By Ducks
WARNING: Contains some pretty Hot Stuff - not suitable for younger readers...
Summary: What if Angel's curse hadn't held the famed "no complete contentment" rider? What would the moments and days after Buffy and Angel... ehem... got pelvic... have been like?
If You haven't seen the end of Season 2, then this is a spoiler... these scenes are based loosely on what transpired in Innocence, from before Angel's collapse in the rain, on...
Notes: Unabashed A/B gushing, here! Utter rip-offs from Innocence are intentional and this is the credit - The episode was written by Joss Whedon, the transcript by AleXander, referenced at the Transcript Archives. Only the happy B/A bits and the new Jenny/Kalderash conspiracy were thunk up by me...
Standard Disclaimer - Don't sue, I'm poor!
His lover... he couldn't believe he was thinking those words together, after so long believing he never would again... and to think that his lover was this wonderful woman, this incredible person... Buffy had given him a gift greater than she imagined, tonight. He could almost laugh at his long-time hesitation to touch her... The fear, the rush of near-death that they had experienced had pushed their passion to the breaking point... all his discretion went straight out the window. Since the beginning, he had avoided being so close to her, fearing the worst. Instead, what he had gotten was the best.
He lay back, folding his hands behind his head on the pillow, staring at the ceiling. He recalled the sound of her whispering his name... the soft warmth of her lips, her sweat pooling between their bodies... gods, how he loved her. He turned his head to look at her again. A little snore escaped her lips, and he couldn't help but chuckle. Incredible... incredible... his heart soared. Which was an odd thing in itself, considering his heart didn't even beat..
He wanted to laugh hysterically... to jump out of bed and dance a jig the likes of which he hadn't done since he was a mortal... he actually, physically, felt alive. He felt warm with her residual body heat, and energized from the exertion of his own body. He almost believed, for a moment, that Buffy had brought him back to life.
But hadn't she? Maybe not in the physical sense, but certainly in the metaphysical... when, in 250 years of being a vampire, and close to 100 having a soul, had he ever felt more happy, more safe, more loved? Or happy, safe and loved at all?
He rose, pulling on his slacks, and moved to the kitchen. Opening
the refrigerator door, he considered the bags of blood hanging
there. He was hungry... famished, actually. He chuckled softly
and grabbed a bag...the act of drinking blood was ironic, considering
his feelings at the moment... his feelings of being alive...
******
Buffy woke slowly, reaching her arm across the bed. She blinked
her eyes open when she realized Angel wasn't there. A brief moment
of panic, and then she heard him moving about the living room.
She smiled, stretching her tired body. The days ahead would be
challenging, to say the least. There was Druscilla and Spike to
worry about again, not to mention the horror that was the Judge.
She sat up and rotated her shoulder, a reminder of what they had
been through last night.
Last night... Buffy closed her eyes and let the images... the good ones... pass through her mind... everything would be different now, she could feel it. For now, she didn't have to be afraid...The Judge and the vampires would be defeated... she and Angel could face anything that came, together. She luxuriated in a rare moment of peace and joy.
She got up and put on the shirt Angel had given her the night before. She poked her head around the corner to spy him sitting, feet propped up on a rollaway desk, staring out into space. She smiled again to herself. He was so beautiful... a half-smile played across his lips... he sighed deeply, happily. She felt her heart surge full of love for him... all the trouble behind... all the trouble ahead... they didn't matter at all, right now. She came fully around the corner, standing in the middle of the room, saying nothing, only cocking her head to one side...
It took him a moment to leave his reverie, but Angel did turn to look at her. He flashed her the biggest smile she thought she had ever seen on his face. She had to smile broadly in return...
"Hey." He said, softly, "How does it feel to be 17?"
She came over and sat sideways on his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck. There was a new closeness between them, now... a feeling of oneness she had never experienced, and if he had, he didn't remember...he put his arms around her and held her close.
