FROM BAD…TO WORSE (OR - NO MATTER HOW SORRY YOU ARE)
As Raziel finished his task, he felt his strength rush back. Angel's
soul was a tortured one, but also very strong. It had survived a lot of
pain. He had drawn out the feeding, to savor it. All Raziel cared about
was that it was strong enough to last him quite awhile. He needed to get
to the Reaver. Because Angel had cast the magick as a souled creature,
and no longer was, the spell was undone.
Angel dropped to the ground, his body shaking from Raziel's invasion.
He came back to himself. He had come back. Angelus, however grateful, was
not at all happy with the ancient vampire. He could still feel the gaping
chest wound, even though it was already nearly healed. His last two returns
to the world had been much more pleasurable than that, and he was angry
that this third time hadn't been. Then again, he just had a burning to
desire to kill something.
He wasn't sure what he was going to do yet. Cordelia and Wesley had
just gotten in, and were upstairs. He smiled. From his position on the
ground, he watched as Raziel headed for that wooden sword that sat atop
the weapons cabinet. It was time to get some practice in. Springing up,
he launched himself at Raziel. When they both tumbled to the ground, and
realized that he had a hold of Raziel's wings, his vampiric face surfaced.
Raziel realized that Angel had gripped his wings. The pain was unbearable
the first time, and considering it took them a better part of a millennium
to heal, he really didn't want to wait that long again. Plus, his ability
to ability to travel would be severely hampered. He'd have to walk through
the, he shuddered, sewers to remain inconspicuous to the humans.
"You don't want to do this." Raziel said.
"I think I do. He warned you about setting me free. You didn't listen.
Things just got worse."
Without a second thought, Angelus tore both wings clean off. Raziel
let out a blood-curdling scream. Kain had simply hurt them enough so they
wouldn't function. He hadn't completely torn them from Raziel's body. If
Angelus could do that, what other vicious acts was he capable of? Of all
the breed members he had seen since his return, Angelus had to be the most
sadistic.
It was this thought that plagued him as his pain was replaced by rage
and adrenaline. He drove his elbow back into Angelus' chest, sending him
flying back across the apartment and into the wall. All he needed was to
get the Reaver. Ignoring the stunned Angelus, Raziel stumbled over to the
weapons cabinet and grabbed it. As he was raising it above his head, preparing
to smash the wooden shell; he heard the noise of the elevator beginning
to descend.
That was all Angelus needed. He ran to Raziel and picked him up by
his throat, squeezed, and then slammed him to the ground. The sword rolled
out the other vampire's hand. Raziel, motivated simply by desperation,
swung his leg around, making Angelus join him on the floor. He got to his
feet, and used one of them to press on Angelus' chest, while he gripped
the Reaver in-between the claws of his other foot.
In the next second, he had snapped the wood, and saw the blue, pure
energy form of the Soul Reaver emerge. He closed his eyes, and soon felt
the Reaver bonding with his arm. It coiled itself around, feeding energy
and power throughout Raziel's body. He didn't even pay attention as Angelus
freed himself.
"Nice toy." Angelus said. "But since it doesn't hurt soulless monsters
such as myself, to me it's just for show."
Angelus walked over to the couch, and saw Cordelia and Wesley stepping
out of the elevator. From the way they were looking at him, he knew they
didn't know what had happened to him. Turning back to Raziel, he shoved
the couch at him, and it flew, hitting the older vampire in the chest and
pinning him against the wall.
Raziel had no desire to be in that position, so he reached out his
arm, and set the couch flying back directly at Angelus, and it knocked
him down.
"This is not simply a weapon." Raziel said. "Its power is so much greater."
Raziel's hand began to glow bright yellow, and the next thing Angelus
knew sunlight was beginning to shine on his legs. Wesley snuck up behind
Raziel, holding a lamp in his hands. He hit the vampire with it just as
his boss' legs caught fire. Raziel's spell stopped abruptly, and he turned
around to look at his attacker.
Cordelia had rushed over with a dark blanket, and was extinguishing
the flames. Angelus was wincing and growling low. His pants were cut and
singed, and he could the burns and his own blood. Not even Buffy had made
him as pissed off as he was right now.
