Disclaimer: I don't own 'em.

A/N: SO sorry for the lack of updates. I just had a severe case of writer's block. Terrible, really. sigh Anyway, here's a new chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Especially those who reviewed the last chapter.

Chapter Four: A Collision

Harry took a deep breath as he stood in front of Mr. Anderson's office. Draco was supposedly inside there with Mr. Anderson, waiting for him to arrive. He didn't know why he was so anxious about all this. Draco had, after all, turned over a new leaf. And as he had heard from his boss, Draco was pretty much excellent in what he did. Demon Hunting.

It is easier to forgive an enemy, than it is a friend.

The statement rang through his head repeatedly and he allowed himself a small smile as he recalled his days at Hogwarts. Days in which he and his friends, mainly Hermione and Ron would bicker constantly with Malfoy. The hatred that he had felt for his ex-arch nemesis was still there, deep within him. He would never forget the insults that he had thrown at him and his friends. But that was the past, and this was the present. And Harry did not live in the past.

Alright, so he would probably never forgive Malfoy for everything that he had done, but the least Harry could do was be decent. That was the mature thing to do, anyway.

Taking another deep breath, he turned the rusted gold doorknob and walked in. The first thing that Harry saw was the back of a white blonde head. It turned almost immediately at his entrance. Harry's boss looked up from the paperwork he was doing and smiled. "I see you've arrived. Sit down and we'll discuss your assignment."

Harry sat on the only available seating left, which was a leather armchair, right beside Malfoy. A pair of steel gray eyes met his, and he was almost astonished to find the lack of animosity that used to glare back at him. Instead, there was a certain kind of neutrality. It was like looking into the eyes of a stranger. It was as if the two had never met.

"Excuse me for a moment," Mr. Anderson cleared his throat and gathered a few papers. "I need to get these to Theodore. I'll be back in a jiffy." He scurried out of the office with an armload of documents. That was when the silence between the two was broken.

"Potter." Draco acknowledged, arching an eyebrow. "I'll get straight to the point. Since we shall be working together for the next few weeks, why don't we call a truce?"

Harry's eyebrows shot up. Can you say, miracle? "That would have been about the first fabulous idea you had ever had, Malfoy." He remarked.

Draco smiled crookedly. "Remember Potter, I had offered before. Yet you declined it. Seems like your mind has changed, now has it?"

Be decent, Harry. He reminded himself. Not. "You're right. It changed the second I saw that you had gained a soul."

The emotion that passed over the other man's features was unreadable. And his smile vanished. "I have a soul, Potter. It may not be as flawless as yours, but yet, there it is. Voila." There was a drawl to his voice, and Harry stiffened involuntarily. He was getting a glimpse of what Malfoy used to be…only, there was authenticity. Which was yet another miracle.

Harry nodded, held out his hand and shook Draco's. "Truce."

"Truce." Draco echoed.

The door slammed shut and Anderson hustled back in.

"Now, here are your airplane tickets. You're flight is three o'clock this afternoon. Yes, you will be going there the Muggle way. Unfortunately, you cannot Apparate or Disapparate where a Hellmouth is located, nor can you use a Portkey. But yes, you can use magic. Owl me if you need anything, especially if something goes sideways…well, I think that's about it. Now go get some rest. You have a big day ahead of you."

…

"This is great, Giles. How'd you manage to snag first-class seats?" Willow asked as she sipped her iced tea. Her mentor smiled from beside her. There was a hint of pride in his smile, which made Willow blush.

"Well, I figured that you could use some comfort and relaxation." Giles shrugged. Then smiled again. "You did well, Willow. For someone who almost ended the world, you have done really well on your 'magic rehab' as Buffy calls it."

Willow grinned. "Well, I couldn't have done it without you."

But Giles had lost her attention, he was staring at something several feet in front of him. Curious, Willow peered around the corner, and saw a pair of guys, around her age, making their way down the passageway. "Who are they, Giles?"

Giles blinked rapidly. She seemed to have interrupted his thinking about – whatever he was thinking. "Er, no one. I just thought he looked rather familiar."

