The characters of BtVS and Angel do not belong to me. I just kill them for sport.
A/N: Rachel, I am not going to kill ALL the characters off...give me some credit!
This is the last part, I hope you all enjoy it...
Life Lessons Final chapter
Everyone was shocked as they looked down at the lifeless body of Dawn. Finally, Willow walked over to stand behind Oz.
"Oz...She can't be-"
That was all Willow could say before the explosion. That was the only word that anyone could use to describe it. A blinding white light burst forth from Dawn's body, with a force that sent everyone flying.
Dazed, they slowly sat up. Xander got up first and he looked around. He shook his head, and looked around again. "Uh, guys? Where's Dawn?"
Slowly, the other members of the group stood up. They looked to the place on the floor where Dawn had been, then started looking around the living room. There was no sign of her.
Spike was in his crypt, waiting for the sun to go down so he could start going after Buffy. Suddenly, he grabbed his head and cried out in pain. He felt like his head was about to explode. His body began to ache all over and he slowly curled up in a ball, the pain to intense for him to bear. The pain slowly began to subside. Spike slowly lifted his head, as tears began to form in his eyes. He felt different. He didn't know how to explain it. A heart-wrenching sob escaped his throat, and he put his head back down as bloody tears poured forth from his eyes.
In LA, Angel was experiencing the same thing, minus the headache. His body felt like it was on fire. He called out for Cordelia. She came to his room and looked down at him huddled on the floor. She rushed to his side and lowly lifted his head up and rested it in her lap. "Angel! What's wrong? Angel say something!"
Slowly he sat up. His body still shaking from the pain that he somehow managed to withstand. He looked up at her, tears streaking his face. "What the hell just happened to you?!" Cordelia asked, still freaked out. Angel shook his head, because he had no idea. He just felt like something inside him changed.
Buffy was sitting in her seat, waiting for her flight to land. She suddenly gripped the armrests. Her knuckles turned white and she felt her heart stop. She couldn't take in any breath. She began to suffocate. With terrified eyes she looked at the old woman sitting next to her. She tried to ask for help, but nothing came out. Her chest was expanded to its limit, and she felt a blackness begin to take over her.
Then it was over. Air was sucked into her starved lungs and she began to breathe heavily. She sat back in her seat, her hands relaxed. She looked deep within herself for an explanation of what had just happened. She didn't have to think that long about it. She knew. The Key abandoned its human form. Dawn was gone.
Joyce did not feel anything as extraordinary as the others did. She felt something deep within her soul. She sighed. The gypsy had been right. Everything the mysterious woman had said would happen, some twenty-five years ago, had happened. Both of her girls where gone now. She knew it and she accepted it. She knew it was time to move on. Joyce, looking older than her years, began to plan for her future. A future she would have to live without her beautiful, precious, and special girls.
Willow sat in her dorm room. A book of spells sat in front of her, unread. She didn't need the spell book. Somehow, she knew what everyone of them said. She tested herself by thinking of a situation, and the type of spell that she would need, and without looking in the book, she knew what it was. She even knew what ingredients she would need from it. She sat silently stunned, until someone came into her room that stunned her even more.
"Hey Red, what ya readin'?"
Spike stood in her doorway, uninvited and in the stream of sunlight that came through her window. "Are you human?"
"Nah, still don't have a heart beat, still lust for blood, and still see rather well in the dark. Oh, and I think the chip is gone."
The last statement had Willow lunging far away from him, and holding up a cross. Her eyes were wide and terrified.
"Easy there, Red" Spike went over and plucked the cross out of her hands. "Just doesn't have quite the same effect." Willow was even more petrified now. "Will you please get that bloody look off your face. It isn't becoming on you at all. I guess I should have mentioned first that I have no desire to kill you. Or anyone else for that matter. I think I have a bloody soul". Willow looked him in the eyes, her body relaxed immediately. "I think we need to have a Scooby meeting"....
The gang sat around, each one telling what new feelings or powers they possessed now. Oz, no longer felt the wolf inside of him, but Xander and Anya admitted that they hadn't felt anything different since the accident.
