Rating: PG-13
Distribution: whoever wants it.
Pairings: An/Ph, Con/Pan, G/Pai, Ar/Cor, L/W, J/S, I/F
Spoilers: Last Season Angel, before Fellowship of the Ring, and not sure where in Charmed, current season of Witchblade
Feedback: Please. This is my first FanFic. Not to mention, my first cross over. Please read and review. PLEASE!!
Summary: No Fred, Connor is back from his time with Holtz. Connor is Connor again and he and Angel are really starting to be a father and son. Willow is still using magic. Pandora is the sixteen or seventeen year old daughter of Leo and Pyper, who grew up in about two months (like Connor) because she was raised with the Elders in `heaven'. Wesley is still no longer part of AI, and Lorne is a friend but doesn't live at the hotel. Takes place after the Hobbit, but before Lord of the Rings. So, there is no hurry for them to get back to save Middle-Earth. Aragorn is friends with Arwen, but they are not in love.
Notes: ` ' is thoughts, and ^ ^ is Elvish.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
~Part: 1~
"Cordelia!"
"Willow! What are you doing here?" Cordy asked as she came from behind the counter to give her friend a welcoming hug.
"Well," answered Willow, "there's two things really. Where's Angel? I have news for him."
"He, Conner, and Gunn are out fighting a big nasty. It is 10 o'clock at night, ya' know."
"I guess it is, I haven't even checked my watch since I left Sunnydale. Do you know when they're supposed to be back?"
"Any time. Oh, no."
"What?!" Willow was in panic mode at the tone of voice that Cordelia was using, also at the strange look on her face. "Are you okay? What's wrong?"
"What? Oh, sorry. I was just having a vision."
"Really?" Asked Willow, sounding a little too excited considering that Cordelia having a vision usually meant that someone was in trouble. "What was it about?"
"That's a good question."
Startled, both girls turned to the sound of the voice as the three handsome warriors stalked into the lobby. "Willow! What brings you here?" Angel continued as he closed the distance between them to embrace her in a huge bear hug.
"Two things actually. But first, why don't you introduce me."
"Oh, sorry. I forgot that you didn't know everyone. Willow, this is Charles Gunn, and my son Connor. Guys, this is Willow Rosenburg."
Having that out of the way Angel continued,"Not that I'm not excited to see you, but what brings you all the way to L.A.?"
"Well, two things, like I said. First, the bad news - Giles found a nasty sounding prophecy that included what I assume to be all of us in this room, plus a few others. So he thought that I might as well bring it to you, since I needed to be here anyway. But, before you ask me about it, I REALLY want to tell Angel the good news that I found out on my way here."
Everyone was silent, staring at Willow expectantly. She took their silence as her cue to continue. "Angel, your soul is permanent. No clauses."
Everyone was stunned, to say the least. Then everyone started asking Willow questions all at once about Angel's soul. Everyone except Angel. He continued to stand there, frozen in his own thoughts. `Permanent? As is permanent? Could it really be possible?'
They were all shaken out of the moment by a brilliant flash of light, out of which stepped two well armed men, dressed as if they had stepped from the pages of a Robin Hood story book. Swords, bow and arrow, and the like. Angel, Connor and Gunn quickly stepped in front of Willow and Cordelia, raising the weapons that they still had in their hand from returning.
Cordelia recognized the two strangers from her vision that she hadn't had time to tell anyone about. "Stop. Good guys." Was all that she could get out, before all eyes turned to her severely confused.
"Huh?" Gunn was the first to recover from her out burst.
"My vision. The one I had right before you guys got back. They were in it. Along with one more guy and four more women. Don't ask me who, I don't know. But I do know that these two guys are on our side, so I suggest you put your weapons down before you freak them out." Her last sentence was more of a command than a suggestion. Angel, Gunn, and Connor knew Cordy, and her visions, well enough to know that she was right. So the three of them placed their assorted weapons on the foyer floor.
Walking around her friends, Cordelia approached the two strangers. "You two can put your weapons down too. They won't hurt you. I promise." She said trying to put them at ease.
^Should we trust her? Where are we? What should we do?^
The blonde spoke to the dark haired man in the most amazing, and beautiful, melodic voice any one in that room had heard. The AI group all looked around at each other frozen in awe.
^It looks like we have no choice. Not if we want answers. Besides, how violent can they be, they were willing to lay down their weapons. Let us do as they ask.^ The dark haired man answered his blond companion in the same language, though his voice was not as smooth as the first.
The two strangers also placed their weapons on the foyer floor.
"We have done as you asked. Now we pray, please tell us what place this is." The darker of the two asked, clearly the stronger and leader of the two.
Cordelia was rooted where she stood. She had never seen such strength and beauty from a man. He was magnificent. `I wonder if he's a good kisser? Bad Cordy! No such thoughts. Focus.' "You are in Los Angeles, California, USA. Where are you from?"
"We are from Middle-Earth. This is Legolas Greenleaf and I am Aragorn, Son of Arathorn. Why have you brought us here?" Answered the raven haired man, talking now to Cordelia. `She is beautiful. I could like it here. Where ever here is.'
"Aragorn, Legolas. I'm Angel" Startling all out of their silent appraisal of the other. "The brunette in front of you is Cordelia, this is Gunn, the red-head behind me is Willow, and this is my son Connor." Angel finished the introductions, with the two women's eyes completely entranced, each by one of the new arrivals - Cordy's eyes were locked with Aragorn's, and Willow could not tear her eyes away from Legolas' steel-grey eyes. Oblivious to all the reactions, Angel continued, "We didn't bring you here, although it seems that the Powers That Be needed you here to help us."
"Help you? How? Why? With what?" Aragorn questioned.
"That's what we'd like to know." The group had been so immersed in Aragorn and Legolas, and they in their new found predicament, that no one noticed that five more people had joined them in the lobby - four women and one guy.
"Who are you?" Gunn asked skeptically.
"We are the Halliwells. I'm Pyper, these are my sisters Phoebe and Paige, my daughter Pandora, and my husband Leo. Believe it or not, we're here to help too - I think. We're just not sure why or how. We were hoping that you'd know."
Cordelia was the first to speak, "The five of you were in my vision too." Turning to Angel she continued, "It's okay, they're on our side too. Well, it looks like everyone from my vision is here. I guess we ought to get started on figuring our why we're all here. Oh goody, more research."
"Wait!" Willow's outburst caused everyone to jump, only because she had been silent up to this point.
"Willow, what is it?" Angel questioned the red head.
"The Prophecy that Giles found. The main reason that he sent me here in the first place. It's the reason that all of us are here right now."
"Willow," Angel looked at here cautiously, "what's the prophecy?" Not sure if he really wanted to find out.
"Wait, let me find the book." Digging into her bag that was still on the floor, she pulled out a very old, very worn, leather encased book. "Here it is. It says:
"When the year is mirrored
within itself
The elect will join
in order to help.
The ensouled demon
and his son,
with his seer,
and magick of the Chosen One.
Add to that
a noble fighter,
the Charmed Ones,
and a daughter,
the one of White
that fathered the child
along with two unknowns
from beyond the wild -
The prince of the wood
and the uncrowned king
These twelve will come
the only hope to bring
an end to the evil
that comes from its source
These twelve shall unite
to plot the world course."
Everyone stood motionless, not sure what to think. Willow was the first to break the eerie silence that filled the foyer. "Okay, I got the first part, the ensouled demon is Angel; his son, Connor; the seer, that's Cordelia; the magick of the Chosen one, that would be me; and I would venture to guess that the fighter is Gunn. But the rest, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that it just described the rest of you?" Willow asked the room in general. Pyper answered, "Well, me and my two sisters are the Charmed Ones, along with my daughter, and Leo here is her father, along with being a White Lighter. So that covers that part. I would say that the two from beyond the wild are the only two not from this dimension. Guys?"
