Chapter Nine
Buffy shifted in the front seat. She was still wearing the clothes she'd bled all over. She felt gross and she was exhausted. She wanted nothing more then to check on Angel, get a hot shower, clean pj's and to crawl in bed and sleep, for a week.
"Wes, the Oracle told me to ask you something about a prophecy and a reward. What's she talking about?" Buffy asked.
Wes stared at the road ahead of him. He opened his mouth to speak a couple of times and then shut it. Finally he said, "It's really Angel's to tell you. When he first found out he discussed it with me, whether he should tell you or not. He decided that it was best if he didn't."
"Didn't tell me what? Come on, Wes. Spill the beans, the Oracle thought I should know about it." Buffy figured that had to count for something.
"Why don't we just wait until Angel wakes up? If he doesn't feel up to telling you, I promise I'll tell you about it." Wes reasoned.
Buffy sighed. She was too tired for this. "Fine, but if he doesn't feel like it, I don't care if there's an apocalypse, you're telling me."
"Very well," Wes agreed.
Buffy checked in on Angel when they got back to the hotel. He was still sleeping soundly. Gunn was in the training room working out. Buffy took a hot shower and crawled into bed. She was asleep before her head hit the pillow.
Buffy struggled against waking up. Her dream was warm and wonderful. She turned over and yawned. She opened her eyes a slit. Directly in her line of vision was a black silk clad chest that seemed awfully familiar. She opened her eyes all the way and smiled.
Angel rested on one elbow. He looked down at her and smiled. He brushed a strand of hair out of her face. She looked into his deep chocolate brown eyes and saw his soul.
"Angel," she whispered.
"I've missed hearing you say my name. No one else says it like you." His voice was deep and rumbley.
"Oh, God, I missed you so much." She buried her face in his chest.
His hands rubbed her back and he kissed the top of her head. "I'm back now." He ran his fingers along her jaw and tilted his face up to his. "What did you do?"
"I went to talk to the oracles." She said.
"And?" he urged her.
"I got them to take your visions back. They're sending you a new seer." Buffy said.
"Did they tell you who?" Angel asked.
Buffy shook her head. "Angel, the Oracle told me something."
Angel grew very still. "About what?"
"She said to ask you about a prophecy and a reward." Buffy said.
Angel sighed. He pulled back a little. He cleared his throat. "A few years ago, not long after I'd gotten the visions, Wes found prophecy. Actually, I stole the prophecy from Wolfram and Hart. I was there to get something else and this scroll just called to me. I had to take it. It took Wes a little while to translate it. I'm not even sure if he ever translated the whole thing. I sort of started getting confused and losing it before then." Angel looked into Buffy's eyes and took a deep breath.
"There is a prophecy that says once I've redeemed myself, adverted some apocalypses, saved however many people-"Angel stopped.
Buffy nodded, encouraging him to keep talking. "It's okay, you can tell me."
"The prophecy when translated literally says the vampire with a soul will live to die."
Buffy looked at him confused. "I don't get it. How is that a reward?"
"I'll live so that I can die one day. I'll be human one day." Angel said.
Buffy held her breath. She couldn't breathe. She covered her mouth with her hands and tears glittered in her eyes. Finally she took one breath and it turned into tears. She wrapped her arms around Angel's neck and buried her face in the crook there. "Wes is sure? There isn't a loophole or a way around this like with the codex?" Buffy finally spoke.
"As sure as he can be about an ancient prophecy," Angel said.
Buffy nodded, her face still buried in Angel's neck. She was unwilling to let him go, unwilling to step outside of this room and have everything disappear. "That's it? You keep up the good fight and poof your human?" Buffy's voice was pitched, afraid to hope.
"As far as we can tell," Angel said.
Buffy shook her head, tears fell down her cheeks. "That can't be it. I've dreamed this to many times."
"I didn't tell you before, because there's no time frame on it. It could happen tomorrow or a hundred years from now. You might not-"Angel started.
Buffy silenced him with her lips. He started to protest but he'd never had any willpower when it came to kissing Buffy. Her hands slid over his chest. She made little mewling sounds and undid the buttons on his shirt with nimble fingers, hot little hands over cool marble muscles and skin. She sighed into his mouth and arched up as he pulled her closer. She would never get tired of the way his hands, so much bigger then her own, felt on her skin.
Angel captured the edge of Buffy's tee shirt and pulled it up over her head, gilding her skin with his hands as he went. She was bare underneath her shirt and she sighed with relief as the cool skin of his chest chilled her own fevered skin. She'd forgotten what it felt like to breathe, being next to Angel, his bare skin against hers, reminded her. This was the only time she could really truly breathe, when he was next to her.
