Disclaimers: I do not own Buffy, MASH, Stargate, Charmed, NCIS, Bones. I can not even claim any original characters for this story.

This is purely written for fun and not for profit. Just my take on a what if.

And a HUGE DEBT of gratitude to DavidEmpey. He has graciously volunteered to help Beta. Any mistakes found they're all on me.

I would like to thank everyone who has recommended this once again AleLupe, AnFan, awolja, Compston, Dreamweaver, grd, hpssslashfan, IronDruid, jdenx, kenchoisez, Marcel, Mordare, munzchr, Questara, Traveler, and . And the newest recommendation from Oddshot, Sorentia, and SpacedCadet.

Also Please leave a review if you like the story. It really is encouraging, at least to me.

Chapter 11

Buffy was having a fantastic morning. Since the assault on the Initiative base, she had been practicing with the Free Jaffa. And while they were not as powerful as vampires, they had a lot more skill. Teal'c had been taking extra time with her, showing her ways to improve her fighting abilities. Well her and Faith. He would make them both spar at a much slower speed than they were capable of. He corrected any flaws he saw in their forms and it was paying off. She could tell that both Faith and herself were becoming much better fighters. The moves they were using were so much smoother, it was almost effortless.

Still as great as everything was there were two dark spots on the horizon: her Dad and Angel. Buffy had been trying to figure out what to do about her Dad. She knew he needed the truth, but was worried about how he would react. After talking about it off and on for weeks she had finally decided to tell him the whole truth. Tomorrow morning would start a three day weekend for her and her Dad. Willow had agreed to come help, so that meant Tara would be there as well. Buffy had to admit she had never met anyone nicer than Tara. But having her there would mean Buffy was going to be the third wheel when they were alone, and she got enough of that at home.

Her Mom had been really great. She was trying so hard to make sure Buffy knew she was still just as important to her as before everything happened. And Faith was so different, although how much of that was because all of those mind screwing spells were gone was hard to say. Mom and Giles were really getting close to one another. Which was sweet and gross at the same time. Mom's were not supposed to be having sex, and definitely not the kind of sex Buffy could hear them having. Slayer perks could be really nice but the walls in the house were not that thick.

Her own source of loneliness was another downer. After hearing about Angel's past and hearing what Riley had to say about her, Buffy was having trouble trusting any guys. A part of her wondered if it would be easier just to switch teams, like Willow had, in order to find someone nice. Shaking her head, Buffy decided enough was enough, she was a smart, beautiful modern woman. She would be alright, and after having several sessions with Sweets, she knew she would do better. In fact, she decided that she was going to ask his advice on Angel. She still felt something for him. It wasn't the burning passion of several years ago, but it was still there, and it hurt. Heading towards the gym showers, she went to get cleaned up and then she would look for Sweets to see if he had any advice for the Angel situation.

For Oz, the last several weeks had been stressful. After hearing the news about the Disaster Area, he had worked his way back to the States. Oz had found himself at a loss at times. Reading a British paper he had seen photos of Giles and everyone in the group. Oz knew something weird was going on. Faith being Buffy's sister? Xander was Giles' son? And the blonde girl who was married to Willow? That one had almost caused him to lose his control. Oz was just grateful he was alone when he had read the story. If he had been around Willow when it came out he was afraid of what he might have done.

Still, he had left her. Oz had hoped she would be there when he finally came back. But he had to admit it wasn't fair to expect her to wait. He wondered when she decided she liked girls. Oz just hoped it wouldn't be too awkward when they saw each other again.

Oz had to admit he had laughed when he read the story about Xander and the strip club. The entertainment sites seemed to be having a field day with the story. And a small part of him did take some satisfaction from the embarrassment he knew Xander must be feeling. Because hey, Xander had broken the code when he made out with Willow. And while they may have worked through a lot of it, Oz still had a part of him that thought Xander should have suffered a bit more. Which Oz admitted wasn't really fair, but he also knew that many times emotions weren't fair.

As the bus he was on pulled into the Greyhound station, Oz got up and stretched. It really was a testament to his control that he had been able to be on a bus from Seattle to LA with so many humans without losing control of himself. As he grabbed his gear, Oz went about the next part of his master plan. Checking the Greyhound boards he saw that there was still no service to Sunnydale. Apparently even through the area was getting better, most traffic was still being controlled by the National Guard. And since Oz had sold his van, he needed a ride back to Sunnydale.

Oz started walking towards a local bus stop. Once he figured out the route he would see if Angel could help him find a way to Sunnydale. After all Cordelia had been in one of the pictures with the Scoobies so maybe she would be willing to give him a ride.

Buffy was feeling confident. She had just finished her session with Sweets, and she was confident she was ready to move forward. Pulling out her cell phone she called Willow and Tara, just to see if they wanted to head down to LA today, instead of tonight. She was hoping to have the chance to talk to Angel and clear the air some more.

Willow had agreed to go early, and Tara had been really supportive when she heard why they were going so early. Although both of them had vetoed Buffy's suggestion that she drive. Which was so unfair and not cool. Buffy knew she was a good driver, it was just everyone else that sucked at driving. After all, she wasn't the one that caused the accidents, it was always caused by something else. Heading home, Buffy just needed to finish packing and then Willow and Tara would be picking her up.

The ride home was uneventful. Buffy was sort of glad that they had the protection details assigned to them. It was weird because she really thought she didn't need them-she was a Slayer after all-but at the same time it was cool. Walking into the house she was surprised to see both Giles and her Mom were still here. "Morning Mom, Giles," Buffy said. "What are you two still doing here?"

"Good morning, Buffy," Giles said.

