"Benediction"
At the hotel, Fred announces she hasn't been able to reach Angel on
his cell phone.
Cordelia figures that's not particularly significant since Angel isn't that adept at using it.
Gunn suggests they head out, start from where they last saw him, see if they can pick up a trail.
Groo offers to help with the tracking.
Cordelia doesn't think it's necessary.
Fred reminds her that something could have come through the rift and it could be after Connor. She thinks Angel needs to know.
Angel comes back to the hotel and tells the others he found Connor.
Gunn notices the wound from the shoot-out ("A New World") and asks what happened.
Angel sits down and says they talked.
Cordelia notices the bruising from the fight Angel and Connor had and figures Connor must have done his talking with his hands.
Angel says Connor didn't do the damage to him, at least not the bulk of it.
Gunn asks if it's a certainty then, that the kid is Connor.
Angel tells him his name is Steven now but he's still his son.
Fred asks where Connor is.
Angel doesn't know, but the kid knows where to find him, he'll be okay.
Fred tells him that might not be true.
Angel asks what she's talking about.
Cordy says something else may have come from Quor-toth before they had the chance to close the portal.
Gunn adds that Lorne's friend who is an expert with dimensional magick, had picked up some troubling vibes.
Angel notes nobody actually saw anything else come through the rift and if Connor was the last thing that exited, that was probably what created the bad vibes.
Fred is still concerned that it could be something else, perhaps something intent on getting vengeance on Connor.
Angel points out Connor survived Quor-toth, he's sure he can take care of himself. He seems to be trying to convince himself of that more than actually believing it.
Fred doesn't think it's wise for Angel to leave Connor alone on the streets of LA.
Angel answers Connor has to return on his own. He's confident he'll do that when he realizes what he needs.
Gunn asks what that is.
Cordelia answers, "a father."
Connor rents a room for Holtz and himself in a seedy motel.
Connor comes out of the motel office and walks across the parking lot, carrying a newspaper. He stops to watch a man get some food from a vending machine.
After the guy leaves, Connor walks over to the machine and pushes buttons, trying to get something to come out of it. When that doesn't work, he picks it up and slams it down.
He returns to the motel room with the newspaper and an armload of food from the vending machine. He calls out for Holtz, who exits the bathroom. Connor hands him the newspaper.
Holtz checks it for the date and seems surprised and somewhat disappointed to note only a matter of days had passed since he left that dimension and entered Quor-toth.
Connor says he doesn't like it in this place, it's not like home.
Holtz reminds him t Quor-toth wasn't their home, it was their "prison". He's not surprised Connor was the one who found a way out.
Connor notes it wasn't that difficult, the openings were there, he just needed to force the "sluks" (the slug-like things in "The Price") to show him the way.
Holtz equates the tactic of using the sluks with that of frightened rats forced to flee toward sunlight. He's proud of his son.
Connor tells Holtz he shouldn't have come after him.
Holtz says he couldn't have done otherwise.
Connor assures him he would have returned after he'd killed Angel. He pauses a moment, then apologizes for not being able to do that.
Holtz understands, saying he couldn't, it's not in him.
Connor reminds him he's killed many times.
Holtz answers that he killed when he had to, he killed to survive. He doesn't think killing Angel was the real reason Connor worked to find a way to return to this dimension, he knows Connor wanted to see his father.
Connor quickly denies that.
Holtz assures him it's nothing to be ashamed of. He knew this would happen one day. He says this is why he always told Connor the truth, he never lied to him about what his parents were or how he and Connor ended up together.
Connor says God gave him to Holtz.
Holtz tells him yes, God delivered Connor to him so he could protect him and give him the love he couldn't give his first children.
Connor knows that opportunity was denied Holtz because Angel killed those children. He wishes he'd been able to go through with it, to kill Angel.
Holtz tells him if he did, he wouldn't be the boy he raised, or the man he will one day become. He says there's much more Connor needs to learn and he's pleased Connor is willing. Holtz tells him he must go to Angel.
Connor isn't happy with that idea.
Holtz continues, saying Connor must walk in Angel's world, must learn all he can and know what is in Angel that is also part of him so he can better control it. He warns him to be wary and remember his lessons, "The devil will show you bright things. Many colors."
In the lobby of the Hyperion, Lorne holds up a crystal he's brought to Fred. He tells her he was delayed in returning because he had to stop and get it enchanted, they don't usually come that way. He hopes it works.
Fred takes the crystal and examines it, noting it should work since these crystals are said to contain mystical energy. She drops it into a Geiger counter.
Cordelia and Groo enter the lobby. Cordelia notices the Geiger counter.
Groo asks what it's for.
Gunn explains they'll use it to see if anything else came through the portal.
Fred adds anything that came through should have left behind some kind of mystical energy signature she can pick up with the instrument.
Cordelia asks Gunn how Angel is doing.
Gunn thinks he's okay.
She asks where he is.
Gunn tells her he's upstairs.
She decides to go talk to him.
Groo watches as she heads up the steps.
Cordelia walks in on Angel who's working over a punching bag. She mentions Fred working on something to determine if anything else came through the portal.
Angel thinks that sounds like a good idea.
Cordy says if they're lucky, Fred will find something and he'll be able to go kill it later in the day. She figures that would appeal to Angel.
He continues punching the bag.
Cordy says she just stopped in to let him know she was back on the clock and that she thinks he's doing the right thing.
Cordelia starts to leave.
Angel stops his workout and wonders what happens if Connor doesn't come back.
In the lobby, Lorne notices a contemplative Groo looking out at the courtyard. Lorne asks if something is bothering him.
Groo doesn't understand why Angel did everything to get Connor back when he was missing but now that he's there, he's doing nothing to bring him back.
Lorne offers sometimes that's the best approach, saying if something is meant to be, it's usually best to let it happen on its own rather than force it.
Groo wonders how something that's meant to be can be forced.
Lorne says it can't.
Groo wonders about something that isn't meant to be.
Lorne answers that definitely can't be forced, "just because something hops a dimension or two is no guarantee things will work out."
Groo smiles.
Lorne realizes he wasn't really talking about Connor and Angel.
