Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. They belong to Joss and ME
Chapter 17
Xander ran to the stables and got on his horse. He raced back to the house. He was furious, and afraid. He had planned to ride to Angelus' manor but thought better of it. There was little doubt in his mind that Angelus had his hand in this. But he couldn't go alone.
He arrived at the house and jumped off the horse so clumsily that he twisted his ankle on landing. He strained to get to his feet and limped into the house.
"GILES! BUFFY!" He fell to the floor crying. It wasn't the pain of his ankle; it was the fact that someone had taken his Willow. Angelus had her and God knows what he was doing to her.
McKenna Manor
Willow was waking up. She found herself in a dark room. She hung from a rope; her feet barely touched the ground. Most of her clothes had been stripped off. She was only wearing her corset and long bloomers. She was cold and frightened. She heard a door open behind her and tried to swing around, but only succeeded in causing herself more pain in her sore wrists.
"Save your strength Miss Rosenberg. You're going to need it." Angelus had walked into the room and started lighting candles. She looked around the room and wished for the darkness again. The room was void of furniture, except for one chair in a corner. On the walls there hung, whips, clamps, several different sizes of mace's and pokers. She saw where a rope was tied to a hook, and looked up to notice that it was the same rope that held her up. Angelus had started a fire in the fireplace.
"Now.." he walked to the corner and retrieved the chair, and dragged it in front of her. He sat down, crossed his legs and folded his hands onto his lap, "shall we continue our discussion from the other day?"
She tried to open her mind to his, but she was still feeling the affects of the drug. She couldn't focus and she was too scared to concentrate on anything but what she imagined he was planning to do to her, not to mention how she would get out of there.
Giles' home
Giles and Elizabeth managed to calm Xander down and wrap his ankle.
"I've got to get her out of that there. Why won't that damn sun go down already!" Elizabeth felt like a caged animal. The demon was stirring inside of her. 'Wait.. wait for Angelus, then I'll let you go'. She spoke to her demon as it if were a whole other person sometimes. In a way it was, but she knew very it was just another part of the whole Elizabeth now.
"Buffy, calm down. This is difficult for all of us, but you can't afford to make a mistake because you aren't thinking straight."
"Giles is right Buffy. We can't go in there.."Elizabeth turned to look at Xander.
"We? You are not going anywhere." She said.
"That monster has Willow. I don't even want to think about what he's doing to her. I'm not staying here!" He yelled back.
"Yes you are!" Giles pounded his fist onto the table. "You are in no condition to go anywhere, and if you come we will not only have to worry about Willow but you as well." He softened his voice when he saw the fear in Xander's eyes. "I know how you feel about her. I can see it every time she walks into a room. The way you look at her as though she were the only woman in existence. But you must stay here. Buffy and I will get her out of there and bring her home." Xander nodded and bowed his head.
Giles armed himself with a crossbow and a sword. Elizabeth slid a small dagger into her belt. They left Xander in the library. They went to the stables, mounted their horses and rode to rescue Willow.
McKenna Manor
Angelus had grown tired of waiting for the pokers he had placed into the fire to grow sufficiently hot, so he decided to amuse himself with a whip. He held the whip in his hand and came up behind Willow.
"You see Miss Rosenberg. I am a man who is used to getting what he wants." He slid the whip up her back. Willow's eyes grew wide. She didn't know what he was touching her with, yet she braced herself for something painful. Angelus stepped back and swung with all his might. Willow let out a loud scream. She was breathing heavy and fast. She had never felt anything so excruciatingly painful in her life, until the second lashing. Then came the third, then the fourth, the fifth, until she lost count.
Elizabeth and Giles arrived at the Manor. They dismounted their horses and were immediately set upon by the men outside the guarding the front doors. Giles dispatched of one quickly using the crossbow. Elizabeth grabbed her knife and swung it at her attacker. He ducked out of her way and threw a punch, which she blocked. She kicked him in the gut and stabbed him in the neck as he bent forward. She had not fed since he night before, the blood of the man she had just killed distracted her for a moment. The she remembered Willow, they came for Willow.
