Disclaimer: Don't own Smallville, Supernatural, or Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Based very loosely on Doppelgangland

"So, you and your boyfriend live here?" Ava asked as she glanced around the apartment. "I imagined something different. Something, I don't know, more Apocalyptic-y."

"Sam's not my boyfriend." Chloe had, in an effort to give her nervous hands something to do, begun folding the clothes she'd washed the other day as she talked with the psychic who had apparently witnessed a future in which the blonde brought hell to earth.

"What is he, then?" Ava wanted to know curiously. "He's always in my visions of you, you live together, and given how vastly different your looks and sizes are I doubt you're related. So what is he?"

Chloe opened her mouth only to close it seconds later, not sure what an honest answer would be to that question anymore. They were more than friends, more than co-workers, they were closer to family but it was different. They weren't lovers but there was mutual attraction. There was also the fact that while she was the conduit for the powers of the Sunnydale Hellmouth, he was her conduit… or able to tap into the energy… or something.

"I get it." Ava nodded sagely. "I've been there, done that myself." She leaned in closer. "You don't know exactly what he is, huh?"

"It's complicated," Chloe assured her.

"Anything to do with men is," Ava sympathized as she rubbed her head with a wince. "Can't live with them, can't live without."

Chloe paused when she felt something hard in Sam's shirt. She'd been sure she'd gotten rid of everything in his pockets but apparently she'd missed something. She reached into the pocket and pulled out something hard and burnt. It was a little smaller than the round of her was some sort of metal or something, and it'd once had some sort of carving on each side, but she couldn't make out what the symbols had been.

"No!" Ava gripped at her head. "Not again!"

Chloe glanced up in time to see Ava slip from the sofa onto her knees, a cry of pain erupting from her. "Ava? What's happened?" She dropped the shirt and hurried towards the fallen brunette. Right before Chloe touched Ava she felt the Hellmouth energy warn her, but she was too late to stop herself, her fingers resting upon Ava's shoulders. Immediately power erupted from within her, but instead of rushing towards Ava (as she'd expected) the Hellmouth energy within her broke free and sought the coin.

In seconds Hellmouth energy erupted around them in a living blanket, and then all was darkness.

"So, you a big Billie Idol fan?"

Those were the first words out of Lucy's sister's mouth and already Spike could see why Kal wanted to kill her. He'd agreed to this dinner out of pure curiosity, wondering just how a mere human could rattle the "Last Son of Krypton" the way she did, and he was already contemplating eating her. He glanced over at Lucy, wondering what his chances were of getting away with it, but the tiny brunette was eyeing him warningly with a death grip on her chopsticks.

Okay. Fine. He could play nice.

"That bollocks copied me," Spike informed the bint like one might a stupid child.

"Considering the age difference, I'd say you copied him," Lois Lane replied. "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery."

"Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness. Oscar Wilde." Spike glared at the expression of shock on Kal's face. "I read." He turned his attention back to Lois. "So you, you little bint, have just insulted me. Do you know how stupid that is?"

"Spike," Lucy growled at him in warning.

"My god, is it your time of the month or something?" Lois rolled her eyes, not at all worried like she should be. "Get your panties out of a bunch. I happen to like the whole 80's London aesthetics. It's really… punk rock glam. Plus, not a lot of guys could pull it off, you do though." She eyed him. "It's the cheekbones." She leaned in close. "Do you contour or are they this defined naturally? I normally don't ask guys if they use makeup, but from your black fingernails you obviously don't mind cosmetics."

Spike had no idea how in the world to handle this girl without outright killing her. "Are you always this bloody annoying?"

"Yes!" Lois grinned brightly. "I'm always this opinionated, too."

Spike turned his gaze on Kal, who mouthed: 'I told you so'. The vampire groaned and shook his head. This was going to be a long night.

"Where are we?" Ava asked as her hands fell to her sides in shock and she pushed up from her knees to her feet.

Chloe gave a little twirl, confusion deep within her. "I have no idea." Pocketing the thing she'd taken from Sam's pocket, the blonde looked around the grand living room. "But I'd love to live in a place like this one day."

"Who wouldn't?" Ava muttered as she went towards a table covered in framed photographs. "Um, Chloe? You know how you said you'd like to live in a place like this one day?"

"Yeah?" Chloe glanced over her shoulder at her.

"I think you do." Ava picked up one of the picture frames and showed it to her. "Or at least you know someone who does."

Moving towards the brunette, Chloe took the frame from her. In it she saw herself wearing a silky white dress and leaning with her head against Sam's side, his arm around her shoulders and his grin large. Dean was also in the picture, making a mischievous face as he gave both Lois and some other brunette bunny ears. On Chloe's side was a petite caramel skinned girl with black, wavy hair and hazel eyes who raised an eyebrow at the camera as if saying: the things I do for these people.

Passing the picture back to Ava, Chloe turned towards the other frames, finding pictures of her and Sam, as well as other pictures of those in that first picture. In addition, though, there was one with Kal and Lucy, who were trading grins with Spike and Drusilla, and then there was another picture of a redhead and dark haired man kissing.

"Where the hell are we?" Chloe asked softly.

Suddenly the door flung open and the redhead in the picture stormed in. "I sensed a great disturbance. What happened?" Veins of black darkened on her face as she held her palm out towards Ava, energy coursing through her fingers visibly. "Who are you and what are you doing here?"

