Home Before Dark - Part Ten
by Debbie Nockels
COPYRIGHT: March 2002
RATING: PG-13
DISCLAIMER: I don't own any of the characters from BTVS or ANGEL. They're owned by Joss Whedon (who needs to treat them nicer), MutantEnemy, Kuzui, Sandollar, David Greenwalt, the WB, UPN, Fox, etc.
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Fred came down the stairs, hoping Cordy was in the office and not out with Wesley and Gunn investigating those mysterious deaths where the bodies had looked like collapsed balloons. She hoped they might do something together. Go out to dinner maybe. After fretting most of the day in the privacy of her room, she was feeling the need to talk - again - about what was likely to happen now that Angel had been reunited with the woman he loved. The only woman he had ever loved and the only one he probably ever would love. The woman with whom he shared kyrumption and moira. The woman with the unlikely name of Buffy. She sighed and pushed the door, already ajar, open enough to enter.
But Cordy wasn't there; Angel was, sitting behind Wesley's desk. He was feeding papers into the shredder. She saw with surprise that he had a martini glass in the other hand and it was filled with what appeared to be water, except it couldn't be water, could it? Not with an olive in it. No one drank olive-flavored water, especially not Angel. As she watched he took a long sip. "What are you doing?" she blurted out.
Angel swivelled around. His startled look was quickly replaced by a wide grin. "Well! Hey, sweetheart. Where have you been hiding?"
Sweetheart? "Uh, you know, up in my room," she replied, flustered. Worrying about the Angel/Buffy situation, but she wasn't going to admit that - not to Angel. Not yet. "Everybody keeps saying 'Fred, you should get out more,' so, well . . . I came down to see if Cordy was here and wanted to go out." She gave a little shrug.
Angel's eyes lit up. "Fred! Now this is more like it." While she was wondering what he meant, he took another sip from his glass then got up and walked around the desk to stand in front of her. His eyes roamed over her in a way she'd never seen before. Not from him anyway. "Have I ever told you you are a very beautiful woman?"
Huh? What was going on here? "Um . . . no," she faltered.
"Do you like olives?" he asked her, pulling the toothpick with the olive out of his drink and offering it to Fred. Growing more confused by the second and not knowing what else to do, she hurriedly ate it off the toothpick.
"Tell you what," Angel said, still with that strange smile. On anyone else she would have called it a smirk . . . maybe even a leer. "I have some work I have to finish up here. Why don't you go on upstairs and put on something pretty and we'll go out on the town."
"Really?" In spite of her bewilderment Fred brightened at the prospect.
Angel touched her on the nose with the toothpick. "And that's just for starters." He winked at her.
Fred took a backward step. "Okay, I'll just - I'll go and - okay." She hurried out. While she was changing, she argued out loud with herself. "Okay, so he's acting a little . . . different. I mean, he called you sweetheart and . . . and . . . acted strange with the toothpick and all. And he's never smiled at you like that before. But he's been through a rough time lately. First he thought Buffy was dead and then he found out she was alive again - that's enough to make anyone act weird, isn't it? Sure it is. And, and she just left yesterday and that was really hard on him, even though they've talked on the phone twice since then, so he's feeling lonely and probably just wants to talk about her. Then I showed up so he asked me out. I mean, no one else is around so who else could he ask?"
She surveyed her reflection in the mirror. "Looking pretty good, Fred, for someone who was living in a cave five months ago, if I do say so myself. And now you're going �out on the town' with Angel. I wonder what he means by that? Dinner probably, maybe a movie or something afterward? He probably doesn't dance," - sighing regretfully - "but anyway he needs a friend right now so you're going to be his shoulder to cry on. Or at least the ear he talks into."
Picking up her purse she made her way downstairs - slowly and carefully, because it had been five years since she'd worn heels and she still tended to slip and turn her ankle when she had them on, and stairs were especially tricky in that regard. Entering the office she started to announce her readiness - and stopped, shocked into immobility. Angel was half-lying on Wesley's desk, with a woman beneath him, a woman he was kissing passionately. It wasn't Buffy, which was her first startled thought. Huh-uh; this woman had dark hair.
