Wesley helped Buffy through the doors of the Hyperion. Fred, Lorne, and Connor were in the lobby. Gunn was on Cordy duty. They all looked up and gasped at the sight walking down the steps. In the time it had taken them to walk the few miles back, Buffy's wounds had begun to settle. Her bruises were darker and her broken bones were throbbing. Wesley had set her finger and wrapped it as best he could with part of his torn shirt. Her blonde hair was matted with dried blood.

"Oh my god!" Lorne and Fred cried as they rushed to help Wesley ease Buffy down onto the settee.

"Did Angelus do this?" Connor asked.

"No." Buffy croaked. "The Beast did this."

"And you killed it?"

"How?" Fred asked.
"I'm not up to much story telling." Buffy said. "I need a shower."

"A shower?" Lorne said. "You need a doctor."

"No time. Wes…."

"I'll get the first aid kit ready." Wesley looked at Connor. "Take her up to Angel's room."

"It's ok." Buffy struggled to her feet. "I'll manage."

Connor shook his head and lifted Buffy in his arms. She started to protest, but he just ignored her and walked up the stairs. He was so much like Angel and he didn't even realize it. She sighed and let him take her upstairs. He made her sit on the bed while he got towels to put in the bathroom and made sure the shower water was hot enough for her.

"Has Cordelia said anything?" Buffy asked before he left.

"I checked on her." Connor said. He seemed like he wanted to add something to it, but instead he said, "She's mad at us." He headed for the door.
Just before he walked out, Buffy stopped him. "Connor…. Look, I know that you have issues with your dad and I get it, but I want you to know that he's a good man. He loves you. You should give him a chance when he's himself again. I think you'll find that you two have a lot in common."

He didn't say anything for a long moment, just stared at her. She offered him a small smile and he finally gave her one back. He nodded slightly, acknowledging her words and then walking out of the room. She really hoped she could get through to him about his dad.

With a sigh, she began the struggle to get into the bathroom, out of her dirty and torn clothes, and under the hot water. It stung as it hit her open wounds. She watched the blood flow down the drain in swirls of red and pink. She dreaded using the soap, but it was necessary. Biting her lip against the pain, she began to wash the blood and grime off of her.

Wesley was waiting for her when she was finished. She stayed wrapped in a towel and gritted her teeth as he poured hydrogen peroxide on the worst of her wounds. He bandaged them up tightly and then left the room. Buffy laid down on the bed and curled up, closing her eyes tightly.

"Is this the great Buffy the Vampire Slayer giving up?" Angel asked from the side of the bed. Buffy sat up and looked at him in shock. "Don't tell me that after all we've been through, this is what makes you give up."

She realized with a shock that this wasn't Angel, but the First. "You're not him."

"You'd like me to be, wouldn't you?"

"I'd like you to go away."

"I'm always here. You can't really get rid of me."

"Wanna bet?" Buffy stood up, ignoring the pain of her broken ribs. "I'm going to put you down just like all the others. Starting with whatever game you're playing here in LA."

"Who says I'm playing a game here?"

"You said yourself that you've got your fingers in all the evil pies. This one is no different. I'll bring Angel back and then we'll stop you once and for all."

The sound of Angel's laughter echoed in the room as she turned her back on the First. She grabbed some fresh clothes out of her bag and dressed quickly. As she rounded the corner to the stairs, Connor came flying back towards her. She sidestepped quickly before he hit her and was suddenly standing face to face with Angelus.

"Hello, lover." He said with a grin.

She launched herself at him, but he ripped off a wall sconce and threw it at her head. She dodged out of the way, but he used the distraction to jump off the balcony and down into the lobby. Fred backpeddled out of the way as Angelus headed for the doors. Buffy jumped down the stairs, ignoring the sharp pain in her broken ribs, and ran after him. She stopped dead when she saw Angelus holding Wesley by the neck.

"Sucky spell, huh? You think it'd at least go to the sidewalk." Angelus taunted.

"Let him go. This is between you and me."

"When are you going to learn, Buff? It's never just between you and me. It could be, but you just keep saying no." Buffy made a move towards them and Angelus tightened his grip on Wesley's throat. "Do the math. Can you get to me before I snap his neck? Wes is just dying to find out, aren't you, Wes?"

