In His Shadow, Book 2:
The Shadow of Angelus
By Night Nymph
Summary: As Angel, Spike, and Buffy adapt to
their new situation, an old enemy threatens their happiness. Sequel to In His
Shadow.
Rating: PG13 for now.
Disclaimers: All unoriginal characters in this
story belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, UPN, and
any other production companies that own the rights. I am just borrowing them
and the back story.
Spoilers: This story takes place after
“Normal Again”, and may include anything up to that episode. It also overlaps
some plots from “Seeing Red,” though in my universe, things have been altered
for the purposes of this story.
Dedication: This is for all the readers of my
first story in this series, especially to those of you who reviewed, and as
always, to my supportive husband.
Thanks: A huge “thank you” to my beta, Sethoz Chan, for taking on the daunting task of being my
beta reader. Any mistakes herein are mine.
Important Author’s notes: Okay guys, here it is - the continuation
of In His Shadow. To best understand
this story, I strongly suggest reading the first story, but for those of you
who are fans of Angelus and just want to read this story, and for those of you
who would like a refresher of the storyline of In His Shadow, I’m providing a brief synopsis below. Everyone else
who’s read the first story and doesn’t need a refresher, feel free to skip
ahead to the prologue below the synopsis. For those Angelus lovers, I suggest
you at least read the second half of chapter 12 and 13 of In His Shadow to get the history of Angelus’ part of the plot. The
sections aren’t too long, and the beginning of this story will make much more
sense. For those who haven’t read the first story, but would like to – please
don’t read the summary below – it will spoil the plot for you.
Synopsis of Book 1:
“In His Shadow”
After the
events of “Normal Again”, Spike decided that something must be wrong with
Buffy. He goes to see a demon named Gnash who is known to be an expert in
dimensional travel. For a price, Gnash will tell Spike what is wrong with Buffy
and how to fix it.
After
enduring a tough journey in an alternate dimension, Spike retrieves an amulet
for Gnash and earns his answer that nothing is wrong except a slight
metaphysical change and the fact that she is unhappy about being taken out of
heaven. While Spike was away, however, Gnash used the time to devise a plan of
his own. He gives Spike what he says is a way to help Buffy be happy as a
reward, but it is actually a flawed spell designed to bind Angel’s soul to
Angelus while allowing the latter to have more power. Unaware of the flaw,
Spike decides he will help Angel bind his soul and counteract the effects of
the curse for Buffy, and he will leave for parts unknown to start over.
Spike
spends one last perfect evening fixing dinner and telling stories to Dawn and
explains his motivations to
Meanwhile,
Gnash uses the amulet Spike retrieved for him to spy on the vampires and
unexpectedly finds a partner in crime in Warren who had been planning his own
revenge on Buffy. Angel and Spike return to Sunnydale,
where Angel learns firsthand about the strange relationship between Buffy and
Spike as he watches them fight demons and trade remarks. Spike makes his peace
of sorts with his decision and with Buffy. The spell, however, doesn’t go quite
as planned when Gnash sends
Angel and
Buffy then come to terms, agreeing that they will see one another, but will not
have to be ever present fixtures in each other’s lives. Buffy assures him she
doesn’t need that anymore, but will be happy having him in her life sometimes.
Angel agrees then returns to
This second
story continues directly from the plot of the first story, but takes place
several months after Angel’s return to
Prologue for Book 2: Shadow of Angelus
It was barren: barren rock, empty sky, and lifeless dirt
below. It was nowhere of this earth, and nothing that anyone would want to
imagine, except as an example of somewhere no one would ever want to be. But he
was there. She had to do something.
“Angel,” she called to him, her voice echoing across the
wasteland.
He must have heard, because he lifted his head, searching
for the source of her voice.
“Angel, where is this place? I have to get you out of
there!”
A smile crossed his lips then, but it wasn’t like any she
had ever seen from him. His eyes flashed gold, and his smile became marred by
vicious fangs. He laughed, a malicious, hateful sound coming from him with
uncharacteristic ease. Cold, cruel eyes seemed to stare into her very soul.
“Oh, don’t worry, lover. I’ll be coming home soon.”
Not Angel. Angelus.
As she woke, she didn’t scream, too shocked for even that
response. Wrapping her arms around herself wasn’t enough to stop the shivering
that seemed to reach to her bones. She wanted to close her eyes, but that might
mean she’d dream again; only she knew that this hadn’t been a normal dream.
After so many years, Buffy knew a slayer dream by now, and this was one she had
dreaded above most others. It was one she didn’t think she was ready to face.
Someone – this chapter is for you,
because, yes, he did promise.
Chapter 1: Awakenings
It should have been alarming or at the
very least disconcerting, but it wasn’t. Instead, his demon face had become
familiar. Dawn didn’t know exactly when it had happened; it wasn’t like there
had been an epiphany or a memorable event to document the occasion. She’d just
gradually come to see it as usual and comfortable, because it meant that it was
him, Spike, and not the other.
Unaware of her musings, Spike threw a piece
of popcorn at her, bouncing it off her forehead. “Stop looking at me like that,
Bit. You’re giving me the willies. And you’re gonna miss Tabitha mess up the spell.” He indicated the television
screen with a movement of his hand, surreptitiously using it as an excuse to
hit her with another kernel of popcorn.
She stuck her tongue out at him as she
brushed the piece of popcorn onto the floor, enjoying the fact that she could
get away with it since Spike was visiting. “Did you see this one already?” she asked.
“I wouldn’t think Angel would watch ‘Passions’ just so you could see it.”
“Course not, Bit. He has poofy taste. I know, cuz Tabitha
always messes up the spell. Like life, that is. Magic often messes up.”
“It worked for you,” Dawn commented.
“Yeah, I was lucky, but there were
consequences.” His eyes returned to the screen as he watched Tabitha at her
cauldron.
Dawn remembered those well. The first
few times Angel had come to visit her, it had been just that – Angel. Spike
hadn’t wanted to come out of his self-imposed prison. Angel had apologized,
saying that Spike would need time, and gradually as predicted, he’d come out.
At first it had been to protect Buffy, his only response that of fists and
fangs against a danger to her. Later, it had been for Buffy in a passionate
capacity, a detail revealed only after much little sister prying. Finally, he
had come to grips with his demons so to speak, decided he’d done enough
brooding, and had become similar to the Spike she remembered.
Angel had helped by learning deep
meditation. Putting himself under made it easier for
Spike to come to the forefront, and Dawn felt privileged that he chose to spend
much of that time of freedom with her. Of course, he spent the rest of his time
with Buffy. The two occupants of the same body had come to an agreement
concerning how often Spike could take over. Dawn had been impressed that her
friend hadn’t asked for more time. Remembering how the vampire used to be, she
guessed the soul must have had an effect on him, because sharing with Angel was
something she could see the old Spike doing only begrudgingly and while trying
to get as much as he could.
As she came out of her thoughts, Dawn
noticed him frowning at the television and making a face. The reason became obvious
when she saw the feminine hygiene advertisement.
“Hey, Bit, either fast forward through
the commercials or give me the remote,” he complained.
Dawn jerked the remote out of his
reach. “Oh, no way are you getting this. You can’t be trusted with it.”
Spike curled his upper lip up and
jogged his head side to side, the actions made more comical because of the
fangs, and said, “Well I have the popcorn.” Both his tone and juvenile
expression conveyed a clear “Nyah, nyah, nya, nyah
nyah.” He proceeded to throw said popcorn at her in
small handfuls.
