Email- LightLes@aol.com
Disclaimer - These characters belong to Joss (All Hail Joss!) Whedon, Warner Bros., Mutant Enemy, etc. I'm just exercising my overactive imagination with them.
< > indicates thought.
This is a Willow/Angel romance that takes place 8 years from now. Basically, I worked with the show's storyline up until "Faith, Hope, and Trick." Then I struck out on my own.
Distribution - TPWFLD or whoever wants it. (Just ask first, please.)
Feedback - Yes! Please! Send any comments. (negative or positive)
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Willow rested her head on the soft leather and stared out the window at the passing cars on the highway. Soft music was playing on the radio and Angel seemed lost in his own thoughts as they drove back to Sunnydale.
Sunnydale. She'd only been back three times since she had graduated high school, and so much had changed since then. It wasn't that she didn't like Sunnydale or miss her friends, she just had never felt like she completely belonged there. The old pain threatened to emerge again, but Willow refused to let it take control. She had a new life, and had dealt with the demons of the past long ago, so it was best to let those events stay in the past where they belonged. It was time to concentrate on her future and the future didn't look very promising. They were going back to Sunnydale, possibly to die, and she had some explaining to do to her friends.
****
On reflection, there were four nights that changed Willow Rosenberg's life forever. The first was the night that she had learned about the existence of vampires, and had volunteered to help the Slayer in her fight against the evil forces of darkness. The second had occurred the night Oz died.....
Willow was in the library, trying to teach Giles how to use on-line card- catalogs while Xander and Cordelia were necking in a far corner, when Buffy came in from patrol. She had an expression of pain and dread on her face, and she stood before Willow, apparently speechless. Giles noticed something was wrong, and steered her towards a chair.
"Will...I don't know how to tell you this...."
"Tell me what?" Willow didn't suspected that anything serious was wrong. She thought that Buffy was going to have a problem, and that she needed Willow's help to fix it. <maybe she's going to need me to stay up all night or perform some ritual or something.> Willow was actually excited at the prospect. It was Oz's "time of the month" and since he had taken to "changing" in his basement under the watchful eyes of his aunt, she was a little bit bored. She had considered stopping by Angel's apartment later on, (since his return from Hell, nobody had really wanted to deal with him, but her) but he would understand if she skipped a meeting because of work.
"It's Oz....." Willow's face paled as Buffy told her the story in halting tones. She was on patrol on his street, when she saw him run out of his house in werewolf form. Apparently, he had been strong enough to break the chains that bound him. Buffy had run to the house and grabbed the tranquilizer gun Oz kept in his kitchen for just such an emergency, and gone after him. The chase had been long, and Faith had joined in the search. Finally, they reached the park and saw their prey. They were about to sedate him when they heard a gun-shot and Oz fell. The hunter who had tried to kill Oz in the past had stepped out of the bushes and done a little dance around the slain werewolf.
"Will....he used silver bullets. Oz is dead." Willow felt numb and didn't notice when Giles' hands came down on her shoulders or hear Buffy's soft comments to her Watcher. Finally, she had recovered enough to ask about Oz's body and the hunter. "They're both here." Buffy had assured her. "I figured you'd want a say in what happens to them." The next few hours were still a blur in Willow's mind, but from what Giles had told her, she had single- handedly transformed Oz back to his human form. This had, apparently, scared the hell out of Giles because he knew that the spell wasn't in any books in the library. Later on, he had gently questioned her as to where she learned it, but she hadn't known.
Giles told her that she had undergone some form of magical transformation which had made her much more powerful than before. She no longer needed to use charms and candles as points of focus, she could now work magic from her mind. He had put her in contact with a Witch in L.A. and, since she was planning on going to college there, it had been agreed that she would begin her training when she moved. To this day, she still had no idea what had happened to the hunter, and had been too frightened to ask.
*****
Willow wondered casually what Oz would think about her new life. She suspected that he would heartily approve. She smiled fondly at the memories, as she thought about the fact that he was one of only two people who had ever loved her completely and unconditionally. The other was sitting in the seat beside her, brooding.
"What's wrong?" she asked gently.
"Nothing." He lied, and she knew he was lying. It was sort of a ritual with them--he could never just come out and say what was bothering him, she always had to cajole. She didn't mind, though. His attempts to be strong only made her love him more.
"You're lying." she finally said. "What's up?"
"I'm frightened." he finally admitted. Willow sat up straight and looked at him.