"Do it." Wesley choked out.

"That's it. Come on. Do it. Take your best shot and save the world. I know it's your favorite thing. What're you waiting for? Oh, let me guess, you're worried about the consequences." Angelus looked at Wesley. "Don't worry about good old Wes. What's one more body? Come on, where's my girl?"

"Buffy!" Gunn ran through the doors and threw a tranq gun at her before pointing his own gun at Angelus. Angelus pushed Wesley forward into Buffy, knocking her off balance. Gunn fired, but missed as Angelus ran away and Buffy worked to untangle herself from Wesley.

"Go!" Wesley cried.

"He's gone." Gunn said as he helped Buffy to her feet.

Lorne, who had been hit with a tranq dart, was sleeping it off on the couch in the corner of the lobby. Buffy sat on the settee listening to everyone as she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. Wesley was staring into the weapon's cabinet while Gunn and Fred talked behind the front desk.

"All I'm saying is, he tries dancing in here and pulling a Dark Shadows again, he's gonna get a dart up his evil ass." Gunn said.

"Well, his ass moves pretty quick. He got the book and the Wolfram and Hart papers." Fred said.

"Not your fault."

"Bet they think it was."

"Like they were any help."

"Super girl wouldn't have fallen for a cheap hunk of crap like this."

"I'm just glad it was. If anything happened to you…."

"Charles, can we maybe…."

Wes cocked a shotgun and Buffy's eyes flew open. "Just what do you think that you're you doing with that thing?"

"Changing the game." Wesley said.

"I was pretty crystal clear on the fact that we're not killing Angelus."

"We're not, but if we get another chance, I want slow him down long enough to tranq him."

"By blowing his legs off?" Fred asked.

"You want some help with that?" Gunn asked.

"Hey, peanut gallery, be quiet." Buffy snapped. Gunn glared at her, but she ignored him. "Fred, I don't think anything was your fault." Fred blushed, embarrassed that Buffy had heard her. "Angelus is cunning. He's gotten me with some stupid crap, too. And Gunn, you weren't a lot of help either. You're just a human with a gun. What did you think you could actually accomplish against Angelus? And while you people have been talking amongst yourselves, I've been concentrating on healing as much as I can so I can go out and face the demon that wears the face of the man I love." She stood up, heading to the weapons cabinet to stock up. She stopped and looked at Connor standing at the top of the stairs. He looked startled that she had caught him. "Are you ok?" He nodded. "Good. Gunn, you're now on Cordy duty. Connor, you're down here playing guard dog. I trust you and your muscles to keep everyone safe."

"Trust him!?" Gunn yelped.

Connor, his chest slightly puffed out, came down the stairs. "At least someone does."

Gunn ignored him. "Do you have any idea what he's put us all through?"

"You know what? I don't care. He's here. He's willing to help. Angel loves him. That's all I need to know."

"I'll keep them safe, Buffy." Connor said to her.

"Thank you, Connor." She looked at Wesley. "I'm making a phone call and then we're leaving." Buffy went into Angel's office and shut the doors. She could hear Wesley telling the others that Buffy knew what she was doing and that they just needed to follow her directions. She ignored the rest and picked up the phone.

"How's it going?" Willow asked.

"Not great." Buffy replied. "I need you up here, Will. I'm going after him and I'm bringing him back tonight."

"I've already got my supplies ready to go. I'll see you soon."

Buffy smiled as Willow hung up. She took a deep breath, allowed herself one moment to feel all the pain and sorrow churning in her mind and body, then let it go. She stood up and walked out into the lobby purposefully, pointing at Wesley. "No blowing his legs off. He'll need them when he's Angel again." Wesley followed her out. "Our best bet is to start with a perimeter sweep. He's probably not still in the area, but I just want to be sure."

"And then what? You'll let him escape again?" Wesley asked. Buffy cocked an eyebrow at him. "Angelus was right. You should have gone for him."

She rolled her eyes. "He would have killed you."

"And how many will he have the chance to murder now because you let that make a difference? How many people were murdered in Sunnydale the last time he was released because you couldn't bring yourself to kill him? Angelus is an animal. The only way to defeat him is to be just as vicious as he is."