"Morning, honey," Joyce said. "We have been working, since we now have so many legal avenues to do things, thanks to those gifts that Shemp and Xander left us, well we have been figuring out the best ways to use them."

"Yes," Giles said. "Originally we had thought to sell the diamonds that were left over through several less than legal avenues. However now we are finalizing the details to sell a portion of them through several auctions. The fact that the diamonds we have sent to be sold have all been certified as IF or VVS1, and the smallest one is over ten karats, means we will be making quite a bit of money off of their sale."

"Ah," Buffy said, "OK, what does that mean?"

Joyce laughed, "IF means a diamond is flawless, VVS1 Very Very Slightly Included, or almost flawless. But really it means that we are going to be making a great deal of money. The auction house has already given us a down payment of one million dollars for the diamonds they will be selling. And it's less than twenty percent of what Shemp and Xander left for us."

"So does that mean I'll be getting a bigger allowance?" Buffy asked with a smile.

"I think you're a bit old for an allowance, Buffy," Joyce said with a smile. "Besides Rupert and I have also been working on setting up the family trusts, everyone will be getting an allowance based on the amount of money in the trust."

"That's great," Buffy said with a grin. "But what about the other diamonds?"

"Well," Giles said. "We felt since it appears that Willow is heading towards a monarchy style of Government, that we should create some kind of crown jewels. We were discussing who should create them, I believe your Mother has narrowed down her choices to Tiffany's, Dior and Cartier."

"Of wow," Buffy said, bouncing just a bit. "So will I get a tiara?"

Both Joyce and Giles laughed, "I think we can manage something, Buffy," Joyce said. "Now why are you home so early, I thought you'd be at the base most of the day?"

"Oh," Buffy began. "I talked with Sweets this morning and decided I wanted to head to LA early to try and talk to Angel." Both Giles and Joyce looked at each other but didn't say anything. "I want to try and clear the air a little. I mean I still feel something for him, but Sweets was explaining about closure and how it can help with feelings and stuff. So I figured, I should get the closure thingy done with Angel, and maybe it would help, ya know, with everything."

Joyce crossed over to Buffy. Hugging her she said, "I think that's a great idea, Buffy. Just remember, that even if Angel's not who you thought he was, you can still find someone who will be what you need."

"Will Willow and Tara be going with you as well?" Giles asked.

"Yeah," Buffy admitted. "They should be here soon, then we are all going to LA."

"And your protection details," Joyce asked.

"Mom," Buffy whined. "I'm the Slayer, I don't need people to protect me."

"I know you're the Slayer, Buffy," Joyce said. "But they can protect you from normal people, not demons and vampires. I expect you to keep them close."

"Fine," Buffy pouted. "Still I have to finish getting ready, Willow and Tara should be here soonish." As Buffy headed upstairs Joyce decided to make a phone call.

"Good morning Jack," Joyce said. "No, everything is fine here. I just wanted to ask you for a favor." Joyce quickly explained how Buffy's plan for the weekend had changed, and asked him to make a minor change to the protection detail for Buffy, Tara, and Willow. Jack seemed happy enough to agree.

"Are you trying to play matchmaker Joyce?" Giles asked as he hugged her from behind.

"Not really," Joyce admitted. "But I think Buffy needs a man around her that she can see as decent and trustworthy. He certainly fits those categories. Besides, Buffy was very happy with spending time with him in London, and she has been talking nonstop about his training. So I thought it would be a good thing for her to be around someone who she already trusts. I don't think things will be as easy for her as she hopes."

Gilles nodded, "Yes they rarely are. Still we must hope for the best." Joyce turned around and kissed Giles, resting her head on his shoulder.

Willow had to admit, she didn't think she had ever been happier. Even with her Mom and Dad coming back into town and all the weird things that were happening with them, her life was fantastic. One of her biggest surprises had been how well both her Mom and Dad took the news that she was gay. Although her Mom had criticized her, in a nice way, about labeling herself. And she thought her Dad would have been more difficult with the whole gay thing. But he had just smiled and said if that was what made her happy, then he would leave the rest up to God.

"Tara," Willow called out. "Are you ready to go?"

"Yup," Tara said coming out of the bathroom. "Hey what happened to our luggage?"

Willow smiled, "I asked one of the guards to take it all down to the car."

"You didn't?" Tara said in mock shock. "Bad Willow, you know they're supposed to just be there for our protection."

Willow nodded, "Well they were protecting us from having to lift heavy suitcases."

Tara shook her finger at Willow as she moved closer and hugged her while giving her a kiss. "You are so naughty."

Willow whispered in her ear, "Does that mean you'll have to give me a spanking?" She said as she nuzzled Tara's neck.

"Mmm," Tara said. "Maybe I'll have to think about that, you bad girl!" Tara laughed as Willow joined in. "Come on let's go get Buffy," she said. As Willow grabbed the folder she had been working on, Tara asked, "Are you going to be bringing all of that as well?"

"Yup," Willow smiled. "I figure we can go over the basic rights charter when Buffy doesn't need us. And maybe in a few more days we can have everything ready. Also, I have some notes on my laptop about the crystal project."

"Which one was that?" Tara asked as they headed outside.

"Modifying the Tok'ra crystal construction techniques," Willow said. "I think I've got the math and chemistry correct. If it works out we'll be able to build houses using the crystals, then run electrical and plumbing through them. It's been really interesting figuring out how to change the matrix to allow for those. Although once you build the house you really can't change anything about the layout. So we've been leaning towards, more outlets and possible light sources. Also, we had to figure out how to create something that could chemically bond to the crystal so that we can have doors and windows."

