"I have an assignment for you if you don't mind."

Amy was never one for beating around the bush. She always wanted things to be straightforward. It was one of the things her and Buffy had in common. So despite what happens between them, she would rather listen to the slayer than anyone else. That doesn't mean she won't be grumpy about it.

"And why me? Why not Willow?" She said, her voice laced with scorn. Buffy's face lost a bit of light, "You know well that that's not possible," Her voice flat. Amy shook her head. She hadn't been keeping tabs, but she was aware of the stake driven between the witch and the slayer. No pun intended. Though she would have expected Buffy to go to a less shady witch than herself.

"Fine. Tell me your terms before I kick you out." Buffy's usual leering smirk returned and her eyes held a twinkle of mischief. Amy almost shivered at the familiarity of it. She had only met Spike a handful of times, but she could tell exactly where Buffy got that look from.

"I need you to contact some higher beings, so I can have some information about Willow before..." Buffy trailed off, not wanting bring up any painful memories. Amy gazed back, her face quizzical. Before what? "Why can't you beat it out of Willow yourself? Your not the type to be gentle when it comes to business." The slayers' eyes widened at the witches remark. Does she not know?

Buffy cleared her throat, her voice flat, "Willow's dead." That was not something Amy saw coming at all. Willow? The oh so powerful mad lady that had been able to stay by Buffy's side far longer than the other scoobies? It was almost unfathomable for the brunette.

"Oh."

How else could she respond to that? It was unimaginable to Amy how the slayer was feeling about it. It was her best friend after all, despite their horrid past together. It was clear Buffy didn't want to dwell on the subject for much longer and continued with the problem at hand. Amy was thankful for that.

"Will decided to leave me some clues of the cryptic; I need more than whats she's given me." The witch nodded, but narrowed her eyes. "What's in it for me?"

"I don't kill you." Buffy said as a matter of factly. Amy scoffed, "Like it matters to me anyway." Buffy sighed, "FINE. What do you want?" The other girl pondered on this for a bit, what did she want? It was almost guaranteed that Buffy could get it for her. She thought back on, about why she was even back in New York City. Smiling at her decision, she turned back to the slayer.

"I want you to get me back into Bohemian Grove. After I tried to take control of the coven, the bastards exiled me." Buffy nodded and walked out the door. Before she disappeared, Amy heard her say, "Consider it done."

Harmony didn't usually like waking up in the morning. Today was an exception, Buffy was out all night and arrived just at sunrise. Harm couldn't keep a consistent sleep schedule, thanks to the ruckus that had gone on over the past few days. Much less even see Buffy for more than a few minutes. Not that she was complaining about that all too much. She didn't want to face her hidden fear of the brutish slayer.

Or maybe it wasn't all that hidden and Harm was a bit of a dingbat. Either way, the less she saw of Buffy, the more secure the vampire felt. What demon wouldn't feel riled up from living in the same house as a sadistic slayer? Harmony realized after she had moved in that staying here might have been a psychotic death wish.

Whatever. The sun was up and all she wanted was to fall asleep. Harm yawned and walked into the kitchen to fix some mediocre blood. Opening the fridge, she poured it in a mug and threw it in the microwave. When she turned around to sit at the table, she taken aback by the sight of Buffy. Who was hardly clothed at all.

"B-Buffy! What are you doing?!" Harmony's voice reached alarming heights. It was surprising that this hadn't bothered her before; when Harm first came to Buffy for help. She was so worked up at the time that she almost didn't notice the others girls nakedness. Now of course it was not something she could ignore.

Buffy was wearing nothing but windy tank top. Just a bit too thin for safety. A tattoo of a railroad spike piercing a veiny heart graced Buffy's white skin. How fitting. Her hair was a tousled mess from tossing and turning, and cheeks flushed. She had been gulping down coffee from a mug like it was her life line. That is, before Harmony's grating screech interrupted her.

"Can you not make my ears bleed so early in the morning?" Buff said with her bitch tone. Harmony fought back against the blood that was rushing to her face, "Can't you put some clothes on?!"

Buffy shrugged and continued to guzzle her beverage. "It's my house, and technically, I am wearing clothes. Silly woman." The blonde vampire muttered under her breathe, and stomped out of the kitchen. Only to come back not even a second later to retrieve her heated blood.

Harmony huffed and plopped on the couch. She tried so hard to focus on the television, she really did. But Buffy's model body kept distracting her. It wasn't like the slayer was even a pleasant person to be around, without sex. Harmony was just a bit envious of that drool worthy figure. Yeah.

Buffy smirked at the retreating figure of Harmony. She forgot how fun it was to make people flustered. It slid off her face immediately, cringey remembrance flooding her head. When she recalled why Harmony had always been her least favorite in high school. It was weird, she didn't often think about her school years so much anymore. When she had first come to Sunnydale, way back when, Buffy had an almost instantaneous dislike for Harmony. Not because she was an idiot that trailed after Cordelia like a dog. Though that didn't help much. Besides Cordelia's monopoly, Harmony was an exact image of herself. The days before slayer-dom.

Before becoming the slayer, she was Harmony. A plastic airhead who discarded the feelings of others for trends and fashion. It made Buffy feel sick every time she remembered it. Having the woman around her was like her past repeatedly punching Buffy in the face. Of course she could just stake Harmony and return back to her usual routine. Still...she found herself reluctant. Why she was Buffy couldn't say, but she decided to keep the ditzy blonde around.

At least until this 'cloaked angel' business cleared up. Then she'd reduce the girl to dust. Until then.

Elizabeth turned toward the graveyard. Painted dark with night. This was her next stop. Walking through the gates she noticed the sounds of heated bickering. Elizabeth moved in the direction of the sound. There she happened to find two figures that radiated seduction.

One had dark hair and a black coat. The other had bleach blond hair and a black duster. The two of them were clearly in a deep fight. "You just don't get it, do you Spike!" The dark haired one yelled angrily.

The one named Spike arched an eyebrow at the other man, "And you think I'm gonna listen to you, you bloody poofter? I get more than you could ever in a million." The dark haired poofter scowled at Spike, fed up with his antics. It was only then that he noticed Elizabeth watching them, her face cold.

He nudged Spike and pointed at the girl. Both of them were now at a high level of shock upon seeing the female. The dark haired poofter stepped forward first, hesitant. "Buffy? It's me, Angel."

This "Angel" tried to inch closer as Spike grew near as well. They both had a fearful softness in their eyes when they looked at her. Unlike the look they had before been giving each other.

"I missed you love," Spike said, his eyes shiny. Elizabeth stepped back, not falling for their act. She summoned up her speed, weapons behind her back. Bolting forward she plunged a stake into each of their hearts. The two each had the look of betrayal and disbelief before disintegrating into dust.

Elizabeth kicked at the remains, disgusted with her current opponents. They all were lying cheerful imbeciles, and not a challenge at all. When will her redemption come? How many times will she have to kill before the sight of freedom?

This was not something Elizabeth could answer. So she strolled out of the cemetery, heading for a hellmouth high school.