A/N Ok, I was watching "Pearl Harbor" and I couldn't resist! It just
seemed like the cutest little story to write. Of course, this is a B/A
fic! What else would it be? Most things in this story are going to be
VERY similar to the movie, but I changed some things around. Obviously.
Um, there are no vamps or Slayers or demons in this. Just humans. Ok, on
with the story. PS You get to imagine Angel in uniform! How much better
can it get? EEP!
Characters (I don't have a lot of main character young guys to choose from, so I've been looking back throughout Buffy and Angel history to get these characters):
Angel-Rafe
Doyle-Danny
Spike-Billy
Xander-Red
Riley-Anthony
Buffy-Evelyn
Willow-Betty
Fred-Sandra
Cordelia-Barbara
Anya-Martha
Pearl Harbor
The Beginning
*Illinois 1926*
Liam Angelus McCawley and Francis Doyle Walker were best friends. They had been most of their lives. Both of them wanted to be fighter pilots and to them, they were already pretty good. World War I had ended a few years ago and Angel and Doyle (as everyone called them) were still hooked on "fighting" the Germans. They were both 10 years old and Angel's father was out crop dusting again.
"German bandits at 2 o'clock." Angel yelled.
"Increase throttle! Power dive!" Doyle yelled back.
They buzzed their lips in a flying noise and worked the controls, Angel's bare feet were on one pedal, and Doyle's were on the other. Doyle looked down from the back of their fake airplane and saw that Angel had misspelled rudder again.
"Spell it right, Angel. Rudder is spelled with two d's." Doyle rubbed away the misspelled part of the word and wrote it over, making sure it was spelled right.
"Thank's man." Angel said.
"Whoa! Bandits!"
"Crack shootin' Doyle!"
"Crack shootin' Angel!"
"Land of the free."
"Home of the brave!"
"There's another one!" Angel yelled as he shot his fake machine gun. Their vocal motors roared again as Angel's father flew by. The boys pretended to shoot at the "enemy" plane.
"Come on!" Angel jumped out and ran after his father's plane. They watched it fly overhead and land near them. "Great flying dad!" Angel's father waved at them and then drove away in his truck. "Come on, I'm going to teach you how to fly." They ran over to the plane and started to climb in.
"I get the front!" Doyle said.
"No! You get the back!"
"I'm bigger and I should be in front!"
"I'm older and I'm teachin'. So no."
"Wow! It's like we're really flyin'!"
"Yeah, I do lotsa times. Come on, you man the guns. I'll give her some throttle. We gotta get those dirty German bandits."
They're motors started running again as they pretended to shoot at the Germans again. Angel started to mess with the switches and suddenly the engine kicked on. "OH MY GOSH!" Angel yelled.
"AH!" They both yelled as the plane shot forward.
"MAKE IT STOP ANGEL!"
"I've seen my dad do this lotsa times! Don't worry!"
"Angel!" The plane lifted off the ground.
"WHOA MY GOSH! WE'RE FLYING!"
"WE'RE FLYING!"
They stayed in the air for a few more seconds and then the plane hit the ground again and Angel figured out how to turn it off. They stayed sitting in the plane, staring in shock and gasping with excitement. Suddenly, Angel stood and jumped out, Doyle following close behind.
"Oh my gosh, my dad is gonna kill me!" Angel said as they ran back up to the barn. "Come on!"
"YES! WOO HOO!" Doyle yelled.
"We flew!"
"WE FLEW! YES! I'm a pilot!" Doyle and Angel jumped up and down. "We flew! We flew!" Suddenly Doyle was jerked back by a strong hand.
"You no cap'in boy!" Doyle's father yelled. "I done told you.. You spend time playin' with this stupid boy.. Can't read. You ain't never gonna amount to nothin'!"
"Daddy! He ain't stupid daddy! Daddy!"
Doyle's father backhanded his son and Doyle went flying to the ground. "Come on! Get on back home!"
Angel had had enough. He ran back to the barn and took the 2x4 propeller off the front of their "plane" and ran after Doyle and his father.
"Get on up! You got work to do!" Doyle's father kept yelling. "Come on! Come on! Get on home!"
Angel pulled the propeller back and slammed it down on Doyle's dad's back. The man fell to the ground. "You let him alone!" Angel yelled.
"Daddy no!" Doyle yelled as his father tried to get back up.
"I will bust you open you dirty German!"
"What'd you call me?" Doyle's father asked. "I fought the Germans in France. And I fought em in the trenches. And I pray to God that no one ever has to see the things I saw." Doyle's father stared at the two boys a moment longer and then started to walk off. Doyle stood and looked at Angel. "You're my best friend." Angel stared at him and nodded. Doyle took off after his father. "Daddy wait!" He ran off after his father. Angel watching him go.
*Long Island - January, 1941*
Angel and Doyle were now 24 and 23 year olds and they were pilots now. Angel was tall and very handsome. Doyle wasn't as tall as Angel was, but he was still pretty tall. He was also good looking, but he never used it to his advantage like the rest of the guys. Right now, they were flying their planes over the airbase.
"All right, Doyle. Now let's show 'em how to fly. We're gonna play chicken. You ready?" Angel asked.
"This ain't the farm, and these ain't no crop dusters. I'm not playin' chicken with you." Doyle said.
"Now don't be a baby. I'll tell you what.."
"I'm not gonna do it Angel."
"Well, I'm coming right at you. You can turn or you can hit me. It's up to you." Doyle rolled his eyes. "Why you always bustin' my ass, Angel? Which way you going?"
"I guess I'll go right. No, uh, left. I'll go left."
"Ok, we're going left, right?"
"Ri.. uh, right. Right?"
"Right like we're going right, or right like we're going left?"
"Well, now you got me all mixed up! I don't know make up your mind!"
The planes were getting dangerously close now. "God, Angel, we're going right! Righty-tighty!"
The planes swerved and just barely missed each other. The guys below watching were blown away by the force of the wind and they cheered. Doyle and Angel were laughing. The minute they were out of their planes though, they were being sent to Doolittle's office. Angel cursed his way up there and then cursed some more on the way in. Doolittle called him in and Angel stood straight up like he had been trained to do.
Doolittle circled him. "After two years of training do you believe that a forty-five thousand dollar airplane is there for your amusement?"
"No, sir. I was just trying to keep my edge, Major." Angel replied.
"And when you did the outside loop last week, what did you think that was? Honing your skills? That's not training, McCawley, that's a stunt. And I personally consider it to be reckless and irresponsible."
"Major.." Angel was at a loss for a moment. He glanced over at Doolittle's trophies and an idea struck him. "How can that be when you're famous for being the first man
in the world ever to do it?"
"Don't get cute with me, son."