"Sounds like you've almost got everything done," Tara said.

"Yeah," Willow admitted. "Selmak was really surprised at the idea. But Jacob explained to her how unlike the Tok'ra, most people really like to have some privacy. But the houses are going to be really beautiful. And Jono suggested that we create crystal tunnels for the streets as well. Although calling it crystal really seems wrong. I mean sure its base structure is crystalline, but its molecular strength is fantastic. So we were thinking to create the road and sewer systems first. Using the crystals. Then we can plan housing areas and markets. The thing that is taking us the longest is each house has to be designed separately, at least if you want them to be unique. And starting from scratch with each one is a pain!"

Tara thought about it for a minute, "Why don't you get with Cordelia?"

"Cordelia," Willow asked. "What can she do?"

"Well," Tara said, "She's really taken off with the computer end of things. Maybe she could create a program that uses what you've already done and could mix and match. Make it so you didn't need to create everything from scratch. I mean that tablet she showed us the other day was great." Each of the Scoobies was working on different projects. Since the Asgard upgrade, they had been assigned projects that fit their aptitudes by Bragi.

Willow nodded, "Oh yeah, Cordelia said she based it off of the Asgard crystal technology, using that for a processor and hard drive. Compared to most computers out on the market right now it is amazing." Tara had to agree, the computer Cordelia had created was light years ahead of anything on Earth, it was only about nine inches wide and five inches tall. And less than a third of an inch thick. But comparing it to a high-end computer on the market it was more than amazing. The tablet as Cordelia was calling it, could store almost one hundred terabytes of data. And it was faster than any of the supercomputers that the Government had. When Cordelia had shown it to Samantha Carter and David Nabbit, both of them had been stunned. Cordelia had already drawn up plans for how they could be created, here on Earth. The initial prototypes, that Cordelia had created were fantastic. Cordelia had only created a hundred of them, but all of the Scoobies now had one. Along with SG-1 and several others that Jack had felt needed them. Ten had gone to the US Government and another ten to the British so that they could see what would be available shortly. Cordelia had had to create a new computer language to make everything work together. Well, it was new to Earth; it was actually based on old programs the Asgard had once used.

After doing the math, Cordelia had announced that they could have production ready to go by July. And it would only cost them about a hundred and twenty dollars per unit to create everything if they could break the one million units sold barrier. David had been drooling at the idea of what this could do. He was frankly betting it might put IBM and several other companies out of business. When Cordelia and the Scoobies had proposed that they create a joint company with him he had almost fainted.

"So are you going to bring your project," Willow asked.

"I might as well," Tara said. Tara had been going over several communication ideas. She had already designed a new satellite system that could be kept powered using solar power once it was in orbit. It's projected lifespan was thirty years. And it could easily handle all of the traffic Earth currently produced twenty times over. An offhand comment by Jono had even had her looking into creating a better cell phone to go with it. "You know I should talk to Cordelia about her tablet. If we can add in the cell phone program it would make them even more valuable."

"That's a really good idea," Willow agreed. "But weren't you planning to do a video feature?"

"Well yeah," Tara admitted. "But we could always save that for later. I mean that way, we have something to bring out as an upgrade. Besides scaling down the holographic display has been really hard to get right. And if we hold off on putting the cell phone on the market, it would allow us to maybe find a good partner so we don't cause too much damage."

Frankly, that had been one of their worries, they didn't want to destroy whole sections of the existing economies. And they knew that their products could do that if they weren't careful. But at the same time, there was so much they needed to do. Giles had said that since they were at war, even if the planet as a whole didn't know it, they had to do the best they could to make sure Earth was prepared for when the Goa'uld next attacked.

The rest of the ride to Buffy's house was spent talking about their various plans. Arriving at Buffy's they could see two other cars were already there. "Looks like the protection detail is here," Tara said with a smile. She hadn't been happy about that at first. But after seeing all of the paparazzi that had swarmed the nightclub she was now convinced that they were a great thing. "Still, I hope Xander gets the Enterprise's transporters working soon." Willow nodded in agreement. Xander had volunteered to work on those since he didn't want to be a taxi service forever. He also had said the math seemed really easy to him which had shocked everyone who knew him. But he hoped to have it repaired in the next few days.

Walking into the house Willow and Tara said hello to Joyce and Giles. They were surprised to see Teal'c and Daniel were there as well. "Hey," Willow said. "What are you guys doing here?"

"I will be accompanying you on your journey," Teal'c said. "Joyce Summers felt it would be helpful to Buffy Summers to have someone with whom she could spar during your trip."

Daniel nodded, "And I'm here to talk with Rupert. We've got a line on almost every single potential that the Watcher's Council knew about. And the British have been taking point on contacting them and bringing them in. Also, I've got the files about the girls who are still alive from project Achilles. We were talking about school requirements and what we should have planned."

"Oh," Willow said. "Make sure you let me know the numbers, we need to make sure to have enough buildings and space for the school. Plus housing and everything else. Hopefully, by the time we get back, I'll have everything done with the crystal construction math. So then we'll just have to move to designing how we want it to look for the island."

Giles nodded, "I shall make sure that Xander updates the information from scanning the islands. I believe he was planning to do that later today. We wanted to check and see what natural resources might be hidden on the islands." Giles might not like technology, but since the Asgard had upgraded everyone's knowledge he was much more comfortable using it. A part of him dearly missed Jenny; she would have loved to be a part of everything. And whilst the children had been focusing on the new technologies, he had been working on cataloging the Watchers' properties, and figuring out who was trustworthy enough to continue as a watcher. The time he was able to spend with Joyce was becoming more and more precious to him. In fact, he had finally admitted that he was going to need a staff to help him with all of his new duties. "If you wouldn't mind, Tara," Giles said. "Whilst you are in LA would you give this letter to Wesley?"