"Much like 16... only warmer." She lay a soft kiss on his lips. He loved that warmth... how moist and soft her kiss always was... after a long few moments, he pulled away, to look deeply into her soft, green eyes... he was overwhelmed, and speechless. She returned his intense gaze, smiling...
"I love you", they said simultaneously, and laughed.
No words passed between them again for several hours.
*****
Even on the trip to the library that evening, Buffy hardly
had anything on her mind besides the feeling of Angel's hand in
hers as they walked. She knew there were things they needed
to be concerned about, things they were very shortly going to
have to face, but she didn't let the thoughts get any more detailed
than that.
Angel caught her looking at him and tugged her to his side.
He was worried, too, but the day of bliss they'd shared made him
think there was no blue skinned, indestructible creature in all
the dimensions that he couldn't face. He kissed the tip
of her nose, making her giggle.
They entered the library to find a room full of glum, worried faces.
"Hey, all!" Buffy cried, cheerfully.
Willow jumped up. "Buffy!" She cried.
Xander piped in, "We were just going to rescue you!"
Willow shot a nasty look at Giles. "Well, some of us were..."
Giles looked sheepish. "Well, I... I would have."
"Good to see you all, too." Buffy said, "Nice to know you all have so much confidence in my abilities..." She took a seat at the table, Angel standing behind her. He casually placed his hand on her shoulder. Willow was a little surprised, sensing something new between them, but she couldn't quite figure what.
"Ohhhh..." She whispered to herself, getting some clue. Buffy gave her a Shut Up! look.
Cordelia slid off the checkout counter. "So, what happened?"
"The Judge, is he..." Giles asked, not sure if he
wanted to hear anything but, 'completely harmless'. However,
considering Angel was standing before them
Buffy frowned. "No assembly required. He's active."
A collective shocked gasp rose amongst those gathered.
Giles whispered, "Oh, damn it..." and compulsively removed his glasses.
"He nearly killed us. Angel got us out." She reached up to touch his hand.
"Why didn't you call? We, we, we thought..." Giles stammered.
"Well, we... we had to hide. Uh, we got stuck in the sewer tunnels..." her mind raced as she tried to avoid telling the assembly where they had spent the night... she suppressed a smile... and what they were doing there.
"We have to stop the Judge." Giles went on, oblivious.
"I know." Buffy replied, thinking
"What can you tell us?" Giles probed.
"Not much. I, um... I kicked him. It was just like a sudden fever. If he'd got his hands on me..."
"In time, he won't need to. The stronger he gets, he'll be able to reduce us to charcoal with a look."
Buffy nodded in agreement. "Also? Not the prettiest man in town." Angel chuckled, causing Xander to snap his head around and knit his brow.
"I'm glad you think this is funny, Mr. I'm-Gonna-Live-Forever..."
Angel glared at him without response.
Giles disregarded the exchange. "I better continue researching, must look for a weak spot."
Jenny spoke for the first time, hoping her true feelings didn't show, "I'll... uh... go on the 'Net and search for anything on the Judge." She wanted to keep an eye on things, considering her ploy to get rid of Angel had failed miserably. She chewed the inside of her lip nervously.
Angel noticed, and wondered about it.
"Thank you." said Giles
Xander piped back in. "I'd like to help, too!"
Cordelia rolled her eyes at him. "Yeah, you might find something useful if it's in an 'I Can Read' Book."
Xander shot her a look to kill as they climbed the steps into the stacks.
*****
It was a long evening, and Buffy and Angel excused themselves
early. Both seemed tired, but uncomfortable cheery, so far
as the others were concerned. They simultaneously looked
up from their reading as the two left, holding hands and chatting
happily.
"'Kay... I'm wigged. Who gave THOSE two happy pills? Or impervious to the Judge pills... and hey! Why didn't they give us any?" Xander half quipped, half snarled.
Willow glared at him.
