Part Eight
Heaven’s a lie…

Turning away from her he walked towards the door to her apartment opened it and began walking down the corridor. A few girls stood at the end of the landing, weapons in hand but not in battle stance. Nodding to Spike as he approached them and letting him pass without challenging him. One called out to Willow, as Spike began to descend the stairs and meet him halfway down the staircase. It wasn’t too hard to see that some thing awful had happened upstairs as the pain was etched deeply into Spike’s face. Confused, Willow knew that Buffy had come too profoundly care for the vampire since he had died and had missed him dreadfully. Surely, Buffy would have told him that she cared for him and about the baby.

So what had gone so terribly wrong?


“Spike, what happened?” Willow put a hand out to stop the vamp from moving down any more steps. “What’s wrong?”

“Why didn’t you tell me she was pregnant with someone else’s kid, Red?” Spike bitterly accused Willow of this injustice done to him. “Could have saved us both a lot of heartache.”

“But Spike there hasn’t been anyone,” Willow tried to defend her friend and save Spike from making a bigger fool of himself, than he already had. “You have to believe me that the only person that could be the father is you.”

“Don’t believe you, Red,” Spike pointed to himself. “I’m the undead Willow. I can’t have children. I’m stone cold to the core.”

“Then give me time to find something to prove to you that it’s possible,” Willow pleaded with the vampire. “Just a few hours to do research. Please, Spike.”

“Don’t go wasting your time Red,” Spike began to walk down the stairs. “Don’t know any vamp who’s had a kid and doubt that there ever will be.”

“Spike, stop!” Willow ordered the vampire, but Spike just continued down the stairs ignoring her. What he didn’t see was Willow’s signal to the other Slayers on the staircase to halt the wayward vampire. Four Slayers came out of the surrounding areas, unseen by Spike who’d been to upset too notice anyone or anything. They halted his progress as they came to stand in front of him. “Spike, stop or I’ll have them make you stop. And it will hurt that I can promise you.”

“Will, don’t do this please.” Spike began to choke on his words as his throat began to well with emotions. “Please just leave this between Buffy, and myself.”

“How can I?” Willow moved down the stairs to stop just in front of him. Looking up and down she decided what to do with him. “Take him down stairs to the holding cell.”
Spike listened to someone that he considered an ally order his confinement, so he decided to do the only thing he thought that he could do in this situation. Run. Breaking his way forward he made it down only four steps before one of the four Slayers knocked him down and out cold. Blackness granted him sanctuary from the pain and torment he was experiencing from Buffy’s betrayal with another man. He’d reached out to heaven only to discover that it had all been an illusion.

Heaven was a lie.


~~**~~

Checking on Buffy, Willow watched her friend have a fitful sleep despite the potion she’d given her to help bring on sleep. Willow had listened to Buffy as she told the story of what had passed between herself and Spike, some details where left out but Willow was told about the significant facts. She held Buffy, as her friend cried until there were no tears to cry and Buffy finally drank a sleeping potion making sure a thousand times that it wouldn’t harm the baby.

Thinking for a moment where to start looking for the answer she searched for, Willow smiled to herself as she realized that she might be able to avoid a long task if she knew where to start looking. She knew exactly who to ask that very question. Walking down to the office, Willow picked up the phone book, picked out a number and punched it into the keypad. Waiting for a few seconds, a faintly familiar voice answered the phone.

“Hello, Wolfram and Hart, this is Wesley’s…ummm Mister Wyndam-Pryce’s office.”
It took just a split second for Willow to place the voice, “Harmony?”

“Yes this is Harmony, personal assistant to Angel CEO of…” Harmony said trying to impress whoever was on the other end of the phone. “Hang on who am I talking to?”

“Hey Harm…umm it’s Willow Rosenberg. You know Buffy’s friend. Umm I thought that you were dead but obviously not,” Willow tried to be pleasant.

“Sure am…vamp and you,” getting no reply Harmony continued. “So how’s Sunnydale?”
“Now witch to the Slayers. Sunnydale is now just a dust bowl, Harm. But enough friendly banter, I need to speak to Wesley, please.” Willow tried to remain calm as time was of essence.

After hearing some muffled conversation and being put onto what Willow assumed was hold when she heard only nauseating chimes. Wesley finally picked up the phone after a few minutes.

“Willow, how are you my dear?” Wesley sounded his usually chirpy English self.
“Good Wesley, just hoping you could give me some inside help on something that’s come up here.” Willow sat down onto a chair near the desk where the phone was. “I was hoping that you could help.”

