Prophecies In Her Eyes

Author: Zenura

Disclaimer: I do not own Buffy or any of the characters (except for the original one); the rest belong to Fox, the WB, Mutant Enemy, and all other affiliates.

Summary: Anything can happen on a hellmouth, especially when someone new arrives.

Spoilers: Some stuff from Seasons 2-4

Rating: R with an option for light NC17 in later chapters.

Feedback: Gets you more of the story.

Author's Comments: Many thanks to Sinayah for her wonderful betaing of this fanfic!

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"Fang and talon, devil and daemon

Summoned near by witch’s power

Shall meet under full moon’s light.

Destiny’s accursed children

Fallen Angel, Feline Woman

Hate and distrust shall abound.

Love’s unlikely flower will bloom

While in the darkness the green eyed

monster doth loom.

The two shall become as one

And the hate which beget love

will again beget hate.

Be warned! The choosing is at hand.

If choice be wrong

Light’s hope grows dim

Pain and suffering shall reign again.

The chosen two will be wrent asunder

and darkness shall devour the light.

Wrong must be made right.

Hope doth rest in angels tear

and the lost shall rise as the phoenix

True love will chain the beasts within

And the cursed shall become the gifted."

* * * * * * * * *

Darkness surrounded him. Even with his eyes wide open, he couldn’t see. Yet he knew he wasn’t alone...never alone. Always his demon was there, watching him, taunting him, and torturing him. If he wasn’t being tortured physically, he was being tormented emotionally as images of all his atrocities played themselves out in his mind like a grisly horror movie. He barely had time to recover from one onslaught before the whole cycle began anew.

Angel struggled at his bonds as the demon chuckled behind him, trailing an icy claw down his back. He stiffened involuntarily in an attempt to brace himself against what he knew was coming. It never helped.

He stared into the nothingness of his own personal hell as individual faces swam before his eyes; images of the people who he had killed over his many years as Angelus. Tears fell down his raw face, bloody tears of pain and guilt as he watched each and every death perpetrated by his own hands. The pain grew in intensity as the faces became more recent, more familiar, and more achingly beloved to him.

He broke down, as he always did, as he watched himself harass the Scoobies, tormenting Buffy and threatening to kill Willow. As always, he lost his last shreds of control when he saw Buffy standing in front of him, tears in her eyes as she desolately told him to close his eyes. He screamed as he felt the sword go through his stomach...

* * * * * * * * * *

Whimpering in her sleep, Willow tossed and turned, trying to escape the nightmares that plagued her. They were always the same; images of Angel, trapped in hell and tortured by his demon. She watched, helplessly, as Angel’s demon stripped the flesh off his back, forcing Angel to scream in agony. She cried bitter tears of frustration as she watched Angel struggle to tear himself away from the images the demon showed him; images of the people Angelus had tortured and killed. She knew that Angel himself wasn’t at fault, that the demon itself was really responsible. She knew as well that Angel would never see it that way, and that he blamed himself for all those deaths.

The images of Angel would fade away, and new ones would take its place. The images were less clear, more confusing as they assaulted her senses. She saw Angel, or at least she thought it was Angel, battling some creature in the cemetery. His eyes flashed yellow, while the other creatures glowed an eerie, feral green. Both attacked with an intense fierceness, neither one showing signs of stopping. Blood...there was blood everywhere, but neither one wanted to stop. They just kept fighting, kept ripping each other to pieces.

Willow saw them break apart suddenly, each watching the other warily as they fought for breath. As the two enemies circled, the moonlight fell upon Angel’s opponent, and Willow got a glimpse of its features. It was a young woman, about her age...no...now it was a large black cat, a panther that snarled and prepared to launch itself at Angel.

A nearby bush moved, and Willow saw the creature turn away from Angel to face this newest threat. Her eyes widened as she saw Buffy, a crossbow in hand, take cold and deadly aim at the creature. The creature leaped...the crossbow twanged...the creature was falling..falling...turning back into the young woman Willow had first seen. It was then that Willow screamed.

"NOOOOOOO..."

* * * * * * * * * *

"...NOOOOOOO!!!" A young woman screamed, jolting herself out of her nightmares and

bolting upright in her bed. Her heart beat frantically in her chest as she gasped for breath,

shaking from the violent images that swam in her mind. Shivering, she fought to regain control of herself, grasping the bed sheet tightly against her nude body. It was several moments before she was able to take a deep breath, before she was able to open her eyes and peer at her surroundings.

It was dark in the room, but the soft glow of the waxing moon outside cast enough illumination for her to see how empty the motel room was. The only pieces of furniture in the room were an old armchair, a serviceable dresser, and a rather lumpy bed. Her large, overstuffed duffel bag lay in a corner of the room, left packed because she wasn’t staying at the motel long enough for it to matter. This was only a place to sleep for the night...she had planned to move on in the morning.

Feeling a little more in control, she forced herself to move, standing up on shaky legs and stepping away from the bed. Leaning against the wall for support, she made her way to the bathroom. The overhead light burned her eyes for a moment and she stopped, blinking rapidly before continuing on her way to the bathroom counter. After splashing water on her face, she leaned against the counter, staring grimly at her own reflection.

Deep brown hair hung down her shoulders in waves, damp from sweat and sticking to her body. Her skin was pale, no doubt from the nightmare she just awoken from, and it stretched tautly across her ribs due to her lack of anything substantial for food in the past week or so. Her intense hazel eyes were a little bloodshot as she took in the damage to herself from yet another night of intense dreaming.

Slightly pouty lips curled in disgust and she snarled softly to herself, cursing inwardly at her weakness. She’d lived with nightmares for little over four years now, and she had been able to keep her sanity thus far. Never mind that lately those dreams were not memories, but rather they seemed to be things that had not yet happened...

Abruptly she turned away from the mirror, striding out of the bathroom as if to escape the hold her dreams had on her. ‘I will not let them get to me’, she thought bitterly to herself as she came to stand in front of the window. ‘I will not let them destroy my last shred of sanity’. Not caring if someone happened to walk by her room and see that she was naked, she pressed her forehead to the cool surface of the glass and closed her eyes, willing her emotions under control.

"Get it together Kat," she whispered. "They’re only dreams." She knew she was lying to herself though; these weren’t simply dreams. Something was stirring, something was calling out to her, warning her. If only she knew why...opening her eyes, she flicked a glance to the map that laid on top of her duffel bag. To the area she had circled it with a red pen. To the name of a town...

her destination.

Sunnydale.

The Bronze was packed early, even for a Friday evening; the sun had not quite set, and already teens were flocking to the club. Willow sat at one of the tables near the stage, head propped up by one hand as she twirled her straw around in her coke with the other. Her emerald eyes stared dazedly into the swirling dark liquid, her brow furrowed in thought. Circles under her eyes marred her otherwise perfectly pale skin.

‘It’s been over three months, and I’m still having the nightmares,’ she brooded to herself, nibbling on her bottom lip. Ever since Angel was sent to Hell and Buffy had run away, Willow had been having dreams. She saw Angel in Hell, shared in his pain and torment as he relived all the evil deeds of Angelus. Sometimes the dream faded into other, less coherent images. Willow barely repressed a shudder at those images. All she could remember from those images was intense pain, loss, and anger. For once she was glad her parents were away on another business trip, because there wasn’t a night that went by that Willow didn’t wake up with a scream caught in her throat…

A sigh of frustration escaped the redhead’s lips. Taking a sip of her coke, she glanced around the room listlessly. Xander, after dragging her here on the pretense of "shaking those inner ghosts through live music and funky dancing," had since abandoned her for the dance floor…leaving the poor redheaded witch alone with her rather dark thoughts.

‘It’s just as well,’ she silently reminded herself. ‘I know they are concerned for me, but they would never understand what I’m trying to do.’ After the first few nights of plagued sleep, Willow had been looking for a way to bring Angel back from hell. She hoped that, by bringing him back, the nightmares would end. So far, she’d had about as much luck in finding the right spell as she had in finding their missing Slayer.

Willow’s eyes darkened in anger as her thoughts turned to the blonde who had run out on them all. She would have given silent vent to her frustrations at Buffy, had not movement out of the corner of her eye forced Willow out of her dark musings. Glancing to her side, she noticed someone rather unusual standing nearby. A girl about her own age was lounging up against the wall, arms crossed over her chest as she scanned the dance floor. The young woman didn’t seem familiar, and after glancing at her watch to confirm sunset was still twenty minutes away, Willow was pretty sure she wasn’t a vampire. Still, there was something about her appearance that drew Willow’s attention. Her face was delicate, yet possessed of an inner strength. Hair the color of chocolate hung down her shoulders in thick waves, her pouty, darkened lips and brownish-green eyes giving her an added mystique that had not gone unnoticed by the male patrons of the club. She was dressed from head to toe in black; black boots, black halter-top, black hip hugging pants. Whereas many young women would look brazen in that outfit, she looked as if the clothing was merely part of who she was.

‘Who is she?’ Willow’s mind whirled at quiet strength the girl exuded. ‘There’s something about her; she looks like some dark goddess come to life.’ She watched as the girl pushed off of the wall, her gaze swinging back and forth as she began to stalk forward, looking like some kind of caged animal…

* * * * * * * * *

Kat managed not to grit her teeth through sheer force of will as another guy brushed up against her ‘accidentally.’ ‘This was a very bad idea,’ she noted wryly as she continued to make her way through the throng in the room, scanning the crowd for signs of vampires. Having arrived a few nights ago, she was aware of Sunnydale’s high level of vampiric activity, and she wasn’t taking any chances. The sun hadn’t set yet, but she had known a few vampires that could get around without waiting for the sun to go down. All they needed were a few underground passageways, and there were always an abundance of those in any town.

Kat prowled back and forth on the edges of the dancing couples, growling softly under her breath. She was tense, like an arrow about to be loosed from a bow. It wasn’t just the vampires that bothered her; her nightmares had increased in frequency upon entering Sunnydale. One image kept popping into her head over and over, flashing like a neon warning sign: a full moon glowing dark with blood, nearly obscured by strands of crimson hair…

The hair on the back of her neck stiffened, and Kat became aware of someone watching her intensely. Slowly she turned her head in that direction, and met a pair of curious emerald eyes. A petite young woman sat in one of the benches nearby, twirling a straw absently in her fingers as she watched Kat slow in her pacing. Dressed in a long-sleeved blouse and a long skirt, she seemed to shrink back a little from Kat’s gaze, ducking so that her hair fell across her face. Hair nearly as red as the blood from Kat’s nightmares.

Kat’s eyes widened as she drank in the color of Willow’s hair. ‘No…her hair. Can it be? Is she the one my dreams told me about? The brunette’s heart raced in her chest as she stared at Willow, fear stabbing her like a knife. ‘But what does it all mean? Is she dangerous, or in danger herself? She looks too innocent to be evil, but looks can be deceiving.’

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Kat’s eyes narrowed in grim determination. Once more, she began to head towards Willow, her lips pursed together in dark musing. Her pupils flashed quickly as her eyes darkened to a deep emerald, a tinge of red that vanished before anyone could blink.

‘I don’t know what she has to do with my nightmares, but I intend to find out!’

* * * * * * * * *

Willow stiffened slightly as she watched the young woman move in her direction. ‘What does she want with me? Who is she? Why does she look almost afraid? Is it, is it because of me!’ Thoughts spilled over Willow like a gushing waterfall, making her feel slightly faint. Swallowing, she started to rise from the booth, but the strangers’ hazel eyes found hers and a wave of paralysis washed over her. Willow trembled slightly, feeling like a deer trapped in the headlights of an oncoming car and powerless to do anything about it.

Suddenly, a hand reached out and grabbed the brunette by the arm, forcing her to turn and deal with someone who had worked up enough nerve to hit on her. Eye contact with the dark girl broken, Willow sank back down into the booth with a thud, her overworked nerves nearly shot. Blinking rapidly, Willow tried to take slow, deep breaths to calm herself, her knuckles white as she grasped the edge of the table.

‘Calm down Willow. Geesh, you are more tired than you thought if you have started to see danger everywhere! All work and no sleep has made you very, very paranoid.’ Still, Willow couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling she had. Risking a look in the dark eyed woman’s direction, she noted that the stranger was having difficulty getting her would be suitor to leave her alone. A slight smile touched her lips as she noted just who was trying to get the brunettes attention. ‘Poor Xander. He isn’t having much luck with the ladies tonight.’ Relaxing a little as she watched her friend’s zany antics, Willow’s eyes idly fell on the strangers back. A slight frown marred her features as she tried to get a better glimpse at the small of the woman’s back, where part of a tattoo could be seen.

"Hieroglyphs? Now there is one weird tattoo," Willow murmured to herself, noting the pictorial symbols splayed on the young woman’s back. Recalling the Egyptian prophecy books Giles received and had her scan onto her computer this summer, Willow leaned forward, trying to decipher the word printed on the dark woman’s back without much luck. Staring at those glyphs, however, Willow’s mind thought back to some of the more recent websites she had been browsing in search for spells for rescuing Angel. She had found one that looked promising, a site for prayers to various gods and goddesses.

A light dawned in Willow’s eyes, and she sucked in her breath, darting a glance at the girl once more. ‘Egyptian glyphs, goddesses, Angel out of hell…’ Realization dawned on Willow and she couldn’t stop hope from blossoming inside of her as she scrambled to her feet. Making sure that the strange girl was still tied up with Xander, Willow silently thanked the goddess and rushed out the door, feeling refreshed for the first time in days.

‘Angel, I’m getting you out of hell. Soon!’

* * * * * * * * *

Kat’s head was already throbbing by the time she managed to convince the young man who had hit on her that she was too tired to dance, but she wouldn’t mind sitting and sharing sodas with him. Just as soon as she talked to someone first. As he moved off to get their drinks, her eyes roamed back over to the spot where the shy girl was sitting. Or had been sitting at any rate. A low growl rumbled in her throat as she spied the petite redhead barreling out the door of the Bronze. ‘Damn!’

She started to head in that direction, but her admirer had returned with drinks and she didn’t want to be cruel in breaking her promise. ‘The moon won’t be full for another week,’ she reminded herself as she was lead to, ironically, the same booth the redhead had just vacated. ‘I’ll just have to find her before then.’

Kat was so caught up in her own musings that she didn’t notice Xander glance around the place in confusion, looking for the very same person her thoughts were fixed on. Finally he shrugged and sat down beside Kat, figuring Willow had gone home to get some sleep.

"Sooo…my name’s Xander. And you are?" Smiling at the young woman who he had cajoled into sitting with him, he watched as she leaned back into the booth, folding her arms over her chest and regarding him with curiosity.

Kat smiled back tiredly, grinding her teeth softly to take the edge of her headache. ‘This is going to be one long night.’ "My name is Katura, but most people call me Kat."

* * * * * * * * *

Willow scanned the webpage she had found on Egyptian deities, her eyes traveling over the names and hieroglyphs of the many gods and goddesses contained therein. She leaned forward, propping her head on one hand as she searched for the information she needed. So far she wasn’t having much luck; most of the prayers and invocations had nothing to do with what she needed. Name after name flickered in front of Willow as she scrolled down the page even further.

Suddenly she sat up straight, eyes widening as she came across a familiar set of hieroglyphs. ‘Those look just like the ones on her back!’ Interest piqued, Willow moved her mouse slowly over the name of the goddess. ‘Sakhmet…I wonder…’ Clicking on the name, Willow felt a sense of trepidation as the page on this lion-headed goddess appeared before her. Her lips moved as she read off the page, murmuring under her breath a few of the phrases. ‘Goddess of divine vengeance…also revered as healer…blessing for fallen warriors of justice…Oh Goddess, this is it!’ Willow’s fear was quickly replaced with elation as she discovered her answer staring back at her from her computer. All she needed were the proper ingredients and she would be able to bring Angel back from Hell! A tear slid down her cheek, unnoticed by the redhead as she stared at the computer screen. Her search was over.

"Oh Angel," she whispered, a smile touching her lips. "Finally…finally I’ll be able to bring you back." Turning, Willow glanced outside, her eyes lifting up to gaze upon the light of the waxing moon. One more week and then she would perform the spell. A smile stretched over her lips, turning into a yawn as exhaustion depleted her remaining reserves. Turning her computer off, the redheaded hacker crawled over to her bed. It wasn’t until she was snug under the covers that she remembered about the strange new girl and the hieroglyphs.

‘Such an odd tattoo,’ she thought sleepily, another yawn escaping her lips. Too tired to think on the mysterious tattoo, its connection to the Goddess Sakhmet, and the brunettes’ reaction to her, Willow vowed to think on it some more in the morning. Her last thoughts as her eyes closed and she drifted into sweet oblivion were of Angel.

‘Soon Angel…soon we will both be free.’

* * * * * * * * *

Somewhere in the back of Angel’s mind, he thought he heard Willow’s promise to him. An unexplainable peace suffused his body, and he moved his lips, echoing her sentiments. ‘Soon.’ And the darkness embraced him like an old lover, and for once he felt no pain.

It was late afternoon the following Monday, and though Sunnydale High School was closed for Labor Day, all was not silent within. From deep within the walls of this institution erupted an explosion of noise, punctuated by a shout and a few choice, and very British, curses. Sprawled out on the floor of the library, Giles stared at the ceiling for a moment, now silently giving voice to the rising ire he was feeling. Pushing some of the books off his body, he attempted to stand, wincing as his back protested the sudden movement. Slowly he straightened, glancing around at the literary carnage wrought by his attempts to unpack the latest shipment from the Watcher’s Council…by himself.

"Blast that boy!" the British librarian muttered under his breath, bending down to pick up some of the books that he had upended on himself during his fall. "Where the devil could he be? Stuffing his face no doubt." As he attempted to bring some semblance of order to the chaos around him, Giles muttered under his breath about bloody Americans and their bad habits…one particular teenage boy at the forefront of his rant. He bent to pick up another armful of books when his eyes took in a unique volume among the masses. Unlike the other texts, this small, palm sized book appeared to be bound tightly, locked to prevent other eyes from seeing the contents within. Made of black leather, the cover of the book was imprinted with a special seal, one Giles had only seen once in his life; it was the seal the Watcher’s Council gave to anything which was considered too dangerous to be seen by all of its members.

His hand shaking slightly, Giles touched the lock on the book cover. It was old and highly rusted, breaking apart at his light touch. Taking a shaky breath, he lifted the cover of the book slowly, moving it closer to his face as he tried to decipher the old, fading ink. "Contained herein the records of the Council of Watchers, formed this day in…" Giles would have read on, his curiosity piqued, had not the sound of someone clearing their throat jarred him back to reality. Turning, he glanced at the entrance to the library and saw a young, dark-haired woman standing there, glancing at him and the chaos behind him with one eyebrow raised.

"Um…am I intruding? I know the school is closed, but the front door was open and I thought…"

Giles sighed and carefully placed the ancient text on the desk and turned to fully face the young woman who had entered his, at the moment chaotic, sanctuary. "Oh, it's quite alright I assure you. Please forgive the mess; I was just cataloguing a new shipment for the library. How may I help you?"

"The woman at the public library said you have quite a collection of rare and odd books. I was wondering if you might have what I need." Cautiously she stepped further into the room, casting glances at the floor as if the books might fly up at her.

"Yes, I do have a rather um eclectic collection of volumes, are you searching for a particular text or just books with reference to a certain subject?" Giles asked.

"Egyptian curses," she murmured, raising her gaze meet Giles. Staring at him for a moment, the brunette tilted her head slightly, a small smile touching her pouty lips. "Next time, I think you should let the books win." A tinge of amusement flickered in her eyes, lightening their emerald color to something more like springtime as she took in his disheveled appearance.

Giles’ eyes glinted back at the girl in amusement and his lips twisted into a smile that echoed hers. "Yes, well um, I was supposed to have some help with this but it seems my assistant has left me to my own devices, or rather I should say, disasters," he said, turning to take in the books scattered hither and thither around the floor. "Egyptian curses, you said? Yes I do believe I have a few volumes dealing with such things. Now where did Willow put them?"

Kat watched the British librarian attempt to find a few books out of the many scattered across the table and floor in the middle of the library, all the while trying to tame his appearance back to civility. Biting her cheek to keep from laughing, she moved closer, gesturing to the mess. "Care for some help, Mr…"

Giles straightened up from the pile of books he was bent over, "Oh, I do apologize for my rudeness; my name is Rupert Giles, though the children usually call me Giles. I would greatly appreciate your assistance, if that little tyrant were to walk in here now I shudder to think of the lecture he'd hand out after seeing this mess. May I ask your name?"

