&&&&&&&&
Spike's Mansion
The enraged Spike leaped up from his sitting position, at the mention
of the monster's name. "What?????!" he roared. The other vampire
cowered, backing away.
"Where is he now?!" Spike demanded.
"Who?" the vamp asked timidly.
"My soon to be tortured childe!!!" Spike yelled.
"I left one of the others to watch him. I figured you and Angelus
would want to be warned first--"
"I think you must have two volumes, Spike," Tara said as she entered
the house. "Loud and Louder," she finished, grinning at her joke. Her
smile dissipated when Spike leapt at her. She reacted with a wave
of her hand though, and Spike went colliding into the far wall,
smashing a table as he went down.
Angelus walked out of the other room, muttering, "What is it with you
today, Spike?" He saw Tara and one of his minions. "What is it?" he
asked the minion.
"Ask him," the vampire pointed to Spike. When Angelus turned to face
Spike, the minion ducked out again.
"Her brother--" Spike pointed at Tara angrily as he got up, "is
double-crossing us with that Adam-thing."
"Really," Angelus said quietly. "Now that was just a big mistake,
wasn't it," he remarked, turning on Tara.
"Hey, don't blame me for what Riley does," Tara replied
nervously. "He's an idiot of his own making."
"Somehow, I just don't think so, Witch," Angelus replied angrily,
approaching her menacingly. Tara raised her hand, but froze when he
warned, "I wouldn't do that if I were you, Tara," with a deceptive
smile. "You'll just make it harder on yourself in the long run. You
may be strong, but you can't always be ready for me. I can wait as
long as it takes to catch you asleep, or just not paying attention.
But I will kill you, don't doubt that."
Tara dropped her hand, and said, "I _don't_ doubt that, Angelus. But I
_didn't_ have anything to do with what Riley has planned. You have to
believe me," she pleaded.
"Do something for me," Angelus replied, stopping inches in front of
her.
"Hey, sis," Riley said, oblivious to the tension in the air.
"You bloody idiot!" Spike yelled, running at him. He was unable to
get close to Riley, though, and he snarled, "Magic! You've really got
to do something about her, Angelus!"
"What's got you so pissed?" Riley asked Spike dumbly.
"I swear, you will be begging for death when I get my hands on you!"
Spike yelled back.
"Stop!" Angelus interjected. At Spike's look of surprise, he
continued, "I was just about to ask Tara to do something for me.
Then, I'll deal with your traitorous childe." He turned back to Tara
and approached her slowly.
"What do you want?" Tara asked suspiciously.
"Remove whatever protection spell you have on your brother," Angelus
replied with a smile.
"What?"
"You heard me. He's betrayed me, he has to die. Do this, and I will
believe you when you tell me you weren't working with him to betray
me," Angelus said.
"I can't," she whispered. "You can't ask me to--"
Angelus backhanded her, growling "DO IT, NOW! I'll probably kill you
anyway, but if you do as I say, I'll make it a less painful
death."
Tara took a deep breath, and muttered a few words in Latin. "It's
done." She looked to her brother, who was looking at her in shock,
and said, "I'm sorry, Riley. But I told you not to do this. Whatever
happens now, it's nobody's fault but your own."
"Exactly," Angelus agreed and approached Riley slowly. "Spike, I'll
deal with him," he said.
"I don't suppose that's really up for debate," Spike sighed
regretfully.
"Good guess," Angelus answered with a smile.
"Well, then....first, I think the witch here," Spike grabbed Tara by
the arms, "needs to be secured. We don't want her going anywhere, do
we?"
Still holding her by the arms, he circled behind her, and looked over
at Angelus questioningly, "On second thought, I don't think we really
want her at all. What do you say, Angelus? Come on, Mate, I'm
hungry," he cajoled, in full game face now.
"Fine," Angelus shrugged. "I got everything out of her that I wanted.
And I suppose I have had all the fun so far."
"What?" Tara looked behind her at Spike and shrieked, "Wait, Angelus,
I can still be useful to you. I--" her words died out as Spike sank
his fangs into her neck, unaffected by her struggling.