"I don't know!" Ava threw her hands up immediately. "Don't hurt me!"

"Hey hey hey!" Chloe threw herself between Ava and the redhead. "Look, uh, I don't know your name but from those pictures we seem to be friends… or friendly… or something."

The redhead's eyes widened on her, and then narrowed on Ava behind you. "What have you done to her?"

"I didn't do anything!" Ava wailed. "I swear!"

Red's face suddenly darkened as she turned her attention back to Chloe. "You're blocking me. Why?" She staggered slightly. "Is this a punishment? Did Xander do something?"

"What?" Chloe asked as she stared at the redhead. "I'm blocking you because you look like you're about to do something bad to Ava, and I need her in one piece."

"Why?" The redhead wanted to know. "Isn't she a White Hat?"

"White—?" Chloe shook her head. "Look, this is going to sound very weird, but what date is it?" When the redhead told her the exact date, Chloe confirmed it was the same as the day she'd been with Ava in Sam's apartment. "So this isn't the future… Can you tell me where we are?"

The redhead frowned darker. "Your home."

"My home." Chloe glanced around her, remembering that just seconds ago she'd wished to live in a place like this. "Thing is, I don't have a home, I'm kind of staying with a friend… I'm between homes, you know? I'd remember this place if I bought it or was given it or whatever." She cleared her throat. "And where exactly is this home located? What part of the world is it in?"

"How can you be so calm about this?" Ava hissed.

Chloe and the redhead ignored the brunette.

"Sunnydale," the other woman replied slowly.

"Sunnydale?" Chloe frowned darker, growing more worried. "Why would I come back to live here?"

"Come back—?" The redhead frowned. "You've never left."

"Never left?" Chloe echoed those words as she once more reached for a frame and stared at it, stared at the people she didn't know in a picture she didn't remember taking. "Maybe… an alternate timeline?" She eyed the redhead curiously. "One in which, for some reason, I didn't leave with Angel when he lost his soul?"

"Are you serious?" Ava squeaked in surprise. "Are alternate timelines real?"

"Quantum physics—," Chloe began.

"Oh no," the redhead whispered, seeming absolutely terrified. "It's happening again. This time to you." She pulled out a phone and began dialing, speaking the second someone answered. "I've found her…. At the house… She's fine…" She glanced over at Chloe in obvious worry, the dark veins slowly disappearing from her face. "Listen, this is important. Remember what happened to you a little while back? The whole thing where you thought this was an alternate reality or one made up by some sort of wish or something?… I know you don't remember it, but we told you—that's not important!" She ran fingers through her chin-length red hair. "What matters is that it's happened again. This time to Chloe. But she's not alone. She's with some mousy brunette."

"Excuse me?" Ava gasped in insult.

"Just get here." Hanging up, the redhead turned to face Chloe once more. "I don't know what's going on, but I guess I have to introduce myself to you. I'm Willow, you call me Red." She motioned to her red hair. "I'm one of the Master's prodigy witches, I'm also part of the inner circle you allow to tap in and use your energy."

Chloe froze in horror. "The Master's alive?"

"Undead, but yes," Willow answered. "When you disappeared he sent all his minions out to search for you. We were all incredibly worried. Even though we've won against the White Hats, things aren't—."

The door flew open and Chloe somehow knew. She looked up and her gaze met Sam's. Relief filled her because, alternate reality or not, this was Sam and he—he was suddenly in front of her—and he was—his lips—he was—! Chloe's eyes widened as Sam's arms wrapped around her tightly, positively lifting her off of her feet as he kissed her with an intensity that left her shocked and breathless. She could feel the energy inside of her, the one she had little to no control over anymore, reacting immediately, exploding and coursing throughout her body to settle in her fingers and toes with warm tingles.

NORMAL TIMELINE

Lucy Lane dragged Spike away from the living room (and her sister) by his shirt. She glared behind them at Kal and mouthed that he better keep her sister occupied if he knew what was good for him, and within seconds had Spike out of hearing and around the corner. Immediately she turned to him with a glare. "If you try to bite her again when her back's turned to you you're going to wake up in a pile of dust!"

"How can you tolerate her?" Spike bemoaned as he threw his hands in the air. "How does Kal do it? She's positively torturous! And not in a good way!" He shuddered. "She said I reminded her of Kiefer Sutherland in Lost Boys!"

Lucy raised an eyebrow. "No killing my sister!"

Spike glared and folded his arms over his chest, completely put upon.

ALT TIMELINE

"So… you and I…?" Chloe hugged herself as she kept her back to him and instead peered at a black silk bed in what was a room worthy of a Queen. The decoration was interesting, all sorts of sigils and symbols were burnt in the walls, and there were artifacts from multiple different ancient cultures all around the bed. "We've been together for a while?"

"Since high school," Sam answered, incredibly patient with the millions of questions she'd piled on him the second he'd excused them to the room so he could 'check her' - which constituted him running his glowing hands over her whole body. "We got together soon after Dean and I found out that Buffy was the Slayer. That's why we weren't at the Bronze when the Harvest happened, and is probably the only reason we're still alive now."

