Fred looked up at Wesley.
"The council?" she asked. " I thought it like . . . ended" she said.
"Well, technically there is no more council, but he was a young watcher that I knew fairly well" Wesley replied.
"What is he doing here? Now?" Angel asked. Wesley began shaking his head.
"I don't know," he said. "Maybe . . ." he began then looked to Fred at her slight moan. "What is it?" he asked concerned.
"I think I need to lie down, this vision really took a lot out of me," Fred said closing her eyes for a second then looking back up into Wesley's. He looked so concerned, his brow furrowed. She was so lost in his deep blue eyes she didn't even hear his question. She suddenly lifted her hand to caress his face. His features softened. Then he picked her up as she rested her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat. She smiled at the warmth she felt leaning against him. Wesley placed her back in bed and brushed a strand of hair way from her face.
"We need to figure out why he's here, or the pain won't go away," Wesley stated very solemnly, to no one in particular.
"I know" Angel replied. "We'll help her, but I need to know about this guy" he said.
Wesley nodded at began to exit Fred's bedroom and Angel followed behind him, closing her door quietly.
"He wasn't very bright but his father got him into the council. He was greatly feared. He had power of some kind. His father and my father were close and pushed for us to be friends. I feared him just as must as anyone else, mainly because he would use his magic. One day it got out of control, and he killed another watcher in training. I was the only witness. He threatened that if I told he'd kill me, but I had to. He was expelled and never returned to the council. We never did know where he was sent, but it was some sort of prison somewhere secluded. But before he left he told me that if he ever got out he track me down and cause me great pain" Wesley explained. "I believe Fred's vision is a warning that he'll do something. I'm afraid he'll do something to Fred, we can't let that happen" he said turning to Angel with tears in his eyes.
"We'll get him Wes, don't worry" Angel said. "If I can find out where this happens, I can stop . . . myself, but we can figure out what's up with this guy and why he's here," Angel explained.
"She's pretty beat, but I could ask her again," Wesley said. "In the meantime can you go to my office and get a few books for me" Wesley said as he began writing down s list.
"Okay, I'll be back as quickly as possible" Angel stated taking the list and exiting the apartment.
Wesley then turned to Fred's room and sighed. He didn't even know if Nick knew about Fred but if he did, he definitely would hurt her. Wesley approached Fred's door and placed his forehead on the door as his hand rested on the doorknob. Inside Fred was trying to fall asleep, she moaned slightly mainly from frustration. Wesley heard her moan and then pressed his ear to the door Fred turned onto her side and whimpered again. Wesley cringed form her whimpers and sighed again. He stood up straight and knocked lightly. Fred opened her eyes and sat up staring at her door. When Wesley didn't get a response he knocked again, more loudly this time. Fred swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood to open the door. She placed her hand on the door and opened it. Wesley just stared at her for a moment.
"Yes?" she asked.
"Oh, I needed to ask you something" he replied. She motioned for him to come in. He paced for a minute then turned to her.
"Wesley what's wrong? Fred asked crossing over to sit on the bed.
"I need to know where the incident happened, or happens," he said.
"I didn't see any signs or an address, I really can't tell you," she said.
"But you have to try please" Wesley asked sitting next to her.
"Wesley I looked, I didn't see anything, I'm sorry, unless the powers would like to send me another brain splitting, head numbing vision, then I'm not going to ahhhhh" Fred screamed as she grabbed her head.
"I guess they heard you" Wesley said steadying her unless the vision subsided. "Are you okay?" he asked.
"Um . . Yea, okay, same scene, kind of. But this Nick guy is laughing as Angel hits him, and there is no family this time, and then it flashes to an altar and candles and there's an orb, and a spell book" Fred rattled off so fast Wesley couldn't even keep up.
"Slow down" Wesley said rubbing her back.
"Sorry, um . . . and Nick is performing a spell of some kind" then Fred opened her eyes and looked up. "Does that help?" she asked. Wesley stared at her for a moment processing everything just as Angel came through the door.
"Wes!" Angel called through the apartment with a stack of books. He placed them on the kitchen table and entered Fred's room. "What's going on?" he asked.
"I had another vision. Nick is up to something, something big, a spell of some kind, but I had the same vision as before too, but it was different. There was no family this time" she explained as she stood and walked over to Angel.
"Well, maybe you thought you saw a family" Angel guessed.
"No I definitely did, they were crying and all sad, as Nick was beaten up, but in the second version, there was no family and Nick was laughing not crying" Fred finished.
"Well maybe the powers . . ." Angel began.
"No, it's him" Wesley said. Fred and Angel turned to him puzzled. "He knows about you, about us. The first vision wasn't a real vision. You said so yourself it felt a little weird," Wesley said standing and walking to join them.
"Well, yea but pain is pain" Fred answered.
"This is the great pain, he is hurting you to hurt me; he wants us to fight. That spell Fred saw was probably him sending you false visions" Wesley said.
