Disclaimer: the characters aren't mine, they all belong to joss, to whom I'm so grateful for starting the whole Buffy thing.
Lost Part III
Angel was leading the remnants of the Scooby gang. Willow had attempted contacting Riley but, luckily, he couldn't be found. They all agreed that her banishing spell had worked and Buffy, Xander, Willow and Angel had decided they could look for Giles once again. The gang had decided on a new plan, not to split up anymore. They also decided to try entering from a different side of the city.
"Well, here we are." Angel said stopping and pulling the man hole cover up and throwing it off to the side.
"Let's go." Buffy said, as though the events of earlier this evening were non-existent.
Xander entered the sewage pipes first and clicked on his flashlight. All around were little rodents and frogs. Willow followed and clicked on her flashlight and dug through her bag for the map.
"Oh, Sh...ugar. I can't find the map. It was in here. I swear it was." Willow looked teary eyed at her friends.
"Don't worry about it Will. We can find our way around without it." Buffy said as she climbed down the ladder. She was soon followed by Angel who pulled the map out of his pocket.
"You dropped it in Buff's room. I picked it up and figured we'd be needing it. Here." He said handing it to Willow.
"Thanks." she replied meekly.
"Well, we can cover this area. The website showed some sort of cave but it didn't print out. I guess we'll aim to work there." She said taking charge.
"So, he really beat you up? He seemed a little tense when I was around." Angel started talking.
"Well, he knows what your capable of and when he found out you were back in town he got a little worried you would find out and hunt him down. It was just so scary, I just don't want to really get into details. It was not a fun time in my life." Buffy shied away from the subject.
"Sorry. But he's gone now. Your safe." Angel comforted her.
Buffy always felt safe when he was around. She still had feeling for him but didn't want to show them. Something inside always told her he still loved her too but she was afraid to test it.
"Ahem. Can we get moving. We have a missing watcher who won't be found until we find him." Xander interrupted her thoughts.
"Sure. Let's go." Buffy said and ran in front of the group.
The dreamless sleep wore off sooner than Rupert was expecting. He felt as though he had had a drug addiction because of all the needle pricks. His arm was sore and bruised. Giles noticed he wasn't tied to a chair anymore. Instead he was in some sort of primitive jail cell. It was guarded by two cloaked and heavily armed guards.
'Bloody hell. This is just a picnic in the park taken the flipside.' He thought to himself. Part of him wanted to run out and kill everything in sight. But of course that was not only impossible but he would die first.
'They are certainly taking their precious time coming to find me. If they are free.' Giles said outloud as if to distract his guards. Instead they just grunted and seemed to fall asleep.
'Hurry up. I don't want to stay here forever.' He thought and walked back to his makeshift bed. It was a lumpy 'mattress' made of some kind of fur and stuffed with hay. A blanket lay folded nicely at the end. 'Well, I better find something to occupy my time. Some nice dreams maybe.' a slow thought encased his mind and he fell into a peaceful dream.
"How much farther?" Xander complained.
"Until what?" a familiar voice behind him sounded.
"Spike? What...What are you doing here?" Xander said as stunned as the other Scoobies.
"Not much. Just milling around. Wasting time. Watching the it's take your watcher...oops, ex-watcher around. He seems to be adjusting to his new living arrangement well. Of course there's always the Jinxx. They are just lovely creatures. Really." Spike said as he let himself down from his perch.
"Jinxx? We faced them once before. They really weren't hard..."Willow droned off.
"You said you saw them take Giles? Where?" Buffy walked over to Spike and held him by the collar up to the wall.
"Just through that doorway. I say, have you been getting stronger?" He said, massaging his neck as she let him down.
"I'll tell you how to get in on one condition."
"We don't like to play your games Spike." Angel spoke up from the darkness.
"Well, well. If it isn't Angel himself. What are you doing in Sunnydale. I thought you moved off to the big city. What was it? Oh, yes, LA. The city of Angels." Spike retorted.
"Shut up with your talk. Tell us what your deal is." Buffy interrupted.
"Let me come with you. I get to help in the fighting. It's been a long time for me and the Jinxx and they deserve it. Have we got a deal?" Spike scowled.
"Why do we let him go with us? We could probably figure out how to get in by ourselves." Xander spoke up.
"No we can't. They are a very devoted people and have their own way of letting people in. We need him." Willow said.
"Fine. You can join us. Just no tricks or your dust." Buffy glared at the new member of the crusade.
"I won't. A vamp scouts promise." Spike looked solemnly at Buffy and then his eyes lit up as he saw Willow.
"Hey smartie."
"God Spike. Leave me alone." Willow couldn't stand his attitude yet something about him made her swoon for him. Why a vampire? Why Spike? She thought to herself.
"They went in through those doors of course you've got to look like them. Here, each of you throw one of these on." Spike tossed each of the gang a hooded robe. They smelled like death. Not a nice thought.
"Ugh. Aren't any clean?" Xander plugged his nose at the stench.
"No sorry. What you got is what you get."Spike said already wearing his cloak.
"C'mon. Let's go inside. Just no fooling until we get to the hall." He hushed them.
Buffy was about ready to ask why but, she shut her mouth as the giant doors opened. They were humongous. Three times the size of the over 6 foot Angel. She was amazed that something could be built by what she considered mole people. The door guard led them into a vast room speaking some language foreign to her. Willow was on her right and Angel was on her left. Xander, of course, was ahead of them but behind Spike. How wonderful to be in-between all those I love. She thought. Soon the Scooby gang was walking down a long dark hallway. It lead to a damp and dark stairwell.
