Buffy's patience came to an abrupt end. Before she turned back to face Angel she let her eyes bleed iridescent green-gold, and she allowed her Sultana fangs to descend. She whirled around to face him, ignoring the looks of shock from Cordelia and the man next to her on the couch. Buffy's entire focus was on her former lover.
"Yes, I am choosing him over you. He's mine. My mate, my vampire, my Aurelian," Buffy growled.
Angel stared at Buffy. His jaw dropped in surprised shock, but before he could utter a word the front door slammed open. Willow, Xander and Anya all spilled into the house happily laughing.
"We found an apartment we like," Anya gushed. Then her eyes came to rest on Angel, "What's he doing here? I thought he finished his stalking game and went back Los Angeles?"
Buffy turned her head to smile at her newly arrived friends and Angel could see that none of them seem the least bit surprised or worried that she had she didn't look like she normally did. The glowing eyes and fangs receded to leave the darling face of the girl Angel loved so much.
"Hey guys," Buffy said, "I think everyone knows each other. Oh, except Cordy's friend there. I don't think we got a formal introduction."
"My name is Allen Francis Doyle, Mistress," Doyle told Buffy as he took her hand and bowed down to kiss it. He ignored the surprised looks on both Angel and Cordelia's faces, "But my friends call me Doyle."
"I am pleased to meet you, Doyle," Buffy murmured graciously.
"We haven't finished our conversation yet, Buffy," Angel proclaimed loudly now that the shock had wore off a bit. Angel moved towards Buffy in hopes of pulling her aside to talk more privately, but she managed to sidestep him and moved out of his reach. He pulled up short and turned to glare at Spike when he heard the blond vampire's menacing, possessive growl.
"Well, it's time for me to get ready for the date. Willow, Anya, would you like to see the dresses Spike picked out for the jewelry auctions?" Buffy smiled as both the Scooby ladies nodded and raced up the staircase. She turned back around to address Cordelia, "Cordy, you can come, too, if you want."
Cordelia nodded gratefully. She was ready to get away from the testosterone poisoning. Cordelia was surprised as hell when Buffy linked their arms together as they went upstairs.
"You vamped her?!" Angel turned on the blond vampire.
"What?! I did no such thing..." Spike defended himself. There was no way he was going to have this conversation without another drink. Spike stood up, glass in hand, and moved towards the sideboard.
"Well, she just couldn't have vamped by herself! What did you do Spike?" Angel snarled as he grabbed Spike by the arm. Spike looked down at the hand on his arm and then back up into the face of the ex-vampire.
"I didn't do anything to her, Peaches. It was great-great-granddaddy that started all this," Spike stated before pulling effortlessly away from Angel. He poured himself another drink and returned to settle himself into the armchair.
"Started what? I didn't leave her here to be picked up by you, Spike!"
"No, you left her here to be shot down by stupid little ponces like that git Parker, who have no idea who or what the real Slayer is," Spike shot back, his irritation level rose rapidly.
"I left her so that she could have a normal life, not be dragged down by the likes of my reckless, irresponsible grandchilde!" Angel moved so he towered over the blond vampire, forcing Spike to look up at him.
"'m not being reckless or irresponsible, Peaches. I take care of my women. I bloody well took care of Dru for over a century," Spike growled. He was tired of Angel casting aspersions on him. Spike knew he had done the best he could after being abandoned not only by Angelus, but by Darla, too.
"And speaking of Drusilla, you're the vampire who thought that taking Drusilla to Prague was the best thing for her?" Angel seemed to imply that Spike should have known what evil lurked in Prague, as if he were the bloody seer instead of Drusilla.
"What the fuck do you know about Prague? You were still in the damned gutter suckin' on rats when that happened. How was I to know that the gypsies that cursed you would be there? Hell, I didn't even know about the curse till we came to Sunnyhell. Darla told us you didn't want us anymore and had moved on. Besides Dru wanted to go and you know how she gets. No talkin' sense to the crazy bint," Spike announced as he took a long swig of his whiskey.
"Drusilla told Angelus when he came back a few years ago, and yes I know how she gets. You should have had sense enough not to have taken her!" Angel leaned over and growled in Spike's face.
