Special thanks to BloodyPasion, SMGbest, Delia Winters, and annekebb4ever for the reviews and to everyone else who alerted and favorited this. You're all amazing!

When Buffy woke the next day she was alone which bothered her more than she wanted to admit. Last night had been wonderful; talking to him one on one, the kiss, falling asleep in his strong arms. She couldn't wait to see him again and it took almost no time at all for her to get ready and walk to school.

A few hours later her good mood had morphed into a pretty bad mood. She had wanted to stop by the library and see if Angel was there but a teacher had pulled her aside to discuss one of her assignments and it had taken up all her free time so she had to go to all her classes before she could check the library again. Lunch time finally arrived and she instantly walked to the library only to frown at the sight of Giles alone in his office. "Where's Angel?"

Giles looked up from a book he was reading and matched her frown. "I think we need to speak about your and Liam's… erm… relationship."

Seeing Buffy's less than amused expression he sighed heavily and removed his glasses to polish them. "Buffy you need to be careful around him, we still don't know what his intentions are. He didn't come back to my home last night and I can only assume he was with you."

"We didn't do anything Giles. He just thought you could use the break."

His stare showed how much he didn't believe that sentence. "Still Buffy, he's a supernatural being and he's at the very least dangerous and unstable."

She bit her lip at his words, realizing the truth in them even though she didn't want to. "I'll be careful Giles, where is he though?"

He shook his head, "I have no clue and that worries me."

The rest of the school day passed slowly as she repeatedly thought about what Giles had said and wondered where Angel was. With heavy feet she walked to the library where Xander and Willow were already seated and working on homework. She dropped down next to Willow and got out all her books before spreading them out across the table and getting to work. About a half hour later a voice next to her ear scared her half to death.

"What are you working on?"

She jumped as she looked at Angel who had suddenly appeared and Willow and Xander screamed as Giles ran out of his office to see what was happening. Xander glared at Angel and was about to say something but a thin ring of red in the angel's eyes stopped him.

Giles glanced around the room before looking at Angel, "How did you just get in here?"

"Doesn't matter."

A huff escaped the watcher. "Alright, well where were you?" Giles asked cautiously.

"Not here." Buffy frowned at his attitude and evasiveness before she noticed a small smear of blood on his right hand. "Is that blood?"

He followed her gaze to his hand before he wiped it against his pants, "Missed a spot. Nothing to worry about."

Everyone was officially uncomfortable so Buffy took the lead, "Is that yours?"

"No."

Buffy swallowed thickly, "Who's is it?"

He suddenly looked aggravated, "I had to take care of something and I did. End of story, I don't owe any of you an explanation."

"I believe you do," Giles said simply. "You're here and we're helping you and I believe you at least owe us that."

Angel's eyes narrowed as his tongue licked one of his sharp canines, his agitation with the situation turning into anger. He stood and walked away from the table before meeting Giles' challenging stare, "It's a boy's blood, or at least it was before I killed him. It was on my to do list and since I was here I went ahead and took care of it."

Buffy thought she was going to get sick and barely registered Willow's choked sob and Xanders cry of outrage. "You killed a child?"

He crossed his arms defensively, "I was ordered to. He had no soul he needed to be erased. He was a mistake."

"But a child? He had no control over it," Giles countered.

To everyone's surprise Angel released a maniacal laugh, his fangs visible as his eyes turned blood red. "You all seriously don't get it do you? This is what I do, what I was made for. He had no soul, he was just an empty shell capable of pure evil." His attention snapped to Buffy, "What did you think I meant when I said I did whatever it took to protect Home?"

Buffy couldn't believe this was happening, "Not this."

Angel shook his head condescendingly, "You're more naive than I thought."

Giles glanced outside where it was beginning to rain and frowned when he remembered that the forecast called for high temperatures and sunshine today. He glanced at Angel who was still arguing with Buffy and flinched when a loud crack of thunder echoed through the library just as Angel finally lost his temper.

