Part 16

Buffy reached out beside her, coming in contact with the cool sheet. Her eyes flashed open, the bed was empty. She sat upright in bed. Fear was beginning to stir in the pit of her stomach. She felt sick.

She stood up shakily. She pulled on her robe over her naked body. Her fingers could barely tie it; it was like she couldn't control her own hands. Her heart was racing. How could this have happened? What about the prophecy? Tears welled in her eyes. 'It's not fair!' her mind screamed. She started to panic. She didn't know what she should do. 'Call Cordelia. She'll have the curse.'

Her mind was not clear. It was far from it. She looked at the phone. It seemed like it was miles away. She took one painful step towards it before crashing down on the bed in a heap of tears.

They had come so close to happiness. To being together.

She crawled across the bed and reached for the telephone. She grasped a hold of it. At first she struggled with it, barely able to hold it with her stumbling hands. "Dial,' she told herself. She stared at the phone; 'I don't know Cordy's number.'

She held the phone in her hand, not sure what she should do next. 'Dawn,' she thought. 'Oh God, Dawn! What if he has done something to her.' She felt a tap on her shoulder. Startled she dropped the phone to the floor. It hit the ground with a loud thud. She turned around. There stood Angel, holding a tray with food on it. "Angel!" she cried throwing her arms around him nearly knocking him off his feet.

He regained his balance by steadying himself against the bedpost. He placed the tray on the bed, "Nice to know you're so happy to see me." He gave her a smile. He noticed her tear streaked face, "What's the matter? What happened?"

"I woke up...and you weren't here. I panicked. I thought that you had...you know...you were evil. It scared me so much. I was terrified," she said between sobs. "I thought that you were gone."

He put his hands on her shoulders, trying to calm her down. "I am so sorry. I shouldn't have just left you like that." He motioned to the tray; "I just wanted to make you breakfast."

She brushed away her remaining tears, "That was sweet of you. Very thoughtful. God, look at me. I just jump to conclusions."

"You had every right to. The last time we made love you woke up alone in bed. Look what had happened. There's no reason that you shouldn't have had the same thoughts this time when you woke up alone. I should have thought about it. I was inconsiderate to do what I did."

"But you made me breakfast."

"There will be plenty of other times to make you breakfast," he justified. "I should have held you in my arms until you woke up. That is what you deserve to have had. And I took that away from you."

"Like you said, there will be plenty of other times. You can hold me in your arms then. And if you ever what to make me breakfast again, I won't have a panic attack. We know that your soul will hold...unless I didn't make you happy..."

He pulled her into his arms, "Don't even think that. You made me happy. There is no way that you could not. I love you so much, and you are the only person who can give me true happiness. I could never be disappointed in you. It goes against all laws of nature. Everything about you I am proud of."

"You do always know what to say to make a girl smile. Don't you?" Buffy asked. "It seems that way to me."

He kissed her lips. His hands made their way to the knot of the robe. He pulled gently at one of the ends.

"What about the breakfast you made me?" Buffy questioned. "It'll get cold, if it's not already."

Angel looked from her to the meal and back again. "Screw it," he said as he shoved the tray off the bed. "I can make more later."

Buffy giggled as Angel kissed her again. Last night she still had doubts about 'being' with Angel. But now she had none. She knew there would be no consequences for their actions. It was like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

When she was with Angel, all thoughts and worries seemed to leave her mind. She went to a place where the two of them were the only ones that existed. She never went to this place with Riley, only with Angel. She didn't think about her mother or Dawn. There were no worries about how she would defeat Glory. It was just her and Angel on a little island of their own.

It was something that could never be taken away from her. She would always cherish these moments. It was a place that was safe and secure. She felt protected. Had need for nothing. Angel could give her so much in the time they were together.

She remembered what it was like on their first night together when she was seventeen. She had never once regretted it. Infact, it was one of the best nights of her life. Angel took her to a place that she had never imagined.

Her heart was filled with love for him. In a few days they had fought and reconciled. She had to thank Dawn for running away. Or else she wouldn't be having these experiences. She wouldn't be with Angel. That truth stood out. This had to be fate that brought her here.