"Just call me Katura, or Kat for short," she responded, bending to pick up a few books. Her shirt rode up her back a little as she worked, a tiny bit of her tattoo peeking out as she continued to talk. "So who’s this tyrant you’re so worried about, the principal or something?"

Giles knelt down to retrieve some of the scattered books and replied, "I'm sorely tempted to say 'or something' but no, he's just the principal. We have a mutual dislike of each other and we've clashed a few times over a group of the students." He glanced over at his companion and caught a glimpse of what appeared to be a hieroglyph printed on her back. He thought about asking about the tattoo but asked instead; "Can you give me any more specifics on the curses you're looking for? It should help narrow the search once we find the volumes."

Kat stopped picking up books and put her hands on her knees, hesitating in her response. Reaching up to brush her hair behind her ear, she picked up a book and traced the words on the cover, trying to make her voice light as she said, "I’m looking for something relating Egyptian curses to deities…or perhaps to lunar phases and deities."

Giles stood, motioning Kat to stand as well and led her over to the table where he sat and took off his glasses, preparing to clean them. "Please, do take a seat Kat. Well, you certainly seem to know what you're looking for. The information you provided should help to narrow our search quite a bit. But before we speak any further I'd like to know what prompted a young lady such as yourself to search for these things in the first place? Is there anything specific I should know?"

Kat’s eyes darkened, the color deepening to emerald, a guarded look coming over her face as she sat down warily in front of Giles. Inwardly she cursed her wayward thinking; damn, but she was getting careless, letting something so personal slip out in conversation. Fortunately she was spared from an immediate answer as the doors to the library burst open and in walked Xander, Willow in tow. "Hey G-man, the cavalry has arrived!" Xander lurched to a stop just shy of the table, causing Willow to collide with him from behind. "What happened in here? Did the books finally have enough and declare a mutiny?" He stared down at the chaos at his feet, not noticing the look of relief on Kat’s face or the look of shocked recognition on Willow’s.

Meanwhile the redhead was trying to recover from her shock; both at seeing the strange woman from the previous Friday at the Bronze, and from the chaotic look of the library and its keeper. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Willow moved around Xander and headed towards Giles, skirting the brunette’s side of the table. "What happened? Are you alright Giles?"

The librarian briefly placed his hand on the petite girls shoulder and said, "Thank you Willow, I’m quite alright. To answer your question Xander, I was attempting to sort through these books and I fell. Now, before we allow our rudeness to go any further I’d like to introduce you both to Katura, or Kat as she prefers. Kat, may I introduce Willow Rosenburg, and her worse half, my missing assistant Xander Harris."

Finally noticing that there was someone else in the room, Xander turned towards her and grinned. "Oh hey Kat, feeling any better today?" Feeling eyes on him, he turned and caught the looks from Giles and Willow. "What? I met her Friday night at the Bronze."

Kat returned Xander’s smile, though it was slightly forced. Her eyes remained a dark emerald as she responded. "I’m feeling better, thanks." Turning her head, she glanced at Willow. "Willow is it? Xander told me a little about you the other night. Pleased to meet you." Rising from her chair, she leaned forward over the table, her hand extended.

Remembering how the girl had made her feel before, Willow tried not to let her hand shake as she reached out and shook Kat’s hand briefly. "Nice to meet you." Her hand fell back down to her side as soon as it left Kat’s. An awkward silence descended on the group.

Giles cleared his throat, making the three youngsters turn towards him. "Well, now that introductions have been made, Willow do you happen to remember where you put those books of Egyptian prophecies and references and such after you scanned them into the dread machine?" The librarian asked.

"I believe you put them in your office; however if you want I can cross check for specific information in the books on this" Willow replied, already moving to her position in front of the computer and turning it on before he could finish speaking. "Anything in particular I should look for?" She glanced Kat’s way to see the new girl’s reaction to his request, and then back at Giles, waiting for his response.

"Our new friend has an interest in Egyptian curses. Xander would you mind trying to restore some sort of order to this mess?" The older man glanced over that the boy, who already looked bored.

Xander looked at the pile of books on the floor, then at Giles. Shrugging, he bent to pick up some of the books. "Sure thing G-man." As he began to straighten up the floor, he looked over to Kat, raising an eyebrow at her. "So…Egyptian curses? Afraid of mummies or something?"

Kat shook her head, once again tucking a strand of hair behind her ear as she thought up some sort of response. She was aware of everyone’s eyes on her, and it made her uneasy. "No…it’s sort of a hobby of mine. My family traces some of its roots to Egypt and my mother," she tried to keep her voice from catching, "my mother liked to tell me stories; about Egyptian gods of old and some of the curses used back in the days of the pharaohs. After she died…I felt like I had to learn all I could about her favorite topic." It wasn’t entirely a lie, for her mother had the same obsession Kat had. It wasn’t a choice; it was part of who they were.

Giles looked across the table at the lovely brunette. ‘She looks so sad’ he thought to himself. Aloud he asked, "Really? Was your mother a professor of some sort? Sadly, interest in ancient cultures has decreased over the years. These days it seems only the scholars have a fascination with the more ancient civilizations."

Kat smiled sadly in agreement, shrugging. "Well, like I said, it’s kind of a family thing." Suddenly feeling a little restless, Kat moved over to the mess on the floor, helping Xander put the books on the table for sorting. Her eyes lost some of their focus, becoming more blue than green as she worked silently beside him.

Giles muscles tensed momentarily in frustration. The strange young woman was trying diligently to not give him any insight into her motives. He was about to reply with another probing question when Xander interrupted. "Hey G-man, what’s this thing? It looks older than your precious pyramids." Giles glanced over at the boy and saw he was holding that precious, ancient text with the watchers sacred seal imprinted on the cover.

"Ahh," the Watcher exclaimed, sounding very undignified. "Xander give that here immediately. It more than likely is older than the pyramids. I’ll just go put it in my office to peruse later." Giles straightened carefully from his seat, still feeling his earlier tumble. Xander handed him the ancient text and the watcher moved to take the book into his office.

Kat let out the small breath she had been holding. Damn, but that man made her uneasy. She had a feeling if she stayed for very much longer, he would continue to probe into her curious interests. Straightening, she turned her head towards Willow, catching the girl’s speculative glance before the hacker looked back at the computer screen. "How long will it take you to find the information?" She kept her voice soft and even, not trying to betray her agitation.

Willow nibbled on her lip, shifting a little on the chair she was sitting on. She knew that there was a connection between Kat and the website she found online; she was pretty sure the deity Kat was most interested in was Sakhmet, the lion-headed goddess. She knew right where the information was on Giles’ computer, but something inside of the redhead made her shrug innocently.

"Giles has a lot of stuff on Egypt; it could take a few days."

Kat stared at the petite redhead for a few moments, not sure if Willow was telling her everything. The unease grew inside of her, however, and she shrugged as nonchalantly as possible. "I gave him some specifics," waving her hand in the direction of Giles’ office, "so if you get stuck he can tell you what I’m looking for." She turned on her heel, moving to leave the library. "I’ll come back in a couple of days. See you around." Offering Xander a brief smile, she started across the room towards the doors. On the way she veered over to Giles’ office and rapped on the door, kicking herself inwardly for feeling she at least owed him a polite goodbye before she fled.

When Kat knocked on his office door Giles had just finished locking the secret drawer in his desk, where he had stored the special book. "Yes? Please come in." he replied to the knock. Kat came in and stood with her arms crossed under her breasts, her posture defensive.

"I have to take off, I need to do some shopping if there are any stores open today. I just came in to say good-bye and tell you that I’ll be back in a day or so to see if you’ve found any of the information I’m looking for. It’s been very nice meeting you Mr. Giles." She said, trying to make her voice sound light.

"It’s been a pleasure to meet you as well Kat, I will do my best to find some information for you in my books. And please just call me Giles, Mr. Giles is my father." The librarian offered his hand and Kat stepped forward to shake it for a moment. "I’ll see you in a few days then, I hope you have a pleasant evening." Giles said as she released his hand. As she turned and left his office he noted her ever changing eyes had darkened again to a deep, piercing emerald.

Out of habit he turned the kettle on to make himself a cup of tea, then walked back into the main part of the library. He spotted Willow still typing away in front of that nasty new piece of technology and Xander paging through one of the new books, no doubt looking for sketches of nymphs and such.

Giles looked at the clock behind the counter as he crossed the room to speak to his charges. "Willow," he said, "I’d appreciate it if you could keep looking for the Egyptian references. Kat is looking for curses relating to deities and lunar phases specifically." The librarian picked up a stack of books from the table, motioning Xander to do the same and heading for the book cage.

The pixie like redhead glanced up from her monitor to reply, "Sure Giles, do you want us to patrol after sunset?" Her face had disappeared back behind the screen before she finished speaking.

"Yes, just a quick one mind you, and don’t try to take on more than any one vampire at a time. I worry dreadfully about you when you patrol." The kettle in Giles office started whistling. Giles headed back to his office to stop the infernal squealing calling back over his shoulder, "Xander would you make sure all of the books are in the cage before you leave?" A moment later the library fell into silence as the three occupants turned to their appointed tasks.

The time passed quickly and before Willow knew it, it was time to go out on patrol. "Hey Xan, grab some supplies and lets get patrol done. Maybe we can stop and get something to eat afterwards."

Xander did as ordered, grabbing a good assortment of stakes and their holy water guns. "Ooh food, great idea Wills, lets go!" The teens called out to Giles that they were leaving and trooped out of the library, just catching his order to be careful and to phone him when they got home safely.

Inside his office Giles had debated opening the locked secret drawer and examining the text held within. ‘No,’ he thought to himself. ‘Better to wait until the children have left. I don’t want them barging in while I’m trying to decipher it.’ He sat down behind his desk with a cup of good English tea and opened the volume on European vampires he’d been studying. By the time Willow and Xander called their good-bye’s the watcher had completely forgotten about the drawer and it’s contents.

* * * * * * * * *

The young man behind the counter was bored; really bored. It was Labor Day, and instead of enjoying his last few moments of summer, he was stuck working for his father at the local home improvement store. ‘Like anyone is actually going to come in here,’ he thought dourly to himself, flipping idly though the pages of a magazine. Thus he was very much surprised when the front door bell rang, announcing a customer as it swung open. He was equally surprised when the customer turned out to be a very attractive young woman. Grinning to himself, he tossed the magazine on the counter. ‘This is turning out to be a good day after all.’ As the dark-haired young woman approached the counter, he turned on his best charm. "Welcome! How may I ‘serve’ you?"

The young woman seemed oblivious to his flirting. Glancing about the store, her eyes lit up as she spied something that interested her. Gesturing to the display by the window, she asked, "How much?"

Turning, the clerk looked where the young woman was pointing, to the wooden chair in the window. "That? That costs about $30, but it’s just a display model. It’s not for…hey!" He cried out as she picked up the chair, swinging it around and smashing it against the wall, causing pieces to go scattering. Picking up the legs, along with a few long, splintered pieces, she walked back up to the speechless teenager and flipped a few tens on the counter. "That should cover it." Her lips twisting into an evil smile, she sauntered out of the store, calling back over her shoulder. "Thanks again." It wasn’t until several minutes had passed since she left that the youth was able to sit back down in his chair. His eyes continued to stare at the wreckage she had left behind.

Dodging a pair of unfriendly arms, Willow scooted around a headstone, putting it between herself and the vampire in front of her. As it jumped up on top of the headstone, she threw her vial of holy water in its face, feeling just a little smug when it started to scream and claw at its once handsome features.

Daring a quick glance around, she muttered a few words under her breath that would have shocked those who knew the hacker to be sweet and timid. She wasn't either at the moment; she was annoyed and scared as hell. Either the coroner was lazy when he filled out the death toll this afternoon, or a few newbies had decided to check out Sunnydale in the Slayer’s absence. Already they had encountered 9 vampires; and they had only been out here for an hour.

As the scarred vampire jumped down to seek revenge on the petite redhead, she picked up the crossbow she had dropped when she had been ambushed earlier and fired point blank at his chest. Showered with ashes, she gagged slightly and pivoted around, seeking her companion.

Willow spotted Xander a few yards away, using some of the defensive moves Giles had taught him over the summer to keep the vampire in front of him at bay. His face was a mask of concentration as he whirled under the vampire’s arm, bringing the stake in his right hand up to impale the vampire through the chest. As the dust swirled around him, he bent forward, placing his hands on his knees as he drew in gasping breaths of air.

Feeling Willow’s eyes on him, Xander looked up at her through his bangs. A crooked smile graced his lips and he quipped in between breaths, "Why is it I can’t get a date for the dance, yet every vampire within a 5 mile radius of the graveyard seems to want me?"

Willow giggled nervously, bending over to retrieve the arrows she loosed in their latest encounter. Watching his petite best friend check the triggering mechanism on the weapon gave Xander a pang of grief and anger. Here she was, a young woman who should be out dating, or at the very least getting ready for school the next day. And yet she was in the middle of a graveyard, making sure her weapon would fire accurately in their next skirmish with a creature that had been a myth to her a year or two ago…all because of one person. He still wasn’t sure how to feel about Buffy’s betrayal to the Scoobies; hurt was the primary emotion whenever he thought about the blonde. Concern was there as well, although that was rapidly fading as he faced the inevitable conclusion: Buffy wasn’t coming back.

From the look on Willow’s face, she was thinking similar thoughts. Not liking the sad look in her eyes, Xander opened his mouth to make more sarcastic comments, only to call out a warning as he saw movement directly behind her. "Behind you!"

Willow swiveled around as fast as she could, instinctively firing the crossbow in the hopes of slowing her target down, only to have it slapped out of hands as the arrow was released. She tried to grab another one of her holy water vials, but the vampire was too quick for her. He grabbed her by the neck, lifting her up until her feet dangled a few inches above the ground. Desperately she struggled to breath, twisting and clawing with all her tiny might. Xander shouted once more and rushed forward, only to be blocked by two vampires as they emerged from the nearby shadows. Frantically he threw a punch at one of the two, reversing his arm to elbow the other one in the stomach. Moving just out of range of their hands, he held up his stake and watched the two of them warily, looking for some opening. Every few seconds he glanced up at Willow, silently praying for some way to save his best friend before she suffocated to death.

Meanwhile the vampire that held Willow grew bored with watching her struggles to breathe. He hurled her into the nearest tree trunk, laughing as her tiny body slid down the trunk and crumpled to the ground. Stalking closer, he grabbed her mane of red hair, his fangs glinting maliciously as he crouched down in anticipation of a good meal. Willow moved quickly then; her hand snaked up from under her body, where she had hidden it from sight when she had crumbled at the base of the tree, and she slammed her cross up against his cheek. Her forward momentum, combined with his surprise, propelled them to the ground, rolling over and over in a mass of fangs, screams, and red hair. As they came to a stop, Willow was trapped under a very angry vampire. His eyes glowed violently and he wasn’t gentle when he ripped her head to the side, exposing her pale neck.

Xander’s eyes widened as he glanced back in Willow’s direction and saw the predicament she was in. "Willow!" he screamed, his attention diverted from the two vampires he was still fighting. One of them circled around behind him, preparing to jump the youth.

"Xander!" Willow called out in warning, closing her eyes as she felt the vampire’s breath tickle her throat. ‘This is it,’ she whimpered at the thought, wishing for some miracle. She didn’t see the glint of red eyes above the vampire, or the shadowy figure that leapt down from the nearby tree…

Suddenly, the weight that had crushed her previously was wretched away from her body. Slowly she opened her eyes, trembling as she peered about for the vampire who was about to kill her. A soft breeze swirled the dust in the air, and she was aware of a dark figure dashing away from her, heading in Xander’s direction. Willow rolled onto her stomach, sighted the crossbow, and attempted to crawl on her hands and knees over to it. Progress was difficult, as she was still shaking violently from her near miss, but she gritted her teeth and forced herself to move faster.

Xander felt a prickling on the back of his neck, and just as he became aware of the fact that one of the vampire’s had maneuvered itself behind him, he heard a shout:

"DUCK!"

Wasting no time with questions he dived to the ground, rolling to the side on one shoulder as he felt the air whoosh above him. On his knees, he watched as one of the vampires was tackled in midair, landing on the ground nearby. Its friend, the one that was keeping Xander occupied until the trap was set, hesitated, and then launched himself at Xander. Springing to his feet, Xander lunged forward, stake rushing up to meet the snarling creature. The vampire grabbed his arm in mid swing, attempting to twist the youth’s arm behind him. Xander turned around, yelling as he dragged his arm over his body…taking the vampire with it. As the vampire landed on its back Xander knelt down, staking it before it could jump back up. When the vampire burst into ashes, Xander slumped forward onto his hands and knees, his last ounce of strength spent.

The sound of fighting died down in his ears. Guessing that their savior had vanquished the last vampire, he raised his head to thank the person for dropping by. All words died on his lips as he peered at the person standing a few feet away from him. The light of the moon caressed the person’s silhouette, making it obvious that this was a young woman. She was slight of frame, and yet the way she pitched in suggested strength as well. She trembled in place, as if she were battling demons within. But what caught him the most was her hair, which was teased by a light breeze. Dark hair, like rich chocolate…

Judging from the slight gasp coming from Willow’s direction, Xander guessed she already came to the same conclusion he did. After glancing in her direction to make sure she was ok, he looked back up at the person who had saved them. Taking a shaky breath, he gasped out a name.

"Kat?" The young woman started, turning in his direction. For one second Xander thought he saw her eyes flash, red as blood. As quickly as he saw it, however, she blinked, and her eyes were dark features in her shadowed face. Yet he knew her just the same. From what he could see of her face, she looked rattled…and shocked.

"X…Xander?" Kat gasped breathlessly, darting her gaze between the young man and the redhead she knew was his companion. Narrowing her eyes, she took a few steps towards him, switching the stake from her right hand to her left so she could help him up. As she helped him to stand and lean against her, she called out to Willow. "Are you alright?" The redhead nodded slowly, finally attempting to stand now that the fight was over.

"Yeah, just a little shaken if you know what I mean," she smiled tremulously, and then rushed over to help Kat, worry etched on her face. "Xander? Are you alright?" He chuckled softly, allowing the two women to help him walk over to the nearest bench.

"Me? I’m great Wills; after all, it’s not everyday a man gets taken care of by two lovely women." Seeing her frown, he sighed, and then added: "I’m just a little winded; the last vamp took a lot out of me." He sank down onto the bench, closing his eyes in pure bliss. As Willow sat down next to him, he cracked an eye open, peering at Kat as she leaned against a nearby grave marker. Her head moved back and forth as she scanned the area, reminding him of a wild animal searching for predators…or prey. The analogy made him wince inwardly.

A strange thought occurred to him just then. Slowly a smile twisted across his lips. His tone was conversational as he spoke.

"So….you must be the new Slayer…"

"WHAT!" Willow exclaimed, jumping to her feet. Her earlier fatigue forgotten, she glanced back and forth between Xander and Kat. Her…another Slayer? And yet it seemed such an obvious question to ask that Willow couldn’t believe she hadn’t thought of it before. Kat exuded strength, with a grace of movement that was more innate than learned. Add to that her arrival on the Hellmouth, and the ease of which she had dispatched those vampires….yep, she very well could be the newest Slayer.

‘But….’ Willow thought anxiously, sharing a look with Xander, who was thinking the same thing, ‘If she’s the new Slayer…does that mean Buffy is…’ Her throat starting to close up, Willow whimpered. As she started to sway in place, Xander reached out a hand to steady her. So caught up were they in their own terrifying thoughts that they almost missed hearing Kat clear her throat questioningly. Xander looked at the brunette, who was still lounged against the headstone, eyebrow raised in confusion.

"Um…what exactly is a Slayer?"

* * * * * * * * * *

It took a few minutes of explaining, but with Willow’s help Kat managed to convince Xander that not only was she not the new Slayer, but she had no idea what one was. The term sounded somewhat familiar to her however. Crouching in front of them, she twirled a stake in one hand, cocking her head to the side. Willow and Xander squirmed on the bench, looking uncomfortable for bringing up such a sensitive topic. Since neither one of them offered to explain their odd behavior, Kat decided to bring it up.

