Disclaimer: I don't own anything of course; wish I did but no not me. Joss is king.
Setting: This is a what-if fic. It takes place on Buffy's seventeenth birthday. What if Angel's curse was different? Instead of Angel losing his soul, he loses his memory.
Thank you to MarieNomad for coming up with the idea. The credit belongs to her and the story is all mine. Please review people. I need serious input here, let me know if this story is any good at all.
Buffy and Angel came running into Angel's apartment. They were soaked from running in the rain, and Buffy stood near the door shivering. They had been running from the Judge and ran to the closest place, Angel's apartment. Angel noticed how cold Buffy was, "Your freezing, let me get you some dry clothes." He walked back in with some clothes for her and told her to change and get under the covers in his bed just to warm up. She sat down on the edge of the bed and gave him an I-know-your-not-going-to-watch-me look. He promptly turned his back while she began to change. When she began to peel her wet shirt off, she felt a pain from a wound on her back. She flinched and drew in a deep breath that caught Angel's attention, "what's wrong?" he asked. "Nothing, just a cut or something" she said. "Can I see?" he says. "Ok." She covers her chest with her shirt as he sits down behind her. "Its ok, it's already closing." The small cut on her back stung a little but as soon as she felt his cool lips on it, she forgot all about the cut. That was it, all her concerns about him almost leaving her earlier that night and then the Judge almost killing them came flooding back to her all at once. She turned to him and tried to express how she felt. She knew what she wanted to do, she would seize the day just like she told Willow. She began to speak, "it's like you said, we can't be sure of anything." Angel shushes her and says, "I love you, I try not to but I can't stop." "Me too, I can't stop either." Buffy then kisses him deeply and he begins to pull away from her but she grabs him, "Buffy, maybe we shouldn't." She shushes him and again draws him closer and kisses him with even more passion. She won't let him stop her this time. They spend the next few hours exploring each others bodies. When they are finally spent, they both fell asleep.
Angel woke up abruptly by the sound of a loud thunder crash. He sat up and checked his surroundings, he had no idea were he was. He looked over and saw a blond haired girl lying next to him in the bed. He quickly checked to make sure she was still alive. His cool touch made her flinch at first then she settled back down. He slowly got out of bed and noticed he wore no clothing. He searched around for some clothes, put them on, and ventured out of the bedroom. He walked around in the small apartment trying to figure out were he was. Nothing seemed familiar except for some weapons and a little art around the place. The last thing he remembered was being in an alley in New York. He had no idea how he got here and who he was in bed with. He did feel comfortable with her but thought it was a bad idea to be so near a human. His urges could take over and he may do something he may regret. It was then he decided that it was best to leave. It was better for him to leave this unfamiliar place then to stay and put that innocent girl at risk. He grabbed a coat from the closet, some weapons from the table, and some cash lying on the kitchen counter and strolled out the door.
Angel walked the streets of Sunnydale for hours it seemed. He had never been here before but he could feel the demonic energy flowing in this place. He walked by a newspaper box and checked the date and the place in which he was. The Sunnydale Times wow Sunnydale, CA how did he get here. He had managed to loose several years in the blink of an eye. He then decided since he was on the west coast, he would head down to LA. He had always wanted to check it out and since he was in California, why not. It would be day soon, he could smell the sun about to rise, so he needed to find a dark place to hide out until night came again and he could head out to LA. He didn't want to go back to the apartment he woke in, so he headed to the closest cemetery and found a crypt to sleep in.
Mean while, back in Angel's apartment, Buffy was beginning to wake. She slowly opened her eyes and rolled over to look for Angel. When she didn't see him in bed with her she jumped up and began to call his name. She received no response and got up to check the rest of the apartment. She looked everywhere, he was gone. She didn't understand why he would just leave like that. She also noticed a couple of things missing in the apartment. The money her mother had given her earlier that day for her birthday, Angel's signature black coat, and the clothes he had been wearing the night before. She thought maybe he had gone out for coffee or something so she went back into the bedroom to get dressed and wait for a little while. Another hour or two passed before she finally got up and left the apartment. It unnerved her that he would just leave without any word or anything, especially after the wonderful night they had spent together. She decided to go home change and head off to the school library and check in with the others.
When Buffy arrived at the library later that morning, she found everyone there except the one person she really wanted to see, Angel.
"My god Buffy, where have you been? We were worried sick; we thought something happened to you." Willow was the first to approach the young slayer.
"Is Angel here?" Buffy blurted out. "No, we thought you guys were together." Willow said back to her friend sounding a little worried. "Oh, we were but when we ran from the factory we split up. I thought maybe he came back here." Buffy was very worried now and Willow could tell.
"So, what did you find out about the Judge? Have our foes found all the required pieces yet? Giles finally piped up.
"No assembly required, he is fully functional." Buffy said to her watcher. "Angel and I barely made it out of there Giles. I just kicked the guy and I felt like I was on fire." Buffy continued the story of what occurred the night before. Buffy was trying to be helpful in doing something about the Judge but all she could think about was, were her lover was. How could he leave her like that? She was only listening to half of what was being said and only responded after Xander came up with his idea. She knew Spike and Drew had something up their sleeves and they needed to act fast. It would be dark in a few hours and time was ticking.
"I think I have an idea, but I'm going to need Cordy's help. Also, I need a vehicle." Xander said. Willow piped up and said "Ok, I can get Oz, he has a van." Willow was still upset about catching Xander and Cordy making out earlier. "Fine, that's good, call him, and Cordy, we will pick you up in an hour. Wear something trashy-er." Xander finished.
They went over the details of what Xander had planned, and for once he had a decent idea. They would meet back at the library at sundown and go from there.
