The past is just a reflection of things to come.
--Robert Jacob Goodkin
Angel pulled his car up to the curb in front of Willow's house. Cordelia slowly opened the door and climbed out of the passenger side. She turned back toward him, her hand still on the door.
"Be careful," she said. "If Drusilla's already managed to get Buffy and Xander..."
Angel smiled at her concern. "We will be. We'll see you back at Giles'." With that note he pulled away.
"Do you know where we're going?" asked Gunn as they sped along one of the few main roads in Sunnydale.
"Dru may be strong enough to kidnap Buffy," said Angel, "But she's certainly not creative."
"Who exactly is this Drusilla?"
"A vampire," replied the other, taking a turn into a narrow alleyway and then onto another larger street.
"That much I gathered," said Gunn, rolling his eyes. "But what does she want with Buffy?"
Angel shrugged. "Who knows? Drusilla is dangerous, but she's completely insane. Literally."
"For real?" Gunn said, a bit surprised at the possibility.
"I should know. I'm the one who made her that way."
When he woke up, there was dark all around him. He fumbled around on the ground, trying to stand up, and discovered that it was smooth and metallic, though littered with grime and dirt.
Where am I? he thought.
As his eyes grew used to the dark, he began to see other shapes around him. Mostly there were boxes and crates, and he seemed to be in a large room with a high ceiling.
Finally able to stand on his unsteady legs, he took a few steps toward one wall of the room. Not too far from him was a tall staircase, made of the same metal as the floor.
Might as well try and find a way out, he thought. It can't be any
creepier outside than it is in here.
Willow sat on her bed, crying softly. Riley and Graham had left her a few minutes before, after she had assured them she was alright. That was one of the biggest lies she had ever told. She was as far from alright as she could be.
In those seconds when Tara's face had changed and the creature she had become had attacked, Willow had felt her whole world collapsing again. She knew it wasn't betrayal in the way she had felt it with Oz, but was a very similar feeling. There seemed to be a hole right through Willow's soul.
Jolting her out of her spiralling depression, there was a knock at the door.
"Who is it?" Willow called, trying to mask the pain in her voice. She really wasn't in the mood to explain this away to her parents.
The door swung open to reveal Cordelia. "Your mom let me in," she said, coming in and closing the door behind her. "How are you feeling?"
Willow tried to scrunch up her eyebrows in confusion, but doing so hurt her head. "Cordelia ... what are you doing here?"
"Well," said Cordelia. "I'm here to check up on you and see if you're up to a little research. I'm in Sunnydale because, well, that's kind of a long story."
"Short version?"
Cordelia thought for a minute. "Angel and I had the same dream and then I had a vision of Buffy in trouble. Angel naturally insisted on coming here where we discovered the current situation." She smiled at her summary. "That brings me back to my question - how are you feeling?"
Willow sighed. "My head still hurts a little, but it's not too bad. The other part ..." she trailed off, not wanting to continue.
"Short version?" said Cordelia a sincere smile on her face.
"Hurt, depressed and confused," said the other after a moment's thought.
"I understand, believe me," said Cordelia, trying not to think too much about her experiences with heartache. It was hard to believe that one of them had been over a year before, and that the girl she was consoling had been part of the cause.
"How did you come out on the other side?" asked Willow.
Cordelia laughed softly. "I got over the hurt and depressed. Unfortunately, I think we're stuck with the confused."
The red head managed a small laugh. "Did you say something about research?"
"Uh huh."
"Count me in."