Angel (noirangel) wrote in madisonvalley, @ 2015-01-15 08:22:00 |
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There were kids. Suddenly. Inexplicably. Everywhere. A very short phone call had assured him that no, Remus had nothing to do with it and had no idea why it happened this time (and that his werewolf acquaintance was now dealing with the shock of having young daughters himself). That meant — hell. Angel didn’t have a clue what it meant. Except for the obvious. And he was trying very, very hard not to get his hopes up that Connor would come. That his son, his baby boy he’d lost would find his way here along with all the other impossible children. God, what he would do to have the boy in his arms again… It wouldn’t do to dwell on it, and he had a job. WAMM had been borne into this mess nine months ago. They’d opened their doors to any and all of the lost children then, and of course they’d do it again now. It wasn’t even a question. So he’d locked away the weapons and made the place as safe as possible, keeping doors closed and locked and paying extra attention that everything was okay. He’d brought out the toys he’d purchased the last time as well, leaving them in the now-cleared training room, and was at the moment up in his apartment, searching through the network for anyone he might be able to help. For the respite and just for a minute. Because meeting kids...so many at once...was a lot on his heavy heart. And their security system would tell him if anyone new came in. He sat on the edge of his bed and put his phone down, taking an unnecessary breath to help himself focus — putting himself into a calmer, steadier state of mind. *** Will had been having a day with his Aunt Dawn because Daddy and Papa didn't like sunlight. Will knew it was because they were vampires, but Will wasn't supposed to talk about that. Especially not at school, Daddy had said. And because Will had super, super hearing just like his parents, he'd heard Papa say something under his breath about child services. So he was out with Aunt Dawn, and his parents had made it very clear -- or tried to, really -- that he couldn't play hide and seek with her because she was human and she'd never be able to find him. Not that Will saw anything bad about that; if Aunt Dawn didn't find him, that just meant he won and Will liked winning. Plus, hide and seek was fun. It was just last week that Will had run off while out with Daddy (who hadn't been able to find him for hours) and it had made Papa so mad he'd started using all the funny words he wasn't supposed to say in front of Will. The problem was that if he couldn't play with Aunt Dawn, she was boring, so he'd wandered off in the store they were currently in, only to turn around and end up somewhere else. It looked like an office. Will didn't recognize it at all and that was wrong. Aunt Dawn was going to be in so much trouble. Will grinned a little and went to explore. *** Feeling marginally more like he was ready to handle whatever craziness was about to spin his way, Angel left his bedroom and exited his apartment. He peeked into the training room to make sure all was well there before starting downstairs back to the offices. His excellent hearing picked up unfamiliar sounds below. Usually he'd be able to tell if it was one of his co-workers -- generally even being able to tell the difference between them by sound alone. But whoever was rustling around wasn't someone he recognized. He hadn't heard any alerts either, though, so now he was rushing downstairs. To find a kid, as he'd suspected. But one glance, once the rest of his senses caught up with him, and he knew he knew this boy. Even if he did look younger. Either way, the sight and scent of his own flesh and blood caused a pang in his heart no kind of meditation prepared him for. He swallowed a hard lump that had formed in his throat. "Will?" *** Exploring in an office was boring, too. Why couldn't he magically go somewhere fun like recess? He'd been in the middle of shaking out a file, which may or may not have left the pages inside of it a mess on the floor when he heard his name. And Will wouldn't have cared except it was Daddy's voice saying his name. Will was a little sad he'd gotten found so fast. "Daddy!" Will dropped the file then and with a burst of speed rushed to hug Angel. He wanted to know where Papa was, too, but that could wait. *** Preternatural reflexes saved him from dropping the sudden weight that threw itself into his arms. Before he could remark about the papers that seemed to be strewn everywhere, he shifted a little so his grasp around the boy was more secure. "Hey, kid," he said instead. "God, you're fast. When did you get here?" Angel needed to tell Spike -- preferably as soon as possible. He'd known it was a possibility, of course, but hell. It was his and Spike's child. It'd been well over a year since he'd last set eyes on him, and he'd never seen the boy so little. Although size didn't seem to temper much. At least nothing -- that he could see -- was destroyed. *** Will already knew from all the times before that Daddy would be able to catch him. He'd said Will was fast and Will giggled. Because it wasn't the first time he'd heard it. 