SERIES: Passing Time (#19)

AUTHOR: Tisienne Blue

E-MAIL: tisatko@msn.com

DISCLAIMER: Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt own all characters you know from TV, and as I don't have a penis, I'm fairly sure that I'm not either of them.

RATING: NC-17, overall.

PAIRING: A/W/Liam; S/C

DISTRIBUTION: if you have other stuff of mine, then feel free!!! My site (when it's open). Otherwise, just ask.

FEEDBACK: would be nice...

DEDICATIONS: to Di, for giving me the challenge, and Myst for listening to me ramble on about this (and others, as well...). Also, to Nutty, Susie, Ali, Louise, and Eva-- thanks for the feedback, luvs!!!

NOTES: It's 2007, and Slutty's dead. Willow lives in LA at the Hyperion. She, Angel, and Liam (alternate timeline Angel) are mated, but something's wrong with the little witch-- she's being tested!!! Spike is also at the Hotel, and he's with Cordelia (cuz I just like them together for this fic)...

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"How is she?" Angel demanded, his eyes locked firmly on Liam. He was trying desperately to distract himself with work, but nothing seemed to be penetrating his brain. He thought it might be because he could *feel* Willow's confusion-- and Liam's fear-- through the bond he shared with both of them, but it was equally likely that it was his own restlessness that was distracting him. It went completely against everything he'd ever been to just... sit around, *waiting*, especially where one of his Mates was involved. "Well?"

The human sighed, shaking his head slowly. "I don't know, Angel. She *seems* to still be sleeping, but..." His voice trailed off, and he saw again in his mind the witch who owned him, writhing slowly on their bed, as if she was in some sort of pain. "Whatever's happening inside her, I don't think it's pleasant... or peaceful, for that matter. And I can't wake her up, either," he continued unhappily. "I *tried*, but... I don't even know if I *should*! Maybe she's supposed to sleep, you know? Maybe that's how this 'test' works-- the *last* one did, so..." He slumped warily down on the arm of the couch, and sighed deeply. "I hate this."

The vampire sighed himself, and stood from his chair, forcing himself to remain as calm as was possible. "I know, love," he said softly, moving to stand before his human-self, "I hate it, too. She's our Mate; we should be able to protect her... to keep her *safe*! We shouldn't have to just sit by and watch her... Well." He sighed again, one hand resting lightly on Liam's shoulder. "Stay here," he said quietly, "Rest. Take a nap. I'll sit with her."

"Are you sure?" Liam asked, his own hand covering the cool one on him, "I thought you wanted to..."

Angel shook his head. "Yeah, I wanted to work, but... I can't. And you've been watching over her for almost three days now, so... Take a break. I'll manage." He smiled slightly, and leaned down, pressing a soft, chaste kiss to his lover's lips before straightening. "I'll let you know if anything changes, but I want you to get at least a few hours of sleep, okay? You're no use to her if you exhaust yourself." As soon as the human nodded his agreement, Angel turned away and left the office. It wasn't fair that he'd let Liam take all the watching of their Mate, but... he didn't know how to deal with what was happening. He was used to going out and fixing whatever was wrong... slay the demon, defeat the evil, whatever! And this wasn't something he could fix... No, all he could do was sit by and watch, and hope that his witch was strong enough to win through whatever trial she was facing in her own head. He climbed the stairs quickly, and moved down the hall, ignoring the sounds coming from his childe's room. Ordinarily, he would have been concerned about what the boy was up to with Cordelia, but... right at the moment...? He didn't have the time, or emotion, to spare. He'd deal with it later, he told himself, as he entered the suite he shared with his Mates. He settled himself slowly on the edge of the bed, one hand lightly stroking his woman's sweat-sheened forehead. "Willow..." he sighed, finally laying down beside her, "What's going on in there...?" He gently smoothed the small furrows from her brow, and sighed again, sadly, at her continuing silence.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

It felt like she'd been there forever, locked in to the dreary, gray landscape with it's twisted, naked trees, dark, jutting rocks, and nearly silent whispering. It truly seemed like years that she'd been wandering, trying to find her purpose. And yet, she knew that was wrong, because... she remembered.

She remembered a city, with bright, shining lights, and a big building where she'd lived happily for a while... She remembered feeling loved-- whatever *that* was-- and having everything she'd ever wanted! Unfortunately, the longer she spent in this place, the harder it was to find those memories. She could feel them slipping away, a little more with each endless moment that passed, and while she knew she should be more upset than she was, she just... couldn't, because... the whispers were there, filling her head with their truths, and...