"She may have told you some of it, Angelus, but she forgot to mention that she knew what was goin' to happen. She wanted to go to Prague to force me to come to Sunnydale. She knew I would never have come here without good reason. I am not fond of Hellmouths," Spike informed the ex-vampire.
Angel backed off a little before asking, "And now that Dru's not a factor... you moved in on Buffy? How the hell did she become a vampire, Spike? If not by your hand?"
"She's not a bloody vampire, you idiot. She's the Sultana!" Spike shouted as he jumped to his feet. He could feel Xander move to stand beside him in support and he nodded to the boy who continued to glare at Angel. Spike sat back down in the armchair he had just vacated.
"The what?" Angel asked, trying to wrap his mind around Spike's words.
"The Slayer Sultana," Giles said quietly from his place on the couch.
Angel glared at Spike as he sat down opposite Giles. He rested forearms on his knees and folded his hands. "Knowing this is the Hellmouth, and strange things happen here, I ask, 'What is the Slayer Sultana?'"
"Given the right circumstances a regular Slayer can become like..." Giles pondered what to say for a moment. "I guess the best way to say it is an ultimate Queen Slayer. And Buffy's filled all the requirements," Giles informed Angel in his slightly slurred voice. Yep, being pleasantly plastered did wonders for dealing with what was going on here.
Angel rolled his eyes a little and leaned back into the loveseat. "Do I dare ask how?"
"Well, she got nearly drained by the Master," Giles announced the first Sultana criteria.
"She drowned in a pool of water," Reggie recited the second Sultana criteria.
Angel raised an eyebrow wondering who exactly this man was that the gang in Sunnydale so readily accepted his presence. He reminded Angel vaguely of the other Watcher that had stayed in Sunnydale the year before.
"I resuscitated her," Xander said as he remembered how he saved Buffy's life so many years before.
"Which called another slayer," Giles disclosed. Uh oh, he was starting to sober up. Giles wanted to get up and get another drink, but then thought better of it. There was a big difference between plastered and drunk and the line was very subtle.
"And I claimed her," Spike smirked proudly.
Angel looked up at each individual in turn and growled at Spike, "What are you doing claiming my girl?"
"I didn't see any claim of yours on the girl. Besides she claimed me in return, Peaches. It wasn't a whim on either of our parts. I love her," Spike responded, the pride in his voice quite evident to all those in the room.
"And why did I feel the connection break between Spike and I?" Angel asked, looking at Giles. That had been the most horrible feeling he had experienced inside his vampiric family since he had dusted Darla.
"By claiming Oz and Willow as part of her family, Buffy started a new clan," Giles informed Angel of the life-changing event that had occurred just a few weeks before.
"How is that possible, Giles? Don't you think she's going at this Sultana thing half-cocked?" Angel questioned the Watcher.
"No one knows anything about what it is to be a Sultana, Angel. Buffy's the first slayer not to die in the change over process. Not to mention the fact that the Chronicles only reveal themselves when an event occurs," Giles sighed, wishing he had more information himself.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Upstairs Buffy had opted for a fast shower, being careful not to ruin her new perm while the other three girls caught up on the gossip. When she stepped out, she toweled herself off quickly and slipped on a bra and panty set. Buffy slipped back into the bedroom from the master bathroom and found the other females admiring the furnishings of the room.
"Buffy, this is the headboard from that store in the mall, isn't it?" Willow asked as she stroked the soft leather.
"Ya, most of the furniture is from there, except what mom has brought over," Buffy answered as she pulled out one of the garment bags out of the closet. She opened it and picked out a little black dress; one that every woman should have whether she needs it or not. Buffy slipped on the dress and asked Willow to zip her up while she put a light coat of make-up on her face.
"Spike, huh?" Cordelia asked, getting right to the question foremost in her mind.
"Mmm, ya, Spike," Buffy answered dreamily as she pulled the other dresses she had purchased out of their bag and laid them on the bed for the other two to admire.
"Angel is being rude to Spike down there," Willow practically growled as she tilted her head.
"I don't hear anything," Cordelia stated curiously. She tried hard to hear what was going on downstairs, but everything was too muffled for her to hear.
Willow's focus came back to the room she was in, "Oh, I was listening in on the conversation through Spike. Sorry."