'Course Papa usually said 'Bloody hell' before it. Will didn't know what 'bloody hell' meant, but he liked saying it because it was funny. "Couple minutes. I was with Aunt Dawn but she's boring and human so I can't play hide and seeks with her because she'd never catch me so I was gonna have a store adventure but then I got here." Will said in one breath. "Where's Papa?" *** Angel wondered if Will ever slowed down, and he was pretty sure he knew who to blame if he didn't. Which was just one of many thoughts that he was having that he needed to reign in, because since when in thousands of hells did he ever think of him and Spike's having a child as being...normal? Something to ponder casually about? He needed to focus. "Probably at home, on his couch," he answered without thinking. Never mind he'd just admitted to his, what, five...six? year-old son that his parents didn't live together. Well, it was the truth, damn it. "We can call him. I'm sure he'd be thrilled to come over." *** Papa being at home sounded right, what didn't was that it sounded like his home wasn't with Daddy. Which wasn't right, because they lived together with Will. That was home. His disappointment was clear on his face before Daddy said he'd call him. Papa needed to be here now. Then he grinned and nodded. "Yes yes yes yes yes yes," he said repeatedly and unnecessarily. Then they could play hide and seeks. Not that Will was going to tell Daddy or Papa that before he started. It was more fun that way. *** Angel couldn't help the affectionate smile that appeared on his face at Will's enthusiasm. However he felt about the whole situation -- and it remained to be seen how he did feel, really -- he couldn't deny that the boy, his son, was...cute. "Okay," he said, letting Will down gently before pulling his phone out from his pocket. "Let's hope he's awake, hm?" He flipped through his contacts and selected Spike, when he got an idea. "You want to say hi to Sp -- uh, Papa first?" *** "Uhuh." When Daddy put him down, Will tried staying put. He did. But it was boring, and even though he wanted Papa, waiting to call him was boring, too. Why couldn't Papa be here already? Will wanted to play. And then he had an idea. Why not just play now anyway? He was really only supposed to hide and seeks during an 'emergency', but the first time Will had tried it out on Daddy, Papa had thought it was so funny that now Will did it all the time. Like now, as he wandered out the room while Daddy was probably in the middle of calling Papa. He didn't know this place at all, but it didn't matter as Will ran as fast as his legs could carry him to another room, laughing as he did so. *** Angel brought the phone up to his own ear when he noticed Will seemed disinterested and waited for Spike to pick up. He could feel panic rising up inside and he clamped it down forcefully. It wasn't helping, damn it. He had a kid here. He needed to focus on that, on taking care of him. And not on other remote possibilities. When he heard Spike answer, he immediately threw his focus on the phone, his tone both authoritative and...worried. "You're canceling whatever you wanted to do today and coming in to my office." *** Spike had been on his couch, game controller in one hand, mug of blood in the other before he set it down on his coffee table, right around the time his phone rang. A quick glance told him that it was Angel calling him, and Spike had no clue what could possibly be on the older vampire's mind as he answered -- only to be told he needed to come to WAMM. "What exactly do you need me at WAMM for?" Spike asked. Far was he knew, there was nothing going on. Unless Angel was just looking to… hang out, Spike guessed was the term. Even if that sounded completely weird to say. **** The first room Will had found was a kitchen, which meant food. He'd had breakfast with Aunt Dawn, so he wasn't hungry (yet -- Uncle Wes said he had a very high metasomething), but he was curious enough to open the fridge and look at what was inside. Nothing good, so Will slammed the door closed hard enough for the fridge to rattle and moved on to somewhere else, further from where he'd left Daddy. He needed to find a good hide and seeks spot. *** "Something's come up with your name on it," Angel replied wryly. The boy was named directly after Spike, wasn't he? His human name, anyway. He wasn't sure why, except that 'Will Pratt' did suit the kid. And, well. At least his name had meaning behind it. He looked around the room and when he couldn't find a trace of Will, he frowned and started walking, looking