"We go on our own from here." Spike said as the guard past them.
"What's down there?" Willow said cowering.
"The jail. All we need to do is get to Giles' cell and knock out the other guards. Now remember, the people are blind and deaf but their leader is not. Dragana's are very powerful but that guard said his master was asleep. That's good for us. Let's get going." Spike said starting down the twisting stairs.
Angel admired the fine craftsmanship of the stairwell. It was carved out of rock which must have taken forever to do. He thought to himself. Without noticing it he started to trip over Buffy.
"Agh. Watch it." she whispered as she caught herself from falling.
"Sorry. I'll pay more attention." Angel whispered back. Buffy. Now there was a girl. To him she was perfect in every way. He wanted to cuddle her in his arms and spend time with her like he hadn't before. He just couldn't tell her.
"Looks like we're here." Xander pointed out.
"Call for Giles." Willow said running through the hall.
'I wonder where they could be.' Giles pondered. He began hearing a voice call his name. 'I must be hallucinating. but that really sounds like Willow.' he said. His guards were lying in slumps on the floor and in front of him, like a dream, stood Willow, Xander, Angel, Buffy, and Spike?!?
"I thought you all were gone. And had forgotten about me." Giles exclaimed in astonishment.
"Forget you? Nah. We just a little delayed." Willow said.
"Let's get outta here." Xander said.
"You've got that right." Buffy couldn't agree more.
"You all have fun. I have some butt to kick myself." Spike said leaving the gang.
Angel found the keys to Giles' cell and unlocked it. Above them, they could hear footsteps and thuds of bodies landing on the ground.
"Can we hurry?" Buffy complained a little irritated as she started to get more and more uneasy. The thuds were coming harder but not as quickly.
Soon a loud blasting boom came overhead.
"Shit. That can't be good." Xander said cowering. He wasn't happy about this whole thing anyways.
"Go, go, go!" Giles yelled at his troop.
They ran up the stairs and were surprised. Dead Jinxx's were lying all over the ground. In front of Spike was a dragon creature. It had three heads and a massive reddish colored body. It stood on four clawed feet with a tail that was tipped with a deadly looking spike.
"Bloody hell. A dragana. What is he doing here?" Giles said as he looked from the dragana to Spike.
"He got us in here." Buffy said in awe of the dragana.
"Come and get me you dirty bastard!" Spike yelled at the creature.
"Don't worry. Your assss good assss gone." it hissed.
"Yeah I'm sure. You'll be the first one dead." Spike mocked.
"We can't just leave him here." Willow said.
"Ummm. Yeah we can." Xander cowered.
"Spike! Do you want some help?!?" Angel yelled across the room. His sound echoed and the dragana turned away from Spike and looked at the Scooby Gang.
"Yessss. He needsss help. You jussst don't look like help though." it hissed at them.
"This is my fight. Stay out of it." Spike screamed at them.
"Dumb Dragon. Let's fight." He yelled at the creature.
Spike ran at it with a hurling force and just knocked it over. The dragana shrunk a few inches when he was hit.
"No fair. You cheated." the dragana squealed at Spike. It swung it's tail at Spike and knocked him over. It grew about four feet and roared at this feat.
"Bastard." Spike yelled.
"Shouldn't we help him?" Buffy questioned. She didn't wait for an answer and ran into the fight. She knocked the dragana over with some help from Spike.
"Nice hit. He gets stronger as he gets smaller though." Spike said to her.
"Oh, fun." She nodded her head for more help from her friends.
"She wants us." Willow noticed and ran to help Buffy.
"Well, let's go." Angel said and followed without much hesitation.
With the whole gang fighting the monster the dragana was about two feet tall but not moving from his position. He was breathing fire balls at them and singeing their clothes.
"He's not giving up. And he's not moving." Buffy said as she, Angel and Spike hit the dragana from the back.
"Hold on. There is something in here." Willow pulled out a book on mystical creatures.
"There. It says, you've got to...let him get bigger." She read.
"What???" They looked at her like she was crazy.
"That's what it says. Just try it."
The gang decided to let the dragana throw them around for a little while. Thrown they were. The dragana at first threw them not even two feet but as he grew they were thrown farther and farther. Soon Buffy, Angel and Spike were being thrown into the walls and the dragana was not getting any bigger.
"Can we stop this shit now?" Spike said staggering towards Willow.
"I guess." She said as she lent him a shoulder to lean on.
Soon Buffy followed and so did Angel.
"So, what now?" Buffy said sitting on the ground badly bruised. They would heal quickly though. They were only caused by something supernatural.
"We light the room on fire and run." Giles said.
"Oh god. Really?" Spike looked at Giles stunned.
"If he says it, let's do it." Buffy said trying to find something that would catch on fire quickly.
"They used gasoline on the other prisoners. There is some downstairs in the prison area." Giles commented.
"I'll be right back." Angel said and ran towards the stairs. The gang heard the clicking of his shoe soles against the hard floor.
"We just need to keep him busy." Spike called.
"Doing what?" Buffy looked at him as if he had sprouted a tail and five heads.
"Just run through his legs." Xander suggested.
"Why don't you?" Spike retorted.
