Who did you sell your soul to?

Hi guys, I've realized that I haven't updated any of my stories for about two months now. But don't worry I'll be back on track again in the new year, and I have lots and lots of crazy stories to be told to you. So lately I have started to watch "Supernatural", and I like their darker approach to the whole monster-hunting business, so I decided to make this fanfic focus on Angel's struggles with his humanity and the darker results from his becoming human. So on the whole I will make the show darker and a little more sinister. We'll see how much Buffy's and Angel's relationship can take, and how strong they really are together.

So here we go with chapter two of my fanfic.

Buffy was getting worried.

She had asked Xander to drive her to LA as soon as she had heard about Angel's confrontation with The Scourge, and the subsequent death of the amiable Doyle. She had been rather sad on his account, but that feeling was soon forgotten as she laid eyes on Angel. He was just sitting in his chair, staring straight ahead for hours according to Cordelia.

Cordelia, now here was something she didn't expect; a Cordy in mourning. From what she could puzzle together from between her sobs Doyle seemed to have sacrificed himself to save dozens of half-demons from some massive bomb. And before he died he had given Cordelia a kiss, something that made Xander's eyes narrow with jealousy.

But the problem with Angel didn't seem to be simply that Doyle had died, something else was on his mind. He had stopped his staring at the opposite wall, and was now rummaging through his books. Buffy slowly advanced on him as he carelessly leafed through several books on demons and spirits, and put a hand on his back.

"Angel?", She said quietly, and he stopped at her touch. "What are you doing?".

Angel turned, and looked down into her green eyes. All the events from their last meeting rushed through his head, and one memory in particular stuck out.

"I just have something I need to find.", he said evasively as he turned back to his books.

Buffy swore under her breath as she contemplated her unending bad luck. First she finds the man of her dreams, then he becomes a monster, then she has to kill him, then he comes back, then he leaves her, then they finally can be together, and barely two days after their goodbye his friend dies.

"Do you think Xander and I could help?", she asked as she took one of the books he had thrown on the table and read the title; Ab Ovo, A tale of the beginning, and what followed. "I think Giles has the same, I recognize the lovely black exterior with all the engraved skulls.".

"That's only the first volume,", Angel said absentmindedly as he seemed to have found what he was searching for and started to mutter under his breath. "Maybe there's more to the eternity part than I thought... What great darkness could summon this one?".

"Eehm... Guys?", Xander tried before everything turned into another one of Buffy's and Angel's legendary squabbles. "I think I'm going to get Cordelia home to her place.".

And he quickly helped her up and led her out of the office. As Buffy and Angel were now left behind alone, Buffy thought they might finally talk through whatever had happened. But to her immense frustration Angel was still running around the place in search for some untold answer to an untold question. And as she followed him downstairs to his apartment, where all the memories of the best night of her life came crashing back she finally snapped.

"That's it!", she said angrily and slammed Forebodings and fantasies shut with Angel's hand still inside. He tried not to wince but he was not as durable now without his vampire strength, and he had never had to deal with an angry Buffy without it.

"You are clearly going through some hard stuff Angel, and this time you won't shut me out. I won't allow it!". She looked up into his brown eyes, and saw the old pained expression surface in them.

"I should have been the one...", he began but Buffy put her fingers on his mouth to silence him.

"No you shouldn't, no one should have been forced to offer themselves on that thing.". She sat down on his (or was it theirs nowadays?) bed and let him hold her in his arms. Even without any supernatural power (except for his lingering immortality) she knew he was still a strong and powerful man, and he had not seemed as troubled by his soul as he had been when they had parted ways.

"You couldn't have imagined it Buffy. He was burned from his insides out, the smell of blood and guts was all over the place.". Buffy was regretting her move to get him to talk already, but she knew he had to get it out. "But after the light died out there was nothing left. We couldn't even give him a decent burial.".

