PART ELEVEN
Willow grinned behind her mask before leaping over a headstone, her movements fluid and lithe, almost feline in the inky darkness.
She rolled and ducked just as Angel brought his stake over her head and into the heart of the vampire that had been pursuing her.
Pouncing up, she made eye contact with him briefly before returning into the fight raging behind her.
Jessica, Heather and Eliz were in the process of fending off three vampires approximately twice their size while a few tweed-clad Watchers stood off to the side taking notes furiously. A bit farther away, Buffy also stood quietly, making sure that things remained under control and occasionally offering advice.
"Eliz, if you hold the stake up a little higher, you won't need to keep covering your face and you can aim better….yeah, that's right. Keep it at eye level." The slayer nodded encouragement as the younger girl did what she was told, much to the chagrin of her opponent. Within seconds he was reduced to dust.
"Oh yes! I kick ass!!" The slayer-in-training did a little victory dance past her friends who were still engaged in battle.
Spotting another vampire about to sneak up on the distracted teenager, Willow quickly ran to intercept him.
Realizing that she probably wouldn't be there in time, she quickly raised her hands up and shot off a wave of energy that sent them both flying in opposite directions.
The unfortunate vampire crashed into his two companions, causing them to tumble into a mesh of arms and legs and making them easy prey for Jessica and Heather.
Willow's short trip through the air ended when she crashed into the solid wall of Angel's chest. Beyond a slight grunt of surprise, he managed to easily grab her and absorb most of the impact of her flight.
Biting off her almost automatic apology into a short squeak, she chose to save it for later when they went back to her house to compare notes over the computer.
"You okay?" He asked just loud enough for her to hear.
She nodded silently and patted his arm for reassurance.
Lowering her to the ground, he sent her one of her rare grins, "Messing around with magic again? Wait til I tell Whistler…"
She whacked his arm a little harder in playful response.
"All right, I think that's enough for one night, girls," One of the Watchers declared in reference to the smaller slayers. He sent Willow a quick confirmatory glance.
The hacker nodded vigorously in agreement.
As they started to pack up, she jogged over to join Buffy, "You okay?" she whispered.
"Yup, hang on." The blonde girl murmured back, "Angel!" She called out, "Why don't you walk everyone else home. I need to talk to the Immortal Watcher for a few secs."
Pausing, the vampire looked at them carefully before doing what he was told.
Buffy waited patiently until she was sure the rest of the group was gone before turning to her friend, "Willow, are you sure you're okay with all this? I mean, I know it's been over a month, but I'm still worried about you. Are you sure you don't want to have a few training sessions with Giles?"
"Buffy…" Sighing, the hacker pulled off her mask. The past several weeks had been hard. Revealing who she was to Buffy had initially almost put the blonde girl into a state of shock, but, being resilient, the Slayer had managed to bounce back fairly quickly. She agreed to let Willow train with Whistler on the condition that she could come and observe some of the patrols during the weekends.
Personally, Willow felt that Buffy was stretching herself a bit thin between Sunnydale and LA, but she didn't feel that she had the right to tell the Slayer what to do. Not yet, at least.
"No, I mean, Willow, I can see that you've gotten a lot better and all and I respect what Whistler's been doing, but aren't you not supposed to be using magic?"
"Amy told me to use my own discretion." The hacker responded, trying to keep her voice light. Even though she had assured her best friend numerous times that she could handle things on her own, Buffy still had trouble relegating her role as Slayer under Willow's supreme role as Immortal Watcher. Although she understood that it was hard for Buffy now that their positions were reversed, Willow still couldn't help but feel frustrated at times like this.
"Yeah, well, that's not what Whistler said to me this morning."
The hacker suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. She had managed to make peace between the two councils vying for her attention, heck, she'd even managed to get Patrick to allow the slayers in training to spend some time in LA for group patrols. All in all she was proud of her accomplishments....except for the one where Whistler became so chummy with Buffy all of a sudden.
"Well, Amy's the witch, so I trust her." Try as she might, she couldn't keep the slightly annoyed tone out of her voice.
Taking a deep breath, Buffy placed her hands over her eyes as if trying to clear her mind, "You know what?" she said finally, "You're right. I'm sorry. I keep doing that don't I?"
"No, it's okay, Buffy." Almost instantly, the hacker felt bad for her abrupt behavior.
"No, it's not okay. I mean, I guess I understand that all this is happening in my head but, it's just like…I'm seeing it and I can't believe it."
"Believe what?"
"That my Willow's kicking ass," Buffy grinned.
"It's a tough job, but someone's gotta do it." The redhead responded in the most authoritative voice she could muster before both girls burst into giggles and walked off together, missing the shadow lurking in the corner and the flash of peroxide blonde hair that shone through the trees.
