4.The Story and The Plan
Giles looked at the clock on the wall. According to it, the two groups had been telling their various stories for three hours. He had done some of the talking but most of the conversation had been dominated by Buffy, Willow and Xander from the Sunnydale contingent and Wesley, Angel and Fred from the Los ANgeles group. Indeed the L.A. story had taken slightly longer because it went back longer ; almost two years. This story had a lot of interruptions.
When Angel explained how Darla had turned up at the Hyperion eight months pregnant, Giles himself had uttered :"That's not possible!" and was very peeved when he heard the explanation about it being manipulated by a higher power. "It's plays with the bloody natural order of things. Vampires can not get pregnant!" The idea somehow offended his sensibilities more than the idea that Angel had had sex or that a Vampire Hunter from the 1770's could somehow be transported to the present.
The next interruption came when Fred (after Wesley and Angel had looked awkwardly at each other for a minute) explained the circumstances which had led to Wesley turning Connor over to Holtz. The outburst had not come from Buffy or Faith but rather from the last person Giles had expected: Xander.
"Well, Wes I gotta hand it to you:I didn't think that it would have been possible to make a bigger mistake than you did with Faith. But this really takes the proverbial cake. Not only did you betray all your friends, you gave them to the last person of all the dozens of people you could have chosen that it should have gone to. Way to go."
Wesley had taken all this in. Then he walked over to Xander. "Since you weren't in my situation, you have no right to judge me. I did what I thought was in the best interest of the child. "
"And look how good that turned out."
"Xander, its OK..." Angel ,of all people, tried to defend him. Xander whipped around on him.
"I wouldn't talk Deadboy. If what you're telling me is correct, we came within a hairsbreadth of being annihilated because of something that you did and something that he did.. Now you've never been the posterboy for doing the wisest thing, so I can deal with that. What's his excuse?"
"He didn't have a choice." shouted Fred.
"Yes he did. He had a choice. He didn't have a good choice but he had one. And if you don't have the courage to trust people who are supposed to be your friends, then maybe you deserved what you got."
For a moment Giles wondered if Xander had gone too far and that he might strike him. The other ex-watcher walked towards him. Xander's gaze never faltered. "What, you want to take a swing at me, monarchy boy? Bring it on. I've been fighting big nasties for so long I could use someone fighting me that I have a chance of taking."
Wesley just stood there for a moment. Then he did the last thing that Giles had thought he would have expected.
"You're right, Xander." The smart mouthed boy did a double take and he wasn't alone.
"What?"
"For the past ten months I've been trying to tell myself that what I did was the only thing that could be done. That I had no choice given the options I had. But I became so focused on the prophecies and on everything that I had been trying to learn about Connor that I completely shut out the people who might have been able to help. I thought that everybody turned away from me, but the truth of the matter is I turned you away first."
AT this Angel began to shuffle about awkwardly. "You didn't deserve to have your throat cut. Or for the rest of us to shun you."
"Maybe not.But afterwards you all tried to take me back and all I did was push everyone else away. And I kept saying that you never gave me a chance to defend myself. Maybe I couldn't even convince myself that I had been right."
"Wait a minute? You got your throat cut?" The once astute boy had gotten fixated on an earlier point. "How come you're still breathing?"
"I don't know." For a moment Wesley's eyes went hard. "By all rights,that bitch should have killed me." Then they went back to normal. "When she did I thought: this is what I deserve. A traitor's fate is all that I am entitled to."
For a moment there was an awkward silence. Then another unlikely person spoke up.
"Maybe you were left alive because they wanted you to redeem yourself." Faith walked over to the man she had once tried to kill and took his hand. "Maybe they knew what part you had to play."
Wesley gave a small smile. "I know what you're trying to say but given the events over the last few months, I'm no longer sure I even believe in that kind of thing. I don't think any of us do."
"What makes you so sure of that?" said Willow.
"There's more of the story to tell."
And so Wesley told about how Cordelia, driven to near death by the blinding visions she had been having had become part demon in order to survive. (At this Dawn said: "How much of her did they really have to change?") Then Angel told how Holtz had taken Connor into the demon dimension Quortoth supposedly disappearing forever. And how less then a month later, Connor had broken free, a warrior teenager raised to kill his father.
Fred had then explained how both Cordelia and Angel had disappeared for several months: Angel because Connor had imprisoned him at the bottom of the sea, Cordelia because she had been called to be a higher being (or so they had believed).
At this Buffy, who had been unusually quiet, spoke up. "And neither of you thought that this would be of interest to anybody in Sunnydale?"
Gunn and Fred looked at each other awkwardly. Clearly this was a sore point between them
"Well, we weren't quite sure..." said Fred.
"WE didn't know what good you..." said Gunn at the same time.
"What could you have done?" they both finished.
"Well, for two months I had dreams that Angel was trapped somewhere. I tried to call him a dozen times and you never got back to me." Buffy was looking at them very sternly.
"Yeah, well you obviously knew the way from Sunnydale to here. So you sure took the time out of your busy schedule to come on down." said Gunn matching her stare.
"All right. " said Willow. "There was a lot going on. Let's just say that there was a misfire in communications and get on with the story."
The rest of the story went on a bit quicker.Wesley explained how he Angel had been rescued and how he had exiled his son. How Cordelia had come back weeks later seemingly with amnesia and later returned with news of a great evil. No one interrupted, but Giles could sense that Angel when talking about Cordelia seemed to be restraining himself. He wasn't sure why but he thought that Angel wasn't talking about Cordelia for a reason.
They explained about the arrival of the Beast. How he had brought about the rain of fire and blocked out the sun. How Cordelia had told them that Angelus knew something about the beast and that they needed him.
At this point Robin interrupted. "Let me get this straight. You gain your soul back and you lose your memory? I thought the whole point of this soul business was that you had to remember every bad thing you ever did."
Now everybody was shifting around awkwardly. Wesley finally spoke. "WE believed that the reason that there was no record of the Beast was because it came from an alternate universe and had the power to erase it's existence. We thought that in the past when Angelus had... Been at his prime... He might be able to remember what Angel couldn't."
"So you thought that bringing back a soulless killer to fight a soulless killer was a good idea. " said Xander. "Makes perfect sense."
"In retrospect its clear that we were being manipulated by someone else." said Wesley. "Someone who had been playing us from the beginning."
Looking at the others, an idea hit Giles. Something that would explain why Cordelia wasn't awake and why everybody was tiptoeing around the subject of what had happened to her.
"Cordelia was the one who was manipulating the Beast." Everyone turned towards him. Of the Sunnydale contingent, only Xander seemed somewhat shocked by this information.
"Of course! I should have known." said Willow. "I saw her aura; it was filled with negative energy. I thought it had something to do with her being worried about Angelus but.... If I had only looked closer."
"Don't beat yourself up." said Faith. "I thought something was up with her when I saw her. I just figured that she was still pissed that I'd tried to kill her."
"I always knew that Cordelia had bad vibes in her; I just didn't think she had it in her to be an evil mastermind." said Dawn.
Of the group only Buffy seemed to be noticing the feelings of the others. Xander had gone very quiet when he had heard Giles' pronouncement. She turned to him.
"It was the demon that was doing this, right?" He walked over to Angel. "The demon that she took on took her over? That's why she did what she did,right?"
Giles knew that something was very wrong. Granted it had been nearly four years since the two had seen each other, but Xander normally wouldn't have asked the vampire for anything unless the fate of the world depended on it.
"Xander, we don't know. The fact is we have no idea who was pulling the strings in this. Cordelia has been in a coma ever for almost a month; we have no idea if she's evil or whatever had been working through her is."
"A coma? What... What the hell did you do to her?"
"Xander, let him explain..."
"SHUT UP!" If Buffy had not been a slayer, Xander might have pushed her into the wall. As it was, she fell back in surprise as much as anything else."You always take his side! Doesn't it matter that she took on being a demon for him, and that he screwed his former sire for kicks and brought this whole mess on our heads! When does it start being his fault?" At this something in Xander seemed to break and he just fell to the ground.
No one was sure quite what to do next. Then Willow walked over to Xander and put her arms around him. "It's OK, Xander. Just let it out." The young boy just began to shake and quiver. . "I know what she meant to you." He seemed to gain strength from being near his best friend. Eventually he looked up.
"I'm sorry, Angel. I know this wasn't your fault."
The vampire looked at him for a minute. "Maybe it is. "
"Angel, no." said Fred. "Someone else had been using her."
"And why was that?" The dark vampire was showing feelings he hadn't seen before about anyone except Buffy. "She just wanted to be an actress. I was the one who needed redemption, not her."
Wesley turned to him. "From what I understood, she chose to work for you. This was her decision as much as yours. You can't blame yourself for that."
"Yeah. I guess."
Xander turned toward Angel. "Tell us the rest of it. What she did. What happened next."
And so Angel told how Cordelia had stolen the orb that housed his soul. How she had manipulated the rest of them into thinking that they had restored his soul and then let him out of his cage. How she had murdered Lilah, the Sun God and the family of wizards who could have taken the Beast. And how she had manipulated Connor into making love to her so that she could become pregnant, how she had used the boy into fighting against Angel, all so that she could give birth to the great evil that would be known as Jasmine.
