Things Unseen

By Gidgetgirl

Chapter Ten

Nicolaa sat down on her bed, her head regally angled and a serious expression on her face. “So,” she said to Anni, thinking that the little girl still looked very young, “you say you’re a non-slayer.”

Anni nodded, “And I need your help,” she reiterated.

“What the hell is a non-slayer?” Kendall asked, not beating around the bush.

“Cliffs Notes?” Anni asked. The girls all nodded. “I was chosen by the power of Turot, the ancient vampiress with the strength of a slayer, called by the opposite power. I was supposed to be an arch slayer, an evil slayer. I was given a choice, just like Turot had been given. I chose not to be the arch slayer. It was too late for the magic to abandon me, so my decision sorta morphed the magic into good magic, and I was called as something that wasn’t a slayer or an arch slayer.” Anni took a deep breath.

“A non-slayer,” Maddy said, catching the drift. “That’s bloody cool.”

Anni smiled at the girl who was almost her same age but seemed much younger.

“So,” Kendall drawled, “if you have slayer strength, why didn’t you kick Travers’ ass?”

Anni looked thoughtful. “Tempting,” she conceded, “but I’m here for a reason, and if Travers’ thinking I’m helpless gives me the upper hand, then that’s what it’s gonna take.”

Chance looked at Anni closely, astounded to see how accurate a picture her dream had given her of the non-slayer.

“Do you know Buffy?” Colette asked from the corner, her voice barely more than a whisper. Anni looked at the girl.

“Yes,” she said. “I live with her, my brother and I do.”

The girls looked astounded. “And Faith?” Nicolaa questioned, getting caught up in the excitement despite herself.

Anni grinned, thinking of Faith. “She’s a frequent visitor,” she said. “She’s Hopie’s Champion, and Hopie’s like family, so that makes Faith like family too.”

“Who’s Hopie?” all of the girls asked at once.

Hopie grinned proudly at the site before her. “You know, My Connor,” she said thoughtfully, “I think Mr. Spike might be an even prettier princess than you are.” Buffy snorted.

Spike sat there patiently, the pink tiara sitting lopsided on his head. The things he did for the half-bit, he thought to himself.

Dawn was in hysterics, cuddled to Connor’s side, tears streaming down her cheeks. The Big Bad, she had to admit to herself, made a very fetching princess.

Angel was holding a tea cup, pretending to drink out of it. Connor was trying to pretend like he wasn’t doing the same. Gunn was hiding with Fred in the back of the plane, and Wes was deep in conversation with Willow.

“Why doesn’t Watcher Boy have to play?” Spike said, referring to Wesley.

“Mr. D says he’s busy, and Miss T says him and Aunt Willow need each other right now. They said to let them have special time.” Hopie grinned.

Angel, Connor, and Spike all silently cursed Hopie’s invisible friends.

Spike looked to his right, where Faith and Lindsey were sitting, her head on his shoulder, like one person, completely in tune with each other.

“Why doesn’t the slay-whipped boy play?” Spike asked, earning him a menacing glare from Cordelia.

Hopie looked to Uncle Lindsey. “Cause he and Aunt Faith are getting married,” Hopie said as if that explanation made sense, “and I like cheeseburgers.” She added the last part as if it clarified something, because in four year old logic, it somehow did. Spike nodded as if everything made sense.

“Right-o,” he said.

Lindsey grinned into Faith’s hair. She smiled up at him. “You think you’re so special,” she said, “always getting out of playing tea party and dress up with Hopie.”

“I played Weapons with her,” he said, mockingly defensive. Faith rested her hand on his well-sculpted and life worn face.

She looked into those finely lashed eyes, and she wondered briefly, for maybe the millionth time, if she would ever have a little boy with those eyes, a little girl with his smile.

“Will you play tea party with our daughter?” she asked him seriously.

“I would dress up like Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz for our daughter,” he answered seriously. “Especially if she had her mother’s smile.”

Faith, content, rested her head back on Lindsey’s chest, feeling his muscles move slightly as he took in even breaths, and listening to his heart beat.

