*****************
Giles excused himself and went to supervise the research party, having first suggested to Angel and Buffy that, in the interests of being alert when they went to meet with Angelus, they should get some rest. He pointed out the futon in the corner of the room and checked that Buffy remembered where he kept his linens and blankets. The last thing he did before leaving the room was to ensure that the shutters were closed as dawn was already beginning to lighten the night sky.
Buffy and Angel thanked Giles for his hospitality, Angel in particular appreciated such care for his comfort and safety from a man who could justly hate him. They also agreed with his suggestion that they would need to rest in order to be at their best when facing Angelus. Throughout the entire exchange however they remained preoccupied with each other.
Once Giles had left the room Buffy dragged her eyes away from Angel's. Moving over to the futon she sat down and gestured for the tall vampire to join her. "We need to talk" she told him. "Giles is right, we need to rest and we will. First though, have you any ideas at all about what the deal with Mr Tall, Dark and Dangerous is?" Angel looked down at the cushion between them, "I have no clue how he got here, I don't even know if it is really Angelus or just some sort of illusion". He lifted his eyes from the cushion and finally met her enquiring gaze. "I am sure that the demon is still within me and that since I arrived in Sunnydale yesterday it's been getting harder and harder to control it. It's as though it's drawing strength from something here, maybe that's what sent Angelus too. If it really is Angelus then perhaps somebody or something performed some kind of temporal fold and plucked him, me, from a different time. Or perhaps they took him from some sort of alternate reality though that sounds a little bizarre."
"If I've learnt anything in the last few years, it's that nothing is too bizarre for the Hell-mouth" Buffy answered his speculation wryly. "Okay, lets assume that he is actually you, or rather the non-soul having you. That would mean that he thinks like you used to, right?" "I guess " "That should help us when we fight him, I mean I have experience fighting him before and you are familiar with his weaknesses". "Yeah, I suppose I am" Angel appeared lost in this own thoughts momentarily. "What is it? " Buffy asked.
"What, oh, sorry I was a little distracted. I was just wondering, if it is actually Angelus, and we assume that he was retrieved from this reality via a temporal fold, when exactly he was retrieved from".
"Does it matter?"
"I think it might. Angel took Buffy's hand and held it. "You remember when I went to Hell?"
It was Buffy's turn to find the cushion on the futon fascinating. "Sure".
"Well, I know that I was only gone for a few months in this time, but time moves differently there"
"I know, Giles explained all of that to me. Anyway, I spent a few hours in a dimension of that sort myself while you were gone." Angel remembered her telling him about her experience when attempting to rescue her friend Anne from being enslaved in that particular version of hell.
"You know that we, I mean vampires, get stronger, more powerful as we get older, right? Well although I've only been around in this dimension for a little less than 250 years, I spent another couple of hundred years there. They weren't very pleasant either and surviving that sort of experience also lends strength to my kind. If he is from this reality and a temporal fold was used to bring him here, then it's likely that he is me from before my years in Hell. He's not as strong as I am now".
"I see what you mean" Buffy replied. "I wonder if he was taken from Angelus' time here in Sunnydale or from earlier than that?"
"I think he would have to have been taken from Sunnydale. I mean he knows all of you, knew about the mansion. Anyway I was cursed almost a hundred years before that. Angelus from before 1898 would have to do a lot of adjusting to this era, I can't imagine that he would be much of a threat. I don't think that whoever is behind all of this would bother with him".
"You're right" Buffy agreed.
"I've, well I've been wondering about something else" Angel suddenly didn't sound very confident.
"What?" Buffy asked, worried by his anxious expression.
"Uh, Riley, where is he?" Angel sounded almost embarrassed to be worried about such a triviality when Cordelia, and Willow, were in such danger.
Buffy smiled gently at the tall, dark vampire. "He's already left for Iowa. I don't think he's coming back either. He's finally finished his Master's degree and he's taken a job working with troubled children near his hometown. We sort of drifted apart these last few months, he was lovely and we had some great times, but it was never more than a college romance". She squeezed his hand comfortingly, noticing his grimace when she mentioned the great times she'd had with Riley and his look of relief at her confession that the romance was over.
"We should take Giles' advice and rest now". Buffy got up and motioned for Angel to do the same. Together they prepared the futon as a bed. They then removed their shoes and lay down together. For a few moments they just lay there, hands joined. Exhaustion quickly overtook them however and they drifted off to sleep.
