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Buffy yawned exhaustedly as she walked into the office, stepping over the remains of the shattered glass doors which two janitors were laboriously picking up. Spike followed shortly behind her, Venti Starbucks Frappuchino clutched tightly in his hand.
"Hey!" Faith called relief, jumping out from behind the front desk. "Harmony's late, I've been fending phone calls and-" she looked from Spike to Buffy for a long moment, observing, "Wow, you guys really look like shit. Didn't you get any sleep?" As Buffy looked down at the floor guiltily and Spike just smirked before taking a gulp of coffee Faith broke into a knowing, slightly sarcastic smile. "Fcked all night long, huh?" she quipped dryly.
Buffy's head shot up and she looked slightly scandalized, retorting indignantly. "Of course not!" before flushing. "I mean, by the time we got home it was already morning-"
"Way to tell me, B," Faith teased, but her smile was kind.
"Yeah, well," Buffy muttered, meeting Faith's gaze, "You still owe me lunch."
Faith's smile faded and she nodded. "I do."
Buffy looked toward the clock hanging over the front desk, blinking. "Is that right?"
Faith nodded once more. "It's right."
"I am SO sorry-" Buffy started to apologize before Faith's first words finally registered and she asked, "Where's Harmony?"
--
"So then," Harmony continued as Angel closed his eyes and wished that he could somehow teleport himself anywhere but where he was sitting, "THEY fired me too! As though it were MY fault that the manager's son couldn't keep his hands off of me!" she frowned slightly. "Though it was a bad idea to try to have a quickie in the-"
"Harmony," Angel interrupted her, holding up a hand, "I think I'm getting the picture."
She blinked in surprise. "Oh! Well, okay. So then I finally decided to come to Spike- I mean, Mr. Spike, and Buffy. And would you believe they acted like they were doing me a huge favor by hiring me? I almost thought Mr. Spike wasn't going to do it, which, I mean, was just uncalled for after all that I did for him- but Mrs. Summers convinced him to give me a chance-"
Angel's ears perked up as he inquired in disbelief, "BUFFY did?"
Harmony nodded, looking surprised at his reaction. "I mean, sure." She shrugged. "She gives me a harder time than he does, but she has a good heart." She wrinkled her nose before continuing, "What did you do to piss her off so much anyway?" wiping off her lipstick and trying another color, evidently more pleased with it as she grabbed a mascara.
"Don't know," Angel replied briefly, not caring that it was at best a half truth as Harmony yanked on a three-inch heel.
"Weird. I mean, I know she's sort of temperamental and all, but honestly-" she began, yanking on the other shoe as he looked at her, trying not to appear too eager as he asked,
"What do you mean?"
Harmony shrugged, holding up a pair of earrings before discarding it casually. "Like- that time when she and Spike weren't talking for a week!"
"She and Spike weren't talking for a week?" Angel asked disbelievingly before snorting. "What happened? Did he catch her with a chaos demon or something?"
Harmony looked at him like he had completely lost it before saying slowly, "Nooooo. What are you talking about?"
"Well- what did happen?" Angel inquired, ignoring her question, hating how desperate he must sound, relieved when Harmony didn't seem to notice as she continued to blurt out the story.
"Well, when they first got married her sister gave them a hamster and it sort of –died. So they had a big, ridiculous fight about who had killed it and when they finished neither of them talked to the other one for a few hours, and I guess it became some weird pride thing between them-" she shrugged. "They're really passionate," she continued, rolling her eyes as though it explained everything, and despite himself Angel felt the words like a knife to his heart. "So finally, after about a week, Faith decided to lock them into the conference room together, which I told her was a bad idea because Buffy would just break the door to get out-"
"Buffy broke the door to get out?" Angel asked incredulously, and Harmony frowned.
"Why are men always so IMPATIENT? I didn't say that's what ACTUALLY happened!"