If things went according to plan, they would be married in one week. When she’d been little and hiding under the kitchen sink from her drunk mother, little Faith had always planned the big events in her life. One of her favorite imagination games was Wedding, where she thought about wearing the pretty white dresses like the women from Mommy’s soap operas. She knew well enough to be quiet during Mommy’s soap operas.

As if sensing Faith disturbing thoughts, Lindsey put his arm around her and pressed a light kiss to her brow. The action banished his unwanted thoughts as well.

Hopie looked up suddenly. “Hey Mr. Oz!” she bellowed across the plane.

“Indoor voice, Hopie,” Cordelia reminded her.

Oz, sensing he was being paged responded with a, “Yeah,” no inflection in his voice.

“You’re funny,” Hopie said.

Oz gave her an Oz grin, which translated to a slight movement of a single facial muscle.

“Come play,” Hopie said.

“Do I have to be the princess?” Oz asked, wanting to set parameters before joining the play.

“Nope,” Hopie said. “I think you should come tell me a story about a puppy who bit you once when he was little.”

No one bothered to ask how Hopie knew that Oz was a werewolf. The Shanshu child, in touch with the universe through these ancient powers, just knew these things.

“A bit odd,” Mr D said to Miss T, “isn’t it that they don’t question how she knows about Oz, but that they have no trouble ‘t all believin’ we’re make believe.”

Miss T smiled softly. “They’ll know soon enough,” she said, casting a soft glance toward the other end of the plane.

“Aye,” the man replied, looking down at Hopie with a grin. “Soon enough.”

Willow read the concern on Wes’s face without bothering to read his mind. “Is it the baby or Anni who’s worrying you more now?” she asked.

Wes rubbed his chin slightly. “Well,” he said, his voice deceptively calm and flat. “On the one hand, I’m concerned that Anni might be lying in a ditch somewhere, completely drained of her life force by the amount of magic she used. On the other hand, I have no idea what those bastards at the Council are doing to my child. Then again, I’m worried that Anni might be getting into trouble with that boy she brought with her. On the other hand, my child could very well be pledged to an upper level demon because his mother is a mortal hell bitch.”

Wes took a deep breath. “And, of course, there’s always the off chance that Anni will take it in her mind to do Quentin Travers some serious damage.”

Willow grinned at the thought. “Would that be so awful?” she asked.

Wes shook his head. “No,” he said, “that was the bright side. Then again, Travers has a lot of power there, and Anni would be weak. If he touches her…” Wes trailed off, his voice going deadly.

Willow squeezed his hands. “Don’t be all pessimisty,” she advised, ignoring her own belly rumblings.

“It’s my fault,” Wes said ruggedly. “All of it is my fault.” He stared out the window, barely noticing the hand Willow placed comfortingly on his neck.

Lorne walked up to the front of the plane where Oz and Hopie were sitting. “Nothing I love like a good story,” he said.

Oz looked at the slightly effeminate demon, no expression appearing on his face as he nodded slightly, continuing his story. Spike, as always, rolled his eyes when he took in Lorne’s outfit.

“Poppet,” he said, addressing Hopie. “Look at Lorne and tell me again why I am the princess.”

Hopie obliged. “You’re a princess. Lorne is a diva. He’s green. I like puppies.” Oz nodded, strangely following the little girl’s logic perfectly.

“I saw Hopie in my slayer dream too,” Chance commented. “The others didn’t.”

“Well,” Anni said slowly, “ I saw Hopie, and I think Buffy and Faith did too. But then again, Hopie is part Buffy, and Faith is her Champion, so I guess that much made sense.” She looked at Chance, feeling as if she had met the girl somewhere before. “But why could you see her?”

Joss grumbled to herself. So now Chance was special. And the new girl was a non-slayer. Kendall and Nicolaa were special. Maddy was special.

Colette saw the look that came over Joss’s face, and she tried to tell herself that the other girl couldn’t help but feel jealous. Personally, Colette, though timid in appearance, was looking forward to her next sparring session with Joscelyn. If anyone needed to be flounced thoroughly and often, it was Joss.