They were woken several hours later by a gentle knock on the door. They were immediately alert. "Come in " Angel invited. The door was opened and Tara's streaky, blonde head poked apologetically around it. "I..I'm s..sorry to d..dis.disturb you, b..but I n..need to talk to you b..both" she stammered.
"Don't worry about it, we needed to get up anyway" Angel reassured her, as he spoke he swung his long legs over the side of the bed and got lithely to his feet. Buffy sat up on the bed, wrapping her arms around her bent knees, feeling unaccountably bereft as Angel left her side. "What is it?" she asked the young witch gently.
Angel ushered Tara into the room and she sat on the edge of the bed he had just vacated, she began to pluck nervously at the folds of the covers. Angel brought a chair over from the other side of the room and sat near to the two girls on the bed. He looked at Tara "Don't be afraid, please. Just tell us".
"Well, you know how you asked me what I said earlier, when you were sitting together?"
"Yeah, you said it was nothing" Buffy sat up a little straighter.
"It wasn't nothing." Tara turned to face Buffy directly. "You remember when Faith switched bodies with you, I met you, well her, and I noticed that her energy, her uh aura, was disrupted. Then you switched back and I met you, the real you this time"
"Yeah" Buffy wasn't sure where the other girl was going with this.
"I didn't want to say anything but I still didn't think your aura was right. I mean it wasn't all disrupted, it didn't look like something had forced it's way in like it did when Faith had your body. I could even see the power there, you know the uh Slayer thing. It's just that it seemed as if something was still missing. As if you were incomplete. That's what I noticed earlier, when you're together ." she turned now to look at Angel as well. "you both seem complete. I can feel more power from each of you when you are together than when you are away from each other".
Angel looked over at Buffy, in his mind he could hear again the words of the Morah demon "Together you were strong, apart you are dead". Of course Buffy didn't remember that day and couldn't know what the warrior of darkness had told them.
"I..I just thought you should know that , I mean if you have to fight that .. guy. tonight". Tara looked down at the covers she was still pulling at. "You need to join your power, you need to be really together and you can defeat anything". With that she rose from the bed and left the room, almost un-noticed by Angel and Buffy who continued to stare at each other. The words of the young wicca were echoing in their minds.
"She's right you know " Buffy finally broke the silence. "I never feel really complete except when I'm with you". "I know" Angel murmured moving over to the bed again. Taking her hand in his he told her "I've never stopped loving you, I will always belong to you. I'm battling still to save my soul but I lost my heart the first time I saw you, you will always have my heart". Tears welled from the corners of Buffy's eyes. "I know and in spite of what I told you in the police station last year, I've never stopped loving you" she answered him, knowing instinctively that the truth was vital now. "I've missed you every day, I've tried to get on with my life, like you wanted me too. I've even done the "normal boyfriend" thing, and I'm glad I did, I needed those experiences but they don't change how I feel about you. I understand now why you left. I know that you were trying to do the right thing, that you thought I was too young to make those decisions so you made them for me. You were right, I was too young. I'm probably still too young. I know that I need you now though. I need you tonight".
Angel pulled the tiny blonde into his arms, she seemed to disappear into his huge arms. Kissing the top of her shining, blonde head he held against his unbeating heart and remembered holding her just like this on another occasion when she sobbed against his chest, a chest that had contained a beating heart.
"I'm here" he whispered to her. "I'll always be here when you need me". Bending his head down to hers he took her lips in the merest whisper of a kiss. With his thumb he gently wiped her tears away.
"Someday we'll find a way" he promised her. "But for now, for tonight, I'm here with you. Together I know that we can overcome Angelus".
Buffy smiled at him through her tears "Together we can overcome anything".
******************
The next few hours passed in a blur of preparation. Wesley and Anya stayed with the books, still hoping that they might find something, anything that would be of help. Buffy and Angel worked out, finding that many of the old routines and moves came back easily to them. Buffy was surprised at how Angel's technique had improved. Always before she had had the upper hand, now she wasn't quite so sure. Xander and Giles whittled stakes and quarrels for the crossbows, sharpened and oiled blades and filled bottles with holy water. Tara made some amulets for Buffy and Angel to wear. She shyly asked each of them for a lock of hair. These she wove into the amulets, Buffy's hair in the one intended for Angel to wear, Angel's hair in Buffy's. She cast the strongest protection spells she could on the amulets before giving them to the two warriors.