"Well then," Angel sighed impatiently, wondering if he even really cared, "What actually happened?"
"Oh!" she exclaimed, as though realizing for the first time that the story might have a point. "They had sex on the table."
Angel blinked, feeling as though he was hearing the punch line to a very, very bad joke before inquiring dumbly, "That's it? That was all you wanted to say?"
"No," she said slowly, seeming to think hard. "I was going to say…" she twirled her hair absently. "Oh! Right! So, while they were having sex, Buffy moaned, and then he said her name, and after this, for like, another week, they fought about who had broken the silence, since, I mean, she hadn't really said anything but she was the first one to-"
"I get the concept," Angel said through clenched teeth. "What. Is. The. POINT?"
"My point is that maybe she's not actually mad at you," Harmony replied as though it was obvious. "Maybe she just kind of- I don't know- likes the fight."
He looked at her in shock for a long moment, stunned that she had managed to actually come up with any kind of a legitimate insight whatsoever before slowly shaking his head. "No. For them that was foreplay. Between her and I it's just-" he paused, trying to determine how to best express it before sighing, "Way too far gone for that." He looked at her sharply before inquiring, "Do they fight a lot?"
"Nope," Harmony chirped briefly before looking at the clock. "Oh NO!" she shrieked abruptly. "I'm dead!"
As she hurriedly shoved on a coat, Angel couldn't resist the urge to mutter, "I can only hope."
--
Buffy took a slow sip of her soda before looking at Faith with a sigh.
"So Connor took the books to England, huh?" she asked bluntly after a brief pause, deciding there was no tactful way to launch the subject.
Faith nodded, looking slightly guilty. "Believe me, B, I feel like shit about the whole thing-"
"What part?" Buffy inquired sharply. "The part where Angel's son doesn't want his father to know anything about his life or the part where we're helping him to accomplish that goal?"
"Both parts!" Faith hissed emphatically. "William and I fought with Connor for over an hour, but at the end of the day it's not our call. Angel's the one who took off without a word to anyone. Are you forgetting the months that you and Connor spent trying to find him?"
"I'm not forgetting anything," Buffy said dully after a long moment, indignation seeming to fade. "And I don't forgive him, but he must care about his son." She shook her head, looking like she wanted to jump up in frustration. "GOD Faith! What am I supposed to do if he asks me?"
Faith shook her head, looking miserable. "I don't know," she shrugged unhappily. "But chances of that are pretty slim, right? I mean, does he even think you know about Connor?"
"What if he asks about DAWN?" Buffy asked disbelievingly. "Am I not supposed to mention the tiny, insignificant detail that she and Connor have been engaged for almost a year? Am I not supposed to mention that Connor is part of our team?"
"I don't know," Faith said, shifting uneasily in her seat. "But honestly, B- do you think he's going to ask?"
Buffy stared at her for a long moment before slowly shaking her head. "I don't." she replied, looking suddenly miserable. "God, Faith. I honestly don't know if he cares about anything at ALL-"
Faith looked at her sharply before inquiring, "How was it really?"
Buffy gingerly bit a French fry before asking, "What?"
"Patrolling with him," Faith offered simply.
"Awful," Buffy said dully, looking down before her eyes flashed up sharply, and she blurted, "Faith, I did something terrible-"
"I knew it!" Faith exclaimed triumphantly. "He tried to kiss you-"
Buffy jerked her head back, looking at Faith like she was out of her mind before saying slowly, "Faith, he barely talks to me. There's not going to be any attempted kissage."
Faith looked at her skeptically. "B, I have to tell you the truth- I don't think he's-"
"I told him things I didn't tell William," Buffy cut her off, flushing. "About the fight-"
Faith looked at her incredulously. "And that's your terrible thing?"