"Giles, I'm going in!" she called. Giles had just finished drawing his sword out of the last mans stomach and followed her into the Manor.
"Wait, I'm coming with you." He yelled as he ran behind her and re-loaded his crossbow. She nodded and they ran inside. It had grown late and most of Angelus' men were in their quarters. Elizabeth stopped.
"What is it?" asked Giles out of breath.
"Willow. I smell fear and blood." She followed the scent. They tried to be as quite as possible. Elizabeth was insane with fear for Willow. She finally came upon the door of the room and with one hard kick, down came the door. She took her knife and threw it at the rope holding Willow up. Willow came down heavily.
"Elizabeth? How nice of you to drop by. Back from France so soon?" Angelus swung the whip at her only to have her catch it in mid air and pull him towards her fist.
"Giles get her out of here!" Giles threw down his sword and put his crossbow back in his shoulder harness. He ran to Willow and threw her over his free shoulder. He turned to look at Elizabeth, "GO!" She yelled as Angelus struggled to pick himself up. Giles ran out of the room and down the stairs. He saw a man come toward him and reached over his other shoulder, drew the crossbow and shot the man in the eye. He draped Willow onto his horse and climbed on. He took one last look toward the open door. Elizabeth was still inside, but he knew she could take care of herself; at least that's what he told himself as he rode back home.
Elizabeth was crouched over Angelus beating him with her fists.
"You sick son of a bitch!" Each word was emphasized with a punch. She was so caught up in her punishment of his face that she failed to sense the man coming up behind her.
"AAAAGGGHHH!!" she could feel her demon come upon her as she looked down at the sword that had come out through her stomach. Angelus was looking at her with horror. Ethan drew the sword out and she fell to her side.
"What the hell are you?" He rushed towards her picked her up by the shoulders and looked at her face as the demon withdrew, "A vampire?" He dropped her hard on the floor. He stood up and backed away from her slightly. Elizabeth was weak. What little blood she had the night before was now seeping through her wound and the pain didn't help either.
"My how quickly the tide changes doesn't it?" Angelus crouched down to her again and picked her head up by her hair, "what was it that you called me? Ah yes, a sick son of a bitch," he laughed loud, "you don't know the half of it my dear. I have plans for you." He dropped her head and stood. He started to walk out of the room and turned to Ethan.
"Bring her and follow me." Ethan picked Elizabeth up and followed Angelus down the stairs and out of the manor. He instructed Ethan to place her in an open carriage and they drove to St. Vincent's Chapel outside the grounds of the manor.
When they arrived Angelus got out of the carriage and opened the chapel doors. No one was there at this late hour. The doors were rarely locked, and he let himself in. Elizabeth was drowsy; she was slipping in and out of consciousness. She managed to jump off the carriage and tried to run, but was too weak and fell. Angelus ran after her and grabbed her arm.
"Oh no you don't! Just where do you think you are going?" He dragged her to the chapel entrance. "Now I have to invite you in, is that how it works? Elizabeth please, come inside, there is something I wish you to see." He continued dragging her up the aisle. Ethan was already inside and had lit a large candle next to the alter. Elizabeth had momentarily fainted.
She now felt herself waking up slowly. She remembered Giles taking Willow out of the manor. She prayed that they had gotten away. Giles would start to look for her once he realized she wasn't coming home. He would know something went wrong, he would know what to do, how to help her. She heard something like stone being moved. Then felt herself being picked up and dropped onto a hard surface. She slowly opened her eyes and looked up.
"Are you comfortable?" asked Angelus as he looked down at her, "I hope so, because you are going to be spending a long time in here. I don't know much about vampires but I do know that they are dead bodies, reanimated by the blood of their victims. So I'm thinking if you don't have blood then you are in a somewhat suspended animation. So you know what I think that means? I think it means you are going to lie here, until the end of time. Listening to voices, feeling the hunger, needing the blood too weak to scream." He laughed again, "You are going to go mad." He looked at her for a long while.
"Do you have any last words?" he asked her. She looked at him through narrow yellow eyes.
"I'm going to kill you." She growled. With Ethan's help, Angelus started to close the lid.
"I'd like to see you try."
