Chapter 21
Gunn came down the stairs to find Angel standing in front of row after row of chairs set up in the hotel lobby. Buffy sat in the first row, her ankle in a gel stint and her crutches laid in the chair beside her.
"Great. My girl is not the only one redecorating." Gunn said.
"You were there." Angel said, pointing.
"Okay. What are we doing? Playing musical chairs?"
"If we were, I wouldn't be playing." Buffy said. "He's trying to figure out where that demon thing came from."
Angel ignored Gunn and Buffy's conversation as he looked past them and suddenly the lobby with its chairs morphed into the lecture hall and the people sitting around and behind Gunn and Buffy. "Nerdy guy. Older nerdy guy. Girl in black there." Angel said.
"Okay. Catching on sorta. How come you never pulled out this parlor trick before?" Gunn asked.
"It's not an automatic reflex. It just kicked in when I saw Lilah."
"Hold up. Lilah was there? Not a huge leap thinking she opened the portal."
"She was just stalking Wesley."
"Wesley? He came to see.."
"You didn't see him talking to me on the stage?" Buffy asked.
"No. I was busy comforting my girl."
"He was waiting." Angel said.
"Wesley?" Gunn asked.
"Guy in the second row, center seat. The guy wearing a tan T-shirt that said 'Thwack!' He had a camera."
"I think I know where to find him." Gunn got up and headed for the doors.
"Whoa, whoa. Ho, ho! Hang on. Wife is a little slower than usual."
"Well, help her. Because when my girls not happy.." Gunn said.
"I'm not happy." Gunn said, slamming the comic book guy against the counter. Buffy sat on a stool while Angel held her crutches for her. The guy looked over at Angel and asked, "Is he gonna hurt me?"
"Think Daredevil one eighty one. I'm Bullseye, you're Electra. One wins, one dies. Get what I'm saying?" Gunn said.
"Yeah. But we're kind of crushing the Dark Horses."
"You were taking pictures of my girlfriend. Why?"
"Because the ceiling was like ripping apart!"
"Why were you there? You always hang with the physicist crowd?" Buffy asked.
"I wanted to see if it was true, if she was really one of them. You know, one of the students who disappeared."
"One of?" Gunn asked.
"Yeah. A bunch of kids just disappeared out of nowhere." Gunn let go of the guy and he walked to the backroom.
"Angel, this is getting old." Buffy said.
"We just have to be patient Buffy." Angel said, kissing her hand.
"It's kind of hard to be patient when you're out of the game for a little while."
The guy came back out from behind the beaded curtain. "You guys know how it is. Like you hear things from the friend of a friend's roommate. You don't know if they really happen."
"Like the story about the girl, the cat and the peanut butter." Gunn said.
"That one's true." Angel said. Gunn looked at him. "Long story."
"Yeah, like, you're Buffy and Angel, right? There are whole forums on you guys in chat rooms, man! Who knew you actually, like, existed?!" the guy said.
"The disappearances?" Gunn asked.
"Ah, supposedly there were three before your girlfriend and one since."
"What do you know?" Angel asked.
"Just rumors. They're all science types, like these weren't your everyday kidnappings. Hey, maybe I can help you guys. Be your Intern."
"We're full up on interns. But the decoder ring's in the mail." Gunn said.
Gunn started to leave. Buffy stood on her good foot and took her crutches from Angel. They followed Gunn out, but Angel stopped which made Buffy stop.
"They talk about us in the chatty rooms?" Angel asked.
"Angel!" Buffy said. She grabbed his coat and yanked on him. He followed.
Willow sat at the computer scrolling through the web pages. Buffy sat on the desk behind the counter with her foot in Angel's lap. Angel sat in the desk's chair gently massaging Buffy's fractured ankle. Gunn paced the floor.
"I don't like this, man. I got a bad feeling." Gunn said. Willow turned and looked at him. "What?"
"Here. The thing all the students had in common." Willow said.
"Oliver Seidel. As in the guy she's with right now." Gunn turned to hurry out the office and almost ran into Fred standing just inside the door. "Fred. Thank god. Look, there is something we got to tell you. The portal.."
"It was professor Seidel." Fred said.
"Yeah."
"And he's done it before."
"That's right. There are others." Willow said.
"No. To me. He's the son of a bitch that sent me to Pylea."
"What?" Buffy asked.
"We're gonna get this guy." Angel said.
"Count on it. He's gonna pay." Gunn said.
