Spike had somehow managed to get back into Angel's viper before catching fire, which if Buffy was honest with herself was an impressive feat. Sam, Dean, Connor, and the Angel Castile were following Spike in a 69' Impala, which if Buffy was honest with herself was the coolest car she'd ever seen. As the Scooby's loaded up the cops came racing around the corner. The realtor was sitting on the curb hyperventilating. Buffy carefully put the painting and the ziplock in the back of the car before jumping in and following the Viper and Impala. After driving around downtown Los Angeles for two hours, the Viper pulled into a seedy motel. The Impala followed and the men named Sam and Dean jumped out and ran into one of the rooms. Connor, if Buffy remembered the name right got out and walked over to their car. As he reached the driver's side window, Xander rolled it down.
"We're stopping here to grab their stuff. It'll make it easier if we're all in one place and don't have to regroup constantly." Connor said.
"Are we headed to the Hyperion Hotel? Cause I know where that is. We could go get our stuff and meet you guys there." Willow rambled off in one breath.
"Um, the Hyperion's gone. We lost it a few years back. We had to kind of rethink our strategy what with LA becoming a new hell mouth and all." Connor answered.
"Wait, LA's a hell mouth? How did we not pick up on that? There are no power readings, or surges, or anything else that would indicate that there's a hell mouth here." Willow began to panic.
"Wills, breath. It's ok." Xander half turned behind him to look at her. "Besides, we knew that the power source in Paris suddenly disappeared and the hell mouth they were trying to form there failed, there's no way we could have stopped them every time they tried to form one. Although they could have picked up the phone and given us a heads up."
As Connor stood there, the two men exited the motel room with several duffle bags thrown over their shoulders. They moved in sync as the pulled them off their shoulders and threw them into the trunk of the Impala.
"I have a question. Since when does Angel willingly work with hunters? Won't they like, I don't know try to kill both him and Spike on site?" Dawn asked from the back seat.
"Their Angel Castile has convinced them that it would be unwise to attempt that. He seems to at least have some clue as to what's going on." With that Connor returned to the Impala and the Viper took off towards the hotel the Scooby's were currently residing in.
"So how'd that conversation with Giles go?" Buffy asked dreading the answer.
"He was momentarily upset that we didn't just tell him we wanted to go to LA to search for Angel and Spike. He evidently thought you didn't want to go looking for them because you never said anything. And if he had known he would have at least sent someone here to either confirm or deny that he was evil." Xander answered.
"I meant about the dream." Buffy clarified.
"Oh, yeah. He's on the next flight out of the office. Seems even he wants to reunite the Scooby's." Xander answered.
They pulled into the parking lot of the hotel and the Scooby's exited the car and hurried to their room to get their stuff. After a few minutes of Buffy coming out of the building with sever duffle bags and suitcases, Dean got tired of sitting in the car and followed Buffy to her room. When he poked his head in he was astounded by it. He'd never stayed in a hotel room this fancy. "So, what does it take to be able to afford this room? He asked as Dawn pushed past him and out the door.
Willow turned to him completely caught off guard by his appearance in the doorway as she threw some of her spell books into a suitcase. "Um, divert a few apocalypses." Willow responded.
Xander reentered the main living room with his one bag. "Have monetary backing and ten years of back pay does not hurt Willow."
"You mean you got someone to actually pay you for hunting?" Dean asked as Willow set another bag by the door for Buffy to take.
"Hunting?" Xander had a slight look of confusion on his face. "I don't think we've ever called it that, but sure."
"If you don't call it hunting, then what do you call it?" Dean asked as Buffy reentered the room with the last of her and Dawns bags.
"Surviving." She answered, as she picked up more bags. Dean moved out of her way and grabbed a few from the floor as the group left the hotel room.
As they entered the lobby Dawn was checking them out. The receptionist was very distraught that they were checking out so soon, after all they were paying for the most expensive suit in the hotel. Well that's what Dawn assumed she was distraught about. She quickly rethought that after they loaded the car because as soon as they were done and in the car, an explosion occurred in the room they had been in. Glass fell to the ground as the sound of the blast knocked windows out on the upper floors of the hotel. Spike had been sitting the Viper snoozing when the blast went off. So it was only natural that he hightail it away from the scene. And because the lead car took off at an incredible speed, Dean in the Impala followed so they would not get lost. And since Xander was following the Impala, he took off, which on the surveillance cameras surrounding the building looked suspicious to the police. So it was not surprising that when the FBI showed up, they took over the case, after all, it's not every day that several people from the FBI's most wanted list all thought to be dead suddenly shown up in the same place at the same time and an explosion occurs. Although to the investigators, none of the criminals had ever dealt with explosives, sure burning down a building or two but never explosives.
