Summary: It's 1968 and Angel has found a moment of perfect happiness. Just what it means for Buffy 30 years later 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. And Darla's still alive.
Disclaimers: Mutant Enemy and Joss Whedon own it all. I'm just doing this for fun, and hopefully entertainment
Turning towards Angel, Buffy looked at his profile. Something didn't seem quite right. No sarcastic remarks, no double entendre, nothing. Jeez, they'd had almost 24 hours of mind blowing sex, at least she thought it was mind blowing, and now…not a single word or touch.
"Okay. So like what's the deal here? Did I forget some piece of post-sex etiquette that has totally pist you off? 'Cause if I didn't and you are acting like this for no good reason, I gonna get really pist. And you know what a pist slayer is like." She finally took a breath.
Angelus pulled up just short of the Bronze and turned to Buffy. "I did something incredibly stupid. Okay? And I just don't know how to tell you."
Her face crumpled. Oh my god she thought, our whole time together was a mistake for him. He didn't feel what I felt. No shit Sherlock, he's a vampire. You fell in love with a vampire and this is what you get.
Angel saw her face and realized what she thought he meant. Oh, Christ! Two stupid things, make that two stupid things. "No Buffy, not us. That was great, perfect. More than perfect. No babe, never us." He gathered her to him. How much worse could he make this?
"Okay, so here's what I did. I had the chance to dust Darla and I didn't." He pulled away and looked at her, he could feel the twinge of fear in his chestand he could swear she would read it in his eyes. He was acting like a total, besotted fool, fearing that he had done something irreparable to his relationship and he was scared. He did not feel like himself at the moment, and once again there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it. Was it true what his sensei had told him? Did the heart, soul and mind merge? Was the souled Angel in there somewhere, leading him who-knows-where? Was he experiencing all this as well? Was he leading the game? I am going crazy, he thought.
She sniffled and rubbed her cheek to his. "I can handle that. I'll just have to kill her myself." Her brow furrowed with a question. "So, why didn't you kill her? Are you still in love with her?"
"I didn't kill her because I'm an idiot. As far as loving her? I never loved her." He ran his tongue over the beating pulse in Buffy's neck. I didn't kill her because I felt compassion for her, my sire. I felt an emotion I haven't felt in thirty years. I'm lost. Just get it together, he heard a voice in his head shout. Could vampires develop schizophrenia after two centuries?
"But you were with her for 150 years. Surely love was a part of it." Why did she insist on asking questions she really didn't want to know the answers to?
He took a very deep, unneeded breathe. "A sire and childe relationship is very rarely about love. It's about control, domination, sex, revenge. But very rarely about love."
"Okay, so I repeat, why didn't you dust her?"
"I wanted to give her a chance to leave town. As soon as I did, I knew it was a mistake. It won't happen again." He moved the car closer to the entrance to the Bronze. "We'd better get in, we only have the place for an hour and a half."
"What's going on up there?" Buffy could see about six vamps loading up a truck with boxes. "Why would vampires need boxes? Moving you suppose?"
"Buff, their waiting for you inside. This is Sunnydale, there will always be more demons doing something slayer worthy." They were just a bunch of minions, no great shakes. He really wanted to get this evening over with.
"Sacred duty, yada, yada, yada. You can go in, this shouldn't take long." She gave him a wicked smile. "After all, it's what I live for."
Buffy jumped out of the car and approached the group of what appeared to be fledglings. "So what are you fellas up to? Charity work?" They looked at each other, not sure what to do. "Ah, brain surgeons. Must be medical, considering all the," she rummaged through a refrigerated box, "O negative bags of blood we have here."
She stood waiting for them to make a move. "Oh, for gods sake." She used her fist to break a wooden crate and dusted the closest vamp, which finally got the others moving.
"About time, you slugs." By now Angel had joined her standing back and just admiring her handy work. Not quite fair for the fledglings, but good practice never-the-less. One of the larger vamps grabbed Buffy from behind while the smaller one attempted to grab her by the throat. Angelus just chuckled at the move; his sorry ass was going to be dust so soon. Buffy lifted both her legs for leverage and flipped the one behind her onto the little guy while she picked up her stake. With a one-two strike, both were dust in a matter of a second. The remaining three charged at Buffy, but Angel put his fist out and stopped one in his tracks, quickly cracking his neck and turning him into ash.
"Need a hand Buff?" He smiled at her.
She smiled back. "Got it covered." She gave the first vamp a kick in the chest that sent him flying into a pile of sharp wood shards. Bad luck for him. The second slammed into Buffy sending both of then through the window of the Bronze. The two of them rolling to a stop in front of the band equipment. Buffy jumped to her feet and kicked the vampire back as he lunged for her. Turning she grabbed the nearest sharp object, a drumstick, and plunged into the vampires' chest, while Giles, Ms. Calendar, Willow, and Oz watched in amazement.
Without missing a beat, Cordelia jumped up from behind the pool table with Xander, raised her arms and yelled, "Surprise!"
Oz looked from Willow to Buffy, "Well that pretty much sums it up."
Buffy looked around at all her friends, family really, trying to look surprised which really wasn't so hard. "So, what's up?"
"Surprise party." Giles blew his noise maker.
"Oh, this is so great! Thank you all so much." She looked around, as her date walked in through the broken window. "Angel, you knew?"
"Not about the vampires hijacking blood, but about the party? Yeah?"
"You guys did this for me?" She looked up at Angel and then over to Willow, with a knowing smile. "It's so sweet."
"Are you okay Buffy?" Willow was very upset that Buffy had to fight evil on her birthday. "Angel, couldn't you have done this for her? It is her birthday, after all."
