Part Three

Buffy was even more confused than before. Why had he turned against her like that? Well, she wouldn't stand for it. She would forget she'd ever met Angel Driscoll, she'd move on. She'd resume her position as Queen of the school. She arrived home to find her mother already home.

"Buffy." Joyce said, "I want to talk to you."

"What?" She said a little irritably.

"I was at the gallery tonight."

"Yes, I know."

"I was speaking to an art dealer from New York. He mentioned the name Driscoll and I asked if he knew my daughter's friend called Angel. He told me all about him. I don't want you seeing him again." Joyce said, expecting Buffy to ask what she'd been told, or to argue.

"Yeah? Well neither does he. Neither do I." Buffy said coldly, heading up the stairs.

**

The next day, Buffy arrived at school resolute. She would apologise to her friend! s and be the Queen of the School again. She would also forget she'd ever met Angel Driscoll. She walked down the hall, her head held high. She arrived at her locker and stopped. She was still trying the combination when Cordelia walked past.

"Cordelia!" Buffy said. Cordelia stopped, turned around but started walking again when she saw who it was. Buffy frowned, but it just made her more resolved to make things right. By lunchtime, Buffy's resolve was weakening, but she headed to the tree in the courtyard and sat down just the same. Her friends went to get up.

"Hang on." She said. "Don't leave. I want to talk to you." Willow was the first to sit back down, but eventually they all relented and waited to hear what she said.

"I'm sorry. I want us to be friends again."

"What about those rejects?"

"History. I mean it. I want it like it was before."

"Well, OK." Willow gave in first. Cordelia looked skeptical.

"Why should we believe you?"

"I asked about Courtney Thomas. And you were right. Angel Driscoll is a total loser. I wish I'd never met him." At this her friends gave in.

"So, am I forgiven?" She asked nervously. Cordelia nodded.

"Sure. Just don't let it happen again." Buffy laughed.

"I won't. Promise." She assured them. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Dru and Angel walking past into the main building. For a moment she wanted to take it all back, but then she remembered his harsh words the night before. She wanted to forget she'd ever laid eyes on Angel, so she turned all her attention back to her friends. This was where she belonged, she told herself.

**

By the end of the week, Buffy was back on top form. She was back dating Jason and holding court under the tree. A tiny voice in her head asked her not to forget Angel and his friends, b! ut it was silenced by the louder voices which told her to get on with her life as it was.

**

Angel, for his part, spent the week in a foul mood. Spike and Drusilla both steered clear of their friend, but they were worried about him. They didn't understand why he had pushed Buffy away even after she told him it didn't matter. Yet Angel was not to be swayed. He remained holed up in his room, leaving only to attend school.

"Angel?" Drusilla called softly through the door.

"What?" He snapped.

"I just brought you some Chinese. You do have to eat sometimes." She said. "I'll leave it here." She put the takeout food down by his door and walked away. Angel got up and opened the door, taking the food. He wanted to die. He didn't deserve to live. He had killed Courtney and he had hurt the one girl he really cared about. He was scum.

**

As it happened, Angel was the only person who thought that. Buffy was angry and hurt, but she didn't really think he'd killed Courtney. Spike and Dru didn't think he killed her. In fact, they knew that Courtney had gotten into that car of her own free will, knowing that Angel was roaring drunk. They knew that the Angel/Courtney relationship had been a volatile one. They knew that Courtney had done her fair share of crazy, dangerous things. But they guessed Angel hadn't told Buffy this. They didn't know why Angel pushed Buffy away, but they did know that he was miserable. So Spike resolved to do something about it.

**

"What do you want, Spike?" Buffy asked impatiently. He had finally managed to corner her at school.

"I don't know what Angel said to you..."

"That he's a sick, twisted bastard?"

"Probably that. But he didn't tell you everything. Courtney Thomas was pretty much crazy too...."

"I don't want to hear it Spike." She went to leave, but he stopped her.

"Listen to me. My friend is miserable because of something to do with you. I don't know what he said that made you mad, but I bet you anything he didn't mean it. Just talk to him. Please." Spike was talking in a decidedly un-Spike manner, and she wasn't buying it. But he carried on.

"Courtney wasn't his fault. She was crazy, crazier even than Angel. He told me and Dru that she was trying to get the steering wheel when they crashed. But he was too busy taking the blame to tell anyone the true story." He stopped.

"Are you done?" She said without emotion. "I have places to be. People to see. People who are actually somebody."

