"Fear, Itself"
Based on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Episode "Fear, Itself" Written by David Fury and the Angel Episode "I Fall to Pieces" Written by Joss Whedon and David Greenwalt
The following story is copyright © 2023 by Mark Moore.
Cordelia walked into the Angel Investigations office, carrying the mail. "Uh, look at all these bills: water...power...and my perennial favorite, the rent. What am I missing?"
"Not a thing I can see."
Cordelia sat down at her desk and dropped the bills on it. "Doyle, try to pay attention."
"I am paying attention, princess. We just need the income to pay for the outgo around here."
"Exactly! You know? This is a business, and we should be running it like one. We should be charging. I know Angel has been working day and night, helping people fight their personal demons, but I need a raise!"
"A raise? What, you've been working for him for, like, twenty minutes?"
"About a month, and I have needs."
"Needs."
"A person needs certain...designer...things."
"Personally, I don't think you need much in the way of clothes. But you are right, and I do agree. Angel needs to start charging. He just hates bringing up the finances with the clients. He likes playing the hero...walking off into the dark with his long coat flowing behind him in a mysterious and attractive way."
"Is this a private moment? Because I can leave you alone."
"No, no, I'm not saying I'm attracted. I'm just saying he's projecting a certain kind of image, and asking for money isn't part of it. He's sensitive about that."
The elevator opened.
Cordelia got up. "Oh, here he comes. Okay, we're going to stand up to him."
Doyle stood up. "Yup, we're standing up."
"Just as soon as he's had his coffee."
"Right."
Angel walked in. "Morning."
Cordelia and Doyle watched him. "Morning."
Angel poured himself a cup of coffee, drank a bit, and made a face. "What is this?"
Cordelia pointedly stared at him. "Last week's coffee. Think of it as espresso."
"I think my esophagus is melting."
Doyle hesitated. "Sure been making us proud these last few weeks, fighting the evil and all that."
Cordelia grinned. "Yeah, you been fantastic! Saving people left and right-"
"I'm not comfortable asking people for money."
"Then get over it!" Cordelia yelled.
Angel looked at her.
"I mean that in a sensitive way."
Doyle shrugged. "Look, bud, I know it's not your favorite thing, but you've got to do what's right."
"You think it's right to ask people in trouble for money."
"No."
"So we agree."
"No."
"We don't agree."
"Make up your mind, will you?" Cordelia asked, irritated.
Doyle's face scrunched up in pain, and he hunched over the table.
"Doyle?" Cordelia asked.
Angel walked over to him.
Cordelia stayed back. "Uh-oh, vision fit approaching."
"Pen. Paper."
Cordelia handed them to Doyle.
"Single malt Scotch."
Angel poured him a shot. "What did you see?"
"Melissa Burns, works at Pardell Paper Products."
Cordelia flipped through the phone book.
"How did she look?" Angel asked.
"Better than me." Doyle took a swallow from the cup and made a face. "This ain't single malt. It's...polymalt!"
Cordelia looked at Angel. "Okay, Pardell Paper Products. 200 Wilshire Boulevard."
Angel grabbed his coat and threw it on. "I guess I'm going to work."
Doyle watched him as he left the office, his coat flowing behind him. Cordelia looked over at Doyle.
"Maybe I'm a little attracted."
Later, in Angel Investigations' outer office, Angel was explaining what had happened. "I was waiting in the shadows by her car in the parking garage. She was jumpy and thought I was someone else. I gave her my card, but...I scared her."
Doyle was sitting next to Cordelia. "Sounds to me like she was scared to begin with."
Angel started pacing. "Am I intimidating? I mean...do I put people off?"
Cordelia carefully considered her response. "Well, as vampires go, you're pretty cuddly. Maybe you might want to think about mixing up the black-on-black look."
Angel looked at Cordelia. "Maybe you should talk to her. She'd feel safer."
"When she hires us, I'll get involved."
Doyle nodded. "Cordelia is right."
"I don't think so. I've got a bad feeling that we need to get involved now." Angel walked over to them and leaned on the table. "This shouldn't be about money."
Doyle shook his head. "It isn't."
"Yeah, you should listen to..." Cordelia looked hard at Doyle. "It isn't?!"
"No, it's about doing what's best for the people you've helped."
Angel straightened up.
"People get attached to a mysterious savior, and can you blame them? But as long as you're just a man who's doing a job and getting paid, they can feel like they've paid their debt to you, and they can move on...independent-like."
Cordelia looked at Doyle. "You are a lot smarter than you look."
Doyle looked at her.
Cordelia shrugged. "Of course, you look like a retard."
Later, the phone rang.
Cordelia picked up the handset. "Angel Investigations. We help the hopeless."
"Hello, it's...it's Melissa."
Cordelia looked up at Angel as she listened.
"When can I come in?" Melissa asked.
"Well, I'd say right away."
"All right."
Cordelia hung up. "She's coming in."
Angel looked at his dark sweater. "I've got to change my shirt."
Later, in Angel's office, Melissa Burns, a young woman with shoulder-length brown hair, was sitting in front of Angel's desk, drinking coffee. "It's been going on for about seven months now. It wasn't so bad at first."
"What's his name?" Angel asked, wearing an off-white sweater.
"Dr. Ronald Meltzer. He's a neurosurgeon. I had an infected nerve...behind my right eye. He operated, saved my sight. Afterwards, he asked me out. I didn't really want to, but..."
Cordelia was sitting to her right, taking notes with a pad and pencil. "He helped you; you felt obligated."
Melissa nodded.
"Plus, a doctor."
"So we had one drink one time...and afterwards he started calling me...a lot. Then he started showing up at my work, my apartment...saying that we had something special, that we should get married."
"And then it got worse?" Angel guessed.
Melissa nodded. "I know it sounds stupid, but I can feel him watching me...all the time. Today, at work, he knew I took my Xanitab when I was alone in the bathroom. I mean...how did he see that? He is just everywhere. He changed my PIN for my fucking debit card. I don't think I can take much more of this."
"Well, we're going to help you."
Cordelia nodded. "Big time...and for a reasonable fee."
Angel gave her a look, and she ducked her head.
"Doyle will make sure that you get home safely."
"Thanks. You guys have been very kind, listening to me." Melissa took a sip of coffee. "It's terrible."
Doyle nodded. "Yeah, we're going to take care of that."
