Part Two
It was just a door. A simple wooden door. Angel could break it down
easily, not that he would have to, all he had to do was knock on it.
Willow was on the other side of the door and she was awake. He could
hear her moving around, going about her morning routine - probably
getting dressed. Angel knocked on the door.
"Good morning, Angel." Willow opened her bedroom door. She was fully
dressed in the borrowed clothes from the night before. "Or, I guess
I should say good afternoon."
"Either is fine." Angel held up a mug. "I brought breakfast, or
lunch."
Willow grimaced at the offered blood, but took it. "Thanks. We'll
call it brunch."
"The others will be here soon," Angel urged. He didn't want her to go
through the raging bloodlust she had experienced the night before. She
looked better, less scared and vulnerable. Angel was glad. He knew
that her life would never be the same, but she would adjust. She was
already starting to adapt.
"Hey, I didn't gag as much this time," Willow announced triumphantly.
She grinned at Angel and he couldn't help but to grin back. "Angel?"
Willow gulped and she lost her smile. She leaned forward. Their
bodies were almost touching. He could smell the blood she had just
drank.
"Wake up, sleepyfangs!" Cordelia sang from downstairs. "It's time to
research and you're not getting out of it just because you're creatures
of the night."
Angel stepped back. The pull toward Willow was amazingly strong. The
only other vampire he had ever been this drawn to was Darla and that
was because she was his sire. He didn't share a blood bond with
Willow, so that couldn't be the reason. "We should go downstairs and
research."
"Th..that's a good idea." Willow followed Angel downstairs, mortified
that her gaze repeatedly strayed to his ass. He had a nice ass. Firm
and muscled...Willow licked her lips. Snap out of it! This had to be
the demon part of herself. She had never thought about Angel's ass
before. Well, there was that one time, but it was totally Buffy's
fault. At the thought of Buffy, Willow felt sad and afraid. She was a
vampire now, how was she going to be the slayer's best friend?
"Hey, Willow, did you want to take the comp...Oh, my God, we have got
to go shopping and get you some clothes." Cordelia grabbed Willow's
hand. She stopped abruptly before the front door. "Can you go out in
the sunlight?"
"I don't know." Willow considered the patch of sunlight filtering
through the window beside the door.
"Perhaps we should begin researching and worry about Miss Rosenberg's
wardrobe later."
"Willow, Wesley, call me Willow. And you too, Gunn."
"Actually, I thought I'd call you 'Tiger.'" Gunn grinned. Half vampire
or not, he liked this little redhead. She had pulled herself together
quickly the night before and it looked like she was accepting what had
happened to her. Gunn liked people with courage and spunk.
"Sure. Why don't we investigate instead of research?" Willow slowly
approached the sunlight.
"Be careful, Willow," Angel cautioned. He wanted to pull her back into
the safety of the shadows, but this was really the only way to find
out. He controlled the impulse and watched as Willow held out her
hand. Sunlight streamed across her fingers, but she didn't pull it
back and she didn't catch fire.
"It tingles." Willow wiggled her fingers. She stepped forward, fully
into the light. "Ow!" She hastily stepped back, slapping her hand
over her eyes. Angel was at her side immediately, leading her back
into the dim lobby. "Oh, ouch. It hurts. My eyes, ow."
"Shhh, it's okay. You're out of the light now." Angel soothed her,
rubbing her back and stroking her hair. He shouldn't have let her take
chances with her life. She was hurt because of him. Gently, Angel
took Willow's hands from her eyes. They were a little red and watery,
but she seemed to focus on him. "Can you see?"
"Yes." Willow wiped the tears from her eyes. "I think it's too bright.
The sunlight didn't burn my eyes. I'm just sensitive to it."
"Here." Cordelia dug into her purse and brought out a pair of
sunglasses. "Try these." Willow took them and put them on. Angel
reluctantly let her go and she ventured back into the sunlight
successfully this time. "Excellent." Cordelia crowed. She grabbed
Willow's hand. "Problem solved. Let's go shopping." The girls
disappeared out the door before Angel could register his protest.