"I know he said he'd hurt you, but how could he know so much about you?" Angel asked.
"I guess the prison wasn't secure enough. He must have used magic to find me," Wesley said running his hand through his hair. "But, after all these years, he'd still remember what he said?" Wesley questioned himself.
"Wait, hurt you? What did he say? What's going on!?" Fred yelled, which surprised both Wesley and Angel. She just stared at them. "Hello!" she said. "Why did this guy said he'd hurt?" she asked turning to Wesley.
"I saw him kill someone and so I told the council, and they took him away. Before he left he told me if he got out, that he'd hurt me, 'cause me great pain'" Wesley explained.
"Oh" Fred whispered. "But you didn't do anything wrong?" she said walking closer to him.
"No, but his father was very upset that I told, which made my father upset. For the first time in my life, I was glad I was at the council and not at home." Wesley replied a little zoned out. Fred stared at him and saw pain in his eyes. Then he shook his thoughts and looked up at Angel. "You get the books?" he asked.
"Yea, they're in the kitchen" Angel replied as Wesley walked passed him and Fred.
"I wish I knew more about his past" Fred stated staring at Wesley as he walked into the kitchen.
"I really don't think you do" Angel said. Fred turned to him with a concerned glare. "Wesley has been through a lot, and his childhood was not a pleasant time for him" he answered. Fred looked back at Wesley.
"Well, I won't press the issue. I'm going to help him," she said walking out the room. She took a seat next to Wesley. He had his head in his hands and his eyes were closed. She gently began rubbing his back, which made him jolt form surprise. He turned to see it was Fred and smiled, the put his head back down. "Are you going to be okay?" she asked. Then he sat up and ran a hand through his hair.
"Yep" he replied quietly. Then he turned to Fred. "Are you going to be all right?" he asked.
She sighed, "Yea, I think so. I'm a little more worried about you right now though" she said. "Why didn't you tell me?" she asked almost hurt.
"I don't know, I was probably still afraid. I know deep down I'm still as scared of him as I was when I was a kid. I mean, I saw what he can do." Wesley explained. "I don't know. I just wish I knew why he was here and how he got here in the first place," he said.
"You will, and everything will be fine" she said.
"Oh, did you happen to catch a location that time?" Wesley asked.
"Oh, umm yea. Let me think. It was in an ally off Wiltshire Street," she said.
"Okay, I'm going to read up on what type of wizardry he does and tomorrow we'll go to Wiltshire and see if he's there" Wesley explained.
"Alrighty" Fred said as she kissed his cheek and went back to her room.
Angel came out and approached Wesley.
"If we do find out why he's here, we have to make sure we're fighting him for a good reason" Angel said. Wesley nodded. "I'm going home, call if you need me" Angel said as he exited the apartment. Wesley sighed and went back to reading.
Fred woke in the middles of the night and found no Wesley next to her. She sat up and called his name.
"Wesley" she whispered and found to her surprise, she barely had a voice. She got out of bed and unsteadily walked into the kitchen. Wesley was still awake, but hardly had his eyes open. He sighed as he turned the page. Fred stood in the doorframe of the kitchen. "Wesley" she called again as she rubbed her eyes. Wesley almost startled turn to look up at a tired Fred. "Why are you still working?" she asked as she walked over to him.
"I wanted to finish this passage I'm translating but it's taking longer than I expected" he replied standing and walking to her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned down to kiss her. Fred ran her hands over his chest and deepened the kiss. Then he broke away and picked her up in his arms. He carried her into the bedroom and gently placed her on the bed. He caressed her face as she blushed a little. He bent over and kissed her again as he ran his hands down her body to rest on her hips. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him closer forcing him to collapse on top of her.
The sunlight flickered through the window. Fred opened her eyes and squinted as light shined into her eyes. She raised her hand to block the light. She looked down at the lack of clothing both of them were wearing. As she moved Wesley wrapped his arm that was rested across her abdomen, tighter around Fred and moved closer to her. She smiled at him and caressed the side of his face. He leaned into her hand and let out a slight moan as he grinned. His eyes flickered open and he smiled up at Fred. Then Wesley shifted and sat up next to Fred. She rested her head on his chest and closed her eyes. "Good morning" Fred murmured.
"Good morning" Wesley replied kissing the top of her head.
"Did you sleep well?" she asked. He nodded and turned to look at the clock.
"I think we should probably get up," he said brushing her hair off her shoulder.
"Why?" she whined giving Wesley sad puppy dog eyes. Wesley couldn't help but laugh a little.
"Because we have work and I have to do more research on Nick," he explained. Fred looked down and then sat up and turned her back to Wesley.
"I forgot all about him," she said running a hand through her hair. Wesley scooted closer to her and pulled Fred's head to rest on his shoulder.
