A/N : I promised to update this fic today and I kept my promise. Thanx to; tinkerbell42, Aleesha (thanks for the compliment, but no, sorry, you can't adopt me! lol), SpIkEs AnGeL (y'know I had a lot of fun with that pissed off Spike once I calmed him down ;-) Hope you keep on reading!), Mita427, Imzadi (sorry, but I don't think I'll have room for Lindsey in this fic, hope you keep on reading anyway), B/S Rox (keep reading...), SouthernRain, fashiongrrl (I completely understand what you were saying. Glad you like the story), Rachel - loved all your reviews! Hope all of you keep reading, enjoying and reviewing! More updates of all my fics should be coming soon, I've been working very hard on them this week...

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 6 - Prophetic Excuse

"Angel?!" Buffy gasped in shock as the vampire smiled.

"Buffy" he nodded a greeting, suspiciously eyeing the boy to the side of his ex-girlfriend. A certain look passed between Spike and Angel as the brunette looked back to Buffy, "Don't I get a hug?" he asked and the Slayers eyes watered as she nodded and went into his arms.

Spike, suddenly feeling like the third wheel and also very jealous, cleared his throat loudly and was glad to see Buffy pull away from the vampire. Placing a territorial arm around his girl, the bleach blond spoke in a low voice.

"So, this is the infamous Angel?"

"Oh I'm sorry" Buffy shook her head, bringing herself out of her Angel-daze, "Spike this is Angel, Angel this is Spike Hart" she introduced, as the two shook hands for the Slayers benefit, "he's Giles's son" she added suddenly and Angel looked more than a little shocked, "Long story" Buffy told her ex before he could ask.

"Well, I've got all night" Angel smiled, glad about the look of discomfort on the boy's face. Okay, so Buffy wasn't his girl anymore, but he hated this guy on sight just because he'd seen them kissing and groping moments before he made his presence known.

"We have to finish patrolling" Spike snapped, desperate to drag Buffy away from this ponce.

"Great" Angel said, not missing a beat, "I'll come along with"

"Oh, wonderful" Spike fake smiled and spoke through gritted teeth, his displeasure completely obvious, but he wouldn't cause trouble with this git in front of Buffy. Luckily the Slayer didn't notice, which Spike almost conceived as a bad thing, since it meant his girlfriend was paying no attention to him at all!

The threesome walked and Buffy explained Spike's arrival in Sunnydale to Angel, who did a fairly decent impression of someone who was riveted by the tale. Spike's arm never left Buffy's shoulders but his eyes were watching the vampire to the other side of his Slayer. He did not trust this 'man' at all. There was no reason for him to hate Angel really, he'd only met him a few moments ago, but he'd hurt Buffy and that hurt Spike, plus he'd been her first love and that meant something.

As Buffy came to the end of her story and ended by telling Angel how Cordy was back in Sunnydale for the Summer and Spike's family were staying next door too, an awkward silence would surely have fallen over the three, but a couple of Sunnydale's undead did not let it happen.

The Slayer was almost glad of the interruption and she swiftly pulled a stake from her jacket and lunged at the first vamp. As Spike moved to go for the second, Angel stepped in front of him, shoved him back with his arm and took on the other vampire himself. The shock of the souled-vampire's arm across his chest, knocked Spike backwards onto the grass of the cemetery and he watched from the floor as Buffy flipped, somersaulted, and kicked the vampire she was fighting right in the face as Angel punched the second. The enemies bumped together, back to back, and as Buffy brought her stake through one heart, Angel flicked his wrist, his own stake shooting out like a projectile from his sleeve, dispatching the second vamp at the exact same time. Two clouds of dust sprinkled to the ground, leaving the two old lovers looking straight into each others eyes. Spike frowned at the way they looked at each other and at the fact Buffy hadn't even noticed he was on the ground. Pulling himself up he stalked over to his girl.

"You okay, luv?" he checked unnecessarily and she shook her head before looking over at him.

"I'm fine" she smiled, "Are you?"

"Just dandy, pet" he nodded and smiled, cleverly hiding his annoyance and hurt.

"Er, Angel" Buffy turned to him again, "You never told us why you were actually here?" she realised with a frown, yawning as she spoke.

"Maybe we should get home, Slayer" Spike suggested his arm snaking around he shoulders once again as he encouraged her to walk with him, "Angel can tell us why he's here in the morning...if he has a decent reason" he sneered.

