Her Ancient Soul Returned
by Nicola

Buffy sat at one of the wooden tables in the large open courtyard of Sunnydale U.C. It was a typical Californian day, bright and sunny, and she was staring off at all the couples around her. They were all smiling and happy, and totally unlike her. Somehow Parker still managed to disturb her. She couldn’t believe how foolish she’d been, to actually think he loved her. She never used to be so naïve, but then things changed. She sighed as she slowly peeled her eyes away from the students around the area and back to her textbook in front of her. But her mind wasn’t on the assignment it wandered to the night she’d shared with Parker and why she’d done it. The answer was evident to her, but she really didn’t want to accept it. She’d slept with Parker because she'd tried to grant Angel's wish and move on. She’d tried oh so hard to find someone else. She actually thought she had when she met Parker, but he’d ripped her heart out and stomped on it. Typical. Buffy was aroused from her dark thoughts by Willow’s perky voice.

“Hey,” she greeted smiling. Buffy managed to smile faintly back. Willow settled on the bench and looked around her. “Nice day, isn’t it?” she said, but Buffy had already submerged into her dreary thoughts once again. It wandered to her most common topic of thought: Angel. She missed him so badly. She missed his touch, his concern, the way everything around her just disappeared when he was about, the way he made her feel wanted and secure. She missed him in general. Willow tapped her on the arm to get her attention back.

“Sorry, what?” Buffy asked confused. Willow smiled as she looked over to the direction from which she’d come. Buffy followed her gaze and saw nothing. Willow looked back at Buffy quickly.

“Uh, what’re you reading?” she asked. Buffy blinked before coming to her senses.

“Oh, just some psych stuff,” she replied. Willow nodded once. There was a long silence during which Willow kept looking over in the direction of the trees. “What are you looking at, Will?” Buffy asked. Willow jumped.

“Nothing,” she said in her high-pitched I-am-so-lying way. Buffy shook her head as Willow continued to stare at the other side of the courtyard. After five minutes or so, Willow cleared her throat. “Buffy, don’t get angry for me not telling you, it was his idea from the start, but uh…” Buffy had a half smile playing on her lips.

“C’mon, Will. You can tell me,” she said reassuringly. Willow glanced over at the trees again and decided she better hurry.

“Well, he’ll be walking over here in about ten seconds so just keep your eye on the trees over there,” she said, nodding in the appropriate direction. Buffy sighed and looked towards the vicinity of the trees. Willow counted down from ten under her breath, “Nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one, show time.” Buffy squinted to see Oz and Xander both walk out from the bushes. They stopped and turned around. They stood there for a while, apparently arguing with someone in the shadows. That reminded Buffy of someone. She sighed and continued to watch, but only for Willow. After a moment they turned around and were followed by another figure. He was kind of tall, dressed all in black as far as Buffy could tell. Anya came up from the other side.

“Is he coming yet?” she asked Willow, making her jump. She nodded annoyed and motioned for her to sit. Anya did so. “Is Xander coming?” she asked. Willow nodded again distractedly. Buffy continued to watch the approaching men as they became clearer. The guy dressed in black had a long stride. Buffy had a vague feeling of recognition. Maybe this guy was on campus a lot, like Xander. As he got closer Buffy’s breath caught when she realised exactly who he was.

“Angel,” she breathed. She got up to meet him half way. The whole world just slipped away and all that was left was he. She could see he was smiling nervously. Buffy didn’t even slow down when they reached each other. She walked straight into his arms and linked her lips with his. Even Willow was surprised at this as the gang gathered around the table and watched. Angel noticed that Buffy’s kiss was desperate as well as loving, and it quickly gathered in heat and passion. A few people in the area watched the reunited couple as they reconciled their love. When Buffy was sure that it wasn’t a dream she halted the kiss. Their foreheads touching, she looked up into his eyes that seemed to sparkle with a new light. Daylight.

“How?” she asked simply in a very quiet voice.

“I’ve had my soul for a long time. Over a thousand years. It just took over.” Buffy looked confused so Angel explained, “In Hell time moves faster than on Earth.” A flash of guilt washed over Buffy’s pretty features, before happiness and then doubt replaced it.

“Are there any clauses?” she asked uncertainly. Angel shook his head smiling.

“I’m a free man,” he replied. Buffy smiled for the first time in over 6 months. Her lips found their way to his again, but the kiss was much more confident. It sealed their renewed relationship. Pretty soon they both had to come up for air. It was then they remembered the rest of the Scooby Gang. Linking hands they joined the others at the table. A small crowd had gathered round the two and Buffy noticed Riley among the people there, looking very miserable. She quickly forgot about it as the crowd dispersed. Buffy grinned at her friends who were all grinning back.

“Thank you,” she said simply.

“Like I said, his idea,” Willow replied. The two hugged, even though Buffy didn’t let go of Angel’s hand. There was a short span of silence before Buffy had a little idea.

“Wanna go for a walk?” she asked Angel. He nodded once. They said good-bye to the others and set off for one of the many paths, arms linked. “So,” Buffy said. Angel sensed an air of uncertainty about her.

