“So we’re trusting him?” 

“Yes,” Oz nodded, looking at Giles who nodded as well. “I always trusted him,” Oz added with a significant look to Willow who frowned. She didn’t like being reminded of all that happened in their relationship. Her betrayal and his because he knew – and she hated when he was right like that – that she couldn’t and probably wouldn’t accept Angel back in Buffy’s life. 

Considering the conclusions they all jumped to when Angel had attacked Giles – and considering the fact that he was attacking Giles over something that was completely justified – maybe Angel was in the right. Oz certainly thought he was and Oz thought he, himself, was as well. Maybe her boyfriend was right, Willow thought, as she often did since this all came out. Maybe Oz was right in keeping it a secret, in trusting Buffy and Angel and in not trusting the rest of them. 

But, God, it hurt. It hurt that he felt he couldn’t trust her…but then she did have this habit of telling Xander everything – don’t even go there – and if it involved Buffy and Angel, then Willow had a feeling she was also going to tell Giles. And then who knew what might have happened. 

“I’m in,” she nodded and they looked to Xander who had voiced the original question. He was silent for a moment, clearly not enjoying either the question or the situation. Oz suspected he liked the attention, however. 

“Okay,” Xander nodded. “I’m in as well.” 

Cordelia shrugged from her sitting position at the other end of the table. She wasn’t sure why she was there, why she cared anymore or why she bothered. Oh, wait. Self-preservation, she reminded herself. She didn’t want to die in the mayor’s ascension, whatever that turned out to be. Finally, she nodded, still silent. 

“Then,” Giles said, taking his glasses off and cleaning them, “We have to start now. We haven’t a lot of time. I don’t know when this ascension is going to take place, but I doubt very much our esteemed mayor is going to want to waste any time.” 

“What is an ascension, anyway?” Xander asked. 

“Don’t know,” Giles admitted, looking at the stack of books that lay before them. “But it has to be something big if he’s been planning it as long as we think he has been.”

Giles had told them all of Buffy’s suspicions about Faith. None of them believed it, but she was adamant and convinced Giles who then had the task of convincing the rest of them. And of bringing them all back together from the fractured state too many lies and secrets between the gang had caused. 