They continued to talk for a while, with Angel telling Buffy all about the nice little Irishman Buffy had only met so briefly. He even showed her the tape where he introduces Angel Investigations, and Angel even had a few laughs at the memory of Cordelia's rather poor work as a director. After a while they felt that there was not much more to say, and Buffy agreed that it was time to rest for a while before the next night of patrols would start.

At first it felt rather strange for them both to just lie in bed together, like they were just any regular couple. And even though Buffy had hoped for rather more than just some kissing the next time she would have seen Angel, she was strangely content to just lie there, curled up against him and listening to the steady Thump Thump of his heart. She also felt how Angel finally relaxed, and slowly drifted off into a deep sleep. She had never seen him this tired, he was clearly working just as hard as if he still had his supernatural strength and the long hours and constant fighting were clearly taking its toll on him. Giles had explained that even though he had gained the power of fast regeneration, that power was not as strong as that of a vampire. A vampire only needed some fresh blood and a few hours of rest to recover from severe wounds, and stabbings and gunshots barely stopped them for long. But Angel was now vulnerable to all of that, and his power of regeneration seemed to fade the more exhausted he got.

She was seriously wondering if it wouldn't be best if Angel either went back with her to Sunnydale where he would have to do less work on his own (and where of course he would be much closer to Buffy) or if he just expanded his business. A lone Slayer in a town of some thousands was already quite a bit of work, a lone vampire (nowadays not even that) in a city of millions seemed just futile. Maybe he could recruit some guys from the council? A real watcher to help him out would definitely improve his chances, and some more muscle to take care of business couldn't hurt either. But getting him back to Sunnydale seemed a better idea. Definitely... Preferably close to the college... So she could visit him in a purely professional manner... This was so going to happen...

But then her plans to break the news to Angel that he had to come back to Sunnydale with her immediately were broken by a sudden painful moan. She looked up at his face, and found to her horror that it was drained of all colour, and that his face was contorted in pain. She sat up and shook him to get him awake, but he didn't respond and now he was beginning to sweat like he was running up a very steep hill. She slapped him hard across the face, but all it did was leave an angry red mark on his cheek. The panic was gripping her as she threw herself on the phone and dialed first Cordelia and then Giles.

After about twenty minutes Cordelia and Xander burst into the bedroom, Cordelia instinctively gave Buffy an angry glance as she was sure this was all somehow her fault, and then her gaze went to Angel. He was still laying there as if he was dying from some strange disease, his face pale and sweaty and his body shivering even though Buffy had covered him in thick blankets. And the worst part was that he still hadn't opened his eyes. This reminded them all of the time he had been poisoned by Faith, and that made Buffy rush up to them with panic in her eyes.

"I think he's dying.", she said as tears streamed down her face. "I don't know how it happened. He was just sleeping for a few minutes when all this started.".

"Has he gotten any worse?", Cordelia asked as she sat down beside Angel and felt his forehead. It was burning up.

"No, but I don't think he can take it much more. Do you have any books on magical diseases? I've already asked Willow to look it up, and Giles is on his way here.".

"We're on it Buff.", Xander said as he took Cordelia by the arm and went over to the bookshelves.

Buffy sat down next to Angel again and continued her stroking of his hands and his face.

"I won't let you die Angel.", she whispered quietly. "Not now, not after everything.".

Angel was sitting in the mayors office in Sunnydale. Everything was as he remembered it, the strange cabinet, the sweets in the little bowl, and of course the grinning man in his leather chair.

"Welcome back Angelus.", The mayor said with his usual bright smile. "Want a candy?".

He offered tho bowl to Angel, but he shook his head as he stared at the supposedly dead man. What had happened? He had fallen asleep with Buffy in his arms, and now he was suddenly back in Sunnydale with a strangely healthy mayor. Had he leaped through time? Was he here with Faith again? Angel looked around, but the only other person in the room was the mayor.

"Faith's not here Angelus." The mayor said, suddenly serious. " I'm just here to talk to you.".

He stood up and walked around the table to lean on it and look down on the sitting Angel.

