Thine Own Self

By Gidgetgirl

Chapter Ten

Dakota Kincaide looked around, her dark ponytail swinging gently behind her. “Not bad,” she pronounced, “if you go for the huge mausoleum type accommodations.”

Faith suppressed a grin, recognizing the lazy sarcastic drawl in Dakota’s voice as her own.

“It’s not like a mausoleum at all,” a voice said from the side of the room. Faith looked over to see Angel.

“And you would know,” she said wryly. Angel nodded.

He walked up to Kody. “I’m Angel,” he said, his voice low.

Dakota gave him a quick once over, not being in the least bit subtle about the fact that she was trying to decide just what she thought about him. “I’m Dakota,” she said finally.

Angel looked at Faith. “She’s the one?” he asked.

“No,” Kody drawled, the hairs on the back of her neck standing up slightly, “the resemblance is a coincidence, I’m a hooker, Lindsey’s my new pimp, and I’m guessing you’re one of the gigolos.”

Angel stared at the fourteen year old, and it occurred to him for the first time that having a fourteen year old Faith living at the hotel might be a whole new kind of experience.

Angel turned his attention back to Faith. He looked at her stomach. “You’re… “ he trailed off for a moment. “Pregnant?” he said, thinking unconsciously of Darla’s pregnancy with Connor.

“Give the man a cookie,” Kody said, her voice carrying throughout the hotel. “Where can I put my stuff?”

“I’ll show you your room,” a voice said from the stairway. Dakota took a moment and looked from Angel to Connor and back to Angel again. She rolled her eyes. “Two for the price of one,” she said suggestively. “Must be my lucky day.”

Grabbing one of her bags and tossing it at Connor, Dakota grabbed the other two. “Lead on, Junior,” she said.

When she was out of ear shot, Angel turned his attention back to Faith. “Well that was pleasant,” he said.

Faith grinned unabashedly. “You’re just mad because she made you one of Lindsey’s gigolos.”

Lindsey frowned slightly at that disturbing idea, and Faith turned to kiss his chest, comforting him.

“Hey,” Angel said, “I’m the gigolo here.” The two stared at him. “I mean I’m the one she accused of being… never mind. Were you like that when you were that age?” Angel asked Faith.

“I was worse,” Faith replied. She laughed a little. “Honestly, Angel, I don’t think you’ve seen anything yet.”

Angel rested his hand on Faith’s stomach, looking off into space. “Honestly,” he said somberly, “I think you’re right. We haven’t seen anything yet.”

Upstairs, Hopie was just waking up from a good nights sleep. She looked around for Connor, discovering that he was already up. She stretched, bounced off the bed, and walked over to her mirror. She opened her mouth widely and tested each of her teeth with her index finger.

No wiggle. No wiggle. Finally, one of her bottom front teeth wiggled. She smiled and then continued to poke her other teeth.

Hearing footsteps in the hallway, the little girl followed them, her hair mussed from the night’s sleep and her night gown clinging to her legs just a bit. Catching up to Connor, she let out a war cry and leaped at him. Just in time, the older boy whirled around and caught her in the air.

Hopie wrapped her arms around him. “Morning, My Connor,” she said.

Connor, his face expressionless, replied, “Good morning, Hopie.” For good measure, he tickled the little girl, and she screamed with laughter. Dakota stared at the two of them uneasily.

“You look like Aunt Faith,” Hopie said to the new girl candidly. “But you don’t smell like her.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Kody said, checking out her surroundings, taking mental notes of the things that could be easily stolen.

Hopie turned her attention back to Connor. “I have a loose tooth,” she said proudly. Hopie looked at Dakota expectantly.

Kody, awkward with kids, responded, “Cool.”

“It’s not a fang,” Hopie remarked sadly. “Maybe the tooth fairy likes fangs better than real teeth and maybe she woulda gave me more for a fang, but it’s not a fang, and you aren’t giving Connor fluffy eyes.”

Dakota looked at the child, clueless as to what the little girl was talking about.

“All of the girls give Connor fluffy eyes, but you don’t,” Hopie said, batting her eyelashes in a very good imitation of Connor’s many wide-eyed adorers.