Spike took the floor. "The reason that I had gone to see Willow, was to check if she had heard from Faith. I haven't talked to her since yesterday. She had a date last night, and this was the first chance I had to get to see her."
"What do you want with Faith?" Xander asked
"Yeah, wasn't she going to go back to prison?" Anya asked
"No, she said that since Buffy went AWOL, she was going to stick around and patrol." Willow told the group. "But why do you want to see her?"
"She has...information that I might find useful". He still didn't want to bring up Buffy and her whereabouts.
Everyone was saying that they hadn't heard from her, when Xander's face went white. "Oh God! She's hurt. It's really bad! Come on guys, she's in her motel room." The group instantly rushed out and made it in record time to the SunnyHello motel in which Faith was currently staying.
Spike burst through the door, to see Faith naked and curled up against a wall. She was shaking and covered in blood. There was a man that was lying on the bed. It was the Council guy. He was obviously the source of most of the blood flow. After taking in the site, Xander immediately knelt down next to Faith and reached for her. She lashed out at him, her eyes looked crazy. "Faith, Faith, shh, it's okay." Xander held her tighter as he said comforting words in her ears. Faith slowly began to give up her fight. She leaned into Xander as sobs racked through her body.
"He was going to kill me" Faith got out between sobs. "He said he loved me. I believed him. He was just trying to get close to me." She finished as she continued to cry. Spike pulled the comforter off the floor where it had been thrown, and wrapped it around her body. Xander then lifted her up, and carried her out of the room.
A few days later, Faith sat on Buffy's old bed in the dorm room, talking to Willow. She was still shaken about what had happened to her, but she had dealt with worse, and she would deal with this. The only difference was, she had help now. Willow made her talk about it, and it made Faith feel better to know that Willow wasn't indifferent as to what happened. It was quite the opposite in fact. Willow was enraged. Faith never had anyone so upset on her behalf. It was really...disturbing. But it made her feel something that she hadn't felt in a long time.
"Do you think you loved him? I mean, I know you didn't know him for very long, but wasn't just a little tiny part of you in love with him?" Willow asked.
Faith thought about the question carefully. "If I were somebody else, and the things in my life never happened to me, I probably would think yes. But too many people have-I loved his attention. I loved the thought that he might love me. I just don't think I'm capable of loving someone."
"Yes you are. And you want to very badly. You just haven't found the right person."
"All I'm saying, is that I've been with men and I've been with women. I was never looking for a gender or a particular type to niche myself into. I just was looking everywhere for that one person. I don't think it exists. Maybe love doesn't find me worthy enough to bestow itself upon."
"That's just crazy talk. You are really special. Think of all the ways you've changed. And it wasn't because you had to. It's because you knew it was the right thing. That's really cool in my book." Willow put her arm around Faith and smiled at her.
"Well," Faith said, putting her arm around Willow "God forbid if the Willow book ever writes me out." She smiled back at Willow. They looked at each other for a minute. Their smiles slowly faded away as they saw something in each other's eyes...
"Xander, how did you know that Faith was in trouble?" Anya asked
"I don't know. Spike mentioned her, and in my Xander brain I said 'If I were Faith, where would I be?' Cause it usually works when I can't find my keys or my shoes. Anyway, instead of thinking a smoky club with whips and chains, like I normally associate Faith with, I saw her in her motel room. It's been happening a lot since we found Faith. If I concentrate on something, I can see it. Weird, huh?"
"Yeah. That is really weird Xander. Don't do it any more."
"It isn't something that I can control, Anya. It just happens."
"Well, stop. End of story. I've got to go to work. See you, love biscuit. We'll have sex when I get home."
"I love you."
"I know" Anya said happily, kissed Xander on the forehead, and walked out of their apartment.
Xander let out a long sigh. He spread out on the couch, ready to take a nap. For some reason, he wondered how Cordy was doing. There was a flash in his mind, but it only lasted for a second. Xander shook his head. Two things about that vision told him it wasn't possible. The first was that Angel and Cordy were on the beach together, in the sunlight no less. The second was that Cordy had told Angel that she used to be in love with Xander, and was still in love with him.
