Simple Things

Author: Skylar

Summary: With Buffy's dad in town for graduation, what will his reaction be to Angel?
AN: Fifth story in my Remedy series. For this series, I've just decided to pick episodes at random to rewrite trying to fix Joss' mistakes.
Spoilers: Everything up through "Graduation", plus the other stories of this series.
AN: For this series, there's no happiness clause in Angel's curse, so there was no Angelus, and no Angel being sent to hell. However, Angel has moved into the mansion on Crawford street. Jenny was killed, only by Spike. And Xander and Willow never kissed, so everything's still peachy between W/O and X/C.
AN: "Wishful Thinking" belongs to Duncan Sheik, "Slave" belongs to David Garza. I may add a few more though.
Rating: I'd say PG-13.
Distribution: Want it- take it. Just let me know where it's going.
Feedback: As always, greatly appreciated.

Part 1

Buffy was in heaven. Her body was relaxed, and her mind was free of stress. It was a perfect way to start her Tuesday morning. < Only two more days of highschool- thank god.> She sighs and stretches as she begins to wake from a very lovely sleep. It takes her a moment to realize her movements are constricted and she can't quite stretch out as much as she wants. Confused, she opens her eyes to see a well-muscled arm slung tightly around her stomach.

"Angel," she mumbles with a smile. They were lying spoon fashion, Buffy's back snuggled very nicely into her lover's chest. He was still sleeping and was not aware that he had her trapped- not that she minded. She relaxes and is very content to lie in his arms until a thought crosses her mind. "Angel?" She tries freeing herself from his grasp but finds her attempts to escape useless. She manages to twist her body to face him and starts to push at his chest. "Angel?"

"Ow..." he mumbles, still not opening his eyes. Seeing his initial reaction, she decides on a different method of waking him up and plants a gentle kiss across his chest instead.

"Better..."

"I know you're not asleep, faker," she giggles, snuggling closer to him.

"What's wrong?" he asks, still half-asleep.

"What are you?"

Finally opening his eyes at his girlfriend's unusual question, he blinks a few times before responding. "Umm...a very tired guy?" he offers.

"No- I mean, what are we telling my father?"

"About what?"

"About you," she smiles, pulling herself closer to him. Realizing that he wouldn't be allowed back to sleep until he answered her, Angel sits up, rubbing the palm of his hand against his forehead.

"I'm guessing that the truth wouldn't be our best option," he smiles at her. Buffy idly begins twirling around the drawstring on his sweatpants as she can already picture her father's sure to be less-than enthusiastic reaction to the couple.

"Mom's whole reaction was a miracle, so I wouldn't press our luck trying to sell dad on the idea."

"Buffy...whatever you decide will be fine with me. I'll back you up one hundred percent- just make sure that you tell me what you plan on telling him ahead of time." He reaches over to plant a quick kiss on her bare shoulder before getting out of bed. He grabs a gray t-shirt from the closet, pulling it over his head as Buffy begins laying out their options.

"What if we told him you were just some plain, ordinary, local college student?" she suggests, following his lead and rolling out from under the covers.

"You think that I'm plain and ordinary?" Angel flashes her one of her own trademark pouts, causing Buffy to saunter over to him, grabbing him around the waist and pulling him against her as she begins singing his praises in between kisses.

"Of course not. You're smart *kiss* and caring *kiss* and deliciously sexy *kiss*. To top it all off, you're polite and courteous- any parent's dream for their daughter's boyfriend...except my father," her mood sombers as she turns back around to start getting dressed.

"What's so bad about your father?"

"Where do I begin?" she jokes, pulling her tank top over her head as she tries to prepare her boyfriend for his upcoming meeting with Hank Summers. "Nowadays, he barely makes any time for me, and when he does, all he finds time for is to criticize me at every opportunity imaginable. I nearly jumped out of my skin when mom-" she stops herself just in time, nervously grinning as she averts her eyes past Angel, peering into the mansion's kitchen. "So what's for breakfast?"

"Buffy...what did your mom do?"

"Nothing."

"Buffy-"

"Nothing," she whimpers again, receiving only another glare from Angel. "Okay, okay- shekindaalreadytoldhimaboutyou."

"What? Did- did you say she told your father about me?" Buffy's confession and her accompanying nod left Angel perplexed. "What's so bad about that?"

"Angel- why do you think he's coming into town tomorrow?"

"For your graduation," he answers her, still not believing that Hank Summers could be as bad as Buffy had led him to believe.

"No...his usual congratulatory mode is sending me a card with money or some flowers. He's coming to town to check you out, and I just know he's going to start with all of his nonsense about me not being old enough for a serious relationship, and you being too old-"

"Your mother didn't tell him how old I really am, did she?"

"Of course not-"

"Then we should be fine."

"I wonder if you'll still be saying that when dad's giving you the third degree and threatening to plunge a steak knife through your heart if you even think about corrupting his daughter."

Angel walks over to her, placing his arms on her shoulders. He softly grabs her chin, gently tipping her head upwards, looking her straight in the eyes to emphasize his words. "Everything is going to be fine. And even if your father doesn't approve, *nothing* can stop me from being with you. I would move heaven and hell if I had to, just to be with you- always." A smile finally graces Buffy's face as she reaches up on tiptoe to capture his lips with her own.

"About that steak knife?" Angel nervously grins out of their embrace, "you weren't serious...were you?" They go to share another kiss until Angel backs away suddenly, a sharp pain radiating throughout his chest.

"Angel, what's wrong?"

"I don't know," he whimpers, his eyes squinting in pain. "I just got this pain. It's fine now..." he sighs, lifting his hand from where his heart no longer beated, the center from where the pain was emanating.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. It was just weird there for a second."

"Maybe I should stay here for the day to keep an eye on you," she suggests, a hopeful glint in her eyes.

"As tempting as your offer is," he slides his arms around her as he ushers her back towards the doors, "I'm pretty sure missing skipping school two days before graduation won't look too good." He captures her lips in a sweet kiss, swallowing up the moan of protest she gave.

"Please- if they haven't expelled me by now, it isn't gonna happen. But if you need me-"

"Call Giles," he finishes for her, quite familiar with her daily instrustion.

"Ooo- don't forget, the guys are all coming over tonight."

"Right," he gives her a quick nod. "Umm...what for, again?" Her gives her an apologetic glance once he hears her frustrated sigh. "I forgot...I think I was too involved in more pressing matters," he grins against her skin, gently nuzzling her neck with a few soft kisses.

"Uggh- I swear you have a one track mind."

"So do you..."

"Mom wants us to pick up a few things for dinner tomorrow night, so I figured we'd been done in half the time if we had everyone helping us shop. Sound good?" Feeling a low moan against her skin, Buffy quickly pulls away. "I'll take that as a yes?" Her smile soon fades as she sees Angel's brow furrow slightly. "Angel?"

"Yeah..." he finally gets out, quickly covering up his second onslaught of pain that morning with a forced grin. "Sounds good. I'll see you tonight then."

"Oh...okay." Buffy leans up to give him one final kiss before reluctantly heading for school. "Love you."

"I love you..." he smiles back, slowly closing the mansion's front doors after her before lifting the corner of his shirt, quickly shedding the cotton material.

His eyes widen at the sight of the small hollow circle glowing a faint yellow overtop of his heart. He lifts a hand to his chest, tracing his fingers across the streak until finally it disappears just as quickly as it appeared. "Great..." he sighs to himself, walking back upstairs to bed. "Now what's going on?"

******

"Na-na na na, na-na na na. hey hey hey, goodbye!" As the slayer was walking down the halls of Sunnydale high later that morning with her friends, Xander's sheer bliss in their approaching graduation had him crazed with excitement. "Na-na na na-"

"Xander!" Cordy snaps at him, pulling her hand away from his as she turns to face him. "You keep singing that lame song and *I'm* gonna be the one saying goodbye to *you*!"

"Oh come on, Cordy," he pleads with her. "Don't be such a flatliner."

"A what?" Oz speaks up. Xander lets out an exasperated sigh as he grabs his girlfriend's hand, continuing to walk towards the friends' lockers.

"Flatlining...as in dead...as in how you're all acting!" He turns the combination to his locker for the last time, pulling off the lock to prepare for end of the year locker clean out. "We graduate in two days- we've only got 48 hours until we finally bust out of this joint!"

"Kinda like Alcatraz?" Oz smiles over at him.

"Only difference is I don't think they allow prisoners to keep so much junk in a locker," Cordy pulls Xander's locker door wide open, its overstuffed contents spilling out onto the floor. "How do you accumulate all of this in just one year?"

Letting out a small chuckle, Xander walks across the hall to open her locker, exposing her various health and beauty products. "The same way you stock up your locker to look like a commercial for Maybelline!"

"At least I don't have any toys in my locker!"

"How many times do I have to tell you- I keep them here strictly for educational purposes!"

