"Just Rewards"

Written by: David Fury &
Ben Edlund
Original Air Date: October 8, 2003

Spike and the amulet
Flashback to "Sunnydale, California, The Hellmouth, 19 days earlier" (BtVS finale, "Chosen"). Spike is in an underground cavern, wearing the amulet Angel gave to Buffy. Bright rays of light emit from it, and him, dusting the vamps approaching.

Buffy rushes up to him.

He tells her to go.
Buffy tries to convince Spike to leave
She says he's done enough and tries to get him to come with her.

Spike is determined to stay, telling her it's up to him to do the "clean up."

As the Hellmouth begins to collapse, Buffy tries one more time.

Spike is adamant, this is something he has to do.

Buffy reaches out to his hand, entwining her fingers in his.
Spike begins to disintegrate
Spike tells her to go, she runs.
Spike's end
Spike smiles, saying he wants to know how it ends. As the cavern collapses around him, the energy from the amulet burns him to ashes.

Things pick up where they left off at the end of the previous episode ("Conviction"), with Spike materializing in Angel's office at Wolfram and Hart, gasping, confused. He looks around at Lorne, Wes, and Fred, not recognizing anyone.
Harm has a question
Harmony steps up and demands to know, "What the hell are you doing here, Spike?"
Spike, confused
Gunn recognizes the name, he wants to know if this is "the Spike"?

Fred starts to ask who he is.
Lorne offers reassurance
Lorne assures an addled Spike nobody is going to hurt him.
Gunn, not so sure about Spike
Gunn suggests Lorne speak for himself.

Fred asks again who he is.

Wes steps up and answers the question, "William the Bloody. He's a vampire. One of the worst recorded, second only to --"
"Me."
Angel finishes the comment, "Me."

Spike whirls to see Angel standing behind him.

Angel looks at Spike, "But, you're dead."

Harmony wonders, "Who isn't?" She looks around the room and acknowledges okay, Wes, Fred, and Gunn aren't but she's not so sure about Lorne.
Spike vamps out
Spike morphs into vamp face, snarls and rushes Angel. He passes through his body and finds himself standing in Angel's desk, his upper body visible, his lower body disappearing into the furniture.
Spike passes through Angel
A startled Angel checks himself, then turns toward Spike who is pondering his predicament. He sums up his reaction, "Bugger."
Spike asks what's happening
Spike asks what's happened to him as Angel moves toward him, sharing the confusion.

Harmony offers she thinks Spike is a ghost.

Spike vehemently denies that.
Harmony, not liking Spike's attitude
Harmony reminds him he is sticking out of a desk and tells him he can't be harsh with her, they aren't going out anymore.

Spike moves out of the desk.

Gunn wonders where Spike came from.
Wes realizes it's the amulet
Wes looks at the amulet, laying on the floor, stoops and picks it up while answering Gunn's question, "From this."

Fred asks what it is.

Angel answers, he'd given it to Buffy before --
Angel answers Spike's query
The mention of Buffy's name gets Spike's attention, he asks Angel if she's --

Angel answers she's fine.

Spike wants to know where she is.

Angel says she was in Europe when he last heard from her.
Angel, not being helpful
Spike wants to see her, talk to her.

Angel reckons that might be a bit difficult.

Spike angrily tells Angel he can't keep Buffy away from him.

Angel says she's not his to keep, or Spike's.
"You never had her."Spike gets in his digs
Spike responds, "Says you.You've got no idea what we had."

Angel reminds him he "never had her."

Spike figures he had her more than Angel did.
Harmony, repulsed
Harmony steps up, realizing what this argument is about. She's unpleasantly surprised to hear about Spike's relationship with the Slayer, admitting she knew he had a "twisted obsession for her" but finds the fact it went beyond that repulsive. She storms out.
Spike's hell
Spike reckons he's in hell.

Lorne points out he's actually in Los Angeles, but the confusion is understandable.

Fred asks Wes if "Spike and Buffy were --"

Wes answers, Spike was an ally of hers, for awhile. At least that's what Angel told him, that's all he told him.
Angel denies Spike is anything like him
As Angel and Spike glare at each other, Gunn asks if Spike is a good vampire, like Angel.
Spike wants some answers
Angel snaps that Spike is nothing like him.

That's something Spike can agree with. He demands to know what Angel has done to him. He looks around and asks what the place is and who are the people in the office. He shouts, wanting to know what is happening.


Wes examines the amuletFred scans Spike
In the lab at Wolfram & Hart, Wes is examining the amulet through a microscope as Lorne watches, while Fred is scanning Spike with a handheld monitor of some sort.

Lorne mutters to Wes it's a great story, the Slayer both men loved and lost. He thinks he could sell that story easily to any studio in town. He's thinking Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom for the lead roles, then admits he thinks about them a lot.

Wes looks up at him from the microscope. Lorne admits it's a hazard of running the entertainment division, he needs to get out more.
Spike gets to know Fred
As Fred continues scanning Spike, he asks what she does. She introduces herself, telling him she's the head of W&H's science dept.

