****

"Cordelia. We'll meet you at the...-" Looking to Pike.

"We call it the food court." Pike tried his hardest not to smile and keep a straight face at Angel's cluelessness.

***

"Okay. See ya in a few." Cordelia ended the conversation with a smile on her face by the thought of finally eating. She stuffed the phone back into her purse.

"They said they were going to meet us at the food court." Explaining the plans to the rest of the group.

"Caela, we really should enroll you in the nearest high school, ASAP." Buffy gave a serious look in Caela's direction, a direction that met a preoccupied girl. Curious to what she was so drawn to Buffy followed Caela's gaze.

Men looked at her as if a lion were sizing up their pray. Caela was lost in confusion to why they were staring. How dumb do I look in these clothes? Sh e asked herself as she noticed another lad drop his jaw at the sight of her.

Buffy began to smile, realizing what was on Caela's mind. "You're beautiful." Buffy whispered in Caela's ear. Snapping out of it with Buffy's words she took in the statement and focused on it for a while. Without realizing where the girls were leading her, they had come to a stop, where more people, it seemed hundreds, were dwelling with one another.

"Angel!" A loud yell ringed in her ears as she focused on Cordys' drawing tone. Caela had finally focused on the world around her. Bringing her head out of her own personal thoughts.

Angel and Pike walked side-by-side as they approached the girls. "Get what you needed to done?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah, and a few other necessities." Pike answer for him almost without permission and snickered as Angel shot him a deadly look.

"Okay. So what should we have for lunch?" Willow wanted to hurry the conversation long and move on to the eating part.

"I don't know I-" Pike stumbled on his own words as he looked down the line of women, ending with Caela. The girl of whom seemed to be everyone's interest in mystery at the time. "What are you wearing?" Pike's question came out of the blue. It wasn't in a cheerful tone either. His voice was firm and outraged.

"What do you-" Caela tried to figure out what was going on before she was cut off.

"Buffy, in Ireland, the girls like her are not allowed to flash off their...sexual appeal. Caela is too young and-" Angel too tried to speak his part but was interrupted.

"And, she is no longer in Ireland. She's a girl, Angel. Let her live a little." Buffy stood her ground for her new friend. And with that Angel shut up. Putting his hands up in front of his chest in surrender. Pike on the other hand still looked down upon Caela. Her head looked down as if she were counting the number of dots on the speckled tiled floor. From where Buffy stood she could see a tear rolling down her cheek.

"I'm sorry. I did not realize that-" Caela pleaded with the man that stood in front of her.

"No, she's not. She's not sorry. She should be able to wear what she likes. And I don't know why you are getting all worked up over this, Pike. Its not like you abide by their rules. You aren't even Irish!" Buffy was beginning to get pissed.

He appeared to be taking in her words for consideration. "I'm sorry. Oh God." He rushed forward and lifted Caela's chin. Forcing her to look at him. "I'm sorry. It's just that I'm not used to seeing you in clothes like this. You are my sister after all." Giving him an apologetic smile as he too, wiped her tears from her face so that not to embarrass her further in public.> "I know. I didn't mean to startle you." With that said, Pike pulled Caela into a hug.

"Uh, brother?" Buffy looked at Pike with a large questioned look on her face.

"Ritualistic and spiritually speaking." Quickly explaining why Buffy was confused. He then released Caela and reassured himself that she was okay by looking back into her eyes and turned to the rest of the group. "Now. Where to eat."

****

Everyone had gotten their choice of meals. They had joined two tables in order to sit near everyone and not separated. Buffy, not planed, sat next to Angel, who seemed to be more calm by their closeness than she. Since his napkin sat on his lap he would, every once in a while, brush his hand against her thigh. With each brush her heart skipped a beat.

"So, what high schools are close enough for Caela?" Buffy, seemed to astonish everyone with her resolute pressing of getting Caela in school. Buffy had received odd looks from everyone by the irony in her question. "What? I just know how hard it is to be a....slayer," lowering her voice for that particular word, "and to keep up in all of my classes. Not to mention that Caela has already missed five months of the work." Continuing to eat her meal.

