Part 2 ...

It was full dark when they crossed Sunnydale. Buffy had drunk at the apartment, quieting her appetite briefly. He knew the hunger was never truly satisfied, but it was a start. Angel hadn't wanted to risk her amongst humans; the smell of blood and life everywhere would have been overwhelming. Was, for any newborn vampire. But she was sated for the moment, and would be until they'd seen Giles. He hoped. Odd, though, he thought. She didn't act the way the others had, when they'd been made. Drusilla had been quite mad, but Spike hadn't been this way. Nor had any of the others he'd sired. But then, he'd never had a soul before, when the act of Change had been carried out...

Giles was surprised by the pounding on his door. Even more surprised when, as he got to it, it fell to one side in a drifting cloud of splinters to reveal Buffy, looking guilty, and Angel, standing behind her, looking even guiltier. "Ooops. Sorry, Giles."

"Buffy? Angel? What on earth are you doing here at this time of night?" He stood aside to let them in, but they just stood there and looked at him.

At last, Buffy said softly, "Can we come in, Giles?"

He frowned irritably at her, waving his hand to indicate they should come forward. "Yes, of course you can come in. You don't usually wait to be asked, actually."

Buffy brushed past him and moved to the centre of the room, standing with her back to him. Angel ducked his head, apologetically, Giles thought, and followed her. Giles peered out through the gap where his door had been, shrugged in resignation and moved after them, absently taking off his glasses and polishing them. "So what can I do for you both? It's not the end of the world again, I would have noticed that, I'm sure," he said, "but it must be fairly urgent. Terribly nasty demons or some such on patrol, I suppose?"

Buffy turned. And Giles felt his heart freeze as he looked at her face. At a vampire.

"Oh dear God." The exclamation was wrenched from him as he instinctively took a step backwards and sagged against a table for support. "Buffy?"

They stood, frozen in place, staring at one another. Shock and horror warred with one another on Giles face as he stared at her. But – well, it was Buffy. Demon though she now was, he still couldn't quite bring himself to believe that she would hurt him.


"I failed you. Let you be taken." Giles whispered eventually. His voice trailed away as he closed his eyes, the pain rising inside him. "Let you be turned. I should have been a better Watcher. I could have helped you."

Buffy sighed and tossed her head slightly, face smoothing out as she Changed. "Giles, we need your help. I asked for this. I want to be with Angel. This was the only way it could ever be. But - something – went wrong. I'm still the Slayer."

Giles stared at her in stunned disbelief, his hand rising. "You mean………Angel did this to you? You wanted to be a demon, a thing of evil, you," his voice started to rise, now with anger as well as shock, "chose to ignore your destiny because you're in love with a vampire?!"

Buffy crossed the room in one swift bound, her hand closing on Giles' shoulder before he even realised she'd moved. "Giles, you're not listening to me!" she said forcefully. "Listen now. Watch my lips. I AM STILL THE SLAYER. I have vampire strength – and I still have Slayer strength."

"But – but you can't be, you can't have," he stammered, staring at her. "You're a vampire, Buffy! How can you still be the Slayer?"

Buffy smiled grimly, forcing back the Change she could feel starting with an effort of will. She was getting hungry again, and how sweet was the scent of blood from Giles, how rapid the pulse in his throat…… she wrenched her gaze away from him, looking instead into his eyes.

"I don't know," she replied. "That's your job. Find out. Has this ever happened before? Have any other Slayers ever been turned?" She gestured to the books, as always piled haphazardly on all available surfaces. "Look in your books. There must be something!" She paused then, and added, "It was weird, though. Ask Angel."

Giles turned to look at Angel, who stood silently to one side, awkward and uncomfortable. Although his face was expressionless, still something in his eyes was clear enough that Angel lowered his gaze, turning his face slightly to one side.

"Well?" Giles voice was cold, filled with contempt. "What happened that you – decided to start snacking on people again? That you decided to start with the Slayer, the only hope this world has against evil?"

Angel shook his head wearily. "I don't know. I was at the table, I was drinking – pigs blood, if you must know – when Buffy arrived. Then – everything changed. I could feel the blood rising up, I could see it in the air. Red, rising like smoke from the table. Wrapping round me. Warm." His gaze met Giles', then. "I – came to with Buffy in my arms. And that's when she asked. To be – Changed."

Giles frowned. "Rising? From the table?" Buffy circled the room restlessly as Giles moved towards his books, lifting a few volumes as he searched for the one he wanted. His face was thoughtful. Buffy watched him, wondering at the calm that seemed to have come over him. A couple of minutes ago, she'd have bet on it that he'd be leaping at her with a stake. Now? He was Research-Guy. Amused, she shook her head. Until his next words.

"Buffy, what are you going to tell the others? Willow, and, and Xander. How are you going to tell them………what you've done? What you've asked for?"

Buffy stopped pacing, and looked at him, though he paid no attention as he flipped carefully through pages. "I won't tell them. They don't need to know." Giles raised his head at that, face incredulous.

"You think they won't notice? That you suddenly don't go to school, that you only come out at night? That you suddenly have a craving for blood? Buffy, be realistic. You have to tell them. They may be able to help us. To help you. To find out what happened and what made Angel," his lip curled on the name, "feed on you."

