Second Chance

Angel stood looking into the alley where the slayer had once kicked him head over heels, their first confrontation; he would never forget it as long as he lived. He thought back on every memory he had of Buffy Summers, the love of his unlife, their first kiss, the first time they danced, the first time they made love…he stopped his train of thought there, it was too painful to go on. But he had come back to this alley for a reason tonight; he had come to finally say goodbye. Not at her gravesite, he couldn’t feel her there, but here this alley where it all began and it all had ended. Buffy had died in this alley. His eyes filled with sorrow and pain as he pulled the Cladagh ring off his ring finger on his left hand.

"Buffy I know your someplace better now, someplace where you can finally be happy…but I miss you so much. It’s been 3 months and I can’t get past this pain, I can’t make myself let go. I love you so much."

"It’s all my fault, I wasn’t fast enough that night. I told myself in order to protect you I had to stay away from you. I didn’t make it to this alley fast enough because I was too busy feeling sorry for myself. I never even got to tell you how much I love you, how much I still loved you. Now your gone and I can’t go on." Angel took a shaky breath and continued.

"Giles tells me that in order to move on I have to let go, that you would have wanted me to find some peace in my memories of our time together, so I’ve come to say goodbye."

"Buffy…I don’t want to do this" Angel knelt down and place his ring on the alley’s floor, he stayed in a kneeling position and looked up at the heavens. "Goodbye Buffy..I will love you for eternity…I wish our time together hadn’t been so short. Our love is for always."

He stood back up and reluctantly turned away from the alley, a strong wind picked up then and swirled the loose debris around Angel’s feet for a second he thought he heard a familiar giggle but then, like the sudden wind, it was gone. He turned toward his old apartment; he wanted, no needed to stay there tonight.

The battle raged on around her but Buffy stayed focus on the Master. She watched as a dark haired vamp staked the vampire named Angel, the one who she had let out of the Master’s cage. She pointed her crossbow at the vampire and killed him seconds later. She finally approached the Master, she landed a few quick blows but he wasted no time in subduing her, Buffy knew she was going to die. She wasn’t afraid to die, after living the life she had for 3 long, lonely years, she almost welcomed it.

Everything seemed to slow down as the Master spun her around and grabbed her head. She saw a red-hair vamp being impaled by a blonde boy, as the boy turned he was set upon by two vamps and quickly went down.

She felt the Master starting to twist her neck… and then a bright light seemed to flash in the room and she felt weightless. She no longer could feel the Masters hands or see the battle before her, she felt as if her body was being sucked along a dark tunnel. Her survival instincts kicked in and she tried to grab for something solid to hold onto, there was nothing but air.

Another bright light flashed and she was falling. She landed…hard… in what seemed to be an alley.

Buffy sat their stunned taking stock of her surroundings. Somehow she had ended up in the alley behind the club. She wasn’t sure of what happened, but she knew she had to go back inside and confront the Master again, this time she’d get the upper hand.

But just as she stood up a metallic flash caught her eye.

*Looks like someone dropped something. * She picked up the ring and looked at it, it looked old. She never saw a ring like it with its hands, heart and crown. She saw that the ring was too big for her.

*Maybe it’s my good luck charm. Yeah, right! Think again Summers your luck ran out when you were 15 years old*

Buffy didn’t believe in luck, life had taught her that nothing was by accident and that everything and everyone had a purpose. She had found out at 15 exactly what her purpose was, she was the Chosen One. Chosen to fight vampires and demons and whatever evil chose to prey on humanity.

Now at the ripe old age of 18 she feared nothing. She didn’t fear for her family’s safety, her parents were killed by vampires when she was 16. She didn’t fear her Watcher, he showed up once a month, told her what to kill and where it was located then disappeared until the next time. She barely knew him. She didn’t fear for her friends, she had none, she wanted none. She had become as efficient in killing as the demon’s she hunted. She certainly didn’t fear death, in many ways she welcomed it.

Buffy shoved the ring in her front pocket and started to make her way around the building. That’s when she heard it, music, there was music playing. She quickly jogged up to the front of the nightclub; the sign outside said the Bronze and she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. People were streaming in and out of the club, talking, laughing and generally having a good time. Couples walked past her hand and hand and she could sense that there was nothing undead about them.

**What the hell is going on. There was just a major vamp feast going on in there, now it’s like "Alice in Wonderland" or something** Buffy just stood there as she tried to absorb what was going on around her.

"Sorry. I didn’t see you standing there." Buffy felt the slight shove just as she heard the voice.

She just turned toward the voice but didn’t say anything. The boy looked up at her and looked apologetic then his eyes widened and he started to back away.

Buffy didn’t understand the boy’s reaction, so she shrugged it off and made her way inside the club.

Jonathan ran home as quickly as possible. He didn’t pretend to know exactly what went on in Sunnydale, but he knew enough to know that when a dead class mate shows up at the local club it’s past time for him to go home and practice some serious denial.

Cordelia sat at her usual table trying to pretend that she was actually listening to Hamony gossip about the latest dirt. She smiled and laughed at all the right times, but inside she wanted to go home and curl herself up in a ball on her bed. Buffy. She missed Buffy, she hated to admit it even to herself, but she missed her sometimes friend most of the time nemesis. When news had hit the school the day after her death, Cordelia had run downstairs to the basement, where she knew she would be alone, and cried her heart out. Later that day no one would ever think the detached head cheerleader had spent 2 hours laying on the basement floor crying for a girl she never called friend in public.

The funeral was no better, she stood alone in the back watching Mrs. Summers shoulders shake while Giles kept a supportive arm around her. She watched Willow totally fall apart at the casket; she had gotten so distraught Oz had to physically remove her from the coffin. And Xander, Xander had stood silently by watching everything but seeing nothing. The eyes that usually were full of mischief were vacant. Giles was everyone’s strong shoulder to lean on during the ceremony. Only when it was all over and everyone had left the church did he fall apart. Cordelia had left her jacket in the pew and had gone back to retrieve it, when she stepped back into the church she witness Giles on his knees with his face in his hands, his body racked by soundless sobs. She quickly left him to his mourning.

She had approached both Willow and Xander and tried to express her sympathy. Her words even to her had sounded hollow, she had built up so many defenses when it came to them, that she couldn’t break down enough to let them know how much she cared about Buffy, and about them and that she forgave them everything. Unfortunately, all they heard was condolences that didn’t ring true. Neither of them had so much as looked at her since then.

So that left her here with her not so real friends pretending that she didn’t have a care in the world.

"Oh God, what’s with this town anyway, it’s like perfect for Ripley’s Believe it or Not! We are so outta here. Come on Cordelia, this is even too weird for you." Harmony marched away from the table taking her wannabes with her.

"Hey, what’s with you…" Cordelia’s voice trailed off as she spotted the petite blonde with the long braid walking toward her table.

*It can’t be…Buffy’s dead* Cordelia kept her eyes glued to Buffy but noticed that other people were starting to recognize her and were also staring.

*Oh My God! She must be a vampire. This is so not what I need right now. Leave it to Buffy to ruin my perfect mourning period. Now I got to go get Giles and have him stake her! Joy! *

Just as she began to make her way to the back exit another thought struck her. *Giles won’t be able to take a vamp that was once a slayer. He’ll end up calling Angel. Oh boy, this keeps getting worse. Angel’s in major suicide mode as it is, he’ll never be able to handle it, neither would Xander or Willow. I guess for once I’m going to have to be the one. * Cordelia took a pencil from her purse, raised it and started to approach Buffy from behind.

**Why is everyone staring at me? This place is giving me the creeps. I wish it was filled with vamps, then I’d know how to react. But no, it’s filled with these happy, overly caffeinated kids who seem to be having a very good time, the ones who aren’t staring stupidly at me that is. ** Just them Buffy felt the electric energy of another body moving in way to close to her, she spun and caught the brunettes wrist just as she was attempting to plunge a pencil into her back….. A PENCIL!

"Now I know I entered the Twighlight Zone when I’m getting attacked by pencils!" Buffy grabbed the pencil out of the girl’s hand and bought it up toward her face.

"Do you work for the Master?" she demanded

"Hands off dead girl your wrinkling my Prada" Cordelia yanked her wrist from Buffy’s grasp. "Jeez Buff your even more paranoid dead then normal, not that you were ever normal. Listen why don’t you just go away and terrorize some other place, I know you vamps like to torment the people you left behind, but they’re tormented enough. Just go…shoo." Cordelia tried to push Buffy toward the door.

"You know my name?"

"Duh..did you lose your mind along with your life!"

"How do you know me? And why do you think I’m a vampire?"

"Are you serious?" At Buffy’s confused looked Cordelia started to realize that she was serious. Not only did Buffy not know her but she seemed to be…breathing!

"Great another freaky Hellmouth moment! Come on let’s go outside and talk, too many people are staring. My name is Cordelia and I know you because were friends…sorta.. and I thought you were a vampire because I attended your funeral 3 months ago." Cordelia paused to let that sink in.

"My funeral…but I’m not dead. I’m the slayer. Though in a way it’s like one and the same." Buffy seemed to be contemplating this when Cordelia voice broke in.