He shrugged. "She has to always be ready Willow. Evil doesn't recognize birthdays or bank holidays."
Oz shook his head. "Did everybody just see that guy turn into dust?"
Willow fidgeted, "Well, sort of ..."
Xander walked over to get some dip and chips. "Yup, vampires are real and a lot of them live in Sunnydale." He plied up his plate. "Willow will fill you in."
She shifted uncomfortably and looked at Buffy for help. "Well, hello Oz. Buffy Summers, remember me?"
"Yeah, sure. Of course."
"Yeah well, I know it may be hard to accept, but…" Buffy stammered.
"Actually, it explains a lot." He looked over at Angel and put his hand out. "I'm Oz, Willow invited me. I brought the soft drinks and ice."
Angel took his hand, "Angel, Buffy's boyfriend." He pointedly looked at Jenny Calendar, who looked away.
"Dude, better run those hands under some hot water."
Buffy stifled a giggle as Willow stepped forward. "Actually Oz, Angel is a vampire. But a good vampire. See it's totally weird. There are like bad demons and good demons. Just have to figure out who's who." She led him over to the drinks he had brought.
Angel looked at the departing figures. The boy doesn't even know what he is. He shook his head. Only in Sunnydale. Oh well, he had about a week before the full moon, time to share the good news. He turned back to Buffy.
"Ms. Calendar. I don't know if you've met my boyfriend, Angel. Angel, this is my computer teacher and Giles' friend, Jenny Calendar."
Jenny shifted, very uncomfortable. She felt her skin begin to flush being so close to the demon that her childhood nightmares consisted of.
"Yes, well. Nice to meet you Mr…?"
"Angel works just fine, Ms. Calendar, is it?" He lifted one brow as he asked.
"So," Jenny spoke to Buffy and Angel "You're boyfriend is a vampire? A good vampire? I've never heard of such a thing before." She looked between them and Giles nervously.
"Well, after all, you are just an internet pagen witch, right? No worries. He doesn't bite, unless you ask him to." Buffy smiled up at her lover.
Giles frowned. "Buffy, really."
"Oh, I'm sure Ms. Calendar knows more about my eating habits than most of you do." Angelus looked directly at her. "Don't you?"
Jenny stammered, "I…I…really don't know much…"
"Okay, enough!" Buffy was ready to end the game. "Who are you, really?"
"Buffy, you are being extremely rude. You know who Ms. Calendar is. Stop behaving this way." He turned to Jenny. "I'm so sorry about this…"
"Stop Giles, do not apologize to her, not until she tells us who she really is."
By now the whole group, including Oz had gathered around to find out what the raised voices were about. Jenny looked around at all of them, hating the fact that she had even begun the lie.
"You seem to have an idea, why don't you and Angelus tell everyone what you know?" She was tired and felt totally defeated.
Angel spoke up first. "I know you are a Romany gypsy. I know your kind has been watching me for decades. I also found out why thirty years ago."
Giles was confused. "Jenny?"
She looked at Giles with unshed tears in her eyes and then at Angel, as if hearing him for the first time. "What? I was told to keep an eye on you. Especially now, with your relationship with the slayer." She looked at the group. "Angel, he was supposed to pay for what he did to our people. If he finds true happiness, one moment of it, he loses his soul and Angelus returns. I was supposed to try to keep the two of them apart, to stop it from happening."
Xander couldn't resist. "You should be so fired. Although I don't think any force on earth could've kept the two of them apart."
Buffy looked at Angel and then back at Jenny with a bit of confusion. "Hello, some news for you Ms. Calendar. He lost his soul thirty years ago. Where have you been?"
Now it was Jenny's turn to look confused. "What? The Kalderash elder woman, she said the pain was lessening, not that it was gone. That's why I was sent here. I don't understand. If the curse was broken, why haven't you been heard from these past thirty years? Why no bloodbaths, no apocalypses, no…nothing? You've just lived this quiet, non-descript life in San Francisco. What happened? And why can't the elder sense your missing soul? This isn't right."
Angel shrugged and put his arm around Buffy, sensing her need to punch something. "Don't know. Maybe you guys aren't cracked up to be as magical as you think you are. Maybe your shelf life expired. It can happen, yes?" He gave her his signature half-smile.
"Okay Ms. Calendar. What are you going to do? Are you reporting back to your gang…group…tribe…oh! whatever you guys call yourself. Are you going to try to resoul Angel?"
"As far as my people are concerned, he still has a soul. I don't understand how this is possible. As for the curse, the magicks, they are long lost to my people. Their only purpose is to keep it intact, to maintain vengeance over Angelus." She shook her head and tried to hide her blush, it all sounded so petty, so over-done.
"I do not believe this. You worm your way into our confidence under false pretenses. Pretend to have feelings for…us. And the whole time you were a spy, a plant? Did you think we would never find out? And what if Angel had lost his soul? What were you planning on then? Just go back to Romania and leave us to clean up a mess you never had any intention of sharing with us?" The vein on the side of his head, the one Buffy was afraid she was going to pop, was expanded in bold relief.
"Giles, calm down. We know the truth now. It's all out in the open. Maybe…maybe Ms. Calendar can help us with Acathla. Just don't get so upset Giles. Please." I so should've done this in private, she thought.
"I should go now. I am so sorry. I didn't want to lie to you. Really. I thought there would never be any need to reveal any of this. I'm so sorry." Jenny turned to leave then turned back to look at Giles. "Rupert, please. If you think you can ever forgive me…I'm sorry." She looked at Buffy. "So sorry."
"Wow, this party turned into a real bummer, huh?" Cordelia was even a little touched by the events. Poor Giles. Oh well. "So, guess we should have cake?"