"Of what?"
"Sunnydale." Willow didn't laugh at him. She understood his fear.
"Me too." He looked over at her, and took one of her little hands in his big one.
"What do you think will happen?"
"With Fontaine or with our friends?" She wanted to pinpoint the cause of his fear and see if it matched hers.
"Both."
"I think that Fontaine won't be counting on us." she said, tackling the easier problem first. "He probably thinks, ‘Oooo! Here's a nice Hellmouth and the only people protecting it are a silly little blonde, a stuffy Brit, a swim coach, and a beautician. Easy pickings!" Willow smiled at the image. "He has no idea that we're coming. As for our friends...." her voice trailed off.
"I know this is going to be hard for you." He gently squeezed her hands.
"Better to get everything out in the open now. If there's one thing I've learned, keeping secrets like this only makes things much, much worse." She smiled at him reassuringly. "It'll be okay." Now she was lying to him and he knew it, but he chose not to press the point. Instead, he kept hold of her hand as they drove on into the night.
****
The third major turning point in Willow Rosenberg's life came the night before she graduated High School. Angel had left a note on her door, asking if he could come see her. She was out on her balcony, waiting for him, and smiled as she saw him emerge from the trees behind her house. He was halfway up the drain-pipe, when he suddenly gasped and fell to the ground. Willow quickly climbed down to kneel beside him.
"What's wrong?"
"Pain....Oh God! I think I'm losing it...." Willow hadn't had to ask what he meant. Somehow, he was losing his soul again. Without realizing what she was doing, she had gone into a trance, seeking the force that was attacking her friend. She knew that he couldn't have achieved true happiness already, it had been less than a year since his return from Hell and Buffy hadn't let him anywhere near her. She quickly looked around with eyes enhanced with The Sight, and saw her. The old woman was drawing Angel's soul from his body, but Angel was struggling. Willow stood and marched to a position that was directly between Angel and the old woman.
"Stay out of this, child." the old woman said. "He's mine."
"Who are you?" Willow demanded. She made a chopping motion with her hand and the link between the woman and Angel's soul was severed.
"I am Caterina, Elder Woman of the Rom. Angelus killed my daughter, and he must pay."
"Angel" Willow stressed the name "has paid enough."
"Not enough! Never enough!" the old woman shouted, and reached out again for Angel's soul. Willow cast a shield around Angel, and the gypsy's wrath turned on her.
"Do you know what happened?" Willow asked quietly. "Angel experienced a moment of true happiness. He lost his soul last year. He became Angelus and killed Janna, another daughter of the gypsies. I found the curse you used to restore his soul, and cast it. It worked, but not before he spent several hundred years in Hell." Caterina glared.
"He must pay for what he did to my child!" she repeated.
"He has paid." Willow maintained control of her voice, though she was inwardly shaking from fear and anger. "He has paid over and over again, and because of your selfishness, so have Janna and many others."
"My selfishness?" Caterina was incredulous. "What I did, I did to save my people."
"What you did, you did to punish Angel for something that was beyond his control. You wanted him to feel guilty. You could have just stuck a stick in his heart, but no! You gave him his soul back so he could suffer endlessly. When he stopped suffering as much as you wanted, you childishly took his soul back, condemning him to repeat his past atrocities. It's your fault Janna died, not his." The old woman began to chant and Willow felt the power building around her. From somewhere, probably the same place she had gotten the spell to transform Oz, she had found words of her own. She remembered a feeling of pressing against an immovable object, a flash of light, and then nothing. When she woke, Angel was kneeling over her. Without having to ask, she knew that she had won the battle. She later discovered that Angel's soul was now permanently linked to his body and that it was also permanently linked to hers. They had to be in close physical proximity, otherwise they would both suffer severe physical symptoms.
This had not presented a very large problem. Angel had planned on leaving Sunnydale anyway, and so he had just come with her to Los Angeles. For the sake of convenience, and a convincing cover, they had moved into an apartment together. Willow made sure that Buffy, Xander, and Giles knew the truth, but as far as the rest of the world was concerned, she and Angel were lovers.
End Part 1
It was shortly after midnight, when they arrived. The high school hadn't changed much at all, but Willow could see a few little differences. The outside had been painted recently and the parking lot had been repaved. She guessed that when Buffy had finally gotten rid of the demon that was posing as Principal Snyder, the school board had found someone who was willing to put some money in the place. They could see the lights in the library.