Silently Fred backed away. Moving as quietly as she could she escaped back to her room, where she immediately locked her door and grabbed the phone. Punching in a number she waited breathlessly for the other person to answer. "Wesley? It's Fred. Listen, you guys have to get back here right away! Something's terribly wrong with Angel. He's on top of your desk making out with a woman. No, it isn't Buffy. This one's a brunette. Oh, and before that he was drinking a martini and acting like . . . I don't know what. I think he was making a pass at me! He called me �sweetheart' and asked me to go �out on the town' with him and winked at me and tapped me on the nose with a toothpick!"
Ignoring Wesley's stammered questions, Fred lowered her voice - even though there was no one to hear her. "Listen, I know this sounds kind of strange . . . but I don't think it's the real Angel in there. What? Who's Angelus? Oh." She gulped. "But why would Angelus want a martini? Okay, yeah, I'll get my cross right away just in case, and then I'll sneak out and meet you in the garden. �Bye."
She stripped off her dress, tossing it carelessly onto the bed, and re-donned the clothes she'd just changed out of, sighing with relief when the more comfortable shoes were back on her feet. Then she hung a large silver cross around her neck, grabbed a stake from the supply she kept in a drawer, and cautiously opened the door. The corridor was empty. She started for the stairs, scarcely daring to breathe. When she came out onto the landing Angel - or Angelus? - suddenly stalked out of the office. Her heart almost stopped as she froze in place, but he crossed the lobby and left the building without ever once looking in her direction.
Waiting a minute to make sure he wasn't coming back, she scurried into the office. Five minutes later she was pacing in the garden, impatient for the others to join her. When they arrived she immediately led them to a nearby stone bench, where several large books lay open. "He's gone - left right after I talked to you, but these books were in the office. This is the way I found them."
Gunn and Wesley crouched down, scanning the pages. Cordelia craned to see, leaning on Wesley's shoulder for balance. A few moments later they exchanged puzzled looks and straightened up. Fred said, "Why would Angel need to read up about vampires?"
"He wouldn't." Frowning, Cordelia shook her head in bewilderment. "And neither would Angelus."
"It would seem," Wesley said slowly, "that whoever this is didn't know about vampires. And you say he was acting strangely, Fred? Unlike himself?"
"I'll say!" stated Fred with emphasis. "He was acting like a playboy bachelor from an old Thirties movie. Calling me sweetheart and saying I was beautiful. And drinking a martini - with an olive in it!"
"He ate those breakfast burritos this morning," Cordelia remembered.
"Yes," Wesley said thoughtfully. "This case we've been working on, each of the victims exhibited wild, uncharacteristic behavior just before they died. They weren't themselves."
Gunn nodded. "Oh! So you think Angel's been infected by whatever got into those gym boys."
"Not 'whatever' - whomever." Wesley turned. "Cordelia, when you and he were at the gym, did anything unusual happen to Angel?"
"No," the young woman answered, her brow wrinkling as she thought back. "I was with him pretty much the whole time . . . except for when he went across the street to the retirement home!" Her eyes lit up with grim excitement. "I think we'd better go pay them a visit, don't you?"
<><><><><><><><><>
Xander sat back in his chair and surveyed the piles of open books that covered the table. How long had they been researching this demon that had broken into the bank in broad daylight? "You know, I still don't get it. I mean, what kind of a demon would rob a bank?" He looked at the others. "And I still can't believe that guy wouldn't give Buffy her loan after she saved his life. What a - " He caught Dawn's eye. " - jerk."
Answering his question, Anya said brightly, "The kind of demon that wants money!"
"How can you research that? What do you even call that?" Xander exclaimed, closing his book with a frustrated bang.