There had then been a period of awkwardness when they tried to explain exactly why she was evil.
"So she made everybody feel good and vivacious and alive." said Buffy. "The horror. The horror."
"She took away free will." said Fred. "She took over the state of California."
"How come this all slipped by you? Didn't you watch TV?" said Lorne.
"The power went all twonky in Sunnydale soon after me and Faith got back." said Willow.
"Besides, nobody was doing much except fighting against the First." said Dawn.
"Oh. Right."
Then Fred explained how she had seen the true face of Jasmine. How she had managed to get the people of Angel Investigations into seeing her as well. How they had hid in the sewers and found the one creature that had known what she was. How Angel had finally managed to show the world her true face. And how Connor, disillusioned by the knowledge of what he was and what he had been used for, had killed Jasmine before she could destroy the world.
Angel told the last bit about Lilah's reappearance,how Wolfram and Hart had offered them their L.A. Office and how he had accepted with the condition that Connor be allowed to live a normal life without any real knowledge of his parents or his destiny.
"Lilah isn't still here, is she?" asked Faith.
"No, she's back.. At the home office." Wesley had a look of pain on his face that Giles didn't quite understand.
"Good. Cause I got to tell you, I'm getting just a little tired of seeing the dead walking around normally." said Willow.
"So after nearly four years of trying to wipe you out, they gave you all of these resources because they were tired of losing to you. " Robin seemed to be having trouble getting his head around this.
"Well, they said that by defeating Jasmine we had stopped world peace from coming about." said Gunn. The people at Angel Investigations seemed a little uncomfortable at admitting what seemed to be Jasmine's goal.
"This creature. It took away people's free will, made them all slaves ate people and this was supposed to bring about peace on earth?" said Giles.
"Well, when you put it liked that it really doesn't sound that great." Fred responded.
"Besides, if things hadn't worked out in Sunnydale, there would have only been peace on earth for about a week." said Willow.
"And I guess that's a segueway to what has been going on in the town formerly known as Sunnydale." said Lorne.
Giles was about to begin talking when he noticed that Buffy was looking at Angel. The vampire seemed on the verge of tears. She walked up and put her arms around him.
"Angel, I'm sorry about what happened to Connor. I know that he must have meant everything to you."
"He had the most horrible life imaginable, and I don't think he ever really loved me, but..."
"You would have done anything for him."said Buffy. "And that's what you did."
For a moment, everyone just stood around awkwardly while Buffy comforted Angel. Then the vampire gathered his strength and asked: "So how did the fight against the First Evil go?"
"You know, I never thought that what we went through would ever be a pleasant change of topic." said Xander.
"I guess when you do what we do for so long, anything seems possible." said Willow.
"Um, when you say the First, you don't mean first as in the actual first evil. We're talking metaphorical right?" said Fred.
"No we are speaking literally. " said Giles.
"But...according to the journals, the First evil was incapable of taking a corporeal form" said Wesley. "How then could it become real?"
"For most of the past year, it has been working through its priests. The Harbingers --- hundreds, perhaps thousands of them--- began a calculated strike to eliminate the entire Slayer line, along with everything associated with it."
Wesley had gotten very still and suddenly Giles realized that he had been kept out of the loop for even longer then him. "How many?"
"Almost all the potentials were killed. There are only a few dozen left--- most of them are here with us now."
"And--- the Council?"
"They have been almost entirely destroyed. Almost every major base of operation was hit. The Council building in London was destroyed with almost no survivors." Giles swallowed. "I don't know for certain, but I believe that your father was one of the dead."
Wesley swallowed rather grimly. The others all looked on in surprise. Giles didn't think that any of them had known that Wesley's father was a Watcher. "I'm sorry." The phrase seemed inadequate.
"He... Called me a few months ago."Wesley was trying very hard to be brave, but Giles didn't think he would make it. "He wanted to know how things were going for me. He said something about that he was glad that I was in Los Angeles. That something big was coming, and I might be in danger." His chest gave a great heave. "I was so wrapped up in myself. He told me he understood what I was doing a lot better now, and I ... I couldn't tell him what had happened to me." He looked up. "W..what about the rest of my family?"
"They're alright. Samuel sent them to a safehouse a few months ago. They're still alive." Giles wasn't sure that Wesley had heard him.
"At least he died doing what he was best at." The last of his strength fell from him and he began to weep. For a moment no one was quite sure what to do. Willow walked towards him and put her arms around him. After a moment, Buffy left Angel's side and walked towards him as well.
"I'm sorry. It's just..."
"It's all right. It's better that you cry now than hold it all in." said Willow.
"It's just... So many people dead. You think that you've steeled yourself for everything and then..." Wesley blinked. "How was it that you survived?"
Giles rubbed his glasses."I heard a pair of shoes squeak."
The others looked somewhat baffled at this. "Excuse me?" said Gunn.
"I went to the home of one of the Watchers. His potential was dead. He was seriously wounded. I was so focused on seeing if he was all right, I didn't notice that there was a Bringer in the room. He was about to cut off my head, and I heard his shoes squeak on the floor. I turned and fought him off." He sighed. "That's the only reason I wasn't killed right then. I was lucky. Most of the others weren't."
Giles then told how he had helped the other potential Slayers to Sunnydale. He told how the rest of them had managed to survive the coming of the UberVamps and the activation of the seal. He then told about the arrival of Faith and the embodiment of the First's power, Caleb. He had planned to gloss over the first attack on the vineyard and the rebellion that took place that ended up with Buffy forfeiting her leadership to Faith, but Buffy surprisingly related most of the information. When Giles cast a look, she said: "They should know all of it."
Buffy then told how she had gone to the vineyard and found the weapon that had been forged to kill the old ones. She related how she had found one of the old ones and how she had defeated Caleb--- with Angel's help. She then explained how she and Willow had used the power of the Scythe to make all the Potential's genuine slayers. How they had won the last battle of Sunnydale, though not without sacrifice.
"So I guess Spike was the champion after all." said Angel. "Funny, I never thought that he would have it in him."
"I guess you never really know until you're tested. " said Dawn. For a moment Giles thought Angel winced but then he recovered.
"So let me get this straight. All that once- in- a- generation crap is no longer true and the Hyperion is filled with Slayers." said Gunn.
"Believe me when I tell you this;it's not nearly as much fun as it sounds." said Xander.
"And the First Evil, the thing from which all evil originates has been destroyed." Gunn looked at Buffy for confirmation and she nodded. "Well, then what else is there to fight for? I mean now that the ultimate evil's been defeated, nothing worse can happen. Right?"
Buffy looked at Giles then at Faith, then at Wesley. Giles spoke first. "It's not that simple. "
"It rarely is." sighed Xander.
"Throughout history, the universe has always relied on a balance of good and evil. Whenever some great evil arises some form of good is usually there to balance it. The First threatened to destroy this balance by attempting to eliminate the Slayer line." replied Giles.
"And we rectified that by giving the power of the Slayer to everyone in the world." said Willow.
"Yes, but one cannot expect a maneuver like that to occur without a drastic effect on the symmetry between these two forces. The First has been destroyed, but there will be consequences. "
"You don't mean another big hellgod is going to show up here and try to set up housekeeping." said Fred. "I think once was enough for me."
"It's unlikely that will happen. It's far more probable that several smaller evils will emerge and try and raise havoc. And now that the Hellmouth has been sealed, they could appear anywhere. Cleveland, New York..."
"Los Angeles." said Gunn tiredly.
"That would explain a lot. " said Angel.
"Excuse me?"
"Over the past few days there have been more reports of demon infestation in L.A. We thought that it was justa return to normal after Jasmine's demise, but...this does make sense." said Wesley.
"Could the two of you not stand so close together? "said Xander. "I feel like I'm seeing double, especially when you talk like that." Wesley moved away from Giles.
"Anyway, something needs to be done in order to redress the balance. Something to bring these things under control." said Giles.
"That's kind of the reason why we're here." said Buffy.
"What do you mean?"
"When we released the power of the Slayer, we made the world into a different place. And I know that I need to do something to make sure that it becomes a better place."
"So do I." said Willow.
"Me too." said Faith.
"We think that we can if we have your help." said Buffy.
Angel looked at the others. "What exactly do you have in mind?"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Angel doesn't make all the decisions anymore. You want our help we have to all agree." said Gunn.
"Actually that's what we want. I wouldn't feel comfortable making this offer if we didn't have your support."
"Oh." Gunn looked a little sheepish.
"Just hear us out." Buffy turned to the others. "With all these Slayers now being active, the WatcherS need to be restarted. The girls that are at the hotel. They all have the power of the Slayer and they have all been tested in combat, but we all know that alone doesn't make them ready to go out into the world on their own."
"There are a lot of monsters out there even with the Hellmouth closed. And demons love challenges."said Giles. "There will be some time as the world gets adjusted to the idea that there are now many Slayers out there. Then they will begin a hunt."
"But I thought that most monsters feared the Slayer." said Fred.
"Most do. But that underscores the amount of demons that are out there. If only ten percent decide that they want to eliminate a Slayer, that would still go well into the thousands." said Wesley.
"Plus a lot of the demons in the world were betting on the First to wipe Good out." added Xander. "When word gets out, theywill be coming for ve.... Blood." he finished weakly.
