Disclaimer: This story is "fan-fiction", based on the Television programme: Angel which remains the intellectual property of creators/producers Joss Whedon, Fran Rubel Kuzui et al and the former WB/UPN TV networks. It is not owned by "The Cat's Whiskers"; no money is being made, and it is purely for the enjoyment of fans of the show, etc., etc. Legal counsel has advised that "fan-fiction" falls within the bounds of "fair use" as defined by UK law (1740) and US law (1976). All 'Original characters, plots and story-settings' remain the property of 'The Cat's Whiskers' and may not be reproduced or continued without her express permission to reproduce, continue or expand same.

Summary: This is the penultimate story in The Blood Will Tell series. Everyone is having anxiety attacks over the fact that Angel has just handed over a human baby to the demonic Fell Brethren like a sack of spuds on supermarket sale, Illyria is still being inexplicably tetchy and moody, and what Lindsey McDonald is up to is anyone's guess…

Rating: for site purposes only: T+. (I do not believe that written works should be age-rated; it is a foolish form of censorship that discourages and de-incentivises reading at all, for both knowledge and pleasure which is disastrous for the hope of producing the next generation of Keats, Milton, Twain, Shakespeare, Agatha Christie, Enid Blyton, C.S. Lewis, Joss Whedon, Eric Kripke, Kyle Killen, and so on.) The above rating conforms to ' ' requirements to rate all stories. This story contains mildly intemperate language entirely in context by very stressed people and sundry mild references to sex, violence, drugs and rock 'n' roll, all of which can be seen and heard on daytime soaps (how's that for pre-watershed) by anyone from toddler age upwards. WARNING: this story does contain a reference to the vileness that is paedophilia that some readers may find distressing.

Setting: You will notice that I have elongated the "gap" between events as they occur in the episodes somewhat (imagine Season 5/this series covers more or less full twelve months in all). However, Sugar & Spice begins within a week of the end of my story Shadowed Souls and takes place just before the events of the televised episode Power Play.

Note: Since apologies for the delay in posting this story. All hail Mendenbar for her encouragement and gentle reminder to get my proverbial in gear.

SUGAR & SPICE

Part 1

Chapter 1

Whee-whee-whee-CLATTER!

With a strangled yelp of fury, Harmony threw back the bedcovers with unconscious vampire strength, so they flew off the bed like something out of Harry Potter and hit the wall with a thwack before sliding to the floor. Harmony didn't notice as she practically catapulted from the mattress to the old sash-style window, shoving the lower half up the old-fashioned wooden slides one handed as with the other hand she grabbed the remaining boot from her pair of galoshes and threw it with vengeful accuracy at the tabby alley cat and the large black tomcat mating with her, whose duet of enthusiastic caterwauling echoed into the night.

Slamming down the window again, Harmony stomped back to bed grabbing the covers en route and heaving them back over her. It was not that she objected to any creature doing what came naturally, but it was now heading for half-past-three in the morning and four previous tomcats had had their way with the tabby since eleven o'clock. Harmony closed her eyes and drew in deep breaths. The problem was, of course, this was so unnatural. While not sleeping in the same way as humans – at best, vampires 'napped' and neither did nor could achieve REM sleep – vampires did rest.

In the day. Vampires were a nocturnal species by virtue of the fact that Earth's sun were fatal as in 'instantly flash-fried to ash'; vampires could only move around in daylight freely if they had a sewer or cave network they could traverse from A to B. At Wolfram & Hart however, that wasn't a problem. Necrotempered glass in the building, the cars, the company jets, etc., enabled those vampires employed by the company to move around with relative freedom during the day, but this also meant that because the majority of the company worked in the day and slept at night, the vampire employees of necessity did the same.

Harmony's internal time sense therefore, was currently wide-awake and chirpy, but she knew from experience that if she didn't get at least some rest, it would suddenly switch itself over to 'I'm going to fall asleep at my desk' round about mid-morning and you could just guarantee that Angel-boss would pick just then to storm out of his office – in what seemed to be his perpetual bad mood these days – and find Harmony face-down in her keyboard snoring for America.

Resolutely keeping her eyes closed Harmony composed herself for sleep with the fleeting thought that at least probably nobody else in Team Angel was in any better situation…

Continued in Chapter 2…

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