What You Are (Part 6/?)
AUTHOR: Rebecca Parker
EMAIL: LaVelleBelle@aol.com
RATING: PG-13
SUMMARY: Buffy has the power to heal instantaneously
and bounty hunters for the Watchers Council
are after her. Xander has gone to get Angel from LA.
SPOILERS: Seasons 1-4 of "Buffy" and Season 1 of
"Angel"
DISTRIBUTION: FINNatics, of course. All others, please ask.
FEEDBACK: Yes please! Nothing makes me write harder
or faster!
DISCLAIMER: Joss owns all, except for a well deserved
Emmy!
DEDICATION: To Jodi and Prophecy- You two rock! To
Jen, fearless leader and Emmy- my evil twin!


The trip to Los Angeles had taken Xander twice as long as he originally
intended, mostly due to the fact that he had been pulled over twice. Luckily
he had smooth talked his way out of the first ticket, but when the same cop
pulled him over twenty minutes later, it was ticketville for Xander.
He knew he shouldn't be speeding, but he had a feeling that time was of
the essence. This situation with Buffy was intense, and the sooner he got to
Angel, the better.
He sighed as he pulled off the expressway and onto the exit ramp for Los
Angeles. Only a few minutes more, he thought to himself as he rolled up his
windows and quickly switched on the air conditioning, feeling the cool breeze
on his legs.
"I need some tunes," Xander said to himself, flipping on the radio.
"Feeling I've been lost for years, you can never understand me..." the
voice from the radio sang out.
"Dingoes!" Xander called out, smiling as he increased the volume. It was
odd, hearing a Sunnydale band on a Los Angeles radio station and Xander felt
strangely proud. Poor Oz. As soon as he had left the band to go on his
retreat to Nepal, the band had hit. He was probably kicking himself right
about now, wherever he was.
Xander stopped at a red light, tapping the steering wheel. He was more
nervous than he cared to admit- he hadn't seen Cordelia since she left
Sunnydale last summer. He frowned as he remembered finding out she had gone
without even saying goodbye. He hadn't taken it well and it still hurt him to
think about how betrayed he felt when he found out.
A few minutes later and Xander was pulling up in front of the office. He
shut off the car and took a deep breath as he stepped out into the street.

*****
"Cordelia, where is the file on Mr. Jovanovich?" Angel asked, unpacking a
box of coffee filters and packaged beans.
"Um, I think it's in one of those cardboard boxes," she said, typing a
letter on her new computer.
"Yes, Cordelia, but which one?" Angel asked, lifting the cover off one of
the 20 boxes that still waited to be unpacked.
Cordelia looked helplessly at Angel, shrugging her shoulders.
"Angel, I believe it's in this box here," Wesley said, opening the box
nearest him. "I labeled the contents on the lid so our move would be easier."
"Thank you Wesley," Angel said, taking the file which Wesley offered him.
"You're very welcome. What is the latest on Mr. Jovanovich?"
"I closed the case last night. Turns out the 'demon' that was bothering
him was a couple of neighborhood kids playing a practical joke."
"With demon ectoplasm?"
"It's LA," Angel said, shrugging. "They really go all out."
"I do say! Well, I say now that that case is closed we should simply work
on acclimating ourselves to our new offices. Has Mr. Nabbit been by
recently?"
"Not since he dropped off the check," Cordelia said, getting out from
behind her desk. "In fact, there's been no one at all here since him. I think
we need to get the word out about our new location."
"I had no problem finding it," Xander said, walking through the entrance,
smiling as he dug his hands into his pockets.
The room was silent for a few seconds before Angel stepped forward,
extending his hand to the boy. "Xander. Nice to see you again."
Xander nodded, gripping Angel's hand. "Yeah," he said, his eyes fixed on
Cordelia, his mind swimming with thoughts of how beautiful she looked- and
how different.
"Wesley," Xander said, turning his gaze reluctantly to the ex-watcher.
"Been a long time."
"I'm afraid so, Xander," Wesley said.
"Cordelia, you look amazing," Xander said, walking over to his
ex-girlfriend. Instinct took him over and he pulled her into a hug, his arms
wrapping around her small frame; his face nuzzled in her hair, which felt
softer than ever.
"Xander, I..." Cordelia started nervously as she pulled out of the hug,
her heart beating fast. "I've missed you."
"I missed you too," he said. "I wanted to say goodbye to you..when you
left- but you left without..."
"I know," she said, interrupting. "I'm sorry."
"Shall we leave you two alone?" Wesley asked, looking at Angel
questioningly.
"No," Xander said, frowning. "I...I'd love to do the small chat and catch
up thing but I have more pressing matters to discuss."
"Buffy," Angel said, taking a deep breath. "Is something wrong?"
"Unfortunately, yes," Xander said, sighing. "We have one hell of a
situation back in Sunnydale and I think we could use your help. All of you."
"What's going on?"
"To make a long story short, Buffy was attacked pretty badly by a gang of
vampires. We didn't think she was going to make it..."
Angel tensed up, his whole body shaking. "Is she OK? What happened?"
"She's...she's fine. Better than ever, even. That's the thing, Angel. She
healed- like, instantaneously 100 percent. She's freaked because she doesn't
feel she knows who she is anymore- or what. And now- the big bads from the
Watcher's Council are after her and- we need your help."
"Oh dear," Wesley said, removing his glasses. "The Watcher's Council-
this is not good at all."
"Do you know what's going on, Wes?" Angel asked, pacing as he thought of
how scared she must be feeling right now. He knew from his experience with
the Gem of Amara that invulnerability was not all it was cracked up to be.
"I have some ideas- some theories that I've been formulating about the
Council that may bring some light to the issue. Of course, I'll need to
speak to Giles."
"That's pretty much the plan. Let me call Giles and make sure we're a 'Go
for Launch'," Xander said, heading towards the phone. "Is that OK?"
"Of course," Angel said, leaning against the door.
Xander quickly dialed Giles' number and after a short ring, he picked up.
"Hello?" Giles answered, his voice harried.
"Giles, it's Xander. I'm here in LA with Angel. Wes thinks he knows
what's up," Xander said, his eyes still on Cordelia as he spoke.
"Xander, you need to bring Angel here as quickly as you can. Willow and
I are inside my apartment and surrounded by the Council's bounty hunters,
armed quite like a small platoon."
"Buffy?"
"She's somewhere safe for now, but Willow and I are not. We need help,
preferably in the form of heavy artillery."
"We're on our way. Stay safe," Xander said, hanging up. He turned to
Angel, frowning. "We have to motor. Giles and Willow are trapped inside their
apartment, there are bounty hunters outside armed and dangerous and Buffy is
hiding out somewhere with Riley."
"We can drive there now," Angel said. "Wesley and I can share a car and
Cordelia can go with you. That is, if it's OK with you, Cordelia?"
"That's perfect," Cordelia said, smiling. "Xander and I have a lot of
catching up to do."
"Great. Angel, Giles requested weapons so maybe we can stock up before we
go?"
"Sounds like a plan," Angel said, walking towards the elevator. "I'll be
right back."
Angel opened the elevator door, moving his way inside and quickly
pressing the down button. This evening had taken a sudden turn for the worse
and the thought of seeing Buffy again, in danger and with Riley was not
making him happy. The sooner they resolved this, the better. Even he could
only take so much.

