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            [The next night.]

            Willow:  Boy that cave was fun!

            Anya:  Can we go back?

            Kelley:  Maybe some other time.  You go too much and it will get boring.

            Cordelia:  Yeah, whatever.  You just wanna be alone with Spike.

            Kelley:  Oh yeah?  Well who keeps going into the woods with Angelus?

            Cordelia:  I didn't say it was a bad thing.

            Kelley:  Damn straight.

            Xander:  So, what do you think we should name the island?

            [Everyone stops for a moment and realizes they never actually got around to naming the island.]

            Drusilla:  The Island of Insanity!! (she spins around with her umbrella in her hand)

            Giles:  Brigadoon?  How about that?

            Spike:  (snorts) Do I look like a kilt-wearing ponce to you?

            Drusilla:  Oooh!  Liberty Island!

            Xander:  There is already an island named that, Dru.

            Drusilla:  Oh right!  Big lady holding a torch.

            [The discussion is interrupted by an attack from the nearby jungle.]

            Angelus:  (falls to the ground) What the hell are you doing?

            Buffy:  (wielding a bamboo stake) You're gonna die!

            Cordelia:  (grabs Buffy by her ponytail) Oh no you don't!

            Buffy:  Ow!  Hey, no fair!

            [Cordelia pitches Buffy into the sand.]

            Cordelia:  I didn't spend the last two years rebuilding his personality just for you to stake him!

            Buffy:  But he's not Angel!  He's Angelus!

            Cordelia:  I haven't seen that much of a difference.

            Spike:  Yeah.  Somehow being away from you kept him from going insane when he lost his soul again.  Gee, I wonder why.

            Willow:  I wanna go back to the cave.  I'm getting a sunburn.

            Buffy:  It's night!  (pause) Wait a second!  You've been to the cave?

            Giles:  Yeah, we all have.  Well, except for you that is.

            Kelley:  Well, bye!

            [Kelley claps and everyone except for Buffy disappears.]

            Buffy:  Hey!  Wait!  This isn't fair!  Come back dammit!  I wanna go to the cave too!

            [Shelley suddenly reappears.]

            Buffy:  Yay!  Are you here to take me back to the cave with you?

Shelley:  No, I'm here to say the disclaimer.  (clears throat) Joss owns all the characters.  If we don't say disclaimers before every story he will send his army of rabid badgers after us.  We love you, Joss!

Buffy:  Please take me back to the cave with you!

Shelley:  I can't.  I'm not going to the cave.  Plus, that's up to Kelley.

Buffy:  Well get Kelley to bring me to the cave.

Shelley:  Sorry.  No can do.  You see?  She's kinda mad about the way you've been treating Spike this season, and she figures he needs someone who will actually BE NICE TO HIM!  Well, see you later.  I'm going to the tree house.

[Shelley disappears.]

Buffy:  There's a tree house?

A/N:  Sorry we haven't updated in awhile.  Lots of papers, "Midsummer" rehearsals, lots of crap to do lately.  You know how it is.  We hope you like the chapter.  The plot is finally arriving!

*****************************************************************************************************

Back in Sunnydale, Willow also hung up the phone.  "Tara's on her way here with Gunn," Willow informed them, a note of worry in her voice.

"Told you she was a bad lady," Xander remarked.

"If Tara's concern in indeed founded, then research is definitely in order."

Everyone groaned.

"Hooray for research mode," Willow chirped.

Xander rolled his eyes.  "Cheerful much, Wills?"

"Nah, she's just all hot and bothered cuz her girlfriend's coming to town.  Sooner we're done, the more time for a rough and tumble.  Right, Red?"


Willow blushed.

Buffy giggled.  "Go ahead, Will.  We'll meet you guys there later."

Willow and Giles let, bound for the Magic Box.  Buffy and Spike were right behind them.

"An evil being is living with Daddy," Drusilla muttered.  "It hides behind a mask of innocence."

"What?" Xander asked.

Drusilla turned her gaze to him.  "Be careful, my sweet."

Xander got off the bed and smiled.  "Aren't I always?"  He went to the door.  "Bye, Dru," he called as he closed the door behind him.  He slowly made his way down the stairs.  "Why can't they ever wait for me?" he muttered under his breath.

At the bottom of the stairs, he heard shouting coming from the living room.

"…she's still a threat, Spike!" Buffy yelled.

"IF she was going to hurt him, she would have done it already, pet," Spike argued, trying to be reasonable.

Xander rolled his eyes.  After all this time they were arguing about who he was friends with?  This was new!

"I don't trust her around him.  Did you see the way she was playing with his hair?  How do you know she isn't plotting something?"

"He can read people's minds, Slayer!  I think he'd know before we would.  He's smarter than you bloody Scoobies give him credit for."

"What happens when the spell wears off?"

"How do YOU know it's a bloody spell?" Spike retorted.

"What did I get a new set of parents?" Xander interrupted suddenly.  "Cuz I don't even want the ones I have now!"

"What's the deal with you and Drusilla?" Buffy asked.