Spike has heard of W&H but he thought it was a law firm.

Fred confirms it is, "among other things."

Spike adds he'd also heard, "they represent the worst evil in the universe."

Angel concedes they did, "among other things," but he's in charge of it now.

Spike isn't impressed.
Fred checks her readings
Fred finds she's getting odd readings. She explains she's getting "electromagnetic readings consistent with spiritual entities" but adds there's no sign of an "ectoplasmic matrix."

Gunn asks for clarification of that.
Fred notes the brain wave thing
Fred says ectoplasm is what makes ghosts visible. If Spike's a ghost, they shouldn't be able to see him without that. She adds she's also detecting "brainwave activity."
Angel gets his snark on
Angel snarks that is odd, for Spike. Gunn suppresses a smile.

Fred goes on with her results, saying ghosts usually absorb "light and heat energy, making the area around them a few degrees cooler" but Spike is radiating heat.

Spike asks if she thinks he's "hot".

Fred counters, "lukewarm", a little above room temperature.

Spike wants to know what he is, exactly.
Wes explains
Wes notes whatever Spike is, it's tied to the amulet. His "essence" must have been held within it. He asks if Spike recalls any particular sensations when the amulet released its energy.
Spike remembers
Spike snipes, "What? You mean my skin and muscle burning away from the bone? Organs exploding in my chest? Eyeballs melting in the sockets? No. No memory at all. Thanks for asking."
Angel wonders about the amulet
Angel wonders how the amulet ended up at W&H considering the last he'd heard of it, it was buried deep inside the Hellmouth.

Fred thinks maybe Spike is there for a reason, some "higher purpose or something he's destined for." She offers perhaps The Powers sent him to help them or something.
Spike starts to fade
Spike wants to know what gives anyone the right to play him like that. He figures a man deserves to be able to die in peace without someone stepping in and deciding it's not his time yet. He thinks he's earned the right to some rest after saving the world. As he rants, he begins fading out.

Fred notices and says, "Spike?"

Gunn and Angel also look on curiously.

Spike answers Fred, "Hmm?" then looks down and notices his state of transparency. He responds to that, "Oh, balls" and disappears.
Gunn wonders what just happened
Gunn asks what happened.
Fred asks about the 'saving the world' comment
Fred isn't sure as she scans the area where Spike was standing. She asks what Spike meant by the "saving the world" comment. The others look to Angel for an explanation.
"Buffy did most of the work --"
He tells them, "Buffy did most of the work" then concedes Spike "helped but --"
Spike reappears
Spike reappears in the lab, asking "What? What?"

Gunn says they were wondering the same thing and asks where Spike went.

He doesn't have an answer.
Fred asks where Spike was
Fred asks if he doesn't know.

Spike starts to answer, "I was --" then gets sidetracked as he looks at Angel. He thinks this is all Angel's fault.
Angel wants to know how this is his fault
Angel wants to know how that is.
Spike rants
Spike rants Angel brought the amulet to Sunnydale and he would have been the one to use it until he "chickened out".

Angel starts to challenge that assertion.

Spike interrupts, saying Angel left Sunnydale just in time, "before the death and mayhem, abandoning the woman you claim to love."
Angel counters
Angel angrily counters it was Buffy's decision to make and she made it, it wasn't his choice.

Spike points out his current state certainly wasn't his choice, telling Angel, "I'm not you. I don't give a piss about atonement or destiny. Just because I got myself a soul doesn't mean I'm going to let myself be led around by the --"
Wes, surprised by the soul mention
That comment gets everyone's attention. Fred asks about it, as does Wes.
Angel didn't find it worthy of mention
Angel notes absently it didn't seem worth mentioning.

Gunn looks at Angel and thinks there's a lot of that going around.
Spike thinks Angel resents his soul getting
Spike offers perhaps Angel felt a bit less special, didn't like having Spike crash his "exclusive club", didn't appreciate having another "vampire with a soul in the world."
"You're not in the world, Casper."
Angel icily reminds him, "You're not in the world, Casper", then walks out.
masked mailroom guy
As Angel walks down the hall, he passes a mailroom employee pushing a mail cart. He takes a moment to look at the man, who is wearing a red, blue and white wrestling type mask that covers his entire head. The man walks on past.

Spike passes through the wall and joins Angel walking in the hall. He notes Angel is taking a typical tack, running away. He sarcastically adds he can see why "heroes" like Angel get all the perks and wonders why he didn't think of that.
Angel, tired of the whining
Angel tells him curtly he's not responsible for what happened to Spike.

As Angel passes Harmony's desk, she tells him it's nearly 3:00 o'clock. She starts to tell him about a meeting he has scheduled but Angel cuts her off, telling her not now.
Spike digs Angel about Harmony
Spike notes Harmony's presence behind the desk and continues sniping at Angel, saying he even managed to get his "ex-tumble, the littlest vampire, fetching coffee for you." Another nice perk.

