TITLE: Eternity
EMAIL: Drus1lla@hotmail.com
RATING: PG I think.
DISCLAIMER: The characters obviously don't belong to me because the last time I 
checked I wasn't an acid-tripping guy named Joss Whedon who likes to torment his fans!
SUMMARY: An alternate ending to the Angel episode, 'Eternity.'


Rebecca had never felt so terrified in her life.  She struggled with the elevator's 
mechanism, praying the machine would stop.  The elevator finally stopped and she 
struggled to pull the grate open and slip out the open end.  She let out a scream as 
something grabbed her leg, then stared in relief at Wesley and Cordelia.

"It's okay," Wesley assured her, helping her out of the elevator.

"Thank God!" she cried, Wesley setting her down.  "You have to help me, he's trying to 
kill me."

"You slut!" Cordelia said vehemently.  "You did it with him, didn't you?"

"Cordelia," Wesley warned, handing Rebecca his handkerchief to wipe the blood from 
her face.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Rebecca cried.

"What you did to him!" Cordelia said, completely enraged.

"I didn't do anything," Rebecca denied.

"With respect Miss Lowell," Wesley began.  "You must have done something."

Rebecca looked back and forth between the two people before her.  "Well I may have 
given him something to help loosen him up and now he's..."

"Loose?" Cordelia offered.
	
"Yeah."

"What did you give him?" Wesley asked, his brain working furtively.

"Does it matter?" Rebecca asked.

"Well if he's all homicidal, I'm thinking...YEAH!" Cordelia shouted.

"Doxymol," Rebecca answered.

"Doxymol?!" Wesley said stunned.

"Doxy-what?" Cordelia asked, confused.

"Powerful tranquilizer, it induces bliss," Wesley explained.

"Bliss?"  Cordelia looked at him, then back at Rebecca.  "As in BLISS?!  Sheer 
contentment, perfect happiness?!"  This was too much, she began to pace.

"It's synthetic," Wesley rationalized, "not true happiness."

"This is really good stuff," Rebecca added, watching Cordelia as she paced with her 
hands buried in her hair.

"He hasn't really turned," Wesley surmised.  "It's an illusion, not real."

"He bit me," Rebecca stated.

"Still, we might want to leave the premises for a while.  Just until the effects wear off," 
Wesley stated, helping Rebecca up from where she was
leaning against the desk.

"Well are you sure they will wear off?" Cordelia asked, fear lacing her voice.

"Reasonably sure," Wesley assured, his conviction slightly wavering.

The three people stood in the office, waiting for the inevitable.  Several minutes passed 
and nothing happened.  "Why hasn't he come in and tried to kill us yet?" Cordelia's voice 
trembled.

"You tell us," Wesley looked at Cordelia.  "You know him best."

"No," Cordelia said suddenly, looking from Rebecca to Wesley. "I don't.  Somebody else 
does."

"Oh God," Wesley's face fell.  "Try calling Giles now, I'll see Miss Lowell to her car.  
We'll leave immediately."

Cordelia nodded, reaching for the phone and dialing Giles' phone number.


Buffy sat with Riley, Willow, and Xander at the Espresso Pump, staring into her coffee.  
Riley was trying to patch things up between them, but she wasn't ready to, not yet.  She 
tilted her head slightly, ignoring the conversation going on around her.  She felt like she 
was being watched.  She turned back to the others, but it was still there, she couldn't 
shake it.  "I'll be right back," she mumbled, getting up from her seat.

The others got up to follow her as she slowly made her way down the street.  They were 
near the Bronze when the feeling hit her harder.  Buffy turned slowly, and there he was, 
partially masked by the shadows.

"Who is that?" Riley asked Willow, watching as Buffy walked towards the figure.

"That's Angel," Xander replied slightly confused.  "Last time wasn't he being Mr. 
Stealthy?"

"Yeah," Willow replied, equally confused.  "I don't get it."

Buffy approached Angel cautiously, something didn't feel right.  "Hey," she greeted him.  
"What happened to keeping our distance?"

Angel looked at her, contemplating the best approach.  "Something important came up," 
he finally decided.  She was looking at him oddly, almost like she knew.  He looked 
behind her at the redhead and Xander, and another guy.  He'd seen him before, the last 
time he'd been here in good old Sunnyhell.  He greeted the other two, then looked back 
to the blonde Slayer before him.

"So what's up?" she asked.  Something still didn't feel right.  As she stood there studying 
him in silence, it hit her.  "Oh God," Buffy whispered.

"I've been hearing that an awful lot tonight," Angel smirked.

"Angel," Buffy began, already putting more distance between them.