Buffy spun around and glared up at Wesley. "Don't talk to me like you're still some know-it-all Watcher who, by the way, doesn't actually know a thing. You've never fought him. You don't know what it's like to see the one person you love more than anything in the world come after you and your friends night after night, knowing that your hesitation is putting so many lives in danger, and not having the mental strength to stop him. And you definitely don't know what it takes to defeat him. But if you want to throw some blame around, why don't you start with yourself? You brought that shaman into Angel's life. It was your idea to release Angelus. This is as much on your head as it is on mine."

Buffy knew she was taking her anger and frustration out on the demon as she bashed its head into the bar, but she just couldn't bring herself to care about it at the moment. They had followed a few trails with the potential of leading to Angelus. The last trail had led them to this particular demon bar near the docks. Upon arriving, Buffy's clout as the Slayer led them straight over to a demon Angelus had been talking to earlier in the night.

"Come on! I bruise easy." The demon whined.

"I can't wait to see what colors you'll turn when I'm done with you." Buffy said, smashing its head into the bar again.

A vampire tried to attack Wesley, but Wesley just aimed his shotgun at the thing's face. "Let's not, shall we?" He said.

The vampire smiled brightly and put his hands up in surrender. "It's cool, dude. No worries."

"I don't remember anything. I was drunk. I thought she was 18." The demon being held down by Buffy said.

"You'd better hope I don't do the math on that statement." She hit the demon's head on the bar again.

"Break his head open. See if there's any candy." A vampire said somewhere behind her.

"Hey, what do I look like, a piñata?" The demon asked.

"Let's find out."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Ease off the contusion. What do you want to know?"

"Simple: Where's Angelus?"

"Who?"

Buffy slammed its head on the bar again, a little harder this time. "Look, we've been in and out of crappy bars all night breathing stale beer and even staler blood half the night. It's led us to you and if you can't tell, I'm not in a good mood. You need to tell us what you know."

"Look, I'm telling ya, I don't know nothing. On my mother's tumor. And even if I did, I'd never yak to a couple of fleshbags that are about to get their internal organs sucked out of their…"

Wesley shot the demon in the face that had been sneaking up on them. Buffy was impressed that he had sensed it coming. "Strom demon." He said. "Face should grow back." He cocked the shotgun. "Eventually."

"Will yours?" Buffy asked.

"Oh, that Angelus." The demon cried. "Yeah, in here all the time running his mouth. 'Look at me, I'm so evil.' Real jackass. Never liked him. I'm on your side."

Buffy hit the demon's head against the bar again for good measure. "Where is he?"

"I don't know. I swear. He was in here earlier giving us the blah blah blah, and then he started mumbling to himself like a big pretty freak, and then…. He slipped into the back."

"Where?"

The demon pointed to the back room and Buffy released him. She shot him a warning glare before heading to the back room. They walked through a beaded curtain to find drugged-out people and vampires laying around.

"This looks like that vampire brothel my ex went to behind my back." Buffy said, looking around in disgust. A vampire appeared, pupils dilated and eyes glassy, and lunged at them. Buffy easily staked him and shook her head. "Why here?"

"What do you mean?" Wesley asked.

"This isn't Angelus' usual type of hangout. Why did he come here?"

"Maybe he was led here."

"By the First?"

Wesley shrugged. "Perhaps. Or by the Beast's master."

Buffy went over to a woman lying on the ground in the middle of a trip. She knelt down and the girl's eyes opened. "Hey, you're pretty. You wanna make out?"

With a sigh, Buffy hauled the woman up by her collar and pushed her against the wall. "There was a vampire in here earlier. Tall, dark hair…." The girl's eyes drifted and Buffy punched her. "Listen!"

"Ok! God! What's your issue?"

"Tall, dark hair, talking to himself…."

"Let go."

Buffy punched her again. "Did you see him?"

"No, I didn't." The woman began to cry. "Stop it, you're hurting me!"