"Soo…," She drawled out slowly, pausing as both teenagers looked up at her warily. "Would one of you mind telling me what a Slayer is? Oh, and while you’re at it," she stops, standing up to tower over the two of them. A breeze played with the shadows, crossing over her features and making her look more menacing as she continued her question in a falsely light tone. "Maybe you can tell me how two people such as yourselves came to find out about such things as Slayers and vamps…much less what you are doing out in the graveyard, at night, looking like vampire slayers yourselves.

When asked that way, who could refuse to answer? After checking to make sure Xander wanted her to do the talking, Willow took a deep breath and began. "It’s kind of a long story…See; we met the Slayer, Buffy, a couple of years ago…" Willow proceeded to launch into an abridged version of their acquaintance with the Slayer; how they met, finding out about vampires, their contributions to saving the world, etc.

Kat’s eyebrow rose further as Willow recounted the Scoobies adventures on the Hellmouth. Admiration for the two rose in her chest as she heard about the Master, some evil vampire named Angelus, and all the things they had overcome in the past two years. Shocking her further was the fact that Giles was not just a librarian, but apparently someone who watched over the Slayer, guiding her in her destiny to fight vampires. Something told her that they weren’t sharing everything with her, but she felt it best to wait until later to find out the answers to her questions.

However, right now she wanted to take another tour of the graveyard, to clean up any vampires that might still be lurking in the shadows. As Willow’s narration wound to a close, Kat’s lips quirked into a small smile. "I’m impressed. Most people tend to dismiss vampires as myths, and certainly no one I know volunteers to go after them." Tilting her head back, she looked up at the moon, then back down at Willow and Xander. "Think you’re up to another hunt through the cemetery?"

Xander grinned, nodding as he stood up slowly. He was still a little winded, but the time it took Willow to explain about their vampire knowledge gave him enough time to get his second burst of energy back. Turning to Willow, he raised his own stake. "What say you Wills? A little slayage, some Twinkies, and then all good Scoobies go to bed?" Giggling, the redhead agreed, and the trio began to move, eyes and ears open as they searched out any vampires in the vicinity.

An hour and a few vampires later, Kat’s estimation of the Scoobies rose another notch. They weren’t that bad as slayers; most of the time Xander and Willow fought as a team. Willow would take up a support position, usually somewhere where she could stay a safe distance from the vampire in question. Xander would take point, and engage the vampire so it wouldn’t go after the petite hacker. The only flaw Kat could see in their tactics is that it was too easy for the whole thing to fall apart if they encountered too many vampires. Their lack of supernatural senses, combined with the fact there was only two of them, made their attempts very dangerous. And yet it seemed as though they were used to risking their lives every night for the people of Sunnydale. They were truly courageous.

As the trio left the graveyard, they headed in the direction of Xander’s house. Each was silent, lost in their own thoughts as they walked down the silent streets of Sunnydale. Xander thought about the way Kat had fought with them; she moved like a panther, graceful and deadly. She reminded him so much of Buffy, and yet the two were nothing alike. Where Buffy didn’t like the idea of the two helping her patrol, Kat seemed to genuinely applaud their efforts. She even went so far as to suggest alterations to their tactics, putting herself into a scouting position that would enable her to warn the others of oncoming vampires, but still including them in the battle if they wished to. It was as if she understood their reasons for wanting to fight…

Willow kept glancing surreptitiously in Kat’s direction, taking in the girl’s profile. Her own mind was whirling a mile a minute, questions cascading down like a waterfall. Just who was Kat exactly? She wasn’t a Slayer, but her actions suggested she wasn’t entirely human either. And then there was that mysterious tattoo, and her obsession with Egyptian curses. Twisting a strand of her hair in her fingers, the redhead didn’t seem to realize they had finally reached Xander’s house until he waved his hand in front of her face.

"Wills? Xander paging Wills. You still among the living?" Seeing his best friend’s wan smile, he shook his head. "Ok, off to bed with you! Kat," turning to address the dark-haired girl, "Think you can get her home before she begins to see pillows at every corner?" After seeing her nod of agreement, he hugged Willow, turning to his front door. As he opened it he hesitated, then turned back to face Kat. "So, like thanks…for saving our lives out there. Think you’d be up to making this patrol thing a threesome?" As the young woman nodded her head, Xander smiled. "Alright then, slaying for everyone. Meet you at the graveyard tomorrow night." Saying no more, his serious moment spent, Xander crept into his house and out of sight.

Kat and Willow walked to the hacker’s house, neither one daring to break the silence. Kat thought about the past few days; her dreams were still the same, a warning of something to come. Now that she knew Willow a little better, she was sure that this was no enemy. However, she was not entirely convinced that the redhead was completely innocent; she knew for a fact that Willow was hiding a few things from her. One of them being the mysterious reason why the Slayer was not with them.

Thus they remained as Kat walked her to the door of the empty house. As the brunette headed back up the pathway, Willow dug her key out of her pants’ pocket. Slipping the key into the lock, she started over the threshold, only to stop when she heard the older girl call out to her. Turning around, she waited for the young woman to say something.

"What happened to the Slayer?"

Willow swallowed. She had told Kat more or less the whole story; about Buffy, and about Angelus, but she had neglected to mention anything about Angel. Xander had picked up on that right away, and fortunately he hadn’t said anything. Hesitating, Willow fought to find the right words.

"She had to sacrifice something precious to her in order to stop Angelus…she left town shortly after that."

Kat blinked in confusion; the Slayer abandoned her duty? Still unsure why this Buffy would run off and leave her friends to the perils of the Hellmouth, without even a goodbye, she frowned softly. So caught up in her musings was she that she barely heard Willow’s own question…even with her enhanced hearing. "What?"

"Do you have nightmares Kat?" A sad smile touching her lips, the brunette nodded. "All the time." She turned, heading back to the sidewalk. "Goodnight Willow."

"Goodnight…Kat." The redhead headed inside, closing the door and sagging against it heavily. Gods, she was so tired. She feared going to sleep though, in case the nightmares returned. Whimpering softly in the back of her throat, Willow glanced at her calendar, seeking the day of the next full moon. Saturday…she would do the spell on Saturday.

Five more days until she got Angel out of hell.

* * * * * * * * *

Across town, Kat stared up at the ceiling of her hotel room. Five more days. Just five more days to stop whatever the dream warned her about. Rolling onto her side, she curled into a fetal position and shivered. She didn’t want to sleep, not when the dreams were waiting for her. Try as she might, she couldn’t keep her eyelids from falling slowly, ever so slowly, until they closed. As the tendrils of her nightmares began to slip into her mind, she shuddered, mewling low in her throat. Once again, she would dream of that horrible night, the night that changed her forever.

Once again, she would be forced to relive her mother’s death…and her birth into the world of darkness.

The days went by quickly, and soon it was Saturday. From opposite sides of Sunnydale, two people greeted the day with mixed emotions; a sense of excitement in one, and a feeling of dread in the other. The air itself was charged with the tension that grew in both of them, a tension that had been building all week. The town lay in wait like a volcano on the verge of eruption.

Willow could barely contain her nervous energy. Tonight was the night; she had the necessary ingredients, and she would be performing the spell to rescue Angel from Hell. A nervous smile touched the hacker’s lips as she darted around frantically, grabbing the things she would need for the spell. Glancing around the room, she looked down at the list she clutched in one hand, making sure she got everything. All that remained was one thing. Grabbing the bag that contained all her supplies, she raced downstairs, careening into the kitchen and braking just before the fridge. Silently the redhead thanked her wayward parents for not being home this week as she opened the door and very, very carefully removed the sealed bags of blood she had thought to get the other night.

As she made her way to the front door she stopped, glancing back around the empty house nervously. A tiny part of her mind tried to talk her out of this risky, foolish attempt. It sounded a lot like Kat; a notion that made Willow frown. The brunette had been very agitated of late; she barely spoke unless Willow or Xander asked her something, and she spent a lot of time glancing at the moon. A couple of times she had caught the dark young woman staring at her, her eyes containing a hint of fear. It was as if Kat knew something about what Willow was going to do…and maybe didn’t approve of it.

Willow’s eyes flashed, twin emerald’s glittering with determination. Kat or no Kat, she was doing this spell. Her resolve face firmly in place, the redhead turned and marched out the door, slamming it behind her. Hitching the backpack up on her shoulder, she moved away from the house and down the street, heading for the site she had chosen to perform the spell…the place where it all began.

The mansion.

* * * * * * * * * *

Kat stood outside the doors of the high school library, one hand raised to push the door open. Her eyes swirled through a myriad of colors, reflecting the turmoil inside of her. Reaching up to twirl a strand of her dark hair in her fingers, the young woman pondered what she should do. She was fairly certain that Willow would try something tonight, though what she couldn’t say. All week she had watched the redhead as the trio patrolled the town, trying to figure out what her motivation was. She had even tried asking a few questions, probing deeper into the mystery surrounding the Slayer, and her connection to the two teenagers.

But Willow was nearly as secretive about herself as Kat was. Sighing, the brunette shook her head; how could she expect anyone to confide in her when she couldn’t even tell them about herself? Uneasily she recalled the other day, when she had made excuses for not joining Willow and Xander on their patrol. She couldn’t tell them the truth…despite the warnings of her recent nightmares, Kat had become rather fond of the two vampire hunters. She wasn’t ready to give up the friendship they were tentatively offering her.

Abruptly she shook her head, eyes darkening stonily as she admonished her foolish thoughts. ‘It’s only a matter of time before they find out,’ she thought bitterly, ‘and you’ll have to move on.’ For some reason that particular reminder made her even sadder.

Glancing at a clock on the nearby wall, Kat noted it was roughly 20 minutes before sunset. ‘Cutting it a little close, but this has to be done.’ Taking a deep breath, she pushed the library doors open, stepping softly into the room. Her voice was low as she called out, eyes darting about for signs of life.

* * * * * * * * * *

Willow stared at the floor in the middle of the mansion, her eyes riveted to a particular spot. Even though it had been months since Buffy had sent Angel to hell, the stain left by his blood remained. Slowly she lowered her backpack to the ground, sinking to her knees beside it. Her hand reached out, caressing the darkened area of wood sadly. Tears formed in her eyes and she brushed them aside. Taking a deep breath, she offered the blood-soaked wood a shaky smile. ‘Soon Angel…very soon,’ she thought, hoping he heard her thoughts and drew comfort from them.

Turning, she opened the backpack and withdrew a container of salt. Brushing her crimson hair out of her eyes she bent forward and poured the salt in a large circle around the area she would use to perform the spell. In the very center lay the spot where Angel had left this plane of existence.

Once completed, Willow went about setting up the items needed for the spell. Beside the bloodstain she placed a shallow wooden bowl. The bottom was fairly flat, which allowed her to place her next object in the bowl without fear of it tipping over: a red, tapered candle. Slowly she withdrew another object from the backpack. A simple dagger she had picked up a few days before, its blade was curvy and double-edged, coming to a point seven inches from the hilt. The pommel of the dagger was etched with the Egyptian symbol of healing, an ankh. This had seemed a good sign to the redheaded witch at the time she had purchased the dagger.

Now, staring at the object in her hand, Willow once again felt anxious about what she was planning on doing. Would she really be able to pull this off? Staring at the gleaming metal of the blade, she reached up to run her finger along its edge. Feeling the slight prick of the tip against her finger, the young witch drew herself out of her doubtful thoughts and placed the dagger in front of the bowl and candle. Checking to see that all was in place, she checked her watch to verify the time. Fifteen minutes until sunset. It was time.

Taking a slow, deep breath, the petite witch closed her eyes and tried to still her thoughts. Her breathing began to even out as she focused on relaxing, mentally readying herself for the power of the spell she was about to start. All doubts and thoughts of mysterious brunettes faded out of mind as one face and name became fixated in her head.

Angel.

* * * * * * * * * *

"Mr. Giles?" Not seeing anyone about, she crept further into the room, moving in the direction of his office door. Again she called out his name, "Mr. Giles?" The pretty brunette spotted the light in the librarians’ office just a moment before the man himself appeared.

"Why Kat, it’s good to see you again. Please do come in. Can I offer you some tea?" Giles asked when he saw the lovely young woman standing before him. He’d rather expected her sooner than this. She’d seemed quite eager to have the information she’d been looking for the last time they’d spoken. ‘But before I give her anything,’ the older man admonished himself, ‘I’m going to get some insight into her motives.’

Shaking her head, the young woman glanced around once more to make sure there was no one else around. As she turned back to face the librarian, she folded her arms over her chest. "No, thank you. I came to talk to you about something," she paused, then added, "and perhaps to ask you a few questions."

"Really." The handsome librarian said, the word sounding more like a statement than a question. If Kat had known what to look for she would’ve seen a certain gleam enter the mans eye and a subtle shifting of his stance that signaled a change in his entire demeanor. The woman’s attitude was a tad off putting and Giles was determined not to give her anything without getting something in return. Therefore, Ripper was about to make himself known. "Well dear, I find I’ve a few questions of my own for you. Why don’t we go into my office." Giles gestured for the brunette to precede him and shut the office door once they were both inside. He walked around his desk and sat down behind it. His eyes fell on the still standing woman and he gave her a look that clearly indicated he wanted her to start the conversation.

The hair on the back of Kat’s neck stiffened, and she darted a glance to the door, as if debating whether or not she could make it out before he was after her. A predator herself, she recognized the same qualities in others…and right now the man she’d previously deemed a harmless, cultured librarian looked like he was on the hunt. Mr. Giles wanted something from her, and from the looks of it he would get it before he answered any of her questions.

Kat’s eyes darkened and narrowed, emerald slits that threatened with less practiced subtlety than Giles’ ‘Ripper-mode.’ Unfolding her arms, she leaned forward, placing her hands on the desk as she glared at the librarian. Her voice came with a low growl as she spoke. "Look Mr. Giles, I realize I haven’t exactly been forthcoming about my intentions with you and your little slaying gang, but this is not the time to get into it." Even as she spoke she could feel the sun sinking closer to the horizon. Her tattoo felt warm on her back as she continued. "Right now that little redheaded witch of yours is getting herself into all sorts of trouble, and if she isn’t stopped something bad is going to happen."

* * * * * * * * * *

It was time. Slowly the redhead opened her eyes, staring unseeingly at the wick of the red candle. Her lips opened and she began to speak, her voice not entirely her own; some otherworldly element added cadence to her words.

"Sakhmet, Daughter of Ra, I beg thee hear my plea. Thy guiding light is fading; night’s dark cloak descends. I stand alone to hold back the encroaching darkness. I ask you, goddess of light, lend me your strength that I might combat the forces of evil and right the wrong that was done here. Light my way and guide my feet upon your path. Let your sheltering light aid me and protect me in my quest; that none may do harm within this circle so long as your blessed flame burns..."

As Willow prayed, her eyes remained fixed on the wick of the candle. A rush of air filled the room, teasing her hair wildly about her face; the air was dry and hot, like a desert breeze. Her eyes seemed to take on an inner brilliance, fire radiating from those twin emerald orbs. One dainty hand rose of its own volition, fingers extended toward the tip of the crimson taper. Suddenly the breeze in the room shifted, whipping her hair in front of her face. The air seemed to grow hotter, expanding from behind Willow in both directions, encompassing the young girl within.

Without taking her eyes off the candle tip, Willow could feel the energy surging out from behind her, licking a path around the line she drew on the ground. In her mind's eye she could see the line glow, a deep red that pulsed like a heartbeat. It encompassed the circle, and the candle sputtered to life with a snap of the girls’ fingers, a flame greedily leaping up on the end of the wick. It flickered in the breeze that stirred inside the manor, yet never went out. Slowly the wind died down, and yet the flame continued to dance on the candle, drawing Willow’s gaze into its depths.

Strength and purpose surged through her body, burning through her veins in a powerful elixir. She had done it; she had been granted Sakhmet's protection for her foray into Hell. Licking her lips, she lowered her hand, trembling inside with the effort to focus on the second half of her casting. This would be much harder than setting the path; now she must reach out onto the path and draw something from the shadows. Drawing a deep breath, she prepared for the next step; retrieving Angel.

* * * * * * * * * *

Angel wasn’t alone; he was never alone. Even as he knelt in the dark depths of Hell he could feel his demon and others pressing close on all sides, taking almost physical pleasure from his pain. His arms were pulled out to each side and raised slightly so as to cause the greatest discomfort, and held in place with heavy iron chains. Blood oozed from the many cuts and scrapes that marred his chest and back. His cheeks were stained scarlet from the many bloody tears the vampire had shed as his demon flayed his back time and time again with many cruel implements of torture, for what seemed like an eternity.

One of the demons leaned forward, licking the sweat and blood off of Angel’s back. He stiffened slightly, recoiling from the demon’s touch and shuddering. His head bowed forward, chin resting on his chest which was slick with blood and sweat. He couldn’t take much more of this; it already felt like centuries since he had been cast into Hell. Desperately, the dark-haired vampire prayed to all the deities he knew of for a miracle; for some way out of this never-ending nightmare.

* * * * * * * * * *

Giles mouth opened in shock. A split second later he bolted from his chair, fear for his young charge cutting through the shock of Kats statement. "WHAT?" he roared at the emerald eyed girl, "What is Willow doing and how in the bloody hell do you know about it?" He’d known Willow was up to something, she didn’t lie well and he’d caught on to her nervous tension during the week. ‘But what is the girl up to that would sound an alarm to this woman who hardly knows her.’ The librarian thought. He reigned in his growing panic and glared back at Kat, waiting impatiently for her answer.

"I’m not sure what she’s up to; all I know is that it has something to do with dreams…or something like that," Kat was having a hard time concentrating, her back began throbbing with a painful heat as she forced herself to continue. "How do I know she’s in trouble? Well, see, it sort of relates to some dreams of my own…" Wincing, the young woman arched back, reaching behind to touch the small of her back where her tattoo was located, it felt like it was on fire. Touching the spot gingerly, she hissed and brought her hand back; her fingers were scalded, and her back was searing hot to the touch.

* * * * * * * * * *

Her course was set, but the most difficult part was now at hand, though Sakhmet was known as a healer, a benevolent goddess, she required a blood sacrifice for a favor of the magnitude Willow was about to ask of her. The crimson haired witch picked up the dagger and placed it against her palm.

"Goddess Sakhmet, Daughter of Ra. You have blessed the path I am about to take. Now, with my blood as sacrifice I beg of you, open the way through the dimensions, remove all obstacles that stand between me and the souled demon whose blood was spilled in this place before my circle was cast."

Willow drew a deep breath, held her palm and the dagger over the bowl, directly over the flame of the candle. A quick slice and a gasp of indrawn breath, and the witches’ dark blood dripped from her hand, over the undying flame of the candle, and into the ceremonial bowl.

* * * * * * * * * *

‘What’s going on?’ The dark-haired young woman thought, looking at her fingers, then at Giles. A sick feeling came over her, and she glanced toward the window, noting with dismay how close the sun was to the horizon. ‘Sunset…damn it’s too near sunset.’ A growl issued from the girl’s throat as it all came together in her mind. "It’s too late; she’s already started, and it’s too damn late!" The last few words spat out in a vicious snarl, she spun around and raced for the door before Giles could say a word, the back of her shirt riding up to expose the tattoo to his eyes. It was an angry red, pulsing like a heartbeat as she ran from him.

"Kat!" Giles shouted as the girl ran from his office. Before she exited the library he saw what was paining her. The hieroglyph tattooed on her lower back was ablaze with a throbbing red glow. He ran after her, chasing her through the school and out onto the front steps where he had to stop to catch his breath. "KAT!" The highly confused librarian called out one last time. The brunette was across the street by now, heading into the park. As he watched her sprinting away from him the sun sank below the horizon and before his eyes the fleeing woman seemed to shimmer and crouching down, she transformed.

* * * * * * * * * *

Willow watched, unblinking, and when the blood had nearly covered the bottom of the bowl she continued her prayer. "Sakhmet, my offering is complete. As my blood mixes with the blood of the one I seek, I beg of thee, I pray to thee.

BRING HIM FORTH!" With the last sentence exhaled on a shout of desperation Willow moved her bleeding palm from its place over the bowl to the old bloodstain beside it. A single drop of blood hung from the witches’ hand for a moment, then fell to the ground, mixing with the blood of her lost friend.