“Let’s head down to city records and see what we can find there. There’s a reason Sunnydale was built on a Hellmouth, this may be it.”
~~~~~~~~~~
“Okay,” Buffy said as they stepped into the great hall in the mansion. The room smelled of the two of them, she thought with a faint tugging deep within her. It smelled of home and safety and long nights where they could be together. And they were together. It smelled of love and longing and him. It smelled of her Angel. 

“Where are these books?” 

“Actually,” Angel said in that smoothly sexy voice and gave Faith a little smirk. Ah, so clueless, so perfect. “There’s been a slight change in plan, Buff.” 

Faith watched the stiffening in Buffy’s shoulders, the flood of tension that raced through her sister slayer. This was great, she wanted to crow. Finally, B was getting what she deserved. No, a part of her cried out in pain, dieing a little more every moment. It wasn’t supposed to be like this! 

Buffy stilled, turned slowly to look at her lover and hoped she was a good enough actress to pull this off. Could she when what she really wanted was to leap across the distance separating them and ride Angel until they were both too weak to care? She asked, a faint quaver in her voice, “Buff? You just called ... What’s the matter with you?” 

“Nothing.” Angel insisted and there was pure honesty in his voice. Faith thought it was because she truly had managed to rid him of his soul, but Buffy knew that it was because he didn’t have to hide any of who he was from her. His face shifted and he added with a wicked smile, “Matter of fact, I haven’t felt this good in a long time.” 

“Angel?” 

“You know,” Angel said as his claddagh ring flashed briefly in the dimly lighted mansion. Faith never noticed he hadn’t taken it off if she ever did notice he wore it in the first place. “I never properly thanked you for sending me to hell.” 

“No,” Buffy wanted to cry, a part of her still felt tremendous guilt over that even though she and Angel had talked about it. But damn, she was good at this acting stuff, an evil streak within her laughed; Faith wasn’t ever going to know what happened to her. 

And another part of Buffy died at that, the bond between sisters failing faster every moment. 

“Oh, Yeah,” Angel nodded and stalked towards her. He could smell her arousal, her blood calling to him, her body yearning for his. He wanted to take her now, but refrained from blowing their charade; Buffy wanted answers and Angel had promised to help. But if Sunnydale went to hell, he wasn’t going to mourn. So long as Buffy survived who cared?  “And I’m just wondering where do I start? Card? Fruit basket?” He grasped Buffy’s arms, drawing her closer so she could feel his own arousal and desperate need. “Evisceration?” 

“No,” Buffy struggled, weak and unsure, she knew. Why would she want to leave his arms, anyway? Okay, so maybe she wasn’t that great an actress. 

“Yeah, I know what you’re thinking. Maybe there’s still some good deep down inside of me that remembers and loves you. If only you could reach me. Then again, we have reality.” 

Reality was that it didn’t matter; he loved, needed her, and he had her. There was no more separation between soul and demon, but Faith didn’t know that. There wasn’t a way to rid the body of something that was inherently tied together with demon, body, blood. Buffy. 

Buffy broke away from him, stumbling backwards not from fear, but from fast, hard, pumping arousal. “I will kill you before I let you touch me. Faith, we need to get out of here, now.” 

Faith was so busy watching what she wanted to see that she didn’t listen to that one part of her still tied to Buffy. The slayer that longed to be reunited with her sister was screaming to be heard. Buffy needed her, the slayer knew, Buffy needed her as much as she needed Buffy. But the darkness slowly consuming Faith blocked out those words, those feelings. The way Buffy felt towards Angel, the knowledge buried deeply within that he wasn’t evil and couldn’t ever hurt her. 

And really, if it was as she thought, then wouldn’t Buffy try to stake Angel right here and now? 

“Speak for yourself, B,” she smirked and sauntered over to where Angel stood with that sexy half smile on his face. “Me, I like it here.” 

Stunned, Buffy stayed still after that revelation. Well, she wasn’t that stunned, was she? Disappointed, unbearably so, but this was what this whole pretense was about. And she was right. Sometimes, Buffy hated being right. Angel growled jus then, causing Buffy to turn and face him. He knocked her out, catching her before she could fall to the ground. 

 Looking up at Faith with lust in his eyes – his mate was in his arms and her arousal still called to him – he bared his fangs once more. She really did have a lot to learn about vampires, but it was rather amusing to perpetuate the myths surrounding them. Particularly him. 

“One thing I learned about Buffy,” Angel looked down at his lover with a knowing smile for Faith. “She’s so cute when she’s sleeping.” Hefting her in his arms, he set about chaining her against the wall. 

Maybe that was a mistake, Angel thought. Because she looked absolutely fuckable there, wearing his chains, waiting for his body. She was wearing entirely too many clothes, but that could be remedied. Very, very soon. 

“Morning, sleepyhead,” he said as he gave one more tug against the chains. His face was close to her belly and he really wanted to move that little bit forward and… “You know what I just can’t believe? All of our time together and we never tried chains. Well,” he shrugged and pulled away before he lost control, “Can’t dwell on the past, especially with the future we have ahead.” 

Missing the double entendre, Faith smirked back at Angelus. “Bondage looks good on you, B. The outfit’s all wrong, but, hey!” She shrugged as if to say well, what can you do about it now. 

“You don’t know what you’re doing, Faith,” Buffy insisted. “Trust me on this, you have no idea what’s happening.” 