"You think you're better than me? You think everything is black and white? You think you have the right to judge me?" He clenched his teeth and balled his fists before suddenly disappearing with a cry of pure frustration.

Buffy, Xander, and Willow just sat there in shock staring at the spot where he had disappeared. Giles however was staring outside, where the sun had suddenly appeared.

No one saw any sign of Angel for the next week and Giles was starting to believe that he had somehow returned to heaven. Xander and Willow felt relieved at the disappearance of the out of control angel but Buffy was feeling lost and confused. The more she thought about what had transpired the more she felt she had handled it badly. If what he said was true and the boy had no soul then he could be a danger to everyone. Also if God commanded it who was she, as a mere mortal, to question it? She released a heavy sigh as she walked through the graveyard alone on patrol wondering if she would ever see him again. Her wondering halted when she heard a scream on the other side of the cemetery. She ran quickly but stopped when she saw Angel and two demons.

Angel was standing between them with a bloody nose and an evil smirk, the blood only adding to his almost demonic appearance. His gaze met hers for a moment before he clapped his hands together, "It's been fun but I'm going to have to call it a night."

The demons only had a second to look confused before they started screaming and fell to the earth dead. Buffy's eyes widened at the sight, Angel had killed them without lifting a hand. She slowly started backing away but stopped when he looked down at the ground, "I didn't mean to scare you the last time we spoke." When he looked up his face was clean and completely human looking, no blood, fangs or red eyes in sight.

She watched as he slipped his hands into his pockets in a non-threatening gesture. "What did you just do to those demons?"

"Smote them. Sent them back to hell."

"How though?"

He shrugged, "Thought it."

She watched as he took a hesitant step forward but stopped when she took a step back. "You weren't that powerful last week."

He shook his head, "No I wasn't. My wings are growing back extremely quickly; they're almost fully formed. I can almost do everything I could before. Please don't be scared of me."

Buffy's hands flew out to her sides, "How can I not Angel? You killed a child. You kill things with your mind."

"But I had to. I have to do what's asked of me Buffy and that's been on the list since he was born I just never had the time. I didn't kill him just because I felt like it. Do you really think I'm capable of that?" he asked softly, the hurt clearly heard in his voice.

She wrapped her arms around herself, "I don't know what you're capable of." What else has he done? Is he really an angel? She spun around when he suddenly appeared directly behind her.

"I'm an angel. I know I've given you a lot of reasons to doubt me but I really am an angel."

Buffy's jaw dropped, "Did you just read my mind?"

This was not going well. "Accidently. You were thinking so loud that I couldn't ignore it. Please though Buffy, please don't be mad at me. I'm sorry for all the things I said but I'm not sorry for doing what's required of me."

The pair stared at each other in silence, both knowing it was up to Buffy if he would stay or leave. Finally after what felt like hours she offered a small smile, "I'll try to not get in the way of your job if you work on your attitude."

He grinned, "Deal." He held out his hand and Buffy slipped her fingers between his before they walked together through the cemetery. "You won't find any more vampires or demons here tonight, they know I'm here."

"Well do you want to go to the bronze with me?"

He nodded, "Sure, why not. Picture it for me." She frowned but did as told and a moment later it felt like her entire body was being pulled in a hundred different directions. Everything was a blur and a roar was sounding in her ears so loud she couldn't think.

"You ok?" Angel asked a second later.

She looked up at him and looked to her left where the entrance of the Bronze stood. "Did we just fly here?"

He nodded with a boyish smile and an excited expression, "Cool isn't it?"

"Something like that," she said as she tried to take a step only to find her legs didn't want to support her. Large hands on her waist held her upright until she could gather herself. After a couple minutes she pulled away from him, "Ok, better now. Come on lets go in."

He followed her as she weaved through the crowd until finally spotting Willow and Xander sitting at a table and heading for them. "Hey guys!" she said happily.

"Hi Buffy! Where were…oh." Willow's eyes grew huge at the sight of Angel standing behind her. "Um..hi Angel."

