Chapter Thirteen

Buffy sleepily rubbed her eyes as she came downstairs heading to the kitchen. Willow was already awake and frying ham and hashbrowns when Buffy sat down at the island.

"Didn't sleep well, huh?" Willow asked as Buffy yawned.

"No, after seeing Liam like that, and realizing it was Angelus, I didn't sleep much."

"Why didn't you help him?"
"Because, I will not stay here and be his nurse. No offense, Willow, but Liam has to control the Demon that lives inside him, why should that change because I'm here? He has just given up." Buffy explained. "It's called 'Tough Love'".

Willow was surprised. She knew that in order for Liam to be rid of Angelus, he had to learn what love was and be loved in return. She was sure Buffy was capable of helping, but she also underestimated the strength of her character. Finally, they had come across someone who was an even match for the Demon.

"It's about time someone taught Angelus a lesson", Willow grinned. "Lord knows I've tried, but nothing I do seems to help."

"Well, hopefully that will change now that I'm here." Buffy smiled as Willow placed some ham and hashbrowns on a plate and handed it to Buffy.

"Hm, oh my god Will," Buffy said through a mouth full of potatoes, "You are a wizard in the kitchen."

"Thanks," Willow giggled as she sat down beside her with her own plate.

"But, I don't know if I will stay another night," said Buffy as she took a bite of ham.

"Why? I thought you came to help?"
"I did, but this is going to be harder than I had anticipated. I think I need to go back and regroup. Come back when I have a lot more time to spend. I'm not sure weekends will be enough."
Willow nodded in understanding.

"When do you think you will be back?"
"Well, I think Spring Break is a week or two away," Buffy thought as she finished her breakfast. "I think I might be able to do it then."
"I hope you can come back."
"So do I. Where's the sink?" Buffy slipped down off the stool and headed through the doorway.

"There, to your right," Willow pointed and Buffy placed her plate in the large steel tub.

"Well, I'm going to go up to the gym and workout for a while."

"Ok, Buffy," Willow said as she disappeared to clean up.

"Catch ya later?"
"Yep", Buffy called as she headed towards the upstairs.

Buffy walked inside the massive ballroom that had obviously been converted into a workout gym. Treadmills, muscle training machines, and all kinds of equipment lined the walls. In the middle of the floor lay a large white mat, a punching bag hanging from the middle of the ceiling, where a chandieler should be. Buffy walked over to the armoire that stood against one wall, and grabbed a change of clothes.

Buffy walked out of the bathroom in her workout clothes; which consisted of a gray sports bra, a black sweatshirt, and a pair of dark blue yoga pants. After spending a few mintues doing her stretches, Buffy began her workout by jogging around the room. After about four laps, Buffy changed gears, and walked over to the punching bag, landing a swinging kick to the side of her imaginary attacker.

While Buffy was really getting into her routine, letting her frustrations air out, Liam lurked through the mansion. He was being careful to avoid direct sunlight, as he sulked through the upstairs of the East Wing. He wasn't exactly feeling his best. Yes, Buffy had been nice last night, but Angelus was in control and made it out to be some kind of twisted game. Liam continued to walk down the dimmly lit halls, berating himself for allowing Angelus to have access to his body, his thoughts. He was only up to old tricks again.

Hearing the sounds of a fight in prgress, Liam walked towards the workout room where Buffy was exercising. He could see that the door was open a crack. Quietly, Liam peered through the crack in the door and observed Buffy's workout. She was spinning and kicking the punching bag, with such intensity, Liam and Angelus quickly realized how close they had both come to death. Liam admired at how graceful Buffy was; almost deer-like. Angelus was impressed at how swift she really was. Like a tiger on a hunt. And contrary to previous beliefs, Buffy was not easily frightened. With every hand chop, and roundhouse kick, Liam knew that she could help him become more determined to rid himself of Angelus.

But where Liam saw her strengths, Angelus was finding the weaknesses. Buffy had feelings for the body he controlled, he knew it with every rapid heartbeat, every act of kindness. Every dream of "Angel". And he planned to use that fact to bring them both down. Try all you want to, Angelus thought. You will both lose.

Buffy paused from her workout to catch her breath. Bending down and placing her hands on her knees, she began to regulate her breathing. She knew someone was watching, and it wasn't Willow. It wasn't her nature. So it had to be Liam, or whoever he was calling himself. She couldn't see his reflection in the mirror behind her, but kneeling down, she looked out of the corner of her eye to see a pair of amber eyes peeking through the now large crack in the door. Buffy smiled inside, before standing and facing the mirror again.

"You can come out of the shadows, Liam," she said, taking out her ponytail and scooping up the loose sections of hair. "I know you're there."
Timidly, Liam pushed open the door further, and walked inside.

"I'm sorry," he said, trying not to focus on the empty space beside Buffy's reflection. He stuffed his hands in the pockets of his pants. "I didn't mean to snoop."
"Yeah, you did," said Buffy coldly, pulling her hair up into a ponytail. "But then again, you can't help what Angelus makes you do."
"You can tell us apart?" Liam asked.
"Well, yeah," Buffy giggled. She turned to face Liam. "You're posture screams 'I'm unsure of myself'."

Liam stared at Buffy in awe. For the first time since they had met, he could see that Buffy did not see him as the monster she thought he was. And Angelus' snikering in the background confirmed it. Buffy was surprised herself as she stared into Liam's amber eyes. She wasn't as disgusted by Liam's rigid forehead and protruding brows. Even the glinty pointiness of his teeth seemed to have faded. She was seeing him as a man. A man who was having troubles fighting his own demons. She had promised to avoid him until he had shown some kind of humanity, but after the last encounter with him had sunk in, she realized more than ever, that he was fighting an internal battle externally. Buffy had worked hard to fight away all her own demons.

