**********

She stepped out of the car into the cool crisp air.  There was a full moon tonight.  She tried to remember the last time she had seen the full moon from this exact spot.  It had been an eternity, of that she was certain.
“What you thinking about, pet?” Her lover asked as he came up behind her.  She turned to him and smiled. “I was just thinking about the last time I had seen the full moon from this spot.”  He chuckled at her admission.
“Let’s go, Luv. We have a lot to do before the sun rises.”    She nodded and followed her lover into the building in front of them.

***********

“Master, I have news.”  The fledgling said as he entered.  He didn’t want to be too close when he told him of his news.
“Speak!”  His master barked.
“They have arrived.”  He answered.
“Are you sure?”  The Master asked, as he turned to his fledgling.  He knew the young vampire was afraid, as he should be.  This news did not please him.
“Yes, sir.  They arrived this evening”
“How many?” The Master asked. His patience was wearing thin.
“I, uh, I don’t know.” The fledgling took a step backwards, afraid for his unlife.
 The Master vampire stood up and backhanded the fledgling, growling.  “You don’t know?”  He bellowed.
“No, sir. We couldn’t get close to them.  We were, uh, afraid they would see us.”  The Master growled as he took his fledgling by the throat, lifting him several feet off of the floor. “You were afraid?”  He screeched. He didn’t wait for a reply; instead he just lowered his fangs and drained the young vampire dry, dropping him to the floor.

 The master returned to his perch in the darkened room, as he called out, “Adam!” After a moment, Adam appeared by the master’s side.  “Yes, master?”
“What have you learned?” he asked his favorite childe.
“They arrived earlier this evening.  They didn’t come alone, but it is unclear how many of their number they brought with them.”
“Why are they here?”  The Master asked.  He had cooled his temper some, but his demon still raged.
“We don’t really know.  There has been talk of…” Adam paused a moment, “Some say they have returned to reclaim what is theirs.”  Adam took a needless breath as he saw the rage in his sire’s eyes.
“Find them.  Bring them here!”  The master vampire snapped.
“But, master Is that wise?”  Adam asked, although he knew that by asking the question he could easily have been reduced to a pile of dust.
“I said BRING THEM!”
“Yes, master” Adam left quickly to carry out his master’s wished, but he knew that it wasn’t very likely that he would succeed.

**********

“We have a shadow.  Did you notice?”  Spike asked his love. She nodded, and he grinned at the twinkle in her green eyes. “They have been watching since we came into town.”  She turned to look at her lover, “If I didn’t know better, I’d think someone tipped them off that we were coming.”  Spike laughed out loud, and put his arm around her as they continued to walk through the empty streets of Sunnydale.

*********

**********

Sunnydale December 1999.

Willow looked outside at the starless night.  It was black, like someone had pulled a heavy curtain over the planet.  There were no stars, no moon, and the sun hadn’t made an appearance in almost three days. “It’s close.”  She whispered, as Spike came up behind her.
“I know, luv.  Are you sure about this?  It’s very dangerous.”
Willow turned around to face her lover. “Yes. I am sure.  If we don’t help them, they’ll die, the Hellmouth will open, and the world will end.”  Spike nodded.  He knew her reasons.  They had been discussing this for weeks.  He agreed with her reasons. Besides, if the world ended, he’d starve.  He just wished that she didn’t have to put herself in danger in order to save the world.
“Well, then, lets go meet our destiny” He grinned and lead the way out of his house.

**********

“Where are they?”  Buffy asked impatiently.
“They’ll be here.”  Angel told her reasuredly.
“How do you know?”  She spat angrily.  “How do you know He didn’t just wisk her away, leaving us to fight alone?”
“Because, unless he has a spaceship hiding somewhere, there is nowhere he can go.”  Buffy groaned at his logic.  Angel took her into his arms, and kissed her softly.  “Don’t worry. Everything will be ok.  Spike won’t miss an opportunity to gloat at the fact that he’s saving you, as well as the world.  She smiled, “Yeah I guess your right, but I don’t know why he’s bothering.  This is bad, Angel.  It’s worse than any of the times before.”  Buffy was scared.  She had a bad feeling that tonight would be her last.”

“Well, isn’t this a pretty picture?”  A voice called from the doorway.
“I would have thought you too would have been long gone by now.”
Angel growled as he slipped into game face at the demon who was now advancing toward them casually.
“Whoa, buddy.  Let’s not.  I still have the watcher, and you still have an agreement to live up to.”  The demon chuckled, as he looked around the room.
“Where is she?”  He asked.
“She’ll be here.  But you had better live up to your end!”  Buffy snapped. “She had better be.”  The demon shifted, when he felt another presence enter the room.
“Witch?  Is that you?”  He asked, sniffing the air to see if he could catch her scent.  He was unsuccessful.  All he could smell were the slayer, and her vampire.  He sniffed again.  This time he caught another scent, but it wasn’t hers.  It belonged to the other one.  The cocky vampire who never left the witch’s side.
“Where is she?”  He asked the blond vampire.
“Here” Willow whispered from directly behind the demon.  He hadn’t seen her enter.  He couldn’t smell her, or even feel her presence.  That when he knew it was true.  She was the one.  The witch who would help his master destroy the world.
The demon turned around and grabbed her wrists, eliciting a nasty growl from the blond vampire. “Let’s go, witch.  We have a world to destroy.  He dragged her out of the building.  It was too easy.  They didn’t try and stop him.  For a moment he thought the blond vampire would try and stop him, but he didn’t.  He just let him carry the slight redhead out of the building. She wasn’t even struggling.

Willow let him carry her out of the building, hoping that Spike wouldn’t attack, and ruin their plan.  She heard him growling, and felt his desire to pummel this demon.  But that wouldn’t have solved anything.  Willow knew that if they were to stop the Hellmouth from opening, her plan was the only way.  She memorized the path they were taking, so that when the demon was dead, and the Hellmouth closed, the ritual could be performed.

**********

Unbeknownst to Willow, tonight was the night she would die.

********

Giles awoke with a sickening feeling throughout his entire body.  He didn’t know where he was, or how long he had been there.  It was dark; he could barely make out the chains, which bound him to the wall behind him. The air was stale, and it smelled of death.  He couldn’t remember how he had gotten there.  His last clear memory had been of being surrounded by a group of demons.  They were strong, and he had been knocked out in a matter of seconds. He had been weaving in and out of consciousness, for an unknown amount of time. He had heard his talk about re-opening the Hellmouth.  They spoke of a witch who would ensure their success.  They had kidnapped him in an effort to discover the identity of the witch.  Giles felt any hope he had of escape leave his body as he saw a far door open and a young girl was dragged in.  It was too dark to recognize her from his vantagepoint.  But his suspicions were confirmed when she spoke.
“Let me go” Willow’s voice was even, indicating she wasn’t afraid, but angry.

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

Present day:

“Mistress” A fledgling was calling from the doorway to her private room.
“Yes, come in, Peter”
“We have some uninvited guests.  What shall we do with them?”  He asked.
Willow turned around, her green eyes twinkling, “I will see to them.”
“Yes, mistress” Peter said as he left the room.
“Spike.”  Willow called into an adjoining room.
“Yes luv?”  He asked as he entered their bedroom.
“Peter tells me we have guests.”  She turned to look at her lover, “Are you hungry?”  She asked as she headed downstairs to meet them.

**********

When Willow entered the room, there were two things she noticed.  The first was that there were more of them than she had original thought there would be. The second thing was the smell of fear.  She smiled at the latter.
“Well, look what we have here.”  She smiled as she walked up to the vampire in the center of the group. She moved her face very close to his, so that she could whisper into his ear, “Do you know who I am?” She asked.  The vampire nodded, and she stepped back.
“Who am I then?” She asked with amusement in her green eyes.
When the vampire didn’t answer, she nodded slightly to one of the Vampires who were flanking the undead group.  He approached the vampire with a swiftness one would have thought impossible, and snapped his neck in two. Willow then turned back to the remaining group of ten vampires. She looked over at each one in turn, “So, who does that make in charge?”  She asked while trying to decide which one of these creatures would serve her purpose.
The vampires seemed to be having some sort of argument, amongst themselves.  Trying to decide which one of them could succeed as their ruler.  One of them stepped forward.  At first glance, he would not have been the once she chose to lead this group.
“You are,” He said.  Had it not been for her above-average hearing, she wouldn’t have heard him.
  Willow smiled. “Yes, that I am.”  She turned to David, the vampire who had previously broken the leader's neck. “Take him.”  As David escorted the new vampire out of the room, Willow approached one of the remaining nine vampires.  “Just so you know, I will not drain you.” She chuckled at the unneeded sigh of relief which could be heard, “He will” She whispered.  All eyes turned to the doorway.  Spike was standing there smirking.
“It figures.”  One the vampires mumbled. He hadn’t wanted her to hear him, but Willow’s senses were exceptional, even for a vampire.  She looked up at the offending creature. “Oh?  Why’s that?”  She asked.  The vamp looked at her for a long second before responding. “You’re weak!”  He spat.  “You can’t even kill!”  In one fluid motion, Willow grabbed the vampire, bending down to gain access to his neck.  She bit to him roughly and sucked the unlife right out of him.  When she was finished, she licked the blood off of her lips and turned back to others, her human visage once again in place.  She headed out of the room, stopping just before she reached the threshold, “I said I wouldn’t.  Not that I couldn’t.”

  Willow left the remaining intruders in Spike’s care, knowing they had less than five minutes left.  Spike would make their deaths quick.  They didn’t have time for games.  She walked down a corridor, and into another room, much smaller than the first.  David was there, with the new vampire.  As soon as she entered the room, David left, leaving his mistress alone with the vampire.
“You’re young.”  She noted with amusement as she walked around him, appraising him.  “Do you have a name?”  She asked.  Before he could answer, a resounding scream could be heard from another room.  Willow Smiled.
“J…Julien” The vampire responded.  She could smell his fear.
“You’re afraid.  And that’s good. You’re friends weren’t afraid. And they have now been reduced to a pile of dust.”  She told him.
“Do you know who I am?”  She asked.  Julien nodded.
“Tell me.”  She prodded.
“You’re the Mistress. Your power is strong.  You have returned. The Master, he fears you.  He knows you will bring about his destruction.”
Willow smiled, “Do you know why you’re here?”  She asked.
“Yes, you wish to change my loyalty, and return me to my master.” Willow arched an eyebrow, “And?”
“I will do as you wish, Mistress.”
“You may go.” Willow told him as David entered the small room.
“Mistress?”  He asked, not wanting to disturb her.  Willow looked up, “Yes David?”
“There is a telephone call for you.”
Willow smiled at the news.  She knew only one other person, outside of the house knew where they were.

********

Sunnydale December 1999

 Willow struggled to break free from the Demon that was carrying her.  It wasn’t working.  His grip was too tight, so she stopped, and let her body go limp.  After a moment, the demon eased up a bit, but not completely.
  Willow was concentrating all of her energy; soon she could feel it.  The slow burn from inside, as it traveled through her body.  When it reached its destination, the demon jumped back at the volt of electricity, which ran through him.  Willow picked herself off of the floor where he had dropped her. “I. Said. Let. Me. go.”
  The demon looked at her curiously, and was about to strike out at her when he felt the presence. His master was near, so he let it go.  The master would not be pleased it the witch were harmed.

“You have brought her. Excellent.”  The master said as he walked towards the slight redhead. “Welcome.”  He told her, trying to fathom how such a small creature could contain such power.  He could feel it.
“You have me.  Now let him go.”  Willow said as she turned her gaze to the far side of the room, where Giles was chained.
“Not yet witch. You haven’t done what I want… yet.”  The master sneered. Willow looked into the master’s amber eyes unwavering.
“I told you, You let him go, and I’ll do what you want.  Not before.”
The Master sighed.  “Very well. Let the watcher go.”  He commanded.

Giles could only barely hear the conversation that was taking place between the master vampire and Willow.  He winced at her defiance. *What did she think she was doing * he asked himself.
   After a few moments a couple of the vampire’s headed towards him.  They released Giles, and let him fall to the floor.  They then carried him out of the building, Giles frantically looking back at Willow, hoping she was okay.

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

Xander walked into the building, and took in the scene before him.  Buffy was standing in one corner staring out the windows.  Windows, which were covered with heavy drapes, so she couldn’t have seen through them, even if she wanted to. Angel was sitting in a chair a few feet away from Buffy, his head in his hands.  Spike was pacing around the room like the caged animal he was.

