Chapter Seven : Runaway Buffy awoke to the sound of her mother waking around and pulling things out of her daughter's closet. Groggily, she sat up in bed. "Mom, what -" "Get up out of bed and get some clothes on," Joyce ordered, passing her daughter a tank top and jeans. Buffy stood out of bed and grabbed the clothes. There was silence between the two of them. Everything that had happened the night before was still fresh in their minds. It always would be. Buffy sighed and changed into the clothes her mother had given her. She wasn't about to ask questions. She didn't want to get slapped or slammed against her headboard again. There was a small bruise on her forehead to prove it and slayers didn't bruise easily. In fact, they hardly ever did, no matter how bad the blow was. Glancing at the clock by her bed, she saw that it was 5: 00 in the afternoon. Buffy had slept all through the day and the sun would be going down soon. "Did... did Dr. Keats call, yet?" Buffy asked meekly, turning to look at her mom. Joyce's jaw clenched. "She did." "Am I..." "Yes." Buffy sat down on her bed as the news sunk in. She knew it. She just knew it. A small smile curled across her lips at the thought of Angel's baby growing inside of her. It was a baby that came from true love and no one could try and argue with that. Not even Joyce. With a small slap on the leg, Joyce said,"C'mon. Get up." "Where are we going?" Buffy asked as she followed her mother out of the house and to the car. "You just sit down, buckle your seatbelt, and shut up," Joyce answered sternly. Buffy hung her head as she opened the car door, crawled in, and did as she was told. Oh, God, Mom. What are you doing now? The Factory Spike rolled himself over to where Angelus sat. The brooding vampire was sitting on a crate, looking of into space. Spike laughed to himself. Xander had done what he was told. "Somebody's in deep thought," the british vamp said. Angelus jumped into reality and stood up, not wanting to hear anything Spike had to say. He didn't want to hear anything, but Buffy's voice. But he'd have to wait until the sun went down. "I believe you had a visit last night from that friend of the slayer's," Spike continued. Angelus turned around to look at him. "How did you know that?" Spike smirked. This was going to be so fun. "I hired the little prick to talk to you." Angelus had to control a growl from escaping his throat. "You what?" "Oh, come on! You were getting pussy wipped and I was tired of seeing Dru in such agony. Why the very thought of you in bed with the slayer is enough to make my blood run cold and I am not cracking a joke. You've been going to her every night this past week and it's making everyone here rather disgusted." "Big words, Spike. How would you like to not be able to say those words again once I rip out your vocal chords and hang you by them?" Angelus threatened. Spike wheeled himself closer to his sire. "That's a nice visual aid you've given. But... there's something I gotta know. Two nights ago, from what I saw that slayer and you were having some fun up in her room. So, I've been wondering. Is she as good as she seems because if you need someone to take your place for awhile..." That was it. Angelus couldn't contain it anymore. He grabbed Spike by his jacket and flung him across the room. Spike immediately vamped out and stood up. "Bloody hell! You really are in love with that bitch aren't you?!" Angelus - completely ignoring the fact that Spike could walk - ran over and punched the vampire. "Don't you ever call her that again!" Spike felt blood trickle down his lip. He felt of it and then licked it off of his fingers. "Okay." he said with a laugh. "Stay away from Dru and I won't touch the slayer." "If you ever try and hurt her or rape her, so help me God, I will personally rip every bone out of your body," Angelus growled. Spike stood up and walked past him. "I'm so scared. I'm shaking in my boots." Angelus growled and went to his room, slamming the door behind him. The Library "You're certain?" Giles asked. Xander nodded his head. "Yep. Angel is leaving Sunnydale. I think he already has. There hasn't been any sign of him." "Do you know if he has contacted Buffy?" Xander sighed, remembering what he saw the night before as he had walked past Buffy's house. She had been sobbing on her bed, obviously from Angel leaving. At least, that's what Xander thought. "I went past her house last night and she was crying. I didn't go in. I just saw from her window. I guess Angel told her he was leaving town." "How do you know that he was leaving?" Cordelia asked from the corner in which she stood. Xander couldn't look her in the eye. He felt guilty about kissing Willow. Yet, he liked kissing Willow. "I, um... Well, I went to see him." Giles' eyes became wide with surprise. "Xander! Do you realize that you could have gotten yourself killed?!" Xander laughed. "No way possible. Spike sent me to talk to him." "Xander!" Cordelia exclaimed. "Don't you think he could have just been using you so that he could get some slurp, slurp, slurp dinner?! Wait a second... He sent you? Are we talking about the same vampire because Spike can't walk and I am pretty damn sure that he doesn't get out much with his wheelchair. I swear, it makes him seem like a poor, needy person you see on the street outside of Neiman Marcus!" Giles, Xander, Willow, and even Oz - who was surprisidly there - rolled their eyes at her. Only she could