"No, sir, I don't mean to be disrespectful. I just think that.. Well, I.. It is reckless and irresponsible if you're just doing it to be a showoff, but.. I was doing it to try to inspire the men, sir, the way you've inspired me. I believe that the French even have a word for that.. When the men get together to honor their leaders. They call it an homage, sir."
"A what?"
"An homage, sir."
"That's bullshit, McCawley! But it's very, very good bullshit."
"Thank you, sir."
Doolittle clicked his teeth and stepped away. Angel sagged in relief. "McCawley, you remind me of myself fifteen years ago. Which is why we need to discuss this." He held up a letter. "Have a seat, son." Angel sat down and watched as Doolittle opened the letter.
"The British have accepted you into the Eagle Squadron. You're on your way tomorrow if you still want to go."
"Huh. Wow."
"Just a few British pilots are all that stand between Hitler and total victory in Europe. They're gonna need all the help they can get."
"Yes, sir. Well, I'm on my way."
"Just for the record I'm supposed to ask you to reconsider."
"Sir?"
Doolittle dropped a newspaper on the desk. The headline was about the U.S.'s advancing involvement in the war. "Sooner or later we're gonna be in this war whether we like it or not. And I'm gonna need all of my best pilots. So it's my duty to ask you to stay."
Angel paused. "Major.. What would you do?"
"If it was me.. I'd go."
"Sir, permission to be dismissed."
"Granted. But no more stunts out of you."
"Yes, sir." Angel walked out of the office and Doyle followed him outside.
"What's going on?" Doyle asked. "What'd Doolittle say?"
"He, uh.. He had an assignment for me." Angel said, looking away from his best friend.
"Assignment? What do you mean?"
"I'm going to war with the Eagle's Squadron in Britain."
"What!?"
"Come on, guys! We got nurses waitin'." William, also known to his friends as Spike, yelled.
"Come on, before the rest of his hair falls out." Riley said.
"How could you do this?" Doyle asked.
"Well, Doolittle assigned me. He wanted me to get some real.. Some real combat training in." Angel said.
"Well, guess what? It's not training over there. It's war. Where losers die and there aren't any winners. Just guys who turn into broken down wrecks like my father."
"Yeah, I understand that, Doyle. But I feel like I got a duty to go."
"Don't preach to me about duty, damn it. I wear the same uniform you do. Now if trouble wants me, I'm ready for it. But why go looking for it?"
"Danny, come on. I'm gonna be twenty-five. I might as well be an old man. They're gonna have me being a flight instructor. I don't wanna teach loops and barrel rolls. I wanna be a combat fighter."
"Hey, come on! The nurses cant dance by themselves." Xander called from the bus.
"Let's go." Angel said.
*Train car later that evening.*
"If the call of duty means seeing a hundred and fifty men in their underwear everyday, we are here to serve." Cordelia said.
"I can't believe it." Willow said. "Saturday night in New York City. Do you know what they're doing where I come from?" Buffy, Willow's best friend, shook her head. "Nothing. Cow tipping."
"Well, that's why you joined the Navy, hun. Get out of that dusty little town and see the world."
"May I remind you, Cordelia, we're Navy nurses, not tourists." Fred said.
"I joined to do my patriotic duty. And.. To meet guys." Anya said.
"Me too!" Willow agreed.
"Girls, we're going to have so much fun tonight in the city." Buffy said.
"You've got to tell them the story, Buffy!" Cordelia said.
"What?" Anya asked.
"Oh, come on. Tell us." Willow said.
"Oh, it's such a long story." Buffy protested.
"We got time." Anya said.
"I saw it happen." Cordelia boasted.
"Well, it was all about four weeks ago.."
*Flashback*
Xander walked by Doyle and Angel rubbing his butt as the two men waiting for the eye exam. Angel looked at Xander and smiled. "Hey, Xand, you all right?"
"Eye exam number four?" Buffy called out.
Angel and Doyle headed towards the eye exam station. Angel looked over as a man said, "Listen, Doc, I have passed a dozen medical checks. You write that they won't let me fly."
"Sorry son." The doctor said as he stamped a Rejected stamp down.
Angel's eyes widened. "I'm gonna fail. They're gonna take my wings away."
"No they won't. Just relax." Doyle said.
"Read the bottom line, please." Buffy said to the pilot in front of Angel.
"Just keep practicin' the bottom line. And don't worry. I'm right behind you."
"J-L-M-K-P-O." Angel muttered to himself.
"Thank you. Next." The beautiful blonde nurse said.
The pilot handed Angel the eye cover and walked away. Angel gave Buffy his file. "Ma'am. J-L-M-L-P-O-E-T-X." Angel said in a rush. "Eyes like an eagle, ma'am."
Buffy looked up at him suspiciously. "Slow down, flyboy. And, instead of the bottom,
read the very top. Both eyes."
"Yeah. C.. Sorry, J. Ahem. C.."
"W." Doyle whispered behind him.
"W."
"Q."
"Uh, Q, uh.. Q."
Buffy looked up at him. "Read the bottom line again, please. But read it right to left and every other letter."
"E.. X." Angel said.
"X, E!" Doyle said behind him.
"X, E, X, E, ma'am." Buffy looked up at him skeptically. "Ma'am, I know how this looks."
"I'm sorry, Lieutenant, I really am. But Army and Navy requires 20/20 vision." Buffy said.
"Oh, I-it's-it's not a problem with my eyes. I mean, I can see. I mean I can hit a running rabbit with a three-dollar pistol. I got a problem with letters, that's all."
"Well, maybe after some schooling you could come back and take the test again."
"No, I had schooling. I mean, I.. The teachers just never knew what to make of it. It's just letters. I mix em up sometimes. That's all. I mean, I just get 'em backwards sometimes." Buffy looked doubtful. "L-look here. Uh, my.. My math and.. And special reasoning and my verbal scores are all excellent."
"But you barely passed the written exam."
"Yeah, but he did pass it. So, is it my turn now?" Doyle asked, trying to get Angel off the hook.
"No, you'll wait your turn." Buffy said.
"Yes, ma'am."
"Ma'am, I-I'm never gonna be an English teacher. But I know why I'm here. To be a pilot. And you don't dogfight with manuals. You don't fly with gauges. I mean, it's all about feeling and speed and lettin' that plane become like a part of your body. And that manual says that a guy who's a slow reader cant be a good pilot. That file says I'm the best pilot in this room." Angel leaned closer. "Ma'am, please, don't take my wings."
*Back on train.*
"Well, I felt so bad." Buffy said. "I had no choice. I passed him." The girls giggled and smiled. "I was rotated to station three just after I did. I wasn't over there more than five minutes before this cocky pilot comes back."
*Flashback* (^ ^ these around a phrase means it's a voice over. We're pretending that this is the movie.)
"Say, fella, you enlisted?" Angel asked the young man sitting down.
"Yeah." The guy responded.
"'Yeah'? Boy, you're talking to an officer."