"Fine! You go off and be a vacuous princess with your Ken doll boyfriend. But you don't want that! You want Angel. And he wants you but he's just too dumb and stubborn to believe it." Spike shouted after her. If she heard him, she didn't respond. But Buffy had heard him, and collapsed dejectedly against her locker when she arrived at him. Spike was right. She did want tall dark and handsome Angel. She loved him. But she found it hard to believe he wanted her back. He had never been anything but a friend. And the way he had acted, she couldn't believe that he had ever loved her back.

**

The school dance was fast approaching. Buffy threw herself into organising it. They had decided on a masquerade ball, and besides decorating the gym, she had to find herself a costume. To be honest, her heart wasn't in it anymore. She felt more alone dating Jason than she had being just friends with Angel. But she went through the motions and picked out an outfit. It was a traditional Venetian masquerade costume with an ornate mask.

**

Spike and Drusilla had managed somehow to persuade Angel to go to the dance, and now they stood in Party Town surrounded by costumes.

"What ones do you like, Angel?" Dru asked gently, trying to get her friend interesting in, well, anything. But he didn't answer her, instead preferring to slouch against the SALE rack.

"Come on Peaches," Spike started. Angel's head snapped up and Spike was confronted by two angry eyes. If it had been a cartoon, daggers would have flown from them at Spike. He retreated behind Drusilla.

"Oh! Angel, you have to get this one!" She pulled a costume off the rack.

"You've gotta be kidding me." He said. She was holding up a dark blue frock coat covered in beads. With it came a ruffled white shirt and a pair of tight black trousers. To top it all off was a long blond wig.

"What the Hell is that?" Spike asked.

"The Goblin King from Labyrinth." Dru said. Spike and Angel both looked clueless.

"David Bowie." She expanded. Angel's interest was slightly piqued. Bowie was cool.

"What's the movie about?"

"You've never seen it?" Dru looked incredulous. Angel shook his head.

"Wear it anyway, you'll look good."

"It doesn't have a mask."

"Yes it does." She held up a demonic half mask. Angel shrugged, not really caring, and went off to purchase it. He didn't care. Without Buffy, it all seemed so very pointless. But he'd done a good enough job to screw himself over for the rest of his life.

**

"This is going to be the best dance ever!" Cordelia exclaimed excitedly. She and Buffy were in the gym putting the last touches to the dance decorations. In keeping with the masquerade ball, they had decorated the gym in a fairytale style. Dingoes Ate My Baby were providing the musical entertainment while Herr Snyder was providing a large squadron of teacher-chaperones.

"You're coming to my house to get ready, right?" Cordelia asked. She had invited Buffy and Willow and a couple of the other uber-popular girls to get ready at her palatial home. Their dates would then arrive to escort them to the dance.

"Sure! I'll be around about six."

"Cool. This really is gonna be the best dance ever."

"We'll have to wait and see." Buffy said. She was trying to put on an excited front, but the truth was, without her friend Angel, it all seemed worthless.

**

But, at six, she arrived at Cordelia's house carrying her costume and make-up box. She'd spent almost an hour in the bath trying to relax and feel better, but nothing was working.

"Hi!" Cordelia answered the door herself and they went up into Cordelia's dressing room, which was roughly the size of Buffy's entire bedroom. Willow was already there, along with Aura and Aphrodesia.

"Hi!" They all called, just as excited as Cordelia. Buffy plastered a smile onto her face and set about dolling herself up for what was shaping up to be the social event of the year. For everyone else.

**

"I look absolutely ridiculous." Angel said, just as down as he had been before. Except now he was dressed as The Goblin King. He did, in actual fact, look pretty good. Even the blond wig had been styled by Dru to look just like it did on Bowie. She'd even done Angel's make-up, much to his mortification. But he was beyond caring, and so just sat back and let her. Then, he looked in the mirror.

"You look scrummy." Dru said. For her part, Drusilla was dressed as Scarlett O'Hara, but with a mask. Spike had dressed as Rhett Butler to match her.

"Yeah. Great." Spike said, stifling a laugh.

"Time to go." Dru said, pulling on the reluctant arms of both Spike and Angel.

**

"Buffy! Jason is here." Cordelia's mother called up the stairs. Sighing inwardly, Buffy glided down the stairs. She did look beautiful. Her purple, black and gold dress glided as if on air and her black and gold mask couldn't hide how beautiful she was. It could, however, disguise how much she didn't really want to be doing this. With the mask on, nobody could see that her smile didn't reach her eyes.

