"Permanent Midnight"
Author: Michelle
Email: michellabella52478@yahoo.com
Notes: I transcribed this to the best of my ability. I watched the episode
with the closed captioning on, so I think I got all the spelling correct.
Welcome to how I spent my weekend!
Angel closed the office door behind him and Wesley for privacy. The vampire simply couldn't believe what the former Watcher was suggesting. And when he blew his top he didn't want the rest of the group to see or hear it. "What do you mean, deliver Angelus?"
"Wo-Pang's a shaman, Order of the Kun-Sun-Dai," Wesley informed him. He widened his eyes with disbelief. There was no way he could be hearing correctly. "Dark mystics? You brought a dark mystic here without talking to–"
"He claims he has the power to extract souls."
"Claims?" 'You have got to be kidding me. Wesley has lost his mind if he thinks I'm going to let anyone remove my soul. Once was more than enough, thank you.'
Wesley had to make Angel see that bringing forth Angelus was their only option. "More importantly, he can restore them. Once we learn what it is Angelus knows about the Beast–"
"We're not bringing Angelus." Angel turned toward the door to leave; he could not listen to another word his friend said.
"You don't have a choice," he explained.
He whipped around. "Actually, I do. That was it. You wanna hear it again? Not with the bringing."
"Don't make this harder than it has to be, Angel. There's no Plan B, and we're running out of time. People are in serious danger."
"Then unleashing Angelus is the last thing we should do." 'I need to get it through his thick skull what a sucky idea this is.' "If he's here, I'm not. I won't be able to protect anyone from the Beast. Or from me."
"It's only temporary," Wesley said. "We'll take all the necessary precautions in the interim. Contain you. I'm not blind to the risks. I know what Angelus–"
Angel shook his head. "You have no idea what Angelus is, Wesley. All you know is what you've read in books. You've never had the pleasure of his company, and you're not going to. Get rid of the shaman." Without another word he left the office.
Wesley never had the opportunity to disagree. Apparently Angel had forgotten the time Rebecca Lowell drugged his drink with Doximal and Angelus briefly returned a few years earlier. Though their confrontation had been brief, it was long enough to give Wesley a clear idea of what Angelus was like. So he followed the vampire out into the lobby and found that he'd already headed for the door. Sharing a knowing look with Cordelia, she went after him. Wesley knew if anyone could convince Angel, she could.
When she stepped out into the darkened garden, Cordelia saw Angel sitting on a bench staring into space. "They're all going to die," she began. "The flowers. Plants. Trees. Without sun." Receiving no reaction from him, she continued. "I-I just came to say that I'm on your side. Angelus is the jumbo, family-size bad of bad ideas. He'd be a danger to all of us. You made the right call. Wesley, the others, they don't get it."
"But you do," he surmised.
"Well, if I didn't when Angelus was loose and killing in Sunnydale, then reliving his past horrors in virtual wide-screen sensurround during my tenure in Floatyville pretty much makes me an expert."
"Right." He sighed heavily. Finally, someone understood. "Do you - do you think Connor is right, that I'm being used by the Beast without even knowing?"
"No," she answered a little too quickly.
"Are you just saying that?"
"Yes. I don't know, Angel. It's possible."
"Well, if I am, then I'm already a danger to you. All of you."
Cordelia frowned. He had a point, one in which she couldn't argue.
"Well, not like Angelus would be. He's - he's smart."
"Excuse me?" Angel didn't know if he should be offended or not by her comment.
"Well…you know what I mean."
"You're saying Angelus is smarter than me."
"No. I mean…you're smart. He's just…" She didn't quite know how to complete the sentence. Words escaped her.
"Ingenious," he finished.
'Thank god he knows what I'm trying to say.' "But in that twisted, sadistic, ruthless kind of way."
"Like the Beast."
"Yes. Exactly. They think alike. Always a step or two ahead of us." She exhaled softly. "What is it about evil that jacks up the IQ points?"
'She's right,' Angel said to himself. 'God help us, she's right. Angelus is the only way to defeat this thing.' He stood up; there was work to be done if he was going to let them bring Angelus back.
Cordelia watched in shock as he walked back inside the hotel. "What? Angel?" 'What did I say?'
"We're gonna need a cage," Angel announced as soon as he entered the lobby once again.
Lorne glanced up. "Cage?" he questioned.
"Strong one," he elaborated. "Ten by twelve. Steel-reinforced. Two inch bars. Maybe three. I'll make some calls."
They all stared as he stalked into his office to make the necessary calls. Gunn was the first one to speak. "What, he thinks something like that is gonna hold the Beast?"
Wesley shook his head in disagreement. "It's not for the Beast. It's for him."
After working for nearly twenty-four hours straight, the cage was complete. Angel himself had checked the bars' strength and felt convinced they would hold his evil self. The gang gathered – sans Lorne and Fred – in the basement of the hotel. They were ready to begin.
Cordelia stood near Wo-Pang as he placed a clear globe on the table. She quickly glanced at the cage where Gunn was strapping Angel securely to the table. "What is that?" she asked him.
"It is the Muo-Ping. It is a receptacle that will house his soul," Wo-Pang told her.
She looked at it with interest. It didn't look like the Orb of Thessulah Willow had used when they restored Angel's soul before. 'Oh well. As long as it gets the job done, who cares what it looks like.' Angel heard her voice and turned his head in her direction. "Cordy? I don't want you here."
"Yeah?" she countered. "Tough."
Wo-Pang took his place behind Angel inside the cage. They were both locked inside. "It would be wise for your safety to add the second lock to the door."
"Do as he says," Wesley stated. Gunn walked over and locked the cage once more.
Cordelia approached the bars. "Angel. You don't have to do this."
The vampire stared at the ceiling and rolled his eyes. "Now she tells me," he whispered.
"Close your eyes. And don't speak," Wo-Pang ordered him. He put his hand on Angel's forehead and began to chant. "Wo qing qui wu xin li. Kun, Zhen, Xun, Kan, Li. Ci wu tong ling. Ji fad muo li. Wa hao zhao. Jue xin zi. Wan chang te da zi yuan." The shaman lowered his lips to Angel's ear. "Time to say good-bye."