"Sure Dad," Tara said. "What's it for?"

"I have decided," Giles said, "after talking to Buffy, Faith, and Cordelia, to ask Wesley to help with restructuring the Watchers' Council. I believe he has changed quite a bit from when he first arrived in Sunnydale. And I am hoping that he will be able to help me bridge the gap with those watchers who are undecided as to what they shall do. Once they see that I am only trying to get rid of those who are incapable of adapting to their new reality, I hope many of them will decide to continue with us."

Buffy came down from upstairs and greeted everyone. After final goodbyes to the parents, the five-car caravan set off to LA. They would be staying at a very nice hotel, which she didn't even want to think about how much it would cost them. But apparently the US and British Governments had decided that they needed a line of credit. Her Mom hadn't wanted to say how much for but she had looked anyway. Both Governments had guaranteed over one hundred million dollars in loans through the international banking system.

When they Arrived at the hotel, it was barely ten in the morning. Once everyone was checked in, Buffy, Willow, and Tara were amazed. They had the penthouse suite. It had a pool and private lounge areas. Plus the view was to die for.

After unpacking, Buffy and Willow decided it was time to go talk to Angel. Tara was very understanding; she could see how nervous both women were. For different reasons, but both were uncomfortable with meeting Angel again. The trip to Angel's hotel was thankfully short. Walking into the Hyperion, Buffy, Willow, Tara, and Teal'c had four other guards with them; the rest had taken up watching the outside of the building.

As Buffy opened the door, she was shocked to see Oz. He was standing there talking with Booth. Buffy knew it had to be Booth because she couldn't see Angelus in his face. Wesley was off to the side. Wesley was going through several books that were laid out in front of him. He didn't even look up to see who had arrived.

"Oz," Willow said in surprise. "What are you doing here?" she asked grabbing Tara's hand. Willow wasn't sure how she was going to break the news about her and Tara to Oz.

"Willow," Oz said. "And you're Tara, right?" Tara nodded. Oz smiled, "I heard about Sunnydale. Knew I needed to come back." Looking at both of them he slowly approached them, Willow had a death grip on Tara's hand. "Congratulations."

Willow almost fainted, Oz knew! And he didn't seem all jealous and angry. "How?"

"News," Oz replied.

Tara shook her head, "You heard about us from the news?" Oz nodded.

"And you're not angry?" Willow asked.

"Surprised," Oz admitted. "But happy for you." Oz could admit to himself he felt jealous of Tara, but he also knew he had left Willow. She had the right to move on.

Willow started to cry, "Thanks, Oz," she said as she hugged him. "I'm sorry you had to find out from the news. But I didn't know how to contact you, or anything!"

Buffy was watching the reunion of the two former lovers. Turning to Wesley and Booth she said, "Where is Angel?"

Booth looked at her, "I'm right here Buffy," Angel said.

"What," Buffy exclaimed. "But how? You're not a vampire anymore!"

Angel looked startled, "How do you know that? I mean it just happened, and I don't even know how. How can you tell?"

Buffy looked ready to faint. "Since everything that happened; Faith and I can always see when someone is a vampire. We only see their game face. You look human. How did this happen?" Buffy moved closer to Angel, she wanted to touch him but at the same time, she knew that she still had things to work out with him.

"I was chasing some strange green demon," Angel explained. "Somehow when his blood got in my wound, it did this." Angel pointed to his new human self. "Wesley is still trying to figure out what happened." Turning towards Wesley Angel said, "Wes, got anything yet?"

Wesley looked up from his books, "I might have something," he said. "Did the demon have a jewel between its eyes?"

"Yeah," Angel said. "Why?"

"I believe it was a Mohra demon," Wesley said. "According to the entries, I have found, they have incredible regenerative powers. But their blood was actually fatal to humans. Although several scholars had experimented with it attempting to create an elixir of life. Their blood would cause any human exposed to it to develop cancerous growths that would kill them. Although there was one account where a grievously injured watcher was healed by their blood." Wesley paused, "It may be that because you're body was actually dead, the Mohra blood regenerated your physical body, restoring it to life."

"So Angel's human," Willow asked. "But what happened to your demon?"

Angel smiled, "I'm human. And Angelus is gone. I could always feel him inside of me, but now he's just gone!" Buffy couldn't help herself she hugged Angel as tightly as she could. Angel ended up crying out in pain. "Buffy! Stop!"

Buffy let him go, unsure of what was going on. Angel carefully felt himself over, "I'm human now. That was a lot too strong of a hug."

Buffy blushed, "Sorry, I guess I didn't think about that. I mean you've always been a lot tougher than the others so I've never had to hold back with you before. But you're only human now," she said with a smile.

Angel frowned at the last part. He hadn't thought about that, he was only human now. He had been so excited that he could stand in the sunlight and eat real food. He hadn't really realized what he had lost now that he was human again. But it was the truth; he didn't have his vampiric strength, speed or healing anymore. Angel wasn't sure what he was going to do now.

"This is so great," Buffy gushed. "You can have a real life now. You don't need to fight everything anymore. You can actually be happy, and not have to worry about losing your soul."

"Congratulations, Liam O'Conner," Teal'c said. "To be freed from your imprisonment is a great gift."

"Ah, thanks," Angel said. "Who are you?"

"I am Teal'c of Chulak," Teal'c said. " Alexander of Furling and the Scoobies have told many of the tales of their adventures. You played a prominent role in those."

