A/N: Y'all seem to like this one, so I'm trying to keep this one updated as frequently as possible. Some of you have expressed slight concerns about the story, but I hope to allay those fears as soon as possible. Props to my betas, Ultrawoman and Ezekeiel Rage

Disclaimer: It's late and the closest thing I've done to writing since I posted the last chapter of this is some beta work for a couple of people. Bear with me, or I'll send my betas around to your place to choke your wivvers with their dead. Well, not really considering that, statistically speaking, the majority of my readers would be the wivvers, and I'm even less likely to get reviews if I choke my readers with my dead betas. Oh, and my betas may not want to be dead, but since when is what they want my priority?

XXX

Second first meetings

XXX

"How the hell does this thing work?"

"Don't shake it like that."

"I wouldn't have to if you just told me how to work this thing."

"I told you already, Derekthel! You just don't listen!"

"Hey, hey! Calm dow- OW! Okay, now that wasn't called for."

"You deserved it, you big jinghead!"

"What the Mekh for? All I want is to make my goodbyes on tekcode."

"You shouldn't be making goodbyes! Why the Mekh do you have to be one of the ones who stays behind?"

"Somebody has to do the dying so everyone else can survive."

"So why can't it be someone else? You've been fighting ever since you came of age. Three damn years!"

"Which is why I should be one of the ones to stay behind."

"It's why you shouldn't be! Do you know how scared mom was every time you went out? We never knew when you weren't going to come home, and now you want to guarantee that you don't?"

"Lis, it's not like that."

"Then what is it like? Because it sure seems like that."

"I know you, Mal and mom used to be worried that I wouldn't come home, but I always did. At least you got that. Almost no-one else did. We were lucky. It's just not in me to ask someone else to lose even more when I can prevent it."

"Kopel!"

"You kiss mom with that mouth?"

"You press the button with the giant power symbol on it to turn the tekcoder on."

"Lis, don't cry. Wait. Wait!"

"Kol off, kopel!"

"I'm sorry, Lis. I hope you realise that I don't want to leave you guys, one day. I also hope mom never catches you using language like that. Now, big button with a power symbol on it? Oh, she must mean thi-"

XXX

"Ooh, Angel, what's this?" Angie asked, rocking on the balls of her feet as she held up yet another box from the shelf.

Angel was seriously regretting not trying to trade the young slayer for the older, more sedate jelt as she was managing to tear the fun right out of being newly human. Five minutes after he'd explained what a shop was and what it was for, she'd begun talking and hadn't stopped for the last half-hour. It was always the exact same question, too. Angel, what's this? Angel, what's this? She didn't listen to the answers he gave her the first couple times, just cutting him off with another Angel, what's this?

"Angel? Angel? Angel! Tell me what this is! Pleeeeeeeease?" Angie asked as she skipped up the aisle to pester Angel at close range.

She rattled the latest next to his ear as he ground his teeth in frustration and tried to ignore her as he moved up the aisle, putting anything that looked like it would be useful to anyone in the group; bread, milk, toilet paper, toothbrushes and paste, shampoo, hair gel - and no matter what Spike would say, the gel was for the younger people because they would need to fit in - some other basic groceries. Hopefully the others would find some clothes for Spike.

Angel had discovered something very important shortly after leaving the mansion. Angie had mentioned holes in her jeans - or as she put it, "my strange, ugly, blue pants are broken! Look! Their integrity has been breached." - and Angel had attempted to explain pockets to the excitable young slayer. Her disbelief was readily apparent, so Angel had put hands into his own pockets to demonstrate, only to be surprised by the presence of a wallet.

Angie, however, interpreted Angel's surprised, "Oh!" as a sign of being under attack and proceeded to tackle him to the ground, trying to protect him from the breach in his pants' integrity.

After regaining consciousness - as a vampire, a hyperactive slayer's tackle never had anywhere near that much effect - Angel managed to not yell at the contrite Angie, and shared his discovery with her. She didn't see how the green paper was that great an idea, but she did find Angel's license incredibly amusing.

Next had come the store, and shortly after that began the endless barrage of Angel, what's this?

"Angel, what's this?"

Angel clenched his fists and every muscle in his body tightened. Taking a deep breath and counting to ten, he unclenched his jaw and looked at the box the young girl was maniacally waving in his face. He stared at it for a second without comprehension before snatching the box out of her hand.

"Hey!" Angie complained loudly while Angel hushed her and frantically looked about for a place to surreptitiously throw the box of condoms. "At least tell me what that was."

"It was a box of condoms," Angel hissed, feeling the unfamiliar heat of a blush creep across his face.

"Ohhh." Angel began counting mentally. One. Two. Three. "What's a condom?"

"Why don't you go pick some ice-cream out of the freezer over there?" he suggested weakly, sagging in relief as she skipped over to the freezer and began to look in with child-like wonder.

