Forget-me-not

by Laura1

Buffy and Angel must deal with the spectres of their respective exes

Introduction ~ This is my interpretation of how the Angel/Darla and Buffy/Riley storylines should end. It's not particularly pro-Riley (probably the understatement of the decade there), so if you like him don't read it. Apologies also because it doesn't totally fit in with the continuity of the two shows, for example, I've assumed that Angel never fired his staff in 'Reunion' or if he did he's since hired them back. There are two reasons for this. One, I haven't seen any of S2 'Angel' or S5 BtVS, I'm just going on episode summaries I've read. Two, some of the events from the series didn't fit with what I was trying to say, so I just used a little creative license. Finally, sorry if the descriptions of the inside of the Hyperion Hotel are a little vague or inaccurate, but I haven't actually seen the sets, so I don't know what it looks like.

Timeline ~ Set after Riley's left Buffy and Darla's been re-vamped (pun very much intended).

Disclaimer ~ I don't own any of them. Woe is me.

The pain was exquisite. It was at first sharp, then faded to a dull throbbing sensation that seemed to fill his whole body. Riley relaxed into the female vampire's arms, so as to better enjoy her bite, the only muscles he kept tense were the ones holding the stake by his side.

As the euphoria induced by blood loss began to set in Riley let his thoughts wonder. It had been a month since he left Buffy and Sunnydale to return to the military and in that month his life had changed unrecognisably. He had just begun to rebuild his career with the Initiative when they discovered his addiction to vampire bites. Facing being court-marshalled Riley instead decided to abscond and ended up running to LA. Here in the city of millions he could be sufficiently anonymous to escape detection by the agents of the Initiative he was sure were searching for him. The city also afforded him easy access to vampires in order to support his addiction.

Of course, there was another reason he had decided to come to LA. There were other large cities that would have served his needs adequately – New York, for example, or Chicago – and these may even have been safer for him, as they were further away from his home territory and the Initiative were less likely to search for him there. But none other than LA offered the opportunity to achieve what Riley longed for – revenge.

His lust for revenge had become almost physical in nature it was as great as his need to feel the bites of the vampires he called into his arms night after night. The revenge that he desired so much was against the creature that he held responsible for his downfall - the vampire with a soul that had poisoned his darling Buffy against him. Angel (the mere thought of the name sent an involuntary shudder through him) had destroyed Buffy, had ruined her personality so that she could never love another nor could she ever give herself completely to anyone else. Riley had been made to feel inadequate, as if Buffy were comparing him in everything he did to her first love and he was coming off worst. But he would show Angel and in doing so prove to Buffy that he was worthy of her love. He had been planning carefully and the time would come, very soon.

Riley felt his knees buckle and his senses begin to blur. He knew that it was time to end the bite before he was completely over-powered and the vampiress killed him. This was all part of the thrill, leaving it until the last possible moment to break away, knowing that the slightest misjudgement could result in his death. He summoned the last reserves of his strength and grabbed the vampire by the throat, pulling her away from his neck. As he did so he brought up the stake he held in his right hand and plunged it straight through her heart. He took a deep breath of the cool night air, wiped the dust from his clothing and walked out of the alley in the direction he had come.

"Well, what d'you think?"

Angel surveyed the film set, taking in the pile of coffins in the corner, the spray-on cobwebs, the many candelabra and the several men milling about in badly made Dracula costumes. He then turned to see the beaming and expectant face of his assistant and close friend, Cordelia and desperately tried to think of something tactful to say.

"So, what part are you playing again?" He asked, only slightly afraid to find out.

"I'm vampire victim number two." She answered enthusiastically. "Which is great, because it's an area I've had a lot of experience in." Getting only an understanding nod in response from Angel she ploughed on. "I was originally only supposed to be victim number three, but the other girl got a role in a commercial, so I was promoted."

Angel struggled to think of a reply to this. "That's, um…really…great Cordelia."

She rolled her eyes at him. "I know you're probably not liking this whole reinforcement of tacky vampire stereotypes thing, but just try to put aside your reservations and think of it as an artistic interpretation."

Angel was still considering how to respond when he was startled by a scream from Cordelia. "What is it?" He asked, alarmed.

"Gary Palmer just walked in. He's like this big Hollywood star and I get to be bitten by him." Cordelia squealed excitedly. "Come on, you have to have to meet him." She grabbed Angel by the hand and dragged him over to where a handsome young man in full vampire make-up and costume was standing.

"Cordelia!" The man cried happily, kissing the air to either side of her cheeks. "Ready for your big moment?" He opened his mouth to reveal fangs and leant over Cordelia threateningly.

"Well, you know I'm always ready to be bitten by you!" Cordelia gushed, causing Angel to raise his eyebrows. "But, you may want to work on the scary a little, because I'm not quite getting mind-numbingly terrifying. Hey! I know, Angel could give you a few tips."

"I'll bear that in mind, thank you." Gary said, turning to face Angel who nodded in greeting. He was then ushered off by an assistant, leaving Cordelia and Angel alone.

"Um, Cordelia what do you think you're doing?" Angel hissed.

"What? Oh, that. No, it's okay, I've told everyone you're my acting coach." She laughed, "like I'm gonna go around telling people that my boss is a vampire. I mean, way to get laughed out of town."

Not for the first time Angel marvelled at Cordelia's ability to completely miss the point, but his thoughts were interrupted by Wesley walking towards them, deep in conversation with a beautiful brunette.

"Have you done much research into your character, um, Miss Mendez? Because, I have quite the collection of books at home on vampire, er, folklore."

"Uh, oh." Cordelia muttered to Angel. "He's using the old 'Come over and look at my books' line."

But the actress was not falling for Wesley's charms. "I figured I'd just scream in horror, then die. Not really much need for background knowledge there," she shrugged. "Now if you'll excuse me…"

"Lost a live one there, Wes." Cordelia was as blunt as usual.

"I'll have you know that I was taking a purely professional interest in the lady. I just thought that with my, dare I say, expertise in such areas as vampires I could help her with her characterisation." Wesley said hurriedly.

"Methinks the lady doth protest too much." Angel teased, quietly amused.

"Save the excuses for her 300lb, overly possessive boyfriend, lover boy." Cordelia added. "He works a bouncer for a club in Hollywood, but I hear he also carries out freelance beatings."

Wesley had turned pale at the thought, so Angel wisely decided a change of subject was in order.

"Thanks for inviting us to see the film set Cordelia, it's been really…interesting."

Cordelia smiled back at him gratefully. "Thanks for coming. This is my first proper acting job and it means a lot that you guys are here to support me. You better make the most of me while you can because once I'm a big star an' all I'm not gonna stick around to do the filing anymore."

There is a silence whilst the three thought about what this will mean for the future.

"Actually, you never did much filing in the first place." Angel added softly, trying to lighten the mood, but his efforts only got him hit in the arm by Cordelia.

Buffy awoke from her dream, tears coating her cheeks. It was the same dream she'd had every night for over a week now. It began with her and Angel walking through a graveyard hand in hand when an invisible force suddenly tore them apart from one another. In the dream Buffy wondered the cemetery in a panic hearing Angel calling her name, yet never being able to find him. Finally he appeared before her with his heart ripped from his chest, holding it in his hands. He offered the heart to Buffy and when she took it, it burst into flames. Then, at this point, Buffy woke up.

At first she had thought the dreams to be prophetic because of their intensity. She had told Giles of them, albeit reluctantly as she didn't like sharing something so private. But he could find no connections in his research with a burning heart. She also insisted that Xander phone Cordelia on a false pretence, so that she could check on Angel's welfare. Cordelia's news was good, though, they were experiencing no major problems, or at least nothing that could be related to Buffy's dreams.

Thus, having eliminated all Hellmouth-related explanations Buffy was forced to acknowledge that it was her own consciousness creating these dreams and that the only way to understand them would be to look inside her own heart. Buffy initially dismissed the dreams as being a symptom of her recent break-up with Riley. She was feeling lonely and hurt, therefore, it was inevitable that her thoughts would turn to Angel, someone else she had also loved and lost. But as time passed and Buffy began to miss Riley less and even to believe she was better off without him, the dreams still continued.

Buffy lay awake in the darkened room, the tears just recently subsided and she allowed herself to admit what she had so far refused to. The dream wasn't about Riley at all, or about her feelings of loneliness at being without a lover. The dream's meaning was as obvious as it appeared. She still loved Angel and she always would. Riley had just filled a gap in her life. She had cared for him, sure, but she had always held back, kept a part of her just for Angel. She also knew that this was part of the reason her relationship with Riley had deteriorated. The tears came anew, though, when she contemplated the rest of her dream. Angel had given her his heart and it burst into flame. This she knew meant that their love was destroying each other. And there was nothing she could do about it.

Riley hid in the shadows of the alley, following the tapping sound the brunette's heels made on the sidewalk as she hurried past. Riley still couldn't believe his luck, that she would walk home alone like this, when she knew all about the perils that lurked in the night. Being friendly with a vampire that would do anything to protect her must be what's making her so confident, he thought. He smiled at this; Angel's loyalty was exactly what he was counting upon to his plan work.

Riley tenderly touched the recent vampire bite on his neck, then dug his fingernails in brutally, drawing fresh blood. He scanned the surroundings checking that there were no other passers-by to interrupt proceedings. When he was satisfied there were no witnesses he staggered out of the alley with a loud groan and collapsed onto the ground, feigning unconsciousness. As predicted Cordelia responded immediately to his cries and rushed over. Finding the bite wound on his neck she gasped in horror. Riley fluttered his eyes open and looked up at Cordelia in a silent appeal for aid.