"You don't know what you do." Raziel told Wesley.
"Go. Leave this place."
Raziel shook his head, and looked down at Angelus. "As you wish." He
walked down the stairs that led into the sewer tunnels.
When he was gone, Wesley was at Angelus' side, still unaware of his
change.
"Are you alright, Angel?" He asked.
"Hello! He just got third degree burns, Wesley!" Cordelia yelled at
her colleague.
Angelus looked at them. "I'm fine. Really. Just fine."
***
Xander stormed into City Hall, walking its corridors. It was still morning
so it was fairly empty. He wasn't in his custodial uniform, but the good
thing about having the head position was that you could set your own hours.
He had a single-minded purpose. To get to the Mayor. It hadn't sunk in
yet, just how foolish it was, but when he saw Buffy hurting, it just set
him off.
The Mayor had been the one who set it all up. Faith was in jail because
of him. Buffy was unhappy because of him. There had been a time where he
wasn't very receptive to the slayers' relationship, but he knew they were
in love. And he wasn't going to see Buffy's heart sucked dry again. Or
see Faith rot in jail. Just because his relationship was rocky at the moment
didn't mean everyone else's should be.
When he reached the Mayor's door, he took a deep breath, and then flung
it open. The Mayor was probably a demon, but that didn't register to him
at the moment. He walked in, moving through the assistant's outer room.
The man began to protest as Xander went into the next room, where he saw
Treden reading the morning paper at his desk.
Treden looked up. "Ah, Mr. Harris. My door's always open, but try to
schedule a time with my assistant next time." He looked at his assistant
and nodded. The door was then shut. "Now, what can I do for you? Or may
I say something? This building has been spotless. You're doing a wonderful
job here."
All the anger had suddenly gone out of him. "Uh, thanks."
"You look stressed. Please. Sit."
Xander took the chair in front of the desk. "Look, the reason I came,
is cause my friend is in jail."
"Which friend might that be?"
"Faith. Faith Adams."
"I see. Very noble of her to confess, wasn't it? Telling the truth
about Summers' innocence?"
"It goes deep with them."
"Ah. Love." Treden smiled. "But what do you want from me?"
"To get her out." Xander requested nervously.
"Why would I do that? I'm sorry…Alexander, is it? Do you mind if I
call you that? Last names are so formal."
"It's Xander."
"I'm sorry, Xander, but the law's the law. And the fact remains that
she has a record that clearly describes her as a threat to society."
Xander knew Treden was just acting, playing the honorable mayor role,
but he was in no position to change things. So he'd just act like a clueless
citizen.
"She's not like that anymore."
"Even if I could, it's out of my hands. It's out of my town, actually."
Xander's eyes widened. "What do you mean?"
"Don't you read the paper? She's been transferred to a Women's Correctional
Facility in Los Angeles. Sunnydale's not equipped to handle such a dangerous
criminal."
He handed the paper over to Xander, who began to skim. Treden stood up and walked around to where Xander sat. "My advice to you, is to find less colorful friends. People like that could get you into trouble, make you stick your nose in where it doesn't belong."
Xander sat the paper down on the desk, and hoped his gulping wasn't obvious. "I'll get out of your way now. Thanks for seeing me."
Treden smiled. "Like I said, anytime. You're a good kid. Stay on the right path, and you'll go far. We'd hate to lose you around here. Oh…and keep up the good work."
***
"I'm so pleased you decided to join us, Faith. Wolfram and Hart -" Kain
began, sitting at his desk.
Faith was pacing around the room. She had to stop thinking about Buffy.
Had to stop thinking about the hurt on her face. Buffy didn't get it. This
was the only way, and Faith wouldn't be able to do anything if she wasn't
able to get Buffy out of her mind. She needed to build those walls again,
to hide her own sadness. Or else none of this would work.
"Cut the crap. I know what you are; you know what I am. I'm not here to play Ally McBeal, so let's just cut to the chase."
"Direct. Angry. Motivated. Just as I'd hoped."