“Something wrong?” he asked.

“No!” Buffy replied immediately. Angel gave her the yes-there-is look and she relented. “I…oh God.” Angel pulled her onto a bench so that he could see her properly.

“You lied,” he said.

“What?”

“You do look good in direct light.” Buffy blushed slightly.

“Please Angel. You’re making this way harder,” she begged. He quickly realised she had something really important to say. “I, well…uh.”

“Just say it, Buffy,” he told her comfortingly. He put his hand on her shoulder.

“I slept with someone else,” she rushed out. Angel didn’t say or do anything, and that made Buffy feel even worse. It would be okay if he walked away, or yelled at her or something but he just sat there. “You must think I’m such a slut,” she said quietly.

“No, I don’t,” Angel replied. Buffy looked away from him, she didn’t want to look at his face and see shame and disgust. Angel turned her face with his hand but still she would not meet his gaze. “You’re not a slut Buffy. And don’t ever say that. If you’ve moved on then good for you…”

“But I haven’t moved on,” Buffy was quick to interrupt him, “I slept with him because I thought he loved me. I wanted him to love me so desperately. Ever since you left I’ve felt so rejected. I needed to feel what we had. So I slept with the first guy that came my way. And it hurt, Angel. It hurt me so bad.” There were tears in her eyes as she finally looked at him properly. Angel brought her into his embrace as she cried softly. “I’m sorry, so sorry,” she whispered.

“I’m sorry too,” he whispered back. Buffy whimpered for a few minutes longer before calming herself. She looked at the patch of shirt by his shoulder where she’d cried.

“I got your shirt all wet,” she said laughing a little. Angel looked down and smiled.

“No matter,” he replied. Buffy slowly let the smile drop from her face.

“I’ll understand if you go back to wherever you were before and never speak to me again,” she said sadly. Angel cupped her face with his large hand and looked into her eyes.

“I came down here to be with you. Honestly, I half expected Willow to tell me you had someone new.” Buffy frowned crossly.

“After all we’ve been through?”

“No, because you’re so damn hot.” Buffy grinned. Angel wiped her wet cheeks with his thumbs. “I’m here now. With you. Because I love you.” A few more tears slipped down Buffy’s cheeks, but these were of happiness.

“I love you too. I always have and I always will,” she replied earnestly. Angel kissed her lightly and they stood up to continue their walk. Angel was glad Buffy had confessed. A secret like that would have eaten at her from the inside out. But after ten minutes or so Angel felt her tense and she leaned into him even more. He looked down at her concerned. Her eyes were fixed on a couple in front walking towards them. Angel gathered that the man of the two was Buffy’s tormentor. Buffy wondered what in hell she was doing, fearing Parker with Angel there. It was absurd. Parker had hurt her enough it was time to get back to Angel. She relaxed with the thought and looked Parker in the eyes as the two couples reached each other.

“Hey Buffy,” Parker said smiling.

“Parker,” she replied sharply, without emotion. He looked to Angel, who stood very close behind Buffy, his arms draped around her waist.

“And this is?” he asked Buffy.

“My angry puppy,” she replied instantly. Parker smiled, thinking it was a joke.

“No seriously,” he said. Angel glanced down at Buffy’s neck and realised what she was on about.

“She is being serious,” he spoke out. Parker and his girl looked at Angel with bemused expressions. They didn’t believe them. He’d fix that. He spun Buffy around so that she was facing him, opened his mouth wide and bent his head to the scar. His human teeth fitted perfectly into the scar. Buffy rolled her head back as the feeling of Angel’s lips on her returned. She giggled softly.

“Remember when (giggle) we were with Giles at the library (giggle) and you were showing me how to (giggle) fight with out fists (giggle, giggle) and use (giggle) tongues.” Angel pulled away from her neck and smiled. He had his arms gripped tightly, possessively, around Buffy’s waist.

“I remember,” he said, looking deep into her eyes, before noticing Parker and his temporary girl. They weren’t looking so sure of themselves now. Parker swallowed down his fear before continuing,

“So when did it happen?” Buffy turned slowly around and leaned into Angel’s broad chest.

“The night before Graduation. Anyone who doesn’t know me and never went to Sunnydale High will have no idea how much fun that was,” she said sarcastically. Parker’s new girl spoke up.

“My graduation was cool. Some boys who were, like, this close to getting expelled egged the principal.”

Buffy gave the girl a once over. Small, skinny chick. Brown hair scraped into a bun. Dark brown eyes. Well-tanned, clueless expression. “Well, at my graduation, the mayor turned into a giant snake and ate the principal and then we attacked the snake and a load of horrible looking guys behind us and then I got the snake to chase me into the library which we blew up with explosives we stole from the military base. Who are you?” she inquired.

“I’m Melissa. You two look like you’ve been together for quite a while,” Melissa pointed out. An evil grin flashed across Buffy’s features.

“Oh yeah, we’ve been together, what, three years?” Buffy asked Angel, winking with her blind eye.

