TITLE: "Dark and Light"
AUTHOR: ASH Watcher/Slayer Watcher
EMAIL: GGtheSlayer@aol.com
RATING: R, possibly NC-17 for strong language, abuse, sexual situations involving a minor, etc. This is DARK Fic, people!
PAIRING: Buffy/Angel eventually
SUMMARY: AU fic where a 15 year-old Buffy is rescued by a tall, dark, and handsome stranger. Ha.
SPOILERS: None, unless you don't know who Buffy or Angel are.
DISCLAIMER: I own the fic, and plot, but not the characters, pooh. I made up Buffy's address, so sue me. *G*
DISTRIBUTION: ash_watcherfanfiction, my site, eventually, and wherever else. Ask if you'd like it.
FEEDBACK: Pretty please! Flames, of course, send directly to Spike. Do NOT pass "GO", do NOT collect $200! :P
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Dark fic here, people...I'm branching out...see? I'm a tree! WOOT! :)
Seriously, the idea for this fic popped into my head as I was trying to get to sleep...I was literally writing it in my head. Jeeze! I decided to write it down, so I wouldn't go nutso and so I would be able to sleep better. ;)
THANK YOU TO: Isis FG for the help! Both with story ideas AND the great beta job! I love the IMs we shared...heehee, "Bananas" and "Mr. Pointy" are good. :D *BIGGG HUGS* for you and Jacey and the sweet baby Jazzy.*sad smile*
OH and Tango, indie, Gia, Maquis Leader, Ralkana, Musey, Boa, Michelle, um... Zo, Chloe, um...and ALL of the other BA 'Shippers out there! This bud's for YOU! ;)
***********************



"That stupid...Buffy! Where the hell are you?!" the man yelled angrily, as he stalked through the dark night searching for his wayward daughter. Another man stepped out of an alley and confronted the first man.

"What seems to be the problem? Maybe I can help," the second man asked. He oozed a predatorial, take-no-prisoners aura. He was the epitome of the type of person you wouldn't want to meet in an alley. The first man, after regaining his composure, eyed the dark stranger, measuring him and debating whether or not to take the man up on his offer of help.
What kind of sleaze hung out in an alley anyway? The creepy lurker had to be up to no good, which would suit his purposes just fine. Maybe he'd be willing to help. Hank swayed, waving a hand and wishing he had another bottle of whiskey somewhere.

"My daughter's gone missing. Stupid bitch. She never came home from school, and we had plans for after dinner. Well, I did, anyway. I invited some of my buddies from work over. They were gonna watch me as I fucked her for the first time. Her cherry's more than ready to be ripped from the tree, if you catch my drift. Man, I bet she's tighter than hell, and I can't wait to bust her wide open!" the older man moaned, practically drooling at the thought of raping his virginal daughter.

The younger man was beyond horrified! My God! The poor child was going to be...well, she sure as shit wasn't ever going back home, that was certain! "Well, what's she look like? If you tell me, I can look around, maybe find her for you," the mysterious stranger managed to say, after a few moments of shocked silence. He could smell the alcohol on the older man's breath and was naturally disgusted with how the man could talk about his own daughter like she was nothing more than a choice piece of ass.

"She's about 5' 3", long blonde hair, pert little tits, perfect for sucking and biting on, a tiny little heart-shaped ass. Oooh, I can't wait to take her anal cherry either! Her eyes are green or blue or something, I don't remember. Besides, I ain't overly concerned about the color of her eyes, I'm more into her body. Damn what a body! My buddies and I are gonna ride that bitch 'til she can't take anymore and then we'll start all over again! Oh! Her name is Buffy, but I call her "Cunt" and "Bitch" and after tonight, I'm gonna start calling her "Whore" and "Slut"."

"Right, blonde, 5' 3", blue, green, or brown eyes, name's Buffy, got it. Where exactly do you live, so I'll know where to bring her if I find her?" the young man requested.

"934 S.W. Telluride Ave, off of Yulipia Street. It's a green and white house, big Cherry tree in the front yard. My name's Hank, Hank Summers."

"Okay then, Hank. I'll look around and see if I spot her."

"Sounds good, thanks. Say, what's *your* name?"

"My name is O'Connor."

Hank nodded, then the man known as O'Connor, watched, seething with pent up rage, as Hank turned and walked off down the street, still searching for Buffy. As soon as Hank was completely out of sight, O'Connor spun around and slowly walked over to one of the dumpsters in the alley. He'd known she was there almost as soon as he'd entered the alley. When he reached the dumpster, O'Connor got down on his hands and knees and crawled over to the shaking and terrified young girl. She saw him and her eyes got larger and more scared looking the closer he got to her. He stopped about four or five inches from her and just sat there.

"Hello there...are you Buffy?" he softly asked, awaiting her reaction. It was swift, as she vehemently shook her head in a negative reply. There was no way in hell she'd admit to being Hank's missing daughter. O'Connor sensed she wasn't telling the truth, but wasn't about to push her in any way. "Okay, we'll play it however you want to. I'm not going to hurt you, I swear it.I would, however, like to take you someplace safe, if you'll let me."

The girl looked up at the strange man, then in the direction her father had gone. She couldn't go home. No way could she do that. But go with this man? Hadn't he offered to find her for her father? Was he just going to take her home? The gentle smile on his face told her he wouldn't do that. There was something so...comforting about him. Maybe he really could help, so she nodded her head in agreement. After all, what could be worse than her father wanting to rape her and pass her around to his friends?

Standing at Buffy's nod of acceptance, O'Connor offered his hand. She hesitated, apparently still reluctant about taking his help, but finally placed her hand in his and allowed him to help her out from her hiding place.

O'Connor bit back a gasp of horror when he got a good look at her. Her face was still wet from tears. She had a bruise on the left side of her face, and her hair and dress were a mess. It looked like she'd been in an altercation of some kind and O'Connor had to fight back the urge to track Hank down and tear him limb from limb. She stood up and moaned in pain as she put her weight down on her left ankle. O'Connor heard the moan, and looked down to Buffy's feet. Her left ankle looked swollen and painful, so before she could protest, he swung her up into his strong arms and began walking towards home. Buffy remained mute and clung helplessly to him as he carried her away from life as she'd known it.
************************

Angel, also known as O'Connor, entered the hotel still carrying Buffy and gently set her down on the couch in the lobby. She whimpered as he let go of her and reached out for him. He immediately sat down next to her smiled at her, one of friendship, as she climbed into his lap. Sure, they were strangers, but Buffy latched onto him because he was her rescuer. She gasped and buried her face into his shoulder, as Angel's friends and co-workers, came into the hotel to begin working. Angel glanced over and nodded his greeting to everyone, they, in turn, nodded back, all wondering who the girl was.

"Good evening guys, this is Buffy. Buffy, this is Giles, Wesley, Doyle, Willow, Cordy, and Fred. They're my friends and we all work in this hotel. It's a...detective agency of sorts. I promise you that none of them will hurt you in any way, okay?" Angel asked, after making the necessary introductions. Buffy nodded slowly, and shyly waved at everyone. Fred and the others waved back, and smiled gently at the girl. Angel knew his friends, Wes and Giles most assuredly, wanted to know why Buffy was there.

"Buffy, is it okay if I leave you with Doyle, Cordy, Willow and Fred for a couple of seconds? I'd like to tell Giles and Wes why I brought you here," Angel asked Buffy softly. Buffy looked unsure, but finally relented and let Angel put her back down on the couch. She watched him closely as he followed the two older men into an office.

"Hi there Buffy, I'm Willow. This is Fred, she and Cordy are my best friends. And Doyle's a really great friend, too!" the bubbly redhead said, as she walked over to sit down and try to befriend Buffy. Buffy didn't say anything in response, and Willow was saddened. Cordy, who'd noticed Buffy's less than stellar appearance, wondered if Buffy would let them clean her up a bit.

"Hi Buffy, I'm Cordy. What say the four of us gals go into the bathroom and get you freshened up a little. Would that be okay with you?" the brunette asked, plopping down on the other side of Buffy. Again, Buffy said nothing, and turned her gaze to stare intently at the door that Angel had gone into. She hoped he'd be back before too long. Doyle, who'd remained quiet, slowly made his way to the couch. He could tell the blonde was still fairly scared of being in a strange place, surrounded by strangers. Fred noticed it too, and wondered how she could help ease Buffy's worries.
********

"I do apologize, but I'm afraid I find that what you've just told me about that young girl out there is rather hard to believe, Angel. Her own father openly admitted that he was planning on raping and molesting his own daughter? Dear lord, what are we going to do?" Giles asked, afraid of what might've become of the girl had her father found her and carried out his immoral plans.

"Well that's rather simple, now isn't it? She's staying here as of this moment. I, for one, would rather shoot myself in the foot, than to place Buffy back into the iniquitous hands of her father. I mean, my God! How could anyone, let alone someone who has children, allow themselves to cause their own flesh and blood any harm?!" Wesley replied angrily. Angel was in full agreement with both Englishmen. Buffy would stay in the hotel where she was safe.

"What do you think we should do about things for her? Clothes and what-have-you? Also, have either of you noticed the state she's currently in? I think it's shock and I really hope she'll be able to come out of it, so she can tell us more about her," Angel said, worried about the girl he'd rescued.

"Yes, and I wonder what the cause of her condition is. Her father, perhaps?" Giles wondered.

"I don't know, but until she's more willing and/or able to talk, we'll just have to wait for answers. In the meantime, I'm going to get back out there so Buffy won't think I've abandoned her. Maybe I can convince her to let Cordy, Fred, and Willow help her get freshened up a little. Then I'll figure out the sleeping arrangements." And with that, Angel nodded at the two men, then left the office to find Buffy.
*******
Buffy was still on the sofa, surrounded by Fred, Cordy, Doyle, and Willow. Buffy saw Angel approach her and inwardly smiled. She sat up a little straighter when he stopped and stood in front of her. He smiled at her, reassuringly, then sat down in the spot Willow vacated.

"How are you, Buffy?" he asked. Buffy shrugged in response. "Do you feel like getting cleaned up a little? Maybe wash your face and put on some clean clothes?" This time she nodded hesitantly, and Angel wanted to cheer. "Would you like one of the girls to help you, then?" Buffy shook her head "no". Angel sighed. He'd been afraid of this. "Okay, then would it be all right if *I* helped you?" Buffy nodded eagerly, then smiled shyly at him. "All right then. Willow, do you mind finding Buffy some pajamas?"

"No prob, Angel! Which ones should I bring down? The bunnies? The cows? The sheep? Or maybe the ones with the..." Willow trailed off, and smiled sheepishly at Angel's look. "Heehee, okay, I'll just go grab a pair," she chuckled, then ran upstairs. Angel smiled after the redhead. She was quite the character.

"Buffy, do you want to go wash your face and comb your hair?" Cordy asked.

Buffy nodded, and sighed when Angel picked her up and carried her into the bathroom. He'd have to wrap her ankle up before it got any worse. Willow bounced into the bathroom a few seconds later, with the borrowed pajamas. They were pink with white sheep dancing all across them. Buffy timidly smiled her thanks, and Willow smiled back. Cordy and Willow left the now crowded room, while Angel remained to help Buffy.
********

In about 15 minutes, the twosome exited the bathroom. Buffy, now clad in the pajamas, yawned exhaustedly. Angel grinned and then carried his cargo up the stairs. He'd decided to let her sleep in his room, with him nearby, in case she had nightmares. So he pulled the covers back on his bed and tucked her in snugly. Then he kissed her forehead and took a seat in the bedside chair, not wanting to leave in case Buffy woke up afraid and alone.
*********

An hour or so into his reading of the latest Michael Crichton novel, Buffy started whimpering and moaning in her sleep. Angel put down his book and watched her for a few seconds, waiting to see if she'd settle down on her own. She didn't though, and instead began thrashing around and moaning louder. It was enough to cause Angel to go over to the bed and sit down by her. He gently shook her shoulder, trying to wake her up without scaring her.

"Buffy, hey Little One, wake up now," Angel said quietly, trying to rouse the sleeping girl. Buffy's eyes popped open and she suddenly screamed in terror. Angel immediately shooshed her by putting his hand over her mouth. She bit him, hard, and he grunted with the sudden pain. She scrambled out of the bed and fled to a darkened corner of the bedroom. He turned on the bedside lamp, and then made his way over to Buffy.

She cowered in the corner, trying to make herself invisible. As he drew near to her hiding spot, she bolted across the room and ran out the door and down the stairs, attempting to get away. Angel followed her quickly, not wanting her to get lost in the streets somewhere. Buffy had run into the courtyard, and frantically searched for some place to hide. Angel tracked her easily and was somewhat relieved that she was still on the hotel's property.

"Buffy, it's okay, I swear. It's me, Angel. I'm not going to hurt you, I promise," Angel recited loudly enough for Buffy to hear him from wherever she was hiding.

Buffy heard him, but was too frightened to show herself. She knew instinctively that he wouldn't cause her any harm, but her nightmare had made her fearful of anyone, even Angel. Across the courtyard, Angel didn't know what to do. He didn't want to scare Buffy even more by going after her, but he didn't want her to be outside, either. Finally he went over and sat down on one of the benches, hoping Buffy would come out on her own. He knew where she was hiding, but respected her need to feel secure, so he left her where she was for the time being.
*******

About half an hour had passed before Angel noticed Buffy venturing out from her hiding spot. He didn't want to spook her, so he stayed where he was, letting her come to him. His actions seemed to reassure her, and she felt safe enough to walk over to where Angel was sitting. She stood in front of him, unsure of what to do.

"Are you okay now, Buffy?" he asked after she made no move to say anything to him. He didn't expect her to respond with words, so when she did, he almost fell off the bench.

"P-Please...I...don't m-make me go h-home....he's...he said...I h-heard him. S-Said he was g-gonna...gonna f-fuck me...and he'd l-let his...f-friends f-fuck me too," Buffy told Angel and she began crying loudly. "Wh-why w-would D-Daddy do th-that? Why d-does he w-want to h-hurt me? Why Angel, why?" she sobbed, crawling into his lap and putting her head on his shoulder. He held her tightly in his arms, rubbing her back soothingly and rocking her gently.

Buffy didn't know what it was about Angel that made her so unafraid. After everything she had been through the past few years, every ounce of logic she possessed told her she should be afraid of him, that she should not be alone with him. He was, after all, a big strong male. But whenever she was around him, she felt safe, as if nothing in the world could hurt her. It made no sense. She knew that, but it didn't stop her from feeling secure in his arms. So she held on to that, held on to him, letting the pains of yesterday escape through her tears.

In a little while, Angel heard her sobs cease, and then she sighed noisily. A few seconds passed before Angel felt her whole frame relax as she fell asleep. He smiled ruefully as he carried her back into the hotel and into his room. It occurred to him while he climbed the stairs that Buffy's reactions to him were a bit...odd. Whereas everything else seemed to frighten her, she'd never once exhibited discomfort in his presence. He couldn't explain it, but he was glad that he could be there for her and offer his support in whatever way she needed it. Reaching his bedroom, he tucked her into the bed, then settled back down in his chair and began reading again.
********

The next time Buffy woke up, the sun was shining and the birds were singing outside. She was a bit disoriented at first, but within a few minutes, remembered where she was and why she'd wound up there. Her dad...Angel...a hotel...safety and security. She slowly opened her eyes and glanced over at the chair at the side of the bed. Angel was sitting there, watching her, just as he'd done the last four or five hours.

He smiled politely at her and said, "Good morning, Buffy. How did you sleep?"

"Um...o-okay I g-guess," she replied somewhat nervously.

"I'm glad to hear it. Are you hungry?" he asked. She nodded. "Good, I'm glad to hear it. Should we go downstairs and see what's for breakfast then?"

"Okay...um...I...I d-don't h-have any c-clothes though," Buffy suddenly remembered and started crying.

"It's okay, Buffy...we'll find you some clothes, I promise. I'm sure Willow, Cordy, or Fred have something you can wear until we can get some of your things from your house."

"Are...are you s-sure, Angel? Th-they won't be m-mad at me?" she questioned, looking at him with tears still in her eyes, wondering why strangers would be so kind to her.

"I know they'll be more than happy to help you out. And later on this afternoon, we can go to your house and get some of your stuff, okay?" Angel reassured her, patting her back. At the mention of going to her house though, she became hysterical and fought to get away from him. Angel didn't want to accidentally hurt her, so he let her go and she ran over to the window and stared out it, looking, but not seeing anything. He was afraid for her, and didn't know what to do for her.

"Buffy...listen to me, okay? We don't ever have to go back to your house, okay? You never have to see it or your father again, I swear," Angel told the frantic girl.

"You...you mean it? I d-don't have to...see h-him any-anymore?" she asked timidly, still facing the window.

"Yes, I really do mean it. I can ask Cordy, or one of the others, to go and get your things if you'd like..." Buffy nodded eagerly, then raced over and hugged Angel as tightly as she could. He hugged her back, but still worried for her. What kind of hell had she been living in? These mood swings of hers weren't a thing to ignore, but he was afraid that if he forced her to tell him about the situation with her dad, she'd go into some kind of catatonic state and become locked in her mind. She was so young and it would be a terrible thing if she broke, mentally.
*********

"Hi Buffy! Want some pancakes?" Willow asked, grinning at the blonde once she and Angel had come downstairs.

Buffy nodded shyly and sat down as soon as Angel did, putting her chair next to his as close as it would go. Willow got a plate for Buffy and put two pancakes on it, then handed the other girl the butter and syrup. Buffy added the toppings to the pancakes and quietly scarfed them down. She hadn't eaten since the previous morning, so she was starving. Angel seemed to sense this, and gestured for Willow to bring Buffy two more pancakes and some orange juice. The redhead complied, then sat down to finish her own breakfast.

After Buffy finished, she sat back in her chair, leaning into Angel. Giles and Wesley noted Buffy's reaction to Angel and wondered if Angel was aware of it. Figuring he was, the two men exchanged concerned looks. Angel glanced down at Buffy and found her staring at him intently. He was a bit unnerved, but smiled at her anyway. Everyone else in the room watched the interaction between the blonde and brunette, and were curious about their supposed connection.

"Ah, Angel...how is Buffy doing this morning?" Giles asked.

"I think she's doing okay...but...she's..."

"Angel, don't talk about Buffy like she's not sitting next to you, it's rude," Cordy interjected, rolling her eyes at her friend.

"I'm sorry Cordy, and I'm sorry Buffy, for talking about you like you weren't in the room with me."

"It..it's okay, An-Angel," Buffy replied softly. The others did their best not to gape in shock when the girl spoke.

"Buffy, would you like to go somewhere more private and talk?" Wesley asked, looking over at the young woman. "I have some experience in psychology, focusing on traumatic events in people's lives. Perhaps I can help?" Buffy looked at Angel for confirmation that Wes wasn't going to hurt her. Angel gave her the okay and she nodded at Wes.

"I...I g-guess that's okay...b-but c-can Angel come w-with me?" Buffy replied anxiously, she didn't want to be anywhere without Angel.

"Certainly, Buffy. Since I can tell that Angel puts you at ease, he is more than welcome to sit in on our conversation, all right?" Wes told the nervous girl.

Cordy and the others dispersed and Willow went up to her room to find something for Buffy to change into. She came back down a few minutes later with a pale green shirt and some blue jeans. Buffy smiled her thanks, then went into the bathroom and changed. She didn't want to wear her bra or panties from the day before, but she noticed that Willow had thrown in some undergarments, never worn, with the clothes and Buffy smiled to herself.
*******

Around twenty minutes after Buffy had put on the borrowed clothes, she, Wes, and Angel, had gathered in Wes' office. Buffy was sitting on the loveseat and Wes sat in a nearby chair. Angel stood by the door, letting Buffy know he wasn't leaving, and letting Wes know he wouldn't be intruding on or impeding the session.

"All right Buffy..we can start whenever you'd like to. You can tell me anything you'd like and I won't judge you or hold anything you tell me against you. I also vow to never tell another soul a word of what is said in this room between you and I. Okay?"

"O-Okay, Wesley, okay..." she said, mostly to calm herself down. "I...I'm fifteen...and I've lived in Los Angeles my whole life. I go to Hemery High and am a freshman. I'm...I'm not very popular, but I have s-some pretty g-good friends. My m-mom d-died ab-about three m-months ago...sh-she was on her w-way to w-work a-and s-someone r-ran a red l-light. She...was k-killed instantly. My..d-dad...he...he..." Buffy began saying, but broke into tears as she remembered her daddy telling her that Mommy was dead. He'd been so...so cold and unfeeling. It was like he didn't care that his wife had been killed.

Angel had to fight the urge to comfort her and wipe away her tears. She calmed down in a few seconds and started talking again. "Bef-fore she d...died...um...Daddy would...he'd m-make me...touch him...and he'd...t-touch me, t-too. If I told him to s-stop, he hit me and s-said he'd h-hurt M-Mommy by taking me aw-away fr-from h-her," Buffy cried, fresh tears running down her face. "Y-Yesterday, when I w-was coming down for br-breakfast, I heard D-Daddy on the ph-phone. He was talking a-about m-me and how he was g-gonna...f-fuck m-me when he g-got home after w-work...a-and he was g-gonna l-let a b-bunch of his f-friends w-watch as he...he 'tore my cherry from me and busted me wide open' ", Buffy explained in a shaky voice, as tears streamed down her face.