"Well, I don't like to disappoint."
"So I've heard. I have just one question before we proceed. Can I trust you?"
Faith stopped pacing and looked Kain in the eyes. "Can I trust you?" The vampire grinned. He had expected that. "You know all about me. When I choose to do something, I go all the way. Maiming, killing…I'll get it done."
"And…Buffy Summers?"
Faith's _expression_ didn't change. "I didn't back down from her then, and I won't now. Hell, I took a knife for the team. Wilkins screwed himself over."
"Yes, he was a bit of a disappointment."
"So we know the deal. Don't try to screw with me, and I won't go after you."
"Do you think you could if it came to that?"
"I don't back down."
"Good." Kain leaned forward. "Now, let's review your job description."
***
The punching bag flew up in the air, and swung back down. It didn't stay down for long though, because its assailant didn't give it time to rest. A right fist swung first, then a left, sending the bag for another ride. The person hitting it was feeling too many emotions at once. Anger, fear, hurt, sadness…love. Or the lack of it. Right now she was channeling all those feelings into her target. Beads of sweat cascaded down her face. Her body was tired, but she didn't let it relax.
"Buffy." Willow tried gently. She got no response. "Buffy, stop."
The redhead and the wiccan blonde had come back to Buffy and Faith's apartment with their friend after they had left Giles'. Buffy hadn't said a word since her breakdown. Had just come back, changed into her sweats, and set up the punching bag. Her punches connecting with the bag were the only things the witches could hear. They stood to the side, concerned.
"This isn't helping her, Buffy. You know that." Tara attempted.
Buffy stopped for a second, and stared at her friends. Two friends that were in love. Her face hard, she faced the bag again. She backed up, almost to the wall, her eyes never leaving it. Then she ran at it, jumping and kicking it with all her strength. The chain holding the bag to the ceiling snapped, and the bag flew against the wall, busting open. The padding was visible through the large tear.
Buffy looked at it, unclenched her fists, and turned to Tara. "And what would help her? She told me to get lost and she's in jail. What can I do, huh?" Her voice sounded hurt more than anything else. She didn't want to leave Faith, but that decision hadn't been hers to make, apparently.
"She only did it to -" Willow started.
"Get me out. Well, I didn't want out, damn it."
"So if we all died while you were enjoying yourself in a cell, it wouldn't matter?" Willow asked with disbelief.
"No, Will, that's not what I…" Buffy sighed and sat on the floor, leaning on the broken bag. "I need Faith. I never thought I would, but I do. And she just cut me off. The least she could have done was told me she was going to…you guys have to know what I mean."
"We do." Tara said, grabbing Willow's hand and going to sit by the slayer.
"This bond, I'm connected to her all the time, but I'm not. And it's really frustrating."
"How's she doing?" Willow asked.
"She's scared. But other than that she's shutting me out. Look at you guys. There's something there too. But nothing's holding you back. No duty. Just being open, and honest…I wish things were that simple for us."
Tara suddenly got nervous when Willow smiled at her. That's what they were all right. Honest. Willow looked at Tara quizzically, but didn't say anything. Instead she leaned forward, and gave Buffy a reassuring hug.
"I'm all sweaty." Buffy said.
"So?" Willow asked, not caring. "You don't want to lose her. I get it."
"God, I really, really don't. Maybe I'll see if I can visit her. Whether she wants me to or not."
"Will they let you in?" Tara asked.
"I'm very persuasive." Buffy said with a grin. Just as Buffy got that determined thought in her mind, Xander came running in, out of breath. She immediately went over to him. "Are you okay?"
He tried to calm his breathing down. "She's not here…anymore."
"Who?"
Willow stood up. "Faith?"
"She's in some correctional facility in LA. She's been transferred." Xander said.
Buffy was quiet. She was thinking, and they weren't thoughts she wanted to have.
"No she hasn't."
"It was in the paper, Buff. And the Mayor -" Xander shut up, feeling like a moron.
"Told you. Nicely backing up his cover story. But we're dealing with Wolfram and Hart, here. I don't know why I didn't realize it before."
