Gunn, Fred, Angel, and Lorne are preparing for a nighttime picnic of Chinese food. Wes is the last to arrive. Fred scans Wes with a security wand and announces she's found no surveillance bugs.

Angel notes Wes was late.

Wes says he thought someone was following him.

Gunn understands the need to be careful but it feels strange to him, hiding from the firm they're supposed to be running.

Angel points out they aren't hiding, just playing it safe. There are factions at the firm that want to destroy them.

Fred says they're not all evil, they work with these people, she sees some of them more than Wes, Angel, Lorne and Gunn.

Wes asks accusingly, "And you think you can trust him?" Fred looks at him. Wes corrects himself, "Them."

Fred doesn't understand what he's getting at.

Wes clarifies, "These people, the ones you're spending so much time with lately." He turns his back to her and adds, "Knox, for example."

Fred fumbles for an answer as Wes turns to face her. She says they're friendly, "But, he's under me --" She realizes how that sounds and adds, "I mean, I'm on top of him -- professionally!" She doesn't believe Knox is evil.

Angel reckons they can all agree the Senior Partners are evil and gave them control of the firm for a reason. He figures they need to find out why.

Gunn notes they've only been there a month.

Fred says they haven't had much time to covertly check things out, running the firm is a lot of work.

Lorne adds he's been busy with the entertainment division.

Wes asks suspiciously about Gunn.

Gunn wants to know what that's about.

Fred hesitantly offers that perhaps Wolfram and Hart added something besides the knowledge of the law when Gunn got his intellect enhanced.

Wes starts to say, "The alteration to your mental capacity --"

Gunn cuts him off, assuring Wes his mental capacity is the same as it always was, the procedure just woke up some brain cells.

Angel thinks the concern is a legitimate one, saying Gunn "gave them access to --"

Gunn interrupts to point out he made a deal, just as all of them did but he seems to be the only one willing to accept that. They each got something.

Angel notes what they got; "Fear, mistrust, a great motor pool."

Lorne adds he got the "Nancy Sinatra collection, the original 45's."

Wes pulls a pen from his pocket and says he got a sterling silver pen, with his name on it, but that's not the point.

Gunn defensively wonders what is the point, that he's spying for the Senior Partners?

Angel denies anyone was suggesting that.

Gunn reckons they were thinking it.

Fred denies that assumption.

Angel knows the Senior Partners have a plan for them and they need to be prepared for it.

Fred offers they haven't been ignoring that fact, it's just that they've had a lot to deal with.

Wes says, "Between running our departments, handling clients, dealing with Spike --"

Angel says Spike is just a "distraction, as soon as he's released from his ties to Wolfram & Hart --"

Wes notes getting rid of the ghost may not be so easy, "That could take years."

Fred tells them he's not a ghost, exactly, using the amulet to close the Hellmouth turned Spike into something "unique."

Wes starts to say something about that when he's interrupted by Angel asking to borrow his pen. Wes sighs and hands it over.

Angel departs with the pen in hand.

A young blonde woman is running as something growls viciously, chasing her. The predator catches up to her and knocks her to the ground. She turns back and finds herself face to face with a werewolf.

The werewolf slashes her upper arm with its claws then bites her.

Angel arrives and knocks it off of the woman. Fight ensues. Angel punches it a few times, then stabs it with Wesley's sterling silver pen, killing it.

The werewolf morphs into the form of a naked man. Angel looks around and finds the young woman has gone. He hears the sound of a car taking off.

---

In the lobby of W&H, Angel hands Gunn a sketch he'd made of the young woman in the park. He says the werewolf bit her, he smelled her blood on it.

Gunn notes it's the second night of the full moon, she has two more nights "to go dog-girl."

Angel says they have 12 hours to find her.

Gunn is confident they will.

Angel knows they have to, she won't understand what's happening to her.

Gunn reckons she'll figure it out pretty quickly, saying "McManus did, the guy you --"

Angel quietly finishes that, "Killed."

Gunn looks at a file he's holding, telling Angel he checked out the guy's financial records and police reports. He'd left his family a couple of years ago, moved around a lot. Mangled bodies showed up occasionally for the first year but for the past six months or so, "Guy was leaving corpses like bread crumbs."