"Did you tell him what time we were coming in?" Willow asked as she stepped out of the car and stretched.
"No." he answered, with a sly grin on his face.
"Why not?"
"Thought it might be fun to surprise him. He doesn't even know we're in town. "
"Really? This will be so fun!" Willow eagerly looked forward to one of the few pleasant moments of their visit home. Angel held the door open for her as she stepped back into the building where she had spent three of the most important years of her life. She mentally catalogued everything that had happened as she passed landmarks. Finally, they reached the library. Willow peeked into the window, and saw Giles with his nose in a book. She put her fingers to her lips, grinned wickedly, and silently opened the door. She tiptoed until she was standing right behind him. He made no sign to indicate that he knew of her presence. She quickly dropped one of her hands over his eyes.
"Guess who?" The force of the chair hitting her legs as Giles jumped up, nearly knocked her over. He spun around, ready for a fight, and gasped when he saw them.
"Willow?" The expression on his face sent her off into gales of laughter. Angel had a broad grin on his face, and even Giles had to chuckle.
"I thought all Watchers were supposed to have superhuman senses." she teased.
"We do...usually." he smiled. "However, Watcher Training does not prepare one for little witches." He hugged her tightly, then noticed Angel. "Angel." he said, nodding his head. Willow knew that Giles didn't blame Angel for Jenny's death, but that he still had difficulty relating to the vampire. She silently applauded him for his efforts, and made a mental note to do so openly, when they had a chance.
"So." Giles said, gesturing for them to take seats. "I hope this is a social call." Angel and Willow exchanged glances.
"‘Fraid not." she said quietly. Giles sat down and gave her his full attention. "We ran into some trouble in L.A., and it looks like that trouble is headed your way." She went on to tell him about Fontaine and imminent arrival on the Hellmouth. "We figured that you could probably use our help....Not that you're not perfectly capable of dealing with this on your own...." Willow hastily added.
"No. You're right." Giles smiled reassuringly. "Things have seemed awfully quiet around here lately. How much time do we have?"
"Two, three days tops." Angel said.
"Well then, why don't you two get settled in. I'll call the others and arrange to meet here tomorrow night." He smiled at Willow. "I presume that you want to keep your arrival a secret from them, as well."
"Please." She squirmed uncomfortably in her seat, looking at Angel. He understood her signal, and stood up.
"I'm sure you two have some catching up to do. I'm going to go see if my apartment is still in one piece. Will, I'll be back to pick you up in an hour." She smiled at him and squeezed his hand, then he left.
"So." Giles said gently, before she could speak "How long has this been going on?" Willow blushed furiously.
"Is it that obvious?"
"Quite, my dear. Care to tell me what happened?"
****
The latest shift in Willow's world had come about a month before the trip to Sunnydale. She and Angel were sharing a lovely apartment in L.A., and she had a job working for a company that specialized in computer security systems. She usually telecommuted, and had adopted Angel's nocturnal lifestyle almost instantly.
Over the past eight years, she and Angel had become very close. At first, she thought it was the bond forged when she permanently anchored his soul to his body, but research proved that the binding had purely physical effects. Willow soon realized that she was falling in love with Angel, but said nothing, afraid of the pain of losing him to another, as she had lost Xander, or losing him to death, as she had lost Oz.
Life had been good. Even though they often found themselves in life and death situations, Willow had never been happier. She and Angel were as close as two people could be, and she had good friends on the Internet. She didn't need anything more. True, it would have been wonderful if Angel returned her feelings, but Willow was content with what she had.
Then, in a freak accident having nothing to do with the supernatural, Willow was hit by a stray bullet from a gang war. The injury itself wasn't too serious, (she had been shot, much to her embarrassment, in the rear end) but it had scared her, and Angel too. For two days, he had walked on eggshells around her, constantly asking if she was all right. Finally, she had gotten sick of his mother henning and decided to have it out.
"I was shot in the butt." she said calmly. "As targets go, that was probably the best place for a bullet to land. I am not going to break, crack, spindle, fold, or mutilate, so you can stop hovering."
"I'm sorry. It's just that...well...." She couldn't be sure, but she suspected that he was embarrassed about something.
"What?" she asked gently.
"I'm afraid of losing you." he said finally. His voice was quieter than usual, and she had to strain to hear him.
"I understand...." she said, thinking she did "Really."