around for him. "Tiny kid, strength like a fully grown vampire. Remember Will?" *** Spike has been right about to tell Angel to cut the cryptic crap when he'd gone and told Spike exactly what he needed to know. "Bloody hell," Spike set down his controller and got up from his couch, deciding to one-handedly get his boots on as he continued the phone conversation with Angel. "Has he broken anything yet?" Spike had to ask, because he remembered what happened to his door the last time. And his coffee table. And his kitchen sink. Little kid was a bloody menace, he was, and the supernatural abilities just made it… not worse. Amplified. He was a hellion on tiny legs. *** Finding the right hide and seeks spot was hard. It didn't take Will to find a room with toys and make a bit of a mess out of half of them before he got bored and moved on to another room. He wished he knew where the weapons were, even though he could never get to them. Magic, Papa had said, it came in handy for some things. Will's wandering eventually led him to what looked like where someone lived. The living room didn't have any good places to hide, Will could tell in one look because he was an expert hider. The bedroom was too easy. Will opted for a kitchen cabinet that looked empty enough and pulled the door closed. He giggled softly to himself in the dark. Daddy wouldn't find him for hours. *** "Not yet," he answered dubiously, grateful that it seemed like Spike wasn't going to argue about coming over to help...deal with the situation. "But he's also -- Spike, he's younger than he was last time. Five, maybe six?" His words held something of a sad note to them, even as he searched the offices. "Will?" He called out, starting to get nervous. He couldn't hear him anymore -- where the hell had he gone? He threw a look toward the front door, but didn't pick up any traces that he'd gone that direction. Maybe the kitchen? *** It took a lot longer than normally for Spike to get his boots on, but he managed it eventually.And getting his duster one was definitely easier as he kept his phone to his ear. "That just means he hasn't had enough time to find something yet," Spike commented, based on the knowledge last time had given him. He didn't know what to think about the boy being younger. Last time he was ten, and now he was about half that. "Even less impulse control, then," Spike commented as he left his apartment and headed down to the first floor. "Should make for a grand old time." Of course, by the way Angel had just called the boy's name, Spike got the feeling the grand old time had already started. "He gave you the slip already." he said knowingly, considering it'd happened to him the last time, too. *** "He didn't -- he's still here," Angel replied defensively. "Somewhere. Hell," he let out a soft breath into the phone as he searched the kitchen. Where was he? He guessed if he wasn't here, he must have gone upstairs. He moved the phone to his other ear as he headed up the stairs. "He's fast -- and damned quiet when he wants to be. I should have heard him..." Angel was starting to get more than a little worried. How had he lost him already? "Will? C'mon, you said you wanted to see Sp -- Papa." *** He could hear Angel in the middle of his search as Spike made his way down the street, taking the quickest route to WAMM -- and the fact that he even had a quickest route to the place was just not to be thought or talked about ever. The faster they found Will, the better. It became pretty clear the sudden kid appearances were happening all over, just like last time as Spike made his way through the streets, but he put that out of his mind to focus on Angel, and Will. And the fact that Will didn't seem to answer Angel. It was too weird to hear himself be referred to as Papa. Spike didn't know how he ever got used to it. "Speaking from personal experience, when the little bugger decides to run off, he's really good at it. Apparently good at it even at the age of five or six." *** Still in his hide and seeks spot, Will's hearing let him know that Daddy was calling for him, faintly, and he perked up at the mention of Papa, but Will knew better than to fall for that trap and didn't answer. If Daddy wanted him, Daddy had to find him. That was the way the game was played. *** "Good enough that he's not just some kid playing," Angel muttered into the phone, checking first the locked room with the weapons. Thankfully it was untouched. "It shouldn't be this hard for me or you to find him. He's been...taught." He turned away after locking it and headed to the training room. Which he found in ruin. Well, not in ruin. But definite signs that Will had been through it, with the state of the toys Angel had left out neatly to one side now in disarray. He let out a groan. "Tell me you're near," he said. "If we get as big an arrival of kids as last time -- or worse, because the