Dawn squealed and threw up her hands,
warding off the flying kernels. “Buffy’s so gonna
yell at you for the mess.” As if on cue, they heard the tell-tale sign of
footsteps outside the door.
Spike looked at her teasingly. “Now
look what you’ve done. Guess you’ll have to take the fall, Bit.”
“Me?” she squeaked. “You were the one
who…” She had no time to finish, because Buffy was already coming inside.
*********
Buffy maneuvered through the door,
carrying two bags of groceries. She could have used the kitchen door, but she
knew what day this was. There was no way she was going to give them a chance to
hide any damage this time. She rolled her eyes at the occupants of the couch,
both of whom halted abruptly and looked at her with expressions of exaggerated
innocence. Of course, the entire act was ruined by the kernels of popcorn
laying everywhere and the fact that not even Spike could pull off innocent when
he was in vamp face. “I don’t know why you two bother to watch that show at all
anymore. You always end up either talking through the whole thing or making a
complete mess of the living room.”
“He started it,” Dawn complained.
Spike shook his head at her, wide-eyed
and still trying to pull off the innocent act.
Buffy bit her lip, trying to keep her
stern face from being invaded by the smile that wanted to come. She really
enjoyed the times Spike came to visit. She knew how happy they made Dawn. And how happy they make me, too, she
added. Buffy shook her head and finally let the smile win. “Clean that up, both
of you, and Spike…” She watched as hopeful gold eyes turned to her with
undivided attention. “If you have some time later…”
“Of course he has time,” Dawn said.
Buffy knew her sister loved her time
with Spike, but she always made sure the vampire had time with her as well.
Buffy only wished that this time it could be spent with entirely pleasant
things, but it couldn’t. She had to tell him about the dream, and for some
reason, it was Spike she wanted to tell first. She took a quick trip into the
kitchen to deposit the groceries.
“Of course, luv,”
Spike’s voice followed her. “You want to do some patrolling?”
Buffy returned to the living room.
“Yes, but I have some things to discuss with you as well, if that’s okay?”
“That’s fine. Angel will let me, I’m
sure. I’ve been right unselfish lately. I deserve a little extra time.” He
nodded once emphatically.
Buffy couldn’t help but smile. It was a
little odd to get used to this new Spike, but she couldn’t say it was a bad
thing.
“Besides if he doesn’t, I’ll just
torment him by hiding his hair gel.” He smiled wider. “Or better yet I’ll
bleach my hair again while he’s under.”
Dawn bounced up and down on the couch.
“Oh let’s do that anyway. I miss your cool hair. The light brown is so not you.
And how would he even know?” she concluded, her eyes flashing with mischief.
“He can’t see it in a mirror.”
“Oh, now that’s brilliant, Bit…”
She headed back to the kitchen, knowing
that this could take a while. As she tuned out the conversation that she knew
would involve careful planning but end with no actual follow through, Buffy
shook her head and smiled. Okay, so maybe Spike hadn’t changed entirely. She
could definitely admit to herself that fact wasn’t unpleasant either.
*********
The demon frowned. This had to be it.
It just had to be the right dimension, because there couldn’t be that many more
left in this vicinity of the portal. The spell had been months ago, but he’d
been careful to plot its progress when it was new, and even now, there was still
a trace of its magic burned into the pathways between dimensions. That witch
had been powerful, all right, and clever, too. She’d punched a hole through
several dimensions before she’d dumped her cargo. Gnash hadn’t been expecting
it to be this difficult to find the vampire, but even with all his dimensional
knowledge and experience, his search had been a long
one. Soon, he knew, it had to pay off.
Gnash paused, his black eyes wandering
to the wall for a moment. He was strong, and his magic was powerful, but he had
no allies in this. Angelus could be a potential ally, but he couldn’t be
trusted. Being the powerful demon that he was, Gnash hadn’t slipped by the
Slayer’s and her allies’ radar by accident. He did it by pulling strings rather
than by doing things directly. He therefore needed someone who he could trust
to do the dirty work, to get things done. A smile crossed his lips. Unless he could even the odds a little. A few less players
on their side, and Gnash just might be able to overcome his disadvantages.
Maybe it wouldn’t take even a few less players. Maybe it would only take one,
and it could be even better if that one could be turned to his side. Power was
a seductive mistress. Perhaps it was time he introduced that fact to someone he
thought might appreciate it.
*********
Her eyes looked troubled, serious, and
Spike had the feeling that whatever she had to tell him, it wasn’t good. He
tried to return her gaze with a reassuring expression, though in all
likelihood, he expected that the effect was lost due to his fangs and demon
features.
Buffy gave him a small smile and
touched his face. “You’re sweet sometimes. You know that?”
“Not sweet. ‘m
evil,” he grumbled, looking away.
“Never said you weren’t evil sometimes,
too,” she teased, before becoming serious again. “Not right now though.” He
tried to turn his face away from her touch, but she wouldn’t let him. “I still
see you, Spike. It’s not just your face. It’s you that makes me see what you
are thinking.”
She said things like that to him more
often these days, and he still wasn’t used to it yet. “Buffy…”
“Shh.
Later. This is important, and I need you to listen very carefully.
And I need you to answer something very crucial for me.” As if by instinct, she
moved a little closer to him on the couch. “Angel never talks about it, and I
don’t want to ask him, so I’m asking you.”
He nodded slowly. “What is it?”
“I need you to tell me everything that
happened that night. The night you and Angel…” she trailed off, no doubt seeing
his expression change.
He had known which night she referred
to even before she had clarified it, just by the way
she had said it. His expression clouded. “That’s a tall order, luv. A lot happened that night.”
“Well, I especially need to know what
happened with…”
She was stalling. This was bad. There
weren’t many things that could affect her this way. “The spell?” he guessed,
though he knew that couldn’t be it.
“Angelus,” she finally finished, and
her mouth twisted after she said it.
Spike closed his eyes for a moment. He
had a feeling that this was worse than bad. It was also a subject he’d rather
not revisit, but he opened his eyes again to look at her. “I tried to defeat
him, Buffy, and I might have, but I didn’t have the time.”
“What happened?”
He cleared his throat. “
“And that was important,” Buffy
guessed. “Was it why you ran out of time?”
He nodded. “Angel was the one who
realized it. I was all ‘fists and fangs’ at the time. He was the one that
brought us here.” He lifted a finger to his head to illustrate. “And when the
connection closed…”
“Angelus was alone in Angel’s body,”
Buffy finished.
“Yes. But I don’t think Angel thought
he had a choice. We don’t know what would’ve happened without the mind
connection. I might have been totally buggered.”
“And Angelus might have killed you.”
Spike nodded solemnly.
“What happened next?”
“Somehow Angelus got a hold of
“
“Don’t remember him being too happy
about it,” Spike said, trying hard not to smile at his own impromptu joke and
failing. “Sorry, luv. Can’t
say as I feel bad the tosser is dead.”
“Don’t worry. I didn’t expect you to
waste any guilt on him.”
He smiled gratefully then scoffed a
little, the memory of the next part making him shake his head. “Angelus though,
he was thrilled. Well, at least until
“I think I saw where,” Buffy said softly as her worried eyes
met his.
“What do you mean, pet?” He felt a cold fist clench in his
stomach.
“I had a slayer dream, Spike. I saw Angelus. He said he was
coming home.”
Oh
shit, Spike thought. Bad didn’t even begin to describe that
scenario.
*********
It was almost the same as every other day.