"Although you are right Buffy, I am not sure if it would be the best idea to put Caela in school. Or at least not in the grade level you are thinking. She's been tutored all her life. She has never had teachers like we did." Pike gave his sense in the conversation.

"What do you mean, 'not in the grade level I'm thinking of?'" Buffy held the conversation.

"Lets see fifteen, that would mean sophomore right?" Receiving nods from everyone except Angel who had no idea what the answer would be. " Okay, Caela...Well, lets just say that Caela knows more than enough languages, can make Good Will Hunting look like an amateur. And the history, well, you cam just say that that was her extra curricular." Although she didn't look up Caela still began to flush red with the comments.

"Oh." Buffy fell silent as everyone looked at Caela and Pike in amazement. "But I would still like to see how she is doing with the assuredness of a teacher. I don't want get her screwed up here. Its just too important. Is that all right, Caela?" This time everyone looked at her, and her only. Her head nodded in response and with knowing that she was getting embarrassed they stopped the discussion with that agreed.

****

Angel and Buffy stayed up as the others slept soundly. They had rented a movie from Pay-Per-View. Voices form the TV only slightly filled the room, it was the rustle of bags that echoed off of the walls. Buffy sat surrounded by clothes and paper as well as plastic bags on the floor. The light of the movie seemed to give off more light than the small lamp on a nearby coffee table.

"But why aren't they allowed to show off a little?" Buffy continued a conversation.

"They are thought to be pure from birth, but once they've...they are also seen to be drained of their purity, in all senses. Clothing is the only thing that keeps a girl pure. A virgin must wear as much as necessary to "protect" her name." Angel, although tried to keep himself from telling a story summed it up for her.

"But I still cannot believe you two acted that way. I mean I know you said you were sorry, but you are going to have to get used to it. I mean-Oh, my God." Stopping herself, Buffy's mind lingered

"What? What is it?" Angel started out calm, but quickly grew worried at her statement. Angel walked over to her, and knelt down beside her on the carpet.

"No, it's just that...well, we are talking about her like we've known her for years. Angel, we just barely met Caela. How-" Looking in his deep chocolate colored eyes.

"I know what you mean, it seemed as if we're related, somehow. But it's not possible. I mean our souls-" He quickly stopped himself when he heard a small tick of a noise from behind the wall. "Caela, you care to explain further?" She emerged finally. from her hiding spot as he finished his question.

"What do you want to know?" Standing at a close enough distance to whisper and yet for enough to breath her own air.

"This whole connection thing we feel towards you, how, I mean what aren't you telling us?" Angel tried not to raise his voice over the sound of an exhaled breath.

"They...The Powers That Be...said that...that, my soul, has been regenerated and reincarnated many times. As well as yours'" Implying the two that stood before her. "In which, at a time, I, the spirit within me, was both of yours' sister. In different periods in history, separate families." Buffy and Angel gave one another a quick look then back to Caela. "There's more." They waited in silence for her to go on.

"In all of the times we've been reincarnated..." she hesitated. "You two have...gotten-You have fallen in love." Blurting in out as fast as possible. Knowing they heard her perfectly, she watched their expressions change.

"But you already knew this, right? I mean, surely you've found this out before?" The looks on their faces told her they had a small inkling, but not a reliable source. Not to mention one that was living and breathing. "Anyway, I just came down to get my new clothes. I din't want them to wrinkle." She found the stack of neatly folded clothes on the floor and picked them up. As she turned her back her head glared behind her and looked at the two of hem, "Good night." Eventually letting out her blessing.

After a few minutes of complete silence between them, they knew the air had grown thick of confusion and opportunity knocks'.

"How are you doing?" Angel knew she would play it cool, but he also knew, for sure, that he wouldn't let her lie to him. Like she had in the past towards her feelings.