Anni brought the conversation back to the issue at hand. “My brother, his, well his old girlfriend is pregnant, at least she was.” Maddy’s eyes opened wide. This sounded scandalous. She smiled as Anni continued. “The Council did some sort of spell, and they kidnapped the baby, tore him from Lilah’s womb. Hopie said they wanted to see if he was like me.”

Everyone but Maddy looked down at the mention of the spell, guilt wrenching in their stomachs. They had been a part of that spell.

“Way with the Oh My Gosh making,” Chance blurted out. “Travers used us, our blood, and he…”

Chance trailed off at a warning look from Nicolaa.

“You can trust me,” Anni said. “You have to.”

Nicolaa had learned the lesson from Mr. Travers himself. A Potential shouldn’t ever trust anyone.

Kendall looked at Anni for a moment and then stepped forward. “Those bastards,” she said violently.

“We have to get the baby back,” Colette said, surprising everyone with the firmness in her voice.

Chance nodded firmly, and Maddy smiled a huge smile. “An adventure,” she said. Anni looked at Joss and Nic.

Nicolaa wanted to do this, felt she needed to do this, but she didn’t want to put the others in any danger. She was the oldest. She tried to take care of them. “I’ll do it,” she said, causing the others to drop their jaws to the floor. Nicolaa volunteering to break rules? “Whatever you need done that is a major violation, I will do it.”

Nicolaa gave Maddy and Kendall a hard look.

“Is that clear?” she asked them, her voice clipped with unspoken authority. Anni suppressed a smile. That was the way Wes talked to her most of the time. She felt tears rise in her throat at the thought of her brother, but she pushed them back down. She would find a way to fix this.

“Sure,” Maddy said, clearly meaning the opposite. “It’s clear.”

Nic turned her glance to Kendall. “Is that clear?” she asked her, her voice low and dangerous.

Kendall smiled at Nicolaa. “Bugger that,” she said, slinging an arm around Nic’s shoulder. “We’re in this together.”

Maddy clearly looked as if she wished she had come up with that answer. She quickly covered for her mistake. “I know where they’re doing research,” she said proudly. “Kendall and I were there earlier.”

“Those were demons,” Kendall reminded the young noble girl. “I didn’t see any babies.”

“I know where he is,” a strong voice said. Everyone in the room turned to stare at Colette. “Follow me.”

Outside, the sun was setting, and in the not so far distance, a plane was finally landing.

Oz concentrated on not turning all wolfie. Hopie grinned at him. “Can you give yourself fuzzy ears?” she asked, batting her eyelashes at him. “Please?”

Cordy picked Hopie up as they walked off the plane. “I don’t think that’s a very good idea,” she said. Hopie laid her head on her mother’s chest sleepily.

“I wanna see Mr. Oz as a puppy,” she commented with a yawn.

Oz shrugged. “Kids,” he commented.

“Tell me about it,” Angel said, glad to finally have discarded the tea cup. He put his arm around Cordy, pulling both her and Hopie into a tight embrace.

“Maybe you two should wait at a hotel,” he said into his lover’s ear.

Cordy looked him lovingly in the eye. “Not a chance, Buster,” she said. “Can you imagine the temper tantrum if we were to do that?”

“Yeah,” Connor teased, “and Hopie might be pretty upset too.”

Angel leaned in and gave Cordy a quick, gentle kiss on the lips. In her sleep, Hopie toyed with the ring around Cordy’s neck.

Cordelia felt the familiar tug at her heart strings. It was almost time.

As a group, they made their way rapidly toward Council Headquarters.

Anni and the other Potentials followed Colette, none of them noticing when Joss slipped off to inform Travers of their actions.

Maybe, Joss thought, then Mr. Travers will see that I’m special too.

Outside, Joss heard a wolf bay at the moon. She shuddered. The wolf almost sounded as if he was singing.

Anni paused in her tracks, also hearing the wolf. She smiled, recognizing the song as the one that had been playing at the Bronze when she and Jordy had shared their soda. Maybe it was on the way to officially becoming their song. As an after thought, Anni realized that now was the time to hope that Jordy had his wolfie impulses under control.

 

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