Cordelia was bored. Willow, Angel and Spike had gone downstairs as soon as Forsyth had left, leaving her with the two ex-Watchers. Seeing her unhappy expression, Wesley had asked her what was wrong.

"What's the point in having another girl in the office if she's always hidden away downstairs," Cordelia moaned, pouting her lips to make her displeasure clear.

"Now Cordelia, this is a delicate time for Willow," said Wesley in what he hoped was a diplomatic tone. "Her bond with Angel and Spike is very new, and the three of them need time to, ah, well, to become comfortable with their new relationship. And of course Willow must be concerned about the imminent arrival of her powers."

"Sure, but we could still spend time together, like during the day. when normal vampires would be sleeping. We could go shopping," said Cordelia, not willing to concede defeat.

"I think Willow has got more important things on her mind right now than shopping" Wesley replied, his expression indicating his disappointment in Cordelia and her warped view of the world.

"Bloody Hell, Red, how much stuff did you buy?" Spike asked, somewhere between amazement and fear. (Let's hope she never wants to drag me on one of her shopping sprees,) he thought with horror. (That can be one of Soul Boy's jobs.)

Willow looked around the study. (It certainly does look a little, mmm, excessive,) she decided, (but no need to admit that to them.)

"Now Spike, you know all of my stuff is at the dorm, and I can hardly ask Buffy to send it, now can I? Plus at the rate I seem to be going through clothes, especially underwear," and Willow glared at Spike, who grinned with obvious pride, "anyway I need clothes." Willow finished quickly, not trusting the look on Spike's face.

Angel had watched the exchange between the two with amusement. He knew from personal experience that Spike was rough on clothing, tending to destroy anything that came between him and his partner when he was in the mood for, in the blonde's words, "a good shag".

"Peaches is going to have to get a second job if you keep this up," Spike mocked, casually emptying one of the bags and looking through the contents.

"No need for that," the redhead replied as she tried unsuccessfully to rescue her clothes from Spike's grasp. "I've still got my parents' credit card."

Angel frowned. "Willow, despite what Spike said you should know that I have more than enough money to look after us, all three of us. And if I have to let Spike spend money on his awful CDs, at least you can let me pay for your clothes and things."

Mentally bracing herself, Willow decided this was as good a time as any to set some limits.

"Look Angel, I appreciate you offer, I really do, but I want us all to be clear on what's going on. I mean, just because Spike and I are staying here while the whole psycho-Slayer thing is going on, doesn't mean we are staying here forever. At the beginning we agreed that you would stay in LA and Spike and I would stay in Sunnydale, and that hasn't changed, so there is certainly no question of you supporting us. I mean, I can get a job if it comes to that, and I will take care of Spike and myself."

Willow gave Angel her best girl-power glare, while noting that Spike seemed quite comfortable with the idea of being a kept man. Angel however did not look very pleased, Willow saw with a gulp, as the vampire strode towards her, paying no attention to the crushed shopping bags which marked his path.

"Now Willow," said Angel in a very Angelus-y purr, "why exactly are you so keen to go back to Sunnydale? What have you got there? Don't you think you'd have a lot more fun here in LA, the three of us just one big happy family?"

As he spoke Angel moved even closer to Willow, until their bodies were brushing together, and he bent his head towards her ear, so that each word he spoke whispered against her skin and sent a shiver down her spine.

Willow tried to back up, to put some distance between them, but found herself instead pressed against Spike, who had moved up behind her.

"Why so shy?" Angel murmured, his lips brushing against her earlobe. He caught one of her hands and brought it to his neck, running her fingertips over the bite mark on his neck.

"You have marked me, I am yours," he said. He bent his head down to her neck, licking at the fading mark which was evidence of the wound he had left last night. "And I have marked you as mine."

His voice was growing huskier by the minute, and Willow felt her body's resistance crumble as the two strong bodies pressed ever more firmly against her.

So she let Angel prove his point, but to her mind nothing had been resolved.