"No. He's gonna die." Fred said.
"What do you mean, die?"
"I don't know yet, but it's going to be about pain." Fred opened the weapons cabinet. "The halberd could work." She picked it up and made stabbing motions with it as she turned back to Gunn, who backed up a little. "Acting like I'm all addlebrained talking about other dimensions. Pylea, never heard of it. Right! How about a flail whipping? Would that take a nice long time?"
"Hours if you do it right." Angel said. Fred picked a flail from the cabinet and whirled it around. "Not that you should do it." Angel stood up and walked over, carefully taking the flail away from her. "At all. Ever."
"He's a killer. And he's just sitting there smiling, telling me I'm so gifted and how he wants to teach me. Oh, there is going to be a lesson, all right."
"Alright, Fred, lets calm down." Buffy said, standing and limping over to the group.
"I idolized him and he sent me to hell. Me and God knows how many others who didn't make it back, so.. so sure! I'll calm down.. when he's dead!"
"Fred, a few years ago I would have done in the guy myself. But this? It isn't what we do." Gunn said. He tried to take the halberd away from Fred but she pulled out of his reach.
"We kill monsters every day."
"We help people. Fred, if you do this, the demons you'll be living with won't be the horned, fangy kind, they'll be the kind you can't get rid of." Buffy said.
"You're wrong."
"She's right. Whatever you do now, is nothing compared to how it'll be afterward." Angel said, supporting Buffy against him.
"It's not a place where you want to go. Believe me. I've been there." Willow said.
"What you're talking about goes against everything you believe in, everything we believe in. Fred, you idolized him, but don't let him be defining what you are now." Gunn said. He held out his hand. "Can I have the ax?"
After a moment Fred let him have the ax. "I'm sorry, Charles. I guess I kind of lost it."
"You want a drink? I could make you some cocoa."
"No. Thanks. I'm just gonna go lay down.. for a few days."
Gunn watched Fred walk up the stairs, then turned to face Buffy and Angel. "So what are we gonna do to this guy?"
"No idea. But let's do it fast." Angel said.
"We got to get to him before Fred changes her mind. Cause vengeance? It can get ugly. Speaking from experience here." Willow said.
"Tell me about it! I was there." Buffy said as Angel lifted her up and sat her on the counter. "So, how can I help? Want me to come along and be an example of how dangerous portals can be?"
"Oh, that's right. We've lost one of our best fighters." Gunn said.
"Well, not exactly."
"You're incapacitated. Can't help us out with your fractured ankle."
"I didn't mean me. CONNER!"
A few seconds later, Conner was standing on the top of the stairs walking down. "Yeah mom?"
"You're going to go with your Dad and Uncle Gunn here on a little mission."
"Really?"
"Yup. Listen to whatever your father has to say. Ok?"
"Of course. What weapon can I take?"
"Slow down kiddo!" Angel said, ruffling Conner's hair.
"I'm gonna go check on Fred." Gunn said.
"I'll come with. Gotta have someone to talk to while you guys are gone." Buffy said.
"I'm still here." Willow said.
"I meant someone to distract."
"Uh, how are you going to get up the stairs with your crutches?" Angel asked.
"You. Conner, get into something slay worthy. You know I don't like you slaying in your school clothes."
Conner ran back up to his room and Angel picked Buffy up in his arms. Gunn grabbed her crutches and walked up behind Angel. Angel put Buffy down and Gunn handed her, her crutches. Gunn knocked on the door and waited for an answer. Nothing. He opened the door and walked in.
"She's gone!" Gunn said.
"What?" Angel asked.
"As in, not here."
"She must've slipped out the back way."
"And I'm asking her if she wants cocoa. Stupid!"
"She's gonna kill him."
"If he doesn't kill her first. You know where she went."
"Look, I'm faster on my own."
"Go. Conner and I'll meet you there."
"She'll be okay." Angel said, jumping out the window.
Gunn turned and headed out the door. Buffy cleared her throat and he came back in. "Sorry." Gunn picked Buffy up and carried her down the stairs. Conner, Willow, and Dawn waited for them at the bottom of the stairs. Willow helped Buffy down from Gunn's arms and they watched Gunn and Conner head out the door.
When 11:30 came and went, Angel, Gunn, Conner, and Fred hadn't checked in. Willow, Dawn, and Buffy lounged around with Lorne. They had music playing and a game of 'Uno' going. So far, Dawn was winning. A knock came from the main lobby doors and Lorne went to get it.