"I'm sorry about what you saw, but we have to figure it out. Let's get dressed eat, and go into work. I will stay with you all day if you want me to" he said. Fred nodded and began to get up. Before she could walk away, Wesley tugged her hand. "Hey, we'll figure it out. Ok?" he said.
"Yea, I know," she said nodding and smiling a bit. Then Wesley followed her into the bathroom.
As Fred entered Wolfram and Hart, she was bombarded with messages from people.
"Miss Burkle, I have those lab reports you wanted" a young women said approaching her.
"Yes, Chelsea thank you but I have to . . ." she began as another colleague approached her and began talking.
"Miss Burkle the lab results came back. I need you to look at them," another young physicist said as she handed Fred a folder full of paper.
"Hi Erin, um . . . I have to look at the lab report and then I can look at . . ." Fred began again and was interrupted once again.
"Miss Burkle, we need you in the lab right away" a man said as he rushed over to her.
"Um . . . I need to think for a second" Fred replied closing her eyes as they all began talking at the same time.
"Okay, Fred needs to rest for a little bit" Wesley said ushering her to his office.
"But I have to . . ." Fred started as she looked back at her colleagues standing behind her in shock.
"You don't have to do anything," Wesley said leading her into his office.
"Wesley I have to check those reports . . . 2 days ago! And I need to go over the results and Matt said they needed me in the lab and . . ." she rattled off almost in tears.
"You need to relax. You're here five minutes and you're already anxious," he said walking closer to her and taking her hands in his.
"I'm sorry Wesley" Fred replied closing her eyes and rubbing her forehead. "But I have a lot of work to do and I need to get started. She finished turning to exit.
"Fred" Wesley called before she left. Fred turns to face him. "Stay here and help me?" he asked more than requested. Fred let out a small smile and walked back to Wesley. She just stared into his eyes for a few seconds and then suddenly hugged him tightly. He returned the embrace. "So, you'll help me?" he asked.
"I'll do what I can," she said.
Fred sat across Wesley at his desk and began reading. The tedious work gave her a headache and made her feel a bit dizzy. She crossed her arms on the table and rested her head on her arms. Wesley rubbed his temples and then looked up at Fred. He smiled at her peaceful form. He knew she was exhausted from work and the visions. Wesley felt a little bad asking her to help seeing as he didn't really need help, but he wanted to stay with here during the day. He felt she was safer when he was around and she made him feel good just by being there. Fred would occasionally whimper in her sleep. Wesley would look up right away and that she was fine, but he took note at how much she whined. He knew she was dreaming, or more accurately having nightmares. This bothered him because he couldn't do anything to stop them. When Fred first joined the group two years ago, he knew she had nightmares of Pylea and all those years as a slave. Now it was the visions. They would come back to her in her dreams, like she hadn't already seen enough. Sometimes Wesley would spontaneously get mad at the Powers just for choosing Fred, or even Cordelia for that matter. He knew how much Fred suffered and it angered him to now that he couldn't help. Pills helped a little bit, but the pain was bad. At she was safe from the damage, that's what Lilah, said but how can you really trust her. He did though, and he hated that, she stood for everything evil, she was a woman he once had a relationship with. He didn't really love her, and he knew she didn't love him but there were feelings at one point. But he knew who he truly loved, Winifred. Wesley really loved her and couldn't believe he had such a wonderful woman. He smiled as he watched her sleep but was shaken from his thoughts as Fred's protective moans. Wesley stood and rounded the desk. He gently nudged her to wake up, but it wasn't working. Fred shifted again, so Wesley knelt next to her and softly called he name out. Fred's eyes fluttered open and she stared at hi for a dew seconds before slowly sitting up.
"Are you alright?" he asked rubbing her back as he stood. Fred yawned and began to stand as well.
"Yea, I was just dreaming" she replied as she reached her arms up to stretch. Wesley then wrapped his arms around her waist, which startled her and she dropped her arms, clinging to him. She giggled from the tickling motion he was doing with his fingers. Then she leaned her head against his chest and closed her eyes as her laughter stopped. Wesley loved to listen to her laugh, talk, whimper and even sing. He's caught her a few times singing in the shower. He finds it adorable but never mentions it; he knows he'll only embarrass her. He snapped back to reality once again as Fred caressed his face lightly. He didn't realize he was staring at her but he couldn't help it. Then Fred leaned up and kissed him softly on the lips, instinctively closing her eyes. Wesley ran a hand up her body to rest in her hair. Fred moaned against his lips and leaned into his body, feeling his warmth and security. Their lips pulled apart, and Wesley brushed a strand of hair away from her face as Fred looked down blushing. He titled her head back so he could see her eyes; he loved her eyes. He loved everything about her but especially her eyes. They were so gorgeous and deep. He would frequently get lost in her eyes, just because they were so beautiful. Then Wesley suddenly broke the silence.
"I've found a spell." He said plainly. Fred just stared at him for a second. "To stop nick" he finished. Fred nodded and turned back to the desk and leaned her arms on it. "He won't hurt you I promise," he said.
