Chapter 6: Angelus
*****Where We Left Off*****
Buffy looked at her cousin, who nodded and stepped away from Buffy just in case she felt the need to transform. Draco moved closer to his cousin and looked at the guy against the try.
"Who's that?" he asked.
"What? You haven't told your godcousin about me?" Angelus asked, moving forward. "I'm Buffy's one and only."
Buffy laughed. "You're not anything to me, Angelus. I saw Angel on the other side. He was the man I loved," she told him. "You're simply my dad's murderer."
"Actually, as much as I'd like to take credit for it—that was all Spike," Angelus told her with a grin. "It was a proud moment for me."
Cordelia wasn't going to listen to the vampire torment Buffy and threw a fireball at him, hoping to just end his existence and be done with it. However, the fireball she threw dissipated right before it hit him, and he laughed.
"The so-called Dark Lord gifted me with a little do-hickey that makes me immune to magical attacks. It only works on vampires, not humans. Aren't I lucky?" he informed them. "You won't be killing me the way you did Dru."
"Then I guess, I will have to do it the old-fashioned way," Buffy said, moving forward.
He moved away from the tree with an eager smile, happy to take her on.
Draco had never really watched Buffy go full out in a fight with someone that could keep up with her, and he was taken back by the sight. It was incredible. At times, he could not even follow the action. The pair of them seemed to know each other too well as it looked more like dancing than fighting.
"This is awesome!" he told Cordelia.
She glared at him. "No, it's really not," she said. "Angelus can't be killed by spell work. He and Buffy are very evenly matched as Buffy sparred frequently with Angel. That means he knows all Buffy's moves. She hasn't been training enough with Faith yet to be any better. In fact, she's gotten rusty."
She said that as Angel managed to knock Buffy on the ground with a powerful kick.
"Well, this has been really fun," Angelus said with a grin. "I know you got school, so I'll catch you later." He whistled as he walked away.
Buffy scrambled to her feet and pulled out her wand, throwing her own fireball at him. Maybe it was just Cordelia. No, it fell harmlessly on the ground before it hit him.
"Well, damn," she said.
Cordelia looked at her. "This is not good," Cordelia told her.
Buffy gave her a stark look. No, it wasn't.
*****After School in the Library*****
Buffy didn't tell her dad what happened before she went to school as she figured that it would be better to tell him with everyone that way Cordelia and Draco could also describe the scene. She really wanted to talk to Giles about it. Although she loved her father and did value his opinion, she needed to discuss the situation with Giles. He knew both Angel and Angelus while her father didn't.
Cordelia had called the twins to ask one of them to be at the library after school got out. Fred stayed at the store while George came.
"Thanks for coming," she said, giving him a warm smile.
"You said it was important," he replied.
"It is," she said. "This won't take more than a half hour, though. We thought you guys should be looped in."
"We like being a part of the group," George said. "We could've opened up our shop anywhere. We chose Sunnydale because it was on a hellmouth, and we wanted to be demon hunters and fight. That means we want to always be a part of everything you all are doing."
Cordelia nodded. "Okay," she said simply.
When Faith strolled in, she saw everyone and smiled. Diana, her watcher, was behind the counter with Severus ready to write down whatever Buffy was about to tell them. The sight amused Faith. "Hey," she said. Draco had already told her about his weekend away from her and their confrontation with Angelus. Of course, he focused mostly on the fight and how amazing it was. Faith tried not to feel jealous about it.
Buffy told her father, Oz, and George about her confrontation with Angelus and his immunity to magic.
"He is brazen," Diana observed.
"A cocky asshole is what came to my mind, but your word is more polite," Buffy said with smirk.
"Language," Severus said, frowning.
"This is not good," George said.
"That's an understatement," Cordelia said crossly. "He knows all Buffy's moves thanks to the fact that Buffy spent way too much time sparring with Angel. Now we can't kill him with magic. He doesn't just know Buffy, but he knows everyone Buffy knows."
"No true," Draco said. "He doesn't us. Nor Faith or Severus. He doesn't know the twins. He knew the old Scoobies, not the new ones."
Cordelia grinned as she realized her cousin was right. "That's true," she said.
"He was just playing with me," Buffy said crossly. "It pissed me off. I should've turned into a dragon and tried to my dragon fire. Maybe he wouldn't have been immune to it."
"Most likely, he would," Severus said. "However, it would be worth trying if he is ever getting the better of you."
"Maybe you need to stop fighting him one-on-one," George said. "As a twin, Fred and I do everything together. You have another slayer. Both of you need to take him on."
