All characters except for Shanshu belongs to Joss Whedon. Shanshu and Will's family belongs to me. I did not make any money off of this.

Prophesy After the Fact

Part One

By Marie Nomad

Rain poured as Angel stood up from the carcass of the dragon. Hordes of demons come in from all sides as the four stood against the darkness. He fought for hours. He lost sight of his fellow fighters and felt so alone. The demons kept them apart, except for the occasional explosion; he didn't know what was going on.

Then, he felt something surge in his system. Out of nowhere, he leapt high into the air and jumped into the horde of demons. A bright light came out of his body and he vanished into a flash of dust.

Angel blinked as he found himself in the Hyperion and then felt his body. In front of him was Illyria tending to the still breathing Gunn and Spike. They were all wounded but alive. "Glad to see all of you alive." He said finally. They were silently contemplating. "Look, I know that battle was hard and that I really don't know how we got out but can…" He became annoyed when no one was even looking at him. "Hey!" He yelled as he grabbed Spike's shoulder only to see it went through. The man stared at his hand and then waved it several times through Spike's head. "I'm dead, again."

"You've always been dead."

Angel looked behind to see a young teenage girl dressed in a normal t-shirt with blue jeans. She had bright pink hair and purple eyes. "You can see me?"

"Yeah." The girl said as she rolled her eyes. "You're a spirit trapped in the folds of the afterlife. You're not going to Hell and you're not going to Heaven."

"Where am I going?"

"New Jersey."

"What?" Angel had to shake the confusion out of his brain. Did she just say that she was going to send him to New Jersey?

"Come on. Let's go somewhere less… distracting." The girl took his hand and in a whirlwind, they appeared in a coffee café.

"Why are we here?"

"Why are we here? The classical philosophy of those who had too much time on their hands." The girl sighed and Angel glared at her.

"I mean, in this coffee place, and why am I a ghost?" Angel demanded as he grabbed her by the arm. "Are you sent by the Senior Partners?"

"Those guys? Ha! No way and I'm not sent by the Powers That Be either. This place makes you the most comfortable and I thought that we could talk there. As for the next question….You know about the Shanshu prophesy? You know, that prophesy that involves a nasty apocalypse and you being dead and reborn?"

"Well, I have some familiarity with it." Angel said calmly as he remembered signing that destiny away.

"I'm Shanshu." Shanshu said as she put both hands on her chest.

"You're the prophesy? I…" Angel looked at her. "You don't look like the prophesy type."

"Have you ever met a prophesy?" Shanshu asked as she pouted. Angel remained silent. "I don't think so. Look, you have been in worlds with two suns, you have manipulated memories, people you care about come back to life on a regular basis, what makes you think that prophesies are just words written down by insane old men who can glimpse into the future while writing French backwards?"

"I see your point. Sorry." Angel said looking uncomfortable. "I think you should go to Spike. I signed my destiny away."

"Spike has a different destiny. You're the one for me." Shanshu said as she put her hand on his chest. "I know about whole signing away bit. Those Senior Partners have little idea on how strong I am. You see, I'm not just a prophesy, I'm 'She who Brings Out Impossible Births', that's what Shanshu means in the ancient language. All those crazy creations, Conner, Jasmine, Michael Jackson's kids, all those are my doing."

"Okay. So, what do you want to do with me?" Angel asked as he shook his head.

"Well, you see, if you have just been turned into a human, things would be hard. You have no documentation, no life on paper; you don't even have a driver's license. Not only that but there are demons that are very mad at you and vampires who would love to bring Angelus back." Shanshu explained. "You actually made things easier by making it so your body can't be turned back into being Human."

"Uh huh. What can you do?"

Shanshu sighed, "As a CEO of a law firm, you must know that for every contract, there is a loophole. I can't turn your body back but what I can do is put your mind and soul into a human body, like that movie with Chris Rock."

"You can do that?"

"Sure, it's a little tricky. For one thing, you can't exactly tell everyone that you are Angel. Your new family will think that you're insane and by the time you're done, you won't know where your friends will be. Also, you can't go off demon hunting like you do before. Your new body won't be able to handle it." Shanshu explained.

"Sounds logical." Angel said as he bit his lip. "Will I remember everything?"

"Yeah, but it will be like a dream. You will remember stuff but it will be foggier. It's to make your transition easier." Shanshu said, "Hopefully, you won't meet the people from your past life."

"With my luck?"

The being paused and said, "Just think positive. Want to say goodbye to your friends?"

Angel pondered and shook his head. "No, they know how I felt. Besides, Illyria and Spike might notice me if I go back. Take me to New Jersey."

"Okay, hold on tight." Shanshu took his hand again and vanished.

XXX

Angel's head throbbed as he opened his eyes. The first thing he was aware off was the annoying beeping in the heart monitors. The second thing he noticed was that a middle aged couple was sitting by his side. The third thing he noticed was the huge tube down his throat giving him air. He looked at the two and then the middle aged woman looked back at him.

"Oh my god! Jacob! He's awake!" The woman sobbed as she knelt by his head. "Are you okay?"

Angel just nodded. These people are worried about him but he didn't know them. "It's okay, son." Jacob said as he held his hand. "We're going to get the doctor."

"Dr. Simmons!" The woman cried out.

"Yes?" An old doctor with glasses came up and gasped as he looked at Angel. "You're awake!"

Angel lifted his free hand and gestured to his breathing tube.

"Oh, yes, we will take that out soon. Do you remember what happened?"

The man shook his head. He didn't know what happened to this body but it must have been serious.