"When I said you had no future together I meant it. And when I heard of your departure I thought you had finally done the right thing. You had a destiny, and she had a future.", he shook his head like a disappointed parent before he continued. "Now look at you. You're weak, slowly dying from your endless fight. As a vampire the concept of endless is rather nice isn't it? But you will be like me now. A human who cannot die, and who won't be able to save her.".

"What do you mean?", Angel asked angrily, finding himself unable to get out of the chair to punch the mayor.

"The demon warned you. The end of times is coming, and only the vampire with a soul in an alliance with the greatest slayers of all times could have stopped it. Its rather sad.". The mayor took a candy out of the bowl and enjoyed it slowly and with too much emphasis for Angel's taste.

"So me being a vampire was the thing that would have stopped this new apocalypse?", he asked incredulously. "How does that work out?".

"Not the apocalypse boy. That stuff is just something the demons are always on about. The world won't be ended by some crazed demon, it never can and never will be. Don't you wonder why there's always a hero to save the world in the exact final moment?".

Angel stared at him confused. He had never really thought about it, he had always been caught up in the heat of the moment. Could the mayor really have a point.

"So what, none of the things we did mattered?".

"No. They didn't. The world will end when its time for it to end, and then the apocalypse, the real one, will take place. Apocalypse just means "the lifting of the veil", and in the final days of the world that will happen.".

"So what's going to happen now? Why are you here talking to me about it?".

"To warn you. I might have been a bit naughty in my days, but I thought that I could raise some more hell before it all ends. The end of days are coming, and cannot be stopped. There will be a final great war, where the vampire with a soul will have a key role. He will fight alongside either good, or evil, and in the end he will tip the balance in favor of one of the sides.".

"But if the world is going to end, then what difference will the war make?".

"Maybe none whatsoever.", the mayor said with a laugh as he took a seat in his chair again. "But that won't stop you will it?".

Angel knew he was right. At least about the last part. If it all came down to one last fight, then better to go out with a bang with Buffy by his side than just give up.

"How long do we have?", he asked, trying to keep his calm.

"The war will be sparked by some extraordinary event at the hellmouth in Sunnydale. How long the war will take is not something I'm allowed to know.".

"I have to warn Buffy.", Angel said, feeling his old resolve come back to him.

"Don't be too sure that she is the slayer you need in this war Angelus.", the mayor said, his voice suddenly full with warning. "She is strong, but she is not ready for a war. Messy things as we both know, she will have to make some hard choices, and she will have to be ready to sacrifice everything to win. And even then it's not even sure you will be able to save the world.".

"If its even the slightest chance of saving it, I will take it. And she is strong enough to make the hard choice. No one knows that better than me.", Angel said with as much defiance as he could muster.

"And will you be ready, when the time comes to make the choice?", the mayor said as he slowly reached under the desk and produced Faith's old knife. "Will you be able to sacrifice her, for the greater good?".

Angel opened his eyes. He tried to focus them, but could at first only see darkness.

After a while he realized that he was staring at his ceiling, and he jerked himself up in a sitting position and then he flew up on his feet. Buffy who had been sleeping next to him was thrown off the bed with the force of his sudden wake. Her scream as she fell out of the bed sent Giles, Cordy and Xander all running into his bedroom, though they all turned away quickly once they saw him standing naked in his bead.

"You're awake!", Buffy cried out as she got up from the floor.

"And rather naked.", Giles added to the wall he was inspecting rather closely.

"Oh...", Angel said as he looked down and found it to be true. "Sorry. Just give me a sec.".

He quickly picked up his clothes from the chair where someone must have put them for some reason.

"Why did you take my clothes off?", he asked Buffy, thinking she must have seen it as a prank.

"Cause you were sweating through your best shirt.", she said as she approached him and let her hand softly slide down his back just to feel his skin.

"Wait a minute,", he said as his thoughts finally caught up with him. "What's Giles doing here, I thought only Xander came here with you?".

"You've been in some sort of strange fever for three days now Angel.", she said, making him look at her as if she was having a laugh.