"No you don't!" his voice had held such pain that she almost cried for him. "I love you and I don't want you to die!"
****
That night had been the happiest of her life, although it had taken him a while to convince her that his emotions were genuine. Willow smiled now, as she told Giles the story of how their newfound relationship had begun. After declaring their true feelings and crying for an hour, they had decided to take things slow.
"After all," Angel had said "we have a whole lifetime ahead of us."
"More." Willow had laughed "if what Selene tells me is true about witches and their longevity."
Willow didn't tell Giles that she and Angel had yet to consummate their love. They had both felt it necessary to close the book on certain areas of their past, before they took this final step. They had been looking for an opportunity to come back to Sunnydale ever since.
"I hope that you're planning on telling Buffy and Xander." Giles said carefully.
"Tomorrow." Willow nodded. "While Angel sleeps, I'm going to see them. Hopefully we can get things hashed out before Fontaine attacks.
****
Cordelia Harris was just getting ready to sit down with some Oreos and a talk show, when the doorbell rang. She grumbled, struggled to her feet, and prepared to blast whoever it was who had dared to interrupt one of the few quiet moments in her schedule. She wasn't expecting to see Willow Rosenberg.
"Willow? Oh my God, I can't believe it."
"Believe it." Willow smiled and hugged Cordy, being careful of her large stomach. She took a step back and admired her old friend. "You look great! Pregnancy agrees with you." Cordy smiled and invited her in.
"Xander's not here right now. I sent him on a few errands, and knowing him, he's stopped to chat with someone." Willow had attended Xander and Cordelia's wedding and had kept up with them religiously. Cordy had created her own line of fashions and was doing quite well. This financial security allowed Xander to pursue his love of swimming by coaching the high school team. So far, the Razorbacks had won four State Championships. Their first child was due in two months.
"Did Giles call you?' Willow finally asked after they had caught up on the gossip.
"Yes. He said that there was some new vamp in town. He didn't tell me you were here, though."
"I asked him not to." Willow's face grew serious. "Cordy, something's happened. I wanted to give you fair warning, because I don't think Xander is going to be too happy and I don't want you caught in the middle."
"What is it? Nothing's wrong, I hope."
"No." Willow smiled. "Everything is right, actually. Angel and I....." she paused, trying to find the words, but Cordelia understood. A broad grin crossed her face.
"Well, it's about time!" she squealed and made Willow give her all the juicy details. That was the last pleasant moment Willow had that afternoon. As expected, Xander wasn't happy about the new relationship and Buffy.....Willow cringed when she thought of what Buffy had called her.
Giles and Angel were already at the library when Willow arrived. Angel took one look at her, opened his arms, and accepted her into his gentle embrace. Giles waited until her tears had subsided and handed her a cup of tea.
"I take it things didn't go quite as you had hoped." he said, making it a statement, not a question.
"Well..." Willow said shakily "Cordelia thinks it's great." This elicited small chuckles from all of them. Giles saw that Angel was holding Willow's hand and looking fiercely protective. He knew that if Buffy and Xander could see them like this, they would understand. However, both were so caught up in their own pride and hurt feelings, that they would never allow themselves to see. He murmured some excuse, and went into his office to give them some private time. Occasionally, he would peek out of the window, just to check and see that they hadn't run. Willow was very obviously upset by whatever Buffy and Xander had said, and Angel had his arm around her shoulders. At one point, Giles saw Angel gently tilt Willow's chin so she was looking directly into his eyes, then gently kiss her lips. Giles' heart broke for the two of them. If any two people deserved happiness, it was them, and he couldn't understand why others couldn't understand that.
A few minutes before the others were due to arrive, he emerged to find Willow looking a great deal stronger. They had decided to face the others together, and put off dealing with personal issues until the Fontaine problem was solved.
Xander and Cordelia arrived together. It was quite obvious that Cordelia was angry, and she defiantly sat across the table from him, next to Willow. They all sat in stony silence until Buffy arrived, late as usual.
"Good. Now that we're all here..." Giles said in his most businesslike voice, trying to set the tone for the meeting.
"How long?" Buffy's voice was hard and cold.
"A month." Willow saw no reason to gloss the truth. "Right after I got shot."
"You were shot?" Xander's face radiated anger. "You didn't tell me you were shot."
"You didn't exactly give her a chance." Cordelia stated. "You were too busy calling her names and telling her that she meant less to you than the dirt on your shoe." Willow looked down at her hands and Angel looked as if he wanted to rip Xander's head off then and there.