He grabbed his knife and thrust it toward Angel's neck. Fortunately, Angel caught sight of this and wrenched his hand from the buckle that held him to the table. He grabbed the shaman's wrist before he could do any damage.
"Gunn!" Wesley shouted.
"Hurry!" added Cordelia as the man furiously worked to get the lock undone.
"Fool, why would I help you?" Wo-Pang asked Angel. "I serve the Awakened One."
Angel struggled with Wo-Pang. "Little help here please."
Gunn and Wesley opened the cage door and pushed Wo-Pang away. He slowly made his way to the door in hopes of escaping. With Cordelia and Connor standing there, he saw no way out.
"So this was all a set-up? This whole soul-colonic thing, for what?" Gunn wanted to know.
Angel managed to free his other arm and closed the gap between himself and the shaman. "That's what I'd like to know. Why does the Beast suddenly want me dead? Did Angelus welch on our pact? Is that it?"
When Wo-Pang refused to answer, Angel became agitated. "Okay then maybe you can shed a little light as to what the Beast's plan is." Still no answer. "Maybe I should just start taking you apart now. Piece–"
Wo-Pang gripped his knife with both hands and shoved it into his chest.
With a grunt he fell to the ground.
"By piece," Angel finished.
"Well, so much for that font of information," Cordelia said sarcastically.
Wesley looked the dead shaman over. Something wasn't right. "Gunn, see if he has anything on him."
The black man bent down and removed the red robe from the shaman's head. It revealed writing. "He's got something on him, all right."
Twenty minutes later the entire gang gathered downstairs to aid in the reading of Wo-Pang's body art. Fred held a flashlight on the shaman's skin while Wesley studied it intently, the rest of them only watched with interest.
"Is there any part of this guy that doesn't have writing all over it?" asked Lorne. Realizing what he'd said, he shuddered. "Scratch that, I don't wanna know."
"Can you translate it?" Angel questioned Wesley.
He nodded. "Most of it. Definitely scripture. A recorded history of the Kun-Sun-Dai. They're acolytes of the Beast, all right."
"So that's why we couldn't find anything about Beastie boy written in the books. These jokers are walking around with it on their asses," Gunn commented.
"Hang on," the ex-Watcher stated.
"What is it?" Angel wanted to know.
"There's a passage here. Difficult to – Fred, could you…" He took hold of her wrist and guided the flashlight to Wo-Pang's lower back.
The girl looked away, obviously uncomfortable at how low the shaman's robe was draped. "Oh. Uh-huh."
"It's detailing the acolytes' victory over the…Bosh M'ad sometime in the…I think the third century."
"What's a Bosh…whatever you said?" Cordelia questioned. None if it made much sense to her.
"The opposers of the Awakening," Wesley answered. "The Bosh M'ad forged something to destroy the Beast." He read another few words, trying to translate. "The tooth of light."
"They made a tooth?" Fred asked incredulously.
"To the best of my interpretation, a weapon of some kind."
Gunn looked hopeful. Finally, the break they'd been waiting for.
"How'd it work out for them?"
"It was never used. The Awakening was centuries away. In the meantime, every last one of the Bosh M'ad was wiped out by the Beast's acolytes."
"So this tooth thing must have had them worried. What happened to it?"
Wesley frowned. "Never found. The opposers kept it hidden."
"Great," the black man said sarcastically. "So now we have to find a tooth in a haystack."
"We don't even know what the weapon is," Angel reminded them. He was slowly becoming more and more aggravated by the whole situation. It seemed no-win.
To his left, Cordelia felt a vision coming on. Her brown eyes glowed white and she could see clearly in her mind what the weapon was. "It's a sword. The Sword of Bosh M'ad. I can see it. Pretty." Blinking, the vision was gone. "I know where it is."
"Where?"
"It's here," she told them. "Under the city."
"Well, that's a break," Fred said.
Angel smirked at Wesley. "Did you hear that? There's a sword, a sword to kill the Beast. And you wanted to turn me into Angelus by having an evil shaman cut off my head. Not that that wasn't a swell plan, too."
"Sounds like I missed all the fun," a voice commented from above them. Everyone glanced upwards, seeing a petite blonde standing halfway up the stairs, looking down at them with raised eyebrows. Wesley and Cordelia exchanged looks of surprise while Angel's jaw dropped. Fred, Gunn and Connor didn't recognize the young woman, and Lorne simply gauged Angel's reaction to her arrival.
"Buffy," the vampire said.
Buffy walked down the remaining steps, meeting her former lover at the bottom. They embraced, tightly; they hadn't seen one another in over a year. "I missed you."
"Me, too," he agreed.
"Who's she?" Connor asked, nodding at the girl hugging his father.
"Buffy Summers," Cordelia muttered with distaste. It figured Buffy would choose that moment to stop by for a visit to Los Angeles. Just when things were starting to head in the right direction with Angel.
"His ex."
Connor lifted a single eyebrow at the jealousy in Cordelia's voice.
"I've never heard of her."
"Angelcakes doesn't like to talk about her too much. She's the great love of his life," Lorne filled him in. "Big love, big loss. Your old man went to Hell and back for that little girl. And I mean literally."
"She is also my former Slayer," Wesley added.
Buffy and Angel broke apart. "Buffy, this is the gang. I know you already know Wesley and Cordelia. That's Fred, Gunn, Lorne and Connor. My son." He pointed to each of them individually.
She flashed a friendly smile at each of them. Her gaze lingered on Connor; she'd never seen him, at least not since his return from the dimension he was taken to as a baby. The young man looked like a combination of both his parents, though she tried not to dwell on it. Knowing Angel had a son with Darla was still hard for her to think about.
"Nice to meet you. And, Cordy, Wesley, good to see you again. It's been a while."
"What brings you to Los Angeles?" her former Watcher asked.
"Heard on the news about the sun being blocked out. Since there's a bit of a lull in Sunnydale right now, I thought you guys might need another supernatural body to help out."
"We can definitely use your help," Angel said. He was so happy to see her. Lately he'd found himself thinking about her more and more.
She smiled at his comment. "Great. Now, what's this I hear about Angelus? Because I'd like to avoid him if at all possible."
