OTMA, From Russia

by Damia

**Authors Notes Posted*******This is a 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' crossover, with the Romanovs, where Buffy gets transported back to 1915 where she mets the Imperial Family.

6. A Fateful Decision

Kia Ora, everyone!

First of all, I wanna thank all of you who have sent me reviews for this story, you are the total best! It really makes my day to find them, lol. Also, sorry it took so long to get this part out. I actually finished and posted it in two different parts on the BA_FLUFF list at yahoogroups, so if your on that or wanna join, you will get it faster anyway.

Anything else to say….ahh, just remember that this is set early-mid S5. Riley is still there, although he's not in this story at all at the moment, haven't decided if I can bring myself to put him in it at all, lol. Also, Joyce is dead in this, so its set soon after that.

And without further ado…

**********



PART Six: "A Fateful Decision"

A week before,

In a building somewhere in Los Angeles….

His eyebrows knitted together thoughtfully, the dark haired man studied the book lying on top of the table in front of him with boredom. Bringing his hand up slowly, he idly flicked through the pages until he came to the one he thought he wanted.

Bending forward as that his nose almost touched the paper; Angel frowned at the picture inches in front of his eyes. Instead of the century old carving of the demon he was looking for, the page showed nothing else but a long legged woman with a sultry pout on her lips, and far too much makeup on her face.

Startled, he quickly flicked the book back to its cover and sighed in annoyance when the evil words "Cosmopolitan" jumped out in full force. Bending back on his chair so that the front legs left the ground, the vampire stuck his head out the office door and bellowed,

"Cordelia! How many times have I told you not to leave your magazines lying around?"

Nobody answered. Giving another sigh, Angel regretfully got off his chair and walked out of his office into the deserted room before him. Eyebrows raised, he looked around the room for any evidence as to where his workmates and friends had gotten to.

He was just starting to get worried when the young woman herself ran in through the door, breathing heavily. On her heals where Gunn and Wesley.

"I'm sorry, Angel." Cordelia called as she dumped her handbag on her desk and flopped ungracefully into her chair behind it. "We went out to get Chinese for dinner to surprise you but it turns out the damn shop was shut! What kind of animal closes a takeaway at dinnertime on a weekday, anyway?"

Shrugging his shoulders, Gunn took off his leather jacket and put it beside Cordelia's handbag. Grabbing another chair, he straddled it and looked up at the perplexed Angel with a grin.

"So, my man, what's the business for this evening?" the young man asked, inclining his head to the side.

Angel and Wesley leaned up against the counter and looked back across at their two friends. But it was the vampire who answered, in an almost regretful tone. "Sorry, guys. Business has been pretty slow all day. We haven't had any calls what so ever."

Cordelia snorted and picked up the rather large pile of files on her desk and busily started sorting through them. With a flick of her brown hair, she looked up at Wesley and snapped, "And whose fault is that, huh? If you hadn't left the phone off the hook ALL yesterday, we might have had something to do instead of sitting around on our butts doing nothing!"

Wesley narrowed his eyes at the young woman and spat out in defence, "I would have thought you of all people would have loved to have a day off!"

Looking between the two, Angel just shook his head and laughed. "Cordy, I would like the think that the reason we don't have any clients is because the demon community has decided to give us a few days off, as far fetched as that might sound. Don't go blaming it on Wesley."

The brunette sniffed haughtily. "Dream on, Angel." She looked pointly at Gunn and held out a pile of sorted files. Quickly getting the idea, he took them of her hand and walked over the filing cabinet. "They are more likely fishing up something nasty to throw at us next time!"

And it was at that exact moment that the phone rang.

Wesley groaned and Cordelia flashed Angel a 'told you so' look. Reaching over her desk, she picked up the phone and answered in a polite voice,

"Angel Investigations, we help the..…Dawn!"

Angel snapped his head up at that single word. He had pushed himself off the counter and was standing before Cordy's desk before he knew he had even moved. On the other side of the room, Gunn stopped filing in mid movement and looked over at them, confusion evident on his dark face. The tension in the room had just effectively tripled as Angel waited, staring at Cordelia's face for any sign of dread.

But the young woman was seemingly obvious to the freaked out vampire standing inches from her as she picked up the portable phone and started to walk around the room, chatting to the girl on the other end. Angel and Wesley followed behind her.

"It's so good to hear from you, Dawnie! It's been ages! How are you? How's school? Are the boys lining up for you yet like I told you they would be?"

Abruptly she stopped, her back to the others, and listened intently into the phone. "What's wrong, kiddo? Why are you crying?" Then suddenly she looked terrified. Large brown eyes opened wide in alarm as she spun around, looking into Angel's eyes in horror.

"Is it one of the others? What's happened?" She was breathing heavily and Gunn noticed as he slowly walked over that her hands were shaking. As she listened to Dawn, the room was silent, even the wind had stopped blowing onto the windows for a moment. Angel, on the other hand, didn't notice any of this as he kept his eyes glued on his friend's face. She looked downright scared at what the girl on the other end of the phone was telling her.

"Alright, Dawnie, I need you to calm down, can you do that for me?" Cordelia spoke in a low, soothing tone, with was broken by the way her voice was quivering. Looking up into her friend's faces, the brunette just shrugged and mouthed the words 'I don't know'. She listened for a moment longer then suddenly frowned. "What do you mean, disappeared?" she asked the hysterical Dawn.

Angel and Wesley shared a worried look, wondering what that could mean. But what they didn't have to wonder about was that something serious had happened in the seemingly sleepy town of Sunnydale. This was the call that Angel had always dreaded the most. He knew better than anyone just how proud the Sunnydale gang was, and how they hated asking for help. Usually, they didn't have to and managed to get out of the trouble themselves. But when they finally did admit they needed whatever information they did, it had always been Giles ringing up Angel or Wesley for help, none of the others would dare.

Pacing around the room, the phone attached firmly to her ear, Cordelia was still trying to sooth Dawn long enough to get some useful information out of her. "Honey, I don't understand you. What do you mean she disappeared?"

Angel closed his eyes in dread and let out a soft moan as he flopped down in the nearest chair. Letting his head fall into his hands he whispered loud enough for Wesley and Gunn to hear, "Oh, god."

This was it. The phone call that was about to destroy him. It was Buffy, it had to be. Why else would Dawn of all people be calling? Something had happened to his Slayer, something serious enough for them to call LA.

Gunn frowned, wondering what they hell was going on. He had never heard of a client called Dawn before, let alone one to get the rest of his team so frightened. Wesley and Cordelia looked serious spooked, and Angel…. well, the big man looked like he was going to combust any second.

Looking back at Cordelia, he was just in time to see her frown and hold the phone out from her ear in confusion before putting it back again. Surprise flew over her face as she obviously heard a new voice. "Willow?" she said, as if it was the last person she thought would be on the line.

"What the hell is going on? What's wrong with Dawn? She sounds…" Then suddenly she broke off. Understanding filled her eyes as she quickly spoke into the phone, "Angel? Yeah sure, he's right here."

Knowing that this was serious, the former May Queen ignored the sense of annoyance and hurt that Willow would instantly take over and demand to talk to the vampire and quickly walked over to the fallen man, holding the phone out for him to take.

Angel knew they were all looking at him as he slowly raised his head out of his hands and stared at the piece of machinery that he knew was about to bring him seriously bad news. He didn't want to take it, it was positively the last thing he wanted to do, but knowing he had to, the vampire slowly held his hand out and let Cordelia drop the phone into it.

Bringing it to his ear, the vampire rose and walked across the room, his back to the others. Taking a deep breath, he spoke gently,

"Willow?"

****

Half an hour later, Angel effortlessly chucked the large satchel into the back seat of his car, slamming the door shut as he went. Cordelia, who had been standing behind the vampire, gave a jump of fright. She was worried about him, they all were. What ever had gone down between Angel and Willow not that long ago, it was affecting the vampire terribly. He had given them the basics, that Buffy had suddenly disappeared into thin air and they were needed in Sunnydale to help look for her, but Cordelia didn't know how much of this Angel could handle.

They were standing outside the office building, Angel's car pulled up on the side of the curb. Wesley and Gunn were still inside, going over some last minute business before they shut shop for a few days.

Taking a hesitant step forward, Cordy laid a reassuring hand on the vampire's shoulder and asked in a gentle tone, "Are you sure about this?"

His back to her, Angel gave a huge sigh that shook his whole body. His head was drooped towards his chest as he reached out and rested his hands on the roof of the car. "I have to, Cordy." He answered softly. It was then that he finally turned around, and Cordelia was pained to see that he looked terrible. Even for a vampire, he looked as if he had aged 10 years.

Not for the first time, the young woman hated Buffy Summers. It was just like her to go and do something like this, even if it wasn't really her fault. But seriously, the blonde Slayer was the only person Cordelia knew who could attract some must trouble when she wasn't looking for it herself.

