"Busy?" Willow looked up as Angel walked into her room.
"Not really. I'm just going over some spells, nothing that can't wait." Willow watched as he sat at the desk.
"I was thinking, maybe I could help you learn to protect yourself in combat.....if you want to that is." Angel finished nervously. Willow smiled at him and nodded enthusiastically. They both got up and headed to the makeshift gym.
"Where do we start?" Willow asked him. He nodded at the mats, and Willow walked over onto them.
"I'll show you some basic throws, to help you escape an opponent rather than fight with them." Willow nodded. "I'm going to attack you." He said, and Willow smiled.
"Thanks for the warning." He moved towards her then suddenly lunged. He grabbed her arm and she spun quickly. Then using his momentum she flipped him over using her back and his hold on her. He thumped into the mat, and lay on his back for a few seconds.
Willow helped him up, and grinned mischievously at his look of astonishment. Finally she took pity on him. "After I got out of hospital Mom had a rare moment of parentalness and enrolled me in a self-defence class." He nodded slowly.
"Why don't you show me what you've learned so far." Willow smiled, then lashed out at him with her foot, he stumbled backwards but managed to stay upright. Smiling slightly he moved towards her. <He won't underestimate wiley-Willow, no sirree........ouch!> Willow lay on her back, and stared up at the light.
"I think we need to work on your concentration." Angel said as he pulled her to her feet.
<How can I work on my concentration when he's half-naked?> "Excuse me?" Angel asked her, startled. Willow slapped her hand over her mouth.
"Goddess, did I say that out loud?" She looked at Angel, and by the expression on his face she could tell that she had. She backed away, then ran out of the room. Angel stared after her in shock, then headed after her, a determined look on his face.
Meanwhile..................
"Are we there yet?" Angelus whined. Amy glanced behind her and glared.
"Why don't you just go......bite someone or something." She climbed over a fence, and headed down a steep slope.
Angelus caught up with her as they neared some houses. "Where are we going?" He asked her again, this time in a more polite voice. She stared at him for a moment, then sighed and answered him.
"I'm going home........I need to get some of my stuff, so will you please go away." She quickened her pace.
"Can't I come?" Angelus asked her, a huge smirk on his face.
"If you think I'm going to invite an evil master vampire into my home, then you're even crazier than I thought you were." She retorted scathingly. "Just, go, away!" Angelus scowled and headed in the other direction, a frustrated look on his face. He walked for about a minute, but turned quickly when he heard screaming.
"ANGELUS!!!" Amy shouted, and he ran towards the blond witch, who was struggling with a masked man.
"Get her into the van!" Her attacker shouted to his partner, who moved forward and suddenly hit her over the head with a stick. When Angelus saw Amy slump over, he growled and increased his speed. The two men quickly bundled an unresponsive Amy into the van, and roared off into the night. Angelus chased the van halfway down the street before he realised that he couldn't catch it. He slowed down and screamed after the vehicle.
"AMY!!!!!"
End Part 14
"Willow......Willow.......wait!" Angel finally caught up with the fleeing girl just as she entered her room. He reached to grab her, but somehow they managed to get tangled together and ended up on the bed. Angel sprawled on top of Willow, who was breathing heavily and was as white as a sheet. <Oh goddess......oh goddess.......shirtless Angel on top of me.........smells good......ick, no.......bad Willow>
Angel stared at her for a minute, he could see her inner-conflict. Slowly his lips moved closer to hers, and he could feel her warm breath on his cheek. Willows eyes got even wider, and she gasped. <Angel lips.....Angel lips.......Angel kissage.....mmmmmmmmmmm> Willow paused, then gave up and started to kiss him back.
"Get your asses in her now!" Faith screamed at the top of her lungs, she was standing at the bottom of the stairs. Willow bolted upright, and Angel fell off the bed in suprise.
"Ouch." Willow peered over the side of the bed and looked contrite.
"Sorry." Then she scrambled off the bed, and somehow managed to get tangled up in the covers. She fell over the edge and landed on top of Angel, her elbow slammed into his stomach, and their heads cracked together.
"Owwwww!" They both exclaimed. Willow managed to stumble upright, and Angel followed her, rubbing at his head and clutching his battered torso as he did so. Willow shot out of the room, leaving a bemused, and befuddled Angel to follow her.
"What's wrong?" Willow gasped as she got to the bottom of the stairs.
"It's Amy." Faith replied, and led Willow into the main room, where Giles, Angelus, and Christine were arguing.
"Where is she?" She asked Giles. He looked up at her, sadness evident in his gaze.
"I'm sorry Willow....she's, that is, Amy-i-is......" Angelus broke in harshly.
"She's been taken." Willow stared at him in shock, then her legs went weak. Faith grabbed her arm, but Willow shooed her away. The slayer took a step back, but remained close by.
"What are we going to do?" Angel asked, he'd entered the room in time to here Angelus' statement. His double looked up at him, anger in his face.
"We get her back." Was all he said.
Half An Hour Later:-
"We simply m-must have a plan of some sort. We cannot simply barge in to wherever she is being held and kill everyone." Giles said to the pacing Angelus.
"Why not?" Was the reply.
"I hate to say this, but I agree with him. Why the bloody hell not?" Spike spoke up for his sire, who had resumed his pacing after glaring at Giles.
"B-because, we, it, simply isn't done th-that way." Was Giles' flimsy response.
"I have a plan." Willow said, nobody acknowledged her except for Faith, who had been sitting quietly throughout the entire discussion. "I said, I have a plan!" Willow shouted, after she realised that they weren't listening to her. Everyone jumped at Willows shout, then they all turned to look at her.
"Well pet?" Spike said finally, after Willow didn't speak. "The plan." He reminded her. Willow shook her head.
"Yes...yes, the plan. Look, these people took Amy because she's part of the prophecy, right?" Christine and Giles nodded, the rest just continued to stare at her. "But why take her, can Amy affect the prophecy that much?" Everyone looked at everyone else.