This time it was Legolas that spoke - directly to Willow, "I am the Prince of Mirkwood, and Aragorn is heir to the throne of Gondor, but has yet to claim it. As it stands, that sounds like what you just read. I suppose that means that we are in the correct place. But what is this new evil that we are to end? I do not understand?"
With her eyes locked with his, Willow barely heard the question. But Pyper was ready for the question, "The evil is the Source."
"The Source? What's the Source?" Asked Angel.
Phoebe placed her hand on Pyper's arm, and answered Angel's question, "The Source is the source of all evil - formerly the demon Balthazar, and my now ex-husband Cole."
"Balthazar? Balthazar was your husband? And now he's the Source of all evil? Great." Angel was shocked, if a vampire can be shocked. He wasn't sure if he was more surprised at the fact that Balthazar is now the Source, or if Phoebe had been married to the former demon, or the fact that Phoebe had been married, or just the fact that Phoebe was open minded enough to marry a demon in the first place `I might still have a shot, especially with the news that Willow brought about my soul. Where did that come from?'
"Yup. That about sums it up. Okay, now it's my turn to ask the questions. What kind of demon has a soul?"
"A vampire." Seeing the disbelieving looks he was receiving from the Halliwell clan he continued. "About a hundred years ago, I was cursed by the gypsies with a soul, because I killed one of the most beloved daughters of their tribe. But there was a little clause in there that no one told me about. It was that if I were to achieve true happiness, even for a second, my soul would be taken from me. Well, a few years ago I fell in love with the Slayer, and there went my soul. I reverted to the evil monster I was before the gypsies. But Willow here restored my soul, with no clause this time. It's permanent. So, no more Angelus."
"Wow. I'd say that you almost got that all out in one breath, but I forgot, you don't breathe." Phoebe smiled at that.
Angel decided that he really liked that smile and would do everything he could to see it as often as possible.
"You're Angelus?" Leo looked nearly freaked.
"Unfortunately." Angel looked down ashamed.
"I thought vampires couldn't have children, in the literal sense anyway." Paige questioned curiously.
"As far as me having a son, Connor was fulfilling another prophecy. Both of his parents are vampires, but somehow he's human. Mostly. He has my speed, strength and heightened senses, but other than that, he completely human. Heartbeat and all."
"What's a vampire?" Aragorn spoke reminding all, except Cordelia, that he was there (Cordy hadn't taken her eyes off of him).
Connor quickly came to his father's defense. "A vampire is a member of the undead. They eat blood, they cannot be in the sun or they will burn to death, and they can only other ways they die is if they literally lose their head, or have a wooden stake put through their heart. They are usually evil, with a few exceptions. My father being the only vampire, that we know of, with a soul. Our job around here is to help people, so don't worry about him going all evil. He's one of the good guys. And now that his soul is permanent, he'll always be one of the good guys. Does that answer your question?"
"Close enough" replied Aragorn, still not fully understanding any of it.
"I'll explain it all to you later" Offered Cordelia with a shy smile.
"I would appreciate that. Thank you." Replied Aragorn.
~Part: 2~
After having made all of the introductions, and the personal resumes having been issued, Angel invited everyone to stay at the Hyperion, at least for the night. Each member of the AI team (including Willow) led one of the newest member of their "new team" to a room on the second floor.
Angel showed Pyper and Leo to a larger room with two beds, so that Pandora could stay with them. A fact that neither Connor nor Pandora liked too much, but it put Angel immediately in Pyper and Leo's good graces. After dealing with two none-too-pleased teenagers, Angel then escorted Phoebe to her room. It just so happened to be right across the hall from Angel's. Phoebe looked quite pleased with that little fact.
Gunn led Paige to her room to drop off her bags, and then the two of them took off to Gunn's to pick up some clothes for him, and some that Legolas could borrow; then he was to swing by Cordy's to pick up the bag that Phantom Dennis would have ready.
Willow guided Legolas to a room not too far from everyone else, but far enough away to grant him some space from all of the other. All of the others except her, that is. She took the room directly across from him. He seemed pleased, and she just blushed.
Cordelia couldn't help but giggle at her friend's shyness around the beautiful stranger. `Oh, who am I kidding? I'm just as nervous around Aragorn as Willow was with Legolas.' Cordelia directed Aragorn to a room two doors down from his traveling companion and she, like the rest, claimed the room across from his as her own. Much to the satisfaction of the dark would-be king. After a quick run down of how everything in the rooms worked, and a request that the two men (well, one Man and one Elf) take a shower to clean up a bit, Willow and Cordelia went to find Angel. To neither one's surprise, they found him in Phoebe's room.
*Knock! Knock!*
Phoebe answered the door wear a "cat-that-ate-the-canary" grin. Will and Cordy did their best to suppress their grins.
Cordelia was the first to regain control of her laughter to speak, "Angel wouldn't happen to be in here, would he?"
"As a matter of fact, he is. Come on in." Phoebe stepped back to let the two younger women in.
"Angel," Cordy remembering the reason that they had sought out the vampire, "we need your credit card so that we can go buy groceries, and we need you to go check on Legolas and Aragorn for us."
Reaching for his wallet Angel responded, "Okay, here's the card. And why?"
"Because the only food around here is liquid, silly" Cordelia retorted.
"Not that why, the other why. Why do I need to go check on the other two? Isn't that *your* jobs?" Barely able to stifle his own grin at that.
Willow actually blurted out the answer before she had a chance to think about what she was really saying, "We could, and we'd really enjoy it, but it might damage their already faulty egos if they have to get help from women that they just met to do or understand what they need to do to function normally here. It might be a easier coming from one warrior to another."
"I think she might be right" Phoebe chimed in. Willow blushed forgetting the brunette was in the room. "So, here's what I suggest. Angel, you go help the guys, and I'll go shopping with Willow and Cordelia. Sound like a plan? Good, let's go." Not letting anyone answer or object, Phoebe pulled the two women out of her room, leaving a dumb-founded Angel sitting on the edge of her bed.
"Wow." Cordelia was impressed with the older witch, "I don't think I've ever seen Angel that flabbergasted before. He was speechless. Oh, I wish I would've had a camera. Not that it would've done much good, seeing as he wouldn't show up on film, but I think you get my point." Cordy was practically rolling on the ground as the three women let the hotel (fully armed) to go to the grocery store.
Angel heard the girls leave laughing together. `It's a good thing my soul is permanent now, because that's one of the most wonderful sounds I've ever heard - my two best friends and the new hopefully romantic interest all at ease with each other. This is going to be my favorite prophecy yet, since it brought Phoebe here.' Pushing those thoughts from his head, Angel wandered down the hall in search of the two new males that had attracted the attention of the two aforementioned best friends.
~Part: 3~
About an hour later, Gunn and Paige had returned, and had gone their separate ways for bed, Angel and Gunn had helped Aragorn and Legolas get cleaned up and leant them some clothes to wear the next day, and the three women returned from shopping. They were downstairs in the kitchen putting the groceries away when Angel sauntered in asking if they needed help.
"Sure thing Angel," Cordelia chirped, "You can stay and help, and Willow and I will go upstairs and deliver toiletries to all the rooms. Night Phebs. Thanks for your help. Night Angel." And with that the two younger girls left Angel and Phoebe alone in the kitchen.
"So, did you have fun with Wills and Cordy?" Angel asked suddenly feeling very awkward.
"Actually, yeah, I did. They're a blast. And full of fun stories about high school, growing up on the Hellmouth, and a certain vampire that showed up on their lives their sophomore year. Not to mention all of the adventures you all have had up `till now. What about you? Did you have fun helping the two guys, Deadboy?" Phoebe smirked as she mentioned the nickname that the girls had said would really get to him. She waited for his reaction.
"Oh yeah," Angel quipped sarcastically, "it was a blast showing two grown men how to work a shower and a toilet. Wait a minute. Did you just call me Deadboy?" Angel was suddenly very suspicious.
