Chapter Eight;
"Angelus, it's nice to see you again," Temperance told him. He gave her a wicked smile.
"You look well, Tempest," he replied. "It's too bad that I have to take you to Wolfram & Hart so that they can turn you over to the Source. We could do a lot of damage."
"Oh, I'm sure we could, Angelus," Temperance taunted. "But you forget, we fight for two different sides now. I'm not evil. I have never been nor will I ever be evil." Angelus looked around the room, seemingly sizing up the easiest way to get her to surrender in a hurry. "That won't work, Angelus. I'm not the easiest target to bring in. Surely Lilah told you that."
"They told me a great many things," Angelus replied. Temperance took a step back toward Wes and looked at him.
"Get out of here," she ordered. "Don't argue. He can kill you easier than he can me." Wes nodded. "Wes, go someplace safe. Try to call the Halliwell's in San Fran. Ask for Phoebe. She'll know who to call to get me help." Wes nodded once more and grabbed Fred's arm, dragging her away. Temperance looked at Angelus. "If you want me, Angelus, you'll have to figure out a way to find me." She smiled a siren smile and shimmered out of the room. She vaguely heard Angelus curse before he ran up the stairs.
Temperance had been shimmering for what seemed like hours. She'd avoided Angelus for the first few minutes of their confrontation, but then she realized that it was only a matter of time before he found her. So she'd started shimmering to where he was, confusing him, and hoping that it would throw him off guard. No help had come yet. Temperance was beginning to wonder if help would come. She watched silently as Angelus turned the corner into room 217, and shimmered into the room behind him, careful to not be seen.
"You're pretty smart, Tempest," Angelus said aloud. "Your shimmering trick works well for you."
"One hundred and fifty years of honing the skill," Temperance whispered to herself.
"I will find you," Angelus taunted. "And when I do, you'll rue the fact that you ran from me." Angelus turned around sharply, inspecting the walls where Temperance had been. She'd shimmered mere precious seconds before he turned. Temperance was careful not to stay behind him for to long. She didn't want him to suspect that she was following him. Angelus growled. "Where are you?" he grounded out.
Temperance felt a tremor of fear flow through her body. She hoped that help came soon. Shimmering into the basement, Temperance sighed. It was as safe as she was going to get for the moment. She expected Angelus to inspect the upper levels of the hotel before he came to the basement.
Seating herself on the ground near the wall, Temperance brought her knees to her chest and laid her head down upon them. She prepared herself to reach into her sons' minds, hoping that they would shimmer to help her. Cre I need your help. Temperance sent out, hoping that it reached her son. He'd know where to find her, for their blood connected them. Apollo, please. Come help me. The only way she'd know if it reached them is if they shimmered to her in the next few minutes, hopefully bringing Cole or the Charmed Ones with them.
Cre was sitting at his desk when he heard his mother call. He looked at Apollo and noted the fear written on his brother's face. "Mom needs us," Apollo said. "We have to help her, regardless of what dad says."
"Should we tell him?" Cre asked. "Should we call Phoebe or Paige? Even Leo?" Apollo nodded.
"Dad won't be home for a while," he replied. "We'll have to get Phoebe and Paige."
"All right," Cre nodded his head. "See you at the Manor." He shimmered away, followed closely by Apollo.
Once the reappeared at the manor, Cre and Apollo immediately went to find the girls. "Paige! Phoebe!"
Footsteps on the stairs greeted them. "What?" Phoebe asked, looking at the boys with a smile. She frowned when she saw their concerned expressions.
"We have to help mom. She's in LA. She's calling for help," Cre told her. "She wouldn't call if she didn't need us."
"All right, I'll get Paige," Phoebe replied. "She can orb us to Temperance. You two shimmer to her." The boys nodded and disappeared.
Temperance hadn't given up hope. She could hear Angelus getting closer with every minute that went by. His taunts reached deaf ears. A familiar shimmer appeared before her, and Temperance saw Apollo and Cre.
"Oh thank the gods!" she cried and scrambled up to hug the twins. "I need your help to capture the demon hunting me." Temperance smiled when she saw familiar blue orbs appear beside the boys. "Thanks for coming. You're help is appreciated."
"You called, we came," Phoebe replied with a smile. "What's going on?"
"Angelus has been let loose again," Temperance explained. "The boys and I are going to capture him. I need him alive, so no staking him. I need you and Paige to prepare the re-cursing spell."
"Re-cursing?" Paige raised her eyebrows.
"Angelus is the vampire with a soul," a faint voice answered. Temperance looked over to see Willow standing in the shadows, or at least, an astral projection of Willow. "You'll need this." The astral being handed Paige a scroll. Paige took the scroll and looked at Phoebe questioningly. "It's in Romani, but Temperance knows how it goes. Buffy sends her good luck and Spike wants you to dust the ponce."
"Thanks, Wil, and we'll see each other again soon," Temperance said. Wil nodded and disappeared. "Not at all like Prue when she astraled," Temperance told them. "She isn't as strong as Prue, yet."
"How are we supposed to get the stuff that we need for the ceremony?" Phoebe asked, reading the scroll that Paige held open in front of them.
"There's a demon bar across town called Caritas," Temperance smiled. "Apollo knows where it is, he'll shimmer you there. A man is there; his name is Wesley Wyndam-Pryce. He'll give you everything you need."
Phoebe and Paige nodded. "What are we to tell him about you?" Paige asked.