Melissa set down the cup and got up to leave. "No, I mean the coffee." She walked off but turned before she reached the door. "Angel, how did you know that I needed help?"
"I have a friend in the police department."
Doyle looked at Angel as he followed Melissa out. "I'll see you later."
"Can you imagine? A doctor. They examine your body. They know every inch of you." Cordelia shuddered. "Ugh!"
"How is he doing it? How does he see her when she's alone, in private? Is he invisible? Or some kind of ghost?" Angel asked. "Maybe he can astral-project."
"Maybe he has an accomplice...or a hidden camera. Not everything has to be creepy and supernatural, you know."
"Not everything, but Doyle had a vision."
"Which, last time, led to a sex-changing, body-switching, tear-your-innards-out demon, right? I guess they don't call you for their everyday cases."
Angel sat down, thinking. "He sees her when he is nowhere around. How?"
Cordelia stood up and turned to go. "Okay, flesh, anytime you want to stop crawling is okay with me."
That night, the night before Halloween, Buffy and the Slayerettes were performing at the Bronze. It was their last song of the evening. For this performance, which featured Tara on lead vocals and Harmony and Sandy on backing vocals, Amy took over on keyboard, and the drums and bass guitar went unused. Buffy and Amy stood off to the side, playing, while Tara, Harmony, and Sandy took center stage. Tara was barefoot and wearing just a lace bra and short skirt.
"I was feeling done in;
Couldn't win.
I'd only ever kissed before."
"You mean she's a-?" Harmony asked Sandy.
"Uh-huh."
"I thought there's no use getting
Into heavy petting.
It only leads to trouble and seat wettings.
"Now, all I want to know
Is how to go.
I've tasted blood, and I want more."
Harmony and Sandy cozied up to Tara. "More, more, more..."
"I'll put up no resistance.
I want to stay the distance.
I've got an itch to scratch.
I need assistance.
"Touch-a, touch-a, touch-a, touch me.
I wanna be dirty.
Thrill me, chill me, fulfill me,
Creature of the night.
"Then if anything grows
While you pose,
I'll oil you up and rub you down."
Harmony and Sandy felt up Tara's waist and hips, slipping their hands under her skirt. "Down, down, down..."
"And that's just one small fraction
Of the main attraction.
You need a friendly hand,
Oh, and I need action.
"Touch-a, touch-a, touch-a, touch me.
I wanna be dirty.
Thrill me, chill me, fulfill me,
Creature of the night."
Harmony and Sandy took over on lead vocals after they each licked one of Tara's cheeks, Harmony her right and Sandy her left:
"Touch-a, touch-a, touch-a, touch me.
I wanna be dirty.
Thrill me, chill me, fulfill me,
Creature of the night."
Tara took over for the final refrain:
"Touch-a, touch-a, touch-a, touch me!
I wanna be dirty!
Thrill me, chill me, fulfill me,
Creature of the night!"
Tara raised her arms - and the microphone - in the air and grinned. The audience went wild, cheering and applauding.
After they had packed up their gear, Buffy, Tara, Amy, Sandy, and Harmony sat at a table, drinking.
"So what are we doing tomorrow night?" Tara asked.
"Movies?" Amy suggested. "I've got a free rental plus my employee discount."
Harmony looked at them. "I thought we were doing the Alpha Delta thing."
"What thing?" Sandy asked her.
"The scary house?" Buffy asked. "Sounds kinda lame."
Harmony grinned. "It's actually fun. You have to go through the scary house maze to get to the party. Which is usually worth getting to. Those guys go all out."
Buffy considered it. "What's the beer like?"
The next morning, Buffy went to Giles' apartment and rang the doorbell.
Soon, the door opened. Giles was standing there, dressed up like a Mexican - including a large sombrero - and holding a big bowl of candy.
"Happy Hallow-Hello, Buffy?" Giles looked at her, confused.
Buffy stared at him. "Oh. My. God."
"It's a sombrero."
"And it's on your head."
"It seemed festive." Giles stepped aside. "Um, come in."
Buffy walked into the apartment.
Giles offered her the bowl. "Candy?"
Buffy grabbed a few Hershey's Milk Chocolate bars and a few 3 Musketeers bars. "Thanks." She looked around at the decorations. "What's going on here? You hate Halloween."
"I never said any such a thing. As my Watcher's duties took precedence, I simply haven't taken time to, well, to embrace its inherent charms - until now."
Giles turned on a Frankenstein puppet hanging from the ceiling. It started dancing.
"Look, look!" Giles laughed. "It's alive!"
Buffy just stared at him.
"See...how he shakes?" Giles asked.
Buffy just stared at him.
Giles turned off the puppet. "Is - Is there something you wanted?"
"I was just wondering if you had heard any..." Buffy stared distractedly at the fringe dangling from the edge of his sombrero. "Could you please take that off?"
Giles set down the bowl of candy. "Oh, yes, of course." He took the hat off.
Buffy unwrapped a 3 Musketeers bar. "I was just wondering if you had heard anything about any bad shit that might go down tonight." She took a bite and chewed.
"Is there some specific danger you were sensing?"
"No. But then, you know, we were all caught off guard when Ethan turned everyone into their costumes."
"True, but what happened then was anomalous. Creatures of the night shy away from Halloween. They find it all much too crass."
"Hard to believe."
"Well, I-I promise you...there is little likelihood of any supernatural activity tonight."
Buffy smiled. "Cool. I'll be at a party, getting drunk."
Giles gave her a disapproving look. "What would your mother say about that?"
"She was the one that suggested keg parties. Thanks again for the candy." Buffy turned and left, then returned to the bowl, grabbed a few more candy bars, and left again.
At the police station, Kate was sitting at her desk, doing paperwork.
"Hello, Kate."
Kate looked up and saw Angel standing there. She got up and folded her arms in front of her. "Angel. Um, hi..." She paused. "It's good to see you."
"You, too."
"So judging by your uncomfortableness, I'd say either you're about to ask me out on a date, or you need a favor."
Angel just looked at her.
"And I'm going to go with favor." Kate sat down. "So ask, and I'll see if I can do."
Angel sat down in the chair in front of her desk. "Girl...a client. She's being stalked, and I think it could get ugly."
"She's being stalked? Then ugly it already is. What's her name?"
