I don't own the BuffyVerse. If I did..things would be going a lot differently than they are. There would be NO Riley( repeat after me..Riley is EVIL) and Buffy and Angel would still be together on one show. Not to say that I dislike the ANGEL show because I don't..I actually think it's better than BUFFY right now..I just think both shows are lacking without the chemistry the two characters brought to each other..even in a long distance let's at least be friends kinda way. Anyways, my point is that Joss owns the BuffyVerse..I am only a mere writer. No sueage unless you want a hell cat. .
The title of this song comes from Carl Anderson and Gloria Loring. The quotes you will recognize theming through this is from called Beautiful Tonight by Eric Clapton. The quotes below are "Love Will Keep Us Alive" by the Eagles. .
To my sister for whom this series is being written. And for my writing partner Erana. You rock man. .
She patted him on the head and smiled mischeivously, "It'll be okay, Xand..you're worrying way too much." She circled around the back of him, pulling on her dress in a way that even if he wanted to, he wouldn't be able to get a look. "It'll go fine. That's why we're going with you."
"Great," he muttered softly, falling back against her bed. "That way even Dead Boy can laugh his ass off as I make a complete fool of myself."
"You won't," she promised. Then she scowled,"And I guarantee you, if he wants any kind of night cap, he won't."
"Thanks Buff," Xander murmured as he trudged himself off her bed and towards the showers.
"It's hung up on the door." Buffy Summers called after him as she moved to inspect her closet for the right pair of shoes.
"Thanks," he called back as he stared at the nice ironed suit that was hanging in a plastic bag from the hook on the door. Sighing, he wondered about all the hurry. After all, God tended to save his ringside seats for fools, just so they could watch their love lives hit the skids over not chewing correctly. Oh hell.
She walked out of the bathroom butt naked and stood before him, "Nevermind. This is stupid. Call him and tell him I reconsidered."
Sighing impatiently he threw a towel at her, "I could do that or I could kick your ass until you got dressed. Now go. We're supposed to pick them up in thirty minutes."
She muttered a string on unintelligible curses and then disappeared back into the dimly lit bathroom of the mansion. Angel sighed heavily and then bent down to pull on his leather boots. Maybe this had been a really bad idea..not the going out part..Buffy wanted a night on the town and he was more than happy to do that but what about the part about pairing two of the more uncertain and yet volatile members of their group: Xander and Faith. It was stupid. It was insanity. Buffy liked to call it fate.
She'd always been a hopeless romantic. Then again, he wasn't far off the beating path. He was just a little bit more skeptic. But that came from having lived as long as he had. Nevermind that he was the last one to talk about taking caution. With Buffy, the Slayer..his mortal enemy, he'd taken none. In fact he'd acted much the same way a battle bruised soldier does when he walks through the doors of his house after the war and sees that even through all of the pain and agony, the love of his life is still waiting for him. No hesitation. Just peace.
Faith was like that.
The poor girl had been running for so damn long and from demons they were only beginning to understand. She kept so much hidden behind that solid rock wall. He understood that. No matter how much he loved Buffy, he was pretty sure that there would be some things, some secrets that were just too damn dark that he'd never be able to speak to her about. Faith was different as far as that went though. Whereas Angel knew Buffy wanted to hear about his darkness, Faith liked to believe that nobody gave a damn.
That was what confused her so much about Xander. He actually talked to her. Yeah, he was definately interested in the physical attributes.. afterall..he was still just an eighteen year old boy. To ask him to close his eyes and ignore that the tall dark haired Slayer was also a beautiful woman would be grossly unfair.
"Do I look alright?" a soft voice asked from the doorway. He turned and smiled, feeling more big brotherly than he had in a long time. Ever since the ordeal about killing the Mayor's aide, the two of them had been like siblings. He'd been the guiding older brother to her somewhat trusting younger sister. It wasn't easy for her, he knew that but then again, it wasn't terribly easy for him to trust either. It sure didn't come natually after all he'd seen and been through.