Giving Angel a worried glance, Cordelia brought her hand up and ran it thought her hair in a nervous gesture. "I know you think you do, Angel, by seriously, you have nothing to prove to those people, or us. No one will judge you if you decide to sit this one out. Wes, Gunn and I can handle it."

Touched, Angel gave her one of his special smiles and gave her hand a quick squeeze as they waited outside, under the moon, for the others to hurry up. "And what exactly would you be handling?" He asked in a faint teasing tone.

Thinking about that, Cordy screwed up her face. "Okay, so we don't really know what the hell's going on, but *I* at least, lived the Sunnydale life for three years under Giles and Co. I'm pretty sure we will have miss Slayer back in a few hours." Cordelia was proud of herself at how confident she sounded, especially since that's just how far it ran. Truthfully, she didn't have a clue how to fix the Buffy problem; she didn't even think Angel or Wesley did.

But, sadly, the people in Sunnydale were still their friends, and they owed it to them to come and help, even if they were there just for moral support.

Sighing, Cordelia leaned back against the car next to the vampire and tilted her head backwards, studying the stars to pass the time. Angel was silent beside her, for which Cordelia was glad. She guessed that he was battling his own personal demons.

But when she couldn't take the silence a second longer, Cordelia lowered her head and whispered faintly, "What do you think happened to her?"

Angel didn't answer for a moment, and Cordelia seriously thought he hadn't heard her. She had just opened her mouth to repeat the question, when the vampire spoke. "Truthfully? I wouldn't have the faintest idea."

Cordelia let out a breath of air loudly. "Damn." She told him. "I was hoping you wouldn't say that."

Angel chuckled and Cordy gave a slight smile, glad that she could lift the vampire's spirits for a moment. Hearing the sound of a door slamming, the young woman watched Wesley and Gunn approach the car. Like them, they both had over-night bags in their hands; although Cordelia was sure Wesley's was full over anything BUT clothes. Her suspicions were confirmed as he handed her the bag to throw on the back seat. She could barely hold it up.

Giving her British friend an irritated glance, Cordy abruptly let it fall from her hands onto the pavement. "What the hell do you have in there? Bricks?" she demanded, ignoring the others and getting in the front passenger seat. She heard Gunn snicker behind her as he effortlessly picked up the bag and chuck it in the back seat, following it in a second later.

Obviously miffed, Wesley rolled his eyes. He wasn't putting up with any of Cordy's insults tonight. "Books, if you must know." Looking in the revision mirror, Cordelia caught the pointed look he threw her way. "How else do you expect us to find out what happened? Honestly, Cordelia, you lived in Sunnydale long enough to know how these things work, you should know better."

Ignoring him, she watched Angel start up the car before turning around in her seat and informing Gunn in a dramatic, mock whisper, "Wait until you meet Giles, he's even worse!"

As Angel pulled away from the pavement and they got on their way, Wesley snarled at Cordelia, "I'll have you know, young woman, that both Giles and myself are positively American compared to most Watchers back home!"

Gunn's eyes lit up at the mention of the Watcher and he leaned in closer to the brunette. "I can't wait to met these guys. I mean, you don't talk about them often, but from what I have heard, they're hardly boring to be around."

Cordelia rolled her eyes. "Trust me, Gunn. You are more likely to wind up in a coffin by visiting Sunnydale than any other place in the country. You've seriously picked a bad time to want to go visiting."

Gunn just shrugged her warning off, and grinned at the back of Angel's head. "I sure hope we get your Slayer back soon, Angel, I'm just *dying* to met her."

Angel sighed. "She's not my Slayer…not anymore." Even to his ears, the remark sounded weak. That's why he wasn't surprised when he heard Cordelia snort and Wesley give a disagreeing huff. Looking in the revision mirror, he saw Gunn frown in confusion to their answers.

"What was all that suppose to mean?" Looking around at all their faces, he knew he was missing half the plot. Reaching over, Cordelia patted his shoulder obnoxiously.

"Poor little man." She crooned and he shrugged her off, grinning widely. "You have such a lot to learn."

Shaking his head, Gunn wondered what the hell they were going on about. "Whatever, man." He told Angel. "Lets just hurry up and get there, so you guys can mesh your brain power with your girl's friends." He grinned as Angel frowned at him in the mirror. "The sooner we get the chick back, the sooner I can settle my curiosity."

As they wove their way through the streets of Los Angeles, Wesley coughed, getting Gunn's attention. Glancing apologetically at the vampire behind the wheel, the Briton grimaced, his eyes flicking back and forth between the open book he now held on his lap and friends who were all looking at him expectedly.

"Don't get your hopes up so soon, young man." He told Gunn. "We have no idea what has happened to Buffy, there could be many reasons for her disappearance. Now, from what Miss Rosenberg told us over the phone, I can tell you that it is almost certainly magically caused."

At the uncertain tone of his voice, Gunn frowned deeply and even Cordelia turned around again, ignoring the stern glance Angel sent her way for her improper use of a seatbelt. "What are you saying, Wes?" Cordy asked, wondering not for the first time if this was more serious than they all thought.

Sighing in regret, Wesley nervously flicked through the pages in his book. "I'm just saying that getting Buffy back might not be as easy as you all seem to think it will be."

And none of them knew just how right Wesley were going to be…

****

A few hours later, Angel's car drew up to a stop outside the group of shops that Willow had directed them to. Inside the car it was silent as the four friends from LA all peered across at the darkened building. Even at this late hour, the lights in the Magic Shop were blazing furiously and everyone knew they wouldn't be getting much sleep tonight. Slowly, Cordelia opened her door and stood on the pavement, stretching her arms above her head as she groaned tiredly. Quietly, Gunn and Wesley did the same, the younger man staring at the building critically.

Gunn knew that inside that normal, everyday shop was some of the best vampire-slash-demon hunters in the business. They had been doing this way longer than he had, and that thought couldn't help but bring respect.

Turning around, they all waited for Angel to step out, but he didn't. Wincing in sympathy, Cordelia walked around the car and squatted down outside Angel's open window. The vampire just sat there, his hands gripping the steering wheel in front of him, eyes forward. Cordelia put a gentle hand on Angel's tense arm and gave it a faint squeeze.

"Come on, Angel, don't do this now." She whispered so that the others couldn't hear. Not that they were actually listening, the tactful Wesley was trying to distract Gunn by quietly informing him about the people who were in the Magic Shop. Gunn however, wasn't really listening; he kept shooting curious glances at Angel and Cordelia.

"We need you to be strong, Angel, or we're not gonna get anywhere." Biting her lip, Cordy decided to try a different tactic. "Buffy needs you to be strong. You know as well as I do that we need your help getting her back, and she wouldn't want you moping out here. Think about how hard she worked to save you when Faith shot you, huh? Don't you think its time you repaid her for that?"

Angel looked down and swallowed thickly. Slowly, he turned his head and stared hard at Giles' shop, Cordelia knew an internal struggle was going on inside him. "Think about Dawn, she deserves to get her big sister back." She smiled softly, even though the vampire wasn't looking at her. "We can get Buffy back for her, but we need your help."

After what seemed like hours, Angel turned away from the shop and stared at his friend outside his open window. Slowly, he looked down at her hand on his arm and squeezed his eyes shut. No matter what happened in the rest of his long life, he would always be grateful of the few close friendships he had. And Cordelia, however unlikely it seemed to be, was at the top of that list.

It was just that if he got out if this car now he was opening a whole can of worms that he had regretfully shut years ago. Buffy might as well have been up in that house, her scent was so strong. He could feel her everywhere around her Watcher's abode, even out here on the road. She was everywhere; in the Magic Shop, in her friends and little sister... if he went in there now he was admitting to himself that she was really gone.

It was the thought of Dawn that made him snap out of it. Remembering how terrified she had sounded on the phone earlier that evening when she had talked to Cordelia, however briefly, made him realise that he did owe it to not only Buffy but to what family she had left.

Giving Cordelia a slight smile in thanks, Angel waited for her to straighten and take a step back, allowing the vampire to open the door. Stepping out, he barely noticed himself shutting it quietly as he and Cordelia walked around the car and met up with Wesley and Gunn, both who were obviously avoiding his gaze.

And together, they all walked across the footpath towards the front door. Taking a deep breath, Wesley knocked…. and waited.

****

It seemed like they stood out there for hours before the sound of footsteps were heard and the door was finally opened, the wood protesting faintly. Looking up, Angel found himself confronted by a very pretty young woman in a brightly coloured dress. Confused, he glanced at Cordelia and Wesley, and was relieved to see they held the same expression.

"Anya?" Cordelia asked incredulously, startled to see the young woman she met briefly in High School there. She had known that she was staying in Sunnydale, but not that she was on such close terms with the scoobies.

Anya ignored her. Her eyes were glued on Angel. Looking him up and down confidently, the woman drew her eyes to Angel's wary face and smiled brightly. "You must be Buffy's vampire! We've been waiting for you to get here for ages! Willow thought you might have gotten into some trouble on the way, but I bet her $10 that your driving is just as bad as Giles." Not waiting for them to answer, she stepped out of the doorway and motioned them in.