"No, you are the only one who can affect the outcome." Druscilla said.
"Exactly! So, maybe they took Amy because they knew that if they wanted to trade, then I'd make you all go along with it." Willow finished excitedly. Everyone apart from Cordelia looked worried.
"Trade what?" She asked naively. Everyone turned to look at Willow. After a moment it clicked. "Oh!" Cordelia frowned. "That would be bad though, end of the world, everyone dies painfully bad, right?" She looked around her, and Giles nodded absently at her.
"What are you suggesting Willow?" He asked.
"I'm suggesting that when they contact us to negotiate, we.....negotiate." Willow said simply. Angel jumped to his feet.
"No!" He shouted. Everyone looked at him in suprise. Faith and Druscilla exchanged a smug look, but no-one except Spike noticed. "I...we, won't let you put yourself at risk." Angel continued. Willow stood up angrily.
"Hang on there buster, I think that's my decision to make. So if you don't mind I'll make it, the decision that is." Faith moved between them.
"Time-out!" She held up her hands. Angelus walked over to Willow, his eyes glittering.
"What's the plan?" He asked her.
End Part 15
"This plan sucks." Cordelia said to Xander, who nodded absently and continued to watch Angel and Willow arguing. Faith sighed loudly, then headed to the kitchen for supplies. The argument between the witch and the vampire had been going on for fifteen minutes already, and didn't look like it was going to stop anytime soon.
"Hey." Faith said, as Druscilla walked in. The vampiress nodded her head slightly, and grabbed a packet of blood out of the fridge. She emptied it into a mug, and heated it in the microwave. "Do you think Angel will let Willow go?" Faith asked.
Druscilla shook her head and smiled slightly. "He loves her to much to allow her to be in that much danger." The microwave pinged, and Faith nodded resignedly.
"Ya know, all we need is a way for Red to be there, without actually being there." She shrugged in defeat, then headed back into the war-zone.
Druscilla paused, the mug of blood in her hand. She frowned in thought. "Not actually there." She mused to herself. Then straightened up suddenly, and headed towards her room.
"You're not going!" Angel shouted.
"Yes I am!" Willow screamed back at him.
"You're not!" He moved closer to her, and loomed over her. She craned her neck and glared at him.
"I am!" She exclaimed forcefully.
"Shut the bloody hell up!" Spike shouted, before the argument could get even more childish. Everyone turned to him. "Dru has a plan." He nodded at the woman who had just quietly entered the room.
"It's Faith's idea, actually." Druscilla said, and everyone turned to look at Faith. Who shrugged. "What if there was a way for Willow to make the exchange, without Willow actually being there." Everyone looked perplexed. Druscilla turned to the two watchers.
"Have you heard of the theory about alternate universes?" She asked them. They continued to look perplexed.
"You mean the one about every action we take leading to a different outcome, and all of them coming true?" Everyone turned to look at Xander, their mouths hanging open. "Hey, I watch Sliders." Druscilla smiled, then continued to explain her plan.
Meanwhile:-
"Uck, oh goddess, who hit me with the wall?" Amy struggled to open her eyes. "Ack, bright." She squinted, and her eyes adjusted to the dim lighting. "Why am I hanging on a wall?" She said to herself, looking around the room.
The walls were a rough rock, probably a cave Amy decided. She turned her head painfully, and could just about see the shackles on her wrists. There wasn't much in the room, just her, and an old wooden chair. It was about two metres away. Amy started to ponder her situation.
"Why me? I mean, I'm not an integral part of the group, yeah, big prophecy involving me but Willow's the one who............Willow." Amy suddenly realised exactly why she had been captured.
Suddenly clapping awoke her from her thoughts. "Well done! I see you understand your part in all of this." The man looked around. "I hope you aren't to uncomfortable."
"Oh no, that's okay. Some curtains, a few lamps, this place could be home." She quipped. The man smiled predatorily at her. "They'll never trade." Amy said defiantly.
"Yes, they will. The Child will make them." He said, walking over to her. He ran his hand down the side of her face. Amy held her breath.
"Wha-what are you g-going to do with me?" She asked.
"You're the bait my dear, I won't hurt you........until after the trade. Then I'll kill you." He said matter-of-factly. Then he turned and walked away. Amy held her breath till she was sure he was gone, then she started to cry silently. Tears running down her cheeks.
"Oh goddess, Willow. Oh goddess.....oh goddess." She cried for a few minutes, realising what she'd lose if she died. What she'd never say.
12 Hours Later:-
"This had better work." Angelus snarled at Willow. Angel looked about ready to deck him, but Willow held him back. Angelus stalked over to where Giles and Druscilla were talking.
"He's worried, that's all." Willow tried to placate Angel, who looked puzzled. "About Amy." She explained. Angel still had no idea what she was talking about. "He loves her." She said simply, and Angel gasped, and turned to look at his double. Who was annoying Giles, and generally being a nuisance.
"You're kidding?" He exclaimed, turning back to Willow, who shook her head.
"It gets better. Amy, she loves him as well." Willow smiled.
"Does he know, that she....I mean.....that is...he's evil, how can she?" Willow smiled at him sadly.
"He doesn't know how she feels, and she's to blind to see that he loves her. You can't choose who you love, you just do. Even if it's wrong, or bad for you, or even if the other person doesn't love you back." She shook her head, embarrassed. <I'm mooning over him like a lovesick puppy, he'll know.....back to work, now!> Willow turned back to the book. She didn't notice the look on Angels face, he had made a decision.
"Right, we can get started now." Giles walked over to them. Willow nodded, then followed him back across the room.
End Part 16
Willows eyes were closed, and she was kneeling in the middle of a candlelit circle. Druscilla, Spike, Giles, Angelus and Angel all stood just outside. Watching the amazing light and wind show that the spell had created. Images flashed through Willows mind.
<Hellmouth....monster......vampire....Master.....blood........pain......Ange l......death......> They came so fast that Willow's thoughts couldn't keep up with them. Her head dropped onto her chest and there was a blinding flash of light. Then silence.
