DISCLAIMER:I don't own Angel or Buffy or any of the Buffyverse. For that matter I don't own anything to do with Chuck Berry or any other entity mentioned. And this is all just for fun, so don't sue, OK?
TIMELINE: Sometime in 2001. Maybe Buffy didn't die, maybe she did. Doesn't make much difference here.
SPOILERS: Only general stuff for Buffy S5/Angel S2.
DISTRIBUTION: Ask and ye shall receive. Especially if you're those darling ladies of the Land Of Denial (BTW, I love the new design)
AUTHOR'S NOTES: OK, this is my slightly belated response to Sunnie's challenge, as shown below. I never realised Chuck Berry was such a great antidote to writer's block. If only I'd realised sooner.... Oh well.
FEEDBACK: Please! I love the stuff as much as the next fanfic writer.
RATING: There's some very mild non-swearing. Of course, it's that heathen music rock n roll, so beware!!
The Challenge: Travelling back through time have all or some of the gang travel back through time. To the `50's. Have the Bronze be like one of those malt shops. The members of the Gang who don't go back have to be there, like if you decided to leave Willow not go, have her back in time as Mary Sue and be Buffy's best friend and oblivious to anything. Or whatever. They can either just go back in time or they can switch places with their counter parts.
Musts:
Angel : if you send him back he must be one of the bad boys James Dean guys. You know like Danny in Grease. Try not to just re-write Grease.
Vamps, have them travel back for a reason. Like the slayer of that time cannot handle it. Sunnie
Part One
Sunnydale, 2001
"You're kidding, right?" Buffy asked Giles. He shook his head.
"You want me to go back to 1958?" Giles nodded. "And you want me to go back to 1958 to prevent an evil prophecy from coming to pass?" Giles nodded again. Buffy rubbed her temples. She was getting a headache.
"Why can't poodle-skirt slayer do it?" Buffy asked.
"We've looked into it. The slayer in late 1958 is a fourteen-year-old North Korean girl. Even if she could get away to go to Sunnydale, she'd never be allowed into the country."
"So it's easier to send Buffy back in time than get some girl a visa?"
"Well... Yes. Buffy, don't worry about it. You'll leave tonight..."
"Tonight?"
"Yes." Buffy sighed. "But when you return, you'll return just a few minutes after you left. You won't miss anything here."
"I have no way of talking my way out of this, do I?" She asked. Giles just shook his head.
"OK. When do I go? Can I take anyone with me?"
"No. It's enough trouble to send you back." Giles told her. "Don't worry about it Buffy. I wouldn't allow you to do anything dangerous. Now, when you arrive, you enrol at Sunnydale High.
"No! I'm not going back there!"
"Please, listen. You will enrol at Sunnydale High. The prophecy, unfortunately, means that in the two weeks before, a large number of vampires will swarm to town."
"So it'll be slay-heavy before the prophecy itself?"
"Yes. Then, it's really very simple. There is a vampire queen by the name of..." Giles paused to read his notes. "Johanna. She wants to open the Hellmouth."
"Don't they all?"
"But this isn't as simple as that. She doesn't want to simply open it, she wants to enlarge it several times over so that, in effect, more demons can get out in less time."
"I just knew someone would find a way to destroy the world with efficiency. It's not fair."
"I know Buffy. All you have to do is destroy Johanna and her amulet."
"Oh! She's got an amulet! How come I'm not even remotely surprised! Don't these guys come up with anything new?"
"Well, it's actually old, when you think about it." Giles said. Buffy fixed him with a glare.
"If you start trying to explain time travel, I'm going to go cross-eyed, then I'm going to kill you by force-feeding you pints of Darjeeling tea." She threatened. Giles laughed.
"That's a good one."
"Thanks." She grinned. "When do we do this?"
"Sunset."
"Great. I'm off home. I'd better talk to Dawn."
"Buffy... You'll only be gone from here for a minute or two."
"I know. But if something goes wrong..." She let the sentence hang in the air. Giles understood. If Buffy died there... He dreaded to think of the ramifications.
*
"Angel?" She'd decided to call, just in case. Dawn had seemed more impressed than worried, and Buffy was pleased. She just hoped she'd didn't screw this up.
"Buffy?" He sounded confused.
"Yeah. I'm sorry, you're probably busy."
"No, it's fine. It's great to hear from you. Is everything OK?"
"Yeah. I just... You're not going to believe this."
"Try me."
"I've got to go back to Sunnydale in 1958 and stop a vampire queen opening the Hellmouth."
"Why did you think I wouldn't believe you?"
"I.... Don't know. I bet you get strange stuff in LA, huh?"
"A fair amount."
"Where were you in '58, Angel?"
"I uh.... I can't remember." He said after a lengthy pause.
"You had a soul then, right?"
"Yeah. I was a good boy." He said. She could practically hear his half-smile down the phone.
"Well, I just wanted to tell you, in case... You know."
"I know. You'll be fine Buffy."
"I hope so."
"You will be." Angel reassured her.
"Thanks. Well, I'd better go." Buffy said reluctantly.
"Bye Buffy." He said warmly.
"Bye." She said, putting the phone down.
*
"OK, I'm ready." Buffy said.
"Step into the circle." Willow instructed. She and Tara had a spell all ready laid out in the Magic Box. Buffy stepped into the circle, and listened, apprehensive, as her friends began to chant. She closed her eyes.
"Is that it? Are we done?" She asked. Getting no reply, she opened her eyes. Instead of the Magic Box as she knew it, she was standing in the 1958 version, beside a shop-owner just like Giles.
"Are you Miss Summers?" He asked. He, like Giles, was English. He was wearing a traditional tweed suit, the kind of which she hadn't seen Giles wear since he was librarian.
"Yeah." She said, suspiciously.
"Don't be alarmed. There has been some communication between now and the future, your time. I'll be assisting you over the next couple of weeks, and when the time comes to send you back."
"Are you...."
"A watcher? Yes dear. I'm Philip Charlton. You can stay with me for the duration of your stay. I'm sure Sunnydale isn't much different to the one you know."
