Title: After The Loving

Author: Gillian Silverlight

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: The characters belong to Joss and the WB. I've just borrowed them and will return them as soon as I'm through playing

Summary: Sequel to Friends And Lovers

After the effects of the Orb wear off, there are things to be considered.

After the Loving...

Angel woke with warmth next to him. He opened sleep filled eyes to see Buffy's sleeping form next to him, one arm around his waist, one leg hooked over his. On her other side was Spike, still sleeping. He was curled against Buffy's back with his arm around her, beneath her breasts. His leg was across Buffy's other leg; the one not on Angel. Her other hand was holding Spike's arm to her body.

Angel remembered everything that had happened over the last 72 hours since they had found that cursed Orb.

* But should I consider it cursed, if I got to be with Buffy again and keep my soul intact? *

He sighed quietly and eased himself out of Buffy's embrace, getting out of bed. Buffy made a small whimper in her sleep, turning over to snuggle closer to Spike, who pulled her closer in his sleep.

Angel stood there seeing the two he loved most in the world, curled up naked with each other like trusting children. He had to laugh inwardly at what might happen when they woke up and saw who they were holding now that the effects of the orb had worn off.

He’d not minded sharing the love of his long undead life with Spike for the last 3 days, why was it bothering him now? Perhaps because the effects of the Orb of Thelin had finally worn off and Angel knew that he'd have to go back to LA, leaving his sweet Buffy with his childe?

He wasn't sure, but he knew that all of them were going to have to answer some questions and settle some issues between them this morning before they left to go back into town. The last three days had dredged up a lot of things all of them would have rather kept hidden. They had to deal with that now, and all the results might not be what they would wish.

It seemed to be light outside still, so they would have time to talk. Then too, Angel was sure there would be more talking once they got back to Giles'. He remembered kissing Willow and Spike kissing Willow. He also remembered Buffy kissing Xander and Giles. He knew Buffy’s watcher was going to have some things to say about all of it.

Angel put his slacks back on.

Shaking his head, Angel went down stairs to get some blood out of the 'fridge. He'd make some coffee for Buffy and heat up a cup of blood for Spike as well.

Buffy snuggled into the coolness at her side, as she swam back up to consciousness.

* I am so sore, all over! *

She remembered how she got so sore and opened her eyes. Snuggled next to her as she was to him, lay a sound asleep Spike.

* Spike! I’m sleeping next to Spike! *

She remembered the other things she’s also done with Spike over the last few days.

* I told him I loved him! What was I thinking? *

She realized as the thought ran through her head that what she had obviously been thinking was that she loved him. Spike, her previous mortal enemy. Now her lover, and she’d been feeling love for him? She looked over at his sleeping form. She had to admit he was adorable asleep. He was sexy, and she was attracted to him. She’d not kept him out of her house or staked him. She DID feel something, but hadn’t wanted to look at that. She had to now. She had to admit she did love him. It wasn’t the same as what she’d felt for Angel, but she did love Spike. That sent another thought racing through her head, Angel!

On her other side, there was no Angel. Buffy felt the panic rising inside of her when he walked back into the room with a tray. She could smell the aroma of coffee wafting up from one of the cups; and the sweet, metallic tang of blood from the other cups. Angel seemed to be his soul-ful self. But she remembered how manipulative Angelus could be.

Buffy gently slid out of Spike's embrace, pulling the sheet over her as she sat up to face, she hoped, Angel.

"A-Angel?"

"It's ok, Buffy. It's still me. I was worried about that this morning when I woke up as well. I guess the effects from the Orb protected me from losing my soul. I'm sure Giles may have more information when we finally get back into town."

Buffy closed her eyes and groaned quietly at the rest of the memories, Xander, Giles, Willow.

* God, how will I ever face any of them again! *

"Do you remember it all?"

"Yeah. I brought you and Spike something to drink. I figured we'd all probably need to talk as well. It's light outside and feels like early in the day, so we'll have time to talk."

"Do we have to?" Buffy was dreading it.

"I think we do, Buffy. Otherwise it will just hang over our heads. We've let too many things do that already. We don't need to add more."