"It's not just-" Buffy started, sighing as she tried to figure out how to explain. "I mean, it was so EASY to talk to him about it, and it shouldn't have been. He was being all… stoic… and all I could do was blurt out things that-"
"B, what are you talking about?" Faith asked, face concerned. "So you talked to him about the big bads. The truth is, Will is pretty far removed from that life. It's normal that you would want to talk to Angel about what you and he were about to fight. And it's not like Will asked-"
"No! I mean, maybe," Buffy amended, flushing slightly, "but- aren't husbands and wives supposed to share everything? I mean, I think they are. I think we were. I mean, are-" she said, looking confused as Faith bit her lip, wishing she better knew what to say.
"I think you're being too hard on yourself," she offered empathetically as Buffy bit her lip, looking guilty before saying slowly,
"I read a book right after high school. I don't remember the name of the book or the author or anything, but toward the end there was this line- I must have sat there looking at it for twenty minutes-"
"What did it say?" Faith asked curiously, and Buffy met her eyes before saying slowly,
"I hate it because it moves me." She shook her head, looking down again before continuing slowly, "That's what it was like to patrol with Angel And I hate myself for that."
Faith looked at her silently for a long moment before offering slowly, "You hate it because it moves you or you hate him because he moves you?"
Buffy looked down at her food again, and for a second Faith didn't think she was going to answer before she whispered hoarsely, almost too quietly to be heard, "Him. Him. I hate him because he moves me."
"B-" Faith began uncertainly before sighing. "We're all on edge right now. You haven't seen Angel in five years and- it's totally normal that you're feeling things. The important part is that you acknowledge them and try to work through them in a way that's healthy for everyone-"
Buffy smirked slightly, raising her eyes once more. "Oh-kay Miss 'I'm a Psychology-Major', I'll keep that in mind." Her smile dimmed slightly before she inquired, "And what about you? How're you holding up with everything?"
Faith looked at her in surprise. "What, me? Five by five!" She smirked slightly. "A little freaked out by needing to be the peacemaker all the time, but basically- I'm not the one you need to worry about. Watch YOURSELF."
--
"WATCH yourself!" Angel exclaimed in frustration as Buffy fell to the floor with a small cry of pain, shaking his head in something resembling disgust as she jumped up. "There's not point in training if your mind isn't here!"
"Oh, my mind is here!" she snapped, throwing a punch that he easily deflected, angry as he shook his head again, saying with certainty,
"No it's not. You need to FOCUS. It's not about strength- it's about CONTROL."
"Oh, and you like control, don't you?" she muttered bitterly, faking another sharp uppercut to his jaw, pleased when he left his midsection exposed in an effort to protect his face and she was able to slam a particularly vicious kick into his gut before cutting his legs out from under him. "Let me guess? You're about to suggest that a little tai-chi could really clear my head and- ah!" she cried as he took advantage of his position on the floor to kick her behind her knees and send her sprawling before he leapt up himself.
"No. I was about to suggest that a little less pathetic banter might help your focus," he said somewhat harshly and she leapt to her feet with a furious cry, as he continued, "This is our third day of training and if anything you've gotten worse-" and she forgot the outside world despite her best efforts not to be swayed by the familiar, seductive rhythm of the fight. Block, parry, duck, punch, dive, kick, twist, over- "Oh!" she gasped as he sent her sprawling with a particularly well placed kick, leaping on top of her and pinning her arms.
"Better," he said dully, climbing off of her almost at once as she slowly got to her feet, breathing heavily. "You're just out of practice," he continued, and she nodded agreeably.
"I am," she replied easily. "But some things never change."
He looked at her in confusion. "Such as?"
"I don't give up," she retorted sharply before launching at him again, trying to think like a warrior as she casually threw a few punches, watching how he moved. Okay. So obviously his advantage is his size, and the fact that I'm seriously out of shape here-
"Focus," he barked at her again, and she shot him a wicked smirk before chirping,
"See, that's where you're wrong-I am."
