11.
For Buffy, Faith, Willow, Cordelia and Fred, the next three days were spent in relative boredom. The other teenagers had left two days ago in order to visit with a neighboring pack. It was customary to hold meetings between packs around the time of the full-moon, to make sure that everyone was getting along, and usually the pack leader and some other males would represent their pack. Since Angel was fast approaching adulthood, he had started accompanying his father on these visits, and the other teenage boys went along as well.
Having nothing else to do, Faith suggested that all them girls have a sleep over that night in one of the recreation rooms. Her idea was met with mass enthusiasm and so everyone grabbed some blankets, pillows and the necessary food from the kitchen and then headed down to an available room. Once they had arrived they set about moving around the furniture in order to create enough space for everyone to lay down.
“Hey, can someone help me move this couch?” asked Willow desperately, panting with the exertion of attempting to move the heavy couch by herself.
“Oh, sorry!” exclaimed Buffy as she quickly rushed over to help her friend, followed by Faith. Within a few minutes the offending piece of furniture had been successfully pushed against the far wall and out of the way. Meanwhile, Fred and Cordelia set about looking through the assortment of movies they had, searching for one to watch first.
“Anyone mind what we watch?” asked Cordelia finally, after several minutes of fruitless searching.
“Nah,” replied Buffy, while Willow and Faith simply shook their heads.
“Fine, we’ll just go with this one then,” declared Fred, selecting a random movie and popping it in the dvd player.
As the movie began to play everyone just settled down on the blankets that they had spread out and got comfortable. Faith plopped down in between Fred and Buffy, placing the bowl of popcorn that they had prepared right in her lap and proceeding to eat most of it. Nobody had bothered to get into their pajamas yet, so twenty minutes later they paused the movie so they could change. Not having the need to feel modest, they simply locked the door to the room they were in, having brought their clothes with them.
Buffy slipped into a pair of light blue silk pants and a black tank top. It was really comfortable to sleep in and she sighed as she settled back into the nest of blankets that she had created for herself earlier. She was soon joined by everyone else as they got ready to continue the movie. Soon Buffy and Willow began to braid Fred’s hair and the movie was soon forgotten in favor of more interesting conversation.
“So, how far have you and Spike gotten?” Cordelia asked Faith, grinning at her.
“Well,” began Faith, in mock thoughtfulness. “We kiss and everything.”
“Uhhh, you’d have to be blind to not notice that,” commented Willow, looking up from the section of Fred’s hair that she was currently working on.
“And deaf,” agreed Fred, making everyone giggle and Faith to simply shrug, not in the least embarrassed.
“What can I say? We love each other.”
“Wait, you love him!” exclaimed Cordelia excitedly, looking shocked. This did succeed in making Faith blush.
“Well, I mean, yeah, I-I do,” she admitted.
“And of course Spike is completely in love with you,” said Buffy, grinning at her friend. “The way he can’t take his eyes off of you, and the only thing he talks about is you, and I’m sure the only thing he thinks about…”
“Definitely,” sighed Willow. “You two make a totally perfect couple.”
“What about you and Oz?” asked Fred, craning her head around to try and get a glance at the red-head.
“M-me and Oz?” she squeaked, her face turning as red as her hair. She had only ever told Buffy about her crush on him and she knew that Buffy wouldn’t tell anyone else.
“Come on, Willow,” scoffed Faith.
“We can see the way you look at him,” declared Cordelia, raising an eyebrow.
“I don’t look at him in any, certain, way,” she protested, not making eye contact with any of the other girls. “I look at him just the same as I do X-Xander, and Angel and Gunn, and, and G-Giles too.”
“Yeah right, Wills,” said Faith, rolling her eyes in exasperation. “Keep telling yourself that. I don’t see why the two of you just don’t get together.”
“You’d make the perfect couple,” agreed Buffy, giving her friend and encouraging smile.
Sighing, Willow finally gave in, deciding to trust her friends. “But, I mean, how do I know if he likes me back?”
“Well, you could always take the direct approach and just ask him.” Seeing the girl’s horrified look, Cordelia quickly changed her suggestion. “Then again, why don’t you just ask Xander? I bet he could find out for you.”
“Or, you could just hang around him a lot, do a little flirting, ya know,” said Faith suggestively, wiggling her eyebrows.
“Fl-flirting? Oh, no. I don’t flirt. N-not a good idea.”
”Oh come on, it isn’t that hard!” protested Cordelia, looking around her in attempt to gain support from the other girls.
“Well, seeing as how you and Faith are the only ones with any experience in that area…” replied Fred, trailing off.
“You have a boyfriend?” asked Buffy, surprised. She had thought that Cordelia was single.
“I did a few months ago,” she replied. “It didn’t work out though. He was from another clan and they were always moving around.” She shrugged, seeming not to care about the whole thing.
“Good thing too,” muttered Willow. “He was really boring.”
“Yeah,” agreed Faith. “Whenever he was over here to hang out all he ever did was sit in the library and read some stupid book.”
“Hey, he wasn’t that bad!” protested Cordelia, but upon seeing the incredulous looks on everyone else’s faces she decided to give in. “Fine, he isn’t the greatest example of my tastes in men. Still, I’m doing better than the rest of you, excluding Faith of course.”
