See prologue for disclaimer
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Part One
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The two figures huddled together seemingly from cold. Neither was wearing a jacket, however, and the weather was usual for California, a balmy warm. Every once in a while, a sniffle emerged from the two.
Xander Harris and Willow Rosenberg were in the middle of one of Sunnydale’s numerous cemeteries. A fresh grave lay before them. Soft sobs drifted towards them on the early morning breeze, emanating from a bent form kneeling upon it. The name inscribed on the headstone read:
"Buffy Anne Summers"
The sobbing abruptly ceased, and the man rose up to his full six-foot-something height. He walked over to the pair.
"How long till sunrise?", he questioned.
"About an hour or two Angel. You should probably get inside or something.", replied Xander, with a kindness in his voice that was not usually present when speaking to the vampire. Angel shrugged, seeming to dismiss the boy’s advice. In the dim light provided by the path lighting, they could see tear tracks on his handsome face. He turned to walk away.
"Where are you going?", Willow called after him, but it was too late. He was gone. Vanished into the fading night. Xander didn’t even have the heart to comment on the annoying quality of Angel’s ability.
The boy and girl leaned against one another, as if gaining strength from the embrace. They felt so alone, so utterly vulnerable without Buffy. She had been their best friend and their protector. They had been stunned upon learning of her death. She had been attacked by a mob of vampires. Angel had arrived on the scene, but it had been too late. He had barely escaped himself.
They stood that way for sometime, staring blankly at her grave. It was pure chance that Xander’s gaze caught the slight movement to his right. A shadow was approaching them. The teen tensed up, ready to protect Willow. *As if I would be able to save us.*, he thought grimly. Willow, however, infinitely more perceptive than her counterpart, recognized the approaching shape.
"Angel," she called, "is that you?" There was no response. It was, in fact, Angel. He was carrying a very large bouquet of deep red roses. Xander’s thoughts wandered at the sight, wondering where in the world Angel had managed to find a florist at 4:30 in the morning, or if he had filched them from someone’s garden. As if not noticing them, the vampire walked past without looking up. He was intent on his mission, whatever that may be.
The grief-stricken Angel continued over to the Slayer’s resting place. Dropping down to the fresh sod, he placed the roses next to the marker. He then proceeded to lean against the headstone. He turned his head, pressing his cheek to the cool marble, as to feel closer to his lost love.
Xander and Willow stood there, keeping guard over the vampire during his silent reverie. The girl checked her watch, then consulted her companion.
"Sunrise in fifteen minutes. He should leave.", she said, while gesturing to the mourning Angel.
"Mmmmph," Xander replied, "so should we."
"Xander. Angel and the sunrise. That will not bring any good."
"Oh. Right." Even though the boy wasn’t all that fond of Angel, he felt that if they allowed him to turn himself into a crispy critter, they would somehow be letting Buffy down. He called out to the distraught vampire.
"Yo Angel, man, you should go back to your apartment or cave or whatever. You know, the sun is coming." Upon hearing the warning, Sunnydale’s resident vampire-with-a-soul turned his head to look at them, and smiled sadly. The look on his face, in his eyes, made words unnecessary. Yet he spoke anyway.
"I know." These two simple words, that held such despair and finality. Angel resumed staring into space. Willow turned to Xander.
"I don’t think he’s going to leave! He’s gonna commit suicide!" she whispered urgently. Xander looked thoughtful. Then he spoke up.
"Is it really suicide? I mean, he’s already dead an-ow!", he cried as the young hacker elbowed him.
"Reality Xander! We should stop him!"
"I really doubt we could, Will. He is a vamp and all." They both looked at Angel. He was staring off into the distance, the East, where the sun was just starting to bring light into the world. The creatures of the night were all safe in their hide-outs and lairs, all except one.
The sky became progressively lighter, displaying brilliant colors. The first ray of sunlight hit Angel’s chest. A small flame appeared and began eating away at the cloth of his white T-shirt. The vampire didn’t notice. His eyes had focused on something in the horizon. He squinted, as if in disbelief. He even shook his head, as if to clear it. Angel’s eyes were wide, staring at some unseen phantom, even as he was in flames. He was burning, and he didn’t care. Willow was crying softly. Angel had saved her and Xander more times than she could count. She didn’t want him to die! After what seemed like an eternity, though was in reality only a few minutes, the vampire was engulfed entirely in the flames. He exploded in a shower of crystalline dust particles. A strangled cry erupted from Willow’s throat. This was the second friend she had lost in one week! Xander hugged her reassuringly. The extreme dislike he harbored for Angel prevented him from becoming too emotional.
Concerned for Willow, he turned to lead her away. Then some inexplicable feeling told him to turn back. He saw a shimmering of light. *More remnants of Angel floating away?*, he wondered. He shuddered slightly at the thought of pieces of Angel clinging to his clothes. The shimmer took shape, causing him to forget his petty worry. She had an ethereal glow about her, and was transparent. Just a shadow, an illusion, but she was there. The Slayer, one Buffy Anne Summers. Xander went to move towards her, but was stopped by a small restraining hand on his shoulder. There was another shadow.
Buffy beckoned to it, and Angel’s soul stepped towards her, into the golden sunlight he hadn’t seen for over 200 years, yet he saw only her. She was the sunlight in his universe, she had been since that first time he had seen her. Buffy’s ghost opened her arms and Angel stepped into them. He embraced her tightly. Their faces shone with joyous tears, their smiles were wide with unheard laughter. The Slayer spoke to him, though the two teens could not hear her words, they knew what she said. ‘I love you,' was her vow, heard only by the one it was meant for. ‘I love you’ was his answer, the sound reaching only his beloved’s ears.
They smiled at each other again, then turned to the astonished Xander and Willow. Buffy looked upon them for the first time since her death. She smiled warmly, and said "I love you guys." They both heard the words as if they had been whispered into their ears. The two angels, for that is what they must have been, linked arms, turned away, and simply disappeared. No trace that they had ever been there was left.
The two teens were crying again, their sorrow mixed with happiness. They knew Buffy and Angel were at peace. The Slayer had the best possible Guardian Angel to look after her, and the no longer tortured soul of her love had finally made it to heaven, with his soulmate by his side.
Xander and Willow turned and walked away. Despite all that had transpired, they still had school in a few hours. Bummer.
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