“Hey guys.” Xander tried to lighten the somber mood.
“Did you get it?”  Spike asked impatiently.
“Yes.  But what exactly do you need this for?” He asked, again wondering what it was that was going on exactly.  Willow had asked him to go by her dorm and pick something up for her, but that was all she had said.
“Where’s Willow?”  He asked noticing her absence.
“Gone!”  Spike barked as he grabbed the book out of Xander’s hand and took it into another room.  Angel followed behind him, leaving Buffy.
“Buff, what’s going on?  Where’s Will?”  He asked as he headed over to Buffy.  When he got closer, he noticed she had tears in her eyes, but was trying to hold them back. Xander put a reassuring hand on her arm, “Buff?”
“Xander, she’s gone.  They took her.  And I let them!”
“What?  What happened?”  He asked gently.  Buffy sat down on the table, “That demon, the one from the other night, he came and he took her.”

********

Spike and Angel were staring at the book Xander had brought.
“Can you do it?”  Spike asked his sire. Angel nodded, “ I think so.”
“You think so?  Bloody hell!  We don’t have time for a trial run can you do it, or not?”
“Yes.”  Angel said confidently, but…”
“But what?”
“Timing is very important.  It has to be done the moment you turn her.”  Angel looked at his childe, and wished, not for the first time, that there had been a better way.
“Well then peaches, you had better pay attention!”  Spike snapped.

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

Sunnydale December 1999

  Willow breathed a sigh of relief after Giles was released.  She didn’t know if she could have gone through with it if Giles had still been here.  What was required of her was highly dangerous.  She would be lucky if she could get out alive.  She believed she probably wouldn’t.  That was her choice, but she couldn’t make such a decision for Giles.

“Okay, he’s gone.  Now you must do as I ask.”  The vampire was leering at her.  She had a sneaking suspicion he had more on his mind than the ritual. But that may work to her advantage.
“Not yet.”  Willow told him, looking into his amber eyes. “I want to make sure that Giles is safe.  When I speak to my friends, then I will do what you ask.”  The vampire debated whether or not he should smack her for her insolence, but thought better of it.

  This witch was the key.  The key to everything.  Her power was extremely strong.  If she refused, all would be lost.  This chance only came once every thousand years, and he wasn’t going to mess it up by letting his angry get the better of him.
“Very well.  We’ll wait.”

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

  Xander sat on the edge of the couch as he tried to absorb everything Buffy had told him.  Giles had been kidnapped.  They were using him as ransom for Willow.  They wanted her to help them open some portal.  They had planned on opening Hell’s Gate.
Xander was about to ask a question when he heard a thump outside of the door.  He and Buffy ran over to see what it was.  When Buffy opened the door, they found Giles sprawled across the floor, somewhat unconscious.
“Angel!”  Buffy yelled into the other room.  Both vampires came out, and after seeing Giles, they ran over to help.  They laid him across the couch. He looked awful.
“Get him some water.”  Buffy told Xander.  After a moment, Xander returned with a glass of water. Angel helped him sit up.  After he drank from the glass, he gasped, “Willow!  They have Willow!”
 Angel looked down, “We know.”
Giles was surprised.  He didn’t think everyone would be sitting here calm, if they knew that Willow had been taken.  “You know?”  That’s when he noticed that Spike was pacing around the room, growling. “What happened?”
Angel sighed.  “They want her to open Hell’s Gate.”  Angel knew that no more need be said.
“Hell’s Gate?”  Giles questioned, “but that’s only a myth.”
“No bloody myth!”  Spike snapped, “it’s real, and it’s here.”
“And it’s now.”  Giles whispered.
“Well what are we going to do?”  He asked.
“We, aren’t going to do anything.  You and Xander and Buffy should stay here.”  Angel told them firmly.
No!  There is no way I am going to sit around doing nothing while Willow is in danger!” Xander yelled.  He was sick of being told what to do by his friends’ vampire lovers.  Before anyone had a chance to respond, Spike walked over to Xander and lifted him off of the floor, and rammed him into the wall, still holding him up.  “You listen here, You will do NOTHING to jeopardize Willow’s plan.  If you do, the end of the world will be the least of your worries!”  Spike growled.
“Spike!”  Angel warned, “Put him down!”
Spike dropped the boy to the ground with a loud thud.  He turned to Angel, “C’Mon, let’s go peaches, we have a world to save.” Spike ran out of the house, Willow’s book in his hands. Angel started to follow him out, buts topped just before he reached the door, and turned around, “He’s right.  Don’t interfere.”

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

The Present

Willow picked up the telephone with a smile.  “Hey.  I thought I wouldn’t here from you until tomorrow?”  She asked into the line.
The voice on the other end chuckled easily; “Well I wanted to see how things were going back in Sunnydale.  How is my favorite Childe?”
“Full” She answered laughing.
“Anyone I know?”  Angel asked.
“Not unless your taste as severely diminished, to include the incompetent.” He laughed a little, and then continued in a serious tone, “How are you doing? Has it been difficult?”
“No, but I haven’t had time to think about it.”  Willow paused, “When will you be here?”  She wanted to change the subject.  Dwelling on the past wouldn’t solve any of there current problems.
“Tomorrow, before sunrise.”  Angel knew that returning to Sunnydale would be difficult after all these years.

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

Julien returned to his master, alone.  He dreaded telling the master that he was the only one to survive.  He didn’t wish to face his wrath.
“m...Master?”  He stumbled into the Master’s chamber.
“Have you brought them?  Where are the others?”  The Master barked. “No… no sir.  She killed everyone. I was lucky to escape.
The Master growled, “What happened?”
“They were waiting for us.  We were ambushed.” Julien explained.
“Then how is it, you survived?”
“I stayed behind.  Travis wanted me to keep an eye out in case we missed them.  He was hoping to catch them off guard.” Julien lied.
The master grumbled. “Very well, you may go.”

 After Julien had left, he stomped out of his lair, in search of an innocent to kill.  When he reached the park, he found two young girls walking around, alone.  * Easy pickin's * he thought to himself, as he approached the girls.  They didn’t even hear him until it was too late.  After he had drained them, and let them fall to the ground, he continued on his way towards the cemetery.

   The master had walked through a good portion of the cemetery when he saw a woman in the distance.  She was standing in front of a large tomb.  He walked over to her.  She couldn’t see him because her back was to him. * Is she stupid?  Who in their right mind would walk around a cemetery in Sunnydale alone, at night? *
 When he had come within a few feet she spoke.
“You shouldn’t have come.”

********

**********
 
 

  Silence.  Complete Silence.

  Willow stood her ground as the master vampire glared at her.  She knew she was lucky to still be breathing.  She also knew that the master believed she was the key to opening Hell’s Gate.

   When she had first learned of Giles’ disappearance, Willow had spent every waking moment researching, trying to find a way to help her mentor.  Giles had been more of a father to her than her own father had been.

  After several days of searching, Willow had stumbled upon a reference to Hell’s Gate, and she had immediately known that she had found the reason behind Giles’ disappearance.

   Hell’s Gate was a portal.  A doorway between this dimension and another.  But not just any dimension.  The doorway led to a world where a powerful evil was imprisoned.  For the most part, Hell’s Gate was a myth.  It told of a dimension no one had ever seen, of a great evil never witnessed.
  However, if there was one thing Willow had learned in her time on the Hellmouth, it was that myths were real.  Nothing was impossible.

  The more she learned about Hell’s Gate, the less she liked it.  The evil that was imprisoned there had amassed great power.  If it was allowed to return to this dimension, certain destruction would surely fallow.

  Fortunately, the power, which had imprisoned it, made it difficult to free.  Difficult, but not impossible.  There was a short window of opportunity once every one thousand years, when the portal could be opened.  However, it required that a sorceress of great power open the portal.  But once opened, only she could close it.  But even more than that, the sorceress had to bestow her power onto the next dimension, thereby freeing the evil.  Another requirement was that the sorceress be pure of heart and soul, and that she willing released the bonds, which held the dimension in place. It was very rare that once could find a witch with such power, who still was untouched by evil, and willing to release such a creature into the world.

  Willow knew that she contained such power.  She also knew that her heart and soul had been untouched by the evil she witnessed on a daily basis.   She had recently accepted that her role in the world was far more than she had previously believed.

    For a long time she thought of herself as someone who couldn’t possibly serve any useful purpose.  Her job was to assist Buffy, in any way she could, usually involving research, but not much else.  The previous year she had made the conscious decision to remain in Sunnydale and fight evil any way she could.  And since that time, Willow had been practicing Wicca with an intensity, which had not gone unnoticed.  Willow had sunk herself deeply into the religion.  She had realized early on it wasn’t just about magic.  She believed strongly in all of its practices.  It had helped her to deal with her break up with Oz, as well as help her understand herself better.

   She wasn’t the same person she had been when she first met Buffy.  She wasn’t the same girl who had fallen in love with Xander Harris, nor was she the same person who had allowed her insecurities to thwart her growth.  It taken her a long time to realize that she could be more than she was, and still retain the love and support of her friends.  Once she had attained that realization, she felt comfortable in continuing to expand on her abilities.

  It was this new Willow, which comprehended the serious nature of the opening of Hell’s Gate.  She realized that it was up to her to stop this from happening.  But she knew she couldn’t do it alone.

  Willow found herself staring into the amber eyes of the Vampire who wanted her to open Hell’s Gate.  She wondered if he knew the full extent of the ritual that would banish the evil for all time.  She hoped not.  Her plan would only work if they were unaware of her actions.

  She heard the far door open and two vampires entered.  They nodded to the master.  Willow realized they were the same vampires who had taken Giles back to Spike’s place.   She looked back into the eyes of the demon in front of her, understanding that it was almost time to do what she had promised.

*******

   Giles was slowly regaining his strength.  He was trying to grasp what Buffy had told him.  Willow had willingly let herself be taken, in an effort to free him.  That in and of itself meant a great deal to him.  However, that wasn’t the end of the witch’s plan.  She had found out about Hell’s Gate, and realized that whatever else happened, the vampires could not succeed in releasing the evil trapped there.

   A part of him was appalled at the idea that she was risking her life.  That she could easily die; would easily die.  But another part of him, the part that understood the evil, and had spent his life fighting against such things, that part of him knew she was right, that there was no other way.  He just hoped it was enough.

*********

   Cymia’ was surprised when she saw the watcher returned to the vampires house.  She had never expected the master vampire, Carlos, to let the watcher go.  It was then that she realized that the witch had willingly gone to him.  She had willingly put herself in a position to open the portal, and in doing so, she would be able to complete the ritual.

   Cymia realized that her wait was over.  She had spent Millennia waiting for the girl.  The one who could banish the evil, permanently.  She had never expected it to be this slight creature, but as she watched the witch willingly enter the lair, she new it was time.

  She was tired.  Her life had lasted far longer than it should have.  She had searched the world for centuries, hoping to find the one who could banish the evil.  The evil she had imprisoned almost ten thousand years ago.  When the world was young and innocent, when evil roamed the earth freely.  Before man, before demon, before life had covered the world with it’s plague.

    She had lived far too long.  Long enough to see the demon rule the Earth.  Long enough to see the hybrids emerge.  Long enough to see man destroy what it didn’t understand.  Long enough to know that the end was near.  She would have prayed for death, if she believed in such things.

  Instead, she just watched, and waited.  Her time was almost over, and another would take her place.

*********

Present Day:

   The master Vampire walked closer to the woman.  There was something familiar about her.  Her back was still to him, and he wondered for a moment if she had really spoken at all.

   After a few moments, she spoke again, this time turning around. “You won’t win.” Her voice was soft, yet fierce.  He took a moment to take in her beauty.  She had fiery red hair, and deep green eyes, and it wasn’t until he looked closely, did he realize who she was, and the truth of her words sank in.

“I will” He told her, although he wasn’t sure.  He had spent two hundred years preparing for this day, all the while knowing that it may never come to pass.  This creature before him looked to be no more than twenty, but he knew she far older, and wiser than him.

She smiled at him.  A smile that lit up the night sky with it’s beauty.  And for a moment he allowed himself to believe that everything he had been told, everything he had feared, was wrong.  Maybe this woman was not as powerful as he had thought.  And then she spoke.

“You must realize that I will not allow you to succeed.  You may try, but you will fail.”  She turned back around; her back towards him, showing him that she did not fear him.

 The demon in him raged at her arrogance.  She should tremble at his feet.  She should cower before him, and beg for her life.  He took a step towards her, and reached out to grab her.  In one swift, fluid motion she turned on him.  She was only centimeters away, and used their proximity to her advantage.  She reached one hand out, grabbing his neck, putting an extreme pressure on his collarbone.  He looked into her green eyes, only to see them glowing brightly.  At that moment, he realized he was going to die, and his dream would never be realized.

   His cold flesh began to burn under her as she felt the power overtake her.  The energy that drove her power seeping into his cold, dead flesh.  She saw the fear in his eyes, and smiled wickedly. She reached out with her other arm and placed a hand on his chest.  She could feel the heat leave her cold body as the power consumed her, sending his dead body into convulsions.  After a moment, he sunk to the floor and then disappeared into a pile of dust.

