Title: Her Presence Still Felt

Summary: Months after her death Angel can still feel Buffy B/A

Disclaimer: Buffy, Angel etc are not mine, don't own any of them. If I did Buffy and Angel would still be together. P.S. Joss is evil!!!!!

This is how the reunion should have gone.

Gunn was on the counter of the hotel, trying to get any semblance of order into their files. Ever since they had returned from Pylea and found Willow in the foyer, life had been hell. Cordelia was shaken and upset. Wesley more shocked then anything. He had told Gunn later that even though he knew it to be untrue, he had thought the slayer to be invincible. That was how she had seemed to him. Fred had no idea what was going on. She had only been in their company for a short time, barely knowing any of them let alone comprehending the phenomenon that was Buffy and Angel.

"It's Buffy."

That single phrase had shattered the little world that Gunn had built for himself, a surrogate family and a new life. It was all in shambles.

When they walked through that door and Angel saw Willow, he knew. He knew straight away that she was gone. The little I had ever heard about "Tornado Buffy", as Cordelia had often called her, I never truly understood their connection. But at that moment it was written all over Angel's face. The man was in serious pain.

Three months later and nothing was as it had been, Angel was in deep brood mode. He hadn't left his room from that day to this. No one could coax him out. It had been a war to get him to eat. Cordelia, Wesley, Lorne, no one could get through to him. Lorne had arrived this morning and was trying yet again. No one held out much hope.

So here he was sifting through files, getting more and more frustrated by the second. Cordelia had a filing system was in a league of it's own, a league that only Cordelia could possibly comprehend. With Angel well and truly out of action, they had had no clients since Pylea and no clients meant no money and no money meant no food and pretty soon, no hotel.

"Gunn?" a timid voice came from under the desk.

"Yeah, Fred?" Gunn replied.

"Do you need. I mean.. can I ..ah .help?" she asked.

Gunn turned and knelt to Fred's level under the desk. "I would love some help, girl. Now get your gorgeous self out from under that desk!" he said offering his hand.

Fred beamed her 1000 watt smile that rarely saw the light of day, took Gunn's hand and for the first time, ventured out from under her safety blanket.

"What can I do?" she asked in a shy almost whisper.

"How about you try to sought this lot out?" he said sliding a bundle of files down the counter towards her. "Think you can handle that?"

"Well it's not quantum mechanics but I can try." Fred said beaming that smile again.

Gunn smiled back. He wasn't sure but he had this nagging little feeling that that smile was gonna be a problem for him not too far into the future.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

/Ain't no sunshine when she's gone only darkness everyday/

Lorne gently knocked on Angel's door, pushing it open as he went. "Angel- cakes? Still undead in here?" The room was pitch black. Nothing unusual there. Lorne could just make out a bundle of blankets contorted on the bed. "I'm not complaining about the dark, nothing new there but Honey, you gotta do something about this smell!"

/ain't no sunshine when she's gone this house just ain't no home anytime she goes away/

A voiced came from the blankets. "Go away Lorne."

"Well, Sweetie, I'd like to and I will but not quite yet. First we're going to have a little chat. Demon to blankets."

"Leave, Lorne." Angel growled, sitting up suddenly "Or I'll."

"Or you'll what? Stink me too death? Gotta say, it's already working. You seriously need to get out of this flunk and leave this room. And burn those blankets. Ugh!"

/Ain't no sunshine when she's gone Only darkness everyday/

"Lorne, you don't understand..."

"No. You know what I don't understand is why you are still in this room. Do you think that that little slayer of yours would have wanted this for you? Do you think that when she sacrificed her life for her sister and the world, that she thought this was how you would remember her? By virtually killing yourself? This is not how to remember her."

/ain't no sunshine when she's gone it's not warm when she's away/

"You don't have a clue, do you? How much she meant to me. How much she changed my life forever. How much I feel like I can't even move now that she's gone."

"This is not the way to honour her and what she did for your life. Don't you think that she would of felt just a little bit easier leaving this world, knowing that you were here to protect it for her?"