"Did it work?" Giles asked Willow, who was pulling herself off the ground slowly. She gulped, and nodded. Then started to close the circle. "Where are they?" Giles said, looking around. Willow walked over to them.
"The Bronze." She said assuredly, then headed out into the night. Angel caught up with her quickly.
"Are you alright?" he asked her worriedly. She sighed tiredly, and nodded. The group went the rest of the way in silence. <Oh goddess, I hope this was a good idea.......if it's not then we are screwed, with a capital S. and speechmarks......maybe even hand actions as well......okay.......don't stare at Angel, don't stare.....to late.>
"It's locked." Giles said, when he tried the door. Angel smiled, and took a large key out of his pocket.
"Not for us it isn't." Angelus said, as Angel opened the door. It was very dark inside the Bronze. <Eerie.....the lights are on but nobody's....>
"Ack!" Willow managed to whimper as the arm tightened around her neck.
"Why hello there, fancy meeting me here!" Everyone else turned to look.
"Willow!" Angel shouted. Willow and her attacker responded.
"Yes?" They both said, at exactly the same time, in exactly the same tone of voice. Nobody said anything for a minute or so.
"Why am I here?" The vampire asked Angelus.
"We need your help." He replied simply.
"I care because?" Willow smiled evilly, and tightened her hold on Willow. Angel inched towards them, and Willow growled at him.
"Get any closer and I pop off her head." Then she smiled suddenly, and let Willow go. "Well, what do you need my help with?" She asked Willow, as the mortal girl dragged in much needed air.
"Saving the world." Willow replied, after catching her breath. Her double stared at her, and cocked one eyebrow. "Our world ends, so does yours." Willow stated. <Hope she's not insane, this has to work.> The vampire frowned.
"I like my world, it's all pain and death and blood." She spoke in a childish voice.
"Sounds like fun!" Angelus quipped. Willow looked over at him, and smiled slightly.
"I like you. You're much more fun than my Puppy." She said to him, then she tapped the side of her head in thought. "Ah, oh Puppy, come out and play Puppy." She called to the darkness. After a few moments one of the shadows moved. Someone stepped forwards into the dim light. <Angel?>
He looked like Angel, but after that the resemblance ended. His head was bowed, his posture screamed defeat. His hair fell messily into his eyes, and he had numerous small cuts and burns all over his torso. He wasn't wearing any shoes, and his trousers were dirty and frayed. "Say hello to Puppy everyone. Be a good boy." She said, as she walked over to him. He nodded slightly, and looked at the people around him.
Giles looked shocked, as did Willow. Angelus looked angry, Angel looked perplexed, and Spike and Druscilla did nothing but watch the scene unfolding. Their expressions indecipherable.
"Well, you in or not luv?" Spike asked as he lit a cigarette. The red-haired vampire thought for a moment.
"Nothing better to do." She took hold of Puppy's arm, and led him outside. Everyone else followed in her wake.
An Hour Later:-
"She keeps staring at me." Xander whispered to Cordelia, who snorted at him, then went back to flipping through some womens magazine that was about three months old.
"Don't be stupid." She replied.
Xander stood up and went to find Giles. He made it to the hallway when a voice stopped him. "Where are you going Xander, don't you want to talk?" he gulped and turned around.
"Nope, nope, that's quite alright....companionable silences are much better than actual conversation.......actions speak louder than words.......and stuff." He backed away, and started to turn to run. She was just about to grab his arm when Spike walked up to them.
"It's time ducks." he walked to the main room, whistling a jaunty tune as he went. Xander skirted round Willow, and hurried after him. Willow smiled at the human boy's retreating back.
"Boy's are no fun........I think I'll play with a man instead." She followed them slowly, her mind working on overload. She smirked to herself as a plan of action formed itself as she walked.
End Part 17
"Haven't you got anything less.......pastel?" The vampire said with a look of disgust on her face. Willow shook her head in apology, and her double sighed and started to change into the offensive clothing. Cordelia looked at Willow, then looked at her vampire double.
"We can't call you both Willow, it's way to confusing." She declared after a moment. The vampire looked up.
"Call me Red." She said negligently, then went back to getting dressed. Faith frowned, looking at Willow, then at Will...Red.
"We're gonna have to do something about your hair." She said. The vampire scowled at her.
"What's wrong with my hair?" She asked the brunette in a dangerous voice. Faith backed up slightly and her eyes widened, somehow Cordelia managed to miss the danger signs.
"Well, for starters, it's.....how do I put this? Limp. It lacks....shine, bounce, life." <She's right there>, Willow mentally giggled. "You know, I have this great coconut butter moisturiser that should help with that." She muttered as she headed out of the room. Willow and Faith looked at each other as Red growled ominously.
"I don't suppose this would be the best time to bring up skin tone?" Willow asked timidly. Her twin growled even louder, and Willow and Faith beat a hasty retreat.
Meanwhile......
"Anyone for blood?" Spike asked as he headed towards the kitchen. Xander pulled a face, and when he spoke his voice was literally dripping with sarcasm.
"Yes thanks, O negative if it's not to much trouble!" Spike scowled at him, then he turned to the other vampires in the room. They all shook their heads, and he headed off to the kitchen. The room lapsed back into silence.
"Bloomin'hell, I've been in rowdier tombs. Lighten up." Spike exclaimed as he entered the room, a mug of blood in one hand and a chicken sandwich in the other.
"I don't find anything in this situation that could possibly lead to-to ...lightheartedness in any form." Giles said sharply, then went back to studying a book, occasionally glancing over at Christine. Christine was also reading a book, and stealing covert glances at Giles while he wasn't looking. Spike rolled his eyes at Druscilla, who smiled slightly.
"When do we go?" Angelus suddenly exclaimed, causing everyone to jump slightly.
"Heel boy.....we'll go when the girls are ready." Xander frowned in thought. "Men seem to say that a lot." All the men in the room nodded slightly, but then stopped when they realised they were doing it. Druscilla and Christine shared a look of understanding and smiled smugly to themselves.