Buffy shook her head stubbornly and as he returned to the book, Giles saw Angel move over to her, murmuring gently. Reluctantly, eventually, she nodded. "Giles? Ok. I'll tell them, you're right, they have to know. But you have to get them to come here. I'll only tell them if you're here," she paused, aware that Giles was staring at her. A hand came up to touch her face. "What? Did I do it again? I didn't feel anything……"

"Buffy, have you realised………," he stopped and turned to Angel. "You can tell. You know. She still has it, doesn't she? You've made a newborn vampire, and she still has her soul."

* * * *

The vampire snarled and charged. Effortlessly, Buffy sidestepped and Changed, watching its eyes widen with surprise as she caught it with one hand and flung it against the wall. It lay, twitching, stunned. A moment later all that remained was a pathetic cloud of dust. Buffy sighed. As a Slayer, it had been easy. Now, with combined demon and Slayer strength, there was no word to describe it.

She turned away from the remains of the kill and wandered idly through the cemetery. They'd called the others over last night, all grumbling about the lateness of the hour. But they'd come. Even Cordelia. They had, she reflected, taken the news pretty well, considering. Willow had had hysterics, Xander had grabbed the nearest cross and had been all for staking her and Angel, and Cordy? Well, Cordy had taken one look and her comment had been, "Well, Buffy, your hair wasn't great before. What are you gonna do with it now you don't have a reflection?"

They were hunched over books now, searching for spells that might have caused the initial feeding. Giles had been muttering about blood spells and vengeance. Angel had come up with a list of enemies who might have cast it – and she'd come patrolling, ready to try out her new vampire-Slayer abilities. She'd already made four kills that night. No humans, though. The temptation to feed was there, she could smell the life rising from the town nearby. She could smell the blood, but she didn't want to take that option. And if Angel could survive without taking human life, then so could she.

Giles had also, she remembered, pounced on Angel suddenly. A question that neither of them had expected. The curse, he'd demanded. Was Angel now happy? Why then, was he still Angel? Why had he not become Angelus? Angel hadn't had an answer, had just shrugged helplessly. Another thing for the gang to find out, if they could. She smiled unconsciously as she wandered aimlessly, and the voice behind her startled her out of her reverie.

"Buffy? It's happened, hasn't it? The Spell of Taros. The Blood God."

She turned, surprised, looking at a slim figure stepping out from behind a looming gravestone. Slim, tip-tilted dark eyes, shoulder length dark hair. Pale skin. The woman bore an uncanny resemblance to Jenny Callender, but Buffy could see that it wasn't her. Her face was serious, unsmiling.

"I know who you are, and what you are. Slayer and Vampire in one. I know that you will not hurt me – because you are still the Slayer. The demon inside doesn't control you - yet. I have come to offer you help, if you will accept it. Help for Angel. There are those of us, you know, who feel that the curse has run its course. That Angel has atoned for his crime against us," she said conversationally. Buffy had yet to speak, surprise catching her voice. "I am Catriana, half but not blood sister to – to Jenny, as you called her. Jana, as she was to us. Listen carefully. I have found a spell – that can make Angel human. That can take the demon away from him. It's dangerous. It must be done with great care and it must be done soon. Before the next full moon. We have two nights left to us." She paused, watching Buffy, waiting for a response. Buffy just looked at her. She shrugged and continued. "You both have your souls at the moment. But the Spell of Taros – activates after a certain time. It will start soon. If my spell is not carried out before then, you'll both lose your souls. And then, God help us all."

"Who set the Taros thing?" Buffy asked quietly, expression veiled, retaining her human face with difficulty as anger welled up inside her. "I – need to know."

Catriana shook her head. "Another of my family, I think. One who wishes for the dark powers to roam free, one who wishes to be a vampire himself. I don't know how or when he cast it, but I know the signs. He has been - dealt with. He will not trouble us again. And I? I have been watching for something like this and I – I come now to offer my help, to make amends."

* * * * *

Buffy stretched, stirring as the sun sank below the hills, feeling the hunger rise along her nerves. She stumbled into the kitchen, could smell the blood, was aware that Angel was looking at her, had already warmed the thick, viscous liquid. Her eyes burned beneath her ridged brow, nothing human in there. Just the demon peering through. "Need………blood," she rasped. "Hungry."

Angel warily handed her the mug of red liquid, watching as she tilted her head back. Runnels of blood ran from the corners of her mouth as she drank. "More." He shook his head.

"No. The more you drink – the more you want." Something was happening. She was losing the Buffy part of her, he could see that. It was beginning. The Spell of Taros, slowly, insidiously. The demon side was starting, slowly, to take over. "You have to control it, Buffy," he said urgently. "You have to fight it, control the hunger, remember who you are." The years of control were working well. He could feel the hunger himself, the urge to feed and kill, but he kept it hidden, as always. Deep inside, where the urge could not escape.

She'd told him about her encounter with the gypsy when she'd returned from the hunt. explained about the spell. That she'd told the woman to come to Giles' that night, to prepare for the ritual, and if possible, to carry it out. He'd looked at her then, listening to what Catriana had told her. Human again. Wondering, he'd touched his face. Human again, after two centuries. Then they'd slept, while the sun burned above them. Till the sun set and it was their time again.

She shook her head, roughly wiped away the blood from her face, Changed back. "I can do that. We have to get – have to get to Giles. To this woman who says she can help you."