"I can do a lot worse if you don't start talking." Buffy pulled out a knife from her the holster on her back. She pushed the knife into the woman's shoulder just under her collarbone about an inch in. The woman gasped in pain, but Buffy slid the knife in another inch. "The tracks on your arms tell me that you've been here at least two or three days straight? Am I right?"

"Yeah, god, stop! Yes four! Four days!"

"Then you've seen the vampire we're looking for."

"Angelus, I saw him. He, uh….

"Where is he?"

"I don't know." Buffy pushed the knife in another inch. "I don't know! Please stop!"

"They said he was talking to himself. What was he saying?"

"I don't know. It wa…. It was like he was talking to someone else. It was all rain of fire a-and pulling strings and a soul. That's all I heard. Please stop. It hurts."

Buffy pulled the knife out of the woman and let her drop. She turned to Wesley. "So, the Beast's master is talking with Angelus."

"So it seems." She reached down and took two of the syringes from the woman's stash. "What are you doing?"

"This stuff drugs vampires, too?"

"Yes. They shoot up, the vampires feed, use them like a filter. I've read the effects can be quite intoxicating…. for both of them"

"Then I think I know how to capture Angelus."

"Buffy, that stuff is dangerous."

"Dangerous comes with the territory of Slayer." She looked at the syringes and sighed, stuffing them into her coat pocket. "He'll never see it coming." Buffy headed out and Wesley followed her back out into the cool night air. They were headed back to his car when she stopped them. "Wes…. I think Cordelia is the Beast's master."

"Why do you think that?"

"She's not acting like Cordelia. At least not the Cordelia I know and was keeping up with until she disappeared into the great beyond. Whatever happened to her up there or on the way back, she's not Cordelia. Sleeping with Angel's kid, letting Angelus out of that cage, the way she's reacting to me being here, trying to undermine everything I say or do…. None of it adds up to the Cordelia I know. Tell me you've seen this."

"Her behavior has been a bit…. Odd, but…."

"You just chalked it up to trauma from coming back? I get it. I wasn't exactly sane and rational after I was brought back, either, but I didn't turn around and sleep with my potential boyfriend's teenage son. Cordelia wouldn't either. Nothing could ever completely alter her personality like it has been. Mentally, she's definitely stronger than I am. Don't ever tell her I said that."

"I'll take your concerns into consideration."

"Thank you."

Wesley's phone started ringing and he pulled it out of his pocket.

Buffy followed Wesley into a dimly lit and under-construction building. The place had once been beautiful with its columns and archways. Wesley had his shotgun at the ready while Buffy just stayed on high alert. She smelled blood and it wasn't very fresh. Or human.

"I don't think this Maury guy will be able to help us find Angelus." Buffy said.

"Why?" Wesley asked.

"Because he's dead." They rounded a corner and sure enough, they found a demon lying dead on the floor. Blood was seeping from his body onto the papers that were scattered all over the ground.

"Hello lover." A smooth purr said behind them. Buffy and Wesley turned to find Angelus standing there. "A little birdie in my head told me you'd be here. Ooh. Exciting."

Buffy looked at Wesley. "Lends credit to my theory."

"I suppose it does."

Angelus looked annoyed that they weren't phased by his sudden appearance. Buffy shrugged at him and brought her arm up suddenly, holding a tranq gun. She shot it, but he just barely managed to dodge out of the lashed out and kicked her in the stomach, sending her skidding back into a column. She hit the floor and saw one of the syringes fall out of her pocket. Grabbing it, she made the quick decision to shove the needle into her side.

Wesley cocked his shotgun and fired a round at Angelus, but the vampire ducked. "Gotta do better than that, Wes." Wesley shot again and missed again. "Come on, I'll give you one more." He raised the shotgun into Angelus's face, but Angelus grabbed the barrel as Wesley pulled the trigger, directing the buckshot away and just barely missing Buffy as she popped to her feet. "Strike three." He threw Wesley through a nearby glass barricade on a ledge and the ex-Watcher fell 20 feet down. "Uh-oh." Angelus turned to Buffy. "Vampire with a gun." He took a shot at her, but she dove out of the way. "I can see why he likes this thing." He shot again and Buffy ended up throwing herself down a flight of stairs. She landed painfully at the bottom. When she finally managed to roll over and sit up, Angelus was there with the gun in her face. "This feels familiar."