   She returned to the tombstone she had been speaking to before he had come.  She smiled sadly as she looked down at the name engraved there.

   * Buffy Anne Summers *

**********
  Present Day

   Willow sat and stared at the tomb.  It was dusty.  No one had come to visit it in too many years.  Did anyone even remember who her friend was?  She didn’t think so.  Almost a thousand years had past since the slayer had died.  Since they’d all died.  Willow turned slightly to see the graves surrounding that of her long dead friend.
   There were four of them.  Each a testament to someone who had died for the greater good.  Someone who had died so that life could go on. Someone who she wept bloody tears for, even a thousand years later.

   Xander Lavelle Harris.  He had been her best friend her entire life.  Even in death.  He could always make her laugh, even if that wasn’t his attention.

  Cordelia Chase.  She had hated her for most of her life, but had learned to understand her in the end.  She was so much more than she appeared.

Anya.  She had been a vengeance demon for more than eleven hundred years, until she lost her powers and became mortal.  She had fallen in love with Xander.  They made an odd couple, but no more so than the rest.  The Hellmouth could reek havoc on ones love life.

Rupert Giles.  He was her mentor.  A Watcher.  A Father.  A teacher.  She missed him greatly.

Only Oz survived.  And only because he was a coward.  He had run away when things got too tough for him.  He had left her, after shagging a she-wolf.  He told her he didn’t want to hurt her.  He had.  But that pain had long since healed.  She moved on.  Into eternity.

   She ran into him once, several years after the change.  He had tried to tell her how sorry he was.  He wanted to apologize to her.  Wanted her to understand why he had left.  Wanted her to forgive him.  He didn’t even know about the others.  He didn’t know that they were gone.  He didn’t know she had changed.  She killed him, although there was no pleasure in the kill.  The nature of her beast made it so.

Would she have gone through with her plan that night if she had known what would happen?  She didn’t know.  But looking back, she realized that was the nature of destiny.  With knowledge, things would have gone differently.  But had they gone differently, the world would have changed.  She would have changed it.

   Willow took one last look at the names engraved in ancient stone and walked briskly through the cemetery, towards home.

**********

      Angel drove through the silent streets of Sunnydale, trying to take in all that he could.  He was trying to memorize the town.  Trying to remember the town as it had appeared when he had been their last.

    So much had changed.  The buildings were different, the people had changed.  But the vibe, that was the same.  Sunnydale radiated evil.  The Hellmouth kept that part of history alive.  He wondered briefly if there was a slayer here, now.  And if so, did they know what was about to be unleashed?  It had been a thousand years since the portal had been opened.  A thousand years since the evil had almost escaped.  A thousand years since he had watched his love die.

    He remembered how she looked as if he had seen her yesterday.  He remembered the single tear she shed as she breathed her last intake of breath.  The calm acceptance as her heart beat for the last time.  He closed her eyes then, and had been forever haunted with the knowledge that his eternity would be that much longer.

   Angel took a deep unneeded breath as he forced his thoughts away from that moment.  As he drove down the street, he found himself turning down the road which led to the mansion.  He didn’t really expect it to be there after all these years, but he had a sudden desire to see something familiar.  Something that would tell him he really had come home.

   He parked his car and walked to the place where the mansion had stood.  He looked up in wonderment at the building, which now stood before him.

“This is the epitome of irony, don’t you think?”  Willow’s voice was soft behind him, as she too gazed at the building.

 Angel turned around and smiled at his old friend. “Artificial sunlight? Is there actually a business in that?”

 Willow laughed.  It was full of humor, “not for our kind.”

Angel laughed as well, as the two friends walked back to Angel’s car.

**********

      Willow walked into the hotel, followed by Angel and smiled. “Spike will be pleased to see you.”  She pushed the elevator button. “Why don’t you go catch up with him.”

  The elevator door opened, and angel stepped in.  When he realized Willow wasn’t joining him, he turned around.  “Where are you going?”

  Willow’s eyes sparkled mischievously. “Out.  Tell Spike to back his bags.  We’re going home.”

**********

     Sunnydale December 1999

   The room was completely silent. Giles and Buffy were searching through some ancient text for some reference to Hell’s Gate.  Xander was trying to decide whether or not he should go after Willow, despite Angel’s warnings.  He had just about made up his mind when Anya and Cordelia came walking into the large house.  Anya was carrying a large book, which appeared to be older than she was, and Cordelia was holding some sort of weapon Xander didn’t recognize.  It had a long handle with indentations on either side.  A stone was placed on one end, secured by nothing as far as he could tell.  The other end was curved and had an odd looking metal protruding from it.

 “We got it!”  Cordelia seemed pleased with herself.

  Giles lifted himself off of the couch.  “Is that it?  Are you sure?”

Cordelia rolled her eyes.  “Yes, but according to the book, it’ll only work if the portal is never opened.  Once opened only the sorceress can close it.”

“How’s it work?”  Buffy asked, anxious to be able to have something to fight, or at least something to fight with.

 Anya grabbed the weapon out of Cordelia’s hands, swinging it around like a baton.  There were several near misses with the metallic end, before Anya lifted it over her head and twisted it so that the metallic end was behind her and the end with the large stone was facing the rest of the room.

 “If you take this through the entrance to the portal, before it is opened, the stone will collect all the energies which are being displaced, giving someone enough time to perform the ritual.”  She set the weapon down along the table with a thud. “However, if the portal has already been opened…”

“Only the sorceress can close it. We know.” Xander supplied.  Anya rolled her eyes.

“Yes, but, even more than that, this weapon becomes a liability.  It will help to draw the evil out.  So if the portal has already been opened, you must destroy this.”  Anya looked to each one of the people in turn to make sure they understood the gravity of the situation.

 “I thought it couldn’t be destroyed?”  Giles asked.  He was dealing in an area, which he had believed to be myth, therefore he was unprepared.

“That’s partially true.  It’s not the weapon itself that is protected.  Just the stone.  But, like the portal itself, there is a small window of opportunity once every one thousand years.  The problem is that if you wait too long to destroy the stone, the portal is opened, and the evil released, but if you destroy it too soon, you risk not being able to use it to displace the energy.”

“So either way, we die.”  Cordelia’s words were never truer.

********

    “Shall we begin?”  Willow turned to look at the vampire on her left.  He grunted in response.  She directed a handful the master’s minions to different areas of the room, hoping that they wouldn’t ask her too many questions about what she was doing.

     She sat down in the middle of the floor, and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath, which she hoped wouldn’t be her last.
After several moments, she opened her eyes, to find five vampires staring at her expectantly.  Each one at a specific point.  She watched at they past a bowl around.  As the bowl came before each demon, they dropped several drops of blood into the bowl.  When they were finished, the master handed the bowl to her.  She added a few items to the bowl, and watched a thin green-blue smoke rise.  She then set the bowl down while she picked up a knife.  She took the sharp blade of the knife and made an even slice across the inside of her hand.  Once the blood started to flow, she held it over the bowl, watching at her blood mixed with the smoke.

    After a few seconds, the smoke started to ripple.  It seemed to be taking solid shape, and then, in an instant, it was gone.  She was the only one close enough to see the transformation. She smiled.

“Done.  Now we may proceed.”

********

    Angel and Spike stood outside of the master’s lair, listening.
“Okay, she has started the ritual.”  Angel told his childe.
“How much time to we have?”
“”I’m not really sure.  Maybe an hour?”
Spike growled.

*********

    Cymia’  watched at the witch began the ritual.  Things were going just as they should.  Soon, the evil would be contained, and she could rest.

********

Part 7:
********
   Present Day:

    Willow walked towards the Master’s Lair, wondering if his minions would give her any trouble.  She kind of hoped they would.  She was in desperate need for a kill.  But killing innocents didn’t appeal to her, so she had to rely on the death of her own kind.  She realized how cruel that would sound, had her kind been anything other than demons.

    She entered the lair without running into any of the former master’s minions.  She knew that the majority of them would still be out on the hunt.  That would only serve her purpose.  She smiled when she entered a small room and found Julien speaking quietly to a fledgling.  He tensed slightly when he felt her presence.

“Mistress.”  He stood up straight and approached Willow.  She smiled at her new servant and took a seat in one of the comfortable chairs in the room.

“When the others return from the hunt, gather them downstairs.  Tell them I have an announcement.”

Julien nodded and headed towards the doors, at once realizing that things were about to change.

*********

    “Spike?” Angel called as he walked into the main room of the hotel Suite.

 “Peaches?”  Spike came walking out of the bedroom smoking a cigarette. “Where’s Willow?”

  Angel chuckled at the site of his childe.  It had been several years since they had seen one another.  Almost seventy-five years, but he hadn’t changed... much.

“She said she had an errand.  Did you know they changed the mansion into an artificial sunlight factory?”

Spike snorted.  “Yeah.  I saw.  You hungry?”  Spike turned towards the small kitchen hidden in one corner of the room.  “I think I may even have something virginal.”  He winked at his sire’s good-natured glare as he opened the fridge. He shook his head.  “Nope, no virgins here.  How about an old married woman?”  He chuckled as he pulled out a blood bag and stuck it in the heating unit.
   After a few seconds, he pulled the blood out and emptied it into a mug.  Walking over to the couch, he handed his sire the mug. “Here.  Don’t worry, it isn’t fresh.”  He smirked as Angel took a sniff at the warmed blood.

“Clarion blood?”  Angel asked, amused.  “I thought there was an endangered species tag on them?”

Spike snorted.  “You don’t ask, mate, and I won’t tell.”

Angel nodded and smiled, remembering how the creatures had delighted Willow when they went to Africa a few centuries back.  He wasn’t sure what had pleased her more, the sight of them trampling smaller animals in the wild, or the richness of their blood.

“Sire?”   David walked into the living room.  Spike looked up, frowning at the intrusion.

“Some of the boys reported that there was talk of a new master.  Most of the locals are gathering at their lair.  Seems the new master wants to make an announcement.”

  Angel and Spike both thought over this new information.

“Willow.” Spike realized as he stood up and grabbed his leather duster.

“Her errand?”  Angel asked as he followed his childe out of the building.

********

Sunnydale December 1999

   Willow sat in the circle and took several deep breaths, summoning all of the courage she could.  She could feel the energy pulsating.  It was almost time.
 

*********

    Xander left Spike’s house determined to help Willow in anyway he could.  He was followed by Cordelia who carried the ancient book, Anya who had control of the weapon, Buffy, who was thankful to have something to do, and Giles, who was unsure of the wisdom of their actions, but unwilling to sit by and do nothing.

  They reached the master’s lair and crept quietly to one side of the building, trying to avoid being caught.  Remarkably there didn’t seem to be any guards outside of the building.

   Xander did notice Angel against a wall on the opposite side of the building.  He was pleased to discover that from his vantagepoint, Angel couldn’t see them.  He hoped that by the time he realized they were there, it would be too late.

********

  Willow rose to a standing position, and started chanting in a language long dead to both man and beast.  She felt the power surging within her veins.  Soon, she could see the doorway, within her mind, and as she concentrated on opening the entrance, a portal emerged.

   It was at that moment that all hell broke loose, so to speak.
 

  Xander came into the lair, followed by Anya, Cordelia, Buffy and Giles.  A fight broke out.  Willow groaned inwardly.  There was nothing she could do.  She was rooted in place by the energies spilling from the portal.  The evil was starting to come through.  Her time was limited.  If she didn’t perform the ritual now, it would be too late.

************
 

   Spike was the first to hear the screech.

“Bloody Hell!!” Spike growled, realizing that Xander had gone into the vampire’s lair.  “That wanker is going to ruin everything!”  He hopped over the wall with Angel close behind him.

*********

   Cymia’ watched in terror.  She had waited for millennia for her time on this world to end.  And just as it was about to, three humans and a former vengeance demon interrupted fate.  The ritual had been started and there was nothing she could do.  If it wasn’t completed she would have to wait another thousand years.  Cymia’ did not believe she had that much time left.

********

     Willow was stuck in place.  Everything was in slow motion.  She willed herself to concentrate on the portal before her.  The evil was escaping.  It was up to her to seal the portal and finish the ritual.  She felt the energy surging before her.  She summoned all of the strength within herself, and began the summoning.  The evil beckoned to her.  She could see it clearly in her mind.  It had no shape, no form, no body, it simply existed.  She was close; she could almost grasp its essence.

   Just as Willow was about to finish the ritual, it was gone.  The presence she had felt within herself had fled.  She opened her eyes and saw that Buffy had the weapon.  She was pointing the end with the stone towards the portal’s entrance.