"Xander-" Buffy cuts into their argument, "since when are a bunch of Ninja Turtle toys educational?"

"Fine, little miss sassy- let's just see what precious artifacts you've got in yours!" He walks back over to where Buffy's locker is, pulling open the door to reveal all of her stored junk. "Now who would've guessed?" He lifts a hand to point out each of the pictures she had plastered across the metal frame. "Angel, Angel, Angel, you and Angel, you and Angel, you and Angel...are we seeing an unhealthy, obsessive pattern here?"

"In about two minutes you're going to be seeing the inside of this locker from another, more close-up view if you don't go clean out your own." Xander pouts as he moves along down the row back to his own, tossing out various items into the nearby row of trash cans.

"Book, notebook, gym shorts, apple, cheese sandwich- complete with mold!"

"Xander," Willow sighs, watching the bluemold crusted bread being tossed alongside her. "That's a total ick." Ignoring her comment, he continues rummaging through, seeing if he could salvage anything. "Video game- that's a keeper! Lab goggles, book, book- wow, I took physics? Don't remember that!"

"Well that could have something to do with the fact that you were rarely awake during the class," Oz reminds him, receiving a huge nod from his friend.

"Rubber gloves, binder, hairspray..."

"Hairspray??" Willow throws a confused glance to her friend.

"Oh- that's mine!" Cordy races over to him. "Hands off, hands off- this stuff is imported!" As the others pass her awkward stares, she quickly explains. "I keep a spare in his locker...just in case. Hey -it is hard work maintaining this gorgeous look!"

"How does Queen C manage to do it?" Willow whispers to Buffy as the two were side by side, cleaning out their own lockers. "So, have you prepared Angel for the whole 'boyfriend meets dad' formality?"

"Yeah, and get this- he actually thinks it'll be fun," she mock cheers, tossing out one of her unused folders.

"Fun? He actually said that? Gosh- I would've expected something more along the lines of maybe kicking and screaming. Or something of the hyperventalating and chest pains scenario." Seeing her best friend tense up at her last remark, Willow frowns, tucking a piece of hair back behind her ear. "Buffy, what's wrong? Angel- he's okay, right?"

"I guess. He- he started getting these pains this morning. He said he was fine- just sorta freaked me out though."

******

Part 2

"Okay...peppers?"

"Check."

"Chicken?"

"Check."

"What about chocolate sauce?"

"Don't need it."

"What do you mean 'don't need it'?" Xander halts in his tracks behind the other Scoobies as the friends were making their way down their last aisle in the grocery store that night. "This is a meal that requires some chocolatey goodness! How can you say you don't need it, Buffster?"

"Last time I checked, us normal people use tomato sauce on pasta. I really don't think my father would enjoy your sugary, chocolate drenched version," the slayer makes a face, sharing a small giggle with Willow at their friend's weird taste in foods.

"Hey- one of these days I'm gonna be swapping my gourmet recipes with Wolfgang Puck! Then you'll all be sorry!"

"More like *sick* from food poisoning," Cordy snaps back. "Why do you even care what Buffy's serving for dinner tomorrow night? Not like you'll be eating with them."

"Hey- if Deadboy's cooking- I'm eating with them. Isn't that right, Angel?" He turns his head to see the vampire idly staring at the ice cream, a puzzled look across his face. "Angel?"

"Hmm? Oh...sure Xander. Whatever you...wait a minute-" he quickly snaps to attention upon processing this latest news. "*I'm* cooking? For your father??" Buffy passes him a sheepish look, averting her eyes to the ceiling as she turns on her sweetest voice. "Did I forget to mention it?" Seeing his initial reluctance, Buffy wraps him up in an embrace, sliding a hand up his back, pulling him closer to her. "Angel, come on. I won't be that bad- I promise. Please??"

"Yeah Angel- please??" Xander adds, eagerly awaiting some more of the vampire's great cooking.

"You know I can't say no to you," Angel mumbles into Buffy's hair, trailing his fingers over her shoulders. As he hears her let out a contented sigh, he sees Xander let out his own cheer. "I do however, have no problem saying no to *you*," he chuckles at him.

"What?! Come on-"

"Xander...it's going to be stressful enough meeting Buffy's dad for the first time," he tries reasoning with him, "the last thing I need is having you there to provide even more stress."

"Moi?" he presents himself innocently. "When was the last time I stressed you out?"

"Aisle three," Oz answers for Angel, his mind drifting back to a few minutes ago when Xander was comparing Angel's pale complexion to a tub of coolwhip.

"Xand," Buffy pulls away from Angel to face her friend. "I think it would just be too much having everyone over. But how about afterwards, we'll all meet for some ice cream action, okay?" The rest of the Scoobs, and a disappointed Xander, are quick to accept her offer, and the friends soon finish up their shopping for the night.

"Hey Angel-" Xander calls back to where the vampire was trailing behind the others as they walked down the street back to Buffy's house, "come on man! Some of us would actually like to get back inside before the next glacial movement." Seeing him give a slight nod, Xander steps up alongside Buffy and Willow, a bit puzzled by Angel's recent lack of energy. "What's up with Deadboy, Buff? You been wearin' him out at night or what?"

"Xander..." Willow slaps him across his shoulder, almost causing him to drop the bags of groceries he was carrying. Without answering him, Buffy walks back to where Angel was catching up with the group, casually lacing her hand in his own free one. "Hey."

"Sorry," he automatically apologizes, his eyes betraying him as Buffy clearly picks up on his unusual tiredness.

"What's wrong?" she pleads with him. "Angel, please...this morning you were having pains, and tonight you just seem out of it." She pulls him to halt, lifting a hand to his chin, making him face her. "This is scaring me...now what's wrong?"

"Buffy, really...I'm fine," he tries assuring her, placing a gentle kiss ontop of her head before pulling her back alongside them as they finally join the others approaching the Summers' home. "I guess I'm just more tired than I thought. Probably didn't get enough sleep, that's all."

"Well if you would take a break from your leading roles as the town lust bunnies, maybe you wouldn't- umph!!" Xander finds himself unable to continue with the bagel Willow had shoved into his mouth constricting his speech.

"Now chew it good, Xander," Willow glares at him, nodding for him and the others to head into the house. "I think we're all gonna head home, Buffy," she pats the slayer on her shoulder before pulling her into a quick hug. "We'll see you tomorrow. Last day- should be exciting." The others finish leaving the bags in Buffy's kitchen, bid their goodbyes, and leave the couple to unpack their food.

"Well, at least my dad will appreciate your cooking skills. That should be a plus," Buffy smiles, placing some of the vegetables in the fridge.

"Trust me," Joyce's voice comes wafting into the kitchen as she comes down the stairs, "if Hank has been fed, he'll be nice to just about anybody."

"Mother! God- you make him sound like a dog or something."

"Just a simple observation, honey- take it as you will," the elder Summers woman playfully nudges her daughter, passing a sidelong glance to Angel. "Has she told you she's got the two of us cooking for tomorrow night?"

Angel grins as he looks down at Buffy. "You actually conned your mom into cooking too? And here I thought I'd be the only one, Joyce. How did she convince you?"

"The same way she probably convinced you- with that cute pout of her's," she gently tips her daughter's chin up, giving her a warm smile. "What she doesn't know is that we may be doing the cooking, but we're making *her* do all of the prep work. Cutting, washing, setting the table, and doing all of the dishes."

"Mom!" Buffy throws her a frustrated glare before turning to work on her boyfriend. "Are you going to let her get away with that?" Not wanting to be caught in the middle of the feisty mother and daughter team, Angel excuses himself for the night. "Look at the time. Didn't realize it's way past my bedtime-"

"What bedtime?" Buffy raises a suspicious eye to him. "You sleep all day- your bedtime's at seven in the morning!"

"Goodnight, Buffy," Angel reaches down, gracing her warm lips with his own cool ones, finally pulling away after a few seconds. "Oh- Joyce? Do you think you could walk me out?" Nodding enthusiastically, Joyce leaves Buffy to finish up in the kitchen as she follows behind Angel to the door.

"Joyce- there's something I wanted to talk to you about-"

"Oh- if it's about tomorrow night, don't worry about a thing, Angel. I'm sure Hank will love you. And even with the two of us stuck cooking, with Buffy doing most of the work, it won't be-"

"Actually, that's not it."

"Oh. Well, what is it then?"

"It's about Buffy's graduation." He immediately notices the huge smile break out across Joyce's face, answering her with one of his own in the process. "Even though, unless some sort of miracle happens before Thursday night, I won't be able to go, I still want to do something special for her. I wanted to run my idea of a graduation present by you first before I go through with what I'd like to do."

"Okay, what did you have in mind?"

"It's too much to discuss this late. I was hoping maybe you could stop by tomorrow morning before you go to the gallery so we could talk things over." Joyce makes an intrigued face at him, finally patting him on the shoulder before opening the door for him. "Great, I'll stop by at around eight. Have a good night, Angel."