Wes cleared his throat and swallowed down the urge to vomit over the horrific things Buffy was telling him. Angel was ready to round up the troops and kill Hank immediately...well, Hank wouldn't go quickly anyway.

"W-Wesley? Why w-would my d-daddy do that? I...I d-don't wa-want to have s...sex with him! P-Please don't make me! I'll do anything!" Buffy pleaded, crawling over to Wes on her hands and knees, begging him not to send her back to Hank. She sobbed and clung to Wes' legs like a monkey. "Don't make me go! Don't make me go!" she cried, repeating the plea over and over until Angel couldn't stand back and not do anything anymore. He came over to Buffy and picked her up. She latched onto him, still begging to not be sent back to her dad. Sensing Buffy's serious mental distress, Wesley left the room briefly and came back with a freshly brewed pot of tea, and not hot water with tea bags either.

When Buffy was finally calmed down enough to catch her breath, Angel walked over to the sofa and sat down with her on his lap. Wes sat down across from them and asked Buffy if she'd like some tea. She nodded jerkily and when Wesley handed her a cuppa, she sighed and wrapped her hands around the hot mug. The threesome sat and drank the tea, not saying anything, just enjoying the temporary calm in the room.
********

At four-thirty p.m., Cordy and Doyle went to Buffy's house to pack up her stuff. Angel had insisted that Cordy not go by herself, in case Hank showed up unannounced, but Angel thought Cordy and Doyle would be safe as he had called Hank's office anonymously and found how late Buffy's scum of a father would be at work. Buffy had, at Angel's prodding, gone to get some rest, she was still very emotionally fragile. She didn't have a nightmare this time and instead, slept peacefully for the first time since her mother had died. Doyle and Cordy were back in the hotel by six p.m. and then Giles, Wes, Doyle, and the girls made up a room for Buffy. It was right next to Angel's.

"I don't think she's ready for her own room yet, but at least she'll have one for when she is. Wes, do you think she's okay to resume school on Monday?" Angel asked his friend.

"It's hard to say, Angel. I'm certain she'll be fine by then, at least for school, but we should look into alternatives, just in case. What do you propose we do about her...father?" Wes replied, spitting out the word "father" like it tasted rotten in his mouth.

"I say we have a friendly chat with him...maybe wait for him to come home from work, even. I'll call Spike and Gunn and see if they wanna come over and play in a little while. Buffy will stay here, definitely, and I think that maybe Willow and Fred can home school her if necessary." Angel said, grinning at the thought of meeting Hank again.

"That sounds reasonable to me. Might Rupert and I come along?"

"Fine by me, the more the merrier. Maybe Doyle would wanna join the party, even." Angel smirked. "I'll go find Buffy. I think she's in the kitchen with Willow or Fred." He left the lobby and went into the kitchen, where sure enough, Buffy and Willow were chatting at the counter. Well, in truth, Willow was doing most of the chatting, but occasionally, Buffy would say something. Angel was pleased that Buffy had reached out to someone besides himself. Willow heard him come in and smiled at him.

"Hey Angel, I was just chatting with Buffy. What's up?" the bubbly girl asked.

"Not much really, just comin' to see how Buffy's doing," the vampire replied. "I'm gonna go make a couple phone calls, then I'll be back and we can fix something for dinner, okay Buffy?" The blonde nodded and smiled shyly at Angel. He smiled back, then left the room for his office.
*******

"Hello?"

"Spike, it's Angel. You up for a bit of fun in an hour?"

"You bet, mate! What's the deal?"

"I'll explain it once you get here...bring Gunn, will ya? We can meet here half an hour from now."

"Six thirty then? Right, I'll ring up Gunn and see if he's up for some fun, and if he is, I'll have him come with me."

"Sounds good, see you soon. Thanks."

"No worries, see ya."
********

"Hello, is Hank Summers there please?" Angel asked, using the number he'd retrieved earlier to check on Hank's whereabouts.

"Yes, just a minute please," Hank's secretary, Bernice replied.

~Muzak playing, "Copacabana"~

"Hank Summers here."

"Yeah, Hank, it's O'Connor."

"O'Connor...oh! You find Buffy yet?"

"I sure did, and I'll bring her to you....but me and some of *my* friends wanna piece of pie."

"No shit, really? Where was the little...uh...darling?"

"Found her wandering down by the pier...she was all dirty and her clothes were a mess. I fed her some story about needing help with some lost kittens or whatever, I forget, point is, I got her to come with me. And you're right, she is a hot little thing, ain't she? Especially when she's fresh from the shower....damn."

"Tell me about it. I used to time her in the shower, then go walking past the bathroom door just when she'd be coming out...nothing but a towel, shit. So, you've got her at your place then?"

"Yeah, but why don't we meet someplace neutral? 'Bout half an hour or so?"

"Sounds good, where?"

"I dunno...what about the bar on Piedmont? "Jake's", right?"

"Yeah, "Jake's"...you say you and your friends want some of her too?"

"Damn straight. No action, no Buffy."

"I hear ya. Just how many of you are there gonna be?"

"Six of us all together. That a problem?"

"Hell no! But I get the first slice. Only fair since she's my daughter."

"True enough. Okay then, see you at "Jake's" in half an hour..."

" "Jake's" in half an hour. Thanks again, man."

"You're welcome."

The two men hung up and Angel wanted nothing more than to take a long shower. He felt disgusting after the chat with that ass Summers. No time for that though, Buffy and the others were waiting for dinner.
*******

After a light supper of grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup, the guys, after letting Fred, Cordy, and Willow know what was going on, got changed and ready to head out. Gunn and Spike arrived at the hotel right on time. Angel took Buffy into his office and let her know that he and the guys had a meeting to go to.

"You...you're l-leaving? Why?" she asked, looking lost.

"I promise I'll be back just as soon as I can, okay? Willow and Fred and Cordy will be here and maybe they can show you around the hotel some more."

"But...but I d-don't want to stay here with th-them. I want to go w-with you, Angel. Please?"

"I'm sorry Little One, but you can't. I'll bring you a surprise, okay?" he replied, pulling her into his arms for a hug. She clung to him, and he kissed the top of her head.

"Okay...b-but you'll be b-back soon, right?"

"Yes, cross my heart." Angel kissed her forehead, and left his office. He exchanged looks with Spike, Gunn, Doyle, Wes, and Giles, and then the six of them left the hotel.
*******

Outside "Jake's" bar, Hank Summers waited anxiously for O'Connor to arrive with Buffy. He couldn't believe his luck. He was *finally* gonna get his hands on his daughter and just the thought of being able to at last touch her in all the ways he dreamed of, was almost enough to make him come in his pants. He heard a noise suddenly, and turned to see O'Connor and five other men coming towards him. Finally.

"O'Connor. Good seeing you again. Where's Buffy?" the naive man asked, looking for his child.

"She's somewhere safe...somewhere you'll never find her. Boys, have at it." Angel replied, giving Hank a menacing look. Spike, Gunn, and Doyle surrounded Hank from behind. Wes and Giles flanked the man on each side, leaving Angel to face Hank head on. The man formerly known as Buffy's father didn't know what was going on and he wasn't about to let these...kidnappers, have his daughter without a fight.

"What do you want? I already said you could fuck her...what more can you want?" Hank asked, getting angry and nervous.

"We want nothing from you...well, actually...we want you to never try contacting your daughter again. As far as you're concerned, Buffy is no longer your child. Wes? Tell the man what you'd like from him." Wesley stepped forward and got right in Hank's face.

"You sir...are the kind of...person...we do our best to dispose this world of. So here is what you are going to do. You will sign the papers my friend had his attorney draw up this afternoon. The papers you will be signing grant full guardianship of one Buffy Anne Summers, over to myself."

"And if I refuse to sign these papers? Then what?" Hank protested, wanting nothing more than to rip Wesley's head off.

"Simple, really. We contact the Los Angeles Police Department, get in touch with our friend Detective Kate Lockley, tell her what the situation is, and have you locked up for the rest of your life."

"For what? I haven't done anything! You're the ones who've broken the law! You kidnapped my daughter!" Hank growled.

"Well, I hardly think one could consider rescuing an abused minor, as kidnapping. Don't you agree, Angel?"

"Most definitely. She was hiding from you...and yet...she came right to me. Why is that, do you think?" Angel snarled.

"How should I know why the stupid bitch does what she does?!" Hank replied, making a fist and preparing to hit someone.

"See, that's just it. She is *not* a bitch...she is your CHILD! How in HELL could you ever THINK of treating her the way you did?!" Giles cut in, spitting with his anger.

"Oh for god's sake. She's a stupid, worthless, female. No better than her mother. No better than any woman, actually. They're only built for two things...fucking and breeding. It was just my luck that Buffy's mom couldn't have more than one child. At least it was a girl, so I could start reproducing again. I figure by fucking her at 15, I've got lots of years before she's too old and ugly to be any good at having babies. By that time, I'm guessing she'll have given me seven or eight kids...maybe more if I'm lucky. And they won't all have to be girls either...some boys would be good, they'd be able to help me fuck the girls...once they were old enough of course. The boys, that is." Hank stated, getting a glazed look in his eye.

"All right, that's enough then. Angel? Can we start hitting this berk now?" Spike asked, looking hopefully at his friend.

"Sure...go for it...oh, and Spike? Get him to sign the papers before he's too beat up."

"Right. Will do and thanks for inviting me over to play," the peroxide blonde grinned cheekily at Angel. Angel snickered, then stood back to watch the fun.
*******

By 8PM, Hank was a bloody mess...but still alive and kicking. He'd signed the guardianship papers, and Wes was pleased. Gunn and Doyle had pity on Hank, just barely, and dumped him at the emergency room of a nearby hospital. Angel thanked everyone for their help and invited Gunn and Spike back to the hotel for a night cap. As the friends walked to the Hyperion, they all chuckled over Hank's scream of fright and his wetting his pants when Angel's face suddenly changed, ridges forming over his brow and two fangs slipping neatly into his mouth. But when they finally arrived at the hotel, Willow was frantic. Buffy was missing.
*******

Angel and the others quickly spread out and started searching all over the hotel for Buffy. Gunn found her...hiding under Angel's bed. He couldn't get her to come out, so he yelled for Angel.

"Yo, Angel man, she's in here!" Angel raced up the stairs and into his room, quickly followed by the others.

"Buffy...what's wrong Little One?" he asked, waiting as she crawled out from her hiding spot and into his open arms. She shook her head and clung to him. "What happened Willow?"

"I don't know! Fred and Cordy and me were watching a movie with Buffy and she just up and bolted out of the family room. We don't know why or anything...and we were just getting ready to look for her, when you guys came home," Willow replied, afraid Angel was mad at her.

"Buffy...can you please tell us what happened? Did something scare or upset you?" Buffy remained mute, and Angel sighed.

"Angel, perhaps if we give you a few moments of privacy, she'll be more apt to tell you what's amiss," Giles suggested.

"Okay, thanks guys. Willow, break out the cookies and cheesecake. Fred, make some cheese and crackers, please. Cordy.."

"I know, I know...I'll break out the drinks and stuff," the brunette rolled her eyes and smiled at Angel. He smiled back and watched as everyone went downstairs, leaving him with Buffy.

"So...are you ever gonna tell me what happened?" he asked a few seconds later.

"Got scared," she mumbled into his neck where her face was pressed.

"You got scared? What scared you?"

"The movie," she mumbled some more.

"The movie, huh? Well what were you guys watching, anyway?" he asked, trying to figure out what kind of movie could scare a teenager.

"Willow said it was 'Scream' and...and she p-promised it wasn't s-scary! But Angel...it *was*!" Buffy cried, looking at her friend. He kissed her forehead then helped her up from the floor.

"So, Willow said the movie wouldn't be scary, but it was...okay. Should I go beat Willow up then?" he asked jokingly.

"Yes, you should...can I help?" she replied, looking at him and smiling slightly at his jesting.

"Why sure! After all, you're the one she scared...why don't you beat her up and I'll watch?"

"Okay, I will!" she almost giggled, but then quickly changed her mind about beating up her new friend. "Angel?"

"Yeah?" he asked.

"Did you bring me a present like you said you would?" she asked somewhat hopefully.

"As a matter of fact, I did bring you something. Do you want to go downstairs and get it? Maybe have some snacks, too?"

"Yes please," she replied, smiling this time. He chuckled and led her down to the kitchen.
*******

"Buffy?" Willow asked, once the blonde girl had gotten her snacks and something to drink and was sitting down.

"Yeah?" Buffy questioned softly.

"I...I'm really sorry if the movie scared you. I...I didn't think it would, honest! It's supposed to be more funny than scary, which is why I picked it for us to watch. Are...are you mad at me?" the worried redhead asked.

"No, I'm not mad...and, it's okay...but Willow? No more scary movies...ever."

"Scout's honor, I swear! No more scary movies, period. Are we okay?"

"Yeah...Willow?"

"Uh huh?"

"Do...do you wanna maybe...you know...be friends sometime?"

"Sure, Buffy! I'd really like to be friends with you!" the girl laughed and quickly hugged Buffy. Buffy started at the sudden move, but shyly hugged Willow back. They grinned and giggled and blushed, then went back to eating.
********

"So where's my present, Angel?" Buffy asked the man, once he'd sat down beside her at the table.

"I'll go and get it in a minute, okay?"

"Okay. Will...will I like it, Angel?" she questioned curiously.

"I think you will, yeah."

"'Kay...wanna cookie?" Angel laughed and nodded, taking the offered chocolate chip cookie from Buffy. She smiled and looked down at her plate self-consciously.

After everyone had had their fill of cookies, cheesecake, crackers-n-cheese, and drinks, Fred and Cordy put the rest away and cleaned up the garbage. Giles, Spike, Gunn, and Doyle all left the kitchen and went to catch the evening news, each for their own reason. Fred and Cordy finished cleaning up, Angel thanked them, then the two girls went up to their rooms for the night. Willow remained in the kitchen with Wes, Buffy, and Angel.

"Wes, will you go get Buffy's present please?" Angel asked. Wes nodded, then quickly went to get the papers out of his office. When he came back, he sat down and gave the papers to Buffy.

"What's this?" she asked, glancing down at the papers.

"This is a document, drawn up by our attorney, Lindsey McDonald. The document states that I am to be your new guardian. I will be in charge of your well-being from now until you come of age at eighteen," Wes explained.

"My...my guardian? Wh-what about my...my d-dad?"

"Your father is out of the picture from this day forward, Buffy. He signed these papers and renounced all claim and parental rights to you. We're your family now and this is your home."

"R-Really? I...I can l-live here with you? I don't have to...to see him anymore?"

"Really truly, Buffy. Is that okay with you?" Angel asked, worried of her reaction to the news that her father had signed her away to strangers. Buffy didn't know what to think. She didn't ever have to see her dad again...she was gonna live with Angel...

"Wha...what about school?" she worried.

"You can still go to Hemery if you wish to. But that is really up to you, Buffy. If you choose to, I can withdraw you from the high school and Willow, Fred, and Giles are all more than willing to homeschool you here. Giles has a teaching degree, and Willow and Fred are both at the top of all of their classes at UCLA." Wes replied, patting Buffy's hand reassuringly.

"Do...do I have to choose right n-now?"

"Nope, you can choose whenever you're ready. Monday's the day after tomorrow of course, but if you're still not ready to go back, then Wes can call the school and let 'em know you're out sick or something. Right, Wes?" Willow said. Wes nodded.

"O-okay..."

"Do you wanna maybe sleep on it, Buffy?" Angel asked her. She nodded, and Angel took her upstairs and waited while she got changed for bed. After she washed her face and brushed her teeth, she climbed into Angel's bed and waited for him. He sat down in his chair and she smiled sleepily at him, then closed her eyes and quickly drifted off to sleep. Angel picked up the Michael Crichton book and settled in for a night of reading.
********

By Monday, Buffy had decided to try high school again and with some trepidation on her part and Angel's, Wes drove her, Fred, and Willow, to school. Buffy waved "goodbye" to them, as she climbed out of the car and went up the front steps to the building. Wes took Fred and Willow to the UCLA campus, then went to run some errands. Cordy also attended UCLA, but didn't have any classes until after 10AM. Angel wasn't sure what to do with himself while Buffy was gone. Doyle dragged him down to the home gym in the basement and the two sparred for a bit.

At ten a.m., as Cordy was heading off to school, the phone rang and she went to answer it.

"Angel Investigations, this is Cordelia speaking, how may I help you?"

"C-Cordy? I...I..."

"Buffy? Is that you? Are you okay? What's wrong?"

*sobbing into the phone*

"Hold on Buffy, I'll get Angel. Don't hang up, okay?" Cordy put the phone down then ran to get Angel. He was just coming out of the bathroom after showering.

"Angel, it's Buffy!" she cried. Angel raced downstairs and grabbed the phone.

"Buffy? It's Angel...tell me what's wrong Little One."

"P-Please...c-come g-get m-me..." Buffy sobbed into the phone.

"Shh, shh, calm down...tell me what's wrong."

"I...I c-can't be h-here, A-Angel...p-please..." Buffy hiccupped, still crying.

"Okay honey, I'll be there soon. Wait for me outside, okay?"

"O...okay...." she said, hiccupping again. She hung up the pay phone and went to her locker to get her things. At the hotel, Angel called Doyle into the lobby.

"That was Buffy, you need to get her from school."

"Is the lass all right then, Angel?" the Irishman asked, concerned.

"I don't know, Doyle. Just please go get her and bring her home."

"Will do, Angel. Back in a flash. Do you need a ride 'Delia?"

"Sure Doyle, thanks." The brunette pair left the hotel quickly and Angel began pacing.
*******

"Buffy? It's me, Doyle....you ready to come home?" he asked when he pulled up to Hemery High and spotted the forlorn teenager. She nodded and raced down the steps and got into the car. The two drove back to the hotel, neither one saying anything. As soon as Doyle had parked, Buffy flew out of the car and into the hotel, right into Angel who'd been pacing. He pulled her to him as she cried noisily. He thanked Doyle again, and then carried Buffy up to his room so they could talk.
********

It was about an hour after Buffy's return from school, that she had stopped crying and was finally able to tell him what had happened. They were sitting on Angel's bed facing each other and he was waiting patiently for her tale of what had upset her and driven her to begging to come home.

"Um...there's...this group of girls...they're Seniors...and they like to p-pick on the lower classmen. Today, right b-before the first b-bell, they c-cornered me in the b-bathroom. The l-leader, C-Cassidy, she...she called me a s-slut...s-said that my c-clothes say I'm j-just asking to be r-r...f-forced to h-have s-sex with," Buffy cried, starting to cry again. Angel seethed in anger at Buffy's ordeal.

"Oh, Little One, you are nowhere near to being a slut. Your clothes are those of a proper young lady and there is nothing wrong with them, okay?" Angel replied, patting her back comfortingly. Buffy sniffled and Angel handed her another tissue. She blew her nose, loudly, then giggled nervously.

"Then w-why did she call me a s-slut, Angel?" Buffy asked, still hurt by the accusation.

"I don't know, Buffy...maybe she was just being an immature, jealous, bitch. Do you want to go back to school?"

"No! P-Please don't m-make me!" Buffy begged, burying her face in his neck again and crying some more.

"Buffy...look at me." He waited as she pulled away and looked at him. "You are by no means, obligated to continue being a student at that school, remember? Wes said he'll have no problem having you removed from the roster, okay? Giles can become your teacher, all right?" Buffy nodded jerkily. "I'll tell Wes your decision, once he gets home and we'll go from there. Sound good to you?" She nodded and he hugged her. "Now, what should we do with the rest of our day? Willow, Fred, and Cordy are at school, Doyle's off somewhere being lazy, I suspect. Wes is still out running errands, but I'm not sure what Giles is up to. Would you like to go and see?"

"I...guess so. Is he nice?" Buffy wondered.

"The nicest, Buffy. I've known him for a very long time."

"Okay, then let's g-go find him, Angel," she smiled shakily and took his hand as they went on their quest to find Giles.
*******

"Hey Giles, you busy?" Angel asked, still holding Buffy's hand. The older man looked up and smiled in welcome when he saw them.

"Certainly not. Do come in you two, please." Angel thanked him and brought Buffy into the room. She smiled timidly at Giles and he smiled back. "Hello, Buffy. How are you today"?

"H-hi, Giles...um...I'm o-okay, thank you. Are you okay, too?" she asked quietly.

"Yes I am, thank you for asking. Please, have a seat if you'd like."

"Okay, th-thank you," she replied, going over to an easy chair and sitting down. Angel followed her and took the chair next to hers.

"So, Giles, what are you up to?" Angel asked after some awkward silence.

"Um, actually, I was just reading a fascinating article on the different ways to...uh, nevermind, I'm sure it would bore you dreadfully," Giles trailed off, blushing a little. Angel snickered softly at his friend's discomfort. "What are the two of you doing this morning?" Giles asked a few seconds later.

"Well, I think we'd like to make up some kind of arrangements for Buffy's schooling. She's decided to not go back to her high school, and instead, wants to homeschool here. Wes and I have told her that you've got a teaching degree and that you'd probably like teaching her."

"Why of course. I'd love teaching Buffy...is that alright with you, Buffy?" the man asked the girl. She nodded demurely. "Right then. Angel, have you any idea of what studies she will require to keep up with the other students?"

"Actually I don't. I was going to have Wes make a call when he returns home, have him withdraw Buffy from Hemery High and see about getting her started with the homeschool thing."

"Um...m-my s-school has a w-website w-with the information on...on homeschooling," Buffy spoke up hesitantly. Both men looked at her and she blushed, then dropped her gaze to the floor.