"Snap out of it, Xand" he told himself "It's just wishful thinking." Xander sat up straight on the couch. 'Wishful thinking'? Where did that come from? An uneasy feeling came over him. He needed to see Anya. He told himself repeatedly on the way to the Magic Box that he just wanted to see her, not to remind him of who he was with.
"This is great. I've missed this. It's perfect."
"Except you're getting your feet wet in the tide with me, rather than with Buffy."
Angel and Cordelia were standing by the shore at the beach. It was his first day out in the sun, since the day that never happened.
"She left. Leave it alone. If she wants me she knows where to find me."
Cordelia bit her tongue. She and Angel had gotten in one too many fights since she found out that he hadn't gone after Buffy. She wasn't about to tell them that Spike had. But she supposed their fights were a little beneficial. Their last fight had pushed Cordelia over the edge. In her frustration, she pushed Angel. Angel, in turn, tripped over the coffee table and fell into the sunlight that came through the front doors. He was looking up angrily at Cordy, when her eyes tripled in size. He then he noticed that he sat in the sun. It was the first of many anti-vampire elements that no longer effected him.
"You should really go after her now. I was waiting for you to tell me yourself, but since it's obvious that you won't...I found the note that Giles left you. It said that the curse Willow recited that restored your soul was sans loophole. That means that you can well...you can...you're a big boy, you can figure it out. Is it true?"
Angel gave her a side look. "Don't know. Really haven't had the opportunity."
"Oh. Why would Giles wait so long to tell you that, though? Why would he tell you in his will?"
"I guess to give Buffy time to get over me."
"Well, look at you now! You can go to church with her, the beach, and all that normal stuff. Just what you always wanted for her. What I want to know, is why you are here with me, instead of with her."
"Why are you here with me?"
"Don't answer a question with a question. It's rude!"
"Answer.
"Where else would I be? Besides, I like being with you. You're good company...sometimes."
"Why aren't you with Xander?"
Cordelia was going to say something flippant, but she had to get it out to someone. "He's with Anya now. He's happy."
"And Buffy will be happy, too. She'll find the right MAN. Not vampire."
"But she isn't happy right now! Do you think that I would have left with you if Xander had been unhappy? NO! Sure, Xander broke whatever heart I had at that time in my life, and he's the reason I took off for LA, but I still love him. Neither one of us handled 'the kiss' very well. It's still his fault, though. But he's happy now. A day late and a dollar short. And you'll be singing a duet with me if you don't go after her!"
"No." He said in a way that made Cordelia back off immediately. "Why are you so adamant about Buffy and I together? I don't get it."
"No, you wouldn't. Don't give me the puppy dog eyes, Angel. You really wouldn't understand anyway."
"Try me" He said softly, taking hold of her hand.
"If someone had intervened with me and Xander, we might be together now. And if someone had intervened with Doyle and me we could have been together before he died. I just want to do for you what nobody did for me."
"I understand." Cordelia smiled up at him. She new he wouldn't do anything about Buffy, yet, but at least he knew where she was coming from. They walked back to his car, hand in hand.
"Hey. Have you seen Willow?" Oz asked Anya when he came to the Magic Box
"Oh, hey Oz. She was here, but she and Faith took off. They're doing that a lot lately. They said something about rejuvenating the spirit. Took a couple of ingredients for a spell though. And she didn't pay for them. Again. She's always taking stuff from here and she never pays for it. That might have worked with Gi- forget it. Forget I said anything." Anya started rearranging stuff on the self, then putting it back in its original place. She stopped and turned back to Oz. "It isn't the same without him here, you know.
"I know. Seems like a lot of things are different."
"He isn't behind the counter drinking tea, or sitting at that table reading a book, or telling me to be nice to customers-"
A woman walked up to the counter. "Excuse me ma'am, but can you tell me where I can find-"
"Hey! Can't you see that I'm in the middle of a conversation? Look harder, if you can't find it, then we don't have it! Okay?" She turns back to Oz "Where was I?"
"Customer Service"
"Right"
"But I get what you're saying."
"Doubtful. You're not the one in a place with so many reminders of someone that was always there. You don't know what it's like to know that nothing will ever be the same again. Whether it's for the best or worst, the one person that you just...expected to be around, isn't."