*****
Shopping with Cordelia was something Willow had only experienced once.
She had hoped to never repeat it, but now she was glad she had.
Cordelia had changed since she had left Sunnydale for L. A. She was
still blunt, but her edges were softer. She still gave the salesgirls
a hard time, but it was because they stared at Willow and not because
they didn't have the sweater she wanted in her favorite color.
Although Willow didn't blame them, they probably didn't get a lot of
bare footed customers wearing a silk shirt ten times too big, a black
mini skirt that reached past her knees, and dark sunglasses.
"Ooo, these are perfect." Cordelia held up a pair of red leather boots.
"Maybe if I were auditioning for Pretty Woman 2. I would break my neck
on those heels, Cordy." Willow slipped on a pair of comfortable blue
sandals with yellow sunflowers. "I like these."
"Okay. I just thought maybe you would like to get down with your bad
vampire self." Cordelia shrugged and started to put the boots back,
but changed her mind. "I'll buy them and you can borrow them if you
want."
Impulsively, Willow hugged Cordelia. "Thanks for accepting this and
treating me like I'm normal."
"Hey, we're from Sunnydale." Cordelia hugged the slight girl back.
"This is normal. You know, Willow, if you ever want to talk...I know
you'll probably want to talk about the vampire stuff with Angel, but
if you want to talk about your feelings...Mr. Stoic hasn't exactly been
an expert in dealing with his own feelings...so, you know, I'm here."
"Yeah. That's why I'm here. I knew you and Angel would help me."
Willow smiled sadly. She sifted through the blouses as Cordelia turned
to the rack of leather pants on sale behind them. "Do you think Xander
will hate me?"
"Never in a million years." Cordelia whipped around to face Willow.
She handed her a pair of dark hunter green leather pants. "Here, try
these on." She pushed Willow into a dressing room and grabbed a burnt
orange silk tank top and handed that to her as well. "And this.
Honestly, Willow, Xander loves you. He could never hate you. He won't
like what you've become and he'll find some way to blame Angel and
hate him even more, but never you."
"You're right. But still, what am I going to do now? I won't fit in
with the Scoobies anymore. The slayer can't have a vampire for a best
friend."
"Why not?" Cordelia shoved a black spandex t-shirt and a flowing blue
skirt through the curtain that separated them. "She certainly
overlooked the fangs long enough to fall in love and bed one of them.
She would be a total hypocrite not to want you as her friend.
Especially since everyone would still think she was dead if you hadn't
figured out that her consciousness was trapped in that vortex thing
and then went in and led her out using the same spell you used when she
went comatose over losing Dawn."
"What do you think?" Willow stepped out wearing the black top and blue
skirt. It was time to stop discussing Buffy, Xander, and their possible
reactions. Willow just wanted to forget about it for a little while.
"Big improvement." Cordelia took the change in subject in stride. She
ripped the tags from the clothes Willow was wearing and gathered up the
others she had tried on in the dressing room and dumped them into the
arms of the nearest salesgirl. "She's wearing those out and we'll take
these as well. After we pay, there are like three more shops that we
have to hit. There's also this cool bistro with the hottest waiters
just down the street where we can have lunch, we can drag Fred out of
the library to join us. Oh, and you haven't met Lorne yet."
*****
The sun was setting. Cordelia had monopolized Willow all day. They
still weren't back from shopping. How long does it take to buy
clothes? You walk into a store, pick up some things off the rack, and
then pay for them. It shouldn't have taken them more than twenty
minutes. Angel shifted in his chair. Wesley had made him stop pacing
an hour ago. He couldn't help it. Willow was so vulnerable and
delicate. He was worried. What if she got hungry? She hadn't eaten
in hours and fledglings tended to need to feed more often in the
beginning. Of course, Willow wasn't a typical fledgling. His desk
chair creaked as Angel shifted again.
"Angel," Gunn snapped. He stood up and tossed Angel a mace. "You need
to get your mind off Tiger. What's with you and this obsessing over
women? She won't disappear if you stop thinking about her for a
second." Gunn grinned at Angel's low growl. He brandished his newly
polished ax with a flourish. "Take your best shot."