Angel thinks the guy tried to control it for awhile, then gave up, "Thought he had to fight it alone and ended up with nothing worth fighting for." As he and Gunn step onto the elevator, he adds the girl in the park isn't alone, "She's got us."

---

In her office, Fred is doing research, working at the computer, checking some papers, thumbing through a book.

Spike walks through the wall into the office. He notes she seems busy and wonders if what she's working on has anything to do with him.

She tells him it doesn't.

Spike figures it's about "werewolf girl", he heard about it. He thinks that's a shame but he's concerned about his own troubles.

Fred tells him she's busy right now.

Spike reminds her he's got his own problem and she offered to help him with that.

Fred remembers and tells him she will help, she has some ideas.

Spike wonders what ideas.

Fred impatiently tells him this is going to have to wait.

Spike doesn't know how long he can wait, admitting things are "getting worse."

Fred asks what he means.

He says his trips to the netherworld are lasting longer.

Fred asks how long.

Spike tells her, "It feels like forever. Look, something's trying to hold onto me, on the other side. If you don't do something soon, one of these times I may not come back."

Fred thinks perhaps Wes could help, the mystical is really more his specialty.

Spike is adamantly opposed to that idea, telling her he and Wes have a history.

Fred asks what that's about.

Spike claims they have a history going back to when Wes was a young Watcher, just out of the academy, they crossed paths. "It was a what-you-call, battle of wills and blood was spilled. Vendettas were sworn, it was a whole --"

Fred sees his cock-'n-bull story for what it is and calls him on it, "You're so full of crap."

Spike admits she's right, he just doesn't want anybody else to know what's happening to him, especially not Angel.

Fred offers she appreciates his situation but right now they have a more pressing problem, finding and helping the young woman that was attacked by the werewolf.

Spike notes dejectedly he's left to just "fade into nothingness."

Fred says there's no need for the dramatic. She suggests he try not to fade out, they'll figure it out sooner or later. She notes they have all kinds of resources at W&H as she leaves her office.

---

In the lab, Fred is working at the computer. Angel asks if they're trying to tell him all the resources at their disposal are useless.

Wes answers, they're doing the best they can.

Angel notes they've come up with two years of history on the dead guy but can't find anything on the young woman.

Fred explains they have his fingerprints to work with, they don't have hers.

Angel wonders if there isn't something at the scene of the attack that could be useful.

Wes says they didn't come up with anything.

Spike appears at the top of the stairs, just outside of Fred's office, looking down on the lab floor. He says it's too bad, letting the girl get away. "Somebody's slipping."

Angel shoots him an annoyed glance then ignores him. He shows one of the lab techs the sketch of the girl and tells her to get people on the street. He wants to know if anyone has seen her.

Wes hands him a file folder, saying the psychics have been working with the young woman's blood. They pick up images, imprints. The folder contains a blurry photo-like image.

Angel thinks it must be the woman's bedroom. He asks if Wes can clear up the picture.

Wes says it's not like a photograph.

Angel moves into the back section of the lab where the body of McManus is laid out on an autopsy table.

Wes introduces the doctor examining him, "Royce", a "cryptozoologist" on Wesley's staff. He figured he'd be able to tell them what they'd be dealing with when they found the woman.

Royce identifies the species as "Lycanthropus Exterus", noting it was a type unknown in North America, until now.

Fred wonders how it differs from the standard werewolf.

Royce notes it walks upright, has longer canines than normal and a bigger arm span.

Angel's only concern is for the young woman.

Spike figures that's too bad, saying she's in the "kill or be killed club" now.

Angel curtly informs Spike she's under his protection.

Spike notes that only works if Angel finds her before she transforms. If he finds her after, "It won't be easy taking her out. I had a wee spat with a werewolf myself, once. Fought for over an hour. Brutal. Vicious." He holds up his hand and adds, "Almost lost my --"

Fred interrupts to tell him Angel killed the werewolf in the park with a pen.

Spike has nothing more to say.

