*Buffy*
I'm not sure why I fell asleep, but I did. I rested my head against Angel's chest and closed my eyes... only to find myself in a huge room, my leg no longer broken. The walls of the room were made out of white and gray tiles, with an opening in the middle of the back wall. Past that was a corridor made out of lots of archways. Beside me, stood Angel. Only he didn't seem as surprised as I was.
As I turned back to admire the room, a strange male and female, definitely not human-- I could tell by their skins and the aura they projected-- appeared in front of me. They examined me for a moment before nodding in approval.
"She's the one," the female stated.
"She is," the male confirmed.
"I'm what one?" I asked. Angel rested a hand of my shoulder and squeezed it gently. He looked at me meaningfully and I realized that these... these were the Oracles. With newfound respect, I waited for them to speak.
"You are the Slayer," the female said in a matter-of-fact voice. "You have fulfilled your duty." But I noticed she hadn't spoken that last sentence to me nor Angel. She had spoken to Justin.
Justin nodded with a small smile.
"Go back," the male said. "Go back to your world and be happy with your father."
Suddenly, Justin was gone. I blinked in surprise and looked at the Oracles.
"Remember," the female told me.
I gasped as a flash of memories assulted my mind. A flash of memories I had been seeing as dreams, but suddenly realized were real. Angel human. Angel and me in bed, eating chocolate and peanut butter. Angel and me, kissing in the sun...
"I..." I stuttered. "I... I can't believe it..."
Angel wrapped his arms around me and kissed the top of my head softly.
"Everything shall be as was," the female continued. "Only you two shall remember today and yesterday's events. Only you two will prevent your death, Angel."
"Only you two shall remember your day as human," the male added.
"Only you two shall know of your future and change it," the female replied.
"Only you two will make the Powers That Be realize your power together."
"This is why we give you the spell."
"Spell?" Beside me, Angel frowned.
They ignored us as they paced back and forth, giving us instructions.
"You shall use it to your best judgment, of course," the male continued. "Do as you will."
He waved a hand carelessly and we were back at Giles' on the couch. I vaguely heard a last statement by the female Oracle, "You are true warriors of light, and for that you will be rewarded."
Willow was in front of us, waving a hand in front of our faces, as if trying to see if we were awake. Everyone else was behind her, staring at us anxiously. I blinked rapidly and shook my head to clear it. Gingerly, I reached down and felt the cast on my leg once again.
"Whoa!" Xander exclaimed. "That was creepy. Your eyes were open, but you weren't responding to anything."
"And Justin just... disappeared," Willow added.
"Were you uh, with the Oracles?" Giles asked nervously. Typical Giles. Always wanting to know about the supernatural stuff.
I nodded. "Yup. They took Justin back and told us to live and be happy, or whatever."
Angel sat up and blinked rapidly. He glanced up at Giles. "They said something about a spell, too."
Willow held out a book. "It was like magic. It just appeared. Which is pretty cool, since it is a magic spell and all. I wonder how the Oracles do that..."
I snatched the book from Willow's hands and stared at the open page.
A spell.
To make Angel human.
"It technically makes him a human with vampire strength," Willow explained. "Well, there's more to it. See, the frog eye makes the demon..."
"I don't wanna know the technicalities, Will," I interrupted. "What exactly does this do?"
"He's still a vampire," Willow answered. "Only he's immune to crosses and holy water and the sun, and all that stuff. He can age, a bit slowly, but he can age. He can have children, and he doesn't need blood to survive. I mean, he does need it, but only like, once a month or something. It's to keep the vampire thing going. You see..."
I smiled. Willow always got excited when it came to magic stuff. I held up a hand, signaling her to stop. "It's okay, Will. I get it."
Willow nodded in excitement. "Can I do the spell now?" she asked.
I looked at Giles for permission. "Well, he said. I think we should look it over and make sure it is alright. But I suppose we can perform it soon..."
I jumped up and wrapped Giles in a tight hug, then repeated the same thing with Willow. "I love you guys," I said.
"Aaaawww!" Xander cried. "Group hug!"
I immediately regreted my phrase as Willow, Xander, and Anya all jumped on top of Angel and me. Oz, Cordelia, and Giles stood back with raised eyebrows.
"I'd join you," said Cordelia, "but I have this policy against hugging tweakos and wrinkling one-of-a-kinds..."
Xander jumped up and pulled her into the hug.
******
*Angel*
Finally, it was Christmas day and we were all sitting around the tree. All being the Scooby gang-- Willow, Oz, Cordelia, Xander, Anya, Giles, and of course, Buffy-- and Joyce. We were at her house, exchanging presents. As promised, no one except Buffy and me remembered Justin. All they knew was that they had encountered the spell to make me half-human by accident and had used it after some reluctance on Giles' and Xander's part. I was glad that now I didn't carry the memory of my day as human by myself. Now, I had someone to share it with. And that same someone to make new memories with.
"We wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!" they were all singing and laughing as they opened their presents and found strange gifts from each other.
"Hey guys, look!" Willow cried from her place by the window.
"It's snowing," I said in amazement.
"Remember the last time that happened?" Buffy asked me softly.
I looked at her and nodded. "Sure do."
"It's a sign," she said.
"Oh?" I asked her playfully. "Of what?"
"Well," she said. "It means that we will have a long life of happiness and saving the world from bad guys, get married, and have a son named Justin."
"Really?" I said. "Wow, Ms. Summers. You're good at this."
She grinned. "I know."
I reached into my pocket and glanced at the others to make sure they weren't paying attention. They were all busy, either staring out the window, or heading outside to play with the snow. I brought out our a small velvet box. "Marry me."
I wasn't really worried that she'd say no-- I knew what her answer would be-- but my heart still skipped a beat when she nodded. "Of course."
I grinned and opened the box to reveal a diamond, white gold Claddagh ring. She held out her finger and I slipped it on.
I was so happy, that I think I would've lost my soul, had I been able to. I opened my arms and she threw herself into them, burying her head on my neck and straddling my hips with her legs.
"Oh, come on guys," I heard Xander say from the door. "Get a room."
I would've taken him seriously, but Buffy stood up, grabbed my hand, and dragged me outside to play with the snow.
As I ducked snowballs and threw some of my own, I silently thanked the Oracles and the Powers That Be for giving me this second chance. And I thanked Justin for righting the wrong.
END