"You and me both," the vampire agreed. "The short version is that there's a beast in town who blocked out the sun. Turns out he's an old pal of Angelus'."
"Why do you need to bring Angelus back, though? It makes no sense since you two share all the same memories," the Slayer pointed out.
"If it were that easy we wouldn't be here," Cordelia shot at her.
"I don't remember ever meeting the Beast. The general consensus seems to be that he either erased my memory or it's buried very deeply in Angelus' psyche."
"I get it," she said, nodding her head in understanding. "Bring back Angelus, find out what he knows and get rid of him. Hence the cage?"
Cordelia snorted. "Wow, no wonder you're the Slayer."
"That was the plan. Until a better one came along," Angel said, choosing to ignore Cordelia's snarky comment.
"Turns out there's a sword," Gunn chimed in. "The Bosh M'ad sword thingy kills the Beast and Angelus gets to stay where he is. And as interesting as he sounds, I'd prefer not to meet him face-to-face."
Buffy sighed, looking away. "His presence is greatly overrated. Angelus is not very pleasant to be around, take it from someone who was stalked by him for the better part of six months. I'm assuming that plan is scratched, so what are we doing about this beast now?"
"We?"
"Do you honestly think I'm gonna leave? No way. If this guy isn't stopped, and soon, I have a feeling more than just L.A. is going to be the devil's playground. I'm gonna help kill him."
"Figures," Cordelia mumbled. "Little Miss Likes-To-Fight rears her ugly head again."
Angel grinned at her offer of aid. "We could use all the help we can get. We have to find the Sword of Bosh M'ad. It's the only thing that'll kill the Beast."
"Where is it?"
"Under the city somewhere."
"What are we waiting for? Let's go get it."
"I don't get this," Angel said as he, Cordelia, Buffy, Wesley and Connor made their way through the darkened sewers underneath the city.
"What?" Wesley asked him.
Angel rolled his eyes, shaking his head. "How is it a sword from the third century is conveniently located here in Los Angeles?"
"I don't think it is," answered Cordelia. "I mean, I get the impression that somehow it's accessible from, like, a hundred points all over the world."
It made no sense to Connor, who rounded out the rear with Buffy and not pleased about it. He wanted to be up front with Cordelia. But no, that place was reserved for his father. "How's that work?"
"I don't know. I just get the visions, not the Cliff Notes."
The group walked several more feet down the damp corridor when an opening came into sight on their left. Wesley pointed to it. "Over there. What's that?"
When they reached it, Buffy pointed her flashlight inside. She could clearly see stairs. "The way down," she announced.
Angel looked over the blonde's shoulder, catching a whiff of her vanilla scented shampoo. 'Concentrate, Angel,' he reminded himself. "That's a steep grade down there. Gonna have to take a little slow, watch our steps and stay…" His sentence was interrupted when Connor pushed past him and Buffy and climbed through the opening. "…together."
"Connor," Cordelia chastised.
They followed the teenager, all hoping his recklessness wouldn't cost them their only chance of beating the Beast. No one said a word as they walked down the stairs.
"Found something," Connor said to them when he climbed back up the stairs, causing Cordelia to jump when he touched her shoulder.
"Easy. Easy," the vampire warned them while Connor led the way. Connor stopped in front of the ropes dangling from the ceiling of the cavern. There had to have been at least fifty or a hundred of them, each one with a bell on it. Wesley, Buffy and Angel gazed at them, their curiosities piqued.
"What are those? Holiday decorations from some S & M bondage party?" Cordelia wanted to know.
Buffy raised her eyebrows at her high school friend's rhetorical question, keeping her retort to herself, despite the fact that it was a good one. Wesley, on the other hand, didn't hear it. He fingered the hanging ropes, causing the bells to tinkle. Everyone jumped backwards in surprise when stakes shot out from the walls.
"Wood," Angel stated, making a face. "Why did it have to be wood?"
"We have to pass through the corridor without ringing any of the bells," the former Watcher informed them.
Cordelia frowned, glancing down at her breasts. "I knew you two would get me in trouble someday."
For the first time in her twenty-two years, Buffy was happy she was rather flat-chested. She didn't have to worry about her breasts setting off any bells.
Connor set out first, winding his way between the individual ropes with ease. Cordelia was next, followed a few feet behind her by Wesley, Angel and Buffy. Every couple steps the vampire would turn his head to make sure Buffy wasn't having difficulty. Wesley busied himself with keeping an eye on Cordelia.
Three-quarters of the way through the maze he saw trouble. "Cordelia!" he hissed. "Freeze! Your sleeve."
Doing as she was told, Cordelia didn't move a muscle until Wesley fixed her sleeve, which was dangerously close to snagging one of the ropes. She sighed with relief when she continued on her way and nearly collapsed with joy when she was safely at Connor's side out of the maze. But Wesley, Angel and Buffy weren't so lucky when the ex-Watcher's arm hit one of the ropes.
"Oh, fu–" he started when the bell went off.
"Move!" Angel shouted.
He jumped out of the way and Angel grabbed Buffy's hand to keep her out of the stakes' way. They all managed to get to the other side before the stakes shot out, staring with wide eyes at the booby trap they'd almost been caught in.
"You okay?" Angel asked his ex-girlfriend.
Buffy nodded. Though she was more than slightly rattled, she didn't want to let on to the others. "I'm fine. Thanks. You?"
"I'm all right."
With her back to them, Cordelia stuck her finger down her throat in disgust. She didn't think anyone saw her, but Connor smiled at her gesture. His father's ardent concern for the Slayer – and Cordelia's jealousy over it – worked in his favor.
"Let's go," he told them.
With tentative steps, the five walked farther down the corridor. What they found wasn't what they had been expecting.
"It's a dead end," Angel noted.
Cordelia let out an annoyed breath. "Who booby traps a dead end? That's just not right."
"How inconsiderate of them," Buffy commented, mocking the other girl.
"I'm sure they would have taken them down if they knew you were coming."
The brunette shot Buffy a dirty look. In the three-and-a-half years since they'd last seen one another, nothing had changed. They still hated each other's guts.
Wesley took a closer look at the dead end. "There's something here." Angel examined it, too. He noticed writing on the individual stones.