"I know you're right Angel, but I really don't want to talk about it."

"Me neither. But we're going to have to..."

"Let's go in the other room before we wake Spike. Give me a shirt to put on, please, Angel."

"Here's mine that you were so fond of at the door." He chuckled quietly as she blushed.

"Luv, if you were trying to not wake me, it's too late." Spike muttered as he rolled over and kissed her on the base of her spine.

"Morning, Spike." Buffy tentatively reached a hand to cup his face. He grabbed her hand and kissed her fingers.

"Spike, I brought you breakfast. Since you're awake, why don't we all just sit here and talk about the last few days. You know we're going to have to."

"Yeah, mate. I think we all have some things to come to grips with. Thanks for the breakfast."

"Yeah, Angel. Thanks for the coffee, it's heaven!"

"You two are welcome. You might want to grab some pants, Spike."

"Seems silly, after the last few days. We've all seen everything there is to see, but I understand. We need a bit o'protection for this talk, so clothes will have to work."

Spike slid his jeans back on, then lounged across the foot of the bed, propped up on one elbow as he drank his breakfast. Buffy had buttoned Angel's shirt, moving backwards to lean on the headboard, legs curled under her. Angel did the same, sitting on the other side of the headboard, pulling his long legs up, a bit more sprawled then Buffy.

None of them were touching the others, yet all three had sat close enough to be able to touch either of the other two.

"So, Angel, I see you're still among the soul-ful after all this."

"Yeah, I was worried about it this morning. Giles said the orb protected me."

"So, what exactly happened to us?" Buffy blushed as Angel and Spike looked at her in astonishment.

"NO! I don't mean that! I remember everything we did. I just don't understand why we did." Buffy struggled to explain without embarrassing herself any further.

"Ah, I see." Angel restrained a chuckle as he remembered what the Watcher had told him over the phone.

"Well while I was downstairs, I called Giles; told him the effects had worn off and that we'd be in later. He told me what the orb really does. It rids the possessor of enemies by strengthening whatever feelings of friendship or love that the affected people already have. The only one not affected would normally be the person holding the orb, but since Spike didn't actually have it in his hands... It was still in the box, remember? It affected all of us. It's set off by strong negative emotions around it."

"Oh. Our arguing." Buffy made it a statement of fact and not a question.

"Yeah, our arguments."

"So, you're saying it doesn't make us do anything we don't already have inside of us."

"That it just makes what is there stronger?" Spike had a growing feeling of uneasiness welling up inside of him.

"Right, Spike." Angel told his childe rather smugly.

They each looked at the other two, something like amazement in their eyes.

"So, that's pretty well what we need to talk about, isn't it, luv?" Spike said quietly to Buffy. She simply nodded back at him, her eyes wide with the implications.

"I think that each of us has some things we need to discuss with each other." Angel told his childe, with an odd look to his face.

"You're not gonna kill me now are you, mate?" Spike asked his sire carefully.

"No. No, I'm not." Angel turned to Buffy.

"Love, why don't you go catch a shower while I talk with Spike first. I think we might want to do this in pairs before we all discuss this together."

"Y-yeah, I think that's a good idea." She leaned over and kissed Angel on the cheek. Buffy eased off the bed, and rummaged through the drawers in the bedroom, finding a clean tee shirt of Spike's and a pair of sweats. Her own underwear and bra would have to do. As she walked toward the door, she gazed at the line of Spike's naked back. She stopped and just looked for a moment, then walked over to him, and kissed the blonde vampire on the cheek too.

Buffy escaped from the bedroom for the relative safety of the shower.

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

"Ok. I guess the cat's out of the bloody bag now." Spike told Angel quietly.

"Pretty much, Spike."

"So how DO you feel about Buffy? The truth for once, Spike."

"You gonna try to kill me?"

" No. And you know why, but we'll get to that in a bit."

Spike ran his hand through his already tumbled hair.

"I have been telling myself for a long time now, that I hated the Slayer. 'S what I'm suppose to do. I'm a vampire, she's the Slayer. So we argue all the time."