“Did you ever have a boyfriend, Buffy?” asked Fred as she got up and allowed Buffy to occupy her space so they could do her hair next.
“Nope, not a one,” she replied, thinking back to all the boys she used to hang out with, although none of them had ever considered her anything more than just a friend.
“But of course, that’s all about to change,” said Faith, grinning evilly.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” asked Buffy cautiously, not really sure that she wanted to know what was going on inside the brunette’s mind.
“Oh, you know. Tall, gorgeous, name starts with an A, can’t keep his eyes off of you,” supplied Cordelia helpfully and everyone laughed, Buffy just blushed.
“I d-don’t know what you are talking about,” she denied lamely, receiving four pairs of eye-rolls in response.
“Can you say DENIAL?” giggled Fred.
“Just admit it B, you totally have a thing for my brother.”
“Fine,” she whispered reluctantly, not oblivious to all of the triumphant stares her admission caused.
“‘Bout time you admitted it,” said Cordelia. “So, are you going to tell him?”
“But what if he doesn’t like me? Then I will look like a total fool, not to mention the embarrassment factor.” Upon saying this Buffy pulled away from Fred and Willow, who had finished with her hair, and laid down on her stomach, facing her friends with a concerned expression on her face.
“Some how I don’t think that that’s a problem, Buffy,” said Willow grinning.
“Why not?”
“Oh, come on! My brother is totally into you! You would have to blind to have not noticed the looks he’s been giving you.”
“Really?” asked Buffy hopefully, sitting up.
“Totally,” continued Faith. “Just give him some time, keep up the flirting, and I bet you he’ll have his tongue shoved down your throat in no time.”
“I have not been flirting with him!” she protested indignantly, blushing at Faith’s declaration, but seeing the looks on everyone’s faces, she decided to give in a little. “Well maybe just a little bit.”
“I bet he’s a good kisser,” declared Cordelia wistfully. “I mean, with a face like that, there’s no way he could be bad.”
“Bad kisser?” asked Buffy, looking suddenly incredibly nervous. “What if I’m a bad kisser? I’ve never kissed anyone before, I don’t know to do, and I’d probably mess everything up.”
“Wow, calm down, B. It’s not that big of deal,” Faith smiled upon seeing that the blonde looked as if she would hyperventilate at any second. But, seeing that she still wasn’t convinced, she pressed on. “You could just let him take the lead, and don’t worry. Angel is really nice, he would never judge you.”
“Yeah, he has always been really nice to all of his other girlfriends,” added Willow, smiling reassuringly.
“Other girlfriends?” asked Buffy, feeling a wave of jealousy mixed with anxiety wash over her.
“Oh, don’t worry about them,” declared Cordelia. “None of them were serious. They were only these girls from some of the neighboring packs. None of them lasted for more than a month or so.”
“But what do I have to offer him?” she asked, still not convinced that Angel would want to have anything to do with her.
“Oh Buffy, don’t think that way!” exclaimed Willow. She really wanted her two friends to get together, and she knew for a fact that Buffy’s fears were misplaced, although she wasn’t going to say anything for fear that Angel would be upset if she did.
“Listen, just be yourself around him and you’ll see for yourself if he likes you or not,” suggested Faith. Buffy just sighed and then smiled.
“Alright.”
“Hey, you guys want to put in a different movie?” asked Fred. “I haven’t been paying any attention to this one.”
Seeing that everyone agreed, she slowly got up from her sleeping bag on the floor and made her way to the shelf that contained all of the videos.
“What do you guys want to watch? Comedy, drama, romance…”
00000000000
An hour later all five girls were huddled together, wrapped up in blankets and pillows, eyes fixated on the television screen. After much discussion they had finally decided on a horror film that no one had seen before, and the darkness of the room combined with the subject matter of the movie was enough to make each one of them more than a little jumpy.
“Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god,” muttered Willow, squeezing Buffy’s hand tightly as she watched the man sneaking up on the unsuspecting girl. They all jumped and Fred shut her eyes as the girl screamed.
Unknown to the five of them, they were currently being watched by five pairs of eyes. Standing in the doorway was Angel, Spike, Xander, Oz and Gunn, grinning as they watched the females’ terrified faces. Beckoning with his hand, Angel urged them to move forward silently into the room, sneaking up on the girls from behind. They tiptoed as quietly as they could, trying to make as little sound as possible so as not to alert their prey. The room was very dark, the only light that could be seen was from the television, and as the boys crept closer they silently circled around, each person coming up behind a girl.
Angel grinned. None of them had noticed the boys’ presence yet. He looked up and caught the eyes of his friends and mouthed a countdown for them. “1…..2……3……”
They all pounced at the same time. Angel was behind Buffy and he grabbed her suddenly around the waist, pulling her back against him. Screams echoed throughout the room, mixing in with the uncontrollable laughter from the boys.
“That. Was. Not. Funny!” bit out Cordelia, once the lights had successfully been switched on again. She glared at Xander, who had been behind her, and folded her arms across her chest.
