Last time in Welcome to the Hellmouth

"The Earth will belong to the old ones," Luke continues, "and Hell itself will come to town." He throws Angel into the open coffin. Finally frightened, he stares up at the ceiling, looking for Luke. Seeing and hearing nothing, he cautiously starts to sit up. But then, Luke leaps into the coffin, landing catlike on top of him. Angel gasps. "Amen," he finishes. He lowers his mouth down to his neck, fangs stretched wide.

The Harvest

As Luke is about to bite Angel the cross that the girl had given him fell of his neck. Without noticing it Luke keeps choking Angel and gets burned by the cross, and he is able to kick him off.

He runs out quickly, trying to reach Willow and Xander. When he arrives, Willow is about to be bitten herself, but Angel gets there in time, and the vampire runs off. Xander is not doing so well as there are vampires trying to drag him away. Angel helps Xander by dusting the vampires who are trying to take him captive.

"Where is Jesse? Jesse! JESSE!"

"Xander, they must have taken him."

Panic strikes as the gang realizes that Thomas has successfully kidnapped Jesse.

The Next Day

The next day in the library, Giles is trying to explain to Willow and Xander the history of vampires.

"For as long as there have been vampires, there's been the Slayer. One boy in the entire world, a Chosen One."

"He loves doing this part," said Angel rubbing his shoulder where the night before Luke had thrown him against the wall.

"Oh, I, I need to sit down" said Willow as if she was going to be sick.

'You are sitting down."

"Oh. Good for me."

"Okay, this is where I have a problem. See, because we're talking about vampires. We're having a talk with vampires in it." Said Xander as he stood from where he was sitting to start pacing.

"Isn't that what we saw last night?"

"No. No, those weren't vampires. Those were just guys who messed up their faces in an accident. Or maybe they had rabies. It could have been rabies. And that guy turning to dust? Just a trick of light. That's exactly what I said the first time I saw a vampire. Well, after I was done with the screaming part my head out in terror."

"Uh, this may be the dumb question, but shouldn't we call the police?" asked Willow.

"And they'd believe us, of course."

"Well, we don't have to say vampires. We could just say that there's a bad man."

"They couldn't handle it even if they did show up. They'd only come with guns," finished Angel dropping the ice pack he had been using on the table.

"The Slayer hunts vampires, Angel is a Slayer, don't tell anyone. Well, I think that's all the vampire information you need."

"Except for one thing: how do you kill them?" asked Xander.

"You don't, I do," said Angel matter of factly.

Xander gets angry when Angel says that she will handle rescuing Jesse alone. He feels that he should help since Jesse is his friend.

"Buffy, I'm not anxious to go into a dark place full of monsters. But I do want to help. I need to." Willow said a little anxious but ready to help.

"Well, then help me. I've been researching this Harvest affair. It seems to be some sort of preordained massacre. Rivers of blood, Hell on Earth, quite charmless. I'm a bit fuzzy, however, on the details. It may be that you can wrest some information from that dread was a bit, um, British, wasn't it?"

"Welcome to the New World," Angel says smiling at his new watcher.

Giles stops the argument by reminding them that they still need to figure out where the vamps took Jesse. Giles tells them that to figure out where Jesse is now, they must figure out how Luke came in to the mausoleum.

"You have no idea where they took Jesse?"

"I looked around, but as soon as they got clear of the graveyard, they could have, boom!"

"They can fly?"

"They can drive."

Meanwhile, underground, Thomas is being scolded by the Master for tasting Jesse when he was meant for the Master.

"I'm your faithful dog. You bring me scraps."

"There was more Master we swear, but there was a boy there."

The vampires tell the Master about the strong boy that they faced.

"A Slayer! Have you any proof?"

"Only that he fought me, and yet lives."

"Hmm, very nearly proof enough. I can't remember the last time that happened."

"1843. Madrid. He caught me sleeping."