As Angel held her in his arms, she silently thanked the Powers That Be, whoever they were.

A cry from downstairs broke Buffy from her dreamland. She blinked, trying to get her mind focused. Angel had already jumped out of bed, and was hurriedly getting dressed.

"What is it, Angel?" she asked.

"I don't know. Cordelia must have had a vision or something," he replied as he threw his shirt on.

She got out of bed, and tugged on a pair of jeans and a tank top. She and Angel flew out of the room and down the stairs.

"What is it?" Angel questioned, worried.

"She had a vision," Gunn answered.

"Dawn, she's in danger. I saw her with some blond lady, definitely not a safe person to be around." Cordelia supplied holding her head. Her head throbbed. "It hurt so much, I could feel her pain."

"Dawn!" Buffy called. "Dawn!" she screamed even louder. She ran up the stairs and peaked in her sister's room. No one. She raced back down the stairs, and searched the kitchen. No one. "Dawn, she's not here. I can't find her."

"She's got to be around here somewhere," Angel assured her. "She wouldn't have just left without saying anything."

"Unless she did say something." Wesley spoke up. Before he knew it, Buffy had thrown him against the wall.

"What do you mean? Where is she?" she demanded.

"She said she was going for a walk."

"And you just let her go?" Buffy asked.

"I thought she would be safe. It's day." Wesley defended himself.

"Glory can be out in the daytime. She's not a vampire!"

"But she's in Sunnydale."

Angel gently pulled the slayer away from Wesley. "She might just be out for a walk. She'll be back any minute perfectly safe."

"Angel, I know my visions, and I don't think she is." Cordelia said. "I just have this feeling."

"Where is she at? Do you know where Glory takes her to?" Buffy questioned. "We need to get to her before Glory can do anything to hurt Dawn."

"Sunnydale."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. She needs Dawn for something to do with the Hellmouth."

Buffy turned to Angel; "Do you think she's going to try to open the mouth of hell?"

"I don't know. It's possible."

"How did she find out that Dawn's the key?"

"I don't think she knows," Cordelia stated. "But I think she figures Dawn knows."

"We have to get to Sunnydale." Buffy said. "Wesley can you stay here for a while at least in case Dawn does return here safely?" After getting a nod from him she continued, "The rest of us will go to Sunnydale right now. I'm going to call Spike and Giles and tell them about our situation. They can try to find some way to stop this. We're going to need all the help we can get."

Angel put his arm supportively around Buffy; "We'll find her."

She slowly nodded. The fear she had earlier was nothing compared to the fear she had right now for the possibility of losing her sister.

Part 17

Buffy paced back and forth across the Magic Shop. They had found out nothing, and had no idea where Dawn was. She felt the fear inside of her growing. It was consuming her. She wanted so very much for Dawn to be safe. She needed her to be safe. She turned around once again to make her journey in the opposite direction. This time she was stopped.

She had run right into Angel.

He pulled her into his embrace, and held her. He ran his hand up and down her back, trying to soothe her. He touched her cheek; "We will find her. We will. She will be fine."

Buffy remained unconvinced. She buried her head into Angel's chest. She wanted this to stop. She couldn't take much more of it. She had to find Dawn, and staying here wasn't helping. "I have to go out," she announced. "I have to look for her. That's the only way we will find her."

"It's too dangerous." Giles warned. "We have no idea how to stop Glory. Sending you after her would be suicide."

"But what about Dawn? Who knows what Glory has done to her? I have to get to her." Buffy closed her eyes for a moment. "I have this feeling inside of me that she is safe right now, but if we don't get to her soon..."

"I'll go with you," Angel offered.

She shook her head, "No, you should stay here. In case I don't make it, someone will have to lead the fight."

"Don't say that. I will not let you go alone." He took her hands in his; "I just got you back. I'm not about to lose you again."