Angel suggests Spike not talk about things he doesn't understand.
Spike figures Angel will get pulled in
Spike points out he knows Angel, he wonders what Angel thinks he's doing. He asks if he thought he could make a deal with the devil to take over the company to use it to fight evil from the inside. He notes the problem is they're so focused on fighting the fight, they don't realize they're getting pulled in.

Angel assures him that won't happen.

Spike observes Angel is no more in control of things than Spike is, the difference being he isn't going to stand for it.
Spike notes the arrival of the Grox'lar
Spike's latest diatribe is interrupted by the arrival of a demon. Spike notes casually in the direction behind Angel, "Grox'lar Beast."
the Grox'lar
Angel turns to face the direction Spike is looking. He sees a large, multi-horned demon step off the elevator and stalk toward him. Angel kicks the demon, then punches it a few times. The demon is unfazed by the blows. It punches Angel then picks him up and tosses him into the wall.

Spike rushes the demon from behind and takes a swing at it but his arm passes through the demon's head. As the demon heads for Angel, Spike notes that development with disappointment.
Angel vs. the Grox'lar
Fight ensues between Angel and the Grox'lar. After a bit of back and forth, Angel grabs it by the neck, runs up the wall, flips over backward landing on his feet and snaps the demon's neck. He gives it a kick into the wall, leaving the demon sprawled on the floor.
Angel wants to know how the Grox'lar got in
Angel wants to know from the gathered employees in the lobby how a Grox'lar got past security and into the building. He doesn't have time for this.
Spike mutters about profit margins
Spike mutters it's more important Angel concentrate on profit margins and power lunches.

Angel says he has a business to run, appointments to keep.
Harm clues  Angel in on his 3 o'clock
Harmony offers that was his 3:00 o'clock appointment.

Spike finds that amusing as he chuckles to himself.
Angel wants to know why  he's meeting with Grox'lars
Angel walks up to Harm and notes he's meeting with Grox'lars, pointing out they eat babies.

Harm says they only eat the heads, as if that somehow makes it less awful. She adds they were opening negotiations with the demon's clan.

Angel wonders why.
Gunn offers an explanation
Gunn approaches and answers the question, the negotiations were to get the demons to stop eating the heads of babies.

Angel realizes that's a good thing then looks at the demon, lying on the floor, and reckons this part is bad.

Gunn tells him the Grox'lar's clan will respect a strong opening position.

Angel looks blankly at him.
Gunn explains what's been happening
Gunn clarifies that conveniently W&H didn't just enhance him with knowledge of human laws, he also got the info on demon laws from all dimensions. He concedes he probably should have told Angel about the Grox'lars but they got distracted. He looks at Spike. He goes on, telling Angel he was also busy instituting their reforms, starting with overhauling the staff. He's fired forty employees over the past two days.

Angel asks how that's going.

Gunn answers, "As expected. Anger. Tears. Venomous death threats." They walk off together leaving Spike standing in the lobby.
Harm, willing to chat"Slayer loving freak."
Harm approaches Spike and admits she was a bit cranky with him before. She offers if he wants to talk, about them or anything else --

Spike walks off without saying anything. Harm says it's okay, probably too soon, she understands. She mutters, "Slayer loving freak."


Angel compares the voodoo dollGunn, not liking the voodoo thing
Angel follows Gunn into his office. Gunn opens his briefcase and pulls out a voodoo doll, created in his likeness. He tells Angel he took it away from an associate they'd fired, he was trying to sneak it out of the "voodoo division."

Angel takes the doll and looks at it, comparing it to Gunn, noting the likeness is pretty good.

Spike comes in. Angel tells him he's in a meeting.
Spike, not caring Angel's busy
Spike lets him know he doesn't care.

Gunn tells Angel they're upsetting a lot of people with the changes they're making. He expects there will be a backlash.

Angel figures they'll just have to ride it out.
Novac enters
One of the W&H attorneys, Novac, enters Gunn's office. He wants to know what's going on with the closing down of the "Internment Acquisitions Division."
Angel looks for an explanation
Angel looks to Gunn for an explanation of that dept.

Gunn simplifies, "Grave robbing."
Novac tries to explain
Novac says he understands they're in charge and they're doing a good job, he's with them 110%, but the Internment Acquisitions Division brings a lot of money into the firm.

Angel offers they'll have to tighten the budget and learn to do without.

Novac tells him he [Angel] doesn't understand.
Angel, not liking the attitude
There's an uncomfortable silence as Angel looks at him.

Novac adds a bit grudgingly, "Sir." He continues, explaining that division has a contract to provide "fresh bodies" to a client named Magnus Hainsley. He wonders if Angel knows who that is.

Angel looks at Gunn who doesn't have an answer either.

Novac says Hainsley is one of the firm's oldest clients. If they don't deliver, he won't be happy.

Angel reckons Hainsley won't be happy to hear from Novac they are no longer representing him.
Novac, not wanting to deliver the news
Novac isn't anxious to be the one to deliver that news.