"Lots of demons?" She asked. He nodded.
"Afraid so."
"Same old Sunnydale." She said with a laugh. He looked at her tight little halter-top and skirt.
"You'll need new clothes." He pulled a bag from behind the counter. "I had something purchased for you just in case." She looked in the bag. A sweater and poodle-skirt.
"If you don't like it, you can get something else. But perhaps you should wear this in the meantime." Buffy nodded.
"Thanks Charlton." She smiled. "Got somewhere I can change?"
"The backroom." He pointed to what, in 43 years' time would be her training room. She emerged five minutes later in a powder blue skirt, a white sweater a little tighter than she felt comfortable in, and she'd put her hair into a ponytail, like she'd seen the girls in Grease wear.
"Much better." Charlton said.
"Thanks." She said. He held the door open for her, and they went out into the day.
"It was sunset when I left home." She commented.
"It was decided to send you back earlier in the day. We didn't think you'd want to arrive and have to start slaying immediately."
"Good idea." She looked down Main Street. Elegant looking cars made their way down the street, while it was exactly as she imagined it- a typical fifties main street. The Sun Cinema was exactly as it was now, except instead of Tomb Raider with Angelina Jolie, the movie was Some Like It Hot with Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon.
"Is it what you expected?" Charlton asked. She nodded.
"Pretty much. It looks nice." She said. They passed the Espresso Pump, except in 1958, it was a flourishing malt shop called Walker's, full of high school students. Next door was Sandra's Boutique.
"We should perhaps get you some clothes?" Charlton suggested.
"How can I afford it?"
"The Watcher's Council is paying all your expenses. They wired me some money yesterday."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. Anything you need. Anything at all."
"Shopping.... Unlimited... I like it here." She said, going into the boutique.
*
They emerged a considerable time later with several large, full bags of clothes. She'd gone for a part Sandy, part Rizzo wardrobe, being torn as to what she would wear. Then, Charlton took her back to his house, which was actually on Revello Drive. It wasn't quite the same as she remembered it, and her exact house hadn't yet been built, but it was still Revello Drive.
"Thanks Charlton, you've been a great help." She said, as he put a plate of dinner in front of her.
"A watcher's duty, Miss Summers." He said.
"You can call me Buffy. You know, in that exasperated way?"
"I don't believe I know what you mean."
"Don't worry, you will." She grinned, and tucked into her food. By the time she'd finished, it was dark, and she put on her new clothes- this time pedal pushers and a halter, complete with sandals.
"You'll be OK on your own?" Charlton asked. She nodded.
"I'll be fine. I might stop off at the Bronze afterwards." She stopped. "Is there the Bronze here?"
"Bronze?"
"Club, for the high school kids." She translated.
"I'm afraid that Walker's is the only place. I rather suspect that Sunnydale now is a lot smaller than you're used to."
"You can say that again. How many cemeteries are there?"
"Six."
"Oh. Cool. Less than I'm used to."
"How many are there in 2001?"
"Thirteen." She said. His mouth dropped open, calculating just how many Sunnydale residents would have to die in the next forty years to fill another seven cemeteries.
"Be careful." He said as she went out.
*
Giles had been right. In two hours, she'd staked six vampires, but now all seemed quiet. So, she headed to Main Street. She could hear the music from the jukebox down the street, and as she got closer she realised that it was some kind of jazz.
"Don't they have rock n roll yet?" She tried to remember exactly when it was that Elvis came onto the scene, but old music wasn't her forte. If only Giles were with her... She went inside the shop, and asked for a Coke, handing over the money to the kid behind the counter. She headed to the jukebox to peruse the song-list.
"Chuck Berry?" She asked herself.
"He's really good." A voice said. It couldn't be. No... She turned around.
"Angel?"
"Hi. How do you know my name?"
"I... Is that your name?" She feigned ignorance. Clearly this was Angel in 1958, not 'her' Angel. Not that 'her' Angel was even hers now. She shook that thoroughly depressing idea from her head and concentrated on the task at hand: Checking out Angel. She thought she might faint. Sure, she'd seen pictures of James Dean and Marlon Brando and thought they looked pretty good. She'd always liked Danny and Kenickie in Grease, but Angel... She really thought she might faint. She'd seen him wearing similar things before- leather jacket, white t-shirt, black jeans, but instead of spikes, his hair had been greased back just like Elvis. Or Danny, or Kenickie. But on Angel, it looked way better.
"Yeah. I'm Angel. You must be the slayer Philip Charlton was talking about."
"You... You know Charlton?"
"Yeah. I'm here to help you." He said, smiling that little half smile she loved so much.
"OK."
"So, where are you from?" He asked. Clearly, Charlton hadn't told him everything.
"Uh... Los Angeles." She said. It wasn't a lie, exactly.
"Really? I used to live there." He said, a flicker of guilt crossing his face. Then she realised what was so different. There was guilt in Angel's eyes, a lot of it, but it wasn't bearing down on him quite so much. Clearly, it would take years for it to take its toll on him.
"So, you like Chuck Berry?" He asked, smirking. Her mouth nearly dropped open. He was flirting with her! Wait till she got home, would she have something to say to him!
"I guess." She said, not really knowing. Putting a coin into the jukebox, Angel pressed a button on the Wurlitzer and the song Brown-Eyed Handsome Man came on. She'd heard this before. And as Angel held his hand out to dance with her, she realised she knew exactly who her Brown-Eyed Handsome Man was.
"You dance well." She said. He did. He still had that same commanding presence that made everyone turn to look, even the other couples dancing.
"Thanks. You're enrolling at Sunnydale High on Monday?" He asked.
"Yeah." She wrinkled her nose. She'd done the high school thing. She was now twenty years old, and she was going back to high school Great. Well, at least she wouldn't have to blow it up this time.
