One thing Buffy decided she needed to do before actually moving in with Angel was revisit the past. On a three day weekend they both shared Buffy and Angel had made their way back to where it had all started: Sunnydale, California. The trip was mostly to go visit Willow and Tara and other good friends still living in town but Buffy felt she needed a good sign from what was before she went through with such a huge decision.

"I thought about marrying you the second that I saw you," Angel told her as they parked on the side of her childhood home. "I don't think I ever told you that," he continued. "But I remember the first time I saw you, you were in a white little sundress just walking along the sidewalk as we'd drove in to town. I don't know why, the image just struck me as we drove past and I kept watching you in the mirror until I no longer could."

Buffy's heart did a little extra hard pitter patter listening to him. She remembered the first time they had met, spoken, but she hadn't known he'd seen her before for all those years.

On their trip they had spent most of heir time at Willow's, she and Angel getting back to knowing one another and making their own amends, they'd seen Xander briefly, spent several hours one afternoon with Giles and Jenny which had been emotional all on its own. They'd driven around the small town, stopped to relive some memories at some of their favorite spots, gone to the The Bronze for a walk through and dance... They had another long talk about what their past together had held, from the early days to it becoming serious between them and then the end and what came next. The really hard part they waited to talk about though back near their old rental home. Buffy hadn't even gone near it if she could avoid it ever since, it hurt to even look at.

Their first home had held many great memories and those did make her smile and she was happy to have them, to laugh about with him, but there was s much sadness that surrounded that place. It remained empty to her.

Buffy felt some sort of relief though as the trip ended and they were bound for home. It felt like a goodbye in many ways but made her more open to the next chapter in their lives. Buffy could feel the difference being there from being a teenager to an adult as she looked around the small town, she could remember how lost she felt but she could also see how much she had grown, how much Angel had grown, she had a lot of blind trust in them once upon a time but a lot of that was just hope and not following through on the hard times and they both had learned the hard way that it's not always enough and both understood if they gave this another go everything had to be different on that end of things.

She wasn't clear of her worries, of wondering if this was actually going to work out, if they weren't making some huge mistake and being scared to death what to do if everything turned bad along the way... but she found a comfort in all the weekend had held. As they made their way back home, Buffy felt like moving day couldn't come quick enough.

OoOoO

Angel wasn't sure what made him wake up but he opened one eye and looked over to Buffy, knowing right away she was awake, too. "Hey," he whispered.

Buffy gasped a little, her arm flying to chest. "Jesus," she said harshly. "You scared me half to death."

"Sorry," he told her as he rolled over to his back like her. "What's going on?"

Buffy reached over, her fingers making small designs on his arm then chest. "Nothing, I was just thinking. I think my mixture of excitement and anxiety are making it hard for me to sleep the past few nights. I keep trying to visually see how everything is going to go and stuff like that."

Angel smiled, taking her hand and bringing it up for his lips. "We still have a few days, and we can always figure all of that out as we the weekend gets here and we start actually getting everything squared away." His smile grew, knowing they were just days away from this officially being their home.

Buffy turned over to her side to look at him. "I know. I'm just excited and my mind doesn't want to be quiet."

"Well, I'd offer to try and get your mind on something else but I feel like you'd still be there thinking about curtains and pictures frames or something."

Buffy laughed at him. "That is very possible," she admitted.

Angel leaned over and kissed her. "Well, while I work on getting back to being sleepy enough to fade out, tell me all about these plans you are coming up with..."

OoOoO

Moving Day had been a very exciting day but also a very long one Buffy decided. It was almost midnight now, all of their extra helped had left, all of her things were here in one way or another. Buffy smiled as she glanced around, happy to see the bigger items in their new places around the house. It made the place look more homier. They had also been buying various things together since she'd been released from her lease and those helped make it feel more lived in now as well.

There were some of her chairs added to the living room, book shelves, knick knacks and other decorative pieces around the place, she'd started putting up some picture frames around the downstairs. She had decided on a new dresser for their bedroom, not liking the idea of them being so mismatched so hers had been taken upstairs to one of the otherwise empty bedrooms. She knew there would be more items probably going up there as she went along organizing and putting away some of the smaller items.

Buffy had started unpacking some throughout the day. She had most of her clothes squared away, the bathroom was mostly done, and the kitchen. She'd about driven Angel crazy in the process at first, asking him if it were okay if she did x, y and z, put something here or there until he finally stole her away for a few minutes away from everyone else and told her to stop asking permission and to just do whatever she wanted, reminding her this was their house, that he wanted her to feel free to do whatever she wanted rather than act like a guest. It'd still be an adjustment but she relaxed some the more she worked.

Buffy walked through the house turning lights off as she went, any more unpacking could wait until tomorrow. She knew she was about done for the day in general. While Angel finished up in the garage she took the opportunity to slip into a sexy lingerie set she'd bought new for celebrating tonight.