"You too, Joyce." The tired vampire begins his walk back to the mansion, still reeling from the affects of whatever was going on with his system. < Maybe I'm getting sick. Wouldn't be surprised- that's just my luck. The only souled vampire getting the first known case of vampire flu.>

******

Part 3

The hot, rushing jets of water were working beautifully to relax Angel the next morning. He hadn't slept more than a few timely minutes the night before, his body weak and weary from the now-constant onslaughts of pain he'd been having. Knowing that Buffy would probably be stopping over before she left for school, as well as her mother dropping by to discuss a few things with him, he'd hoped that a nice shower would revive him.

As the steaming water beats down on him, the sudden ringing of the doorbell broke him out of his peaceful trance. Figuring it was Buffy, he quickly steps out of the shower, grabs a towel and heads over to the stairs to call down to her. "It's open, Buffy! I'll be right down!"

After a moment of hesitation, Willow steps through the doors, carefully shutting them behind her as she makes her way through the grand hall. The first thing she notices is the kitchen counter, a few glasses and plates of food resting on top of it. < Must be expecting Buffy...> she muses to herself, slowly pacing over to the stairway.

With one towel wrapped around his waist, another overtop of his head, somewhat blocking his vision, Angel makes his descent. Instinctively, he moves towards the figure, wrapping an arm around her waist, placing a soft kiss on her cheek. "Good morning..."

"Uh...yeah...you- you too, Angel," Willow stammers out, flinching back just as much as Angel does once he realizes it wasn't his lover he had embraced.

"Willow? Oh- sorry. Sorry about that."

"Oh- that's okay. We're a friendly bunch, right? No biggie," she tries hiding her blush, shyly pulling a strand of hair behind her ear.

"I was just-"

"Expecting Buffy," she finishes for him, motioning towards the food that he'd set out for the slayer.

"As always," he lets out a small grin. "Umm...if you're hungry, help yourself." He pads into the kitchen, pulling out a chair for her. "Just let me run upstairs and throw on some clothes."

"Yeah- clothes are always a plus," she giggles nervously, trying to keep herself from staring.

After a few minutes, Angel comes bouncing down the stairs again, this time clad in black sweatpants and a white t-shirt. His hair still damp, he runs a hand through it before sitting down at the table next to the redhead. "So...how's you speech coming along?"

Willow smiles sweetly. Even when all the others, for the most part- Xander, had their reservations about Angel, she'd always had a soft spot for him. Over the last three years, she'd developed a keen friendship with her best friend's boyfriend, and was always appreciative of the great interest he took in her achievements.

"Slow, but steady. I tried asking principle Snyder if this year we could just skip the whole 'valedictorian-has-to-give-a-boring-speech' tradition and start a new tradition."

"Which would be?"

"The 'valedictorian-sits-quietly-and-waits-for-her-name-to-be-called, avoiding-all-possible-humiliation' tradition."

"I'm sure you'll do fine, Willow. I'm just sorry that I won't be there to see it," he trails off on a somber note.

"Oh- speaking of which...I totally forgot why I'm here."

Finally remembering her whole reason for paying him such an early morning visit, Willow retrieves a book from her backpack, flipping through the pages as she looks up at him. "Buffy sorta told me that you've been having pains lately-"

"Willow, I'm fine, really," he lies, but somehow knows he won't be able to carry on his deception for much longer. If last night was any indication, he was hoping he'd be able to make it through dinner with Joyce, Buffy, and her father later that night without collapsing over dessert.

"Angel- last night you looked like Xander would've been able to take you down with one wimpy blow. So when I went home, I started researching-"

"You didn't have to do all that," he sighs.

"Well...considering the fact that you've saved my life on more than one occasion, plus this crazy concept I call 'you being my friend', it was nothing. Anyway, I haven't been able to run this by Giles yet, so I'm not really sure how accurate this whole thing is. And I debated whether or not to even mention it to you, because I didn't want to get your hopes up and then have to tell you that I was wrong- which, I- I tend to be sometimes, and I-"

"Willow," he softly cuts off her rant. "What did you find?"

"You're becoming human," she blurts out, receiving a wide, shocked stare in return from the stunned vampire.

"What?" is all Angel can manage to get out through his dropped jaw, his mind still trying to process what he's just been told. Taking a few steadying breaths, Willow begins her explanation.

"When we first found out about you, ya know- having a soul and all, don't get mad at me, but...I kinda started doing a lot of research on you. I wanted to find out more about your curse, and what you having a soul really meant. Anyway, when Buffy mentioned you having all of these weird pains, and then after seeing you last night, I remembered something that..." She pauses, the memory of receiving the news of Spike murdering Jenny flashing before her for a moment. "...something Miss Calender had shown me.

There's a prophecy about the souled vampire finally regaining his humanity. Something called Shanshu. It talks about the vampire's redemption being brought about by the strongest lifeforce known to the universe." She smiles over at him, trying to lighten the matter a bit. "We're talking about the big 'L' word here. Anyway, I think that's what's happening to you."

"Because of Buffy?"

"Because of the two of you together. Sometimes I don't think you two realize what there is between you. I mean, if it's enough to bring forth what was believed to be a lost prophecy-"

"I'm still not getting this, Willow," Angel slowly stands from his seat, beginning to pace across the tiled floor. "How do you figure my getting sick means I'm turning human?"

"It's a process, Angel." The redhead flips a few pages, beginning to summarize the ancient text. "Since your body has been...dead, just a host to a demon, as your humanity returns, so do all the things that life brings with it- sickness, disease...all of the things you're immune to as a vampire. Unless the...where did it say...?" She runs a finger over the print, trying to find her missing details. "Here it is- unless the ultimate noble self-sacrifice is made, eventually you're body will just...sorta...expire."

"So as of right now, I'm stuck?" his voice borders on sarcasm and hopelessness as he raises an eyebrow at her. "I'm getting my life back, but at the same time losing it? That doesn't make any sense."

"It all has to do with the final act. The only way to salvage and maintain the humanity that's being restored is to anchor it using the 'ultimate noble self-sacrifice' " she recites again from the pages of the book, seeing Angel's face turn a shade even paler than usual.

"What does it mean by a sacrifice?" He looks towards the redhead, finding her eyes averting him in trepidation of just what needed to be done for the prophecy. "Willow? What's the sacrifice?"

"I was hoping we could just sorta skip over that part," she sighs. "It's pretty heavy, Angel...but it would be worth it. And it's not like it would kill her or anything, and I know she'll do it. She'll make you do it if she has to, which she probably will, because I don't think you're gonna want to do this-"

"Willow," he snaps her back to the topic at hand, "what sacrifice? And who are you talking about?"

"Buffy..." she finally raises her eyes to him, but her attention seemed more focused on the sight of the small figure standing behind him.

"Buffy? How does she fit into all of this?"

"Yeah..." comes the slayer's voice from behind him, causing him to quickly turn around, his strucken gaze now fixed on her. "How does Buffy fit into all of this? By the way- just what am I fitting into?"

"Buffy..." Angel half-smiles, pulling her over to him.

"Morning," she gives him a quick, playful kiss, throwing a stare to her best friend afterwards. "You too, Will. What are you doing here anyway?"

"I, uh...I just..."

"She was just having breakfast," Angel covers for her. "She knows you stop by in the morning before you go to school. Willow, weren't you saying something about wanting to have Buffy listen to your speech before you show it to Snyder this morning?" he tries detailing his lie even further, hoping Buffy hadn't heard any of their conversation.

"Yeah," Willow perks up. "That's right- my speech. I figured you'd be here, so...here I am. Just...hanging out with Angel. Oh- and some pancakes," she smiles, lifting one up in front of her as if to offer further proof.

"So you wouldn't just be trying to steal my boyfriend from right under my nose?" Buffy jokes with her, pulling up a seat in between the two of them. "No! No, no...it's just me, Angel, and pancakes- see?" she holds up her fluffy circle again, her nervousness clearly showing through. "It has nothing to do with romance or- or lusty thoughts. I- I even forgot about seeing him in that towel," she slips, still babbling on helplessly. "Or- or that he kissed me."

Buffy immediately shoots a stunned look at Angel, who began chuckling softly. "I had just gotten out of the shower and I heard someone at the door. I had a towel-"

"She mentioned the towel," Buffy cuts in, still lifting an eyebrow at him.

"I also had one over my head- I thought she was you," he smiles, capturing her lips in a kiss.

"For a minute there I thought I'd have to get in two slays before homeroom," she kids, but sees that Willow is still apprehensive. "Will- I'm kidding," she reaches over to snag a sip of her orange juice before standing back up, slinging her backpack over her shoulder.

"It's almost 7:30," Willow finally gets out a coherent thought, standing from the table.

"Yeah- we'd better get going...before you two decide to elope," Buffy laughs aloud, though instantly sees her best friend slump back down in her chair in fear. "Oh Will, come on. We've seriously got to work on your sense of humor." Buffy leads Willow by the arm over to the front doors, turning back around to say goodbye to Angel.

