"Immortal Beloved...XXIII..."

A shortie...

PG-13

Disclaimer: It's all yours and ME's, Joss...Except the 'Soames Walthrop'...

Spoilers for Angel to this week...Flee at once!...

Summary: Ok, now I've gone entirely too far...(Remember they're not parts of one story, but a series of retellings during and after the Rome rendezvous of "Girl In Question")

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Rome...Buffy's apartment...About one am...May6th...

The Immortal by her side, Buffy stares at Andrew, then a troubled-looking Dawn...

"So they came by...And left without a word?..."

"Oh, no..." Andy notes brightly..."They talked a lot to me..."

"Spike left this..." Dawn handed a tape...

Hmmn...Buffy stared...How nice...the Immortal noted...

"It's just one song..." Dawn noted...The Immortal doing his aristocratic best to politely repress visible signs of boredom...

She went to their stereo...Ummn...Buffy?...Dawn called quietly...

"You might wanna play that later...In your room..."

She waved a hand briefly... "Spike has gotta get this outta his system...I mean...It's not that I'm not fond of him but...Heck, he never called me..."

(Why...Annie Lennox...)

"How many times do I have to try to tell you

That I'm sorry for the things I've done

But when I start to try to tell you

That's when you have to tell me

Hey...this kind of trouble's only just begun

I tell myself too many times

Why don't you ever learn to keep your big mouth shut

That's why it hurts so bad to hear the words

That keep on falling from your mouth

Falling from your mouth

Falling from your mouth

Tell me...

Why

Why

I may be mad

I may be blind

I may be viciously unkind

But I can still read what you're thinking

And I've heard it said too many times

That you'd be better off

Besides...

Why can't you see this boat is sinking

(This boat is sinking this boat is sinking)

Let's go down to the water's edge

And we can cast away those doubts

Some things are better left unsaid

But they still turn me inside out

Turning inside out turning inside out

Tell me...

Why

Tell me...

Why

This is the book I never read

These are the words I never said

This is the path I'll never tread

These are the dreams I'll dream instead

This is the joy that's seldom spread

These are the tears...

The tears we shed

This is the fear

This is the dread

These are the contents of my head

And these are the years that we have spent

And this is what they represent

And this is how I feel

Do you know how I feel?

'Cause I don't think you know how I feel

I don't think you know what I feel

I don't think you know what I feel

You don't know what I feel..."

Ah...Yes...The Immortal nodded...Annie Lennox...I know her well...he smugly noted...

Uh...huh...Dawn eyed him coolly...What did Xander call him after meeting him last time?...His 'Pompous Buffooness'....?

Ummn...Buffy stared at the stereo...I...Ummn...

"I'll take that if you don't want it, Buf..." Dawn eyed her...

And him as well...Her look clearly said as their eyes locked...

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