Disclaimer: All characters belong to Joss Whedon and Angel the series.
Synopsis: This is the third story in the Soul series I am working on. In order the stories are The Price of a Soul, The Judging of a Soul, and now The Weight of a Soul. The Council is having it's own inner-struggles but have been forced to stop their pursuit of Faith. Just as they are breathing a sigh of relief, once member of Council is killed and sends a package to the team that has caught them all by surprise.
Chapter Four
Angel had taken over for Faith. He'd had a long talk with Cordelia. Well, it was more of him talking and her laying there as though asleep. It was a definite change in positions for the both of them. All those times he'd wished she would be quiet and now all he wanted was for her to sit up and argue with him. Yell at him for it. Anything. But she didn't. Spike came and checked in, more or less kicking him out and so he headed back downstairs. The office was quiet so he knocked and opened the door. Wesley was sitting at his desk with Faith propped on the edge and Lorne leaned back against the wall.
"Anything?"
Wesley glanced up. Lorne looked around and then excused himself, slipping passed Angel to the stairs. Faith shrugged, her only comment and a way of speaking up for Angel's participation. Wesley rubbed at his face and sat up more.
"Well, Spike found a possible answer. Should we be able to transfer the visions from Cordelia to another, then she would wake and the person who took the visions would then be incapacitated."
Angel nodded and came in to sit in front of the desk.
"So we would just need a volunteer?"
Faith almost winced and lowered her face. Wesley frowned.
"We dismissed that as a viable alternative. However, Willow is on her way here. She and Giles believe that she may have a spell to help."
Ange's brow furrowed.
"Why are we dismissing Spike's information again?"
Faith stepped in, so much as she went to answer and put a hand over on Wesley's arm.
"Because it means putting someone else into a coma. She wouldn't go for that and we know it."
Wesley stood up and grabbed his glasses.
"I believe I'll head upstairs to get a few hours rest before Willow arrives."
He gave Faith a quick smile and she rose to kiss him before he took off. She watched him head for the stairs and nod to Spike as the other man headed for the basement. Faith waited until Spike was back out of view before she sighed and looked at Angel again.
"Look, you missed a lot, with that reading. It kind of caught us all off guard."
"I know, I know, the visions are hers."
"More than you know champ."
He frowned at her.
"All right, then tell me."
Faith sighed, then sat back down on the corner of the desk.
"Okay well, what's the one thing we all actually have in common?"
Angel had to think a moment, they were all quite different, but then it hit him and his shoulders slumped.
"Sunnydale."
"Bingo! And hey, did any of us fit in there? No, of course not, but see we gave up. In some way, we all gave up. Hell I gave up on them because I was afraid they were about to give up on me. You left because. . . "
"I got it Faith."
She leaned towards him, hands on her knees.
"No, you don't. That's what Lorne was telling us. It was a test, for her. She didn't have to help them, ever. We were all stuck in the middle of it, but she wasn't, she could have had nothing but normal if she wanted. I mean, I never cared. In Sunnydale, the stuck up cheerleader was the last thing on my mind, but after her reading I started to think about it. She was always, out of place. No one wanted her there, she sure as hell didn't seem to be helping a lot, but she still stuck around."
He raised his eyes to meet hers.
"She choose to stay, to help even when she didn't need to. They were, preparing, her for this. To make sure that she would want to help if she got them."
Faith nodded and sat back up, arms crossed over her chest.
"She's as stuck now as any of us. If you were meant to be a souled vampire fighting for the Powers and I'm meant to be a slayer, she's . . . "
"Meant to be a seer."
She shrugged.
"Destiny's a bitch."
Angel gave her a crooked, albeit genuine, grin.
"Thanks Faith. I think, I should go see how Spike's doing."
Faith jumped up after him.
"Hey one more thing!"
Angel stopped and turned back to look at her.
"He's in love with her, I know."
"Yeah, well. . . what about you?"
She was going to mention that Cordelia, had her heart set on another vampire but the look on Angel's face told her it wasn't something she should be talking about. Angel shrugged and continued towards the basement. Faith let him leave and went about to get things cleaned up, figuring coffee was going to be needed, again.
AA
Spike was hammering away at the swing bag, needing to get frustration out in some way. Sure he heard Angel approaching, he just didn't care. So he continued to punch at the bag. Angel entered the room and stood in the corner watching. He'd have to talk first so he gave a short nod.
"I heard you found something."
Spike spared him a glance.
"Didn' find nothin', poof."
"Faith said, "
"Ain't nothin' usable! Should know that yourself, 'course, shoulda known not t' try takin' them visions from 'er too."
Angel snarled at him, but Spike kept punching at the bag.