Angel directs him to tell Hainsley W&H is under new management and out of the grave robbing business. He suggests he go and present his case.

Novac hesitates.

Angel tells him to "go."

Novac heads out the door of the office with the demeanor of a dead man walking.
"You don't have to take that."
As he passes Spike standing at the doorway, Spike tells him he doesn't have to take that.

Angel tells Spike to stay out of it, he doesn't work there.

Spike isn't unhappy about that, pointing out now Angel delegates the dirty work to "spineless, low level flunkies." Off Novac's look, Spike offers an apology to him for the comment. Novac leaves.

Spike goes on, noting the hero is now a bureaucrat and adds, "If a certain Slayer could see you now --"
Angel wants Spike goneSpike, happy to leave
Angel tells him to get out.

Spike is happy to oblige. He doesn't intend to spend his afterlife stuck at W&H playing ghost to Angel's role as "Chairman of the Boring" nor does he plan to stay in L.A. He walks out.


Wes reconsiders disturbing Angel
Angel is sitting in his office on the arm of the chair, his back to the open doorway. Wes approaches carrying an open book, notices Angel seems to be lost in thought and starts to depart.

Angel senses his presence and without turning, asks if Wes thinks Spike isn't really gone.
Wes, wondering what's on Angel's mind
Wes enters the office, wondering if that's what Angel has been thinking about.

Angel knows what happened to Spike was intended for him.

Wes asks if he's feeling guilty about that.
Angel knows Spike's fate was intended to be his
Angel scoffs, that's not it. He moves behind his desk and takes a seat. He tells Wes W&H gave him the amulet, they must have expected he'd use it and they must have known it would have done to him what it did to Spike.

Wes realizes what it is Angel is pondering, why would the Senior Partners give him "the keys to the kingdom?"

Angel can't make sense of it, he wonders what game the Senior Partners are playing.
Wes thinks they may not have the full picture
Wes offers perhaps there's dissension in the ranks or another player they don't know about. Then again, he considers perhaps they got what they wanted.

Angel says, "Spike."

Wes says maybe he's the one they --
Angel, frustrated to see Spike return
Angel continues, asking Spike who is now standing at the doorway behind Wes, what he's doing there. Angel thought he'd left town.
Spike explains he tried to leave town
An exasperated Spike says he tried, but every time he got near the city limits, he ended up back at W&H, felt like his insides were getting pulled.

Wes thought that might be the case. The amulet belongs to W&H, it's bound to the firm and if Spike is connected to it --

Spike cuts him off, reminding him he's nobody's property. He wonders what this means, if he's stuck there forever. He figures Angel is enjoying it.

Angel notes dryly, yes, Spike haunting him for eternity is a "dream come true."
Harm announces Novac's return
Harmony comes to the doorway and hesitantly tells Angel that Novac has returned from his meeting with Hainsley.

Angel directs her to send him in.
delivering Novac
Harmony pauses a moment, then says "Mmm, okay." She looks outside the office. Two security men bring in three buckets of blood and guts. They set the buckets on Angel's desk.
Wes, Angel check out the buckets
Angel gets up, he and Wes examine the contents of one of the buckets.

Spike snarks, "Buckets was right", they're doing a great job.


Angel asks for discretion
Angel comes out of his office, Wes following. He stops at Harm's desk and directs her to get him a list of Novac's contacts, including next of kin. He quietly tells her to be discreet about it for now.

Harm asks, "Discreet? Oh! You mean, like, not tell anyone about bucket o' lawyer."

Angel glowers and reminds her to get the contact list.
Gunn hands Angel the file
Gunn approaches Harm's desk and hands Angel the file on Magnus Hainsley. They discuss it as they walk down the hall. Gunn says Hainsley is a sorcerer, lots of money and power. He owns a sizable number of shares in W&H and has some major connections. He has influence with power brokers in many different areas.

Angel thumbs through the file and notes Hainsley is a necromancer.
Wes fills in the blanks
Wes joins them, saying he has power over the dead which explains why W&H has been providing him with bodies.

Angel notes they still don't know what he's doing with them as they walk into his office. He demands Spike get out of his chair.
Spike, not willing to move
Spike, reclining in the chair behind Angel's desk, tells him to "Make me."

Gunn asks what's in the buckets on the desk.

Spike answers it's Novac, he was "downsized."

Angel says it was intended as a message from Hainsley. He'll respond to it, in person. He hands the file back to Gunn.
Wes thinks Angel should tread carefully
Wes doesn't think it's wise for Angel to deal with Hainsley alone.

Angel doesn't want to risk what happened to Novac happening to anyone else.

As Angel walks over to the private elevator in his office and searches for a button to open the doors, Wes reminds him he has a firm and lots of "armed and trained" employees to handle things.
Angel prefers to handle it himself
Angel says they "cramp" his style. The doors to the elevator finally open, Angel steps inside.