"The deal was for her to…work for them." Tara figured out.
"I need to go to LA. Maybe Angel can help. I'm not going to lose her. Especially not to a bunch of evil lawyers."
"By yourself?" Willow asked.
"You guys have school."
"So do you."
"Not if we…uh…flood it." Tara said slowly.
The four of them grinned.
Buffy turned to Xander. "Is it okay if the three of us go, Xand?" She smiled apologetically. "She asks after he helps her out."
"It's okay." He smiled in reassurance. "There's things I have to deal with here."
"Thank you. Can you tell Giles what's up, and say that I promise to call once we get there?"
He nodded, and she hugged him. "Be careful. You know I'll be there in a jiffy if you need me. What's a jiffy, anyway?"
She chuckled. "You better be." They separated, and Buffy turned towards the wiccans. "Ready? I've learned to not ask if you're sure you want to do this. I'm not even sure what 'this' is yet."
"I'm ready." Tara confirmed.
"And raring." Willow added.
***
Raziel walked through the sewers of LA, knowing exactly where he wanted to go. Angelus was a nuisance, one that he helped to set loose, and therefore would be dealt with eventually. He knew one thing though. Angelus was going to die, because Raziel had no intention of ever giving him a demonic soul, and he doubted Angelus would accept the offer anyway. There were pros to having the vampire around, of course.
Mainly as a distraction for the slayers. But if Angelus did succeed in bringing them down, he would still be a problem for Raziel afterwards. And Angelus would certainly try to take recruits away from him. No, he was still dangerous, and had to die. That much was certain, but now it was time for Raziel to start his recruiting process. The sooner he did, the sooner he would face Kain.
And Raziel was sure that his ancient nemesis was already plotting. He had to catch up. He intended to start with the vampire nest that he sensed in the side tunnel. An immortal cadre living in filth, it was revolting, but he could no longer think about such things. Soon enough, they'd all be living above ground, not afraid of the light, and they wouldn't have to be secretive about their existence.
He knew they were down in the sewer as soon as he entered, and he intended to give them all the gift of a vampiric soul. Approaching the lair, the sleeping demons awoken, and were ready to attack him, an intruder. As they laid their eyes on him, and the mystical Reaver attached to arm, they backed down. Raziel knew they wouldn't fight with him.
"I offer you greatness."
***
Kain led Faith around the building, giving her a tour, simply to watch
her reactions to things. He wasn't a fool, he knew that the slayer wasn't
enthusiastic about her new job. And he knew that she and Buffy Summers
were very close, in love, in fact. It pained her to be doing this, he could
tell, but she didn't think she deserved anything good, certainly not her
blonde partner, and that evil was the only thing that would take her.
She willingly accepted her arrest and went to jail to pay what she
owed to society. Her thinking had been, that if she did the time, then
she would be able to allow better things to come her way. But evil had
still found there. Found her before that too. Keeping her from extending
her education, punishing her for even thinking that she could live a good
life. She went the extra length and confessed to God, and not even He could
absolve her. The brunette was slowly resigning herself to the fact that
this was her fate.
And Kain planned to exploit that mentality. He didn't know if she would
kill again, kill the Summers girl, and he wasn't going to risk her not
complying with his wishes. She would have no choice.
They walked into a large conference room, with several cushioned swivel
chairs positioned around a polished oak table. On it, sat a stack of stapled
pages, a pen, and what looked to be a miniature cassette player. Faith
went to the side of the table on which those things were placed, and she
pressed the 'PLAY' button on the player. As soon as she heard her voice
confessing, she clenched her eyes shut, and threw the player in a rage.
Kain found much amusement in her anger. "I suppose you're asking yourself
how exactly we knew you were going to that church to trap you so deviously."
"As a typical villain, I'm guessin' you're gonna tell me." Faith said.
The vampire laughed. "We have mind readers, my dear. We have been following
you. As an employee of a man who was once our client, we saw your potential,
waiting for the right time to bring you into our tightly-knit family."
"You sent those demons from the bar after me, the money…"
He nodded. "Driving you to the point where you have no hope for the
future. But don't be upset Faith, here at Wolfram and Hart, we create new
futures. Ones more suited to our interests, of course."