"Yup. You got a problem with that?" Phoebe was all but rolling on the ground watching Angel try to figure her out. "Okay, okay. Willow and Cordelia told me about a friend of theirs back home that always called you that, mostly because it got under your skin. I wanted to see for myself. Please forgive me." Phoebe had been walking towards Angel, and softly placed her hand on his arms that he had folded sternly across his broad chest. Neither was expecting the surge of electricity that shot through both of them. Chestnut eyes met chocolate. Everything around them ceased to exist. With her other hand, Phoebe gently cupped Angel's face.
"I see so much pain and regret when I look in to your eyes." Phoebe said softly. "But right now, I see fear. Why? Is it the prophecy, or me?"
"A little of both." Was all the Angel could manage to get out. He placed his large hand atop Phoebe's delicate one on the side of his face. He turned his face into her hand, and placed a tender kiss on the palm of her hand. The touch of his lips on her skin made Phoebe shudder.
"Why? How?"
"I'm afraid that somewhere in the middle of the sure-to-ensue fight, that you'll get hurt or I'll lose you. And I don't want to lose you, hell, I just found you. I . . " He was silenced with a kiss. A sweet but ever deepening kiss.
Angel soon found his arms wrapped around the tiny waist of Phoebe, while her arms were draped around his neck, with her hands running through his hair. Reluctantly, Angel pulled away from the kiss; Phoebe was panting in need of oxygen.
"What's wrong Angel?"
"The fact that I want nothing more than to throw you up on that table and take my newly permanent soul for a test drive."
"And that would be a bad thing why?"
"Because, it's too soon. We just met, but already, I respect you too much to have this be a purely physical thing. Am I making any sense?" If vampires could blush, Angel was sure that he would be the color of Willow's hair right now.
"Oh, Angel. That is the nicest thing any guy has ever said or done for me. Usually, it's how soon can we go to bed? So, if you can wait, so can I. I'm not saying it's going to be easy, staying across the hall from you and all, but I think that it will be well worth the wait." Phoebe answered with a small, but seductive smile on her lips.
"Well, in that case, how about if I finish putting the groceries away and you go on up to bed."
"Sounds like a plan. Goodnight Angel." Phoebe leaned up and gave Angel a relatively quick goodnight kiss, and then headed upstairs, leaving Angel in the kitchen all alone.
~Part: 4~
Somewhere around 8:30 the next morning, it was like there was some unknown alarm clock that had gone off, and all of the men came out of their rooms, dressed and ready to face the day, at the same time. Angel and Leo couldn't help but chuckle at the fact that they all emerged at the same time. The men wandered down the stairs, the smell of food cooking wafting through the air. The closer they got to the kitchen, they realized that all of the women were awake and in the kitchen. Angel couldn't help but smile at the thought of Cordelia in a kitchen. He'd eaten her cooking, and it wasn't pretty.
As the men entered the kitchen, the women stopped to admire and say good morning to the freshly showered and dressed men. Cordelia and Willow about fainted at the sight of Aragorn and Legolas. Aragorn was wearing a pair of Angel's black leather pants, a black dress shirt, and black boots. Sometime since Cordelia had last seen him, Aragorn shaved off his beard, so that all that was left was a goatee. Legolas was in a pair of Gunn's jeans, a tight navy blue flannel shirt, and tan boots. The sides of his hair was pulled back out off of his face, but most of it was left down, with the dark blue of his shirt accentuating the blonde, not to mention bringing out the blue in his eyes. `Wow!' Both girls though at the same time.
Gunn and Angel couldn't help but notice the looks of awe on their two female friends' faces, and smile in accomplishment. Helping the other dimensioners was not an easy task. But eventually, Legolas and Aragorn agreed to let Gunn and Angel assist them. And seeing the looks on Willow's and Cordelia's faces, Legolas and Aragorn knew that it had been worth it, and couldn't suppress the smiles that came from the thought that the two new women in their lives appreciated the efforts they had gone too to fit in on their world.
"Well, good morning gentlemen. You're just in time to eat. Have a seat." Pyper cheerfully greeted the men as they wandered farther into the kitchen. The men happily obliged, and sat at the large table. Angel didn't remember the table being there before, but thought better of asking, because he wasn't sure he wanted to know. Gunn and Conner looked at each other, thinking the same thing, but also sat down without saying a word.
~~45 minutes later~~
"Okay, I am so full, I can hardly move. That was the best breakfast, not to mention the biggest, that I think I've ever had. Thanks ladies." Gunn sighed with contentment.
"Me too."
"I agree."
"Yes, thank you."
"For solid food, I have to agree." Everyone at the table turned to stare at Angel. "What? I'm used to my food being liquid. I don't normally have to chew my food. Give me a break. I said that breakfast was wonderful. Sheesh." Seeing the look of embarrassment on Angel's face, everyone at the table burst out laughing at the ensouled vampire. Phoebe placed a reassuring had on Angel's knee which helped him relax and notice the hilarity of the situation and soon he too was laughing. It was good to hear everyone laughing with each other. They all needed to feel comfortable with each other, and who knew when they'd have the chance to sit and laugh like this again. Soon, they all hoped.
Fighting hard to breath Pyper was finally able to speak first. "Well guys. I'm glad you liked it, because you're cleaning up."
The men looked at her for a minute before deciding that there was no use arguing, and got up from the table, taking all the empty plates with them.
"That was the right answer. Thanks guys. We girls are going out to the lobby to get to know each other and learn about the others' powers. Come join us when you're done." With Pyper's dismissal, the women left the six men standing in the kitchen wondering how they ever got roped into doing dishes.
"Get used to it guys. Trust me, I know from experience. The Halliwells are very stubborn and independent women and more often than not, what they say goes. Get used to not having a say. And I hate to point out the obvious, but I think that Cordelia and Willow aren't much different. So, this could be a very interesting mission." Leo couldn't help but chuckle at the slightly worried, slightly interested looks on the faces of the other five men in the room. "I will say, however, that I'm glad to finally have enough men around to even out the number of women. You have no idea what it's like living in that house. There's way too much estrogen, and not nearly enough testosterone. I'm glad that it's finally even. Maybe it will have a calming effect on the women."
"Why don't I believe that?" At Legolas' unexpected humor, all the men burst out laughing. Yup, it's going to be an interesting mission.
~~30 minutes later~~
"Okay, we're done." Announced Leo as the men walked triumphantly out of the kitchen.
"It's about time."
"Cordy, put a sock in it." Angel retorted sarcastically. Cordelia's response - she stuck her tongue out at him, then all but Legolas and Aragorn laughed.
"Okay, here's the plan." Interrupted Paige, "now that we've got an idea of where we stand with the magick, let's see where we stand with the fighting. Angel, is there a place where we can all fight and/or train?"
"Yeah, there's some mats downstairs that we can bring up. There's more room up here. Aragorn and Legolas, why don't you two come with me, and the rest of you can move the furniture out of the way."
~~after the mats are set up~~
"Okay, where do we start? Or should I say how?" Gunn was a little apprehensive about sparring with relative strangers.
"Okay, Gunn" offered Angel, "why don't you and I start at each other and one by one, the rest can join in, and we'll see who's left standing. Yes? No?"
"Sounds like as good a plan as any. Are we supposed to hold back so that no one gets hurt?" Gunn asked worried that he might have to hurt Paige.
"I say all out" blurted Willow. "What? Are you afraid that the poor little defenseless women are going to get hurt?"
The guys slowly nodded, except Leo, he was trying not to laugh at the stupidity of the rest of the men.
"I suggest you think again." Willow stated, then walked up to Angel and hit him squarely in the jaw causing him to stumble backwards. "Any questions boys?" Stunned, they all shook their heads. "Good. Let the games begin."
At her "signal" Angel and Gunn charged at each other. After about a half a minute, Gunn stopped and looked at Cordy.
"Delia, couldn't the Powers just send you a vision so that we go out and practice in a little more realistic atmosphere?"
"Yeah, Gunn. Like the Powers are going to send me a vision just because you asked for one. Okay, so maybe I spoke too soon. There's two girls in a parking garage, being attacked by a bunch of really ugly demons. The parking garage is at 421 State Street. Angel, if you leave now, you can meet us there. Take your sword, and we'll meet you there."
