Summary: It's 1968 and Angel has found a moment of perfect happiness. Just what it means for Buffy remains to be seen. Not happy with the title, so this may change. Will take place at the beginning of Buffy/Season 2, but will deviate from original story line. Almost totally AU. Buffy/Angelus
Disclaimers: Mutant Enemy and Joss Whedon own it all. I'm just doing this for fun, and hopefully entertainment
The gang, now including Angelus, was in the school library discussing their inability to find Spike and Drusilla as well as the stone artifact that had been stolen from the Sunnydale Museum of Natural History.
"I told you we should steal it ourselves, weeks ago, but no. That's not what 'white hats' do. No, the good guys wait until the bad guys steal it and then try to stop the world from ending. I swear, drama is so over-rated." Angel smirked at Giles, who was throwing darts from his eyes, wishing he had real ones.
"This is so not productive." Buffy knew there was a little power play going on between her watcher and her boyfriend. The fact that they had all, well maybe not all, had accepted her choice was a big step. But Angelus wasn't exactly endearing himself with his occasional open contempt towards Giles. "Come on, we made a mistake, okay? We knew the artifact thingy had something to do with Acathla and we didn't move fast enough. But we can find them, we did it before and we can do it again. I mean how hard can it be to find a peroxide Billy Idol wannabe and a crazy ass chick in renaissance clothing?"
"Mid 19th century, babe."
"Angel, so not in the mood for your need to be right compulsiveness."
He chuckled and pulled her onto his lap, receiving a critical look from Giles. "Yes, well, accusations are rather impotent at this time. So, Willow, have you been able to find anything out?"
"Actually I think I did have some success. Well maybe success is overstating it. I may have some leads, yeah I think leads is the word I'm searching for." Willow gave the group a nervous smile. She so hated speaking in front of groups.
"Please Willow, just get on with it." Xander was quickly losing patience with this whole thing. He was wicked jealous of Angel. And his little secret whatever with Cordelia was not making him a happy camper. And now Willow and Buffy were keeping all sorts of secrets from him. He was more than just odd man out. He was feeling plain old odd, more a boy than a man, especially around Angel and totally out of the loop. Cordelia was more in the know than he was and no one really liked her.
"Jeez Harris, relax a little. Willow always gets to the point, eventually." Cordelia looked at her watch. "But if you could get there like, oh I don't know, now? That would be just great."
Willow cleared her throat, a flush coming to her cheeks.
"At least Willow has something useful to offer. She hasn't been pretending to do research in the stacks while really just making out for the past half hour like the two of you. Just fuck and get it over with. Put us out of out misery." Angel looked directly at Xander and Cordelia. "So, can we let Willow finish?" He was getting really impatient with all this agreement by committee crap. If he and Buffy could just do it all it would get done and they would have more time together. Alone.
Buffy and Willow gave each other a 'we know what he's talking about look'. Angel had shared his suspicions with Buffy, who in turn called Willow immediately to let her know what was going on between their Xander and Cordelia of all people. So big was the yuck factor that Buffy had to leave and console Willow on the unworthiness of a boy who would choose Cordelia over such a prize as Will.
"Angel, please. Such language really isn't called for. These are mere children, please remember that." Angel rolled his eyes, obviously the watcher forget what high-school was like. Not that he did, but he'd eaten enough teenagers in his time to know they were jaded since the 60s.
Giles looked over at the young red-head. "Yes Willow, please continue." Giles gave her an understanding look and wondered what he had done in a past life to be stuck with so many teenagers and a supposedly reformed demon in this life.
"Well, I um, found five empty warehouse locations outside the city limits. Seems like the perfect place for someone to try to resurrect a demon. And all perfect places to take a big, stone artifact. Three of the buildings are really remote, so I think these would be the logical places to start."
"Well done Willow." Giles did like this one teenager very much. "I think we can move on from here, at least we have a very definite place to start." He looked to his slayer, who was hanging on her very dead boyfriend. Would he ever get used to that? "What are your thoughts Buffy?"
She looked at him, not sure what to say. Guess he wants me to do the leader-slayer thing she thought. I can do that. She smiled up at him. "Okay, so Angel, you and Xander can check out a couple of places. Willow, you and I will take two of the addresses. And Giles, you and Cordy can take the last one." She hopped off of Angelus' lap. "Sound like a plan?"
