Disclaimer: All belongs to Joss and other writer folks, not me Chapter Seven: Everything

Changes, so at Least That's the Same

"Did that really just happen?" Willow asked herself.

Oz was still there, on his knees with a ring. He couldn't think of the right words to say and the meaning of the gesture should be fairly obvious. She wasn't talking and, although Oz loved Willow, sometimes her busy brain wore him out. "Oh, God," he thought, "She better speak soon because this silence is deafening.

"Just so that I don't look presumptuous, you are proposing right now, right?" Willow squeaked the words out. She was a little nervous at the rapidity of this turn of events.

"Yes." Oz was always a little monosyllabic, but this was ridiculous. Willow couldn't believe he wasn't going to offer a little more explanation. At least an, "I love you, I know this is sudden." She gave him a patented Willow look that clearly said, 'okay, Oz, you'd better say something here.'

"Look, Willow, I know this seems sudden. You know that I love you, so I didn't say it immediately. I think a lot of things get said that don't need to be. Believe me, if I felt like I could say something that would melt your heart or really express how deeply I love you, then I would. I just don't know what those words are."

"Oz, I don't want to hurt you. I told you to come stay with me and I told you I love you, but I can't just get back together with you by spontaneously marrying you. That is a little too fast. Maybe we could move in together, though. Would. . ." Willow looked down at her nails and crinkled her eyebrows in a nervous fashion. "Would that be okay for now?"

Buffy woke up with a long, cat-like stretch. She rolled over to look at her blonde, hottie of a honey. He was already awake, gazing at her with his deep, passionate blue eyes. They stayed like that for a moment entranced in the reality of the situation. Spike was still shocked that Buffy was really in love with him and Buffy was still shocked that Spike was really back. For one brief minute, the world melted away and they could really see each other relaxed and involved in a world where cuddling with your lover was the normal thing to do. Then, the silence was broken.

"There is so much we have to do today," Buffy sighed. "I wish we could just stay like this forever, but with you here, it doesn't matter. For once I'm going to be happy no matter what I do."

"Yeah, Pet, I actually have a lot I want to ask you. Why are you here in L.A. working with Peaches, for starters?"

"How do you know I work with Angel, Spike? You, like, just got back."

"The weird little chippy- the one with the Dixieland accent, she knew exactly where to find you. Stands to reason you're here most of the time."

"Don't tell me you're already starting the jealousy crap again. Captain Forehead is just my friend. I still needed to fight evil after the Hellmouth closed and it seemed like a good idea to do it here, where I can make money at it."

Spike was visibly relieved. He had tried to think of himself as the biggest and baddest of the Big Bads, but when it came to Buffy and Angel, he would always be vulnerable. He looked around trying to get a picture of how she was living. That's when he noticed something that bothered him even more than thoughts of an Angel/Buffy lovefest.

"Where's Little Bit? I can't smell her at all. It's like she's never been here."

Buffy looked down, her blonde hair cascading over her eyes. She was ashamed at how she had left Dawn there with the Scoobies. She hadn't been able to pull herself together enough even to call and check on her baby sister. She had assumed that Willow would take care of Dawn and had left it at that. She looked up at Spike and a small tears streamed down her cheek.

"That's because she hasn't ever been here. I haven't talked to her since we closed the Hellmouth. I haven't talked to any of the Scoobies, either."

Spike head was reeling. He saw that Buffy felt horrible, but he couldn't shake his anger towards her at abandoning Dawn. "The same girl that you died for, you haven't talked to her? Why the bloody Hell haven't you talked to her?"

Buffy sat up, a look of righteous indignation spreading across her face. "I couldn't! You had just died protecting the world and the way everyone had been treating you- What do you want from me? I love you, was I supposed to forget that and just accept their opinions about you?"

"Buffy," Spike sighed and touched her beautiful, porcelain skin. "I love you. Please don't let's ruin this morning. I don't want to fight. You wouldn't love me if I didn't tell you how I really feel, though, and I'm telling you that the first thing we need to do today is call Lil Sis."

TBC

Sorry it took so long to update, I have had chicken pox!