Never the Same
Chapter 2 – Tall, dark and bumpy.
DISCLAIMER: Buffy the Vampire Slayer belongs to Joss Whedon, and Harry Potter to J.K. Rowling. I don't own anything…
RATING: PG-13 (T) to R (M) - violence, language, angst, horror, possible mild sexual interactions, etc. If you can watch BTVS/AtS and read HP, I doubt you'll have any problem with this story.
TIMELINE: Sequel to "Out of the Blue" and "Red Horizon" (Part 3 in the series), and begin where we left in "Red Horizon" chapter 39, and a bit before BTVS season 7, though it's almost completely AU, with many changes from the real plot.
SUMMARY: BTVS/HP crossover. Sequel to RH. "You can run but you can't hide, evil finds you everywhere. Peace and quiet can no one provide, who said life was ever fair?" Starting over is something that definitely falls into the 'easier said than done'-category. Buffy and Remus are doing their best to move on, and get used to the changes and the new turn their life has taken, but it's not easy...especially not when living on a Hellmouth.
CENTRAL PAIRING: Buffy/Remus
OTHER PAIRINGS: Willow/Tara, Xander/Anya
Special Thanks to: My Beta - CharmedChick
Remus frowned as he woke up in unfamiliar surroundings, and he took a quick look around, before his eyes landed on the sleeping form of Buffy beside him. And everything came crashing back to him. How Dumbledore had sent him to Buffy's dimension, and how they'd been reunited...Buffy's tears as she heard about what had happened to her friends...the awkward dinner... He pulled Buffy closer to him and buried his nose in the crook of her neck, taking in her sweet scent of vanilla. They were together again, and even though he wished the circumstances would have been a lot happier, he was grateful.
Buffy groaned slightly and rolled around, blinking slightly as she woke up. At first she looked confused, but then she grinned sleepily as she realized that it really was Remus lying beside her, and not just a dream.
"I missed this," she confessed quietly. "Waking up next to you."
Remus smiled, and placed a soft kiss on her lips. "Me too. You have no idea how much."
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.
"Buffy?" Her mother called, Joyce sounded worried. "Are you awake?"
"Yeah!" Buffy answered. "What is it?"
"I can't seem to find your friend anywhere. Where did you put him last night?"
Remus raised his eyebrows at Buffy, who flushed.
"I guess mom thought you'd sleep on one of the couches," she whispered, before turning her attention back to her mom, who was still standing behind the closed door.
"Uhh...he's in here with me. No need to worry."
Silence.
"Oh," they finally heard Joyce said. "Right. I'll just go...make some breakfast then..."
They could hear her moving away from the door and going down the stairs.
Buffy groaned in embarrassment. "She's going to want to interrogate me now," she whined, giving Remus a miserable look.
Her boyfriend just laughed, and place a quick kiss on her nose.
"I'm sure it won't be too bad," he tried to assure her. "She doesn't know anything about what your life's been like. Just explain that we shared a house back in England, and she'll realize we're serious and she'll lay off on you. Buffy? Buffy?"
Buffy had gone quiet, and she gulped. "I was just thinking about...about England. Your words made me...remember...and wonder." She looked up, tears in her eyes. "Do you think they were in pain? And what made Sirius do it?"
Remus closed his eyes. He really wasn't ready to talk about this - ever.
"Buffy...I-I don't know. But...I don't think so," he lied, hoping to comfort her and make her change the subject. Remus knew that while Lily's death had been a cause of a killing curse, and therefore quick and painless, James' hadn't been, even though it was a killing curse that finally ended it. And Peter...well...since he'd been blown to pieces- literally- he guessed it was quick- but far from painless. As for Sirius- well, he really didn't want to think about him at all.
"Come on," Remus said quietly, slipping out of the bed. "We shouldn't let your mum wait."
During the entire breakfast, Joyce gave Buffy and Remus strange and nervous looks, though neither of them noticed as they were both lost in their own painful thoughts.
Finally, Faith broke the silence. "So, B, what are you planning to do nowthat your boy's here?" She asked.
"Well...I really need to visit Angel," Buffy said slowly.