"That's not what I'm worried about" Fred replied turning back to face Wesley. "I'm scared he'll hurt you," she said. "I can take care of myself" he replied.
"I know, but you said it yourself, this guy is powerful and I don't think I could bare anything happening to you" Fred stated near tears.
"I'll be fine. I won't do anything stupid that could get me hurt" he replied brushing her cheek as a stray tear fell.
"I just worry sometimes" she replied, wiping her eyes, even though Wesley just did. He embraced Fred for a moment just as Angel knocked on the door. The separated and Wesley answered the door.
"Hey guys, did you find anything yet," Angel asked glancing between them. Fred with, tears stained on her face, turned so her back was to Angel. Angel sensed the tension in the room and turned primarily to Wesley.
"Yes, we have" Wesley replied after a few seconds. "I've found a spell to suspend Nick's magic long enough for you to attack although we do not know his plan, I'm sure it has something to do with hurting me in some way. I want Lorne to come in and try to get into Fred's visions. See if the first was she saw was really a fake. Fred turned at this comment.
"Umm, may I protest?" Fred answered, raising her hand. "I don't want Lorne in my head, or anyone for that matter. Remember last time with Cordy, she blew him across the room, literally!" Fred exclaimed.
"You won't do that, and we have to, just to find out if your first vision was faux." He replied.
"Will it hurt?" she asked, with tears welling up in her eyes again.
"Well, I don't -" Wesley began but Fred interrupted him.
"And do not say, you don't know because I can't take any more pain, it's too much to handle right now" Fred almost yelled as tears ran freely down her face. She knew she was crying from being tired and upset and just to cry.
"Fred, we don't want to cause you more pain, but this is the only way" Angel replied.
"I know you don't want to cause more pain but that's not the point, the point is you always do" she finished angrily. They just stared at her for a few moments as she composed herself. "I'm sorry guys. It's not your fault. I'm just frustrated" she apologized.
"It's okay" Wesley said walking towards her.
"I think we better just get this over with" Fred stated walking past Wesley.
"Lorne with be arriving in a few minutes," Angel explained. Fred nodded and walked over to the coach and sat down. Lorne came in a few minutes later, breaking the silence.
"Howdy kids" Lorne said in a quite happy tone, but noticed the tension in the room and just walked over to Fred. "Hey how are you doing?" he asked Fred as he sat next to her. She looked up at Lorne.
"I'm okay," she said. "Can we just get this over with?" she asked after a beat. Lorne nodded and stood.
"Lay down for me" he said as she did so. He sat next to her and Fred closed her eyes. He could tell she was tense. "Just relax" Lorne instructed as Fred took a deep breath. Lorne placed his index and middle fingers on Fred's temples and slightly rotated them counterclockwise. Lorne then closed his eyes. Fred jolted for a second and Lorne pulled his hands away. "Okay, well one of the visions definitely wasn't real. But whoever sent it has power, and lots of it." Lorne explained. Wesley walked closer to them and stared down at Fred. He eyes were still closed, and rather tightly. "Fred" Lorne called gently. "Fred, it's over, you can open your eyes" Lorne said. Fred slowly opened her eyes and looked up at Wesley, Angel and Lorne gazing down at her. She sat up, and they backed off a little.
"Sorry, got lost for a second" she said.
"You guys have to watch out, whoever sent the vision wants to cause harm. To Fred, to you, anyone but it's going to be big. From what I could tell, you're supposed to meet tonight" Lorne explained.
"Well, we have a spell to counter any of his magic curses" Wesley said.
"Ahh, you guys know how well magic works, I don't know if that's the best idea" Lorne replied.
"It's the only way. He's too strong for us to fight in combat and even if he wasn't, he'd use magic to hurts us instead," Wesley explained.
Wesley retrieved all the supplies for the spell and later that night he Angel and Fred, equipped with weapons and the spell. As Angel drove to the alley, Fred and Wesley were silent in the back. Angel would glance up at his mirror and see them looking away from each other.
"We're here" Angel called as he parked and began to exit the car. Fred began to open the car door but was stopped as Wesley's hand rested on her arm. "Be careful" Wesley said as he looked into her eyes.
"I know" Fred said as she proceeded to get out.
"Fred" Wesley called again. Fred turned to him a little angrily. Wesley moved closer to her. "I mean it, I don't want to see you get hurt" he said.
"I know" she said softly and Wesley let go of her arm as she got out.
"So this is the spot right?" Angel asked, looking around a bit.
"Yea, this is what I saw" Fred replied looking around as well, just as Wesley caught up to them weapon in hand.
"Well, Nick should be here soon" Wesley said. "Everyone have their weapons?" he asked just as Nick appeared from the fog.
"Hello Wesley" Nick greeted. Wesley whipped his head to glare at Nick. "Long time no see, thanks to you" he finished with a wicked grin.
