It was simple after all, be it only on the surface. Ranger found her 48 hours after his arrival in Sunnydale but something was sorely amiss and at present he had more questions than answers. He was close to bliss though, so he could wait, so to speak.

The night before he'd ended up at The Bronze and through a stroke of sheer luck overheard a group of teenagers mention Willow by name. With a unique name like that, they'd have to be talking about his girl, right? He tailed a petite blond and brunette as they left the club together. He spent the night in front of one of their homes, parked in a rental and at daybreak followed them again as they headed out. Hopefully they weren't just going to school.

He wasn't disappointed, only a bit confused. The two girls led him to a housing complex, disappearing into one of the apartments. Soon afterwards he saw a man, slightly older than himself, emerge guiding a woman to clapped out car. Ranger knew instinctively that this woman was Willow. Not the girl he'd fallen for but a stunning woman with apparently more than one secret.

Bits of the conversation he'd overheard the night before seemed to slot into place. All he needed now though was a bit more patience and to get her alone, away from the man holding her arm.

"Giles..." Willow spoke as they approached the car.

"Yes Willow?" Giles answered.

"What did Buffy and Faith want?" She'd seen them enter Giles' apartment.

"They grilled me about you." He grinned at her. "Both of you's." The Englishman attempted a New York accent, which elicited a confused smile on Willow's face.

"They can't believe you need more time and want to know what my interest in you is..." He looked pointedly at her reflection, as she climbed in the passenger seat and checked her make-up.

Willow looked up at Giles, seeing him for the first time as an equal rather than the mentor he'd been so far. It was unsettling and her smile did little to hide the sudden realisation that overcame her. Giles was interested in her. If she could just stop thinking about Ranger... she could and would've kicked herself.

The drive to the school was uneventful. They talked little, Giles choosing to switch on the radio. Neither noticed the car trailing them but then Ranger was a professional.

Willow ran class, after class seemingly on auto-pilot. Her thoughts occupied with her time in Trenton, her current predicament, estrangement from friends and plans for the future. There appeared to be no change in her condition and the more time she spent with Giles, the more she liked him.

It was a real shock when after the last lesson she bumped into Ranger in the corridor.

"Ranger." She sighed, the sound catching in her throat. She was frozen to the spot. The man was more gorgeous than she remembered.

"Willow." He murmured softly, pleased at her reaction. Her cheeks were flushed and pupils turned black.

The corridor was deserted, as was typical after the last bell, so they had as much privacy as in any deserted public building. Willow's body was a magnet for his. Her flowery dress contrasted with his black jeans and t-shirt. His arms quickly found their way round her as he drew her into him, locking their bodies in a long-overdue embrace.

Ranger sought her lips. He'd kissed once or twice before but this was something completely different. Incredible heat emanated from the girl, stimulating the depth of his being. It took great resolve on his part to break their kiss for long enough to take a breath and guide them to the nearest room, which turned out to be a broom closet.

Bliss. That turned out to be the solution. Willow marvelled at the inspired cosmic symmetry. The one thing that caused Angel to loose his very soul proved the key to turning her back into a teenager. Someone out there had a wicked sense of justice or maybe it was just humour.

The girl looked back at the man looking at her with glazed eyes. He'd started making love to a woman and now was embracing a somewhat younger version of the same "model". Wasn't life strange...? Willow wondered how long it would take her to explain everything and whether he was going to stop touching her now she had changed.

Haply the explanations were postponed as Ranger began to explore her body anew. It seemed he was yet to reach the state of bliss, having first taken care of her needs. It also seemed that he wanted her in any form he could get her. Willow smiled, finally sympathising with Xander and Cordelia's escapades in the broom closet, though thoughts of her friends disappeared quickly under the machinations of his hands.

Bliss. It felt good. Questions and answers would come later. The End