A/N: Sorry for the long delay. It's impossible to write and do all the school work required of you in college. I'll try to finish up the story before I head back to college on the 26 of January. I hope I didn't lose too many of you. I apologize again.
Chapter One
They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.
Andy Warhol
After being on the road for a month the one thing Buffy learned was that her life was not going to change with time. It was her that needed to change herself. Buffy took that knowledge and ran with it as she stepped into a place that she had promised herself she would never return too. It was still too dangerous for her to be in LA. She wasn't even talking about how there was no sun and Angel had lost his soul becoming Angeles once more. Buffy was talking more about the fact that the Scooby gang could be around any corner as they were most likely still searching for her. It had only been a month since she had last stood in Sunnydale. Buffy pushed that thought to the back of her mind as she moved through the darkened streets of LA. She arrived at the hotel that she knew Angel had been living in with his friends without much problem. She only came in contact with about twenty vampires, but now they were all just piles of dust. When Buffy entered the hotel she didn't see anyone around.
"Hello," Buffy called out, "Anyone home?"
Just as Buffy spoke her last word an arrow flew at her. She only managed to jump out of the way as it grazed her left arm tearing her shirt in the process. Buffy didn't even notice the cut on her arm as she quickly sprang into her defense position. She quickly scanned the room trying to figure out where the arrow had come from and if anymore was to come her way any time soon. She spotted movement at the top of the stairs and she quickly rolled over so her back was to the far wall. From this point no one was able to hit her with any arrows unless they were to come down the stairs.
"Who are you?" a familiar British voice called from above.
The British voice sounded familiar but she wasn't able to place who it was. She knew it wasn't Giles since he was still back in Sunnydale. He was the only man from Britain that she knew in the United States besides Wesley. Then it occurred to her that Wesley had been working for Angel the last time she had spoken to him. It had surprised her at first especially when she saw how much he had changed since his days in Sunnydale as the uptight watcher she had first met.
"Wesley it's me Buffy," Buffy called out.
Buffy heard muttering above and she couldn't help but think some things would never change for the watcher. Then she heard him yell to others that the coast was clear. After a few moments Wesley appeared on the stairs along with some others that Buffy didn't recognize. The last time she had been there was when Faith had escaped from Sunnydale and had gone to Angel for help. The only other two people she had seen besides Angel had been Cordelia and Wesley.
"Buffy it is good to see you," Wesley told her.
After introductions had been made she learned that the people Wesley was with was Fred, a girl they rescued from another dimension, Gunn, who was a local helping Angel, and Angel's son Connor. It was Connor that surprised Buffy though she didn't let it show on her face as she shook each of their hands as Wesley introduced them. It was just that Buffy had never thought it possible for vampires to have children. She never even thought it possible for Darla and Angel to have a child together. It wasn't as if she were mad that it wasn't her having it with him, but Darla of all people or vampires.
"So I heard some of what has been going on," Buffy told them to explain why she had shown up, "I figured I would come and lend a hand."
"Thank you. Your help is much needed," Wesley told her, "We were just about to call Sunnydale for assistance."
Buffy turned away so that Wesley wouldn't see the look on her face when Sunnydale was mentioned. She didn't want him to realize that she hadn't been in Sunnydale for over a month. If he knew she knew Wesley would hurry up and call there to let the others know that he had found Buffy for them. It was still to early for her to return home. She hadn't put her life back in order yet. She also knew that their pity party hadn't ended yet. She wondered if it ever would.
"So give me the details," Buffy told them, "What's been going on here?"
"We might as well sit down," Wesley told her, "We'll explain everything."
Buffy nodded before following Wesley in the direction of Angel's office. She agreed that it would be better if they were at least sitting and semi comfortable before it was discussed what was going on in Sunnydale. Before she was able to follow Wesley, Gunn, and Fred into the office she was stopped by Connor.
"How come you looked away when Wesley mentioned Sunnydale?" Connor asked her quietly.
Connor seemed to have the same effect on her as his father had. She suddenly felt compelled to tell him everything that had been bothering her.
"I haven't been home in a month," Buffy admitted, "Maybe we can talk more about this later?"
"Sure," Connor agreed, "But I'm going to hold you to it."
Buffy nodded before she headed into the room with Connor right behind her. She knew that it was going to be a long night. Or was it day? The lack of sun light was making it impossible to tell how much time had passed.
