Immortal Beloved..." LXXIV...

A shortie...

PG-13

Disclaimer: No, Joss, no...I make no claims, put that thing down! It's all yours and ME's...

Spoilers for Angel to the bitter end...Flee at once!...

Summary: Various outcomes following "Girl In Question" and /or "Not Fade Away" on Angel...

Ok, I lied about stopping at 50...But me poor ole mum would just say, "so long as I like it, it's ok..."

***

Two days after the defeat of the Senior Partners at LA...

The sub-sub-sub-basement occult storage vaults of Wolfram-Hart, Inc...Home to the firm's occult secrets...

"This system of cataloging seems quite disorganized for a firm that prided itself on its evil organization..." Illyria, in Fred form, sniffed, pawing through a file cabinet of material deemed too unstable or valuable to be put on computer... "Hmmn...One spell for enhancing the beauty of old wood...I thought this stuff was supposed to be dangerous or valuable... 'Side effects may include nausea or vomiting, may cause burning or itching'?..." she peered at the old parchment...Ah, 'old world...demons'...This is a spell for making demons from a certain dimension appear human..."

"Ok... "Angel sighed... "Just keep going...We're losing the building to the Feds tomorrow when they move in to seize all assets and begin their investigations into the Partners' less supernatural shenanigans...We've gotta get everything of potential use and destroy everything too dangerous to let fall into anybody's hands..."

"I know Charlie's gonna be in the hospital for another week at least, but I don't see why William couldn't've come...We could use another pair of hands and eyes here..." she frowned...

"He wanted to keep an eye on the baby...Somebody has to...And he's more or less taken charge there..."

"He could've brought it...And he did agree to become our partner in the new firm..."

"When we start the new firm...If we can manage to start the new firm, given this Federal investigation..."

"I love babies...He should let me take it..." Angel stared at her...What?...She frowned at him...

"Winifred...I think he likes taking care..." Angel paused...Illyria smiling rather warmly...Thanks...she beamed...

"For forgetting again...I like that...Though...It's not hurting you a lot, is it?...Cause I'll do blue if it hurts too much?..."

"It's fine..." he waved a hand... "I'm glad to have even a little of her back...And it's a kind thing to do for her parents, to try and be Fred for them..."

"Wesley would want it..." she said simply... He smiled at her a second... "And appreciates it, I'm sure..." he nodded...

Nina wandered into the vault room with another stack of files taken from an identical, though less packed vault, and set them down on the table where Illyria and Angel were hard at it... "That's the last from the other vault..."

"Thanks, honey..." Angel beamed at her...

"No problem, sweetie..." she patted his shoulder...Eyeing the folder Illyria was opening... "Say, isn't that about that Immortal guy?..." she noted the folder tag...

"Yeah...Ummn...Hmmphf..." Illyria gasped, then to her companions' surprise began laughing...In very Fredian mode...

What?...Angel blinked at her...She handed the file over...He scanned the pages within...

"Well?..." Nina came and looked over his shoulder...He was chuckling now...

"Oh my God..." she started laughing...

"I never would've believed Andrew Wells had that good a sense of humor..." Angel was now laughing heartily... "When William gets a load of this...Apart from being on the first plane back to Rome..."

His cell phone rang...

"Buffy?..." he blinked at the phone as the other two eyed each other... "What's...?"

"Yeah, we're fine...Thanks for sending those Slayers...At the last minute they really...Yeah, William's fine...Though I think he was a little disappointed not to see you there...Oh?...Just the other day?...Andrew kept it that well?..."

What...?

You're where?...

The others eyed him...

"The..." Angel chortled a bit... "Immortal, eh?...He's going where?...Why?...You told him what?..."

Buffy...he frowned at the phone... "As Will's friend...Yes, I said friend...And grandfather of sorts...I gotta say..."

Oh...Yeah...he grinned suddenly..."I know about the Immortal..." he chuckled... "We were just reading up on it..."

Buffy...I think William can handle this...Yeah, sure...I'll give you his address...he grinned at the ladies...

"What, you couldn't keep up, following your little playmate?..." he chuckled into the phone...

The ladies looked at him as what was clearly a frosty pause ending his hee-hawing... "Sorry...But Buffy, you gotta realize...We thought His Benevolence..."

Unless of course your tastes have gone that way...he resumed chuckling...

"I wouldn't slam that phone down till you got Will's address, kiddo..." he hastily noted... "Oh, he's at home...No, not alone...No, not Dru...No, not Harmony...In fact he's enjoying a little quality time tonight with his adopted kid..."

I think I just paid her back properly for that charming 'no one trusts you anymore' remark of Andy's...he happily thought as the phone remained quiet for a full minute...

