DISCLAIMER: Danny, Carly, Miss Berries, and R.J. are mine no one else is
TIMELINE: sometime into the future
SPOILERS: none
SYNOPSIS: it’s Buffy’s and Angel’s son’s first day of school
DISTRIBUTION: please, please take it if you want it (just tell me(
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Angel is human & married to Buffy
FEEDBACK: PLEASE!!! PLEASE!!! :):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):)
RATING: G
DEDICATION: to everyone who has ever given me feedback

“ Danny, wake up. It’s time to get ready for your first day of school,” Buffy tried to coax her five-year old son to wake up. “ Danny, you don’t want to be late for your first day of kindergarten.”

Slowly the little boy opened his chocolate brown eyes. Buffy smiled at the sight and thought about how much Danny looked like his father. That thought always made her happy.

“ Good morning, sleepy head,” Buffy greeted . “ You excited for your first day of school?”

Danny nodded vigorously and reached for his mom. Buffy picked him up and helped him get dressed in his brand new school clothes. Once Danny was all ready, they walked down the stairs, together.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Buffy and Danny arrived in the kitchen to find Angel trying to feed a very uncooperative two-year old Carly. “ Good morning,” Buffy greeted.

She walked over to the table and gave both Angel and Carly a quick kiss , before settling Danny down with his Cheerios. This did not sit well with Danny.

“ Mom, I don’t want this,” Danny complained.

“ I’m sorry honey, but you have to eat something,” Buffy calmly responded.

“ But Mom...”

“ Danny..,” Angel warned. “ Eat what your mother gave you.”

Buffy threw Angel a grateful look.

Danny still pouted, but began to eat his cereal, anyway.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

When everyone was finished with their breakfast, Buffy, Angel, Danny, and Carly piled into the car to take Danny to school. Angel was taking the morning off from his job at the local art gallery so that he could see his son off to his first day of school. Buffy and Angel had been researching elementary schools in Sunnydale ever since Danny was two and a half years old. They had finally found the perfect middle sized private school just a few miles away from their house. Hunington Elementary was just the right size, price, and atmosphere for the Sullivan family.

As they pulled into the parking lot of the school, Buffy began to get a little misty-eyed. Angel noticed Buffy begin to cry and took her hand in his. Buffy was more than a little sad about sending her baby boy off to school where she wouldn’t be able to protect him. Buffy had spent many nights expressing her reluctance to Angel, and he would always listen patiently to her worries and help her to feel more comfortable about the situation.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Buffy stood in front of Danny’s new classroom, holding his hand . Angel stood next to her with Carly in his arms. Miss Berries, Danny’s kindergarten teacher, came out of the classroom and greeted Buffy and Angel and then kneeled in front of Danny.

“ Hi, I’m Miss Berries,” she began. “ What’s your name?”

“ Danny Sullivan,” Danny answered.

“ Well, Danny, I’m glad you’re here today, and we’re gonna have a really fun time together this year. You come on inside when you’re ready. OK?”

Danny nodded. Miss Berries smiled and return inside to the classroom.

Buffy kneeled down in front of Danny, trying not to cry. She fixed his shirt, and he tried to wiggle away.

“ Mom, stop,” he whined.

“ Oh, I’m sorry,” Buffy said trying to suppress her giggle. “ Now, you be good. Listen to the teacher and be nice to the other kids. OK?”

“ OK,” Danny answered.

“ Good,” Buffy replied before giving him a big hug. She stood and took Carly from Angel.

“ Say bye to your brother,” Buffy instructed Carly.

“ Bye bye, Danneeee,” Carly waved enthusiastically.

“ Bye, Carly,” Danny said quietly, a little embarrassed of his little sister.

Angel took Danny’s hand and led him into the classroom. Buffy watched from outside as Danny and Angel gave each other their not so secret handshake. She loved to watch them interact with each other.

Angel returned outside to stand with Buffy. He put his arm around her waist, and they waved to Danny when he turned to wave goodbye to them. Angel held Buffy a little closer when she began to sniffle as she watched Danny begin to play with the other children.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Angel drove Buffy and Carly home before going to work for the rest of t he morning and afternoon. Once at home, Buffy put Carly down for an early nap . Buffy, also, decided to take a nap, but she couldn’t sleep for very long. She was worrying too much about Danny and how he was doing at his very firs t day of school.

Buffy heard Carly crying. She went into her room and found her standing up in her crib with tears running down her face. “ Couldn’t sleep, baby?” Buffy asked.

Carly stopped crying to look at her mother. “ Yeah, me neither, “ Buffy said as she picked Carly up out of her crib and began carrying her down the stairs.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Buffy and Carly had been playing for a couple of hours when the phone rang. “ Hello,” Buffy answered.

“ Hey, baby,” Angel said from the other end.

“ Hey.”

“ I just wanted to call and see how you were doing on your first day without Danny in the house.”

“ Fine,” Buffy responded lamely.

“ Really?” Angel questioned.