She gave into him, "Fine, come with me." She knew that she wouldn't be able to leave without him with her. A part of her wanted him to be with her. She didn't want to go alone. If she found Dawn wasn't alive, she didn't know what she would do. Having Angel there would ensure that she would be well protected against Glory and her minions.

"I'll go too." Spike added in. He tossed down the book he had been flipping through. "Research is boring. I need some action."

"Spike, I really don't need you to come along with-"

Angel held up his hand, silencing her. "As much as I hate to admit it, we might need Spike. Strength in numbers."

Buffy slowly nodded, "Yeah. I guess you're right." She directed her attention to Spike, "You will be our backup plan. When we find Glory, you are to wait for us at a safe distance. If Angel and I get into some major trouble, then you help out. A surprise attack. Your first priority is Dawn's safety. Not mine. Got it?"

"Sure pet. I got it," he answered.

Buffy faced the rest of the gang, "Where's the best place to start to look for Glory? Any ideas?"

Cordelia slammed shut an old book. She sneezed as the dust flew up from it. "We have no further details than when we first started."

Buffy looked to the others.

"None."

"Zip."

"Drawing a blank."

The all echoed after each other.

"Giles?" Buffy looked at him helplessly.

He took off his glasses, and cleaned them. It was one of his nervous habits. He placed them back on his face before answering her, "Hmm..You mentioned before that Glory needed the key for something to do with the Hellmouth."

"Yeah. I sensed it in my vision. The pure evil that went along with it. Sends lots of warm waves through you body. You know? Not. It was more like the cold touch of death." Cordelia explained.

"Giles, do you think that Glory...?" Angel asked.

"The Hellmouth. Check there first." Giles told them. "That's your best bet as of now."

"A trip to the old library." Buffy said. "It's going to bring back lots of pleasant memories of death and ...well...death."

Angel took her hand, "We'll keep in touch."

"Be careful!" Giles called after them.

______________________________

Meanwhile at the library..

"Where is the key?" Glory demanded of Dawn.

Dawn was chained up to the wall. She was beginning to lose feeling in her arms. She strained to get them loose. So far she had no luck. "I have no idea what you are talking about. I don't even know what the key is."

"I'm so sure. If you're lying to me..."

"You'll what? Kill me?" Dawn questioned trying to sound undaunted. She was filled with fear. She was hoping that her being killed wasn't one of her options.

"Don't tempt me little girl. I won't kill you. No, that's not what I'd do. I'll gain energy from you. You'll be walking around like a loony then. You'll be spending the rest of your life in a mental hospital." Glory said with a smirk on her face. "But if you tell me where the key is..."

"What is the key? Maybe then I'll be able to help you out."

"Not this game again! I don't want to play along."

"You don't even know what the key is." Dawn concluded.

"Sure I do," Glory assured her. "That's not the point. I think you know where the key is. Your sister seems to know. You mean to tell me that she never told you? I'm so sure about that."

"She hasn't."

"Well, then I guess when she comes to rescue you, I'll just have to find out then. Won't I?"

"She'll never tell you." Dawn spat at her.

Glory grabbed Dawn's face, "She will when I offer her the trade. The key...for you...her sister."

Part 18

The small group arrived at the old Sunnydale High School. It was amazing that it was even still standing.

"Umm...which way's the library?" Angel asked. "I have no idea where it's at. Not anymore. I can barely recognize it. It's safe to say that this place definitely has changed."

"It's this way," Buffy pointed. With her other hand, she gripped tightly on to Angel's. She clenched it with all her might. They were getting so close. So close to finding Glory and Dawn. So close to see if Dawn was still alive. As much as she wanted to find them, if Dawn was dead, she didn't want them to be here. That was she would still fill an ounce of hope.

They were nearing the library.

"I hear voices," Spike told them. "Someone's here."

Angel felt Buffy tense up beside him. He squeezed her hand reassuringly. "She will be fine. Just take a deep breath and stay calm. You'll be no good for her like this." He brushed her hair away from her eyes. "We can do this. We'll be able to get through this."

"So what's the plan?" Spike inquired. "We ambush them?"

