By Regina Halliwell

Story Summary: post Not Fade Away

Chapter Summary: Willow was into a catatonia, and didn't notice that Kennedy left. What did she see that kept her attention?

Pairings: Buffy/Angel, Dawn/Connor, Willow/Oz, Giles/Olivia, Faith/Spike, Xander/Anya, Illyria/Gunn, Cordelia/Doyle

Chapter Rating: PG-13 for some brief profanity and sensuality

A/N: Sorry for anything OOC, I am really trying. Also, the title of this chapter is trademark of Blockbuster, and also featured in a Buffy episode. See if you can figure out which one.

A/N 2: Also, thanks to BJ for inadvertently inspiring me to create Belinda, who, like she said, 'drools over Angel.' Thanks again!

Chapter 3:

Be Kind, Rewind

"Willow? Willow," Buffy called. The redhead sat, still in a trance. Her eyes were unfocused, and then suddenly they began to dance around nimbly as if the girl were going through the R.E.M. cycle. For minutes that dragged on Buffy simply watched Willow sit there. After what seemed like an hour, Willow blinked suddenly and then pulled out of her shrug and moved, almost as if she had awoken easily from a pleasant dream.

"Why is everyone staring at me," she asked. "Do I have something in my teeth?"

Buffy turned to see what Willow had been looking at. Behind her stood half a dozen girls curled around the doorway looking as guilty as peeping toms. Her reprimanding stare fell on faces too prying to notice. Even Spike stood there, looking curious, a wayward eyebrow raised inquiringly.

"Nothing's wrong, everyone. Go back to bed." Buffy ordered. "We'll talk about this in the morning." Looking at a clock on Willow's dresser, she sighed. "We'll talk about this later this morning then." In order to re-enforce her words, Buffy shooed the girls from the room and led them back into the living room. She glanced at Spike meaningfully and gestured to Willow.

He nodded, telling her with his eyes that he would stay with the witch. When Buffy reached the living room, she found Faith struggling to calm the remaining Slayers down.

"Okay, people, we know that something having to do with the wacky is going on here, but until we figure out what the hell it is, get some rest and leave Willow alone." Upon seeing Faith's interested grin, Buffy added, "Please."

Faith smirked and then grabbed Buffy's arm, pulling her gently away from the girls. "You know, you and Spike share that same telltale smirk. You really are perfect for each other." Buffy semi-whispered.

Faith shook her head at Buffy, "B, you know he still can't take his eyes off you. Then again, you do have tall dark and vampy over there all to yourself anyway… unless I take him off your hands."

With a disgusted laugh, Buffy told Faith, "How about not. Besides, I really don't think this is the time to be thinking about our love lives. What about Willow?"

The brunette slayer shrugged her shoulders, and suggested that she go get Angel and bring him to Willow's room where they could talk. She agreed and walked off as Faith approached Spike outside Willow's ajar door.

"It couldn't have been her. Could it?" Willow was muttering to herself, not noticing Faith and Spike standing outside her door.

Buffy walked through the long hallway on the way to Angel's room. Along the way, she began to hear a soft voice. It was juvenile and sweet. Buffy could tell that the girl was trying to act sultry, and this angered her. Opening the door, Buffy stepped into the room to find a girl. On top... Of Angel.

Buffy recognized her immediately. The girl, a long, curly haired redhead was the newest and oldest addition to the group of slayers. She had been found in Italy only a few weeks before, and had immediately caused jealousy between the young slayers. Thinking hard, Buffy remembered her name to be Belinda, a vigorous eighteen year old that enjoyed to party and steal other people's boyfriends. Immediately after receiving her powers, Belinda had gone on a spree similar to the one Faith had been on after coming to Sunnydale.

Now, much like Faith, Belinda was trying to take Angel for herself. The impudent slayer sat in only pajama pants and a tank top on Angel's hips, her hands holding his struggling arms down as she licked his cheek. Angel, who had been fruitlessly struggling against the slayer, heard Buffy's silent entrance and looked helplessly over at her.