He smiled, "Hello Willow. Sorry about last week I didn't mean to scare any of you. Please accept my apology."

Willow glanced at Buffy who nodded to show things were ok. "Um.. sure, I accept it."

"Well I don't," Xander spat as he stood up to glare at Angel.

Angel watched as the boy stepped forward to him, his glare faltering when he realized just how large Angel really was. He had to give the boy credit, not many would stand up to him. "I'm sorry to hear that Alexander, maybe with time you can."

Xander sputtered in annoyance when Angel sat down and dismissed him but didn't say anything because of a pleading look from Buffy. Knowing he needed to just try to ignore the fact that the man across from him was a psychotic angel on missions from who knows where he forced himself to adopt a neutral expression. "So where you been Angel?"

Xander's eyebrows shot up when Angel suddenly took a sip of a dark beer that hadn't been there a second before. "Around, I never left."

He noticed that Xander was staring at his drink, "Guinness, want one?"

"I'm only sixteen."

A chuckle escaped the angel, "So? You want one or not? Something else?"

Buffy spoke up, "I'll take a coke. Willow you want something?"

"An iced tea please," she said quietly.

"I'll have a Mountain Dew," Xander finally answered. As soon as the words left his mouth everyone's drinks were in front of them. Willow and Buffy instantly started drinking theirs but Xander just stared at his drink. "It's not poisoned right?"

Angel shook his head with a smile as he downed the last of his beer, the glass instantly refilling as it hit the table. "I'm not that subtle or compassionate. If I wanted you dead it would be much more painful and obvious."

Not knowing how to respond to that Xander just grabbed his drink and turned to look at the dance floor. His eyes widened at the sight of a woman dancing with long maroon colored hair dressed in tight leather. Her extremely tall and voluptuous figure barely concealed by her outfit.

Buffy watched the woman dance by herself and couldn't help but be jealous, she was beautiful. She subtly looked at Angel who had his eyes locked on the woman but unlike every other boy he didn't look entranced, he looked pissed. He shoved himself away from the table and walked over to her. She smiled mischievously at him and pulled him to slow dance with her.

"What are you doing here Abaddon?" Angel growled as the woman pulled him closer.

She melted against him and wrapped her arms around his waist, "Just enjoying the night life Liam, same as you are."

He pursed his lips together, "Leave now before I kill you."

Abaddon brought her lips to his neck and kissed it softly, her forked tongue dragging along the edge of his ear. "Cute. You could try little boy." Her hands rose from his waist and wrapped themselves around the edges of his wings which were visible to her as she pushed herself shamelessly against him. "God I want you," she groaned into his ear. "Your wings are magnificent and they're not even fully grown in yet," she whispered as her hands caressed the black feathers.

Angel cringed at the unwelcome and intimate touches and grabbed her arms to remove her from him. "Last warning."

She smirked and dropped her hands back to his hips, her fingers hooking in his belt loops to pull his him against her again when he tried to step back. "He doesn't deserve you. He punishes you for what you are. Do you know what you are Liam?"

He simply glared.

"You're imperfect in every possible way. So confused, conflicted. Always wondering if what you're doing is the right thing. You're beautifully imperfect."

He smiled cruelly as he lowered his lips to her ear, "Do you know what's perfect Abaddon?"

She shivered from the touch of his lips on her ear before shaking her head slightly.

"Perfect is what it's going to be when I rip your wings off of you and snap your neck."

She jerked back slightly and took a step back, "I'll see you soon Liam." With a parting wink she disappeared into the crowd leaving Angel silently fuming. He turned to look at Buffy who was watching him with a hurt expression.

He made his way back to the table and sat down unceremoniously next to her. "Give me a chance to explain before you get upset."

She nodded stiffly and crossed her arms, "Ok Angel, explain to me why you were grinding against that woman while she molested you."

"That was a demon."

She scoffed, Xander doing the same. "Even better, so you were dancing with a demon."

