Title: Owning my mistakes 5/7
Author: Spikewil
Feedback: spikewil@w...
Pairing: Spike/Gunn
Rating: R
Summary: Spike gets raped, ends up pregnant and needs to trust the father again.
A/N 1: I adopted this plot bunny from Asdomina:
Knock Spike up by somebody who isn't Angel. I know, not really a challenge but there aren't enough out there.Beta'd by: Spiked_by_James, Morrolan17 and Pat. Thanks!
***Angel's office - 11 a.m.***
Buffy stood in the hallway of the Wolfram & Hart building. She arrived with Dawn, Xander and Willow. All four were curious to see Spike. As they waited for Andrew and Giles, Angel watched them from his office.
Spike was peeking through the glass at the small group. He was nervous, his hands stroking his belly as he leaned back against Gunn.
Gunn hugged the nervous vampire from behind as they waited for Angel to invite the group in. They both watched the older vampire walk to the door and open it. "Hello Buffy, Dawn, Xander, Willow, Andrew, Giles. Come on in," Angel greeted, and invited the group inside.
"Spike?" Dawn whispered when she saw the vampire standing in the middle of the room. She slowly made her way towards him when she noticed his extended belly below his and another man's hands.
"Hi, Nibblit," Spike greeted softly.
"Hey Deadboy junior, what's with the beergut belly?" Xander bluntly asked. "Ow!" he complained when Buffy and Dawn elbowed him.
"How are you, Spike?" Buffy asked, curious to know what had happened to him.
Spike looked at Buffy and smiled. Not a smirk, but a real smile that lit up his eyes as he snuggled against Gunn. "I'm doing bloody great, if I say so myself."
Dawn couldn't stop staring at Spike's belly. The blond vampire watched her stepping closer to him. She looked at him, quietly questioning him. Spike took her right hand and placed it on his belly. His child took that moment to show what a good little kicker he or she was.
Dawn gasped when she felt a little kick against her hand. "You're pregnant!" she stated softly.
There were several gasps heard as the young woman said those words. Buffy and Willow both came closer to look at Spike.
Spike suddenly hugged Dawn and sighed happily when she hugged him back. "I missed you," the vampire whispered in Dawn's ear.
"I missed you too," Dawn replied, looking over Spike's shoulder at Gunn.
The hunter stood protectively close to his fiancé, only allowing a few inches between them. When Spike was girl free, he embraced the vampire again and looked at the three women.
"I'm Charles Gunn, Spike's soon-to-be husband," Gunn introduced himself.
"No need to get overprotective, Charles," Spike whispered, knowing Gunn could hear him. He giggled when Gunn tickled him lightly. When the vampire looked up, he was met with strange looks.
"You just giggled," Giles mentioned thoughtfully. He had watched the vampire from a distance and noticed that Spike was looking happier than ever. The ex-watcher felt his lover squeeze his hand and he turned his head to look into Andrew's blue eyes. He blushed brightly when Andrew kissed him deeply in front of the others.
"Wow! Way to go, Andrew!" Spike exclaimed loudly, when he spotted the two men making out. Who knew the watcher could still blush? Then again, nobody would have guessed those two ending up together.
"Spike, how did you come back? Last time I remember, you were buried under the ruins of Sunnydale," Willow questioned sharply, not realizing that her friends were looking at her cautiously in case she lost control again. The witch had never really recovered from the overload of magic required to give every potential slayer strength.
Spike tensed at the question and it was Angel who answered, making sure the witch's attention was focused on him and not on Spike.
"A necklace arrived with the mail on my desk. After I opened it, Spike reappeared as a ghost. Fred was working on a way to turn him corporeal again when he received an unidentified package," Angel answered.
"I opened the package only to be momentarily blinded by a flash of light. Turns out, there was nothing in it," Spike continued, safely nestled in Gunn's arms. His voice sounded softer as he was talking with his face buried in Gunn's chest.
"He walked towards Angel's office, intending on walking through the door as he used to do, but this time he hit the door hard and fell on the floor. Quite funny, really," Gunn softly continued.
"He has been corporeal ever since," Angel ended and leaned against Lorne, trying to steady his nerves by soaking up comfort from his lover's embrace.
Giles knew something was being left out, but he accepted the answer so far. He was shocked to see Angel being embraced by a green demon. He looked at Buffy to see if she had seen it as well. The girl was shocked at the sight of the couple. Even though she was staring wide eyed at them, a look of understanding crossed her face. It was if she realized that she and Angel were meant to be friends and nothing more. Could she bear another disappointment? Giles wondered.