"What do you mean through Spike?" Cordelia suddenly wondered how much Doyle had left out of his explanation to her and how much Doyle really knew himself. The Powers That Be were tricky that way.
"I... um," Willow threw a quick glance at Buffy before blurting out, "I sorta belong to Spike and Buffy now."
"Belong? Belong to them how?" Cordelia asked in a confused voice. She sank down into one of the armchairs beside the window.
"Things are changing here, Cordy. There are things that Angel has to accept. I am changing and it's not a bad thing, really," Buffy told the ex-cheerleader, "Spike makes me happy. I'm happier than I ever was with Angel. I really do still care for him, but he took the easy way out and abandoned me. Spike and I are making our own clan. We've already have two clan members; Willow and Oz."
"But you're not a vamp, right?"
"What? No," Buffy laughed, "I am something called the Slayer Sultana. Sorta like an ultimate Slayer."
"Things are never easy with you, are they, Buffy? So how did you get together with Spike of all vampires?" Cordelia questioned.
"No, they never are. I think it's the influence of the Hellmouth," Buffy giggled, "Spike... well, Spike came back to town for the Gem of Amara, which he found. I fell for this smooth talking guy named Parker who was rude and sorta dumped me in the middle of the campus. I saw Spike and a plan for revenge popped into my mind and it just kinda went from there. Which dress do you think is best for the auction at Mom's gallery?"
Buffy held up first a red dress than a white dress. Both Willow and Cordelia indicated the red dress would be great for the auction at the gallery, while Anya indicated she didn't know enough about human rituals to have a preference.
"So, you're working with Angel, now. How'd that happen?" Buffy asked Cordelia as she put the gowns back in their protective bags. She hung them in the closet and then turned to look at the three very different women in the room with her.
"I met him at a party, almost got ate by a vamp, and didn't have anything better to do that week," Cordelia chuckled. She shifted in her chair wondering why she suddenly felt comfortable with the other women in the room. They hadn't gotten along at all before.
"That guy with you, Doyle, he likes you. Has he given you any orgasms yet?" Anya asked Cordelia. She, too, wondered why she wasn't feeling weird talking to her boyfriend's ex.
"No, no orgasms. Do you really think he likes me?"
"Oh ya, the way he looks at you, Cordy, he really, really likes you," Buffy assured the ex-cheerleader as both Willow and Anya nodded in agreement.
"Okay, are any of you wigged out by the fact that we are all in the same room and we are getting along?" Buffy inquired as she headed for the closet door, "Time for Spike to get ready."
Buffy pulled out a pair black dress pants, a black silk dress shirt and a blood red tie. Then she laid them on the bed. She moved to the bedroom door and indicated to the others it was time to get back downstairs. The four women trooped downstairs to find a living room full of silent men.
Spike leaped to his feet and made his way over to her acting as if he had to reassure himself. He grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips, all the while communicating his love to her through the claim. He ignored Angel's grumbling in the background.
"You need to get cleaned up, baby," Buffy said as she reached up to tap his neck where she had bitten him, "Don't want to scare the little old ladies at The Sage Room." Buffy watched as he smirked at her and went bounding up the stairs. She could feel, regardless of all his moaning and groaning, that he was just as excited as she was about the date.
"Where do you get the nerve to accuse Spike of turning me? Didn't you see me in the sunshine the last few days you were watching me?" Buffy asked Angel as she decided to forgo any niceties.
"I wasn't . . . watching you . . . I was assessing the situation to see what was in Doyle's vision. When you turned into the vampire's demon what did you think I would assume, Buffy?" Angel stated as he stood up and moved closer to Buffy.
"Did I look like any vampire that you've ever seen before, Angel?" Buffy asked as she skirted around Angel and sat down in the armchair that Spike had recently vacated.
"For all I know you could have been a daywalker," Angel said as he came to realize that Buffy wasn't going to allow him to get close to her and neither did it seem were the others. Both Willow and Xander came up to stand on either side of the armchair that Buffy was sitting in.