Groo notes it's a beautiful day. He tells Lorne if Cordelia asks, to tell her he's gone for a walk.
Angel is in his room with Cordelia, telling her his son feels further away from him now than he did when he was in another dimension. He doesn't think he really believed he'd lost him and now that he's returned, he knows he has.
Cordy doesn't think it's a permanent situation.
Angel just thought they'd have time to do things together before Connor hated him.
Cordelia assures him Connor doesn't hate him, he doesn't know him yet. She's sure he will one day. She believes he'll come back.
Angel wonders how she can be certain of that.
She answers "he has to because he's family."
Wes is sitting at the table in his apartment, preparing to eat a warmed up frozen dinner. He pours himself a glass of wine.
He hears the new email arrival tone on his laptop and goes over to the computer where he finds a note giving him a location and a time, telling him to "come alone."
At the hotel, the others are following Fred as she checks out the area with the Geiger counter. She gets a strong reading where the portal was, noting that's logical. She tells Gunn to mark that spot while she continues her scan of the lobby.
She notices several more hot spots, then follows a particularly strong reading. She looks up from the counter to see it has led her to Connor who's standing on the lobby entrance landing.
Everyone stares at Connor as there's an uncomfortable silence.
Angel finally greets him.
Connor stammers a bit, saying he thought he'd come by as Angel had suggested.
Angel is glad he made that decision. He introduces "Steven" to everyone.
Connor looks at Lorne with an expression of disgust.
Angel asks the others if they're finished. They take the hint and come up with various excuses to leave so he can be alone with Connor.
Cordelia tells him she'll hold his calls as she leaves the lobby.
Angel and Connor stand facing each other, both with arms crossed, saying nothing.
After an uncomfortable moment, Angel asks Connor if he's hungry.
Connor asks what he's got.
Angel thinks on that a moment, then suggests they go out to get something.
Cordelia starts shouting about a bar and a gang of vampires. She asks Angel if he can hear her. In her vision, Cordy sees Angel as he's standing in front of her in the lobby, but he's in the crowded, noisy bar of the vision. She continues yelling over the music and crowd noise, not realizing she's the only one hearing it. She tells Angel a woman is in danger from the vampires, she doesn't know they're there, Angel needs to get to her in a hurry.
Angel asks her for the location.
She keeps yelling.
He tells her to slow down.
She finally pulls it together and speaks normally. She tells him a gang of vampires are after a woman at a bar and gives him the location. She urges him to get to her quickly.
Angel thanks her for holding his calls then tells Connor he has to go out for a bit, it's sort of his job.
Connor says he understands and starts to leave.
Angel tells him it could be dangerous, involving violence and killing. He asks if Connor would like to come along.
Wes is in the bar Cordelia saw in her vision, standing on the upper level looking to the crowded dance floor below. The music is blaring loudly.
As Wes scans the crowd, Lilah approaches, happy he responded to her invitation.
Wes isn't thrilled to see her.
She says she thought the "come alone" part of the invite was rather ironic considering he really didn't have much choice, he doesn't have anyone else he could come with anyway.
Wes starts to leave.
Lilah stops him, suggesting he look toward the bar.
Wes does and sees Justine sitting there.
Lilah tells him she went to some trouble setting up a show for Wesley.
He bids her good-bye and starts to leave.
Lilah tells him if he goes, he'll miss Justine's big death scene.
Wes stops and turns to face her.
Lilah figures Wes might like to see the woman who cut his throat and left him to bleed to death get a little payback.
Wes asks what's going on.
Lilah tells him someone tipped Justine that the club would be full of vampires that night and, as it turns out, it is.
Wes knows the same someone who tipped Justine the vamps would be there also tipped the vamps that she would be there.
Lilah smiles and says Justine isn't all that popular with vampires.
Wes notes Lilah thought he'd want a front row seat to watch Justine get killed.
Lilah figures that sums it up.
Wes tells her she doesn't know him at all.
She agrees that's probably true.
As he starts to leave she wonders if he'll go straight to his car or take a minute to warn Justine of the danger first. She notices Wesley's hesitation and tells him that was all she needed to know, he can leave now.
Wes turns back to her, realizing he'd just been tested.
Lilah tells him she just needed to know if she was wasting her time and to prove she's still a friend, she'll arrange for Justine to be rescued before she gets killed. She doesn't figure Wes would want that on his conscience, tormenting himself with the question of whether or not he did the right thing.
Wes looks over the railing to the main floor below and sees Angel. He tells Lilah he doesn't think her plan to rescue Justine will be necessary.
Angel hands Connor a stake and reminds him to go for the heart.
Connor assures him he knows what to do, his father taught him.
Angel is sure that's true. Hel points out the club is filled with innocents and reminds Connor not to do anything until he sees the vamps in game face.
Connor asks if it's like Angel's
He confirms that.
Connor asks why Angel kills vampires if they're like him.
Angel answers they are not like him.
Justine sees Angel at the same time he sees her and decides to make a hasty retreat. She's grabbed by the bartender who morphs into game face as does the guy sitting next to her.
They grab her, and throw her into the glass display behind the bar as more vamps join the fray.
Angel attacks the vamps.
Wes and Lilah watch from the upper level.
Connor sees Justine get grabbed by another vamp, he leaps across the room in one move, then up onto the bar and stakes the vampire attacking her.
Lilah wonders who the kid is, noting "he moves just like --"
Wes finishes her thought, "his father."
Connor pulls Justine from behind the bar, they look at each other a moment. Angel notices, pulls Connor out of the way and directs Justine to get out of there.
Angel and Connor continue the fight.
Lilah figures Wes is interested now. She turns to get his response, but finds he's left. She goes back to watching the fight.
One of the vampires runs out of the bar into the alley. Connor follows, stake in hand. He cautiously exits the club into the apparently vacant alley. He scans the area, senses something behind him and turns to stake it.
Angel is the one who was standing behind him. He grabs Connor's wrist, stopping him from plunging the stake into his chest.
Angel suddenly forces Connor's hand around to dust the vampire who has appeared behind his son. He points out vampires don't have to breathe or make noise, Connor needs to be careful.
