From: Subject: BUFFYFIC: "Starting Over" 6/13 Date: 01 Aug 1998 08:06:59 EDT "Starting Over" (6/13) Section 1 by Jaclyn Link TITLE: Starting Over E-MAIL: Angel75427@aol.com DISTRIBUTION: Ask me first, but I=92ll probably say yes. RATING: PG SPOILERS: None, but if you haven=92t seen Becoming, you might not want to= read =09this. SUMMARY: Buffy had left Sunnydale via bus after sending Angel to Hell. On= the=0Abus =09she met the next Watcher in line, Andrew, and decided to li= ve with him=0Aand his =09Slayer, Shy. After a visit from Drusilla, Andrew= is injured and in=0Athe hospital. =09Giles comes to bring Buffy back to = Sunnydale, telling her that=0Ahe knows how to =09bring Angel back from He= ll. DISCLAIMER: Joss Wheden, Mutant Enemy, Sandollar Telivision, 20th Century= Fox,=0A=09the WB, Kuzui Productions, etc. own all the character from the= show Buffy the=0A=09Vampire Slayer. FEEDBACK: Please send it to me. AUTHOR=92S NOTE: This story is in two sections. The second section will b= e a=0Asequal =09to this under the same name. Also, special thanks to AleX= ander=0A=09(rathom@primenet.com) for the use of his wonderful ep transcri= ps which can be=0A=09accessed at http://slayerfanfic.com/transcript.html. *** =09"What?" Buffy asked, not believing what she heard. =09"Xander actually found the ritual to bring Angel back, not me," Giles = said.=0A"He said that he felt guilty for some reason." =09"Angel," she whispered. Tears of joy started to roll down her cheeks. = Reality=0Athen started to seep in. How can I face him after what I did to= him? she=0Athought to herself. =09"Buffy, are you alright? I thought you=92d be happy at the news." =09"I am. I am." =09"Well, then, let=92s go." =09"I, I can=92t." =09"Why not?" =09"Shy." They both looked at her. "Andrew is in the hospital. We had a v= isit=0Afrom Drusilla. I=92m taking care of her." =09"Go," Shy said. "I can take care of myself. You deserve to have Angel.= " =09"No," Buffy said, "I told Andrew that I=92d take care of you, and that= =92s what=0AI=92ll do." =09The phone rang, and Buffy rushed to pick it up. "Hello?" =09"Hi, Buffy. It=92s Andrew." =09"Andrew. Guess who=92s here? Giles. Gee, I wonder how he knew that I w= as=0Astaying with you." =09"Look, I=92m sorry, but it was my duty. I-" =09"Hey, no biggie. Water under the bridge. There=92s just one problem." =09"What?" =09"He wants me to come home with him so that we can bring Angel back fro= m Hell.=0ABut I don=92t want to leave Shy." =09"Why don=92t you take her with you." =09"To Sunnydale?" =09"Yeah. She can see how you live for a while. And after I am well again= , I can=0Atake her back with me." =09Buffy didn=92t hesitate. "Okay. Yeah, that=92s great. I=92ll have her = call you when=0Awe get there." =09"I=92ll talk to you soon." =09"Bye." =09As soon as Buffy hung up the phone, she picked it up again and dialed = her=0Amother=92s number. =09"Hello, you=92ve reached the Summer=92s home. We=92re unable to talk r= ight now, but=0Aif you leave you=92re name, number, and message, we=92ll = get back to you as soon=0Aas possible." =09"Hi, Mom," Buffy said. "It=92s Buffy. I was just calling to tell you t= hat I am=0Acoming home. I am coming home." *** End Part 6 End of Section 1 "It hurts sometimes more than we can bear. If we could live without passi= on,=0Amaybe we=92d know some kind of peace. But we would be hallow. Empty= rooms,=0Ashuddered and dank. Without passion, we=92d be truly dead." -An= gel, Passion ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Subject: BUFFYFIC: "Starting Over" (7/13) Date: 01 Aug 1998 08:09:06 EDT "Starting Over" (7/13) Section 2 by Jaclyn Link TITLE: Starting Over E-MAIL: Angel75427@aol.com DISTRIBUTION: Ask me first, but I=92ll probably say yes. RATING: PG SPOILERS: None, but if you haven=92t seen Becoming, you might not want to= read =09this. SUMMARY: Buffy had left Sunnydale via bus after sending Angel to Hell. On= the=0Abus =09she met the next Watcher in line, Andrew, and decided to li= ve with him=0Aand his Slayer, Shy. After a visit from Drusilla, Andrew is= injured and in the=0Ahospital. Giles =09comes to bring Buffy back to Sun= nydale, telling her that he=0Aknows how to get =09Angel back from Hell. T= hey take Shy with them. DISCLAIMER: Joss Wheden, Mutant Enemy, Sandollar Telivision, 20th Century= Fox,=0A=09the WB, Kuzui Productions, etc. own all the character from the= show Buffy the=0A=09Vampire Slayer. FEEDBACK: Please send it to me. AUTHOR=92S NOTE: This story is in two sections. The second section will b= e a=0Asequal =09to the first section under the same name. Also, special t= hanks to=0AAleXander =09=09(rathom@primenet.com) for the use of his wonde= rful ep transcrips=0Awhich can be =09accessed at http://slayerfanfic.com/= transcript.html.=09 *** =09Buffy took a deep breath before entering the library. How can I face m= y=0Afriends after leaving? she thought. As she pushed through the doors, = she saw=0AWillow and Oz by the computer, Xander huddled over a book , and= Cordelia=0Afixing her lipstick. =09As soon as Buffy stepped foot in the library, everyone looked up. Xand= er was=0Athe first to stand up, and Buffy ran to him and hugged him. For = one of the=0Afirst times in his life, Xander was speechless. =09"Buffy," Willow said. "Where were you? We were so worried." =09"Long story," Buffy said. "It=92s not important." She sighed as she pu= lled=0Aaway. "God, it=92s good to be back. I=92ve missed you guys so much= ." =09"Where=92s Giles?" asked Cordelia. =09"He took Shy, the Slayer, to his house. She=92s going to be spending a= couple=0Aof days with us." =09"I=92m sorry," Willow started, "that I did the curse a second time so = that=0AAngel went to Hell." =09"Don=92t be. It wasn=92t your fault. I should have stopped him from ta= king out=0Athe sword." =09"But that=92ll all be better now, =91cause I found the ritual," Xander= said. =09"Thank you so much, Xander. You have no idea how much this means to me= ." =09"Oz and I talked to some of Ms. Calendar=92s friends from her technopa= gen=0Asights. We=92ll be able to pull this off." =09"We=92re so glad you=92re back," Cordelia said. "You don=92t know how = scared I=92ve=0Abeen to be in this library without any protection." =09"Hey," Xander said defensively. =09"So, what do we have to do?" Buffy asked. =09"Well," Willow said, "we need to reawaken Acathla and open the vortex.= =0ASomeone has to retrieve Angel from Hell by passing four tests: loyalty= ,=0Afriendship, strength, and forgiveness. If the person fails one of the= tests,=0Ahe is trapped in Hell for eternity. But if they pass, they reac= h Angel. The=0Aonly way that they can get out is if they have this." She = held up the knife=0AAngel had cut his hand with. "Since Angel=92s blood o= pened and closed the=0Avortex, it will free him from Hell, as well as any= one with him." =09"Any volunteers?" Cordelia asked. =09"I will," Xander said. =09"No," Buffy spoke sternly, "you can=92t. I won=92t let you go into Hel= l and=0Apossibly not survive because of what I did. I=92m the one that=92= s going." =09"I deserve to," said Xander. =09"You weren=92t the one who sent him to Hell, Xander." =09"No, but I could=92ve stopped you." He took a deep breath. "Buffy, rem= ember=0Awhen I came to help you get Giles? I said that Willow wanted me t= o tell you=0Asomething." =09"So?" =09"So, she wanted me to tell you she was trying the curse again, not to = kick=0Ahis ass." =09Buffy=92s expression changed. She opened her mouth to say something, b= ut=0Anothing came out. Looking at him, realizing that he was also respons= ible for=0AAngel, she hit him and walked out of the library. =09"Buffy, wait! I can explain!" Xander called after her. But she wasn=92= t=0Alistening. =09"Xander," Willow said. "I thought you were my friend. I thought you we= re her=0Afriend. But no, you=92re so selfish that you put your happiness = above hers.=0ABuffy deserves to be with Angel. She loves him. I you reall= y loved her, you=0Awould have let her have him. You=92re so caught up in = your own jealousness that=0Ayou didn=92t even think what this would do to= Buffy. Or worse yet, you didn=92t=0Aeven care. Xander Harris, you=92ve d= one some pretty low things before, but this=0Atops them all. I=92m going = to go make sure Buffy is okay." Willow started to=0Awalk out of the libra= ry with Oz following her. =09"You still love her, don=92t you?" Cordelia asked. "Why can=92t you ju= st be happy=0Awith me?" =09"Cordelia-" =09"Spare me," she hissed. "Y=92know, I thought you were different from t= he other=0Aguys, but I guess I was wrong." She grabbed her purse and stor= med out of the=0Alibrary. =09Xander just stood there, regretting what he said. Looking over to the = table,=0Ahe saw the knife and the book he of the ritual. Picking them up,= he started to=0Aleave the library. I have to make it up to her, he thoug= ht. Well, here=92s my=0Achance=85 *** End Part 7 "It hurts sometimes more than we can bear. If we could live without passi= on,=0Amaybe we=92d know some kind of peace. But we would be hallow. Empty= rooms,=0Ashuddered and dank. Without passion, we=92d be truly dead." -A= ngel, Passion ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: taygeta@juno.com (Charity C. T.) Subject: BUFFYFIC: REVISED: Chronicles (1/?) Date: 01 Aug 1998 12:21:32 -0700 AUTHOR'S NOTE: Although I am not done with the Chronicles series, I am currently revising what I found to be unsatisfactory early installments... I suppose revising is not a good word, but rather re-writing in hopes to establish a better foundation to this story which has reached into installments of 20s. TITLE: Chronicles of the White Knight #1 Loving in the Shadows AUTHOR: Taygeta E-MAIL: taygeta@juno.com FEEDBACK: Pretty please with a cherry on top! DISTRIBUTION: Sure, just tell me first. RATING: PG-13 DESCRIPTION: Buffy/Xander fanfic series DISCLAIMER: The characters any such reference to Buffy the Vampire Slayer television series belong to their creator, Joss Whedon, and their owners, Mutant Enemy productions, Kuzui Productions, Sandollar Productions, and 20th Century Fox. In other words, they do not belong to me. Copyright infringement not intended. *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Chronicles of the White Knight #1 Loving in the Shadows By: Taygeta Angelus had once called him, Buffy's White Knight, and as he contemplated, he supposed that he had been something of the sort to Buffy, but all he had been doing was first and foremost being her friend, although, there were many who would probably think otherwise. He cared for Buffy…it was as simple as that, but obviously, his feelings were unencumbered by the boundaries of friendship. He wished for more than just simple talks and inside jokes, all in all, he loved that he had those moments with her, but that didn't draw from the fact that he was *in* love with her and that she didn't love him back. She would never see him beyond the Xander, the guy who was just one of the girls, complex she had bestowed on his unlucky head. There were moments…there are *always* moments…in which he thought he saw the possibility of her caring more for him, but they were fleeting increments of time that he had convinced himself meant nothing. They couldn't *mean* anything so long as she was in love with Angel. The moment Xander had realized what Angel represented to her…the love and romance he wanted to have signified in her life…that window of friendship closed. He resented Angel until no return and despite an established median of understanding between them, a friendship could not exist. They were inclined to hate each other…they both wanted what only one could have…Buffy's love, and guess who got the short end of that? Beneath any of his negative feelings about Angel, he knew that deep down he was happy for Buffy because she found love, the rarest of the rare, despite its impending restraints. He didn't necessarily approve nor did he like the relationship so often and inadvertently thrown in his face, but he had accepted it as fact. There was nothing he could do about it and rather than make the trouble he'd accept it as mundane…it was mundane if you considered the locale and it's locals. But that was then, and this is now…Angel was no longer Angel. The demon inside him had been relinquished when he had lost his soul, and thus Angelus took reign. With him, Buffy no longer met happiness and only faced the evil and darkness and pain that he was determined to revenge upon her for making him feel so human. Despite her strong demeanor, Xander could see her sorrow in her eyes and it hurt to know that he couldn't do anything to make it go away. "Xander…Cordelia is on the phone," he heard his mother say from downstairs. "Tell her I call her back, Mom," he said with a sigh. Cordelia Chase placed quite a dilemma in his mind. What was this *thing* that he had with her? A year ago if someone had told him he would be dating Cordelia, he would have laughed his head off…now he didn't know whether to laugh or kill himself before she killed him. Not that Cordy was bad for his health, but he didn't know the whichever way that they were going towards and not to mention there were his feelings of Buffy that didn't easy matters much. Sometimes, no matter how many times they had their 'meetings' in closets, he didn't think it felt all that right…as if he was pulling some sort of charade. Determining what he felt for Buffy was simple…everything, even the hesitance of the possible lost of their close friendship said yes. Every time he looked at her, he felt like never wanting to look away, but always knowing that he would always have to. Cordelia, on the other hand, was the equivalent of a million possibilities that never could equal yes or no, but was dormant somewhere in the haze between. So, maybe he would never have Buffy's love and maybe dating Cordy was the right thing to do, but the keyword was maybe. He didn't know and wasn't sure he wanted to know what lay beyond that. And that was what was left in his daily contemplation, an uneasy, unsettling void that could never be filled until an ultimate conclusion on want and what have could be made. Until then, *always* until then, he would have to make do with a love too scared to be presented…with a heart fearful of pain too often felt…with the wish that the shadows that hid all this would some day no longer be. _____________________________________________________________________ You don't need to buy Internet access to use free Internet e-mail. Get completely free e-mail from Juno at http://www.juno.com Or call Juno at (800) 654-JUNO [654-5866] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Andrea Newbery" Subject: BUFFYFIC: Repercussions (16/17) Date: 01 Aug 1998 15:10:11 PDT Title: Repercussion, 16/17 Author: Andrea E-mail: anewbery@hotmail.com Disclaimers: The characters are the property of Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, the WB, etc. They are not mine. Distribution: Sure, just tell me where Feedback: Please. Good, bad, whatever. Summary: Well, Xander found Angel and Buffy knows what Xander is doing. Thanks: To Rachel and Jenn. Angel's Apartment 9:30 p.m. August 21, 1998 Running desperately