She took a deep breath and looked directly in his gaze. She barely exhaled, quiet, still, her muscles tensed as she held her breath now. He read her like a book he knew her so well. She was going to save her feeling of words and just fall apart. His predictions of her reactions were once again turned upside down. His stomach fell as it twisted with her reaction to the question. Still denying the tears a fierce sob betrayed her. Angel quickly walked over to her. She immediately fell into him. His chest held strongly against her head as his arms enveloped her torso. Being so close to he, her sobs, too, vibrated his body.

Ring... They stayed put. Ring...Buffy pulled back slightly, gesturing with her head to the telephone. Angel decided upon himself to answer it. Gently he pulled away from her grasp and answered the annoying tone in the kitchen. "Hello?" Buffy could only hear his side of the conversation. "May I ask who is speaking?" She then figured it was, of course, for her. "Just a moment please." She heard him walk through the kitchen and into the living room finally. Her head was lowered as far down as possible. Moving her eyes she focused on something new. Angel held the phone in front of her face. "it's your dad." She took the telephone immediately with knowing who it was.

"Daddy?" Her voice was heavily cracked. It broke even Angel's heart to hear her sound like such a little girl. A hurt and scared little girl. He closely listened to her words. "A friend. There are a lot of us here...No...Emem...Riley? Riley and I- It's complicated....When?...Okay...I love you too, bye." She slowly lowered the phone from her ear and turned it off

"What did he say?" Angel put his hand on her head and lightly brushed her hair with his fingers subconsciously.

"He's coming down tomorrow afternoon. God, I haven't see him since..." She caught herself.

****

Both Angel and Buffy shared the same thoughts as Buffy accidently brought up the "unforgetable" past. Besides the movie they stayed in complete silence for minutes. Angel finally spoke his mind to break it. "Buffy...I know that you're in a confusing state right now, but I need to know what we're playing at here." Buffy turned her body slightly out of his grasp to face him. "I mean, you and Riley are together and then all of a sudden I show up and you are...well...confused. It seems as if you want me to be around you more than you want him- don't get me wrong- I love spending time with you, I mean, I've missed you so much. Especially after- But I need to know if you just need me to get through this ordeal. I don't mind staying with you. I'll understand if you feel that way." Buffy couldn't help the tears as she listened to the rambling man. Every word although appeared to be mixed up was actually completely understandable in every way to her. She gave him a small sympathetic and yet loving smile. The best one she could muster at the time.

"Angel- I don't know what is going on with my head right now. All I know is that I want you to be with me right now. Ever since you arrived, I've noticed just how much he doesn't understand about me, my past and my life itself. And I know its wrong, but compared to you- He just doesn't measure up. Not enough anyways." Trying to give him the equal length of speech she kept her ground without so many tears she had expelled with his.

"Buffy..." He was speechless. He knew that there was something going on between the two of them but it was just now that she had admitted it. Buffy's eyes began to wonder, knowing that the emotions were getting to deep and that she had to keep her eyes on something other than his in order to keep it together. Setting upon the mess around them she had discovered a ownerless paper bag. Reaching over without thinking about anything around her she grabbed the neatly folded down top and drug it over to her lap.

"Who's is this?" Buffy whispered to herself more than him, but his eyes widened as he put two and two together to what she was asking about. Angel instinctively snatched the bag from her and stood up, walking away from her a few paces.

"Nothing." Flatly he answered her question.

"Nothing?" Unbelievably by the way he acted. "Well, if its nothing then why are you acting like it's the holy grail of all paper bags?" Standing up to even the distance between them.

"It's just the stuff I bought today thats all. I'll go put it away." He tried to make his way quickly past her to the stairs. No such luck.

"Come on. What did ya get?" Using her slayer reflexes she reclaimed the bag from his hands. He began to grab at it as she held it out of his reach. From one side to the other playing keep away. Buffy decided that he was just too tall to hold out for long and eased her way up the stairs. With him in trail of her, still begging her not to open the bag.

"It's not important. Really. It's just stuff I needed. Trust me you don't need to know what it is." Quickly releasing as he leaped two steps at a time and reaching the top. "Please." He knew that everyone was still asleep and that he didn't need an audience.

