[insert funny disclaimer here]

Buffy hesitated, her hand on the doorknob. She knew it was past time to confront this issue, and that she couldn't let herself be distracted any more. Not by new Watchers, or demons, or evil gloves, or even her surprisingly good SAT results. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and opened the door. Stepping into the gloomy basement, she pulled the door closed behind her, and turned to where she knew the only occupant of the room was.

"Hello Angel."

At that exact moment, a drunken blond was prying himself out of the wreckage his car made after crashing into the Sunnydale sign.

"Home sweet home!" Spike slurred out before falling unconscious.

"I've been trying to figure out what to say for days now. I mean, what can I say? I sent you to hell, after evil-you tried to destroy the world. And now you're back. None of this is great conversation material. I don't even know if you're Angel or Angelus." She paused, staring at the recumbent figure in the half-light. "Why are you back? How?"

"…Buffy?"

It was more a croak than a word, but she was instantly on her guard, stake in hand.

"Sit up slowly. Any stupid moves and I'll be crying as I dust-bust you up."

The figure painfully pulled himself up and leaned back against the wall. He looked pale and drawn, more so than usual. His hands shook slightly, either from fear or a side effect of being in hell, she couldn't tell.

"Angel?" How one word could be filled with so much hope, yet so much fear she never figured out, but at the time, she felt like she poured an ocean of emotion into those five letters.

He looked at her, and she could tell it was him. She could see it in his eyes, the loss, the pain, the love. If she hadn't had supportive friends and family, this might have broken her. But her friends rallying around her, helping her get through this let her do what she needed.

"I love you Angel. I think I always will."

He smiled, feeling some of the pain in his soul fade away.

"But I can't be with you. Ever. So you need to leave."

She stood up and walked away, missing the look of shock on his face.

In an old burned down factory, there came a dreadful cacophony of what could be called music, if one were feeling very generous.

"Ah travel'd eACh an' evr'y HIGHway! An' mor'! Mush mor' 'an this! Ah did it myyyYYYYYYYY WAY!"

Gary Oldman would shake his head. Sid himself would bottle the bastard. But Spike was oblivious, drunkenly screaming off-key lyrics as he trashed the remains of Drusilla's doll collection. He eventually collapsed in a heap, sobbing the rest of the lyrics through his tears, like a pathetic wanker.

Giles and Xander walked into the basement, neither looking entirely happy about it. Angel was still sitting there with the same look of shock, and didn't snap out of it until Giles cleared his throat.

"…she…what? But…I don't understand."

"What's to understand, Captain Forehead? She loved you, you almost destroyed the world. You make Romeo and Juliet look like amateurs when it comes to doomed romance. But you both survived, and get a second shot. Just not at each other."

The vampire slowly stood up, looming over Xander.

"You did this, you turned her against me. Do you think you can just move in after I'm gone and…"

"Angel." Giles interrupted quietly, but with authority cracking from his voice like a whip. Angel flinched back, remembering what he had done to the man.

"Though it may have been stated crudely, was anything Xander said wrong?"

"…No." The admission felt like it was covered in barbed wire, but Angel couldn't deny it.

"Were it my choice, you-you'd be a stiff fart in the breeze right now, but it's not. Buffy insist that you've done good, and while I do hold more than a little animosity towards you, I can't disagree. But you won't stay here. You and she are dangerous together, and the temptation is unnecessary. So you'll leave."

Angel looked as though he would protest, but just nodded instead. "As my mind started to come back, I realized the same. Doesn't mean I like taking orders, but I'll leave. A few months to tidy up old business and…"

"If you are inside city limits at dawn, rest assured that I will ensure you see it."

Angel was visibly taken aback, but didn't get a chance to argue as Xander chimed in.

"You and she are a crate of dynamite and a forest fire. We're choosing not to tempt fate. There's a car registered to Liam Angel out front, keys are in it, as is two grand in cash. Considering what you've done, it's more than you deserve. Take it and leave."

After a pause, Angel spoke back up. "Fine. There are things I've been meaning to look into in LA, I can be there…"

"EEEEEINT! Strike two!" Xander crossed his arms in an 'X'. "You're a drug addict, and she's your fix. A two-hour drive is not enough distance. Head for the Rockies and don't stop until you're on the far side. Hell, head all the way to the East coast. Drive up to D.C., get rid of some of the parasites there. And kill some vamps while you're at it."

