It has been a few weeks since the funeral. Buffy's father had decided to stay in town. Not only for the thoughts of his daughter's own well being, being near family that is, but for his own mourning process. He didn't have too any family members in LA, he wanted to keep a close eye on his daughter.

Buffy had no problem with this. Only that Angel and her didn't have as much privacy as they would have liked to have. Caela kept to herself as well as Pike. The house was full as it is and yet it was busting at the seams with people with Hank sleeping there. He had promised that he would return that Saturday. Which was all good in Buffy and Angel's book. But now they still had a lot of other things to think about. Caela, for instance couldn't be with just Angle or just Buffy. Pike was given specific orders to make sure that he leaves her with the two of them. Together. The idea of protection was worthless with them working seperatly, it had to be a team work kind of thing.

Cordelia stayed out of the house for most of the time she spent there, she would go visiting some old friends who stayed in Sunnydale. But Wesley was a whole nother story. He seemed to want to inquiry Caela about her life, her backgrourd, her "gifts" as a Chosen One of the Chosen as well as a hand picked begin of the Powers That Be to possess the ability to read things that were beyond other's reach in comprehension. They had just discovered that she can also speak to people by telecanisis. And with this wonderful new finding Wesley felt that it was his "duty to dig deeper in this whole situation and to get the bottom of this." He felt so sure of himself each time he learned something different in the books that he borrowed from Giles' private library. But each time he took it up with Caela he would feel a little sheepish with her responses sounding a little like this, "That 'tis right. I know 'bout 'dat. Did you find anything else, Wesley?" She would always peer at him with great thought and appreciation, although he knew that she wasn't quite grasping the thought that she already knew the things that he was gathering and yet not telling him. She was unknowingly leading them into circles while she held the answers. Finally, Wesley gave up. He decided to simply just talk to her more about it. She figured that if she wasn't coming straight forward with the information, not on purpose that is, than it was his "duty to get it out of her a different way." Of course, the usual responses from these declarations were smirks and snorts of people holding in their laughter.

Angel wasn't sure who to spend the most time with. Caela or Buffy. Buffy because of infactuation of the heart and his passionate love for the woman and Caela for the interest that he had in her and her backstory. She knew things and held things in the palm of her hands, this he knew, that Angel has, for years, wanted to learn about and ask someone who had the answers to them. Angel would play it cool. Just simple questions on what types of things she could grasp the facts on, how far her "gift" could reach out and just how powerful. He wouldn't exceed more than a few questions each day, perhaps one or two. Nothing more. But Caela knew what he was doing, what he was dodging, and what he wanted from her. His past. Even though Angel could remember the things that he had done before and during his vampire years he still had a gut feeling that she was a major connection, perhaps larger than that of the Oracles were, to the Powers That Be. She was a "direct contact" with them. Angel just, well, he just didn't know where to begin with the list of questions he was running in his head. There was so much to ask her, that he knew, he just couldn't put any of them in words. Angel had quite the delema.

"Caela?" Angel called from the kitchen as he started to scramble the cooking eggs on the stove.

"Hm?" Her head peeked around the corner of the wall that broke the living room to the kitchen.

"Are you..." Hesitation. He hated hesitation. It made him sound so small and dumb. "Are you busy later this afternoon?" He looked up to her from the pan of eggs as he unconscienciously moved the spatchula around to keep them from burning.

"Ah, well... Wasn't Buffy going to take me to The Bronze tonight?" Angel and the gang had gotten used to her Irish statments and answers with a question on its own. It was "normal" Irish-English talk.

Answer a question with another question. Of course. It makes perfect sence. A ngel had thought. Yeah right. Silently rolling his eyes he moved back to his cooking.

Caela caught the look of disappointment on his features before he turned away to his task. Contemplating what was reeling in his head. "Aye, I t'was invited to go the De Bronze...But, would ya like to come 'long with us? It be mighty fun!" Then, thinking to herself she mumbles so that he too can hear. "Or so I am told."