Peering over her shoulder, Chloe eyed him as he leaned in the doorway. "So we didn't stop the Harvest." Okay, things were making sense. This was an alternate timeline in which things had changed because they hadn't stopped the Harvest and the Master had arisen earlier than he had in her timeline. Everything from the moment the master had arisen would've been completely different from how it had happened for her, and had somehow ended up with Chloe dating Sam Winchester and not Angel.

"I don't understand what whoever is doing this expects to get out of this," Sam whispered in clear frustration, having found nothing amiss during his 'check'. "This happened before. I just blanked out and thought things were different, that the Master hadn't arisen and that you were some guy with a girlish name like Cherub or something like that. I was sure that a spell or something had happened, or that I was under some weird dream curse. I don't remember any of that. All I know is that one minute I'm fine, and the next everyone is telling me about all the things that happened while I was… I suppose I can call it… trapped in my own subconscious?"

The thing in Chloe's pocket nearly burned. Sam. Her Sam, had come here. Why hadn't he told her about this or what had happened? Why had he kept it a secret?

"So Angel didn't come to Sunnydale in this timeline," Chloe whispered as she sat down in understanding. "It makes sense now. Angel is the one who warned us that the Harvest was coming, so if he wasn't around we would've been unprepared for it… and this future would've happened." She let out a stuttered breath. "Wow. You know, with everything that's happened in our lives it's hard enough to keep up with the present, I never really stopped and wonder how things might've ended up if we hadn't managed to avert one of our many disasters."

"Chloe, someone did this to you, okay? It's definitely the same people who did it to me." Sam sat next to her on the edge of the bed. "We're going to figure out how to fix you, like I was, and everything will be fine." He cupped her cheek. "As soon as you accept that this is the truth things will come together, it's what I believe happened to me."

"But it's not," Chloe informed him as she turned to face him on the bed. "I know it's hard for you to believe, but I'm not your Chloe. I'm the Chloe from the timeline where the Harvest was averted. I'm the Chloe who dated Angel in high school and got kidnapped by him when he lost his soul and spent a couple of years in Europe with him and Spike and Drusilla as their well-kept hostage."

"No, look, I was confused like that too," Sam denied with a shake of his head. "It'll come back to you. Okay? The White Hats are just-."

"No, look, Angel-."

"You killed Angel!"

Chloe's eyes widened as she froze in horror. What?

Sam sighed and ran his hand over his face. "I don't remember it, it was during – from what I've been told you and the others captured this vampire who was trying to fool you into believing he had a soul." He licked his lips. "I wasn't there, but Bette was, and she says that he was working for the White Hats. You got information out of him, and then you killed him."

Tears filled Chloe's eyes as she stared at Sam in mute horror. The Chloe of this timeline had killed her corresponding Angel? And after an interrogation? She and Angel had been working on opposing sides? But why? This didn't make any sense! What was going on in this timeline? Why had the Master arising earlier caused things to change so monumentally?

And yet, while she wanted to ask more on this topic, it wouldn't help her. No. There were more pressing things to consider. Her timeline's Angel was alive and well, and that was all that mattered. This timeline was different, and that meant that these versions of her and her friends could know things that those from Chloe's own timeline did not know. And that was all that mattered right now.

"Are there people who can tap into me against my will here?" Wiping at her eyes, Chloe cleared her throat and steeled herself. "Like you can?"

Sam frowned as he eyed her thoughtfully. "I'm your Conduit, I'm the only one with a connection that's always open, but there are others who have the ability to use the Hellmouth energy to strengthen their magic, yes, like Red and Bette."

This was the second time she'd heard that name. "Who is Bette?"

Sam's eyes widened for a second before he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, bringing up a picture of Chloe grinned with her arms around a petite olive skinned girl with hazel eyes and dark curls. She was the same younger girl from the picture in the living room. "This is Bette. She's a Special Child like Red and I are, but she's Next Gen."

"Special Child?" Chloe leaned forwards, eyes wide. "What do you mean Special Child?"

"They've really done a number on you," Sam whispered as he brushed her hair out of her face. "Baby, Special Children are the people Azazel experimented on when they were infants, feeding them his own blood to make them a mixture between Animus demon and human." He brought his hand to his chest. "I'm a half Animus demon, half human."

Chloe's eyes widened, her heart banging painfully against her ribcage. "Dean too?"

"No." Sam shook his head. "Dean's a vampire."

Chloe nearly slid off of the bed in utter shock, but like with Angel she pushed that revelation out of her mind and didn't let it distract her from what really mattered. "What was the purpose of making Special Children?"

"We're not actually sure," Sam admitted. "A lot of us were hunted down by a group of White Hats formed by some guy my dad used to know, Gordon Walker. It took us a while to figure out the connection and save the ones we could, but most were murdered in Walker's two Purge campaigns. In the end Bette, Red and I are the only ones still around. One is your bodyguard, and the other works under Spike to keep an eye on things there for you... and I'm your Conduit."

Filing all that down in her mind under MUST REMEMBER, Chloe nodded and told herself to make sure to get Red and Bette's names in full for future use. "I think Ava's a Special Child… and I've met three others… Andy, Webber and Max. Andy and Webber could make people do whatever they wanted, and Max was telekinetic." She took in a deep breath and was about to ask more about this when suddenly she realized something. "If we've been together since high school… have we broken your family curse?"