"But I've admired her since the first time I saw her. I love watching her fight. “She's all graceful and alive, so strong and small at the same time."

"Cor, I never imagined how strong she was until I found out what she had to do.” “You know, you getting your soul back when you did and all. I could never have done something like that."

"Yeah, I don't know how she did it either." Angel shook his head slightly to get his thoughts back on track. "Besides admiring her, how do you feel about her, Spike?" Angel was persistent because his childe’s answer was important.

"While we were under the Orb's influence, you told her you loved her. Do you?"

"You're sure you’re not gonna kill me?" Spike wasn’t sure if he should tell his sire the truth or not.

Angel chuckled. "I might if you don't tell me."

"That's what I've been covering up with all the bloody arguments. I love her.”

“Hell, who wouldn't?"

Spike ran his hand through his hair again in frustration.

"Just look at her. She's bloody wonderful. But she loves you and wouldn't have given me anything except the pointy end of a stake if not for that Orb."

"She did tell you that she loved you too." Angel reminded Spike.

"Oh.... Yeah, she did." Wonderment spread across Spike's face, followed closely by worry as he glanced up at his sire.

"Spike, the Powers That Be have told me that I'll eventually get to be human again. But I have no idea when that might ever be. As much as I want her and love her, I can't be with her like we've been for the last three days. We know that and it's been tearing us up. I want her to be happy, to have a normal life, be with a normal guy."

"Angel, she isn't ever gonna be normal. You should know that. She's the Slayer. Nothing normal at all about what she has to do and be. Bloody hell, I saw it with the soldier-boy. Normal men can't handle what she is, if they know. Her speed and strength threaten them. Can you see a date?

'Oh, excuse me, Mr. Normal date, I've got to run off and save the soddin’ world right now.' "

"As much as I hate to agree with you, you're right. I'd never stopped to look at it like that. I just accepted that this is her and loved her anyway." Angel’s expression found new levels of brooding as he realized what Spike was actually saying.

"I can tell that, mate. But I got to see her with the wanker. I saw how he acted. That's not gonna work for our Slayer." The blonde vampire remembered ‘captain cardboard’ with distaste and a tender spot on his chest.

"Besides, you were the first person she loved. D'you think that doesn't make a difference in what she prefers in a man? You'd be a bleedin' fool if you didn't."

"What exactly do you mean, Spike?" Angel asked his childe, a bit warily, knowing he had to keep his emotions in check.

"It means, oh sire of mine; she prefers vampires. We're different. We're not warm like a normal bloke. We, at least you and I, understand what she is, what she has to do. She wants a man that’s strong, who can protect her when she needs it and leave her alone when she needs that. Someone she doesn't have to worry about getting ‘urt."

"She wants someone like you. And I'm all she has."

"She has me. She knows that. She'll always have me." Angel sounded a bit defensive.

"No, Angel, she doesn't. All three of us know you can't be with her. If she has a human mate, he's gonna get her killed trying to protect him. Or he’ll be killed and she’ll blame herself." There was a sting underlying Spike’s words.

Angel sat with the words echoing in his ears. He knew Spike was right. That was why he'd had to go back to the PTB's, to go back to being a vampire. To give up his accidental humanity; to give up being with Buffy. To endure her never remembering the one day they had had together… The PTB's had told him that she'd get killed if he was human. She'd be protecting him and not herself. The PTB's were right. Spike was right. Angel could only see one answer, and he didn't like it. But better that than Buffy being hurt over and over, or killed. Angel knew he couldn't handle that at all.

"Why, Spike?" Angel asked, knowing the younger vampire had no answers for him.

"She's the Slayer, mate."

"And yeah, I love her. I love her as much as it's possible for a soul-less vampire to love anything or anyone. I'd give my un-life to save hers if it came to that."

Spike lay quiet, unmoving, still inside and out as he waited for his sire to rip him a new one, if he didn't kill him.

“But why’d she tell me that she loved me?”

“As much as I hate the thought of it Spike, it had to be inside of her somewhere for the orb to bring it out.” Angel felt the very words twist inside of him, each one causing another wound.