Kody looked around. “I don’t give anyone fluffy eyes,” she said finally, setting her bags on the floor of the room Connor had led them to. She sent a look in Connor’s direction that made him a bit uncomfortable. “Fluffy eyes have nothing to do with it.” Kody immediately walked over to the window and gauged how hard it would be to escape from it if the situation should come to that. It was doable.

Stuffing her hands in her jean pockets, Kody turned her attention back to the other occupants of the room. “Nice meeting you and all,” she said, “but I’ve got a new city to explore, people I haven’t screwed yet.”

Connor looked at Hopie and then glared at the new girl. “You better not say that around Cordy,” he said. “She gets mad when people say things like that around Hopie.”

“I’m so scared,” Kody said, her voice dripping with easy sarcasm.

“Maybe you should be,” a voice said from the doorway. Kody turned to look at Cordelia.

Hopie wiggled down from Connor’s arms and ran over to Cordelia. “Morning, Momma,” she said. Cordy picked her daughter up, never taking her eyes off of the girl who looked so much like Faith had when she’d come to Sunnydale that it took Cordy’s breath away.

Kody looked at Connor. “Another one?” she asked, stunned at how many twenty-somethings there were around this place. “Damn, they multiply like bunnies, don’t they?”

“Bunnies have ulterior motives and can only be defeated through monetary acquisition,” Hopie recited.

“Anya,” Connor and Cordy said at the same time by way of explanation.

“Whatever,” Kody said. Feeling the sudden urge to make Connor uncomfortable, she walked up to him and stood very close, her eyes never leaving his. She smiled a slow, seductive smile. She was Dakota Kincaide, self-destruction girl. It was what she did.

Cordy handed Hopie to Connor. “Can you give us a minute?” she asked. Connor shrugged, and carried the little girl downstairs to see Angel.

Cordy looked at Dakota. “You’ve got this tough-girl-I-don’t-care-femme-fatal vibe down pretty well,” Cordy commented good naturedly, “but I knew the real deal back in Sunnydale when Faith was younger, and you don’t impress me.” A bit of Queen C entered her voice, and for a moment, Cordy felt like she was talking to Faith, not this new girl. “Don’t even think about hurting my daughter.”

Dakota laughed, that casual laugh Faith had always used to keep people distanced. “Ease up, Queenie,” she said, her voice an echo of Faith’s. “I like kids fine, and honestly, Patches, if you stay out of my way, I’ll stay out of yours.”

Cordelia raised one eyebrow. Patches? After a moment, the seer left the room, and Kody prepared to leave, unescorted, to get to know the city a bit. Rummaging through one of her bags, she took out some dark red lipstick and put it on.

“Wicked,” a voice said from the doorway. “Can I try some?”

Kody turned warily toward the door to see a rather petite British girl standing there, an infectious grin on her face. Kody handed her the lipstick. “Why not?” she said. “Knock yourself out, kid.”

“I’m Maddy,” Maddy said, expertly applying the lipstick. “Bloody sodding hell, my brother will freak when he sees this lipstick.”

“Screw him,” Dakota said. Maddy looked at the new girl, liking her already. “Who knows,” Kody mused. “Maybe I will.”

Maddy made a mental note to remember that line. Kody opened the window and looked down. Maddy followed suit.

“So,” she said amicably, “where are we going?”

Kody looked at her. “We’re not going anywhere,” she said. “I’m going out.”

“And that’s going to piss everyone off,” Maddy said. “I’m all for it.”

Kody climbed out the window, making it safely to the ground via the fire escape. She sighed when she heard another set of feet land beside her. Maddy grinned up at the older girl.

“One thing you’ll learn about me,” Maddy said. “I’m very persistent, and very thorough, and I’m quite certain that there are guys in this city that I have not yet kissed.”

Kody sighed. When in Rome, she thought, do as the Romans do.

Kate woke that morning to the sounds of fighting. Automatically, her hand flew to the bed beside her. She bolted up in bed. Cale wasn’t there. She looked around, her blonde hair flying into her face.

Getting out of bed, she walked quickly toward the noise, ready to kill anyone who messed with her baby boy.

“Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr,” came a baby growl from the next room.

