Part 1

* Well, that was fun.  Angelus thought as he strode out into the
night.  * Buffy's, such an air head.  I bet she hasn't figured out
what just happened in there.  He smirked, thinking back on her
reaction to his appearance and their subsequent conversation.  Her
face was so expressive, the pain and anguish on it was a sheer joy to
behold.  It was good to be back.

He scanned the night around, sensing a familiar presence and his
chocolate colored eyes caught sight of hair the color of rich blood.
* Well, well, if it isn't the darling, little redhead hacker.  What's
she doing way out here and all by her self?  His curiosity was further
aroused when he saw her heading towards the bus station and caught
sight of the bag that was slung over her shoulder.  He followed her
into the station and stood behind her.  "Hello, Willow."  His voice
was low, full of intent.

She jumped and turned around, looking up at him reproachfully.
"Angel, you shouldn't do that to a person.  And what are you doing
here?"

"I think the question, Willow, is..."  He pulled her out of the line,
"What are you doing here?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?  I'm leaving."  She tried to move
away but his grip tightened.  "Let go, Angel.  I'm not staying."  She
surprised him when she jerked her arm away with a strength he hadn't
thought she'd possessed.

"Why are you leaving?"  Angelus asked, following behind her.

"N. O. Y. B."  Willow showed no intention of continuing their
discussion, so he quit speaking.  At least for the moment.  "One on
the bus leaving the soonest."

"Make that two."  He paid the man and accepted the tickets, pocketing
them.  He walked away, she followed, trying to stop him so she could
get her ticket away from him.

"You can't go with me!"  Willow exclaimed, frustrated with his strange
behavior.  He blocked her attempts at retrieval.  "Buffy and the Judge
and Buffy!"

Angelus rolled his eyes.  "Willow, I don't belong to Buffy.  And I'm
sure that Giles can find a way to stop the Judge.  Right now I'm more
concerned with you."

"Don't be.  It isn't worth your time."  She snagged her ticket with
the deftness of a professional pick pocket and boarded the bus,
conscious of him behind her.

He was amused, this was a side to Willow that he'd only seen once
before and he liked it.  "Willow..."

"Can it, Angelus."  Willow glared at him and sat down defiantly.

"Angelus?"  He raised an eyebrow in a silent question to her.

"Yes, Angelus." She emphasized the last syllable of his name, then
ticked of the differences that she'd noticed between the Angel she
knew and the Angel that was with her right now. "Come on, I'm not on
idiot.  Angel was never this concerned about me.  He was never callous
or cruel to or about Buffy-even when he was trying to stay away for
her own good.  And he never had the confidence to wear leather and
satin."

"If you're clever enough to have figured out the truth, then you're
clever enough to know that *I* won't be pushed around.  Even by you,
cute though you are.  Move over like a good little girl."  There was
an authority in his voice that she automatically responded to.  "Now,
why are you running away?"

She turned around and stared out the window, resolutely ignoring him.
+ Meddling vampire.  Why couldn't he leave me alone and be like the
diaries describe him?  Utterly ruthless and wholly absorbed in his own
pleasures.

"Upset about something, my own dear heart?"  He asked, innocently,
earning a vicious glare from her before she turned back around.  * If
looks could kill, I'd be dead.  Oh, wait.  I'm already dead.  "Tell
your dear Uncle Angelus what's robbed the smile from your face,
sweetling."

She snorted and turned towards him.  "Why are you doing this, Angelus?
There's no point to it.  Buffy and the others don't care, they won't
even notice I'm gone until they need me for something."

"Why is that?"  From what he could tell, their friendship was a solid
thing.  A source of strength to Buffy, the one thing that set her
apart from other slayers and made her a worthy opponent.  But the look
on Willow's face made it all to clear that all was not sunshine and
roses for the Scooby gang.

Her laughter was harsh, cold.  "You mean I'm *not* the last one to
know about Xander and Cordelia's relationship?  They've been
'together' since the Order of Taraka went after Buffy.  Although
Xander says they were 'just kissing' and that 'it doesn't mean
anything.' If I hadn't walked in on them, I would never have found out
and they all *knew* about them.  And none of them valued me or my
friendship enough to tell me what was going on!"  Pain laced her words
and they had an odd effect on Angelus.  He felt a sudden urge to go
and hurt all those that had hurt her, not kill them but push them to
the very limits of their pain endurance.

"None of them, not even Buffy told you?"  He asked, quietly.  She
shook her head, struggling not to cry.  Angelus was even angrier, it
had puzzled him for years that humans could come down upon demons and
yet hurt one of their own in ways that they couldn't. "I don't believe
it.  They come down on demons like holier than thou preachers and then
turn on one of their own like vipers.  Those spineless,
cowardly...what?"  Her shocked look stopped his words.