When it came to Angel to step over the threshold, Anya stepped deftly in front of him, blocking his access. Narrowing her eyes, she told the baffled vampire firmly, "Now you might be as cute as a button, but I have heard many a sad story from Xander about you, and I'll tell you right now…I don't want any funny business from you inside this shop. I happen to work here, and unless you want to pay for any damages, I suggest you keep your hands to yourself. Once you get Buffy back, you and her are to stay away from the sex, am I making myself clear?" Amazingly, her face changed into one of sympathy.

"It must be very hard for you, I don't know what I would do if I have to refrain from Orgasm with the person I love…. it must be terrible!"

Godsmacked, Angel could do nothing but stare at the woman. He only snapped out of it when he noticed Xander quickly move to Anya's side and…non to gently…grip her by the shoulders, making to move her away. Looking up at the vampire's stunned face, Xander nervously patted his arm and pushed Anya behind him.

"Sorry, man, she didn't mean it."

The young woman looked indignant and frowned. "Yes I did!"

Acting like he didn't hear her, Xander put a hand over her mouth, still looking at Angel. "Dead Boy met Anya." He flashed the vampire a wide grin. "Trust me, you'll learn to love her!"

Not really sure if he agreed or not, Angel looked warily at Anya again, not for the first time wondering what was so wrong with Xander that he attracted such strange people. But the vampire had to agree that she looked harmless enough, a bit chirpy for his liking, but who was he to complain?

"Ahh, its nice to met you." Angel said politely, and Anya beamed back at him. Feeling the air change behind him, he turned his head ever so slightly at wasn't surprised in the least to see Cordelia standing inches from him, staring at Anya with narrowed eyes. It seemed that Angel and Xander noticed this at the same time and both men took a quick step back, successfully separating the two.

Cordelia gave the vampire a disgusted glance. "What? For god's sake, Angel, what did you think I was going to do to her? Slit her throat?" Before any of them could answer, she rolled her eyes, looked at Anya and carried on. "Please. I'm so over the loser, honey, you can have him!"

Anya frowned, looked hard at Xander, who in turn was shooting death glances at his ex, then looked back at Cordelia. "Not that I need your consent, but thank you." Then she narrowed her eyes back at Cordelia and spat out, "Xander loves me. He wont leave me for you, so don't get any funny ideas!"

Cordy's eyes flew open wide in surprise as she took a threatening step towards the ex-demon. "Like I said before, you can have him! I wouldn't go near the guy!"

Both girls ignored the alarmed glance Xander sent Angel as Anya put her hands on her hips and ground out between clenched teeth, "Just see that you don't."

"Ahh, guys?"

The soft, hesitant voice made them both pause and turn their heads, Angel, Xander and Gunn included. Willow stood beside the table, her fingers playing across the polished wood nervously, staring back at them tiredly. Instantly Xander let go of Anya and hurried over to his best friend, gently taking her arm, leading her over to the nearest chair and helping her down. Ignoring the rest of them, Xander smiled softly down at her and brushed a stay of hair of her forehead lovingly.

"What are you doing up? That spell of Tara's was meant to knock you out for at least another three hours." Angel and Wesley glanced at each other in surprise at the sound of such concern in Xander's voice.

But Willow just smiled sleepily. "Don't blame Tara, Xander. I'm sure the whole of Sunnydale can hear those two, the way they were going at it." She gave Anya a pointed look before turning to Cordelia, who, looking decidedly uncomfortable, was looking everywhere but at the Witch.

"Hello, Cordelia." Willow started gently and Cordy found herself unable to look away. Slowly she brought her eyes around and looked fully at her one time worst enemy and the girl she had picked on for 10 years. Biting her lip, all thoughts of Anya completely forgotten, the brunette looked the Witch up and down in her own type of concern.

"Hi, Will." Unable to stop herself, Cordelia took a step towards the redhead and frowned deeply. "Are you ok? You don't look to hot."

Hearing her, Angel and Wesley both looked at the young woman and came to the same conclusion. Frankly, she looked exhausted. Her eyes had a permanently sleepy glaze to them and she was blinking slowly, as if dazed. From the way Xander was frowning anxiously at her, never far from her side, the vampire knew he was worried too.

But Willow just gave a tinkering laugh and patted Xander's hand in reassurance. "I'm fine, guys." She told them, touched by their concern.

"Actually, no your not, love." A soft voice came into the room as a new figure walked in from the back. Jerking their heads up, the LA gang found themselves looking at a pretty blonde girl wearing a long purple skirt and what looked like a Mexican Poncho.

Looking back at them shyly, Tara walked over to Willow, kissed the top of her head affectionately and handed her the flask that she was carrying in her hands. Willow screwed up her face in disgust but drank the silver liquid anyway.

"She's been wearing herself out since it happened with those locator spells or whatever, but we still haven't got anywhere." Xander informed them sadly.

Looking at Willow in worry, Angel cleared his throat and asked, "Ahh, are you sure you should be drinking that if you've been doing spells? You never know what's going to affect it." He didn't know what he had expected them to do with that information, but he was pretty sure laugh wasn't high on the list.

But they did, or in a way. A fleeting grin appeared on Xander's face for a second before leaving, being replaced with the typical sad expression. But Willow and the other girl both smiled tolerantly up at him.

"Its fine, Angel." Willow told him kindly. "Energy potions are Tara's speciality." She looked up lovingly at the tall girl beside her, who smiled back.

But Angel and the others were confused. "Tara?" Wesley asked, and he remembered Cordelia saying something about Willow's girlfriend. Suddenly Willow blinked, and gave her head a shake. When she looked up again, they all noticed her eyes seemed to be a bit clearer and they breathed a sigh of relief.

Willow swallowed. "Man, I really needed that." she muttered loudly to herself. Turning back to their old friends, Willow slowly stood, gripping Xander's arm in support. "I guess we should do the introductions, shall we?"

The Witch linked her arm through Tara's. "This is Tara, everyone. Cordelia, you will remember her, I've told you all about Tara, I'm sure. And for you who haven't guessed all ready, that's Anya over there. Angel, you must have forgotten. She has here in our senior year. She's also our resident ex- demon." At Angel, Wesley and Gunn's confused look Will grinned slightly, but Angel noticed it didn't reach her eyes.

"She was a vengeance demon for a thousand years before turning human…so I'd watch it, Cordy."

Cordelia only huffed and folded her arms across her chest in a defensive gesture. "Please. I remember what she did to me in High School. By all rights, it should be you warning her!"

Xander studied the dark beauty discreetly. Outwardly, she looked as if she was almost enjoying the familiar banter with her old friends. He remembered intimately how she would get when she was in fight, how her eyes would narrow ever so slightly like a deadly cat and they would flash with barely restrained fury. What had made her such a bitch in High School had seemingly now been used to an advantage. She could probably scare away a great many demons just be snarling at them.

At that thought, Xander tried to smoother a grin of his own as he looked down at the petite whirlwind at his side. Anya, on the other hand, hadn't seemed to click on that this was just Cordy's way of making an introduction. To him, she looked like a wild tigress, reading to fight for her mate. A fight that might very well end in death. Trying to reassure her that he wasn't intending to leave her side, he reached down and subtly took her hand in his and gave it a warm squeeze. At the touch, the pretty brunette flashed him a look of such intensity, such unbridled passion that Xander was very well tempted to forgo the welcomes of Angel and his gang and discreetly pop out back for a few moments of unbridled passion of his own.

But strangely enough, the only reaction he got from that thought was the smile slowly slipped from his lips as he remembered why they were here in the first place. With it came the now familiar clench of his already bruised heart as he thought of his missing friend. He remembered clearly the last sound he had heard from her, the cry that had been torn from her lips a mere second before she disappeared from their lives once again. It had been a cry of undeniable emotions; shock, surprise, confusion, and pain. Unmasked and uncensored pain that had been ripped from her as her body protested against the crimes being committed against it.

Lifting the hand that wasn't connected with Anya, Xander ran it through his short dark hair. Looking up at the group of people in front of him, he cleared his throat to get their attention. When they all immediately broke their conversations and turned in his direction, Xander nodded, acknowledging their allowance of him to speak.

Now that he had their full attention, he turned to the dark young man who he had never seen before, but sensed held a valid position with the people he worked with. Putting a kind, hopefully reassuring smile on his face, Xander held out his hand to Gunn to take and greeted him in a warm tone, "I don't know what that lot have told you, and by knowing them its probably not good, so lets just start again, shall we?"

Spurred on when Gunn sent a startled glance at Angel - but seeing he wasn't going to get much help from that department - reached over and took his hand, Xander continued. "I'm Xander Harris, by the way. And that's Willow and Tara over there." He grimaced and ducked his head for a moment, before looking up with a sheepish expression. "And you've already met Anya."

