DISCLAIMER: Willow, Angel, Amy Madison, Buffy, Xander, Giles and everyone else don't belong to me, they belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. No, really, they do...
AUTHOR'S NOTE: The title of this story comes from lyrics from the Elton John song, "The One"

When Stars Collide
By: Serendipity

Part 6


 "I am SO excited," she squealed, waving her hands in front of her flushed face as ran back upstairs, "But WHY am I so excited?"

This had been a question which had been troubling her ever since she'd changed Angelus back to Angel. It was utterly ridiculous and every time she thought about it, she knew how ridiculous it sounded but she also knew it was the truth. She was actually looking forward to having Angel all to herself for these last few days. She was, in fact, dreading the moment when she'd have to admit to her friends that he had changed back. Dreading it for more than just the fact that everyone would be mad at her for lying. It was more a question of having to give him up and share him with the rest of the world. Her mind told her that it was unspeakably selfish and that she should feel incredibly guilty, but her undefineable excitement and happiness over seeing him that night indicated otherwise.

"It's just that I'm...I'm happy to have someone to talk to," she decided aloud.

Yes, that was it. It was the simple companionship which was causing that wistful ache in her chest whenever she thought of him. It was the wonderment of being able to feel comfortable around someone again which made her so talkative around him and so free. It was the joy of having an acquaintance, a confidant, a *friend* in her life again which caused her head to spin and her heart to beat twice as fast whenever he was around. She had every right to be selfish and to want to cling onto him like this, especially after having been so lonely for so long. It was only natural to want to perserve this. Yes, it was friendship, that's all. It wasn't something silly like love. Love was different. Love was sickness and pain and tears. Her experience with Xander had taught her that in a way she'd never forget. Besides, love didn't just take place in the span of two weeks. (The fact that she'd actually known him for almost 2 years was somewhat irrelevant. Especially because he'd been with Buffy then...)

And so, having rationalized things to herself, Willow felt much better.

With a clear mind and a light heart she began to pick out her clothes for that night. She'd wait for Amy to arrive before she figured out what to do with her hair.



He lay flat on his back, staring up at the ceiling. Try as he might, he couldn't get her face out of his mind.

He was in love with her. That much was certain. He'd always loved her, he realized that now. Even from the very instant he saw her, he'd fallen hard for her. So alone. So pretty and vulnerable. She lived a lonely existance, always out of place with very few friends. He remembered the look in her eyes when he'd first attacked her. So stricken and lost. She had gotten over that though and gradually she became more hurt than scared. So hurt and angry that she'd taken matters into her own hands.

Unable to stand it anymore, Angel got off of the bed and strode around his apartment. <Damn, I'm so restless.>

He couldn't help but smile when he thought about her. How did she manage to be so beautiful and strong and yet at the same time, soft and feminine? Yes, he loved her. He loved her alot. How could he admit it to her, though?How could he ever come to terms with it and say it aloud after everything which had happened?

He picked up a delicate vase at the other end of the room.

No, he couldn't risk it. She'd try to push him away because of what her friends would think. She'd never speak to him again. As is, their relationship was edgy and precarious. This would simply push it over the cliff and she'd get scared and run.

He swiftly smashed the vase against the wall. <Hah. Much better.> Feeling the tension ease slightly in his shoulders, he reached for yet another item, this time an antique clock, and flung it against the floor. The sound it made was almost pleasant.

No, he couldn't risk losing her forever. He loved her too much to put her life into jeopardy and such a revelation would do just that.

Quickly, he began running around the apartment, picking things up and throwing them wherever he fancied. <Hey, it's my building, I can do whatever I want.>

He'd wait it out. All for her.

Gradually he began to lose steam.

He'd keep his emotions in check at all times because he never wanted to cause her pain. Never again.

Slowly, he sank to the floor.

He'd do anything for her, he knew that now.

His shoulders shook slightly as he wept.

Part 7


"Okay Willow, you have to calm down," Amy did her best to sound authoritative but ended up smiling anyway. For her, the past few years had been hard. Especially with her mom going postal and using her own body to try to kill people, but being quick to adjust to the abnormal, she'd gotten over it. She didn't have too many friends after the whole episode, though. She thought but she'd gotten over that aspect of her life as well, but soon found out that she hadn't. Hanging around with Willow was one of the nicest things to happen to her in a long time. It made her feel inexplicably warm inside and made her remember what it was like to have friends, a feeling she was far too removed from.