She tried to find words to describe what she was feeling.  "You.
You're not what I expected at all. Certainly nothing like the
Watcher's Diaries described you to be.  I was expecting someone who
didn't care about anyone else.  Someone with an absolute passion for
destruction and hatred.  Someone who wouldn't be on the bus next to me
going to who knows where.  And I don't know why you're bothering, no
one else does.  If this is some elaborate scheme to get at Buffy, it
won't work.  She doesn't even respect me enough as a friend to tell me
what's going on.  And if it's to turn me into a vampire, forget it. I
did a spell that will keep me dead after I die, although it has
extended my life span and dramatically slowed down my aging.  So,
unless you actually care about me, I fail to see what you could
possibly gain from staying with me.  And I'm talking to much, aren't
I?"  She was blushing and gasping for air.

"No.  I rather like to hear you babbling, it means you're comfortable
with me.  As for why I'm doing this, I have no idea.  Maybe there's
nothing in Sunnydale that is holding my attention.  I get bored
easily."  He turned in the chair and studied at her through hooded
lashes.  His hand trailed across her face and played in her hair.
"You know what?  I don't think you'll bore me, Willow."

She wasn't sure if that was a compliment or not and was too tired to
care at that moment to think about it.  "Just no biting, okay?"
Willow whispered, leaning into the caresses of his hand.

"Not unless you bite first."  He agreed, pulling her to him and gently
forced her head to rest upon his shoulder.  She stared up at him with
wide eyes, he realized that he'd never noticed before that they were
green.  A deep green like emeralds-or the green of his homeland.  A
sudden wave of homesickness passed through him.  "Don't worry, Willow.
I'll behave.  Now, rest."

She finally drifted off, wondering why she was trusting him to keep
his word. Willow was aware of one thing, Angelus was not going to let
her leave him to try to stand on her own, and she wasn't all that sure
she wanted to be alone.  + When did my life get so complicated?  Her
final thought before drifting to sleep was an uncertain now what?

Angelus wondered about his behavior, * must be the soul's influence.
Why couldn't that wimp choose a worthier woman for us?  Before he
allowed himself to fall asleep, he scanned the bus and was relieved to
find that he would be in no danger from the sun.  * She must have
figured that I wouldn't leave since I didn't choose these seats.  He
worried about her wanting to go for food without him, he didn't quite
trust her yet. * I'll worry about that later.  He thought before he
went to sleep.
 

Part 2
Title: Who Are You, Really?

The bus drove through the night without any trouble and stopped in the
morning at a gas station.  It was a gray and rainy morning, Angelus
awoke with a start and looked around.  For a moment, he was puzzled,
both by the warm body beside him and by where he was. Then the night's
events flooded into his mind.  He looked around and saw that many of
the passengers were still asleep, including Willow, he noticed with a
relieved glance.  Angelus eased her away from him, gently resting her
head on his jacket.  He rubbed his neck, the chairs on the bus weren't
the most comfortable but he'd had worse.

Angelus walked into the store and looked around, he knew from one of
the infrequent conversations he'd had with Willow that she liked
cinnamon doughnuts and chocolate milk.  He picked up some, along with
some cherry pop tarts, plus a few snacks, and an ice chest to keep the
drinks cool, then paid and got a little snack for himself.  He took
care not to kill the man, just enough blood to last him a few hours.

Willow woke up a few minutes after he'd, noticing that she wasn't as
comfortable as she'd been before.  She looked around, Angelus was
gone.  + So, he finally came to his senses, about time.  She thought
with a touch of bitterness, someone sat beside her and she shook off
her thoughts.  Willow glanced up at her new seat mate and was
surprised to find the very object of her thoughts there.

He caught the surprise in her glance before she could look away and
smiled, amused by her amazement.  "Thought I'd left, didn't you?  But
where's the fun in that, baby?"

"I don't know."  She sniffed and starred at the ground, silently
fuming that he found her situation hilarious.

"Don't sulk.  That's more Buffy's style than yours."  Angelus ordered,
but there was no real threat in his tone.

"I'll sulk if I want to. This is *my* party you're trying to rain on."
Willow retorted, trying not to laugh at his comment about Buffy.

He sighed, rolling his eyes.  "Willow, you're acting like a child."

"Compared to you, I am a child, old man."  Willow quipped, her eyes
flashing.  He hissed at that last comment.  "Oh, stop.  I'm not afraid
of you."

"Is that so?"  He narrowed his eyes and studied her intently.  For
someone who liked to stay in the background and hide, she had a real
fire and smart aleck attitude.  He'd never let her know but he was
enjoying this.  "Why aren't you afraid of me?  You know who and what I
am."

Willow gulped and shied away, she was beginning to think that she
shouldn't have started this battle.  He came closer, his eyes meeting
hers.  They revealed nothing while hers were showing signs of rising
panic-panic she was trying to stop. "Could it be that you believe that
Soul Boy is still somewhere inside me, Willow?"  His fingers brushed
out the tangles in her hair.

Willow tried to stop his hands but, once again, he evaded her
attempts.  "Maybe, a little."  She conceded.