About an hour before sundown Angel and Buffy finished their workout. They took turns using Giles' shower and dressed for the battle, each secreting several stakes in hidden pockets about their clothing. They checked over the weapons that Giles and Xander had prepared for them and gratefully accepted the amulets from Tara. Buffy had something to eat and Angel removed a brown paper package from the refrigerator, excused himself and went once more to the small back room to feed. After a few minutes he put his head around the door and asked Buffy to join him.
When she entered the room he was standing there holding something in his cupped hand. As she drew close to him she realised that what he held were the two silver Claddagh rings, the one he had given to her and the one he had worn for her, heart turned toward his own. He smiled at her apologetically. "I thought it might be appropriate to wear these again, just for tonight?" She noticed the hopeful look deep in the dark pools of his eyes. Carefully she took the ring from his hand, "I wondered what had happened to this" she mused.
"I found it on the floor in the mansion, shortly after I returned from Hell. I wasn't sure that you would want it then so I kept it. I've always kept it close to me ever since" he answered softly.
"Would you put it on for me?" Buffy asked shyly. Angel took the ring and slipped it on her finger, heart facing inwards, signaling that she belonged to someone, as she surely had ever since the night she'd discovered the man of her dreams following her into a dark alleyway. She took the other ring from his hand and placed it on his finger. Their hands intertwined, the rings touching, as Angel drew her into his arms. She looked up , was captured at once by the love she saw deep in his eyes for her, her love for him shining in reply. Angel leant down and took her mouth in a kiss that was full of all the love he felt for her, all the tenderness, all the sorrow of the last couple of years. Just for this one stolen moment they found a beautiful sense of peace in each other's arms.
All too soon they were disturbed by a knock on the door and Giles' voice telling them that it was almost sunset and time to leave for the old high school. As soon as the sun slipped down over the horizon the whole group, including both vampires, left from Giles' apartment and made their wa y the few blocks to the ruin of the school. Xander and Spike each carried a bag of vampire hunting supplies, though not without complaint. "I'm not a bloody porter, don't see why the old Sire can't carry his own baggage, not to mention the Slayer, I mean what the hell is all that preternatural strength for if she can't even carry a few stakes" Spike grumbled. "Nobody asked you to even come" Xander replied.
"It was looking like a slow night" Spike defended his actions, though any body looking closely at him would have noticed that an embarrassed expression crossed his face briefly. "Anyway, I just might get to see a few of you poofs killed, that would really make a night of it" he added, bravado apparent now. Angel, who had also shared some of the blonde vampire's dreams since his arrival in Sunnydale, glanced at his childe but a gentle smile was his only reaction to Spike's attempts to cover up his concern for Willow.
As they arrived outside the school Spike, Angel and Buffy all became fully alert. Each using all of their preternatural abilities to sense out any danger lurking in the vicinity. Buffy, in a semi-crouched position, was edging towards the door of the ruin crossbow at the ready. She suddenly whirled around and loosed an arrow towards the upper branches of a near-by tree, seconds later a vampire tumbled to the ground, quarrel through his heart and immediately exploded into dust.
Angel had drifted off from the main group and appeared some moments later from the shadows holding another hapless vampire by the neck. "Look who was waiting to meet us, nice of Angelus to send the welcoming committee like this" he remarked as he joined the others. He and Buffy used some of their persuasive powers on their prisoner in an attempt to discover how many others they were facing. It appeared however that he had only seen 3 or 4 other minions and it was unlikely that Angelus was going to face them with so paltry a force. Since he didn't seem to have any further in formation however Buffy introduced him to Mr Pointy and produced yet another small pile of dust.
Giles and the others armed themselves with crossbows, crosses, bottles of holy water and a good supply of stakes. They then took up positions around the perimeter of the building to deal with any vampires that might at tempt to flee the battle. Tara cast a spell and confirmed that Willow was indeed in the old school building. At the insistence of the others she then retreated to the relative safety of Giles' apartment with strict instructions not to invite anybody in.
Buffy and Angel looked into each other's eyes for one long moment and grasped hands before nodding slightly at each other. As they approached the door of the school Buffy whispered "I love you". "And I you" Angel replied. "Please remember that, no matter what he says to you". They entered the door of the school, fully alert now. Covering each other and moving in such synchronicity as to appear almost one being. They headed towards where the library had once been - scene of so much of their shared history - drawn by the flickering light and the faint sound of chanting from that direction. Even more carefully they passed the remnants of the library doors and moved away from each other, each circling the crater created by the explosion that had destroyed the school.