"The red or the black?"

"It's orange and dark grey and I go with the orange."

"Orange it is. Short sleeves or no sleeves?"

"No sleeves."

"Are you sure?"

"Wait..where's the shirt that I brought? Try that one on."

"Oh yeah..but does it go with the orange skirt?"

"Well yes, I think it does. Wait a second..what shoes were you planning on wearing with that?"

Willow held up her brown Mary Janes.

Amy shook her head, "Uh uh. Those are a no go."

"Well, I really don't have anything else that would look remotely ni-,"

In midsentence, Amy snapped her fingers and a pair of black clogs suddenly appeared.

Willow blinked, "Wow, those are nice!"

"And they'll go perfectly with your skirt."

"You've really got to show me how to do that sometime."

Amy grinned wryly, "You know, I can."

"Wait...seriously?"

"Yeah, why not?"

"But, don't you have to have witch's blood or something?"

Amy looked thoughful for a moment.

"Well, it helps, but it isn't the be all and end all of witchcraft. I can teach you some simple things which might be helpful in certain situations."

"Like?"

"Like how to levitate small objects or how to transport things. Shoes for instance."

"You're not kidding...ohmigosh, Amy that's so cool!!"

"Hey, I'd be thrilled to teach you. Think about the amount of fun we could have in Ms. Allan's physics class!"

Willow burst out laughing.

"I've been making the chalk float every once in awhile just to see her face turn that incredible shade of red."

"I'd have to say that it's more of a purple."

Soon, both girls were in hysterics.

"Okay, Wills, you'd better be careful, you don't want to smudge your makeup. *And* we still have to do your hair to get you ready for this date."

"Wait, what?" She stopped wiping the tears out of her eyes, "A date?"

"Hmm?" Amy mumbled looking under the bed, "Yes. What did you do with the other sheer stocking I gave you?"

"Amy, just a sec..this isn't a date."

The blond popped her head back up almost instantly, "What?"

"Angel and I are just hanging out."

The witch studied her friend for a few moments, trying to gauge just how serious she was about that last comment before responding, "Willow, look around you. Look at this room. Do you always get this dressed up just to hang out?"

There it was again. The "dressing up" comment. Willow took a guilty glance around her room and sure enough, clothing was strewn everywhere. There was tons of makeup, mostly Amy's, on the dresser and several pairs of nylons mixed with shoes littering the floor. She hadn't even done this much damage to her room the first time her parents let her and Xander go to the Bronze alone in ninth grade. Amy was right. She *was* dressing up. This could be a problem.

"Oh dear."

"What?"

"Well, I-I just don't want to look weird or act weird around him. Why am I doing this Amy?"

"Uhh..because you like him?" she chose to hazard the obvious guess.

"No, no I don't," the red-haired hacker shook her head vehmently, "I can't."

As much as it shocked her, Amy knew that Willow was serious. She honestly didn't believe that she harbored any feelings for Angel. <She's worried about betraying Buffy.> Until now, it hadn't quite struck Amy exactly how bad Willow's situation was. She had undertaken this task largely on her own. She'd risked her life to complete it. She was forced to hide her success from the few friends she did have because it might alienate them even further and now, to make matters even worse, she had inadvertantly fallen in love with the subject of all of this madness. Without even consciously knowing it.

Amy swallowed. Hard. This wasn't going to be an easy situation to manuever.

"I need to change...b-but I don't have any time. Oh no, Amy, what am I going to do?" Willow was near tears.

"Okay, calm down," the blond whispered soothingly, "It's all going to be alright. We'll figure something out." <Hmm... I need to make her look nice but still not too dressy.>

While Willow was searching for some kleenex, Amy closed her eyes and pictured the outfit. <There. Perfect.> She opened her eyes and waved her hands swiftly. In a glittering instant, Willow's clothing had changed and her hair and makeup were switched as well to match.

"Amy, have you seen the tissue bo-," the hacker happened to glance at her reflection in that second and gasped, "Ohmigosh, it's perfect!"

"Dark corderoys with a white top with some funky suspenders. Cool, but not too weird," the witch smiled, standing behind her, 'I think it works."

