As heinous as Buffy was feeling, Pike was feeling worse. Not only was he definitely not making time with Buffy, he was stuck in a mausoleum with a very pissed off one-armed vampire. And he didn't have any arms at the moment, since he was tied up on the floor. Which just seems like adding insult to injury, since he was already a wimpy mortal.

Speaking of the pissed off vampire, he was patrolling around and occasionally snarling menacingly. At least he was trying to, but the stump really ruined the image. It made him look lopsided.

"Not so big now, are you?" Stumpy vampire sneered.

"What?" Pike said. "You're like wicked strong and I'm just down here chilling. When was I ever so big? Oh, and I dig the one-armed look. You must have gotten into some fight."

Stumpy Vampire growled as he grabbed Pike by the shirt and threw him across the room. He stumbled as his newly asymmetrical body shifted so suddenly.

Pike landed against the opposite wall, which knocked most of the breath out of him. But he had a little bit left.

"Hey gimp, you might wanna check with your boss first. He might not want to damage the goods."

Stumpy Vampire pulled Pike upright against the wall and leaned into him.

"He said you had to be alive. He said nothing about how many arms you have to have."

Buffy POV

Buffy was off for the cemetery as fast as a girl could humanly go. She did have to grab a few things, after all. She was wearing her riding jacket- a little extra protection never hurt.

Los Angeles is a big city, and a lot of people die there. As a result, "the cemetery", in this case Sunnydale Memorial, was a big place. At first Buffy was worried, but then she saw the humongous, ornately carved mausoleum surrounded by statues.

Well, that's the place. Anyone who dresses like Lothos has an eye for style. Buffy thought as she approached. She stopped at the thick stone door. No need to go charging in without a plan. She put her ear to the door and listened. She didn't hear anything, so either there weren't many people in there or the door was really thick. Or they were just really quiet. Well, she had to go in eventually. She stepped back and opened the door at arm's length, ready to react if anything sprung out.

Nothing sprung out. As it turned out, Lothos was not interested in subtlety. He was stretched out on the stone coffin holder, playing his violin.

Always that stupid violin. Is he trying to be romantic or something? He's whacked.

Lothos looked up gracefully as Buffy entered, finished the last few notes of his song, and regally swept himself up.

"Buffy. I'm so glad you could make it," he said with a smirk.

"Where's Pike?" Buffy demanded.

"So impatient," Lothos replied. He stalked forward slowly as he talked. "Forget him. Isn't it odd that you always seem to be drawn back to me?"

"I wouldn't have been if you hadn't kidnapped my boyfriend," Buffy said. She glanced over her shoulder to clear an escape path.

"Admit it, Buffy. He's not enough for you. You need someone who can match you and tame you." Lothos said.

"Tame me? Aren't women supposed to be, like, liberated? I'll show you tame." Buffy said. She reached into her pocket, popped the top off a vial and tossed some genuine holy water in Lothos' face.

Lothos had wicked reflexes. She had to give him that. He hopped back and threw up an arm, so it missed it face, but an armful of holy water still isn't a picnic for vampires. He hissed and bared his fangs at her.

"You want it rough, slut?" He growled. Buffy ignored him and grabbed one of the stakes hanging off her belt. Lothos was still close enough to tackle her, and the stake went flying as Buffy was thrown to the ground.

"So eager to fight your soulmate?" Lothos purred as Buffy tried to squirm away.

"Bug off," Buffy said. She slammed the heel of her hand against his nose. He yelped and rolled away reflexively. Buffy kicked him off the rest of the way and grabbed another stake even as she was scrambling up. She slammed the stake down, knowing that Lothos' heart wasn't accessible but also knowing that a stake through the hand will ruin anyone's day.

Lothos howled what might have been an epithet. It was hard to tell through the smashed nose and the blood running into his mouth. Buffy was readying another stake when she heard a noise.

It was coming from the next room over. Apparently this was some kind of Beverly Hills luxury crypt, since it had a back room and everything. It was a dull thump. Buffy leapt out of Lothos' reach and listened. The last thing she wanted to deal with was more bloodsuckers.

Another thump followed, and then a pained yell. Buffy shot across the room and hauled the door open.

That wasn't a vampire, and Lothos could wait. She had a boyfriend to save.