“You mean maybe she’d been fighting with me to cover up, like I’ve bloody well been doing with her?”

“Knowing, Buffy, I’d have to say yeah.”

“She’s not going to hand anyone else the keys to her heart without a fight, not after what I did to her.”

“Might be one reason she couldn’t love ‘Captain Cardboard’. She gave it a hell of a shot though.”

“Spike, that’s something I REALLY don’t want to hear, or think about at all. I hate the thought of her being with him. Remember, I met him and he tried to kill me. I didn’t like him at all. I can barely tolerate the thought of her being with you.”

Neither knew Buffy had finished her shower and was standing outside the doorway, listening. Her emotions were in such turmoil. Why did it have to be this way? Why! She’d better go back in there. She was going to have to talk to both of them. Buffy stepped back a few feet then made noise as she headed back toward the door.

"Better, Buffy?" Angel asked her with concern

"Leave me any hot water, luv?" Spike teased the small blonde slayer who’d captured his heart.

Buffy smiled at the two vampires that meant so much to her.

"Yeah." She told Spike as she kissed his cheek again, and walked to the head of the bed to climb back to where she was sitting before.

"Better." Buffy kissed Angel's cheek as she crawled past him.

"I'll go catch my shower and a cigarette while you two love-birds talk." For once there was no bitterness or sarcasm in Spike's voice. He got up, grabbed some clean clothes and headed off to the shower.

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

Angel reached over and gathered Buffy into his arms, pulling her into his lap.

"The past three days have been very precious to me, Buffy. Don't think I regret them for a second. I hope you don't either."

Angel looked into the eyes of the woman he loved above all else, anxious about what she might say, might feel.

"I don't regret any of it either, Angel. I got to be with you, to love you, and your soul was safe."

"And Angel.... Somewhere in all the things the orb did to us, I remember." She looked up at him, knowing he'd understand.

He did and pulled her to him, kissing her with every ounce of love in his body.

"Baby, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I had to be turned back." Tears were streaming down both their faces.

"Angel, love... I understand. I really do. I know it was as hard for you to do that as it was for me to send you to hell. We both did it to save the world. We did what we had to do."

"Buffy, I didn't care about the world when I asked them to change me back. I did it to keep you alive. Without you in the world too, why am I trying?"

She looked up at the beautiful man who held her, seeing the pain and anguish that moved across his eyes, as well as the love he had for her. She felt so small.

"So what do we do now? I know we can't be together. Except for something like the orb, but we can't do that either. I won't be able to walk again if we try that, Angel. I think that’s one time where vampire stamina might be stronger than slayer stamina." She smiled at him to try and take the sting from her next words..

"But I’ve realized that I can't have normal like you wanted for me. Like I wanted for me. Normal guys can't handle what I am and what I have to do and I can’t handle them not being able to handle it. I have to protect them. If that's the way it has to be, I'd rather it be you I’m protecting."

"I would too, love. But we both know the danger." Angel remembered all to well feeling helpless as he’d had to depend on Buffy to save both of them.

"I need to know something. I need the truth, Buffy. I won't be angry. I won't hurt anyone. Nothing you can tell me, other than you hate me; will make me hurt any worse than not being able to be with you. I have a reason for what I'm going to ask you, so just tell me the truth."

Buffy had a worried look in her eyes. After the last few days, she had an idea what he was going to ask her. She didn't even want to talk to herself about it, much less him. But she also knew that ignoring everything that had surfaced was out of the question.

"Ok. Ask."

" You told Spike over the last few days, that you loved him. Do you love him, Buffy?"

"Oh, god. Why did I know that was going to be the question?" Buffy unconsciously used Spike gesture, running her hands through her golden blonde hair in frustration.

"I thought about it while I was in the shower, Angel. I love you and I'll always love you.”

“Since Spike and I have been working together, we've gotten close. I know I argue and threaten him to keep from thinking about anything else toward him. But under neither it all, I think I do love him. Not like I love you, but I do love him. He's aggravating, irritating, annoying, and funny. He can make me laugh. He makes me want to stake him too… It’s so wiggy, Angel, I feel as safe with him as I know I am with you.” Buffy struggled to make sense of what she felt so she could explain it to Angel.

