"Immortal Beloved..." CVII...

A shortie...

PG-13

Disclaimer: No, Joss, no...I make no claims, put that thing down!

It's all yours and ME's...

Spoilers for Angel to the bitter end...Flee at once!...

Summary: Various outcomes following "Girl In Question" and /or "Not Fade Away" on Angel...Not a continuous series, though some are multi-part...

Archived at the "Normal" Buffyverse page of the BR verse, https://www.angelfire.com/zine2/buffyrebecca/index.html

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Rome...One day before the great battle at LA...

"Well, then he went off without a word to us...And in September, I found him...With soul...Insane in the high school basement, near the Hellmouth Seal..."

"So then...What he did say?..." an eager look... "I mean, can you remember his first words to you when you saw him there, his soul recovered for love of you, but he himself insane?..."

"He was insane...He babbled a lot...But he did have a soul, I could sense it right off..."

"Yes, but what did he say?...Then and in that church you mentioned, later on..." pen in hand, waiting over paper...

A slight frown from the narrator, a slight young blonde woman, seated on the couch of her apartment...

"You know..." she eyed her interrogator and dinner guest, the famed Immortal...

"You sure like to ask a lot of questions about William...Not to mention all the notes..." she eyed the three notepads he'd filled just this evening...

"I am a writer, Buffy...With my latest, the fourth volume of my autobiography, coming soon to a bookstore near you..." a Benevolent beam... "And this story, a vampire winning back his soul for love...I mean you must see it's a tale that deserves to heard by the world...For your William's sake, of course..."

"Yeah...'Course you know I got a few great tales in my lil' exploits...Like this time when..." she began...

"Indeed, indeed...And I enjoy hearing them, my dear, truly...All of them...But to be honest...Those are, after all, merely tales of your doing your job...And they pretty much all end the same way...Bad fellow goes poof, world saved..."

She blinked...

"But this tale...William the romantic poet, trapped for a century by a cruel rejection and headstrong act, but saved by...Well, freeing himself, you not really providing much support...Love..."

Huh?... "Now, wait a min..."

"It's a guaranteed sure-fire hit, Buffy...I mean of course in terms of allowing your noble friend's tale to be told as a tribute to his spirit..."

As a poet and writer, I'm sure he'd appreciate this form of tribute...The Immortal beamed again...

"Of course, if you had played a more active role in helping him overcome his tragic fate..." a slight sigh...

"Active role?..."

"I mean, had you shown any concern for his safe return to Humanity...Even as a mere friend let alone a lover..."

"But I told him I loved him..." she noted, a little wanly, blinking...

"Yesss...You did..." he seemed to consider a moment... "Nah, doesn't work...I mean you ran off and left him to die and never even tried so much as a seance to see if he was all right in Heaven...I mean, Buffy, come on...The boy was ready to die for you even soulless..."

I think we best leave the "I love you" out...he nodded thoughtfully...

"But..." she stared... "I really...Sorta..."

"Unless..." he gave her a sidelong glance...

You might...Possibly...I mean in the interests of seeing William's story properly told before the world...In the way I am absolutely sure you would have gone had the situation not been quite so...Hectic...That day...

"Consider a...Very slight..." he held thumb and forefinger a quarter inch apart... "Rewrite?..."

Ummn?...

"Rewrite?..." she stared...

"Just something to make it clear how deeply you did love the poor boy...I mean, dear girl...This is your story too...Your incredible romance that reclaimed a lost soul...If he is the romantic hero, your very own Michael Furey...You...My dear Buffy...Are certainly the romantic heroine..."

Hmmn...?

"Who's..."

"Character in Joyce...James, not your mother...Anyway, Buffy...I want to tell the real story buried within these factual events...The thoughts, feelings...The passions...You two felt before poor William's tragic end...An end you, with all your incredible abilities, could not save him from..."

"Uh...Oh...Oh..." Sounds of sobbing...

"Here, Andrew..." His Benevolence passed over some paper napkins from the table...Paper, he sighed, repressing the urge to roll eyes...Thank God I should have her signature on the contract's bottom line in the next ten...

Another night watching reality TV and eating whatever that horrifying concoction was with Ms. All-American Girl and I think I'd finally see a sunrise...

