PART 3

Joyce Summers was slowly going crazy, she'd been locked up in the stupid hotel with that darn vampire's company for two whole days and still none of them had managed to gather any new information on Buffy. She finally snapped and lashed out at the closest person to her, unfortunately that was Angel, who wasn't exactly pleased when she told him to go back to hell where he belonged.

After that incident Angel longed to escape, but when he headed out to Caritas they all followed him.

"Angel" the host called out as he spotted him, "Two visits in one week. To what exactly do I owe this honour?"

"Nothing much… just thought maybe you had some new information… Or something?"

The host nodded in understanding, "The visitors are driving you nuts… especially the mother."

"How did you? Forget it" Angel muttered.

The host laughed, "Sing a song. It'll make you feel better."

"No it won't" Angel replied.

"Then you won't find out if I know anything new" the host teased.

"Fine" Angel muttered in defeat. The host went up to the stage and before Angel knew it, he was once again singing.

//Looking back on the memory of

The dance we shared 'neath the stars above

For a moment all the world was right

How could I have known that you'd ever say goodbye//

//And now I'm glad I didn't know

The way it all would end, the way it all would go

Our lives are better left to chance

I could've missed the pain

But I'd of had to miss the dance//

"Wow" Willow said to Cordy, "Angel's really, really bad at this."

"Yep. You'd think that after twenty years at this he'd improve… at least a little" Cordy replied knowingly.

"But you have to admit he's innovative" the host said coming up behind them. "He puts his own uniqueness into each song."

Cordy turned to him, "You're just glad he's not singing 'Mandy' again."

"Eternally grateful" the host agreed.

//Holding you I held everything

For a moment wasn't I a king

But if I'd only known how the king would fall

Hey who's to say

You know I might have changed it all//

//And now I'm glad I didn't know

The way it all would end, the way it all would go

Our lives are better left to chance

I could have missed the pain

But I'd of had to miss the dance//

//Yes, my life is better left to chance

I could have missed the pain

But I'd of had to miss the dance//

When he'd finished, Angel came down from the stage, he looked at the host expectantly. "Okay, big guy" he said handing him a slip of paper. "Go to this address… the battle is almost upon us." Angel stared at the paper and then gave the host a dubious look. "Okay… I know I've sent you on a few missions that were…"

"Deadly."

"Hey, you're still here" the host defended his decisions. "Anyway this one's correct and… there is a certain girl living there."

"I thought that you couldn't give me her address?"

"Hey, I'm fickle and a sucker for true love."

Angel took the paper, mumbled thanks and returned to the gang, where he was immediately questioned by Cordy. "What did he say?" she asked.

"We have to go to San Francisco" Angel informed them.

"Why?"

"It's where the battle is to be fought," Angel said, "Also… it's where she is."

There was a collective gasp from the group, followed by a moment of silence. Then Joyce said, "Let's go."

"We should consider the fact that she may not know who we are," Giles said trying to be the voice of reason.

This sobered Joyce and Dawn and Willow was then next to speak. "Whatever the outcome… we'll deal," she said softly.

"If we leave tonight… we could stay in a hotel, rest tomorrow and then head over to see her as soon as it's dark tomorrow" Dawn said.

"Hey… you know some of us have responsibilities. Wes and I can't leave Gina and Tamara alone. They'll destroy the house and kill each other" Cordy replied.

"Yeah" Xander agreed. "Anya and I'll have to arrange for the sitter to stay with LeAnn and Travis longer."

"Well… mom, Giles, Angel and I could head up tonight and tomorrow you guys could join us," Dawn suggested.

They all agreed and with that plan in mind they left Caritas to go meet their futures.

San Francisco – The Next Evening:

"Where do you think that you are going?" Piper said as she spotted Emma and her seventeen-year-old niece, Trisha trying to leave the manor.

"We're going to the movies, it's a retrospective. We told you and Aunt Phoebe this morning," Emma told her mother calmly.

Piper vaguely recalled the conversation and she knew that she didn't have any right to keep them from going, "Okay… but don't do anything stupid."

"Aunt Piper, we're teenagers… we're supposed to do stupid things," Trisha said as Emma pushed out of the door.

Emma turned back to her mother and said, "Don't worry, we'll be fine and back early since I have patrol. Besides we're meeting Andy and he'll protect us since he's such a guy and all… at least until something scares him and then he'll run away screaming."

"No need to be sarcastic," Piper told her as the door closed.

Leo orbed in behind his wife and put his arms around her. "It'll be okay… she'll be okay, she's the slayer," he said, "And she's not a baby anymore."