Angel dashed to the weapons cabinet, grabbed his favorite sword, and took off to the basement entrance to the sewers. The non- AI group was standing motionless until Cordelia broke the confused silence. "It's still daylight, and Angel can't be in the sun without going up in flames. He'll meet us there. As for the rest of us, from what I could tell, it's pretty cut and dry as far as how they die; break their neck, cut off their head, pierce them through the heart - the usual. They have huge big claws and very sharp teeth. They have tails that are all spikey, like a mace, and they spit some sort of acidy-goo. Well, that's about it. Let's go."
"Okay" Managed Pyper, "since this is our first fight as a new team, let's try to use as little magic as possible so that we can see where we stand with our physical fighting capabilities. What do ya' say?"
Every agreed, on the condition that Pyper would blow up the creatures if it got to that point. Everyone grabbed a weapon or two from the cabinet and piled in to the cars, to meet up with Angel.
~Part: 5~
~~Two hours later~~
"Good grief, that was hard." Connor mumbled as the team stumbled back in to the lobby. Everyone nodded in agreement.
"But," Pandora added, "we vanquished them without using any magick. So, that's a plus, right?"
"Most definitely." Connor reassured her, as he tucked one of her stray goo-covered hairs behind her ear. He then held her hand somewhat protectively. Pyper and Leo both raised an eyebrow at the scene unfolding before them. But before they could mention anything about it, in came Angel from the basement.
"Well, that was fun." He stated facetiously as he crossed the foyer to join the rest of the group, coming to stand behind Phoebe. She reached a hand back slightly, and Angel willing took it, taking a step closer to her so that his chest was pressed up against her back. Looking around the room, he quickly noticed that everyone was either holding hands with someone or leaning up against them. The sight made Angel smile, and he placed a quick kiss on the top of Phoebe's slime-covered head.
Gunn finally broke the reflective silence, "I gotta admit, you ladies rocked back there. I didn't think you had it in you. No offense, but I just figured you guys were all about using magic to fight."
"Well," Paige leaned back to look up at Gunn, "We've lost our powers more than once and have had to rely on good ole' hand to hand combat to win. Which as you can tell, we always did. Ya' know, based on the fact that we're still alive." That got a smile from all present.
"I don't know about you," Cordelia announced, "but I need a shower. How's about well all go up stairs and clean up, and then we can come down and work on dinner and strategy?"
Everyone agreed and the crew straggled upstairs to freshen up. Of course, Pyper thought that she would have her man help her clean off while she was in the shower, but she wasn't the only one who was thinking along the very same lines. Paige invited Gunn to join her, Phoebe asked Angel to join her, Pandora asked Conner, but both teenagers' parents but a huge no-go on that idea, and Phoebe offered her shower to Pandora seeing as she would be using Angel's. Willow and Cordy both wanted their respective male counterpart to join them, but they weren't sure how the guys would react, not being from this world and all.
Finally, Cordelia got up the guts first. "So, um Aragorn."
"Yes, Cordelia."
"I . . . uh . . . well, what I mean is . . . um. . ."
"Just say what is on your mind. Please know that you can tell me anything."
"Uh, okay. Wanna join me for a shower?" Cordelia was blushing the shade of Willow's hair.
"I thought you'd never ask." Was all that he said, and then took Cordy's hand and led her into her room and closed and locked the door.
`Wow, that looks easy enough' Willow thought, `even I could do that. Okay here goes. I mean he is standing out here in the hall with me, dripping with slime. He keeps looking at me expectantly. Oh no, what if he says no. I'll bo so embarrassed. Oh no, what if he says yes. He's not a human. What if things are different for his people. I wouldn't know what to do.'
"Willow!" Legolas practically had to yell to get her out of her own thoughts. Willow looked up his big green eyes and found herself wanting to get lost in them forever. "Willow, I was wondering if you wanted to join me? Seeing as everyone is showering together." `^Seeing as everyone else is showering together? Now she's going to think that's the only reason I asked her. It's not. I want to be with her. Oh no, what if she says yes? She's not an Elf, what if we can't do anything, seeing as we're not the same. Oh no, what if . . .^'
"I'd love to. I was going to ask you, but I was scared that you'd say no. But then I got nervous that you'd say yes. I mean, since you're and elf and I'm human, and . . ."
Willow was suddenly silenced with a kiss. A gentle kiss at first, but it began to deepen. Deftly, Legolas swept Willow up into his arms, his mouth never leaving hers, and carried her into her room. He broke off the kiss long enough to let Willow stand on her own again and for both of them to take a much needed breath.
"Willow, I had the same concerns, but for now, the only thing I can think of, is we'll make it up as we go. Now stop thinking and worrying so much, and let's get in to the shower. Okay." Legolas placed a gentle, but passionate kiss on Willow's already swelling lips.
"Okay, you win. No more thinking."
~Part: 6~
Conner and Pandora wandered downstairs to meet everyone for dinner, but no one else showed up. So after eating, they headed back upstairs to Connor's room. They had a feeling that no one would notice that she didn't sleep in Phoebe's room. They were right - until the next morning.
The team was milling around the hallway, going back and forth between rooms to get ready. On his way to the stairs Connor walked past his father's room as his father was walking out.
"Morning Dad."
"Morning Connor. . . Hold it!" Angel stalked up behind Connor, took a deep breath in, then smack his son up side the back of his head. "What were you thinking? Have you lost your mind?!" The more Angel thought about it, the angrier he got. He could actually feel Angelus trying to come out.
"Dad, it's not what you think" Connor said in his defense. "Nothing happened."
All Connor knew was that his father was growling at him. He didn't even notice the audience that had formed around them. Cordelia stepped in between the father and son, breaking the eye contact that Angel had made with Connor, forcing Angel to look at her and not his son.
"Connor, go downstairs." Ordered Cordelia, never breaking the eye contact that she now had with Angel.
"But Cordy . . ." Whined Connor.
"NOW!" Cordelia cut him off.
Defeated, Connor turned and stomped down the stairs. Once Connor was safely downstairs, Cordelia set to work calming Angel down. "Angel? Can you hear me?" Cordelia asked soothingly. Her only response was a deep growl. `Fine. Two can play at this game.' "Angelus! Snap out of it!"
Upon hearing his name, the vampire blinked, and focused on the brunette in front of him. "Angelus? Cordy, you know that he's not coming back. Willow said that my soul's permanent. Remember?" Angel was shocked that his closest friend had called him be his demon's name.
"You could've fooled me. Growling at his best friend and his son is something that Angelus would do, not Angel. And since you were growling at us, guess who that made you?" Replied Cordy.
"I growled at you and Connor?" Cordy nodded. "The last thing I remember is walking out of my room, Connor walking by, and then . . ."
"What?"
"I smelled something on him that set my daddy instincts in to overdrive."
"What was it?" Cordelia was now getting concerned about the boy she thought of as a nephew.
"Pandora."
"WHAT?!!"
"Now you know why I snapped."
"I'm gunna kill him. They're just kids Angel. That can't be doing that."
"I hate to point out the obvious" broke in Phoebe, with Paige and Willow right behind her, "but they're not such little kids anymore. Not to mention, they didn't have the greatest role models last night. Seeing as every single one of us spent the night with someone else." Paige and Willow nodded in agreement.
"I know, but . . . it's my job to over react to my kid growing up. I'm the dad. And do mean to tell me that Pyper and Leo are going to be okay with this? I don't think so. This is their little girl we're talking about. You have to remember. To us, our kids were only BORN about a year ago. None of us have really had time to adjust to the fact that our babies, well aren't babies anymore."
"I know why you did it," Phoebe wrapped her arms around Angel's waist to comfort him. It worked - he immediately relaxed in her embrace, "but you have to let them grow up and experience things on their own. And remember. These kids have seen more in their short life, then most people see in their entire lifetime. So, cut `em some slack. I'm not saying stop worrying or caring, just let them do their own thing, and trust in how you raised him." The only response Angel could give her was to pull her to him and hold her. She was his lifeline to sanity at the moment.