There was clear hesitation before Sam nodded. "In a manner of speaking, yes."

"What do you mean: in a manner of speaking?" Chloe moved closer, just as desperate for these answers as she'd been to know about the Special Children and their purpose.

Sam cleared his throat. "Well… the curse is only, uh, active while you're alive… so when Dean died and became a vampire it basically nullified the curse for him."

Chloe's eyes widened in shock. "What about for you?" She narrowed her eyes. "You're still alive, right?"

"Yeah, of course I am." Sam licked his lips, clearly nervous and uneasy right now. "But it's, uh, it's a little different for me."

Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Why? How?"

Sam cleared his throat. "Well, honey, how much do you remember about yourself?"

Her eyes narrowed even further. "I'm the Conduit of Hellmouth energies who is unable to control the power inside of me and everywhere I go the Hellmouth energy starts to leak, or I channel some unknown Hellmouth close by, and basically create a small Hellmouth wherever I am that draws the attention of demons everywhere because they're confused because they know no Hellmouth energy should be around. I was raised by Gabe Sullivan but he's not my father, I don't know who my real father was, the Master said it was him but that was actually a lie. My mother was doing some really dark magic when I was conceived so my father could be anyone's guess, but he probably wasn't a really nice guy given who she was hanging out with at the time. Also… uh… Azazel knows more than he's letting on about who I am and stuff that are about to happen."

"Right." Sam cleared his throat once more. "Chloe, that's not exactly true."

She froze. "Which part?"

Sam opened his mouth.

The door flew open, and Red was there, eyes narrowed. "Sorry for interrupting, but the Ava girl is withering on the ground in agony. I don't know what's going on. I think she's being attacked. It could be by the same person who did this to Chloe."

Sharing a look, Sam and Chloe pushed off of the bed and hurried behind Red.

NORMAL TIMELINE

"I've been wondering how long it would take you to come and visit."

Sam hated feeling predictable, but kept his mouth shut as he emerged from the dark tunnel to the cellar where Angel had taken up residence since he'd returned. The place was a piece of shit, and considering Sam knew for a fact Angel could afford better he realized this was something akin to Catholic Guilt. Angel was, in his own way, trying to pay penance for all that he'd done, and part of that was by depriving himself of things like a decent place to stay in.

"Sorry, I don't have more comfortable seating." Angel motioned to a stool before leaning against the wall.

"I'll stay standing, thanks." Sam glanced around the dingy place. "What do you know about family curses?"

The surprise on Angel's face was bright and genuine. "Excuse me?"

"The Winchester men were cursed so that any woman they loved would die in a horrible way," Sam replied. "Cordelia's time was running out… She just left Dean and he's… he's destroyed." He let out a sigh. "Have you ever heard of any sort of similar generational curse and a way to get rid of it?"

Angel stared at Sam in confusion. "I thought you'd come here to tell me off for coming back – that you were here to yell at me for what Angelus did to you and Chloe." He took in a deep breath. "I've been waiting for you to do that."

"Well, that's not what I'm here for," Sam muttered with a deep breath of his own. "Look. You and Chloe have issues, but they're between the two of you and I have no place getting mixed in that." He licked his lips. "And if you want to make up for what Angelus did to me, then help me break this curse so my brother can get back the only woman he's ever loved."

Angel stared at him before he lowered his head and exhaled. "Do you have more info on this curse? Like who put it on the men of your family?"

Sam nodded. "Dean and I finally got information out of our father – it was like pulling teeth though to be honest – but we have it. It's at my home."

Shoulders rising and lowering in a deep breath, Angel looked up at Sam and held out his hand. "I'll help you break the curse on your family."

Staring at that hand, Sam waited a split second before placing his hand in Angel's. While it was best for him if Angel had no reason to stick around, Sam put his brother's needs before his own. "Welcome back to Team Scooby, Angel."

ALT TIMELINE

Ava curled up in a ball on the ground, holding her head tightly as she held her eyes tightly and cried out in obvious pain. Tears cascaded down her pale cheeks as she began to rip pieces of hair out of her scalp from the strength behind her grip.

Kneeling in front of Ava, Chloe placed her hand on her forehead, and immediately felt a kick of power to her gut which left her breathless. She closed her eyes and tried to fight it, but when she opened her eyes she realized she'd lost the fight, because in front of her wasn't her living room, or Sam's living room. No. They were somewhere else entirely as images flashed before her eyes

…

Chloe, Ava and Sam stood with their backs pressed against the door, which was shaking behind them under a great strain, something large visibly trying to break in.

"This is it!" Ava cried out in fear as her body trembled. "This is what I kept seeing!"

"What's going on?" Andy gasped breathlessly from the corner, huddled along with some other strangers, looking very scared.

"Don't you get it?" Max asked from where he sat on the dust-covered floor, his back against the wall. "Am I the only one who understands what is going on or why we were brought here specifically?"

"What do you know?" Chloe yelled from where she fought with the others to keep the door closed.

"Yeah, dude!" A guy of African American descent asked as he joined them, putting incredible force against the door and helping seal the creature out. "Spill!"

"Wait, you don't know?" Max's eyes were wide on Chloe. "Are you serious?" He let out a dark chuckle. "Wow. That's amazing." He leaned his head hard against the wall. "I'd thought you would've known even if these other idiots didn't."