Angel is impressed with Connor's fighting skills. He tells him he'd normally take him to a "ball game or a museum or something" but he's glad to know the kid can handle himself in a fight.
He takes a mock lunge at Connor who reflexively moves away and smiles a little. Angel is glad to see that as well.
As they play fight in the alley, Holtz looks on from a fire escape above.
Connor is waiting in the motel room as Holtz arrives. He says Angel was everything Holtz told him he was. He thinks Angel tried to deceive him by saving people. He says it won't work, he's seen Angel's "true face."
Holtz says he's seen Connor's as well.
In Angel's room, Cordelia reclines on her side on the bed, her head propped up on her hand, playing attentive audience while he proudly describes Connor's fighting skills displayed at the club.
Cordelia tells him she saw it all. After Angel and Connor had left, she got a vision of what was happening at the club. She doesn't know why that happened, just that she saw it all, Angel and Connor working together.
At the motel, Connor tells Holtz he's wrong.
Holtz is sure he isn't, pointing out anyone who saw Connor and Angel together would know that Connor was meant to be at Angel's side.
Connor doesn't want to hear it.
Holtz continues, saying it was Connor's need for Angel that led him back to this dimension.
Connor denies that need.
Holtz tells him to go back to Angel.
A hurt and confused Connor asks Holtz why he's doing this, saying God gave him to Holtz.
Holtz agrees it was God's plan that he would raise Connor, he will always believe that, but now he thinks it's time for him to give Connor back.
Connor says Angel is a demon.
Holtz reminds him he's "the bastard son of two demons."
Connor figures that must make him a demon as well.
Holtz assures him that's not so, though he admits he doesn't really know what Connor is. He tells Connor there are answers but he's not the one to give them. He wants Connor to go find them.
Fred and Gunn are outside of the motel in Gunn's truck. Fred checks her Geiger counter and points out the strongest readings outside of the Hyperion are coming from somewhere in that area.
Gunn wonders what they should do next.
Fred isn't sure. She doesn't even know if they should be looking above ground or below it.
In the motel room, an angry Connor tells Holtz he warned him [Connor] not to be deceived but he figures Holtz is the one who was.
Holtz says he would stop it if he could but the two of them were brought there by forces they can't control.
Connor tells him he's wrong and storms out of the motel.
Gunn and Fred see Connor exit the motel room. Fred figures they've been tracking Connor all along so there must not be anything else from the portal roaming around.
Gunn isn't so sure as he notices Holtz closing the motel room door.
At the hotel, Lorne pours himself a drink. He notices Connor has entered the lobby. He greets him, asks if he's looking for Angel and offers to show him the way to his room upstairs.
Connor glares at him and informs him he's not going anywhere with a demon.
Lorne figures since Connor was raised by a psycho in a hell dimension, he'll let that go. He heads upstairs to get Angel.
Connor calls him a "filthy demon."
An agitated Lorne answers that's "uncle filthy demon to you" as he sharply reminds Connor it wasn't that long ago he was taking care of him.
Cordelia comes in and asks what's going on.
Neither Lorne or Connor offer an answer.
Cordelia asks Connor to sit down as he continues to glare at Lorne. She pulls him to the poof couch as they both take a seat. Cordy says she understands things in this dimension are new to Connor and there are things he has to learn but Lorne is a good guy.
Connor, still staring daggers at Lorne, tells her "it's a demon."
Cordelia answers he is but that's not necessarily a bad thing. She reveals that she's part demon, by choice, saying she did it to help people.
Connor suddenly grabs her, pulls a knife and holds it over her throat.
Cordelia does the white glow thing, the light moving to envelop Connor as well as herself. She tells him to "let it go", he doesn't need it. She repeats that as he sits back and lowers the knife which dissolves and disappears
The glow fades from both of them. She tells him it's okay.
He starts to cry.
She holds him, looks up at the landing and sees Angel standing there.
Lorne hands Connor a glass of water out in the lobby as Angel and Cordelia talk in the office.
Angel asks if she's okay, she says she is.
Lorne comes in and notes Cordelia got the "full package" from The Powers, pointing out Connor was "toxic" when he came into the hotel.
Angel asks what happened.
Lorne figures Cordelia gave the kid a "soul colonic", purging the ugliness.
Cordelia says it was Quor-toth, it filled every part of Connor.
Angel recalls when Fred was taking the readings, some strong stuff was coming off of the kid.
Lorne speculates she wouldn't get anything off of him if she tried it now.
Angel thanks Cordelia for what she did.
She says she knows what it was like for Connor, she felt it all. Quor-toth was where Connor felt he belonged.
Angel joins Connor in the lobby and asks how he's doing.
Connor quietly answers he tried to kill Angel's friend.
Angel says she's used to it.
Connor thinks he should go.
Angel asks him to stay for awhile, saying he knows it may not feel like it but this place could be his home.
Connor says he has none.
Angel tells him he does, he just doesn't remember it. His home is there, it's where he's supposed to be.
Connor notes Angel sounds like his father, telling him he said the same thing to him.
Angel tenses up noticeably at Connor's reference to Holtz as "father."
Connor continues, saying his father told him they came back for a reason.
Angel takes that in.
Gunn and Fred arrive back at the hotel.
Holtz answers a knock on the motel room door. He opens it to Justine.
They both look at each other, surprised for a moment.
She says his name.
In the office at the Hyperion, Angel tells Gunn and Fred he told Connor they were going to take him out for a while.
Gunn wonders if the kid is okay with that.
Angel thinks he is.
Fred asks where they're supposed to take him.
Angel answers, "someplace where this world isn't as ugly as he thinks it is."
Gunn asks how much time Angel needs.
He says a couple of hours should be enough.
Gunn asks what they should say if Connor asks where he's gone.
Angel instructs him not to tell.
Fred and Gunn depart.
As Angel prepares to leave, Cordy suggests it would be better if he didn't go there.
Angel says he has to do this.
Cordelia says she understands but "don't --"
Angel assures her he won't kill Holtz, even though he deserves it.
Cordelia tells him she doesn't care if he kills Holtz. She figures he deserves it for depriving Connor of a childhood but she doesn't want Angel to lie to Connor about it. She doesn't think he's building trust by sending him away to be distracted while he confronts the man Connor considers his father.
