Part Ten as promised.
Part Ten –
//slow down your moving too fast, you've got to make the morning last//
When Buffy woke the next morning, she was immediately aware of two things. The first that she just wasn't tired anymore, Ever since she'd woken up in that hospital almost a month before she'd suffered from constant fatigue. Even though she'd wanted to sleep she hadn't been able to, instead lying awake in bed trying to make sense of the pain and confusion that the bonding had heightened within her. The second thing she was aware of was that she was naked, the cool silk sheets fell freely over her skin, and every time it rippled and pooled over her senses with her movements it reminded her of the night before. She blushed at the memory.
She slowly scanned the room around her, although the thick black curtains were drawn it was lighter than it had been the night before. The light allowed her to see that the room she was in was decorated in the slightly fancy style of the Victorian period, with gilt chairs and a chaise lounge covered in rich red velvet cushions. Everything in the room was so amazingly tactile that Buffy could've spent days running her fingers over the room exploring every object in the room. But there were more interesting things to address, specifically her gorgeous vampire who sat across from her, unashamedly naked and sketching her sleeping form.
Pulling the cover sheet of the bed she wrapped herself up in it and crossed the room to curl up on Angelus lap. "Morning beloved." He greeted her kissing the crown if her head before continuing to sketch her from memory.
"Morning." Her fingers were all ready wrapped around the sketchbook and pulling it toward her, Angelus let her take it watching her as she took in the image before her. The smile on her face was genuine, and full of warmth and love. Carefully folding the sketchbook closed and putting it to one side she shifted her position to straddle him with the dark red sheets surrounding them both and started trailing a line of kisses down his jaw line, playfully biting at his neck. While her hands ran over his body smoothing his muscles and warming his skin at her touch. Angelus replied in turn licking and nipping a path across her collarbone, before laving at the juncture between her neck and shoulders where her creamy flesh was raised in a jagged scar. It had been reopened again the previous night, but he continued to lave at the spot raising her blood to the surface. She whimpered at his touch and suddenly pulled back.
"Angelus. I don't have any clothes."
Angelus slumped onto her chest "Goddamnit Buffy. Now – not the time." He let his hands roam feely over her skin to make his point. Buffy promptly forgot what the problem had been as she lost herself in his kisses.
Hours later Buffy and Faith sat in Faith's favourite diner, between Willy's and the cemetery stretch. Faith had been watching her with her special suspicious smile that said quite clearly. I know you've been screwing. It wasn't hard to tell what Buffy had been doing the night before anyway. She was practically glowing, filled with a giddy happiness that lit up her now constant smile and kept her dancing on the edge of her seat.
"So how was it?" Buffy was refusing to accept Faith's hint and she'd got bored of waiting for her to just open up, so she figured the direct approach was most likely to get her anywhere.
"Huh?" Buffy replied all innocence and flowers.
"You Angelus, hot monkey sex all over the mansion?" Faith prompted.
"Oh. Nice." Buffy's wide smile told her it was a lot more than nice, but she was all ready blushing heavily so she let it be.
"Where's Angelus now anyway? You know sunlight withstanding I thought you two'd be joined at the hip." Faith replied tucking into the bowl of fries between them.
"I didn't have any clothes, hence the borrowing of yours. And I have no money so Angelus went out to buy some."
"You fool!" Faith laughed. "Fifty bucks you'll get back and find there's nothing there you can wear in front of your mother." They laughed and some of the tension between them was released but there was still something in the back of Faith's eyes, that was making Buffy a little uncomfortable. It couldn't be Angelus, Faith had been having her way with Spike for a year it must have been something – Buffy's eyes went wide at her sudden realisation.
"Buffy?" Faith asked concerned for the sudden twist in her friends jovial mood.
"My mother!"
Faith raised her eyebrows in confusion, not able to decipher the fear of her fellow Slayer's face. "Yes…" She prodded.
"Is supposed to be visiting. What day is it?"
"September Twenty-third." Faith replied instantly.
Buffy gave an audible sigh of relief and collapsed back into the booth. "Good. She's not coming 'til the thirtieth." She sat back up and began picking at the fries in front of her. "I lost sense of time for a while." The thick-cloud of sadness that had surrounded Buffy since they'd first met years before returned, and Faith slowly realised that it was never going to go anyway, and Buffy's experience of being separated from the man she'd been bound to had made it worse. Still one good thing had come out of the binding, Buffy's moments of happiness would be a more constant thing now Angelus was there for her. Angelus would never leave her, not like everyone else Buffy had loved and Faith had to be grateful for tat even if she didn't like the idea of Angelus running around with a belly full of Slayer blood. Which he certainly did, the scar of Buffy's neck appeared to have been reopened several times during the night and Angelus must be running on a hell of a high right now.