“Really?” Again, Faith shrugged. “Weird, because something about all this just feels so right. Maybe it’s one of those unhappy childhood things.” Listen to our sister! The slayer voice with Faith demanded but then fell silent under the onslaught of memories. “See, when I was a kid I used to beg my mom for a dog. Didn’t matter what kind, I just wanted, you know, something to love.”

Faith wandered over to Angel and kissed him, showing Buffy that now she had just that, someone to love. Buffy stared at Faith with genuine tears in her eyes. There was love between them, love and companionship and slayer-energy that burned hot and true. What happened there? 

And really, did Faith think that Angelus could love her? The only being the demon felt those feelings for was Buffy and the blonde slayer knew that. “A dog’s all I wanted,” Faith continued, “You know, a cute little puppy to play with?” 

They’d seen one in the pet store window and Faith had wanted it so badly, the feeling burned through Buffy. Neither mentioned it, but  Buffy knew that Faith wanted the small ball of fur as her own. “Well, that and toys, lots,” she lifted a blanket on a tray several feet from where Buffy stood against the wall to reveal a variety torture instruments no doubt left over from Angelus’ reign last year. 

“And lots of fun toys to play with. But mom was so busy, you know, enjoying the drinking and passing out parts of life,” bitterness flowed into Buffy with Faith’s words, but it was vague, faint, their link dieing a little more with those feelings. “That I never really got what I wanted, until now.” 

“Faith,” Buffy tried again, “Listen to me very closely. Angel’s a killer. When he’s done with me, he’ll turn on you.” 

Angel smirked. Ah, his little slayer knew him well. But then he’d never be done with Buffy; she was his and his alone. His to love, his to touch, his to taste. And his to protect. “She’s right. I probably will.” 

Faith seemed unimpressed and gave another shrug. “Yeah? Huh, guess we’ll just have to keep you around for a while then. Before we get started, I just want you to know: if you’re a screamer, please, feel free.”

With that, Faith walked over to Buffy and licked the side of her face, letting the anger and jealous hatred washed over her. It felt good, powerful, strong and Faith liked that even more. It felt better – not better weaker – than the bond between slayers and Faith liked that, too. She could feel Buffy’s body humming and smiled. Maybe she should’ve made good on that halfhearted promise about she and Buffy; her sister might have enjoyed it more than Faith realized at the time. 

“Why, Faith? What’s in it for you?” 

“What isn’t?” Faith laughed. She had it all now; the mayor at her back, Angelus at her side and in her bed, and her sweet little betrayer, her so-called sister, right here, just waiting to be tortured. “You know, I come to Sunnydale. I’m the Slayer. I do my job kicking ass better than anyone. What do I hear about everywhere I go? Buffy. So I slay, I behave, I do the good little girl routine. And who’s everybody thank? Buffy.” 

“That’s not what happened and you know it.” Buffy told her and all three heard the honesty in her voice. “You came here and we were…” she couldn’t describe it, what it was like to have a sister slayer, someone by her side, at her back. “We were sisters, we fought and played and you know it.” 

“What I know,” Faith snarled, picking up a scalpel, “Is that you betrayed me with your little boy toy. You didn’t trust me, you didn’t need me, and you certainly didn’t want me around.” 

“I did!” Buffy shouted, “You know I did. Faith-” 

But Faith heard nothing. She stalked a few paces towards Buffy, sleek in anger and power, strength and hatred. The scalpel was clutched tightly in her hand and she was more than ready to use it. Stopping a few paces from Buffy, Faith glanced back at Angel. He stood here, idly playing with something else – metal and painful looking from what Faith could discern but she had no idea what it actually did. He didn’t care for Buffy, Faith thought with a relieved sigh. If he did, then he’d be there to stop her, Faith, from cutting her. 

That last little bit of Slayer, of reasoning, left her then and Faith firmly squashed the insistent voice within her that called out for Buffy. didn’t need that – or her – any longer. No, Faith had Angelus. 

“Everybody always asks, why can’t you be more like Buffy? But did anyone ever ask if you could be more like me?” 

Angel shrugged from his position near the fireplace. He wasn’t worried about Buffy – she could and would take care of herself. “I know I didn’t.” 

Turning to glance back at him, Faith wondered at his words. Maybe she’d been to hasty in thinking he was hers? But no, he didn’t want Buffy, had insisted that himself and from everything Richard had said about their little…affair from last year he tried to kill her, not bed her. No, his words were simply that. He didn’t want Faith to be like Buffy because he wanted Faith, not Buffy. 

“You get the Watcher. You get the mom. You get the little Scooby gang. What do I get? Jack squat. This is supposed to be my town!” 

Buffy laughed then. “You want all that? Fine,” she spat, “They’re all yours. The watcher who poisoned me and tried to have me killed because of some ancient ritual. The mom who has no clue what I do or who I am and drinks herself into a stupor the nights I don’t make it home before dawn.” 

Angel stiffened behind Faith at that revelation. He hadn’t known that about Joyce and suddenly felt a sliver of guilt for keeping Buffy away from her mother. He couldn’t live without her but hadn’t thought about what her mother would think so soon after finding out about Buffy being the Slayer, about Angel returning. 

“You want my friends? Again,” she offered, “Yours. They don’t get it thought, Faith. They don’t understand just what it is we do, how it defines us and who it makes us. They think it’s a game when we both know better.” 

Buffy leaned forward, earnestly. She needed to try and reach Faith one last time. “The only person who understands you is me and the only one to understand me is you. We’re connected, we’re slayers, we’re sisters. You know that!” 