"Who the hell is Alexander of Furling," Angel asked.

Buffy smiled, "He means Xander, don't worry about it." Angel's face had dropped at hearing Xander's name. Buffy laughed, "Don't worry it wasn't just Xander telling him stuff."

"I need to know about this. Is this permanent? Am I - am I normal Joe now? Can I have a normal life?" Angel was pacing now, "I need to speak to the Powers-That-Be."

The three women were slightly alarmed to hear that. They knew, even if Angel didn't know it, the powers were not good guys. "Why do you want to do that, Angel?" Willow asked.

"Yeah," Buffy said. "You should just take what's been given to you. Messing with the PTB's, that's not of the good."

Tara was looking at Angel; his aura was odd. She could see the stains left on it from housing the vampire Angelus. It made it almost impossible for her to get a clear reading. "If you really need some answers then maybe you should go to Caritas," Tara suggested. Since what had happened to Cordelia every one of the Scoobies had met Lorne. Tara had to admit in his own way he was almost as nice as Xander was.

Oz looked at them, "Caritas?"

Willow nodded, "It's a demon bar, but it's really cool, not like Willy's. And they have karaoke, and the Host, Lorne, he can read most people and give you some hints about the future. And there's no violence allowed. So it's really great."

Karaoke?" Oz asked with a raised eyebrow. Oz wasn't sure that karaoke wasn't inherently evil.

"It's cool, Oz," Buffy said. "Even my Mom liked it."

"Mom Approved," Oz said. Shrugging he figured he would give it a shot.

It was still before noon, but the group knew Lorne would probably already be at his club. And he had told them all they could come over at any time. Knocking on the door to the club, Mia, the waitress with the scales, opened the door. Seeing the group she shook her head. Turning to look over her shoulder she called out to Lorne. Lorne came to the door, seeing the large group he was surprised. Buffy, Willow, and Tara were all fairly well known to him by now. But the rest were new.

"Darlings," Lorne gushed. "Now what brings you here before the crack of noon?" Lorne ushered them inside. He called Mia back to start taking drink orders.

"It's Angel," Tara said. "Something happened to him, and he's human now." Lorne looked shocked. "We need a reading to see if this is permanent, or what might be happening." Lorne still looked a bit shocked at that.

"So Sam Spade is just a regular guy now?" he asked.

"That's what we need to find out," Buffy said. Turning to Angel, she grabbed his arm, "Go," Buffy ordered, pushing him towards the stage.

Angel didn't look happy, but he obeyed. Picking his music Angel started on his truly horrible rendition of Mandy. Everyone present was surprised, except Lorne who had heard Angel sing before. Oz had known people who couldn't sing, he was frankly amazed at how bad Angel was. "Wow," was the only thing Oz could say about Angel's singing.

"Indeed," Teal'c said. Both men looked at one another and recognized a kindred soul. Teal'c tipped his head to Oz, and Oz replied with a raised eyebrow.

Once Angel was done signing he came back down. Standing a little away from the group he asked Lorne, "Well?" Lorne got up and walked towards him. Pulling him to another table the two sat down to talk. After several minutes it was obvious to Buffy that Angel didn't like whatever Lorne was telling him. Angel finally got up, stalking towards the front door, he turned to everyone. "I need some time to figure everything out. I'm sorry Buffy," Angel said as he left.

Buffy was about to go after him when Lorne placed a hand on her arm, "Princess," Lorne said. "He really needs to think about things. Let him go."

"What did you see," Buffy demanded. "Is he going to be alright?"

Lorne sighed, he really had a policy of not sharing readings, but he knew Buffy well enough to know that, that policy, could have big problems. "He's human," Lorne said. "Nothing more than that."

"But, but that's great," Willow said. "I mean isn't it great?"

Lorne shook his head, "Not to him. He's no longer a champion for the Powers. No special destiny anymore."

"Why would this upset Liam O'Conner?" Teal'c asked.

"Because he's normal now," Tara said. "Before he was special; Angel the Vampire with a soul. Now he's just Liam." Tara might not have known Angel, but she had listened to everyone as they talked about their mutual past.

"What's wrong with being just human?" Buffy asked.

Lorne looked at her, "Because, humans are fragile. I think he's scared. Scared of not being able to fight, of being hurt, being vulnerable."

"But he can still fight," Willow protested. "I mean Xander fought for years as just a normal guy. And Angel has a lot more experience than Xander did."

Buffy shook her head, "But Angel isn't Xander. Xander never lets anything stop him. Angel would let almost anything stop him," she admitted. It had taken a bunch of talks with Sweets to admit that, but it had been a revelation. Part of her was still sad, sad that if she had opened her eyes she could have had Xander. Even though she could see how happy he and Faith were together. "He always looked down on Xander, and now he's right where Xander was."

"Is he truly so foolish?" Teal'c asked. "I would rejoice to no longer have to carry a prim'ta. Even with the loss of the benefits it brings."

Buffy nodded, "Yeah he is. I guess he just wants what he can't have. And he's afraid of fighting as a normal man."

"Then he is a fool," Teal'c declared. "I have seen the prowess of the Tau'ri. They are highly skilled in battle; the loss of his demon should not deter him from the fight."

Buffy looked at Teal'c he really was right, "Thank you," Buffy said hugging Teal'c.

"What are you thanking me for, Buffy Summers?" Teal'c asked.

"For being a good man," Buffy said. "I just wi- ah would like it if there were more men like you."

"So," Lorne said, "Enough of the downers, kiddies. What else can I help you with?"

Willow smiled at Lorne, "Well have you decided if you'll take the job with us?"

