.What You Hear Over The Phone.

Sequel to 'Broken

The story is 1490432

Parings: Buffy/Angel, Anne/Gunn, Doyle/Alonna,

Timeline: between S3 and S4, Grad pt.2-Freshman, in the summer

Notes: Buffy-talking Anne-talking

Music

It had been Two weeks since Buffy's graduation, and Joyce's conscience was getting to her.

Had she really been right to ask Angel to leave, making up her own mind for her daughter that was so in love?

Was it really right that Angel had left?

Joyce sighed as she finished her coffee. It was afternoon, and summer. But Buffy was still in her room.

She smiled as she heard the guitar from her daughter's room. It had been years since she had heard her touch the thing.

Joyce knew her daughter could play. But she didn't know the extent, and she had no idea that she could sing. She was momentarily awed and calmed with the singing. And then she heard what it was that Buffy was singing.

It doesn't matter what I want
It doesn't matter what I need
It doesn't matter if I cry
Don't matter if I bleed
You've been on a road
Don't know where it goes or where it leads

This is where the music stops when the phone rings. Joyce goes to pick it up, but sees the red light on it, showing that it is in use. Joyce is about to sit down, when her curiosity overcomes her, and she picks it up silently, careful not to be heard.

/ "Hey Buffy."/

/ "Hey Anne. What's up? You haven't called in a few weeks?"/

/ "Nothing much, but Gunn is getting antsy. He's been fighting demons all week and banging things over the head. He thinks his body wants him to start bangin' the drums instead of the demons."/

Buffy giggled over the phone line. Joyce didn't know what was going on. She didn't know any Anne or Gunn.

/ "How's Alonna?" /

/ "She's doing fine. Gunn is hyper that he's an uncle now, although, he is kind of weirded that his nephew is quarter bracken."/

Buffy could be heard laughing lightly over the phone.

/ "How is Little Leo?"/

/ "He eats like a tiger, and I think he is definitely going to fit into the demon hunting business. He is just a baby, and he is already banging the little musical baby device thingy. It's driving me nuts. And Tito is acting like a dog. That four year old, we decided to name Jason. We haven't figured out who his parents are yet, and I doubt we will. But he is showing a like to helping Tito. He keeps calling him Toto."/

Joyce could hear the giggle on the other side of the line, and then on Buffy's side.

/ "And how my friend, are you? They aren't being too tough on you are they? You don't need to just slow down and take a break?" /

/ "No, I'm fine."/

/"If you could just ask the Powers if they could hurry along with the damn day, then maybe I can get some proper sleep and not worry about you dying before we have a chance to get them to the hellmouth before the world ends."/

Buffy laughed.

/ "It wouldn't matter anyways. I saw the whole other timeline. And let me just say, I have the lives of a cat. My scoobies wouldn't quit bringing me back, which I am still not sure if I can trust them for. And they actually thought I was in hell? Puhlease... But Dawn's not here, I don't know if she will be. I hope so, since she's my sister, but if that happens, well, what about the tumor?"/

Joyce could hear Buffy visible shiver through the phone.

/ "I don't know B."/

/ "Oh please don't start calling me that. Faith wouldn't quit, and if I'm right, she will be the same way when she gets out of her coma."/

/ "How long does she have?"/

/ "According to the other timeline, I was in the second semester, first year of college. She woke up, tried to kill me, and kidnapped my mother, stole my body, then she went to LA. And I wish I didn't know the painful stuff that happened there. I know it was nothing, but still. All we have to do now is wait for thanksgiving, and then I can tell Angel."/

There was a pause on both sides of the phone.

/ "Huh. I bet that hurt."/

/ "Yeah, I saw it coming, and figured that it would still happen, even though it could have been prevented. But, I dunno. I went through it through her, or my, her memories. I went through everything in her/my memories, but I am glad that I went back in time. I get them out of it. And if that's the only difference, at least I will have something else to live for." /

There was a pause on the line that lasted a few minutes.

/"Dawnie was killed in the last battle, and Andrew was at her side. A lot of the potentials died, but that was expected. The First used my embodiment and threw me off, even though I figured it would. It cut me, and I was forced to hand it off to Faith. I didn't make it to the safe house. The killer of the dead got into me, and since I wasn't anywhere near him at the moment, then I guess you could call me spiritually dead... I, I never even got to see them..."/

/ "Buffy, don't worry about it. We have the chance to save everyone, and we took it. A lot of players aren't here yet, but that's okay. We just gotta keep it on track until the time comes."/

/ "Yeah, I know. I wonder if Cordelia will realize that Doyle doesn't really have eyes for her. She was looking at him like Angelus did to me when it was just us in shadows. Stalkers are really creepy."/

/ "How was it to take over? Any problems?"/

/ "No. I knew I was nearly dead in the last few weeks, but I didn't think it was so bad. Must have been the time through memory. I think my head tuned the feelings way down. If you thought I was bad when we thought they were gonna die, it was almost as bad here. Just quietly, and none of them noticed. Which is a good thing. Actually, it might have been a bad thing. Bad for me now and then- but I don't know. I just keep knowing that he would know if something were off."/

Joyce of course had no idea what was going on or what they were talking about. But that didn't stop any of their chatter.

