Chapter two

Disclaimer: see previous chapter.

"You want to explain to me as to what is going on?" Angel asked when they got inside (leaving the frogs outside with their crazy party), turning to face no one in particular.

"They just came over and started asking questions," Amy innocently answered; considering that above the waistline she was dressed about as revealing as she was below, 'innocently' was perhaps a misnomer, but still...

"Yes?" Angel turned away from Amy and glared at the other people in the room. "What is it?"

"Is she an American witch named Amy the Rat?" one of the Aurors (Angel belatedly remembered their official title) asked, slightly unsteadily, as Angel's inner demon was showing – slightly – on his face.

"No, I'm not," Amy answered before Angel could. "And that witch gone and done over, thank you very much, so don't waste her time looking for her either, or seeking her advice. You want any – advice, that is – go and seek out Nodira. She's the magic town's hierophant, essentially."

"That's ridiculous!" the wizard who had spoken first, spoke up again. "All hierophants are gone!"

"Well, Nodira is the first of the new wave, then," Amy shrugged. "Go and ask her – that's what Angel and the other citizens of our place do."

There was a pause as the others actually considered Amy's advice and Angel just stared at them with an exasperated look.

"No, this is ridiculous," the spokesperson refused to back down and face the inevitable defeat. "The town's magic may have broken the statute of magic into dust, technically, and the situation in the Ministry is little better, but the Staff of Truth – it still works."

"What's that?" Angel asked, curious despite his intentions.

"An artifact analogue of the Veritaserum," came the reply, "it is currently indicating that your friend, vampire, is...telling the truth."

That realization, in turn, produced some very profound and heartfelt curses from the group, who then vanished with barely a sound.

"Wand users," Amy bit down some choice curses of her own. "All this time, while we were high and dry because your girlfriend destroyed the Seed of Wonder, those arrogant swine were coasting nicely using the innate magic of their wands! If Whistler was not such a cowardly halfwit, he should have gone for their wands and staffs rather than some obscure artefacts! God and Merlin!"

"Any idea why they were looking for you?" Angel was not impressed by Amy's rant, and her heaving bosom was not having that much effect on him either – he was a vampire, he had spent quite a bit of time with Darla and Drusilla, so he was resilient – to a point.

"The wand users may have cut themselves off from most of the rest magical world, but some things still leak through. Some of those magic-users can use their innate magical power to become animals, for example-"

"And this is where you came in," Angel nodded sagely. He was reward by a death glare from his interlocutrix.

"My condition," Amy growled, "was because of a magical curse; yes, it was initially self-inflicted, but still! It came externally, not internally, and when I heard of an offer floating around, I refused it." The last part was spoken with such finality, that Angel believed her - perhaps incorrectly, but still...

"So, what do we do now?" he asked, fishing for a change in topic instead.

"Well, I made dinner," Amy shrugged. "Soup with matzo balls, fish and salad. Want to join?" She paused and added. "And yes, I'm aware of the fact that you don't eat – I just don't think that you'll want to join Leonard and the Wonder-Twins over there either."

Angel grimaced. The sounds that were coming from there were disturbing – in a non-life-threatening, un-heroic way. "I still can't believe that they would go for the first bugbear with a hookah," he confessed. "I mean, they're so prissy, usually, and he's a giant goblin-"

"Don't call him that," Amy quickly said. "As far as they're concerned, it's the hobgoblins and goblins who are their degenerate cousins, and since they are bigger, it's their opinion that usually sticks in such disputes... So, anyways, dinner?"

"What about it?"

"You are coming or staying? I am just pointing out that with all of this moaning around you will not be able to do any of your angst-"

"Hey, I stopped-"

"Must've been after your Twilight gig, because during that time? You angsted!"

"I did not!"

And Angel followed Amy to the kitchen.

And they had dinner. (Well, Amy had – Angel just stayed there for company and conversation, because even that was better than Leonard and the Fairweather sisters.)

And the Aurors did come back later, actually – but that was a different story.

End