Spike was less than pleased to be woken by the telephone. He was blissfully relaxed, Angel's arm slung around his waist and Willow's warm body curled against his side. He was sore in all the right places, and he needed at least another hour's sleep. He nudged Angel, but the bastard didn't even twitch.

Accepting the inevitable, Spike grabbed the phone before Willow woke up - after all, he decided, she needed her rest if she was going to keep up with two vampires.

"What?" Spike bit out, struggling to hold the phone cord so that it didn't fall on Willow's face.

"Spike? It's Giles. Wesley and I are on our way back to the office with Cordelia. She has had a vision. We need to go immediately to Sunnydale. We'll be there in 20 minutes. Get ready." And with that the phone went dead.

"Bloody Hell," cursed Spike. He really didn't want to go back there, and he didn't want Willow to have too much of a chance to try and get back into her old life. The more time Spike spent with Angel and Willow in LA, the more it felt right to him, and he was ready to help Angel persuade Willow to stay ... especially as he enjoyed the persuading part so much.

(Oh well, better get moving all we'll have two Watchers getting an eyeful) Spike realised, and he started tickling Willow's nose. She batted at his hand a few times before finally waking up, rubbing her body against his as she nuzzled at the offending hand. Willow reached out a lazy arm to stroke Spike's stomach, but as she dipped her hand lower she found it pushed away as Spike scolded her.

"Red! Only got one thing on your mind, eh?"

Willow raised her eyebrows. "So you're complaining then?"

Spike grinned and kissed her. "Not likely pet. But the Watchers are on their way with the prom queen, some kind of emergency, and you know no-one's going to get anything done if you don't put some clothes on."

"What kind of emergency?" Willow asked somberly as she got out of bed. She really didn't need any more bad news.

"The Sunnydale kind." Willow looked at Spike and saw he was serious, and headed to the study to find something clean to wear.

Spike watched her depart, enjoying the excellent view he had of her cute little ass, before turning to Angel, who was lying motionless beside him. "I know you're awake you pillock," Spike said crossly. "Now we're all off to Sunnydale, next thing you know Willow and Bitchy will be bestest buddies again and we'll be seeing her for an hour on weekends with the Slayer as chaperon. Sod that."

(Always thinking with his dick) Angel mused, wondering how Spike had managed to brainwash Willow into finding him attractive. "Don't worry boy," drawled the older vampire, "by the time we fix this emergency Willow will know exactly who she belongs to ... and so will you."

And with that Spike found himself thrown onto the bed as Angel sank his fangs into the blonde's exposed throat, both groaning in pleasure as the bond between them was affirmed yet again. Spike reached his hand between their bodies to grab Angel's cock, and soon felt a large hand start to stroke his shaft.

The dual sensation of Angel sucking at his neck while his cool hand worked at Spike's cock were too much for the vampire, and Spike came with growl.

Angel kept his lips against Spike's neck. He could taste Spike's orgasm in the spicy blood that trickled into his mouth, and he soon felt his own release join the sticky fluid already coating both their stomachs. Angel lifted his cum-covered fingers to Spike's mouth and watched in pleasure as his childe delicately licked them clean.

Then with a reluctant sigh he headed for the shower. Angel was getting tired of all these interruptions. When all this drama was over he was going to lock his childe and their witch in a room, and no- one was going to leave until he was well and truly satisfied - which he fully expected to take quite some time.

Spike waited for Angel to finish his shower so he could get cleaned up. He saw the gleam in Angel's eyes as he left the shower stall and felt his balls tighten. (What the hell is that poof up to now?) he thought uneasily. Then he realised he had more pressing problems and quickly ducked under the spray, rinsing himself clean and hopping out to find Willow waiting for him with a towel and his clothes.

"Don't you ever get sick of wearing the same thing?" she asked casually as she rubbed his back dry.

"Pet, it took decades to find the perfect outfit. You don't mess with success."

Willow snorted and watched him dress, noting the marks on his back and neck from their little "bonding" exercise earlier, as well as a very fresh bite mark on his neck.