Angel stood up, holding the mace at his side. He and Gunn moved into
the open area of the lobby, circling each other with predatory grace.
Angel's mind went blank as he focused on his adversary. Gunn was a
worthy opponent in a sparring match. He wasn't as strong or fast as
Buffy, but he was smart and he had great battle instincts that he
didn't second guess. He was also impatient. Angel waited for Gunn to
make the first move.
"So, Angel, is Tiger free? Cause vampire or not, she's one hot little
number." Gunn's features split into another grin as Angel's eyes
flashed gold. Angel hadn't expected his first attack to be verbal.
But Gunn was catching on. Damn vampire always waited until he lashed
out first and then it usually ended up with him on his ass. It wasn't
going to happen this time. Even if he had to use Angel's obvious
less-than-brotherly feelings for the vampire witch.
"No, she has a girlfriend."
"What?" Angel used Gunn's surprise against him and swung the mace. It
clanged on the ax as Gunn deflected the blow. Unfortunately, the
defensive move unbalanced Gunn and Angel swept his feet out from under
him. Not to be totally outdone, Gunn kicked at Angel's knee. They
both fell to the floor with a thud.
The front door opened and both men looked up to see Cordelia, Willow,
and Fred with their arms laden with shopping bags. "See, I told you
they would keep themselves occupied." Cordelia stepped over the guys
and walked to her desk. "You better not have broken anything of mine.
How many times do I have to tell you not to rough house in here?
That's what the ballroom is for." Cordelia glared at them and then
turned to Wesley who was sitting in his office with the door wide open.
Books were piled up on his desk. "Why didn't you stop them, Wesley?"
"Cordelia, we've been researching all afternoon, not gallivanting about
the city on a shopping spree." Wesley took off his glasses and rubbed
his nose. His initial excitement had quickly dissipated, he was now
worried and exhausted. His reading had turned up very little
information. He didn't know if he could help Miss Rosenberg. The last
thing he needed was a lecture from Cordelia. "This is a very serious
matter. We need to know as much as possible."
"And I'm sure Angel and Gunn got a lot of useful information from the
floor." Cordelia rolled her eyes. "Now, Willow and I have discovered
a lot while gallivanting. For example, Willow still needs to eat
regular people food, garlic doesn't effect her...."
"Garlic doesn't effect me either," Angel stated drily. Willow set down
her bags and held out her hand to him. Her grip was strong as she
helped him to his feet. "That's a myth."
"Crosses only give her this horrible, bumpy rash that goes away pretty
quickly," Cordelia continued as if Angel hadn't interrupted. "And she
doesn't need an invitation. We stopped at my place so she could meet
Dennis. We also went to see Lorne." Cordelia gave Wesley a
self-satisfied smirk. She resisted the urge to stick her tongue out
at him.
"She took me shopping and then she made me sing." Willow pouted at
Angel. He squeezed her hand, the one he hadn't let go of once he was
on his feet.
"You have a beautiful voice," Fred offered hesitantly. She hovered in
the doorway. These were her friends, but she was still afraid. Afraid
that they weren't real, that being back was just a dream. She was
afraid that one day she would step into the hotel and its walls would
disintegrate, her friends would disappear, and she would be back in her
cave in Pylea, talking to herself.
"Thanks, Fred." Willow smiled at the girl. She reminded her of herself
in highschool before she had met Buffy, shy and nervous. She was glad
that Cordelia seemed to have taken her under her wing. Again, it was
just like her and Buffy. Willow lost her smile and sighed.
"What did Lorne say?" Angel asked softly. He squeezed her hand again.
Willow blushed. She wasn't exactly ready to share everything that the
green-skinned reader demon had told her and especially not with the
group. She wasn't even sure she believed it. He must have
misinterpreted something. But she could tell them one thing. "He said
someone close to me brought this about. Whoever sent VampWillow after
me didn't want this to happen, I was supposed to die. She was supposed
to kill me. All me's in every dimension. What did I do to make
someone hate me that much?" Willow moved into Angel's waiting arms.