“That’s a big growl for such a little man,” came the gently teasing reply. Seconds later, Kate heard Cale burst into giggles, and she walked into the room in time to see the little boy launch himself valiantly at the thirteen-year-old werewolf. Jordy caught him easily, and the two wrestled, Jordy being very careful with the tiny vampire child.

Oz walked into the room behind Kate. “No biting,” he said lightly in the general direction of the rough housing children. He turned his attention to Kate.

“Willow called,” he said. “She says there might be a way to help Cale. It involves us going to LA. We need Connor.”

Kate tried not to look into his eyes, but she couldn’t help it. “When do we leave?” she asked plainly.

“Within the hour,” Oz replied. They stood there for a moment, listening to the sound of rough housing and trying not to acknowledge the electricity in the air between them.

Cale screamed with laughter again, and his little baby face vamped, his fangs becoming more prominent, though he still maintained his cheery, cherubic smile.

Kate’s face registered no change, but Oz could hear her take in a very shallow breath.

“He’s just a little guy,” Oz said.

“I know,” Kate replied. “I’m going to pack.” She left the room, and after a moment, Oz joined in the wrestling, carefully pinning both boys to the ground.

“Mommy sad,” Cale commented.

Oz nodded. “Yeah,” he said. “I think so too.”

Jordy squirmed and attempted to throw Oz off of him. Oz opened his eyes a bit wider, the equivalent of an Oz-grin, and pinned the smaller werewolf back to the ground.

With their enhanced hearing, all three of them heard Kate sit down on the bed in the next room.

“I’m going with you,” Wes said for a second time. “You’re very pregnant with my child, and there’s no way I’m letting you go to LA to perform some ancient ritual that I’m not even convinced was properly translated, without me.”

Willow looked at Wes. “You’re so cute when you’re stodgily overprotective,” she said.

“I’m not stodgy,” Wes said sullenly.

Willow stood on her tiptoes and kissed his lips softly. “Maybe just a little,” he conceded.

He kissed her back, and then sat down into one of the kitchen chairs, pulling her protectively into his lap. With one hand on her pregnant stomach and the other wrapped around her shoulders, Wes sat there, silent for a minute.

Thinking about Anni? Willow asked him silently as the Potentials, Dawn, and Anni filed into the kitchen.

Yes, Wes said. She’s been through a lot, and she’s almost thirteen. She’s smart, she’s stubborn, and to top it off, she has an immense amount of power and perhaps enough repressed anger to do something with it.

And you’re worried she will? Willow asked mentally. Wes leaned his head into her shoulder.

I’m worried about what I’ll have to do to stop her, he replied mentally.

I’m worried, Willow replied silently, thinking of the power surge she had felt when Anni had laid hands on her stomach, that what we’re dealing with isn’t Anni at all.

I’m not leaving her here, Wes thought. She’s liable to burn down the house while scantily clad.

Willow tried not to smile and failed. And the scantily clad part is somehow more disturbing to you, she told him silently, poking him in the ribs.

Wes very manfully repressed the urge to giggle at her ticklish poking.

“Anni,” Wes said. “We’re going to LA.”

Buffy walked into the room, a silly look on her face that Dawn didn’t even want to try to decipher, because she guessed it had a little to do with the oscillation between content and cockiness she’d already seen on Spike’s face that morning. “So are we,” Buffy told Chance, who had just stuffed a very large spoonful of Captain Crunch into her mouth.

“Faith found her demi,” Buffy continued. “We want you two to meet, since you’re, you know, related in a kind of weird, not related at all way.”

Dawn looked at Buffy. “Technically,” she said. “Since I’m half Faith and this new girl is Faith, I’m more related to her than Chance is, so I should go to.”

“And make sure Connor is keeping his distance from the LA Potentials?” Buffy asked, rolling her eyes at her little sister.

“Maybe,” Dawn replied.

Spike came into the room. “I’m game,” he said. “Wouldn’t want to send my ladies off without a proper escort. No offense, British.”

Wes, tracing circles with his index finger on Willows large belly, didn’t reply.

“We might need Giles,” Buffy continued, “and Anya said something about needing to talk to Hopie.” Buffy turned her attention to the remaining members of the household.

“You two okay here by yourselves?” she asked Kendall and Joss. A moment later, Buffy realized that she’d just proposed leaving Kendall alone, unattended with Joss for an extended period of time.