Lorne shook his head, ever since the thing with Cordelia they kept encouraging him to come with them to their island. "Still haven't decided," Lorne admitted. "I still think you could do better."

"Now that's crazy," Buffy said. "Cordelia backs it up too."

"So," Oz said, "Job?" Willow nodded and began to catch Oz up on everything that had happened to them since he had left.

As she was talking to Oz, Tara pulled Wesley to one side. "Wesley," Tara said. "Dad wanted me to give this to you." Handing him the envelope Wesley opened it and began to read.

"Oh my," Wesley said. "Did Lord Rupert tell you what was in this?"

Tara nodded, "He really hopes that you'll accept. I think with you on board, a lot of the watchers that are not sure of him will come around."

Wesley snorted, "He is placing a great deal of faith in my abilities."

Tara looked at him, "I think it's justified. From all the stories, you're not the same person who came to Sunnydale. And now you can help a lot more people. Maybe you should listen to Willow's story before you decide." They hadn't shared the full story with Wesley, and Tara felt now might be the right time to do that. Wesley nodded as he sat down and listened to Willow's tale.

Lorne by this time already knew everything. He was still not sure what he should do about the future, which for an oracle was really funny. Most of the afternoon was spent as the story was told. Once they got to the part about Aliens, Oz looked for a minute and said, "Aliens?" Then he looked at Teal'c.

"Indeed," Teal'c confirmed.

"Hmm," Oz said. As Willow continued her story.

It wasn't too long before all the stories had been told. Willow and Tara invited Oz to come back with them. Since he had only been at Angel's in order to get a ride to Sunnydale he agreed to go with them. As the group reached the hotel they were surprised to see almost twenty reports waiting for them. Getting out of their cars, the photographers were taking pictures and shouting questions. Across the street, several protesters had set up. They had pictures of Tara and Willow and signs that said they would burn in hell. Willow took one look at that and almost lost her temper.

Tara pulled Willow inside before she could do anything to the protestors. "It's Ok, Willow," Tara said.

"No, it's not," Willow said. "They don't know us or what we do. And they think because we love each other we're going to hell. They have no idea what real hell is like!"

Tara smiled, "And they don't know anything about Heaven either. So how about you show me Heaven and we'll forget all about them?" Willow gulped then followed Tara into their bedroom.

Buffy had been relaxing in the pool, Oz and Teal'c had joined her. Both men were very quiet, but it was relaxing to be around them. Although she wished she could read Teal'c better, he really was the hardest man she had ever met for reading what they were thinking about. She had ended up taking Oz down to the Hotel gift show to pick him up a pair of swim trunks. While there she had seen a small metallic blue bikini that looked so good on her. Once they were changed she could tell Oz, appreciated the view, but she wasn't sure about Teal'c.

As she was lying down in the Sun the phone rang. Picking it up she heard someone's voice that she hadn't heard in too long. "Daddy," Buffy cried out. "Oh, you're here?... No don't get your own room. We have the entire Penthouse level. There's plenty of room for you too… OK, I'll call down to the front desk and let them know… I love you, Daddy."

Buffy quickly called down to the front desk and told them that her Father was there and he should be brought up to the suite. Looking down at herself she realized she should change clothes before her Dad arrived. She ran towards her room, only stopping to knock on Tara and Willow's door. "He's here," Buffy informed them. "I told him to come up here so he should be here soon." Tara and Willow mumbled something from inside their room, but Buffy was already gone.

Changing into something better suited to seeing her Dad, a nervous Buffy waited for Hank Summers. She had had to stop at Tara and Willows door again to make sure they were getting ready. She just hoped that Hank Summers would listen and understand.

Hank Summers wasn't sure what was going on. He had heard about what happened in Sunnydale. But Joyce had assured him that Buffy was fine. Then he had seen the photos and news stories on Rupert Giles, the new Earl of Kent. And Joyce was his date. Buffy had been there as well, along with Faith. He had been shocked when he learned about Faith, he was grateful that Joyce had told him about her several months ago.

Truthfully Hank Summers had been adrift ever since the divorce. He still didn't know why he had fooled around on Joyce. But he knew he had, and he knew Joyce would never forgive him. It had led to too many nights alone with a bottle; Or with some cheap date. He had found himself pulling away from Buffy because he knew he had failed her as a Father. It was only in the last six months that he had started to pull himself together. While he still drank occasionally he didn't curl up into a bottle anymore. And he was actually single right now. His therapist had recommended Hank work on himself before he tried for a stable relationship.

And then Buffy had called wanting to see him. He had almost said no out of a sense of shame. But Joyce had called him shortly after Buffy and warned him not to disappoint Buffy. Because no matter what, Buffy deserved time to be with the Father she loved. The guilt alone had been enough for him to agree with almost anything. So here he was riding an elevator up to a penthouse to see his only daughter.

As the doors of the elevator opened and Hank Summers stepped out, he was almost knocked to the ground by Buffy. "You're here," an excited Buffy said. "You're really here! I missed you, Daddy."

Hank felt like his heart was melting, "I missed you too sweetheart," Hank said. "And I'm sorry I didn't come around like I should have."

Buffy shook her head," Doesn't matter! You're here." Buffy pulled Hank into the room. "Dad, This is Willow and her wife Tara. That's Oz, he's a friend from Sunnydale. Over there is Teal'c, he's been helping me to train."

Hank greeted everyone. The bell hops finished putting his luggage into one of the rooms. Hank tipped them and they left. He could tell Buffy was nervous about something, but he wasn't even sure where he should start when it came to talking to her.