In the Summers' house, Buffy and her mother were sitting at the dining room table. Joyce was altering a red cape on her sewing machine.
"Thanks again for doing this at the last minute."
"I'm just glad I could find it. There. Try it now. I let down the hem and loosened it a little around the hood."
Buffy put it on. "Oh, it feels better."
Joyce smiled at her.
"Oh, no. Someone is getting nostalgic face."
"I'm sorry. I'm thinking about the little girl who wore that. What is it? Five? Six years ago?"
"Yeah, Little Red Riding Hood was the cutting edge in costumes."
Joyce laughed. "Your father loved to take you out."
"He was such a pain! Twelve years old, and I can't go trick-or-treating by myself?"
"He just wanted to keep you safe."
"No, he wanted the candy. I was just the beard."
"Oh, that's not true, actually. The candy was for me. Your father loved spending time with you."
Buffy looked down. "Not enough, I guess."
"Buffy."
"Oh, that just paved right over Memory Lane, huh?"
"Our divorce had nothing to do with you."
Buffy swallowed. "I don't know."
"Trust me."
"Do you..." Buffy paused. "Do you ever wish Dad had gotten me, and you had gotten Dawn?"
Joyce hesitated. "Yes. After..." She couldn't bring herself to say it.
Buffy understood and looked down. "After I murdered your boyfriend."
Joyce fidgeted and played with her hands. "'Murdered' is a harsh word."
"After beating him, I chased him down to the end of the hall and kicked him down a flight of stairs, breaking his neck." Buffy paused. "Let's be real."
Joyce got up. "You must have noticed that I am not exactly the social butterfly I was when I was with your dad. I don't think I made a single new friend for months after we moved to Sunnydale."
"Why not?"
"Fear. I didn't believe I could trust anyone again. Ted was the first person that I warmed up to. And you took him away from me."
Buffy didn't say anything. She didn't even look at her mother.
"And I'm glad you did. I'm so sorry that I didn't believe the things that you'd told me about him. You had been right about him all along. But Buffy..." Joyce abruptly paused. "Never mind. He did hit you. And, as it turned out, you probably saved my life. So I'm sorry, and I'm grateful. We won't discuss it again." She paused. "It's taken time and a lot of effort, but I've got a nice circle of friends now. I mean, don't get me wrong, I-I'm still a little gun-shy. It certainly didn't help that my last boyfriend turned out to be a homicidal maniac." She sat down next to Buffy. "I will always be here for you."
Buffy looked at her.
"Believe me, there is nothing to be afraid of."
Buffy slowly smiled.
At the police station, Kate walked to her desk with a file in her hand. "Your girl did file a report two months ago. The doctor responded and denied everything." She sat down. "A lot of noise from his lawyers." She noticed the name of the law firm. "Ouch..."
"What?" Angel asked.
"His lawyers. Wolfram and Hart. You know the name?"
"I've heard it."
"Yeah. They're the law firm that Johnnie Cochran is too ethical to join. They actually filed a restraining order against her. Very cute. Still no record of violence for the doctor."
"Yet."
"You think he's going to blow?"
"I do."
"I'll put a uniform on her building. But I can probably not spare one for more than a day or two."
"Thanks. That'll help."
"And your client, she's holding up?"
"She's scared. He's had her on the ropes for a while now."
"Then you better help her get mad, because that is the only way she'll be able to fight him."
"Well, hopefully, I'll be doing the fighting. That's why she hired me."
"That's not what I mean. This guy could go to jail tomorrow, Angel, and still kill her in her dreams every night. I've put a few of these creeps away, and the hardest thing is to know that he is still winning. She's still afraid. He took her power away, and no one can get it back for her but her."
In her dorm room, Amy was sitting on her bed and talking on the phone with Katrina.
"You got any plans for Halloween, Trina?" Amy asked.
"Oh, yeah. We're gonna freeze a pumpkin in liquid nitrogen and drop it from the top of Millikan Library."
Amy was confused. "Why?"
"Because it's the highest point on campus."
"No, I mean...why are you doing it?"
"It's a Halloween tradition. Supposedly, a claim was once made that the shattering of a pumpkin frozen in liquid nitrogen and dropped from a sufficient height would produce a triboluminescent spark. A crowd of observers gathers, and they try to spot it."
Amy paused for a moment. "Okay, well, have fun. We're going to a haunted house party and getting shit-faced."
Katrina laughed. "Well, we all experiment in our own ways. Enjoy yourselves."
"We will. You're coming for Thanksgiving, right?"
"Yeah, Anne and Faith are picking me up."
"Cool, I'll see you then."
At Good Samaritan Hospital, Cordelia was interviewing a nurse.
"Another article about Meltzer."
"Well, our readers at the...um..." Cordelia glanced down at some magazines. "Journal of Diagnostic Orthoped...et cetera...seem endlessly fascinated with him."
"He is fascinating. Before he became an ocular surgeon, he specialized in orthopedics. He developed nerve and blood vessel accelerants that helped a lot of people."
"How?"
"When you sever a limb, there is only so much time to reattach before it atrophies."
Cordelia was grossed out. "Yuck!"
"What?"
Cordelia smiled. "Nothing, please go on."
"Dr. Meltzer's work extended that time significantly. Plus he's one of the best at reattaching severed nerves."
"So he is good at the cutting and the sewing. Did he ever strike you as a big dangerous creep?"
"What? What kind of article are you writing?"
"I've got to be honest with you. It may not be a very nice one. I don't like the way he treats women. I'll keep your name out of it, but just between us...what's the real dish on this guy?"
The nurse looked around to make sure there was no one close. "He is not very generous. He doesn't share his techniques with the medical community at large, and a lot of what he claims to have done is pretty radical."
"Like what?"
"Like reattaching eyes, for one thing." Cordelia was pacing in Angel Investigations' outer office. "Apparently, this guy can do anything with a knife. You so don't want this guy fixated on you. What is stalking nowadays...the third-most popular sport among men?"
Angel was typing on the computer. "Fourth...after luge."
"I don't get it. This guy has a lot to lose. What is it about Melissa that got him to go all O.J. on her?"