"Can you walk?" She hissed.

At his small nod of ascent she pulled him to his feet and dragged him away from the alley.

"Come on." She muttered urgently. "We have to get you inside where it's safe. The vamp that attacked you is probably still around here somewhere."

Riley leant on her arm and allowed himself to be steered in the direction of her apartment block. This is going even better than expected, he thought.

Once inside Cordelia's apartment Riley found himself deposited upon her couch. He lay there prone and unresponsive whilst Cordelia fussed around him. She announced she was going to fetch some bandages and disappeared into another room. Riley sat up and surveyed the room. There were four doors leading out of it. One was the front door he had entered by, another he presumed lead to the bedroom, a third to the bathroom and the forth to the kitchen, where Cordelia had gone. Satisfied that there was only one route out of the apartment Riley stood up and extracted a gun from the ankle holster he was wearing. It was only a small revolver, the only thing he had managed to smuggle away from the army, but it should be enough to frighten a young woman at home alone with a stranger.

He headed towards the direction of the kitchen, moving quietly, so as not to alert Cordelia's suspicions too soon. When he entered the room, however, his stealth was rendered useless as a large vase flew down from a shelf, narrowly missing his head. Cordelia spun around startled by the loud crash created when the vase hit the floor. Her shock intensified when she saw Riley standing three feet away from her, gun pointed straight towards her chest.

"Cooperate and you won't get hurt." Riley told her in a low voice. She nodded dumbly and Riley cuffed her hands behind her back. She flinched at his touch.

"What do you want?" She asked. Anger beginning to win out over fear.

"I want you as a house guest." He answered pushing her roughly towards the door. When he tried to leave, though, the front door wouldn't open. He pulled at it with all his strength and fiddled with the lock, but couldn't make any difference. Panic began to eat away at his self-control. What was the matter with the damn door? He pointed the gun at Cordelia's head and demanded that she find a way to open it. She caught the wild look in his eyes and to his bemusement called out to the empty apartment.

"Dennis! Just do what he wants! Please."

The door swung open by its own volition and Riley stared at it incredulously. He didn't have time to get sidetracked, though; he had to focus on the task in hand. She's got to be pretty weird to work for a vampire in the first place, anyway, he reasoned. He bundled her out into the corridor, slamming the door behind him.

He didn't look back, but if he had done he would have been confused even further. The now vacant apartment filled with a strong, almost angry wind, which scattered papers and toppled ornaments. Then almost as quickly as the wind had started it ceased and all was still again. All, that is, except for the telephone receiver, which was knocked sharply off the hook. A number dialled itself and after five rings a male voice answered the other end.

"Hello, hello. Who is this? Is there anyone there?"

But the empty apartment provided no response.

Angel paced the floor of Cordelia's apartment. He had checked the caller ID on the mysterious phone call he had received earlier that evening and found it to have come from Cordelia's number. He had phoned back but there was no answer. Definitely worried now he had gathered together Wesley and Gunn and they had all hurried over to her to look for her. But Cordelia was nowhere to be found.

Instead they were greeted by an empty apartment that looked as though a bomb had just hit it. Books and papers were strewn all over the floor, furniture was overturned and the remains of what was once a glass vase littered the kitchen. Wesley suggested notifying the police but Angel, visions of Kate barging in and taking over with her bossy attitude filling his head, decided against this course of action. They could locate Cordelia themselves his maintained. They were a detective agency after all.

He pushed his concerns for Cordelia to the back of his mind and tried to approach the problem rationally. It didn't take him long to think of a solution.

"Dennis!" He called out to empty air. "Did you see anything?"

His request was rewarded by the sound of a faucet in the bathroom turning itself on. Angel quickly rushed into the small room, followed by Wesley and Gunn. Once they were all there the water stopped running and one of Cordelia's lipsticks was lifted into the air by her resident ghost and began to write upon the mirror. The words 'kidnapped', 'man' and 'gun' appeared in shaky letters. The three men exchanged worried glances.

"Is there anything else?" Angel asked hopefully. But the lipstick remained stubbornly still.

Cordelia found herself in a large, empty warehouse. She looked around and to her horror noticed all the windows were blacked out. Absence of sunlight, she thought, that's never a good sign. But the man who had kidnapped her wasn't a vampire, she was sure of that. He was definitely alive; she had felt his pulse earlier. That didn't mean he was human, though, she mused. He could be some kind of a demon. That still didn't explain what he was doing with her, or why he had pretended to be in need of her help. Which was a pretty low thing to do, she thought angrily. She narrowed her eyes and studied her captor. He didn't look very demonic, but then neither had Doyle and he had fooled her for long enough. Eventually, unable to contain her curiosity any longer, Cordelia had to ask the obvious question.

"Who are you, anyway?"

The man looked startled that she had spoken and twisted round to face her, gun poised at the ready. He looked at her nervously but didn't answer.

Cordelia sighed with impatience. "Well, if you're going to kill me I'll be damned if I'm gonna die without even knowing why."

Riley cleared his throat, hesitating before speaking. The high he had been on last night had now worn off and he was beginning to lose faith in his plans. "I'm not going to kill you." He said quietly. "I don't want to hurt you either. I just want you to cooperate with a few little requests that's all."

"Why should I?" Cordelia prompted impetuously. This elicited a confused look from her kidnapper. "Why should I do anything you say, if you're not going to hurt me? Why shouldn't I just walk out of here?" She continued.

"Well you're tied up, so you can't just walk away." Riley pointed out.

"OK, then," she persisted. "Why don't I just sit here and wait for Angel to rescue me then." At the mention of the vampire's name a scowl came across Riley's features, which Cordelia noticed immediately. "Ah, so this is a get at Angel thing. Well you can forget it. You've got no chance going up against him alone."

"But I don't intend to fight him alone."

Cordelia thought back to the blacked out windows and shuddered. "What have you got against Angel, anyway?" She asked.

"I'm a friend of Buffy's," was all he offered by way of an explanation.

"Oh great, Buffy." Cordelia muttered in exasperation. "I always knew that woman was the devil incarnate."

Riley shot her an angry look. "Be careful what you say about my Buffy."

"Ah, I get it now." Cordelia relaxed, suddenly grasping the situation. "You're the new guy. Soldier boy. Man, Buffy sure knows how to pick 'em. Last I heard you'd dumped her."

"I don't want to talk about that." He waved his gun at her indicating the topic was off limits. "What I do want to talk about, though, is the phone call you're going to make to Angel."

"Forget it. I'm not doing anything you say. I thought we'd been over this. You're not going to hurt me. Buffy would never speak to you again if you did." Cordelia made a valid point.

Riley was taken aback he had expected fear and compliance from the woman, rather than the confident defiance he was seeing now. He realised he would have to do something quickly before he lost control of the situation. He produced a Swiss army knife from his pocket and advanced towards Cordelia. She glanced at him nervously.

"What are you planning to do with that?" She asked.

"Thought I might give you a little haircut to pass the time." He answered. "That is if you're still feeling uncooperative.

"You wouldn't dare."

"Just try me."

"Fine." Cordelia gave in. "Where's the phone?"

Angel drove across town towards the location Cordelia had given him. He was still puzzled by what she had said on the phone. She had maintained that she had found a young woman in need of help at the warehouse and that Angel should come quickly. When he had tried to question her about her own welfare she had just repeated her story and then hung up. Clearly it was a trap as none of the information Cordelia had given him fitted with what he had found out at her apartment, but some questions still remained. Why was he being set up like this and what would he find when he reached the warehouse? Whatever, he was being led into, he thought, he was more than equipped to face. He glanced in the rear view mirror and the sight of Wesley sitting in the back buried under a pile of weapons confirmed this. Whoever the guy was that had taken Cordelia, he wasn't going to be alive much longer.

Riley watched in horror as the girl in front of him doubled up in pain. A loud scream ripped from her throat and she clutched her head in her hands. He glanced down at the empty Chinese cartons by her feet in a panic and wondered whether it was something she had eaten. He decided it couldn't have been because he had eaten the same. Maybe she was allergic to something, though. Oh God I've killed her, he thought. This wasn't supposed to happen.

He rushed over to Cordelia, then stopped before touching her, briefly wondering if it was a trick. He had done the same thing to her earlier after all, pretended to be hurt so as to get close enough to attack. The pain on her face seemed to be genuine, though, and his medical training kicked in. He decided it was some kind of epileptic fit and tried to persuade the girl to lie down on the floor until it passed. At first she resisted then, the fit apparently over, collapsed into his arms.

Seconds later she was coming round again and when she realised her position she pushed him groggily away.

"We have to get out of here." She managed weakly. "Vampires - they're coming to attack. Lots of them."

Riley stared at her in confusion, before realising what she was referring to. "It's OK." He said smiling in reassurance. "They work for me. I hired them to be your boss' surprise. You won't believe this, but they don't like him much either."

Cordelia shook her head, but it only intensified the pain. "So, that was your well-thought out plan was it? Kidnap me in order to lure Angel here then have a bunch of vampire lackeys kill him for you. You didn't even have the guts to take him on yourself, oh but you tried that before and got your ass kicked, didn't you?" She was really angry now. "You're an idiot, do you know that. Those vampires aren't going to do a thing you say, no matter how much you pay them. They're just going to take your money and then its feeding time at the zoo. You didn't pay them already did you?"

