Chapter 10: The Mission is What Matters

Squalls of light rain rattle against Spike's window while Buffy sleeps in his protective embrace. Blonde wisps of hair drape around the sharp corners of her convex face, giving Spike full view of all her exquisite features. He wonders what will be responsible for waking up the beauty in his arms - the storm outside his window or the rumble of his belly from lack of sustenance. Before he can place a bet, Spike feels a powerful vibration against his lower body and cocks an eyebrow. What the bloody hell? Buffy groans and scrunches up her face, digging into her pocket for her ringing cell phone. Oh.

"Hello?" she says drowsily. "Uh, hi Giles. Yeah. Oh, you came by my room?" With bags under her eyes, Buffy looks up at Spike. "No, I stepped out early this morning. I was … craving a scone," she lies. "Okay, I'll be there in a few. Bye."

"Morning, Sunshine. Duty calls?"

"Uh, yeah," Buffy responds distractedly as she springs off the mattress. "We have a Scooby meeting. I totally spaced." She looks down at her feet as they reach the floor, realizing she must've kicked her shoes off at some point in the night, along with one of her socks.

"Sounds riveting," he grumbles in a sleepy voice.

"You can come if you want. I think Angel will be there too."

Spike rolls his eyes and runs a hand through his bristly, blonde hair as he pushes himself off the bed.

"I wouldn't want to steal Tall, Dark and Dreary's thunder. Think I'll opt for warm blood and telly-time instead," he says while sliding on his combat boots. Meanwhile, Buffy struggles to find her chunky, black pumps.

"Have you seen my-"

Spike appears in front of Buffy with her missing shoes and one frilly, pink sock.

"Nope, haven't seen 'em," he says with a wicked grin. She scowls at Spike and snatches them out of his hands playfully.

"Look, about last night," begins Buffy as she slides on her heels. "I'm not trying to pressure you into coming with us. You're your own vampire-person and you can make decisions for yourself." Buffy pets down her powder-blue tank in an attempt to smooth some of its wrinkles. She knows she doesn't have time to stop by her room to change before the meeting.

Hope nobody notices I'm Outfit-Repeater-Gal today.

She pouts and makes her way over to the door where she finishes her thought. "But if you do decide to come with, I wouldn't … hate that." Buffy glances at him one more time before exiting the room.

"Quite the romantic, she is."

The Scoobies, along with a few allies, gather around a conference table in the Cleveland Headquarters' boardroom. Buffy hides a yawn and takes a quick survey of the space: it's a fairly plain room, filled with an incredibly strange group of people. Andrew stands next to Giles eyeing the She-Demon, Illyria, whose feet are firmly planted in darkness beside Angel, who couldn't look more displeased to be here. Robin Wood - Head Watcher of this HQ and Faith's ex-whatever - stands as far away from the feisty, brunette Slayer as possible, resulting in some uncomfortable tension. Her heavy Doc Martens drumming against the floor, Faith walks over to Willow and whispers something into her ear. Okay, weird, Buffy thinks. Did anyone else see that? Her eyes search for Xander, who she finds doodling on the white board waiting for the meeting to start. Meanwhile, the storm rages against the double hung windows, reminding Buffy to close the blinds - a safety measure for Angel in case the sun comes out during their meeting. People who are seeing each other for the first time share a few awkward glances before sitting down at the long, distant table.

"Alright, what's the first order of business?" Buffy starts off.

Andrew's hand shoots up immediately and everyone suppresses a long, exasperated groan.

Here we go.

"Yes, Andrew?" she regrets asking.

"I just wanted to say I think it's hogwash that I didn't get an invite to this meeting. You guys are lucky I overheard Xander talking about it in the hallway," Andrew whines with crossed arms. In no mood to humor him, Buffy moves past it.

"Great, anyone else?"

"I got something, B," Faith answers. Willow's face shoots in the direction of the dark-haired Slayer as she speaks, consumed by her gravelly voice. "I know some of you already know this -" Meaning everyone but Robin, Buffy thinks. "... but a few of us got ambushed last night during patrol and some Slayers got hurt. They'll probably need to sit out of tonight's outing."

Unable to keep himself from speaking up, Robin shifts toward her angrily.