Somehow the pitiful excuse for a sun had set, and the animals had scurried out
from the jagged rocks. There were no clouds, so no rain and little water except
for small, putrid pools that sprang from the otherwise barren earth. So how
there were even animals was uncertain, but each day there were a few, just
enough it seemed to keep him going, but not enough that he was ever satisfied.
He was no longer the being that he once was, his features more angular, and his
body more bony. He didn’t even bother trying to keep his face anymore, finding
it easier to let the demon features that now constantly wanted to surface
simply remain. Besides, there was no reason for such pretense here.
As he drank the vile blood from the
filthy, little animal, he tried to imagine that it was something sweet,
something human, her perhaps. No, it shouldn’t be her. That would be too quick
an ending, and she deserved something slow and painful, preferably while he watched. Throwing the drained animal
on the ground, Angelus growled at the thought of him, the other. This was his fault. Sure he was himself again,
his own vampire, the Scourge of Europe, but that did him little good stuck here
in this hell dimension. He wanted nothing more than to make him pay, or more
precisely, to make them pay. It was
both of their faults actually. And now that he thought about it, at least Angel
had an excuse, but Spike… he had no excuse for this. What kind of vampire was
it that allowed himself to be so beaten, so tamed as to actually seek a soul?
Of course Buffy was the answer. Somehow
she seduced them both. They perhaps had no chance of escaping her seductive
pull, her light. Oh, how he would love to twist that, break her, turn her dark.
He could think of many ways to do it: killing her friends, killing her family,
killing them, but there were other
ways too. He could seduce her. As distasteful as that idea was in some ways, in
other ways it was perfect. As long as he was the one in control, the one making
her beg for him, he wouldn’t have to think about actually touching her. He’d
abuse her, all the while making her want it, ashamed by her own depravity. Only
then would he turn her. An evil smile crossed his lips. Maybe he’d even curse
her with her soul. Of course that would be after he let her kill a couple dozen
people, maybe her family and friends included.
He laughed, a
terrible bitter sound that echoed across the earth and bounced off the jagged
rocks. Tomorrow he would think of something just as satisfying, yet different.
Maybe it would be something where he did depraved things to Spike as well as
Buffy. No, stay with this one. Save the
other for tomorrow, he told himself. He couldn’t waste them all at once.
These fantasies were all that kept him together now. Without them, Angelus knew
he just might go mad.
*********
The vision flickered before Gnash, his
concentration wavering. It was difficult, the effort making his body ache
almost unbearably. The magic used to extend his statue’s abilities did not come
without a physical cost, but as he saw the scene before him, he knew he had to
persevere just a little longer. There, that had to be it. His strength almost
gone, he put down a magical marker. He couldn’t stay longer with the vision
today. He needed rest, but that was okay.
A feral, satisfied smile crossed his
lips. Tonight, he could rest and plan, because now he finally had a glimmer of
hope, and this time it was justified. In that shimmering vision of the ruined
landscape, he had seen his goal. The body had been thinner, but that was to be expected
given what he could discern of the landscape. The eyes, though, they never
lied. Gnash was sure he had finally seen Angelus.
Chapter 2: Negotiations
The music
pounded painfully in Sarah’s head, the driving drum beat and harsh guitars
grating on her eardrums. She just had to go outside for a moment to give her
head a rest. She communicated this to her friend, Cindy, via hand gestures, the
music too loud to allow a properly understood verbal message. As Sarah
carefully pushed through the crowd near the door and emerged onto the street,
she already felt a little better, glad to have left the chaotic atmosphere of
The Bronze. The air, reasonably fresh compared to the smoky, alcohol-laden
vapors inside, was a welcome relief.
After a
moment of relative quiet near the entrance, Sarah decided that the cause of her
headache had to be the music. It couldn’t be alcohol, because there’d only been
one drink, a drink that she was reasonably sure had been watered down on top of
that. She scoffed. When had she become such a nerd? She supposed that perhaps
one tough semester of college could do that to a girl. She moved a little
farther away from the door and the ogling eyes of a drunken fraternity boy,
trying to find some peace to think of a plausible excuse to go home early.
The band
was not what she’d expected, but in retrospect, she should have known better.
Her girlfriend Cindy was nice enough, and she loved her to death, but even she
had to admit the girl was an airhead. She should have known better when Cindy had
assured her the band was really good and focused instead on her friend’s
excited descriptions of the lead singer. No amount of good looks was worth
sitting through that racket. Sighing, she considered heading home. Perhaps
Cindy wouldn’t even notice.
She’d only
walked a few more paces from the door when a hand snatched her into an alley.
That alone would have been enough to scare her half to death, but something
about the hand was all wrong. It felt too bony. Sarah had no time to make sense
of any of that information, barely getting out the yelp of surprise, before her
eyes met with an inhuman face. Her breath caught for a moment, her brain trying
to find any kind of logical explanation to rationalize away the horror that she
was seeing. It was a college prank or it was part of the act inside; either
might have been acceptable if she hadn’t felt that cold, clawed hand touching
her flesh. Before she could scream, another of those hands covered her mouth.
Sarah felt her body start to defy the demands of her brain to fight and to flee
as the monster pulled her back into its massive chest, effectively pinning her.
Too frightened, she didn’t notice the demon’s body stiffen or the sound of an
approaching voice.
“Oh, thank
you so much. This way, you said, right? Oh there you are, Sarah, I was
wondering where…”
Sarah
watched Cindy’s eyes go from thankful to terrified in
seconds.
“Even
better,” said the cold voice of the monster that held her, just before Cindy
screamed.
Without
warning, Sarah stumbled hard into the alley wall she’d been shoved towards. She
fell to the pavement without a sound and watched the monster grab her screaming
friend and disappear seconds later. It wasn’t until a few moments afterwards
that the reality would hit her, but she didn’t tell what she’d seen to the
people who came running. She would sound completely crazy. Self-preservation
provided her with a believable lie and the all too reasonable excuse for giving
it. She went through the motions, cooperating with the police, pretending to be
helpful, all so she could just go home where she’d be safe.
The first
pangs of guilt wouldn’t hit her until the quiet hours before dawn, their cause
of an entirely different nature than her story to the police. It was then that Sarah
remembered something just as horrible to her as the monster’s hideous face and
something not as easily excused as her fib. It was something she tried to stuff
deep down, but the memory wouldn’t be denied. Because in those sleepless hours
when there was nothing to do but worry and think, Sarah recalled with perfect
clarity her first coherent thought following the incident. Thank God the monster took Cindy instead of me.
*********
Angelus
thought he was imagining things, because he couldn’t believe he was seeing what
he thought he was: a young, tasty, all-too-human woman. Grinning evilly, he
scented the air from behind his hiding place. She smelled human as well, her
aroma enhanced by the obvious, delicious tang of fear. He stifled a laugh. God,
she was a shapely one too, with large tits and round hips. If this was a
delusion, he was going to make it last, that was for sure, and if it was real?
Well, he’d still make it last. No matter how starving he was for the rich taste
of human blood, there was something else he’d missed just as much. If the woman
was real, he’d catch her soon enough, so why not make it fun? Any vampire could
hunt and kill. He made it an art.
Closing his
eyes, Angelus centered himself, calming his raging hunger for just a little bit
longer. Then with some initial difficulty, he forced his human mask into place
and stepped from behind the rocks.
*********
Buffy felt
much better. She had promised Spike that she would explain things to Angel if
he would stay with her just a little bit longer while she worked through her
initial anxiety. Of course Spike hadn’t objected in the slightest, suggesting
exactly what he could do to help her work through the aforementioned anxiety.