"Don't worry about it." Angel appeared from the stairs. No one had heard him come up.
"Watch!" Giles said as the dragana threw a fireball at them.
"Crap. He's discovered us." Xander said.
"Here. Spread this on the walls of the cave and you then run to the doors." Angel handed everyone a can of gasoline.
"GO!" Buffy screamed.
They ran around the room confusing the dragana. Gasoline pored all over the walls and soon Willow dropped her can and ran for the door. Buffy followed. Then Xander and Spike and finally Giles and Angel. They watched as the dragana spit fire to try and get rid of the smell of gasoline. Soon the room caught on fire and Buffy struggled to open the door. It wouldn't budge.
"It won't move!" Buffy said struggling to pull the door.
"What the hell? We need to get out of here. It's getting a little warm." Giles said wiping himself with the edge of his shirt.
"Let's all pull it." Angel said helping Buffy.
"One, two, three!" The door still didn't move.
"Crap. This isn't cool. I'm to young to die." Xander complained. The fire was creeping closer to the monster.
"Let's try again." Willow pulled the door.
"Pull!" Buffy screeched. She had never felt so warm before. The heat was so intense it felt like she might of been the turkey she had for dinner last night. Drops of sweat dripped down her face and it got her shirt wet.
"It's not working we need another plan." Angel said. He was covered in beads of sweat that were making the heat of the fire seem more intense.
"Maybe we should push it?" Willow said wiping her forehead.
"Push!" Spike yelled. This is almost like hell he thought. The heat engulfed him and he laughed.
The dragana was devoured in the flames and left the gang with a loud screeching sound. The flames approached them with great speed. Soon the bottoms of their pants were catching on fire.
"Let's get our of here." Xander screeched stomping out the fire on the end of his pants.
"Push it again!" Giles yelled over the roar of the flames.
The door burst open with great velocity and the gang went sprawling on the cold, damp sewer floor.
"RUN!!!" Buffy screamed as she got to her feet.
The door blew off and a loud blast followed. Fire followed and the gang bearly beat it. They jumped up a ladder and through a manhole. Angel threw the cover back on and watched it get blown off of its sitting place.
"Shit. That was close." Spike said as he walked down the road.
"What was your deal with that thing anyways?" Willow followed Spike.
"Nothing. Really it was nothing." Spike gazed at her. She looked so beautiful in the light. Her dark red hair was lit up by the dim street lights. He looked at her in awe. She was just like an angel.
"Willow. Wanna come home with me? We can watch movies and eat popcorn." Buffy walked over to Willow.
"Uh. Sure. Is anyone else coming?" She asked meekly.
"Maybe. Xander?" Buffy looked at him.
"I guess." He said looking at himself. He was a mess but could find some other clothes probably at his house before he headed over.
"Do you mind if I come?" Angel looked at Buffy with a puppy dog look in his eyes.
"No. I don't mind. That means..."
"I can come?" Spike interrupted her.
"If you really want to." Buffy said. She was more or less looking for Giles who had disappeared as soon as they got out of the sewers. 'That's weird.' She thought to herself.
"I'll swing by later. I really wanna change out of these." Xander pointed to his clothes and jogged down the street.
"Well, let's go. I want to get my car." Buffy said and led her troop down the road. Willow and Spike dragged behind, she and Angel were in front. The silence between the first two was just hanging there.
"So...Whaddya think is going on with them?" Buffy said glancing back at Willow and Spike who were giggling at an unheard joke.
"A love at first sight relationship. Who knows." Angel replied.
"Willow and Spike? That's kinda odd. Don't you think?" Buffy chuckled.
"Sure is. Listen there is something I have to tell you."
"How funny." Willow giggled. She was having a great time listening to Spike tell his jokes. There definitely was some kind of chemistry between the two of them. 'Why?' she questioned herself.
"Yeah. It was one of the better times in my life. So what do you think they are doing up there?" Spike looked at her. She was just, just, just beautiful, so innocent and perfect unlike himself.
"Who knows. Probably something about this evening, Buffy's never been one to converse very long to him about much." Willow replied.
"Unless they are together, alone and confessing themselves to each other. Like old times." Spike commented.
"Maybe he'll tell her." Willow thought aloud.
"Tell her what?" Spike inquired.
"Oh, nothing. Really it was nothing." Willow stepped out of her dreamy state.
"Fine. Don't tell me. All I want to know is will I find out?" He looked at her with pleading eyes.
"Don't do that. Maybe you'll find out, maybe you won't. It depends on Angel. Stop looking at me like that!" Willow squealed. He looked so cute like that. She wanted to give him a kiss but held her emotions at bay.
"Tell me what?" Buffy looked at Angel with intrigued eyes.
"Well, it's been going on for quite some time. It all started one evening while I was working in LA I was just sitting there and suddenly someone knocked on the door." He started.
"That's unusual?" She joked.
"I opened it and no one was there. I Looked around and called around outside and nobody answered. Soon something knocked me onto the floor. I landed and was beat down and couldn't move. Something hit me in the head and knocked me out. The next thing I knew I was walking out onto a deserted street with..." He trailed off as he looked at her.
"With what?" Buffy looked worried.
"With this."
"Oh my god. It looks like she's telling him." Willow said being observant to the happenings of the two in front of them.
"Telling him what? He better hurry cuz we are almost there. I want to know what they are saying!" Spike said.