Buffy opened her bedroom door and quickly slipped in, closing the door directly behind her. Leaving Angel to stand outside and wait.

"Buffy....Don't." He whispered clearly, knowing she could hear him, through the door. He could hear a small echo of rattling paper. He knew that his new life was about to end. And his exicutioner slowly opened the door and stepped to the side as he accepted the invitation.

Buffy stood at her window and focused on anything outside of her window. As long as she kept herself from looking a him at the moment. He stood at the end of the bed, looking down at the opened bag and box of condoms that sat on the bed.

"Buffy...I can explain-" He stopped himself as he noticed that she had turned her attention finally to him. "I-" This time it was truly her who did the cutting off.

"I'm not sure I need and explanation. You knew what happened last time after you became human and you didn't want to make the same mistake." Basically explaining for him anyway.

Angel just gave her his unforgettable "you-know-what-can-happen" look. "Angel..." She waited for her thoughts to completely come together. "Kiss me?" Tears slid down her cheeks as she asked him such a simple question. Angel contemplated her state and her question. Finally. He rushed at her, giving her a large rush of adrenaline by his act. Wrapping one arm around her waist he held her face with the other and crushed her lips to his. He began to caress her back. The kiss grew even more passionate. Buffy got with the program and, too, wrapped her arms around his neck, fingers reaching his hair. As the kiss grew, Angel pressed Buffy closer to him. Their bodies were directly against one another. Angel's tongue danced with her's as he found the end of her shirt and slid his hands under her shirt. He had, for so long, wanted to touch her skin once again. A large rush of heat ran from his finger tips to his heart and core as he caressed the now bare skin.

Although mutually, Buffy lead them towards the bed. Keeping their slow pace over the carpet Angel lifted the shirt that barred him from her soft skin, pulling it off over her head. Immediately they resumed kissing. She then wanted to feel his skin as well. Beginning to roll up his two shirts he decided it would be easier if he took it off himself. Now both of their shirts laid in the same pile. Angel inevitably reached the side of the bed and sat down rather quickly, looking up at Buffy, parting with her lips he noticed just how out of breath she was. Her breasts heaved in rhythm as she breathed deeply with each breathe. His paused hesitation started to confuse Buffy. Her eyes were filled with questions to why he had not continued. Instead of asking she waited.

Angel realized that she had begun to doubt what was happening. He stretched out his neck and body and kissed her softly. His arms too, pressed her to him. With her still wrapped in his arms he pulled his head back just enough to part his lips to speak. "Are you sure?" Although it was the smallest whisper she clearly heard him

She looked up at him and continued the kiss. Their mouths grew with each other's movements. With him sitting on the bed she had gradually slipped her right leg in between both of his. As one hand held her face surly the other slid down to her jeans and began to unbutton them. Accomplishing this, he returned his hand to join the other, to explore the rest of her body. Both of their skins were now flushed with crimson and other colors of red. Angel, for the first time in nearly 250 years began to sweat slightly to the arousal of being this close to her. Angel couldn't stand how far she was from him. Even though it could have only been a mere 3 inches and picked her up just enough to set her on his lap. Her legs straddled his torso. Leaning to the side he laid her down on the bed and started to ease her unbuttoned jeans. Accomplishing this, he threw them over the edge of the bed. As he was doing so, Buffy, too, was working on his pants.

****

As Buffy steps over the curb, she enters her favorite cemetary. The darkness that fills the sky with the night supplies only the glowing light of the slivered moon. Although she walks in the crisp, cold night her body remains warm and balanced. Almost unwillingly she is some what guided to a particular grave. An unexpected gust of wind seperates the weeds and grass from the head stone. Buffy tries to focus on the engraved rock, and starts to read the inscription--

"Buffy...?" Angel becomes worried by her sudden jolt in his arms. It wasn't until the morning sun had rose that her respiration had quickened as she slept. He had kept a close eye on her since the first inkling of change in her dream state. Buffy's head still lied on his arm as he cupped her body with his behind her. Meeting her lose fetal position. As she moves slowly in his arms she implies that she's awake. With her head still in the crook of his arm and chest his other remained wrapped around Buffy's waist. "You alright?" Angel softly asks as she resettled herself.

