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Author's Chapter Notes:
Character death influenced by reader feedback. If you like him or her, say so and they won't be axed. If this was a movie it would be rated R, but story and character development will be given as much attention as romantic or erotic content.
"Xander?"


"I still look like me right?" he replied.


"You're sick?" asked Buffy.


"It appears that way. I feel like I house the earth's core."


"Yeah you do look a bit drippy."


"Fell asleep watching the boob tube this afternoon and woke up like this. Been trying to psych myself up for the move to my room but…"


"it's ok. might as well just make this germ central and stay put. Do you want anything? Uh...mini-mart-ish?"


"Patrol?"


"Yep. Can find something for you after if my outfit has not been accessorized with innards, blood, and the like."


"Anything from a freezer would be swell." he replied.


"K... Xan?... you want me to stay?"


"Yeah right, that would make me feel manly. You're heading out armed for supernatural combat but let's worry about the man whose hot."


Buffy smiled. Ok, I'm off. Be back with a frozen treat. Don't melt."








several hours later…








"Uh. Buffy here. 3:14 on um… well still feels like today to me but technically it's… shit.. uh, hold on…" She strode over to the fridge and looked at the calendar. "Friday. It's Friday."





"Ok. Checked out sub-train tunnel 4,5, and 6, blue line. Small homeless population in 5. Makes me feel grateful for this place you got us. I should have said that before now. At least we have somewhere to call home. Anyway, a lot of them seemed really young Giles. As long as they're together they have some safety in numbers but I wonder if the baddies have managed to stay under the radar here because they have easy victims that wouldn't be missed. I did sense one vamp all night, trailing me. No contact though. I couldn't tell if he knew I am a slayer."


She let out a sigh.


"I know you want us low profile but I really hate that I can't do my job unless I don't have witnesses. Not such a good feeling to let him go. Well.. I'm dirty, hungry, tired, that's it. I'll call again soon."


Buffy hung up and set her weapons down on the counter. Her glance landed at the top of the stairs. Silence. She walked back over to the fridge, opened up the freezer door, and tossed the bag of popsicles inside. Her cell phone rang as the door swung closed. She pulled it out of her back pocket and answered.


"Giles?"


"Buffy I just got home. I need to talk to you. I caught the last bit of your message but unless it's urgent, I would prefer to get right to the matter at hand."


"No it can wait, just a routine report. Shoot," she said.


"Well, Andrew phoned me earlier today with a matter of importance." He sighed and continued. "It seems that Angel had some business In Italy yesterday."


"Oh."


"He tried to see you as well. It got to him somehow that you had been sighted there."


"Yeah?"


"I'm surprised you haven't let him know where you are Buffy. Be that as it may, …he had company."


"So he must have talked to Andrew?"


"Yes, caught up with him at Dawn's flat, but your double wasn't there. You see…."


"So he knows…"


"Buffy listen…"


"I can call him tomorrow. After everything, I have just been dealing, you know, and it never felt like the right time to get back in touch. He'll understand that…"


"No. Andrew didn't know what to do", Giles interrupted. "He didn't explain our little setup, wasn't sure if it was ok to tell them where you really..."


"So what did he say?"


"Look, if you would just let me speak."


"Sorry, still pumped from patrol. Shutting up."


"Wake up Willow."


"Now?"


"Yes. I think you should have company."


"Giles..."


"Just please do it Buffy. I'll stay on the line."


Moments later a groggy but willing Willow padded down the stairs with Buffy in tow. They both sat at the kitchen table and switched Giles to speaker setting.


"Four ears here. Hey Giles," Willow began.


"Yes, right then. You see I was just telling Buffy that Angel just surfaced in Italy... Spike was with him."


The two women exchanged a look but it was Willow who pushed out a reply.


"Huh? Um. Should we be interpreting that in a metaphorical sorta way?"


"According to Andrew he is alive and looks better than ever, his words obviously. And before you inquire further, I called Angel. As far as I can ascertain from him, it's true, given the assumption that it was really Andrew and Angel I was in fact talking to. Our respective conversations were obviously not face to face."


"We, we don't understand Giles."


"Of course, the feeling is mutual I assure you. When I reached Angel he just put me on hold and then returned to tell me he would ring me momentarily. When he did, Spike was with him. Well, someone sounding much like Spike at least. They didn't give me details about what has occurred in the interim between Sunnydale and the present, but apparently they saw our slayer stand-in with the Immortal and pouted their way back to L.A."


"Both of them?" Willow questioned.


Buffy continued to stare at the tiled floor, seemingly devoid of emotion aside from a slight shake of her head from side to side.


"And?"


"And I told them about Buffy's decoys and your current location. It was a secure line. I called from headquarters. Then quite frankly they devolved into little boys as far as I could tell. When it became clear by all the ruckus I could hear that a rowdy altercation was ensuing, I hung up. Spike called me back an hour later and gave me a phone number to give to Buffy. Angel yelled in the background to call him later if she wants to talk with him instead. By the sounds of it, he was trying to pry himself loose of some restraints. I must say if this is all a ploy of some sorts it is a very convincing one, complete with the usual display of childishness those two bring out in each other."


"When was this?", Willow asked the former watcher."


"Two hours, more or less. I have the phone number. Buffy?"


"I'm here," she murmured.


"I propose you stay guarded for now until we know more and you three stay together just in case. I can come if you want but I won't make it my business unless you want it to be or unless there are some mystical implications of his return we should consider."


"Alright. I'll call you tomorrow to let you know how Bu… uh we….are doing." said Willow.


Giles said goodbye and hung up. Buffy looked up at her friend and stood.


"Will, I might come into your room later if that's alright." "Of course, anything you need", she replied without hesitation. They both sat in silence and then took turns shuffling off to retire to their rooms.


Buffy had completely forgotten about checking up on Xander downstairs.











xxxxx


Chapter End Notes:
There aren't any canon characters I don't appreciate. Heroes, villains, and everyone in between will be written with unconditional love.



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