population's bigger -- I'm going to need...I'm just going to need someone else here." He paused outside of the archive room, down the hall from the entrance to his apartment. "Will! Come out here now. I mean it." *** "So what you're saying is that the fact that we can't find him when he runs off is probably our own damn faults," Spike stated, because that was really the only conclusion to come from that. If Will had been taught how to hide, the only people who could have done that was him… and Angel. Bloody hell. Spike didn't even ask what it was that made Angel groan, assuming that it was Will-related, considering. And since he knew what it was like to spend an hour (or a few) trying to find the boy, Spike just answered, "Yeah, I'm a couple of blocks out." And he was not really looking forward to dealing with a bunch of kids again, but he knew from last time that Angel hadn't done well with not having someone else around to help, so Spike guessed he was planning to be that person this time around. Brilliant. He couldn't help laughing just a little at the order Angel tried to dole out. "Yeah, tried something like that the last time he was here. Didn't work then either." It was as he was saying that that he reached the front door of the WAMM building. He let himself in, able to sense pretty easily that Angel was upstairs and heading that way. *** "Pretty much," Angel confirmed. Evading vampires wasn't actually that easy. And for a kid, who'd leave traces of his path even more accidentally than an adult, it was near impossible. It was actually kind of impressive that Will managed it. At least it would be if it weren't also frustrating -- and, for Angel, a bit terrifying as well. What if he had gone outside? What then? "Don't laugh," he replied irritably as he entered the apartment and started going through his living room piece by piece. "William Pratt, you'll be in trouble if you don't come out right now." The command this time was masking his panic, and he heard footsteps at the stairs as he finished. He hung up the phone and pocketed it, knowing Spike was about to appear. Funny it wasn't the first time he yelled at a William Pratt. *** When Spike reached the top of the stairs, he pocketed phone, heading straight for Angel's apartment. He'd heard Angel call Will out by his entire name and it was weird to hear it in reference to the kid as he let himself in. Automatically, he spotted Angel going through his living room, piece by piece almost. Spike sighed for a moment and then gave in to the idea that he was going to have to start calling out for the boy, too. Since Angel had the living room, Spike decided to check his bathroom. "Will, it's -- Papa!" God, he sounded like a prat. ...And that wasn't funny in the least bit. *** Will could tell that Daddy was getting closer, since he was in the next room. And then he heard Papa, too, and had to remind himself about the game and that he had to stay still until they found him. They were getting close, though. *** Angel decided he wouldn't say anything...or laugh...about Spike calling himself Papa. It was just too weird. And absurd. And...yeah. Just really weird. Plus, he was a little preoccupied with the fact they hadn't found the kid yet. His movements becoming a little more agitated, he gave up on the living room and poked his head in after Spike, his expression filled with the worry and concern he felt. "Should we try the bedroom?" And God, wasn't that a question to pose to the blond vampire? *** The bathroom was of course no use. No Will hiding behind the shower curtain or anything like that. When he heard Angel behind him, he turned to look at the other vampire, easily reading the fact that now Angel was worried in his expression. Even as he was also raising his eyebrow at the way that question was asked. Right. "It's pretty much the only place left. Well, that and the kitchen." Spike couldn't imagine where Will could hide in a kitchen, but he decided that at this point to not underestimate the little boy and his ability to hide. And if he wasn't in either place, well, then. That made the issue a bit bigger, didn't it? Madison Valley big. *** The kitchen. Right. "Why don't you try there?" He suggested. There was also Zoey's room, but he was pretty sure that was locked too. "I didn't mean to lose track of him," he added, shaking his head as he started for his room. "Damn. Spike, you know what this means, right?" He guessed Spike had picked up on the fact that the potential future kids were back. "The others...Kathy and Kendra and your Darren...it's possible they'll be back too." And what about Connor? A voice in the back of his mind prompted immediately. He could be here, too. *** Spike just gave him a nod, and headed for the kitchen. "Don't think it can really be helped where he's concerned," he said, which… yeah, was an attempt to make Angel feel better about the situation. Spike