Dawn held up a large book. "This?" A picture of a demon was displayed on the open page. "I'm guessing on how you say it �cause it's got an apostrophe. I think it's Mmm-Fashnik. Like �Mmm, cookies.' "
Leaning forward, Xander scanned the page. "Or maybe, Muh-Fashnik. Like Muh . . . " Realizing too late that he couldn't think of an ending to go with it, he finished lamely, " . . . Fashnik."
Just then Buffy and Willow emerged from the back room. Dawn turned the book toward Buffy. "This your guy?"
"You do research now?" Buffy asked. "Want a cappuccino and a pack of cigarettes to go with it?" Inwardly she winced. Just because she was worried and on edge was no excuse for jumping on her sister like that.
Dawn gave her an angry look. "Would you just look at the picture?"
"I'm sorry, Dawnie," Buffy sighed. "It's just hard for me to realize that you're growing up. I still think of you as the kid who had to be threatened with no dessert before she'd do her homework, so it's a little startling to see you volunteering to help with our research."
Mollified, Dawn smiled at her. "Research isn't homework - not unless a teacher is making me do it. Besides, demons are way more interesting than geometry or . . . well, just about anything we learn in school."
"Doesn't exactly fit the profile for your typical bank robber," Xander commented, still studying the picture.
"Maybe they turned down his loan application," Buffy muttered. She gave Willow a wry smile since they'd just discussed that very subject, then looked at Dawn's book. "That's him. Big bad. This thing was strong, guys. No weapons that I could see, but - " A movement by the door caught her eye. She looked up, stared, and heard her voice finishing the sentence without her conscious volition. " - still . . . real . . . dangerous."
There was the sound of cloth rubbing against wood as everyone turned in their chairs to see what she was looking at. Xander half expected it to be Angel, except that it was still light outside so how would he have gotten to Sunnydale? Instead he saw Giles standing just inside the door, two suitcases still in his hands, staring at Buffy as if he couldn't believe his eyes.
Buffy swallowed. Here was another hurdle for her. How was he going to react? But no more than a few seconds passed before Giles let his bags fall to the ground with a thump and started walking toward her. Swallowing again, but from a different emotion this time, Buffy went to meet him.
A tremulous smile went over his face. "Oh God, Buffy." His arms went around her. Giddy with relief, Buffy hugged him back, feeling that her world had just become more normal. Giles was back, and that was almost as good as having Angel or her mother there.
"You're alive," Giles whispered, his voice full of emotion. "You're here. And you're still -" His words grew strained. "- remarkably strong."
"Huh?" It took a moment for his meaning to penetrate. "Oh." She released her tight hold on him. "Sorry," she told him sheepishly.
Giles shook his head a little, dismissing her apology. "Willow told me, but I didn't really let myself believe." Buffy saw that his eyes were wet. A strange shock went through her. She'd never seen Giles cry before, not even after Jenny's death. She also felt tears threatening, and instinctively resorted to a quip.
"I take a little getting used to. I'm still getting used to me."
"It's . . . you're. . . ." His voice faded away.
"A miracle?" she supplied lightly, trying not to wince the way she did whenever one of the gang used that word about her return. Her smile began to flatten but she was able to stop it before he noticed.
Giles nodded. "Yes. But then, I always thought so." He touched her cheek tenderly. Buffy started to get that suffocating feeling again and had to force herself to remain in place for a few seconds before stepping back. She turned around.
Everyone was watching them, smiling happily.
<><><><><><><><><>
"Thanks, guys, that was a very timely rescue. But how did you know?" asked Angel as they walked toward his car. He looked up at the night sky, relishing the fresh breeze against his face. "I am so glad to be out of that place! It might as well be a prison."
"It was Fred who figured it out," Wesley supplied. Angel fished the keys out of his pocket. As he unlocked the driver's door, he said, "Thank you, Fred. So how did you know something was wrong?"