"OK don’t go all deep thoughts on me, we already have an Oz for that! Let’s go, I’m taking you to someone who can straighten this out." Cordelia led Buffy to her and made her way to Giles’s house.

"What’s an OZ?"

Cordelia nervously rang the doorbell and turned to Buffy.

"Like I said stay out of sight, until I explain to Giles what’s going on, he’s like old and a sudden shock can kill him."

Buffy silently nodded her head; she was having trouble taking all of what Cordelia had told her in. There seemed to be another Buffy Summers, who died. Giles was her watcher, she had terrific but lame friends according to Cordelia and her parents were alive! She and Cordelia had attended the same school for about 2 ½ years before she died of a vamp attack outside the Bronze. Cordelia hinted at more but she said it would be better if Giles told her.

"Cordelia! What a surprise, what brings you here tonight? There’s no trouble is there?" Giles was suddenly nervous, since Buffy’s death her was paranoid about the safety of the others, even Angel.

"Everything’s great Giles. I sort of ran into someone who is sort of like someone we already know or knew, and I was thinking that may you and this someone should sit down and talk." Cordelia was very proud of herself, there she told him without causing him a heart attack.

"Was that in English?" Giles looked perplexed. "Why don’t you come in and explain exactly what’s going on."

"Didn’t I just do that…god some people you just have to draw a picture." With that Cordelia pulled Buffy out of the shadows to stand in front of Giles.

"Giles meet Buffy the second"

"Oh dear… Oh… there must be some kind of mis…" Gile’s eyes filled with tears, he stepped forward and pulled Buffy into a tight embrace. "Buffy..is it really you?"

"Back off Jeeves!" Buffy quickly pushed the guy away. "I don’t know about your Buffy but I don’t get all touchy, feely with my watchers."

Giles seemed to collect himself, he realized now that there was more going on.

"You two better come in, I believe we have a long night ahead of us."

Buffy was getting tired of repeating her story to this Giles guy, talk about anal!

"So… Buffy" Giles seemed to choke everytime he said her name. "You saw a flash then you were pulled through a dark tunnel and ended up in back of the bronze."

"Yep, that about covers it, though it wasn’t exactly a tunnel, it was more like some sort of vacuum."

"Interesting" Giles stood went for a book in his private library.

" Is he always this…"Buffy couldn’t find the right word.

"Uptight?" Cordelia helpfully replied. "Yah, but you like him anyway."

"He’s not so bad, he seems to really care. My watcher just gives me my assignments and takes off. I think he’s scared of demons or something."

"Well talking about scary let’s talk about your rapidly declining fashion sense. The last Buffy was miles from fashion city but you, well you’re not even on the same planet. That Rambo look went out like in the eighties and that hair. When’s the last time you trimmed those split ends?"

Buffy self-consciously grabbed the end of her braid, it was so long it brush the small of her back.

Then she abruptly stood, suddenly angry at this girl for making her care about unimportant things like her appearance. She grabbed the girl by the collar.

"Who the hell do you think you are? Do you have any idea how easily I could crush you? Maybe this other Buffy tolerated your bitchiness, but sister let me tell you something." Buffy moved her face close to Cordelia’s. "I’m not her, cross me and you’ll regret it!"

Cordelia shook herself free. "Trauma much? No need to go all psycho girl on me, one wacked out slayer is enough! God, take a pill, a little fashion advise never hurt anyone. Besides you really don’t want to run into Angel looking like that!"

"What do mean "one psycho slayer" and who’s Angel?" Buffy could barely understand Cordelia but she understood enough to calm down. She had a feeling she already knew who or what Angel was but decided to play stupid until she had the whole story.

Giles walked back into the room a book in his hands.

" I believe Cordelia is referring to Faith, in this time line there are two slayers. Faith couldn’t emotionally deal with the stress of being a slayer and turned against us and is now working with our Mayor, who is really a demon. I’ll explain more of that later."

"And Angel is…" Buffy wondered if this was the same vamp who the Master had held captive.

"Angel …well. .Angel is… a vampire."

Cordelia rolled her eyes at Giles.

"Giles just tell her, she’ll find out soon enough. Besides the old Buffy was in love with Angel, this one doesn’t even seem to like anyone. What are the chances two Buffy’s will fall for Angel?

"Wait one minute! " Buffy couldn’t believe what she was hearing. "Are you saying that I, I mean my other me "fell" for him? That’s disgusting!"

"That’s what Xander always said but you were like.." Oh, Angel this and Angel that" Cordelia was starting to have fun.

Buffy looked sick.

"Angle is a vampire with a soul…" Giles launched into Angel’s history and gave Buffy a brief, dry account of her relationship with the vampire.

"So he lost his soul when he and I… I mean…the other Buffy did it?" Buffy’s mind didn’t seem to be able to get past the fact that she and a vampire "did it".

"Yah, but you two thought you were like "eternally connected" or something so you stayed together and lived unhappily ever after, well at least until you died."

"Cordelia is correct, Buffy and Angel had a very strong bond, I hate think about how he’s going to react to this." Giles was not only worrying about Angel but about Joyce, Willow and Xander.

"So why don’t you just zap me back to my world and know one would ever have to know" Buffy wanted to be gone, this was too weird. Her mom alive, friends who cared and a vampire boyfriend. Her other self seemed to like breaking all the slayer rules.

"It’s not as easy at that, it seems that in order to return you we must first find the power that brought you here. I found a reference to Alternate Universes and Time-Lines in this book and it is very specific about this point." Giles looked up at Buffy.

"Why can’t you stay here?" Buffy and Giles both turned to look at Cordelia. "I mean, not for me of course but.. I think this world might need you." Cordelia looked to Giles for support. "Giles you were just saying how unusual it was that a new slayer wasn’t called when Buffy died, we chalked it up to Faith being here, but what if Buffy, this Buffy, is the new slayer."

"I don’t know Cordelia, it is plausible"

"It’s totally plausible! Maybe this world needed her more than the other world…she even said how the other world was practically taken over by vamps anyway; maybe there was no hope for them. Maybe there’s still hope for us."

"You people just don’t get! I don’t want to stay here! Granted my life wasn’t much of a life but it was MY LIFE! Here I’m just a shadow of that other girl." Buffy was getting seriously upset at the thought of being trapped in this world.

"I don’t want to see my mom again, I don’t want friends and I don’t want some vampire boyfriend! All I want is to go back and have the Master finally snap my neck!"

Giles looked at the girl in horror. "What did you just say?"

"What part didn’t you catch, Einstein!"

"You said the Master was going to snap your neck?"

"So…what of it?" Buffy didn’t understand what point he was trying to make.

"Buffy, our Buffy, died when a vampire snapped her neck in that alley."

Buffy looked stunned. Cordelia had tears in her eyes as she remembered how her friend died.

"That’s way too freaky a coincidence"

"My thoughts exactly Cordelia"

"So it looks like maybe my being here isn’t a random thing?"

"We don’t know that yet Buffy, but we will find out, I promise you."

"So what am I suppose to do?"

"You can stay here and out of sight until we settle this. Cordelia you mustn’t tell the others, it would only be a painful reminder to them. Plus, Buffy here might not be staying long."

"OK. But it’s going to be hard" Cordelia got up and walked toward the door. "Goodnight Giles."

"Good night Cordelia"

"Buffy…goodnight…maybe if you’re still around in a couple of days I’ll come back with some real clothes."

With that last comment she walked out the door.

"Giles?"

"Yes, Buffy?"

"Is your Buffy the same as me? I mean are we the same people? Will we like the same things?" For the first time in 3 years Buffy Summers felt vulnerable.

"Time will tell Buffy. Go to bed we’ll talk more when I arrive back from work tomorrow. The spare room is through that door." Giles pointed to a closed door.

"Buffy whatever you do, do not leave this house. I can’t explain how painful it would be for anyone you were close to, to see you."

Buffy nodded and went into the spare room. Alone in the strange room she finally started to assimilate some of the facts she learned tonight. This Giles was way more organized than the Giles she had met briefly in her world. And that girl, Cordelia, she remembered now the other Giles saying something about a necklace and how the dead girl Cordelia had made some sort of wish, she’d have to look more into that. Maybe she should tell this Cordelia that she was dead in her world, maybe that would shut her up! How did her other self put up with her mouth? She supposed she meant well but God! That attitude!

And Angel. This where she had the most trouble understanding the other Buffy. She did notice his looks when she helped him out of his cage, but to actually kiss and do a lot more with a walking corpse! Yuck!

Buffy never dated, her last date was with a boy named Tyler back when she was a freshman at Hemery. How did the other Buffy handle slaying, a full social life with friends and an undead boyfriend? Didn’t she realize her sacred duty? Didn’t she know how much danger she was putting her friends and family in? What was wrong with that girl! She supposed that this world’s Buffy was still the selfish airhead only interested in boys and parties. That was the only explanation she could come up with, though it didn’t explain Angel. Buffy knew she would never get to sleep that night.

*Maybe I’ll take a stroll, check out the neighborhood. No harm in that, I’ll be back before Jeeves even wakes up. * With that thought Buffy climbed out the bedroom window and hit the streets.

Buffy looked up at the name over the cemetery gates she was about to enter.