"I think I might have a good idea how that feels."
"Oh. Yeah, you and Willow. I forgot about that, you know, her being a lesbian and all."
"Right. Maybe I should go."
"Did I offend you? I didn't say something rude, did I? Xander's always telling me about tact. I thought that was an adhesive or something."
"You're fine. It's just a little hard right now."
"You must have really loved her."
"About as much as you love Xander."
"Oh. Then what's the problem? Get over it!"
Oz just gave her a weird look
"What? I was a vengeance demon for over a thousand years. It's going to take a little more than a year for me to be able to love a man."
"But you said that you loved me."
Xander had overheard most of their conversation, but he couldn't believe what she had just said.
"Xander! What are you doing here?"
"I came by to see you. What do you mean you don't love me. You told me you loved me."
"Well, yeah, but that's because you said it to me."
"You mean you told me that you loved me because I told you?"
"Yeah."
Xander looked at her for a second "Oh God...I've got to get out of here."
Xander's construction job had been going so well that he finally had enough money to buy a used car. He now jumped in his '86 Honda and took off. He didn't know where he was going, just that he had to get out of this town.
Then he had an epiphany. He just hoped she would be there.
Buffy checked into a motel room, in a part of New York that you didn't see in the brochures. The room smelled bad. Really, really, really bad. She mentally shrugged her shoulders as she went into the bathroom to clean up. One look at the floor made her realize that she wasn't even going to step a foot in there fully clothed, much less naked. Her body physically shivered in disgust.
"Should I announce my presence or wait till you strip down?"
Buffy's body went tense. There was no way that he could have followed her here. There is no way he could have known where she had gone. She only told Faith- oh. HaHa, Faith, 'I won't tell a soul'. Very funny. Not at all.
Buffy turned around and met the eyes of the peroxide vamp. "What are you doing here, Spike?"
"Just wanted to visit the Big Apple. You know my first choice was Harmony. But get this: there is no Harmony in Maine! I think those people at Passions made up a town!"
"Imagine that." Buffy said, a hint of a smile playing about her lips. "But really, Spike. What are you doing here?"
"Well I thought if the big Poof wasn't going to come and get you, I might as well give it a shot."
Buffy's face fell. "He isn't coming? Don't know why that surprises me. It shouldn't. I'm a pro at this aspect of our relationship. Well, you're here aren't you? That's something. At least I'm not a complete loser. How long are you staying for?"
Spike noticed that her eyes had lost their light. She looked terribly alone. Her tone was both hopeful and desolate at the same time. Hopeful because someone was with her, and desolate because she knew he would eventually leave. He wanted to ring Angel's neck. No, he thought, he wanted to stake him.
"Believe it or not, Slayer, but I'm here for the long haul. Think you can stand a few years of me?"
There was a spark in Buffy's eyes "I have so far, haven't I?"
Across the filthy motel room, they held each other's gaze. It was an agreement that they both felt good about. That they both needed.
There it was again, Angel thought bitterly. Someone was banging on the front door, and nobody had answered it yet.
"Cordelia! Can you get the door? Cordelia! Forget it, I'll get it myself!"
Angel stomped down the flight of stairs from his bedroom to answer the door. He opened the door to a very confused looking Xander.
"Hey Dead boy. Listen, I really don't know what I'm doing here. It seemed like a good idea about three and half-hours ago. I should go." Xander turned to leave.
"Xander?"
There it was. That voice that he had wanted to hear ever since she and Angel went back to LA. He turned to face her. God she was beautiful.
"Cordelia. I -"
He didn't get anything else out, because Cordelia practically flew across the hotel lobby and into Xander's arms. "I miss you too" he said, only half joking.
"Shut up, Xander." Cordelia's voice was muffled by Xander's chest
"Shutting up." He replied, burying his face in her hair
"I'll just leave you two alone." Angel said, but the two people temporarily glued at every inch, didn't hear.
Angel smiled sadly and walked out of the room.
The End
Well, that's the end of that. I plan on doing a follow up that takes place a couple of years later. Hope you enjoyed this. And if you're a big B/A fan, you probably didn't like that ending. But fear not, there is a method in my madness...