Touched by his friendliness, Gunn shook his hand firmly as the other's watched. They were the only two true mortals in the group and even if they didn't really realise they were doing it, they were forging an alliance that would hopefully last a lifetime. Gunn and Xander stared at each for a moment, sussing each other out as men do, while at the same time, gripping hands.

As if suddenly unconscious as to what they were doing, the two young men dropped each other's hands like stones and took a step back, avoiding everyone's gaze. Angel rolled his eyes at such strange behaviour and turned back to Willow, whom he saw was watching the exchange with a odd, secretive smile on her face.

They all have changed so much, the vampire mused to himself, watching the stunning young woman. Xander, Willow and Buffy had been so innocent back then, even though Buffy would venomously deny it. But now, seeing them again, just brought up how different they actually where. All of them, they had been through so much together…

With that thought he frowned. Looking up, he scanned the shop seemingly for the first time. He didn't like what he saw.

Looking back at Willow, he asked in confusion, "Aren't we missing a few people? Where is Giles?" If possible, his frown deepened. "And even though I might regret saying this, what about Riley? He should be here, surely?"

From slightly behind him, he heard the unmistakable sound of Xander snorting and he muttered under his breath, "Where are Spike and Dawn for that matter."

Angel heard the remark and twisted clearly in his seat to glower at the young man. "What did you just say?" he ground out, his hands forming fists around the back of the chair he was sitting on. Xander just looked at him in confusion, obviously not understanding what he was talking about.

But Willow did and she quickly reached over and touched the vampire's shoulder lightly. Reassurance and comfort radiated into his body from her touch. "It's alright, Angel." She murmured, "Spike would never hurt Dawn. He practically worships the girl."

He turned to gape at the Witch in disbelief even as he heard Cordelia gasp in surprise. They both exclaimed at the exact same time, "You actually allow him near Dawn!?"

Now it was Tara's turn to frown. The gentle blonde took a step forward and said hesitantly, "I really don't think that is very fair of you. You haven't seen them together, and if you did, you wouldn't be so quick to judge Spike."

Looking across at her in surprise, Angel gave a hollow laugh. "I've known Spike for over a hundred years, he isn't capable of caring for anyone like Dawn. Its just not his style."

Willow gave her head a slight shake in denial. "I know what your saying, Angel, and quite frankly we all had issues about Spike at first to." She shrugged. "Still do actually. But he wouldn't let anything happen to Dawn, we can trust him on that." She inclined her head to the side and gave him a truthful smile. "Buffy trusted him completely when it came to Dawn, Angel. She knew she would be safe with him."

Angel looked aghast as he stared at Willow, seemingly trying to see if what she said was true. "What was she thinking?" he muttered to himself, running his hand through his hair, exasperated. "She should know better than to trust her sister with Spike, of all vampires. He's not exactly stable. What would Dawn do if he suddenly turned the tables, huh? She wouldn't be able to defend herself!"

Willow looked down, trying to smoother her grin even as Xander and Tara smiled slightly.

Cordelia, Wesley and Gunn looked at them each in turn, wondering what was so funny. Cordelia put her hands on her hips and frowned. "Are we missing something here?"

It was unsurprisingly Anya who answered their question. "He can hurt anyone now, poor little thing." she spoke up clearly. "He's as good as gone, can't hurt a fly!"

Angel looked even more confused. He looked at Anya, brows married darkly. "What is that suppose to mean?" he asked incredulously.

It was Willow who answered. She stood up briskly, surprising everyone in the process, and walked around towards Giles' counter. With everyone's gaze on her, she opened one of the compartments and dug around for whatever it was she was looking for. Without even looking up, she spoke to the group at large, "What it means is that Spike is harmless, Angel. He can help us, and most of the time he does."

Finally she looked up. "And what you have to know and understand is that Buffy trusted him with Dawn, therefore so are we. Standing here like dummies isn't going to make Buffy come back any quicker, so I suggest we get down to business. As to answer you earlier question, Giles is asking around places in town; Willy's bar etc, that might have information as to what happened to her. And Riley…" she frowned. "I'm not quite sure where he is, work probably."

Withdrawing her hand, the young Witch smacked an old, dusty book on the counter so loudly that everyone jumped with the noise. With everyone looking at her, Willow stood firmly in her place, hands gripping the book in front of her. "We have to find her, you guys, and we have to do it fast. The vampire population is gonna click on sooner or later that something has happened to her, and I'd really like to either have her back, or be getting her back, when they do."

Now that her speech had come to an end, the room fell into silence, everyone staring at Willow, stunned at her words. Xander, Angel and Cordelia were the first to look away, for they more than the others knew just how hard this all was on the young redhead. She and Buffy had been best friends for a very long time now, and they had seen and done things together that made their friendship even stronger than normal. To Willow, losing the Slayer now was unacceptable.

Gunn was staring at her in a mixture of wariness and awe. From what little he had been told about Buffy, he had known the Slayer was loved…. and loved deeply. Angel and Cordelia were proof of that. She had almost singly handedly given them meaning in their lives, a fact that Cordelia would deny to her dying day. But to see them here, ready to storm heaven or hell…or any place in between…to find her, was simply awe-inspiring. More than ever Gunn hoped to the heavens that he would have a chance to form opinions of his own about the tiny, legendary Slayer that had seemingly taken on the entire world.

Knowing that the silence had to be broken, Angel slowly got to his feet gracefully and folded his arms across his chest. The vampire gave the powerful group around him a quick once over before directing his gaze back to Willow. As if she knew he was looking at her, the young woman met his gaze firmly, and two of the most important people in the Slayer's life fought in an unconscious battle of wills.

Finally Angel sighed and put an arm around Willow's thin, delicate shoulders, relaxing slightly when she leaned into him in an old age gesture of deep friendship.

"Well, we might as well get out of here." The vampire spoke quietly, breaking the spell that had fallen over the forlorn group of people. They now all looked up at him quickly. "Xander, Willow; do you guys think Dawn will mind of we crash at the Summer's house tonight?" The vampire had the grace to look sheepish as he scratched his head. "We didn't really organise any sleeping arrangements before we left."

Catching on quickly, Willow nodded her head eagerly. "Of course she won't mind, Angel. She will love to see you." A dark shadow fell over her features. "Although, I wish it was under different circumstances."

"Don't we all." Xander muttered as he pushed himself away from the bookshelf he and Anya had been leaning against and headed out the back of the shop. Everyone followed his example and the Sunnydale gang started getting everything they needed before shutting up shop. Wesley and Gunn were roped into carrying out boxes of books that Willow and Tara obviously thought would be helpful to use. From the expressions of the two men's faces, the books were heavy reading, even by their standards.

At last, the small group headed towards the door, their arms filled with material that they were taking to the Summers' residence. Cordelia, Wesley and Gunn chucked the boxes in the back seat along with their bags that were still in there, and climbed back into the car.

Angel stood in the doorway, holding it open for the others as they came out. Willow and Anya were doing a quick once over, turning off lights etc, and were just about to walk out the door when Anya suddenly paused and turned back around, as if she suddenly remembered something. She was frowning, deep in thought, when she murmured to Angel in an uncharacteristic quiet tone,

"I'll be right back." before briskly jogging back into the shop. The vampire protectively watched her disappear into the back room only for a second before she remerged, an old, black covered book under her arm. As she passed him in the doorway, she flashed him a wide smile.

"This baby might come in handy." was all the explanation she was clearly about to give, but the vampire didn't push her. He had long ago given up trying to understand Xander's girlfriends, past or present.

But then Willow was locking the door under the watchful eye of Anya who from what Angel understood would rather die than see anything happen to her beloved shop. And as they all stood there out in the cold street, piling into their respective cars, they all knew that they had a long night ahead of them, and when they finally got to the Summer's house, they could all get down to work…. and hopefully bring their missing Slayer back…alive.

****

Angel knew that as long as he lived he would never forget the sight that greeted him when he walked through into the Summer's lounge. In his arms was a large box that Tara had thrust his way with a hesitant smile on her lips, and as he walked through the foyer, all he was looking for was somewhere to dump it.

He came to an abrupt stop in the doorway to the lounge, staring in complete shock at the scene in front of him, wondering not for the first time if he had suddenly been thrust into some alternate universe without being told.

The television set was blaring harshly into the brightly lit room, and Angel noticed that the heaters were all on, making the room nice and toasty warm. Not that the occupants would notice, they were both to absorb in what was on TV to even notice Angel standing there, staring at them, stunned. The blonde vampire sat comfortably on the sofa, as if he owned it, leaning back with one strong, muscled arm thrown across the back. His other hand was threading its way unconsciously through the long, silky, dark hair of the other occupant of the room. She sat on the floor next to Spike's legs, leaning up against the sofa, her head leaning against the vampire's knee in a gesture of complete companionship.

Angel watched, unable to tear his gaze away, as Spike continued to play with Dawn's hair, as if he wasn't even conscious he was doing it. She didn't seem to mind, not in the slightest. Angel lowered his gaze to her face, studying her graceful, pixie like features intently.