"Perhaps Angel and Buffy have the right attitude." Giles added. "After all, wearing long faces certainly won't make it any easier for us to defeat the Judge."
Everyone turned to give him a look.
"Well... it *was* her birthday... and it *wasn't* ruined by Angel having to leave..."
"Ah, a half-full scenario!" Willow piped in.
"Indeed." Giles agreed.
"Oh, YEAH." Cordelia snapped, "Let's all just wander off into happy lover's land or whatever, and just not WORRY about the world coming to an end! How about NO? I, for one, am going to be WAY upset if I die because of them being all... slobbery or whatever."
"Buffy will be back. She just needed to get some sleep before any of this went down." Willow said, trying to get them to stop talking about it...
Xander slammed his book shut. "Nada." He announced. Cordelia closed her book and followed him up the stairs to the stacks. Giles shook his head sadly.
No telling how much longer Buffy and Angel would have together if they didn't find any information on how to stop him. He looked up to the door where they'd just exited. They were at least lucky to have each other...
*****
Buffy and Angel floated their way to Buffy's house... when they arrived, Buffy gave her door a long look. They took a few steps up the walk, but then she grabbed his hand and pulled him away...moving in the opposite direction. She wasn't ready for this to end, yet.
He stopped her, and turned her to him.
"Hey," he said, gently taking her face between his large hands, "You need to get some sleep."
Buffy pouted. "I can sleep at your house."
He gave her a mock stern look. "You know if we go to my house, not much sleeping will get done. I'm tired, too, you know."
She put her arms around his waist, pulled him close, and burrowed her face into his chest. "Mmmm... and why would that possibly be?" came her muffled comment.
He wrapped his arms tightly around her, kissing the top of her forehead. "Any number of reasons... Judge... Slayer..."
Buffy raised her eyes without pulling away. "Slayer? Who, me?"
Angel laughed and pulled away, holding her at arms length.
"We've got to get serious, Buffy."
Buffy pouted, harder this time. "I am serious. Serious about not wanting to think about any of that other stuff."
"You mean the Judge? The world ending? That 'other stuff'?"
Buffy play punched him... he half pretended to be thrown off balance.
"Fine, then. I'll go home and sleep." She turned to stomp off, but he pulled her back, hugging her tightly once again. He released his grip only to kiss her passionately.
"I love you, Buffy." he said, and walked away, slowly backward, not wanting to take his eyes off her. "Please try to get some sleep. You need it."
She waved forlornly. "Yeah, bye... Angel!"
She ran after him and grabbed him again. She kissed him soundly.
"I love you too. Please be careful."
She turned and ran into the house.
He watched her go, smiling. He was torn between this insane happiness and an equally insane terror of what was to come. What were they going to do? He turned toward home, missing her already.
******
Jenny went to see her uncle at his hotel room. They argued, for the first time in her life. She felt like a heel, lying to her friends, and to the person that she loved...
Enyos was furious. "You know what it is, this thing vengeance?"
"Uncle, I have served you. I have been faithful. I need to know."
"To the modern man, vengeance is a verb, an idea. Payback. On thing for another. Like commerce. Not with us. Vengeance is a living thing. It passes through generations. It commands. It kills."
"You told me to watch Angel. You told me to keep him from the Slayer. I tried. but there are other factors. There are terrible things happening here that we cannot control!"
"We control nothing. We are not wizards, Janna. We merely play our part."
"Angel could be of help to us. I mean, he may be the only chance we have to stop the Judge."
Enyos frowned.
"You are to do your duty, and nothing else. You must not allow Angel to know a moment's happiness... especially with that girl."
He turned his back to her.
"Uncle, this is insanity! People are going to die!"
"Yes. It is not justice we serve. It is vengeance."
Jenny snorted, grabbing her coat and bag. "You are a fool. We are all fools." She slammed the door behind her.