"You look... You look... Really nice." Jason said, struggling for the words. She smiled tightly and took his arm.

"Thank you Jason. You too." Jason, for his part, had dressed as the Lone Ranger. He led her out to his car and they drove off towards Sunnydale High.

**

They arrived at the dance just as it was beginning to swing. Cordelia and Xander, Willow and Oz had already gotten there, and were sitting at one of the best tables, except Oz, who was already up on the stage with Devon and the band.

"Great, isn't it?" Jason said as they walked in. She smiled that fake little smile again and they went off to mingle.

**

Angel, Spike and Dru arrived, and Angel began to feel less bad about what he was wearing. Compared to some, he'd gotten off lightly, he realised, as a Salt shaker ran to catch up with a Pepper pot. At least he could exude a little cool. He kept his mask up to his face. He liked the anonymous feeling it gave him. He looked around the room. He saw Buffy immediately. She was wearing her mask, but he recognised the girl in the purple, black and gold dress immediately. She was dancing with Jason, whose mask disguised nothing. He walked around the edge of the dance floor, eyes always on the most beautiful girl in the room.

**

She could feel someone watching her. She looked around. She saw someone in a long blue frock coat, with a demonic mask held up against his face. She recognised the costume. Whoever it was had come as the guy from Labyrinth. She watched as the guy walked around the room, always watching her, almost predatory. When the dance ended, she searched for him, but he was nowhere to be seen. Breaking away from Jason, she looked for the mysterious man who held such sway over her.

**

She was looking for him, he knew. But he was not ready to be found. He watched a little more, hidden by the shadows. He watched as she moved gracefully across the room, almost gliding. He felt hate build up inside him against himself. Why had he pushed her away? Then, it was replaced by a resolve he hadn't felt for a long time. He would regain her trust and friendship, even if it killed him. He had been scared but not anymore. He didn't hope that she loved him like he did her, but he was going to get his friend back. He stepped from the shadows, ready to be found.

**

She looked up. There he stood, elegant in his frock coat. She saw his lips curve up in a smile, then he removed the mask. She nearly fainted. It was Angel. Then, she mentally kicked herself. She should have known it would be Angel. Nobody had ever entranced her like he did. He moved towards her. Without a word, he swept her into his arms and into a dance. She didn't even begin to object. They whirled around the room to the music, caught up in the moment. For a moment Angel's past, Courtney Thomas and his cruel words to her were forgotten. It was as if they were the only two people in the room, the only two people in the world.

**

However, they weren't. And several pairs of eyes were watching closely, with varying reactions and degrees of emotion. Spike and Dru stood watching, grinning. Buffy's friends stood glaring, furious that she was dancing with Angel, after all that she'd said. Jason stood, angry that his girlfriend was so obviously caught up in someone else.

**

The song began to end, and Buffy calmed down a little. Then she remembered the harsh words of her dancing partner, and her resolution to forget him. She pulled away.

"Buffy, wait." He whispered to her. But she pulled away and pushed through the crowd of people dancing. He went to follow her, but as soon as he got off the packed dance floor, he was intercepted.

"Don't even think about it." A harsh female voice said. He looked to see Cordelia standing there.

"What do you know?" He asked.

"She's my friend and I won't have her ruining her life with a loser like you." She said. He glared.

"Get out of my way."

"Or what? You'll hit me? I don't think so." She smirked. He lifted her up, moved her out of his way and released her. He began to walk in the direction Buffy had gone, when a hand gripped his shoulder.

"What are you doing?" Jason asked.

"None of your business." Angel snapped. He only wanted to apologise to Buffy, and people were stopping him.

"Oh, I think it is my business. She's my girlfriend." Jason said.

"Go do your manly man thing somewhere else." Angel told him. "I've got things to do." Jason went to hit him, but Angel ducked. He didn't want to get into a fight, but he wasn't going to say no. But before anything could happen, Spike and Drusilla appeared. Before he knew what was happening, Jason was being dragged off to the refreshment table with Rhett and Scarlett.

**

Buffy was sitting by the fountain. Angel approached quietly.

"Buffy?"

"What do you want?" She sniffed softly. She'd been crying, and it was all his fault, he thought.

"I...." He sat down beside her. She stiffened.

"I'm sorry." He said quietly.

"What?"

"I'm sorry. I was... I wasn't angry at you. I was angry at me, and I took it out on you and I'm sorry and I love you and I know you hate me and I get that, but I just wanted to tell you I'm sorry." He said in a rush. She looked up.