"Dad," Buffy said, "tonight we are going to have a long talk. And I need you to promise me to listen. I promise we can prove everything we're going to tell you about. But I need you to keep an open mind."

"Buffy," Hank began. "I know I've screwed up. And I haven't been there for you. But I promise I'll try and listen to you."

Buffy smiled at her Dad, "Thank you, Daddy," she said as she hugged him. "OK, the hardest thing first," Buffy got up and ran into her bedroom. Less than a minute later she came out with a steel bar. Handing the bar to Hank she said, "I want you to try and bend this, Dad."

Hank felt the heavy bar and looked at Buffy like she was kidding, "OK, Honey." He tried to bend the thing but it wouldn't budge. "I'm sorry, I just can't do it," Hank admitted.

Buffy smiled, "I know," she said. "I just wanted you to try, so that you know this isn't a trick." Buffy took the bar back and proceeded to bend it into a pretzel.

Hank was amazed, "How?"

"It's OK," Buffy said. "Daddy, I'm sorry, but you have to know the truth. I'm not like other girls. Remember when I burned down the Gym?" Hank nodded it was hard to forget, that was shortly before his life had gone to hell. "Well, when I told you there were vampires in the gym, I didn't tell you the whole story." Hank almost interrupted at the mention of Vampires but he held his tongue. Buffy then started to tell her story.

Hank didn't want to believe what Buffy told him, about how her life had been in constant danger because she was this Slayer and magic was real. Willow and Tara had proven that. By the time Buffy got up to her graduation he didn't know what to say anymore. Briefly, they called down for room service. Once the food had been delivered he was amazed at how much food his little girl could eat. She had laughed when she explained that part of the Slayer package was that she needed a lot more calories. Although one of the perks was she would never get fat.

Then came the rest of the story, Aliens, their were real Aliens out there. And Buffy was technically an Alien. Teal'c had shown his symbiote, which had freaked Hank out. But Buffy had promised that if he wanted he could go with them up to the Asgard ship. Then Buffy got to the real shocks.

"Daddy," Buffy said. "You need to know the final truth. We found out that the Powers that Be, they caused you and Mom to get divorced."

"No, Buffy," Hank protested. "That was my fault. I cheated on your mother. And I'm so sorry for doing that. But I did, and we can't change that."

"Mr. Summers," Willow said. "That's not true. When we did the spell to remember the truth, Joyce found out that you never cheated on her. Whistler just made you, your secretary and Joyce think that you had. But if you're willing we can give you back your real memories."

Hank didn't know what he should do. He had worked hard to accept his own responsibility in the destruction of his marriage. And now Buffy and her friends were saying that it hadn't happened. "I'm not sure," Hank admitted.

"Daddy," Buffy pleaded. "You deserve to know the truth. And I know this won't change anything. You and Mom won't be getting back together. But no one deserves what those bastards have done to us. They raped our minds!" Hank could tell how upset Buffy was.

"OK, Buffy," Hank said. "If it means so much to you, I'll do it." Buffy smiled at him and got up with Tara and Willow. The three of them held hands and started chanting. Then a light gathered around their joined hands and shot into Hank Summers. Hank fell back on his seat as he had the truth revealed to him.

When Hank opened his eyes he looked at his daughter, "Oh Buffy," Hank said. "I am so sorry, I remember now. I'm sorry that I didn't know."

Buffy hugged her Dad, "Not your fault," Buffy muttered into his chest. Looking up at him she said. "You saw Whistler and what he did, right?"

Hank nodded, "Yes," Hank paused. "But what happens now?"

Buffy smiled, " Now you get to hear about the future!" Tara, Willow, and Buffy started to tell him about everything they had left out. The islands and learning from the Asgard. All the possibilities that were in front of them.

Willow pulled out her folder with everything they had thought up for the island. She started explaining their ideas for a government and showed him the tablet Cordelia had created. Tara explained about how they were going to be setting up better satellites and they were looking at moving into the cellular phone market.

For Hank Summers this was amazing. His normal work as a lawyer with an advertising firm meant he did have an idea of how much these products would be worth. When they explained how they would have dual citizenship, and the tax benefits of being a citizen he jokingly asked, "Honey, where do I sign up?"

Buffy just looked at him, swatting him on the arm she said, "You're my Dad. We already decided that any of our parents would have the right to live on the island. Even Xander's Mom!"

"OK, Honey," Hank said. "Now how can I help? You've got amazing products here. And it sounds like you're going to be bringing a lot of new ones to the market in the next few years. Please let me help with that. Plus from what Willow has shown me you're creating your own Government. I'd like to try and help with that as well. I never was into criminal law, but I'd be happy to help. The main thing to remember is to keep it simple. One of the hardest things about the way the law is today is everyone looks to previous cases, rather than just look at the law itself."

"But wouldn't that make everything too rigid?" Willow asked.

"Depends on how you do it," Hank said. "What you want to do is leave room for discretion but at the same time every case is different. You want to be able to look at a case only based on its own merits." Willow and the others nodded; that made sense.

Buffy was just happy her Dad was taking things better than she had hoped for. And he wanted to be a part of her future. She wasn't ready for his next question.

"So Buffy," Hank said. "Is there anyone special you're seeing now?"

"Ah," Buffy said. "No, I was seeing someone in Sunnydale, but it turned out he wasn't the right guy for me." Buffy paused, "It's really hard to find someone who can accept me for who I am. I mean yeah I'm a girl, but being a Slayer, a Witch, and a Protector is so much more. When the other Xander called me and Faith to be Protectors it was like lightning. I mean you know how in the movies they talk about the moment when everything changes?"

