Disclaimer: I don't own Angel, it that simple.
A/N: Thank you for the reviews! Thank you Eloise for your tips, I have now edited my chapters and they look good! Sorry this chapter took so long but like many of you have being saying in your reviews you can wait to see where this is going, well I'm not sure either (I have an outline but still there is a lot of room for changes)! It's fun but it doesn't give you the comfort like a story practically set in stone does. It's mostly the transitions that are driving me crazy. If you don't like the directions this fic may be heading too, please feel free to yell at me (that is NOT an invite for flames).
The lights flickered as the group walked down the hallway, to the stairs.
"Do you know who broke in?" Gunn asked as they entered the dark stairwell. It seemed like it was rarely used by anyone, since cobwebs abound.
"No, but I have a feeling who," Belle Tanner replied as she jumped over the handrail, falling a 3 stories before landing elegantly on the main floor. She walked out the door into the lobby. Spike and Angel followed in suite.
"Great," Gunn groaned as he continued down the flights.
I wasn't sure why, but I was afraid of letting myself pass through the concrete steps, it wasn't like it would hurt me. I was ghost now. But what would stop me from falling through the main floor, straight to the center of the Earth, to the center of Hell?
Myself, I answered my own question. I disappeared through the gray stairs. It didn't feel cool and smooth like stone. The cement felt like everything else I felt now--nothing. I came to the first floor just as Gunn did. A smile crept on his face, I suspect because this reminded him of the good old days, when he was the muscle of the team.
As we entered the lobby to a free for all. Six girls were taking out the security team like they were a joke. Throwing them against walls, windows and desk were being broken. Spike and Angel were standing still, not exactly knowing what they should do since Belle was laughing.
"Rupert, where are you?" she smirked.
Out of the shadows Rupert Giles appeared. A dark look on his face.
"Belle, where-" he was cut off.
"Ms. Tanner," she corrected, seeming to be enjoying this very much.
"Where is the slayer you're retaining?"
"Rupert-"Belle began but was interrupted.
"Mr. Giles," he repeated what she had done.
"Mr. Giles, I'm not aware of any slayer being in our building against her will. I may not be in the legal department but I do know what habeus corpus is"
Angel spoke up, "Belle, if you are lying-"
"Why would you care? You're a part of them now," Giles snapped, and then an expression of disbelief washed over his face as he noticed the blonde vampire standing next to Angel.
"Sp-Spike, you're alive?" Giles stuttered, unsure of himself.
"Damn," he muttered under his breath, "Yeah, I've been haunting Peaches here and now I'm corporeal again."
"You didn't tell us…you didn't even tell Buffy," Giles spat at Angel.
"It was complicated," he replied.
"Oh, you know the Ripper here?" Belle turned, her fingers twiddling with her turquoise and silver pendant.
Suddenly, Josephine sleepily exited an office. She must have awaked because of all the commotion.
"What's going on?" she asked rubbing her eyes.
"Jo," one of the girls said in a Welsh accent. Crimson streaks ran through her chin-length, dark brown hair. She wore simple dark jeans and a tight, black sleeveless shirt that revealed her pale midriff. I noticed that one of her many necklaces were made entire of fangs, and looked they very real.
"Wynn," Jo replied, staring at the girl, or rather young woman. She appeared to be a little older than the rest of them, same age as Josephine.
"You're not being held her, are you?"
"Here I can have a fairly normal life. I don't have to live every day just to fight another evil-"
"Because you're with the evil," Giles interjected.
"It's just like any other law firm, only difference is that it deals with demons," she answered.
"Josephine, I know that you do think so, but the justice system is for the most part good," Giles looked into her emerald eyes.
"Is the part where you say that if I work for them I'll go to Hell, because I going there no matter what I do. In church they told you that if you were truly sorry you got a second chance, but that isn't true. I mean, here's a vampire with soul," she gestured to Angel, " and he's suppose to be the sorriest son of bitch on the planet, but I'm sure that a cross still burns him."
"That's different Josephine," Giles sighed.
"Not really. A vampire is some mixture of human and demon, so is a slayer. Both killers,"
"Josephine, you're not bad-"
"No, I was just really screwed up before I was ever a slayer."
Wynn shouted, "Jo! Life's tough and we all have things we regret, that we wish we could bury, but just deal with it, damn it! We all have too and we don't make a spectacle of it."
Josephine stared blankly and walked away. The sound of her high heels echoed throughout the area.
"I told you Rupert," Belle cocked her head a little, " we aren't holding a slayer against her will."
"Giles maybe I could talk to her-" Angel started but was interrupted.
"I have no business with you now Angel since you associated now with Ms. Tanner,"
Angel was now very annoyed and angry, "We're not them, we have different policies. We are trying to use the LA division for good,"
"So why are you here, and not in LA?"
"There's this big gala-"
"In the middle of night?"
"Look, I'm here right now because Fred was nearly killed by this dark mist! And…" Angel trailed off when he noticed the look on Giles' face.
"Did you say the Dark Mist?"
Belle quickly followed, "You said black fog when you were telling me the story."
"Aren't they synonyms?" Gunn said, very confused. I was perplexed myself, what did Belle and Giles know?
"What do you know about?" Angel asked.
"Plenty of books in our library mention it," Belle commented, this had now become a persuasion match between her and Giles.
"Do you think she'll truly help you? She wants the apocalypse!" he yelled.
"Not an apocalypse the Dark Mist will bring, but a long one, where there is plenty of money and power to be gain,"
"Doesn't matter, they all have contracts that extend death. What happened Angel?"
"Well, there was a car accident-" Angel started.
"If you tell him don't expect any help from Wolfram & Hart. Make a decision Angel, now," Belle gave her ultimatum.
Next time: Who will Angel choose? Also, Fred sees someone she didn't expect… or that could be in the chapter after next. Sorry, I got to work it out.
A/N: I know the whole Jo conversation was vague but her situation will be explained in coming chapter(s), as well as who Wynn is.