"They do? Well then, I'll get right on there and find out what I can. If you'll just give me the, ah, URL, I believe it is, I'll get to it," Giles said to Buffy. She nodded then told him the URL for her former school's homeschooling website. Giles thanked her politely, and she told him he was welcome. Angel and Buffy remained sitting in the chairs as Giles logged on to the internet. Within seconds, he was browsing the site Buffy had told him about.

"This is extraordinary, really!" Giles exclaimed, upon seeing the various resources the site had to offer. "There's a, link, yes?, that enables a person to download the entire cirriculum one needs to begin the homeschool studies. Marvelous, indeed!" Giles grinned. Angel chuckled at his friend's exuberance for all things knowledge. He quietly asked Buffy if she was hungry, she nodded, so they excused themselves and went to get a snack.
*******

Around one in the afternoon, Wes returned from his errands and said "hello" to Buffy and Angel.

"Hey Wes. Buffy's got something to tell you. Go ahead Little One, tell Wes what you've decided to do," Angel gently prodded. She blushed and looked at Wesley.

"I...I w-wanna go to school here...A-angel said you'd l-let me if I w-wanted to. Please?" she stammered, looking at him hopefully.

"I see. Might I inquire as to what brought about your decision, Buffy?"

"There were...bullies...at my sc-school...I....I don't wanna s-see them a-again," the girl explained haltingly.

"Alright. Shall we go and make the necessary call to the school then? Does Giles know he's to become her teacher, Angel?"

"Yeah, Buffy and I were just chatting with him a little while ago. She told us about Hemery High's homeschooling website and he's been surfing it ever since. Apparently all of the needed info for homeschooling, is on the site."

"Splendid. I'll just go call the high school and set about removing Buffy from their registry of students. Then I'll have a chat with Giles and we'll see what we can come up with."

"Sounds good, thanks Wes."

"Th-thank you, Wesley."

"You're most welcome, Buffy." Wes smiled at her, then left to use the phone in his office. He quickly back-tracked though, and walked back to Buffy. "And just so you're aware, I want you to know that if at anytime you'd like to talk about anything, then please feel free to approach me. You needn't a reason, and you'll never be a bother to me either. Alright?" She nodded shyly and thanked him again. He patted her on the shoulder in a friendly gesture, then went to his office.
*********

"Yes, hello, my name is Wesley Wyndham-Price, and I'm calling on behalf of my ward, Buffy Summers. Yes, I'll hold, thank you."

~Muzak playing "Girl From Impanima"~

"Hello, Mr. Wyndham-Price, this is Paul Stark, head of Administration at Hemery High School. How can I help you this afternoon?"

"Ah, good afternoon Mr. Stark. I'm calling on behalf of my ward, Buffy Summers."

"Miss Summers, ah yes. How is she doing, sir? I haven't seen her since her parents brought her in to register for the school year a few months ago. Terrible shame about her mother."

"She's fine, thank you. However, due to recent circumstances, I have obtained guardianship of the young Miss Summers and am calling to remove her from your school."

"I'm sorry to hear that. Might I ask why?" Mr. Stark questioned.

"I'm afraid I'm not at liberty to divulge that information. Please inform me of the steps I must take to go about with withdrawing Buffy from the student registry," Wes replied.

"Certainly, I'll need you to come down to the Administrator's Office, just as soon as you can, and I'll have you sign the "Student Withdrawal" papers."

"Thank you, Mr. Stark, I shall be there within half an hour."

"You're welcome, Mr. Wyndham-Price. The papers will be waiting for you," Mr. Stark told the man.

"Fine, thank you. Good afternoon, Mr. Stark. Goodbye."

"Good afternoon to you and goodbye, Mr. Wyndham-Price." Both men hung up the phone and Wes left his office. Buffy and Angel were making lunch and Wes told him he was heading over to the high school to sign the papers.

"Okay, Wes. We'll save you something to eat," Angel said, winking at Buffy, who blushed and giggled.

"Thank you for that. Buffy, are there things you need from your school locker?"

"Uh...I don't r-remember...maybe some...um...girly-things," she replied, wondering what Wes would think of the half-used box of Tampons in her locker.

"What exactly are 'girly-things'? Should I be frightened?" he asked, grinning at his charge.

"T-tampons...half a b-box full. I don't w-wear makeup or anything, so t-tampons and books are all that's in my l-locker," she stammered nervously.

"Tampons, eh? Well if that's the worst of it, I imagine I'll survive the ordeal. Anyway, I'll just be going then. Back soon," Wes stated, then left the hotel for the drive to the school. Minutes after arriving at the high school, he was shown to the Administrator's Office and after reading the papers carefully, signed and dated them. Mr. Stark shook his hand, and then had a Student Aide escort Wes to Buffy's locker and waited as Wesley took the box of Tampons Buffy had warned him about. He didn't even blush, the aide noticed, and instead watched Wes exit the building with the box tucked under his arm.
*******

Within a few weeks after Buffy had come to live in the Hyperion, and had been withdrawn from school, Giles had set up a school-type atmosphere in a corner of his office. Buffy had a desk and all of the school supplies she needed to resume her academic studies with Giles as her new teacher. Both student and educator seemed to get along well, he was very patient with her. She, in turn, did her best to make him pleased with her. She liked excelling and getting a "good show, Buffy" out of him. She'd also felt secure enough to move into her own room at the hotel.
********

"Hi Buffy!"

"Oh! H-hi F-Fred."

"How ya doin'? Wanna go on the "grand tour"?" Fred asked, smiling at her friend.

"Um...what's the "g-grand tour"?"

"It's the tour only reserved for the very special newbie residents. So, ya interested?"

"O-okay. Who else is c-coming?" Buffy asked curiously.

"Well, I'm pretty sure that everyone who lives here has a favorite room, so I bet Willow and Angel will come with us...I dunno about everyone else, though."

"S-sure...okay...are we going now?"

"Yep, let's go!" Fred replied eagerly and yelled for Angel and Willow that it was time for the "grand tour". Both Willow and Angel came out into the lobby and smiled at Buffy. Giles asked what all the yelling was about and nodded his agreement when Fred explained Buffy was about to get a full on tour of the hotel. "You wanna come with us, Giles?"

"Alright, just a moment while I ask Wesley and Doyle if they'd like to join us. Cordelia's on a date, pity she'll miss the fun," Giles replied, smirking at the word "fun". A few minutes later, everyone, with Fred in the lead, began ascending the stairs to start the tour. Buffy saw everyone's bedrooms, seven in all. She also saw five full bathrooms, three half-baths. Downstairs she viewed the expansive library, Giles and Wes' favorite room, Angel's, Wes', and Giles' offices were next. The kitchen, family room, lobby, and reception area were "ooh"-ed and "ahh"-ed over.

On the third floor, the bottom floor, also known as the basement floor, Buffy gaped at the impressive home-gym and swimming pool. The game room, with the pool table, dart board, two pinball machines, and other game tables, caused a similar reaction from Buffy. This was her home? When the tour party reached the lobby, everyone went off in their own directions, except for Buffy and Willow. The two girls sat down in the family room to chat.

"W-Willow...c-can I ask you s-something?"

"Sure, what?"

"Wh-what are all those...um...b-books for in the l-library?"

"Well, it's a library...most libraries have lotsa books, right?"

"Y-yeah...but I think I s-saw books on...d-demons and v-vamp-pires..."

"You...you did? W-well...um...there's a good reason those books are in the library. Yep, a darn good reason that I'm gonna come up with in just a second or two..." Willow stammered, turning red and becoming flustered as she tried to think of a plausible reason for books on demons and vampires to be in the hotel's library. But short of telling Buffy the truth, Willow wasn't sure how to explain things. Buffy waited patiently for her friend to say why those weird books were in the hotel.

"Okay...um...yeah...how do I put this...you know those scary movies, like Bram Stoker's "Dracula" and stuff, with the vampires?" Buffy nodded, remembering how much she hated those kinds of movies. "Well see...um...what most people don't know, is that vampires and stuff, are real."

"R-real? You...y-you mean...there are...*gulp* t-things out t-there that r-really...d-drink...b-blood?" Buffy squeaked, turning white. Willow nodded and wanted to kick herself for scaring Buffy. For her part, Buffy had no idea what to think. Vampires are real? "Have...have y-you ever s-seen one?" she asked.

"Yeah, I've seen a few...and they're mostly creepy and gross looking," the redhead replied, making a face at how some of the vampires had looked. Buffy shuddered in horror at the idea of meeting a vampire.

"D-do...do they come into your h-house?" Buffy whimpered, grabbing a throw pillow and hugging it to her. Willow shook her head firmly.

"Not unless they're invited, but most vampires don't get invitations to enter someone's home all willy-nilly. Just so you know. Okay?" Buffy nodded jerkily.

"Willow? Do...do Angel and the o-others know t-that v-vampires are r-real?" Buffy asked, concerned for her new family.

"Uh, yeah, we all know about vampires. We learned about them from the books we've got in the library."

"But w-why do y-you have the b-books?" Buffy inquired, gazing intently at the redhead. Willow groaned silently. What kinda mess had she gotten herself into? She sighed, well, might as well go for the gold. Angel was gonna kill her, she whined mentally.

"Well...we have the books, so that we can read about demons and vampires. And the reason we *want* to read about demons and vampires, is because we fight them every night. Do you remember seeing that big shelf thingy in the gym?" At Buffy's nod, Willow continued. "That shelf thingy, has lots of weapons in it. Weapons we use to fight the demons and vampires. Wes and Giles, research in the books and tell us what kind of demon we're up against, and Cordy and Doyle get...um....visions, when somebody needs rescuing," Willow explained. Buffy's eyes were as big as saucers at all of the new information her friend was telling her.

Just then, Cordy popped her head into the room and let Buffy and Willow know that dinner was ready. Willow thanked her, and quickly left the room. Buffy remained on the couch, still in shock over everything she'd heard in the last half hour. When Angel came into see if she was going to join everyone for dinner, she nodded slowly, then got up and in a daze, walked into the dining room. Angel wondered what was going on...Willow was trying not to look guilty and Buffy was looking shocked. Looks like he'd be chatting with Willow after dinner.
********
Over the next day or two, after Willow had confessed the existence of vampires as being real, Buffy began to question some oddities about Angel, and compare them to the little knowledge she had about vampires, at least TV ones. Buffy had to admit to herself that some of the things he did or didn't do, kinda made sense. Like, she recalled the events of her last day at Hemery. She'd called the hotel and Angel had vowed to come and get her...but he hadn't. Doyle had instead. Well, okay, so maybe something came up at the last second, not allowing Angel to leave or pick her up.

But she also remembered how every time everyone sat down for breakfast or dinner, Angel never seemed to eat much. She didn't know why, but, if he *was* a vampire, then, like, he wouldn't eat food-food, would he? Maybe she could ask him sometime. Buffy hadn't spent too much time trying to see if Angel had, say, a reflection or anything, but she didn't know if vampires even had reflections. Guess she'd ask him about that too.

Oh, duh! Hello, Buffy, library full of books about vampires...she mentally smacked herself for not remembering the books in the first place. She made a quick trek to the book-filled room and grabbed the first book she came across. Then she went up to her room to start reading. Buffy discovered very soon into the book, that there was so much Willow hadn't told her! Daylight, crucifixes, holy water, fire, wooden stakes, garlic...just some of the ways vampires could be killed. Decapitation?

Ewwww, she shuddered, making a face of disgust at the thought of beheading something. Majorly ick. She continued reading until dinner. After dinner, Buffy went back to her room and rifled through the boxes of stuff she hadn't unpacked yet. She was looking for her jewelry box and did a happy dance when she found it. Next, she opened the jewelry box and smiled happily when she found the item she'd been searching for, her gold filigree cross necklace. It had been a gift from her mom on Buffy's 15th birthday.

She slipped it on and went downstairs to show Angel. She was curious to see if vampires really hated crucifixes. If Angel really was a vampire, then wouldn't he hate her necklace too? It wasn't a crucifix, but maybe crosses had the same effect as a crucifix did. Guess she'd find out. Buffy found the man...vampire?...in the family room with Giles and Wes, watching something on tv. She took a seat on the couch next to Giles, who was sitting next to Angel. Buffy didn't say anything at first, merely watching Angel from the corner of her eye. What would he do about her choice of jewelry?

She wanted to pout. He hadn't done anything, other than smile at her when she'd first sat down. Maybe he wasn't a vampire after all? Or maybe he hadn't noticed the necklace? Perhaps she should ask his opinion.

"Angel?"

"Yes, Buffy?"

"D..do you s-see my n-necklace? It w-was from M-Mommy..." Angel looked down and inspected the necklace. Gold, medium sized, very dainty looking. Oh, right, a cross. Yikes.

"It's very pretty, Little One," he calmly replied, making no move to get closer or touch it.

"Thank you, A-Angel. S-She gave it to m-me for my b-birthday in J-January," Buffy told him, smiling sadly in remembrance.

"Well your mother had good taste in jewelry, Buffy."

"Yes, she d-did...she h-had a g-gallery near the w-waterfront.It was part of the Th-Third Street P-Promenade."

"In downtown Santa Monica, right? And part of the SMDD, correct?" Giles interrupted. Buffy nodded in response. "What was your mum's gallery called, Buffy?" Giles asked.

"Um..."S-Summer Expressions"...yeah, p-part of the S-Santa Monica Design D-District, too," she said.

"That was...or rather, is, a lovely gallery, Buffy."

"Yeah...she opened it w-when I was about t-ten...and it was my f-favorite place to go, when I didn't have s-school," Buffy replied, smiling at the happy memories. Giles and Angel smiled too, glad that Buffy had *some* good memories of growing up.

********

A few nights later, Angel and Doyle left the hotel, presumably to patrol, and Buffy, being naturally curious after her chat with Willow and her very informative reading session, snuck out and followed them. It wasn't until after some fledglings had been dusted, and Doyle had headed off, most likely to get a drink or two, that Angel realized he'd been followed. There was a...tingling at the base of his spine...and he was certain it hadn't existed before Buffy had come to live with him and the others. Was the tingling a...connection of some kind...with Buffy? He hadn't really noticed it during the fight, focusing his attention on the altercation, but now Angel couldn't focus on anything else.

"All right...come out whoever you are," he said, staying in the shadows so his potential foe couldn't see him. He almost gasped when shy, timid, tiny little Buffy, stepped into the glow from a street lamp. So, it was her after all...interesting. "Come over here, Little One..." he said, stepping into a partially lighted area of the street. She did, slowly...and when she got closer to him, she gasped. What was wrong with his face? Come to think of it...what was wrong with the other peoples' faces too? What could cause a person to have...wrinkles and bumps all over their face?

Angel wasn't aware he still sported his "game face", so when Buffy approached him and reached out a shaky hand to touch him, he flinched. She steadied herself and her hand made contact with the side of his face. Didn't the bumps and wrinkles hurt? Her small hand, gently explored the grooves and bumps that made up the features of his facial structure.

"D...does it hurt, A-Angel?" she asked quietly.

"No, it doesn't. And you shouldn't have to see me like this," he replied, cursing himself for letting his demon show. "Little One, what are you doing out after dark....and by yourself?" Angel asked her tersely.

"Willow told me about vampires and how you fight them. So I followed you," she replied, not stuttering at all, he noticed. Angel had neglected to ask Willow about the chat she'd had with Buffy the other night, but he would definitely not put it off any longer. "Are you *really* a...a v-vamp-pire, Angel?" Buffy asked, stutter back in its normal spot.

"Yes, I am. I think that's enough questions for tonight, we need to get you home and into bed, Little One," Angel answered, taking the hand she'd been using to touch his face with in one of his, and leading her home.
*******

"Willow! Get in here, please!" Angel yelled, as soon as he and Buffy had returned to the hotel safely. It was time to call a meeting. The redhead came running into the lobby, and skidded to a halt, when she saw the look on her friend's face. He didn't look too happy. "Stay here with Buffy, I'm going to go find Wes and the others," he ordered, giving Willow a firm look. She nodded sharply, then waited with Buffy as Angel went to collect everyone else.

"W-Willow! Angel's a...a v-vampire!" Buffy exclaimed, looking excited by her discovery.

"Yep...I know he is, Buffy, but how'd you find out?" Willow asked, confused and worried.

"I f-followed him and D-Doyle! There...there were these th-things that had th-these bumps on their f-faces and...Angel and Doyle made the b-bumpies disappear!" Buffy told her friend, clearly still fascinated by what she'd witnessed. "And then...I s-saw Angel...*he* had the bumpies, too! And g-guess what?! I...I touched his b-bumpies, Willow!" Willow groaned, she was done for now. Giles, Fred, Wes, and Cordy, followed Angel into the lobby.

"Thank you for joining me. Did any of you happen to notice where Buffy was this evening while Doyle and I were out?" Angel asked his friends. Nobody had paid any attention to Buffy's whereabouts and told Angel so. "I thought so. Well, she followed Doyle and I out on patrol. I'm sure she snuck out, since you all thought she was here someplace."

"Is that true, Buffy? Did you really sneak out and follow them?" Giles asked, concerned about his pupil. She nodded and wondered what kinda trouble she was in.

"I...I w-wanted to see the v-vamp-pires Willow told me a-about," Buffy replied timidly.

"Willow told you about...vampires?" Wes asked his ward, glaring at Willow.

"Yuh-huh...s-said that you guys f-fight them every night."

"As you can see, Willow took it upon herself to tell Buffy the ins and outs of our nightly occupation," Angel announced, giving Willow a harsh stare.

"How could you, Willow?" Cordy asked, giving the redhead a curious look.

"I...I didn't mean to! But...but Buffy and I were talking...and she asked me about the library...and all the books about demons and stuff," Willow replied some-what defensively.

"You didn't have to tell her anything, really. Ya coulda had her ask Giles or Wesley...heck, even Angel," Fred told the girl.

"Yeah, she could've but chose not to. In any case, Buffy knows the truth. What do you guys think we should do about it?" Angel asked the group. Everyone was silent as they thought of possible solutions.

"Perhaps we could..train her...so she'd at least have some sort of, means of protection, in case she should find herself in a precarious situation," Giles finally suggested.

"I don't think it's necessary, since she'll never leave the hotel unescorted," Angel replied.

"Uh, hate to point it out to you, Angel...but she already has, remember? Sneaking out, following you...ring a bell?" Cordy asked bluntly.

"Yes Cordy, thank you so much. But that's not going to happen ever again...right Buffy?" Angel said, giving Buffy a commanding look.

"W-Wrong, Angel...I w-wanna help f-fight," Buffy answered, meeting Angel's gaze head-on, surprising herself and Angel both by her assertiveness.

"Buffy...Little One...you don't need to help fight and I won't let you. I don't want anything to happen to you," he told her with concern in his voice.

"Then l-let me t-train, Angel. I...I know you p-protected me from H-Hank...but w-what if he comes b-back? What if he...he takes me s-sometime when I'm o-out with W-Willow or C-Cordy? I need to k-know how to g-get away from him!" she stated, firmly, but apprehensively.

"She does have a point, Angel. Hank Summers, could very well still be a threat to her safety," Wes said, looking at the girl he was responsible for. "Who's to say he won't corner her somewhere? Grab her, take her to a location of his choice, after doing harm to whomever she's out and about with. Cordelia, Fred, or Willow...they know some moves, yes, but if Buffy knew how to handle herself as well, I firmly believe she'd be more likely to escape from him safely. He certainly wouldn't expect it." Wes knew he'd hit a sore spot with his friend. The Englishman could sense Angel's feelings for Buffy weren't merely that of a brotherly nature. He also knew that Angel would never act on them, at least not without Buffy's consent. Angel sighed and relented.

"Fine, she can train...but not until after she's done with her schooling and any homework she's assigned," Angel told everyone. Buffy grinned broadly and ran over and gave Angel a big bear hug. He froze for a second, then returned the hug. God, what a smile!, he thought to himself. Wonder what else could make her smile like that, a small part of his brain was curious to know. Angel quickly squashed that thought, mentally slapping himself upside the head for thinking innapropriate things about Buffy.

She ended the hug and smiled at him again, then followed the girls upstairs to get ready for bed. Angel shook himself, hard, but still couldn't resist watching her bounce up the stairs. He was one sick puppy, he chastised himself, then went to grab a snack from the fridge.
*******

The next afternoon, as soon as she was dismissed by Giles from school, Buffy ran up to her room to change. Giles had promised to start training her in self-defense moves today. He told her to dress comfortably, sweats and a t-shirt would work. Buffy threw off her jeans and tank-top, then pulled on some shorts she wore when she jogged back on the track team in junior high school. She put a loose fitting t-shirt on too, then gathered her hair into a ponytail and skipped downstairs. They met in the home gym on the bottom floor of the hotel.

"Ah, Buffy, that was rather quick, wasn't it?" Giles smiled in welcome as she came into the room.

"Hi, Giles...l-long time n-no see, huh?" she replied, giggling lightly.

"Now then, where should we start? Perhaps a warm-up first."

"Okay...w-what do I do? J-Jogging or something?" she asked.

"Yes, I think a couple of laps around the gym is good for starts," Giles replied, giving her the okay. She grinned, then started jogging at a light pace around the room. When she passed him for the third time, she stopped running and stood there panting quietly.

"I u-used to j-jog every day...b-but then I got to h-high school and st-stopped," she told him. He handed her a face towel and she dabbed at the perspiration dampening her face.