"Assyrian?" he questioned.
The former Watcher shook his head. "Hebrew. Raschi script."
"Can you read it?" the Slayer wanted to know.
"They're just random letters," he said. "One on each stone. Unless…" He pressed one and the wall lifted.
"This is it!" Cordelia exclaimed excitedly. "You did i-You didn't."
The wall slammed back to the ground.
"There's a pattern," Wesley deduced. "Hebrew letters have numerical value. Aleph is one. The letter of the next highest numerical value is he, five." He pressed the stone corresponding to he, only to have a stake shoot through his hand. "Aah!"
Angel whipped around at the cry. "What happened?"
"He was wrong," Connor informed his father, a small smile playing upon his lips.
"I don't know. I don't know what else," Wesley said. Buffy ripped off a section of the lower portion of her shirt to be used as a makeshift bandage for his hand. "Nine stones. Yes, that's it. It's not their numerical value. These are the first letters of the nine antidiluvian patriarchs in Genesis."
"Huh?" Buffy questioned. "Anti what?"
"That would have been my next guess," Cordelia added.
"So which one do we press?" Angel walked to the wall.
Wesley thought for a moment. "Aleph was Adam. So in ascending order…Shin for Seth." He pointed to the correct stone. "That one."
The vampire pressed it and the wall lifted a few feet off the ground. But it closed too quickly for him to get a hold of it. He sighed. "Now what?" he demanded.
"Kaf for Cainan."
"Which one? Kaf?"
He looked closely at the wall, trying to figure out which one Angel should press. "Maybe that one."
"Maybe?" Buffy exclaimed. "I don't have enough shirt to bandage both of you."
Cordelia had to bit her tongue to keep from commenting. One thing was for sure, Buffy definitely didn't have enough shirt.
Angel pressed the stone corresponding to Kaf. The wall lifted and he and Buffy held it open with their supernatural strength. Cordelia, Connor and Wesley made their way to the other side. The vampire looked in the Slayer's eyes. "Buffy, go!" he ordered.
She shook her head. "Both of us."
"Now." They dropped to their knees and rolled inside with only a second to spare before the wall closed in on them. Angel glanced around; there were two corridors to choose from. "Which way now?"
"We should split up," suggested Wesley.
"Right," Angel agreed. "Connor, go with Wes and Buffy. Cordy and I will take the one on the left."
Connor didn't like the idea. "I'll go with Cordy."
"Connor," she chastised.
"I mean, what difference does it make? Why do I–"
Buffy didn't want to hear an argument between the three of them. They had more important things to do. "We don't have time for a discussion. Cordelia, just – just go with Connor and Wesley. Angel and I will go together."
"Problem solved, let's go," Angel said. He, too, didn't want there to be an argument.
Connor, Cordelia and Wesley headed to the right, Angel and Buffy to the left. The former couple walked in silence for the majority of their travels. Neither of them knew the right words to say. They were used to uncomfortable silences around one another, but this was worse than usual.
"Buffy, I'm really sorry about that back there. Connor has kind of a…a crush on Cordelia," he explained.
"And she only has eyes for you. He's jealous."
"I'm sorry," Angel apologized again. "I never meant for it to happen like this."
She shrugged her shoulders. "You're allowed to move on, Angel, it happens. When you work so closely with someone for so long, feelings start to develop. Office romances happen. We ought to know. Although I don't exactly approve of your choice of girlfriends."
"She's not my girlfriend. It doesn't even come close to what I feel for you. And it never will," he admitted. "If anything, I've been thinking more and more about you, about us. And I can't help thinking–"
They turned around the final bend and reached the opening of a large, well lit corridor. Buffy sighed with relief. "This has got to be the place." She looked around for the Sword of Bosh M'ad. "So, where's the sword? Okay, great. It's gone."
Angel wasn't as convinced as she was. "Maybe."
"What maybe?" she questioned. "I don't see it, do you?"
"No. But the light must be coming from somewhere."
In midair above a stone table was a giant ball of light. Both of them noticed it, and Angel stuck his arm inside, deducing that the sword must be there.
"Angel," warned the Slayer. She didn't trust whatever it was.
He felt around inside. "Some kind of dimensional hub. That's why the sword can be in a hundred different places. Ah! At once." His hand bumped against something metallic. "Ah! Yeah." He pulled out the sword and grinned with pride. "I'd say things are starting to look–"
The portal turned from a white light to a ball of fire. Their eyes widened as it grew larger. "Uh, Angel…" The ball exploded and fire flew everywhere, then the ground shook. "Can we get out of here now?"
Before he had a chance to reply, a pillar fell between them and fire loomed around it. The tall flames blocked his view of her. "Buffy!" he called.
"Angel! Angel!"
"Hang on!"
Making sure he had a good grip on the sword, Angel jumped over the wall of flames. He had to get Buffy out of there before the fire took her away from him. When he reached her side, he wasted no time in grabbing hold her and getting her away from the flames. They dove out of the way just as another pillar fell. When they landed, Buffy fell on top of Angel, both of them struck by a sense of deja vu.
"Are you hurt?" she asked.
He pulled out the sword from under him. "I missed the pointy end." Relieved, she dropped her head to his neck, leaving a soft kiss there before gazing into his soulful brown eyes. "We could have been killed. If I'd lost you…there's still so much I have to tell you."
"Buffy, we have all the time in the world."
"No we don't," Buffy said. "I always thought that until I died. I never got a chance to tell you everything I need to tell you. Like I love you. I'll never stop."
"Don't."
She touched his face. It was warm from the fire. And it gave her the strength to finally tell him. "You're a hero, Angel. You have given up so much to be a champion, including your life as a human to keep me alive. It's the most selfless thing anyone has ever done."
"How did you – the Oracles said you'd never remember."
"They didn't count on me dying and being brought back. I still remember everything from my time in heaven. When I died, I could look back on everything that I did. You don't know how many times I replayed that day. It must have been a million or more. We were on your old office floor, just like this, me on top of you. We chased the demon, we made love for hours and then you gave it all up."
"I couldn't have stayed human if it meant you dying."
