FF: The Spiral Cage 1/?

[Carol.Clarke@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Title: The Spiral Cage
Part One: Wedding
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Joss Weldon owns Buffy and Chris Carter owns the
X-Files. 
Rating: NC -17 (Part one is PG)
Pairing: Joyce/Dana the rest wait and see
Note: This story is in an alternate universe. It does not follow cannon
story lines. The people are different in places because they have lived
different lives. Dana Scully is a lot happier in this world. Dawn was there
from the beginning. And Buffy isn't the Buffy you know. Also there are many
kinds of vampires and demons, mixing them from the X-file world and BTVS,
and other myths. 

The Spiral Cage
Wedding

Dana took one last look in the mirror at her white wedding gown. This was
something she never envisioned for herself. She was still surprised that all
of her family came out for the wedding. She knew Charlie and Melissa would
support her. But Bill had not only shown up for her wedding but was going to
be giving her away. Dana Scully didn't often show her emotions, but when her
oldest brother had demanded this right she had actually cried. 

Dana smiled again as her mother fussed over her dress one last time then
pulled back and stood looking at her oldest daughter. She was beautiful in
her white dress. "You look wonderful honey," Maggie Scully said with pride.
"You are going to save the dress for Willow?"

"I'll save it." Dana answered her mother. She didn't feel like arguing on
her wedding day. 

"Gee Nanna do you think I am going to get married that soon?" Willow said in
an innocent voice but they all knew she was being sarcastic. Willow was a
great deal like her mother, both in looks and in personality. Willow had her
mother's red hair, and love of science and math. And like her mother she was
a painfully shy adolescent around most people, around her family her more
playful side came out.

"Willow did your father make in last night?" Melissa asked, knowing how much
her niece loved her father. 

"Yeah, he and Mark made it in about 10, Dad took me out for a late night pie
and ice cream. He is sitting on our bride's side a few rows back. After the
wedding he is taking me, well me and my new step sisters, out to a movies
tonight so mom can have some honeymoon time." Willow said excitedly.

Before Maggie could give her one of her patented stares, Dana said, "Ira
isn't going to be able to spend much time with Willow this trip, we are
going off on vacation tomorrow. Joyce and I thought we needed some family
bonding time away from everything." 

"Actually I think it's a good idea. The girls need to get used to each
other. It can't be easy just suddenly moving into a house together. And
you're right, Willow needs to spend time with her father. I've always liked
Ira." Maggie replied, surprising everyone in the room.

"That's not what she said when he got you pregnant." Melissa whispered in
Dana's ear only to get elbowed quietly back. 

"I heard that, you two are worse than when you were in high school, and I
always liked Ira, I just wished you would have waited to have children, it
couldn't have been easy going through medical school with a baby and no
husband. But you did it, and you have a wonderful daughter. I don't have
anything bad to say about my Willow." Maggie said pulling Willow into her
arms and giving her a big hug.

"And I like Joyce. If you have to be gay, well she is a good woman. And her
daughters are both sweet." Maggie added still hugging her granddaughter a
little harder. 

"I just have one question Dana?" Melissa asked with an evil smile, "Where do
you hide you gun in that dress."

Dana slapped her sister in a playful manner and everyone in the room
laughed.

"I am glad you are all in a good mood." Buffy Summers said as she entered
the room. She was still a little wary of her future stepmother. "The Priest
wants to know if you're ready to begin?" Buffy stated looking around the
room at the women all in formal wear. She was wearing a dress that matched
Willows in color and style. They were going to be their mother's bride's
maids. 

"Buffy you look very nice," Dana said as a compliment. She was being careful
with Buffy. They hadn't exactly hit it off well when she first started
dating Joyce. 

"You look nice too." Buffy said back with a fake smile. She was doing her
best to be nice, but it was clear she wasn't really happy about her mothers
wedding. 

"Thanks, you can tell everyone we are ready to go." Dana replied, and Buffy
quickly opened the door and was gone in a flash. 

"Give her time." Melissa whispered quietly to Dana. "She doesn't really hate
you, she just is protecting her mother."

"I know." Dana replied as she headed for the door. Willow quickly got in
line behind her mother followed by Melissa, and then her grandmother. 

(((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((())))))))))))))))))))))
)))

The wedding went off without a hitch. Bill Scully dutifully gave his sister
away to Joyce Summers. Willow and Melissa stood beside Dana as her bride's
maids and Buffy and Dawn Summers stood beside their mother as her bride's
maids. 

The Catholic priest, whose pope still wasn't sure which take to have on
same-sex marriages preformed the ceremony and signed the marriage
certificate as stated by California Law. Same-sex marriages had been legal
now for almost 15 years. 

After the ceremony the cake was cut, food was eaten and people danced to a
variety of music. Joyce had few guests. She had a few friends from work and
her Aunt Sarah. The girls' father, Hank, had refused to attend the wedding,
but that wasn't much of a surprise. Hank Summers had little to do with his
children, much less his ex-wife. 

Dana on the other hand had many guests. Her large family all attended. Bill,
his wife Tara and their two children. Her brother Charlie, his wife Jill and
their four children. Her sister Melissa and her mother both came. And then
there was her old friend Fox Mulder, she had worked with him on the X-Files
for a little over a year. She had enjoyed the work but it was just too
demanding a job for a mother, and she felt it wasn't fair to Willow to stay
with the X-Files so she transferred to the LA office and took a job doing
autopsies. She was home more often to spend time with her daughter. 

And then there was Ira Rosenberg. The boy who had gotten her pregnant at
16. The two of them had figured out they were both gay as teens, but they
both had scientific minds. So they tried an experiment. The product was
Willow. It also proved to both of them that they were firmly gay. 