Remus stiffened. Angel. Buffy's ex, and the one she'd lost her virginity with. The one she had thought was the love of her life before she met Remus. The one she had had to send to hell, literally, before running away, unable to deal with the pain she had felt. Right. He saw no problems. There was no trouble at all...it wasn't like he needed to compete with the guy. Remus cast a quick glance at Buffy, who was taking a deep breath.
"I mean...I really have to see him. Sort some things out."
Remus jaw dropped, and Faith smirked, as she realized the werewolf wasn't too happy about Buffy meeting her ex.
"Go there? To him? In Los Angeles?" Remus asked. "But...I just arrived here!"
Buffy sighed. "I know. But I really have stalled my visit long enough as it is. I need to see him."
Faith winced. B really wasn't playing this the right way. You should never ever mention one of your exes while dating another, let alone suggest- and actually plan- a visit- to 'sort things out' - unless you tried to make the current boyfriend insanely jealous of course, or if she wanted to break up with said boyfriend. And Buffy seemed completely clueless to it all.
Remus eyes flashed amber. "You need to see him? Why not just give him a call, or something? And when did he come back to life anyway?"
Buffy's eyes widened. "I can't just give him a call! That is too impersonal!"
Faith winced again. Really. What was Buffy doing? Okay, she was blonde, so she had a little excuse for being stupid - no offense to other blondes intended -but then she noticed her hair at the scalp was a lot darker, and her eyes narrowed. So she wasn't a natural blonde...right. Then she really was an idiot.
Remus' stood up from his chair. "Fine. Go see him then. I don't care. After all, it's not as if I just traveled across the universe to get back to you or anything. I understand completely. He's your ex. I'm just your boyfriend. I'm happy to see you've got your priorities straight," he said bitterly. And with that, he stalked out of the kitchen and out of the house, slamming the door closed with a loud 'bam', not caring in the least that he was rude.
Buffy stared after him, completely befuddled. What just happened?
Faith snorted. "Great show, B. You totally blew it, you know."
Buffy turned to Faith with narrowed eyes. "And what's that supposed to mean? I need to see Angel; why can't he understand that?"
Faith rolled her eyes. "Really, B. He's your boyfriend- figure it out!"
At Buffy's clueless look, Faith let out a frustrated cry. "He's jealous!"
Buffy blinked. "Why in the world would he be jealous of Angel?"
Faith gave her an incredulous look. "Duh. Maybe because he's your ex you were insanely in love with before you met wolf-boy. Who has a point, by the way. The man just got back into your life, and now you want to go cross-country to see Angel. It's no wonder he took it the wrong way. You basically said you thought Angel more important, and would rather spend time with your ex than your current – very hot - boyfriend."
Buffy started to protest.
"I did not!"
Faith just raised her eyebrow at Buffy, who frowned as she mulled over what she'd said to Remus in her mind. She went pale. "I did, didn't I?"
"Uh-hu."
Buffy moaned and let her head fall onto the table. "Merlin, what do I do?"
"Well, first you should find him. Second, apologize. Third, kiss him senseless. Fourth, take him back to your room and enroll in some bed activities. He's a male- he'll be fine after that," Faith shrugged and then frowned. "And I can't believe I'm giving you love advice."
Joyce cleared her throat uncomfortably. "Talking about beds," she said, her face reddening. "Buffy, I'm not sure I'm alright with Remus sharing yours."
Faith snickered as Buffy groaned.
"Mom...honestly. It's not a big deal. I'm not a little girl anymore- I lived alone with Remus in a house in England. We're practically engaged."
Joyce paled. Almost engaged? Her little girl? Just yesterday she was walking around in diapers...
Buffy sighed, and drank up the last of her juice, not for the first time wishing it had a taste of pumpkin.
"Well, I'll better go find Remus and sort this mess out," she said. "Bye for now."
She didn't have to go far. Remus was sitting on the steps leading up to the house, staring aimlessly straight ahead. Buffy fingered the wolf-necklace she had under her shirt. The one Remus had given her on her eighteenth birthday...it all seemed so long ago...
"Rem..." she mumbled, sitting down beside him, and putting a hand on his shoulder. He flinched.
"I'm sorry. You mean so much to me. I love you," Buffy said, somehow knowing that that was what Remus needed to hear. This must be so confusing for him- ending up in another dimension, with nothing but awful memories of the past... Buffy knew all too well how that felt. And yet, she had gone and made it all worse.