had lost him for three hours last time, outside, hadn't he? It stood to reason that the issue was Will's hiding, not them. It was really happening again. All the kids. And Angel was right about the chances that the rest of their kids from last time could show back up -- he ignored the mental awkwardness that was thinking of the group of kids that had any mix of parents between him, Buffy, and Angel as "their" kids and focused on checking each cabinet. Of course there was one kid Spike knew Angel would probably be hoping would show up if he wasn't already, but Spike figured there'd be time later to approach the subject of Connor with Angel. Especially if he didn't show up. *** Somebody was in the kitchen, and Will could tell it was Papa. If anyone could have actually seen him, his excitement would have actually been clear as day on his face. Still he waited, even though waiting was boring and he was already thinking about playing something else. There were toys downstairs. Toys Will didn't have before but still toys. Will liked toys even if he accidentally broke most of them. *** "Right," was all he said in reply as he slipped into his bedroom. They'd obviously taught him how to hide. Angel couldn't help but wonder if they'd started to teach him to fight. God knew the kid probably had the strength. He found himself wondering if he was left-handed, like Connor had shown signs of being before he'd been stolen. He frowned and shook the thought. Starting with under the bed, Angel paced through his room for any likely hiding spots. There weren't any, really, beyond the bed. His room was neat and organized and looked even to his critical eye fairly untouched. Giving up, he left and looked over to Spike. "Any luck?" *** Spike had managed to check a couple more cabinets before Angel had returned from his bedroom. The question, Spike didn't have an exact answer for it. "Still have a few more cabinets to go," he said, almost sure in the silence that he'd heard a heartbeat. A tiny one, but still. and it was nearby, at that. Spike gave Angel a look, not having to actually say what he was thinking. That Will had picked one of the cabinets left in this room as his hiding spot. *** Angel met Spike's look and instantly understood. He thought he'd detected a faint and familiar sound too -- especially excited, probably in anticipation. Cute kid. The thought that kept coming up. He paused, trying to listen carefully to pinpoint his exact location. He made silent steps until he reached where he suspected their culprit was hiding. He nodded to Spike, who was at the other side of the cabinet. On the count of three... *** Spike really didn't know what to think, or how he felt, coming to the same realization that in his hiding spot, Will was apparently excited about eventually being found not that he'd managed to give Angel a bit of a run around the building. It was… cute was the word that came to mind, unknowingly echoing Angel's own thoughts. Spike wondered what being four years younger changed about the boy, other than the obvious. Needing to be watched more was likely, if this whole situation had proved anything. Spike focused on the present, though, standing still as Angel made his way over to the cabinet Will was most likely hiding inside of. It was pretty easy to read Angel's intention and he gave the other vampire a nod in return, a show that he understood the plan. He almost couldn't believe he was about to indulge a kid -- his kid, but still. *** It occurred to Angel that it was perfectly possible that in another life -- in whatever reality that Will existed -- he and Spike genuinely played these kind of games with the boy. Together. Tag and catch and...hide and seek, wasn't it? Those kinds of things. They probably had regular playtime with Will. Such a strange thought. But it was also...it wasn't that strange. He could see himself doing that. Making time out from working to spend time with his child. It's what he'd wanted to do, anyway. The weird part was Spike, he supposed. But mostly because Spike hadn't been there, at the Hyperion or in Los Angeles. He guessed, if he had been there, this souled one, anyway, Angel wouldn't have thought it too strange to play those kinds of games with Connor and Spike. Huh. That was definitely different from how he'd felt the last time Will had been around. He decided not to dwell on the reasons why that was or examine it too closely. Instead, after another moment, he quickly threw open the door to the cabinet where Will was hiding. *** Will was still being quiet, confused a little because he couldn't hear Daddy or Papa anymore. Maybe they gave up? the boy had a split second to wonder before suddenly the cabinet door was open and it wasn't dark anymore. He let out a shriek of delight at seeing Daddy, 'cause being found meant the game was over, and then in the next second tried to slide farther into the