“It's almost like our fights are a part of showing how we feel, but a cover. You know?"

Angel chuckled a bit." Yeah. I know. That's why I fight with him too."

"I know that you still love me, and I'm glad. I'm also glad that you love my childe."

"I think he'd make you happy. Or I'd kill him." Angel chuckled again at her shocked expression.

"Seriously, love. I think he'd try hard to make you happy. He'd protect you. A normal man won't be able to do that. It'd be like when I was human that day and you had to protect me."

"I want you to think about giving Spike a chance, please. If I can't be with you except as a friend, I'd rather he be the one with you." Saying those words to Buffy was as painful for Angel as giving up his humanity had been. But he needed Buffy to understand so he could try and keep her safe.

"He spent a century devoted to Dru. He gave her everything he possibly could. So if he loves you, I know he'll care for you the same way. Even if he doesn't have a soul, he can love you."

"I'll..." Buffy stared off into space with her thoughts... "I'll give him a chance Angel, if that's what you want me to do. AND, if that's what he wants.”

“But he'll have to change a few things."

"I understand, Love. I agree." Angel felt a bit better at Buffy’s answer. It hurt to have anyone else with her, but he knew Spike would protect her.

"Give me a kiss and let me go shower, while the two of you talk." He told her as Spike came back into the room. Angel leaned down and captured her lips in a sweet, gently burning kiss. Afterwards he sat her on the bed, gathered up some clothes from Spike's drawers, and laid a hand on his childe's shoulder for a second before leaving the room.

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

Spike came over to sit where Angel had been next to Buffy. He was so nervous he was about to jump out of his skin. He was also afraid to look at Buffy, for fear of what she'd see in his face, fear of what he'd see in hers.

* Bloody hell! I’m afraid to find out what the Slayer thinks about me or feels about me. *

Spike reached over to take Buffy's hand. "Slayer..."

"Spike, I like it better when you call me by my name." She smiled slightly at him.

* He’s nervous! Spike is nervous because he cares about me. He thinks I’ll reject him. God, I know how that feels! *

"Buffy... I meant every word I told you the last few days. I want to protect you, to watch out for you." Somewhere in his confession, Spike had suddenly vanished and he felt like he had when he was human and William.

Buffy almost giggled, but knew better. She'd never seen Spike so fragile.

" Does that mean you love me too?" She asked the slender vampire as he gently held her hand.

He ran his free hand thru his still damp hair as he muttered.

"Oh, bloody hell!"

* Just TELL her mate, and get it over with! * Spike knew he was in trouble when he had to talk to himself.

"Yes, Buffy, it means just that. I love you."

He stopped, waiting for her to cut him to pieces with her words, or to punch him. Instead she cupped his face with her hand, making him look at her.

"Spike, you know how Angel and I feel about each other. I don't expect that to change, but I've found out that I have room in my heart for you too, if you want me." Her words were gentle. She was surprised to discover that she was almost as nervous as Spike seemed to be…

His answer was a kiss.

When they finally broke the kiss so Buffy could catch her breath, Spike asked her,

"Does this mean you'll stop fighting with me, luv?"

"Probably not." She laughed.

"You are the most irritating vampire I've ever met."

"You're also cute and sexy and I enjoy fighting with you as almost as much as I do loving you."

He hugged her close.

"Good. I enjoy our fights too. But you're gonna have to stop threatening to stake me! Gives a man a bleedin' complex, it does!"

Buffy burst out in giggles and fell back on the bed. Spike leaned over her, covering her body with his own. As he looked into her eyes, he lowered his lips to hers savoring the feel of her mouth under his. Her arms went around him and pulled him closer as she explored his mouth with her own before breaking off to trail hot kisses along the side of his neck. He groaned and nipped along her neck to her shoulder. Spike gently licked the soft skin there just feeling the beat of her pulse under his mouth, curling his tongue over the pulsing warmth below the skin, feeling the echo of that beat from her heart where her chest pressed against his. He sighed and kissed her neck, rolling off of her to lie at her side.