"I didn't think it was locked." Buffy said.
"It's not." Lorne said, stepping away to reveal Cordelia and Xander.
"Hey." Xander said. "She wanted to come back."
"Cordelia!" Buffy said. She wobbled to her feet and grabbed her crutches.
"Oh my God! What happened?" Cordy asked.
"Oh, a demon and a portal. Fractured my ankle. It'll be completely healed by Sunday."
"How? I mean, fractured ankles take a while."
"Slayers have fast healing. It goes along with the job."
"Sucked into his own portal." Angel said, walking in behind everyone with Fred, Gunn, and Conner. "Wish I could have seen his face."
"Yeah. I'm gonna.." Gunn said, heading upstairs.
"Good night." Fred said, following.
"Night!" Angel turned around and found everyone grouped on the other side of the lobby. "Buffy! What are you doing on your feet? You need rest."
"Angel.." Buffy shifted out of the way to show him she was with Cordy.
"Hi." Cordy said.
"Cordelia." Angel walked up to them.
"Can we.. you know, talk? You, me, and Angel?" Cordy asked.
"Sure." Angel came and picked Buffy up and carried her out to the garden where they sat on a bench in front of the fountain.
Cordy noticed the wound on Angel's head. "You should have somebody look at that."
"It'll be okay. Run-in with a Voynok demon. Turns out they have nine lives." Angel said.
"Like a cat?"
"Only less stand off-ish."
"We were friends. I know that. Not just from the pictures, but.. And I know that's why you lied before.. to protect me. Well, I-I staked a vamp today."
"Xander took you.." Buffy started.
Cordy didn't let her finish. "And what I realized is: whoever I was before.. I'm still her. She didn't need protecting, and neither do I. So no more lies?"
"No more lies."
"Good. Because there is something I need to know. Did I have someone I loved before I.. left? Xander said that he had someone, Anya, and you guys have each other, and Fred and Gunn are together, and I'm pretty sure Lorne and I weren't, and Dawn and Conner are too young. Was there.. Someone? I feel like there's a hole inside me. Like something's missing."
Buffy and Angel stared at each other, not knowing what exactly to say about Gru.
Gunn came down the stairs to find Angel standing in front of row after row of chairs set up in the hotel lobby. Buffy sat in the first row, her ankle in a gel stint and her crutches laid in the chair beside her.
"Great. My girl is not the only one redecorating." Gunn said.
"You were there." Angel said, pointing.
"Okay. What are we doing? Playing musical chairs?"
"If we were, I wouldn't be playing." Buffy said. "He's trying to figure out where that demon thing came from."
Angel ignored Gunn and Buffy's conversation as he looked past them and suddenly the lobby with its chairs morphed into the lecture hall and the people sitting around and behind Gunn and Buffy. "Nerdy guy. Older nerdy guy. Girl in black there." Angel said.
"Okay. Catching on sorta. How come you never pulled out this parlor trick before?" Gunn asked.
"It's not an automatic reflex. It just kicked in when I saw Lilah."
"Hold up. Lilah was there? Not a huge leap thinking she opened the portal."
"She was just stalking Wesley."
"Wesley? He came to see.."
"You didn't see him talking to me on the stage?" Buffy asked.
"No. I was busy comforting my girl."
"He was waiting." Angel said.
"Wesley?" Gunn asked.
"Guy in the second row, center seat. The guy wearing a tan T-shirt that said 'Thwack!' He had a camera."
"I think I know where to find him." Gunn got up and headed for the doors.
"Whoa, whoa. Ho, ho! Hang on. Wife is a little slower than usual."
"Well, help her. Because when my girls not happy.." Gunn said.
"I'm not happy." Gunn said, slamming the comic book guy against the counter. Buffy sat on a stool while Angel held her crutches for her. The guy looked over at Angel and asked, "Is he gonna hurt me?"
"Think Daredevil one eighty one. I'm Bullseye, you're Electra. One wins, one dies. Get what I'm saying?" Gunn said.
"Yeah. But we're kind of crushing the Dark Horses."
"You were taking pictures of my girlfriend. Why?"
"Because the ceiling was like ripping apart!"
"Why were you there? You always hang with the physicist crowd?" Buffy asked.
"I wanted to see if it was true, if she was really one of them. You know, one of the students who disappeared."
"One of?" Gunn asked.