And then darkness.
Chapter 17
Xander ran to the stables and got on his horse. He raced back to the house. He was furious, and afraid. He had planned to ride to Angelus' manor but thought better of it. There was little doubt in his mind that Angelus had his hand in this. But he couldn't go alone.
He arrived at the house and jumped off the horse so clumsily that he twisted his ankle on landing. He strained to get to his feet and limped into the house.
"GILES! BUFFY!" He fell to the floor crying. It wasn't the pain of his ankle; it was the fact that someone had taken his Willow. Angelus had her and God knows what he was doing to her.
McKenna Manor
Willow was waking up. She found herself in a dark room. She hung from a rope; her feet barely touched the ground. Most of her clothes had been stripped off. She was only wearing her corset and long bloomers. She was cold and frightened. She heard a door open behind her and tried to swing around, but only succeeded in causing herself more pain in her sore wrists.
"Save your strength Miss Rosenberg. You're going to need it." Angelus had walked into the room and started lighting candles. She looked around the room and wished for the darkness again. The room was void of furniture, except for one chair in a corner. On the walls there hung, whips, clamps, several different sizes of mace's and pokers. She saw where a rope was tied to a hook, and looked up to notice that it was the same rope that held her up. Angelus had started a fire in the fireplace.
"Now.." he walked to the corner and retrieved the chair, and dragged it in front of her. He sat down, crossed his legs and folded his hands onto his lap, "shall we continue our discussion from the other day?"
She tried to open her mind to his, but she was still feeling the affects of the drug. She couldn't focus and she was too scared to concentrate on anything but what she imagined he was planning to do to her, not to mention how she would get out of there.
Giles' home
Giles and Elizabeth managed to calm Xander down and wrap his ankle.
"I've got to get her out of that there. Why won't that damn sun go down already!" Elizabeth felt like a caged animal. The demon was stirring inside of her. 'Wait.. wait for Angelus, then I'll let you go'. She spoke to her demon as it if were a whole other person sometimes. In a way it was, but she knew very it was just another part of the whole Elizabeth now.
"Buffy, calm down. This is difficult for all of us, but you can't afford to make a mistake because you aren't thinking straight."
"Giles is right Buffy. We can't go in there.."Elizabeth turned to look at Xander.
"We? You are not going anywhere." She said.
"That monster has Willow. I don't even want to think about what he's doing to her. I'm not staying here!" He yelled back.
"Yes you are!" Giles pounded his fist onto the table. "You are in no condition to go anywhere, and if you come we will not only have to worry about Willow but you as well." He softened his voice when he saw the fear in Xander's eyes. "I know how you feel about her. I can see it every time she walks into a room. The way you look at her as though she were the only woman in existence. But you must stay here. Buffy and I will get her out of there and bring her home." Xander nodded and bowed his head.
Giles armed himself with a crossbow and a sword. Elizabeth slid a small dagger into her belt. They left Xander in the library. They went to the stables, mounted their horses and rode to rescue Willow.
McKenna Manor
Angelus had grown tired of waiting for the pokers he had placed into the fire to grow sufficiently hot, so he decided to amuse himself with a whip. He held the whip in his hand and came up behind Willow.
"You see Miss Rosenberg. I am a man who is used to getting what he wants." He slid the whip up her back. Willow's eyes grew wide. She didn't know what he was touching her with, yet she braced herself for something painful. Angelus stepped back and swung with all his might. Willow let out a loud scream. She was breathing heavy and fast. She had never felt anything so excruciatingly painful in her life, until the second lashing. Then came the third, then the fourth, the fifth, until she lost count.
Elizabeth and Giles arrived at the Manor. They dismounted their horses and were immediately set upon by the men outside the guarding the front doors. Giles dispatched of one quickly using the crossbow. Elizabeth grabbed her knife and swung it at her attacker. He ducked out of her way and threw a punch, which she blocked. She kicked him in the gut and stabbed him in the neck as he bent forward. She had not fed since he night before, the blood of the man she had just killed distracted her for a moment. The she remembered Willow, they came for Willow.