* * * * * * * * * *

As Kat crossed the street the pain in her back increased intolerably. A trembling began in her knees and she fell to the ground, shaking like a leaf. ‘No,’ she thought frantically, raising her head to gaze at the last rays of sunlight as they disappeared over the horizon. ‘It’s happening too fast…the spell is triggering my change too quickly.’ Fear coursed through her veins, spreading like wildfire as the transformation took her. Her eyes narrowed to mere slits, the pupils swirling and changing into something resembling cat’s eyes. Bowing her head to submit to the whims of her goddess, Kat closed her eyes and let the fire sear through her blood, altering and reshaping her body. Bones snapped and readjusted in her body as it nearly doubled in size, clothing ripped at the seams and fell to the ground in useless rags. Naked flesh was quickly with black fur as it sprouted all over her body; the whimper that had lodged in the back of her throat emerged now as a growl as the transformation was completed. Where Kat, dark-haired young woman had knelt but a moment before, a sleek black panther now stood, eyes flashing red in the fading light.

* * * * * * * * * *

Like a bonfire, the flame on the candle roared to life. The air itself intensified, charged by the power drawn by the redhead’s words. Underneath her hand the ground shook, pulsing like an erratic heartbeat. The wood melted away, forming a portal where the bloodstain had been. Light swirled in the depths of the portal, blue and silver tinged with red electricity. Willow felt her fingers sink into the portal; straining, reaching out to the one she was trying to pull back…

* * * * * * * * * *

Suddenly, the demons surrounding the wretched vampire hissed, stepping back from him in fear and agitation. Feeling warmth caress his cold, tortured body Angel lifted his face upward, wincing as he opened his eyes and met with a blinding light. Blue and silver light pierced the depths of Hell, tinged with red electricity as it bathed the vampire in its intense light. It caressed him like a long forgotten lover, bringing with it feelings that soothed his aching heart; intense friendship and undying courage. An image appeared in the vampires mind, that of a young woman with deep red hair and eyes as green as the grass of his homeland. She was kneeling inside a sacred circle and one bloody hand hovered over a swirling portal, then she reached into the eerily lighted tunnel and Angel knew the portal above him for what it was: the miracle he had prayed for; a way home.

Slowly he tried to reach up toward the light, discovering in astonishment that his bonds were broken. Joy and hope suffusing him and giving him strength, Angel stood up and tilted his head back to gaze at the portal, a small smile touching his lips. Dainty fingers reached out from the other end of the portal, reaching out for him. He lifted his hand, straining to touch those welcoming fingers…

* * * * * * * * * *

As she reached into the portal, Willow felt something grab her wrist tightly. Panic welled up inside her for a moment before she felt a rush of emotions coming from the other side of the portal: intense fear, beloved friendship, and unwavering trust. Somehow, she knew it was Angel. Twisting her wrist to capture his, she gritted her teeth and pulled with all her strength, at the same time sending her emotions to the one below: hope, friendship, and happiness. Her lips quivered and her body shook with the effort to drag him out of the portal. It was as if Hell itself was holding onto him, refusing to let go.

* * * * * * * * * *

One of the demons, forgotten at that moment by the vampire, apparently recovered from its discomfort long enough to lunge at him. Desperately Angel reached upward, wildly grasping for the hand that was extended toward him. His hand clamped around her wrist at the same time the creature grabbed him by the waist, trying to drag him bodily away from the portal. Panic rose in his throat, and the vampire twisted in the demon’s grasp, kicking his legs with all his might in an attempt to get free. On the other end of the portal, he felt himself being tugged closer and closer to the shining surface of light.

* * * * * * * * * *

Her shoulder burned with the effort to maintain a good grip, her bleeding hand sticky with the blood that pooled underneath. Biting her lower lip, she threw herself backward in one final heave…and as she fell a large bruised and battered male form emerged from the seething portal, still holding tightly to her wrist. Both figures collapsed on the ground, the portal closing with a rush of air behind them.

Willow stared up at the ceiling, gasping for air. Sweat beaded on her face and she turned to peer at the figure lying beside her. A slow, tremulous smile touched her lips as she got a good look at his features. A tear fell down her cheek, staining the wood as she whispered faintly:

"Welcome home Angel." That was her last coherent thought as the poor witch passed into the realm of slumber, drained of all energy.

* * * * * * * * * *

Finally, in what seemed like one desperate lunge, Angel felt his arm being jerked nearly out of its socket. The force behind the pull dislodged the demon on his back, just long enough for Angel to be dragged into the portal. The light became searing, and as he felt himself emerge on the other side, the vampire passed out in exhaustion. He never heard Willow’s whispered welcome back, never felt his demon readjusting itself to its confinement in his body once more. But even in his unconscious state he knew his torment was at an end, and he smiled.

* * * * * * * * * *

Shaking its fur, the mighty cat raised its head, staring off into the distance as if searching for something. It felt a presence far ahead, and an urge to get to it as quickly as possible. In a flash of movement it was off, bounding out of sight as silently as the other predators that occupied the town of Sunnydale.

Confounded, Giles stood on the steps of the high school, his mouth agape at what he’d seen in the deepening twilight. Needing to confirm what his mind was telling him, the librarian walked across the street to the spot where the girl, Kat, had been replaced with the largest black panther he’d ever seen.

Spotting the rags that were all that was left of Kats clothing, he bent down and scooped them up. Looking closer at the ground he also saw the change from the shoe prints made by a young woman’s sandals to the paw prints of a large predator. ‘My God, it was real.’ The man thought.

After taking note of the direction the panther had gone Giles made his way back to the library, Kats clothing still in hand. Entering his sanctuary he placed the rags and torn sandals on a chair, then sat down at his desk and opened the bottom drawer, where he’d placed the information he’d gathered for the young woman who; it now seemed, was also a panther. Opening the folder Giles started what would undoubtedly be a long night of research.

* * * * * * * * * *

Silently the dark cat raced through the darkness, enjoying the feel of wind as it ruffled the cat’s black fur. Its heightened senses detected other supernatural creatures nearby, making it easy for the panther to navigate around them without much fear of discovery. Normally it would be hunting those things right now, bloodlust raging in its veins; however, a more pressing urge spurred the big cat onward. It grew stronger, beckoning the shadowy beast and spurring it onward.

Soon the black cat slowed in its pace, a dark building looming up in front of the creature. Sniffing the air cautiously, the panther detected the presence of a human…and one of those things that it despised. Its hackles rose and the big predator hissed in anger, fangs glinting in the light of the rising full moon. Moving closer to the side of the house, it sniffed around for a way in.

Sliding through a broken window, the panther landed with a soft thump on all fours. Slowly it stalked through the house, eyes gleaming with a feral light as it sought out its prey. As it came to the main room of the house, the fur on the back of its neck rose once more, and the cat growled menacingly, baring its fangs. In the center of the room lay two still forms, surrounded by some pulsating red light. As the large animal watched, one of the figures stirred, rousing itself long enough to raise its head and look right at the beast. It was the one that reeked of death; the long hated enemy of this animal.

Hissing and spitting, the panther leapt into the air, ready to pounce on its weakened prey…only to yelp in surprise and pain as it encountered the protecting wall of the sacred circle that Willow had cast. Electric fire coursed through the black cat’s body and it fell backwards, slumping to the ground before the edge of the circle. As darkness came to embrace the panther, it glared its hatred at the enemy which lay beyond its reach.

* * * * * * * * * *

Angel blinked at the scene he awoke to, confusion and fear warring in him as he watched the giant beast slump into unconsciousness. He had tried to stand, but the spell and torture had combined to leave him severely weakened. Moving his arms, he struggled to sit up, shaking with the effort it took to raise himself a couple of inches off the floor. Finally he collapsed back on the ground, closing his eyes and sighing. Whatever it was, it couldn’t hurt him or Willow right now; he would just have to deal with it after he got some sleep.

As the exhausted vampire slipped back into oblivion, the candle in the center of the room continued to burn with an almost ethereal light.

* * * * * * * * * *

Giles sat in his office, carefully studying the information on Egyptian curses Willow had printed up for him to give to Kat. "Bloody hell." The librarian muttered under his breath. He’d found nothing in the printouts about transmogrifying curses, nothing that would give him the faintest clue about the woman/panther. He shut the folder and leaned back in his chair, removing his glasses and pinching the bridge of his nose as if to ward off a headache. Giving up on his search for information about Kat, he decided to concentrate his efforts on trying to find out exactly what Willow may have been up to that had alarmed the brunette woman.

After retrieving his spell books from the locked cabinet that also contained the watchers diaries and his more obscure and valuable books of prophecy, Giles again sat at his desk and began looking through the books, trying to figure out what sort of dangerous spell Willow would have tried.

Hours passed by unnoticed, so engrossed was the librarian in this search. Finally he closed the last volume. Sighing tiredly he thought to himself, ‘Rupert, think! What could that girl have been doing that may have been dangerous for her? As far as I know she hasn’t done any casting since the soul restoration she attempted for Angel. She hasn’t been sleeping well; maybe she attempted a spell to aid her sleep. But no, I don’t think any of those spells could be considered dangerous.’ The exhausted man made himself a cup of tea and left his office, walking into the main part of the library. He glanced around the room as if the library itself could tell him the answers to his questions. Giles noted that it was about an hour till sunrise; he’d been researching fruitlessly all night.

All of a sudden he spotted Willows computer. "Of course!" The watcher cried. He realized now his mistake. Willow would have kept notes, or some clue of what she was doing on her computer. He rushed over to it, skidding to a halt before the foul piece of machinery. "Now listen you," Giles spoke aloud to the monitor. "You don’t like me, and I certainly don’t like you, but Willow may be in danger so we’re going to have to work together on this. I promise, if you give me what I want I will never touch you again." He sat down before the computer, thinking idly about what a nonce he must look like, speaking to a machine. He turned it on and waited for it to boot up.

The background picture on the monitor showed Buffy, Willow, Xander, Cordelia and himself sitting at the table in the middle of the library. He smiled, remembering that Jenny had come in one day and taken that picture. Giles looked over the icons on the desktop, double clicking on the folder icon titled Willow. It was filled with various documents and sub folders, none of which he thought might be useful as they appeared to be homework assignments.

‘Hmm, maybe something on the internet?’ Giles thought. He closed Willows folder and tentatively logged himself onto the net. After a few minutes of searching, he found the email program and managed to open it. Glancing at the subject lines on each email he deduced that there was nothing of interest there and closed the program.

‘Alright, that was pointless. Let’s try that surf program thing.’ He thought. Another search got him into the web browser. ‘Now what was it she did whenever she wanted to search the coroners’ files? Ah yes, favorites.’ He opened the pull down menu for Willows favorites folder, smiling slightly when he saw that it was neatly organized into categories. Demons, Newspaper, Miscellaneous, Possibilities, Public Offices, Warez, and Witchcraft.

Most of the folders held no interest to the librarian. He honed in one the one labeled Possibilities first. It turned out to be his lucky break. Inside the folder were links to sites that, though varied in type, all but one held to the same theme: inter-dimensional travel. There were scientific papers, spells, and rituals, to open portals between the dimensions. But the one anomaly to the theme caught his attention; it was labeled Prayers to Egyptian Deities. He clicked the link and the web page loaded for him. It was filled with text relating to Egypt and the deities of the ancient Egyptian culture. At the bottom of the title page were links to several different deities, the links were marked by hieroglyphs along with the name of the God or Goddess. Giles studied the hieroglyphs closely, until his eyes rested on the link to the Goddess Sakhmet; the hieroglyphic name of Sakhmet was the same as the tattoo on Kats back.

Immediately Giles clicked the link. He knew very little of this goddess, but he was certain this page held at least some of the information he needed to find out just what the hell had happened tonight. He read through the page, noting phrases like divine vengeance, Lady of Pestilence, and healer. To the librarian, this goddess seemed to be a warrior for justice; she would lend her aid to warriors in peril if their cause was good. There were links to a few prayers and spells to invoke the aid of the goddess. He clicked on the link to a ritual spell called Light the Path. As he read through the ritual his eyes widened in fear for his charge. He knew now what she had done. Giles jumped out of his chair and ran for the door, stopping only long enough to grab a stake; he had to get to the mansion.

Giles drove, as fast as his Citroen would go. As the town flew by him the librarian went over what he knew. ‘Willow always said the second attempt at the restoration worked. She believes in her heart that Angel went to hell with his soul intact. Even after all that Angelus has done to us she couldn’t leave him there, not if he had his soul. Foolish girl, there’s no way to know for sure the restoration worked.

He was close to the mansion now. But he was going to be too late. The sun was rising. He kept going, he had to know. His thoughts continued to plague him, making him press the gas pedal to the floorboards, urging him to go faster, to find whatever he would. ‘If she’s done this, and he’s Angelus, she could be dead already. If she attempted it and failed, she could be in hell right alongside him.’

Hunger; it gnawed at his stomach from the inside out, forcing the souled vampire to rouse from his deep slumber. Blinking the sleep from his dark eyes, Angel peered about in cautious confusion. He was lying on the floor of the mansion in a circle of white salt, which pulsed with a dim red light. At the center of the circle a red candle burned in a wooden bowl; the taper was nearly burnt out. Turning his head, the vampire encountered a petite body sleeping beside him. Crimson hair fanned out around a pale, pixie like face, sending waves of recognition through Angel’s mind as he glanced down at Willow’s sleeping form. Images of the previous night flickered behind his eyes, forcing the weakened vampire to relive his exit from Hell. He bent forward, clutching his head as the visions assaulted him one right after another.

His stomach growled once more, forcing Angel’s thoughts back to the present. With Willow so near, her blood calling out to him like a siren, his demon struggled close to the surface. The vampire recoiled in horror and backpedaled; his hand encountered something plastic and squishy, causing him to look down in confusion. Bringing his hand up to his face, Angel realized he held a bag of blood, probably provided by the redheaded witch for just such a situation. Without pause he morphed into demon face, piercing the bag with his teeth and drinking it as fast as he could in order to avoid the cold, metallic taste of packaged blood. His hunger cooled, but did not fade, and the vampire glanced around at the floor, seeking more packages to sate his thirst. Two bags later he sighed in relief, the blood thirst dying down to a more manageable level.

As his human mask reemerged, Angel became embarrassingly aware of another problem; he wasn’t wearing a stitch of clothing. Sheepishly he searched around for something that would be suitable to wear, so as not to frighten or embarrass his witchy friend when she finally woke up. He tried to move outside the circle, but the red glow acted like a force field, imprisoning him for the time being. Spotting Willow’s backpack near the center of the circle, Angel moved to retrieve it and see if she had brought any spare clothing. A hint of a smile touched his lips as he pulled out a pair of black sweat pants, and a black tank.

‘Sweet Willow, she sure does think of everything doesn’t she?’ Angel contemplated as he donned the clothing so thoughtfully provided for him. Making sure it fit, he padded silently over to the sleeping redhead, kneeling down to watch her for a few moments. Slowly he reached out, brushing a lock of hair from her forehead and whispering hoarsely, "Thank you…friend."

* * * * * * * * *

Suddenly Angel became aware of another presence in the room, one he had up till now ignored entirely. Just on the outer edge of the fading circles light, a dark form lay, eerily still. Frowning, Angel crept closer for further inspection. A faint animalistic scent touched his nose as he leaned forward to get a good look at the creature lying on the ground. Surprise and confusion drew his brows together as he discovered it was a large panther, black as midnight. Its side rose and fell as it slept; unaware of another predator looming uncertainly over its body, struggling to recall what it was doing there in the first place.

As Angel debated over his next action, he felt a slight stirring of air in the still mansion. Turning, he looked at the scarlet candle, watching as the flame at the end sputtered, then died out. As the light from the candle faded, the line marking the sacred circle flickered, fading away into nothingness. So intent was Angel on the disappearing protective barrier that he failed to notice the creature beside him stirring…and changing into something else entirely.

Turning his head back to study the panther once more, Angel sucked in an unneeded breath of surprise. The black cat was gone, and in its place was the body of a young woman. Tilting his head to one side, the vampire studied her face, searching for anything familiar about her. She was certainly attractive, with dainty features framed by thick, wavy brown hair. Nothing in her face suggested familiarity however and so his eyes traveled lower of their own accord, widening as he came to realize something about this young woman: she also appeared to be unclothed. Slightly embarrassed to be staring openly at a strange young woman’s body, the vampire tried to move his eyes back to her face. The demon inside him didn’t seem to agree with the idea however; it was perfectly content to ogle the delectable young morsel. Frowning, Angel struggled to control his demon…and his eyes. While he was trying to subdue his darker half, he failed to notice the young woman’s eyes snapping open, green fire blazing from their depths.

The feeling that someone was standing over her brought Kat out of her pain-induced stupor. Her nostrils flared slightly as she inhaled the scent of the intruder; the hair on the back of her neck stiffening as she became aware of the strangers vampiric nature. Acting on instinct she raised her upper body in a blur of motion, her hand curling into a fist and flying in the direction of the vampire’s unprotected face.

Angel barely had time to blink as the brunette lying at his feet suddenly moved, her fist rushing up to connect with his face. Bright light and fire burst behind his right eye as her fist made contact, causing the vampire to reel backwards in bewildered pain. Warily he took a step back, putting some distance between them as he watched the little spitfire bound to her feet, raising her arms and assuming a fighting stance. Admiration for her speed mingled with an appreciation for her strength, not to mention her beauty; the flush of anger that spread over her made for an interesting show in her naked state. Her eyes flickered between dark green and black, a fascinating trick of light that made him raise an eyebrow, before wincing as it intensified the throbbing in his eye.

Kat couldn’t believe what she was seeing…a goddamn vampire ogling her! Growling low in her throat, she launched a spinning back kick at him, bringing her leg up and around aiming for the side of his head. As the vampire ducked under her leg to avoid her foot she changed tactics, planting her feet and aiming a back fisted punch at his throat.

Angel snapped out of his reverie as the angry young woman threw a kick at his head. He tried to dodge, but she kept pressing forward in a flurry of acrobatic and inventive movements. He blocked a series of well aimed punches as best he could, though he took a few hits to the chest and stomach area. He backed up in an attempt to get out of range of her fast flying attacks. His ire rose as she continued to press forward, her natural grace and style belying her skill. ‘Oh yea, she’s pretty alright,’ he thought darkly, ‘…pretty fucking dangerous.’ The dark-haired vampire tried to keep his movements defensive, but with each fist that flew at his body his demon edged closer to the surface…

Kat twisted, throwing a powerful side kick at the vampire. She felt it connect and watched as the creature flew backwards, sprawling on the ground before her. Her pleasure was short-lived, however, as she saw what he had tripped over in the process: the still form of one of her new friends, the redheaded hacker Willow. Her skin was so pale as to nearly be translucent; dark circles marred the translucent skin under her eyes, and she barely seemed to breathe. The odor of blood rose from Willow’s body, causing the brunette to hiss under her breath. If possible, her eyes became even flintier as she scowled down at Willow’s body, clenching and unclenching her fists. ‘The bastard,’ she thought angrily, struggling to control her fury, ‘the bastard already got Willow!"

The taste of blood in his mouth made Angel growl, pain and outrage making his human mask slip. His eyes burned with golden fire as his demon struggled to be free of its imprisonment, its rage howling for the life’s blood of its attacker. Licking the trickle of blood that had formed at the corner of his mouth, he watched the girl’s expression darken noticeably as she glared down at Willow. An uneasy feeling overcame the angry vampire as he watched her struggle with her own anger; if her eyes expressed her thoughts and feelings at this moment, it looked as though she were wishing Willow a slow and very painful death.