**
Settling down at the computer in her living room, Willow grabbed the keyboard and leaned back in her chair comfortably.
'Miss me?' she typed.
"I was worried about you, yes. What'd Buffy want?" He asked aloud after reading the message over her shoulder.
'She just wanted to talk about…stuff.' The hacker's fingers flew over the keys.
"Stuff you can't talk to me about?" He prodded gently.
She swiveled slightly and noted the mischievous sparkle in his dark brown eyes.
'Slayer/Immortal Watcher confidentiality. Sorry.' She typed unapologetically after realizing that he was just teasing her.
"Fair enough." He responded easily, "So, what are your plans for the rest of this weekend?"
She paused.
'Why?'
"I was wondering if we could fit an extra patrol in on Saturday night."
'Oh.' She couldn't help but feel a slight amount of disappointment over the reason behind his initial question even if it was what she had been expecting. 'Actually, I'm expecting some company.'
"Really?" He touched her shoulder inadvertently while leaning in to get a better look at the computer screen, "Can I ask who?"
Taking a deep breath and silently praying that Whistler wouldn't choose this instant to walk in she quickly responded, 'This girl that's friends with Buffy, I think. She's coming to help Whistler with some research I guess. She's from Sunnydale so you might have known her. Willow Rosenburg?'
"Rosenberg….b-E-r-g," Angel corrected absent-mindedly while straightening up, "Willow's coming down?"
Oddly pleased that he caught the purposeful misspelling of her last name, the hacker nodded, 'Yeah, but it shouldn't be too big a deal. I mean, we could still fit in the extra patrol. I'm sure she wouldn't mind.'
"No," The dark vampire shook his head, "Let's go easy this weekend. You should probably spend some time with Willow."
'What if we just brought her along?'
"I don't think that's a good idea." Angel's voice took on a firmer quality.
'But I've heard she's one of Buffy's friends and that she helped with the sla-'
Before the hacker could finish the sentence she was typing, Angel placed his hands over hers and gently swiveled her around to face him.
"Listen, Willow's great. I knew her when I lived in Sunnydale and you're right, she did help Buffy sometimes but this isn't Sunnydale. This is LA and if something happens to her out here, I don't have the kind of knowledge and connections I did back there to be able to guarantee her safety."
"Who's safety?' Whistler strolled into the room and eyed the couple.
Snapping to attention, Angel released her hands and put some more distance between the two of them before responding, "Willow's. I was just told that she's coming to LA to help you research. Why didn't you let me know?"
Whistler's eyes widened slightly and he glanced at the dark-clad figure sitting at the computer, "I didn't think the two of you were all that close." The demon responded shortly.
A slightly tense silence settled over the room.
"Well, it's getting late, I should be leaving." Angel finally said, bending to pick up his car keys and heading towards the door.
"See you tomorrow after sunset." The demon responded without taking his eyes off of Willow.
Several more moments of silence passed as the remaining pair listened to the sounds of the vampire as he got into his car and started the engine.
As soon as the vehicle turned out of the driveway, Whistler spoke.
"Willow Rosenberg is coming to LA to help me research?"
Pulling her mask off her head, the hacker met his gaze unflinchingly, "Yes, she is."
"And why, pray tell, is she doing that?" The demon responded.
"Because she has friends she wants to see up here and she's tired of wearing a hood over her head."
Sighing, Whistler shook his head, "Well, you've already told him that you're coming down so there's nothing I can do now."
A slow smile spread over the hacker's face.
"I'll let Buffy know," He continued, ignoring her obvious happiness and exiting the room.
"Thanks, Whistler!" She called bouncing up and down in her seat.
"You'd just better pray that you can pull off the Superman/ Clark Kent shit without Angel figuring it out." He called from the kitchen, "As dumb as he looks, he ain't no Lois Lane. You're gonna have to do a hell of a lot more than just switch between glasses and contacts."
**
Cordelia was just putting the finishing touches on Willow's 'casual' upswept hairstyle that had only taken half an hour to accomplish when the doorbell rang.
"Buffy!! Can you get it? I'm busy." Cordelia shouted, her teeth clenched over a bobby pin.
Muttering under her breath, the slayer bounded out of the guestroom with several young girls trailing her.
"Wait Buffy! Sit down!"
"Your makeup isn't done yet!"
Yanking the door open, she beckoned for Giles to enter.
"Sorry, I can't find the spare keys Cordelia lent me." The librarian began before getting a better look at his slayer, "Dear Lord, Buffy…what happened to you?"
