Explanations coming up!

Weasy

Part Three

//I've got my freedom -

But I don't have much time

Faith has been broken

Tears must be cried

Let's do some living

After love dies//

Wild Horses – The Rolling Stones

Cordy had returned to her normal bitchy self before the visitors arrived, having decided that feeling sorry for her self was too pathetic for Queen C. The Sunnydale crew were heartily encouraged by this return to form. They were sitting in the living area, trying to find similarities between the world Cordy described as home, and the world they lived in, when there was a knock at the door. By now somewhat used to people barging in it took Giles a moment to realise what the sound was.

Getting up he opened the door, and was met by a small blonde girl and three men. The girl smiled at his confused expression, before sticking out a hand. "Hey, I'm Buffy." She introduced herself.

"Oh!" Giles sighed now greatly relieved. "Wonderful, come in, all of you." Giles stepped back to let them in; opening the door wider as soon as the tall dark spiky haired man walked in her was seized by Cordy who appeared to have run across the room to wrap him in a bear hug.

"Uh, hi?" The man questioned, looking over Cordy's head at Giles who just shrugged. Buffy, beside him, glared at the dark haired girl who had so wantonly seized her husband.

"Oh god! Angel! I am so glad to see you!" Angel patted Cordy nervously on her back.

"Uh… Who are you?" Letting go of Angel Cordy stepped back so he could look at her closely.

"Don't you recognise me?" She demanded.

"Sorry." Slipping his hand into Buffy's, Angel glanced around the room. "I guess we'd better do introductions." He finally said, seeing the boy eyeing him warily from the sofa. "I'm Angel, this is my wife Buffy-"

"You're what?!" Cordy shrieked and Angel backed away expecting to see smoke come out her ears. "How the hell is that possible?" She eyed him suspiciously. "You are still all grr aren't you?"

Angel cocked one eyebrow. "If you mean am I a vampire… then yeah. There isn't really a cure for that."

The boy on the sofa scrambled to his feet, holding a wooden cross in front of him. "Cordy! You just invited the vamps to an all you can eat buffet at the Giles' residence!"

Cordy turned around and glared at him. "Jeez, you're certainly as impotent as usual, Angel's special, he's got a soul."

"So the hell what!" Xander yelled. "Evil bite-y thing!"

Buffy sighed loudly. "What's up with you guys? I didn't drive all the way here to get yelled at."

Behind her one of the other guys laughed. "Like Angel would ever let you drive his car."

She turned to glare at him. "There's nothing wrong with my driving skills."

All three of the guys suddenly became very interested in the floor. "Whatever darlin'." The third guy had a thick Irish accent and…

"Doyle!" Cordy squealed again. "Why are you hanging around with Buffy?"

"We'd better finish the introductions." Giles prompted.

"'M Doyle." The Irish one agreed his eyes glued to the dark haired slayer in front of him. Eyes sparkling as though he had some mischief in mind.

The last man, a tall and skinny but rugged looking man, with piercing eyes and dark hair nodded at the Slayer. "I'm Pike."

"Well, I'm Giles," the watcher started, "this girl is Cordelia and that is Xander. Hopefully Oz and Willow will be joining us tomorrow I should think, Willow said she would get the first flight back she could."

"Good." Buffy murmured.

Seeing all his guests were still standing by the door he motioned towards the sitting area. "Please sit down, I'll just fetch some tea."

After some polite discussion of seating arrangements Cordy ended up sitting in one of the lazy boys beside the sofa, while Xander, Pike and Doyle shared the couch Doyle carefully situating himself as close to Cordy as he could. Angel sat in one of the other chairs, Buffy promptly curled up in his lap, there was much eye rolling from Cordy at this. Xander however, sitting close to them, appeared not to object and was watching Buffy with undisguised interest. Angel glared at him, pulling Buffy closer to his chest.

Giles came in before a fight broke out and put the tea down on the coffee table before taking the last seat. "Since, Cordelia insists on interrupting everything you say perhaps we could have a brief history, I have to admit I'm intrigued as to how you got your soul… and then into demon hunting."

"Where should I start?"

