AUTHOR: Tisienne Blue

E-MAIL: tisatko@msn.com

DISCLAIMER: I own nobody except Serena... everyone else belongs to their respective companies/ producers/ creators...

NOTES: X-over fic for Natty's b-day... Buffy/Angel/Highlander/Pretender... for my purposes, the totally suck fifth season of Highlander never happened... Um, *****= change of
scene/location, and ~~~~~ indicates passage of time within a segment...

RATING: I'm hoping for a hard R... we'll see...

PAIRINGS: W/Methos; W/A; Serena/Jarod...

DISTRIBUTION: Charity can have it, of course, as can anyone I've said yes to before... all others, ask and ye shall receive...

FEEDBACK: gets you a dedi...

DEDICATIONS: Nat (duh...*giggle*); also Gems and Julie... thanks girlies... also to the CO people... luv ya, sweetlings...*g*

&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*&*

<< China Club, Paris--- 9:30 pm >>

Willow was feeling incredibly good when she and Angel walked through the front doors of the club. It seemed that sometime between when she had left the apartment with Adam that
morning, and the time she'd returned to change and go out again, with Angel this time, her friend had managed to rediscover the fun version of himself. Gone was the brooding,
depressive persona; the guilty, angst-ridden moping. He'd been amusing and attentive all the way from their apartment to the club, and somehow... the thirty-five minutes she'd just
spent with him had felt more like a date than the entire day with Adam had.

She wasn't entirely sure of just how she felt about that in the long run, but for the moment, she had decided to just go with it... see what happened. Besides, Angel was her friend; he
wouldn't want her to feel badly that there were so many more attractive women around, so that was probably the reason for all the attention he was lavishing upon her. She shrugged
out of her coat, grinning up at him when he took it from her. Her breath caught for a moment when she saw the swiftly-hidden look in his eyes, and she mentally gave herself a good
shake. She was imagining things... she had to be. Because there was no way that Angel had been looking at her with... desire?

Her smile trembled a bit, and her eyes followed his back as he turned to check her coat, and his. She almost sighed out loud as he slipped the long black duster from his shoulders. He
was wearing a blue silk shirt with a pair of razor-creased black slacks that fit him to a nicety, and the way he moved was... Friend! Willow reminded herself. Angel equals Friend! OK, so
gorgeous, perfect, guy-type friend who she really wouldn't mind seeing naked, but... eeep! She could feel her face flushing bright red at the unexpected thought, and she groaned to
herself when he chose that particular moment to turn back around.

Angel pocketed the claim ticket that the girl behind the coat-check counter gave him, and turned around to see an amazing sight... the little witch was blushing brighter than he'd ever
seen anybody blush before. He could actually smell the blood just below the surface of her skin, and it smelled... just like it had tasted the day before... sweet, and fruity, and
altogether... wonderful. It was almost intoxicating, especially with the slight tinge of... he looked more closely at her, his nostrils flaring slightly as he took a deeper breath, trying to nail
down exactly what it was that he was smelling, because it couldn't be... desire, could it?

He shook his head slightly, even as he noticed the slight dilation of her pupils, and the suddenly fast, shallow breaths she was taking. His lips started to twitch into what he hoped would
be a come-hither smile, only to twist into a frown when she shot her gaze behind him, and greeted the bastard of a cab driver that she'd spent the entire day with.

Willow couldn't believe that she had actually been lusting after her friend... even worse, she'd gotten caught, and by him! She almost wanted to turn and run from him, but she knew
he'd only follow after her, asking questions, until she finally told him the truth... and she didn't want that. She didn't want to see the pitying look in his eyes when he tried to find some
nice way of telling her that they were just friends... that that was all they'd ever be. She had allowed herself to be swayed by the way he was acting, even thought she knew that it was
just him being nice. She started to pull her eyes away from his when she caught, on the very edge of her vision, a familiar form approaching them. "Adam!" she cried out, relieved, "I'm
so glad you're already here!"