"Don't forget- be early tonight. That'll earn you instant 'dad points' ."

"I'll be around right after sunset. Promise," he leans down to kiss her on the forehead, then settles his lips on hers for a lingering kiss.

"Uh...guys," Willow taps Buffy on the shoulder, "school, remember?"

"Right," Buffy agrees, finally separating from him. "See ya tonight."

"Have a good day," he wishes to the both of them, slowly closing the doors after them, turning back around to walk back through the great hall. < Human? This is insane...it's impossible. But...Willow's usually right on these things, and...god- to be human again, and with Buffy?> The idea embodied the only hope he'd clung to over the years, but never dared to dream for.

But since watching Buffy called on that fateful day in front of her school, he'd tried summoning up the image of the two of them being able to share a life together. A life out of demons and darkness. And the image would always come, but always fall short of coming into full focus for him. < If this is really what's happening...>

The pain that begins building up in his chest wipes out his concentration as he reels back against the wall, clutching a hand over his unbeating heart in a blind attempt to stop it. His vision blurs, his hearing falling just short of silent as the faint knocking at the door eventually reaches his senses.

Taking a few uneccessary calming breathes, he steadies himself as he walks towards the doors, welcoming Joyce into the mansion.

"Joyce, come on in, please." The smiling mother eases her way past him, catching a glimpse of his haggard appearance. "Angel? Are you alright? You look a little...you're sweating," she points to his forehead, beads of perspiration beginning to run streaks down the side of his face.

"Oh- I just got out of the shower," he brushes it off, motioning for her to sit down in front of the fireplace with him. "Can I get you anything?"

"No, no...I'm fine, dear, thank you." She relaxes onto the couch, nestling her purse off to the side of her. "So...what did you have in mind for this graduation present of yours, hmm?"

******

Part 4

"Oh...right," he smiles back at her. "To the point. Joyce...I don't think I have to tell you just how much I love your daughter." Joyce beams at him, nodding softly in agreement. "I treasure anytime that I get to spend with her, and lately...more and more I dread when the sun rises because I can't share that time with her. I realize that she's still young, but...as I'm sure you'll agree, she's more mature than anyone else I've ever known. But I still wanted to check with you first before I-"

"Ask her to move in with you?" Joyce completes his thought.

"How- how did you know?"

"I've suspected this would be coming for some time now," she answers him, shifting her position to face him better. "Ever since prom weekend, there's just been this...glow about the two of you whenever you're together. It's as if it's just the two of you...and everything else doesn't matter so long as you're with each other."

Nervous of her ultimate decision, Angel squints his eyes a bit as he focuses on her with a deep rooted respect and hope. "So...what do you think?"

"You haven't mentioned any of this to Buffy yet?" Joyce asks, her eyes wandering around the spacious mansion, already visualizing all of Buffy's loud and sometimes obnoxious designs cluttering Angel's tastefully decorated scheme.

She had to admit, she was surprised Angel hadn't made talk about the idea a lot sooner. She'd regarded the vampire as more than just her daughter's boyfriend. Within her there was a compassion for Angel, one that made her feel as open and honest with him as any other person in her life, if not more so. She saw in him a peace and gentleness that had been lacking in both her's and her daughter's life that he now offered the both of them.

"No. I wanted to approach you with the idea first. I didn't want to get Buffy's hopes up and then send them crashing down if-"

"She's going to have a lot of packing to do..."

"-you decided that it's not such a good idea, and-" Angel peers up at her in confusion, his look of shock and happiness priceless. "You mean..."

"You didn't even have to ask me, Angel, but the fact that you did proves even more why I'm not against the idea." Seeing the vampire's eyes still wide with the news, Joyce goes to sit next to him. "Buffy spends most nights here anyway. Next year she'll be going to UC Sunnydale, and college life combined with slaying...I think this would be good for her. Give her something to really look forward to coming home. And besides...she's always stealing my clothes anyway- might as well let you experience the slayer-snatcher," she lets out a small laugh.

"I've already been a victim," he smiles back. "On numerous occassions...wouldn't trade it for the world though."

"We'll see if you change your story after a few straight weeks," she quirks back, giving his shoulder a small pat as she gets up from her seat, Angel following behind her. "Okay- so when can I start renting her room out?"

"I wasn't planning on asking her until after the graduation ceremony. I was hoping to surprise her. Maybe have some more of her things waiting here for her-"

"I've got a great idea," she turns to face him. "They all have off from school tomorrow. Her father and I will take her out for the day. I'll get Xander, Willow, and the others to clear out her room and help you move her stuff in here. The girls will all be getting ready at Cordelia's house, so it'll work out great. Buffy won't know a thing."

"That sounds..." Joyce watches in panic as Angel clutches his stomach, his pains now beginning to claw through his abdomen, surging straight through him.

"Angel? What's wrong??" Joyce immediately wraps an arm around his back, fearing he may have been injured in a recent fight with any number of demons she was sure he and Buffy had encountered during the week.

"Nothing...I'm okay..." He steadies himself, forcing a smile at her. "Just a little sore...that's probably all it is."

"If you're sure..."

"Yeah, thanks Joyce. I don't want to hold you up anymore. I'm fine, really." Giving him one final look for reassurance, Joyce makes her departure, leaving Angel to slide down against the door once he closes it shut. Leaning his head back against it, his fingers dance idly on the cold floor, his mind still racing with the two new thoughts that it had recently attained- the possibility of Buffy moving in, and the prospect of finally regaining the humanity that had been ripped from him so long ago.

******

Ten hours later, Buffy moves easily about her kitchen, making some last minute preparations for her father's arrival.

"Mom!!!"

"What's wrong now, honey?" Joyce adjusts her earring as she walks into the kitchen to see just what was the source of her daughter's frustrations this time. Since arriving home from school, the young slayer had been unusually high-strung in anticipation of the evening's dinner and her father's first introduction to Angel.

"He's still not here?!"

"Who? Your father, or Angel?"

"Both of them! Ughh- I expect dad to be late, but Angel promised me he'd be here right after sunset."

"Which was about five minutes ago," Joyce chuckles. "Honey- relax. I'm sure Angel will be here any minute. You've got to give him a little leeway here. After all, he's still nursing some wounds." Buffy's head shoots up at her mother's last comment.

"What do you mean nursing some wounds?"

"When I went over to talk to him this morning, he was a little sore, that's all." Buffy makes a quick mental note of the news, already planning how she was going to yell at her boyfriend for lying to her about only having a few meaningless pains. In the middle of her conversation with herself, the familiar chimes of the doorbell brings her back to reality.

Quickly scampering to the door, she gives her hair a final tussle before welcoming Angel in. Angel had no sooner opened his mouth to compliment her dress when she shoots him an angry glare, her eyes penetrating into his own confused gaze. "What's wrong?" he asks. Deciding that they'd discuss things on a night when she wasn't trying to pass him off to her father as her normal, human boyfriend, she lowers her head, trying to plaster a smile on her face.

"Nothing," she waves a hand in the air, moving aside to let him step past her. Angel searches her face for a moment before simply smiling back at her. "Well hello to you too." He leans over and kisses her lightly.

Her annoyance evaporates instantly at the sight of his trademark half-grin. "Hello," she replies as she pulls him back down to her, drawing him in for a longer embrace.

"Hello..."

Realizing their kiss had lingered a little longer than they'd anticipated, the third voice approaches them from the porch, the person clearing their throat just loud enough for Buffy to slowly pull herself out of Angel's arms. Her glance strays through the still-opened door, her eyes finally resting on the sight of the well-dressed, and somewhat displeased, Hank Summers.

"Ummm...hi dad..."

******

Part 5

Stunned at her father's arrival, Buffy throws Hank a look to see how he was reacting to finding his daughter smooching with the boyfriend he was coming to interrogate. He seemed bemused, and quite embarrassed by the sight in front of him. Shifting his eyes a bit, he reaches behind him blindly to close the door while Angel moves beside Buffy, unconsciously straightening out the folds of the dark blue silk shirt he wore beneath his jacket.

"Hi sweetheart," Hank finally says, pulling his daughter into a tight hug, his eyes trailing over her shoulder to focus on the obviously much-older creep who just seconds ago had his hands roaming all over his little girl.

"Did you just get in?" Buffy pulls away from him with a nervous grin.

"Uh-huh..." he replies, his eyes never leaving Angel as he addresses his daughter. "Buffy...aren't you going to introduce me?"

"Introduce you? Oh- ohhh..." she reaches around a hand, fishing for Angel's, relieved when she finally grabs hold of him. "Dad, this- this is Angel. Angel, this is my father," she smiles, having to yank on Angel's arm to draw him forward.

"Mr. Summers," he extends his hand, hoping he wouldn't find anything too unusual by it's lack of heat. "Pleasure to meet you, sir."