"You look wonderful tonight," he replied. And she did. She was dressed in a black dress with spaghetti straps. It gave her an ample amount of cleavage without going the "let me show you everything I got baby" route. He chuckled slightly at the sight of the steel-toed boots she was still wearing. A girl had to feel comfortable right?
She brought her hand up to her hair which was pulled back and away from her face. It brought out her cheekbones and made her smile look even fuller. She was a beautiful girl. "So, we ready or are you gonna keep staring at me and go on with the internal monologue?"
He frowned and shook his head, "We're ready." Offering his arm, he led her towards his black Cadillac. He opened the door for her and then swung around to the other side. He gave her one last smile and then started the ignition.
"What if she reconsidered?"
"Angel will get her here."
"But.."
"No buts. Have faith."
"That's cute."
"I thought so." Buffy smiled widely at him and then stood to gaze at herself in the mirror one last time. She wouldn't dare admit it to Xand, he was already a nervous wreck, but she was beginning to wonder if they were going to show. It was already twenty minutes after eight. Pick-up time had been eight.
No. Angel wouldn't dare stand her up. He might be ancient in the ways of the world and he might not have a clue about dating protocal but he was smart enough to know that the fallout from flaking would be painful. And fun only for her.
Well maybe he'd forgotten that he was supposed to pick them up at her mothers' house instead of the dorm. Oz and the Dingoes had taken over she and Will's dormitory with one of their excessively loud practices. All that noise tended to make Angel go catatonic so a compromise had been reached and they'd decided that she and Xand would get ready at Buffy's old house. Maybe he'd forgotten. Afterall, he was really old. Maybe vampires could get age related memory diseases like..
"They're here," Xand whispered from the window. She moved to join him and smiled widely as she watched Angel get out of the drivers' seat, looking immaculate in a black suit. She saw the door to the passenger door opening but a quick exchange between Angel and presumably Faith stopped it. Angel moved around to the other door and opened it. He then offered an arm to a reluctant Faith who seemed even less confident about her surroundings than usual. Buffy saw the girl blanch and try to escape back into the car but Angel held her steady and moved her towards the house. Smiling down at Faith, he knocked on the door.
Joyce Summers pulled it open within seconds and then smiled at the two. "Faith, you look amazing." She ushered them into the house. Looking around, his eyes fell across the suitcase sitting by the stairs. Joyce and a few of her friends were going to Vegas that weekend for a woman's getaway or as Buffy called it..a liscensed bitching session. She would be leaving later that night. He was moving towards the stairs when he felt a soft slender hand grasp his arm. Joyce pulled him back towards her. "Two hundred and fifty years old and you never learned how to work a tie?"
He blushed slightly and then craned his neck so that the elder Summers woman could adjust the tie. She finally patted his arm. "Thanks," he murmured, still embarassed.
She winked at him, "Don't worry about it. In all my years of marriage to Hank..he never figured it out..and one of his jobs as a teenager was the mens' department at Macy's. Primarily the tie racks."
He chuckled. "Are they uh..ready?"
"We are," Buffy said descending the stairs in grand fashion. She smiled fully at her vampiric lover, managing to find the control to not jump him on the spot deep in the pit of her stomach. Then she turned to look behind her, "Come on Harris, ya wimp."
His head popped out from behind the wall followed a moment a later by the rest of him and then suddenly, quite out of nowhere, he began to move down the stairs at mach ten speed. "You look incredible," he whispered, eyes locked on Faith.
She pointed to herself, uncertain. He just nodded. She blushed. Angel chuckled. Buffy hit him. "Thanks," she said softly, still sounding unsure, still looking over her shoulder for the other person he was calling incredible.
"And me? How do I look?" Buffy asked with a devilish grin.
He just winked and leaned closer, "Edible my love. Simply edible."
"Good boy. Well trained."
Angel laughed. "Thanks." He glanced over at Faith to see if she was going to throw in commentary but her eyes were still locked with Xanders'. Shaking his head, he asked "We ready to go? Our reservation is in twenty minutes."