A/N: Rachel, I am not going to kill ALL the characters off...give me some credit!
This is the last part, I hope you all enjoy it...
Life Lessons Final chapter
Everyone was shocked as they looked down at the lifeless body of Dawn. Finally, Willow walked over to stand behind Oz.
"Oz...She can't be-"
That was all Willow could say before the explosion. That was the only word that anyone could use to describe it. A blinding white light burst forth from Dawn's body, with a force that sent everyone flying.
Dazed, they slowly sat up. Xander got up first and he looked around. He shook his head, and looked around again. "Uh, guys? Where's Dawn?"
Slowly, the other members of the group stood up. They looked to the place on the floor where Dawn had been, then started looking around the living room. There was no sign of her.
Spike was in his crypt, waiting for the sun to go down so he could start going after Buffy. Suddenly, he grabbed his head and cried out in pain. He felt like his head was about to explode. His body began to ache all over and he slowly curled up in a ball, the pain to intense for him to bear. The pain slowly began to subside. Spike slowly lifted his head, as tears began to form in his eyes. He felt different. He didn't know how to explain it. A heart-wrenching sob escaped his throat, and he put his head back down as bloody tears poured forth from his eyes.
In LA, Angel was experiencing the same thing, minus the headache. His body felt like it was on fire. He called out for Cordelia. She came to his room and looked down at him huddled on the floor. She rushed to his side and lowly lifted his head up and rested it in her lap. "Angel! What's wrong? Angel say something!"
Slowly he sat up. His body still shaking from the pain that he somehow managed to withstand. He looked up at her, tears streaking his face. "What the hell just happened to you?!" Cordelia asked, still freaked out. Angel shook his head, because he had no idea. He just felt like something inside him changed.
Buffy was sitting in her seat, waiting for her flight to land. She suddenly gripped the armrests. Her knuckles turned white and she felt her heart stop. She couldn't take in any breath. She began to suffocate. With terrified eyes she looked at the old woman sitting next to her. She tried to ask for help, but nothing came out. Her chest was expanded to its limit, and she felt a blackness begin to take over her.
Then it was over. Air was sucked into her starved lungs and she began to breathe heavily. She sat back in her seat, her hands relaxed. She looked deep within herself for an explanation of what had just happened. She didn't have to think that long about it. She knew. The Key abandoned its human form. Dawn was gone.
Joyce did not feel anything as extraordinary as the others did. She felt something deep within her soul. She sighed. The gypsy had been right. Everything the mysterious woman had said would happen, some twenty-five years ago, had happened. Both of her girls where gone now. She knew it and she accepted it. She knew it was time to move on. Joyce, looking older than her years, began to plan for her future. A future she would have to live without her beautiful, precious, and special girls.
Willow sat in her dorm room. A book of spells sat in front of her, unread. She didn't need the spell book. Somehow, she knew what everyone of them said. She tested herself by thinking of a situation, and the type of spell that she would need, and without looking in the book, she knew what it was. She even knew what ingredients she would need from it. She sat silently stunned, until someone came into her room that stunned her even more.
"Hey Red, what ya readin'?"
Spike stood in her doorway, uninvited and in the stream of sunlight that came through her window. "Are you human?"
"Nah, still don't have a heart beat, still lust for blood, and still see rather well in the dark. Oh, and I think the chip is gone."
The last statement had Willow lunging far away from him, and holding up a cross. Her eyes were wide and terrified.
"Easy there, Red" Spike went over and plucked the cross out of her hands. "Just doesn't have quite the same effect." Willow was even more petrified now. "Will you please get that bloody look off your face. It isn't becoming on you at all. I guess I should have mentioned first that I have no desire to kill you. Or anyone else for that matter. I think I have a bloody soul". Willow looked him in the eyes, her body relaxed immediately. "I think we need to have a Scooby meeting"....
The gang sat around, each one telling what new feelings or powers they possessed now. Oz, no longer felt the wolf inside of him, but Xander and Anya admitted that they hadn't felt anything different since the accident.
Spike took the floor. "The reason that I had gone to see Willow, was to check if she had heard from Faith. I haven't talked to her since yesterday. She had a date last night, and this was the first chance I had to get to see her."