Chained together at one side of the crater lay Willow and Cordelia. Shivering with fear, only the gags jammed in their mouths were preventing them from screaming. Relief showed in Cordelia's eyes when she noticed Angel, catching her eye he smiled reassuringly at her. In the centre of the rough circle formed by the crater a large fire was burning. The flames leapt and twisted in the air - now blue, now bright, fiery red. Around the fire were gathered a number of figures, familiar to Buffy from her experience at Christmas a few years previously. Angel too recognised the figures from the dreams he had shared with Buffy at that time. The Harbingers, the Bringers of the First Evil. There were about a half dozen of the terrible, eyeless figures. They had not noticed Buffy and Angel's arrival, so engrossed were they in their chanting.
In the shadows created by the flickering flames stood Angelus, flanked by his loyal fledglings. He had been extremely busy these last few days in Sunnydale, creating and recruiting his army of minions. There were at least twenty of them surrounding their Master, awaiting his command to attack.
Buffy and Angel assessed the situation. Although they were outnumbered by 10 to 1 neither particularly feared the Vampire army. Both realised that the real danger lay not even with Angelus, though they must first defeat him, but with the success of the Harbingers in their ritual.
They were given no further opportunity to consider this danger though as Angelus stalked forward towards Buffy. "Buff, I was worried" he drawled. "I leave you alone for a little while and when I come back you've just left, not even a note. Not very polite". "What can I say, the hospitality was a little lacking, I prefer my chains a just a bit shinier, especially when I'm the guest" Buffy quipped back. She glanced over briefly at Angel, as if to reassure herself that there were really two of them.
Angelus took advantage of that moment to attack her, swinging one long leg through her midsection in a powerful, sweeping kick. The tiny vampire slayer was knocked off her feet but immediately used her legs in a whipping motion to flip herself upright again. She assumed her fighting stance in time to parry his follow-up.
Meanwhile the army of minions had turned on Angel. He whirled and weaved, kicking an attacker with one long leg, blocking an attack with his right arm, landing a solid punch to the jaw of a third with his left arm. Triggering his wrist mounted ratchet devices he staked two vampires as they approached him from either side. With not even a flicker of his attention to confirm that they had indeed turned to dust he continued to attack and parry attacks. He was holding his own, they were for the most part young fledglings and no match for the former master vampire.
Angelus, still fighting with Buffy, called an order to two of his minions to retrieve Willow and Cordelia. Buffy looked around desperately at where the two girls were lying. It simply wasn't possible for her to get a way from Angelus to free them. He may not be as powerful as Angel had be en when she had worked out with him earlier that day, but he was still an exceptionally skilled fighter and he was taking advantage of her slight hesitation in hitting that familiar and beloved face.
Angel too looked toward Cordelia and Willow. It was impossible for him to get there either. He was reducing the number of his opponents, there was a growing pile of dust to testify to that but there were still six or so surrounding him, preventing him from making a rescue attempt of his own.
The two minions dispatched by Angelus were dragging the brunette and the red-head towards the fire at the centre of the Harbinger's circle now. Buffy and Angel were afraid they would have to watch their friends being sacrificed to the first Evil. They re-doubled their efforts in a desperate attempt to get to the girls. It looked like they would be too late.
Just then the vampire that was dragging Willow towards the fire exploded in a cloud of dust. Before his companion, busy with a struggling Cordelia, had time to react he too had been staked through the heart. When the dust cleared a peroxide blonde head appeared behind the girls, freeing them from their chains. "Spike" gasped Willow in surprise. "Don't look so shocked, couldn't let the old Sire have all the fun" Spike grinned. He looked over to where Angel was finishing off the last of Angelus' army of minions and winked at his old companion. Glancing over to where Buffy continued to fight Angelus, Spike grabbed Cordelia and Willow by their arms and hurried them from the building.
Angel dusted the last of his opponents and, satisfied that Cordelia was safe for now, immediately moved to assist Buffy. As he joined the fight Buffy noticed that in the centre of the fire was a growing black shadow. Worried that the real danger was just now arriving she looked at Angel, a question in her eyes. Angel nodded.. "I can manage, you go " he shouted. Buffy headed toward the fire and the Harbingers leaving the two identical figures battling it out.