Buffy slammed the door behind her, causing Belinda to look over, momentarily ceasing her movements. "You bitch!" Buffy yelled at the redhead.

"How dare you even try to–" Buffy screeched.

"What? How dare I even try to steal away your soulmate? That's rich, coming from the girl who was sleeping around with The Immortal last week!" Belinda yelled.

Angel cringed from beneath the redhead. Buffy saw this and approached. She ripped the younger slayer off of the injured vampire, throwing her across the room as she did so. Turning to glimpse at Angel, Buffy's face appeared ashamed. Even though they had already talked about what had happened between the Immortal and Buffy, the blonde knew it still hurt Angel to think about them together.

Across the room, slumped against the wall, the feisty redhead started laughing. Softly at first, but growing in volume. Buffy, upon hearing this, touched Angel's shoulder softly, then turned and walked unwaveringly towards the girl. Still laughing, Belinda looked up, smiling at Buffy.

Buffy knelt down and quickly struck out at Belinda, her fist crushing the girl's nose. Immediately, Belinda's laughter ceased, and tears fell, accompanying her whimpers. Grabbing the redhead by her shoulders, Buffy stood and pulled Belinda up, dragging her out into the hall, past the stares of the remaining slayers and the questioning Spike and Faith.

Letting go, she pushed the girl towards the front door, desperately pulling it open. "Go," Buffy told her. "I don't want to see you here again." Belinda stood, dazed, just outside the front door, before backing away and turning. Faith, inside the house, had grabbed Belinda's possessions and handed them to Buffy, who promptly threw them at Belinda.

Finally, Belinda picked her things up, trying to maintain some dignity, and walked away. The sun had long past risen, though streaks of pink and blue and purple were still visible on the horizon. Buffy looked on her for a moment before slamming the door.

For a minute Buffy stood with her head against the door frame and her eyes softly closed. She shook her head and quietly moved away from the crowd towards Angel's room. As she walked down the hallway, she heard a slight wince and rushed towards the vampire.

When she opened the door, Buffy found Angel standing, attempting to walk towards her. He faltered momentarily and then continued towards her, looking almost defiant. He approached her, reaching out to touch her arm. Buffy saw the faint pain in his face and pulled him towards her, holding on to his back to support him as she led him back towards her bed.

He, of course, protested, saying "I'm fine. Really. The ribs aren't so bad now."

While his cuts and bruises had mostly healed, Angel's ribs were still in awful shape. Pulling up his shirt a bit after sitting Angel back down on the bed, Buffy examined the vampire's injured torso. His chest was a mess of purple and blue and black and when Buffy felt his ribcage, she could tell which ribs were still intact and which ones weren't.

Sitting down next to him, Buffy sighed as she thought. "Should I… maybe let you, you know–" Buffy suggested tentatively, but Angel broke in before she could get it all out.

"No." Angel said sternly. "That's not going to happen. Not again. Really," he commented softly, "I'll be better in a while. Maybe by sunset, even."

Buffy again sighed and nodded. Then, in a flash, she remembered why she had come to get Angel.

"It's Willow, "she told him. "Something happened and Kennedy ran away. She's been sitting on her bed, practically comatose, for hours."

"Okay, then. I'm ready. Let's go see what happened to Willow."

"Guys, you're never going to believe what I saw. It was amazing. It was like I was right there with them. But… I don't see how it's possible." Willow stammered, trying to explain to everyone what she had seen.

"Willow, calm down. You're babbling. What did you see?" Angel asked.

"Well, actually I saw Cordelia. As in, alive." Willow told them.

"Red, I don't think that's actually possible. Cordelia died in a coma, last I heard. Nothing supernatural about that, is there?" Spike invited, eyebrows raised.

"It isn't the coma that was supernatural; it was how she got there. Last I heard the only ways to come back from the dead were the resurrection spells, bargaining with Osiris, and you know that box thing that Wolfram and Hart used with Darla." Angel elucidated from his seat in the easy chair across from Willow's bed.

