple of new moves that might be more effective."

"Wonderful," Giles nodded his agreement. "Just don't push yourself too much."

"Don't worry," Buffy chuckled as she and the love birds headed out the door. "I won't."

"This is cute!" Cordelia smiled as she entered the apartment. "I love the way you've decorated."

The other four girls smiled. This was going to be much more pleasant than they had originally thought. Cordelia was an extremely different person from the one who had left Sunnydale over a year earlier. Things had been a little awkward for the first few minutes, but her friendly, completely non-snobby manner was a nice surprise.

"You'll be in the first room on the left," Willow said as they entered. "Tara moved into my room last night."

"You're sure you don't mind?" Cordelia asked Tara. "I don't want to kick you out."

The shy witch smiled. "It's okay. I really don't mind."

"Thanks," the actress-in-training smiled warmly. "I'll put this stuff in there and then go back for the rest."

"How much help do you need?" Willow asked.

"Oh, I'm fine," Cordelia replied. "I don't have much. Just this bag and two more. I–ah!" she doubled over suddenly, falling against the couch. The others crowded around her in surprise and concern. What was going on?

"Anya, call the emergency room," Willow ordered.

"No...no," Cordelia waved her hand at them. "I'm...okay now. You have an aspirin?"

"I'll get it," Tara darted into the bathroom. When she returned with a glass of water the dark haired girl downed them, sighing in relief as they took effect.

"Thanks. I'm fine. It's just. I get these obnoxious visions from the Powers that Be, and they show me when someone's in danger. I saw a bunch of girls, freshmen in high school maybe, being attacked by several *ugly* demons -all the same kind-and a few vampires." She paused for a moment. "They were near the Bronze."

"Let's go," Willow motioned to Anya and Tara. "I'll call Xander," she pulled out the cell phone as they ran out the door."

Buffy looked at Cordelia. Cordelia looked at Buffy. Both girls were a little apprehensive at finding themselves alone together so suddenly after their less-than-friendly past.

Cordelia managed a small smile. "I think...I need to sit down. These visions are a real pain."

Buffy smiled back. "I can imagine. You want anything to drink?"

"Sure," the other woman nodded. "Ice water will be fine."

Buffy got them both drinks and sat down on the couch next to Cordelia. She looked at the woman who had worked for Angel for a year. "I'd like to...apologize for the way I acted the last time I was in LA. I had no business stepping in and trying to tell any of you what to do. I'm not in charge of anything outside of Sunnydale."

Cordelia looked a little startled at the apology, then nodded. "You're not," she replied in her usual blunt manner. "But I can see why you felt like it was your duty to do so. I've never been very nice to you. Not when we were in high school. And definitely not after the way you treated Angel. That was really spiteful."

The Slayer blushed slightly. "I know. We talked about it when he came to apologize. Did he tell you about that?"

"He did," Cordelia smiled a little. "He said he didn't much care for Riley."

"That's an understatement," Buffy smiled. "They were at each others throats in a ridiculous display of testosterone. How is he?"

"Much better these days," the darker woman replied. "He's not brood boy as much anymore. He's got a new apartment finally. Wolfram and Hart blew the old place up right before summer started, tried to kill all of us. Really no fun. And he smiles more than he did when he first got to LA by a long shot."

Buffy couldn't help but smile at the thought of Angel happy. While at times her heart ached for the days when she saw him nightly, she knew now that those days were long over and would never return. Though she still hoped that someday their pain would fade enough for them to be friends. "Angel never did smile very much, except sometimes when we were alone. I...I want to say thank you."

"For what?"

"For taking care of Angel," she took a sip of apple juice. "He tends to forget to do things like eat when he's depressed. If he's happy then it makes me feel better about his leaving. Maybe it was better for him this way." Her voice was twinged with a slight sadness.

"What about you?" Cordelia asked. "I know I didn't exactly approve of you two as a couple, but it hurt so much to see him hide away in his apartment all day in the dark. And I can understand why you loved him so much. I love him like I would a brother," she admitted. "He's been there every time I've needed him. And it hurts so much when he's in pain. You can see it in his eyes, like a hurt puppy, and you melt....but then, you know all about that."

Buffy chuckled. "I do. He has that vulnerable side that he tries to hide, but always fails miserably. And then sometimes he's impossible to read." She paused. "Does he know...about this?" she motioned at her stomach.

"No," Cordelia shook her head. "I didn't even know til I got here, and no one's told me anything. When did....maybe I shouldn't ask...if it's private I mean," she stumbled over the words, trying her best not to fall back into her former patterns of communication.

"It's all right," Buffy replied. "It's not like it's something I can hide. Four months ago. There were these sexually repressed ghost children who were getting revenge for the cruelties of the woman in charge of them in the house. Anyway, the sexual energy took over the house during a frat party, and the gang had to fight it because it was feeding of Riley and I while we....you know," she smiled, abashed. She'd never thought she'd be having this kind of a real conversation with Cordelia Chase. "Anyway, I didn't know about it when I was in LA, or when Angel came here. I didn't even find out until I was injured by the first Vei-rogk and his minions we came across. It's the weirdest feeling I've ever had."

"I can relate," Cordelia smiled, and proceeded to tell Buffy all about her experience with the five demon babies.

"You win," Buffy laughed at the end of the tale. "One human is definitely not as bad as five demons, and I've *never* had a craving for blood."

"Be grateful, it's really gross," the actress replied. "Angel and Wesley were wonderful though. Even Dennis was nice."

"Dennis?"

"Oh, did I forget to mention my house ghost?" Cordelia looked surprised, and related the entire story of how she got her lovely, possessed apartment. "He's not so bad except that he gets jealous of any men that enter, even Wes and Angel. The woman who took the apartment is, fortunately, the owner of the local occult bookshop, so she didn't mind too much."

"Things have been very interesting for you since you left," Buffy noted. "You've changed."

"Angel said the same thing," Cordelia smiled. "I was a royal bitch before I had to try and make it on my own. I never realized how much pain and suffering there was, or how much you go through fighting to keep the people who can't defend themselves safe."