"Nothing. It's not about Melissa; it's about rage. This guy is too fucked up to deal with a real woman, and he can't stand that. So he creates a fantasy about a girl he barely knows. But eventually even she fails him. So he has to hurt her, because, when he looks at her, all he sees is how useless he is, how damaged-"
"Uh, what a fun date you must have been back in your bad vamp days." Cordelia pulled over a chair and sat down next to Angel. "On the other hand, it should give you some insight into the assholes of the world."
"I know how this guy thinks; I just don't know how he's doing it."
"Being everywhere at once?"
Angel showed her a book. "Vinpur Natpudan says that we are everywhere at once, since we are all made up of the same molecules."
"I remember that guy. He made a big noise a few years ago on public television. Huh. Then had a big case of Joe Recluse."
Angel looked at the computer. "What he had was a nervous breakdown. Not long after, he conducted an exclusive retreat for a group of well-known yogis and doctors."
"I'm guessing Dr. Stalker was at that retreat?" Cordelia guessed. "What are you doing?"
"Sending Joe Recluse an e-mail. I'd really like to talk to him."
Cordelia read what he was typing. "'I hope you have the nerve to believe that I need help with Ronald Meltzer.'" She looked down and read the dedication in the front of the book. "'...hope you have the nerve to believe...' Did you steal this book?"
"Yeah."
"Good."
That evening, Buffy, dressed as Little Red Riding Hood, was standing with a basket in her hands.
Tara walked up behind her, dressed as Xena. "Hey."
Buffy looked at Tara and smiled. "Hey, warrior princess."
Tara smiled. "You like?"
"You bet."
"Insurance, you know, in case we get turned into our costumes again."
They started walking. They met up with Amy and Harmony. Amy was dressed as a non-stereotypical pagan witch, using her own wardrobe and jewelry. Harmony was dressed as a bubbly, cheerful vampire, all blacks and pinks. She wore pink eyeshadow and light red lipstick.
Buffy smiled. "Amy. Harmony."
Amy smiled. "Hey, guys."
Harmony grinned, revealing her fake vampire fangs. "Like my costume?"
Buffy opened her basket, took out her stake, and pointed it suggestively between Harmony's legs. "Oh, look, a vampire. I might just have to stake you, slowly and repeatedly."
Tara folded her arms over her chest and smiled in amusement. "Oh, really."
Buffy looked at Tara as she put the stake away. "I'm just having fun, sweetie. Besides, a Slayer dating a vampire is a monumentally bad idea."
The group continued walking. Sandy joined them, dressed as a Goth vampire, all blacks and reds. She wore black eyeshadow and dark red lipstick.
Amy smiled. "Went for the super obvious, huh?"
Sandy smiled. "Went for the super lazy, huh?"
Amy shrugged. "Well, that's me: super lazy. At least, that's what my mom used to say."
Harmony looked at Sandy up and down. "Copycat."
Sandy looked at her. "Bite me."
Suddenly, two people dressed as commandos, wearing ski masks and carrying guns, stepped out of the bushes in front of them.
Buffy looked at them. "Nice costumes. Very stealthy."
"What are they supposed to be?" Tara asked.
The commandos walked away. The gang resumed their walk toward the Alpha Delta house.
Tara looked at her friends. "Oh, yeah, I invited Jenny to join us, but she's having some trouble with her costume, so she's just going to meet us there."
Harmony grinned. "We're going to have the best time."
They walked up to the house. Kids ran out, screaming.
Harmony turned around in front of the door. "Let the horrors begin."
They entered the silent haunted house.
"The joint's not jumping. Where is everybody?" Buffy asked.
Mechanical laughter came from a head with one eye hanging from its socket sitting in a punch bowl on a table next to the door.
Amy shrugged. "Follow the signs."
Buffy looked at the severed head. "Terrifying. If I was Abbott and Costello, this would be fairly traumatic."
A plastic skeleton with a knife swung out at Sandy, and she jumped.
"Holy shit!" Sandy exclaimed, panting.
Amy looked back at Harmony and noticed a tarantula on her shoulder.
Harmony saw what she was looking at and screamed. "Uh, get it off!"
Amy brushed at it, then checked her over. "It's gone."
"Okay, that is not sanitary!" Harmony complained.
Buffy nodded. "Yeah, let's get to the party part of the...party."
They walked into a room, and Buffy bent down to examine a spot on the carpet.
"What is it?" Tara asked Buffy.
Buffy looked at the stain on her fingers. "Blood." She smelled her fingers. "Real blood."
Harmony shuddered. "Ew, creepy. Bravo, frat boys!"
Buffy stood up. "Shh! Do you hear something? Like a...squeaking noise?"
Sandy concentrated. "I hear it, too. Something like..."
They all slowly looked up at the ceiling. It was covered with bats. All of them screamed and covered their heads as the bats suddenly dropped down and flew off down the hall. Amy walked over and picked up a bat that was laying on the floor.
Harmony frowned. "No, Amy, don't; it might be-"
"Rubber. It's made of rubber."
Buffy looked around. "What the hell is going on here?"
Tara tried to be optimistic. "Look, maybe it's nothing. Maybe it's just a neat trick. You know, something done with wires or-"
"Release me!" a rumbling voice exclaimed.
Tara paused. "Or it might be something else."
Kate got called to Melissa's house. A police officer had been killed on the property. She interviewed Melissa, then she went inside and talked to the officers on the scene and to Angel. The officer's dead body was wheeled out.
Kate and Angel walked outside. A crowd of people was growing. Melissa was wrapped in a blanket.
Doyle handed Melissa a cup of coffee. "Here, drink up, love. It's over."
Kate and Angel walked up to them.
"She is not making a lot of sense."
"She's been living in terror for the last seven months."
"You think it's the doctor."
"I know it's the doctor."
Kate put her hands on her hips. "How could he do it? I mean...she's got bars on her windows. The security cameras in the hallway show our officers going in and nobody suspicious all day. I mean...who is this guy, Houdini?"
"Something like that."
"I've pulled prints. If they match his, he's going down."
"Detective? Can you sign the coroner's release?" an officer asked.
Kate walked over to him.
Jenny walked up to the frat house, dressed as Motoko Kusanagi from Ghost in the Shell. There was a welcome mat laying in front of a solid wall.
Jenny stared at it. "Where's the door?" She knocked on the wall. "Hello? Hello?!" After a moment, she sighed and walked back out to the street.
She heard a scream coming from the house and looked up to see a boy banging against one of the upper-story windows.
"Help me! Help me!" the boy screamed.