"Leave her alone!" Riley yelled, but Angelus punched him in the face
sending him sprawling.
When Spike had drained Tara, he dropped her unceremoniously. "Now,
let me get a good seat for the viewing of the Riley beating,"
he said, and went over to the couch.
"Spike?" Riley pleaded, trying to stay out of Angelus' reach.
"Don't 'Spike' me, you idiot," Spike replied. "You're the one who went
and tried to betray us with that Adam thing. You so deserve what you
get."
&&&&&&&&&
Outside the Mansion
"Okay, guys. Oz and I will take on the vamps--" Buffy said.
"And me!" Cordelia insisted.
"Fine," Buffy rolled her eyes. "But I can't protect you, Cordelia.
Angelus is one of the strongest vampires I've ever had to deal with,
and all I'll be able to do is keep myself alive.
"That goes for all of you. Especially since Spike attacked me last
night, it left me weak. Therefore I'm giving any of you who wants it
the chance to go home. I won't blame you."
"We're not going anywhere, Buffy," Willow replied firmly, and the
others nodded their agreement.
"All right...Cordelia, I really hope this blood stuff does what you
think it will."
"Oh, it will, Buffy, just make sure it mixes with Angelus' blood, and
I think you'll be surprised at how well it works," Cordelia answered
with a smile.
"Oh, good. You didn't start without me," Giles said walking up.
"Giles! What are you doing here?" Buffy asked, surprised.
"I'm not completely old and decrepit yet, Buffy," Giles answered
irritably.
"That wasn't what I was even trying to imply," Buffy said. "I just
thought, considering your last run-in with Angelus, you wouldn't be
caught within a ten mile radius of here."
"Actually, it's precisely because I know what Angelus is capable of
that I'm here, Buffy. Hopefully we're in time to save Xander, and if
we are, I want to do everything to help."
"Okay, speaking of Xander, can we go already?" Anya said.
"Yes, Anya," Buffy said. "Oz, Giles, me and Cordelia will keep Spike
and Angelus occupied, while you find Xander and Wesley. Willow will
stay out of harm's way as much as possible, providing any help in the
magic department that she can. So, everybody have their weapons?"
All held up their respective weapon of choice. Giles held up a duffel
bag, saying, "And more if we need it."
"Oh, and one more thing," Buffy said as they reached the door. "I'll
deal with Angelus." She held up her hand to stop Giles' protest. "If
it comes down to it, I'll stake him, Giles. I realize my role in
life. The fate of the world rests on my shoulders, etc, etc."
&&&&&&&&
10:30 am
Buffy was the first one inside the mansion, and she was taken aback to
see Angelus and Riley fighting. She saw Spike sitting on the couch
nearby, and he noticed her too. He smiled in his annoyingly cocky way,
but didn't draw Angelus' attention to her. She looked over toward the
kitchen and saw Tara lying in a heap on the floor, dead. She looked
at Willow, who also had seen the other witch.
Willow said, "I might still be needed."
Buffy looked around, but didn't see any sign of Xander or Wesley. She
looked at Anya, who nodded toward a door to their right. Buffy
replied, "Wait until Spike and Angelus are occupied. Then go."
Angelus noticed her then, and stopped his repeated punching of
Riley's face, dropping the vampire to the ground. "Hello, Lover," he
said to Buffy with a smile.
"I'm not your lover," Buffy replied with a sigh. "But please. Don't
stop on my account. If you want to beat Riley to a pulp, I'm not
going to stop you."
"He's so good at it too," Spike said appreciatively. "Warms a
vampire's heart to see it."
"Okay," Angelus said to Buffy. "You stay there, though. I'll get to
you as soon as this one's taken care of." He leaned down to pull
Riley to his feet. Riley punched out at him, getting a lucky shot in.
His fist made contact near Angelus' left eye, and Angelus snarled.
"You shouldn't have done that," Spike said. "You thought you were
being hurt before, but you're about to find out what pain really is."