The boy stood up straight at attention. "Yes, sir. Sorry, sir."
"Give me that file."
"Yes, sir."
"Parade rest."
"Yes, sir."
Angel walked over to Buffy who was sitting by the medical cart. "Ma'am, I didn't get a chance to thank you."
"Drop your skivvies."
Angel's eyes widened a bit, but he bent over the table and lowered his skivvies. "Uh, ok. Just like this?"
"That's fine." ^He did have a very cure butt.^
"You know, I know you didn't have to pass me and you did. And I just.. I didn't think you'd understand, and you did."
"You know, you still haven't said thank you."
"Thank you."
"You're welcome."
"Why'd you do it? I mean, I'm just curious. You're like my hero now."
"Actually, my father was a pilot. And, um, I've seen firsthand what happens when a pilot loses his wings." Buffy applied the alcohol-soaked cotton to Angel's backside, then reached for the needle.
"You know what? Your father's my hero, then, too. In fact, as an officer, I think it'd be my duty to take my new hero's daughter out tonight. Just to.." She jabbed him with the needle. "Aaahhhhh!"
"Gosh, did I poke to deep?"
"I think you hit the bone there."
^You are so mean.^ Anya said.
"So is.. Is there any chance that you might, kind of, sort of you know, like me, or.." Angel asked.
Buffy smiled and leaned over him. "Oh, how did you guess? They never taught us how to deal with this.. feeling."
"W-What feeling?"
"Well, it's kind of like.. this." She jabbed him with the needle again. Angel yelped in pain. ^Well, he was getting fresh, so I poked him again.^
"All right, Romeo. I want to get this over with." A pilot said from outside the cubicle.
"Hold on a second." Angel turned back to Evelyn. "Miss.. I really, really lick you." Angel smacked himself. "Like you. I didn't mean to say that. And I just, um.. I just want to ask you, please, if I can donate dinner. Or, well, buy you dinner."
Buffy looked over the chart. "This isn't your chart."
"Whoa. No. That's the, uh, this, uh, fellow over here's. I think he left."
"Have you already had this shot?"
"Yeah, well, once.. already. Well, I wanted.. I mean, can I ask you out?"
"NO!"
"Ok." Just then, Angel toppled over and slammed his nose on the medical cart.
"Oh! What'd you do to him?" Cordelia asked, running in.
^Poor guy.^ Buffy said. ^So, later on.."
Angel was waiting in the shadows as the nurses came down the stairs. He came out of the dark and stopped in front of them, the huge bandage around his nose much more obvious. "Hey!"
"Oh, my God. Are you ok?" Buffy asked as the other girls kept walking.
"Uh, yeah. I'm fine. I feel great. This is just standard precautionary.. thing. Look, I got some, uh, genuine French champagne.. from France. I thought, you know, maybe we could celebrate."
"Celebrate what?"
"Oh, I don't know. Uh, well, you being my hero, for one."
"Ok. Why not?"
Buffy allowed Angel to help her sit on the steps. He handed her two champagne glasses. "So, uh, ahem.. I wanted to thank you. And I just wanted to, uh, put your mind at ease about passing me because I really think you did this country a service. I mean, I'm.. I am a great flier." Angel started to open the cork.
"And if you have a fault, which you obviously don't it-it's modesty."
"No. If I have a fault, it's candor. You are just so.." The champagne cork popped and hit him straight in the nose. Buffy gasped. "Uh, cork just got away from me." He started to pour champagne into the glasses, his shaking hand making the bottle clink against the glass. He groaned and his face crumpled as he started to cry. Buffy tried not to giggle, but it was just too hard to hold in. "God, it hurts. It hurts something fierce." Buffy laughed. "I'm sorry. Ohh.."
"Oh, it's bleeding." Buffy pulled Angel's large form onto her lap.
"God!"
"Lay still." She grabbed a chunk of ice off the ground.
"I ruined everything." She put the ice on his nose. "Ow! It's cold!"
"It'll stop the bleeding."
"I can't breathe!"
"Lay still!"
"You are so beautiful it hurts."
"It's your nose that hurts."
"No, I think it's my heart."
Buffy stared into Angel's eyes and then leaned over to kiss him gently.
*Back on the train.*
"And then I kissed him." Buffy said.
"Oh, Buffy!" Anya said.
"That's the romantic story I ever heard." Fred said.
"It's been the most romantic four weeks and two days of my life." Buffy said dreamily.
"I'm so jealous." Willow said.
The train pulled to a stop at the train station. The girls got off the train and Buffy walked ahead toward Angel who was coming up to them with the rest of his buddies in tow.
"Hello, Lieutenant. It's good to see you." Angel said.
"You, too, Lieutenant." Buffy said with a smile.
"Pick a hand."
Buffy smiled wider and picked his right hand. He held up a beautiful silver ring with a crowned heart held by two hands who's arms made the band of the ring. "It's beautiful. What's in your other hand?"
"Mine." Angel held up the larger ring that was already on his finger. Buffy smiled as he took her hand and gently slipped it on her finger. Buffy laughed and jumped into his arms. He twirled her in the air before setting her down.
"I want you to meet my friends. Angel, this is Anya, Willow, Fred.."
Cordelia popped up and shook Angel's hand enthusiastically. "Hi. I'm Cordelia."
"Hi." Angel said.
"Would you happen to have any friends?"
"Huh. Take your pick." Angel motioned towards the group of guys behind him.
"Hi!" Cordelia said, staring at them all.
*Later at the night club.*
Swing music played as the crowd laughed and talked and had fun. Angel, Buffy, Doyle, and the rest of the group were at a table. Riley was at the bar. Buffy smiled at Angel as he asked her to dance. A slower song came on and Angel gathered Buffy in his arms and they started to sway to the music. All the other guys were occupied except Doyle.
"Doyle seems kinda shy around the girls." Buffy noted.
"It's not that he's shy." Angel said. "He's just.. A little unsure of himself, you know. His old man used to run him down a lot. Get him in a plane, he's sure of himself. He's like my brother. He's like my best friend. He's my right hand."
"Which at the moment is a long way south of my waist."
Angel moved his hand down further. "Oh, I'm sorry. I guess I lost a little altitude."
"Yeah, I guess you did."
Angel smiled and leaned in for a kiss. Buffy didn't disappoint. They shared a long, passionate kiss before they had to break away for air. Buffy looked up at Angel.
"So, the rumor is the Navy's shipping us to Pearl Harbor." Buffy said.
"Well, it won't be so bad. It's about as from the fighting as you can get. You'll get a suntan." Angel said.
"So maybe the Army'll post you guys there, too."
"Hopefully."
After a long pause, Buffy looked around and then back into Angel's chocolate eyes. "I don't want to be with the crowd tonight. I just want to be alone with you."
"Well.. how does New York Harbor by moonlight sound?" Angel asked.