She’d put up a show of offense and the requisite “pig”, but both had known his
suggestion was exactly what she wanted in the first place. Luckily Dawn had
excused herself earlier after manipulating some cash out of Spike for ice
cream. Lucky too, that the bed was still in one piece, that small miracle
perhaps aided by the fact that they never quite made it there.
She smiled
at Spike sprawled out on the floor beneath her, his hands still above his head
despite her having removed the cuffs already. He was perhaps the only male she
knew who could look self-satisfied after being thoroughly ravaged.
“Thanks for
the tumble, luv,” he teased, “but I’ve overstayed my
welcome as it is.” He chuckled. “Angel’s gonna brood
over the bruises we left him already.”
“Spike,”
she scolded, pinching his hip.
He jumped a
little, giving her a lascivious tongue roll. “Oh, now there’s another.”
“Stop it. You know we can’t start again.” She
turned serious for a moment. “I do have to tell him. I’ll see you again soon,
okay?”
He nodded.
“Bye, pet.”
When Buffy
saw his fangs and brow ridges recede, she moved to lie beside him. Caressing
his face, she smiled into the now blue eyes that were clouded slightly with
disorientation. Angel looked above his head, finding his arms there then rolled
his eyes as he brought them down. He sighed, finding himself naked as well.
“Spike,” he muttered. “I should’ve known he was up to something.”
Buffy
pouted in what she hoped was an adorable fashion and softly rubbed his slightly
reddened wrists. “Now don’t blame Spike entirely. It was partly my fault.” She
supposed some worry showed in her eyes now that it was time to share the story
of her dream with him, because Angel seemed to pick up on it.
“What’s
wrong Buffy? You look worried.” He reached a hand up to stroke her hair.
She smirked
slightly. “You should have seen me before this,”
she teased, motioning her hands between them.
Seeing
through her jokes, he looked at her, his gaze serious. Some of Spike’s memories
were no doubt returning to him slowly. “Tell me.”
She nodded then
pulled the comforter from her nearby bed to wrap around them. Snuggling into
him, she smiled sadly. “I had a dream.”
*********
Her body
ached all over, but it was nothing compared to the wreck of her mind. Sitting
up carefully, Cindy tried to get her bearing as she took in the strange
landscape in front of her. This couldn’t be happening, because it was
impossible. That had been her plea for the last few moments she remembered
before waking up here, and it seemed just as appropriate now. It had all looked
and felt so real though. The feel of the whatever-it-was’s
hands on her skin, the black eyes, and the large body with the scaly skin all
had seemed bona fide, but then with a flash, literally, it had disappeared, and
she was alone. As she looked at her surroundings, somehow that idea became only
slightly less terrifying than the monster had been.
A noise
startled her into motion and she scrabbled away from the sound, her heart rate
increasing. Oh God, where was she? She wanted to look for a place to hide, but
she couldn’t turn her back on the noise, fearing something would get her as
soon as her back was turned. She got to her feet and prepared to run until she
saw a figure taking a few careful steps from behind some rocks. He moved
tentatively, his head and shoulders ducked a little and his steps unsteady.
“Are you
real?”
Relief
flooded her as he spoke. He had such a reassuring voice, and she wasn’t alone
anymore. He must’ve been here a while, she reasoned, because his clothing had
seen better days. The shirt already bore tears and his pants looked as if they
carried the dust of the ages. “Where are we? How did we get here?”
“I don’t
know. I woke up here one day quite a while ago.”
“Me too,
but just now,” she offered, glad someone else could share her bewilderment.
As he came
closer, she mused that he wasn’t half bad looking, in spite of the obvious dirt
and ruined clothes. “What do we do now? How do we get out of here?” He smiled
in response, and the first prickling sensations moved up her spine.
“Oh, I
don’t know exactly what you’ll do, but me, I plan on having dinner.” With that
declaration, his face deformed hideously, his mouth growing obvious fangs.
Cindy
screamed and turned, fleeing despite the aching in her limbs. She didn’t notice
that this new monster didn’t follow right away, nor did she hear his response
to her actions.
“God, I
love it when they run.”
Angelus
felt the urge to chase her right away, but forced himself to wait so it
wouldn’t be over too quickly. Reliving the girl’s reaction helped him. Watching
her hopeful, relief-filled eyes suddenly widen in horror had been priceless.
They almost always fell for it, but somehow he never tired of that expression
of shock and terror, and this girl, she screamed like a pro. Of course it helped
that just before she screamed, her lungs filled with air, enhancing her ample
chest. God, this was going to be fun. He closed his eyes and picked up her
scent, following it at a leisurely pace.
Angelus had
learned early on that following a scent trail was fairly easy in this
dimension. Somehow there was a constant movement of air, not really wind per
se, but movement nonetheless. He had supposed at one point that it was likely
magical, but in actuality, he could care less as long as it let him find prey,
and this evening, what glorious prey it was. It wouldn’t be long before the
waning sun disappeared entirely, and there would only be an unearthly glow
emanating from the various rock outcroppings. She would have no time to run
anywhere else in the encroaching darkness. He chuckled to himself. Not only was
she buxom, but brainless as well, just like in the movies. Okay, he could use
that.
He moved in
a mockery of stealth towards the closest rocky ridge. “Well, let’s see, our heroine
has chosen to hide in the first place she saw, because the monster would never look there.” Making his tone
sarcastic and loud, Angelus ensured that she would hear his every word. He also
made sure she could hear his approaching footsteps, relishing in her growing
fear that carried on the air. He inhaled deeply and waited for the inevitable.
As
expected, the anticipation of his arrival was too much for her, and she fled
into the encroaching twilight, flushed like a quail from brush. Angelus followed,
not rushing, watching her labored breathing with appreciation, but his hunger
was growing as he came nearer. As he gained on her, intending to end the chase
now that he’d had his fun, she looked behind her in terror, and suddenly
tripped, sprawling on the dusty ground below.
“Oh, and the heroine trips, maybe twisting an ankle. How cliché,” he taunted.
She gave a
strangled scream and scrambled to her hands and knees, attempting to rise to
her feet. Angelus was on her back in a moment, wrapping his arms around her
waist, and in a parody of affection, he whispered in her ear, “Oh, now how did
guess that this is my favorite position?” He then sunk his fangs into the skin
between her neck and shoulder. She screamed, not then knowing that it would be
the least of what he would do to her.
*********
Gnash
looked down on the body of the girl, taking a moment to admire the vampire’s
handiwork before he spoke. “So I see you enjoyed my little gift, Angelus.” The
vampire startled in response, and the demon smiled in amusement. “Be careful
now. Don’t let all that nice, human blood make your senses weak.”
Angelus
looked him up and down then, and the demon was amused to see forced
indifference in the other’s expression.
“And what
are you supposed to be? Some cross between the monster from Alien and Kermit the frog?”
Gnash would
have gotten angry if the retort hadn’t been so amusing, not to mention a
somewhat accurate as a description. “Oh, but you forgot one important
component. There’s a little Merlin in the mix as well.” He let some blue sparks
dance on his talons for show. “Though perhaps in my case,
maybe more of a Morgana, not including the feminine
aspect of course.”
“Oh, so
that’s how you got here. Magic.” The sarcasm in his
tone wasn’t at all subtle. Angelus sighed heavily. “And I suppose now that
you’ve given me the little bimbo, here, you want me to do something for you.”
He rolled his eyes. “Well, screw you. I’m not anyone’s lacky.
And since you seem to know who I am, the chance is pretty good that you need me.
So whatever it is, you can shove it until you give me good reason to say
otherwise.”