*Restfield Cemetery, well let’s take a look and make sure everything is resting*

As she walked past the headstones and crypts she unconsciously searched the names, looking for one in particular. In her world she had wanted to finally die, it seemed in this world she had gotten her wish. It was ironic though, this world’s Buffy seemed to have wanted to live but died. She who wanted to die was forced to live in a world not her own.

Suddenly Buffy felt the very familiar presence of a vampire. She quickly slipped behind a crypt and scanned the area. There he was! Standing over a grave, holding something in his hand. Buffy crept closer, she finally got close enough to make out the features of the vampire, it was Angel! Buffy was stunned, she hadn’t expected to run into him. He looked different in this world, more…just more. Buffy couldn’t explain the difference, physically he looked the same as the other Angel but he radiated something the other one didn’t have. Then it came to her.

*Strength of character* Buffy mused. *This one holds himself proudly. *

If Buffy was begin honest with herself, which she wasn’t, she would admit that this Angel had her fascinated. Then he started to speak, Buffy jumped a little when she heard her name.

"Buffy, I thought I could do it, I thought I could say goodbye and move on, but I can’t. You always were the strong one, if the situation was reversed I know somehow you would get through it, but I never could be half the man you needed me to be. I’m so sorry, but I’m going to let you down again." Angel fell to his knees in front of the grave. He had left his heart behind in the alley, here he would leave his ashes.

It was then that Buffy noticed what he held in his hand. A stake.

"I can’t live without you . I wont. I know you wouldn’t want this, but I can’t…" His voice broke. "I left Giles a note so he would know what happened to me, it’s the least I could do. Please understand." He began to lift his right arm, the stake pointed inward toward his heart.

Buffy froze. On one hand she was tempted to let him do it, one less vamp to worry about, on the other she felt as thought she would be betraying some part of herself. Did she owe the other Buffy anything? She had already watched Angel turn to dust once, could she do it again knowing what she now knew?

She watched Angel close his eyes. "I love you…I’m sorry."

In that instant a wave of blind panic like she never experienced before swept over her. Angel could not die! She didn’t understand the force driving her; all she knew was this man had to live. She launched herself at him just as his hand began it’s descent.

"What the …" Angel was instantly in defense mode. He didn’t know what attacked him, but it ruined his final goodbye to Buffy, so it was going to pay. Not even Angelus could match his temper at this moment.

Angel grabbed the thing that was clinging to his back and flipped it forward. Without even looking he slammed it into the wall of a nearby crypt. His right hand came up still holding the stake and he drove it forward with all his strength. His eyes met the dazed blue ones of his attacker.

Buffy wasn’t prepared for the strength or speed of Angel’s attack. The other Angel was weak from being tortured, this one was powerful. As he slammed her into the cement wall and raised the stake, Buffy looked up into his eyes. Her hand came up and caught his wrist.

Angel froze. He couldn’t believe what his eyes were telling him.

"Buffy? Are you real?" He dropped the stake. He brought up his left hand, Buffy was holding his other wrist prisoner at the moment, and tentatively touched her face. "Buffy." He stood there staring, he was afraid if he moved or talked she would disappear.

Buffy was rooted to the spot. No one had ever touched her the way he just did, granted his hand was cold but his touch had sent sparks shooting down her spine. And his eyes, she couldn’t believe that anyone’s eyes could look so worshipfully at her, plain old her, with her scarred lips and ratty hair. She relaxed her hold on his wrist.

"What happened here?" Angel reached up and traced the scar that bisected her full lips. His mind was conveniently forgetting that he held her broken body only 3 short months ago. He’d think later, now he just wanted to feel.

Buffy’s mind froze, Angel’s fingertips on her lips had her body reacting in ways she never dreamed possible. She saw his lips coming closer, but couldn’t make herself protest.

"Does it hurt?" Angel whispered the question a hairs breath away from her face.

"No."

"Good."

His lips covered hers and her body exploded. He expertly moved his lips over hers coaxing them apart. His tongue darted out and eased inside her slightly parted lips. He moaned in the back of his throat and pressed his body into hers, pinning her against the wall.

Buffy felt his body pressing her against the wall and tentatively reached her arms up around his neck. Her tongue reached out and touched his, he moaned again and she felt herself getting wet. Her breathing escalated and she involuntarily grinded her crotch against his hardness. She never felt anything so incredible in all her eighteen years. No wonder why the other Buffy fell for him!

That thought finally brought her out of her sexual trance. He’s groaning for his Buffy, not her! Why would he ever want some battle-scarred girl like her? She wasn’t even a real person, just some freak trick nature created. She broke the kiss, and landed a solid right hand into his jaw.

Angel wasn’t sure of what just happened. One minute he was kissing Buffy, the next he’s lying on the ground, pain exploding in his head. His mind did start functioning finally and he realized this girl couldn’t possibly be Buffy, his Buffy was dead. He got to his feet.

"Who are you? What do you think you’re up to!" Angel was suddenly furious. How dare this girl look so much like his lost love.

"I think you’re the one who’s up to something. As for who I am, I’m the one who just saved your pathetic ass from dusting himself. Why I bothered I don’t know, but I won’t make the same mistake twice. Go ahead and pick up where you left off." With that she kicked the stake over to him and start to march away.

Angel eyed the stake then eyed girl.

"Wait." He quickly caught up to her and spun her around.

"Let go! Don’t you ever lay your hands on me again. They’re cold and gross and I don’t like it when you touch me."

Pain slashed Angel’s heart. He knew this couldn’t be Buffy, but to hear those words in her voice coming from her lips, destroyed him. He quickly let go and stepped back.

"I won’t touch you, I promise. Just don’t walk away, I just want to talk." He shoved his hands in his pockets. "I’m sorry about before, you look like someone who I once…knew. Actually, you look identical to her and since I know for a fact she didn’t have a twin I think something weird might be going on." He stopped, by her comments he assumed she knew what he was, but just how familiar was she with Sunnydale’s Hellmouth? He didn’t want to scare her. Though it looked like nothing much scared this girl.

"You might be in some trouble, I know someone who can help you. Let me take you to him." Angel waited for her response.

"Jeez can you be any vaguer? "You might be in some trouble…" Buffy did a mock imitation of Angel’s voice.

"Hate to tell you this buddy, but if your someone is British and uptight. Been there done that." Buffy didn’t know where all of these flippant comments where coming from, everytime she opened her mouth they just seemed to pop out. She guessed he must bring out the worst in her.

"You’ve seen Giles? So what’s going on? Who are you?"

"My name is Buffy Summers the Vampire Slayer."

"I don’t know what game your playing, but Buffy Summers is dead. I saw her dead. If this is some kind of trick, if you’re working for the Mayor, I’ll kill you myself and it won’t be fast or easy." Angel started to turn away, he knew in his heart he could never kill this girl with Buffy’s face, but to hear her say that she is Buffy tore him apart.

"Listen you…you…you vampire." Her supply of witticism’s had run dry. " I am Buffy. Hey don’t turn your back on me." She grabbed his arm and spun him around.

"Don’t you dare drop something like that on me then walk away!" Buffy felt an eerie sense of déjà vu, she knew somewhere at sometime she had said something very similar to Angel. But did she say it?

Angel froze too, those words were hauntingly familiar. He could see that she was affected also and decided to hear her out.

"So talk. What’s going on?"

"It’s getting late. Why don’t we talk while I walk back to Gile’s house."

"You’re staying with Giles?" Angel felt inexplicably jealous. He knew Giles and his Buffy had a father/daughter relationship, but what about this Buffy?

"Yah, he’s letting me use his spare room." She didn’t understand her needed to clarify that point.

Angel looked relieved.

Buffy explained everything that had happened to her starting with her first summoning to Sunnydale by the other Giles. She even told him about the other Angel, Cordelia and Giles. She told him more than she had told anyone else, including Giles. It just felt right to unburden herself to him.

"So Giles needs to find whatever power source brought me here."

"You want to go back?" Angel held his breath.

"I…don’t know. I keep thinking about what Cordelia said, by the way, is she always like that?"

"Cordelia comes off uh..abrasive, but she does care. She’ll deny it if confronted but her heart is in the right place. You’ll see she kind of grows on you."

"Right." Buffy rolled her eyes. "Anyway she said that a new slayer wasn’t called, that maybe I’m the new slayer. If that’s the case then it’s my duty to stay." Buffy hoped she sounded convincing. She didn’t want him to think that she would stay for him. She was not going to be a Buffy substitute, not for him, not for anyone.

"Duty. You would stay for duty." Angel looked at the ground. She didn’t love him anymore. What was he thinking, this wasn’t his Buffy, of course she wouldn’t stay for him!

They arrived in front of Giles house and turned to face each other. Unbeknownst to Angel and Buffy, Giles had gotten up to check on Buffy earlier and discovered her missing. He had been watching out the window for some time now hoping she would appear. He was unprepared to not only see her approach but Angel’s as well. It seemed that the universe insisted on throwing these two together. Leave it to Buffy too not only disobey him but to stumble across and bring home the one vampire she should stay far away from. Some things never changed. A small smile played across Giles’ mouth while he watched the two draw a step closer to each other.

*Yes, indeed some things never change. I must find away to tactfully bring up Angel’s curse again. In case she’s forgotten the happiness clause."