Angel grinned at this.

"Come with us, Angel. Save me from dis unusual music that these people listen to. I just know that yerself isn't as fond of it as these people are." She made fun with him as well as of him at the same time as she completly entered the room and leaned her back against the counter so that she and Angel could talk formally. Well, sort of.

"No, you are right. I do not," he made fun of her use of complete correct grammar according to the English language, "like the music that Buffy and her friends listen to. At least not all of it. Some of the musicians and songs have their beauties."

She took a deep "Irish sigh" as she released, "Well..." She looked away from him and into her thoughts. Then she finished her thoughts aloud. "If that tis true than someone ought to teach me how to dance to American music. Because Goddess knows dat I do not know how to. Sure, wouldn't I trip over me own feet if I tried." She saw Angel smile at her "joke." Knowing that she was DEAD serious. She was proud to have made him laugh.

Buffy had over heard a UNfamiliar laugh and followed it to the kitchen. Upon seeing Angel smiling as he recovered from his small fit of laughter she noticed that Caela was absolutly beaming with the thought of conquering the impossible. She had gotten the poor lad to laugh.

"Buffy!" Caela had squealed in recognition of Buffy's presense and happy to see it at that. "Won't you come in here and tell de man 'ere that he must come with us tonight and teach me how to dance. If not, I'd be promised to fall on me face and make a fool of meself with the other boys." She looked at Buffy as she gestured to Angel.

"Angel, is she telling me the truth?" She stepped further into the kitchen. "That you would be willing to allow Caela, your resposibility may I remind you, to embarass herself by something that she has no control over and yet you do?" She wasn't sure if what she was asking made sense. She was trying desperatly to make sense as an Irish woman, speaking with other Irish people. She had a feeling inside her that just screamed that she sucked awefully at being Irish.

Angel thought this over in his head as he served up the plates that were laid out for everybody on the table with the eggs. "Alright. I'll go." He snapped his head up to catch both girls' eyes. "On one condition!" He got their full attention.

"Och, sure, why not, what 'tis it then?" Caela leaned on her elbows as she eased forward on the counter, almost too eager to hear what he was going to say. She was obviously excited about the night's plans.

"That you don't dance like Buffy with the guys until you get older." He glared at her. Caela thought that at first he was playing with her and Buffy. Then she realized the serious look that showned through his eyes as they stung her's in return. Then she turned to Buffy who gave a shy shrug with crimson cheeks.

"I can not promise ya dat when I don't even know how she dances. I have never seen the girl dance before, Angel. And if I be not permitted to dance as she does, then of whom do I mimic?" She inquiried, looking back and forth from Angel to Buffy.

Angel thought about this. The teen did have a point. He ran the names of other girls that she could pick up dance moves from; Cordelia. And Willow. One of whom didn't dance at all. And the other...Well lets just say he didn't want her to pick anything up from her. Not to mention the lack of compassion.

"We'll discuss it." He returned to setting the table with glasses or orange juice.

Caela pulled her head back up from her leaning position and gave him a scrunched nosed look. "Careful, Angel. You sound as if you were me bro. Wouldn't that be something altogether. Not only is a human an ex-vampire but a big brother. Dating a Slayer non the less." She was lucky. Hank had been outside with Pike in the garage. She was safe. But Angel's head shot straight up at her comment and looked to Buffy for some sort of back up or explination as Caela left the room.

Caela wasn't used to having people look after her in the sense of just looking out for her. Not protecting her life. It was her image as a person that Angel was protecting. Something entirly new in both her part and, she knew, Angel's part. Things were twisting and turning in her life that she wasn't sure she could get used to. Everything woul take a lot of time to adjust, she just didn't know if she had all the much time in order to confide in them with her secrets. And the same in their place with her. She just hoped it wasn't in the distant future, but the near.

Part Seven

Feedback to CaeAnneEclps@aol.com!

Go here for more of Caela's stories.

This page hosted by Get your own Free Home Page