Remus chuckled bitterly. "It didn't sounded like that in there."
"I know. I shouldn't have said those things. It came out all wrong," Buffy tried to explain. "I do need to see Angel - for a lot of reasons. Hear me out," she continued and held up a hand as Remus opened his mouth angrily.
"I have to see him, because of the way we left off. It never really ended for me, you know. I killed him, and then I come back here and find out he's alive. It's quite a shock. I need to see him so I can get him out of my system. I can't move on completely until that happens. I need it to end. For real."
Remus took a deep breath. "I guess I'm just afraid you'll leave me for him," he muttered, and Buffy's eyes widened.
"Don't say that!" She exclaimed. "Never say that! I love you. Not Angel - I may have once, but not now."
"Are you sure?" Remus said. "I mean, you can do so much better than me, Buffy. You can have anyone you wanted. I'm just a werewolf- "
" - And Angel's a vampire who's been maiming and killing for hundreds of years," Buffy countered. "That gives you the advantage, at least in my book."
Remus chuckled. "True. Still, he has a soul."
"Like you don't?" Buffy said. "Plus, he has that little problem that if he's getting any, he becomes all happy go-lucky and loses it. I don't think I could live with that- I have needs, and therefore, no plans of going celibate just to be able to go roaming in the night with tall, dark and forehead."
At this, Remus laughed out loud, and Buffy grinned.
"Tall, dark and and forehead?" Remus snorted.
Buffy shrugged. "It's Spike's nickname on Angel. I feel really bad for saying it, but it does kinda fit. At least the 'tall and dark' thing. I'd probably switch the 'forehead'-partto 'broody' though."
Remus sighed, suddenly growing serious again. "I think I can understand your need to go see him now," he muttered. "Though I'm still not happy about it, and I want to come with. I need to see what all the fuss is about."
Buffy grinned. "Great! We can apparate right away- that way, we'll be back before dinner!"
"Right. But we need to find a map of LA first, so we can pin-point the location. Neither you nor I have ever been there, and it wouldn't do for us to land somewhere in the Pacific Ocean."
Buffy gave him a kiss. "Always the practical one," she said fondly.
They landed in front of a large hotel, with a sign that read:
ANG L INV STIGATIONS- WE H LP THE H LPL SS
Buffy took a deep breath before stepping inside, Remus following. As they entered, Buffy saw a familiar looking man was leaning over a large book.
"I think your sign's missing some letters," Buffy said softly, leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed over her chest.
The man spun around, his mouth falling open.
"Buffy?"
"Angel," Buffy said with a small nod, walking up to him.
"They said you'd gone," Angel breathed, putting his hands on her shoulders.
"I did. And now I'm back."
Remus cleared his throat from behind them.
"Oh, right." Buffy said, not noticing Angel's eyes narrowing as he sniffed in the air.
"Angel, this is Remus. He's- "
"- A werewolf," Angel growled, taking a menacing step forwards.
Buffy rolled her eyes as Remus just smirked. "And you're a vampire. And nowthat we've all been happily introduced, why don't we all engage in a group hug?"
"Rem..." Buffy gave him a warning look, which Remus ignored.
"Who is he?" Angel asked Buffy, sounding demanding. "I don't trust him."
"And I don't trust you either," Remus said, a overly bright and wide smile on his face. "How convenient. Hey, I know! Maybe we can be best friends!"
Buffy scratched her nose in frustration. "Honestly. Guys..."
Both Remus and Angel ignored her, as they started to circle around each other.
"You her boyfriend?" Angel asked.
"Does it bother you?" Remus countered. "But yes, I am. And the proper term is 'are you her boyfriend?' Haven't you been taught proper grammar?"
"Centuries ago," Angel said calmly.
"Right. I forgot- you're old enough to be Buffy's grandfather's father's father's father, or something like that. Isn't she a little young for you?" Remus smirked.
Angel growled menacingly in his throat. "And what about you?" He asked. "You're a werewolf- why don't you go and howl at the moon or something?"
"Oh, I would," Remus said lightly. "Only, it's still light out. And the moon's the wrong phase. You see, I'm a little spoiled; I need it to be full to 'feel the tingle,' if you know what I mean?"
"You might need a moon to go all fluffy," Angel said. "But I don't." And with that, he vamped out.