"Yours, you mean."
"If you wish to get technical, then yes. I have need for you in my
plans, all which I will discuss with you once we take care of a minor formality."
Kain looked at the papers. Faith followed his gaze, and let out a small
chuckle.
"A contract?"
"All our employees must sign them. To assure loyalty."
"Guess I don't get to look it over before I sign."
He pulled out the chair so she could sit, and smiled broadly, showing
his fangs to her. Faith was never afraid of any vampire, but with Kain,
it was a different story. He was sure of himself, but not to the point
of arrogance. Which meant he had the power and resources to back up his
words.
"Forgive me, Miss Adams, but even if you didn't agree with the terms
written on these pages, it wouldn't make any difference. Very plainly,
your choices are to sign or die. And you are much too young to give up
your life." He handed her the pen.
There was something he wasn't telling her, she could feel it. It felt
like she was selling her soul. But when you sold your soul to the Devil,
weren't you supposed to have a choice whether or not to say no? Free Will?
But Kain obviously didn't believe in free will. He was a vampire. Perhaps
more evil than the Devil. Faith brought the pen to the dotted line, and
began to make the characters that would spell her name.
Her single, solitary thought as she wrote, was of Buffy, and apologizing
to her. Kain quickly snatched up the contract and stuck it inside his jacket
as she finished.
"What's next?" Faith asked, trying to shake off the sadness she felt.
"My main requirement of you…well, it's not time for that yet. There
are…items I plan to take back, among other things. When I do, I'll need
a leader for my army."
"Until then?"
"I'm sure unforeseen circumstances will pop up that may require your
expertise. But until they do…"
Two rather large Ethros demons, wearing dark, hooded cloaks, came into
the office and grabbed Faith by the arms.
"Show the lady to her office."
***
Buffy, Willow and Tara entered Angel Investigations to find its namesake
laid up on the office couch with his two employees tending to his scorched
legs with bandages. The blonde slayer's first instinct when she saw him
was to demand why he was laying down on the job, and then she saw the injuries.
Even though the burns were already fading, she started to worry. There
was also another nagging feeling in the back of her mind that something
wasn't right.
"What happened?" Willow asked, beating Buffy to the question.
"Raziel has his sword." Wesley answered for his boss, bitterly.
"That's what I don't get." Cordelia said. "You had protection over
the sword, right? How'd he break it?"
Angel, Angelus now, avoided her, and looked at Buffy with a smile.
One that didn't seem appropriate for the dire situation.
"What are you doing here? Something wrong?"
Buffy sighed. "You could say that."
Cordelia looked at the slayer quizzically. "Hey, aren't you supposed
to be in jail?"
"Long story short, Faith went to Wolfram and Hart because she thinks
that's all she's good for. I need your help to get her out of there."
She looked at Angel while she said it, but Cordelia chipped in yet again.
"And she got you out of the big house too."
Buffy looked sad, and suddenly couldn't look at anyone. Willow went
up to her friend, and glared at the girl she still knew only as the ex-May
Queen.
"You can stop talking."
"Will you help us?" Tara asked Angel softly.
He stood up slowly, still with that smile on his face. Studying all
three girls closely, it ran through his mind how easily he could take them.
They came to him. It was wonderful, and it took all of his energy not to
end his charade. But he was in a playful mood, and took his mind off Raziel.
He moved close to his ex-lover.
"Of course. What can I do?" He asked, faking a sympathetic tone.
Buffy looked into his eyes, and she saw the darker edge to them. She
closed hers, and leaned into him. This wasn't him, even now, after a year
of non-involvement, she could feel him. The change in him. In his personality.
His soul was gone. He had seemed to calm, too happy when she walked in.
With the knowledge that Angelus was standing before her, the pieces fit.
Raziel had taken his soul, and had broken the magickal protection, snatching
his sword. He probably gave Angelus the burns in a fight, and ran off.
Everything was…
She hated the disfigured vampire for it, and began to cry. "This is
too much. Why is everything falling apart?"