"Then maybe we can still do this. After all the one thing that all slayers have is the strong sense of heroism." The Master said as he looked at Jesse. Luke realizing what the Master meant walked up to Jesse.

"I thought you nothing more than a meal, boy. Congratulations, you've just been upgraded. To bait."

Back in the library, Willow hacks into the city's security system and gets the sewer blueprints.

"So all the city plans are just open to the public?" asked Giles a little impressed.

"Uh, well, in a way. I sort of stumbled onto them when I accidentally decrypted the City Council's security system."

"Someone's been naughty," said Xander trying to mocked Willow.

Seeing them, Angel realizes that Luke came from behind her, so there must be a passage inside the mausoleum.

"The access to the tunnels is in the mausoleum. The girl must have doubled back with Jesse after I got out. God, I am so mentally screwed."

"I'm going to go back there and see if I can find Jesse."

"I'll come with you," said Xander needing to be doing something.

"No you stay I need to focused on Jesse, and if you go I'll be worried about you too," said Angel now in full slayer mode.

"Angel, he is my friend…"

"And I'm the slayer, stay," he order to Xander leaving the library.

In the hallway, Xander and Willow are talking about the weird occurrences.

"And everyone else thinks it's just a normal day."

"Nobody knows. It's like we've got this big secret."

"We do. That's what a secret is, when you know something the other guys don't."

"Try also blood, death, and earthquake."

"I'll put it on the computer search. If it's in there, it'll turn up. Anything that'll lead us to vampires."

"And I, in the meantime, will help by standing around like an idiot."

"Not like an idiot, just… standing"

"I can't do this, I can't just sit around, I need to make sure Jesse is ok."

Xander decides that he is useless at school, and believes he should go help Angel. Willow tells him to stay put, but Xander refuses to listen.

Meanwhile, Angel reaches the mausoleum.

"I knew you'd figure out this entryway sooner or later. Actually, I thought it was gonna be a little sooner."

As Angel turned around he found himself facing the girl that had taken over his dreams the night before. Yet in his dreams she had been sweet and nice, at that moment she looked cocky, but certainly not sweet.

"Sorry you had to wait. Okay, look; if you're gonna be popping up with this cryptic wise ass act on a regular basis can you at least tell me your name?" He didn't care about her cockiness, or about the cryptic act, he just wanted to know her name.

"Buffy"

"Buffy. It's a pretty name." Angel said turning to the door. "I don't suppose you've got a key on you?"

"They really don't like me dropping in."

"Why not?"

"They really don't like me."

"How could that possibly be?" Angel turned and knocked the door down.

"Don't... go down there." She said trying to stop him. She looked almost worried, almost.

"Deal with my going."

"You shouldn't be putting yourself at risk. Tonight is the Harvest. Unless you can prevent it, The Master walks."

"Well, if this Harvest thing is such a suck fest why don't you stop it?"

"Because I'm afraid."

"They'll be expecting you."

"I've got a friend down there. Or at least a potential friend. Do you know what it's like to have a friend?" He looked back to Buffy wanting to see her smile. Yet he didn't get that instead he got to see how her eyes turned dark.

"That wasn't supposed to be a stumper."

As Angel turned to enter the darken hall he turned around one last time to see Buffy's face.

"Take the tunnel to the right then straight until you are near the school, you will find them there."

"What no good luck?" He asked almost hopping, almost.

He wasn't expecting it so he turned away to go look for Jesse, but he could swear he heard Buffy replied in a whisper.

"Good Luck."

Willow saw still looking for information in the computer room about the harvest. There she heard Cordelia being her normal self.

"Are we going to the Bronze tonight?"

"No Harmony, we're going to the other cool place in Sunnydale." When she sees Harmony confused she tries to clear her friends head. "Of course we're going to the Bronze. Friday night? No cover?"

Out of nowhere she says "you should have seen Angel last night cute but weirdo."

"So he comes running at me, screaming: "I'm gonna kill you!" I swear! He had this stick and attacked me with it!"