"I know about your soul." Cordy interrupted, "he was all evil undead massacring people left and right till he killed this gypsy girl, her clan got majorly pissed and cursed him with a soul so that he would forever be haunted by the memories of everyone he killed." Angel nodded his agreement.

"And when was this?" Giles inquired, leaning closer to Angel free of his initial shock. Xander was still clearly unconvinced.

"About a hundred years ago."

"And you started Angel Investigations then?"

"No. I didn't do anything much for ninety years; I just brooded a lot… I stopped feeding off humans, so I was starving myself to death very slowly."

Cordy appeared to be listening with interest having never heard this part of the story before, briefly she wondered if she should have been more interested in his history, given her interest in him. "Why did you change?" Giles asked.

Now Angel smiled pressing a light kiss to Buffy's forehead. "I met Buffy. I was informed, through a messenger that Buffy was going to be called, I was supposed to help her… protect her, guide her."

Giles' jaw dropped, Cordy jumped up and pointed at him laughing. "I told you! I told you she's meant to be the Slayer!"

At this Buffy put her hands over her ears. "What is it with you and the yelling?"

"Cordy was right?" Xander echoed "Cordy was right." He tried again, pulling odd faces as he tried to wrap his mind around the concept.

"Hello?" Buffy tried, "Is it useless to point out that I am *not* in anyway shape or form the Slayer. *You* are."

Cordy sat down and leaned forward and motioned for silence. "What happened after you met Buffy?"

Angel shrugged. "I fell in love with her."

Cordy shook her head. "Well duh! Buffy and Angel in love, what a surprise… I mean… you guys are married so you must've done the nasty… in which case how come you aren't all schizophrenic psychopath-y?"

"I did…" Angel replied surprised that this stranger would know such intimate things about his and Buffy's life. "I mean, when we first, but a witch friend of ours Janna cursed me with my soul again and took out the 'moment of happiness clause'"

"There was a clause in you curse?" Giles enquired at the same time as Xander was spluttering something about Buffy having sex with a demon. Cordy ignored them both and ploughed forward with her interrogation.

"How come you arrived in day light and you're not all crispy fried?" Buffy laughed out loud. And held up one of her hands and one of Angel's, there beside their matching silver Claddagh wedding bands were two more silver bands, each with a half of a stone set in the middle.

"It's called the Gem of Amara. One of Angel's childer found it; it makes any vampiric wearer of it invincible. Having stolen it off Spike we got it made into some rings so we can help people in the day time as well as the night."

"You're a vampire?" Cordy echoed. "Well *that's* not the same." She told Giles. "I guess it explains the hair though."

"What's wrong with my hair?" Buffy pouted.

"When where you turned into a vampire?" Xander finally asked – anything to stop a catfight between Buffy and Cordy.

"The day I was meant to get called, when Angel first met me the master Lathos attacked my High School in LA, I guess he knew I was going to be the Slayer and figured he'd turn me while I was still defenceless."

"Why didn't you save her?" Xander demanded of Angel.

"I wasn't there." Angel sighed hanging his head in shame; "I went back to meet Whistler in New York, when I came back Buffy had just risen."

"The first person she met was me." Pike put in, "And I knew about vampires, 'cos my best friend, Benny, had just got turned I was about to stake her when Angel stopped me he knew there was something wonky about Buffy as a vampire."

"What was that?" Giles asked.

"I kept my soul." At everyone's blank faces she sighed and began, "when a person is turned into a vampire they die and their soul goes to the spirit world. That's why it's a big deal that Angel has a soul normally vampires have no soul so they feel no remorse for their actions only pleasure in them. When he got his soul he instantly felt the guilt of a hundred years worth of atrocities his body had committed… but not his soul. When I was turned I kept my soul."

"Why?"

Buffy shrugged. "I don't know. We think maybe it was something to do with me being a potential slayer but… It's hard to say."

"Given that you're all shocked and dismayed about Buffy being a vamp, what happened in your world?" Pike asked Cordelia.