They continued to talk through the afternoon. Cordelia related the last year in LA, telling almost everything. She didn't mention the prophesy. That was Angel's to tell to whom he wished. Buffy related the entire school year from the first day, meeting and dating Riley, discovering the Initiative and defeating Adam. Slowly they poked and prodded each other with words, as strange animals might with noses, and found each other to be vastly different from who they had been at their last meeting. Both found the other to be much less grating on the nerves, and tempered by time and experience.

At last Buffy looked down at her watch. "Shoot! I have a date with Riley in less than an hour and I haven't even showered."

"Oh! Well then I should probably let you get ready," Cordelia stood. "I still need to get the rest of my stuff, and then I'll head over to Giles' and see what happened with those demons I saw."

"Great," Buffy smiled. "Giles could probably use some help with something. He always does." She stood and walked toward her room, stopping just before she entered. "I'm glad you're here."

Cordelia smiled. "Me too."

Riley smiled across the table as they waited for dessert to arrive. Buffy smiled back. He had said that he wanted tonight to be special, and he had gone all out by getting them reservations at the most expensive restaurant in Sunnydale. He looked charming in a suit and tie, if a little out of character from the usual camouflage or t-shirt and jeans that she was used to seeing him in. And he had ordered them dishes of lobster and lamb, with all the trimmings.

Buffy had settled on what was really only one of two maternity dresses she *had.* This one was simple and deep green, matching her eyes. It fell to just above the knee, hanging loosely over the bulge of her abdomen in a way that flattered, rather than accentuated, her condition. This nagging feeling of being self-conscious about her appearance was really starting to annoy her, but there seemed to be nothing she could do about it. She missed her body, and she missed being able to fight! She noticed Riley looking at her with a look of concern. "What?"

"You scared me," her boyfriend replied. "When I found out about the attack I wanted to kick myself for not being their to protect you."

"It wasn't like it was your fault," Buffy said to him. "There was no way we could have known. Can we please just have a nice evening?" she asked, knowing that this was heading toward another argument and trying to divert the conversation onto something different.

"But you shouldn't have been out alone," Riley continued, seeming to not have heard her request. "It's dangerous, and it keeps getting more so. Please, give it up."

"Give it up?" Buffy stared at him as if he were some alien creature. "How?"

"Just do it," the tall blond replied. "Everyone else is doing just fine. You don't *have* to slay anymore. You can quit, raise the baby in safety. He or she will never have to know the fear of losing their mother."

Buffy couldn't believe she was hearing this domestic *drivel* from Riley! "I can't quit. It doesn't work that way."

"And why not?" Riley asked, his brow furrowing in frustration. "I can take care of you. Of the baby. Of *all* of us. I've still got my job as a TA next year, and the stipend is bigger. I can get another job too. It'll be enough for both of us. You can finish school, get a job. We can be happy."

Buffy did *not* like the way this conversation was going. "Riley, please, don't ruin a lovely evening with this."

"I don't intend to ruin it," he replied, standing. He came around the table and knelt at her side, taking one hand. "Buffy, I know the last few months have been hard on you. But I want you to know you're not alone in this. We made a mistake, but there's no reason to suffer for it. Buffy," he pulled out a small box.

*Oh, shit!* Buffy's mind screamed as she recognized this scenario straight out of any romantic movie. And his words enraged her. "Riley...I,"

"Buffy," Riley continued right over her objections. "Will you marry me?"

The Slayer stared at him for a moment, then tossed her glass of water in his face. "How dare you!" she screamed, not caring that she was making a scene. "A mistake? You call *this* a mistake?" she pointed at her stomach. "A mistake. Hard on me? What would you know of how hard this has been for me? And I *can't* quit my duty. It's not possible, and not a job to be quit when I get bored or tired of it. It's a *part* of who I am! And I am the only person who can do it when it comes right down to it, even if I need help." She stood, causing him to back up and stand or crane his neck to look up at her. "And how *dare* you suggest that I become some domestic little housewife just to satisfy *your* need for clean honor and your stupid Iowa dream-world delusions! I am not going to spend my life as some brood sow to a man who can't appreciate what I am and who I am!"

Riley backed up, hands up defensively. "Buffy, I--"

"Shut up, Riley Finn," the blonde continued moving forward. Riley backpedaled to avoid accidentally impacting her stomach and possibly harming the child within. "I've put up with your smothering for months now and I'm not going to take it anymore. At first I thought you were just over concerned because I was injured, and because I'm carrying your child. But you just kept getting worse. Study sessions, health food, and all the other crap I've put up with just to save your feelings from getting hurt. Well you know what," her voice dropped to a low, threatening half-whisper. "I don't need you! I haven't felt so stifled in years, and that is *not* the environment I want *my* child raised in. I should have realized this a long time ago, but I was too busy trying to have a nice *normal* relationship. But you didn't even trust me to go to LA without having sex with my *ex.* You know the meaning of ex don't you, Riley? Because it now applies to *you.* Welcome to the real world, fish-boy. Hope you don't mind being a little lonely."

With the last snarled remark she spun around, dropping her napkin at his feet, and marched out of the restaurant.

Riley just stood there, mouth gaping open like a stuffed trout.

Part 5

"Buffy, over here!"

The Slayer glanced across the crowded cafeteria and saw Willow waving at her from a table near the windows. Cordelia was seated opposite her. She waved back to show that she had seen them and proceeded to wait for the lunch line to pick up the pace. It was the middle of the first day of classes, and the place was packed. She grabbed a large caesar salad, a grilled chicken sandwich, onion rings, chocolate pudding, and a large sprite. By the time she got through the line and over to the table, Willow and Cordelia were already finished eating and were chatting animatedly.

"What's up?" Buffy asked as she sat down beside Willow.

"Turns out we're in the same acting class," the red-head informed her.

"And the teacher is such a super-hottie," Cordelia grinned. "Not to mention an amazing actor."

"We were doing this improvisational exercise today," Willow continued. "Just to get us warmed up and used to each other. There'd be two people on stage, and each time the teacher yelled "change" they would have to start a completely different scene starting in the same position they had been in when the last scene ended. Then they made it more challenging by letting other students call out "freeze." The two people on stage would have to stop, and the other student would replace one of the actors on stage and start a different scene from the same positions."