Angel tells her he is Connor's father and leaves.
At the motel, Justine tells Holtz he came to her at a time in her life when she'd given up and gave her a reason to go on, even if it was a lie.
Holtz assures her not everything was a lie.
Justine concedes she'd probably still do anything for him, she would have followed him into the portal if he'd let her.
He's grateful she didn't.
She asks how he survived there.
He answers that it was his hatred that kept them alive.
Justine notes that hate can be good for something, it can drive you to keep going when nothing else will.
Holtz says he thought he had to survive so that he could pass on his "legacy of hate" but that something changed in Quor-toth, the hate turned to love for a son. He tells her he's discovered that love is more powerful than hate, he needs her to do one thing for him and he can be finished with vengeance.
Fred and Gunn take Connor to the shore.
Connor looks out over the water and asks what it is.
Gunn tells him it's the ocean.
Connor says his father told him about oceans, but he didn't tell him they were so empty.
Fred tells him it just seems that way, there's a whole world beneath the surface.
Connor says everything is very different there.
Fred understands, alluding to her experience in Pylea. She says she got lost once and when she came back, nothing seemed real, it was like she "was seeing everything from the bottom of the ocean."
Connor doesn't recall being lost. He walks toward the water.
Gunn starts to stop him, Fred keeps him from it. She thinks Connor needs some space. They stand a distance back as Connor stops at the water's edge.
Fred isn't comfortable keeping Connor distracted while Angel pays a visit to Holtz. She wonders what Angel will do.
Gunn says he doesn't know. He knows what he'd do but he's sure Angel will handle Holtz in his own way.
Connor turns toward them and stares at them.
A startled Fred and Gunn try to convince themselves he couldn't possibly have overheard their conversation, then realize the kid's hearing is as sharp as his father's.
Connor takes off running down the beach.
At the hotel, Cordelia turns off the lights. As she crosses the lobby, she sees someone in the shadows on the landing. She assumes it's Angel and tells him how happy she is he took her advice not to confront Holtz. She rushes up the steps telling him she's glad to see him.
The figure steps out from the shadows. It's Groo.
A suddenly uncomfortable Cordelia greets him with, "Hi".
At the motel, Holtz finishes placing a folded piece of paper into an envelope. He has his back to the open door but senses Angel's arrival. He says he doesn't remember if Angel would need an invitation to come in.
Angel steps inside and says it's public accommodation, he doesn't need to be invited.
Holtz figures he should have remembered that, it would have seemed important once. He says he has trouble recalling details now.
Angel shuts the door and slams Holtz against the wall, his hand on his throat. He says Holtz took Connor from him.
Holtz reminds him he kept Angel's son alive, Angel murdered his.
Angel releases his grip on Holtz and steps back, quietyly saying he was different then.
Holtz replies he was different then as well. He realizes Angel feels remorse for what he did but he can't seem to express it.
Angel wonders how he can say he's sorry, knowing it wouldn't mean anything.
Holtz tells him it wouldn't mean much, but it would be something.
Angel says he's sorry, for whatever it may mean, it's all he has.
Holtz notes it's not everything, Angel had a son. He slowly sits down and says he thought he'd have some justice by taking Connor but he was wrong.
Angel tells him it was vengeance, not justice.
Holtz answers perhaps vengeance is what he's doing now, giving back what he took. He tells Angel as an old man, he has nothing to give Connor now. He believes Angel can give Connor what he can't, a purpose, but tells him every time he looks at Connor he'll be reminded of the things he took, the things he couldn't give back. He concludes with, "If that is vengeance, I find I have no taste for it."
He hands Angel the envelope containing the paper he'd inserted just before Angel's arrival. He asks that Angel give Connor the letter. He points out he didn't seal it. He expects Angel will read it and he believes he should do so.
Angel asks why Holtz is doing this.
Holtz thought he'd made it clear, he loves Connor, this is the only way he knows to ensure Connor will always love him in return.
Angel slowly takes the envelope from Holtz's hand, then heads for the door.
Holtz tells him Connor won't easily accept this, he'll try to find Holtz but "he never will."
Angel leaves.
Connor rushes toward the motel.
Angel stops the car, removes the letter from its envelope and reads it. In the letter, Holtz tells "Steven" he means everything to him but what's in his best interest must come first and that's why when he looks for Holtz, he won't find him, he'll be gone.
Connor continues running toward the motel.
Angel continues reading the letter. Holtz tells Connor one day he hopes he'll be able to understand and forgive him for saying these things in a letter rather than in person. He can't tell him good-bye in person, he fears he'd never be able to let go.
Holtz answers the door of the motel and greets Justine.
Connor continues his run to the motel.
The words of the letter continue with Holtz telling Connor he must let him go, knowing if he didn't, Connor would end up hating him and he couldn't live with that.
Justine and Holtz are in the alley outside of the motel. She's holding an ice pick.
He grabs her wrists and pulls her against him, his back against the side of the building.
She tearfully begs him not to make her do it, saying she can't.
Holtz tells her they already know she can and reminds her she promised. He urges her to do what he's asked, then takes her hesitant hand and guides it, forcing the ice pick into his neck.
Justine cries as Holtz sinks to the ground and weakly tells her to do it "again".
Angel continues reading from the letter, Holtz telling Connor his destiny is with Angel, he understands that now. Connor will have a better life with him. He's comforted by that and knows that through Angel, Connor will realize his true purpose.
Holtz whispers "Steven" then dies.
Angel finishes the letter, smiles and says, "Connor."
Connor rushes into the motel room and finds it empty. He steps back outside and hears Justine sobbing. He follows the sound and sees Holtz lying on the ground, Justine bent over him with his head cradled in her lap.
The voice-over of Holtz's words in the letter concludes, Holtz telling Connor he hopes he's prepared him for what lies ahead. He believes he has. He tells him to be brave and signs off with "Lovingly, Your Father."
Connor kneels next to Holtz's dead body and sees two puncture wounds, aligned side by side like vampire bite marks, in his neck. He makes the assumption Holtz expected him to make as he coldly reacts, "Angelus."