think about clothes at a time like this. "That's the thing about Spike," Xander answered. "The vamp can walk." "Good Lord," Giles said. "Is this a bad thing?" "Yes, it's a very bad thing! You got rid of one vampire, although I have no idea how, yet now, we have another one on the rampage! He and Drusilla could do much more damage than when it was just Angel! Angel sired those two! He taught them everything they know!" Xander hung his head. "Spike didn't want to get Angel out of the way. He didn't want him to leave town." Willow looked over at him from her seat. What was he saying exactly? "Xander, what are you talking about?" Xander sighed. He had been selfish by telling Angel to leave Sunnydale, but that was fine. He was proud of what he had done. Angel was gone. He would never go near Buffy again. "I'm saying this. Spike just wanted Angel to stay away from Buffy so that he would be there with Drusilla. He claims that she's acting a little more... crazy than usual. He didn't want Angel to leave or anything like that because the Drusilla would probably leave him. I agreed to go talk to Angel and get him away from Buffy. Only I wasn't planning on talking to him about what Spike wanted me to talk to him about." Willow stood out of her chair. "What did you say to Angel?" "I told Angel that he wasn't good for Buffy. I convinced him to pack his bags and leave town, which he has done." Anger rose in Willow. You could mess with her, but you never messed with Buffy and Xander had screwed up Buffy's life just then. "Are you crazy?! Do you know what this is going to do to Buffy when she finds out that you are the reason that the one thing in her life that mattered left her?!" "Down, Bessie," Xander quipped. "Don't you dare make me calm down, Alexander LaVelle Harris! Not only is Buffy going to go into a deep depression and hate you for the rest of her life, we've got a mad Spike on our hands! Do you know what he might do if Dru leaves him?! Angel's gone! A lot of bad, bad things could happen that are worse than when he was here!" "She's right, Xander," Giles agreed. "How could you be so stupid as to do something like that?" "Well, excuse me for caring about my friend!" Xander exclaimed, standing out of his chair. "Yeah, well, maybe you care a little too much!" Willow yelled. Xander sighed. He didn't know whether to yell or to kiss her. What was wrong with him? He wasn't falling in love with his best friend was he? "I'm gonna go before we hurt each other," he said quietly. With that, he walked out of the library. Buffy awoke to the sound of her mother ordering her to get out of the car. She had fallen asleep on the ride to wherever it was that they were at. Darkness surrounded the vehicle outside and Buffy found herself longing for Angel to be beside her. She was so scared. She didn't know where she was and she didn't know what her mother was doing. "Get out now!" Joyce screamed, opening Buffy's door. Buffy sighed and slowly unbuckled her seatbelt. Suddenly, Joyce grabbed her by the arm and roughly pulled her out of the car. "Ow, Mom! You're hurting me!" "This hurts me more than it hurts you, Buffy! Now, come on!" Buffy could do nothing as her mother led her into a building. It looked pretty old. Almost as if no one had lived in it for years, but there were three cars parked outside of it. "Mom, where are we?" "Never mind that. Just shut up and do what I tell you." Buffy hung her head as they walked into the building and sat down in two chairs that were by the entrance. The place looked even older inside than it did outside. The painted walls were chipping, there were leaks in every place on the ceiling, and the tiles of the floor looked like something out of a seventies movie. More than anything, Buffy wanted out of that room. "I'm sorry to have to do this, Honey," Joyce spoke with a sigh. "But there is just no way we can support it." Buffy gazed at her mother in confusion. "Mom, what are you -" But she was interrupted as a voice from in front of her spoke. "Ms. Summers, if you will follow me, we can carry on what you are here for." Buffy looked up at the man in front of her. He looked to be about fifty years old, fat, ugly, he had a beard, and his breath smelt like he had spent too much time in a bar. When his breath touched her nostrils, Buffy thought for sure that she was going to throw up. But then what he said registered in her head. What was she here for? "I - I don't understand. Wha - Why am I here?" The man laughed and turned to Joyce. "You really aren't telling anybody are you?" Joyce ignored him and turned to her daughter. "Honey, there is no way that we can take care of a baby. There isn't. For you to have a child at your age is insane. Angel won't be here for it. He won't even be there for you. The only thing we can do is get rid of it." Buffy began to shake her head as the realization of what her mother was saying dawned on her.This was an abortion clinic. An illegal one, no less! Joyce was making her get rid of her baby! No way in Hell was Buffy about to let that happen! Tears formed in her eyes. "No. No, I won't let you take my baby away from me!" "It's the only way!" Joyce insisted. "No! I can take care of it on my own! I don't need anyone's help!" The man sighed out of frustration and grabbed Buffy by the arm. "C'mon, now, follow me." Buffy slapped him, trying to push him away. "No! Let me go! I'm not going with you!" "Shut up and come on! Your mother is paying me a $1000 dollars to cut that thing out of you!" Upon hearing this, Buffy lost it. She sent a roundhouse kick to him, knocking him down and then she kicked him in the chest, square into the heart. He began coughing as blood escaped his lips. "Oh, my God!" Joyce exclaimed, standing up in her chair. "Buffy, how -" Buffy ran towards the door, wanting to get out of there, but Joyce grabbed her by the arm. "No! You are not leaving! You are staying here until we can take care of this problem!" "You know what?! Why don't I take care of the problem that's in my face?!" Suddenly, Buffy punched her mother in the nose. Joyce fell back, grabbing her face as blood poured down it. She screamed in pain, but Buffy felt no remorse. Nobody tried to take away one of the few things that mattered in her life. Nobody. She didn't care who it was. She would kick their ass until they were dead on the ground. Convinced her mother wasn't going to get up anytime soon, Buffy ran outside. The Factory One Hour Later Angelus entered the building and removed his duster. He had looked everywhere for Buffy. He tried the cemetary, he tried the Bronze, he tried her house, and he even looked in the library through a window to see if she was there. Nothing. He couldn't find her. He was so worried about her. The night before, Joyce had been acting like an insane animal. She was so angry that she could have killed Buffy. Angelus would be damned before he let that happen. Angelus still couldn't believe that Buffy was pregnant. He never thought it would be possible. A vampire is dead. There is no way that it can produce a child. But then it occured to him that he had had his soul on Buffy's birthday. That was a human part of him. Maybe that was what had caused it to happen. When he made love to her, he had a piece of his humanity. Which was why he had to see her. He needed to know what was going on. Was she going to keep the baby? He was fairly certain that she was, but he didn't know if Joyce would let her. However, if Joyce even tried to make her get rid of their baby, Angelus wasn't sure how he was going to react. "Oh, Daddy," a sing - song voice called. "Fuck me," Angelus mumbled with a sigh. He walked into the part of the factory where Drusilla was... and what he saw almost brought tears to his eyes. There was his Buffy. She was tied up and some of Spike's men were hovering around her, touching her in places that were only meant for Angelus. "What's this?" Angelus asked, trying to keep his cool. Drusilla smiled. "A gift. You can kill her now. Remember? Remember what you want to do to her?" Angelus swallowed hard. The only thing he wanted to do to Buffy was kiss her and tell her how much he loved her. The one ting he wanted to do to Drusilla, however, was kill her slowly. "Angel," Buffy whispered, tears rolling down her cheeks. Angelus gazed at her for a few seconds. Her clothes were drenched, he figured from the rainstorm outside. He wasn't wet. He had been going through the sewers to try and find her. She obviously had ran in the pouring rain to find him. Angelus wondered how far away she had been. "Untie her," he ordered. Drusilla stared at him in surprise. "But, Angel -" "Let her go, damn it!" Spike's men immediately did as they were told. As soon as she was untied, Buffy ran to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. Angelus returned the embrace amd kissed the side of her face. "Daddy... you're not going to kill her?" Angelus put on a fake smirk. "Oh, I will. I just wanna have a little fun first." He pulled Buffy with him into his room, locking the door behind him. Buffy stared up at him in confusion. What had he just said? Had he meant it? "Angel?" she asked meekly. He nodded his head to reassure her. "It's me, baby." "Oh, God!" Buffy cried, throwing her arms back around him. The two of them planted kisses along each other's face. "God, Buffy, do you know how dangerous it was for you to come here?" She nodded her head. "I know. I'm sorry. I had to see you." Her tears were growing heavier now and it was making it hard for her to talk straight and for Angelus to understand a word she was saying. "Okay, baby, just calm down, please. Everything's okay. Now, what has happened?" Buffy waited a few seconds so that her tears would subside. Not everything that had happened with her mother had sunk in yet. She was still reeling from the fact that she had almost had an abortion against her will. "My mom... she's lost it. She tried to take it away from me. She tried to take it away from me." Angelus didn't understand what she meant. Her tears were coming back full force. "Okay. Just calm down. What did she try to take away, Buffy?" "The baby," she answered softly. Angelus felt anger rise up in him like he had never known before. Joyce had tried to make her get rid of the child that belonged to him and Buffy. How dare she?! What gave her the right?! "She took me to some place. It was horrible! She was paying some guy $1000 to cut this baby out of me! She said that you wouldn't be there for me and that you woulnd't want this baby." "Buffy, I do want our baby and I am going to be there for you. I don't care what she says. I am not running away from you." Buffy laughed softly. "That's what I thought you'd say." She turned around so that he wouldn't see the tears falling down her face. And that's when she saw his duffel bag. It was packed fully, ready to go. A slight gasp escaped her throat. He was leaving. He was