"It was a lot of fun," Cordelia nodded in agreement. "There was the one guy- Scott- I was doing a scene with. We were pretending to be ballroom dancers, and just as he put me in a dip, the prof yelled change, and what does Scott do next?" She paused for dramatic effect. "He hisses and bares his canines as best he can and pretends to suck my blood. So I jerked away, shoved him with my foot, and pretended to stake him."

Buffy couldn't help but laugh at the irony in the situation. "I'm sure the look on the guys face was something to see when you responded *that* way."

"He probably expected you to scream," Willow agreed. "He looked rather disappointed when their turn ended there."

"Yeah, but after seeing the group that went after me, I know I totally suck," Cordelia lamented.

"No you don't," Willow protested. "You were a little awkward at first, but the moment you forgot to think of it as *acting* you were very natural."

"Thanks," the brunette smiled. "Of course you were hilarious as a two- ton tap dancing bunny rabbit!"

Buffy stared at her usually fairly reserved friend. "Do I *want* to know?" she smiled.

Willow flushed pink. "During Freeze this one girl started to pretend she was Godzilla on ice skates. So I thought I giant hopping, dancing rabbit could take her on."

"Even the teacher was laughing," Cordelia nodded. "My god, did you really eat all that?"

Buffy looked down at her now empty plate. "I know. It's totally disgusting isn't it?"

"Not disgusting," Willow disagreed. "Astounding."

The blonde stuck her tongue out at her best friend. Her ob-gyn had informed her that in the second trimester her appetite would likely reach voracious proportions. It was perfectly normal for a pregnant woman. That didn't make it pleasant, for it meant she was always hungry and thus always eating. "It's not funny," she pouted. "My stomach was growling all through my British Literature Seminar. The people around me kept giving me funny looks."

"I'm sure they were," the redhead giggled. "I've heard you in the morning."

Buffy looked pleadingly at Cordelia. "Isn't someone going to defend me?"

The brunette shook her head. "I would. But you actually woke me up this morning when you were in the kitchen."

Buffy shook her head, pausing momentarily at the feeling of eyes watching her. "Someone's behind me." She watched Willow and Cordelia's faces as they looked across the crowded room.

"There's hundreds of people behind you," Willow commented. "This *is* a University."

"It was Riley wasn't it?" she confronted her friends. The uncomfortable looks she received told her all she needed to know. *At least he didn't come over here.* Buffy didn't want to encounter him anytime in the near future. "So, where's Tara?" she said, changing the subject quickly. When she had told her friends about her rather violent and public break up with Riley when she arrived home early two days before they had reacted with shock bordering on paralyzing, but they understood. Willow, Tara, and Anya had seen how overbearing and controlling he had become over the past few months. Cordelia simply trusted their judgement, and had even made Buffy a cup of hot chocolate, decaffeinated of course.

"She's got a class now," Willow replied, going with Buffy's topic change without question. "She's in Plant Biology right now, I think."

"Why is she taking plant biology?" Cordelia queried.

"It's useful for learning about herbs and other plants uses," Willow explained. "It's useful for magical purposes as well as filling a science requirement."

"Sounds like a good idea," the other girl agreed.

Buffy nodded. "That'll be useful. Anyone up for something after classes are done? I think surviving our first day of classes calls for a little celebration, don't you?"

"We could hit the Bronze," Willow suggested.

The Slayer shook her head. "No, I want to try someplace new." *Someplace where we won't run into `him.'*

"There's supposed to be a good club that opened on the other side of town," Cordelia said. "Someone in my Theater History class was talking about it. Stone's, I think it's called."

"Oh, I heard about that place," Willow said, getting a little more excited about the idea. "They're supposed to have a great band."

"Sounds good then," Buffy smiled, hoping her friends didn't catch her look of relief. If they thought she was actually going out of her way to avoid talking to her now ex-lover, she knew they'd never let up on her. She suspected that they thought this was just a temporary explosion on her part, or that she would at least settle things with him later in a calmer fashion since she was, after all, carrying his child. As far as Buffy was concerned, she'd just as soon prefer she never had to deal with him again. The terror that she had felt when she realized what he really wanted had been overwhelming. She had no wish to ever feel that way again. "I'm going for more pudding," she said with a slightly forced smile as she carefully got to her feet. Her balance had been a little more precarious lately. "Anyone else want some?"

"Good afternoon," Doctor Dorothy Santner smiled as Buffy entered her office. "You're right on time."

The Slayer smiled. Her ob-gyn was a pleasant woman in her mid-thirties who herself was a mother of two, had light brown hair, and was fairly slender. She could be a bit annoying when it came to her constant questioning to see if Buffy was following her instructions, but all in all she was a nice enough person.

"How are you doing?" Dr. Santner asked.

"Starving," Buffy replied simply. "It's like every five minutes I'm ready for another meal."

The light brunette woman chuckled. "Sounds about right," she commented. "The baby is growing very fast at this point, and taking up a lot of energy. Which means you'll be growing a lot more in the next five months, which stinks, but is usually preferable than having all that extra weight to get rid of afterwards."

Buffy shuddered at the thought. "I think I have to agree with you on that one." She sat patiently through the test for blood pressure and while her blood was taken and whisked away to the in-hospital lab where it would be processed within a day. Then came her least favorite part so far, the measurements of her weight and waistline. It had quickly become the horror of her visits as she was further along.

The doctor smiled. "You're right on schedule so far. So I'd say keep eating whenever you have been. You're doing fine. Now for the fun part."

The "fun part" as Dorothy put it was what Buffy preferred to call "slime time," as it involved cold K-Y jelly smeared across her stomach. She followed the doctor into the other room and lay down on the table and pulled up her shirt, exposing the entire surface of her stomach to the air conditioned hospital room. She braced herself as Dr. Santner smeared the cold goop across her stomach. It was impossible not to shiver slightly.

"I know how you feel," the older woman smiled as she adjusted the fetal monitor. "Now let's see what we find today. You haven't had a sonogram in a while since the stupid machine was malfunctioning last time, so let's see how things are progressing. We may even be able to distinguish the gender for certain this time." She turned on the monitor and moved it around her stomach while watching the screen. "There we go."

Buffy stretched her neck up to see the screen over her stomach. There among all the white static was what was distinctly a baby. With a head, two arms, two legs, and... "What's that?"