through the deserted streets, Buffy prayed that she would get there in time, that she would be able to stop Xander before he got hurt. Her pulse quickened at the thought of losing both Angel and Xander because of her mistakes. But while she worried about stopping Xander from going to Hell her heart was singing at the thought of going there herself. She could feel hope running through her again as she realized she may have a chance to undo what she had done to Angel. Turning onto his street she quickened her pace, afraid suddenly that she was too late, that the moments she wasted feeling hope would come back to haunt her. Pulling the door to the building open she flew inside, taking only two leaps to reach the bottom of the stairs. She stopped, her hand on Angel's doorknob, visions of the last time she had been here swarming through her mind, the cruel words spoken in his voice. Shrugging them off, reminding herself that it hadn't been Angel she quickly went through the door. She stopped just inside the room, the look on Cordelia's face as she sat on the edge of a circle drawn on the floor telling her that her fear had been justified. Her eyes drifted to Whistler who was sitting with his feet on Angel's desk. His expression causing her fear to settle like a rock in her stomach, his whole demeanor letting her know that he was in charge. Her eyes swung towards the bathroom, her last hope fading as she prayed that Xander was inside. Seeing that the door was open she turned back to Cordelia, furious that the brunette had let her stand outside this apartment and try to destroy Xander without saying anything to her of his plan. "You let him go? What were you thinking?" Cordelia stared at her, climbing to her feet, the worry on her face disappearing as she let her anger show. "Me!? What was I thinking?" Pausing Cordelia took a deep breath and balled her hands in fists. "I was thinking that Xander was heartbroken over what happened to you. He felt responsible because he's a good person. But we both know that it isn't his fault. He didn't sleep with Angel, he didn't stand by while Angel killed people, killed Ms. Calendar. All he did was try to make you do what you should have done months before. And now Xander's risking his life to make everything better for you. So don't look at me. If you had taken one second to talk to him instead of condemning him you would have known." Cordelia stopped, her breath ragged, tears streaming down her cheeks. Buffy stood there, letting Cordelia's words burn through her. Ignoring the sudden churning in her stomach and the pain that filled her as she realized that she once again had failed a friend who needed her, once more had put her emotions ahead of who she was. The guilt fighting with her instinctive desire to protect herself she opened her mouth to defend herself against Cordelia's words. But looking into Cordelia's face she understood that they were all true. Dropping her eyes she moved towards Whistler. Glaring down at him, angry to see this demon once again invading the home of someone she loved. "How did it work? Can I go in after him?" "No. I've got him. Don't worry." Whistler leaned back in the chair, slowly crossing his legs. He stared at her, his expression relaxed. "Got him?" Buffy leaned closer to Whistler, wanting to intimidate him, but Whistler's expression didn't change, he just sat there looking confident and untroubled. She was only inches away from his face, her jaw clenched and the pulse in her neck throbbing at his cavalier attitude. Whistler remained unruffled, watching her as if she were nothing more than a minor irritation. Cordelia answered, her voice shaky, "Xander's connected to Whistler, some spell or something. Whistler can help him if Xander gets into trouble." Buffy glanced at Cordelia, digesting her words then turned back to Whistler, "And he's okay? You can feel that?" "He's fine." Whistler spoke shortly, "He should be back soon, he's closer now." Buffy hesitated, shocked at his response, not knowing what that meant for Angel, swallowing she spoke, "And Angel? Is...is Angel with him?" She closed her eyes, terrified of the answer. She tried not to hope, tried not to want it so badly. She could feel the goosebumps rising along her arms, the fear that held her heart and caused it to pound so loudly in her ears. She watched Whistler barely able to breath, fully aware that his answer held her future "Xander wouldn't come back without him." Cordelia spoke with a resigned certainty, her face ravaged by fear. Buffy stared at Cordelia, taking in her words and the terror in her eyes. She felt a chill run down her spine at the finality in Cordelia's voice. She understood then, how much pain Xander had felt. She waited for the rush of anger to follow, but it was gone. Swept away as she realized how much he was willing to sacrifice for her. How much he was always willing to sacrifice for her. She opened her mouth to tell Cordelia that she understood and that she was sorry when the door flew open and Willow ran in followed by a very out of breath Giles. Buffy watched helplessly as Willow took in Angel's apartment, the hopeful expression in the redhead's eyes disappearing as she stared at Cordelia's face. Willow's fair skin became even paler as she stumbled over to the couch and collapsed into it. Struggling to hide her fear Willow spoke softly, her eyes never leaving Cordelia's face, "When? How?" "Three hours ago." Cordelia's voice broke as she spoke. Buffy watched as Cordelia stared at Willow for a moment and then the brunette slowly walked over and sat down on the couch beside her. Willow stiffened, then relaxed, taking Cordelia's offered hand and holding it tightly. Buffy took a deep breath, glad they could comfort each other. Turning away from the two girls on the couch Buffy led Giles over to where Whistler sat. "Giles, Whistler. Whistler, Giles." Buffy made the introductions, her voice tense. "Whistler has played a big role in tonight's mistake. He helped Xander go to Hell." "Well, if you hadn't run away..." Whistler left the words hanging in the air. Buffy swallowed, a fresh wave of guilt crashing in on her as she realized Angel had suffered in Hell longer than he had to. Cursing herself once more for her inability to get anything right she straightened her shoulders, unable to waste any more time punishing herself. "I know. So, can I go in now? I can bring them both back." Whistler shuddered, his face suddenly concentrating on something she couldn't see. She looked to Giles for advice, her heart pounding, but he looked just as confused as she felt. At Willow's gasp Buffy swung around, to see Willow pointing at the circle. Buffy watched it, seeing the air change texture, become thick and wavy. Her pulse raced as she walked closer to it, ready to defend the occupants of the room. "Xander." The name whispered from Cordelia's lips. Buffy quickly looked at her then turned her full attention to the shimmering air. "Is that...?" Buffy whispered, her stomach knotted. "Is that Hell?" "Yup." Whistler jumped up from his chair and strolled over to join the rest of the group by the circle. Cordelia stared straight into the circle, her voice breaking as she spoke to Buffy, "If he doesn't have Angel...Buffy you'd better not make things worse for him. He did this for you. For you and for Willow." Buffy glanced at her, her eyes filled with tears. She nodded in agreement, her eyes coming back to the shimmering portal that was opening, her mind struggling with the thought that Angel could come back, that he didn't have to spend eternity in Hell. Swallowing she reached out and grabbed Willow's shaking hand. They were all frozen watching, waiting. A hand appeared through the air, suspended by nothing. Cordelia gasped as Buffy dropped Willow's hand and took up a defensive stance in front of the arm. Slowly the arm waved around the room, a shoulder following it. A leg stepped out of the waving air, followed quickly by the rest of Xander's body. Cordelia sunk to the floor, sobbing in relief, Willow slipped down beside her, supporting her. Buffy waited, trying to be happy that Xander himself was safe, telling herself that they knew the way into Hell now, and she could rescue Angel herself. She moved forward to help him up, to tell him it was all right as Xander stuck his arm back through the portal and pulled another arm back with him. She stood there, frozen, silently watching as Xander pulled Angel the rest of the way through and collapsed with him onto the floor. 'Her life. Xander had brought back her life' The words ran as if they were a song through her head, no thoughts of the horror that was behind them or what might lie ahead. All she knew was that he was back. Standing there she stared mesmerized at Angel, at the face she thought she had condemned forever, her heart pounding at the chance she had gotten back. Xander slowly separated himself from Angel, looking up at the occupants of the room. He winked at Cordelia, his eyes shining. Seeing Willow next to her, his expression froze, became wary, his eyes swinging around the room until they came to rest on Buffy. Nodding towards Angel he smiled carefully at her. She nodded back, tears streaming down her face. Her mouth formed a silent thank you as she crawled over to where Angel lay, face down on the floor. She knew it wasn't enough, he deserved an apology and so much more, but she needed Angel right now. Wrapping her arms around him she lay her head on his back, the tears falling in full force onto his back. She could feel Xander watching her as she hugged the unmoving vampire, felt when Xander moved away from them and got slowly to his feet and walked over to Cordelia. Turning her head slightly Buffy watched from Angel's shoulder as Cordelia threw her arms around Xander's neck and held him as if she would never let go again. Cordelia's sobs were muffled until she pulled her head from Xander's neck only to join her lips with his as if she needed more proof that he was really back with her. Buffy watched Xander's shoulders relax as he kissed his girlfriend and took strength from her. Buffy held her breath as she saw Willow moving closer to the pair. She tensed as Xander took in Willow's approach his body freezing as Buffy silently begged fate to make it okay between the two of them. They stared at each other, not saying anything until Willow smiled, her eyes filling with relief. He held out his arm and Willow joined their embrace. The three of them crying openly. Buffy let out her breath, turning her attention back to the man underneath her, to the hardness of his body and the pain she knew he felt. Willow, Xander and Cordelia would be fine, she could worry about Angel now. She felt Angel stiffen beneath her as Giles cleared his throat. Running her hands softly along Angel's back she murmured words of love to him, wanting to protect him from any more pain. She listened as Giles spoke quietly to Whistler, his voice unsure "It is Angel? He has a soul?" "Yes." Xander answered for Whistler, his voice soft. Buffy watched amazed as Xander untangled himself from Cordelia and Willow to defend Angel. She leaned against Angel's shoulder enjoying the feel of him against her as Xander turned to Whistler, his voice strong. "He's Angel." Whistler grinned at him, nodding his head, "You did good kid." Speaking to the entire group he motioned towards the door, "We should leave them. My man Angel's not gonna be able to handle seeing all of you." Buffy nodded at his words. She wanted to be alone with Angel, needed to be alone with him. She had to convince him that things would be okay, that they still had each other. Xander nodded, still hanging onto both Willow and Cordelia as if they might disappear. Looking to Giles he spoke softly, "He really couldn't handle you Giles. The guy's beating himself up way too much as is." Buffy almost gasped at his words, this was Xander, defending Angel, to Giles. She looked up into Willow's eyes which were mirroring the shock in hers. Both breaking contact to stare, stunned at Xander. Xander smiled at Willow, his voice unsure, "What? Spend some time with a guy in Hell and you're gonna bond." The redhead flashed him a quick Willow-grin in response. Buffy watched the tears of relief filling his eyes until he dropped his head onto Cordelia's shoulder. Giles looked for a long moment at his Slayer and the vampire who were huddled together, unmoving on the floor. She kept her eyes down as her Watcher looked at them, knowing the pain he must be feeling, but unable to help him. She loved both of them, but leaving Angel wouldn't lessen Giles' pain. She looked up as he slowly turned and walked from the room, his gait unsteady, Whistler following close behind him. Willow followed them, allowing herself one quick look back at the pair on the floor, her eyes filled with tears. Meeting Buffy's eyes the Hacker smiled at her before slipping out of the door. She held Angel tightly, feeling the silent sobs that racked his body as Cordelia and Xander walked towards the door. Cordelia smiled brightly at Xander as he grabbed the handle to pull the door shut, "You did it." Looking back Xander met Buffy's eyes, smiling sadly, "It's not finished yet." Staring down at Angel's shaking body for a moment before looking back at Buffy again. She smiled through her tears, gratitude for what he had given her overwhelming her, "It's okay Xander. I've got him now." He nodded slowly at her, and taking one last glance at Angel he turned back to his girlfriend and pulled the door shut behind him. Buffy took a deep breath as she listened to their footsteps heading up the stairs. Turning back to the vampire wrapped in her arm she leaned down and kissed the tattoo on his back. Letting her tears fall freely she wrapped her arms tightly around him and closed her eyes. ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Sara B." Subject: BUFFYFIC: site addy Date: 01 Aug 1998 16:00:04 PDT Can anyone *please* give me the addy to Aeja Kim's BtVS fan fiction site? I need this addy!! Thanx, Sara Sara114@hotmail.com http://www.geocities.com/TelevisionCity/Studio/8502/mainbuffy.html ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Subject: BUFFYFIC: Moment Of Truth (1/1) Date: 01 Aug 1998 21:49:34 EDT Title: Moment of Truth (1/1) Author: Nastassia Email Addy: Teknopgan@aol.com Rating: PG-13 Spoiler: Not really, before What's My Line Feedback: Please please please! Distribution: Maybe if you ask nicely. Disclaimer: Buffy and Spike belong to Joss. The song "Iris" belongs to the Goo Goo Dolls. I'll give them back once I'm done playing. Summary: Nope, I'm not giving this one away. You'll just have to read it. I'm such a _huge_ Buffy/Spike 'shipper, and I came up with the premise for this story while listening to "Iris" in the car. Oh and this isn't part of my series. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Moment of Truth (1/1) by Nastassia ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ I don't really know what drew me to the Bronze that night. It wasn't hunger or the desire to kill. I don't know what it was, but it pulled me towards the club like a beacon in the night. I pushed open the door to the club and paused in the doorway. My eyes scanned the dance floor, and that's when I saw her, a vision in white. The Slayer. The woman who haunted my every thought. She didn't even notice as I walked towards her. "Slayer," I breathed. She whirled around, suddenly prepared to attack. "What do you want?" she asked. I smiled as I heard the first strains of music from a slow song echo through the Bronze. "Only a dance," I said, offering her my hand. Suspicion clouded her features for a moment as she, no doubt, engaged in an inner debate with herself. "Okay," she said, softly. I was shocked that the mighty Slayer seemed almost shy. I was until I realized I felt the same way. I slid my arms around her waist as the first lines of the song were heard. And I'd give up forever to touch you Cause I know that you feel me somehow You're the closest thing to heaven that I'll ever be And I don't want to go home right now I allowed myself to indulge our closeness for the first time. It seems as though everytime we would fight I would wind up with her body pressed against mine, her heart racing, making me think of other ways I wanted to make her heart race. Now we were closer than we had ever been. I could feel her heartbeat through the thin fabric of her dress. She buried her face in my neck, and I shivered as I felt her warm breath. And all I can taste is this moment And all I can breathe is your life Cause sooner or later it's over I just don't want to miss you tonight I must be losing my mind. 'She's the bloody Slayer, Spike!' I told myself, but it was no use. 'I need her. I want her.' 'God, I think I'm in love with her.' One of my hands left her hip as I gave into the urge to thread my fingers into her golden hair. It was like silk on my fingertips. She pulled away from me abrubtly. "What do you want, Spike?" she whispered, "Really?" "Only you, Slayer," I purred, pulling her closer. "Only you." And I don't want the world to see me Cause I don't think that they'd understand When everything's made to be broken I just want you to know who I am She smiled coyly. "Is that all?" "I want you, Slayer." She smiled again and ran her fingers over my face, tracing the lines of my cheekbones and running her fingers through my hair. Her lips touched mine, and a feeling of pure electricity flowed through both of us at that touch. Hours seemed to pass as we remained locked in that embrace. The world could have burned to the ground and I wouldn't have given a damn. All I knew was her lips against mine, her tongue seeking mine, her body so close...... And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming Or the moment of truth in your lies When everything seems like the movies Yeah you bleed just to know your alive We drew apart, regretful that this moment had to end. I took her hand and pressed my lips to her palm, closing my eyes in an effort to find the strength for the words I needed to say. "Buffy," I whispered, "I-" "I know, William." And I don't want the world to see me Cause I don't think that they'd understand When everything's made to be broken I just want you to know who I am I opened my eyes, and it took me a moment to recover from the shock of where I was. I was in the warehouse, not the Bronze, and Drusilla was sleeping next to me. It had been a dream. Just a dream. But as I turned away from Drusilla I swear I could hear the last words of that song.... I just want you to know who I am *END* Send questions, comment, flaming stakes, or Buffy/Spike fanfic (better than any other prize!) to me at Teknopgan@aol.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Elizabeth Palmer Subject: BUFFYFIC: For When Darkness Falls (2/2) Date: 02 Aug 1998 00:49:31 -0300 Title: For When Darkness Falls (2/2) Author: D.L. Powers Email: epalmer@nbnet.nb.ca Feedback: Yes, please. I'll pass them on to the author who is too shy to post this herself. Rating: PG Spoilers: This story was written a long time ago, before we knew Angel's past. Please take that into account. Disclaimers: I own the character of Devon any other characters not found on Buffy: TVS. All others belong to our leader, Joss and the WB. Summary: A new Sunnydale student has ties to Angel and gives a whole new look on one way his past might have played out. ****************** "But I thought that vampire's couldn't...you know, procreate...in the normal sense of the word, anyway." They were all sitting in the boiler room, to avoid being discovered by the janitor, and waited for the sun to set. But, in the meantime, there was plenty of time for explanations. Buffy wasn't going to let this one go unexplained. "They...we can't. I was human once." "But, wasn't that, like, a few hundred years ago?" She turned to Devon. "My you've aged well, haven't you?" "I guess I really take after my papa," she leaned back with a smirk across her face. "It seems we both have a little secret to share. I'll tell you mine, if you tell me yours." "Angella!" Angel snapped instinctively at her sauciness. "That's enough." His outburst, caused Buffy to look at him in a new light. She'd never pictured him as a father before. She had to hide her smile at that thought. "No, father, it's not nearly enough. Why didn't you ever tell me?" Angel looked at her, wanting to give her some simple, comforting explanation, but the words were lost to him. "When you left, the family was gone. I had nothing left. I looked for you, for months. And I started to get close to finding you, but not nearly close enough...well, I had no idea you had become a vampire. It didn't even occur to me, I had never believed in fairy tales." "But, what confuses me," Buffy intervened, wondering as she did, if it was a mistake, "is that you are not a vampire, I saw you outside today. How can you still be around, and...younger than me?" "The simple explanation to that is I'm not a vampire. The not so simple explanation is that I'm immortal. This could take some time to explain." She stopped, and looked at Angel, her expression changing from cold and accusing to soft and forgiving. "My life is no simpler than yours. I have to fight to keep my life, and every time I go to a new place, friends are always difficult to make, and keep." She went over to him and tried to lean against his shoulder, but he firmly held her away from him. She stalked back over to the boiler. "You killed me," she lashed out, wanting to hurt him again. "You know. It was you, when I was searching the world for you, you responded by killing me. I was thirteen years old!" He stared at her, his expression not changing. He shook his head slowly. "You can deny it if you want, but it's the truth." Buffy was starting to feel like she was in the way, and began to back up towards the door, hoping to leave unnoticed. Angel saw her and opened his mouth to speak. "No," she held up a hand. "No, I don't want to get in the middle of family matters. You just work this out, and uh...you know where to find me when you do, okay? Okay. It was nice meeting you Dev- uh, Ang...uh, well anyway, I'll see you in homeroom tomorrow, I think. Okay, I'm going now." She practically dove out the door, leaving Angel alone with his daughter. When he turned back, she was leaning her forehead against the wall. He waited for a moment, and when she didn't move, he coughed into his hand, trying to catch her attention. She laughed. He frowned. Turning, she spoke bitterly to him. "How can you be so human? You were never so human when you really were human. I've never met a vampire like you before. The few that I have met, were not concerned with innocent lives, and the consequences of their actions. They were certainly not concerned with being polite to strangers." The last comment bit deep, and Angel winced. "It's part of my curse. I feel the complete loss of the lives I have taken. I can see each and every one of my victim's faces. I have to live with this pain and guilt. There's nothing I can do about it." He looked down, to avoid her eyes. "So I help the slayer when I can. As often as I can." Devon hesitated, but only for a moment. She went over to him, and put her arms around him. He let her, but was unsure what to do with his own hands. He wasn't really sure what he was doing. "Angella," he pulled her away so she could see his face. "I don't know who you've been talking to, or what you think you remember, but I didn't kill you. It wasn't me." Sighing, she looked up at him. "It was in July. There was a full moon, that was one of my last mortal sights. I had heard you were in Rome, so I went there. I made so many contacts, I could have started my own mob. If I'd known how." "But, you were a...just a little girl. How did you manage to...and what happened to your mother?" She chuckled at his sudden interest. "I left London the year she married the Duke of Strathmore, more than ten years after you left, I think. He wanted me dead, at least, that's what he told mother. I ran away, with her blessing, and prompting even. I had to cut my hair and dress like a boy, but it got me odd little jobs and I made enough money to get to Rome. You must have heard that someone was looking for you. It must have worried you that someone had been able to track you through three countries and in almost two years. Two vampires, I didn't know they were vampires at the time, found me. They said you had sent them. They killed me, ripped my throat out and gorged on my blood. Not a pleasant way to die." She paused, her eyebrows coming together in a frown, as she remembered. "But when I woke up, I was whole and unbruised from my experience. A woman had discovered me, and took care of me. She was someone like me, and she taught me to survive, and how to use my skills to keep one step ahead of the male population. I stopped looking for you, and got on with my life." There she stopped and studied his face to gauge his reaction. He didn't seem to react at all, not moving, not looking at her. She wondered if he would ever move again. He didn't even blink, and he wasn't breathing, she hadn't noticed until that moment. "Angelus?" He didn't move. "Father?" Nothing. She began to see what he was saying, by not saying anything. "I didn't tell you this to make you guilty. I wasn't even looking for you. It's just coincidence that we ended up in the same town at the same time. I thought you didn't want me to find you. I'll leave, and...I'll just leave. Okay? I'll leave." He still wasn't moving. She let go of his hand and walked away. Devon got a full three blocks from the school before she realized how disappointed she was. Even though she had gone more than two centuries without seeing him, having him directly reject her was worse than not knowing. She sat down on the ground where she stood and let her sorrow and self pity wash over her. She was too engrossed in her thoughts to notice that someone was watching her. The sensation of meeting another immortal didn't break through her concentration until it was almost too late. She saw the blade flashing in the early moon light, and managed to roll out of the way before it sliced her head off. It whistled above her head by only centimeters. Collecting herself was easy, as she tapped into her training and instincts. Her own sword was produced from a hidden sheath down the back of her coat. But as she danced around, vying for the best position with the stranger, she began to lose interest in wanting to win. "I don't know who you are, and I don't really care. However, I'm going to have to disappoint you if you were interested in a nice long sparring match. I'm not in the mood." With these words, she dropped her sword at her feet, and waited. The stranger stared at her for a moment, and then smiled. "Well, it's just like Christmas for me tonight, isn't it?" He stepped toward her and brought his broadsword up. Devon closed her eyes. The blade whistled through the air again, and Devon braced herself for the impact. She could almost picture it, in slow motion, but when the searing pain she expected didn't come, she opened her eyes. Angel was tackling the stranger and holding him pinned to the ground. He pried the sword out of his hand and tossed it far, then clasped onto his neck with an iron tight grip. "Angel!" Devon ran over to him and tugged on his arm. "Stop it!" Angel turned his face toward her, and she jumped back. His face was distorted, angry and feral. Vampiric. His teeth protruded into alarmingly sharp points, and they wanted blood. He snarled and turned back to the stranger. Without warning, he lunged for the neck, and the surprised man let out a garbled scream. Angel stood and brought the man with him. "Run away." He growled. They watched as he scrambled away from Angel and only paused to collect his sword, and then he was gone. "Angella," his face was still grotesque, and Devon kept her distance. "I won't hurt you." "I don't think you could, but thank you for the thought." "Angella, don't run away from me," as he spoke, his face returned to a normal smooth human expression, and except for the blood on his lips, he looked perfectly normal. She took another step away from him. "Okay, I deserve that." He turned and started to walk away. He spoke over his shoulder. "You don't have to leave town, I will." Devon stood there, alone, in the dark. "Angel," Buffy tried to follow him, but he kept being in another spot when she got to him. "Angel, what are you doing?" He stuffed another handful of things into the bag. "Where are you going?" "Anywhere but here. I just have to go, I can't explain." "Does this have to do with Devon? Are you leaving because of her?" Angel stopped what he was doing, and threw the porcelain figurine of an angel, that was in his hand at the time, into the corner with great force, and looked darkly at Buffy. The shattering sound precipitated silence. "I think you better go," he said softly after the staring match got boring. "Okay, fine. I'll go. I think you're making a mistake, but if that's the way you want to be, fine. I'll see you in the next life time." She spun around and stalked back to the door. Angel started to say something, but Buffy had already yanked the door open. Devon stood there. "I was just leaving," Buffy said, and slipped out, glancing once more at Angel before she was out of sight. Buffy sat on her bed, and listened to Willow prattle on about what she had discovered about the new girl from the school database. It was somewhat interesting, but incredibly lacking in information. "Uh, Willow, I don't think I need all the details about how you got into the system. Plausible denyability and all that." "Oh," Willow turned and stuffed all the blank forms back into the folder. "Buffy, is there some reason you asked me to get this infor-- oh my there's a man standing at your window." Buffy frowned and looked. One strategic swipe, and the curtains were swept aside, revealing a very sorry looking Angel. "Well, aren't we suffering from severe mood swings. What happened now?" Angel's face was enough to break the heart of any man of steel. A squeak came from Willow's side of the room. When Buffy looked over, she was looking extremely sad. "Willow, what's wrong?" "I don't know," she sniffed. "But he just looks like a little beagle puppy that someone kicked." "Angel," Buffy turned back to him, and saw where Willow's emotion was coming from. "What happened?" Her voice cracked a little. "Tell me before I start crying." "She's gone." There was no emotion in his voice, it was all in his eyes. "She came to tell me that it wasn't fair for me to have to leave. Her papers were overdue anyway, so it won't be hard for her to pack up and go. She left." Buffy opened her mouth to tell him he was an idiot to let her go, but Willow squeaked again, and glanced quickly away when they looked at her. "But...but," Willow stuttered, trying to find the right words, "but why can't you both stay here? True, you've been estranged for two hundred years, but that's no reason you can't work thing out." Angel looked at Buffy, expecting assistance. "Hey, don't look at me," she shrank back slightly. "She has a point." "Besides," she continued, "take it from me, I know what's it's like to not have a father around. And why exactly didn't you think of that, Mr. 