"Look, if we could just...." Giles tried to prevent what he knew was coming.
"I don't believe you." Buffy stated, staring at Willow.
"Well, frankly, I don't give a damn whether or not you do." Willow was sick and tired of being the communal punching bag. She stared at the shocked faced around here. "We have more important things to deal with right now."
"Thank you, Willow." Giles sighed. "Here's the situation....." They talked for an hour about the Fontaine situation, but the conversation was obviously strained. Angel hardly spoke and Giles noticed that he was concentrating hard on something.
"There's one thing I don't get...." he murmured finally.
"Just one?" Xander sneered. Giles, Willow, and Cordelia all shot him dirty looks, but he pointedly ignored them.
"Fontaine has a base set up in L.A. He's king vamp there. Here, nobody knows about him. Why would he just drop all that and come here?"
"Well there is that little thing called the Hellmouth, or have you forgotten it?' Buffy's attitude was really starting to wear on Giles.
"He's right." Willow said quietly. "You know, I never thought of it before, but he's right. Fontaine has it pretty good in L. A. I mean, he's got to deal with us and Selene and a few others, but on the whole, there's more people, more places to hide, more potential allies....."
"Is there anything important happening here in the next few days?" Angel turned to Giles.
"Well....to be honest, I don't know." Giles said. "I will certainly look into my books...Willow, do you want to help?" Willow looked at him and he could see the bags under her eyes. Suddenly, he recalled her saying that she was now on Angel's schedule. That meant she hadn't slept in 24 hours. The confrontations this afternoon probably hadn't helped her state either. "Scratch that." he said quickly. "Angel, take her home and make sure she gets a good night's rest. I'll call you." Angel nodded and stood, preparing to leave.
"She's not going anywhere with you." Xander snarled.
"Xander..." Willow started to speak, but Buffy interrupted her.
"He's right. You're staying with me tonight."
"Why? So you can insult me some more?" Willow's pain and bitterness were quite evident. "No thanks." She stood and allowed Angel to lead her towards the door. As they left, Giles saw his arm circle her waist in what was probably an entirely unconscious gesture. Giles turned to the others and glared.
"I hope the two of you are very happy with yourselves."
"Giles, you just don't get it...." Xander started, but Giles wouldn't let him finish.
"Oh, I get it all right." Giles looked at them with disgust and walked out.
End Part 2
Willow was exhausted, but she couldn't sleep. She lay on the bed in Angel's old apartment, staring at the ceiling. Angel had gone out to try and find out what was going on, and she was alone. She smiled bitterly to herself. The events of the afternoon kept playing themselves over and over again in her mind. Buffy had accused her of some terrible things: deliberately sabotaging Buffy's relationship with Angel, creating the link between herself and Angel, so that Angel would be forced to be close to her....In short, Buffy thought that Willow had calculated every move since she had first laid eyes on Angel. Xander had been no better. Willow sighed deeply and wondered how two people who claimed to be her best friends could think such things of her.
Slowly, the tears came. She rolled over to face the wall and buried her head in Angel's pillow, letting the sorrow and self-pity wash over her. She felt his cool hand stroke her forehead, and immediately felt better. Angel. She had Angel. How often had she come to him in the middle of the night (well, day actually) and found him crying from guilt, shame, and self-loathing? It seemed almost funny that he was using the same tactics on her that she had used to comfort him. Slowly her tears abated, and she felt him climb into the bed with her. One arm circled her waist, while the other gently lifted her head and rolled her over so that her head was pillowed on his chest. No words were needed, but Willow gently turned up her face and kissed him in gratitude before settling into a deep, dreamless sleep.
****
Willow, Giles and Cordelia spent the next day at the library doing research. In her line of work, Cordy had developed an affinity for numbers which helped immensely. Willow watched her and smiled inwardly. Who would have ever guessed that Cordelia Chase, Queen of Spring Fling and all those dedicated to fashion, snobbery, and the perfect cheer, would have ended up married to class clown Xander Harris and owning a successful business. Finally, they found the answer, and Giles went to call Buffy. When he was done, Willow took the phone.
"‘Lo?" Willow could tell that Angel wasn't quite awake yet.
"Sorry, dear. Did I wake you?" Willow used her sweetest voice knowing that it would irritate him. She was immensely tickled when all he did was growl. "Listen, we found something here and it's pretty bad. We're calling a meeting at the library for just after sundown."