"Now you know better than that," he taunted.  "Oh, I know what you're going to say next, 
let me see if I remember it.  'This can't be you!'  That's what it was going to be, huh 
Buff?"

"Willow," Buffy began, still backing away from him.  "Get out of here, go to Giles!"

"You don't _really_ think I was going to let that happen again do you?"

Buffy ignored the other people behind her, keeping all her attention focused on Angelus.  
"I know you, better than you think I do.  You wouldn't want to pass up the chance to kill 
me, you came straight here."

"You're right Buff," he shrugged, moving closer to her.  "What can I say?  I just couldn't 
stay away from you anymore."

"Willow, go!" Buffy yelled, not turning around.  She heard footsteps retreating and knew 
that Xander and Willow had both gone to her Watcher.

The little half-smirk appeared across his face once more.  "What's wrong lover, didn't 
think I could come back without you?"

Buffy stopped moving, closing her eyes, trying to wish that this wasn't actually 
happening.  "If you're going to kill me, let's get started already.  I've got class tomorrow 
and I've found the teachers don't like it when you don't show up."


Riley moved cautiously around toward the vampire's back, pulling the stake he had 
started carrying out of his pocket.  The vampire's attention seemed to be focused on 
Buffy, he had the element of surprise.  He stopped short when he heard the word 'lover' 
escape the vampire's lips.  He had called Buffy that.  His mind quickly told him that they 
had known each other when the man had been human, that was the only explanation.  He 
raised the stake in his hand, poised to strike when the demon suddenly whirled on him.

Riley fell to the ground as his body was assaulted with several kicks and punches.  He 
hadn't even seen the creature move.  Pain resonated through every nerve as he frantically 
searched for assistance from any source.  He suddenly found himself hauled through the 
air, held against a building by his throat.

"So Buff, this is my replacement?  Didn't think the living were your type."

"Let him go, and deal with me," she answered, moving closer to try and protect Riley.

"Take another step and he dies," Angelus warned.  "I think your boy needs to learn a few 
lessons, the first of which is not to touch what isn't his."

Riley coughed as his body hit the ground once more.  He had never come up against a 
hostile he hadn't at least had a fighting chance with.  He really hadn't been prepared for 
the blows that hit him.  He felt the blood dripping down his face, and was fairly certain 
some of his ribs were bruised, if not broken.  He heard Buffy yell something, raising his 
head to see her and the vampire fighting.  He had never seen such a look of determination 
on her face before, this was not a fight she intended to lose.  He saw her raise the stake in 
her hand, and then she stopped slightly, and looked at the vampire in front of her.  "You 
can't do it," he heard the vampire sneer.  "You _still_ can't kill me."

Buffy quickly snapped a kick to Angel's head, followed by several punches before he 
finally dropped to the ground unconscious.  She backed away from him a few inches, 
dropping to her knees and burying her head in her hands.


Buffy sat in a chair in Giles' apartment.  Her knees were drawn in towards her chest, her 
forehead resting against them.  After she had knocked Angelus into unconsciousness, 
Wesley and Cordelia had shown up.  With their help she had managed to bring Angel's 
body here.  They had chained him upstairs to Giles' bed, and now everyone else was 
participating in a shouting contest.  She noticed that Riley was the only one voting on the 
stake through the heart, Xander surprisingly, wasn't on his side.

She closed her eyes, resting her head back against her knees.  She didn't know how long 
she sat there, or even what to feel right now.  It didn't surprise her in the least that 
Angel's presence made her question everything that she had come to know.  Especially 
her feelings for Riley right now.  Some tiny irrational part of her brain kept screaming at 
her not to forgive him, simply for the reason that he hadn't known it was Faith, and 
Angel would have.  She slowly opened her eyes as the tingling sensation that overcame 
her whenever Angel was around, flared to life.  She breathed
a sigh of relief, Wesley had been right.  His voice finally pierced her thoughts.

"Damnit!" Wesley shouted, his voice drowning out the others.  "We don't know what 
performing the ritual again while he still has his soul will do to him.  We can't do this 
until we are certain."

"And how do we get certain?" Riley shot back.  "Let's unchain him and let him try to kill 
me again!  I still don't see why you haven't dusted him already!"

The shouting erupted once more.  Everyone had an opinion on whether or not to perform 
the curse again.  Willow, Giles, Xander, Riley, Wesley, and Cordelia.  The only 
exception seemed to be Tara, who was quietly sitting in the corner clutching her 
spellbook to her chest.  She had come over to bring Willow some herbs that were needed, 
and possibly help if she could.