---

The young woman who was attacked in the park, Nina, is in her bed sleeping fitfully. She's pale and sweating. She wakes and weakly sits up. She hears the sound of chopping and a child's laughter somewhere in the house. She gets to her feet and walks slowly, pausing to steady herself briefly on the bedpost. She grabs her clothes off of the bed.

In the kitchen, Nina's sister Jill, dressed in nurse's scrubs, prepares a meal. Her nine year old daughter, Amanda, helps.

Nina enters the kitchen and asks how long she was asleep.

Jill answers, it's been all day, she thought Nina must not be feeling well. She passes on a message, "Zach called, he missed you in life drawing."

Nina is distracted by the loud (to her) sound of a fly buzzing at the window.

Amanda asks why her neck is bruised.

Nina doesn't know. She pulls her hair back and looks at her neck reflected in the polished surface of a teapot on the stove.

Jill takes some ice from the freezer, wraps it in a towel and hands the towel to Nina. She asks if there's anything Nina wants to tell her.

Nina puts the ice to her neck and declines, saying she must have tripped while she was jogging. She tells her sister rather urgently not to overcook the meat.

Amanda moves over to the skillet on the stove and asks if she can flip.

Jill suggests she ask Nina to help her with that.

Nina walks over to the stove and watches as Amanda turns the patties, mesmerized by the blood running from the surface of the meat.

Jill asks if she feels like baby-sitting Amanda that evening. If not, she could try to change shifts.

Nina assures her she's fine as she continues staring at the meat.

Amanda calls her name.

Nina looks at her and sees the girl's throat viciously slashed and bloody. The hallucination disappears.

Amanda asks if she's okay.

Nina answers she's fine.

---

In the lab, Fred, Angel and the others continue trying to come up with information that will lead them to Nina. Fred reveals what she's come up with based on tire tracks. The tires are at least 5 years old.

Gunn comes in and says someone recognized the girl from Angel's sketch. She was seen the night before in east Hollywood.

Angel summarizes what they know; they're looking for a mid-sized sedan, at least five years old, somewhere in the Hollywood area.

Spike notes the clock is ticking, moonrise is coming.

Wes works at the computer, having gotten access to the Department of Motor Vehicles database. He says there are thousands of possibilities that fit the limited information they have.

Lorne offers the woman, having just been attacked by a werewolf, was probably in a rush to get home. He doesn't figure she was likely to stop for red lights.

Gunn thinks they might find something via the traffic cameras. He sits down at a computer and starts to call up the information. He looks back over his shoulder and snipes, "Course, I might leak the info to the Senior Partners cuz, we're tight."

Wes brusquely tells him to "Just do it."

Angel asks if the van is ready.

Fred assures him it is.

Spike thinks they're going to a lot of trouble for one girl. He tells Fred she's got other things to do, "important things."

Angel tells him, "You know that whoosh thing that you do when you're suddenly not here anymore? I love that." Spike glares.

Gunn announces he's come up with something. He has the make and model of car along with the intersection where the red light was run the night before. He hands Angel the picture of the driver taken by the traffic camera.

Angel recognizes her as the woman in the park.

Wes calls up her name on the computer, Nina Ash, along with her address.

---

At Nina's, she's posing as her niece sketches her. Nina watches as the scratching of the pencil against the paper becomes increasingly louder and more irritating.

Amanda looks up and asks what's wrong.

Nina tells her she's going to lie down for awhile.

Nina makes her way upstairs to her bedroom where she collapses on the floor.

Amanda hears the thud and slowly walks toward the stairs. She calls out to her aunt then walks up the steps toward the bedroom.

Nina goes into violent convulsions, beginning the transformation.

Amanda approaches the closed bedroom door and calls out to her.

Nina begins to change, her fingers and nails growing, large fangs extending from her mouth.

Amanda asks if she can come in as she slowly reaches for the doorknob.

Nina has completed the transformation and looks toward the door, growling.

Angel shows up in the open bedroom window and greets Nina, "Hey doggie, come and get it." The werewolf rushes Angel. They both fall out the second story window to the ground below. Fight ensues.

Wes shoots the werewolf with a taser, knocking it out.

Angel compliments him on the shot.

Amanda enters Nina's bedroom and looks around, confused.