/Alonna has another five months, and then you're an aunt, again. Doyle is not here yet, but he will be around soon. I am still trying to figure out how we're gonna tell him. /

/"Why don't you just coax him in, and try to find some way to give him the vision?"/

/ "that's what we were thinking, but I don't know... Will he believe it?"/

/ "Knowing our luck, doubtful, but you never know. Maybe the PTBs will care about us for once, and not treat us like pons."/

/ "Yeah. Let's hope so..."/


It doesn't matter what I want
It doesn't matter what I need
If you've made up your mind to go
I won't beg you to stay
You've been in a cage
Throw you to the wind you fly away

/ "They've been crying like crazy since he left you know."/

Joyce heard on the line.

/ "Yeah, I figured they would. I swear, I felt like something ripped my heart out bare-handed. Just cause I knew it would happen didn't lessen the impact. Not even since it was the second time I had to go through it."/

/ "I'd hate to be where you are now. At least our family is over here. Except for you of course."/

Joyce could tell her daughter decided to switch subjects next.

/ "How are they?"/

/ "They're okay. But they miss you."/

/ "I miss them too. But I gotta of course save the world again, instead of worry about my own life."/

Joyce could tell her daughter was bitter about something. But not what. She was out of the loop of the whole conversation. She had no idea what was going on.

/ "The portal is still closed, and it looks like it will stay that way for a while, we can hope. It's kinda quiet over here. Any good violence over there?"/

/ "Not really. I've only patrolled a little. I gotta keep from falling into tears and sobs like I did before. But it's still hard."/

/ "Let's just be glad that we got to keep our ideas, and the kids. I don't wanna even think about if we had to leave without them."/

/ "Don't give the First any ideas Lil. I couldn't bear it if those two were taken from me. It's bad enough that I had to come back to being unhappy-act-happy-Buffy over here with the scoobies. I just wanna get back to you guys. Sure they were once my friends until they betrayed me. But still... I just wanna be home, and watch them grow, and then I can die some peaceful death- not that my nature will allow me to."/

/ "Think of it this way. If we succeed in saving the past, then they won't be not-your-friends anymore maybe. And then things will change in the time continuum, and maybe they will go back to you in another form."/

/ "yeah, that'll be nice... I didn't get him around when they were..."/

/ "Yeah."/


It doesn't matter what I want
It doesn't matter what I need
It doesn't matter if I cry
Don't matter if I bleed
Feel the sting of tears
Falling on this face you've loved for years

/ "Hey, Gunn needs to use the phone, and the others say 'Hi!' So I'll call back in a bit, and make sure you haven't gone out and gotten yourself killed yet."/

Buffy laughed a little, and you could nearly hear the nod over the phone.

/ "Yes ma'am! I salute you- actually, I think I am your upper officer. But oh, well. Let's just hope that our plan doesn't get screwed up, and we succeed in changing the world for the better. I can go home, be happy, and have my wonderful life, in the sunlight with Angel. Although, if he never turned human if the PTBs somehow went bad in their plan, I guess that I make him know that I love demons and darkness just the same, and there is no way that we'll be able to get out of it."/

/ "Now, if you could only just get your mother to believe that..."/

/ "Ah, alas. Im afraid that wishes such as those are very unlikely, hellmouth or no."/

/ "True."/

/ "Of course, I know that they won't get out of that world, but I was kinda raised in it. So I guess that Im just used to the badness. "/

The girl that Joyce didn't know laughed.

/ "Sorry, I guess I'll let you go. Tell Gunn he still owes me five bucks for the Quarter bet, and he owes me ward spell for the nightmare."/

/ "Will do. Have fun, and make sure you don't get yourself killed."/

/ "I'll try."?/

Joyce had no idea what was going on, or who the other people were. But she knew that her daughter were talking to a friend that she had definitely spent some time with. But nothing could have prepared herself for what came next.

/ "You better! Oh, and Buffy. Hurry up, they want you home."/

Confusion from Joyce.

/ "I have no control over it- and I wanna be home too. Don't you think Liam and Elizabeth are apart of me as well. It nearly hurts to be so far from my babies."/

Joyce shock, as well as confusion

/ "I know. Listen, I gotta let you go, Gunn's edgy again."/

/ "Okay, hear from you later. Bye."/

And with that, the phone was hung up.

Chapter end.

TBC?

-Only if you give me lots of reviews and ideas for the sequel or next chapter. But this will just be a small simple fic if you don't give me reviews and