They were driving on the freeway, when Spike suddenly exited throwing both Dean and Xander off, the sun having set long ago. As they slowed down, Spike turned under the freeway and off the road to a gate. Beyond the gate was a service entrance to the sewers wide enough to get their cars threw. Spike got out of the car and unlocked the gate before driving threw and then locking the gate behind them. Once he was back in the Viper, he took off down the sewer. After a few minutes they came to what could best be described as a parking lot, although Buffy doubted it had ever been used as one before. There were lots of shiny expensive cars all parked along the wall of this open area that had four tunnels leading off in different directions. Spike parked the Viper and exited the car while everyone else pulled up.
"Man, why'd it have to be a sewer?" Dean asked.
"What Dean, afraid of getting more shape shifter skin on you?" Sam mocked.
"No, just when either one of us gets kidnapped we either end up in the sewers, or some creepy barn with hillbillies that want to eat us." Dean responded.
As they stood there with their duffle's thrown over their shoulder, they were surprised to find that the group they had somehow manage to pick up back at the house were leaning on their car with a bag a peace, and not nearly as many as Dean had seen them carry out of the hotel. Spike had gone over to the entrance where they'd come through and hit a button on the wall causing a giant iron fence to slide over the opening. That surprised both Dean and Sam, a demon using iron to keep other demons out.
As Spike led the group down one of the sewer hallways, Dean and Sam hung to the back of the group. "Dean, something's been bothering me." Dean looked at Sam as they walked silently telling him to continue. "That vampire from last night, have you ever seen one turn to dust before?"
Dean stopped and waited for the group to get farther ahead before he answered. "Only in those flashed I had when I was one." Dean dropped his head and continued walking. They quickly caught up to the rest of the group as Spike opened a door that was completely hidden in the wall.
Even though Spike was leading the group down the sewer, he still heard when the two hunters slowed down for their little chat. 'So, Dean was a vampire' Spike thought to himself. 'Maybe the prophesy wasn't about either of the two vampires.'
When the group entered the room on the other side of the Sewer, they were pleasantly surprised that they were not met with more sewer, but rather what appeared to be a living room or as close to a living room as one could get in a sewer. There were a couple of couches scattered throughout the room, a few floor lights, and a rug.
Sitting on one of the couches was a black bald man. "Connor, Spike, where have you two been? And who are your friends?" The man asked. As Willow entered the room his face held at least some recognition for one of their companions. "Is the world ending again? The reinforcements don't usually show up unless it's an apocalypse." The man shut up after that waiting for some form of a response.
"Not sure yet. Where's the poof?" Spike asked as he walked further into the room.
"He went out on a case earlier. He should be back any minute now. So who are your friends, Willow I remember from way back when, but the others are new faces." The bald man stood up and dusted himself off.
"You never met Buffy?" Spike asked.
The bald man's face held shock for a few brief seconds. "Naw man, I joined up with the Angel after my crew got ripped to shreds. He was already working out of the hotel by then."
"Well this is obviously Buffy." He stated as he pointed her out. "The little niblit over her is her little sister Dawn." Spike pointed out a much taller brunet. "The pirate with the eye patch is Xander." Spike continued with the introductions. "Sasquatch over here is Sam, and the shorter one is Dean. They'd be the two hunters we were talking about earlier." The bald man seemed to stand a little taller at the announcement of the two hunters. "And the tax accountant next to them is the Angel Castiel." Spike finally finished.
"Gunn." The bald man answered. Before turning around and walking out of the room threw a hallway no one had noticed earlier.
"Is it me or has he gotten more glumly since the last time I was in town?" Willow asked.
"No, well, maybe, no one around here likes the Powers much. You know cause of Cordelia and all." Spike answered.
"What about Cordy?" Willow asked. "The last time I was in town I never got to see her. She kept saying she felt like crap. Oh and that reminds me, why were Faith and my memories altered?" Willow asked as she turned on Connor.
Connor darted his eyes over to Spike. "Hey don't look at me, Reds on a role. I was in Sunnyhell helping them stop the First. You were here at least that's what Blue keeps saying."
"I would rather Angel explain it, especially since it was his decision." Connor stated as Gunn, and a blue woman in leather entered the room.
"What are we explainin?" Gunn asked Connor.
"Me" was the only response Gunn received before Connor left the room.
"Ah, yeah I'm not touching that with a ten foot pole. Ask Angel, I'm not about piss anyone off." Gunn stated as he walked rejoined the group.