The stones surrounding the window suddenly expanded to cover it up. Jenny turned and ran to her car.
The gang walked back into the entrance room. They could hear all kinds of screams and creepy sound effects.
"Where are the stairs?" Sandy asked.
"Where is the door?" Tara asked.
"This is the way we came in, right? We just went in a circle?" Buffy asked.
The sound effects cut off as Tara flipped a switch.
"Hey, I have a neat idea: let's get out of here!" Harmony exclaimed.
Buffy rolled her eyes at her. "And you were so anxious for me to come."
Amy looked at Buffy. "Harmony actually has a good idea, Buffy. We don't know what we're dealing with."
"As soon as we start dealing with it, I'll know what it is we're dealing with. Do you hear something?" Buffy put down her basket. "It's like a 'ssss' noise?" She pulled open the door to a closet.
There was a guy in there, rocking back and forth. "I'm sorry. I didn't know. I'm sorry."
Buffy crouched down in front of him. "Are you okay?"
"I didn't know."
"What's happening?" Buffy asked him.
He rocked harder. "It, uh-"
"What is it?" Buffy asked impatiently.
"It's alive. It's alive."
"What's alive?" Buffy asked.
Tara shook her head. "He's in shock."
"What happened here?" Buffy asked him.
He looked up and screamed. Buffy turned and saw the formerly plastic skeleton come up and stab at her with the formerly plastic knife. She knocked its head aside, then kicked it in the middle. It lay back to land on the ground, once again plastic.
Buffy stared at it, then checked her shoulder. "I think the cape took most of it."
Tara walked over to her. "Let me see." She checked Buffy's shoulder wound. "Could need stitches. You should at least get a bandage or something."
They heard a boy scream, and the boy on the floor crawled back into the closet and closed the door.
Harmony shuddered. "Cowering in a closet is starting to seem like a reasonable plan."
Buffy looked back over her shoulder. "What closet?"
There was only a blank wall.
"I'm gonna make my way upstairs and see if there are any people up there." Buffy picked up her basket. "You guys find a way out of the house and use it."
"You're telling us to run away and leave you behind?" Tara asked her.
Buffy pulled a loaded crossbow out. "We need help. We need the only two people that can make sense of what's happening."
Later, in Angel's apartment, Cordelia was pacing. "I can't believe it: a guy that can take his body apart piece by piece." She shuddered. "Gross!"
Doyle was putting duct tape over a vent. "It's not good for the ventilation, but he's not getting in here."
Cordelia touched his collar.
Doyle jumped. "What-"
"I was just trying to fix your collar."
"Yeah, well, what say we just leave it crooked until this thing's resolved?"
They walked into the kitchen, where Melissa and Angel were sitting at the table.
Melissa sipped from a cup of tea. "I don't see how this can...I mean this can't be happening. What I saw..." She paused. "You must think I'm crazy."
"No, I believe you."
"But it's not possible. I mean...he can really-"
Angel nodded. "Yes! Remember I told you I sometimes handle things the police can't?"
Melissa nodded.
"This is one of those things. I'm going to take care of him. Doyle and Cordelia are going to stay here with you. I want you to try and get some rest."
Doyle flipped the latch closed on the trap door to the sewers and secured it with a bolt. Cordelia offered Melissa a tissue.
"Thanks, but I'm not going to cry anymore. At least, I hope not. I'm tired of crying and being afraid."
Angel shook his head. "You don't have to be afraid."
"You're just duct-taping me in for fun?"
"You've survived a living hell these last few months, and you're still standing, while he's coming unhinged at not being able to control you. He's the weak one. You're the strong one."
Cordelia nodded. "You should listen to him, Melissa. He knows what he's talking about. He's stalked plenty of-"
Melissa and Angel looked at her.
"-books on the subject." Cordelia looked at Angel. "Could I see you upstairs for a moment?"
Angel stood up and followed Cordelia to the elevator. They got in, Cordelia pulled the metal grating closed and pressed a button, and the elevator went up.
"Okay, Melissa stays here with us; that makes sense, but the part about you taking care of the doctor..." Cordelia looked Angel in the eyes. "This guy is really dangerous."
The elevator stopped. Angel opened the elevator, walked over to the desk, and started flipping through the Yellow Pages.
Cordelia walked over to him. "What are you doing?"
"Seeing where I can get some steel boxes at this hour of the night."
"Steel boxes? Why would you want-" Cordelia suddenly realized. "Oh. For packing up people parts. You know this job..." She made a face. "Don't get me wrong; I'm grateful to have it. God knows it's educational, but sometimes..."
The phone rang.
Cordelia jumped. "God, who's calling at this...?" She looked down at the phone and saw the Line 3 light blinking. "It's the special line."
"Answer it."
"Right, right. Okay. Now, who are we again? Johnson International Holdings?"
"Jensen."
"Jensen. Good, got it. Jensen. Now, does that sound like an international name?"
"Cordelia."
Cordelia picked up the handset. "Jensen International Holdings. How may I direct your call?"
"Mr. Brian Jensen, please. This is Dr. Ronald Meltzer."
"Please hold." Cordelia put him on hold. "It's him."
Angel took a deep breath, took the handset, set it down, turned on the speakerphone, and selected the line. "Brian Jensen."
"You're working late."
"Downside of being global."
"If you still want me to, I'll operate on your wife."
"I do, thank you."
"We'll have to do it out of the country, and I need $100,000 in cash to get things rolling."
"Are you in your office?"
"Yes."
"I'll bring it to you tonight." Angel ended the call.
"You're going over there? What if he comes apart on you?" Cordelia asked.
"If he comes apart on me, he's going to stay that way."
Jenny walked up to Giles' door and knocked insistently.
"Just a minute! Coming!"
Soon, the door opened. Giles was standing there, wearing his stereotypical Mexican costume.
"Happy Hall-"
"Giles, we have a situation. The gang is in trouble. They went into a haunted house, and I believe it really is haunted. We've got to do something."
Giles took off his sombrero. "Slow down. I need you to be more specific."
"We were supposed to meet at this house, and I got there, and there was no door where a door should be. And then I saw this boy standing in a window, and then the window disappeared."
"Hmm. Matter and reality distortion." Giles went back into his apartment.
Jenny followed him. "I went and got some supplies and returned to the house. I tried casting some spells to remove glamours and evil spirits, but nothing's worked so far."