“Fuck you, B,” Faith spat, doing her best to ignore the words Buffy shouted at her. She knew…but no, it wasn’t true. “And what of your precious Angel? The one you lied and betrayed me for? What of him? He doesn’t understand you? Well,” She gave a coy smile over her shoulder at the vampire behind her. “Not anymore, eh? 

“Faith, listen to me!” 

“Why? So you can impart some special Buffy wisdom? Is that it? Do you think you’re better than me?” Faith scoffed at the idea but added, “Do you? Say it; you think you’re better than me.” 

“I am,” Buffy said quietly. Her heart broke for what her sister had become, for not being able to help her. “I always have been.” 

“Um, maybe you didn’t notice.” Faith wouldn’t let Buffy’s words get to her, tried one last thing. “Angel’s with me.” 

Scoffing at that, the blonde asked straightforwardly. Angel knew what she was doing, and knew his role in this play. Later, he’d reinforce his role in Buffy’s life. And her bed. “And how did you get him, Faith. Magic? Cast some sort of spell? Cause in the real world,” she laughed here. “Angel would never touch you and we both know it.” 

Storming over to her, Faith backhanded Buffy. Not true, not true, not true. 

Licking her lip of the blood that pooled there, Buffy ignored the faint purr/growl coming from Angel. Was it over Faith’s actions? Maybe, but Buffy had a feeling it had more to do with the scent of her blood calling to him. “You had to tie me up to beat me,” Her sister was lost to her. “There’s a word for people like you, Faith. Loser.” 

Laughing, Faith stepped back. She was so onto Buffy, her sister had nothing over her. “Uh huh. You’re just trying to make me mad so I’ll kill you.” Again, that voice shouted in protect, but it grew fainter by the moment. “I’m too smart for that. Stick around, you’ll see. I have resources now that you know nothing about. So just watch, B, watch and see.” 

“Watch what? Watch you try to best me? Watch you wear out your welcome with Angel? Oh, I know,” Buffy taunted. “Your boss’s lame Ascension. I’m supposed to be scared of that?” she laughed, “Like I couldn’t stop it. 

“You can’t,” Faith shrugged. She didn’t know how Buffy knew about her association with the mayor, or about Richard’s ascension, but it ultimately didn’t matter. “You can’t stop him, B.”

“I will.” Her voice was full of confidence and Faith wavered. 

Ignoring it, she shrugged again, laughing at the blonde. Another glance at Angel to reassure her that he was still there. “Keep dreaming, sister,” Faith mocked. “No one can stop the Ascension; mayor’s got it wired, B. He built this town for demons to feed on and come graduation day, he’s getting paid. And I’ll be sitting at his right hand.” She shrugged again, and Buffy was beginning to get annoyed at all that movement. Faith wasn’t as sure as she thought. 

“Assuming he has hands after the transformation. I’m not too clear on that part. And all your little lame ass friends are going to be kibbles’n’bits. Think about that, Miss I’m too good for everyone else, when your boyfriend – who is now with me – is cutting into you.” 

The finale split was there. It tore straight down the middle, the very essence screaming loudly into the world. Those in tuned with such things cried out in shock and hurt, wondering what could cause such a rip in the very fabric of being. But they were few and far in between. And only two of them stood together, watching, knowing. And mourning. 

Buffy doubled over with those words, Faith not much better. Angel stilled his instinctive movement to go to Buffy’s side and tend her. He had no idea what was happening to her, but it scared and hurt her. That was enough for him to drop everything and comfort her. But he didn’t. he waited, the demon screaming in his head, the soul reaching out to its mate. 

“What the fuck did you do to me?” Faith demanded as she struggled to stand up straight. 

“Nothing,” Buffy gasped. “Why?” She still wanted to know. “Why did you do this? I never knew you had so much rage in you.” 

Shaking off whatever had just happened to her, and feeling very much alone and afraid in this suddenly opened world, Faith snarled. “What can I say? I’m the world’s best actor.” 

His cue and Angel took it. He walked to Buffy, needing to be close to her. He didn’t care about the farce they played, all he needed was his woman by his side. “Second best, Faith. You were always second best.” 

Silence. 

Turning to Angel in stunned surprise, Faith felt her world crumble. What little was left of it that was. What little hadn’t already disintegrated into nothingness with the break from Buffy now did so with this newest betrayal from Angel. “How…?” 

“Graduation day,” Buffy said, still trying to regain her balance from whatever happened between her and Faith. Or didn’t happen. “You think we missed anything, baby?” 

“I think we know everything she knows, lover,” Angel said as he released Buffy from the unsecured chains and kissed her cheek. His fingers ran down her arm, curling around hers. 

“You played me.” Faith shouted, enraged. “You played me!” 

“It didn’t have to be this way, Faith,” Buffy insisted. “It didn’t have to be this way at all.” 

Faith leapt at Buffy then, all her anger and rage coiling within her. Angel moved out of the way, watching his woman take on the weaker slayer. It was really no match. Fists flew and legs swept out in a flurry of motion that only Angel could follow. It was exhilarating to watch…and arousing. Damn, but his woman could move. 

Buffy and Faith each held a knife to the other’s throat, breathing hard, waiting, waiting, waiting. 

“What are you gonna do, B, kill me?” One last tug, one last move. “You become me. You’re not ready for that, yet.” 

Grabbing Buffy’s neck and pulling her sister forward, Faith kissed her on the forehead. “Sister,” she whispered and then raced out the door. 

“Sister,” Buffy whispered back.

Angel was there, helping her stand. “You alright?” 

“No,” she said, burying her head in his shoulder, holding on to him. “What happens now?”
~~~~~~~~~~
“Well,” Giles said the next morning when everyone gathered in the library. 