Remus raised his eyebrows. "I don't see any fluff here. It looks a little bumpy to me. At least I know the reason to why Spike calls you tall, dark and forehead now. It suits you," he said half serious, as he nodded solemnly.
"STOP IT!" Buffy yelled, and both Angel and Remus turned to look at her, Remus blushing slightly and Angel looking sheepish as he transformed back.
"For Merlin's sake, you're acting like an old married couple!"
Both Remus and Angel gave her (and each other) horrified and disgusted looks, before inching away from each other. Buffy rolled her eyes.
"Really, guys. This I might have expected from you, Angel- "
At this, Angel spluttered indignantly, while Remus smirked.
" - But not from you, Remus. From Sirius, certainly, and maybe even from James, but - " she abruptly stopped talking, and got a pained look in her eyes. Remus' smirk had died. Angel just looked confused at her sudden silence. "Buffy?"
"Huh? Oh, right...Remus, do you think you could go outside for a minute while Angel and I talk?"
Angel, who had expected Remus to immediately protest, looked surprised as he just nodded and walked out, looking rather subdued. As soon as the door closed behind him, Angel turned to Buffy.
"What was that all about?"
Buffy sighed. "Never mind. It's a long story..."
"I've got all time in the world," Angel said. "I'm not getting any older."
Buffy smiled slightly. "That may be true, but to be honest, I'm not ready to tell you."
Angel nodded. "Right. So..."
"So..."
"So maybe I should start. Buffy...where were you? After I came back to life, the only thing the others would tell me was that you'd disappeared after you killed me. Only they made it sound like you deserted them. Did you?"
"No," Buffy said softly. "I didn't. Okay, maybe I did. But...I needed to get away- distance myself from everything, you know? And I was planning to come back...but somehow I got stuck in another dimension instead..."
Several minutes later
"Wow..." Angel said softly, and gave Buffy a hug. "I'm so sorry, Buffy...It must have been so hard for you."
Buffy smiled through tearstained eyes. It had been hard to talk about what she had gone through in England, but she was grateful that she had gotten a chance to ease her heart up to somebody, even if it wasn't Remus. In fact, Buffy doubted Remus would ever be able to talk about it. "Yeah...well...I shouldn't keep Remus waiting for much longer. We should probably get back to SunnyD."
"Right," Angel said, giving Buffy a last hug. "Take care of yourself."
"You too," Buffy said, and walked out of the door and up to Remus, who was standing outside, looking immensely bored.
"Wait!" Angel said, stopping Buffy, who had just placed her hand in Remus'. "How are you getting back? Bus? Plane?"
Buffy just grinned. "Magic."
And with that, both she and Remus disappeared with a small 'crack,' leaving Angel to stare at the spot they had occupied only a half-second earlier, looking confounded.
"What the- "
CRACK!
Buffy and Remus landed inside the kitchen, startling the occupants which were eating dinner: In fact, Xander fell out of his chair.
"Hi," Buffy said, sounding sheepish. "Sorry if we startled you."
"Where did you go, Buffy?" Willow asked, sounding rather timid. She feltway guilty for pretty much ignoring Buffy since her return. "Faith said you went out to find...eh...Remus, was it?."
Remus nodded. "Yes. And in answer to your question, we took a quick trip to LA and met up with tall, dark and bumpy."
Thepeople in the room stared at him. And then, Xander burst out laughing.
"Tall, dark and bumpy!" He snorted. "I love it! Beats even tall, dark and forehead! I like you, man," Xander finished, and gave Remus a high five.
Buffy just sighed, shaking her head.
"For Merlin's sake..." she muttered. "So, Willow, what brings you and Xander over?"
"Well, Xander wanted to brag to your mum about the new Sunnydale High he helped build."
Buffy blinked. "The new Sunnydale High? What happened to the old one?"
"Oh, we blew that one up," Xander said.
Remus stared at him. "You blew up a school?"
"Yep," Faith said. "But it was all for the greater good."
"Right..."
"Anyway," Xander said, turning to Buffy and Remus, who still looked shocked. "Do you want to see it?"
"...It is my great pleasure and privilege to announce the official opening - on the very ground that it first stood upon - of the brand new state of the art Sunnydale High!"
Buffy and Remus clapped politely, as the dark man cut off the large red ribbon that hung in front of the new school, which Buffy had to admit, look a lot more impressive than the old one.