Buffy decided that since she had a few hours to kill before she had to meet the Scooby gang, she would check Angel's apartment again. She knocked on the door first and then when she heard no response opened the door and entered. It looked the same as when she left that morning. She check the bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen to see any signs that he had at least come back to shower or eat. Nothing, everything was the same, it was very disturbing. She began to think the worst thoughts, maybe he went out to get some blood or something and Drew and Spike captured him. What if the Judge burned him up? She began to get that panicky feeling and decided it would be better if she went back to the library and wait for everyone else. Maybe Giles could help her find out what happened to Angel after they took care of the Judge. She exited Angel's apartment openly sobbing and feeling scared to death that Angel was missing and she could do nothing about it.
She took her time getting back to the library, stopping by the Espresso Pump for a cappuccino. She needed the extra boost of caffeine and chocolate always helped the blues.
When she reached the library, Giles and Jenny were sitting at the table going over all the texts they had on the Judge. She knew the couple had gotten very close the last few months and it warmed her heart that Giles had someone in his life now. She approached them quietly and Jenny noticed right away that something was wrong with Buffy. "Buffy, what is it? Are you ok?"
"No, I mean, I don't know. I haven't heard from Angel since last night. When I went to his apartment earlier to check on him he wasn't there. I am worried something has happened to him. Maybe he got caught by Spike and his gang. I don't know what to do." Buffy let a tear escape down her cheek and Jenny felt her heart break at the sight. "Don't worry Buffy; Angel can take care of himself. He what, two hundred plus years old, I think in all that time he has learned a few tricks on how to stay alive or undead, whatever, you know what I mean." Jenny wanted to reassure Buffy, if anything her mind needed to be clear to fight this Judge guy. "I know, it's just, he has never disappeared like this before. He always lets me know if he's going somewhere so I don't worry. I don't like this, something doesn't feel right." Buffy was still upset but she had a job to do and she needed to focus on that. Besides, anything to keep her mind off Angel was good right now. She sat down beside Jenny and looked over to Giles. He gave her a warm smile and reached over to cover her hand with his for a moment. She smiled back; it was enough to help put her at ease just for a few moments at least. They sat there waiting for the others to arrive. It was only another half hour when the other four came bouncing through the doors of the library carrying what looked like a large coffin.
"What ya got there Xand?" Buffy asked. "I got a present for you. Thought you might like some extra fire power for the beastie who can't be killed." Xander seemed very proud of himself at the moment. "Wanna see how it works?" He asked her. "Yes, please" she responded rather quickly.
While Xander showed the slayer how to use the large weapon the happened to acquire, she rest of the gang flopped down at the table with Giles. "What's our next move Mr. Watcher?" Willow was the first to speak. "Well, I guess we need to figure out their next move. I am sure they will want to help the Judge gather his strength. They will be looking for a highly populated area, somewhere with lots of people in close proximity. Maybe somewhere like the Bronze I gather."
"I don't know, I think that the Bronze is ok but if it were me, I would be thinking bigger. The mall maybe, lots of people in close proximity. Yep that's my vote." Oz didn't always say much but when he did it was with purpose. "Right then, I think you may have something there. The mall would be an excellent spot for them. Lots of people and lots of exits for them if there is trouble." Giles was surprised at the young man. He was so quiet and reserved but he was finding him delightfully smart. He was feeling grateful that he and his slayer had so many eager, smart, and helpful people working with them.
They all agreed that Oz was right and decided to head to the mall. The Judge was in need of power and Spike's gang would be making a move tonight. Buffy knew they would be there. It was like she could feel it. They got to the mall and went in through the back entrance. They waited for the vampires to appear. They weren't disappointed, not so long after they set up in the center of the mall, they noticed Drew and the Judge emerge from the elevator. They sent the minions out to try and block the exits and the Judge began to burn anyone close to him. You could see the energy begin to build and it soon spread across the mall floor like a lighting bolt. Buffy sprang up from where she had been hiding and sent a bolt across to the room at the Judge to get his attention. He began to laugh at her and announced "No weapon forged can kill me." She readied the weapon, aimed, and fired it at him. Just as if came sailing towards him he said "what's that?" Then all you heard was a loud boom and Judge parts flying in the air. Drew had jumped off the stairs and on to the floor when she was the weapon being fired. As soon as the smoked cleared she got up and ran screaming from the mall.
They cleaned up the mess as best they could and left the mall. Just as Buffy reached the parking lot she thought she felt that feeling. The one she always gets when Angel was near. She looked around to see if he was there but he was no were in sight. Across the street Angel stood looking at the slayer. She was beautiful he thought and he remembered waking up in bed with her the day before. He wanted to get one last look at her before he headed out to LA. When she got in the van and left, he turned and walked away feeling that he would somehow miss this girl he didn't know. He walked down to the bus station and caught the next buss to LA.
They all got back to the library and were discussing how to properly dispose of the remains of the Judge. Most of his body was burned up but there were still pieces. Giles check his books to see if there was a spell or ritual they could perform to ensure he could never be reassembled. The whole gang was in on it except for Buffy who was sitting on the steps starring into space. Her mind racing about all the events of the last few days and what could have happened to Angel. She started to think maybe she did something wrong when they were together the night before. Maybe she scared him away; she had no idea what she would have done to deserve this. Why would he make her suffer this way?
Giles noticed how lost she looked. She was so blue and after the event that just occurred she would have been bouncing off the walls normally. To see her in this state was very disturbing to him and he couldn't tale watching her anymore. "Buffy, it's getting late and you look very tired. I am sure after the last few days' events you are in much need of some rest. We can handle this without you, why don't you go home and spend some time with your mother."
"Huh, oh, ok, I am sorta beat. Slaying can take a toll sometimes; I can hear my p.j.'s calling me. Thanks Giles, I'll call you tomorrow." And with that said she got up and went home.