He raised his eyebrow and searched her eyes for some hint of the coming outburst of laughter, but she remained serious. Her look of relief seemed to say it all, and she remained close to him for the rest of the day, apparently watching him for any signs of a return of the strange fever.

"So, Giles...", Angel asked a few hours later when they were all sitting in his kitchen to eat dinner. "Any ideas what could have done this so quickly?".

"Lots of things,", Giles answered, finding that once again the old gang seemed to have found their way back to each other. The only one missing was Willow, but she was combining her studies with her search for Angel's disease from the college. "That demon that cured you is an assassin for some very dark powers, so side effects had to be expected.".

"A week later?", Buffy asked unbelieving, that seemed rather farfetched even for Giles. "And the moment he closes his eyes, all this seems like a bad joke someone is having.".

"I agree.", Cordelia consented, speaking to the rest for the first time since they had arrived in LA. "I mean, you didn't see anything special while you were out?".

Angel shook his head. He wasn't ready to tell them of his meeting with the mayor any time soon, in case it turned out to be some evil trick to get him off his path.

"Great!", Buffy said with a smile while she handed Xander a tray with croissants. "At least it seems to be gone for real now, and that's all that matters.".

She couldn't help but think back to when she had been hostess to the thanksgiving dinner. That had been barely more than a week ago, the day before Angel's cure, and they had all been gathered then too. Cordelia might not be a good substitute for Will, but she had become much nicer in her time in LA.

The dinner was nice and uneventful, and at the end Buffy and Angel left for patrol while Giles went back to the hotel room he had rented. This left Cordelia and Xander alone in Angel's apartment, and quite a few awkward attempts at a conversation followed.

"Cordy...", Xander began at the exact time that Cordelia started to say his name too.

They broke off in mutual embarrassed laughter.

"You know we could have some fun while you're in LA,", Cordelia said with a smile. "I know a nice club, much better than the old Bronze.".

"Your condescending attitude towards our hometown has something irresistible about itself.", Xander joked, trying not to think to hard if it counted as cheating to go out for drinks with his ex-girlfriend.

Cordelia lit up into her old happy self for the first time in weeks again and took Xander's arm and half led, and half dragged him outside to her car. It was time's like this that reminded Xander why he had liked her so much. Her energy was even greater and more infectious than Buffy's when she chose not to be the condescending queen of Sunnydale.

"That's enough patrolling for the night, don't you think?", Angel asked Buffy while they were strolling down another dark alley, leaving her standing there open mouthed.

"You suggest we take an early night?", she asked doubtingly, this didn't sound like her ever serious boyfriend.

"Nah. Just no patrolling.", Angel answered, planting a soft kiss on her forehead. "I was thinking of this place I know. Great music, nice people, cheap drinks and best of all; demon free.".

He smiled down to the beautiful blond girl in his arms, and wondered why he hadn't thought about doing something like this earlier. She seemed completely stunned by the strange new behavior in Angel, though in all fairness it was something she really liked.

"You're not under some spell are you?", she asked suspicious, feeling his forehead for signs of fever.

"Remember when I said I wanted you to be with someone who could take you into the light? Well that man is me nowadays, and I think that taking my girlfriend out to have a nice time after a long day is something normal people do.".

Buffy thought that if this was some wonderful dream then she should just tag along and see how good it could get.

The second big surprise of the night was when she and Angel entered the club and found Xander and Cordy in one of the large sofas, having too much fun for what Buffy thought Xander could be legally entitled to with his girlfriend still in Sunnydale. Though if it came down to it she would definitely prefer Xander together with Cordelia than with that ex-demon with all her strange ways. Though on second thought she wasn't too sure that Cordy didn't have some demon blood herself.

"Hi guys.", she said as she and Angel walked up to them, giving Xander a quick reproachful look.

"Eeeh, hi guys.", he stuttered nervously. "Already done with patrolling?".