"Tell him that I have the help I need. We'll be okay," Temperance replied. "Apollo, as soon as you get them there, get back here. It will take all three of us to get Angelus this time." Once Apollo nodded, Temperance gave him a smile, and then remembered about Lorne. "Oh! Don't worry about the demon you'll meet. He's an empath, and can read your destiny through karaoke, but he can't hurt a flea. His name is Lorne."
The girls nodded again and took Apollo's hands. They disappeared.
Temperance looked at her other son and sighed. He grasped her hand. "It's going to be okay, mom. We'll bag ourselves a vampire, re-curse him, and have another player for defeating the Source and Uncle Dare."
"I hope that you are right, Cre. I really do, for all of our sakes," Temperance whispered to him. "If he brings me to the Source, we'll all be in trouble for resisting him."
"I know, mom, that's why bringing in Angelus is so important. We'll need him," Cre smiled. "I'm just itching to hit something real that isn't Cole or you."
"Well, keep the voltages low. I don't want this particular vampire dead," Temperance instructed. "You remember how to keep the energy voltages low, right?"
"Yeah," Cre answered.
"Good," Temperance smiled. Apollo shimmered in and looked at his mother.
"They'll hurry as fast as they can. Phoebe sent Paige to get Cole, and Paige will send him here," Apollo whispered. "Now all we need to do is locate Angelus."
"Upper levels somewhere," Cre said. "Mom, any suggestions on how to get up there?"
"We shimmer. Different places at the same time," Temperance replied. "You both know what Angel looked like. Angelus looks the same. Track his demon. That will lead you right to him."
"We didn't go through that in training," Apollo looked at her.
"It's okay, sweetie," Temperance replied. "You're Cole's son; it'll come easy to you. Don't doubt the demon inside of you. It's meant to be used, not left alone to fester into something horribly evil."
"Thanks mom," Apollo smiled.
"All right," Temperance looked at them. "You know what do to. If you can, lead him down here to the cage. We'll lock him up and re-curse him that way."
"Got it," Cre said. Temperance smiled.
"Good. Let's go," she whispered and shimmered to the upper levels of the hotel.
Cre and Apollo stayed together for the most part, which made Temperance happy. It was less of a risk to have them together when they were the strongest like that. Temperance found herself showing up in front of Angel constantly. She drove him to the lobby of the hotel, where she hopped to get him to the basement as soon as she could.
"You're pretty smart," Angelus taunted. "Using your children as decoys. Bet the Source will have good use for them."
"I bet the Source won't have a use for you once you bring me in," Temperance replied. "He knows I can't be caught willingly. That's why he sent you to do this job. I'm unattainable." Temperance shimmered in front of Angelus and smiled. "You can't catch me, Angelus; I'm too much of a demon for a half-breed like you." Angelus snarled and grabbed her around the neck before she could shimmer. Temperance grabbed Angelus' wrists and used her demonic strength to remove them from her neck. It was then that Cole shimmered in.
"What the hell?" he exclaimed, rushing to her side.
"No time, basement," Temperance replied and both shimmered to the basement. Temperance shoved Angelus into the cage and slammed the door, locking it.
"We'll see how much of a demon you are when I get out of this cage," Angelus raged. Cole looked at her, noting that she had a thin red line along her neck.
"You're hurt, are you okay?" he asked, lifting her chin to get a closer look at the slight wound.
"I'm fine, Cole. It's just a scratch," Temperance replied, moving away quickly. She let out a sigh of relief when familiar blue orbs appeared before her. Paige and Phoebe smiled at her and held up their hands.
"We've got all that the curse required. And Wes tripled each thing, just incase the first ritual didn't work," Paige told her.
"Good. He's a smart man, that Wesley," Temperance smiled. Angelus jumped against the cage, making the three girls jump. Cole walked up to the cage and looked at Angelus.
"If it isn't the infamous Angelus," he taunted. "Caged up like a rabid dog."
"Cole!" Phoebe and Temperance exclaimed.
"Don't make him angrier than what he already is. I don't know how long that cage will hold a demon of his caliber," Temperance chastised. "If he gets out, you aren't going to be seeing me anytime soon."
"You can't hold me long, Tempest," Angelus growled. "I'll escape."
"Ignore him," Temperance ordered. "Cole, go find the boys. Paige, cast the circle, and Phoebe, hand me the scroll, please. I want to read it over before we start the re-cursing ritual."
Cole shimmered out, as Paige began to cast the circle. Phoebe handed Temperance the scroll, and stood beside her, arms crossed over her chest. "Do you think that the ritual will work?" Phoebe asked.
"Honestly?" Temperance raised her eyebrows at Phoebe. "I don't know. It worked twice before, but who's to say it will three times? We are running on hope, Phoebs. The third time isn't always the charm in the world of the Slayer and her friends. Sometimes it's the worst try of all."
"You've done this before?" Phoebe asked.
"I had to. Angel's curse is that he is never to know true happiness. If he does, he'll lose his soul and become the thing he was and is now; the scourge of all Europe," Temperance explained. "Gypsies cursed him because he fed from their princess. They wanted him to feel the guilt for killing all those people in his life. His worst victim was Drusilla, a young woman he made crazy before he turned her."
"Circle is cast," Paige said, coming up to Phoebe and Temperance.
"Good, we'll wait for Cole and the boys, and we'll get started," Temperance said. "I have a feeling this is going to be a long ritual."