"And if I don't?" It never took much for Angel to get annoyed with Xander, but the teen was really pushing his buttons today.

"Then I hope you're a fan of Kansas."

"Why's that?"

"'Cause you'll be dust in the wind."

Spike managed to pull himself up and shake some of the dust off. Upon slightly sober reflection, this wasn't a particularly smart move, coming back to the old wreck.

"Heh. Lookit the place. Practia'y fallin' 'round me ears." He smacked one of the walls to demonstrate and it obliged, falling over and burying him. Spike decided that enough was enough, and passed out again.

Angel may have still been feeling weak and disoriented from his return from hell, but he wasn't backing down from a kid and a librarian.

"Oh? What, you get a haircut and think you're enough to take me?" The big vampire surged forward only to stop as he heard the 'click' of a small crossbow and feel a sharp point against his chest.

"Me? Maybe. Maybe not. But Giles can hit a dime with a crossbow at a hundred yards. Mrs. Summers has been practicing as well. I don't need to stake you, Angel. I just need to distract you while someone else does. And let me tell you, there's no shortage of volunteers. Heck, Cordy started getting some practice in when she heard you were back."

"Fine." Angel stepped back and both living men lowered their weapons. Slightly. Giles handed Angel a business card.

"What's this?"

"As much as I personally dislike you, you have fought against the darkness, and should have some resources to call upon. Should you require my expertise in research to identify some supernatural threat or another, I-I'll, provide what assistance I may. However, I fully agree with Xander's threats, and will not hesitate to end you should you show up uninvited."

Angel took the card, understanding the peace gesture as what it was.

"Can I say goodbye to her?"

"She's already left."

Shoulders slouched, despondent, the vampire with a soul left, and was soon out of Sunnydale.

"Why aren't I a wreck? I mean, when I first saw him back I froze up, and then I cried all night. I've been moping this past week because of him, trying to figure out what to say, and what to do. And then I see him, and I'm overflowing with emotion, and…that's it? I tell him to leave and never come back, and walk away?"

Buffy collapsed on her couch as Oz continued to strum his base. She was puzzled and confused, not necessarily in that order, but didn't feel as bad as she felt she should have. In her mind, it was such a huge, soul-wrenching decision, but she was barely in the basement five minutes before she left.

"Could be you'd already said all you needed last spring. Could be the week waiting took care of all the stressing. Could be a Slayer thing. But it doesn't mean you're bad. Or shallow."

Buffy closed her mouth as he said shallow, having been about to ask that exact thing. She glared at him, knowing it would have no effect on the musician, and then started up again more slowly.

"He feels different. It used to be I'd be alone with him, and my pulse would race, my heart beat faster. I was convinced it was because it was beating for both of us. Just now, I felt the hairs stand up on the back of my neck. I could still feel the emotions, but they drained away so fast. It just doesn't make sense."

"Sounds mystical. Definitely a Slayer thing."

"Great. As if being a Slayer wasn't bad enough for my love life."

Oz pauses in his playing and raises his eyebrow at her.

"OK, so this isn't the same. None of my other ex's tried to destroy the world. Or were vampires. It's still weird that I was so worked up and then…nothing."

"Talk to Giles. He might have some idea."

"Guess you don't have all the answers then." Buffy teased, starting to get over her funk.

"No, but I made sure your mom bought another pint of Rocky Road."

"Stop being perfect Oz. Willow would hate me if I tried to steal you, and I'd be embarrassed when I failed."

The musician shrugged. "Love makes us do the wacky."

The sun finally set again as the wreckage of the warehouse started to move, and Spike dragged himself out from under it.

"Ow. Well, this was pointless. I may as well bugger off again, don't want to run into Summers. I'll just sit here a spell and…" Spike dropped the cigarette he had just put into his mouth. "That's it! A spell! That red-headed bint that hangs around with the Slayer fancies herself a witch of some sort. I'll get her to put the mojo on Dru and I'm back in the game!"

AN: Oh Spike, will I ever tire of using you as a punching bag? Probably not.

Sooooo, you may have noticed that I wrote Angel out of the series. That's for real. I have no intention of bringing him back. This is not a Buffy-Angel crossover. And, quite frankly, for all the good points about that show, there were huge parts I didn't like. Like the powers.

I'm anticipating my first flames over this decision, but bring them on. It's still cold here, I could use the heat.