Spike noticed Illyria. "Red, meet Blue." He stated smugly.
Dean, Sam, and Castiel were instantly on guard Sam even had Ruby's knife in his hand, albeit no one could see said knife.
"Would you two chill? She's on our side." Spike stated. "And Buffy before you go into kill mode, she's not like Glorificus."
"How do you know of my old enemy Spike? I do not recall telling you of her."
"Remember when the Poof told you he knew people that could kill you if you stepped out of line?" Spike asked. She nodded he head. "Well this be them, don't worry unless you piss them off you should be fine Illyria." Spike stated.
Dawn, to her credit didn't dart behind Buffy at the mention of the evil hell goddess that tried to kill her. Instead she asked the one question that was on everyone's mind, but they hadn't quite formed into a coherent thought. "So, how'd you get here?"
Illyria's blank face morphed into one of confusion as she answered. "I was at rest in the deeper well where the remaining Old Ones sleep when I was resurrected into this shell. I once ruled what is now Los Angeles, but my vast armies have become dust as they awaited my return throughout the centuries."
Gunn and Connor reentered the room and Gunn picked up where Illyria stopped. "One of the science guy's in Fred's lab was a secret worshiper, and we missed that when we screened everyone. He back doored the sarcophagus from England, but it got stuck in customs. Which is where I got blackmailed into letting it threw. It ended up in her office and as soon as she touched it, she inhaled this dust."
"Peaches and I flew over to the deeper well, and talked to the guard and found out that if we kicked Illyria out, then a plague would be released so we couldn't do anything." Spike finished. Buffy was surprised at the dejected look he was wearing.
"I did not like this place, it is different. When I was forced to slumber, humans did not exist. Vampires were the scum between the toes. The one called Knox should not have done this." Illyria stated.
Just then the door from the sewer system opened and Angel stepped into the room, where he stopped and almost ran out the door. As he shuffled his feet, his eyes darted back and forth between the Scooby's and the three men standing next to them. "Buffy" he managed to squeak out. "What… what are you doing here?" he asked, his voice steadily gaining courage.
"Well we were in town looking for you guys, cause you know five years and not a peep out of the second line against a hell mouth. We would have been here a lot sooner if Giles and I had discussed it rather than pretend that the other one could read our minds. And I'm rambling. I'll shut up now."
"Oh, I knew you were in town, I meant in my living room."
"Oh, didn't you hear, Mom was a ghost, Apocalypse, someone trying to assonate me. You know the usual."
"When did people decide they could kill you will explosives?" Spike asked.
"Um, the evil slayer army led by this French Model. They tend to use explosives, which reminds me how did they know we were there? Cause not even Giles knew we were here."
"Buffy every demon in town knew you we here the second you stepped into town, it's a hell mouth." Angel responded.
"Right. How did that happen?"
"Well, the powers sent me a vision to take out the order of the black thorn, so we did, and then the senior partners got pissed cause that cut off their abilities to direct any apocalypses in this dimension, so they started opening a hell mouth here to make up for the one you guys destroyed, and somehow."
"Wait, that was why you were fighting a dragon in an ally?"
"How did you know that?" Angel asked.
"Skip, which reminds me." Buffy turned to face Castiel. "What's up with using demons to send us messages."
"I do not understand that question."
"Cass, she's asking why, wait what are you asking?" Dean stammered.
"You know skip showing up in the middle of our battle in Paris, zaps me over here does some weird blendie thing with them." Buffy pointed to Angel, Spike, Gunn, and Illyria. "And then suddenly I'm back in the cell, except I can suddenly break chains just by looking at them. And then we had the first slayer war, and we won and Paris didn't become another hell mouth, and I died again and woken up seconds before they lit the funeral pier."
"She had this glowing child on her shoulders except I was the only one that could see it." Willow added.
Dean and Sam had the same look of confusion on their faces until Willow mention being the only one that could see this glowing child. "Cass, how exactly does an Angel come into being?" Dean asked.
"I am not sure, It has been a few thousand years since a new Angel has joined our ranks, barring Anna of course." Castiel answered.
"Michael's lock down in the cage with Lucie who killed Gabriel, Uriel, and Zachariah are dead, not to mention all the others Zachariah was using, Balthazar is playing for a different team, and Raphael is still toting the kick start the Apocalypse line, so how many Angels that fight are actually alive? Cause the cupids ain't doing any fighting." Dean asked.
"Dean, it is civil war in Heaven, I do not have time to accompany you everywhere you go because you want friends. What is the point of these questions?" Castiel asked as he raised his voice in frustration.