Angelus looked to Spike expectantly, and Spike sighed, standing
up. "If I wasn't enjoying this so much, I'd say get it yourself," he
said, as he walked over to the kitchen, still keeping an eye on the
Scooby Gang as he walked.
*****
Anya took advantage of that moment to hurry to the room on the right,
and open the door. Finding Wesley, she ran over to him, untying his
feet. "Where's Xander!" she demanded.
Wesley said, "They have him in another room, I don't know which one.
And I know he was still alive fifteen minutes ago."
"How do you know that?" Anya questioned.
"You don't really want to know how I know that, Anya," Wesley warned.
The color drained from Anya's face at that. "Come on, I'm getting you
out of here, then I'm getting Xander." She helped Wesley stand, and
led him to the door. They both were greeted by the sight of Angelus,
in full game face, fighting Riley, also in game face. Riley had two
black eyes, and was obviously the loser in this game. Angelus did not
appear to have been hurt in the least.
******
Spike emerged from the kitchen, tossing Angelus a stake.
"I love the irony of this," Angelus said with a laugh. "What's more
amusing than one vampire staking another?" He looked to Buffy, and
she shrugged.
"Yeah, it's hysterical," she said. "Get on with it, would you?"
Angelus laughed again, and Riley ran toward the kitchen. Angelus
threw the stake, which hit Riley in the center of his back, obviously
missing his heart. Riley screamed, and the other two other vampires
laughed at his pain.
"That's gotta hurt," Spike commented.
"Help me!" Riley pleaded with Spike, as he fell to his knees. He
reached around, trying to pull the stake out.
"Let's think about that for a second," Spike said. "...Okay, I've
thought about it, and the answer's still no."
Anya, meanwhile, had led Wesley over to where Cordelia and Oz were
standing. She scanned the room, noticing another door, but this one
was on the opposite side of the room from where Wesley been. This
meant she would not only have to get past Angelus, but Spike as
well to get to the room.
She reached down to the duffel bag of weapons that Giles had
brought, and found an axe. "Axes are good," she reassured herself, and
inched toward the couch where Spike was sitting. She had to cross
either in front of it, nearer Angelus, or behind it. She wasn't happy
with the odds either way. Spike eyed her, mildly interested, and she
said, "Just stay there, I don't care about you. I want Xander."
"So I've heard," Spike replied with a disgusted grimace. "Although I
can't bloody figure out why."
"Ha ha. Now do I have to use this on you?" Anya challenged, raising
the axe.
"You probably wouldn't know what to do with it," Spike taunted,
leering at her.
"Maybe, but I definitely know how to use this," Anya replied. She
pulled out a vial of holy water and calmly threw it on the vampire.
"Bloody fuckin' hell, woman!" Spike roared, as he leapt out of her
way.
"I warned you to leave me alone," Anya said, shaking her head in
exasperation. She walked to the far side of the room, and opened the
door. She barely recognized Xander, as he looked up at her. He was
covered in burns, bruises and cuts. His shirt was gone, probably so
Angelus could have access to more flesh to torture him better.
"Anya?" he looked at her blankly for a moment. "Is that you?"
"Yeah, Baby, it's me," Anya ran over to him, fighting back the tears
which threatened to come. She quickly untied his arms and legs from
the chair, asking, "Xander, can you stand?"
"Sure, I'm fine," Xander replied. Anya helped him stand, and his
inability to support himself told a different story. "What are you
doing alive?" he asked then, puzzled. "I saw him attack you--"
"Having lived for over a thousand years, Xander, I'm a lot stronger
than Angelus realized," Anya answered.
"Oh. I'm glad. I thought he'd killed you, and I was ready to do the
same to him. And now, after this morning, I'm so much more ready to
kill him."
"Come on, let's get you out of here. You might enjoy what's going on
out there," Anya said with a smile.
"What, Angelus' ass kicking?" Xander said hopefully.
"No, Riley's ass kicking," she returned with a chuckle.
"Ooh, Fish-Boy's getting beaten up? I gotta see this."