'I've been around long enough to know better'?" "You're ganging up on me." "And you're a little old to be pouting over this. Go get her before the bus leaves." Devon tapped her fingers together nervously, waiting for the bus to arrive. It was ten minutes late already. She paced the length of the building, kicking rocks as she went. Glancing at her watch, the bus finally pulled up. Sighing in relief, she reached for her suitcase and started over to the doors, but there was suddenly a line where once there had been no one around. Scowling, she trudged to the end of it. It took forever, but eventually, she made it to the door. The bus driver looked at her suspiciously as she put one foot up on the step. "Sorry, we don't got no more seats, little lady. Try the next bus, okay? It'll be along shortly." He closed the door, barely giving her enough time to get her foot out. Without further explanation, the bus started away, leaving Devon standing there alone. But the bus moved away to reveal Angel standing on the other side, directly across from where Devon stood. Surprised, she let go of the suitcase. "What do you... Did you...do that?" She pointed to the vanishing bus. "I don't want you to go Angella." She didn't move, or betray any emotion on her face. Even when he came closer and pushed the wayward hair out of her eyes. "Please don't leave." Devon couldn't hold it back any longer. Her face crumpled and her tears gushed down her cheeks. He pulled her forward into his arms, and comforted her. Like a father should. The end. *********************** ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Elizabeth Palmer Subject: BUFFYFIC: For When Darkness Falls (1/2) Date: 02 Aug 1998 00:49:45 -0300 Title: For When Darkness Falls (1/2) Author: D.L. Powers Email: epalmer@nbnet.nb.ca Feedback: Yes, please. I'll pass them on to the author who is too shy to post this herself. Rating: PG Spoilers: This story was written a long time ago, before we knew Angel's past. Please take that into account. Disclaimers: I own the character of Devon any other characters not found on Buffy: TVS. All others belong to our leader, Joss and the WB. Summary: A new Sunnydale student has ties to Angel and gives a whole new look on one way his past might have played out. *************** Devon looked up at the sky, and then back down to her shoes. It was a beautiful sunny day, but her mood was cloudy. It was her first day at a new school, not exactly her idea of the perfect birthday present, but so far, everyone had simply ignored her. "Oh, great, another freak show coming to our school. Why do they always come here?" The voice was hushed, but the person was standing too close for the effort to have worked. Devon turned to see who had spoken. Not so much to confront her, but so that she could avoid her in the future. It was a tall dark haired girl, wearing a short brown skirt and matching blouse. She was talking to a group of her friends, making them giggle hysterically. She turned to see Devon, but instead of making the effort to patch up her bad manners, she turned and walked away with her friends trailing behind. Devon turned and tried to find her first class. Finding her first class wasn't as easy as it sounded. Devon had only been to the building once, and all the halls looked pretty much the same. She wandered around a corner, and saw the Library for the fifth time. Sighing, she turned around to start again and walked face first into a blurred figure. They both went down. "Oh, I'm sorry, didn't see you..." Devon tried to smooth over the first impression. "Sorry." She picked up the other girl's books and handed them over. "Are you lost? What class are you looking for?" "Physics, with Donaldson. I thought it was around here, but I keep ending up back at the library." "Wow, you doing physics? Even after missing the first half of they year? You're braver than I am. You're new here, aren't you?" Devon smiled shyly, nodding. "I thought so. No one walks in circles better than a new student. I know, from personal experience." "Oh, you're new?" "I was new three months ago. Now I'm old." Devon laughed. "Well, I think you're looking for room 23D. Down that way, take one right, and then a left. It's right there, you can't miss it." She indicated the direction with a gesture. "I'm Buffy Summers. Maybe I'll see you around?" "Sure, thanks. I'm Devon. Devon Roberts. Well, I think I'm a little more than fashionably late, so I better go now. Thanks." Devon turned and hid her humiliated pride from what she hoped was a new friend. Showing up late for class was least of her worries. The physics teacher was a large, overpowering man, who called on her three times, all of which Devon had to claim ignorance. She could feel everyone looking at her, and had to remember to breath slowly, and not let go of her temper. She managed, keeping in mind the memory of her first experience in a school. That first day was disastrous, and she had nothing to complain about here. When the bell rang, she was the first one out the door. The rest of the day passed less eventfully than the first part. Devon spoke to no one, except for teachers who asked her questions, and to say 'excuse me' to people who bumped into her. She might as well have been invisible. Until the final bell rang, and everyone crushed for the door. Devon was at her locker when she felt the hand on her shoulder. "Miss Roberts?" It was principal Snyder. "I'd like to have a word with you, in my office." "Yes, sir," she replied blandly and closed her locker again. He walked stiffly, in front of her, not looking back to make sure she was following him. Her footsteps were soft, and she could tell he was fighting the urge to assure himself of her presence. He led her directly into his office and sat down without a glance at her. "It has come to my attention that there are a few documents missing from your permanent record. In a nutshell, all of them. We have no grades, or letters from your old school, or even that you attended a school previous to this one, we don't even have proof that you exist, except for our documents you and your parents signed last week. Could you offer some explanation for this?" Devon sat across from him, nervously tapping her fingers together. She was afraid something like this would have happened. Her instincts told her not to trust a guy named Gargarelli. Something in his greasy appearance should have made her ask a few more questions. Her mistakes were bound to catch up to her. "I'm sorry sir," she began, slowly, "It's all my fault. I only confirmed the documents to be sent once. I should have called at least three more times. I can have them in by the end of the week." She stopped to see his reaction. He didn't move, except for the one vein on his forehead. "Well, I suppose, if that's the best you can do, I can't very well kick you out of classes your first week." His tone indicated that he would very much like to have done just that. "But I'm going to keep a close eye on you until I get your permanent record. Keep that in mind." "Yes, sir," she stood up to leave, but Snyder held up his hand. "Hold on, Miss Roberts. We're just getting started." Reluctantly, she sat back down, and two hours later, she finally stumbled out into the hallway again. Snyder had broached every subject from her course choices to her parents occupations to her own extra-curricular activities, to her hair style. He finally let her go, when she said that her parents were expecting her home for dinner. Limping on a half-asleep foot, Devon made it back to her locker, and as she stared at the emptiness within, she heard voices from nearby. Someone else had stayed late and did not realize she was there, or they would not have been discussing what they were discussing. Especially not as loudly as they were. "Angel, what are you doing here? How did you even get here? The sun's not even down." Devon's ears perked up and she padded over to the corner and listened. There was a mumbling response, and she only caught the last few words. "...been around long enough to know better than that." Devon recognized Buffy's voice, but the other voice was only vaguely familiar. She moved closer to the edge and listened for more. "I have something to say. Are you going to lecture me some more, or do you want to hear it?" Buffy was silent, so Devon surmised that she must have nodded. "I've received some underground information. There's something here. I don't know what it is, but it's not human, and not vampire, that I know of, anyway. They didn't say if it was dangerous, but I'm not happy about the news. Be alert." Devon didn't hear anything else that was said, her mind took her back to when that voice was part of her life. It had been so long, she didn't think her mind had kept such memories. As a little girl, she remembered seeing him smile down at her. Devon forgot where she was, and stepped out into the hallway. She had to see. He stood there, same as he had always looked. His clothes were the same. Dark and inconspicuous, like his eyes. But they were different. He looked at her, and she felt him staring at her, she could almost hear his thoughts as he tried to place her in his memories. Then, she saw the horror on his face when he recognized her. Devon turned and disappeared back the way she had come, returning to her locker. That was where they found her. She knew there would be a confrontation. "You know, it's really not nice to eavesdrop. Did your parents ever teach you it's not polite?" Buffy looked indignant, but Angel still stared at her in silence. Devon paused, keeping her expression docile and calm, looking from Buffy to Angel, who appeared to have lost the capacity to keep his own expression neutral. "Are you okay? You're not going to pass out are you?" "We'll see," he replied, no louder than a whisper. Looking back to Buffy, Devon didn't bother to smile at her. "To answer your question, actually, my parents taught me how to eavesdrop. Didn't you Daddy?" Angel now had Buffy's undivided attention. ********* (continued) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: sdouglas@camfordinfo.com (Sarah Douglas) Subject: BUFFYFIC: "The Cure" (13/14) Date: 02 Aug 1998 15:53:17 DISCLAIMER: I don't own Buffy or any of the other wonderful characters in the Buffyverse. I am using them without the permission of the people who do own them who are not going to sue me because I am not making any money off this. Joss Whedon, WB, Mutant Enemy, Kusui and Sandollar own the Buffy characters. DISTRIBUTION: Just ask. RATING: Probably PG FEEDBACK: I would love to know what you all think of this. Please send me feedback. Pretty please. SUMMARY: Okay, well this takes place while Ms. Calendar is still alive, but Angel is evil, so probably Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered. It's another "Angel gets his soul back" story which I wrote to convince myself that Angel could be good again. It's kind of long and I'm sorry about that you all. AUTHOR'S MESSAGE: I'm back. I know it took a while. Okay, a very very long time and I'm sorry about that. I'm not going to bore you with the details. I want to thank the people who e-mailed me asking for the last parts, they got me off my lazy butt. Since it has been a while, if you don't remember the story or you never read it, e-mail me and I'll send you the other parts. On with the show. ********************* The Cure 13/14 ********************* "We are done!" the elderwoman announced. "Thank God," Cordelia replied. "Move this table," the elderwoman directed. Xander and Oz each grabbed an end. Willow picked up a chair and Giles did the same. Cordelia stood with her arms folded across her chest, watching everyone else. Alice and the elderwoman each grabbed a chair. Finally Cordelia let out an annoyed sigh and picked up a chair. "Oh bravo, Cordelia," Xander said sarcastically, applauding as he spoke. Cordelia shot him a dirty look. Buffy and Jenny entered the room then. Buffy was carrying Angel. "All right, enough with the bickering, let's get this over with." **************** Buffy sat on the counter, watching the scene closely. At first Ms. Calendar seemed quite nercous, but after the big breath Buffy saw her take she calmed a little. Buffy listened as Ms. Calendar spoke, sounding like a parot reciting what it just learned, but after the first line, the words came flowing and Ms. Calendar looked like she was in a trance. Buffy watched what was going on around her. First the candles that had been arranged lit themsleves on fire. As Ms. Calendar continued, the herb mixture also burned. Finally, the wax on the floor lit on fire as a climax to the spell. Buffy jerked back as the wax lit on fire. Ms. Calendar finished the spell ans everything extinguished simultaniously. <> Buffy thought. *************** The smoke in the library cleared and Jenny came out of her trance. She opened her eyes and looked around the room. She waved her hands in front of her face to clear the smoke. The elderwoman and Alice were looking around, clearing the smoke in front of them. "Is he...?" Buffy asked, jumping off the counter. The elderwoman moved forward. "Yes, child, that is your Angel. However, the power of the spell will leave him unconscious temporarily. Don't worry, it doesn't usually last long. He'll have plenty of time before sunrise." Buffy smiled and walked over to the library phone. She quickly punched in a number. She waited a minute. "Hi Spike, it's Buffy.....yeah, the curse worked.....he can still get his stuff, right?...and Spike? Thanks.....Spike, as a thank you gift, I'm offering you a Get-Out-Of-Sunnydale-Free card. Take Dru and go....Well, bye then." Buffy looked over at Angel. he was sitting up. "What happened?"he asked, rubbing his neck. Suddenly, he seemed to remember. "Umm....did I lose my soul after...and act like a jerk?" "Yeah, if you want to use the nicest posible way to describe what you did," Xander replied, bitingly. "I am SO sorry. Oh my God, I can't believe I did that to you. Is there any way to make that up? Especially to yu Buffy. My God, what I put you through," Angel said, the incredible remorse for having hurt them