"He's right," Severus said.
"There is no need to fight the way he wants," Diana pointed out. "If it's a game to him as you say—"
"It is," Buffy said flatly.
"Then don't play it," she said. "Never patrol alone. You and Faith are patrolling on school nights separately to share the burden, but you have three adult wizards, who can patrol Monday through Thursdays while you two pair up. Draco and Severus can take one side of town while Faith and Buffy another. The twins can take the later shifts at from eleven to two or so."
"I will speak to Fred," George said. "We don't open until ten, but we can open at eleven if we need to. We're the only store of our kind. People will come back."
"Yes, they will," Cordelia said.
"I think it's an excellent idea," Severus said.
"I do, too," Buffy said. "When I go to Hogwarts, I don't think you should worry too much because he won't be that interested in you."
"I don't think so either," Diana said. "All the notes from Rupert such that he focuses on his chief obsession, which is you right now. Faith should be safe if you are out of town."
"I agree," Severus said.
"There's another thing that we need to talk about. Buffy's gotten rusty. She and Faith need to step up the training because Angelus knows all her moves," Cordelia said bluntly. She looked at Faith. "I hope you got some moves you can teach her."
"Hey, I'm not that rusty!" Buffy protested.
"Angelus knocked you on your ass," Cordelia reminded her.
"Fine," Buffy conceded. She looked at Faith. "Any help will be appreciated."
"I'll be happy to," Faith said with a grin. She was stoked that the original slayer thought Faith could teach her something.
"I know Giles often had you working out her in the library, but that was when there was just you," Severus said. "We have a fenced in backyard with a lot more space. A notice-me-not spell will take care of the neighbors."
"What's that?" Oz said, speaking for the first time.
"What it sounds like," Buffy told him. "Basically, a spell that makes people ignore us."
"Cool," he said, nodding.
"Faith, why don't you join us for dinner today?" Severus asked. "We can get started."
"Sure," Faith said. She looked at Draco, giving him an apologetic smile. He had wanted to take her to dinner because he'd been gone all weekend.
"Can I join you?" Draco said.
"Of course," Severus said.
Oz felt a bit sorry for Buffy. She had her schoolwork and still her work from her magic school. Now she had to be patrolling nightly instead of the three nights a week she had been doing. It would be hard for her to have any free time. Of course, he knew that he could always patrol with her if he wanted to spend time with her.
He looked at her as she contemplated things and could tell she felt the weight of it all. Oz wished that he could find a way to ease her burden because she was so special.
Maybe he could find where this Angelus was staying.
*****At Buffy's*****
After dinner, Buffy insisted that a floo call be put in to Giles, so Faith was able to witness her first magical phone call. She took mental notes, so she could tell Diana all about it later. Her watcher would be just as fascinated as she was with the way it worked. Giles' head was floating in the fireplace, but it wasn't burning.
"This is some freaky shit," she said to Draco.
He smiled and put his arm around her. "It's pretty normal for me," he told her.
When Giles heard about Angelus' magical immunity, he muttered, "Oh, dear."
"Your counterpart, Faith's watcher, suggested that the girls not patrol solo," Severus told him.
"I agree. He enjoys toying with his victims," Giles said. "He will grow frustrated if she is never alone and eventually force a direct confrontation."
"Do you think my dragon fire will kill him?" Buffy asked.
"I do not know," Giles said. "I will ask Albus. It is not a spell, but it is a result of you magical transforming."
"That was my thought," Severus said.
They spoke a few more minutes before Giles said goodbye.
Then Severus had Faith and Buffy go to the backyard and spar.
Joyce asked her husband, "How worried should I be?"
"Well, she's a slayer on a hellmouth, so there's always going to be a reason to be concerned," he answered honestly. Faith grinned as she matched Buffy blow for blow. "However, Faith is very powerful, also. As you can see, she loves fighting. The twins are here, also. Angelus does not have the rest of his scourge. He is alone, and he is too arrogant to ask for help or think he needs help."
Joyce felt reassured. Angelus was just one vampire, and they were many. Eventually, her daughter or husband would kill him.
******A Few Days Later******
Oz had told his bandmates about the mayor being evil, and he had them keeping active surveillance on his office whenever they had time. He didn't share any of Buffy's secrets, of course, but they knew all of his. Devon was privy to the magic show at Buffy's house, but he didn't tell the rest of the band. That was just how he was. The band knew that Sunnydale wasn't a normal town and that werewolves were real. Finding out that the mayor might be an evil wizard who had been alive since the town's founding freaked them out enough to take pictures of anyone coming and going.