Riley nodded, beginning to see his mistake.

Cordelia groaned. "Well we're screwed now. They're coming after us and they're hungry."

"How do you know all this?" Riley wondered out loud.

"I get these visions from the Powers that Be. It's a long story involving me and an Irish half-demon with incredibly bad dress sense, but I don't have time to go into that now. We have to leave. Now. Untie me." She ordered.

Riley did as she obeyed, releasing her wrists from the handcuffs. Cordelia was just climbing to her feet, when the door to the warehouse slammed open and a whole gang of vampires trooped in.

"Alright boss." The lead vampire swaggered towards Riley. "We're all here, reporting for duty. Who was it you wanted us to kill again? Because I've got a bit of a bad memory and can't quite recall all the details."

"Forget it." Riley managed in a shaky voice. "The deal's off. You can keep the money, just leave now."

"Oh, I don't think we'll be doing that." The vampire chuckled. "You wouldn't send us out into the cold without a meal now, would you?"

The vampire motioned to a couple of his accomplices who grabbed hold of Cordelia. She fought with them, delivering a vicious kick to one's stomach, but they were too strong for her and she was soon securely in their grasp. Riley rushed towards his bag, where he kept a stake, but several more vampires stepped in his way. He backed off nervously, until one attacked him, going straight for his neck. He dodged the approaching vampire and managed to knock it to the ground with a few well-placed kicks and punches. However, two more vamps attacked him from behind and managed to pin him to the wall.

"Oh, guess I won't be going hungry tonight after all." The leader of the group quipped.

"Guess again." A low voice came from the doorway as a new player entered the room.

"Angel!" Cordelia exclaimed in relief.

Angel was quickly followed into the room by Wesley and Gunn, both armed with crossbows. These they pointed at the approaching vampires and managed to take out three in quick succession. When the vampires were too close for crossbows to be of any use, they threw them away and produced stakes instead. Angel had his trusty axe by his side and took on the group leader immediately. The fight was short and brutal. Angel beheaded the lead vampire, who turned to dust and then focused his attention on the vamps that still had hold of Cordy. These were soon dust also and after a quick check on Cordelia's welfare Angel surveyed the state of the rest of the group.

Gunn had disappeared, chasing after the last vampire, who had possessed the common sense to run away before being killed. Wesley had a bloody nose but stood triumphantly over a large pile of dust, clutching his stake. Riley sat leaning against the wall where the vampires had left him, ashamed of his behaviour and shocked by his narrow escape from death. Recognising Riley and soon realising what had happened that night Angel inhaled deeply as a wave of anger hit him. The stupid boy could have had us all killed, he thought.

"Cordelia go wait in the car." He ordered, a dangerous calm filling his voice. "Wesley I want you to see what's happened to Gunn."

"I really don't think this is a good idea Angel." The Englishman protested.

"I only want a word with the boy, Wesley." Angel said darkly. "Now go."

Wesley knew better than to argue and scurried out of the warehouse, closely followed by Cordelia. Angel walked slowly over to where Riley had now scrambled to his feet and casually leant his axe against the wall.

"What exactly did you think you could accomplish this evening?" Angel asked in a low voice.

"I thought that would have been obvious."

"You were trying to have me killed." Angel turned away from Riley and laughed softly to himself. "Well that plan failed miserably, don't you think." He spun back around and grabbed Riley by the throat, pinning him to the wall. "Don't mess with me boy, or I'll make you wish you'd never been born. You understand?" Riley didn't respond to this, so Angel shook him. "You understand?" He repeated.

This time Riley managed to gasp out an affirmative response and Angel released him, letting the younger man drop to the floor.

"In the future stay away from me and my staff, but most of all stay away from Buffy. If I even hear you've gone anywhere near her I will tear you limb from limb. And that's a promise."

Angel reclaimed his axe and swept out of the warehouse. Riley stared daggers into the retreating vampire's back, bitterly resenting how foolish he had been made to look, yet again. This was not the end, he resolved. Not by any means. If anything his hatred of Angel had been deepened, despite the vampire saving his life that evening. His lust for revenge had only been heightened and he would get it, no matter what lengths he had to go to.

Back at the Hyperion Hotel Angel found his quiet contemplation, or brooding, as Cordelia would have called it, interrupted by Wesley.

"Um, Angel. What, er, exactly did you um say to that young man?" Wesley ventured the question nervously.

"Don't worry Wesley, he still has all his limbs intact."

"Yeah, but is he still alive?" Cordelia asked bluntly.

"I didn't do anything to hurt him, OK guys." Angel reassured them. "I just warned him to stay away from now on, that's all."

"Good, so we've heard the last of him right?" Cordelia had been witness 'warnings' issued by Angel before and knew that more often than not they were heeded.

"No." Angel said, surprising them. "He's foolish and he'll be back. He's lost everything he cares about and now he's convinced that killing me will solve all his problems. It's just a question of when and where we'll see him again."

"What do we do then?" Asked Cordelia.

"I don't know." Angel answered honestly. "I don't want to hurt him." They all looked at him sceptically. "OK," he amended. "Maybe I do want to hurt him a little, but he is human…"

"And Buffy would go ballistic if you laid a finger on him." Cordelia finished.

"Yeah." Angel sighed. "But if he carries on like this I might not have a choice. Who knows how much trouble he could cause. He's starting to put the lives of innocent people at risk."

"Perhaps, we should consider contacting Buffy." Wesley suggested.

"Contacting Buffy about what?"

Everyone in the room turned towards the doorway at the sound of a familiar voice. Standing there, framed by the sunlight, stood Buffy smiling nervously.

"Have I got precision timing, or is it just that I'm a major conversation topic around here, because I always seem to walk in at the mention of my name." Buffy attempted a joke.

"Buffy!" Cordelia exclaimed. "We were just…"

"Talking about me?" Buffy finished for her. "Yeah, I gathered that much. What's going on?"

All eyes turned to Angel for an explanation. "We should talk." He said to Buffy.

She nodded in compliance and followed him up to his room.

Buffy sat in silent incomprehension after hearing what Angel had had to say to her. She couldn't believe Riley would do such a thing. To kidnap Cordelia and set a pack of vampires loose on Angel and his staff. He wasn't capable of it she was sure. Her first reaction had been that of anger and disbelief. Angel disliked, possibly even hated Riley, he must have been making up these tales to discredit him and to hurt her. But when he described Cordelia's kidnapping she had known he couldn't have made something like that up. Besides, she thought, for all his faults Angel never lied, even as Angelus he had been brutally honest. Then she had protested that it must have been a mistake, a misunderstanding, Riley must have been helping protect Cordelia from the vampires and she just misinterpreted his intentions. But even as Buffy said the words her voice sounded hollow and the sad look in Angel's eyes soon silenced her altogether.

"He's mixed up, that's all." She still could not help but defend him.

"I know."

"The military, they did things to him. Mind-control. Drugs."

"I know that too." Angel said with real understanding. "That doesn't solve the problem of what we are going to do about him, though." He added gently.

"I'm sorry."

"What for?" Angel asked.

"It's my fault." Buffy maintained in a small voice. "He wasn't like this before I met him. I did it to him. If it wasn't for me then he wouldn't be in LA at all."

"It's as much my fault as anyone else's." Angel countered. "I shouldn't have fought with him last year. It was a petty, juvenile thing to do and ever since he seems to have fixated upon me as the source of all his problems."

As silence stretched between them as they both processed their current situation. Angel was the first to break it, as he suddenly wondered over Buffy's presence in LA.

"What are you doing here, anyway?" He asked. Buffy shot him a sharp look in response to the abruptness of the question. "I mean, I had assumed that you came because you heard Riley was in town, but when I mentioned it you were surprised." Angel explained. "So, why are you here?"

Buffy thought about it. She didn't even have the answer to the question straight in her own mind. The dreams had been getting worse, they were more graphic now. She saw Angel's whole body burning and heard his cries for help loudly in her head. They were incredibly vivid and seemed to be more real even than her waking world. She had even felt the heat of the flames as Angel burned. The dreams had also become more frequent. Every time she closed her eyes they seemed to plague her, she woke up screaming several times a night and consequently was getting very little sleep. The last time her dreams had disturbed her this much was around her seventeenth birthday, when she had dreamt that Druscilla had killed Angel and she remembered all too vividly what had happened then. Buffy had known that she could not continue any longer in this way and the only solution she saw was to come and visit Angel and allay her fears for his safety. But now that she was here and had heard about his predicament with Riley she was even more confused.

Angel was still waiting for answer and she still had none.

"I-I've been having these dreams." She finally managed. Angel nodded for her to continue. "They seem to be prophetic in their intensity. They all involve you."

"What happens in these dreams?"

Buffy shut her eyes trying to dispel the images that flooded her conscious every time she even thought of the dreams. "You die." She said. "And, and there's nothing I can do to stop it. I just have to watch you burn." Buffy was getting more and more upset. "They come all the time Angel. I can't sleep because of them. I can't even think. I'm so tired and …frightened." Tears were rolling down her cheeks.

Angel covered the short distance between them with a few strides and took Buffy in his arms. He brushed the tears from her cheeks and murmured softly into her ear. "Shush. It's OK. Everything's going to be fine." He was briefly reminded of the last time he had comforted Buffy over the contents of her dreams, but quickly suppressed the memory and tried to concentrate on the present.