"Where are you going?" Angel asked Angelus, as he headed towards the door of the mansion.
"Out.........dad." Angelus smirked at his counterpart condescendingly. Angel nodded slowly, and stood up. He paused, and turned to his other double. He stumbled slightly on what to call him. "Erm....Puppy....would you join us?" The vampire looked up at the sound of his name, and nodded slightly. The three identical vampires left the mansion and headed out into the night.
"Is it me, or is that just plain weird." Spike said to the room. Xander nodded seriously.
"Right there with you, buddy."
Ten Minutes Later:-
"Ouch!" Red exclaimed, as Faith dragged the comb through her hair.
"Your a vamp for gods'sakes, quit you whining." Willow smiled at the two of them indulgently, and brought the liquid closer to the vampire. She backed away suddenly.
"Don't you dare come near me with that. I'm warning you......I'll bite." She actually seemed quite scared of the bottle Willow was holding up.
"Come on, it won't kill you!" Willow exclaimed.
"It's pink!" The vampire exclaimed, backing into the wall. Willow frowned.
"Well, I wear pink nail-varnish.....so you have to." Faith grabbed the vampire, and pulled her over to the desk, where she forcibly held the struggling vampire down. The red-heads shoulders slumped in defeat, and Willow gleefully painted the vile colour onto nails that had previously been red.....blood red.
Faith looked at the vampire she was holding down. "Why do you do it?" She asked her seriously.
"Do what?" The vampire asked harshly.
"Pretend to be, well.....insane. A few banana's short of a bunch." Willow nodded, getting into the game.
"A few houses short of a street." She added helpfully.
Faith frowned in thought. "A couple of guys short of an orgy." Willow pulled a face.
"You win." She exclaimed. The vampire looked thoughtful.
"Power." She said cryptically. <She's been taking lessons from Angel.....or would it be Puppy.....> Faith and Willow looked at her blankly.
"As far as vampires go I'm young. There are only two real ways to get power, the first would be age......." Willow interrupted her.
"Example of which being The Master." Red nodded and continued.
"The second way is to make every other vampire afraid of you. An insane demon is one who will do and risk anything.....they have no sense of their own mortality, which scares the vampires who are afraid of getting dusted, so they don't cross you." Willow and Faith nodded. <That sounds reasonable......hang on a minute, now I'm scared......an evil vampire version of me is making sense.....what have I become?> Willow shook her head, and resumed torturing her double.
"Okay, now the other hand!" She said to Faith, who smiled evilly at the vampires look of pitiful defeat as she watched her nails turning pink before her eyes.
End Part 18
They had been walking for about half an hour. So far in silence, Angel sighed, then said what was on his mind ever since The Bronze.
"Do you love her?" Angelus and Puppy looked up at him, startled. They both had "who, me?" looks on their faces. He nodded at both of them. Angelus scowled, and Puppy looked away.
"Do you?" Angelus asked Angel instead of replying. Angel stared at him for a moment, then accepted defeat. He nodded slightly. Angelus looked surprised that he'd actually said yes.
"Well, seeing as though we're going in for a heavy bonding session, I suppose that I do too. Amy, that is." Angelus amended, just in case Angel thought he meant Willow. Angel smiled slightly, then they both turned to look at Puppy. He blinked at him, then averted his eyes, not wanting to answer.
"You don't have to say it, it's obvious." Angelus said finally, and Puppy looked at him in surprise.
"H-how is it obvious?" He asked quietly. Angelus sighed, then nodded at Angel.
"We all know that you could have left by now, tricked her into killing you....if you really wanted to. But you haven't, which means that you had a reason to stay." Angelus continued when Angel paused.
"I'm guessing it wasn't for the torture......I was never one for being the tortured." He smiled slightly, reminiscing. Angel shuddered slightly, a wave of memories coming to the surface. He hastily shut them out.
"Are you going to turn her?" Angel asked Angelus, who looked thoughtful for a minute.
"No. I like her how she is. There is more than one way to make someone immortal and....." Angelus broke off, realising what he'd just admitted to.
Angel smiled at Angelus' slip of the tongue, then took pity on his demon double. "My thoughts exactly." Angelus smiled at him, then straightened his shoulders.
"They should be ready by now." He said, then turned back towards the mansion. Angel nodded at Puppy, who seemed lost in his thoughts, and the two souled vampires headed after him.
Half An Hour Later:-
"Ta-da!" Cordelia exclaimed to the room as she flung her arms wide. Faith and Willow forcibly escorted the unwilling vampiress into the room. Everybody's mouth dropped open in shock.
"You know, I thought I'd gotten used to more than one version of someone walking around.....but this is just plain freaky." Xander said to himself, and Giles nodded, wholeheartedly agreeing with him. Angelus stood up impatiently.
"Well then, let's go." He headed out of the mansion. Everyone stood up at once, and followed him out in two's. Giles walked alongside Christine, who was smiling slightly. Cordelia grabbed Xander, Spike held Druscilla's hand, Willow headed out with Angel, and Faith, Red, and Puppy brought up the rear. The slayer was the last one out, so she locked the door behind them.
"How come I'm the only un-coupled person here?" She asked herself, then she ran to catch up with the departing group. "Oh well, at least I'm gonna get to kick some serious butt."
End Part 19
Amy looked up as she heard her captors approaching. "I am calm.....I am calm." She took several deep, relaxing breaths, then resumed hyperventilating. The man who had spoken to her before walked over.
"Hello my dear. I hope you're enjoying yourself.....soon you'll be dead, and your friends will follow you." Amy stared at him, then did the only thing she could. She spat in his face. He roared and wiped his face, then he backhanded her.
"Ohwwm." Amy's head his the wall, and her ears began to ring. The man grabbed her face tightly, and snarled at her.
"Little bitch. You're going to die painfully for that." Then he relaxed slightly, and backed away from her. He nodded at the men who had followed him into the room, then he left. The men moved forward and began untying her, then they dragged her after their leader.