"Yes, but not a great one. Why do I have to go with dead boy?" Xander didn't like or trust the vampire Buffy had taken to with open arms and open mouth and open…he so didn't need to go there.
"Because we only have three cars." She looked at Giles. "Three reliable cars. Cordelia, you'll have to drive Giles. And Angel can protect you Xander. I can protect Will and Giles can take care of Cordelia."
"Um…" Cordelia raised her hand. "I think I'd rather hang with you or Angel. Super powers and all."
"Giles trains me Cordelia. He's fully capable of protecting you." And Buffy was not in the mood to think about leaving Cordelia alone with Angel.
Xander spoke up. "I can go with G-man, no problemo."
"You're with me boy. Don't question the slayer." He walked over to Buffy and pulled her to him in a very deep kiss. "Protect yourself first." He whispered into her ear. Angelus turned towards Xander. "Let's go boy. We'll meet back here in two hours."
Willow handed out the addresses and directions, "I got maps and directions for all of them." She then followed Buffy out to her car.
"Well partner, where to first?" Buffy started the car.
"Head east on the freeway and exit left on Walnut. Thanks for not making me go with Cordelia, she just tolerates me. And Giles just humors me."
"So not true Will. Giles just gets nervous around that 'dread machine'. And Cordelia's just jealous 'cause you're a genius. You so underestimate yourself. Angel totally senses how powerful you are. He thinks you'll be a great Wicca someday."
"Really? He can sense that?" She had just the tiniest bit of a crush on him, but mostly he just made her feel small and insignificant. And really, really young.
"He has those vampire senses and all. Angel thinks that in a couple of years you'll be a force to be reckoned with. And I'm quoting him, you know I'd never that use a phrase like," in a deeper voice, "to be reckoned with."
Willow giggled. "Cool. I would love to be a powerful witch who uses her powers for good. A white witch. I can totally see it." She smiled to herself and made a mental note to study her spell books and do something nice for Angel. Brownies, maybe.
Xander sat as close to the passenger door as he could. As much as he disliked Angel, he was more afraid of him. He was a vampire after all. A blood-sucking, soulless demon. And he didn't believe that he only drank bagged blood. Buffy swore he promised her he wouldn't kill anything human, but he could still suck on someone without draining them dry, Giles had told him.
"Xander, would you relax? I'm not going to do anything to you…" he graced Xander with a very wicked grin, "I promised Buffy."
He shivered. "Maybe I don't believe you. You'd tell Buffy anything to get into her pants. Don't look at me like that, I've seen the way she looks at you and the way you leer at her." He couldn't believe he had just said that. Harris, you idiot, look up the word self-preservation. I'll bet it doesn't include, piss off large vampire.
Angelus had to laugh at the boys' audacity. "You've got sand boy, but that really doesn't matter to me. Buffy's all that matters. She's all that will ever matter to me." He said it with a shake of his head.
"Are you obsessed or something?" Xander was confused, Angel sounded like he was in love with Buffy.
"I'm obsessed and something. And it pisses the hell out of me. But the dye's been cast and this is where I am." There was a tinge of resignation in his voice and it surprised Xander.
"Are you in love with her? I mean you're an evil, soulless demon. How can you love her?"
"You're beginning to sound like a fucking parrot! Evil, soulless, demon – how many times can you say that in a minute?"
"You didn't answer my question."
Angelus turned into a deserted parking lot. "Is this the place on the map?"
"I so do not see why I got stuck with you, no offense." Cordelia turned to face Giles.
Giles cursed under his breath. "None taken. Why should I take offense at something so personal?"
"Yeah, right. I mean, people get bent about the weirdest things. And they can be so self-centered, you know? The world does not revolve around everyone else, am I right?" Cordelia maneuvered her car onto a dirt road that led to a large brick building. "Is this it then?"
Giles looked at the address again. "It would appear so."
She stopped the car. "Okay, now what?"
"Now we go and see if there are any occupants." Giles rolled his eyes at the vapidness of this girl. And who, despite that very flaw in her nature, had helped them on any number of occasions. She was a puzzle to him. As were the whole group who had dubbed themselves the scoobies.
"Oh no, no way am I walking through all that dirt in these shoes. I'm sure they cost more than you earn in a week."
"I'm sure they do. No worries, you stay here and wait for me while I check the place out." Shaking his head for the umpteenth time that evening, Giles went to look for vampires.