Giles went and pulled a book from his shelf. "What you're describing sounds like a summoning spell's temporal flux. I just need to get some...supplies together."
Tara, Amy, Harmony, and Sandy walked down a corridor.
Harmony sighed. "Have we been here already?"
Sandy shrugged. "I dunno. It all looks the same."
Tara nodded. "Also, it's possible that the house is morphing."
Amy looked at Tara. "Maybe we should split up, cover more ground."
"Without weapons or knowing exactly what's in here with us?" Tara shook her head. "No, we better stick together."
Suddenly, Catherine Madison showed up directly in front of Amy.
Amy came to a stop, frozen in shock. "Mom?!"
The others looked around. They didn't see anyone.
"What?" Tara asked.
Catherine stared at her daughter in hatred. "You worthless, lazy bitch! When are you ever gonna do anything with your life?!"
"Mom, w-what are you doing here?" Amy asked.
Harmony looked at Tara. "Do you see anything?"
Tara shook her head. "No, but...there's something..."
Catherine's eyes started glowing red. She levitated and lunged at Amy. Amy jumped back, turned around, and ran in the opposite direction.
"Amy!" Tara called.
Amy opened a door and ran out, slamming the door shut behind her.
Sandy looked at Tara. "What do we do?"
"I don't know."
Later, in Angel's apartment, Doyle was taping up yet another vent. He walked over towards the bedroom, looking around. "I got everything, I think."
"Shh. She's resting." Cordelia motioned to Melissa sleeping on Angel's bed. "What did you put in her tea?"
Doyle was still looking for holes that he might have missed. "Enough whiskey to drop my Aunt Tudy. That woman had some girth."
Cordelia sighed. "What's the point?"
"Well, it tastes good, and it relaxes you."
"No, I mean of ever going out with anyone."
"Well, people need people." Doyle took a step closer to Cordelia. "And people who need people are the luckiest-"
Cordelia put a hand on his chest and pushed him back. "Either you like them, and they don't like you, or you can't stand them, which just guarantees that they'll keep on hovering around and never go away."
"Uh,...yeah, I just hate guys like that." Doyle stepped away with a sigh. "I'll just check on..." He walked away.
Cordelia folded her arms. "It's just so unfair. I mean...here is this poor girl. She hooks up with a doctor. That's supposed to be a good thing. I mean you should be able to call home and say 'Hey, Mom, guess what, I've met a doctor!' Not 'Guess what, I met a psycho, and he's stalking me, and, oh, by the way, his hands and feet come off, and he's not even in the circus!'"
"Not every relationship leads to disaster."
"You ever had one?"
"Not me, personally. But I've read..."
Tara, Sandy, and Harmony were walking through another corridor.
Sandy felt a sudden craving for blood. She took a vial out of her pants pocket. It was empty.
"Shit!" Sandy exclaimed.
Tara looked at her. "What?"
Sandy bared her fangs. "I'm out of blood, and...I feel hungry." Her hunger grew in intensity. "So hungry..."
Harmony was confused. "Wouldn't that be 'thirsty'?"
Sandy hissed and lunged at Harmony's neck. Tara pulled Harmony out of the way.
"Run!" Sandy warned them.
Holding hands, Tara and Harmony ran down the corridor.
"I swear this always happens to me!" Harmony yelled. "Why me?! What do vampires see in me?!"
"The human equivalent of Wagyu?!" Tara guessed.
Tara and Harmony were walking down another corridor.
Harmony looked from side to side. "This place is so creepy."
"That's the general aim of a haunted house." Tara paused by a door and opened it.
Harmony saw thousands of cockroaches pour out of the room. They crawled onto her, covering her entire body. Harmony screamed, turned, and ran away.
Tara looked after her, then turned and slowly started walking on her own.
Suddenly, her father, Steve Maclay, stepped in front of her. "And where are you going, deviant?"
"Dad?!" Tara asked in shock.
"You're coming home with me right now, you little whore!" He grabbed Tara's wrist.
"No, please don't!" Tara begged.
He squeezed her wrist hard.
"Help!" Tara yelled desperately. "Help!"
Buffy heard Tara yell for help and spun around. She tried to follow Tara's voice. "Tara."
She walked up to a locked door and busted it open. There was no floor in the room behind it, and she fell down into the basement. She lay on the floor on her back, looking up as the door swung slowly shut.
"Basement. I must be in the basement."
"All alone."
Buffy pushed herself up. "Who said...that?"
Ted Buchanan walked around a corner with his head tilted at an unnatural angle. "Just us dead. The dead that you couldn't save. The dead that you murdered." He smiled at her. "But don't fret, little lady; you'll be one of us soon, and we'll drag you to Hell."
Buffy screamed as arms burst up through the floor to grab at her. Buffy struggled against the dead people coming up through the floor, trying to pull her down.
Jenny and Giles stood in front of the house. Giles was running a hand over the place where the door used to be, holding an open book in his other hand.
"Well?" Jenny asked.
"We're gonna have to create a door."
"I tried that."
Giles closed the book and walked over to his bag. He got out a chainsaw and stood up, holding it in his hands. "With this?"
Buffy was fighting the dead people.
Ted stared at her with dead eyes. "No matter how hard you fight, you always let people down. The people that slip through the cracks. Your family."
Buffy crawled along the floor on all fours, kicking at the guys following her.
"I don't see why you bother."
Suddenly, Buffy remembered the words of her mother: "Believe me, there is nothing to be afraid of."
"There is nothing to be afraid of." Buffy sighed. "I may go to Hell someday, and so be it, but today is not that day, and I will no longer let this weight hold me down."
Buffy reached a small door, went through, and slammed it shut behind her.
She stood up and took in her surroundings. She was in a big room with a pentagram on the floor.
"I'm upstairs." Buffy slowly walked into the room.
There were college kids in costumes cowering all along the walls, whimpering.
Buffy looked at a girl cowering in a corner. "Sandy?"
Sandy looked up at Buffy, bared her fangs, and lunged at her. Buffy jumped back.
"Get away from me!" Sandy warned.
"Sandy, control yourself. You can do it. Take deep breaths."
"I don't have any blood on me!" Sandy yelled.
"Really? Check again."