Almost so quickly that was impossible to see, she brought her arm back
and punched him in the face. Everyone was confused, and Cordelia was yelling
at her, but Angel simply shook off her hit, and laughed that evil, maniacal
laugh, she hoped to never hear again. He shifted into his vampiric visage,
and she shivered.
Why did she always have to ruin his games? "Your life always does seem
to fall apart, doesn't it? Maybe someone's trying to tell you something."
He could see she was shaking. "Come on, Buff, cheer up. It can't get any
worse from here." He retailed with a punch of his own, which she shook
off just as easily. "Then again, maybe it can."
"Run." Buffy said to everyone.
"Yes. Run. Let's see how far you can make it."
Oh well. A new game was already starting, anyway.
***
Xander returned to his basement home after informing Giles of Buffy's
plans, and had been sitting there for the past few hours watching television.
Going to work didn't seem like the best idea in the world that day. For
a couple of reasons. He was a little unnerved by the Mayor, knowing without
a doubt that there was more to him, and he really didn't want to be in
the same building with him. The second reason was his girlfriend. He was
now at the point where he couldn't concentrate on anything.
He couldn't even remember the last time he had seen her. All he wanted
was to talk. He still couldn't figure out what was wrong, but he did know
that her distancing herself from him began at Olivia's funeral. He called
her about a half an hour ago, but got no answer. She didn't have an answering
machine. What could she have been doing? Where was she?
And when he wasn't worrying about Anya, he was waiting for Giles' to
call him and tell him that Buffy, Willow and Tara reached Los Angeles safely.
And it was getting dark. That was never good.
After a few more minutes of silence though, his steps began to creak.
Somebody was coming down. He jumped off the bed, excited, in the hope that
Anya was coming to see him finally. Standing at the foot of the stairs,
he saw that it most certainly was. First there was jubilation, and then
there was shock. She was wearing, well, clothes he never expected to see
her in.
Anya stood there, decked out in City Hall's janitorial uniform. She
stared at her boyfriend, and in what sounded like *too much* enthusiasm,
she greeted him.
"Hi, Xander!"
"Uh…hi." He choked out.
"Guess what?"
"What?"
"We're going to be employed together! Boss." Then she narrowed her
eyes in a warning glare. "But if you ever tell me what do, I'm dumping
you. And don't think I won't."
Xander slowly backed up, and sat down on his bed.
"That's…wow. Honey…wow." He couldn't form a coherent thought at the
moment.
"You're happy for me. You have to be happy for me. Doing a necessary
human task, and wearing these clothes…I'm contributing to society." She
said with what sounded like pride, but had a trace of fear as well.
"I am. I am. Really. But…I think it's time we -"
"Great!" Anya jumped onto the bed. She obviously didn't want to talk,
and even though she was here, it still worried him. "I missed having sex
with you. We should do it now." She saw him staring at her, and looked
at the janitorial garb she was wearing. "Do men find women more attractive
in outfits related to certain professions?"
"Uh…you mean uniforms, right?" This was all wrong, but he never could
turn her down.
"I always thought it was the other way around." She shrugged. "I guess
we should find out."
***
Wesley, Cordelia, Tara and Willow heard Buffy's very good suggestion
of running, but they were still numb from the shock of seeing Angelus free,
that they couldn't move. Tara didn't know whether she was going to die
or not, but she felt the guilt bubble up inside her. If she did die, it
would be without telling Willow the whole truth about herself and her past.
What she had inside her. Demon blood. She had left that out because she
didn't want to lose the best thing that had ever happened to her, but she
owed it to the redhead to be completely honest.
'I might not get that chance now.'
When that thought came into her head, Tara snapped out of her trance, and her brain was finally telling her body to start working her legs. Then she started pulling on Willow's arm, trying to get her to come too. There wasn't time to be frightened. They needed to get out. That's when Buffy screamed at them.
"Didn't you hear me? Run!"
With that forceful command, it finally got through to Cordelia and Wesley. They all ran from the office as Buffy tried to keep Angelus busy as long as possible. She grabbed him by the jacket, and slammed him into the grate that covered the elevator. She let go, and he sank to a sitting position, simply laughing in amusement at the whole thing. She hated that. Hated him.
