DISCLAIMER: I don't own the characters nor anything else Joss created, just the rampant plot bunnies.

SO FAR: The spell has been done, but at the last minute, things have gone horribly wrong. Rated M for violence and swearing as always.


WALK WITH ME IN HELL


The first thing Buffy felt was a thousand knives cutting into her skin. She was laying on a hard floor of sand that felt like it was moving, and it took a few minutes to regain her composure before she could pull herself to her feet. And when she did so, and opened her eyes, she regretted it more than ever. As soon as she had done so, a foul noise, like the screaming of a thousand banshees, invaded her ears and she clasped her hands over them quickly, trying to see where she was. A thick red dust obscured her vision for the most part, swirling around her like a terrible tornado. The dust was what had caused the sensation on her skin, and she knew that she needed to find shelter.

Looking around her as best she could, she saw no sign of Willow and the only thing she could see was a few dead, gnarly looking trees, that may not have been trees at all. They looked odd, deformed and she wasn't sure she wanted to take a closer look.

She opened her mouth to scream for her friend, but only choked on the red dust, doubling over in pain as she tasted blood and a foul acidic taste invaded her mouth. Coughing and spluttering, she decided that calling wouldn't work and that moving forward was really her only option at this point. But the steps were not easy, as if the very landscape was against her and the gravity of this world was heavier than her own. It was slow going, but after ten minutes of wandering, it felt like her vision was adjusting to the dust and she finally spotted a cave entrance.

Struggling towards it, she passed closer to one of the mangled trees and she saw it wasn't a tree at all. It was a twisted contortion of bones, and at the base of it, blood was pooling, as if it were a grotesque piece of artwork. Buffy shuddered, feeling more terrified by that one "tree" than she had been by anything in a while. But of course, the First was good at putting on a show. She should have remembered that. It was highly unlikely any of this was truly real.

After twenty minutes of pushing herself forward, feeling her body weakening, she threw herself through the entrance to the small cave, and lay there in the dirt, grateful for the dimming of the roaring sound in her ears and the horrible sensation gone from her skin. She wasn't sure how long she laid there, but the time passed as it did when you really didn't want to get out of bed. She knew she had to move, had a job to do, but she couldn't bring her limbs to cooperate until they felt like it.

It was only the thudding of another body landing next to her that caused her to move. And it wasn't the face she expected.

'Angel?' She pushed herself up onto her forearms, staring at him with a mixture of relief and anger. 'What the hell? Cordelia said it was too dangerous for you to come here!'

'Something happened.' He grunted, his eyes bloodshot from the dust outside. It didn't seem to have cut him up at all though, so she assumed the dust was just an uncomfortable sensation and she didn't look like she'd been rolling in broken glass. He didn't roll over or make eye contact; he merely lay on his side, breathing in an erratic manner, even though he didn't need to.

Buffy narrowed her eyes, ignoring the urge to shut them. 'What do you mean?'

'Some infected people got into the hotel. I think Xander was infected too, he was shouting at me before they came in-'

'He may not have been. He just really doesn't like you.' Buffy said, bluntly, no thought for the vampire's feelings. 'Wait – infected got in? And you skipped out? What the hell were you thinking? My sister is there! My friends! They could be killed!' She scrambled to her feet, towering over him with anger blazing in her eyes. For a moment, the fury consumed her and she thought for a moment that maybe she was infected, until she remembered Giles' words. She was apparently just really pissed at Angel. The vampire in question struggled to his feet, holding his hands out in a gesture of peace.

'I didn't mean to! I was trying to wake Willow, we had to stop the spell. The others went to fight the infected and then Willow apparently found the way here, because….well, here I am. I swear, Buffy, I didn't mean for this to happen.' He was wide eyed and worried now, knowing she wouldn't hesitate to kick his ass.

Buffy was angry, no doubt about that – but there wasn't much she could do about it now. She deflated – visibly – and Angel sighed a breath of relief. The Slayer shook herself, still feeling sluggish now she had let go of the anger inside her. 'We need to find Willow. She doesn't have the same constitution we do, that storm will hurt her for real.'

'Did you try to talk in that crap? I felt like I was drinking holy water.' Angel mumbled, looking back towards the entrance of the cave. He jumped backwards as Willow appeared, smiling of all things, a protective shield holding back the dust from around her. She entered the cave and dropped the shield, brushing herself down, somewhat dramatically as the vampire and slayer stared at her incredulously.

'Phew. Didn't think I'd find you guys.'

'Doesn't have the same constitution huh?' Angel harrumphed, looking at Buffy. 'Hers is better.'

The Slayer merely stuck her tongue out at him and turned to her best friend, hugging her tightly. 'I'm glad you're okay. Wait, you knew Angel was here?'

'I felt him touch me. I would have let him rouse me but I was so close to getting us here that I couldn't let go. I was rather hoping you would though.' Willow sighed at the vampire. 'This makes things more difficult. It'll take more power to get you and Spike back with us and you're in serious danger here. The First can't really hurt me or Buffy, but you…you're just a tasty morsel for it.'