"What are you going on about?" One of the other strangers hissed. "Why should that girl know what's going on?"

Max shook his head, disgust on his face. "Because 'that girl' is the reason we're all here."

…

"NO!" One of the girls screamed and hid her face in the face of another as the group stared up at the body, which had been skinned and hung. Chloe wasn't in the group anymore, and she was terrified that meant that the body hanging up there was hers.

"We're all going to die," Ava whispered as she hugged herself, eyes wide with tears as she stared up at the body.

"No, we're not," Sam whispered back with a hand on her shoulder. "We're going to get out of here."

Ava closed her eyes and tears streamed down her cheeks.

…

"No!" Dean screamed as he knelt on the ground, Sam's lifeless and blood-covered body on the ground in front of him.

…

Cordelia's body lay in front of an open hellmouth, her blood pouring from her into it, causing it to glow intense scarlet.

…

Angel was covered in blood and clearly injured as he pulled an unconscious and very injured Giles into his arms.

…

Buffy's body was half-propped up by the spear that pierced her body, its handle deep in the ground. Her eyes were wide and lifeless, the blood that dripped from her lips still fresh.

…

John Winchester looked up in shock as he yanked the blade out of his chest and peered up at the person who'd buried it deep within him. "Why?"

…

Chloe levitated in the air, eyes closed, hellmouth energy whipping out around her like a tornado as hellmouths opened up all around her.

And there, standing in front of her with a grin, stood Azazel, eyes glowing yellow.

…

Hellmouth energy exploded from deep inside of Chloe… and all hell broke loose.

…

Gasping, Chloe opened her eyes to find that Ava had stopped crying and stared at her with the same horror she knew her own face conveyed.

"See?" Ava wiped at the blood trailing down her nostril. "That's what I see, over and over again. The world's going to end, and you're going to be the reason it does."

Collapsing into a seated position, Chloe stared ahead of her numbly.

NORMAL TIMELINE

Giles couldn't help but stare at Joyce's… husband. He'd met the "man" a couple of times while meeting with Joyce to give her updates on his search for Buffy's whereabouts, and never had he even suspected that the man wasn't human. And yet, staring at Ted so… disassembled… he couldn't help but gawk at Buffy's step father.

Dean had proved just how out of it he was with Cordelia's leaving when he merely glanced at Ted and then shrugged and threw himself on the sofa, completely ignoring the robot in the box in the corner. His gaze remained on his phone, as he texted message after message and called as well, with no luck whatsoever. It didn't take a genius to know who Dean was trying to get into contact with.

Sighing, Giles wanted to go over there and comfort Dean, but he'd known the boy long enough to know that he didn't need comforting right now. Dean needed to be left alone to try and get in contact with Cordelia, and once he was ready to talk he'd come to them. He'd at least not closed himself off to them and had chosen to come and be here with them, and that was good in Giles' books. It meant that even though he was emotionally wrecked Dean knew that he couldn't do this alone, and would no doubt reach out once he was ready to. Until then everyone had to respect his need to be left alone while he texted on his phone desperately.

"Chloe and Sam will be over soon, Sam went to go and pick her up since her phone is going to voicemail," Buffy assured her mother, who was drinking tea and eyeing her boxed up husband with open worry. "If there's anyone who can fix Ted it's them." She glanced over at Dean and cleared her throat before returning her attention to her mom. "It mightn't happen right away because we're in the middle of some sort of crisis, but they will fix him. I promise."

"Thank you," Joyce whispered as she squeezed her daughter's hand. "I know Ted's and my relationship is difficult for you to understand and accept, but your support means so much, Buffy."

"I just want you to be happy, mom." Buffy's voice choked. "And if Ted makes you happy, then I'll do all in my power to give him back to you."

Joyce smiled a tearful smile at the strawberry blonde.

There was a knock at the door, and when Giles opened it he was shocked to see that Chloe wasn't the one standing next to Sam. "Angel."

"Rupert." Angel looked the picture of shame and contrition. "I hear there's a possible Apocalypse, and a family curse, that you guys need help with." He motioned with his head towards the boxes of books he and Sam were both carrying. "I think I can help with both."

Giles' gaze went to Sam's, surprised that the boy had been the one to go and bring Angel back into the fold. He stared at Sam and realized for the first time that he couldn't consider Sam a child anymore. This had been the most grownup move the boy could've ever done. "Come in, Angel."

"Thank you," Angel whispered as he walked in.

Giles stared at Sam, questioning him silently.

"We have an apocalypse to avert and a curse to break, Giles," Sam whispered in answer, eyes averted. "We need the Scoobies back together if we're going to do either."

Smiling, wondering if this was the pride a father felt when his son grew up to be a good man, Giles squeezed Sam's shoulder and ushered him in.

ALT TIMELINE

After what had happened in the living room everyone had insisted Chloe lay down in bed, and she hadn't resisted. Not only had being forcefully planted inside of Ava's visions taken a lot out of the blonde, but what she'd seen had left her weak at the knees and highly nauseas. Was that the future? Were all of her friends going to die such horrible deaths? Was she really the cause? Why? How?

What could she do to stop it?

That was the question she kept asking herself long after Sam had left to go and 'liaise with their assets', leaving her alone in the room, with Red guarding Ava in the living room.