"What's it to you?  Why do you care anyway?"

"Because I don't want you to get hurt," Buffy answered.

"Why are you always under the impression that I can't take care of myself?" Xander yelled.

"Yeah, you did SO well taking care of yourself against Darla and Drusilla, you ended up in the hospital!"

Xander glared at her and suddenly Buffy realized she'd gone too far.  Xander pushed past her and headed for the door.

"I'll always be the Zeppo to them, won't I?" he mumbled before slamming the door.

"Good going, Slayer.  Feel better now?"  He followed Xander out the door.

He caught up to Xander easily.  "You know she didn't really mean it.  Not like that anyway."

"She doesn't trust me!" Xander yelled.  "After everything we've been through she still doesn't think I can make my own decisions!"

Spike smirked.  "Maybe it's your choice in women?"

Xander smiled back.  "Okay," he admitted.  "A few weird choices there, but it's not like her track record's that much better."

"Hey!" Spike growled.

"Present company excluded…sort of."

Spike shot a glare at him.  "She can't help it if she's a little thick-headed."

Xander grinned.  "Yeah, all those shots to the head probably didn't help any."

The two walked in silence for a few minutes.  Suddenly, Spike put his arm out to stop Xander.


"Wait, someone's following us."

Xander concentrated and heard whispering in the back of his mind.  "You're right.  I can almost hear…"

Xander felt a prick and his hand flew up to his neck.  He looked down at the dart in his hand.  "Spike, we're in trouble."  His knees buckled and he toppled to the ground.

Spike looked around wildly for the attackers, game face at the fore.  He was stopped by a sudden pain in his arm.  He looked down at the offending appendage. 

"Oh bugger," he managed to say before passing out.

*****

The young girl watched the goings on at the Magic Box in wonderment.  How could three such different people ever work together?  And what on earth had happened to the Willow she'd known in high school?  Why did the school librarian own a magic shop now?  Geez, you go away for five years and everything changes.  Ok, well that's a given, but did the entire world turn upside down?

She pushed the thoughts aside and once again focused on the three in the back.

Giles approached the table, several books haphazardly piled in his arms.  "Willow, you said Tara was on her way here?"

"Yeah," Willow answered.  "She said she'd be here in a couple of hours."

"She felt the vision was that important?" Giles asked in surprise.

"After I mentioned that lawyer woman, she wigged majorly."

"Xander said she was a bad lady, didn't he, Giles?" Anya interjected suddenly.  "Maybe she's a demon, an unrepentant, unreformed demon, that is.  Xander does seem to attract them like Lakryll Demons to egg nog.  Like Spike to alcohol.  Like you to those strange PBS comedies."

"We get the point, Anya," Giles cut her off.

Giles pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to get his thoughts in order.  "Willow, why don't you get on your laptop and try to find out about this law firm.  Anya and I will research the spell Tara performed that affected Xander.  Maybe there's a side effect that's been overlooked."

"Telepathy's a pretty big side effect to miss," Willow argued.  She turned thoughtful.  "Tara mentioned some things on the phone…maybe we should look up clairvoyance or something."

Giles paused.  "At this point, I'm willing to explore any avenue.  Hopefully, Tara will be able to shed some light on this subject."

Now having their assignments, the three got to work.

The girl leaned against the counter, absorbing everything she'd just heard.  Xander, a telepath?  She looked around the room nervously.  If that was true, that could present problems.  She gripped the counter edge tightly.  Something cracked underneath her fingers.  She pulled her hand back, seeing several small bits of metal in her palm.  She examined the pieces closely.  It was a bug.  She smiled.  Wolfram & Hart must have been listening in.  Oh well.  They weren't the only one.  She pushed herself away from the counter, stretching lazily.  Time to get out before and possible mind readers showed up.  With a mocking wave toward three people she knew couldn't see her, Marcie Ross exited the Magic Box.  "I'll be seeing you," she whispered.

*****

"I swear to God, Lorn, the parrot is evil!" Angel argued as he dragged the Host into the Hyperion.  Wesley, Fred, and Cordelia followed behind snickering quietly.

"Whoa, hold your horses, Angel Cakes.  How do you expect me to prove your little pet is some kind of demon?"

"He's not mine!" Angel screamed.  "Cordy and Fred brought the abomination home.  We need to kill it."

Fred gasped.  "How can you say that?  Bob's never done anything to you, and you still hate him."

Cordy tried to hide her smile.  "Yeah, you're not being very charitable.  There goes your redemption."

Angel glared at Cordelia, who only gave him her I'm-just-an-innocent-seer look.  Angel scowled.  "Just listen to it sing."

"It sings?" Lorn asked.

"Well, it whistles," Angel explained.  "Can you read it?"

"I don't know Broody Buns.  Can you get it to whistle?"

Angel stared at the bird. 

The bird stared at Angel.

Neither of them made a sound.

The Host looked at Fred.  "They do this often?"

Fred nodded.  "All the time.  I don't think they like each other very much."

