Gunn was stunned by the sheer number of files piled up on his desk. "Jeez Lorne,"

"I did the best I could." Lorne's tone of genuine remorse made Gunn feel a flash of guilt for sounding so disappointed. Lorne wasn't a lawyer. The fact that he had been able to manage any of this at all was stunning. "Some of those files I didn't even understand."

Gunn tried to give Lorne an encouraging smile. "No, you did well."

Lorne shook his head. "How long will it take for you to get through all of this?"

Gunn sighed. "In this business falling behind a day can take almost a month to get straight, especially when our resources are so tied up. But I'll figure it out."

"Is there anything I can do?"

"Just keep me updated on Fred's progress with the amulet and how things are in Rome."

"You got it boss." Lorne gave Gunn a playful salute and then left.

Gunn groaned. "This is a disaster."

…

Angelus wiped some blood off his chin as he approached the Immortal. "Where were you?" The older vampire demanded "You can't just run off like that, this is a delicate plan."

Angelus grinned. "That's what I love about you. Everything always according to plan."

The Immortal scowled. "Where-"

"How many girls so far?"

"We got the first and second floor cleared, the messenger is already gone. We killed twelve and four of them drank. The first slayers to ever be turned, it's almost anticlimactic."

"Yeah," Angelus said "That's kind of the problem." Before the Immortal had time to realize he was being betrayed Angelus had removed a vial of holy water he'd picked up downstairs and splashed it in the Immortal's face. He had raised a hand to defend himself, expecting a stake or a blade. But the water just scorched his hand and then went through his fingers to the handsome features below. The Immortal bellowed in pain. "You were right about one thing, I am a poet. Not a sentimental twit like Spike, a real artist. My girls, they are two sides of the same coin. One dark, one light. They belong together and they will be my matching set for all eternity. They will be the first slayers to ever be turned. Now," Angelus pulled out a stake and killed the debilitated Immortal. The man's one weakness was that he couldn't improvise, everything had to go according to plan. This man had simultaneously fought three slayers (young amateurs, but still) and won because when he properly judged a situation he always won. But he couldn't understand a creature like Angelus. He couldn't understand the art. "I have to go kill all of your minions and cut the heads off those unworthy corpses you tried to turn. Ta, ta."

Angelus kicked the pile of dust and then went to finish clearing out the building in preparation for the arrival of his true prey. He began to hum. He would finally get rid of that annoying fool Spike. For a while Spike had been good fun, but now with a soul he had lost all of his charm and amusement. The new family would just be him and the girls. Angelus smirked at the thought as he waved at two vampires and beckoned them over. They were curious about his cheerful expression, but with a quick double jab they weren't anymore. Once he had the slayers turned nothing would be able to stop him from getting Fred back. Then the three of them would kill everyone at Wolfram & Hart before moving on to the remnants of the new council.

…

Kennedy lounged in the lab watching Fred and Willow try out various spells and devices to open the box. "Why don't you try hitting it really hard with something?" Kennedy asked

Willow looked up. "Huh? What was that babe?"

"I could swing a hammer at the thing." Kennedy said

"Wouldn't work," Fred mumbled, absorbed by her work

"Couldn't hurt to try though, right?"

Willow shook her head. "That might activate another charm."

Kennedy shrugged. "Well it was just a suggestion."

"We'll figure it out." Fred said cheerily "Just a little skill and a whole lot of patience."

"Hmm," Kennedy was bored. "So that's your kid the vampire was watching right?"

Fred looked up now and she frowned. "Evi's my daughter."

"So you couldn't find a human babysitter?"

"Kennedy," Willow said softly

Kennedy ignored her girlfriend. Kennedy stared at the thin pale woman working next to her girlfriend with a little too much familiarity. Willow had to know she wasn't blind. "I would think of all people you would be aware of how dangerous those things-"

"Kennedy!" Willow turned bright red.

It hadn't seemed possible, but Fred had gone even paler. Her skin was so washed out now that if she lost another shade she would be translucent. "I just don't see how a mother could be-"

Willow didn't let Kennedy finish this time either. She walked over to her girlfriend and grabbed her arm. Willow used a little magic to combat Kennedy's slayer strength and hauled Kennedy out of the lab. "What the hell is your problem?!" Willow demanded when they were out of Fred's earshot "Is something going on with you? I've never seen you like this."