Buffy slowly got up, and quickly made her way over to the table where Willow had been 
setting up the Ritual of Restoration.  She knew right now there was nothing she could 
possibly say that they would listen to.  They couldn't understand that she knew he still 
had his soul, she could feel it.  Without saying a word, she picked up the Orb of 
Thessulah and hurled it against the wall.

The Scooby Gang and Riley all stared at Buffy in varied stages of shock, looking from 
the Slayer down to the Orb that now lay shattered on the floor.  She turned away from 
them, and headed up the stairs to Giles' bedroom.  Buffy stood at the foot of Giles' bed, 
looking down at the face she still loved.  He stirred slightly, opening his eyes to find her 
watching him.

"Hello lover," Buffy whispered.

Angelus smirked at her again.  "I always knew we'd get to chains, I just pictured it a little 
differently.  This works too though."

"Angel," Buffy began quietly.  "This isn't real.  You've been drugged."

"I know," he growled.  "Looks like you're not the only one who can make me happy.  
Although last time I saw you, well the me with a soul saw you, we didn't need the chains 
or the drugs.  You _really_ liked the kitchen table though."  His smile grew when he saw 
her brow furrow in confusion.  "Oh, that's right you don't remember.  That's the thing I 
never understood about my soul, the need to protect you.  I would've
preferred to stay human and fuck you, but look where we are now!"

Buffy backed away from the bed, tears streaming down her cheeks.  A clear image 
flashed in her head, of Angel holding her in his bed.  Her own words rang inside her 
head, *I'll never forget*.  She choked back a sob, realizing that the dreams she had been 
having recently were actually memories.  She turned away from the cold smile on his 
face, heading down the stairs to the group of people who were waiting.


The seven people in the room looked at one another, silently wondering what was going 
to happen next.  Cordelia bit her lip, then cleared her throat.  "She hasn't said a word 
since we found them."

Giles removed his classes, pinching the bridge of his nose, attempting to ease the stress.  
The last hour of shouting had only succeeded in giving him a headache.  He looked 
around at the others, deliberating over what would be best to say.  "This isn't easy for 
her.  Instead of all the arguing that just took place, we could've simply asked Buffy 
whether or not Angel still possessed his soul."

"How would she know?" Riley asked.

The others exchanged glances, opting to keep silent and let Giles handle the tough 
questions.  "It's a quite long and complicated story, better left for another time.  
Shouldn't you go to the hospital or something?"

Cordelia couldn't help the giggle that escaped her throat.  "Yeah, looks like Angel really 
did a number on you."

Wesley smiled at her, then looked back at the others.  "Yes, well.  As is evident by 
Buffy's actions, I would say that Angel is still in possession of his soul.  As soon as he 
wakes, I think it would be good if we left."

"Oh yes," Cordelia added. "The less time they spend around each other, the better off we 
are."

"Gotta agree with you there," Xander deadpanned.

"There's must be something we can do," Willow interrupted.  "I'm thinking it would be 
good for the helping of people, if he wasn't trying to eat them."

"A spell of some sort?" Wesley asked.

"Like a who cares if he gets happy kinda thing," Cordelia suggested.

"We should've thought of this before," Giles sighed, moving to clean up the ritual.

"I think," Tara began.  "I might have a spell."

Willow turned to look at her friend who had been quietly observing the entire scene.  
"Like a binding spell?"

"In a way," Tara answered.  "I wrote it a couple nights ago."

"You wrote it?" Giles questioned, moving closer to Willow and Tara.

Tara looked up at them.  Very aware, and unnerved, by the fact that she was now the 
center of attention.  "I had a strange dream, and when I w-woke up, the spell just sort of 
wrote itself.  It's a binding of two souls, it should help your friend."

"Binding two souls together?" Cordelia raised her eyebrows in question.  "Like, bind 
Angel's soul to somebody else?"

"Yes," Tara answered.  "It's a pretty powerful ritual.  I think Willow and I can handle it, 
but..."

"But what?" Xander asked.  "I'm not liking the sound of the but."

"It requires b-b-blood," Tara practically whispered.

"Well we have..." Giles began.

"Human blood," she amended.

"You may use mine," Wesley offered.

"I think it has to be somebody specific," Tara announced, flipping through the pages of 
her book.

"How come?" Riley asked, intrigued by what was going on around him.
	
"Well, the w-wording of the ritual.  L-listen to the way it's phrased," she continued to flip 
through the book.  When she found the page she was looking for, she began to read.  "Let 
the two who are one in spirit, now become one in blood.  Where once it healed his body, 
let her blood now bind his soul."

The Scooby Gang was silent.  There was only one person who could possibly do this 
ritual.  In the long run, it would be a great help.  But did they have the right to even ask 
her to do it?  The two of them had gone their separate ways, moved on.  Doing a spell 
like this would bring them even closer than they had been before.