 “NO!!!!!!” Willow screamed.  She tried to move her body, each second lasting a lifetime.  The closer she got to Buffy, the farther away she seemed.  When she had finally reached the weapon she felt her body come in contact with something, and then everything went black.

********

     The master vampire was outraged.  How dare these mortals try and disrupt his moment of glory.  When he noticed that one of them carried the arm of Vay’ena, he felt fear.  If the weapon were used before the witch could open the portal, then all would be lost.  He turned to the circle and breathed an unneeded sigh of relief as he saw that the portal was opening.  The humans were too late.

    He laughed as the Slayer attempted to stop the portal by using the weapon.  It was too late.  Her effort would only aid in her own destruction. Once the portal was opening the Vay’ena stone would only draw the evil out.

  Out of the edge of his vision he saw the witch move.  She was trying to destroy the weapon.  She knew what it could do, which also meant she probably knew how to destroy it, and the portal.  He had to kill her, before all was lost.  Now that she had opened the portal, she was a dangerous liability.

   He was closer to the portal than the witch.  He made it there just before her, and used all of his strength to throw her across the room.  He knew he had to finish the job.  If she didn’t die, there was still the chance she could close the portal.

   Just as the master reached the witch he felt someone move behind him.  He thought it was one of the humans.  By the time he turned around, it was too late.  He turned to see the amber eyes of a demon, and then nothing.  He felt his dead body collapse in on itself as it turned to dust.

*********

  Spike ran up to Willow.  She was lying in a heap on the floor.  For a moment he thought she was dead, but then she moved.  She groaned, in obvious pain.

  Willow opened her eyes to see the amber eyes of Spike’s demon staring back at her.  She lifted her hand up to caress his ridges.  They dissolved under her touch.  She smiled weakly.

“The portal.  I… I have to… close it.”  Her breath was labored.  Her chest hurt.  She knew she was running out of time.

“There isn’t enough time.”  Angel crouched down next to her. “You can push it back, but you don’t have enough strength to perform the ritual.

Willow nodded realizing what he said was true.  She sat up, drawing on strength she didn’t know she had.  Spike helped to steady her.  She walked back into the circle and stepped closer to the dwindling portal.  She let the energy fill her body, take momentary control.  It was drawing strength away from her.  Her knees grew weak and she fell to the floor.  She didn’t have enough power, she realized.  She would fail.

********

    Cymia’ watched at the witch drew on every ounce of strength she possessed.  It wasn’t enough.  The power was overtaking her.  In an instant Cymia realized what she had to do.  She reached out through time and space, towards the witch now lying in a heap on the floor.  She felt her power draining.  It was leaving her.  She knew her time here was done.  She had fulfilled her destiny.  She reached out with her mind and found the spirit of the witch.

   Just before her eyes closed for the last time, Cymia’ saw the portal close in on itself, imprisoning the evil for another one thousand years.

*********

    Once the portal had closed, Willow felt her life leaving her body.  She felt strange.  She was weak, but yet strong.  She couldn’t move.  She was losing consciousness, she realized.

“Sp… Spike” His name died on her lips as she felt her heart stop.

********
    Spike felt her life draining from her body and new that it was time.  He bent his head down towards her neck.  His eyes were closed.  She was calling to him. He felt him demon emerge, and all else ceased to exist. He bit into the dwindling pulse point on her neck, and drained the last bit of life from her.  He took his right hand and cut a line into his left wrist using the dagger Angel had insisted he bring.  He then brought his now bleeding wrist up to Willow’s lips, forcing her to drink from him.  At first there was only a trickle of the red liquid to flow into her awaiting mouth.  But soon, the need over came her, as she hungrily lapped at the blood of her lover.

   Spike forced his gaze away from his childe and onto his Sire, to be sure he was performing the spell.  He couldn’t stand the thought of Willow, his Willow turning into a soulless creature of the night, like him.

******

     Angel watched his child carefully, waiting for the exact moment when Willow’s life slipped away, and she embraced death.  It was then that the change could be completed.  He started chanting, calmly at first, but soon a power overtook him.  It was like nothing he had ever experienced before.  It was a swirl of energy.  Life and death mixed with something he couldn’t quite decipher.  And then he felt it.  The connection.  First it was just his Childe, then it was Willow, and her power seemed to overcome all else. She was strong, much more so than he even realized.  That’s when he knew that she would be unlike any vampire that had ever walked the earth.  Unlike any that ever would walk the earth.

  Angel was bombarded with the power his childe and the witch shared. The two seemed to be locked into some kind of bond.  They had taken over the ritual.  He was no longer in control.  He could feel Willow’s demon come to life.  Its feel was dark, predatory.  But just as quickly as it had appeared, it was gone.  No, not gone, contained.

   Angel felt the power leave his body, and was immediately filled with an overwhelming sense of exhaustion.  He fought through his hazy mind to see if he had been successful.  He dragged his body slightly closer to where his childe sat.
   At first glance his fear gripped him as he noticed that Willow had stopped breathing. Then he realized that she would never breathe again, and a terrible sadness filled him.  All he could do was watch, and wait, and hope that the ritual had been successful.

   ******

     Willow felt her life leaving her body.  She wasn’t afraid.  She knew this would happen.  She knew that she would live on.  Spike would make sure of that.  She only hoped that Angel could perform the ritual.  If not, she was sentenced to eternity as a soulless demon, or a quick and painless death at the hands of a stake.  However, Willow knew that Spike wouldn’t be able to bring himself to stake her.  He had promised her he would, but she didn’t think he could do it.  Instead he would lock her up until they could modify Angel’s curse to fit her.

    Her head was foggy; her thoughts were becoming mingled, intertwined with one another.  That’s when she felt it.  A power, her power was taken over.  It was reaching out, through the blackness, through death to find what it sought.  It didn’t have to search for long.  Its strength was over powering.  She knew Angel was performing the ritual.  Binding her soul to her power, binding her to her mate, binding her power to her immortal body.

   ********
 

       Present Day

   Willow waited patiently as the last few fledglings entered the building.  They were all whispering to one another, wondering what was going on.
 She almost laughed out loud at the sight.  These fledglings were young, untrained.  If they were to survive, they would have a lot to learn.

  “Mistress?”  Julien approached Willow cautiously.
“Yes?”
“Everyone is here.”
“Excellent.  We’re almost ready.  I am just waiting for two more arrivals.”

   Almost as if on cue Angel and Spike took that moment to approach the master’s lair.  They had barely reached the heavy doors when they were confronted with the less than frightening glare of a minion.  Spike brushed past him, taking a split second to snap his neck.
  Angel followed his childe in chuckling.
“Children”

   Once inside, Spike found it necessary to stake several more minions before he could reach the center of activity.  Just before he reached it, he heard several growls from one side of the room.  There was a lot of hissing, and it was apparent that there would be a fight.  Spike and Angel stopped, preparing to battle the young vampires.

“Stop!”  Willow’s hiss quieted the room.

   The local vampire population stood still, waiting to see what action was about to be taken.

   Willow calmly walked over to one of the offending creatures and pulled out a stake out of a hidden pocket and staked the vampire in one fluid motion.  Without a second thought, Willow turned her back on the vampires and returned to her place in the center of the room, motioning for Spike and Angel to join her.

*******
    Sunnydale December 1999

       The silence was deafening.  The air was thick, filled with death.  The portal had been closed, the evil contained but at what price?  Everyone had died.  Xander lay slumped across the dead body of his ex-demon lover.  A stake had pierced her heart.  Xander’s death had been quick.  His neck had been snapped in an effort to keep him from helping the witch.  He hadn’t lived long enough to hear Giles’ bones crushing just a few feet away.  He hadn’t seen the weapon seemingly split Cordelia’s body in two.
   In a few short minutes, their lives had been taken, and only the dead remained.

******

   The first thing Willow was aware of was the silence.  Nothing moved.  Nothing breathed.  Then came the hunger.  Unlike any she had ever known.  It was paralyzing. The scent of blood was overpowering.  It was everywhere all around her.  But it was stale.  Dead.  She opened her eyes, and tried to adjust the differences in her vision.  She could see things that had been invisible before.  She could feel things in the air.  The essence of life.  Except here.  Here everything was dead.  She turned her head slightly to see Spike staring at her with his icy blue eyes.  He was waiting for her.  Waiting to see what she would do.

“I’m hungry.”
“I know, pet.”  Spike offered her his wrist.  The same one that had given her eternal life and she greedily took it. After several moments, he gently took his wrist away.
“Better?”
“Yes.”  She looked around the chamber, seeing her friends’ broken and dead bodies.  She felt a power surge within her.  At first she couldn’t identify it.  It was unlike anything she had ever felt.  But then she realized it was rage.  Powered by her new vampiric attributes, her anger was becoming tangible within her.  She felt her demon.  It was demanding retribution.  But then she felt a wave of love.  It washed over her.  It calmed the beast, which slumbered within her veins.

“Luv?  How are you feeling?  Are you weak?”  Spike’s voice was soft, but it sliced through the silence, reminding Willow once again of the death that surrounded her.
Willow wasn’t sure how to answer.  She felt… different.  Dead, but yet more alive.  She couldn’t feel her heart beating, or her lungs working to give her breath, but she could feel other things.  See other things.  She wondered if it was this way for all vampires, or if this was an effect of the ritual.
  Willow turned her head around, seeking the only other body that still held the hope of movement.
“Angel?”  She whispered, almost afraid of the answer.

“I’m… I’m fine.”  Angel stood up from somewhere behind her.  He was close, she could feel him.  She wasn’t exactly sure what it was she was feeling.  It was just a presence, but it was distinctive. She recognized it as Angel.

   Spike stood up and pulled her with him.
“We had better go, luv.  There is nothing more we can do here.”
Willow looked around the room at the dead bodies of her friends and fought the urge to cry.  She had to be strong.  Her life, as she had known it, was over.  She nodded slightly, and turned to find Angel standing behind her, staring passed her, to the dead body of the slayer.

*****

    Present Day  -  December 2999

     Willow took a deep, unneeded breath, and smiled.
“Can you believe this lot?”  She asked as Angel and Spike sunk into the couch.  After Willow’s announcement, the trio had returned to the hotel suite to prepare for the move the following evening.  Willow had made it clear that the master was dead and she and Spike were in control.  No one dared question her.  She frightened them.  She had power that radiated from her.  Something that wasn’t apparent to the average mortal, but to a vampire it spoke of life and death, and of the danger of crossing her.  She was strong, stronger than the average vampire.  But it was more than that she was powerful.  Her strength and power were within her, not her demon.  The demon didn’t control her, she controlled it.

“Well, luv, what do you expect?  This is Sunnyhell.”  Spike grinned.
 “I hate to break the mood, but you realize that our fight isn’t over?”  Angel’s tone grew serious with each passing word.

Willow’s green eyes clouded over for a moment, “Yes, Angel.  I do.  But we will succeed.  We have to.”  Her voice was soft, full of regret.  Full of memories she hadn’t let herself remember for over a thousand years.

*******

  Sunnydale December 1999

   Willow walked down the streets of Sunnydale in eerie silence.  She could still feel death.  It surrounded her.  It was her. The silence of the night was deafening. The night air was cool against her skin.  The trees were stilled due to the lack of breeze.  She looked up into the clear night sky and as the stars twinkled down at her she realized this was her life.  The night was her existence, for eternity.  And she didn’t mind.  It felt comfortable.  The dark was no longer something to be afraid of but as comfortable as an old friend.

   She stopped in front of the doors to Spike’s house.  She was hesitant to go in.  She didn’t want to see the reminders of all she had lost on this night.  The people she couldn’t save.  A part of her was angry.  They weren’t supposed to be there.  If they had listened, maybe they would still be alive.  Another part of her, the part that clung to her humanity realized she couldn’t blame them. It wasn’t in their nature to sit by and do nothing.
  She took a deep unneeded breath as she sat down on the steps and waited for her companions.

 ******

   Spike and Angel walked in silence from the master’s lair.  They were a couple of blocks behind Willow, but close enough to still see her.  It was quiet.  The local vampires were staying in tonight.  They were probably afraid of being caught in the backlash of the portal’s opening.

    Spike was staring after Willow, trying to gauge her mood from her body language.  She seemed to be taking the evenings events well.  She hadn’t cried, and that’s what worried him.  She had lost almost everyone who was close to her.  She had lost her life.  He wanted her to grieve.  He wanted them both to grieve. He found himself saddened by their loss.  He wouldn’t go so far as to say that he was saddened by the deaths of the slayer and her merry band, but they had died well.  The slayer was a formidable opponent. Much more so than any other that he had come across.