"What the hell is a daywalker? Giles, what the hell is he talking about?" Buffy questioned her Watcher as she sat up straight in her chair. Why had Giles not mentioned this years before when the gang's most secret fears had been uncovered by that boy and his dreams? Buffy silently moaned as Spike saw the memory of her being a vampire and that he was instantly sorry he hadn't been around to see that one. He told her all the naughty little things he would have enjoyed doing with and to her as a vampire, even though he enjoyed her as the Sultana even more.
"A daywalker is a slayer-vampire hybrid that retains the soul and has none of the weakness usually associated with vampires," Giles stated. The room filled with tense silence as everyone considered the information the ex-Watcher told them. It was then that Giles decided that, yes, it was time for another drink. He went to the sideboard and poured himself yet another healthy portion of alcohol.
"What's a what?" Xander's confused voice broke through the quiet room like a firecraker.
"Well, you could have asked instead of accusing Spike of being reckless and irresponsible," Buffy grumbled. She was still upset that her beloved mate had been insulted in his own house.
"There hasn't been a daywalker alive in 6 centuries. When I heard about them they were myth," Angel defended himself. It was then that he realized not too many of the people in the room even cared about his explanation of his actions. Certainly not any of those he left behind in Sunnydale.
"The Slayer Sultana's a myth and yet here I am," Buffy quipped in a snarky tone of voice.
"Yes, but you just said you weren't a daywalker. So you haven't gotten all the perks yet," Angel remarked a tad snidely. He wasn't enjoying this side of the girl he loved and wished he could do something about it.
"Well, Mr Information Guy, why don't you tell us all the perks," Xander piped up, only getting a hate-filled glare from Angel for his trouble.
"How did you know I accused Spike of being reckless and irresponsible? You were upstairs the entire time."
"He told you the claim isn't one-sided. I listened in and so did Willow," Buffy informed her ex-boyfriend.
"Eavesdropping now, are we, Buffy?" Angel growled.
"Whatever it takes to keep my mate safe."
"Frustrated with Spike though I am, and always will be, he's Drusilla's childe and I will not take that from her no matter how much the boy grates on my nerves," Angel continued to growl, trying to discover some way to verbally get between the Slayer and his grandchilde. He hoped that the mention of Dru would do it.
"Dru dumped him again, Angel. She treated him less than dirt. I'm picking up the pieces, just as he's picking up mine. You should've thought of that when you were Angelus and took her away from him." Buffy jumped to her feet and stalked towards the dark haired ex-vampire. She knew exactly what he was trying to do with his hurtful words.
"Drusilla has been known to be finicky when nothing goes her way. I wonder what Spike did this time, look at another girl?" A moment of silence hung in the air while Angel looked real close at Buffy and then it dawned on him. "Drusilla has visions. She saw something. She saw you around him. That's why she left him." Angelus scoffed. "Drusilla always wearied of the competition."
"Angel, I told you that things are the way they are suppose to be. Why do you keep fighting what is meant to be?" Doyle asked the ex-vampire.
"Because it wasn't supposed to be like this. Not with her and not with him of all creatures," Angel grumbled. The day had gone from bad, to great, to the worst ever for him and he wasn't happy about it.
"You don't know that, Angel, and neither do I. The Powers That Be have condoned this mating and that's all you need to know," Doyle said. He wondered how far the ex-vampire was going to push things and who would get hurt the most.
Before Angel could answer, Spike reappeared in the living room door. He was freshly showered and handsomely dressed in the dress pants, silk shirt and red tie that Buffy had laid out for him. Brand new boots adorned his feet.
"Harris, here's the down payment for that apartment. Just like I promised," Spike said as he handed Xander a white envelope. Then he turned to Buffy to hand her a large rectangular box, "And for you, Slayer, jewels to adorn your beauty."
Buffy took the box from her mate and gasped in surprise when she opened it. Inside was a diamond pendant with matching earrings and bracelet. She motioned for Spike to help her put on the necklace while she put the earrings in and placed the bracelet on her wrist. Buffy leaned up and kissed Spike's cheek.
As Spike ushered their friends and other disgruntled guests out the front door, Giles took the oppertunity to speak up about Harmony. Spike assured the Watcher that they would start looking for new digs for the vampiress minion the very next week. Spike locked the front door, whisked his golden Slayer away to the Desoto and was roaring down the street before anyone else was allowed to get a word in edgewise.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Doyle and Cordelia came down the stairs of the mansion to find Angel staring out a window, his hands jammed in his pockets and a frown on his face. The Brachen demon motioned to Cordelia to sit down on the couch while he approached the ex-vampire.
