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This chapter here is dedicated to Honey-B, because, quite frankly, her threats were scary.

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CHAPTER NINETEEN

It was like a fire had consumed them, days of unspent passion had exploded into this single kiss; laced with heat and desire. Hands with minds of their own traced their way through paths of flesh, traveling familiar routes.

He pressed her into the wood and it hurt like hell but she didn't care because she was happier than she could ever remember. His kiss was intoxicating; she lost her senses and the need for contact took over.

He ravished her neck with a ferocity unknown to them both, teeth grazing her skin. Her fingers dug into his shoulder so deeply there were sure to be bruises the next day, most likely splayed out in the shape of her grasp.

Her hair was in disarray and she didn't care because he was looming over her and she'd lost any power of speech or thought she had. Every second she melted a little more.

He kissed her with all the passion he ever had, because she was real and she wasn't pushing him away. She wasn't attacking him; she was kissing him back and that was the only thing that mattered. Other thoughts were pushed out of their minds.

She focused on him and he focused on her and they both recognized the feeling as one they would never let go again.

The morning sun was rising, sunlight beating down on the narrow streets. The pair retreated in the shadows, never breaking contact.

Had they been paying more attention to their surroundings, they would have noticed a pair of amber eyes glowing in the waning darkness. Shaded beneath a roof of timber and thatch, the eyes watched the pair with interest.

Watching.

Waiting.

He could smell the blood. Rushing, coursing through their veins; their hearts beating rapidly in tandem. It was the sweet scent of power. Power for the taking.

He growled.

He studied the pair, a voyeur to their activities. The way she sighed into his kiss, the way he held her body against his. They were obviously very… attached to each other. He smiled through bared fangs. This would make things infinitely more interesting.

"No," a voice told him softly from behind. "Not yet, not you. You are to watch them. We take the Slayer when we have the book. We need her blood."

"Darla," he hissed dangerously.

"Penn," she replied, just as maliciously. "We have an agreement, Penn. Do you not remember?" she asked, her tone innocent.

Penn turned around to stare at her, his fangs present. "I remember," he said simply, not elaborating. Just because they had an… alliance of sorts, it didn't mean he had to like her.

"You are the deciding vote on the Council, Penn. One of the younger Elders. You are not tied down by the traditions of old, the traditions that keep our race in the dark. When I rise to power, you will sit at my right hand. All of this will not be in vain. You will be rewarded for your efforts."

He turned his eyes back to the pair of humans, who were still quite engaged.

"I sincerely hope you're correct," he said dryly, "because if you're wrong about the book…"

"I'm not. The Judge will rise. And then the fun will begin."

His ridged face stood out prominently in the dim light, eyes glowing with wickedness. A growl escaped his lips and he turned to his partner.

"Watch them. Report back to me before nightfall," she gave him orders. Her face lost its smooth planes and fangs protruded from her jaws. She bit down onto Penn's neck, tracing over a familiar mark. Her mark.

"Tonight," she whispered one more time before she slipped away.

"Buffy," he breathed, his hands moving on their own accord to an unheard rhythm. His mouth devoured hers in a fire of passion.

She responded enthusiastically in return, sighing into his touch, "Angel," she breathed heavily.

After a long moment, he pulled away, earning a small moan of protest from Buffy.

"We have to go to Giles, Buffy," he said delicately, hating the words coming out of his mouth.

She groaned loudly and shot an angry glare at her Angel. He just had to say it, didn't he. He just had to ruin a perfectly enjoyable experience.

"I know. I would be content to stay here all day, but… we can't. You can't. You were born to do this."

"I was born to do a lot of things," she grumbled, pushing herself away from his chest. She walked out into the glaring morning sun, Liam following closely behind her.

Penn growled loudly when they were out of earshot. The sun was too bright for him to directly follow, so he set out on finding an alternate route.

He fingered the bite mark on his neck with a bit of regret. Why had he bound himself to Darla? Because she was going to come out on top. Not any of the Elders, and as much as he hated to admit it, not him… it was Darla who would have the power.

And he made damn sure that he would never be on her bad side.

The pair traveled the streets quickly, Liam tentatively slipping his hand inside the Princess' own. A sense of relief mixed with a euphoric happiness when she grasped back.

They arrived at Giles too quickly, in Liam's opinion. He would have been content to stroll along the village streets hand in hand; to watch the sun fully rise above them.

"Hurry up," she said, pulling him along.

"Why? Can't we just-"

"You were the one who was so set on getting to Giles, Angel. So let's go. I have to get back to the palace before someone notices me missing… Maybe it's still early enough that no one would have come to check my rooms…" she babbled worriedly.

Casting a short glare at her Angel's slightly amused _expression, she continued on, Liam struggling to keep up.

She entered the now familiar doorway of Giles cottage with a heavy sigh, steeling all of her resolve. She could do this. This was all… very real. She was still trying to come to terms with that.

The old man looked up from his books when he heard her come in. The _expression on his face moved from immediately wary to a gentle satisfaction. He knew she'd come around… Liam must have convinced her. He sent a grateful look in his direction, and the young man nodded silently in return.

"Elizabeth," he said softly, "I'm glad you here."

She nodded in return, and the tiniest of smiles slowly appeared on her face.

Giles hurriedly cleared a place for her to sit down, amidst many stray pieces of parchment and dusty books. The entire room was cluttered with various scrolls; and on the table sat the Book.

It seemed to call to her, that gentle buzzing she had felt previously pulled her to the table. It wanted her, it wanted her to touch… Her hands reached out to feel that wonderful warmth the book brought and she was lost in it, her senses in a pleasant haze.

"Elizabeth!" a voice jolted her out of the fog… Giles, she realized after a moment. He had pulled her out of that delightful feeling… Anger started within her.

