Chapter 7
Goodbye Love
Summary: This is the big ol' chapter where major events happen. Enough said. Spoilers for "Hero", Angel season 1, and "The Trial", Angel season 2.
Disclaimer: Joss owns them. I can only dream.... The title of this chapter is from a song from the musical "Rent" , by Jonathan Larson. I recommend you see it. Breaks all the stereotypes about musicals.
Author's Notes and Rants: No one has reviewed my story in a while. (* wipes a tear away*) I'm hurt. So, if you have a soul, please review. Your opinion is valuable.
"Angel," Buffy murmured as she woke up, her hair a blonde tangle. Pushing it out of her face, she sat up, her muscles screaming in protest. Leaning her back against the wall, she closed her eyes, sighing. She hadn't slept well. What sleep she got was filled with nightmares, and re-liveing the one day she had been denied the memory of.
A clatter of metal dragged her out of her thoughts. The goblin had returned, baring a metal tray that had some sort of food on it.
"Here you go, Missy," the goblin said, opening her cell and sitting the tray down, the gruel slopping over the edge of it's bowl. She grimaced as she crawled over to the tray, the goblin snickering as he went on to the next cell. Picking up the spoon, she tried the oatmeal like liquid.
Her gaging could be heard a mile away.
Katherine tossed Angel a bag of blood as she walked toward a bookcase. He took it silently, wondering how she had know he was hungry. Once before he had to go through three trials to try to give Darla a new lease on life. He had gone through all three, and wasn't able to save her from being turned again, this time by Drucilla,.
"So what other hoops do you want me to jump?" he asked outloud, stopping Katherine in her tracks. He was pissed, and wasn't afraid of letting her know.
"It's not my choice, " she said softly, taking a worn volume from the bookcase, then retuning to the seat in front of him. Curling her legs under her, she opened the thick leather volume, blowing lingering dust away.
"Then why are you here?" Angel asked, annoyed. He had his fill of her cryptic remarks and told her so.
"Liam, you never understood, " she said, her voice barely above a whisper. He sat quiet for a moment, taken aback by her change of mood.
It was Anna, the servant at Liam's home, who ran in the pouring rain that last morning, tripping over her skirts and falling in the mud. Determined, she pushed herself back up and continued running. Reaching her destination, she knocked frantically on the door, almost hitting Katherine in the face when she opened the door.
"Anna, what happened?" Katherine exclaimed, placing a hand on Anna's shoulder and pulling the young woman inside, closing the door behind her.
"Miss, please, I have to tell you-" Anna stammered, pulling away as Katherine removed her mud stained shawl, tossing it aside.
"Calm down, Anna, you can tell me once you are clean," Katherine said gently, guiding the frightened woman to the bath house that was connected to her small home. Once Anna had the mud cleaned off her body, and replaced her gown with a clean one, Katherine sat her down in the kitchen with a glass of whiskey.
"Now, tell me what is wrong," Katherine said. Anna looked up to her, eyes dripping tears as she took a deep breath.
"It's Liam. Daniel found him in an alley early this morning....." Anna began, a sob entering her voice.
"No, no, it can't be him.," Katherine said, fear washing over her like an angry ocean. "NO. He wouldn't- he couldn't....." she went on, running toward the door.
"But miss, the killer..... a demon!" Anna shouted at Katherine's silhouette running into the pouring rain.
Pulling herself out of her memories, she stood. Looking at Angel, she stood, and walked over to a door he hadn't seen before. He stood, walking toward her.
" It's over," she began softly, her eyes cast to the floor. "Buffy is free to go. Go through this door, and you'll find her."
"That's it?" he asked, knowing there had to be a catch. There always was. Just like when he had to save Darla. The second test had required him to simply unlock a door. Thing was, the key was in a pool of Holy water, in a hall made of crosses. He knew it simply couldn't be that simple.
"Oh, by the way Liam, " she said softly as he placed a hand on the doorknob,. He stopped, waiting for her to continue. "Once you cross that threshold, I die. Just thought you might want to know," she finished, turning from him and returning to her place on the couch. "A life for a life, remember?"
Katherine pulled her cloak around herself tighter, not wanting anyone to realize it was her. Saddling a horse, she rode out of town, the sun setting behind her. It was a short ride to the Elder's house.
Everyone in Galway knew that the old crone was a gypsy. The taverns whispered about how successful her love charms were, and how powerful her vengeance spells were. Hoping that all she had heard was true, she knocked on the timeworn wooden door, holding her breath. After several moments, the door slowly opened. The woman looked ancient, wrinkles on top of wrinkles, her face defying gravity.