She hushed him, brushing her lips against his. "I know. After this thing with the Beast is over, you and I need to have a long talk. We're gonna figure out a way…"
The sentence was never completed. Their lips met in a hungry kiss the likes of which neither of them had experienced in a long time. What started out slow and sweet turned hot and passionate. And sealed their decision to be together once more.
An hour later they returned to the hotel with the sword. Fred, Lorne and Gunn looked up in surprise and relief when the three of them saw the group enter the main lobby. Fred was startled when she saw the battle-weary warriors.
"Oh, my god," she commented, walking over to them.
"I thought you guys might be dead," Gunn added.
Angel frowned. For as difficult as it had been to enter the cavern where they found the sword, it was just as hard to get out. And uncomfortable, too, once he and Buffy realized Wesley, Connor and Cordelia knew about their kiss. "Don't stop thinking it yet."
Lorne glanced at the sword the vampire carried. "Is that it?"
"The Sword of the Bosh M'ad," Cordelia informed them. She was still stinging over seeing Buffy and Angel kissing.
"The slayer of the Beast," Wesley clarified.
Gunn approached them, grinning excitedly at the new weapon. "Ooh! Can I play with it?" He practically jumped for joy when Angel tossed the weapon to him.
"Where's Connor?"
Buffy and Angel exchanged guilty looks. Connor had run off after they managed to get out of the cave. Wesley had filled the former couple in on how angry the teenager was about it. "Patrolling," the ex-Watcher covered. He didn't want to be the one to tell them the truth; that was Buffy and Angel's job. "We have the sword, now all we need–"
He was interrupted by a loud crashing sound. All eyes turned to Gunn, who stood with the sword in his hand, the desk in two pieces on the ground in front of him. "My bad," he apologized.
Wesley rolled his eyes and started his sentence again. "All we need to do is locate the Beast."
"Well, most of my connections have am-scrayed to dimensions a little lighter on the stomping your entrails out. All I could Kolchak was a rumor of bad mojo rising down in the warehouse district," Lorne filled them all in.
"Then that's where we'll start."
"Wait," Fred stopped the vampire. "We found some relevant passages in the Paranych Grimoire which we were able to cross-reference with Wo-Pang's, um, butt."
"Either he's got one hell of a funky mole or we figure there's only one way to kill the Beast," Gunn said.
"How?" Wesley asked.
Fred made a face. "Piercing its brain with the Bosh M'ad."
"That sounds like a plan to me," Buffy noted. Clean and easy, just the way she liked her kills. "But what about the sun?"
The black man twisted the sword in his hand before handing it back to Angel. "One good poke in the coconut should take care of that, too."
"There's a catch, isn't there?" questioned the Slayer. She gazed at Angel, who walked to the staircase and took a seat on the fourth step.
"One small eensy."
"Always with the fine print," Cordelia said sarcastically.
Gunn nodded his head. "Took a whole lot of power to pull off permanent midnight."
Angel sighed. He knew exactly what he needed to do, and what would happen when he did it. "Which will all be released when I kill the Beast."
"As far as we can figure from the texts, nothing human will survive at that close a range," Fred added. "I'm not even sure that you can."
He got up. "I'll let you know."
"You're not gonna fight this thing by yourself," Buffy told him sternly.
"There's no choice."
Cordelia couldn't believe her ears. The man she loved was on a suicide mission. "There's always a choice."
"Not for me," he disagreed. "I have to do this. You made a difference, each of you. Not just to me, but to the world. We've been pushed to the edge so many times, done things we're sure can never be forgiven, but we're always there for each other when it counts. We've never let the darkness win. And it's not because of the Powers That Be or the super strength or the magical weapons. It's because we believe in each other, not just as friends or lovers, but as champions. All of us. Together."
Taking an unnecessary breath, he gripped the sword tightly in his hand and took several swift steps toward the front entrance. He'd said everything he could say publicly before he left. There wasn't time for a private goodbye for each and every one of them, despite having left some things unsaid between himself and many of them, particularly Buffy and Cordelia.
Buffy chased after him. "Angel, wait. You just said it. We're stronger together. And as I recall, the Mohra demon said the exact same thing on the day that never happened. You can't do this alone," she tried to reason with him.
"I'm not."
"Drop the Hallmark crap. That might placate the shiny happys over there, but I'm working with a little more investment." She lowered her voice to a whisper so the rest of the gang couldn't hear. "I can't lose you. Not now. And not again. Not when we're just starting whatever it is or could be."
Angel dropped his forehead to hers, placing his hands on her upper arms. "We'll figure it out when I get back."
"What if you don't?" she whined.
"That's not gonna happen," he promised.
Despite his promises, Buffy wasn't convinced. "You don't know that."
"I've never been more sure of anything," Angel whispered. "I'll come back, Buffy. I promise. For you. But first I gotta do this, I gotta find the Beast and–"
He stopped in mid-sentence when the door leading to the gardens burst open, breaking from the force. Everyone looked up and the expressions on their faces turned to that of dread when they saw the Beast standing a few feet away.
"Oh. There he is," Angel commented dryly. While the gang scattered away from the Beast, Angel approached it.
"I grow weary of your cowardice, Angelus," the Beast addressed him. "If you will not stand with me, suffer the agony of my wrath." He eyed the sword. "Is that what I think it is?"
"Go!" he ordered them.
He took a swing at the Beast with the sword. The demon blocked every one of the vampire's blows successfully. Angel knew there was no way he could fully concentrate on defeating the Beast while his friends were still inside the building. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Buffy sifting through his weapons cabinet.
"Go!" he shouted at her. "Get out of here!"
"No!" the Slayer responded stubbornly.
"All of you! I can't do this with you here. Go!"
Distracted with trying to convince them to get out of the hotel, Angel lost his upper hand and the Beast took full advantage of it. Before he knew what was happening, Angel felt himself being thrown across the room.
Buffy saw it and tried to run to where he'd fallen. "No! Angel!"
Concerned for her safety, Gunn grabbed her arm and dragged her out of the hotel.
Angel took another swing at the Beast with the sword, connecting it with his leg. "That stings," the Beast complained.
"Not as much as it's gonna."
"We could rule this world. Why do you oppose me?" the demon wanted to know.