"Are you ready for some stretches now?" he asked, not wanting to tire her out too quickly.

"Yeah, I'm r-ready, Giles."

"Excellent," the man replied, then led Buffy through a series of stretches. She caught on quickly, he noted, pleasantly surprised. The two spent the next hour moving through various techniques. He'd planned on keeping things simple, but the way she took to learning them, had him showing her some more advanced moves. Both student and teacher, were very happy with their accomplishments by the time Giles ended their training session. Buffy was eager to learn more, but Giles promised there was a lot more to know, and he'd teach her some more the next day. She smiled shyly at him in thanks.He blushed, patted her on the shoulder, causing her to flinch slightly, inadvertently, then quickly flee the gym, not looking back.
Giles cursed once she was out of hearing distance for scaring her accidentally.
*******

Later on that night, as Angel walked towards his room, he heard a noise coming from Buffy's room. Was she crying? Concerned, he knocked on her door softly, and waited for her to answer. When she didn't, he slowly turned the knob and opened the door. She was lying in bed, on her side, with her eyes closed and tears rolling down her cheeks. Angel thought she was asleep, but when she sobbed for her mom, he knew she was awake. Uncertain of what to do, he walked over to her bed and carefully sat down by her.

"Buffy?" he whispered, "Are you awake, Little One?" She sniffled loudly and opened her eyes.

"A-Angel...w-why are you in h-here?" Buffy asked quietly, gazing up at him.

"I thought I heard you crying. Are you okay?" She shook her head and kept crying. "What's wrong, Sweetheart?"

"I...I w-was dreaming about my m-mom...the d-day she died..." Buffy began, sitting up and looking at him. "It was a T-Tuesday and s-she dropped me off at s-school, we w-waved goodb-bye and said "I love you" to e-each other, then she d-drove away. I...I miss her s-so much, A-Angel!" Buffy wailed, sobbing openly by this point. He pulled her into his arms and held her as she cried tears of sorrow for the loss of her mother. She cried as if the loss had just happened and Angel wondered if maybe Hank hadn't ever let her cry for her mom before. Just one more thing to loathe about the man who'd raised Buffy.

Eventually the tears stopped and Angel handed her some tissue to blow her nose with and dry her face off. She thanked him and the two of them remained in the dark silence a few more minutes. Angel was struck with the sudden thought of kissing away her sorrow and giving her something to smile about, but he mentally smacked himself. He really had to stop thinking inappropriate thoughts about her. Even if he never acted on them. He sighed to himself and wondered what she'd do if he actually tried to kiss her. Probably scream the house down and never speak to him again.

She finally climbed off his lap and back into bed. He made sure she was tucked in snugly, kissed her on the forehead, and after bidding her a good night, left for his own room. But first he'd be taking a shower. A very cold one. Damn. After he'd closed the door on his way out, Buffy sighed. She was lucky to have a friend like Angel. Not to mention Willow and everyone else who had taken her in. But as she drifted back to sleep, her last waking thought was of what it would be like to kiss Angel.
*******

Two days later, Saturday, Cordy privately convinced Angel that Buffy needed more clothes and lots of 'em.

"Have you seen her mostly non-existent wardrobe, Angel? It's two pairs of jeans, two pairs of shorts, five or six tops, and a few pairs of shoes. And Angel? It's a really good thing that the rest of her...clothing....was left behind. Trust me, it was nowhere *near* suitable for any respectable woman, young or old," Cordy told him. The things she'd seen in Buffy's closet and dresser...well, only the cheapest hookers in LA would've worn those...maybe.

"Okay, Cordy. You can take her shopping, but make sure Fred and Willow go with you. And don't forget to see if Buffy even *wants* to go first," Angel said, grinning. She held out her hand for his American Express Gold Card, the one with the $50,000 limit, but he knew better than to give it to her. Instead, he handed it to Willow, who snickered at Cordy's disgruntled expression.

Twenty minutes later, and with lots of reassurance from Angel, Buffy let herself be dragged off to the mall by Cordy. Willow and Fred giggled as they climbed into Cordy's convertible Mustang. Buffy swallowed nervously, then got into the car too, in the back with Willow. The four girls sped off and Angel hoped he hadn't made a mistake sending her off with Cordy. Willow and Fred he trusted with Buffy, but Cordy could be...well...rather harsh at times and he was afraid of how Buffy would handle things. He told himself she'd be fine with Fred and Willow to protect her. Assuming she needed it.
********

Once at the mall, Cordy dragged Buffy into The Limited, and started pulling things off the racks and thrusting them into Buffy's waiting arms. Fred and Willow tried not to crack up laughing, remembering how Cordy had done the same to both of them soon after they'd moved into the Hyperion. Cordy led Buffy to the fitting rooms and told the girl to start trying on the clothes. Without knowing what to say, Buffy went into a dressing room and pulled on the first outfit. It was a pale pink skirt, that came to just above the knees, and Cordy had paired a white silk tanktop with it. Buffy was stunned by what she saw in the mirror.

She smiled slightly at her reflection, then opened the door to show Cordy. Cordy grinned and told Buffy the outfit was a keeper. Buffy smiled shyly at the brunette, then stepped back into the small space and closed the door. She tried on ten or eleven more outfits, showing Cordy each choice...and when they left the store half an hour later, Buffy was carrying four bags full of new clothes. She was in a daze. Their next stop was Macy's. Cordy headed straight for the shoe department and asked Buffy what size shoe she wore.

"Um...I w-wear a s-six...," Buffy stuttered, looking towards Willow and Fred for help.

"Hey Cordy...why don't you let Buffy pick out her own shoes?" Willow suggested.

"I suppose. But what if she doesn't know which styles or colors to get?" Cordy asked, worried Buffy would choose the worst kinds of shoes that would ruin all of the new outfits she'd chosen for the blonde girl.

Willow rolled her eyes and told Cordy to quit being a worry-wart. Then, they watched as Buffy went through the process of picking out shoes. There were so many choices! Which ones to begin with? It took a few minutes, but eventually Buffy started grabbing shoes left and right and trying them all on. Some she hated, some she loved, and in the end, she (and Cordy) left the shoe department very happy with Buffy's shoe choices.

By the time they were done doing damage in Macy's, shoes, a backpack/purse, and some makeup, were added to Buffy's pile of loot. Buffy said she was hungry, so the girls made their way to the food court to refuel. They grabbed slices of pizza and found a set of tables they could plop down at. Willow asked Buffy if she was having fun shopping yet. Buffy nodded and smiled timidly in Cordy's direction.

"So, Cordy...where ya draggin' us to next?" Fred asked, once the pizza was consumed.

"I dunno yet. Any place you'd like to go, Buffy?" Cordy replied, smiling at Buffy.

"Um...a-actually...there's a p-place I used to go with my m-mom. I don't know if it's s-still here or n-not, though."

"What's it called?" Willow questioned.

"The Hallm-mark Store...she'd look at the c-cards and I l-liked the B-Beanie Babies. I used to c-collect them, til she d-died. We b-both liked the c-candles, though. I think Hank th-threw my Beanies o-out when he threw out all of m-my mom's s-stuff," Buffy replied, a sad look crossing her face at the memory. Willow and Fred frowned sadly and Cordy wanted to cry. "W..we also u-used to g-get c-candy from the S-Sweet Factory next to H-Hallmark." Buffy looked down at her hands, not sure what else to say.

"Okay...so our next stops are The Hallmark Store and then The Sweet Factory. Deal?" Cordy announced. The others nodded and Buffy smiled hesitantly at Cordy and thanked her for the shopping trip. Cordy smiled back and said Buffy was more than welcome. Then they all threw their garbage away and resumed shopping.
*******

Around four in the afternoon, Willow, Fred, Cordy, and Buffy, all giggling, entered the hotel's front doors. They were all weighed down with numerous shopping bags, which they promptly dumped in the lobby at their feet. Angel, hearing the giggling, came into the room and smiled in relief at the sight of all the girls giggling. Especially Buffy. She saw Angel and smiled nervously at him.

"Hey Little One, have a good trip?" he asked, already dreading what his credit card bill would wind up being.

"Yeah...got lots of s-stuff...don't kn-know where it'll all f-fit, though," she replied, gesturing at the twenty or so bags near her.

"I'm sure there's plenty of room...do you want some help getting all these bags upstairs?" Angel questioned, noting the flushed cheeks she'd gotten from laughing. She nodded, then grabbed two bags in each hand and going up the stairs. He followed carrying five more bags. Willow grabbed her two bags and went up the steps behind him to her room. Cordy and Fred grabbed their bags and took them to their rooms, too. Buffy and Angel put the bags on her bed, then went back down and picked up the other six shopping bags and put them on the bed next to the first load.

"Um...C-Cordy said you...um...f-funded the t-trip, Angel." Buffy looked up at him and he nodded. "Thank you," she said. Then she reached up and hugged him. He told her she was welcome and hugged her back. They broke apart and stood there, not knowing what to do next.

"So...um...wanna play Scrabble or something?" Angel asked, but before she could give him her answer, Wes called for him downstairs. He smiled at her and went down to see what Wes wanted. Buffy flopped down on the bed. She felt...relieved at the interruption. Angel was great and she really liked him, but sometimes he overwhelmed her. Sometimes it felt like she'd known him forever. As she sat there thinking about Angel, Fred popped her head in to say "hi".

"Hey Buffy! Just wanna invite you to the "Girls Only" pajama party at 8 tonight, okay?"

"Okay, F-Fred...what d-do I do?"

"You've never been to a pajama party, have you?" Fred asked sadly. Buffy shook her head "no". "It's no biggie. All you gotta do is shower and put on your cutest PJs, then come down to the family room. Cordy and Willow and I will be in there already. We also invited our friend Faith and her cousin Tara, they're really nice. We're gonna have popcorn and candy and soda and watch movies all night. Sound fun to you?" Fred grinned.

"Yeah...it d-does. Thanks for inviting me," Buffy replied, smiling at her friend.

"No problem, Buffy! We're all friends here, more like family really. So I'll see ya at dinner, okay?" Buffy nodded, then smiled to herself as Fred bounced out of the room. She was so lucky to be living here with such great people.
********

After a quick dinner around six, consisting of Chinese take-out, complete with a shared reading of Fortune Cookies, Buffy went up to her room to start unpacking all of her new clothes and accessories. She grinned at the fun time she'd had with her new girl friends. And was looking forward to the pajama party...she hadn't been to one since her 12th birthday, when her mom had let her have one for her birthday. Buffy and her friends: Lisa, Jenny, Missy, and Taya, had stayed up until three in the morning, giggling and gossiping about the boys they had crushes on. It had been such a blast.

When Buffy had finished putting everything away, she was surprised by all of the new stuff she had. At a loss of what to do next, she sat down on the bed and cuddled Mr. Gordo to her chest. She had cried when she'd seen him sitting on her new bed, after Cordy and Doyle had brought all of her stuff from her old room over to the hotel. Mr. Gordo had been a present from her dad, back when he was still a great man and father, on her second birthday. She hadn't been able to talk very much, but had still managed to name the stuffed pig. Nobody knew what had made her name the pig "Mr. Gordo", it had just popped out of her little mouth and stuck.

She sighed...it had been such a long day, in a good way, and she was more than tempted to lay down on the bed and go to sleep. But Buffy knew she couldn't do that. She had to shower and get all dolled up for the pajama party. Oh god! What was she going to wear? How was she gonna do her hair?

She "eep"ed and rolled off the bed to begin getting ready. After closing her bedroom door, she stripped out of her clothes, tossed them into the hamper, and grabbed the stuff she needed for a shower. Once in the shower, she used her vanilla body wash, vanilla shampoo and conditioner. Then she shaved her legs and rinsed off once more. She turned the shower off, wrapped a towel around her hair and the other around her body. Buffy grabbed her stuff, and headed towards her room, not noticing Angel standing by the bathroom, waiting to go in. Angel, for his part, gulped and swallowed hard. Oh gods.
******

Clad in light-purple-with-white-stripes pajamas, Buffy entered the family room. Her hair was in two ponytails. She smiled when Cordy, in red satin pajamas, Willow, in light-green-with-white-polka-dots pajamas, and Fred, in pale-blue-with-pink-polka-dots pajamas waved hi and smiled at her. Cordy had her hair in a french braid, Willow's was parted down the middle and braided in one long braid on each side, and Fred wore her hair in just a single ponytail.

"Buffy! Hi! I'm so glad you came!" Willow gushed, quickly coming over to the blonde and giving her a light hug. After a second, Buffy hugged the redhead back. Hugging people was getting easier, she noticed.

"Faith and Tara will be here any second...so should we wait for 'em in the lobby?" Fred asked. The other girls nodded, and then the four of them trekked into the main part of the hotel. Just in time, it seemed, for only a couple minutes passed, before a dark haired brunette and a sandy blonde came through the Hyperion's front doors. Both girls grinned their hellos and Willow ran over to hug them.

"Hey Faith, Tara....good to see you," Cordy said, waving "hi".

"Lookin' good, Cordy," Faith replied. Cordy grinned and winked at her. Willow dragged Tara down the steps and over to meet Buffy.

"Tara, this is Buffy." Buffy smiled timidly at the taller girl.

"H-Hi, Tara," she said. Tara said "hi" back and the two blondes stared at each other in curiosity.

"So Buffy, huh? What kinda name is that?" Faith asked, stalking over to examine the new girl. Buffy blushed and didn't know what to say. Fred jumped in though, and told Faith to shove it.

"Buffy's as good a name as any, you dork," Fred said, giving the brunette a warning look. Cordy smirked, then led the way into the kitchen for snacks. Buffy followed Cordy, grateful for the interruption of Faith's scrutiny of her. Willow grabbed Tara by the hand and followed Buffy.

"Whatevah, Princess Fred," Faith commented, then headed into the family room to wait for the others. Fred shrugged then followed the other girls. She wondered why the hell Cordy had invited Faith...Fred sure didn't like her. Oh well.
*******

In the kitchen, Buffy, Cordy, Tara, and Willow, grabbed bags of potato chips, bottles of soda, in the 20 oz. size, and whatever else they could carry in one trip. Buffy wasn't sure about that one girl, Faith...but she liked Tara...probably cuz Tara was a lot like her, shy and quiet. When the girls got back to the family room, they dumped their booty on the coffee table and plopped down onto the couch. Faith was slumped down in a recliner and gave the others the once over. She snorted and wondered why she'd even come over. Oh, right...Cordy. Cordy and Faith had a love-lust-hate relationship going on. They insulted each other, but the insults were thinly disguised as flirting.

Tara asked Willow where to change into her PJs at and Willow showed her the bathroom. Faith hadn't bothered bringing pajamas with her, she typically slept in a tank-top and boxers...but she wasn't planning on staying long enough to fall asleep. Tara came back into the family room a few minutes later, wearing an aquamarine satin pajamas set, it was shorts with a matching top. She left her hair down, but pulled it into a half ponytail to get it out of her face. Willow patted the empty spot between her and Buffy, and Tara went over and sat down.

"So...what're we doin' first?" Fred asked.

"Hmm....well, let's pop in a movie, and then how 'bout manicures and pedicures?" Cordy suggested. She was dying to get her hands on Buffy's nails. Everyone, minus Faith, agreed to Cordy's idea, and Fred popped in "Grease". Cordy and Willow groaned at the movie, it was Fred's favorite and everyone who knew Fred, could quote the movie along with the Texan. Fred grinned unabashedly and they all giggled. Buffy, who'd never seen it, wondered what it was about, so she asked Fred.

"Gosh...it's about Sandy and Danny, and there's lots of singing and a car race and everythin'!" Fred exclaimed. "It takes place in the 50s and it's just the best movie, *ever*!" Cordy snorted, and then laughed when Willow choked at the unexpected snort.

"Okay, enough chit-chat about the movie...let's figure out who's giving who a pedicure and manicure. I choose Buffy as my victim," Cordy announced. Fred picked Willow, Willow picked Tara, and Faith opted out of the fun. Everyone found a spot and got to work. Since Willow's finger and toenails would be done by Fred, but Tara's would be done by Willow, it was decided that Willow would work on Tara's nails first, then she'd have hers done afterwards. So while Willow worked on Tara, Fred happily watched her movie, quoting along with the characters and singing the songs.

"So, Buffy...why don't you pick a color of polish?" Cordy asked, then handed the girl a big basket full of all sorts of nailpolishes.

"Gosh, Cordy...I...I've n-never had a manicure or p-pedicure before. Will you pick something for m-me?" Buffy replied quietly.

"Sure...how about "Purple Hooter"?" she asked, showing Buffy a pinkish-purple polish. Buffy said "okay" and Cordy got started. She filed, buffed, and applied a base coat of clear polish. Then she shook the bottle thoroughly, and opened it. Buffy placed her hands on the table in front of her and watched intently, as her friend began applying the color. It was really pretty.

Meanwhile, Tara had picked a darker purple called, "Sheer Butterfly" and after filing, buffing, and putting on a base coat, Willow started painting Tara's fingernails. When she was done, she applied the top coat of clear polish, told Tara not to touch anything, then started on the girl's toenails. Faith, still in the recliner, rolled her eyes at the whole "girly-girly" thing going on. She watched Cordy and wondered what the girl would do if Faith told her she was leaving. Probably do the pouty thing...it drove Faith nuts and Cordy knew it.

By this time, Cordy had moved onto Buffy's toenails. Normally she'd have had someone do her nails, but she'd just gotten them done a couple of days before. Buffy was entranced by the prettiness of her newly painted fingernails. She smiled at Cordy and Cordy smiled back.

"Thank you, Cordy...it's a lot of f-fun for me to spend time with all of you guys."

"You're totally welcome, Buff. It's always fun for me when I get to introduce someone to the joys of manicures and pedicures...and clothes and makeup and...," Cordy replied, laughing. The girls smiled at each other again, and Cordy resumed her handiwork.

Willow finished Tara's toes, then grabbed a polish for herself and plopped down by Fred. Fred whooped and went to work on the redhead. Faith walked over to Cordy, who'd just finished with Buffy's nails. Buffy had been ordered to sit still so the polish could dry.

"What do you want, Faithy?" Cordy asked the other brunette.

"You o'course...what else, Queen C?" Faith replied, grinning lasciviously at her.

"Uh huh...so what're you gonna do about it?" she questioned smugly.

"What? You expect me to perform with an audience?" Faith answered, putting a hand on her chest in mock-horror. Cordy snorted at Faith's pretend shock.

"Gosh Faith, you got performance problems or something?"

"Hell no! I would just prefer to...perform...in privacy. So sue me."

"Fine, with me. Do you wanna go now? Or later?" Cordy asked her.

"Later's fine...I ain't in a hurry or nothin'."

"Good, now go pick a movie, and then sit down and shut up...unless you want a manicure or pedicure?" Cordy ordered, giving Faith "the look". Faith grumbled under her breath about "pushy dames", then did as Cordy said. After putting "Die Hard" into the DVD player, she sat back down in the recliner and was silent as she watched Bruno in action. It *was* her kinda movie, after all.

Tara, whose nails were dry, grabbed a soda and bowl of barbecue chips and started munching. Buffy did the same, only she grabbed sour cream -n- onion chips. Buffy, trying to overcome her anxiety of Faith's personality, timidly asked the girl if she wanted something to eat or drink.

"Sure, Twinkie...whatcha got?" Faith replied.

"Um...there's barbcue chips, cheddar and sour cream chips, original flavored chips, and sour cream -n- onion chips. There's a-also Coke, Rootbeer, S-Sprite, and O-Orange C-Crush to drink." Buffy cursed her ever present stutter and just *knew* Faith would harass her about it.

"I'll take a Coke and some cheddar chips, thanks," Faith said, surprisingly ignoring Buffy's speech impediment. Buffy nodded, then brought Faith the snacks. Faith thanked her and started chowing down. Buffy sighed a breath of relief, as she went back over and sat down with Tara.

"That was pretty hard, huh, Buffy?" Tara said, smiling at Buffy.

"Yes it w-was...she s-scares me, T-Tara."

"She scared me the first few times I hung out with her, but I got to know her and she's not so bad."

"G-Good to know...thanks," Buffy responded. The two girls smiled, then resumed watching and snacking. Willow and Fred grabbed some snacks and soda, and plopped onto the couch with the blondes. Cordy went over, after getting *her* munchies, and sat on the floor by Faith.
**********

They got bored with watching movies after: "Grease", "Die Hard", "Dirty Dancing", and " Die Hard with a Vengeance", so Faith suggested they play "Truth Or Dare". She picked Buffy to start.

"Buffy...truth or dare?"

"Um...I..I've n-never played this g-game before. W-What do I do?"

"It's easy, promise. If you pick "Truth", then you hafta confess something true about yourself, like if you've got a crush on anyone or something. And if you pick "Dare", then someone dares you to, like, run around naked outside, and you hafta do it. If you choose not to do the dare, then you automatically hafta do a "Truth". Okay?" Faith patiently explained.

"Okay...so, n-now I pick one, right?" Faith nodded and Buffy made her choice.

"I p-pick "Truth"", she said. Faith grinned and thought of what she'd ask Buffy to confess.

"Hmm...okay..."truth" it is...have you ever french kissed a guy before, Buffy?" Faith asked.

"Y-yeah...once...," Buffy replied, blushing in shame and staring at the floor.

"Really? Who was it? How old was he? How old were you?" Faith inquired, very curious to know the details. She'd thought for sure, that Blondie was an innocent babe.