Xander and Anya reached the door way to the outer room, just as
Angelus reached Riley. "He's a vampire too," Anya explained.
"Really. I'd say too bad for him, but that would just be a lie,"
Xander replied.
Angelus pulled the stake out of Riley's back, and Riley kicked out,
tripping him. Angelus snarled and leapt up, grabbing Riley and
throwing him against the wall. "It would be a really good idea," he
said, reaching where Riley was, "if you would just take it--" kick
"--like a vampire." He grabbed Riley and pinned him against the wall,
headbutting him.
*****
On the other side of the room, Willow watched as Anya and Xander
emerged. *Oh my Goddess, what did Angelus do to him? He looks like
hell. I can't believe he's still alive. Oh, he's not going to be
happy about Buffy's 'save Angel' plan.* As she saw the hatred in
Xander's eyes when he looked at Angelus, Willow knew that her friend
would not be at peace with anything less than Angelus' death.
She looked over at Buffy then, who was watching Angelus beat up Riley.
She was surprised at the lack of emotion that Buffy showed at watching
her ex-boyfriend beat up her current boyfriend. She watched Buffy scan
the room, and saw as her eyes fell on Xander and Anya. Buffy winced,
and looked to Willow, an apologetic look on her face. Willow sighed,
knowing that no matter what Angelus had done, Buffy wouldn't slay him
if there was a chance she could bring Angel back instead.
Willow saw that Spike was a danger to the two over on the opposite
side of the room, and spoke an incantation quickly. At Oz'
questioning look, she smiled, and said, "Nothing big. Just a little
something to keep Spike from being a problem.....Hey!"
She was tossed to one corner, and Buffy fell near her. Cordelia and Oz
were knocked to an opposite corner; and Giles and Wesley were shoved
to the center of the room, as ten vampires forced their way into the
mansion.
"Oh, good. I was wondering when the rest of the minions would get
here," Spike said with a grin. "Now we're going to have some fun!"
&&&&&&&&&
End of part 13
Spike's Mansion
The enraged Spike leaped up from his sitting position, at the mention
of the monster's name. "What?????!" he roared. The other vampire
cowered, backing away.
"Where is he now?!" Spike demanded.
"Who?" the vamp asked timidly.
"My soon to be tortured childe!!!" Spike yelled.
"I left one of the others to watch him. I figured you and Angelus
would want to be warned first--"
"I think you must have two volumes, Spike," Tara said as she entered
the house. "Loud and Louder," she finished, grinning at her joke. Her
smile dissipated when Spike leapt at her. She reacted with a wave
of her hand though, and Spike went colliding into the far wall,
smashing a table as he went down.
Angelus walked out of the other room, muttering, "What is it with you
today, Spike?" He saw Tara and one of his minions. "What is it?" he
asked the minion.
"Ask him," the vampire pointed to Spike. When Angelus turned to face
Spike, the minion ducked out again.
"Her brother--" Spike pointed at Tara angrily as he got up, "is
double-crossing us with that Adam-thing."
"Really," Angelus said quietly. "Now that was just a big mistake,
wasn't it," he remarked, turning on Tara.
"Hey, don't blame me for what Riley does," Tara replied
nervously. "He's an idiot of his own making."
"Somehow, I just don't think so, Witch," Angelus replied angrily,
approaching her menacingly. Tara raised her hand, but froze when he
warned, "I wouldn't do that if I were you, Tara," with a deceptive
smile. "You'll just make it harder on yourself in the long run. You
may be strong, but you can't always be ready for me. I can wait as
long as it takes to catch you asleep, or just not paying attention.
But I will kill you, don't doubt that."
Tara dropped her hand, and said, "I _don't_ doubt that, Angelus. But I
_didn't_ have anything to do with what Riley has planned. You have to
believe me," she pleaded.
"Do something for me," Angelus replied, stopping inches in front of
her.
"Hey, sis," Riley said, oblivious to the tension in the air.