Half An Hour Later:-
"We're here." Puppy shouted to the empty clearing. Nothing.
"We've been stood up, mate." Spike said, lighting a cigarette. The bushes in front of them suddenly rustled, and a group of men came out, one of them was dragging Amy by her hair, her hands were tied behind her back. Angelus snarled, and Amy looked up at him, eyes wide, fear emanating from her hunched frame.
"The Witch for The Child. Deal?" The leader of the men asked Puppy. Who nodded slightly. Red walked forwards, head bent down slightly, eyes firmly planted on the ground. The leader of the men nodded and Amy was released. She stumbled towards her friends, as she passed Red their gazes locked.
Amy's eyes went wide, then she continued to walk forwards, a slight smile in her eyes. Suddenly all hell broke loose. One of the men reached into his coat and pulled out a gun, he aimed at Amy and squeezed the trigger. Angelus launched himself at the blonde witch, and tackled her to the ground. The bullet whizzed over their heads and embedded itself into an unassuming oak tree.
A lot happened at once after that. Puppy, Spike, and Faith launched themselves towards Amy's kidnappers, Druscilla started chanting, Giles and Christine started firing tranquilliser darts at the men, and Willow and Angel rushed out from behind.
Angel hit the first man he came to on the head with a stout stick, and Willow released her spell. The five men closest to her keeled over suddenly, then lay still on the ground, sleeping soundly. The rest of the bad-guys pulled out their guns and aimed at their attackers. Nothing happened. They stared at their guns in confusion, still pumping the trigger.
All at once they shot off into the trees. Only a few were left behind, they were fighting with the three vampires and the slayer. A few minutes later the fight was over. Fifteen bodies littered the clearing, and you could smell and see the blood, it was everywhere.
"Bloody good scuffle." Spike quipped. Angelus smiled, and helped Amy to her feet. He had been lying on top of her during the entire fight, protecting her with himself. Amy smiled slightly at him, and Willow rushed over to hug her friend. They both started sobbing with relief.
"You're alright...you're alright, you are alright? This is all my fault.......I'm so-so sorry." Willow stammered, unsure of what to say. Amy pulled back slightly, and tried to reassure her friend.
"I'm fine, this is not your fault, we're gonna be okay." Willow gave her a watery smile, then sniffed. Amy turned slightly.
"Thank you." She said to the group. "All of you." She glanced at Angelus, then quickly looked away. Druscilla nodded knowingly at Faith, who tried unsuccessfully to keep her grin in.
"We'd better get Amy home." Angelus said, as he walked over to her. He took off his leather coat and wrapped it around her. He stared down at her for a moment, then suddenly gathered her into his arms. "Who hit you?" He asked her, gently touching the side of her face.
"The red-haired one....he escaped." She replied. He frowned.
"Not for long." He promised her, she smiled at him. Then he did something that shocked the entire group. He leaned down, and kissed her. Not an ordinary kiss.....a one of those passionate, sunset, lovers reunited kisses. The ones that cause the earth to move, or at least sit up and take notice. Faith wolf whistled, and Spike grinned at his sire and started clapping.
The two lovers broke apart, Amy was breathless, Angelus smug.
"I-I perhaps, we should, that is, leave now?" Giles stammered. Everyone waited for a moment, then suddenly headed towards the mansion.
End Part 20
"Well?" Willow stared at Amy. "Something happened while I was "vacationing", and I want to know what." Faith smiled, and backed her up.
"Yeah Wills, dish." Willow looked around the room, begging someone to save her. Druscilla just smiled at her, and Red was smirking with pure unadulterated enjoyment.
"I know you want him." He vampire twin said.
"How do you.....I mean, what makes you think I want An....nyone?" Willow went bright red, and stared at her shoes. <Uh-oh>
"That's simple. I want my Puppy, my Puppy wants me. So you want your Angel, and your Angel wants you." Amy nodded, then looked questioningly at Willow.
"Well, we.....sorta kissed but it wasn't a proper kiss 'cos we got interrupted so the smoochies were ,only half smoochies but they were nice smoochies and now I'm thinking maybe Angel doesn't want Willlow kissage." Willows words all ran together, and the other women in the room just about managed to understand her.
"I'm sure he does, who wouldn't want Willow kissage?" Amy tried to reassure her friend. Willow smiled hopefully.
"Do you really think that......." She was interrupted by the phone ringing. Faith picked it up.
"Yeah?" She snapped, she wanted to here what Willow was going to do. She frowned. "Who? Okay," she looked at the rest of the group "someone called Odd wants to talk to Willow." Willow and Amy looked at each other, extremely puzzled. Suddenly it dawned on Willow, and she leapt up and grabbed the phone from Faith, then she headed out into the hall.
"Who's Odd?" Red asked, Faith snickered slightly.
Amy frowned, a worried look on her face. "That would be Oz......Willow's boyfriend."
Meanwhile......
Xander and Cordelia walked into the mansion. "Well?" Angelus asked them before they could close the door behind them. Cordelia huffed at his haste, and headed upstairs to find Willow.
"We followed them to the other side of town. They're holed up in the old Michael's Way quarry. Highly unsanitary, and as Cordy would say, in desperate need of an interior decorator." Giles nodded, then turned to Angel.
"There isn't long left now. We simply m-must practice more. Willow must be stronger than she is." Angel nodded sadly, then headed off to find the girl who had been constantly in his thoughts over the past few days.
Two Weeks Later:-
"I'm sorry.....I'm really, really sorry......I didn't mean for this to happen.....honestly." Willow said to the person opposite her. They just stared back at her. "I never wanted to hurt you, I still love you Oz, it's just not love love, I have love love with Angel, with you it's sweet love and......ughhhh that was lame." Willow pulled a face and the person opposite her did the same.
"You talking to your reflection again, I thought we'd talked about that." Amy said as she strolled into the bathroom. She started rummaging through the cupboard. Willow glared at her, then sat on the edge of the bath and sighed loudly. She waited for a moment, and when Amy didn't say anything she sighed even louder.