"Rain of fire. Blocking out the sun," listed Angel. "And you just kinda piss me off."
The Beast shook his head. "It doesn't have to be this way, Angelus."
"I'm thinking it does."
Angel jumped up, sword in hand and attacked the Beast. He started to feel confident he would win until his enemy grabbed hold of the sword by its blade and held it steady. The vampire couldn't move it, no matter how hard he tried. They held that position for what seemed like an eternity before the blade snapped in half, the sharp end falling to the ground only a couple feet away.
"Did you really think you'd win?" the Beast taunted.
"I should be in there," Buffy said from the sidewalk, standing between Gunn and Lorne. "Angel may need me. What if he's hurt? Or worse?"
"He's a big boy, Sweet Pea. Angel won't come out as anything but a winner," Lorne reassured her.
Cordelia frowned. "Yeah, Lorne's right. So quit whining."
"Shut up, Cordy. I'm sorry if I'm not a cold, heartless ice queen like you. I actually care if he makes it out alive."
"Why? So you can go back in there and break his heart for the gazillionth time?" the brunette countered. "Angel was doing fine without you. He was finally starting to move on."
"With you, I heard about that. Then right before he kissed me he told me his feelings for you will never be as strong as his feelings for me. You're not his perfect happiness, Cordelia. You're nothing but a cheap imitation."
She smirked. "We'll see about that."
The two girls were too busy arguing over the man they both loved that they never noticed the sun return. Fred, Gunn, Wesley and Lorne stared at the sky in awe and amazement.
"Hey, you two," Gunn began, interrupting the fight. "In case you haven't noticed, I think Angel won this one."
They stopped talking and marveled at the warmth of the sun on their skin. Gunn was right, Angel had won. *They* had won. Without saying a word, the six of them walked back inside the hotel, almost frightened at what they would find. What they did find inside surprised them – both Angel and Connor standing over a pile of dust.
"Connor," Cordelia announced, walking over to him. "You came."
He smiled when she kissed his cheek. "Like I'd let him take all the credit for saving the world."
Buffy made her way to Angel's side, hugging him as if she'd never let go. "You did it."
"We did it," he corrected. "All of us." Angel moaned, touching his hand to the back of his neck in pain. "Now, could one of you do me a favor and sweep that up?"
Angel pulled the curtain back from the window so he could look outside. The sun was shining over Los Angeles once again. An hour had passed by since he and Connor defeated the Beast and the sun returned, and the people of L.A. were still staring up at it in awe. He wanted to smile at the sight of it but he couldn't. As much as he hated to admit it, he was jealous.
"Must be hard," Buffy commented, coming up behind him. She could see his look of longing. "Seeing everyone so happy because of what you did. Bringing the light back. But not being able to go out into it."
He closed the curtain once again, turning around to face Buffy. She looked beautiful with her blonde hair loosely curled to her shoulders and wearing a silver dress that accentuated every one of her curves. From the way she was dressed, Angel assumed she was going out to a fancy dinner. "There's no place I'd rather be than here with you," he whispered.
They stared into each other's eyes for what seemed like an eternity, completely silent but speaking volumes. No words even needed to be said; they'd said everything earlier while in the cave. What was about to happen between them had been a long time coming – four years, in fact. And they could no longer deny themselves.
Angel brought his hand to the back of her neck, running his fingertips gently over her warm skin before tangling them in her hair. He pushed several strands away from her face and lowered his head to hers. Buffy's lips were mere inches away, yet he took his time in making contact. What he wanted most was to savor the moment.
If he believed the cliché, Angel would have said he saw fireworks when their lips finally met. Buffy ran her hand along his right cheek before sliding it to the back of his neck, pressing him closer to her. Her lips parted, allowing his tongue to slip inside so the two could engage in the erotic dance they'd both been missing out on for years. But Angel had to pull away before he lost any semblance of self-control.
"Buffy–"
She shook her head, stroking his dark hair with her left hand. "No. Whatever it is. Whatever the reason or excuse or logic. We're here. Now. Together. Everything is the way it's supposed to be. For once. Angel…Haven't we waited long enough?"
"We can't," he argued. "The curse…"
"You saved the world from eternal darkness," Buffy stated. "You deserve some happiness for it. Not even the Powers That Be are cruel enough to deny you that."
Fred glanced at the ceiling from the couch she sat on in the lobby of the hotel. "Um, what do you guys thing is going on up there?"
Gunn, Wesley and Lorne exchanged knowing glances while Connor simply turned away. Cordelia, on the other hand, sneered. "My guess is that they're getting groiny with one another."
"That's good for them, isn't it?" she asked. "I mean, they love each other. They should be allowed their time together."
"Yeah, it's wonderful," Cordelia replied sarcastically. "I'm thrilled for the two of them."
The young woman realized how much her comment hurt the other woman in the room. "Oh, Cordy, I'm so sorry. I know how much you love Angel."
"Forget it. When it comes to Angel's heart, Buffy wins. Buffy *always* wins. There's no point in competing."
Standing on her tiptoes, Buffy moved her face closer to his and used the hand she'd moved back on his neck to push his head in her direction. Though Angel tried to resist at first, it proved to be futile. There was no way he could resist the temptation of the only woman he'd loved in two hundred and forty-eight years. She was right, he deserved one moment of happiness in her arms.
As their kisses grew more passionate, more desperate, Buffy took the first steps toward what would be their final destination. With confident fingers she began unbuttoning the blue shirt Angel wore. It brought back loving memories of the night of her seventeenth birthday. Although this time she knew just what to do, and this time Angel had chosen an easier garment to dispose of: a button-down shirt instead of the black pullover he'd worn the night they first made love.
Once she was finished removing the shirt from his body, Angel took the opportunity to push the straps of her dress down her arms and let it fall to the floor. Buffy stood before him in a matching black lace bra and panty set. The past four years had been kind to her soft, supple body.
He felt himself growing hard just by looking at her, and knew making this moment last would be a difficult task. But he was bound and determined not to rush it.
He gently ran his right hand up and down the smooth skin of her back, from the nape of her neck to the waistband of her panties and back again. The sound of her heartbeat pounded in his ears and the smell of her arousal permeated his nose. All he could do was stare at her beauty before him. And even though it wasn't the first time they'd been in that position, it made Buffy blush.