Wes notes Angel's "style" won't likely get him too far with a necromancer. He thinks it would be wise to avoid "an eye for an eye escalation."
Gunn has an idea
Angel says he's "not going for his eyes."

Gunn offers he has an idea of the perfect place to go for, where it will hurt.

Angel stops the elevator door from closing, willing to listen to Gunn's idea.


Spike, waiting in the Viper
Angel exits the private elevator into the parking garage. He walks up to a black Viper and opens the door where he finds Spike, already inside, waiting in the passenger seat. He notes Angel is terribly predictable, he just knew he'd pick that car.
Angel moves to another car
Angel tells him to get out.

Spike refuses. The idea of haunting Angel for eternity is starting to appeal to him. He notes he could drive him totally crazy and there wouldn't be anything Angel could do to stop it.
Spike, ready for a road trip
Angel slams the door shut and walks over to the sporty, silver-gray Trans Am convertible parked next to the Viper. He gets in and finds Spike already inside, planted in the passenger seat. Angel sighs in frustration.

Spike is looking forward to a road trip, the two of them "together again." He asks where they're going.

Angel answers curtly, "To see the wizard."


entering Hainsley's
A smartly dressed manservant holds the door open as Angel and Spike enter the posh abode of Magnus Hainsley. The manservant asks if they have an appointment.

Spike says he sent them an invitation.

Angel tells him he's from Wolfram & Hart.
"I'm his date."
Spike adds, "I'm his date."

Angel purses his lips and rolls his eyes heavenward in annoyance.

The manservant informs them Hainsley is with a client, he doesn't like to be interrupted.

Angel doesn't care about that, he directs the man to get his employer.
the manservant
The manservant tells Angel and Spike to wait there then departs.
Spike thinks it's too civilized
As Angel and Spike look around inside the house, Spike notes it's all too civilized for his taste. Hainsley makes minced meat out of one of Angel's employees and here's Angel, making nice.

Angel says he's trying to avoid a "body count."

Spike sees something and tells Angel it appears Hainsley keeps one on hand.
corpses on display
They enter a room where there are countless corpses, all dressed and posed as if at a party. Spike scoffs, thinking Hainsley likes to "play with dollies."

Angel flips on the light and notes it's not for Hainsley, it's a "showroom."
Hainley performs a ritual
In another room, the corpse of a young woman is lying on a table, positioned above a pentagram on the floor. A middle aged, balding, rotund man, Magnus Hainsley, moves his hand over the woman's body as he hums, performing a ritual of some kind.
the demon ponders his choice
The demon in the room with him watches the proceedings, saying at first he was going to go with someone older, "more distinguished, kind of a 50-something Shirley Temple Black with it, ultra-respectable, ambassador to somewhere feel" but admits in the end he chose pretty. He reckons everybody does. His eyes briefly flash red.
Hainsley begins the transfer
Hainsley's hand sinks into the chest of the corpse. The demon is slightly repulsed by that. Hainsley extends his free hand toward the demon who groans as he dissolves into particles and light that enter Hainsley through his hand, traveling through his body and into the corpse of the young woman.
"Kill them."
The manservant enters and offers apologies for the interruption. He says there are more men from W&H who want to see him and they seem persistent.

Hainsley tells him to "Kill them."

The manservant departs.


Spike thinks the necromancer is into necrophilia
In the showroom, Spike and Angel look around. Spike offers perhaps Hainsley is just lonely and likes to throw himself parties. He looks at one of the female corpses and suggests perhaps Hainsley likes to show them " a good time, if you know what I mean."

Angel shoots him a look of disgust.

Spike doesn't understand the revulsion, pointing out the corpses probably don't mind.
Angel doesn't like the implication
Angel says he minds.
Spike doesn't reckon the corpses care
Spike thinks the corpses are the lucky ones, they only had to die once and then got to move on. Nobody is forcing them back against their will.

Angel informs him again that he minds.
the manservant, armed with cleavers
The manservant enters and announces Hainsley requested he send them back to W&H. He pulls a couple of meat cleavers from behind his back and flips them around a bit, demonstrating he's experienced using them.

Spike figures there are buckets in Angel's future.
a spoon to the head
Angel retrieves a spoon from a cup and saucer in the hands of one of the posed corpses. He throws it, embedding it in the manservant's forehead. He screams and drops the cleavers.
Spike hopes for a show
Spike is disappointed there was so little action. He notes the manservant pull the spoon from his forehead as Angel looks on warily. Spike is encouraged there may be some entertainment to come after all.

The manservant drops to the floor, dead, disappointing Spike.
Angel would prefer Spike not root for the opposition
Angel says he knows Spike can't help, but he'd appreciate it if he didn't cheer on the other side.

Spike is happy to cheer for anybody who can bring Angel down a few pegs.
Angel wants to know Spike's issue
Angel wants to know what Spike's problem is.