"What do you want with Faith?" Xander asked
"Yeah, wasn't she going to go back to prison?" Anya asked
"No, she said that since Buffy went AWOL, she was going to stick around and patrol." Willow told the group. "But why do you want to see her?"
"She has...information that I might find useful". He still didn't want to bring up Buffy and her whereabouts.
Everyone was saying that they hadn't heard from her, when Xander's face went white. "Oh God! She's hurt. It's really bad! Come on guys, she's in her motel room." The group instantly rushed out and made it in record time to the SunnyHello motel in which Faith was currently staying.
Spike burst through the door, to see Faith naked and curled up against a wall. She was shaking and covered in blood. There was a man that was lying on the bed. It was the Council guy. He was obviously the source of most of the blood flow. After taking in the site, Xander immediately knelt down next to Faith and reached for her. She lashed out at him, her eyes looked crazy. "Faith, Faith, shh, it's okay." Xander held her tighter as he said comforting words in her ears. Faith slowly began to give up her fight. She leaned into Xander as sobs racked through her body.
"He was going to kill me" Faith got out between sobs. "He said he loved me. I believed him. He was just trying to get close to me." She finished as she continued to cry. Spike pulled the comforter off the floor where it had been thrown, and wrapped it around her body. Xander then lifted her up, and carried her out of the room.
A few days later, Faith sat on Buffy's old bed in the dorm room, talking to Willow. She was still shaken about what had happened to her, but she had dealt with worse, and she would deal with this. The only difference was, she had help now. Willow made her talk about it, and it made Faith feel better to know that Willow wasn't indifferent as to what happened. It was quite the opposite in fact. Willow was enraged. Faith never had anyone so upset on her behalf. It was really...disturbing. But it made her feel something that she hadn't felt in a long time.
"Do you think you loved him? I mean, I know you didn't know him for very long, but wasn't just a little tiny part of you in love with him?" Willow asked.
Faith thought about the question carefully. "If I were somebody else, and the things in my life never happened to me, I probably would think yes. But too many people have-I loved his attention. I loved the thought that he might love me. I just don't think I'm capable of loving someone."
"Yes you are. And you want to very badly. You just haven't found the right person."
"All I'm saying, is that I've been with men and I've been with women. I was never looking for a gender or a particular type to niche myself into. I just was looking everywhere for that one person. I don't think it exists. Maybe love doesn't find me worthy enough to bestow itself upon."
"That's just crazy talk. You are really special. Think of all the ways you've changed. And it wasn't because you had to. It's because you knew it was the right thing. That's really cool in my book." Willow put her arm around Faith and smiled at her.
"Well," Faith said, putting her arm around Willow "God forbid if the Willow book ever writes me out." She smiled back at Willow. They looked at each other for a minute. Their smiles slowly faded away as they saw something in each other's eyes...
"Xander, how did you know that Faith was in trouble?" Anya asked
"I don't know. Spike mentioned her, and in my Xander brain I said 'If I were Faith, where would I be?' Cause it usually works when I can't find my keys or my shoes. Anyway, instead of thinking a smoky club with whips and chains, like I normally associate Faith with, I saw her in her motel room. It's been happening a lot since we found Faith. If I concentrate on something, I can see it. Weird, huh?"
"Yeah. That is really weird Xander. Don't do it any more."
"It isn't something that I can control, Anya. It just happens."
"Well, stop. End of story. I've got to go to work. See you, love biscuit. We'll have sex when I get home."
"I love you."
"I know" Anya said happily, kissed Xander on the forehead, and walked out of their apartment.
Xander let out a long sigh. He spread out on the couch, ready to take a nap. For some reason, he wondered how Cordy was doing. There was a flash in his mind, but it only lasted for a second. Xander shook his head. Two things about that vision told him it wasn't possible. The first was that Angel and Cordy were on the beach together, in the sunlight no less. The second was that Cordy had told Angel that she used to be in love with Xander, and was still in love with him.