"You've been here one night and I already have injured Slayers? You have to pay better attention to your squad," Robin orders. "We're low on fighters here as it is." He is clearly hinting at the fact that Faith decided to join the rest of the Scoobies in Scotland a few months ago, leaving Robin to lead the Cleveland HQ alone. Since both of them refuse to talk about their problems, the reason for their breakup remains a mystery to the gang. But the animosity between Faith and Robin suggests one of them - probably Faith - messed up big time. Xander looks at Willow and sends her a message with one pointed eye: She's not-committal, Will.

"Excuse me? I was doing my job," Faith barks back at him.

"When you're here, your job is to protect these girls."

"What do you think I've been trying to do?"

"I think you need to be more focused during patrol," Robin dictates in a tone that makes Faith lose her cool.

"Wow, look at the Principal trying to school me. You've really let leadership go to your head, haven't you? Well, news flash: I don't answer to you."

"This is the job you instructed me to do, so why don't you- "

Buffy is about to step in before things get too hasty and possibly violent when someone else takes it upon themselves to interject.

"Why don't you just lay off?" Willow blurts out at Robin, causing everyone at the table to look at her in confusion. "It wasn't her fault." Faith's doe eyes fill with surprise and appreciation for Willow, whose random outburst was a strange comfort. She's not used to people - especially a member of the OG Scooby Gang - standing up for her.

Giles, ever the voice of reason, addresses the three of them.

"Why don't we get back on track?" He readjusts his glasses and refers to his notes. "I think, perhaps, we should do introductions. We have some new faces here today."

Angel turns into the shy, new kid on his first day of school while Illyria remains stationary in her seat.

"Illyria, uh … would you care to go first?" Giles asks the blue woman. She glances at Angel, who is sinking into his office chair.

"I am Illyria, God-King of the Primordium, Shaper of Things. I came to this world to unleash my Army of Doom on humanity."

Buffy and Giles flash each other worrisome looks, which Angel then clocks. Before Illyria says anything too alarming, the gloomy vampire interrupts.

"But then she decided against that and joined forces with us instead."

"Because my demon army perished," Illyria says in her plain, logical voice, staring straight ahead. The group exchange a second round of disturbed glances. Again, Angel tries to fix things.

"She's kidding." He looks at her directly and speaks in a firm, reprimanding voice. "Tell them you're kidding."

"I do not engage in humor," Illyria answers, triggering Angel to clench his fists in frustration.

"She's good now, really. I'm working with her," he reassures the unsettled humans that surround them.

Illyria takes in his words. If the God was ever capable of surprise, it was now. She studies Angel's face and wonders: is this my new teacher?

The Scoobies can't really argue with Angel's efforts to redeem Illyria when three of them are technically murderers. In addition to that, she hasn't done anything to give them reason to distrust her. Besides the fact that she tried to enslave the world a few months ago, Buffy thinks. Just that little detail.

"I'm Angel," he notifies Robin - the only person in the room he hasn't got acquainted with yet. "I, uh. I led Angel Investigations over in L.A. We … helped the helpless. "He wrestles with the idea of announcing he's a vampire but instead says: "I'm a Cancer."

"Lovely," Giles responds in a monotone voice, realizing that putting the two most awkward people in the room on the spot probably wasn't the best idea. "Moving on - Willow?"

Willow, who has been trying to avoid Faith's eye-flirting for the past three minutes, is brought back to reality. "Yes! That's me. Um. I've been in contact with the coven and we haven't sensed any bad juju from the Senior Partners. Pretty dead energy, actually. I-I don't want to say we're done with them for good, cause y'know, we've been wrong before. But I think the worst is behind us."

"So, we're Scotland-bound?" asks Xander.

"Wait, hold on. I've been fighting these guys for years. There's no way they've just decided to close up shop," Angel tells the Scoobies. Buffy swears there's a hint of disappointment in his voice.

"Angel, their army is gone. There's not much you can do without an army," Xander returns before awkwardly looking at the God across the table. "No offense ..."

"Perhaps some of us should stay behind to be safe," Giles suggests. "What do you think, Buffy?"

The five foot tall Commander in Chief takes a few moments to think over her former Watcher's proposal.