"You bloody idiot!" Spike yelled, running at him. He was unable to
get close to Riley, though, and he snarled, "Magic! You've really got
to do something about her, Angelus!"
"What's got you so pissed?" Riley asked Spike dumbly.
"I swear, you will be begging for death when I get my hands on you!"
Spike yelled back.
"Stop!" Angelus interjected. At Spike's look of surprise, he
continued, "I was just about to ask Tara to do something for me.
Then, I'll deal with your traitorous childe." He turned back to Tara
and approached her slowly.
"What do you want?" Tara asked suspiciously.
"Remove whatever protection spell you have on your brother," Angelus
replied with a smile.
"What?"
"You heard me. He's betrayed me, he has to die. Do this, and I will
believe you when you tell me you weren't working with him to betray
me," Angelus said.
"I can't," she whispered. "You can't ask me to--"
Angelus backhanded her, growling "DO IT, NOW! I'll probably kill you
anyway, but if you do as I say, I'll make it a less painful
death."
Tara took a deep breath, and muttered a few words in Latin. "It's
done." She looked to her brother, who was looking at her in shock,
and said, "I'm sorry, Riley. But I told you not to do this. Whatever
happens now, it's nobody's fault but your own."
"Exactly," Angelus agreed and approached Riley slowly. "Spike, I'll
deal with him," he said.
"I don't suppose that's really up for debate," Spike sighed
regretfully.
"Good guess," Angelus answered with a smile.
"Well, then....first, I think the witch here," Spike grabbed Tara by
the arms, "needs to be secured. We don't want her going anywhere, do
we?"
Still holding her by the arms, he circled behind her, and looked over
at Angelus questioningly, "On second thought, I don't think we really
want her at all. What do you say, Angelus? Come on, Mate, I'm
hungry," he cajoled, in full game face now.
"Fine," Angelus shrugged. "I got everything out of her that I wanted.
And I suppose I have had all the fun so far."
"What?" Tara looked behind her at Spike and shrieked, "Wait, Angelus,
I can still be useful to you. I--" her words died out as Spike sank
his fangs into her neck, unaffected by her struggling.
"Leave her alone!" Riley yelled, but Angelus punched him in the face
sending him sprawling.
When Spike had drained Tara, he dropped her unceremoniously. "Now,
let me get a good seat for the viewing of the Riley beating,"
he said, and went over to the couch.
"Spike?" Riley pleaded, trying to stay out of Angelus' reach.
"Don't 'Spike' me, you idiot," Spike replied. "You're the one who went
and tried to betray us with that Adam thing. You so deserve what you
get."
&&&&&&&&&
Outside the Mansion
"Okay, guys. Oz and I will take on the vamps--" Buffy said.
"And me!" Cordelia insisted.
"Fine," Buffy rolled her eyes. "But I can't protect you, Cordelia.
Angelus is one of the strongest vampires I've ever had to deal with,
and all I'll be able to do is keep myself alive.
"That goes for all of you. Especially since Spike attacked me last
night, it left me weak. Therefore I'm giving any of you who wants it
the chance to go home. I won't blame you."
"We're not going anywhere, Buffy," Willow replied firmly, and the
others nodded their agreement.
"All right...Cordelia, I really hope this blood stuff does what you
think it will."
"Oh, it will, Buffy, just make sure it mixes with Angelus' blood, and
I think you'll be surprised at how well it works," Cordelia answered
with a smile.
"Oh, good. You didn't start without me," Giles said walking up.
"Giles! What are you doing here?" Buffy asked, surprised.
"I'm not completely old and decrepit yet, Buffy," Giles answered
irritably.
"That wasn't what I was even trying to imply," Buffy said. "I just
thought, considering your last run-in with Angelus, you wouldn't be
caught within a ten mile radius of here."
"Actually, it's precisely because I know what Angelus is capable of
that I'm here, Buffy. Hopefully we're in time to save Xander, and if
we are, I want to do everything to help."
"Okay, speaking of Xander, can we go already?" Anya said.