^Well, that was interesting.^ Legolas commented to Aragorn.
^That it was. I can not say that I would not have done the same thing as he. I am glad that the women here are strong and tender. From what I can tell, the women are a much needed power on this world.^ Replied Aragorn. ^I am happy that we found two such women to be a part of our lives.^ Legolas nodded. ^Speaking of which, how was last night?^
Legolas blushed, ^Wonderful. Beautiful. Perfect. I had no idea it could be that amazing. For someone so young, she has much wisdom.^ Aragorn smiled knowingly at his old friend. ^I'd ask you how your night was, but I could hear you.^ Legolas laughed and now it was Aragorn's turn to blush.
^My dear Elf, you've already described my evening, when you described yours. Now, let us go join the others.^ With that, the two headed to the kitchen for breakfast.
~Part: 7~
~~About six weeks later~~
After getting a vision almost every other day for the past two months, Cordelia was starting to worry. It had been three days since her last vision. `Did the Powers forget about us? It is kind of a needed break.'
The twelve companions had gotten to be fast friends, and had learned to trust in each others' instincts. Each time they went out on an mission for the Powers they tried different combinations of fighting the evil. Sometimes they defeated it physically, sometimes magically, and sometimes a combination thereof. Cordelia was becoming quite adept with magic in her own right, and the rest of the women were becoming quite the combatants. There was only one glitch that they could find in their team. Leo couldn't fight. He was great at healing, but he wasn't allowed, by the Elders, to fight. This presented a problem as it left on woman without a defender, usually Pyper.
Sitting around the dinner table that night, Cordy had an idea. "I have a cousin that's a police detective in New York. I could call her to come help." Seeing all the strange looks she was receiving, she quickly defended her idea. "She already knows what goes bump in the night - she fights it too. Anyway, I figured that we could use all the help we could get."
Everyone thought about her logic for a minute. "Go call her." Leo answered for the group. "Hey Phebs, why don't you go call Daryll and see if he can come down too. If he can, I'll go orb him here. Anyone else?"
Gunn answered for the A.I. crew, "There is one police detective here that knows about us. Angel, why don't you go call Kate."
Angel silently nodded. He and Phoebe left the room as Cordelia was re-entering. "She's on her way and she's bringing one of her partners with her. They should be here first thing in the morning."
"Sounds like a plan," Connor chimed in.
"They're both a go" informed Phoebe as she and Angel walked back in to the kitchen. "Leo, Daryll will be expecting you in about an hour. He said he needed time to pack."
"Kate said she's be he in about an hour as well," Angel added.
"Well," Pandora offered, "let's go make sure that there are enough rooms clean for the newest arrivals."
Nodding in agreement the team wandered upstairs searching for clean rooms to house the new members that would be arriving soon.
~~one hour later~~
Leo orbed out to go get Daryll.
"That is still one of the `coolest' things I have seen since I've been here." Everyone turned to stare at Aragorn like he had just grown a second head.
"Honey, you just said `coolest'. Are you feeling okay?" Cordelia asked with mock concern.
"Yes, my sweet. I just decided that if I am going to be here for a while, I might as well try to adapt. If that is `okay' with you?"
"Of course it is honey. I just wasn't expecting it, that's all." Cordelia leaned up and placed a deep kiss on his lips. The others decided it looked like such a good idea that they all turned to their partner and followed Cordelia's example.
"AHEM!" Came a female voice from by the door. "Am I interrupting something?"
"Kate." Angel pulled away from Phoebe to greet the Los Angeles detective. He was about to introduce her to everyone when Leo orbed back in with Daryll. Angel and Gunn thought that Kate looked like she was about to faint. "Sorry Kate. I should have warned you. I just didn't think they'd be back so soon." Angel apologized.
"It's okay. I've just got to remember to expect the unexpected around here." Replied Kate.
Angel and Leo introduced Kate and Daryll to everyone. As Angel was showing Daryll to his room to let him settle in, he offered a room to Kate if she wanted to stay at the hotel. She said she'd think about it, but really wanted to know what she was doing there. Angel told her that as soon as Daryll was settled he'd explain it to both of them. Angel went back downstairs, leaving Kate upstairs with Daryll. There was something about the San Francisco detective that she liked immediately. Maybe it was the fact that he knew about the same evil things she did, or maybe it was that he was a police officer too, or maybe it was the fact that he was drop-dead gorgeous. `Where did that come from? I'm not here to fall in love, I'm here to kick evil's butt. Although, speaking of butts . . . STOP IT KATE!!' She chastised herself and asked Daryll if he was ready to head back down.
"No, but let's go anyway. I'm never ready for what the Halliwells throw at me. What about you?"
"Same with Angel. We've helped each other out on a few cases, but that's about it."
The two detectives walked in to the foyer to see Aragorn and Gunn half-heartedly sparring on the mats, with Cordelia and Paige sitting next to the mat working on Cordy's levitation of a pencil. She was getting much better. The rest of the group was sprawled or cuddled up on the couches. When the two detectives walked over to the couches, room was made for them and the other four joined them from the mats.
Willow pulled out the book with the prophecy and read it to them, then told them what they figured to be their plan of attack, and why they called the detectives in to help.
"Well, sounds like an adventure." Daryll said. "Let's do it." Kate nodded in agreement.
"My cousin from New York and one of her partners will be her in the morning to help too." Cordelia added.
"The more the merrier." Kate state dryly.
"It's getting late" announced Legolas. "I say we all head up to bed and resume this in the morning when the other have arrived."
They all agreed and headed to the stairs. Kate and Daryll brought up the rear, eyeing the others and then looking at each other very confused. Daryll walked Kate to her car to get her things (which she had brought for "just in case"), and then headed upstairs themselves. The two stayed up talking in Kate's room most of the night, relating stories of their connection to and adventures with the group. `Maybe this won't be so bad after all' they each thought as they finally drifted off to sleep in the separate rooms.
~Part: 8~
~~The next morning - early~~
*SLAM*
Angel and Legolas darted out of their rooms, weapons in hand. Legolas headed around to the far side of the balcony while Angel headed for the stairs. The two intruders (one male, one female) made their way in to the middle of the foyer, seeing neither of the armed men above them. Angel noticed immediately that both strangers were armed with guns.
"Explain your presence here!" Angel bellowed from about halfway down the stairs. Startled, the two intruders turned toward the sound, reaching for their guns. But Angel moved with vampiric speed to the bottom of the stairs. "I suggest you place your guns on the ground if you want to live. You are completely surrounded." The female spoke first, "Hey man. We were given this address to meet my cousin."
"Cousin? As in Cordelia?" Angel finally realizing who was in his lobby.
"Yup, that's her. She here?"
"SARAH!" Cordelia shrieked from the top of the stairs.
"Cordy. Hey, nice welcoming committee you got going here." Motioning towards Angel.
"The guys around here are a little over protective. But it's quite comforting, nonetheless." Cordy replied.
"My favorite part was the `we've got you surrounded' part." The male stranger spoke for the first time, condescendingly.
Cordy laughed, "You are."
"I don't see anyone else" he said looking around the lobby.
"And you're a detective how?" Sarah couldn't help but laugh at her cousin's trademark tact, or lack thereof. "Check out the floors above you. They're all balconies with lots of shadows. It's okay guys. Come on down."
Out of no where it seemed to be raining men. Legolas, Aragorn, and Connor all leapt over the second floor balcony, landing softly behind the two newbies. Daryll, and Leo came down the far stairs, while Gunn came down the same stairs that Angel had taken. The women all came down behind Gunn.
"Wow." State Sarah "I'm impressed. Guns, swords, bow & arrows, cross-bows. You guys really know how to throw a party."
Sarah's male counter-part was speechless. `We really had been surrounded and I completely missed all of it. Not a good sign.' He thought.
