"And they didn't say who "he" was?" Giles asked after listening to Xander's incredible story.
"No, just that he was the last in the line of an ancient one, and the last in the line of another ancient one, someone they call the Daughter of Fire, will help me stop him," Xander said.
"So you are like Angel, you have your soul?"
"Yes, but unlike Angel, my soul is mine to keep or lose at will. Its only my humanity holding onto it. And my guilt."
Giles nodded. He didn't doubt that Xander had a lot of guilt built up inside him over everything he had done. Not that he didn't deserve every drop of it, but he had come back to stop something bigger than the evil he had unleashed, something he thought he had seen destroyed.
"We'll need help," Giles said finally. "I'll call Wil..."
"No you can't," Xander yelled as he jumped to his feet. "No-one must know I'm here. It would only hurt them."
"They are already hurting Xander," the Watcher replied wearily. "They think you are a monster. That you are no better than...something like Spike. They need to know. Maybe Willow could help find this 'Daughter of Fire' and Buffy could..."
"Buffy could slay me," Xander finished for him. "Its better this way. For everyone."
"Perhaps you're right," Giles said. "But it will complicate things, for me and for everyone. How on earth will we keep this from everyone? Oh you do get yourself in some messes Xander."
Willow had been looking for hours and so far she had come up with nothing. All the regular sites she used for her searches had nothing that could help with locating Xander's Diaries. She yawned as she rubbed her tired eyes. There was still one option she hadn't used.
A while ago, she had stumbled on the password for the Watcher's Council site in Giles' files. She had never accessed it, but she'd kept it, just in case. Nothing else had worked, so maybe, just maybe, she could find something there.
She got up from her desk and stretched. Her body felt so stiff. Sitting for hours at her computer did nothing for her back, but this was important and it was the one thing she could do that helped. Buffy slayed. So did Faith, sometimes. And Xander was just....gone. She wiped tear from her eye as she went to her bedside table and looked for the password.
Angel watched from the shadows as Buffy and Legolas walked through the cemetary. He could see that they were talking, but he was too far away to hear any words. The looks they gave each other said more than enough anyway. She used to look at him that way, and she hadn't for a while now. Not that it mattered any more. She was nothing but a thorn in his side and he would take great pleasure in removing her. He had failed the last time, but he wouldn't make that mistake again.
Willow.
She had ruined everything when she had given him back his soul. He had suffered endlessly in that hell Buffy had sent him to when he would have had nothing but pleasure if he'd stayed without it. The things they had done to him... This time, he would remove the witch before she screwed up his plans.
Smiling to himself, he spun on his heels and strode purposefully from the cemetary.
"Well I must say, I am a little disappointed," Richard said after listening to Krytalia's report that they still had no luck locating the Diaries.
"I am sorry," she said softly. "We thought we had found something, but it ended up being not what we thought it was."
Richard walked over to his cupboard and opened it. He pulled out an amulet. Krytalia paled as she recognised it. The Amulet of Thorvin; the source of all the power and strength of her kind. With it, Richard had control over her race. He had stolen it from their leader and now held it over their heads. It was her job to retrieve it, and so far, she was failing.
"You know the price of failure," Richard said as he caressed the amulet. "I will destroy this, and with it, your entire race. Find them. The time draws closer with each movement of the clock."
Krytalia nodded, her eyes glued to the amulet. Its sapphire, once so bright, now seemed dull. If its fire burned completely out, they all would.
"No, just that he was the last in the line of an ancient one, and the last in the line of another ancient one, someone they call the Daughter of Fire, will help me stop him," Xander said.
"So you are like Angel, you have your soul?"
"Yes, but unlike Angel, my soul is mine to keep or lose at will. Its only my humanity holding onto it. And my guilt."
Giles nodded. He didn't doubt that Xander had a lot of guilt built up inside him over everything he had done. Not that he didn't deserve every drop of it, but he had come back to stop something bigger than the evil he had unleashed, something he thought he had seen destroyed.
"We'll need help," Giles said finally. "I'll call Wil..."
"No you can't," Xander yelled as he jumped to his feet. "No-one must know I'm here. It would only hurt them."
"They are already hurting Xander," the Watcher replied wearily. "They think you are a monster. That you are no better than...something like Spike. They need to know. Maybe Willow could help find this 'Daughter of Fire' and Buffy could..."
"Buffy could slay me," Xander finished for him. "Its better this way. For everyone."
"Perhaps you're right," Giles said. "But it will complicate things, for me and for everyone. How on earth will we keep this from everyone? Oh you do get yourself in some messes Xander."
Willow had been looking for hours and so far she had come up with nothing. All the regular sites she used for her searches had nothing that could help with locating Xander's Diaries. She yawned as she rubbed her tired eyes. There was still one option she hadn't used.
A while ago, she had stumbled on the password for the Watcher's Council site in Giles' files. She had never accessed it, but she'd kept it, just in case. Nothing else had worked, so maybe, just maybe, she could find something there.
She got up from her desk and stretched. Her body felt so stiff. Sitting for hours at her computer did nothing for her back, but this was important and it was the one thing she could do that helped. Buffy slayed. So did Faith, sometimes. And Xander was just....gone. She wiped tear from her eye as she went to her bedside table and looked for the password.
Angel watched from the shadows as Buffy and Legolas walked through the cemetary. He could see that they were talking, but he was too far away to hear any words. The looks they gave each other said more than enough anyway. She used to look at him that way, and she hadn't for a while now. Not that it mattered any more. She was nothing but a thorn in his side and he would take great pleasure in removing her. He had failed the last time, but he wouldn't make that mistake again.
Willow.
She had ruined everything when she had given him back his soul. He had suffered endlessly in that hell Buffy had sent him to when he would have had nothing but pleasure if he'd stayed without it. The things they had done to him... This time, he would remove the witch before she screwed up his plans.
Smiling to himself, he spun on his heels and strode purposefully from the cemetary.
"Well I must say, I am a little disappointed," Richard said after listening to Krytalia's report that they still had no luck locating the Diaries.
"I am sorry," she said softly. "We thought we had found something, but it ended up being not what we thought it was."
Richard walked over to his cupboard and opened it. He pulled out an amulet. Krytalia paled as she recognised it. The Amulet of Thorvin; the source of all the power and strength of her kind. With it, Richard had control over her race. He had stolen it from their leader and now held it over their heads. It was her job to retrieve it, and so far, she was failing.
"You know the price of failure," Richard said as he caressed the amulet. "I will destroy this, and with it, your entire race. Find them. The time draws closer with each movement of the clock."
Krytalia nodded, her eyes glued to the amulet. Its sapphire, once so bright, now seemed dull. If its fire burned completely out, they all would.