To Be Continued
"The council?" she asked. " I thought it like . . . ended" she said.
"Well, technically there is no more council, but he was a young watcher that I knew fairly well" Wesley replied.
"What is he doing here? Now?" Angel asked. Wesley began shaking his head.
"I don't know," he said. "Maybe . . ." he began then looked to Fred at her slight moan. "What is it?" he asked concerned.
"I think I need to lie down, this vision really took a lot out of me," Fred said closing her eyes for a second then looking back up into Wesley's. He looked so concerned, his brow furrowed. She was so lost in his deep blue eyes she didn't even hear his question. She suddenly lifted her hand to caress his face. His features softened. Then he picked her up as she rested her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat. She smiled at the warmth she felt leaning against him. Wesley placed her back in bed and brushed a strand of hair way from her face.
"We need to figure out why he's here, or the pain won't go away," Wesley stated very solemnly, to no one in particular.
"I know" Angel replied. "We'll help her, but I need to know about this guy" he said.
Wesley nodded at began to exit Fred's bedroom and Angel followed behind him, closing her door quietly.
"He wasn't very bright but his father got him into the council. He was greatly feared. He had power of some kind. His father and my father were close and pushed for us to be friends. I feared him just as must as anyone else, mainly because he would use his magic. One day it got out of control, and he killed another watcher in training. I was the only witness. He threatened that if I told he'd kill me, but I had to. He was expelled and never returned to the council. We never did know where he was sent, but it was some sort of prison somewhere secluded. But before he left he told me that if he ever got out he track me down and cause me great pain" Wesley explained. "I believe Fred's vision is a warning that he'll do something. I'm afraid he'll do something to Fred, we can't let that happen" he said turning to Angel with tears in his eyes.
"We'll get him Wes, don't worry" Angel said. "If I can find out where this happens, I can stop . . . myself, but we can figure out what's up with this guy and why he's here," Angel explained.
"She's pretty beat, but I could ask her again," Wesley said. "In the meantime can you go to my office and get a few books for me" Wesley said as he began writing down s list.
"Okay, I'll be back as quickly as possible" Angel stated taking the list and exiting the apartment.
Wesley then turned to Fred's room and sighed. He didn't even know if Nick knew about Fred but if he did, he definitely would hurt her. Wesley approached Fred's door and placed his forehead on the door as his hand rested on the doorknob. Inside Fred was trying to fall asleep, she moaned slightly mainly from frustration. Wesley heard her moan and then pressed his ear to the door Fred turned onto her side and whimpered again. Wesley cringed form her whimpers and sighed again. He stood up straight and knocked lightly. Fred opened her eyes and sat up staring at her door. When Wesley didn't get a response he knocked again, more loudly this time. Fred swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood to open the door. She placed her hand on the door and opened it. Wesley just stared at her for a moment.
"Yes?" she asked.
"Oh, I needed to ask you something" he replied. She motioned for him to come in. He paced for a minute then turned to her.
"Wesley what's wrong? Fred asked crossing over to sit on the bed.
"I need to know where the incident happened, or happens," he said.
"I didn't see any signs or an address, I really can't tell you," she said.
"But you have to try please" Wesley asked sitting next to her.
"Wesley I looked, I didn't see anything, I'm sorry, unless the powers would like to send me another brain splitting, head numbing vision, then I'm not going to ahhhhh" Fred screamed as she grabbed her head.
"I guess they heard you" Wesley said steadying her unless the vision subsided. "Are you okay?" he asked.
"Um . . Yea, okay, same scene, kind of. But this Nick guy is laughing as Angel hits him, and there is no family this time, and then it flashes to an altar and candles and there's an orb, and a spell book" Fred rattled off so fast Wesley couldn't even keep up.
"Slow down" Wesley said rubbing her back.
"Sorry, um . . . and Nick is performing a spell of some kind" then Fred opened her eyes and looked up. "Does that help?" she asked. Wesley stared at her for a moment processing everything just as Angel came through the door.
"Wes!" Angel called through the apartment with a stack of books. He placed them on the kitchen table and entered Fred's room. "What's going on?" he asked.
"I had another vision. Nick is up to something, something big, a spell of some kind, but I had the same vision as before too, but it was different. There was no family this time" she explained as she stood and walked over to Angel.
"Well, maybe you thought you saw a family" Angel guessed.
"No I definitely did, they were crying and all sad, as Nick was beaten up, but in the second version, there was no family and Nick was laughing not crying" Fred finished.
"Well maybe the powers . . ." Angel began.
"No, it's him" Wesley said. Fred and Angel turned to him puzzled. "He knows about you, about us. The first vision wasn't a real vision. You said so yourself it felt a little weird," Wesley said standing and walking to join them.
"Well, yea but pain is pain" Fred answered.
"This is the great pain, he is hurting you to hurt me; he wants us to fight. That spell Fred saw was probably him sending you false visions" Wesley said.