Cordelia finished descending the stairs then rushed to hug her cousin. "Guys" she turned to her crew "this is my cousin Sarah Pezzinni. And this must be her partner . . ."
"Jake McCarty" Sarah offered
"Sarah. Jake. This is Angel, Phoebe, Leo, Pyper, Daryll, Kate, Connor, Pandora, Legolas, Willow, and Aragorn. Welcome to our humble abode."
"If there's gunna be a rumble, I want in." As the group turned to the door Angel raised his sword to the female intruders's neck. The others raised their weapons as well, including Sarah and Jake. "Hey. Watch the sword Fang. I kinda like my head where it is." She joked.
Angel was stunned. So were Cordelia, Willow, and Gunn. Angel finally managed a whisper. "Faith?"
"In the flesh."
Angel lowered his sword and moved to embrace the brunette in front of him. Willow and Cordelia motioned for everyone to lower their weapons. "How? What? When?"
"Geez, I knew you were cryptic guy Angel, but that's ridiculous. I got paroled this morning for good behavior. I thought I'd come by and see if you needed my help. But it looks like you got the fire power thing under control." Faith motioned to the rest of the room.
"Sorry. Come in. This is . . ."
"I heard the intros the first time around. But thanks. So what brings a group like this together? And does that guy have pointy ears?" Faith asked intrigued.
Willow stepped in front of Legolas. "Yes his ears are pointy. He's an Elf. What other kind of ears would he have?"
"Elf?!" The three newest members reacted at the same time.
"Why doesn't everyone have a seat and we'll explain everything." Angel offered. As they all turned to walk to the couches Angel, Legolas, and Aragorn all froze. It took the rest of the "trained" group about a half a step to stop as well. The five new members took a few more steps before they realized that everyone else had stopped. The three men quickly scanned the shadows and then looked at each other knowingly.
Before anyone could blink, Legolas had fired an arrow, Aragorn had thrown a dagger, and Angel had leapt to a shadow in the corner. The arrow and dagger had successfully pinned the hidden man to the wall, with an angry Angel right in his face, growling.
"What do you want?"
"I have come to protect Sarah." The man said nodding toward the New York detective. Sarah cautiously walked toward the man.
"Ian Nottingham? How did you know where to find me? And how did you get here so fast?"
"Your coming was foretold. I've been waiting for you to get here." He replied with a bow of his head.
"Can I release him from the wall?" Angel asked Sarah.
"Yeah, but I wouldn't suggest turning by back on him."
Angel removed the dagger and arrow and shoved Ian to the center of the foyer. "Talk" he growled.
"Just as the first twelve of you are here to fulfill a prophecy, so are the other six of us. There's a second prophecy telling of those that would assist The Twelve."
Angel glanced toward Willow who held up her hands in a "don't ask me" pose. "Okay, the fact that you know about the twelve of us here due to a prophecy speaks well of you. Now, how do you know Sarah and why does she need protecting?" Barked Angel.
"I was raised to always protect the wielder of the Witchblade. And Sarah is currently the wielder of the Witchblade."
"The what?" Everyone asked in unison. Sarah held up her right arm showing her bracelet.
"It's one of those destiny things." She said simply.
"Oh, okay." They answered. Most in the room also had a chosen destiny, and knew that it would be a long story. One which the details could be obtained later.
"In that case," Pyper broke in "Welcome to the training grounds. Let me show you too your rooms, and then well all come down and have some breakfast." Sarah, Jake, Ian, and Faith followed the witch upstairs, while the others headed to the kitchen.
Faith kept stealing glances at Ian on her way up. `Okay, that's got to be the sexiest man alive. He's so dark, mysterious, and powerful. Hold on girl. I know prison can make a girl desperate, but this is ridiculous. You just met the man.' Faith thought as she was shown her new room. `Definitely better than a prison cell. A girl could get used to this.'
Little did Faith realize that Ian was also sneaking glances at the Slayer. `She exudes power and strength. Who is this girl? How does one so young get that type of confidence? She is intriguing. I must get to know her better.' Ian pondered as he walked into his room across from Faith's.
Jake and Sarah had rooms opposite each other at the far end of the hall. "This is going to be interesting" Jake said to Sarah.
"I think you just won the award for understatement of the year." Was her reply to her blonde partner.
~Part: 9~
~~Later that afternoon~~
After breakfast, Willow faxed a copy of the supposed second prophecy to Giles to see if he could translate it. She also e-mailed a copy to Gabriel, a friend of Sarah's in New York. Until the group heard back from one or both, they trained and practiced magic, they sparred and practiced shooting crossbows and bows and arrows. The new six were absolutely astounded at the skills The Twelve possessed.
~~around 6 p.m.~~
As the crew was finishing dinner, Cordelia received a vision. There was a couple in the park being attacked by a large group of extremely ferocious vampires. So the eighteen of them headed to the park. Sarah, Jake, Ian, and Daryll were amazed when they got there that Faith easily took the lead. They heard her mumble something about it had been too long, and then proceeded to dust about three vamps before the rest of her crew caught up with her. The AI team and Kate jumped right in to the thick of things, with the Halliwells not far behind.
What surprised Daryll was the way the Kate knew exactly what she was doing. `Hell, if she can do it, so can I.' He decided to jump in to the fray, and the New Yorkers followed suit. The fight lasted for about thirty minutes before all the vamps were dead or running for their un-lives.
Seeing as it was still early and they weren't covered in any slime or blood this time, Angel suggested that they go to Caritas for drinks. There were no objections, so off they went. Lorne was happy to see his friends, and to make a whole lot of new ones. He easily picked up on the fact that the Halliwells and Willow were witches, and quite powerful ones at that. Faith and Sarah were quite powerful, he just couldn't figure out why or how. It was easy to identify Legolas as an Elf, the ears and blonde hair gave it away. Aragorn he wasn't sure about. The rest were obviously human. The AI crew failed to mention about the consequence of singing in front of Lorne, and for good reason. It was a way to find out what to expect in the near future.
After the group had been there for awhile and had a few drinks in them, Faith made her way to the stage. As she returned to her seat, Lorne pulled up a chair next to her. "What was a Slayer doing in prison, sweetie?"
Faith just stared at him before deciding that he looked harmless enough. "Atonement," was all she said.
Lorne seemed to think about that for a minute. "I'm glad that you're still on our side. Paroled this morning and already saving the world. I knew I could sense a power about you, it just took me a little while to figure out what it was. If you stay true to the cause, you'll have more happiness and love than you could ever have imagined. You'll find yourself in a real family. Maybe not by blood, but a family nonetheless. Keep up the good work, honey bunches."
Lorne just put his chair away and walked off leaving Faith stunned and silent, neither of which are easy to do. Ian had been listening intently to the conversation between the green demon and the brunette that had captured his undivided attention. `A Slayer? What's a Slayer? And why was she in prison? More questions surrounding this girl. She is much more interesting than Sarah ever was.' Ian thought as he stared at his raven haired beauty.
Faith could feel his eyes on her, and it made her tingle all over. She couldn't believe that there was a chance that he might be interested in her, but here he was staring at her. And it was the good kind of stare, not he psycho kind that she's seen so much of throughout her life. `I think I'm really going to like this mission.' She thought, bringing a smile to her face. One which Ian instantly fell in love with.
Now, it was Sarah's turn to hit the microphone. As she finished and was walking back to her seat, Lorne intercepted her. Jake got worried and came up behind her to make sure that she was okay. What he heard almost sent him in to shock.
"The Witchblade, huh? How did you come to wear it?" Lorne asked. Sarah told him the whole sordid story, not knowing that Jake was right behind her listening. Lorne then asked, "What have been able to do with it? Or should I ask what can it do?"
"It comes in really handy in a fight" She laughed. "It's great as a brass knuckle of sorts. It's also nice when the sword decides to make an appearance. The armor it actually relatively light considering the fact that it's bullet proof. It can deflect a bullet fired at close range quite nicely." Sarah smiled and laughed, relieved that there was actually someone that she could talk to about it. "It comes in hand when investigating. I can tell if someone's lying, and it helps me see things that I would've missed otherwise. My partners think I have these great instincts, but it's really the Witchblade, not me. But I don't think they'd believe me if I told them about it. Hell, I still don't believe it sometimes and it's on my wrist."