Chloe didn't know how long she'd been there trying to rack her brains on a way to avoid the deaths of everyone she loved and held dear, but after far too long she realized she was no longer alone.

"Hey." A body flung itself on the bed next to her, hazel eyes watching her with a frown. "I came as soon as I found out."

"Bette," Chloe recognized the girl from the pictures.

Bette smiled as she lay on her side and shuffled a little closer. "Sam told me you got whammied like he did a while back. He's gone with some of the others to try and figure out something to help you get your memories back." She made a face. "I should've been here. No more sending me off-base on missions. I'm your bodyguard for crying out loud. I could've deep-fried whoever did this to you."

"You can create fire?" Chloe guessed from the comment.

Bette held her hand up and watched as black flames appeared, licking at her wrist and fingertips. "I couldn't control it at first. Couldn't localize where it appeared or if I projected it outwards or not. You helped me stop accidentally killing anyone who came near me."

"How?" Chloe asked softly.

"You really don't remember, huh?" Bette sighed heavily as the flames disappeared immediately. "Well, every Special Child you guys came across could conduct your energy and use it to fuel their abilities. So knowing that you can guess that you could magnify my power." She licked her lips. "Or weaken them if our powers draw mainly from Hellmouth energy, like ours do."

Chloe sat up immediately. "I can do that?"

"Of course you can." Bette sat up as well, their legs crossed under their bodies, their knees nearly touching. "You blocked Red's attack on that Ava chick, didn't you? Even now I'm working on stored energy, you've got me completely blocked off too." She cleared her throat. "I mean, don't get me wrong, we don't just feed off of hellmouth energy, but that's where our powers really manifest their true form." Bette made a face. "But Hellmouth energy can control anything, sentient or not, if it's concentrated enough and the intent is clear."

"How did we meet?" Chloe asked softly.

"I lived on the street before… I'd hurt people." Bette took in a deep breath. "There was a bus. People got hurt. You felt the tug on the Hellmouth energy and found me." She gave a half-hearted shrug.

"What's your full name, Bette?"

"Why?" Bette tilted his head curiously.

"Because when I get back to my time I want to find you," Chloe responded sincerely. "Sam says there were a group of people who tried to kill Special Children. I want to make sure I get to you before I did in this timeline, maybe together we can find a way to stop that from happening."

"You're from this timeline you know," Bette declared with a frown. "You're the same badass who survived what the White Hats did to you, who toppled over their regime. Not even the Initiave stood a chance."

"What's your full name, Bette?" Chloe repeated patiently.

Bette sighed and lowered her head. "Bette Sans Souci."

Chloe nodded as she committed that name to memory. "Show me how to help you."

Head raising, Bette's thickly kohl lined eyes stared at Chloe in clear conflict before she sighed and nodded. "Maybe this will help jog your memory." Sitting up straighter, Bette threaded her fingers through Chloe's and held them tight as her hazel eyes met the girl's greens. "This is what you did." And with that she showed her.

NORMAL TIMELINE

Chloe's phone went straight to voicemail again.

Sam glanced up at the clock and frowned. It was getting late. Where exactly was she? He'd swung by the apartment and had seen signs of her having gone there after meeting up with Angel, and yet there'd been no trace of her, and she wasn't answering her phone. If she continued to do this he was really going to start getting worried. She knew better than to go walking around alone at night, especially with everything that was going on.

He peered over at Angel, who was talking to Dean. While Sam's brother still wasn't a hundred per cent back to normal, the fact that they were actively working on how to break the curse, and had a much better chance now, had visibly invigorated him. The look of hope on Dean's face was enough for Sam to not regret bringing Angel back into the fold, despite knowing that that would no doubt be the catalyst for Chloe and the vampire getting back together.

"This is horrible," Joyce muttered as she slowly read through one of the books, having surprisingly enough offered to help, most probably in an effort to keep her mind off of the back that her husband was disassembled and awaiting repairs. "I can't believe there are people out here who would use these kind of spells on others."

"People are sick, mom," Buffy informed her.

"It's disheartening," Joyce muttered once more. "Ted and I were talking to Sheila and Ira the other day and you should've seen what happened to their house last Thanksgiving. It was disgusting. They had to spend the whole next day cleaning up that filth with their daughter, who'd come back to visit them from university."

Sam glanced over at "Ted", shook his head, and tried dialing Chloe's number once more.

ALT TIMELINE

The door flew in and Bette stood immediately, defensive, before realizing who it was and collapsing on the seat once more with a sigh. Chloe and her had gone back to the living room after Bette had showed her what Chloe had done to help Bette with her abilities, and both girls had been speaking with Ava when the door had been kicked open. Ava seemed to take her cues from Bette, but still looked nervously at the newcomers. Chloe, on the other hand, was shocked stiff. The last person she'd expected to see marched into the room with a girl she'd had never seen before.

Lois Lane stood there, shaking her head before gathering Chloe in her arms. "I can't freaking believe it, you too? Meg blinked to where I was and brought me back early. I can't believe, first Sam and then you?"

"Blinked?" Chloe asked in confusion as she glanced over at 'Meg', realizing her eyes were now black. She was either an Animus demon or half. "Half or full?"

Meg looked confused for a second before she blinked and her eyes were brown once more. "Full. I'm Meg Masters, or, well, my first meatsuit was named that and it kind of stuck."

