Okay peeps, here you are. Enjoy it, and please leave reviews. Two notes- Hypothermia is a very dangerous medical condition! If you ever find someone and know or think they are hypothermic CALL FOR MEDICAL ASSISTENCE ASAP! If possible move the victim out of the cold and change them into warm, dry clothes while waiting for help. Also note that this is a fictional story about fictional characters, so I had to make allowances to the characters and the situation. Note two- Big hugs to QueenGwen for her tender loving beta work.

Okay story time.

~*~

Angel couldn't move, couldn't think. His hand still rested on his love's shoulder. Buffy's eyes were closed, and snowflakes had frozen to her long lashes. Her normally rosy lips had turned a dark shade of violet and a layer of ice had formed above her upper lip. A good half inch of snow covered her body. For one mind-numbing second Angel feared she was dead. Then he noticed the tiny cloud of breath exiting her nose. Mentally Angel thanked every god and deity he'd ever heard of that she was alive.

Suddenly realization hit Angel like a stake through the heart—she had to have been sitting here for several hours to look like this. Angel hurriedly brushed the snow off her body, noting painfully that she was huddled in a ball, her arms wrapped around her legs.

Angel reached for the doorknob, wondering why Buffy hadn't let herself in and found it locked. "Damn it," he muttered, searching the pockets of his duster for the key. Finding it, he unlocked the door, not bothering to remove the key. Carefully he scooped Buffy into his arms, her body stiff with cold. Kicking the door shut with his foot, he rushed to the bed, laying Buffy down on top of the crimson comforter. Small bits of ice flaked off of her jacket and jeans as the fabric moved. 'I have to get her out of these clothes.' Angel thought as he sat next to her. 'I have to get her warm.' The first thing that crossed Angel's mind was a piece of information he remembered picking up along the way—to warm up someone with hypothermia, the best way was with body heat. This required both parties to be naked. Had Angel not been so worried to the point of distraction about Buffy the thought of them getting naked might have made him blush. But then Angel's heart sank when he remembered that rule generally applied only when both parties had body heat to give. At second thought, his own body temperature probably matched hers. One of the down-falls of being a walking corpse.

Sighing, and trying not to let broodiness and anguish get the best of him, Angel did the next best thing to giving her his own body heat. Rapidly, he unzipped Buffy's coat, removing her from the frozen material. He removed her shoes, leaving her socks on. Getting up, he went to his dresser and pulled out a dark green sweater and a pair of cotton sweatpants. Returning to her side, he slowly eased her cold, unresponsive arms out of her shirt. Under normal circumstances Angel would have been concerned with modesty, but now he was too worried to care. Her skin was pale, her veins bright blue lines against her chilled flesh.

Slowly, for he was terrified that he would hurt her, Angel lifted her shirt over her shoulders and eased it over her head, supporting her back and neck with one arm. Tossing her top aside, Angel reached for his sweater and carefully enveloped Buffy in it. As he slid her arm through the sleeve, he noticed her finger tips had turned blue. "Oh Buffy, my love...what happened? Why were you out in the cold? And for so long...?" Gently he raised her tiny hand and kissed her chilled fingers. "Oh my love, my sweet love."

~*~

Angel covered Buffy with yet another blanket and checked the hot water bottle he had pressed against her back. Still warm, but he went back into his small kitchen and refilled the tea kettle anyway. Setting the full kettle on the burner, he went back to the bed. Buffy was incased in covers and warm towels, only her face left exposed. Angel reached for the bowl of warm water that sat on the bedside table, and wrung out the cloth that was inside. Tenderly he bathed Buffy's face with the tepid water. Brushing back a stray bit of her hair, Angel whispered quietly, "Come back Buffy... please come back."

~*~

Angel glanced at the clock; ten till five. It had been over two hours since he found Buffy in the snow and she still hadn't moved. Angel was scared; he didn't know what to do. Thanks in part to his vampire-enhanced hearing, he could tell her heart rate was lower then it should be, and she was breathing slower then normal, but he didn't think it had reached a life-threatening low. He couldn't be sure though, and calling the paramedics was out of the question. Not only was there a good foot of snow covering the ground, but they would ask lots of questions, and Angel did not have any answers.

He couldn't remember a time when he had felt more helpless.

~*~

TBC

Yes I know I'm evil. And I'm sad to say I have nothing else written to date. I will finish, but it'll take some time. Please bear with me! -LadyCallie