“Angelus.”  Spike’s voice broke through the silence of the night.  Angel stiffened at Spike’s use of his name.  He stopped and looked at his childe. He could see the concern in his blue eyes.
“Will she be alright?”
Angel followed his childe’s gaze to the redhead ahead of them.
“She has lost a lot tonight.  But she’s strong.  She’ll be fine.”  He smiled slightly, realizing the truth to his words. Spike’s next words caught him off-guard.
“So will you, Peaches, so will you.”  Spike continued to walk, followed by Angel.  He could feel Angel relax slightly, behind him.

   Spike had to admit he missed his sire.  The last few years had been difficult between the two.  So much had changed.  So much of their relationship was lost.  He remembered when he had first come to Sunnydale three years ago.  His sire had disgusted him.  He had not only had a soul, but he had gotten involved with the slayer.  Of all things, that was the worst.  When he had lost his soul, again, the following year, Spike had been ecstatic.  Until he realized that Angelus had been tainted by his time with the Slayer.  Gone was the sire he remembered, replaced by a bitter copy.  That’s not to say that the Angelus he had known wasn’t ruthless, but that he wasn’t driven by a blinding hatred for what he had become for nearly a century.
   Things only went downhill from there.  Angelus’ return divided him from Druscilla, his dark goddess, causing him to make a deal with the Slayer, which ended with his Sire being sent to hell.  He had regretted that.  Things had never been the same with Druscilla after that.  They had left Sunnydale, only for him to return the following year, in a vain attempt to get his Druscilla back.  That was the night things had changed.  He didn’t know it at the time, but his fate had been sealed when he kidnapped the fiery redheaded witch. He had wanted her to perform a love spell.  He chuckled at the insanity of it.  He left Sunnydale, without the spell, only to find himself back there the following year.  This time, he was looking for the fabled Ring of Amarra, a sort of Holy Grail for Vampires. When he left Sunnydale that time, he went to Los Angeles, where he took great pleasure in the torture of his sire. That hadn’t worked out as planned.  He returned to Sunnydale shortly afterwards with the intent of making the Slayer’s life very difficult, only to be attacked, kidnapped, and ‘neutered’ by a secret commando organization.  After he escaped he had been forced into helping the Slayer and her merry band of misfits.  One of who was the redheaded witch.  The one he had fallen in love with.  He wasn’t sure when it had happened, he only knew that it had.
   And now, here they were, the dawn of a new millenium approaching, and with it, the realization that they would have to be here, in another one thousand years, to finish what they had started tonight.

******

    Angel sat down next to Willow and smiled, still marveling at the sparkle that still remained in her eyes, despite all that she had lost.
“How are you?”  He asked quietly.
Willow turned to look at him, her green eyes staring into his dark ones. “Okay, I guess.  I don’t think it’s really sunk in yet.  I know they’re gone, but I can’t really feel it, not really.  It’s almost as if it happened to someone else.”  She turned her gaze to Spike, who was standing a little farther away, letting her speak to Angel in private. “Spike?”  She asked.
“Yes, Luv?”  He asked as he approached her.  He crouched down so that he was at eye level with her.
“Can we… Can we go? I don’t think…” She trailed off, unsure of what she was trying to say.  Spike smiled at her and nodded his head.  “Sure, Luv.  We can leave.  You just wait here. I’ll be back.”  He stood up and walked past her into his house, knowing that they probably wouldn’t return for a very long time.

*******

   Present – Sunnydale 2999

   Angel looked out at the darkened sky and sighed unnecessarily.  It was close.  He could feel it.  The power was emanating from the cavern.  He hadn’t been back to Sunnydale in a thousand years.  It held to many memories.  He wondered briefly about the outcome in the fight that lay ahead of them.  This time things were different.  This time they wouldn’t have to fight the vampires to gain entrance to the portal.  This time, it would open without Willow’s assistance.  Her very presence in the Hellmouth was enough to cause the portal to open.  But this time, she would wage a battle against the evil.  Her power was stronger; stronger than it had been that night all those years ago.  Stronger than anyone would have believed.  Her power grew with each passing day.  The centuries had afforded her much control.  She had learned to master things no mortal would ever understand. Things that were hard for even him to comprehend.

   The sounds of a scuffle outside brought Angel out of his thoughts.  He made his way to the front of the house, and nearly stopped cold at the site.  There was a young girl.  She couldn’t have been more than seventeen.  She was surrounded by a group of vampires.  She was prepared to fight them, and win.  Of that he was sure.  She was a slayer, he knew.  He wasn’t sure why, but that fact surprised him.  She was nothing like Buffy.  She was tall, and muscular.  With Long black hair, swept into a twist around her face.  Her eyes were black, like coal. She stood in a circle of vampires, ready to fight.  Angel chuckled at the site as he walked closer.

“Well, what do we have here?  A Slayer?”  He asked as he made his way into the circle.  She eyed him warily.
“Who are you?  Their master?” Her tone was cold.
He laughed, a deep rumbling sound. “No, not quite.  What is it you want, slayer?”  His voice was mocking, reminding him of how much he was more like his unsouled self, than the vampire that had met Willow all those years ago.

“To kill you, of course.  That is my job.” She smiled, but the smile didn’t reach her eyes.

“In case you hadn’t noticed, you’re slightly outnumbered, ducks.”  Spike said from behind Angel.  The slayer craned her neck to see Spike, who was obscured from her view.

She smiled again.  A purely evil thing. “I take it, you’re the master of this sorry lot?”  She asked, motioning to the vampires that still surrounded her.

“No.  That would be me.”  Willow’s voice was calm, almost a whisper.  As she grabbed the slayer from behind, and twisted her neck almost to the point of breaking. She leaned forward until her lips were inches from the slayer’s ear. “Slayer,” She hissed, “You don’t belong here.”  She paused, “I am going to let you go, but know this, You won’t be so lucky the next time.”  She let her grip go, and motioned for the vampires to back off.

 The slayer stared unbelievingly at the woman standing before her.  She noticed her fiery red mane of hair, her emerald green eyes, and her pale complexion.  But what really unnerved her was the feel of the woman.  She radiated power.  She didn’t feel like any vampire she had ever met before.

“You’re not like them.”  She stared into Willow’s eyes, while she motioned to Angel and Spike, who were the only vampires left.

Willow’s green eyes sparkled, “No.  I’m not.”  She paused for effect and then continued, “You don’t belong here, Slayer.  I suggest you leave, and not come back.” She watched the Slayer with curious eyes.

   The slayer stared at the three vampires, trying to decide whether or not she should leave.  Looking into Willow’s green eyes, she noticed a flash of gold, and realized that she may not be able to win a fight with this demon.  She nodded once and left the three vampires.

******

     Willow watched the slayer leave and took a deep unneeded breath.
“That girl will be trouble.  I want her followed.”

******

   Present Day – December 2999

Julien walked slowly into the Mistress’ chamber.  He was nervous.  He had news to bring her, and he feared she wouldn’t be pleased. When he entered, he noticed the room was empty, or so it appeared.  Julien knew she was there.  He couldn't feel her, but that wasn’t unusual.  The Mistress had the ability to mask her presence, even among vampires.  She was a fascinating creature.  Julien was young, at least in comparison to the Mistress and her brood, but he had lived for a few centuries, and had never come across anything that even came close to comparing to her.
    He’d heard the rumors for over a hundred years, when he first came to Sunnydale.  The local master had been preparing for the day when he could reopen the portal, and set the evil free.  Many of the fledglings thought he was crazy.  They believed it was a fairy tale, a myth.  But the Master was strong; they didn’t dare challenge him.  In the past century others had tried, and failed.  Julien was not so naïve as to believe that what the Master sought was a myth.  He had seen things in his time that even the undead found unbelievable.  His sire had been a philosopher, of sorts.  He had been a watcher when he was human, and his quest for knowledge had carried over.  He instilled that desire into Julien, and he embraced it fully.
   When he had first heard the story about the portal, and the last time it had been opened, he knew that it was no myth.  The witch who had closed it was still alive.  He didn’t know how he knew, but he knew it was true.  The Master had feared her.  That in and of itself, was something.  When they had learned that a group of Vampires had come to Sunnydale, so close to the anniversary of the opening, he knew it was no coincidence.  When the Master gave the order to capture them, he knew it couldn’t be done.  He knew they would die.  He had accepted it.  He even welcomed it.  He knew that if the Master was successful and the portal was opened, it would mean death for them all.

   His need for death had changed the moment he was taken to the mistress.  The moment his was standing in the same room as her.  He knew she was the one.  She was powerful, strong, and deadly.  She was also their salvation.
  There was something different about her, he knew.  He wasn’t exactly sure what it was.  She was a vampire, of that there was no doubt, but she was also something else.  He supposed it was because she had been such a powerful witch when she was alive, but there was more to it than that.

   “Julien.”  The Mistress brought Julien out of his inner thoughts, and reminded him of why he had come.

“Mistress.  I have some news for you.”

Willow turned to look at her young servant, and smiled.  She could tell he was nervous.  That meant his news wasn’t good.

“Come.  Tell me.  What have you learned.”  Her voice was calming.

“The Slayer.  She has found out about the cavern. She plans on stopping the opening.”

Willow turned around and smiled.  “And her watcher?  Is he here as well?”  She asked, a plan already forming in her mind.

Julien hesitated.  “Uh, no.  She doesn’t have one. She, uh, She…”
Willow turned back to Julien, her eyes, glinting dangerously.  “She killed him?  Yes, I thought as much.”  She smiled again.  “Excellent.  Keep an eye on her.  I want to know everything that she does.  Every movement, every thought.  Understood?”
Julien nodded and started to leave, when Willow stopped him. “Julien?”
He turned to look at his Mistress.  “Yes, Mistress?”

Willow walked towards the younger vampire.  “I’ve been checking up on you. I know what you know.  I know what you can do.  Don’t be afraid to use your knowledge.  Your power is strong.”  She smiled at him, signaling that he could leave.

*******

     After Julien left, Willow chuckled to herself.  When she had killed the Master and taken over his minions, she knew that most of them would die.  If not by the battle that lay ahead, than by her own hand.  The Master had been stupid, ignorant.  His servants weren’t any better.  She had expected to find them lacking, and she was not disappointed.  What she had not expected was to find Julien.  He was different.  He wasn’t like the others.  It wasn’t very often that she was surprised by a young one, and on this particular occasion it was a rather pleasant surprise.

********

     Moira paced uneasily in her house.  She was nervous.  She was being watched.  She knew it was vampires.  She could feel them.  She had killed several of them, but every time she did, more would come.
   She was out numbered, and out-smarted, by the enemy.  That thought didn’t sit well with the Slayer.  She had only been called two years ago, but since that time had slain more than she could effectively count.  And not just Vampires.  She had no conscious to speak of.  The innocents didn’t get in the way of her calling.  Her watcher had been appalled at her lack of remorse.  That was his problem.  Well, not anymore it wasn’t.  She killed him six months ago, and she never regretted it.  The only thing she regretted was that she hadn’t done it when she was first called.

    She was alone now.  The council had abandoned her. In killing her watcher she had ended a long line of watchers.  Generations, that spanned the millenium.  Her watcher had once told her about his ancestor.  He was a Watcher who lived on the Hellmouth.  This Hellmouth, and survived, well almost.  He had eventually died.  That had been a thousand years ago.  Her watcher spoke of the man with a great deal of respect.  It didn't matter.  Nothing did.  He was just another watcher, another mortal who didn’t deserve to live.  She laughed out loud.  When she was through, they would all be dead.  Every last one of them.  The mortals, the vampires, the demons.  It didn’t matter, they would all die.

    It had been a long time since she had been afraid, and she refused to admit that she was now.  Fear was for the weak, and she wasn’t weak.  She would wait, and soon, they would slip up, they would make a mistake, and immortality would be hers.  Then, nothing would stand in her way.  Nothing would stop her from plunging the world into eternal darkness.

*******

    “Mistress?”  David entered the chamber.
“Yes, David?”  Willow smiled.  He was her favorite childe.
“I have spoken to Lydia.  She has the information you requested.”
Willow turned around, her back towards the vampire. “Good.  Where are the others?”  She asked as she gazed out at the starless sky.

“Out.  Hunting.  They’ve been gone for several hours, and should return soon.”

Willow nodded.  “When they return, tell them we have what we need.”  She turned, and stepped past her childe.  “I’m hungry.  I’ll be back soon.”

  David watched his sire slip out of the house into the darkness.