It was almost like old times. Except Angel was there, sitting in the chair furthest from the windows. Giles wanted to ask him how it was he moved around in the sunlight, but didn’t. Nor was he going to. Things weren’t like that between the men anymore. Chances were they wouldn’t be again, either. 

“What’s the word?” Buffy asked from her chair immediately next to her vampire lover. 

“The mayor,” Giles said in his best lecturer voice, “Seems to be immortal.” 

“He smelled of magick,” Angel admitted, his hand caressing Buffy’s neck. “Old magick, and something else. I’m not sure what. Tried to stick him with his letter opener but it didn’t leave so much as a scratch.” 

Frowning, Giles turned to Wesley. He wasn’t exactly in the loop, but the younger watcher did have contacts to the Council that Giles was loath to use. While technically still a watcher, once Wesley informed the Council of Angel’s return and his place in the scheme of things, Giles had lost much of his standing. Oddly enough, he found he also didn’t care. 

“According to the records in city hall,” Wes added, “He’s over a hundred years old.” 

“Maybe,” Angel conceded. “But there’s something else about him, too. I just can’t place it.” 

“Basically,” Cordelia summed everything up, “We know nothing more than we used to. Except that we’re never making it out of high school.”

Xander opened his mouth for a snappy comeback but nothing was there. “Think of it this way,” he eventually said. “At least we’ll make it too graduation.” 