"I can't tell you. I swore to him I wouldn't tell anyone unless he told me I could." She replied sadly.
"How do you know what this is anyway?" Spike glanced at Willow.
"Ummm....He told me."
Angel opened his shirt revealing a sight Buffy wasn't ready to see.
Where she used to sleep all safe and sound.
"There isn't anything there." She said looking at him as though he was crazy.
"Yes there is." Angel took her hand in his and placed it upon his chest.
Buffy gulped down a scream. Under her hand was a heart. A beating heart.
":What in the world happened to you?!?" Buffy hushed her voice.
"I was attacked and was almost killed. An oracle came by to see how things were working out and found the door open and me lying on the floor. He said the only way he could save me was to give me a heart. A life." Angel looked at her. Buffy looked as though she was totally confused. He grabbed her arms and brought her into a hug.
"I've missed you." He said.
"Me too."
"Awww. How mortalish." Spike snickered. He and Willow had been observing Buffy and Angel since Angel had opened his shirt.
"I think it's kinda cute." Willow said. She grew more and more to love Spikes sarcasm. It was sincere but evil.
"Yeah, and I'm a fuzzy bunny."
"You could be. Just need some ears, a tail and fur. You could pull it off."
"I was just being-"
Holding her felt so right. She fit perfectly into his arms. They were aware of the peering eyes of Spike and Willow but didn't care.
To her it felt like a dream. To perfect to be true yet so right to be wrong. She loved the way she felt when he held her. It was like old times just in a new way.
"Angel,"
"Yes,"
"I love you."
"I love you too." He said as he let go of her and slid his arm around her waist. And they walked on.
"It worked!" Willow squealed with joy.
"Woah. That was interesting." Spike retorted.
"Yes! I knew they would get back together. I knew it!" Willow stopped so full of joy and grabbed the closest thing to her, Spike. She gave him a humongous kiss.
"Woah Will. Calm down. Your horny this evening." Spike pulled away from Willow both excited and worried.
"So? I'm just happy." Willow said with a new tone in her voice.
"Why?"
"Because. Buffy and Angel are together like they should be."
"Oh."
"Spike,"
"Yeah Wills."
"You stepped in dog crap."
"Oh, shit." Spike was hoping she would say something else but laughed at this.
"What do you think they think of us?" Buffy asked as she fumbled for her house key.
"We are fools in love."
"Really?" She said pushing the door open.
"Hurry up! They are already inside." Willow said jogging along to the Summers' house. Spike was behind her but soon caught up and slid his hand into hers.
"We're here." He said back as they stepped up onto the porch.
"Hey guys. What's up?" Angel gestured at Willow's hand in Spike's. That was a very unusual sight. Especially with Spike.
"Oh. Nothing." Willow giggled.
"Sure." Angel smirked.
"What happened to you two?" Spike said too Buffy who was sitting on the couch with a movie already in the VCR. Angel sat beside her and she leaned onto his chest.
Willow watched them react with each other in a daze. She had watched them love each other and enjoy each other since they met. She wanted to have something like what they had.
"I'm gonna grab a drink. Anyone else want one?" Willow offered.
"We'll have some water." Angel nuzzled Buffy. It was as though they just picked up where they had left off. Nothing seemed different except that Angel was now, well, human.
"I'll come and help you." Spike said.
Willow was bummed because of this. She just wanted to have some kind of time to herself but it was still fun to be around him.
Spike followed Willow into the kitchen and watched her grab four glasses out of the cabinet.
"I don't want anything." Spike said looking in the fridge.
"Are you sure?" Willow checked.
"The only thing I want right now is..." Spike paused to gather his words.
"Is you." he looked at her with a passion in his eyes. He hoped he wasn't moving to fast.
"Spike, you're scaring me." Willow said. She was so unsure about her own feelings she didn't want to use someone else's.
"Sorry. I'm moving to fast." Spike grabbed the glasses and walked out into the den. He handed Buffy and Angel their glasses and sat down in a chair in the corner.
"What was I doing?" Willow yelled aloud. This is what she had been waiting for. Someone to actually like her and make a move. The only problem that was obvious, was she was mortal and Spike wasn't. He also was a 'bad' vampire but he was good. Hard for her to figure out.
"What happened in there?" Buffy looked at Spike who was distressed.
"Nothing." He replied.
Willow walked out of the kitchen and sat down on Spike's lap. He was very surprised and showed it when she did it.
"Woah."
"What's wrong?" She looked at him. She could make it work.
"Nothing."
The movie finished, Willow was asleep leaning on Spike's shoulder. Buffy was cleaning up and Angel was asleep on the couch.
"I need to go. The sun'll be up in a few hours. I'll catch you later." Spike got up and walked towards the door. He looked at Willow with sorrow in his eyes and walked back to the couch. She was still asleep and he kissed her gently on the cheek. Buffy watched with great interest, Spike wasn't usually crazy for anyone but Dru. This was the first time he had shown any feelings towards anyone. They sure would make an unusual couple. The door opened and shut and Spike was gone. The door creaking woke up Angel who helped Buffy clean up. Buffy wasn't sure about leaving Willow on the couch so she pulled out the bed from the couch and made it. Angel picked Will up and put her under the covers. Buffy went up the stairs to her room. Angel sat downstairs watching innocent Willow lie there asleep and then went up to Buffy's room. She was already lying in her bed asleep. HE climbed into it with her.
"I love you." he whispered in her ear.