******
Angel entered the school the next evening through the side door behind the gym. The scene he came upon looked decidedly tense and unpleasant, with Willow right in Xander's face, angrily waggling her finger at him.
"Let's get this straight. I don't understand it, I don't wanna understand it, you have gross emotional problems, and things are not okay between us. But what's happening right now is more important than that."
Xander looked shocked and ashamed. "Okay," he said.
Willow dropped her arm, resigned. "What about the Judge? Where do we stand?"
"On a pile of really boring books that say exactly the same thing."
"Lemmee guess: 'no weapon forged'..."
"It took an army..."
"Yeah, where's an army when you need one?" Willow looked over at Xander, "What?"
His eyes were distant, thoughtful. "Whoa. WHOA! I think I'm having a thought. Yeah yeah yeah, that's a thought! Now I'm having a plan!"
Angel, seeing the tense part of the moment was over, emerged from the shadows to join them.
"Willow. Xander." He greeted them.
They turned to looked at him, both obviously star tled.
"Angel." Xander said.
"Where's Buffy?" asked Willow.
"I'm sure she's on her way. What's up?"
"Listen, I think I have a plan." Xander said, the pride apparent in his voice.
Angel looked at him skeptically. "I can't wait to hear this..." he said, and followed them into the library.
*****
Buffy felt a little bit better, but not nearly as rested as she knew she needed to be. She was running on pure joy and fear -- positive and negative adrenaline. She strolled easily up to the school, excited about seeing Angel, nervous about the upcoming fight with the Judge. She was so wrapped up in her paradoxical reverie, she didn't hear Jenny coming up behind her.
"Buffy." Jenny said.
Buffy nearly jumped out of her skin. She was too tired for this.
"God, don't do that!" She snapped at Jenny -- more angry at herself for letting her guard down than anything else.
"Sorry." Jenny said absently, "Buffy, we need to talk." Her face was deadly serious.
"Did you find out anything about the Judge?"
"No... no. There's something else I need to tell you."
"Something more important than impending doom? I doubt it." Buffy turned to walk away, but Jenny put her hand on her shoulder and spun her back around.
"Buffy, this is serious. It's about Angel."
That got Buffy's attention.
"What about Angel?" She asked suspiciously, her hackles immediately up.
"I..." Jenny wasn't so sure what to say, now, "I think that there are things you need to know about him. About his past... I mean..."
"I know about his past..." Buffy said, her voice small.
"No... I mean... there are other things..."
"WHAT?! Buffy snapped, obviously becoming fearful. "What is it, is he in trouble? Did something happen to him?"
"Well, um, no, not exactly. Yet..."
Buffy put both hands on Jenny's shoulders and shook her. Jenny felt her teeth rattle. Maybe this wasn't such a great idea after all.
"Jenny, please! Where is he? What's wrong with Angel?"
Jenny was dumbstruck. She knew it was too late now to go back, but she didn't know how to move forward, either. Buffy had to know about the Kalderash curse... all of it.
"He's in side, I think... but that's..."
Buffy was already gone -- tearing up the sidewalk leading to the dark school.
"Great." Jenny said, and slowly followed.
*****
Buffy bounded down the hall and burst into the library, full-fight mode in effect. She startled Angel, Willow, Xander, Cordelia and Giles, who were standing around the table. All heads turned toward her, but she was focused on Angel. She ran to him and practically knocked him over as she grabbed him and hugged him tightly. She backed away a little bit and inspected him closely.
"You're okay?" She half-asked, half-exclaimed.
He looked at her oddly. "Yeah..."
Buffy turned to look at the others, who were, in turn, looking at her as if she had sprouted antlers.
"But Jenny said..." she began.
"I was way off." Jenny entered the room at that moment, interrupting. "I had a nightmare. About Angel. It scared me. I ... I shouldn't have even said anything. I'm sorry, Buffy. See? He's fine." She indicated Angel with a sweep of her hand.
Angel was not convinced, adding another check to his mental 'keep an eye on Jenny' column.