"Hey, that Mohra demon regenerated more then just you," Doyle announced softly. He came up beside Angel and stared out the window, too.
"What?" Angel asked as he shook off his reverie and looked at the shorter man standing next to him.
"I had a vision. It regenerated itself in the tunnel where you fought it. It headed to Sunnydale immediately afterwards. I see some sort of factory. Hmmm, I thought I tasted salt," Doyle said as he tried to recall all the details to the fast paced vision he had had upstairs.
"It needs a lot of salt to live," Angel commented as he began to pace, trying to come up with where the demon might go once it got to Sunnydale.
"Well, it was very much alive in this vision and angry if I might mention. It's here in town," the seer reiterated as he went over to sit by Cordelia.
"I'll have to kill it again," Angel announced as he grabbed the car keys off the fireplace mantle. The trunk of his car was where the weapons were.
"Yeah, but you're human now. They released you," Doyle shouted as he jumped to his feet, closely followed by Cordelia. The pair followed Angel out to the car, watched as he popped the trunk, and began to sort through the weapons stored there.
"You want to let that thing roam free? You saw it in a factory. There is a saline plant a few miles north of town. We'll start there," Angel replied as he took an axe and a sword out of the trunk and laid them on the backseat of the car.
"Yeah, but if it can regenerate itself, how can you kill it?" Doyle asked as he glanced at Cordelia trying to convey a message that she wasn't getting. She scrunched her nose and shook her head ever so slightly.
"We'll figure it out. Here's the book of Kelsor. You'll read, and I'll drive," Angel said as he pulled the book from the trunk and tossed it to the Brachen demon.
"Don't you we should bring someone a little supernatural?" Doyle questioned as he grimaced his face, frowned and rolled his eyes at Cordelia again. This time she caught the hint and nodded, ever so slightly.
"No, I want to handle this on my own," Angel announced as he slid into the driver's side of the Plymouth convertible.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
The two dark-haired men entered the deserted saline plant. They were both thankful that it was closed on Saturdays and so there were no workers except the janitorial crew to have to deal with. Not that telling them that was a gas leak in the area wouldn't work fabulously, but it was easier if no on was there to start with. Gotta love 'the Sunnydale denial factor' at work. Angel stood peering into the darkness and Doyle read from the book.
"Okay. This is not good. It doesn't just come back. It comes back bigger and stronger. I think we should go back and get Buffy and Spike," Doyle disclosed his findings from the book.
"I know what I'm doing," Angel pronounced confidently.
"Look, Angel, this isn't your average demon we're fighting here. It nearly licked you before, and now you're a mortal," Doyle said. He hoped Cordelia got a message to Spike and Buffy before something terrible happened here with him and Angel.
"If I am going to convince Buffy to be with me instead of Spike, I need to be able do this on my own. I can't risk her life every time some minion of hell..." Angel stopped arguing with Doyle. "Just tell me how to kill it," Angel growled menacingly. He watched as Doyle quickly went back to looking at the book. The seer seemed to have momentarily forgetten Angel wasn't a vampire anymore.
"Uh, 'It regenerates until the dark future it envisions is upon us.' Oh, 'to kill the beast one must bring darkness to 1000 eyes'." Doyle recited from the book before placing it in a backpack he was carrying. Out of the pack he grabbed a small crossbow and some crossbow bolts. He quickly and efficiently loaded one of the bolts into the bow.
"Funny, I only saw two," Angel quipped.
"Keep up the glib. It makes me feel like we have a chance," Doyle quipped back before noticing Angel gagging over the two dead bodies of the janitorial crew, "Take it easy, mate."
"The blood," Angel coughed as Doyle moved to support the newly human man.
"It's never an easy sight. It's part of being human now, but hey, at least we don't have to see if the gas leak story would have worked," Doyle joked, trying to get Angel's mind off of the blood. Who would have thought an ex-vamp would get so sick from blood?
"I'm going to kill that thing," Angel snarled.
"Just remember that it's brutal, deadly, and..." Some inner sense made the seer look up at the catwalk above the two men, "here!"