Blinking her blue eyeshadow laden eyes at him, she shook her head causing her numerous braids to flip flop errantly, "What are you talking about, Giles?" Leaning closer she whispered, "I'm running interference. Cordelia is helping Willow get ready and I'm distracting the…others."
"Ready? Ready for what? I thought she was patrolling tomorrow night, not tonight." The librarian looked confused.
"C'mon, Buffy! I haven't put the bows in yet!" Emma tugged her hand insistently
Wincing, the slayer plastered a smile on her face and feigned enthusiasm, "Oh boy."
"Hi Giles! Bye Giles!" Cordelia flew past the Watcher quickly, tugging Willow along at almost breakneck speed.
"Well, hello, but, y-yes, where are you two girls…."
The door slammed shut.
He looked around the empty hall, "Going?"
**
As Cordelia's red corvette pulled up in front of their destination, she smiled, "Okay, now I'll drop you in front of the bus station and you need to get in and look for terminal number 7. Just stand near the terminal entrance. Angel is due to pick you up from there in about 20 minutes but I figure he'll be early cause he always is."
"This is kinda silly, Cordelia." The hacker sighed and hauled her blue backpack out of the car as she opened the door.
"No, this is a good way of making him really think that you took the bus up here to LA. Besides, it was my idea. Therefore, it is automatically genius because I'm always right. Now get out of here and haul ass to the terminal."
"See you later, Cordelia." The hacker humored her friend with a smile and a wave as she quickly headed into the busy building.
She was almost to her destination when she spotted a dark figure seated out of the way of the throngs of people, quietly reading a book. Her heart fell when she realized that there was little chance of her getting past him to the entrance of the terminal without getting spotted first. He must've gotten here half an hour early! She sighed.
Looking around at the massive crowds packed into the station, she wondered how she'd even been lucky enough to spot him in the first place. Gosh, it's like I have Angel-radar or something. I'm like…like…a little pointer dog or something.
The PA system blared the arrival of a bus and Angel absently looked up from his book.
Quickly, Willow ducked into a nearby food kiosk and bent down to remain hidden. Guess, I'll just have to wait it out until 'my bus' gets here…
**
Stopped at a red light, Cordelia was hunting around for her mascara when she heard a thud. Looking up, she watched as a man fell atop the hood of her car, slid off the other side and took off running in the opposite direction.
"Hey!" She started to yell, beeping her horn in anger when she noticed 3 or 4 burly men run around behind her car in hot pursuit. Pausing to check her rear view mirror, she suddenly recognized the man being pursued.
Whistler.
"Aw, shit." The brunette cursed softly before gunning her engine and hauling an illegal U-Turn in the middle of the street.
Ignoring the angry shouts from other drivers, she took off trying to catch up with them, praying that there weren't any police nearby. She already had 2 out standing speeding tickets.
Taking a sharp turn around the corner, she passed the pursuers and managed to catch up to Whistler just as he was about to dart through a narrow alleyway.
"Get in!" She shouted at the demon, unlocking her doors just long enough for him to dive into the back seat.
He barely managed to get the door slammed shut before one of the attackers came up alongside the car, growling. Another appeared directly in front of the vehicle.
Getting a good look at the snarling, bony vices of the two men, Cordelia needed little more encouragement to press her accelerator directly to the floor and plow over them both.
Ignoring the loud bumps as she ran over the bodies, she quickly took a right, turning onto the highway, "Cordelia Chase Search and Rescue, at your service. You'd better be glad that there weren't any police around. I would have kicked your sorry ass if I got stopped." She smiled cattily.
There was no response from the back.
"So, what the hell was that all about?" She asked.
Dead silence.
"Whistler?" She asked again, her smile fading somewhat.
Still no response.
Yanking down her rearview mirror, she gasped softly. "Oh my god…"
Beaten badly, the demon was slumped over against his seat covered in a mixture of grime, sweat and blood. His shirt torn and fedora missing, he looked pale as a ghost and was completely unconscious.
Hazarding a glance behind her to double check that what she saw was real, she quickly grabbed her cell phone and started dialing.
"Giles? It's Cordelia." She tried to keep her voice from shaking, "I found Whistler. He's really hurt. What should I do?"
**
"Want me to help you with that?"
Willow tried not to feel guilty as Angel gently took her backpack from her.
"How was the bus ride?" he asked.
"The bus ride was good…it was…long. Yup, really long."
There was a slightly awkward pause as the pair tried to think of something else to say while walking to the car.
"Well, Buffy should be at Cordelia's by the time we get there." He offered.
"Oh, good!" Willow responded happily, "I mean, I haven't seen her…in…a…few days."
"She would have been here except she had to help Giles take the slayers-in-training out for a short patrol and some exercise."
"Oh, well that's fine, I understand." The redhead smiled, "I think it's great that you came to pick me up."