"That doesn't tell us anything," Riley sighed, sitting down at the table.

"Actually," Wesley said, moving behind Tara to read over her shoulder.  "It tells us 
everything we need to know."

"How?" Riley asked.  "I mean, whose blood do you use for this?"

"Mine," Buffy answered.

Everyone turned to look at her, they hadn't even heard her come down the stairs.  The 
expression on her face was unreadable, not letting any of them know what she was 
thinking or feeling.  Her eyes were red, her skin marred by tear streaks.

"Are you all right?" Giles asked, his concern evident.

"He just," Buffy began.  She slowly exhaled, pausing to calm down.  "Deja vu."

"Are you okay?" Willow asked gently.

"I'll be better when he's himself again," Buffy answered.

"What did you mean your blood?" Riley asked.  "And it's a vampire, it's not a person!  
What happened to killing the demons?"

"You wouldn't understand," Buffy said, her voice low.

"Why would you say that?" Riley persisted.

"Oh I don't know," Cordelia snapped.  "Maybe it's your whole demons bad, people good 
mentality."

"Cordelia," Wesley warned her with his tone.

"What?  He wants to dust our boss, I have a problem with this.  You should have a 
problem with this."  She turned to the Scooby Gang and then specifically to Buffy.  
"_You_ should have a problem with this."

Buffy looked around at the others.  "I do have a problem with this, and I'm the solution."  
Her gaze wandered over to Tara and Willow, who were looking over the necessary 
materials for the spell.  Her eyes met Willow's, and the Slayer simply nodded her head.  
The two spellcasters immediately went to work.

"You can't be serious," Riley moved in front of her.  "I can't believe you're willing to do 
this!  You're going to help a vampire!  You can't do that Buffy!"

"I can't?"  She looked up into Riley's face, noticing the confusion there.  "I'm the only 
person in this room who actually can do this."  She sidestepped him and joined Wesley in 
looking over the spell.

"Why you?!" Riley demanded.

"Giles, do you have a white candle?" Willow asked.

"R-r-right, a candle.  Buffy, I think that you should..."

"Giles, not you too."

"They have a point Buffy," Wesley interjected.  "You and Angel have gone your separate 
ways.  It is quite admirable that you're willing to help him after everything, but this isn't 
going to be like last time."

"Right, he's not dying this time," Xander sneered.  "He's just the soul-less murdering 
bastard he once was.  Hey, maybe he'll actually kill you this time!"

"And it's still my decision, just like it was last time."  Buffy wiped at her tears, laughing 
bitterly.  "You thought he forced me, didn't you?"

"I'm not siding with them here, it's great you're being helpful and all," Cordelia 
stammered.  "But, Buffy, he won't hurt you.  We all know that."

"He'll do it," she whispered.

"Buffy he's not weakened by poison this time," Wesley stated.

"The drugs haven't worn off yet," she cut him off.

"He'll do it," Cordelia quickly agreed.  "Are you sure you know what you're doing?"

"No, but it'll help him," Buffy answered.

"We're ready," Tara whispered.

Buffy swallowed and took the goblet that Tara held out to her.  She saw the other people 
staring at her, waiting.  "I don't need an audience here," she commented.

"Of course," Giles quickly began ushering everyone but Willow and Tara outside.

Riley moved next to Buffy once more.  "Don't do this Buffy."

Buffy looked him directly in the eye, "Go home Riley."  She watched the group as they 
walked to the door, then turned to Tara.  "What do I do?"

"Drink this, it will help protect you.  Once it's inside you, the magic will start.  Willow 
and I will ch-chant while Angel dri-drinks from you.  Then you have to drink from him.  
That's it," Tara explained.

"But won't I?" Buffy began.  Tara and Willow both shook their heads.  "The potion?"  
The response came in another nodding of heads.  "How will you know when to start the 
chant?" she asked.

"The candle," Willow answered.

Buffy took a deep breath then lifted the chalice to her lips, drinking deeply of the fluid 
within it.  Her eyes widened in shock, her breath coming out in a gasp as the potion 
quickly traveled throughout her body.  Her mind felt cloudy, she couldn't even 
comprehend that there were other people still in the room.  She felt someone, she wasn't 
sure whether it was Willow or Tara, take her hand.

Tara took Buffy's hand, poking her finger with a straight pin.  A single drop of blood fell 
from Buffy's flesh and onto the wick of the candle.  "Let this candle be our guide," 
Willow and Tara softly chanted together.  The white string immediately burst into flame, 
and then the wax of the candle itself turned a deep blood red.  Buffy staggered away from 
them, slowly making her way up the stairs.