"You're exhausted. You should try and get some sleep. You can lie down here, we have plenty of spare rooms after all."

"But…" Buffy protested weakly.

"Shush." Angel silenced her. "Don't worry about the dreams. They're not real. I'm fine and I'm just going to be in the next room. OK?"

Buffy nodded and let him lead her to bed. She removed her coat and shoes and climbed under the covers. She was asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow. Angel kissed her lightly on the forehead and switched the light out and spoke softly over her slumbering form.

"Goodnight. Sweet dreams."

He turned out the light and left the room.

Buffy awoke shivering in the darkened room. She realised that the hotel must not be heated. As far as Angel was concerned it would be an unnecessary expense and the others all had their own warm homes to go. She slid out of bed and wrapped a blanket round her shoulder for warmth. She then went in search of Angel.

He wasn't in his room, so she padded downstairs in her bare feet. She checked her watch, but it had stopped and the digital display read midnight. She briefly wondered how long she had been asleep and realised she had no way of knowing. It could have been anything from thirty minutes to eight hours; she had been that tired. Buffy reached the office area, but found that deserted as well.

"Angel?" She called out.

There was no response.

"Cordelia? Wesley?" She tried. "Hello. Is anybody there?"

She was greeted by only silence. She wondered round the downstairs of the hotel looking for a note Angel may have left. He wouldn't have wanted to wake her she reasoned, but she wouldn't have thought he would just leave her there alone with no explanation. Maybe Cordelia had a vision, she thought, and they all had to rush off. Satisfied with this explanation she began to familiarise herself with her surroundings. This is where Angel spent most of his time. There was so much she didn't know about his life now and faced with the reality of this Buffy felt saddened and a little lost.

She heard sounds of laughter coming from behind her and spun around. The whole place had been empty a second ago. There was no one there, but she heard the sound again, this time coming from another room, and she followed it.

Buffy pushed open the door of the room and gasped in shock and horror. Directly in front of her, about eight feet away, was Angel. He hung from the ceiling in chains and his face was contorted with pain.

"Angel!" She cried out, tears already streaming down her cheeks.

She tried to run to him, but her feet seemed frozen to the ground. She couldn't move, furthermore Angel didn't even seem to have registered her presence. Buffy could only watch, distraught, as the scene in front of her played itself out.

A woman Buffy recognised as Darla appeared next to him and Buffy realised it was she that had been laughing before. Darla produced a large cross, which she seemed to be able to hold without it affecting her, and pressed it against Angel's bare chest. She giggled happily at the cries of pain Angel produced as the cross burnt him. Darla abandoned the cross and caressed the large red welt it had left upon Angel's chest. She kissed the mark gently then dug her fangs into him, drawing blood, which she licked off. Darla then proceeded to pour holy water over a writhing Angel, taking great pleasure in the task. After a few minutes of this torture Darla turned to look at Buffy, her eyes glowing with a strange red light.

"You can't protect him any longer." Darla informed Buffy with a self-satisfied smile. She then disappeared, leaving Angel and Buffy alone together in the room. Buffy now found she could move and rushed over to Angel's aid. She tentatively reached out to touch Angel's cheek, but her hand left a burn mark where it had contacted with his skin. Filled with concern she took Angel in an embrace, as much for her own comfort as his. As she held him, though, he burst into flame in her arms. She drew back instinctively and found she could do nothing but watch as Angel burnt into dust in front of her eyes.

Buffy's screams tore through the hotel, echoing in the empty rooms. Angel, upon hearing them, rushed upstairs in a panic. He found Buffy crying uncontrollably in bed. He held her close to him, rocking her until her sobs receded to whimpers and finally she was quiet.

"Shush, it was only a dream. Only a dream." He repeated over and over again.

When Buffy was finally able to form words she looked up at him with red, frightened eyes. "How do I know?" She asked.

"Know what?" Angel murmured.

"That this is real, not another dream. I could be dreaming now and you could be dead."

Angel pulled her closer to him. "This is real I promise." He pinched her arm gently. "See you felt that, didn't you? So, you can't be dreaming."

Buffy seemed satisfied at this and she nuzzled deeper into his chest. He lay down with her on the bed and stroked her hair. He listened as her breathing slowed and became rhythmic. He leant his head against hers and held Buffy tight in his arms as she slept a peaceful, deep, dreamless sleep.

Riley started on his third beer. He found that alcohol no longer affected him, not since the damage medical experimentation by the Initiative had done on his body. At the moment he was grateful for this as drinking was a useful way of occupying his time whilst he waited in the bar, yet he needed his mind to remain sharp. The events of last night had made him realise something. To put it in rather grand terms he had had an epiphany. He had finally understood that he was not Angel's equal and there was no use pretending he was. How could he expect to beat Angel if they weren't even competing on a level playing field? Angel was immortal. He would live forever and never grow old, he was strong, he couldn't be hurt, his senses were acute, his speed and stealth were unnaturally enhanced and he possessed an innate fighting instinct. Riley was only human and he was still recovering from years of physical abuse, there was no way he could go up against someone like Angel and win.

So, he had come to a decision. He had been going about things entirely the wrong way. Previously he had been convinced that if he could destroy Angel using his own merits then he could prove to Buffy that he was deserving of her love. Now he knew that was the wrong course of action. Buffy was a warrior; she possessed superior strength and fighting skill. She respected Angel because he had these same skills. She had never respected Riley in the same way. As far as Buffy was concerned he was weak and beneath her. If he wanted her to love him then he had to become her equal. He had to get the same strength and skills that she had, that Angel had. He had to turn himself into a warrior too, and as far as he knew there was only one possible way to accomplish that. He had to become a vampire.

The decision made, Riley felt a sense of great calm befall him. Finally, he was going to win his Buffy back. She would be able to love him like she never could when he was human. Once he was a vampire he would destroy Angel. Riley would humiliate Angel and make him beg for mercy in front of Buffy, but no mercy would be granted. Buffy would then realise she had been wasting her love all these years. Riley was the strong one, the worthy one and Angel was nothing. Nothing but dust. Or he will be by the time I've finished with him, Riley thought.

He finished his third beer and was about to ask for a fourth, when a beautiful blonde came and sat down at the bar next to him.

"Feeling a little lonely are we?" She asked invitingly.

Riley returned her smile. She was a vampire he knew. The fact he was seated in a demon bar where half the clientele were undead notwithstanding, he could now identify vampires almost immediately. Their skin was not only obviously pale but often it appeared translucent and had a smoothness about it akin to polished marble. He had also noticed that the air around a vampire seemed to possess a certain kind of chill, unlike humans whose body heat warmed their immediate surroundings. Thus, when a vampire approached him in a bar he realised what they wanted straight away. This time, though, Riley wanted the same.

"Well you know. I'm a stranger in a strange land." He replied to the blonde.

"Yes, I had noticed." She said lightly. "You ought to be more careful coming to places like this, it could be dangerous." As she spoke she leaned very close to Riley and he caught the heady scent of her perfume and was rewarded with a not so insubstantial glimpse of her cleavage. He felt stirrings of arousal in the pit of his stomach, in spite of himself. He was beginning to think that his conversion to being a vampire need not be a wholly unpleasant experience.

"Well I'll just have to rely on you to protect me." He flirted with the vampire.

She laughed. It was a soft, melodic sound but the sentiment did not reach her eyes and her expression remained cold and calculating. Riley did not notice this, however, he only heard her words. "Oh well, I shall have to take that responsibility very seriously. I'm not making any promises, though."

"That's what I was hoping you'd say."

"What the hell are you two doing?!?" Cordelia's shriek dragged Buffy and Angel out of their respective slumber.

"I can't leave you two alone for a minute without you jumping on top of each other." She continued.

"Cordelia." Angel warned in a low voice.

She paid no heed to his tone. "But obviously you've lost your touch, because we're all alive, so I'm assuming he's still soul boy."

Buffy was sitting up by down and Cordelia looked down at her to gauge the reaction to her words. What she saw shocked her. Buffy's eyes were red rimmed and her mascara left tear tracks down her cheeks, her clothing was dishevelled and her hair matted. It was a far cry from the immaculately presented, completely controlled Buffy Cordelia was used to seeing. The sight silenced Cordelia mid-tirade; something past experience had proved was exceedingly difficult to achieve.

There was a strained pause in which Angel glanced nervously at Buffy, unsure of what her reaction to the situation was going to be. He was relieved when her eyes lit up with their familiar defiance and she prepared to take on Cordelia in a battle to see who had the sharpest tongue. She did not get the chance, however, as Cordelia was already backing out of the room, not keen to face the prospect of an angry slayer and an over-protective vampire.

"You actually pay her to be here?" Buffy turned to Angel incredulously.

"Well I didn't exactly get much choice in the matter." Angel explained. "She kind of hired herself. She won't be staying much longer, though."

"Ah, so you finally got sick of her did you? I don't blame you, three years of high school practically had me ready to use slayer moves just to shut her up."

"Actually she's changed a lot." Angel commented and Buffy raised her eyebrows. "Well maybe not that much, but you'd be surprised. No, she's leaving because she's got a part in a movie, as a murder victim."

"Now that I would pay to see."

Angel smiled at her and she looked at him quizzically. "You sound like you're feeling much better." He told her.

