A/N: Sorry I have taken so long to update this story. Christmas and work have had me so busy lately, not much time to sit and write. I hope this chapter is worth waiting for. Please review and let me know.
Buffy shook the strange mans hand who was standing on her front porch but her spidey senses were telling her that he was not human. She didn't know if he was evil though, so she decided to let him speak his peace and then she would decide whether to slay him or not. "So, whose friend are you anyway?" Buffy started the conversation off with her first question.
"Well, you're all business and no fun. I was just hoping to get a date for prom." The strange man was starting to get on Buffy's nerves already. "Look, I'm tired; just get to the point of your little visit here. Who are you and what do you want?"
The man gave a slight giggle and staggered back, pushing his hat up. He sat down on the top step and put his hands together in his lap. "Fine, the name is Whistler. Originally I was sent here to help Angel. Which I thought I had already done, and then all of a sudden I get called back here again. The only thing I really know is that he is supposed to be here and he's not. My sources told me to come here and talk to you about it." He paused for a few moments, looking at Buffy to catch her reaction and wait for her to continue. She said nothing to him. She stood there with a blank expression on her face, staring at Whistler but not really looking at him. She was lost in her own little world at the moment. Any mention of Angel's name put her mind into a spin and all she could do was think of where he could be. What was he doing, was he hurt or lost. "Um, hello, anyone there………can you hear me?" Whistler started to wave his hand in front of Buffy.
After a few seconds she shook her head slightly and looked at Whistler again, "What, oh, sorry……did you say you came to help Angel?"
"That's right; I came to help you find Angel. So why don't you tell me everything that happened so we can figure out where he might have gone to." Whistler was saying this to Buffy with a sarcastic tone. Buffy became instantly enraged and slowly walked up to Whistler. "Ok buddy, I don't know who you really are. It's late, and I am so not in the mood for smart ass demons coming to my front door in the middle of the night being all criptive and wearing the ugliest clothes I have ever seen. So you are going to tell me what I need to know, then you're going to get lost, unless you want to meet the pointy end of my weapon." Buffy then pulled out the stake she had been holding on to in her pocket and pointed it at Whistler. He jumped up from the step and put his hands in the air. "Hey lets not get hasty now. I came here to help not get killed, so let's take a deep breath and start again. I'll tell you how we met and why I was sent to help you if you put the stake down."
"Fine, start talking, but if I don't like were this is going it's the pointy end for you, got it." Buffy was not playing around. She was tired of people telling her half of a story after the fact. She wanted to know everything about Angel and any way she could help him. She needed him back so badly. She felt like a part of her was missing. It was her fault that he was missing, and she needed to do everything possible to get him back. She walked up on the porch and took a seat on the couch. Whistler took the hint and came over to sit next to her. He had a strange look on his face. He wasn't sure coming here had been the best decision but the Powers that Be only gave him so much to work on. He had only been told that Angel was missing and they needed him to be found. The only leads they gave him were Buffy and now he felt that she may kill him before he could finish his mission.
"I guess I should start from the beginning. You know that Angel was cursed with a soul about a hundred years ago. He spent a lot of time wandering around places. He didn't know what to do with himself. He was no longer just a demon out to kill and feed, not with a soul. The other vampires didn't want him around anyway. He didn't want to be around humans either; they just made him crave blood. So he spent years scavenging for small animals and rats to feed on. He had hit an all time low and was living in an alley in New York City when I found him. Feeding on rats, living in filth, he stunk to high heaven. I showed him another way to live, tried to steer him in the right direction. I showed him that he could live in this world not just exist. He made a decision then to become good, to fight on the side of good. He came out here to the west coast and set up shop here in Sunnydale. When I left him, he had an apartment and was on the right path. I just wanted to know what happened after that." Whistler was trying to tell her the story without upsetting her more. He knew she was agitated and he hoped she didn't kill him before they finished talking.
"He still has his apartment over by the Bronze. I'm not sure how to explain the whole story to you. What I know for sure is that his curse is what caused him to disappear. The gypsies cursed him with a soul but with a bonus attached. If he experiences one moment of pure happiness….." Buffy began to cry. She couldn't finish telling him. "I'm sorry. I can't do this." She got up from the couch and moved to the front door. "Please, can we do this tomorrow? I just……I just cant right now."
"Sure thing, I will come by in the morning and we can talk then. Ok." Whistler gave her a small smile and turned to leave. Buffy didn't wait to see him depart; she just walked into the door and ran up to her room. She collapsed on her bed and cried. She kept thinking that once again she would have to tell someone it was all her fault that Angel was gone. She knew she was the cause of this. What was she going to do if they can't find him? She felt she may die of a broken heart and began to sob even more. She felt like she couldn't breath, like something was choking her do death and all she could do was cry. She thought of calling Willow but her body was so tired, like she was drained of all her energy, that even getting up to make a call seemed to much an effort. She lay in her bed crying until she fell asleep.