Buffy and Angel's eyes were locked on one another, whatever magic Willow and Tara 
had begun to weave was already affecting him as well.  She went through the motions of 
unlocking the chains, unable to take her eyes off his the entire time.  Her heart was 
pounding in her chest, her desire for him rising each second she was in his presence.  
Angel could feel his hunger for her rising, unable to control it.  He tried to tell her, warn 
her to get away from him, but couldn't do it.  He felt the demon take control, then pulled 
her to him roughly.

Her chest was heaving as she looked up at him, a small gasp escaping her throat with 
each rise and fall.  He felt her hand reach up and caress his demonic features, her fingers 
coming to rest against his lips.  He saw her head slowly tilt back, exposing her throat.  He 
opened his mouth, and moved in toward the pulsing vein in her neck.

Buffy heard his roar of pleasure as Angel sank his fangs into her throat, and could not 
suppress the moan of ecstasy that escaped her own lips.  She wrapped her arms around 
his shoulders, burying her fingers in his hair as he continued to nurse the blood from her 
neck.  Angel's arms tightened around her, trying to pull her even closer than she already 
was.  They fell onto the bed together, Angel landing on top of Buffy.  She arched her 
body towards his, wrapping her legs around his waist.

Her hands roamed over his back, caressing every inch of him that she could reach.  She 
heard herself moan loudly again as he continued to drink.  Buffy arched towards Angel 
once more, wishing the barriers of their clothes would disappear.  He growled in 
response, grinding his hips against hers.

Angel pulled away from her momentarily, taking only enough time to rake his nails 
across his jugular vein.  Buffy latched onto it immediately, drawing the thick red liquid 
into her mouth.  She tasted the mixture of their blood flowing over her lips, swallowing 
down their essence.  They broke away from one another, drained from the intensity of the 
ritual being performed.  Angel kissed her tenderly, before collapsing into sleep beside 
her.


Xander, Riley, Giles, Cordelia, and Wesley had all paused at the door, watching the 
candle sitting between Willow and Tara in fascination.  They all looked towards the 
ceiling when they heard Angel roar, followed immediately by a moan of pleasure from 
Buffy.  The flame of the candle leapt into the air, seeming as if it were in reality, the 
flame of a blowtorch.

Willow and Tara immediately clasped hands, "Let the two who are one in spirit, now 
become one in blood.  Where once it healed his body, let her blood now bind his soul."  
Their voices melded together, their purpose never wavering.  The two Wiccans shook 
under the strain of the Magic.  Neither one of them had ever experienced something like 
this while casting a spell before.  Their eyes both widened as the energy surrounded and 
then passed through them.  The candle burned down to nothing, before finally snuffing 
itself out and surrounding them in a hazy blue smoke.

"Did it work?" Cordelia asked timidly.

"Wow," Tara whispered.  She stared at Willow, who like her, was still shivering.  "That 
was..."

"Yeah," Willow agreed.

"What happened?" Riley demanded.

"It was just, really," Willow started.

"Intense," Tara finished.
	
"But did it work?" Wesley asked.

"I think so," Willow answered.

"It felt like it," Tara agreed.  "I mean that was.  There was a l-lot of power."

"Between the two of them," Giles sat down next to Willow.  "I'm not surprised."

"Why?" Riley looked around at the other people.  He knew Tara was as new to the group 
as he was, but she still seemed to know more.  "What is going on?"

"There is a lot, that you need to hear, from someone who is not any of us," Wesley 
stammered.

"There's history," Xander amended.  "That everybody here, except you and Tara were a 
part of.  That enough for you?"

"Xander," Giles said tersely.  "Like I said before, it is a long tale, and now is not the 
time."  He turned to Willow and Tara.  "Are you certain this worked?"

"The only way we'll know, is when they come down here, for certain," Willow answered.

"I don't see how it c-couldn't have," Tara added.  "It was a spell for the soul, and with the 
amount of power that passed through us... it had to work."

"What does it matter if it was a spell for the soul?" Riley practically shouted.  "He's a 
vampire."

"With a soul," Willow said with more fierceness than she had intended.
	
"What difference does that make?" Riley looked at all of them like they were insane.  
"He's a demon."

"You experienced the difference first-hand," Wesley explained.  "Without his soul, Angel 
is one of the most vicious creatures ever to walk the earth.  With it, he is one of the most 
formidable warriors against the forces of darkness."

"Let me explain it a little simpler," Xander quipped.  "The soul makes him care, he has 
the soul we're safe.  He doesn't have the soul, we're dead."

Cordelia looked around at the others, wondering why they were explaining anything to 
this guy at all.  "Didn't Buffy tell you to go away?"