"I know he said he'd hurt you, but how could he know so much about you?" Angel asked.
"I guess the prison wasn't secure enough. He must have used magic to find me," Wesley said running his hand through his hair. "But, after all these years, he'd still remember what he said?" Wesley questioned himself.
"Wait, hurt you? What did he say? What's going on!?" Fred yelled, which surprised both Wesley and Angel. She just stared at them. "Hello!" she said. "Why did this guy said he'd hurt?" she asked turning to Wesley.
"I saw him kill someone and so I told the council, and they took him away. Before he left he told me if he got out, that he'd hurt me, 'cause me great pain'" Wesley explained.
"Oh" Fred whispered. "But you didn't do anything wrong?" she said walking closer to him.
"No, but his father was very upset that I told, which made my father upset. For the first time in my life, I was glad I was at the council and not at home." Wesley replied a little zoned out. Fred stared at him and saw pain in his eyes. Then he shook his thoughts and looked up at Angel. "You get the books?" he asked.
"Yea, they're in the kitchen" Angel replied as Wesley walked passed him and Fred.
"I wish I knew more about his past" Fred stated staring at Wesley as he walked into the kitchen.
"I really don't think you do" Angel said. Fred turned to him with a concerned glare. "Wesley has been through a lot, and his childhood was not a pleasant time for him" he answered. Fred looked back at Wesley.
"Well, I won't press the issue. I'm going to help him," she said walking out the room. She took a seat next to Wesley. He had his head in his hands and his eyes were closed. She gently began rubbing his back, which made him jolt form surprise. He turned to see it was Fred and smiled, the put his head back down. "Are you going to be okay?" she asked. Then he sat up and ran a hand through his hair.
"Yep" he replied quietly. Then he turned to Fred. "Are you going to be all right?" he asked.
She sighed, "Yea, I think so. I'm a little more worried about you right now though" she said. "Why didn't you tell me?" she asked almost hurt.
"I don't know, I was probably still afraid. I know deep down I'm still as scared of him as I was when I was a kid. I mean, I saw what he can do." Wesley explained. "I don't know. I just wish I knew why he was here and how he got here in the first place," he said.
"You will, and everything will be fine" she said.
"Oh, did you happen to catch a location that time?" Wesley asked.
"Oh, umm yea. Let me think. It was in an ally off Wiltshire Street," she said.
"Okay, I'm going to read up on what type of wizardry he does and tomorrow we'll go to Wiltshire and see if he's there" Wesley explained.
"Alrighty" Fred said as she kissed his cheek and went back to her room.
Angel came out and approached Wesley.
"If we do find out why he's here, we have to make sure we're fighting him for a good reason" Angel said. Wesley nodded. "I'm going home, call if you need me" Angel said as he exited the apartment. Wesley sighed and went back to reading.
Fred woke in the middles of the night and found no Wesley next to her. She sat up and called his name.
"Wesley" she whispered and found to her surprise, she barely had a voice. She got out of bed and unsteadily walked into the kitchen. Wesley was still awake, but hardly had his eyes open. He sighed as he turned the page. Fred stood in the doorframe of the kitchen. "Wesley" she called again as she rubbed her eyes. Wesley almost startled turn to look up at a tired Fred. "Why are you still working?" she asked as she walked over to him.
"I wanted to finish this passage I'm translating but it's taking longer than I expected" he replied standing and walking to her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned down to kiss her. Fred ran her hands over his chest and deepened the kiss. Then he broke away and picked her up in his arms. He carried her into the bedroom and gently placed her on the bed. He caressed her face as she blushed a little. He bent over and kissed her again as he ran his hands down her body to rest on her hips. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him closer forcing him to collapse on top of her.
The sunlight flickered through the window. Fred opened her eyes and squinted as light shined into her eyes. She raised her hand to block the light. She looked down at the lack of clothing both of them were wearing. As she moved Wesley wrapped his arm that was rested across her abdomen, tighter around Fred and moved closer to her. She smiled at him and caressed the side of his face. He leaned into her hand and let out a slight moan as he grinned. His eyes flickered open and he smiled up at Fred. Then Wesley shifted and sat up next to Fred. She rested her head on his chest and closed her eyes. "Good morning" Fred murmured.
"Good morning" Wesley replied kissing the top of her head.
"Did you sleep well?" she asked. He nodded and turned to look at the clock.
"I think we should probably get up," he said brushing her hair off her shoulder.
"Why?" she whined giving Wesley sad puppy dog eyes. Wesley couldn't help but laugh a little.
"Because we have work and I have to do more research on Nick," he explained. Fred looked down and then sat up and turned her back to Wesley.
"I forgot all about him," she said running a hand through her hair. Wesley scooted closer to her and pulled Fred's head to rest on his shoulder.