*
She returned to Charlton's house some time later. Angel had offered to accompany her on another patrol, and who was she to refuse such a request? He might not be the Angel in love with her, but he was still Angel and she wasn't in a position to get picky about such things. They had talked a little, and he admitted to her that he was a vampire, and he told her the story. Which she already knew, so she was able to take it all in her stride. Which impressed Angel. That made her glad. She liked the idea that maybe even fifties Angel, with his Brando scowl and Teddy Boy hair might fall in love with Buffy. She then spent a leisurely Sunday at Charlton's house, becoming acquainted with all things 1958. The number of channels was a disgrace. Where was the Home Shopping Network? The WB? UPN? What was she going to do with her spare time? Charlton merely smiled and pointed to the large bookcase. She suddenly felt for Angel. He had nothing to do during daytime, and for most of his life, there hadn't been TV at all. No wonder he liked books.
*
Monday arrived, and she went, grudgingly to Sunnydale High School. Charlton had explained that she had to enrol there in order to keep an eye on the Hellmouth, located right underneath the library.
"Hi! I'm Barbara-Ann!" A shrill voice called. A dark-haired girl approached her. She was the ultimate fifties bobbysoxer, and Buffy fought the urge to call her Cordelia.
"Hi, I'm Buffy."
"You're from LA, right? I'd kill to live in LA. That close to that many shoes?" Barbara-Ann said as a joke. Hadn't Buffy heard that one before?
"Well, it's OK, I guess." Buffy said. "Do you, uh, know where the library is? I have to get books." She said. Cordelia/Barbara-Ann- linked arms with her and led her down the hall.
"I'm just sure you'll get along fine here. All you have to do is pass our simple test." Oh dear God, Buffy groaned. How was she going to pass the 1958 test?
"Dean or Jerry?" Barbara-Ann asked. Buffy knew those names. She didn't know who they were, but still...
"Dean?"
"Totally! I mean, he's like, friends with Frank!" Now Buffy was fairly sure she was talking about Frank Sinatra.
"OK... Elvis?"
"Cool."
"OK... Paul Newman..."
"He needs to call me!" Buffy mimicked her old routine. Barbara-Ann nodded in approval. "You totally passed!" They had arrived outside the library.
"Well, thanks. Maybe I'll see you around," Buffy said, wanting rid of this girl. She represented all the negative points of Cordelia, with seemingly none of the positive. She went into the library.
"Hi! You must be the new girl." A pretty redhead called from the table in the centre of the library, which looked as it always had done. Before it was blown up, of course.
"Uh, yeah. I'm Buffy." Buffy said, reassured by the Willow doppelganger.
"I'm Peggy-Sue."
"Peggy-Sue?"
"I know. I've had the jokes since they released that record." She blushed.
"I'm Rory." A boy came forward, wearing clothes that were on the verge of being cool, but missing something.
"Hi." Suddenly, a thought occurred to Buffy. Wasn't Xander's uncle called Rory? She fought the urge to laugh as he pulled out three Twinkies. He was so Xander-ish it was untrue.
"Are you staying at Mr. Charlton's house?" Buffy looked up. Had Peggy-Sue just asked her that?
"Don't worry. We know all about... vampires and stuff." Rory said proudly.
"Oh." Buffy breathed a sigh of relief. "Yeah, I am."
"OK. We can, uh, patrol with you if you like?"
"No, I'm fine, really. I wouldn't want you getting hurt." Buffy said. Both looked visibly relieved.
"Well, we can meet you at Walker's after patrol if you like. Or before, whatever." Rory said, clearly taken with the new girl and her tight skirt. Some things really don't change, Buffy realised.
"That sounds... great." She said. The bell rang, and the other two scurried off to classes. Buffy walked much slower.
"I didn't show up when I was meant to. I'll be damned if I go to classes now." She said.
"You must be the new girl." A harsh voice said from the library door.
"Uh, yes." She said.
"I'm Principal Harrison." The small, balding man said. "I suggest you get to your next class. One doesn't want to start badly on one's first day."
"You're right..." She pretended to examine her timetable. History, room 102. She knew exactly where it was, but she wasn't meant to.
"Principal Harrison, sir..." She decided some crawling wouldn't hurt. "Perhaps you could help me. I have History in 102 now. But I don't know where that is." She gave him her brightest smile. To her surprise, he responded.
"Yes dear. Down the left, second right." He said, returning her smile slightly. Definitely not Herr Snyder, she decided. Principal Harrison was much more civilised.
*
The day crawled along, but Buffy learned a few interesting and perhaps important things- like names. She had to keep up the pretence of being a high school student to guard the Hellmouth, so she would need to know a few names. Peggy-Sue and Rory were so like Willow and Xander that sometimes it was unnerving. But they were good kids. They reminded Buffy of the first time she had met her friends, before so much demon killing hardened them. Not for the first time, Buffy regretted allowing her friends to help her with such things. They had been open, innocent children and within just a few days of arriving in Sunnydale, Buffy had turned them into fighters. A part of Buffy hated herself for doing it, yet another part, equally loud, told her that Willow and Xander chose to fight. After all, Buffy told herself, hadn't Willow chosen to attend UC Sunnydale instead of a safer school in a galaxy far, far away? Hadn't Xander chosen to return from his aborted road trip? They could've left, but they didn't. Yet still Buffy felt guilty for dragging them into it in the first place.
"Buffy?" A sweet voice called her. She turned to see Peggy-Sue running after her. School was out, and Buffy intended to walk home. She smiled at the girl.
"Hi! I thought I might walk with you. If that's OK? Is it OK? Do you want me to go away?" Buffy smiled. Very Willow.
"Please, I'd like that." The look of happiness on Peggy-Sue's face reminded Buffy of that shy girl she'd met on her first day at Sunnydale. They walked along, Peggy-Sue chattering away about all kinds of things, and Buffy marvelled at how much this part of town really hadn't changed. So, there were fewer cars, and the cars were different, but it was still Sunnydale.
Unfortunately, time seemed to pass a whole lot slower in this Sunnydale, and it seemed to be an eternity between returning to Charlton's house and time to go to Walker's and on patrol. So much time, in fact, that Buffy did her homework. There was no TV, she didn't much like the music Charlton had. Unlike Giles, it appeared that Charlton hadn't been cool as a kid, and his musical tastes didn't go much further than Souza or Bach. The most controversial record he had was Black, Tan & Beige by Duke Ellington. Buffy had never been one for jazz, so homework it was. Finally, it was time to go to Walker's again. She suspected that staying in Fifties Sunnydale for two weeks would make her go crazy with boredom. There was only one cure she could think of.