"I...I'd rather n-not say..."

"Okay, that's cool. Now, you pick someone and ask them "Truth" or "Dare"". Buffy picked Willow.

"I want...um...okay, "Truth" I guess," the redhead said.

"Um...have you...um...ever...hadsex?" Buffy blurted, then wanted to kick herself for the bluntness of her question.

"Yep, I have...twice," Willow said, grinning and blushing at the same time. Willow chose Tara and Tara decided on "Dare".

"K...um...I dare you to...uh...do a handstand," Willow giggled, coming up with the first idea that popped into her head. Tara grinned, then got up from the floor and went over to a clear spot near the couch. She tucked her pajama top into her pajama shorts, got low to the floor, put her hands down, one on each side of her, and pushed off. Her legs went straight into the air, all of her body's weight resting on her hands. Everyone watching, gasped, then applauded, as the handstand ended. Tara smiled smugly as she went back over to her spot on the rug.

"Wow, Tara! That was awesome," Faith said, giving her friend a high-five. Tara blushed, then returned the high-five.

"Thanks, guys...10 years in gymnastics made me the girl I am today," she grinned. Her victim of choice, was Cordy.

"Cordy..."Truth" or "Dare"?"

""Dare", please."

"Hmm...okay...I dare you to...to kiss Faith...tongue and all," Tara announced. She snickered at Faith's stunned look...and Willow's...and Fred's...and Buffy's. She wasn't as shy as she acted sometimes, and she'd definitely noticed Cordy and Faith's "thing" for what it was.

"Cool....c'mere Faithy," Cordy said, giving the other brunette a "come hither" look. Faith gulped silently, then crawled over to Cordy. Cordy pulled Faith super close, and without preamble, planted her lips firmly on Faith's. Faith gasped at the suddenness and Cordy took the opportunity to slip her tongue into the other girl's mouth. Mmm...she tasted gooood. The brunettes kissed, tongues and all, for a few minutes, and their audience was gaping in shock, well, 'cept for Tara of course.

Faith finally pulled away to catch her breath. Damn what a kiss, she thought. Who knew Queen C packed such a punch when she kissed someone. Cordy was thinking the same thing about Faith's kissing ability. Guh. She finally cleared her throat and asked Fred "Truth" or "Dare".

"Gimme a "Dare", Cordy!" Fred winked.

"Let's see....I dare you to...um...go kiss Wesley...but we all have to see it."

"Y'all wanna watch me kiss Wesley?" Fred squeaked in shock. Three of the four girls nodded...Buffy didn't wanna see anything...it was uncomfortable enough seeing Cordy and Faith kiss. Girls weren't sposed to kiss other girls, were they? She remembered Hank making her watch a movie with girls kissing each other...and not just on the mouth. It had scared her a lot and he'd called her a "stupid pussy", then had slapped her and made her....Buffy quickly ended that train of thought. She suddenly felt like she was going to throw up and jumped up from the floor, and ran out of the family room. She needed fresh air right away.

The others didn't see her escape, since they'd followed Fred into Wes' office. He, Giles, Angel, and Doyle, were playing Gin. The men looked up as the girls came into the room. Well, except for Buffy. Angel said "hello" to the girls, then got up and went looking for Buffy. She wasn't in the family room or even upstairs. He was worried now, where was she? What happened to make her leave? Making a quick guess, he went outside and headed for the courtyard.
*******

Buffy was sitting on a bench when he found her. She heard his approach, barely, but was too caught up in memories of life with Hank to do anything. He walked over and sat down on the bench, keeping a good foot and a half between them so he wouldn't spook her.

"Is everything okay, Little One?" he asked, after a few more minutes of silence.

"No...not really...," Buffy whispered, then got quiet again. Why wouldn't the memories of Hank go away and leave her in peace? "Angel? Do you th-think he'll ever stop haunting me?" she wondered aloud.

"I think he will, yeah. But I think it'll just take some more time, Buffy...what upset you tonight?"

"Cordy and F-Faith kissing...it reminded me of the time my d-dad...I mean, *Hank*, made me w-watch a m-movie with g-girls kissing and to...touching each other...." she told him, remembering the night vividly. "....the m-movie made me almost throw up, Angel...and...and when H-Hank saw me t-try to l-leave and go to my bedroom, he..." she paused, swallowing the bile that had risen in her throat.

"Buffy...you don't have to tell me...okay?" he told her, moving closer to put a hand on her shoulder to comfort her. The touch made her flinch and get up from the bench instead.

"No...I *have* to get it out! It's g-going to make me c-crazy if I don't!" she practically yelled, startling Angel. "He made me TOUCH him, Angel! He grabbed me by the arm and dragged me over to his chair...he crushed my hand with his, until I stayed put. Then he...god, Angel...he had me unbutton and unzip his pants..." she stated flatly. "Hank took my hand and made me reach into the pants and touch his....his...COCK, Angel...cock, cock, cock!" Buffy ranted, near hysteria. "His ugly, gross, nasty, COCK...Hank forced me to grab a hold of it and stroke it...it was...he had an e...erection. I wanted to throw up, Angel! He didn't let go of my hand until he...it...came all over my hand. And just when I hoped it was over, he grabbed me by the hair and told me to clean him up...with my mouth..."Lick it all up, baby...it's good for you", he said. So I did...it's not like I had a choice or anything..." Buffy turned to look at him and laughed shrilly at his look of horror. "And you know what, Angel? When dear, old, *Daddy* was all tidied up...you know what I did next?" She stalked over to him, got right in his face, and whispered, "I spit in his face and ran up to my room, locking the door behind me." And with that, she went over to the nearest bush and threw up everything she'd consumed that day. She continued dry-heaving for a few minutes after her stomach was emptied.

The tears started then, and they broke his heart. How anyone could survive such a childhood as the one she'd been through, he didn't know. Angel walked over to where she was still kneeling on the ground and gathered her into his arms, holding her as she wept. Willow gasped when he carried her into the hotel.

"Angel! What happened to her?" she asked, worried for Buffy. He shook his head and told her Buffy was okay. Then he carried the tiny blonde up to her room, setting her down on the bed. He started to leave, but she whimpered and asked him to stay, so he did. Her sleep was restless, filled with, no doubt, more horrible visions and memories of her young adult life. After she'd woken up a second time, more like jerked awake suddenly, he got onto the bed beside her and pulled her to him. She believed him when he said he would never harm her in any way, so she allowed herself to be gathered into his strong arms. Angel held her throughout the night, stroking her hair, keeping the bad dreams at bay, and Buffy was able to relax completely for the first time in years.
*******

Buffy had been living at the Hyperion for four months now and she still wanted to pinch herself occasionally for the luck she'd come into. Willow, Fred, and Cordy, had become her best friends. Wes was a trusted confidant, as was Giles. Doyle was always able to cheer her up with a funny joke or anecdote, and then there was Angel. How could she put him into a category as unoriginal as "friend" or "confidant"? He was those things and so much more. Big brother, care giver, companion, buddy...he was always someone she could go to, even if the others seemed unapproachable to her.

The longer she lived in the hotel, the less her stutter came out and eventually it was gone all together. Just as suddenly as it had appeared, it vanished. Buffy was very happy about it, and didn't miss it one little bit. She'd had many bonding sessions with the girls, Faith and Tara as well. Angel had flipped out when he'd seen Buffy's butterfly tattoo on her left ankle, but after she told him it wasn't permanent, he chilled out and told her it was cute. She'd grinned and thanked him politely.
*******

For Buffy's 16th birthday, Angel and the others threw her a huge bash. Faith, Tara, Willow, Angel, Giles, Cordy, Fred, Doyle, Spike, and Gunn all came bearing gifts. Cordy and Faith, after a brief affair, had chosen to stay friends. Fred was dating Wesley. Giles was dating Tara, Willow was involved with a man named Oz, and Doyle, Angel, Buffy, Cordy, Faith, Spike, and Gunn, remained single. For her birthday, Buffy got: a sweater from Giles, a Sony Playstation from Gunn who said he'd be *more* than happy to teach her how to play, causing Faith and Spike to groan, for they knew Gunn's obsession with video games. Cordy and Fred each gave Buffy gift certificates, one for Sweet Factory, and one for Aaron's Airbrush Tattoos. Buffy hugged them both. Willow gave Buffy a stuffed pig, which was promptly named Mrs. Gordo. Doyle, Spike, and Faith, gave Buffy certificates for other clothing and shoe stores at the mall.

Angel gave Buffy a gold locket, that resembled the one that had once belonged to Joyce. Inside the locket, Angel had managed, with everyone's, especially Wesley's, help, to find pictures of Joyce and Buffy for the piece of jewelry. Buffy had cried happy tears, and kissed Angel and Wes on the cheek. Both men had stuttered and told her they were happy she liked it so much. There was lots of cake, ice cream, chips, pizza, soda, music, and laughter. Buffy hadn't had such a wonderful birthday in a very long time and would never forget it.

As she drifted off to sleep that night, she couldn't stop all of the wonderful things from replaying over and over in her head. Buffy fell asleep with a big smile on her face, secure in the love she had with her new family. It was the best thing that had happened to her since before her mom had died.

~ONE YEAR LATER~

"Hey, Buff, ready to spar?" Angel asked, grinning suggestively at her. She wrinkled her nose, rotated her shoulders, wiggled her arms and hands to loosen them up, then nodded at him. He got into position, and waited for her to do the same...when she did, he nodded once for the signal, then sprung into action. They circled each other a couple of times, each waiting for their opponent to slip up so the other could pounce, but both knew better than to let the other have an opening. Staring at her intently, Angel waited a few seconds...oh, there it was. Buffy dropped her right shoulder a smidge, giving Angel the opportunity he'd been looking for. He pounced forward and grabbed her under the left leg, slamming her onto the mat.

"One for me," he stated smugly. She huffed, then wriggled out from underneath him. Dammit, she hated when he pinned her so quickly. If only she knew what she was doing wrong, then maybe she'd have a one up on him. She sighed, and got back into the first position. This time, she watched him more closely and took the first shot by elbowing him in the gut and when he grunted, she grabbed him by the forearm and tried to flip him. He didn't budge though, and she got mad.

The next time he pinned her, she squirmed even more and was surprised when he jumped off her as if he'd been burned. She wasn't wearing any jewelry and she wasn't one for bathing in Holy Water, so what was up? He told her that was enough for the day, then bolted out of the gym. Confused and hurt, she followed him to get an explanation for his weird behavior. Buffy trailed him upstairs, ready to confront him, but he disappeared before she could ask why he'd left so abruptly. Sighing, she decided to shower and change, since he wasn't going to spar with her anymore. She stripped her sweaty tanktop and shorts off, peeled off her socks and trainers, and stood in front of her closet.

Instead of going to the shower, she decided to go for a swim instead. At least then she'd still be getting *some* exercise. She pulled on a bikini, one that was blue and white checkered, grabbed a towel and trekked down to the pool. When she got there, Buffy put her towel down on one of the chaise lounges and walked over to the pool's edge. As she got ready to jump in, she noticed a movement in the water and wondered who'd beat her to the pool. The person's head came to the surface and she gasped upon seeing it was Angel.

Buffy shrugged and went ahead and jumped into the pool. Brrr...she thought, it was cold, but felt good on her sweaty body. Angel felt the movement of the water and looked over to find Buffy in the pool. He gulped and cursed his bad luck. It figured. He'd tried getting away from her but it seemed she was inescapable today. Buffy swam towards him and instead of swimming away or getting out of the pool, Angel let her corner him.

"So...fancy meeting you here, Angel," she grinned.

"Yep...what a coinky-dink...," he replied, smiling uncomfortably. If only she'd move away from him, then he might be able to control his urge to drag her to him and kiss the stuffing out of her.

"So tell me....why'd you call an end to our sparring so suddenly? Did I have bad breath or something?"

"No, your breath's fine...I just...uh...decided we'd done enough."

Buffy snorted.

"Oh puhlease, Angel! We barely started. Come on, tell me the real reason......please?" she asked, sticking her lower lip out in a pout and batting her eyelashes at him. When she did that, it drove him crazy with want...lucky for her, she had no clue how he truly felt about her.

"Let it go, Buffy, please. It's nothing, honest...let's just swim, okay?" he almost begged. She gave him a scrutinizing look, but relented and began swimming laps. He got into the rhythm with her and soon they were moving in synchronization in the water. After ten laps, Angel pulled himself to a halt and just watched the blonde beauty continue swimming. She did five more laps, before she stopped, treading water and catching her breath.

"You ready to get out, Buffy?" he asked.

"Yeah, gimme a sec though," she replied, smiling in between breaths. He nodded, then hefted himself out of the water to sit on the side of the pool's surrounding floor. Buffy almost stopped breathing when she saw him sitting there in his trunks. Gods...when had he gotten so *hot*? And why had she *just* noticed? Maybe she needed to cool off in the pool a little longer, but glancing at her fingers, which had turned to prunes, she swam over to him and climbed out of the pool to sit next to him. Their legs pressed together and she was overcome with the urge to lean over and kiss him square on the mouth.

Buffy nearly jumped, startled at the thought that had just flickered to life in her mind. She wanted to kiss someone? She wanted to kiss Angel? What was going on with her? For so long, just the mere idea of being...close...to someone had churned her stomach to the point she thought she might throw up. After all her father had done to her, the last thing she had ever wanted was to be intimate with a man in any way. Why did she want to now? What had changed? ....

She wasn't sure she could answer either of those questions. All she knew was that as she'd floated there in the water and seen Angel's strong muscular body, bared by the swimming trunks, she'd been hit by a wave of...something...she couldn't explain. Something that made her want to be close to him. Something that made her wonder what it would feel like to feel his lips on hers. She suddenly had all these feelings fluttering inside her. It was all so confusing. And she couldn't seem to get the idea of kissing Angel out of her head.

They sat there in silence, wondering what the other was thinking. Finally she couldn't take it anymore... and turned to face him.

"....Angel...?"

"Yes?"

"Would...um....will you...k-kiss me?" she practically whispered, stuttering over the word "kiss".

He was floored. Had she actually just asked him to kiss her?! Surely not.

"I'm sorry...but did you just ask me to kiss you, Buffy?" She nodded and held her breath for his response. Angel didn't know what to do. Sure he wanted to kiss her more than anything...but why did she want HIM to kiss her?

"Are...are you sure, Little One?"

"Yes, I'm sure, Angel....," Buffy replied, standing up suddenly, and giving him a what she hoped was a sultry look..."and in case you hadn't noticed, I'm not little anymore," she told him, placing her hand on her hip and licking her lips. He gulped and stood up next to her. He'd definitely noticed she *wasn't* little anymore....far from it, actually. Was he going to try and talk himself out of it or would he actually kiss her?

"I...I guess I'd like to know *why*, Buffy."

"Why? Why what, Angel? Why do I want to be kissed or why do I want *you* to kiss me?"

"Both." She sighed...and tried to gather her thoughts.

"I...I'm just curious to know what a real kiss is, Angel. One that isn't tainted in any way...as for why I asked you...well, frankly, cuz you're the only one I want to be kissed by. Wes, Gunn, Spike, Doyle, and Giles...they're not my type, I suppose. Besides, I think Spike is gay...nothing against him of course...but even if he's not, I just like a little more meat on a guy and waaay less peroxide. Gunn is seeing some girl named Gwen, Wes and Giles are both involved with someone and Doyle always smells like alcohol. Which is *definitely* not a good thing...reminds me too much of Hank. Gag."

"So naturally, I'm the only remaining choice, huh?" Angel chuckled, wondering why he was feeling...used. Buffy could sense he was feeling hurt, and wanted to kick herself.

"God, Angel...I'm so sorry! Yeah, Buff, just make him feel like he's nothing more than an experiment, why don'tcha! Ugh, I'm *such* an idiot!" she groaned, then slapped herself on the forehead. "Again, I'm really sorry Angel, I wasn't even thinking!" she apologized, then ran from the room, forgetting her towel on the way out. Could she *be* any stupider? She kinda doubted it. Angel smiled ruefully as she left...way to go, Angel, he grimaced, nice job scaring her off like that. Damn.
*******

"I was kinda curious about something...," Buffy said one night at dinner.

"What's that, Buffy?" Willow asked, in between bites of rice.

"I know I'm kinda behind the times here, but, like, what makes you guys fight vampires and stuff? How did each of you get started?" Buffy asked that night at dinner, Mexican this time. Everyone stopped chewing to look at her. Did she have food on her face again?

"Uh...well, it's kind of a long story and stuff...you sure you wanna know?" Cordy replied.

"Yuh-huh, I really do...I assume that's okay, right?" Buffy asked, glancing at her family, wondering if she was asking something she shouldn't have.

"Nah, it's cool, Buff...no worries," Fred reassured her friend.

"Thanks, Fred. So...tell me...what's the what?" Buffy urged.

"Alright...I suppose I can go first," Wes volunteered after nobody else had. "Around 10 or 11 years ago, Giles and I met at a cafe. We'd both gone their for a properly made cup of English tea, but failed to notice there weren't many available seats left. Giles managed to snag one, and not seeing anywhere else to sit, I wandered over and asked if I could join him. He told me I could, so I smiled my thanks and took the extra chair. As we sat there with our tea, the two of us chatted about various things and I couldn't help but notice the tattoo he had on his left bicep. It was rather unusual looking, so I asked him about it."

"When I asked him if it was the mark of Eyghon, I thought for certain Giles was going to snap my neck. It seems he'd, well I'd best leave that particular story to him. In any case, he did eventually tell me that yes, it *was* the mark of Eyghon and the two of us discovered we had quite a bit in common. Especially in things dealing with the occult. I'd taken a course on the subject back at university in London and knew bits and pieces about various things....such as vampires and demons. And a little on magicks, as well."

"I believe Giles and I sat in the cafe for roughly two hours, before we noticed the strange looks other patrons were giving us, so we decided to continue the discussion elsewhere. And a year later, we opened up a shop dealing with the occult, it was called The Magic Box and was relatively successful. However, roughly a year and a half later, it was destroyed in a demon attack. Which incidentally enough, was how Giles and I met Angel. He'd come into the shop on the trail of the Mucussites who'd just broken through the front door and windows of the shop."

"The next thing I was aware of, I was lying on the floor with Giles looking down at me. He was kind enough to inform me that I had, ahh, passed out upon seeing the demons. It was then that I became aware of another gentleman in the store with us, or what was left of the store after the demons were finished with it. I was, naturally, quite surprised when Giles proceeded to tell me that the man, Angel, was a vampire. I was reluctant to believe it, but he was, ahh, quite convincing when he revealed his vampire visage. After I got over my shock, I was rather curious about him. We spent a few hours talking that night."

Wes finished his tale and resumed eating. Buffy was quite surprised by her guardian and friend's story. What were everyone else's stories like, she wondered. Fred decided to tell her narrative next.

"K, well, my parents and I moved here during the summer before I was gonna be a junior in high school. Hemery, actually. Funny, huh?" Fred grinned, then resumed the story. "We settled into a nice house near the school and I got enrolled and everything. "Half way through my first semester, my teachers realized my classes weren't challenging me enough so they suggested I take some extra classes at UCLA. I was getting bored with my advanced math and science courses at Hemery, so my parents and I decided I'd get started with college a little early. I ended up really enjoying it, too."

"Right before my seventeenth birthday, my physics professor decided that I was too much of a threat to his teaching position, so he opened up a portal to a different dimension and shoved me through. It sent me to a place called Pylea...and I lived there, in a cave doing equations for six months, five weeks, three days, twelve minutes, and forty-three seconds. My parents had found out I was missing right after I didn't come home from school. They questioned everyone at both Hemery and UCLA, but nobody knew what had happened to me. The police didn't get involved until forty-eight hours had passed, and they didn't have any clues or leads as to where I'd disappeared to."

"Somehow my mom and dad found out about Angel's agency and hired him to find me....which he did....and I've been working here ever since. That was four years ago. Wow, I didn't realize it had been that long." Fred smiled and finished the food on her plate. Buffy couldn't believe Fred had been so...so calm by the re-telling of her life before the Hyperion. But Wes had been rather sedate too, interesting really.

"Spose it's my turn then, all right. Well first off, you already know that Doyle and me both get visions from The Powers That Be," Cordy said, beginning *her* story. "When I was fifteen, I found out I had a cousin I'd never met...a distant cousin on my dad's side, who'd spent his life in Ireland. Anyway, Alan Francis Doyle and I met when I was 16. He was rather...interesting for sure, and I didn't know what to expect from him, if anything. But we started hanging out and discovered that we both got horrible splitting headaches every so often. He told me what they were, that they were related to the visions we get, and from then on, we've had a special bond."

"At seventeen, I was out with friends one night, and got one of the visions Doyle'd told me about. It was *horrible* and my friends, freaked out by my screams of pain, turned tail and left me alone in the parking lot of the movie theater. When I was able to function again, I managed to call Doyle on his cell phone. And while I was waiting for him, I was attacked by vampires...luckily another vampire saved me. He introduced himself as Angel, and waited with me for Doyle. Doyle wasn't sure what to think of the story I told him about being attacked, but he thanked Angel and the three of us went to a nearby cafe for coffee."

"Shortly after that, Doyle and I started working with Angel, Giles, and Wes...I'm the one who came up with the name "Angel Investigations". The guys all thought it wasn't a very original name, but since they hadn't thought of a better one, 'Angel Investigations' pretty much stuck." Cordy finished talking, took one last bite of food, then announced she was going to go watch tv, so she left the dining room and went into the family room.

