Destinies Entwined
DISCLAIMER: Not mine, never will be. All of the characters mentioned therein belong to Joss and the other writers of Btvs and Angel, the WB, and of course, 20th Century Fox (how could we forget, with the shutting down of all our favorite websites?). But in my opinion, they belong most of all to the beautifully talented actors and actresses that breathe life into the characters each week bringing a third dimension to the otherwise two-dimensional scripts. Bravo.
The plot and story itself belong to myself alone. The concept is perhaps not an original, as how can one copyright a conclusion that is so right, everyone that is truly in touch with the characters must come to it through some means?
RATING: PG-13, for content. The two amorous lovebirds get a little frisky near the end, but nothing extensive.
CLASSIFICATION: B/A eventually, plenty of GWA (gut wrenching angst) ahead.
SPOILERS: Graduation Part 2, mainly, but seasons 1-3 as a whole, up to the season 3 finale. After that, I diverge from Joss’s timeline into my own for this fanfic. Angel has been living in LA, working with Cordelia and Doyle. As far as Kate is concerned, she either left the picture early on, or didn’t exist. Which is how it should be (hint hint to Joss). Buffy and Angel have had no contact whatsoever since the night of Buffy’s high school graduation, as depicted in Graduation Day part 2.
SPECIAL THANKS: To my right hand beta reader, Ginger, who has taken the time to transform a paragraph-less blob of a grammatical nightmare into something resembling a decently edited story. Also much heartfelt thanks to Joanne, my other beta, who also came up with the title.
AUTHORS NOTE: The song at the beginning is Give Up Giving In, by Amanda Marshall. Since I have written this story before I have seen the series premiere of Angel, my descriptions of his apartment are purely speculation, and most likely in no way resemble his actual apartment (which is why I kept them general). If you, gentle reader, could ignore that little inconsistency, I would be much relieved. This was my therapy for when I heard that my favorite star-crossed lovers would be parted. Come and take a glimpse into my world, where Buffy and Angel are soul mates, in every sense of the word, and share a bond that cannot be severed by space and time, or acid tripping producers ). They may travel different paths, but in the end, shall both arrive at the same destiny- each other’s arms.
*I always think about you
I always will
I always wonder what might've been
If we could get time to just stand still
Oh well
It was the right train
But I guess we must've been off track
And I've been waiting for so long
But now I know you're never coming back
So I'll give up giving in
Quit playing this game I can't win
I wish I could stop
But I don't know where to begin
I wonder how you slipped away
I wonder why
I always wonder if there's a chance
That maybe you know what this is like
It's like a bloodstain
And it's spreading across my chest
And I've been bleeding for so long
I think this heart of mine deserves a rest
So I'll give up giving in
Quit playing this game I can't win
I wish I could stop
But I don't know where to begin
And now the wolf is at my door
And it's never gonna be like it was before
And I have cried 'til I'm insane
Now my head is getting cloudy
It's shrouded in this pain
And so I'll give up giving in
Quit playing this game I can't win
I wish I could stop
But I don't know how
To give up giving in
Quit playing this game I can't win
I wish I could stop
But I don't know how
To begin
Gotta give up
It's never gonna be
Like it was before
The wolf is at my door
Gotta give up.....*
Buffy Summers brushed a strand of long silky blonde hair out of her face, squinting in the bright May California sun, and took out her stake. She approached the old warehouse cautiously, hazel eyes darting everywhere out of habit, but she strode with an air of confidence, and stopped, surveying the deserted area, watching for any sign of activity. The only movement was the dry dust that stirred with the breath of an invisible breeze, the same breeze that scooted a discarded cardboard box across the empty street with a dry rasping sound.