"Angel. Here again?" She said flippantly. He smiled that curious little half smile she dreamed of at night.
"Well, uh... Nothing else to do." He said. "Besides, I hoped you might be here."
"Really?" Her heart started doing backflips good enough for the Olympics.
"Yeah, I uh, thought you might want help on patrol." Her heart then stumbled on the dismount.
"Oh. Well, sure." She said. Angel looked at her, wondering what he'd said wrong. But she forcibly pushed a bright smile onto her face, and he was appeased. Patrol that night was busy, with Buffy and Angel dusting well over ten vampires.
"That was..."
"A lot of vampires." Angel finished for her. They had just slain a group of six.
"Yeah. When Giles told me that there'd be a lot, I thought it was Giles overreacting."
"Giles?"
"My watcher in the fut... My old watcher." She said. "He sent me here."
"Will you... go back home after this?"
"I have to." She said. He looked to her to be genuinely disappointed.
"Maybe I'll see you sometime? Afterwards, I mean."
"I can more or less guarantee it." She said quietly. He looked confused. Damn! He wasn't supposed to hear that. How was she meant to get out of this one?
"What?"
"Well, I mean, I'm sure our paths will cross again." She said, covering up her slip. He smiled.
"I'd like that." He said, sounding shy. She smiled. He liked her! Fifties Angel liked her! Which, considering his future self walked away from her, was a big confidence booster.
"Are you OK?" He asked.
"Did I zone out again?"
"Yeah. You do it a lot?"
"No. Well, probably. Maybe. I babble too."
"I'm getting that." He laughed. Buffy looked at him in surprise. She didn't think she'd ever heard Angel laugh before.
"What?" He asked, wondering why she was staring at him so intensely.
"Oh, nothing." She said, still staring. Then, without warning, she took his face in her hands and kissed him. Just as suddenly, she pulled away. Angel looked shocked, but not upset.
"I'm sorry." She said, caught out of breath slightly. "I shouldn't have done that."
"No." He said, stepping towards her.
"I don't know what came over me. I, uh..."
"What?" He asked, his eyes not leaving hers.
"I've got no idea." She admitted. He bent down and kissed her. This time neither pulled away.
Part Two
The next week passed swiftly for Buffy and her Angel. They spent most of their time together, in the cemeteries and around town slaying the numerous vampires that had arrived in town. She found herself wholly in love with this Angel, in his white t-shirt and leather jacket. With Buffy, he dropped the sneering Rebel Without A Cause persona he seemed to adopt with the rest of the world. She realised it was just like that persona he had in the future. It was his mask, his armour against the rest of the world. His impenetrable blackness in the future was the same as this rebel now. Suddenly, her heart swelled as she realised that both times, he had allowed her to see behind it, she had pierced his defences. She knew Angel well enough to know that the only way somebody could do this was if he allowed it. Now, she understood better Angel's love for her. She was the only person to get behind those defences, she was the only person he'd loved enough to allow her to do so. Now, it didn't matter that he had left, because she knew she had his heart.
*
"What are you thinking?" Peggy-Sue asked. They were, as usual sitting in the library at lunchtime. They were meant to be discussing their dresses for the dance that night, but Buffy had other things on her mind.
"Oh, was I someplace else?"
"Yeah. Is it that guy we keep seeing you with?" The girl asked. Buffy looked at her strangely.
"What?"
"That guy, I don't know his name. Tall, dark, handsome. Like Elvis."
"He's not like Elvis." Buffy said quickly. "He's way better looking than Elvis." She said dreamily.
"You got it bad, huh?" Peggy-Sue asked.
"Yeah." Buffy sighed.
"That must be nice." The other girl mused.
"Haven't you ever been in love?"
"Aside from Ricky Nelson, no." Peggy-Sue laughed.
"Ricky Nelson?"
"Yeah, the singer?"
"Oh. Yeah." Buffy bluffed, not knowing who he was.
"Totally. I can't wait until they release Rio Bravo. He's in it with John Wayne and Dean Martin. And I just love Lonesome Town."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"But you've never been in love with anyone here?"
"No. When you're the school geek, not many people ask you out on dates. Or in my case, no one." Peggy-Sue laughed nervously, trying to cover up her sadness. Buffy smiled.
"But that doesn't mean it won't happen." She said. "You're a beautiful girl, I bet there's someone out there just waiting to fall so in love with you he won't know what's hit him."
"Thanks. But tell me about your guy! What's his name?"
"Oh. Angel."
"Angel what?"
"Just Angel."
"Oh, OK." Peggy-Sue was clearly confused by Angel's lack of surname. "Where's he from?"
"Oh... Well, I met him in Los Angeles. He moved here just before I did. Weird coincidence, huh?"
"Yeah. But cool!"
"Absolutely." Buffy gushed.
"Is he a senior or something?" Willow asked.
"No, he's uh...." She groped for something. "He's at college."
"He's a college guy? That is so cool! Barbara-Ann would be so jealous. She's always talking about her college boyfriends, but Rory's sister is at UC Sunnydale, and she says that all the guys there avoid Barbara-Ann like the plague because she's so annoying!" Peggy-Sue laughed. Rory came in.
"Good afternoon ladies." He said grandly. "You're looking at the newest owner of... a car!"
"You got a car?" Peggy-Sue exclaimed. He nodded.
"Come and see it! Come and see it!" Rory was practically jumping up and down with excitement. They went out to the parking lot. It was the powder blue car that Buffy remembered Xander borrowing in senior year.
"It's great. Looks like its built to last." Buffy said, knowing he wouldn't understand.
"I'll come and get you tonight to go to the dance, if you like." Rory offered Buffy.
"Oh... Well..."
"Peg? What about you?"
"Sure!" Buffy noticed Peggy-Sue's eyes light up at his invitation. History really did repeat itself in this town.