Sandy took the vial out of her pocket again and was surprised to find it full. With jittery fingers, she unscrewed the cap, took it off, and gulped down the blood. She took a few deep breaths and slowly started to calm down.
The door opened.
Harmony ran into the room, waving her arms around. "Get them off me! Get them off me! Get 'em off! Get 'em off!"
Sandy took hold of her. "Harm, what's wrong?"
"Can't get them off..."
"It's okay. It's okay. There's nothing there." Sandy pulled Harmony into an embrace, wrapping her arms around her. "We're okay."
Buffy shook her head. "We're not okay. We need to get out of here."
Amy ran into the room. "No! No! You stay the fuck away from me!"
Harmony looked at Amy. "What's going on, Ames?"
"My mom's after me!" Amy yelled.
Harmony looked. "Did she turn invisible or something? 'Cause...she's not there."
Amy turned around and looked behind her. "Oh." She turned to face Harmony and smiled. "Wow, do I feel like a dumbass."
Harmony nodded. "I know the feeling." She paused and reconsidered her words. "Wait..."
Amy laughed and turned around again. "I totally thought there was someone-"
Suddenly, Tara ran into her, sending them both to the floor, Tara on top of Amy.
Amy stared up at Tara. "You okay, Tara?"
"My dad!" Tara cried. "He's come to take me away!"
Amy groaned in slight discomfort. "Your dad and the rest of your family moved back to Alabama. What you saw wasn't your dad."
"Are you sure?" Tara asked her.
Amy nodded.
Tara got off Amy and helped her to her feet. The two of them hugged.
Amy looked at Buffy. "The house separated us. It wanted to scare us."
Tara looked at Buffy. "But we got away."
"No. We were brought here. We all got so scared that we ended up here. Why?" Buffy asked.
Amy saw the pentagram on the floor and pointed at it. She looked around and spotted an open book on a table. She walked over and picked it up. "I can't read it."
Tara took the book from her and looked at the text. "It's Gaelic."
"Can you translate?" Buffy asked her.
"Release me!" the rumbling voice yelled.
They all looked around, but there was nothing there.
"Release me!"
The door slammed shut.
Buffy looked at Tara. "Tara, give me something."
"Okay, um, um, the icon's called the - the Mark of Gachnar. I-I think this is a summoning spell for something called...well...Gachnar. Somehow, the beginning of the spell must have been triggered. Um, Gachnar is trying to manifest itself, to - to come into being."
"How?" Buffy asked.
"I-It feeds on fear."
Buffy looked at everyone. "Our fears are manifesting it. We're feeding it. We need to stop."
Amy shrugged. "I think we have, but what about everyone else that's trapped in here?"
"Release me!"
Buffy's mind raced. "Okay, so their fears are feeding it; if we get everyone out of here-"
The walls started knocking and shaking.
"Good plan. Let's go!" Harmony walked towards the door.
She screamed when it burst open to reveal Giles with the running chainsaw in his hands. Giles turned off the saw.
"Giles?" Harmony asked. "Everyone, it's Giles! With a chainsaw! Glad you could make it."
Jenny ran in behind Giles.
"The walls closed up behind us." Giles walked over and took a look at the book in Tara's hands. "Gachnar, of course. Its presence infects the reality of the house, but it's not managed to achieve full manifestation. We cannot allow this to come into being."
"But if it does, I can fight it, right?" Buffy asked.
Tara walked over and showed her a picture in the book. "Buffy, this is Gachnar."
Buffy took a look at the drawing and shuddered. "I don't want to fight that. So...we break the spell."
Sandy was nervous. "Whatever we do, let's do it fast."
Tara flipped pages. "I have it, I have it. Um, 'The summoning spell for Gachnar can be shut down in one of two ways. Destroying the mark of Gachnar-'"
Buffy ran over to the mark and put her fist through it, ripping up the floorboards. She got up and looked over at Tara with a proud smile.
Tara gave Buffy an awkward look. "'-is not one of them and will in fact immediately bring forth the fear demon itself.'"
Buffy made a face and looked at the mark that was beginning to glow.
"Look!" Jenny yelled.
The floor rumbled as they all stared in horror. Gachnar rose up from beneath the floor, ugly - and very tiny, no more than a half-foot tall.
"This is Gachnar?" Buffy asked, amused.
"I am the dark lord of nightmares!" Gachnar proclaimed.
Buffy tried not to laugh.
"The bringer of terror! Tremble before me. Fear me!"
Harmony laughed. "He-He's so cute!"
"Tremble!"
Jenny bent down. "Who's a little fear demon? Come on! Who's a little fear demon?!"
Giles looked at her. "Don't taunt the fear demon."
"Why, can he hurt me?" Jenny asked.
"No, it's just...tacky."
Jenny straightened. "You're a real stick in the mud, Rupert."
"Be that as it may..." Giles turned to face Buffy. "Buffy, when it comes to slaying-"
"Size doesn't matter?" Buffy asked with a smile.
Gachnar stared up at Buffy. "You're going to Hell, you know."
"Yeah, yeah." Buffy stomped down with her foot and squished the fear demon.
Later, Melissa was still sleeping on the bed.
Cordelia checked her watch. "What if Angel doesn't come back?"
Doyle was still putting more tape over something. "Ah, he'll be back."
"What if Dr. Chopped Salad shows up before he does?"
Doyle ripped off another piece of tape. "I have this place sewed up tighter than-"
They heard a rattling noise.
"What was that?" Cordelia asked.
Doyle got up and slowly walked over towards the living room. He pulled two weapons free from a brick wall as he passed it and handed the sword to Cordelia. "Just the wind."
They slowly advanced into the living room, weapons raised.
"So...you want to play some cards, or you want to watch the tube?" Doyle asked.
"Sure, how about some...gin? Penny a point?"
"Yeah, you'll owe me money."
"We'll see about that."
The rattling started again. It was the trap door to the sewers.
"Cordelia."
Two fingers came up through a slit and started to work on pushing the bolt aside. Cordelia and Doyle watched as the fingers pushed the bolt to the side. Doyle crouched down next the trap door, hatchet at the ready, and flicked the latch back. He opened the trap door and peered into the tunnel below. Cordelia felt Ronald put a hand over her mouth from behind. He slammed her into a wall and then out through the door. She heard the conversation between Ronald and Melissa.
"Hi. Getting some rest?"