Angel had come into the room mid-sentence and whatever he'd planned on saying fell off to the wayside as soon as his eyes landed on her laid out in the bed. Buffy felt any exhaustion get revved up as his brown eyes darkened taking the sight in. His head cocked to the side as he stepped deeper into the room, slowly letting his eyes rack over every inch of her. "Do you like?" she teased, feeling her heart racing.

"Is that all for me?" he asked and she nodded. "Mmm, well now I feel bad that I didn't get you anything."

Buffy gave him a lusty look of her own. "I'm pretty sure you have something you can give to me." Angel gave her a dark smile, she could already see him straining against the fabric of his pants. Buffy sat up in the bed and beckoned him to come closer. Angel was up and crawling over to her moments later. "Hi," she said softly after he kissed her for what felt like an eternity.

"Hi there," he told her in a dark voice. He kissed her again, his hands finally reaching for her body. "I like this," he told her as his hands roamed the lace and silk.

Buffy moaned as his shirt went flying off the side. "I was hoping you would," she told him and then she grabbed hands full of his dark locks as his hands returned to her breasts, squeezing and his head bent to kiss a trail down her stomach. He started to make his way back up but she groaned, pushing at him. "Lower," she whispered.

His eyes looked at her for a moment then he smirked. His lips made their way back the other way, going to the top of her tiny underwear. He took a moment to admire them on her one last time before all but ripping them off of her body. His palms slid up the inner side of her thighs, opening her up to him. Buffy closed her eyes as his tongue touched her, sliding along the slit of her womanhood.

Angel held nothing back as he devoured her, Buffy screamed, arching against her own will as he tipped her over the edge once then twice. Her legs shook as he continued to suck on her pulsating pearl, the sensation almost too much for her to deal with.

Buffy pulled at his hair until the took the hint, smiling before kissing her roughly. Buffy's hands went to his pants, working the button and zipper open and grabbing him. "Off," she told him breathlessly, pushing them down.

Angel stood, freeing himself of the rest of his clothing. Buffy's hands returned to him, stoking his shaft several times. Angel swore before pushing her gently back to the bed. Buffy flipped him onto his back and climbed on top of him though, wanting him to get the most out of this little outfit tonight.

OoOoO

"Soooo..." Cordelia started.

Buffy looked over at her. "Sooo?"

"It's been a week, how's life with you and Angel?" Cordelia asked.

Buffy smiled, settling back into her chair more. "I feel almost like we're on a cloud most of the time," she admitted. "It feels almost too natural."

Cordelia laughed. The brunette and her had started carpooling to and from work weeks ago, it just seemed to make sense with Angel and Jesse usually having earlier and longer hours than the two of them, especially once Buffy was officially moved in just a few blocks over.

"Jess and I were like that when we moved in, too," Cordelia told her. "It seemed so chaotic when we both had our apartments but then we were under the same roof and it was so less stressful. There wasn't figuring out the next time we'd see each other or time driving back and forth between our places or overnight bags and all that nonsense."

Buffy nodded. "It's been nice. He tells me goodbye every morning and I usually wake up for a moment then pass back out until my alarm goes off then we're just both at work. I get home, start dinner when he's working later and just wind down. He comes home and we catch up and eat and just enjoy the evening together."

Cordy smiled. "Simple things in life right?" Buffy nodded. "We'll have to work out a time soon to all get together though. The boys usually have weekends off so that's helpful I've found. Doing too much during the week just wears us both down but then there's Friday night and the whole weekend to go out and have fun, see friends or go out to eat or just relax... do whatever we want. We should set aside like one Saturday a month or something for us to do something. We need a collective hobby," she said with another laugh. "Get Fred and Gunn in on it too and some other couples."

"Speaking of such," Buffy said, "I heard you and Fred talking earlier..."

Cordy glanced over at her. "About what?"

"Marriage."

"Oh. About when me and Jess are going to take that leap?"

Buffy nodded. "Exactly. What's taking the two of you so long? You're over here all getting in everyone else's business - such as mine - but what's going on with that situation?"

"Well the jackass has to ask me first now doesn't he?"

Buffy laughed. "You could always ask him."

"Girl, please," Cordelia countered.

"Didn't he ask you before?" Buffy asked, recalling to a few years ago.

Cordelia made a sound, pulling into Buffy's new little neighborhood. "That didn't count. He didn't ask to ask, he asked for stupid reasons and I told him no because of that. If he asked me properly that would be another story. But I'm not telling him that." The two girls sat out in the driveway for a little while gossiping before Buffy bid her goodbye and started getting out of the car. "I'm pretty sure you and Angel will remarry before me and Jesse will even have a conversation about that."

Buffy made a face at her friend. "Don't even start," she warned. Buffy was mad at herself already for even having the idea of if the two of them maybe getting re-married popping into her head not long ago. She was pushing all of that away for now, not ready for go there.