"We can't wait around forever for another army to show up. By that logic, we should've anticipated The First to make an uber-vamp-sized comeback." Buffy takes a look around the room at her friends, who seem to agree with what she's saying. "But instead, we focused on things we can change. Like helping these girls." She traces her thumb along the outline of her jaw, weighing her options. "The Scottish squad gets bigger every day. I have more and more Slayers showing up that need training. I can't stay here."

"What about me, Buff? I can stay," Willow offers, followed by a faint frown from her bestest friend.

Willow has spent more time away from Xander and Buffy in the last year than she has during their entire friendship. As the Slayer Organization grows, their individual talents are needed all over the globe, which means the Scoobies usually have to split up during non-apocalyptic times. If it's selfish to want us all to be in one place for longer than a day … then I guess I'm selfish. Despite Buffy's greedy desires, she's always willing to put them aside for the good of the group.

"If you want to stay, Will, that's good with me. I'll stick around for a few more days and then we'll be in touch," Buffy declares, trying to keep all emotion out of it.

"I can stay too," says Andrew. "The Slayers in Italy aren't really taking to my authority. I think it's a cultural thing."

"Yeah, I'm sure that's it," Faith quips, throwing a leg up on the table. The rain outside seems to have settled down as a tiny ray of sunlight peaks in from the bottom of the blinds and dances on the floor.

"This is unnecessary. My team can handle the Senior Partners, we've been doing fine for years," Angel chimes in.

Xander looks around the room with a furrowed brow. "Uh … what team?"

"Me and … Illyria." Angel says pathetically, wracking his brain for more potential candidates. "Spike, I guess. Oh, I have a friend in New York I can call. Gwen. I'm sure Gwen is available."

"Great, you and your three friends can take down an all-ancient evil by yourself. Let us know how that goes," Xander sasses. Angel is about to unleash a long-awaited insult on him before Buffy pipes up.

"You need us, Angel. Whether you like it or not," she says. "We'll do our best not to step on your team's toes."

Angel calms to Buffy's voice, settling back into his chair. He notices that Illyria looks unsure of what to do with this emotion-fueled conversation. Angel wonders what she's thinking. Probably ... 'pitiful humans. Their lust and attachments make them lesser beings. They are the muck at my feet." Illyria's annoying speechifying is so ingrained in Angel's brain that he hears it even when she isn't speaking. Just … kill me, he thinks to himself.

"Does anyone want to add anything before we close out?" Buffy asks the group.

"You reek of my pet," Illyria directs at the blonde Slayer. "Why is he not in attendance?"

"I'm sorry, your what?"

"She means Spike," Angel says through gritted teeth. "He does have a pungent odor."

Oh, jealous vampire crap, how I've missed you.

Giles conceals a look of … worry? Anger? Disappointment? Buffy refuses to give it her attention.

"Okay, can we just -"

"I don't know, I think Spike smells nice," Andrew adds on to the conversation. "Kind of flowery with like ... a smidgen of death."

Alright, time to leave, is all Buffy can think.

While they speculate about Spike's scent, Xander tries to strike up a conversation with the glowering Illyria.

"So, like, what's your story? Do you come with a Thor Hammer?"

"She's not an action figure, Xander," Willow reprimands him from across the table, although the answer starts to peak her interest seconds later. She turns toward Illyria abruptly. "Wait, do you?"

"I carry no weapon but my body," the all-powerful and alluring God tells them. Xander and Willow send each other another message with their eyes: I think I'm in love with her.

"Everyone cool if I open the window? We could use some sun in here." Robin already has his hand on the blinds' ladder string when a few shrieks from Buffy and Willow stop him. He turns around to find that Angel has thrown himself into a dark, isolated corner.

"Uh … what's the problem?"

"Angel's a vampire," Buffy informs him like he already knows the answer. She gets silence in return and decides to add on to her previous statement. "And you know … sunlight equals bad."

"Yeah, no, I got that part," Robin says, backing away from the window and readjusting his tie, a ritual that seems to help him unwind. "I just thought someone might give me a heads-up." He sits back down in his chair with the intention of playing nice - although he really doesn't want to.