And as he drew back to punch her she took advantage of her smaller size to drop to the ground, diving under the small coffee table and kicking it toward him with all the strength in her legs, cringing slightly as it splintered around him and he let out a growl of pain before she jumped up, taking advantage of his surprise to send him sprawling with a sharp roundhouse kick before landing on top of him, enquiring breathlessly,
"You give?"
He looked at her for a long moment, making her slightly uncomfortable for reasons she didn't bother to analyze before he grabbed hold of her waist tightly with his hands and viciously flipped her over, reversing their positions.
"Don't know," he bit out roughly. "Do you?"
She looked to both sides frantically, trying to figure out how to improvise a weapon. Seeming to read her mind, he pulled her arms roughly up over her head, causing her to shiver. Feeling the strength of his grip, Buffy forced her body to relax as she realized words were the only thing she had left.
"A lot has changed since you used to know me, Angel," she said softly, pleased as his expression became slightly confused, and she inclined her head to whisper in his ear, "For one thing… I like it better on top."
His grip loosened at once as he looked at her, expression utterly scandalized, and she took advantage of his hesitation to clench her legs around him, flipping them over so that she was on top of him once more.
"Give?" she asked again, triumphant smirk on her face, slightly disappointed when he nodded rapidly.
"I do."
"You're no fun," she pouted before swinging herself up and looking at the coffee table with some concern. "I hope William didn't really like that thing-"
"Well, if he did I doubt it would be in your basement," Angel snapped and she looked at him, face displeased before saying,
"What's with the bad mood? Are you pissed that little ole me actually beat you or are you just-"
"MY bad mood?" he demanded incredulously. "What about you? All you've done is attack me since I got here four days ago. Do you think I have no feelings? Do you think I WANT to be here, watching you and Spike and the great life you've built together? Do you think I WANT to help you train?" He lowered his voice. "I don't have any delusions that you're glad about helping me, but would it really kill you to-"
"Oh! You don't have any DELUSIONS?" she snapped. "Well guess what? Neither do I! I don't mean anything to you. I doubt I ever did. I know you don't WANT to be here. You've made it perfectly clear that you never wanted to see me again, but you think you can come here when you need help and expect me to fall at your feet and say- what? 'Oh Angel, I missed you?' I DID!" Her eyes flashed as she advanced toward him, voice cold. "But you know that, don't you? Did you laugh when I was looking for you? Did you LAUGH when you told Willow you hated me and never wanted to see me again? Well guess what, Angel? YOU WIN." A single tear fell down her cheek as she repeated quietly, "You WIN. I hate you too."
Angel looked at her in disbelief for a long moment before taking a slow step toward her, reaching out an uncertain hand as he breathed, "Buffy-"
"Do NOT touch me," she said firmly even as another tear fell down her cheek "DO not-"
"Buffy?" they suddenly heard Spike call from the top of the stairs, and she let out a small gasp, bushing her tears away as she called, voice shaking slightly,
"What's up, honey?"
"Giles is on the phone. Says they figured something out, wants us all to hear."
"Faith around?" Buffy called straightening her shirt as she headed toward the stairs.
"No," he called back. "Interview of some kind- we'll have to give her the news later."
"Oooh? Which one?" Buffy asked, suddenly looking a lot more like herself as she started up the stairs. "Was it Stanford? Because she really wants Stanford-"
"Can't remember," Spike said lightly as they stepped into the living room, Angel feeling blinded by how completely white and spotless the décor was- as though a touch of darkness might somehow corrupt-
"Buffy?" they heard Giles's voice through the speakerphone. "Angel?"
"We're her, Giles. What's the what?" Buffy chirped lightly.
"Well, since the books arrived I've been pouring over them personally, transcribing the-"
"Giles, I get it. Hard work, much appreciated, honest," she said, voice sincere but impatient.