He shot her a sideways glance.
"Th-that is to say that it's good to see you. I haven't seen you in a really long time, like…ever since…." Her voice trailed off.
"That time we killed the Mayor and blew up Sunnydale High?" He supplied dryly.
"Yeah, around then." She sent him a sheepish smile.
"It's good to see you too, Willow." Although he didn't smile at her, his tone softened slightly. Holding the door open, he waited for her to get in the car.
Exhaling deeply, the hacker felt some of the tension seep out of her, "Uhm, thanks. Oh look, black leather interior….nice."
Slightly surprised that the redhead had noticed, he nodded, "Whistler bought it for me."
"Oh yeah, how's Whistler?" Willow asked as Angel got into the car, desperately trying to keep the conversation going.
"He's alright as far as I know. I haven't been able to get in touch with him at all today, though." Checking his rear view mirror briefly, the vampire started the car and pulled out of the parking lot. "I'm not sure if I should take you over to Cordelia's or to the Immortal Watcher's house….do you have a preference?"
"Preference? Me? Uhm..no." Willow squeaked the mention of her alternate ego making her somewhat nervous. "Actually," she rethought her words, "Maybe we SHOULD go to her house first."
"Which 'her'?" Angel asked, a slight smile in his voice.
"Oh, the…uhm..the Immortal Watcher."
"Sounds good."
They lapsed into companionable silence for most of the remainder of their journey.
Just as they were pulling up to Willow's street, the hacker spoke again, "So, do you know the Immortal Watcher really well? I mean, she being your Protector and all. Are you two close friends?" She glanced at him hopefully.
Angel chose his words carefully, "We know each other. Not as well as maybe you and Xander, but yes, we're good friends."
Unable to help herself, Willow's face broke into a wide grin.
"What?" The vampire asked, noting her expression.
"Oh, oh..well, nothing. I mean, it's just nice to hear you say that…she must be really, uhm, nice."
"Yes, yes she is." Angel responded as he turned into the driveway of the house. "Here it is. I'm not sure if anyone's home. If not, we can go to Cordelia's because Buffy should be ther-." Abruptly the vampire stopped talking.
"Wh-what? What is it?" Anxiously, the hacker followed his gaze and her eyes came to rest on the broken upstairs window he was staring at. Then, she noted the glass strewn across the grass and pavement. It almost looked as if someone had jumped…or had been pushed out of it.
"Willow. Wait in the car." The vampire's order was delivered so firmly that she sat frozen in her seat until he had gotten out.
"Oh, wait, Angel, don't go. Maybe we should call Buffy!" She suddenly realized that he intended to investigate alone.
"Just sit in the car, Willow. I'll be right back," he ordered again before closing the door and locking her in.
"Wait!" She called, pounding on the glass, "Angel! Come back!!" Furiously, she tried to open the door or a window but the power controls wouldn't budge without the key in the ignition.
"Angel!! There's no one in the house! I know there isn't, come back!!" But it was too late. She saw the shadow inching up behind him as he was pushing open the main door which had been left slightly ajar.
"Look out!" She screamed. Leaning heavily down on the horn, she caught his attention just as he was attacked.
Shouting in anguish, she watched as more and more vampires swarmed onto the scene quickly ambushing her friend. Unable to scream or claw her way out of the car, she tried a different tactic.
Lying down so that her back was pressed firmly to the bottom of the seat, she kicked sharply up against the passenger side glass window of the car.
After a few tries, she felt it start to give way. All of a sudden, she saw a face appear in the window just as she geared back for another shot. She froze in mid-kick.
Spike smiled at her smugly, his game face firmly in place, his fangs gleaming dangerously in the moonlight. Sauntering causally up to the car, he yelled in to her, "I told you to watch your back, didn't I, luv?"
Willow's eyes filled with horror.
Slapping his hand against the glass, he smiled sadistically as he smeared blood—undoubtedly Angel's—against the pane.
"Come and get it." He snarled, a deadly challenge gleaming in his eyes before he abruptly disappeared from her view.
Trying to control her violent trembling, Willow gingerly pulled herself into an upright position and looked around.
Where there had previously been an enormous fight raging before, there was now nothing.
Spike was gone.
So was Angel.
Silence reigned.
PART TWELVE
Opening his eyes slowly, he winced at the sharp pain caused by the gash on his forehead.
"I think he's waking up!" A feminine voice announced.
"Whistler, are you okay?" swiftly, another figure entered his field of view.
Trying to get a good look at the speaker, he eventually forced the image to focus.
"Cordelia?" He rasped softly.