Andrew watched the group's reactions and wasn't surprised to see that Buffy, Dawn and Xander were accepting Angel and Spike's explanations easily while Willow was looking introspective.
Cordelia had seen Willow's look as well. She didn't like the way the girl was looking at the vampires and their lovers.
"As much as I like all of you here, Spike and I have to see our doctor," Gunn announced and guided Spike away from the group.
"Gunn, could Dawn come with us?" Spike asked in a small voice. He wasn't sure if Gunn would allow anyone near him. The human could be as possessive as a vampire sometimes.
Gunn looked at the young woman who had been looking at their retreating backs and nodded. "Come one, Dawn."
Dawn squealed, excited to spend more time with Spike. She quickly walked towards them and the three of them headed towards the doctor's office.
*****
"Why didn't you call us when Spike returned, Angel? We had a right to know," Willow demanded.
"You don't have any rights at all, Willow. None of you do. What gives you the right to know about Spike," Angel growled angry.
"Willow, shut up!" Xander ordered. He was getting sick and tired of the way Willow was behaving. Soon after Spike destroyed the First, she had lost control of her magic again and it took three slayers, including Kennedy to get their 'old' Willow back.
"Angel, could Rupert and I rest somewhere? It's been a long trip from London to L.A. and we're tired," Andrew asked. Even though he truly was very tired and needed a nap, he knew his lover needed to rest before talking to the blond vampire when he returned.
"Yes, of course, blond muffin," Lorne said instead and guided the Sunnydale group to their rooms. He had sensed Willow's hostility towards Spike and made sure Buffy shared a room with the witch. The blond woman would be strong enough to control the witch until back up arrived. Just in case, he placed an alarming spell on the room.
Giles and Andrew followed the green demon and entered their room. Andrew guided Giles to the bed and wasn't surprised when his lover broke down crying.
"I can't tell him, Andrew. He's going to hate me," Giles sobbed.
"You have to tell him, Rupert. He has a right to know and I don't think he will hate you," Andrew argued. "Yes, he will need time to think things over, but I think it will be okay."
"I know. I will tell him, but will you come with me?" Giles whispered as he felt himself being enveloped by Andrew's embrace.
The day before their departure to L.A, Giles had received a file from his father's lawyer. His father's last will and testament stated that every thing he owned now belonged to his only son and heir. But when he read the file, Giles was shocked to realize his father knew of his time traveling and his secret marriage.
"We have to wait until Spike, Gunn and Dawn return from the doctor's," Andrew said. "We can have a nap before we meet them," the young man said before hugging Giles tighter and closing his eyes.
Giles nodded and relaxed enough to fall asleep.
*****
"Lorak, this is Dawn, a good friend of mine," Spike introduced the young woman.
"Hello," Dawn said shyly and shook the outstretched hand.
"Good morning, Dawn," Lorak greeted her and guided them towards his desk. "So, how are you feeling, Spike?"
"I'm doing fine. Only my skin hurts where it's stretching," Spike answered thoughtfully as he stroked the sensitive skin above his navel.
"Let's take a look, shall we?" Lorak instructed as he stood up and walked behind Spike towards the table.
Spike lay down and pulled up his shirt as Gunn stood next to him. Dawn was slowly making her way to the table and stared at Spike's belly.
Spike laughed as he noticed her staring and giggled when he saw her gaping at the screen that popped up as the doctor chanted a spell.
"Is that the baby's heart?" Dawn asked curiously as she watched the screen intensely.
"Yes, it is," Lorak answered the enthusiastic girl. "Spike, the baby is about 19 weeks old. His or her progress is going faster than I thought it would have," he said after examining the screen thoroughly.
"Is that bad?" Dawn asked worried. She had just gotten her best friend back and she was not losing him again.
"No, the baby is healthy and doing very well, as far as I can see on the screen," Lorak answered. He liked the girl; she was interested in Spike's well being. "Instead of 18 days, I think this pregnancy will be at least be 8 days shorter than we initially thought. That means you have to do breathing exercises every day from now on. You might want to go shopping for baby clothes too," Lorak explained.
"I can help!" Dawn exclaimed and looked at Spike with hope in her eyes.
The vampire nodded his head and was glad his Nibblit accepted him completely. His eyes teared up and he hid his face in Gunn's chest.
Gunn had said nothing during the entire examine, but studied Dawn's expression and behavior towards Spike. He was happy his beautiful vampire had this beautiful young woman as a friend.
After leaving the doctor's office, they headed towards their room for some privacy but they walked into Giles and Andrew before they got there.