"Oh- er- right," he stuttered slightly. "Sorry. I was just going to say that it's in code, and I'm not positive- well- the best I can understand, any demons who would be able to survive on this plane after the apocalypse would have to be mutants-"
"Doesn't make sense," Buffy cut him off, perching on the edge of the sofa as she bit her lip lightly. "They look totally standard-"
"No- that is to say, not in terms of appearance- in terms of strength."
There was silence for a moment. "Buffy?" Giles inquired and she seemed to snap back to attention, saying flatly,
"Sounds about right."
"These demons would still be rendered powerless on our plane, however, without a god to lead them- which also makes no sense, since our dimension is effectively closed to-"
"Illyria," Angel said dully as Buffy and Spike both looked at him in surprise.
"Mate, she died in the-" Spike began to say before his brow furrowed. "Never did make sense how she just disappeared that way-"
"Wait," Buffy said. "I mean, I am a bit out of the loop about all that but- wasn't she sort of a good guy?
Angel and Spike shared a long look before Angel shrugged reluctantly. "Don't know."
"Okay," Buffy said, closing her eyes as she tried to put it together. "So- basically we have a pack of super-demons potentially led by a god. Am I getting this so far?"
"That would be the gist, yes," Giles said slowly. "There are also coordinates, but I'm not sure what they mean-"
"Coordinates? As in a location?" Buffy inquired, brow furrowing.
"No. As in a Monet painting," Giles snapped sarcastically, and Spike smirked despite himself as Angel inquired,
"Where are they?"
"About two miles away from you, actually," Giles said slowly. "I was going to advise Faith and Buffy to go check-"
"Faith's gone for the night," Buffy said matter-of-factly. "I'll go alone."
"Buffy, I REALLY don't think that's wise," Giles began at the same moment Spike said,
"Absolutely NOT."
"I'll go with her," Angel offered quietly, to everyone's surprise.
"I said I'll go alone," Buffy said defiantly.
"The hell you will," all three men said at once, and Buffy rolled her eyes.
"Fiiine. Give me ten minutes to get ready, but seriously- how bad can it be?"
--
Feedback is appreciated and taken to heart! Thank you to all who left it and all who will in the future. I hope you enjoyed and thanks for reading!
Interested2: Thank you VERY much :) I am a huge Spike fan and promise he will not be neglected as the story continues :-P Thanks for the positive comments!
Kit: Yes, they certainly ARE lovely together and I won't forget it… ;-) Thanks for reading.
AllenPitt: THANK you for your long, thoughtful commentary. Regarding Illyria, it WILL factor into the story (as was probably made evident in this chapter)… as for Spike not telling Buffy about Giles and the Fred thing, repercussions for that are forthcoming, as is an explanation- just sit tight ;-P Connor will continue to be addressed more in future chapters- I have a definite plan for him as well, never fear :) Are you a Spuffy or a Bangel supporter?
CF: The fact that Spike knows Giles refused Angel help back in,"Damage" and "Shells" will indeed come back… never fear :) Thank you for reading!
RabidReject: Thanks for your nice comments :) I did mean for Spike to 'lie' to Buffy… an explaination is forthcoming, just sit tight :) Are you a Bangel or a Spuffy supporter?
Angel sumoritos: THANK you as ALWAYS for the glowing feedback! You're the best!
Javachino: I'm rooting for them too snickers back. And thanks for the link to the story! I'm LOVING it!
Drunknmunky: Hi! As started to be explained in this chapter, Buffy DID look for Angel… a lot is going on on both sides that is leading to bitterness, BELIEVE me. I view her bitchiness as a huge defense mechanism… don't worry, it will get better! Thanks for reading and please continue to tell me what you'd like to see happen!
Emz: I am trying to be realistic about how Buffy would react if Angel had been gone for five years… I would love to discuss this more with you if you'd like to email me- Basically though… I feel like she'd be really, really hurt and upset, and it would take time for them to trust one antoher again… I promise that more Bangel action is coming! Honest! (Next chapter will actually include a sexy nightclub scene, tee hee).