"Who?" asked a boy that was sitting next to them.

"Angel!" said Harmony looking a little to happy to be normal.

"Hey I heard he got kick out of school, probably a druggy."

"It has to be."

Willow who knew the truth couldn't handle it anymore.

"That's not truth."

"Excuse me? Who gave you permission to exist? Do I horn in on your private discussions? No. Why? Because you're boring."

"Ok, I think the program's done." Said Harmony looking relieved.

"Finally the nightmare ends! Ok, so how do we save it?"

"Deliver," said Willow and left all the time with a frown on her face that cover the smile that was threatening to come out.

"Deliver? Where is that? Oh!" she pushes "DEL" and the program is deleted.

While in the sewers, Angel runs to someone he was sure would stay in the school, Xander.

"What are you doing here?" asked Angel infuriated.

"Dude I needed to come, ok"

"Fine, but stay behind me"

About two minutes later they still hadn't found Jesse.

"Okay, so, crosses, garlic, stake through the heart," said Xander verifying his list.

"That'll get it done."

"Cool! Of course, I don't actually have any of those things."

"Good thinking," said Angel sarcastically.

"Well, the part of my brain that would tell me to bring that stuff is still busy telling me not to come down here."

"You've done some beheading in your time?"

"Oh, yeah. There was this time I was pinned down by this guy that played left tackle for varsity... Well, at least he used to before he was a vampire... Anyway, he had this really, really thick neck, and all I had was a little, little Swiss knife... You're not enjoying this story are you?"

"No, actually, I find it oddly comforting."

They find Jesse, only to realize that they walked into a trap: they are surrounded by vampires. Buffy and Xander find a room to hide in, but not for long, as the vampires are breaking the door to reach them.

"We can't fight our way back through those things. What do we do?"

"I got an idea. 'vamps out' You can die!"

Seeing that their friend was a vampire they knew there was nothing they could do now. There was vampire trying to get into the closet where they were trap with Jesse.

"Xander we have to get out!"

"Over here"

In the chaos Xander had found a latch that lead to the outside into the light. While Angel was still busy fighting Jesse and a few other vampires that were trying to get inside.

"Xander, help me with the door." Angel had finally been able to throw the vampires out and both he and Xander closed the door. They didn't have much time though, the door wasn't that much and if they didn't hurry the vampires would break throw it. They crawl through a little space, and climb out onto the sunlit streets, first Xander then Angel who had been caught by a vampire around the ankle. With a few good kick they shooed him of though just in time for the vampire to get burn by the sun.

"So, Giles, got anything that can make this day any worse?"

"How about the end of the world?"

"I knew I can count on you."

That day in the library Giles had been reading an old tome when he came across a dire prophecy. He read that the Master is an ancient and very powerful vampire. He also learned that the Master was trapped in a church under Sunnydale long ago, and remains there to this day. He also discovered that there is a way for the Master's minions to release him, and all the signs are pointing to that very night, The Harvest.

"He needs some kind of vessel that would come into the surfaces and killed in his name, giving him every single drop of his power. But for that they need a great gathering of humans."

"Of course just one problem, where would people go to get slaughter," said Xander. He had come into the library and sat with Willow almost crying for the loss of their old friend.

"They are going to the Bronze. Tonight."

"Alright let's go."

"First we have to stop by my house first," said Angel moving out.

"Why?"

"Supplies," was all Angel said as a response.

The Master is not pleased that his trap did not work on the Slayer, but he seems calm as he focuses on his next plan.

"Ah, Colin... You failed me. Tell me you're sorry."

"I'm sorry!"

"There. That wasn't so bad, was it? Hold on... You've got something in your eye."

The Master says some ritualistic words and paints signs on Luke's forehead.

"Rise my vessel, now go into the world."

At his house Angel is getting ready to go out when his mother and sister come in.

"You are going out tonight again?"

"Yes mom."

"You got in really late last night, I didn't even hear you."

This time Angel said nothing.