*****

"Riley?" Buffy called out, sitting up in the chair. Her bones were sore
from sleeping in an awkward position and she stretched, looking around the
apartment. Instantly, goosebumps covered her skin. This was the last place
on Earth she wanted to wake up and find her significant other someplace
other.
"I'm here," Riley said, opening the door and walking inside. "I was in
the hallway. I wanted to give you some peace and quiet."
"What about you, Riley? You need sleep too."
"I'm used to it," he said, shrugging. "Besides, I was...reading."
"What?" Buffy asked, getting up from her seat and walking towards where
Riley stood, staring at the book clutched in his hand. "What is that?"
"Angel's diary," he said, his voice shaking. He had hemmed and hawed
about letting her know what he had found and revealing to her that he had
invaded the vampire's privacy, but he wanted to be honest with her. "I was
looking around- I couldn't sleep and I found it."
"His d-diary?" Buffy asked, her hands shaking as she reached out to touch
the leather cover of the book. "Give it to me," she said sternly.
"Buffy, I-"
"No Riley. Now. Give it to me now. You had no right to read that."
"I know I didn't but- I...I don't know why I did. I'm sorry."
Buffy bit her lip, trying hard not to let herself cry- there had been too
much of that tonight already. She reached over and tore the book from his
hands, clutching it to her chest. "I can't believe you."
"I didn't know how much he loved you," Riley said, his voice soft and
apologetic. "I don't think I ever realized the magnitude of your
relationship. And the fact that all that was written before you- made love,"
Riley shook his head, "I can never compete with that."
"What?" Buffy said, looking up at him, her eyes wet. "Riley, I-," she
started, but a bright light erupted in the room and Buffy instinctively
covered her eyes. "Riley!" she called out, but she felt everything fade away
as something hit her, pushing her back onto the floor where she fell on top
of Riley who already lay an unconscious mass beneath her.

