In Waiting
Somewhere in the middle of the dessert
Angel's head throbbed. He tried to sit up, but he felt every muscle in his body protest.
Slowly, he brought himself up into a sitting position, and noted he was parked where he last remembered he had been heading. There was sand for as far as the eye could see in every direction.
He tried to remember what had happened. Had he already been there and back? No one else was around, and daylight was coming.
The sun was just beginning to rise when he remembered the polish he picked up before he had left. He began smearing the windows haphazardly, using a wad of tissues. By the time the sun reached his car in all its strength and deadliness, he was behind darkened glass.
The Vampire was hungry, and looked beside him at the small cooler he'd brought with him. Before he opened the lid more than an inch, he could smell that the blood inside was bad, and closed it quickly. Looking around his car for some magical blood to appear, which it didn't, he noticed an envelope on the car's dashboard.
Angel tore open the envelope, unfolded the paper, and read.
"Vampire, the Powers watch over you. You have been tested and found worthy of the gifts awaiting you. It is up to you. Your life is yours, and the choices you make are your own. Intelligence and instinct will guide you now. Let your love be freed, and let those who would, love you."
Angel reread the short letter.
A feeling of confidence washed over him. He knew that his mission was important, the feeling that he belonged with his son, his friends and his family. The memory of Cordy.
Then one voice repeated itself. "Why have you not acted on it? Magic enough to stop a prophecy...one to stop a curse."
Angel shook his head. "Great, now I'm hearing voices." He looked over the letter again. "…let those who would, love you." His brow furrowed. "They can't mean..." The voice came through once more. "…one to stop a curse."
Angel quickly turned over the engine with a twist of his car key. The car started easily, and he headed in the direction of a brothel he had only been in once.
In LA
Fred descended the steps slowly Thursday morning as she scanned the lobby. Angel wasn't there. She wasn't sure why she would expect him to be. It was early. Not even 6 A.M. yet, but she looked nonetheless.
Wes's office door was open. She peered in and it was empty. "Good," she stated. An empty office meant that he had gone home to sleep, and he needed it.
She headed for the coffee maker and thought about the last few days. The demon woman had simply needed a reading from Lorne. Not nearly as exiting as the group had hoped.
Gunn and Fred both drove through the seedier parts of town looking for stray Vampires who might have gotten away from the nests they had cleared out. All in all, a little too average with all that was going on.
Without Cordelia or Angel, it just wasn't the same at Angel Investigations. The days seemed too long. Research only kept you busy when there was something to research. Fred even tried to find more on Akoshta, but there wasn't anything on the 'net or in the books that was of any help. No new information.
The general consensus of both groups was that the tests were for the Vampires' futures, not for an immediate wish or gift.
Willow and Fred had been e-mailing each other with short messages, "Nothing new, he hasn't come back," every evening.
The young woman set up her computer, and checked the e-mails sent to AI. Nothing out of the ordinary, a few questions she could research, one request for a Vampire's fangs. She hated those. She pulled a pad of paper over so she could take notes easily, and began researching the questions and requested information of the e-mails.
Sunnydale
Anya was dressed and making waffles when Xander staggered into the kitchen Thursday morning.
"Hey, An, what's the occasion?" Xander walked over and wrapped his arms around his soon-to-be bride.
"It's Thursday!" She turned around and kissed him warmly.
Xander happily let her. Then an idea came to him. "I could be a little late if you want?" He wiggled his eyebrows at her. She promptly frowned. "Or not." He loosened his grip and took a small step back.
Anya tried to cover up what had to be the 100th almost-slip in the last five days. "It's just that, shirking one's responsibility to keep our capitalistic government running is not responsible."
She placed a cooked waffle on the plate and covered it with powdered sugar. "Besides, tonight we could play the demon hunter game you like. I'll let you vanquish me." This time, she wiggled her eyebrows at him.
Xander took the plate. "Only if you promise." He kissed her quickly and sat at the table.