Spike looked curiously at Giles, who was fidgeting. "Spike, could we talk to you in private?" Andrew asked, when he realized his lover was too scared to ask anything. Who knew the Watcher could be this shy or scared?
"Yeah, sure," Spike answered and guided them outside towards their apartment. This ought to be good. He didn't remember seeing the Watcher squirming like that since he had to thank Spike for saving him from a very poisonous demon.
***Spike and Gunn's apartment - 6 p.m.***
"What do you want to talk about?" Spike asked, when everyone was settled in the living room.
"Giles has something to tell you," Andrew said bluntly.
"Andy, please," Giles begged, not knowing how to start.
"Rupert, just start from the beginning," Andrew said gently, while taking the older man's right hand into his own.
Giles took a deep breath, causing his eyes to tear up again, before starting with his story.
Spike was worried when he saw how terrified Giles was of telling him something. He had never seen the man act this way before.
"At the age of 19, I traveled back in time to the year 1855, to be precise. After three days I realized I couldn't get back. The spell Ethan and I did, didn't work for me to go back," Giles quickly started telling his story, looking at Andrew and his hands.
Spike wasn't sure what to think of this. The watcher had visited his birth year. Somehow he wasn't sure if he wanted to hear the rest of the story.
"I settled down, trying to accustom myself to that time. I found a job and a place to stay. Three weeks later I met Becky, a beautiful woman. We started seeing each other secretly because I didn't meet her father's expectations. Two months later, she was carrying my child. Her father found out and demanded I married her," Giles said softly, remembering his beautiful wife.
"Becky knew the truth about me, she was aware that I might go back to my own time one day. When she was 7 months pregnant, I started to feel dizzy and I vanished in front of her eyes. Her blue eyes and the words that she loved me were the last thing I saw and heard of her," Giles now openly sobbed in Andrew's chest.
"Did you find out what happened to your wife and child?" Spike asked, softly crying. He already knew the Watcher was his relative; he was the spitting image of the man his mother had married. He had often looked at the photograph taken at their wedding. Unfortunately, his father had died before his birth so it couldn't be the Watcher, could it?
"I researched history books and old newspapers for many years. Finally, shortly before the final battle with the First, I managed to loan a genealogy book from the British Library. I discovered that Becky never remarried and raised our son by herself. His name is William Rupert Giles," Giles said after he calmed down enough to answer Spike's question.
"You mean "was", don't you?" Gunn questioned when he heard the present tense being used, startled to hear his lover's full name. No else but him and Angel knew it, the vampire didn't like to be reminded of the past. It must be a coincidence, right?
"No, I meant what I said. My son is still alive. And you're marrying him," Giles answered as he straightened himself.
"I...I need some time to think about this. I...I need..." Spike gasped when the truth hit him harder than he thought it would.
"Rupert and I will go back to our room now. Maybe we could meet you again later," Andrew said and stood, taking Giles with him. The man had regretted not telling Spike the truth before the battle and had sunk into a deep depression after Sunnydale's destruction. Andrew had done his best to comfort him but the older man only revealed the reason of his anguish when they became lovers.
Before leaving, Giles stared at his pregnant son and realized he had a lot to make up for. Maybe he would have a chance now.
When Giles and Andrew were gone, Gunn took his fiancé to their bedroom and undressed the vampire. "Let's take a nap."
*****
"Gunn? I have a father," Spike stated quietly. He hadn't been able to sleep, the story Giles had told them was whirling around his mind. The Watcher had been his enemy, initially, and had slowly become an ally. Not really a friend but he had always admired the old man's tenacity and courage. He had even survived a torture session with Angelus without breaking down. Hey, something they had in common. Maybe there would be more? "Why didn't he tell me sooner?"
"Would you have believed him?" Gunn asked, knowing the vampire had to understand the Watcher's reasons for not telling.
"No, I'd probably have laughed at him," Spike whispered, realizing why Giles never told him the truth.
"Dawn said he was devastated when he heard from Buffy that you had died. He had a break down and that's how Andrew and Giles hooked up," Gunn recalled Dawn's enthusiastic story about the others.
"I want to give him a chance, but I want Angel to know the story as well. Do you think my father would stay here if I asked him?" Spike questioned softly.
"Why don't you ask him tomorrow when you tell Angel and Lorne," Gunn suggested, hugging Spike tighter and laughed when he felt their child kick against his thigh. "Let's get some sleep. I think we both need it. You shouldn't get this much excitement in one day. Too much stress for the baby."
Spike rolled his eyes at another show of excessive protectiveness by his lover. However, he kept quiet and nodded, closing his eyes and letting sleep overcome him as he dreamed about his parents.