*****

Xander's car sped along the expressway back to Sunnydale, careful not to
veer too far over the speed limit. "So you were pregnant?"
"Yes, but it was like a demon 24-hour thing. Wes and Angel saved me. They
were great," she said, smiling. "Of course, it totally turned me off to the
dating scene for a while."
"Yeah well, now you know how I felt after Ms. French and Ampata"
"Totally," Cordelia said, laughing. "That is one dating trend I will no
longer knock you for. This year alone I had demon spawn lover boy and, well,
Doyle- but he was only half demon and he was," she said, pausing, "he was
Doyle. It just didn't get much better than that."
Xander frowned, taking his frustration out on the gas pedal as the car's
speed rose to 70 miles per hour. "Yeah well. That's great that you loved
him," Xander said unconvincingly.
Cordelia sighed. Obviously this was a topic Xander didn't want to talk
about and frankly, neither did she- months later, it was still a painful
topic. "How about you? Have anyone special in your life?"
"Well," Xander said, breathing deeply. "I do actually have a girlfriend."
"Really?" Cordelia asked, feeling an unwanted pang of jealousy. "Who?"
"Anya," Xander said, quickly taking his eyes off the road to look at her.
"Vengeance demon chick? Chick who tried to kill Willow and half the
Bronze?"
"Not her finest moment, I admit..."
"I just thought you would go to the Prom with her and that would be the
end of it."
"So did I, actually," Xander said, grinning. "But she came back a few
months later-"
"After she ran away from the Ascension leaving you and all your friends
to die?"
"OK, so I'm getting you're not the biggest fan of Anya," Xander said,
smirking.
"Well, it's good to see your detective skills are still as sharp as
ever," Cordelia said, shifting in her seat uncomfortably. She didn't know why
she was reacting like this and she wasn't too thrilled about it either.
"She's changed. She's working on the whole 'act like a decent human
being' thing," he said, changing into the right lane as he noticed the
Sunnydale exit approaching.
"Yeah well, wish her luck with that!" Cordelia said, sarcastically.
"Cordy, I'm sorry. I- I think it's ending with Anya and me. She's just-
all it's about anymore is sex."
"Sex?" Cordelia said, shocked. "You're having sex with her?"
"I'm not a kid, Cordelia," Xander said, driving onto the exit. "Of course
we did."
"Oh," she said, turning to look outside her window, concentrating on the
lines in the road moving past. "I just thought- you would save your first
time for someone special."
"My first time?" Xander asked, looking at her. Realization dawned on him
and his eyes automatically went back to the road. "Oh."
"Oh?" Cordelia repeated. "Oh?? Anya wasn't your first. Well, you were a
virgin when you were with me, right?"
"Yes," Xander said, gulping.
"So that means that somewhere between me and her- there was someone."
"That would be...a fair assessment," Xander said, gripping the wheel as
he made a sharp right.
"So who was it?"
"You don't want to know," Xander said, slowing the car to a halt a block
away from Giles' apartment.
"Oh my God, it was Willow, wasn't it? You two got back together when Oz
wasn't looking!
"No," Xander said, putting the parking brake on. "It wasn't Willow. It
was Faith."
"Faith?!" Cordelia exclaimed, pulling off her seatbelt. "Slayer Faith?
Miss Skeeze and Trampy and So wrong for you??!"
"Yeah well, she's dropped that name," Xander said. "Look Cordelia- it was
a mistake I made one night and I regret it. I wish my first time had been
with someone I loved- someone like you," Xander said, moving his hand over to
Cordelia's.
"Xander," Cordelia said, looking up at him, her eyes damp with tears. "I-"
The window smashed in, cutting off Cordelia's words. "Get out of the car
now," the man said, unlocking the door as he reached his arm around the
broken window.
"Xander, Drive!" Cordelia said, but before he had a chance, the man
yanked Cordelia out through the window, the glass cutting her skin as she
moved over it. "See what happens when you don't do what you're told?" the man
with the accent said.
Xander jumped out of the car, trying to run at the man that held
Cordelia, but a pair of arms grabbed him as well. "Now now, we'll have none
of those heroics, Mr. Harris. You do as you're told and you'll have your
little girlfriend back. You tell Ms. Summers that either she turns herself
in, or we turn Ms. Chase inside out. Do you understand?" he asked, his tone
menacing.
Xander looked around helplessly, wondering where Angel and Wesley were.
Damnit, he thought to himself- if only I hadn't sped the whole way! "You're
going to die," Xander said. "You hurt her- they'll have to think up a new
word for what I'm going to do to you."
"We'll see about that, Mr. Harris," the man behind him said, pushing what
felt like a blade into his back, and automatically Xander fell to the ground
in pain. A van pulled up beside him and he watched helplessly as the man
tossed Cordelia inside the back of it and quickly shut the door. "Let's hope
you do the smart thing- for once. She has until tomorrow at sundown- she'll
know where to find us," he said, hopping into the front and slamming the door
as the van drove away, the sound of the skidding tires filling Xander's ears
as he lay on the ground, his hands reaching around his back and feeling the
blood there.
"Cordelia," Xander called out, his voice weak. He was beginning to lose
consciousness when he heard a car pull up only feet away.
"Xander!" Wesley said, rushing to the spot where Xander lay bleeding.
"Wesley, help him," Angel said, a strange lilt to his voice from a few
feet back. Even in semiconsciousness he could tell that his blood was at once
inviting and repulsive to the vampire.
"Cordelia?" Wesley asked, lifting Xander to his feet. "Where is
Cordelia??"
"They took her," Xander said, sobbing. "They're going to kill Cordelia if
Buffy doesn't- doesn't turn herself into them."
Angel cursed, angry at the situation and wanting more than anything to
tear one of these bounty hunters' throats out. "Wesley, take him to the
hospital. I'm going to make my way into Giles and work on ending this. No one
is giving themselves and no one is dying- except them."
Wesley nodded, supporting Xander's weight. "Good luck, Angel. I fear
you'll need it."
"No, I won't," Angel said. "I have pure rage on my side. Start praying
for them."

To be continued...