"Is Angel taking you?" Peggy-Sue asked.
"Angel? Who's Angel?" Rory asked, perturbed.
"He's my..." She paused. Was he her boyfriend? Really, honestly? She wasn't sure anymore. Everything, including time itself was screwed up.
"Boyfriend." Peggy-Sue finished. Buffy didn't bother to correct her.
"I might be late to the dance." She said, thinking of patrol.
"Sure. Well, we'll see you there?" Peggy-Sue asked as the bell rang.
"Absolutely." Buffy smiled. There was no way she was passing up the opportunity to go to a real sock-hop!
*
She brought up the subject later when she arrived at Angel's little apartment just off Main Street.
"We have more important things to think about than a dance, Buffy." Angel said. She stared at him. Only the different location alerted her to the fact that she wasn't merely reliving that nightmare conversation in the sewers.
"Angel..." She started.
"I'm a vampire! I shouldn't be at a school dance. I don't belong there." Angel told her.
"Please, Angel. I didn't really get to do any of this stuff at my old school because of demons getting in the way. Please. We don't have to stay long." She pleaded.
"Would I have to dress up?"
"No. Come as you are if you like." She was aware that it might annoy some of the chaperones, but right now, she was more concerned about getting him to agree to go.
"Fine." He relented. "Like I could possibly say no to you."
"You managed it fine last time." She muttered.
"What?"
"Nothing. Nothing. So, Charlton said by his calculations, Johanna should try her ritual in two days' time."
"Two days. Night before the full moon?" Angel asked.
"Yeah." Buffy nodded, crawling into his lap and planting kisses on his hands.
"Don't we have to patrol?" He asked, smiling in spite of himself.
"Absolutely." She said, moving up to kiss his lips. He returned it fully, before breaking away.
"Buffy, we really do have to patrol." He said. She scowled, but got up anyway.
"Well, the sooner we patrol, the sooner we end up at the dance." She said. He sat back down.
"What's the rush, huh?" He asked.
"Come on." She smiled, pulling him out of his chair.
*
Patrol was busy, but they arrived at the dance as it was beginning to really swing. She changed into her new dress in the girls' bathroom, and the two entered together. Peggy-Sue was sitting on the bleachers, waiting for someone to ask her to dance, and saw them come in.
"Buffy!" She jumped up and ran down to the pair. "You look great!" Buffy was wearing a pink organza dress with spaghetti straps. Angel was wearing his uniform white t-shirt, black leather jacket and black jeans.
"Angel, this is my friend Peggy-Sue. Peggy-Sue, this is Angel."
"Pleased to meet you. Buffy's been telling us all about you!" Peggy-Sue exclaimed.
"Really?" Angel raised an eyebrow at Buffy.
"She's exaggerating. I just told her how we met in Los Angeles and we both happened to move here." Buffy filled him in on his fictional history. He nodded and smiled at the redhead.
"Nice to meet you." He said. She looked as if she were about to faint, just from having the handsome man smile at her.
"Dance, Angel?" Buffy asked. He nodded reluctantly and allowed her to pull him onto the dance floor as the song Be Bop A Lula by Gene Vincent began. From the sidelines, a beautiful brunette girl watched the two curiously. The song ended, and Angel persuaded Buffy to sit the next one out. They went over to the bleachers and sat down.
"So... Do you want a drink?" Angel asked, actually wondering what the Hell he was meant to do at something like this. Most of the parties or dances he'd ever been to, he'd been there to eat. But that was before. He went over to the refreshment table to get Buffy a drink, when a brunette stepped in the way.
"Hi." She said with a bright smile. "I'm Barbara-Ann."
"Hi. Angel." He said guardedly.
"What a great name." She said. He inwardly winced. She was too perky to be believable. If only he could get back to Buffy...
"Is that for me? Thanks." She said sweetly, taking the drink from him.
"Well, actually..."
"Dance? I'd love to." She said, taking his arm and pulling him forcefully onto the dance floor. Once there, she pulled his arms around her and put her hands on his shoulders.
"I..." Angel went to tell her that he was with Buffy.
"So, how come I haven't seen you around before? I'm sure I'd remember you." She said, batting her eyelashes at him.
"I'm new." He said, wondering how to get out of this one.
"Really? That's interesting." From her position on the bleachers, Buffy was fuming. She knew that Angel wouldn't want someone like Barbara-Ann. Didn't she? She knew this Angel was different to the Angel he would later become. Maybe Barbara-Ann was his type.
"Hi Buffy." Peggy-Sue had appeared again. "I see Barbara-Ann steamrolled into Angel." She said.
"Yeah." Buffy said faintly. The song ended, and Angel managed to extricate himself from Barbara-Ann's clutches. He came back over to Buffy.
"I am so sorry, Buffy. She press-ganged me. I..."
"It's OK." She said, managing a smile.
"I'm only here for you." He said, sitting next to her.
"Really?"
"Really. Compared to you, she's nothing. I don't even remember her name." Angel smiled. Sensing she was still unsure, he leaned in and kissed her.
"Still don't believe me."
"No I don't. Persuade me more." She said slyly. He laughed, kissing her again.
"We should probably do another sweep." She said.
"Yeah. It's getting close to the raising." Angel said.
"Yeah." She said, reluctance colouring her voice. She didn't want to leave this place, if she were truthful. It was a Pleasantville Sunnydale, even with the presence of demons. Everyone was polite and nice. But that wasn't her reason for wanting to stay. Angel loved her here. Angel wanted her here. Angel hadn't left her.
*
"Are you OK?" Angel asked with concern as they left the gym, much to the delight of the teachers, who were glad to see the back of the older guy dressed like a rock n roller.
"You know I have to go home when this is over?" Buffy asked. After a moment, Angel nodded.
"I know."
"OK. I just..." She paused. She couldn't do that to him. She couldn't declare her undying love for him, only to leave him. For forty years, at least.
"What?"
"I, uh... Duck!" She shouted. He did and she flung her stake at an approaching vampire. Her aim was good and it exploded.