It wasn’t in the least bit comforting.
~~~~~~~~~~
Joyce Summers watched her daughter pace from the living room through the dining room and into the kitchen, pause, and do it all again. She was giving off seriously tense vibes and Joyce was worried for her. Plus, Buffy was spending entirely too much time with that vampire. It wasn’t healthy for her. 

“Honey,” she called from her place in the den where she was looking over inventory from the gallery. “What are you so agitated about?” 

“Mom,” Buffy said and walked into the den. “Remember how I said there was this new big bad out there that had inside help?” Joyce nodded and Buffy took a deep breath. “Well, it was Faith.” 

Empty, cracking void with nothing within it. Empty, hopeless, needy. Their connection was gone, but something within Buffy still called out for it. 

“Faith!” Joyce said in shock. “What happened?” 

Slowly, Buffy spilled the whole story to her mother. She even told Joyce the parts where Faith wanted Angel for herself. The mayor, the ascension, graduation day. All of it. 

“What are you going to do?” Joyce finally asked. She wasn’t sure how much of this she understood, or even how much she believed. She still had some problems with the whole concept of vampires and demons, but believed her daughter…this time. But then this time there was proof. 

“What I have to do,” Buffy admitted with a sigh. There were tears in her eyes and Joyce wondered at that. “What I always do. But I don’t want you to worry, mom, okay? Just, well…if you see Faith, be careful. Okay?” 

Joyce nodded and Buffy stood. “I’m off for patrol with Angel.” Kissing her mom, she grabbed her spring jacket and left.

Missing the speculative look on Joyce’s face.
~~~~~~~~~~
It really was the only way. 

Joyce only wanted her daughter happy and was convinced that so long as she and that vampire were seeing each other it could never be. Buffy needed something more than the darkness that invaded her life, something more than patrolling and demons. She couldn’t have that with Angel, as he was one of those demons himself. She also couldn’t have a normal life with her slaying and Joyce so wished that Faith had worked out. 

Knocking on the door nearly a week after Buffy told her of Faith’s turning, Joyce waited while Angel opened it. He was kind and courteous, offering her a drink or something to eat. Why would he have those things here? 

Buffy. He did it for Buffy. Well, at least her little girl was being fed, that was something. Still, she was so young, had her whole life ahead of her. She needed…she deserved more than this.

“I,” this was more awkward than she’d anticipated. “I know you and Buffy are seeing each other,” Joyce began and stepped further into the room. “I know she often spends the night here. With you. I’m not interested in the details. That’s not why I’m here.” 

“Okay,” Angel said warily, not liking this one bit. Something wasn’t right in the air, Joyce’s scent was off, wrong. She was worried about Buffy – and Angel could appreciate that – but there was something else there, too.

“I’m here because I’m worried about you two. In general.” Nerves now, Joyce was filled with nervous…something. Mothering in the extreme.

Confused, Angel told her, “What happened before, when I changed, it won’t happen again. I can’t lose my soul, Joyce.”

She didn’t understand that, either. Buffy hadn’t told her the reasons, just that it wasn’t possible. And yet Joyce knew her daughter was having sex with her vampire lover. “That’s not all I’m concerned about. I don’t have to tell you that you and Buffy are from different worlds. You’re immortal if I understand everything correctly. She’s not. She’ll live, grow up, go to college. Want a life, children, a family. Can you give her that?” 

“I’ll give her anything she needs, Joyce. I can’t physically give her children, but if she wants them, then I’ll find a way to give them to her.” 

“How? They won’t be yours, are you willing to raise children that don’t bare your blood?” Angel didn’t answer but Joyce had the sense that yes, this man would. It settled something within her and she knew she should’ve let it go, but something else, some deep, dark part of her wouldn’t. Or couldn’t. “She’s had to deal with a lot. Grew up fast. Sometimes, even I forget that she’s still just a girl.”

“And your saying that I’m old enough to be her ancestor. I understand that, Joyce. It doesn’t change the way I feel for her.”

“She’s just starting out in life, Angel,” Joyce said, some part of her desperate to drive this point home.

“I know that. Believe me; I know it better than anyone. I think about it more now that she’s staying in Sunnydale.”