Buffy slowly opened her eyes.  She moaned slightly as the pounding in her head only 
seemed to intensify.  She felt different somehow.  The complete feeling was there, but 
that was probably because Angel was lying next to her, his arm possessively around her 
waist.  She brushed her fingertips over his hand that was lying on her stomach, thinking 
that if she touched him the dream would be over and he would disappear.  She let out a 
sigh of relief as Angel said her name in his sleep.  Buffy pressed a light kiss to his 
forehead, then slowly extricated herself from his grasp.

She was fairly certain that the spell had been a success, but she needed the reassurance 
that only Willow and Tara could give her right now.  As she made her way down the 
stairs, the cacophony of voices made it apparent that the entire group was still very much 
there.  That was all she needed right now, to have this imminent talk with Riley in front 
of everyone.  Cordelia's annoyed tone was not lost on her as Buffy paused on the last 
step,
"Didn't Buffy tell you to go away?"

"Cordelia," Buffy cut her off.

"Buffy!" Willow jumped up from the table and was immediately at her friend's side.  
"Did it..?"

"I think so," Buffy answered the unfinished question.  The Slayer looked around at the 
familiar group of faces, stopping at Riley.  She saw the confusion and pain on his face.  
She knew there was no possible way he would ever understand why she had done what 
she did.  No matter what happened since he had left, she still loved Angel.  She always 
would.  The last time she had seen him, he had ended up sacrificing so much for her, so 
much she hadn't been allowed to remember.

Not a part of her regretted what had happened just moments ago.  She didn't know what 
the ritual meant for the future.  Maybe their future wouldn't even be together, but at least 
there wouldn't be any more surprise visits from Angelus.  "I think it worked," she said 
again.  I feel different."

"Different how?" Giles asked.

"I don't know if I can explain it," Buffy replied.

"Try," Riley said, bitterness and anger lacing his voice.

The Slayer moved to sit down on the sofa, swaying slightly on her feet.  Her former 
Watchers immediately moved to help her.  They looked at her, concern etched over their 
features.  "I'm okay," Buffy told them.

"Should we take you to the hospital?" Wesley asked.

"No hospitals," Giles answered.

"Buffy you're hurt," Riley insisted.

"I'll heal," she sighed, leaning her head against Giles' shoulder.

"The Slayer and hospitals don't mix," Willow supplied, leaning over her friend.  She 
smoothed Buffy's hair away from her neck, cringing slightly when she saw the bloody 
wound.  "Sorry," she apologized, cleaning the bite.  Buffy relaxed against Giles once 
more, keeping still as Willow finished her doctoring.

"Come on, what're the odds that death will be there again?" Cordelia joked.

"Yeah, you broke its neck the last time," Xander added.

"Yes," Wesley agreed.  "Nice job on Der Kindestod."

"Almost like old times, isn't it guys?" Buffy looked around at the Scoobies.

The eight people in the room turned their heads to the door as it flew open.  Spike 
sauntered in, not even looking around at the others.  "Rupert, I think I..."

"When did he get invited?!" Cordelia demanded.

"Cordelia," Spike laughed.

"Well hey," Xander immediately picked up.  "It wouldn't be like old times without Spike 
here right?!"

"The part where he can't hurt anybody is new though," Giles agreed.

"How come I didn't get invited to the party?!" Spike smirked at them.  "Ey Soldierboy," 
he moved past Riley to join the others.

"Well," Xander got up.  "I'm going to go, Anya doesn't like to be kept waiting.  Give 
Dead Boy my regards."

"Angel's here?" Spike asked, moving over next to Willow.  The redhead smiled up at him 
as he put his arm around her.  He returned the smile, loving the fact that she was his.  The 
two of them had slowly become closer, she was even now looking for a spell that would 
somehow deactivate the chip in his head.  Giles and Xander hadn't been happy about the 
fact.  The Slayer hadn't either at first, but had finally come around, realizing she wasn't 
one to talk about getting involved with a vampire.

"You and Spike?!" Cordelia asked, completely bewildered.

Willow understood Cordelia's disbelief, at first she hadn't been able to understand her 
feelings for the platinum vampire either.  But now it was almost as if she couldn't live 
without him.  It wasn't what she had with Oz, she knew that.  It was very new, and 
wonderful.  Neither one of them had been looking for it, but the attraction between them 
was there and undeniable.  She knew when Spike promised her something, it was a 
promise he would keep.  "Yes Angel's here," she answered him.  "And yes, me and 
Spike."

"You've been working magic, Pet," he observed, able to sense the power still radiating 
off her.  He turned to look at the Slayer, something was different about her.  "You're 
wounded Buff."