The sun came up the next morning like it always did but Buffy did not welcome it. She lay in her bed, eyes swollen from a night of crying and very restless sleep. She watched the curtains lightly blow around from the cool morning breeze blowing in the window. She knew she should get out of bed and get dressed but that would mean having to go and talk to that guy Whistler again. She wasn't looking forward to that conversation at all. She needed to tell him about the curse and what happened after their night together so they could maybe find Angel, but saying it out loud was not something she really wanted to do. She heard her mother moving around in her room and new that soon she would be yelling for her to get up for school. She finally got out of bed and headed to the shower. Maybe standing under the hot water would make her fell a little better.
Joyce was in the kitchen making coffee and some toast when her daughter finally made an appearance. She became alarmed at the sight of her. She looked like she had not slept in days. Dark circles under her blood shot eyes and she slinked into the room like someone was dragging her. "Sweetheart are you feeling alright? You look terrible, are you running a fever?" Buffy looked up at her mother and tried to give her a smile but she failed miserably. "I'm fine, just didn't sleep well that's all. How about a little of that coffee?" Buffy walked over to the counter and poured herself a cup. She sat down and tried to wake up more, even just to make her mother feel better. "Well if you don't feel better after you get to school, go to the nurse and have her call me. I don't think you should go to school if you are sick. Maybe I should cancel my trip. If you're sick I don't want to be going anywhere." Joyce was really concerned now. She never remembered Buffy looking so ill. She didn't want to go away and leave Buffy to take care of herself. "Thanks mom, but I'm fine, no need to worry. I'll have a little coffee and everything will be peach keen, you'll see." Buffy finished her coffee, gave her mother a kiss and headed off to school. Maybe a normal day with her friends would help take her mind off things.
Normal, what was that anyway, so much for normal, when Buffy got to the library she found Whistler sitting there waiting for her? "So the gangs all here, plus one." Buffy announced as she entered to library. She saw that everyone was sitting around the table. Willow, Xander, Oz, Cordelia, Giles, and of course Miss Calendar, whom which she hoped she wouldn't be seeing there for a while. Buffy walked up the Giles with fire in her eyes, "What's she doing here?" She pointed at Jenny. "Buffy please, lets deal with the matter at hand. I believe you have been aquatinted with our new friend here." Giles pointed to a smiling Whistler. "We've met what's this all about anyway?" Buffy was getting very agitated, first this guy shows up on her front porch in the middle of the night and now here he is sitting at the table like he's been around for years of something. "Yes, please sit down and we can all get started then." Giles motioned for Xander to get Buffy a seat. "Miss Calendar has been filling our friend here on the curse. He has told us of your conversation last night so we took the liberty to fill him in on the rest. He thinks he may know were to start looking." Giles hoped that Buffy would not be angry for telling Whistler of her situation but one look at her told him that she was relived not to have to tell the story herself. "He says he knows someone in LA who may be able to help. There is a demon in LA who reads people's aura. Maybe this demon can help us or tell us something we may be over looking." Giles seemed hopeful. He knew Buffy was upset and he wanted to help her find Angel. He had grown quite fond of Angel and his disappearance was strange. Buffy was the slayer and her job was to fight the evil that came to the hell mouth, but Buffy had help. She had Willow and Xander, and every so often Cordelia would help out but the most help came from Angel. He was strong, a good fighter, and he knew that Angel loved Buffy. "I think you should go to LA with Whistler and see what this demon can do for you." Buffy didn't say anything she shook her head and then turned to Jenny to give an evil glare. She knew that Jenny didn't mean for anything bad to happen but she couldn't help but blame her. "It's settled then, you leave for LA tomorrow after your mother leaves for her trip. We will patrol while you are gone. Now I think the rest of you should get to class now." Giles walked to his office and shut the door. He also was still upset with Jenny. He wanted to talk to her so badly but he would never do anything to upset Buffy more. When they found Angel and everything was normal again, he and Jenny would have a talk.
Buffy spent the rest of the day lost in thought. She went from class to class in a trance. All her thoughts were about Angel and the trip they were taking to LA. As the day progressed she felt more and more eager to leave, she could feel all her energy beginning to return to her. Just the thought of doing something to find Angel made her feel better. She couldn't wait until nightfall so she could go patrol and blow off some steam. Willow and Xander offered to patrol with her but she told them to rest up because they had to take over when she left.
Night finally came and Buffy hit the cemetery ready for a fight. She wasn't disappointed because just after she entered Restfield, she was attacked by a vampire. 'This guy has no idea what kind of trouble he is in.' Buffy thought to herself. He came at her with his game face on and Buffy kicked him with a round house as soon as he came near her. He flipped back to his feet and lunged at her again. She punched him in the face and swept his feet out from under him. She stepped back so he could get up and he looked at her puzzled. That only last for a few seconds before he jumped up and ran at her again. She kicked him again in the face and he staggered back but came up quick and hit her back. She flew backwards and grabbed her face. She wiped the blood from her lip and smiled at the vamp before running full force at him. She punched him in the gut and then in the head then spun around with another roundhouse knocking him to the ground. She jumped on top of him while he was down and pulled out her stake. Just before she plunged the stake into his heart she said, "Thanks for the workout; it was just what I needed." Then she rammed the stake into his heart and he turned to dust. She got up from the ground put the stake into her back pocket and headed for home.