Hank shakes his hand firmly, never losing eye contact with him. "So this is Angel. Well, it's nice to meet you too." Releasing his hand, Hank's eyes stray into the dining room where Joyce was carrying in some drinks, gently setting them on the table.

"Hank," she casually strolls over, welcoming him with a friendly hug. "Good to see you."

"You too, Joyce."

"I see you've met Angel here," she places a calming hand on the vampire's shoulder, receiving a warm smile from him.

"Mmm...I have the feeling I was interrupting something," he looks down at his daughter, watching as she turns another shade of red.

"Well...Angel had just gotten here a few seconds before you did, and we were just...I mean- I was just...greeting him. That's all."

"Why don't we all go into the dining room," Joyce quickly covers for her, leading Angel in by the arm ahead of her daughter and ex-husband. "Angel," she whispers over to him, "what did Buffy say to tell Hank you do? I mean, what do we tell him?"

"I think she sorta left that part out, Joyce," he realizes, wishing they wouldn't have gotten so distracted the other night to the point where Buffy never had the opportunity to clue him in as to what background they would be giving to Mr. Summers.

Hank watched with a pleased eye as Angel pulls out both Buffy's and Joyce's chairs for them, taking his own seat beside Buffy once the two Summers women were both seated. "Angel and I won't be starting dinner for a little while," Joyce informs them, "since a certain 'helper' hasn't quite mastered the fine art of chopping vegetables yet," she throws a pointed glance to her daughter.

"Hey- it's not my fault I'm not slicing-and-dicing inclined," she defends.

"So you cook, Angel?" Hank lifts his eyes to him, trying not to focus on the way his daughter's hand was busy tracing over Angel's own.

"Yes, sir," he replies.

"Must've picked it up from your mother I'm willing to wager."

"Yes, sir."

"Come to think of it, Joyce never mentioned your family's name..." he trails off.

"O'Halloran," he answers, seeing both Buffy's and Joyce's eyes widen at his unusual openess about his past. "Angel Liam O'Halloran."

"Are you and your family from around here?" Hank continues his questioning.

"No, sir. We're originally from Ireland. Galway, actually. Quiet little town."

"Oh. When did your family move to the states?"

"Actually, I'm the only one to come here. After both of my parents died...I just decided to get away from things. Start over here in California."

"How nice," Hank responds, so far pleased with most aspects of him. Kind and courteous, respectful and easygoing.

"Well Angel," Joyce draws his attention, "what do you say we go start on dinner, hmm?" Following her lead, Angel excuses himself from the table to help Joyce in the kitchen. Sensing a perfect opportunity, Buffy inches closer to her father, hoping to get his first reaction to Angel, but finds herself being cut off before even opening her mouth.

"So how've you been, sweetheart?" Hank wraps an arm around her shoulder. "How're you doing in school?"

"Great, just great," she smiles up at him.

"Your mother said your grades have really been up there as of late."

"Yep. Tomorrow night I'm even gonna get to wear one of those special gold thingies-"

"A tassle," he cuts in.

"Right. I actually managed to pull my grades up into the top twenty. Isn't that great?"

"That's wonderful, honey," he places a kiss on her cheek. "I'm so proud of you."

"Well...I can't take all the credit. Mom's been really supportive, and Angel too."

"Really?"

"Mmm-hmm...he's actually been, ummm...tutoring me in some classes. He's really helped." < Might as well give him the same story I first gave mom.>

"Well...it's good to hear he hasn't been a...distraction from your studies. I hope this will still be the case once you start classes at UC Sunnydale in the fall."

"Of course, dad," Buffy sighs, already frustrated by her father's typical habit of twisting things around from a critical point of view. The slayer lets out another sigh, this time of relief, as she sees her mother and Angel return from the kitchen.

"Dinner should be ready in about a half hour. Just remind us to go check on it, 'helper' " Joyce smiles at her daughter as Angel again pushes in her seat for her, then takes his place back beside Buffy.

"We're having chicken," Angel looks over to Hank, "if that's okay with you, sir?"

"I'm sure whatever the two of you are cooking up will be wonderful, Angel. And enough with the 'sir'," Hank tries extending a more friendlier welcome. "Just Hank is fine." Seeing Angel nod, he decides to continue in his attempt to accurately survey him. "So Angel, besides cooking, what do you do? Are you a student? Working?"

"A student."

"He's an artist."

"He works at the gallery."

Angel, Buffy, and Joyce look to each other as Hank stares at the three of them, a bit overwhelmed by the three different answers he had just received from each of them. Seeing that Buffy and Angel were at a loss as to how to clear things up, Joyce decides to step in. "Well, actually Angel *is* a student," she starts, validifying what Angel had said, "but he works part-time at the gallery with me."

"And he *does* paint and draw and stuff," Buffy adds to her own previous answer. "So I think of him as an artist."

"Oh, then we have a bit of something in common then," Hank sits back in his chair, adjusting his position. "I'm an architect myself. Designing and such...I've always been fascinated by it."

As the four sit waiting for dinner, the evening's conversation takes many different directions. From Hank's recent clients in LA to how well Joyce's gallery was doing in Sunnydale. Buffy was actually feeling a bit left out when her parents and Angel became engrossed in a conversation about some big museum exhibit that would be in LA in two weeks, but as soon as Angel reached over and nudged her softly, asking her if she'd like to go see it, her annoyance quickly vanished.

Hank had to admit, he was finding himself liking Angel more and more, but he still harbored an unable to be overlooked detail about him. "I hope you don't mind my asking Angel, but...exactly how old are you? Joyce did tell me that you were a little older than Buffy..." he grins as he gives him another look over.

"I'm, uh...twenty-four, Hank," Angel answers, hoping Buffy's father wouldn't react as badly as Buffy had already warned him.

"Twenty-four...you're six years older than Buffy," Hank states, obviously not pleased with the fact.

"Dad..." Buffy sighs, "please don't make a big deal out of it. I'm eighteen years old-"

"How old were you when you two first started going out?"

"Sixteen, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"I see. And just how...serious has your relationship been. I mean-"

"Hank," Joyce interjects, already seeing where he was going with this. "The two of them have had a very understanding relationship for the past three years and I really think that's all that needs to be said here."

"Joyce," he turns to face her, "I'm just looking out for our daughter's best interest. I would expect you to do the same-"

"And she does," Buffy defends her mother, her frustrations turning to annoyance as she stands up to her father. "She's been so supportive of everything in my life, and if after all this time you can't see that, then...oh no. Time...has anyone checked on dinner?" Immediately Joyce's and Angel's heads shoot up as they stand from the table, racing into the kitchen, only to find their dinner blackening even more in the oven.

"I guess chicken's off the menu for tonight," Buffy quips as she sticks her head in through the doorway, offering them her best 'I'm sorry' look in hopes of being forgiven for not keeping up her end of their cooking arrangements.

"Looks like," Hank joins them all, eyeing the burnt bird with a wry smile. "Tell you what, why don't we all just go out to eat? My treat." Buffy accepts her father's offer for her mother and Angel, grabbing hold of her lover's hand as they all walk out to Hank's car.

Within ten minutes they arrive at Callaway's Restaurant, soon after being seated at a lovely table, ready to order. But as Buffy takes a quick glance around, she instantly recognizes four familiar faces.

"Uh...you guys know what? I'm really not in the mood for Italian anymore," she nervously tugs at Angel's arm, urging him to back her up.

"Sweetie, you love Italian," Joyce eyes her warily. "Besides, where else are we going to go?"

"Maybe the school cafeteria's still open," she offers, becoming even more anxious as she sees the four people she had spotted getting up from their table and making their way over to them.

"Buffy, what's wrong?" Angel turns to her, his brow furrowing at her behavior.

"Buffster!! Deadboy!! What's up?!"

Without even having to turn around, Angel brings a hand up to his head, slumping his elbows onto the table in a mix between anger and panic. "Oh god no..."

******

Part 6

Mentally kicking herself for letting Joyce's and Angel's beautiful dinner go up in flames, forcing them to spend the evening out, Buffy tosses her boyfriend an apologetic stare as Xander, Cordelia, Willow, and Oz surround their table.

"Deadboy?" Hank raises an eye to Xander's greeting for Angel.

"Uhh...just a little nickname between friends," Buffy nervously smiles at her father. "It's sort of a running joke between these two," she chuckles, slapping Xander across the chest none too lightly.

"Ugh! What was that for?!" the young teen whines.

"Well...would you all care to join us?" Hank offers his daughter's friends, but immediately notices Buffy shake her head emphatically.

"I don't think that would be such a good idea, dad."

"What? Buffy, don't be ridiculous. It's about time I got acquainted with all of your friends here. Why don't you all pull up a chair," he smiles up at the rest of the Scoobs.

