Part 11

      "Did you say Voldemort had the Slayer?" Dumbledore questioned, finally
coming closer to the group of students and vampires.  "That he has taken
over her body?"
      "That's what he said his name was," Angel answered, still holding onto
Willow with his uninjured arm.
      "Who is this Voldemort guy anyway?" Spike muttered.  "And why did he seem
so happy to have the Slayer's powers, although it isn't like I'm all that
sorry to see you gone."
      "Spike," Willow hissed.  "Hush."
      "Sorry mum,' he said sheepishly, all the while a huge grin crossed his
face.  "I promise to behave."
      "Why does that not make me feel any better?" Willow rolled her eyes at
Spike's blatant unashamed look.
      "Because you know how my childe is and you know it's not whether he behaves
himself or not, just how he does it that should scare you," Angel teased.
      "Oh yeah, that's right."  Dumbledore cleared his throat trying to gain the
attention of the group again.
      "About Voldemort," he began, again only to be interrupted.
      "Do you have to keep saying his name?" Ron shivered his fear of the warlock
in question apparent in his voice.  The red headed boy was standing next to
Drusilla and the insane vampiress put her arms around his shoulders.
      "Don't worry, mommy's friend," the woman cooed, trying to soothe the scared
boy.  "The bad man won't hurt you.  He's afraid of your friends.  With you,
they are more powerful than him.  You are safe from him." Ron looked up at
Drusilla and found himself suddenly no longer afraid of the dangerous woman
who could just as easily kill him with a sudden movement.
      "Really?" He asked hopefully.  Drusilla smiled as she placed a tender kiss
on his cheek.
      "I will protect you, little one," she promised.  "Just as you protected me.
  I won't let anyone hurt you."
      "And that's a promise you can take to the bank, mate," Spike told Ron.
"When Drusilla says she will protect you, she means it.  She won't let
anyone hurt you."  Ron smiled at the prospect of being under the protection
of the vampire.
      "What is going on here?" Professor Snape practically screamed, still not
understanding why the headmaster was talking to the vampires instead of
destroying them, which is what should be done, good or evil.  "Why haven't
we destroyed these creatures yet?"
      "Because then you would be dead," Willow stated flatly, leaving no doubt
that she spoke the truth and suddenly Snape knew.  If something happened to
the vampire known as Angelus, Willow would severely harm, and quite possible
kill, those responsible.  Willow meanwhile, looked around the crowded room
and decided that whatever had to be said should be done so in some other
location.
      "I think it may be advisable if we take this somewhere a little more
private," she suggested.  "I don't think we should talk about whatever has
happened to Buffy where the other students can hear and Xander really needs
to get looked after.  And Angel and the others need to feed."  At the
mentioning of the vampires feeding, the students that had braved getting
closer suddenly moved back. They didn't want to be anywhere near a hungry
vampire.  Willow saw this and couldn't help it.  She smiled.  "Oh, please, I
didn't mean that they would feed off of you.  Angel can feed from me.  He
has on many occasions already."
      "That's how the bond between the two of you was formed, wasn't it?"
Professor Lupin questioned, fascinated about the fact that a seemingly
bright young mortal would willingly allow a vampire to feed from her.  He
hoped that he would be able to speak to her, and Angel, about it before they
left, because it was clear to him, that Willow and Amy would no longer be
students at Hogwarts.  But it seemed that they had already been quite versed
in some of the things that they would have learned at the school anyway.
Willow nodded her head.
      "Yup, and I've occasionally have been known to give Angel a pint or two
when he's been in a major fight, so its no big deal to me," she said.  "But
I would rather not do it in a roomful of people."
      "Quite right," Dumbledore agreed.  "Let's go to my office and we can talk
there and you can help your friends.  Miss Madison, why don't you take your
young gentleman to the nurse and she can fix him up."  Amy looked over at
Willow, who nodded showing that she agreed with the headmaster's suggestion.