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| Written by: Tim Minear | Original Air Date: May 13, 2002 |
At the hotel, Fred announces she hasn't been able to reach Angel on
his cell phone.Cordelia figures that's not particularly significant since Angel isn't that adept at using it.
Gunn suggests they head out, start from where they last saw him, see if they can pick up a trail.
Groo offers to help with the tracking.
Cordelia doesn't think it's necessary.
Fred reminds her that something could have come through the rift and it could be after Connor. She thinks Angel needs to know.
Angel comes back to the hotel and tells the others he found Connor.
Gunn notices the wound from the shoot-out ("A New World") and asks what happened.
Angel sits down and says they talked.
Cordelia notices the bruising from the fight Angel and Connor had and figures Connor must have done his talking with his hands.
Angel says Connor didn't do the damage to him, at least not the bulk of it.
Gunn asks if it's a certainty then, that the kid is Connor.
Angel tells him his name is Steven now but he's still his son.
Fred asks where Connor is.
Angel doesn't know, but the kid knows where to find him, he'll be okay.
Fred tells him that might not be true.
Angel asks what she's talking about.
Cordy says something else may have come from Quor-toth before they had the chance to close the portal.
Gunn adds that Lorne's friend who is an expert with dimensional magick, had picked up some troubling vibes.
Angel notes nobody actually saw anything else come through the rift and if Connor was the last thing that exited, that was probably what created the bad vibes.
Fred is still concerned that it could be something else, perhaps something intent on getting vengeance on Connor.
Angel points out Connor survived Quor-toth, he's sure he can take care of himself. He seems to be trying to convince himself of that more than actually believing it.
Fred doesn't think it's wise for Angel to leave Connor alone on the streets of LA.
Angel answers Connor has to return on his own. He's confident he'll do that when he realizes what he needs.
Gunn asks what that is.
Cordelia answers, "a father."
Connor rents a room for Holtz and himself in a seedy motel.
Connor comes out of the motel office and walks across the parking lot, carrying a newspaper. He stops to watch a man get some food from a vending machine.
After the guy leaves, Connor walks over to the machine and pushes buttons, trying to get something to come out of it. When that doesn't work, he picks it up and slams it down.
He returns to the motel room with the newspaper and an armload of food from the vending machine. He calls out for Holtz, who exits the bathroom. Connor hands him the newspaper.
Holtz checks it for the date and seems surprised and somewhat disappointed to note only a matter of days had passed since he left that dimension and entered Quor-toth.
Connor says he doesn't like it in this place, it's not like home.
Holtz reminds him t Quor-toth wasn't their home, it was their "prison". He's not surprised Connor was the one who found a way out.
Connor notes it wasn't that difficult, the openings were there, he just needed to force the "sluks" (the slug-like things in "The Price") to show him the way.
Holtz equates the tactic of using the sluks with that of frightened rats forced to flee toward sunlight. He's proud of his son.
Connor tells Holtz he shouldn't have come after him.
Holtz says he couldn't have done otherwise.
Connor assures him he would have returned after he'd killed Angel. He pauses a moment, then apologizes for not being able to do that.
Holtz understands, saying he couldn't, it's not in him.
Connor reminds him he's killed many times.
Holtz answers that he killed when he had to, he killed to survive. He doesn't think killing Angel was the real reason Connor worked to find a way to return to this dimension, he knows Connor wanted to see his father.
Connor quickly denies that.
Holtz assures him it's nothing to be ashamed of. He knew this would happen one day. He says this is why he always told Connor the truth, he never lied to him about what his parents were or how he and Connor ended up together.
Connor says God gave him to Holtz.
Holtz tells him yes, God delivered Connor to him so he could protect him and give him the love he couldn't give his first children.
Connor knows that opportunity was denied Holtz because Angel killed those children. He wishes he'd been able to go through with it, to kill Angel.
Holtz tells him if he did, he wouldn't be the boy he raised, or the man he will one day become. He says there's much more Connor needs to learn and he's pleased Connor is willing. Holtz tells him he must go to Angel.
Connor isn't happy with that idea.
Holtz continues, saying Connor must walk in Angel's world, must learn all he can and know what is in Angel that is also part of him so he can better control it. He warns him to be wary and remember his lessons, "The devil will show you bright things. Many colors."
In the lobby of the Hyperion, Lorne holds up a crystal he's brought to Fred. He tells her he was delayed in returning because he had to stop and get it enchanted, they don't usually come that way. He hopes it works.
Fred takes the crystal and examines it, noting it should work since these crystals are said to contain mystical energy. She drops it into a Geiger counter.
Cordelia and Groo enter the lobby. Cordelia notices the Geiger counter.
Groo asks what it's for.
Gunn explains they'll use it to see if anything else came through the portal.
Fred adds anything that came through should have left behind some kind of mystical energy signature she can pick up with the instrument.
Cordelia asks Gunn how Angel is doing.
Gunn thinks he's okay.
She asks where he is.
Gunn tells her he's upstairs.
She decides to go talk to him.
Groo watches as she heads up the steps.
Cordelia walks in on Angel who's working over a punching bag. She mentions Fred working on something to determine if anything else came through the portal.
Angel thinks that sounds like a good idea.
Cordy says if they're lucky, Fred will find something and he'll be able to go kill it later in the day. She figures that would appeal to Angel.
He continues punching the bag.
Cordy says she just stopped in to let him know she was back on the clock and that she thinks he's doing the right thing.
Cordelia starts to leave.
Angel stops his workout and wonders what happens if Connor doesn't come back.
In the lobby, Lorne notices a contemplative Groo looking out at the courtyard. Lorne asks if something is bothering him.
Groo doesn't understand why Angel did everything to get Connor back when he was missing but now that he's there, he's doing nothing to bring him back.
Lorne offers sometimes that's the best approach, saying if something is meant to be, it's usually best to let it happen on its own rather than force it.
Groo wonders how something that's meant to be can be forced.
Lorne says it can't.
Groo wonders about something that isn't meant to be.
Lorne answers that definitely can't be forced, "just because something hops a dimension or two is no guarantee things will work out."
Groo smiles.
Lorne realizes he wasn't really talking about Connor and Angel.