‘Over my undead body,’ Angel vowed darkly, his protective instincts aroused and adding strength to his demonic side as he vaulted back to his feet swiftly and silently. Without waiting for the brunette to attack either Willow or himself he rushed her, slamming into the deranged woman and tackling her, throwing them both backwards to the ground. As he felt the breath rush out of her body he grabbed her by the nape of her neck as he would a cat and stood, dragging her to her feet before flinging her roughly against the wall. A rush of pleasure overcame him as his demon reveled in her groan of pain. Growling loudly deep in his throat he hauled her to her feet once more, twisting her around and picking her up by the throat with one hand. He slammed her against the wall, pushing her up a few inches so that her feet dangled above the ground. As she fought and struggled for breath he smiled evilly, his demon howling in its prison, desperately trying to take complete control of the situation

Kat struggled in his grasp, feeling light-headed from a combination of dizziness, pain, and lack of air. She hissed and fought as hard as she could, scratching and clawing at his hands for all she was worth. His grip on her throat however was like a vise; the harder she fought, the tighter his grip became. Her breathing became shallower, and her vision started to blur, his demonic visage mocking her suffering as his eyes glowed with determined intensity…

Angel continued to hold the brunette against the wall, his demon reveling in her attempts to free herself and breathe. So caught up in her torture was he that the vampire almost missed the soft, melodic voice that called his name. Turning his head slightly, he watched in surprise as Willow got to her feet, eyes beseeching him softly.

"Angel please," she whispered, fearful tears brimming in her eyes as she watched her vampire friend try to choke the life out of Kat. "Please, let her go."

The softness of the plea, coupled with her teary gaze, had the effect of a cold bucket of water, dousing Angel’s anger and bringing his sanity abruptly back to the forefront of his mind. Shaking with the effort to reign in his demon, he slowly lowered Kat to the ground, loosening his grip on her neck enough for her to breathe, but not to get away. Glancing back at the redhead, Angel wondered if she was going to explain just who this young woman was…and what she was doing here.

Suddenly, the door of the mansion burst open, letting the morning sunlight stream in. Luckily, Angel was out of its direct path and, though he winced instinctively, he kept his grip on his attacker. A tall, menacing figure appeared in the doorway and stalked into the room. Willow and Angel turned to see who this new intruder was. To their astonishment the threatening form was Giles.

* * * * * * * * *

"What in the SODDING HELL is going on here?" the furious man roared. As the librarian took in the scene before him, his face registered anger, fright, and confusion. Angel stood game faced with a very naked, very angry Kat gripped by the neck and pressed against the wall. Willow was walking slowly towards the vampire, her hand extended to him and tears filling her beautiful eyes.

Startled by Giles’ entrance and subsequent outburst, Willow squeaked and stared at him, trembling like a rabbit caught in the headlights of an oncoming automobile. Angel, too, was distracted by the frantic librarian; so much so that he didn’t notice the calculating gleam appear in Kat’s eyes.

Kat, while shocked that Giles had managed to find his way here already, nevertheless recovered her composure rather quickly as she felt Angel’s hold on her loosen even more due to this distraction.

A sound between a hiss and a groan issued from Angel’s lips as Kat’s knee connected solidly with his groin then again with his face. Stumbling backwards a step or two he fell to his knees, bending over and moaning as the fiery pain spread over him. He was dimly aware of the commotion that had been unleashed upon the hellcat’s actions, but it was hard to hear through the roaring in his ears.

Kats renewed attack on Angel spurred the others to action. Giles flinched as Angel was kneed in the groin, but at the same time an unholy glitter appeared in his eyes. He started forward, gripping his stake tightly, intent on staking the man who’d caused him so much grief. At the same time Willow, seeing her friend go down ran to the vampire and stood over him like a mother lion. She saw both Kat and Giles heading for them, murder written clearly on their faces. Without even thinking the petite witch threw her arm out and shouted "PROHIBEO!"

The two did indeed stop; they seemed to freeze in mid stride, unable to keep advancing on the injured vampire. Angel opened his eyes upon hearing Willows command. He saw his attacker and the watcher frozen in place and looked up at his savior in astonishment. "Willow?" the dark haired vampire said, his tone questioning.

"Shhh Angel, I wont let them hurt you." Willow stated, her famous resolve face making an appearance. Her eyes never left Kat and Giles, but her free hand went to Angels head and pressed him gently to rest it against her tummy. She stroked his soft hair and began speaking to the frozen duo.

"Alright you two," Willow began, her voice ringing out with determined anger upon seeing the mutinous faces of the Watcher and the young woman. Raising one hand, she continued to stroke Angel’s hair as she pointed accusingly at the two. "I have had just about all I can stand of you and your asinine attempts to kill Angel. I have worked too damn hard to rescue him from Hell and I will NOT let you two screw it up by sending him back!"

"Not ONE word!" she continued, sweeping her hand in a "silence" gesture as soon as Giles’ opened his mouth to argue. "Unless you’re completely blind or something, you’ve noticed that I haven’t been sleeping well these past couple of months. I couldn’t sleep because, when I did, all I did was dream about Angel, and how they tortured him in Hell…." Her voice softened in sadness as she remembered some of the things she saw Angel go through, and when he tightened his arms on her waist in surprise she hugged him back briefly. Taking a deep breath to compose herself and offering Angel a comforting smile, the redheaded witch continued in a more subdued tone, "It was driving me insane Giles. I knew how you and Xander would feel about this but I had no choice; I had to help my friend. Look," she paused, noting the dubious look on the librarian’s face, "I know you don’t believe me, but can’t we please talk about this civilly? If you just give him a chance, you’ll see that this really is Angel…and that I did the right thing."

* * * * * * * * *

To say the least, Giles was furious. Not only had his innocent little Willow brought back the worst demon the team had ever faced, but now she was standing over him, cuddling him to her and offering comfort while at the same time holding both Kat and himself off with magic. When the redhead started her diatribe the librarian was determined not to listen, to simply bide his time until the girl released him. But when she mentioned that her lack of sleep was due to dreams about the tortures Angel had received his heart went out to her. There was such pain in her eyes when she spoke the words, and she clutched the vampire tighter to her. ‘He’s a demon, he killed Jenny, and he tortured me.’ Giles ran down a mental list of everything Angelus had done to him and to the rest of the scoobies. Even as his mind relived the torments he couldn’t deny Willow the chance she was asking of him. Especially since, for the moment at least, she seemed able to control the vampires’ instincts and soothe him into submission.

When the girl was finished speaking he felt the tension of the spell loosen so that he was able to speak. "Alright Willow. Let us go and we will give you a chance to explain your actions and prove to us that this really is Angel." The librarian capitulated.

Snorting, the dark-haired young woman glanced at Giles, then at Willow, in utter amazement. "You’ve got to be kidding!" Her voice rose in pitch and anger as she continued, "He’s a vampire! I have no idea what you’re talking about, if he’s some angel or not: he’s a fucking demon! You might as well keep me here till Hell freezes over, cause I am not going to wait for him to kill me first!" Her eyes promised to back up her words, ebony points of flint that glittered dangerously back at both Willow and the vampire she was holding to her.

The petite witch narrowed her eyes in response to Kat’s words; true, Kat had no idea who Angel was…they hadn’t exactly been forthcoming in information regarding Buffy’s boyfriend, other than to say that she lost him due to the coming of Angelus. Still, that was no reason for Kat to be so unrelenting in her goal. A tiny part of Willow suspected Kat had deeper reasons for wanting a vampire dead, but now was not the time.

Anger burning once more in her veins, Willow retorted, "So what if Angel’s a vampire? You don’t know anything about him; he’s not like other vampires you know." Another snort from the brunette made Willow grit her teeth, forcing her next words out slowly. "Angel was cursed with a soul, once by gypsies, then recently by yours truly. Basically, he’s still a vampire, only now he has a conscience." From the dubious looks Kat was throwing her, she didn’t think the young woman would believe her.

* * * * * * * * *

Kat raised an eyebrow, not sure she heard the fiery redhead clearly. ‘A vampire with a soul; does she really think that would stop someone like him from killing anyone?’ Sighing, Kat shook her head. Or tried too at any rate. This paralysis spell really annoyed her. "And that’s supposed to make me trust him, a fucking soul?" Laughing, Kat smiled wryly. "Oh Willow, don’t you know there are tons of people out there, with souls, who do things that are regarded as monstrous? What makes you think a soul is going to stop Mr. Fangy there from killing?"

Still clutching Willow’s waist, Angel growled in the back of his throat. His demon raged just below the surface at her words, his head and lower regions still throbbing from the hellcat’s last assault. As he muttered something about naked bitch cats and their occupation in hell, he felt Willow tighten her hand in his hair in warning. Glancing up with golden eyes, his demon visage already slipping back into place, he saw her frown at him. "Don’t you start," the redhead admonished him, causing Angel to glare at Kat once more before closing his eyes and leaning his head back on Willow’s stomach. As she continued to stroke his hair he relaxed slightly, his human face reappearing.

Once satisfied that her vampire friend had calmed down, Willow fixed Kat with a penetrating stare. She waited several moments before responding to Kat’s questions, and when she did, it was with a question of her own. "How can you speak to me of trust; you don’t even trust us enough to tell Xander, Giles, or myself about who you really are?"

Kat bit her lip and looked away from the redhead, staring off at a spot on the wall. Damn, but she had a point there. When put that way, Kat was no better than the rest of them. ‘In other ways…I guess I’m no better than the vampire. He isn’t acting like any vampire I know, that’s for sure,’ she mused, contemplating Willow’s ability to calm him. Sighing, she continued to glance at the wall as she finally spoke up. "Fine, I won’t kill your vampire just yet. But," she added, her eyes moving to meet Willow’s determined ones, "I promise you…if he is just another vampire, I will kill him."

"And I can promise you," Willow stated, her tone as cold as Kats eyes were hot, "that it will be over my very dead body." With that promise made, Willow released the two from her hold. They both stumbled rather comically before righting themselves.

"Perhaps we should take this discussion to the living room where we can all sit down." Giles commented. Willow nodded. "That sounds like a good idea, but maybe Kat should go upstairs and find something to wear first. Angel, would Dru have left anything behind when she and Spike left?" the petite girl asked.

Nodding into Willow’s stomach he leaned back just far enough to talk without sounding muffled. Clearing his throat, he pointed behind him, in the direction of the stairs. "Up there…to the right. Spike and D..Dru’s room." The vampire winced momentarily as he thought about his childer, pain and sadness melting the gold from his eyes and returning them to their usual chocolate shade.

Willow went back to running her fingers through Angel’s hair as Kat moved in the direction of the staircase. She bit her lip to keep from giggling as she saw Giles trying unsuccessfully to keep from staring after the dark-haired young woman. Feeling movement against her waist, Willow assumed Angel was also trying to get a peek.

Clearing her throat, Willow tapped Angel on the head to get his attention. As the vampire looked up at the redhead she raised an eyebrow. "Think maybe you two could take your eyes away long enough to move to the living room?" She looked at Angel as she spoke, but her statement was obviously for both men.

Angel smiled somewhat sheepishly, while Giles managed to clear his throat uncertainly. "Yes. Um…perhaps we should move while Kat…uh…makes herself presentable," he stammered, face flushing as he studiously avoided looking in the brunette’s direction again. Willow bit her cheek to keep from laughing at their faces as she helped Angel to his feet; they looked like little boys who had been caught with their hands in the cookie jar. Somehow she managed to help Angel move towards the living room without giggling at their reactions, Giles trailing behind them.

* * * * * * * * *

Meanwhile, Kat found the room that she supposed had belonged to this Spike and Dru. Glancing around at the dark décor, she raised an eyebrow at the row of dolls that lined one of the walls. Picking one up, she stared at it for a moment before shuddering. "I…don’t think I want to know," she muttered, putting the doll back down and moving away from the creepy things. Spying the closet nearby she moved closer to it, opening the doors and searching through the clothing for something suitable. As she pulled out something light and airy she wrinkled her nose.

‘It’s a dress,’ she frowned at the dainty garment. ‘I don’t think so!’ Shaking her head violently, she thrust the offending outfit back into the closet, her search becoming more determined. "I’ll be damned if I’m going to…aha!" Further back in the closet Kat discovered an entirely different style of clothing; stuff that looked like it belonged to the other former occupant of the room. A sigh of relief escaped the brunette’s lips as she reached in, drawing out a couple of items.

"Now THIS is more like it!" Her lips twitching into a smile, Kat began to get dressed, relishing the feel of leather and silk as it caressed her body…

While Kat was upstairs pondering the mass of dolls and getting acquainted with Spikes leathers Giles, Willow, and Angel adjourned to the living room. The watcher tried to appear nonchalant about entering the room but his gut clenched, remembering the torture he’d endured there. He sat down on one of the two sofas and prepared for the difficult conversation ahead.

Willow led Angel to the sofa opposite the one Giles occupied and sat down with him. She went to release his hand but the vampire increased his grip and she relented, wrapping her fingers around his hand once more. "Giles? I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you what I was planning, I knew you wouldn’t let me try if I told you, but, don’t you see, I had to bring him back. As awful as Angelus was, Angel didn’t deserve to suffer for the demons crimes. I hope you understand. Please, try to understand."

The librarian sighed, removing his glasses and pinching the bridge of his nose. "My dear girl, I am trying, I really am. But don’t you see how dangerous this was? There was no way to know for sure that your second attempt to re soul Angel worked. You could very well have brought Angelus back, or Gods forbid, ended up in hell with him. As it is, the magicks you invoked could have dire consequences in the future. If you’d only explained about your dreams, we could have worked to find a way to relieve you of them, instead, you risked great peril to bring back a demon the rest of us were quite happy to see the end of." Giles cut himself off. The older man could’ve kept ranting until the end of days. He was frightened, both of the demon sitting across from him, and the sweet young girl who was intent on protecting him as though he were a child.

Clearing his throat to try, Angel leaned forward, rubbing Willow’s hand lightly in reassurance as he addressed Giles. "Rup..," Angel began using the librarian’s given name then, seeing Giles stiffen, started over, "Giles…I know that, after what I did to the group, and to you as well, that nothing I say can take back what happened. I betrayed everyone; I exploited your weaknesses, and I threatened to kill all of you. I regret every moment of it, especially when I..when I killed Jenny." Angel’s voice wavered as he mentioned the gypsy he had left in Giles’ apartment for him to find in bed, dead by the vampire’s hands. A bloody tear fell down his cheek as he continued, staring off into space as he unburdened himself to the librarian. I relived it all; every single, horrific moment over and over, until I thought I would go insane. I tried to stop myself, but each time…each time I…"

Letting go of Willow’s hand, Angel brought his hands up to his face, openly crying now as all the torment, all the guilt, assaulted him anew. "I’m sorry…I’m so sorry," he sobbed, his body wracked with shudders as he continued his litany of sorries. "So much…I did so many horrible things. Gods, Willow, sweet girl, you’re wrong, I did deserve what I got in hell, that and so…so much more." Overwhelmed, Angel couldn’t continue and again when Willow touched his shoulder the vampire turned, burying his face in the girl’s lap, sobs wracking his large body.

None of the three people realized the scene was being watched by a pair of brilliant green eyes.

Willow sat, cooing to the grief stricken vampire and stroking his back. She looked over at Giles and was relieved to see that her mentor no longer believed that Angel was soulless. She smiled sadly at the british teacher, silently thanking him for his understanding. Slowly Angel’s sobs lessened; under her gentle caresses Angel seemed to recover a bit of his composure.

As they waited for Angel to completely recover, and for Kat to return, a stray thought occurred to Willow. "Giles," she asked, her voice quiet, "How did you and Kat know what I was doing? How did you manage to find me?"

The librarian blinked, momentarily taken aback by the change in subjects. "Oh dear lord, that’s another story altogether. I spent the entire night researching after Kat warned me and left rather err, abruptly. I eventually found the spell you were casting on that infernal bloody machine you love so much. But I think we should wait for Kat before we discuss last night’s events more thoroughly."

* * * * * * * * *

Moving back into the hallway, Kat leaned her head against the wall, closing her eyes as she contemplated what she had witnessed. As long as she had known vampires, she had never known them to show the depth of emotions that dark-haired one had exhibited. In fact, she couldn’t recall ever having seen one of them so much as shed a tear, even for a fallen companion. Angel’s misery touched a chord inside of her, much as she hated to admit it; she knew what it was like to have suffered such gut-wrenching heartache.

‘Willow may be right; he certainly doesn’t act like any vampire I have known…’ she mused silently. The cynical part of her mind questioned her judgment however. ‘But…if he’s such a good person when he has a soul, why was he sent to Hell?’ Confused, the brunette decided to find out as soon as possible. From what she had heard, they would want to know about her as soon as she returned. Hesitating, the dark-haired young woman debated going in, or leaving and facing them some other day. Steeling herself mentally, she moved towards the doorway, this time making enough noise that at least the vampire should be able to hear her coming.

* * * * * * * * *

Hearing footsteps nearby, Angel raised his head, wiping the tears from his face as he moved from his rather comfortable position to sit beside Willow on the couch. The trio watched as Kat emerged, striding across the room in a rather unexpected outfit: Instead of one of Dru’s ancient gowns, Kat had picked out something that undoubtedly belonged to Spike. A silk shirt of a vibrant red color, the tail ends tied together so that her midriff was exposed, topped a pair of sleek leather pants. A little loose on the slender woman, they rode low on her hips as she approached the couches.

His defenses weakened from his outburst, Angel was slightly jarred by the young woman’s attire. ‘Spike never looked that good in those pants did he?’ Angel thought, not realizing he had murmured those words until he heard a muttered response from the redhead sitting next to him. ‘He sure did.’ Shooting a dark, confused glance down at Willow, the dark-haired vampire frowned, not sure he heard her correctly.

Meanwhile Kat moved to sit on the couch Giles occupied, sitting as close to the edge as possible. As the three stared at her silently, she crossed her arms over her chest, slouching back in the couch and glaring defensively. "What?"

The other three fidgeted slightly, uncomfortable about the conversation they were about to have. No one wanted to start talking first. Finally Willow, resolve face making a brief appearance, began. "Ok, first I don’t think you two were properly introduced, what with the fighting and all." Willow glanced between Kat and Angel before she continued. "Angel, this is Kat. We don’t know much about her as of yet but I’m hoping to rectify that today. Kat, this is Angel. He’s a dear friend of mine, and yes, he’s a vampire, but like I said before, he has a soul. Before we start I’ll catch you up a little so you understand better."

* * * * * * * * *

Willow gave Kat some details about the scooby gangs’ history with Angel. She told the skeptical brunette about how she and Xander found out about vampires and about how Angel had slowly made his way into their group by first giving Buffy vague clues as to what was happening with the Harvest, patrolling with the slayer and aiding the scoobies with research. When Willow was finished Kat looked over to Giles, silently asking for confirmation of the redheads statements. Giles nodded his head and answered, "Everything Willow told you is true. Angel has been with the group since we formed and has aided us time and again." It hurt the watcher to admit it, as he was still dealing with his memories of Angelus.

"Ok so he’s helped you guys out, but what about this soul thing? I mean yeah, helping humans is strange but that doesn’t mean he’s any different on the basic level." Kat questioned the group.

Angel answered, leaning forward as he began to speak, "Well…I guess you could say I fed off the wrong girl." A sardonic smile touched his lips as he continued, his voice smoothing out from its earlier hoarseness. "My sire gave me a present in the form of a beautiful young woman…turned out she was favored among her clan of gypsies, the Romany." Sighing heavily, the vampire resumed his explanation, "In retaliation, they decided to do the worst possible thing they could think of to a vampire; they gave me a conscience. Basically, I can still do everything I did before, but I suffer for it." His eyes betrayed the truth of his words, a haunted look echoing in the depths of those chocolatey orbs.

* * * * * * * * *

Kat stared at the vampire in shock, mouth partly slightly. ‘A conscience…yea, I can see where that would suck; facing your bad moments and wishing you could…ok, don’t go there Kat,’ she shuddered slightly, nodding her understanding to Angel. "Ok, I think I get the soul thing." Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to continue. "But if that is the case, then why did Giles come in here ready to kill? And why were you in Hell for that matter?"

When Angel went to reply, anguish written clearly in his features, Giles waved him back. "No Angel, I’ll tell her." Relieved, but knowing the next few minutes weren’t going to be pleasant, the vampire sat back and took Willows hand when she offered it.

The watcher sighed deeply and began to polish his glasses. "I’ll answer the second question first Kat. Last spring something happened, which none of us are prepared to speak of right now, and Angel lost his soul. Angelus, as he was known before the curse, returned and bent his attentions to destroying us."

Giles paused for breath and continued, his voice shaking. "He tortured us with mind games, and killed one of our group, my girlfriend Jenny. When his efforts failed to break us he decided to destroy the world. The statue of Acathla had been unearthed and he stole it. Buffy went to stop him from opening the portal as Willow tried to re curse him. Apparently the curse worked, but not in time. Angel was sucked into hell."