“How can I be of assistance?”

“I’m trying to find out some information about vampires,” Willow asked.

“I would have thought that working with the Slayer that you would have had all the information you needed about vamps, Willow?” Wesley was perplexed that Willow would be calling him about vampires. “Doesn’t Giles have what you need?”

“I’m trying to keep Giles out of it.” Willow whispered despite the fact that no one was within earshot. “It’s about Buffy…she’s pregnant.”

“What? A Slayer pregnant? I wouldn’t have thought that she couldn’t have gotten pregnant Willow. Didn’t she now how to protect herself from that kind of thing?”

“Umm it’s hard to explain,” Willow tried to think of how she was going to explain the situation to Wesley. “She didn’t think that she had to.”

“Why not?” Wesley disappointment could be heard in his voice. “I never knew Buffy to be careless.”

“She wasn’t,” Willow just thought that the best plan of action was just to spill it out. “The father’s a vampire.”

“Oh my god. Angel?”

“No, Wesley, no.” Willow stuttered. “Spike.”

“Well, well,” Wesley muttered to himself. “That’s where Spike ran off to…should have seen that one coming. Angel is not going to like that Spike’s with Buffy or that she’s now pregnant. Angel’s not going to take that news very well I’m afraid Willow.”

“It’s got nothing to do with Angel,” Willow spoke up for the couple. “This is between Spike and Buffy. Can you help me or not? I need to prove to Spike that he could father Buffy’s baby. He thinks that she’d been with someone else. That Buffy cheated on him but if he knew that he could be a daddy, then maybe they’ve got a chance together.”

“Yes, I can help you considering the circumstances, but this stays between us Willow. If Angel knew I told you then I’m sure he’d kill me himself with his bare hands.” Wesley knew that despite the risk it sounded like Willow needed to know the truth about Connor, Angel’s son with Darla, who had been Angel’s sire before she dusted herself to give birth to their son. “Angel has a son… and no one knows about him…well almost no one.”