Willow spun around a few times, admiring the two simple braids her hair had been pulled back into and the understated makeup which complimented the outfit perfectly. Just a touch of blush, a little eyeliner and some pale lipgloss. Cute, but casual. Special but not too obvious. It was perfect.

"And now, Cinderella, I say you are ready to go "hang out" with Prince Charming," she leaned over and gave the red-head a hug, "Have fun, call me later."

"I will, and I can't thank you enough for all this," she returned the hug, "Shall I see you to the door milady?"

"Nope, it shan't be necessary," Amy replied in a snooty British accent. With a wave and a mischievous grin, she crossed her arms over her chest and blinked in an obvious 'I dream of Jeanie' parody before disappearing.

"I have *got* to learn how to do that," Willow muttered under her breath as she went about searching for her keys, her wallet and the last few things she'd need.

Having collected everything, she hurriedly grasped her small backpack and headed downstairs. She only had about half an hour to get to Angel's apartment alone before the journey would be too dangerous. She'd made it as far as the front door when she heard the bell ring. Nearly jumping out of her skin, she stood on her tip toes, and peered through the peephole. What she saw almost caused her to scream on the spot.

Xander.

There he stood, oblivious as ever, occasionally leaning forward to look through the other end of the peephole while juggling a pint of cafe ole. Willow's favorite ice cream. <What the heck is he doing here? Oh geez, Xander, just when I thought life couldn't get any more complicated...>

"Willow?" he called, breaking her out of her thoughts, "Wills, it's Xander, open up. I brought you and Amy some ice cream."

Well, that did it. She was just going to stand there with the door locked and wait him out. Eventually, he'd be forced to leave once it became obvious that no one was home.

"Willow?" he called again.

Th red-head bit her lip in frustration.

Suddenly, much to her absolute horror, she heard the sound of keys.

<Oh God. Xander has a spare key to the front door. I totally forgot about that.> Her eyes narrowed slightly <He's only supposed to use those keys in the case of an emergency. I mean, what the heck? He's been out there barely 3 seconds and he wants to come barging in? How does he know I'm not here and half naked getting out of the shower or something? How rude..>

The key began turning in the lock and Willow realized that she didn't have any time to spare being angry at him. First, she needed a plan for escape.

Barely managing to get out of the way in time, she leaped up the stairs just as the door swung open.

"Willow...?"

The hacker stood in her room desperately looking around. <Should I hide? Pretend like I was asleep or something? Oh no..I'm supposed to be with Amy. I can't be asleep.>

"Willow? Hey Wills, you up there?"

Hearing the voice at the bottom of the stairs sent Willow into a fit of panic. Quickly, she slammed her door shut. <Uh oh...baaaad move.> Almost instantly, she heard his sneakers pounding up the stairs at an ever-quickening pace.

With no other options left, Willow did the one thing she could do.

She leapt out the window.

Part 8


Around 20 minutes later, the doorbell rang at Angel's apartment.

A solitary figure lying on a pile of black silken sheets groaned. <Maybe they'll just go away...>

The bell was followed by insistent knocking.

<Maybe not.>

Snarling in irritation, Angel shoved himself up and rolled out of bed to answer the door, <If these are *more* of Spike's goonies, there is going to be some SERIOUS bloodletting in-,> He whipped the door open, already in attack stance when he came face to face with a very startled young girl.

"Willow?" he gasped in surprise.

"Angel?" she backed away fearfully.

Suddenly he realized he must have his game face on. The guilt was enormous as he quickly shifted back to his human features.

He felt the anger and power ebb right out of him at the sight of the pretty teenager cowering at the other side of the hall, "Yes..yes, Willow, it's Angel. I'm sorry about that. I apologize."

She let out a sigh of relief.

His shoulders slumped slightly and his gaze glued itself to the floor.

They stood like that for a few more seconds before Willow finally cleared her throat, "Well Angel? Aren't you going to invite me in?" she asked firmly.

His eyes shot back up to her face almost instantly in order to gauge her emotions.

She'd been expecting that reaction and gave him a huge, warm smile. "I came by to give you something and to see how you're doing."

"Oh. Well, yes, of course, come in." Needless to say he was quite a bit surprised that she still wanted to be alone behind closed doors with him. He honestly hadn't expected her to come visit him or to keep checking up on him either.