"Emmhmm." Although it was hardly a breathe, it was loud enough for her lover to decipher. Her eyes were, unusually at such an early hour, wide open. Confussion and worry filled her head as well as her stomach. She had not only been holding a lot of her emotions in, well...when it came to her mother's resent death, but she had also been wondering about how she was going to tell Riley what she was thinking. Or even if she should be completly honest with him at all. She wasn't sure as to how to tell him that his present fear had become true and that there was no way to get around it. That she had made her choice.

Angel knew that she wasn't being completly honest with him either at the moment, but let it quickly go. Thinking of how to respond to what she must have been thinking he came to a conclusion. He tightened his grip around her waist and kissed the base of her neck, where her hair line ended. Smiling with his actions, she folded further more into him.

****

Caela's nightmares had not yet ceased. Although she was more relaxed after getting to know her new friends and family, she was still afraid of her past. The same dream and the same words came from her mouth each night. But she was determined to make herself wake up if anything got over a simple whisper. She didn't want to be a bother and nor did she want anyone to worry over her when it didn't seem to compare to the other monstrous problems that presently existed.

After being awake for nearly 3 hours, do to the lack of sleep of course she started to walk about the house. She had finished an entire novel that morning since starting it the first night she stayed in Buffy's house.

She made her way into the kitchen and noticed that the house was a mess. Excluding from the over population of people in a single house at the time, the sanitation level was dropping tremendously with each day. Finding the chemicals under the kitchen sink, Caela was able to clean up the kitchen, both of the restrooms, pick up lose clothing around the house, disposing them into a single hamper and loaded the washer.

Being contemt with herself and her deeds afterwords she realized what time it was. Walking past the bathroom she inevitably passed Buffy's bedroom door on the way to go down stairs. With a rush, information and voices pored into her head. It disappered just as sudden as it had came. Looking at the door as if she knew what exactly had gone on the night before she smiled at her new thoughts.

Freeing one hand of the stuff that she carried, Caela knocked lightly on the door just loud enough for those who occupied the room to hear and no one else in the house. "The house stirs, my friends." Caela tried to give them a heads up of the time instead of actually reading it to them.

With small contemplation she slowly turned around and returned to the laundry. She still wanted to keep busy. No one was really awake yet, at least not enough to interact with and keep her company. She knew she would be bored if she were to try and do something else.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs, Caela noticed a strong gleam of light shinning through a loosly covered window. She dropped the boundle of clothes in the hamper near her feet and walked over the window to admire the new day. Everything was glowing with the sunlight's rays. Every last drop of rain from the earlier days had vanished with the sudden boost in the weather's temperature. Thinking that it was too late for anyone to be sleeping she wanted to share the beautiful sight with the rest of the occupants. She suddenly opened the curtains of all the windows in the kitchen and livingroom.

Wesley was most desturbed by the invador of his dream. Rolling to his side to look at the small fram that stood in the surrounding glimmer of the day he placed a hand about his brow to gaurd his eyes.

Although Caela knew that she had woken someone up she only gave her best smile in greeting and a small, "Good morning," and went on to finish the last parts in sorting the house. After all, she had contributed to the mess.

****

Buffy and Angel decided to be discreet and exited the room separately with Angel first to make it seem that he had slept in his own sleeping area. He made his way downstairs and padded into the kitchen. He smiled a "good morning" smile in Caela's direction as he entered the tiled room.

"Beautiful morning, don't you think?" Caela meant more than just the day itself but also last nights events and he knew that. He looked into himself for a brief contemplation of what happened between he and Buffy and finally returned to the question.

"Yes, it is." He pored a cup of coffee for himself and sat down next to her at the table where she attempted to read the newspaper. "How are you?" He meant to make it seem as if it were an everyday question but she knew that there was more to it than that. He was referring to the nightmares, the geographical change and the new people.