"Snap out of it, Xand" he told himself "It's just wishful thinking." Xander sat up straight on the couch. 'Wishful thinking'? Where did that come from? An uneasy feeling came over him. He needed to see Anya. He told himself repeatedly on the way to the Magic Box that he just wanted to see her, not to remind him of who he was with.
"This is great. I've missed this. It's perfect."
"Except you're getting your feet wet in the tide with me, rather than with Buffy."
Angel and Cordelia were standing by the shore at the beach. It was his first day out in the sun, since the day that never happened.
"She left. Leave it alone. If she wants me she knows where to find me."
Cordelia bit her tongue. She and Angel had gotten in one too many fights since she found out that he hadn't gone after Buffy. She wasn't about to tell them that Spike had. But she supposed their fights were a little beneficial. Their last fight had pushed Cordelia over the edge. In her frustration, she pushed Angel. Angel, in turn, tripped over the coffee table and fell into the sunlight that came through the front doors. He was looking up angrily at Cordy, when her eyes tripled in size. He then he noticed that he sat in the sun. It was the first of many anti-vampire elements that no longer effected him.
"You should really go after her now. I was waiting for you to tell me yourself, but since it's obvious that you won't...I found the note that Giles left you. It said that the curse Willow recited that restored your soul was sans loophole. That means that you can well...you can...you're a big boy, you can figure it out. Is it true?"
Angel gave her a side look. "Don't know. Really haven't had the opportunity."
"Oh. Why would Giles wait so long to tell you that, though? Why would he tell you in his will?"
"I guess to give Buffy time to get over me."
"Well, look at you now! You can go to church with her, the beach, and all that normal stuff. Just what you always wanted for her. What I want to know, is why you are here with me, instead of with her."
"Why are you here with me?"
"Don't answer a question with a question. It's rude!"
"Answer.
"Where else would I be? Besides, I like being with you. You're good company...sometimes."
"Why aren't you with Xander?"
Cordelia was going to say something flippant, but she had to get it out to someone. "He's with Anya now. He's happy."
"And Buffy will be happy, too. She'll find the right MAN. Not vampire."
"But she isn't happy right now! Do you think that I would have left with you if Xander had been unhappy? NO! Sure, Xander broke whatever heart I had at that time in my life, and he's the reason I took off for LA, but I still love him. Neither one of us handled 'the kiss' very well. It's still his fault, though. But he's happy now. A day late and a dollar short. And you'll be singing a duet with me if you don't go after her!"
"No." He said in a way that made Cordelia back off immediately. "Why are you so adamant about Buffy and I together? I don't get it."
"No, you wouldn't. Don't give me the puppy dog eyes, Angel. You really wouldn't understand anyway."
"Try me" He said softly, taking hold of her hand.
"If someone had intervened with me and Xander, we might be together now. And if someone had intervened with Doyle and me we could have been together before he died. I just want to do for you what nobody did for me."
"I understand." Cordelia smiled up at him. She new he wouldn't do anything about Buffy, yet, but at least he knew where she was coming from. They walked back to his car, hand in hand.
"Hey. Have you seen Willow?" Oz asked Anya when he came to the Magic Box
"Oh, hey Oz. She was here, but she and Faith took off. They're doing that a lot lately. They said something about rejuvenating the spirit. Took a couple of ingredients for a spell though. And she didn't pay for them. Again. She's always taking stuff from here and she never pays for it. That might have worked with Gi- forget it. Forget I said anything." Anya started rearranging stuff on the self, then putting it back in its original place. She stopped and turned back to Oz. "It isn't the same without him here, you know.
"I know. Seems like a lot of things are different."
"He isn't behind the counter drinking tea, or sitting at that table reading a book, or telling me to be nice to customers-"
A woman walked up to the counter. "Excuse me ma'am, but can you tell me where I can find-"
"Hey! Can't you see that I'm in the middle of a conversation? Look harder, if you can't find it, then we don't have it! Okay?" She turns back to Oz "Where was I?"
"Customer Service"
"Right"
"But I get what you're saying."
"Doubtful. You're not the one in a place with so many reminders of someone that was always there. You don't know what it's like to know that nothing will ever be the same again. Whether it's for the best or worst, the one person that you just...expected to be around, isn't."