Devon used a camera to video when it was his shift, and that's when Oz decided to tell Buffy about their activities. He also told her that he was trying to sniff out Angelus' base of operation.
She was in the library talking to him as he shelved books.
"I don't want you and your friends risking themselves, Oz," Buffy said, unsure of how she felt about this.
"They aren't," Oz assured her. "I'm careful."
"Can I see what's on the video?" Buffy asked.
"Of course. I'll bring you the photos," Oz told her. "You go to patrol around 8?"
She nodded. "Until winter gets here, sun isn't setting until a bit after that," she said. "Faith and I are meeting at the Bronze."
"How about I come to your house around seven with the video that way your dad can watch it, too?" he suggested. "Then I'll take you to the Bronze."
"Sounds good," Buffy said.
Oz put his last book on the shelf and reached for her hand. "I like spending time with you," he told her.
"I like spending time with you, too," Buffy admitted with a smile. They ate lunch every day together, and she liked him more and more.
Oz leaned forward and kissed her. It was the first time he had kissed her, and Buffy didn't expect it. However, it was warm and sweet. He didn't try to get carried away as he knew her father was on the other side of the bookshelf. Yet he felt compelled to kiss her. Oz almost always trusted his instincts.
Buffy looked at him when he pulled away. "I know we've only went out a few times, but I really like you," Oz said. He stroked his hand down her shoulder and arm, picking up her hand and lacing it with his.
Her heart was pounding; it seemed a long time since she felt this way. He was so self-contained and solid. It was very attractive to her as Angel had been both those things, and he loved poetry. Oz was a musician. Clearly, Buffy had a type. However, she did worry about him getting tangled in her life. "I like you, too, but my life is dangerous," she warned him.
"So is mine," he reminded her. "Being with me is dangerous. I promise to be careful and never get out of control with you, but I would really like you to be my girlfriend."
"Are you sure?" Buffy asked.
He nodded, reaching for her other hand. "I am very sure," he told her.
She smiled. "Then I would love to be your girlfriend," she replied. Then this time, she initiated the kiss.
The kiss was much deeper and hotter, causing Oz to forget where he was at.
"Mr. Osborne?" Severus called out.
Oz pulled back. "I'll be right there," he said. "You better stay here for a minute, or he will know exactly what we were doing."
Buffy grinned, feeling like a normal teenager for the first time in a long time.
When she got home, she wrote a letter to Willow to tell her all about it and borrowed her father's owl to send it off. Sure, she would see her in two weeks, but she just could not wait to tell her every detail. Then she realized that she totally forgot about her French test the next day, so she had to cancel on Oz, who promised to bring the video to school the next day. Instead, he went patrolling with her, quizzing her on her French vocabulary as she and Faith patrolled. It was great having a boyfriend.
The next day, Oz brought Devon's video into the library as Giles had an old VCR in the back. He hooked it up, so they could watch it at lunch. Draco and Faith joined them as well as Cordelia, who had Pinky bring lunch to the library.
"So what's going on?" Faith asked as the tray of sandwiches Pinky made was passed around.
"Oz and his bandmates have been surveilling the mayor's office," Buffy said. "Father has the photos they got developed, but Devon used his video camera. I thought we could all watch it and see if anyone—mainly Cordy since she knows everyone—recognizes anyone who works with the mayor."
The TV was set up at the head of the table, and Oz put the video in, pushing play before he sat down.
He was sitting next to Buffy, and Cordelia couldn't help but notice how connected the two of them were. She had a feeling her cousin was holding out on her and made a mental note to ask her later what the relationship status was.
"That guy plays golf with Daddy," Cordelia said, looking at the guy going into the office in the video. "He's not a demon, just a bit of a jerk."
"Shouldn't we focus on the ones later at night?" Faith asked.
"Okay," Buffy said, fast forwarding with the remote. Then she stopped as she saw a familiar person going into the building. A sick feeling hit her as she paused the video.
"It's Angelus," Cordelia remarked.
Severus hadn't been listening and looked up. "What?" he asked.
"The video of the mayor's office shows Angelus going into it," Cordelia explained.
"So what does that mean?" Faith asked.
"It means that Angelus is probably working with the mayor," Buffy said flatly.
"Shit," Faith said. "That can't be good."
Buffy knew that it was bad.
Very, very bad.
*****Chapter End*****