Buffy shook her head, "No. You stay back here. Only come after us if Angel and I get in trouble. And then go for Dawn first. Get her to safety."

Spike nodded, "Okay, but I still don't see why I don't get to join in the fun. I want to kick some goddess ass."

"We could send him in as bait." Angel suggested.

"Don't you two get started," she warned. "You bickered all the way over here. I thought that I was walking with a couple of bitter old ladies."

"Fine. I'll stay here and mind my own business," Spike stated.

"Come on, Buffy." Angel led her into the library.

Buffy gasped when she saw Dawn. She was chained to the wall, but she looked unharmed. Buffy was filled with relief. Dawn was alive. Then worry set in. How was she going to get Dawn free? She turned to Angel. Her eyes were filled with questions she hoped he could answer.

"You take Glory," he whispered. "She knows you. If I went after her, she would immediately turn her attention to you anyway. I'll try to get to Dawn. Fight off some of the minions. Do you think you can handle Glory for a little alone?"

"I think I can manage it. She messed with my sister. She's gotten me just a little pissed off." Buffy replied.

Angel gave her a soft quick kiss on the lips; "Good luck my love." He released her hand, and started to creep silently towards Dawn.

Buffy took a small step towards Glory. Luckily Glory wasn't facing her. Glory's back was to her. How was she going to do this? Every time she tried to fight Glory, she was the one who ended up getting their ass kicked, not Glory. She looked over at Angel; he was halfway to Dawn. She could keep Glory away from them for a few minutes. She could manage that.

She made her way to Glory, and kicked her with all her might. It felt like she was kicking steel. Pain shot up her leg.

Glory was only momentarily caught off guard. She regained her balance, and whirled around to face the slayer. "Well, well, well, look at what we have here. Did you come to save your sister?"

Buffy involuntarily glanced at Angel who had reached Dawn. She focused back on Glory.

The goddess had seen Buffy's action. "Freeze!" she shouted. "One more move and I'll kill the blond girl." She turned to Angel.

He had managed to unlock one of the shackles. Dawn's right arm had been freed. Angel had the other one in his grasp, trying to break the lock on it. He did as Glory said. He stopped, but he didn't let go of Dawn.

Glory faced Buffy; "You thought that you could fool me? You're not getting your sister back that easily. I have a proposition for you."

"What's that?" Buffy asked.

"You give me the key and I'll give her to you. Do we have a deal?"

Buffy's eyes went wide. How was she going to get out of this one? "We don't have a deal."

"Then maybe I'll have to hurt if not kill your sister to inspire you to tell me." Glory said. "Where is the key?"

Angel watched Buffy. He knew the expression on her face. She was trying to come up with a plan. Something to tell Glory was the key. He knew she wasn't coming up with anything. He let go of his grip on Dawn. "I'm the key."

"Angel! Don't!" Buffy cried.

Glory tuned to him with a smile on her face. "Well, that wasn't so bad, now was it?" She started to go to Angel.

Buffy ran over to him. "You can't do this. You don't need to. She'll probably kill you. I can't lose you."

"But it'll save Dawn."

"I won't let you."

"Wait!" Spike called. "Bloody hell, Angel. Don't lie to her. You know damn well that you're not the key."

"Spike!" Angel hissed.

"He's not?" Glory questioned. "Then what is?"

"You don't need to protect me anymore," Spike began. "I'm the key."

"Why am I supposed to believe you?" the goddess asked.

"Don't you see how much Buffy hangs around me. It's because she has been trying to protect me from you." Spike explained. "I'll give myself to you. You can use me for whatever you have to. I just have two conditions."

"What are they?" Glory demanded, growing impatient.

"One. You let the girl go, no harm done. Two. You let the other two leave as well. Seeing as you will probably end up killing me, you should grant my wishes."

She thought for a moment. "Fine. They may go." She unlocked the other shackle.

Dawn rubbed her wrists, trying to bring feeling back to them. She gave Spike a quick hug.

Buffy followed Dawn's lead and did the same. "Thank you, Spike. I don't know how I'll ever repay you."