"Yes dearie?" she croaked, startling Katherine that her voice was strong.
"I want to live forever."
"What do you mean?" Angel asked her, kneeling down beside her. As Angelus, and Liam, he had spent so much time by her side that he knew that she was speaking the truth.
"Someone has to maintain the balance," she told him, not meeting his gaze. "When you went to Hell, the balance between dimensions was not right. God- I can't explain it right. " She met his eyes, her voice certain." You and Buffy are more important than you can even imagine. Without you two..... together..... Buffy will stay dead. And in hell. When you walk through that door, I will take Buffy's place in the void she filled when she jumped in Dawn's place," she finished. "I can't decide. It's your choice." Standing, Katherine walked to the door he had entered from, closing it softly behind her. Shocked, he collapsed on a nearby chair, resting his head on his hands, needing to think.
He had been right earlier. The decision was simple.
He could stay with his fist love, the lost cause that had been credit for some of his more evil tasks. She had been Angelus's pride and joy, causing jealousy in his sire, Darla. She couldn't understand that a human could match his lust for pain, who could match his passion. Katherine could. She had, thus enough reason for Darla to kill her. In the four hundred years Darla had been alive, there had been a person that made her scared.
Or go and save Buffy, the one he was meant to live eternity with. he had given so much of his soul to her, he didn't know where his ended and hers began. Even though they couldn't be together, he knew, in a single moment, that he would do anything for the Slayer. He just didn't know if he could kill Katherine.
The old woman laughed as she ushered Katherine to sit in a chair. Once she was seated, the old woman went to a small cabinet by the fireplace. Groaning and grasping her back with a clawed hand, she opened it and removed a small vile and a worn leather book.
"The price for what you ask is high," the old woman said, placing the book on the table, a cloud of dust clouding the view of it for a moment.
"I don't care," Katherine said firmly, her eyes, usually the warm pale violet , were hard, cold, and empty. The old crone gazed at her for a moment, then chuckled.
"Aye dearie, I believe you don't. My deepest sympathies, though, for Liam. It's amazing that he could find someone like you," she said, and opened the worn book. "The price you have to know. You will live forever. No diseases will harm you, but, the regular methods of killing people will work on you. No a day shall you age from this moment."
"Fine," Katherine said, not really caring." Go ahead."
"But my dear.," the crone said , a trace of concern etching her wrinkled face. "The price is your soul. Are you willing to give that up?"
"Listen, I didn't ask for your opinion," Katherine said, rage glowing in her eyes, the emotion virgin to her." Just do whatever you have to do. Just give me what I came here for."
The crone sighed, and passed the vial to her. "Drink. "
Not taking a moment to hesitate, Katherine raised the small glass vial to her lips, not even thinking that the monster who took Liam would be able to see that she wasn't merely a simple human.
She was a monster. Just like him.
Katherine sighed as she closed the door behind her. This room was what the previous Oracles had used. She didn't like the stiff and formal Roman marble columns, and empty space. It held an air of....
"You told him, didn't you?"
Katherine nodded to Doyle as she sat down on the small stairs that lead to the hallway that Buffy had told Angel to go in. Doyle sat down beside her, placing a comforting arm around her shoulders. Allowing a tear to fall, she dropped her head to his shoulder, knowing that this might be the last human contact she would have. Because she knew, deep inside, that Angel would choose Buffy.
"I knew, when this started, I was going to die. The Powers were kind enough to let me attempt to handle this situation," Katherine murmured, rolling her eyes at the empty room. "I knew. This second chance isn't going to last. But......." her voice trailed of, her eyes looking to the closed door she had entered from. Doyle stayed silent, feeling empathy for the young woman. She loved Angel. Enough to realize that she had to allow him to be with Buffy. To allow them to be together, she had to sacrifice herself.
He knew the feeling. He loved Cordy, but he knew he had to die to save the people he had ignored. They weren't demons to him anymore. They were people, who had come to him for help. And he had denied them that. When that first vision came. he knew, deep inside, that what he saw was true. His kin had been murdered, because he was having a hard time coping. The small child's shoe, the father that had begged him for assistance. The pure hatred that had filled his soul was not for the Scourge, who had killed, but for himself.
They all had their own demons, he thought, comforting Katherine, who had been his friend in the afterlife. he just didn't know if she could cope with hers.