Disclaimer: BTVS isn't mine, neither is Angel. Original characters may show up. If so, they are mine.

Chapter Nine: What happens next?

Xander Harris sat in his parent's basement reading a Superman comic. Anya was in Florida on some sort of "business mission." She had been very vague about her destination which was unusual for her. Xander was falling for the very blunt, very strange, very pretty woman, but he was enjoying the time alone. Things had been moving very quickly in his life and he really hadn't had a chance to make any plans. He typically seemed to be a complacent individual, but the truth was, in reality Xander liked to reflect. The goofy mannerisms were more a defense mechanism than anything else, and he was secretly relieved when he and Anya could quietly enjoy nothingness- the simplicity of staring at the sky.

There was a knock on his door. He was startled. He hadn't seen Buffy or Willow in weeks and Giles wasn't the type that normally spent too much time hanging around Xander's basement. He did secretly stop in now and then for fruit punch, but that was strictly on the hush-hush.

Xander opened the door. What he saw shocked him. He had been shocked before due to years of adolescent demon hunting, but nothing had ever shocked him as much as the face staring back at him. His blood ran cold.

"Cordelia?" he asked, incredulously.

"Xander. Hi. Can I come in? I know you don't really understand this new thing called manners, but. . ."

Ah, Cordelia! His truest enemy, the bane of his existence. She was so beautiful to look at. She had the richest hair, the smoothest skin, and the deepest eyes. She would have been the perfect woman if she would keep her mouth shut. Whenever she spoke it was hard to remember how beautiful she was, all you could notice was her smart-ass comments and judgmental vanity.

"Come in."

Cordy entered Xander's meager surroundings and took a seat on the only chair that looked clean. She had been in Sunnydale with Angel and Doyle for about two days. They had worked hard to stay incognito, but Angel was sure Drusilla had seen him traveling. She had visions whenever anything involved one of his (cough) family members. Cordy had been the one to do most of the snooping around. Doyle accompanied her to keep her safe, but he had no connections in Sunnydale. Willie had remembered her from the early days. He wasn't afraid of her. In fact, now that Willow and the slayer were evil, no one evil had much to fear. That was really the reason Willie had told Cordelia about Buffy and Willow. He took pleasure in it. Of course, Cordy's reaction wasn't what he had hoped. The news made her nervous, but not sad. Although Cordy still carried a grudge against Xander, she did have sympathy for him. She was at his home to break the news.

"Xander, I don't know how to tell you this. Angel, Doyle, and I have come to Sunnydale because something horrible has happened. You really aren't going to like this. You should sit down."

Xander did as she suggested, his mind reeling under the weight of possibilities. Could Anya be hurt. Was she back to her old tricks? Was her businessy mission just a cover so that she could wreak havoc on men who had scorned women? He felt weak at the thought of losing her.

"Cordelia, just tell me! Is it Anya?"

"Who?" Cordy paused, trying to recall the name to memory. "EWWW! You mean you're dating skanky demon girl? Little Miss wish granter? Gross, Xander!"

"Watch it, Cordy! I happen to love her! At least she's not a money hungry witch, like you!"

"You know what Xander? You don't even know me anymore. I happen to be in love, too. He's a half-demon and very poor and- oh, shit! Xander, you got me completely off the subject."

"Oh, it's my fault you went on a tangent."

"Shut up, would you? Buffy and Willow both got turned into vampires!"

Xander felt as if all the air had been knocked out of his stomach. He turned white, then grey. Buffy and Willow were his best friends and his friends were his life. He didn't know what to do; everything was spinning around him and there was a fog making it hard for his eyes to focus. He grabbed the side of his bed. Even though he was sitting down, he still felt the need to steady himself. Cordy reached out to help him, but it was too late. Everything went black as he collapsed to the floor.

Cordy rolled her eyes and scolded herself. "Yeah, Cordy, great job breaking it to him gently."

Willow walked into the crypt to find Buffy and Spike curled up together in a heap. Although she had wanted to be included in the relationship between them, she knew that the whole scene made sense. The sexual tension between Buffy and Spike had always been present and, now that Buffy was no longer the Slayer, she didn't have to be Little Miss Holier Than Thou. After she briefly scanned the room, she realized that Drusilla was also lying in a heap on the floor. That made slightly less sense. Where had she come from? As Willow drew closer to see what was going on, she realized that Dru was awake. Not only was she awake, in fact, she was talking to herself. Drusilla looked up, and their eyes met.

"Willow? You're the witch?"

"Drusilla? It's so good to see you. Spike has told me all about you."

"The other girl still kills us," Drusilla whispered without a trace of emotion.

"What do you mean?"

"She killed my only daughter, my Grandmother."

Willow scanned her brain quickly. Buffy had killed a vampire. How could Drusilla 's grandmother have been her daughter? Then it all suddenly made sense.

"They had somehow made Darla a human and you turned her again." She stated this with no hesitation, it was the only answer that made sense.

"Witchy, witchy fly away on your little broom. Company's coming and Daddy will be very cross when he sees that Slayer and Witch haven't fed Miss Edith any pie."

Buffy and Spike began to stir. They seemed unaware that anyone else was in the room and began whispering quietly under the covers. Willow sighed. Nothing was turning out as she planned. She had thought that, just once, she would be the center of attention. She started walking through the tunnels to the Magic Shop. She was getting angry and decided to do a little spell that would take things into her own hands. Angel was paying a little visit to Sunnydale? It was doubtful that he'd be coming alone. She would be ready to give him a proper welcome if only she could find a spell that would relieve him of that pesky soul. She would make Angelus come back into the picture. That would really shake things up.

TBC