Buffy scowled at her. "Don't do that, Jenny. Please. Don't scare me like that."
Xander waved his arms between them. "Uh, hello? Guys? Can we... uh, focus on me here? Plan Guy?"
Buffy turned away, shooting Jenny one last look before she joined the circle. Jenny followed close behind, watching Buffy carefully.
Angel continued watching Jenny.
*****
The plan was set. Things would be in motion by that time the next night. For now, everyone was to retreat to their respective corners to charge their batteries and wait.
When Buffy and Angel walked through his front door a short while later, she was thinking about the rings they had exchanged at the docks a few days before.
Angel locked the door behind them, and Buffy plopped down on his couch, tossing her gym bag on the floor.
"Angel?" She said, looking intently at her hand.
"Mm?" had said, absently.
"Does this mean we're married now?"
He looked at her. The question surprised him, a little.
"I guess it does... yeah." He smiled. He would never had made love to her without at least that much of a commitment. He was still an old-fashioned boy, at heart. "As much as we can be, considering the small legal problem of me being dead." He sat beside her.
"And me being 17." Buffy added. Angel winced.
"And then there's that." he said quietly.
Buffy continued to stare at her ring. He took that hand and gazed at their two rings, clinking softly together, before he moved his gaze to look deeply into her eyes. He kissed her ring gently.
He whispered in Gaelic, "I love you, my wife."
Buffy smiled at him, not understanding, yet comprehending fully. She rested her palm on his cheek, caressing his face with her eyes before drawing him to her for a long, deep kiss.
Married.
He lifted her into his arms without interrupting the kiss and swept her into the bedroom. They made love more slowly, tenderly, without the desperation of the first night or the hot passion of the day after, but simply, softly experienced one another.
Buffy ran her hands down over his shoulders, his back, his waist. His skin, though cold, was soft and seemed to hum beneath her touch. Angel kissed her softly on the neck as she ran her fingers through his hair. He moved his face above hers, looking at her with great love, then kissing her softly on the lips.
"I love you", he whispered.
...his wife...
*****
He was wearing his game face. This wasn't right, she knew -- they had been making love, not battling demons. Then, suddenly she was at a funeral in broad daylight. Angel was across from her, approaching the casket. Buffy looked over at him. His face was bathed in the sunlight... she started a little. He looked up at her.
"You have to know what to see." He said.
She looked at him, confused, then back down at the grave. She looked around at the other people attending the funeral and saw Jenny lifting a black veil from her face.
*****
Buffy jolted awake, sitting straight up in bed. Angel stirred and opened his eyes.
"What is it?" He said with tender concern, "Are you okay?" He brushed her bare shoulder with his hand.
"Something weird is going on." She said, "And it has something to do with Jenny."
That got Angel sitting up. Buffy began to scoop her clothes off the floor.
"I know," Angel said.
Buffy stopped and turned to look at him. "What do you mean, 'you know'? What exactly do you know -- and why didn't you tell me?"
"I wasn't sure." He said, "I thought maybe I'd imagine that she'd been acting funny. Saying and doing odd things."
Buffy looked at him, exasperated. Waiting...
"And?" she said.
"It's not anything I can put my finger on. She's seemed really... what... skittish? lately. And the 'nightmare' incident last night?" He shook his head, "Not kosher."
Buffy nodded. "That didn't sit quite right with me, either. What do you think is up?"
Angel shrugged, "I don't know, but it makes me nervous. We have enough to worry about."
Buffy finished dressing and pulled on her shoes. "I'm going to talk to her. I know it has something to do with you. She seemed to want to tell me something before we came in to the library last night. She was pretty dire."
"Do you want me to come with you?"
Buffy stopped and looked at him, his handsome features shadowed with worry.
"No, sweetie..." She leaned over and kissed him softly, "...besides, it's 10am. It probably wouldn't be the best thing for your complexion."