Angel was a little disconcerted by fighting his own double, when you hadn't had a reflection in nearly 250 years suddenly being faced with your own image was a little surreal. There was no margin for error in this fight however. Angel might have the edge in experience and technique but the two were identically matched in physical terms. Angelus appeared to be suffering no distraction from fighting his alter ego. Both vampires now wore their true faces, fangs bared, eyes glinting yellow with danger.
"You might as well just give up now" Angelus taunted. "You can't defeat me, you've been fighting to control me for a hundred years but you can't, you never really will". Angel's only reply was to increase the ferocity of his attacks even further. The two tall figures were locked in an almost balletic contest, their lithe bodies moving so quickly that it was difficult to see where one ended and the other began. "You can't kill me, you'll never be rid of me, you should join me, then we can have some fun with the Slayer". Angel growled deep in his throat and lunged at Angelus' throat. Angelus retreated slightly, thrown off balance by Angel's attack. They were edging ever closer to the fire now, so engrossed in their own battle that they were oblivious to the danger behind them.
Buffy had dealt with the Harbingers without any real difficulty, they were priests not warriors and she defeated them easily. Those she didn't slay ran away. Now the Slayer stood by the magical fire, staring horrified at the dense, black shadow at its centre. It was an inky pit of darkness, there were no fangs, or claws , or horns or forked tails to be seen, yet Buffy sensed more evil than she had ever felt before, even when she had faced the First. There was a complete absence here of any human qualities, no mercy, no kindness, no love. There was simply a void, a rent in the fabric of reality that was leaking sheer unmitigated evil into the world.
Angel and Angelus continued their battle. Angelus was obviously tiring now, Angel drawing power from his experiences in Hell and from the importance of what he was fighting for. Angelus fought because he enjoyed and welcomed evil, because he would relish seeing humanity being defeated, tortured and eventually annihilated. Angel however was fighting for Buffy's life, for the lives of all those he held dear. Angelus could not compete with the passion that drove Angel, he was driven ever closer to the fire. He no longer taunted Angel, he could not spare the energy for conversation. He was fighting now for his life, something that all immortals hold dear. Angel could feel his desperation and it gave him hope that he could finally defeat his nemesis. With one final effort Angel spun around and using the momentum of his movement pushed Angelus into the fire where he was consumed until not even dust remained. Angel felt a jolt, like a sudden electric shock, in his chest as he watched Angelus disappear. He had no time to be concerned about that now though, Buffy needed him.
He went to stand by Buffy at the fire, sensing immediately the utter evil emanating from the centre of the fire. Angel had had many dealings with evil in all of its manifestations during his two and a half centuries. He had been evil. He had fought evil. He had been to Hell. He had however never felt the desolation, the complete absence of hope that he felt now, looking into this vacuum. He despaired, crying inside that they would fail, could never hope to defeat this all-pervading evil. He felt a strong urge to simply throw himself on the fire and be done with it, that way he wouldn't have to watch Buffy die, see her defeated. He couldn't do that though, couldn't leave her alone to face this.
Preoccupied with this internal struggle he was barely aware of Buffy's small hand slipping into his. She too was feeling desolate, hopeless, terrorised. She turned to Angel for comfort, as was always her first instinct. The warmth of her hand in his eventually broke through Angel's distraction and he looked down and met her eyes. Looking deeply into each other's eyes, each other's souls they remembered Tara's words "You need to join your power, you need to be really together and you can defeat anything". Suddenly they knew what they must do.
Turning to face each other they continued to look into each other's eyes. Their hands joined together, rings touching, they each looked into their own heart, their own soul and allowed their love for each other free rein. Every ounce of feeling that they had for each other, every moment they had spent missing each other, every tear they had cried for each other was called up and set free. If there had been anybody there to see them they would have noticed a perceptible glow begin to emanate from the couple, a white aura surrounding them, a physical manifestation of the power of their love. The white light appeared to diffuse into the air around them, moving towards the dark pit at the centre of the fire. Light and Dark they faced each other, utter evil and pure love. The essence of the battle that had been going on since time began.
This was a battle that darkness could never win. Gradually the light suffused the darkness and filled the vacuum. The flames of the fire continued to leap and dance but the colours in the fire were warm now, oranges and yellow. The light generated by the two lovers filled the crater, drove out the darkness and the pall of despair lifted from that place.
Eventually the light too faded away and the fire died down and still they stood there, lost in each other, lost in love. A love that had saved the world.
*****************
EPILOGUE
It was some time later that they dragged their eyes away from each other for a moment and realised that they had defeated the darkness. They still clung to each other, unable to let go, afraid that they would never exp erience anything like this again.