The Mohra demon jumped down on the two men from the catwalk, knocking Doyle out almost immediately. Angel and the demon continued to fight. Only the knowledge of skills learned for over two centuries kept the newly human from getting killed right off. When Angel realized he wasn't going to be able to kill it with sheer force, he decided a game of cat and mouse would be better. He hoped that the demon would slip up and he could take advantage of it. Except Angel's luck that day was bad; instead of the demon slipping and losing the advantage, it happened to the ex-vampire instead. The Mohra demon stood triumphantly above him, foot placed firmly on Angel's neck as it got ready to deliver the death blow.
"The end of days has begun and can't be stopped. For any one of that falls, ten shall rise," the demon announced gravelly as it raised its sword ready to stab Angel.
Its actions were prevented when a small blonde warrior fell upon it from above knocking it off of the ex-vampire. Buffy used her advantage and grabbed the demon's sword away from it. She circled it carefully, looking for its weaknesses and learning its strengths.
"A great darkness is coming," the Mohra growled as it began to circle the small warrior.
"You got that right. Bring it on," Buffy growled back as she beckoned the demon towards her with her free hand.
Buffy launched herself towards the demon, the sword raised in her outreached hand. As they continued to fight the Mohra demon managed to wrap its morgenstern around the sword, loosening Buffy's grip on the weapon. In retaliation, Buffy kicked the demon into the wall.
"Come on, this is the great warrior of darkness?" Buffy quipped.
The demon was momentarily distracted by a chuckle on the catwalk above it. Looking up it saw a pale man with bleached hair, wearing all black. Once again, the Slayer uses the demon's distraction and managed to step on the chain of the morgenstern, kicked the demon hard and made the demon let go of its weapon, too. At that moment, the Mohra picked up the Slayer and threw her against the wall which caused her to lose her breath.
Buffy was pissed. Pissed at Angel for trying to take this on by himself. Pissed at the demon for being in Sunnydale and dragging her out of her warm, Spike-filled bed to come fight it. Buffy kept her face down as she let her Sultana features bleed through. When she raised her face to the demon, it's triumph-filled face suddenly became terrified.
"No... This isn't possible. When the Slayer's champion became human it was suppose to tear things apart. Together you were powerful, alone you were suppose to be dead," the demon said in confusion.
"Changed champions, chump," Buffy announced as she indicated the figure leisurely standing on the catwalk, smoking a cigarette.
Angel grabbed a handful of salt and threw it in the demon's eyes. Angel tried to go around the Mohra to Buffy, but was instantly thrown across the room by the angered demon. He laid there studying the Mohra.
Buffy leaped up from her crouch and launched herself at the demon. She knocked it into one of the barrels of salt on the opposite side of the room as Angel. The Slayer and the demon continued fighting until Angel began to shout.
"The light of a thousand eyes.. The jewel in its forehead! You have to smash the jewel."
Buffy nodded slightly before picking up the morgenstern and moved towards the demon with her goal set firm in her mind. As she raised her arm, weapon in hand, the demon began to shout in denial, but it quickly vanished in a bright light when the Slayer's weapon connected with the jewel in its forehead with a direct hit.
"'m your champion, huh?" Spike asked once he had jumped off the catwalk and moved to stand behind his mate. He rested his hands on her shoulders, and they both ignored the snort that Angel gave from his place on the floor.
~~~~~~~~~~~
"You again," the male oracle said blandly.
"What have you brought me?" the female oracle asked.
"Famille Rose vase," Angel answered as he threw the vase towards the female oracle, "China dynasty. Circa 1811."
"Lovely."
"Why are you here, lower being?" the male oracle questioned.
"I want to know what the hell is going on. Is it true what the Mohra demon said about other warriors of darkness coming? What is all this with my grandchilde claiming MY slayer?" Angel demanded forgetting he was talking to two beings more powerful than he was.
"I think you need to talk to your guide," both oracles sing-songed together. They disappeared in puff of smoke and in their place stood a short man in a tacky leisure suit and a fedora. He took a long puffing sniff and surveyed the room until his eyes fell on Angel.
"Angel, old pal, what can I do you for?" asked the Powers To Be's messenger boy.