"You look surprised, didn't you remember that we were supposed to hang out tonight?" she demanded once he'd closed the door.

<Oh. I completely forgot about that.> "It..ahh..it slipped my mind."

She nodded briskly and began to survey the apartment. The same apartment he'd spent all day trashing.

<Forgot about that too.>

She turned her steely gaze back to him and he flinched slightly <Here it comes..violent tendencies and all are out in the open. Here's the part where she leaves.>

"Angel, I'm worried about you," she murmured softly, crossing the room to embrace him.

There, she had done it again. She'd managed to catch him completely off guard and shock him.

Her demeanor seemed to swing almost as quickly as his. From all at once reprimanding and scrutinizing to tender and loving.

"I'm fine, Willow, really," he shifted uncomfortably in her embrace. It wasn't just that it felt strange to be held by the hacker, but it also felt good. And feeling good wasn't something that Angel was willing to allow himself any time soon.

"Don't you..umm..have parents? That is to say..aren't they going to be worried about you? You really shouldn't be here," he hastily broke away from her. She smelled too nice.

"My parents are out of town. Perpetually. And I *should* be here. I'm checking up on a friend."

"Willow..," he began in exasperation, "what...happened to your hair..?" His voice trailed off as he suddenly took in her torn corderoys and stained shirt as well.

She blushed furiously, "I um....I had an accident." She turned away from him and started wandering around the apartment, "Angel, do you have a mirror around here?"

"Were you attacked?" he felt the energy pulse back into him as he growled in anger.

She went into the bathroom and he followed her.

"WERE YOU?" he demanded again.

She swiftly shook her head to the negative, "Don't you have a mirror anywhere in this place?"

"Then...??" he asked in total confusion.

"Angel, how on earth do you get by without a mirror?"

"Willow, I don't HAVE A REFLECTION!!" he shouted at her and gripped her shoulders firmly, "What happened to you?"

"I went out a window. Must you pry????" she yelled back in exasperation.

His eyes rounded, "Someone threw you out a window?"

"NO, I *jumped* out a window," she explained patiently.

"Oh...what?"

"I-it's a long story," she waved him off immediately, "We can get into it later."

He shook his head in wonder as she shrugged him off and headed for her backpack. <Maybe she's on some sort of drug or something....>

"Angel, have you eaten?"

"No."

"Good, I brought you something to eat."

Right before his eyes she reached into her bag and yanked out two pouches of blood.

"Willow, where did you get those?" Even he could hear the edge of hunger in his voice as he eyed the pouches and he hated himself all the more for it.

"I volunteer at the blood bank. Don't worry about it." She picked up one of them and threw it to him, "Drink up."

He looked at the bag and then at her, "Willow, this is human blood. I don't drink human blood anymore." He firmly tossed the pouch onto the chair at the other end of the room.

"Angel, you're weak and you haven't eaten, just make an exception this once until you can go out hunting on your own again."

"Absolutely not."

She gazed at him silently before surrendering to his will. He was obviously not going to back down on this one.

"Fine then. Hey, want to watch some TV?"

"What?" he was thrown by her sudden change of tactics, "Willow, I really appreciate what you're trying to d-,"

"Oh wow, Angel. You don't even have a TV in here? What do you do all night?"

"Willow, I think you should go hom-,"

"No. I can't go home, Angel. Not now. Not until I spend some time with you."

"Willo-,"

"Will you sit down? Your pacing is making me nervous."

Almost automatically, he sat down at her request before wondering why.

She was more determined than ever to make this visit seem completely normal. Just two friends, hanging out together on a Friday night. Two totally normal pals, chatting it up with a little bit of take-out from the local blood bank. <Hmmm...>

"Well, you don't have any mirrors or TVs in here...or a computer. So what would you like to do? Do you have any board games?"

He simply stared at her.

"Guess not....hey, I have an idea, let's have a conversation," she smiled brightly while sitting on the edge of the couch, "You go first."

<She looks so cute with her hair like that. Almost like a pixie or an elf.> Thats when he realized she'd been speaking to him...something about a conversation.... Bad idea, "Willow, you know me, I'm not much of a conversationalist."

"Well, neither am I."

