MARCH, 2001, SUNNYDALE

"You have to totally promise not to tell Buffy, cause of she'll mope even further, and Tara, cause of I like her to think I've always been at least reasonably competent at magic."

Xander nodded.

"C'mon, Will. You and me, we showed each other--even back when we had nothing to show. Besides, it can't be that bad."

"No, it completely can. Completely. Can."

Xander winced.

"Can-Can?"

Willow gulped.

"With bloomers showing, scandalizing all of Gay Paree--so to speak."

Xander sat down, glad that Anja wasn't there to offer interpretations of what was being said.

"Give."

She hugged her oldest and dearest friend, who then stared at her.

"I meant--give with the bad thing."

"Sorry."

*And I told Tara she was just being paranoid, he thought.*

"Okay. Xander, remember when I re-cursed Angel?"

"Do I? You were aces. Did the job that needed doing."

She shook her head.

"Nope. I sort of left out a page."

Xander grabbed his forehead.

"That's not good, is it? Will, how could you leave out a page?"

She shrugged.

"I --sort of-- left out a page. I found out when Tara and I did spring cleaning. I used it, just in the wrong way. I thought it was just a primer, an instruction sheet to get the spell primed through complex invocations."

"But--it wasn't."

"No. I was supposed to use it as a refrain. I was supposed to break the Romany channeling, chant that stuff anew, resume the channeling, then ya  know, lather, rinse, repeat. Only I didn't."

Xander held up an opened palm.

"Wait, wait. Quit worrying."

"But I do good at worrying. Unlike that spell."

He got up, shaking his head.

"Its small wonder we're friends. Because, you are just as big a jerk as me. Willow, think! Angel's had his soul back for over two years. He has a detective agency. He stops by, and him and me actually get along. Cordy even calls, and I tell her how many of the old clique that turned on her are knocked up, and she's happy. Its a huge percentage. Those girls were true airheads."

"Translation?"

He squeezed her hand as he had since forever.

"Meaning, pal of mine, you did well, and that missing or misused page has had no side-effects on Angel whatsoever!"

Willow got the last word.

"Yet."

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LOS ANGELES, ROUGHLY WITHIN THE SAME TIME PERIOD

He had known true pleasure. Ecstasy. No more caring. No more beating his knuckles bloody against evil that he was just better off rejoining. No more love, only hate and desire.

Yet as Angel watched Darla sleeping in the afterglow of their love-making, a realization of the impossible suddenly dawned on him.

"I still have my soul?"