"Perfect."
"Come on." Angel grabbed Buffy's hand and they ran out of the club. They caught a taxi down to the pier and jumped out, laughing.
"Are you gonna be a bad influence?" Buffy asked as they slipped under the chain and headed down towards a police boat.
"Of course I'm a bad influence. Let's see if we can commandeer this vessel cause we're, uh, officers of the US Government." Angel said.
"Not for long we won't be." They got into the police boat and took off toward the Queen Mary. Buffy laid back in Angel's warm arms. "One day, we'll take a trip on a boat like that."
"Would you like that?" Angel asked, kissing her hair.
"We'll be dressing for cocktails and walk into the grand salon. No one's talking about war. They're just dancing to Cole Porter."
"I'll have to get a tux."
"Yeah." Buffy giggled.
Angel stopped the boat next to a cargo lift. He got out onto the platform and helped Buffy out of the boat. "Come on. There you go. All aboard."
"You're out of your mind!"
"Oh, yeah. Careful now. Here, sit down. Now let's see here." Angel turned the lever to "UP" and the platform started to rise. "Ah! There we go. See, this is as close as I can get you to your ship. So, at least I tried right?"
"Actually, you know what? This is better."
"Yeah, it is. God, you're pretty." The platform stopped high in the air. Angel took Buffy in his arms and kissed her.
"What's gonna become of us all, Angel?"
"Well, the future's not exactly in our hands, is it?"
"No. I guess you're right."
They kissed again. As they got more passionate, Angel accidentally lowered them onto the lever and switched it to "DOWN." The platform dropped immediately and they screamed as they hurtled toward the water, stopping with a splash on the surface.
"Oh, my God! Are you all right?" Angel asked.
"Yeah. Are you?"
"That was not part of the date."
Buffy laughed and helped Angel back onto the platform. They kissed again and then got back on the boat. They walked along, Angel holding her tightly as if to protect her, until they found a cab. They rode back to the hotel and got out.
"Watch your step." Angel said, taking Buffy's hand like a gentleman.
"Oh, thank you." Buffy said.
"Buffy!" Cordelia called.
"Guys, come on up! Come on up! Come up! We're in 321." Doyle called before Cordy smashed her lips onto his and made them both spill their drinks. Buffy laughed at the little display.
Angel clucked his tongue. "He's had some alcohol tonight." They walked towards the hotel, but Angel stopped and pulled them out of the way. "There's something I got to tell you."
"Well, you've got no secrets from me, Lieutenant. I've seen your medical chart." Buffy joked. Angel looked at her uncomfortably. "This can't be good or it wouldn't be so hard to say."
"I got to go away."
Buffy smiled. "We're all going away."
"Yeah.. but I'm going to the war.. tomorrow." Buffy started in surprise. "I'm flying with the Eagle Squadron. It's a outfit the British started for American pilots." Tears started to form in Buffy's eyes. "I don't understand. You're in the U.S. Army. How could they order you to go?"
"They didn't order me. I volunteered."
Buffy pulled away from Angel. "But I passed you. I let you through. And now you
volunteer for the most dangerous place you could go?"
"It's not your responsibility, not your choice. Flying's the only thing I ever wanted to do. I mean, everything in my life has led me up to this point. Meeting you. I love you. I love you so much. Let's go inside." They turned and headed through the swinging doors to the lobby. Just then Angel stopped and steered them back outside. Buffy stared at him in bewilderment. "All right. Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Just.. I.. I cant do this." He stopped on the sidewalk. "This just.. it's not right. I'm sorry. I just.. see, I can't do this. I mean, I mean, I CAN. I.. I want to. I'm not trying to be noble, you know. Or not saying I know what would happen or just.. I need to stop talking. I just.. I just don't want it to be like everybody else. I don't want you to have anything about tonight that you regret. I mean, it's been the most incredible night of my life.. and I don't want to ruin that."
"Oh, you couldn't ruin it. If I had one more night to live, I'd want to spend it with you."
"See, that's what I want to come home to. That's what I want to have to think about and dream about. I want to know that the best part of my life is still ahead of me. Look.. don't, um.. could you.. not come see me off? Because, uh..saying good-bye to you once is hard enough."
Buffy stared at him in amazement and then pulled her scarf off. "Here. Take this." She put it around his neck.
"Why? You think it looks good on me?" She smiled sadly. "I will come back."
They kissed goodbye. She pulled away and walked back into the hotel. Angel waved at her through the glass doors. Buffy turned around and walked away, not able to watch him walk away from her.
*Train station the next morning.*
Doyle and Angel walked through the crowded train station. Angel kept searching the place for Buffy. Doyle smirked.
"I thought you said you told her not to come." Doyle asked.
"Yeah, I did." Angel replied, still searching.
"Why you looking for her then?"
"It's my test. If I tell her not to come, and she comes anyway then I.. I know she loves me."
"All aboard! Track 57!" An announcer called.
Doyle and Angel stopped. Angel looked Doyle in the eyes. "If, uh, anything happens to me, I want you to be the one to tell her. All right?"
"You just make sure and come back for the both of us, all right?" Doyle said.
"Ok. See you when I get back." Angel walked away, leaving Doyle alone.
"Yeah. Good hunting, Angel." Doyle said, knowing his best friend wouldn't hear him.
Doyle turned and saw Buffy run into the train station to the counter. The man shook his head and pointed outside where the train lights came on and the whistle blew. She ran outside onto the outdoor track where the train was getting ready to leave. Angel saw her from his seat and knocked on the window.
"Buffy! Buffy! Buffy!" Angel pounded on the window frantically. The noise from the engine and the steam prevented her from hearing him. Dismayed, she turned and walked away. "Buffy! Hey!" The train pulled away and he sat back in his seat. A man sitting next to him looked at him funny. Angel gave him a goofy smile. "She loves me."
*England Air Base*
Angel looked around at the destruction. Bullet holes were everywhere in the planes. He took a deep breath and held tighter to his suitcases as he walked forward towards an officer.
"This is a real mess!" The officer said.
Angel dropped his suitcases and saluted. "Lieutenant McCawley reporting for duty, sir."
"Good. We'll get you settle into your quarters. And then introduce you to the crate you'll be flying."
"Yes, sir." Angel picked up his bags and looked at the planes. "Uh, if y'all are patching up bullet holes right here on the runway maybe we ought to skip the housekeeping and get me in an airplane."
"Two didn't come back, sir." A man said, running up. "We counted only eleven."
Angel was shocked. He wondered if volunteering for this mission was a good idea after all. He had a woman back home that he was in love with and it would devastate her to lose him. The officer looked at him.
"Are all Yanks as anxious as you to get themselves killed, Pilot Officer?"
"Not anxious to die, sir. Just anxious to matter." Angel replied sincerely.