"Better." She admitted that she was at least getting used to her surroundings but she could not promise a decrease in her disturbed sleep. "What about you?" Caela gave him a coy smile, almost making fun of him. It was impossible for anyone else in the house to know what they did, but Caela was different. And he knew that.

"Wonderful." His mind was flying in the clouds as he answered. He felt free, that he was able to finally be with Buffy and not have to worry about the consequences.

"Really?" She laughed a little as she flipped to another page.

He acknowledged her statement and looked at her with a crimson river flowing to his ears.

"We have nothing to worry about now." He took a sip of his hot beverage.

"Aye?" Looked at him with confusion to his last comment. "What about Riley?"

****

"Hey, guys!" Cordelia entered the room and realized she had interuped an already disturbing conversation to being with. Angel shook himself out of his confusing contemplation and sipped at his coffee, trying to look cool. It wasn't working.

"What going on?" She stopped dead in her tracks in front of the waiting coffee. Since not recieving an answer she resulted in studying the dramatic ex-vampire. "Who are we brooding about, now? Another demon? Did Buffy insult you last night? Because when you really think about it, she had every--"

"No, Cordelia. Caela and I were just discussing things over about...about...how we should go about the future with her living arrangments. A lot of things need to be questioned.

"Oh!" She breathed a sigh of relief and returned to her mission: coffee. Caela hid her face in her cup of coffee as well, trying to hide her smile. She had already discovered that angel was a good actor, but she still had a lot of training to go through in order to keep things descrete.

****

Buffy had just gotten out of the shower and padded her way to her room while tightly wrapped in her towel. Her mood was fully expressed with humming and a rather unimaginably large smile on her face. She knew that she should still be in shock and mourning but she knew that that would come later that day. She didn't take pride in feeling bed. Her thoughts ran rapid through her head. Andel and I-

"Buffy..." Angel had startled her by sneaking up on her and grabbing her upper arm.

"Angel?" When he held her in place by fear and a sense of force she was obligated to be curious towards his actions.

"We have to talk." He looked around the hallway and finally broke down at her fresh face.

"Okay." She opened the near by door and let Angel guide her completly into the securing walls of her bedroom. He let go of her and took a few steps back. he seemed to be attempting to collect his thoughts of what to say. "Angel?" She caught his full attention. "Whats going on? What do we need to talk about?" Her own question raised the answer at the same ime. The instant after she asked, she wanted to take it back.

"Riley..." That was both the topic of their mental conflicts.

"I know...I can't...I don't want to hurt him...Not that I haven't already..." Her hesitations all became drastic searchings for some solutions in his eyes. She was now lost with one thought.

"You have to--" His voice was soft and understanding in reason and yet it was cut off.

"Tell him." She took a deep breath. "I know."

"Are you...I mean...It's none of my business--But well-"

Buffy began to understand where exactly he was getting at and couldn't believe what she was hearing."Angel..." She advanced towards him to close the gap between them. HIm, the wall near the door, her, near the bed. "Riley...Kept me sane through all this I can't deny..." His eyes showned down at the floor. She put her fingertips under his chin and tilted his face to look back up to her. "Although I love you both, I can't live without you." He stared at her with deep passion in his eyes, which she returned, with crimson red cheeks accompanying.

Each breath was difficult to release by impulse, they were forced out by suffication threats. Angel and Buffy were dangerously close to one another. HIs new body sent more signals to his mind now than he had for over 200 years. He ached to touch her without boundrys, but he knew that she was not "his" to do so. Yet. Soon though. He began to reel ideas in his head of what he was going to do with her the instant she returned to him again. Free to make the decision of continuing to love him.

Buffy's heart was threatening to stop on her. At least thats what it felt like. She retracted her hand from his chin and lowered it slowly down to her mid chest . She hesitently placed her fingertips against his white t-shirt. The material, being so thin, revealed Angel's skin through the cloth. Buffy was surprised by the feel of his warm skin. Its going to take a lot of getting used to. But I like it. She told herself. Her eyes studied the event that was happening where her hand explored. Each one of his heart beats could be felt under her palm.

Go to the Next Part