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Aware that their time left together was severely limited, Buffy and Stefanie spent the rest of the night and even well into the next morning having a gabfest, while Angel slept. But mostly, it was Stefanie who was divulging a lot of details about her long life.
"I grew up in Georgia," Stefanie said. "On a farm, believe it or not. You'd never guess by looking at me now that I'm a country girl at heart." She sighed, a nostalgic look in her eyes. "Everything was so simple then. Vampires and demons were just mythical creatures to me until my Watcher, Linda, came... It's quite ironic that someone like me was chosen, huh?"
Buffy shook her head. "Not at all. I was a snobby airhead cheerleader before I became the Chosen One," she said with a laugh. "Didn't have many great aspirations about what I wanted to do with my life back then. I definitely didn't expect it to end up this weird... How about you? How did you suffice in terms of strength?"
"I'd been taking dance classes," Stefanie said. "Maybe that qualified me as athletic enough. Linda taught me the rest..." Stefanie paused, wiping tears from her eyes. "I miss her," she said suddenly. "Back then, she was the only one who understood, who listened to all my troubles concerning slaying. I wasn't allowed to tell even my closest friends about my lifestyle. It would put them in danger, Linda said."
Buffy nodded. "She was right... I can't tell you the number of times Willow or Xander were put at risk because they know what I am. Slaying's just a dangerous game, and it's always going to be that way." Buffy sighed, rubbing at her eyes. "Well, we should get some rest, Steffi."
Stefanie got to her feet and started for the cellar, then stopped and looked back at Buffy. "You've been a good friend," she said. "I've never had one quite like you, Buffy. And I probably never will again after this is over."
Buffy remained silent for the longest time, then stood, walking over and hugging Stefanie tightly. The two of them stayed like that for what seemed forever, drawing strength from each other. It was only now that they fully acknowledged that one of them wouldn't make it, and it hurt both like hell...
When Giles awoke from a deep sleep, the first thing he was aware of was that his wife was again sitting at her computer, an anxious look on her face. He watched her in silence a moment, then retrieved his glasses from the nightstand and got up, going to her. Leaning over Jenny's shoulder to look at the monitor, he asked, "Did you find anything?"
Jenny paused, then looked at him. "Nothing concrete," she replied with a sigh. "At least, nothing we don't already know... I've sent an e-mail to a fortuneteller friend of mine though. She's going to do a reading for me, and write back as soon as she can. Tonight, most likely."
Giles looked back at her. "How long have you been at this?" he asked gently.
Jenny ran her hands through her dark hair, sighing again. "Since two in the morning," she answered. "I couldn't sleep." She looked over at him with tired eyes. "I've been too worried."
Giles sighed. "Seems to be a lot of that going around," he said, leaning closer to embrace her. "At least now I can take over the research bit... You, in the meantime, are recommended to get some shuteye."
Jenny couldn't help but smile, pulling him closer for a quick kiss. Then, she stood, allowing him a good view of her long tapered legs as she walked to the bed. "I hope for once that those dusty old books of yours will prove more insightful than my web pages," she told her husband as she slipped beneath the covers.
Giles threw her an amused glance. It was rare for her to say such things, for she preferred her computers to his library any day. That was one of the main things they disagreed on, which of the two sources was more illuminating. But strangely, it had been those very quarrels that had led him and Jenny to become attracted to each other in the first place.
Giles got dressed quickly, then walked to her side, bending over and planting a kiss on her cheek. Jenny opened her eyes briefly, purring and offering him a warm smile before he went off to work...
That night, before her everyday jaunt to the Bronze, Buffy had Angel stop at Sunnydale High to visit Giles, who had spent the whole day there. She took the time to ask if he had found anything (which he hadn't) and she was on her way once more.
Buffy and Angel left her car in the lot at her insistence, for she said she wanted to walk. They were silent most of the way, until Angel noticed she was detouring away from the night club. "Where are we going?" he asked her.
Buffy turned to smile at him. "You'll see," she said.
At first, Angel didn't recognize the alley that his girlfriend led him into, not until he noticed the pipe about nine or ten feet above them. He laughed, looking down into her sparkling green eyes. "Couldn't resist coming back here, huh?" he teased.
Her smile widened. "Thought it would be fun to revisit the place we first met. Brings back memories, doesn't it?"
Angel unconsciously began to rub at the back of his neck. "If I recall, the first time I officially laid eyes on you, I was flat on the ground with your foot on my chest," he reminisced. "And that you were mad because I had followed you for a few blocks."
"I wasn't mad. You scared me," Buffy said with a laugh. "But you made up for it when you saved my neck that night. I never did thank you for that crucifix necklace you gave me."
Angel smiled, leaning forward to embrace her. "Glad that cross was put to good use," he replied. "Because I fell in love with you that very night."
"When did you realize it though?" Buffy asked after a moment. "I mean, I admitted I was in love with you the morning after our first kiss, even if you did turn into a vampire afterwards."
Angel thought a moment. "For me, I guess it would be the night I came to the Bronze to find you on a date with that one guy. To warn you about that thing with the Anointed One. Do you remember that?"
Buffy's eyes lit up. "Yeah, the poetry-lover... Oh, what was his name?!?" She contemplated it a moment, then gave up. "Oh, well, I guess it doesn't matter. All I remember is that you were pretty jealous when you saw me and him together."
"Because by then, I wanted to be the one on a date with you," he replied. "We've come so far since then."
"And now here we are on our five-year anniversary," Buffy cracked. "And still going strong." She stepped closer, her face only an inch from his. "I hope we always will," she whispered against his lips.
His eyes grew misty at those words, but he leaned closer to kiss her once more, drowning in the feel and the scent of her. For a few moments, they could forget everything, who they both were, the danger they were in. But it didn't keep.
Buffy's head snapped up when a piercing scream rang out, and she looked back the way she and Angel had come in fright. A second later, she was grabbing a small stake from inside her purse. "Never leave home without it," she cracked as she and her boyfriend hurried from the alley, ready to face whatever was thrown their way...