"Well it's amazing what a couple of hours of sleep can do for you." Buffy replied softly.

"Whatever it is I'm glad. You really scared me earlier."

"I really scared myself." Buffy was suddenly very serious. "The dream, it was different this time."

"Different how?" Angel asked.

Buffy paused as the disturbing memories came flooding back. "Darla was there. She was torturing you." Angel looked away. "I know she's back," Buffy continued. "Has she been causing you a lot of trouble?"

"Depends what you mean by a lot." Angel replied. "She and Druscilla have run riot across LA and Darla's decided to make bringing back Angelus her pet project."

"I'd say that classifies as 'a lot'." Buffy commented quietly. "Anyway, in my dream you burnt when I touched you." She carried on. "I'm really worried Angel. I think you're in danger and Darla and I are somehow involved."

"I think you may be right." Angel acknowledged. "Darla's left me alone recently and I have a suspicion it means she's planning something big." Buffy's eyes widened in fear. "But, whatever it is we'll be ready for it. OK?" Angel reassured her.

Buffy nodded then exclaimed loudly. "Oh my God!"

"What is it?" Angel felt fresh concern flash through him.

"I must look such a mess!"

She was only mildly offended when Angel burst out laughing.

Riley was pleasantly surprised when the blonde vampire brought him back to her modern, spacious and obviously expensive apartment. Most of the vampires he had met before tended to live in crypts, or at least draughty old buildings. He had assumed this was sort of a cultural thing, because vampires having no morals could easily steal the money required to rent a nice home, or even kill the owner of one and move in. Thus, it was a new experience for him to encounter a vampire that not only possessed wealth, but also taste.

He fidgeted nervously on the leather sofa, suddenly unsure as to whether he was doing the right thing. Did he really want to become a vampire; because once he had been turned there was no going back. He thought of Buffy. Remembered her fierce passion and her fighting spirit, how beautiful and peaceful she looked when she was sleeping. He then recalled all the times she had had to protect him. How she had fought battles for him that he could not cope with himself and how her respect for him had progressively dwindled away to nothing. He had no choice, he realised. He had to do this, for Buffy. She would recognise the sacrifice he had made for their love and respect him anew. Once he was a vampire he wouldn't need her to protect him any longer, she would be the one relying on him.

The thought gave him a fresh focus on the task in hand. He turned to speak to the blonde next to him.

"So, what does one do to occupy eternity?"

"Interested in finding out are you?" She smiled enticingly.

"It's a research project I'm working on." Riley leaned closer towards her.

"Well first we drink." She said, pulling away from him and retreating into the open plan kitchen. There she poured two glasses of champagne and brought them back through into the main room, offering Riley one. He accepted willingly. The blonde pressed against him and he once again caught the aroma of her perfume as champagne bubbles fizzed on his tongue. He began to feel giddy from sensory overload. Even to his uneducated palette the champagne tasted exquisitely expensive. He did detect a slight metallic after taste, but quickly disregarded this as his imagination.

As he drained his glass, Riley noticed his sensation of light-headedness increase. He decided that the alcohol was affecting him after all and refused when the vampiress offered to refill his drink. She rested her hand on his knee and the room in front of him began to spin. Riley blinked and turned to look into the face of the beautiful blonde, which now appeared grotesque in his blurred vision. His last thought before he lapsed into unconsciousness was that he mustn't lose control of the situation.

Buffy had showered and was now sitting downstairs wearing one of Angel's sweaters. She had brought her own change of clothes but she still couldn't shake the chill from her dream earlier, so Angel had leant her an extra jumper to keep warm. The fabric felt soft and warm against her skin and she fancied she could still catch a trace of his scent in the material. Angel himself was sitting across the room from her, deep in thought. She studied his expression, wondering what he was thinking about. He felt her gaze and looked up, their eyes met and they both smiled shyly before looking away.

Cordelia witnessed this exchange and rolled her eyes. "When you two have quite finished." Buffy blushed. "We have to decide what we're going to do about the little problem of your respective exes."

"Maybe I could talk to Riley," Buffy offered. "Tell him its over. That I don't care about him anymore. Then hopefully he'll give up and get on with his life."

"Uh, not going to happen I'm afraid." Cordelia said bluntly. "This guy is like Glenn Close with testosterone, military training and a semi-automatic weapon. You politely tell him to move on and I don't really think it's going to make much of an impression."

"Yes." Wesley agreed. "From what Cordelia tells us of Riley's behaviour it would be wishful thinking to hope that his fixation upon you and Angel could be removed simply during a conversation."

"Was he really that bad?" Buffy asked.

"Worse." Cordelia told her. "He had fresh vampire bite on his neck - that was how he got me to trust him, he pretended to be injured – and at one point he actually threatened to shave off my eyebrows if I didn't do as he said." Everyone looked at her strangely. "Do you have any idea how long shaved eyebrows take to grow back? And it totally ruins their shape." She said defensively.

"But he never threatened to kill or hurt you?" Buffy addressed Cordelia.

"No." She admitted. "He said he didn't want to hurt me, but he was pretty homicidal towards Angel."

Buffy nodded and started to think carefully about what their next course of action was going to be. The room fell into silence, which was interrupted in short order by Gunn.

"Ya know, all this contemplation about soldier boy is all very well, but isn't he a pussy cat in comparison to somebody else's ex. Much as I'd rather take on Buffy's stalker boyfriend than Darla, I think the problem of an evil, twisted vampire with a penchant for torture and a grudge to bear is slightly more pressing."

"Well, we've been trying to deal with Darla for the last couple of months and nobody's come up with a half-decent plan yet." Cordelia said pointedly, looking at Angel.

"Maybe we come up with one now then." Angel replied to her challenge. "I probably frightened Riley off for a couple of nights, anyway. It'll take him a while to come up with a new plan and in the meantime we can take out Darla."

"If only it were as simple as that." Wesley interjected.

"Maybe it can be." Buffy suggested. "After all you've got me to help now. Angel and I working together could beat Darla. After all we've done it before."

"I'm not sure Buffy." Angel said. "Darla hates you, there's no saying what danger you might be putting yourself in if you try to fight her."

"I can handle myself." She met his gaze. "And I'm not letting you face her alone."

Angel nodded remembering Buffy's dream and how it had prophesised a stand off involving him, Darla and Buffy. In her dreams he had died and there was no way Buffy was going to let Angel out of her sight until the danger had passed. As much as Angel worried about Buffy's welfare he knew that she was incredibly stubborn and when she had decided upon something there would be no changing her mind. "OK, then." He addressed the group. "I say we pay Darla and Dru a visit tonight then." There was general agreement. "Cordelia, you stay here with Wesley. If Riley does decide to make another move then I don't want to turn you into a target again."

"I can't." Cordelia announced. "They want me to film my scene tonight, so I'll be at the film studio all evening."

"Fine, take Wesley with you then."

Wesley, thrilled at the prospect of spending more time on the set of Cordelia's movie, agreed to this plan immediately.

"Gunn you can come with us. I'll need someone in the car to act as backup or to help with a quick getaway." Angel paused long enough for Gunn to nod his compliance. "Buffy," he continued. "I'm going to have to kit you out with some weaponry. Something tells me you'll be needing more than just Mr Pointy for this one."

Riley awoke to immense discomfort. His head was pounding and his arms and legs were pulled away from his body at unnatural angles. At first he thought that the transformation must have taken place. He was now a vampire and the reason he hurt so much must be because he had died and was only now rising from the dead. Then he realised that he didn't really feel much different, apart from aching all over that was. He didn't feel stronger, he couldn't change his features into that of a vampire's and the idea of drinking blood still made him gag. This was followed almost immediately by a second realisation; the reason he couldn't move his arms or legs was because they were tied in place. Further exploration revealed that his arms were chained to the wall and his legs were bound with rope and trapped underneath him.

Riley struggled to work out what this all meant and how it had happened. The champagne, he finally concluded, it must have been drugged. Never trust a vampire, he thought ironically, as it had been his mistrust and dislike of a vampire that had put him in this situation to begin with. When his mind had cleared from its substance induced fog sufficiently enough for his full reasoning powers to return, Riley began to wonder about the vampire's motivation for doing this to him. Surely if she had wanted to kill him then she could have just bitten him last night, certainly once she had fed him the champagne he had no chance of fighting back. Her motivation must be more complicated than just bloodlust he decided, and that frightened him even more.

He was given no more time for contemplation, though, as the door to the room swung open. In walked his captor and she was not alone.

"So, do you like him Dru?" Darla asked of her companion.

Druscilla walked over to where Riley was tied up, a maniacal expression on her face. She peered closely at him, bringing her face to within three inches of his. Riley met her gaze with a hostile and defiant stare, but jumped back involuntarily when Dru suddenly changed to her game face. This amused the vampire immensely and she began to giggle.

"He's fun, grandmamma. Can I play with him?"

"No." Darla admonished her. "Remember what I told you. This is a surprise for Daddy."

"I love surprises." Dru said excitedly. "Is Daddy coming?"

"Yes, you dreamed it remember? Now go get ready, you want to look your best for when he comes. And remember it's a secret." Darla led Druscilla gently towards the door.

"Bye bye." Dru called out happily, she then turned and leant in Riley's direction. "Shush," she put a finger to her lips. "You're a secret." She began giggling again and left.

Darla remained, leaning against the wall, looking very pleased with herself.