"I..." Melissa paused. "What are you?"
"I'm more than meets the eye. But you never bothered to find out, did you? You just took advantage of my kindness. Led me on until you could find yourself a vacuous LA pretty boy."
Cordelia crawled over as silently as she could to watch. Melissa tried to run past him, and he cut her off and cornered her up against the wall.
"I'm very disappointed in you, Melissa."
Melissa stared at the scalpel in his hand. "I know." She paused. "I didn't mean-"
"No, no, no, no. Stop now. You're babbling."
"I think...I think you disappoint yourself. I think you gave up on being loved a long time ago, and now you're just another creep who gets off on pain."
"Now, don't try your little childish-"
"I think you know that I would be crazy to want to touch you, to wake up next to little pieces of whatever you are."
"Shut up."
"You turned yourself into a freak, Ronald, a vile, repulsive freak. And I'm done being afraid of you. You can cut me, and you can kill me, but it still won't change what you are."
His throat was bulging strangely.
"Angel was right. You're weak!" Melissa yelled.
"I'm weak? Then how was it I killed him?"
The door slid open behind him, and he looked around.
"Inefficiently."
"You can't be alive. You...You're not human!" Ronald yelled.
Melissa backed away from him. "You should talk."
Ronald's teeth flew out and bit Angel's arm. Angel smashed them against a wall, and Ronald clapped his hand over his mouth in pain. As Angel advanced on him, he slammed the scalpel into his shoulder. Melissa screamed, but it barely slowed Angel. Ronald threw his right hand, which gripped Angel's throat and slammed him back on the floor. Ronald turned towards Melissa. Angel ripped the hand off and threw it away. It came skittering back towards him, and he pulled the scalpel from his shoulder and stabbed it with it, pinning it to the floor.
Ronald looked at Melissa. "We could have been so happy." One of his ears fell off.
"Ronald."
As Ronald turned around, Angel hit his head with a pipe, sending the head flying across the room.
Angel stepped up to Melissa. "Are you all right?"
She just gasped, and he held her carefully.
Cordelia slowly got to her feet, groaning. "Happy Fucking Halloween. Next year, can we skip the monsters and just pig out on candy?"
Later, the gang was digging into Giles' Halloween candy at his house. Amy, Tara, and Buffy were sitting on the couch. Jenny was relaxing on the floor, her bare feet on top of Giles' coffee table, as she ate a Snickers bar. Harmony did the same from the other end while eating a handful of Nerds. Sandy was kneeling by the coffee table, chewing on some candy that was shaped like bloody vampire fangs. Giles was reading the book.
Amy unwrapped a Milky Way bar. "Some quality treats here, Giles."
"Please, finish them."
Buffy unwrapped a 3 Musketeers bar. "Um, this is much better. There is no problem that cannot be solved with chocolate."
Tara leaned back, crossing her arms over her stomach. "I think I'm going to barf."
"Except that. The cure for that is a good tummy rub." Buffy started rubbing Tara's stomach.
Tara giggled.
Sandy chewed a piece of her candy. "This 'blood' is really sweet." She suddenly had an idea. "Ooh! Blood mixed with sugar!"
Jenny chewed some of her candy bar. "I heard it doesn't amalgamate well."
Harmony suddenly thought of something. "I hope this candy doesn't turn me into an actual nerd."
Amy laughed. "It's not magic candy, Harm."
Harmony stared at her in annoyance. "I know that. Duh!"
"Oh, bloody hell. The inscription!" Giles exclaimed.
"What's the matter?" Buffy asked him.
Giles came over to show her and Tara the book. "Tara, you should have translated the Gaelic inscription under the illustration of Gachnar."
Tara rolled her eyes. "Well, excuse me. I was in a hurry on account of a fucking demon was about to emerge and kill us all."
Buffy took the book and looked at it. "What's it say?"
"Actual size." Giles walked away.
After a moment, Buffy shrugged and closed the book.
The next day, in Angel Investigations' office, Cordelia was making coffee. "Oh, goody, recycled coffee, my personal favorite." She added some fresh grounds to the ones already in the filter and started the machine.
Angel walked in, wearing a dark blue shirt, and handed her some papers.
"Oh. That guy's never going to put himself back together, right?" Cordelia asked him.
"He's in twelve steel boxes buried in twenty cubic feet of concrete in the floor of LA's newest subway station."
Doyle looked at him. "That ought to bring in the tourists."
The door opened, and Melissa walked in, carrying a potted plant.
Melissa smiled. "Hey."
Cordelia and Angel smiled. "Hi."
"Hi, how's it going?" Doyle asked.
Melissa handed Angel the plant. "I brought this for you guys."
"Oh. I hope it doesn't need light."
"I'm sure it'll be fine in here."
"Can I offer you some coffee?" Cordelia asked.
"Coffee, oh, no. I can only stay a minute. Places to go, people to see." Melissa looked at Angel. "Thanks to you."
Cordelia and Doyle started coughing.
Angel looked uncomfortable. "Uh...there..."
Melissa looked wide at them coughing. "What?"
"There is...uh..." Angel paused. "There is a...bill?"
Melissa was confused. "Bill who?"
"A bill for my services."
"Oh, of course. That's the other reason I came." Melissa pulled out a check and held it out towards Angel. "Here."
Cordelia darted forward and grabbed it. "I'll take that, thank you."
"I mean...I didn't do it for money."
"Oh, please, you earned it." Melissa reached and shook Angel's hand. "Well, hope I never see you again."
"Me, too. Good luck."
Melissa left.
Doyle looked at Angel. "Well, that didn't go so badly."
"See, you can save damsels and make decent money. Is this a great country or what?!" Cordelia asked, grinning.
Doyle smiled. "Let's march down to the bank and deposit this beauty."
"You guys go ahead. I think I'll stay here and not burst into flames."
"Oh, right, you're pretty much the night deposit guy. Still, cause to celebrate."
Cordelia patted Doyle on the shoulder. "You think everything's a cause to celebrate." She picked up her purse. "We could use more of these."
She and Doyle headed out the door.
"And we'll have more of these soon."
"We need more of these now. Have a vision."
"I can't just perform on demand."
"We need the clients. Have a vision."
"That money has corrupted you."
"If I hit you on the head, will you have a vision?"
"Get away from me. You're insane."
"Am not. Now, will you have a vision?"