All he could come up with was that she looked content. She didn't look happy, but he hadn't expected her to. She had had a rough last few days, and the dark haired vampire noticed that she looked exhausted. Angel would bet that she hadn't had much sleep. But still, staring at the pretty girl who he had known since she was very young, Angel couldn't believe how much she had changed, how much he had missed out on.

When he had left, she had still been the awkward, long-limbed little girl whom he remembered taking out for the evening to get her out of Buffy's hair. They had gone anywhere that had settled their fancy. Sometimes it was to the park, where they would sit under a tree to protect Angel from the last rays of the afternoon sunshine, talking comfortably about anything and everything under the sun. Dawn confined in him easily, not as her sister's mysterious boyfriend, but as a friend of her own. She told him all about her problems with her elder sister, how unfair the world seemed to her, how she wished Buffy's friends would stop treating her like a baby, reasons why she thought Giles hated her.

And Angel had listened to her fully. Somewhere deep within him had been delighted and at the same time humbled to be able to get this unbiased insight of the lives of the humans around him. Dawn didn't miss anything out, it was if she didn't remember who he was, *what* he was. And through her, he had been able to settle his curiosity about the lives of Buffy and her friends in the day light hours where he was unable to join them.

Buffy had understood this, in her own way, and never tried to stop the outings between the vampire and the young girl. She had known her sister could not have been safer with anyone else. Joyce, on the other hand, hadn't liked them too much. But she held her tongue, refraining for voicing what she had obviously been wanting to. Maybe it was because she saw how happy they had made Dawn, no one really knew.

But as his time in Sunnydale had neared its end, the number of outings had diminished until they stopped completely. There had been too much going on; everyone was to busy with research and trying to think up ways of stopping the Mayor. Angel had had his own problems, things of his own to work out, not to mention relations between the vampire and Joyce had been strained at best in the last month or so. So his relationship with Dawn had gotten frosty at best, what with the girl being so fiercely loyal to her sister. Dawn hadn't liked what he had done to Buffy too much, and wasn't afraid to tell him so. And then Angel had left, and the farewell they had had couldn't have really been called appropriate.

But now, even though Angel now know from what Buffy had told him that these outings never really took place, that Dawn wasn't all that she seemed to be, Angel still treasured the memories, even if they were fake. They would always be real to him, and he hoped Dawn felt the same.

But now, staring at her, seeing just how comfortable she had become with the childe of his House, Angel didn't know what to think. In one respect he was disgusted that she had been allowed to get so close to him in the first place. He had always thought Buffy had wanted the same as he did for Dawn, for her to have a normal a life as possible considering the circumstances. And having a vampire as dangerous as Spike one of your close friends was not considered normal in Angel's books. Oh, he knew Spike wouldn't push the boundaries. Young teenage girls had never been his taste. But by the looks of things, they had a completely different relationship. One based on caring, protection…and Angel would bet, fascination on Dawn's behalf.

But on the other hand, he was pleased to see how well she had adapted to the vampiric world. Not to mention that it was one of his Family who had, in his own way, sworn himself to protect her.

Not wanting to be caught staring, Angel cleared his throat loudly and spoke up casually, "Hey…"

The effect was immediate. Dawn's head whipped around so fast the vampire thought it was amazing that she hadn't gotten whiplash. Her big brown eyes flew open in surprise as she saw him standing there, the box still in his arms. He couldn't help the small smile that played on his lips when she noticed him, and it grew when she gave an utterly feminine squeal and jumped up from the floor.

Angel quickly dropped the box just in time as Dawn launched herself into his arms, wrapping her thin arms around his neck tightly. Even though she was obviously distraught over loosing her sister, she wasn't able to conceal the small laugh of delight when she hugged him. Looking over the young girl's shoulder, Angel stared hard at Spike, waiting to see what his reaction was going to be, and at the same time, holding in the urge to poke out his tongue.

But the blonde vampire surprised him. As if he had all the time in the world, he slowly peeled his eyes away from the screen and took his time meeting Angel's. They flickered over the form of Dawn in his arms, and then followed her body upwards until he finally met his grandsire squarely. What Angel saw there made him frown deeply in annoyance.

Spike had known he was standing there in the doorway the entire time.

Angel mouthed the word, 'bastard', over Dawn's shoulder, but Spike only shrugged and went back to the TV. Deciding the best policy was to just ignore him, the elder vampire went back to concentrating on the dark haired girl in his arms. When she withdrew from her tight embrace, she looked up into Angel's dark face and he saw nothing but relief in her eyes.

"Thank god you're here, Angel." She whispered, and as if she was making sure he was indeed real, she hugged him again. He waited and gave her a reassuring smile when she looked at him for the second time. Setting her down on her feet, he reached up and cupped the side of her face gently.

"How you doing, Dawnie?" he asked softly and she smiled up at him faintly.

"Not to bad. I'm so glad you here." The last words came out as a sob and Angel felt his heart break for her. He gathered her small hands in his larger ones and gave them a squeeze. Seeing that she needed more, he put an arm around her shoulders and gathered her close.

"Everything's going to be fine, honey. I promise." He whispered into her hair as he kissed the top of her head. Looking up, he saw the rest of the gang coming through the doorway. He heard, rather than saw, Cordelia coming into the room.

"Where can I dump this stupid box? It's killing me!" Both Angel and Dawn turned at the sound of her voice. Cordelia ignored them as she pushed past into the lounge, and let the box fall onto the ground, just inches from Spike's feet. The vampire pulled his feet away just in time and sent a murderous glare in Cordy's direction as he half got up from the sofa.

"Watch it, queeny!" he snarled. "You almost squashed my bloody feet!"

Cordelia, who had obviously decided not to be terrified of Spike like she had been in High School, just sent him a scathing glare and snarled, "So move them, you idiot!"

Spike was surprised at not only her answer, but also the fiery way she said it. But then, as if he recognise a challenge when he saw one, a sly smile slowly spread across his face. Anyone else would have shuddered and backed away, not wanting to go anywhere near him in that mood, but Cordelia either didn't see it or simply didn't care, for all she did was give another huff, flick her hair over her shoulder, and walk away form him.

She did stop in front of Dawn and Angel though, and had the good graces to give the young girl a quick hug and a smile of sympathy. She hovered for a moment around the two of them, seemingly anxious about Dawn. "You hang in there, okay, kiddo?" she told the girl kindly. "We'll get Buffy back as soon as, you just wait and see."

Touched, Dawn just nodded. Before walked away, Cordelia shot Angel a look which he could have read straight from the dictionary it was so clear. It said, 'See? I told you I have tact.'

And then a familiar voice broke through the room, "Good god, is that Cordelia I can hear? It must be, I'd know that voice anywhere." Turning around, Angel sighed in relief when the comforting sight of Giles walked out of the kitchen. He too, looked extremely tired. His hair was messed up, and there were dark rings around his eyes. The disappearance of his Slayer had obviously taken a lot out of the Watcher. In his hand he held a large white dinner plate, which he was drying with a blue striped tea towel.

Angel smiled at Giles, who in return looked very startled to see him standing in the doorway. But, getting over his surprise quickly, Giles was obviously relieved to see him. Even though they hadn't seen each other a very long time, the outwardly elder man quickly walked over and they shook hands warmly. "As I suppose Dawn has already said, Angel; it is very, very good to see you."

Looking into the Watcher's eyes, Angel was gratified to see the faintest glimmer of Hope.

By then anything that the two men were going to say was cut off as the rest of the group trudged tiredly into the room and all but collapsed in heaps in the chairs and sofas. Gunn and Xander didn't even make that far, they just dropped onto the floor next to the TV and made themselves comfortable. Angel would bet they didn't intend to get up any time soon. They had all had a very hard day.

The greeting between Spike and his grandsire was short, and anything but sweet.

"Spike."

"Peaches." They spoke shortly as Angel walked past him to get his chair. They avoided eye contact like the plague.

When they all got settled and Dawn had gone back to the couch next to Spike, Willow and Angel got their chairs from the dining room table and sat in front of the room so everyone could see them. They all fell silent, waiting for them to get started. Putting his hands in his lab, the dark featured vampire leaned back in his chair.

"Okay. Now first of all, I want you to tell me exactly what happened, Xander. Don't leave anything out." he told the young man, who, seemingly knowing that he was going to do it, just sighed and nodded his head. With a clear, yet tired voice, Xander explained exactly how the Slayer had disappeared to the others who hadn't heard it before. The Sunnydale gang listened intently also, even though they must have heard it a million times before.

"…I can't explain what happened, Angel. She just vanished. Poof!", Xander threw his hands up into the air in frustration as the others watched.

Angel frowned, thinking it over. He shot Wesley a quick glance and the Briton met it squarely with a worried frown. He looked very concerned with what the young man was saying. Leaning forward, Wesley stared intently at Xander and began to ask questions of his own. "What about afterwards? Was there any smoke, for instance? Or dust?"

Xander just shook his head. Then he suddenly grimaced. "Nothing like that, but she did cry out as she disappeared, though."