Buffy nipped along the edge of Angel's collarbone, savoring the cool taste of his skin. She paused at his jugular vein and smiled faintly, imagining what it would be like to feel a pulse there, thrumming against her lips. She took a deep breath of him and imagined what it would be like to add the smell of sunshine to the intoxicating smell of Angel. She giggled and whispered "Human Angel, I can't wait to see you in the sunlight."
Angel took a deep breath and sat up, pulling away from Buffy. His breathing was ragged and uneven. "Me either, but until then soul is still a problem."
"Shit," Buffy muttered under her breath. "Sorry, I got carried away."
Angel nodded. "There always has been a lot of that between us."
"Yeah," Buffy sighed. Angel scooted over near her and wrapped his arms around her.
"Thank you, for going to see the Oracles, for taking care of me, for letting me drink you. Every time I need saving, you're there." Angel said kissing the top of her head.
"I'll always be there. That's why we're forever, hell Angel, we're longer then forever." Buffy turned her face up to his and stared into his eyes, through his eyes into his soul. Tears gathered in the back of her throat and she looked away. It was too much.
"Where do we go from here, Buffy?" Angel asked. His voice was quiet and soft in the almost dark room.
"I don't know but I know where I don't want to go. I don't want to be years hearing from you. I don't want to have to wonder if you're okay." Buffy said.
Angel nodded. "I'm sorry about that."
Buffy chuckled softly. "It's okay. You were a little occupied."
"Going insane will do that to you." Angel said with a chuckle. He grew serious after a moment. "I can't see you every day. I can't smell you and touch you and not want you."
Buffy swallowed hard. Her heart pounded in her ears. She nodded. "I know. It's too hard. Dammit, I knew I should have asked the Oracles to anchor your soul while I was there."
"What you did-was-there are no words for how thankful I am to you for talking to them. I couldn't have stood it much longer. Eventually I would have opened the window and waited for the sun. The only thing that stopped me thus far was you. I thought you were in Heaven and I wanted to make sure when my soul left my body it would go to yours."
Buffy laid her hand against Angel's cheek. She pressed a light kiss to his lips. "I was in Heaven, but I would have known it if your soul had left your body and I would have found it, no matter where it was."
"Hell's not a very pretty place, Buffy." Angel said.
She shook her head. "It doesn't matter. I would have found you. Where ever you are lost, I will find you, always."
There was a soft knock on the door. "Come in," Buffy said.
Wes stepped inside. He held the cordless phone. "Buffy, Mr. Giles is on the phone. He'd like to talk to you."
"Thanks, Wes." Buffy held the phone to her ear, "Giles?"
"Buffy, I hate to bother you but I believe we could use a slayer here for a few days at least." Giles said.
"What's wrong?" Buffy said, instantly concerned.
"It seems word has spread that you are on vacation. Vampire attacks and risings have been, well, on the rise. Xander, Willow and I have managed to keep the number of newborns down. I know Angel is ill, but perhaps if you could spend a couple of nights down here it would help." Giles said.
"Angel is okay now and I'll leave in the morning." Buffy said.
"Oh, well very good then and thank you." Giles said.
"No problem, Giles. Is Dawnie okay?" she asked.
"Dawn is quite well. She's staying with Xander right now."
"Ok, see you tomorrow then." Buffy said hanging up the phone. She turned to Angel with a slight smile. "It seems destiny is intervening yet again to keep us apart."
Angel smiled slightly. "It always does."
"But this is of the good, because of the touching and the wanting." Buffy said.
Angel nodded. "You're coming back though?"
"You want me too?" Buffy asked, looking up at him fear evident in her hazel eyes.
He pulled her close inside the circle of his arms. "I want you too." His voice had grown husky with desire in the space of a breath.
"I love when your voice sounds like that, all want-y and needy." She smiled up at him.
He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Want-y and needy are big issues around you."
"Here too."
"I know you have to leave in the morning, but will you stay with me until then?" Angel asked. His voice was heartbreaking, sounding so little boy lost that it brought tears to Buffy's eyes. She wanted to smother his face with kisses and tell him she'd stay with him forever.
She merely nodded. They lay down on the bed together, his body curled around hers. Buffy whispered in the dark, "you know I can stop demons, vampires, hell goddesses and even death, one of these days I'm going to figure out how to stop the sunrise."
Angel shook his head. "No, I love seeing you in the daylight, even if I have to hide in the shadows. You're my sunshine, in the shape of a girl."
She smiled and dreamed of a day she wouldn't be his only sunshine.