"Spike, do you want us to stay in LA with Angel?" Willow asked, gazing with apparent absorption at the towel she held in her hands.

Spike looked at her, his mind racing. In his years with Drusilla he had heard enough of these questions to know there was never a right answer. It was like walking through a sodding minefield.

"Pet, I want to be wherever you want to be." Spike felt his nervousness increase as he saw from the look on Willow's face that he was not going to get off the hook that easily.

"Well what if I said it was up to you?" asked Willow, looking him in the eyes.

"I'd say we should stay here, with Angel," Spike said with more certainty than he felt, trying without success to read Willow's expression.

"We'd better head upstairs," she said, taking his hand. "They'll be here soon." And with that she led a confused Spike to the lift.

Cordelia finally felt the headache tablets start to take affect as Giles parked his car outside Angel's office. She adjusted her sunglasses despite the lack of daylight and, breathing a heavy sigh, allowed Wesley to assist her from the car and escort her inside.

She settled herself on the sofa next to Willow, who was close enough to Spike to more or less be on his lap. She felt sorry for Willow; they may not be friends exactly but it seemed to her that the redhead had enough on her plate without adding in this latest development. But there was not much any of them could do about it.

Angel entered the office, having come upstairs as soon as he heard the others arrive. He looked at Cordelia, and asked gently, "Cordelia? What did you see?"

Cordelia took a deep breath, running the vision through her mind again to make sure she didn't miss any details she could pick out of the jumbled images.

"Well, I saw Buffy with some soldiers in Sunnydale. I recognised the cemetery, it was St Andrews. There were three demons, sort of small and round, and bluish. Then there was an explosion of some kind, and all the soldiers were burnt, as in nothing left but ashes. Then I saw Buffy with the Watcher, with David. They were hurt too, I couldn't tell how badly, they were lying on the ground. And then I saw the same demons, and Willow was there with someone else - I couldn't see who though. And that's it."

Giles cleared his throat before breaking the silence that had fallen over the group. "I called Sunnydale Memorial, and a woman matching Buffy's description was admitted a few hours ago. She has serious burns and other injuries, and has not yet regained consciousness. They said her condition was critical. I have called Buffy's mother, and she is on her way to the hospital."

Angel knew he had to ask the next question, even though he suspected he already knew the answer. "And Forsyth?"

"Dead," came the quiet reply, confirming Angel's fears. What kind of demons were these, that could bring down a Slayer? And how was Willow meant to fight them when she still didn't have her powers?

Willow knew exactly what Angel was thinking - and Spike too, judging by the death grip he had on her hand. But Cordelia's vision meant that whatever her own fears may be - (I mean) she thought, (even if my powers arrive how am I supposed to know what to do with them? I doubt I'll get an instruction booklet.) - she knew that she would be heading to Sunnydale.

"OK," she said briskly, "we have to get moving. I think we should go first to the hospital, in case Buffy wakes up and we can get some information from her. And then we need to do some serious research, which means Giles' place and his library."

Giles polished his glasses nervously. "Do you think that's safe? The Council may not be an immediate threat anymore, but the Initiative is still looking for Spike, and they could make the connection to me and my apartment."

It was Angel who answered. "First, Cordelia's vision showed that they lost some of their soldiers to the demons, so I imagine that right now that is their priority. Also, Spike may not be able to fight humans but I can, and so can Willow."

Willow felt his words reassure her, and looked over at Spike to see that he didn't seem concerned by the prospect of running into the Initiative.

The decision made, Giles, Wesley and Cordelia headed off in Cordelia's borrowed car, closely followed by the others in Angel's car.

Spike was seated in the passenger seat with Willow by herself in he back. She watched as Angel and Spike quietly chatted, observing how Angel managed to unconsciously calm the younger vampire's mood, and how Spike's frequent irreverent comments managed to bring several smiles to Angel's normally serious expression.

(They make a good team,) Willow thought, then rolling the idea around in her mind, she mentally amended it to (we make a good team.)