"Well, I guess I’m here." Buffy felt stupid standing there, she didn’t know how she should end the conversation. It wasn’t like a date or anything and she was not ever going to let him kiss her again. So why was she standing there like a moron.

"Yah, were here. Listen, tell Giles you ran into me, don’t keep him in the dark. He’s probably the one person you can totally count on, tell him everything." Angel didn’t want to see her go, but he knew he had no claim on this Buffy.

"Well its not like he’s my watcher or anything, but OK I’ll tell him everything. I guess I’ll see you around?" Buffy hoped her voice didn’t sound as pathetic as she suspected it did.

"Maybe. I don’t know, it’s kind of…painful to be around you." Angel took a step forward and grabbed her right hand. "If you find this power source think carefully before you go back, your risking your life going back there, maybe the Fates have something else in mind for you. But if you decide to go back and I don’t see you again. It’s been my pleasure." Angel raised her hand to his lips and kissed it gently. He released her and turned away. He was gone in a flash.

"Goodbye Angel."

*Now I know what she was thinking. * Without realizing what she was doing she held the hand Angel had just kissed close to her heart.

Giles paced the library nervously stopping ever so often to clean his spotless glasses. He wondered if Buffy was going to actually listen to his order to stay put. He doubted it; she was the most confounding girl sometimes. Last night when she had crawled back through the window he had been waiting for her, she was surprised to say the least and hurriedly rushed to explain and apologize. Her guilty expression had reminded him so much of his Buffy he couldn’t stay mad at her for long. She had then explained everything to him. The other Giles, which majorly freaked him (he was starting to think like the kids), the necklace that was supposedly destroyed and Cordelia’s wish. Though the exact phrasing of the wish was still unknown. Maybe Cordelia could shed some light on the subject later.

It was the destroyed necklace that bothered him, if the necklace was destroyed it couldn’t be the power that drew Buffy into this world. And what of Buffy herself, was she some sort of doppelganger or a different version of the real Buffy? Or was this Buffy the real Buffy and the world they lived in the false one? All of this was giving Giles a major headache, he needed tea.

How was he going to act around the children? If he seemed in too good of spirits they may suspect something or worse think that he had forgotten Buffy. As for Cordelia, he hoped she could keep quiet, if Willow or Xander found out nothing could stop either of them from rushing to Buffy’s side. In the end it would only cause both unimaginable pain. This Buffy didn’t seem to want friends so her rejection of them or her leaving would be like losing her all over again.

As if his musing summoned them, Xander, Willow and Oz trailed into the library. They still met with him every morning before class it was there way of clinging to Buffy’s memory. They were also helping him figure out Faith and the Mayor’s plan for Graduation, with no new slayer he needed all the help he could get.

"Hey Giles." Xander plopped down in his usual chair, but said nothing else. Xander hadn’t been his wisecracking self since Buffy’s death. He only really responded if someone asked him a direct question.

"Good Morning Xander, Willow, Oz. Would anyone care for tea?" He hated keeping things from them but had no choice.

"No thanks Giles. We were just wondering if anything was going on?"

"Going on? Why would you think anything would be going on? Did Cordelia say something?" Giles jumped more than a little at Willow’s question.

"I only meant about Graduation. Is everything OK Giles, you seem kinda jumpy?" Willow worriedly looked at Giles, he looked tired.

"Oh…yes… of course Graduation, you meant Graduation. Well nothing as of yet, but I’m still researching and well maybe something will…pop up." He finished lamely.

"Not up to your usual caliber of vocalization." Oz thought Giles was acting weird, but lately all of them were acting weird.

"What does that bitch Cordelia have to do with anything." This came from Xander, his bitterness of his ex-girlfriend’s cavalier treatment of Buffy’s death burned like acid in his stomach. He would love to tell her off, and if he was actually acknowledging her existence on the planet, he would.

"Xander don’t stoop to her level." Willow placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Buffy would’ve just said it was Cordelia being Cordelia, and we should just blow it off." Tears welled up in Willow’s eyes as she imaged her best friend playfully blowing off Cordelia’s cattiness.

"I know but it’s not right. Buffy should have some statue or something dedicated to her. Not some spiteful girl’s comments who’s not worthy enough to even say her name." Xander’s voice choked up and he couldn’t go on, he missed Buffy’s wit, her grace under pressure. She’d bought light and laughter into their lives along with a mix of danger. Things were never dull with Buffy around, he had loved her. At one time he thought he was in love with her, but now he realized that he loved her spirit, her kindness, her just being her. She was one of his best friends and he wished he could have one more chance to tell her how proud he was of being her friend, how proud he was of her. But his last words to her were some stupid remarks about her growing close to Angel again.

*So Buff, you think you can drop us line after you screw Angel this time. Oz and I need some warning so we can hide Willow. It only makes sense that Angel goes after Willow like he did Jenny, since he knows she restored his soul last time. * Buffy’s eyes had filled with tears and he had walked away.

It was the last time he ever saw her alive. If he had another chance he would make it up to her, he would research day and night to find away to make Angel’s curse permanent, but he was never going to get another chance. He was never going to get a chance to say, "I’m sorry."

Willow’s heart broke for Xander. She knew about his and Buffy’s argument the day of her death, for awhile she was mad at Xander, but eventually she forgave him. He didn’t know what would happen that night. He lashed out at Buffy because he was worried about both Buffy and herself. She couldn’t afford to stay mad at Xander; she learned the hard way that life was too short to hold grudges. What she wouldn’t give to spend one more day with Buffy, just sitting on the edge of her bed gossiping about boys, more specifically Angel and Oz, laughing about Xander’s lame attempts at attracting Cordelia’s attention again.

Life hadn’t been perfect but it had been complete. Now with Buffy gone, Willow felt like a big part of herself was gone, the part that had learned to stand up for herself and not to take crap. She had reverted back to being the shy, bookworm. She only came out of her shell for Oz, Xander and Giles.

Willow felt Oz’s arms slip around her waist. She was grateful for his silent support; she leaned back and moved closer into the embrace.

Giles looked at the sad group before him: Xander with his head in his hands, Willow with tears on her cheeks leaning against OZ and Oz whispering reassuring words to Willow. How he wished he could make everything right for them. To give them all second chances.

Cordelia chose that time to stroll happily into the library.

"Giles I thought about last night and I think this is the same Bu…" Her voice trailed off as she spotted the somber group.

Xander jumped up at her voice. "Leave. You’re not welcome here."

Cordelia wasn’t about to take this; Buffy was back so that cancelled her guilty feelings. She had mourned too dammit!

"What are going to do about it Chicken Little? I go where ever I please."

Xander got up in her face. "You know what you are.."

"No, why don’t you enlighten me Mr. Brain Dead!"

"Your nothing but a cold, unfeeling piece of trash that someone forgot to take out. Everytime you open your mouth it’s an airborne disease that infects everyone around you. Nobody likes you, you’re only tolerated because your dad has money and you screw all the right people. I maybe lame and have no cool, but you know what I do have Cordelia, I have friends real friends, ones that like me for me. You have nothing…you are nothing!"

Cordelia staggered back, she had expected his usual round of insults, not this ripping apart of her person. Although their arguments usually were heated, she assumed it was the heat of passion that was fueling them, not hatred. The words he had just spoke would forever be between them, her eyes filled with tears and she quickly spun around and ran out of the library.

"Don’t you think you were a little on the harsh side?" Giles had witnessed the entire event and his sympathy went out to Cordelia. The girl could be trying, but she did not deserve the verbal assault Xander just dealt her.

"Don’t defend her!"

"Xander, I’m not part of the Cordelia fan club either, but remember the last time you ripped someone apart? Go and apologize, if you leave it like this and something happens to Cordy…well you’ll be the one to suffer." Willow’s gentle words had the desired effect.

Xander bolted out of the library, he had to find Cordelia fast and apologize. He was angry at everything not just Cordelia but she was the easiest person to take out his frustrations on, but he couldn’t image losing her too, not after what he just did.

Oz and Willow and Giles watched him go.

"The tempest of youth." Giles hoped that out of this ugly episode maybe those two could find a measure of peace.

"So what was Cordelia talking about anyway? She was saying something about last night and something being the same." Not much got by Oz.

"Well…she was… helping me research, yes that’s it, she was helping me research the Ascension and we stumbled onto…another dead end." Giles hoped his ramblings were believable.

"That still doesn’t explain…hey ouch!" Willow elbowed Oz in the ribs and started dragging him out of the library.

"I just remember the class we have to get to now and that we have to go!" Oz looked confused but let her lead the way.

Willow waited until they were out of earshot before she started talking.

"Something’s going on."

"And that something is…" Oz was definitely confused.

"Well one of two things, either Giles is hiding something from us, for our own good of course, or him and Cordelia are having an affair."

"I pick what’s behind door number one."

"That’s my guess too, he was acting too nervous even for Giles. I say we do a little spy work tonight."

"Your sexy when your re-con girl." Oz playfully kissed her on the lips. This was the most animated he’d seen her since Buffy’s death and he was relieved. He was starting to get majorly worried.

"But what if were both wrong and …UGH! Giles and Cordy!" They both broke into smiles, and walked to next period class.