<That's true.> "Okay, what do you want to talk about?" He couldn't understand why he kept giving in to her. She was definitely a major switch from Buffy. She was much more honest and straightforward. He could tell that she was willing to put herself on the line for her friends both physically and emotionally. Which was exactly what she was doing for him.

This was going to take some serious adjustment.

"Anything you'd like, Angel. Life, hobbies, favorite TV shows...if you had a TV which you don't so we can scratch that one...unless of course you used to watch TV at some point and had a favorite show from back then and we could talk about that. You know what show I really like that's pretty old? I Love Lucy. It's SO hysterical. I mean, the whole 'red-head' factor has nothing to do with it. That's why Xander thinks I like it. He doesn't think it's funny at all. He's really into the Three Stooges, though, which I absolutely don't understand because I've watched it with him and I don't even crack a smile while he's on the ground laughing so hard I think I'll have to administer CPR. In fact, it's funnier to watch him than to watch the show. There's a definite difference between "girl humor" and "guy humor", I think. Hey did you watch any cartoons when you were little? Oh, well, I guess not cause there weren't TVs when you were little, but I used to love cartoons. I'd wake up at 6am and run downstairs to watch them. They had some of the coolest cartoons back then, none of the 'mutant' stuff they have now. Have you noticed how EVERYTHING is mutant now? There's even some show with mutant bunnies, now that's just twisted. When I was little, I liked the Smurfs, before they time-traveled of course, and Kidd Video, and Poochie , and My Little Pony, and The Wuzzles, and She-Ra, which granted was sorta sexist in hindsight, but at the time I wanted to BE her, an-,"

"Okay, Willow, you know what? I *do* want to talk about something," Angel chose to interrupt her now knowing that if he didn't, she'd be liable to carry on this one conversation with herself all night.

Willow smiled internally <Note to self. Babbling incessantly makes Angel talk.> Outside, she was all innocence, "Yes?"

"It's...well.." he stood and started pacing again, "It's hard for me to say."

"Oh, give it a try, it can't be that bad."

"Oh, but it is, trust me it is," he rolled his eyes, "....it's just that," he suddenly sat down right next to her and lowered his voice, "There's this face I just can't get out of my head."

"A-a face?"

"Willow, as a..a...a friend," he seemed to have trouble saying the word and believing it at the same time, "can I ask you something?"

"Sure, Angel!" unable to help herself, she leaned forward slightly and her heartbeat picked up just a bit.

"It's pretty important, and I can give you time to think about it, but I really need an answer."

She nodded.

"I feel so stupid asking, and I know this isn't the right thing to do, but I can't help myself."

She nodded sympathetically.

" I mean, I've turned it over in my head a hundred times, and every time I do it, I can't seem to get away from my feelings..."

She nodded again, her heart jumping to her throat.

"But I trust you Willow, I really do. I think I've always trusted you without even knowing it," he took her hands in his, "And..I don't want you to hate me for asking you this, especially because I'd promised myself that I wouldn't when this whole thing started, but now I know that I can't let it go any longer."

"Angel, just ask!" she finally exploded.

"Do you think I have a chance?"

"A-a chance?"

He looked incredibly guilty but forced his gaze to her own, "At a...at a relationship..."

Willow just about fainted, "A relationship?"

"With Buffy."

"With.......Buffy..oh," she looked down immediately and tried to blink away the unexpected tears which flowed into her eyes. Must be dust in her contact lenses again.

"Willow? Please don't be mad at me. I know it's unfair to put you on the spot bu-,"

She looked back up at him,"No. No Angel, it's fine."

Was it his imagination or did her eyes look a bit brighter than they did before?

"I understand your postion completely, and I don't hate you at all," she continued, forcing herself to smile at him kindly, "I could never hate you, you're one of my closest friends," she dropped her gaze again and studied the crinkles in the tan leather sofa, "I can ask Buffy, if you'd like. I think your chances are good though," she raised her eyes back to his, "Very good. With a little bit of prodding, I'm sure she'll come around..." <What am I saying? Am I agreeing to help him to win back Buffy? Ohmigosh I am..>

"Y-you mean, you'll help me to get her back?" he asked in disbelief.

"Yes...I will."

"Thank you Willow," he whispered softly. In a rare show of emotion, he leaned over and hugged her.

Falling limply into the embrace, she felt the tears well in her eyes. <Wow, it sure is dusty in here....>

End Part 8