Finding Her Way Home
by rebelrsr
Chapter 43
[reviews]
Disclaimer: All things Buffy belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, and lots of people in expensive suits. I'm not making any money here, just trying to create a happier Buffyverse for my favorite characters.
Spoilers, etc.: Pretty much everything after the Gift.
A/N: Character thoughts are enclosed by **. Flashbacks are enclosed by //. Thanks to Ivy for the preread and Zigpal and Lilly for the beta and encouragement! I couldn't do it without you.
Archiving: By permission only.
A/N2: I'm mixing parts of S6 and S7 with very little regard to canon. For purposes of the fic, Dawn is over the age of consent *wink*.
Faith spun to look at her. "Hey, B. Didn't mean nothing by that." Her dimples popped out. "It was almost a compliment."
"Some compliment," Buffy said dryly. Looking past Faith's shoulder, she nodded at Angel. "Hey, Angel. Thanks for coming. We can really use the help." She moved up to the side of the van. "We've got real trouble."
Angel didn't respond. His eyes zeroed in on her hand — and the way it held Willow's.
Buffy saw his nostril's flare, too. Suddenly, she realized what trouble Faith had been anticipating, and why the other girl had rushed out to talk to Angel. Letting her fingers slip from Willow's, Buffy stepped in front of her wife and met Angel's eyes. "Angel?" It wasn't a question; it was a softly spoken warning. Buffy didn't care how he felt about her new relationship. This was business. If he couldn't — or wouldn't — let go of the past, she'd make sure he wasn't a threat.
"Oh, thank God." Cordelia's voice interrupted the staring match. "I thought I'd have to beat you off Angel with a big stick. Who knew I'd ever be grateful for Willow." She jostled Buffy as she climbed into the van and sat leaning against Angel's side. "I told you she'd be fine with us, you big broody goof."
***
Angel and Cordy? Willow tried to make sense of that concept. It got harder when Angel turned his head and smiled tenderly at Cordelia. Angel didn't smile, tenderly or otherwise.
She shoved that aside when she felt Buffy stiffen and green sparks lit her link with Buffy.
"You and Angel?" Buffy demanded harshly. "Are you kidding?"
Willow reached out and gripped Buffy's hand. Tightly. "Congratulations," she said, directing the comment at the two now staring in shock at Buffy. "When we aren't facing certain death and the end of the world, I want to hear all the details."
*Snap out of it, Buffy.* The dual conversation was difficult. Head pounding with the strain, Willow worked on staying supportive of her wife. This wasn't the time to argue about Buffy's lingering feelings for Angel...or Spike. *We have work to do. Be glad we don't have a fight on our hands over 'us.' More than that*, Willow refused to give Buffy an inch, *be happy for Angel*.
The bright flare of Buffy's jealousy dimmed. However, it didn't disappear completely. It gathered around their internal conduit, glowing sullenly.
"Oh, do I have details." Cordelia seemed unaware of the emotions swirling around their small grouping. "Too bad the Higher Powers have been beaming messages into my head. Do you know how irritating it is to be in the middle of a conversation and get a vision? It can take me hours to get back to normal."
*Define normal,* Willow almost said. Instead, she smiled slightly. "Why don't you and the rest of the crew come inside? There are a lot of new faces, Angel. I want to make sure they know who you are and that stakes need to be somewhere else around you. Then Cordy can fill us in on her visions."
"Just one problem with that, I'm afraid." Angel gestured to the slight shadows cast by the setting sun. "I'm going to be a little toasty if we go right now. Can you get everyone else settled? I'll come in as soon as it's safe."
Responding to a need to show both Buffy and Angel that she was the superior choice, Willow shook her head. "Don't worry about that. I've got you covered."
"Will," Buffy said. Willow heard a note of warning and uncertainty in her voice. "You can't-"
"Get ready, Angel. I'll let you know when I'm ready," Willow said over Buffy's comment.
Letting her external sight fade, Willow keyed open the gates to her reservoir. Raw power poured through the channel she'd carved through the thick walls of the barrier. Gathering the magical energy between her hands, Willow hardened and shaped it. A thin blue bubble formed and grew as she blew more magic into it. When it was the right size, Willow turned her head and fused her inner and outer vision.
Angel appeared through a haze of power. "Get out of the van." She smiled in satisfaction at his look of wide-eyed astonishment at her accomplishment.
He and Cordy scrambled out. The bubble surrounded Angel the second he was in range of the fading sunlight.
"Move slowly, please. I have to make sure your protection stays with you," Willow instructed the pair.
In a tight grouping, they made their way up to the porch. The crowd hurriedly parted for them.
Angel stopped at the threshold of the patio door. "Willow..."
Still needing to demonstrate her power, Willow let him stand there, barred from entering, for a long minute
***
Behind Willow, Buffy felt her wife's glee at Angel's dilemma through their link. *Issues much, Will?* she asked silently.
Willow's chagrin colored the conduit a pulsing pink.
*Get him inside, baby. Then can you cut back on the chest beating*? Buffy blew a kiss through their connection, cooling the heat of Willow's blush. *You don't need it. I know I acted like an ass when Cordy spilled her secret. I'm over it. I promise.*
"Go on in, Angel. You have my permission," Willow said softly, only an edge of her satisfaction showing in the tone.