Willow shrugged and concentrated back on her iced tea, although her eyes strayed a moment longer on the attractive young man with tousled black hair.

…

Buffy scanned the crowd of people that bustled around the airport, looking for any sign of her best friend and Watcher. She was excited to see them again. It had been a long time…and she wanted to see if Willow was alright. She hated seeing her best friend in pain. And Buffy wanted nothing but happiness for Willow.

Which was something that may be difficult to acquire.

She was the Slayer, therefore, evil never strayed too far away. And evil always had a tendency to wreck her and her friends' life. That's why a Slayer works alone. The words echoed in her head. And although she knew that it was her friends' choice to support her – to help her fight the good fight…she knew deep, deep down that it was her friends' close ties to the Slayer – to her – that they were undergoing so much pain and suffering in their lives.

All my fault.

"Look! There they are!" Xander's voice interrupted her thoughts as he pointed across the room were two all too-familiar faces were making their way towards them – smiles on their faces.

Buffy couldn't help but smile as well. It had been such a long, long time since she had seen Willow look so alive again.

Dawn was the first to run over to their friends, with Buffy and Xander at her heels. Being so preoccupied with the thought and excitement that two of the people she held so close to her heart were back home again, she didn't see were she was going and crashed right into another person.

"Bloody fucking hell."

"Oh shit! I'm so sorry!" Buffy apologized, shooting up from the floor and reached out a helping hand to the man lying in an ungraceful heap on the floor. He was about her age, with Spike-like blonde hair (only she could tell that his was real), and intense gray eyes. Damn, he's hot. The thought entered her head before she even knew it. But before she could even contemplate on that, the man took her offered hand and she automatically pulled him up to a standing position.

Brushing off the invisible dirt from his black button-down shirt, he smirked at her. "Well, since fate decided to bump us together. How about a name to go with that beautiful face?"

British. Buffy noticed before mentally rolling her eyes. Smooth ain't he? She thought with a grin. "I don't think 'bump' was the right word for that. More like, 'collision'." He laughed. "And my name is Buffy."

"Buffy?" He cocked an eyebrow. "What kind of name is that?"

She glared at him. "Well, let's see what you've got."

"Draco Malfoy," he said with a flourish.

She burst out laughing. "Draco Malfoy? And you think my name is bad."

He grinned, and was about to say something when they were interrupted by Dawn's shout. "Buffy! Get your butt over here now!"

Buffy glanced at her sister and smiled. "So Draco, I'll see you around?"

"Count on it," Draco said, disappearing into the crowd of people but not before flashing her one last charming grin.

…

"Hi Buffy," Willow said shyly as the blonde approached her slowly. Willow didn't know what Buffy truly thought of her recent addiction to magic – black magic to be specific. But the witch had a feeling in her gut that she had lost a small part of Buffy's trust. She had after all, hurt her. Not to mention Dawn as well.

"So you're alright now?" Buffy asked softly. Willow was surprised to see the gentleness in her friend's eyes.

"I'm alright now." Willow confirmed. Buffy's face split into a smile and she threw her arms around Willow in a tight hug. They embraced each other for a few more seconds before breaking away from each other. Willow could feel her eyes welling up with tears. She didn't deserve this. Buffy should hate her for all the things she did.

As if reading her mind, Buffy said quietly. "It's all over now Will. Let's just – put in the past."

Willow nodded and hugged her again.

They broke apart when someone cleared his throat behind them. Buffy grinned at the man standing beside Xander, who wore a similar expression on his face. Buffy gave him a good once-over. "Still in tweed, Giles?" she laughed and hugged him – hard. "God, I missed you Giles."

"I missed you too Buffy – but please, air. I need air."

"Oops! Sorry!" Buffy laughed and released him. She glanced around at her friends. "So what do you say we go back to the Magic shop and do some catching up? I'm sure Anya would love to see you guys."

Giles and Willow exchanged a look. "Right. Anya."

…

A/N: Please review! They make me want to write more. :-)