---

A naked and confused Nina awakens to find herself in a barred cell. She notices clothes neatly folded and piled just outside of the bars. She reaches through and retrieves them, getting herself dressed. She hears the outer door being unlocked and looks toward it, frightened.

Angel enters and opens the cell door.

Nina asks who he is.

He tells her it's okay and introduces himself as he enters the cell.

She backs away from him.

He assures her she's safe.

She's glad to hear that as she bolts for the door.

Angel stops her from leaving.

She screams for help.

Angel addresses her by name and tells her he's trying to help her.

Nina isn't buying that. She wants to know how he knows her name, what he wants from her.

Angel says he wants her to see something.

---

In Angel's office, Nina watches a surveillance tape of a werewolf in the cell. She wonders what she's supposed to be looking at.

Angel asks if she doesn't remember being attacked a couple of nights earlier.

Now she remembers as she looks at the surveillance tape. She thinks that's what attacked her.

Angel tells her, "Not exactly." He says he was in the area, he heard her scream but by the time he arrived on the scene --

Nina remembers he was the one who saved her.

Angel says he was too late.

She looks at the monitor and watches in horror as the werewolf in the cell transforms into her.

Angel explains it was a werewolf and it bit her, which began a process, the effects of which she's probably already experienced, "distorted vision, heightened senses."

Nina doesn't want to believe it but puts it together. She says her sister was cooking meat, the blood -- She realizes her niece was in danger.

Angel assures her that her sister and niece are fine.

Nina doesn't think so, shouting she wanted to rip out the child's throat.

Angel assures her it wasn't her, it was what's inside of her.

Nina isn't sure there's a distinction.

He tells her there is, he knows it's hard for her to understand all of this.

She doesn't think he knows anything, pointing out, "You didn't wake up and find out you're a monster!" He can't know.

Angel tells her he's not a werewolf, but he knows what it's like, he's a monster too.

She asks if he's like "a Frankenstein" or something.

Angel is slightly offended by that, "What? No!" He hesitantly offers he's a vampire.

Nina repeats that, "Vampire."

Angel tells her he has a soul, he's not evil and neither is she.

Nina notes vampires kill people.

Angel says they can control themselves if they want to. He does it every day and she can do it too.

Nina sits down on the couch and sighs.

Angel offers to help her.

She quietly asks if he can cure her.

He admits he can't, but he can keep her safe.

---

Angel exits his office and joins Royce and Fred who are standing out in the hall. Fred asks how Nina is doing.

Angel answers she's agreed to stay in the cell for the night, but she's scared. He looks at Royce and asks what they should do next.

Spike appears and answers, "Wait for the show. Should be a good one, everyone on pins and needles, dreading the moonrise. Then, pop goes the werewolf."

Angel does his best to ignore the interruption as he, Royce and Fred walk down the hall. Angel says he can't stop what's going to happen, but he can keep her from getting hurt.

Royce offers the early transformations are the roughest, the strength of the werewolf combined with the fear and disorientation makes things more difficult.

Fred asks if Nina could injure herself.

Royce answers, he's seen them bash their heads against walls, claw at their own skin.

Angel suggests tranquilizing her, letting her sleep through it.

Royce thinks that's okay for the night but it's not a long term solution.

Fred asks if there's anything they can do.

Royce says they like familiar objects and scents. He suggests taking Nina home and letting her collect some of her things to bring back with her, it might help to calm her.

Spike doesn't reckon "fetching her blankie" is going to change anything.

Fred tells him he's not helping.

Spike is undeterred, adding his opinion, "The girl's a killer. Maybe not tonight or tomorrow, but she will get out of that cage."

Angel says she won't if she doesn't want to.

Royce adds she'll want to, that's just the way it is.

Spike says when it's not the full moon time of the month, she'll be wracked with guilt, "What with a soul and all."

Angel counters, "Didn't seem to bother you."

Spike shoots back, "Oh, it's been nothing but a pain in my --" He disappears.

A relieved Angel reacts with, "Finally!" He says he'll take Nina back to her place and heads down the hall.