"Me too." she said back, it was a dream come true.
Lost Part III
Angel was leading the remnants of the Scooby gang. Willow had attempted contacting Riley but, luckily, he couldn't be found. They all agreed that her banishing spell had worked and Buffy, Xander, Willow and Angel had decided they could look for Giles once again. The gang had decided on a new plan, not to split up anymore. They also decided to try entering from a different side of the city.
"Well, here we are." Angel said stopping and pulling the man hole cover up and throwing it off to the side.
"Let's go." Buffy said, as though the events of earlier this evening were non-existent.
Xander entered the sewage pipes first and clicked on his flashlight. All around were little rodents and frogs. Willow followed and clicked on her flashlight and dug through her bag for the map.
"Oh, Sh...ugar. I can't find the map. It was in here. I swear it was." Willow looked teary eyed at her friends.
"Don't worry about it Will. We can find our way around without it." Buffy said as she climbed down the ladder. She was soon followed by Angel who pulled the map out of his pocket.
"You dropped it in Buff's room. I picked it up and figured we'd be needing it. Here." He said handing it to Willow.
"Thanks." she replied meekly.
"Well, we can cover this area. The website showed some sort of cave but it didn't print out. I guess we'll aim to work there." She said taking charge.
"So, he really beat you up? He seemed a little tense when I was around." Angel started talking.
"Well, he knows what your capable of and when he found out you were back in town he got a little worried you would find out and hunt him down. It was just so scary, I just don't want to really get into details. It was not a fun time in my life." Buffy shied away from the subject.
"Sorry. But he's gone now. Your safe." Angel comforted her.
Buffy always felt safe when he was around. She still had feeling for him but didn't want to show them. Something inside always told her he still loved her too but she was afraid to test it.
"Ahem. Can we get moving. We have a missing watcher who won't be found until we find him." Xander interrupted her thoughts.
"Sure. Let's go." Buffy said and ran in front of the group.
The dreamless sleep wore off sooner than Rupert was expecting. He felt as though he had had a drug addiction because of all the needle pricks. His arm was sore and bruised. Giles noticed he wasn't tied to a chair anymore. Instead he was in some sort of primitive jail cell. It was guarded by two cloaked and heavily armed guards.
'Bloody hell. This is just a picnic in the park taken the flipside.' He thought to himself. Part of him wanted to run out and kill everything in sight. But of course that was not only impossible but he would die first.
'They are certainly taking their precious time coming to find me. If they are free.' Giles said outloud as if to distract his guards. Instead they just grunted and seemed to fall asleep.
'Hurry up. I don't want to stay here forever.' He thought and walked back to his makeshift bed. It was a lumpy 'mattress' made of some kind of fur and stuffed with hay. A blanket lay folded nicely at the end. 'Well, I better find something to occupy my time. Some nice dreams maybe.' a slow thought encased his mind and he fell into a peaceful dream.
"How much farther?" Xander complained.
"Until what?" a familiar voice behind him sounded.
"Spike? What...What are you doing here?" Xander said as stunned as the other Scoobies.
"Not much. Just milling around. Wasting time. Watching the it's take your watcher...oops, ex-watcher around. He seems to be adjusting to his new living arrangement well. Of course there's always the Jinxx. They are just lovely creatures. Really." Spike said as he let himself down from his perch.
"Jinxx? We faced them once before. They really weren't hard..."Willow droned off.
"You said you saw them take Giles? Where?" Buffy walked over to Spike and held him by the collar up to the wall.
"Just through that doorway. I say, have you been getting stronger?" He said, massaging his neck as she let him down.
"I'll tell you how to get in on one condition."
"We don't like to play your games Spike." Angel spoke up from the darkness.
"Well, well. If it isn't Angel himself. What are you doing in Sunnydale. I thought you moved off to the big city. What was it? Oh, yes, LA. The city of Angels." Spike retorted.
"Shut up with your talk. Tell us what your deal is." Buffy interrupted.
"Let me come with you. I get to help in the fighting. It's been a long time for me and the Jinxx and they deserve it. Have we got a deal?" Spike scowled.
"Why do we let him go with us? We could probably figure out how to get in by ourselves." Xander spoke up.
"No we can't. They are a very devoted people and have their own way of letting people in. We need him." Willow said.
"Fine. You can join us. Just no tricks or your dust." Buffy glared at the new member of the crusade.
"I won't. A vamp scouts promise." Spike looked solemnly at Buffy and then his eyes lit up as he saw Willow.
"Hey smartie."
"God Spike. Leave me alone." Willow couldn't stand his attitude yet something about him made her swoon for him. Why a vampire? Why Spike? She thought to herself.
"They went in through those doors of course you've got to look like them. Here, each of you throw one of these on." Spike tossed each of the gang a hooded robe. They smelled like death. Not a nice thought.
"Ugh. Aren't any clean?" Xander plugged his nose at the stench.
"No sorry. What you got is what you get."Spike said already wearing his cloak.
"C'mon. Let's go inside. Just no fooling until we get to the hall." He hushed them.
Buffy was about ready to ask why but, she shut her mouth as the giant doors opened. They were humongous. Three times the size of the over 6 foot Angel. She was amazed that something could be built by what she considered mole people. The door guard led them into a vast room speaking some language foreign to her. Willow was on her right and Angel was on her left. Xander, of course, was ahead of them but behind Spike. How wonderful to be in-between all those I love. She thought. Soon the Scooby gang was walking down a long dark hallway. It lead to a damp and dark stairwell.