Kendall looked at Joss, whose mouth was open, ready to relate the whole duct-tape-to-the-door thing in the most vindictive way possible, but Joss closed her mouth without saying a word and went back to moving her spoon slowly around in her Lucky Charms, careful not to take a bite. She always felt a little queasy the morning after the dreams.

Kendall shrugged and decided that maybe Joss deserved some flounceage relief, if only for the brief period until she again called Dawn a reject, Anni a freak, or Chance a nothing.

“How about you two come too?” Buffy said. “We’ll take a few cars and make a trip of it.”

“Sure,” Kendall said, thinking that she’d missed Maddy and Nic and wondering how Colette was holding up.

“Whatever,” Joss mumbled, watching the cereal pieces in her bowl swirling. A marshmallow heart floated by a four leaf clover. Joss let her spoon sink into the bowl and carried the bowl over to the sink, rinsing it into the sink, heart, clover, and all. She wasn’t ever the lucky one.

Connor put Hopie down, and the little girl ran toward Faith, throwing her arms around her Champion’s legs and hugging them fiercely.

“Missed you, Aunt Faith,” Hopie said. “There was a clown vamp and I have a loose tooth, and Maddy’s making fluffy eyes at everyone and I sang Connor a lullaby and Momma’s being all Momma Bear around Little Faith and…” Hopie trailed off to catch her breath.

Lindsey knelt down next to the little girl. “Don’t I get a hug?” he asked.

Hopie hugged him. “Course,” she replied, taking in the smell that was distinctly Uncle Lindsey.

“What do you mean Momma’s all Momma Bear around Little Faith?” Angel asked. Hopie looked at him as if that sentence were very self-explanatory.

“Her name is Kody,” Faith told Hopie. “I don’t think she’d like being called Little Faith.”

“Nope nope,” Hopie said. “I don’t think she would either.”

Reaching up, Hopie patted Faith’s stomach. “Hello, babies,” she said happily.

Faith peered down at her. The child didn’t seem to find it the least bit odd that Faith had become very pregnant over night.

“Good luck,” Hopie reminded her. “Like pretzels. And babies.” Hopie grinned and then began spinning around in circles, making herself dizzy, and giggling all the while.

“Spinning, spinning, lots of babies coming, spinning, spinning,” the little girl chanted. She fell down. “We all fall down,” she recited.

Angel raised one eyebrow at Connor. Lots of babies coming?

“Don’t look at me,” Connor said.

Lilah Morgan straightened her jacket, and without casting a second glance at the man asleep in the bed, she picked up her briefcase and left the room.

It hadn’t meant anything. She hadn’t felt anything, but for that one moment, she’d been the only one in the world to exist, and in that moment of solitude, she’d escaped loneliness.

Lilah shook her head. It didn’t make any sense. She wasn’t about to sit around psychoanalyzing herself. It was just a fairly decent lay. That was all. Her cell phone rang, and Lilah answered it, the power returning to her voice as she remembered that Wolfram and Hart was all hers.

“Where is she?” she asked, referring to Dakota, and promising herself that she’d dismember any minion who failed to read her mind regarding this question.

“Currently at a local mall,” the minion replied. Lilah knew that there was a reason that she employed primarily psychic, conscienceless Harvard Law grads.

“Is she alone?” Lilah asked.

“No,” the minion replied.

“Kill whoever’s with her and bring her to me,” Lilah said. “I’ll be back in an hour.” She slammed the cell phone shut and went to find the mystic who would teleport her back. Air travel was so overrated these days.

The minion made a face at the phone, but then set out to carry through with Lilah’s instructions.

Kody leaned against the banister of the balcony, casually watching the people who walked by. Maddy mimicked her posture. Slowly, Kody was warming up to the younger girl.

“That one,” Dakota said, tilting her head slightly toward a teenage boy who was walking by. In one smooth movement, Kody walked over to him, pushed him up against the wall, and pressed her body close to his. She kissed him, hard, and broke off after a long few seconds. She smiled at him.

“Happy Birthday,” she said.

The boy’s jaw dropped open. “It’s not my bir-irthday,” he stammered.