"Why didn't you give us the chance to decide for ourselves? We might have surprised you." Jake startled Sarah. As she spun around to face him, she missed the grin on Lorne's face, but Jake didn't. He'd thank Lorne later for the info.
"Jake. How long have you been standing there?" Sarah was worried that her partner would have her thrown in the nut house.
"Since you started explaining when you got it. Not to mention what it does. Pezz, why didn't you tell me? I hate having secrets between us."
"Oh yeah, like you've never kept a secret from me and Danny."
Jake thought for a minute, and decided to bite the bullet and let Sarah in on his secret. "Pezz, I'll make you a deal."
"I'm listening."
"I'll keep your secret identity from Danny if you keep mine."
"Yours? You have a `secret identity'? What, are you part demon too?"
Jake chuckled at his partners sarcasm. "Well. Kinda. I'm a field agent for the FBI. I'm undercover trying to infiltrate the White Bulls."
Sarah was astounded. "A Fed? My rookie partner is a Fed? Were you ever going to tell us?"
"Were you ever going to tell us about the Witchblade?"
"Touche. Okay, I can't be too mad at you. And your secret is safe with me, as long as mine is with you. Outside of our little gang here, and Gabriel, no one knows about the Witchblade. And I won't tell anyone outside of the occupants of the Hyperion that you're a Fed. Does that work for you?"
"Deal. Now let's go back and sit down." The two wandered back to the tables with the rest of their new allies feeling relief that there was now someone in their life with whom they could trust their secret, and their life.
~Part: 10~
Once the gang managed to make it back to the Hyperion, Angel put Phoebe to bed, and then headed to the store.
When Phoebe awoke the following morning, Angel handed her a pregnancy test. "What's this for Angel?"
"It's just something that Lorne said to me last night. Humor me, pleeeeez." Angel begged. Phoebe just smiled and did as she was asked. Five minutes later, Phoebe and Angel found out that they were going to be parents. Not sure how it happened, but not complaining that it did.
"Have any of the other women been mentioned anything about this?" Angel wondered.
"Not to me they haven't." She replied.
Now aware that there's another life force in the room, Angel tries to sense it. `Wow! How did I miss it? I wonder if I could tell about the others too?'
At breakfast, Angel tries to sense if any of the others are pregnant too. He thinks that the others are, but he wants a second opinion. "Legolas, can I talk to you for a minute?" Angel and Legolas head out of the room. "Do you hear too many heartbeats in the kitchen?" Legolas looked confused at the question, but focuses to hear in the next room.
Startled, he responds, "I hear six too many. What does that mean?" Worried that something was wrong with his Willow.
"It means that the girls are all pregnant. You're going to be a father Leg. Congratulations. Let's go have some fun with the news, since no one else knows."
The two saunter back in to the kitchen and sit next to their mates. Angel leaned over and whispered in Phoebe's ear that she wasn't the only one. She smiled a little too mischievously. He liked it.
"Hey Angel," Phoebe said a little too loudly, "Can a man be considered fertile?" It took every ounce of self control Legolas had not to burst out laughing, knowing what was coming next.
"Dunno Phebs. Why?" By now the couple had the undivided attention of everyone at the table.
"Because considering that you're not supposed to have any kids, you're on number two." While the others were trying to wrap their minds around what they were just told, Angel, Phoebe, and Legolas were nearly rolling on the ground they were laughing so hard.
"What?" Gunn finally regained his senses enough to ask. "How?"
Angel finally stopped laughing enough to answer. "The what is that Phoebe and I are going to have a baby. The how you should know, especially since you're in the same boat we are." Gunn didn't know what to make of that tidbit of information.
Legolas finally broke the awkward silence. "Oh yeah, Willow and I are expecting too."
"We are?" Willow stared at Legolas for a minute, and then broke out in the biggest, happiest smile he's ever seen. She wrapped her arms around his neck, barely letting him breath.
Angel finally decided to let everyone out of the dark. "All four Halliwells, Cordelia, and Willow are all pregnant. I don't know why, but it's got to part of something big seeing as I'm not supposed to be able to have children. So, congratulations everyone."
The Twelve all turned to their mate and hugged and kissed them. The Six congratulated all the others, surprised at the turn of events. Faith was the first to put two and two together.
"I have a question." She announced. Once she had the attention of those in the room she continued. "If a witch is pregnant with a magical child, wouldn't that make her powers just that much stronger, since she now had her power and the kids in her?" The group just stared at her. Of course, that's exactly what would happen. The Powers or the Elders, or both, have given the crew added powers (and a reward) for the upcoming battle.
Ian leaned over to Faith and whispered in her ear, "Very astute, Slayer." His breath on her neck made her go weak.
Pyper turned to Angel, "How did you know?"
"Something that Lorne said last night got me thinking. So I went out and bought a pregnancy test for Phoebe and when she woke up I had her take it. It was positive. So I asked Leg if he could hear too many heartbeats in here and he could. So I knew that it was true. I have enough tests for the other five of you to take if you want scientific proof." The girls jumped up from the table and ran upstairs to Angel's room to get the tests. The guys all smiled and laughed, knowing it was true. The Six were still stunned. Except Faith.
"Fang, I never knew you had it in you. Try to keep this one with you." She smiled and laughed making Angel realize that she was just teasing her like a sister would tease a big brother. And as Angel looked around the room, that what Angel realized he had. A great big family that was about to get a whole lot bigger. He was truly happy.
~Part: 11~
The make-shift family decided that barring a vision they would go out that night to celebrate. Dinner and dancing. Somewhere nice. After all, they deserved it, seeing as it may be the last chance they got. The women went shopping and the men planned the evening and then got some training in. And since there had been no vision, they all got ready to go out to celebrate the news of their family expanding.
The men waited anxiously in the lobby of the hotel, since the women had not allowed the men to see them getting ready. "It's a surprise" they had said. The men were growing impatient.
"What's taking them so long?" Aragorn grumbled as he paced. The guys from this dimension just laughed at their friend's ignorance.
"They're primping." Gunn explained. "And then they have to make an entrance."
"Speaking of . . ." Leo muttered. All male eyes shot to the top of the staircase, while all of their jaws hit the floor. The women sauntered down the stairs. The men had yet to blink.
"Oh that's an attractive look for the nine of you. How about you pick your jaws up off the floor and put your eyes back in your heads." Kate joked as the women came to the bottom of the stairs.
"Wow" was all that Daryll could get out as he stared at Kate. He was the only one that could actually compose himself enough to say anything. Each girl made her way to her male interest and asked what he thought.
"Um . . . I mean . . . ah . . ." was the general response across the board. The women took that as a very good sign. Not that they weren't thinking the same thing about the men. They were all cleaned up, in suits and ties, each holding a rose for their lady.
The women blushed and accepted the gift graciously, and took the proffered arm of her escort as they walked out into the warm night. The restaurant was only about a block and a half away so they decided to walk. Of course, the men were all carrying stakes, and Daryll, Jake, and Ian all had their Glocks (as did Kate and Sarah). The walk was quick and full of laughter. They soon arrived at their destination and were shown immediately to their table. Angel and Ian had been over earlier to make arrangements and to shell out an obscene amount of money.
Once the exquisite dinner was over, The Twelve silently made their way to the dance floor. Taking the hint, the remaining three men asked their dates to dance, and soon they were also wrapped in their date's arms. No one talked much, they just enjoyed the closeness and the feeling of their partner pressed up against them. Suddenly Ian stopped and pulled back slightly to look down at Faith. She looked up at him and their eyes locked. Time stood still, at least it did for them. Wordlessly, he bent down and placed a simple kiss on her full lips. She accepted it and returned it eagerly.