"Angel…" she said breathlessly.
"Shh," he hushed her. "No words."
Buffy closed her eyes when she felt Angel unclasping her bra. "Can I at least say that I love you?"
"I love you, too."
Their lips met again in a feverish kiss, and the couple clung to one another. The Slayer dug her short fingernails into his shoulder blades from the intensity of it, effectively pushing her nearly-naked body flush against his hard, muscled chest. Angel brought her arms back to her sides so he could remove the bra from her body. When the garment dropped to the ground, Buffy broke the kiss and looked down at it. It was then that she saw her love still wearing his pants, tented at the groin area by his erection.
Angel watched through clouded eyes as she unbuttoned and unzipped his trousers. He half-expected her to look away when his erection sprang free of its confines; she'd removed his pants and boxers in one fail swoop. But she didn't look away, or even tremble when she brought her hand to it. He knew at that moment they were ready. This was the moment he had fought so hard to achieve. He had achieved his destiny. Hoisting her into his arms, Angel carried his love to his awaiting bed.
Buffy held tightly to him when her back pressed into the soft mattress, and he wasted almost no time in climbing on top of her. Angel kept his weight off of her, keeping the majority of it in his arms, which were positioned on either side of her. He started by kissing her sweet lips, making love to her mouth. It was hard for him to move away from her mouth, but did so with the recollection that the best was yet to come.
She sighed and closed her eyes when his kisses traveled across her jaw and then to her neck. His hair tickled her earlobe as he nibbled softly on the skin covering her jugular. It was becoming more difficult for her to stay focused when his ministrations were sending her nerves into a frenzy. She could feel his stiff member pressed against her inner thigh, so she spread her legs and bucked her hips upward for some form of contact with him. If Angel noticed, he chose to ignore it.
"Angel, please," she begged when his lips caught one of her pert nipples.
Catching the desperation in her green eyes when he looked at her, Angel tore himself away from her breasts and captured her lips once again. There would be time for worshipping later. With help from her, he managed to slide her panties off. She kicked them off the bed, then wrapped her legs around his waist to signal her readiness. They stared into each other's eyes as he thrust himself into her.
He groaned as her heat enveloped his member and he tried to keep himself still for as long as possible. If he moved too soon he wouldn't last very long. Slowly, he began to gently rock back and forth, setting a leisurely pace they would both enjoy. Then he kissed her again and they moaned in one another's mouths from the sheer ecstasy of being one.
Buffy turned her head from side to side when Angel's thrusts became firmer and pushed deeper inside of her center. Any minute now she would come and she knew it. But she wanted to prolong it as long as possible.
Angel felt the same way as he nuzzled his cheek against the left side of her neck, then rained kisses along her collarbone. He licked and kissed the skin, unable to get enough of her addictive taste.
Every thrust stimulated her over-sensitized clit more and more until the Slayer felt ready to explode. She was going to come, and wanted her lover to join her in the act. But she was so lost in a hazy sea of desire that she couldn't find the strength to say his name. All she could get out were barely audible moans and incomprehensible words. When she finally reached her peak, words escaped her and she threw her head back against the pillow and let it jolt through her body, holding Angel close to her.
The feeling of Buffy's orgasm and her walls clenching around him was more than the vampire could take. Squeezing his eyes shut, he let himself go and his orgasm approached in record time. He was thrusting wildly into her when, all of a sudden, his eyes shot open and pain gripped his heart. He recognized the pain and knew exactly what it meant. He'd achieved the true happiness he thought he would be allowed.
Buffy noticed the change just as his seed shot through her. Seeing the look of anguish on his handsome face, she went from feeling pure bliss to intense fear. The Powers That Be hadn't given Angel his one moment.
"Buffy–" he panted, rolling off her pliant body. Laying on his back on the bed only inches to her left, Angel struggled to catch the breath he didn't need. "No, oh god, no!"
"I don't think we need to wonder what they're doing up there," Gunn commented as he walked down the stairs to the lobby where everyone was congregated. He'd gone upstairs to get a book from his and Fred's bedroom.
"You were eavesdropping, Charles?" Fred questioned.
He shook his head in disgust. "Um, no. You can hear them from all the way down the hall. All the bumpin' and grindin' and headboard slammin' against the wall sort of tipped me off. Not that I wouldn't have figured it out on my own." Gunn laughed. "From the sounds of it, that girl is giving Angel all the perfect happiness he can handle."
Lorne made eye contact with the black man and shook his head vigorously in an effort to keep him from saying anything else. Cordelia was hurting; he could tell that without needing to hear her sing. Everyone but Gunn seemed to see it. So the demon got up and sat next to the dejected girl. "I know this is hard for you, Plumcakes."
"I'm fine. As soon as she walked down those stairs this morning, I expected it," Cordelia admitted. "Doesn't mean I have to like it."
"You knew his history with Buffy," Wesley pointed out to her. "You were there in Sunnydale the first time around. You had to know those types of feelings don't just disappear."
Fred was insulted by his words. "Wesley! Don't."
"I could kill him for doing this to you," muttered Connor.
Cordelia shook her head. "Forget it. Angel has a right to be happy, even if it isn't with me. Wes is right. I knew what would happen."
"Illusion becomes reality," Wo-Pang stated, letting out a deep breath.
On the table in front of the shaman, Angel opened his eyes, staring blankly at the ceiling. "It is time."
Cordelia stepped closer to the cage where the man she loved was locked inside. When her eyes met his, there was no feeling in them. None of the softness or love Angel possessed were present. All she saw was an emotionless void. "Angelus," she whispered.
And he laughed.
Wesley opened the safe behind the painting in the office. The gang gathered in there to watch as he stored Angel's soul for safe keeping. Holding the Muo-Ping securely in her hands, Cordelia frowned. It cut her deep inside to know the man she loved was again a soulless monster.
"Seeing Angel's soul all floaty like that kinda makes me–" Fred started.
Lorne shook his head at her. "It's not forever, Sugar Plum. We're-we're just borrowing it."