The tension in the boardroom grows stronger than ever. Buffy feels for the man before her. The child of a Slayer, Robin Wood lost his mom too young - and to Spike, a demon who the Scoobies consider an ally. Robin's defensiveness, sensitivity and lack of trust are all things to be expected in a room with a vampire, a demon-god, an ex and a Slayer who often forgets to text him important details. But his special hatred for blood-suckers is something Buffy didn't put a lot of thought into before bringing two of them into his Headquarters.

"Before you get all vampire-huntery, just know: Angel has saved more people than anyone I know. And I don't mean saved like … just pulling someone out of a burning building. He's saved people's souls," Faith praises him while leaning back in her chair. She gives Angel a half-smile and he almost - almost - returns it. Buffy watches them look at each other from across the room and wonders what exactly went on between them in L.A.

It doesn't matter … it's none of my business.

Robin tries to maintain a professional manner, though he's close to losing it, which Faith can sense. She knows it's time to back off, but she can't let go of how he reprimanded her earlier in front of everyone. Willow watches the changes in Faith's face, knowing she's about to say something to antagonize him further.

"Anyways, we'll do better at communication stuff. Sorry about that," Willow quickly tells Robin and then bites down on her lip. Faith scowls at the girl who robbed her of a bitchy moment.

"The energy is so weird in here. Be honest - did someone cut the cheese?" Andrew can't help himself from saying.

His ridiculous comment is the last straw for half the group's focus and the other half's patience. Everybody breaks out into their own bickering conversations - some more hostile than others - while Buffy stands at the head of the table, massaging her temples. She takes another look around at the strange mix of people.

I think we just put our fingers on why the Scoobies and Angel Investigations never joined forces.

"Enough!" Buffy bellows, resulting in sweet silence. "Well, I think that about wraps it up," she concludes with a fake smile, eager to get the hell out of this meeting. "Thanks for coming, everyone. We'll reconvene soon."

The sound of people getting up from their chairs and exiting the room is a soothing elixir to Buffy's headache.

"Listen, Buffy," Robin says to her on his way out the door. "I apologize for how I acted earlier. I'm very defensive of these girls and I want to make sure they're protected," he finishes sincerely.

"I understand. But remember - the mission is what matters," Buffy tells him. "Our emotions are assets, but we should be using them to make us better warriors. Not allowing them to get the best of us. Okay?"

From the abrupt shift in Robin's demeanor, Buffy can tell he's about to say something she doesn't want to hear.

"You know I have the utmost respect for you, Buffy, I really do. But did you find yourself wedged between two vampires - defending them at every turn - because 'the mission is what matters'?" Buffy doesn't have an immediate verbal response; only vexation brewing inside her. "I'm sorry if I'm out of line -"

"You are."

"I just know … Giles wants to say something to you but he's afraid he'll lose his Slayer." They both look over at Buffy's old Watcher and current father-figure cleaning his glasses. "I figured I'd take the bullet for him." Buffy looks back into Robin's heavy, brown eyes but remains silent. "It was good seeing you, Buffy. Let me know if you need anything while you're here." And just like that, he's gone with the rest of the migraine-inducing humans.

He means well but … wow, I want to hit him right now.

Outside the boardroom, Willow waits for Faith, who storms out the door in a fit of petty annoyance. She carries irritation with her in every miniscule movement as she pulls her brown hair into a high ponytail and huffs while doing so. Willow catches the brunette with her mousy voice before she gets too far.

"Hi," Willow says, speeding up her pace so she's beside Faith.

"Hey."

"You okay?"

"Five-by-five."

"You don't have to lie," Willow assures her.

"You don't even know what five-by-five means, Red."

"Then why do you keep saying it to me?!"

"It makes you angry. And then you squirm," Faith responds in her smokey, flirtatious tone.

Willow tries to hide her blushing eyes from the saucy Slayer who simply can't help but toy with her.

"Okay, well. If you need to talk or something, I'm here." Willow begins walking away, nervously fiddling with the loose thread hanging off of her fuzzy sweater.

"Hey," Faith calls after her from across the corridor, prompting Willow to stop dead in her tracks. "Thanks," is all she manages to say.

Willow's lips curve into a soft smile as she faces away from her and continues walking, leaving Faith alone in the hallway with her own haughty smirk.

"See you tonight," Faith mumbles to herself before strutting off into the direction of her room.