"Hmmm?" The doctor looked closer at the image. "Oh my."

"What?" Buffy asked, a sense of urgency causing her throat to constrict at the stunned sound of her doctor's voice. "Tell me!" she said, a slight threat in her voice.

Dorothy looked at her. "Well, Buffy. It appears that your carrying twins."

*Twins?!* Buffy stared at the monitor. As she watched, the thing she had seen turned into a definite leg shape, followed by another one. Hidden behind the baby they could definitely see was another one. "Twins?" she repeated out loud incredulously.

"It appears so," Dr. Santner smiled. "I can't believe we missed this earlier. Let's see if we can determine a gender for either of these two little miracles."

After several minutes of moving the fetal monitor around to get a good view of *both* babies, the doctor declared baby number one, also known as the-baby-we-knew-about as a boy, and baby-that-caught-us-completely-off-guard, or baby number two, as a girl. "Of course, I could be wrong about the second," she said. "It's harder to tell with negative four-month-olds than with anyone who's actually been born." Finally she removed the monitor and gave Buffy a warm, wet towel with which to remove the slime from her belly.

Buffy made her next appointment, verified that her first Bradley method class was set for next week, and left feeling much more dazed than when she had entered. Twins! It did explain why at only four months she looked like half of the six-monthers she'd seen in the office. *Two* children sired by someone as big as Riley in a woman as petite as she was *would* show rather obviously. Buffy pondered this new turn of events until she got off the bus a block from the apartment. As she entered the building she decided not to tell anyone yet. She wanted some more time to absorb the idea before letting the news out as public knowledge. For the moment a different problem plagued her; how would she tell their father? *Would* she tell him?

*Finished,* Angel sighed to himself as he placed the file in the small filing cabinet that sat in the living room of his apartment. The place was the same size as his old one, but sparsely furnished. He hadn't been much in the mood for shopping of any sort, and so all that filled the apartment was a bed, bedside table, an old couch, a coffee table, and the beige carpeting that had been pre-installed. The fridge was stocked with a months worth of blood so he wouldn't have to worry about running out. Things had been much quieter with Cordelia gone, even if it had only been a couple of weeks since she left. He and Wesley were still working out of their apartments while the office upstairs was finished by the work crews.

Angel had quickly discovered that filing was not an amusing task. They had been fortunate in that there had been several cases in the last week alone, and all of them had paid fairly well. The vampire fully intended to pay David Nabbitt back at some point, grateful as he was for the multi-millionaire's generosity.

Stretching, Angel stood and walked over to the bookshelf and pulled an old book of Irish folktales off the shelf. He had picked it up in an old book store the week before. It was in an old Gaelic, so it had been cheap. Going into the kitchen he warmed a mug of blood and returned to the old couch to read. He hadn't left the apartment in two days, and so he was still in boxers and an old t-shirt he had bought at a thrift store.

Bring!

*Must be Wesley,* Angel reached over to pick up the phone. *Could be a client.* "Angel Investigations."

"You say it like that and they'll assume we're too hopeless to help!"

"Cordelia?"

"So nice of you to remember me," the perky voice chuckled. "You sound like you've been brooding. Do I have to come back and tickle you until you stop being gloomy?"

Angel couldn't help but smile a little. "No, it's okay. I just finished the filing."

"Yuck," Cordelia exclaimed.

"So, how's college life?" Angel asked before his former employee could ask him about what *he* was doing. He wasn't in the mood for a lecture."

"Oh, it's great," Cordelia practically gushed. "The acting teacher is amazing, and hot, and I'm rooming with Willow, Anya, Buffy and Tara -that's Willow's girlfriend. Yeah, I know I wasn't expecting that, but they're *so* cute together." Angel just leaned back to enjoy his friend's babbling. " And there's a new club that just opened on the edge of town. Great place. Good music. Pulls in the better crowd that some places I could name. Too bad we had to leave early when we were there earlier this week. But how was Buffy to know pickles and butterscotch wouldn't agree with her stomach. Well, it'll come out of my sweater. It wasn't really her fault, thought I was pretty upset at the time, and-"

"What did you say?" Angel was suddenly alert. "Is Buffy all right?"

"Huh?" Cordelia was already on to Wednesday and it took her a moment to realize what she'd said. "Oh, of course she's all right. Worrying about her again huh? Well it was *just* indigestion. Not her fault she got a bout of morning sickness at nine at night. She-"

"Morning sickness?" the vampire interrupted her again. What was going on in Sunnydale?!

"Well of course silly, she is...oh," she cut off suddenly. "Oh my gosh, I'm sorry. I forgot that you didn't know."

"Didn't know what?" Angel felt a little frantic. "What's wrong with Buffy?"

He heard a sigh from the other end of the line. "Angel, Buffy's pregnant."

Angel felt something slam into his chest. He didn't know what it was exactly, but it hurt. "When?" he choked out. He couldn't ask who.

"Four months," Cordelia replied. "Riley's," she answered his unspoken question. "But... they broke up."

Anger welled up in Angel's center that someone would do that to his Buffy. *His* Buffy. Not anymore. She had moved on much faster than he had thought. He hadn't even *known* that they were.... their bond was obviously more closed than he had realized.

"Angel?"

"Cordelia, sorry," he spoke into the phone again.

"I'm sorry you found out like this," she apologized sincerely. "Me and my big mouth."

"No, it's not your fault," Angel insisted. "I just..."

"Want to be by yourself to brood for a while."

Angel snorted a derisive laugh. "You know me too well."

"That's my job," Cordelia replied. "I may still need a job in a few years. It wouldn't do well for me to alienate a possible employer. I'll go now. Can I call you back in a few days?"

"Of course you can," the vampire insisted. "It was...good to hear from you."

"Thanks. Bye."

"Bye," he said into the phone as she hung up. He put it back down and slumped against the back of the couch, stunned. Buffy was *pregnant?!* And with Riley's child. The thought made him shudder. He didn't like Riley. The boy was too ignorant and cocky. He didn't understand Buffy, obviously, since he had left her in such a state. The demon, and most of the man in him, wanted to wring the military idiot's neck for what he had done. For abandoning her after taking what innocent she had... just as he had once done against his own will.