"I'm not the one with something going on." Kennedy said

"What are you talking about?"

"You don't think I saw how you were with her?"

"Are you insane?" Willow demanded "She's straight. She's engaged."

Kennedy scoffed. "To a guy in a coma."

"I can't believe you're doing this. Since when are you Ms. Jealousy? We are in the middle of a serious situation and you're choosing now to get all petty and crazy? Why?"

"You're flirting with her!" Kennedy accused

"I'm not dealing with this right now. We'll talk when we get home."

Kennedy watched Willow turn around and go back to Fred. She was probably going in there to apologize for Kennedy. Kennedy hated when she did that. Willow was always telling people that she was sorry and making excuses for her girlfriend. Kennedy didn't need anybody to make excuses for her. She knew what needed to be done and as far as she was concerned diplomacy was overrated. Buffy and Willow could slay with a smile and make nice with people and demons who were being uncooperative. But didn't they realize that just made the new council look weak? Kennedy walked off, furious. "Excuse me miss," Kennedy turned and looked at a man in an immaculate suit. "I couldn't help but notice your little predicament." He said

"What predicament? Who are you?"

"You want to destroy this evil place. Your boss is too blind to see that it must be done."

Kennedy glared at him. "What is this?"

"I believe you and I can help each other."

…

Buffy entered the school and almost collapsed when she saw the headless corpse on the ground, a corpse that had once been a young woman that trusted her. Buffy's eyes filled with tears as she contemplated all the ways she had let her student down. Faith put a hand on Buffy's shoulder and squeezed. Any tension between them was superseded by this. "Come on B."

Spike walked further down the hall and sniffed. "The Immortal, I recognize the scent."

"That's how he did this." Buffy said "He got local help. God, I'm an idiot."

"Buffy you couldn't have known-"

"Known what?!" Buffy cut off Faith. "That Angelus would attack the school?! It's a little obvious isn't it?! Angelus wanted to get to me so he-" Buffy's sobs overpowered her voice.

"Get it together slayer." Spike said "We'll be needing the element of surprise."

"Let's split up." Faith said "We'll cover more ground."

"What are you the jock in a horror movie now?" Spike asked

"Any one of us can hold him off long enough for the others to arrive. We all have our walkie-talkies, when we see him we call in the location and then attack. I'll take the third floor."

Before Buffy or Spike could protest further Faith was gone. Buffy sighed. "I'll take the first and second floor. You take the basement. There are a lot of rooms down there and a lot of weapons designed specifically for vampires. So be careful and don't let him sneak up on you."

"Can do slayer. You be careful as well."

Buffy's only answer was to start down the hall and begin her search for the monster that had stolen the body of the man she loved and used it to commit unspeakable crimes.

…

Angelus stood in front of a door on the third floor. He licked a blood drop off of his hand as he stared at the door. There was something about this room… He put his hand on the door and then left the room he was in. He soon came back with a metal chair which he proceeded to bang against the door several times. It took even longer to get into this room than it had to get into Dana's but in time the door yielded. "Everything yields to me." Angelus mused "Let's see what treasures you have stored inside." Angelus entered a sort of storage room that was full to bursting with various kinds of mystical artifacts. Angelus walked around the room and looked at the numerous jewels and weapons. Angelus whistled. "Nice slayer, very nice. I like it."

…

Faith heard loud impacts down the hall. She started to bring her walkie-talkie to her mouth but then paused. This could be a trick. She needed to investigate first to make sure that it was Angelus. She carefully started toward the banging sounds and as she grew closer they suddenly stopped. With as much caution as ever she continued toward where the sounds had been coming from. A door had been forced open. She went into the room and then the door slammed shut behind her. She whirled around in time to catch a hit to the jaw. "Hey Faithy,"

…

Spike stood in front of Dana's defiled corpse. "I'm sorry love. I truly am." Of course the mangled flesh did not respond. Spike was reminded of Nina's body, of the way the body had looked when Angelus and Drusilla left it and Fred for them to find. He thought about how Fred had been forced to sit in front of the corpse until they found her. Spike wished there was something he could do for Dana. He wished there was some action or gesture that would show how deeply this was effecting him. The blood smelled great, that was the worst part. The blood was still warm and Spike could imagine how it would taste. He turned around. He closed his eyes and let a single tear escape for Dana. "I guess you were right kid. We are the bad guys."