The things I do for great literature...And to allow myself what is necessary to maintain the image of "The Immortal"...Two castles, three chateaus, all fully staffed, naturally...And three, (thank God, mortal) ex-wives...

"Ooh...Ah...Buf...Buffy..." Andy stumbled over from his chair, wearing bathrobe, hair in towel...There being no Slayers-in-training to take round the sights this evening...

"It's ok Andy..." she patted him... "I know how much you miss him..."

"Bu...Bu...But...He..."

Hmmn...His Benevolence eyed Andy...Not quite the right image for the gallant friend, touched by Evil himself, who comes to support the romantic duo in their quest...I think perhaps I'll model him on Angel...Physically at least...

Hee...And perhaps that tiresome brooding fellow on this one...Comic relief in the former lover and now, by most accounts, rather dull CEO who didn't quite...Shall we say?...Hack it in the sack...

Anyway she says she's not even sure if it was him or Angelus that one time...

"Andy..." Buffy pulled up his chin... "You gotta get over this...Hey, I've moved on, you can too..."

"Bu...But he's not dead...I mean he's dead but not not Undead..." Andrew blurted...

And I am so dead when Chairman Giles hears I talked...

"He what?..." Buffy stared... "William's...?"

"In LA...With Angel...Well, they're not together or anything...So far as I know..." Andrew gave a thoughtful look...

"But he's working with Angel since he materialized in the old Wolfram-Hart office...Something to do with that amulet and some enemy of Angel's corporealizing him so he'd challenge Angel..." a hand wave...

"Alive?...I mean..." she gave a quick shrug...Then a frown quickly sliding to glare...

"And why the hell didn't he come to see me right away?..."

"He was trapped by the fiendish power of the loathsome Partners..." His Benevolence cut in... "Until that fateful day when his beloved, learning of his return from beyond beyond the grave..."

Hmmn?...she stared...

Hmmn...That would be kinda romantic...she thought...And Giles did say Angel might be up to something when he asked me to agree to cut him outta our loop till we knew what was up in LA...

"I think he was afraid to come though he did come by one time...Uh..." Andrew paused...

He what?...

"See Chairman Giles thought...When I told him after I got back from LA when that poor Dana girl cut Will's hands off when he tried to help her..."

Cut?...Buffy stared...

He tried to save a demented Slayer for his own love's sake and suffered a horrible fate...Oh, Lord for this bonanza thou is square with me for my own unjust condemnation...The Immortal gazed Heavenward...

"It might be a good idea for you to go, Buffy..." Andy noted... "I think Angel's moving against the Partners...All our LA surveillance reports in the Council point to him as the one who destroyed the Black Thorn Circle...And they probably will not be giving him a golden parachute when they hear..."

"The heroine arrives in the nick of time to save her beloved and her former (yes, definitely cast someone like dear Andrew...Perhaps that young actor I saw, Tom What's-his-name...Ah, right, Lenk, as Angel, he thought) lover...It's sheer poetry, Buffy..."

And a potential gold mine for a certain Benevolent...And not-at-all desiring to screw up a gold...er, great romance...Immortal...

"Naturally I understand...These times we've shared have been wonderful and I shall always treasure...(Here's your coat, dear)...Your friendship..." he pointed her towards the door...

"But you must...(Don't forget Mr. Pointy, sweetheart)..." No, indeed...She...And he...Must live...

For the sequel...

Hell, I smell a whole series here...Cha-ching, cha-ching...

"...go to him whom you truly love...And show him the true depth..."

Try to look the part, dear...At least till I cast Nicole Kidman...he sighed at her somewhat puzzled face...Andrew grabbing his coat as well...

"...of your love for him..."

Yeah?...Buffy stared...

"Absolutely..." His Benevolence patted her on the shoulder... "Now go, Slayer...The love of your life and his existence awaits you both..."

Yeah...she nodded vaguely...Ummn...

"Ready, Slayer..." Andrew struck a dutiful pose...Oh...He grabbed the towel from his head and threw it into his bedroom...

Hmmn...His Benevolence thought....

So Angel, towel on his head, emerges...

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