"Are you sure you're up to it?" Angel's voice was full of concern.
"I can handle it. It's you I'm worried about."
"Me? Why?"
"Well, it turns out that we have to take care of....things....tonight." She didn't want to go into detail on the phone. "Giles, Cordy, and I have already made plans. I'm going to have to stay here and work a spell, and you are going to have to go hunt. Cordy says she'll talk to Xander, but I think we may be looking at the slight possibility of a stake in the back. Apparently he said some things...." She tried to keep her voice light, but he wasn't fooled.
"Do you really think he would...."
"I don't know." she sighed. "He's certainly mad enough and he blames you for everything."
"I may just have to have a talk with that boy." Willow could almost hear the demon in him trying to escape.
"Don't hurt him." she commanded.
"Awwwww, pleeeeeeease?" His abrupt shift in tone made her giggle.
"No." she said mock-firmly. "That's my job." The conversation ended with laughter.
****
"Why is it that the demons can never stay buried or drowned or frozen like they're supposed to?" Cordelia complained.
"I know, it's so inconsiderate of them." Willow chimed in. "I mean, here all of these monks and magicians, and priests went through all the trouble to bind them in the first place, you think they'd have the decency to stay put." The girls laughed as they continued to set up for the evening's activities. Unbeknownst to the others, Giles and the two women had already determined everyone's position in the drama that was about to unfold. Buffy, Angel, Xander, and Giles were going to go hunting, but in reality, they were merely a diversionary tactic. The real work would be done by Willow, who would be assisted by Cordelia. Their base would be the library and the purpose of the other four was to lead the vampires as far away from there as possible. Giles had worried about leaving them alone, but Willow had demonstrated some of the moves Angel had shown her. It had taken some doing, but he had finally been convinced that Willow could handle herself almost as well as Buffy, and was more than capable of protecting Cordelia. Willow knew it would be much, much harder to assure Angel of that fact. Meanwhile, she and Cordy spent the afternoon setting up magic "silent alarm" systems that would give Willow some advance warning of an attack. Finally, Willow could see the elongated shadows cast by the setting sun and knew that night was drawing near.
Buffy was the first to arrive. She stood in the doorway for a minute, simply staring at Willow, and then in an instant they were embracing.
"I'm so sorry. Please forgive me." she kept repeating over and over again. Willow simply nodded and shed a few tears. By the time Giles showed up, the girls were all chatting merrily. He was, as always, amazed at Willow's capacity for forgiveness.
*****
Meanwhile, as soon as sundown came, Angel found Xander and tailed him until they reached school grounds. Making sure that there were no easily available weapons, Angel stepped up behind him, clamped his hand over Xander's mouth, and dragged him off into the bushes. When he reached a suitable place, he quickly searched Xander and disposed of the stake in his pocket. Finally, he let Harris go.
"What the hell are you doing?" Xander's yell was a combination of anger and fear.
"I am making sure that you never, ever hurt Willow again." Angel hissed. Only then did Xander realize that the vampire had his "game face" on. He quickly took a step back, but Angel reached out and grabbed his arm. He grinned evilly as he saw the fear cross Xander's face.
"Now wait a minute....." he said, while trying to stay as far away from the fangs as possible.
"For what?" Angel asked quietly. "For you to go in there and continue being an insensitive jerk? What makes you think I'm going to let that happen?"
"What does it matter to you, anyway?" Xander's question stunned Angel.
"What does it matter? I love her, you idiot!" Angel barely controlled his impulse to smack the kid upside the head.
"Why do I have such a hard time believing that?" Xander's words shocked Angel badly.
"Why wouldn't I love her? Willow is a beautiful, intelligent woman who saved my soul...."
"So this is just a gratitude thing, huh? You know, ‘you saved my soul so I guess I'll put up with you for a while...'" Angel did smack Xander upside the head then, but not hard enough to do any real damage. Not, he thought to himself, that Xander had all that much to lose in the brains department anyway.
"Don't you ever say that again." he hissed. "Not to me and especially not to Willow. Do you know how hard it was to convince her that this wasn't gratitude or some magic bond talking? I love her more than anything on this earth and if you do anything to hurt her, I swear I will kill you."
Xander simply stared at the vampire he had hated from day one. "I would never do anything to hurt Willow." he said quietly. Angel laughed mirthlessly.
"Really? So all this talk about dusting me was just some big joke?" Xander recoiled.