"Buffy." Faith said, suddenly serious and Buffy looked up to meet her eyes. "Yesterday, Wesley kind of caught me and Spike. And Wesley went on at me about how degrading it was and, it hurt. I told him about you and Angelus and he said it was different because you two were prophesised… and bonded." Faith's eyes were now running over the table cloth while her fingers played with it's fringe.
"It's not different, it doesn't matter what he says anyway, Giles doesn't approve of me and Angelus either. I can just tell when he looks at me prophesised. It doesn't matter that they don't approve because it has nothing to do with them. Besides it's just something else that makes us different from the stepford slayers" She lowered her head in conspiracy. "And the whole bonding thing? I don't think you've got long to wait." Satisfied she slumped back and the conversation twisted path suddenly to discuss anything but the paranormal.
When Buffy stepped into her room that night she could hear the shower running in the en suite and deduced that Angelus' was in the shower. She took a moment to marvel at the fact that she all ready thought of the room as hers, more so than she had ever thought of the flat in LA as hers. Sighing satisfied she spied some carrier bags lying haphazardly on the bed next to a pile of Angelus' clothes and she snuck over to the bed to look through the shopping bags that lay there.
Five minutes later she slipped into the shower next to Angelus, and immediately started kissing a path down the knotted muscles of his back. "By the way, you owe Faith fifty dollars." She told him smiling sweetly as he spun round locking her hands with one hand over her head and backing her against the wall, he wasn't really angry but vamped out and started nipping at the side of her neck anyway.
"Why?" He asked.
"She said you wouldn't buy me anything I could wear in front of my mom, Leather, lace and silk… she was right."
And the challenge has ended. *Sigh* hope you liked the ride. I did and hence the fact… I'm not going to stop writing it, if you've read the challenge you'll know I snuck in a few random bits and pieces of my own and so I feel bound to keep going and bring this story full circle. Plus I kind of like this 'verse. I'll admit Angelus wasn't being all that Angelus-y but that's not the point.
Weasy
Oh yes, the challenge, as issued by Carol Ann:
Initiative, Watchers and Angelus Oh My!
Premise: Angelus was never cursed by the Gypsies, so Angel's soul was never returned. Sunnydale is Angelus' home base, he lives in the Mansion. He is still one of the most dangerous vampires there is but he is not psychotic.
Pairing: B/A(us) F/S C/D
There is more than one Slayer scattered through the world. Buffy is the Los Angeles slayer, she never came to Sunnydale. Giles is her Watcher.
Faith is the Sunnydale Slayer and is friends with Buffy. They don't get along with the other Slayers. Buffy and Faith think of the other slayers as "stepford" slayers always following the slayer handbook, unable to think for themselves and always doing exactly what the council tells them
Angelus is the one who killed the master because he didn't want the Hellmouth opened. Angelus likes the world just the way it is.
Spike is Angelus' second in command.
The Initiative base is in Sunnydale
The Watchers Council making a deal with the Initiative to give them one of their slayers for study. The Council picks Buffy because they can't control her (she's just like the Buffy on the series), she doesn't see all Demons as evil.
The Initiative kidnapping Buffy, Giles going to the council for help and finding out what they did.
The Initiative running nasty tests on Buffy to see what her abilities are and later plans on trying to breed her with several of their soldiers.
Doyle (yes I had to put him in the challenge, I loved his character) is Buffy's adopted brother and yes he is still half demon and gets visions.
Giles going to the enemy for help to rescue her. Angelus and Giles coming to an agreement, and it must somehow involve Buffy.
Buffy, after being rescued, having to stay in Sunnydale under Angelus' protection because both the Initiative and the Watchers Council are after her.
Angelus supplying Buffy with a new wardrobe since she doesn't have any clothes. Angelus picks out clothes he wants to see Buffy in, lots of leather and silk.
And of course Angelus and Buffy getting involved in a relationship together.
Buffy's somewhere between 17 and 19. Still in her teen years.
Some Riley bashing.
I was also requested to credit the songs I have at the beginning of each chapter, which seems fair because I sort of forgot at the beginning so:
Dodgy - Good Enough
Crush – Jenifer Paige
Emily – Bowling for Soup
Too Much to Ask - Avril Lavigne
All Ready Over Me – Rolling Stones
Always Suffering – Rolling Stones
When You're Gone – Bryan Adams
Blurry – Puddle of Mudd
Save Yourself – Sensefield
The 59th Street Bridge – Simon and Garfunkel