"We bound their souls together," Willow filled him in.

"What happened to the staying away for her own good bit?" Spike scoffed.

"He was drugged," Buffy answered.

"You mean Angelus was around and I missed it?!  Bloody hell.  Looks like he had fun 
with you," Spike sneered at Riley, who was still breathing hard.  The soldier boy's face 
was a mass of cuts and bruises, and Spike silently thanked his Sire for doing what he 
himself couldn't at the moment.

"Even he knows more than I do!" Riley was hurt and angry.  There was so much going on 
around him, that no one was willing to give him the answers to.  "Buffy what is going 
on?  Why did you say that you were the only one who could do that ritual?!"

"That's obvious," Spike answered.  He smiled at the soldier boy's confusion.  Spike 
looked at the others, he saw that Tara, Willow, and Buffy knew what he was about to say.  
The Watchers probably did too.  "A spell for the soul, can only be done between two 
soulmates."

Riley's face fell as he took that piece of information in.  He looked from Buffy to the 
others, none of whom seemed the least bit surprised by that knowledge.  His gaze 
wandered back to her, the woman he suddenly realized he still barely knew.  She was 
leaning against Giles, who had a comforting arm around her, her eyes closed.

"I'm going to go too," Tara said suddenly, getting up from the table.  "I'm glad I could 
help your friend."

"Thank you," Buffy whispered.  Tara smiled at her, and nodded, waving goodbye to the 
others as she went.

The tension in the room was thick, nobody knew what to say.  She knew Riley was still 
watching her, waiting for an explanation she was not ready to give.  If she let him know 
that she still loved Angel, she had to ask herself the question why she had started seeing 
Riley at all.

"So what happens now?" Cordelia asked, looking around the room.

Buffy's brow furrowed as the memories assaulted her once more.  The memories of a day 
that never happened, but did.  She remembered asking Angel that very same question 
right before time folded and she was no longer in the comforting circle of his arms.

	*'The Oracles are giving us back the day, turning back time so I can kill
	  Mohra before his blood makes me mortal.'
	 'When?'
	 'Another minute.'*

"Buffy?" Giles shook her shoulder slightly.  He looked down at his Slayer, she seemed to 
be lost in her own private world at the moment.

"What?" she asked.  She saw everyone was watching her, waiting for an answer.  "I don't 
know what happens now," she replied.  "I just don't know."

"I can't believe you did this," Riley said again.

"Oh great, here we go!" Spike sneered.  "Listen pet, as much as I'd like to stick around 
for the ensuing dramatics there's better things to be done.  I'll
talk to the poof later.  Ready to go Red?"

"Sure," Willow answered.  She gathered up her things, then took Spike's offered hand.  
"I'll see you back at the dorm Buffy."

The Slayer nodded her head, then watched as her best friend and Spike left together.  The 
two of them had already begun to kiss tenderly as soon as they were out the door.  Buffy 
wished things were that simple with her life.  Now they could be.  There wasn't really 
anything standing between herself and Angel.  The curse was no longer an issue, the spell 
had seen to that.  She raised her gaze, and saw Riley was still staring at her intently.

"Did you do this just to hurt me?" he asked, looking down at her.  "I apologized for what 
happened with Faith, I don't know how many times I can say I'm sorry."

"Faith's awake?" Cordelia asked quietly.

Giles nodded affirmatively, watching Buffy as she got up and crossed the room.  "We 
don't know where she is now," he answered.

"I'm gathering her awakening was not a pleasant experience," Wesley commented.

"Far from it," Buffy answered.  She looked over at Riley as she spoke her next words, 
"For me at least."

"Buffy," Riley said her name, moving toward her.  "I'm sorry for what happened, I am.  I 
should've known but I didn't, nobody did.  If the whole audio enhancement earlier 
tonight was to hurt me it succeeded."

She sidestepped him, moving toward the front door.  "This wasn't about revenge, and it's 
not the time or place to talk about the past.  This was about helping Angel."

"It's true what Spike said, the thing about soulmates?" he asked through a clenched jaw.

"Yes it is," she answered.  "That's how Angel would've known it wasn't me.  You didn't 
know, but he would have."

"He's a vampire Buffy."

"When is he going to stop saying that?" Cordelia sighed.  "Please, like we don't know 
he's a vampire?  In case you didn't catch it before, Angel has a soul.  Hence the 
soulmates thing, cuz he has one."

"I know who and what he is," Buffy said calmly.  "I don't need you to tell me."  She 
scrunched her forehead in confusion.  "Audio?  What are you talking about?" she asked 
as she looked at the others.

None of them met her gaze.  "Well you..." Giles trailed off.