"Spike..?" Buffy was puzzled. Had she done something wrong?

He looked over at her to reassure her. " 'S,ok, luv."

"Nothing's wrong at all. I just want you and we can't right now."

She nuzzled against his neck, settling her head in the curve of his shoulder.

"Yeah, I know. Thank you for caring about me, and thank you for caring about him."

Buffy realized that she had wanted Spike to continue, that she had wanted him as well but knew that it would hurt Angel more than he already did. Buffy knew she couldn’t let that happen.

"You see way too much, luv." He growled at her in mock fierceness.

"Occupational hazard." She grinned at the blonde vampire next to her then turned over on her stomach so she could see his face.

"So does this mean we're gonna try to be a couple?"

"Yeah, luv. That's what it means. Are you sure you want me? I don't want to be just the default guy." Spike didn’t think he could endure being a substitute for any other man in Buffy’s life. He wanted her to want him.

"You're not the default guy. Why do you think I fight with you so much? To keep my feelings hidden."

She buried her face into the bed

"Aaaaagggghhh!"

"The only two men I can really love, and they both have to be vampires."

"As if I don't have enough to explain to Giles already, he is SO going to wig!"

"I'll be there with you, luv." Spike reassured her as he kissed the side of her neck again.

"So will I" Angel said catching them by surprise. They'd not heard him return.

"Angel..." Buffy breathed out.

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

"So, you two get that settled?" Angel asked the blonde pair sprawled at the foot of the bed as he grinned down at them

"Are you sure you're ok with this, Angel?" Buffy knew the older vampire loved her as much as she loved him. This had to be hurting him. She had to know he was going to be alright.

He sat down on the other side of the bed next to the beautiful blonde slayer he loved.

"Yes, Buffy. I am. I can't say it doesn't hurt, because it does. That I can't be with you, that my childe is the one to be. But if I can't, I rather it be him, like I said.”

“He'll protect you and care for you. At least if he’s smart he will.” Angel growled at Spike quietly.

“He knows who and what you are and you won't have to worry about him like a human male."

"And he understands what we have between us." Angel said almost in a whisper.

"Spike, you've always been my favorite childe. My most stubborn, annoying, aggravating and irritating child, but my favorite. I've always loved you and been proud of you.”

"So I'm trusting you with my girl."

"OUR girl, Sire, our girl."

“I've always been proud to be of your line, even if you are a poof." Spike grinned that devil-may-care grin of his. "I'll try to live up to your trust."

The younger vampire turned his head to look at Buffy as he continued speak to Angel.

"We both love the Slayer. She 'slayed' us without even a stake."

Buffy got up onto her knees, pulling Spike up with her. She hugged both vampires at once. Then kissed one and then the other. "I love you both more than you can imagine. And you both make me so crazy I could scream.”

“Now let’s go see what's in the 'fridge. I'm starved! And I may never be able to walk right again, thanks to you two!"

She got up giggling and headed for the stairs. Spike got to her first and tried to pick her up, she twisted around him to jump on his back.

"Carry me downstairs, Spike?" She asked an a little girl voice, laughing at him.

"What? You think I'm a bleedin' horse, Slayer?" He started down the stairs with Buffy on his back.

They both knew she’d always ‘been on his back’ this was just a new way….

Angel watched them and just laughed until his sides hurt. Spike was right for Buffy. He wasn't much more than a kid either, for all of Spike’s 120 years. Those two were going to have an interesting relationship, Angel could tell. He started down the stairs after them.

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

They rummaged through the 'fridge and came up with something to throw together for a meal. Spike and Angel wound up doing most of the cooking. It wasn't really Buffy's best skill. After all, it was hard to fit cooking in between slaying and saving the world.

So the two vampires, who meant so much to her, cooked Buffy’s meal for her, teaching her more new words than she knew existed in the process.

They all sat and talked while Buffy ate. Angel and Spike had another mug of blood.

When the sun finally went down, they gathered up the things they needed; their other clothes, Angel's cell phone and other odds and ends as Angel called Giles to ask the watcher if he'd come meet them so they didn't have to walk the whole way back.