"Little sisters can be monsters, can't they?" a clear, feminine voice asked.

Angel nearly had a heart seizure. It had been a long time, over three hundred years, but the voice was still familiar. He turned around and felt a jolt of complex emotions, even after three centuries. She was a lot younger than he remembered, her whole demeanour more vibrant. Her tanned skinned practically glowed and her hazel eyes shone with amusement through her blonde fringe, which hung artfully over her face.

"Hi, my name's Buffy Summers," she said, removing all doubt as she extended her hand, which Angel shook weakly.

"Angel."

"So, are you guys new here? I mean, I haven't seen you around," Buffy asked.

"Uhh, yeah. We just moved into the mansion on Crawford Street with our cousins," Angel supplied the story they'd prepared.

"Cool," Buffy replied, smiling.

The smile disappeared off the blonde's face when a second familiar figure came barging up the aisle. Angel felt another burst of emotion, this one predominantly grief, when he recognised the gangly figure of an eleven year-old Dawn Summers staring at her sister with death-glare-level-5.

"C'mon, freak-monster! Mom says it's time to go, and I get the ice cream."

Dawn flounced off in the direction of the exit just as Angie came up with a tub of ice cream in hand. "Can we get this one Angel?"

Angel blinked before realising that the pair were looking for an introduction. "Angie, this is Buffy Summers. Buffy, Angie… my sister."

"Nice to meet you, Angie," Buffy said warmly.

"Sqwp!" Angie peeped, her eyes wide, her entire body taut.

After a distinct pause Buffy retracted her hand. "Right…"

"Mawp!" Angie shrilled, dropping the tub of ice cream to the floor.

"Buffy!" Dawn yelled from across the store. "If you don't hurry up, I'll tell Mom that you broke curfew on Wednesday!"

Buffy rolled her eyes and smiled ironically. "I've got to go," she said, casting a slightly disturbed look at Angie who let out a strangled 'Fwuh!', before looking coyly at Angel.

"See you 'round?"

"Bye," Angel said.

Angie pwok'd.

XXX

Spike slouched even further in his chair and closed his eyes, trying to block out the three sitting across from him. Well, more the girls, because Derek was usually pretty quiet. Regular bloody Angel wannabe that one. Probably be overfond of hair gel, too.

He scratched himself through the thin black cotton of his t-shirt - put on because, after the chat about peroxide, all three of them stared at him to the exclusion of all else and it was bloody disconcerting - and tried to block out the stream of questions the girls were sending his way.

"Do you know where, or even when we are?"

"Does this reality have food? Because I'm getting hungry…"

"Do you feel any different now you have The Peroxill in your hair?"

"Are all clothes in this dimension this uncomfortable?"

"Does wearing black have some significance when your hair is white?"

"What the hell is this thing around my boobs?" (Spike cocked open an eye at that, only to close it again after seeing her toying with a bra-strap. Human or vamp, Spike was still a heterosexual man.)

"What is the cultural significance of the transparent holes in the walls?"

"I'm cold. Are you cold?"

"Now that you are human do you feel a significant loss in strength, speed or overall attractiveness?"

"Why am I so itchy?"

"Can you take your shirt off?"

Spike's eyes snapped open and he glared at Derek, who posed the last question. The man in question shrugged indolently.

"What? We're going to be stuck here for a while, so why shouldn't we have something to entertain us while we wait?"

Spike opened his mouth to say something, then paused. After a moment, he stood and took his shirt off. After all, the man did have a point. Sprawling in his chair once more, Spike closed his eyes but this time without the cacophony screeching in his ears the whole time. Sure, he was human now, but he wasn't deaf.

The time passed slowly while they waited for Angel and Angie to return, especially since Spike had discovered he did have clothes, but in his five hundred years Spike had learned a little responsibility. If he left now, he'd not only be abandoning one or more of the kids alone here to wait for Angel, but he'd be forcing Angel to have to hunt him down and without vampire senses that would probably take too long.

Besides, self-preservation instinct said that if it was dangerous out there, they'd know when Angel and Angie simply didn't show up. Spike decided he was okay with that.

"Hey guys!" Angie's loud, shrill voice cut into the silence unexpectedly, causing Spike to leap to his feet, cursing human hearing. "We're back! And you'll never guess what-"

Angie ceased talking when she saw Spike, standing there half-naked - as opposed to fully naked as when they'd left him - and when she saw his bleached hair she let out a battle shriek and tackled him to the ground.

Spike groaned as he slowly regained consciousness, dimly noting that Angel or Derek, or maybe both, was explaining the concept of hair dye to Angie. Spike blearily opened his eyes just in time to see Angie realise that she was laying across a half-naked man, and not just any man but one of her idols, Spike. She flung herself off him so fast it was both amusing and bruising to the ego.