/ain't no sunshine when she's gone and she's always gone too long any time she goes away/

"I don't know. I just can't comprehend the fact that she is gone. I can't accept it. She was so full of life and vibrancy. She was my sunshine, my life for so long. I can still feel her presence, just like I always could, even miles away. Right now I could swear that she is here in the hotel."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gunn and Fred hadn't been at the filing for long when they heard a sound they hadn't heard for a long time, the front door bell. A client! And God was this a beautiful one. Even if this hadn't been the first customer in four months, Gunn thought he would had fallen all over himself to get to her anyway. She was tiny with hair of spun gold, glistening in the sun.

With Gunn standing there with his tongue hanging out of his head, Fred did something she never thought she'd do. "Welcome to Angel Investigations. We help the hopeless. How can we help you?"

Gunn turned to Fred even more bewildered then before. Did Fred just say that to a stranger?! Where did she even hear it?

The potential client didn't seem to notice this. "I'm here to see Angel."

Gunn returned to his senses at this point. "I'm sorry but Angel is unavailable at the moment. Can my colleagues and I perhaps help you?"

"I'm not a client. This is a personal visit. I'm here to see Angel. Where is he?" The blonde had seemed reserved when she first arrived but was get more determined by the minute.

"I'm sorry," Gunn repeated "but Angel has just recently lost someone very close to him and can't see anyone at the moment."

"I know. He'll want to see me."

"Look, I don't know what your relationship is to Angel but he won't see you. He won't see anyone."

The blonde turned and started towards the stairs. "I know he's upstairs. If you won't tell me which room he's in I'll just have to start searching."

Gunn raced from behind the counter, Fred a few metres behind, and positioned himself between the blonde and the stairs.

"Look, Lady! I don't know who the hell you think you are but you are NOT going to go up stairs and upset him even more!" Gunn practically yelled.

"Move!"

"Okay, okay." Fred said trying to keep the peace. "Can't we find some other solution? Isn't there anyone else here that can help you?"

The blonde seemed to calm down a bit. "Fine. Get Cordelia. Where is she?"

"Cordelia's up stairs. I'LL go and get her." Fred said when Gunn started to make another move towards the stairs. "Be nice."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Cordelia?"

Cordelia had followed Lorne to Angel's room and was standing in the hall. She was so concerned for her friend that she had bullied Lorne into trying to get through to Angel again. Everyone had tried but it seemed that Lorne was finally getting somewhere.

"Cordelia?" Fred asked again.

Jolted out of her thoughts, Cordelia ushered Fred away from the doorway. "SHHH!!!!! Fred! Angel'll hear!"

"Sorry. There is a girl downstairs demanding to see Angel. She won't take no for an answer but she'll talk to you." Fred explained.

"God! Can nothing be done without me in this place! Come on, we'll see what this chick wants." Cordelia complained, lead Fred down the stairs. "I mean, can't Gunn take care of this himself?! It's not like she's." Cordelia faltered when she reached the top of the stairs and caught sight of the blonde arguing with gunn at the bottom. ". a slayer. Ohh my God." Cordelia fell to the floor, her hand covering her mouth.

"Cordelia? What's wrong? Is it a vision?"

"Go get Angel Fred!"

"But."

"I don't care, just get him!" Cordelia hissed.

Fred ran.

"Angel! Angel!" Fred practically screamed when she got to his room.

Both vampire and demon looked up. "Fred?!"

"Cordelia. *gasp*.. collapsed..*gasp* ... at the top of the stairs!*gasp*"

Angel shed his blankets and for the first time in four months, left his room. Angel bolted to the stairs and grabbed Cordelia who was still sitting there, in the same position with her hand over her mouth and a look of shock on her face.

"Cordelia, what's wrong? Are you hurt, was it a vision?"

"Angel. Angel! Look" Cordelia interrupted pointing to the bottom of the stairs. Angel stopped and turned. His entire body was still, no breath, no voice not a heartbeat. His face mirroring Cordelia's shock.

Suddenly he moved like a blur, running and vaulting over the railing, landing two floors down with the grace of a cat.

The blonde turned sensing the movement as Angle moved towards her.

'Angel man." Gunn stopped speaking when Angel strode forward grasped the blonde by the shoulders and passionately and furiously kissed her. He pulled away and looked at her.

"Buffy."