"Furthermore, we have no idea how broad the effect of the Spell was." said Giles. "We don't know if giving every slayer power extends to only girls, to women who could have been Slayers but were never called and grew to adulthood, or if it effects babies who will be born."
"Aren't there spells or something that are used to find Slayers?" asked Fred.
"Yes, but only a handful of people in the world know it. And most of them were on the payroll of the Council." said Wesley. "How many are left?"
"Less then a dozen, including myself." said Giles. "I can teach others to do it but we would need to spread our resources very thin in order to get them into places where they could use it."
"Wait a minute. If only Watchers know how to find Slayers, then doesn't that mean that demons won't be able to?" said Dawn.
Both Lorne and Angel shook their heads. "Most demons don't need spells in order to locate warriors. They can tell by smell or sensation." said Angel.
"Smart demons when they see a Slayer run away. Unfortunately,there are a lot of dumb ones out there. And even worse, most often its the dumb ones that are also the strongest." Lorne sighed. " A Yakra demon, for example. Small brain, large claws." He looked at Buffy and Faith. "It would take a lot of skill for one of you lovely ladies to take one down. One of the women at the hotel, well it wouldn't be pretty.Whoever survived would take a hell of a beating."
"So these Slayers would be in danger. And they need protection and training. I'm still not entirely sure how we come into the picture." said Gunn.
"In order to train these Slayers, we would need resources. Magic, weapons,space, people who would be willing to travel the world." said Buffy.
"Also, there would definitely need to be some major changes in how they are trained." said Giles. "Wesley can verify how absurd and archaic most of the practices that the Council made Slayers and Watchers undergo."
Wesley nodded. "There would definitely need to be changes. So you would want to operate the Watcher's Council out of here?"
"That's what we had in mind." said Willow.
"Whoa. Whoa,Whoa. Let's back it up it bit. How exactly would this work?" asked Lorne.
"I would send out the word to the rest of the Watchers... Still alive." Giles looked at Wesley for a moment, and seeing that he was OK, continued. "They would bring most of the lore and prophecies that they still had from the Council. Combined with whatever Wolfram and Hart gave you, we could probably have a library at least as good as the one in London."
"I imagine it would." There was a faint look of remembrance on the younger Watcher's face. " And once they were here?"
"WE would assign them Slayers and begin the process of locating all of the Slayers who have been called. At the same time, we'd also begin the process of finding new people that we would train to be effective Watchers capable of dealing with today's Slayers."
"You keep saying 'we', said Angel. "What 'we' are you referring to?"
"Myself, Wesley, Buffy, Faith, Xander, Willow and Robin. The rest of you are welcome to participate, but to be perfectly honest we know somewhat more about what it takes to be a Watcher then you would." said Giles.
"Come to think of it, I think that it would make more sense for them to help. They may not know about Watcher's as well as we do but they certainly know more then enough about fighting evil to qualify." said Willow.
Fred and Gunn looked at each other for a moment. "I'm not entirely sure whether we've been insulted or complimented." said Gunn.
"I think that maybe it was both." said Fred.
"Wait a minute. I understand that Wood did a lot of fighting, but how is it that he is more qualified than us to decide who a Watcher is?" asked Lorne.
"The man was trained by a Watcher." said Buffy. There was the slightest trace of hostility and Giles wondered if she still held a grudge.
"Huh? I mean aren't Slayers always female. The Robin's a little ambiguous I know, but still..." Fred turned to Wesley. "This make any sense to you?"
"As a matter of fact it doesn't . Who was your Watcher?" asked Wesley.
"Bernard Crowley."
"Crowley. Wait a minute. He operated out of New York. Quit after his Slayer was... "It was like a thunderbolt had struck him. "You're Nikki Wood's son."
"Wait a minute? You're telling me that a Slayer had a kid?" said Gunn. "How did that happen?"
"I was born about three months before my mother was called. Bernard promised my mother that he would take care of me if something happened to her."
"And something did. " Gunn thought. "So why did your Watcher quit? Because your mom died."
Robin shook his head. "The higher-ups at the Council said it wasn't his responsibility. The next potential Slayer was more important then a real child. As Travers put it: 'The Council can not and will not take the duties of a day care facility'"
"That does sound a bit like Travers." said Wesley. "But to return to the point, it seems that you're getting an awful lot without giving much back. We understand what you get. What do we get?"
"Manpower. Or maybe womanpower is a better term. Well, I guess technically its girlpower, but I really don't want us compared to the Spice Girls. Actually, Slayerpower is a lot more accurate, but...." Willow turned to Buffy. "Maybe you had better explain."
"OK. Wolfram and Hart basic surrendered control of it's LA office to you. Now maybe I'm making assumptions, but my guess is that you have a lot of resources, money, weapons, prophecies skilled magicians, etcetera. What I'm guessing you don't have is fighters. The five of you control a lot of power, but I doubt you have made any alliances that allow you access to people."
"Well, Gunn has a crew that he made contact with a few days ago and there pretty disciplined." said Angel. "And Wes has a few friends that work with him, but otherwise you're basically right."
"Then here's what happens. You take us on and help us reassemble the Watcher's council, we supply you with a team of warriors who can help you clean up Los Angeles."
"I thought that these girls needed to be prepared to fight." said Fred.
"Well, they have received a bit of training over the last few months." said Xander. "I think fighting the First Evil qualifies as boot camp."
"They are all very skilled. Some more fighting against some monsters around here and they should be good to go." said Faith.
The group of Angel Investigations all looked at each other for a couple of seconds. Eventually they all looked to Angel. "You make a strong offer..." the vampire said.
"And it's not that we couldn't use the help..." said Wesley.
"But you seem to be leaving some things out."
"Such as?" said Giles.
"Besides helping arrange the Watcher's Council, what would your duties be?"
There was a brief pause. "We would be helping you in the fight against evil. Isn't that enough?" said Xander.
"And you wouldn't want anything in exchange?" said Gunn skeptically.
"No, we would want room and board, which you seem to have an excess of, and enough money for us to live on." said Buffy.
"Wait, you want to be paid for fighting evil?" said Fred. "I... Isn't that... Wrong?"
"Oh and I suppose that you and your friends have spent the last three years working for nothing. How exactly did you afford that hotel?" Faith's remark caused a certain amount of awkwardness around the Angel's investigation.
"And this law firm? We're supposed to believe that all these attorneys are working pro bono?" said Dawn.
"Well.... "
"Uh?"
"You see" The three most articulate members of Angel Investigations were temporarily struck dumb.
"It's a good thing Cordy isn't here. She would not be on our side." said Gunn.
"Look, we know that the payroll department here is active, but we have no idea how to withdraw money from the system." said Angel.
"It's computerized, right?" asked Willow.
"Yes, but it's encrypted and there are firewalls..." Angel trailed off weakly, knowing who he was dealing with.
"Plus we don't know what would happen if Wolfram and Hart found out we had access to their money." said Wesley.
"You've been taking all this shit from them for four years; you don't think that they owe you something?" said Dawn. Again the four of them looked at each other.
"I wouldn't mind squeezing these fat cats for as much as we could." said Gunn.
"We would be taking money away from evil and utilizing it for the greater good." said Wesley.
"OK,OK, let's say that we pay you for doing this." began Angel.
"Not just us. You're also paying the Slayers who decide to work here." said Giles.
"Hold on. Let's not get carried away here. Are you sure that you want to send a message that fighting evil is something a person can earn a living on?" said Wesley.
"These girls have spent the last six months unsure if they would live or die." said Buffy. "I think that they are entitled to a little workman's compensation."
"Beside, they would only be earning money until they managed to find some other job. This is more a work- study program than it is anything else." said Giles.
"All right,lets say that we agree to pay you. What makes you sure that any of these Slayers would want to continue to work here?" asked Angel.
"Yeah, I mean if you offer them a choice whether they want to go home and lead normal lives or risk death and disfigurement, what choice do you think that they will take?" responded Gunn.
"Right because you would make the same choice as well." said Xander. Again the people from Angel Investigations looked at each other awkwardly.
"Some of them are going to say no. In fact, I'mpretty sure that at least six or seven of them are going to say we're going to keep our prizes and go home. But if they're anything like me and Faith, the desire to do good, to make the world a better place is going to be burning pretty deep inside of them. And some of them--- I think most of them--- want to see where this journey will take them." said Buffy.
There was a long pause. "They're gonna do it because of the money, right?" said Gunn.
"Oh yeah." said Buffy.
"Definitely." said Faith.
Angel looked at Buffy. "Are you sure that this is something you really want to do? I mean, after you fought Caleb, didn't you say that...?"
"I know what I said. And I think that I'd better make things perfectly clear. Unofficially, I'm retiring. I will help train the girls and Dawn,I will help with research and if there's a really big nasty out there, I will saddle up. But otherwise, I'm no longer involved in the fight against evil. Furthermore, I'm no longer in charge. If you agree to this, I have an idea on how we can handle who does what, but I'm no longer the single voice of authority." She looked at Angel. "I need to figure out what I'm going to do with my life, but the fact of the matter is that I'm not sure what else I'm good at. And until I can--- whether that is a job or finishing college or whatever-- I need this."
Angel looked at the others. "What about the rest of you?"