"It seemed..." Wesley also began.

"You two didn't?" Cordelia asked.  "I mean cuz it sounded like...."  Buffy cradled her 
head in her hands, embarrassment washing over her completely,
then simply shook her head.  "Well that's a relief then," Cordelia admitted.  "Then you 
guys just did the blood sucking thing?"  Buffy could only nod her head again.  "Leave it 
to the two of you to get off on that."

Giles, Wesley, Riley, and Buffy all looked up at Cordelia.  "Thanks Cordy," Buffy 
snapped.

Riley shook his head, then looked at her again.  "So this is done and we can get back to 
normal right?"  He looked over at Buffy who still wouldn't even look at him.  He held out 
his hand to her.  "So let's go then."

She looked at his outstretched hand for a moment, then back down towards the floor.  She 
looked around at the others, then suddenly her gaze flew up to the ceiling.  It was as if 
she could actually feel Angel waking up, like every inch of her own body was just 
waking up as well.  Silently, she turned away from Riley and went up the stairs.


Angel sat on the edge of Giles' bed, his head in his hands.  He could feel her coming up 
the stairs.  He was certain that if he closed his eyes, he would
actually be able to see what Buffy was seeing.  The taste of her was still in his mouth, her 
rich, sweet, magical blood was once again coursing through him.  He didn't look up at 
her as she stood before him.

Buffy saw him sitting there, looking lost and alone.  But neither one of them could ever 
be alone again.  They were more a part of each other now than they ever had been before.  
She walked up to him, standing between his parted knees.  He finally looked up at her, 
his sorrowful gaze meeting hers.

She reached a hand out, cupping his cheek.  "I'm guessing that expression isn't because 
they were all out of fresh O.J. at the deli."

Angel's head fell back down to resting against her stomach, as her words from their 
stolen day escaped her lips.  "You remember," the low sound escaping his throat was 
barely more than a whisper.

"Not exactly," she answered.  Buffy knelt down in front of him, making him meet her 
gaze.  Her hands were resting on his thighs, holding onto him in any way she could.  "I 
dreamt about it, and earlier you..."

"I'm sorry," he cut her off.

"What for?" Buffy asked, her voice quavering slightly.

"For tonight," Angel swallowed down the tears that threatened to escape.  "For hurting 
you."

"It didn't hurt Angel," she admitted.  "Actually," she began, unable to look at him for fear 
of his reaction.  "It felt good.  I don't know what I was supposed to feel, but it wasn't 
pain."

Angel looked up at her in slight disbelief, but also in wonder.  That she would risk her 
life for him again, after he had left her, after she had moved on, made him love her even 
more.  He tentatively took one of her hands in both of his, pressing her fingertips to his 
lips.

Buffy drew in a shaky breath, relishing in the feeling of his skin touching hers.  The last 
time they had seen one another, the day he had been human, a simple touch had led them 
to experience the all-consuming love for one another they had been denied for so long.  
The memories from that day would not leave her mind as she brought her free hand to 
rest on his broad shoulder.

Angel kept his eyes locked on hers as their emotions quickly escalated.  He knew he 
could not touch her like he was without pulling her down into the bed.  He knew that the 
spell that undoubtedly Willow had performed, was an assurance that he would retain his 
soul.  He knew it because Buffy knew it.  And they both knew exactly what the other 
wanted, only each other.

Their lips were mere inches apart, Buffy leaning in towards Angel when she felt his cool 
breath against her lips.  "People downstairs," he quietly reminded her.

"We should go..." she replied, desperately trying not to start what they couldn't finish 
right there.

"Somewhere else," he finished her sentence.

Buffy couldn't help the delighted smile that broke over her face when she realized he 
wasn't going to fight this.  They were soulmates, meant to be together, bound to one 
another for Eternity by love and blood.  They stood up together, Angel towering over her 
small frame.  "We'll just go straight out the door," she whispered, walking backwards 
toward the stairs.  Angel nodded quietly, quickly scooping her into his arms, heading 
down the staircase, past the four shocked faces in the living room, and out the front door.


"What the hell just happened?" Riley demanded of Giles, Wesley, and Cordelia.

"They finally came to their bloody senses," Giles answered.

"Let's go home Wes," Cordelia called.  "I have a feeling we're going to have a guest for 
well, ever."

Wesley smiled, following Cordelia out the front door.  "I'm sure you're right," he replied.

Riley stared at Giles in astonishment for a few moments, before turning and quietly 
leaving.  It was obvious not only to him, but to everyone around him, that Buffy was 
exactly where she wanted to be.  In the arms of the vampire she loved, and who loved her 
back.

The End