She couldn't even remember their names. She knew there had been two of them, however, and that they'd made her feel whole. Whole. She wasn't even sure of what the word meant anymore, and as the timeless eternity continued, she wondered if maybe she'd dreamt it.

Maybe she had, because... whatever she was, she was obviously the only one of her kind. In all the time she'd spent here, she hadn't seen another being at all, and... Maybe she didn't even exist. Maybe she was just a small spur of whatever had created this place, and was suffering from delussions.

And why was she so certain that this place had been created, anyway? Maybe it just existed, without meaning or design. Yes, she told herself, that was it. She didn't exist. None of the things she'd once imagined actually existed. She was nothing.

A small part of the being who had once been Willow Rosenberg railed and screamed its disagreement, but if she noticed it at all, she chose to ignore it. After all, if *she* didn't exist, then how could *it*? No, the only things that were real were the sly, almost indistinguishable voices leeching into her skull.

She trudged wearily through the colorless world, never stopping, never slowing, and reconciled herself to the emptiness growing within her. She was nothing. She had no purpose, and she never *had*. But at least, she told herself, sternly, she wasn't entirely *useless*.

A vague memory, carefully kept by her inner self, rose to the surface, and she clenched her hand tightly before her for a moment, before speaking one soft word, and as she opened her fingers, she smiled at the small green glow in her palm. It was so beautiful...

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

He watched her from the bed as she moved towards to bathroon, his eyes twinkling merrily at the sway of her long dark hair. He almost couldn't believe what was happening to him, but... he was dangerously close to falling in love with the girl, and somehow, he couldn't seem to bring himself to mind! She was glorious, and warm, and *sane*, and... He thought she might be falling just as hard for *him*! It was a good thing, too, he told himself, because he'd meant what he'd told her four days earlier. He was going to find a way to keep her with him forever, and the eternity he had in mind would be much more pleasant if she *enjoyed* it! And he'd *make* her enjoy it, whatever it took. He sat up, grinning, as she started back to him, only to frown when she stopped suddenly in the middle of the floor, swaying. "Cordelia?" he said, confused. The confusion only lasted a moment, though, and when she cried out and stared to crumple to the floor, he was at her side in an instant, his cool hands catching her while he slowly lowered them both to the rug. "Cordy...?" he demanded frantically, his eyes flashing golden while she convulsed and whimpered. "Cordy!"

Cordelia groaned loudly, her head throbbing in time with her hurried heartbeat. "Oh..." she finally managed to say, her eyes opening ever so slightly, and "That feels nice..." she whispered, when her lover stroked her hot brow with his cool, smooth hand. "Sorry," she murmured, relaxing slightly as the pain receded, "Didn't mean to scare you..."

Spike almost laughed his relief, but... she still wasn't entirely recovered from whatever had just happened to her, so he just shrugged. "It's all right, pet," he muttered, standing and lifting her in his arms. He carried her to the bed, and laid her down carefully before stretching himself out beside her. "Are you okay?" he demanded quietly, one hand cupping her cheek, "And what in the *hell* was *that*?" He steeled himself against her reply, wondering if maybe she was sick, or dying, only to finally release his earlier laugh when he heard her answer.

"Vision," the Seer said shortly, "Surround-sound, scratch-and-sniff *vision*." Her eyes widened, and she glared at the blond vampire. "And what's so *funny*, Mister? It's not like they're a big old *hoot*!"

He really tried to control himself, but... the look of consternation on her face was just too much, especially when combined with the joy singing through his body, and he laughed even harder, pulling her tightly against him when she tried to move away. "Oh, no you don't, luv," he chuckled, still holding her struggling form, "You're not going *anywhere*!" He buried his nose deep in her hair, and just inhaled the smell of her. "I wasn't laughing at *you*, pet," he finally said, when his laughter had died out, "I was laughing because..." He sighed softly. "I *was* scared. Thought you were dying or something. I thought I was gonna *lose* you, and I only just found you, y'know?"

Cordelia's anger drained away just as quickly as it had sprung up, and she wound her fingers in his short, bleached locks, pulling his face from her hair. "So you *laughed* at me?" she demanded, unable to resist giving him just a *little* bit of a hard time. "Not really the way to get in *good* with me, Spike!"