Groo notes it's a beautiful day. He tells Lorne if Cordelia asks, to tell her he's gone for a walk.
Angel is in his room with Cordelia, telling her his son feels further away from him now than he did when he was in another dimension. He doesn't think he really believed he'd lost him and now that he's returned, he knows he has.
Cordy doesn't think it's a permanent situation.
Angel just thought they'd have time to do things together before Connor hated him.
Cordelia assures him Connor doesn't hate him, he doesn't know him yet. She's sure he will one day. She believes he'll come back.
Angel wonders how she can be certain of that.
She answers "he has to because he's family."
Wes is sitting at the table in his apartment, preparing to eat a warmed up frozen dinner. He pours himself a glass of wine.
He hears the new email arrival tone on his laptop and goes over to the computer where he finds a note giving him a location and a time, telling him to "come alone."
At the hotel, the others are following Fred as she checks out the area with the Geiger counter. She gets a strong reading where the portal was, noting that's logical. She tells Gunn to mark that spot while she continues her scan of the lobby.
She notices several more hot spots, then follows a particularly strong reading. She looks up from the counter to see it has led her to Connor who's standing on the lobby entrance landing.
Everyone stares at Connor as there's an uncomfortable silence.
Angel finally greets him.
Connor stammers a bit, saying he thought he'd come by as Angel had suggested.
Angel is glad he made that decision. He introduces "Steven" to everyone.
Connor looks at Lorne with an expression of disgust.
Angel asks the others if they're finished. They take the hint and come up with various excuses to leave so he can be alone with Connor.
Cordelia tells him she'll hold his calls as she leaves the lobby.
Angel and Connor stand facing each other, both with arms crossed, saying nothing.
After an uncomfortable moment, Angel asks Connor if he's hungry.
Connor asks what he's got.
Angel thinks on that a moment, then suggests they go out to get something.
Cordelia starts shouting about a bar and a gang of vampires. She asks Angel if he can hear her. In her vision, Cordy sees Angel as he's standing in front of her in the lobby, but he's in the crowded, noisy bar of the vision. She continues yelling over the music and crowd noise, not realizing she's the only one hearing it. She tells Angel a woman is in danger from the vampires, she doesn't know they're there, Angel needs to get to her in a hurry.
Angel asks her for the location.
She keeps yelling.
He tells her to slow down.
She finally pulls it together and speaks normally. She tells him a gang of vampires are after a woman at a bar and gives him the location. She urges him to get to her quickly.
Angel thanks her for holding his calls then tells Connor he has to go out for a bit, it's sort of his job.
Connor says he understands and starts to leave.
Angel tells him it could be dangerous, involving violence and killing. He asks if Connor would like to come along.
Wes is in the bar Cordelia saw in her vision, standing on the upper level looking to the crowded dance floor below. The music is blaring loudly.
As Wes scans the crowd, Lilah approaches, happy he responded to her invitation.
Wes isn't thrilled to see her.
She says she thought the "come alone" part of the invite was rather ironic considering he really didn't have much choice, he doesn't have anyone else he could come with anyway.
Wes starts to leave.
Lilah stops him, suggesting he look toward the bar.
Wes does and sees Justine sitting there.
Lilah tells him she went to some trouble setting up a show for Wesley.
He bids her good-bye and starts to leave.
Lilah tells him if he goes, he'll miss Justine's big death scene.
Wes stops and turns to face her.
Lilah figures Wes might like to see the woman who cut his throat and left him to bleed to death get a little payback.
Wes asks what's going on.
Lilah tells him someone tipped Justine that the club would be full of vampires that night and, as it turns out, it is.
Wes knows the same someone who tipped Justine the vamps would be there also tipped the vamps that she would be there.
Lilah smiles and says Justine isn't all that popular with vampires.
Wes notes Lilah thought he'd want a front row seat to watch Justine get killed.
Lilah figures that sums it up.
Wes tells her she doesn't know him at all.
She agrees that's probably true.
As he starts to leave she wonders if he'll go straight to his car or take a minute to warn Justine of the danger first. She notices Wesley's hesitation and tells him that was all she needed to know, he can leave now.
Wes turns back to her, realizing he'd just been tested.
Lilah tells him she just needed to know if she was wasting her time and to prove she's still a friend, she'll arrange for Justine to be rescued before she gets killed. She doesn't figure Wes would want that on his conscience, tormenting himself with the question of whether or not he did the right thing.
Wes looks over the railing to the main floor below and sees Angel. He tells Lilah he doesn't think her plan to rescue Justine will be necessary.
Angel hands Connor a stake and reminds him to go for the heart.
Connor assures him he knows what to do, his father taught him.
Angel is sure that's true. Hel points out the club is filled with innocents and reminds Connor not to do anything until he sees the vamps in game face.
Connor asks if it's like Angel's
He confirms that.
Connor asks why Angel kills vampires if they're like him.
Angel answers they are not like him.
Justine sees Angel at the same time he sees her and decides to make a hasty retreat. She's grabbed by the bartender who morphs into game face as does the guy sitting next to her.
They grab her, and throw her into the glass display behind the bar as more vamps join the fray.
Angel attacks the vamps.
Wes and Lilah watch from the upper level.
Connor sees Justine get grabbed by another vamp, he leaps across the room in one move, then up onto the bar and stakes the vampire attacking her.
Lilah wonders who the kid is, noting "he moves just like --"
Wes finishes her thought, "his father."
Connor pulls Justine from behind the bar, they look at each other a moment. Angel notices, pulls Connor out of the way and directs Justine to get out of there.
Angel and Connor continue the fight.
Lilah figures Wes is interested now. She turns to get his response, but finds he's left. She goes back to watching the fight.
One of the vampires runs out of the bar into the alley. Connor follows, stake in hand. He cautiously exits the club into the apparently vacant alley. He scans the area, senses something behind him and turns to stake it.
Angel is the one who was standing behind him. He grabs Connor's wrist, stopping him from plunging the stake into his chest.
Angel suddenly forces Connor's hand around to dust the vampire who has appeared behind his son. He points out vampires don't have to breathe or make noise, Connor needs to be careful.