"You love me?"

"You picked up on that bit, huh?" He laughed nervously.

"You do?"

"Well... Yeah." He admitted, looking down at the ground. Then he looked into her eyes.

"I do. And I was so nasty to you. You just wanted to forgive and forget and take me as I am. But I...."

"It doesn't matter." She said softly. "Spike told me about Courtney, how she took the wheel...."

"But I still killed her." Angel said brokenly. "It was my fault."

"No. She got in that car of her own free will. And it gave you a whole new start here in Sunnydale with Spike and Dru.... And me." She took his hand.

"You... don't mind?" He asked feebly. She shook her head.

"It doesn't matter anymore. You're not the same as you were in New York." She smiled at him. Then she giggled.

"I can't believe I'm sitting in Sunnydale High talking to the Goblin King." She laughed. Angel's lips twitched a couple of times before he allowed himself to smile back.

"I can't believe I'm sitting in Sunnydale High talking to some Venetian lady." He retorted.

"You want to go?" He asked. She nodded.

"Sure." He stood and offered her his hand. She took it and they walked away hand in hand.

**

"Where have you been?" Joyce asked, concerned as Buffy walked in through her front door. Buffy and Angel had walked around, then up to his house, from where he drove her home. Now, Joyce noticed the sleek black car outside her house.

"You were with him?" Joyce's voice rose. "That killer?"

"Yes. You don't know the whole story." Buffy said.

"I don't want to know the whole story." Her mother told her.

"You won't even give him a chance!"

"That's right. I know what happened!"

"No! No you don't!" Buffy said. But instead of carrying on up the stairs she turned around and ran out! of the house. Angel was about to drive away.

"Angel! Wait!" She shouted. He stopped the car and she jumped in. "Drive." She commanded. He looked hesitant, but drove away just the same.

"What's going on?" He asked as they turned off Revello Drive.

"She... She was... She called you a... a killer. She wouldn't listen to me." Buffy said. "She wouldn't give you a chance." She added. Angel sighed and turned the car around. He drove back up Revello and stopped outside her house.

"Go inside. Talk to your mother. I don't want to get you in any trouble." He said. She opened her mouth to object, but off his look, she opened the door. But before she got out, she kissed him.

"I love you, Angel." She whispered to him. She then got out of the car and walked up to her front door. Before she could open it, Joyce appeared.

"What do you think you're doing young lady?"

"Nothing. Angel made me come back and talk to you."

"Oh, he did, did he? When did he become Young Citizen of the Year?"

"Would you shut up!" Buffy shouted at her mother. "He isn't what you think! It wasn't his fault and he's not a killer!" She screamed. She then bolted up the stairs and into her bedroom.

Part 4

It wasn't until the next morning that Buffy emerged from her room. Her mother was sitting in the kitchen reading the Sunnydale News and called out to Buffy.

"Buffy! I want to speak to you!" Buffy ignored her, heading straight out the door. She was going to see Angel and she wasn't about to let Joyce stop her. However, several other people were also gunning for Buffy that morning. Her friends were not pleased by her sudden about-face at the dance the night before, and were on their way to speak to the Class President. However, Buffy was on her way to Angel's, and so their paths met halfway.

"Buffy!" Willow sounded concerned and relieved above all. Buffy looked up, snapped out of her reverie.

"Oh. Hi." She said, annoyed that they had jolted her out of her day dream.

"Is that all you have to say? Oh, hi?" Cordelia demanded.

"I'm sorry about yesterday. But you were wrong about Courtney Thomas. You didn't have the whole story. And Angel didn't tell me everything either. That was left to Spike."

"Where are you going?" Jason asked.

"To Angel's." She said.

"You're... You're my girlfriend." He sputtered.

"Since when?"

"Since you got back together with me."

"It wasn't real, Jason, even you know that." Buffy sighed. "I'm in love with Angel."

At this, her friends looked shocked.

"You're... in love with Angel?" Willow asked.

"Yes." Buffy said softly.

"Oh. We didn't.... We thought you were just trying to... We thought you were just trying the whole living dangerously thing." Xander said.

"What?"

"We thought you were just trying to be exciting. If we'd have known you were in love with him, we'd never have been so mean." Cordelia admitted.

"Oh." Buffy said. "You know, Angel's different now. Dark, maybe. But not dangerous."

"We're so sorry Buffy." Willow took her hand. "Really."