"I know, pet," he purred smoothly, his still-golden eyes locked tightly on her brown ones, "But I can make it up to you..." He moved on to his side, one hand trailing teasingly over her smooth, tanned skin, and he smiled when she moaned softly, then growled as she pushed him away. "Luv...?"

She reached out to him then, her fingers lightly stroking the ridges of his brow. "I have to talk to Angel," she explained gently, "The vision... it was about Willow, I think..."

Spike sighed, and forced himself to get up. "Fine," he said swiftly, reaching for his clothes, "Let's go see Peaches, then." He smiled widely, his human seeming slipping over his true face while he watched his girl hurriedly get dressed, as well. He'd hated seeing her in pain, but she seemed to be fine now, and... if whatever she'd seen could help Red, then... maybe it was worth it. The little witch was his Sire's Mate, after all, and she'd also been the only one of the Sunnyhell gang to treat him like anything other than an embarrasing mistake, so... He smiled again, taking Cordelia's outstretched hand, and let her drag him down the hall towards the stairs. "Wait," he said suddenly, tugging on her hand, "The pouf's in his room."

Cordelia looked surprised for a moment, mostly because she *was*, but she let him pull her back the way they'd just come, her eyes narrowing with sadness when she saw the dejected-looking vampire laying on the bed beside the smallish redhead. "Angel," she said softly, not wanting to startle him, "I had a vision. I think there's something that can help Will, and I know where it is." She almost smiled at the sudden hope in his eyes as he leapt quickly from the bed. "Liam needs to hear this, too," she insisted.

Angel nodded tentatively. "I don't want to leave her alone..." His eyes traveled longingly over the small, pale redhead on the bed. "I just..."

The Seer smiled at her Warrior before transfering her gaze to the blond, one brow raising.

"Oh, *fine*," Spike muttered, trying to sound disgusted, "Go find the *other* pouf, I'll stay here and witch-sit." He met his Sire's worried gaze, and nodded slowly. "Don't worry, Peaches," he muttered, "I'll look after Mum..." He nearly laughed at the way Angel winced, but he held it in and shooed him away. "Go," he instructed, "And send my cheerleader back up here when you're done." He watched them move from the room, and sat himself down on the edge of the enormous bed. "Y'know, Red," he said conversationally, "For a good little girl, you sure do get yourself into an awful lot of trouble..."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

She stared at the green glow for a moment, her eyes wide, because... she *remembered* this! It was called... colour, and it hadn't existed anywhere around her in this place! And if... Her brow furrowed as she fought the dead feeling within herself. If *colour* existed, then perhaps so did all the *other* things she'd forgotten?

She closed her eyes for a moment, only to open them again when the darkness started wrapping more firmly around her mind, and she stared fixedly at the small globe of verdant glow in her hand.

She cried out softly as she felt the images of a life she'd forgotten swarming wildly in her head, and again when she realized... she wasn't where she was supposed to be! She shouldn't have been here, in this bleak, empty place, all alone! No, she should be...

She should be... in that city she recalled, in that big building... the... Hotel...? Yes! She should be *home*! With her... She didn't know just *what* they were to her, but... she *would*! She'd *make* herself *remember*, and maybe then, she'd find out how she'd come to be in this place, with its lack of colour, and lack of joy, and lack of... *them*! And then...? Well, then she'd find a way *out* of this Hell, and find her way back to *them*!

She could almost picture them in her mind... *almost*. But it would come to her; she knew it. And once she knew who she was looking for? She would release the bright green ball, and follow it to them. It was, after all, a locating spell.

She smiled again, to herself this time, and sat down to wait for the memories, the increasingly desperate voices of that place going unnoticed, and unremarked, as they'd never been before.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"It'll have to be Spike," Angel insisted to his angry Mate. "He doesn't have any more body heat than *I* do, and... it's a two-man job, Liam! Spike and I can get in and out without setting the alarms off!"

"Yeah?" the human demanded, "And what about the *motion-detectors*, Mister Know-It-All? How are you gonna get past *them*? From what you tell me, Spike isn't exactly the patient sort, so how's he gonna move slowly enough to avoid setting them off?"

"I don't *know*!" the vampire shouted, impatience and frustration evident in his voice, "But I have to *try*! I can't just... sit back and do *nothing*! Not any more! And if actually pulling this off means that I have to make you mad by taking *Spike* with me instead of *you*? Then be *mad* at me, damn it! But I won't let you come!"