The officer led him to an airplane. "This is yours. Good chap. Didn't die till he'd landed
and shut down his engine."
Angel climbed the stepladder and got a closer look at the plane. The glass in the canopy was splattered with dried blood. He gulped and prayed that nothing like this would happen to him.
Characters (I don't have a lot of main character young guys to choose from, so I've been looking back throughout Buffy and Angel history to get these characters):
Angel-Rafe
Doyle-Danny
Spike-Billy
Xander-Red
Riley-Anthony
Buffy-Evelyn
Willow-Betty
Fred-Sandra
Cordelia-Barbara
Anya-Martha
Pearl Harbor
The Beginning
*Illinois 1926*
Liam Angelus McCawley and Francis Doyle Walker were best friends. They had been most of their lives. Both of them wanted to be fighter pilots and to them, they were already pretty good. World War I had ended a few years ago and Angel and Doyle (as everyone called them) were still hooked on "fighting" the Germans. They were both 10 years old and Angel's father was out crop dusting again.
"German bandits at 2 o'clock." Angel yelled.
"Increase throttle! Power dive!" Doyle yelled back.
They buzzed their lips in a flying noise and worked the controls, Angel's bare feet were on one pedal, and Doyle's were on the other. Doyle looked down from the back of their fake airplane and saw that Angel had misspelled rudder again.
"Spell it right, Angel. Rudder is spelled with two d's." Doyle rubbed away the misspelled part of the word and wrote it over, making sure it was spelled right.
"Thank's man." Angel said.
"Whoa! Bandits!"
"Crack shootin' Doyle!"
"Crack shootin' Angel!"
"Land of the free."
"Home of the brave!"
"There's another one!" Angel yelled as he shot his fake machine gun. Their vocal motors roared again as Angel's father flew by. The boys pretended to shoot at the "enemy" plane.
"Come on!" Angel jumped out and ran after his father's plane. They watched it fly overhead and land near them. "Great flying dad!" Angel's father waved at them and then drove away in his truck. "Come on, I'm going to teach you how to fly." They ran over to the plane and started to climb in.
"I get the front!" Doyle said.
"No! You get the back!"
"I'm bigger and I should be in front!"
"I'm older and I'm teachin'. So no."
"Wow! It's like we're really flyin'!"
"Yeah, I do lotsa times. Come on, you man the guns. I'll give her some throttle. We gotta get those dirty German bandits."
They're motors started running again as they pretended to shoot at the Germans again. Angel started to mess with the switches and suddenly the engine kicked on. "OH MY GOSH!" Angel yelled.
"AH!" They both yelled as the plane shot forward.
"MAKE IT STOP ANGEL!"
"I've seen my dad do this lotsa times! Don't worry!"
"Angel!" The plane lifted off the ground.
"WHOA MY GOSH! WE'RE FLYING!"
"WE'RE FLYING!"
They stayed in the air for a few more seconds and then the plane hit the ground again and Angel figured out how to turn it off. They stayed sitting in the plane, staring in shock and gasping with excitement. Suddenly, Angel stood and jumped out, Doyle following close behind.
"Oh my gosh, my dad is gonna kill me!" Angel said as they ran back up to the barn. "Come on!"
"YES! WOO HOO!" Doyle yelled.
"We flew!"
"WE FLEW! YES! I'm a pilot!" Doyle and Angel jumped up and down. "We flew! We flew!" Suddenly Doyle was jerked back by a strong hand.
"You no cap'in boy!" Doyle's father yelled. "I done told you.. You spend time playin' with this stupid boy.. Can't read. You ain't never gonna amount to nothin'!"
"Daddy! He ain't stupid daddy! Daddy!"
Doyle's father backhanded his son and Doyle went flying to the ground. "Come on! Get on back home!"
Angel had had enough. He ran back to the barn and took the 2x4 propeller off the front of their "plane" and ran after Doyle and his father.
"Get on up! You got work to do!" Doyle's father kept yelling. "Come on! Come on! Get on home!"
Angel pulled the propeller back and slammed it down on Doyle's dad's back. The man fell to the ground. "You let him alone!" Angel yelled.
"Daddy no!" Doyle yelled as his father tried to get back up.
"I will bust you open you dirty German!"
"What'd you call me?" Doyle's father asked. "I fought the Germans in France. And I fought em in the trenches. And I pray to God that no one ever has to see the things I saw." Doyle's father stared at the two boys a moment longer and then started to walk off. Doyle stood and looked at Angel. "You're my best friend." Angel stared at him and nodded. Doyle took off after his father. "Daddy wait!" He ran off after his father. Angel watching him go.
*Long Island - January, 1941*
Angel and Doyle were now 24 and 23 year olds and they were pilots now. Angel was tall and very handsome. Doyle wasn't as tall as Angel was, but he was still pretty tall. He was also good looking, but he never used it to his advantage like the rest of the guys. Right now, they were flying their planes over the airbase.
"All right, Doyle. Now let's show 'em how to fly. We're gonna play chicken. You ready?" Angel asked.
"This ain't the farm, and these ain't no crop dusters. I'm not playin' chicken with you." Doyle said.
"Now don't be a baby. I'll tell you what.."
"I'm not gonna do it Angel."
"Well, I'm coming right at you. You can turn or you can hit me. It's up to you." Doyle rolled his eyes. "Why you always bustin' my ass, Angel? Which way you going?"
"I guess I'll go right. No, uh, left. I'll go left."
"Ok, we're going left, right?"
"Ri.. uh, right. Right?"
"Right like we're going right, or right like we're going left?"
"Well, now you got me all mixed up! I don't know make up your mind!"
The planes were getting dangerously close now. "God, Angel, we're going right! Righty-tighty!"
The planes swerved and just barely missed each other. The guys below watching were blown away by the force of the wind and they cheered. Doyle and Angel were laughing. The minute they were out of their planes though, they were being sent to Doolittle's office. Angel cursed his way up there and then cursed some more on the way in. Doolittle called him in and Angel stood straight up like he had been trained to do.
Doolittle circled him. "After two years of training do you believe that a forty-five thousand dollar airplane is there for your amusement?"
"No, sir. I was just trying to keep my edge, Major." Angel replied.
"And when you did the outside loop last week, what did you think that was? Honing your skills? That's not training, McCawley, that's a stunt. And I personally consider it to be reckless and irresponsible."
"Major.." Angel was at a loss for a moment. He glanced over at Doolittle's trophies and an idea struck him. "How can that be when you're famous for being the first man
in the world ever to do it?"
"Don't get cute with me, son."
"No, sir, I don't mean to be disrespectful. I just think that.. Well, I.. It is reckless and irresponsible if you're just doing it to be a showoff, but.. I was doing it to try to inspire the men, sir, the way you've inspired me. I believe that the French even have a word for that.. When the men get together to honor their leaders. They call it an homage, sir."
"A what?"
"An homage, sir."