Anya breathed a sigh of pure relief and went back to the batter. It was going to be a long day.
LA
Wes's alarm clock went off at 7:00 Thursday morning. He groggily hit the off button and sat up. Leaning over he found his glasses on his nightstand. "Seventh day," he said, pushed himself off of the mattress, and headed for the bathroom.
After he was showered, dressed, and had his cup of tea, Wes gathered up the small pile of books he would be looking over at work, and headed out the door.
Sunnydale
Dawn walked out of the bathroom, dressed and ready for school. She walked up to Buffy's door to make sure she was awake. There was some noise coming from inside. It sounded like she was having another nightmare.
"Spike!" Buffy screamed behind the closed door.
"She's having a dream about fighting Spike?" Dawn asked herself. "Jeez, she must really like kicking his butt." The girl frowned.
"Mmmm...Spiiikke." Buffy moaned.
Dawn's face crinkled in confusion. Then a wide grin covered her face, "Ooooh," and she decided she'd go have breakfast before she woke her sister.
Willow opened her door just in time to hear one more moan of "Spike" from behind Buffy's door, and see the back of Dawn's head as she headed down the steps.
The redhead stepped out of her room and knocked lightly on Buffy's door. A few more knocks later, Buffy opened the door. "Oh, hey, Wills. I'm up. Don't worry."
Willow looked behind her down the hallway. "I think Dawn heard you this time."
Buffy ran her hand through her rumpled hair and straitened her pink nightshirt. "Heard me what?"
Willow raised an eyebrow. "Heard you...dreaming...about...you know...Spike?" Buffy's eyes went wide. She peered past her friend into the empty hallway.
"You guys can hear...I mean, I'm talking?" Fear and embarrassment were clear on Buffy's face.
"I wouldn't really call it talking. More like, moaning. Sometimes screaming."
"Oh, God." Buffy suddenly dreaded walking her sister to school.
Inside Spike's Car
"Ohbloodyhell!" the blonde Vampire slurred loudly in the car. His head felt like he'd punched the whelp.
Spike tried to push himself into a sitting position, but his entire body ached. He slumped into the seat, and promptly fell back to sleep inside his Desoto as the sun climbed.
LA
Gunn came through the doors of The Hyperion just before 9:00 and scanned the lobby for Angel. Like Fred had done when she came down the steps, and Lorne had done as he came down with Connor, and just as Wes had done before going back to his office.
"Not back?" he called to the green demon sitting on the check-in counter of the hotel, flipping through the pages of GQ.
"Not yet, but I think he may have done alright," Lorne answered when he slid off the counter's top. "Connor's been cooing happily all morning."
Fred came from behind the desk. "Connor always coos in the morning, Lorne." Lorne just nodded.
Gunn looked at the demon. "Are you 'reading' Connor?"
Lorne looked shocked. "Reading a baby? Too much future in them. Gives me a headache to try, but I am getting a seriously invigorating vibe off the little guy today."
Fred looked down at the baby, who seemed to have discovered the fascination that is one's feet. Holding one foot in each hand the baby began flapping his arms. "He looks like he's fighting his feet," Fred giggled.
"Who's winning?" her boyfriend asked.
Sunnydale
Anya unlocked the door to The Magic Box and flipped the Open/Closed sign over to advertise the store was now Open. After the lights were on, and the specials of the day were marked, she settled herself behind the counter, and sat impatiently.
Willow walked in at twenty after 9 A.M., and scanned the empty store. "Anya?" A blonde head popped up.
"Over here." Anya looked over at Willow. "Oh, it's only you."
"Nice to see you, too." She set her bag on the counter and sat on the stool.
Anya heard the sarcasm. "I'm sorry. It's just, all the waiting. Why can't Spike just get here so Buffy will tell Xander, and I can go back to not feeling all icky for hiding things from him?"
The former witch studied the ex-demon's pout. "Well, look at the bright side. You won't have to hide anything from him today. He'll be at work." Anya perked up a little, so Willow continued. "And by the time he gets off work, Spike will probably be here, and Buffy will tell him. OK?"