***

William's apartment...Same time...

"Ok now, lamb..." Will, in thoughtfully chosen baby-friendly muted-color tan t-shirt and beige slacks...His newly-acquired baby books collection having recommended such, eyed the baby lying on open Pampers diaper on his kitchen table... "We're gone get this in just a bit and then it's dinner-time...Yep...Bobba-bobba..." he pantomined a baby's bottle to his lips as the baby cooed and giggled... "That's right, kid...You, me, our respective nutrient solutions...And 'Gilmore Girls' on the telly...I'd call that one fine..."

His door was burst open... "William the Bloody?!!..." a stern, yet somewhat thin voice called into the room... "Prepare...To dust!..." Sounds of a sword swooshing a bit...

"Who the hell?!..." he turned...The baby likewise turning on the diaper to view the intruder with an anxious stare...

"My card, monsieur..." a card was tossed at him out of the dark...He picked it up off the floor, the baby eyeing him with a somewhat worried look... "Don't sweat it, kid..." he smiled gently as he looked at the card...

"... 'The Immortal'...Lovely..." William sighed...Hmmn, he tried to peer into the dark...Rather a small fellow unless my eyes are playing...

"Now that I have introduced myself, as I have said...Prepare to dust, monsieur!...En garde!..."

"It's not enough Summers is hanging out with you, now you've come to ruin my quiet evening with the little one here..." The baby whimpered, then began to bawl a bit... "Whom you've just made cry..."

The Immortal leaped forward and paused, blinking at the baby...Who gave up sobbing to stare and then coo...

At the approximately two-and-one-half foot tall cat in boots and sporting a plumed hat, sword drawn from a small belt about its waist and in hand...

Will now staring in shock, then grinning... "You...You're the Immortal?.."

And Angelis always said Dru and Darla had no sense of humor...

"I am Henri Faucomb d'Vestigy..." the cat proudly noted... "Famed cat to the great King Henry the Fourth of France and his royal descendants...Granted both unique powers, including a human intellect, and Immortality for courage in defending my king's life against evildoers determined to bring down his tolerant reign...And now here to defend the honor of a great lady, wronged by you, sir..."

"Great lady?..." Will struggled to go through the list of potentially suitable Spike victims...

"One Ms. Buffy Summers...She whom you so callously spurned and..." the cat's eyes narrowed as he stared again at the baby... "...clearly have betrayed..."

"Now just a mo, prick-in-boots..." William frowned... "Did Summers send you here to?..."

"Ms. Summers would never lower herself to such things...But any creature of honor, committed to her service..." the cat began...

"Henri!..." a voice cried...Hmmn...Henri turned...Fur bristling a bit... "Bad cat!..." Buffy slapped a thigh... "Come away from William, now!..."

"But, ma cheri?...My Immortal defense of your Honor requires..."

"Dawn and Xander are morons...Whatever they said to you..." she glared... "Now let William be and go wait outside while I talk to him..." William noticed a large pack on her back as she turned glare to him...Henri frowning, but moving off...Pausing for a quick rub and purr at her side as she patted him and he went out...

"Call me should the dastardly fellow try anything, my dearest one...Your Puss-In-Boots is forever at your..." he called as the door closed...

"And as for you, you cowardly little blonde asshole..." She frowned at William, then eyed the baby on the table...

"Nice kid you got there...Give thanks to God it's not Dru's or..." she shuddered a bit... "Harmony's..."

"Summers...I..."

He blanched a bit as she swung the 'pack' around...A baby carrier...With a three month old baby within...Who, he immediately realized bore an unquestionable resemblance to...

"If you ask who's...You're dust, you know that..." she eyed him...Then smiled as she brought the blonde boy over...

"This'll be so neat that they're so close in age..." she beamed...Then looked around as he stared, dumbfounded...

"We are gonna need a bigger house...Picket fence and everything..."

***

"But..." he stared at her... "Andrew never..."

"He didn't know...No one but Giles and Dawn knew until recently...Actually that's why I hadta vamoose to Rome, Giles was gettin' all WatcherCouncilchairmanish and making with the 'for your own good my dear' after I told him I was having Willie Jr. here whether he was part demonic or no..."

Which I would've...she gave him a careful stare, full in the eyes... "Demonic or no...After all, I already knew the worst...And best of that part of his father..."

Not sayin' that Giles would ever...she hastily added...Just...Well, didn't wanta take any chances...He blinked at her, then 'Willie, Jr.'

"Well...Say hello to William Soames Walthrop, Jr., Dad..."

What?...she frowned... "Like I wouldn't find out the name of the beloved, if moronically distrustful and cowardly, father of my child?..."

****