"Yes, Anya," Buffy said. "Oz, Giles, me and Cordelia will keep Spike
and Angelus occupied, while you find Xander and Wesley. Willow will
stay out of harm's way as much as possible, providing any help in the
magic department that she can. So, everybody have their weapons?"
All held up their respective weapon of choice. Giles held up a duffel
bag, saying, "And more if we need it."
"Oh, and one more thing," Buffy said as they reached the door. "I'll
deal with Angelus." She held up her hand to stop Giles' protest. "If
it comes down to it, I'll stake him, Giles. I realize my role in
life. The fate of the world rests on my shoulders, etc, etc."
&&&&&&&&
10:30 am
Buffy was the first one inside the mansion, and she was taken aback to
see Angelus and Riley fighting. She saw Spike sitting on the couch
nearby, and he noticed her too. He smiled in his annoyingly cocky way,
but didn't draw Angelus' attention to her. She looked over toward the
kitchen and saw Tara lying in a heap on the floor, dead. She looked
at Willow, who also had seen the other witch.
Willow said, "I might still be needed."
Buffy looked around, but didn't see any sign of Xander or Wesley. She
looked at Anya, who nodded toward a door to their right. Buffy
replied, "Wait until Spike and Angelus are occupied. Then go."
Angelus noticed her then, and stopped his repeated punching of
Riley's face, dropping the vampire to the ground. "Hello, Lover," he
said to Buffy with a smile.
"I'm not your lover," Buffy replied with a sigh. "But please. Don't
stop on my account. If you want to beat Riley to a pulp, I'm not
going to stop you."
"He's so good at it too," Spike said appreciatively. "Warms a
vampire's heart to see it."
"Okay," Angelus said to Buffy. "You stay there, though. I'll get to
you as soon as this one's taken care of." He leaned down to pull
Riley to his feet. Riley punched out at him, getting a lucky shot in.
His fist made contact near Angelus' left eye, and Angelus snarled.
"You shouldn't have done that," Spike said. "You thought you were
being hurt before, but you're about to find out what pain really is."
Angelus looked to Spike expectantly, and Spike sighed, standing
up. "If I wasn't enjoying this so much, I'd say get it yourself," he
said, as he walked over to the kitchen, still keeping an eye on the
Scooby Gang as he walked.
*****
Anya took advantage of that moment to hurry to the room on the right,
and open the door. Finding Wesley, she ran over to him, untying his
feet. "Where's Xander!" she demanded.
Wesley said, "They have him in another room, I don't know which one.
And I know he was still alive fifteen minutes ago."
"How do you know that?" Anya questioned.
"You don't really want to know how I know that, Anya," Wesley warned.
The color drained from Anya's face at that. "Come on, I'm getting you
out of here, then I'm getting Xander." She helped Wesley stand, and
led him to the door. They both were greeted by the sight of Angelus,
in full game face, fighting Riley, also in game face. Riley had two
black eyes, and was obviously the loser in this game. Angelus did not
appear to have been hurt in the least.
******
Spike emerged from the kitchen, tossing Angelus a stake.
"I love the irony of this," Angelus said with a laugh. "What's more
amusing than one vampire staking another?" He looked to Buffy, and
she shrugged.
"Yeah, it's hysterical," she said. "Get on with it, would you?"
Angelus laughed again, and Riley ran toward the kitchen. Angelus
threw the stake, which hit Riley in the center of his back, obviously
missing his heart. Riley screamed, and the other two other vampires
laughed at his pain.
"That's gotta hurt," Spike commented.
"Help me!" Riley pleaded with Spike, as he fell to his knees. He
reached around, trying to pull the stake out.
"Let's think about that for a second," Spike said. "...Okay, I've
thought about it, and the answer's still no."
Anya, meanwhile, had led Wesley over to where Cordelia and Oz were
standing. She scanned the room, noticing another door, but this one
was on the opposite side of the room from where Wesley been. This
meant she would not only have to get past Angelus, but Spike as
well to get to the room.