"Where does it hurt?" she prodded while looking nervously at someone out of his sight. He guessed it was either Buffy or Giles since he recognized the room as the guestroom in Cordelia's apartment.
"Where doesn't it?" He retorted and she smiled down at him, some of the fear leaving her face.
"I think he's gonna be okay…" She spoke to the other person in the room.
Trying to let his broken ribs heal properly, Whistler made a valiant attempt to stay as still as possible as he spoke, "Where are Willow and Angel?"
"They should be here any minute…" Cordelia brushed his hair gently out of his eyes, "Who did this to you? What's going on?"
Swallowing hard, he looked up at her, "They took me by surprise. I was in the upstairs study. I don't know why they came after me, but I didn't have time to use magic."
"How did you get away?"
"I jumped out the attic window."
Shock and concern flooded the pretty brunette's features yet again, "Oh my God, Whistler, do you want me to call a doctor or take you to the hospital?"
Squeezing her hand comfortingly, he smiled, "Naw, looks worse than it really is. I'll be fine by tomorrow."
"Cordelia, I need you now!"
The sharp tone in Giles' voice made the young girl look up almost instantly. The librarian was staring back at her, white as a ghost, his hand over the receiver of her cell phone.
"What's going on?" Whistler asked softly.
"I-I don't know yet. Just wait here for a second…."
After a few moments of hushed whispering out of Whistler's range of sight, Cordelia reappeared looking to be near tears.
"Wait…what happened?"
"I'll be right back. JR, stay here with him, please."
Almost instantly, a slayer-in-training stepped up next to the brunette.
"Cordelia…" Whistler began again.
"Just please…don't move." At the desperate look on her face he assented giving her a slight nod before laying still.
"It'll be okay…" JR smiled down at him comfortingly while taking his hand and patting it.
He sighed helplessly as he heard scrambling down the hallway, followed by the door slamming shut and then silence.
**
It took Buffy, Giles and Cordelia nearly 10 minutes to pry the hacker out of the locked car.
The thing that worried Cordelia the most wasn't so much the state of the house or of the yard or even the blood stain she saw on the passenger side window that nearly gave her a heart attack; it was the emotional state of Willow once they got her out.
As Buffy and Cordelia enveloped the slight girl in a group hug, the only thing she whispered in response was, "I have a plan."
Pulling away, the slayer looked at her with concern, "A plan for what?"
Although red-rimmed and bloodshot, the hacker's eyes were devoid of tears, "A plan to get Angel back."
"Willow, what happened?" Cordelia asked.
"Spike kidnapped him."
"Get in the car, we'll discuss this on the way back home." Giles said firmly, darting a nervous glance around the darkened yard and ushering the girls towards Cordelia's red corvette.
"I'm going to get him back," Willow said flatly as Buffy buckled her into the back seat.
"I'm going in with you," the slayer added, "You're not going this alone, Wills. I've fought Spike before. I know his weaknesses."
There was a long moment of silence and the group wasn't sure if Willow was still in shock from her ordeal or if she had heard Buffy's statement,
The redhead suddenly nodded, "Okay. Good idea."
Slightly surprised at the lack of resistance, Buffy sent the hacker a reassuring smile.
"Where's Whistler? I'm going to need him for this." Willow asked softly.
"Whistler's at my place," Cordelia responded, "He's..uhm..he's been hurt."
Taking in her friend's words quietly, the news didn't seem to throw the young girl at all. "Alright. I'll need Amy too then."
"What do you have planned?" Giles asked carefully from the front seat.
"You'll see." She smiled to herself, "You'll see."
**
"NO! Absolutely not!" Giles stormed around the apartment, furious, "I've allowed a lot, Willow. I've sat by and watched you act as Angel's Protector and I've said nothing when Whistler trained you to fight but there is absolutely no way I'm going to allow you to do this."
"Let me see your arm," Willow whispered quietly to Whistler, effectively ignoring the librarian and his tirade.
"Have you entirely lost your mind?" He demanded.
"Giles, calm down." Buffy said quietly.
"YOU stay out of this!" He pinned his slayer with a deadly glare, "If you think I'm allowing you to go into this as well you're entirely mistaken."
Wincing slightly, Whistler watched as the hacker gently ran her fingers along his cut and bloody appendage.
"I think it's starting to heal already. When Amy gets here, though, I'll see if she has enough power to maybe help your healing process after she fixes me up." The redhead smiled kindly at him.
"Giles, let's go to the kitchen, I'll get you some tea and we'll talk out there." Cordelia started to direct the irate Watcher out of the room.
"I will NOT be coddled!" He shouted, "Let go of me!"
Firmly, Buffy took ahold of his other arm and dragged him out into the hallway.
"I simply won't allow this. It's obscenely dangerous. So help me, if I have to lock her in her bloody room myself, I'll do it!"