Willow looked at the others. "Well, I want to finish college and maybe do something else with my life. But I think that I could be good as a Watcher." She looked at Angel. "And that thing about atonement that you were always talking about, I kind of feel that I need to do that too."
"Xander, you've never been my biggest fan. And its pretty obvious that you haven't mellowed much in the past four years.Why would you go along with this?"
"It's not like I have a lot of career options. There are only so many options available for a one-eyed high school graduate and all of my previous references are currently under the ground. Add to that the general state of the economy, I think I'd have to be a lot dumber than I look in order to pass up this opportunity." Xander nodded at the others. "I'm going to find some other job but right now Buffy's line works for me. Besides this is a pretty big law firm; I think we can manage to work around each other."
The vampire took all this in. "And what about Dawn?" he asked Buffy.
"Um,you can talk to me. I'm not invisible." Dawn piped up.
"Sorry. But you are only sixteen."
"That's how old Buffy was when she got called."
"I know that, Dawn. But she was called; you weren't. "
"The girls just came fresh from the last battle of the Hellmouth." said Buffy, with a little pride. "She's been field tested and combat ready."
"Look Dawn, this is a dangerous career. And despite all the trappings I have, the health plan really stinks, if you know what I mean."
"I know; I'm not a fool." Dawn turned to her sister. "He means I could get killed, right?" Buffy nodded.
"You're a very smart girl. There are certainly a lot of better and safer careers that you could choose." said Wes.
The sisters looked at each other.Dawn spoke "I can't just go back to high school and pretend that the last year never happened. I need to do something to make a difference."
Angel looked at Buffy. "You're OK with this?"
Buffy put her arm around her sister's shoulder. "I promised her that I'd show her the world. I'm going to keep that."
The five people--- actually the four people plus Lorne; Giles kept forgetting the demonic nature of the fifth member---looked at each other for several seconds.
Wes spoke first. "I'd be willing to have you work with us."
Gunn was next. "Hey, if it means that we get paid, I'm all for it."
"I think the more backup we have in this band, the better music will play." Everyone looked at Lorne. "I'm sorry. I was trying for film noir and hit nouveau."
"We have a lot of work to do in L.A. The more people we have doing it, the better. Especially if they're Slayers." Fred blushed. "Of course watchers are good too. So are demon fighters and witches and... And..." She paused. "Xander."
"Yeah, you can always use three or four Xander's when the chips are down." said Dawn.
"Am I being complimented or insulted?"
"Your call." Both Dawn and Xander smiled. Everyone else was looking at Angel. He walked towards Buffy
"Do you really believe that the two of us can work together and not feel the way that we feel?"
There was a long pause. "We're not the same people we were four years ago, Angel. I think that I can manage. Can you?"
There was another long pause. The faintest tinge of a smile seemed to play across the vampire's face. "Welcome to the team."
There was a general reaction of elation from the others. Fred and Willow seemed particularly cheerful for reasons Giles could not understand.
"Willow, I'll have my secretary get you a laptop and the general access to the Wolfram and Hart mainframe. Try to be very subtle. Eventually the home office will figure out what we're doing but there's no need to give them advance word."
"Gotcha."
"I think that Rupert and I had better start making contact with whoever is left of the Watchers. You sure that they will listen to us?"Wesley asked.
Giles nodded. "There's no reason they won't. It's not as if there is anyone else who would draw their attention."
"Faith and I should probably get back to the hotel and lay out the situation for the other Slayers. Can you get together some money for us?"
"Why? What are we going to need it for, B?"
"Like I said some of the others are going to want to go home. The least we can do is give them plane fare back."
Faith nodded. Angel walked over to Robin.
"Have you and Xander decided exactly who you're going to work with?"
"Not yet. " The former principal was cool but not hostile towards the vampire.
"Then you might want to work with Gunn and Fred, at least for now. They're in charge of security and weapons and they could probably help you get situated and prepared. By the way, Xander about your eye..."
"What, you think I'm going to be a liability because I have no perception? I'll be fine."
Angel took a step back. "Actually, I was going to ask if your doctors had done all that they could. I made a joke about our health plan, but we might be able to find someone who could fix it for you."
"Really?" Xander was trying to play it cool but there seemed to be the slightest tinge of hope in his voice.
"Wait, wait. Hold it." said Dawn. Everybody turned to look at the young girl. "Aren't we all forgetting someone?"
"Dawn, we were getting around to you."
"Not me, although I would like to be assigned somewhere." She sighed."What are we going to do about Andrew?"
"Oh cripes." There was a general reaction of dismay from the Sunnydale contingent.
"Wait a minute. Y'all still holding on to the kid who murdered his best friend?" asked Fred.
"Yes, I guess we have. Buffy what do you think we should do with him?"asked Xander
"What did I just say.? OK, let me make something clear. Remember before when I said about how this wasn't the place where majority ruled?"
"I think we all remember something along those lines." said Giles ironically.
"Well that's one of things we change. From now on this is a democracy. " Buffy said
"That's all it takes? Man, that revolution was easy."said Xander.
"What are you talking about?" asked Angel.
"I'm thinking that all of us would act as some sort of council of elders to decide what is done and who goes where. If there is a divisive issue, we vote on it. Majority rules."
"And you think that the girls at the hotel will just go along with not having a say in what they do?" said Faith.
"Um, well maybe we can..." Buffy verbally stumbled.
"We can work out Parliamentary procedure later. I think that Buffy's general idea is a good one; I'd be willing to go along with it." Buffy flashed a silent thank you at Giles.
"There's a lot of merit in that; I'd be willing to go along with it too." said Wesley. The others all spoke agreement as well. Angel seemed a little reluctant, but he nodded his assent.
"Even me?" said Dawn.
Buffy sighed. "Yes, Dawn even you." For a moment it looked like she was going to squeal, but she gained control of herself.
"All right, then the question that WE have to deal with is what do we do with Andrew?"
Buffy turned to Willow. "Granted I'm not entirely impartial, but I think that he should go to jail for what he has done."
"I don't know,Will. I'm not Andrew's biggest booster, but should we be the ones to play judge and jury?" said Xander.
"Xander, the boy has committed a series of crimes. He probably should be turned over to the proper authorities. " Giles turned to Faith wondering if she would raise any outcry, but she remained surprisingly quiet.
"I don't know. Andrew doesn't seem like your ten-most wanted type.And doesn't the fact that he fought with us count for anything?" said Dawn.
"Wait a minute. Didn't he commit his crimes in Sunnydale?" asked Wesley.
"Yeah. What's your point?" said Willow a bit crossly.
"I'm just not sure whether the Los Angeles police would be able to charge him with anything with most of the proof under the rubble of Sunnydale."
"Dude's got a point. Unless you have something legitimate that you can charge him with, he probably couldn't be held." said Gunn.
"All right, say we don't turn him over to the authorities. Does anybody here feel real comfortable with the idea of keeping him here working with us?"
There was a long silence as the group pondered this question. Then the last person that Giles would have expected to speak did.
"Look, I know that I am the last person who should talk about letting a criminal go free---"
"Actually Faith, you're probably more qualified then most of us so go ahead." said Xander.
"I don't believe that Andrew is any real danger to us. And I think that everyone in this room"--- she paused--- "well, at least everyone from Sunnydale doesn't consider him that way either."
"How do you know what we think? " asked Dawn.
"You let him go to the monastery with Spike."
"Well, he might have been scared of him..." Willow trailed off weakly.
"And you let him go to get food and medical supplies after.. Well, you know." The rest of the Sunnydale contingent pondered this. "He didn't try to betray you or run away. That has to count for something."
"Why are you so high on him? " asked Robin.
"I had a conversation with him about a week ago. Let's me tell you something; he's not the person you captured all those months ago. He had a..." Faith struggled. "What's that thing you have when you realize something important? It starts with an 'e'.
"Enlightenment?' said Giles.
"Not that."
"Epiphany." Angel had gone very still after he made his suggestion.
"That's it. He's a different person now. And I think he's a better person."
Everyone considered this."But what do we have him do. I mean despite how he fought at the high school, I don't think he has quite the stuff to be a warrior." said Buffy.
"Wes, Giles when the two of you were working for the council, they made you keep records of all the battles that the Slayer fought in, right?" Both men nodded. "Well, let him do that. Have him keep a record of what happened this year in Sunnydale. The Last battle of the Hellmouth. That would keep him busy and out of your hair."
"He did seem to have a grasp of that when we were back in Sunnydale." said Xander.
"It would save us a lot of trouble." Giles admitted.
Buffy looked around. "Willow, are you sure that you would be OK with this?"
Willow thought for a moment. Finally she said: "I won't lie and say that I'll be glad to work with him, but I managed to get along with him for a while. I think I can keep that up."
"So everybody is OK with Andrew staying with us?" There was a general murmur of assent. "All right, but one of us had better keep an eye on him, at least for a little while."
The groups of people began to break up. And as he walked with Wesley to begin making the calls to the rest of the Watchers, he began to feel something that he had not felt for a very long time. Certainly not for the past few months.
He felt optimistic. Maybe they could rebuild the Council. And maybe with all the new Slayers that now existed, the struggle of good versus evil might finally have shifted decisively. Maybe now with the First beaten, there was actually hope that evil would slowly begin a retreat.
He had no idea how wrong he was about that last thought.