"Nice shot." Angel said, getting up from the ground. They continued walking along through the cemetery. They came out at the other end, not far from City Hall. A thought suddenly occurred to her.
"The Mayor." Buffy whispered. Angel picked up on it.
"What?"
"The Mayor, do you know the Mayor's name?" She asked.
"No."
"OK. Is there a phone somewhere?" Buffy asked. Angel looked confused, but pointed. The local telephone exchange was opposite City Hall.
"Try there."
"Good idea." She went in, and searched in her bag for Charlton's number. Finding it, she called him.
"Hello, Philip Charlton." A well-spoken voice answered.
"Charlton? It's Buffy."
"Buffy? Are you well?"
"Yes. I just... Who's mayor of Sunnydale?"
"Mayor Richard Wilkins." He said, confused by her line of questioning. "Why?"
"I have a lead on where we might find Johanna, Master Vamp before any of this needs to go down." She said.
"Very well." Charlton said, clearly not quite understanding what Buffy was on about. But then, Angel didn't know what she was talking about either.
"What are we doing?" He asked, as they crossed the street to City Hall. Several lights still burned bright in the building and they went in. Buffy already knew the way to the Mayor's office and went straight there. Knocking softly, she heard a familiar arrogant voice call out cheerily.
"Come in!" She went in, closely followed by Angel. Richard Wilkins sat behind his desk, looking exactly as he had just before he became a big snake.
"Mr. Mayor. I'm looking for someone." She said without preamble. He looked up at the two people standing in his office and smiled pleasantly.
"Who are you?"
"I'm looking for someone." Buffy repeated with a pleasant smile.
"Who might that be, young lady? Usually people don't just barge into my office at all hours of the night." He said, with the same bland smile she knew already.
"Johanna." She said. He visibly blanched, before pushing the smile back onto his face.
"Who are you?" He demanded, his voice becoming harsher.
"I'm... a friend." She said.
"I don't need any friends, young lady."
"I didn't say I was yours." She told him. She held up her crossbow and pointed it directly at his heart.
"Where is she?"
"I don't know any Johanna." He said.
"I don't believe you. The rest of this town doesn't know who you are, what you are, but I do. And I don't believe for a second that you don't know where she is." Surprisingly, the Mayor laughed.
"Who am I?" He asked.
"You're an evil son of a bitch who built this town for demons to feed on. And I'll put money on you being a damn sight older than you look." She responded. He nodded.
"You show initiative little girl. What's your name?" Realising he wouldn't give any information without receiving any, she spoke.
"I'm Norma Jeane Baker." She said, trying to think of a name. She hoped he wasn't a big Marilyn Monroe fan.
"Where are you from?"
"What is this, twenty questions?"
"Information for information. A fair trade, especially as you have me at a disadvantage." He pointed to the crossbow. Well, one more lie wouldn't hurt.
"I'm from Iowa. I'm in town visiting a friend."
"A friend called Johanna?"
"You've got my drift." She said.
"Would this friend have an allergy to sunlight?" He asked. Buffy nodded.
"Where is she?" She asked. "I'm only going to ask so many more times before I put this bolt through your heart."
"Well... You seem to have me over a barrel." He laughed. "Well, she's probably at the school right now, bringing Hell to Earth."
"What?"
"I assume you know of her purpose. It's tonight." He laughed. Buffy looked at Angel quickly, knowing that Wilkins wasn't lying. She turned back and let the bolt fly. It embedded itself in the wall just above Wilkins' head.
"Thanks for your time, Mr. Mayor." She said, clearly not meaning it.
*
They ran back to the school. The dance was still in full swing, but a cursory inspection of the exits of the building showed them to be guarded by vampires. Taking the first two out easily, Buffy and Angel ran inside towards the library.
"How do you know where it is?" Angel asked.
"Research." She said cryptically. At least fourteen vampires were stood in a circle in the library. Buffy and Angel were stood outside, watching through the window.
"They figured it was easier to open it from here than underground, huh?"
"From what I know, she doesn't like to get dirty." Angel said of the vampire in the middle of the circle, a tall, thin female vampire with long red hair.
"How do you know her?"
"By reputation. Never met her." He said. "Can we take all of them?"
"I don't know. I have a bunch of weapons in my locker." Buffy said. "Wait here."
"No. I'm coming with you. We shouldn't be separated." Angel said. She nodded and they ran down the corridor towards her locker. Once there, she ripped the door off, having forgotten her combination. She gave him half the weapons, taking the rest for herself.
"We need to work quickly. Once the vampires outside realise something's gone wrong, they might start snacking on the kids at the dance." Buffy said, as they rushed back to the library.
"Count of three?" She asked.
"Nah." He said with a smile.
"Sure." They burst in through the doors, distracting the vampires. Angel and Buffy worked together as they always had done, instinctively, covering for each other as if they'd been doing this forever. One by one, the numbers of the vampires were depleted until only Johanna, still chanting, remained.
"Angel, go out and find the other vampires. We can't let them attack the gym."
"I..."
"Do it." She said.
"Who the Hell are you?" Johanna looked up from her chanting.
"I'm Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, who the Hell are you?"
"As regards you, little girl, I'm the Grim Reaper."
"Oh. That's disappointing. There was me hoping for a good fight, and you tell me we're going to play chess instead." Buffy shot back. Johanna's face filled with rage. Buffy approached. Johanna threw down the book she was reading from, and more importantly, her amulet. The ground shook a little, but stopped after only a second.
"I'm going to kill you." Johanna said.
"They all say that." Buffy said. "What makes you different?"
"I'm actually going to do it." Johanna lunged at Buffy, and they traded blows.
"That's a pretty good answer. Most of these guys, they try to out-pun me. You go for the simple. I like it." Buffy slammed her fist into Johanna's face. She pulled out her stake.
"It's still going to open. Unless you destroy my amulet, you die anyway."
"Thanks for the tip." Buffy said, as she thrust her stake into Johanna's heart. The vampire looked utterly surprised, before exploding into dust.
It wasn't over yet. Buffy searched for the amulet. The ground shook again. She saw the book on the ground, and picked it up. Underneath was the amulet.