"We had the right idea."
"What's that?"
Angelus shot up, and shoved her back with so much force, that she flew to the other end of the room, hit the wall, and fell. He was standing by her in the blink of an eye.
"Leaving you." He sounded upset next. "You're just too…abusive." He brought his hand to his mouth. He picked her up, and just threw her back down again. "What happened to you, huh?"
The phone began to ring, and he looked in the direction of the noise. It didn't even occur to her that it might have been Giles, checking to see if she was there. To her it was simply a distraction, and she scrambled on her hands and knees towards the steps that led to the entrance/exit to the building. Angelus forgot about the phone, and was overtop of her in an instant.
"What are you talking about?" She asked.
"Giving up the straight life and settling for a murderous, fiendish, whore. I thought you had better standards." He shook his head. He was getting her angry. Not even he was going to get away with talking about Faith that way. "Don't get me wrong, I like seeing those qualities in a human being, I just never thought you'd sink so low."
She felt her pants pocket and smiled. Faith might not have been there with her, but something that reminded her of the brunette sure was. Buffy reached into her pocket, and removed the retractable blade. The younger slayer had given it to her as a gift, and it was about to come in handy.
She flipped to a standing position, and moved up to the second step, and in one quick motion, he sliced his cheek open. He growled, standing on the step below her.
"She's not like that."
Despite his anger, he had a grin on his face. "What? You helped her change her life around? She couldn't get her diploma, a group of drunken demons beat her up, and she gets thrown in jail, then blackmailed. Yeah, you've done a hell of a job."
"You bastard." It was truth. It was all her fault. Or at least she thought it was, and he wasn't helping.
"It just occurred to me that I'm neglecting your friends."
"I'm sure they don't mind."
She kicked him in the side of the head, and he nearly lost his balance,
but managed to steady himself. He drove his elbow into her chest, and she
tripped landing her head at the top of the stairs, but her lower back hit
the top step, and she grimaced.
"I've been wanting to have fun with that shy one you brought with you
ever since I saw her. And she and Willow seem *awfully* close. I think
I'd enjoy her." He smiled, and bent down close to her, whispering. "And
in my experience, the quiet ones always scream the loudest."
He rushed past her, and when she caught her bearings, he was already gone.
***
"No, Joyce." Giles said into his phone. "I haven't heard from them yet…yes,
I just called. There was no answer…of course I'll call you when I get word…all
right. Good bye, and don't worry. I'm sure they're fine."
He hung up quickly, so Buffy could get through if she was calling.
This wasn't like her. She told Xander she was going to call, when she got
to LA. She should have been there by now, he reasoned. He was going to
give her fifteen more minutes.
Then he was driving there himself.
***
Wesley and Cordelia led the way as they all ran across the street to
Angel's convertible. He hopped in the driver's seat, she got in the passenger
side, and the two wiccas got in the back. As he went to start the car,
he realized that he didn't have the keys. He patted his pockets, and checked
the glove box.
Nothing. He slammed his hands on the steering wheel.
"Oh, you have got to be kidding me." Cordelia said, looking at him.
"They must be -"
From the backseat, Tara and Willow screamed. When Cordelia saw who they were looking at through the windshield, she screamed too. Angelus stood in front of the car, and dangled the keys in his hand.
"Looking for something?" He asked, as he started to walk around the
driver's side. "And here I was thinking of getting a spare made for you,
Wesley. Good thing I didn't, or we might not have been all together right
now."
"Yes, that would have been such a shame." Wesley said. Angelus leaned
over, and grabbed Wesley by his shirt. "Go on. You've won."
Cordelia was searching through the glove box frantically. Though unbeknownst to anyone, Tara had been saying a spell under her breath. The brunette found a bottle of holywater, uncorked it, and immediately threw it at him, at the same time the blonde witch finished reciting the words. Angelus let go of Wesley's shirt, and was flung by a strong force, back across the street.
"Go me!" Cordelia congratulated herself.