"Giles will be worried about you" Angel eventually broke the silence. "I know" Buffy answered. "We should go". Slowly, still hand in hand, they left the ruined school. Outside it was a beautiful, moonlit night. A ngel loved to watch Buffy in the moonlight, deprived as he was of the chance of seeing her in sunlight, the dance of moonbeams across her translucent skin was the closest substitute. She was stunning at any time, he thought, but natural light added an extra sheen to her beauty.
Buffy looked up at her lover. She only really realised now how much she had missed looking up to see that perfect profile, to catch the corner of his beautiful, soulful brown eyes with her glance. How much her own soul had pined for that special, slanted half-smile that nobody else could ever smile. She felt his large hand tighten around her tiny one and leaned her weary body against him. She could never remember feeling this tired before.
Angel too felt weary, in a way that he hadn't in a very long time. Circling her shoulders with one long arm he matched his stride to hers and tog ether they walked the short distance to Giles' apartment. Angel was anxious to ensure that Cordelia had not suffered any real harm during her ord eal. He knew that she and Wesley would be worried about him too, would need to see for themselves that he had really survived. Buffy was equally anxious about Willow's condition and also knew that Giles and the rest of the gang would be worried about her. In a few minutes they had reached the courtyard of Giles' building. Despite their anxiety to be reunited with their friends they were strangely reluctant to knock on the door. They instinctively felt that being with other people would break the spell, dispel the magic that lingered around them.
Their concern for their friends overcame their reluctance and Angel raised a hand and knocked gently on the door. It immediately flew open. Xander stood there wild eyed with fright. His expression changed to one of relief on seeing that Buffy was in one piece and he pulled her into an enormous bear hug.
Angel went into the apartment and joined Cordelia. She was ensconced in the most comfortable chair that Giles owned, being fussed over by Wesley. She smiled at the approach of the dark-haired vampire. She looked at Wesley, "Thank God" they said in unison. "We were afraid you wouldn't come back, it was really scary in there" Cordelia continued. Angel sat on the arm of her chair and gave her a gentle squeeze. "I had to come back, who else would be able to keep you two from killing each other" he teased .. Cordelia was unable to even pretend to be indignant, she was so relieved to have both of the men she depended on safely with her again. She settled down to tell them all about her ordeal at the hands of Angelus.
Buffy, meanwhile, had exchanged Xander's embrace for Giles'. She looked anxiously over his shoulder until she spotted Willow, curled up on the sofa with Tara by her side. Tara held a fold of Willow's skirt between her fingers and had a smile of relief on her face. Hovering behind them, looking extremely uncomfortable at the arrival of Buffy and Angel, was Spike. Xander had gone back to rejoin Anya in the kitchen where they were making sandwiches and tea.
Before long the entire group were gathered around tucking into the refreshments. Buffy hadn't realised how hungry she was. Giles and Wesley were anxious for details of the battle. Angel described what they had seen as well as he could. As he spoke Buffy moved over to sit on the floor at his feet, her arm curled around his calf. His hand came to rest lightly on her shoulder as she leaned back against his chair. As he completed his brief description of events in the old school he noticed that her head was drooping against his knee. He looked questioningly into her eyes. Buffy nodded almost imperceptibly but it was as though an entire conversation had taken place. Almost as a unit they rose from their seats. Angel spoke softly to Cordelia and Wesley for a few moments to discover that Giles had invited both of them to spend the night in the apartment since Cordelia was not enthusiastic about returning to the mansion.
Buffy meanwhile had a similar conversation with Willow and Tara who looked at each other for a moment and then admitted that they really wanted to return to their dorm room. Spike, who had been in the kitchen helping himself to Angel's supply of blood and Giles' box of Weetabix, offered his services as escort – since he just happened to be heading in the same direction and it would be a shame if his earlier heroism, which he hoped had been duly noted by the Slayer, were to go to waste now. Angel at once proffered the use of his car, throwing the keys casually to his childe. Xander and Anya announced that they were also leaving, Anya making no secret of the fact that she was bored now that all the excitement was over .. The entire group then departed with promises to meet again in the morning, amid mutterings from Cordelia regarding the injustice of everybody in the entire universe, even a klutz like Xander, getting to drive Angel's car while she, his best friend in the world had never had the privilege.
With another round of goodnights, embraces and promises regarding the following morning Buffy and Angel took their leave a few moments later. Walking hand in hand they swiftly covered the short distance to Angel's mansion. Angel swung open the heavy front door and held it for Buffy to enter.