"Whistler," Angel growled as he moved closer to the other man. He went to grab the suit's lapels when he realized Whistler wasn't really there; it was just a projection of the demon.
"Sorry, old pal, can't have you roughing me up, even if you wouldn't do much damage now that you are mortal," replied Whistler as he took off his hat and cracked his neck. He crammed the hat back on his head and stared pointedly at the ex-vampire. "I'm here. Ask your questions."
"The Mohra demon said more warriors for darkness are coming. I want to know if it's true. What will happen to the Slayer when these soldiers come?" Angel asked gruffly as he turned and found a marble chair to throw himself into.
"The Slayer now has the means to fight all of the coming darkness," Whistler answered as he, too, lowered himself into a marble chair.
"I want to break the claim. There is no way that reckless grandchilde can be her champion. It's me. She always told me that I'm the champion," Angel stated emphatically as he jumped to his feet and began pacing.
"Even if the Powers That Be could break the claim between William the Bloody and the Slayer Sultana, they won't. As for being her champion, he wouldn't need the claim to become it. If things continued the way they were going, she would have died and broken the chance to become what she was meant to be," replied Whistler nonchalantly. He sat there examining his fingernails ignoring the pacing man.
"There is no way that she would ever chose Spike for her champion. He is cruel, ruthless and as evil as they come. He was taught by the best. No, I can't. No, I won't believe it till I see it," Angel growled.
"That can be arranged," Whistler said quietly. With the wave of a hand, he and Angel vanished from the white marble room.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Angel and Whistler stood in what appeared to be a dusty crypt. On the sarcophagus laid a Spike so beat up that if it wasn't for his trademark bleached hair and black clothes, Angel wouldn't have recognized the younger vampire. His face was badly bruised, one eye swollen closed. His shirt was torn open and Angel could see burn marks littering the vampire's chest. Several ribs appeared to be broken and out of place.
The door slammed open and what appeared to be Buffy dressed in a sleeveless hot pink shirt, pleated skirt and high heels entered the crypt. She had a big, plastic smile on her face as she marched briskly over to stand next to the wounded vampire.
"Spike! You're covered in sexy wounds," Buffy said cheerfully as she took in his appearance. At her words, Spike turned and stared at her as if he was trying to figure out who she was.
"Yeah," Spike muttered as he started to sit up, "I feel real sexy. Where you been?" Spike was barely able to sit the rest of the way up.
"I fell down and got confused. Willow fixed me. She's gay," Buffy announced happily.
"Will fixed you? I thought they'd melt you into scrap." Spike said in a confused voice. He visibly winced as he shifted himself around on the stone pyre.
"They were confused, too," Buffy answered as she once again smiled brightly, "Do you want to ravage me now?"
"Give us a minute. Got some bones need mending," Spike muttered weakly. He winced again as he tried to find a comfortable position to sit in.
"Why did you let that Glory hurt you?" Buffy asked as she moved closer to Spike.
"She wanted to know who the key was," Spike answered weakly.
"Oh well, I can tell her, and then you'll..." Buffy broke off and turned to leave the crypt.
"No!" Spike's shout turned into a cough, "You can't ever do that. Glory never finds out."
"Why?"
"Cause Buffy, the other, not so pleasant Buffy, anything happened to Dawn, it'd destroy her. I couldn't live, her bein' in that much pain. Let Glory kill me first. Nearly bloody did," Spike said quietly.
Buffy frowned slightly before leaning and kissing Spike softly and gently on the lips. Spike began to kiss her back, but then frowned and pulled away. His face changed into a look of amazement. He leaned towards her as if he was going to kiss her again, but she pulled back and started to walk away.
"And my robot?"
Buffy turned back around and stared at Spike, "The robot is gone. The robot was gross and obscene."
Spike lowered his head in shame, "It wasn't suppose to...
"Don't. That... thing, it... it wasn't even real." Buffy turned and walked a few more steps before stopping and to say, "What you did, for me, and Dawn... that was real."
Spike lifted his head to watch her retreating back in time to catch her look at him over her shoulder and her parting words, "I won't forget it."
~~~~~~~~~~~
With the wave of a hand, Angel and Whistler changed scenes.