His fierce shouts echoed down the hall, growing fainter and fainter.
"Willow," Whistler looked up at her, "I have to agree with Giles on this, I don't like it. We can get Angel back another way."
"There isn't time." She shook her head firmly.
"This isn't about Angel. You know that, don't you? This is about you. Spike couldn't care less about Angel. The only reason he took him without killing him is to bait you."
"I'm not stupid, Whistler." The hacker responded quietly, "I know it's a trap."
"Then why are you doing this, Willow?"
When she didn't respond, he sighed.
"Okay. Look. If you won't wait for me to heal before we try this, at least call a friend of mine. He can help you in this case. In fact, he's probably the only one who can help you in this case. The phone number is in my wallet on the table."
Nodding, she stood to retrieve it.
"His name is Julian."
"And how is he going to help me?" The hacker stared at the pale yellow piece of paper in her hand. Judging from the area code, he lived in New York.
"He's been on the C.O.E for longer than I've been around and he happens to know a lot about what you're trying to do."
"I'll call him." She looked up at the demon, determination flashing in her dark green eyes.
"Good luck," Whistler replied seriously, "And be careful."
**
Bound, gagged and blindfolded, Angel had fewer options than to stand still, conserve his energy and bide his time.
"Well if this isn't just deja vu all over again?"
The snide and cocky voice was all too familiar.
"What was that? Oh, yes, I'm sorry, but you really aren't in a position to chat right now, are you mate?"
Remaining stock still, Angel tried to concentrate on Spike's voice in order to judge his location.
"Where am I?" The blonde vampire breathed softly into his captive's right ear.
Involuntarily, Angel flinched.
"Am I here?"
His voice seemed to be coming from overhead.
"Or am I here?" His voice now echoed from behind.
Clenching his jaw in an attempt to keep from reacting, Angel forced his tense muscles to relax.
"No, I think that I'm right here."
Spike stood directly in front of Angel carrying a large crowbar. Swinging it efficiently downwards, he struck the vampire's right thigh with a resounding crack.
The blow, while expected, was still excruciatingly painful.
Angel let out a muffled yell.
Watching the blood from the gash flow downwards, Spike merely smiled.
"You know what this reminds me of? That time that Dru and I went to Spain for a week. She absolutely adored the piñatas. She couldn't get enough of the fucking things. The part that I loved the best was that the prizes were on the inside. You just need to beat hard enough."
**
Pacing, Willow flipped the page of the diary she was reading and almost bumped into Buffy.
"Do you have a schedule together yet?" the Slayer asked all business.
"Yup," Amy responded, coming into the study and setting down two hot chocolates, "Julian's ETA is in about 10 minutes. I made arrangements with some friends to get him here fast. If all goes well, we should be good to do this very soon. I'm still working the kinks out of the spell and healing Whistler at the same time, though so we might get a bit delayed. Can you be ready in about 20 minutes?"
Buffy nodded seriously, "Yup, not a problem."
"We still need Spike's location, though." Amy bit her lip.
"Taken care of." Buffy sent her a bright smile, "Robin, Carrie and I went out for a group patrol and coaxed some info. The vampires here aren't as scared of Spike as the ones back home so they were more willing to talk with a stake pointed to the chest."
"Good." The witch looked thoughtful, "Okay, so I'm going to need you to be in position in exactly 40 minutes. We'll fix Willow and send her after you as soon as possible. Don't try anything until she gets there, though, okay?"
"Sounds like a plan, I'll go finish getting ready," Glancing worriedly at her silent red haired friend, Buffy quickly exited the study in search of Giles.
"Willow?" Amy touched her shoulder, once Buffy was gone.
Startled, the hacker looked up, "Sorry, what did you say?"
"Willow, I want you to seriously think this through. I mean, although this is a great idea, I just don't want to see you get hurt. You know I have complete faith in you bu-,"
"Amy," She cut in quietly, "I know."
The witch opened her mouth to respond but was quickly cut off yet again.
"I know that everyone wants what's best for me but this is something that I have to do alone. I was appointed to protect him and I messed up so now I need to fix it."
"Willow, Spike didn't kidnap Angel just for the fun of it. You need to look at the Immortal Watcher part of this. If he gets his hands on you and, goddess forbid, kills you or..or does something worse like turns you, we don't know what kind of power he could wield."
"Amy, I know. I've though about this before."