Spike says Angel is his problem.
Spike rants
Angel walks out, Spike follows, continuing his ranting. He's got it too good, "You're king of a 30 floor castle, with all the cars, comfort, power and glory you could ever want. And here I save the world, throw myself on the proverbial hand grenade for love, honor and all the right reasons and what do I get? Bloody well toasted and ghosted is what I get, isn't it? It's just not fair."
Angel counters
Angel turns and angrily tells him Spike asked for a soul, he didn't. Angel spent 100 years trying to come to terms with "infinite remorse" and it almost killed him. He points out Spike spent "3 weeks, moaning in a basement, and then you were fine!" He wonders what's fair about that?
"Are you getting blurry or is it --?"
Spike looks at him quizzically and asks, "Are you getting blurry or is it --?" Spike fades out and disappears.

An exasperated Angel continues his search for Hainsley.


Hainsley invites Angel in
Angel knocks the doors down to the room Hainsley uses for the rituals and finds him calmly washing his hands. He invites Angel in, noting the "door is open". Hainsley is surprised to see the boss, he expected more minions. He thinks Angel should show more respect.
the animated corpse
The corpse of the young woman on the table sits up, now seemingly fully alive. She can see the two of them have things to discuss and plans to get out of there. As she walks past Angel, he grabs her. She turns to him, her eyes flashing red. He punches her, knocking her out.
Angel wonders what Hainsley charges
Angel asks what Hainsley charges to install the average demon into a human body. He's sure there are many who would like to pass as human, to "walk among the sheep."

Hainsley smiles, assuring Angel the "average" demon couldn't afford it.

Angel tells him he's cutting off his supply of corpses.
Hainsley uses his power
As Hainsley extends his hand, Angel grimaces as his body stiffens. Hainsley wonders who Angel thinks he's addressing.
Angel, in Hainsley's invisible grasp
As Angel is pulled toward Hainsley, he tells him, "I eat the dead for breakfast, son. You're just another plate of bacon and eggs."

Spike shows up at the doorway.

Hainsley is amused Angel brought a ghost as backup.
Spike tells Hainsley to carry on
Spike informs him he's not helping, just haunting. He tells Hainsley to go on doing what he 's doing.

Hainsley tells Angel he'd like to turn him inside out, he could dust him where he stands and wouldn't need a stake to do it. He releases Angel from his invisible grasp, noting the Senior Partners wouldn't like that, they have plans for Angel.
Angel places a call
Angel says he has some plans as well. He flips open his cell phone and tells Gunn to "do it." He flips the phone shut.
Hainsley asks about an "air strike"
Hainsley asks sarcastically if he called in an "air strike".

Angel tells him his bank accounts have been frozen, his paper assets terminated and his books have been given to a motivated contact they have at the Internal Revenue Service. He notes in five minutes, all Hainsley will have is the house. In ten minutes, he'll lose that.

As Angel leaves, Hainsley tells him it's illegal, he won't get away with it. He'll sue.

Angel wishes him luck on that, pointing out W&H are his attorneys.

Hainsley warns him this isn't the end of it.
Spike taunts Angel
Spike follows Angel toward the front door of the house, snarking about the way Angel handled things. He suddenly disappears mid-sentence.

Angel is relieved to be rid of him as he opens the door and walks out.
Spike finds himself back with Hainsley
A surprised Spike finds himself reappearing in front of a smug Magnus Hainsley who points out he has power over the dead. He obviously brought Spike to him. Hainsley says Spike is a ghost, "well, close enough anyway", and that's a terrible way to be. Neither here nor there, just stuck somewhere in the middle. Spike can't fix it, can't control it, can't lift a finger.

Spike wants to know what any of this has to do with Hainsley.
Hainsley makes an offer
Hainsley offers to give it all back; "freedom, power of choice, I can put your destiny back in your own flesh and bone hands." He can get Spike a corporeal body, but he wants something from Spike in exchange.
"You've come to the right ghost."
Spike eagerly wonders if what Hainsley wants involves hurting Angel.

Hainsley smiles.

Spike smiles in response, saying "You've come to the right ghost."



Angel returns to his office at W&H where Gunn tells him they wiped out all of Hainsley's assets. He figures that's gotta hurt.
Fred, Wes
Fred and Wes enter. Wes asks if Hainsley is out of business.

Angel answers he is, for now.

Fred asks if Angel thinks he's not going away.
Angel wants to know how to get rid of Spike
Angel mentions Hainsley did say this wasn't the end of it. Angel would like to discuss his "spiritual crisis". He notes Spike faded out at Hainsley's place but they all know he'll keep coming back and he doesn't want that. He asks Fred and Wes to explain how to get him out of there.

Fred says he can't get out.

Angel doesn't want to hear can't.
Fred lets Wes explain
Fred tells Wes to explain as she takes a seat next to Gunn.

Wes had his department do research on the amulet, there isn't much to be found on releasing Spike from it, "at least, not in the conventional sense".