“I thought it was kind of funny,” commented Oz nonchalantly, earning grinning nods from the rest of the guys. Smiling, Buffy just swatted Angel on the shoulder, secretly thrilled to feel his strong arms around her once again. Suddenly, Faith picked up a pillow and swung it at Xander’s head, which soon escalated into a full-out pillow fight.
Angel tried to quickly scurry away, but before he could move Buffy had grabbed a pillow and began attacking him. At first he attempted to grab the pillow from her, but soon he was having to block the blows which were raining down upon his large frame. Deciding that he had played fair for long enough, he suddenly leaped at her, tackling her as gently as possible to the ground. Looming over her petite body, he began tickling her mercilessly, smirking as she squirmed and shrieked.
“An-Angel!” she exclaimed breathlessly, unable to control her laughter. Finally taking mercy on her he ceased his actions and stood up, helping her to her feet. She tried to keep a scowl on her face, but soon gave up the attempt in favor of a smile. He smiled back and then the pair turned their attention back to the other occupants of the room. Much to everyone’s surprise, Cordelia had Xander pinned on the ground, her small body forcing his down.
“Truce, truce!” he yelled, desperate to get the fanatic female off of him. Cordelia, however, wasn’t listening and just continued to yell at him, punctuating every other word by whacking the pillow against his head. Laughing, Gunn and Spike finally decided to take pity on their friend and they grabbed the girl by her shoulders, lifting her up and off of her victim, though not without loud protests. Everyone laughed at the display, but she just huffed and sat back against the couch, wrapping a blanket around her lower body.
“So,” began Faith, when everyone had calmed down, “when did you guys get back?”
“Just a couple minutes ago,” replied Angel, running a hand through his now messy hair. “We saw the light on and just couldn’t resist.”
“Did you have fun?” asked Willow, settling down next to Cordelia and pulling Fred and Buffy down to sit with her.
“Not really, red. Whole thing was rather boring if I do say so meself,” replied Spike.
“Yeah,” agreed Xander, a look of disgust upon his face. “A bunch of boring political mumbo-jumbo. I don’t think I understood a single thing the entire time I was there.”
Shaking his head at Xander, Angel moved over to the couch and sank back into the comfortable cushions. “Well, those of us who were paying attention actually did get something out of the endless meetings.” Then he paused, looking thoughtful for a moment. “Actually, it was kind of interesting. The Urbinuth pack was hosting the meeting, and the impression I got was that they were trying to make an alliance between our pack and theirs.”
“Yeah,” agreed Gunn, nodding. “They were all acting nice, and always talking about unity and this coming togetherness. I wonder what they’re up to.”
“Urggg, the Urbinuth pack?” asked Cordelia. “Aren’t they the ones that are always, like, picking on everyone else? Why did you guys meet with them anyways?”
“Well, you see, them being the mos’ powerful pack in this region and all, we don’t exactly have a choice, now do we pet?” declared Spike, looking bored with the entire conversation. “So, what were you guys watching?”
“Just some horror movie,” supplied Buffy, shrugging her shoulders. “But why don’t we watch something else, I’m definitely not in the mood anymore.” All the boys grinned sheepishly.
“Mind if we join you ladies?” asked Xander, plopping himself down in front of those sitting on the ground, which only earned him a kick from a still shook-up Cordelia.
“Cool,” said Willow. “But why don’t we put in a comedy?”
“Sure,” said Angel, groaning as he lifted himself off of the couch and moved over to the television. “Mind if I pick it?”
“Nah, go ahead,” responded Faith, moving over to Spike and sitting down with him, wrapping her body around his. She then reached over and grabbed a blanket to put around the both of them as Spike grabbed a pillow to lean against. Soon the lights were out again and everyone was getting comfortable on the ground.
Angel, who was the last to come over, scowled at the seating arrangement, they had left no space for him. Not to be deterred, he contemplated his options, grinning upon reaching a solution. Strolling boldly over to group, he bent down in front of Buffy and lifted her up and away from her spot between Xander and Faith/Spike. Then he sat down in her now vacant spot, rearranging the pillows behind him. Buffy just stood in front of him, looking completely shocked. She just stood there, mouth hanging open, with her hands placed firmly on her hips. Looking expectantly up at her he waited, but when she made no move he simply reached his hand up and pulled her down and into his lap. After making sure she was comfortable he tucked the blanket in around them, slipping his arms around her waist, an increasingly familiar sensation.
“Happy now?” he whispered into her ear.
Turning around, Buffy prodded his chest gently, as one might fluff up a pillow. Giving a dramatic sigh, she turned back around. “I suppose you’ll have to do.”
Sighing contentedly, she leaned back fully into the strong body behind her. Maybe they were right, she thought. Maybe Angel did like her. She sure hoped so; she had never felt more safe in her life than when she was being held securely, wrapped up in his strong arms. She placed her hands on top of Angel’s and began to subconsciously play with his fingers, causing him to chuckle softly to himself. He found his concentration wandering from the movie continuously, choosing instead to linger over the lightly illuminated features of his blond goddess. After a while her eyes slowly began to close and she laid her head back against Angel’s chest, lulled to sleep by his steady heartbeat.
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