"What the Hell do I do with this?"
"Well trying burning it." Peggy-Sue had appeared at the door.
"Peggy-Sue?"
"I felt the tremors. I came here."
"You shouldn't have."
"I know how to destroy it. But Rory has the powder for the Living Flame." Peggy-Sue said.
"We should find him."
"I'm here! I'm here!" Rory came in, wheezing from running so fast. He pulled out a bag.
"Where can we do this?"
"In the centre of the circle." Peggy-Sue said, taking the bag. "Rory, I need your Zippo lighter."
"Sure." He tossed it to her. She poured the powder onto the floor, igniting it with the lighter.
"The amulet?" She asked, surprising Buffy with her level-headed calmness. Buffy handed it to her. The powder was now a green flame, and she put the amulet into it, and stood back. The flamer shot up several feet, before dying out. All that was left on the floor was a sooty mark. The tremors stopped immediately.
"Is that it?"
"Yeah."
"Vampires, outside." Buffy said. "We need to stop them."
"All done." Angel appeared at the door. "Not very clever vampires either."
"We're done? That's it?"
"Yeah."
"Oh." Excitement filled her voice, but it was tinged with sadness. This meant she had to go home. Home to her Angel-less future. Angel seemed to realise much the same.
"You can go home." He said, his eyes betraying his sadness.
"Yeah." She repeated. "Great." He put his arm around her.
"Don't worry Buffy. I can always, I don't know, visit or something."
"No. No you can't. That's not possible." She laughed harshly, sadly.
"Why?"
"Because... Where I go, you can't follow." She said.
"Oh."
"I wish you could. But you can't."
"We should... Go back to the dance." Peggy-Sue said, pulling Rory out of the room. Neither Buffy nor Angel noticed their exit.
"I wish you could," She said, her voice cracking slightly.
"But I can't. I understand."
"Thank you. You always do."
"When will you go back?"
"I guess right away." She said. He put his arms tightly around her. Suddenly, the floodgates burst open and tears streamed down Buffy's cheeks. "I... I don't want to go... I want to stay here with you... I...." She sobbed.
"Shh, shh, don't worry Buffy. It's OK."
"No, it's really not. If you knew..." She stopped. She couldn't say anything to him. Nothing. Much as she wanted to. Giles had been firm on that one. No mentioning curses or anything. And she knew that was the way it had to be. She forced herself to stop crying.
"Where did Peggy-Sue and Rory go?" She asked.
"They probably wanted to give us a moment alone." He said, brushing his lips against her forehead.
"We should find them. I want to say goodbye." She said, wiping her eyes. She took his hand and they walked together, away from the library.
*
Peggy-Sue and Rory had accompanied them back to Charlton's house after the four spent a little longer at the dance. Buffy had danced with Rory, Peggy-Sue had danced with Angel and Barbara-Ann tried once more to snag Angel. They were now doing what Riley would have called de-briefing. Buffy shuddered involuntarily at the thought of Riley. She looked up at Angel and felt better. De-briefing in this case meant drinking tea and talking about the dance.
"Everything is well?" Charlton asked for what seemed like the fiftieth time.
"Absolutely. Although it could have been bad if it weren't for Peggy-Sue and Rory." Buffy smiled gratefully at the two.
"It's nothing. We wanted to help." Rory said. She smiled.
"Thank you. It definitely comes under the heading of Above And Beyond." Buffy smiled. The two students stood up.
"We should get home now." Peggy-Sue said. Buffy rose and hugged the girl warmly.
"Bye." She said.
"It was great to meet you Buffy." The girl said.
"You too. And you Rory," Buffy said, giving him a hug too. He grinned.
"See you around maybe?"
"Stranger things have happened." She said. If she happened to go visiting with Xander, you never knew. Then, they were gone. Charlton excused himself and Buffy and Angel were alone.
"I... I'm going to miss you." She said.
"I'm going to miss you too." He said.
"The sun will be coming up in a while." She told him.
"Yeah."
"Angel..." She was going to say it. Yes, she was. "I love you." She told him. He smiled, a tear forming in his eye.
"I love you too." He said with much more ease than he would in forty years.
"Take care of yourself, OK?" She said.
"Sure."
"Promise?" She demanded.
"Yes." He nodded. She kissed him once, softly.
"Bye, Angel." She said, trying so hard not to cry. He stood up and went to the door.
"Goodbye Buffy." He left, not daring to look back at the girl he loved. She composed herself, and stood. Charlton came back in.
"Are you ready, Buffy?"
"Yeah. Can I take all my new clothes home? Vintage is so in right now."
"I'm sure you can." He smiled warmly at her. "Why don't you pack while I get the car ready to go to the magic shop."
"Sure." She nodded. This was harder than she'd expected. But for once, it was her walking away from Angel. Not that it was much comfort to know, but still.... She'd recover. She always did, didn't she?
Part Three
Charlton and Buffy went into the magic shop and set up for the spell. Then, she stood in the circle, clutching her bags of clothes bought courtesy of the Watchers' Council.
"It was a pleasure and an honour, Miss Summers." Charlton said. She smiled at him.
"Same here. Stay safe, OK?"
"I'll try." He smiled back. "Close your eyes." He asked. She did so and listened as he chanted. When she no longer heard his voice, she opened her eyes.
"Buffy!" Xander's voice cried out.
"You're here!" Willow added.
"I am." She said, biting her lip, trying so hard not to cry. "I'm back. How long was I gone?"
Giles checked his watch as Xander and Willow enveloped their friend in a bear hug. "Six minutes. My tea is still warm."
"Good. I'm glad." She said. She was exhilarated to be back, yet utterly sad to leave behind that cosy pastel coloured world.
"You got clothes." Anya said. Buffy nodded.
"All paid for by the Watchers Council of Great Britain." She said.
"All went well?" Giles asked. She nodded.
"Yeah. Thanks to a couple of friends. Speaking of... Willow, you don't happen to have an aunt or someone called Peggy-Sue, do you?"
"Peggy-Sue? My mom's sister. Why?"
"Nothing. Xander?"
"Yep?"