Giles stopped speaking, though he wasn’t finished. "After you warned me that Willow was doing something dangerous, I spent the entire night researching. When I figured out what she was trying to do I panicked, I was afraid she had brought Angelus back. You see, there was no way to know for certain that the curse had worked. I wanted to send him back to hell before he could hurt us any more."

A look of apology flickered across the librarian’s face as he turned to Angel, noting the vampire’s pain, which rivaled his own. "I do apologize Angel; I can see that Willow was right, you do have your soul back. Please forgive my rather…rash conclusions?" The vampire nodded slightly, knowing there was still much the two men had to talk about…another time.

Brow furrowing, Kat watched the two of them, nibbling her lip in deep thought. "So, you believe that this really is the old Angel…but, how do you know he won’t become Angelus again?" A flinch from Angel, small but noticeable, made the young woman wish she could take back the question.

A look was exchanged between Giles, Willow, and Angel. Giles responded, saying, "I believe that is one of the things we don’t wish to discuss at the moment. Let’s just say that circumstances now don’t allow for that to happen again." Both Angel and Willow nodded. Now that they had explained who and what Angel was, Giles prepared to change the subject. He still wanted answers from Kat, and now had even more questions for her, and since this appeared to be what the children called ‘share time’ the watcher was determined that Kat would do some sharing of her own.

* * * * * * * * *

Acting on his thoughts Giles turned to Kat and asked the question that was foremost on his mind. "Alright Katura, we’ve all explained ourselves to you, I think it’s about time you returned the favor. Just who are you?"

Kat grimaced, knowing full well the librarian’s determination by the way he didn’t use her nickname; instead calling her Katura. Sighing, she reached up with one hand, capturing a strand of hair in her fingers and playing with it idly as she stared at some spot past Willow and Angel. After a moment she began, her voice low as she spoke, "My full name is Katura Akensakhmet." Seeing the look in Giles’ eyes, she continued, "My last name roughly translates out to ‘Servant of Sakhmet;’ it is a family name…passed down from mother to daughter. It symbolizes our tie to the Egyptian goddess, as well as the curse that we have had to bear over the years."

Taking a deep breath, the brunette rushed on before her courage could leave her. "Many centuries ago, a young thief entered one of the temples of Sakhmet, the Egyptian goddess of divine justice. She made the mistake of trying to take one of the statues from the shrine…a mistake for which she paid dearly, for Sakhmet is not what you would call a forgiving goddess." Smiling darkly, the young woman continued. "Every night the full moon shines upon the land, the woman was cursed to become a panther, something twin to the werewolf curse if I’m not mistaken…except no one may become cursed like my family by a bite or scratch."

When the young woman stopped speaking Giles nodded his head, saying, "That does explain a few things, not the least of which was why I saw you change form last night. I have the remains of your clothing in my office if you’d like them back." The older man paused before continuing with his questions. "Now, my next question is; why are you in Sunnydale?"

A faint blush appeared on the young woman’s cheeks as she remembered the remains of her clothing she had left behind, she almost didn’t hear Giles’ question. Frowning, she lowered her gaze to her lap, curling her feet under her body as she tried to figure out how to answer his question. "I’m not sure why exactly…my dreams led me here, so to speak. Ever since my…for a long time now I’ve been traveling around, but for the past several weeks I’ve felt drawn here, like there is something coming, and I’m a part of it all."

"Dreams you said? Do you often have prophetic dreams? Though the pull you felt may have simply been that of the hellmouth." Giles paused and Willow took the opportunity to ask a few questions of her own.

"I’m sorry to interrupt you Giles but I’d like to ask Kat some questions too." The redhead directed her gaze to Kat. "How did you know what I was doing last night? Giles mentioned that you warned him I was up to something. Is it a connection to the goddess, ‘cause, you know, Sakhmet is the goddess I invoked for help last night…and now I’m starting to babble so I’ll shut up now." Willow cut herself off before she could start a full blown babble, giving the brunette a chance to answer her.

Kat clenched her jaw, the memory of the searing pain her tattoo had dealt her still fresh in her mind. "Yes, you could say it was because of my connection to Sakhmet," she replied darkly, narrowing her eyes as the redhead’s words played in her mind. "Wait a minute…how exactly did you find an incantation for Sakhmet in the first place?" Before the redhead could answer the brunette stood up abruptly, eyes flashing emerald fire. "Of course!" Anger coursing in her veins, the brunette shook a finger in Willow’s direction, causing Angel to move protectively in front of her. "You saw my tattoo didn’t you? That’s where you got the idea to use Sakhmet for the incantation… and that’s why it burned when you were rescuing him from Hell!"

Angel growled low in his throat, taking a defensive stance in front of the shocked redhead. He didn’t like the way this stranger behaved, she could be docile and friendly one minute and then suddenly go on the attack as she was now. Kat growled back at the vampire, feeling justified in her accusations.

Once again the small redhead calmed Angel, grasping his hand she quietly told him, "Sit down Angel, she isn’t going to attack me." After a moment Angel backed down, but growled once more in warning before resuming his seat next to the witch. Willow continued, answering the emerald eyed woman. "Yes I saw your tattoo, but that isn’t the reason I looked to Sakhmet for help. I’d been looking for a way to rescue him almost from the day he…left. It’s purely coincidence that I found the website with the right spell after I saw you. We hadn’t even met when I found the spell; we’d just seen each other in the bronze. And I don’t appreciate having you jump at me like that without reason." After putting the brunette in her place Willow sat back, leaning slightly against Angel.

Before Kat could speak up again Giles decided it was time to regain control of the conversation. "Kat, please sit down, I realize that Willows spell last night caused you some discomfort…I did see the tattoo on your back glowing as you ran off. I assure you Willow would never have intentionally hurt you."

Watching Kat fume silently on the couch, Angel frowned, his arm still protectively around the petite witch sitting beside him. An uneasy silence loomed over the group, which he broke as he spoke, directing his question to the hellcat, "Well, we know who you are, and what you are doing in Sunnydale…care to explain why you felt the need the attack me the moment you woke up?" His eyebrow rose questioningly as he looked at her, waiting for a response. "I assumed you had attacked her." It wasn’t entirely the truth, but it was enough to suit her purposes for now. She wasn’t about to tell them about her mother, not now anyway.

Angel knew she was holding something back, but he nodded, accepting her answer for the moment. The uneasy silence was resumed until Giles decided it was time to end the discussion. "Does anyone have any more questions that can not wait until another time?" The young women and the vampire all answered in the negative. "Well then, I suggest we adjourn until later, when we’ve all had some time to sleep and think. We’ll get together tomorrow in the library if everyone is available."

* * * * * * * * *

Upon hearing the librarians suggestion of sleep a yawn made it’s way contagiously around the room. When he’d finished speaking they simultaneously agreed and Giles and Kat got up to leave. Willow decided to stay at the mansion with Angel for the moment, feeling that the vampire might need her comfort once he had time to think more clearly about everything that had transpired.

The redhead walked the others to the door, saying her goodbye’s to them both. Before she could shut the door after them Giles stuck his head back in the door. "Willow, I suggest you go and see Xander before we meet tomorrow and warn him about Angel. I don’t think I need to remind you of the boys’ feelings toward Angel. He isn’t going to take this well I imagine. Be prepared for his anger." With that last thought the librarian left the redhead and Angel. When he got to his car, hap hazardously parked in front of the mansion he saw that Kat was already halfway down the driveway. He got in his car and caught up with the girl. "Would you like a ride home Kat? I don’t think your feet would appreciate walking home barefoot."

* * * * * * * * *

Kat looked down at her bare feet and the dragging hems of the leather pant legs, then back at the librarian. "I don’t know that I’d get to the hotel any faster in this thing but thanks, I’ll take you up on that offer." She walked around to the passenger side of the car and climbed in. She gave Giles directions to her hotel, then closed her eyes to rest.

Stopping at a set of red lights Giles glanced over at his passenger. ‘ Poor dear, she has so much to deal with, though she handles her destiny with more grace than Buffy ever did.’ The lights changed and Giles drove on.

The following day Kat slowly plodded though the hallways of Sunnydale High, head bowed as if she were on her way to the gallows. The rim of her sunglasses slipped a notch down her nose, forcing the young woman to push them back into place with one dainty finger. Behind the nearly black lenses, bloodshot emerald eyes scanned the empty halls as she made her way to the library.

"WHAT????" The tired brunette’s head jerked up as the cry of outrage reverberated down the hallway. Her lips twisted into a mockery of a smile as she recognized the voice behind the frustrated yell: only Xander could yell like that. ‘Someone just found out about the vamp’s return,’ Kat thought dryly as she came to a stop before the closed wooden doors of the library. Cocking her head to the side, she listened as the voices within grew in intensity. ‘Can’t say I blame him for being mad though.’ Recalling the few things Giles had mentioned regarding Angel’s actions when he lost his soul, Kat wasn’t surprised by the teenager’s behaviour. It isn’t a pleasant surprise, finding the guy who terrorized your friends has returned…and by the very hand of your best friend.

"Are you nuts? The guy is a vampire; he killed Jenny, and he nearly killed both you and Giles!" Xander’s feelings of betrayal could be heard in his voice as he shouted at the redhead. As Willow’s voice cut in, Kat detected the note of growing ire that thickened the petite hacker’s words.

"I know very well what Angelus did," the emphasis Willow placed on the vampire’s demonic version of his name did not escape Kat, "but as I have told you five times already, Angel isn’t Angelus! I restored his soul, and he won’t hurt any of us!"

"How can you trust him? Christ, he almost killed you when you were doing the spell the first time…if he is evil he’ll kill you before you even have a chance to figure out if he is Soul Boy or not!" A desperate pitch lent itself to the young man’s voice as he continued, seeming to search for a way to get through to his best friend. "How can you just forget everything he’s done to us…to Buffy! She never would have left if it wasn’t for him!"

Kat felt pity for the girl, and a strange sense of protectiveness for the young redhead rose inside her as Xander brought up the Slayer’s name. "That was low," she murmured, moving forward and pushing the doors open to let herself into the library. Her eyes widened slightly behind her sunglasses as she watched Willow’s hand move, smacking Xander across the face. The sound of the slap echoed in the sudden silence in the library like the crack of a whip. For moments afterwards the silence hung over the room like a tomb.

It was Willow who spoke up first; her voice soft with barely repressed rage. "Don’t," she began; her voice hoarse with the effort it took to control her emotions, "Don’t you dare use Angel to excuse what Buffy did Alexander Harris." The jealousy driven boy flinched as Willow addressed him by his full name, but otherwise did not move as she continued, shaking like a leaf. "Angel can be forgiven for his actions because he couldn’t stop the demon; but there is no excuse for what Buffy did. She left us; she abandoned her friends, and her duty…and she never told us!"

Tears brimmed in the redhead’s eyes, and her breath became shaky as she went on. "She never even told us Xander; she just left. I didn’t figure it out until days later, when I began having nightmares about Angel’s torment in hell, the reason she ran away."

Xander’s eyes widened; her lack of sleep was due to Angel’s pain? "Wills I…" he began, only to be cut off as the redhead shook her finger at him. "DON’T! Don’t tell me you’re sorry; you never even asked me what was wrong. You knew I wasn’t sleeping well, but neither you or Giles thought to ask me about it." Tears slid down the redhead’s cheeks as she felt her anger slip away, the helpless feelings of despair she had been dealing with for months washing over her. "His pain was my pain Xander; I felt everything he was going through. I couldn’t let a friend stay in that place, I just couldn’t." Heavily sobbing now, Willow bowed her head, hands coming up to cover her face as her shoulders shook violently.

Watching his friend break down, Xander felt a pang of guilt at causing her fresh pain. His anger dissipating in the face of her tears, he stepped forward, awkwardly putting his arms around the redhead and drawing her to his chest. As Willow latched onto him, her tears soaking his shirt, he rubbed her back silently. It wasn’t until he heard the soft sound of someone clearing their throat that he managed to look up…his eyes coming to rest on the dark-haired young woman who leaned against the counter, watching the two of them from behind the rim of darkly-tinted sunglasses.

Her expression void, Kat watched Xander comfort Willow, a thousand questions running through her mind. Not for the first time, she wondered what could have driven a Slayer to abandon her sacred duty, not to mention her friends. A part of her sensed there was more to the whole ‘Angel went to hell, so Slayer took a hike’ scenario, but she refused to draw any conclusions until she had a chance to wrangle some answers out of the group of people she had come to know in the past few days.

As Xander looked in her direction, she offered him a small smile of sympathy, nodding her head once to indicate she wouldn’t interrupt. She sensed the turmoil raging inside the teenager; his need to help his friend versus his desire to see the treacherous vampire pay for everything he had done to them. He was having a tough time accepting everything that was happening; she didn’t want to know what would happen if Angel decided to show up…

Suddenly the young woman stiffened, senses on full alert as a familiar scent assailed her nostrils. Her eyes widened behind the dark lenses of her sunglasses, and she swore inwardly at the accursed timing of this unholy place called Sunnydale.

‘Guess Xander is going to have a chance to confront his fears sooner than expected,’ Kat thought darkly, her gaze travelling to the back of the room. One of the shadows detached itself from the others, slinking along the bookcases silently, hunched over as though keeping as small as possible to avoid detection. As soon as it heard Willow’s sniffling it paused, then stepped out of the darkness. A subdued vampire watched the two teenagers in the middle of the room, clearing his throat softly. As Xander and Willow pulled apart, gasping in surprise, he glanced at the redhead’s tear-stained face, concern etched into his features.

"What is going on here little one?" While his words were directed at Willow, his eyes shifted over to Xander, irritation over the source of the petite hacker’s sobs warring with the anxiety he felt at seeing the young man once more. There was no love lost between the two of them, and if Xander’s face was any indication, he hadn’t yet forgiven the vampire for his actions as Angelus.

Silently Kat watched as Xander moved in front of Willow, shielding her body from Angel as he confronted the vampire. Curiosity aroused, the young woman watched with one eyebrow raised as Angel stood still, his whole body slumped as if he held the guilt of the world on his shoulders.

"What do you think you’re doing here?!" Xander spat out, moving forward before Willow could recover from her shock. Ignoring Willow’s cry behind him, the young man rushed the vampire, pushing Angel hard enough to cause the vampire to stumble backwards. "No one invited you Dead Boy!"

Kat started forward, her mouth parted to say something, when a voice rang out from behind her. "That’s enough!" All eyes turned and regarded Giles’ solemn face as he stormed into the library. Spying Xander with his hands on the front of Angel’s shirt, his face distorted by rage, Giles sighed and wiped his face with one hand. "Xander, kindly release him; I invited Angel here today so that we might discuss certain…events…that have occurred in the past few days," Giles trailed off, his eyes skimming over Willow and Kat briefly before returning to the irate teenager.

With great difficulty Xander managed to release Angel, who glanced at the young man briefly before lowering his gaze, seeking out Willow’s. As the redhead came forward he reached for her hand, seeking comfort in her tiny presence. Squeezing his hand slightly, the tiny young woman pulled him towards the table, ignoring the glares Xander sent their way. Mutely Kat followed, seating herself beside the angry brunette and leaning back, her arms crossed over her chest as she regarded the rest of the occupants from behind her shades.

As the group settled down at the table Angel, with a prompting squeeze of his hand from Willow, spoke first. "Hey guys. Giles…Xander…," he nodded his head at both men, noting how one stiffened slightly, while the other one continued to glare openly at him. Nervously he moved on, his eyes settling on the still silent brunette who sat beside Xander. A slight smile touched his lips as he tilted his head at Kat, "Hellcat…good to see you again." His smile widened as the young woman’s lips pursed together in a frown, stopping only when Willow shot him a warning glance. He couldn’t resist antagonizing her however; her punches still fresh in his mind…and on his body. "What’s the matter, cat got your tongue?"

Bristling, Kat struggled inwardly to keep her temper under control. Outwardly she smirked, sticking her dainty tongue out at Angel. "Bite me Dead Boy," she taunted, her voice dripping with sweetness.

"With pleasure," he nearly purred in response, a hint of fangs glinting as he half-leered at her.

"Enough!" Giles exhaled loudly, reaching up to pinch the bridge of his nose. "Would you two stop acting like children for just one moment? We have more important things to discuss here, or have you forgotten about Willow’s little spell? Or the other matter, regarding Kat’s timely arrival in Sunnydale?" When neither Angel nor Kat spoke for several moments, Giles continued. "Now…" Pausing, the librarian gestured to the dark-haired girl sitting beside Xander, who was still hiding behind a pair of sunglasses. "Do take those silly things off…this room is already dreadfully dark, and I hate talking to those bloody things almost as much as I hate computers."

Frowning, the young woman nodded and reluctantly took the sunglasses off, placing them in front of her on the table. "Better?" She glanced up at the librarian for a moment before returning her gaze to the tabletop, staring at the pair of sunglasses in order to avoid looking directly at anyone.

"Uh yes, quite," the British man murmured, readjusting his glasses on his nose as he glanced at each of the table’s occupants. "Now…are there any questions regarding certain…recent events?" Seeing Xander open his mouth, he quickly added, "any questions not of a malicious nature?" As the young man scowled and shook his head, Giles sighed. "Then allow me to start. Kat, you mentioned something about not believing in coincidences. I too find the connection between your arrival here in Sunnydale and Willow’s foray into Hell to be more than a little suspect. Can you tell us anything of the dreams you’ve been having lately?"

Shifting uncomfortably in her chair, eyes firmly fixed on the sunglasses on the table, Kat replied reluctantly, "All I can remember are two of them." Carefully she omitted one of her nightmares from the list. "The first one, the one that brought me to Sunnydale, I think pretty much already came true…" Frowning, she paused, lost in thought as she pondered the dream. "I could see a full moon, dripping with blood. Hair floated in the blood, hair so red that at first the blood obscured it from view." Glancing up quickly, her eyes sought the petite hacker, noting that her pallor had become alarmingly white. She was fairly certain it had been a warning, a warning that she hadn’t been able to stop in time. Now all she had to go from was her second dream, and that one made her insides clench painfully.

Willow clutched Angels hand for support and spoke up, "How did you know your dream meant me? I remember the look you gave me that first night at the bronze, you knew then didn’t you? That I was the red haired person from your dream." Trying to calm herself, the young witch took several deep breaths. She’d known bringing Angel back was going to cause a ruckus, but she didn’t think there would be this much trouble.

"I didn’t know per say that you were the person in my dream, but you have to admit your hair color does kind of stand out." Twisting her lips into a wry smile, the dark-haired young woman sighed, then shrugged. "I had to find out."

"And your second dream?" The redheaded hacker shivered, the back of her neck prickling with unease as she continued to watch the brunette sitting across from her. She had a sudden feeling she didn’t want to know the answer to her own question. Even the comforting feeling of Angel’s hand squeezing hers did little to quell the rising anxiety inside.

For many long minutes Kat didn’t speak; she just stared off into space, her face void of any emotion. When she spoke, her voice seemed detached, distant, "A horrible battle, some dark lab or room. I’m fighting off a vampire, and I hear this clicking sound behind me…" her words fell from her lips with little effort, surprisingly full of detail. "There’s a crossbow leveled in my direction. I can’t hear anything…it’s as if all time has stopped. The crossbow fires and I move to try and get out of its path. Only I’m moving to get directly in front of the arrow. The next thing I know, I feel a burning sensation, and I’m falling backwards. It gets so dark…"

A shudder rippled over her body, her hands clutching the chair as she fought to control her emotions. "Combined with the dream for the full moon, that led me to Sunnydale." Blinking rapidly, she raised her head, and for a moment everyone could see her eyes: they were bloodshot as if from a lack of sleep. Chuckling softly, she shook her head. "Somehow, I doubt that dream will be of any use to you Giles."

Giles leaned back in his seat, contemplating the situation. Kats’ dreams sounded suspiciously like Buffy’s prophetic dreams. From his experience as a watcher he knew that it was extremely rare for anyone other than a slayer to receive dreams such as these. There were of course people who had been born with second sight, who received visions of things yet to come. Angels own childe Drusilla was such a person. But the watcher thought that the brunettes’ dreams were likely a connection with the goddess who’d cursed her family.