Knowing full well just how quickly Xander would ruin whatever chances Buffy had of getting Angel past Mr. Summers, Willow takes it upon herself to decline for the group. "That's really nice of you Mr. Summers, but we really can't-"

"Say no," Xander interjects, pulling a chair over to sit beside Angel. "We really can't say no to such a gracious offer." At a loss as to what else to do, Cordelia takes the seat that Xander had pulled over for her, Willow and Oz following suit.

"There you go," Hank perks up. "Now was that so hard, honey?" he looks over to his daughter.

"Not yet..." she mutters under her breath, looking towards her best friend for support. "I have a feeling I'm going to regret this night," Buffy whimpers.

"Come on, Buffy," Willow tries consoling her. "Be positive."

"Okay- I'm *positive* I'm going to regret this night."

"Well, now that everyone's here..." Hank calls back her attention, "Buffy, why don't you introduce us?" Releasing the heavy sigh that had been building inside since seeing her friends already gathered at the restaurant, Buffy makes her way around the table presenting everyone.

"Dad- this is Willow, Oz, Cordelia, and Xander. Guys- this is my dad. And you all know mom and Angel," she manages a smile, trying to salvage hope for some normalcy in the evening.

"Well of course we know Angel," Xander grins widely, wrapping an arm around the vampire's shoulders. "Everybody loves Angel, don't we guys?" Cordy can't help but roll her eyes at her boyfriend's blatancy, mouthing an apology to Buffy in the process. Willow and Oz simply look to Angel nervously, hoping Xander wouldn't blow things completely.

"Well it's nice to meet all of you. I didn't realize you were all so close, Angel," Hank smiles, looking across to where Angel was beginning to fidget between Xander and Buffy.

"Well..."

"Oh yeah," Xander answers for him. "Are you kidding? I spend more time with this guy than I do with my own family."

"You're going to be spending time in the intensive care unit if you don't stop," Angel whispers to him, all the while passing his trademark half-smile to Hank.

Ignoring the threat, Xander decides to take full advantage of the situation, giving Angel's shoulder an extra squeeze as he turns to address Buffy's father once more. "Did you know he likes blood? I mean- he's *like* blood?" Xander lets out a laugh at his intentional slip. "Just can't say enough good things about this guy. Even if I lived to be *245 years old*, I still wouldn't be able to- uggh!!"

"Oh! Xander, was that your leg?" Cordelia feigns an apology. "Sorry about that," she smiles sweetly, reaching over to grab his hand, giving it a not-so-gentle squeeze. "Instead of focusing on Angel," she whispers firmly, "why don't you pay more attention to me, hmm?"

"Right..." he winces, reaching down his other hand to rub his ailing leg.

After a few minutes of getting to know his daughter's friends, Hank calls over their waiter to order.

"I'll have the linguini with extra *garlic*," Xander proudly gives the young girl his order, turning to nudge Angel afterwards. "Gotta keep those vampires away, right buddy?"

"Aren't you a little old to believe in vampires?" Hank laughs at his remark, at the same time wondering why Joyce and Buffy were both holding a hand to their heads, muttering something incoherent between them.

"You'd be surprised at the things that go bump in the night, Mr. Summers," Xander flashes him a smile. "Am I right guys?"

"I've never run into anything..." Oz says, the four words being the only other ones besides 'hi' that he'd spoken all evening.

"Me neither," Willow adds. "Things are pretty peaceful around here."

"More like *dead*," Xander emphasizes, smiling at Angel's instant squirm.

"About the only thing that's interesting around here is the mall," Cordelia tries in her own way of steering the conversation towards a lighter note.

"Ooo- and your gallery," Willow looks over to Joyce, receiving a proud smile from her, a round of stares from the others. "What? I like art and history- sue me."

"Oh- well then that's something you and Angel have in common," Hank notes, nodding towards the vampire with a grin.

"What- *history*??" Xander pipes up again. "Oh yeah- I don't think there's anyone who knows more about *history* than Angel- umph!!" Xander nearly keels back in his chair as Cordelia shoves a roll into his mouth.

"Now chew it slowly, honey..." she warns him, giving his cheek a small pat.

"Umm..." Hank pauses, a little confused by Cordelia's action, "actually, I was talking about Joyce's gallery. That's where Angel works, right?"

"The gallery?" Willow's brow furrows slightly until she spots Buffy desperately nodding her head, trying to grab her attention. "Oh...ohhh- right. The gallery. Yep- that's where Angel works. At the- the gallery. Good ol' gallery-working Angel."

"Buffy, is that how the two of you met?" Hank asks, startling the slayer slightly as he places a hand on her shoulder.

"Actually, they met in an alleyway when Buffy knocked him on his a-"

"Have another roll, Xand," Cordy smiles, shoving another one into his mouth to silence him.

"Uh...yeah," Buffy finally answers her father. "Yeah- mom introduced us when she uh, heard that I needed some tutoring in history, and we just...hit it off right away."

"Speaking of right away," Hank says, standing from the table, "I'd better head over to the bathroom before our food gets here. Be right back."

"Take your time," Xander finally gets out, extracting the half-eaten roll that his girlfriend had lodged in his mouth.

Once her father had disappeared around the far-off corner, Buffy seizes the opportunity to have a few words with her friend. Leaning over the table slightly, she reaches out an arm, grabbing Xander roughly by his shirt. She pulls him to her, just inches away from her face as she whispers her threat through gritted teeth. "If you don't knock off your little one-man show, effective *immediately*, *I'm* gonna take *my* time tossing you all around town, in and out of every vampire nest I can find- okay??"

"Gotcha..." Xander gulps, thankful to see Mr. Summers returning to the table from the other side of the restaurant, forcing Buffy to shove him back against his seat.

"Everything okay?" Hank raises an eye as he sits back down, noticing the table's rising tension.

"We're fine dad," Buffy pats his shoulder affectionately. "Xander just had something on his shirt. I wanted to help him get it off, that's all. Isn't that right, Xand?"

"Uh-huh..." Xander finally squeaks out, his eyes still wide at the slayer's anything-but-idle threat.

******

Part 7

Despite their initial fears, both Buffy and Angel were pleasantly surprised at how well the evening was turning out. Xander had finally ceased in all of his remarks, and Hank really seemed to have been enjoying his night out with his daughter and her friends.

Every so often, the proud father would steal a glance of Angel leaning over to whisper something into Buffy's ear, giving her a gentle kiss on her cheek, causing her to blush- he noticed that she seemed to do that a lot around him. He could tell that Angel was truly sincere in his compliments. There was such a depth to his eyes and a caring soul beneath his smile.

"Angel...you don't eat much, do you?" Hank takes notice that his plate was still almost completely full.

"I'm uh...just not a big eater I guess. Never really thought about it before."

"Probably in training," Hank assumes by his large, intimidating frame. "You look the athletic type. Play any sports?"

"A- a little. I uh...wrestle..." he offers, trying to think of any other activities he could mention besides slaying alongside his lover, "...and...well, for the most part I just..." he trails off, unable to continue once the familiar twinge of pain starts working through him. < No...not now...not here, please...> he silently begs whoever was listening, but it was no use.

"Angel?" Hank checks, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You okay there?" Receiving only a groan in response, he looks towards his daughter and Joyce for answers. "Is he alright?"

"Angel?" Buffy instinctively wraps an arm around him tight. "What's wrong? Talk to me, what's wrong?" The others can only look on in surprise, Willow seeming to be especially concerned with Angel's worsening condition.

"Nothing..." he winces away from her touch, trying to bring the pains under control as he'd been able to do before.

"You know what," Buffy stands from her seat, pulling Angel reluctantly up along with her, "I'm just gonna take him outside for some fresh air."

"Well wait-" Hank holds up a hand to stop them, "we're about ready to leave anyway."

"No- that's okay. You guys all finish dessert. We'll only be a minute." Casually sliding an arm underneath his shoulders to help support him, Buffy leads Angel out of the restaurant, holding him up against Hank's car to face him. "Angel, what's going on? And don't tell me 'nothing' . You've been in pain for the past two days. What's happening?"

"I don't..." he struggles to get any more coherent words out, hissing in agony as a sharp bolt of pain radiates across his chest. As his eyes squeeze shut, he slides down against the metal frame, giving Buffy a chance to take in the rest of his appearance. His typically cold skin was starting to burn up, now layered with a thin veneer of sweat. His body held a small tremble and he seemed to be almost gasping for air he shouldn't have even needed.

Kneeling down beside him, her hand resting on his chest, Buffy is more than relieved to see him begin to calm down. His eyes slowly open, vision slightly blurred as he squints to focus on her. Bringing a hand to his forehead, he tries getting up, but finds himself being held down by the slayer.

"Just stay here. I'm going to get mom and we're taking you home."

"Buffy..."

"Don't Angel-" she gives him a gentle warning not to argue with her. "Stay right here while I grab mom."

In an instant, Buffy is back inside, softly jogging back over to their table.

"Honey," Hank stands, "is everything okay? Angel- is he alright?"

"Just a little sick. He- he said it's been going around the university. Sorry to bail on the evening, but I think we'd better get him home."