"We go on our own from here." Spike said as the guard past them.
"What's down there?" Willow said cowering.
"The jail. All we need to do is get to Giles' cell and knock out the other guards. Now remember, the people are blind and deaf but their leader is not. Dragana's are very powerful but that guard said his master was asleep. That's good for us. Let's get going." Spike said starting down the twisting stairs.
Angel admired the fine craftsmanship of the stairwell. It was carved out of rock which must have taken forever to do. He thought to himself. Without noticing it he started to trip over Buffy.
"Agh. Watch it." she whispered as she caught herself from falling.
"Sorry. I'll pay more attention." Angel whispered back. Buffy. Now there was a girl. To him she was perfect in every way. He wanted to cuddle her in his arms and spend time with her like he hadn't before. He just couldn't tell her.
"Looks like we're here." Xander pointed out.
"Call for Giles." Willow said running through the hall.
'I wonder where they could be.' Giles pondered. He began hearing a voice call his name. 'I must be hallucinating. but that really sounds like Willow.' he said. His guards were lying in slumps on the floor and in front of him, like a dream, stood Willow, Xander, Angel, Buffy, and Spike?!?
"I thought you all were gone. And had forgotten about me." Giles exclaimed in astonishment.
"Forget you? Nah. We just a little delayed." Willow said.
"Let's get outta here." Xander said.
"You've got that right." Buffy couldn't agree more.
"You all have fun. I have some butt to kick myself." Spike said leaving the gang.
Angel found the keys to Giles' cell and unlocked it. Above them, they could hear footsteps and thuds of bodies landing on the ground.
"Can we hurry?" Buffy complained a little irritated as she started to get more and more uneasy. The thuds were coming harder but not as quickly.
Soon a loud blasting boom came overhead.
"Shit. That can't be good." Xander said cowering. He wasn't happy about this whole thing anyways.
"Go, go, go!" Giles yelled at his troop.
They ran up the stairs and were surprised. Dead Jinxx's were lying all over the ground. In front of Spike was a dragon creature. It had three heads and a massive reddish colored body. It stood on four clawed feet with a tail that was tipped with a deadly looking spike.
"Bloody hell. A dragana. What is he doing here?" Giles said as he looked from the dragana to Spike.
"He got us in here." Buffy said in awe of the dragana.
"Come and get me you dirty bastard!" Spike yelled at the creature.
"Don't worry. Your assss good assss gone." it hissed.
"Yeah I'm sure. You'll be the first one dead." Spike mocked.
"We can't just leave him here." Willow said.
"Ummm. Yeah we can." Xander cowered.
"Spike! Do you want some help?!?" Angel yelled across the room. His sound echoed and the dragana turned away from Spike and looked at the Scooby Gang.
"Yessss. He needsss help. You jussst don't look like help though." it hissed at them.
"This is my fight. Stay out of it." Spike screamed at them.
"Dumb Dragon. Let's fight." He yelled at the creature.
Spike ran at it with a hurling force and just knocked it over. The dragana shrunk a few inches when he was hit.
"No fair. You cheated." the dragana squealed at Spike. It swung it's tail at Spike and knocked him over. It grew about four feet and roared at this feat.
"Bastard." Spike yelled.
"Shouldn't we help him?" Buffy questioned. She didn't wait for an answer and ran into the fight. She knocked the dragana over with some help from Spike.
"Nice hit. He gets stronger as he gets smaller though." Spike said to her.
"Oh, fun." She nodded her head for more help from her friends.
"She wants us." Willow noticed and ran to help Buffy.
"Well, let's go." Angel said and followed without much hesitation.
With the whole gang fighting the monster the dragana was about two feet tall but not moving from his position. He was breathing fire balls at them and singeing their clothes.
"He's not giving up. And he's not moving." Buffy said as she, Angel and Spike hit the dragana from the back.
"Hold on. There is something in here." Willow pulled out a book on mystical creatures.
"There. It says, you've got to...let him get bigger." She read.
"What???" They looked at her like she was crazy.
"That's what it says. Just try it."
The gang decided to let the dragana throw them around for a little while. Thrown they were. The dragana at first threw them not even two feet but as he grew they were thrown farther and farther. Soon Buffy, Angel and Spike were being thrown into the walls and the dragana was not getting any bigger.
"Can we stop this shit now?" Spike said staggering towards Willow.
"I guess." She said as she lent him a shoulder to lean on.
Soon Buffy followed and so did Angel.
"So, what now?" Buffy said sitting on the ground badly bruised. They would heal quickly though. They were only caused by something supernatural.
"We light the room on fire and run." Giles said.
"Oh god. Really?" Spike looked at Giles stunned.
"If he says it, let's do it." Buffy said trying to find something that would catch on fire quickly.
"They used gasoline on the other prisoners. There is some downstairs in the prison area." Giles commented.
"I'll be right back." Angel said and ran towards the stairs. The gang heard the clicking of his shoe soles against the hard floor.
"We just need to keep him busy." Spike called.
"Doing what?" Buffy looked at him as if he had sprouted a tail and five heads.
"Just run through his legs." Xander suggested.
"Why don't you?" Spike retorted.
"Don't worry about it." Angel appeared from the stairs. No one had heard him come up.