"I suppose you'll be wanting something to eat." She said with disdain. Riley didn't answer. "Oh well," Darla continued. "I'd better get you something anyway. We wouldn't want you collapsing from hunger. Not before the festivities are over." She finished with a smile.

Riley felt his heart begin to pound and his stomach go hollow from fear. It's an adrenaline reaction, he told himself. He had learnt this in basic training; in times of stress the body produced hormones that mobilised its systems. It was called the fight or flight response. The fear was beneficial; it would give him extra strength to do what was necessary to survive. Riley summoned up all the courage he had left and tried to stop his voice from shaking as he faced the vampiress.

"What are you going to do with me?" He asked.

She laughed. "I'm not going to do anything. I thought I'd just watch." The expression on Riley's face amused her even more and she walked over and ran her fingers across his cheek. He flinched under her touch. "Did you really think I was going to turn you into a vampire?"

Riley didn't answer.

"I know who you are." Darla told him mockingly. "I know all about you and the slayer." She spat the words out with distaste. "You think you can destroy my Angelus, do you?"

Riley was taken aback at the mention of the name. What have I got myself involved with, he wondered. Whereas he had been concerned over his fate before he was now petrified. When he had found out about Buffy's history with Angel he had done a little research of his own into the vampire. He knew that Angelus was the Scourge of Europe and had read about some of the hideous things he had done to his victims. It didn't take a great leap of inference to work out who these two women that had him captured were. The blonde was Angel's sire, Darla, and the brunette must be his childe Druscilla. As far as Riley's research revealed they were both psychotic and extremely evil. There were no limits to the torture they could subject him to and they both seemed keen to get Angelus involved as well. They must have been able to bring him back, Riley surmised. Not that there was ever much difference. He felt like he was going to vomit and retched a couple of times, but there was nothing in his stomach for him to bring up.

Darla knelt down beside him, mock concern on her face.

"Oh dear, is my baby ill?" She felt his forehead. "Now we can't have that. We want the surprise to be perfect."

"Surprise?" Riley croaked.

"Oh yes," Darla said with enthusiasm. "He doesn't deserve a present, after all he has been beastly to me for the past century or so, but I could never say no to the dear boy."

Buffy fingered the retractable stakes Angel had strapped to her wrists and checked the position of the knife she had tucked in her belt. She felt uncomfortable with this amount of weaponry, but if it reassured Angel about her safety then she was happy to go along with it. She nodded her readiness to Angel and he motioned for her to get out of sight, before knocking on the door to Darla's apartment. She didn't understand why they didn't just break the door down and storm in, but Angel had insisted on doing things this way. She supposed the disturbance they would cause by breaking in might result in somebody calling the police and he didn't want the interruption.

Darla opened the door wearing a blood red, velvet evening gown. She leant against the doorframe in a seductive pose.

"Angelus." She smiled. "We've been expecting you. And I see you came prepared." She motioned to the axe in his hand. "Come in."

Angel strode across the threshold. "I don't need an invitation remember Darla. This isn't the home of a living soul."

"Just trying to be polite, Angelus." She reprimanded him.

"Then perhaps you could extend the pleasantries to me." Buffy stepped around the edge of the door, brandishing a stake.

Darla was suddenly hostile. "You." She spat out at Buffy.

Dru leapt up from where she was formerly lying on the chaise lounge. She faced Buffy with a confused expression on her face. "You weren't in my dreams," she accused.

"I could say the same thing about you." Buffy countered.

Darla had retained her composure and she forced herself to smile. "Actually I'm glad you're here," she addressed to Buffy. "You'll enjoy the show especially. And I think we could even find a role for you in it."

"Well I had to come." Buffy said petulantly. "I couldn't miss Angel killing you again. Not after I enjoyed it so much the first time."

Anger flashed in Darla's eyes, but she refused to let herself to be provoked. "Come on Angelus. I've got a present for you." She led him towards the room that contained Riley. "I went to a lot of trouble to get it, but I think you'll be pleased."

"I'm sure I'll love it Darla. After all, the last present you got me was so much fun." Angel said ironically.

He followed Darla into the room, Buffy close at his side and Dru giving them both a wide berth. As they entered the room, Buffy gasped at the sight of a chained up Riley. Angel sighed, he should have known to expect something like this from Darla.

"Well I suppose it is the thought that counts." He told her.

Riley was jolted out of his daydreams by the sound of voices. He had been imagining he was with Buffy. They were picnicking on a beautiful summers day and the sun's light was making her golden hair shine. He looked up and saw Buffy across the room. He almost thought he was hallucinating until he heard her voice.

"Riley!"

"Buffy." He gasped back.

"Ahh, isn't that touching." Darla laughed. "The two lovers reunited. And now they get to die together."

"Not going to happen, Darla." Angel said forcefully. "You and me. It ends here." He raised his axe.

Darla picked up her own axe, from where it was mounted on the wall. "No, this is just the beginning, Angelus."

They advanced towards each other, launching their first blows simultaneously. The axe heads crashed together, sparks flying as metal contacted metal. They drew back circling each other, like wild animals, both daring the other to attack.

Buffy sensed this was Angel's battle and he needed to fight alone, so she squared off against Dru, who had armed herself with a small dagger. Buffy rushed at Druscilla, tightening her grasp on her stake as she did so. Dru stood her ground, eyes wide and staring insanely at Buffy. When Buffy reached Dru she knocked her to the floor and wrestled the dagger out of her hand. She raised her stake to plunge into Druscilla's heart. Suddenly she found herself being thrown backwards. Dru had brought her feet up to Buffy's abdomen, her spike heels pushing painfully into Buffy's stomach, and used the force of her legs to push the slayer off from on top of herself. Buffy quickly jumped to her feet and faced Dru who was now standing only a foot away from Buffy, her game face on. Buffy remembered the retractable stakes at her wrists and lunged forwards to punch Druscilla, flicking back her hand at the last minute and releasing the stake like Angel had showed her. But Buffy's unfamiliarity with the weapon meant that she missed the vampire's heart and stabbed her low in the shoulder with the stake.

Druscilla screamed shrilly and stared down in horror at the wound. Blood was flowing freely from it and dripping down the gap in her cleavage. She pulled the stake out and turned to Buffy, the anger in her eyes now changed to fear.

"Blood." She cried. "You made me bleed." Dru accused Buffy.

"Don't worry I'll soon make that better for you. A quick stake through the heart," Buffy waved her conventional weapon, "and you won't feel anything anymore."

Dru threw her head back madly and recited a string of words in Latin. Buffy watched in shock and puzzlement, until she realised that it was a spell and it was affecting her. Buffy found she could no longer move. The spell had frozen her feet to the floor. She felt the cold fingers of terror grip her heart as she flashed back to her previous night's dream.

"Angel!" She cried out. "I can't move."

Druscilla continued her chanting and Buffy shrieked in pain.

"Angeeeeelllllll!" She cried before collapsing to the floor, unconscious.

Angel, distracted by Buffy's screams, took his attention away from Darla to check on the slayer's welfare. These few seconds gave Darla all the opportunity she needed and she swung her axe, knocking Angel's weapon out of his hands. He snapped his attention back to Darla, who threw down her axe and pounced upon him barehanded, pinning him to the ground. Angel threw her off easily, concern for Buffy adding to his innate strength. He ran over to where Dru was bending over Buffy's unconscious form, morphed to his vampiric countenance and growled threateningly at his childe. Dru sensed the danger she was in and quickly backed away from Buffy. Angel lunged forward and Druscilla emitted a small shriek of fear and ran out of the room, clutching her bleeding chest.

Angel knelt at Buffy's side and shook her gently, trying to wake her. She remained unresponsive. He could see her chest rising and falling as she breathed, so he knew she wasn't dead. He was just going to have to wait for the spell to wear off before she regained consciousness that was all. Darla approached him from across the room.

"Oh dear, looks like she's out for the count. Clearly your little cheerleader couldn't stand the pace." Darla's voice was hard.

"Neither could your sire." Angel provoked.

"Never mind," she ignored his comment. "It's just us two now. You don't have to put on a show for Little Miss Pep Rally over there. We can have a little fun together. Just like the old times. Remember Florence?"

"Do you mean the city or the dairy maid we murdered together?" Angel asked without feeling.

"Either. Both." Darla answered. "There were so many good times, Angelus. Now we have the chance to make some more. Starting with him." She motioned to Riley, who so far had been sat watching the fighting in silent shock. "Wouldn't you like to hurt him Angel? Wouldn't you like to rip him apart for everything he can give Buffy that you can't. You imagine them together don't you? Laughing in the sunlight. Kissing. In bed together. He can screw her and you can't. Now doesn't that just make you hate him?"

Angel took a deep breath and tried to shut out the truth of Darla's words. She knew him so perfectly that she could almost read his mind. Almost. "I came here to kill you Darla." He told her. "Now I'm going to finish the job. No distractions."

"All work and no play makes Angelus a dull boy." She teased. "Besides if you really wanted to kill me, you would have done it already. You've had plenty of opportunity."

"I want to kill you Darla, believe me."