Wesley continued to tell Willow the story surrounding Connor’s birth, disappearance and return upon the condition that she never name him as the source of his information. He also told her of the prophecy foretelling of Connor’s birth. That Willow could use it as proof that maybe a pregnancy was possible between Spike and Buffy, making it clear that it wasn’t about them. Yet if a vampire could father a child with another vampire…than why couldn’t a vampire father a child with a human. Satisfied with what she’d learnt, Willow gave her thanks to Wesley and hung up. Tapping her hands on top of the desk, she thought about how to use the information to make Spike see sense and be reasonable about the baby. Clicking her fingers, she devised a plan to do just that and went about doing just that.

~~~***~~~***~~~***~~~

Part Nine

Believe…

Waking up with a splitting headache, Spike pulled himself up from the bed where he lay. Swinging his feet over the edge, Spike fought back the nausea that hit the back of his throat. Looking around he found himself a cell surrounded by bars and Slayers, no fighting chance for a lone vamp to escape. That’s all he wanted to do at the moment was escape from the pain he’d discovered last night and go back to L.A. to pretend that this had never happened. Forget that the woman he loved carried the child of another man. That Buffy had actually been with someone else so soon after he’d sacrificed himself for her, made his soul ache in anguish. Spike felt like he wanted to cut his own heart out if it would mean the end of this agony.

Hunger pangs jolted him away from his dark thoughts as he again looked about the room for a way out. The one thing that he need to control was his demon. As angry as Spike was, losing control of his demon in the need to feed could be devastating to some poor unfortunate. As he lost all will to care and that could mean a good dusting from some Slayer. He really didn’t care anymore about himself or the unlife he lead, nothing really mattered anymore without her.

Hearing chattering amongst the Slayers, Spike’s gaze went back to them. Noticing that Willow was amongst them, giving what it seemed to be instructions as she pointed and gestured with her hands. As if by instinct, Willow looked around to see a now conscious Spike sitting on the edge of the cell bed. Walking over she stood in front of the bars with a cup in her hand. Spike could smell the blood from where he sat, he couldn’t distinguish the type but it wasn’t human. Offering the cup through the bars, Willow extended her hand forward and watched the vamp slowly get off bed to walk towards her. Spike noticed in his peripheral vision that the Slayers in the room standing rigidly straight getting ready to ponce should he do something that they didn’t like.

“Got ‘em trained well Red.” Spike took the cup out of her hand and poured the contents directly into his mouth. “Thanks pet, I badly needed that.”

“You alright?” Willow asked, feeling somewhat guilty for instructing him to be struck down by the Slayers. “I’m sorry I just couldn’t let you leave. Buffy’s missed you too much to watch you leave and you know what a crabby Slayer is like.”

“Red, please don’t ask me to stay,” Spike held onto the bars. “Hurts too much to stay. So either let me go or dust me.”

“No need for that, Spike,” Willow turned around to the others in the room and nodded pointing to the door. With some reluctance, the Slayers left the witch and vampire alone in the room. “I’ve been a very busy beaver while you were having your beauty sleep. I found out some interesting things about vamps and babies.”

“Exactly what I told you, Red. Wastin’ your time.” Spike spat out. “Vamp’s can’t have kids, end of story. Ergo, Buffy’s bub can’t be mine.”

“That Spike, is where you’re mistaken….” Willow looked at the disbelief that covered his face. “I have it on good authority that Vampires can and have had children.”

“Don’t bloody lie to me, Red,” Spike spoke to her harshly. “Don’t fucking lie.”

“I’m not lying to you Spike,” Willow reached into her pocket and removed a set of keys. “Have I ever lied to you about anything? This is about Buffy and you. Buffy would kill me if I told you a lie just to make you believe her.”

“Then how come in all my years I’ve never heard or meet these kid’s and I’ve been around, Red. A lot bloody longer than many people.” Spike ran a hand through his hair and looked away from a tired looking witch. “So whose been telling you fibs, Red?”

“Wesley wouldn’t lie to me.”

“That little nancy boy?” Spike shook his head. “Only interested in his books…what would he know? Need’s a good shag if you ask me.”

“Wesley’s been wrong about a few things but not about this. He was there when Angels’ son was...ummm.” Willow went a bright red; she’d always been one to let things slip out of her mouth at the most inconvenient time. “Spike, it’s like this…”

“That bloody ponce has a son and he didn’t tell me,” Spike was livid at his grandsire for not trusting him enough to tell him. “The right git, just wait till I get back to L.A. and tell him off for not telling me about the boy. But hang on…I’ve never meet Angel’s kid.”

“No and I doubt that any of us ever will,” Willow moved to the cell door and unlocked it with the keys she held in her hands. “Angel doesn’t want the world to know about Connor. He wants a normal life for his son and only a few know about him.”

“Connor. Hmm better than ‘Liam’ I suppose.” Spike shrugged his shoulders. “Guess if the poof can have a kid, why can’t I?”

“So you believe me…”

“I’m trying too Red. You’ve never been one to lie and when you do you go all red in the face.” Spike smiled at her in somewhat relief in knowing that it was possible that Buffy’s kid was his. “You’re so easy to read.”

“Spike you have to promise not to tell anyone. Not even Buffy,” Willow swung the door open for him to leave the cell hoping that telling him would make him want to stay.

“If it’s true, than I’m not telling Buffy. Ever.” Spike shook his head. “This bub an impossible miracle. Red, your secrets safe with me.”

“Fine but you can’t say a word to anyone Spike, not even Angel. Promise me.”

“Fine Red. I promise, never ever to tell a soul.” Spike saluted her with his hand. “But how did Angel…?”

“I don’t know Spike,” Willow hid her hands behind her back and crossed her fingers. “But I’ve been thinking about you and Buffy, she’d four months pregnant right. Maybe it has something to do with that amulet that you used during the battle with the first. I don’t know really. We lived in the middle of the Hellmouth. Nothing should surprise me after all these years. If there are real vampires, then why can’t there be slayers impregnated by the souled damned?”

“It doesn’t matter at the moment, Red,” Spike smiled to himself. “There has to be an explanation to how Buffy got knocked up? I need to know…”

“Already onto it Spike, but I don’t think that we might ever have an easier answer. You just have to believe me and trust Buffy,” Willow crossed her arms. “Don’t let her know that I’m looking for your sake and mine. I’m looking under a protection spell that will give me some stealth. I will call Wesley again, but remember not a word to Buffy about anything. Especially, not about Connor.”

“Red, I already said I wouldn’t say anything about the ponce’s prodigy didn’t I?”

“Good,” Willow went over and opened the door for them to leave the cell area. “Now it’s you time for you to make things all peachy with Buffy. You might want to try groveling on your knees for starters…”

“Red!”

“And cookies. Cookies are good.”

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