Buffy shifted in the front seat. She was still wearing the clothes she'd bled all over. She felt gross and she was exhausted. She wanted nothing more then to check on Angel, get a hot shower, clean pj's and to crawl in bed and sleep, for a week.
"Wes, the Oracle told me to ask you something about a prophecy and a reward. What's she talking about?" Buffy asked.
Wes stared at the road ahead of him. He opened his mouth to speak a couple of times and then shut it. Finally he said, "It's really Angel's to tell you. When he first found out he discussed it with me, whether he should tell you or not. He decided that it was best if he didn't."
"Didn't tell me what? Come on, Wes. Spill the beans, the Oracle thought I should know about it." Buffy figured that had to count for something.
"Why don't we just wait until Angel wakes up? If he doesn't feel up to telling you, I promise I'll tell you about it." Wes reasoned.
Buffy sighed. She was too tired for this. "Fine, but if he doesn't feel like it, I don't care if there's an apocalypse, you're telling me."
"Very well," Wes agreed.
Buffy checked in on Angel when they got back to the hotel. He was still sleeping soundly. Gunn was in the training room working out. Buffy took a hot shower and crawled into bed. She was asleep before her head hit the pillow.
Buffy struggled against waking up. Her dream was warm and wonderful. She turned over and yawned. She opened her eyes a slit. Directly in her line of vision was a black silk clad chest that seemed awfully familiar. She opened her eyes all the way and smiled.
Angel rested on one elbow. He looked down at her and smiled. He brushed a strand of hair out of her face. She looked into his deep chocolate brown eyes and saw his soul.
"Angel," she whispered.
"I've missed hearing you say my name. No one else says it like you." His voice was deep and rumbley.
"Oh, God, I missed you so much." She buried her face in his chest.
His hands rubbed her back and he kissed the top of her head. "I'm back now." He ran his fingers along her jaw and tilted his face up to his. "What did you do?"
"I went to talk to the oracles." She said.
"And?" he urged her.
"I got them to take your visions back. They're sending you a new seer." Buffy said.
"Did they tell you who?" Angel asked.
Buffy shook her head. "Angel, the Oracle told me something."
Angel grew very still. "About what?"
"She said to ask you about a prophecy and a reward." Buffy said.
Angel sighed. He pulled back a little. He cleared his throat. "A few years ago, not long after I'd gotten the visions, Wes found prophecy. Actually, I stole the prophecy from Wolfram and Hart. I was there to get something else and this scroll just called to me. I had to take it. It took Wes a little while to translate it. I'm not even sure if he ever translated the whole thing. I sort of started getting confused and losing it before then." Angel looked into Buffy's eyes and took a deep breath.
"There is a prophecy that says once I've redeemed myself, adverted some apocalypses, saved however many people-"Angel stopped.
Buffy nodded, encouraging him to keep talking. "It's okay, you can tell me."
"The prophecy when translated literally says the vampire with a soul will live to die."
Buffy looked at him confused. "I don't get it. How is that a reward?"
"I'll live so that I can die one day. I'll be human one day." Angel said.
Buffy held her breath. She couldn't breathe. She covered her mouth with her hands and tears glittered in her eyes. Finally she took one breath and it turned into tears. She wrapped her arms around Angel's neck and buried her face in the crook there. "Wes is sure? There isn't a loophole or a way around this like with the codex?" Buffy finally spoke.
"As sure as he can be about an ancient prophecy," Angel said.
Buffy nodded, her face still buried in Angel's neck. She was unwilling to let him go, unwilling to step outside of this room and have everything disappear. "That's it? You keep up the good fight and poof your human?" Buffy's voice was pitched, afraid to hope.
"As far as we can tell," Angel said.
Buffy shook her head, tears fell down her cheeks. "That can't be it. I've dreamed this to many times."
"I didn't tell you before, because there's no time frame on it. It could happen tomorrow or a hundred years from now. You might not-"Angel started.
Buffy silenced him with her lips. He started to protest but he'd never had any willpower when it came to kissing Buffy. Her hands slid over his chest. She made little mewling sounds and undid the buttons on his shirt with nimble fingers, hot little hands over cool marble muscles and skin. She sighed into his mouth and arched up as he pulled her closer. She would never get tired of the way his hands, so much bigger then her own, felt on her skin.
Angel captured the edge of Buffy's tee shirt and pulled it up over her head, gilding her skin with his hands as he went. She was bare underneath her shirt and she sighed with relief as the cool skin of his chest chilled her own fevered skin. She'd forgotten what it felt like to breathe, being next to Angel, his bare skin against hers, reminded her. This was the only time she could really truly breathe, when he was next to her.