"He can't tell us in the morning" Buffy whispered, "He'll fry"

"Oh yes" Spike smirked to the vampire, who had obviously heard every word, "Of course he will"

"I can tell you now" Angel told her, shooting daggers at Spike with his eyes as the three began to walk out of the cemetery towards Revello again, "It all has to do with a prophecy" he began to explain.

"Doesn't it always" Buffy sighed.

"Well, this one is weird" the vampire told her, taking a piece of paper from inside his jacket and handing it to her, "but then I guess they're always weird too" he conceded.

Buffy opened up the folded paper and read the words written there, all in Angels' impeccably tidy handwriting, the same handwriting that blessed several pages that the Slayer had hidden away at home, in the secret compartment of her weapons chest. Spike read over her shoulder, smirking to himself, even the ponce's handwriting looked...well, poncey!

" 'Not of evil, yet devil made, hybrid creature, his part to be played' " Buffy read aloud, frowning hard since she had no idea what it meant. Intrigued, Spike continued.

" 'Link to masters of our fate, twenty years from bearing date, to bring assistance to inhuman souled, he shalt be a warrior bold' ...well, that makes a whole lot of bleedin' sense" Spike scoffed with a sarcastic tone.

"Prophecies aren't often big with the sense making" Buffy reminded him, they'd had to handle a couple since Spike joined the Scooby gang, "but we need to figure this out as soon as, it could be important"

"Why's it important to us?" the bleach blond wanted to know, speaking as if Angel were not even there, "I mean, 'the inhuman souled' that's gonna be him" he gestured to Angel with a slight tilt of his head, "What's it got to do with us?" he looked up at the vampire, giving him a 'sod off back wherever you came from' kind of a look.

"There were co-ordinates" Angel explained, ignoring Spike's glare as best he could, "turns out whatever this prophecy is talking about should be around about on the Hellmouth, that's why I'm here"

Buffy blinked hard at the paper in her hand. She still did the Slayer thing, it was her calling after all, but other than her patrolling which she did with Spike and the other Scoobies anyway, things had calmed down on the Hellmouth considerably lately. Now Angel was back and with him he brought prophecies, possible evil and confusion in her head and heart.

She was glad when the three arrived in Revello Drive, she needed to be alone right now, she needed sleep and a chance to digest all this information.

"I'll keep this" she gestured with the paper to Angel, "I'll show it to Giles tomorrow and we'll figure out what's happening. Come by tomorrow night and we'll tell you whatever we find out"

"Thanks Buffy" Angel smiled, "I knew you were the girl to come to for help" he moved to kiss her cheek and Buffy wasn't sure whether it was her Slayer senses or something else that made her shiver when he got close. Spike almost growled as the great git dared to put his lips on her and was glad about the neutral look on her face. If she'd have look like she'd enjoyed it he'd have probably staked the ponce, Buffy's mate or not!

With a flip of his black coat, the souled-vamp was gone and Spike and Buffy were finally alone again. The Slayer yawned once more and looked over at her house.

"So, I'll see you tomorrow then, pet?" Spike asked, just about managing to get her attention, she had a distinctly dreamy look in her eyes.

"Oh, yeah" Buffy turned to him and replied, as if she'd just noticed he was there, "Tomorrow" she echoed as her boyfriend moved to kiss her. Usually a goodnight kiss between the pair could go on for some time, and a passer-by could wonder at how they went so long without oxygen, but tonight Spike barely got a peck on the lips before Buffy headed into her house and up to her room to sleep.

It was a ridiculous thought, the Slayer knew, to think that sleep was going to come easily to her tonight. She loved Spike, of that she was perfectly certain, but she used to love Angel and having him back here was giving her feelings she really didn't want to have. Plus, there was the matter of the impending evil foretold in the prophecy and Buffy still had a multitude of questions for her ex. Where had he been all this time? Did he have another girlfriend now? Was he staying in Sunnydale for long? Little did she know as she climbed into bed that her questions would be answered sooner than she thought...

It had hurt, when she'd kissed him fast and practically run away. If he were the type, Spike would of cried, but he was a man and not some nancy boy. Buffy loved him, he knew it, she'd told him often enough, proved it with her looks and kisses, he just knew she wasn't that good of an actress, she had to care for him. But he saw it in her eyes tonight, there were still feelings there for her first love, for Angel.

The excuse was a propechy, that's why the vamp was back on the Hellmouth, not really to see Buffy as such, or so he said, but Spike was the suspicious type and he couldn't help wondering if this supposedly good demon had an ulterior motive. He guessed he'd find out more tomorrow, unknowing that Buffy's own questions would be answered sooner...

To Be Continued...