"Mahal"
By: Lynn
DISCLAIMERS: Making it short...NOT MINE!
SUMMARY: AU; Just another story where everybody's human and Angel, Oz, and Xander are the new students in school.
DISTRIBUTION: Are you kidding me! I NEED someone to host my fics. Just e-mail me if you want them. Previous Parts found at: http/
E-MAIL:
BETA READER: Ashley Russo (last parts un-beta¡¦ed)

Part 6

Buffy and Dawn drove several blocks to Revello Drive, and the whole way Dawn constantly rambled on and on about how cool the Roarkes were.

"... and Connor and Xander showed me the half-pipe they're starting to build in the backyard. It is SO cool. They even showed me some tricks they can do. Xander wasn't so great, he kept falling and stuff. But Connor... wow! He's amazing," with a dreamy look upon her face, Dawn stopped to sigh.

Buffy smiled knowingly at her sister. She knew the look on the young girl's face all to well from her own experience. Dawnie was developing a new crush. Yet another to add to her ever-growing pile.

"Do I sense that 'wow' can be interpreted in different ways?" Buffy teased.

Dawn blushed and admitted sheepishly, "Maybe."

Buffy shook her head, the smirk on her face glued in place, "Dawnie, Dawnie, Dawnie. What number crush is this?"

"Hey! This one is different from the other guys I've liked."

"How!" Buffy asked incredulously.

"Well, he's smart, funny, athletic... and he's SO cute," she gushed while they stepped into their home.

"Oh yes of course, as opposed to Danny who was smart, Josh, who was smart and athletic, and Peter who was smart, athletic, AND funny. But all three of them 'SO cute'?"

"Who's cute?" a new voice chimed in.

"Hi Tara," Buffy hugged their cousin, as did Dawn "and Dawn's crush," she answered.

The older blonde cocked her eyebrow at her fifteen-year-old cousin, "Oh, I see. Ronnie right?"

"No a new one," Buffy answered again in a mockingly amazed tone, "Connor."

Tara wrinkled her nose, "Connor Jones?" She was thinking of the kid that they knew when they were younger. He had crooked teeth and bad hygiene. He was a little walking pervert who used to think flashing his penis every chance he got and make the girls scream in terror with his gross habits were really charming qualities. It was safe to say that things didn't really change much since they were kids.

Dawn looked disgusted at the sound of that name, "Oh no, ew. God that's just insulting. I have standards you know! She's talking about Connor ROARKE. He just moved here from Orlando."

Tara's next comment was interrupted when her younger brother, the lovable, yet annoying, platinum blonde, Spike entered the room, and commented while

chewing on a baby carrot, "What's with the new boys getting the girls all hot and bothered? I don't see anything special about them."

"Boys?" Tara questioned, "There's more than one?"

"Four and one girl," Buffy told her. She started walking to the kitchen with her cousins and sister, "The three oldest are me and Spike's age."

"Triplets, huh?"

"Yup. But they don't really look alike...at all actually…Anyways, Connor has a twin,

Jessica. She's friends with Dawn."

She ended her sentence when she entered the kitchen where her aunt, uncle and parents were gathered. Greta MacClay was chopping vegetables on the kitchen island, while her sister stirred something in a pot on top of the heated stove. Robert MacClay sat on one of the stools and did his best to help by "supervising." Giles was sitting next to Robert, assisting him with the important task of occasionally snatching bits of food just like Spike did moments ago. Once in a while they would get caught and get a light slap on the hand from their significant others.

"Hey!" Buffy greeted the adults. She gave each adult a kiss on the cheek and made quick small talk before trotting upstairs with her cousins on her heels. Dawn stayed back for a little while, taking a seat on her father's lap, basking in the attention she was receiving from the grown-ups.

"So are you going to Bronze it tonight with us, or do you have lots of college work to do?" Buffy asked Tara. She, Tara, and Spike were lounging on Buffy's bed; Spike and Buffy leaning against the metal headboard as Tara sat cross-legged in front of them.

Tara was a year older than her brother and cousin. As a freshman attending UC Sunnydale, she lived in the dorms, but still managed to make time for her family and friends on the nights she wasn't swamped with her studies.

"Yeah, I'm going. I have nothing important to do tonight," Tara said with a shrug of her

shoulders.

"Great! Oh, you'll get to meet Angel, Oz, and Xander. You'll love 'em," Buffy commented.

Later on that night, when Oz, Xander, and Angel arrived with Riley at the Bronze, introductions were made between Tara and them, and as Buffy said, Tara took an immediate liking to them.

At the moment, Oz, Willow, and Tara were sitting at the table talking, while Riley, Spike, Buffy, and Angel were playing a game of pool next to them. Xander and Cordelia were off on the dance floor, moving together to the fast beat of the music blasting on the speakers.

After the cue ball bumped the eight ball into the corner pocket, Angel straightened back up with a smug smile on his face.

Buffy gave Angel a high five and threw an arm around his waist while he put his over her shoulders; they faced their opponents.

"Haha! We win," Buffy smiled triumphantly, rubbing victory in Riley and Spike's faces who just scowled at her in return. Laughing, she shot out her hand towards them, palm up, "Pay up." Angel shot out his hand, too, imitating Buffy.

Unhappily, Riley and Spike dug in their wallets and fished out the money they owed Buffy and Angel, handing it over dejectedly.

"Thank you," Buffy snatched the money from their hands and gave Angel his half.

Hearing the music change to a soft slow song, Angel took Buffy's hand in his and nodded to the dance floor, "Join me in a victory dance, Partner?"

"Love to."

She followed him willingly to the mass of dancing couples finding their own little spot where they can dance. She went into the arms and rested her head onto his chest. She couldn't help but feel comfortable and safe with him.

"You know, we make a great team. They should call us Bonnie and Clyde," Buffy smiled up at Angel.

Angel chuckled and replied, "Yeah, I could see it now... Us teaming up and wreaking havoc in all pool halls nationwide. They'll never see us coming."

Buffy laughed with Angel and then they returned to their peaceful moment.

A little while later, Angel took a nervous breath, "Um... Buffy?" The blonde lifted her head connecting her blue-green eyes with his brown ones. He didn't know where this nervousness came from. When it came to pursuing girls, nervous was a foreign word to him.

"I-I was just wondering...," he broke their eye contact, trying to gather up his courage to ask her out, "Since, you know, we make a great team and all, that we should-"

At that very moment, the DJ decided to change the slow song to a loud, upbeat tempo song, cutting off Angel's question.

To make it worse, his DARLING brother, Xander asked if he could take Buffy out of his hands so they could, in his words, "get down."

Buffy looked at Angel, silently asking him if he minded. Not showing how upset he felt, Angel gave her a reassuring smile and yelled over the music, "Thanks for the dance."

While he walked back to the tables where the gang was, he muttered to himself, "I was just wondering if you would go out with me." He shook his head and ran his hand through his brown spikes.

Plopping down into the chair next to Oz, inwardly berating himself, he joined the conversation between Tara, Willow, and Spike.

TBC…