"Meg's one of us," Lois informed her as she pulled away and looked Chloe over. "So, did Sam tell you about the time he spent over in this dimension?"

"No, he didn't." Chloe's eyes wide. "Wait - you know that it was a switch? Or, well, I think it's more like our consciousness playing parasite in the version of our bodies in this dimension."

"Who do you think helped Sam get back to his own dimension?" Lois wanted to know. "I figured it was either a subconscious jump, or a dimension switch, but since apparently you didn't have our Sam walking around over there, and he has no memories of your side, a parasitic take-over does seem the most likely."

"You can't seriously believe that," Bette declared from where she sat. "Sam, Dean and Red-."

"Seem to have forgotten exactly who she is and what she's done in the past," Lois interrupted with a roll of her eyes. "Am I the only one who remembers the Pylea incident?"

'Pylea?' Ava mouthed to Chloe in confusion.

Chloe shrugged, having no idea what they were talking about either.

Bette's eyes widened and her lips parted. She then cleared her throat and folded her arms over her chest with a pout. "That happened before I joined the gang. I can't be blamed if it slipped my mind as a possibility."

"Are you really not with Sam in your timeline?" Meg asked curiously. "I can't imagine that."

"Especially since your boyfriend has such a girlie name," Lois muttered in agreement.

"Ex boyfriend, actually," Chloe corrected with a flinch. "It was a rough breakup."

Lois' eyes. "Oh, that makes sense."

Chloe frowned at her in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"Your switch, it makes absolute sense now," Lois declared. "Sam made a wish on a fountain that he didn't realize had a cursed coin in it. He wished that you would've never met Angel, so the coin transported him to this reality, where you'd never met Angel. If you were going through a bad breakup with Angel you probably subconsciously wished you'd never met him either… but without the coin to act as an inter-dimensional anchor it's shocking you came here too. There have to be other realities in which you and girlie-name-boy never got together so why did you also come to this exact-?"

Chloe's eyes widened and she reached into his pocket, pulling out the charred metal thing she'd removed from Sam's dirty clothes. "This coin?"

"Aha! Mystery solved!" Lois yanked the coin away and peered at it, flipping it over. "Did you know this bad boy got me pregnant once? The effects went away the second Sam destroyed it, but damn, I mean, it didn't even buy me dinner first."

Chloe just stared at her cousin.

"So, do you want to hang around or do you want to go back home immediately?" Lois wanted to know curiously. "I know how to get you back if it's the first."

"We need to go back," Chloe responded immediately.

"Do we, really?" Ava asked softly from the sofa, flinching at the look Chloe gave her. "You saw what I've been seeing! If we go back that's going to happen! Everyone's going to die and the world's going to go kaput!"

"We have to go back to stop that from happening," Chloe argued.

"But your being there is what makes it happen!" Ava threw her hands in the air. "If you stay here then that yellow eyed guy can't use you to end the world!"

"Yellow eyed guy?" Meg asked immediately, eyes narrowed.

"Yes, Azazel," Chloe responded before her eyes widened. "He's an Animus demon. You might know him!"

"Know him?" Meg stared at Chloe in confusion. "He was my father."

Chloe's eyes couldn't be wider. "Your father? How can we not know what the Special Children were created for then?" She hurried to Meg and grabbed her shoulders. "Why would Azazel want to use me to destroy this world?"

"He wouldn't, he likes this place too much," Meg informed her. "You don't get it, Anima is very much like what the Christians refer to as Hell, it's horrible there. There was no reason why he'd want to destroy the place that he saw as his own brand of Heaven." She cleared her throat. "And my father kept the whole Special Children thing close to his chest. It never played out anyway, John Winchester killed him a very long time ago, before you even came to Sunnydale."

Chloe's hands slipped from Meg's shoulders as she took in a deep breath.

"See? Yellow Eyes doesn't exist in this universe," Ava decided as she stood. "We could stay here and keep our world from…" She made an exploding gesture with her hands. "Both worlds continue to exist and no one dies in very graphic and grisly ways, that's a win-win in my books."

"Cordelia and John were somewhere other than where we were. Their deaths have nothing to do with me," Chloe informed her. "I have to go back, I have to save them."

"They'll die anyway when all hell breaks loose!" Ava threw her hands in the air. "I don't want to return to that! I can't-I can't keep seeing all those horrible things – all those deaths! I saw the way I die! I won't die like that! I want to stay!"

"Then you stay," Chloe snapped. "But what I saw about Cordelia… I can't ignore that!" She turned to Lois. "If I destroy this coin and wish to go back, it should take me home, right?" When her cousin nodded, Chloe took in a deep breath before hugging her tightly. "I haven't seen you in so long. I've missed you."

"Really?" Lois asked softly as she hugged her. "So I'm not in Sunnydale in your timeline?"

"No, you're in Europe," Chloe responded. "Lucy's there too."

"Lucy didn't die on vacation with her school friends in your timeline?" Lois pulled away, eyes filled with tears, and when Chloe shook her head she took in a stuttered breath. "Is she happy?"

"Very much."

Lois smiled and wiped at her eyes. "Finally. Something good about your timeline."