*****
The bodies of the children wove around each other in a heated frenzy to
the beat of the loud music. It was incredibly hot in the nightclub,
both in temperature and hormones. That was the way Darla liked it.
She had left L. A., but not because her errant childe had ordered her
to. She had needed time to shed the scummy film of humanity that had
clung to her. Angel was a bad influence, he had actually made her
care. Darla shivered. A sweet, young boy - no more than twenty-two -
caught her eye. Draining him would be a step in the right direction.
He reminded her of an uncorrupted, younger Lindsey.
A hand on her arm stopped Darla's approach and pulled her into the
shadows instead. "Dru?" Darla cocked her head at the insane vampire.
"I thought you had gone to Sunnydale to get Spike back."
Dru pouted. "My Spikey's head is full of the slayer. She's taken him
like she did my Daddy, only she won't play with Spikey. He's a bad
boy."
"She is a greedy little slut, isn't she?" Darla grimaced. It still
hurt that the schoolgirl had the power to bring back her boy and she
did not. "So, what brings you to San Diego, Dru? Do you want to kill
the bitch?"
"She was dead, but now she's alive." Dru's sad eyes brightened and she
started to hum and sway. "The stars told me a wonderful story,
Grandmother Daughter. The little tree that weeps has joined our family.
She's my new Mummy and she'll give me brothers and sisters to play
with." Dru cradled her stomach, protecting a nonexistent baby. "Her
womb isn't dead."
As always, Dru's rambling was frustrating. It didn't make sense. It
sounded like Angel had found a new woman, but there was no way he could
give her children.
Following Darla's train of thought, Dru sang softly, "There's a spell.
Daddy and Mummy will have beautiful children. They'll walk in the
light."
"And destroy by day if we play our cards right." Darla still didn't
understand how what Dru was saying was possible, but she would. "Let's
get back to Los Angeles. It's time I was a bad influence on Angel and
this time I'll use his new love to bring him back home."
To be continued....
It was just a door. A simple wooden door. Angel could break it down
easily, not that he would have to, all he had to do was knock on it.
Willow was on the other side of the door and she was awake. He could
hear her moving around, going about her morning routine - probably
getting dressed. Angel knocked on the door.
"Good morning, Angel." Willow opened her bedroom door. She was fully
dressed in the borrowed clothes from the night before. "Or, I guess
I should say good afternoon."
"Either is fine." Angel held up a mug. "I brought breakfast, or
lunch."
Willow grimaced at the offered blood, but took it. "Thanks. We'll
call it brunch."
"The others will be here soon," Angel urged. He didn't want her to go
through the raging bloodlust she had experienced the night before. She
looked better, less scared and vulnerable. Angel was glad. He knew
that her life would never be the same, but she would adjust. She was
already starting to adapt.
"Hey, I didn't gag as much this time," Willow announced triumphantly.
She grinned at Angel and he couldn't help but to grin back. "Angel?"
Willow gulped and she lost her smile. She leaned forward. Their
bodies were almost touching. He could smell the blood she had just
drank.
"Wake up, sleepyfangs!" Cordelia sang from downstairs. "It's time to
research and you're not getting out of it just because you're creatures
of the night."
Angel stepped back. The pull toward Willow was amazingly strong. The
only other vampire he had ever been this drawn to was Darla and that
was because she was his sire. He didn't share a blood bond with
Willow, so that couldn't be the reason. "We should go downstairs and
research."
"Th..that's a good idea." Willow followed Angel downstairs, mortified
that her gaze repeatedly strayed to his ass. He had a nice ass. Firm
and muscled...Willow licked her lips. Snap out of it! This had to be
the demon part of herself. She had never thought about Angel's ass
before. Well, there was that one time, but it was totally Buffy's
fault. At the thought of Buffy, Willow felt sad and afraid. She was a
vampire now, how was she going to be the slayer's best friend?