Angel moved forward into the house, and Buffy kissed Willow again in thanks.
The shimmering blue bubble surrounding Angel dissipated. "Um...thanks, Willow." Angel strode toward the center of the cluttered living room.
Slayers, Watchers, and witches poured into the room as well.
Buffy noticed more than a few stakes clutched in teenaged hands, and her Slayer senses indicated there were magical weapons at the ready, too.
"Angel," she called out, hurrying in his direction, "meet the new and much larger Scooby Gang." Waving a hand at the crowd, she started the introductions. They took a while to complete. As she spoke, Buffy took a head count. Twelve Potentials, six Watchers, Kirstan and Jennifer, Drew, Tara, Dawn and Faith, Xander and Anya, Giles, plus herself and Willow.
When she finished, Angel smiled at the gathered Scoobies. "Thanks for inviting us. We wouldn't know what to do with ourselves if the world wasn't ending again."
There were a few chuckles.
"Let me introduce my additions to the New Gang." Four people joined Angel in the middle of the room. "Cordelia. She's our Seer."
Anya's strident voice broke in. "You will not look at her, Xander. You are with me, now."
The rest of her words were cut off by the hand Xander plastered over her mouth. "Sorry. She gets like that when hot women show up." He grinned and winked at Cordelia. "Looking good, Queen C. Glad you could make it."
"What else was I going to do? My nails?" Cordelia buffed her nails on her shirt and peered at them before wrapping an arm around Angel.
The message was clear. Anya didn't have anything to worry about. Buffy went back to examining the rest of Angel's crew. The tall black man, Gunn, looked ready for a fight. Fred was a Texas-bred version of Willow.
Then Angel turned to the whiskered, jeans-clad man to his right. "I'm sure some of you remember Wesley Wyndham-Price."
"That's Wes?" No way. Buffy took a few steps forward. "Did someone give him a personality transplant?" The last time she'd seen him, he'd been clean-shaven and...well... Wesley.
"Hello, Buffy. So nice to see you again." The familiar half-smile appeared on his face. "I apologize if this isn't what you expected."
For just an instant, his British accent and the clipped words convinced Buffy the change in her former Watcher was cosmetic. Looking into his cool, contact-lens covered eyes convinced her otherwise. This was definitely not the pompous and ineffective Wesley she'd known. This Wesley was a warrior and unafraid of the coming battles.
"Glad to have you back on the team." Buffy nodded at him before taking a seat in one of the armchairs. "Get comfortable, everybody. Cordy has some news from the PtB. Once she fills us in, we'll hand out new assignments."
***
Faith leaned against Dawn and watched Buffy take control. She was glad not to be in charge anymore. Or...was she?
"Regretting the change of command, baby?" Dawn's question echoed her thoughts so closely, Faith wondered briefly if Dawn was reading her mind.
"Ain't sure, D," she answered softly as Buffy ceded the floor to Cordelia. "It was a lot of work, and I was a fucking basket case when B was on her vacation. Kinda hard to go back to being the backup Slayer, though."
Warm lips brushed hers. "You say that again, and I'll have Willow teach me how to magically tie your ass to the bed. Got it?"
Faith chuckled, though the Slayer wanted to carry Dawn to the bedroom for a demonstration.
"Excuse me," Cordelia snapped, "is there something you'd like to share with the rest of the class?"
Barely glancing away from Dawn, Faith answered, "Depends, Queenie. How do you feel about a little slap and tickle?"
"That's quite enough!" Giles interjected.
This time, Faith did look up. Glasses off, Giles patted his pockets in search of a handkerchief. She grinned. Some things never changed.
Cordelia used his comment to get back to her tale. "Anyway, as I was saying before some people interrupted, I had a vision in LA." She paused, probably for dramatic effect, Faith thought. "The First is going after Spike. It needs him to open the Seal of Danzalthar."
What the fuck? Faith straightened, and she felt Dawn go very still against her.
However, Buffy didn't seem fazed by the news. "We already got that bulletin. I guess the PtB thought you might be too late or something. They sent Will the same vision."
"How did we miss this?" Dawn whispered angrily in Faith's ear.
Faith wanted to know the answer, too, until she put together the timeline of the last day in her head. "I think we were a little busy when the girls figured this out."
"Busy?" Dawn was confused.
"Yeah. You know, busy." Faith accented the last word and wiggled her eyebrows.
She knew Dawn had made the connection when her skin turned fiery red from a blush. Hugging her girlfriend a little tighter, Faith went back to the conversation in the middle of the room.
"I wish the PtB had taken that into consideration and left me alone, then." Cordelia tossed her hair.
"They couldn't, Cordy." Angel took her hand. "I was the only one who could put the pieces together."
"What pieces?" Buffy demanded.
Faith listened more intently. Her sister Slayer looked tense now. Something was going on. Something big.
Angel stood, looming over Buffy, hand still gripping Cordelia's. "There are only two vampires who can open the Seal. Their blood is part of an ancient and powerful bloodline — the Master's."
A/N: A belated note on the AtS crew - I've basically ignored all of the Conner portions of canon. Also, although the Beast was summoned, there was no evil Cordy. Mea culpa to the AtS canon enthusiasts.