…

Lorne got off the phone with Lilah and then headed for Gunn's office. Gunn was on his landline as well as his cell phone while he flipped through a file as well as reading something on a computer screen. Lorne decided to wait to update him. Lorne then headed for his office where Harmony was goofing off with Evi in the most adorable way possible. He didn't bother the vampire or her young charge either. The last stop on his list was the lab where Fred was working with Willow. The two women were intent in their work. Willow was trying to write an enchantment that would protect the device Fred was making from a hex on the box. Lorne was on his way back upstairs when he heard voices down the hall. "Why would you want to bring down Wolfram & Hart? You still haven't said who you are. What's your angle?" Kennedy said

Lorne listened more intently. "Who I am is not the issue."

"I like to know who I'm dealing with."

"You don't like surprises little girl?"

"No, and I hate being called a little girl. I could take you easy."

"You're very confident."

"Yeah, I am. I have good reason to be."

"So what are you going to do about the demon eavesdropping on us?"

Lorne's heart began to pound. He started to back away but in no time Kennedy was in front of him holding his shirt in her fist. "I don't know. What am I going to do about you?"

"I was just passing by." Lorne said in a poor imitation of a laid-back tone

"Passing by, right. Did your boss send you to spy on me? Is that it?"

"N-no," Lorne said "We're on the same side Kennedy, please-"

"I don't think we are. I don't think you and I have a whole lot in common."

"Kenn-"

Kennedy punched Lorne in the gut. Then she placed her mouth next to his ear and in a very soft voice she sang. "Oh, my life, is changing every day." Then she snapped his neck in one swift move. She dropped his limp body to the floor. "Come on, let's get out of here."

"Yes mam," Hamilton said

…

Faith lifted her walkie-talkie, but Angelus knocked it out of her hand. He stomped on the device, reducing it to bits of plastic. She attacked the vampire and he countered. They were soon engaged in a bitter confrontation, neither relenting on the other. Faith was in far better condition than she had been in their previous fights and she had the advantage. But Angelus was cruel and clever, he would take advantage of any opportunity. Angelus shoved Faith into a shelf full of glass vials. The shelf fell over and the vials shattered, releasing colorful powders and liquids that exploded upon touching each other. Smoke clouded Faith's vision and a collection of small burns now covered her exposed flesh. She tried to crawl away, slicing her hands and knees on slivers of glass as she did so. She saw a dark figure loom over her and then she spun onto her back, kicking him in the face all as one movement. She leapt to her feet and then shoved Angelus away. His next punch was aimed at a burn on her arm. She stumbled into another shelf with several ancient artifacts on it. She hit the ground right in front of what she would describe as an ancient jam jar decorated in symbols and small crystals. A spiral pattern on the lid moved and the ancient jar released a puff of dust into her face. Faith coughed as she struggled to her feet.

…

"We got it!" Fred was so excited she gave Willow an ecstatic hug.

Willow returned the hug before removing the amulet from the box. "Now we just have to remove the protections on this thing and then crush it into a bunch of tiny pieces."

"Sounds like a plan," Fred said "I'll work on a device for the crushing. I'll use diamonds as the baseline for how hard the amulet might be. Hopefully it isn't any higher than that."

"We're almost there." Willow's grin was reflected in the blood-red gem.

…

Gunn was interrupted from his work by a knock on the door. He looked up and saw a stranger in his doorway. "What do you need? If it's not an emergency I'll have to ask you to-"

The woman put a finger to her lips. "I'm Kennedy."

"Willow's girlfriend?"

"Yes,"

"Well what is it?"

Kennedy came further into the office. "It's odd to me, what you're doing."

"What are you-"

She put her finger to her lips again. "Just listen. You're human, right?"

Gunn nodded.

"That's the problem. Demons I have no problem killing. People though, they are a whole different ballgame. A person who collaborates with demons is scum pure and simple, but they are still a person. Killing a person is serious. It requires contemplation, certainty."

