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Angel kissed Buffy more passionately than he ever had after coming back from Hell. He had nothing to fear now. He pulled her closer to his body and circled his arms around her small frame. He had been so close to losing her, so close to never holding her in his arms like this. Her hands crept along his back to the back of his neck, her fingers playing with the short hair and she pulled him even closer to her while she rose even higher to her toes.
But the heated moment was interrupted by Giles clearing his throat. They separated from each other, Angel looking very ashamed, Giles was like a father to Buffy so he wasn't very comfortable with him seeing them in a heated moment like that. Giles wasn't very comfortable either, he took off his glasses and nervously started to clean them.
“Well, I see you have finished your patrol”, he said and put his glasses back on, quite sure it was safe, but he still wouldn't look at them.
“Not really”, Buffy answered looking at the ground, anything but at her father figure.
“What do you mean?”
“Well, we were in the sewers, tracking a vampire. Well, we did get the vampire, but then Angel collapsed, he was really in pain. And...” Buffy kept a small pause, she tried to gather her thoughts, sending Angel to Hell was still very sore subject to her. “And his eyes flashed, like when he gained back his soul”, she finished with a barely there voice. Angel took hold of her hand and gave it a small squeeze. Buffy turned to look at him and gave a small smile back to him, thanking for the strength he gave her.
“That is strange”, Giles agreed. “What happened then?”
“We came back here to ask you what was going on and there was this really old gypsy woman waiting for us. She told us that they had done some magic because they didn't want Angelus running around lose and that now Angel's soul is permanent.”
Giles stared at her like she had just spoke in Latin and took off his glasses, starting to clean them once again. “That is extraordinary”, he whispered in awe. “I must consult my books”, he said absently and went to his office. When he came back to the door, holding a load of books, he looked at Buffy questioningly, she hadn't moved from Angel's side. “Aren't you going to help?” he asked.
“Giles, you're the book guy, I just slay them. You know that dusty books and me don't match. Besides, Angel and I must talk.” Giles gave her a look and she sighed: “Just talk. Take your mind out of the gutter.”
He blushed and shifted his gaze away from the couple, that wasn't what he wanted to hear, he didn't want to know about her intimate life now that there was no fear of Angelus. “That was too much information for me, thank you. I understand that you two can consume your relationship, but I would advise you to wait until we know that there is no danger of Angelus coming back.”
“Come on, we're not slaves of our passion”, Buffy said rolling her eyes.
“Well, yes... We should call the others here, to help with the research.”
“Fine, I want to tell Willow anyway”, she said pulling Angel with her to the desk. She really wasn't in the mood to read, but she needed to now if it really was true, that Angel couldn't lose his soul.
Everyone stared at Buffy and Angel in shock, Cordelia was the first one to get over it. “So now you can do it like bunnies, why do I have to be here?” she asked.
“Thank you Cordelia”, Giles said clearly uncomfortable and once again he started to clean his glasses.
“Soon you don't have any lenses on those things if you keep cleaning them at this rate”, Buffy stated. Giles just frowned at her and put them back on.
Slowly Willow started to realize what had just been said and she jumped up from the chair, pulling Buffy into her arms. “That's so great! Buffy, isn't it just so great!” she said feeling giddy and even hugged Angel who looked like a deer caught in headlights when she jumped him.
“Yeah, Willow, we're happy”, Buffy laughed, her friend was just so cute when she got all giddy. Xander just glared at Angel, but held his tongue for once.
“Well, back into the matter at hand. While researching, I found a spell that will show if the soul belongs to the body. It should let us know if Angel has his soul permanently.”
“It should?!” started Xander, he never liked Angel, but now he liked him even less than before he turned Angelus. Everyone turned to look at him. “It should?! What if Buffy gives him the big happy and Angelus comes back. Some old granny says his soul is permanent and you just believe her?!” he continued.
“Xander”, Willow childed, but it didn't work.
He was about to continue when Cordelia interrupted him: “Get over it, Harris! She has never been into you, so just grow up already.”
Xander was about to snap back at his ex when he was interrupted again, this time by Giles: “This spell is to assure that his soul is bound. We are not taking a word of a strange woman, we are confirming it this way.”
“Well, I'm not going to say I told you so when Angelus kills someone else”, he said, got up and left the library.
Cordelia rolled her eyes and jumped down from the table she was sitting on. “Okay, you do your hocus bogus, unlike you people, I have a life”, she said and left.
“Well that was fun”, Buffy sighed and Oz nodded without changing his expression.
“Entertaining”, he agreed.
Giles performed the spell with Willow's help and it confirmed Olga's words were true. Buffy looked at Angel with tears in her eyes. He gazed back at her, feeling worried, he wiped away her tears with his thumb and cupped her cheek. “You're crying”, he whispered and she nodded.
“Happy tears”, she choked out and covered his hand with hers. He leaned closer to her and pressed a chaste kiss to her lips. “Well, now you don't have any excuse not to come to the prom with me, as my date”, she said grinning through her tears.
“Buffy”, he started to protest, but she pressed her fingers against his lips, silencing him.
“No buts, you're my boyfriend, show me you love me by coming to the prom with me. Or I'll ask Xander”, she said knowing that his jealousy would force him to come with her, there was no way he was going to let her go with Xander, and he didn't need to know that Xander already had a date.
“I don't have a tux”, he tried without any protest, his face dark from jealousy.
Buffy just grinned, she knew she had him now. “Why don't we go back to the mansion. To talk”, she said with a cheeky grin which sent shivers down his spine.
Angel and Buffy returned to the mansion. She sat to the couch as he added wood into the fire place. She watched him closely, noticing every move of a muscle in his back. God, he was the sexiest thing she had ever seen. Angel turned to look at her with a small half smile on his face, he had felt her eyes on his back and now he was looking into her heavy lidded eyes.
“Maybe we should talk now”, he suggested and stood up. Buffy looked at him long and hard, the passion from her eyes was starting to cool down.
“You're not going to do anything stupid and noble, are you?” she asked half joking and half seriously.
“Buffy. I may have my soul, but I'm still not a man. You deserve a normal life. Something that I can't give you”, he said and it was very difficult especially now that he was so close to being with her. Buffy jumped up from the couch and quickly crossed the distance between them.
“Don't even think about it. I already told you, Angel, I don't care that you are a vampire. I love you no matter what. I'm never going to have a normal life because I'm the slayer, you are the closest thing to normal that I have. Do you love me?”
Angel sighed and cupped her cheek with his large hand. “Of course I love you, I can't stop no matter how I try”, he answered and she closed her eyes, leaning into his touch.
“So, stay with me”, she whispered not daring to open her eyes.
“Forever”, he whispered back and leaned closer pressing a loving kiss to the corner of her mouth.