"Thought so."  Angelus nodded.  He was a little preoccupied by the
feel of her silky hair running through his fingers.  It had been quite
sometime since he'd felt anything so soft, so heavenly.

"But you can't blame me, you aren't acting at all like the Angelus the
Watchers' Diaries talk about.  You are but you aren't, and that didn't
make any sense at all."  Willow spoke up before he could continue.  It
was finally sinking into her head that he really meant her no harm.
It was a strange feeling to be able to relax around Angel, even if he
wasn't exactly Angel.

"Willow, get this straight, Angel is gone.  I am here to stay."  He
shook her gently to emphasize his words.  "Understand?"

"Yes, sir, Mister Angelus, sir."  Her hand flew over her mouth and her
eyes widened in fear but he just laughed.  She relaxed.  "May I have
my head back, sir?"

"Sure, brat.  Do you want it attached or in a gift box?"  Angelus
waited, curious to see how she'd respond to that.

She pretended to think, her head tilted to the side.  "Try attached.
I think I look better this way."  Her tone was dry but her eyes were
amused.

He had to admit, if only to himself, that he agreed with her.  "Oh, I
don't know.  Why don't we try it and take a survey using our fellow
passengers?"  He smiled suggestively.

She giggled, rather enjoying their strange conversation.  "And how
would you explain that to them?"  She took on a haughty tone,  "Excuse
me, my fellow travelers, but my companion here seems to have lost her
head.  We were having a difference of opinion and I thought that we
should get your opinions on this topic as well.  So, what do you
think.  Does she look better with or without her head?  Personally, I
favor the silent version of her."  She added in a confidential
whisper, then she resumed a normal tome of voice.  "Besides, you
aside, I don't think a corpse makes all that entertaining a traveling
companion."

Angelus couldn't stop laughing, once again this little girl managed to
surprise him.  She kept an innocent expression on her face. "Was it
something I said?"

He finally regained his composure and glared at her.  "You know very
well what you said, imp."  Angelus playfully pouted, "You spoiled my
fun."  But there was a twinkle in his eye, so she wasn't that worried.

"Where did you go?"  She asked after a few moments.  The bus had
finally pulled out onto the highway, they were on the road again.

Angelus handed her the ice chest.  "Here."  She opened it and squealed
when she saw the contents.  "I take it you're pleased."

"Pleased?  You know what, Angelus?"  She impulsively hugged and then
kissed his cheek. "I'm beginning to be very happy that you decided to
tag along."

Angelus was reeling from that simple contact.  He'd never in his whole
existence, had anyone do anything like that to him.  His father had
been very stern and his mother followed in his footsteps.  As for his
sister, by the time she'd been born, he'd been too involved in his own
life to care what happened to her.  And after he was vamped, things
like that never seemed to matter.  He caught Willow's inquisitive look
and shrugged out of his thoughts, shelving them away for dissection
later.  "Thanks, I think."

"You're welcome, my Angelus."  Willow turned the tables on him once
again with her flirtatious tone of voice.  Her eyes danced with
laughter, then sobered up.  "What's the matter?"  She asked softly.

"Nothing, princess."  He smiled reassuringly at her.

"Cause if you're freaked out about what I just did, don't be.  I'd
kiss perfect strangers if I was happy.  It's just that no one, not
even my parents ever did anything so considerate for me.  I just can't
believe that you would do anything so…"

He looked at her, waiting for her to continue.  She'd gone awfully red
and he had a sneaking suspicion he knew what she'd been about to say.
"So, what?"  He grinned at he wickedly.

"Non-demonic?"  She tried hopefully.

"Nice try."

"Neat?"

He tsked.  "I don't think so."

"Like Angel?"  She was running out of ideas and she knew it.

"Didn't was already cover that?"   Angelus mused and looked at her in
amusement.

She heaved a deep sigh and mumbled something.  "What was that?"  He
cupped his hands around his ear and leaned closer.  "I must be losing
my hearing in my *old age* because I didn't quite catch that."  He
emphasized his words and she flushed.

"I said sweet."  Willow ducked her head, hiding behind her hair.

"Sweet?  Like chocolate perhaps?"  He teased her, glad to be back on
more familiar ground.  "Go to sleep, Willow.  You didn't get enough
earlier."

She leaned up against the window, blocking out the sun that seeped
through the clouds and entered the bus. Willow stared at him, trying
to figure out what his game was. The motion of the bus and the
emotional roller coaster she'd been on for the last few days drew her
into sleep's embrace, before she fell asleep she mumbled something.
"Maybe dark chocolate.  The sinful, really bad for us, stay away from
kind."

* She looks like a kitten, all curled up and fuzzy.  He narrowed his
eyes as he studied her.  * Definitely going to have to do something
about that wardrobe of hers though.  She needs a whole new look since
she's traveling with me.  So while Angelus planned for their future
and Willow dreamed, the bus drove out of California and across Nevada.

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