"Know what really burns though? I'd do it in a second. Take them visions, let 'er wake up. Didn' matter if they killed me or not. Problem is, she won' know, or care. All 'cause she's in love wit' a poof like you!"
He nearly broke the bag then and Angel was shocked out of his snarl.
"Me? She, she can't be. I screwed up before with. . . "
Spike laughed and stopped the bag from spinning and looked at him.
"What, you think 'cause you ran off fo' the slayer, again, she'd give up on you? She's not th' givin' up type."
"No. No I guess she's not."
Spike nodded to the bag, held it for him and Angel stripped off his coat to come over and let out some of his own frustrations. After a few punches he looked at Spike.
"You're right. She asked us not to take the visions. She tried explaining, but I didn't listen to her."
"Not gonna say we wasn' all more an' a li'l upset. Taught me somethin' though."
"What, me going to the powers?"
Spike shrugged, then winced at a particularly hard hit and Angel gave a small shrug of apology.
"Yeah well, was always a bit jealous o' you poof. Never seemed t' have t' work at anythin'. Got that fresh start wit' just havin' a soul. Never 'ad t' earn it. People jus trusted ya. Slayer an' her crowd. Cheerleader told me I could be a good man, even wit'out the soul. Thing is, now I know I can be a better man. Cause I wouldn' o' taken her visions when she made it clear what they meant t' her. An' I wouldn' even 'ave considered puttin' up another life in her stead."
Angel hit the bag hard that time, on purpose, and it had Spike faltering in his stance.
"Well I'm so glad to have helped, but you have no idea Spike. You have no soul, so whatever decisions you make, they have no bearing on how you feel. Everything I have ever done weighs on me! No matter how much I try to do to make up for it, that weight doesn't go away, it doesn't lessen. You have no idea, and, I couldn't add her death to that. I couldn't add that and survive."
Spike let go of the bag. Angel hung his head and so Spike rolled his shoulders. He wouldn't argue the point, he might disagree but Angel was right, he had no soul so how was he to know? If anything it looked like Angel felt a bit better for the work out though.
"Might not understand th' weight o' it. But I do understand more than you think. She's different. I understood th' attraction to th' slayer. She seems like she's full o' light, but still comes from th' darkness, like us. But Buffy. . ."
Angel raised his head and nodded.
"But Buffy can't reconcile it. She tries to separate her life, the dark and the light. Like living with two identities. But sometimes, you can't do that."
Spike smirked.
"Now th' cheerleader. She don' hide, or separate. She jus' brings th' light wit' her."
Angel answered his smile. They must have been down there longer than they thought because they heard someone clear their throat and turned to look at the stairs. Willow smiled and gave a weak smile.
"Hey guys, um, Faith said to tell you I'm here so to, uh, get your butts upstairs?"
She was glancing between the two as if still a little nervous from having talked to Faith. Seeing Spike didn't make her feel any more comfortable. Angel gave her a nod.
"We'll be right there."
Willow smiled and headed back upstairs. Angel glanced to Spike.
"We good?"
Spike snorted.
"Meanin' I'm not gonna kick your poof arse fo' this mess? Yeah. But don' think I"m outta th' picture."
Angel smirked.
"Wouldn't dream of it."
AA
By the time the two vampires headed upstairs, Willow and Wesley were going over a book in earnest. They looked at each other then to Faith who was standing a few feet away. She shrugged.
"Lorne is watching Cordy. I don't know, something you two said triggered Red there. She and Wes have been just talking a mile a minute. I don't get any of it."
Willow popped her head up.
"Go get Cordelia! She's a seer? Really?"
"Willow."
Wesley chided and Willow shook her head.
"Sorry, sorry. Just, a little weird. Okay go get her, Wes and I will set up the circle!"
"I, really don't know if I can do this."
"I'll be right here Wes, it's not hard, I'll do the magic working."
Wes nodded then went to the office to get a few things. Angel and Spike both moved to the stairs but finally Spike growled and backed off letting Angel go get her. Faith gave him a smile and tilted her head towards the office. By the time Angel came back down, Cordelia in his arms and Lorne trailing behind, Wesley and Willow had a circle drawn and had directed Faith and Spike where to sit. Angel looked at Wes who glanced up from making his last marks.
"Place her in the center."
Angel set her down carefully and Willow was right there to grab his arm and pull him to a spot outside of the circle to sit.
"Wait, what's going on?"
"Beats us, poof. Jus' followin' directions, yeah?"
Willow placed a card down in front of him.
"Just turn it over when Wesley points at you and read it."
Once things were set Wesley took his place and glanced around. Lorne stood there looking nervous.
"You guys sure about this? I mean, this is heavy mojo."