He was about to ask the girl if perhaps, her mother had had such dreams when Xander, who’d been quiet up until now, interrupted as usual, at the most inappropriate time. The boy had been sitting quietly, glaring across the table at Angel, but now his focus was directed on the watcher and Giles knew he’d bear the brunt of the young mans anger.

"Giles how the hell can you be taking this so well?" Xander asked, rather loudly. "I don’t understand how you can sit here calmly discussing dreams of all things, when the monster that killed your girlfriend, tortured you, and tried to kill all of us is sitting right there!" Xander was ranting, full of righteous anger and indignation. The boy firmly believed Angel was responsible for everything that wasn’t right with his world and he didn’t have the maturity to handle the emotional storm raging inside him.

Surprisingly, it was Angel that calmed the teen down. The vampire stood up and walked a few steps around the table towards Xander, saying "Control yourself boy! Stop yelling at Giles. It’s me you’re angry with, not him so if you have to take it out on anyone, take it out on me. God knows I deserve it." The souled vampire now stood directly in front of the irate boy, looking him straight in the eye, fully prepared to accept his wrath.

Confronted with the source of his fury, looking deep into those gold-flecked orbs, Xander deflated. Angel’s eyes truly were the windows to his soul, and the boy could see every emotion the vampire had in them. The mahogany depths showed a maelstrom of emotions tightly controlled. Sorrow, grief, and guilt swirled at the forefront. Xander realized that Angel was allowing him to see this, and was prepared to take the blame for anything Xander wanted to push off on him. But the boy couldn’t do it. He knew that, while Angel was responsible for some of the grief he felt, most of his anger was directed at himself.

The vampire must have seen the play of emotions flicker across Xander’s face, because he leaned closer, whispering so only the boy could hear, "you couldn’t have changed anything Xander, don’t feel guilty for not trying."

Angel backed away, and Xander fell back into his seat. Quietly he spoke up, directing his words at the stunned librarian. "I’m sorry for yelling at you Giles. Deadboy’s right, you’re not the one I’m mad at." He lowered his gaze to the table, unable to look anyone in the eye after his outburst.

"Yes uh…" Giles stuttered, amazement etched in his features as he watched Angel walk away from a more subdued Xander. It wasn’t until the vampire sat down beside Willow again that the watcher managed to recover his wits. "Kat, did your mother by any chance have prophetic dreams?" As the young woman shook her head, he pressed, "Are you sure?"

Exhaustion fueled the brunette’s frustration at Giles’s in inquiry into her dreams. Jaw set, her eyes darkened to near black as she ground out, "If she did, it sure didn’t help her much now did it?" Watching the hurt look that crossed the librarian’s features, Kat sighed heavily. One hand came up to rub at her face tiredly before she began again. "I’m sorry Giles, I must be even more tired than I thought." Her statement caused him to look closer at the poor girl in front of him: she was on the verge of collapse. It wasn’t just her bloodshot eyes that alarmed him, she seemed on the verge of losing her cool. From his initial impressions of the girl, she wasn’t the sort to easily ‘wig out’ as Xander liked to say. She looked like she hadn’t slept in days, and the wear and tear was getting to her.

Moving around the table, Giles touched Kat on the shoulder, causing her to look up at him in question. "We don’t have to figure this all out right now. Why don’t you get some rest?"

Softly the young woman smiled, her lips curving ever so slightly. "Thanks. I’m going to need it for tonight," her words recalling the terrible family curse she suffered to the minds of at least three of the other people in the room. Giles and Willow looked at the quiet young woman, sympathy obvious on their faces.

"If you wouldn’t mind cramped spaces, you can lay down in my office, or I have a cot in the back that might be more to your liking." As Kat glanced at Giles, a questioning look in her eyes, he added, "I’d just as soon you stayed here for a bit Kat. We could discuss your…problem…and perhaps a temporary solution for tonight." The thought of a rogue panther running loose on the streets of Sunnydale made Giles as uneasy as the thought of Angelus reappearing.

After agreeing, Kat chose to sleep in Giles’ office, preferring the idea of some measure of privacy with a closed door as opposed to some cot in back. Softly mumbling her goodnights, the young woman walked away from the table, missing the looks of sympathy from Giles and Willow.

The watcher and girl weren’t the only ones who felt for the catlike young woman. Angel stared after her as she left the room, his eyes noting how tired and strained her movements were. Seeing the fierce woman so disheartened softened the vampires’ heart to her, though he was still smarting from their earlier altercation. He couldn’t find it in him to hate the girl, if he’d been in her position he probably would’ve done the same. Angel still didn’t like the brunette, her guarded attitude put him off, but a small voice inside him said that given time he might just like her quite a bit.

As the door shut on the office, Xander stirred out of his quiet trance. A frown of puzzlement slipping into place, the young teenager glanced at the office door, then across the table at the other three people. When he spoke up, his voice was tinged with confusion, "What’s going to happen tonight?"

Willow glanced between Giles and Xander, indicating to the watcher that he should fill the boy in on Kats circumstances. Willow sat down behind her computer and booted it up. The redhead had found some interesting stuff on Egypt during her searches that she hadn’t had a chance to fully examine yet, and she figured now would be as good a time as any to have a look at the bookmarked pages.

Angel remained sitting quietly at the research table while Giles explained to Xander about Kats condition. Both the vampire and the librarian were surprised when the boys only reaction was to lick his index finger and make a motion like drawing a line on a chalkboard. The vampire couldn’t resist asking the meaning of the motion. "Just tallying up my score Deadboy, so far I’m five and oh on the women I’m attracted to. Every single one has had something strange about her. Just call me Xander…weirdness detector." But the boy was smiling as he said this, and when he thought back Angel had to agree with the teen, he did tend to attract the strange ones.

Willow called Giles over to look at something she’d found on one of the sites she was browsing, it seemed to the redhead to be part of a prophecy. "Giles my latin isn’t very good, what does this say?" the petite girl asked, looking over her shoulder at the watcher.

Giles leaned in closer and translated the three lines on the screen. "I believe it says ‘Fang and talon, devil and daemon, summoned near by witch’s power, shall meet under full moons light.’ Willow is there any more to this?" The lines sounded like prophecy to him, and it sounded suspiciously close to what was happening to them now.

"Sorry Giles, those three lines are all that’s listed." The young witch responded, shaking her head. Willows’ thoughts were running the same course as her mentors. "I’ll see if I can find anything else, if you want?"

As his little friend and the librarian continued their conversation Angel turned his attention to the strange noises coming from Giles office where the hellcat was sleeping. His sensitive hearing picked up soft whimpering and restless shifting noises. Curiosity piqued, the vampire rose and walked quietly to the office to check on the girl. He opened the door silently and peeked in. Seeing the brunette was asleep, the vampire entered.

Kat was sleeping curled up on her side facing him. Most people look peaceful in slumber, but the woman on the couch looked anything but. Her sweet face was drawn, and worry lines marred her forehead. Her lush, full lips were drawn tightly in a frown. ‘Poor girl.’ Angel thought, ‘What secrets are you keeping, and why are your dreams so troubled.’ The souled vampire left the room as quietly as he had entered, missing the young woman’s lip as they began to move, trembling as if pleading with some unseen foe. He also failed to notice her head roll about, hair falling away from her neck to reveal an ugly pale scar…the kind of scar made by a vampire bite.

Nothing. For over a week Willow had been looking for any information regarding Kat, Egyptian curses, and that weird bit of prophecy that they had come across, and so far she hadn’t found anything useful. Frowning, the tiny redhead pushed away from her laptop in disgust, leaning back in her chair to stare out her balcony doors. Her emerald gaze turned pensive as her thoughts focused on another disturbing problem: Angel. Ever since the meeting in the library he had secluded himself in the mansion. Several times the hacker had tried to stop by, offering food or someone to talk to, but he had met her attempts with polite refusals and subtly, but firmly, made it clear he didn’t want her around.

The idea that maybe she had somehow made the vampire mad saddened the redhead. As she stared off into space she nibbled on her lower lip worriedly. The rest of the group aside, she was the only one who had gone by to visit the souled vampire. Everyone else, while coming to terms with the idea of Angel being alive, were not so eager to become bosom buddies with him. She didn’t like the idea of him being all alone in that mansion, with no friends, because he wouldn’t accept her overtures toward friendship.

So caught up was she in her dark musings that Willow didn’t hear the pounding on the door downstairs, or the voice that called out from below. It wasn’t until she felt a slight touch on her shoulder that the tiny woman reacted, shrieking and twisting as she tried to stand…all of which caused the poor redhead to get tangled up in her chair and fell backwards on her bedroom floor. Closing her eyes, Willow tensed for an attack. When none came, she cautiously rolled over, cracking one eye open to gaze up at her assailant.

Green eyes twinkled down in amusement at the hacker, eyes that shifted between light and dark colors. Lips curved into a half smile, and the young woman standing over her leaned against her chair with both arms, one eyebrow raised questioningly at the redhead’s strange antics.

"I take it you didn’t hear me come up," Kat murmured as she watched Willow lay on the floor, her lips twitching once more with the urge to grin as the redhead shot her a murderous glare. Pretending to ignore the deadly threat in the other woman’s eyes, Kat plunged on nonchalantly, her voice low as she spoke. "I knocked on the door, but you never answered. I knew you were supposed to be home, so I came on up to see if you were still alive."

Upon seeing the brunette in her room, the proverbial light bulb turned on in Willows head. Kat could be the answer to her ‘Angel’ problem. A truly evil glint in the redhead’s eye went unnoticed by the werecat. Bolting up off the floor the elfin girl launched herself at her new friend, closing arms around her neck and hugging the startled woman tightly.

"Kat! I’m so glad you’re here; you can help me with my problem! I’ve been trying to figure out what to do, and then you show up and now everything will be ok…" her babbling voice trailed off as Kat pushed her back slightly, regarding the other young woman with one raised eyebrow.

"Whoa! Slow down there…what problem?" She was still smiling when she noticed the serious look that crossed the redhead’s features. ‘Whatever the problem it, it must be serious to disturb her so,’ Kat mused, her expression becoming one of concern. "What’s wrong?"

‘Oh boy, how do I explain’ Willow thought desperately to herself. Deciding to just say it, she gushed out her dilemma, ‘I’mworriedaboutAngel. Hedoesn’ttalktome, hewon’tletmecomeover,andIthinkheisbackinbroodmode. Couldyougotalktohim?"

Staring at Willow, Kat forced herself to breathe. Even after knowing Willow for a few weeks, she still could not get used to the other girl’s remarkable talent of condensing a one-minute speech into five seconds. As her brain tried to decipher the babbling that was 'Willowspeak' Kat took a closer look at her new friend. Over the past week the brunette had let down her defenses a little and allowed the young redhead to know her on a more personal level. Right now her little friend was worried, her sprightly green eyes troubled and her shoulders hunched in dejection. 'This tiny thing is one of those people you'd do anything for, because you know she'd do anything for you.' Kat thought, smiling. Her brain finally figured out what Willow had been babbling about. "You want me to do WHAT?" The brunette asked, a slightly hysterical edge to her voice.

"Kat please, let me explain…" Willow began, but the other woman made a slashing gesture with her arm, eyes blazing as the hacker fell silent.

"Are. You. Insane?" the brunette ground out through her teeth, her eyes a dark emerald she glared at Willow. Her arms gesturing crazily in the air, the angry woman began to pace, ranting as she went. "You want me to go to that…that vamp’s house…and comfort him?" Seeing the other girl nod slightly, she fumed. "Willow, he hates me, and frankly I’m not too fond of him either!" Still pacing, she added, "Why can’t you just go over there yourself? I mean you’re the only one so far who has any influence on him."

"Because," Willow whispered, hugging herself as she answered, "Because he doesn’t want me around." The tremor in her voice caused the dark-haired young woman to freeze, dark eyes seeking out emerald ones. Watching Willow’s eyes cloud up with self-doubt and worry, Kat’s hatred for the vampire grew. Closing her own flickering orbs, the brunette cursed the day he had been brought back from Hell. Dammit, but Willow didn’t deserve to be hurt when all she was trying to do was to help someone in pain. He could go back to hell for all she cared, and she was about to tell the redhead these very words when she made the mistake of opening her eyes.

Tears filled the redhead’s eyes, threatening to spill over as she gazed beseechingly at the other young woman. Her lower lip trembled and her shoulders slumped, crimson hair falling forward to obscure part of her face, though not enough to keep Kat from seeing the myriad of emotions playing across the hacker’s face.

‘Christ, she looks like a kicked puppy,’ the brunette growled silently, whirling around so her back was to the redhead. Hands clenching so tight the knuckles turned white, Kat debated and weighed her options carefully. Minutes seemed to stretch out into hours, and still they stood in the middle of Willow’s room, silent as their thoughts reeled heavily. Slowly Kat opened her eyes, staring at the wall as she gave Willow her quiet reply.

"I’ll do it," the brunette’s words were low, her voice hoarse from the effort it took to reign in her temper, but they cracked through the room like a whip, causing Willow to gasp in shock. Blinking her tears back rapidly, the redhead smiled in relief, taking a step forward to thank Kat. She froze as the other woman turned her head, nearly black eyes fixing the hacker to the spot in surprise. Red fire seemed to blaze from the depths as her lip curled in a near snarl, causing a tinge of fear to spread through Willow’s body. "Don’t thank me!" the werewoman hissed, storming out the door before another word could be spoken.

Willow stared at the open bedroom door, shock and fear coursing through her veins, until she heard the front door slam downstairs. Her knees buckling, the redhead sat down on the edge of her bed in a rush, her mouth still partly open as she took deep, ragged breaths. Her hands gripped the bedcover tightly as she bent forward, closing her eyes.

‘Dear Goddess, what have I done?" the hacker lamented silently. "She’ll kill him!"

* * * * * * * *

On the other side of town, Angel was oblivious to the storm brewing in his direction. Slouched down in his leather couch, the souled vampire sat in darkness, staring at the flames within his fireplace. One arm propped up by the couch, his fingers to his temple, the dark-haired vampire sighed heavily. The emptiness stretched out before him like a tomb, causing a sharp pang of loneliness.

Almost immediately the image of a cheerful redhead swam behind his eyes, as if answering his silent plea for companionship. Scowling, Angel closed his eyes, willing the image to go away with some difficulty. He couldn’t, wouldn’t think about Willow right now. Friendship such as hers should never be bestowed on a creature as despicable as he.

As Willow’s face wavered, then faded from his mind, Angel tried to think of something, anything other than the kind redhead who had tried repeatedly to give him her friendship over the past week. Unbidden another person took her place: the same delicate features, set in an altogether darker, more alluring face. The vampire’s scowl deepened further as his memory produced every detail of the mysterious hellcat’s face.

‘Invasive little kitten,’ he mused darkly, pondering his volatile reaction to the dark beauty. Her abrupt manners with him every time they met left him rather annoyed, and yet there was a part of him that sympathized with the tiny woman. Certainly she seemed to have suffered through something tragic in her past, something that struck a chord in the ensouled vampire.

The sound of a board creaking under someone’s foot drew the vampire out of his brooding. Standing and whirling around to face the trespasser, Angel was completely unprepared to see Kat standing in the doorway, as if summoned by his thoughts. One eyebrow rose as he regarded the deadly crossbow she had leveled at him…certainly he hadn’t imagined this situation. Nor had he anticipated the dark look she was giving him, dark emerald orbs tinged with deadly red fire. ‘Strange, she looks ready to kill.’ As he waited for her to move, his mind swamped with questions, the dark-haired woman spoke.

"You have five seconds to give me one good reason not to shoot you where you stand Dead Boy."

* * * * * * * * *

‘Correction…kitten already has my tombstone carved,’ Angel noted dryly, gauging her actions cautiously, his face expressionless as he eyed her slender finger and the crossbow trigger that lay beneath it. Chocolate orbs moved upward, taking in the determinedly angry expression on the young woman’s face. Apparently he wasn’t responding fast enough for her, for her eyes narrowed, a hissing sound escaping her lush lips.

"Well?" she demanded impatiently, "aren’t you going to answer me?"

"I would if I knew what the question was." His voice was smooth, belying the nervous way his eyes darted back to the crossbow repeatedly. It took much effort for him not to flinch as he watched her finger tighten almost imperceptibly on the trigger. "What do you want to know?" He kept his voice soft, hoping to soothe the hellcat enough to find out what was going on…and not get staked in the process.

Kat eyed the hulking vampire warily. Though he was still weak from his inter-dimensional vacation the brunette knew he would be a formidable opponent if he decided to attack her. She cocked her dark head, glaring daggers at him as she responded. "I want to know why I shouldn’t kill you for upsetting and worrying Willow. She likes you for some reason and you’re tearing her up inside by refusing her friendship."

Kat paused to take in his expression before continuing. The pain reflected in those mahogany orbs almost made her feel sorry for the vampire, but she persisted in her rant. "Now I haven’t known Wills very long, but it seems to me that a friendship like hers only comes along once in a lifetime, or several in your case. She risked her life for you, twice if I’m remembering right. She saved your goddamn soul and then risked untold tortures to bring you out of hell and what do you do to thank her? You turn your back and tell her to leave you to your misery. Well fuck that! You’re either gonna give me a good explanation to take back to that girl, or you’re gonna get acquainted with the wrong end of this crossbow. Take your pick."

Angel bowed his head as Kat’s angry words washed over him, his shoulders slumping with the weight of his guilt. He never meant to hurt Willow. He just couldn’t look at her and not see another person staring back. It was the eyes, those horrible, trusting eyes. They reminded him of all he had lost long ago…by his own hand.

Gradually the guilt-ridden vampire became aware of the silence that clung to the room. Eyes closing, he sighed, sensing Kat was waiting for his explanation. "I…never meant to hurt her," he responded softly, keeping his eyes on the floor as he spoke, refusing to look up at the protective woman who stood before him. "I just…I can’t face her." He paused, waiting for Kat to make some comment. When she remained silent however he continued, his words spilling forth in an anguished rasp as he closed his eyes. "She trusts me. After all I’ve done to them, to her, she still trusts me. I see it every time I look in her eyes, or see her smile. She trusts me…just like my sister did all those years ago."

Raising his head, he opened his eyes, laying his soul bare before the other woman. "Don’t you understand!" he shouted, "I look at her, and I see my sister all over again! I see her reaching out to me, trusting me completely. Never once would it enter her mind that her big brother would hurt her, or that he’d kill her, Mother, and Father. Drain them dry. Not her big brother…never his kind friend Willow." Dark, bitter eyes locked onto shocked emerald ones, Angel continued, his voice straining with emotion. "I can’t take it kitten. I can’t accept the forgiveness in her eyes. It’s like having my sister forgive me for killing her."

Kat stared openly at the vampire who bared his soul to her, her mouth parted in surprise. ‘My god, he sees Willow as the little sister he killed.’ The depth of anguish in his eyes as he looked at the brunette had her holding her breath in dazed wonderment; reeling from the guilt he carried so close to his heart. As his eyes slowly slid off hers back to the ground, she let out her breath in one hiss of air.

‘He’s really torn up over this,’ she realized, watching the tremor that shook his shoulders as he let his guilt overwhelm him. ‘Damn but I don’t want to feel bad for him.’ But she couldn’t help herself, because she knew how guilt, whether deserved or no, could eat a person alive inside. Chewing on her lower lip, a nervous trait she unconsciously picked up from her petite hacker friend, Kat pondered what to do next.

‘I could just leave him, tell Willow why he is avoiding her.’ But that idea didn’t sit when with the brunette. Willow was bound to rush over to console Angel, and in the state he was in seeing her would only compound the problem, good intentions aside. Grimly Kat came to only one conclusion, but it was even less appealing to her. ‘It’s the only thing that would work though,’ she mused, slowing lowering the crossbow. Setting it down on the floor, the brunette steeled herself mentally and cautiously took a step forward. When the morose vampire didn’t move or raise his head she moved closer, stopping a few inches away from him. As she cocked her head to the side, a wave of sympathy for the dark-haired vampire rose inside her, to be squashed by grim determination.

‘This has to be done,’ she told herself, seeing him begin to stir out of his dark brooding. As he began to lift his head she raised her arm.

He didn’t see her hand until it was too late.

* * * * * * * * * *

CRACK! The speed of the slap had Angel stumbling backwards in shock. Covering his already throbbing cheek with one hand the dumbfounded vampire gaped at Kat as she glared at him, eyes conveying a look of disgust and anger.