Sitting back Cordy began. "Well it started sorta the same I guess… I don't know everything but I guess Angel must've seen Buffy being called… and you were called, when that Lathos guy turned up you killed him, but you got kicked outta Hemery for burning down the gym and your parents got divorced so you moved to Sunnydale…"

"What happened with me and Angel?" Buffy asked.

Cordy looked suddenly guilty for bringing any of it up, "Look it doesn't matter…"

"What happens?" Buffy asked again a dangerous edge in her voice.

"Uh… well, at first we didn't know Angel was a vampire… and Buffy was all over you… when you kissed Angel vamped out and everyone had a complete wiggins. We were going to kill Angel but Darla turned up and backed up Angel's story that he had a soul before trying to kill you both. Angel staked Darla to save Buffy."

"I recall that happenin' over 'ere as well." Doyle added.

"So uh, then you avoided each other for ages but ended up getting together and uh, had sex, and Angel went all Fangy and killed half our Junior Class before Buffy sent him to hell where he spent a coupla hundred years. Buffy got expelled when the police thought she murdered Kendra-" she deflected the question about Kendra with a wave of her hand. "-so she ran away. I've no idea where she went." She added before anyone could ask. "She came back a few months later and somehow managed to get allowed back into Sunnydale High… I think it was something to do with her mom… Angel came back from Hell and Buffy was hiding him in the mansion on Crawford Street, when everyone else found out they thought Angel was still all evil so Faith – another long story - got sent to kill him. Buffy saved Angel and after that you guys went out on and off till graduation. It was kinda tricky with the whole look but don't touch thing so Angel left at the end of graduation and now he lives in LA with me and Doyle and Buffy's in Sunnydale guarding the hellmouth." Cordy finished now hoping to swiftly change the subject… given that Angel was looking outraged and Buffy about ready to cry she suspected that wasn't going to happen anytime soon.

"I guess… while this world is really crappy so far as I'm concerned it's kinda better for you guys here." Cordy offered.

"Yeah." Buffy muttered. Sensing her distress Angel was whispering something in her ear while running his hands over her skin reassuringly.

"So uh… how come you're now in this world instead of yours?" Pike asked.

"I accidentally wished that I was the Slayer instead of Buffy and so the demon Anyanka who I accidentally wished this to, changed the entire world to suit my wish."

"Anyanka?" Xander laughed, "You mean Anya?"

"Yeah… she went by that at the end of Sunnydale High." Cordy agreed seeing everyone's confused looks she sighed, "look this isn't the first time a wish has been granted and it's gone incredibly badly but it's a whole long story and I don't know how to fix it because I *died* before Giles turned it all back. And given that dying *really* isn't on my list of priorities I'd really appreciate it if you could fix this."

"Well she goes to UC Sunnydale with you… her number's probably in your room."

"Great. Where is my room?"

"Oh." Giles pointed upstairs. "Up there, third door on the right."

"I live with you?" Cordy complained then threw up her arms in frustration. "I can't believe this, Buffy doesn't have to live with you."

"It's standard Slayer practice." Xander reminded her.

"Yeah, but Buffy's not a standard Slayer… and I'll be damned if I'm going to be one." Turning to Buffy she shook her fist. "Let's get this straight… I don't like you. If I had my way I would never have had anything to do with you and trust me when I say when I get back home I'm going to work out how this is all your fault."

Buffy stood up folding her arms and raised one eyebrow. "For the last four years me and Angel have been night-tripping to Sunnydale to clear up your hellmouth… I *am* a better Slayer than you even without the superpowers."

Pike jumped to his feet "Heh… why doesn't Cordy go get this chick Anya's number, and me and Buff can just go for a quick patrol."

"It's daylight, Pike." Buffy replied.

"Yep… ain't that a killer. C'mon let's work on your tan." Pike prompted, as he dragged Buffy toward the door. Angel stood and motioned toward the door.

"I'm just gunna go… uh… book a hotel reservation…" he covered before he could hurry after the pair Giles stopped him.

"Do you think there's anything you can do to help?"

"I don't know." He replied honestly, "I can make a few calls see if there's been an inter dimensional disturbance…" He shrugged. "But right now I think I really ought to go after my wife."

TBC

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