"What do you want?"

"I contemplated. I am certain."

Gunn got to his feet but Kennedy shoved him back into his chair, hard. "He told me you were the one. You're the guy everything hinges on. You'll stop him from slipping."

"I don't-"

At that moment three security guards entered the room. Two grabbed each of Kennedy's arms and tried to drag her back while a third pointed a gun at her. "Stand down miss."

Kennedy struggled against the grips of the men holding her and was close to breaking free when the sound of the gun being cocked stopped her. "What is this?" Gunn demanded

"An assassination attempt," The guard with the gun said

"Why?" Gunn asked before panic took over his face "If the council is trying to assassinate us then Fred is in danger!" Gunn started to run toward the lab with the security team behind him dragging Kennedy along and calling their colleagues for back-up.

Gunn burst into the lab, shocking both Willow and Fred. "Charles, what-"

"You should probably step back Fred." Gunn said

"I don't understand." Fred said

"The council ordered to have us assassinated." Gunn said "Kennedy just tried to kill me."

"What?!" Willow was stunned.

"The innocent act is cute." Gunn said "But the jig is up."

Fred turned to Willow with wide frightened eyes. "I don't know what this is. I can't imagine why Kennedy would try to kill Gunn." Willow said earnestly "I would never-"

"She already killed Lorne." A guard said "She broke his neck."

Gunn was stunned by this. "Lorne," He whispered

"But you can't kill a Pylean that way." Fred said "Where's the body?"

"It's up in the infirmary. We have to have a doctor declare-"

Fred was already on her way to the infirmary. Gunn ran after her and after a moment's hesitation Willow followed suit. The guards shrugged and, prisoner in tow, also followed.

…

Faith felt strong hands grip her shoulders and lift her up. "It's time sweetheart."

Faith struggled, but she felt woozy. "You… Son of… A bitch…"

"You sound a little winded." Angelus teased

Another voice came from the front of the room. A confident young woman stood by the door with a cross in her hand. "I'm not." She said "Put her down and let's see if you can take a real slayer down. I guarantee you that you won't come out of a fight with me looking so good."

"Think I'm handsome do you?" Angelus teased

"Come on, let's dance."

"I'll dance with you until the end of the world." Angelus unceremoniously dropped Faith to the ground. The slayer hit the tile with a loud thump. Angelus ran toward Buffy.

…

Everyone was stunned when Fred took a hold of Lorne's neck and snapped it back into place with ease. They were even more stunned when he blinked and rubbed his neck. "Ow,"

"What happened?" Willow asked

"Kennedy broke my neck." Lorne said

Kennedy scowled. "For the greater good!"

"Well yes, there is that." Lorne admitted

"I am so confused right now." Gunn said "I have a mountain of paperwork on my desk, we're in the middle of a serious emergency, and now… whatever this is. I'm starting to get a little angry. So if someone wants to explain what the hell is going on, that would be great."

"Calm down Gunn, I'll explain everything." Lorne said "It all started when Kennedy got mad at Willow because she thought Willow was making the doe eyes at our lovely Fredikins-"

"Wow, wow, wow," Kennedy said "Why is that being included in the story?"

"I have a unique storytelling style." Lorne said

"Time is not something we have a lot of right now." Gunn reminded Lorne

"So Hamilton sensed that Kennedy was in a vulnerable state of mind and tried to trick her into helping him carry out his nefarious plan. Kennedy decided to play along in order to figure out what he was up to. She sang me a line of 'Dreams' to let me in on the ploy. Hamilton wants to kill all of us so that there won't be anyone to anchor Angel when he gets back, so he'll slip."

There was a long silence. "It's a good thing we know that and can prepare." Gunn said

"Thanks," Fred said to Kennedy with complete sincerity

"If Hamilton is trying to take us out we need to act now." Gunn said "Lorne you must know a few safe places in L.A. You need to take Harmony and Evi out of here."

"I'm not sure I'm comfortable with that." Fred said "Maybe they should just hang out in the lab. Nobody would be stupid enough to go up against a powerful witch like Willow."

