** ** **

Willow stared at the book in front of her, barely seeing the words written so
clearly in black ink on the page. She really needed to finish this chapter, her
last exam was only days away. But she couldn’t. She hardly had the energy to
keep her head from falling on to the table, much less understand the complex
programming problems being discussed in her textbook.

It had been almost a week since she had managed to get a good night’s sleep.
Nearly an entire week since she had been able to sleep for more than an hour
without the dreams starting. They weren’t bad dreams, she reasoned. Definitely
not nightmares.  More like really erotic fantasies that played out while she
was sleeping. She would wake from each one feeling more exhausted than when she
had tumbled into bed. It was as if she wasn’t actually sleeping during them.

And in a way, she wasn’t.

The dreams that played out in her head were signs, letting her know her mate
was coming. He had somehow gotten free of the bindings he had been locked in
for the past seven years and was now coming for her. Coming to take her away,
back to the life she had once had with him. Except this time would be
different. This time she wouldn’t give him up.

No matter what.

No, this time Angelus was back to stay. There would be no cursing, no forcing
his demon into the gilded cage of his putrid soul. Not this time. She didn’t
know what had broken the curse but was damn sure it hadn’t been a Slayer – so
he wouldn’t be insane with rage. This time he would be all hers. Every single
inch of his wonderful body would be hers for the taking without any threats of
world domination looming over her head.

Wetness pooled between her slim thighs as she remembered the way he had made
her body feel. The heights he had been able to take her to were some no one
since had come close to. Not the wolf, not the witch, not even that cute little
army boy she had met up with for a one night stand last time she went home to
visit. None of them had been man enough for her. Not a single one had been able
to quench the fire that burned inside her.

But Angelus could.

She glanced out her small bedroom window, knowing she should try to study but
unable to concentrate amidst thoughts of her mate and lack of sleep. How long
would it take him to get to her? She had left for Virginia Tech her sophomore
year, deciding she could get a better education there rather than at the
community college she had been attending. It didn’t hurt that they had taken
one look at her transcripts and offered her a full scholarship.  Going to
school in Virginia had put her on the opposite side of the country from her
mate though and, with the restraints of day, she didn’t know when to expect
him. It could be days or weeks.

There just wasn’t anyway to know for sure.

Looking at the phone, Willow was tempted to call Sunnydale, see what was going
on. Did any of them even realize yet that Angelus was back? Somehow the red
head doubted it. They would have called her if they knew. Called to warn her to
stay inside and lock the doors – don’t let the big bad man into your house. She
chuckled softly. Though Angelus was big and bad, he was nothing that scared
her.

There was no reason for her to fear her mate. He loved her more than his very
unlife. Even when he had the soul, the vampire had been unable to stay in
control when he was around her. So he had stayed away, denying both of them
what their bodies so desperately needed.

 Not that she wanted Soulboy.

Her lips curled up in disgust, thinking of the shell of a man that her lover
had become when she had been forced to curse him again.  The whining,
perpetually brooding vampire had done all he could to make it clear to her that
they could never have a relationship together. That he could never love her the
way Angelus had – even though they were the same person. {He never once stopped
to consider that I didn’t want his sniveling self,} Willow smirked.

She could never have made a life with the souled version of her heart’s true
mate. They were just too different when it came down to it all. No matter how
hard she tried to deny it, deep inside of her was a darkness that matched that
of Angelus. She had received physical proof of it when the vampire version of
herself came from Anya’s wish world – had seen for the first time exactly what
Angel’s demon saw every time it saw her.

And it had excited her.

One day she would have that, the power and confidence, the sex appeal, the
daringness to wear leather.  Angelus would make sure of that.  The thought of
being turned normally scared her. But, the thought of her mate turning her,
sinking his fangs into her neck, was enough to make the red head wet with
desire.

 It was something she had been looking forward to since the night he had
claimed her as his mate. Her heart cried out to be joined with him in eternity
every time he was near. The knowledge that she would be little more than a
demon didn’t even phase her, the part of her that acknowledged the dark haired
vampire as its mate squelching any fears or objections she could possibly have
had.

She would tell her friends first, of course, warn them not to trust her any
further. No matter what had happened in the past, she didn’t want to see any of
them dead. Especially not Xander. He had broken her heart a thousand times
during high school, but he didn’t deserve to die.  None of them deserved to die
– except maybe Buffy.

{And wouldn’t it be grand to have a Slayer’s death under my belt?} Willow
thought wickedly. Just knowing that her mate was coming, getting closer by the
moment, brought the touch of evil that lurked within her to the surface.

Yawning, the red head closed the book with a bang. There was no point in
studying. No point at all. Soon Angelus would be there to take her away from
everything. To start their life together all over again.  She slipped under the
covers of her queen sized bed, the silk sheets rubbing against her smooth legs.
The sheets had been there since after the first dream, ready and waiting for
when her lover came for her. Shutting her eyes, the young witch fell into the
arms of sleep, looking forward to her next dream or her mate waking her.

Whatever happened first.

** ** **

Knock. Knock.