"No need to apologize, sweetheart." Soon enough, Hank is paying their waiter and quite anxious to get his daughter's sick boyfriend home for the night. "We can just take him home right now-"

"Oh- uhhh...actually dad, you don't have to. I'm sure Cordelia can drive us," she looks towards the brunette, thankful to see her nod accordingly with a smile. "It's right on her way home anyway."

"Well, if you're sure?" Hank checks again, genuinely concerned about Angel's well being.

"Yeah," Buffy makes a wave of her hand, "we'll just see you tomorrow at the ceremonies," she manages a smile, leaning up to pull him into a hug."

"Alright then. I guess I'll see you all during your big moment tomorrow at three. It was great meeting all of you," he bids her friends goodbye, then turns to his ex-wife. "Joyce, can I offer you a ride home?"

"That'd be nice," she passes him a grin. As they all begin their walk out to the front, Joyce pulls Buffy aside. "Angel hasn't been looking well, honey," she solemnly admits to her.

"I know. I'm going to get him in bed then give Giles a call. See what he can come up with."

"I would like you home tonight, Buffy," Joyce sighs. "You've still got a big day ahead of you tomorrow. Oh, and your father and I are taking you out tomorrow morning, so I'd like you up early."

"I'll be home in a little while. Don't worry."

"Just make sure he's okay."

As Joyce and Hank left towards Revello Drive, Cordelia's red Saturn speeded off towards Crawford street, finally pulling up in front of the mansion. With Xander and Oz giving her a hand, Buffy gets Angel upstairs into his room.

"Buffy..." Willow meekly speaks up, watching as her best friend begins stripping the vampire of his clothes, "everyone else is headed home. Is there anything else we can do?"

"No...thanks, Will. I'm just going to give Giles a call. Let him know what's going on to see what he thinks."

"Oh-" Willow's mouth hangs open for a moment as she ponders her next move. "I could call him now before we leave while you're helping Angel."

"Will, that's okay. I won't be that long-"

"No, really. I can...lemme call him," she pleads, not even waiting for an answer as she walks downstairs to join the others.

"How's Angel?" Oz asks upon seeing her reach the bottom of the stairs.

"I don't know...I'm just gonna..." she points towards where Angel's phone was resting on a nearby desk, "I'm gonna call Giles."

As her fingers began dialing the familiar number, Willow's mind seized on the idea of the prophecy she and the watcher had been studying all week. She should've told Buffy as soon as they'd discovered it- especially considering the slayer played a crucial role in it's coming full circle. < It's going to be alright,> she thought to say to her, but she held it back. She didn't want to say anything which could so easily turn out to be a lie, and the sounds of Angel's anguished yells of pain suggested that things had gone well past the all-right stage.

"Hello?" the warm British voice came leaping over the phone line.

"Giles, it's Willow."

"Oh, Willow. Is everything alright?"

"Not really. We're all at the mansion. We were out with Buffy's father for dinner, and Angel's pains started again." She paused for a moment as she heard the former watcher let out a distraught sigh. "He's getting worse Giles. And Buffy doesn't have a clue."

"Have you told Angel?"

"Most of it. I told him about the prophecy, but I never told him about the sacrifice that would have to be made. He'd never want it if he knew what Buffy would need to do."

"I'm not even..." Willow could almost see the breath that Giles was holding in as he hesitates. "I'm not even sure I would want it to come to pass if it means-"

"If it means Angel will regain his humanity, it's worth it," Willow affirms. "You've got to know that, Giles."

Giles opens his mouth to argue, but finds nothing to offer her. "I know...and I do hope that it will come to pass. I just pray it won't be too late. When do you suggest we tell Buffy?"

"Not now. Not right before graduation. If she knew, she'd want to go through with things right away, and..."

"I understand. Completely..."

"I just hope she will when she finds out we've been keeping this from her."

"So tomorrow night then? After graduation? We'll all meet at the mansion?"

"Yeah. Buffy will already be here anyway. Angel was..." Willow begins grinning at the news she'd received from Joyce when the happy mother had asked her and the rest of the Scoobs to help Angel move all of Buffy's things into the mansion tomorrow morning for his graduation gift. "...he was planning on asking Buffy to move into the mansion. It's sort of a surprise. We'll all be moving her stuff in here tomorrow, so we'll be able to keep an eye on him."

"That's good. Call me if his condition worsens any. If not, I'll see you all at the ceremony tomorrow."

Slowly hanging up the phone, Willow turns to see the others staring at her intently, seemingly trying to make sense of the conversation they'd just overheard.

"What was that all about?" Xander is the first to speak up. "You and G-man been conjuring up some spells behind our backs?" he lets out a small laugh, surprised to see her face turn more serious at his playful comment. "Wait- you have?!"

"Will?" Oz places a hand on her shoulder. "What's going on?"

"I'll tell you all in the car," she sighs, her head shooting up as she sees Buffy beginning her descent down the stairs. "Buffy...is Angel okay?"

"He- he's sleeping..." she manages to keep her voice above a sob, holding back any tears that threatened to be shed. "I'm gonna...stay for a little bit."

"You're not spending the night?" Cordy asks.

"No...mom wants me home. Can't imagine why..." As she lowers her head, her friends share a knowing look, having already set their alarms to beging their jobs tomorrow morning as moving-men for the slayer. "What did Giles say?"

"He, uh..." Willow's mind races, trying to come up with something, anything, to tell her. "He said he may just be sick."

"Sick?" Buffy raises an eyebrow to her ex-watcher's theory. "Since when do vampire's get sick?"

"He, uh...doesn't really know how, but...he's pretty sure that's all it is. Said you shouldn't worry. He's gonna...take a look through his books. He'll let us know as soon as he finds something," she lies, hating herself in the process for witholding any information from her best friend, let alone when it dealt with Angel.

******

Part 8

The following morning, Buffy sits at the kitchen table, her eyes weary from a long evening's effort. < No- more like torture,> she thinks to herself. After having to watch Angel suffer, as well as not being able to stay by his side throughout the night, the slayer wasn't quite feeling up to spending her morning showing her father around town. < Not like he's going to stick around long enough after graduation to enjoy it.> Across the table, her mother assesses her sullen look. She stares her straight in the eye, and smiles.

"Are you tired, honey?" Joyce inquires, her face careworn and concerned.

"A little. I didn't really sleep much last night."

"Worrying about Angel?" The look that Buffy shoots her confirms Joyce's initial thought that the question didn't even have to be asked. "You said Mr. Giles said he was just getting sick-"

"Vampires don't get sick, mom...that's one of the few perks of the gig. I just wish Giles knew more so we could at least give Angel something to help the pain. I mean- it's gotta be more than just a cold or a virus. Never mind the fact that he's a vampire...I've never known a cold to do this to a person." Before Joyce could respond, the ringing of the doorbell came echoing throughout the house.

"That must be your father," she assumes, hurrying from her stool to answer the door. "Hank, you're right on ti-...Xander? Oz?" She steps out onto the front porch, reaching a hand behind her to close the door. "What are you doing here so early? I thought I told you to come by at eight?"

"Willow and Cordelia are already at the mansion with Angel," Oz answers, "so we figured we'd get an early start moving Buffy's things."

"That's a lovely thought...one small problem though." Joyce checks over her shoulder through the window to see if her daughter was approaching. "Buffy's still here! Hank isn't here yet."

"So now what?" Xander asks as he crosses his arms against his chest.

"Hank should be here any minute. Why don't you two...wait-" Joyce sees Hank's Explorer pulling up into their driveway. "Wonderful. Okay- I'm gonna go back in and grab Buffy. You two head around back. I keep a key under the doormat. Go- go!!" she gives them both a shove, smiling to herself as she sees them hop over the rail of the porch, running into the back yard.

"Morning Joyce," Hank greets her as he walks up the stairs. "Wasn't that Xander and Oz?"

"Hmm? Oh- yes. It was. They, uh...go out jogging in the morning. Always pass along through here."

"Seems like everyone around here likes to keep in shape," he smiles. "How's Angel doing?"

"Good. Buffy said he's going in to see the doctor tonight," she tries detailing her lie as much as possible, not really knowing how her ex-husband would react knowing that their daughter's demon boyfriend was the first of his kind to catch a cold. "Buffy's inside. Lemme just go grab her and we can go."

Joyce hurries back into the house, calling out to Buffy as she makes her way into the kitchen. "Honey- your father's here. We can...ahhh!!"

"Get it off me!!! Get it off meeee!!"

"Mom?" Buffy stands from her seat at the table, startled by her mother's yell, as well as the noises she was hearing from outside. "What's wrong?"

"Demon dog!!! Owww!!! Demon dog!!!"

"Mom- what's that noise?"