"Watch!" Giles said as the dragana threw a fireball at them.
"Crap. He's discovered us." Xander said.
"Here. Spread this on the walls of the cave and you then run to the doors." Angel handed everyone a can of gasoline.
"GO!" Buffy screamed.
They ran around the room confusing the dragana. Gasoline pored all over the walls and soon Willow dropped her can and ran for the door. Buffy followed. Then Xander and Spike and finally Giles and Angel. They watched as the dragana spit fire to try and get rid of the smell of gasoline. Soon the room caught on fire and Buffy struggled to open the door. It wouldn't budge.
"It won't move!" Buffy said struggling to pull the door.
"What the hell? We need to get out of here. It's getting a little warm." Giles said wiping himself with the edge of his shirt.
"Let's all pull it." Angel said helping Buffy.
"One, two, three!" The door still didn't move.
"Crap. This isn't cool. I'm to young to die." Xander complained. The fire was creeping closer to the monster.
"Let's try again." Willow pulled the door.
"Pull!" Buffy screeched. She had never felt so warm before. The heat was so intense it felt like she might of been the turkey she had for dinner last night. Drops of sweat dripped down her face and it got her shirt wet.
"It's not working we need another plan." Angel said. He was covered in beads of sweat that were making the heat of the fire seem more intense.
"Maybe we should push it?" Willow said wiping her forehead.
"Push!" Spike yelled. This is almost like hell he thought. The heat engulfed him and he laughed.
The dragana was devoured in the flames and left the gang with a loud screeching sound. The flames approached them with great speed. Soon the bottoms of their pants were catching on fire.
"Let's get our of here." Xander screeched stomping out the fire on the end of his pants.
"Push it again!" Giles yelled over the roar of the flames.
The door burst open with great velocity and the gang went sprawling on the cold, damp sewer floor.
"RUN!!!" Buffy screamed as she got to her feet.
The door blew off and a loud blast followed. Fire followed and the gang bearly beat it. They jumped up a ladder and through a manhole. Angel threw the cover back on and watched it get blown off of its sitting place.
"Shit. That was close." Spike said as he walked down the road.
"What was your deal with that thing anyways?" Willow followed Spike.
"Nothing. Really it was nothing." Spike gazed at her. She looked so beautiful in the light. Her dark red hair was lit up by the dim street lights. He looked at her in awe. She was just like an angel.
"Willow. Wanna come home with me? We can watch movies and eat popcorn." Buffy walked over to Willow.
"Uh. Sure. Is anyone else coming?" She asked meekly.
"Maybe. Xander?" Buffy looked at him.
"I guess." He said looking at himself. He was a mess but could find some other clothes probably at his house before he headed over.
"Do you mind if I come?" Angel looked at Buffy with a puppy dog look in his eyes.
"No. I don't mind. That means..."
"I can come?" Spike interrupted her.
"If you really want to." Buffy said. She was more or less looking for Giles who had disappeared as soon as they got out of the sewers. 'That's weird.' She thought to herself.
"I'll swing by later. I really wanna change out of these." Xander pointed to his clothes and jogged down the street.
"Well, let's go. I want to get my car." Buffy said and led her troop down the road. Willow and Spike dragged behind, she and Angel were in front. The silence between the first two was just hanging there.
"So...Whaddya think is going on with them?" Buffy said glancing back at Willow and Spike who were giggling at an unheard joke.
"A love at first sight relationship. Who knows." Angel replied.
"Willow and Spike? That's kinda odd. Don't you think?" Buffy chuckled.
"Sure is. Listen there is something I have to tell you."
"How funny." Willow giggled. She was having a great time listening to Spike tell his jokes. There definitely was some kind of chemistry between the two of them. 'Why?' she questioned herself.
"Yeah. It was one of the better times in my life. So what do you think they are doing up there?" Spike looked at her. She was just, just, just beautiful, so innocent and perfect unlike himself.
"Who knows. Probably something about this evening, Buffy's never been one to converse very long to him about much." Willow replied.
"Unless they are together, alone and confessing themselves to each other. Like old times." Spike commented.
"Maybe he'll tell her." Willow thought aloud.
"Tell her what?" Spike inquired.
"Oh, nothing. Really it was nothing." Willow stepped out of her dreamy state.
"Fine. Don't tell me. All I want to know is will I find out?" He looked at her with pleading eyes.
"Don't do that. Maybe you'll find out, maybe you won't. It depends on Angel. Stop looking at me like that!" Willow squealed. He looked so cute like that. She wanted to give him a kiss but held her emotions at bay.
"Tell me what?" Buffy looked at Angel with intrigued eyes.
"Well, it's been going on for quite some time. It all started one evening while I was working in LA I was just sitting there and suddenly someone knocked on the door." He started.
"That's unusual?" She joked.
"I opened it and no one was there. I Looked around and called around outside and nobody answered. Soon something knocked me onto the floor. I landed and was beat down and couldn't move. Something hit me in the head and knocked me out. The next thing I knew I was walking out onto a deserted street with..." He trailed off as he looked at her.
"With what?" Buffy looked worried.
"With this."
"Oh my god. It looks like she's telling him." Willow said being observant to the happenings of the two in front of them.
"Telling him what? He better hurry cuz we are almost there. I want to know what they are saying!" Spike said.
"I can't tell you. I swore to him I wouldn't tell anyone unless he told me I could." She replied sadly.