Angel's bit back a moan as he looked down at the floor. He clenched his hands together at his side and took a few unnecessary deep breaths to get himself under control. But the thought of what Buffy had gone through, and was still going through, was only made worse if he knew she had experienced pain in the process. He wondered where she was at this moment, what she was doing. It was almost impossible to imagine her not there with them. Truthfully, he still expected her to come walking in through the door, a resigned, tired smile of her face as she saw him, and gently scold the vampire for not telling her they were coming in advance. The thought of her in some other place, possible dead or in horrific pain, almost tore his heart in two. The only comfort he had was that he knew they would get her back to Sunnydale where she belonged. The sooner the better.

Trying to distract himself from what Xander was possibly hinting at, the vampire looked intently into the many faces of the people gathered in the room, all that were pledging themselves to find the missing Slayer. What he saw there wasn't surprising. They were all in mixed stages of grief, even Spike, something that seriously wigged Angel out. But he knew that in his own way, the younger vampire cared for the Slayer greatly. But that fact didn't change anything. If he caught wind of even the slightest news that Spike had mistreated Buffy or her younger sister, he would take great pleasure in ripping him limb from limb.

But when he got to Anya, Angel suddenly paused, curious at the expression on her pretty face. Frowning deeply, the vampire narrowed his dark eyes slightly as he noticed what was so different about her from everyone else. Unlike the rest of the group, she wasn't listening to a word that her boyfriend was saying. Instead, she sat slightly apart from the others, her back to the wall, and she was deeply ingrossed in the large, old book she was reading. Angel recognised it immediately as the book she had taken from the Magic Box earlier. She too, was frowning, but hers was one of deep concentration, instead of suspicion.

He continued to watch Xander's girlfriend as she slowly turned the page of the old book and continued reading. When he couldn't handle it any longer, he straightened and called out softly, "Anya? What are you doing?"

Xander broke off in mid sentence and gave Angel a dirty look for interrupting before he too, followed his gaze and examined his lover who, in turn merely threw the vampire a quick glance of annoyance before going back to her reading as if it was completely normal. Without looking up, she spoke to the group at large, "I'm looking for a way to contact an old friend of mine."

She turned the page of the book slowly, still reading. "She might be able to help us with our currant Slayer problems."

Xander and Angel looked at each other quickly, eyebrows raised in query. Nether man quite knew what to say to that. Clearing his throat, the ex demon's current boyfriend asked her, "Arn? What are you talking about?"

As if deciding that she wasn't going to be left alone on the matter, Anya gave a loud sigh and slammed the book shut. Finally she looked up and, seeing that she had the whole room's attention for once, actually preened and shook her head slightly to get the hair out of her eyes. Casually, she shrugged and started to explain the lore to the incredulous group of people who were staring at her warily.

"I think what has happened is that Buffy has been chucked into a alternate dimension." She shrugged. "I wouldn't have a clue who by, but then, what demon hasn't imagined sending the Slayer into some unmentionable hell at some time or another?" She smiled slightly and got a far away look in her eyes as if she was remembering a fond memory. "They would be the toast of the demonic world for centuries to come. Bloody amazing if they actually manage to do it in the first place, but still, it's every demon's dream."

Seeing the startled expression on Giles and Wesley's faces as they silently shared a look and Xander's raised eyebrows, her eyes flew open wide and she said hastily, "Not that I'd do it *myself* or anything…"

Angel smiled thinly and nodded his head. "That pretty much what we came up with too." Looking worried, he threw the two Watcher's a glance sharply. "But the problem is, how do we get her back?"

"Oh, that's the easy part."

Every pair of eyes flew to meet Anya's. She was positively beaming as she surveyed the room. "As I was saying before I was rudely interrupted," she narrowed her eyes at Angel, "I have a good friend who specialises in this sort of thing. She's a Questor actually."

Wesley leaned forward excitedly. "Indeed?" He turned to Giles. "I've read up on them quite a bit, in fact. Is it true they spend the majority of their time jumping through time?" the last part was spoken to Anya, who from the looks of things had just found herself a new best friend.

Again, she shrugged and looked a bit miffed. "They dramatise everything dreadfully, but yeah, I guess they do time travel a bit. Their actual job is to hunt around the different dimension for missing souls who have lost their way to wherever they're off to and ended up in places they shouldn't be. Cora always used to brag like it was the best flaming job in the world…" she screwed up her nose in distaste. "Always used to go on about all the exotic dimensions that she gets to visit. One of her favourite hobbies was going back in time and killing off semi-important people so that they wouldn't be born in the real time. It used to screw with history something fierce. She had a great old time until the Powers got tired of it and told her off."

Willow looked a tad unsure as she spoke up, "But if your friend goes and gets Buffy from whatever dimension she's been sent to, isn't it going to mess with history already?"

Catching on to what she was meaning, Anya shook her head. "No. That's actually half of their job. To fix any tears in time that might happen when a soul stumbles into a dimension they shouldn't be in." She looked pensive for a moment as she thought the possibility over. "Technically, it wouldn't be a problem for Cora, just zip in, grab miss Slayer, and zip out again." She shrugged. "Questors do it all the time."

Angel, Wesley and Giles looked at each other silently, thinking it over. As much as they didn't like to admit it, Anya's friend might be their only hope. They had nothing else to go on at the moment, and the longer the Slayer was away from Sunnydale, the worse the situation became for all of them.

Angel had heard only a little about Questors. It wasn't something that he had welled on much over the years. All he knew was that they were immortals with demon powers that basically did the Power's That Be's dirty work. The Higher powers seemingly had better things to do than waste time zipping in and out of the thousands and thousands of dimension that made up the universe and cleaned up every one else's mess. Formally, they were the guardian's of time. The mysterious, intelligent, lethal kind that had the power to snatch you out of your very bed if they felt the urge and dump you down in a dimension that was just like yours until you walk out your front door and find this world had been invaded by green Aliens from outer space…. so to speck.

But the vampire wasn't sure if he trusted them well enough to rest the responsibility of getting Buffy back on one of their shoulders. And a friend of Anya's no less. That had to count for something.

The room was silent as Angel quietly observed Giles, just as the others were doing, knowing that the decision was entirely the Watcher's to make. Buffy was his Slayer, after all. But deep down Angel desperately wanted to make the decision for him. He wanted Buffy back now, and was starting to think he wouldn't care how they did it. He was finding that knowing he wasn't in the same dimension as the Slayer was physically painful. Angel felt as if he had lost half of himself, and the remainder of his body was mourning for it, crying out silently for its return.

Again, he wondered what she was doing at this very moment. Was she in pain? Being tortured or something horrible to that extent? Or had she somehow managed to prevail and was desperately searching for a way home, knowing…hoping…that they were doing the same?

Giles had his hands in his lap and he was staring down at them as he thought Anya's possibility over in his head. Angel knew that he was deeply troubled, feeling that this was all moving far to fast…because he felt the same. But he knew in the bottom of his heart that they would probably never get such a good opportunity. And that was why the vampire wasn't surprised when the Watcher finally looked up and over at Anya. His lips were set in a grim line and his eyes were curiously sad as he said quietly to the young woman,

"Do what you have to do, Anya. As soon as we can get in contact with this Cora woman, the sooner we can get Buffy back." Sighing, the Briton looked troubled as he spoke next. "I just hope we are doing the right thing and not leading them to her."

Angel turned his head and stared out into the everlasting darkness of the night's sky, thinking the same thing. He wouldn't be able to forgive himself if they unwittingly lead a whole herd of vampires and demons right to her. Instead, he tried to comfort himself by telling his heart that soon Buffy would be back with them.

Looking up at the heavy pregnant moon that washed his face in a pearly light, Angel slowly closed his eyes, basking in the power from the heavenly body that watched over them regally. And for the first time in many, many years…. he prayed.

***

It took them three days to successfully gather the necessary instruments to summon the Questor. A very busy three days and by the time they all gathered once again in the Summers lounge, every one of the humans were all just about ready to collapse. Angel, Cordelia and Wesley had been back to Los Angeles a few times for supplies, taking young Dawn with them. It seemed that the elder vampire wouldn't let the girl out of his sight, something that pissed Spike off to no end. He had bluntly informed his grandsire that Dawn was perfectly safe with him, and Angel had grudgingly admitted as such. In fact, he knew perfectly well that the young girl couldn't be safer with anyone else. But he simply felt more reassured if he could keep an eye of Dawn himself. Spike would have pulled out both his eyes and ate them before he admitted he understood.

In those three days Angel felt the loss of the Slayer even more. It was strange actually, he had missed her terribly when he moved to Los Angeles, but this…it was almost as if she no longer existed, like she had died. He had always been able to tell himself that she was safe in Sunnydale with the people who loved her most while he was only a few hours drive away. But this, it was completely different. They had no idea where she was. She was more far away from them than she had ever been.