"Oh yeah.", Angel said, taking Buffy by her hips and steering her towards the dance floor, leaving both Cordelia and Xander behind with unbelieving and amused looks on their faces.

But no one was more surprised than Buffy once Angel showed off some surprisingly good dance-moves. She had never seen him like this ever before, so full of energy and of... Life. After a while Xander and Cordelia joined them, and at the end of the night Buffy was more tired and happy than she had been since the day after thanksgiving. And she was definitely drunker than she had been her entire life, with Angel buying them all rounds as no one else was actually allowed to buy any alcohol.

When they left they had to split a cab as no one was in shape to drive, and stopped to drop off Xander and Cordelia at her place. Buffy was so out of it and occupied with kissing Angel at the moment that she didn't think about that much. Once they reached Angel's apartment neither of them could control themselves much longer, ripping of their clothes all the way to the bedroom. What followed was a result of the mixture of the desperate longing they had felt for each other ever since "that night" and the alcohol-infused ecstasy of the past four hours almost nonstop dancing.

"Wake up Angelus.", a voice hissed in Angel's ear.

He flew up from the bed, but found only a sleeping Buffy at his side.

"You were supposed to save the world.", the voice whispered again. It seemed inhuman, rasping like lizard and at the same time a deep dark echo. "Now look at you. Back to your days of drinking and debauchery, and dragging the slayer down with you as well.".

"Who are you? And what do you want with me?", Angel asked, his anger starting to build now that he found that he had his first human hangover in 242 years.

"I am no one, and every one. Everything and nothing.".

"I'm not in the mood for silly games.", Angel said as he reached for his broadsword.

And suddenly something appeared before him. A dark shape sat at the kitchen table, it looked like the shadow of someone in a hooded robe, too dark to be colored, yet to real to be a mirage. The only color was two dots of burning red right where the eyes were supposed to be.

"Sit down with me Angelus.", it said as it beckoned him to sit down on the opposite side of the table.

Angel looked back one more time on the sleeping Buffy, but decided that she probably wouldn't handle having a dark shape come into their bedroom to talk to her boyfriend. So he got out of bed and sat down opposite of the shape.

"I will start with my usual questions; Who are you? And what do you want?", he poured himself some coffee, finding it rather good for him now that his vampire sensitivity to it was gone.

"As to who I am.; you could call me the messenger, as I am merely a conduit to higher powers.". The shape played around with a fork, letting it drift through the air, before he let it drop back to the table. "What I want is to thank you for your choice. My masters are rather pleased that you finally returned to your old self again.".

"Returned? I'm still human aren't I?", Angel asked puzzled.

"That is a minor detail. You have however left that self pitying behind, and once again embraced life. Now we ask you to join us in the coming war, to take your rightful place among us.".

"What if I refuse?".

"That will be your choice. But we know you will join us, it has been foretold, it is written and can not be changed. We need only wait for you.".

"It's going to be a long wait then.", Angel said with a smug smile.

"Not as long as you might think. Things are already in motion, the board is set and the players ready for the first move.".

"What players?", Angel asked, feeling a great unease at the matter-of-fact tone the Messenger used. "What has been set in motion?".

"When you ceased to be the legendary vampire with a soul, the first blow was struck.", the messenger looked over to the sleeping Buffy. "Now the war will begin, and soon you and your woman will have to choose your side. Will you be on the side that destroys the world, the one that tries to save it, or the one that will actually save it? Remember that there will be more than two sides to this conflict, and you don't want to choose the wrong one.".

And with that said the Messenger melted into itself and vanished. And at the exact same moment Xander ran into the apartment, his face pale with terror and fear. Buffy jumped out of the bed the second the door slammed open and looked at Xander as he tried to catch his breath.

"Xander, what's happened?", she asked, feeling extremely uneasy with Giles this frightened looking.

"It's...", he panted. "It's..."

"It's what?", Angel asked, terror gripping him as well as he feared that his strange dream and the strange visit might actually be true.

"It's full on war.".

So, what did you think? Please leave a review and let me know.