"So did you find her?" Willow was sitting by the fountain with Xander and Oz. It was a nice day so they opted for eating lunch outside.

"No I looked everywhere, even waited by her locker but no Cordelia." Xander looked majorly bummed. "You don’t suppose something happened to her do you?" His worried gaze met Willow’s.

"It’s daytime Xander, nothing happened to her. She probably went home. Try going by there later. Better yet, we’ll all go by and pick her up. The Scooby Gang needs to team up again to go on Giles stake out. Plus I think she knows something about what’s going on with Giles. If you suck up enough, maybe she give us a clue." Willow had already confided to Xander her and Oz’s suspicions.

"Great. So we go and kidnap her and take her along to go and invade Giles’s privacy because he’s probably trying to keep us alive by keeping us in the dark." Xander shook his dark head. "Hell we might us well make it an official party and swing by the mansion to pick up Angel."

"Now you’re thinking. Good idea." Oz nodded approvingly.

"I was kidding. I don’t need to see Dead Boy anytime soon."

"I thought you were being better with the Angel thing?"

"Will, it’s not like I hate him, I don’t. But when I see him I can’t help but to think about Buffy, it’s too weird to see him around and not see her. They were like Pinky and the Brain."

"I know. You’re right we shouldn’t include him. I’m sure it’s just as painful for Angel to see us." They all fell into companionable silence while they reminisced about a certain blonde.

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

Buffy knew she was going to disobey Giles again, she knew the minute she promised not to leave the house again that she was going to do it anyway. She hated these feeling of guilt, why couldn’t he be some spineless jerk like her watcher Merrick, she was starting to like and respect Giles and she didn’t want to, everytime she liked someone they ended up dead. Her curiosity had gotten the best of her though; she wanted to see these friends she never had.

It was easy enough finding Sunnydale high, Sunnydale wasn’t that big a town. She had worn a baseball cap and sunglasses to help conceal her identity that along with a baggy windbreaker she had found in Gile’s closet. She hoped nobody recognized her.

She wandered around a little and wondered what it was like going to school here, having lunch with friends just hanging out and being young. She never made it past freshman year, the council had supplied some tutoring but she would scare the tutors away. Who needed school when you had an early death to plan for?

Now a part of her wished she had stayed in Hemery. This other Buffy obviously found a way to balance her life why couldn’t she? What made her different? Where did their lives split?

Deep in thoughts she didn’t realize she had wandered to the back of the school, she was about to turn when she heard the unmistakable sound of weeping.

*Buffy to the rescue and in broad daylight no less*

Buffy rounded the building and saw a girl with her head down, squatting on the floor behind the bushes; her arms were wrapped around her legs.

"Are you OK? Do you need help?" Buffy felt very uncomfortable, she wasn’t use to these types of crises.

"Go away." Cordelia lifted her head to get rid of whoever was intruding on her pain.

"Cordelia?" Buffy couldn’t believe that the arrogant girl from last night and this one was one and the same.

"What are you doing here? Didn’t Giles warn you about wandering around? Jeez, once a Buffy always a Buffy!" Cordelia got up and wiped the tears from her face. She was glad that she now had a target to focus her wrath on. "This is so like you, only thinking about yourself, what if the others saw? Then what? When are you finally going to learn to be less selfish"

"What just happened here?" Buffy was amazed at the girls lightning fast change of demeanor.

"Come on, let’s get you out of here."

"Wait. I want to see who Xander and Willow are." There she finally admitted it; she was more than a little curious.

"Well, you can’t. There too busy being self-righteous right now." Cordelia never wanted to lay eyes on Xander again.

"Please Cordelia, could you just point them out? Please. I get the feeling you didn’t like Buffy too much, maybe she did something to you, I don’t know, but I can’t explain this need I have to know that somewhere, someplace people really cared about me. Even if it wasn’t me. Am I making any sense?

"Yes, you’re making perfect sense. Come on I’ll point them out, but only from a distance." They started walking toward the front of the school. "For the record Summers, I liked Buffy, I liked Buffy a lot. She was my friend, maybe the only one I really had, not that I’ll ever repeat it."

Buffy realized at that moment that Cordelia was a lot like her, hiding her vulnerability behind a tough demeanor.

"There they are the three "Dork-a-teers". Willow is the skinny redhead sitting on the fountain. Xander is the dark-haired dweeb trying to balance the skateboard on his head, and Oz is the blonde guy making sappy faces at Willow. You’ve seen now you leave."

"Wait." Buffy couldn’t help but stare. The boy Xander was doing the stupidest things with the skateboard and the red-hair kept laughing encouraging him on. The blonde boy seemed to throw a comment in every once and awhile which caused the girl to smile at him. Suddenly, both boys grabbed the redhead and started tickling her unmercifully.

Her shouts of laughter were easily heard by both girls staring at the trio with identical wistful expressions on their faces.

"Xander and I used to go out." Cordelia didn’t know why that popped out of her mouth but oh well, it was out there.

"You." Buffy said while eyeing Cordelia’s expensive outfit. "And him?" She then looked at Xander’s loud Hawaiian shirt and baggy pants.

"That’s very interesting?" She didn’t know why Cordelia was telling her any of this. "Why’d you two break up?"

"He cheated on me."

"Oh"

"With Willow"

"Oh" Buffy was at a total loss. What was she supposed to say?

"I never forgave him or Willow or Buffy." Cordelia seemed to be speaking more to herself than to Buffy.

"He made a fool of me. Willow pretended to be my friend then stabbed me in the back."

"And Buffy? What did she do?" Buffy was now very curious about this particular group’s dynamics.

"She felt sorry for me." Cordelia’s eyes filled up with tears. "She still tried to be friends with me, but I blew her off. Now she’s gone."

"I’m sure she knew you cared."

"Don’t try to make me feel better! No, she never knew I cared because I made it clear I didn’t. They don’t know I still care…" Cordelia pointed at the group by the fountain "because I remind them daily that I don’t."

" Who are you angry at anyway Cordelia? Xander? Willow? Buffy? Or yourself?" Buffy was getting a little sick and tired of Cordelia’s attitude.

" I think you’re so angry with yourself for not being able to forgive and move on that you take it out on everyone around you. Yes, you got a raw deal, but you only get one life Cordelia, if you care about these people, tell them before it’s too late."

"Who died and left you Oprah? Oh yeah, that’s right, I almost forgot. You died." Cordelia flounced away, Buffy’s words had hit too close to home.

"Xander I think I just saw Cordelia over there by that girl." Willow caught sight of Cordelia stomping away and wondered what was wrong now.

"Guys, do you notice anything about that girl, that’s well, weird?" Oz was getting some sort of vibe; it was a werewolf thing.

"Only that she thinks she’s some kind of celebrity with the hat, breaker and glasses. Total incognito girl." Xander was more interested in looking to see if he saw which direction Cordelia went.

"Now that you mention it, it’s the way she holds herself. It’s kind of familiar." The three by the fountain all stared at the girl who was staring at them.

Buffy noticed the trio looking at her and decided to get back to Giles’s house. These kids looked nice, she didn’t want to cause them pain. She already caused enough with Giles, Cordelia and …Angel. Her heart sped up at the thought of him.

*Stop this right now! He’s the walking dead for Christ Sakes! *

Buffy shook herself mentally and stomped off campus.

"Well there she goes, however she was, but your right Will I’ve seen that walk before." Xander scratched his head. It would come to him.

"So pick you up at 7:00" Oz directed this at Xander.

"Just call me Xander, Xander Bond." Xander ruined his suave imitation by tripping over his skateboard.

Willow and Oz just grinned.

"Yes, she’s still here Cordelia. No, I don’t know what size she is, blue sounds good…grey is also very good." Giles looked to the ceiling hoping for some divine intervention, Cordelia was calling from her cell phone, she was at the mall buying Buffy some clothes. "No, she can’t come to the phone she’s in the shower. No! I will not just "poke my head in" and ask her, her size! Fine, that sounds fine. Please come by when you’re through I do have some questions for you. Bye."

"Who was that?" Buffy stood at the entryway to the living room, brushing her waist length hair, she was wearing one of Giles’s old robes. It was too big but it was all she had clean to wear.

"That was Cordelia, she’s picking you up some clothes and will be over shortly. Good thing she’s coming here, she left school early and I didn’t get a chance to ask her about the Wish."

"So, once I have clothes, should I go out and patrol?" Buffy was at a loss on what her responsibilities were in this world. Should she be trying to get back or should she be filling in as acting slayer?

"Angel has been filling in temporarily until the Faith issue is settled." Giles looked over at Buffy to see how his next words would effect her; he was starting to form a theory on why Buffy was called here. "He can handle anything out there, the only person who even would be a slight problem is Faith herself and he doesn’t need to fear for his life with her."

"If Faith’s a slayer and they’re on opposite teams, why wouldn’t he fear for his life?" Buffy knew she wasn’t going to like the answer.

"It seems as though Faith has developed a certain fascination with Angel. Now that Buffy’s gone she has made several…er…attempts in capturing his affections."

