Sincere Amore

Chapter 1:

"The Girl in Question", a different version.
Angel Season 5 Spoilers

Angel hung up the phone.

"Okay what is it this time? Uber-vamps? Demon gods? Devil robots?" Spike asked Angel as he sat comfortably in the chair in Angel's office.

"It's Buffy." Angel said in sad voice.

4 weeks ago...
Rome

Buffy ran from room to room in her apartment with curlers in her hair and a bath robe on, acting as if she was looking for something.

"Dawn!" Buffy yelled, "You get your books...Dawn?!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah...I know. Take a chill pill...or have an Italian ice." Dawn giggled. Dawn walked out of one of the rooms and into the hallway nonchalantly, with Buffy traveling behind her.

"Ha-ha...very funny. Come on you're going to be late for school." Buffy said, pushing Dawn towards the front door.

"Wait. Wait. Wait!" Dawn stopped and turned to Buffy, "Money." Dawn opened her palm, expecting the cash.

Buffy rolled her eyes and grabbed her purse and started to search. "What happened to the thirty bucks I gave you two days ago." She mumbled to Dawn as she continued to look through her purse.

"Girl has to eat...besides...its not bucks around here...its lire." Dawn grinned.

Buffy glared at Dawn and shoved the bills at Dawn. "Thanks...ciao." Dawn said and left with a smile.

"Ciao." Buffy mimicked Dawn and then looked down at her clothes and noticed she was in her bath robe still.

As Buffy started to take the curlers out of her hair as she headed back to her bathroom in no rush. She fixed her hair and looked in the mirror and saw her reflection. The apartment was so quiet that she could hear the sound of people talking outside in the city of Rome.

The last few months have been slow for Buffy, but in a way quick at the same time. Finding Slayers around the world took up most of her time, but however her nights were long and timeless. Buffy missed Sunnydale, her friends, patrolling in "her" cemetery, and The Bronze. She also missed a certain vampire who she was supposed to move on from.

After Spike's sacrifice everyone understood Buffy's depressing moods but after time they wanted her to move on. So one morning she woke up and decided to move on, just like that. For weeks she didn't even mention his name. However, when moments she was alone, in the apartment she got the urge to cry. There were many things she never got to say to him. She kept playing the scene in the Hellmouth over and over and wondered if she could have said something more to make him go with her or to convince him more that she loves him.

Buffy expected that her new life would be wonderful and full of freedom; this was her time to find out what she wanted and who she wanted. But as the months passed by all Buffy did was dreamed and reminisced about her time in Sunnydale.

The doorbell rang and broke Buffy's thought, she went to the front door and opened to reveal Andrew.

"Andrew?" Buffy questioned.

"Hi. Giles sent me." Andrew explained and both Buffy and he walked into the apartment.

"So what's the deal?" Buffy got straight to the point.

"Well I got a major baddie for you." Andrew handed Buffy a folder.

"Yay." Buffy said sarcastically, "New baddies are what I live for." She took the folder and opened it but paused, "But wait...I don't live for this anymore...why do I have to do this? Can't another Slayer do this?"

"I'm just the messenger...oh and this is not an 'new' baddie...its an old one...The Immortal. He's been around for a while—"

"Hence the name...'Immortal'?" Buffy chirped in.

"Well anyway...he goes by 'Francisco' now." Andrew pointed out.

"So...what has he done?" Buffy shut the folder and looked to Andrew. She was never much for the reading and wanted to know the information quick and since Andrew loves to snoop he would know everything in the folder.

"He stole a head and is holding it ransom." Andrew explained.

"Ewww..." Buffy made a disgusting face.

"Yeah...I know...but if The Immortal kills the head it will mean bad news. You need to retrieve the head and sent it to..." Andrew coughed, "Angel."

"What was that?" Buffy leaned forward and held her hand to her ear.

"Well umm...the head needs to go to...Angel." Andrew muttered and looked down.

"Angel?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah..." Andrew said quietly, "But you don't have to see him if you don't want to...I'll deliver it."

"When I get the head we'll talk UPS but tell me more about this...Francisco." Buffy demanded.

TBC...