"No, that's… the coma has nothing to do with it. Cordelia isn't alive in the strictest sense of the word. She's back. As a higher being."

Angel, the only one present in the group who had been there when Cordelia had been a higher being before, merely sat there.

Faith, on the other hand, was all questions. "So you mean she's like some sort of goddess or something?"

Willow's brow furrowed as she thought. "I don't know. I mean, all I know is that she and this dorky looking guy were in this roman-ish like room and they were wearing togas. That's it."

Angel gasped and began muttering to himself wonderingly.

"Oh this is great; the bloody pouf's gone off his rocker again!" Spike exclaimed as the group turned to look at the dark vampire.

"I think I know where Cordy is. And if she is where I think she is, and who she's with, then she's got some explaining to do." Angel said, standing up and leading the group out of Willow's room.

When they passed the slayers who had calmed down and were now watching TV, Faith told them that they were going out and not to go anywhere.

Suddenly, as Willow and Buffy started talking with Angel about where they were going and how to get there, with it being daytime, Spike quietly asked, though everyone heard him, "Where's Blue?"

"Blue?" Faith asked, then thought about it and retorted, "Yeah where the heck is Illyria anyway?"

Angel started forward, then stepped back, "I think she's gone. Maybe she left to try and find Gunn. Has anyone seen her?" Silence.

"Okay," he continued, "Well we can't very well sit around waiting for Illyria to show up. We need to find out why Cordelia contacted you, Willow. Maybe when we get back, Illyria will be here."

"Um, Angel…"

"What is it, Willow?"

"Back from where," she asked him.

"The Post Office."

"Um, Angel, are you sure that this is the right place?" Buffy asked. They stood in the basement of the L.A. post office, after Willow had transported them all there.

Instead of answering, Angel stepped over to a large basin in the center of the room. After placing the herbs inside and saying, "We beseech access to the Knowing Ones," Angel lit a match and dropped it into the bowl. A bright flash lit up the room and the entranceway to the Oracles opened up. Following Angel, they all hesitantly filed through the bright doorway.

A/N:

I know it's a little shorter, and I'm sorry, but I've got a lot of things going on right now in my life. The next chapter will be good, I promise, and I hope that you like this one too.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed the second chapter:

Scary Vampiress- Thanks for the review. I'll keep writing!

Me-Spike-4eva- Thanks, I'm glad that you are liking it so far. I also hope that you see my writing style improve as a keep writing.

Jax- Thanks, I'm glad that you like it!

Elementofthegerbil- As this chapter tells you, I do have plans to bring some people back from the dead. At this point though, Wesley is not one of them. I was content with the deaths of Willow and Fred and I think that is how they should stay- which is not to say that I wasn't sad and didn't bawl my eyes out when I saw both of them die. Thanks for the review, please keep reading.

Urangel- thanks, I'm glad that you think that my story is original. I hope that you keep reading and liking it!

DarkAngelGuardian- thanks, please keep reading!

Koos- I know what you mean, I couldn't stand the Faith/Wood pairing. And I will make sure to work that thing in about Xander and Faith somewhere in the future. Thanks for the suggestion.

Chosen-5x5- Thanks for reviewing. Since Buffy stopped the First from becoming corporeal, didn't she kinda kill it, if not destroy it? I mean, it's not like it's ever going to come back, otherwise they wouldn't have ended the series with it. I don't know. Anyway, thanks for reviewing.

BJ- Thank you so much. I am glad that you like everything so far. And you are right about the Angel-droolage. I hope that you like what I have done with this chapter. Your comment added something to the story arc that I probably wouldn't have thought of myself. Thanks again, and keep reading and reviewing!

Well, everyone, that was it. Chapter 3. I hope that you liked it. I know it was a little rushed, but I just needed to get it out. Please keep reviewing! Thanks! P.S. Try looking up the meaning of the italian name 'Belinda.'I think that you'll see why I chose it.