Guilt flooded through him, but he pushed it away. He hadn't meant to leave Buffy. That was the demon. It *had* been him who had taken back the day that had never happened from her. She couldn't know the pain he felt thinking of the feel of her tongue on his chest as she playfully removed the ice cream that had spilled, or the urge he felt running through him as he remembered the electricity between them as they jumped each other, crashing right through his kitchen table. She was the only thing that had made him truly feel human again. That day when he *was* human had been made perfect by her presence. Perhaps he should have felt good about saving her the pain of knowing that it had never happened. But what he really felt was the guilt that he had cheated her out of the only moment of pure happiness they had ever had that wasn't tainted by the demon inside him, or the curse that came with his soul.

He felt selfish. If the world were fair at *all* that child would have been his. His and Buffy's. Often, though he had never admitted it to her or anyone else, he had thought about what it would be like to have her. To be with her forever. For her to carry his child. There was something enticing about the images his mind conjured of her strong body, softly rounded by the new life within her, wrapped in his arms and the sheets of their bed after a night of playful loving. The feeling of her head resting on his chest as she slept peacefully. She was a goddess, and he worshiped her in his fantasies and dreams. Fantasies that he had thought put out of his mind ever since he had first gone to LA. For months he had refused to think of them, but now they came back with a vengeance, and he felt more cheated than he ever had in all his life.

Angel hadn't realized he could be *more* depressed.

"Anything yet?" Willow asked Tara over the book in her lap. The two girls were in what was now *their* room, formerly just Willow's, doing more research on the mysterious DNA-switching spell Tara had been compelled to perform.

"Nothing," the blonde witch sighed. "I've been trying to translate this passage for *hours.* So far all I know is it is about the Slayer and her child. I'm sure that if I could just figure out the last part we would know exactly what happened and why it happened."

"This book Giles had has been of some use," Willow tried to be positive. The book had several translations of passages in languages similar to -but not exactly like- the one they were attempting to decipher. She turned the page. "Wait! I think I have something. Let me see that passage again."

Tara passed her the old tome. "What is it?"

"Just a second... here!" the wiccan yelped excitedly, then stifled herself. It was late at night and they had been as quiet as possible so as not to wake anyone up. They were still the only two who knew the spell had been cast. They hadn't told Giles more than that they were working on a spell. "Let it be known that the children of the One shall all be of the one who does not breathe. They shall be sired by one who is not like the One, but yet not unlike her in mission and in heart. He whose soul is not his shall sire all the children of the One without exception. Let this be known, and let it stand for all time."

"But the baby is Riley's," Tara looked at her girlfriend uncertainly.

Willow shook her head. The one who did not breathe, who fought evil, and did not own his own soul, would be the father of Buffy's child. "Could the spell have been written to make sure that this prophesy came to pass?"

"So that whenever a Slayer was ever pregnant, the father would be-"

"Angel," the red-head cut her off. "It has to be referring to Angel. He's the only vampire who's ever had his soul returned. And it definitely doesn't belong to him with the curse attached."

"Does that mean I've done what I think I've done?" Tara looked frightened.

Willow nodded slowly. "I think so."

"Should we tell Buffy?"

She shuddered. Telling Buffy about the spell would be bad enough. Telling her that Riley's DNA had been switched with Angel's was almost unthinkable. Who knew how she might respond, given her Slayer-strength sized mood swings lately. "Not yet. We could be wrong. This could mean that this baby might not live to be an adult. Or any number of things. I think we should do more research and check on this translation before we say *anything* to anybody."

Tara looked over the words again, hoping she would catch some mistake in the translation they had done. But she didn't see any.

Neither did Willow. She was worried about what would happen when the baby was born. There was always a chance that its true parentage would be discovered by Buffy, Riley, or the doctors, at any time during its life. Would Buffy be happy? Now that she refused to be within *sight* of Riley, she might be. Willow knew that her friend still had feelings for the tall, handsome vampire, though she had no idea what they were anymore. She just hoped that her friend would understand when it was all explained.

Part 6

"Someone tell me why are we at a Starbucks again?" Xander asked his friends. The entire Scooby Gang was crowded around a corner table at the coffee shop, looking at the huge old book Giles had brought with him.

"Because I'm tired of all of you messing up my house," the Brit replied. "And Cordelia thought this would be a suitable replacement meeting place."

Everyone glared at the budding actress. She looked around, a little wide eyed. "Hey," she defended after a sip of Caramel Frappuchino. "I don't see why we have to be uncomfortable and annoying when we can have good drinks and munchies while we work."

"Depends on your definition of good," Xander grumbled.

"Angel never complained," Cordelia mumbled under her breath.

"Can we get back to this please?" The ex-watcher pleaded, gesturing toward the book. "It would be nice if we could stay on task for once."

"Okay," Buffy grinned. "Now exactly *what* does this word Gnak'thoh mean?"

"That's what I've been trying to get at for the last fifteen minutes," Giles sighed. "We know it means swarm. I did some research and *this* is what I found." He pointed at a passage in the book. It looked like gibberish to everyone else at the table, as it was in a demon language none of them had ever seen before. "To the Vei-rogk, having one of their clan killed is an insult of the highest degree."

"Way to go, Buff!" Xander held up his hand as if for a high five, then saw the glares he was getting from the women, and Giles, around him. "Sorry."

"As I was saying," Giles continued. "To *swarm* means that the Vei- rogk will come down upon the death place of their brother with terrible force and an army of demons, to get revenge for the embarrassment of one of their own kind. They believe themselves too intelligent to be killed, and thus consider failure to be a stain upon the entire clan. They swarm to cleanse that stain."

"So we're talking end-of-the-worldy stuff again aren't we?" Willow asked unhappily.

Buffy grimaced. "I hate the end of the world. It's always late, and always at the worst possible time."

"Actually, wouldn't this be *early* for the world to end?" Xander commented. "I mean. *I* don't want it to end yet." He put his arm around Anya who, for once, had remained mostly quiet during the conversation.

"Then we need to come up with a way to stop it," Buffy said simply. "We kick bad guy butt, evil demons go bye-bye. Who's with me?" The Scooby Gang looked at each other for a moment, exchanging glances. "Not me fighting," Buffy smiled, sipping her decaffeinated hot chocolate. "Just with me on getting rid of them."