Willow rolled over, pulling her pillow over her head and hoping whoever was
making all the noise in the hallway would stop. She had been about to dream,
she just –knew- it. The knocking stopped and she sighed in relief, putting her
head on the pillow and closing her eyes. Maybe the dreams would come to carry
her off to the place where she was with her mate.

Knock. Knock.

“Would you knock it off??!?” Willow cried, sitting up in bed. “Some of are
trying to fucking sleep!” Again the knocking stopped and she started to lay
back down, eyes already closing.

“Little one…”

All thoughts of sleep left Willow at the soft sound of the voice outside her
door. She shot out of bed, slipping on the cool wooden floor of her room. Her
heart was thudding in her chest, her entire body craving what was lying on the
other side of the door. She undid the lock, easing the door open slowly.
“Angelus..” She breathed, her eyes raking over the sight before her.

Her mate was there, lounging against the wall next to her door. She had never
seen him look quite as good as he did at that moment. He was like water to her
after months in the desert. Per the usual, his leather pants were molded to his
body, hugging every curve, every line. A deep burgundy shirt hung open,
exposing the tight lines of his well-muscled chest.  She licked her lips
unconsciously, her eyes moving to the perfect fullness of his lips.  Deep brown
eyes stared at her, amusement warring with lust in their depths.  His hair was
spiked to perfection, black locks sticking up with almost planned randomness.

“Going to let me in, lover?” Angelus purred, lust winning out in his eyes. He
had been traveling for almost a week and a half to get his mate and was anxious
to reestablish their bond – physically, all night long.

“Come in,” Willow whispered, stepping back so he could enter the apartment. She
had barely slid home the lock before his hands were on her, tearing into the
thin nightgown she was wearing. “Angelus…” She moaned, leaning back into the
hardness of his arms. “Take me, please.”

“Your wish is my command,” the vampire whispered, his voice husky. He lifted
her into his arms, glancing around quickly for the bedroom. With a few quick
strides he was there, laying her in the middle of the blood red silk she had
covered the bed in just for him. It had been too long since he had felt the
pleasure of his mate’s body and he was already aching with need.

For the past seven years he had waited in the cage the soul had built for him,
straining to get lose and reclaim his mate. It had been torture every time she
had come near the soul and he had ignored her.  For that alone he hoped the
soul suffered for eternity wherever it had been sent to.  To ignore the woman
that should have been mate to every part of him was the worst sin he could
think of.

His eyes roamed over the naked body of his mate, rejoicing for the thousandth
time in two weeks the circumstances that had led to him being set free. Who
would have thought that the compassion and understanding of a child would have
caused the soul a moment of true happiness? Who would have thought that one
small hand caressing his face while the demon was out was all it would take? He
smirked, capturing the mouth of his lover and pushing all thoughts of that from
his mind.

Small hands tugged at the few buttons actually closed on the dark haired
vampire’s shirt, struggling to free him of it.  The red head sighed in
happiness when her lover’s hands replaced hers, removing the shirt with a few
quick flicks of his wrist.  Her fingernails scratched at his chest, leaving
pink trails on his hard, pale skin and his eyes closed briefly in pleasure.

Angelus rose from the bed, kicking off his boots and pants as quickly as he
could and rejoining his lover on the bed.  Perching over her already panting
body, the vampire slid into her with one fast motion. She screamed his name,
fingernails drawing blood on his back as he began to slam into her, thrusting
his entire length in with every stroke.

“Harder…” Willow moaned, already nearing her own climax and wanting to bring
him with her. She groaned as he increased the intensity of his thrusts,  the
pain and pleasure mixing to the point she couldn’t tell which was which.
“Angelus…” She moaned, his blood thick on her fingers as she continued to tear
at his back with her nails. The pain was good for him too, she remembered that
from long, long ago.

The red head saw the vampire’s face slip as the demon came out to play. Her
eyes lit up with ecstasy, the part of her that held the mating bond with
Angelus screaming in recognition. She had missed this, missed him, missed the
feel of his body pounding into her. She tilted her head to the side, allowing
him access to her neck. She wanted his mark on her, wanted to be claimed all
over again. She cried out, her body shuddering as her orgasm washed over her,
his name spilling from her lips time and again.

“Willow…” Angelus growled. His stomach clenched and he howled in pleasure as
his own release took him. Sharp teeth sank into her neck, drinking her life’s
blood as he claimed her for a second time. His cock spasmed deep within her,
spilling cool seed into her burning womb. With one final thrust, he pulled his
teeth from her, licking lightly at the wounds. “Mate.”

“Mate.” Willow nodded sleepily.  She would finally get a good night’s sleep
now, in the arms of her mate. Her body was sore from the brutal fucking yet
tingling with pleasure. It was a feeling she never wanted to end. She shut her
eyes, snuggling into the Angelus’s arms, feeling safe for the first time in
seven years.

“Lover…”

The quiet voice of her mate roused her from her near-slumber.  She looked over
at him, surprised to see the golden eyes of the demon staring at her.
Surprised, but not afraid. In those yellow depths she could read his intent,
knew what was to come next. She smiled softly, baring her neck for the second
time that evening and knowing that this would be different from all others. She
was truly to be his mate for the rest of his unlife. Her last thought as
unconsciousness took her was that she never got to warn her friends.

Oh well.

They’d learn soon enough.
 

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