Willow nodded.
"Sure, you and I will stay here to make sure nothing disturbs them."
Faith finally raised her hand.
"Right, and doesn't disturb us from what?"
Wesley put the book in his lap and cleared his throat.
"Well, with this spell we will, in essence, combine ourselves. We will, enter her mind and by combining our strengths, be able to bring her back."
"Say that again English?"
Willow rolled her eyes at Spike.
"If what you guys say is right then she's a seer, and it's her destiny to get the visions right? So if she's meant to be here, you should be able to bring her back."
Angel frowned.
"But the Powers. . . "
Lorne understood.
"The Powers can't alter a destiny, Angelcakes. They only delayed it by putting her in a big sleep. You wake her up, and the worst they can do is put her back under."
Faith smiled.
"And if we just keep waking her up, they have to give up some time."
Willow nodded.
"Right so are we ready?"
The all looked around at each other then nodded. Wesley cleared his throat and began. He reached in front of him and turned over the card.
"Sophus...the mind."
He nodded to Faith, who turned her card over and read it.
"Spiritus...the spirit."
In turn it went to Angel.
"Manus...the hand."
Spike reached for his card and turned it.
"Animus...the heart."
Wesley reached for another card and read it before placing it at Cordelia's head.
"Luminos...the light."
He looked at them all, and then down at the book in his lap as he finished the incantation.
"We enjoin that we may inhabit the vessel. The light, daughter of Pythia, first of the Oracles. We implore thee. Begin the ancient rights. Shroud us in the light. Admit us. Bring us to the vessel. Take us . . . now!"
No one had a chance to ask if it worked. A unified intake of air and their shoulders all snapped back, heads fallen and eyes gone milky as they stared up at the ceiling. They didn't move and Lorne looked at Willow who was looking through her book nervously.
"Okay, I think that means it worked."
Lorne narrowed his eyes then glanced back to her.
"Um, so you're sure this is supposed to bring them all to the Princess?"
"Who? Oh! Cordelia! Yeah, um, why."
Lorne shook his head.
"Because I can see all their auras, all in one place, and it's not her head, it's Angel's."
"Oh. Um, that's not good is it?"
Willow looked up at Lorne who looked just as confused.
AA
Angel felt pulled, sucked from his body but not in the same way he'd lost his soul. It was softer, kinder. It felt like being lifted and drifting. It was gauzy white, and felt as airy as being in the clouds. When the fuzziness was gone he found himself standing, alone. He was confused, he thought they were all supposed to be together, to be finding Cordelia.
"Hey."
He turned quickly and there was a giant demon there. One that the others might recognize, but he didn't. So he stepped back and bent at the knees to better prepare. Skip, just rolled his eyes.
"Okay so you guys aren't much for the hospitality are you?"
"Who are you?"
"I'm Skip, pleased to meet you."
Skip held out a hand and smiled, glad to get back to some sort of normalcy. Angel looked from his hand to him and then relaxed and shook his hand.
"Angel. So uh, what are we doing here Skip?"
"This? Well, when you fired your seer seems she talked to the Powers. Convinced them to give you another chance."
"Chance at what?"
Skip stepped aside and Cordelia grinned at him. Wearing something, like what the Powers had been wearing but all white and cream colored.
"Another chance at living with a soul. Instead of just surviving with one."
Angel's mouth drops open and he doesn't even focus on the words, only at the person in front of him. He rushes forward and pulls her into a hug. Cordelia laughed and hugged him back.
"Hey sorry I'm late, had to get the others situated. Oh and they're ready for you Skip."
Skip nodded.
"Right, see you guys later."
With that he was gone and Angel was looking Cordelia over, he frowned.
"Situated? Cor, we're here to get you back."
She stepped back and shook her head.
"No, you're not. You are all here for you, Angel. For this."
"I, don't understand."
Cordelia smiled sadly and nodded. Lifting a hand and brushes her fingers along his cheek.
"I know. We try, to show you, to help you. Hey, god knows I've done everything I can to get you out among the living! So I guess, giving up on me, was kind of the last straw. The Powers let me have this. A chance to get you to understand."
"Cor, you aren't making any sense."
Cordelia rolls her eyes and reaches into the folds of her gown to pull out the card that Wesley had laid out before. The Light.
"Well duh! I've been asleep Angel, not dead. So now I'm here officially. As your guide."
Angel still doesn't understand and he's actually getting more annoyed then anything and crosses his arms as he looks down at her.
"My guide to what?"
She slapped at his arms and then reached for his hand before turning to walk away.
"To being alive, Angel. The good, and the bad, the pain and the laughter. All of it. I'm going to be your guide, to living."