"Yeah. Come on guys, let's get moving." Buffy said, allowing Angel to help her put on her overcoat.
"You kids have a good evening," Joyce said as she handed Xander a blue jacket. "Angel, I'm counting on you to be the adult." Then she narrowed her eyes at Buffy, "And you..make sure the house is picked up before you lock it up. I don't want to get home tommorow night from my long drive to find a pig-sty. Understand?"
"Gotcha mom," Buffy replied with a small laugh as she squeezed Angel's arm. The excitement was rolling off her in waves.
"Good. Have fun."
Angel smiled slightly, "We will. Thanks." And then with a dramatic sigh, he waved his arm to usher the other three towards the car. He helped Xander and Faith into the back before seating Buffy riding shot-gun. He trotted around to the other side and jumped in. Starting the engine, he pulled aweay from the house and began to drive towards the docks. There was a fine dining restraunt there called Rudy's. The waiting list alone tended to be weeks if not months. It'd taken a few favours to swing the four of them getting a table that night. Cordelia Chase had been amply impressed.
As he was driving, attempting to keep his eyes on the dark stretch of road in front of him, he felt Buffy settle her small hand over his. He looked up at her and she just grinned wickedly. He shook his head. Not here. Not now. Later. She sighed. Prude.
"You two getting nasty up there," Faith said with a wink. She moved herself up so that she could peer over the seat divide. She felt Xander settle his hand on her arm and was fascinated by the warm sensation that accompanied the touch. It was a tad bit frightening and a whole lot of exhileration. Weirdness.
"No," Angel said, caught painfully between the responsibilities of being an adult and the needs of a young man with his beautiful girlfriend sitting way too close.
"No," Buffy replied petulantly. Faith laughed.
Faith glanced over at Xander when she realized that his hand was still on her arm. "Do you feel alright?" she asked, a hint of nervousness in her voice.
He smiled,"I feel wonderful tonight."
Angel offered Buffy a small grin and then squeezed her hand. "We're here guys.."
"Hey Angel..when did they start feeding the patrons outside of Rudy's?" Xander interrupted as he tightened his grasp on Faith's arm.
Both Buffy and Angel looked sharply up. "Fuck," Buffy muttered, eyes narrowing. Angel glanced over at her surprised but Buffy was already up, preparing for battle. The moment he stopped the car, she was out and racing across the docks, heels and all. He and Faith were only steps behind.
Buffy threw herself into the closest of the fang-mouths. Hitting him across the face with such ferocity that his head swung full around, she stood above him, growling. "All I wanted was a nice evening with my lover. Tell me that's not too much to ask?" The vamp looked up at her uncertain as to his reply. His silence was greeted with a swift kick to the face. "Well? Is it?"
"No?" the vamp said as it cowered from the furious anger that was staring back at him.
"No,what?" Buffy glowered.
"No,it's not too much to ask?"
"Good boy and now as your gift for winning our showcase..a quick staking." And with that she plunged the stake through the vampire's chest. Turning, she examined the rest of the fight. Damn..it sure was in full fury.
Angel was taking on two by himself as was Faith. Xand looked like he was just trying to keep himself from getting bitten. Buffy did a backflip and pressed her back to Xanders'."You okay?"
"Yeah," he replied shakily. That was when she saw the bloody stripe above his eye. It didn't look deep but it didn't look fun either and the blood was dripping down on to his shirt. "Faith. Help Faith." He looked at her with naked desperation. "Please."
She nodded quickly, stopping only to squeeze his arm reassuringly. She watched him stake the vamp he was facing and then slump against the wall behind for a moment. Then she turned towards where Faith was.
The taller brunette Slayer was boxed in. That much was obvious. But she was putting up one hell of a battle. Kicking, punching and biting when deemed neccesary. There was blood on her arm and a scratch on her cheek. Narrowing her eyes, Buffy ranged back and then took fight, sending the heels of her shoes into the back of the vampire that was attempting to shove his fangs into Faith's jugular. The vamp howled in agony and then fell to the ground.