"I know… but I feel like I'm losing her. She just doesn't talk to me anymore and she used to tell me everything" Piper told him relaxing in his arms.

Leo kissed her and said, "Uh… Piper… I really need to tell you something to tell you about Emma."

"What now?" she asked suspiciously.

"Something that you're not going to like."

Angel, Dawn, Giles and Joyce met up with the others in front of the Nelson Arms hotel just after dark. "So are we ready?" Dawn asked anxious to see Buffy. Even if she was a totally different person, Dawn still felt as though she was her sister.

"No… but then again, I don't think I'll ever be" Joyce replied nervously.

The others all agreed with Joyce, but went along with Dawn's idea and piled into their respective vehicles, heading to the address that the host had given Angel. Fifteen minutes later they pulled up in front, got out and stood there staring at the manor.

"It looks so normal" Joyce whispered.

"So did ours mom" Dawn reminded her.

Xander looked around uncomfortably, "So do we knock…"

"Are we ready to knock?" Willow suddenly said in panic, "I don't feel ready yet."

"No… I'm not ready either" Joyce added nervous now the moment was upon them.

Giles sighed and joined in, "What if she doesn't want to know us or doesn't remember?"

"Of course she'll want to know us… we're her family" Dawn said strongly.

"Not anymore kiddo" Xander told her. "She'll have a whole new family… friends… boyfriend," Xander said aiming his last point at Angel.

Angel was staring at the manor and chose to let Xander's comment pass by, it's not like that idea hadn't already occurred to him, he knew that after all he'd done that he didn't deserve another chance with her… Whatever the body she was in. Suddenly he said, "She's not here."

"Huh?" Cordy questioned. "Did he give us the wrong address again?"

"I didn't say that she didn't live here… just that she's not at home now" Angel told her.

"Oh" Cordy replied embarrassed.

They all stood out the front of the manor trying to decide whether they should run away or embrace the lost part of their past, that was now an important part of their futures.

Meanwhile Inside The Manor...

"Our daughter is a reincarnated soul," Piper repeated slowly. "Big deal. Pheebs already proved that it does happen."

Leo sighed, "This is different, Piper. Emma has the full memories of her life as Buffy - birth, death and everything in-between."

{Oh My God, my poor baby} Piper thought. "So what exactly does this mean for her?" Piper asked Leo horrified at the thought of her daughter having to deal with the memories another life, on top of the one she already had.

"She has to complete the destiny that was set out for her last lifetime" Leo told Piper what he knew for sure, leaving out the bits about Scooby gangs and vampires wanting to join with Emma.

"So…" Piper was confused. First Leo tells her this and then leaves her hanging for information.

"I don't know anything more than that… this time they are even more closed mouthed than usual" Leo replied upset, but not for the usual reasons. This time it was personal, the witch in trouble was his daughter and for once he didn't want to stumble through it blindly. He wasn't even supposed to really be involved since he wasn't Emma's white lighter.

"We'll get through this" Piper told him, going from being comforted to being the comforter. "We always do… we're the charmed ones."

"Emma's not just a charmed one" Leo said, "She's a slayer also… it's different. Demons attack her for different reasons than they attack you guys for. Plus she has to deal with the responsibilities of not only her witch powers, but also her white lighter powers."

Phoebe rushed into the room, cutting off anything that Piper was about to say. "Guys" she said anxiously, "You need to see this."

"What Pheebs?" Piper asked wondering what else could possibly go wrong tonight. Phoebe went over to the front window and checked on something.

"There is a bunch of strange people on your lawn having a debate… well actually it's more like a fight."

"WHAT?" Piper and Leo chorused getting up and going over to the living room window where Phoebe was standing.

They looked out and Leo said, "I know two of them."

"How?" Phoebe asked Leo, since everyone in the group was strangers to her and Piper.

"Business" Leo said as he went outside.

Willow looked up at the sound of a door opening and saw a familiar face standing on the steps above them. "Leo?" she asked confused. What were she and Tara's white lighter doing here? The others stopped arguing and looked at Willow and then at the stranger standing there, looking at them.

"Willow… Tara? What are you doing here?" Leo asked them.

"Umm… we're kind of looking for someone" Willow mumbled shyly, she always got nervous around Leo because of his whole orbing thing.

Leo looked at them and realised who this rag-tag bunch were, "You're the Scooby gang?"

A look of shock appeared on most of their faces and Giles whispered to the stranger, "How did you know?"

"Come inside and I'll try to explain" Leo told them.