"Well, I guess that's enough sharing for tonight guys," Angel said, as everyone carried their plates into the kitchen. Buffy and Willow cleaned up the rest of the food and stored what was left in the refrigerator for later. Fred and Wes loaded up the dishwasher and turned it on. A few minutes later, Wes and Fred left to catch the new Harry Potter movie at a nearby theater. Giles headed up into his office to make some new lesson plans, Doyle headed to a local tavern, and Willow went up to her room to read. Angel and Buffy smiled self-consciously at each other...both wanting to talk about the scene at the pool a few days before, but both were loathe to be the one to bring it up, too.

Buffy cleared her throat and took a second to get her thoughts in order. Angel waited patiently for her to speak.


"Um...I, uh, wanna say again, that I'm really sorry for asking you to kiss me, Angel. I hate that I made you feel like you were my last resort when it comes to that sort of stuff...it was never my intention..." she sighed, wondering if her babbling was making any kind of sense. "It's just that...I don't know how to explain it really, but suddenly I'm having all these strange...feelings. When we were in the pool the other day I couldn't stop looking at you, and umm, wondering what it would be like to kiss you. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable or to think I was using you. You probably think I'm stupid, but I just wanted you to know that I really did want to kiss *you*. I really like you." Buffy looked at him and blushed at the intensity of his gaze.

Angel didn't know what to say...did she have...feelings for him? Romantic feelings? Impossible! How could someone as lovely, innocent, caring, and sweet, have feelings for someone like him? If she *did* have feelings, romantic feelings, for him...were they real? Was she just out to use him for experimenting with? Or did she honestly care about him *that* *way*?

"Buffy...I'm truly flattered and honored that you want me to be your first kiss. But I think we should...maybe take things one step at a time. Would you consider going out on a date with me sometime?" Angel asked, holding an unnecessary breath as he waited for her answer.

"A...a date...with you?" she squeaked, shocked by his suggestion. He nodded. "Oh...gosh...I...I don't know, Angel...can I, um, think about it and let you know?" Buffy managed to say without too much squeaking.

"Sure you can, Buffy. No rush...just let me know when you've decided, okay?" Angel replied, trying to ignore the disappointment he felt at her semi-refusal. He should've known better than to ask her something that stupid. God he was a moron. He smiled once more at her, then headed up to his room before he made an even bigger fool of himself in front of her.

Buffy remained sitting at the table, trying to figure out what had just happened. Had Angel *really* asked her out? For a *date*? Woah.
*******

"Um, Cordy...can I ask you something?" Angel questioned his friend the next afternoon.

"Sure, what's up?" Cordy replied, setting down the issue of Cosmo she'd been reading.

"Well...I want to take Buffy out on a date. But I don't know where to take her or anything. Do you have any suggestions?"

"Excuse me, that must have been in my *bad* ear, Angel. I thought I heard you say you want to take Buffy out on a date. Since when do you wanna date anyone, let alone Buffy? The entire time I've known you, I've *never* seen you so much as flirt with a member of the opposite sex. But now you actually want to date one? Be still my beating heart here, Angel. You on a date...an actual pick-the-girl-up-bring-her-flowers-maybe-kiss-her-at-the-end date? I think the world's ending."

"Ha-ha, Cordy. Enough abusing sarcasm, please. Now, will you help me or not?" Angel asked, rolling his eyes at the girl.

"Only cuz you're pretty helpless in the world of dating," Cordy responded, giving Angel a cheeky grin.

"Gosh, I don't know what I'd do if I didn't have you to hold my hand, Cordy," Angel grinned.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever Angel. Now shut up so I can think of ways for you to wow Buffy," Cordy groused at him. He made the I'm-zipping-my-lip gesture at her, and she snorted.

The girl sat in silence a few minutes as she tried thinking of date ideas for Angel. Movie and dinner were *so* passe, so that idea was vetoed immediately. Ballet or opera might wind up putting Buffy to sleep. Art gallery maybe? Possibly, but it could bring up bad memories for Buffy, so maybe not. Ugh...how could Cordy be expected to think under pressure like this?

"Okay...well, I think dinner someplace nice could work. But then what to do afterwards, right? I was thinking an art gallery, but it might depress Buffy cuz of her mom." Cordy sighed. "I'm sorry I'm not much help, Angel. Don't stress out too much, just go with your gut. Take her to wherever your instincts tell you to."

"All right Cordy, thanks," Angel said, then smiled at her and went off to his office to plan a date.

It would be the best date Buffy'd ever had, even if it killed him. He grinned at the thought of finally letting some of his feelings for her come to the surface. Hopefully his feelings wouldn't scare her off, but he didn't think they would. Angel still couldn't believe that Buffy had told him she liked him...*liked* him! It was quite a rush, really. Especially when he let himself wonder what her lips would feel like under his. Were they really as soft as they looked? Angel groaned at the surge of lust that hit him as he imagined Buffy's reaction to their first kiss. Gods.
********

Two days later, Angel was sparring with Buffy in the gym. She'd been trying to come up with a way to accept Angel's offer of a date, a way that wouldn't make her look like a moron. Finally she decided to just blurt it out. They were circling each other on the mat and Buffy couldn't hold it in anymore.

"I'd really like to go out on a date with you, Angel," she announced, stunning him.

Angel froze where he was standing. Did she just accept his idea of a date with him? Buffy tried not to crack up giggling at his stunned look. She knew it wasn't fair, but so what? While he was still immobile where he stood, Buffy shifted her weight, and kicked out with her leg. As expected, the move caught Angel off guard and his legs swept out from beneath him. He grunted as his shoulder collided with the mat, and then lay sprawled in a heap, staring up at Buffy with shocked and admiring eyes.

"Oh my god! I...Woohoo! One for me, Angel! I knocked you down! Yesssssssss!!!!!!!" Buffy cheered, giggling and bouncing up and down in joy. Before he could get up to retaliate by knocking *her* down, she quickly high-tailed it out of the room, grinning and laughing the entire way to her room.

A few seconds later, Angel realized he was lying on his back on the hard floor. How had he gotten there? Then he remembered. Buffy had told him she wanted to go out with him on a date. He grinned. But wait, had he fallen down or something? No...that's right. Buffy had knocked him off his feet, literally, and he hadn't realized she'd done it, because he was still reeling from her announcement. Wow, so she'd told him "yes" and then sent him reeling to the mat. Angel snickered. Man, what a woman!
*********

Upstairs in her room, Buffy was still giggling as she remembered Angel's facial expression. He'd been so *floored* when she'd told him she wanted to date him. Buffy sobered though, when she started wondering what a date with Angel would be like. She'd been too shy and naive to date when she was younger, plus Hank hadn't let her out of his sight when he was around. The one time she'd asked him if she could go out to a movie with friends, guys and girls, he'd told her in no uncertain terms that the only person she'd be whoring herself out to, would be him and him alone. Buffy had paled and quickly fled to the safety of her bedroom before Hank could elaborate any further.

God, she thought, what had kept him from raping her? Sure he'd planned on doing just that two years before, but why hadn't he done the deed when she was younger? Her mom, maybe? No, Buffy figured that he could've waited until Joyce was on a buying trip and gone for days at a time to fuck his daughter. She shook off the unpleasant line of thinking and went back to picturing a date with Angel. Thoughts of him always made her smile.

Still, even though she trusted Angel and wanted to go out on a date with him, she was nervous. She didn't know anything about dating. What did people do on dates? Would Angel want to hold her hand? Should she let him hold her hand? Would he kiss her? Would he try to...Buffy abruptly cut off that last question. Angel wouldn't ever make her do anything she didn't want to do. He wasn't like that. She was letting her past get the best of her.

The past would only ever control her if she let it. That's what Wes had told her once. She could let what her father had done to her dictate her actions, or she could take control and move on with her life. The latter was what she wanted. She wouldn't ever forget the horrible life she'd lived with Hank. That just wouldn't be possible. But she wasn't going to let it take over her mind. Not anymore. She would go on her date with Angel. She would have fun. And she would trust him to be as sweet and caring as he'd always been.
*********

Two weeks later, on a Friday night, Angel knocked on Buffy's bedroom door. She gulped and tried to calm her nerves. Butterflies were doing cartwheels and somersaults in her stomach. Oh god, he's here! Taking a few calming breaths, she slowly walked over to her door and turned the knob to open it. The sight of him standing there kicked the semi-calm butterflies into a full gymnastics routine and Buffy was afraid she'd throw up all over the man standing there waiting for her. Her date, Angel, was wearing black slacks, a crisp white dress shirt with the top two buttons left undone. He had a matching black jacket on, black dress shoes, and in one hand, held a single daisy.

He smiled at her and handed her the flower. She blushed, smiled back at him nervously, and took the flower from him.

"Are you almost ready, Buffy?" Angel asked, smiling so she'd know he wasn't trying to rush her.

"Y-yeah...I'm ready," she stammered, blushing again.

Angel took her hand in his and they walked downstairs. Fred and the others were grinning at them. Willow gave Buffy a thumb's up and giggled. Buffy returned the gesture and finally felt the butterflies start to settle down. It was just a date, she reassured herself mentally, not brain surgery. She could do this...it *was* Angel after all. The blonde and brunette left the hotel in Angel's GTX after a few final "good lucks" and well wishes for a successful first date.
*********

The drive to the restaurant was silent, as neither person in the car knew what to say to break the ice.

"You look really great, Buffy..." Angel finally said, glancing at her briefly, before returning his gaze to the road.

"Thank you, Angel. You look really good too," she replied. Oh man, has she just said he looked good? At least she hadn't said the rest out loud...'good enough to eat' Buffy silently mused. Now *that* would've been *beyond* embarrassing.

Buffy was wearing a lilac colored sundress with white heeled sandals. Her hair, done by Willow, was in a simple french braid, with a few strands of hair pulled out and curled, framing her face. Pearl earrings adorned her ears, and a simple gold chain was around her neck. Cordy had done her makeup and Fred did her nails; they were painted in the same shade of lilac as Buffy's dress. Angel was stunned by her sheer beauty and by the fact that he was lucky enough to call her his for the evening.

Upon reaching the Italian bistro, Buffy was assisted from the car by the valet, and Angel offered her his arm, which she wrapped her hand through. They smiled at each other, and after receiving the parking receipt for the car, Angel escorted her inside.
**********

The Maitre'd showed them to a table, handed them each a menu, then left to resume his position at the entrance of the bistro. A waiter showed up immediately, bringing each of them a glass of water. He gave them a few minutes to make their dinner choices.

"Um...Angel?"

"Yes, Buffy?"

"This menu's in Italian, isn't it?" He nodded. "Thought so. My Italian's not up to this level yet...can you help me pick something?"

"Of course I can. What sort of things do you like?"

"Um...chicken and pasta is always good. I also like lasagna and ravioli," Buffy said.

"Okay, how about the Chicken Alfredo?"

"Oooh, that sounds really good! I'd like that, please."

"Sure. I'll tell the waiter for you when he comes back, all right?" Angel asked, smiling at her across the table.

"Yes please. Thanks," Buffy replied, smiling back at him.

They made idle chitchat until their waiter returned for their orders. As promised, Angel ordered her the chicken alfredo, and for himself, he ordered the vegetable lasagna. Sure he didn't get any real protein or anything from human food, but he still enjoyed it from time to time.

"So Angel...what are we doing after dinner?" she questioned.

"Hmm...I haven't quite figured that out yet. Do you have any ideas? Is there anything you'd like to do, or anywhere you'd like to go?"

"I'm not sure...but I'll letcha know once I do, okay?"

"Sounds like a good idea to me," he said, smiling at her again.

He couldn't believe how stunned he'd been when she'd opened the door to her bedroom. She'd looked *amazing* and it was all he could do to keep from barging into her room, slamming and locking the door behind him, and spending the rest of the night introducing Buffy to the pleasures of the flesh. Gods! Angel had wanted *so* badly to pull her into his arms and kiss her all over. Luckily his self control had reasserted itself in time. But he couldn't help but wonder if keeping her locked in her room with him, both of them naked, in her bed, would have been such a terrible idea after all. Nah, he sighed, it was probably a *little* too soon for that. Ah well, there was always the second date.

Buffy stared at him and wondered what sort of thoughts were going through his head. She shuddered internally, hoping Angel's thoughts weren't leaning towards the idea of rushing through their date, and dumping her back at the hotel, never speaking to her again. No, she chided, he liked her...liked her enough to ask her out for a proper date. That had to mean *something*, right? Her mental musings were interrupted by the waiter bringing them their entrees. After thanking him, Buffy dug into the meal hungrily, making Angel grin at her exuberance. Then he started eating too, just not as fast.
*********

"So how do you think the date's going?" Willow wondered.

"Knowing Angel, he's probably thinking he's in over his head," Cordy replied, then snickered.

"Yeah, prob'ly," Fred giggled. They were all seated in the family room, watching tv and discussing their ideas of how Angel's date with Buffy was going. There was a betting pool on how long it would take for their friends to kiss. The girls all thought Angel would *never* kiss Buffy on the first date. They said he was too old-fashioned for that. The guys, mainly Doyle, Gunn, and Spike, all scoffed at that, and swore that when their friends walked through the front door, Buffy would look like she'd been seriously ravished from kisses with Angel.

"There ain't no way that Angel will let the date end without playing tonsil hockey with the Buffster! The girl is freakin' hot and if I were in Angel's shoes..." Gunn said, only to shut up when his girl Gwen, smacked him on the arm.

"You wanna keep having me around, you'd better not finish that thought, Buster," Gwen suggested, glaring at her boyfriend. He winced, then whispered something in her ear. She blushed, then grabbed him and dragged him up to his room. Once they'd left, Cordy, Fred, and Willow giggled. Spike made a crude comment, causing the girls to throw pillows at him.
*********

Angel helped Buffy into the car after dinner, then walked around and got in on his side. They waved to the valet attendants, then drove off.

"Have you decided on what you'd like to do now, Buffy?" Angel asked a few minutes later.

"You'll probably think it's dumb...but could we maybe head to the beach?" she suggested, half-joking.

"That sounds like a great idea, Buffy! We're off to the beach then," Angel announced, making her giggle.
*********

Twenty minutes later, the GTX pulled into a parking spot at a local beach. Angel turned off the car and climbed out. Opening her door for her, he reached in and helped her out. Locking the car, they linked their hands together and walked towards the sand.
*******

Half way down the beach, swigging down the contents of a freshly purchased bottle of Jack Daniels, Hank Summers sat slumped down in the sand. God he wanted, no, *needed* a good fuck! It had been two years since that bitch of a daughter of his had up and vanished. Stupid cunt. Hank had thought long and hard about things...if only he'd stayed home that day. If only he'd fucked her when he'd first thought to. She'd been about twelve when he noticed she was getting tits. He'd become obsessed with seeing them and touching them. Biting their nipples and hearing her whimpers of fright and pain.

If only the bitch he'd been married to hadn't been around so damn much. Joyce had constantly been spending time with Buffy...taking her to birthday parties for school friends of Buffy's. Or to Joyce's stupid gallery. Hank smiled in fond remembrance of the first time Joyce had gone on one of her buying trips. Buffy had been almost thirteen at the time. He'd been hard-pressed, pun intended, to get his hands on his sexy little virginal daughter. As soon as Joyce had driven away, Hank had given Buffy an I-want-to-rip-off-your-clothes-and-fuck-you-until-you-scream look. Innocent, shy, and timid Buffy hadn't a clue what her father was planning on doing while her mom was out of town.

She'd asked him what they were gonna do while Joyce was gone for the weekend, and Hank had said they were going to be having lots of fun. Buffy had smiled and hugged him. He'd hugged her back, copping a feel at the same time. She'd felt so good and he knew she'd feel even better without any clothes on. It had been such an awesome weekend...at least for him.
********

Angel and Buffy strolled in contented silence near the water. They'd both taken off their shoes and Buffy liked the feel of the sand squishing between her toes. Neither partner said much and instead just enjoyed being together. Occasionally they would share a smile, then they'd both quickly look away, laughing quietly at their shared shyness.

"I've been having a really good time tonight, Angel," she said quietly at one point.

"Me too, Buffy...it's been a lot of fun so far." He grinned at her and she blushed, but grinned back. "Do you want to find someplace to sit and watch the water?" Angel asked.

"Okay, let's do that," Buffy answered, nodding.

They headed away from the water, looking for a good place to sit down. Suddenly Buffy's foot tripped over something in the sand.

"Hey! Watch it, you dumb fuck!" a man's voice growled at her from the darkness. The man stumbled to his feet, preparing to tear into the unfortunate person who'd kicked him.

Angel gasped softly when he saw what, or rather who, Buffy had bumped into. It had been two years, but Angel never forgot a face...this one belonged to Hank Summers. Hank looked as sleazy as ever, Angel noticed. The man was drinking heavily and could barely keep his balance as he stood in front of the pair. Buffy wondered why the man looked familiar to her. But when the smell of whiskey hit her nose, she almost threw up. The drunk was none other than her...than the man she'd once called "Daddy". She'd hoped she'd never have to see him again, but luck wasn't on her side it seemed.

"Well, well...lookit who we have here," Hank slurred, taking a good long lecherous look at the woman he had sired. "If it isn't my long-lost daughter. How ya been, Cunt?" he leered, taking a half step towards her. "You look as fuckable as ever...and boy have you grown! What are ya now...a C cup? D cup, maybe? C'mere and lemme measure yer tits, girly."

"Nice to see you too, Hank...except, well, *not*!" Buffy managed to say without stuttering or hurling. She moved closer to Angel, inadvertently causing Hank to look over at her companion.

"And if it ain't O'Connor! Huh...guess now I know why you didn't want me to have her. You wanted her for yourself, didn't ya?" Hank asked, taking a swig of whiskey and moving closer to Buffy. "So tell me...man to man...she any good? Nice and fuckable, ain't she? Bet she squealed like a stuck pig when you busted through that cherry o'hers, didn't she?" Hank chuckled and hiccuped.

Buffy couldn't believe this...thing had raised her. Angel was swamped with indecision. Slug Hank? Threaten him? Snap his neck? Angel didn't know what to do. He glanced at Buffy to see how she was dealing with her father's disgusting words. She was standing there with her hands clenched into fists. On the outside she looked somewhat calm, but on the inside Buffy was terrified and angered by Hank.

"Normally I'd take the opportunity to kick your ass six ways from Sunday, Hank. But I think I'm going to let Buffy have a say in what happens to you," Angel finally said, glancing at the girl.

"Oooh, ya mean the little bitch is gonna hurt me? Sounds pretty good to me...I been wantin' to feel her hands on me a long time," Hank blurted, closing the distance between his daughter and him.

"Buffy? Are you okay with this?" Angel asked, concerned he was setting her up for something she might not be able to handle.

"Yeah, I think so, Angel. Do you think you could hold my shoes though? I have a feeling I'll need both hands for Daddy-Dearest here," Buffy replied, handing her shoes to Angel and giving him a subtle wink. He winked back at her, reassured that she could handle anything that might happen.

"So...*Dad*...you really wanna feel my hands on you? Sure thing! Which part should I put my hands on first?" Buffy asked, taking a couple of steps back to give her some space to work with.

Hank chuckled. Like hell she was actually going to do anything to him...well, except maybe she'd blow him. He hadn't felt her lips and tongue on his cock in years.

"Hell Buff, why don'tcha start with what's in my pants. It's all nice and hard for ya, too. Remember how it feels to touch and suck on it 'til it gives you a nice creamy present? I sure do...the first time I made you touch it, I think you were 'bout twelve. And man did I give you *such* a gift, too! Damn...your hot little tongue licking my cock all over...especially the head." Hank staggered towards her, unfastening his pants and pulling the zipper down to expose his erection. "Here it is, Slut, have at it. Show Angel or whatever the fuck his name is, here how good you are at sucking cock."

Buffy froze at Hank's statement. She'd sucked him off at twelve? What was he talking about? Buffy couldn't remember doing *anything* sexual with Hank until she was fifteen. Was he telling the truth or was he letting the booze do the talking? If Hank *was* being honest, then why couldn't Buffy remember doing such a horrible thing?

"I guess you don't 'member, do ya? Ah well...once you get on your knees and reintroduce yourself, I'm sure it'll all come back to ya...why it's just like ridin' a bike, Buff!" Hank laughed, making a grab for Buffy and latching onto one of her wrists.

He reeled her into him and pushed down on her shoulder with his free hand to force her to her knees. She resisted though and using *her* free hand, made a fist and swung it at him, clipping him under the chin. Hank groaned at the unexpected hit and letting go of Buffy's wrist, he lunged at her, preparing to shove her onto the sand so he could mount her. She easily sidestepped her drunken father, and when he fell, Buffy kicked him in the ass, hard. He landed sprawled out on the sand and grunted from the impact.

"Anything else I can do for you, 'Dad'?" Buffy snickered, looking at the man lying on the ground in a pathetic heap. "You ready to go, Angel?" she asked, shyly glancing over at her date.

"Yeah, I'm ready, let's go," he replied, taking her hand and kissing it. She blushed and smiled at him.

Leaving the past behind her, literally, Buffy joined hands with Angel and the twosome headed back to the GTX and the relative calm of the hotel.
*******

For the next two months, life at the Hyperion was on the quieter side as there were no more sightings of Hank. The demon-battling, however, was a bit busier. Angel spent many nights patrolling the streets in search of a Spuffy demon who'd been causing some trouble.