“More or less three years straight,” he played along. Parker looked kind of shocked.

“Three years?” he asked. Buffy and Angel nodded together. Parker leaned towards Buffy a little, and she immediately with drew into Angel. “But Buffy. We did that thing a few weeks ago, and you were single then,” he said in a low voice. Of course both Angel and Melissa heard.

“That! Oh God, you still remember that pathetic excuse for a fun night?” Buffy exclaimed. Parker looked confused. Angel felt the same but he played along. She turned to her new honey “Can you believe this guy?” Angel shook his head smiling. Buffy returned her fiery gaze back to Parker. “I give you one night’s pleasure so I can blow off a little steam while he’s away and you think I actually care?” She cracked up laughing, noticing Parker’s very hurt expression. Angel chuckled slightly too, knowing that Parker had finally been given his own medicine. Buffy turned to Melissa. “If I were you I would so get rid of this jerk. He couldn’t give you pleasure to save his own life. He’s terrible in the sack. Go find someone you deserve.” With that she and Angel walked through the two in front and down the sidewalk, laughing and smiling all the way.

When they were further away Angel quickly grew calmer, but no less happy.

“I’m very proud of what you did back there,” he told Buffy sincerely. Buffy grinned and her eyes sparkled. She rested her head on his shoulder.

“It was mostly the truth,” she replied. They walked in comfortable silence for a while, each relishing the fact that the other was once again by their side. It was a glorious afternoon that was drifting slowly into the evening. Students littered the campus, making Buffy and Angel seem like ordinary people. They liked it that way.

Buffy couldn’t get out of her head how pale Angel was. He was like a ghost. True, he’d existed like a ghost for the better part of two and half centuries, but she was so used to a shadow surrounding him it was freaky just seeing him in the light.

Angel couldn’t believe what he’d missed because of his undead characteristics. Buffy was so gorgeous in the sunlight. He was so used to seeing her fight like a shadow on the planet, seeing her in all her supernatural glory. But this was different. It was just as good, but different. She looked normal. She looked like the daylight was where she always was, never setting foot into the night. He knew that that was far beyond the truth, but it was a fantasy she didn’t realise she lived.

Buffy had no idea where they were going, and she didn’t care. As long as Angel was with her it was all good. He led her across campus, to the car park, to a certain car in particular. It was a black, typically Angel, convertible.

“Yours?” she asked him, quirking an eyebrow. He nodded as he opened the car door for her. She stepped in gratefully. The sun was just lowering its gracious rays to the horizon, leaving the way clear for the moon. Angel started the engine and the car roared to life. They sped away from campus and onto the busy roads. Buffy had a vague recollection of assignments at the college to finish, but it quickly fled from her mind. Angel handled the car well, for someone who didn’t have a driving license. He let his right arm drop to his side, controlling the wheel with his left hand only. Buffy reached her hand across and took his. She was still surprised to find that it was warm. Angel felt that familiar tingling sensation go up his arm and course through his entire body. He got it whenever she was around, and he was pretty sure he knew why. He pulled up at the nearly empty car parking area just by the sandy Sunnydale beach. He opened the door for Buffy and felt the tingling sensation again when she brushed by him.

Buffy hadn’t been to the beach for a long time, not since high school. When you’d already lived past your life expectancy, the definition of long took on a different meaning. Hand in hand, the two walked down the soft shallow incline of the beach. The sun was very close to the horizon, rolling itself down towards the part of the Pacific where no person would ever reach. They stopped not too far and not too close to the water’s edge and sat down. Buffy made herself comfortable in Angel’s lap, and he rested his chin on her shoulder. They watched for what could’ve been hours, could’ve been moments, as the pinkish golden orb gently laid itself to sleep. It was something Angel had always wanted to do with Buffy, and now he’d finally done it he wished that he could do it again and again.

As darkness fell, so did the weight of Buffy’s duty. She sighed, half way between happiness and defeat.

“As much as I hate to say this, I have a job to do,” Buffy mumbled. Angel kissed her cheek, sending thrills through her body. There was a cool breeze whipping in from the ocean, and Buffy was glad Angel had some body heat. He kissed her cheek again, before standing up behind her. Buffy didn’t move for a moment, before resigning to her fate. She turned around and came face-to-face, body-to-body, with Angel. She looked up into his love filled eyes, and her destiny was quickly forgotten. She bent up on tiptoes and kissed him, tenderly at first, but the familiar passion and desire quickly descended. They both had to pull away breathless, instead of the usual one. They both smiled slightly at each other. Buffy ran a finger down Angel’s chest seductively.

“Why don’t we double check that your humanity has no clauses?” she said in a husky, low voice. Angel didn’t wait a breath as he grabbed her hand and half led, half dragged her to the car. His need for breath was only making his feeling stronger. The climbed into the car, and sped away.

“Hold that thought,” he told her.

It wasn’t ten minutes before they pulled up at the mansion. They dashed inside and to the bedroom. Angel closed the door behind them, and the fun began.

The End!

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