She didn't have time to say anything, because as soon as she had removed her hand, the book snapped open, startling everyone in the room and making her jump.

"Remarkable," Giles said in awe, as he flipped through the blank pages of the decaying book. When he arrived at the last page, a worried look overtook his features, and he glanced around the room nervously.

"Giles?" Liam questioned his strange behavior.

Giles had risen to his feet, and was pacing nervously around the room. He shifted desperately through a pile of scrolls, and the dust cloud that rose and made him cough did nothing to slow his efforts. We he found the one he had been looking for, he plucked it from the pile and immediately unrolled it.

Liam and Elizabeth looked at the scroll with interest. It was old…older than any of them, older than Buffonia…

Giles turned around to face the pair, a grave look overtaking his countenance. He slowly placed the scroll on the table next to the book.

"I know what the book contains," he said slowly, seriously.

He pointed to the scroll, "A long time ago…longer than I know… there was a prophecy. It told of an evil so great, it burned the souls of humanity… An evil left biding his time, waiting to strike since it had been banished… since the dimensions were split… The prophecy called this daemon the Judge… for he shall judge the denizens of this earth, deem them worthy of saving… Any being 'tainted' with a human soul shall be sent to the depths of hell…" he spoke in broken sentences. As a young Watcher in the Academy, there had been rumors…

But things like these were supposed to happen to someone else. Somewhere else. Not here. These things happened to ancient people, ancient heroes… Not a scholar.

He looked at Elizabeth slowly, hating this. Hating… to have to see her… If the prophecy was correct…

He pushed the thought out of his mind.

"Darla… she wants to raise the Judge. She needs the book. It tells the materials, the spell needed for the ritual."

Liam slowly took all of this in. "But the pages are blank," he reasoned.

Giles nodded, "That's where the Princess comes in. Only she can open the books. Only she can reveal its contents. Her blood is needed. The Slayer's blood that runs through her veins."

Elizabeth looked at Giles, fear planting itself in her mind, ready to grow.

"That's... that's why she wanted me. My blood," she said, understanding.

Giles nodded, "If your blood is flown on the pages of the book, it should reveal itself. The instructions should appear."

She nodded silently, getting up from her seat. She winced as she stood, her body still sore from Riley's mistreatment the previous night.

"I have to get back to the castle," she said quietly, a disturbed look upon her face. A look that did not go unnoticed by Liam. "I'll be missed."

Giles nodded and she departed. Liam moved to follow, but Giles held him back. "Let her alone, Liam. It's daytime, no danger can befall her. She is still a Princess; she has her duties. She has to come to terms with this. Only then can we work to defeat it."

"Defeat it? Have you read this prophecy?" he almost yelled at the old man, still holding the scroll in his hand. Giles winced; he had forgotten that Liam was proficient in Latin.

"I read it," he said quietly.

"Then you know what the last line says! Giles! This…this…" he yelled, his mind swirling with the haunting reality of the prophecy.

"I know," he replied again, forcing a calm tone over near hysteria, "I know. But we shall cross that bridge when we come to it."

Liam looked at him in disgust. How could he just... stand by? Stand by and do nothing? The walls of the room were closing in on him, stifling him. His breath came out in ragged gasps that seared his chest. He had to leave… He had to get out of here….

Giles watched sadly as Liam found his way out. This… all of this…

He returned to the table, and slowly rolled the scroll that contained the prophecy. He couldn't help the sharp intake of breath as he reread the last line. The words emblazoned themselves in his mind.

Iudex insurgit, interfecta lamia morit

The Judge will rise, the Slayer shall die.

**

END CHAPTER NINETEEN

A/N- Pheww. ::Wipes sweat off brow:: That was a tough chapter to write. Tell me how I did. 'Cause all good readers review. I swear! They do. I finally gave you guys some B/A…. Reviews make me smile.

Anybody interested, I passed all my midterms with flying colors. Except for math, which we won't talk about….. 3 A+'s though! And only one grade that was below an A-…. *cough* C+ in Math *cough*…. Anyway… Since I was bad and haven't updated in a while, you guys get treated with this extra-long chapter. Don't you feel lucky? :)

Many thanks to all my lovely reviewers:

Kari- Why, thank you! I'm glad I keep you reading.

PunkyCowgirl- Sorry you couldn't beta this one, my computer is a piece of shit, and I'm barely able to post this… But thanks for the review! And do so again!

Lori- Thank you!

TK- Thanks for your reviews. They're always so nice… I hope this chapter lives up to your expectations. :)

Lady Moirane- Hola! Recibe una nota a la A- para mi examen del espanol. But with a ten point curve, 'cause everyone else failed… Thanks for your review. And I'm sorry if that scream at the end confused you, ::sheepish grin::, it wasn't meant to.. it was the messenger that Darla told her minions to 'take care of.' I should have made that more clear. Oh well. Thanks again for your review, you know how much they mean to me. And Oceans is coming along. And by coming along, I mean like a super speed demon snail. LOL.

AngelRose4- I gave you smoochies. Were they optimum smoochies? Thanks for your review. :)

Jess- Thanks!

Newbies!

Ayanna Reese- Thank you for your kind compiments! Welcome to the story! I'm rabid B/A- there is no other pairing! And Riley annoyed everybody. :)

Fairiegirl- Wow! Thanks for adding me! And thanks for reviewing!

And last, but certainly not least, Honey-B. When I woke up about a week ago, my inbox was about 47K bigger than it was the night before. That is seriously… a lot of reviews. I thank you for your kind words. Your enthusiasm. Your dedication to the story, and your love for my writing. Thank you. A lot. The reviews made me laugh.

And this is me, signing off, saying thanks for reading, REVIEW!, and that I'll try and update as soon as is humanly possible. 3