"Well...."
"Understand something, Harris. We're physically connected. If I hurt, she hurts. If I die, she dies. So anything you do to me, you do to Willow. Got it?" Angel was stretching the truth a bit, but he didn't think Xander would notice.
"Got it." Xander reluctantly shelved his ideas on vengeance.
"Good. Now we have business to take care of." Without another word, Angel stalked off towards the library, barely remembering to restore his features to their human shape. Xander reluctantly followed.
****
Willow was looking through some of the pictures from Xander and Cordy's wedding when Angel walked in. He sat beside her, kissed her cheek, and draped an arm over her shoulders.
"Everything okay?" she asked quietly.
"Mmm hmmm." he answered. "Nothing to worry about."
"Except for Fontaine and the demon he's planning on raising." He hissed and stared at her.
"Please tell me that you didn't just say...."
"You heard me. Fonatine is planning on raising a demon tonight."
"Again with the demons." Xander sighed loudly as he entered the room. He walked over to Cordelia and whispered something in her ear. She smiled at him and they embraced. Willow suspected that he was apologizing to his wife, and smiled.
"I'm afraid so." Giles interrupted the interlude and sat at the table. Once they were all settled, the plan was discussed. As expected, Angel was not thrilled with leaving Willow and Cordy alone in the library.
"Listen to me." she tried to reassure him "The spell itself doesn't take all that much time and I'm strong enough now that channeling that kind of power won't knock me on my back for a week. I can protect myself and Cordelia. We'll be fine."
"I really hate to say this...." Xander said "but Dead Boy's right." Pointedly ignoring Angel's glare, he continued. "One of us should stay behind to take care of any nasties that try to get you."
"Who?" Willow asked in her most reasonable tone. "Buffy's the Slayer, she has to be out there. You and Angel are our two best non-Slayer fighters, and Giles has to go ‘cause he knows what the demon looks like. Besides, if things go as planned, you all will be providing a distraction. Fontaine and his gang won't even get near the library."
After much more discussion, the plan was agreed upon and final preparations were made. Xander and Cordelia went into the stacks for a private moment, and Angel took Willow into Giles' office. The shades were not totally drawn, so Buffy had a pretty good view of what was going on inside. She watched as Willow sat on the couch while Angel sank to his knees in front of her. From the expressions on their faces, she guessed that Angel was trying, one last time, to talk Willow out of staying in the Library by herself. Willow had her "Resolve face" on and Buffy knew she would not be budged. Angel held both of Willow's hands between his, and she could see that they both were crying. It was then and there, that she finally understood the depths of their feelings for one another. There was none of the pettiness or jealousy that had plagued her relationship with Angel from the beginning. Angel and Willow shared an emotional intimacy and trusted each other completely in a way that the Slayer and the vampire had never been able to achieve. Buffy had to admit to herself that she didn't know two people who were more right for each other. Still, it hurt a bit when she saw Angel reach up and pull Willow's head down for a tender kiss. She resolved then and there not to let that pain get in the way of her friendship with Willow ever again. After all, Willow would have done the same for her.
Finally, it was time to leave. Angel had to make a conscious effort to let go of Willow's hand, and there were tears in Xander's eyes as he said goodbye to his wife and child. The four hunters left the library and Willow and Cordelia quickly set to work. The spell was cast without incident, binding the demon in such a way that Fontaine could not release him. Willow was a little weak, but was not worried. Then, one of the silent alarms they had rigged began to go off...
****
"Son of a - " Xander staked the vampire that had just cut his arm and took a moment to examine the wound. "Oh God, the blood!" Angel gave his arm a cursory glance.
"It's shallow. You'll live."
"Yeah, but I'll scar."
"Xander, if that's the worst thing that happens to you tonight, consider yourself lucky." Giles was panting from a particularly vicious battle.
"Um, I hate to interrupt the pity party, but where'd all the vamps go?" Buffy looked around, but saw nothing.
"Maybe they got scared?" Xander's voice betrayed his worry.
"Maybe they figured out who rained on their little party." Angel's demonic features slipped into place easily and he began to run.
*****
"Cordy, go into Giles' office. Bar the door and don't come out!" Willow could hear the approaching vampires and was just putting the finishing touches on her arsenal.
"But Willow...."