Once inside he once again lit the fire in the enormous stone fireplace an d then turned to where Buffy was sitting on the couch to ask if she would like more tea. His voice trailed off as he saw that she was fast asleep .. Gently he picked her small form up and carried her to the bedroom.
He closed the door behind them and laid her on the bed. Carefully and slowly, so as not to awaken her, her removed her shoes, jacket and jeans.
Once he was sure that she was lying as comfortably as possible he pulled the cover over her. Sitting on the other side of the bed he allowed his head to fall into his hands. He offered a silent prayer of thanks for their victory. Overcome himself by tiredness he wearily removed his own s hoes and jacket and stretched out beside his beloved, tugging the covers up to his shoulders. Within moments he was asleep but not before his hand found Buffy's and covered it.
********************
As soon as his body found sleep Angel's mind drifted off into a dream. He dreamt that he was under the main post office in L.A. beseeching access through the gateway of lost souls to the knowing ones. He experienced the disorientation that had always accompanied that moment when he would go from being in the dark antechamber to being in the bright main chamber instantaneously. Once again he was standing in the marble hall where he had several times met with the Oracles. The hall where he had discovered their bloody corpses after Vocah had murdered them. Where he had spoken with the shade of the sister, begged her for the information he needed to save Cordelia, sworn to avenge her and her brother.
In his dream he saw both brother and sister. They appeared semi-translucent, insubstantial, unreal. The male Oracle spoke to him "You have done well Warrior, for a lower being". His sister added "We thank you for avenging our deaths".
Suddenly the scene dissolved before his eyes and he was walking in a wood , the trees above him stark and bare against the pale grey of the sky. Under his boots he could hear the soft rustle and crackle as the fallen leaves shifted. A carpet of russet and yellow and brown stretched before him, leading toward the beautiful lake in the distance. On the lake itself he could just see the shapes of the swans, drifting in the still water , their reflections shimmering in the light of the sun, which filtered softly through the misty clouds.
The Sun - all at once he realised that it was daylight and he shrank back into such shelter as the bare branches offered. The daylight here was diffuse and gentle, unlike the harsh brightness of the Californian sun but it was still the Sun, deadly to his kind. Yet here he stood, in the watery sunlight and it appeared to be having no affect on him.
Just then he heard a footfall behind him, muffled by the thick underlay of fallen leaves but still audible to his preternatural ears. He swung around, instinctively adopting a defensive posture. He caught sight of a small, dark figure making its way through the trees. There was something familiar about this particular figure, the shape of the head, the line of the shoulders. "Doyle" he breathed. "Yeah, man" the small Irish man answered "Didn't think you'd seen the last of me did ya ?" He grinned at Angel as he approached. Angel flung his arms around the smaller man and they embraced. "What's going on? Where are we?" Angel asked as they pulled away from each other at last.
"Don't you recognise it?" Doyle asked "And you a Galway man, y'should be ashamed of yourself. We're in Coole Park, in the County Galway. I find myself drawn back to the auld sod these days".
"Drawn from where?"
"Well now, that'd be tellin'" Doyle tapped the side of his nose conspiratorially. "We're not here to talk about me anyhow, this little chat is all about you, well you and little Miss Puppy Thighs". Angel looked up sharply at this reference to Buffy and Doyle winked at him. "What are you talking about?" Angel asked his friend.
"At the risk of becoming a bore ….. I've been sent by a higher power" Doyle grinned. "I have a message for you, well for the both a ya really. Apparently you're doin' pretty good with regard to the whole uh destiny thing, ya know earning your redemption and that. The Powers are pleased that you and Buffy united to defeat the Evil and fulfil the prophecy. Now don't go getting' all excited on me, 'cos you're not there yet, ya stil l have battles to win before you can be released from your duty. There is somethin you should know though. Ya remember when you and the Slayer joined your hearts and souls together to fight the darkness, well it was kinda permanent".
"You mean.." Angel's voice trailed off. "Yeah" Doyle replied, and appearing to quote a learned text added "Your heart is joined to her heart, your soul to her soul. So long as you're faithful to this bond your soul cannot be lost to the darkness". "Can't be lost ?" Angel echoed, a question in his voice. "That's right, can't be lost, not so long as you remain faithful to your soul mate and she to you". "No perfect happiness clause?" Angel queried. "None" Doyle agreed, grinning now all over his face.