Hank nodded his head. "Well that was it," Buffy said. "We still don't know exactly what it means. But Faith and I have talked. I mean the whole dealy with Daughter of Summer and Daughter of Winter. You know that has to mean something. But so far we don't know what."

"I'm sure you'll figure it out," Hank said. "And until you do just keep doing your best." Hank looked at the clock, "Wow," Hank said. "It's already eleven thirty?" I can't believe we've been talking that long. Still, I think I need to get some sleep." Standing up he hugged his daughter again and kissed her head. "We'll talk more tomorrow," Hank promised.

Everyone went to turn in. Hank found himself alone in his room. He couldn't not believe what he had learned tonight. The spell to restore his memories had shown him the truth. Sitting on his bed, Hank also knew that his actions after the divorce were his own. As he thought about how he had abandoned his little girl, Hank Summers started to cry. Sleep wouldn't come quickly as he felt the weight of his guilt.

Angel had been wondering the city for hours. After talking with Lorne he didn't know what to do. He wanted to be happy that he wasn't a vampire anymore. He could eat real food, he could walk in the sunlight. He had a life in front of him. But at the same time, he felt lost. Before last night he knew what his purpose was: he had been called to fight, to make up for his past as Angelus. But according to Lorne that was gone. He wasn't a champion anymore, he was just Liam O'Conner.

Over two hundred years of being a vampire was a long time. Angel never bothered to worry about where he was because he was a master vampire. Tonight he had been drinking, for the first time since he had been turned he was actually drunk. Vampires can drink and get a buzz from it, but vampires never had to deal with drinking so much it made you sick or hung-over.

Angel could feel the difference, it was an old friend. As Angel staggered down the street heading home, he didn't even notice the two vampires in front of him. Both of them knew who Angel was, the vampire cursed with a soul. The fact that they recognized him would have saved him if Angel hadn't started throwing up. Looking at each other, the two vampires moved closer to Angel.

"Well what do we have here," the first vampire said.

"Looks like a human," the second vampire said. Drawing a deep breath he added, "Smells like one too."

"Human," the first vampire asked. "How could that be this is Angelus, Master Vampire, Scourge of Europe, not some pathetic human." Reaching out the vampires grabbed Angel and pulled him closer. "Well, well, well," He said his game face showing. "It is a human. So what happened to you, Angelus?"

Angel looked at the vampire, then belched in his face. "Sod off," Angel said. "You think you can take me? I was Angelus, I could dust you like that," Angel tried to snap his fingers but he was too hammered to be able to do it.

"Oh," The vampire moaned, "I'm so scared." He backhanded Angel to the ground. "Come on get up blood bag, I want to have some fun before I kill you."

Angel lay on the ground. He couldn't quite understand how he had gotten there. He was trying to pick himself up when he heard a familiar voice.

"Oi," The voice called out. "I think you two need to reconsider your dinner plans."

The two vampires looked up and saw Spike, he was a little bit ahead of Drusilla. "What's it to you?" the second vampire asked. Both Spike and Drusilla looked tanned, "After all if you're so worried about our dinner plans you two can be added to the meal." Both Vampires laughed, at the joke.

"Now, let's not be hasty," the first vampire said. "She looks like she would be fun. How about we kill you and him, but her," he paused. "Well, we'll have some fun with her. After all, she looks like she'd be a good fuck. I bet she's a screamer."

Drusilla smiled, "Oh, naughty little boys think they can make me scream?"

"You two just made a big mistake," Angel slurred.

"I'm going to enjoy tearing you apart," Spike said.

"Now that's funny," the second vampire said. "Give it your best shot blood bag."

Spike blurred forward, the vampire couldn't even believe how fast this guy was. Grabbing the arm of the second vampire Spike braced his other arm on the vampire's chest. Then he pulled down. The second vampires started screaming as Spike pulled his arm off. Spike grabbed the arm and started beating the one-armed vampire on the head with it. "Oi," Spike said, "Why are you hitting yourself?" After five blows the arm was almost shredded.

The first vampire seeing this went to move to help kill the human when he saw Drusilla in front of him. "Ah, ah, ah," Drusilla said, wagging a finger at him. "It's not polite to interrupt." The vampire felt a sense of dread, as Drusilla looked at him. "My what a naughty little boy you are. I think you need to be punished." Drusilla grabbed his head and pulled him down so that he was looking into her eyes. "Be in my eyes, see your fate." The vampire seemed to go still for a few seconds, then it started to scream. Drusilla let it go; the vampire fell to the ground screaming. It picked itself up and started to back away, never taking its eyes off of Drusilla. It continued to scream as it was finally far enough away to turn and run, still screaming, it ran into the night.

"What'd you do to him," the one-armed vampire yelled.

"Don't worry bout it mate," Spike said. "He shouldn't a said that about me Dru. But you, you're the lucky one."

"I am," the vampire asked hopefully.

"That's right mate," Spike said picking him up with one hand. "It's your lucky night. See I'm going to kill you rather than let Dru have you." Spike reached back with his free hand and plunged it into the vampire's chest. He grabbed the vampire's heart and pulled it out then held it in front of the vampire.

The vampire knew he was dead, but strangely he felt grateful, "Thank you," he said as he crumbled to dust.

Angel felt someone picking him up. He managed to open his eyes and saw Spike holding him up, "What are you doing here," Angel slurred.

Spike pushed Angel as far away as he could without dropping him. "Oi, Bloody buggering hell, you stink."

Angel belched again. Drusilla came up to look at him, "Hello not Daddy. We have so much to talk about. William and I have missed you so much." Turning to Spike she said, "Bring him." Drusilla started walking back the way they had come, Spike followed carrying Angel.