Giles looked at the clock on the wall. According to it, the two groups had been telling their various stories for three hours. He had done some of the talking but most of the conversation had been dominated by Buffy, Willow and Xander from the Sunnydale contingent and Wesley, Angel and Fred from the Los ANgeles group. Indeed the L.A. story had taken slightly longer because it went back longer ; almost two years. This story had a lot of interruptions.
When Angel explained how Darla had turned up at the Hyperion eight months pregnant, Giles himself had uttered :"That's not possible!" and was very peeved when he heard the explanation about it being manipulated by a higher power. "It's plays with the bloody natural order of things. Vampires can not get pregnant!" The idea somehow offended his sensibilities more than the idea that Angel had had sex or that a Vampire Hunter from the 1770's could somehow be transported to the present.
The next interruption came when Fred (after Wesley and Angel had looked awkwardly at each other for a minute) explained the circumstances which had led to Wesley turning Connor over to Holtz. The outburst had not come from Buffy or Faith but rather from the last person Giles had expected: Xander.
"Well, Wes I gotta hand it to you:I didn't think that it would have been possible to make a bigger mistake than you did with Faith. But this really takes the proverbial cake. Not only did you betray all your friends, you gave them to the last person of all the dozens of people you could have chosen that it should have gone to. Way to go."
Wesley had taken all this in. Then he walked over to Xander. "Since you weren't in my situation, you have no right to judge me. I did what I thought was in the best interest of the child. "
"And look how good that turned out."
"Xander, its OK..." Angel ,of all people, tried to defend him. Xander whipped around on him.
"I wouldn't talk Deadboy. If what you're telling me is correct, we came within a hairsbreadth of being annihilated because of something that you did and something that he did.. Now you've never been the posterboy for doing the wisest thing, so I can deal with that. What's his excuse?"
"He didn't have a choice." shouted Fred.
"Yes he did. He had a choice. He didn't have a good choice but he had one. And if you don't have the courage to trust people who are supposed to be your friends, then maybe you deserved what you got."
For a moment Giles wondered if Xander had gone too far and that he might strike him. The other ex-watcher walked towards him. Xander's gaze never faltered. "What, you want to take a swing at me, monarchy boy? Bring it on. I've been fighting big nasties for so long I could use someone fighting me that I have a chance of taking."
Wesley just stood there for a moment. Then he did the last thing that Giles had thought he would have expected.
"You're right, Xander." The smart mouthed boy did a double take and he wasn't alone.
"What?"
"For the past ten months I've been trying to tell myself that what I did was the only thing that could be done. That I had no choice given the options I had. But I became so focused on the prophecies and on everything that I had been trying to learn about Connor that I completely shut out the people who might have been able to help. I thought that everybody turned away from me, but the truth of the matter is I turned you away first."
AT this Angel began to shuffle about awkwardly. "You didn't deserve to have your throat cut. Or for the rest of us to shun you."
"Maybe not.But afterwards you all tried to take me back and all I did was push everyone else away. And I kept saying that you never gave me a chance to defend myself. Maybe I couldn't even convince myself that I had been right."
"Wait a minute? You got your throat cut?" The once astute boy had gotten fixated on an earlier point. "How come you're still breathing?"
"I don't know." For a moment Wesley's eyes went hard. "By all rights,that bitch should have killed me." Then they went back to normal. "When she did I thought: this is what I deserve. A traitor's fate is all that I am entitled to."
For a moment there was an awkward silence. Then another unlikely person spoke up.
"Maybe you were left alive because they wanted you to redeem yourself." Faith walked over to the man she had once tried to kill and took his hand. "Maybe they knew what part you had to play."
Wesley gave a small smile. "I know what you're trying to say but given the events over the last few months, I'm no longer sure I even believe in that kind of thing. I don't think any of us do."
"What makes you so sure of that?" said Willow.
"There's more of the story to tell."
And so Wesley told about how Cordelia, driven to near death by the blinding visions she had been having had become part demon in order to survive. (At this Dawn said: "How much of her did they really have to change?") Then Angel told how Holtz had taken Connor into the demon dimension Quortoth supposedly disappearing forever. And how less then a month later, Connor had broken free, a warrior teenager raised to kill his father.
Fred had then explained how both Cordelia and Angel had disappeared for several months: Angel because Connor had imprisoned him at the bottom of the sea, Cordelia because she had been called to be a higher being (or so they had believed).
At this Buffy, who had been unusually quiet, spoke up. "And neither of you thought that this would be of interest to anybody in Sunnydale?"
Gunn and Fred looked at each other awkwardly. Clearly this was a sore point between them
"Well, we weren't quite sure..." said Fred.
"WE didn't know what good you..." said Gunn at the same time.
"What could you have done?" they both finished.
"Well, for two months I had dreams that Angel was trapped somewhere. I tried to call him a dozen times and you never got back to me." Buffy was looking at them very sternly.
"Yeah, well you obviously knew the way from Sunnydale to here. So you sure took the time out of your busy schedule to come on down." said Gunn matching her stare.
"All right. " said Willow. "There was a lot going on. Let's just say that there was a misfire in communications and get on with the story."
The rest of the story went on a bit quicker.Wesley explained how he Angel had been rescued and how he had exiled his son. How Cordelia had come back weeks later seemingly with amnesia and later returned with news of a great evil. No one interrupted, but Giles could sense that Angel when talking about Cordelia seemed to be restraining himself. He wasn't sure why but he thought that Angel wasn't talking about Cordelia for a reason.
They explained about the arrival of the Beast. How he had brought about the rain of fire and blocked out the sun. How Cordelia had told them that Angelus knew something about the beast and that they needed him.
At this point Robin interrupted. "Let me get this straight. You gain your soul back and you lose your memory? I thought the whole point of this soul business was that you had to remember every bad thing you ever did."
Now everybody was shifting around awkwardly. Wesley finally spoke. "WE believed that the reason that there was no record of the Beast was because it came from an alternate universe and had the power to erase it's existence. We thought that in the past when Angelus had... Been at his prime... He might be able to remember what Angel couldn't."
"So you thought that bringing back a soulless killer to fight a soulless killer was a good idea. " said Xander. "Makes perfect sense."
"In retrospect its clear that we were being manipulated by someone else." said Wesley. "Someone who had been playing us from the beginning."
Looking at the others, an idea hit Giles. Something that would explain why Cordelia wasn't awake and why everybody was tiptoeing around the subject of what had happened to her.
"Cordelia was the one who was manipulating the Beast." Everyone turned towards him. Of the Sunnydale contingent, only Xander seemed somewhat shocked by this information.
"Of course! I should have known." said Willow. "I saw her aura; it was filled with negative energy. I thought it had something to do with her being worried about Angelus but.... If I had only looked closer."
"Don't beat yourself up." said Faith. "I thought something was up with her when I saw her. I just figured that she was still pissed that I'd tried to kill her."
"I always knew that Cordelia had bad vibes in her; I just didn't think she had it in her to be an evil mastermind." said Dawn.
Of the group only Buffy seemed to be noticing the feelings of the others. Xander had gone very quiet when he had heard Giles' pronouncement. She turned to him.
"It was the demon that was doing this, right?" He walked over to Angel. "The demon that she took on took her over? That's why she did what she did,right?"
Giles knew that something was very wrong. Granted it had been nearly four years since the two had seen each other, but Xander normally wouldn't have asked the vampire for anything unless the fate of the world depended on it.
"Xander, we don't know. The fact is we have no idea who was pulling the strings in this. Cordelia has been in a coma ever for almost a month; we have no idea if she's evil or whatever had been working through her is."
"A coma? What... What the hell did you do to her?"
"Xander, let him explain..."
"SHUT UP!" If Buffy had not been a slayer, Xander might have pushed her into the wall. As it was, she fell back in surprise as much as anything else."You always take his side! Doesn't it matter that she took on being a demon for him, and that he screwed his former sire for kicks and brought this whole mess on our heads! When does it start being his fault?" At this something in Xander seemed to break and he just fell to the ground.
No one was sure quite what to do next. Then Willow walked over to Xander and put her arms around him. "It's OK, Xander. Just let it out." The young boy just began to shake and quiver. . "I know what she meant to you." He seemed to gain strength from being near his best friend. Eventually he looked up.
"I'm sorry, Angel. I know this wasn't your fault."
The vampire looked at him for a minute. "Maybe it is. "
"Angel, no." said Fred. "Someone else had been using her."
"And why was that?" The dark vampire was showing feelings he hadn't seen before about anyone except Buffy. "She just wanted to be an actress. I was the one who needed redemption, not her."
Wesley turned to him. "From what I understood, she chose to work for you. This was her decision as much as yours. You can't blame yourself for that."
"Yeah. I guess."
Xander turned toward Angel. "Tell us the rest of it. What she did. What happened next."
And so Angel told how Cordelia had stolen the orb that housed his soul. How she had manipulated the rest of them into thinking that they had restored his soul and then let him out of his cage. How she had murdered Lilah, the Sun God and the family of wizards who could have taken the Beast. And how she had manipulated Connor into making love to her so that she could become pregnant, how she had used the boy into fighting against Angel, all so that she could give birth to the great evil that would be known as Jasmine.
There had then been a period of awkwardness when they tried to explain exactly why she was evil.