and the unbelievable anger at himself apparent in every movement he made. Everyone descreetly left the library, leaving Angel and Buffy together, alone. "Buffy, I'm so sorry. I hate myself for what I did to you. Buffy, I still love you," Angel looked at her, imploring her with his eyes to say the same. Buffy turned away from him. She felt confused. This was what she'd hoped for, what she'd dreamed of. She'd spend the whole day thinking about this. Now that it was here, she just kept remebering everything Angelus had done to her, to her friends. She heard the demon's words echoing over and over in her head. She turned to him and threw his words back at him. "Yeah, I love you too. I'll call you." And she walked out of the room. End part 13 feedback to ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: sdouglas@camfordinfo.com (Sarah Douglas) Subject: BUFFYFIC: "The Cure" (14/14) Date: 02 Aug 1998 15:53:26 DISCLAIMER: I don't own Buffy or any of the other wonderful characters in the Buffyverse. I am using them without the permission of the people who do own them who are not going to sue me because I am not making any money off this. Joss Whedon, WB, Mutant Enemy, Kusui and Sandollar own the Buffy characters. DISTRIBUTION: Just ask. RATING: Probably PG FEEDBACK: I would love to know what you all think of this. Please send me feedback. Pretty please. SUMMARY: Okay, well this takes place while Ms. Calendar is still alive, but Angel is evil, so probably Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered. It's another "Angel gets his soul back" story which I wrote to convince myself that Angel could be good again. It's kind of long and I'm sorry about that you all. AUTHOR'S MESSAGE: Here it is, the last part. I hope you all enjoy it. I appologize for the cuel way Buffy behaved to Angel, but I was mad at him for all the mean stuff he did when I wrote it, so she was mad too. It gets better. I promise. ********************* The Cure 14/14 ********************* Buffy walked into the library the next mrning with mixed feelings. With a deep breath, she went in. "Buffy." All heads shipped towards her. They had seen her leave, and Angel left shortly after. They were all dying to know what happened "So what happened?" Cordelia asked, in her usualy blunt way. Today, though, nobody minded. They were all just as anxious to hear. Buffy faced them. Everyone was there: Willow, Xander, Giles, Cordelia, Oz, Ms. Calendar, even the elderwoman and Alice. "Well, first of all, thank you Ms. Calendar. I can never thank you enough for what you did, and you two too. But as I was standing with him, all I could htink of was how much he'd hurt us. So I left. I don't know what I'm feeling. It may take some time for me to figure things out," Buffy explained. Willow watched her best friend try to explain how she felt. As soon as Buffy finished, Willow gave Buffy a hug. "It's going to be okay, Buffy," Willow whispered. "Thanks Will." **************** Giles put the weapons back in the storage area. After Buffy and Angel had left, the group had packed up everything at Oz's and brought it back to the library. Giles had spend most of the morning unpacking. And worrying about Buffy. <> he thought. He decided to give her the night off. <> Suddenly, Buffy came in. "Hi Giles." "Hello Buffy. How are you?" "I'm fine. Giles, would you mind if I just hung out here? I don't really feel like being around lots of people right now." "Yes, of course you can "hang out" as you put it." Buffy picked up a book and put it away. Then she went into Giles' office and shut the door. *************** "Bye Mom!" Buffy called over her shoulder, heading out the door to Oz's van. "Hi Buffy," Willow greeted. Buffy looked around and saw Xander and Cordelia already sitting in the back. "Hi guys. Oz, what are you waiting for? Let's go!" "That was pretty cool of G-man to give you a night off," Xander said. "Yeah, I can't believe it. This is gonna be a blast!" Buffy said. **************** Buffy sat at a table, sipping her coffee. Willow and Oz were playing pool. Xander and Cordelia had gone to get themselves drinks. The song ended and a new one started. A slow song. Xander and Cordy started dancing. Buffy smiled as she saw Willow dancing with Oz. <>Buffy thought, giving Willow a thumbs up sign. Then Buffy saw him. Angel was standing in the shaddows. Buffy's gaze locked on him. Suddenly, she stood up, and began walking towards him, as if drawn by a magnet. Angel had felt her gaze resting on him. When she came forwards, his heart lept. He walked to meet her. "Hi," Buffy said, puttiing her arms around him as they began to dance. "Hey." All of the sudden, Buffy's mind was filled with all the wonderful things he'd done for her and her friends. She thought of the love they'd shared. <> she realized. <> she decided. "Angel?" "Yes, Buffy?" "I love you." Angel's heart soared at those words. "I love you too, Buffy." They drew together in a kiss that said everything. Buffy felt all her doubts melt, she knew this was right. Angel was perfectly happy, completely happy because she loved him. "If another moment of true happiness will destroy the curse again, we're in trouble." "No," she replied," your curse is permanent." They kissed again, the same way they had kissed at the post-fumagation party long ago, but this time when the kiss ended, it wouldn't be goodbye, it would be hello. FIN Okay, okay, I know I'm sentimental. But I just had to do it. Feedback to ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Tracy Cain" Subject: BUFFYFIC: OT; regarding Date: 02 Aug 1998 19:59:32 PDT I realize that it has been a long time since I updated my story "the Third Child;" this is both an apology and an excuse. I have decided to discontinue this story for several reasons. If any of you have seen Star Hawk's story "Lost Angels," I want you to know that it is almost exactly what I was planning to do with my story. She began it long before I began mine, but only a few days ago did I encounter it. I thought a long time to try to come up with an original plot, and apparently, I failed. Incidentally, it's also much better written than mine. I also have been struggling with writer's block and lack of feedback. To any of you who were following my story, I'm sorry. Next time, I'll finish it before I post it. -Rihanon "Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and good with ketchup." ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Subject: BUFFYFIC: Libidinous 8/? Date: 03 Aug 1998 17:45:20 EDT Title~ Libidinous 8/? Author~ Shani Notes~ in psychoanalytlic theories, the libido is the driving force behind all human actions Summary~ A Buffy/Angel story with a few twists. Involves characters from General Hospital, but yoiu don’t have to watch GH to understand this fic. I did change a thing or two around for you GH fans. Disclaimer~ All characters of Buffy the Vampire Slayer belong to Joss Whendon, Mutant Enemy Productions, Kuzui Enterprises, Sandollar Productions, and 20th Century Fox. “Reflection” is from the Disney movie Mulan and is sung by Christina Aguilera. All characters of General hospital belong to ABC. Chapter 8, Reflection < Look at me You may think you see who I really am But you'll never know me Ev'ry day It's as if I play a part> Thrust, block, thrust, thrust...she stopped to help Giles up. “Yes,yes, very good. I see you haven’t lost your skill.” Giles mumbled. She smiled at him, but the same question kept repeating itself in her head. Finally, she decided to ask Giles. “Giles, how do I kill Arcanus without killing Angel?” Buffy asked her Watcher. It was a good question, Giles had to credit her with that. “I...I um, will have to consult my books...” He replied, already heading for the stack of books he had brought with him. Buffy smiled inwardly. It was good to have him here to say that, though she wished he had said something more like ‘Just say please and everything will be ok. Now, why don’t you take the next month off.’ Right, that was gonna happen. “Well, what can I do?” She asked her Watcher yet another question. “Have you eaten anything? How about get some sleep.” he suggested. ‘Oh, you mean be normal for a few hours.’ she thought. She couldn’t. She was too wired. “I think I’m gonna go on patrol.” She said. Giles looked at her long and hard for a moment. ‘She *wants* to patrol?’ He looked down for a moment, but by then she was gone. < Now I see If I wear a mask To be myself I can fool the world But I cannot fool my heart> Nikolas watched her go. He quietly followed her out. He was able to keep track of her until they reached the beach. He spun around, she was nowhere to be seen. The next thing he knew, his face was in the sand. “Oh Nikolas! I’m so sorry!” She exclaimed, holding out a hand to help him up. “I wasn’t sure who was following me...” Nikolas inturrupted her explaination. “I’m alright. Could I join you?” he asked. For some reason he wanted to see how it was done. He hadn’t believed those stories his uncle had told him about the Slayers, and now that he did, he found himself quite curious. He noticed her hesitaion, but she finally nodded her head. < Who is that girl I see Staring straight back at me? When will my reflection show Who I am inside?> They enjoyed the boat ride to the mainland in silence. She could tell there were things that he wanted to know about her, about slaying. She guessed that he thinks that it’s neat and makes you feel powerful. She thought that’s what it would be like at first. Xander and Willow thought it would be cool to be the Slayer, but now they all knew better. The others would never ready understand it the way she did. She supposed that only a Slayer could understand it they way that she does. Slaying was exactly as she had described it to her mother. Lonely and dangerous. She sighed inwardly before speaking aloud. “Go ahead.” She said. < I am now In a world where I have to hide my heart And what I believe in But somehow I will show the world What's inside my heart And be loved for who I am> “What?” Nikolas asked her. She stopped walking for a moment. “Nik, there are obviously things that you want to know, go ahead. Ask.” That should clear up any confusion he has, it was very straight forward. They continued walking while Nikolas thought briefly about what she had said. “I, you’re right. Uncle has told me of the Slayer before, but I never believed what he was saying. I suppose now that I do believe, I’m curious. I know the story of you and Angel, but well...how did you find out that you were the Slayer?” He said, finally deciding on a question. She remembered what that was like, how lonely it felt, and she tried to explain it to him. < Who is that girl I see Staring straight back at me? Why is my reflection someone I don't know?> Buffy stopped mid-sentence. “Stay behind me,” she ordered Nikolas. A vampire appeared to their right. Nikolas was shocked at it’s true, horrible face. It looked them both over for a moment. “Sslayer...” The demon hissed. “Slayee” Buffy retorted. They began combat. The vampire threw a punch to her head, which she easily blocked. The Slayer then kicked it in the face, knocking it backward. She got out her stake, but the demon was quick. Getting up, he tripped her and pinned her down. She threw him off of her and staked him in the chest. The vamp exploded into a pile of dust. Buffy wiped off her hands and turned to make sure that Nik was alright. He was staring at her and the spot where the demon had stood not long ago. “Are you ok?” She asked him. “Am *I* ok? You just fought a vampire, are you alright?” Nikolas asked in return. “Sadly, I don’t even consider it strange anymore. I’m fine. Look, we’ve been out here for a while, why don’t we head back.” < Must I pretend that I'm Someone else for all time? When will my reflection show Who I am inside?> They walked back towards the docks discussing her training, which Nikolas seemed to find fasinating. When they arrived at the docks, Buffy elbowed him. “What’s...” then he saw the two figure’s sitting on the bench. “So, “ Buffy began. “You are privately tutored. I know what that’s like, do you find not being around others your age difficult?” She hated pretending to be someone that she wasn’t to protect her secrect. Still, sometimes she wanted to be someone else. Nikolas figured out what she was getting at. “No, I like going at my own pace with the tutor.” He said. They continued this line of pointless convorsation until they were on the boat, heading back to Spoon Island. < There's a heart that must be free to fly That burns with a need to know the reason why Why must we all conceal What we think How we feel? “Thanks for playing along back there.” “Hey, I understand why you have to keep what you do a secret.” Nikolas told her. He couldn’t even imagine what would happen if everyone knew that there were vampires. Maybe people would be able to protect themselves better. Or maybe they would panic. Buffy sawthe look on his face, and had an idea of what he was thinking. “Didn’t you feel safer not knowing? Before this, weren’t you just a happy citizen like I was, like Xander and Willow and Giles and my mother?” He finally understood. Though he would never understand as completely as her friends or her Watcher, or even Angel, but he understood that this is not something that she wants to do. He knew that she was chosen, but never really understood that she didn’t get to choose. He looked at her with a new respect. She looked at him, the realization of something visible in his eyes. < Must there be a secret me I'm forced to hide? I won't pretend that I'm Someone else For all time When will my reflection show Who I am inside? When will my reflection show Who I am inside?> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Subject: BUFFYFIC: The Other Side of Midnight (1/1) Date: 03 Aug 1998 23:41:53 EDT Title: The Other Side of Midnight Author: Noodlebrain Distribution: Just ask me first, k? Spoilers: You all know Buffy ditched Sunnydale. Summary: Oh, just read it. Buffy doesn't return home in this one. Disclaimer: Everything but the story belongs to the Joss-entity. The lyrics belong to Screaming Fist. Notes: I have never heard this song, but the lyrics just struck me so much that I had to write. Unfortunately, the song is not available on any album. // On the other side of midnight Where shadows walk and walls are breathing Sacrificing innocence, Mother-Satan leaves me bleeding Child, scream the rage// --from "Scream the Rage" by Screaming Fist ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ It was a crash of thunder that defied the limits of simple sound. It shook houses on their foundations; beams of wood and metal girders squealing and rattling in protest. Streetlights blinked out, their globes of illumination flickering and dying like some bizarre harbinger of doom. Car alarms went off as sonic aftershocks echoed through the air. It wasn't any simple thunder- this was the thunder of ungodly fury, in a storm that no man would brave. It was a good thing that Buffy never seemed to be very much in God's favor in the first place. Seated on a low stone wall on a darkened avenue in a storm- battered small town, she held a stake in one hand, slowly twirling the tip of it against the palm of her other. She sucked in a slow, measured breath, enjoying the way that the feel of the rough, dull wood grinding up against the her comparatively soft and yielding flesh kept her hyper-aware of stark reality. She kept grinding, almost believing that if she stopped, she'd fall asleep. Getting enough sleep was an awful task. She hunted by night. Sometimes, she slept in the day. Sometimes, she traveled in the day. Trying to accomplish all three activities in twenty-four hours often left her feeling more exhausted than if she didn't sleep at all. So mostly, she just traveled and hunted. Hunted and traveled. Buffy could imagine what the others were saying; could see Willow, driven to tears by what were by now probably full-blown daily arguments between Giles and Xander; could see Xander angrily condemning her for ditching her responsibilities by running away and leaving them to fend for themselves against the Hellmouth; could see Giles angrily defending her, but being equally angry at her in his heart. What did they know? Did they think she could actually stop hunting? They'd never seen it. While they were sound asleep, enjoying the relative luxury of nightmares, even being treated to an occasional erotic fantasy dream, she was fighting. Always fighting. Midnight to them was then end of the day. They'd never known what it is was for her; would never know the other side of midnight. What should have been her comfort zone, the buffer between each stressful "day in the life," was hell. A hell she was condemned, through no fault of her own, to repeat every day, most likely until she died. Didn't matter what town. Didn't matter whether she had friends, lovers, or blood-sworn adversaries, or no one at all. She'd always have to fight, to hunt. It was just easier when there was no one. Looking down, she realized that she'd stopped grating the stake up against her palm. She'd drifted off into introspection, regardless of the stinging raw skin where the grain of the wood had abraded her. She felt the twinge in her conscious before she heard the twig snap. Stupid leeches, she thought. Don't they ever watch horror movies? She exhaled loudly. "I'm over here," she said to the to the dark night, anxious to get the fight over with. For tonight, at least. As the muffled sound of wet thuds and smacks filled the rain- drenched air, Buffy cursed at no one in particular. At the residents of this small town, perhaps, who would remain ignorant of her fight for their life. Maybe at the powers that be, for casting her to this fate. Or even at her friends back in Sunnyhell, condemning _them_ for the simple fact that they were once smack dab in the middle of her world, they remained oblivious to it. It wasn't their fault, of course, but she had to rage at someone. She had to scream, why had she been left alone? None of it would ever matter, though. She was forever abandoned on the other side of midnight. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Full song lyrics: "I will sing the pain give voice to the madness Of tearing flesh and unending sadness Child, scream the rage I want what you cannot, Could never begin to give me Tell me that you lied Take it back If you must apologize Child, scream the rage You cannot know, cannot begin to touch The anger, pain, and fury Deepest burning pits of hell Cannot contain the torment I feel Child, scream the rage Guilty in the first degree Of childhood, and being needy Sentenced by a Judas-court The goddess-whore is judge and jury Child, scream the rage 'Reject it from the very start to kill the child's soul and heart' Insanity the legacy of drunkard, whore, and pederasty Child, scream the rage On the other side of midnight Where shadows walk and walls are breathing Sacrificing innocence, Mother-Satan leaves me bleeding Child, scream the rage I want back what's taken from me Innocence, trust, and purity How can you rape a child? How can you steal a smile? Child, scream the rage The scars tell a story 'Mommy doesn't love me and this world, this society's got no place for me, no place for me' I totally reject everything you ever put inside me Throw it in your face, your demon-eyes, your lies, and pseudo-grace Child, scream… I will sing the pain, give voice to the madness Of murdered souls and unending sadness Child…" --Screaming Fist, "Scream the Rage" lyrics used without permission Feedback!!!! Comments of any kind, JMHnoodles@aol.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Azzy :)" Subject: BUFFYFIC: DIscuss: Fantasies Date: 04 Aug 1998 10:36:54 -0500 (EST) Hi there, I wanted to tell you all, that while the last few parts of the Fantasies storyline is roaming around in my head, it's going to be a while before I can get them to to the list. I'm moving, and I have to wait till I get a new account before logging back onto the list. But as soon as I can I'll have the fantasies story finished up and ready for your approval, or disapproval maybe. :) Thanks for all the great input you've been giving me! :) :P :) :P :) :P :) :P :) :P :) :P :) :P :) :P :) :P :) :P :) :P :) ;) The Universe has Aislynn Denny sense of Humor. bd16281@conrad.appstate.edu -Callista "Children of the Jedi" ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Subject: BUFFYFIC: "Secrets" (1/2) Date: 04 Aug 1998 11:28:04 EDT Disclaimers: Standard disclaimers apply. Distribution: Eventually Sarah's archive. All others, check with me first, please. Feedback: To KylenRevik@aol.com, whether it be good, bad, or anything in between. Note: Takes place prior to "Angel". ~ "Secrets" Losing one's keys could be such a pain in the _ass_, Xander thought silently. Especially when your parents were out of town for the weekend and you had absolutely no way of contacting them. Buffy was at Willow's, and he had been pointedly informed that this was Girls' Night Out, and he was not welcome to attend. So he was stuck here until either very late at night, or tomorrow morning. And he didn't _want_ to be, especially now that darkness was falling. He was hoping there were no vampires out tonight. At least, not over here. Maybe some would go terrorize the shopping mall, or maybe they would decide to take a vacation. Whatever, so long as he didn't wind up having to fight them armed with nothing but the cross he'd taken to wearing under his shirt on a thin gold chain. Somewhere past midnight, Xander found himself drifting to sleep in the darkness, propped up against the back door. Lucky for him, he thought, that it was a warm night. All was well until the moment he reached that point between being awake enough to think rationally, and actually being lost in sleep. At that point-- just as he teetered on the edge of consciousness-- Xander heard something crack in the bushes, and he shot directly upright. "No vampires. No. Uh-uh. No." He swallowed nervously, his eyes glued to the point in the bushes where the sound had come from-- until a small squirrel ran out from the bushes, pausing for a moment to meet Xander's eyes. The teen managed an uneasy smile. "See? No vampires. I'm going to sleep now. Yes. Sleep good. Being awake and listening to every sound that happens by, bad. Very bad." Repeating the mantra in his mind, Xander finally managed to push himself into something resembling sleep. * Quiet laughter snuck into Xander's dream, waking him only slightly. It was several seconds before he realized that the giant cheese that had been chasing him through his dreams had turned into the blonde vampire who was now kneeling before him, and another few seconds before he realized he was no longer dreaming. He choked. "Darla." The moment he realized who she was, he felt his pulse quicken. She smiled, nodded. "That's right, kiddo..." She reached forward, her fingertips brushing his neck, gentle for barely a second before she jerked his head violently to one side, bending and letting her lips touch his neck. An involuntary shudder swept through him, and Xander jerked away from the light touch. His hands fumbled under his shirt and pulled out the tiny cross, the chain snapping and flying out into the grass while he clutched the metal of the charm itself. Hissing, Darla drew away, releasing him. Her game face melted away, and Xander found himself staring up into her eyes once more, shivering again. "Put that away," she snapped. "Yeah, right." "I don't need my _teeth_ to kill you." The glimmer of light on steel flashed in the corner of Xander's eyes, and next thing he knew he was staring at the blade of a large knife. "Impressive, isn't it?" Darla sighed, stroking the sharp-edged blade with one finger, ignoring the thin stream of blood that began to trickle down her palm as she finished the action. "I love playing with knives...though so many people say it's not healthy." She drew her hand from the blade, and pointed its tip toward him. "What's your opinion?" she asked. Xander managed a weak smile, then shook his head. "Opinion? I don't-- I don't have one, actually..." "Sure you do," she said with a slight smile. "Everybody's...got..." She moved forward, and Xander's arm slowly pulled back as Darla teased the blade out, back, out again-- always with the hint of a threat to strike him around the cross, always with the possibility that if he didn't pull back, she might not cease her advances. As his back ran up against the wall, Darla hit his wrist with the hilt of her blade, and he felt the cross drop from his fingers. "...an opinion," she finished, letting the knife rest against the soft, thin flesh of his throat. "Uh--" He licked his lips nervously. "Look, ah, maybe we could, well, aren't you not supposed to, well, slit my throat, because--" "Shh," Darla said, laughing a little. "I won't. Just wanted to get some atten--" She broke off, and Xander heard a rustling in the trees. As the knife left his throat, he felt Darla push him away and turn toward the figure that leapt from the branches. "There you are!" the blond vampiress called with a smile, speaking to whoever it was who had just appeared. Xander's eyes crossed the distance between himself and the new arrival, and he breathed a sigh of relief mixed with annoyance when he realized it was Angel. Relief, because now he wasn't going to die. Annoyance, because he would now owe his life to Angel, of all people. "Leave him alone," Angel called to Darla, moving toward the porch and pushing Xander out of the way. "Whatever you say, dearest," Darla replied, laughing again. As the two, vampiress and man, circled each other, Xander found himself staring slack-jawed. It wasn't until they had maneuvered so that Darla had her back turned toward Xander that Angel's eyes focused once more on the teen. "_Run_, you moron!" he shouted. Xander's brow creased, but he fought the urge to repudiate the charge of harboring moronic qualities, and instead he turned and let his feet pound against the pavement in rapid-fire succession as he sprinted away from his back porch. ~ More to come. Comments to KylenRevik@aol.com, please! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Subject: BUFFYFIC: "Secrets" (2/2) Date: 04 Aug 1998 11:28:12 EDT Disclaimers: Standard disclaimers apply. Distribution: Eventually Sarah's archive. All others, check with me first, please. Feedback: To KylenRevik@aol.com, whether it be good, bad, or anything in between. Note: Takes place prior to "Angel". ~ Darla grinned at her childe as he shouted for the human boy to run. She let a slight laugh pass her lips. "Forget the kid, Angel baby." Nails sharpened to razor-like tips raked across his cheek as Angel feinted, and he smothered a cry of pain at the burning sting that rose along the paths Darla's nails had followed over his flesh. She stepped back to admire her handiwork, and crossed her arms across her chest as a smile slipped smoothly across her lips. "Come on," she repeated, her features still smooth-- a show of the control she could exert over her vampyric qualities. "If I fight you, I'll win." A sharp, bitter laugh rang in Angel's ears a moment before he felt Darla's stiletto heel embed itself in his stomach. He choked, doubling over at the sensation-- it was as if someone had slammed a sledgehammer into his gut. As he tried to overcome the sensation, fight back against the nerves that shot pain through his body-- even as he felt the puncture wound from the stiletto begin to heal itself-- Angel heard her give a sneering scoff. "I made you," Darla snapped as Angel began to straighten. "You haven't got a prayer." His eyes met hers, his gaze cold and hard. "I haven't had one of those in a long time," he replied, the pain slowly fading, the only sign that there had been a wound being the newly-made hole in his cotton t-shirt. "And it seems to me you'd be better off to quit talking and see if you can back up your words with something a little more substantial than a high heel." Darla rolled her eyes and shook her head, then took a step toward him and moved her hand to rest against his shoulder, though it almost covered the place where his heart had once beaten without the prompting of a recent feeding. Her face moved in next to his own. "You wouldn't hit a lady, would you?" She offered him a slight smile, though it contained more bitterness than Angel would have expected from his old mistress, the one who had created him. In response to her question, he caught her wrist and shoved her backward, slamming her against the wall of Xander's house, not letting himself wonder where the teen had gone and how safe he might be there. "I'd hardly consider you a lady, is the thing." He was only centimeters from her then, and both of them had shifted into the vampyric face while the words had been exchanged. "Then I guess I'm gonna have to prove it to you." Darla smiled, whispering through her teeth and through slitted eyes. "Fine by me." Before Angel had the opportunity to push away, he felt her nails running over his shirt, pressing down and shredding the fabric, and she moved closer to attach her teeth to his lips and puncture his flesh. As her teeth penetrated his lips, Angel felt a rough jerk, as though he were being pulled from the reality he knew into one created specifically by his sire. A world in which the only logic was hers, and the only reason to do anything at all was for her approval. He knew what was happening, intellectually. He had heard other vampires speak of how a sire could exert power over its childe by another exchange of blood. But that had been long after he had left Darla's side, and he had never thought she might come back to do this to him. All the parts of him that Darla had put there so many years ago began to cry out for that which had created him. He was sinking into a rapture, knew no escape, and couldn't have cared less had he discovered he would never find one. It was enough for him to be simply here, joined to her across a bridge of blood. Darla was slowly pushing against him, running her tongue over his lips and letting the fingers of one hand run through his hair while the other scored and tore at the flesh of his chest through the t-shirt. Blood rushed upward from the tiny tears, toward the air, toward freedom, and