'He can stay here whilst we find Spike.' Buffy said, looking at her former.

'No, he can't. Leaving him unattended and unprotected is not a good idea.' Willow replied and Angel scowled.

'I don't need protecting. I'm a vampire.' He complained. The witch rolled her eyes.

'You're a vampire with a soul. And I'd quite like to keep you that way. I don't fancy having to take Angelus down right now. And you may be able to protect yourself back in our dimension but here, you're just evil chowder. So zip it and do as I say, okay?' Angel made to protest but Willow flashed him her resolve face and he thought better of it. Buffy stifled a giggle at the determination on her friend's face.

'So.' Buffy asked, ignoring the humour of the situation. 'How do we find Spike?'

At that point, a scream shattered the noise of the storm outside, echoing through the cave. It was the scream of someone in extreme pain. Buffy looked towards the darkness it came from. Her brow furrowed. 'Spike.' She whispered, reaching out to grip Willow's hand.

'We follow the screams.' Angel whispered.


Giles could honestly say his lungs were on fire. The load in his arms hurt more than he could describe, but he daren't drop her. He had to carry on, and he had to get the others moving.

'Fred, Wesley, are you okay?' He turned, seeing the dishevelled younger Englishman behind him, blood steadily dripping down his forehead from a nasty gash. Fred was curled under his arm, cradling an obviously broken wrist. They both nodded and he looked past them to the rest of their bedraggled group. After Willow, Buffy and Angel had disappeared, the infected had swarmed the building. They had mostly beaten them back, but Xander had turned and attacked Gunn, who had come down to investigate. The black man had told them to get out and Cordelia had led him, Fred and Wesley to the emergency exit. Giles had grabbed Dawn on the way through, knowing that Buffy would never forgive him for leaving the young woman behind.

Cordelia had shut the door behind them after they left, promising to find them. He'd not noticed until that moment just how honourable the once vapid cheerleader had become and he felt respect for her, thinking of others before herself. He had briefly worried about the slayers up in the suite upstairs, but knew Willow had placed them under a protection spell and could only hope it would hold.

He should have known that the hotel would come under attack. It was inevitable but he couldn't see beyond his own pride. Another mistake for Rupert Giles. He could only pray his Slayer would make it back okay, along with the vampires he loathed and the witch he cared for. If Spike was the only hope for humanity, then he could let things lie. For now.

The Watcher turned his attention back to Dawn in his arms. The spell Willow had cast upon her would last for a good few hours yet, but he wished to get them somewhere secure until then. He turned to his two companions.

'Where are we going to go? Cordelia said she would meet us but she did not indicate where.'

'We could go to my apartment.' Fred whispered, looking around nervously. She was in obvious pain and Giles felt for her, but there was nothing he could do to help her until they were somewhere safe.

'Do you have medical supplies? And does Cordelia know where you live?' Giles asked, looking to Wesley for an answer as the small Texan was leaning towards to tears at the pain she was in.

'She does and I believe there is a first aid kit. I can strap her wrist with a ripped sheet if need be.' Always the head boy. Giles thought and nodded in agreement with the other gentleman.

'Then we shall go there and hope for the best. Lead the way, Wesley.'


The screams hadn't gotten any closer and it felt like they had been wandering for hours. Buffy's feet hurt and it felt like blood was pooling in the bottom of her sneakers, but in reality she knew it was just her toes going numb. Not for the first time, she wished she could have brought a bag or something with her, but Willow had said that it was too much of a drain on the spell to carry supplies. She only had her fists for this one.

'Do you girls need to stop for a rest?' Angel asked quietly, and from the tone of his voice, Buffy could tell, without looking at him, that he was in game face. All vampires appeared to have a slight lisp when they were, probably because of all the teeth in their mouths. Angel seemed to whistle slightly when he talked in game face. She attempted not to giggle at this observation and cleared her throat.

'No, we need to carry on.' She said, looking over at Willow, who was walking beside her, a small ball of light guiding their way. The witch nodded.

'Agreed. The sooner we find Spike, the sooner we can leave. I may be powerful and stuff now, but these dark caves are giving me the major wiggins.' Buffy nodded in agreement, missing the hilarious way Angel rolled his golden eyes.

'I'll let you know as soon as I pick up his scent. These passageways smell more like a hospital than anything else.'

'They smell of disinfectant?' Buffy asked.

'No. Death.'

The slayer shivered and turned her focus back to the path in front of them. A dim light began to fill the hallway ahead and she felt a little jolt of hope inside her, picking up her pace. The other two followed suit, and they came back to the cave opening they had left. Buffy let out a cry of dismay before Willow grabbed her arm, dissipating the ball of light as there was no need for it.

'Buffy, look.'

All three stared at the cave entrance, where no long ago, a storm had been raging, filling the world with red dust and making it look something akin to the horror film Xander had insisted they watch months ago, called Ghosts Of Mars. Buffy had always hated space alien films, and the resemblance hadn't helped this particular mission. But now, the outside of the cave was blazing with brilliant sunshine, and the road which had appeared beyond looked suspiciously like Crawford Street, where the mansion had been in Sunnydale. Buffy took a step forward, her eyes filled with wonder at the vision of her lost home.