Giles agreed, telling them he was leaving then to come pick them up.

Buffy, Spike and Angel started walking toward her home. They occupied their trip laughing and joking, teasing and the occasional kiss between Angel and Buffy or Buffy and Spike.

They had not covered half the distance back when Giles met up with them. Willow had ridden with Giles, having been at his place doing some more research on the orb. She also had the necessary stuff to replace Angel's soul, just in case.

The two vampires and the slayer climbed into the back seat of Giles' car. Buffy sat between them and the two vampires had an arm around the slayer while she drapped an arm around each of them.

"Giles!" Willow whispered. "I thought you said it would wear off in 72 hours?”

“That was this morning!"

The three in the back seat heard her and all laughed.

"It did wear off, Willow. We talked about what we'd discovered about each other while it was active. In fact, we talked about it all day. I think things will be much better now in a lot of ways, although very different." Angel told the redheaded witch with a great deal of humor in his voice.

Giles glanced upward with a sigh. "What did I EVER do to deserve this?"

Laughter filled the car.

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

Back at Giles' apartment, Willow excused herself and headed home to tell Tara about the weirdness taking place. Giles just sat stunned while he listened with amazement at what they were telling him.

"So you see, Giles; Angel, Spike and I know that Angel and I can't be together even though we love each other. And normal guys won't work either. All that insecurity and me protecting them and running out on dates to save the world stuff…" Buffy was babbling trying to get Giles to understand her point of view.

"I love the Slayer. Doesn't matter what anyone has to say about it. I'll protect her, and love her. I'll try to make her happy. But we're still gonna fight."

"Doesn't matter if she has to leave a date to save the world, I'd be there with her anyway to help."

Spike was trying to explain his position as Giles just retreated further into shock.

"If I can't be with her, I'd rather Buffy be with Spike. I know he'll love her and be devoted to her like he was to Dru. I'll still love her forever, but I won't have to worry about her getting hurt trying to protect a human boyfriend who I don't even know." Angel added his comments on top of it all.

It was more than Giles could handle.

"Excuse me for a moment, please."

Giles got up and went to his bathroom. Looking in the medicine cabinet, he got some aspirin and took them. He knew he didn't want to hear all of this. He had a bloody damned headache from trying to understand. His Watcher diaries were going to read like a bloody soap opera. He could see it now, ‘As the Vampire Turns..’. * Hell and damnation! *

Re-entering the living room and sitting back in his chair again, he looked at the three of them sitting so comfortable and friendly on his couch.

"So let me see if I have this straight. Angel, you still love Buffy, but have given your blessing to her being with Spike."

"Spike, you have admitted that you love Buffy and want to be with her."

"Buffy, you still love Angel, but you're going to be friends without so much angst. You're going to be a couple with Spike, who you say you also love."

" Each of you knows everything about this and all of you are fine with this arrangement?"

"Yep, that's about it, Giles." Buffy smiled at him

Giles leaned his head into his hands. "Oh dear lord. It's a good thing I'm not an official Watcher anymore. They'd fire me!"

Laughter rang through the room. None of it was from the Watcher.

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

The next evening, Angel left to go back to LA. He and Spike had spent the night at Buffy's with her. They had all piled into a 'puppy' pile again, just happy to be together. Fortunately, Joyce was on a buying trip and wouldn't be home for another couple of days.

Before leaving, the two vampires and the Slayer went to Giles’ again so that Angel could thank Giles for all his help, and to say goodbye before leaving

The rest of the Scooby gang was there to see Angel off. After all the goodbyes and hugs, Angel went to his car as Buffy, Spike and Giles followed him out.

Buffy kissed Angel goodbye. Spike hugged his sire. Giles just shook hands with the older vampire.

Angel started his car and put it in gear. Before he'd gone even a foot, he stopped.

"Buffy."

Buffy, Spike and Giles walked back up to the driver's door again.

"Yes, Angel?"

"Buffy, if you EVER kiss your Watcher like that again......."

They all dissolved into helpless laughter.

The End

Gillian Silverlight 2/2/01