His expression was soon mirrored by Angel's. A broad grin lit up his handsome face and his dark eyes gleamed with happiness. "Oh yeah" Doyle's voice interrupted his happy reverie. "Yes" Angel looked back at his friend .. "There's one other thing, ya defeated Angelus, defeated your own demon so to speak. Doesn't mean he's not still with you, 'cos he's still there alright. You beat him though so he should be a little easier to control in the future. "I know" Angel spoke sombrely now. "Ever since I fought him I've felt freer than I've felt since my soul returned. I can still feel the demon inside me but it doesn't take such an effort to resist him anymore". The two friends smiled at each other a little sadly. They knew that the time had come to say goodbye. "I miss you " Angel told Doyle .. "I'm sorry I failed you".
"Ya didn't fail me" Doyle replied. "That was my fight and I fought it the only way possible, there was nothing you could have done, it wasn't your destiny, it was mine". "Thank you" Angel took the smaller man's hand between both of his own. "I'll never forget you Francis". "I know". Doyle smiled at the tall vampire one last time and then disappeared. Angel realised that the hand between his was not Doyle's but Buffy's and that he was no longer in the autumnal woods but was lying in his bed.
*******************
He sat up in bed, not sure whether he was awake or not. He certainly seemed to be. His dream had seemed so real too. Could it possibly be true? Was his soul safe?. He was jolted back to reality by the sound of the telephone ringing by the bed . He reached out his hand and picked up the receiver. Buffy stirred beside him as he spoke into the phone "Hello". "It's me" Cordelia's voice answered his greeting. "Sorry for waking you if you were asleep but I just had a vision and" "Are you okay?" Angel interrupted his associate. "You mean apart from the guy who's splitting my head open with an axe – sure. That's not why I called. You were in my vision. You and Buffy and you were together – I'm going to talk to the PTB about some censorship rules here – as in TOGETHER and it was totally cool. I just thought that you might like to know that."
"Are you sure?" Angel couldn't still believe it. "Sure I'm sure. My visions are always right. Would you ever just get on with it. I'll make su re that nobody calls too early in the morning. 'Night boss". Angel could hear the smile in Cordelia's voice as she hung up the phone. Replacing the receiver he lay back down in the bed and turned toward Buffy. She was looking at him sleepily. "Who was that?" she asked him. "Cordelia" h e sounded a little distracted still. "What the hell did she want at this hour?" Buffy demanded, less sleepily now. "She had a vision, she needed to tell me about it".
"Couldn't it have waited 'til morning, I mean how many times do we have to save the world in one day?" Buffy wasn't going to forgive the intrusion into her slumber that easily. "I'm glad she didn't wait" Angel said softly, stroking Buffy's cheek with his index finger. "The vision was about us, about the fact that the happiness clause appears to be defunct". "What?" Buffy sat bolt upright. "Did you say…?". Angel sat up also. "Yes". "But…. how can we be sure, how reliable are these things of Cordy's anyway ?" she asked. "She's never been wrong and it isn't just that , I had this dream". Angel took her into his arms and described his dream to her.
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Buffy leaned into Angel's embrace as he told her of his conversation with Doyle. It was all so difficult to believe. Not that it was difficult t o believe that their hearts and souls were still joined together, she believed that, could feel that. That it had the power to overcome the gypsies curse though, that they would no longer have to stay apart so that the y could avoid the temptation that came with being near each other, that was difficult to believe. Almost impossible that what she had dreamed of s o often, wished for so hard was actually a reality. She and Angel could be together, could make love to each other, could recapture that amazing night….
She looked up at him, gazing deep into his dark brown eyes and she believ ed what he as telling her. She just knew, suddenly and without a shadow of a doubt, that it was true. They could be together, Angel's soul was bound to hers and would not, could not be lost.
Angel too felt that certainty and as though drawn to her by an irresistible force he bent his head to hers and touched her lips with his own. Like a drowning person offered a life belt she clung to him, reaching up her hand to draw him down to her kiss. They fell on each other now, free at last to yield to the incredible attraction between them, to fully express their deep love for one another.
Each knew that it would not be easy. They had duties and responsibilities and not just as warriors in the eternal battle between good and evil. She had college, her friends, and her mother in Sunnydale. He had his business, his own quest for redemption, his own little family in L.A. It would be hard to find the time and the opportunity to be together. Equally each knew that they would find that time, that they would make those opportunities, that nothing would stop them from being together now.
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