1898.
Romania.
"You have failed us." Whistler spoke in a quiet voice, a disappointed voice, staring at the red haired demoness in front of him. "Angelus is not dead.. He's very much alive in fact, and with Darla, as we speak."
"But the gypsies…t-they gave him a soul." Miranda spoke in a shaky voice. "I saw it as soon as it happened, as soon as he bit that girl."
"SHUT UP." Whistler demanded his anger getting the best of him. "He may have a soul now, but one moment, just one, of complete and total happiness can erase all of that! It will erase all of that! You stupid girl."
Miranda gulped, feeling what little color was left in her face leave it. "Then what do you want me to do now?" she asked quietly, desperately.
"Nothing." Whistler said firmly. "As of this moment you are being stripped of your powers. The only one you will retain will be the one most natural too you. Return to London, or Egypt, for all I care. I never want to see you meddling in affairs like these ever again. "
Miranda didn't speak for a long moment, fighting back tears, and other emotions that she was not sure that she understood; " It's not my fault I fell in love with him. I was just trying to do my job."
"Let's hope to god that when Angelus returns you can do what is right then, and kill him."
Sunnydale.
The Present.
Miranda jerked awake, shooting straight up in the bed, the sun streaming through the window in front of her making her wince. She closed her eyes for a long moment, before reopening them, and getting out of the bed. She padded down the stairs to the kitchen, and out on a pot of coffee. She was just pouring herself a cup when someone opened her sliding glass door, and stepped into her kitchen. "I thought you never wanted to see me again." She asked, without turning to face him. She finished adding cream and sugar to the coffee and turned around. "And yet, here you are. Did you come back to punish me for trying to help Buffy now?"
Whistler watched her for a long moment, fully aware that the woman in front of him had changed an awful lot in the last hundred years or so, since he had seen her last. "No, actually I didn't." he answered finally. "I came to ask you what the hell you were thinking revealing yourself to Drusilla."
Miranda shrugged. "She would have seen eventually, realized on her own that I was a part of this."
"You made yourself a target." Whistler pulled something out of his pocket, and handed it to her. "That was on your front porch."
Miranda took it from him, and unfolded the paper, already knowing who it was from. Inside was a picture of her that Angelus had sketched over one hundred years previously. Underneath the picture he'd added a caption, and despite herself Miranda shuddered when she read it.
This time I'll get you too.
"He knows then." She said softly. "I don't know how or when he figured it out, but he knows."
"Yeah. He does." Whistler sighed. "And you get to keep yourself, the slayer, and Jenny Calendar alive."
"And there are werewolves in Sunnydale. And werewolf hunters." Miranda said brightly, taking a long drink of coffee.
Whistler, watching her smiled grimly. "I think you need something stronger than coffee."
The Next Day.
Miranda ran into Buffy and Xander the next afternoon, between classes. Literally. "Sorry guys." She muttered, "Long day."
"You're telling us. We were just talking about Theresa." Buffy said quietly, glancing around the hallway.
"I've been meaning to ask you about that actually." Miranda said suddenly. "I looked up the police report after Giles mentioned Werewolf.. did you ever see it?"
"Not all of it." Xander answered for them both. "Why?'
"Because it doesn't mention anything about her being mauled."
Buffy's eyes widened. "Oh.."
Xander looked confused. "What?"
Miranda and Buffy turned towards the doors to the school almost at the same time, and Xander hurried to keep up, still wondering what they were talking about. "What are you two so jazzed up about?" he asked again, not entirely surprised when neither woman answered him. They were almost to the funeral parlor before Xander got an answer from Buffy.
"Her death was linked to the animal attacks from the other night. We assumed it was the werewolf."
"But?"
Miranda glanced at him, as she parked her car and led the way into the building. Buffy right behind her. "But. Angelus got to her first."
Xander and Buffy both looked at her sharply, as they examined the bite wound hidden under the scarf tied around the other girl's neck. "This is my fault." Buffy muttered under her breath, as she glanced at the guest book. "She had a lot of friends."
Xander opened his mouth to answer her, but paused. "Theresa's a vampire."
Buffy turned and lunged herself at Theresa as the other girl got up. They wrestled for a moment, and Buffy got her pinned, reaching for a piece of wood to stake her with. Suddenly though, Theresa spoke, and what she said sent Buffy reeling. "Angel sends his love."
Buffy hesitated long enough for Theresa to start to get up, and Miranda started to move forward to dispatch the fledgling. Xander however stopped her. Let me. He mouthed, just before sticking the easel through her back. Theresa collapsed into dust, revealing a very shaken Buffy. Xander helped her up, and she leaned on him for a moment, fighting for composure. "Angel." She muttered.
"Buffy.." Miranda started, before falling silent. Xander had already beaten her to the comforting. So instead of speaking Miranda turned her head, and gave Buffy time to compose herself. If anyone knew what it was like to hit rock bottom with Angelus running around trying to kill her it was her. She turned on her heel and led the way out of the funeral home. After a long moment Buffy and Xander followed her. They still had werewolves running loose, and as usual the Slayer's feelings were put on the back burner, to be dealt with later.