"Go!" Without another word, Cordelia did as she was told. Willow took out the first two vampires that came through the door with her trusty crossbow. She then neatly doused the vamp that was trying to sneak up behind her with a pitcher of holy water. That left three. She grabbed her quarterstaff and began to fight, mentally thanking Giles for insisting that she keep up on with her training even after she left Sunnydale. Her staff had the distinct advantage of having pointy ends, and she was able to dust one before another hit her from the side.
****
Angel burst into the library just in time to see Fontaine tackle Willow. His fangs were coming dangerously close to her neck, when she rolled out from under him and kicked him in the stomach. A second vampire tried to grab her from behind, but was prevented from doing so by Angel's fist hitting his spine. Unfortunately, this had the undesired effect of pushing Willow forward into Fontaine's waiting arms. Angel tossed the unknown vamp back towards the others and heard his cries as someone dusted him. His eyes never left Fontaine or Willow. Fontaine had his hands wrapped around Willow's neck in a manner eerily reminiscent of the time Angelus had nearly killed her.
"Well, well. Looks like we're at a bit of a standoff here, doesn't it?" Angel growled and stepped forward but stopped when Fontaine tightened his grip and Willow squeaked in pain. "No closer." Angel watched helplessly as Fontaine began to back away towards the stairs. Willow was struggling to breathe and her face was turning red. He knew about the door in the stacks that led outside and he was sure that the other vampire was also aware of its existence. There was nothing he could do to stop Fontaine without putting Willow's life in even more danger.
"Willow..." he nearly sobbed. She cast him one last loving look, then her eyes closed and her body went limp. Fontaine chuckled and moved another step back. He never noticed Willow's arm rising slowly, and doubled over when her elbow hit him square in the solar plexus. She, very much awake and alert, pivoted and kicked him in the balls. From somewhere on her person, she grabbed a stake and when Fontaine finally stood up, plunged it into his heart. The vampire turned to ash and then there was nothing. Willow stood stock still for a moment, then began to cough, leaning heavily on the bannister. Angel reached her in two steps and held her. Finally, she regained her composure and began to brush the ash off her clothing.
"Have I ever mentioned" she said, smiling at him "that you have exquisite timing?" They both chuckled softly for a moment, then Willow's body stiffened.
"Cordelia!" she cried and ran over to the door to Giles' office. She tried to open it, but had no luck. She was reduced to banging on the door and it took ten minutes for Willow and Xander to convince Cordy that everything was all right.
****
An hour later, they were all sitting around the library table, indulging in a rare treat–take out Chinese food.
"So, Will," Xander spoke with his mouth full of food. "That was some pretty fancy movin' you did back there. Where'd you learn it?"
"Oh, I picked some stuff up from Giles, some from Selene, some from Angel...."
"But how did you manage to stay conscious?" Buffy asked.
"Well, when you kiss a vampire, you kind of learn how to hold your breath for long periods of time." Willow smiled at her friend and Buffy laughed in agreement.
"But if you're now such a fighter chick, how on Earth did you get shot?" Xander threw a napkin at her, then dodged when she, with much better aim, hurled a fortune cookie at his head.
"Accident, really. I was walking down the street, heard some people fighting behind me, and the next thing I knew, I had a bullet in my behind." she answered blithely then handed him a cup of water to ease his choking. She told the story and they talked into the early hours of the morning. Finally, Willow and Angel had to leave in order to be back to his apartment by sunrise. Buffy tentatively brought up the idea of them moving back to Sunnydale, but Willow and Angel both knew that to do so would place an overwhelming burden on their relationships with the people they loved the most in all the world. They declared their intentions to return to Los Angeles the next night, and after some tearful goodbyes, returned to Angel's apartment.
****
Willow lay down on the bed and felt Angel curl up behind her. She took his hand in hers and smiled.
"You're smiling." he said. She turned her head to see that he was propped up on one elbow staring down at her.
"Yes." she answered, quietly. "We defeated the bad guy, worked things out with our friends, and nobody got hurt."
"Except you." he murmured, fingering the bruises on her throat.
"But I'm not hurt." she protested. "See?" With that, she grabbed his shoulders and pulled him down for a deep kiss.
"No." he whispered into her ear. "You're obviously in good physical condition. Too bad I'm too tired to take advantage of that." She smiled at him and snuggled closer.
"Oh well." she sighed. "As Scarlett O'Hara said," she affected her worst Southern accent "‘Tomorrow is another day.'" The last thing she heard before she drifted off to sleep was Angel's laughter.
THE END