Not bothering to look, the Slayer rested a hand on her hips, ignoring the hot sun that beat down upon her head. Dry and hot. *Welcome to LA* She thought with an involuntary roll of her eyes. After so many years, slaying was a familiar routine. Of course, the Hellmouth offered no lack of demonic forces to battle, but after 12 years there she jumped at the opportunity for a change of scenery at every chance she got. Which was why when the tip off of a massive vampire nest in LA was left at the library, she left impulsively without checking with Giles first.
She knew the drill he’d want to double-check every source at least fifty million times. It wasn’t as if she didn’t appreciate his protectiveness, or see the reason behind his caution. They were, after all, part of what had kept her alive longer than any slayer in history. But she had no patience for them lately. She rolled her eyes in anticipation of the trademark lecture she would receive when she returned. For some reason, even at 28, Giles insisted on treating her like a child.
Her relationship with Giles was one of the many things in her life that had become old, restrictive. Even if he was no longer her watcher, and had not been for some time, it did not stop him from acting the part. It seemed like her life had fallen into a cycle. Everything seemed old, stale. Even fighting powerful new evil, saving the world, teaching PE at the school... it all seemed so empty, so hollow. Everyday, the same routine. Go to work the same old school she had attended since high school, though redecorated since her graduation, of course. Hanging out in the library with Giles when she wasn’t working.
Even her friends had noticed it. Xander, who had gone off traveling the country, working odd jobs, had noticed it when he stopped by to visit. Willow had noticed it, and she hadn’t even spoken to Willow in person in years, not since the wedding, a bittersweet affair for Buffy, for as happy as she was for her two friends, their overwhelming happiness and love always seem to accent everything she was never allowed to have. She couldn’t help but be jealous. Not of Oz, of course, nice a guy as he was, he simply wasn’t her type, but of what they had. Everything. As much as she convinced herself it wasn’t, it was really the perfect picture of what she had always wanted, what she had always assumed she would have someday, when she had been a child, daydreaming of the future before she had found better things to do. But that’s all it was. Just another empty childhood dream.
Buffy gave a tired sigh unsuccessfully attempting to shrug off the depressing thoughts that hovered over her like a perpetual storm. Somehow, even over the phone, from as far away as Washington, where she was working on her doctorate at some prestigious university, Willow had been able to pick up this lack of enthusiasm. The funk, as Xander called it.
She recalled a conversation she had overhead between Giles and Xander earlier that month when Xander’s travels had brought him by once more. She had walked in and over heard them in Giles office, Xander's voice, ringing through the quiet library.
* "I’m telling you, something’s wrong. It’s more than being off her game. She’s out of the game. She’s not even on the bench. She’s in the locker rooms showering."
"Now, now, lets not be too hasty.... I think we’re all allowed to feel a little down in the dumps, as you delightful Americans put it."
"Of course, the 12 years you’ve lived here doesn’t put *you* in that category....."
She could practically hear Giles giving Xander the look. "But that’s not the point, my point being," Xander continued, "there’s something wrong. I know her. Of all the classes I’ve failed, I got an A in Buffy, and she’s in an official funk."
"I’m not denying that’s she’s been a little out of sorts lately, but lets give her a little time, shall we?"
"Fine..... Look, you’re the watcher guy. You’re the one who’s around her the most, but I’m telling you, I’ve been here all of one day, and I can tell something’s wrong. She... she’s lacking that ‘Buffyness’ that makes her Buffy,"
"I’ll be sure to note that in my official file, now, if you please, Buffy should be here soon and I’d appreciate it if...."
"Give her some time off. Let me take her with me. I’m sure after some time on the road she’ll be as good as new..."
"Xander" Giles interrupted. "Taking her away isn’t the answer. You aren’t her knight in shining armor. You can’t solve all her problems, simply with a wave of a magic wand. I’m afraid this is one thing she’s just going to have to work through on her own."
"And if she doesn’t?"
"Well, yes, ah... lets think positively, shall we? Buffy is a strong woman. We’ve seen her fight darker demons than this, though not all of them were physical, I assure you, given time, she’ll be her old self again...." *
Buffy