"And if they are all the better." Willow said, prompting a smile from Fred which prompted a scowl from Kennedy "Kennedy maybe you should guard Gunn."

Gunn had a severe case of mental whiplash right now. First Kennedy was trying to kill him and now she was his bodyguard? "As long as we can all get back to work." Gunn said

…

Faith had a pounding headache. She felt like there was a baby growing in her head kicking her skull every few seconds. The pain was so intense that she almost couldn't see and the small bit of vision that she did retain only gave her a view of smoke. She heard the sounds of Angelus's and Buffy's battle. Faith tried to get to her feet, but every attempt was met with a wave of dizziness and she had to lower her head and clench her fists to quell the pain. Faith felt a large shard of glass enter her palm during her latest attempt and that sharp pain brought her a small measure of clarity. Faith drew a deep breath and then slammed her hand down on the myriad of jagged glass. She opened her eyes and could now see well enough to observe a mane of golden hair and the shadow of a long dark coat. Faith grabbed one of the shelves that was still standing and attempted to pull herself to her feet. She stumbled, but managed to remain standing even though her eyes watered with pain and she was now seeing an odd mist that had nothing to do with the smoke. She reached for another shelf and felt her hand close around a familiar shape.

…

Fred kept looking up from her work to glance at her daughter. Willow couldn't help but smile at the mother's attentiveness even as she threw herself into her work. "We'll have to time this perfectly if we're going to get the soul where it needs to be." Willow said "The amulet has to break exactly when I finish the spell. Can you calibrate your machine that precisely?"

Fred grinned at her friend. "As precise as you need it,"

"How did I know that I could count on you?" Willow asked

"Magic?" Fred suggested playfully

Willow's arm jerked in shock. The answer was so familiar that Willow felt a tear pushing against the back of her eye, begging to be let out. "That must be it." Willow hoped that Fred hadn't noticed her reaction. Why did everything this physicist did remind Willow of Tara?

…

Faith threw herself against Angelus and pressed the cross in her hand against his cheek with unrelenting pressure. Angelus bellowed in agony while Buffy tried to take advantage of the situation and gain the upper-hand. Unfortunately Buffy hadn't realized just how unstable Faith was and was shocked when Angelus put his arm around Faith's throat. Angelus pulled out a knife and pressed the tip against Faith's skin. "Stay back flaxen maiden or Faithy gets it."

Buffy took a few steps back. "You know you can't win. Even if you get away you'll always come back. You can't quit. And you won't kill her. You need her, like you need me."

"You're surprisingly perceptive when you want to be." Angelus said

"You're surprisingly dense when you want to be." Buffy said

"What do you mean?"

…

"When I get to the middle of the third verse start the machine." Willow said

Harmony felt nervous anticipation as she held the wriggling infant in her arms. So much rested on the outcome of what she was witnessing. Harmony knew that she couldn't truly grasp the enormity of this situation; but she could sense it in the eyes of the mother who was no longer periodically glancing at Evi. There was too much to be done, too much taking her attention, too much that could save or end the world. "Good luck." Harmony told the two experts

Willow gave the vampire an odd look. "Really?"

"Of course."

"I will never be used to you not being evil." Willow said before turning to Fred "Ready?"

"Yes,"

…

"I mean that you planned for every contingency but the most deadly to you." Buffy said

"Are you talking about the soul? Lindsey had it locked away tight, but nice try."

"You think I'm bluffing?" Buffy asked

"I know you are bluffing." Angelus said "If you could put soul-boy back you would have done it already." Angelus tightened his grip on Faith. "Speaking of souls, where's blondie-bear?"

"Why? Do you want to tap out?" Buffy asked

"From where I'm standing I have all the cards. So why don't you just put your hands in the air and get on your knees? If you don't fuss I'll give you a quick painless death."

Buffy rolled her eyes. "I'll tell you how this is going to go down. First you let Faith-"

Buffy was cut off when Spike ran into the room with a stake and lunged at Angelus after taking only a moment to assess the situation. Angelus dropped Faith and then blocked Spike's attack with ease. Spike kicked his exhausted grandsire in the face and then tackled the older vampire to the ground. Spike raised his stake. "No!" Faith was beyond out of it at this point, but she summoned the last of her strength and lucidity to pull Spike off the scourge of Europe.