"Nothing I remember." Buffy gritted out. Her broken ribs were throbbing and the drugs were starting to make their presence in her bloodstream known.

"Oh come on! The last time we danced together. You were alone then, too. I had a weapon pointed at your face just like I do now."

"Right." She struggled to her feet and stood in front of him. "That dance ended with you in hell."

"Again," Angelus tossed the gun away. "Not me you sent to hell. What do you say we finish that dance?"

"You know if I win this, you end up with a soul again, right?"

"And if I win…."

"I'm yours."

"Forever." Buffy shrugged. Angelus grinned. "This is going to be fun."

Buffy rolled her eyes and took the first punch. He laughed and they began their brutal ballet. Her head swam with every blow, but she fought the dizziness as hard as she fought Angelus.

"A little tired, sweetie?" He taunted. "You wanna take a break?"

"Not until you're shoved back in your box." Buffy kicked out, but he caught her foot and flipped her onto her back. She rolled to avoid him stomping on her, but he managed to kick her in the head. She rolled a few feet before stopping to spit the blood out of her mouth. "Now, this is disappointing. You never used to bleed so easy."

"Do you ever get tired of the sound of your own voice?"

"Not really." She got to her feet again, sliding the knife hidden in the arm of her coat into her hand. "You'll just have to get used to it, I guess."

Buffy threw the knife and embedded it into his chest. Before he could react, she moved into action and ripped it back out. He tried to block her punches, but she was too fast. He finally managed to get in a good kick to her stomach to knock her back. Using the moment of relief in her attack, he jumped up into the scaffolding.

"That hurt, baby. Kinda liked it." She looked up to try and find him, but he was moving fast in the shadows. "How about you?"

"It didn't suck for me."

"There's my girl."

Buffy heard him drop down behind her, barely making a sound, and she turned and lashed out at him. He caught her wrist and punched her, knocking the knife out of her hand. They traded blows, finding they were pretty evenly matched. Buffy needed a breather, so she jumped up into the scaffolding. She got all of three seconds before Angelus jumped up after her.

She dodged around him and swung to the outside of the scaffolding. He kept trying to punch her, but she expertly swung away. She couldn't stop the giggle that left her lips and knew the drugs were really hitting hard. Unfortunately, he took advantage of her distraction and connected a punch to her chest, sending her to the scaffolding across the room. He jumped after her, but she was already up and moving.

"I fought a hell-god on some scaffolding once." Buffy said, fending him off. She leapt from one level to another, but he managed to catch up to her and throw her to the ground before jumping down beside her.

"You seem a little chipper about this."

"Do I?" She laughed as she got to her feet. "Probably. I've been stuck with a house full of annoying, knit-picky teenage girls. This is the most fun I've had since I shared a sex hallucination dream thing with you!"

Angelus cocked his head. "Haven't seen this side of you before, Buff."

"Why aren't you fighting?"

"You were giggling at it." She studied him for a long moment. The drugs were really beginning to affect her brain. "What is wrong with you?"

"Did you miss the part where this is my version of fun?" He narrowed his eyes at her, but she stepped closer to him and shook her head. "Nothing makes sense anymore!"

"What are you babbling about?"

"I got yanked out of heaven by my friends and stuck back in this crappy world that I save over and over and over and I get absolutely no thanks for any of it. The only thing I do get is stuck with a bunch of wannabe-Slayers who question my every move and never stop eating my food! My friends always look to me to tell them what to do and I end up giving these long winded, pick-me-up speeches that do nothing in the long run because I always end up right back where I started. Which is them looking at me to tell them what to do. And did I mention how judgmental they are? It's constant judging with them! Especially Xander. I am tired! And I am done." She grabbed his head and pulled him to her, crushing their lips together in a fiery kiss.

His arms wrapped automatically around her waist and lifted her up. She wrapped her legs around him and he pressed her against a nearby column. He pushed his hands up inside her shirt and scratched at the skin on her ribs. She bit down on his neck and he growled, vamping.

"Welcome to the dark side, baby." He said as she bared her neck for him. With a victorious grin on his face, he sunk his teeth down into the mark on her neck.