Finally she gave up. "Watcha looking for?" She asked her friend, who was now rummaging through the sink cabinet. Amy didn't turn round.
"My Offspring album." Willow stared at her.
"Okay.....and you're looking in the bathroom why?" Amy looked at her in surprise.
"Everything always turns up in the bathroom.....plus the brunette-slayer-faerie might of had something to do with the fact that it's AWOL." Willow nodded sagely, then frowned.
"I don't know how to tell Oz." She moaned. Amy looked up and smiled at her.
"You could always drop him a few hints.....make out with Angel just as he comes into the room."
"I think that's be an anvil." Faith quipped, as she entered the bathroom. "Whatcha doin'?"
"Willow's moaning 'cos she hasn't told her boyfriend that she's two-timing him with one of the un-dead." Amy explained.
"Well, Amy's looking for her Offspring album, which she accused you of moving." Willow responded. Amy looked at her and glared good-naturedly. "Besides, you are dating a member of the un-dead species." Faith grinned.
"I second Willows motion, and I move that the last comment be stricken from the record." Amy stuck her tongue out, and started looking through the cupboard again.
"Why are you all in the bathroom....have I walked in on a toilet-orientated orgy? If so, why wasn't I invited?" Xander asked them seriously. Willow nearly fell in the bath, and Amy and Faith started laughing. <I know how to get rid of him>
"Why Xander, do I....is that Red I hear, coming this way?" Xanders head shot up, and he glanced behind himself, then he sprinted out of the bathroom as if a whole army of zombies was on his tail. Amy and Faith laughed even harder.
"That-that was cruel." Amy gasped. Willow nodded evilly.
"But so much fun!"
End Part 21
"So, where's this Oz guy been while you were battling evil, rescuing damsels in distress, and generally averting the horrible, painful end of the world?" Faith asked Willow, as she brushed her hair.
"Summer School." Willow said seriously. Faith looked up at her and laughed.
"No way, jesus.......you didn't tell him, did you." Faith questioned her friend as she blushed and looked uncomfortable.
"Well, actually....I was in the process of, thatt is...not 100%, well, no.....I didn't." Willow stammered out. Faith started laughing, then she shook her head and smiled.
"Willow, sometimes I think you're worse than Red." Willow looked up in shock, and an identical voice joined hers.
"Hey!" Willow and Red exclaimed in unison, outraged at the idea. Faith grinned at them, then put her brush down.
"I'm gonna get a coke, want?" The two identical girls shook their heads and Faith shrugged, heading downstairs.
Meanwhile.............
"Okay." Oz nodded at Giles, after he had finished his fifteen minute speech bringing Oz up-to-date on recent events. Giles frowned, took his glasses off, and started polishing them.
"Don't y-you want to know why you weren't told......or w-why we haven't sent Red and Puppy back, or why w-we are working with Spike and Druscilla?" Oz shook his head, and gave a slight smile.
"You don't say much, do you." Spike added when Oz remained silent.
"I'm the sententious member of our clique." He said as an explanation. Spike frowned.
"I don't even know what that means." Xander nodded his head in male understanding.
"You can join me and Cordy, we make up the unarticulated section of the group." Cordelia hit him around the back of the head.
"Hey, speak for yourself. I represent the poised, fashionably dressed division." Xander stuck his tongue out at her, after she had turned away though. "So, what's the plan now then?" Cordelia asked Giles, who just shrugged. Everyone looked suprised at his lack of plan, and he shrugged defiantly at them.
"I guess we'd better get back to work." Christine offered, pulling the attention away from Giles. He smiled at her in thanks, and she blushed slightly.
"Yeah, the world ain't gonna save itself." Spike grinned at Giles, who glared at him.
"Yes, quite......well, I suggest you all, leave. Christine," he turned to his fellow Watcher "would you like to, that is.....perhaps we could go over some of the translations together?" He stammered blushing and polishing his glasses even more.
"I'd love to....I mean yes, of course." Christine got even redder. Cordelia glanced at Druscilla, who smiled back at her, one eyebrow raised. Cordelia nodded, then stood up quickly. She pulled a protesting Xander to his feet, and dragged him out of the room.
Druscilla and Spike soon followed them. As they passed Oz they stopped, he looked up at them and gave a slight smile showing he understood. They all left together. Spike and Druscilla followed Cordelia and Xander, and Oz went in search of Willow.
Oz checked the kitchen first, grabbing himself a soda while he was in there. On his way out he ran into Angel. "Hey."
Angel screeched to a halt, then looked anywhere but at Oz. "Ermm....hello, Oz." He stood for a moment, unsure of what to do. Finally, he fled the kitchen as if several chaos demons were after him.
Oz shook his head in bemusement at Angels behaviour, then headed towards Willows room. After he left the room Faith stepped out of the walk-in pantry, a concerned frown on her face. She stood there for a few minutes, lost in thought. Finally, she followed Oz, slowly walking through the mansion.
End Part 22
"So."
"Yes, well...the books are over there, we should read the books, because they have what I need....we need." Giles turned bright red, and hurried to the kitchen. Christine smiled slightly, and picked up one of the heavy volumes. She started idly flicking through it. She could here Giles banging cupboards in the kitchen. She sighed and stood up.
"What was it like being Buffy's Watcher?" She asked him suddenly, before she could chicken out. Giles jumped about two feet into the air at the sound of her voice, and dropped the cup he was holding. It shattered on the floor. They both bent down to tidy it away, and the next thing they knew they were holding their heads.
"Ouch!" "Ow!" They both said, simultaneously. Then they smiled at each other, the tension broken by their mutual embarrassment.
"Sorry." Giles said, as he reached out to stop Christine from picking up the shards. "You should leave them, they're very sharp." He helped Christine to her feet, and they stood nose to chest, slowly Christine tilted her head back and stared into his eyes. Their mouths got closer, and closer.......