Fred blushed. "Well, I was kind of confused when I saw you drinking a martini and, and then you called me sweetheart and said I was beautiful and asked me to go out on the town with you, but I figured hey, you were just, just lonely and needing to talk. But then when I came back downstairs and saw you on the desk with that woman and you were kissing her - " She snorted. "Well, it was obvious! I knew something was wrong because you wouldn't be kissing a woman who wasn't Buffy!"
Angel's face during all this was a study in growing consternation, but when Fred talked about finding him on the desk his jaw dropped. Gunn snickered. Cordy also chuckled, and Wesley hid a smile.
"Desk?" Angel said weakly. "Woman? Kissing?" With each word his voice rose higher.
"Big time kissing," Fred confirmed. "And your hands were pretty busy too. I mean, not your hands of course - " She stopped, frowning a little. "Actually, they were your hands, weren't they?"
She laughed uneasily, then at the look on his face added in a hurry, "But you weren't the one controlling them, so that's okay. Anyway, you could have been under some kind of spell, of course, but then I found the books on vampires all open like you'd been reading up on it, like you hadn't known about vampires, and Wes remembered that the cases we'd been investigating had all acted weird before they died - totally unlike themselves - so we all figured that whatever had taken over their bodies had gotten yours too. And Cordy remembered you'd gone to the retirement home by yourself so we went there. Then when we saw him going in we followed him and overheard the confrontation between the two of you and were able to stop him from killing you and keeping your immortal body." She gave him a happy smile, bouncing a little on her toes.
"What - " Angel stopped. Wetting his lips and swallowing, he started again. "What about the woman? Who was she?"
Fred shrugged. "I couldn't see her face. She had dark hair, that's all I know."
"What happened to her?" Angel's voice was tense. Wesley glanced at him curiously.
Another shrug from Fred, accompanied by a shake of the head. "I don't know. I went back upstairs to call Wesley. When I came down a few minutes later, you were leaving - I mean, he was leaving - and there was no one in the office when I went in. She must have left before he did."
"There wasn't any - you didn't see - " Angel shut his eyes briefly, then opened them again. "Fred, was there any blood?"
Cordelia's eyes grew wide. Wesley exclaimed softly, "Oh my God." Fred only looked puzzled. "Blood? Why would there be blood?"
"You didn't see any blood in the office?" peristed Angel.
"No, of course not." Fred looked at Wesley and Cordelia, then at Gunn, who also appeared disturbed. "What's wrong?"
"Or any signs of . . . violence?" Angel's hand was clenched on the roof of the car, his expression that of someone expecting to hear the worst.
Fred still didn't understand why everyone seemed so worried. "Well, there were papers scattered everywhere, but I figured they just got knocked off the desk when they - you know, hopped onto it." She rubbed her arms nervously. "I don't understand. Why do you think there might be blood? Whoever the woman was, she wasn't exactly trying to fight him off, you know. He wouldn't have any reason to get violent with her."
Angel's face had a frozen look on it. "The demon was still in my body. Something made Marcus discover it. I'm guessing he instinctively vamped out, and that only happens because the vampire is experiencing a sudden surge of emotion, like hunger or rage - or lust. If it happened while he was with that woman - " He didn't finish.
"Oh." Understanding at last, Fred bit her lip. "I didn't hear anything. Wouldn't she have screamed or . . . or something?"
Wesley put his hand on Angel's arm. "Angel, we'll go back and check, certainly. But there's no reason to think anything at all happened to this woman. You heard Fred - she didn't see any blood and didn't hear any kind of a struggle."
Angel said tightly, "There wouldn't necessarily be a lot of blood. Fred might not have noticed it."
"Fledglings are always messy," Wesley said firmly. "You know that. And regardless that he was in your body, Marcus was a fledgling when it came to being a vampire. For that matter, we don't even know that's how he found out about it - he could very well have simply passed in front of a mirror and seen that he had no reflection. Or tried to go out in the sunlight. But there's only one thing that will ease your mind, so let's get back to the office and see what we find."
Angel's dark expression lightened a trifle. "Yeah. Let's go." He slid behind the wheel as Cordelia and Wesley scrambled inside. Fred elected to go with Gunn in his truck.