Joyce's eyes remain wide as she takes in the sight behind Buffy through the large, glass patio doors. With his mouth dropped open in panic, his eyes wide with fear, Xander was trying to make a mad dash over their fence, but was finding it quite difficult as the neighbors' rottweiler held a tight grip on his leg. Oz, who had already suceeded in outrunning the neighborhood nuisance, was in their yard, extending an arm to his friend in an attempt to help pull him over the fence. "Nothing...nothing- just that damn Patterson's dog again. Trying to, uh...get over the fence. That's all."

"Really?" Buffy makes an attempt to turn around to catch a glimpse until she feels her mother's arms wrap around her shoulders, turning her back around the other way. "Come on, honey. Your father's waiting outside." Joyce leads Buffy down the hall, walking with her as far as the front doors. "You go ahead out to the car with your father. I'll be right out, okay?"

"Sure..." the small blonde murmurs, a bit thrown off by her mother's strange behavior as she walks out of the house.

Racing back into the kitchen, Joyce breathes a sigh of relief as her eyes pick up on Xander, having finally escaped Butch's jaws, laying out in the middle of the yard.

"Oh my god!" she yells, sliding open the door to check on him. "Xander- are you okay?!"

"Fine...just fine..." he squeaks out, taking Oz's arm to help pull himself up. "Scared out of my wits and in a lot of pain...but fine..."

"There's a first aid kit in the hallway closet if you need it. You boys make yourselves at home. We're dropping Buffy off at Cordelia's at one, so I should be back here a little after that." Passing them one final look, not being able to resist a laugh at Xander's current pantless appearance, Joyce goes back in to join Hank and Buffy, leaving the patio door open for them.

"You know...this is the second pair of pants I've have ruined because of Deadboy!" Xander whines as he and Oz slowly make their way into the Summers home.

"And let me assure you, both times were well deserved," Oz replies in typical Oz fashion.

"For those of us who are me, would you kindly inform me as to how I deserved to be chewed up like a raw porkchop by that wolf in dog's clothing?!"

"Well, I'd say after your little performance last night, you're just lucky it wasn't Angel who tried chewing you apart limb by limb. The dog went easy on you." Xander can only mumble his own grievances as he follows Oz up the stairway to Buffy's room. "Come on- let's start tearing apart Buffy's room before any more animals try tearing *you* apart. I saw some pretty mean looking squirrels out back that were eyeing you."

******

Part 9

"Okay...would somebody please tell me how she can possibly own this many stuffed animals?"

Cordelia sets down another box of Buffy's things on the floor of the mansion's great hall. Tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear, she throws a glance to Willow. "Does she really think Angel's gonna let her keep all of these here?"

"Of course," Willow quickly answers her, pulling a few of Buffy's things out of the box she had been carrying. "Besides- I happen to know that Angel is very good friends with Mr. Gordo," she lets out a small giggle, waving the pink pig in front of Queen C.

"Whatever," the brunette brushes her off, making her way over to where her boyfriend and Oz were carrying in a few more packages. "Is this all of Buffy's stu- Xander!! Where are your pants?!" she gasps, noticing the hem of his gray t-shirt falling just above his exposed boxers.

"Don't ask..." he moves over to give her a quick kiss, rolling his eyes as he sets down his box. "How's Angel doing?"

"He was sleeping when we first got here- which is always good." The red-head pulls herself to her feet, gingerly walking into the kitchen. She still felt a little awkward 'making herself at home' inside the vampire's immaculate home, but she was slowly growing more accustomed to it. < I'd better get used to it if Buffy's going to be living here from now on.>

Grabbing a glass of water and a bottle of some special painkillers Giles had brought over a little earlier, she walks over to the stairway. Raising his head from where they were unpacking their friend's things, Xander calls over to her. "Where're you going?"

"To check on Angel. See if he feels up to coming down and helping."

"That's a good idea," Oz adds. "Maybe it'll help him get his mind off of things...namely the pain."

"Yeah...great..." Xander sighs. "He'll get his mind off of the pain and get it right back on Buffy." Cordelia's quick to side with her boyfriend's train of thought.

"Oh god- and you can sooo tell when either one of them is having lusty thoughts about the other one! If that's what I have to look forward to six hours before I graduate, then I'm outta here." Ignoring them, Willow just shakes her head as she makes her way up the stairs.

She stares at Angel's door blankly for a minute. Lifting a wary hand, she gently taps on the wooden frame. "Angel?" she calls softly, waiting for permission to enter, but no answer came. Looking down the long corridor, she can see the curtains drawn over the windows scaling the hallway windows. The lights still hadn't been turned on yet upstairs. She starts to walk away slowly, but stops once she hears the creaking of the opening door.

"Angel?" she calls again, turning back around to see him finally appear in the doorway. He had edged his head around the frame, his eyes still half-closed.

"Willow...hey..." He steps out of the doorway fully, slowly padding over to her. "Is everyone here? Xander...Oz?"

"Mmm-hmm...they've already got all of Buffy's things cleared out of her room. We're unpacking all of it now. You feel up to coming down?"

"Yeah...yeah, just let me," he makes a wave of his hand, indicating his desire to get fully dressed first. "Come on in..." he moves aside as an invitation for her to enter his room.

Though she'd been in his room before, Willow had never taken the opportunity to fully examine it. The first aspect that caught her eye was that it was neat- too neat for her to even believe. < Wait until Buffy's been here a few weeks...> Various paintings were strewn along the paneled walls, their designs giving the room an added somber tone. The only picture that stood out in clear brightness was the one that rested on the large bureau across from the bed. Taken only a week or two earlier, the photo held more meaning than any other decorating the room, as it displayed the vampire in a warm embrace with...

"...Buffy?"

"Hmm?" Too caught up in her perusal of the room, Willow hears only the last word of Angel's question.

"I said, have you talked to Buffy?" Angel asks again, reemerging from the master bathroom, sliding on his white t-shirt.

"Oh...no. Not since last night."

"What exactly happened last night, Willow? I don't...I can't remember much. I know I didn't feel too well during dinner, and I remember Buffy taking me out to the parking lot, but that's it. Wait..." a thought occurs to him at the last minute, "Buffy's dad..."

"Oh- he was fine. Buffy told him that you were just catching some cold that was going around campus. I don't think he suspects anything. I think he really likes you."

"No thanks to Xander..." he manages a grin, opening the bedroom door for her as they begin their walk downstairs.

"Oh, don't worry about Xander. Oz said he got what was coming to him this morning."

There was a moment of heavy silence downstairs as Angel and Willow appeared. The Scoobs look to each other with what seems to be great solemnity. At last, Xander breaks the silence. "Deadboy...how're you feeling?"

"Better...thanks." He passes a nod to Cordelia and Oz, moving over to where they had placed Buffy's boxes. "Are these all of Buffy's things? I would've thought she'd have more to move in."

"Don't question it...just be grateful..." Xander smiles, his eyes subconsciously lingering on Angel's appearance. He looked tired...and not the 'pleasantly numb' tired Xander was accustomed to seeing both him and the slayer as being. "You sure you're feeling good enough to be moving around? I mean, we can pretty much bring all of her stuff upstairs for you. She can arrange it all later, and-"

"I'm good, Xander. Thanks..." he lets out a deep sigh.

"Oh..." Oz's mouth hangs open a bit before the others turn to face him. "Will, Giles called. Said he found something."

"About what?" she takes a step towards him, anxious to hear the news.

"Wouldn't say. Just said he found something and to call him as soon as possible." Not wasting a minute, Willow heads over to Angel's cordless, picking up the phone and heading into the library with it so as not to be disturbed. Quietly shutting the door behind her, she begins dialing the number, startled when Giles picks up on the first ring.

"Hello?"

"Giles, it's me."

"Oh- thank heavens you called. I've spent the entire morning going over all of our research for this prophecy."

"And?"

Back down the hall, Angel was busy amazing Cordelia with his vast knowledge of Buffy's countless stuffed animals. "Okay- what does she call this thing?"

"It's not a thing," he softly chides her, "it's a koala bear. And his name is Kasey."

"You've spent way too much time with Buffy's 'little friends' " Cordy laughs, pulling herself to her feet. "But then what do I expect- you two spend most of your time in bed anyway," she adds, flipping her hair over her shoulder as she walks towards the kitchen to grab a drink. "Ooo...speaking of time, I should call Buffy's mom and see what time she's dropping her off at my place," she mutters to herself, lifting the kitchen phone from it's receiver to dial Joyce's cell. But as she lifts the phone to her ear, she realizes Willow was still on the phone with Giles. Instinctively going to place the receiver back onto it's hook, she finds it impossible to do as she picks up on the end of her friends' conversation.

"Giles, it can't be. Not this soon...not tonight. You've got to be reading it wrong."

"I wish I were, Willow. But it's clear as day. It has to happen tonight- we don't have any more time."

Cordelia can't help but pull a hand over her mouth as Giles' last words come echoing over the line.

"If Angel doesn't drink from Buffy tonight, he'll be dead by tomorrow morning."

******

TBC...

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