“ No...,” Buffy began as she let her emotions flow. “I miss Danny. The house feels empty without him. I’m worried he’s scared and wants to come home, and I’m not there for him.”

“ Buffy,” Angel tried to calm her. “ I’m sure he’s fine. He was excited about starting school and so you don’t have to worry. He’ll be home in a few hours, and then you can love him to death and ask him all about his day .”

“ Are you saying he doesn’t need me.”

“ Of course not. He absolutely needs you, but he’s not a baby anymore.”

“ I know. I just miss him.”

“ I know, baby.”

“ Do you want to talk to Carly?”

“ Sure.”

“ Carly, do you want to talk to your daddy?” Buffy aske d her daughter.

“ Ya!” the two-year old girl answered enthusiastically as she climbed up onto the couch next to her mom.

“ Daddee?” Carly asked.

“ Hey, baby girl,” Angel answered. “ Are you bei ng a good girl for Mommy and keeping her company?”

“ Yeah,” Carly said. “ She miss Dannee. But I here.”

“ I know, honey, and I’ll be home later, too.”

“ When Daddee?”

“ A little while after Danny.”

“ Oh.”

“ Let me talk to Mommy, again, okay?”

“ K,” Carly said as she dropped the phone on the couch, and then she went back to playing with her toys. Buffy picked up the phone.

“ Hey,” Buffy said into it.

“ Hey,” Angel answered. “ I gotta go, but Danny‘ll be home soon and so will I. I love you.”

“ Love you, too,” Buffy said before hanging up the phone and going into the kitchen to make Carly a snack.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** *

Buffy and Carly arrived early to pick up Danny at the end of his first school day. They had been waiting for a while, and Carly was getting a little antsy when Danny came rushing out of his classroom and over to where his mom and sister were waiting. Upon reaching them, he immediately began telling them all about his day.

“ ....and then we went outside for recess and I played on the swings and then...”

“ Hey, slow down there, buddy,” Buffy tried to calm Danny. “ Why don’t we go on home, and you can tell us all about your day on the way.”

“ OK,” Danny agreed.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Buffy heard the doorbell ring and went to answer it with a squirmy spaghetti sauce covered Carly in her arms.

“ Hey,” Angel said from across the threshold after Buffy had opened the door. “ I forgot my keys.”

“ I figured,” Buffy said and leaned in for a kiss.

As Angel returned the kiss, Carly realized her dad was home and reached for him. Angel took her from her mom’s arms while trying not to get spaghetti all over himself.

“ Why are you so messy, baby,” Angel asked Carly.

“ She was helping me make dinner. Weren’t you, baby?” Buffy answered for her.

Carly nodded.

The three of them walked into the kitchen, and as Buffy helped Carly clean up, Danny proceeded to tell his dad all about his first day of school . “ ....and then me and R.J. colored together and he likes trucks just as much as me but he doesn’t have as many trucks as me but that’s ok because he might get some for his birthday and he says I can come over and...”

“ Hold on there,” Angel interrupted. “ Don’t tire yourself out. Now, first of all, who’s R.J.?”

“ He’s my friend at school,” Danny stated simply .

Angel looked over towards Buffy for assistance.

“ R.J. Evans,” Buffy offered. “ He’s in Danny’s class, it was an instant bond.” Buffy said all the while with a big smile.

“ Oh,” Angel said.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

That night, Buffy and Angel lay in bed after putting Danny and Carly to bed. Danny had taken a little longer than usual because he had still been so excited from his first day of school.

Angel rolled to his side and studied Buffy’s face. “ So,” Angel began. “ How did you handle your first day without Danny?”

Buffy turned to look at Angel in his eyes. She sighed and said, “I missed him, but I had Carly to keep me busy. And he had a really good day so that helps, I guess.”

She sighed, again, and Angel pulled her closer to him. He kept his arms around her as he spoke, “ I know it’s hard to be without Danny all day, but he’s growing up and making new friends and that’s good for him.”

“ I know.” Buffy paused. “ And you should see R.J., he’s the cutest little boy...next to Danny, of course,” she said with a smile.

“ Yeah, he is a pretty good looking kid.”

“ He takes after his father.”

Angel smiled at her and gave her a sweet kiss.

The quiet peace that had settled over the room was interrupted when Carly poked her head around the bedroom door.

“ What are you doing up, cupcake?” Angel asked.

Instead of responding, Carly scrambled her way up her parents’ bed and settled herself down in between Buffy and Angel. She looked up at both of them and said, “ I wanna go twoo skool morrow wif Dannee.”

“ Sweetheart, you can’t,” Angel told her. “Wouldn’t you rather stay home with Mommy?”

Carly looked up at Buffy who gave her pouting look. Carly smiled and reached for Buffy, who scooped her up in a big hug.

“ Otay, Daddee,” Carly said. “ I stay wif Mommy.“

“ Okay,” Angel said.

“ Do you want to stay with Mommy and Daddy until you fall asleep ?” Buffy asked Carly.

Carly nodded enthusiastically, and the three of them settled down deep in the covers to go to sleep.

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