"Thanks, B."Faith murmured, desperately out of breath. She placed her hands on her knees momentarily, moving onl,y to punch a vampire away fom her. "You were right..this ain't no big deal. Just like any other date. Some fighting. Some cussing. Some biting and some bleeding."
"Haven't..had many dates like that, Faith," Buffy muttered with amusement as she punched a vampire so hard in the mouth that she thought she heard a crack. She winced and then shrugged. Looking over towards Angel she saw that he was still struggling with the two vamps that kept attempting to sucker punch him. "Hold on, baby." Buffy cried out as she started to move towards him. She barely felt the vampire that lifted her up in the air until it threw her into the wall that Xander was still sagged against it. Only his quick hands kept her from smashing into it head-first. He pulled her into him and held her there while she tried to shake the dizziness away.
Faith saw that her friend was momentarily in good hands and then moved to help Angel who was doubled over on the pavement. She swung out with her foot and connected with one of the vampires' heads. It crumpled back and never had time to recover before she staked it. The other one turned on her but Angel reached up from the groud and slammed a stake through it's back. He looked up at her, as winded as a vampire could get. His hair was damp with persperation and was sticking to his forehead. "Thanks for the assist."
She smiled and helped him. She was about to turn around to declare victory but what she saw made her face go white with fear and then dark with anger. "Oh God dammit.."
Xander was still holding a stunned Buffy in his arms and the two of them were pinned against the wall by three amazingly large vampires that by Angel's estimate best resembled the Three in size. And damn did they all look hungry.
Faith reached over to the wood railing of the dock and with one quick snap broke off a piece of it. Angel followed her lead and the two of them attacked the vamps from behind, fighting in full fury and in Angel's case,full vamp face. Within minutes, gray ash swirled around them.
The two of them dropped to the ground and Angel quickly took Buffy from Xanders' arms and laid her out on his lap. Xander looked up at Faith and smiled weakly."You okay?"
"Yeah." she said, taken over by a sudden need that she couldn't control. Reaching across to him, she gently brushed a strand of blood streaked dark hair out of his eyes and then she leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on his forehead. He looked up at her quizzically but her only reply was another soft sweep of her hand past his forehead. "Hey Angie, how's B.?"
Angel frowned intially at the nickname he'd asked her a million times not to call him and then he sighed. "Baby?"
She looked up groggily,"I'm 'kay." Rubbing her eyes, she attempted to push herself to her feet but then ended up back against Angel.
"I guess dinner's off," Faith said with more regret than she thought she'd feel.
"No, it's not," Angel replied. "Faith, drive them back to Buffy's house. Joyce should be gone by now. Get them both settled. I'll take care of everything else."
She lifted her eyebrow,"Alright. No chick flicks."
He just smiled,"Go." He watched as Xander lifted Buffy up and placed her into the back of the Caddy. Then he narrowed his eyes at Faith. "Drive carefully."
"Sure Dead Boy. Okay." And with that she swipped at the keys. She flashed one more mischeivious grin back at him and then raced into the car, eager to get it going before he could reconsider. She burned out of the parking lot leaving a trail of flying dust in her wake. He just sighed.
Within an hour, both Buffy and Xander were feeling better. The two of them were sitting in front of the television playing the James Bond game. Buffy kept growling at him because he kept taking pot shots at her head with the laser rifle.
Faith looked up from the liquor cabinet she was going through to see Angel enter from the kitchen door with three brown paper bags that were all steaming. He gave her a look and she very reluctantly shut the cabinet. "What's that?"
"Steak. I went down and had a friend that owed me a favour cut me up some filets and cook them up. Full steak dinner with all the trimmings," he said with a slight smile as he held up the bag. Then from under his arm he pulled out a tape case. Faith plucked it from his hand and lifted his eyebrow.