Angel is impressed with Connor's fighting skills. He tells him he'd normally take him to a "ball game or a museum or something" but he's glad to know the kid can handle himself in a fight.
He takes a mock lunge at Connor who reflexively moves away and smiles a little. Angel is glad to see that as well.
As they play fight in the alley, Holtz looks on from a fire escape above.
Connor is waiting in the motel room as Holtz arrives. He says Angel was everything Holtz told him he was. He thinks Angel tried to deceive him by saving people. He says it won't work, he's seen Angel's "true face."
Holtz says he's seen Connor's as well.
In Angel's room, Cordelia reclines on her side on the bed, her head propped up on her hand, playing attentive audience while he proudly describes Connor's fighting skills displayed at the club.
Cordelia tells him she saw it all. After Angel and Connor had left, she got a vision of what was happening at the club. She doesn't know why that happened, just that she saw it all, Angel and Connor working together.
At the motel, Connor tells Holtz he's wrong.
Holtz is sure he isn't, pointing out anyone who saw Connor and Angel together would know that Connor was meant to be at Angel's side.
Connor doesn't want to hear it.
Holtz continues, saying it was Connor's need for Angel that led him back to this dimension.
Connor denies that need.
Holtz tells him to go back to Angel.
A hurt and confused Connor asks Holtz why he's doing this, saying God gave him to Holtz.
Holtz agrees it was God's plan that he would raise Connor, he will always believe that, but now he thinks it's time for him to give Connor back.
Connor says Angel is a demon.
Holtz reminds him he's "the bastard son of two demons."
Connor figures that must make him a demon as well.
Holtz assures him that's not so, though he admits he doesn't really know what Connor is. He tells Connor there are answers but he's not the one to give them. He wants Connor to go find them.
Fred and Gunn are outside of the motel in Gunn's truck. Fred checks her Geiger counter and points out the strongest readings outside of the Hyperion are coming from somewhere in that area.
Gunn wonders what they should do next.
Fred isn't sure. She doesn't even know if they should be looking above ground or below it.
In the motel room, an angry Connor tells Holtz he warned him [Connor] not to be deceived but he figures Holtz is the one who was.
Holtz says he would stop it if he could but the two of them were brought there by forces they can't control.
Connor tells him he's wrong and storms out of the motel.
Gunn and Fred see Connor exit the motel room. Fred figures they've been tracking Connor all along so there must not be anything else from the portal roaming around.
Gunn isn't so sure as he notices Holtz closing the motel room door.
At the hotel, Lorne pours himself a drink. He notices Connor has entered the lobby. He greets him, asks if he's looking for Angel and offers to show him the way to his room upstairs.
Connor glares at him and informs him he's not going anywhere with a demon.
Lorne figures since Connor was raised by a psycho in a hell dimension, he'll let that go. He heads upstairs to get Angel.
Connor calls him a "filthy demon."
An agitated Lorne answers that's "uncle filthy demon to you" as he sharply reminds Connor it wasn't that long ago he was taking care of him.
Cordelia comes in and asks what's going on.
Neither Lorne or Connor offer an answer.
Cordelia asks Connor to sit down as he continues to glare at Lorne. She pulls him to the poof couch as they both take a seat. Cordy says she understands things in this dimension are new to Connor and there are things he has to learn but Lorne is a good guy.
Connor, still staring daggers at Lorne, tells her "it's a demon."
Cordelia answers he is but that's not necessarily a bad thing. She reveals that she's part demon, by choice, saying she did it to help people.
Connor suddenly grabs her, pulls a knife and holds it over her throat.
Cordelia does the white glow thing, the light moving to envelop Connor as well as herself. She tells him to "let it go", he doesn't need it. She repeats that as he sits back and lowers the knife which dissolves and disappears
The glow fades from both of them. She tells him it's okay.
He starts to cry.
She holds him, looks up at the landing and sees Angel standing there.
Lorne hands Connor a glass of water out in the lobby as Angel and Cordelia talk in the office.
Angel asks if she's okay, she says she is.
Lorne comes in and notes Cordelia got the "full package" from The Powers, pointing out Connor was "toxic" when he came into the hotel.
Angel asks what happened.
Lorne figures Cordelia gave the kid a "soul colonic", purging the ugliness.
Cordelia says it was Quor-toth, it filled every part of Connor.
Angel recalls when Fred was taking the readings, some strong stuff was coming off of the kid.
Lorne speculates she wouldn't get anything off of him if she tried it now.
Angel thanks Cordelia for what she did.
She says she knows what it was like for Connor, she felt it all. Quor-toth was where Connor felt he belonged.
Angel joins Connor in the lobby and asks how he's doing.
Connor quietly answers he tried to kill Angel's friend.
Angel says she's used to it.
Connor thinks he should go.
Angel asks him to stay for awhile, saying he knows it may not feel like it but this place could be his home.
Connor says he has none.
Angel tells him he does, he just doesn't remember it. His home is there, it's where he's supposed to be.
Connor notes Angel sounds like his father, telling him he said the same thing to him.
Angel tenses up noticeably at Connor's reference to Holtz as "father."
Connor continues, saying his father told him they came back for a reason.
Angel takes that in.
Gunn and Fred arrive back at the hotel.
Holtz answers a knock on the motel room door. He opens it to Justine.
They both look at each other, surprised for a moment.
She says his name.
In the office at the Hyperion, Angel tells Gunn and Fred he told Connor they were going to take him out for a while.
Gunn wonders if the kid is okay with that.
Angel thinks he is.
Fred asks where they're supposed to take him.
Angel answers, "someplace where this world isn't as ugly as he thinks it is."
Gunn asks how much time Angel needs.
He says a couple of hours should be enough.
Gunn asks what they should say if Connor asks where he's gone.
Angel instructs him not to tell.
Fred and Gunn depart.
As Angel prepares to leave, Cordy suggests it would be better if he didn't go there.
Angel says he has to do this.
Cordelia says she understands but "don't --"
Angel assures her he won't kill Holtz, even though he deserves it.
Cordelia tells him she doesn't care if he kills Holtz. She figures he deserves it for depriving Connor of a childhood but she doesn't want Angel to lie to Connor about it. She doesn't think he's building trust by sending him away to be distracted while he confronts the man Connor considers his father.