"How do you know what this is anyway?" Spike glanced at Willow.
"Ummm....He told me."
Angel opened his shirt revealing a sight Buffy wasn't ready to see.
Where she used to sleep all safe and sound.
"There isn't anything there." She said looking at him as though he was crazy.
"Yes there is." Angel took her hand in his and placed it upon his chest.
Buffy gulped down a scream. Under her hand was a heart. A beating heart.
":What in the world happened to you?!?" Buffy hushed her voice.
"I was attacked and was almost killed. An oracle came by to see how things were working out and found the door open and me lying on the floor. He said the only way he could save me was to give me a heart. A life." Angel looked at her. Buffy looked as though she was totally confused. He grabbed her arms and brought her into a hug.
"I've missed you." He said.
"Me too."
"Awww. How mortalish." Spike snickered. He and Willow had been observing Buffy and Angel since Angel had opened his shirt.
"I think it's kinda cute." Willow said. She grew more and more to love Spikes sarcasm. It was sincere but evil.
"Yeah, and I'm a fuzzy bunny."
"You could be. Just need some ears, a tail and fur. You could pull it off."
"I was just being-"
Holding her felt so right. She fit perfectly into his arms. They were aware of the peering eyes of Spike and Willow but didn't care.
To her it felt like a dream. To perfect to be true yet so right to be wrong. She loved the way she felt when he held her. It was like old times just in a new way.
"Angel,"
"Yes,"
"I love you."
"I love you too." He said as he let go of her and slid his arm around her waist. And they walked on.
"It worked!" Willow squealed with joy.
"Woah. That was interesting." Spike retorted.
"Yes! I knew they would get back together. I knew it!" Willow stopped so full of joy and grabbed the closest thing to her, Spike. She gave him a humongous kiss.
"Woah Will. Calm down. Your horny this evening." Spike pulled away from Willow both excited and worried.
"So? I'm just happy." Willow said with a new tone in her voice.
"Why?"
"Because. Buffy and Angel are together like they should be."
"Oh."
"Spike,"
"Yeah Wills."
"You stepped in dog crap."
"Oh, shit." Spike was hoping she would say something else but laughed at this.
"What do you think they think of us?" Buffy asked as she fumbled for her house key.
"We are fools in love."
"Really?" She said pushing the door open.
"Hurry up! They are already inside." Willow said jogging along to the Summers' house. Spike was behind her but soon caught up and slid his hand into hers.
"We're here." He said back as they stepped up onto the porch.
"Hey guys. What's up?" Angel gestured at Willow's hand in Spike's. That was a very unusual sight. Especially with Spike.
"Oh. Nothing." Willow giggled.
"Sure." Angel smirked.
"What happened to you two?" Spike said too Buffy who was sitting on the couch with a movie already in the VCR. Angel sat beside her and she leaned onto his chest.
Willow watched them react with each other in a daze. She had watched them love each other and enjoy each other since they met. She wanted to have something like what they had.
"I'm gonna grab a drink. Anyone else want one?" Willow offered.
"We'll have some water." Angel nuzzled Buffy. It was as though they just picked up where they had left off. Nothing seemed different except that Angel was now, well, human.
"I'll come and help you." Spike said.
Willow was bummed because of this. She just wanted to have some kind of time to herself but it was still fun to be around him.
Spike followed Willow into the kitchen and watched her grab four glasses out of the cabinet.
"I don't want anything." Spike said looking in the fridge.
"Are you sure?" Willow checked.
"The only thing I want right now is..." Spike paused to gather his words.
"Is you." he looked at her with a passion in his eyes. He hoped he wasn't moving to fast.
"Spike, you're scaring me." Willow said. She was so unsure about her own feelings she didn't want to use someone else's.
"Sorry. I'm moving to fast." Spike grabbed the glasses and walked out into the den. He handed Buffy and Angel their glasses and sat down in a chair in the corner.
"What was I doing?" Willow yelled aloud. This is what she had been waiting for. Someone to actually like her and make a move. The only problem that was obvious, was she was mortal and Spike wasn't. He also was a 'bad' vampire but he was good. Hard for her to figure out.
"What happened in there?" Buffy looked at Spike who was distressed.
"Nothing." He replied.
Willow walked out of the kitchen and sat down on Spike's lap. He was very surprised and showed it when she did it.
"Woah."
"What's wrong?" She looked at him. She could make it work.
"Nothing."
The movie finished, Willow was asleep leaning on Spike's shoulder. Buffy was cleaning up and Angel was asleep on the couch.
"I need to go. The sun'll be up in a few hours. I'll catch you later." Spike got up and walked towards the door. He looked at Willow with sorrow in his eyes and walked back to the couch. She was still asleep and he kissed her gently on the cheek. Buffy watched with great interest, Spike wasn't usually crazy for anyone but Dru. This was the first time he had shown any feelings towards anyone. They sure would make an unusual couple. The door opened and shut and Spike was gone. The door creaking woke up Angel who helped Buffy clean up. Buffy wasn't sure about leaving Willow on the couch so she pulled out the bed from the couch and made it. Angel picked Will up and put her under the covers. Buffy went up the stairs to her room. Angel sat downstairs watching innocent Willow lie there asleep and then went up to Buffy's room. She was already lying in her bed asleep. HE climbed into it with her.
"I love you." he whispered in her ear.
"Me too." she said back, it was a dream come true.