As always, much thanks to my faithful reviewers & readers! You words are so very encouraging.

Thanks to Meli for her work as a beta! :) She says this chappie is sad, so you have been warned!

**Hugs**
Opal

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*Banner By Ariel Dawn*
Thanks AD! Hugs~Opal

Story Dedicated to Meli!
Thanks for being a great Beta. Hugs~Opal


Single Quotes = thoughts to oneself or between Buffy & Spike


Chapter 30 - Cuppa Hot Cocoa



*Note – This section is about William’s return to the future

William opened his eyes expecting to see himself surrounding by loved ones and family. He was shocked to see he was surrounded by quiet and fog. He changed into vamp face in order to make his way through the surrounding mist, but he was not able to see any better than he could in his human guise.

He walked around aimlessly for hours, searching for purpose, for family. Yet he felt none of the bonds he had when he was back in time. In fact, he could not even feel the bond he had with his father.

Finally, he came across a small clearing. It appeared to be a small, recently abandoned campsite. He sat down on the ground and leaned up against a large rock. He let the despair he was feeling overtake him as he nodded off to sleep. When he awoke, he was surprised to see his Grandmother Joyce sitting across from him. With tears in his eyes, he rose up to embrace her.

He fell forward as he lost his balance. Either he had seen a mirage, or the air had come between his arms had been that of a ghost. William still held on to the hope that the grandmother that had died when he was younger would at least speak with him and give him some inkling of what was going on.

“Grandmum Joyce?” William whispered.

“Oh my beloved little angel. You must be wondering why everything is so not as you expected.”

“How did you know?” William was surprised that his grandmother was aware he had returned to that fateful moment to change his mother’s life.

“William, Buffy and Spike raised you in my house. With everything that had happened to them, they made sure that once they returned home they told me the whole story. Your father was so proud of the way you exacted vengeance, and I must say that so was your mother. She had confided in my how she was most proud that you were able to use your leanings of magic to do something as unselfish as to risk your life and existence by returning to the past and stop her deadly mistake.”

“Was nothing really, looks like it didn’t pay out though.”

“Well now, you know what your father tells you all the time, don’t you?”

“I know; magic always has consequences.”

Joyce used all the energy she had inside her to bring forth enough solidness to her form that she would be able to hold her dejected grandson in her arms.

“William, how bout you come with me and we talk about old times?”

William nodded in agreement, as he followed his grandmother to what appeared to be an underground lair. Within moments, the opening to the lair collapsed. William looked around the lair trying to sense what had happened to his grandmother. He began to think that someone was trying to play a joke on him. Perhaps his dad was trying to teach him a lesson.

“William, no one’s trying to pull a fast one on you. Just come over to the couch and we will sip some tea while we wait for the video to start.”

“Where on earth is there a place to sit back and watch the teley? We are in the middle of a soddin’ cave?”

Joyce rolled her eyes at the young vampire.

“Breathing isn’t an issue for you, right?”

“Yeah.”

“And you haven’t ventured into the other rooms in the lair yet out, true?”

“Yes grandmother.”

“Ok then. If you follow me, you will find what you are looking for,” Joyce instructed.

“Very well then,” he replied. He followed his grandmother around the corner to find a video tape, TV, and a remote control. He put the archaic tape into the antiquated viewer, and after a few tries he was able to start the contraption in front of him.

William purred in delight when he finally got the picture to work. However, each time he would try to press play, it would not move beyond watching his mother’s introduction to her sister, Dawn. William was pleased that Dawn and Buffy were interacting on friendly, sisterly terms.

Joyce gently took the remote from William.

“Only I have the power to work the remote. It will allow me to stop and make explanations on what the Powers That Be want you to see. I remember this day as if it just happened. I could not understand why Buffy was so friendly to her sister, because they were usually at each other’s throats. Of course, once I got an explanation everything made sense, but the how and why of Dawn did not really matter to me. She was of my family’s blood and I loved her.”