"No," she smiled knowingly. "You want to kill, period. That's what all this demon hunting is about isn't it? It's not about retribution or helping the innocent. It's about the killing. There's no other feeling in the world like it. Wielding that much power over life. One swing of a sword or twist of an arm and they're dead. You see the life drain out of their eyes and you know. You know that it was you who did it. That you could do it again and you want to so badly." Angel was silent and Darla continued. "But you can't do it to humans anymore because then you feel guilty, so you kill demons instead. They're evil, killing them is justifiable, but it doesn't change the feeling of exhilaration you get when you do it. Well, you don't have to be chained by your soul anymore Angel. You can be free and you know just how to do it."

Angel followed her gaze to Buffy's unmoving form.

"Take her Angelus." Darla commanded. "You know you want to."

"No." Angel protested.

Darla nodded understandingly. "You're not ready. Not yet anyway. Now come," she produced a large knife. "You haven't opened your present yet."

Angel looked over to where Darla was standing offering him the knife and then down again at Buffy. He made a decision and bent over Buffy, reaching for the stake she still grasped tightly in her hand. Prising open her fingers he took hold of the stake and advanced towards Darla.

She laughed. "You're not going to kill me, Angelus. You can't."

"I've done it before."

"That was different. Then you had hope. Hope for the future. The love of a beautiful girl. Now you have nothing. You really think she's going to take you back? Not after she's had a mortal man. One who can give her so much more than you ever could. Now all you have to look forward to is an eternity alone. Your only companionship is the demon inside you. I feed that demon Angelus. I keep it alive. Make you feel your dark side. You kill me and it dies with me. Then you'll be truly alone and you're not strong enough to face that."

"You don't know how strong I am."

Darla walked towards him. "No. I know. I know because I know you. A century and a half together is a long time, Angelus. I know what you feel, how you think and I know how to please you." She kissed him lightly on the mouth and he let her. "You want to be comforted, pampered, pleasured." She ran her fingers down his body. "Temptation, Angelus. You never could resist it.

"I offered you the world once and you took it. I'm willing to bet you'll take it again." She buried her face in his neck and ran her tongue over the scar she had left there nearly 250 years ago. "But you don't have to choose now. You only have to play. And I'll provide the toys."

Angel dropped the stake he was holding and morphed his features into that of a vampire's. He then pulled Darla into his arms and kissed her roughly.

"Let the games begin." He said.

Buffy dragged herself out of a deep sleep. She had been dreaming she knew, but she couldn't remember what about. Images teased her conscious, coming nearly close enough for her to see, but slipping away before she had a chance to focus on them. Groggily she wondered where she was, she was far too uncomfortable to be in bed at home. Anyway, she recalled, I'm in LA. The memories came flooding back. Darla. Druscilla. Riley chained up. Angel fighting. Blood. Pain. Then blissful unconsciousness.

She opened her eyes and with a heavy heart realised she was still at Darla's. Even worse, though, she registered, was that she was tied to a chair and the scene in front of her was utterly horrific. Riley was still chained to the wall opposite her, but his position had been changed. Now he was standing as though he was to be crucified. His arms were held out to the side and his legs were bound tightly together. He was bare-chested and his skin was still smooth and unmarked. They haven't hurt him yet, Buffy thought. Thank God. Her gaze rose to study his face. His expression was blank, his eyes unseeing. This she recognised meant that he had retreated inside himself. Events in the outside world were no longer affecting him. It was a sign of intense shock; she knew and was in many ways grateful for it. At least it meant that if he were to be tortured he would be spared from feeling much of the pain. Unfortunately it also meant that he would be no use putting up any resistance against Darla.

"Oh look. Sleeping beauty awakes." The sardonic tone of the female vampire made Buffy turn her head sharply to where Darla was sitting. To her horror she realised that Angel was with her and they both wore their game faces. "We've been waiting for you." Darla continued. "I would have started without you, but Angelus insisted it would be so much more fun if you were watching." She kissed him. "He always did have such good judgement."

"But don't just think it was you we were waiting for." Angel said harshly. "You're not that special. We had to give the pokers a chance to warm up, as well. Because it's nowhere near as much fun torturing you with them if they're not red hot."

Buffy felt sick. "Angel, what's the matter with you."

"Nothing I feel great!" Angel answered her. "And this time its got nothing to do with you, it's all thanks to Darla here."

"But, but you can't have lost your soul again." Buffy stammered.

"Nope. Still got the soul, but I realised something." Angel strode across the room, gesturing grandly. "Since I had my soul restored I've chosen not to hurt people. Before, when I was a soulless, killing and maiming were pretty much mandatory. Then suddenly it's like I've got free will again. I can do anything I want. So, I decide to give the killing a break. Branch out into new areas. I got all broody for a while, experimented with feeling guilty. Found perfect happiness. Brooded for a little while more.

"Then I find myself in LA. Fighting the good fight. Seeking retribution. And I'm stuck listening to Wesley's pompous, English blustering and Cordelia's inane chattering all day, every day. And I put up with it, because when I hear them, I don't hear the screaming in my head, I don't hear the cries for mercy of all of my victims. Then Darla comes back into my life and she tells me to listen. So, that's what I've been doing. Listening and remembering. And I found that instead of hating the screams I enjoyed them. They were like music and I was the composer. And when you've got that much talent for composition then it would be a shame to waste it, don't you think?"

"Angel this isn't you." Buffy protested. "Darla's done something to you I know it. You have to fight her." Desperation crept into her voice.

"It's no use. He's not going to listen to you." Riley had come out of his trance-like state upon hearing Buffy's voice and now spoke flatly.

"Do you know, I think that's about the most intelligent thing you've said, uh, ever." Angel addressed Riley and then turned to Buffy. "I've had enough of you making me feel inadequate. You got under my skin. Made me feel ashamed to be what I am. Well, no more. I'm done apologising to you Buffy. And I'm done feeling guilty."

"Angelus." Darla called. "The pokers are ready. Shall we begin?"

"Sounds like a plan." Angel picked up one of the pokers out of the fire and touched its glowing end with his fingertips. "Ow! Those are damn hot."

"You're insane." Riley said with contempt.

"And the insights just keep on coming today." Angel mocked. "Now enough of the small talk, let's get on with the main event. It's been a long time since I tortured anybody. I seem to recall the last person was Giles. How is the old chap, by the way?"

Buffy closed her eyes and tried to block out the entire situation.

"No reaction, eh? Well, we're going to have to do something about that. Now what can I think of to do to provoke a response." Angel mused. "Darla, my sweet, fetch the needle nosed pliers. I have a feeling pokers are going to get tired pretty quickly."

Darla smiled and watched as Angel advanced towards Buffy, brandishing a poker. "Feel free to scream as much as you like dear," she said. "The whole place is sound proofed, so no-one will hear you." Darla then left the room in search of more instruments of torture.

Angel knelt next to Buffy and peeled up her shirt. He touched the poker to her bare skin and held it there as she screamed. Darla re-entered the room and leant against the wall to watch.

"Such a beautiful sound. I shall never tire of hearing it." She remarked.

"Oh, a couple hours more, my love, and you'll be keen enough to silence it." Angel replied.

"True, very true." Darla sighed. "But there is a lot more fun to be had first." She walked over to where Riley was chained and ran her fingers over his chest. "So smooth and unblemished. Like a blank canvas. Torture is an art you know," she informed her prisoner.

"Yes and you're a grand master." Angel caught Darla's hand and pulled her into his arms. "I missed our little games."

"So did I, Angelus." She kissed him. "But we're together again now."

"Yes," he kissed her in return. "But, there is one little thing."

"What's that?"

"I was always so much better at the mind games than you were. You were too impatient. You always wanted it to be over too quickly. You never let the games run their course."

"Well, this time I'll be more patient, I promise." Darla was slightly puzzled. "You can have all the fun you want."

"Oh, but I've already had all the fun I want." Angel morphed back to his human features and kissed Darla deeply. During the kiss he reached inside his jacket and pulled out a stake, which he plunged into Darla's heart. He just had time to pull away from the kiss and savour the confused look on Darla's face before she turned into dust.

Angel shut his eyes and sank to the floor. The excitement of the situation over he was physically and emotionally spent. He held his head in his hands and tried to come up with a rational thought. He failed. He had just killed his sire. For the second time. And to do it he'd had to come in contact with the deepest, darkest side of himself that even he tried to deny existed.

There was a loud crash and sound of splintering wood, as the front door to the apartment was broken open. Angel jumped up again, bracing himself to face the latest threat. Gunn burst into the room, axe held high, ready to attack. When he registered the situation he lowered his weapon and his mouth dropped open.

"Holy shit. What happened here?"

"It's a long story." Angel managed to speak. "But the crux of it is, that pile of dust on the floor over there is Darla."

Rational thought was beginning to return, gradually. He realised that Buffy and Riley were still tied up, so rushed over to free them. He released Buffy first, afraid to meet her eyes and even less willing to touch her.

She grasped his hand. "You really frightened me back there for a while you know."

"I'm sorry." He hung his head.

"You did what you had to do." She said. "I didn't like it, but I understand why."

He nodded and went over to attend to Riley. The other man shrunk away from him as he approached, so Angel gave up and motioned for Gunn to free Riley. Angel had had enough for one night, he just wanted to get out of there and be alone to brood in the peace and quiet.

Back at the hotel, Angel disappeared upstairs before anyone had a chance to talk to him. He was not in the mood for conversation. Nobody stopped him.

Cordelia and Wesley were not back yet and Gunn had wondered off home, still muttering disbelievingly to himself. This left Riley and Buffy alone in the downstairs of the hotel.