"He’s not responding is he? I mean she’s bad and he’s…well… not so bad, besides I thought he and Buffy had this eternal thing happening." Buffy knew she was talking way to fast and Giles was starting to eye her funny. "Oh and attempts! What kind of attempts are we talking about exactly?!"

"Of course he’s not responding, but…" Giles half hoped he was dead wrong on his theory, but her reactions thus far only seemed to support it. "Faith and Angel are very alike, both have walked in the darkness and have known the temptation of true evil. Angel feels that she is not totally lost, that maybe she can be saved. He strongly believes in second chances, so if he thinks being with Faith would help her… I really can’t predict what he would do. As for attempts, I believe one involved chains."

As he half thought she would, Buffy exploded.

"That skanky, back-stabbing HO! I’ll show her chains! I’ll show her chains wrapped around her neck!" Buffy threw the brush across the room. Giles ducked. Then she started pacing. "And that whole save me from myself thing," what a load of crap! If he’s falling for that line, I have some vampire sunscreen I want to sell him!"

Buffy whirled around to face Giles totally lost in her inexplicable jealousy. Giles cautiously moved a few steps away from her flying hands.

"It’s only been THREE MONTHS! So much for "You’ll always be my girl, Buffy" "I want to see you in sunlight, Buffy" "I’ll always be with you, Buffy!" I guess one slayer is as good as another!" She was close to tears now and had a burning desire to rip every strand hair out of Faith’s head. As for Angel, if she ever saw him again…Scratch that …she’d make sure she never laid on that fickle bastard again!

Giles hadn’t been prepared for the force of Buffy’s anger and jealousy, she’d only had one encounter with Angel. Or had she? If his theory proved true, Buffy and Angel would get their second chance. Giles was feeling bad for exaggerating the Faith situation; Angel never responded to that girl and never would; though he didn’t lie about Faith’s interest in Angel. Angel had to be extra careful these days.

"Why don’t I make us some tea while we wait for Cordelia?" Tea - that was Giles’s answer for female hysterics.

"Take your tea and shove it up your ass! That is if it will fit with that big stick you have rammed up there!" Buffy stalked to her room and slammed the door.

"How charming." Giles went to the kitchen to start the water.

"You’re breathing on me! Get back!" Willow tried pushing Xander away but he wouldn’t budge.

"It’s not fair! You and Oz have ring side seats and I have to be in the back!" Oz and Willow had picked Xander up at 7:00 as planned and then drove on to Cordy’s. They noticed that her car wasn’t in the driveway and had kept on going to Giles’s house. Now the three were on the side of his house angling to get a view into his home.

"It’s totally fair, you’re taller than us." Oz elbowed backward trying to get Xander to move.

"It’s not my fault your height challenged, besides I want to see the blonde! Go Giles! I can’t believe he actually has some blonde there in his robe! Is she a babe? Can you tell?"

"Xander stop it! I think it’s sweet that he’s finally moving on, and we can’t tell from here what she looks like, but she’s on the short side with hair down to her waist." Willow thought wistfully of her own waist length hair she finally chopped off last year.

"The blonde explains the nervousness." This came from Oz.

"No, No my friend, that was not nervousness you sensed from the G-Man! That was "I can’t wait for school to be out ‘cause there’s going to be a hot time in the city tonight!"

"Shush Xander, keep your voice down!"

"Will, there’s no else around. Who else would be stupid enough to be lurking around outside Giles’s house?"

"I think both you should keep quiet right about now and get down out of sight. And Xander, as far as who else is stupid enough….Witness the expert lurker" Oz pointed over to the shadows, where someone was moving toward Giles’s window.

"Angel." Willow whispered "It’s Angel. What is he doing here?"

"I think the question is…why isn’t he going to the door? Why is he doing his rendition of Peeping Tom?"

Xander watched Angel looking through the window of Giles’ spare room.

"Hey, isn’t that the window to where the blonde just went! What’s with him and blondes!?" Xander was getting angry this was too weird. Why would Angel be spying on Giles and his date what kind of sick freak was he! Then the remembered what they were also doing.

**Yeah, but it’s different, they were concerned about Giles. Angel looked to be more interested in the blonde!** Xander was good at justifying his own actions.

"There’s got be an explanation for this, I refuse to believe that Angel gets his kicks from spying on blondes. There must be something going on, we were right the first time. Angel must know something, I vote to go over there and ask him. All in favor raise your right hand." Willow finished her statement and raised her right hand, she looked at Oz.

"I’m right there with you, Will." Oz raised his hand.

"Oh, you just gave in because she’s your girlfriend."

"Yes, and that would explain the fact that you don’t have one."

Xander looked put out. "OK…we go ask Dead Boy why he’s a freak. Can this night possibly get any stranger?"

"It seems like it can.." This time Oz pointed to Cordelia walking up the path to Giles’s front door. She had half dozen shopping bags in her hands and a big smile on her face.

The trio ducked out of sight. Angel on the other side of the walkway did the same.

"Now I’m really confused. Why would Cordelia be popping in on Giles’s date with a girl who is only wearing his robe?" Willow shook head.

"Under normal circumstances the thoughts running through my head would give me hours of entertainment in my bathroom but since this does involve my ex-girlfriend and Giles, I’m thinking party-crashing right about now!" Xander wanted nothing more than to bang on the door and punch Giles in the face.

"Oh and let’s not forget the joyful fact that Soul Boy decided to pull up a chair and watch!"

"We’re getting nowhere with this, let’s get Angel and just knock on the door and ask Giles what’s going on." Willow stood up.

"I’m thinking door number two." Xander looked confused at Oz’s statement, Willow just grinned.

Angel couldn’t believe he sunk to this level, he was actually spying on Buffy. Not that he hadn’t done so a hundred time in the past, but this felt different. In the past, Buffy had always known about his nocturnal activities, she even once admitted to not sleeping right until she sensed his presence outside her window. This Buffy had no idea he was watching her. She looked upset, she was lying on the bed in only Giles’ robe her long damp hair trailing over the side.

**I shouldn’t be here** Angel thought to himself. **I said goodbye last night, I should just walk away. God, she looks so beautiful lying there. I wonder what’s wrong, maybe she needs my help, maybe I should check…**

Angel pushed himself away from the window. What was he doing? This wasn’t Buffy! But it felt like Buffy, looked like Buffy even tasted like Buffy. Everytime Angel had kissed Buffy he always felt a sense of completion, a feeling of rightness no other had ever been able to give him. When he had kissed this Buffy he was swamped with the same feelings. Involuntarily he went back to the window, she had shifted and her robe had come apart by her legs. Desire coiled in Angel’s gut as he looked at the toned legs. He remembered so clearly how it felt to have those legs wrap around his waist. It was only one time but the memory was still as potent today as it was 1 ½ ago.

**How can I be having these feelings? This isn’t my Buffy. I’m betraying her memory by lusting after this girl just because of a resemblance to her! I’m sick. **

Angel saw Buffy move again, this time to her side and he could see her face clearly now. She was crying! The urge to jump through the window and hold her almost overwhelmed him, every time things got to be too much for his little slayer; he would be her shoulder to cry on. Now it looked like she did her crying alone. He didn’t want her to be alone ever again.

"I’ve seen some sick things in my life, mostly I’ve seen you do some sick things in my life, but this takes the grand prize of ickiness!"

Angel knew that voice. That voice really annoyed him. Xander. He turned to see Xander, with his hand clenched into fists, Willow smiling sheepishly and Oz just standing by Willow.

"What are you guys doing here?"

"Well…" Willow began, but Xander cut her off.

"The question is Dead Boy, what are you doing here? But I guess we don’t have to ask that since it’s obvious you get off on spying on girls. Did Angelus teach you that?"

"Xander!…what’s wrong with you!" Willow was shocked at Xander’s venom. First Cordy now Angel.

"What’s wrong with me! How can you ask that! We just caught our best friends boyfriend spying on some girl with Giles and your asking what’s wrong with me!"

"I’m sure Angel has a reasonable explanation." Willow turned to Angel. "So explain."

Angel was past explanations; not that he could be total honest with them anyway. He didn’t want to betray Buffy’s presence. He was too angry anyway for rational explanations, 3 months of heartache along with Xander’s crack about Angelus and his all too pointed comment about the other girl sent him over the edge.

"I’m through with explaining myself to a worthless little boy who isn’t mature enough yet to realize that his words and actions have consequences." Angel’s morphed into his vampire face. "I’m going to teach you a lesson in consequences!"

Angel dove at Xander. Xander screamed and tried to hide behind Willow and Oz.

"Don’t think so my friend." Oz pushed Xander back into Angel’s line of attack. "I think you need that lesson Angel mentioned besides you have some definite rage to work through."

Xander realized that this was the perfect opportunity to pound on something without doing any permanent damage. He thought back on his break-up with Cordy, his estranged friendship with Will, his and Buffy’s argument, Buffy’s death, his verbal assault on Cordelia his rage exploded. Instead of dodging Angel he went barreling toward him.

Angel met him halfway, picked him up and threw him toward the front of Giles’s house. Xander got quickly to his feet and stunned Angel by landing an upper cut to his jaw. Xander’s victory was short.

Angel reigned in his blows, he didn’t want to kill the boy, not totally anyway. Xander managed to twist away from Angel’s fists but tripped over his own feet, thinking fast he shot his legs out and managed to trip Angel.