"Yeah. A bunch of kids just disappeared out of nowhere." Gunn let go of the guy and he walked to the backroom.
"Angel, this is getting old." Buffy said.
"We just have to be patient Buffy." Angel said, kissing her hand.
"It's kind of hard to be patient when you're out of the game for a little while."
The guy came back out from behind the beaded curtain. "You guys know how it is. Like you hear things from the friend of a friend's roommate. You don't know if they really happen."
"Like the story about the girl, the cat and the peanut butter." Gunn said.
"That one's true." Angel said. Gunn looked at him. "Long story."
"Yeah, like, you're Buffy and Angel, right? There are whole forums on you guys in chat rooms, man! Who knew you actually, like, existed?!" the guy said.
"The disappearances?" Gunn asked.
"Ah, supposedly there were three before your girlfriend and one since."
"What do you know?" Angel asked.
"Just rumors. They're all science types, like these weren't your everyday kidnappings. Hey, maybe I can help you guys. Be your Intern."
"We're full up on interns. But the decoder ring's in the mail." Gunn said.
Gunn started to leave. Buffy stood on her good foot and took her crutches from Angel. They followed Gunn out, but Angel stopped which made Buffy stop.
"They talk about us in the chatty rooms?" Angel asked.
"Angel!" Buffy said. She grabbed his coat and yanked on him. He followed.
Willow sat at the computer scrolling through the web pages. Buffy sat on the desk behind the counter with her foot in Angel's lap. Angel sat in the desk's chair gently massaging Buffy's fractured ankle. Gunn paced the floor.
"I don't like this, man. I got a bad feeling." Gunn said. Willow turned and looked at him. "What?"
"Here. The thing all the students had in common." Willow said.
"Oliver Seidel. As in the guy she's with right now." Gunn turned to hurry out the office and almost ran into Fred standing just inside the door. "Fred. Thank god. Look, there is something we got to tell you. The portal.."
"It was professor Seidel." Fred said.
"Yeah."
"And he's done it before."
"That's right. There are others." Willow said.
"No. To me. He's the son of a bitch that sent me to Pylea."
"What?" Buffy asked.
"We're gonna get this guy." Angel said.
"Count on it. He's gonna pay." Gunn said.
"No. He's gonna die." Fred said.
"What do you mean, die?"
"I don't know yet, but it's going to be about pain." Fred opened the weapons cabinet. "The halberd could work." She picked it up and made stabbing motions with it as she turned back to Gunn, who backed up a little. "Acting like I'm all addlebrained talking about other dimensions. Pylea, never heard of it. Right! How about a flail whipping? Would that take a nice long time?"
"Hours if you do it right." Angel said. Fred picked a flail from the cabinet and whirled it around. "Not that you should do it." Angel stood up and walked over, carefully taking the flail away from her. "At all. Ever."
"He's a killer. And he's just sitting there smiling, telling me I'm so gifted and how he wants to teach me. Oh, there is going to be a lesson, all right."
"Alright, Fred, lets calm down." Buffy said, standing and limping over to the group.
"I idolized him and he sent me to hell. Me and God knows how many others who didn't make it back, so.. so sure! I'll calm down.. when he's dead!"
"Fred, a few years ago I would have done in the guy myself. But this? It isn't what we do." Gunn said. He tried to take the halberd away from Fred but she pulled out of his reach.
"We kill monsters every day."
"We help people. Fred, if you do this, the demons you'll be living with won't be the horned, fangy kind, they'll be the kind you can't get rid of." Buffy said.
"You're wrong."
"She's right. Whatever you do now, is nothing compared to how it'll be afterward." Angel said, supporting Buffy against him.
"It's not a place where you want to go. Believe me. I've been there." Willow said.
"What you're talking about goes against everything you believe in, everything we believe in. Fred, you idolized him, but don't let him be defining what you are now." Gunn said. He held out his hand. "Can I have the ax?"
After a moment Fred let him have the ax. "I'm sorry, Charles. I guess I kind of lost it."
"You want a drink? I could make you some cocoa."
"No. Thanks. I'm just gonna go lay down.. for a few days."
Gunn watched Fred walk up the stairs, then turned to face Buffy and Angel. "So what are we gonna do to this guy?"
"No idea. But let's do it fast." Angel said.
"We got to get to him before Fred changes her mind. Cause vengeance? It can get ugly. Speaking from experience here." Willow said.