"Is this really worth it, Willow?" the brunette sat down next to her friend, her eyes shining with concern, "This isn't just another patrol. You're going into, like, the central base for most of the vampires in the area. AND you're going in as a-,"
"Amy!" frustrated, the hacker stood up, "You want to know if it's worth it, yes it is. I know what can happen and I know what the consequences are but that didn't stop me from staying and stealing pages out of the Mayor's Ascension books when I could have escaped and it won't stop me from getting Angel back. I don't want to die and I don't plan to. Now I need to read," turning away, Willow headed out of the room, "I'm sorry."
The door clicked shut behind her.
Banging her head lightly against the solid oak table she was sitting in front of, Amy sighed.
"Me too."
**
"Buffy, nothing you say is going to change my mind."
"Giles, you need to understand that this is something she feels like she needs to do."
"I can't believe, that YOU as her best friend are allowing her to do something as absurdly deadly as this."
"She's backed me up ever since we first met, Giles. I feel like I owe her one on this."
"At what cost? Her life?!" The librarian was leaning against the kitchen counter, gripping it so tightly that his knuckles were turning white.
"You forget, oh wise Watcher, that I'm going to be there with her. Right at her side."
"No, I do, in fact remember the particulars of this entire foolhardy plan and I can honestly say that I wouldn't care if Willow went through with this accompanied by every Slayer who ever lived. She's not going in and neither are you."
Rolling her eyes, Buffy sighed, "Giles, do I need to ditch the Council AGAIN?"
"Buffy, you can do whatever you think is correct. Leave the Council if you wish. Willow, however doesn't have that luxury because she IS the Council. She's the Immortal Watcher and, may I remind you, she isn't immortal yet."
"Giles." Buffy lowered her voice slightly, "I know how you feel about this. I'm worried too, but all you need to do is look at Willow's face to know that she is going to do this no matter what."
"Buffy, I-,"
"Please." The slayer cut him off with a wave of her hand, "She'll do this with or without your blessing so give her the support she'll need to get through it. Just think about it, okay? I have to finish getting ready…"
The two Slayer's in Training standing outside with their ears pressed to the door simply exchanged a look.
"What do you think?"
"I dunno. What do you think?"
"I'm feeling…torn."
"I like Giles…I like Willow…I don't want Willow to die, but I don't like her idea being dissed either."
"Me neither. Then again, we also don't know what her idea is exactly."
"I think we should have a meeting about this."
"Agreed."
"Hey, where are those other two Watcher guys? You know, the ones taking notes from last patrol?"
"Not a clue. I think they went out for doughnuts."
Rolling her dark brown eyes, Jessica sighed, "Nappy bastards."
"Ooh." Pausing, Laura duly noted this new phrase and committed it to her growing vocabulary arsenal, "I like that one. C'mon, let's go find the others."
** The sharp knock on the door startled Willow out of the light sleep she had slipped into. Guilty, she sent a bleary glance at the clock on the wall and made a face when she realized that she'd been out for nearly 15 minutes.
"C-come in…" The hacker called, rubbing her eyes and readjusting her hold on the latest diary she'd started reading. Fully expecting Giles to enter the room, Willow braced herself for the inevitable argument.
Instead, a stunningly handsome young man stuck his head into the room.
"Excuse me for bothering you…Willow?" He asked carefully.
Her mouth suddenly dry and her palms sweating, Willow's body promptly 'did the wacky' at the sight of this new arrival.
"Uh, yes, hi!" Flushing a slight pink, she jumped to her feet, readjusting her skirt.
"I'm Julian."
Taking in the pale blonde hair, icy blue eyes and warm smile, Willow felt herself physically melting into her green converse sneakers.
"I arranged for him to get here early." Amy poked her brunette head next to his shoulder and shot the hacker a smile, "Come on. Let's do this thing. The sooner we get this done, the sooner we can get in and get Angel and get out."
**
By the time Giles found Willow to tell her that she had his (grudging) support, the ritual was already underway.
Standing aside so as not to get in the way, he simply watched.
Cordelia sat cross-legged holding a bowl of herbs while JR, the only Slayer In Training deemed worthy to sit still long enough to fulfill the needed position, sat across from her, holding a candle. In the center of the protection circle sat Willow and Whistler, staring directly into eachother's eyes and chanting something so softly that the librarian couldn't quite make it out.
Julian walked slowly around the circle, his pale blue eyes gleaming with an almost unholy light as he recited the spell Amy had so carefully patched together.
For her part, the witch was sitting in rough triangular formation with Cordelia and JR, clutching her crystal pendant hard to her chest.
As a howling wind picked up in the room, Giles slowly edged towards the door, intending to stay outside in case his presence was detrimental to the delicate balance within. His fingers were just curling around the knob when suddenly Amy gasped.
The witch's hand was bleeding profusely and remnants of her crystal lay in her lap and on the floor.
Abruptly, Willow started to slump forward just as Giles started towards the group, his heart in his throat.