"I'm just doing what's right, love." Spike replied. He gave her a soft kiss on the lips. It was the only thing he had wanted to do before he died. Buffy was too much in shock to stop him. "Take care."

Angel grabbed her hand and Dawn's, and rushed them out of the school. They didn't stop moving until they reached the safety of the Magic Shop.

Part 19

Both the members of the Scooby Gang and the L.A. gang greeted the three of them when they arrived back at the Magic Shop. Everyone hugged Dawn, thankful that she was safe.

"How did you manage to escape Glory?" Giles asked. "You didn't seem to be gone long."

"We ran," Buffy simply said. She leaned up against the wall for a moment before slowly sinking to the ground.

"What's the matter?" Xander questioned. "Shouldn't this be a happy time? Unless Glory is on here way here right now to kill us. Then I vote for getting out of here. Who's with me?"

"Xander!" Cordelia hissed at him. "Can you stop trying to be funny for one moment? And just for the record you're not."

"Not what?"

"Funny!" she yelled. "Grow up! If I ever wonder why I dumped you, all I have to do is think of moments like these."

"This isn't why you dumped him. You dumped him because you saw him kissing Willow." Anya reminded her. Cordelia glared at her. "Just thought I would clear it up for you."

Angel ignored the ongoing argument between the others and knelt down beside Buffy. He gently placed his hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong?"

She shook her head, "Nothing's wrong, I guess. It's just..I don't know. What Spike did. He gave up his life for Dawn's. I never thought he would ever do something like that." She leaned against him. "I feel bad about all the times I treated him like dirt. If I knew he would do something like this, I would have been nicer to him."

"Sometimes you don't know what a person is capable of until they do it. You and me both never thought Spike would do something so selfless. But he did."

"It just surprised me. And then he kissed me. Why would he do that?"

"Because he's in love with you," Dawn supplied.

"What?" everyone chorused.

"Am I the only one who saw it? Spike was so in love with you, Buffy. He like had a major crush on you." Dawn explained. "Haven't you noticed the way he always hung around you?"

"I just thought that was because he had nothing better to do than to get on my nerves." Buffy informed her. "I never thought he was in love with me." She jumped up, "Oh God! Spike's in love with me! What am I going to do?! This is just so..! And he kissed me!" She wiped at her lips, "Spike lips! Eww!"

"It's finally hit her," Dawn said.

"Spike kissed her?" Xander questioned looking at Willow.

"Hey! Don't look at me. It wasn't my fault. I didn't cast any spells." Willow assured them. "I swear."

"Let me get this straight." Giles broke in. "Spike is with Glory now because..."

"Because Glory wanted to make a trade, the key for Dawn. She had no idea that Dawn was the key, and the trade was impossible. First, Angel said that he was the key, but then Spike jumped in and said he was the key. And for some reason she believed him. She let Dawn free, and we took off." Buffy finished.

"What happens when she finds out that Spike isn't the key?" Gunn inquired. "Won't she try to come after us? I'm thinkin' that maybe we should haul our asses out of town. I haven't met this chick, but by the sound of her, I don't think she's a bright ball of sunshine. I'm really not lookin' to meet her."

"I second that motion," Cordelia said. "I didn't come to Sunnydale to get killed. I like living."

"Me too! I don't want to die!" Anya whined.

"Oh bloody hell," came a voice from behind them.

They all turned to face...Spike.

"I'm gone for five seconds and you all go sappy on me," he stated.

Before she gave a thought to it, Buffy ran over and gave him a hug. When she came to her senses, she quickly pulled away from him.

"Maybe I should offer to give up my life more often," Spike said.

"You're a pig," Buffy shot at him.

He shrugged, "Now there's the Buffy we all know and love. That whole liking Spike thing lasted for how many minutes there?"

She ignored his question. "How did you escape?"

"Turns out if she tried to use something that wasn't really the key, she would blow up." He looked at his shirt. "Caught my damn shirt on fire when she did it. Bitch," he muttered under his breath.

"What do you mean?"