<><><><><><><><><>
"What did you find when you got there?" Buffy was pretty sure she knew already, because otherwise Angel wouldn't be so calm about it. Not that he hadn't been affected by the whole experience, because it was obvious that he had, but he wasn't in his dark, tortured mode. It was Friday night and for the time being they were alone in the house, although Willow and Tara were due back soon, with Dawn. Giles was at the Magic Box doing heaven knew what - probably annoying Anya among other things - and Xander of course was also there, with Anya.
"There were no traces of blood," Angel told her. "Not in the office and not anywhere in the lobby. I even checked all around the perimeter of the building. So either he didn't attack this woman or the wound was so slight she got away without any significant bleeding."
"That's good."
"Yes."
Amazing how one little word could be infused with so much emotion. Buffy studied Angel's face. Even though the light in her living room was bright there was a shadow in his eyes, never mind that the events he'd just told her about had happened several days ago and had ended well. She didn't have to look far to guess the reason for that shadow. She put her hand over his. "It came a little too close to home, didn't it?"
"Not just 'too close.' It is home - for me," Angel said. His hand balled into a fist under hers. "It's what I live with every single day - knowing that my body was used by someone else to do terrible, evil things without my knowledge or consent."
"Marcus isn't Angelus," she reminded him, "and he didn't do anything terrible while he was in your body."
He gave her a somber look. "That we know of. You didn't hear him mocking me with what a poor excuse for a vampire I am." He mimicked Marcus' words. " 'Vampires don't help people, you moron, they kill them!' And there's about an hour between when he left the hotel and when he showed up at the rest home that's unaccounted for. I don't know what he did during that time."
A wry smile crossed his lips. "When the Romany first cursed me, I used to pray for hours on my knees that the demon's memories would go away. It's kind of ironic to realize now that not knowing can be even worse."
Buffy stroked his arm consolingly. "Angel, he couldn't have done anything too awful or there would have been something in the media about it. Right? I mean, it was only an hour, less if you count travel time. It's not like he had time to attack someone and then go bury the body, assuming the person was dead, or even find a good hiding place for it, for that matter. Plus it doesn't sound to me like he'd bother doing either of those things anyway. He was so cocky, he'd have let the body lie where it was. And that would have been on the news."
"That's what everyone's been telling me, and what I keep telling myself," Angel sighed. "And it makes sense, I have to agree. But I can't be one hundred percent positive, and I think the uncertainty will stay with me for a long time. But enough about me." Determinedly he shook off his low spirits and slid an arm around her shoulders. "I don't think we've really said hello to each other, have we? You were on the phone when I got here."
"Mm-hm," Buffy assented. "And then we started talking - "
' - about me," Angel cut in, "so like I said, enough of that. Hi." He smiled.
She smiled too. "Hi." They came together in a kiss, drew back to look at one another, then kissed again. Angel pulled her onto his lap, cradling her in his strong arms. She wound her arms around his neck and for a few heavenly moments forgot about her worries and cares. It was enough to have Angel there with her and to be in his embrace, to feel the tender pressure of his lips and the gentle caress of his tongue, the press of his hands on her back. Outside, a lone figure watched them through the front window, standing very still, then walked away unseen by anyone.
When Buffy finally dropped her head to Angel's shoulder, she felt at peace. "It's so good to be with you," she breathed. "Just having you here makes everything seem better."
"I know," he murmured. "When we're together like this it doesn't feel like anything could ever go wrong." They both chuckled, ruefully.
"Wouldn't that be nice?" remarked Buffy, with a sigh. "We could have our own little Buffy and Angel universe, where bodies don't get switched and demons don't wreck the house."
Angel glanced at the broken pictures on the wall. "Is that what happened? I could tell that you'd had some excitement around here."