"Well, you were in a car accident with your sister about a year ago. You had been in a coma and I thought you were brain dead." Dr. Simmons explained and then Angel grabbed his hand. He stared at him wildly. He didn't want to deal with a dead sister, not again, even though this girl wouldn't really be his sister, he didn't want her to be dead.

"It's okay. Leia's fine." The woman said calmly, "She is at school right now."

Angel relaxed and then looked at his breathing tube again. He has questions, lots of questions, like what his new name was and who was this woman. He started to point to his breathing tube and make a motion of getting it out.

"Yes, yes, I know. We'll get that out." Dr. Simmons smiled slightly as he took the tube. "Now, breathe out on the count of three. One… two… three." The man pulled and Angel coughed out the tube.

"Water." Angel hoarsely said with his throat was parched with thirst.

"Of course." The woman handed him a glass of water and he gulped it down.

"Thanks." Angel paused and then looked at his bracelet. His medical bracelet read out, 'William Smith'. "My name is William?" He couldn't help but felt like Shanshu had a warped sense of humor. Spike's human name was 'William', he called him that back when he was Angelus and mad at him. Not only that but if people called him 'Will' then he would be 'Will Smith'.

"Yes, of course. You don't know your name?" The woman asked.

"No… I'm sorry. Who are you two? Are you my parents?" Angel asked as he looked up at them.

"Oh god." The woman sobbed as she grabbed his hand. "I'm your mother, Elizabeth Smith and this is Jacob Smith. Let me show you what you look like." Elizabeth looked into her purse and held out a hand mirror.

Angel gazed into the mirror to see a dark haired man with chocolate colored eyes. He had a strong jaw and looked like someone in a football team. "I'm sorry, he… I don't remember that face." Angel said as he handed the mirror back.

"Don't worry; we'll get your memory back, William. You can help him right?" Elizabeth pleaded to the doctor.

"I don't know. It was a miracle that he even got out of his coma. So, permanent memory loss is possible. He may also show a different personality than before. We need to take more tests." Dr. Simmons explained. He looked down at Angel. "We're going to do brain functioning tests and cat scans to see how much brain damage you have."

Angel nodded. It was perfect. They know that amnesia is possible in him and with brain damage, he could act the way he wanted to and they can blame it on the brain damage. "Just do what you can, doctor."

XXX

The day flew by as Angel endured test after test. He played with blocks, did logic exams, and he had to go through the CT scan a few times. He never liked enclosed spaces, especially after his three month vacation in a steel coffin in the bottom of the ocean. Finally, he was done and he was relaxing in his bed.

A young dark haired girl knocked at the door and came in. "Hi. Do you remember me?"

Angel stared at her and shook his head. "Sorry, you're my sister right?"

"Yeah, I'm Leia. Dad was a real Star Wars fan." The girl laughed as she came in and sat down next to him. "Do you remember anything like in the accident?"

"No, in fact the earliest thing I can remember was waking up this morning." Angel couldn't help but feel guilty. Leia was the same age as Buffy back when he first met her. This girl was young and wearing a green school uniform. "So, Leia. Maybe, things will jump start if you tell me a bit about me. Like how old am I? What day is it? And do I have a girlfriend?" He found himself praying that he doesn't. The last thing he needs is to have a girlfriend he never met before.

"Oh, sure. You're 27. It's April 11, 2005. You don't have a job and no girlfriend. Ummm… you're a musician hoping to make it big."

Angel's eyes widened. It had been six months since he had died in the alley. What happened to him during that time? "I can sing?"

"Yeah, you're a great singer. Really into heavy metal." Leia smiled slightly. "I'm in high school, senior year, so much is going on."

"I bet." Angel paused and asked, "Where is this place? I mean, I know that I'm in a hospital."

"Oh, you're in the Sunnydale Hospital in Sunnydale, New Jersey." Leia replied as Angel's jaw dropped. He couldn't believe it. He had ended up in another Sunnydale in New Jersey. "You okay?"

"Yeah, just… that name sounded bad that's all." Angel said, "Kinda ominous."

"Well, there was this Sunnydale in California that got hit by a powerful earthquake and imploded while everyone was out on vacation. Don't worry, there are no earthquakes here."

"What about vampires?"

"Vampires?" Leia repeated as she paled slightly.

Angel nearly slapped himself on the head. He had forgotten that normal people don't talk about vampires like they are real. "Never mind. Stupid question. Brain damage and all."

"Yeah, just don't worry. Vampires don't exist." Leia said as she shook her head. "I'm going to go and get your stuff. Mom and Dad were so worried about you."

"I'm sorry." Angel looked up at her. "I really don't remember you but I hope we get along. Really."

"Sure. I'm busy a lot with after school stuff but I'll try to visit as much as I can." Leia bowed her head and walked away.

Angel watched her and laid his head back. "Oh man."

"What do you think?" Shanshu asked as she appeared out of nowhere. "Pretty nice. Eh?"

"This is weird." Angel confessed, "I'm a different man and…" He put his hand over his much smaller muscles. "I have to work out."

"It's your body now."

"What happened to the real William?" He asked, "Did he die or did I push him out?"

"Oh, he was in there before I got him out. He was practically bored to death. I mean, that coffin thing you were in for three months was nothing compared to being trapped in your mind." Shanshu said as she sat beside him. "I offered him a chance to get out and help someone so he gave me his body in exchange of getting him out and into the afterlife."

"So, he was willing to do this." Angel sighed in relief.

"Of course. You can't just abduct a mind and soul out of the body without permission." Shanshu said as she smiled. "It's your body, your life; you can do whatever you want."

"Good." Angel nodded. "I have plans."

"It's good to have a plan. I have to go. I'll be watching." Shanshu vanished in a whirlwind.

"How does she do that?" Angel wondered as he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

To Be Continued…