"Just like I said. She was trying to get back into hell or something, and when she did the spell thing with me, she blew up. She wasn't very nice about it either. She cursed at me. I think she set my shirt on fire on purpose."

"So besides the fire, you were nowhere near almost killed?"

"Then after her little explosion. The whole bloody school almost collapsed on me. I got out just in time to see it cave in."

"So it's all over?" Tara questioned. "Just like that?"

"If you ask me, it's kind of a big let down." Cordelia added in.

"No big demon explosive finale." Xander chimed in. "I fell cheated."

"Yo guys? We didn't die." Gunn pointed out. "I kind of like that. Although, I do wish we got to kick some goddess ass. I always enjoy the ass kicking part of the action."

"I guess we can go back to L.A. then?" Cordy looked over at Angel. "Right?"

Angel was too busy looking at Buffy. He didn't want to leave her, not again. But his life was now in L.A., and hers was here in Sunnydale.

"I guess we sorta need to figure this out," she said.

"Yeah, we do."

Xander handed a key to Angel.

"What's this?" he asked.

Xander gave them a smile; "It's the key to my apartment. Go you two. Discuss whatever you need to. Take some alone time. You deserve it."

Buffy gave her friend a hug. "Thank you, Xander," she whispered.

Angel took Buffy's hand and led her out the door.

"I bet they're going at it in ten minutes." Anya stated.

"Oh please!" Cordelia explained. "You're giving them way to much credit. I say five minutes."

"I can't believe you guys!" Willow glared at them. "I'll give them fifteen minutes. They'll probably talk a bit first."

"His soul is permanent. Right?" Xander asked.

"One hundred percent." Cordy assured everyone. "They've already tested it and everything. I didn't have to wait too long to find that one out. You tell them about it, and five minutes later they're getting pelvic. Hence the reason I said five minutes."

"I think I'll change my bet to five minutes too." Anya said.

"We're betting on them now?" Willow questioned as everyone laughed.

Part 20

Buffy unlocked the door to Xander's apartment, and led Angel inside. She placed the key on the table near the door before turning to face Angel.

They joy she had felt after finding Dawn was gone. It had been replaced by fear again. She felt dread growing in the pit of her stomach. She knew Angel too well to think that they could just kiss and all would be well. No, it just couldn't be that simple. Not for them.

"Buffy," Angel said as he tried to take her in his arms.

She shrunk back. "Don't. Don't try to make this seem okay. Don't try to tell me that everything will be for the best. I'm tired of that. I'm not a little schoolgirl anymore. I won't listen to your lectures on what is best for me."

"I wasn't going to tell you what was best. I never thought of you as some schoolgirl. You were never that to me. Never."

"Then why did you do it?" she asked. She blinked back the tears that she felt in her eyes. She wasn't going to let him see her cry. "Why did you leave me? You never even wanted to hear my opinion about it. You thought that I was too young to make my own decision."

"I never thought that. I just had to do what was right."

"You thought that I couldn't decide what was right? And since when was leaving me the right thing to do?"

"You deserve more than me."

"Cut the crap!" she shouted at him. "I know what I deserve. I know what I want. What I want is for us to be together. I don't care if you can't take me out in the sunlight. I'm more of a night person anyway. I didn't care if we couldn't make love. But now we don't have to worry about that because we can. And children. I don't want children. How can I bring a child into this world knowing what goes bump in the night? Knowing that I probably won't live to see him or her grow up? You said that I would want those things in the future. Well, guess what, Angel? The future has come and my mind still hasn't changed."

"But you tried to have a normal life. With Riley."

"Tried is the key word. It didn't work out. I'm not normal. I can't have a normal life. And you want to know something? I don't want a normal life, especially if living a normal life means being without you," she told him. "And Riley. He left me. Remember? He left me because I wasn't giving my full self to him. You want to know why? Because I'm still so in love with you. I can't stop. I won't stop loving you. Ever. You are what makes me me. You're like my other half. When you're gone, it feels like part of my soul is missing." She couldn't hold back her tears anymore. They poured down her face.