That was why when he again sat down in the Summers lounge, he looked intently at the ex demon as she busied herself in the middle of the floor, setting up the necessary objects that would allow them to contact Cora. There was a frown of concentration of her pretty face as she carefully placed the white candles in the right places on the floor. Angel watched as she got up silently and began to trace a circle of salt around the candles expertly.

Finally, when she was ready, Anya looked up and motioned Tara and Willow over. Clasped tightly in Tara's hands was a large silver goblet encrusted with piercing rubies around the rim. Whatever was inside it was steaming steadily, letting off a faint musky scent around the room. By the way the young woman held the goblet so possessively in her hands, they all knew it was very valuable, not only because of what it held inside, but the goblet itself. It belonged to Anya herself and was one of the only thinks she had managed to keep from her demon days. No one actually knew what significance it held to the young woman, they hadn't wanted to ask, but she had told them all confidently that it would work perfectly in contacting their Questor.

Knowing they were about to begin, the others moved out of the way without being told and found seats. Everyone but the two Watchers just sat down on the floor and leaned up against the wall, Angel included. He wouldn't be taking part in contacting Cora, only Anya and the two Witches had parts to play.

Willow and Tara stood next to each other inside the circle of salt along with Anya, who was facing them. Solemnly, Tara passed the silver goblet to the ex demon and joined hands with her lover. Strangely, there were little words that needed to be spoken, and Anya was going to say them, for as she had explained earlier, she had done it before therefore there was little chance she would screw it up.

After a few moments, Anya slowly reached up with the goblet and took a long drink before passing it to Willow, who did the same before handing it to Tara. They went around the circle until the entire potion was finished and after she drunk down the last drops, Anya put the goblet down on the floor between them. As one, they closed their eyes and took a deep breath. Reaching out simultaneously, they all clasped hands and intertwined their fingers tightly.

As the potion raced through their bodies, Anya lifted her chin slightly and spoke in a clear, even voice,

"Masters of time, here us now.

We call you in this time and in this hour,

The Questors we seek, the guardians of the time that rules us all.

The one named Cora, an elder of your kind.

Allow her to hear us, to hear our call,

And bring her to us on the swift wings of time."

She finished and the room was silent as they all waited anxiously. Cordelia even went as far as to look up at the ceiling as if she expected the woman to come crashing through the roof. No one moved, no one even breathed. Angel saw out of the side of his eye Xander and Gunn share a look, both with raised eyebrows. But as the minutes started to tick by, the vampire frowned and let out an unnecessary breath of air that he hadn't realised he held.

It hadn't worked. When he finally couldn't stand the silence any longer, Angel slapped his hands down on his knees, causing everyone to glance his way. The vampire had just opened his mouth to asked what they do next when a totally unexpected thing happened.

The doorbell rang.

***

Startled glances flew around the room, but Anya didn't see them as she clapped her hands together in delight and practically skipped out of the room to answer it. Sputtering, Giles and Wesley jumped up and followed her, Angel on their tails.

He had just got view of the door as Anya reached it, flicked the lock and opened it wide, grinning madly at the person on the other side. Wasting no time, his eyes flew upwards to examine who in his gut he knew it would be.

But he found that Cora surprised him. He hadn't known what he had expected her to look like, but this certainly wasn't it. For starters, the Questor was incredibly pretty. She was quite small, petite…like Buffy, Angel mused. She had large, bright blue eyes and masses of thick, curly caramel coloured hair that could only be real and ended at her shoulders. She had a delicate, classical face with high check bones and graceful lips that looked like they were made for kissing. She was dressed in faded blue jeans that rested low on her hips and a white, short-sleeved peasant blouse. She had a chic black buret sitting slightly on a lean on top of her head.

Overall, Cora wasn't exactly what Angel had been expecting.

The Questor ignored everyone gaping at her and concentrated entirely on her old friend. Putting her hands on her hips, she cocked her head to the side and grinned mischievously at Anya.

"Where you been, lovie? It's been *ages*!" Angel noticed instantly that she spoke with a faint Irish drawl that was barely detectable. Like him, it was as if she had had a lot of time to perfect her new accent. The vampire admitted to himself that he was curious about the woman. He didn't quite know *what* to make of her.

Reaching over, Anya eloped the shorter woman in a warm hug and they both giggled and rocked slightly as women do. The others watched the exchange quietly in the background. When they pulled back, Cora held Anya there at arms length and made a show of looking her up and down critically.

"Well, I never thought I'd be saying this, Anyanka, luv, but being mortal certainly suits you! I don't think I've seen you look so radiant since…well now, I guess it would have to be the 60s!" She drew back and winked dramatically at her friend.

"You certainly had your plate full then, didn't you? All those open marriages and free sex…Bluh! "

Choosing to ignore the last remark, Anya frowned deeply and looked sullen. "So you heard, did you?"

There was no mistaking what she was talking about and Cora clicked on instantly. Clucking her tongue, she reached out and patted the ex demon's shoulder reassuringly. "Of course I heard, you silly duck. We always used to keep our ears open for news about each other, didn't we? Shame on you for thinking I wouldn't hear about it!" Then she went and gave herself away completely but screwing her nose up in distaste. "Anyway, the way D'Hoffryn was blabbing it about, I'm sure the Power's themselves know by now."

Anya looked horrified. "He hasn't!" she cried, her hand on her mouth.

Looking very sympathetic, Cora only nodded. Looking even more horrified by the second, Anya let out a wail, turned on her heals and ran straight to Xander. She threw herself in his arms and started to stamp her feet in anger. "That asshole! Xander, he's embarrassed me for the rest of my life! How can I face the world after this?"

With a perplexed expression on his face, Xander awkwardly lifted a hand and stiffly patted her on the back. "Ahh… there, there."

Dismissing the two, Angel turned to Cora, who was watching the pair with upturned eyebrows of surprise and curiosity. Folding his arms across his chest, he stared at her hard, causing the woman to turn in his direction. Cora saw his expression and frowned, folding her arms right back at him.

"Now don't look at me like that, sonny. She had to find out sooner or later." She gave a dismissing shake of her hand in the air. "It was better it came from me, anyway."

Angel didn't have time for explanations. "That's fine. But you might be surprised to know we called you here for a reason."

Obviously not trusting him enough in his present mood to continue without insulting the Questor, Giles hurried to butt in. He took a step forward and smiled a little hesitantly at her. Shooting Angel a stern glance to stay quiet, he motioned her further into the house. Narrowing her eyes at Angel one last time, she complied and let the Watcher lead her into the lounge where she sat down next to Dawn without being asked. The young girl shared a quick look with Spike before moving over more out of her way, eyeing her sister's retriever warily.

Cora didn't seem to notice and smiled brightly at the girl. "Now you're a pretty little thing, aren't you?" Then her expression turned curious. Studying the girl intently for a moment, she leaning away and turned back to Giles and the others. Pointing a finger at the Slayer's sister, she whispered, "Ahh, you guys do know that she's…."

Giles cut in. "Yes, yes. Thank you, my dear, but yes, we have realised."

Cora accepted this with a shrug and dropped the matter like it was the most normal thing in the world to be sitting next to the Key. Smiling brightly, she put her hands in her lap and looked at the two Watchers pointly. "Now, what can I do for you?"

But before anyone could answer, she raised her eyebrows at them. "Just don't get any ideas that I do this often, you hear me? I'm helping you out cause your friends of Anyanka here, and she happens to be a very good friend of mine…" On another couch, Anya sniffed and gave a watery smile before borrowing back into Xander. "…So don't start expecting that I'm going to drop everything in the future and help you out, you got me?"

When the all nodded readily, Cora gave a sharp nod before looking up at them blankly. When nobody spoke, she sighed. "Sooo, what's the matter?"

Getting a cue, Giles spoke up and explained how the Slayer had disappeared four nights before. Cora listened intently and asked questions when she felt the need, but on a whole, she just let the Watcher talk. When he finished, she sat back and frowned deeply, thinking it over. They all held their breaths, Angel and Spike included, waiting to see what she was going to say.

"So basically what your telling me is you've lost your Slayer and you want me to disrupt a busy schedule that the whole *world* counts on to go and bring her back, is that right?"

Angel closed his eyes and felt his shoulders droop in defeat. She wasn't going to do it…

Sharing a look with Wesley, Giles cleared his throat nervously and smiled weakly. "Well, that sounds about right."

Cora let her eyes drift off the two Watchers slowly and fall on Angel. His eyes were still closed so he didn't see her studying him, but everyone else sure did. It was almost as if she could read his soul and was giving it a quick once over. Inclining her head to the side thoughtfully, she studied him intently before giving her eyebrows a quick flick upwards gracefully. Almost regretfully, her eyes left the vampire's and went back to Wesley and Giles. They, along with everyone else, looked very anxious. Cordelia and Willow were ringing their hands together.

Finally she just shrugged casually and said, "Sure. It's not like I've got anything better to do."