Fred follows and reminds him it's daylight, unless he's planning on staying in the car --

Angel realizes she's right and instructs her to take security with her, in case Nina changes her mind.

---

Fred and Nina are in the back of a van, accompanied by W&H security personnel. Nina wonders if all the security people are for her.

Fred denies that initially, then admits they are, sort of. Just in case Nina decides to --

Nina offers, "Run away?"

Fred assures her she's not a prisoner, it's just important that she stay with them for the night.

Nina finds it all tough to deal with, saying she should be in ceramics class, learning Raku. She feels like that's someone else's life now.

Fred reminds her it's only three nights a month, not even days. Her life doesn't have to change all that much.

Nina wonders how Fred knows, and asks if she's a monster too.

Fred answers she's just a "standard issue science nerd" but admits she did spend five years in a demon dimension, until Angel rescued her.

Nina figures Angel saves a lot of women.

Fred says, "Girls, guys, puppies ... He's pretty much an equal opportunity saver."

Nina asks if Fred and Angel are a couple.

Fred says no, he was sort of seeing someone but she -- She adds, "Angel doesn't date much ... At all. Because of his circumstances."

Nina asks if it's because he's a vampire.

Fred says that's part of it, it's complicated.

Nina thinks that sounds lonely.

Fred tells her maybe, sometimes, but he has his friends. They try to be there for each other.

Nina notes it's like a family.

Fred agrees with that, "Like a demon hunting, helpless helping .. dysfunctional family."

---

In his office, Gunn finishes up some paperwork. He tells Angel to sign it and they can release McManus' body to his family.

Angel sits in the chair opposite Gunn's desk.

Gunn tells him he's made arrangements to transport the body back to -- He notices Angel lost in thought as he continues, "The North Pole. Turns out he had a close personal relationship with Santa."

Angel doesn't say anything.

Gunn says his name.

Angel tells him he was listening, "Turning over the ... Santa?"

Gunn stands up and tells Angel he saved Nina's life, if he hadn't gotten there --

Angel knows the werewolf would have killed her, but it doesn't change what she's going to have to go through.

Gunn knows it's tough, but Angel did the best he could.

Angel curtly tells him he doesn't need a "pep talk" right now. He suggests Gunn, "Just do your job."

Gunn decides to do just that, elsewhere. He collects some papers from his desk and walks out, nearly running Lorne down as he exits.

Lorne comes in, noting Gunn seemed a bit cranky. He looks at Angel and tells him, "That extra weight is not looking so good on you."

Angel glances down at himself.

Lorne clarifies, he was talking about the "psychic pounds". He takes a seat on the edge of the desk, opposite Angel, and offers to help.

Angel tells him he won't sing.

Lorne is happy to hear that, he figures Angel needs some talking time and he's willing to offer a shoulder.

Angel says he's not going to be crying either.

Lorne was thinking more of offering a shoulder for leaning. He knows Angel is carrying a lot, but that's not exactly new.

Angel tells him it's really not a good time.

Lorne knows Spike showing up the first day Angel took over W&H was difficult for Angel, they've all been feeling that ever since.

Angel reckons it's no secret he doesn't like Spike.

Lorne doesn't figure it matters one way or the other, pointing out, "You're fighting so many enemies around you Angel, your punches are getting sloppy and we've got the bruises to prove it."

He stands and says they're operating in hostile territory, he doesn't want Angel to forget those who are watching his back. He departs.

---

Fred and Nina exit the van and head for Nina's house. Nina stops halfway to the house and tells Fred she's changed her mind.

Fred offers to go first, explain things, if that would help.

Nina just wants to leave.

Fred knows she's frightened, but running away won't help.

They walk into the house where they are confronted by Nina's angry sister. She demands to know what happened to Nina. She asks who Fred is.

Before Fred can introduce herself, Jill is shouting at Nina. She came home from work to find her daughter alone and afraid.

Nina tries to apologize.

Jill is having none of it. She wonders who leaves without their purse or keys?

Nina says she thought Amanda heard her say she was leaving.

Jill isn't pleased Nina seems to be blaming her daughter.