"That's bullshit, McCawley! But it's very, very good bullshit."
"Thank you, sir."
Doolittle clicked his teeth and stepped away. Angel sagged in relief. "McCawley, you remind me of myself fifteen years ago. Which is why we need to discuss this." He held up a letter. "Have a seat, son." Angel sat down and watched as Doolittle opened the letter.
"The British have accepted you into the Eagle Squadron. You're on your way tomorrow if you still want to go."
"Huh. Wow."
"Just a few British pilots are all that stand between Hitler and total victory in Europe. They're gonna need all the help they can get."
"Yes, sir. Well, I'm on my way."
"Just for the record I'm supposed to ask you to reconsider."
"Sir?"
Doolittle dropped a newspaper on the desk. The headline was about the U.S.'s advancing involvement in the war. "Sooner or later we're gonna be in this war whether we like it or not. And I'm gonna need all of my best pilots. So it's my duty to ask you to stay."
Angel paused. "Major.. What would you do?"
"If it was me.. I'd go."
"Sir, permission to be dismissed."
"Granted. But no more stunts out of you."
"Yes, sir." Angel walked out of the office and Doyle followed him outside.
"What's going on?" Doyle asked. "What'd Doolittle say?"
"He, uh.. He had an assignment for me." Angel said, looking away from his best friend.
"Assignment? What do you mean?"
"I'm going to war with the Eagle's Squadron in Britain."
"What!?"
"Come on, guys! We got nurses waitin'." William, also known to his friends as Spike, yelled.
"Come on, before the rest of his hair falls out." Riley said.
"How could you do this?" Doyle asked.
"Well, Doolittle assigned me. He wanted me to get some real.. Some real combat training in." Angel said.
"Well, guess what? It's not training over there. It's war. Where losers die and there aren't any winners. Just guys who turn into broken down wrecks like my father."
"Yeah, I understand that, Doyle. But I feel like I got a duty to go."
"Don't preach to me about duty, damn it. I wear the same uniform you do. Now if trouble wants me, I'm ready for it. But why go looking for it?"
"Danny, come on. I'm gonna be twenty-five. I might as well be an old man. They're gonna have me being a flight instructor. I don't wanna teach loops and barrel rolls. I wanna be a combat fighter."
"Hey, come on! The nurses cant dance by themselves." Xander called from the bus.
"Let's go." Angel said.
*Train car later that evening.*
"If the call of duty means seeing a hundred and fifty men in their underwear everyday, we are here to serve." Cordelia said.
"I can't believe it." Willow said. "Saturday night in New York City. Do you know what they're doing where I come from?" Buffy, Willow's best friend, shook her head. "Nothing. Cow tipping."
"Well, that's why you joined the Navy, hun. Get out of that dusty little town and see the world."
"May I remind you, Cordelia, we're Navy nurses, not tourists." Fred said.
"I joined to do my patriotic duty. And.. To meet guys." Anya said.
"Me too!" Willow agreed.
"Girls, we're going to have so much fun tonight in the city." Buffy said.
"You've got to tell them the story, Buffy!" Cordelia said.
"What?" Anya asked.
"Oh, come on. Tell us." Willow said.
"Oh, it's such a long story." Buffy protested.
"We got time." Anya said.
"I saw it happen." Cordelia boasted.
"Well, it was all about four weeks ago.."
*Flashback*
Xander walked by Doyle and Angel rubbing his butt as the two men waiting for the eye exam. Angel looked at Xander and smiled. "Hey, Xand, you all right?"
"Eye exam number four?" Buffy called out.
Angel and Doyle headed towards the eye exam station. Angel looked over as a man said, "Listen, Doc, I have passed a dozen medical checks. You write that they won't let me fly."
"Sorry son." The doctor said as he stamped a Rejected stamp down.
Angel's eyes widened. "I'm gonna fail. They're gonna take my wings away."
"No they won't. Just relax." Doyle said.
"Read the bottom line, please." Buffy said to the pilot in front of Angel.
"Just keep practicin' the bottom line. And don't worry. I'm right behind you."
"J-L-M-K-P-O." Angel muttered to himself.
"Thank you. Next." The beautiful blonde nurse said.
The pilot handed Angel the eye cover and walked away. Angel gave Buffy his file. "Ma'am. J-L-M-L-P-O-E-T-X." Angel said in a rush. "Eyes like an eagle, ma'am."
Buffy looked up at him suspiciously. "Slow down, flyboy. And, instead of the bottom,
read the very top. Both eyes."
"Yeah. C.. Sorry, J. Ahem. C.."
"W." Doyle whispered behind him.
"W."
"Q."
"Uh, Q, uh.. Q."
Buffy looked up at him. "Read the bottom line again, please. But read it right to left and every other letter."
"E.. X." Angel said.
"X, E!" Doyle said behind him.
"X, E, X, E, ma'am." Buffy looked up at him skeptically. "Ma'am, I know how this looks."
"I'm sorry, Lieutenant, I really am. But Army and Navy requires 20/20 vision." Buffy said.
"Oh, I-it's-it's not a problem with my eyes. I mean, I can see. I mean I can hit a running rabbit with a three-dollar pistol. I got a problem with letters, that's all."
"Well, maybe after some schooling you could come back and take the test again."
"No, I had schooling. I mean, I.. The teachers just never knew what to make of it. It's just letters. I mix em up sometimes. That's all. I mean, I just get 'em backwards sometimes." Buffy looked doubtful. "L-look here. Uh, my.. My math and.. And special reasoning and my verbal scores are all excellent."
"But you barely passed the written exam."
"Yeah, but he did pass it. So, is it my turn now?" Doyle asked, trying to get Angel off the hook.
"No, you'll wait your turn." Buffy said.
"Yes, ma'am."
"Ma'am, I-I'm never gonna be an English teacher. But I know why I'm here. To be a pilot. And you don't dogfight with manuals. You don't fly with gauges. I mean, it's all about feeling and speed and lettin' that plane become like a part of your body. And that manual says that a guy who's a slow reader cant be a good pilot. That file says I'm the best pilot in this room." Angel leaned closer. "Ma'am, please, don't take my wings."
*Back on train.*
"Well, I felt so bad." Buffy said. "I had no choice. I passed him." The girls giggled and smiled. "I was rotated to station three just after I did. I wasn't over there more than five minutes before this cocky pilot comes back."
*Flashback* (^ ^ these around a phrase means it's a voice over. We're pretending that this is the movie.)
"Say, fella, you enlisted?" Angel asked the young man sitting down.
"Yeah." The guy responded.
"'Yeah'? Boy, you're talking to an officer."
The boy stood up straight at attention. "Yes, sir. Sorry, sir."
"Give me that file."
"Yes, sir."
"Parade rest."
"Yes, sir."
Angel walked over to Buffy who was sitting by the medical cart. "Ma'am, I didn't get a chance to thank you."