******

     Willow walked through the park, seeking out her prey with a stealth that was unheard of, even for her kind.  She could feel her prey.  He was getting closer.  He thought he could out run her.  He thought he could hide.  He should know better.
   She approached a tree.  She knew the creature was hiding on the other side, awaiting his death.  Willow looked up, and lunged silently for the branch, which was beckoning to her, like an arm to help her up.  She flipped and found herself crouching above the stiff bark.  The tree was old; she could feel its life surging through its tendrils.  Willow smiled, as she peered over the side to see her prey.  He was crouched on one side of the tree, listening.  When he didn’t hear her, he slowly made his way around the tree.  Believing he was safe, he breathed a sigh of relief.  It was short-lived.  Willow chose that moment to pounce.  Like a graceful cheetah, she flew out of the tree, landing mere centimeters away from her prey.

   ******

   Spike and Angel returned to the lair, expecting to find Willow waiting for them.  She had only gone out hunting once since they had returned.  Angel believed it was because Sunnydale reminded her of who she used to be.  Reminded her that she was different now.  She was the predator, and not the prey.

   “Willow, Luv.  Are you here?”  Spike called out as he walked passed his sire into Willow’s chamber.  The room was empty.
“David!”  Spike barked, as he left the room in search of his grand childe.

  David poked his head in from outside at the sound of Spike’s voice.
“Master, the mistress has gone hunting.  She will return shortly.”

  Spike nodded, “And Lydia?  Have we heard from her?”  He asked, knowing the answer.
“Yes.  She has found the text.  She will be here before morning.”  David started to return to the night air, but then he hesitated.

“David?  What is it?”  Angel asked, noticing the indecision play out among the younger vampire’s features.

  David turned to face his great grand sire. “It’s Lydia.  She sounded… disturbed.”
“How so?”  Angel asked, growing concerned.  David was not one to worry needlessly.
“She says that the Mistress was right.”
“As she always is.”  Spike chuckled.
David smiled.  “This Slayer.  She’s a liability.  She will try and stop the ritual.  Lydia believes that she wants the power for herself.”

   Angel sunk into a nearby chair as he thought about what they had just learned.  “Could she be wrong?  What exactly did she see?” Angel’s voice was laced with dread.

 “She’s not wrong.”  Spike looked at his Sire with such intensity, Angel realized that he knew something.
 “Willow knew that there would be someone here. Someone with the desire to undo what we did.”  He paused, “But it won’t matter.”  Spike said the last as he left the room, leaving Angel and David to think about what he had said.

  ******

    He stared at the creature.  She was like nothing he had ever seen.  He had known she was after him.  But he realized that he only possessed that knowledge, because she allowed him to.  He had no doubt that if she had wanted to remain unseen by him, she would have.  That frightened him.
   She was a creature of legend. Something that many didn’t believe existed.  There were rumors about what she had done here centuries ago.  For most, they were just that, rumors.  But his people believed she would one day return, to finish what she had started.  And so they stayed, and waited, for the day when their history would come full circle.

   He had been taught that it was his sacred duty to insure that she would fail.  The evil must be released.  So it was written, so it must be.  His people believed their was no price too high, to insure victory.  He didn’t agree.  He had allied himself with the slayer.  That was a mistake.  He had thought that if he could manipulate the Slayer into going after the creature, she would be too busy to stop what was to come.
   He was wrong.  Not only had he underestimated the creature, he had made a serious error in the form of the Slayer.  She would try to stop the creature, but only for her own gain.  That couldn’t be allowed to happen.
  But, he was no fool.  He knew where his priorities lay.  His sole responsibility was to the evil, and that which was required to allow it its freedom.  The Slayer wasn’t his concern.  However he feared that if he didn’t make her his concern, things would go badly.

    He stared into the eyes, of the creature, deciding on his best course of action.  He could never outrun her; he couldn’t kill her, so instead he waited, for her to make the first move.

******

   “You should have left, when you had the chance.” Willow hissed.
The demon tried to back away, slowly. Before he had moved more than an inch, Willow had flipped over him, and had him pressed up against the trunk of the tree.

  “You do know who I am, do you not?”

  The demon tried to speak, but this action was hindered by the amount of pressure she was putting on his throat. He nodded as she eased up the pressure.

 “Your people are fools.  But them, I understand.  They had a purpose.  A reason for being.”  She let go and let his body drop to the floor, “But, you, Vaynaya, you ally your self with the Slayer!”  She spat viscously at the demon. “You reek of her foul stench!”  Willow took a deep breath and continued, “It doesn’t matter.  You will die, and she will fail.” She took another step towards him, but was stopped by his words.

 “Why do you hate the Slayer so?  You aren’t like the others.”

Willow laughed out loud.
“You think so?  What do you, a Vaynaya demon know of me?”  When he seemed unwilling, or unable to answer, she continued, “Oh, I am sure that you have history books filled with tales of what happened here a thousand years ago.  Books that tell you what will happen again in a few days, but they are just books, and dusty ones at that.
  “I have lived for a millennia.  I have seen things you could never conceive of.”  She grinned wildly at the confused demon.
 “And you, in all your wisdom, believe that I should not despise the Slayer, because I am different than others of my kind?”  She asked.  When he nodded weakly, she continued, “Well, I am a vampire, lest you forget.”  She chuckled, at the humor in the situation, “But, that is not what makes me hate the Slayer.”  She spat the last word like venom.

   At the demon’s curious gaze, she laughed again, but only for a moment. “In my time, the word Slayer meant something.  It was something to be feared.  She stood for something.  I knew a slayer once, well actually several of them.”  When the demon looked even more confused, she elaborated, “Before the change, I knew three of them.  But the best was Buffy.  There was never a Slayer like her, nor has there been one since.”  Her voce had taken on a sad note, but as soon as it was there, it was gone again. She took a swift step towards the demon, and grabbing him fiercely across the throat, she lifted him high above the ground. Her voice was a deadly hiss.
“But, that’s neither here nor there.”  She didn’t wait for him to respond.  She wasn’t in the mood to play with her food.
    She brought the demon down to rest against her chest, as she tilted his neck, and sank her fangs into the pulse point.  She felt his bitter blood being drawn into her body.  The taste was unmistakable.  It was powerful.  It gave her strength.  It had been such along time since she had drained a demon of his breed.
   As she felt he life slipping away, Willow was infused with a tremendous amount of energy.  She chuckled to herself as she let his lifeless body fall to the ground.
   She turned around as she felt a presence, watching her. She couldn’t see them, but she could feel their life energy radiating from less than a yard away.  She grinned evilly as her human visage slid back into place.

  “There is only one way this can end, Slayer, “ She snarled into the darkness, “I’ll be coming for you next.”

******

  Before Moira could react to the implied threat, or the dead body of the demon slumped against the tree, Willow was gone.  Moira didn’t understand it.  One minutes she was there, feeding, the next, she had vanished.  Moira couldn’t feel her, however that meant nothing.  Moira had never felt her, not even when she was seconds away from snapping her neck.
   She realized that this Vampire, whoever she was, wasn’t going to be easy to kill.  But she had no choice.  If she were to gain immortality, she would have to kill her.  There was no other way.  Her only hope would be in catching her off guard.

*****

From the moment Lydia stepped off of the plane and into the cold night air, she knew it was true. Everything she had seen, everything she had felt, it was real. She clung tightly to the package. She couldn't afford to lose it.

She became wary as she headed to the Masters' lair. She could feel the evil all around. It surrounded her like a cloak. She also felt the presence of the slayer. She felt the death that surrounded the girl. She wanted to go after her. Hunt her down, like they had in the past. But she couldn't risk it. There was too much at stake.

Lydia picked up the pace, and wished for the first time that she had been wrong.

******

The two minions watched the slayer, who watched Lydia. They were confused. They didn't understand what they were doing watching the Slayer. Nor did they understand what the slayer was doing watching the vampiress. There was something odd about the new arrival, but they couldn't place it. She knew she was being watched, and yet she didn't attack. They couldn't understand it. She was weak, they decided. They would earn points in their mistress' favor by telling her of this vampires' weakness.
That decided, they left the position following the Slayer, in search of food.

******

Moira watched the vampire curiously. There was something about her. Something she couldn't quite place. She felt different than the others. She held a package tightly to her chest. She briefly wondered if she should engage the vampire, but then decided it was smarter to wait, and follow her instead.

She quickly became aware that the vampire was going to the master's Lair. At the thought of visiting there again, a feeling of dread overcame her. She wasn't ready to go there again. Wasn't ready to face the strong vampire with the unusual abilities.

Moira sighed heavily as she slowed her pace a bit, and then stopped. She turned around, only to come face to face with the object of her fear.

******

"Slayer." Willow hissed. "I warned you. I have tried to be patient, but you don't listen. You follow my family. You hide in the shadows. You are a disgrace to all who came before you." Willow turned her gaze away from the slayer and whistled.

At the noise, Lydia turned around and smiled when she saw her Mistress. She walked towards the vampire and the Slayer.

"Mistress." Lydia smiled broadly. She turned to the slayer distastefully. "Is this her?" She asked. Willow nodded, and then turned back to the Slayer.

"I shall only say this once, so listen well. If you think that immortality will be yours, think again. There is a price you must pay, to obtain what you seek. A test you must pass. You will fail."

Willow and Lydia melted into the shadows before Moira had a chance to process what the vampire had said.

*****

Willow and Lydia walked back to the lair in silence. Once inside willow turned to the Vampire.
"Is that it?" She asked referring to the package.
Lydia nodded. "Yes." She handed the package to her sire and tried to smile.
"What about her? She won't give up."
Willow's green eyes sparkled. "I know. She wants to play; she just hasn't learned the rules.
Lydia grinned at the mischievous tone in Willow's voice.

Willow's expression grew somber as she entered the main room where David and Angel sat where Spike had left them. She turned to David. "Go find the Master. We have a lot to do, and we're running out of time."

David nodded and quickly left the room.

******

The cave was dark, and it smelled of death. Something that comforted those that lived there. It held this presence, reminding its inhabitants of what was to come.

There was a small circle in the center of the room. The only light being the candles that were set in a pattern around the circle. Seven robed demons stood around the circle, chanting.
After a few moments the room grew silent and a lone figure standing in the shadows spoke.

"It has been done."

One of the demons turned to look at the outsider. "She has claimed another." It was a statement. The demon merely nodded.

"Then it is time."

The demons within the circle left the cave, leaving only the one who had spoken to the outsider. He hesitated at the entrance to the cave.

"Have you seen her?" The outsider nodded again.

"Is she everything we have heard?"

"And more."

******

Lydia had barely made it to the edge of the couch when she collapsed onto the floor in a boneless mass. Her head was splitting apart as the images came forth.

// A cave. The chosen one. Carnage. The evil. Death //

Once the images had stopped, Lydia stood up on shaky legs. She turned to the others, her gaze settling on Willow.

"Another has been called."

******
 
 

"Are you sure?" David asked from where he had moved to the couch.
Lydia tore her gaze away from her sire to look at her mate. "Yes. He is strong." She turned back to Willow, "The Slayer, she's a liability. We must stop her." Lydia sat on the couch and leaned into its plush back while Willow paced around the room, thinking.

After several moments where the only sound that could be heard was Willow's boots brushing against the carpet, she stopped.

"Lydia? The Slayer, she had an alliance with the Vaynaya. What have you learned?"

"The demon approached her. He wanted her to be a distraction for you. She is hungry for power, but she doesn't possess enough knowledge to know what it was she was allying herself with." Lydia stood up and picked up the package from where it had been set down. She gently tore the brown wrapping off, and revealed a book. It was old. The pages were dusty, and crinkled with time. She opened it to a page, which had been bookmarked. Pointing to a drawing she spoke softly.
"I'm not sure where exactly she got her information, but she has learned that IT has the ability to grant her immortality. However, I believe that is all she knows. And foolishly, all she cares to know." Lydia handed the book to Willow, who examined the drawing carefully, and read the passage:

She who walks the path of night will come to destroy us. Her death is our only salvation. Immortality shall be granted to the one, which claims the beast.

Willow spoke the words softly, looking up at Lydia.

"Does the Slayer know of their breed? Of why they are here? Does she even know about the portal?" Willow spit the words out like fire, needed to know all the facts before she formulated a plan.

******

The demon awoke from a deep slumber with only one thought. Destroy. He had been bred for this. His life was nothing, if not for the destruction of the creature. He had never seen her, but he would recognize her anywhere. She was near, he could feel it. Her power surged. Soon the portal would be open, and the world would be plunged into darkness.

But first, he had to correct the mistakes of his predecessors.

He opened his eyes, and turned to the closest of the brethren.

"How long?" He asked. When the demon looked confused, Vencient elaborated. "How long has it been? How long have I slept?"

The demon turned to one of the others, searching for the answer to the old ones question. The brethren whispered amongst themselves. And then turned back to Vencient.
"Six centuries."

Vencient nodded his understanding and quietly left the cave, in search of his prey.

******

Willow was about to speak when she felt it. A wave of energy washed over her. It was familiar, but something she hadn't felt in centuries. She turned to the others.

