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Epilogue 

Xander left with mixed feelings.  

Willow and Buffy weren’t speaking to him; they’d both been less than pleased when he’d met with them at Giles’ and said he was moving to Los Angeles with Spike and Angel. Accusations had been made and Xander just didn’t have it in him to argue. He was too tired, physically and mentally. 

He’d quietly said goodbye to Giles in the sudden silence and left. Limped, because he still wasn’t fully healed, though he’d held his head high as he’d walked away. 

Spike had met him at the door when he returned and at the look on his face, the pain he’d been unable to hide, had been ready to kill his friends.  

“Forget it, Spike,” Xander sighed as he stepped inside. “Let’s just go.” 

He felt Spike’s arms slide around his back and pull him into a hug, mindful of his injuries, and Xander rested his head on Spike’s shoulder. 

“Alright, pet.”  

Spike looked at Angelus. 

“Wesley, let’s go,” Angel said. 

The drive back to Los Angeles was made in silence.  

~*~*~*~*~ 

Back at the hotel, Spike led Xander up to their room. Wesley watched them until they disappeared from sight. He wasn’t quite sure what to do now that the situation in Sunnydale had been dealt with. Doyle wasn’t around so he couldn’t ask him about the demon that had brought him to Los Angeles in the first place. He was just about to leave when he was stopped by Angel. 

“Feel like sticking around, Wes? We could use an ex-watcher turned rogue demon hunter,” Angel said. 

“Really? I mean, um… Yes. Yes, I would.” 

“There are plenty of rooms if you need a place to stay.” 

“That would be great. Thank you. I have some things saved in storage, books and such that could be useful. I can arrange for them to be sent over in the morning.” 

Angel pointed to the area behind the counter. “Offices are through there. There’s an empty desk and some shelves you can use.” 

Wesley nodded and thanked Angel again. “I’ll just, uh, go pick out a room.” 

“I’d avoid the third floor.” 

“Oh?” 

“Spike and Xander are on that floor.” 

“Right. Of course.”  

Wesley left and Angel took a seat behind his desk. He leaned back and propped his feet up, smiling, oddly content. For the first time in a long while, Angelus wasn’t banging against his cage, struggling to break free and wreak havoc among the populace.  

He could only contribute the sudden change to having Spike back in his life. As much as he was a pain in Angel’s ass, Spike gave his demon something that Cordelia and Doyle – and now Wesley and Xander – couldn’t.  

Angel shook his head and chuckled, got to his feet and headed towards the bedroom he’d claimed as his own.  

For once, he was looking forward to tomorrow. He had a sense of purpose that had been lacking since arriving in Los Angeles, and a team that seemed eager to help him. So what if he had a psychotic, evil vampire and a boy that he really couldn’t stand a few months ago and was soon going to change into a werewolf for the first time as part of that team. 

They’d keep him on his toes and out of his perpetual brood. 

~*~*~*~*~ 

Dr. Angleman was surprised that he was getting someone other than a JAG lawyer to represent him, especially since there was no way he could afford it. Still, he stood and let himself be shackled at his wrists and ankles, then led to a separate area where the accused and their lawyers could meet in semi-privacy. 

Once in the conference room, his chain links were secured to the floor and the marine left the room to stand sentry just outside. A moment later the door opened, revealing a clean-cut young man whose suit probably cost more than Angleman made in a year. 

“Hello, Dr. Angleman,” the man said and whipped out a business card from an inside pocket. “I’m Lindsey MacDonald.”

The End

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