"I'm sorry about what you saw, but we have to figure it out. Let's get dressed eat, and go into work. I will stay with you all day if you want me to" he said. Fred nodded and began to get up. Before she could walk away, Wesley tugged her hand. "Hey, we'll figure it out. Ok?" he said.
"Yea, I know," she said nodding and smiling a bit. Then Wesley followed her into the bathroom.
As Fred entered Wolfram and Hart, she was bombarded with messages from people.
"Miss Burkle, I have those lab reports you wanted" a young women said approaching her.
"Yes, Chelsea thank you but I have to . . ." she began as another colleague approached her and began talking.
"Miss Burkle the lab results came back. I need you to look at them," another young physicist said as she handed Fred a folder full of paper.
"Hi Erin, um . . . I have to look at the lab report and then I can look at . . ." Fred began again and was interrupted once again.
"Miss Burkle, we need you in the lab right away" a man said as he rushed over to her.
"Um . . . I need to think for a second" Fred replied closing her eyes as they all began talking at the same time.
"Okay, Fred needs to rest for a little bit" Wesley said ushering her to his office.
"But I have to . . ." Fred started as she looked back at her colleagues standing behind her in shock.
"You don't have to do anything," Wesley said leading her into his office.
"Wesley I have to check those reports . . . 2 days ago! And I need to go over the results and Matt said they needed me in the lab and . . ." she rattled off almost in tears.
"You need to relax. You're here five minutes and you're already anxious," he said walking closer to her and taking her hands in his.
"I'm sorry Wesley" Fred replied closing her eyes and rubbing her forehead. "But I have a lot of work to do and I need to get started. She finished turning to exit.
"Fred" Wesley called before she left. Fred turns to face him. "Stay here and help me?" he asked more than requested. Fred let out a small smile and walked back to Wesley. She just stared into his eyes for a few seconds and then suddenly hugged him tightly. He returned the embrace. "So, you'll help me?" he asked.
"I'll do what I can," she said.
Fred sat across Wesley at his desk and began reading. The tedious work gave her a headache and made her feel a bit dizzy. She crossed her arms on the table and rested her head on her arms. Wesley rubbed his temples and then looked up at Fred. He smiled at her peaceful form. He knew she was exhausted from work and the visions. Wesley felt a little bad asking her to help seeing as he didn't really need help, but he wanted to stay with here during the day. He felt she was safer when he was around and she made him feel good just by being there. Fred would occasionally whimper in her sleep. Wesley would look up right away and that she was fine, but he took note at how much she whined. He knew she was dreaming, or more accurately having nightmares. This bothered him because he couldn't do anything to stop them. When Fred first joined the group two years ago, he knew she had nightmares of Pylea and all those years as a slave. Now it was the visions. They would come back to her in her dreams, like she hadn't already seen enough. Sometimes Wesley would spontaneously get mad at the Powers just for choosing Fred, or even Cordelia for that matter. He knew how much Fred suffered and it angered him to now that he couldn't help. Pills helped a little bit, but the pain was bad. At she was safe from the damage, that's what Lilah, said but how can you really trust her. He did though, and he hated that, she stood for everything evil, she was a woman he once had a relationship with. He didn't really love her, and he knew she didn't love him but there were feelings at one point. But he knew who he truly loved, Winifred. Wesley really loved her and couldn't believe he had such a wonderful woman. He smiled as he watched her sleep but was shaken from his thoughts as Fred's protective moans. Wesley stood and rounded the desk. He gently nudged her to wake up, but it wasn't working. Fred shifted again, so Wesley knelt next to her and softly called he name out. Fred's eyes fluttered open and she stared at hi for a dew seconds before slowly sitting up.
"Are you alright?" he asked rubbing her back as he stood. Fred yawned and began to stand as well.
"Yea, I was just dreaming" she replied as she reached her arms up to stretch. Wesley then wrapped his arms around her waist, which startled her and she dropped her arms, clinging to him. She giggled from the tickling motion he was doing with his fingers. Then she leaned her head against his chest and closed her eyes as her laughter stopped. Wesley loved to listen to her laugh, talk, whimper and even sing. He's caught her a few times singing in the shower. He finds it adorable but never mentions it; he knows he'll only embarrass her. He snapped back to reality once again as Fred caressed his face lightly. He didn't realize he was staring at her but he couldn't help it. Then Fred leaned up and kissed him softly on the lips, instinctively closing her eyes. Wesley ran a hand up her body to rest in her hair. Fred moaned against his lips and leaned into his body, feeling his warmth and security. Their lips pulled apart, and Wesley brushed a strand of hair away from her face as Fred looked down blushing. He titled her head back so he could see her eyes; he loved her eyes. He loved everything about her but especially her eyes. They were so gorgeous and deep. He would frequently get lost in her eyes, just because they were so beautiful. Then Wesley suddenly broke the silence.
"I've found a spell." He said plainly. Fred just stared at him for a second. "To stop nick" he finished. Fred nodded and turned back to the desk and leaned her arms on it. "He won't hurt you I promise," he said.