Fred steps up and claims it's her fault. She says she called Nina, nearly suicidal, because some guy in their ceramics class dumped her and then her car got towed and Nina wanted to call but her cell phone battery was dead --

Jill isn't interested in the story, telling Fred this has nothing to do with her.

Nina tells her sister to leave Fred alone.

Jill is angry that Nina left Amanda alone in the house, at night. She says she didn't want to go to school, she had to lie and tell her Nina had called.

Nina yells at her to shut up.

Jill shouts back, she'd called the police. She says Nina sleeps all day, she has bruises she doesn't remember getting, she wants to know what's going on.

Nina apologizes for what happened the previous night but tells Jill she can't count on her all the time.

Jill wonders why not, all of a sudden.

Nina suggests she find another baby-sitter as she picks up her purse and heads for the door.

Fred grabs a photograph and a small stuffed animal as she stammers for an explanation. She tells Jill that Nina will be fine as she follows her out the door.

As Nina and Fred head for the van, Fred notes it's good that Jill was shouting and angry, it means she cares.

Nina is concerned about Amanda.

Fred tells her nothing happened and it won't.

Nina knows Fred can't be sure of that.

They stop as they approach the van, Fred noting the side door ajar. She walks up and slides the door open. She sees the W&H security team, unconscious. She realizes this is not good as she pulls a tranquilizer gun and tells Nina to run.

Several masked men jump out of another van and attack. Fred gets knocked out as Nina is grabbed and pulled into the van. One of the attackers places a call on his cell phone.

A well dressed, middle aged man, Jacob Crane, answers.

The attacker tells him they "got the package."

Crane tells him to, "Bring it around back, I just had the floors done." He snaps his cell phone shut and walks out of the room.

---

Nina is dragged, screaming, into an empty room that resembles a cell. Her wrists are locked into manacles hanging from chains in the ceiling.

A heavy set woman in a lab coat approaches. She nods to one of the men standing in the room who is holding a large hose. He turns it on and rinses Nina down with it.

After a bit, he turns the water off, the woman approaches a sobbing Nina and cuts her clothes off of her with a pair of scissors. She begins scrubbing her skin with a brush as Jacob Crane impassively looks on.

---

In the conference room adjacent to Angel's office, Dr. Royce is singing "Jessie's Girl", badly, for Lorne.

In Angel's office, Wes tells Angel Lorne has read the security staff, the lab staff and most of his department. He hasn't come up with anything.

Angel reckons Lorne will know if the kidnappers had someone working inside W&H.

Wes wonders if perhaps Nina was discovered before they found her.

Gunn wonders who would have made that discovery.

Fred, sitting on the couch next to Gunn, says the kidnappers were very organized, almost military in their precision.

Wes quietly notes, "An underground, monster hunting, military organization. It's happened before."

Fred feels it's her fault for being stupid.

Angel tells her it's on him if something happens to Nina.

Fred is upset she approached the door to the van when she saw it ajar.

Gunn tells her to stop mocking herself, "Get enough of that with Blondie Bear."

Fred looks around and asks if anyone has seen Spike.

Angel says no.

Fred is concerned, noting it's been several hours. She starts to tell Angel something but is interrupted by the arrival of Dr. Royce.

Angel asks what he's found.

Royce hands him a sheet of paper and answers, the usual; "There's the sacrificers, whackos who want to rid the world of abominations and werewolf packs looking for new recruits. Then there's the paranormal sporting groups, vampire hunting in eastern Europe, that kind of thing."

Fred notices a transparent Spike walking through the lobby. She exits Angel's office and follows, calling out to him. She follows him up the lobby stairs, down a hallway, continuing to call to him to stop.

Spike walks through a wall.

Fred enters the office he disappeared into. She sees him disappear through the inner wall of the office. She rushes to the wall in an attempt to catch up with him, stumbling over the wastebasket in the process. She kneels down to pick up the trash that spilled and notices a small drug vial.

Royce enters and asks if she was looking for him.

She stands and asks if that's his office. She doesn't wait for an answer, offering an apology, explaining she was following Spike and wasn't really paying attention. She notes the spilled wastebasket and admits she made a bit of a mess.

As Royce looks down at the floor, Fred picks up a lamp and hits him in the head with it, knocking him out.