"Well of course we are!" Cordelia stated firmly, trying to make everyone else enthusiastic. "We can stop them. How many of them can there be?"

"According to this, there are at least twenty Vei-rogk in a clan. And each one can control up to fifteen demons in a fight. Their ability to take over the minds of the demons they have working for them -and it must be voluntary to work- makes them very deadly, since they are extremely intelligent."

"Ummm.... anyone feel like running for the hills now?" Cordelia asked. No longer quite as enthusiastic as before.

"We can't," Willow replied. "If we don't stop them, at least Sunnydale is doomed. If we run, they'll follow us until we're dead."

"Wrong," the Slayer shook her head. "It's *me* they want. I'm the one who killed their *brother.* Hopefully it won't come down to them and me." And her children.

"We won't let that happen," Willow assured her. "I'm sure Tara and I can come up with another spell. Maybe one to stop them from controlling other demons?"

"It's possible," Tara nodded. "And maybe some others that could be useful in battle. We'll get started right away."

Buffy smiled. "Great. I just hope we get to them before they get to us."

Buffy Summers stepped awkwardly out of Cordelia's car. Her awkwardness was only partially due to her condition. "Thanks for the ride, Cor."

"No problem," the brunette smiled. "Just give me a call if you need a ride home later." At Buffy's nod of consent, Cordelia put the car in drive and pulled away.

The blonde gathered her inner strength and walked up to her mother's door. She didn't know what was about to happen, but her mother had called her- for the first time since Buffy had told her she was pregnant- and asked her to come over for dinner. The Slayer knew better. Mom wanted to talk. The problem was, this was equally as likely to be another lecture as it was to be an "I'm sorry" talk. Buffy was hoping for the latter of the two. Feeling much more timid than usual, and not liking the feeling one bit, she rang the door bell.

"Coming!" came her mother's voice. "Buffy," she smiled as she opened the door. It was a brilliant happy-to-see-you-smile, but a I'm-relieved-that- you-even-came smile. Joyce's eyes opened slightly wide as she took in her daughter's radically changed appearance. Buffy noticed the little intake of air and slightly wide eyes that constituted a gasp of shock from her mother.

"I know, I'm huge," she smiled to break the silence.

Her mother blinked, then smiled a little sheepishly. "I'm sorry. It's just, I haven't seen you since that night when–"

"I know, Mom," Buffy cut her off before she started babbling. "Thanks for calling."

Joyce smiled. "Well, don't stand in the doorway all night. Come on in. I've got Tuna Noodle Casserole in the oven." It was a dish she had made often when Buffy was smaller, and had been the only way to get Buffy to eat tuna. "Are you hungry?"

"Starved," Buffy chuckled. "Seems to be the story of my life lately."

"I'm sure it does," her mother couldn't help but smile a little. "You should have seen the grocery bills when I was carrying you. Your father complained that he didn't have a wife and child-to-be, but a pair of racehorses." The oven timer went off. "How's Riley?" she asked as she removed the casserole.

Buffy swallowed. "We...broke up."

"Oh, Buffy," Joyce swung around, her face full of motherly concern. "I'm sorry. What happened?" It was to her credit that she didn't make any assuming statements about why they had split up.

The younger woman felt a little relieved that her mother hadn't laid the blame on either of them immediately. It meant she was learning to reserve judgement til she knew more about the facts of the matter. Yet she didn't relish telling her the rest of it. "I broke up with *him,* Mom."

Joyce looked truly confused. "But *why?* You seemed so happy together."

"He was stifling me, Mom. I couldn't deal with his overprotectiveness, his constantly trying to control my life. I don't think he really knew that he was doing it," she said in his defense. "But he kept taking over, and talking about how I'd have to stop slaying to take care of the baby, and telling me what I should eat, and all sorts of other stuff. I'm sorry, but *tofu* is *not* on my list of cravings!"

Her mother smiled a little at her last outburst. "He doesn't understand you," was all she said.

Buffy nodded. "He just can't grasp that Slaying is my sacred duty and all that. I *can't* give it up, even though I'd like to. But I can't and won't til the world is safe. I won't put my babies in danger, but if I have to sacrifice all of us to save the world, then I'll do it."

Her mother didn't look thrilled with that statement, but she nodded. "I know, honey. I've had several years to think that part of your life over, and see it in much more detail than I ever really wanted to," she said, then turning to put the casserole on plates. She spun back around an instant later. "Did you say *babies?* as in plural?"

Buffy let out a snort of laughter. "Yes I did. Didn't I tell you? I'm sure I told you." She grinned wickedly. "It's twins."

Joyce leaned back against the counter, dinner forgotten for the moment. "Twins," she repeated, stunned. Speechless, she finally just hugged her daughter. "You amaze me sometimes," she said, smiling. "I'm still not thrilled that you and Riley were so reckless that this happened in the first place, but if you're happy with your situation I'm not going to try and change it."

The Slayer smiled. "Thanks, Mom. But it wasn't totally our fault." Before Joyce could give the typical parental response to *that* statement, Buffy pushed on, telling her mother about the sexually repressed child ghosts in the frat house, and how the entire house and everyone in it had been overcome by sexual desires. She abashedly told her mother about how it was feeding specifically of her and Riley's sexual energy, and made it impossible for them to stop. At the end, she wondered if her mother would believe such a crazy story.

Joyce looked at her for a minute. "Sexually repressed ghosts forced you to have sex and got you pregnant."

"Pretty much."

"That is the strangest story I ever heard," her mother chuckled. "Sure beats *conception on the kitchen table.* "

"Mom, I didn't need that mental image," Buffy grimaced slightly. Kitchen table. Why did those words give her deja vu? *Whatever.*

Joyce smiled back. "I'm sorry." She looked at her for another moment. "Twins."

"I look it, don't I?" Buffy smiled. "Don't worry about me, Mom. Wait, let me amend that. Don't do any baseless worrying. I'm fine. No complications of any kind so far. And I *am* eating healthy. Willow, Cordelia, Tara, and Anya will all back me up on that."