Kody shrugged. “Well, damn,” she said. “My mistake.” With those words, Kody sauntered back to where Maddy was standing. The younger girl beamed at Dakota.

“That was bitching,” she said, her voice sounding very proper.

“You get too much of a kick out of saying those words,” Dakota commented. “If you make it sound like a big deal that you’re saying them, you might as well not say them at all.”

Maddy nodded and put a very chilled out expression on her face. “Bitching,” she said in her best ‘chilled out’ voice.

“Your turn,” Dakota said, when a boy who looked to be about fourteen walked by. Maddy slinked toward him as Dakota had and pushed him up against the wall. She was getting good at this. The boy opened his mouth, but before he could say a work, Maddy closed her eyes and pressed a kiss to his lips.

Afterwards, she opened her eyes. “You’re an angel,” the boy said, looking at her like he’d just received the most amazing kiss of his life.

Maddy looked back at him glumly. “I was hoping for more along the lines of temptress,” she told him honestly before trudging back to Dakota.

“He said I was an angel,” Maddy said darkly.

“Impressive,” Kody replied.

Maddy scuffed her foot glumly. “Bet no one ever calls you an angel,” she pointed out sullenly.

Dakota smiled wryly. “No,” she said softly. “They don’t.”

“I don’t think either of you looks particularly angelic right now,” a voice said from beside them.

“Hi Gunn,” Maddy said brightly, turning to look completely at him. “What are you doing here?”

“Just watching the little show you two are putting on,” Gunn replied, his tone distinctly not amused. “I see The Lips and Faith’s double taking a hike out a window,” he continued, “I figure I’ll follow them.”

A huge grin spread across Maddy’s face. “The Lips,” she said, a satisfied expression on her face.

“That wasn’t meant to be a compliment,” Gunn clarified. As Kody turned to leave, he grabbed her arm.

She looked at him, her eyes dark. “I don’t think you want to do that,” she said.

“Really?” Gunn said.

As the two of them stared at each other, Maddy let out a piercing scream. Instantly, both of them turned around to see the younger girl being carried away by several robed men.

They both went after her, but instantly, they were overcome by opponents of both the demon and human varieties. By the time their opponents were on the floor, Maddy was gone.

“Wolfram and Hart bastards,” Gunn muttered. “Come on,” he said darkly to Dakota. “We have to get back to the hotel.” Kody, in a state of shock, agreed.

When the minion saw the girl her minions brought her, she gritted her teeth. A person didn’t get to be a minion’s minion based on a high IQ, and the situation currently in front of her was proof enough of that.

They’d brought her the wrong girl. Lilah had wanted Dakota Kincaide. Instead, she’d gotten Lady Madeline Claymore, also known as a whole lot of trouble.

Dakota and Gunn arrived back at the house moments after the Sunnydale gang arrived. Connor, Hopie, Angel, Faith, Lindsey, and Cordy came outside to meet them, and as Cale ran on chubby baby legs instinctively up to Connor, Chance slowly approached Dakota. Connor knelt down next to the little boy, and not knowing exactly why, he held up his hand for the child to touch with his tiny fingers. Chance put her hand on Kody’s shoulder.

In that moment, there was a loud noise, and a dark beam of light connected the points at which Chance and Kody and Cale and Connor were touching. Standing in between to the two pairs, Anni was caught in the beam, and it threw her across the room.

“Anni!” Jordy yelled.

“Yes,” Anni said from his left, standing up on shaky legs.

“Hello, Lover,” another Anni said darkly from his right.

“Wolfram and Hart got Maddy,” Gunn said, ignoring the two Anni’s.

The Anni on the right laughed. “That’s the least of your problems,” she said, and in that moment, everyone except for the other Anni and Hopie was thrown to the floor.

“Anni,” Wes croaked from the ground, his breath knocked out of him.

“I’m not your precious Anni,” the girl said, scowling at Anni. “She’s a weakling. I’m not. I guess,” she said finally, “that you can call me Ari.”

“Bella,” Hopie said.

“Yes?” both girls replied.

Hopie narrowed her eyes at the dark Anni. “You’re not Bella,” she said.

“But I am special,” the one who called herself Arabella replied. Hopie said nothing. Ari was right. She was special, and pretty soon, it would be night time, and then all of the vampires would know she was special too.

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