New Beginnings

Disclaimer: Joss owns it all. All hail Joss.

Author's Notes: Words in *'s are emphasized, words in 's are thoughts, words in ~'s are dreams and words in ^'s are flashbacks. For any other information, see chapter one.

Chapter Three: Emotions

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Cordelia Chase looked down at the small bundle she held in her arms, a loving smile crossing her face.

"You are so precious! Do you know that?" she cooed, laughing softly when the baby gurgled his response. Every time she glanced at Connor, the feelings that overwhelmed her never ceased to amaze her. When she was in high school, Cordelia had been a self-proclaimed rich bitch with an attitude that could rival anyone's. However, since becoming poor, moving to LA, and working for Angel, somewhere along the way she'd shed that persona and had begun to actually care.

Although, the former cheerleader knew it was bound to happen. Eventually, everyone grew up. Still, as passionate as she felt about so many things now, nothing compared to the fierce protectiveness that she felt for the infant that had recently entered her life. Except, perhaps, the love and devotion that she associated with his father.

Cordelia was pulled from her thoughts by the sound of the front door opening. She glanced up as Angel entered, followed closely by Gunn and Fred. All were covered in purple goo, each carrying a different weapon from the arsenal that decorated the lobby of the hotel.

With a small smile, Fred headed upstairs, her thoughts focusing solely on getting cleaned up. Gunn nodded at the brunette seer, and wordlessly followed his girlfriend.

"Hey, Cordy. The demon is dead, just in case you were wondering," Angel said dryly once he noticed that her attention had reverted to Connor. He shook his head, shooting a confused look at Wesley, who was standing in the doorway to his office, a book in his hand.

The former watcher smiled knowingly, shook his head, and returned to his reading.

"Did you get the formula?" Cordelia questioned, not taking her eyes off the boy she held.

Angel froze, looking very much like a deer caught in headlights. Out loud, he asked, "Aren't you even going to ask how the fight went?" He really hoped to change the subject. However, his recently demonized seer was having none of it.

She shook her head, the smile she was gracing Connor with never leaving her face. "Nope. I'm going to pretend that you haven't even returned, yet. Because, if you had come back without the one item necessary to feed your son, that would mean that you forgot. And, I would not be very happy to hear that you forgot about your own child's hunger. So, I'm just going to keep playing with Connor while you march your undead butt out of here and go to the store," she replied.

The souled vampire nodded, turning to exit. He took a glance at his clothing and winced when he realized how grotesque he looked. She really expected him to go out somewhere looking like this? Angel paused, looking longingly towards the stairs. Just a quick dash to his room…

"Don't even think about it. I know you keep a spare shirt in your car. You should have thought about being able to shower whenever you wanted *before* you slept with Darla. Now, go!" Cordelia said.

Angel sighed, walking out of the building. Just as the door shut, he heard her exclaim, "Don't forget the baby wipes!"

"You should have thought about that before you slept with Darla," he mimicked under his breath, rolling his eyes. Although he knew that Cordelia had forgiven him for sleeping with his sire, he also knew that she would never forget the faux pas. However, the growl that erupted from his was contradicted by the small smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth. As much as Cordelia Chase was able to annoy him, he really wouldn't have it any other way. Over the past few years, the bluntly honest woman had grown on him. In fact, if he were to be honest with himself, he would admit that he was beginning to fall in love with the girl. Check that. He already had fallen in love with her. Completely and hopelessly in love.

The vampire was so busy brooding as he drove away that he failed to notice enormous black car that pulled into his parking space. If he had been paying attention, he would have immediately recognized the vehicle as one DeSoto, belonging to none other than his wayward childe.

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Tara stared at the monstrosity of a hotel that loomed before her, the slight fear that she'd been feeling quickly giving way to full blown terror and panic.

Spike stood beside the girl, sensing the anxiety that was rolling off her in waves. He glanced sideways at her, suddenly feeling the urge to wrap an arm around her and make her feel safe once more. However, he quickly quashed the thought before it became an action and he made a complete fool of himself. It was bad enough that he was already starting to think like his poof of a sire. He'd be damned if he was going to start acting like him, too.

"S-Spike, I-I don't know if I-I can do t-this," Tara stammered quietly, wrapping her arms around herself to stop the trembling that had taken over her body.

The chipped vampire winced inwardly, yet his face remained impassive. Then, the absurdity of the situation hit him. This wisp of a girl was perfectly comfortable with sharing the same bed as William the Bloody, but the mere thought of meeting the Slayer's ex-honey had her literally quaking in her knickers.

He forced back a chuckle, instead opting for reason.

"Pet, you do know that Peaches is all soul-having, right? He's one of the good guys."

Tara turned her wide-eyes gaze to him, obviously not convinced.

"So?" she replied softly. "There are l-lots of people that are really evil, and they all have souls. A s-soul doesn't make a person automatically good, Spike. It just makes it easier for them to choose."

He nodded, conceding her point. "Alright. But, luv, I can bloody well assure you that the Poof chooses to do good. Has his redemption to strive for, and all that rot," seeing the doubt in her eyes, he sighed. "Look, I give you my word that I won't leave your side. If he tries to hurt you, I'll stake him, okay?" he offered.

She smiled brightly, nodding. Although she was still afraid, the fear had returned to its previous level, making it much more tolerable.

"Thank you," she said sincerely.

Spike shrugged, looking away from her before she saw the myriad of emotions play across his face. "'s no problem. I'd love to have a reason to kill the wanker. This way, I don't have to worry about the Slayer staking my arse for it," he muttered. However, both of them knew that it would be next to impossible for him to kill Angel. The sire-childe connection was too strong. Sure, he could attack him, maybe even beat him senseless. But, stake him? Not going to happen.

However, Tara was still grateful for the offer. Even after more than a year with the Scoobies, she still wasn't accustomed to kindness. The only other person that had ever really been nice to her growing up had been her mother.

Spike shifted from foot to foot, suddenly anxious to get the initial encounter over with. The sooner they got started, the quicker they'd be done.

"Ready, pet?" he asked. Once she nodded, he walked into the hotel, Tara right behind him.

"Daddy, I'm home!" he sang out. However, he was unprepared for what greeted him.

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