“Good,” she nodded, accepting that as the second seed planted within Angel’s mind. “Because when it comes to you, Angel, she’s just like any other young woman in love. You’re all she can see of tomorrow.  But I think we both know that there are some hard choices ahead.  If she can’t make them, you’re going have to. I know you care about her. I just hope you care enough.” 

Joyce left the way she’d come, out the front door with Angel holding it open for her like a gentleman. He didn’t want to, wanted to slam it in her face, wanted to slip his fangs into her neck and drain her completely. But he didn’t. oh, it’d be so easy to, so easy to kill her and blame it on another. 

Except that Buffy was right outside. 

“You heard?” He asked, looking to the left where Buffy hid in the bushes. 

With tears in her eyes, Buffy nodded. This wasn’t her year. First her friends tried to kill her lover, then Faith turned on her, and now her mother. The only thing that made sense anymore was Angel. 

“What are you doing here, baby?” Angel asked as Buffy walked into the house, closing the door behind her. 

“I missed you,” she whispered. “Skipped lunch to see you; I was worried about you.” She always worried about him when she wasn’t with him. 

Joyce’s actions, completely unbeknownst to her, solidified Angelus’ resolve. The demon wasn’t leaving. Just because the soul wanted all those things for Her meant little. They weren’t leaving. Angel’s unease about Buffy’s attraction to the blending of both man and demon, as well as what Joyce said about Buffy not thinking clearly meant one thing and one thing only to Angel. 

That now, more than ever, the soul and demon needed to work together. Needed that healing, needed to clear the air between the two. Needed to merge wholly, completely, absolutely for the survival of Her, of Mate. They both realized if they didn’t they were going to loose Her and loosing Her is no longer acceptable for either man or demon. 

“What’d she say?” Buffy demanded. Angel remained silent, trying to spare her this, at least. He didn’t like Joyce, felt her entirely too oblivious about Buffy’s life and destiny. But Buffy loved her mother, needed that solid normalcy for what it was – a small rock in a storm of needs for her lover and the pressure of her destiny. 

“What did she say?” Buffy demanded again, louder now. “What possible reason could she have for coming here?” 

Again, Angel remained silent. 

“Are you leaving me?” Buffy wanted to know, pushing the hurt, the anger into a locked box in a corner of her mind and heart. She couldn’t do this rationality, couldn’t do this sanely if she didn’t.

“Is that why she was here? To demand that you stop seeing me? To leave me?” Buffy knew her mom didn’t like Angel, but thought she’d respect her daughter enough to at least let Buffy make her own choices, her own mistakes. 

“Do you ever think about the future?” he asked, in a calm and quiet voice. He’d tell her of the magick surrounding Joyce later, of his suspicions that Richard Wilkins was out to stop them any way he could. Obviously, the mayor didn’t have all the facts, or he’d know that Angel wasn’t leaving anytime soon – and he couldn’t lose something that didn’t want to be lost in the first place. “What do you see in your future?” 

Something within Buffy froze. Pain, panic, her heart skipped a beat then another, her breath clogged in her lungs. Even her blood stopped moving for one precious moment. Oh, God, this was it. This was the big speech where he told her he couldn’t be with her anymore. That he was leaving, that he wasn’t going to stay with her, that she wasn’t really what he wanted, or worse, that she was but….something else. Something equally horrible. This was the end, oh, God, this was it. 

“Well?” His voice hardened when she didn’t answer. “What do you see in your future? Answer me, damn it!” 

“You,” she admitted quietly, her stomach clenching. “I see you and me.” 

“I’m never going to die, Buffy.” He said, moving to her then and enveloping her in his arms. “I’ll live on long after you…” Could he? Could he do that, live without her? 

“It doesn’t matter, love,” Buffy said softly, a hand caressing his cheek. “Because with you, I’ll always live.” 

Crushing his lips to hers, Angel set out to reassure her that he wasn’t going anywhere. He was hers, and she was most assuredly his. Carrying her up to their room, Angel didn’t care if she missed the rest of her classes, he wasn’t letting her out of his sight…or bed, for the foreseeable future. 

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