"What's this?"
"It's a French movie. Not a chick flick. There's lots of blood and gore for you and Xander but it's also a romance."
"Sex?"
"Lots."
"Subtitled?"
"Yes."
She shrugged. "I'm just hungry."
"How are they?"
"Fine. They're killing each other. Buffy's bitching."
"That game again?" he asked with dread. Buffy had a bad habit of becoming addicted to video games and it all went downhill from there.
She nodded and then reached out for the bag. Angel slapped her hand away. "Go sit out there. I'll bring it out in a moment."
"Okay," she grumbled moving towards the living room.
"Hey Faith?"
"Yeah," she asked turning back towards him.
"You looked stunning tonight," Angel, said, smiling affectionately.
Very shyly she replied,"Thanks." And then she made a quick exit and he once again found himself angered at the thought that the girl was so unused to being told how beautiful she was. He'd been astonished enough as it was that Buffy still had trouble being told such a thing..it pissed him off that both of them were so uncertain about themselves.
With a short low growl, he moved over to the counter to begin serving up dinner.
Faith settled herself next to Xander. He smiled up at her and then leaned across and pecked her on the cheek, eyes sparkling. In spite of the person inside yelling be cool, she giggled an that made him laugh. When she looked up, she saw Buffy beaming back at her.
Trying to regain some of her cool, she said gruffly,"How's the head?"
"Feels better. Now just stomach hurts. Man should be dealing with that. Man slow. Man must suffer for this."
Faith lifted an eyebrow. Xander just patted her arm," It's a lethal combination. Starvation, blood loss and getting her ass kicked in a video game. Makes her English suck."
"Eat me," Buffy muttered.
Both Xander and Faith looked at her, "Um, B., conventional wisdom says.."
"Conventional wisdom says you don't offer something which belongs only to me," Angel said softly from the doorway. He entered the room carrying two plates. He put them down in front of the trio and then disappeared into the kitchen only to reappear seconds laters with two more plates. "Hang on. One more trip." He returned with four wine glasses and a bottle. "You all understand you're not leaving here tonight, right?" They all gave him the "duh" look. He poured the wine and then looked at Faith daring her to say that she didn't do wine but she kept her mouth shut and instead dug into the food. Angel smiled. Reaching over to the VCR, he popped in the tape.
"This is better," Buffy said. "Like this much better than eating at some stuffy restraunt. Can't curl there."
"You mean you can't make out there," Faith chuckled, watching as Angel pulled Buffy against him and placed a piece of steak in the tiny blonde's mouth. "And you definately can't do that."
Buffy winked.
It was after two in the morning when the movie finally ended. Looking down at the small blonde in his arms, he found, to no great surprise that she was sleeping. He chuckled and moved to lift her when his eyes swept across the room to where Xander and Faith were lying, curled ,up with each other. He smiled and then picked Buffy up and carried her upstairs.
He was on his way up the stairs when his foot overstepped the first step and he stumbled, nearly dropping Buffy. She looked up at him through bleary eyes, "Your chances ae getting less, Fly Boy. Drop me and you're done for." He just chuckled and then holding her in his arms, trotted up the steps.
Xander looked up, woken by the noise Angel had made. He glanced down at Faith and then leaned down to kiss her cheek. She stirred in his arms and gazed up at him. Lifting a hand, she traced a finger past his lips. "Morning," she said softly.
He chuckled,"Hardly morning. Just after two. Go back to sleep..sleepy-head."
"Hey Xand?" she asked, curling her head back into the crook of his arm.
"Hm?"
Very quietly, almost uncertain of the words coming from her lips, she asked, "How was I tonight?"
He chuckled but the sound wasn't meant to insult or make fun of her. Leaning down so close that his soft lips brushed across her ear, he replied in song, "My darling.." and then he stopped and with much more feeling he finished, "You were wonderful tonight."
She chose not to reply, only curled further, allowing sleep to take her with a smile stretching complacently across her lips.