He raked a hand through his hair, "I was talking to him, he's the one that was turning it into a groping session."

"He?" Willow asked.

Angel leaned back in his chair, "Yes, him. His name is Abaddon and he's one of the strongest demons in hell, second only to Lucifer. He chooses how he wants to appear and this time he obviously chose a woman."

"Are you gay?" Xander asked.

Angel turned to look at him slowly before shaking his head. "That's what you're focusing on? I tell you a powerful demon from hell was just here and you ask if I'm gay?" Seeing the boys nod he rolled his eyes. "No I'm not but he's attracted to everyone and everything. He figures he catches more flies with honey than vinegar."

"What did he want?" Buffy asked, her slayer side showing up at the mention that the she was a he and the he was a demon.

Angel shook his head, "I don't know but he's definitely here for something. As much as I hate to say it I think he's here for me. He always wanted me gone and now's his chance." In a surprisingly human gesture he dropped his forehead to the table and groaned.

Buffy placed her hand on his back and rubbed his shoulders, "We'll deal with him."

Hearing the confidence in her voice made him smile, "Glad you're so confident."

She looked at her friends who were trying to ignore Angel and stood, "I'm going home, I'll talk to you guys later."

After saying goodbye to everyone Angel and Buffy started their walk home hand in hand. He had offered to fly but Buffy didn't seem to enjoy it as much as he did. As they walked Buffy watched him out of the corner of her eye. A frown was covering his face and he looked very deep in thought, most likely about the demon that had appeared. "Angel?"

He startled for a second before looking down at her, "Yes?"

"Why didn't you just kill Alibaba?"

He smiled, "I didn't kill Abaddon because I'm not strong enough to. Even on my best day it would be a challenge but right now it's impossible. Plus the risk of collateral damage was too high."

Buffy nodded, "The bronze was pretty packed tonight."

"Not them Buffy, you."

Not wanting to start another argument she simply stared straight ahead and ignored the fact that he was willing to overlook so many human lives. When they arrived at her house they stood on the front porch bathed in darkness.

Feeling uncomfortable and awkward suddenly she looked at the ground to get away from his intense stare. Her eyebrows knitted together as she leaned down to grab something from next to Angel. When she stood and inspected it better she saw it was a small black down feather.

Angel blushed furiously and looked away when she looked at him with questioning eyes, "That's embarrassing." Seeing her confused expression he continued, "I'm molting."

Her eyebrows shot up, "This came from you? Where are your wings though?"

"Yeah that's one of mine. They're trying to appear but aren't able to yet. Molting is the last thing so as soon as my new feathers come in they'll manifest."

She smiled as she twirled the feather between her fingers, "It's so soft."

"It's down. It's from the underside of them near the base." He watched as she slipped the feather into her pocket and yawned before smiling up at him. "Guess I should go to bed."

He wanted to join her but since she didn't ask or invite him to he stayed silent. "Goodnight Buffy."

She stepped forward and hugged him tightly, the smell of spice and fresh rain assaulting her senses. With a content sigh she looked up at him and raised herself on her tippy toes to kiss him. When his lips met hers she allowed her eyes to drift shut as he wrapped his body around hers.

Angel had meant for this to be a small kiss like before but now that it was happening and she was in his arms he couldn't stop. He slowly nudged her backwards until her back was against the house, her small body pressed against his as he devoured her lips. His hands dropped to her hips as he pressed into her harder, his tongue gliding against hers as they spiraled out of control. When she needed air she turned her head slightly and Angel moved his lips along her ear and down to her neck where he licked and nipped at her skin. She groaned at the contact and threaded a hand through his hair to pull him closer.

"Angel, we have to stop," she whispered when his hands rose to her waist under her white shirt.

With reluctance he kissed back up her neck to her lips before slowly pulling away and staring at her. His eyes were almost completely black giving him an otherworldly appearance. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

She nodded before turning and entering her house. As soon as the door clicked shut she slumped against it with a small smile and licked her lips, the taste of Angel still upon them.