"Hey, Willow, did you want to take the comp...Oh, my God, we have got
to go shopping and get you some clothes." Cordelia grabbed Willow's
hand. She stopped abruptly before the front door. "Can you go out in
the sunlight?"
"I don't know." Willow considered the patch of sunlight filtering
through the window beside the door.
"Perhaps we should begin researching and worry about Miss Rosenberg's
wardrobe later."
"Willow, Wesley, call me Willow. And you too, Gunn."
"Actually, I thought I'd call you 'Tiger.'" Gunn grinned. Half vampire
or not, he liked this little redhead. She had pulled herself together
quickly the night before and it looked like she was accepting what had
happened to her. Gunn liked people with courage and spunk.
"Sure. Why don't we investigate instead of research?" Willow slowly
approached the sunlight.
"Be careful, Willow," Angel cautioned. He wanted to pull her back into
the safety of the shadows, but this was really the only way to find
out. He controlled the impulse and watched as Willow held out her
hand. Sunlight streamed across her fingers, but she didn't pull it
back and she didn't catch fire.
"It tingles." Willow wiggled her fingers. She stepped forward, fully
into the light. "Ow!" She hastily stepped back, slapping her hand
over her eyes. Angel was at her side immediately, leading her back
into the dim lobby. "Oh, ouch. It hurts. My eyes, ow."
"Shhh, it's okay. You're out of the light now." Angel soothed her,
rubbing her back and stroking her hair. He shouldn't have let her take
chances with her life. She was hurt because of him. Gently, Angel
took Willow's hands from her eyes. They were a little red and watery,
but she seemed to focus on him. "Can you see?"
"Yes." Willow wiped the tears from her eyes. "I think it's too bright.
The sunlight didn't burn my eyes. I'm just sensitive to it."
"Here." Cordelia dug into her purse and brought out a pair of
sunglasses. "Try these." Willow took them and put them on. Angel
reluctantly let her go and she ventured back into the sunlight
successfully this time. "Excellent." Cordelia crowed. She grabbed
Willow's hand. "Problem solved. Let's go shopping." The girls
disappeared out the door before Angel could register his protest.
*****
Shopping with Cordelia was something Willow had only experienced once.
She had hoped to never repeat it, but now she was glad she had.
Cordelia had changed since she had left Sunnydale for L. A. She was
still blunt, but her edges were softer. She still gave the salesgirls
a hard time, but it was because they stared at Willow and not because
they didn't have the sweater she wanted in her favorite color.
Although Willow didn't blame them, they probably didn't get a lot of
bare footed customers wearing a silk shirt ten times too big, a black
mini skirt that reached past her knees, and dark sunglasses.
"Ooo, these are perfect." Cordelia held up a pair of red leather boots.
"Maybe if I were auditioning for Pretty Woman 2. I would break my neck
on those heels, Cordy." Willow slipped on a pair of comfortable blue
sandals with yellow sunflowers. "I like these."
"Okay. I just thought maybe you would like to get down with your bad
vampire self." Cordelia shrugged and started to put the boots back,
but changed her mind. "I'll buy them and you can borrow them if you
want."
Impulsively, Willow hugged Cordelia. "Thanks for accepting this and
treating me like I'm normal."
"Hey, we're from Sunnydale." Cordelia hugged the slight girl back.
"This is normal. You know, Willow, if you ever want to talk...I know
you'll probably want to talk about the vampire stuff with Angel, but
if you want to talk about your feelings...Mr. Stoic hasn't exactly been
an expert in dealing with his own feelings...so, you know, I'm here."
"Yeah. That's why I'm here. I knew you and Angel would help me."
Willow smiled sadly. She sifted through the blouses as Cordelia turned
to the rack of leather pants on sale behind them. "Do you think Xander
will hate me?"
"Never in a million years." Cordelia whipped around to face Willow.
She handed her a pair of dark hunter green leather pants. "Here, try
these on." She pushed Willow into a dressing room and grabbed a burnt
orange silk tank top and handed that to her as well. "And this.
Honestly, Willow, Xander loves you. He could never hate you. He won't
like what you've become and he'll find some way to blame Angel and
hate him even more, but never you."