NORMAL TIMELINE

Angel kept glancing at the clock and then towards Sam, who despite having brought Angel there to help them research the two active issues at hand, was visibly distracted. The vampire wondered if it had to do with the fact that Chloe wasn't here. Was that because Angel was here? Was she refusing to come and Sam was trying to convince her to do so?

It hurt Angel to know just how bad he'd fucked things up. Not only had he gone and lost his soul, but he'd put Chloe through some horrible things for three years, and then the second his soul had been returned to him he'd freaked out and bailed on her when she'd needed him the most. Angel knew he was a piece of shit, and it was half of the reason why he hadn't let her know that he'd been in town for much longer than he'd let on. He'd watched from afar, trying to protect the best he could from the shadows, and he'd intended to do just that…

…and then he'd watched her throw the Claddagh ring he'd given her for her birthday outside of her bedroom window. He'd collected the ring from where it'd fallen and wore it around his neck. And when she and Sam had emerged from the apartment they were sharing, smiling at each other, he'd been unable to move and hide in the shadows as he'd been doing for so long now. The fear might've been what had rooted him to his spot.

Throughout the months he'd watched from the shadows as best as he could he might've missed the moments where she'd been tapped into (although he wasn't exactly sure how or when that could've happened) but while they were apart what had given him a sense of hope was the fact that despite it all she still wore his ring on her finger. No matter how angry she rightfully was with him, she still cared enough for him to be unable to get rid of it. And then she did. Did that mean she no longer loved him anymore? Had she fallen in love with Sam? Was that why Sam wasn't pissed off at the vampire like he should be? Why he was so at ease with bringing him back into the Scooby Gang?

Angel knew he didn't have a right to ask Chloe to forgive him, or to ask her to give him another chance, and he'd let her know that. He wasn't here to brush under the rug all the horrible things he'd done as Angelus, and the cowardly actions he'd done as Angel. No. Chloe deserved better than that. But he wanted to protect her, and after hearing that multiple people had forced connections with the hellmouth energy inside of her (and he'd had no freaking clue) Angel had realized that he couldn't truly protect her in the dark anymore.

That was why he was here, whether she wanted him there or not.

ALT TIMELINE

"Don't you want to wait for Sam to get back?" Lois asked as they stood together on the balcony.

"He's not my Sam," Chloe whispered with a shake of her head as she held the coin up between them. Ava had gone with Meg to get as much distance between her and the coin as possible so she wouldn't be taken back with them when the magic was completely destroyed. There was no way she would return to the normal timeline, and Chloe didn't blame her. The girl had seen countless times how Chloe condemned the earth, but now that Chloe had seen what had happened she knew what needed to be stopped. She'd find a way to save Cordelia as well as the world. She would. No matter the cost.

"Your Sam's in love with you too," Lois whispered right back. "I saw it in his eyes." She took in a deep breath. "Since things have gone pear-shaped with the Angel guy, maybe you should give Sam a chance. He's made you very happy in this timeline." She smiled tenderly. "And you mightn't be my Chloe, but you're still a version of her, and that means I want you happy. Sam makes you happy." When Chloe didn't say anything, Lois sighed. "You know, you - the you from this reality - didn't want to believe there was a timeline in which she wasn't with Sam, but she eventually came to admit that yours exists."

Chloe looked up at her in surprise.

"She and I talked a lot about what happened with Sam, and about what that meant. We even tried to figure out which reality yours might be, but while the ones in which you're alive are very few, it's still very hard to pinpoint which one you are from." Lois made a face. "She had a feeling it wasn't over though. She said that something's been happening in the few realities in which you exist. She doesn't know what it is, but she can feel it's something bad."

"Wait, what?" Chloe stared up at the brunette in shock.

"Yeah, I mean, you only exist in very few timelines or realities. Chloe has been researching this like crazy since everything happened." Lois let out a deep sigh. "To put it in perspective, let's say there are a hundred different realities - you only exist in like ten of those realities. Those aren't the actual numbers, but it's to put it in perspective. And it's weird, especially given everything we know about you."

Chloe's gaze lowered to the coin. "Lois, why does Sam's curse not work? With Dean it's because he's no longer alive, he's undead. So if Sam's alive why is the curse not active? Is it because he's half Animus demon?"

"Of course not, silly!" Lois giggled in amusement. "It's because you're…" her mouth moved and formed the words that would forever alter Chloe's world.

Her eyes widened in horror. "That can't be. I—I'm not—! That's a lie!"

"Beelzebub's balls…" Lois' expression was absolute shock. "You didn't know."

Chloe stared down at her hand as Hellmouth energy seeped from her pores against her will, reacting to the overwhelming feelings welling deep inside of her. "I'm not…" She gazed up at Lois, feeling so lost and scared and confused. "Please tell me that was a lie."

"I'm sorry Lil Cuz," Lois whispered, tears filling her eyes. "I didn't realize you didn't—how could you not know?"

She was right. How could she have not known? Not have realized? Suspected?

Bette got up and stormed towards the balcony, obviously sensing something was wrong.

Tears filled Chloe's eyes as she collapsed to her knees and hung her head, tears falling as magic exploded around her. She blinked and found herself back home, the coin in her hand now nothing more than sand.

Sobs escaped her lips as she collapsed to the floor and curled up in a ball.

Her phone rang loudly from somewhere in the apartment.

She ignored the sound.

TBC