“Are you
done?”
Angelus
looked towards the featureless sky above him. “Yes, I’m done. What do you want?
Though I’ve got to tell you, not much I can do from here.”
“No, you
are correct on that. What I want you to do is not here, but back home.”
“Of
course,” he huffed, adopting a put-upon expression
that would make a diva proud. “And what God-awful place is home to you?”
“Why
“I have
business there myself,” he growled.
“And I
imagine that our purposes are somewhat similar.”
“Well, what
are you waiting for? Let’s go home.”
Gnash
smiled. “Soon.”
Angelus
growled. “Soon?” He looked ready to make an issue of
it.
“Yes, as in not quite yet. Look at yourself. You’re practically skin and bones. I may
be powerful, but I am a secretive demon. I don’t make my presence known to my
enemies. Do you understand?”
Angelus
smiled. “You want me to be your calling card.”
“Not so
slow after all,” Gnash said. “And to do that, you need to be strong again.
These aren’t girls like the one I sent to you.
Well, actually one is a girl, but not your usual girl.”
“Let me
guess,” Angelus offered. “Small, blonde, annoying, heavy into
stakes and weaponry. Am I getting close?”
“Very, and
she has strong allies. Perhaps much stronger than you
remember.”
“Like that red-headed witch who sent me here.”
“Yes, for
one. And another witch and a vampire for two others.
While you remain here getting stronger, I’d like to try and even those odds a
little too.”
“And I’ll
be getting stronger how?” Angelus asked, giving a vague gesture to his
surroundings.
“There’s
plenty more where she came from,” Gnash answered, indicating the girl’s body
with a nudge of his foot. “You just take care of regaining your strength and
fighting skills. I’ll supply the rest.”
“Why can’t
I get stronger back in Sunnydale?”
“Because I don’t trust you to be patient, vampire. Patience is my strong suit, not
yours. You’ll be off trying to get your revenge before you are anywhere near ready.
No, I’ll let you stay right here. I’m doing enough for you as it is. Wouldn’t
you agree?” His voice carried a bit of warning that he could see was not lost
on the vampire.
Angelus
bristled, at first defiant, but quickly backed down, shoulders slumping just a
little. “I’ll stay here and get stronger. Just don’t forget the choice eats,
and we have a deal.”
He watched
Angelus stand up straighter again, the demand mostly for show since there had
already been an offer to supply the vampire with more humans, but Gnash was
always the diplomat. It went along with being a good behind-the- scenes demon.
It was much easier to get someone to do your bidding when they felt like part
of the process. “Of course. You will be provided for.”
Without further discussion, Gnash brought out his pre-made spell, smashed it,
and vanished before Angelus could change his mind.
*********
Buffy would
be fine. Whatever her Slayer dream had meant, he was sure she would overcome
it. There was no way that Angelus would be coming back now. If he could have,
he would have done it all ready. This Angel was sure of. Of course the fact
that he was heading back to
Shifting in
the driver’s seat, Angel resigned himself to the drive
home. The movement elicited a slight groan as he remembered yet another
disadvantage of leaving early: no recovery time. He never should have let Spike
talk him into staying under for that last thirty minutes or so. A tense Buffy
was often a Buffy that liked to blow off steam. When Spike was thrown into that
equation, it often resulted in a little “rough and tumble”, emphasis on the
“rough” part. Sure Spike enjoyed himself, but he didn’t have to live with the
lingering aches and bruises that followed. Angel shook his head and smirked.
Buffy did seem to like things a little rough at times. That was something he
never would have guessed about her in the old days but probably should have.
Until his
merger with Spike, he’d only had the one night with Buffy, and that night had
been her first. She’d had no real idea of what she would like in terms of a
physical relationship then, because it was all new. She’d had plenty of time to
figure it out after he’d left. Though surprisingly, with him, she enjoyed
returning to the romance and slow, shy wonder more often than not. Perhaps it
recalled one of the best times in their relationship: the one perfect moment.
Angel couldn’t argue with the appeal.
It wasn’t
usually the same thing with his counterpart, however. After gaining some of
Spike’s memories and a new insight after they had merged, Angel knew that a lot
of Buffy’s relationship with Spike had been self-destructive on her part,
including a lot of the sex. Perhaps Buffy herself wouldn’t have guessed she’d
enjoy keeping a little of the rough play even after their relationship changed.
Maybe it was the way Spike made her feel powerful. For Buffy, Spike would be
tamed, and the look that would cross her face as she watched him surrender,
well, the memory of it now made Angel want to shiver. Equally as magnificent
was her expression those times she surrendered in turn. Angel had seen it first
through Spike, but slowly, Buffy allowed him to see that side of her as well.
It had been
hard for her at first, he knew, and she had finally admitted as such one night
in his arms. Once she had let him know that she was afraid of what he would
think, that she was worried about him seeing how much she had changed from the
shy, inexperienced woman he knew, it had been easy for him to show her that she
had no reason to be concerned. Generally though, she left the rough stuff for
Spike, which was fine with him. The “morning after” bruises were bad enough.
Angel
flipped on the radio, glad that his musings had taken his mind off the problem
at hand for a while. Unfortunately, as
Chapter 3: Thoughts of Heart and
Home
Home at last, Angel thought. The traffic on the
last stretch of road had been horrendous, the situation exacerbated by an
accident. He was glad to finally leave
his car and the frustrating
Angel watched Cordelia’s
eyes widen in surprise as he walked casually into the lobby of the
Hyperion, the illusion more believable
now that he’d become accustomed to moving in his new body. It took her a full
five seconds before she could speak.
“Wait. What happened?” she asked.
She craned her head, trying to see if anyone else would come through the door. Seeing
no one else, her eyes narrowed.
“Alright, you peroxided pest, where’s Angel?”
The stake she produced seemed to come from nowhere.
“Cordy, it
is me, Angel,” he told her. “Really.”
Her mouth and her stake dropped simultaneously
as she looked him up and down, head slightly tilted in confusion. Her
expression as she tried to figure him out was priceless. Then her face changed
slightly, her eyes lighting up a bit. Was that intrigue he saw there? “No way!”
she finally exclaimed when she found her voice again. Moving closer to him, she
poked a finger into his arm experimentally.
Angel chuckled. “I’m not
non-corporeal.”
“I know that,” Cordelia
replied a bit testily, adding, “You big jerk.” She punctuated that with a punch
to the arm. “Scaring me like that.” Then she snorted and affected nonchalance.
“Making me think I’d have to run this place all by myself.”
Angel almost chuckled again. That was
his Cordy, deftly hiding any signs of her concern in
the blink of an eye. Too late though, he had seen it, and though he’d succeeded
in stifling his chuckle, a grin remained on his face. Of course that only
annoyed her further.
“I hope you realize that you’ll have
to get an entire new wardrobe,” she pointed out. “And don’t expect me to help
you shop either. I’m not forgetting this so easily, you know. I expect presents
of some kind…” She continued off in this vein as she moved into the office.
“I know you were worried about me,”
he sing-songed.
She poked her head out of the
office. “As if,” she snorted indignantly. “Get me a hunky office assistant and
I wouldn’t even need you,” she teased then returned to the recesses of the
office, mumbling something about annoying, egotistical vampires.
He smiled even wider, thinking that
it was good to be home.
Angel
grinned, the memory of his first return a few moths ago helping to distract him
from unpleasant thoughts as he prepared to once again step into the hotel. He
loved his visits with Buffy, but still, going home always felt good. Of course,
now Cordelia didn’t even blink at seeing him in
Spike’s body. That had become old hat after the first two weeks. So Angel
wasn’t at all surprised as he strolled into the lobby to see Cordelia look up at him from the couch and… give a startled
jump? Okay he was a little surprised.