Just as he reached the edge of the circle, the wind stopped and a flash of light blinded him.
In the midst of it all, Cordelia screamed.
Then, pitch darkness.
**
Standing outside of the boarded up factory, Buffy waited in the shadows and twirled her stake nervously in her hand. She simply couldn't shake the gnawing feeling that something was very wrong.
It was right about then that a door burst open from behind her, unceremoniously shoving her into the glare of a nearby street light.
Slayer Sense.
Never leave home without it.
Before she could retreat into a safer haven, she was rushed by several snarling vampires.
Looks like the party's gonna have to start without Wills…
Jumping up gracefully, the Slayer latched onto the support beam attached to the street lamp and set about kicking away her attackers one by one. This tactic seemed to be working quite well up until a marginally clever vampire managed to launch up and grab her legs from behind, pulling her down.
Grunting as she hit the ground, Buffy endured a few blows to the back and side while rolling out of reach from her attackers.
She pounced up to a crouch, staking one of them neatly while tripping another with an outstretched leg. Pushing off with her hands, she flipped backwards over the heads of the remaining few and next to a stack of crates a few feet away. She had just managed to hop up the first few in an attempt to get away and regroup, when she felt an iron grip close in around her ankle and she was yanked harshly across the splintered wood.
Ignoring the hot stabbing sensation that assaulted her exposed forearms, Buffy thrust her head back into the nose of the vampire trying to flip her over. Crying out in pain, he immediately released her waist and she gingerly crawled to her feet.
The Slayer's dark blue eyes gleamed angrily as she hunted for her fallen stake. Feeling the movement of air directly behind her, she settled for a broken piece of wood among the wreckage of the crates she'd been dragged through.
Just as her opponent launched at her, she spun around and flung the sharp sliver of wood with blinding efficiency.
He exploded into mid-air.
Smiling, Buffy brushed some excess dust off of her black pants and peered into the silent darkness, satisfied.
"Well, that was easy."
Turning around to enter the factory, she came face to face with a legion of 20 vampires, armed and reeking of bloodlust.
Staring into their yellow gaze, she sighed Shut UP, Buffy!! Why can't I ever just shut UP?
Backing up slightly, she entered the small circle of light that fell from the lone street lamp in the area. Quickly and with amazing precision, the vampire army she was facing surrounded her, blocking her escape from all sides.
As the circle tightened, she felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise in anticipation of the impending battle. The question was, who would make the first move?
The answer, evidently, was Willow.
With an angry cry, the hacker dropped down from seemingly thin air, falling perfectly into position back to back with Buffy.
"What took you so long?" The slayer muttered under her breath.
Willow didn't respond.
Her entrance was enough of a provocation that they were soon engulfed in a swarm of vampires. Grunting and yelling, Buffy went to work finishing off as many as she could.
With deadly silence, the redhead did the same.
In minutes they were able to rid themselves of most of their opponents, once again clearing a path to the factory.
"Willow!!" Buffy called out, having been grabbed on either side by two large vampires. They threw her up against the brick wall of the factory and she slid down, slightly dazed.
Kicking up with one foot, the redhead knocked one of her own attackers to the floor and then staked him by driving her wooden high heel into his chest. Turning, she grabbed the other and flung him into the wreckage of the crates. He accidentally staked himself trying to get out.
Stalking over to where the two vampires had her friend pinned down, Willow quickly grabbed one by the collar, hauling him to his feet. Throwing him to the floor, she drove her heel through his back, not waiting for the telltale explosion before she pulled her foot up and turned to the other.
Buffy had managed to stand and was doing well against this remaining vampire until the third one, who had, up until this point, mysteriously disappeared, leaped down from above, yanking the blonde with him by her hair.
Unfortunately, he didn't get much farther than that as Willow easily staked his companion followed by him in one easy gesture.
Sweating slightly, and out of breath, Buffy accepted the outstretched hand proffered to her.
"Damn, Willow, where'd you learn that?' The Slayer asked with a grin. Her smile faded slightly, though, when she noted her friend's short plaid pleated skirt and white blouse, "Hey, what's with the clothes?" She asked, furrowing her brows slightly.
Lowering her eyes, Willow didn't respond. She slowly started to turn away.
"Hey, I mean, it's a good look on you," Buffy rushed forward, touching her shoulder, "bu-,"
With lightening speed, the hacker whipped back around, bringing the side of her fist into Buffy's head, knocking her unconscious.
Tapping her foot lightly against the wet cement, she observed the fallen Slayer.
"Oh, look. Now I have a gift to bring home to Spike."
Cocking her head to one side, the ridges on her forehead became deeper and her fangs gleamed dangerously.
"How nice."