Title: Beginning Alterations

Feedback: I love it…all kinds of it!

Disclaimer: Nothing's mine, blah, blah, blah…you know the routine.

Author's Notes: Some of the dialogues in this story are quotes from BtVS. Again I don't own any of this stuff so don't sue me.

Chapter 1

Angel staggered along the filthy streets of Manhattan. The soul was scratching at him, consuming his mind and making him crazy. He sighed, taking an unneeded breath and rested against a wall. He was tired and hungry. He smelled something and searched the alley with his eyes as he spotted a rat scampering across to the other side of the street. He took a couple of unsteady steps as he began to stalk the rat. It disappeared into a pile of trashcans and bags and Angel dived after it. He nosily scattered the trashcans and bags and lost the rat in the process. A man came into the alley behind him and watched as Angel rolled over to sit and hit the trashcans in anger over missing the rat. The man approached him with disgust written all over his face.

"Boy you're a sight for sore eyes." He spoke in much purposeful sarcasm. Angel just sat there having calmed down a little.

"This is really an unforgettable smell. This is the stench of death you're giving off here. And the look says, uh... crazy homeless guy. It's not all that good you know." Angel looked up at him eyes glaring angrily.

"Get away from me."

"A little grouchy are we? What are you going to do, bite me? Oh the horror! A vampire!" he jumped back a little pretending to be scared but hardly of the sorts. Angel looked up at him surprised.

"But you wouldn't bite me. Not with your poor tortured soul in the way. Damn those things." He grinned ever so slightly. Angel looked up at him with confusion.

"Who are you?"

"Lets take a walk." Angel hesitated a little but finally got up and began to walk with the man. They walked for a while along the sidewalk and Angel wasn't paying much attention to the traffic as an oncoming car almost hit him. The man grabbed his arm and pulled him back on the sidewalk. The car honked as they continued to walk.

"Hey! Look, you're skin and bones here! Butcher shops are throwing away more blood in a day than you could stand. Good blood…you lived in the world a little bit, you'd know that." Angel stopped the man and turned him to look at him. He glared at him as he was losing his patience.

"I wanna know who you are."

"And I wanna know who *you* are."

"You already do."

The man crossed his arms in front of his chest. "I don't know because from the looks of it you can go either way."

"I don't understand you."

He chuckled a little as he uncrossed his arms. "No one understands me…that's *my* curse. My name's Whistler…well lately it is." Angel sniffed him and Whistler pushed him back. "Hey there Rover…"

"You're not a vampire."

"I'm a demon…technically. I mean I'm not a bad guy. Not all demons are dedicated to the destruction of all life."

"What did you mean I could go either way?"

"You can either stay a worthless nobody or you can become someone. A person. Someone to be counted on." Angel turned and started to walk away.

"I just want to be left alone."

"Ok, I can leave you alone. For what…another 90 years? Then you'll be worst then a stink guy." Angel stopped and turned back to look at Whistler.

"What do you want from me?"

"I want you to see something. We have to leave here so, you see, then you tell me what you wanna do." Angel just looked at him and Whistler pointed his hand in a certain direction.

"This way please." He led Angel down an alley and then they disappeared.

They came to a high school with kids streaming out because school just let out. An old, rusted Chevy Impala with black spray-painted windows pulled up across the street. The driver's window rolled down and Angel looked out at the screaming kids across at the school.

"This is the best you could do?" He turned and looked at Whistler who was sitting in the passenger seat.

"Do I look like I'm made out of money? Besides, Chevy Impalas are the best around so get over it." He leaned in so he could get a better view of the kids at the school.

"Cute isn't she?"

"Who?"

Angel looked back out the window at who Whistler was looking at and spotted a young girl no more then maybe 16. She had shoulder length blonde hair and was a skinny petite young person. Angel stared at her as she talked to her friends. She had a big smile and seemed to get along with the two other people she was with. One was a girl with long red hair and the other was a tall guy with black hair. They talked and laughed together as a man approached them. He looked like the librarian of the school as he was carrying books. He wore an old fashioned 3-piece suit and wore glasses. Angel looked back at the young blonde girl and was amazed at her beauty.

"Yeah she's beautiful."

Whistler settled back into his seat on the passenger side. "Her name's Buffy Summers. She transferred from a Los Angeles High School after burning down their gym." Angel turned to look back at Whistler a little surprised.

"Why did she do that?"

"I'm coming to that. Her mom thought it would be better if they moved somewhere where they could start fresh. So they moved here, to Sunnydale." Whistler looked at the group of people talking and Angel turned back to look at Buffy.

"She's what they call a vampire slayer. I'm guessing you're familiar with the term already." Angel didn't say anything and Whistler took that as a yes.

"Anyways, a group of vampires attacked her school and so the only way to get rid of them was to burn down the gym which led to making a big scene and forcing her and her mom to leave Los Angeles."

"What happened to her dad?"

"Her dad and mom got divorced when she was 14 and yet another reason they decided to move here. The people you see with her are her little groupie friends. One watcher, one computer nerd, and one ordinary comedian."

"So I imagine they know about her secret already?"

"Yup."

"So why is she so important?"

"We'll get back to that. Now lets focus our attention to this young lady." Whistler pointed to a young girl about the same age as Buffy coming from the school. She was taller with long chocolate brown hair. She was a little more sophisticated and seemed to hang with a snobbier group of friends but knew Buffy and her group of friends.

"That's Cordelia Chase. She comes from a very rich family and is very picky about what she wears."

"I can see that." Angel looked at her and rolled his eyes at her smart attitude. Whistler chuckled.

"Not your type?"

"Not really."

"Well looks can be deceiving." Angel turned to Whistler.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Let me show you. Keep driving." Angel rolled up the window after taking one last look at Buffy and started the car. They drove forward and it again disappeared without anyone knowing.

TBC! I know some of this stuff you already know but I had to start somewhere. Well, tell me what ya think and I'll be back with the next chapter soon. Love Ya! ~Michele~