Part Two
Buffy had panicked when she woke early in the morning and decided to check on her two sleeping angels and found her daughter missing. She rushed downstairs to find a person sat on the sofa. She moved round to look but she didn’t really need to since she’d know the colour of that hair anywhere. She looked at the two sleeping figures. He opened his eyes.
“Hi, didn’t know you were due home.”
“I’m always due home, it’s just sometime I don’t come when I should.”
“What she’s said?”
“Just told me some stuff. I think we need to talk when they go to school.”
“Yeah well I’ll leave getting ‘em to school up to you since neither will want to go since this is the first day you’re back.”
“Well it’s the weekend tomorrow so they got 2 full days with me. But I will not leave this house unless you want me dead.” Buffy smiled.
“Been doing that a lot lately?” the smile stopped and she looked at him. “Later.” She nodded and went to the kitchen to make some breakfast.
After a huge fight to get Will and Emily to school and a thousand promises to what they could do they finally left. Spike went to find Buffy and was about to start the inevitable conversation when the phone rang and doorbell went at the same time. Since the sun was high Buffy went to the door while Spike got the phone.
“Hello…hey, trouble? Right…when…well I’ll try and sort it…yeah see ya.” Spike went into the main room to find the Slayer talking to Riley. The look on his face when he saw Spike was priceless.
“Spike you’re back.”
“No I’m not back. I’m home.”
“Long time thought you’d forgotten them. Wouldn’t have surprised me you being a vampire and all.”
“Spike is my family Riley. He was always gonna be coming home, where he
belongs. It doesn’t matter that he was away longer than usual, he’s home now.”
“That little talk, I’m not staying long but I’ll be back sooner and I’m not
going as far. But my lead it worked it. That’s why I was away so long. You have
to earn information there. It took me 2 months to get there and another month
to find him. 5 months work and one week information telling and another 2
months return. I know it’s nearly a year I’ve been away but this time I doubt
it will even be 2 months.”
“Spike, I stopped listening at another lead. We’re really gonna find him now. They all said I should stop hoping but I wouldn’t not since the dreams started. He was always telling me not to give up and it’s working.”
“Buffy we’re a long way away from finding him. Besides they could move him.” Buffy’s happiness deflated.
“But one day we will.” The vague promise made to cheer her up worked only a fraction of what his first words did. But then maybe Spike didn’t want to talk in front of Riley. He didn’t like him and didn’t trust him.
“Riley can you please leave.” Riley looked as though he wouldn’t but turned and went. Spike sat and Buffy perched on the end of the sofa. Although Spike was her best friend and could read her in a way that no other friend could she still found it harder to talk to him than Angel and so the small piece of hope he dangled in front of her and took away made her hurt.
“Buffy do you want him back?”
“What? Spike how can you, my best friend, ask me that?”
“Emily, last night she cried because you were moving on. You let Riley in and spoke civilly to him. I know that probably sounds like nothing but not to her. She also said that for about 3 months you’ve either fallen asleep down here his picture with you or up there his picture with you, but last night it was neither and she thinks that’s because you’ve found someone else.”
“Riley! You think I’m with Riley. How could I be with him when I love Angel? The only reason I did that last night was to tell him to just give up. They don’t know but I heard them yesterday morning that’s why I slept without his picture. It killed me but I did it for them. She said ‘I need the love and warmth of a father and I don’t have it and day by day I’m losing my mother too’. Spike that broke my heart. She was crying so much. I have to be strong and I have to survive and I have to be their mom but I will never stop loving Angel and wanting him with me.” Spike wrapped his arms round his best friend as she cried.
“We’re on the move. Get up.” The man kicked him. Angel had lost track of time. He knew that he’d been moved around a lot and it had been a long time. But every night they were together again in their dreams. He always knew that she had the same dream as him since they had before. And every night she saved the last dance for him. And every night he told her not to give up and she swore she wouldn’t. He loved her so much and could only hope one day he would escape his prison and return to her. He remembered that day so clearly. He’d woke knowing he had to leave for work, although he wanted to say goodbye he couldn’t wake her. She looked so beautiful and peaceful. He’d left the house and drove but he got a flat. He pulled over and got out. He was hit over the head. He knew the voice that always spoke to him but couldn’t place it in his mind. All he knew was that in the early days of being here that man had come and told him that his Buffy was pregnant. Later obviously about 8 months later he was told they were all okay. Angel knew there had been twins, a boy and girl. He wasn’t told their names. He had no idea how old they were. Didn’t even know what date their birthday was. He knew he had to get home to them, to Buffy. When he’d finally got what he wanted, his love he had thought his life was perfect. If only he still had his strength then he could fight these people who held him here and performed tests on him. But he didn’t and unless someone found him he feared he would be stuck here forever and even through dreams he feared that he couldn’t reach her.