'It's not real.' Willow said, her hand still gripping Buffy's arm. 'This is the First's dimension. It can make us see whatever it wants us to see. We can't trust anything here.'

'I'm not trusting that I can go out in that.' Angel said, his eyes, back to their brown human colour, darting up to the sun filled "sky" outside. 'The First has a good reason to make me explode.'

'No. It can't kill you with artificial sunlight. It can make it look like sunlight, but there's no actual UV to kill you.' Willow clarified, her eyes still on the vision of Sunnydale before them.

'Still not sure I want to take the chance.'

Buffy took another step forward, shaking off Willow's arm as she headed slowly for the cave entrance. She was mesmerised by the sight in front of her, even though her brain told her it wasn't real. She'd been more devastated than she'd let on at the loss of her hometown, and seeing it before her now created a feeling in her heart that she never thought she'd had again. Home.

'Buffy!' Willow called as the Slayer moved beyond the cave entrance. She appeared not to hear them as she continued walking forward.

'Hello sweetheart.' A voice to the side of her made Buffy turn and she almost fainted, feeling her knees turn to jelly as she saw her mom in front of her.

'Mom?' She choked out, moving forward and stopping as she remembered where she was. 'No. You're not her. Don't be her.'

'Sweetheart, what are you on about?' "Joyce" said, stepping forward. 'I've missed you so much!' She held out her arms and Buffy had to fight every last fibre in her being not to run into them.

'No.' She said, her voice taking on a hard edge. 'You are not my mother.' She turned her head back towards the cave, only to find it wasn't there and it was like she really was in Sunnydale. But she knew it wasn't possible.

'Buffy!' Willow yelled again, walking forward towards the cave entrance, seeing Joyce appear and Buffy staring at her mother like she was going to cry. A force held her back, and Willow let her eyes bleed black as she fought against the invisible barrier. Angel took a wary step back, his gaze split between the angered Witch and the scene unfolding in "Sunnydale".

'Please, sweetheart, I only want a hug. We've been separated for too long.' "Joyce" took a step forwards. Buffy held up her hands, falling into a defensive stance, ignoring the part of her that wanted to just be held by her mother. Except this wasn't the real Joyce Summers.

'NO!' She spat through gritted teeth. 'You are not her. You could never pretend to be her. Change into someone else! Right now!'

"Joyce" dropped her arms and stilled, her gaze fixed on the small blonde woman in front of her. A cruel, evil smile split her face. 'I should have known you wouldn't play ball.' She sighed. 'This would have been so much easier without you in the picture. If you'd just stayed with your vampire lover in the hellmouth and let it crush you, but you've still got that pesky will to live.' The smile grew wider. 'Lucky for me, your vampire has the same desire and it's making me so much stronger.'

Buffy almost growled. 'Take off her face. Stop being her.'

"Joyce" laughed. 'Why would I when it causing you such delicious pain. The world is in pain, Buffy, and I'm thriving. You really think you can win this battle. Even with your witch behind you?'

Willow suddenly fell through the barrier as the cave reappeared in Buffy's peripheral vision. The First sneered at the redhead as she got to her feet. 'This is my world. I control it, just like I will soon control yours. You don't know the pleasure it brings me to watch the insects in your dimension, falling to pieces and killing each other. I'll infect every single one of them. And I'll make sure I send you back, so you can spend the rest of your miserable existence killing those you were supposed to protect.'

'You won't win.' Willow threatened, gathering her magick again. "Joyce" turned her sharp gaze on her.

'Why? Because you're going to rescue William?' "Joyce" laughed. 'I don't feel all that threatened. By coming here, you've just given me another tool.' She raised her hand, and suddenly Angel was standing next to her. 'Your cheerleader warned you.' She said, turning her attention to Angel and running a hand down his chest. He was immobilised against her, his eyes full of panic.

'Angel.' Buffy whispered. Her worst nightmare was happening before her eyes.

'Yes, Angel.' "Joyce" mocked. 'Not for much longer I'm afraid.' She splayed her hand over his heart and the sunlight around them started to dim, as if the sun were setting. Angel gritted his teeth, trying to hold back a scream and failing as he unleashed it and a bright light consumed his eyes. Buffy and Willow watched, the witch moving closer to her friend as "Joyce" threw her head back in pleasure and Angel slumped to the ground unconscious. 'Mmmmm.' She said, looking from the downed vampire to Buffy. Tasty.' And then she disappeared.

Buffy and Willow stood in the darkness of the fake Sunnydale, streetlights flickering to life around them as Angel shifted, groaned and then got to his feet. He shook his head, and the two girls waited with baited breath, fear surrounding them. Angel looked up, his facial expression no different to the soulful vampire they knew, until his eyes connected with Buffy and a malicious smirk came over his face.

'Hello, lover.'


A/N: Ooooo I may be evil for this cliff hanger, or you may get another chapter before the end of the weekend. I might be nice. I liked this chapter. It flowed for me. Let me know what you think!