He grinned, realizing his error.
"Right." He said. He reached out and squeezed her hand. She pulled away, smiled softly at him, waved, and bounded out of the room.
He would have laughed if he wasn't so frightened.
*****
Buffy wasted no time, but headed directly for Jenny's classroom. Her class was just leaving and Buffy could hear her calling directions to them as they hustled out.
She walked in, watching Jenny erase the chalkboard. She noticed Giles standing close by, gathering up some files and books he'd brought with him for a presentation. He noticed Buffy first.
"Oh, Buffy." he said. She ignored him, instead getting right in Jenny's shocked face.
"What's going on?" Buffy snapped, looking her in the eye.
Giles tried to get between them. "Buffy!" He cried.
"Did you do something to Angel?" Buffy said, a deadly, violent edge to her voice.
Giles knew he was missing some imperative piece of information that would somehow help the unfolding scene make sense. Of course, it was missing, and thus, he was confused.
"Buffy, calm down," was all he could think of to say.
She snapped her head around and shot him a look that made him wish he'd never seen any of this.
"Well?" Buffy yelled, turning her attention back to Jenny, who didn't show signs of backing down, despite being obviously terrified.
"There are things you don't know about Angel's curse... about the people who cast it on him." She finally said, "My people."
Giles stood with his mouth gaping, dumbfounded.
"What don't I know?" Buffy snarled.
"I was sent here to watch you. They told me to keep you and Angel apart. They have always been watching you. I'm not supposed to allow you to bring him a moment's peace."
"Jenny!" Giles exclaimed, hurt and confusion in his voice.
"I'm sorry, Rupert. Angel is supposed to pay for what he did to my people." She went on.
Suddenly, Buffy's hand was around Jenny's throat. Her eyes bulged in fear as Buffy shoved her on her back onto the desk.
"And me? What am I supposed to be paying for?" Buffy cried, tears beginning to show.
Jenny gagged.
"Buffy..." Giles said softly, pulling her hand off Jenny's neck.
"You brought the piece of the Judge. You tried to send Angel away." She accused.
Jenny only nodded.
"My god." Giles said incredulously.
"Is there anything else planned? Any other little booby traps you've set for us?"
Jenny didn't raise her eyes, but said, "I have broken my vows. Someone else will be sent to take my place. Someone who is faithful. I don't know what they will do. They know all about the two of you. They know you have become lovers. They will try to use that against him."
"Lovers?" Giles mumbled, more confused than ever, "I don't...don't... I don't think I understand..."
Buffy gave him a sheepish look, but said nothing.
Jenny rubbed her neck.
"What can we do?" Buffy asked her.
"Nothing. If he runs, they will find him. You are better off killing him now, yourself. It will be more merciful than what they have in mind for him."
*****
Buffy returned to the library late that night to meet the others. She was so wound up her head hurt, and it had been all Angel could do to make her let him go, to trail the Judge until the confrontation. She had screamed at him when they parted ways, and now she felt horrible about that, too. He didn't seem overly concerned about what the Romany had in store for him, or even too surprised that Jenny had been a spy. It seemed all par for the course for him... or all part of the curse...
Buffy was infuriated. She couldn't believe that Jenny had done this to them... how the hell was she supposed to concentrate on saving the world if she had to worry about the people who were watching her back?
She sat forlornly in Giles' office, fiddling with the crossbow on her lap. It hardly seemed worth the bother, at this point... everything felt hopeless... all the joy of the past few days had disappeared, and now only fear and anger stood in its place. Couldn't she just be happy for once? Couldn't the fates just give her one little break?
Just then, Xander and Oz came crashing in, followed closely by Cordy and Willow. Giles came down from the stacks in response to the ruckus, and the boys slammed a large crate onto the desk in front of Buffy.
"Happy Birthday, Buffy. I hope you like the color." He stepped back, out of the way, and let her get to the box.