William gave his grandmother a puzzled look.

“Well you know the monks did really manage to make a mess. After the Scooby Gang did some research, they found that the monks had not counted on the spell’s effectiveness if the Slayer was the mate of a vampire. When they cast their spell, it did not work on her. The also only made a mistake of casting the spell on friends in Sunnydale and LA. When they performed the spell, the monks emphasized ‘in,’ and as many of Buffy’s friends were not in Sunnydale and LA at the time it was cast, they also didn’t get the fake memories.”

Joyce turned to her grandson. Her face reflected deep sorrow.

“Of course it didn’t take long for the hell-god Glory to come around. That is when I found out Dawn was also an inter-dimensional key and the monks made her. Glory wanted to use my Dawnie to open the portal to hell. The Scoobies tried so hard to stop it. It still hurts me to speak of it; you’ll just have to watch.”

Then the television began to play again. In front of his eyes, he saw the events that his grandmother had spoke about. He saw the members of the council come to the Magic Box and resist giving information to his mother.

What he saw next shocked him.

He saw Quentin Travers at a posh hotel room with a few of his closest allies. He spoke of how he saw that the Slayer was mated to William the Bloody. Travers was furious and told his men that the mating must cease to exist, and their job was to hunt the rogue Slayer down and eliminate her from this realm no matter what the cost. William clenched his fists in fury that after all his parents went through that the arrogant son of a bitch would dare disrespect his parents.

The scene before him then switched to Buffy giving Spike a kiss on the cheek. She asked him to keep good care of the baby while she was out on patrol. His dad then told his mother that she did not have to go out tonight, not while they did not know where Glory was. His mother just said that the regular baddies were still out there and that her personal crisis could not hold her up from doing her job as the Slayer. She told him as soon as Willow could come take over watching William, then Spike should come join her.

Buffy was just about to step into Restfield cemetery when the sound of gunfire rang out. His mother immediately collapsed to the ground. Two men ran up to her. William watched the scene and prayed that they would help her. He could not hold back the tears when he saw their faces.

Two men he had seen at Quentin Traver’s hotel room. They saw that she was still breathing, but unconscious. Blood was pouring out of her chest due to the bullet wound. Then the screen went blank.

Softly, Joyce spoke.

“You don’t need to see what happens next. In fact, it was removed from this tape because it is just so horrid. They shot my Buffy in the head. By the time Spike had arrived there, with you in his arms, it was too late. She was already dead. He was so angered that he was able to tear the heads clear off to the two bastards that had done this to her. Apparently they had hung around, thinking they may be able to off her mate in the process.”

William was still stunned at what he had just seen and what his grandmother had relayed to him. He had a sinking feeling in his stomach though that this was just the tip of the iceberg.

“Of course without Buffy to protect Dawn, it made fighting Glory harder. Your dad did everything he could. Some man he called the doctor stopped him from releasing Dawn. Your father fell off a huge tower and could not get back up in time to stop the Doctor from cutting Dawn. Her blood opened the portal to hell.”

William, with tears streaming down his face, looked over to his grandmother.

“So all I did was for nothing. I destroyed the world.”

“No dear, it wasn’t your fault. You just altered the path of life. Part of that progression did result in all of us dying shortly after hell broke loose; we all did our best to fight off the evil. The last straw for your father was when demons stormed our lair where we lived and killed both you and me before his eyes. It was then when he gave up and staked himself.”

William was silent. He was at a loss for words. Wrapped up in his thoughts, he did not notice two cups of steaming hot cocoa, with marshmallows, in front of them.

“Don’t be sad though William. Here have a cup of cocoa while I tell you what your going to do to on behalf of the Powers to make things right.”


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I'm evil! Ha ha ha....I know you are all throwing stuff at me for being evil, but hey the Powers are giving William a chance to make things right.

Thanks for reading! As always, I love reviews. They inspire me to write and post faster.


**Hugs** Opal