"I think I might have a good idea how that feels."
"Oh. Yeah, you and Willow. I forgot about that, you know, her being a lesbian and all."
"Right. Maybe I should go."
"Did I offend you? I didn't say something rude, did I? Xander's always telling me about tact. I thought that was an adhesive or something."
"You're fine. It's just a little hard right now."
"You must have really loved her."
"About as much as you love Xander."
"Oh. Then what's the problem? Get over it!"
Oz just gave her a weird look
"What? I was a vengeance demon for over a thousand years. It's going to take a little more than a year for me to be able to love a man."
"But you said that you loved me."
Xander had overheard most of their conversation, but he couldn't believe what she had just said.
"Xander! What are you doing here?"
"I came by to see you. What do you mean you don't love me. You told me you loved me."
"Well, yeah, but that's because you said it to me."
"You mean you told me that you loved me because I told you?"
"Yeah."
Xander looked at her for a second "Oh God...I've got to get out of here."
Xander's construction job had been going so well that he finally had enough money to buy a used car. He now jumped in his '86 Honda and took off. He didn't know where he was going, just that he had to get out of this town.
Then he had an epiphany. He just hoped she would be there.
Buffy checked into a motel room, in a part of New York that you didn't see in the brochures. The room smelled bad. Really, really, really bad. She mentally shrugged her shoulders as she went into the bathroom to clean up. One look at the floor made her realize that she wasn't even going to step a foot in there fully clothed, much less naked. Her body physically shivered in disgust.
"Should I announce my presence or wait till you strip down?"
Buffy's body went tense. There was no way that he could have followed her here. There is no way he could have known where she had gone. She only told Faith- oh. HaHa, Faith, 'I won't tell a soul'. Very funny. Not at all.
Buffy turned around and met the eyes of the peroxide vamp. "What are you doing here, Spike?"
"Just wanted to visit the Big Apple. You know my first choice was Harmony. But get this: there is no Harmony in Maine! I think those people at Passions made up a town!"
"Imagine that." Buffy said, a hint of a smile playing about her lips. "But really, Spike. What are you doing here?"
"Well I thought if the big Poof wasn't going to come and get you, I might as well give it a shot."
Buffy's face fell. "He isn't coming? Don't know why that surprises me. It shouldn't. I'm a pro at this aspect of our relationship. Well, you're here aren't you? That's something. At least I'm not a complete loser. How long are you staying for?"
Spike noticed that her eyes had lost their light. She looked terribly alone. Her tone was both hopeful and desolate at the same time. Hopeful because someone was with her, and desolate because she knew he would eventually leave. He wanted to ring Angel's neck. No, he thought, he wanted to stake him.
"Believe it or not, Slayer, but I'm here for the long haul. Think you can stand a few years of me?"
There was a spark in Buffy's eyes "I have so far, haven't I?"
Across the filthy motel room, they held each other's gaze. It was an agreement that they both felt good about. That they both needed.
There it was again, Angel thought bitterly. Someone was banging on the front door, and nobody had answered it yet.
"Cordelia! Can you get the door? Cordelia! Forget it, I'll get it myself!"
Angel stomped down the flight of stairs from his bedroom to answer the door. He opened the door to a very confused looking Xander.
"Hey Dead boy. Listen, I really don't know what I'm doing here. It seemed like a good idea about three and half-hours ago. I should go." Xander turned to leave.
"Xander?"
There it was. That voice that he had wanted to hear ever since she and Angel went back to LA. He turned to face her. God she was beautiful.
"Cordelia. I -"
He didn't get anything else out, because Cordelia practically flew across the hotel lobby and into Xander's arms. "I miss you too" he said, only half joking.
"Shut up, Xander." Cordelia's voice was muffled by Xander's chest
"Shutting up." He replied, burying his face in her hair
"I'll just leave you two alone." Angel said, but the two people temporarily glued at every inch, didn't hear.
Angel smiled sadly and walked out of the room.
The End
Well, that's the end of that. I plan on doing a follow up that takes place a couple of years later. Hope you enjoyed this. And if you're a big B/A fan, you probably didn't like that ending. But fear not, there is a method in my madness...