The doorbell rang. Willow walked to the door of her small house and peeked through the window. She grinned and opened up the door. "Oz!" she said happily. "Hi!"
Oz stood in the doorway, smiling slightly. "Hey, Willow," he said in his standard calm way. "Can I come in?"
"Sure!" She held open the door as he walked in. "Can I get you anything? Something to drink?"
Oz shook his head. "No, no, I'm fine."
They walked to the living room. Willow gestured to the couch. When Oz sat, she looked at him expectantly. "So how're you doing?" she asked cheerfully.
"Good, good," Oz said. He looked at her. "You look wonderful."
Willow smiled sweetly. "Thanks," she said. "You look good too. I haven't seen you in so long!"
Oz nodded. "It's been awhile...." He paused. "So how're you doing?"
"Oh, it's been..." She was interrupted by the sound of a baby crying. She chuckled. "It's been busy...excuse me for a minute, okay?"
Oz nodded as Willow left the room. He sat back in the couch, thinking, then sat up slightly when other person entered the room. "Oh. Hey Tara," he said nonchalantly.
"Hi..." Tara said quietly. She looked as if she was going to say something else, but changed her mind when Willow walked into the room holding a baby.
"Oz," Willow said happily. "I want you to meet the newest member of our family, Aeaea Eostre." She held up the baby to Oz. "We call her Dawn."
Oz reached for the baby. "Can I hold her?" he asked.
"Sure." She carefully handed him the baby. Oz held the small infant tenderly, stroking her fine red hair gently. Willow continued speaking. "We found a sperm donor...anonymous, of course, we didn't want to know who was involved in the creation of her. It was like...Tara and I created her from our own flesh and blood and spirit...." She trailed off.
Oz held the baby for a few more seconds, then handed her back to Willow. "She's beautiful," he said.
"She's perfect." Willow held her baby tightly. "My little Dawn has much ahead of her." She looked up at Oz. "She will be a great woman, Oz."
Oz raised an eyebrow. "Will she?" he asked.
Willow smiled beatifically. "Oh yes..." she said in a soft, almost reverent voice. "Aeaea Eostre is very important to us." She looked down at the baby and ran her finger against her cheek. "She will be a leader for our people — for Wiccans everywhere. She will save us from the darkness, from the new Burning Times, from the people who would oppress us again. She is our light, she is our spirit..." Willow leaned down and kissed the top of her daughter's forehead. "She will save us."
Oz frowned slightly. "Willow..." He paused for a second. "That seems awfully dangerous..."
Willow looked up, and nodded. "Oh, yes, I know. It will be dangerous. But she will be up to it, even if it means her death." Willow's expression grew solemn. "She'll have to die," she said in a cool voice. "But her death will mean life for our people. She will be our freedom."
Oz looked down at the baby, and sighed. "Willow, I..." He reached out and took her hand. "I came here because Tara asked me to."
Willow looked at her lover, who had been sitting on the couch quietly, in surprise. "Tara? Why?"
Tara looked down at her hands. "Willow...Dawn...she's..." Tara searched for the words. "She's not what you want her to be."
Willow looked at her blankly. "What?"
"She's not a savior, Willow. She's a baby." Oz looked directly at her. "And it's because of this conversation that I have been authorized by the Sunnydale Child Welfare services to remove Aeaea Eostre Rosenberg from these premises." He pulled out a small stack of papers. "Here is the authorization, here is the court order preventing you from being within 100 feet of your daughter..." He set the papers on her lap and reached for the baby.
"Tara?" Willow said, her voice growing frantic. "Tara, what are you talking about?" She looked at Oz. "Oz, what're you — No! You can't take my baby!"
Tara reached over and held down Willow as Oz carefully took the baby from Willow's grasping fingers. "I'm sorry, Willow," Tara said softly as Willow jerked against her. "I'm sorry."
Oz held the baby close to him as he walked out of the living room. "Tara," he said to the woman still holding down her lover. "If you come by the office tomorrow, you can fill out the necessary paperwork for visitation."
Tara nodded. "Thank you," she said, looking up at him with grateful eyes.
Oz nodded, and walked out the door.
This Angel/Buffy the Vampire Slayer story was written by Kate Bolin. If you liked it, there's plenty more at http://www.dymphna.net/fanfic/. And you can feedback her at dymphna@dymphna.net.