Author's Note: What can I say, I'm an impulsive guy. Just this morning I wrote in my Live Journal that I was thinking about maybe, possibly continuing Excedo Inferi, now that I've somewhat gotten my fanfic gist back. And what do you know: It's evening now and I've gotten a part finished. Now don't go bouncing, I have absolutely no idea when I'll get around to the next part. 10 Parts to go in this episode alone and another 13 episodes in the 'season'.

Of course you all realize that massive amounts of reviews will help bring the next chapter out faster, right?

Enjoy!

Part 2:

Every instinct of Angel's was screaming at him to just go to Buffy's side and do what came so naturally to them after all this time, but he held himself back. It was for the best, he kept reminding himself. For the best, for the best, for the best. He had to keep telling it to himself or he would not be able to wait.

"How long?" he asked through clenched teeth.

Giles looked at the stopwatch in his hand.

"Two minutes, 15 seconds."

On the couch in front of the two men sat Buffy, sweat on her brow, trying to keep herself from shaking. This was difficult. God, it was difficult. For an estimated thirty years they had regularly fed on each other's blood. This had changed Buffy, was still changing her. Now that they were both out of hell she no longer needed the blood to survive, but she was still addicted.

And like with every addiction, the only way to defeat it was slow and very, very painful.

Buffy's breathing was already erratic. The need for Angel's blood came in regular intervals like clockwork and when it hit her she used to immediately go into seizures. Over the course of the last few weeks they had begun to lengthen the intervals between feedings. Which meant that Buffy had to endure the seizures for a time. She was able to delay their onset somewhat by way of concentration and meditation, but not by much.

Giles' stopwatch was just past the three minute mark when Buffy finally lost her grip and fell onto her side, her small body trembling like mad. Angel was by her side in an instant, picking her up, leading her mouth to his neck. Giles turned around, giving the two of them the illusion of privacy.

Whenever they shared blood it was like heaven. The taste of each other's life essence so sweet and delicious. How hard it was to remember that they needed to lessen the amount of blood exchanged, too. So it was with utter reluctance that both of them withdrew, even though they were both still feeling the need.

"How long this time?" Buffy asked after wiping the remaining droplets of Angel's blood from her lips. She was soaked with sweat and still a bit shaky. A hot shower was most definitely needed.

"Three minutes, eight seconds better than last time, Buffy. We are making good progress."

Buffy nodded, but couldn't quite get into the spirit of things. Sure, intellectually she knew that she needed to beat this addiction to Angel's blood. In Hell it had been necessary, otherwise she would never have survived. Here, though, it was a liability. Her dependence on Angel, the ongoing changes inside of her, first among them her temper, which was increasingly difficult to reign in.

Yes, intellectually she knew all this. It didn't make it any easier when every fibre of her being was crying out for just another little taste of the sweet red wine running through Angel's veins.

"I'm gonna take a shower," she said, getting to her feet. "When is Faith getting here for patrol?"

Giles looked at his watch. "She should be finishing her latest lesson within another ten minutes. She wanted to come here directly afterwards."

That, at least, did manage to put the ghost of a smile on Buffy's face. With Faith coming directly from another session with her harpy of a private tutor, chances were that her own misery would pale in comparison. After all, if one believed Faith, her tutor was the devil made manifest.

"I'll take a shower then. See you in a few."

"She IS the devil," Faith insisted, which caused Buffy to laugh. The sun had yet to go down, which was why Angel would only join them later on. Giles thought it would be a good idea for Buffy to spend more time in the daylight, no matter how uncomfortable it might feel due to the vampiric blood in her veins.

"You keep telling me that, Faith," Buffy answered. "Giles, on the other hand, keeps praising both her and the advances you've made since your lessons started."

The younger girl fidgeted a little. The idea of being good at anything other than fighting was still very new to her. It was a fact, though, that Faith was quite smart. She had just never been given the chance to show it.

"Giles is biased," Faith finally said. "He's my legal guardian, so he's gotta be supportive and stuff. And liking the harpy is probably genetic. She wears a blazer with elbow patches."

Faith shuddered at the image, which caused Buffy to laugh again.

The two Slayers kept walking as the sun dipped toward the horizon. Sunnydale's vampires usually appeared in two shifts. The older, more experienced ones came out right after sunset, looking to bag the people who had not made it indoors yet. The younger ones and the fresh risers didn't come out until past midnight most days.

Walking through Sunnydale's only decent shopping mall, Buffy and Faith kept their eyes open. Lots of people were still shopping late, lots of potential vampire snacks. For the moment, though, everything seemed quiet.

"Typical," Faith complained. "It seems every time I want to go slaying after my lessons no vampires show up."

"They probably know by now that you will only use them to work out your aggressions these days, Faith. Your lesson plan has probably become required knowledge for all Sunnydale vamps. Stay clear on Tuesdays and Thursdays!"

Faith gave her the finger, but smiled doing it.

A slight tingle made both Slayers look up at the same time. Over on the other side of the mall they spotted a familiar face.

"Isn't that Cordelia?" Faith asked.

"Yeah, and heading toward a shoe shop. What are the odds?"

Granted, Cordelia was no longer the shallow bitch queen of Sunnydale High that Buffy remembered from before her journey through Hell, but she was still the darling of every retailer this side of the Pacific. Her shopping sprees were legendary.

What had drawn the two Slayers' attention had not been their friend, though, but rather the girl walking beside her.

"Do you know that girl?" Buffy asked.

"Can't say I do. Are you getting a strange tingle from her as well?"

"Yeah. Not sure what it is. Not vampire, but something's off."

"Let's go check it out!"

Unfortunately it was not to be. The two Slayers ran across a small group of vampires about to lead a couple of young girls outside the mall, using some promise or other. By the time they had dusted the vamps and sent the girls home Cordelia was already on her way to the parking garage, bags hanging under her arms. There was no trace of her earlier companion.

"Hi, C," Faith greeted the brunette.

"Buffy, Faith! And wearing your working clothes," she said, motioning at the black leather coat Faith wore, the one she had swiped from Spike. "Evil on the prowl again?"

"Not so much, more like in the dust. Say, who was that girl you were with earlier?"

"Hm? Oh, that was Anya. She's a new student at Sunnydale High. Just moved here. I was showing her around."

Buffy dimly remembered her own introductory tour when she had moved to Sunnydale and started at Sunnydale High. There had been no trips to the shoe stores back then.

"Anything unusual about her?" Faith asked. "We picked up something of a vibe from her earlier."

"A vibe?" Cordelia asked, a slightly disgusted look on her face. "No way. She didn't burn in the sun and she likes to shoe shop, even though her stamina is somewhat lacking. She can't be a demon."

"If you say so," Buffy said, shrugging. "Still, I think we'll come by school tomorrow to give her the once-over. Just to be sure."

"You two are coming to school out of your own free will?" Cordy asked, a mock look of shock on her face. "The end of the world has arrived."

Laughing, the three friends walked off, unaware of the eyes watching them.

"This is going to be fun," Anyanka said to herself. "Oh yeah!"

TO BE CONTINUED