Disclaimer: Same as always. I am in no way affiliated with the Jossverse. . . I am just an obsessed fan.

Chapter Ten: Waking Up

Xander woke up to see Cordelia staring down at him. 'Cold and shallow as ever,' he thought, as he looked at her vacant eyes. 'Couldn't even be worried about me while I'm unconscious.'

Cordy rolled her eyes. Xander was such an idiot. He never had got it right; he was never going to learn that women don't like men that faint! Sure, he was still cute. Boyishly cute, like an imp. Not Johnny Depp cute or anything. Still, there was something about him that she would always like and, as she sat down on the bed next to him, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of regret about the way things had worked out. If he hadn't kissed Willow like he did, if it had been a quick kiss . . . maybe she could have forgiven him the way Oz forgave Willow. She couldn't forgive him back then because she had seen the look on his face. He had meant it, when he kissed Willow he was kissing her because he wanted to. Gazing over at him, Cordy still felt admiration. So she did what any well- bred American girl would do. She pinched hi on the shoulder.

"Owww!" He screamed. "You tell me my best friends are vampires and then you PINCH me? What is your problem?"

"Gee, Xander, I don't know. Maybe I'm still mad at you for making out with Geeky the Witch Bitch!"

"Cordy, you do realize that was like a year ago, right?"

"Whatever!" Cordelia stood up quickly, glaring at Xander. "I just want to know Xander, has it hit you yet? It's been a year, has it hit you that I really loved you and you threw me away?"

With those last words, Cordelia walked out into the sunlight, smiling. Xander was unhappy and she would be just fine. She was a member of Angel Investigations and had work to do. She would find Doyle and they would work side-by-side. When they got home, she would tell him that she loved him, too, and they could start their lives as a crime fighting couple. The couple that kicks ass together, stays together.

On the other side of the door, Xander rubbed his arm. 'Cordy is such a mean-ass,' he thought to himself. His arm hurt, his best friends were vampires, and his ex-girlfriend had pinched him. Anya was in Florida and couldn't kiss him better. Life was really starting to suck. Deciding that the only option available to him was to find Giles, Xander stood up and began to walk towards the door, when it opened again. Again, it was Cordelia.

"Listen, Harris!" she declared. "I know your girlfriend is out of town and I know your friends are vampires. That is why I've decided to help you. We are gonna go find Giles. And another thing"-

Stopping in her tracks, she grabbed him by the sides of his shirt and kissed him full on the mouth. His mind went blank. He couldn't think about Buffy and Willow and he Definitely couldn't think of Anya. All he could think about were the two satin lips pressed against his, the tight, firm body pressed against his. He didn't understand why she was kissing him, he didn't like her, but he couldn't help himself. He kissed her back.

Willow watched from her hiding place behind the ice-maker. She was waiting for Angel to come out of his hotel room. 'What kind of vampire was he anyway? What kind of vampire sleeps in a hotel room? What was had he done during the day, slept in the bathtub?' She looked at her fingernails and smiled. He was going to be so fun. She didn't know yet how to strip him of his soul, but maybe she could strip him of other things. . .like his clothes. Ever since she had been turned, she had thought of sex a lot. Made sense, too. . . vamps in movies have sex constantly. Buffy wouldn't care if Willow tasted her man. After all, Spike was supposed to have been hers. He promised to love her, but so far only Buffy had gotten any "lovin."

Willow heard footsteps, so she ducked down. She saw the profile of a girl getting off the elevator. The girl had long, chestnut colored hair and tan skin. 'My oh my,' thought Willow. 'Could I really be this lucky? Could it really be Cordelia?'

As Cordelia grew near, Willow stepped out from behind her hiding spot. She was disappointed, Cordy didn't scream or look afraid. She looked bored.

Sighing heavily, Cordelia asked, "Oh my God, do we really have to do this now Willow? After all, I have just come back from making out with Xander, your little crush. I'm kind of tired."

Willow felt herself growing angry. Her teeth dropped and her face bumpified. "Oh, yeah, bitch. We have to do this now. I'm so hungry."

Running at Cordy, Willow could almost taste the other woman's blood. 'This is gonna be so easy' she thought, pinning Cordy to the wall. That's when Cordelia surprised her, bringing her foot up and bringing it down on Willow's foot.

"Ow!" screamed Willow. "Who stamps on someone's foot?"

Willow charged again, but Cordy was ready. She stabbed at Willow with a stake. She had gotten pretty good with a stake over the past three years, now was her time to prove it. The first blow landed in Willow's arm. The second, however, got her in the heart.

Or where her hear was. Unfortunately, Cordelia discovered that willow was smarter than other vamps. There was something in her shirt, protecting her heart.

"Listen up, Cordelia. Go inside. Tell Angel I'm out here. This is your shot to live, don't be a hero."

Cordy slipped into the door. She looked around. Doyle was asleep on the bed and Angel was still in the closet. Knowing full well that a hotel was a residence and Willow wouldn't be able to get in, Cordelia climbed into the bed next to Doyle instead of even bothering to wake anyone up. She wasn't afraid of the big bad witch. She was just glad to get some rest.

Waking up next to Spike, Buffy smiled. She didn't know if it was possible, but she decided that she loved him. She had never taken him seriously when he had said he loved Dru, she had always thought that soulless people were incapable of love. Waking up beside Spike had changed all that for her. She was humbled and full of lust. Together they would fight, showing no mercy killing whatever they could. Together they would drink. Together they would sleep and make love and live forever. She smiled and evil, saitisfied smile. Nothing could make her feel more satisfied than the feelings she had with Spike. She shook him and he woke, grumbling.

"Spike, you didn't want to miss the whole night did you?" Buffy pouted. "I'm really hungry from all that work last night."

"Mmmmm. Me, too, Pet. What do you want to eat?"

"I don't know. I guess I could go for some Chinese food. . . Wanna go kill Mr. Nguyen?"

"He's the chap on eight street, right?"

"Yeah. The only thing is. . . "Buffy trailed off, looking troubled. "How do you get them to hold the MSG when you drink their blood?"

TBC