"Good to know your friends take care of you," her mother seemed happy. "Cordelia's back?"

"Yeah, she decided she could use some acting lessons before actually becoming an actress," Buffy replied. "So she moved in with us."

"I thought you two didn't always get along."

"We didn't. And we don't always now," Buffy admitted. "But we are better friends than we were before. Things have changed a lot since high school."

"No kidding," Joyce dead panned.

Buffy grinned. "How about some dinner before I collapse on the kitchen floor and make you feel all guilty?"

"We can't have that now, can we?" her mother smiled. "And I won't let my grandchildren go hungry either." With that she turned and picked up two plates.

The sewers of Los Angeles were even darker by night than they were by day, if that could be said to be possible. Water dripped, echoing hollowly down the endless maze of pipes and tunnels. The air was humid and almost pleasantly cool down where the sun couldn't reach.

Angel was perfectly at home in the dark, Wesley was another matter entirely. Without the aid of a light to see, he was almost helpless in the dark. Angel's vampire eyes could see well enough for the two of them though, and Wesley's ears were good.

After what seemed an eternity, Angel sighed. "We lost him."

"Are you sure?" Wesley asked his employer.

Angel nodded, even though he knew the Brit couldn't see him. "Positive. His smell is gone."

"How can you smell *anything* down here," Wesley said quietly, referring to the stench of sewer that surrounded them.

"Practice," he sighed, more out of habit than any real need to expel carbon dioxide. "We might as well go home."

They trudged back out of the sewers and began the long walk home through the nearly deserted LA streets. The glaring street lights accented the shadows and the vast emptiness about them. The worse parts of the city apparently *did* sleep sometimes. A wind off the ocean blew bits of paper and city grit across the ground at their feet. It was a harbinger of the winter rains to come: damp and cool. It combed through Angel's hair like delicate fingers. In a breath of familiarity it was gone again.

"Angel."

He turned to look at Wesley.

"I need to tell you something." The tone in the younger man's voice was serious.

"Go ahead." Angel had a feeling he knew what was coming.

"I've been offered a job."

Angel managed a small smile. "Congratulations. When do you start?"

"That's the thing. They want me to start as soon as possible. It's a library position." The other man looked decidedly uncomfortable. "It's at U.C. Sunnydale."

"Oh." The vampire didn't trust himself to say anything more in comment. He hated losing friends. It was selfish, but then most of his existence had been led by selfish motives. He could be alone. He'd done so before. "That's... great."

"I won't go if you don't want me to, Angel," Wesley insisted.

"It will be good for you to go," Angel replied.

Wesley shook his head. "Don't start feeling sacrificial on me. Cordelia would have my hide if she knew I let you get away with that."

Angel chuckled a little at that. "She would. I mean it, Wes. Go back to Sunnydale. They can use your help there. It's not like there's been anything horribly exciting happening around here lately."

"Promise you'll call if you need help."

"I promise. I'm not a child you know."

Wesley grinned. "Tell that to Cordelia."

"I tried," Angel smiled back. It was sincere, if sad.

They reached the corner outside Angel Investigations' new building. It was only a few blocks to Wesley's apartment from there. They stopped for a moment.

"Good night," Wesley spoke at last.

"Good night, Wesley."

When the Brit was gone, Angel entered the building alone, and feeling more depressed than he had in a long while. Closing his door against the world outside, he made his way across the apartment without bothering to turn on any lights. He didn't need them, nor was he in the mood for their cheery brightness. He pulled a packet of blood from the fridge and a pint of Irish whiskey from the fridge, mixing the two in a mug, about a quarter whiskey, and taking the concoction into the living room where he crashed on the sofa. The whiskey had been Doyle's, left in his fridge and had somehow migrated over to Cordelia's before the old office had exploded. It had been decades since Angel had indulged in any form of alcoholic beverage, but he felt the occasion appropriate. He had lost again. First he left Sunnydale to give Buffy a real life. Then Doyle died. Cordelia left, and now Wesley. If he had felt he deserved it, he might have cried. Or gone back to Sunnydale.

He refused to do either. Tears he didn't deserve. Besides, he told himself, he was still needed in LA. Buffy could take care of Sunnydale, and she had her friends to do so until her child was born. Even if she wasn't with Riley anymore, she wouldn't want to see him. He would be a painful reminder of her failure in any kind of relationship.

He couldn't trust himself. Angel had to admit it. If he went back to Sunnydale he didn't think he could keep himself from pursuing Buffy again. That path went places they shouldn't ever go again, but that drew them both whenever they were within sight of one another. He had felt it those several months ago when he had gone to apologize to her. He hadn't known then that she was pregnant. According to Cordelia, Buffy hadn't known yet either. It was amazing she hadn't miscarried, fighting Adam as she did. Yet her baby was strong enough to survive. Her baby...and Riley's.

Angel was jealous. He could feel it seething within him, stronger than the demon. Riley had given Buffy everything he couldn't have with her. There was only a little satisfaction in the thought that Buffy had dumped the mid- western misfit. The child she carried wasn't *his.* Those nights of love had not been *theirs.* All his dreams were destroyed by an idiot from the Army.

Angel finished his dinner and went for seconds.

"He didn't?" Willow gasped, laughing out loud. The sound bounded lightly across the darkened campus as they cut across it on the way home.

"He did!" Buffy grinned, taking a lick of her ice cream cone. "I couldn't believe it!"

"Who could have pictured Giles playing on a slip-n-slide!" Willow panted.

Buffy couldn't have until earlier that day. She had been stunned to find Giles babysitting for his next door neighbor, who had *four* children: ages 2, 4, 5, and 9. It had been a hot enough afternoon that the kids had pulled out the old toy and had been playing. Buffy had arrived just as they had convinced Giles, in shorts and a t-shirt, to try it. Needless to say, the former-watcher had been slightly embarrassed to have been discovered. "It was really funny," the Slayer chuckled. "Mmmm. Chocolate Maple Fudge ripple."

"Good, isn't it?"

The two girls had just gotten ice cream at a new shop that had just opened up in town. They had the most interesting flavors; all home made.

"It's del- hold on!" Buffy held up a hand, bringing Willow to a halt. "I feel vampire-y."

The red-head pulled a stake from her bag as the bushes next to them rustled.