"So she made everybody feel good and vivacious and alive." said Buffy. "The horror. The horror."
"She took away free will." said Fred. "She took over the state of California."
"How come this all slipped by you? Didn't you watch TV?" said Lorne.
"The power went all twonky in Sunnydale soon after me and Faith got back." said Willow.
"Besides, nobody was doing much except fighting against the First." said Dawn.
"Oh. Right."
Then Fred explained how she had seen the true face of Jasmine. How she had managed to get the people of Angel Investigations into seeing her as well. How they had hid in the sewers and found the one creature that had known what she was. How Angel had finally managed to show the world her true face. And how Connor, disillusioned by the knowledge of what he was and what he had been used for, had killed Jasmine before she could destroy the world.
Angel told the last bit about Lilah's reappearance,how Wolfram and Hart had offered them their L.A. Office and how he had accepted with the condition that Connor be allowed to live a normal life without any real knowledge of his parents or his destiny.
"Lilah isn't still here, is she?" asked Faith.
"No, she's back.. At the home office." Wesley had a look of pain on his face that Giles didn't quite understand.
"Good. Cause I got to tell you, I'm getting just a little tired of seeing the dead walking around normally." said Willow.
"So after nearly four years of trying to wipe you out, they gave you all of these resources because they were tired of losing to you. " Robin seemed to be having trouble getting his head around this.
"Well, they said that by defeating Jasmine we had stopped world peace from coming about." said Gunn. The people at Angel Investigations seemed a little uncomfortable at admitting what seemed to be Jasmine's goal.
"This creature. It took away people's free will, made them all slaves ate people and this was supposed to bring about peace on earth?" said Giles.
"Well, when you put it liked that it really doesn't sound that great." Fred responded.
"Besides, if things hadn't worked out in Sunnydale, there would have only been peace on earth for about a week." said Willow.
"And I guess that's a segueway to what has been going on in the town formerly known as Sunnydale." said Lorne.
Giles was about to begin talking when he noticed that Buffy was looking at Angel. The vampire seemed on the verge of tears. She walked up and put her arms around him.
"Angel, I'm sorry about what happened to Connor. I know that he must have meant everything to you."
"He had the most horrible life imaginable, and I don't think he ever really loved me, but..."
"You would have done anything for him."said Buffy. "And that's what you did."
For a moment, everyone just stood around awkwardly while Buffy comforted Angel. Then the vampire gathered his strength and asked: "So how did the fight against the First Evil go?"
"You know, I never thought that what we went through would ever be a pleasant change of topic." said Xander.
"I guess when you do what we do for so long, anything seems possible." said Willow.
"Um, when you say the First, you don't mean first as in the actual first evil. We're talking metaphorical right?" said Fred.
"No we are speaking literally. " said Giles.
"But...according to the journals, the First evil was incapable of taking a corporeal form" said Wesley. "How then could it become real?"
"For most of the past year, it has been working through its priests. The Harbingers --- hundreds, perhaps thousands of them--- began a calculated strike to eliminate the entire Slayer line, along with everything associated with it."
Wesley had gotten very still and suddenly Giles realized that he had been kept out of the loop for even longer then him. "How many?"
"Almost all the potentials were killed. There are only a few dozen left--- most of them are here with us now."
"And--- the Council?"
"They have been almost entirely destroyed. Almost every major base of operation was hit. The Council building in London was destroyed with almost no survivors." Giles swallowed. "I don't know for certain, but I believe that your father was one of the dead."
Wesley swallowed rather grimly. The others all looked on in surprise. Giles didn't think that any of them had known that Wesley's father was a Watcher. "I'm sorry." The phrase seemed inadequate.
"He... Called me a few months ago."Wesley was trying very hard to be brave, but Giles didn't think he would make it. "He wanted to know how things were going for me. He said something about that he was glad that I was in Los Angeles. That something big was coming, and I might be in danger." His chest gave a great heave. "I was so wrapped up in myself. He told me he understood what I was doing a lot better now, and I ... I couldn't tell him what had happened to me." He looked up. "W..what about the rest of my family?"
"They're alright. Samuel sent them to a safehouse a few months ago. They're still alive." Giles wasn't sure that Wesley had heard him.
"At least he died doing what he was best at." The last of his strength fell from him and he began to weep. For a moment no one was quite sure what to do. Willow walked towards him and put her arms around him. After a moment, Buffy left Angel's side and walked towards him as well.
"I'm sorry. It's just..."
"It's all right. It's better that you cry now than hold it all in." said Willow.
"It's just... So many people dead. You think that you've steeled yourself for everything and then..." Wesley blinked. "How was it that you survived?"
Giles rubbed his glasses."I heard a pair of shoes squeak."
The others looked somewhat baffled at this. "Excuse me?" said Gunn.
"I went to the home of one of the Watchers. His potential was dead. He was seriously wounded. I was so focused on seeing if he was all right, I didn't notice that there was a Bringer in the room. He was about to cut off my head, and I heard his shoes squeak on the floor. I turned and fought him off." He sighed. "That's the only reason I wasn't killed right then. I was lucky. Most of the others weren't."
Giles then told how he had helped the other potential Slayers to Sunnydale. He told how the rest of them had managed to survive the coming of the UberVamps and the activation of the seal. He then told about the arrival of Faith and the embodiment of the First's power, Caleb. He had planned to gloss over the first attack on the vineyard and the rebellion that took place that ended up with Buffy forfeiting her leadership to Faith, but Buffy surprisingly related most of the information. When Giles cast a look, she said: "They should know all of it."
Buffy then told how she had gone to the vineyard and found the weapon that had been forged to kill the old ones. She related how she had found one of the old ones and how she had defeated Caleb--- with Angel's help. She then explained how she and Willow had used the power of the Scythe to make all the Potential's genuine slayers. How they had won the last battle of Sunnydale, though not without sacrifice.
"So I guess Spike was the champion after all." said Angel. "Funny, I never thought that he would have it in him."
"I guess you never really know until you're tested. " said Dawn. For a moment Giles thought Angel winced but then he recovered.
"So let me get this straight. All that once- in- a- generation crap is no longer true and the Hyperion is filled with Slayers." said Gunn.
"Believe me when I tell you this;it's not nearly as much fun as it sounds." said Xander.
"And the First Evil, the thing from which all evil originates has been destroyed." Gunn looked at Buffy for confirmation and she nodded. "Well, then what else is there to fight for? I mean now that the ultimate evil's been defeated, nothing worse can happen. Right?"
Buffy looked at Giles then at Faith, then at Wesley. Giles spoke first. "It's not that simple. "
"It rarely is." sighed Xander.
"Throughout history, the universe has always relied on a balance of good and evil. Whenever some great evil arises some form of good is usually there to balance it. The First threatened to destroy this balance by attempting to eliminate the Slayer line." replied Giles.
"And we rectified that by giving the power of the Slayer to everyone in the world." said Willow.
"Yes, but one cannot expect a maneuver like that to occur without a drastic effect on the symmetry between these two forces. The First has been destroyed, but there will be consequences. "
"You don't mean another big hellgod is going to show up here and try to set up housekeeping." said Fred. "I think once was enough for me."
"It's unlikely that will happen. It's far more probable that several smaller evils will emerge and try and raise havoc. And now that the Hellmouth has been sealed, they could appear anywhere. Cleveland, New York..."
"Los Angeles." said Gunn tiredly.
"That would explain a lot. " said Angel.
"Excuse me?"
"Over the past few days there have been more reports of demon infestation in L.A. We thought that it was justa return to normal after Jasmine's demise, but...this does make sense." said Wesley.
"Could the two of you not stand so close together? "said Xander. "I feel like I'm seeing double, especially when you talk like that." Wesley moved away from Giles.
"Anyway, something needs to be done in order to redress the balance. Something to bring these things under control." said Giles.
"That's kind of the reason why we're here." said Buffy.
"What do you mean?"
"When we released the power of the Slayer, we made the world into a different place. And I know that I need to do something to make sure that it becomes a better place."
"So do I." said Willow.
"Me too." said Faith.
"We think that we can if we have your help." said Buffy.
Angel looked at the others. "What exactly do you have in mind?"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Angel doesn't make all the decisions anymore. You want our help we have to all agree." said Gunn.
"Actually that's what we want. I wouldn't feel comfortable making this offer if we didn't have your support."
"Oh." Gunn looked a little sheepish.
"Just hear us out." Buffy turned to the others. "With all these Slayers now being active, the WatcherS need to be restarted. The girls that are at the hotel. They all have the power of the Slayer and they have all been tested in combat, but we all know that alone doesn't make them ready to go out into the world on their own."
"There are a lot of monsters out there even with the Hellmouth closed. And demons love challenges."said Giles. "There will be some time as the world gets adjusted to the idea that there are now many Slayers out there. Then they will begin a hunt."
"But I thought that most monsters feared the Slayer." said Fred.
"Most do. But that underscores the amount of demons that are out there. If only ten percent decide that they want to eliminate a Slayer, that would still go well into the thousands." said Wesley.
"Plus a lot of the demons in the world were betting on the First to wipe Good out." added Xander. "When word gets out, theywill be coming for ve.... Blood." he finished weakly.