Spike pulled on his shirt, wincing as he saw the beginnings of a slayer shaped bruise on his stomach, and smirked at the red-faced Angie as he fell back into his chair.

"I found-"

"Wallets, ID, credit cards, maybe even some cash. We know, Peaches. We found them too," Spike informed him, trying not to let anyone see how much pain he was in. This human kick had bloody well better get much better sharpish.

"You did?" Angel asked dismayed.

"We went in to a store!" Angie began excitedly, reminding Spike why he'd been so glad to shunt her off to Angel.

"What's a store?" Anna asked interestedly.

"Oh, it's great!" Angie enthused. "It's full of stuff. Food and hair gel and teeth stuff and ice cream and condoms." The young slayer frowned at Spike, who burst out laughing. Angel reddened slightly and the other three looked on curiously, not getting the joke.

"And we walked all the way there and all the way here in the open and we didn't even get attacked once!" Angie gushed, to the amazement of the others. "You could even see the sky!"

"What's it like?" Mary asked curiously.

"It's pretty. You could see lots and lots and lots of stars, and one of them looked close enough to touch. Angel called it moon. And you'll never guess who I met there!" Angie continued, ignoring Spike's laughter as best she could.

"On moon?" Derek enquired, trying to follow the young girl's train of thought.

"No, in the store, silly," Angie giggled.

"Who?" asked Anna, despite herself.

"The most holy Buffy Summers!" Angie said reverentially.

Spike's laughter stopped immediately and he felt an intense ache in his chest before he remembered that breathing was no longer a luxury. Ever since recognising the Crawford Mansion, this had been one hope that he hadn't dared foster and the possibility alone was… beyond words. He turned painfully hopeful eyes to Angel, who nodded solemnly.

The bleached blond rose to his feet unsteadily and staggered towards his room.

XXX

Buffy quietly pulled on her jacket and grabbed her stakes, being careful not to make too much noise. Her Mom or Dad might hear her, or worse, Dawn would. Buffy suspected that she was far too evil to be a human child, and had delicately posed questions to her parents but they both seemed reasonably sure that the demon-child was theirs. Maybe there was a mix-up at the hospital or something.

Opening the window, wincing when it got jammed before opening fully with a loud bang, Buffy prepared to sneak out of her house once again to go patrolling. She nearly had heart failure when there was a knock on her bedroom door.

"Yeah?" she called out eventually.

"Phone for you, sweetheart," Hank called back. "It's your friend Willow."

Buffy opened the door and held out an arm imperiously for the phone. Hank looked at his now-fully dressed daughter and cocked an eyebrow.

"Oh!" Buffy exclaimed when she realised what her Dad was looking at. "Just trying on some outfits. You know us girls," she said with a fake laugh.

"Mm hmm," Hank murmured, glancing at the wide open window.

"It's stuffy in here. Isn't it stuffy?"

Hank handed Buffy the cordless phone and leaned in. "Don't let your mother catch you."

As her Dad walked away, Buffy lifted the phone to her ear. "Hello?"

"Hey, Buff, it's me. Did I catch you at a bad time?" Willow asked.

"Oh, hi Will," the Slayer responded. "No, I was just about to go patrolling."

"I didn't get you in any trouble, did I?" the redhead worried.

"Nah. I think my Dad figured it out but he just thinks I'm sneaking out to meet with boys."

"Are there boys?"

"Sadly, no," Buffy sighed. "Although I did meet this really cute guy at the store earlier."

"Sparkage?"

"Major sparkage. He was with his sister, but she was… a little weird."

"Person-weird or Hellmouthy-weird?"

"I dunno. She just kept making funny sounds. It was kinda wiggy."

"But the brother was cute?" Willow returned to the important issue.

"Waaay cute."

"Have you done the French homework?"

"Ugh, no."

"We have a spare tomorrow morning, so I can help you and Xander then, if you like."

"Xander hasn't done it either?"

"Buffy, it's Xander."

The two girls shared a giggle.

"Good point. Look, I better go patrol. You just know the lecture Giles would give me if skipped it for a night."

"'k Buff, I'll catch you tomorrow at school."

"Later Will."

Buffy hung up the phone, grabbed another stake and slipped out the window, into the night.

XXX

A/N: I'm proud. This is finally heading in the direction I need it to. On the plus side - or maybe the minus - I'm actually going to begin a more meaningful plot at some point. Rewatching old Angel episodes has given me an idea that's so very intriguing. As I am planning to personally respond to each review with an e-mail address attached, (after all, you go to the trouble to talk to me, the least I could do - aside from nothing - is to respond in kind) I might even tell you what the upcoming surprise is, if you ask nicely.

I will be updating Demolished as soon as I feel I've done the chapter right. I also have a collaborative work - where someone else is the main creative drive, thank you very much - that infringes on my time. Bear with me, and review. Your comments do affect the speed and quality of my writing.