Spike spent more time at the hotel after he started dating Cordelia, something that surprised everyone. They were completely mismatched. But it seemed as though the love bug was going around with Gunn and Gwen, and Wes and Fred also spending time together. Then there were Buffy and Angel.

The two went on a few more dates, ones not tainted by Buffy's vile father. As of now, they weren't quite boyfriend/girlfriend, but they were working toward it. Things might have moved faster if both hadn't had other issues to deal with; Angel chasing the demon, and Buffy studying constantly for her upcoming SAT's. Despite their busy schedules, they spent time together when they could.
*******

"Are you ever gonna kiss me, Angel?" Buffy pouted one afternoon during a study break. She'd come into his office for a change of scenery. And what could be better to look at than her almost-boyfriend?

He looked up from his seat behind the desk and fought the urge to laugh at her petulant expression.

"Hmm...I don't know, Buffy...I suppose I *could* kiss you. Maybe you should kiss me instead, though," Angel replied, winking at her, then leaning back in his chair, putting his hands behind his head.

Buffy mock-glared at him, then sauntered over to where he was sitting behind his desk.

"You *do* know that we've been dating for two months, two weeks, two days, and you *still* haven't kissed me yet, don't you?" she asked, almost rhetorically, already knowing that he did indeed know how long they'd been dating.

"Buffy, I know how long we've been dating. And yes, I *am* aware that we still haven't had our first kiss yet," Angel said, grinning at her.

"Well why haven't you kissed me then? Do you...do you not want to?" Buffy asked, somewhat frightened by the possibility that her almost-boyfriend didn't find her kissable.

"C'mere, Little One," he said, drawing her into his arms.

"I thought I toldja not to call me 'Little One' anymore, Angel," she told him as she wriggled away from him.

"You did tell me...and I apologize. It's just kind of force of habit that I call you that nickname. When I first started using it, I meant it to be comforting. And just now when I used it, I meant it as more of an endearment," Angel explained.

"Oh," Buffy replied.

"As for why I haven't kissed you yet...it's most definitely not because I don't *want* to. To be honest, Buffy...I think you have the most kissable mouth I've ever seen. And I'm pretty sure that if I started kissing you, I wouldn't want to stop until we were both naked on the floor of this room, and fucking like animals. Although, it's probably a safe bet that even then, I wouldn't want to stop kissing you."

Buffy was shocked by his words. He...he wanted to...oh god.

"S-So then we're never gonna kiss? Ever?" she asked sadly, tears welling up in her eyes waiting to be shed. Buffy hiccuped suddenly and immediately raced out of the room before Angel could see her cry. Yes he'd seen her cry plenty of times before, but he'd never actually been the cause of her tears.

As soon as Buffy got inside her room, she slammed and locked the door behind her, then ran over, flopped down on her bed, and began sobbing her heart and soul out. Harsh, racking sobs, that seemed to come from deep within her. Angel didn't want to kiss her! Or rather, he *did*, but wasn't ever going to, because he didn't trust himself around her. Her heart broke more and more with each sob that escaped and each tear that ran down either side of her face.
******************

Downstairs, Angel was cursing himself in three different languages for upsetting Buffy. He might as well have told her to get lost. It would've been less painful, well, maybe. He sighed. Now how could he fix this? Short of lavishing her with expensive gifts, that is.

"Okay Angel, you fucked up, now how do you fix it?" the vampire asked himself. "Flowers and candy maybe? Isn't that what one gives their girlfriend when they accidentally make her cry?" He sighed, then went to find one of the girls to get some advice from.

Willow was the first one he found, so Angel asked her what to do.

"Well, what did you do, Angel?" she asked.

"I made her cry...," he replied, but upon seeing Willow's horrified look, quickly added, "not on purpose, though!"

"Hmph. Guys never mean to make their girlfriends cry, but they still do. So give me all the details, so I can give you an estimate of what you'll need to do to fix your boo-boo."

"Buffy came into my office during a study break and we were flirting and talking about kissing. More specifically, she asked me when I was going to kiss her and I half-jokingly suggested to her, that maybe she should kiss me. She got kind of huffy and pointed out to me exactly how long the two of us have been dating. So I told her I was aware of how long we've been going out. Then she asked me if for some reason, I didn't *want* to kiss her. And I quickly told her that I think she has the most kissable lips ever, but then it kind of went downhill from there."

"How so?" Willow urged, afraid of what he might've said to Buffy.

"Well...I told her that I hadn't kissed her yet, because I was afraid that if I started, I wouldn't want to stop. At least not until she and I were both naked on the floor, going at it like rabbits," Angel replied. "Of course my wording was a little different, but you get the gist."

The redhead groaned and reached up to smack Angel in the arm.

"You're such a...a moron sometimes, Angel! God! You don't tell a girl you can't kiss her without wanting to shag her silly. How come you didn't already know that?" Willow spat, rolling her eyes at Angel's male-stupidity.

"But I never told her I wanted to 'shag' her. Well, not exactly. Damn, okay, thanks for your help, Will," Angel replied, leaving the redhead to go look for Buffy.

"Hey, I wasn't finished...Uh! How rude!" Willow sputtered, as Angel took off. "What a butthead," she said to his retreating backside. (And what a nice backside it was, too, the author suddenly interrupted. Only to be dragged off by a mob of irate readers who ordered her to get back to writing, or they'd do unspeakable things to her. *wicked grin*)
*********

Buffy had calmed down and was holding Mr. and Mrs. Gordo for comfort.

"Why are guys such stupid pigheaded--no offense to you and the Mrs., Mr. Gordo--insensitive JERKS?" Buffy asked the pigs. Neither responded, of course, cuz that would've been just wrong. (Ack, author got off track again.) Just then, there was a knock on her door, so she sat up, wiped the tears off her face, tossed the Gordos to one side, then yelled for the person to come in. It was Angel, otherwise known as, the stupid pigheaded insensitive jerk in question.

"Hey..."

"Hey back," Buffy replied, avoiding looking at him.

"Uh...look...I'm *really* sorry for making you cry earlier. It wasn't my intention, at all. I just...I don't know. I'm afraid to rush things with you. I...I think I'm falling in love with you and it, well, scares me," he told her, after coming over and sitting on the floor at her feet. He didn't trust himself to be on the bed with her. How could he put everything he felt for her, into mere words? Were there even enough words in the English language or Gaelic or French languages, to express his heart-felt emotions and feelings to this girl? He doubted it. Angel stared at her, marveling in her uncomplicated yet intoxicating mix of beauty and innocence. Despite everything she'd witnessed, taken part in, lived through, she still had an air of purity about her.

"What? Do I have something on my face?" Buffy spoke, feeling around her cheeks and forehead for anything amiss. Angel mentally shook himself and got back on track.

"No, your face looks as beautiful as always, Buffy," he replied, giving her a gentle smile. She blushed at his compliment.

"So, um, you're scared of us? Our...r-relationship, I mean?" she asked, quietly.

"Yes, I am. I...I don't know how to show or tell you everything you make me feel. I want to climb the highest mountain and when I reach the top, yell "I LOVE BUFFY!" at the top of my lungs. I want to write poetry that describes every ounce of your radiance. But I'm afraid to. I'm afraid to let all of my feelings out. The last thing I ever want to do, is scare or hurt you." Angel said, pouring out his heart to her.

Buffy wasn't sure how to react to such a statement. Here was this wonderful man, confessing his love for her. What was she supposed to say?

"I, I don't know how to respond to something like this, Angel. Everything is so new for me...,"Buffy began saying.

"Everything is new for me too, Buffy. I've never felt this way about anyone, and I honestly believed I would never fall in love with any woman, let alone one as amazing as you. If you knew the things I'd done in the past...before I got my soul back, you would probably run away, screaming in horror."

"You...you mean you haven't always had a soul, Angel? What does that mean?" she questioned, confusion written on her face.

"It means that for many years, many, *many* years, after I was turned into a vampire, I offered death to everyone I met and I did it with a song in my heart."

"D-death? As in, you know, the whole sucky-bitey thing that you vamps do?" Buffy asked, startled somewhat by Angel's open discussion about vampires, specifically him and his history.

"Yes. I know you've read about vampires, the myth and whatnot, and you've seen my demon face a few times, but do you actually know how a vampire makes a new vampire? Words in a book are one thing, but witnessing or hearing about vampire lore first hand, is another." Angel replied, not exactly wanting to scare her, just wanting her to know more about him.

"No, I don't. I read that there's an exchange of blood, though. Isn't that basically it?"

"Basically, yes. But there's more to it. Quite a bit more, actually. There's a certain finesse to killing another person. Most vampires, rush through killings. A quick lunge to the jugular with their fangs, an equally quick draining of that person's blood, and then the vampire drops their victim to the ground and heads off in search of new prey. Some vampires play with their food, dragging out their killings on purpose. I was one such vampire. As Angelus, I was known as the Scourge of Europe."

"'Scourge'? What's that mean?" she asked, half-dreading his answer.

"The word 'scourge' means, essentially, one used to inflict pain or punishment. An instrument of punishment or criticism."

"So...you t-tortured people, innocents, to death?! And you did it with a...a s-smile on your face?! But...but why?" Buffy was shocked by what he'd just told her. The man who'd not ten minutes earlier, confessed to falling in love with her, was now telling her that he was a murderer? She swallowed hard and wondered what she was supposed to do now, in light of his startling confession.

"Yes, Buffy, I did. I killed hundreds of people without even batting an eyelash. I was the talk of the town, many towns, actually. I...I was especially talented at torturing hapless victims of mine. It's nothing I'm proud of, but back then I was the cock of the walk and couldn't have been happier," Angel replied, ashamed of his past.

"I...I need some time to think about things, Angel. Could you please leave now?" Buffy requested, refusing to meet his gaze, knowing that if she looked up at him, she'd see the hurt and disappointment in his eyes. She couldn't face that yet.

"Of course, Buffy. I'll...be downstairs if you want to find me," he replied sadly, then left her room, shutting the door on his way out.

After he left, Buffy sat on the bed in stunned silence. Dozens of thoughts raced through her head. He loved her. He was a killer, and a vicious one no less. She liked him, really liked him. He was the closest thing she'd ever had to an actual boyfriend. She'd had dreams of what kissing him might be like. Dreams that had her waking up gasping and squeezing her legs together to quench the intense feelings that would pass through her in waves. Feelings she didn't recognize, but thought they might be desire. Lust. Wanting.

How was she supposed to contemplate a future with him, knowing what she now knew? What had made him stop torturing and killing people? He said something about getting a soul...but how? When? Why? Buffy had so many questions to ask, but she didn't feel she could ask Angel personally. Not with too many raw emotions and feelings coursing through her. But she knew she could ask Wes or Giles. They would definitely have answers for her. She wasn't in any hurry to rush down and ask one of them, though.
**********

Three or four days passed before Buffy gained enough courage to ask Giles about Angel's past. The older man was quite startled by her request, but agreed to help her in any way he could.

"So you'd like to learn about Angelus?" he asked, after she'd sat down across from him.

"Yeah, I would. He...Angel, I mean, told me a little about his, uh, demon a few days ago. And I want to know more. Can you help me, Giles?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I can. Buffy, do you remember when all of us sat around and told you the stories of our pasts?" She nodded and waited for him to continue. "If you recall Wesley's story, specifically his reaction upon discovering Angel being a vampire, Wesley said that I was the one who told him about Angel. To be completely honest, Buffy, I am actually the person who helped Angel adjust after he was given his soul back. Before I came along, Angel was living in alleys and sewers, feeding off of anything but humans. Mostly rats and other small creatures." Giles shuddered in remembrance.

"So...Angel was living like a...a bum?" Buffy asked, trying to picture the Angel she knew, as being homeless and having to live off of rats. Yuck.

"For lack of a better term, yes, Angel *was* living like a bum. He felt like it was his penance for what he'd done while not having a soul. When I met him, he had given up and was starving himself. And Buffy, it takes years for a vampire to die by starvation," he explained. "What exactly did Angel tell you about Angelus?"

"Just that he was known as...um...the Scourge of Europe and that he killed a bunch of people. I wasn't sure what a "scourge" is but he told me that it's like an instrument of punishment or criticism. Which lead me to believe he was at the top of the "torture and maim 101" class. He also told me how'd he killed hundreds of innocent people without even batting an eyelash." Buffy said, still trying to picture the man she knew as a cold and ruthless murderer. "Giles...why...how did Angelus get his soul?"

"Ah...I believe he told me it was from a Gypsy clan. He apparently fed off the, urm, wrong girl. Killed her, actually, and as a result, her clan punished Angelus by returning his soul to him. I can't remember what year that was though, perhaps you can ask him. Or possibly read his journals..."

"He has journals?" Buffy almost squeaked, eyes wide in amazement.

"Yes, he does. Angelus kept many journals of his victims. Detailed accounts of each and everyone, well, mostly the ones he was most proud of. Like Druscilla, for one. I believe there are drawings as well somewhere. I'm not quite certain of what else I can tell you, Buffy. You know Angel and Angelus are two seperate people inhabiting one body, correct?" Giles questioned.

Buffy nodded, at a loss of what to say. Angel had journals? Angelus' journals?

"Um...thank you Giles, for talking with me. I just have one more question," Buffy said a few moments later.

"Certainly, Buffy. Ask me anything."

"Do...do you think he'd let me read the journals if I asked?," Buffy wanted to know.

Giles was quiet for a second or two, then finally nodded his head.

"Yes Buffy, I believe Angel would. In fact, I wouldn't be too surprised to find out that he's been waiting for you to come to him and ask."

"You think he's actually been waiting for me to ask him for the...but why?" she wondered aloud. "Never mind, Giles. Thanks again." Then she smiled at him briefly and left the library where they'd been talking.
***********

That night at dinner, she was fairly quiet and spoke only when spoken to. Willow was telling everyone about a test she'd had earlier that day and everyone agreed that she'd probably aced it. Angel was also pretty quiet, and chose to watch Buffy unobtrusively. He wondered what she was thinking about and if she'd ever seek him out to learn more about his demon. Giles and Wes discussed a new demonology text they'd gotten the day before. Fred was out with Cordy and Spike.

When everyone had finished eating, Willow and Doyle served up ice cream for those who wanted it.

"Ugh, I'm so full now," Tara said. She'd come over for dinner after Giles, her boyfriend, had invited her. Giles grinned at her and she blushed.

"Shall I roll you into the family room for a movie then, Luv?" he asked, chuckling. She giggled and nodded. He took their dishes and put them into the sink, then escorted her into the other room.

"Would you like to watch a movie with them, Buffy?" Angel asked, smiling hesitantly at his future(??) girlfriend.

"No thank you, Angel. I think I'm just gonna go upstairs and study or hit the pool for a couple of laps," Buffy replied, returning the half-smile, then putting her dishes in the sink and heading upstairs.

Willow went up to her room to call her new boyfriend, Lindsey. The two had met a few weeks before at CARITAS and had hit it off. She also knew him somewhat from being the attorney for Angel Investigations. He made her laugh and was a killer in the kissing department. Doyle headed off to his favorite bar, although pretty much any bar was a favorite of the Irishman's. And Angel remained sitting at the table lost in thoughts of Buffy. He wondered if he'd blown any chance they might've had by telling her about his past and his demon.
********

Too many thoughts, not all unpleasant, were swimming through Buffy's head. Angel and Angelus. Two men, or rather one man and one demon, sharing one body. How did he keep from letting the demon out? He had a soul, which to Buffy's belief, kept him from hurting or killing people like he'd done in the past, before the soul. But she wondered if his demon ever had urges. Buffy was loathe to bring up Angelus with Angel...but there were so many things she still wanted to know. So after cursing her morbid curiosity numerous times, Buffy went to seek him out.
********

A timid knock on his bedroom door, had Angel jumping up from his reading chair and quickly going to open it. He'd been out with Doyle earlier, but had called it a night rather quickly. The Irish Whiskey the bartender had given him had tasted funny, but Angel swigged it down anyway. It had given him an odd sort of buzz, but he'd been trying to ignore it.

"Buffy," he practically sighed, but caught himself in time and held the door open for her.

"H..hi," she replied softly, then entered his room keeping her gaze focused mainly on the floor. He offered her a seat, then sat down across from her.

"So...uh..."

"C-can we, um, talk about, um A-Angelus?" she asked shyly.

"Sure...," he replied cautiously.

"Okay..."

Angel waited patiently for her to gather her thoughts and begin talking.

"Do...Can I ask you about him?"

"Yes, you can. Anything you'd like to know and I'll answer you honestly," Angel told her.

She looked at him and nodded.

"Oh, um, do I use his name? Or do I just say "him" ?"

"Either one is fine, Buffy," he reassured the girl. He could smell her anxiety and his demon wanted nothing more than to wallow in it and in her.

"Um...when did you get turned into a vampire?"

"I was sired by a vampire named Darla. She was the favorite childe of The Master. I was born and raised in Galway, Ireland in the 1700s. I spent most of my adult life getting drunk and getting laid," he began, his mind easily slipping into the past. "When I was twenty-six, as I came out of a pub one night, I spied a lovely young lass near an alley. I approached her and asked her what a lady of her station was doing alone in an alley with someone disreputable like me. Her response was that maybe she was lonely. And I offered myself as an escort to protect her from harm and to while away the dull hours. She called me gracious and I told her I'd been called that quite often before. So when she asked me if I was up to the challenge of being her protector, I told her that other than an honest day's work, I was up to any challenge," Angel spoke, getting lost in the memory.

"I remember calling her a pretty thing and asking her where she was from. 'Around. Everywhere.' was her response. So I told her I'd never been anywhere and that I'd always wanted to see the world. She told me she could show me and smiled at me. 'Could you, then?' I asked. Darla continued reeling me in by offering to show me things I'd never seen or even heard of. I said it sounded 'exciting' and she said 'It is. And frightening'. I almost scoffed and said that I wasn't afraid. Told her, 'Show me. Show me your world.' And boy did she," he laughed harshly. "After I'd risen, I proceeded to slaughter my entire family. My father had never approved of me, so I took an extra long time killing him."

Buffy swallowed hard around the lump in her throat. She'd been watching him surreptitiously from under her eyelashes. And she was taken aback at the pain radiating from his deep brown soulful eyes. Buffy wanted to reach out and hold him, but she didn't know how he'd react, so she remained where she was.

"I...Giles told me that...um, you, got your soul back after...uh..."

"After I killed a gypsy girl. Her clan wasn't very happy about her death, so the clan elders conjured up a nasty little spell to slap my soul back into my body. And after being rejected by my Sire Darla, I was lost," he finished for her, hurt echoing in his voice. "I'm sure Giles told you the rest...of what I was like when he found me."

"Yes, he did. Well, I didn't ask for specific details, but I know you were living more or less like a homeless person," Buffy said, this time reaching out and taking his hand in hers. Their eyes met and both quickly looked away nervously. "He also said that, um, A-Angelus kept j-journals?" she stammered a few seconds later.

"Angelus had a few journals, yes. I'm not sure they're something you should read though, Buffy..." Angel hesitated. "It's only because the details are very graphic, gory, and violent. Definitely not what one would call bedtime reading, unless of course you wanted to have bed-wetting nightmares."

Buffy gulped. Maybe he was right. Did she really need to read an account of everything he'd done to the innocents he'd killed? Lord knew she'd had enough nightmares of her own past. Buffy was quite sure that the last thing she needed was to have nightmares of *Angel's* past.

"Do you ever get urges to...to do any of the things Angelus did?"

"You mean rape, torture, or slaughter someone?" he practically snarled at her, causing Buffy to drop his hand and jump back. His sudden change in demeanor startled her and made her nervous. "Only all the time, Buff! But the pansy-ass soul won't give up control long enough for me to act on any of them! There are *so* many things I'd *love* to do to everyone here...but I'd save you for last. Yeah...save the best for last. Mmmm...virgin flesh," Angel purred and stared at her lascviciously, licking his lips longingly.

"Um...A-Angel?" Buffy squeaked, then gasped as he stalked towards her. How was she supposed to get away from this new Angel when he was blocking the only way in and out of the bedroom? Angel paused in his trek towards Buffy to shake his head as if to knock something loose.

"Buffy, run! I don't know what's happening, but you're not safe! Go! Now!" he yelled, frightened of what was happening to him and frightened of what might happen to her if she didn't leave.

Buffy didn't have to be told twice. She fled past him and out the bedroom door, slamming it on her way out.

"Giles! Wes! HELP!" she screamed as she ran down the stairs. Both men came running, urged on by the terror in her voice.

"Buffy, what is it?" Wes asked, pulling her to him for a quick hug.

"I...I don't know! Something's wrong with Angel! You have to h-help him!" Buffy shook her head and clung to Tara who'd followed Giles into the lobby. Tara hugged Buffy to her and petted her hair in a calming gesture.

"Tell us what happened, Buffy. As best you can, so we'll have a better chance of helping Angel," Giles suggested rationally.

"W-we were talking about A-Angelus and...and he was telling me about w-when he'd become a v-vampire. I asked him if he ever g-got urges to d-do any of the s-stuff Angelus d-did and Angel just...just changed! He g-got m-mean and growly and started c-coming towards me! I d-didn't know what to d-do...but then he changed b-back and told me to r-run. So I did," Buffy explained in a tiny shaky voice.

Wes and Giles looked at each other, both thinking the same thing. Could it be Angelus was back? If so, then why hadn't he immediately come down to slaughter everyone? How had it happened? His soul was supposed to be permanent.