She wished that she and Buffy were still friends, she really needed to talk to someone, to try and sort out what she was feeling. But, she decided philosophically, even if Buffy hadn't reacted so badly to the idea of her and Spike being together she doubted that the blonde would be overly thrilled at the idea of Spike and Willow with Angel, her one true love.

Willow tried to run through her other options. She imagined telling Giles the intricacies of her love life - that was just too disturbing, she decided, shuddering at the mental image.

Cordelia? Well, she had a certain bluntness that sometimes passed as refreshing honesty, but Willow couldn't really imagine revealing too many of her innermost thoughts to her former nemesis.

Spike? Well, at least he already knew the gory details, but it was a bit hard to get a straight answer out of him, especially about Angel.

And Angel? Willow smiled at the idea, which to her seemed just crazy enough - and obvious enough - to make sense.

She leaned forward in her seat so that her body was wedged between the two front bucket seats, and casually put a hand on each man's thigh, enjoying the feel of muscles clenching under her touch. (Oh yeah, I'm bad!) Willow decided with pride.

Spike put his hand over hers and tugged it higher, while Angel squirmed slightly and threw a quick glance at her face, which was obscured in the darkness of the car.

"Willow ?" he asked huskily, trying to keep his gaze on the road.

She let Spike move her hand over the bulge in his trousers then pinched him hard, drawing a yelp from the blonde as she quickly withdrew her hand to avoid retaliation. Then she turned her attention to Angel, slowly stroking his thigh.

"Angel, if Spike and I decide to stay in Sunnydale, what will you do?"

Her quiet voice carried no emotion, but Angel knew this was no casual question. Casting aside his pride, he slowly answered. "I would try to convince you to come to LA, and if I couldn't I would move back to Sunnydale."

Willow could hear the honesty in his voice, and she kept up her slow massage of his leg.

"If you could break the bond, without anyone being hurt, would you?"

"No," was his immediate reply. Angel took one of his hands off the wheel and placed it over Willow's hand. "The bond, being together with you both ... it feels like a new chance to me, to finally find a way to be at peace with myself and of having a family again. To be with people I love, and who love me. To no longer be alone, or lonely."

Willow let silence fall as she considered his words. "Yesterday, when you and Spike were at the apartment while Cordelia drove me to LA, I felt you, you know, through the bond." Willow looked at Angel's face but could only see his profile. "What were you doing?"

Angel turned briefly to face her so that she could see the half smile on his face. "Do you remember earlier that morning, that you sent your emotions through the bond?"

Willow thought back, then smiled. "Did it work? Really?" She was practically squeaking with excitement.

A snort came from Spike's seat. "Did it work? Knocked us both unconscious is more like it."

"Oh, umm, sorry," she said sheepishly. Willow looked at Angel curiously. "What did it feel like?"

"Like drowning in a sea of love," came his soft reply, and Willow felt her heart stop at the emotion in his voice. Sighing, she finally stopped fighting, putting her memories behind her and letting her heart and her mind unite.

Speaking into the darkness , she said quietly, "I wanted you to know how much you mean to me, how much I love you, both of you."

Spike felt his demon squirm at the sentimentality even while acknowledging his pleasure at Willow's declaration. Angel on the other hand had no hesitation. His soul and his demon both welcomed the redhead's words, her sincerity helping to wipe away many of his fears about the future.

Angel squeezed Willow's hand before returning both his hands to the steering wheel.

"I was trying to return your message," he said, trying for a conversational tone despite the emotion still flooding his mind from Willow's declaration. "Did you get my reply?"

Willow grinned. "Well, if your reply was the one that included S&M instructions and a bondage how-to catalogue, then yep, I got it."

Angel was horror-struck, his emotions not helped when his demon joined in Spike's gleeful laughter.

"Oh Peaches, you didn't?"

Angel was spared from replying by a gasp of pain from the back seat. He turned to see Willow slumped unconscious on the seat, and quickly pulled off the freeway. He and Spike struggled to undo their belts and assist their mate, but seconds later their limp bodies also lay in the car, as their minds slipped into blackness.