Disclaimer: I do not own any of the BTVS characters in this story, they are the property of Joss Whedon and The WB.

Christmas was now over in the small town of Sunnydale, California; the snow had finally cleared up and it was back to its normal temperature outside. Angel sat alone in the old mansion thinking about a few nights ago when he had almost killed himself by waiting for the sun to rise on the hill.

*Maybe some strong power had prevented it from coming,* he thought. His mind then wandered what would have happened if he hadn't approached Darla.

"I never would have met her," He said outloud, referring to Buffy.

"Then again, Angelus, you actually would have met her--but in a different time," said a voice from behind him.

Angel turned around quickly in alarm to see a young girl about the age of 12 or possibly 13 years standing in front of him.

"Who are you?" He asked.

"Someone that's here to help you."

"Why?"

"If you think that I'm 'The First Evil' that had paid you a visit earlier then your wrong," She said, "I'm just here to show you what your life would have been like and how you can change the life that you have now."

"I don't understand."

"Take my hand," The girl said as she held it out to him.

He took her small hand in his and the room began to form into a different place.

The young Angel stood with his friends: Harlen, Duncan, and Eric. Next to him stood his two younger sisters, Ingrid and Maeve, who were talking about the new family that had just moved there.

"I heard that they had just moved all the way from London," Ingrid told them.

"Really?" Maeve asked.

"Yes."

"Do you really believe everything you hear?" Duncan asked the two girls. "It's probably just a rumor."

"Actually, it's true," Harlen said as he looked at a small girl and her mother, "Because they're right over there." Everyone looked to where Harlen was staring.

A young woman approached the girl, who was now standing alone. She had long brown hair and looked to be around the age of 18. Both the young Angel and the old Angel couldn't keep their eyes off of her, and neither could Angel's friends. She looked beautiful.

"Now that's a pretty one," Harlen said, "She must be the older daughter that I heard so much about."

Maeve waved her hand in front of Angelus's face.

"Hello?!" Maeve said, still waving her hand up and down in front of her brother's face. "I think we seem to be missing a brother here," she said to her sister.

"What?"

"Are you all right, Angelus?" Harlen asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Doesn't seem like it to me. Your eyes looked like they were about to pop out of their sockets," Duncan said with a grin.

"Well, she's probably just another prissy noble woman," Harlen remarked. Ingrid shot him an annoyed look and hit in the arm. "What?!"

"Buffy!" Angel said as he walked up to her.

"She can't see or hear you. This is Buffy, only this is one of her past lives. The two of you are soulmates but you were separated from her when you became a vampire. You're not a vampire now because you didn't go to the tavern that night when Darla sired you."

The young woman kneeled down next to the little girl.

"Can we go home now, Sarah?" The girl asked.

"Ask mother," Sarah told her.

"Sarah..." her mother called softly. Sarah carried her small sister over to her mother.

"Mommy, can we go home now?" She asked.

"Yes, Elena, we're going home," her mother said with a smile.

Elena grasped Sarah's hand with her own tiny one. They went home after saying good-bye to a few new friends.

Later that day, Sarah went to the local bookstore. As she walked in she said hello to the book keeper and then went about her business, as did the bookstore owner. The young Angel had followed her into the bookstore. The book keeper nearly fell out of his chair after noticing that Angelus had walked in: he had never set a foot in that store in his life.

Sarah walked up to the man and handed him the books that she wanted to buy and the money. As he put the books down in a bag, he leaned in closer to the young woman, "Be careful, Miss. You might want to stay away from the likes of that lad," he said as he glanced at Angelus.

"May I ask why?"

"The local drunk, he is," the man said with a soft chuckle.

"Oh," she said grabbed her bag, "I'll keep that in mind." Then she left.

Angelus had walked out of the bookstore and then headed over to the tavern. Hours later, he was stumbling home after a night of whiskey and cards. He shivered as he walked by the graveyard, and he told himself that the night was chilly, as indeed it was, but that wasn't why he shivered.

Then he heard an unearthly scream, the sounds of a scuffle, and footsteps, running towards him. A small fury of a cloaked figure hit him square in the chest and he grabbed its elbows in an instant before impact.

The dark hood framed a face white with fear. Angel noted at once that it was a very pretty face and then as the hood fell back and revealed a mane of long brown hair, he recognized who she was.

"Whoa, there!" he told her, "What in Heaven's name is a young girl such as yourself doing in a place like this at night?"

"It's a quicker way home if I walk through the graveyard. There did seem to be another sort of a creature there tonight, and bent on no good. No matter, though. I hit him hard in the back of the head with a large stone and I don't think he'll be bothering me again."

Angel stood leaning against a tree as he watched and listened to his young self and the girl talk from the shadows. He didn't actually seem to be surprised that she could take care of herself. She wasn't a Slayer but she was like the person he knew from his time. And he knew exactly what it was that she had encountered in the graveyard. He watched the couple with an amused grin on his face.

Angelus laughed. He wasn't used to such uprightness, or tenacity from woman, especially noble women. "As capable as you seem of taking care of yourself, this is still not the safest place by night. Might I escort you home, wherever home might be?"

She looked him up and down, and smiled back. "Thank you, but no," She said. "I can indeed take care of myself. And from what I've heard of you, sir, I think I'd have to be much on my guard in your company." She leaned toward him an inch and sniffed audibly. "And I smell drink on you too. I don't need a protector whose senses are dulled by whiskey."

With a quick twist, she was free of his grasp. "Goodnight to you, then!" She said, and before he could think of a retort, she was off.

"I'd be offended, but I do believe the lass is speaking the truth," Angelus said to himself.

"Perhaps I should have begged for her protection instead." He chuckled again, and set off at a quick pace--just in case her attacker should shake off the smack of the stone to his head and come after him, as well.