"Hey, where the hell are ya'?" Faith waltzed through the front door, and the two broke guiltily apart. Giles turned to the boiling kettle, and Christine walked into the main room, clearing her throat as she went.
"Something wrong?" He voice went really high, and Faith glanced at her perplexed, then shrugged.
"Naw, just thought I'd help with the book thing.....unless ya' think I should patrol. Kick some un-dead ass etc." Christine smiled at Faith, and nodded. "I heard Giles has some cool weapons, can I play with em'?" She asked the Watcher as he entered the room, his eyes fixed on Christine.
"Er, well, yes....they're in the breast, I mean chest...over there." He pointed past Faith, and she headed over to the chest, and started emptying the contents all over the floor.
Christine and Giles sat next to each other, stiffly, and pointedly didn't look at each other. Every so often you'd here a "Cool!", or a "Nice piece of steel" from the brunette Slayer. After the longest fifteen minutes of Giles' life, the girl headed outside with her loot, and left the rest of the weapons scattered on the floor.
"See ya' back at the mansion." Faith called as she headed out the door. They both murmured quietly, and she smiled to herself, and headed up the steps. "They must think I'm blind." She mused, then shrugged. Her mind now focused upon the hunt.
Meanwhile...........
"If you want him then take him." Red said to her counterpart, who made a strange sound, and hid her head under her pillow. "Well, if you aren't going to then I will. Puppy and Angel." She growled in pleasure, and Willow sat up and threw her pillow at the vampire.
"You leave Angel alone. He's mine." Then she put her hand over her mouth. "Oops." Red frowned.
"Why do you waste your time, time that you could spend with him, worrying about hurting the wolf. Be happy." Willow sighed.
"It's not that simple."
"Then make it that simple." The vampire said, with an edge to her voice.
"I don't know how." Willow tucked her feet under her, and stared off into space. "I thought I loved Oz, but I know I love Angel. But I don't want to hurt Oz, he was the first boy who really saw me for me. But Angel makes me all tingly, but good tingly, not foot gone to sleep tingly, which is kinda painful." Red rolled her eyes, and snorted.
"Follow your heart." Willow stared at her.
"Great, I'm taking advice in my love life from an evil demon. Can I sink any lower?"
Red frowned in thought, then gave her famous evil smirk. "Probably not."
End Part 23
"Hi." Amy said to Cordelia and Druscilla as she entered the kitchen. They nodded at her, and continued what they were doing. Amy walked over to them curiously. "Whatcha' doing?" Cordelia looked up.
"I'm trying to convince insane-o-girl here that Gucci is good." Amy laughed and sat down. Dru looked up at her.
"Why so sad?" Amy frowned and didn't answer. Cordelia waved her hand around excitedly.
"I know. I know. It's because Angelus has been avoiding her." Amy glared at her, then gave a big sigh. Finally she nodded.
"I don't know why, I mean, I thought that he, that we....but no." Druscilla frowned.
"He feels guilty." Cordelia and Amy looked puzzled.
"About what?" Amy asked.
"About letting you get captured, hurt, scared...take your pick." Cordelia shook her head.
"No-way. Angelus doesn't do guilt, maybe a little torture and bloodletting, but guilt?" Druscilla looked at her.
"We feel guilt sometimes. But only about things we feel strongly about, people we love." She looked at Amy, who was sitting in silence.
"He loves me?" Druscilla nodded and Amy's eyes went even wider. "Wow. I didn't think he did. So, what do I do?"
"Confront him about it, make him admit that he loves you as you love him." Druscilla said after a minutes thought. Amy stood up purposefully.
"Good plan. Great plan. One problem, how the hell do I find him?" Cordelia and Druscilla looked at each other, and they both rolled their eyes.
"Hello? Witch." Cordelia remarked scathingly, and Amy blushed.
"Oh yeah." She murmured, then walked out the kitchen, murmuring a spell under her breath. Cordelia turned back to the vampire sitting next to her.
"We'll start with trousers, which women have been wearing for like, 50 years now!" Druscilla sighed, it was going to be a long day.
Later that Evening.......
"Hey, vampire." Faith twirled the stake around in her right hand as she faced down a particularly ugly member of the walking dead. Suddenly a hand closed around her neck, and grabbed the stake from her hand. The vampire she was facing laughed, and headed towards her. His game face emerging. Faith waited until he was in range, then bunched her muscles, and prepared to pounce.
Her captor swung her up, and she lashed out with her left foot, catching her opponent in the jaw. The demon reeled back, and Faith landed off to one side. Suddenly the stake flew through the air and imbedded itself into the shocked vampire. It's eyes widened, then disappeared as he turned to dust, taking her stake with it.
"That was my favourite stake." She berated her captor.
"Sorry." Angelus shrugged. Faith smiled.
"Was worth it though." Angelus nodded. "Was he one of yours?" Faith nodded at the pile of ashes, that were slowly spreading out due to the gentle breeze in the graveyard.
"No, I'd never sire anyone that stupid." Faith grinned, and headed out of the cemetery.
"How'd ya' explain Spikey then?" Angelus laughed, and followed her. "What's going on between you and the Witch?" Faith asked suddenly, as they picked their way past the gravestones.
"You're not shy, are you." Faith snorted. "None of your business."
Faith frowned, and turned to face him. "It is my business. I count her as a friend, and if you're screwin' with her then I'll stake you personally." Angelus drew himself up to his full height, ready to fight, then sighed suddenly, and looked away.
"She scares me." Faith's eyes went wide at the unexpected statement.
"K, not what I expected to hear." Angelus frowned.
"You don't understand. I'm evil, I've killed hundreds of people, I have no remorse...but when she was being held captive I wanted so badly to take her place." Angelus smiled to himself. "I don't usually go in for self- sacrifice." Faith frowned, and then understanding spread across her features.
"You feel guilty." Angelus looked up quickly, then nodded. "So, Whatcha' gonna' do about it?" He smiled.