"Are you OK?" She asked him. Riley had not spoken a word the whole of the way back from Darla's.

"Fine." He muttered.

"Have you got a place to stay? Because I'm sure Angel wouldn't mind if you crashed here."

At this suggestion Riley snapped. "Like I'm going to stay here with a homicidal maniac. And neither should you. I can't believe you can even stand to be in the same building as him after what he did to you."

"What did he do to me?" Buffy questioned.

"The torture. With the red-hot pokers. Or had you forgiven him already, like you've forgiven him everything else he's done to you."

"Angel didn't torture me." Buffy explained. She lifted up her shirt to prove it and Riley saw that her stomach, where Angel had held the poker, was bare. There was not a mark on her. "It was a cold poker he touched me with, not a red-hot one. He knew exactly what he was doing and he didn't want to hurt me."

Riley's stared incredulously. "But you were screaming in agony."

"I was putting on a show for Darla. Joining in with Angel's charade."

"So, you knew all along."

"That he was faking being Angelus to get at Darla. Yes." She hesitated. "Well, that's not strictly true. I did have my doubts at the beginning. But the more I heard him speak the clearer it became. Then when he mentioned Giles it brought it all back. How he was last time and how different he was now. And I just knew."

"But, you didn't hear some of the things that Darla said when you were unconscious. She was talking about how much Angel enjoyed the killing and wanted to hurt people…especially me. And add that together with when he beat me up last year and the other night…"

"She said those things. Darla. Not Angel. And when he beat you up that had nothing to do with him being a vampire, it was just a case of jealous ex syndrome. Which I'm hoping we can blame your abduction of Cordelia on."

Riley hung his head in shame. "I'm sorry about that. I don't know what I was thinking. I just wanted you back and I thought that if I could prove I was better than Angel you'd love me instead of him."

Buffy sighed. "Riley, I know that you think that I never loved you, but I did. You were a good friend and I cared about you. It's just that I was never in love with you. You never gave me a chance to be. As soon as you found out about Angel you were always trying to be him for me, take his place in my life. Well you couldn't. Nobody can. What I had and will probably always have with Angel is unique. Because we're both unique. We didn't chose to fall in love with each other, we just did, and after that there was no going back. But we can't be together and tonight you saw why.

"Whatever excuses we might make about not being able to have sex or kids or whatever, they're all just that. Excuses. The real thing that keeps us apart is the demon inside Angel. An entire century of having a soul and he can still only barely control his darker side. So, that's why I don't want to date another guy like Angel. I wanted to date you. Riley Finn. I wanted to learn who you were. See your real personality, not one you were fabricating for me. But I never did, so I could never really love you.

"Maybe I'll never feel about another guy the way I feel about Angel. And in a lot of ways I hope I don't. Because where there's love there's also hate. Where there's passion, there's suffering. Loving Angel has been the most painful experience of my life and I didn't want a repeat of that with you."

Riley considered what she'd said then turned to face her. "Maybe we could try again. I understand now. I get what you're feeling and what you want."

"No." Buffy said sadly. "You missed your chance. I'm sorry, but it's over between us. Please respect that this time."

Riley nodded, finally able to accept the truth. He took one last look at Buffy and walked out of the door of the hotel, ready to move on with his life.

Buffy went upstairs in search of Angel, she would be going back to Sunnydale that day, but there were a few things she needed to sort out with him first. She knocked quietly on his door before entering. He was sitting alone in the dark, like she had known he would be.

As Buffy entered Angel switched on a desk lamp, creating a small pool of light for them to see each other by. She came and sat down on the bed, facing him.

She took a deep breath before starting to speak. "I want you to know that everything you said, and did, tonight is already forgotten. It was all for the benefit of Darla and I understand that."

Angel fidgeted uncomfortably. "That still didn't give me the right…" He paused and then rethought what he was going to say. "I took it too far Buffy. Got carried away. I had to take it down to her level, fight her on her terms. Darla's not someone you can just fight and beat. You have to destroy her. So, I took advantage of her one weak spot. Angelus. She still cares – cared – about him. I should have told you what I was planning, but I didn't mean for you to get so involved. Darla she…she always brings out the worst in me."

"And I bring out the best." Buffy added softly

Angel smiled, nodding his agreement with this statement.

"I'm going back to Sunnydale." Buffy told him gently. "Now I know you're safe from Darla I'm pretty sure the dreams are going to stop happening."

"I'd figured as much." Angel met her eyes. "Just make sure you take care of yourself."

"You mean make sure I improve my taste in men."

"Well, I'm not exactly in a position to complain, but yeah."

Buffy smiled. "Don't worry, I think I'm sworn off men for a long time to come."

Angel frowned at her. "Don't cut yourself off Buffy. Loneliness can be one of the most painful things you can experience." He looked down. "Believe me, I know." Buffy was silent, so Angel continued speaking. "Darla told me I didn't want to kill her because I was afraid of spending eternity alone. And in some respects she was right. I was clinging on to her company because she occupied my mind, kept away the loneliness." He stopped.

Buffy got up from where she was sitting and kissed Angel lightly on the forehead. She took his hand in hers and started to speak. "Neither of us will ever be alone, because we'll always have each other," she told him. "I loved you before I even met you, and the first time I saw you the feelings I'd had all my life suddenly made sense."

Angel squeezed her hand. "I know what you mean."

"I'll love you until the day I die," Buffy continued. "And we can't be together. I know that and I hate it. But it doesn't hurt as much anymore. Now each time I think of you I remember more of the love and less of the pain. And when I'm on my own in the dark or I'm frightened, I think of you and know that I'm loved and I don't feel alone anymore."

They embraced and Buffy buried her head in his neck. When she looked up Angel saw tears falling down her cheeks, he kissed them away gently and she smiled. She got up and backed towards the door, keeping hold of Angel's hand until the last possible moment. Then she was gone and Angel switched off the desk lamp. He sat in the dark, alone, feeling Buffy's presence as keenly as if she were still in the room.

There was a loud bang as Cordelia threw open the front door of the hotel. She stormed in angrily, followed by a sheepish Wesley. Angel raised his eyebrows and a small smile crept to his lips.

"So, how did things go at the movie studio last night?" He asked.

"Terrible!" Cordelia said melodramatically. "And it's all his fault." She pointed at Wesley.

"Really, I don't think…that isn't justified…" The Brit stuttered then gave in, a defeated look on his face. "She's right. I ruined her acting career."

"I know I'm going to regret asking this, but how exactly did you manage that." Angel asked Wesley.

Cordelia jumped in, answering for him. "He spent the entire time telling the director and the producer, and all the important people you're not supposed to talk to," she said pointedly, "all about how unrealistic the whole thing was. Every time they tried to shoot a scene he pointed out all the inaccuracies in it. I mean this is Hollywood, even the palm trees are fake." She paused for breath, then continued. "The worst thing was they started to listen to him. He actually got the director to change things round, so that they make more sense and foremost in these script revisions was the cutting of my part!" She glared at Wesley who looked embarrassed.

"They're still going to pay me for my time." She admitted. "But, I miss out on the screen exposure, which I really needed to launch my movie career. So, now I'm stuck here working at this freak show." She collapsed into a chair.

"Well, it's good to have you back, anyway." Angel told her.

Cordelia looked up, suspicious. She turned to Wesley. "What's the matter with him this morning. He's not brooding." She addressed Angel again. "What happened, you and Buffy finally decide you can't live without each other?"

"No," Angel answered. "Buffy went back to Sunnydale."

Cordelia opened her desk drawer and whipped out a cross. She held it in Angel's direction. "Who are you and what have you done with the real Angel?"

"Put the cross away Cordelia." Angel ordered and she did so. "Last night I staked Darla." Wesley and Cordelia looked surprised. "It's a long story but Buffy and Riley were also there. After it was all over Riley left and I don't think he's going to cause us any more problems. Then Buffy and I had a talk. We sorted a few things out."

"And yet you're still not brooding." Cordelia gave him a sharp look. "Are you sure you're not evil?"

"Well, I wasn't but I might get that way in a minute if you keep asking."

Cordelia shut up.

"Well, now the Darla situation is resolved, what do we do now?" Wesley asked.

"Druscilla's still out there somewhere." Angel told him. "So, she needs dealing with. And there's the problem of Wolfram and Hart. Other than that it's business as usual."

"But we don't have any business." Cordelia pointed out. "You frightened it all away when you were going screwy over Darla."

"You could soon remedy that with a vision." Wesley informed her.

"I can't just have visions to order you know. There has to be someone in pretty serious trouble."

"I bet there are lots of people in trouble right now. You just have to tune into them. Maybe if you filled your head with something other than celebrity gossip and fashion tips, namely the contents of 'Vogue' magazine, then you might be more receptive to the needs of people who are suffering."

"Hey, Vogue contains a lot more than just celebrity gossip and fashion tips."

"Like what?"

"There are articles. On serious stuff."

"Oh yes, I believe this week's feature was 'Ten ways to Firmer Butt Cheeks'. In depth journalism like I have never seen it before."

"Hey, how do you know what it about if you haven't read it yourself? Ha, ha, Wesley reads women's magazines!"

Angel listened contentedly to the bickering of his staff. He had plenty to brood about, but that could wait. Now he was just happy to empty his mind and focus on Cordelia and Wesley's voices. The insignificance of their conversation comforted him. The room was so full of life and he was glad of it. Glad to be a part of it.

THE END