“Angel? Oh
darn you,” she muttered, picking up the nail polish she’d dropped in reaction.
“You’re lucky I didn’t spill this.” She returned to painting her toenails. “You
weren’t supposed to be back for three more days,” she pointed out, annoyance in
her voice.
As he
watched her finish her toenails, Angel wondered when she’d remember that she
was wearing what appeared to be an avocado facial mask. After a moment, he
decided that it might be fun to help her remember. “Are we closed?” he asked
with amusement, “because I think you might perhaps scare any potential
customers with, well, that.” He vaguely gestured to her face and watched the
dawning horror as Cordelia put her hand up and felt
the mask.
“Aah!” Her expression turned indignant, evident even beneath
the layer of olive green, and she whipped a throw pillow at him. “You! How long were you going to let me sit here like this?”
Angel
flinched as he blocked the pillow. To make matters worse the instinctive
reaction brought Spike closer to the surface, and the demon’s response was to
get a good look at Cordelia and start laughing. Of
course, Angel was still partly in control, so his face remained unvamped, leaving him to get the blame. Cordelia
marched over to him and hit him on the arm.
“Hey! Stop
laughing.”
“It’s not
me,“ he protested, still laughing.
“Oh well,
in that case, it’s not you I’m hitting.” She delivered a punch to his arm, and Angel
gave up and let Spike come forward and have his laugh at poor Cordelia’s expense.
“People
would take one look at you and prefer whatever demon they came here to get rid
of,” Spike barely got out.
Cordelia’s
eyes flashed, and she looked ready to hit him again.
“Okay,
okay, I’ll stop,” he said and forced a sincere expression on his ridged and
fanged face, but there was one more
thing he couldn’t resist saying to make him go back on that declaration. He
gave her an expression of exaggerated sincerity. “I suppose now would be a bad
time to remind you ‘bout the curlers in your hair, huh pet?” Dissolving into
laughter again, Spike ran ineffectually as Cordelia
retrieved the throw pillow and chased after him. Not worried about the pillow
hitting him, he still kept moving, reveling in the
thrill of the chase and in the fact that something was bound to get broken and
annoy Angel to no end.
*********
It was
beautiful. Orbs often were, but this one was almost mesmerizing. Perfectly
smooth on the outside with seemingly endless layers of radiant, multicolored
crystals of dancing fire within, it was unlike anything even he had laid eyes
on before. Ironic that such magnificent beauty hid such danger within.
It wasn’t
like Gnash to dwell on the splendor of an object, but this object compelled him
to do so. He stroked its cool, smooth surface reverently and felt a pleasant
hum on his palm. Realizing that it was perhaps not just its beauty that drew
him, he shook his head a little and took his hands away. Wow, he though, this thing is
powerful. So much so that it even affected him. Well, that was good,
because the witch was powerful too, and if she was going to fall under its
spell, it would have to be.
But the
witch, he knew, was also clever. Sure she’d had a taste a few months ago at
recklessly using her powers again, and oh, yes, he’d seen the look in her eyes
as she threw that useless human, Warren, into Angelus and watched the vampire
eat him, but she’d been relatively careful recently. She hadn’t given up using
her powers again entirely, so that was good, but she would definitely need
motivation.
He thought
for a moment. The other witch, Tara, would make a good incentive, but that one
was intuitive. She might sense the danger ahead of time. Maybe one of the other
ones, the man-boy or his ex-girlfriend would make a better choice. Gnash smiled
for a moment thinking of the woman. She had just recently come back into the
group he’d been spying on, but he’d recognized her immediately as that demon
woman who’d visited him months ago. He frowned a little. Too bad she’d recently
given up her powers again and was no longer a demon. She was less appealing,
not to mention, probably much less receptive to a demon rendez-vous
as a human. Maybe with that man-boy, what was his name? Oh yes, Xander. Maybe with him gone, the girl could be persuaded to
return to her demon ways. Now, that
was something to think about.
Gnash
smiled. Okay, one Xander as motivational goat coming
up. One thing decided. Now who to get to do the dirty work? Perhaps more
importantly, how would he make sure the orb’s existence and history became
known without giving away everything? That would be hard. The other witch,
Tara, had discovered the flaw in his spell for Spike; she was sure to figure
out the potential evil in the orb. Perhaps a distraction was in order. Hmm, so
much to do, and it was time to snatch another woman for Angelus. There really
was no rest for the wicked.
And the
good guys thought they had it rough.
*********
Cordelia
sat across from him in a chair in his room. He’d stopped packing to take the
second chair at the small table after he’d seen the concern on her face.
“Angelus,
huh?” she asked, trying to plant a brave smile on her face.
“I won’t
let him do anything. We’ll stop him. If he does return that is. Buffy’s dream
could be wrong. You haven’t seen any visions…”
“Buffy’s
slayer dreams have a scary way of being accurate,” she pointed out. She looked
down a moment, clearly uncomfortable and worried. “But I have faith in you,
Angel. You’ll stop him.” She nodded then and smiled. “And it’s good to talk to you again instead of that annoying pain
in the butt. Laughing at my facial mask and curlers,” she grumbled.
Angel
smirked. “Well you really can’t blame him.”
“Watch it,”
she warned. “And besides, you shouldn’t be so nice to him. Look how he takes
advantage of you.” She gestured to his cheek and neck.
Angel
wrinkled his forehead in puzzlement.
“The bruise
and the giant love bite,” she explained, “and that’s only the visible stuff.
That just has to be Spike. Not that it doesn’t somehow look
strangely good on you, but... You do realize that you guys are in a
threesome, right?”
“What?”
“Or is it
more that she is cheating on you,” Cordelia mused,
shifting her eyes upward and twisting her mouth.
“It’s not
cheating if I let them,” Angel said. “Besides, I do owe him. He may be a pest…”
“And a little kinky.”
Angel
sighed and tried not smile. “But I would still have that happiness clause if it
wasn’t for Spike. Once a month or so is not that much of a sacrifice to make
for what I get in return.”
Cordelia
looked a little uncomfortable for a moment, pretending to examine her finger
nails for signs of wear. Then she looked at him again. “You are back now,
right? I mean I know it always takes a little bit after the meditation before
he goes back into the background.”
“Cordy, what’s wrong? What’s this about? You’re not normally
this hard on Spike. So tell me what’s bothering you?”
She sighed.
He watched the emotions play over her face as she decided whether to tell him
or not, a strange thing to see since Cordeila seldom
held back. Whatever this was it had been bothering her for a little while.
Finally she shook her head a little as if getting her hair in place, and then
in true Cordelia fashion, she just let it all out.
“What if he fights you? What if he doesn’t want to help against Angelus? What
if he wants his body back and gets you stuck with Angelus instead?”
Angel shook
his head. “No. Spike wouldn’t do that. He hates Angelus almost as much as I do.
You don’t know all the things Angelus did to him when he came back. He’ll want
to kill him as much as I do.”
“Are you
sure about that? How can you be certain?”
Angel
smiled at her and put a reassuring hand on her arm. He put his other hand over
his heart. “Because I’d feel it. I’d know. He likes
what he has with me. He feels safe.”
“Safe?”
Angel
nodded once and kept eye contact to let her know he was sincere and certain. “He
didn’t want to hurt Buffy. In here, he knows he won’t, but he can still love
her. I feel that. It’s odd to say, but I can.”