---

Wes, Fred and Gunn go through Royce's office, looking for clues. Wes looks at the drug vial and says it's "Calendula", he figures Royce expected they'd have him sing for Lorne.

Fred says he was obviously prepared to block the reading, it's like taking Valium to pass a polygraph. She was suspicious as soon as she saw the vial in the trash.

Gunn wonders how she ended up snooping in Royce's trash in the first place.

Fred says it was Spike, he led her there.

Gunn notices a false bottom in one of the desk drawers he'd removed.

In his office, Angel is throwing Royce around, demanding to know where Nina is.

Royce insists he doesn't know.

Angel slams him down onto the conference table and stands over him, grabbing him by the lapels of his lab coat.

A frightened Royce tells Angel it's a secret, "If I tell you, this man .. he's not like you. You're a good guy but he's a ... Well, no offense, but he's scarier than you."

Angel morphs into vamp face and smiles, baring his fangs. He asks Royce, "Wanna bet?"

In Royce's office, Fred is repulsed by some snapshots she's looking at. She tosses them down and considers burning a good way to deal with them.

Wes pulls a wicked looking knife with a long curved blade from the drawer and notes it's not a standard autopsy knife.

Gunn is reading over a brochure and tells the others "You're not going to believe this", as he hands it to Fred. She looks it over and reacts, "Oh, God!"

Fred, Gunn and Wes approach Angel's office. He meets them at the doorway and tells them he knows where Nina is.

Fred hands him the brochure, telling him they know what they plan to do with her.

Angel quickly scans it and notes, "It's a menu."

---

At Crane's, Nina is gagged and chained to a table, garnished with greens and vegetables. A formally dressed crowd applauds as the chef wheels the table into the dining room.

Crane thanks his guests for coming on short notice and promises them a rare treat. He tells them moonrise will occur in 15 minutes and shortly after, "Dinner will be served", as he indicates Nina.

---

Crane is chatting with guests about his first time eating werewolf, in Seville. It was a taste experience he's never forgotten. He says his chef assures him his recipe will be just as memorable as he takes a glass of champagne being served by a waiter passing through the room.

There's a knock on the door. The man inside slides open a small panel in the door and sees Royce on the other side. He slides the panel shut and opens the door.

Gunn enters and knocks the guy out. He enjoys getting back to being physical.

Angel and Wes enter as well, along with Royce. Wes has a gun pressed against Royce's back.

Royce doesn't think Crane is going to be pleased.

Gunn suggests he hope Nina is still alive.

Wes notes she has to be, at least up until dinner, since a werewolf reverts to its human form when it dies.

Gunn realizes Wes is saying they intend to eat her alive.

Crane approaches, casually noting Royce brought guests.

Angel tells him they just came to get a friend.

Gunn pulls out a shotgun and aims it at Crane.

Angel grabs a silver serving tray and knocks out Crane's chef who's been standing next to Nina, sharpening knives.

Angel works to free Nina who tells him to leave her there. Angel grabs an iron candlestick and uses it to break the chains binding Nina to the table. He tells her she'll be home tomorrow.

She says this is what she is, she can never go home again, this is better.

Angel doesn't see anything better about "ending up in a doggy bag" as he finishes breaking the chains.

Gunn looks over the menu as he keeps the shotgun aimed at Crane. He asks sarcastically, "What? No leprechaun soufflé?"

Crane scoffs, there's no such thing as leprechauns.

Several men armed with guns of their own enter the room, getting the drop on Angel and crew.

Wes notes they have a problem.

Angel tells Crane they won't leave without Nina.

Crane smugly tells him he's willing to let his people die, he wonders if Angel can say the same.

Gunn keeps the shotgun aimed at Crane and lets him know if he goes down, he's taking Crane with him.

Crane shrugs it off as a risk he's willing to take.

Angel notes Crane probably should have told him to drop the heavy candlestick as he tosses it into the air. He uses the distraction to punch one of the security people. One of the other security guys shoots Angel who stumbles back.

Wes looks toward the sound of growling and sees Nina, fully transformed, getting up from the table. She bites one of the dinner guests in the throat, killing him.