toward her. He could already feel the wetness between himself and his sire as she sucked at him, her tongue darting quickly in and out of his mouth, down his throat, around his teeth, moving without pause. He was fighting, but not hard enough. He hadn't fed tonight, he didn't have enough blood to sustain him if all she did was take. She pulled a hair's breadth away as he thought that, and she smiled. "Right here, baby," she breathed, pushing him, and Angel found that somewhere in the moment of the kiss she had moved around him until he was the one with his back to the wall, and Darla was the one pushing him against it, pushing herself against the stickiness that had soaked through the tatters of fabric until it was plastered against both their flesh. A low growl beginning in the back of his throat, Angel yielded, letting Darla push him down toward the porch floor. Letting her wipe away the messy, wet strips of cotton, the rags that had once provided adequate covering-- and were now only a reminder of an obstacle that had been no more than an illusion to grant him a pathetic sense of security. Darla straddled him, resting atop his body, no longer sucking blood from his lips but instead simply letting her tongue slip across his blood-covered skin, lighting the cold flesh aflame with the heat she had stolen from his own blood. Everything about her hammered and pounded its way into his mind, obscuring any ability he might have possessed in the way of thinking clearly. The way she slit her wrist with one of the sharp nails that had already shredded the skin of his chest and taken tiny shreds of his flesh along when it moved on to its new objective sent shivers up his spine. The motion of her lips, her tongue, her hands, the scent of his blood pulsing inside her, the way she pushed it against his lips and buried his face in her arm and at the same time dipped her head to lap at the pool of blood gathering upon his chest-- it was enough to send him into spasms of euphoria. All of it assaulted him in a continuing whirl of emotion and color and sensation he couldn't even describe, all of it pulling him further and further into the sound of her newly gorged heart beating, pulsing, her tongue darting in and out in quick forays against his skin, the sounds, the steady rhythms beating across the natural sounds of night. He wanted to cry out in ecstasy when her fangs pushed through the already torn and mutilated flesh of his chest, but instead he closed his own powerful jaw around her thin wrist, fangs splitting four new holes around the slit that was already starting to heal. Though vampyric blood lacked the sweetness of human, there was an unmistakable bitterness that he hadn't tasted in decades, and the flavor held an attraction all its own. In thick gulps, the nectar filled his mouth, and his muscles worked like those of a baby to pull it down his throat as quickly as he could. He could feel Darla's hair against his skin as she too gorged herself on him, and it was already thickly caked with drying blood when Angel felt a sudden absence of weight on his body. His mind slowly began to recover from the clouds and haze that had swarmed across and through it, and let itself open to the clarity of what was unfolding around him. The lips that had worked to drink of her flesh found themselves suddenly drinking in only the cool night air, and in shock Angel heard the sounds of blows and heavy breathing. He left the pathetic excuse for a shirt behind on the slatted boards of the porch as he rose to watch the events crashing into reality around him. "You-- little-- _skank_!" the Slayer shouted at the vampiress, each word punctuated by a kick or a punch. From where he stood, Angel couldn't see Buffy's face-- but he had the feeling he already knew the way the fury in her eyes must be burning its way through Darla's expression. Realizing her prey had regained his senses, Darla glanced toward Angel for a split second, and he felt his heart leap into his throat. His chest, all but healed, threatened to burst again when he recognized the look in Darla's eyes-- the one that said she had a secret, and she was willing to share it. He tossed another look toward Buffy, then glanced back at Darla and shook his head, hoping his sire, so recently thwarted, might show a shred of mercy and not unmask his true identity to the girl he was more than a bit afraid he might be falling in love with. He wondered if it was possible for Darla-- soulless, petty Darla-- to understand something like love, to understand how much he would be willing to do to keep from ruining whatever potential he and the Slayer might have. "Angel." He glanced up at the voice, as Buffy ran a hand over his arm. He looked around. Apparently, he had missed Darla's departure. Buffy's hair was in a state of disarray, however, and her breath was slightly quicker than usual. "Yeah?" he asked. "You okay?" the Slayer asked. "Xander, he came-- he said...and it looked like that bitch was _mauling_ you or something..." Her voice trailed off, and Angel found himself confronted with the questioning gaze of a woman he cared for, respected, and admired-- and he realized he had no way to explain to her what had happened. "I'm fine," he replied. She sighed, shook her head. "Look," she said, "I realize you're into the whole macho-vampire-killer thing, but Angel..." "I can take care of myself." "You're only human. I'm the Slayer. You shouldn't have--" She cut herself off in midsentence, no doubt realizing that had Angel not stepped in when he had, Xander would have made Darla's next meal. "Everything was under control," Angel said, measuring his voice carefully. "She was--" "It was _under control_," he said, cutting her off sharply. Then he shook his head. "Buff, I'm older than you, and I know what I'm doing." "You," she snapped angrily, "were _making it_ with a _vampire_ on _Xander's back porch_." Both of them fell silent. Angel stared at her, taking in everything about her, everything from the pained light showing in her eyes to the way her posture, defiant and strong, seemed to scream that if he was going to do this to her, she wasn't going to let herself take it. Part of him wanted to retract his earlier statement, to tell her it wasn't something he had planned on happening, that he had only tried to save Xander because he knew what Darla was capable of and he knew losing the teen would have hurt her too badly. But down the road of truth lay more than he was willing to reveal. *I. Am. A vampire.* He winced at the thought, and at the realization that he could never let Buffy learn his true nature. "I'm sorry," he said softly, shaking his head and knowing there was no way he could make himself say more than the paltry apology. Knowing that the chances of Buffy accepting that were tiny, if not pathetic and almost non-existent. With a sigh, he took a step away from her. "So that's it?" she asked. "You try to fuck some vampire bitch, I save your ass when she starts tearing you to pieces, and you vanish into the middle of the night?" "I'm Mister Cryptic Guy, remember?" he heard himself replying, his voice filled with enough acid to compensate for the way his heart and soul were screaming at him to make things right, to admit what he was and to make amends to Buffy in any way possible. "Oh yeah," she replied, shaking her head. "Forget I asked." "There're some things you're better off not knowing," Angel snapped, before his mind could kick in and remind him that speaking such a thought aloud, to Buffy of all people, was most likely not something he should be doing. "Your sexual habits with _them_ being at the top of the list," she hissed back. As the Slayer turned her back on him, Angel had to bite down hard on his lip to keep from moving after her. He was almost unable to believe the strength of his desire to stop her from leaving, to stop her from thinking he and his sire, who she didn't _know_ was his sire, had been engaged in...what she thought they had been engaged in. And he could hardly explain that, without letting her know why it was that Darla was willing to knock him down, slash him to bits, and all sorts of other things-- without killing him. As she vanished into the shadows of the nighttime, Angel allowed himself only one statement: that the path he was taking was the right one, that if Buffy were ever to learn of his true nature, it would be the beginning of the end for all of them. Four words were the only reassurance he allowed himself. *It's better this way.* THE END Copyright 1998 Rachel Brody Comments to KylenRevik@aol.com, please. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: sah Subject: BUFFYFIC: ADMIN: List rules Date: 04 Aug 1998 13:01:59 -0400 (EDT) Welcome! This list is for fiction related to "Buffy The Vampire Slayer," both the TV series and the movie. To ensure that we all get to enjoy as much fiction as possible, please adhere to the following guidelines, and please save them for future reference. 1. Fiction should have Buffy characters in it and clearly be related to Buffy. Crossovers are great, and expected, but general vampire/monster stories that aren't in the Buffy universe and don't use Buffy characters belong somewhere else. 2. Discussion of posted fiction is permitted onlist. Please put "DISCUSS" in your subject line. 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If you have any questions about these rules, please contact either one of us offlist. If you have subscription problems or questions, the fastest way to get help is to e-mail one of us at the addresses below, at the kirby@xmission.com addy which is the "official" e-mail owner of the list. Jill Kirby (jtkirby@mcs.com) & Sharon Himmanen (romana@mindspring.com) Listowners, Buffy the Vampire Slayer Fiction List buffyfic@xmission.com - ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: sah Subject: BUFFYFIC: ADMIN: Subscribing a free email address policy Date: 04 Aug 1998 13:02:05 -0400 (EDT) Please read this. It's very important. Effective immediately, anyone who wishes to s*bscribe to any Buffy list on a "freemail" account (Geocities, Hotmail, etc.) will be required to provide us with a "permanent" e-mail address as a backup. We will under any circumstances reveal this permanent e-mail address to anyone. This is for our reference This new policy has become necessary because of the problems we've experienced with freemail accounts. They're too easy to set up and cancel, and there is so little recourse if the individual with the freemail account causes problems, that we have no choice but to enact this policy. The s*bscription information pages will be changed to reflect this policy. IF YOU ARE CURRENTLY S*BSCRIBED UNDER A FREEMAIL ADDRESS: as long as you stay s*bscribed, you do not need to provide us with this information. However, if you uns*b and want to res*b at some point, you will have to give us this information even if you were previously a s*bscriber through a freemail account. If we have to uns*b you for bouncing mail, again, you'll have to provide the information to res*b. If you have any questions regarding this, please contact us offlist. Thanks. sah and Jill romana@mindspring.com and jtkirby@mcs.com -- sah * romana@mindspring.com * romana@aol.com NatPack * BotCoS * Jungle Patrol * BBPGrrl:TGLIL * Bishop * BTVS Listowner Nat's B&B: http://free.prohosting.com/~romana/natpack/html My homepage: http://free.prohosting.com/~romana/index.html "Armageddon might be thirty seconds after some guy puts his hand down my shirt." --Jill Kirby ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Subject: BUFFYFIC: Libidinous 9/? Date: 04 Aug 1998 18:27:59 EDT Title~ Libidinous 9/? Author~ Shani Notes~ in psychoanalytlic theories, the libido is the driving force behind all human actions Summary~ A Buffy/Angel story with a few twists. Involves characters from General Hospital, but yoiu don’t have to watch GH to understand this fic. I did change a thing or two around for you GH fans Disclaimer~ All characters of Buffy the Vampire Slayer belong to Joss Whendon, Mutant Enemy Productions, Kuzui Enterprises, Sandollar Productions, and 20th Century Fox. “One Moment In Time” belongs to Whitney Houston. All characters of General hospital belong to ABC. Chapter 9, One Moment In Time < Each day I live I want to be A day to give The best of me I'm only one But not alone My finest day Is yet unknown> Buffy and Nikolas reached Wyndemere without further insident. Giles and Stefan were engaged in a convorsation on one end of the room, and on the other, sat Xander and Willow. They all looked up when they walked in, then wrapped up their discussions. “What’s up?” Buffy asked anyone that was listening to her. “It seems that there has been another death.” Stefan reported to a shocked Buffy and Nik. “Valerie Easa, age 22, volunteer at General Hospital. The PCPD still says it’s gang related.” < I broke my heart Fought every gain To taste the sweet I face the pain I rise and fall Yet through it all This much remains> Buffy sat down. More deaths. More casualties in her war. She would not let this go on. She had once told herself she could kill Angelus, now she told herself that she would kill Arcanus...even if it meant giving up Angel. She turned to look at Giles. She just watched him for a moment, then finally spoke. “Did you find anything about how to kill Arcanus without killing his host?” “A spell must be performed. Arcanus must be bound to a blessed object, then to ensure that he cannot be freed, the object must be shattered.” Buffy felt her hopes rise, that sounded easy enough. “Good.” Giles shook his head. “Not good? Why is this not good?” “No one here can perform that kind of magic.” The room was silent for a moment. Willow was about to suggest she do it, she had beem able to give Angel back his soul. Someone beat her to it. “I can.” Buffy stated. < I want one moment in time When I'm more than I thought I could be When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away And the answers are all up to me Give me one moment in time When I'm racing with destiny Then in that one moment of time I will feel I will feel eternity> “No.” Giles and Willow said at the same time. “Let me. I performed the spell tio give Angel his soul back.” Willow said. Buffy shook her head. “I won’t let you put yourself at risk again. When I was looking for the book that would get Angel out of Hell, I came across some other books. I’ve read about magic and Merik and I worked on it a little...before he was killed.” She added softly. Giles gave a stiff nod. Willow was about to protest, but was silenced with a look from Giles. He knew his Slayer. He knew her well. He also knew that once she had made up her mind, there was no point in getting her to change. He looked over at her. She was smiling, a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. There was still work to be done. “There are things that we must do to prepare. I think we should get started.” He was surprised when no one argued. < I've lived to be The very best I want it all No time for less I've laid the plans Now lay the chance Here in my hands> The sun had just come up. Nikolas found that he wasn’t even tired. He