Dean turned from Castiel to Buffy "How many times have you died?" He asked.
"Let's see, Drowned by the Master." Buffy put a finger up. "If you include alternate realities then he killed me twice, there was the worst nightmare thing when that kid was stuck in the coma, and I was turned in to a vampire for a few hours." She put up two more figure. "Jumped off that tower and closed the hell mouth, was dead for a month and Willow ripped me out of Heaven." She put up another figure. "And then Paris." And another figure went up. "So, five, or three if you don't include the nightmare and the alternate reality."
"How she do that?" Sam asked.
"Um, we thought she was in hell, cause she jumped into the hell mouth, so it was a logical deduction. I should have verified she was there before I did that spell. If I had known Buffy was in heaven, I would have left her there. I'm rambling, stopping now."
"How have we not run across you guys before? I tried everything I could think of to get Dean out of hell." Sam started.
"You did not resort to black magic. That is a good thing, because at one time you were hooked on it." Willow replied before her could finish.
"I've never been hooked on magic."
"Are you sure? Cause the vibes you're sending off is screaming blood magic and that's never good." Willow replied. Sam looked at the ground liked he'd been scolded. "Hey, no judgment here, that would be hypocritical of me seeing as I almost ended the world when I went through my dark magic faze." Willow replied.
Dawn who was standing next to Buffy put her hands in her pockets and pulled out the long forgotten ziplock. "Hey what's in the ziplock?" Angel asked.
"Were not sure, we found it behind this painting in Buffy's old house. Which is weird because Joyce did not paint, and Buffy remembers her painting this and then never seeing it again." Spike answered as He picked up the painting from the couch and trust it at him. "That's your department, Peaches."
Buffy took the ziplock from Dawn and slowly opened it. She pulled out the folded up papers and began reading. Her face quickly changed from one of confusion to one of disbelief as the papers slipped out of her hands and she slowly sank to the ground starring off in to space. Dawn grabbed the papers and quickly read the papers and then began looking back and forth between Buffy and the papers before she snorted. "That explains so much." She then bent down and wrapped Buffy in a hug.
"Um, guys not to be insensitive or anything cause you know I'm not, but what does the paper say?" Xander asked.
Dawn with shaking hand passed the papers over to Xander who leaned towards Willow so she could also read the papers. After a few seconds Willows face scrunched up in anger, and Xander's face fell into an emotionless stupor. Then after a few seconds it lit up as if he had an idea. "How can we be sure that this letter was written by Joyce? It could be a lie, because I don't see Joyce doing this without good reasons, or at all. So what if someone placed this letter behind that painting to lure Buffy into a trap? Because claiming that Hank is not her father, come to think of it, that does make so sense. Shutting up now."
"Who's this guy though, Xander, I don't remember Joyce ever mentioning him. And she told us about all of her boyfriends." Willow looked up at Xander and then went and hugged Buffy. "Buffy sweety look at me, look at me." Buffy finally moved her head to face Willow. "It will be ok. Hank left you guys, you remember that. He dumped you for his secretary. This just means that he's more of a dick for not telling any of us this. Remember what you said about him." Willow was desperately trying to get Buffy to say something. "He's a poopy head Buffy. He did not come to Joyce's funeral, and he didn't come to yours, so screw him."
Buffy smiled and then shaking stood up and took the papers back. "We need to find this guy. I don't remember mom ever mentioning him." She said as she reread the letter.
"Right let me work my magic." Willow said as she pulled out her lap top and began booting it up.
"What's this supposed to mean? 'He claims he's a hunter, but he doesn't kill animals.' There's a whole paragraph of mom trying to figure out what he was talking about, but then she gave up."
"Hunter?" Dean asked. "He may have meant Hunter, like us. What's his name, we may know him, or a way to get a hold of him?"
"It just says Bobby S there's no last name just an initial." Buffy told him.
"You have got to be firkin kidding me." Dean exclaimed as he grabbed the papers from her hands and began reading the portion of the letter about Bobby. He handed the letter back to Buffy as he pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed Bobby's number.
Before it had the chance to connect the line went dead. "Did we mention the whole phone system not letting you dial out of town unless you have some serious mojo?" Spike asked.
"Is that why we never got a call for backup?" Willow asked.
"Yeah" Dean looked over at Castiel who just vanished."Whoa, where'd the Angel go?" Spike asked before Castiel reappeared with an older man wearing messy blue jeans, a tee shirt, a plaid shirt over that, and a trucker hat.
"This is much faster." Castiel responded to the man he brought with him, and then tilted his head as if he was listening to something. "I must go." And then the Angel was gone again.