"Come on out!" Buffy said loud enough for the bush to hear. "I know you're there."

"I kind of figured that," came the sarcastic cockney response.

Buffy and Willow looked at each other, stunned. "Spike?"

"Well who else would it be," the blonde vampire replied, stepping out of the dark, clad in black as always.

"Where have you been?" Buffy asked, curiosity getting the better of her. Spike hadn't been seen since before school let out the semester before.

"None of your business, Missy," Spike grinned. His eyebrows ran for his hairline as Buffy stepped into the light of a street lamp. "My, my. Look at what we've got here. If it isn't Miss Housewife-Idaho. Or is that Missus now? I don't see any diamonds."

"Shut up, Spike." Buffy glared at him, suddenly horribly conscious of her belly.

"Touchy aren't we?" He grinned devilishly. "Of course, that would be how this happened in the first place, wouldn't it." He glanced nervously around him, and Buffy noticed.

"You're being followed," she grinned, glad to be able to change the subject.

Spike leaned against the lamp post and lit up a cigarette, obviously upset that she'd noticed, but even more distracted by the fact that it was the truth. "Yeah. So what if I am?"

"Who's following you? And where *have* you been?" Buffy pressed him for information. It could be important.

"If you're just *dying* to know about the amazingly interesting things that happen in my life, then I'll tell you," Spike replied flippantly. "I was up north. It's beastly hot here in the summer, or hadn't you noticed."

"Enough with the commentary, I haven't got all night," the petite blond snapped.

"Oh, snippy aren't we. The bitch afraid she'll whelp outside? You look about ready to drop right here."

"Get *on* with it!" Only Willow's hand on her shoulder kept Buffy from staking the smart aleck right there.

Spike backed up a step, grinning. "Well, while I was up there, these guys started asking around; recruiting. Don't know what for. When I decided it would be better to clear out, they started following me."

"Who's *they?*" Buffy tried to reign in her temper.

"Don't know, ducks." He took a long drag on his cigarette. "But I'd be careful if I were you. They mean business. Everyone was seriously afraid of getting messed up with them, and even more so of resisting." He flicked the last soot to the ground and stomped it out. "Now if you'll excuse me, I've got someone to evade for another couple of hours." He paused and looked Buffy over up and down, very slowly. "Maybe it's a good thing Peaches left. I can just imagine what he'd say if he saw you all knocked up. You look just ducky you know. Waddling and all."

"Damn you, Spike!" Buffy grabbed the stake from Willow and stalked forward.

A little unnerved, the vampire jumped backwards, away from the hormone ravaged Slayer. She was quite a sight, stake in hand, hair blown by the wind, and a good twenty pounds heavier. Her ice cream had fallen to the ground, forgotten in her rage.

"I'll just be going," he pretended to keep his cool. Buffy could see right through the act though. "Just be careful," he said before melting back into the night as fast as he could.

Buffy stopped, huffed, and lowered the stake. "I hate him!" Her voice nearly broke as a tear trickled down her cheek.

"Buffy," Willow came up and pried the stake out of her friend's clenched fist. "He's gone. We should go too. You know, and call Giles. He'll wanna know. And you're stressed."

Finally the Slayer looked at her friend. She couldn't believe she'd let Spike's taunts get to her that much. Was that what the others thought too? *Of course not,* she had to tell herself firmly. *Spike's just a jerk.* "You're right, Will. Let's go home."

Her friend looked concerned. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Buffy wiped the trickle of tears off on her sleeve. The vampire's words echoed in her mind, though. *I can just imagine what he'd say if he saw you all knocked up.* Without a glance at the fallen ice cream, she continued toward the apartment.

Buffy fled to her room as soon as they returned to the apartment. Through the door she could here Willow telling the others what had happened and then the sound of the phone being dialed, and the red-head talking to Giles. Slowly she changed into her pajamas. Everything Spike had said about her had been at the height of nastiness. But it had all been true. She was huge, and starting to waddle like a duck. It was embarrassing, but her size no longer allowed her to walk normally. What had hurt the most was his last insult.

What *would* Angel think if he knew? Would he be disappointed? Angry? Or would he be glad he had left? And why couldn't she convince herself that Angel's opinion of her didn't matter? *Because he loves you,* came the unbidden reply. *That's why he left.*

"But was this what he wanted?" Buffy asked out loud to her wallpaper. She didn't think so. He would probably be ashamed that she had made such a mistake. He didn't even like Riley. *He'd probably think I'm a complete loser. Especially when I didn't apologize to him when he said *he* was sorry. He didn't even do anything*

Gently she eased herself down on the bed, ignoring the ache in the small of her back and focused fully on the nagging guilt she felt. She deserved it for her childish and selfish outburst in LA. Angel had done nothing to incur her wrath. It had been entirely her selfish pride, and anger at seeing him hug Faith. Betrayal had filled her at that moment, and jealousy. Jealousy that Faith was in those wonderful arms instead of her. The last time she had been in those arms....

Funny, it didn't feel like two years ago had been the last time. She could distinctly remember the feel of his strong arms, and the press of wood into her back. *How strange,* she thought. *My mind must be making things up. Angel and I never did it on a table.* Now, with *Riley* on the other hand...

A strong kick in the belly brought her out of her pensive mood. She smiled slightly and placed one hand over the left side of her stomach, where the now confirmed boy had woken up. "Aren't you the athletic one," she chuckled softly. Even though she was huge, and twenty-three pounds heavier than her preferred weight, the magic of the babies inside her could still make the college girl feel that all of the discomfort was worth it in the end. The boy kicked again. "No playing soccer in the house," Buffy told him firmly. The kicking softened to squirming and taps. "That's better." Then the other side of her stomach started wiggling. "You woke up your sister," she admonished her son. The left side moved again. "I'll take that as an apology," Buffy smiled. "And look at me. I must be nuts. I'm talking to my stomach."

Several angry jabs met that remark. Buffy chuckled and ran her hand soothingly over her swollen abdomen. "All right, I'm sorry. How about a story?"

The kicking stopped.

"Good then," Buffy reached down and plucked a children's book from the small collection that had grown in corner by her bed. "Once upon a time, there was a toy maker..."