"He has awakened."

******

Moira paced her small room. She felt like a caged animal. Something was coming, she could feel it. She had watched the vampire kill the demon. She didn't understand. Why was this Vampire attacking her own kind? She had never known a creature so viscous. Moira was beginning to doubt she would make it out of this situation alive.
She wondered what was in the package the other vampire had been carrying. Did it hold answers to some of her questions? She believed it did, but realized she wasn't very likely to find them.

Moira started when she heard a noise out side. She opened her front door and took a step back, knowing that a vampire wouldn't be able to enter without an invitation.
At first she didn't see anything. Just the blackness of the night. Then, slowly, a figure came into view. It was a demon, like the one who had been killed, only taller. He had violet skin, red eyes, and patterns of bumps and ridges all along his body. Two tusks poked out from either side of his mouth. The other demon had amused her, with his plan to kill the vampiress. But this one only brought a feeling of dread.

"What… What do you want?" She asked, feeling like her life was slipping away, right in front of her.

The demon smiled evilly as he entered her house, shutting the door behind him.

*****

Screams could be heard from a mile away, breaking the silence of the night.

******

Willow paced warily in her private chambers. The chosen had awakened. She felt it. She knew they were running out of time. He would try and stop her. It was his destiny. His soul purpose of being. But, she also knew that he was more than what any of them had made him to be. He was more than what his destiny had laid before him. He was the first of his kind, and would probably be the last.

"Willow, Luv." Spike came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her slender waist. Willow leaned back into him, enjoying the feel of him. The past few days hadn't afforded her the time to just be with her mate.

He whispered into her ear. "When this is all over, we will go away somewhere." Willow turned around and grinned. "Somewhere cold?" She asked, a hopeful tone she didn't often use in her voice. It reminded him of times past. Spike sighed. "If you insist."
"I do." She smirked as she claimed is lips in a powerful kiss.

"Spike? Have you seen… " Angel entered the room and then stopped when he saw his childe and his mate locked in a passionate embrace. He turned around and walked out of the room, leaving them to their moment of happiness, knowing that there was a good chance none of them would survive the week.

******

David was startled out of a deep slumber by the screaming of his mate. Lydia was shaking uncontrollably. Her cold skin was clammy and was sweating blood.

"Lydia! Lydia" He shook the vampire to wakefulness. When she opened her blue eyes, they held a look of terror. "What is it? What did you see?" He asked her as calmly as he could muster.

As she took deep unneeded breaths to calm her nerves, she turned to David. "The Slayer. She'd dead."
David paled even further, if that could have been possible. "Are you sure?" Lydia pulled her self out of his embrace, and nodded vehemently. "Yes. We have just run out of time."
Lydia left their room in search of the mistress.

*****

She left the house, and marveled at the blackness of the sky. It was barely noon, and still the sun did not rise. That was a sign. It was beginning. However Willow did not need to witness the sign. She felt the power surging all around her. She knew the portal was starting to open. It would be another thirty-six hours before the opening would be complete enough for the Evil to emerge. It was then that her fight would begin. Until then, she only had to wait.

She was drawn out by the chosen. He called to her. He had been created for her. It was his destiny to battle her. To stop what was to come. Destiny isn't all it's cracked up to be.

******

Vencient could feel her. She was out here. In the blackness of day. They were drawn to one another. She fed his hunger. The hunger, which had, lay dormant for six hundred years. Her power was strong. He could feel it stretching out like the web of a venomous spider, daring to claim his essence.
The part of his being which gained strength from what he knew was to come, longed to strip her of that which she possessed. But there was another part, the part which rebelled against his destiny. A part, which still held on to the memory of the vampiress who had taught him that there was more him than what they had created. That was seven centuries ago.
He briefly wondered if she was still alive. If she was, he found himself saddened by the knowledge, that should he succeed, she would inevitably die. The evil, which he was freeing, would kill her, and all of her kind.

Vencient shook off his memories of the vampire, knowing that what he was to do, had to be done. He sniffed the air. He could feel it crackled with the presence of another. But he couldn't place the feeling. He spun around, searching the darkness.

******

"Vencient." Willows voice was calm, as she took in his appearance, and felt the power rolling off of him in waves. She let her cloak fall, letting him sense her. She inhaled the air around her, taking in the scent of his last kill. Recognizing the smell, she growled. Her eyes glowed yellow. Her very being boiled with rage. And then it was gone. Or more precisely, buried. Hidden away to a place only she could reach.

"You killed the Slayer?" She asked, keeping her voice even.

"Willow?" Vencient took in the creature before him, not believing his own eyes. *It can't be! * He told himself, but knowing that it was.

"You've changed."

Willow raised an eyebrow. "So have you, old friend."

******

"Your power is strong." Vencient eyed the vampire carefully. "How long has it been?"

Willow green eyes pierced into his. "Seven hundred years, give or take." She walked circles around the demon, contemplating her next move.

"You're the one?" He asked.

Willow nodded. "I am."

"I never knew." Vencient turned to face her and looked coldly into her glowing eyes. "But you did, didn't you?"

Willow laughed, it was a deep throaty sound. "Did I know I was the one? Or did I know that you would be the one sent to stop me?"

"Both."

"I've known who I was from the moment I was turned. And you, You were made. Created, just for me. And you think I wouldn't have known you anywhere, at any time. Vencient, you have slumbered too long. You forget your place."

Vencient growled at her accusation. "I forget nothing, Witch."

Willow snarled in return and then broke out in a slow smile. "Oh, Vencient, How I have missed you." She slowly backed away from the demon and into the shadows, "It doesn't have to be like this you know." She didn't wait for his argument. As she drifted into the shadows, Vencient heard her voice in the depths of his mind.
"Until next time."

********

A man paced nervously in an office in London. He was lost in his own thoughts. Thoughts which were frightening, even to someone as old as he. He was started out of his contemplation be the doors being swung open and a women walking in, a frown plastered to her pasty complexion.

"What is it?" The man snapped.

"Moira. She's dead." The woman replied.

"And the next? She has been called?" He asked cautiously.

The woman nodded her head slightly. "There have been… complications."

The man groaned. "I do not care about complications. I care about the Slayer. Find her. Train her."

The woman nodded her head and headed towards the door but stopped, afraid of what she was about to tell him.
"Sir? She is a descendant. If the witch finds her, and drains her, there will be no stopping the prophecy. It will come to pass."

The man slumped into his chair and sighed heavily. The end was coming, and there would be no stopping it. Their salvation rested on the shoulders of two master vampires, a one thousand-year-old witch, and the blood of the first slayer.

They were doomed.

********

She awoke with a thud. Things she couldn't understand had plagued her dreams. Things she only ever imagined as being in movies. Things that couldn't possibly exist, but yet she knew they did. The dreams had haunted her for weeks.
She pulled herself out of her bed, and looked into the mirror. What she saw there frightened her. It was herself, only not. She looked different. She looked as though she were dressing up for a costume party. A really old costume party. Her hair, which normally was wound tightly around her head, fell in little curls across her face. Her dress appeared to be ancient. She reached one hand up to her head to feel the curls, and was shocked to find nothing there.
She closed her eyes for a moment, and gasped when the opened them again to find her own reflection staring back at her. She shook her head, convincing herself that she had been imagining things.

She sighed heavily. "Oh, Nell, what's wrong with you?" She asked herself.

******

Willow walked back to the lair snarling and cursing under her breath. She wasn't surprised by the turn of events. She knew that Vencient would be awakened and that he would be shocked at her presence. She even knew that he would try to kill her. What she hadn't counted on was his killing of the Slayer. That could mean only one thing. The next would be called. There was no telling what she would do. Her blood insured her strength. But what if she was more like the last, than the first? Could they defeat the Evil, while battling each other?

Willow growled loudly when she saw her mate pacing ferociously around the room.

"Where have you been?" Spike snarled as he leapt towards her. "Lydia had another vision."

Willow allowed Spike to inspect her and then relaxed into his embrace.
"I know. I saw Vencient. He killed the slayer."

"So then it's true?" David asked from behind her.

She turned towards her childe. "Yes. It's only a matter of time. And we have to be ready."
She turned towards the doorway and looked expectantly at her grandsire. "Angel, did you get everything?"
When he nodded she continued. "Good. We leave in an hour. We can't afford to wait any longer. The time has come to finish what we started."

******

Willow could feel the energy washing over her as she approached the cavern. The portal had started to open. That was good. It would make what she was planning that much easier. She turned to her companions and smiled. No matter what happened tonight, she wouldn't regret anything. Her life had been rich, and long. Longer than she ever would have imagined.
"Luv? Are you ready?" Spike spoke from beside her. She smiled at her mate, allowing her demon to come to the fore.
"Yes. I have lived my whole for this. It has always been about this." She told him softly, as her eyes glowed gold in anticipation of the fight ahead.
"No, luv, not for this. For what comes next." Spike squeezed her hand gently and paused in his steps, allowing his sire to catch up to him.
*****
Nell awoke in a sweat, with a clarity of vision she had never before possessed. She had knowledge things she couldn't possibly know. Memories that were not her own. Emotions she had never felt. She climbed out of bed and dressed quickly. She knew what she had to do. Where she had to go. Her destiny awaited her, in a small town called Sunnydale.
*****
Vencient fought against the anger, which threatened to over take him. He could feel her power. She was at the portal, attempting to finish that which she had started so long ago. He felt as though he was split in two. The very core of his being screamed at him to stop her. That was his destiny. He was created for that purpose, and that purpose alone. But Willow had taught him long ago that there are more purposes on heaven and Earth than we can deign to understand. He had thought her foolish all those years ago. She was a child, spouting off wisdom she couldn't possible understand. Or could she?
She was the One. She was his adversary, in every way. She possessed powers even he could only speculate at. She had lived on this world for over a thousand years with abilities, which far surpassed any creature, living or dead, and yet, she remained true to the girl he had known all those years ago. Maybe it wasn't she who was the threat. Maybe he was on the wrong side. Maybe he would never know.
*****
Willow entered the cavern and smiled. The portal's opening was just wide enough for what she had planned. She giggled at the irony of it. A millenium had past, and still she was destined to fighting the forces of evil with knowledge she had retained as a mortal.
Willow turned to her companions.
"It's time. If it closes before I come out, leave me." Her voice was like steel, daring her mate and his sire to question her. She cocked to her head to the side, as if listening for some sound unheard by the others.
"She's coming. The Slayer." She turned towards Spike; "You know what to do?" He nodded. "If she doesn't pass the test, she dies. Period."
"We got it." Angel's voice was filled with understanding.
Willow embraced Spike in a fierce hug and kissed him savagely. They were lost in their kiss for minutes, in which both expressed the love that they had shared over the centuries. Willow pulled away reluctantly and turned towards Angel.
She hugged him, and whispered into his ear. "Take care of him." When she felt him nod he let go and walked towards the opening in the portal.
The two vampires watched at the witch entered the foggy expanse through the small opening.
Angel turned to his childe; "She'll be back."
Spike nodded his agreement, although he was anything but sure.
 

******
Nell arrived in town shortly after what would normally be considered dusk; however, the strange absence of the sun had made the term irrelevant. She didn't know how exactly she knew where she had to go. She only knew what her dreams had told her. They spoke of a great evil being unleashed, a powerful witch sent to stop it, and the battle waged between the two. She knew that she would be given a test. That was where her knowledge ended. She hoped that whoever awaited her arrival knew more than she did.
 

******
 

Vencient felt the girl as soon as she entered Sunnydale. Her blood called to him. The strength of it caused him to remember what Willow had told him about the prophecy. He now understood why she had been so upset that he had killed the previous Slayer. He sighed heavily as he realized what he had inadvertently allowed to happen.
As he made his way towards his destination, Vencient couldn't help but wonder if this was what the prophecy had meant all along.
 

**
Out of the light comes the One
She will stop what is to come
Of her blood and of her power
Comes the demon to whom they cower
Failing Once, she will return
And with the blood of the first, The town will burn
And on this night, of blackest day
They will come to pave the way
If it breathes, so shall you not
The end has come, and we have lost
**
 

Those who had created him believed they understood the prophecy. He now wondered if they had been wrong. Where did his destiny lay?
******
 

"She's here." Angel soft words broke through the silence of the cavern.
Spike turned towards the entrance and the young woman. He could feel her presence. It was strong, even for a slayer.
"Welcome, Luv, to your destiny." Spike smirked.
*****

Nell looked at the two vampires. She smiled. They were the ones. They would know why she was there. They would give her the test.

"Do you know who I am?" She asked, unsure of what was to come.