"Yes, I think that would work out best for me. Let's do that."
The redhead shook with amusement. No one had been all that comfortable hiding the
relationship from Xander or Dawn. It had to be worse for Anya, though. She had to see Xander every day and probably listen to rants on Spike's evilness in general.
"Either way," Anya began to state, "Buffy said she would tell tonight...even if Spike wasn't back. She said Thursday." Anya turned to the calendar beside the phone and pointed to the day. "It's Thursday. So she has to."
Willow wasn't about to argue. She really wanted this to be over as well. As much as she loved Buffy, coming up with excuses to tell Dawn about the noises coming from the Slayer's room was getting to the point of ridiculous. This morning's topping the list. "Oh, yeah, she was um, dreaming about... spiked punch."
Lying had never been her forte.
Anya opened a few of the boxes behind her desk to replenish her stock of chicken feet.
Willow opened a textbook and prepared herself for her 1:00 class.
~~`~~
Buffy watched the clock move the slowest it had since she started working at The Doublemeat Palace. Her shift started at 9 A.M., at least four hours ago, but there was the clock, reading 10:15. "Grrrr."
Thoughts of the best way to slay a clock ran through her head. She checked the register tape's last receipt. The time stamp was worse. 10:12, and that was the order she had just finished.
Buffy thought about how Dawn acted on the way to school that morning. Odd references to punch the whole way. Buffy just kept asking what Dawn was talking about. Dawn in turn said, "You should know."
"Miss!" A voice pulled her from her reverie.
"Huh?" Buffy looked at the middle-aged man with black hair and glasses. "Oh, um. W-welcome to The Doublemeat Palace, can I take your order?" A smile plastered to her face.
~~`~~
Tara stepped out of the library shortly after noon. The sun was high and lit up the campus of green grass and trees. The air smelled so fresh that the girl simply stood and smiled at the beauty that was alive all around her. The calm was soon replaced with one clear thought. "The seventh day."
Hefting the bag full of books onto her shoulder, Tara walked towards The Magic Box.
The group had all decided to meet there, as per usual. The girls with the untold secret had decided that would be one of the first places Spike would go looking for Buffy if he passed.
The others, Dawn and Xander, always came by after school and work respectively.
The plan was simple. Get everyone in one room, and tell everything. Buffy would reveal to Dawn, Xander, and Spike, that she was in love with the Vampire. That way everyone could hold down Xander if necessary, and Spike could tell them what had happened to him.
Dawn and Xander were in the dark as far as Akoshta was concerned. Dawn knew Spike was gone, but had no idea where.
Xander hadn't even noticed Spike was gone. He'd only made sideways remarks about 'the lack of Spike' and that Spike might finally be getting the idea: he wasn't wanted.
As Tara opened the door, she bumped into Willow leaving. "Hey." They said simultaneously, then chuckled.
"Going to class?" Tara motioned to the books in Willow's arms.
Willow looked at her books, then to Tara. "Yeah. Oh, but I'll be back before...well, I should be back by 3:30 or so."
Tara nodded at her. "Ok. W-well, I'll be here."
"O-ok." Heading off to class, she gave a small wave, and walked away.
Tara entered the shop, and greeted Anya who was furiously dusting everything. "Anya, I think it's clean." Tara watched Anya move quickly from one shelf to another.
"I heard once that if you keep busy time passes more quickly." She stopped and checked the clock on the wall. "I think whoever I heard it from was lying."
Tara giggled.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
I'd now like everyone to know that I would like a Spike Vamp of my very own. He's just so lickable. Am I right?
Chapter End Notes:
I should mention that my kids and I have 2 hamsters. One dark brown named Jackie Chan who loves to leap off of tall objects, and one very white one with blonde patches name Spike who escapes from his cage every week or so and always seems to find his way to my bedroom. *I'm absolutely serious* Thanks for the reviews guys. More please.