The Wheel
Aftermath: The World
by Cynamin

21 The World: Ecological and/or global issues. Perfection, recognition, fulfillment, completion, success, achievement. Rewards reaped from hard work. Long-term goals accomplished. Can also indicate a lack of global perspective; tunnel vision; inability to see the forest for the trees; self-serving interests; short-term rather than long-term goals; failure to complete a task; lack of vision.

Buffy stared apprehensively at the closed door in front of her. So long traveling the world…it felt like longer than it had actually been. Only seven years, but Buffy had seen so much. She’d things that she’d never imagined she’d have the chance to. All that time traveling from town to town, from country to country, following tales of mysterious murders and monstrous creatures…. Sometimes they were false alarms; more often than not they were the real thing. Still, ever since the end of the last real demon war and Buffy’s following resurrection, the number of demons had been steadily declining. She had decided it was finally time to return home.

A hand squeezed Buffy’s shoulder reassuringly, and she smiled to herself. *They* had decided it was time to return home. They had traveled so far together, even seen where Angel had lived as a human. Still, even with everywhere they had seen and the amount of time they’d spent away, Sunnydale was somehow still home to the both of them.

For the moment neither of them spoke. Then Angel smiled understandingly at Buffy and reached around her to ring the doorbell. The near silence of the nighttime street was quickly replaced by the sounds of activity inside the home.

“Coming!” a familiar voice called, and Buffy felt her stomach flip.

/Why am I so nervous?/

Then the door opened and Willow looked at her in surprise. “Buffy!” she cried enthusiastically. She wrapped Buffy in an exuberant hug. Her cry alerted the others in the apartment, and soon the space behind Willow was crowded with familiar faces. “Come in, both of you!”

Buffy smiled and she and Angel happily entered. The two of them were quickly engulfed in warm hugs and friendly handshakes. As soon as the babbled greetings were over, Willow spoke up once again. “I didn’t think you were going to come! You didn’t call…”

“Yeah, well…” Buffy shrugged and say on the now empty couch. “We weren’t sure we were going to be able to make it. We almost didn’t – planes and sunlight and all. So, um…surprise!”

A couple of chuckles met her statement, and the group filtered into the living area and sat on whatever space available. The whole gang was there as Buffy remembered them; from Giles to Anya. Buffy and Angel fit back into the group like they had never left. Or like they had just left for vacation and hadn’t been traveling for seven years. It was so nice to be back in time for the annual holiday party. Buffy and Angel had been invited every year, but the invitation had usually reached them after the event had passed. They’d only made it this year because they were on their way back to Sunnydale anyway. As it was, no one knew that she was planning to stay this time.

“So,” Willow said at last, leaning forward, “how have you been? Where have you been? Come on, tell me everything.”

Buffy smiled at her friend’s eagerness. “Well,” she said, leaning onto Angel’s shoulder as she spoke, “most recently we were in Washington D.C., cleaning out a good sized vampire nest. Though, compared to the sort of things I fought eight years ago they were nothing much. I really think there are barely any organized demons left.” She smiled at the thought. Ever since the last major battle it had actually seemed like there was an end in sight.

“So, you’re doing good then,” Giles said after a moment. “I mean, you look good. You both look…” he paused, flustered. “Angel…you look older.”

Angel jumped slightly and Buffy chuckled. “Don’t be silly,” she said.

All attention was on them now. “No, I think he’s right,” Xander piped up. “You look older. Buffy tiring you out?”

Angel glared at him for a second, then fidgeted under the continued attention. “You know this is ridiculous guys,” he said.

“We don’t mean it in a bad way,” Cordelia said quickly.

“He doesn’t look any older to me,” Buffy protested.

“You see him every day,” Willow pointed out. She stood suddenly. “Hold on. I have an idea.” With that she left the room, leaving Buffy and Angel staring after her in confusion.

Moments later she returned, holding a large photo album under one arm and a Polaroid camera in her opposite hand. “Okay,” she said certainly to the two of them as she put the album on the table, “smile. I want a nice picture of you two, alright?”

Buffy and Angel glanced at each other, shrugged, and complied. Willow snapped the picture quickly, then placed the still developing picture on the table. That done, she began to flip through the photo album. “What are you doing?” Buffy asked finally.

“Before and after pictures,” Willow explained with a grin. She held up the photo album triumphantly. “See? Here’s ‘before.’”

Buffy took the album from Willow’s hand and looked at the picture it was open to. Right before the two of them had departed for parts unknown they had thrown Buffy a part ‘Welcome Back,’ part ‘Bon Voyage’ party. There were a bunch of pictures, but Buffy’s attention was focused on one of her and Angel laughing at something she couldn’t recall now. Well, she was laughing. Angel just had a funny grin on his face. Buffy leaned back from Angel slightly, looking at him, then the picture, then him again. /Wait a second…/

Before Buffy could make the same comment everyone else had already made, Willow presented the developed photo she’d taken a minute before with a flourish. “And here’s ‘after,’” she declared, handing the photo to Angel.

Angel looked like he’d swallowed something strange. Placing both photos side by side, it was clear to see what everyone was talking about. “I…look older,” he whispered, clearly shocked. “I’ve aged.”

“A bit slow on the uptake,” Xander commented, amused.

Angel didn’t even bother to glare this time. “But…how is this possible?”

Many eyes turned to Giles, but no one spoke for a long moment.

“Seven years…”

That whisper was from Cordelia, and all eyes turned to focus on her. “Years…” she was muttering to herself. “I should know this…” She noticed all of them staring at her. “Hey! I’m trying to think! Is it *that* weird that I might know something?” She stared at each of them in turn, daring them to contradict her. When no one spoke, she smiled contentedly. “Thank you. As I was saying, there’s something about that phrase that’s familiar. Years… Possible years…?”

“The deal!” Wesley said suddenly. He’d been quiet all night, but now the attention was turned on him. He wasn’t fazed though, looking earnestly at Cordelia and Angel. “Remember right after the last battle, when you tried to tell us what Angel did for Buffy’s life? You used that phrase then. Something about using his possible years.”

“That’s what she meant?” Angel asked himself softly.

“What is it?” Buffy asked.

He leaned back in the couch cushions, obviously lost in thought. “When the battle was over and I…met a representative of the Powers…. I remember her saying, when I asked for your life back, ‘Would you give of your immortal life that she might have those years she was denied in this life?’” He seemed to snap back to the present and looked at all of them before focusing on the two ex-watchers. “Is this what she meant? That I’m going to age now?”

“Maybe she…they…wanted to give you a little something closer to a normal life, even if you’re not living per say,” Wesley suggested.

Before Angel could ponder that statement further, Buffy chuckled. “If that’s the case, you don’t know the half of it.”

“What do you mean?” Willow asked, voicing the question everyone else was thinking.

“I’ve decided that I’m staying in Sunnydale,” Buffy declared. “We’re moving back home.”

There was a bit of joyous ruckus at that which took a little while to calm down. When it did, it was Giles that spoke calmly. “As happy as I am to have you return – we’ve all missed you, you know – why did you decide now?”

Buffy smiled so large it nearly hurt, but she couldn’t help it. She winked at Angel and proceeded to tell the lot of them something not even Angel knew yet. “Well, traveling around the world and killing demons doesn’t exactly leave a lot of time to raise a child.”

The entire gathering fell into stunned silence at the statement. For a moment Angel looked at her completely without comprehension, then he wrapped Buffy into an exuberant embrace all his own.

And that was how the annual Scooby holiday celebration became a celebration of a completely different kind.

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