cabinet anyway. Even being his size, there wasn't much space for him to slide to, but he tried anyway. *** Spike didn't wonder too much what it must be like, to actually live somewhere with Angel and Will where this might have been a legitimately daily thing. It was weird to think he'd ever at any point have a relationship with Angel that might in some way be considered domestic. It was weird to even think on the Will part, because Spike had never had kids. He'd never thought he'd have any. It wasn't even supposed to be possible. Hearing Will's response to being found, though, Spike had to guess that it was actually pretty damn possible, as he moved forward to join Angel, just in time to catch Will thinking he could hide deeper in the cabinet. As if that would help. Deciding to grab a hold of Will and pull him out of the cabinet -- carefully -- was easy enough, even as the boy fought it halfheartedly and then seemed to recognize who was doing the pulling. "Papa!" Was all the warning Spike got before Will clung to him. He just gave Angel a wry look, if a bit awkward. He didn't think he was ever going to get used to being called 'Papa'. *** Angel was glad Spike was quick enough to grab Will before he tunneled away from them again, and he couldn't help but but smile at Will's enthusiasm. It was a funny image, too, seeing the boy squeeze Spike so tightly. He was obviously very happy to see the blond vampire. "See? Told you he'd come quick." The look in Angel's eyes was amused as he looked at Spike then. "Maybe if you're good and you don't run away again, Papa will play with you." There had to be toys in tact in the training room, right? If not, he'd go get more. And he'd join them, too, as long as there wasn't anything else to attend to. Mostly he didn't want Will to run and hide again. He didn't like that part so much. *** Spike felt that even if he hadn't been holding onto Will in return -- and he really was tiny being younger than he'd been the last time around -- that Will would be able to stay right where he was, that's how tightly the boy was holding onto Spike. Spike just raised an eyebrow at Angel at the suggestion that he'd play with Will. Of course, he'd do it because Will was a bit of a handful to leave to one person, it seemed like. And because his enthusiasm had been a bit endearing. And there was being called Papa again. "Right. Like Daddy says," and that was no less weird, for sure. "And you should tell him you're sorry, too. Think you might've actually made him age a bit." His tone was amused as he smirked at Angel before focusing his attention on Will, who pouted for a long moment. "Sorry, Daddy. I'll be good." For as long as he could, anyway. *** And there was that part, the part where he was 'Daddy.' That part was definitely still strange, especially to hear Spike say it. And a part of him, that part he seemed to be having trouble controlling, kept thinking you never got to hear Connor say it, either. God, he needed to...stop. Angel didn't say anything, though, to Spike's accurate observation that he'd been worried enough about having lost Will to fret. A lot. Hm. Maybe he was getting old. He looked at Will, who was pouting pretty adorably -- and Angel thought belatedly he got that pout from Spike. Hell. He stepped up to the pair and affectionately tousled Will's hair before bending and placing a kiss on the top of the boy's head, even while Spike still held him. He decidedly didn't meet Spike's gaze -- it was his son, their son. Angel felt compelled to give Will a little love, despite his being from a completely impossible reality. "C'mon. Let's go to the training room, then." *** Even though Angel had decided to not glance in Spike's direction, Spike was definitely still looking at him anyway. For more than a few reasons ranging from his own growing suspicions on how this whole situation was making Angel feel to the affection he showed Will. And with those reasons came a lot of thoughts and a few feelings that Spike decided were better not thought about for delved into. And, God, Will managed to be a lot cuter than Spike had expected. For a little mess maker, who liked hide and seek a bit too much and tended to break everything he touched. Spike had never really thought of himself as the paternal type, but having Will around again -- and he had to wonder if Darren would be back, too, or even Joey, the little boy he'd had with Dawn -- made him feel a little otherwise. Even if he was from some future that wasn't even possible. "To the training room, where we're going to play calmly and keep breaking things to a minimum," Spike added, opting to carry Will there. Especially when it seemed like the boy wasn't inclined to let go of him just yet. There was one bright side, Spike guessed. Will was too young to say anything awkward about the kind of relationship he and Angel had where he was from. Small blessings. |