Cordelia
nodded and relaxed a little. She put her own hand over his which still rested
on her arm. “I hope, for your sake, that you are right.”
*********
Drizzle
fell, blanketing everything outside in damp. It was the gray, lingering kind,
too, not the kind that led to sunshine breaking through the clouds and
beautiful rainbows. This drizzle meant business, and it meant to stay a while.
Somehow, though,
She’d made
such a difference recently. Everyone trusted her again and allowed her to help.
Though
“Where?”
“Right
here,” she replied, gently kissing the sauce away.
“No fair
trying to distract me,”
“I tried,”
she said teasingly.
“Yes,”
“Strong enough to resist the pizza?”
“Even that.”
“All the more for me then.” She made quite a show of choosing a piece and bringing it
to her lips. Closing her eyes, she took a bite, chewing happily and licking the
sauce from her lips. “Mmm,” she almost moaned.
“Vixen,”
Smiling at
the comment,
Later, she
would be strangely thankful that she was able to eat three-quarters of her
slice before Buffy entered, because the look on her friend’s face had signaled warning
bells even before the words had come from her lips.
“Good,
“Why Buffy,
is something wrong?”
Irrationally,
“Angelus.
I had a slayer dream. I’m afraid he’s coming back.”
And all of
a sudden, the drizzle outside had seemed as bleak as
Chapter 4: Reflections on Life and
Donuts
“Angelus. I had a slayer dream. I’m afraid he’s coming back.”
Reluctantly,
“It was a
slayer dream. I’m sure of it. But I don’t know when he’s coming back, so we
need to start preparing now.” Pausing only briefly, Buffy let her determined gaze
shift to include them both. “I need to be ready. So I need you both to tell me
everything.”
“Because of
“Yes,”
“Spike told
me that part. He said that Angel took them both back into Spike’s head because
the connection was closing.”
“Yes,”
“I
shouldn’t have drained the power from you,”
“Yes, but…”
Her forehead wrinkling in confusion,
“I don’t
know. I only know that somehow he will. I saw where he was, guys. The barren landscape, the reddish sky, the whole general hell-dimensiony flavor. It was so real.”
For a
moment, no one spoke as the potential dread seemed to suck the life out of the
room. Then Buffy added, “It’s not like I haven’t beaten Angelus before. I can
do this, but I don’t know where he’ll come from or when. Or what he’ll do
before I can stop him. If I can narrow this down, I can prepare.”
“So, we’ll
research,”
“Huh? Start?”
“Researching where Angelus is. What kind of dimensions? Or perhaps a
spell to search for recent magic activity?”
“Right,”
Buffy added. “Because magic would have to be involved for him
to come back. Big magic, right?”
*********
Watching
the proceedings from his home, Gnash growled, barely keeping his temper in
check. Not good, not good, he thought. Of course a fairly large dose of
magic would be needed to bring Angelus back. It was a strange quirk of most
trans-dimensional travel that it took more than an additive amount of magic to
transport more than one being. There were some exceptions. For some demons,
teleportation was an integral part of their modus operandi. Vengeance demons,
for example, had to be able to transport quickly to potential clients, so they
had an easier time teleporting others with them, but even for them,
inter-dimensional travel wasn’t as easy as usual teleportation from one place
to another within a particular dimension. If the little gang of do-gooders was
able to track his magic and pinpoint when Gnash brought Angelus back, and
worse, to where, he would have less time to get things in place and going
before he was discovered. And if there was anything Gnash hated, it was being
discovered.
He pressed
the palms of his hands into his eyelids for a moment. Okay he needed sleep, or
he at least needed a break as he didn’t require much actual sleep, because he had
been spying on these humans for too long. Gnash was thorough and patient as far
as demons went, but even he had been working on this particular project too
much as of late. Maybe he had to let some of his control issues go, accept that
there might be some set-backs and deal with them as they came up. Or maybe he
could start tipping the scales now instead of later. Much, much better,
he decided. Okay so he had control issues; he could deal with that. Besides
they had served him so well in the past. Why fix something that wasn’t broken,
especially when he could break something else instead, something that wasn’t
his?
Gnash
briefly considered sending a beautiful Galok demon to
entice the boy Xander, but that was so cliché even he
couldn’t do it. He had some pride. Besides Galok
demons weren’t always trustworthy; she might make it difficult for him later.
Oh, oh a disguise: why didn’t he think of it before? A
glamour would let him nab the boy without being detected as himself.
Now, he had to get the boy to the magic shop where the rest were researching.
Well, how else, but with a magical mystery? Gnash smiled and picked up the
beautiful but dangerous orb. Kill two birds with one stone and simple was
always best: two very old and very useful pieces of advice. He was never one to
ignore good advice.
*********
It was
official. He was brooding. It just had to be Angel’s fault, Spike decided,
because he didn’t brood. He drowned himself in whiskey perhaps or
indulged in a spot of violence, but this brooding thing was new. Must be
because of the merger, he decided, and it’s one
trait of the annoying poof I don’t need.
He’d
returned to the background now, but he knew everything that was going on. Odd,
that, he mused, because Angel didn’t seem to feel him so much when he was
in his mystical cage. It was a really creative curse these gypsies thought up.
He could only imagine how crazy it must have driven Angelus to be only a casual
observer like this, made even worse without the benefit of the occasional
release to the forefront that he had. Heh, heh, he thought, good.
Bloody wanker deserved it. That thought made him
feel a little better, though he was surprisingly hurt by Cordelia’s
comments. He hadn’t thought that he would care what she thought of him, but
hell, he hoped she’d have gotten used to him by now.
Paying
attention again, he caught the look of concern in Cordelia’s
eyes as she softly moved her hand across his/Angel’s hand resting on her arm,
and ah, well, so that explained it. If he could roll his eyes he would have.
Bloody hell, but Angel was dense. Couldn’t he see it; the woman was in love
with him, for God’s sakes. He should have figured it out before himself. She
had broken up with that Grusalug of hers and sent him
home, after all. That should have been one clue right there, but well, he had
the excuse of being in the background. Being a complete git
could only be Angel’s.
Well,
this probably won’t end well, he thought. Suddenly, he felt sad for Cordelia,
his hurt feelings forgotten. Bugger, but suffering the effects of a conscience
sure sucked sometimes, and not in a good way either. Sigh, and back to
brooding. Soon enough, he’d start thinking about all he’d done in his past
again, and that was never good. He’d likely be doing enough of that on the
boring car ride home. He needed a diversion here.
He thought
about the return to Sunnydale for a moment, hoping
that they got back soon so Angel and Buffy could go patrolling. That was
something both he and Angel enjoyed. Angel got to fight the evil, and him, well
he had to admit fighting evil was good too. Buffy liked him fighting evil, so
that was a bonus, but even better than that, he got to kill something. And
right about now, Spike could sure use a good kill. Though since the merger, not
even that held the same appeal anymore. It was good, but not like before and
also not an option right now, because Angel was packing again which could take
forever knowing him. How hard could it be to decide which outfits to take? See
that was the advantage of black tee-shirts and jeans, but no, those stayed in
the closet now most of the time, so packing it was, and a non-physical
distraction was needed.
He first
thought of Dawn. The Bit had been happy to see him that was for sure, and he’d
been happy to see her too. His relationship with his Nibblet
was one thing that was his alone, because she would always prefer him to the
poof. Of course, him telling the girl amusing Angelus stories sure helped. He
only embellished a bit, because of course, Angel always “remembered” eventually,
even though it was too late for him to complain by then. Well, that’s what
Angel got for agreeing to their little arrangement. What did he expect; he was
still Spike after all. The soul did change him some, but hell if it was going
to change him completely. Okay, careful, he told himself, we’re
sliding towards brooding territory again.