Buffy nipped along the edge of Angel's collarbone, savoring the cool taste of his skin. She paused at his jugular vein and smiled faintly, imagining what it would be like to feel a pulse there, thrumming against her lips. She took a deep breath of him and imagined what it would be like to add the smell of sunshine to the intoxicating smell of Angel. She giggled and whispered "Human Angel, I can't wait to see you in the sunlight."
Angel took a deep breath and sat up, pulling away from Buffy. His breathing was ragged and uneven. "Me either, but until then soul is still a problem."
"Shit," Buffy muttered under her breath. "Sorry, I got carried away."
Angel nodded. "There always has been a lot of that between us."
"Yeah," Buffy sighed. Angel scooted over near her and wrapped his arms around her.
"Thank you, for going to see the Oracles, for taking care of me, for letting me drink you. Every time I need saving, you're there." Angel said kissing the top of her head.
"I'll always be there. That's why we're forever, hell Angel, we're longer then forever." Buffy turned her face up to his and stared into his eyes, through his eyes into his soul. Tears gathered in the back of her throat and she looked away. It was too much.
"Where do we go from here, Buffy?" Angel asked. His voice was quiet and soft in the almost dark room.
"I don't know but I know where I don't want to go. I don't want to be years hearing from you. I don't want to have to wonder if you're okay." Buffy said.
Angel nodded. "I'm sorry about that."
Buffy chuckled softly. "It's okay. You were a little occupied."
"Going insane will do that to you." Angel said with a chuckle. He grew serious after a moment. "I can't see you every day. I can't smell you and touch you and not want you."
Buffy swallowed hard. Her heart pounded in her ears. She nodded. "I know. It's too hard. Dammit, I knew I should have asked the Oracles to anchor your soul while I was there."
"What you did-was-there are no words for how thankful I am to you for talking to them. I couldn't have stood it much longer. Eventually I would have opened the window and waited for the sun. The only thing that stopped me thus far was you. I thought you were in Heaven and I wanted to make sure when my soul left my body it would go to yours."
Buffy laid her hand against Angel's cheek. She pressed a light kiss to his lips. "I was in Heaven, but I would have known it if your soul had left your body and I would have found it, no matter where it was."
"Hell's not a very pretty place, Buffy." Angel said.
She shook her head. "It doesn't matter. I would have found you. Where ever you are lost, I will find you, always."
There was a soft knock on the door. "Come in," Buffy said.
Wes stepped inside. He held the cordless phone. "Buffy, Mr. Giles is on the phone. He'd like to talk to you."
"Thanks, Wes." Buffy held the phone to her ear, "Giles?"
"Buffy, I hate to bother you but I believe we could use a slayer here for a few days at least." Giles said.
"What's wrong?" Buffy said, instantly concerned.
"It seems word has spread that you are on vacation. Vampire attacks and risings have been, well, on the rise. Xander, Willow and I have managed to keep the number of newborns down. I know Angel is ill, but perhaps if you could spend a couple of nights down here it would help." Giles said.
"Angel is okay now and I'll leave in the morning." Buffy said.
"Oh, well very good then and thank you." Giles said.
"No problem, Giles. Is Dawnie okay?" she asked.
"Dawn is quite well. She's staying with Xander right now."
"Ok, see you tomorrow then." Buffy said hanging up the phone. She turned to Angel with a slight smile. "It seems destiny is intervening yet again to keep us apart."
Angel smiled slightly. "It always does."
"But this is of the good, because of the touching and the wanting." Buffy said.
Angel nodded. "You're coming back though?"
"You want me too?" Buffy asked, looking up at him fear evident in her hazel eyes.
He pulled her close inside the circle of his arms. "I want you too." His voice had grown husky with desire in the space of a breath.
"I love when your voice sounds like that, all want-y and needy." She smiled up at him.
He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Want-y and needy are big issues around you."
"Here too."
"I know you have to leave in the morning, but will you stay with me until then?" Angel asked. His voice was heartbreaking, sounding so little boy lost that it brought tears to Buffy's eyes. She wanted to smother his face with kisses and tell him she'd stay with him forever.
She merely nodded. They lay down on the bed together, his body curled around hers. Buffy whispered in the dark, "you know I can stop demons, vampires, hell goddesses and even death, one of these days I'm going to figure out how to stop the sunrise."
Angel shook his head. "No, I love seeing you in the daylight, even if I have to hide in the shadows. You're my sunshine, in the shape of a girl."
She smiled and dreamed of a day she wouldn't be his only sunshine.