Buffy gave a short laugh. "I guess you could call it that. That M'Fashnik demon I told you about found its way here. I guess it was upset with me for trying to spoil his little bank caper. Anyway, it broke the coffee table and Mom's heirloom vase and a bunch of other things before Spike and I were able to force it into the basement, where I finished it off. He tore off a piece of my brand-new copper piping too!" Remembering, she scowled.
Angel's attention had been caught before she finished. "What was Spike doing here?"
"Who knows?" She shrugged. "I went out on the back porch and there he was, smoking and throwing the disgusting butts everywhere."
"Has he been bothering you?" he demanded, eyes narrowed.
"No," Buffy denied. "I've run into him once or twice while patrolling, we talked a bit and that was that. For a soulless demon he's really easy to talk to." She ended on a note of surprise.
"Just don't forget that he is a demon," Angel reminded her. "He may be neutered at the moment so he can't physically hurt anyone, but that doesn't mean he can't do harm indirectly. Didn't you tell me he allied himself with that Adam monster last year?"
"I haven't forgotten that," Buffy assured him. "I know that his chip doesn't equal a soul or even a conscience - but it's not that simple, Angel. He was a tremendous help last spring when Glory was after Dawn. He protected Dawn and even when Glory tortured him he didn't betray her whereabouts. I can't exactly spit in his face and treat him like dirt, after that."
"I suppose not," Angel admitted, unwillingly. "But I still don't trust him, and you shouldn't either. If that chip in his head ever gets removed he'll revert to his true self in a second."
She smiled. "You sound like Giles. He gave me the same lecture the other morning, after we went over the bills." Involuntarily she sighed.
"How is your financial situation?" Angel was concerned. She'd already told him that most of Joyce's insurance money had gone to pay her hospital bills, and that she'd had to have a complete copper repipe job done in the basement, which he knew didn't come cheap.
"Well, we're not completely broke," she answered, with another sigh, "but I need to get a job soon or we will be. There's enough to pay the mortgage and groceries for a couple more months, but after that - " She gave a slight shrug.
Angel frowned. That just wasn't right. "Can't the Council do anything to help? You are their Slayer, after all. It seems to me they'd want you to be able to focus on that job instead of worrying about bills."
Buffy's upward glance was baleful. "The Council doesn't know I'm back - and that's the way I want to keep it. If they knew I'd been resurrected with magic they'd probably want to put me under a microscope, make sure I hadn't come back damaged in some way."
Angel made a noncommital sound, mentally resolving to take the matter up with Giles in private. Between them they ought to be able to come up with a way to alleviate Buffy's money problems. Out loud he said, changing the subject, "How have you been otherwise? Have you had any more dreams?"
"No," Buffy replied with visible patience. "I told you I'd let you know if I did, remember? You don't need to keep asking me that every time we talk."
"Sorry," he said hastily. "I didn't mean to nag. I just worry that you're not getting enough rest, that's all." Of course that wasn't the real reason - or not all of it, at least - but he couldn't very well tell her he was worried that she might dream about That Day again. That would only draw her attention to it, which had to be avoided.
He still hadn't figured out how it had happened in the first place, unless she'd somehow managed to tap into his memories while they both slept. That seemed a logical explanation since her first dream that night, the one about his epiphany, had also portrayed actual events and certainly could have been pulled out of his subconscious or unconscious or whatever. God knew he dreamed often enough about the day the Oracles had erased that the memory was never very far below his conscious mind. What really concerned him was that the dream might trigger an actual memory - though that would also seem to be impossible - and he didn't think she was strong enough to bear that burden; not now, with all the stress she was under.
And then, of course, there was her second dream, which was loosely based on reality - the night he'd come to Sunnydale after Joyce's funeral - but had then gone on to present an alternate scenario of events. That didn't quite fit in with the "tapping into his subconscious" theory.
"You're deep in thought," Buffy remarked. "Something wrong?"
Angel came back from his reverie with a start. "Sorry. No, everything's fine." He sutudied her face. "You look more rested; have you been sleeping better?"