Spike chucked at her youth and innocence. At another time he would have savored her blood. But not today. In once swift movement he grabbed the girl and turned her around so that her back was leaned up against him. He took one look at his sire before he lifted her off of the ground and thrust her towards the portal. When he had her up against the wall, inches away from where the vortex was forming, he released his grip slightly. It wouldn't do to kill the girl before the test was completed.
While keeping one hand firmly around the girls' small throat, Spike turned slightly and reached his other hand to grasp the knife Angel was handing to him.

"Don't cut too deep." Angel reminded him.

Spike nodded as he took the knife and cut a small gash in her wrist. As the blood started to flow he moved her closer to the portal, and stuck the arm with the wound through the opening. After a moment he pulled her back, and watched, to see if she had passed the test.

*****

Willow looked around briefly, before relaxing. She knew that if the Slayer were true, she would join her shortly. She had hoped to avoid fulfilling the prophecy, but Vencient's actions had changed all that. Now there was no choice. She would have to kill the Slayer. Together they would close the portal.

"You're here." Willow felt more than heard the voice. It was the same one, which had called to here a thousand years ago. The voice of the evil.

"You didn't think I wouldn't be, did you?" Willow asked.

She felt a deep, rumbling fill her body.

"Of course not, child. You were destined to be here. You could do nothing else."

Willow felt a wave of cool air, and knew that the evil was surrounding her, enveloping her. She couldn't see it, but she knew it was there.

"You know, child. I have watched you, over the years. Felt you. You shouldn't fear me. You should embrace all that I am."

Willow stood completely still as the words filled her head.

"You could have unbelievable power. You could live forever."

Willow trained her sensing on where the energy was emanating from. "I have power. I am already immortal." She told the entity.

She felt a smile wrap around her. "True, child." There was a stillness that covered Willow for a moment, before she felt the voice once again.

"But you have lost. You will have to bind the Slayer to you. Do you think you can do that? Are you strong enough?"

Willow moved away from the spot she had been rooted to, walking circles around the fog she was covered in.

"Yes. We will be joined. You will perish." Willow tightened her reign on her senses and she reached out and laced on to the energy source. It was strong, but it had been weakened over the centuries. It needed her help to escape. Help it wouldn't receive.

"Child, think about it. To bind yourself to the Slayer, that means that, should you survive, she would be like you. A killer. And you like her." The evil tried to sway Willow's resolve.

"To hunt your own kind is an abomination of all things, man and demon." It taunted her.

Willow's head was filled with images. Hundreds of years of hunting. The Slayer's she had killed. The vampires who had died at there hands. She was filled with the slightest bit of doubt. Could she do it? Bind herself to the creature?

*****

Nell felt fear go through her as the vampire thrust her arm into the swirl circle of light. She didn't know what this test was, or if she would even survive it. She doubted that she would.

She felt her breathing return to normal as she felt the vampire let her go. She watched him with curiosity. He seemed to be waiting for something. What, she could only guess.

Nell was going to ask them what was going on when her gaze was drawn back to the portal. It was opening. The swirling hole widened, as if in response to something. She watched, as the hole became larger and larger. She heard the vampire chuckle and say something she couldn't hear. Then just as she was about to demand some answers, Nell felt her body being lifted. She was being drawn towards the portal. She tried to pull away, but the force, which had her, only gripped tighter.

Soon she found herself been drawn into the portal. She closed her eyes tightly, afraid of what she would find on the other side. When she felt her body hit a hard surface, Nell decided she should open her eyes.

Nell found herself looking into the golden eyes of a creature she had dreamt about often in the past few weeks. She was a vampire, but also more.

"Slayer." Willow pulled the girl to her feet. "So good of you to join us."

Nell looked around the fog that surrounded them. "Us?" She asked.

Willow chuckled. "Welcome to the end of your life. This is where you die."

*****

"Well, Peaches, I guess that means she passed the test." Spike observed after the Slayer had passed through the vortex.

"I guess so." Angel agreed. He turned his head slightly as he heard a noise outside of the cavern. "The demon is coming." He whispered.

Spike nodded. "She said he would. Now comes the real test."

"And what would that be, Vampire?" Vencient asked as he entered the cavern.

Spike turned around at the demon's entrance. "What's it gonna be? Life, or oblivion?" He asked as he approached the demon, ready for a fight, if necessary.

*****

"This is your last chance, child. Join with me." The evil whispered into Willow's mind, trying to sway the vampire from her task.

Willow neared the Slayer. "Are you ready to die?"

Nell looked at the vampire carefully. There was something different about her. Despite the golden of her demon's eyes, they held an understanding she didn't think was possible in one of her breed.

"Yes." Nell nodded, and took a step closer to the vampire.

Willow smiled. "You are the one. I can feel it." She reached out for the Slayer and brought her flush against her. She bent her head down to the pulse point in the young girls' neck and pierced the flesh, sinking her fangs in and draining the life from the Slayer. When death was upon her, she pulled out and slashed open her wrist, bringing her own blood to the dying Slayer's lips.

****

Vencient chuckled as the two vampires took a step closer. He looked towards the portal. "She has passed the test?" He asked.

Spike looked at Angel briefly before returning his attention to the demon. "Yes." He relaxed ever so slightly when it didn't appear that the demon was going to fight.

"Why are you here?" Angel asked appraising the demon carefully. "If I recall, you were to stop Willow." Angel remembered the demon from nearly six centuries previous.

"Things change." Vencient told the vampires. When Spike looked at him skeptically, he elaborated. "Six hundred years is a long time." HE looked into Spike's golden eyes and smiled. "You're witch is unlike any creature I have ever met."

"That she is, mate." Spike agreed, not ready to trust the demon. Willow had told him that Vencient would make the right decision, but he wasn't as trusting.

"So now what?" Angel asked, unsure of what the demon was prepared to do.

"No we leave." Vencient headed towards the door that led out into the black night. When he realized the vampires hadn't moved, he stopped and turned around. "You must go. Leave them."

"Not bloody likely!" Spike snarled.

Vencient sighed imperceptibly. "Vampire, If they are successful, this whole building will come down. The town will parish." He looked carefully at the blond vampire before he spoke his next words. "And if they don't…"

"It will be too late." Angel finished knowing that what the demon said was true. "Spike, Come. We should warn the townspeople."

"Bloody, Hell, Peaches!" Spike snapped. "I'm not leaving Willow alone to help a bunch of people who I don't give a rat's arse about!"

"The vampire is right." Vencient spoke to Angel. "The people are of no consequence." He didn't wait for a response as he walked out of the cavern.

Angel turned to Spike after the demon had left. "Come with me." He told him forcefully. When Spike didn't move, he looked beseechingly at his childe. "Spike. You can't help her here."

"I'm not leaving." Spike all but growled.

"Dammit, Spike!" Angel snarled as he grabbed his childe from around the throat and started dragging him towards the exit. "I promised Willow I'd make sure you made it out in one piece, and I'll be damned if I let you make be break that promise!"

Angel dragged his snarling child into the cool air, and shoved him against the side of the cavern. "Don't make me remind you who you are!" Angel threatened.

Spike looked into the glowing eyes of his sire, and after seeing the fierce determination there, he stopped his struggle. "Fine." He said with barely repressed anger.

Angel released his grip. "Good. Now, let's return to the house. We need to get as far away from the Hellmouth as possible." He turned towards his glaring childe. "Willow will find us."

Spike nodded and reluctantly followed his sire. He knew he was right. The events enfolding were nothing he hadn't been prepared for. He knew what was supposed to happen. He knew about the prophecy. Staying behind would only succeed in ending his unlife. And by extension Willow's and that was not something he ever wanted to be responsible for.

*****

Nell awoke slowly with new senses. She could feel something thick in the air. It surrounded her and seemed to be alive. She stood slowly, and made her way through the fog, using senses that were new to her.

"You're awake." Willow spoke from somewhere within the fog.

Nell turned towards the voice and let herself be guided by a force which seemed to be pulling her closer. "What happens now?" She asked softly, knowing her sire's exceptional hearing would pick the sound up.

"Now," willow came up behind the Slayer, "We fulfill our destiny."

Nell turned and found herself staring into green eyes which sparkled with purpose. She watched as Willow took a long nail and sliced a gash in Nell's palm, and then did the same to her own.

Willow smiled softly at her new childe as she clasped her bleeding palm into that of the new vampire. "My blood to your blood. Let the circle be unbroken." She chanted softly.

"On this night, and on this hour, We call upon the ancient power." Willow turned to look at the Slayer, demanding her to join in the chant.

"From the blood of the first to the blood of the last, We bind you from out of the past." The two vampires chanted.

"Your fire will die, as you lay claim to the naked sky." Nell faltered in her chant slightly as a deep rumbling began in the earth. Is seemed to cover them in energy. Slowly the vortex started to emerge, drawing their power away from them.

"We bind you here forever more." As Willow spoke she felt herself being drawn into the portal after Nell.

Once they had returned to their realm the portal closed in on itself, and they could feel the tremors in the ground. They heard a screech from deep inside their minds.

Willow turned to her childe. "Come. The task is completed."

*****

The sky screamed. The ground wept. The air extinguished life with a flourish. When the sun rose for the first time in a week the following day, it would shine on a dead town. Everything had died. Every animal, every person, every plant. A massive explosion that rocked the very core of the Hellmouth had burned the life away. And explosion that could be felt for miles around. It would be another couple of centuries before anyone would call Sunnydale home. Now, there was only death.

******

Spike watched as the smoke filled the night air. They had left Sunnydale three days ago, and they could still see the evidence of the explosion, which had saved the world.

"It's over. A thousand years, and it's finally over." Angel stared out into the billowing smoke.

"She's close." Spike told him, "I can feel her. She should catch up with us in a day or so."

Angel nodded. "Where will you go?"

Spike looked strangely at his sire. "You're not coming with us?"

Angel chuckled. "No. I think I'll go back to Ireland. Will you miss me?" He questioned knowing that he would miss his childe and Willow.

"Not on your unlife!" Spike told him. "When are you leaving?"

"I'll wait until Willow returns." He paused for a second. "Is she bringing the Slayer?"

Spike sighed needlessly. "Probably. Just what we need another chit to drag around for eternity!"

Angel slapped Spike on the back and whispered into his ear. "As I recall, there was another Slayer who almost became a childer."

Spike groaned. "Almost nothing! Don't remind me of that disaster. I think she's still around somewhere." Spike grinned. "She was an improvement over Slutty…"

"Spike." Angel warned.

Spike laughed outright. "A thousand years, Angelus, and you won't let it go." He turned at looked Angel over carefully, smiling slightly. "You need a good shag." He told him decidedly. "Maybe this Slayer…" He trailed off as Angel started to growl.

*****

"Willow?" Nell called into the other room as she stared into the empty mirror.

"What is it?" Willow asked as she entered the room. She smiled softly at her childe's lack of reflection.

"Will I ever get used to it?" She asked quietly. "This think that I am, this killer, will it get easier?"

Willow turned Nell around so that she was facing her. "You are what you make yourself. Never doubt that. If you kill, or if you don't. It's all up to you." Willow's green eyes bore into her childe's. "Your demon is tame. You don't have the bloodlust. The thrill of the kill. Savior that. You will not find another like yourself."

Willow stood up and walked towards the opened window, taking in the smoke-filled sky.

"What about you? You're like me." Nell pointed out.

Willow chuckled. "No, Luv, not like you. I am 'unique'. My breed is pure. Never touched, never tainted." She turned and faced the former Slayer, her demon coming to the fore. "But never forget, that I am what they made me. I kill, I hunt, and I feed. My demon relishes in the power they give me." She let her human mask slip back into place. "You are still you. Eternal, Nell. Use your time well." Willow turned back towards the window. "Come. We're close. His demon calls to me."

*****

Spike felt her the moment she entered the town. He was out hunting his evening meal, when his senses were overrun with her essence. He turned around, grinning widely at the vision that stood before him.

Willow stood there, smirking, as she held a struggling girl by the throat. "Lose something, Pet?" She asked.

Spike leapt for his mate, casting the meal aside. He planted a firm kiss on her lips, enjoying the feel of her in his arms again. Their lips devoured one another hungrily for several long moments before Spike became aware of another presence.

He pulled himself away from Willow's lips and looked over her shoulder. "This is her? The Slayer?" Spike asked softly, pulling Willow against him, not wanting to let her go just yet.

"Yes." She turned to look into Spike's blue eyes. "She is like Angel. She can't stay with us."

Spike nodded his understanding. "Peaches is returning home. Maybe he can take her with him. Teacher her what it means to be what she is."

"Do you think he will?" Willow asked skeptically.

Spike placed at tender kiss on her lips. "I'm sure… with the right persuasion."

Willow giggled. "Well, then, lets go butter him up."

Willow took Spike's hand and headed away from the park, motioning for Nell to follow. Her childe would be fine, she realized. They all would be.

*****

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