Angel wonders about the "unconventional sense."
Wes offers the 'unconventional solution'
Wes answers, they can give Spike what he wants, "eternal rest."
Harmony chats as Spike walks by
Spike passes through the closed elevator door at W&H and heads down the hall toward Angel's office. He passes Harmony who's clearing up papers at her desk. She tells him it's fine that he's not talking to her. When they were together, he treated her "like day old rat blood", she doesn't expect things to be different just because he's a ghost now.

Spike, annoyed, asks what she's going on about.
Harm thought Spike might want to talk
Harm admits she thought maybe, since Spike had a soul now, he'd open up and talk to her but she guesses "a leopard can't change its stripes."

Spike points out leopards have spots.

She caustically thanks him for sharing, notes that was enlightening, and walks off.
Spike does some eavesdropping
Spike hears the conversation in Angel's office and stops outside of it, eavesdropping.

Angel says it's an unusual case, but they don't have a choice.

Wes agrees it's what they'd do in the case of any haunting, "an exorcism of sorts."
Fred, uncomfortable with the solution
Fred reminds them they're talking about "killing him." She understands he's dead, but if they do this, he'll be "gone dead, forever." She doesn't think that feels right.
Wes thinks it's the merciful option
Wes agrees with her, but doesn't think it's right leaving him tied to W&H either, caught between realms, "with no control over his fate, not able to touch anything, affect anything, unable to fight." Wes thinks freeing him to cross over is the most merciful option.

Angel is all for the mercy. He asks how to get it done.

Wes says the amulet is protected by magic that makes it invulnerable, but the magic won't have power on hallowed ground.

Gunn asks if a church would do.

Wes confirms it would, or a cemetery. Either way, the amulet has to be taken there and destroyed.

Fred asks how to do that.

Wes reckons a sharp blow will finish it.
Gunn wonders what Angel thinks
Gunn asks Angel what he thinks about the plan.

Angel quietly admits he wants to sleep on it.
Angel wants to sleep on it
Fred lays the amulet on Angel's desk then departs with Gunn and Wes.

Spike leaves as he sees them coming out of the office.

Angel retrieves the amulet from his desk and heads upstairs on the private elevator, to his apartment.


Angel enters his apartment
Angel exits the elevator and enters his apartment. He ponders the amulet in his hand as he tosses his jacket onto the couch and keeps walking.
Angel heads for bed
Angel comes out of the bathroom, having changed for bed. He crawls under the covers, switches off the light and settles in to sleep.

Spike shows up in the bedroom.

Angel isn't pleased.
"On top of the world ..."
Spike looks out the window, quietly noting Angel is "on top of the world, looking down on ... well, everyone." He figures it must feel good to be king.

Angel tells him the rules, haunting only during work hours and his apartment is off limits.

Spike says he didn't come for a fight.
Angel, unsure what's up with Spike
Angel isn't so sure.

Spike knows he couldn't, even if he wanted to. He repeats Wesley's words about his not being able to affect anything.

Angel realizes he overheard the conversation.
Spike admits overhearing
Spike admits he did.

Angel asks how much he heard.

Spike answers, enough. He reveals Hainsley tried to make a deal with him, offered to give him a corporeal body if he double-crossed Angel.

Angel figures he'd find that proposition tempting. He wonders what Spike told Hainsley.

Spike says that's the problem, that Angel even had to ask him the question. He reminds him he no longer works for that side and besides, he doesn't trust Hainsley anymore than Angel trusts him [Spike].
Angel asks what Spike wants
Angel asks what he wants from him.

Spike can't live this way, as useless, as nothing. He wants it to end.


Spike figures he found a place
Angel and Spike walk through a cemetery. They stop near a large headstone. Spike reckons it's a good place, "feels hallowed enough."

Angel pulls the amulet from his coat pocket and asks Spike if he's sure he wants this.
Spike is ready to end it
Spike has no interest in hanging out with Angel and his crew, forever stuck in the role of ghostly sidekick. He thinks Angel knows, as does he, this is the right thing to do.

Angel places the amulet on top of the headstone and picks up an urn to smash it with.

Spike tells him he's glad it's Angel doing him in, "Feels right, you being my grandsire and all. Circle of death, eh?"
Angel says good-bye
Angel tells him good-bye. He raises the urn and smashes himself in the side of the head with it.

Spike, amused, points out he missed.

Angel hits himself in the face with the urn, then drops it as he's raised off of the ground.
Hainsley arrives
Magnus Hainsley shows himself. He notes a vampire should consider carefully before messing with someone who wields power over the dead. He sends Angel flying into the outer wall of a crypt, knocking him out.
Spike
Spike chides him for taking so long to finally show up, noting he almost got a one-way ticket to the beyond.

Hainsley assures him he wouldn't have let anything happen to Spike, he's the centerpiece of the plan.

Spike reminds him it's their plan and Hainsley had better hold up his end of the deal. He doesn't intend to be used by anyone.
Hainsley looks over toward Angel
Hainsley informs him he will be, but he'll honor his part of the deal, afterward Spike will get the reward he asked for, he'll be back in control of his own afterlife. As he looks over at an unconscious Angel, still lying on the ground, he notes control is all anyone ever really wants.