"Tell your uncle Rory that Buffy Summers says thanks for the dance."
"What?"
"He'll understand. Willow, does your aunt like Ricky Nelson?"
"Absolutely! How do you know all this?"
"They helped me save the world. If it weren't for them, the Hellmouth would have actually opened."
Two mouths fell open.
"Really?" Willow asked.
"No! Rory? My uncle Rory?"
"Absolutely." Buffy smiled. She looked towards Giles. "Dawn? How's Dawn?"
"Buffy, although you spent nearly two weeks there, you've only been gone six minutes." Giles reminded her.
"I'm fine, by the way." Dawn appeared at the door of the Magic Box.
"What are you doing here?"
"Spike brought me along." She said, coming into the shop followed closely by Spike.
"Hey there Slayer. Have a nice trip down memory lane?"
"Great. Thanks Spike." She said sardonically. Then, the sadness returned. She'd been with Angel for nearly two weeks and it had been fun and wonderful.
"Xander, I need a favour." She said.
*
Some time later, Buffy was cruising down the freeway towards LA in a blue 1957 Chevy Bel Air owned by an old friend of hers. She had gone with Xander to his Uncle Rory. Rory nearly had a heart attack when he discovered that Xander's best friend was his old crush. He'd also been more than happy to lend her his car for this very special trip. She pulled off the freeway into Los Angeles and found the Hyperion Hotel. She pulled in and shut off the engine. She grabbed her bag and ran up the steps. She checked her reflection in the glass. She was still wearing her dress from the dance with the matching sandals and her hair was still in it's fifties ponytail. Taking a deep breath, she went in.
"Buffy!" Cordelia exclaimed. Angel looked up from the book he was reading. He looked as if he'd seen a ghost.
"Buffy?" He asked softly. She came down the steps towards them.
"Did you just go to a Grease theme party or something?"
"Or something." Suddenly, the Beach Boys song Barbara-Ann came into her head and she suppressed a smile.
"Are you OK?" Angel asked.
"You should know. I was just with you." She said. "And I wonder why you didn't tell me about this when I called earlier." She asked.
"You called earlier? I get it now! Angel was way more cheerful than normal." Cordelia said. From Angel's look, she picked up her book.
"I'll just go and see how Wes and Gunn are doing upstairs." She said, running up the stairs.
"I didn't want to tell you in case...."
"In case what? I didn't nearly have a heart attack when I saw you at Walker's?"
"Sit down?" He offered. She did so, and he sat beside her.
"I... When you first came to Sunnydale, I didn't say anything, because I didn't know what was going on. I'd spent forty years thinking about that beautiful blonde girl I fell in love with. I didn't believe it was the same person, because it seemed impossible. But then, when I got an opportunity, I spoke to Giles about it. We looked through the Watcher Diaries and found that you'd come back in time. But we didn't know exactly when from, and knew that we couldn't tell you."
"Why?"
"Because we weren't really meant to know. As usual, I screwed up the plan."
"You didn't screw it up."
"It made so many things much clearer. For years I wondered why I couldn't ever see you again. When I discovered that was why, I felt a lot better. I thought you just didn't want to see me again."
"That would never happen." She insisted.
"I know now."
"Angel, when I got back to the present, I just wanted to cry, because I wanted to be with you. I didn't care if it was Angel in 1958 or 2001. I just want to be with you." Tears began falling down her cheeks.
"If memory serves, you've done a lot of crying today." He said with a smile. She swatted him lightly.
"I'm very stressed at the moment." She said. He put his arms around her.
"Does that help?"
"Pretty much." He planted his lips firmly on hers.
"How about that?"
"Yeah. Yeah, I feel better now." She said with a smile.
"Did I tell you how beautiful you look?"
"You know, I don't think you did."
"Well, you do. You look so beautiful." He said.
"I brought all my clothes back."
"Why am I not surprised?"
"Shut up! But I figured you know, it couldn't hurt to pretend we're back then?"
"No, it couldn't." He said. Then, he stopped. "But Buffy..."
"Don't even think about 'But Buffying' me. I know you have a curse, I know that you're a vampire, and newsflash Angel, I don't give a damn. We're going to make this work if it kills me."
"But Buffy, it could well kill you."
"I'm a Slayer. I have the life expectancy of fresh bread."
"That's one way of putting it."
"I'm not letting you talk your way out of this. I don't care if you stay here and we commute to each other, I don't care if I never have sex again for as long as I live." She paused for a second to contemplate this. He raised his eyebrows and smirked.
"Or, we could find a way around the curse." She rectified. "I don't care if I get old and wrinkly and you don't. There's always Botox. I don't care, I don't care, I don't care." She went to speak again, but he cut her off with a kiss.
"I agree." He told her. He pulled away for a second and picked up the remote of the CD player. He pressed a button and on came Brown Eyed Handsome Man by Chuck Berry.
"Nice song."
"I know. I've been listening to this stuff all night. Be Bop A Lula's next." He murmured.
"Dance?" He asked, extending his hand to her.
"Sure." She took his hand.
When Cordelia ventured down the stairs, she saw Buffy and Angel dancing together to the words:
Well flying across the desert in a TWA
I saw a woman walkin' 'cross the sand
She'd been walking thirty miles en route to Bombay
To meet a brown eyed handsome man
Her destination was a brown eyed handsome man
Way back in history three thousand years
In fact ever since the world began
There's been a whole lotta good women shedding tears
Over a brown eyed handsome man
A lot of trouble was a brown eyed handsome man
Well the Milo de Venus was a beautiful lass
She had the world in the palm of her hand
She lost both her arms in a wrestling match
To win a brown eyed handsome man
She fought and won herself a brown eyed handsome man
Well a beautiful daughter couldn't make up her mind
Between a doctor and a lawyer man
Her mother told her daughter
Go out and find yourself
A brown eyed handsome man
Just like your daddy was
A brown eyed handsome man
Well a two three the count with nobody home
He hit a hi' flyer into the stand
A rounded third he was headin' for home
That won the game it was a brown eyed handsome man
It was a brown eyed handsome man.
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