Angel felt his eyes pop open in surprise as she continued, ignoring the gaping group of people in the room. "This is gonna be the most interesting thing I've done all week." She grinned evilly as a thought occurred to her. "Just wait until D'Hoffryn hears about this one, Anyanka, he's gonna be pea green with envy! The bastard, that'll teach him!"

Cora started to laugh and slapped her hands on her knees at her own good luck.

"So you'll go get Buffy?" Dawn whispered, stunned at she stared at the woman next to her on the couch. When Cora turned to her with a smile and nodded kindly, Dawn burst into tears as four days of stress and worry finally caught up with her. The Questor lost her smile fast and threw Spike a startled glance.

"What's wrong with her, vampire?" she asked as Spike quickly put an arm around his little friend and pulled her closer to him, ignoring Angel's growl of warning.

"She'll be okay, she just misses her big sister, 'is all."

Cora seemed to except this, but she still looked rather worried as she stared at Dawn. "Just don't blow me up or anything, okay, hon?" she joked, although she looked rather anxious. This caused Dawn to hush and she looked terribly confused as she glared at Cora through her tears. The Questor didn't seem to notice and she patted the young girl on her shoulder awkwardly

"Your sis will be back in a jiffy, now that good old Cora's on the job, don't you worry." Seemingly deciding her part was over, she dismissed the perplexed Key and abruptly stood, letting her hands fall to her sides as she straightened. Taken by surprise as her abruptness, the others craned their necks to glance at her face.

"Well, there's no time like the present, I always say."

Giles jumped to his feet and shot Cora a stunned look. "You mean…you can go now?" he obviously hadn't expected things to move so fast. Nether had Angel and he was frowning as he too, slowly got to his feet. He had a guarded, suspicious expression on his face.

Cora just shrugged. "Why not?" She started to pace back and forward as she went over her plan of action. "Now, I'll need the vampire over there to come with me, for starters." She threw Angel a quick glance so the others knew she was talking about him, not Spike. The blonde vampire looked considerably relived with that, he obviously hadn't been fond of the idea of time travelling.

Giles sputtered, "What in the world for? We were under the impression that you could do it yourself."

The Questor frowned in annoyance as she came to a stop facing Buffy's Watcher. "Usually, I can time travel by myself, thank you very much. But it might not have occurred to you, English, that your girl isn't going to have any idea who I am. We have no idea what kind of condition she's in, what she's had to endure in the last four days."

She shot Anya an unreadable glance before continuing, "And the fact that I hadn't known she had been switched in the first place is quite a worry. Usually a Questor can tell instantly when there's been a tear in the dimensions, or something's out of wack, but on this one there's been nothing."

She jerked her head towards Angel as the others listened. "Now, even if nobody's going to admit it, your Slayer is obviously very close to Angel Eyes over here, and that's why he needs to come with me." She shrugged, leaving the rest to their imagination. "If anyone can reach her, it'll be him."

Cordelia suddenly spoke up. "How long is this going to take, anyway? We need to get back to LA soon." As Xander shot her a disgusted glance, she huffed, insulted. "Well, we do!" She narrowed her eyes at her ex boyfriend. "Unlike some people I can mention, we're actually needed at our job!"

Cora rolling her eyes at their blatant show of jealousy. "It wont take much time at all, actually. It'll be finding the girl once we get there that will be the problem. A day tops, I'd say."

Angel glanced at Giles who was going over everything in his head. They locked eyes and the Watcher raised his eyebrows in an unspoken question. But already knowing the answer, he just nodded shortly like he knew what he would find and turned back to the Questor.

"Alright, then. Do what you have to do. But please find her, I beg you." He glanced quickly at Dawn so Cora knew what he was talking about. "She is needed here."

Seriously, Cora nodded back, understanding. She turned to Angel, who was waiting behind her, reading to go.

"Alright then, lets get this show on the road."

Cordelia, Wesley and Gunn all stood and gathered around their vampire. Not knowing what to say, the two men just patted Angel on the shoulder and wished him good luck. Cordelia was a little bit more open in her feelings. Ignoring the others watching them, she reached up and hugged Angel tightly and closed her eyes in relief when she heard him chuckle and hug her back. "You find her and come back to us soon, you hear me?" she whispered into his hair.

Pulling back, Angel smiled reassuringly down at the shorter brunette and nodded. Her gave her a lopsided grin. "Wish me luck."

Cordelia smiled slightly at his obvious attempt to make her feel better and whispered, "Good luck." She stepped back and her place was immediately filled with the two girls who meant the most to the missing Slayer. Willow and Dawn. Willow looked like she was holding back tears of her own as she looked up into the face of the dark vampire who meant so much to her best friend. They stared at each other for a moment, words failing them, before Willow closed her eyes tightly and hugged Angel to her. "Look after her, Angel, please. She is going to need you." She whispered.

Frowning, the vampire drew back and found Willow looking deep into his eyes. There was a look there that was deeply disturbing and it shook the vampire to his soul.

"Willow?" he asked, but she just shook her head silently, telling him not to push. But Angel couldn't stop thinking that Willow knew more than she was saying. He wanted to ask her more, but found that she wouldn't allow it and silently moved away, letting Dawn take her place. Xander, Spike and Giles were standing behind the young girl, but Angel didn't see them, his gaze was locked on Willow's. He watched, growing more concerned by the minute, as Tara slowly walked over to her were she now stood, out of the way of the group, and took her lover in her arms.

"Don't say anything, vampire." A voice spoke in his ear, and he turned his head to find Cora standing there by herself, looking at Willow too, with an accepting, somewhat respectful expression on her face. "She has her reasons for staying silent, and you will respect them."

Nodding, the vampire turned away from her and smiled gently down at Dawn as she gazed hopefully up at him. The rest of the goodbyes and 'good lucks' were spoken but years later as Angel would try and think back and recall them, he would find that they were blank.

Tearing his gaze away from Dawn's worried face, he searched the room for Cora and found her hugging a still snivelling Anya. Pulling back, the Questor reached up and cupped her old friend's face gently. "After all this is done, me and you are gonna have a good long talk, you hear me?"

Looking miserable, Anya only nodded and let Xander wrap his arms around her waist, leaning back against his strong body for comfort. Cora saw this and huffed, giving Xander a curious glance. "And we're gonna have words too, young man."

Stepping back, she found Angel at her side. Speaking quietly for his ears only, she muttered, "Don't worry about a change of clothes or anything, we'll have it when we arrive."

Then she looked up and around the room. Obviously finding what she wanted, Cora smiled kindly and held out her hand. "Come over here for a bit, will you, hon?" Looking up, Angel saw she was talking to Dawn. The girl looked startled at being singled out but complied passively, walking over to the Questor and held out her hand to be taken, but she quickly dropped it when a voice came from behind her.

"Hey, now, watcha doing?" Not in the least bit surprisingly, this came from Spike. He looked worried as he pushed himself through Xander and Gunn to stand at the front of the group. "I certainly hope you don't intend to take her with you, cause you aren't!"

Cora just rolled her eyes. "No, she's staying right here with you, you big lug. How do you think I'm going to find the damn Slayer in the first place if I don't have something to go on?" When the all looked blank, she shook her head and sighed. "Although this comparison is totally insulting, I guess you could say I'm like a blood hound. I need something, a scent if you will, that allows me to hunt around the dimensions quickly and pin- point which one she's in, do you follow?"

Not waiting for their response, she reached out and grabbed Dawn's hand and closed her eyes, concentrating. She was silent for a moment, her face blank, until she suddenly smiled brightly, dropped Dawn's hand and muttered, "Gotcha!"

Opening her eyes slowly, she blinked and gave her head a slight shake. "There we go. That wasn't to hard, now was it?" This was directed at Spike, but he just frowned and looked sullen.

Giles blinked in surprise. "You've found where she is?" he asked, looking stunned.

Cora just smiled and nodded. "I can see where she is, but not what its like or anything. That's for only when you arrive there." She looked up at Angel. "Now, you ready?" she asked. The vampire nodded his head, looking determined.

Reaching out, she clasped his hand and held it tightly. Facing the group, Angel gave them all a reassuring, nervous grin and a little wave with the hand that wasn't holding onto Cora's.

Glancing over at the Questor at his side, he was just in time to see her close her eyes and breath deeply. Understanding that he should be too, he followed suit.

And as one, they seemed to flicker in and out before disappearing completely.

And at that moment the world seemed to pause in itself and hold its breath. Time stopped, the world groaned, and as the Powers that Be suddenly awoke from their enteral slumber and gasped in horror…. the world shuddered as the fates cried out in surprise.

And curled up in a warm bed far, far away from it all, dreaming about the ball that she was to attend in a few days time…. Buffy Summers suddenly shot up in her bed, the blackness of night eloping her as her wide, terrified eyes roamed the room for the danger she could feel deep in her bones. Finding only the two still, content forms of the young girls in the beds beside her, the Slayer tried to steady her breathing, but found she could not. Laying there, her sheets pooling around her waist, she gasped, sucking in huge breaths of air as one single thought occurred to her.

Something had gone terribly wrong.