Angel wakes to a predicament
Angel wakes to find himself lying on the table at Hainsley's house, in the ritual room.

Hainsley greets him and asks if he had a nice nap.
Hainsley in a bad mood
As Angel tries to sit up, Hainsley extends his hand and knocks him back down, noting he's had a tough day, thanks to Angel.

Angel figures Hainsley's day is going to get worse.

Hainsley doesn't think so, reminding Angel he's a necromancer and Angel is dead. Angel can't touch him.
Angel reckons the Senior Partners won't be pleased
Angel concedes that may be true but wonders what Hainsley thinks the Senior Partners will do when he turns up missing.

Hainsley informs him he won't be missing, he'll be at his desk tomorrow morning where he'll undo all the damage that was done to Hainsley and his assets, along with reinstating the Internment Acquisitions Dept.

Angel wonders why he'd do any of that.
Spike lets Angel in on the plan
Spike shows up and informs Angel it will be him, in Angel's body. Spike notes he didn't really have a choice. He didn't intend to be exorcised, banished to oblivion. Hainsley will give him his body back after he takes Angel's for a "test drive". He mentions the upside, he goes in, and Angel goes poof. Gone for good. Spike ponders the possibilities, "Yours truly will be running the show. Your cars, your fancy digs, everything and everyone I deserve will be mine." He considers perhaps having a go at Fred, noting she seems to look up to Angel.

Angel tells him to shut up.
Spike tells Hainsley to get on with it
Spike agrees there's been enough chat. He tells Hainsley to get on with it.
Angel, having a bad day
Hainsley tells Angel he's never done this to a conscious corpse before, he imagines it's going to be pretty painful. He starts his humming and moves his hand over Angel's chest then plunges his hand in as Spike smiles.

Hainsley extends his free hand toward Spike who dissolves into particles and light that move into Hainsley through his hand, travel up his arm over to the other, still resting inside Angel's chest.
things don't go as Hainsley planned
Hainsley realizes something isn't right when the light stops at his forearm rather than traveling the rest of the way down into Angel's body. His hand is pulled out of Angel who punches him, then rolls over the top of him onto his feet on the other side of Hainsley. Angel notes he can touch him now.
Hainsley isn't finished yet
Hainsley extends his hand and sends Angel flying across the room. He informs him his ghost can't control him for long, he has power over the dead, remember? He extends his hand toward Angel again, but it has no effect this time as his arm is forced to the side.

Angel punches him a few times, then tosses him, slamming his head on the edge of the table. Hainsley slumps to the floor.
Hainsley's body, Spike's headAngel gets a surprise
As Angel moves cautiously toward him, Hainsley gets up and starts punching. He gets in a few good shots before Angel retrieves a nearby serving tray and tosses it like a frisbee, decapitating Hainsley. To Angel's surprise, the headless corpse stays standing briefly as Spike's head protrudes from the neck. The corpse falls away.

Spike admits Hainsley was dead since hitting the table, he didn't want to miss the chance to take some shots at Angel.


Wes asks about the plan
The next day at W&H, Angel and Wes step off the elevator. Wes asks about Spike telling Angel the plan.
Angel notes Spike isn't into sharing
Angel says he did, after Spike learned Hainsley was the conduit for the transfer, the trap "fell into place."

Wes thinks it was a bit reckless.

Angel stops at Harmony's desk where she hands him a file folder and a mug. Wes notes it would be prudent for Spike to share his plans with the rest of them if he's going to be sticking around.
"Preaching to the horse's mouth."Wes, Angel, trying to decipher Harmony speak
Angel says Spike isn't really good with the sharing thing.

Harmony agrees, "Preaching to the horse's mouth."

Angel and Wes look at her, both sharing the same state of confusion.


Fred finds Spike in her office
Fred arrives at the lab and enters her office, where she finds Spike, waiting. She asks if she can help him.

He figures that's the question.

She doesn't understand what he's getting at.
Spike thinks Fred can help
He notes she's the smart one with all the ghost knowledge.

She laughs nervously and admits the occult is really Wesley's specialty, considering his Watcher's training.

Spike observes she's the "science queen", she understands the hows and whys of things.
Fred asks if there's something --
An obviously uncomfortable Fred asks if there's something --

Spike tells her he's "slipping."

Fred doesn't understand.
Spike explains what's happening
A wistful Spike explains, "I don't want to go but it's like ... it's like ... the ground underneath me is splitting open and my legs are straddling both sides of this bloody big chasm. It's getting wider, pulling me in."

Fred asks if that's what's happening when he disappears.
Spike admits being afraid"Help me?"
He turns his back to her and answers, "I know what's down there, where it's trying to take me and it's not the place heroes go. Not by a bloody long shot. It's the other one, full of fire and torment and it's happening. And I'm terrified."

He turns his head to look over his shoulder at her and asks, "Help me?"



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