So, it should not have surprised her to say, 'You need to fight your demons', but yet, she was.

"You have to fight him," she said, folding her arms. "Angelus will always win, as long as you let him!"
"But how can I do that?" Liam told Buffy, pulling his hands from his pockets and placing them palms up before her.

"By doing to him, what he does to you." Liam looked puzzled. "Look, you two share one body. So that means, he knows your strengths and you know his. All you need is to tap into Angelus' strength."
"I-I can't do that," stuttered Liam. "I have tried to do what you say, but he's won everytime."
"Because you thought that in order to use his power, you had to relinquish control. That's not true. If he can manipulate me into thinking you were a helpless wreck, then you can make me think you are a blood-thirsty killer."

Liam thought about what Buffy had said. He wasn't really sure she was telling him the truth, but then again, the cursing that was going on in another part of him, told him she was. Liam smiled to himself as Angelus began to curse and stomp in his head, like a spoiled child whose toy was taken away from them. He looked at Buffy, a small smirk on his lips.

"Ok, what do I need to do?" Liam asked, watching Buffy croutch down.

"Just tap into that part of Angelus that makes him powerful." And with that, Buffy swung her leg around, knocking Liam on his back. "Come on, or do I have to do this by myself?"
Liam looked at Buffy. He was still unsure, but she wasn't. Buffy had a look on her face that made Liam feel that he could trust her. Carefully, he closed his eyes and concentrated. Then, with one move, Liam was standing and swung a fist at Buffy. She ducked, and swung at Liam, the contact forcing his head sideways. Liam shook off the pain, before swinging again. Buffy blocked again with her hand, and soon the sparring match was on.

Punches, kicks and flips passed between the two fighters, Buffy was barely touched at first, but as they continued, she could see Liam becoming comfortable. That's it. Control him, don't let him control you. She had been so preoccupied with her thought, that she missed her chance to duck, and Liam landed a blow to Buffy's face. Buffy fell and rolled back into a fighting stance.

"You okay?" Liam asked concerned. Buffy swung around as Liam inched closer, landing a kick to his side.

"That answer your question?"
"Yeah," Liam said, a full smirk appearing on his face. Confident that he was in control of Angelus' physical abilities, he swung around with his foot, and aimed for Buffy's head. She leaned back, avoiding Liam's kick. She countered with a punch to his face.

"You know, this is fun," Liam smiled as he ducked and swung at his target. Buffy smiled in response.
"It can be, if you have the right partner." Just then, Liam spun around, kicking Buffy in her side. She spun as she landed. Regaining her barings, she noticed Liam was on top of her, his knee on her stomach. He wasn't applying painful pressure, but it was enough to keep her from moving. Liam leaned down so his face was closer to hers. He was going to ask her how he did, but for some reason, neither said a word.

The last rays of the sun had set long ago, but the room was bathed in a bright orange light. From her place on the floor, she took in Liam. The lighting made him look almost human. His eyes almost reflected a brown, that made Buffy question what he was feeling. Was he fighting Angelus internaly now? No, they still had that shy, insecure feeling they always had. But she also saw that Liam had gained some confidence, it was reflecting back at her. She smiled.

Liam leaned over Buffy as she continued to examine him. He could see that emotions where swirling inside her. He was swelling with pride though. He had used Angelus just he had used him, and for once he felt in control. He wanted to tell Buffy how grateful he was for her help, but the words wouldn't form. When she smiled at him, he decided to use the last ounce of courage he had. Gently, he leaned closer, and placed his lips to Buffy's.

Buffy was almost grateful as she felt Liam kiss her. That proud part of her wasn't letting her do what felt natural. The kiss was soft, gentle, just like Liam. Buffy closed her eyes and allowed her emotions to take over. Carefully, Buffy reached for Liam's face. Brushing the side of his face, she opened her eyes wide as her fingers touched the edge of his protruding brows. Buffy broke the kiss, and pushed Liam off of her.

"What were you thinking?" she snapped in knee jerk reaction. Liam fell on his rump from Buffy's push. He was surprised.

"What do you mean? You kissed me!" Liam wasn't far off. He knew she wanted him to kiss her, and he had wanted to for a long time. But then again, Buffy's response to him really wasn't a surprise.

"As if!" Buffy spat, standing and grabbing a towel. "I can't believe.." Buffy looked back at Liam as she wiped her face. She was doing it again. Pushing others away. Ever since Spike, she couldn't bring herself to allow others to see her vulnerable.

"Look, I'm sorry." she said, offering a hand to Liam. Taking it, she pulled him up. "It's just that-, I just don't- what happened; please don't take it too personally? I mean, we were fighting and we both got caught up in the moment. Understand?"

Liam looked at Buffy smiling. "Yeah", he told her.

"Good," Buffy replied, relieved. "Other than that, you did really good. Just remember; Aneglus has as much control over you, as you do over him. Now, I have to go shower."

Buffy gathered her things, and walked into the shower. Letting the hot water run over her, Buffy relaxed, as she replayed the fight in her head. Mentally, she went over every kick, jab, and punch. Then she came to the end of the fight and the awkwardness after. Buffy placed her hands on the faucet as she replayed what she told Liam about the kiss.

Wait a mintue! she thought, remembering something she said. I said not to take it too personally? I didn't mean to say that! Now he probably thinks I have feelings for him! Buffy screamed as the weight she was applying to the faucet shifted and Buffy was greeted with a quick cold shower for her troubles.

End Chapter Thirteen

My muse! My Muse! She has returned! At long last you guys get updated! LOL Thanks to those who reviewed! Update as soon as I can get chapter uploaded! PLEASE KEEP REVIEWING! Thanks!