"That's not what I'm worried about" Fred replied turning back to face Wesley. "I'm scared he'll hurt you," she said. "I can take care of myself" he replied.
"I know, but you said it yourself, this guy is powerful and I don't think I could bare anything happening to you" Fred stated near tears.
"I'll be fine. I won't do anything stupid that could get me hurt" he replied brushing her cheek as a stray tear fell.
"I just worry sometimes" she replied, wiping her eyes, even though Wesley just did. He embraced Fred for a moment just as Angel knocked on the door. The separated and Wesley answered the door.
"Hey guys, did you find anything yet," Angel asked glancing between them. Fred with, tears stained on her face, turned so her back was to Angel. Angel sensed the tension in the room and turned primarily to Wesley.
"Yes, we have" Wesley replied after a few seconds. "I've found a spell to suspend Nick's magic long enough for you to attack although we do not know his plan, I'm sure it has something to do with hurting me in some way. I want Lorne to come in and try to get into Fred's visions. See if the first was she saw was really a fake. Fred turned at this comment.
"Umm, may I protest?" Fred answered, raising her hand. "I don't want Lorne in my head, or anyone for that matter. Remember last time with Cordy, she blew him across the room, literally!" Fred exclaimed.
"You won't do that, and we have to, just to find out if your first vision was faux." He replied.
"Will it hurt?" she asked, with tears welling up in her eyes again.
"Well, I don't -" Wesley began but Fred interrupted him.
"And do not say, you don't know because I can't take any more pain, it's too much to handle right now" Fred almost yelled as tears ran freely down her face. She knew she was crying from being tired and upset and just to cry.
"Fred, we don't want to cause you more pain, but this is the only way" Angel replied.
"I know you don't want to cause more pain but that's not the point, the point is you always do" she finished angrily. They just stared at her for a few moments as she composed herself. "I'm sorry guys. It's not your fault. I'm just frustrated" she apologized.
"It's okay" Wesley said walking towards her.
"I think we better just get this over with" Fred stated walking past Wesley.
"Lorne with be arriving in a few minutes," Angel explained. Fred nodded and walked over to the coach and sat down. Lorne came in a few minutes later, breaking the silence.
"Howdy kids" Lorne said in a quite happy tone, but noticed the tension in the room and just walked over to Fred. "Hey how are you doing?" he asked Fred as he sat next to her. She looked up at Lorne.
"I'm okay," she said. "Can we just get this over with?" she asked after a beat. Lorne nodded and stood.
"Lay down for me" he said as she did so. He sat next to her and Fred closed her eyes. He could tell she was tense. "Just relax" Lorne instructed as Fred took a deep breath. Lorne placed his index and middle fingers on Fred's temples and slightly rotated them counterclockwise. Lorne then closed his eyes. Fred jolted for a second and Lorne pulled his hands away. "Okay, well one of the visions definitely wasn't real. But whoever sent it has power, and lots of it." Lorne explained. Wesley walked closer to them and stared down at Fred. He eyes were still closed, and rather tightly. "Fred" Lorne called gently. "Fred, it's over, you can open your eyes" Lorne said. Fred slowly opened her eyes and looked up at Wesley, Angel and Lorne gazing down at her. She sat up, and they backed off a little.
"Sorry, got lost for a second" she said.
"You guys have to watch out, whoever sent the vision wants to cause harm. To Fred, to you, anyone but it's going to be big. From what I could tell, you're supposed to meet tonight" Lorne explained.
"Well, we have a spell to counter any of his magic curses" Wesley said.
"Ahh, you guys know how well magic works, I don't know if that's the best idea" Lorne replied.
"It's the only way. He's too strong for us to fight in combat and even if he wasn't, he'd use magic to hurts us instead," Wesley explained.
Wesley retrieved all the supplies for the spell and later that night he Angel and Fred, equipped with weapons and the spell. As Angel drove to the alley, Fred and Wesley were silent in the back. Angel would glance up at his mirror and see them looking away from each other.
"We're here" Angel called as he parked and began to exit the car. Fred began to open the car door but was stopped as Wesley's hand rested on her arm. "Be careful" Wesley said as he looked into her eyes.
"I know" Fred said as she proceeded to get out.
"Fred" Wesley called again. Fred turned to him a little angrily. Wesley moved closer to her. "I mean it, I don't want to see you get hurt" he said.
"I know" she said softly and Wesley let go of her arm as she got out.
"So this is the spot right?" Angel asked, looking around a bit.
"Yea, this is what I saw" Fred replied looking around as well, just as Wesley caught up to them weapon in hand.
"Well, Nick should be here soon" Wesley said. "Everyone have their weapons?" he asked just as Nick appeared from the fog.
"Hello Wesley" Nick greeted. Wesley whipped his head to glare at Nick. "Long time no see, thanks to you" he finished with a wicked grin.
To Be Continued