"Drop your skivvies."
Angel's eyes widened a bit, but he bent over the table and lowered his skivvies. "Uh, ok. Just like this?"
"That's fine." ^He did have a very cure butt.^
"You know, I know you didn't have to pass me and you did. And I just.. I didn't think you'd understand, and you did."
"You know, you still haven't said thank you."
"Thank you."
"You're welcome."
"Why'd you do it? I mean, I'm just curious. You're like my hero now."
"Actually, my father was a pilot. And, um, I've seen firsthand what happens when a pilot loses his wings." Buffy applied the alcohol-soaked cotton to Angel's backside, then reached for the needle.
"You know what? Your father's my hero, then, too. In fact, as an officer, I think it'd be my duty to take my new hero's daughter out tonight. Just to.." She jabbed him with the needle. "Aaahhhhh!"
"Gosh, did I poke to deep?"
"I think you hit the bone there."
^You are so mean.^ Anya said.
"So is.. Is there any chance that you might, kind of, sort of you know, like me, or.." Angel asked.
Buffy smiled and leaned over him. "Oh, how did you guess? They never taught us how to deal with this.. feeling."
"W-What feeling?"
"Well, it's kind of like.. this." She jabbed him with the needle again. Angel yelped in pain. ^Well, he was getting fresh, so I poked him again.^
"All right, Romeo. I want to get this over with." A pilot said from outside the cubicle.
"Hold on a second." Angel turned back to Evelyn. "Miss.. I really, really lick you." Angel smacked himself. "Like you. I didn't mean to say that. And I just, um.. I just want to ask you, please, if I can donate dinner. Or, well, buy you dinner."
Buffy looked over the chart. "This isn't your chart."
"Whoa. No. That's the, uh, this, uh, fellow over here's. I think he left."
"Have you already had this shot?"
"Yeah, well, once.. already. Well, I wanted.. I mean, can I ask you out?"
"NO!"
"Ok." Just then, Angel toppled over and slammed his nose on the medical cart.
"Oh! What'd you do to him?" Cordelia asked, running in.
^Poor guy.^ Buffy said. ^So, later on.."
Angel was waiting in the shadows as the nurses came down the stairs. He came out of the dark and stopped in front of them, the huge bandage around his nose much more obvious. "Hey!"
"Oh, my God. Are you ok?" Buffy asked as the other girls kept walking.
"Uh, yeah. I'm fine. I feel great. This is just standard precautionary.. thing. Look, I got some, uh, genuine French champagne.. from France. I thought, you know, maybe we could celebrate."
"Celebrate what?"
"Oh, I don't know. Uh, well, you being my hero, for one."
"Ok. Why not?"
Buffy allowed Angel to help her sit on the steps. He handed her two champagne glasses. "So, uh, ahem.. I wanted to thank you. And I just wanted to, uh, put your mind at ease about passing me because I really think you did this country a service. I mean, I'm.. I am a great flier." Angel started to open the cork.
"And if you have a fault, which you obviously don't it-it's modesty."
"No. If I have a fault, it's candor. You are just so.." The champagne cork popped and hit him straight in the nose. Buffy gasped. "Uh, cork just got away from me." He started to pour champagne into the glasses, his shaking hand making the bottle clink against the glass. He groaned and his face crumpled as he started to cry. Buffy tried not to giggle, but it was just too hard to hold in. "God, it hurts. It hurts something fierce." Buffy laughed. "I'm sorry. Ohh.."
"Oh, it's bleeding." Buffy pulled Angel's large form onto her lap.
"God!"
"Lay still." She grabbed a chunk of ice off the ground.
"I ruined everything." She put the ice on his nose. "Ow! It's cold!"
"It'll stop the bleeding."
"I can't breathe!"
"Lay still!"
"You are so beautiful it hurts."
"It's your nose that hurts."
"No, I think it's my heart."
Buffy stared into Angel's eyes and then leaned over to kiss him gently.
*Back on the train.*
"And then I kissed him." Buffy said.
"Oh, Buffy!" Anya said.
"That's the romantic story I ever heard." Fred said.
"It's been the most romantic four weeks and two days of my life." Buffy said dreamily.
"I'm so jealous." Willow said.
The train pulled to a stop at the train station. The girls got off the train and Buffy walked ahead toward Angel who was coming up to them with the rest of his buddies in tow.
"Hello, Lieutenant. It's good to see you." Angel said.
"You, too, Lieutenant." Buffy said with a smile.
"Pick a hand."
Buffy smiled wider and picked his right hand. He held up a beautiful silver ring with a crowned heart held by two hands who's arms made the band of the ring. "It's beautiful. What's in your other hand?"
"Mine." Angel held up the larger ring that was already on his finger. Buffy smiled as he took her hand and gently slipped it on her finger. Buffy laughed and jumped into his arms. He twirled her in the air before setting her down.
"I want you to meet my friends. Angel, this is Anya, Willow, Fred.."
Cordelia popped up and shook Angel's hand enthusiastically. "Hi. I'm Cordelia."
"Hi." Angel said.
"Would you happen to have any friends?"
"Huh. Take your pick." Angel motioned towards the group of guys behind him.
"Hi!" Cordelia said, staring at them all.
*Later at the night club.*
Swing music played as the crowd laughed and talked and had fun. Angel, Buffy, Doyle, and the rest of the group were at a table. Riley was at the bar. Buffy smiled at Angel as he asked her to dance. A slower song came on and Angel gathered Buffy in his arms and they started to sway to the music. All the other guys were occupied except Doyle.
"Doyle seems kinda shy around the girls." Buffy noted.
"It's not that he's shy." Angel said. "He's just.. A little unsure of himself, you know. His old man used to run him down a lot. Get him in a plane, he's sure of himself. He's like my brother. He's like my best friend. He's my right hand."
"Which at the moment is a long way south of my waist."
Angel moved his hand down further. "Oh, I'm sorry. I guess I lost a little altitude."
"Yeah, I guess you did."
Angel smiled and leaned in for a kiss. Buffy didn't disappoint. They shared a long, passionate kiss before they had to break away for air. Buffy looked up at Angel.
"So, the rumor is the Navy's shipping us to Pearl Harbor." Buffy said.
"Well, it won't be so bad. It's about as from the fighting as you can get. You'll get a suntan." Angel said.
"So maybe the Army'll post you guys there, too."
"Hopefully."
After a long pause, Buffy looked around and then back into Angel's chocolate eyes. "I don't want to be with the crowd tonight. I just want to be alone with you."
"Well.. how does New York Harbor by moonlight sound?" Angel asked.
"Perfect."
"Come on." Angel grabbed Buffy's hand and they ran out of the club. They caught a taxi down to the pier and jumped out, laughing.
"Are you gonna be a bad influence?" Buffy asked as they slipped under the chain and headed down towards a police boat.