"Tell me about it! I was there." Buffy said as Angel lifted her up and sat her on the counter. "So, how can I help? Want me to come along and be an example of how dangerous portals can be?"
"Oh, that's right. We've lost one of our best fighters." Gunn said.
"Well, not exactly."
"You're incapacitated. Can't help us out with your fractured ankle."
"I didn't mean me. CONNER!"
A few seconds later, Conner was standing on the top of the stairs walking down. "Yeah mom?"
"You're going to go with your Dad and Uncle Gunn here on a little mission."
"Really?"
"Yup. Listen to whatever your father has to say. Ok?"
"Of course. What weapon can I take?"
"Slow down kiddo!" Angel said, ruffling Conner's hair.
"I'm gonna go check on Fred." Gunn said.
"I'll come with. Gotta have someone to talk to while you guys are gone." Buffy said.
"I'm still here." Willow said.
"I meant someone to distract."
"Uh, how are you going to get up the stairs with your crutches?" Angel asked.
"You. Conner, get into something slay worthy. You know I don't like you slaying in your school clothes."
Conner ran back up to his room and Angel picked Buffy up in his arms. Gunn grabbed her crutches and walked up behind Angel. Angel put Buffy down and Gunn handed her, her crutches. Gunn knocked on the door and waited for an answer. Nothing. He opened the door and walked in.
"She's gone!" Gunn said.
"What?" Angel asked.
"As in, not here."
"She must've slipped out the back way."
"And I'm asking her if she wants cocoa. Stupid!"
"She's gonna kill him."
"If he doesn't kill her first. You know where she went."
"Look, I'm faster on my own."
"Go. Conner and I'll meet you there."
"She'll be okay." Angel said, jumping out the window.
Gunn turned and headed out the door. Buffy cleared her throat and he came back in. "Sorry." Gunn picked Buffy up and carried her down the stairs. Conner, Willow, and Dawn waited for them at the bottom of the stairs. Willow helped Buffy down from Gunn's arms and they watched Gunn and Conner head out the door.
When 11:30 came and went, Angel, Gunn, Conner, and Fred hadn't checked in. Willow, Dawn, and Buffy lounged around with Lorne. They had music playing and a game of 'Uno' going. So far, Dawn was winning. A knock came from the main lobby doors and Lorne went to get it.
"I didn't think it was locked." Buffy said.
"It's not." Lorne said, stepping away to reveal Cordelia and Xander.
"Hey." Xander said. "She wanted to come back."
"Cordelia!" Buffy said. She wobbled to her feet and grabbed her crutches.
"Oh my God! What happened?" Cordy asked.
"Oh, a demon and a portal. Fractured my ankle. It'll be completely healed by Sunday."
"How? I mean, fractured ankles take a while."
"Slayers have fast healing. It goes along with the job."
"Sucked into his own portal." Angel said, walking in behind everyone with Fred, Gunn, and Conner. "Wish I could have seen his face."
"Yeah. I'm gonna.." Gunn said, heading upstairs.
"Good night." Fred said, following.
"Night!" Angel turned around and found everyone grouped on the other side of the lobby. "Buffy! What are you doing on your feet? You need rest."
"Angel.." Buffy shifted out of the way to show him she was with Cordy.
"Hi." Cordy said.
"Cordelia." Angel walked up to them.
"Can we.. you know, talk? You, me, and Angel?" Cordy asked.
"Sure." Angel came and picked Buffy up and carried her out to the garden where they sat on a bench in front of the fountain.
Cordy noticed the wound on Angel's head. "You should have somebody look at that."
"It'll be okay. Run-in with a Voynok demon. Turns out they have nine lives." Angel said.
"Like a cat?"
"Only less stand off-ish."
"We were friends. I know that. Not just from the pictures, but.. And I know that's why you lied before.. to protect me. Well, I-I staked a vamp today."
"Xander took you.." Buffy started.
Cordy didn't let her finish. "And what I realized is: whoever I was before.. I'm still her. She didn't need protecting, and neither do I. So no more lies?"
"No more lies."
"Good. Because there is something I need to know. Did I have someone I loved before I.. left? Xander said that he had someone, Anya, and you guys have each other, and Fred and Gunn are together, and I'm pretty sure Lorne and I weren't, and Dawn and Conner are too young. Was there.. Someone? I feel like there's a hole inside me. Like something's missing."
Buffy and Angel stared at each other, not knowing what exactly to say about Gru.