Angel watched, barely holding onto his human face, as the girl he wanted so badly went to hug the other man. He knew that he was growling, low and deep in his chest, but right at
that particular moment, he didn't care. Mostly, he was angry. He hated the thought that the passion and desire he'd seen in the little redhead just a moment earlier had obviously been
for the man she'd spent the day with... it wasn't fair! After all, that Adam jerk had just met her, whereas he had known her for years! Of course, he sighed to himself, most of his ire
bleeding away at the realization, if the girl HAD wanted him, she'd had plenty of time to let him know... No, he finally saw, Willow just didn't see him that way. It didn't matter if he was
funny or stoic, happy or brooding, he was just Angel... her friend... and he hated it. But nowhere near as much as he hated Adam at that moment.

For his own part, Methos was almost shocked speechless by the redhead's greeting. Somehow, during the course of the day, he had come to the conclusion that Willow and Angel were
a good bit more than friends. Maybe it had been the way she'd glowed when she put his sweater on for the first time, or the soft tone of her voice when she'd called him on the phone...
it might even have been the way her conversation had been peppered with 'Angel and I...' and 'Angel thinks...' and even 'Angel once told me...' But whatever it was, he had been sure
of their involvement when she'd insisted upon going home, adding that she would be going to the club with her 'friend'.

Of course, he might have been wrong, he decided as the girl's arms wrapped around him in a hug... Or not, came the unwelcome thought, as he caught just the barest tint of gold in
the vampire's otherwise brown eyes. "Yes, well..." he finally said, stepping back from the girl, "I, ah... I spend a lot of time here. My friend Joe's band plays here, I... I thought I told
you?"

Willow smiled, her mental equilibrium regained. "That's right, you did! It must have just slipped my mind in all the excitement..." She blanched slightly. "Of being in Paris, I mean...
not any other excitement, because, hoo, boy! No excitement here. Nope, nada, zip... not excited at all..." She cringed a bit at how silly she knew she must sound. "And, OK, shutting
up now..."

Methos glanced, amused, at the girl before transferring his gaze to the tall vampire who had just stepped up behind her and was, at that moment, running his hands lightly up and
down her bare arms. "Does she do that a lot?" he asked curiously, smiling when the vampire laughed.

Angel found himself in a rather awkward position. He had spent the better part of a day and a half hating the other man in his Willow's life, but Adam didn't seem to be pressing
whatever advantage he might have had... in fact, he was standing as far away from the redhead as politeness would allow, and somehow doing it without letting the girl see it! Of
course, she hadn't been around anywhere near as long as he had, so maybe she wasn't tuned to picking those sorts of things up. "Not a lot," he finally responded, laughing aloud at the
almost stunned look on Adam's face, "But not infrequently, either. It's one of her many endearing traits." His hands slowed in their stroking of her arms as he realized what he had just
said. "Uh... you know, like... eating everything but the pizza crust, then going back and eating it anyway... it doesn't necessarily make sense, but it's very... Willow."

Methos nodded slightly, finally understanding what was going on with the redhead and the vampire. The two of them had been friends for so long that they were each afraid of telling
the other how they truly felt. It was sad, but... ultimately it would work in his favour. The trick was going to be in not clue-ing the girl to her friend's feelings by accident... or the vampire
to Willow's. "I'll have to take your word for it, then, seeing as we've just met..." He continued to speak with the tall vampire for a few moments, amazed at how personable the man
could be when he wasn't feeling threatened, and finally took the two of them inside to his table by the stage.

Willow was caught between being mortified that she'd babbled at Adam, and being thrilled by the way Angel was touching her. Oh, sure, she knew that it meant nothing to him, that
he was just being comforting, but... the coolness of his hands against her heated skin was... she couldn't decide whether it was soothing or arousing... maybe it was both. She smiled to
herself when he described her tendency to run off at the mouth as endearing, and was completely surprised that he knew how she ate pizza. She almost moaned when his hands
began to move more slowly on her skin, and she decided on arousing... definitely arousing. She fought the urge to lean back against his silk and linen clad body, thanking any gods
that might be listening when Adam turned and led them into the main room of the club.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

<< the streets of Paris--- 9:45 pm >>

Jarod sat in the back of the long limousine, Serena held against his side with one strong arm. "So. You travel like this every time you're in Paris?" he asked playfully, knowing she
didn't.