"You're right. But still, what am I going to do now? I won't fit in
with the Scoobies anymore. The slayer can't have a vampire for a best
friend."
"Why not?" Cordelia shoved a black spandex t-shirt and a flowing blue
skirt through the curtain that separated them. "She certainly
overlooked the fangs long enough to fall in love and bed one of them.
She would be a total hypocrite not to want you as her friend.
Especially since everyone would still think she was dead if you hadn't
figured out that her consciousness was trapped in that vortex thing
and then went in and led her out using the same spell you used when she
went comatose over losing Dawn."
"What do you think?" Willow stepped out wearing the black top and blue
skirt. It was time to stop discussing Buffy, Xander, and their possible
reactions. Willow just wanted to forget about it for a little while.
"Big improvement." Cordelia took the change in subject in stride. She
ripped the tags from the clothes Willow was wearing and gathered up the
others she had tried on in the dressing room and dumped them into the
arms of the nearest salesgirl. "She's wearing those out and we'll take
these as well. After we pay, there are like three more shops that we
have to hit. There's also this cool bistro with the hottest waiters
just down the street where we can have lunch, we can drag Fred out of
the library to join us. Oh, and you haven't met Lorne yet."
*****
The sun was setting. Cordelia had monopolized Willow all day. They
still weren't back from shopping. How long does it take to buy
clothes? You walk into a store, pick up some things off the rack, and
then pay for them. It shouldn't have taken them more than twenty
minutes. Angel shifted in his chair. Wesley had made him stop pacing
an hour ago. He couldn't help it. Willow was so vulnerable and
delicate. He was worried. What if she got hungry? She hadn't eaten
in hours and fledglings tended to need to feed more often in the
beginning. Of course, Willow wasn't a typical fledgling. His desk
chair creaked as Angel shifted again.
"Angel," Gunn snapped. He stood up and tossed Angel a mace. "You need
to get your mind off Tiger. What's with you and this obsessing over
women? She won't disappear if you stop thinking about her for a
second." Gunn grinned at Angel's low growl. He brandished his newly
polished ax with a flourish. "Take your best shot."
Angel stood up, holding the mace at his side. He and Gunn moved into
the open area of the lobby, circling each other with predatory grace.
Angel's mind went blank as he focused on his adversary. Gunn was a
worthy opponent in a sparring match. He wasn't as strong or fast as
Buffy, but he was smart and he had great battle instincts that he
didn't second guess. He was also impatient. Angel waited for Gunn to
make the first move.
"So, Angel, is Tiger free? Cause vampire or not, she's one hot little
number." Gunn's features split into another grin as Angel's eyes
flashed gold. Angel hadn't expected his first attack to be verbal.
But Gunn was catching on. Damn vampire always waited until he lashed
out first and then it usually ended up with him on his ass. It wasn't
going to happen this time. Even if he had to use Angel's obvious
less-than-brotherly feelings for the vampire witch.
"No, she has a girlfriend."
"What?" Angel used Gunn's surprise against him and swung the mace. It
clanged on the ax as Gunn deflected the blow. Unfortunately, the
defensive move unbalanced Gunn and Angel swept his feet out from under
him. Not to be totally outdone, Gunn kicked at Angel's knee. They
both fell to the floor with a thud.
The front door opened and both men looked up to see Cordelia, Willow,
and Fred with their arms laden with shopping bags. "See, I told you
they would keep themselves occupied." Cordelia stepped over the guys
and walked to her desk. "You better not have broken anything of mine.
How many times do I have to tell you not to rough house in here?
That's what the ballroom is for." Cordelia glared at them and then
turned to Wesley who was sitting in his office with the door wide open.
Books were piled up on his desk. "Why didn't you stop them, Wesley?"
"Cordelia, we've been researching all afternoon, not gallivanting about
the city on a shopping spree." Wesley took off his glasses and rubbed
his nose. His initial excitement had quickly dissipated, he was now
worried and exhausted. His reading had turned up very little
information. He didn't know if he could help Miss Rosenberg. The last
thing he needed was a lecture from Cordelia. "This is a very serious
matter. We need to know as much as possible."