"You were just looking out for me, I guess." She smiled slightly. "But I have to go now. I promised Dru that I'd help Spike with his English homework." She grinned and ran up the hill towards the mansion.

"OK. You do realise what we did?" Cordelia asked her friends.

"We need to speak to Buffy's mom." Willow agreed. Then, they headed towards Buffy's house.

"First, a phone call is in order." Cordelia pulled out her cellphone.

**

"Hi!" Buffy said brightly, as a tired, ruffled Angel came to the door.

"It's early Buffy." He yawned. She checked her watch.

"It's nearly midday."

"Hence it being early." He yawned again. "But come in anyway."

"Oh, if I'd have known you'd be cranky, I wouldn't have come."

"It's great to see you. I'm just tired." He said, sitting by the fire. She sat with him, snuggling into his arms.

"I feel better now you're here." He said, kissing her forehead.

"I saw my friends on the way here."

"Were they terrible?"

"No. They thought I was just, like, acting out or something. When they found out that I actually love you, they were totally OK." She told him.

"That's good. What about your mother?"

"I haven't spoken to her."

"You just left this morning without saying anything?"

"Exactly."

"Buffy...."

"Don't Buffy me, Angel. She was so horrible."

"Don't worry. If you like, I'll get dressed and come and talk to her."

"You would? You'd do that?"

"Sure. It probably won't help much. But I'll try. Anything for you." He kissed her, and reluctantly broke away to get dressed.

When he emerged, he had barely sat down again when the doorbell rang. He got up and opened it. There stood Joyce Summers. Without waiting for an invitation, she barged right in.

"Mom?" Buffy said, jumping up.

"Get in the car. Right now." She demanded. Buffy stood her ground.

"No."

"Uh, Mrs. Summers, we were about to come and see you..." Angel started.

"I don't want to hear it. Get in the car, right now."

"No."

"Mrs Summers! Mrs Summers!" Voices were heard outside. Cordelia, Xander and Willow came running in.

"What do you want?"

"We have to tell you something! We were wrong. We only had half the story." Cordelia said. "I rang my cousin in New York again, and she said that it was only half the story."

"Who's your cousin?" Angel asked.

"Bebe Thomas." She smiled.

"Courtney's sister." Angel remembered. So that's how Cordelia had found out.

"She told me that Courtney was as wild and insane as they came. None of them ever blamed you, Angel. They were just waiting for something like that to happen. They couldn't stop her." Cordelia told them.

"What is going on here?" Joyce demanded.

"Angel didn't kill Courtney Thomas. She grabbed the wheel, taking them off the road and into the river." Buffy said.

"Bebe told me that six different substances were found in Courtney's bloodstream."

"Really?" Angel asked.

"Yeah. Bebe says Hi, by the way." Cordelia grinned.

"I'm not a killer?" He said hollowly.

"Not really. Sure, you acted like an idiot, but you're not the only teenager to go for a drunken joyride."

"He's not a..." Joyce said.

"No, he's not. And he's changed from what he was in New York." Buffy told them. "And I think he'd appreciate apologies from everyone." She added. Her friends came straight forward to do so. Joyce, however, was less forthcoming.

"Mom?" Buffy challenged.

"I.... I suppose I'm sorry. It doesn't mean I like you." She said. "Come on Buffy," She went to leave.

"I think I'll stay here for a while." Buffy said, taking Angel's arm and smiling up at him. It was then that Joyce knew she had truly lost.

"Fine. Be back by eight." She said, still frosty. Buffy nodded, but wasn't really listening.

**

"She's coming around?" Cordelia asked. She and Buffy were sitting in English, waiting for Ms. Davis. Angel too, had yet to arrive.

"Yeah. She made him come round for dinner last night. He was so polite and gentlemanly that she couldn't help but soften up. Then he started talking about art with her!"

"I bet that won her over?"

"Pretty much. They like a lot of the same stuff, so here's hoping!" Buffy grinned. Angel sauntered in, looking Jim Morrison-ish as usual. She beamed. He sat in his seat behind her and she turned around.

"Hi." She said, playing it cool.

"Hey." He also tried the playing it cool thing. But then Buffy grinned and leaned over to kiss him.

"If Buffy and Angel could wait until after class?" Ms. Davis called out. Buffy blushed a deep crimson. She hadn't noticed the teacher come in. Cordelia sniggered, Angel smirked, Buffy blushed.

But in that moment, she realised one thing: Everything was going to be OK.

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