The redhead smiled, her green eyes sparkling. "Only when I'm with someone I want to impress..." she said silkily, gazing at him from beneath her lashes.

He chuckled for a moment before responding. "The car doesn't really impress me, Serena... Now that thing you do with your tongue..." He grinned at her while she tried to suppress her
giggles. "Laugh if you will, Ser, but I didn't think that it was physically possible to do that once, much less repeatedly..."

Serena grinned back at him, her thoughts taking a decidedly wicked turn. She glanced quickly at her watch. "Damn!" Her eyes latched on to his, holding his brown with her own green.
"If I didn't have this meeting to go to, I'd have Jacques drive us around for a while, but..." she sighed deeply. "Later?"

Jarod swallowed hard at the look in her eyes. "I..." he started, before swallowing once more, "I'm counting on it..."

"Good," she said, "Then I'll..." her voice trailed off, and her face suddenly took on a far away expression; Jarod sat silently, having seen it before.

After less than a minute, she snapped out of it and reached for the cell phone Jarod was already holding out to her. "Thanks, love," she said distractedly, not noticing the look on his
face at the endearment. She hit the six on her speed-dial, and waited for barely a moment until the line was picked up. "Larry. It's Serena. I want you to sell Yo-Yo-Dyne... No, all of it.
Because I said so! No... no... Look, Larry," she finally snapped out, "You work for me, not the other way around, so... Do it!" She sighed deeply. "Larry," she said sweetly, "Have I ever
been wrong before?... That's right. Now, sell!... Thank you, Larry." She flipped the cover closed and handed the phone back to the man beside her. "I swear, sometimes it's like pulling
teeth!" She glanced quickly at him, her gaze arrested by his stunned expression. "J?" she said softly, then "Jarod? What is it, love, what's wrong?"

He shook his head slowly, his mind spinning rapidly out of control. "I... you..." He shook his head again, almost afraid to look at her.

"J, please," she breathed, concerned, one palm cupping his cheek, "You're scaring me, love... tell me what it is!"

He closed his eyes and breathed deeply for a few moments, one hand rising to hold hers to his face. "It's..." he finally said, "Why did you call me that..."

Her brow furrowed for a moment as she replayed the last few minutes in her head, her eyes widening when she realized what she'd said... what she'd done. Shit! "I... force of habit?"
she tried, fairly certain that he wouldn't buy it.

His eyes opened, boring into hers. "Try again." he said bluntly, still holding her palm against his face.

"I... oh, hell..." she sighed. "It was an accident, Jarod. I didn't mean to..."

"So it was a mistake," he said, not wanting to let her see his disappointment, "And you didn't mean anything by it..."

Serena sighed deeply, wishing that she could lie and agree with him. But she couldn't; it wasn't her way. It was one thing to lie by omission, quite another to just flat out deny the truth.
"Not exactly," she finally said. "I... calling you that... love... I hadn't intended to say it, but... I do..." She sighed again, wrenching her hand away from him. "And I know that's not
something you're looking for here, but... I can't help it!" She glanced quickly out the window, gathering her thoughts. "How could I, J? Huh? I mean, you're... everything!" She looked
back at him, angry. "From the first moment I met you, I knew that you were going to be important to me... that you'd be my world... I didn't know that I'd love you, though, or at least...
not like this! And it's all your fault, anyway! You just had to be all good, and kind, and smart, and wise! All justice-seeking, helping the defenseless and abused... How could I NOT fall
in love with you?" She looked away again, refusing to let herself cry. "Why couldn't you be mean, or an asshole, or just a regular piece-of-shit guy? Why'd you have to be all... perfect?"
She stopped herself then, knowing that there was nothing else to say.

Jarod could feel his heart leaping in his chest. She loved him... was IN love with him, in point of fact. It wasn't anything he'd ever expected to hear from her, but... "So it's my fault,
then... I made you love me..." he stated, more than asked, and, "Good." he said when she nodded, her back to him.