was watching Buffy and Giles work together, the Watcher trying to prepare his Slayer. Fortunately, Arcanus did not have to be present for the spell to work. He turned away from the pair for a moment. Xander and Willow seemed to be looking for something. He felt completely useless, and decided the least he could do was help them find what they needed. “Is there something that you two need help finding?” He asked them. “Actually, yes. We were given the job of finding some kind of stone cross that your uncle told us was blessed by a Roman priest. I think he said it was given to you as a gift on a trip to Rome. I hope you don’t mind that we use it...” Willow rambled. “Of course not. I think I may know where it is. Come with me.” Nikolas led Xander and Willow to the attic to find the blessed cross. She took a deep breath. She could do this, she’d do it for Angel. Buffy read over the spell again. Giles had gone off to look for candles and herbs and other spell things. Xander and Willow were supossed to be finding some blessed thing. Nikolas was God knows where, and Stefan was watching her from the other side of the room. She could feel is eyes boring a hole into the side of her head. Finally, she stared him straight in the eye. “Can I help you she said.” The annoyance seeping through her voice. Stefan said nothing. “Well are you staring at me for any special reason?” “Just noting your reaction to all of this. You don’t seem to enjoy your work, but I see you have begun to take it seriously.” Stefan said. “It has serious consequences if I don’t. That was something I found out *way* too young.” She turned back to her book. She didn’t want anything to go wrong tonight. < Give me one moment in time When I'm more than I thought I could be When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away And the answers are all up to me Give me one moment in time When I'm racing with destiny Then in that one moment of time I will be I will be I will be free I will be I will be free> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Subject: BUFFYFIC: What Just Happened 7/? Date: 04 Aug 1998 22:38:45 EDT TITLE: What Just Happened? AUTHOR: Azziel Savament E-MAIL: Uvs3000@aol.com FEEDBACK: I need it to live. PLEASE MORE!!!! If I don't get more feed back soon, I'll kill a main character off….HAHAH…I'm out of my mind….so don't put it past me!!!!!!!!!! Xander will Die!!!!!!!! RATING: PG-14 just to be safe. CONTENT: Angst, Confusion, the usual. SPOILERS: The story is set after season two happened SUMMARY: This is a Angel/Buffy what-if story. It starts off the morning after her suprise party. What happens when Buffy wake's up to find out that all that happened from the time of her birthday to the time she sent Angel to hell was just a dream, or was it?????? DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of these, they belong to an evil man named Joss Whedon. NOTE: I have no idea what on earth that I am doing, all I know is that the fanfic must go on! Part 7: Sometime You Just Got to Think Location: Library Zeal is wandering the room thumbing threw the shelves. The only other people in the room are Angel and Giles. Giles had sent the gang home to wait for him to call them when they had rescued Xander. "Giles I'm sensing something bad, how do you know Zeal will leave Buffy's body after she defeats the Judge?" Angel was wearing a concerned look on him face, and could not help but repeatedly look over his shoulder at Buffy. There was a feeling inside of him that the spell might have gone wrong. "Angel calm yourself, we will know the out come when it comes. Right now our concern is to destroy the Judge." Giles said as he removed his glasses to clean the again. Anyone who would have seen him would have noticed that he was completely stresses out, and losing faith in the spell that they had used to ensure the return of Buffy. "I hope you both realize that I can here every word that you are saying." Zeal said as she walked between the two. Then turned to Angel and looked into his eyes seemingly peering into his soul. "And every thing that your are thinking. Do you mine if I speak to you for a moment." She never broke eye contact with him. It seemed to unnerved him for a moment, but he still couldn't help to look upon her as if she was Buffy. Finally when she broke eye contact with him, she looked at Giles and spoke. "Alone." Giles gave a concerned look at Angel, but Angel soon waved away Giles doubts about leaving the two alone with a few simple words. "I'll be fine." With that Giles left, and entered his office. "What do you want?" Angel questioned. "A little harsh don't you think. I want to talk about us." "There is no us. There is only me and Buffy, you might be in her body, but your not her." "O but I am. She is still inside here screaming to get control. She doesn't like me very much in here. I don't blame her. I know all of her thoughts, all of her memories, and all about what you two did lasts night. Even that little nightmare she had, or was it. Knowing this helps me greatly, it will make it easier when I make my mark, and change things. But it still seems to piss her off greatly. She knows what I want to do. She knows who I want." With that Zeal cupped his jaw slowly lowering his face to hers. "What do you want?" Angel whispered. "You." Slowly their lips came together, but just as quickly, Angel had a moment of clarity. But before he could respond to his own thoughts the Library doors burst opened and Zeal pulled away for the kiss. Behind the door was Annabel in full game face. Annabel could not help but think as she lunged at Zeal. With one quick movement Zeal slammed her fist into Annabel's face. Zeal could not help but smile at Annabel's thought. This pitiful young vampire was not her goal, and she had no intention to destroy her. "Get up. NOW!" With an amused look on her face she helped Annabel up. "So, you think you have come here to die. You shouldn't worry about that. I'm not going to kill you. Just give me the note and leave. Before I change my mind." Both Annabel and Angel had confused looks on their faces. Angel for the fact that Zeal was never known to be merciful. Annabel because she didn't even had a clue to what was going on. With that Annabel dropped the note on the ground an halled ass in the other direction. Just in case it was a trick she was not going to stick around to find out. Slowly walking over, Zeal kneeled down, and picked up the note. It read: Slayer, so you will be joining us soon. Wonderful, Come to the factory with Angel tomorrow night at Sundown. Fail to come, and your boy Xander will Die. Spike "What does it say?" With that Zeal handed him the note. With a quick glance at the note he had another questioning. "What are we going to do?" "You see they are playing my game now. The sun will be up soon. You should go; I'll come for you right before sunset. We will go there at sundown, and we'll bring them the death that they have asked for." With one more glance into Angel's eyes, then finished her answer. "To all of them." With that she turned her back to Angel, and walked into Giles's office to tell him what was going on. End of part 7 Personal note: You should never suffer for the sins that you have committed, but the good deeds you could have or should have done. Azziel Savament ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Subject: BUFFYFIC: What Just Happened1-5/? Date: 04 Aug 1998 22:40:43 EDT TITLE: What Just Happened? AUTHOR: Azziel Savament E-MAIL: Uvs3000@aol.com FEEDBACK: Yes, please. RATING: PG-14 just to be safe. CONTENT: Angst. SPOILERS: The story is set after season two happened SUMMARY: This is a Angel/Buffy what-if story. It starts off the morning after her suprise party. What happens when Buffy wake's up to find out that all that happened from the time of her birthday to the time she sent angel to hell was just a dream, or was it?????? DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of these, they belong to an evil man named Joss Whedon. NOTE: I have no idea what on earth that I am doing, all I know is that the fanfic must go on! What just Happened? By: Azziel Part 1: What? Buffy awoke suddenly crying. She did not realize that she was in Angel's bed, and that Angel was laying right next to her. All she could do was sit there and sob. Angel quickly sat up and started to confert her. The first words out of Buffy's mouth were. "O my god Angel I thought I had lost you forever." "Don't worry It was just a dream," He said while caressing her hair. "Angel don't ever leave me," She said with tears rolling down her face. She could not shake the feeling that the nightmare that she had just had was real. "Don't worry, I will never leave as long as I live," He smiled lightly at her hoping it would lighten the saddening mood in the room. With all of her strength, she was able to muster up a half-smile, and stopped crying. It felt like an echo through her mind, as all the emotions from her dream came back to her in full force. Then the tears returned as she rested her head on Angel's chest. Angel could not help but feel like that there was something more to this dream, then being a normal nightmare. It was true that Buffy had not been sleeping well the past couple of nights, but he never realized that it was this bad. He knew that when night fell he and Buffy were going to have to go to Giles and the gang to explain what happen to them. They had neglected to call or stop back when they had gone to the factory. They had been a bit tide up, and rather liked the idea of staying with each other. "Tonight we are going to have to talk to Giles," He whispered into her ear. She slowly stopped crying by then, but her eyes were still glazed over as if one wrong word would have caused her to break down again. "OK, tonight" Was all she could manage saying without busting into tears again. Part 2: Where When the sun finally set Angel and Buffy went to the Library to see Giles, and to check in. They both hoped that no one did anything stupid, and went to find them at the factory. The problem was Xander did and now was a the mercy of Spike and Drusilla. The fact remained that Xander still did not trust Angel, even after all the times that he saved his life. He could not just sit there and wait for their return and now he was stuck. Location: Library, an hour after sunset. Buffy enters the Library with Angel right behind her. Everyone was siting around the table, still look for a way to stop the Judge. All except Xander. "What happened to you both, we where all worried, and Xander went after you. "Giles said while cleaning his glasses. "What!! You have got to be kidding me, why didn't you stop him. He is no match for them. The Judge is assembled, and we almost got killed going in there. Xander could be dead!" Buffy's tone was becoming more anger filled as the word came to her."We have to go after him he might be still alive, and I am willing to take that change. "Buffy had to put all of the emotions aside that she was feeling from before. Even if it hurt, right now she could not be concerned with dreams, only with the fact she had to save Xander. From behind Buffy, Angel finally spoke up, "I don't think you should just go storming in there without knowing how to stop the Judge. We nearly got killed when we went in there, and we had a plan. What do you think will happen when we going in there again? "By then Angel and Buffy were looking only at one another, like they where the only to in the room. "Angel, I can't just sit here waiting for something to happened," by then she was whispering. As Angel slowly lowered his head, and was about to kiss Buffy in an attempt to dispel the pain that he knew she was feeling. "Hello Guys!!," Cordelia started. " I don't mean to interrupt your Kodak moment, but we still don't know how to stop the Judge, and if we don't stop him soon everyone will be dead. God you to are acting like you too slept together," with that Buffy and Angel gave her a look that would kill. "O, I see how it is, while you should have been saving the world and stopping Xander from going off and getting killed, you were......"Cordelia was starting to get angary because they were off having their fun while Xander was getting killed. "You what?" Giles was getting a little worried about what they were about to say. He always minded a little that she was with a vampire, even if it was Angel. "That is not important right now, right now we worry about saving Xander and stopping the Judge."Buffy stated firmly, since she really did not want to have to deal with having a talk about sex with her Watcher."Do you have any ideas on how to stop him?" "Well, yes, but I don't think you are going to like it." Giles did not know where to start but he knew that it was the only way to stop the Judge. End of Part 2 Part 3: Who? Location: Factory The Judge is knelling at a makeshift altar gathering his strength for his task at hand. Xander is chain to the adjacent wall struggling to get lose, but is failing miserably. While Spike and Drusilla just sit back watching the show before them. Suddenly Drusilla falls to the ground in pain, and begins talking incoherently. "Dru, luv, what's wrong." Spike knew that it one of her visions coming, but was still a little concerned. Well, as concerned as Spike could get. "My mind is swimming, it's all black, and they are screaming. The sound is so lovely!" "Dru, what do you see?" "Spike she's coming, all of the shadows will come and she will lead them." "Who's coming luv, The Slayer?" Spike had such a questioning; he loved when Drusilla did this. "Yes," Dru slowly stood up, walk over, and took Spikes' hand. "But she will no longer be pure, she will be as evil as we. "I knew she was coming, she'll never be evil, she'll stop you all once and for all," unfortunately for Xander this did not just get the two vampires attention, but also the Judge. "Quiet your whining, I will put you out of your misery and make the world clean of all its goodness." As the Judge got up to burn Xander, Spike stepped in and stopped him. "Why are you stopping me, he must be cleaned." "Don't touch the bate, mate. You don't get to kill. At least not yet." With that Spike grinned widely at the thought of the slayer being evil. He also knew that if she became evil Angel would soon follow. "I have the feeling that the fun has just began." Part 4: Hu? Location: Library Giles is pacing back and forth fumbling with him glasses look for the right words to say. "Well." He wanted to start off slow to let everything that he was going to tell Buffy would sink in. "There is only one way to really stop the Judge without getting burned to death. You have to be able to get close enough to disembowel him, and to do that you will have to have no humanity left in you." He stops to wonder for a moment the idea that he was going to propose, but before he could continue Buffy spoke up. "What are you saying Giles." With a very concerned look on her face Buffy let Giles continue. she could not help but think to herself. "The only person that was able to ever get close enough to the Judge to disembowel his was the leader of the last army that went against him, she was said to