They were now both wrestling on the front lawn punching and cursing at each other. Angel rolled to a sitting position on top of Xander, drew back fist and was about to knock him out when a very familiar weight tackled him from behind. He didn’t put up a fight, he already knew who it was.

Unfortunately, Xander didn’t realize he was being rescued. He came up punching and kicking. He connected solidly with a leg and heard a very feminine "Ouch!"

He got to his knees and saw Giles’s blonde lying across Angel, his arm wrapped around her waist.

"It’s good to know you graduated from verbal abuse to physical. Your such a loser Harris." Xander turned to see Cordelia and Giles standing at the open front door her hands on her hips. Giles was rubbing the bridge of his nose, wearily shaking his head.

Willow and Oz approached the girl still lying on Angel, they weren’t’ making any attempts at moving.

"Hey, are you OK?" Willow went closer to the girl’s side.

"Yeah, are you OK. I didn’t mean to kick you I thought you were Dead… I mean Angel. Me and Angel go back a ways, we were only clowning around…" Xander’s voice trailed off. The girl was still lying on Angel, she wasn’t making any moves.

"You ready for this?" Angel questioned the girl softly.

"I don’t think I have a choice." She answered just as softly.

"Well, hate to break up this Hallmark moment but kindly get off of my best friends boyfriend before I tear you off!" Willow saw Angel’s eyes go all soft, she couldn’t make out their words but she heard their tone. The temper she had repressed for 3 months came to the surface.

"How could you Angel, no don’t look at me that way! Your Buffy’s! How could you just forget…" Her voice broke. Oz put his arm around her.

Angel and the girl got up, she still had her back to them.

"I will never forget Buffy, Will. I promise. This isn’t what you think it is."

"Then why don’t you tell us what exactly it is." All the fight was gone from Xander’s voice. Buffy and Angel’s relationship symbolized security and permanence to the group. The world might change around them but Buffy and Angel’s love would never change. If Angel was moving on it would rip what was left of his and Willow’s world apart, the world that had so briefly included Buffy.

Angel looked up at Giles still standing in the doorway. Giles nodded his head. He gently grabbed the girl by the shoulders and turned her to face them.

"Buffy…oh god Buffy!" Willow ran forward and threw her arms around Buffy. Angel stepped back not knowing what Buffy wanted him to do. Buffy just looked scared, she didn’t return the hug but she didn’t participate either.

"Buff, I missed you so much." Willow’s words were choked off by her tears, she stopped attempting to speak and just clung to her friend.

Xander cautiously approached not knowing if she was still mad at him. Tears were pouring down his face but he never said a word. When she didn’t tell him to leave, he wrapped his arms around both Buffy and Willow, laid his head on Buffy’s and started to cry like a baby.

Only Buffy heard the boy whispering "I’m sorry" over and over again.

Oz stood by the group but didn’t get any closer. He knew these three needed their share time. He didn’t understand exactly how Buffy could be back but he knew Giles would explain everything. For now he was happy that things were going to get back to normal, well as normal as things ever got in Sunnydale.

Cordelia had tears in her eyes as she watched the reunion. She was glad this Buffy didn’t totally wig on Willow and Xander like she did when Giles went to hug her, now the only thing left to do was to explain to Willow and Xander that this wasn’t their Buffy. She didn’t know how they would react but this time she vowed that she would be there for them, at least for Willow, Xander had some major groveling to do before she forgave him.

Angel saw that Buffy was starting to get antsy, he figured it was time to put an end to the group hug.

"Guys I think Buffy needs to breathe right about now." He gently started pulling Buffy away.

"Oh that’s priceless…" Xander said while wiping away the tears on his face, he was slightly embarrassed at balling like a baby and tried to cover it up by making wisecracks. "Buffy comes back from the dead and your already hogging her!"

Willow’s happiness dimmed a little once she got over the shock of seeing Buffy. How could this be?

"Buffy, how can you be alive? I went to your funeral. I stayed at the cemetery until the workers were through burying you. I stayed their all night to make sure you didn’t rise or anything." The others looked at Willow shocked, no one even considered the possibility at the time, Willow continued "I even went there, I still go there every day after school to keep you updated on all that’s happening and your grave has never been disturbed."

Buffy was stunned at this girl’s loyalty to her, what did the other Buffy do to inspire such loyalty? She felt very uncomfortable too, she had a feeling that she would never measure up to their Buffy she was destined to disappoint them all.

"Why doesn’t everyone come inside, before we disturb the neighbors and I will bring everyone up to date." This came from Giles who realized it was too late to try to protect anyone’s feelings.

Giles scanned the group sitting in his living room. Willow, Xander and Oz were sitting on his couch, Buffy and Angel were sitting on this love seat, trying not to look at each other, Cordelia was reclining in his Laz-E-Boy, looking bored she already had heard the story.

"As you can see we have quite a mystery on our hands. I was hoping Cordelia can solve a bit of this puzzle." Cordelia snapped to attention at the sound of her name.

"Me! What do I know!"

Xander snorted but didn’t say anything. Cordy just shot him a look.

"Your wish Cordelia. What was the exact phrasing of your wish?" Giles waited expectantly.

"Uh…and what wish would that be…I have a lot of wishes you know!" Cordelia was nervous, she knew Giles was referring to that freaky Anya girl’s wish but nothing bad happened with her wish or did it?

"Come on Cordelia, we need help here. Buffy needs your help, don’t let her down." This came from Angel whose sincere direct approach worked magic on Cordelia.

"OK. I wished." She paused they were going to go ballistic on her. "I wished Buffy Summers had never come to Sunnydale, but it was all Xanders fault!"

"My fault, my fault! You make some stupid wish and it’s my fault!

"If you and Willow never kissed, I would’ve never made that stupid wish! Your just lucky I didn’t wish you to hell!" Cordelia snapped her mouth shut but it was too late to take back what she said, she guiltily looked at Angel. "Sorry. I didn’t mean your hell."

"I thought you said we were friends? Why would you wish that I never came to Sunnydale?" Buffy sounded genuinely hurt.

"I just thought that…If you never came, then I would’ve never have gotten involved with Xander, and if I never dated him, he would have never had the opportunity to break my heart." Cordelia looked down she rarely felt sorry for any of her actions, but this time she did.

Giles just sighed, all this teen melodrama was really too much. Xander was looking at Cordy’s bowed head wanting to go over and put his arms around her, but he knew this softer side of Cordy wouldn’t last long. Willow felt horrible, now she was feeling guilty all over again, she never guessed the long term effects of her and Xander kissing, she glanced at Oz, he smile slightly and squeezed her hand. Things were still OK with Oz.

"It’s OK Cordelia, you couldn’t have known what would happen." Buffy then looked at Giles.

"Now what?"

"Now we figure out exactly where you and our Buffy’s life split."

Buffy recounted her life since her calling as the Chosen One.

"It’s seems that you and our Buffy were one and the same until Buffy’s move to Sunnydale. Cordelia’s wish seemed to manipulate the laws of the universe. The Wish created a whole other world where you existed in parallel to our world. Buffy you said that the other Giles mentioned that Cordelia told him to summon you, that she had made a mistake and this wasn’t the way it was suppose to be." Giles was onto something. The gang looked at him expectantly.

"Yeah, he said he was going to destroy the demon’s power source and change everything back. I guess he did it. He also said that Cordelia was killed earlier that day…!"

"What! Yuck!" Cordelia couldn’t believe that her own wish killed her.

"Let that be a lesson to you young lady!" Xander grinned over to Cordy. Surprisingly she grinned back.

"As I was saying" Buffy frowned at the two, Jeez they never stopped. "He didn’t know who she was, but his helpers did, they knew her from around school."

"She attended Sunnydale, yet she never came into the library once or attempted to help me in any fashion before."

"And so…." Buffy hated when Giles dragged things out.

"We can assume that the Cordelia that told me about her wish and told me to call Buffy to Sunnydale was this Cordelia."

"I was never in that freakazoid world, I would’ve remembered!"

"Not necessarily Cordelia, the power behind this type of magic is very strong. Your mind may have been wiped clean of its memory of your time in that other world. From what we know of other dimensions, time moves differently there, a second here can translate to a lifetime in another realm."

"And since Cordelia didn’t run into herself we can assume that only one Cordelia really exists." Angel was starting to catch on to Giles theory.

"Thank God for that" Only Oz heard Willow’s utterance.

"Anybody else lost? Please let someone else be lost!" Xander was totally confused.

"Hate to admit, but I’m right there in confusion land with ya!" Buffy smiled over at Xander, who smirked back at her then a memory flashed through her head.

"You killed Angel!" Buffy now remembered the dark haired vamp that had killed Angel as he took a bolt in the heart meant for her!

"As much as I would like to take credit for that, the grand prize goes to Darla, like 200 years ago." Xander had no idea where Buffy was going with her statement.

"And you" Buffy now turned to Willow. "You were a vampire, he killed you!" Buffy pointed to Oz.

"What! You killed me! How could you?" Willow couldn’t help but be a little miffed.

"I don’t..I never.." Oz was stuttering.