Wesley turned to the young woman clutching Angel's soul for dear life. "Cordelia." Looking up, she handed the jar to him and he locked it inside the safe.
"Don't drop it," warned Fred while the exchange was taking place.
The former Watcher faced them. "Angel is gone," he stated matter-of-factly.
"I can't believe…" Cordelia began. "It's done."
"Taking out Angel's soul, putting it in a jar? Hope we know what we're doing," Gunn commented. Though he didn't want to admit it, he was scared.
"If Angelus knows how to destroy the Beast, it's all we got."
"Yeah. Otherwise, permanent midnight," agreed Lorne.
Cordelia bit her lip. "He's dangerous. I know. I've seen it." She turned away, unable to face the other people in the room. "But we're doing the right thing."
"As long as we're *very* careful. Before Angelus was ensouled, his viciousness was mythic. You all know his history," Wesley told them.
"Killing, maiming, torture," Fred summarized quietly.
"Puppies nailed to walls," the green skinned demon added. "Thank you, Cordelia, for that lovely image. But I think that brings us up to speed."
Wesley didn't want to dwell on that; he wanted to get to work. "There's only one thing Angelus will be focused on: getting free…so he can slaughter us."
"We're Angel's only link to humanity. Angelus will hate us for that. He'll want to make us suffer." 'Just like last time with Buffy,' Cordelia thought. 'How did she do it?'
"Watch the monitor when I go down," Wesley ordered. "Pay attention to everything he does, everything he says. He'll try to confuse you, to play on your emotions so you drop your guard. If he succeeds even for an instant…we're all dead." He paused. "I spent my life training for this and I'm still not ready. He's smarter than I am and a great deal more focused. He'll exploit everything Angel knows about me and go for the jugular. Whatever he's got, I'm not going to see it coming."
It wasn't a lie when Wesley said he wasn't ready. As he climbed down the stairs to the basement, it was all he could think about. He had only read about Angelus, but never had the pleasure of being one-on-one with him, except for that five minutes they sparred a few years earlier.
Giles had informed him of the events of Angelus' reign of terror in Sunnydale back in 1998, and Wesley hoped to keep the vampire contained so it didn't happen again.
"Angelus," he greeted, approaching the cage.
The vampire stood up and smirked. How wonderful it was to see a familiar face. What fun he would have with this one. "Wes. Why the long face? Aren't you happy to see me?"
"Should I be?" 'Show no fear,' he reminded himself.
"Well, if it wasn't for you and your shaman friend, I wouldn't be here. I'm feelin' the love."
"The choice was Angel's."
Angelus sneered. If all they were going to do was compare him to his other half, it was going to be a boring return. Or at least until he found a way out and tortured them. "Angel-Schmangel. You're the man with the brain."
But he wasn't falling for it. "You're comfortable?" Wesley asked.
"Nice acoustics," he said, glancing around. Getting out would be very difficult, Angel had made sure of it. "Wouldn't hate a chair."
"You'll have to forgive the accommodations. The last time you were free, you terrorized Sunnydale."
"That Slayer…she's a pistol. Always kept me guessing. I guess that's why Angel had such a hard-on for her. Wouldn't mind giving her a go." Wesley ignored what he was saying about his former charge. Despite their differences, Buffy was very dear to his heart. So he decided to change the subject. "I've imagined this moment many times." He picked up a nearby chair. "Years of study, research. I've read everything ever written about you."
"Stop. I'm blushing," Angelus said sarcastically.
"To be one-on-one with the legendary Angelus…" He placed the chair in front of the cage a safe distance away and sat down. "As a former Watcher, it's a high point."
But Angelus was not one to be easily fooled. "Buttering me up, getting me all relaxed. Not the most innovative interrogation technique, but…okay, I'll play."
"Is it a game?" Wesley questioned.
"Hey, open book. Anything you want to know." The vampire made an exaggerated gesture of openness. "How sweet that virgin gypsy tasted. The special smell of a newborn's neck. My first nun – now, that's a great story."
"We could start there."
"Don't be coy, Wes. You're just dying to know all about the big beastie. Fire away."
He was grateful Angelus was as eager to get this over with as him. "All right. Did you know the Beast?"
Angelus smiled devilishly. At least Wesley knew enough to cut to the chase. "Well, now, that's a question. Not a great question, not even an insightful question, not a Wyndam-Pryce-worthy question."
"If you knew the Beast, why wouldn't Angel remember?" Wesley wanted to know.
"I don't know," the vampire replied, rather annoyed. "Maybe he doesn't remember the good times. Maybe he won't let himself. So like him. Here's one for you. What's the deal with Angel and the Raiders of the Lost Ark?"
The ex-Watcher was genuinely confused. "The movie?"
"Perfect day fantasy he came up with. Caves, booby traps…" He chuckled. "The requisite phallic sword."
"He fought the Beast in the fantasy," he deduced.
"Real candy ass," Angelus commented.
"The Beast?"
He shook his head. "Angel. Not enough to be the hero. Couldn't be happy unless the whole gang's pitching in."
"So he killed the Beast in his fantasy?"
"Had to…to get what he wanted."
Wesley was intrigued. He hadn't expected Angelus to be so candid. "What was it that Angel wanted?"
"If you have to ask, you're not as smart as you think."
'What on earth could Angel possibly want?' Then it came to him. There was one thing – one person – Wesley knew Angel desired but could never have.
"And the lightbulb goes on," Angelus stated, seeing the look on Wesley's face. "Congratulations, Wes, you finally figured it out."
"What happened in the fantasy with Buffy?"
"You can't figure that out for yourself? Come on, don't be a prude. She came to save the day, they saved the world, they fucked, I returned. Do I need to draw you a diagram?"
He shook his head. "Not necessary. So Angel and Buffy made love after he killed the Beast."
"And he lost his soul. Again. One would assume he learned his lesson the first time. Not that I'm complaining. Some things just get better and better with age. And apparently that Slayer is one of them. Although I prefer them with a little more to grab on to, if you know what I mean. But the soul has a big old yen for her. He got what he wanted. We all want something, Wes. It's the way of the world. Everybody's got an agenda."
Wesley leaned back in his chair, preparing himself for what was to come.
"And you're going to tell me mine."
To be continued...