"Furthermore, we have no idea how broad the effect of the Spell was." said Giles. "We don't know if giving every slayer power extends to only girls, to women who could have been Slayers but were never called and grew to adulthood, or if it effects babies who will be born."
"Aren't there spells or something that are used to find Slayers?" asked Fred.
"Yes, but only a handful of people in the world know it. And most of them were on the payroll of the Council." said Wesley. "How many are left?"
"Less then a dozen, including myself." said Giles. "I can teach others to do it but we would need to spread our resources very thin in order to get them into places where they could use it."
"Wait a minute. If only Watchers know how to find Slayers, then doesn't that mean that demons won't be able to?" said Dawn.
Both Lorne and Angel shook their heads. "Most demons don't need spells in order to locate warriors. They can tell by smell or sensation." said Angel.
"Smart demons when they see a Slayer run away. Unfortunately,there are a lot of dumb ones out there. And even worse, most often its the dumb ones that are also the strongest." Lorne sighed. " A Yakra demon, for example. Small brain, large claws." He looked at Buffy and Faith. "It would take a lot of skill for one of you lovely ladies to take one down. One of the women at the hotel, well it wouldn't be pretty.Whoever survived would take a hell of a beating."
"So these Slayers would be in danger. And they need protection and training. I'm still not entirely sure how we come into the picture." said Gunn.
"In order to train these Slayers, we would need resources. Magic, weapons,space, people who would be willing to travel the world." said Buffy.
"Also, there would definitely need to be some major changes in how they are trained." said Giles. "Wesley can verify how absurd and archaic most of the practices that the Council made Slayers and Watchers undergo."
Wesley nodded. "There would definitely need to be changes. So you would want to operate the Watcher's Council out of here?"
"That's what we had in mind." said Willow.
"Whoa. Whoa,Whoa. Let's back it up it bit. How exactly would this work?" asked Lorne.
"I would send out the word to the rest of the Watchers... Still alive." Giles looked at Wesley for a moment, and seeing that he was OK, continued. "They would bring most of the lore and prophecies that they still had from the Council. Combined with whatever Wolfram and Hart gave you, we could probably have a library at least as good as the one in London."
"I imagine it would." There was a faint look of remembrance on the younger Watcher's face. " And once they were here?"
"WE would assign them Slayers and begin the process of locating all of the Slayers who have been called. At the same time, we'd also begin the process of finding new people that we would train to be effective Watchers capable of dealing with today's Slayers."
"You keep saying 'we', said Angel. "What 'we' are you referring to?"
"Myself, Wesley, Buffy, Faith, Xander, Willow and Robin. The rest of you are welcome to participate, but to be perfectly honest we know somewhat more about what it takes to be a Watcher then you would." said Giles.
"Come to think of it, I think that it would make more sense for them to help. They may not know about Watcher's as well as we do but they certainly know more then enough about fighting evil to qualify." said Willow.
Fred and Gunn looked at each other for a moment. "I'm not entirely sure whether we've been insulted or complimented." said Gunn.
"I think that maybe it was both." said Fred.
"Wait a minute. I understand that Wood did a lot of fighting, but how is it that he is more qualified than us to decide who a Watcher is?" asked Lorne.
"The man was trained by a Watcher." said Buffy. There was the slightest trace of hostility and Giles wondered if she still held a grudge.
"Huh? I mean aren't Slayers always female. The Robin's a little ambiguous I know, but still..." Fred turned to Wesley. "This make any sense to you?"
"As a matter of fact it doesn't . Who was your Watcher?" asked Wesley.
"Bernard Crowley."
"Crowley. Wait a minute. He operated out of New York. Quit after his Slayer was... "It was like a thunderbolt had struck him. "You're Nikki Wood's son."
"Wait a minute? You're telling me that a Slayer had a kid?" said Gunn. "How did that happen?"
"I was born about three months before my mother was called. Bernard promised my mother that he would take care of me if something happened to her."
"And something did. " Gunn thought. "So why did your Watcher quit? Because your mom died."
Robin shook his head. "The higher-ups at the Council said it wasn't his responsibility. The next potential Slayer was more important then a real child. As Travers put it: 'The Council can not and will not take the duties of a day care facility'"
"That does sound a bit like Travers." said Wesley. "But to return to the point, it seems that you're getting an awful lot without giving much back. We understand what you get. What do we get?"
"Manpower. Or maybe womanpower is a better term. Well, I guess technically its girlpower, but I really don't want us compared to the Spice Girls. Actually, Slayerpower is a lot more accurate, but...." Willow turned to Buffy. "Maybe you had better explain."
"OK. Wolfram and Hart basic surrendered control of it's LA office to you. Now maybe I'm making assumptions, but my guess is that you have a lot of resources, money, weapons, prophecies skilled magicians, etcetera. What I'm guessing you don't have is fighters. The five of you control a lot of power, but I doubt you have made any alliances that allow you access to people."
"Well, Gunn has a crew that he made contact with a few days ago and there pretty disciplined." said Angel. "And Wes has a few friends that work with him, but otherwise you're basically right."
"Then here's what happens. You take us on and help us reassemble the Watcher's council, we supply you with a team of warriors who can help you clean up Los Angeles."
"I thought that these girls needed to be prepared to fight." said Fred.
"Well, they have received a bit of training over the last few months." said Xander. "I think fighting the First Evil qualifies as boot camp."
"They are all very skilled. Some more fighting against some monsters around here and they should be good to go." said Faith.
The group of Angel Investigations all looked at each other for a couple of seconds. Eventually they all looked to Angel. "You make a strong offer..." the vampire said.
"And it's not that we couldn't use the help..." said Wesley.
"But you seem to be leaving some things out."
"Such as?" said Giles.
"Besides helping arrange the Watcher's Council, what would your duties be?"
There was a brief pause. "We would be helping you in the fight against evil. Isn't that enough?" said Xander.
"And you wouldn't want anything in exchange?" said Gunn skeptically.
"No, we would want room and board, which you seem to have an excess of, and enough money for us to live on." said Buffy.
"Wait, you want to be paid for fighting evil?" said Fred. "I... Isn't that... Wrong?"
"Oh and I suppose that you and your friends have spent the last three years working for nothing. How exactly did you afford that hotel?" Faith's remark caused a certain amount of awkwardness around the Angel's investigation.
"And this law firm? We're supposed to believe that all these attorneys are working pro bono?" said Dawn.
"Well.... "
"Uh?"
"You see" The three most articulate members of Angel Investigations were temporarily struck dumb.
"It's a good thing Cordy isn't here. She would not be on our side." said Gunn.
"Look, we know that the payroll department here is active, but we have no idea how to withdraw money from the system." said Angel.
"It's computerized, right?" asked Willow.
"Yes, but it's encrypted and there are firewalls..." Angel trailed off weakly, knowing who he was dealing with.
"Plus we don't know what would happen if Wolfram and Hart found out we had access to their money." said Wesley.
"You've been taking all this shit from them for four years; you don't think that they owe you something?" said Dawn. Again the four of them looked at each other.
"I wouldn't mind squeezing these fat cats for as much as we could." said Gunn.
"We would be taking money away from evil and utilizing it for the greater good." said Wesley.
"OK,OK, let's say that we pay you for doing this." began Angel.
"Not just us. You're also paying the Slayers who decide to work here." said Giles.
"Hold on. Let's not get carried away here. Are you sure that you want to send a message that fighting evil is something a person can earn a living on?" said Wesley.
"These girls have spent the last six months unsure if they would live or die." said Buffy. "I think that they are entitled to a little workman's compensation."
"Beside, they would only be earning money until they managed to find some other job. This is more a work- study program than it is anything else." said Giles.
"All right,lets say that we agree to pay you. What makes you sure that any of these Slayers would want to continue to work here?" asked Angel.
"Yeah, I mean if you offer them a choice whether they want to go home and lead normal lives or risk death and disfigurement, what choice do you think that they will take?" responded Gunn.
"Right because you would make the same choice as well." said Xander. Again the people from Angel Investigations looked at each other awkwardly.
"Some of them are going to say no. In fact, I'mpretty sure that at least six or seven of them are going to say we're going to keep our prizes and go home. But if they're anything like me and Faith, the desire to do good, to make the world a better place is going to be burning pretty deep inside of them. And some of them--- I think most of them--- want to see where this journey will take them." said Buffy.
There was a long pause. "They're gonna do it because of the money, right?" said Gunn.
"Oh yeah." said Buffy.
"Definitely." said Faith.
Angel looked at Buffy. "Are you sure that this is something you really want to do? I mean, after you fought Caleb, didn't you say that...?"
"I know what I said. And I think that I'd better make things perfectly clear. Unofficially, I'm retiring. I will help train the girls and Dawn,I will help with research and if there's a really big nasty out there, I will saddle up. But otherwise, I'm no longer involved in the fight against evil. Furthermore, I'm no longer in charge. If you agree to this, I have an idea on how we can handle who does what, but I'm no longer the single voice of authority." She looked at Angel. "I need to figure out what I'm going to do with my life, but the fact of the matter is that I'm not sure what else I'm good at. And until I can--- whether that is a job or finishing college or whatever-- I need this."
Angel looked at the others. "What about the rest of you?"