He tried to take her in his arms again, and this time she let him. "I am so sorry, Buffy. I never realized how much I hurt you when I walked out of your life. I thought you would be better for it."

"Well, I'm not," she cried into his chest. "Please, Angel. Don't leave me again. I'm not sure that I could survive it this time."

He stroked her hair. His fingers gently went through her soft hair. He forgot how nice it was just to hold her in his arms. He missed her so much, and having her with him in L.A., it had been a dream come true. Now she had no reason to stay with him. Dawn was safe; she didn't need to be away from Sunnydale. But he knew one thing for sure. He couldn't stand to lose Buffy either.

He led her over to the couch, and pulled her into his lap. "We'll find a way to make this work. We will. I won't leave you. I don't think I could survive either."

She looked at him with her tear-streaked face. His shirt was damp from her tears. "You won't?"

"You mean far too much to me. I don't know how we made it so long apart in the first place. But I do not want to try it again. It was too long for us to be separated." He brushed away the last of her tears with his thumb.

"Angel?" she asked softly.

"Hmm?"

"Did you ever think that I was too young? I mean-"

He placed a finger to her lips, silencing her. "I never once thought that you were too young. I loved...love everything and anything about you. I wouldn't change one thing about you for the world. You are my girlfriend, my lover, my soulmate. And nothing will ever change that. Nothing. I'm sorry for what I have done to you in the past. I promise to never do it again." He stopped when he saw her smile. "What?"

"Shut up," she said. "You don't need to convince me anymore. You had me when you said soulmate. Do you mean it?"

"Soulmate? Of course I do. You are my soulmate. I am so glad that I found you. I can't think of what my life would have been like if I had never met you. You changed my life for the better."

"So you have no regrets about us?"

"I have not once regretted us. I'd have to be crazy if I did."

If it was even possible, Buffy's smile grew. "You are my soulmate, Angel. I love you."

"I love you," he responded without another thought in his mind, but his undying love for her. "We'll find away to be together, always. Even if it means that every time there's a big ugly in L.A. I take the long drive out there."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. I think I should buy a nice little house on the beach. You and I can live there, and take long moonlit walks in the sand. Having the cool ocean wash over our feet as we walk. It'll be perfect."

"Like a dream. We can get ourselves a puppy, and she'll greet us whenever we return home."

"A cute little puppy that will be ours," he agreed.

"Is this going to be for real?" she asked.

He nodded, "It is. I can't think of anything that I would want more than a happy life with you."

She gave him a kiss. It was tender and loving. Full of the promise of their future together. This time it wasn't just a dream. It was real. It was really going to happen. No matter what happened to them. No matter how many demons they had to face. They would always be able to go back to their comfy home, and shut out the horrible world around them.

As the kiss deepened a funny thought came to Buffy's mind. She broke away, needing oxygen. "Something just occurred to me."

"What?"

"The gang knows that we're here alone. I wouldn't put it past them to make bets on how long it takes us to make love."

"You think that they would do that?"

"Oh I know they would." She looked at the clock on the wall. "I think we probably made it longer than any of the times they said."

"You have the strangest friends," he stated.

"Hey! Some of them are now your friends," she pointed out. "So watch what you say about them."

"Do you want to go back to the shop now, and spoil their beliefs that we can't go fifteen minutes alone without making love?"

"Who said anything about that? I could care less. I would rather have you any day, and admit that they are right about us."

"Just checking." Angel said before capturing her lips in a passionate kiss.

Later, as they lay entwined in each other's arms, Angel traced over the features of Buffy's face with his fingertips. "You are so beautiful. There is not one flaw on your perfect body."

"It's so not perfect."

He kissed her forehead, "Yes." He kissed her eyelids, "It." He kissed the tip of her nose, "Is." He kissed her lips.

She giggled at his action. "I love the way you treat me."

"That's because I love you so much."

"I think that we should never let things get so complicated again. We should keep it simple. Enjoy the finer things in life."

"And what's that?"

"Each other." She gave him a soft tender kiss. A kiss that sealed their future. A lifetime of love that would be theirs forever.

For eternity

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