Liam's clenched fist slammed hard against the desk. "I never put you in charge of me, Angel!" he announced, his eyes glittering dangerously, "I never told you that you could make my decisions for me! She's *my* Mate, too, damn you, and I'm not *about* to let you take all the *risks*, here! You *need* me for this, you arrogant prick!"

"Yes," Angel hissed, eyes flashing gold, "I *need* you! I need you to *stay* here and take care of our *Mate*! I need you to watch over her, and take care of things if I don't make it back!"

He could feel his human heart skip a beat, and his mouth dropped open as he stared as his vampiric-self, stunned. "What...?" he barely managed to say, "What do you *mean*, 'if you don't make it back'? How could you... not make it back?"

Angel sighed, angry at himself. "It's just... It's not as simple as it sounds; that's all. I... *know* the demon we're talking about robbing, and... His security is incredibly tight. He's set up for vampires, and just about every *other* kind of demon you can name, and humans, too." He sighed again, rubbing at his eyes. "I'm not even sure that this is going to be possible, much less that it'll *work*, but..."

"But you have to try," Liam whispered, still shocked, "Even knowing that you're most likely going to *die*..."

The vampire nodded slowly, moving to his Mate and embracing him tightly. "It's for *Willow*," he said quietly into Liam's ear, "I can't *not* try..."

Spike rolled his eyes at the drama being played out before him, glad that Cordelia'd come for him when things had started to get ugly. "So, exactly what kind of a suicide mission have I been volunteered for, here?" he asked baldly, interrupting the oh-so-sweet scene in Angel's office, "Or don't I get to know?"

The older vampire sighed once again before pulling away from his Mate's comforting form. "There's a demon who has something that could help Willow," he explained quickly, "But he collects, and... We're going to have to break in to get what we need. His security is incredible, so it doesn't look good, but..."

"Yeah, Peaches, I know, 'You have to try'; I *heard* that part. What I don't get, though, is why you think *I'm* willing to throw myself to the lions, as it were. Red's not *my* Mate, now is she?" He smirked wickedly up into his Sire's eyes, and laughed around the hand that was suddenly gripping tightly at his throat. "Just kidding, Peaches... You know I love Mum..." He laughed again, his voice rasping slightly, when he was just as suddenly released. "So, who's this *demon*, then, and just how good *is* his security?"

Liam watched and listened while his Mate told the blond about what they were going up against, his eyes widening at what Angel hadn't told him before, and when the tense monologue was finished, he shook his head seriously. "*No*." he said intently, "I won't *allow* this. There is absolutely *no* chance that you can pull this off. Not tonight, not tomorrow, and not in a million years! You're talking about breaking into a *fortress* here, and I'm not going to let you do it! I don't care if I have to knock you over the head and keep you chained in the basement for the rest of forever, I'm not going to let this happen!" His fists were clenched tightly at his sides, and he nearly snarled at the stubborn look on his Mate's face. "Forget about it, Angel. It's *not* gonna happen!"

Spike truly wanted to hear what the great pouf would have to say to that, but time was of the essence, after all. They had no idea of what was happening to Willow inside her head, but... They'd said she was fighting a battle, and... timing was everything. "You're right," he said, meeting Liam's hot brown eyes, "It's not. And *listen* to me before you blow your top, Poufy!" He stared expectantly at his Sire until the taller vampire sat down, fingers steepled against his chin in what Spike liked to think of as Angel's 'I'm listening, but I'm not going to change my mind, so hurry up' pose. "Okay, so this demon collects things. I get that. And we need one of the things he's collected, right? So, here's an idea. Why don't we just *ask* him for it, instead of going off to die dusty deaths? Because... immortality? Kind of *liking* it." He smirked slightly, still holding the pouf's eyes with his own. "Besides, I don't think Cordelia'd be too happy if she knew you were planning on getting me *killed*. She'd never forgive you! Or *me*, for going along with such a bloody stupid plan."

Liam smiled into the stunned silence Spike had created with his one simple question. "You think he'd give it to us?"

The blond shrugged. "Maybe; maybe not. Maybe he'd sell it to us, or let us *borrow* it, whatever it is. But I think we have a better chance of getting what Red needs by asking. I mean," he elaborated, still staring at his Sire, "If we're big piles of dust, then it's not even *possible*, right?"

Much as he hated to admit it, Spike had a point. "All right," Angel finally said, "We'll try it *your* way, boy... And when it doesn't work, we'll do it *mine*."

End.
 

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