"Of course I'm a bad influence. Let's see if we can commandeer this vessel cause we're, uh, officers of the US Government." Angel said.
"Not for long we won't be." They got into the police boat and took off toward the Queen Mary. Buffy laid back in Angel's warm arms. "One day, we'll take a trip on a boat like that."
"Would you like that?" Angel asked, kissing her hair.
"We'll be dressing for cocktails and walk into the grand salon. No one's talking about war. They're just dancing to Cole Porter."
"I'll have to get a tux."
"Yeah." Buffy giggled.
Angel stopped the boat next to a cargo lift. He got out onto the platform and helped Buffy out of the boat. "Come on. There you go. All aboard."
"You're out of your mind!"
"Oh, yeah. Careful now. Here, sit down. Now let's see here." Angel turned the lever to "UP" and the platform started to rise. "Ah! There we go. See, this is as close as I can get you to your ship. So, at least I tried right?"
"Actually, you know what? This is better."
"Yeah, it is. God, you're pretty." The platform stopped high in the air. Angel took Buffy in his arms and kissed her.
"What's gonna become of us all, Angel?"
"Well, the future's not exactly in our hands, is it?"
"No. I guess you're right."
They kissed again. As they got more passionate, Angel accidentally lowered them onto the lever and switched it to "DOWN." The platform dropped immediately and they screamed as they hurtled toward the water, stopping with a splash on the surface.
"Oh, my God! Are you all right?" Angel asked.
"Yeah. Are you?"
"That was not part of the date."
Buffy laughed and helped Angel back onto the platform. They kissed again and then got back on the boat. They walked along, Angel holding her tightly as if to protect her, until they found a cab. They rode back to the hotel and got out.
"Watch your step." Angel said, taking Buffy's hand like a gentleman.
"Oh, thank you." Buffy said.
"Buffy!" Cordelia called.
"Guys, come on up! Come on up! Come up! We're in 321." Doyle called before Cordy smashed her lips onto his and made them both spill their drinks. Buffy laughed at the little display.
Angel clucked his tongue. "He's had some alcohol tonight." They walked towards the hotel, but Angel stopped and pulled them out of the way. "There's something I got to tell you."
"Well, you've got no secrets from me, Lieutenant. I've seen your medical chart." Buffy joked. Angel looked at her uncomfortably. "This can't be good or it wouldn't be so hard to say."
"I got to go away."
Buffy smiled. "We're all going away."
"Yeah.. but I'm going to the war.. tomorrow." Buffy started in surprise. "I'm flying with the Eagle Squadron. It's a outfit the British started for American pilots." Tears started to form in Buffy's eyes. "I don't understand. You're in the U.S. Army. How could they order you to go?"
"They didn't order me. I volunteered."
Buffy pulled away from Angel. "But I passed you. I let you through. And now you
volunteer for the most dangerous place you could go?"
"It's not your responsibility, not your choice. Flying's the only thing I ever wanted to do. I mean, everything in my life has led me up to this point. Meeting you. I love you. I love you so much. Let's go inside." They turned and headed through the swinging doors to the lobby. Just then Angel stopped and steered them back outside. Buffy stared at him in bewilderment. "All right. Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Just.. I.. I cant do this." He stopped on the sidewalk. "This just.. it's not right. I'm sorry. I just.. see, I can't do this. I mean, I mean, I CAN. I.. I want to. I'm not trying to be noble, you know. Or not saying I know what would happen or just.. I need to stop talking. I just.. I just don't want it to be like everybody else. I don't want you to have anything about tonight that you regret. I mean, it's been the most incredible night of my life.. and I don't want to ruin that."
"Oh, you couldn't ruin it. If I had one more night to live, I'd want to spend it with you."
"See, that's what I want to come home to. That's what I want to have to think about and dream about. I want to know that the best part of my life is still ahead of me. Look.. don't, um.. could you.. not come see me off? Because, uh..saying good-bye to you once is hard enough."
Buffy stared at him in amazement and then pulled her scarf off. "Here. Take this." She put it around his neck.
"Why? You think it looks good on me?" She smiled sadly. "I will come back."
They kissed goodbye. She pulled away and walked back into the hotel. Angel waved at her through the glass doors. Buffy turned around and walked away, not able to watch him walk away from her.
*Train station the next morning.*
Doyle and Angel walked through the crowded train station. Angel kept searching the place for Buffy. Doyle smirked.
"I thought you said you told her not to come." Doyle asked.
"Yeah, I did." Angel replied, still searching.
"Why you looking for her then?"
"It's my test. If I tell her not to come, and she comes anyway then I.. I know she loves me."
"All aboard! Track 57!" An announcer called.
Doyle and Angel stopped. Angel looked Doyle in the eyes. "If, uh, anything happens to me, I want you to be the one to tell her. All right?"
"You just make sure and come back for the both of us, all right?" Doyle said.
"Ok. See you when I get back." Angel walked away, leaving Doyle alone.
"Yeah. Good hunting, Angel." Doyle said, knowing his best friend wouldn't hear him.
Doyle turned and saw Buffy run into the train station to the counter. The man shook his head and pointed outside where the train lights came on and the whistle blew. She ran outside onto the outdoor track where the train was getting ready to leave. Angel saw her from his seat and knocked on the window.
"Buffy! Buffy! Buffy!" Angel pounded on the window frantically. The noise from the engine and the steam prevented her from hearing him. Dismayed, she turned and walked away. "Buffy! Hey!" The train pulled away and he sat back in his seat. A man sitting next to him looked at him funny. Angel gave him a goofy smile. "She loves me."
*England Air Base*
Angel looked around at the destruction. Bullet holes were everywhere in the planes. He took a deep breath and held tighter to his suitcases as he walked forward towards an officer.
"This is a real mess!" The officer said.
Angel dropped his suitcases and saluted. "Lieutenant McCawley reporting for duty, sir."
"Good. We'll get you settle into your quarters. And then introduce you to the crate you'll be flying."
"Yes, sir." Angel picked up his bags and looked at the planes. "Uh, if y'all are patching up bullet holes right here on the runway maybe we ought to skip the housekeeping and get me in an airplane."
"Two didn't come back, sir." A man said, running up. "We counted only eleven."
Angel was shocked. He wondered if volunteering for this mission was a good idea after all. He had a woman back home that he was in love with and it would devastate her to lose him. The officer looked at him.
"Are all Yanks as anxious as you to get themselves killed, Pilot Officer?"
"Not anxious to die, sir. Just anxious to matter." Angel replied sincerely.
The officer led him to an airplane. "This is yours. Good chap. Didn't die till he'd landed
and shut down his engine."
Angel climbed the stepladder and got a closer look at the plane. The glass in the canopy was splattered with dried blood. He gulped and prayed that nothing like this would happen to him.
