Title: Not so scary

Summary: Post The Dark Age Pre What’s My Line (Btvs S2)

A/N Written for Ragna for her birthday. Happy Birthday Hon! Hope you like!

 

 

 

            “Everything’s quiet on the home front…or the Sunnydale front…the back and sides too. What does that mean… the front? I mean exactly where is the front of Sunnydale and in my experience the bad guys tend to come at you from the back rather than the front…” Buffy rambled. She took a deep breath. “Anyway, things are quiet.”

 

            “Very good then,” Giles responded without a pause in his scribbling in his journals.

 

            “Kay, I’m gonna head on out then…” Buffy narrowed her eyes at her watcher. “Everything alright on the Watcher front?”

 

            He glanced up at her. “Yes, yes, of course…I’m merely updating my diaries and records. No reason to let things fall behind.”

 

            Buffy furrowed her brow. “Yeah…that’s my motto. Anyway, I’m outtie.” She emerged from the library shaking her head.

 

            “Something wrong?”

 

            A smile curved her lips at the sound of that voice. She glanced over her shoulder to see Angel materializing from the shadows. “Angel.” She watched him flow from the shadows, poetry incarnate.

 

            “Buffy.”

 

            The way he said her name made her heart beat faster.

 

            “So is something wrong?” He asked again.

 

            Buffy shook her head. “No, it’s just Giles being uber watcher. He’s been that way since the thing with Eyghon. It’s like he’s committed the ultimate Watcher sin by having a past.”

 

            Angel’s eyes grew haunted. “Sometimes a past is a sin.”

 

            “We’re talking about Giles, not Angelus so stop with the dour face. Besides, I’ve had enough with the dour. I’m desperate for some dour free fun.”

 

            Angel glanced at her, the little half grin that only she brought about gracing his face. “Dour free fun?”

 

            “Yup.”

 

            “Buffy, it’s past midnight. Everything is closed.”

 

            Buffy sighed, her mouth falling into a natural pout. “I know, so sucketh the life of a slayer.” She looked up at Angel, hope making her eyes shine. “So walk me home the long way?”

 

            Angel held out his hand to her, that little half grin growing marginally wider. “I can do that.”

 

            They walked through the cemetery, shoulders brushing. Buffy tilted her head up to the sky, a smile painting her face. “This is nice, me and you without the vampires, present company excluded, patrol and bad omens.”

 

            Angel hesitated, his brow furrowing. His mouth turned down at the corners.

 

            “What’s with the serious…okay more serious face?” Buffy asked, catching his look.

 

            “Buffy, that’s what I’m here for, to help you patrol, fight, to help keep you alive.”

 

            Buffy’s smile dropped. She looked down at the ground. “You do keep me alive.” Her voice was a half whisper in the still night.

 

            “Exactly, by fighting beside you, warning you-” Angel started.

 

            Buffy shook her head. “No, you keep me alive by talking to me, touching me, kissing me, treating me like I’m worth more than a slayer, like I’m worth more than the whole world.”

 

            Angel stopped, pulling her closer to him. His face was full of sorrow, pain and something else Buffy was afraid to name, but hoped was true. He glided a fingertip over her eyebrow, her cheekbone and her lips. “You are, but this can’t ever be.”

 

            “Why not? Because you’re older? Because you’re a vampire and I’m a slayer? Everyday people say those things can’t ever be and yet we are. Please don’t shut me out, Angel.” She sighed and looked up at him, her eyes wrapped in tears. “The future doesn’t scare me at all…not when you hold me. Nothing is like before, Angel. Slayers, vampires and a couple hundred years don’t matter. The only thing that matters is the way I feel when I’m with you.” Her voice faded to a trembling whisper as she spoke.

 

            Angel stepped closer, pulling their bodies flush. He placed his fingers under Buffy’s chin, tilting her face up to his. He brushed her nose with his. “And how is that?’

 

            “Clean and simple,” she whispered.

 

            He kissed her, lips begging for more, claiming and branding. “This isn’t going to be simple or clean.”

 

            Buffy tiptoed, her lips brushing his, her tongue teasing him. She cupped his face with her hands. “I know, but you kiss me and maybe some things are that simple.”

 

            He gave in, knowing he couldn’t resist her for long. Angel nibbled at her bottom lip, making her mewl and arch up into him. He pulled her impossibly closer, one hand tangling in her hair. He wrapped the other arm around her waist, his hand pressing the small of her back into his body. He tilted his head, deepening the kiss, devouring her, a breath at a time.

 

            Buffy broke away gasping for breath. She was trembling all over, so was he.  She looked up at Angel and smiled. “See, simple.”

 

            A grin quirked across Angel’s face. “Simple? I would never call that simple. I’m shaking.”

           

            Buffy laughed and held out her hand to demonstrate that she was still trembling. “Join the club.”

 

            Angel took her hand and placed a kiss on her knuckles. “Let’s get you home.”

 

            Buffy nodded. “Yeah, school tomorrow and all that.” Her voice held regret and underneath it, hope.

 

            Angel nodded and tugged her toward Revello drive. He knew if he didn’t take her home now, he’d stay out here with her until the sun rose. They stopped at the tree in front of Buffy’s window. She glanced up and then back at Angel. “Here’s me.”

 

            He nodded and looked up at her window, reluctant to let her go.

 

            “Come on up? I have something for you,” Buffy asked.

 

            Angel looked at her surprised. “You do?”

 

            Buffy nodded. “It’s nothing big. I mean just something silly Willow and I did the other night when she stayed over, but I was thinking about you when I did it, so you might as well have it.”

 

            She scampered up the tree without looking back, half afraid he wouldn’t follow. She smiled as he ducked through the window. She ducked her head and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “It’s-I’ll get it.” She turned away, rummaging in a drawer for something. Angel could hear her heart rate increase. She was nervous about what she was looking for. She turned back, her hands full of something. She was blushing pink and avoiding his eyes.

 

            “Will and I…we were messing around and we-I made this CD for you. It’s got all these songs on it that make me think of you and God, it’s stupid. I’ll just…never mind.”

 

            Angel took her hands in his, taking the bundle of things she had. “I’d really like to have it. Please.”

 

            She blushed even redder and nodded. “Yeah. There’s a CD player with headphones. I didn’t know if you had one so I’ve got an extra and it takes batteries, but I put some in there. You can keep it.”

 

            Angel tipped her face up to look at him. He smiled and bent to place a light kiss on her lips. “Thank you. I’ll listen to it when I get home.” He slipped to the windowsill and perched there a moment, looking back at a girl he was in love with whether he wanted to be or not.

 

            “Sleep tight.”

 

            And then he jumped to the sidewalk. He paused at the end of it, looking back at Buffy’s still lit window. She was right. The future wasn’t scary when she was in his arms.