Tara simply smiled at Willow, and let the ex-cheerleader have her moment.
Willow saw something on the ground. "He dropped the keys!" She got out to grab them. She looked to make sure Angelus was still far away, and saw Buffy running towards the car. "Hurry Buffy!"
She threw the keys up to Wesley, and he started the engine.
***
Buffy was running as fast as she could, but was cut off when someone
appeared in front of her.
"You're certainly in quite a predicament." Raziel said. "What with
that horrid vampire behind you some feet away, who seems to have the singular
purpose of killing you all."
"And if he wasn't, we'd be fighting right now." She swore. "So unless
you want to see me dead, move out of my way."
"I considered leaving you to die, but then I realized that we have
a common foe. Who I believe has coerced the one you care for into working
for him."
"Yeah? What's your point?"
"I warn you not to strike her." Raziel said. But he wasn't looking
at her anymore. He was looking over her shoulder.
When Buffy turned around, she saw Angelus standing directly behind
her. Given her only two choices, she backed up towards the vampire that
wasn't trying to kill her at that very second. Angelus growled at Raziel,
but he didn't advance.
"Now, to answer your question, considering Kain is our mutual enemy,
we could be allies."
"Yeah, we could, but there's one little problem."
"And that is?"
"I hate you."
"I could kill you at any time, or I could leave and let our angry friend
do with you as he pleases -"
"You made him this way." Buffy interrupted.
Raziel kept going. "- Yet I'm choosing to save your life. As I saved
hers once. I told the other slayer that you would both help me. She has
already, now I ask you to do the same."
"What do you need me for? You and Kain are both stronger than I am.
I wouldn't be much help in a fight."
"Ah, but you want to fight him. You have motivation. That's a powerful
tool."
Buffy thought to herself. Die now and have accomplished nothing, or
possibly accomplish something later, and then die? They weren't great choices,
but at the moment, the latter sounded slightly better. She still despised
him though.
"Okay."
"This isn't over." Angelus warned.
"It is for now." Raziel said, with anger. "I happen to be in good spirits,
despite what you took from me, so I give you one chance to go."
Angelus stood there for a second, angry because he lost, but he decided
to play it smart. He disappeared into the night.
***
Kain sat in a room filled with monitors that let him view every room in his building. He was focused on in particular, however. He was watching a pacing Faith Adams. He had her locked in one of the basement rooms of the complex, below the actual working firm. But he wasn't a monster. Well…maybe he was, but he was being good to her. The room was well furnished with expensive carpet, a large bed, a fridge…only she was locked in by an advanced security system, and was obviously under surveillance.
He had a problem with trust, even with all the precautions he took. It was a flaw.
She would be allowed out soon. He needed to test her loyalty after all. And if she wasn't…that was taken care of. There was no need for him to worry. But the speed of her pacing was increasing, and he didn't want her any more angry than she already was. He had just gotten some news, and he figured he could have her handle it. He reached to turn on the microphone, as he zoomed in on her face.
Kain shuddered. Love was revolting. He tested the microphone by tapping on it, and when he saw Faith look around the room, he started speaking.
"That's right, Faith. I can see everything you do. I know Wilkins cared for you, but make no mistake, I am not him, and you will not get that treatment from me."
"I don't want crap from you. Gotta hand it to ya, though, you're careful."
"Thank you." Kain smiled. There was some level of respect. "I've got an assignment for you. It seems a new player has come onto the field, so to speak. I'd like you to extend him an invitation."
"Sounds easy enough. Who is he?"
Kain could see the relief on her face. Obviously, she was expecting a dirtier job. They'd come, just not now.
"He used to be our biggest nuisance, but according to what I hear, he's changed his ways."
Faith's eyes went wide. "You don't mean -?"
"Angel? Yes, I do."
--
"I wanna set the record straight. I thought the cop was a prostitute."
(Homer J. Simpson)
"You think you know? What's to come? What you are? You haven't even
begun."
(Tara to Buffy, BTVS)
"Since when is there a cowboy in 'Death of a Salesman' anyway?" (Willow,
BTVS)