Angelus picked up Spike's dropped stake and yanked the vampire from Faith's grip, throwing him against the wall. Angelus put the stake against Spike's breastplate as Buffy ran toward them to put a stop to the confrontation. But both vampires knew she would be too late.

…

Fred heard her cue and pressed the button on the machine that would vibrate the molecules in the gem into the positions where they had the least attraction and most repulsion to each other. At the same time it applied pressure that would, if Fred's calculations were correct, crush the jewel. A lot rested on those calculations being accurate and precise, the world itself.

…

"Goodnight Will-" Spike watched a flash of light explode in Angel's eyes and then the stake slipped from Angel's fingers. Angel looked confused. "Spike? What's going on?"

"Angel?" Buffy asked, hesitant and hopeful all at once

Angel released Spike and then turned around to face the stunned Buffy. "Buffy? What are you doing here?" Angel surveyed his surroundings. "Where is here? What happened?"

"Angel please try to remember that-"

Angel's eyes widened in horror and he cut her off. "It happened didn't it?"

"Angel-" Buffy was now crying.

"He came back. Oh God, and soon I'll remember."

"Angel it wasn't you." Buffy's voice cracked.

"Did I kill anyone?"

"Angel-"

Angel saw Faith. "Faith! Is she-"

"Alive," Buffy said quickly "She's alive."

Angel fell to his knees. Buffy's heart sank. He remembered. "Angel,"

"Oh God, oh God, no, no, no. Why didn't you just kill me? Why?"

…

Willow watched Gunn enter the infirmary. "It worked." He told the two women heading toward Wesley's room "Angel's back." Gunn sounded more stunned than ecstatic. "It's over."

"Good," Fred sounded more nervous than elated. "Is he on his way back?"

"I guess," Gunn said before turning an evaluating gaze on Willow "Can you do it?"

"We won't know until I try."

…

Angel was in shock. He had a vague memory of being led to a car and then into a building and finally into this room. Buffy, Faith, Spike, Lilah, and some woman that he didn't know were also in the room. Angel could feel the human blood in his stomach and it was horrifying in how satisfying it was. But that sickening sensation wasn't even close to how awful the memories polluting his head were. He remembered everything that he did to Nina, to Gwen, to those innocent people that had picked the wrong street to walk down, to Fred. He remembered how warm she was and what she tasted like. He wanted rid of that memory so bad. He wanted to drive a stake into his chest. Faith was sitting in an arm chair and she was the only one not staring at him because she couldn't keep her eyes open. "I guess we should go back to L.A." Lilah said

Angel finally looked up. "What?"

"Mission accomplished, time to get back to work." Lilah said

"Work?" He could barely form the word.

"Why do you think we went through the trouble to save you?" Lilah asked

"Shut up." Buffy whispered

"Why didn't you kill me?" Angel demanded softly

"Because you're the bloody prophecy boy." Spike grumbled

"Don't you know what I did?" Angel asked

"Yes," The hardness in Spike's eyes as he spoke revealed volumes.

"You should have killed me."

"Yeah well we didn't!" Buffy was pissed. "We tried to save you because you would have done the same for any of us! We tried to save you because we love and need you! Sorry!"

"Angelus did so many… The memory spell, it broke."

"Yeah," Spike said

"Conner-"

"Conner's fine." Faith mumbled

"Are you sure you don't need to go to the infirmary?" The stranger asked Faith

"I'm fine." Faith touched her forehead. Lilah yanked Faith to her feet by her wrist and felt the woman's forehead. "What the fuck?! Let go of me!" Faith tore herself away.

"Did you come into contact with anything on the hunt?" Lilah asked

Alarm began to overpower Angel's despair. "What is it?"

"She has a fever." Lilah said

Angel remembered the artifacts in the room where their fight had taken place. He recalled the various mystical objects and how once a mystical object had caused a friend of his to be infected by the most deadly of diseases. "Faith did you inhale anything?" Angel asked

"Some dust," She murmured before collapsing

…

Wesley's eyes opened and he was confused by what he saw. "What happened?"

A small hand took hold of his. "What do you remember?"