Ira loved Willow, and cared for Dana greatly. They had stayed close. And
Willow was crazy about her father, the college professor. She even liked his
current lover Mark. Dana was actually a great deal more relaxed because of
them. 


(((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((())))))))))
)))))))))))))))))))))

The wedding was over and everyone had gone home. Buffy Summers pulled at the
zipper of her leather jacket. Mostly out of boredom, then she sat down
beside her new stepsister on the curb. Willow and Dawn were talking
excitedly about some new computer system or component. Buffy really had no
idea what they were actually talking about, but she was happy they seemed to
get along. If anything Buffy was a little jealous of Willow. Her younger
sister Dawn already idealized Willow's knowledge and intelligence. They both
were good at school and they both loved anything computer. 

"When is your dad coming?" Buffy asked in a bored tone. She hated feeling
like an outsider, but it was a feeling she was used to having.

Willow looked at her watch, and said, "He and Mark will be here in about
five minutes."

"Mark is soooooooooo cute," Dawn moaned and then smiled broadly.

"And he is soooooooo gay," Buffy said trying to match her sister tone
sarcastically.

"So you're Bi, or at least that is what you told mom," Dawn shot back
defensively.

"You're Bi?" Willow asked turning to look at her new stepsister.

"YES SO WHAT!" Buffy said standing up and moving back across the sidewalk.

"Buffy, our parent are gay, it's not an issue, I was just curious," Willow
said carefully. " I don't know what I am. I mean both my parents our gay,
but that doesn't mean I am gay. But I don't know if I am straight. Or maybe
bi. I never thought about Bi actually." Willow babbled.

Buffy, having already experienced Willow's babble mode, decided to stop her.
"Could you maybe not think about it now. I am so not in the mood, ok." With
that Buffy jogged up the street.

"She isn't comfortable yet with the bi thing. She doesn't say it. Then Buffy
doesn't really say a lot. Mostly she hits things." Dawn explained. 

"Sounds wonderful, does she have a girl friend, or boyfriend?" Willow asked
as they watched Buffy jog to the end of the block.

"I think she has both, and that's the problem. She has this boyfriend, Pike;
he is older and kind of weird. And I know there is this cheerleader at
school she has been with, well mom and I walked in on them kissing in the
living room last week when we were packing for the move. That's when the
whole Bi thing kinda of came out. I think Buffy really took it worse than
anyone. Mom was actually really cool about it." Dawn said quietly as Buffy
passed them by running up the street and then turning around and running
back down the street past them again. 

"Does she always run like this when she gets upset?" Willow asked as Buffy
picked up speed on her run up and down the street. 

"Runs, punches, kicks, she is into this whole martial arts phase. Only she
doesn't let anyone see her practice the martial arts stuff. She does that in
the basement. She has a punching bag down there. Mostly she is like a caged
animal. And she sneaks out at night a lot. I am so glad I am getting my own
room. I hated lying to mom all the time about her sneaking out," Dawn
explained.

They had all moved into a new house. And in the new house each girl had her
own bedroom. Now she knew why Buffy wanted the room with the view of the
tree. Buffy clearly was planning on sneaking out of their new house. Willow
looked back at the porch light on the house they had only been in for two
days. They had all moved in the day before the wedding and were still
unpacking. Willow turned back and saw the lights of a car pulling up to the
house from a distance.

"Buffy I think that's my dad's car." Willow screamed at her stepsister.
Buffy turned and ran at full speed over to the curb that her sister and
Willow were sitting on and then stopped and sat down next to them. Willow
noticed she hadn't even broken a sweat while she was running around the
street. 

"You know my mom jogs every morning before she goes to work, maybe you can
run with her." Willow offered. 

"She would probably just shoot me as a run-away prisoner or something, no
thanks." Buffy rudely stated. 

"You really are a bitch sometimes. Mom and I have never been mean to you, it
wouldn't hurt for you to try and get along with us." Willow said standing up
as her father pulled up to the curb. 

"Sorry, you're right. I was being a bitch. I'll try to be nicer." Buffy said
quietly. She actually liked Willow, and of all the women her mom dated Dana
was actually the best pick of the bunch. It really wasn't about them.
Something was going on inside her and it was like her emotions were going to
explode. She could barely sit still. And the nightmares she was having every
night were making her even more anxious. The caged animal comment her sister
had made was closer to the truth. It was exactly how she felt. And the
feeling wasn't getting any better. 

After general greetings, the three girls all climbed into the back seat of
Ira Rosenberg's rented car. His lover Mark turned and began to joke with the
girl's right away. Willow and Dawn both laughed at his humor. Buffy tried to
pretend to laugh with them, but mostly she just felt trapped in the car. Ira
was a kind man; Buffy would have liked him under other circumstances. 

"Can we at least see an action picture?" Buffy suddenly asked from the back
seat. 

"If you want to see an action picture sure. It just has to be PG-13. Your
mother doesn't want Dawn seeing R rated movies yet," Ira replied as he
drove.

"How about Episode I? Star Wars should have lots of action." Willow
suggested. "I don't think Dad has seen it yet," She and Dawn had seen it
together last week but Buffy had been on a date. Or at least that is what
she told her mother. 

"Cool, I would love to see it again. You really will like it Buffy," Dawn
added excitedly. 

"Sounds like we are going to see Star Wars. That is ok Buffy?" Ira asked
casually. 

"That sounds good to me," Buffy replied trying to sound happy. The idea of
having to sit still in a large theatre filled with people terrified her.
The caged animal feeling was almost becoming unbearable at times. And she
had to face this on top of the wedding. She pulled at her jacket zipper
nervously. As her mind began to hunt the streets of LA, while they drove
toward the multiplex. 

As Willow glanced at her new stepsister she could have sworn for just a
second Buffy's pupils turned red. Then she felt Buffy's mind drift away. 




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