Jake had watched the entire thing transpire and thought he'd try the same move. He stopped moving with the music and moved his head to look Sarah in the eyes. Their eyes connected and suddenly it was as if they were alone in the room. She glanced from his blue eyes to his luscious lips, back to his eyes only to get lost in them again. Jake slowly leaned in for a kiss which Sarah returned in earnest.
Daryll and Kate had been watching both couples the whole time. Kate looked up at Daryll so that he could share in her amusement, but instead of humor she found desire in his eyes.
Instantly she knew that hers reflected the same. She reached up and pulled his head down to meet hers and he responded by wrapping his arms tightly around her slender waist.
Once the three kisses had finally ended, all nine men looked at each other and motioned to the doors with their heads and smiled. The eighteen people could barely keep themselves from sprinting back to the hotel to be alone with their date. They all made their way up to their rooms and didn't emerge until late the next morning.
~Part: 12~
Around 3 o'clock that afternoon, Cordy had a vision. It was time to fulfill the mission that they had been brought together to take care of. It was time to vanquish the Source once and for all.
The three White Lighters (Leo, Paige, & Pandora) orbed the eighteen warriors and witches to The Underground. The were immediately attacked by demons, vamps, orcs, assassins, and all other manner of evil creatures. Leo could only watch as the seventeen, fighting valiantly, soon found their way to come face to face with the Source. All fighting stopped when they saw the Source. He quickly dispersed his army with the wave of his hand.
"Phoebe. What brings you to my humble home? Did you miss your son?" Cole taunted his ex-wife.
"Not really. But thanks for asking. Actually, I came to kill the two of you. You don't have a problem with that, do you?"
"Well, actually, I do kind of have a problem with it. Ya' see. I like all the power. I love that my son will be even stronger than I am, thanks to his mother. I've been meaning to thank you for that, Phebs. Besides, you'd have to be alive to be able to kill me. And I don't think you will be." With another wave of Cole's hand, the group was attacked from behind.
The 11 defended while Leo could do nothing but watch as the 6 witches performed their spell to weaken Source. Once the witches could tell that their spell was staring to work, Willow and Cordelia performed a protection spell to help keep them safe. Angry, the Source threw a fireball at the witches which was easily deflected by the protective shield. Source amazed at power that the two young witches possessed. In fact, it made him a little nervous. He was afraid that the women just might succeed, and be his undoing. Satisfied that the protective shield would hold, the six witches continued with their vanquishing spell. Almost as quickly as they had begun, it was over. Cole screamed and suddenly just seemed to go up in a cloud of smoke. Cole's minions quickly ran frightened from the eighteen of them.
"Well that was rather anti-climactic." Pyper stated, almost disappointed. Almost. "Are you sure you want to do this Phebs? One of the rest of us could do it for you."
"Thanks, but I need to do this." Phoebe said quietly.
Angel placed a light kiss on the top of her head, and then she walked up to where her son was laying. Phoebe took the poison out of her pocket and poured it down the throat of her son. He began to cry in pain, and then like his father, he was swallowed up by smoke and disappeared. Angel took Phoebe in his arms, while the other Halliwells trapped Source's essence/powers in an iron box and locked it magically.
The eighteen of them orbed back to hotel. Leo and the Halliwells went about making sure that the box and its contents were destroyed forever. Once that was taken care of, the eighteen of them stumbled up to bed for a much deserved night of rest and relaxation.
~Part: 13~
~~next morning~~
Waking late in the morning, the eighteen warriors decided to take a well deserved day of fun and play. As soon as the sun set, the group was out the door and into the night. They walked along the boardwalk, enjoying the sound of the waves crashing to the shore. They stopped at a little outdoor café for a light dinner, then went for ice cream. Later, they all sat on the beach looking up at the stars, the stillness wrapping around them like a warm blanket. It was so easy and comfortable. No one wanted the night to end.
Some time around three or four o'clock, they decided to head back to the hotel. On the walk back, Ian leaned over and whispered in Faith's ear, "Come back to New York with me. I want to have you in my life everyday."
"Ian, I would love to," Faith replied beaming, then suddenly her face fell in defeat. "Wait. I can't leave the state. My parole officer would have me thrown back in prison without blinking twice. Damn it! It's just not fair. I finally find a reason to live the good life, and I can't keep it close. I'm so sorry Ian. I want to go with you, but I can't." A lone, silent tear rolled down Faith's cheek.
"There may be a way my darling. Wait here." Ian reassured her, and then went off to talk to Kate. Then Kate and Ian went off to find Sarah. Faith was confused, and a little hopeful. She knew that if Ian set his mind to something, he'd move heaven and earth to get it done. Faith caught up with an equally confused Daryll.
"Hey D. What's going on?"
"I have no idea." Daryll replied. "One minute Kate and I were walking, then all of a sudden Ian was whispering in her ear, and then they took off to find Sarah. Any ideas?"
"Knowing Ian. Not a clue." They both laughed as their significant others made their way back to them.
Sliding her hand into Ian's they two slowed down in order to talk privately. Faith asked, "Ian, honey, what was that all about?"
"Nothing dear. Just an idea I had."
"Please tell me." Faith was almost begging.
"Not a chance." Ian answered with a smirk.
"Don't make me make you sleep on the couch." Faith retorted.
"You wouldn't." Ian was suddenly worried that the beauty next to him didn't play by the rules.
"Oh, I would, and you know it. Now spill."
"Ya' know. You really don't play fair."
"Never claimed to. Now quit stalling." Faith teased.
"Well," Ian began, "I didn't want to get your hopes up in case it doesn't work out, but since you forced me. . . I was asking Kate and Sarah if there was a way to get your parole transferred to New York. They are going to check on it in the morning." Seeing the hope in Faith's eyes Ian prayed that he hadn't jinxed it by telling her. "Now kitten, please don't get your hopes up. I don't know if it will happen. I just don't want to see you upset if it can't work."
"Don't you get it? It's not whether I get to go to New York or not that got my hopes up. It was the fact that someone cared enough about me to even think of it, let alone actually do something about it. You get my hopes up Ian. You make me happy, and that's not the easiest thing to do. I would love to go to New York with you, but your thoughtfulness is the most important thing to me." Faith reached up and planted a firm but loving kiss on his lips. He pulled her closer to him and deepened the kiss until they both pulled away for some much needed air.
The group finished their walk back to the hotel in comfortable silence.
~~the next day~~
Kate and Sarah had been on the phones all morning trying to work out a way for Faith to be able to move to New York, finally they were able to arrange for have Faith's parole transferred to New York. Sarah and Jake even offered to help Faith with her Slaying duties while she was there.
The Six say farewell to their newly found family and go their separate ways, four to New York, one to San Francisco, and one to downtown Los Angeles.
~~a few months later~~
The Halliwells moved to Los Angeles and into the hotel. Pyper opened up another P3 nightclub in LA. Daryll transferred to the LAPD to be with Kate and moved in with her, but they spent most of their free time at the hotel, or at least with everyone from the hotel. The New York crew came out to visit as often as they could.
The Twelve found a way to open a permanent portal between Middle-Earth and this dimension, and traveled back and forth often. Aragorn and Legolas showing everyone around their world. Angel loved it there because he was able to be out in the sun. Phoebe like it because it meant that Angel got some color on his pale skin. One day, all six women went in to labor at almost the same time. Lorne had a doctor friend of his come to hotel to deliver the babies, seeing as two of the fathers couldn't go to the hospital because of their Elf and Vampire status. All six babies were born on same day.
Aragorn and Cordelia has a boy, as did Legolas and Willow, and Connor and Pandora. Leo and Pyper gave birth to their second daughter; and Angel and Phoebe, and Gunn and Paige also had girls. The eighteen were together for this wonderful occasion. Ian chartered a plane so that the four from New York could get their for the births of their nieces and nephews.
The most important thing, they all thought, was that the entire family was together and that all the babies were healthy and happy. And they knew that the children would grow up to be amazing people that somehow would shape the course of the future.
***THE END***