"Giles," She said, " We go to the factory first, but they might not be there. They're on the offensive. We need to figure out where they'll go."
Giles pulled a crowbar out of the cabinet and set it in the box's lock. He lifted violently, and the clasp broke easily.
"Agreed," he said, and lifted the lid.
Buffy looked into the box, "This is good."
Just then, Jenny appeared in the doorway.
"Do you, uh..." Giles turned to look at her, "Is there something I can do?"
"Get out." Buffy snapped, without even looking.
"I...I just want to help." Jenny said.
Giles looked away from her. "She said 'get out.'"
Buffy looked up at Giles, as he looked sadly into the box. Jenny turned around and left.
Xander stepped up behind them. "Do you want me to show you how to use it?"
"Yes, I do." Buffy said.
*****
Author's Note: Chaos ensues. After discovering the Judge and Co. had already left the warehouse, Buffy and the gang confront the Judge, Druscilla and several dozen lesser vampires at the Sunnydale Mall. Buffy doesn't see Angel, which of course freaks her thoroughly, but she manages to keep her focus on the problem at hand. Using her spiffy birthday present, she toasts the judge, quips mightily, and sends the cleanup crew to gather and separate his pieces. Buffy does recon in the mall, trying to hunt down Dru, but she is long gone.
Angel is still nowhere to be seen.
Giles gives Buffy a ride home, and this is where we rejoin
our intrepid heroine.
*****
Giles pulled up in front of Buffy's house. He looked over at the Slayer and cut the engine, worried that the only sound he heard were the crickets. Buffy hadn't said a word since the victory at the mall.
"I'm sure Angel is fine..." he said, not sounding sure at all.
"You must be so disappointed in me." Buffy said morosely.
"No," he said, and Buffy turned to look at him, "No, no, I'm not."
"But this is all my fault," she insisted.
"No. I don't believe it is. Do you want me to wag my finger at you and tell you that you acted rashly? You did. A-and I can. I know that you love him. And...he...has proven more than once that he loves you. You couldn't have known what would happen... the coming months are going to be hard... I...I suspect on all of us, but... if it's guilt you're looking for, Buffy... I'm... I'm not your man. All you will get from me is... is my support. And my respect."
Buffy smiled at him through her tears. The smile lasted less than half a second.
"What are we going to do now?" she asked, sounding more like a frightened little girl than Giles had ever heard her. It was hard to stomach, seeing Buffy so frightened. She had faced a world full of monsters, went head-to-head with her own death every day... but the thought of losing her one true love reduced her to a teary child.
"I don't know." he said, honestly. He patted her knee. "The gypsies can be a very dangerous group. Their hold on the supernatural is uncanny. I suspect we will have to do some very vigorous research to find a way to protect you and Angel."
Buffy nodded, the n climbed out of the car. She watched Giles drive away, and wearily headed to the house, her head bowed.
Which allowed her to run smack into Angel, who stood waiting on the front step. She gasped audibly, and jumped into his arms. Several minutes of kissing and injury inspection ensued. Angel was a mess. Much more so than Buffy.
"What happened?" She asked, "I looked for you at the mall... I thought you were following the Judge?!"
"I was... I got... a little sidetracked. Ghouls."
"Ghouls? Are you kidding?"
He shook his head sadly. "I have a feeling that's just the beginning..."
Buffy looked longingly into his eyes, and repeated her earlier question to Giles:
"What are we going to do?"
Angel shrugged and shook his head. "I don't know." he said. He took her hand, kissed it, and turned toward her door.
"But I do know that your mom made cake. I can smell it. Whatdya say?"
Buffy looked for a long time at her lover... her husband... her vampire... his life was in danger, again. Hers, too. The Kalderash were another in a long line of creatures that wanted them dead. Danger was theirs to face, every day. She smiled. They'd handle it. They always did.
Right now, there was cake to conquer.
They walked hand-in-hand into her house.