"A little. I'm not waking up as often during the night, and when I do it's easier to get back to sleep again." She smiled coyly at him and ran a finger over his lips. "I have a feeling I'll sleep really well tonight."
"Vixen." But he smiled as he said it, and bent his head to kiss her again. They were still at it when the front door opened and Willow, Tara, and Dawn trouped in, chattering about the movie they'd just seen. Although they instantly drew apart, Dawn spied them before Buffy could slide off Angel's lap. She cast her eyes upward.
"Good example to be setting your little sister - making out on the couch with the lights on and the curtains open so the entire neighborhood can watch."
Angel looked abashed, but Buffy just smiled. "Better than closing them first like we had something to hide," she remarked, standing up. "How was the movie?"
"Great!" the three girls exclaimed, practically in the same breath. Exchanging glances, they laughed. "I love the 'Harry Potter' books," Dawn enthused, "and now I love the movie and I can't wait for the next one to come out!" She walked toward Angel, who had also risen. "Hi, Angel."
Angel smiled at her. "Is that all I get - 'Hi, Angel'?" Dawn smiled too and stepped forward to give him a big hug, which he heartily reciprocated. "I've missed you," she whispered. "I've missed you too," he replied. Standing back he held her at arms' length and gave her a once-over from head to toe. "I swear, every time I see you, you've grown another inch."
Dawn smirked. "I'm already taller than Buffy." She gave her sister a teasing, sidelong look.
Buffy only lifted an eyebrow. "Yeah, yeah, gloat all you want. Don't forget I can still kick your ass if I have to."
Playfully, Dawn stuck out her tongue. "Only because you're the Slayer. Otherwise you'd be outta luck."
Willow intervened at that point. "Be nice, children. Buffy, I have some news for you." Buffy looked expectant. "I've taken a part-time job. Starting Monday I'm Dr. Lannegan's TA. She, um, replaced Dr. Walsh." She looked apologetic at having to mention the name of the woman responsible for the Initiative's actions the year before.
"Oh." Surprised, Buffy groped for words. "Well . . . that's good. I guess. Why do you want a job, Will?"
"I'm getting one too," Tara put in.
"And me," contributed Dawn. "I'm going to shelve library books after school for minimum wage."
"What?" Buffy looked from one to the other, at a los. "What's this all about? Why the sudden urge for gainful employment?" She pointed her finger at Dawn. "You can forget about it, young lady. Your schoolwork is more important than earning money."
"It's only an hour a day," Dawn countered, crossing her arms in front of her. "Ninety minutes tops. And I promise I'll start my homework as soon as I get home."
Tara interrupted. "Buffy, Willow and I have been living here for months without contributing toward expenses. If we're going to continue living here, that's got to change. We're not going to sponge off you anymore."
Astonished, Buffy said, "You've never sponged and you know it."
Willow stepped forward. "Okay, we bought a few groceries and took Dawn out to dinner or a movie once in a while, so maybe we weren't total moochers. But if we stay here with you, if this is to be our home too, we have to share the responsibility - and I don't mean just staying with Dawn while you're out patrolling. I mean helping with the housework and contributing toward the household expenses."
Buffy felt the tears rising. "I don't . . . don't know what to say," she faltered. Angel was still standing with his arm around Dawn. " 'Thank you' would be a good place to start," he suggested quietly. "You have good friends." He looked down at Dawn and planted a kiss on the top of her head. "And a good sister." Dawn beamed up at him.
Buffy went over to Willow. "Thank you so much. I . . . I never expected this." The girls hugged, both of them with wet eyes, then Buffy turned to Tara and gave her a hug too. Finally she walked over to Dawn. "Thank you, Dawnie. I appreciate your wanting to help. But if your grades start to drop even a little bit - "
Dawn held up her hand. "I know, I know. They won't, I promise." The sisters shared a long embrace.
"Well, I'd say this calls for a celebration," Angel declared. "How about we go to the ice cream parlor - my treat?" Agreement was unanimous, and enthusiastic.
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