"It's happening again isn't it." Silence "Fine want to play it like that then you are not going out tonight."

"But mom. This is really, really important."

"I know. If you don't go out it'll be the end of the world. Everything is life or death when you're a sixteen-year-old. Now if you want to come down with us for dinner then you're welcome, if not I won't hold it against you. "

His mother left leaving the brother and sister together.

"Do you think you can cover for me?"

"It's really happening again, isn't it?"

"It never stopped, Kathy."

"Then go I'll cover for you." Giving his sister a kiss that was both a thanks and a goodbye Angel left his house through the window.

"We are late."

"Well I'm sorry but I didn't expect my mother to go Sargent tonight."

"Can you break the door."

"No, to thick. There has to be another way in. Giles get everyone out let me take care of the rest."

"We gotta get in there before Jesse does something stupider than usual."

"You listen to me, Jesse is dead. You have to remember that when you see him, you're not looking at your friend, you're looking at the thing that killed him."

That evening at The Bronze, a group of vampires had walked right in. They took the stage, and explained to the very terrified crowd that it is time.

"Ladies and gentlemen… there is no cause for alarm. Actually, there is cause for alarm. It just won't do any good."

As Luke starts to kill, one by one, and the Master gets stronger with each life taken. Just as Luke is about to kill Cordelia, Angel arrives.

"Ok vessel boy. You want blood?"

"I want yours, only yours," said Luke releasing Cordelia.

"Works for me."

He dusts a few vampires before making his way to the stage where Luke is. As Angel and Luke fight, Willow, Giles, and Xander try to get everyone out.

"Jesse, man. I'm sorry."

"Sorry? I feel good, Xander! I feel strong! I'm connected, man, to everything! I can hear the worms in the earth!"

"That's a plus," Xander say finally realizing that Jesse is not his friend anymore.

As Xander is talking to Jesse about his sorrow, someone bumps into Xander, and Xander accidentally stakes Jesse - his best friend.

Meanwhile, Angel and Luke are still fighting, and Angel manages to catch him off guard.

"You forget, metal can't hurt me," Luke said when he saw that Angel was using a mic stand to fight.

"There's something you forgot about, too," he said as he throws a music stand through a window behind Luke and bright light pours in. "Sunrise!"

" Aaaaaarrrrg..." then he sees that the light is just a streetlight "Huh?"

"It's in about nine hours, moron."

During his moment of confusion, he stakes Luke, and he turns to dust. With his death, the Masters plans for leaving the old church, have failed. The last couple of vampire that were left ran away when they realized that Angel truly was the slayer. Outside of the Bronze Buffy saw the vampires running out of the club.

"He did it," she said smiling and almost with a proud tone.

Sunnydale is safe. For now.

"It's over."

"One thing's for sure," Xander comments, "nothing is ever gonna be the same."

The next day at school, Angel and friends are walking through the outside halls discussing their adventure. Willow and Xander are stunned to realize that even though they stopped the Master, the work of the Slayer is far from over.

"The world almost ended we should at least have an assembly."

"The human mind is an amazing thing, it remember olny what it wants," said Angel who had seen that kind of behavior before.

We're at the center of a mystical convergence here. We may, in fact, stand between the Earth and its total destruction."

" Well, I gotta look on the bright side. Maybe I can still get kicked out of school!"

"Oh, yeah, that's a plan. 'Cause lots of schools aren't on Hellmouth," said Xander.

"Maybe you could blow something up. They're really strict about that," joked Willow.

"I was thinking of a more subtle approach, y'know, like excessive not studying," responded Angel walking away from Giles. As Giles looks upon the three teen that have just save the world he seems to realize something that had eluded him since day one when he met them all.

"The Earth is doomed!"

To be continued…

A/N: Hey everyone. Here is a Christmas gift. Now I posted a poll on my profile. The poll is simple, is so you can tell me whether you want every episode done in reversed or if you want me to do just the Angel/Buffy ones. Thanks and Merry Christmas!