"Good?" she echoed, surprised, as she turned to look at him. "Good?" she said again, confused.

"Good." he said intently, staring deep into her eyes. "I wanted to know who to thank, and since it's me, I guess I don't have to owe myself one..."

Serena stared at him, her eyes wide. "I... I don't... understand... You... but..." She shook her head slowly, doubt and confusion clear in her expression. "Huh?"

Jarod laughed aloud, reaching out and grabbing her hand as he pulled her back across the seat. "I think I've loved you since I found you dead in that alley." He pressed a finger to her
lips, stopping her protests. "You were dead, Serena. I know. I've been a doctor a few times... I can tell when a person's dead. Hell, I even saw the bullet wounds... and I saw them heal."
He pulled his finger away, freeing her mouth, and stared deep into her eyes. "I don't know exactly what you are, and I don't care. That stopped mattering to me months ago. I know that
you're Serena, and that's a wonderful thing to be... I know that you never go anywhere unarmed, and I know what you've told me about your past, and your family. And sure, I hope that
someday you'll tell me the rest of it... the things you've kept back, or were afraid to say, but until then, well... no pressure."

There was so much that she wanted to say, but she couldn't, partly due to the large lump in her throat, and partly because that was the moment that the car stopped outside of the
China Club, so, "We'll talk tonight..." she said, getting out of the car.

Jarod got out right behind her, and swiftly reached out, pulling her back against him. "Oh, we'll talk," he murmured softly, his lips against her ear, "But not tonight..." He chuckled a bit
wickedly, delighted with the way she was trembling against him. "As I recall," he reminded her, "We already have plans for... later..." He grinned as he released her, and smiled even
more when she reached back for his hand and led him inside.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Joe watched Methos and his two guests from his usual spot by the bar, completely unsurprised that the girl the immortal had been so excited about seeing was the same Willow
Rosenberg he'd been so gung-ho about protecting. He smirked as he watched the girl's 'friend' manoeuver himself between her and 'Adam' yet again. It was almost sad, really. This
Willow was the first woman Joe had seen his friend be truly interested in in a long while, and she was apparently already taken, even if she didn't know it yet. He switched his gaze to
the girl's oh-so-protective 'friend', and found that he liked what he saw. The man was dangerous, there was no doubt about that, but Joe had the feeling that the barely restrained
violence he carried for all to see would only be unleashed for good reason... say if someone threatened his 'friend' Willow. He also appeared to have a gentle side, which was readily
apparent every time he so much as looked at the girl. He had to agree with what Methos had said the night before... whoever this guy was, he wasn't Angelus.

Angel had felt the man's speculative glances, and after sneaking a glimpse of the one doing the staring, he knew that it wasn't anyone he knew, so he did the last thing he'd have
thought to do, even an hour ago... he asked Adam. "Uh, there's a guy at the bar who's been staring at us for the last fifteen minutes..."

Methos smiled slightly, taking a sip of his beer. "Old guy, gray hair, beard? Look on his face like he's not sure that he approves of any of us in general?" he asked nonchalantly.

"I don't know about old, but yeah, the rest fits..." Angel tried not to laugh at the cab driver's all-too-accurate description, but a chuckle slipped out none the less.

"That's Joe." Methos announced.

Willow sat up straighter, her eyes drawn to the wizened features of their observer. "Quite the Watcher, isn't he?" she murmured in an aside to Angel, not noticing the way that Adam
stiffened at her words. "I bet he and Giles would get along great... they could discuss the best methods of eavesdropping, then record each others' thoughts for the Council..." She
giggled slightly, the two glasses of wine she'd had in the last quarter hour making her a bit more giddy than usual. "I miss Giles..." she said sadly, her laughter suddenly gone. "And
Xander, and Buffy... I even miss Anya, ex-demon that she is..." She sighed, leaning against Angel's side. "Can I call them when we get home, Angel? Just to let them know I'm OK?"