leaving her. He must have decided to go when he found out she was pregnant. Joyce had been right. Angelus caught her gaze and silently cursed himself. She turned back to him with stunned eyes and began shaking her head violently. "No! No! You can't leave me! You can't go!" she screamed as she began pounding on his chest. Angelus caught her hands and whispered into her ear to calm down. "Shh. It's okay. I'm not leaving you. Listen, there's something I have to tell you. I just need you to calm down and relax. Can you do that for me?" Buffy hesitated before finally nodding her head. What in the hell was going on? "I thought about leaving you. I didn't think that I was really Angel -" "You are! You're him! You love me!" "I know, baby. But when I began thinking like that, I didn't. I started packing my bags and I was going to tell you last night. But then you told me you were pregnant. With my child. And I couldn't leave you. I love you so much and when I saw you crying last night, I felt like I wanted to die for even considering the thought of leaving you. I am not going anywhere." Buffy buried her face into his chest and cried out all of her anguish. He kissed the top of her head and ran his hands up and down her arms. It was then he realized how cold she was. "Buffy, you're shaking like a leaf," he said worriedly. "I'm fine," she replied with a sniffle. "No, you're not." Angelus picked her light body up in his arms and carried her to his bed, pushing the duffel bag aside. He lifted her soaking tank top over her head and grabbed one of his shirts, dressing her in it. Then he removed her pants, that were just as soaked as her top. Buffy kept her face buried against his chest as dressed her in warm clothing. "It's okay. I've got you now." He kissed the side of her forehead and she winced in pain. Angelus pulled his face away from hers and saw fear in her eyes. Slowly, he pushed her hair away to reveal a dark blue bruise. He swallowed hard, trying once more not to cry. "Did she do this to you?" Buffy reluctantly nodded her head. Suddenly, an idea sprang forth. It might not have been a good one to most, but to her it was the best plan ever. "Let's runaway." Angelus stared at her in surprise. "What?" "Please, Angel! She - She's going to kill me, if not our baby if I stay here! She was going to make me have an abortion! When I tried to run, she grabbed my arm to try and make me stay! I had to punch her in the nose to get away from her!" "You punched your mother in the nose?" "Yes! Angel, please! I can't stay here and neither can you! Wha - What are we going to do when my friends find out or when Spike and Drusilla realize that I'm having your child?! They'll try and kill me!" "Okay, baby, just calm down," Angelus whispered, sitting beside her on the bed and pulling her to him. She muffled her cries on his shoulder. Angelus was sure that his silk shirt was ruined because of her tears, but he didn't care. All he cared about was being with her. "Please," she pleaded in a small whisper. "It's the only way. It's the only way." Angelus just closed his eyes and pulled her down on the bed with him, the two of them falling asleep in each other's arms. How are we to face this problem? It's not gonna go away Everyone's telling us what to do Instead of us doing it our own way We're gonna make a great big happy family If it's the last thing we do Let's runaway Throw our cares to the wind And begin again Let's run through the rain Forget what everyone says I just wanna be with you - Sunrise The Next Morning Joyce got out of her bed and faced the mirror. Her nose was completely swollen from where Buffy had hit her. How had her baby learned to throw a punch like that? She didn't know. But she did know one thing. She had waited all night for Buffy to come home, but she never did. Finally, at three in the morning, Joyce went to her room to get some sleep. Joyce was still angry at her daughter for having sex with a man that Joyce had no idea she was seeing, but guilt was a big part of her emotions at that moment. She had almost forced her daughter to give up the child she carried. She had almost forced a man to kill her unborn grandchild! How could be so stupid?! Lord knows how the man would have gotten the baby out of Buffy. He might have just used a knife to cut into her and try and find the child. Tears began to burn at Joyce's eyes as she heard screams in her mind. They were sounds that Buffy hadn't made, but would have if she hadn't ran the night before. "Oh, God, I'm so sorry, baby," Joyce whispered to herself, as if Buffy could hear her. Her cries grew more loud and heavier. Finally, she ran out of her room and into Buffy's. She had to be home by now. But she wasn't. At first, Buffy's room seemed normal, but then Joyce took a closer look. Her jewelry was missing. Some make - up from her vanity table was gone. Joyce's eyes grew wide and she rushed to Buffy's closet to find half of the clothes gone. She opened the drawers to find the same thing - half of the clothes were missing. Where was Buffy?! Now, Joyce had another feeling to add to the list - worry. Her daughter had ran out in the pouring rain the night before. Was she dead? Well, she couldn't have been because most of her stuff was missing. Then, Joyce caught sight of the envelope laying on Buffy's bed. She walked over and grabbed it, ripping it open quickly. And when she was done reading it, she collapsed onto the floor in tears. Continue 