Wesley stared into Fred's eyes and then his own widened. "Everything," He sat up in his infirmary bed. "Oh my God, what the hell happened?" He squeezed Fred's hand, stunned.

"What do you mean?" Willow was there, asking him a question he didn't understand.

"Wes?" Fred put a hand on either side of his face.

"I didn't remember before, but now I do. Conner, Illyria, what happened to all of that?"

"Wolfram & Hart cast a spell on all of you." Willow explained

"Why?" Wesley asked

"Angel asked them to." Fred said

"I'm missing something." Wesley said

Fred kissed him. "I'll explain everything. But first somebody wants to see you." Fred left the room for a moment and then returned with her infant child. Wesley's undisguised glee at the sight of his daughter filled Fred with joy and made Willow satisfied with the results of her work.

…

Angel stood in front of Buffy. Somehow they were alone together. "Buffy I…"

"It wasn't you." Buffy said "Angelus killed my students, not you."

"How can you forgive me? Why don't you hate me?" Angel demanded

"Angel I love you. I always will. I can't help it." Tears slid down her face. Angel wanted to kiss the tears away, but more than that he wanted to be hit by a bright ray of sunshine and be incinerated in front of his love. "You are as much a victim as any of us. I can't imagine what it-"

"Don't." Angel insisted "Please don't. I can't take it."

Buffy nodded. "I know you were angry about me not trusting you-"

"Well it turns out you were right." Angel said

"Would you please just let me finish?" Buffy was starting to get aggravated.

"Go ahead."

"I think you were an idiot to trust Wolfram & Hart. I think you should have known that there would be unforeseen consequences. I think all of this could have been avoided if you had asked me for help instead of going to your mortal enemies. But I also think that you're a good man and that you will save the world. I love you Angel, but it's not just that. You are a force for good in the world and Angelus isn't you. He's somebody else, somebody nothing like you."

Angel shook his head. "I'm not a good man Buffy. I'm not even a man."

Buffy sighed. "So what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to save Faith." Angel said without hesitation

"What if you can't?"

"I won't give up."

"How can you say something like that and still claim not to be good?"

"Buffy no matter how much good I do it will never make up for what I did."

…

For a moment she forgot. For a moment Fred was sitting next to the man she loved while their daughter was in his lap. The two lovers leaned against each other and she forgot that they had been subjected to horrors. She was with her family and everything was fine. But there were things that had to be dealt with. She had to face reality. She found she had the strength now to stare it down. "Wesley, we need to talk about something." She took his hand in hers.

"I know."

"You do?" She looked at his face, surprised.

"We can't do this anymore. This life, it's not for children."

Fred sighed in relief. "No, it's not."

"Where do you want to go?"

"I don't know yet; maybe we could go visit my parents for a few weeks while we figure things out. We wouldn't tell them what happened, but it would be nice to be around them."

"Yeah, your parents are great."

"I'm so glad we feel the same way about this." Fred whispered

"Me too," Wesley said "But there is one thing I-"

"You want to talk about the spell don't you?" Fred asked

"Yes,"

"You want to ask if I feel differently about you now that it's broken."

"Yes,"

Fred turned her head and pressed her lips against Wesley's. It was a fair amount of time before their mouths were separated. "Does that answer your question?" Fred asked

"I think so." Wesley said

…

Kennedy shoved a few items into a knapsack. "Hey babe," Willow said cheerily as she approached her lover from behind "Are you ready to go? I've got the spell ready."

Kennedy turned around, her expression not pleasant. "I've been thinking."

"What's wrong?"

"If Lorne hadn't verified that I was playing that evil guy, would you have believed me?"

"Of course," Willow said

Kennedy narrowed her eyes. "I don't think so."

"Baby-"

Kennedy cut Willow off. "Deep down I don't think you trust me."

Willow was stunned. Her mouth hung open. "What are you saying?"

"I don't know." Kennedy sighed. "I feel more insecure around you than I ever have before and I don't know why. I never would have gotten jealous like that before."

"Yeah," Willow said "That was kind of crazy."

"So what do you think?"

"Maybe you're sensing something."

Kennedy considered this. "Maybe I am. Maybe we should… take a break."