"For starters, tear the limbs off the one who hurt her." Faith smiled.
"Want some company?"
End Part 24
"It's official, I hate shopping." Amy said between gritted teeth as she stalked into the next shop on Cordelia's hit-list. Cordelia rolled her eyes and Druscilla sighed.
"I'm with the Witch on this ducks." Spike stated as he finally caught up with them, his arms laden with bags of what Cordelia had called the "essentials of any modern girls wardrobe". At that comment Spike had snorted and remarked that in his book the essentials consisted of red-lacey underwear, then wished he hadn't made the remark as Cordelia (whilst muttering under her breath) immediately headed for the nearest lingerie shop.
Willow and Red trailed behind the main group, and if any passers-by had heard the conversation in full they would have been very frightened, as it was mainly Red lecturing her twin on vampiric dating including all the bases, and some Willow hadn't even heard of. (I will literally never get back to my normal colour. I'll now be known as that red-faced girl.....oh goddess, I so didn't need to know what she did with the ice-cream and the stake. Therapy till I'm 90.)
Suddenly a tannoy could be heard, announcing that the mall was closing in 15 minutes. The only person who wasn't happy with the news was Cordelia, who was already planning tomorrows campaign.
On the way back to the mansion....
"Look, I seriously don't think I can wear this." Amy whined at the whirlwind shopper next to her.
"Look, you want Angelus right?" Cordelia waited until Amy nodded before continuing. "Well, to get him you're gonna have to literally dress to kill. Are you understanding me here?" Cordelia spoke very slowly, and Amy scowled at her, before nodding again. "He is seriously gonna flip when he see's you. He won't be able to resist, and believe me, the one thing I do well is irresistable," Then without even looking in Spikes direction she said "and wipe that idiotic grin off your face."
Spike screwed his face up and stuck his tongue out, but as Cordelia wasn't even looking at him it was pretty pointless, so he ended up sulking the rest of the way back.
In the other car the conversation was just as frightening.
"I could kill him for you." Red said, looking at Willow.
"NO! You aren't gonna kill Oz, you're a.....gooder-guy and no kiling your own team-mates, understand. Oh, and please watch the road." Willows voice got higher as the sentence went on, and Red grinned at her then went back to driving.
"This car sucks." Red said after a minute of silence.
"You try telling Giles that, he totally flips." Willow laughed at the memory that came to mind. "I remember when Buffy said......" Willow's voice trailed off, as she sat thinking about her friend. Red gave her a considering look, but said nothing.
"So, Dru. Was it fun running with Angelus? Kill anyone famous?" Red asked the vampire in the back seat, who was rummaging through the clothing that Cordelia had forced her into buying.
"There were so many." She smiled reminiscently, then frowned. "How can I possibly carry off the unstable-vampiress wearing these?" She pulled out a pair of knee-high boots.
"I'll show you how
if you like, you just have to match them with the right outfit.
They do say that
clothes maketh the man..." Willow interrupted her double.
"Or woman." Red continued after grinning at her.
"It's fun actually, if you get the look right you can scare people without even saying a word." Druscilla frowned consideringly, then nodded an affirmative.
"Why couldn't I have gone in the car where they have a normal conversation?" Willow mumbled to herself as they pulled up outside the mansion.
Later that evening.....
"Alright. We need a plan." Giles said to the entire room.
"Tell us something we don't know." Xander muttered, with caused Willow and Cordelia to elbow him simultaneously from both sides. "Ouch!" He hugged his injured ribs and groaned, his face the ultimate portrayl of a man in undeserving pain.
Spike laughed, which then caused Druscilla and Red to elbow him as well. Giles glared at the entire room, and then continued.
"Yes, well....a plan." He looked around the room. "Does, er, anyone have one?" Everyone looked away and he sighed.
"Kill the buggars." Spike said helpfully.
"Yes, well, we have that part of the plan, we now need the part which gives us clear instructions on how to "kill the buggars", as you so colourfully put it." Giles said with a voice dripping with sarcasm, mixed with a slight amount of contempt.
"There must be a spell. I mean, we have a prophecy, and spells and prophecies go hand in hand, right?" Willow looked around the room for help.
Amy and Druscilla nodded. "I may have a few idea's, I'm getting a book translated, it's possible it may contain something helpful." Druscilla told Giles, who suddenly brightened up. He and Christine dragged Druscilla into the library to find out more about the book, and the meeting unofficially dissolved.
Red went outside and Puppy followed her, keeping a discreet distance. Amy practically ran up to her room, and Angelus headed outside into the garden. Spike, Cordelia and Xander headed towards the kitchen to grab some movie-fest snacks.
The four that were left in the room looked around them uncomfortably. Actually, Willow and Angel studiously avoided each others eyes, and Faith and Oz watched them avoiding each others eyes.
The brunette slayer watched the musician look back and forth between his girlfriend and the vampire. She watched as uunderstanding spread over his features, that quickly turned into hurt, finally dissolving into resigned acceptance. He looked up, catching her staring.
Faith blushed, not knowing why, and Oz smiled slightly, then looked pointedly at the other two. She could see that he wanted her to do something about the situation. Faith bit her lip, then smiled.
"So, Wills.....you gonna tell him?" Willow looked up at Faith, a horrified look on her face. Faith decided to take pity on her. "He knows." She said quietly. Willow looked at Oz guiltily, then started wringing her hands.
Angel was watching the entire thing with a brooding-wary expression. "It's okay, I understand. Well, I may not like it, but I can accept it. If he makes you happy, then I'm happy." Oz said to Willow, who just kept staring at him with tears in her eyes.
He walked over to Angel, and looked up at the vampire consideringly. When he spoke, Angel could almost sense the growl that accompanied his words. "If you hurt her, I'll kill you myself." Then Oz headed out of the mansion, with everyone staring after him.
Willow looked at Faith, who nodded and headed out after the wolf, to make sure he was gonna be okay.
Then it was just Willow and Angel, alone together, in the room, by themselves.
(Oh boy.)
End Part 25