"And I'm sure Angel and Gunn got a lot of useful information from the
floor." Cordelia rolled her eyes. "Now, Willow and I have discovered
a lot while gallivanting. For example, Willow still needs to eat
regular people food, garlic doesn't effect her...."
"Garlic doesn't effect me either," Angel stated drily. Willow set down
her bags and held out her hand to him. Her grip was strong as she
helped him to his feet. "That's a myth."
"Crosses only give her this horrible, bumpy rash that goes away pretty
quickly," Cordelia continued as if Angel hadn't interrupted. "And she
doesn't need an invitation. We stopped at my place so she could meet
Dennis. We also went to see Lorne." Cordelia gave Wesley a
self-satisfied smirk. She resisted the urge to stick her tongue out
at him.
"She took me shopping and then she made me sing." Willow pouted at
Angel. He squeezed her hand, the one he hadn't let go of once he was
on his feet.
"You have a beautiful voice," Fred offered hesitantly. She hovered in
the doorway. These were her friends, but she was still afraid. Afraid
that they weren't real, that being back was just a dream. She was
afraid that one day she would step into the hotel and its walls would
disintegrate, her friends would disappear, and she would be back in her
cave in Pylea, talking to herself.
"Thanks, Fred." Willow smiled at the girl. She reminded her of herself
in highschool before she had met Buffy, shy and nervous. She was glad
that Cordelia seemed to have taken her under her wing. Again, it was
just like her and Buffy. Willow lost her smile and sighed.
"What did Lorne say?" Angel asked softly. He squeezed her hand again.
Willow blushed. She wasn't exactly ready to share everything that the
green-skinned reader demon had told her and especially not with the
group. She wasn't even sure she believed it. He must have
misinterpreted something. But she could tell them one thing. "He said
someone close to me brought this about. Whoever sent VampWillow after
me didn't want this to happen, I was supposed to die. She was supposed
to kill me. All me's in every dimension. What did I do to make
someone hate me that much?" Willow moved into Angel's waiting arms.
*****
The bodies of the children wove around each other in a heated frenzy to
the beat of the loud music. It was incredibly hot in the nightclub,
both in temperature and hormones. That was the way Darla liked it.
She had left L. A., but not because her errant childe had ordered her
to. She had needed time to shed the scummy film of humanity that had
clung to her. Angel was a bad influence, he had actually made her
care. Darla shivered. A sweet, young boy - no more than twenty-two -
caught her eye. Draining him would be a step in the right direction.
He reminded her of an uncorrupted, younger Lindsey.
A hand on her arm stopped Darla's approach and pulled her into the
shadows instead. "Dru?" Darla cocked her head at the insane vampire.
"I thought you had gone to Sunnydale to get Spike back."
Dru pouted. "My Spikey's head is full of the slayer. She's taken him
like she did my Daddy, only she won't play with Spikey. He's a bad
boy."
"She is a greedy little slut, isn't she?" Darla grimaced. It still
hurt that the schoolgirl had the power to bring back her boy and she
did not. "So, what brings you to San Diego, Dru? Do you want to kill
the bitch?"
"She was dead, but now she's alive." Dru's sad eyes brightened and she
started to hum and sway. "The stars told me a wonderful story,
Grandmother Daughter. The little tree that weeps has joined our family.
She's my new Mummy and she'll give me brothers and sisters to play
with." Dru cradled her stomach, protecting a nonexistent baby. "Her
womb isn't dead."
As always, Dru's rambling was frustrating. It didn't make sense. It
sounded like Angel had found a new woman, but there was no way he could
give her children.
Following Darla's train of thought, Dru sang softly, "There's a spell.
Daddy and Mummy will have beautiful children. They'll walk in the
light."
"And destroy by day if we play our cards right." Darla still didn't
understand how what Dru was saying was possible, but she would. "Let's
get back to Los Angeles. It's time I was a bad influence on Angel and
this time I'll use his new love to bring him back home."
To be continued....