"Well," she asked Remus. "Should we head home?"
"No," Remus answered, shaking his head. "I want to have a look around. See what kind of school you went to."
Buffy raised an eyebrow. "You do know it wasn't this one, right?"
"I know. But it is a High School."
Buffy rolled her eyes. "Fine. Don't say I didn't warn you though..."
"Right..." Buffy told Remus, several minutes later. "And that was the bathroom -I think we've seen everything now."
"Not everything," a voice said from behind her. "You haven't met me yet."
Buffy spun around, and came face to face with the principal she'd seen cutting of the rope earlier.
"Hi," the man said. "I'm Robin Wood. New Principal."
Buffy stared, and then remembered her manners. "Oh, hi! I'm Buffy Summers, and this is Remus Lupin."
Remus nodded at him. "Hello."
Wood smiled, revealing a line of perfectly white teeth. "Aren't you a little old to go to school?"
"Huh? Oh right, of course, but we're just having a look around."
Wood nodded, still grinning. "I understand- I was just joking. And do you like what you've seen?"
"Yeah, I guess. It's really...clean," Buffy finished lamely, earning herself a laugh from the tall principal.
"For now," Wood agreed. "However, give the students a week, and it will be all nice and dirty."
Buffy smiled. "Yeah..."
"So what are you doing here, Miss Summers? Because really, people who have graduated- or in your case, been expelled, don't usually return."
Buffy blinked. "You know about that?"
Wood laughed. "I know a lot about you- largest file on any ex-student I've ever seen."
Buffy forced out an uncomfortable smile. "I'm sure."
"Still," Wood mused. "I think you belong here. You never really let go of this place -it never really ended. Listen, I know this school's reputation. I did not get this job based on seniority- I was the only one who wanted it. And we've got a lot of troubled students here, and just enough money to keep this place from caving in."
"Get to the point," Buffy said impatiently. "What are you trying to say?"
"I'm offering you a job, Miss Summers," Wood said calmly. "As a sort of a guidance counselor."
Buffy jaw hit the floor.
"Are you serious?"
"Yes," Wood said. "Though the money we could pay you...wouldn't even fold. And it would only be a couple of days a week. I think the kids could use someone, you know, closer to their age, who's had a little rebellious past herself and knows what it's like- "
"I'm in!" Buffy interrupted. Both Remus and Wood stared at her.
"What? Are you serious?" Wood asked. "You - you did hear the part about the money, right?
Buffy shrugged, and gave Remus a look. "Yeah, I heard. My schedule might be a little funtastic, but, uh, I'll work it out. I'd like to keep an eye on this place."
Wood broke out into another smile.
"Well, that's great. Look at that. It's not even noon, and I've already bullied someone into helping out. I'm going to be the best principal ever!"
And with that, he walked a way, leaving Remus and Buffy alone in the corridor.
"Are you sure about this?" Remus said dubiously.
Buffy shrugged.
"Yeah, I mean, like he said, it's just for a couple of days a week, and I'd rather be here than asitting duck somewhere...though knowing my luck, I'll probably be fired soon, in which case I'll try to study to become a muggle nurse or something. I plan to do that anyway, just not right now."
Remus nodded, still looking unsure. "Well, if you're certain..."
Buffy gave him a kiss. "I'm certain. Come on. Let's get the hell out of this place before I get cold feet. It kinda creeps me out."
"And yet, you just agreed to work here," Remus said, humor clearly visible in his voice. Buffy came to a quick stop, and she paled.
"I just did, didn't I?"
Remus noddded. "Uh-hu."
Buffy whimpered. "I am so doomed..."
A/N: And chapter two is up! Right now, it may seem as if I'm making this out to be a replica of seson 7, but I'm really not - there will be a lot of changes - things will play out in different ways, we'll see things playing out that wasn't in the series but only mentioned(for example, when Giles was gathering Potential Slayers, etc.). Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter- and I think I can please you by promising the majority of the chapter will be this length or longer - with other words, a lot longer than the chapters for OOTB and RH. Please REVIEW! Review responses that might need a bit more placecan be found at myLiveJournal, and as usual, responses will also be sent out as Private Messages to the reviewer thanks to the very nifty Review response feature at this site.Until next update, people!
/Ida