"Giles, I'm going in!" she called. Giles had just finished drawing his sword out of the last mans stomach and followed her into the Manor.
"Wait, I'm coming with you." He yelled as he ran behind her and re-loaded his crossbow. She nodded and they ran inside. It had grown late and most of Angelus' men were in their quarters. Elizabeth stopped.
"What is it?" asked Giles out of breath.
"Willow. I smell fear and blood." She followed the scent. They tried to be as quite as possible. Elizabeth was insane with fear for Willow. She finally came upon the door of the room and with one hard kick, down came the door. She took her knife and threw it at the rope holding Willow up. Willow came down heavily.
"Elizabeth? How nice of you to drop by. Back from France so soon?" Angelus swung the whip at her only to have her catch it in mid air and pull him towards her fist.
"Giles get her out of here!" Giles threw down his sword and put his crossbow back in his shoulder harness. He ran to Willow and threw her over his free shoulder. He turned to look at Elizabeth, "GO!" She yelled as Angelus struggled to pick himself up. Giles ran out of the room and down the stairs. He saw a man come toward him and reached over his other shoulder, drew the crossbow and shot the man in the eye. He draped Willow onto his horse and climbed on. He took one last look toward the open door. Elizabeth was still inside, but he knew she could take care of herself; at least that's what he told himself as he rode back home.
Elizabeth was crouched over Angelus beating him with her fists.
"You sick son of a bitch!" Each word was emphasized with a punch. She was so caught up in her punishment of his face that she failed to sense the man coming up behind her.
"AAAAGGGHHH!!" she could feel her demon come upon her as she looked down at the sword that had come out through her stomach. Angelus was looking at her with horror. Ethan drew the sword out and she fell to her side.
"What the hell are you?" He rushed towards her picked her up by the shoulders and looked at her face as the demon withdrew, "A vampire?" He dropped her hard on the floor. He stood up and backed away from her slightly. Elizabeth was weak. What little blood she had the night before was now seeping through her wound and the pain didn't help either.
"My how quickly the tide changes doesn't it?" Angelus crouched down to her again and picked her head up by her hair, "what was it that you called me? Ah yes, a sick son of a bitch," he laughed loud, "you don't know the half of it my dear. I have plans for you." He dropped her head and stood. He started to walk out of the room and turned to Ethan.
"Bring her and follow me." Ethan picked Elizabeth up and followed Angelus down the stairs and out of the manor. He instructed Ethan to place her in an open carriage and they drove to St. Vincent's Chapel outside the grounds of the manor.
When they arrived Angelus got out of the carriage and opened the chapel doors. No one was there at this late hour. The doors were rarely locked, and he let himself in. Elizabeth was drowsy; she was slipping in and out of consciousness. She managed to jump off the carriage and tried to run, but was too weak and fell. Angelus ran after her and grabbed her arm.
"Oh no you don't! Just where do you think you are going?" He dragged her to the chapel entrance. "Now I have to invite you in, is that how it works? Elizabeth please, come inside, there is something I wish you to see." He continued dragging her up the aisle. Ethan was already inside and had lit a large candle next to the alter. Elizabeth had momentarily fainted.
She now felt herself waking up slowly. She remembered Giles taking Willow out of the manor. She prayed that they had gotten away. Giles would start to look for her once he realized she wasn't coming home. He would know something went wrong, he would know what to do, how to help her. She heard something like stone being moved. Then felt herself being picked up and dropped onto a hard surface. She slowly opened her eyes and looked up.
"Are you comfortable?" asked Angelus as he looked down at her, "I hope so, because you are going to be spending a long time in here. I don't know much about vampires but I do know that they are dead bodies, reanimated by the blood of their victims. So I'm thinking if you don't have blood then you are in a somewhat suspended animation. So you know what I think that means? I think it means you are going to lie here, until the end of time. Listening to voices, feeling the hunger, needing the blood too weak to scream." He laughed again, "You are going to go mad." He looked at her for a long while.
"Do you have any last words?" he asked her. She looked at him through narrow yellow eyes.
"I'm going to kill you." She growled. With Ethan's help, Angelus started to close the lid.
"I'd like to see you try."
And then darkness.