  Amy helped Xander, who had grown weaker although he was still trying to
hold in the grimace of pain.  She wrapped his arm around her shoulder,
allowing himself to use her for support, and the reunited couple made their
way out the room and away from the curious stares of the other students.
      Dumbledore then showed Willow, Angel, Spike, Drusilla, Professors Snape,
McGonnigal and Lupin to his office.  Harry, Ron, and Hermoine followed, not
willing to be left out since they already knew most of the story and had
come to care for the vampires that had arrived at school because of the way
that Willow had spoken about them.  Snape had tried to stop them from
coming, but growls from Spike and Drusilla stopped any further protests he
might have had.  Finally, they had reached the headmaster's office and
everyone entered, the three vampires sitting so that they could continue
healing.
      "Okay, now, Angel, you know the drill," Willow said as she offered her arm
to her mate.  Angel looked at her and saw that her resolve face was on.  He
took the offered arm and raised it to his lips, lightly kissing at the pulse
point under the skin. The four teacher and three students watched in
fascination as Angel gently sunk his fangs into Willow's skin, causing a
look of pure bliss to cross Willow's face.
      "Ummm," Ron said, looking over at Drusilla.  "Do you need to feed too?"
Drusilla gazed at the boy softly.
      "Yes, but I will be fine," she told him.  Ron seemed to think about
something for a minute before giving Drusilla his arm.  "I don't need to
drink from you, little one."
      "I know, but it will help you get better quicker," Ron stated, his voice
only showing a hint of the nervousness he was feeling.  Drusilla smiled
sweetly at him, and slowly drank from the young man, trying to cause as
little discomfort as possible.  Hermoine watched as her friend did this and
was surprised to see how much Ron seemed to enjoy Drusilla feed from him.
      "Damn, everyone's got a treat but me," Spike muttered, drawing Hermoine's
attention, who suddenly realized that Spike was the only one that hadn't had
a chance to feed.  She went over to the blonde vampire and offered her own
arm.
      "Go ahead."  Spike flashed his best smile, causing Heroine to melt inside,
and slowly drank from her, causing her head to spin, but not from blood
loss.  "Wow," she whispered when he had stopped.  "Does it always feel like
that?"  Willow grinned at her two friends, grateful to the lengths that they
had gone to in order to help her friends.
      "Usually," she replied.  "Total high, ain't it."  Ron and Hermoine could
only nod, as the two vampires that had just fed from them wrapped them in
their arms and settled them on their laps.  "Okay, now that that's over,
time to talk about Buffy and Voldemort.  I didn't even know that he was
around."
      "He was hiding in the woods and got us just as we were about to come into
the school," Angel began.  "He said that he could sense the power coming
from Buffy and that he needed that power to return to the living.  He had
some kind of creature with him; I didn't recognize it, that grab her.  We
tried to help her but he was too powerful.  Before we knew it Buffy, Giles
and Voldemort were gone. No trace."
      "He is probably going to use Buffy to return to the actual plane,"
Dumbledore theorized.  "He probably figures that with her Slayer power she
would be extremely useful in fighting off anyone that tried to oppose him.
We've got to destroy him before he has a chance to do any more damage."
      "But what about Buffy?" Willow cried, worried about the blonde girl that
had befriended her and introduced Angel to her.  Dumbledore looked at her,
sympathy in his eyes.
      "I'm sorry, but if Voldemort has already taken over her body, there is a
very good chance that the only way to defeat him would be to kill your
friend," he answered simply.
      "No way," Willow shook her head, denying what her headmaster was saying.
"There has to be a better way. I mean, there is no way that Buffy deserves
to die.  I won't let it happen."
      "Maybe there is something we can do," Professor Lupin volunteered.  Once he
had everyone's attention, he continued.  "Because Voldemort would be taken
over the body of the Slayer without her consent, there is a good chance that
she will fight whatever control that he has over her."
      "So maybe we would be able to separate him from her," Professor McGonnigal
finished.  "But how?"
      "That will be the problem," Dumbledore added.  "So, let's try and take care
of that problem."
 

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