Angel wrapped his arm around the girl's slender shoulders. "Of course, sweetness... you can call them any time you like!" He grinned down into her eyes. "And you're right, Will, I think
Joe over there would get along with Giles, too."

Methos couldn't believe what he'd just heard. He knew, of course, that Willow had spent a great deal of her time back home with her little group of friends, and that one of that group
had been the librarian at her high school, but... the man, Giles, was a Watcher? What exactly was he in Sunnydale watching? Or, more precisely, who? He'd thought that he was the
only one who'd figured out who Willow was, but now it looked as if maybe this other Watcher... But no. If the man had known, he never would have let her leave town... But what had
the girl meant when she said one of her little friends was an ex-demon? He didn't think that was even possible! And how did the vampire know about the Watcher's Council? He shook
his head slowly... too many questions, and no answers in sight. He stood quickly, smiling slightly at their surprised glances. "I'm going to invite Joe to join us, OK? I think he'd really
enjoy meeting you both." He turned and walked towards the mortal, not waiting for a reply.

"Joe." he said in greeting, signaling the bar-man for another beer.

"Methos." Joe replied, equally deadpan. "So that's the vampire, huh?"

"Yeah," the immortal replied slowly, taking the beer that was handed across the bar. "Although I've got to say, he's not really... normal for his kind."

"Oh." The gray-haired man gave his friend an annoyed look. "OK, then." He shook his head at his friend before looking once again at the table. "That Willow's a looker, though..."

Methos grinned, taking a sip of his drink. "That she is, my friend, that she is."

"Wonder why they're not together, what with all that sexual tension going on there... I mean, you could practically cut it with a knife!" Joe looked, amused, at the suddenly sputtering
immortal. "What? Just because I'm mortal, I have to be blind, too?" He was just starting to work up a good tease on his friend when he saw the man suddenly assume a 'listening'
expression. "Oh, good. She's here." he said, softly adding to himself, "This ought to be interesting..."

Methos could feel his eyes growing wide when he saw Serena enter... with a man! It was obvious that whoever her companion was, it was no casual thing. He could tell, he knew her
ways. She was walking at his pace, and holding his hand, but the real tip-off was the way that she couldn't seem to keep herself from looking at him... even while she was watching the
crowd around her, light though it was, it still being early and all, she kept glancing at him from the corner of her eye... and he was doing the same to her. He hadn't seen her act like
this in a good long while, and for it to be with a mortal, well... he just couldn't credit it. He stood there, next to Joe, completely speechless as she approached. It wasn't until the two of
them got closer that he felt it, and understood. "Serena," he said jovially, forcing himself to at least sound happy, "Who's your friend?"

She stared at him for a moment before turning to the mortal man beside him. "Joe!" she said happily, giving him a quick one-armed hug, "How are you?"

"Much better now," the man said smoothly, "Glad you could make it."

"Well, when you said it was about Angelus... Oh, this is Jarod! Jarod, meet Joe Dawson, blues man extraordinaire!" She smiled into Jarod's eyes, her thumb rubbing gently across the
back of the hand she still held. "He can coax sounds from a guitar that you'd swear were impossible!"

"It's nice to meet you, sir," Jarod said, shaking the older man's hand.

"Just call me Joe, Jarod... I haven't liked the word Sir since 'Nam."

Jarod nodded. "Joe it is, then. So, Serena tells me you'll be playing with your band tonight?"

"Yeah," the gray-haired man replied, deciding that he liked Serena's young man... there was something... interesting about him. Like he could see inside you and understand where
you were coming from. "But first, I have to talk to these two for a few minutes, so... if you'll excuse us?"

Jarod nodded. Serena was in Paris on business after all. "Of course, Joe..." he started, only to find himself cut off by his redhead.

"No." Serena spoke up, "I want Jarod in on this, too... Just trust me."

Methos shared a swift look with Joe. Neither of them was terribly sure about the wisdom of that, but... Serena usually knew what she was doing, so... "Fine," the immortal said, starting
towards the door to the small back stage area, "But if he flips out..."

"He won't." the redhead said as she followed the immortal, Joe trailing right behind.

End--- Pt 5

next