"So where are all those "deep thoughts" now!" Xander liked to see Oz, for once, on the hot seat.

"Buffy exactly what are you referring to?" Giles jumped in before he lost control of this meeting.

"When I was fighting the Master, Angel and I broke into the Bronze. Angel was the first to die." Buffy paused a little, the thought of Angel dying unnerved her.

"It’s OK, I’m here." Angel touched her hand reassuringly.

"You got to be kidding me…!" Xander couldn’t believe that these two were actually sitting there making goo-goo eyes at each other. How many lifetimes did he have to sit through this!

"Shut-up Xander!" Everyone shouted at once.

"Continue Buffy." Giles wanted the whole, uninterrupted story.

"Like I said, Angel was the first to die. Xander was, well, a vampire he was trying to kill me. Angel saw what was happening and attacked Xander. Xander staked him. I started to make my way to the Master and Xander got in my way, I staked him. When I reached the Master we fought but he was faster and stronger, just as he was going to snap my neck I looked up and saw Oz propel Willow, who was also a vampire, into a piece of wood, just as Oz turned to get out of there two vamps jumped him, he never got up.

The entire group was silent. Buffy had just re-counted their deaths and to say they were wigged would be an understatement. They may have their arguments and bad times, but when the chips are down they could always count on each other, to find out in other circumstances they would be each other’s executioners, it made them realize how fortunate they were to live in their world. Even if it was the Hellmouth.

"Well that totally sucked. Who killed me?" Cordelia felt a little left out.

"I’m not sure, you were dead by the time I got there. Giles said it was vampires, two of the masters favorites…oops." Buffy just put two and two together and came up with Willow and Xander.

"Oops…what’s oops? Spill Summers!"

Buffy glance apologetically at Willow and Xander.

"I think it was Willow and Xander who killed you."

"That’s just makes perfect sense. You guys have been a pain in my neck for years now." Cordelia actually smiled.

It took everyone a minute but they finally realized Cordelia had actually made a joke. Everyone laughed.

"Hey Giles! How about some of that tea you’re always pushing?" Buffy was starting to enjoy herself. She liked these people.

"Sure, Buffy…let’s see…where did I put it? Oh, I remember now. Give me a moment while I pull it out of my arse." Giles usually didn’t sink to vulgarities but he felt more lighthearted than he had in months.

"Uh Gross much!" Cordelia along with everyone else but Buffy looked grossed out by Giles’s comment. Buffy doubled over and laughed.

While Giles was in the kitchen making tea, Buffy was trying to avoid making eye contact with Angel. She was still hurt and angry about Faith but more than anything she was confused. When she had stormed off to her room she remembered that in her anger she quoted things that she just knew Angel had said to her at one time, but when she tried to picture the exact circumstances the memories eluded her. It was like when you woke from a dream and you could just barely remember it, but the more you tried to picture it, the more it escaped you.

She hoped Giles finally got a chance to finish explaining his theory, but judging from the undercurrents in the room she guessed there would be a few more interruptions.

"I guess I’ll get dressed before Giles get back." Buffy quickly stood and without looking directly at anyone escaped the tension filled room.

"So you think we overwhelmed her enough for one night?" Xander kept forgetting that this Buffy wasn’t their Buffy. He could just image what all of the group’s infighting must look like to a stranger.

"She must think we’re awful people." Willow stared at the door, she hoped they didn’t scare her off.

"She’s just going to need some time Willow. Why don’t you go in there and talk to her, you were Buffy’s best friend if anyone knows how to make her feel better it would be you." Angel hoped that Buffy would open up to the red head, they were especially close.

"No, Angel you were always the one that made her feel better." Willow touched Angel lightly on the shoulder as she passed to him to enter the spare room.

"Hope you don’t mind I just wanted to see if you needed any help." Willow was looking in the opposite direction from where Buffy was standing. She didn’t want Buffy to feel self-conscious changing in front of her.

"It’s OK, you can turn around, I’m decent." Willow turned and her eyes widened, it was Buffy…their Buffy.

"Cordelia spared no expense…I haven’t worn things like this since I was fifteen." Buffy looked at herself in the mirror. She had on a blue square neck halter-top, that tied around her neck and exposed her mid drift and a blue skirt with patterns that stopped right below her knees, a pair of heeled sandals completed her outfit.

"She even got me make up." Buffy looked at the cosmetics; she had no idea had to put them on.

"Well, you look terrific and as for the make up, I’m no expert but I can help a little." Willow grabbed the make up brush and went to work.

" So…not to be rude or anything…what’s up with your boyfriend?" Buffy had been getting a definite creature of the night vibe from Oz.

"Up?" Willow looked confused, then it hit her. "Oh, you mean the werewolf thing! Don’t worry he’s totally trained. Puts himself in a cage 3 nights a month."

"You make it sound so ordinary, you know he would kill you if he ever got out of his cage?"

"Oz is good. It’s not his fault his cousin bit him! Your not thinking any slaying thoughts are you, because if you are…it definitely wouldn’t be a good thing!" Willow had nothing to threaten Buffy with.

"Relax. I’m not thinking slaying things, I just don’t want to see you get hurt, you seem nice."

"Oh, that’s so sweet, but you don’t have to worry about me, you taught me how to take care of myself." The two girl’s eyes met in the mirror and the bonds of friendship, that neither time nor death could totally destroy, were once again forged.

Before they realized it they had moved to sit on Buffy’s bed. Buffy was in her usual place leaning against the headboard and Willow sat on the edge of the bed Indian style clutching a pillow.

"Whatcha think about Angel?" Willow leaned in she was in major girl talk mode.

"Nothing!" Buffy felt her face go red.

"Come on Buff, I saw the way he was looking at you on the couch."

"OK…since you twisted my arm. He’s…so…intense. I mean, every time I look at him I forget to breathe, and when he kissed me.."

"He kissed you! Already!" Willow couldn’t believe that things had progressed so far, in so short amount of time. It was like they were picking up where they left off.

"When he first saw me, he thought I was his Buffy and he kissed me."

"You are his Buffy, you will always be his Buffy." Willow didn’t know what was going on but her gut told her that this was Buffy.

"I don’t know Will. Maybe I’ll disappoint him. Maybe I’ll disappoint all of you."

"You could never disappoint us. Never. You just being you is enough for all of us."

"So what do you think they’re talking about?" Xander directed the question at Cordelia.

"Why ask me, how should I know? It’s not like I’m in there. But if I were to guess, I would say Angel and Oz." Cordelia felt a little hurt that she hadn’t been invited to the girl talk session.

"That should be a very short conversation!" Xander looked over at Oz hoping he would get his crack about height.

"Unless they’re talking about you Xander, then the conversation would make no sense." Oz not only got the zing, he volleyed one back.

"Let’s settle down. Cordelia go and get the girls. Maybe we can finish this tonight." Giles stressed the maybe, it had been 3 long months since this group had been all together and this meeting was starting to resemble a group therapy session.

Buffy walked back into the room followed by Cordelia and Willow. Angel turned to look at her and kept on staring. She looked beautiful. He didn’t fall in love with Buffy because of her youth or her looks, but he had to admit that she was an amazing looking girl. She was dressed all in blue and her hair hung straight to her waist. She had put make-up on and had attempted covering up the scar on her lip. She sat back down beside him and he kept right on staring.

Buffy felt herself turning red, she knew Angel was staring at her and everyone else was staring at Angel stare at her.

"This is test from the Emergency Broadcasting Unit! This is only a test! "REMEMBER THE HAPPINESS THING DEADBOY!" Xander stood up while delivering his announcement. "We now return you to our regularly scheduled program, if this had been an actual emergency we would all be running for our lives."

Angel stiffened and quickly looked away from Buffy. Pain crossed his features, *What was he thinking! He could never really have Buffy, she now had a chance to exist in a safer world where she had no memories of their love. She had a chance to start over without his emotional baggage. He was going to give her that chance. *

Buffy noticed the pain in Angel’s eyes and wanted to slap Xander.

"Are you sure we were friends?" She looked at Xander. "Because I don’t like you very much."

"Buff, I’m sorry, it was just me being stupid. I always do stupid things, that’s part my charm." Xander knew he blew it again, hadn’t he promised himself that he would be different if given the chance? Now Buffy hated him all over again.

"I can see that we aren’t getting anywhere with this tonight." Giles wiped his glasses. The kids were too emotionally raw to handle anymore. They needed to rest and continue tomorrow.

"Why don’t we all meet at the library, say about sunset so Angel can join us and we’ll continue with my explanations then. Everyone just go home and rest."

Angel was the first to get up and make his way to the door. He nodded briefly to Buffy and quickly left.

Willow, Oz and Cordelia all said their goodnights and went outside to their cars. Xander lingered wanting to make peace with Buffy.

Buffy saw him start to speak and held her hand up.

"Don’t say anything, you’ve said enough for one night. Just for once listen…I don’t know if I want to be your friend, I don’t know if I even like you. You were out of line tonight, I’m sure you have your reasons and maybe the other Buffy understood them. From what I’ve seen and heard about you I’m not sure you know how to be anyone’s friend, so just go." Buffy held the door open.

"I am your friend Buffy and I’m going to prove that to you." Xander walked out the door with his head low.