Willow's breath caught in her throat. Kennedy looked unsure and Willow knew that if she protested Kennedy would change her mind. "Maybe you're right. A break could be…"

"Helpful," Kennedy said

"Yeah," Willow said

"You've been spending so much time in London and Rome lately that you're hardly ever home and I can handle our slayers on my own. Maybe you should move to Europe for a month or two while you figure out how you feel. Maybe we're just too…" Kennedy hadn't meant to start the last statement and now regretted that the words had escaped unbidden.

"Too different," Willow said

"Yeah,"

…

Faith's limp body lay on a bed in the infirmary radiating heat. The whole scene was all too familiar for Angel. He had to avert his gaze. As Angel was leaving he found himself standing face to face with Gunn in the doorway. "What happened?" The lawyer demanded

"Gunn-"

"What did you do?!"

"It wasn't him." Spike muttered

"What was it?" Gunn asked

"The next old one," Angel whispered

"Oh my God," Gunn pushed past Angel into the room and before Angel could warn him Gunn had taken Faith's hand. Gunn yelped in pain as he dropped the hand and Angel noticed an envelope on the floor Gunn had dropped when he had seen Faith. "Oh Faith," Gunn mewled

"Gunn what is this?" Angel picked up the envelope.

"What?" Gunn asked

"What is this envelope?" Angel held it up.

"Willow fixed Wes. He asked me to give that to you." Gunn said

Angel opened the envelope and pulled out a letter. The letter wasn't long but it wasn't particularly short either. Angel read it and then let his hand fall to his side. "I see."

"They left." Gunn explained to a confused Spike "Fred wanted me to tell you goodbye."

"Sure, thoughtful bird isn't she?"

"Willow offered them a job and… well it's all in the letter."

Angel stared at Faith and then left the room without another word. He ran into Lorne on the way to wherever he was going. "Angel!" Lorne shouted, stunned to be seeing his boss

"Lorne,"

"Are you all right?" Lorne pretended not to notice the dirty look. "It wasn't your fault."

"What specifically wasn't my fault? Are you talking about Fred? Are you talking about Gwen, Nina, Gunn, Wesley, or Faith? Are you talking about-" The vampire was cut off.

"What happened to Faith?" Lorne asked "Is she all right?"

"She's infected. Don't-"

"I won't tell Wes or Fred." Lorne promised "They'd come running back to help."

"I know why they left without saying goodbye." Angel said "She couldn't look at me."

"Angel-"

"I don't blame her. I don't want to look at her either."

Lorne recoiled. "Why not?"

"You don't get it do you? I remember everything Lorne. I remember every sensation and I don't remember as an observer. I remember because I did it. I remember how she felt when-"

"I don't need details, thank you." Lorne looked ill.

"Do you know how I got her to come with me?" Angel asked

"If we're going to continue this conversation I have to insist that you not refer to Angelus in the first person. Call him by his name. I can't bare it otherwise." Lorne insisted

"Fine, do you know how he got her to go with him?"

"He threatened to kill Evi, yeah."

Angel looked away. "That's why I asked Spike to come back with me. He's the only one who realizes. If this ever happens again he'll stake me before I can- Angelus can hurt anyone."

"You gave Spike a job?" Lorne was shocked.

"Wesley suggested it when Casper first showed up. I should have listened to him. If I had then maybe I'd be a pile of dust like I should be and none of this would have happened."

"Angel-"

"Don't tell me I shouldn't be a pile of dust."

"I was actually going to ask what we're going to do about Faith."

"I know!" Both men turned around and saw a smiling vibrant blond in a pink dress that honestly wasn't appropriate for the office environment. Harmony's grin widened. "Vision,"

"Cordy told you how to save Faith?" Angel asked, stunned that something good might actually be happening to them for the first time since Lindsey had cast his spell

"No," Harmony didn't let their disappointed expressions lower her high spirits. "But I do know how to delay the process and give you time to figure out what to do. That helps, right?"

Lorne gave Harmony an encouraging smile. "It sure does sweetness."

Angel closed his eyes for a moment. Every part of him wanted to go to his office and wallow in infinite misery. But Faith needed him. She had refused to give up on him long after reason dictated she take him down. He had to save her at any cost. "Let's get started."