Gunn and Wes use the distraction to deal with the security people.

Gunn finds the werewolf stalking toward him. He holds the shotgun aimed at it, but doesn't fire. The werewolf knocks him to the floor.

Wes fires a tranquilizer dart into it, knocking it out.

Angel tells Crane they are going to take their friend and leave.

Crane tells him the night may not be salvageable, but his guests have paid a high price, he promised them a werewolf.

Werewolf Nina wakes up and suddenly sinks her teeth into Royce's leg.

Wes shoots another tranquilizer dart into her, knocking her out.

As Royce cries out in pain, Angel notes the fresh werewolf bite on his leg and casually tells Crane, "And a month from now, you'll have one."

Royce screams, "No!" and pleads as he's dragged out of the dining room.

---

Fred enters her office and turns on the light. She finds a transparent Spike waiting inside. She tells him she was looking for him. She asks if he was wherever he goes when he disappears.

Spike quietly answers, "There. Nowhere. I didn't think I was coming back."

Fred tries to be reassuring, pointing out he made it back, mostly. She mentions his leading her to Royce's office but realizes by his expression it wasn't intentional, he has no clue what she's talking about. She's glad he's made it back.

He tells her, "Last gasp before fire and brimstone." Then adds half-heartedly, trying to cover, "Let's party." He's not convincing himself or Fred.

Fred wants to tell Angel.

Spike is vehemently opposed to that idea.

Fred offers perhaps Angel could talk to the Senior Partners.

Spike still refuses.

Fred tells him she'll help him, she doesn't know how exactly, but she's determined to find a way to bring him back. She promises that.

Spike's form becomes solid again as he tells her, "Well, all right, then", smiles and adds, "No need to get dramatic."

---

Angel pulls the silver Trans Am convertible up in front of Nina's house. Amanda is drawing with colored chalk on the sidewalk as her mother looks on.

Nina tells him Amanda is a good artist.

Angel offers space on his refrigerator when she's ready to show her work.

Nina asks how he deals with it, knowing he's killed people.

Angel reminds her those people were going to dine on her.

She says she just wants to wake up.

Angel says one day she'll be shopping with Amanda and the werewolf thing will just be a part of who she is.

She wonders if he's going to tell her he actually likes being a vampire.

He admits being nearly indestructible has its advantages.

Nina looks over at her sister and niece, telling Angel she can't tell them.

Angel notes, "Maybe, maybe not. That part's not covered in the manual." He tells her they're waiting for her.

She wonders if Angel ever thinks about disappearing somewhere.

He answers, "Look, if you separate yourself from the ones you love, the monster wins."

She thinks he makes it sound easy.

He assures her it isn't.

Nina smiles and tells him she'll see him next month. She exits the car and hesitantly walks up into the yard.

Jill and Amanda approach and give Nina a hug as Angel looks on briefly, then departs.

---

Wes, Fred, Gunn and Lorne are looking out the window in Angel's penthouse, appreciating the view. Fred points out a building, wondering if that's the hotel.

Wes thinks it's the Scientology center.

An embarrassed Fred thinks the mistake was understandable, considering the buildings look .... nothing alike.

As they move away from the window and check the place out, Gunn notes he didn't think they'd ever see the inside of Angel's apartment.

Angel apologizes for not inviting them up sooner, admitting he needed some time to get used to the place.

Lorne approaches the bar and asks if anyone else wants a drink.

Fred thinks that's a good idea.

Wes notes the surroundings are quite luxurious.

Angel says it's "not bad."

Gunn takes a seat and says Crane's "Bistro of the bizarre" has been closed down, permanently.

Wes wonders where he can go now if he gets a craving for "Sasquatch soup".

Gunn wonders if that's "something you English eat with your beans on toast?"

All the food talk is making Fred hungry. She suggests Chinese.

Angel offers to buy.

Lorne mutters hell has just frozen over.

Gunn asks Angel if he thinks he has a chance with "werewolf girl."

Angel says, "She gave me a look."

Wes incredulously asks, "Really? A look?"

Angel furrows his brow and looks downward as Fred places an order for Chinese takeout on her cell phone.

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