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Part 2
When Giles had finished, Buffy looked up at him with tears streaming down her face. "It's already started," she said in a shaky voice. "Steffi and I did do in a dozen vampires tonight."
Cradling Ivory in one arm, Angel stepped closer and rested one hand on her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her. But all the while, he was on the verge of breaking down himself. "Who are the two friends that were mentioned?" he asked Giles. "Do you know?"
The Watcher shook his head. "I don't know anything at this point. The first part is pretty clear, but the second... It's anyone's guess as to who or what it refers to."
Stefanie took a step forward, fingering the pendant Buffy had given her. "How can you be so sure that any of the rest of it will happen?!?" she blurted out. "It could be wrong. We could stop it!"
Buffy looked over at Stefanie, her green eyes filled with pain. "Because it can't be changed," she said numbly. "There's no prophecy in the Codex that doesn't happen... I'm sorry, Steffi, but one of us..." Buffy broke off, unable to finish the sentence.
Stefanie did so herself. "One of us will die," she said with a sob, looking around at her friends. But she kept talking, knowing that if she didn't, she would break down in tears. "Giles, how long do we have? When will this happen?"
He remained silent a moment, gazing at her as if to capture her image in his mind. "It could be a matter of days, possibly a few weeks. I don't know."
Cordelia spoke up at this. "Well, what do you know?!?" she fired back. "What good are you if you can't give us any straight answers?!?"
"Cordy," Buffy started, only to have the haughty girl fix an icy gaze on her.
"Don't you dare tell me to calm down, Buffy!" Cordelia said. "I am not going to go through a major disaster because of you. If that's what being a friend of yours will do, then consider our friendship off as of this moment!" With that, Cordelia got her purse, starting towards the doors.
Giles' wife, Jenny, watched her go with a contemptuous stare. "Some pal she is."
Buffy looked round at Jenny at this. "She's just scared, same as the rest of us," the slayer explained. "I don't blame her... I think Cordy's got the right idea. I don't want any of you guys put in harm's way because of me."
Angel set Ivory back in her makeshift crib gently, turning to his girlfriend. "We're already in harm's way," he stated simply. "It's like you said. Nothing we do can stop this... The best we can do is try to determine the outcome."
At this, Buffy threw glances at all her loved ones left in the room, wondering just which two would be used against her and Stefanie. First, there was her loving Angel, who she felt cared too much to ever harm her. Buffy met his eyes briefly, managing a brave little smile for his benefit.
She focused next on her recently married best friends, wiseguy Xander and modest Willow Harris. Their loyalty for her ran very deep, and Buffy knew that, unless a demonic possession was involved, they would never turn on her. So they too were out as likely candidates.
As to Giles, Buffy trusted him more than words could say. He was more than a friend; he was like a father to her. And he would give his life before he did something to jeopardize their relationship.
That only left Jenny. Buffy wasn't especially close to her, not as much as the others. But there was enough rapport between them that the slayer didn't think that she was a possible threat either.
With a sigh, Buffy looked back at Angel, thinking that making an opinion was easier said than done. She quickly made her thoughts known, then suggested they disband for the night and wait to see what the next few days brought.
She held Ivory in her arms all the way home while Angel drove, studying her daughter's cherub-like face intently. After a long moment of silence, Angel interrupted her reverie.
"She looks so much like you," he said softly. "The same emerald eyes, the same features. I imagine she'll be the splitting image of you someday."
"Without my blonde curls though," Buffy said with a short laugh, stroking Ivory's sheer patch of black hair. After a moment, she added solemnly, "Angel, do you think I'll be there to see it?"
Angel threw a quick glance at her, reaching for her hand. But he said nothing, knowing that Stefanie was sitting in the back seat and not wanting to upset her with what, for Buffy, would be a hopeful assurance.
So Stefanie surprised him when she leaned forward and stated, "Of course you will, Buffy. Fate wouldn't be that cruel... If one of us has to die, it should be me. You're needed by too many."
Buffy looked back at her friend, biting her lip. "If only we were give the option to choose. I wouldn't wish this on either you or me." She paused, remembering what the last line had said. "What do you think it meant when it said the surviving slayer would 'fade into darkness'?"
Stefanie shrugged. "I haven't the faintest clue." Then, on a more positive note, she added, "Whatever it is, it can't be as awful as it sounds."
Following this, the trio remained silent until they reached home. Once there, Buffy carried Ivory upstairs to the nursery, laying her down in her crib and watching her sleep.
Buffy didn't know how long she stood there, but she was acutely aware of when Angel entered and came to stand behind her. After a moment, he placed one arm across her shoulders, and she turned her head to look at him.
The strain of the evening's news showed in his dark eyes, as it appeared he'd been crying. The sight of it made her vulnerable too, and Buffy stepped into his embrace, feeling safe in his arms just as she had countless other times.
Eventually, Buffy looked up at him. "We'll get through this, Angel," she whispered. "Nothing's carved in stone... If I recall, the Codex prophesized that I was to die five years ago. But you and Xander resuscitated me!"
Angel sighed. "We were lucky then," he said, hating to rain on her parade. "There's nothing that says we will be now." He put one hand to her face. "I think we should prepare ourselves for the worst. And pray for the best."
With that, Buffy cas one more glance at Ivory. Despite her attempts to assure herself, she found herself wondering how the infant would survive growing up without a mother...