"You fucking coward!" The hurt look that crossed the vampire’s features as she cursed him made the werecat feel lower than dirt. She hated to do this, hated to add physical pain to the mental anguish he was already suffering, but he needed this shock. Much like slapping a hysterical woman in order to stop her from screaming, shock could help someone in the bowels of despair crawl back out of the shadows. And so Kat kept her face from revealing any of her sympathies as she leaned forward, jabbing one dainty finger into the vampire’s t-shirt clad chest. Hard. Shaking her dark head at the confounded vampire Kat ranted, getting right into his face.

"So you’re afraid to be forgiven is that it? You’ve been around what two and a half centuries now? You’ve seen all the atrocities this world has to offer and you choose the forgiveness of one tiny girl to be afraid of? Man, that’s just stupid. You’re acting like forgiveness is a reward to be granted. It’s not. Forgiveness is something given freely not because someone deserves it, but because they need it."

If the slap hadn’t shocked Angel, the hellcat’s ranting sure did. He didn’t want to hear her words, because they made more sense than he cared to admit. Still, her voice had him spellbound: he had no choice but to listen, wide-eyed as she continued. "Look, I know you feel bad about all the things you’ve done, and that’s good. That’s what separates you from the monsters. But you’re blowing it out of proportion here. Your grief and guilt are keeping you from doing anything that might make you feel better."

Kat wasn’t finished talking, but some of the anger had drained out of her voice. Taking Angel’s arm, she gently but firmly dragged him to the sofa, pushing him down to sit before taking a seat opposite him. When she continued her voice was more subdued, but no less compelling. "If you can’t think of forgiveness as anything but something to be earned, then go out and earn it. You’ll never get anywhere sitting here in the dark, that’s for sure. Do you know that, despite not having any sort of super powers, Willow and Xander patrol the park and cemeteries every night? How are you going to feel if one or both of them die out there when you could’ve saved them, if only you’d been fighting beside them instead of sitting here brooding about a past you cant change?"

The last sentence made Angel’s head jerk up, dark orbs meeting Kat’s serious emerald ones. He hadn’t known the kids had taken over patrols. He hadn’t even been able to bring himself to lurk in the shadows, watching the group as he had done in the past, since he’d been back. Knowing she’d gotten through to the vampire Kat decided to push just a little more, to make sure Angel would stop acting like an idiot.

"Go out there and make an effort Angel," knowing her use of his name would make sure he paid attention. Her lips curved into a slight smile, which she offered him as she continued. "I think you’ll find it’s worth the trouble. You don’t have to suffer alone and in silence. You’ve got friends, and I know Willow would be beyond thrilled to have you around. And if you had nothing in this world but that little redhead’s friendship, you’d be the luckiest creature in existence, and that’s a fact. Think about it."

Rising up from her seat, Kat gave Angel one last look before heading for the door, pausing only to pick up her crossbow. A little embarrassed at the length and depth of her lecture, the brunette was too lost in thought to hear the whispered ‘thank you kitten’ that trailed after her.

Minutes ticked away, and still Angel remained sitting in the living room, staring into space as Kat’s words echoed in his mind. ‘She’s right,’ he admitted to himself, shaking his head to clear it of the paralyzing effect her rant had on him. ‘I can’t hide from my problems, I need to face them.’ His lips twisted as he thought about how right the hellcat had been, only to flinch slightly as his cheek reminded him just how she had gotten her point across. Gingerly he touched his cheek, stroking it as he thought about what to do next.

‘Wait a minute…didn’t she say they went patrolling at night?’ Glancing up at the clock over his mantle, Angel noted that the sun had set nearly an hour ago. They would probably be heading out the cemetery as soon as the hellcat caught up with them. Standing up, the dark-haired vampire went in search of his favorite black jacket. ‘Can’t let them have all the fun,’ he thought as he headed for the front door.

Just as he was leaving the mansion, an errant thought wormed its way into his head. This time his cheek didn’t throb as much as his lips turned upward, forming a slight smile as he contemplated this new curiosity.

‘I wonder how good the kitten is with her claws.’

Kat wanted to scream in frustration as she barely dodged yet another crossbow bolt which was sent wildly in her direction. Growling, she ducked under the arm of the vampire she was fighting, using its confusion at the bolt to slip into its defenses. As she jerked the stake out of its chest it exploded into dust, swirling about her in the wind as she turned to face her ‘other’ attacker. Gnashing her teeth, she glared at the tall brunette who had nearly ended her life.

"Cordelia," she started, sweetness dripping from her mouth as she advanced on the poor girl. "Next time, would you mind aiming for a vampire that ISN’T so close to Xander or me!" She was sorely tempted to send the annoying cheerleader back to Hawaii or Mexico or wherever her parents had taken her for summer vacation. She fought with spirit, certainly, but so far she had nearly killed Kat at least five times…and the evening was young.

"Well excuuuuse me Miss Fur Rubbed the Wrong Way, but I told you I haven’t handled a crossbow before!" Flinging her dark locks over her shoulder, she glared right back at Kat. "It’s not like there’s an archery class available in this town!"

Nervously watching Kat’s eyes darken, Xander intercepted the cheerleader before the werecat’s twitching hands found something to do…like choke the life out of someone. "Cordy," he began, clearing his throat as he placed one hand on the crossbow, the other on her shoulder. "It just takes some getting used to. I know!" he grinned as inspiration struck, "just think of the vampires we aren’t fighting as the latest in high fashion. You should be able to zero in on them then!"

Willow bit back a groan as Xander’s wacky idea was met with shrieks of outrage. As Cordelia focused the full scope of her anger on her somewhat boyfriend, the redheaded hacker sidled closer to Kat. Hoping to defuse at least one end of the tension in the group, she cleared her throat and asked tentatively, "So, um, did you and Angel have a good talk?" As the brunette’s eyes turned to glare at Willow she plunged on nervously. "You didn’t kill him right, cause that would be a bad thing since I haven’t entirely recovered from bringing him back from hell and I don’t think I could go through those dreams…"

"Willow," interrupting the babbling redhead before she really got into the swing of things, Kat sighed, her eyes losing some of their hard edge. "I talked to him." After a moment of silence from the tiny hacker, Kat continued reluctantly. "He’s not mad at you Wills. He just has to work some things out." She didn’t know how Willow would have reacted to Angel’s comments about the connection between his sister and her.

Her small smile blooming into a radiant grin, Willow threw herself into Kat’s arms, giving her friend a grateful hug. "Thank you for not staking him! And for talking to him, cause I know you didn’t really want to. I’m sure you helped a lot!" Kat didn’t think so, but she kept her comments to herself, hugging the redhead back briefly before extracting herself as gracefully as she could. Friends they may be, but the brunette wasn’t used to anyone invading her personal space…especially as often as Willow liked to hug people.

A small sound reached Kat just then, causing her to turn abruptly. Her nose wrinkled a little as it confirmed a vampire as the source of the noise. Placing herself in front of Willow, she concentrated on seeking the demon out. Just as she noticed movement in the shadows it stepped forward, arms raised in a sign for surrender. A groan escaped her lips as the vampire came into full view, amusement flickering briefly in his chocolate eyes.

"Don’t shoot," Angel said, his eyes glancing over to the still fighting couple before coming back to rest on the two petite young women before him. Kat stared at him, an unreadable expression on her face, while Willow darted past the brunette, launching herself into the vampire at full tilt.

"Angel!" the redhead cried out in joy, causing Xander and Cordy to halt and look over at the trio. "I’m so glad you came!" As Willow pulled away to look up at the vampire, a look of confusion crossed her features. "But how did you know where we would be, cause you haven’t been patrolling with us, you haven’t even been by the library I was so worried about you and…" her stream of babble was silenced by a finger to her lips.

"I was…tied up Little One," Angel explained, not wanting to worry his friend and have her know why he had been so miserable lately. "I didn’t mean to worry you." Touching her nose lightly, he offered her something of a smile. "I’m here because Kat suggested it actually," raising his eyes to glance over at the werecat, who blinked in confusion.

"I did?" Frowning, Kat couldn’t remember when she had suggested that Angel seek them out tonight for patrol. Then again, she had said so much to the vampire that she wasn’t entirely sure what she told him. Fortunately Xander, who even now was coming over with Cordelia’s hand tucked into his own, spared her from having to comment further.

"Hey Dea…ah…Angel," Xander greeted the vampire, wincing as Cordelia crushed his hand in warning. "You come to patrol with us, or just do the lurking thing?"

"Actually, I was thinking about helping you guys out…that is, if you’ll have me?" His slight smile faltered as his doubts and self-consciousness surfaced. Briefly he wondered if the time was right for him to ask to join their group, but Willow put a stop to that before he could slip back into brood mode.

"Of course!" the redhead bubbled, grinning at Angel, then the rest of the startled group. "This is great, that means we can cover more ground. Xander, Cordelia, and I can search in one direction, and you and Kat can go the other way." The idea greatly pleased Willow, because it separated Kat and Cordelia, which might prevent any possible

‘accidental’ homicides as a result of another misfired crossbow bolt.

"I don’t think," Kat began, only to be overruled by at least two other people present. Cordelia was all for anything that would get her as far away from the feral brunette as possible, and Xander wasn’t entirely comfortable with the idea of patrolling with Angel, no matter how friendly he tried to sound. Thus it was that she found herself searching the south end of the cemetery with a souled vampire who was probably about as thrilled with the idea as she was.

* * * * * * * * *

"Great, just great," she muttered under her breath, one dainty hand tightening painfully around the stake she held. "I’m traipsing around the cemetery with a vampire to watch my back, while the High School Vampire Slaying Club goes merrily off to get themselves killed. More than likely by that Cheerleader from Hell." Lost in her personal rant, Kat jumped when Angel placed a hand on her shoulder. Taking a deep breath, she glanced up at him, noting the serious look on his face. "What?"

Clearing his throat, Angel let his hand slip from her shoulder. His voice was soft as he spoke. "I just wanted to thank you. For what you did today." His eyes held hers as he continued. "I know you didn’t want to be there…"

"It’s nothing," Kat replied curtly, uncomfortable with how serious he was being. Not to mention his sincerity. Taking a step back to get the vampire out of her personal space, she shrugged lightly. "I was just helping a friend."

Angel stared at the young woman for a moment, trying to understand her reaction to his thanks. He wasn’t sure why she was so uncomfortable with appreciation; he had seen her talk with Willow, and knew that while she seemed much friendlier with the redhead, she still avoided becoming too emotional. ‘Looks like I’m not the only one who closes myself off,’ he thought, his gaze questioning on the brunette as she looked away, scanning the area in a pretense of patrol. He was about to comment on it when she stiffened, nostrils flaring in warning.

"We’ve got company," she stated flatly as two vampires materialized in front of the pair: big brutes with more muscle than brain. One of them leered at Kat’s black clad body, its eyes trailing up her hip-hugging pants and tight top as she growled. Licking its lips, the lecherous vampire launched itself at the brunette, while its friend was diverted by a suddenly vamped out Angel.

Unable to spare a glance at Kat to see how she was doing in her fight, Angel whirled under the muscle-bound vampire’s arms, slamming his elbow into his opponent’s abdomen. As it staggered back he reached behind his back, pulling a stake out of the lining of his black jacket. Hissing, the vampire moved, rushing Angel wildly. Sidestepping the vampire in one fluid motion, he twisted his upper body, slamming the piece of wood into the other vampire’s chest before it could slow its velocity. Dust whipped past him as he stood there, shaking his head in amazement.

‘More muscle than brain,’ he noted dryly, scanning the area for Kat and her assailant. He spotted them a few feet away, a blur of motion in the darkness. She had wound up with the more skilled of the two vampires as she blocked one of the lecher’s kicks with her arms crossed in front of her, flinging it down before she launched a roundhouse of her own. Recalling their fight upon his return from Hell, Angel watched with interest, admiration for the young woman’s agility rising with each move she made. It took him a moment to see the subtle movement behind the dark-haired young woman, another adversary maneuvering itself to take her by surprise.

Determination was etched into Kat’s face as the brunette pivoted on her feet, dodging a blow to the head that would have left her reeling. So far she had managed to keep the vampire from seriously hurting her, but he was faster than his mass made him out to be. Twirling her stake in her right hand, she circled the vampire, seeking an opening. Just as she was about to attack she noticed the vampire’s eyes shift slightly, glancing up at something behind her before returning its attention to the petite morsel in front of him.

‘Now what is he up to?’ the brunette wondered, eyes widening as a horrible idea dawned on her. Fast as lightning she started to turn, but she wasn’t fast enough. A third vampire reached out, leather-clad arms trapping her own arms to her sides as it grabbed her from behind. Hissing she kicked and bucked, but it hauled her up, dangling her feet a few inches from the ground. As the lecherous vampire licked its lips and advanced in her direction, she felt the one behind her move its head, nuzzling closer to her neck. Her mind exploded into a storm of rage and fear, triggered by a barrage of unpleasant memories. Her eyes blazed with an inner fire, turning red as hellfire as she fought to free herself from the vampire’s deadly embrace.

* * * * * * * *

When Kat was grabbed from behind Angel growled, gold eyes glowing as he raced to her aid. Eyes narrowing angrily as the vampire who held her bent to nuzzle her neck, only to turn into confusion as the vampire drew back, eyeing the brunette’s dainty neck warily. As Angel neared the trio Kat exploded into action. Red tingeing her dark emerald eyes she whipped her head back violently, snarling as the back of her head connected with the vampire’s face. At the same time she kicked out in front of her, catching the other vampire fully in the chest and causing it to fall backwards…right into Angel’s stake.

Nor did she stop there, twisting about as the vampire’s embrace loosened from a combination of confusion and pain. Turning her upper body, Kat slammed her elbow back, rage adding strength to her blow and causing the vampire to stagger back, letting her go and raising its hands to its head as the ground swam before it. Quivering with barely suppressed rage Kat brought her right hand up, swinging the stake in it down through a deadly arc. The bloodlust in her eyes brightened as the vampire’s eyes widened in fear, too late it tried to defend itself as her stake imbedded into its chest.

Dust settled around the brunette as she stood there, silently staring off into space. The blood roared in her veins, a testimony to how much nearly being bitten had affected her. Sensing movement behind her, she whirled around, stake upraised to meet the new attacker. Only a tiny part of her recognized the sight and smell of the man who stood before her.

Angel watched in amazement as Kat glared in utter hatred at him, crimson eyes blazing in the moonlight. Her lips were curled into a snarl, and she seemed to be coming down from a berserk frenzy, almost unable to distinguish friend from foe. Slowly understanding seemed to come to the hellcat, her eyes losing that red tint that made her look so deadly. Blinking once, twice, three times, the brunette lowered her weapon arm, giving Angel an apologetic half-smile.

"Sorry about that," she murmured, a trace of her tension betrayed by her voice. "I don’t know what came over me." Idly she reached up, rubbing the same area over her jugular that the vampire had been trying to bite. Her actions drew Angel’s attention back to her neck, and he remembered the way the vampire had reacted when looking at her neck. Cautiously he moved forward, pausing when Kat’s eyes flew up to meet his, distrust and worry reflected in her flickering orbs.

"What is it," he asked, his eyes moving back and forth from shadowed area on her neck to the guarded look in her eyes. As he took another step closer to her the brunette backed away, her hand pressed against her neck defensively.

"Nothing." Her eyes flashed briefly, a myriad of emotions so fast Angel was barely able to see them. One stuck out fresh in his mind however: fear. She was afraid. Of what he wasn’t sure, but suddenly he was determined to find out. Taking another step forward he reached out with his hand, his eyes locked onto hers.

"Let me see." His voice was soft, firm but gentle in its insistence. Staring into his warm chocolate eyes, Kat couldn’t form a word of protest as he moved closer, brushing her hair aside. As his long fingers ran through her dark locks, the vampire drew his eyes away from hers, moving his gaze down to her neck. Her hand had fallen to her side, exposing the pale flesh to his scrutiny. At first he couldn’t see anything, but soon his eyes began to pick out a section that was paler than the rest of her marble skin. Though it looked as if it healed, the ragged nature of it suggested that it had been a painful scar when she had acquired it. Angel’s jaw clenched, his eyes narrowing as he realized just what he was looking at…the type of scar made by a vampire bite during a struggle. "What’s this?"

The deadly tone in his voice caused Kat to flinch, though she stood her ground, refusing to move as he stared at her scar. Licking her full lips the brunette shrugged as calmly as possible. "It’s just a scar; I told you it was nothing." She tried to back away, but Angel’s hand fisted in her hair, keeping her firmly in place. "What!"

"How did it happen?" Instead of shouting, the vampire’s voice got softer, colder. His eyes came back up to fix on Kat, leveling her with a look that told the brunette she had better not try to get away from this without answering.

"Why do you want to know so much, it happened years ago!" Angrily she tried to free her hair from his hand, but the harder she struggled the tighter his grasp became. Finally her temper exploded. "What do you want to hear? Do you want to hear that I got it the night my mother died? That my mother invited a bunch of vampires into our home unknowingly, and that they proceeded to beat the shit out of her?" Angel’s hand in her hair loosened, but Kat plunged on, her emotions and memories pouring from her despite her intentions. "They beat my mother unconscious, and when I tried to stop them, one of those bastards grabbed me and sank his teeth in."

Kat cocked her head to the side, moonlight spilling over her neck to illuminate the ugly scar. "I got this because while he was biting me, I started to change for the first time." A bitter laugh erupted from her throat, causing Angel’s eyes to dart back to her face with concern. "Later I found out just how unusual that was. Seems that very few members of my family have ever transformed when the moon wasn’t full. My mother wasn’t strong enough to change, so I did it for her." Her eyes stung as the urge to cry welled up inside of her, but the brunette blinked rapidly, exhaling loudly as she fought to regain her composure.

Minutes ticked by as she stood there, her chest heaving and her eyes staring off into the distance. Angel stared down at the petite woman, astonishment and sympathy welling up inside of him. He wondered how someone could go through all that and still maintain a shred of sanity. His mouth parted as he sought to offer her some words of comfort, but no sound emerged. Instead he waited as she collected herself enough to continue. Her eyes refocused on the bewildered vampire as she went on.

"I was only twelve; I didn’t understand what was happening to me. One minute I was watching my mother go down, being grabbed from behind…the next I woke up beside her, blood covering my body." A slight chill came over Kat and she rubbed her arms self-consciously before straightening. "My mother was still alive, but barely. She spoke to me a little, but then her eyes closed and she didn’t wake up."

Angel’s hand moved out of her hair, squeezing her shoulder as she took a deep breath. "After the cops came by, they couldn’t figure out what happened. They deemed it a murder by thieves, and took me to a foster home. Two years later my transformations became routine, and I left the homes for good."

Letting out a breath he hadn’t known he was holding, the stoic vampire just watched as the delicately strong brunette straightened; any pain her memories had caused her falling away from her face as the guarded look returned. Knowing a little more about her softened that part inside of him that had previously held nothing but ire for the fiery hellcat. Silently he watched as the young woman slipped behind her defensive walls again, any hint of her outburst lost behind hooded eyes. Feeling sorry for the pain she had suffered, he did something unexpected. Slowly his hand moved from her shoulder back to her neck, one long finger tracing the scar gently, almost tenderly.

Kat’s eyes widened as Angel’s finger caressed her scar, sending tiny tremors through her body. Not since her mother had tucked her into bed when she was little had she been touched in such a personal nature, and it nearly undid all her emotional control. Shaken, she backed away from the vampire, her arms crossing over her chest in a silent barrier against his advancement.

Taking her actions as a cue that he had crossed a line, Angel cleared his throat somewhat nervously. Glancing around the quiet cemetery, he looked back to the young woman with a raised eyebrow. "Why don’t we go look for the others?"

"Good idea," Kat agreed quickly, relief evident in her eyes as her thoughts turned to the matter of patrolling. Her hand tightening on the stake she held, she set off in one direction before Angel could utter another word, her face a mask of grim determination. Angel watched her rush off, his expression sad.

"Oh kitten," He murmured, so softly the werewoman couldn’t hear him. "What a pair we are." Shaking his head, the vampire moved to follow her. As he scanned the area for potential predators, his eyes slid time and again to the back of the brunette who had thoroughly confused him in such a short time.

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