Buffy. There you go, Spike, think of her. By letting his memories drift to
his afternoon with Buffy, it wasn’t difficult for him to tune out the endless
parade of socks and knickers (what did he need those for anyway),
button-up shirts and slacks. It also kept his ghosts at bay. So he let his
memories recall everything: every touch both commanding and tender, every kiss
and every bite, every little delightful pain delivered just right, and every
time they made each other moan with pleasure. God, but Buffy had been
magnificent. He loved it when she looked at him like that: like he made her
feel like she was in control and powerful, like she could do anything she
wanted to him, and he would do anything for her, which was all true of course.
No time for caresses and soft words afterwards this time, not that she had been
in the mood for that today anyway, but he did enjoy that, too. Anything to show
her how amazing he thought she was. It surprised him that even now that she
actually believed it, he still craved showing her how he felt, and that he
never tired of proving it. Bloody hell, but he was love’s bitch. And he
wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.
Spike let
the thought fade out and his attention shift back to what was happening. Oh,
bonus, packing finally done. Now let’s go say our goodbyes to Cordelia and get on the road. Buffy’s waiting. Spike
knew he had no real influence but was pleased nonetheless when Angel actually
did go to find Cordelia. It was one step closer to
returning to Sunnydale. In one way, he wasn’t looking
forward to having a confrontation with Angelus, but in another, it was sure
better than the torment of waiting for the inevitable. And even if Angel tried
to convince himself Angelus wasn’t returning, somehow Spike knew in his gut
that he was. This time Spike would be ready for him.
*********
That had
been nice, Xander thought, more than nice actually.
Rather, it was a well-deserved and much needed event. He was still a little
buzzed from the few beers he’d had, so the loss of twenty bucks in that last
pool game didn’t even register as a disappointment. All he knew was that he’d
had a normal and enjoyable guys’ night out with some of his crew after a
productive day, no make that a productive week, at work. He was on his way to
his car, momentarily pondering if he was okay to drive when he heard a
commotion nearby. Without thinking of the consequences, he started moving
towards the noise and blurred movement. Then as he recognized a woman
struggling, he ran to his car, hoping to grab a weapon. Fumbling for his keys,
he heard a scream.
Damn, he
thought, torn, but he knew he needed a weapon if he was to be of any use.
“Hey!” he called out as a distraction, hoping to draw the demon’s attention
from the woman. It seemed to work as the demon turned gold eyes and a bumpy
forehead in his direction. Okay, a vampire, good, that he could deal with.
“What’s the matter? Can’t pick on someone your own size?”
The vampire actually looked insulted as he tossed the woman to the
ground. She picked herself up and went screaming off into the night while the
vampire headed towards him instead.
It was then that Xander realized he was
supposed to be opening the trunk at the same time as he was insulting the
vampire. “Stupid, stupid, stupid,” he chanted to himself as he fumbled to get
the trunk open. He got it open just as the vampire reached him, pulling out a
battle axe and swinging it. The vampire threw an arm up to block it, but
stumbled back from the blow, allowing Xander to
recover and get the axe ready again. Snarling, the vampire ran off.
“That’s right. You better think twice before messing with Xander Harris!”
Only after the vampire had gone did he drop the axe back into the trunk
and lean his head on his folded arms against the open trunk hood, panting
heavily. After a minute he looked off in the direction the woman ran, glad that
the vampire had taken a different direction and hoping she was okay. A moment
later, he noticed the dropped purse under the light pole not far from his car.
The vamp must have dropped it on his way over to the car after stealing it from
the woman. Frowning, he went cautiously to pick it up and carefully reached
inside to find a wallet with an I.D. He hoped it would be local, because a
student might have a license from out of state, and he’d be less likely to find
an address or phone number to return it. There was no wallet though, only an
ornate wooden box. Opening it, he saw a beautiful crystal ball. No, even he
knew it was more than that. It was definitely an orb. Knowing that this was out
of his league, he pulled out his cell phone to call
*********
At least
the traffic is better,
Angel mused as he cruised down the freeway for the second time that day. He’d
tried to be as optimistic as possible for Cordelia’s
sake, but now he was starting to have doubts. He had a sneaking suspicion that
was Spike’s fault. The anxiety coming from the demon had been
uncharacteristically apparent earlier this evening, and that worry was starting
to pick at the edge of his awareness.
Angel
usually didn’t get any real thoughts from Spike when he was in the background
as he was now, but he often got vague impressions, emotions, and feelings. And
at this moment, it felt like Spike was brooding. He was almost amused at the
prospect, except that he remembered the long few months after they had first
merged. Spike had gone through hell, and though he’d done a pretty good job of
keeping it from him, Angel sometimes felt the trauma. He had a pretty good idea
that without a distraction, his demon was feeling more of the same at present.
Somehow
Angel had known this would happen and had tried to warn Spike when he’d heard
his rival’s plans to rid him of Angelus. He’d been right, on both the
consequence and on the point that Spike hadn’t been prepared. At times like
this, Angel was both glad and a little guilty that he hadn’t tried harder to
talk him out of it.
Furrowing
his brow and changing lanes, he wondered if Angelus had felt the direct effects
of the soul as Spike did now. Angel tended to think not, but it was hard to
tell. He didn’t remember getting that impression from his previous demon, not
even in his memories of Angelus, just a lot of rage at having been kept at bay
as a prisoner for so long. In binding the soul to the demon, some things had
changed with this curse, and both of them had sacrificed for it. Not for the
first time, Angel was amazed that Spike had been willing to go through it at
all. Of course this took some of the fun out of being annoyed with the pain in
the ass for the memories of some rather embellished stories he’d told Dawn
earlier today. Figures Spike wouldn’t even leave him that, and to think he’d
defended him to Cordelia earlier. Angel snorted to himself. Jerk. And nope, he wasn’t gonna feel bad about that thought either. Just to make sure
he didn’t, Angel turned on the radio.
Barry Mannilow had to be on one of the stations.
*********
Gnash let the glamour drop as soon as he made it to the alleyway,
chuckling a little in spite of himself. Humans were so gullible. Had he been a
real vampire, he’d have grabbed the axe out of the boy’s hands so fast it
would’ve made his head spin. Well, before he sank his fangs into his neck and
drained him dry that is. But the boy had bought it, and he’d found the orb. Now
it was time for the second step of his plan. Pulling the worn, leather volume
from beneath his coat, Gnash looked at it. He vaguely wondered if they would be
suspicious when they found it in the box amongst the recent book order. The
ex-vengeance demon might be if she checked it against the order form, but if he
was lucky, the others would find the book before she ever knew. She wasn’t even
there right now, not being a part of the late-night research party. The red
witch he knew wouldn’t care. She’d just be content to have found the
information she needed. Such simple things made humans happy. He listened to Xander’s side of the conversation as he talked on the
phone, pleased that he’d found the rest of the group on his third call.
“Oh, researching? Well, good, because I’ve got
something else to bring to that party. You’ll never guess what I found
tonight?” A pause. “No, not even close. I’ll have to
show you. What did Buffy say? Donuts? I can bring
donuts. What kind do you want?”
That
should distract them for a moment, Gnash thought as he prepared to
make a quick teleport into the basement to stash his book amongst the recent
order. No one ever agrees on the best kind of donut. What other reason
was there to explain the cruller?
TBC