She reached down to the duffel bag of weapons that Giles had
brought, and found an axe. "Axes are good," she reassured herself, and
inched toward the couch where Spike was sitting. She had to cross
either in front of it, nearer Angelus, or behind it. She wasn't happy
with the odds either way. Spike eyed her, mildly interested, and she
said, "Just stay there, I don't care about you. I want Xander."
"So I've heard," Spike replied with a disgusted grimace. "Although I
can't bloody figure out why."
"Ha ha. Now do I have to use this on you?" Anya challenged, raising
the axe.
"You probably wouldn't know what to do with it," Spike taunted,
leering at her.
"Maybe, but I definitely know how to use this," Anya replied. She
pulled out a vial of holy water and calmly threw it on the vampire.
"Bloody fuckin' hell, woman!" Spike roared, as he leapt out of her
way.
"I warned you to leave me alone," Anya said, shaking her head in
exasperation. She walked to the far side of the room, and opened the
door. She barely recognized Xander, as he looked up at her. He was
covered in burns, bruises and cuts. His shirt was gone, probably so
Angelus could have access to more flesh to torture him better.
"Anya?" he looked at her blankly for a moment. "Is that you?"
"Yeah, Baby, it's me," Anya ran over to him, fighting back the tears
which threatened to come. She quickly untied his arms and legs from
the chair, asking, "Xander, can you stand?"
"Sure, I'm fine," Xander replied. Anya helped him stand, and his
inability to support himself told a different story. "What are you
doing alive?" he asked then, puzzled. "I saw him attack you--"
"Having lived for over a thousand years, Xander, I'm a lot stronger
than Angelus realized," Anya answered.
"Oh. I'm glad. I thought he'd killed you, and I was ready to do the
same to him. And now, after this morning, I'm so much more ready to
kill him."
"Come on, let's get you out of here. You might enjoy what's going on
out there," Anya said with a smile.
"What, Angelus' ass kicking?" Xander said hopefully.
"No, Riley's ass kicking," she returned with a chuckle.
"Ooh, Fish-Boy's getting beaten up? I gotta see this."
Xander and Anya reached the door way to the outer room, just as
Angelus reached Riley. "He's a vampire too," Anya explained.
"Really. I'd say too bad for him, but that would just be a lie,"
Xander replied.
Angelus pulled the stake out of Riley's back, and Riley kicked out,
tripping him. Angelus snarled and leapt up, grabbing Riley and
throwing him against the wall. "It would be a really good idea," he
said, reaching where Riley was, "if you would just take it--" kick
"--like a vampire." He grabbed Riley and pinned him against the wall,
headbutting him.
*****
On the other side of the room, Willow watched as Anya and Xander
emerged. *Oh my Goddess, what did Angelus do to him? He looks like
hell. I can't believe he's still alive. Oh, he's not going to be
happy about Buffy's 'save Angel' plan.* As she saw the hatred in
Xander's eyes when he looked at Angelus, Willow knew that her friend
would not be at peace with anything less than Angelus' death.
She looked over at Buffy then, who was watching Angelus beat up Riley.
She was surprised at the lack of emotion that Buffy showed at watching
her ex-boyfriend beat up her current boyfriend. She watched Buffy scan
the room, and saw as her eyes fell on Xander and Anya. Buffy winced,
and looked to Willow, an apologetic look on her face. Willow sighed,
knowing that no matter what Angelus had done, Buffy wouldn't slay him
if there was a chance she could bring Angel back instead.
Willow saw that Spike was a danger to the two over on the opposite
side of the room, and spoke an incantation quickly. At Oz'
questioning look, she smiled, and said, "Nothing big. Just a little
something to keep Spike from being a problem.....Hey!"
She was tossed to one corner, and Buffy fell near her. Cordelia and Oz
were knocked to an opposite corner; and Giles and Wesley were shoved
to the center of the room, as ten vampires forced their way into the
mansion.
"Oh, good. I was wondering when the rest of the minions would get
here," Spike said with a grin. "Now we're going to have some fun!"
&&&&&&&&&
End of part 13