Willow looked at the others. "Well, I want to finish college and maybe do something else with my life. But I think that I could be good as a Watcher." She looked at Angel. "And that thing about atonement that you were always talking about, I kind of feel that I need to do that too."
"Xander, you've never been my biggest fan. And its pretty obvious that you haven't mellowed much in the past four years.Why would you go along with this?"
"It's not like I have a lot of career options. There are only so many options available for a one-eyed high school graduate and all of my previous references are currently under the ground. Add to that the general state of the economy, I think I'd have to be a lot dumber than I look in order to pass up this opportunity." Xander nodded at the others. "I'm going to find some other job but right now Buffy's line works for me. Besides this is a pretty big law firm; I think we can manage to work around each other."
The vampire took all this in. "And what about Dawn?" he asked Buffy.
"Um,you can talk to me. I'm not invisible." Dawn piped up.
"Sorry. But you are only sixteen."
"That's how old Buffy was when she got called."
"I know that, Dawn. But she was called; you weren't. "
"The girls just came fresh from the last battle of the Hellmouth." said Buffy, with a little pride. "She's been field tested and combat ready."
"Look Dawn, this is a dangerous career. And despite all the trappings I have, the health plan really stinks, if you know what I mean."
"I know; I'm not a fool." Dawn turned to her sister. "He means I could get killed, right?" Buffy nodded.
"You're a very smart girl. There are certainly a lot of better and safer careers that you could choose." said Wes.
The sisters looked at each other.Dawn spoke "I can't just go back to high school and pretend that the last year never happened. I need to do something to make a difference."
Angel looked at Buffy. "You're OK with this?"
Buffy put her arm around her sister's shoulder. "I promised her that I'd show her the world. I'm going to keep that."
The five people--- actually the four people plus Lorne; Giles kept forgetting the demonic nature of the fifth member---looked at each other for several seconds.
Wes spoke first. "I'd be willing to have you work with us."
Gunn was next. "Hey, if it means that we get paid, I'm all for it."
"I think the more backup we have in this band, the better music will play." Everyone looked at Lorne. "I'm sorry. I was trying for film noir and hit nouveau."
"We have a lot of work to do in L.A. The more people we have doing it, the better. Especially if they're Slayers." Fred blushed. "Of course watchers are good too. So are demon fighters and witches and... And..." She paused. "Xander."
"Yeah, you can always use three or four Xander's when the chips are down." said Dawn.
"Am I being complimented or insulted?"
"Your call." Both Dawn and Xander smiled. Everyone else was looking at Angel. He walked towards Buffy
"Do you really believe that the two of us can work together and not feel the way that we feel?"
There was a long pause. "We're not the same people we were four years ago, Angel. I think that I can manage. Can you?"
There was another long pause. The faintest tinge of a smile seemed to play across the vampire's face. "Welcome to the team."
There was a general reaction of elation from the others. Fred and Willow seemed particularly cheerful for reasons Giles could not understand.
"Willow, I'll have my secretary get you a laptop and the general access to the Wolfram and Hart mainframe. Try to be very subtle. Eventually the home office will figure out what we're doing but there's no need to give them advance word."
"Gotcha."
"I think that Rupert and I had better start making contact with whoever is left of the Watchers. You sure that they will listen to us?"Wesley asked.
Giles nodded. "There's no reason they won't. It's not as if there is anyone else who would draw their attention."
"Faith and I should probably get back to the hotel and lay out the situation for the other Slayers. Can you get together some money for us?"
"Why? What are we going to need it for, B?"
"Like I said some of the others are going to want to go home. The least we can do is give them plane fare back."
Faith nodded. Angel walked over to Robin.
"Have you and Xander decided exactly who you're going to work with?"
"Not yet. " The former principal was cool but not hostile towards the vampire.
"Then you might want to work with Gunn and Fred, at least for now. They're in charge of security and weapons and they could probably help you get situated and prepared. By the way, Xander about your eye..."
"What, you think I'm going to be a liability because I have no perception? I'll be fine."
Angel took a step back. "Actually, I was going to ask if your doctors had done all that they could. I made a joke about our health plan, but we might be able to find someone who could fix it for you."
"Really?" Xander was trying to play it cool but there seemed to be the slightest tinge of hope in his voice.
"Wait, wait. Hold it." said Dawn. Everybody turned to look at the young girl. "Aren't we all forgetting someone?"
"Dawn, we were getting around to you."
"Not me, although I would like to be assigned somewhere." She sighed."What are we going to do about Andrew?"
"Oh cripes." There was a general reaction of dismay from the Sunnydale contingent.
"Wait a minute. Y'all still holding on to the kid who murdered his best friend?" asked Fred.
"Yes, I guess we have. Buffy what do you think we should do with him?"asked Xander
"What did I just say.? OK, let me make something clear. Remember before when I said about how this wasn't the place where majority ruled?"
"I think we all remember something along those lines." said Giles ironically.
"Well that's one of things we change. From now on this is a democracy. " Buffy said
"That's all it takes? Man, that revolution was easy."said Xander.
"What are you talking about?" asked Angel.
"I'm thinking that all of us would act as some sort of council of elders to decide what is done and who goes where. If there is a divisive issue, we vote on it. Majority rules."
"And you think that the girls at the hotel will just go along with not having a say in what they do?" said Faith.
"Um, well maybe we can..." Buffy verbally stumbled.
"We can work out Parliamentary procedure later. I think that Buffy's general idea is a good one; I'd be willing to go along with it." Buffy flashed a silent thank you at Giles.
"There's a lot of merit in that; I'd be willing to go along with it too." said Wesley. The others all spoke agreement as well. Angel seemed a little reluctant, but he nodded his assent.
"Even me?" said Dawn.
Buffy sighed. "Yes, Dawn even you." For a moment it looked like she was going to squeal, but she gained control of herself.
"All right, then the question that WE have to deal with is what do we do with Andrew?"
Buffy turned to Willow. "Granted I'm not entirely impartial, but I think that he should go to jail for what he has done."
"I don't know,Will. I'm not Andrew's biggest booster, but should we be the ones to play judge and jury?" said Xander.
"Xander, the boy has committed a series of crimes. He probably should be turned over to the proper authorities. " Giles turned to Faith wondering if she would raise any outcry, but she remained surprisingly quiet.
"I don't know. Andrew doesn't seem like your ten-most wanted type.And doesn't the fact that he fought with us count for anything?" said Dawn.
"Wait a minute. Didn't he commit his crimes in Sunnydale?" asked Wesley.
"Yeah. What's your point?" said Willow a bit crossly.
"I'm just not sure whether the Los Angeles police would be able to charge him with anything with most of the proof under the rubble of Sunnydale."
"Dude's got a point. Unless you have something legitimate that you can charge him with, he probably couldn't be held." said Gunn.
"All right, say we don't turn him over to the authorities. Does anybody here feel real comfortable with the idea of keeping him here working with us?"
There was a long silence as the group pondered this question. Then the last person that Giles would have expected to speak did.
"Look, I know that I am the last person who should talk about letting a criminal go free---"
"Actually Faith, you're probably more qualified then most of us so go ahead." said Xander.
"I don't believe that Andrew is any real danger to us. And I think that everyone in this room"--- she paused--- "well, at least everyone from Sunnydale doesn't consider him that way either."
"How do you know what we think? " asked Dawn.
"You let him go to the monastery with Spike."
"Well, he might have been scared of him..." Willow trailed off weakly.
"And you let him go to get food and medical supplies after.. Well, you know." The rest of the Sunnydale contingent pondered this. "He didn't try to betray you or run away. That has to count for something."
"Why are you so high on him? " asked Robin.
"I had a conversation with him about a week ago. Let's me tell you something; he's not the person you captured all those months ago. He had a..." Faith struggled. "What's that thing you have when you realize something important? It starts with an 'e'.
"Enlightenment?' said Giles.
"Not that."
"Epiphany." Angel had gone very still after he made his suggestion.
"That's it. He's a different person now. And I think he's a better person."
Everyone considered this."But what do we have him do. I mean despite how he fought at the high school, I don't think he has quite the stuff to be a warrior." said Buffy.
"Wes, Giles when the two of you were working for the council, they made you keep records of all the battles that the Slayer fought in, right?" Both men nodded. "Well, let him do that. Have him keep a record of what happened this year in Sunnydale. The Last battle of the Hellmouth. That would keep him busy and out of your hair."
"He did seem to have a grasp of that when we were back in Sunnydale." said Xander.
"It would save us a lot of trouble." Giles admitted.
Buffy looked around. "Willow, are you sure that you would be OK with this?"
Willow thought for a moment. Finally she said: "I won't lie and say that I'll be glad to work with him, but I managed to get along with him for a while. I think I can keep that up."
"So everybody is OK with Andrew staying with us?" There was a general murmur of assent. "All right, but one of us had better keep an eye on him, at least for a little while."
The groups of people began to break up. And as he walked with Wesley to begin making the calls to the rest of the Watchers, he began to feel something that he had not felt for a very long time. Certainly not for the past few months.
He felt optimistic. Maybe they could rebuild the Council. And maybe with all the new Slayers that now existed, the struggle of good versus evil might finally have shifted decisively. Maybe now with the First beaten, there was actually hope that evil would slowly begin a retreat.
He had no idea how wrong he was about that last thought.