"Tara, please take Buffy to your place. Angel doesn't know where it is, nor does he have an invitation to get in," Giles told his worried girlfriend. She nodded, then led Buffy into the family room.

"We'll need Willow's help to restrain Angel...can you call her telepathically, Wes?" Giles asked. The other man nodded and a few seconds later, the redhead ran down the stairs. Tara used her cell phone from the family room, to call Cordy and explain to her what was going on.

"What do you mean Angel's acting weird?" the brunette asked from her end of the conversation.

"Just that he's not behaving in a normal way. So you and Fred stay with Spike until one of us calls you, okay? I'm going with Buffy to my place for the time being," Tara told her.

"Fine, I'll tell them what's going on. What about Willow and Doyle?" Cordy questioned.

"I'm pretty sure Doyle's drunk by now and passed out at his ex's house. And Willow will most likely be needed here."

"Oh, that's right. In case Angel needs to be tied up. All right, I'll wait for someone to call and give me the 'all clear' signal," Cordy said. "I just remembered something though...Angel's been to Spike's place before and can get in. So where are we supposed to go instead?"

"I don't really know, Cordy. Don't your parents have a beach house or something?" Tara asked.

"Yeah, they do...okay, I'll have Spike take Fred and me there."

"Sounds good. Just sit tight until one of us gets in touch with you. Bye," Tara said, then hung up.

"Buffy? You okay?" she asked the younger girl.

"I...I don't know, Tara. What's wrong with him?" Buffy replied, worried for her almost-boyfriend.

"I really don't know, Sweetie. You and I need to leave though, before something bad happens. Okay?" Buffy nodded, then left with Tara, grabbing her jacket on the way out.
************

Up in Angel's room, the man was starting to panic. The demon kept leaping to the surface and Angel didn't know why.

"Just give it up, Soul-Boy! *I'm* in charge now!" the demon snarled.

"NO! I won't let you out!" Angel yelled back.

"Well it doesn't look like you have a hell of a lot of choice, does it?" the demon laughed.

"Just shut up already!" Angel growled, then slumped to the floor as everything went black.
***********

When he came to, he groaned. What the hell was going on?

As Angel sat up from where he was on the floor, he tried piecing things together. He remembered going to the pub and having a drink with Doyle. He remembered coming home and settling down to read. And he remembered Buffy coming into his room for a chat. But then what? Where was Buffy? Mmm....Buffy. His head instantly filled with dozens of wicked and lustful ideas of all the fun he could have with her. Angel heard footsteps outside in the hall, footsteps heading for his room. What was he doing just sitting around? Angel hopped up from where he'd been sitting, and quickly escaped through the window. He needed to find Buffy.
***********

Tara and Buffy were watching tv at Tara's apartment. Both wouldn't admit that the tv was on just for noise. Buffy's thoughts were focused on Angel. Tara's thoughts were focused on her worry for Buffy *and* Angel. There was a knock on the door, causing both girls to jump at the unexpected noise.

"I'll g-get it, Buffy," the older girl said, walking over to see who'd come to visit. She looked through the peephole and bit back a gasp of shock.

How on earth had Angel found them? He'd never been here before. What was she supposed to do? Angel had heard her tell Buffy that she'd answer the door, so he knew they were both inside. Oh god, oh god, oh god, Tara chanted to herself silently.

"Aren't you gonna open the door, Tara?" Buffy asked after a few seconds.

"Yeah, Tara...aren't ya?" Angel sneered in a voice low enough for only he and Tara to hear. She gulped, then calmly turned the knob and opened the door. He stood there looking pleased with himself. It had been a bitch finding this place, but he had.

"Angel!" Buffy exclaimed and made her way toward him, only to have Tara stop her.

"Buffy, no. It's not safe to get any closer," she told Buffy.

Buffy was confused...but then she took a closer look at him. He looked different somehow. She'd seen that look on a man's face before, plenty of times in fact. It was the look of a smug, arrogant, "do-as-I-please", man. It reminded her of the man she'd once called "Daddy". Buffy shuddered in revulsion.

"Aw...I'm hurt, Buff. Don't I at least get a hug?" Angel asked, pretending to pout.

"No way in hell, Angel. Or do I call you Angelus instead?" Buffy spat out, sneering at him.

"Oooh, kitten's got claws! I like that in a woman, I really do," Angel replied, grinning at her, then winking.

Buffy snorted in disgust, then went over to him. He looked her up and down, a perverted twinkle in his brown eyes.

"See anything you like, Angelus?" she snarled.

"Most definitely, Buff. Can I come in and sample the merchandise?" he asked, giving her a hopeful look, still grinning.

"Hell no! Do everyone a favor and get lost, Angelus. You're not welcome here and you're NOT invited in!" Buffy yelled, then slammed the door in his face. She turned to grin triumphantly at Tara, only to freeze when the door suddenly burst open behind her. Tara screamed in horror as Angel entered the apartment.

"Oh stop that! I'm just getting what I came for, then I'll be leaving," Angel growled at Tara.

"IMMOBILUS" Tara shouted, causing Angel to freeze where he stood. There was no way she'd let him get his filthy hands on Buffy.

"Dammit you stupid witch!" Angel spat out angrily.

"Buffy get behind me, NOW!" Tara yelled. Buffy squeaked and quickly hid behind her friend. What were she and Tara going to do now? They needed help and fast!
***********

"Willow! Help!" Tara yelled to the redhead telepathically.

"Tara?! What's wrong?" Willow frantically asked back.

"Angel's here at the apartment with Buffy and me! I've got him immobilized, but I don't know how long I can hold him!" Tara exclaimed.

"We're on our way now, Tara! Try and hold him as long as you can! We should be there in about ten minutes, okay?" Willow replied, quickly clued in Giles and Wes who snapped into action.

"Okay, but hurry, please!" Tara begged, then went silent.

Willow and the two men hopped into Giles' car with Giles at the wheel, and sped down the street to Tara's.
************

"Let me GO, Blondie or else!" Angel growled, trying to get free from Tara's spell.

"Not a chance, Angelus!" she replied, maintaining her hold on him.

Buffy continued hiding behind her friend, all the while watching Angel and praying that Willow or Giles would come and help them. And as if she'd actually conjured them up herself, Willow and Giles, along with Wes, came racing into the apartment.

"Oh joy, the Gimpy Wimps are here. Guess that means the party's over, huh?" Angel groused.

"Do shut up, Angelus," Wes said as he and Giles made quick work of wrapping heavy-duty chains around the immobile vampire.

"Chains, Wes? Why I'm surprised! Maybe the fun *isn't* over yet after all," Angel cheerfully announced.

"No comments from the Peanut Gallery, Angel," Buffy said, feeling brave enough to face him again. She wasn't really sure why she'd been hiding...possibly because his new attitude was unfamiliar to her. It didn't really scare her when she thought about it, though. It *was* still Angel, right?

"So you *can* speak huh, Buff?" Angel replied, giving her a mock-surprised look.

"Learn somethin' new everyday, don'tcha, Angel?" she grinned, feeling bold enough to walk up to him.

"Okay guys, head 'im up and move 'im out. Oh and Angelus? The chains are magickally enhanced, so you won't be going anywhere we don't want you to," Tara stated, interrupting Buffy and Angel's conversation. Tara released the immobility spell and Giles and Wes grabbed under each of Angel's arms and hefted him up. Willow opened the door and everyone left the apartment with Tara in the lead.
***********

Once Angel was secured inside the hotel, Tara called Cordy and let her know it was safe to come home. Wes and Giles were in Giles' office busy researching any possible causes for Angelus' appearance. Willow and Tara were discussing spells that might be needed in dealing with Angelus, should he be sticking around for a while. And Buffy was in Angel's room keeping an eye on him. She'd gone against everyone's wishes by doing so, but he honestly didn't frighten her. And in being completely honest, he never had, even from the first time they'd met in that dark alley. Buffy had instinctively trusted in him and had never really questioned why.

"Since I'm not going anywhere Buff, how's about we get better acquainted?" Angel suggested while leering at her.

"Sounds like fun. Where do we start?" she replied, sitting down in his reading chair.

"Good question..."

"I thought so. Here's an idea...what's the REAL reason you haven't kissed me yet?" Buffy wanted to know.

"It's like Soul-Boy told you. If he kissed you, he'd have to fuck you. And since he's such a loser, he doesn't want to start something and not be able to finish it," Angel said, rolling his eyes at the soul's morals.

"Why do you call him a loser? Isn't that like calling yourself one?" Buffy asked, a little confused.

"Hell no it's not! He's one person and I'm another, we just share the same body, unfortunately. He's a loser, I'm not. If it were up to me, I'd have killed Hank and run off with you for parts unknown. Then I'd have spent many, *many* years educating you in all of the delightful pleasures of the flesh. Mmm, you'd have loved that...we both would have, I imagine," Angel said, almost drooling at the thought of everything he and Buffy could have done together.

"Pleasures of the flesh? You mean sex?" Buffy blushed at the thought of she and Angel doing that kind of thing.

"Sex, lovemaking, fucking, screwing, humping like rabbits, yeah." Angel laughed wickedly at her innocent reaction to their choice in topic.

"What...what's it like?" she asked, meeting his hungry gaze briefly, before looking down at her shoes.

"What's what like, Buff?" Angel wanted her to actually say it.

"Sex. What's sex like? Is it really...um...dirty and disgusting like Hank made it seem?" she asked softly, looking up at him.

"It's not dirty OR disgusting, Buff. Unless of course it involves food of some kind, like chocolate pudding. I bet you'd look good covered in chocolate pudding," he grinned, instantly seeing a picture of a naked chocolate-covered Buffy in his head.

"You...you mean people use f-food? For sex?" she squeaked, blushing again.

"Some people do, yeah. It can be extra fun and extra sexy." Angel couldn't believe how expressive her face was right now.

Buffy was all agog at the idea of people using food for purposes other than eating. She'd seen some really bizarre and often scary things during her life with Hank...but food had never once come up. Her face flushed bright red at the idea of licking whipped cream off of Angel. Mentally erasing that thought, since it would never, *ever* actually happen, Buffy wondered what else to talk about with Angel. She opened her mouth to say something, but quickly changed her mind. And instead chose to get up from the chair and walk toward the bed where Angel was chained up. Angel sat up straighter as Buffy approached him. What was she up to?

Seeing him chained up seemed to somehow free her from any fears or doubts she'd had in the past. Fears her former father had put into her head. Fears about sex and everything associated with it. And doubts...doubts she'd been having about her ability to function normally in a romantic relationship with anyone. A romantic relationship with Angel, in this case. Something was drawing her to him. Something she didn't know or recognize, that coursed through her and made her ache. Made her feel things she'd never felt before.

"What are you doing, Buff?" he asked, tilting his head to one side and looking at her extra close.

"I don't really know, Angel. I'm just kinda going with it. Whatever *it* is," she replied, climbing onto the bed next to him.

Angel watched as she got to her knees and crawled onto his lap, straddling him. She worked around the chains, and scooted forward until her face was mere inches from his.

"Will you please do me a favor and close your eyes, Angel?" Buffy requested.

Extremely curious by this point, he figured closing his eyes couldn't hurt anything. Plus, it wasn't like he could get up and walk away from her. She saw his eyelids shut and she took a calming breath or two. Then she closed the gap between his lips and hers, and pressed her mouth to his in a kiss. Angel was startled by the feel of Buffy kissing him. It was a very chaste and innocent kiss. He didn't kiss her back, even though it was definitely something he wanted to do desperately. Buffy ended the kiss and sighed. That was kissing? Grown-up kissing? If so, then she wanted to know what the big deal was.

As she thought about trying another kiss, Willow and Tara burst into the room with Giles and Wes behind them.

"Buffy? What are you doing?" Giles asked, upon seeing his pupil sitting on top of the possibly homicidal vampire.

Buffy blinked a couple of times, as she tried coming up with a reasonable explanation for what she'd been caught doing. Or almost doing anyway. But Angel saved her the trouble.

"She was kissing me, actually. So if you don't mind..." Angel told them, hoping they'd leave so he could teach Buffy how to kiss properly.

"You were kissing him, Buffy?!" Willow gasped, giving her friend a shocked look. Buffy groaned quietly to herself and Angel's preternatural hearing picked it up.

"Yeah, I was," Buffy replied, sitting up straight where she still resided on Angel. She ignored the tell-tale blush on her face.

"Why were you kissing him?" Tara asked.

"I really don't know. I just wanted to, I guess. I wanted to see what the big deal about kissing is," Buffy sighed and got off Angel. "Kissing isn't anything like what you see on tv or in movies. I don't know why everybody's so excited about doing it. I see all of you guys kissing your boyfriend or girlfriend and I wanted to kiss Angel. So I did. It wasn't anything like I'd imagined." She looked forlorn and depressed. "Don't worry guys, I won't be kissing him or anyone anytime soon."

Wes cleared his throat.

"Well, then. Shall we get on with things now?" he inquired. Tara and the others nodded, while Buffy went across the room to get away from everyone.

Willow and Tara said an incantation while waving some stinky herbs over Angel. He sneezed and then gasped when the spell was finished.

"What was that?" Buffy asked, concerned for Angel and wanting to know why he'd gasped.

"I...I don't know, exactly," Giles told her as he cautiously moved toward the bound vampire. Angel wasn't moving.

"Angel?" Buffy questioned, walking towards his limp form on the bed. "Are you okay?" She shook his shoulder, trying to wake him up.

"Why isn't he waking up? Why'd he go limp?" Buffy demanded to know, becoming frantic.

"Buffy, we don't know. Tara and I just used a spell to find out if his soul was still in him anywhere. It shouldn't have caused any ill effects," Willow told her, and hugged her reassuringly.

"Bull, Willow! You did something to him! I just know it!" Buffy yelled, shoving the redhead away from her and going back to Angel's side. "Angel! Wake up! Please!" she beseeched, crying out loud. Angel remained still.

"Do something! You have to fix it!" Buffy cried, imploring the others to help Angel.

"All right Buffy, we'll see what we can do," Giles calmly told her, then dragged the others out with him, leaving Buffy to watch over Angel. What the hell had just happened? he wondered.
********

An hour later, Giles walked into Angel's room, and saw Buffy still sitting with the unconscious vampire. She looked up when Giles cleared his throat to get her attention.

"What is it, Giles? Have you found a cure?!" she asked, almost begging.

"No Buffy, we haven't found a cure yet, I'm sorry. We think we've come up with a reasonable explanation for what happened to Angel as a result of the spell, though," he replied.

"Don't just stand there! Tell me Giles, please!" Buffy cried.

"Very well. We believe that Angel's soul never left his body, which was determined by the spell that Willow, Tara, and I performed an hour or so ago. The reason it caused Angel pain and subsequently, er, knocked him out, was because his soul had been fighting to escape from his body. And the spell bounced off of his soul, resulting in, what I can imagine to be, intense pain. The type of pain that would render any man, vampire or human, to slip into unconsciousness," Giles explained rationally.

"So...Angel's soul is still inside him, and when you guys did the spell to find it, his soul, I mean, the effects of your magicks hurt him? Hurt his soul and *that's* what made him pass out?" Buffy questioned, glaring at Giles.

"Ah, yes, I believe that's what I just told you, Buffy," he replied.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but weren't you the one who once told me that one should *never* conduct a spell without researching it thoroughly beforehand? Researching the possible ramifications that may or may not happen as a result of the magicks? So that something like *this*", she pointed at Angel, "wouldn't happen?!" Buffy growled. Giles swallowed hard, then nodded once.

"Get out, Giles and do *NOT* come back until you find a way to reverse what you did to Angel!" Buffy snarled at him. Giles mumbled a response, then quickly fled the room.
*************

"OOH! I think I've got it!" Willow exclaimed, half an hour after Giles had been tossed from Angel's room.

"Got what exactly, Willow?" Wes asked, moving to her table.

"Angel's cure!"

"What? Let me see, Will," Tara said, sitting down next to her friend.

"See, right here, in The Pergumex Maleficio, chapter thirteen, page nine, in the third paragraph," Willow replied, showing Wes and Tara the passage she'd found.

"You mean, Goddess of earth and fire,
ease the pain of this vampire.
Bring him back to his empire
before things become too dire.?" Tara asked.

"Yep, simple, huh? And all we need to perform it, are the same stinky herbs as before," Willow answered.

"Cool! Guess we should get to it then, cause the longer he's out of it, the weaker he's likely to get," the blonde witch said. Then took the bundle of herbs that Giles handed her. She kissed him on the lips briefly, then headed up the stairs to Angel with Willow.
*************


Buffy hovered near Angel's bed as the two witches performed the new spell. Within seconds after the incantation had been completed, Angel stirred and started waking up. Buffy held her breath as he opened his eyes and looked around.

"B-Buffy?" he croaked hoarsely.

"Yeah, it's me. Are...are you okay?" she replied, moving towards him.

"I think so, yeah. But wait...why are there chains wrapped around me?" Angel asked, shifting around.

"Um..well...actually...something happened and..." Buffy started to say, only to be interrupted by Angel groaning.

"Don't tell me Angelus showed up?"

"As a matter of fact, yeah, he did. We don't know why or how though," Tara cut in.

"Fuck. Did I hurt anyone?" Angel asked her, fear and worry etched across his face.

"No, you didn't. You came after Buffy and I, and Willow was able to restrain you with Wes and Giles' help. And mine. Then we brought you back here to the hotel and chained you up to the bed," Tara told him. He sighed in relief.

"Thank god. Um, can you guys unchain me now?" he replied.

Buffy, Willow, and Tara blushed, then removed his chains, enabling him to get up from the bed. The witches left the room after hugging him quickly, leaving Buffy alone with Angel. She blushed as he came towards her. He pulled her into his arms, then leaned down and kissed her once, questioningly. Buffy gasped softly, and kissed him back cautiously. Angel groaned quietly, then took her lips in an all-consuming kiss. One that caused sparks of desire to flood Buffy's whole being. She opened her mouth a little and touched her tongue to his timidly. He moaned, and kissed her some more, tangling her tongue with his in a passionate kiss.

She eventually needed to breathe, and while she was catching her breath, he planted tiny kisses on her face and ears. Buffy was overwhelmed, in a good way, by Angel's actions. He was FINALLY kissing her! She was so happy and grinned to herself.

"What's that little grin for, Buffy?" he asked amused.

"Nothing really...I'm just happy, I guess, Angel." Buffy grinned at him and blushed. "Why'd you finally kiss me?"

"Because I was tired of holding myself back. I didn't want to scare you by moving too fast, but when you actually *asked* me to kiss you, I realized you were more than ready. Of course I also realized I was being a dumbass, and that you shouldn't have had to ask me to kiss you," Angel said, pulling her over to the bed and sitting down.

"So...I'm ready for kissing now?" she questioned, sitting down next to him.

"Yes, you are. I think you have been for a while, you just didn't know it. But now that you are...watch out, Buffy," he chuckled, kissing her on the lips again. It was supposed to be a brief kiss, but just knowing that he could actually indulge himself and kiss her, caused him to drag the kiss out for a few moments. She was right there with him, and boy did she learn quickly.

Panting for air, Buffy pulled away for a second, then attacked his mouth with hers again. They groaned, and he pulled her onto his lap to straddle it. She was too lost in the new sensations brought on by making out with Angel to notice what he'd done at first. But then Buffy became aware of a hard lump pressing into her crotch. She gulped and moved away from him.

"What's wrong, Buffy?" he asked, worried he'd hurt or scared her.

"N-Nothing, Angel. Uh, I just, uh, need a sec," she stammered and looked at the suddenly fascinating bedspread she and Angel were sitting on.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah...I just...something was, um, p-poking me," Buffy told him, blushing.

"Poking you...?" Angel looked confused for a second, then realized what she'd been talking about. "Oh god! I'm so sorry!" he apologized then pulled a pillow onto his lap to cover up the protrusion. "This is so embarrassing," Angel groaned. Buffy giggled and looked at him. He looked at her and started laughing. Him laughing made her giggle harder, and suddenly they were both cracking up. For a few minutes their laughter filled the room, Buffy would calm down, only to start laughing again when she'd look at Angel.

"Okay...okay...owww," she giggled, trying to catch her breath and clutching her side.

"You okay?" he chuckled.

"Yeah, all that laughing made my side hurt," Buffy explained, smiling at him. Her whole face was flushed from laughing and he didn't think she'd ever looked more beautiful. Angel was struck by the urge to kiss her, but held off, knowing it would wind up out of control again if he gave in.

"This was fun...and educational, too," she told him.

"It certainly was both, yeah."

"So..um...now what? Are...are we boyfriend and girlfriend?" she asked, glancing up at him.

"I...I guess we are, yeah. Buffy, my girlfriend," Angel replied, grinning at calling her his girlfriend.

"Angel, my boyfriend. I'm Angel's girlfriend...wow." She grinned back at him and blushed when he kissed her quickly.

"I'm Buffy's boyfriend. Double wow." He chuckled and hugged her. Buffy giggled and hugged him back.
********************

THE END(??)

A quick note here: I'm not sure if I'll ever add anything to this fic or not. I'd planned on there being a first-time making love between Buffy and Angel, but by the time I'd reached this point in the fic(where it leaves off, I mean), I was more than happy to be ending the fic. ;) An epilogue might come sometime in the future, but I don't know when or anything. :) Thank you to EVERYONE who read and/or sent me feedback about "Dark and Light", I appreciate it a lot. :)
 

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