Cordelia shrugged.  "Yeah, he has a phobia, or something."

"Guys," Wesley called from his desk.  "You should take a look at this."

Angel growled at the bird.  "Sing, damn you!" he cried melodramatically.

Cordelia, Fred, and the Host all rolled their eyes simultaneously.

"Um, guys?" Wesley called again, waving his arms in the air.

Angel grabbed the cage, shaking it angrily.  "Why do you torture me?"

The bird squawked and left his perch.  Angel jumped back with a screech, bringing his arms up in front of his face.  He pointed a shaky finger at Bob.  "Damn you," he whispered.

"HEY!  YOUR BOSS WHO PAYS YOU HAS IMPORTANT INFORMATION!" Wesley yelled.  That got everyone's attention.

"Geez, Wes!  Melodramatic much?"

Wesley's eyes narrowed as he addressed the group.  "I'm not even dignifying that with a response.  Tara and Gunn are gone."

"I knew there was something up with those two!" Cordelia proclaimed.

"Not like that, Cordelia," Wesley corrected.  "Apparently, they've headed for Sunnydale."

"Why?" Angel asked, clearly confused.  "Is there trouble?"

Wesley looked at the group gravely.  "Lilah's in Sunnydale."

Angel squashed the impulse to bolt out the door and go after the Wolfram & Hart lawyer.  He had responsibilities in L.A. to think of, after all."

"Did they say anything else?" Angel asked.

"They said they would call us when the got to Sunnydale.  It also mentions something about Xander and visions."

Angel forced himself to calm down.  He had to focus.  Tara and Gunn could handle a little reconnaissance.  If they needed help, they'd call.  "Then we'll wait for them to check back in."

Cordelia and Wesley looked at Angel like he'd grown an extra head.

"What?" Angel asked.  "I can't be patient?"

Cordelia arched an eyebrow.  Wesley looked at him disbelievingly.  Angel remained undaunted.  "We'll keep researching until Tara calls us."

Wesley blinked.  Angel was actually holding back?  He looked out the window for signs of locusts or raining frogs.  He sighed in relief.  It seemed they were safe…for now.  "Yes," he said.  "That sounds like a great idea."

*****

Buffy stormed into a Magic Box, still fuming after two hours of demon bashing.  The anger had dimmed a little, but she still couldn't believe that even Xander was defending Drusilla.  Spike didn't even join her on patrol like usual.  Dammit!  He was supposed to annoy her and keep the boredom away.  That's what he did best.

The door opened again.  She spun around to deliver a sarcastic remark to Spike, but it wasn't Spike.

"Um…Tara.  What are you doing here?"

"Who is your tall, dark, and muscled friend?" Anya asked from where she was counting the money at the cash register.

Tara smiled at Anya.  "This is Gunn.  Gunn, this is Anya."  Tara spotted Willow at one of the back tables.  She hurried over and gave her girlfriend a kiss.  Gunn wolf whistled from his spot at the front of the shop.  Tara broke the kiss and winked at Gunn, who was still smiling.  Tara quickly became serious and turned to Buffy.  "We're here about Lilah."

Buffy frowned.  "That bad, huh?" she asked tentatively.

"We go way back," Gunn told her.  "She's bad news.  Whatever she's up to here, you can bet you won't like it at all.  Nobody wants to deal with Wolfram & Hart."

"Wolfram & Hart?!" Anya cried.  "Oh gods!  They're going to kill us!  Giles, we're leaving the country."

Giles glared.  "We most certainly are not, Anya.  What's gotten you so panicky?"

"No one crosses them.  They're the lawyers of the demon world, and have a hand in everything.  I met them once in my demon days."

"Demon days?" Gunn asked, surprised.

"Yes, demon days." Anya assured him.  "Do you have a problem with that?  During the 2nd Crusade, Wolfram & Hart tried to have me executed."

"Whoa!" Gunn exclaimed.  "That happened in 1270 or something.  How old are you?"

"I think more to the point would be, how old is Wolfram & Hart?"

Willow saw that this conversation was going nowhere fast.  "Buffy, aren't Xander and Spike supposed to be with you?"

"We separated," Buffy answered quickly.

"When?" Willow asked.

"About…" Buffy looked around until she spotted a clock near the door.  "…two hours ago.  They should have gotten here by now."

"Maybe they went patrolling," Willow suggested weakly.

"They're on foot and Xander's still in a cast.  Even Spike and Xander aren't that stupid.  Besides, I went patrolling."

"Why did the three of you separate anyway?" Tara asked.

"Well…we kinda, sorta…had a fight," Buffy admitted.  "You don't think they're in trouble, do you?"

"I'm sure they're perfectly fine," Giles tried to reassure her.  "But we do need to find them…wherever they've run off to."

"All right.  Gunn, you take Willow and Tara and check out the main hangouts.  Willow will show you where they are.  Giles and I will scope out the cemeteries.  Anya, stay here just in case the come back here.  Everybody got that?"

They all nodded and set out to search.

Buffy sighed.  "Xander, Spike, where are you?"