Angel tells her he is Connor's father and leaves.
At the motel, Justine tells Holtz he came to her at a time in her life when she'd given up and gave her a reason to go on, even if it was a lie.
Holtz assures her not everything was a lie.
Justine concedes she'd probably still do anything for him, she would have followed him into the portal if he'd let her.
He's grateful she didn't.
She asks how he survived there.
He answers that it was his hatred that kept them alive.
Justine notes that hate can be good for something, it can drive you to keep going when nothing else will.
Holtz says he thought he had to survive so that he could pass on his "legacy of hate" but that something changed in Quor-toth, the hate turned to love for a son. He tells her he's discovered that love is more powerful than hate, he needs her to do one thing for him and he can be finished with vengeance.
Fred and Gunn take Connor to the shore.
Connor looks out over the water and asks what it is.
Gunn tells him it's the ocean.
Connor says his father told him about oceans, but he didn't tell him they were so empty.
Fred tells him it just seems that way, there's a whole world beneath the surface.
Connor says everything is very different there.
Fred understands, alluding to her experience in Pylea. She says she got lost once and when she came back, nothing seemed real, it was like she "was seeing everything from the bottom of the ocean."
Connor doesn't recall being lost. He walks toward the water.
Gunn starts to stop him, Fred keeps him from it. She thinks Connor needs some space. They stand a distance back as Connor stops at the water's edge.
Fred isn't comfortable keeping Connor distracted while Angel pays a visit to Holtz. She wonders what Angel will do.
Gunn says he doesn't know. He knows what he'd do but he's sure Angel will handle Holtz in his own way.
Connor turns toward them and stares at them.
A startled Fred and Gunn try to convince themselves he couldn't possibly have overheard their conversation, then realize the kid's hearing is as sharp as his father's.
Connor takes off running down the beach.
At the hotel, Cordelia turns off the lights. As she crosses the lobby, she sees someone in the shadows on the landing. She assumes it's Angel and tells him how happy she is he took her advice not to confront Holtz. She rushes up the steps telling him she's glad to see him.
The figure steps out from the shadows. It's Groo.
A suddenly uncomfortable Cordelia greets him with, "Hi".
At the motel, Holtz finishes placing a folded piece of paper into an envelope. He has his back to the open door but senses Angel's arrival. He says he doesn't remember if Angel would need an invitation to come in.
Angel steps inside and says it's public accommodation, he doesn't need to be invited.
Holtz figures he should have remembered that, it would have seemed important once. He says he has trouble recalling details now.
Angel shuts the door and slams Holtz against the wall, his hand on his throat. He says Holtz took Connor from him.
Holtz reminds him he kept Angel's son alive, Angel murdered his.
Angel releases his grip on Holtz and steps back, quietyly saying he was different then.
Holtz replies he was different then as well. He realizes Angel feels remorse for what he did but he can't seem to express it.
Angel wonders how he can say he's sorry, knowing it wouldn't mean anything.
Holtz tells him it wouldn't mean much, but it would be something.
Angel says he's sorry, for whatever it may mean, it's all he has.
Holtz notes it's not everything, Angel had a son. He slowly sits down and says he thought he'd have some justice by taking Connor but he was wrong.
Angel tells him it was vengeance, not justice.
Holtz answers perhaps vengeance is what he's doing now, giving back what he took. He tells Angel as an old man, he has nothing to give Connor now. He believes Angel can give Connor what he can't, a purpose, but tells him every time he looks at Connor he'll be reminded of the things he took, the things he couldn't give back. He concludes with, "If that is vengeance, I find I have no taste for it."
He hands Angel the envelope containing the paper he'd inserted just before Angel's arrival. He asks that Angel give Connor the letter. He points out he didn't seal it. He expects Angel will read it and he believes he should do so.
Angel asks why Holtz is doing this.
Holtz thought he'd made it clear, he loves Connor, this is the only way he knows to ensure Connor will always love him in return.
Angel slowly takes the envelope from Holtz's hand, then heads for the door.
Holtz tells him Connor won't easily accept this, he'll try to find Holtz but "he never will."
Angel leaves.
Connor rushes toward the motel.
Angel stops the car, removes the letter from its envelope and reads it. In the letter, Holtz tells "Steven" he means everything to him but what's in his best interest must come first and that's why when he looks for Holtz, he won't find him, he'll be gone.
Connor continues running toward the motel.
Angel continues reading the letter. Holtz tells Connor one day he hopes he'll be able to understand and forgive him for saying these things in a letter rather than in person. He can't tell him good-bye in person, he fears he'd never be able to let go.
Holtz answers the door of the motel and greets Justine.
Connor continues his run to the motel.
The words of the letter continue with Holtz telling Connor he must let him go, knowing if he didn't, Connor would end up hating him and he couldn't live with that.
Justine and Holtz are in the alley outside of the motel. She's holding an ice pick.
He grabs her wrists and pulls her against him, his back against the side of the building.
She tearfully begs him not to make her do it, saying she can't.
Holtz tells her they already know she can and reminds her she promised. He urges her to do what he's asked, then takes her hesitant hand and guides it, forcing the ice pick into his neck.
Justine cries as Holtz sinks to the ground and weakly tells her to do it "again".
Angel continues reading from the letter, Holtz telling Connor his destiny is with Angel, he understands that now. Connor will have a better life with him. He's comforted by that and knows that through Angel, Connor will realize his true purpose.
Holtz whispers "Steven" then dies.
Angel finishes the letter, smiles and says, "Connor."
Connor rushes into the motel room and finds it empty. He steps back outside and hears Justine sobbing. He follows the sound and sees Holtz lying on the ground, Justine bent over him with his head cradled in her lap.
The voice-over of Holtz's words in the letter concludes, Holtz telling Connor he hopes he's prepared him for what lies ahead. He believes he has. He tells him to be brave and signs off with "Lovingly, Your Father."
Connor kneels next to Holtz's dead body and sees two puncture wounds, aligned side by side like vampire bite marks, in his neck. He makes the assumption Holtz expected him to make as he coldly reacts, "Angelus."
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