~~~~~~~~~~~
The ex-vampire found himself standing inside Buffy's house, watching Spike go into the living room to gather weapons and Buffy standing at the stairs just inside the front door.
"We're not all going to make it," Buffy stated quietly.
"Yeah," Spike said as he grabbed a few weapons from the chest and returned to the foyer," Hey. Always knew I'd go down fightin'."
"I'm counting on you to protect her."
"Till the end of the world. Even if that happens to be tonight," Spike pledged solemnly.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Another wave of a hand and once again the scene changed.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Angel watched as Buffy turned and took a leap off the tower into the blue swirling portal. He could hear Dawn sobbing on the platform nearby.
~~~~~~~~~~~
"The witch resurrected her, Angel, but it raised an evil you are acquainted with quite well," Whistler replied, "The First Evil doesn't take well to the dimensions being breached." He waved his hand, again. Angel realized his human body was getting a little sick to its stomach with all this jumping around.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Angel realized that they were standing in one of the many churches that dotted the Hellmouth landscape and even though he was now human all the crosses made his skin crawl.
Buffy was standing in the middle of the center aisle, beautiful in the blue light pouring in from the stained glass window. Spike was lying on the floor on top of a smashed pew.
"I tried to find it," Spike said.
"Find what?" Buffy asked.
"The spark. The missing... the piece that fit. That would make me fit. Because you didn't want..." Spike's voice hitched as he began to cry, "God, I can't. Not with you looking." He stood up and drifted into the shadows. He stared out a window, his back to Buffy. He turned his head slightly before speaking again. "I dreamed of killing you."
Without taking her eyes off of Spike, Buffy bent down and picked up a large splinter from one of the broken pews. She watched as Spike began to pace and speak again.
"I think they were dreams. So weak. Did you make me weak? Thinking of you, holding myself, and spilling useless buckets of salt over your ending? Angel, he should've warned me. He makes a good show of forgetting, but it's here, in me all the time," Spike stated as he moved around the room to stand behind Buffy, "The spark. I wanted to give you what you deserve, and I got it. They put the spark in me and now all it does is burn."
Buffy's face filled with shock, followed by disbelief and then after a few seconds comprehension, "Your soul."
"Bit worse for a lack of use," Spike laughed bitterly.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Whistler waved his hand and the scene changed again.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Angel could see that he was in a house he didn't recognize. Buffy was sitting on the bed, her eyes filled with tears as Spike stood in front of her.
"You listen to me," Spike demanded as he knelt in front of her "I've been alive a bit longer than you, and dead a lot longer than that. I've seen things you couldn't imagine, and done things I prefer you didn't. I don't exactly have a reputation for being a thinker. I follow my blood, which doesn't exactly rush in the direction of my brain. So I make a lot of mistakes, a lot of wrong bloody calls."
Spike looked up into Buffy's eyes as he continued, "Hundred plus years, and there's only one thing I've ever been sure of: you."
Buffy turned to look away from him, but Spike's hand ghosted her cheek slightly, "Hey, look at me. I'm not asking you for anything. When I say, "I love you," it's not because I want you or because I can't have you. It has nothing to do with me. I love what you are, what you do, how you try. I've seen your kindness and your strength. I've seen the best and the worst of you, and I understand with perfect clarity exactly what you are. You're a hell of a woman. You're the one, Buffy."
Tears rolled down Buffy's cheeks and she said quietly, "I don't want to be the one."
"I don't wanna be this good looking and athletic. We all have crosses to bear," Spike chuckled along with Buffy, "You get some rest now. I'll check in before first light. You can decide how you want..." Spike stood up and walked towards the bedroom door.
"Spike," Buffy's quiet voice caused the vampire to turn and look back at her, "Could you stay here?"
"Sure," Spike said as he looked at the chair he was standing next to. He took off his coat and threw it down. "This old diabolical torture device, the comfy chair. It'll do me fine."
"No, I mean here," Buffy said as she patted the bed beside her, "Will you just hold me?" She scooted back to the headboard still patting the spot beside her.
Spike nodded slightly before going to sit beside her on the bed and put his arm around her. She curled up next to him, cuddling up to his chest as he swung his booted feet up onto the bed. Spike put his other arm around her and settled her in closer to him.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"One more, Angel, then we're done," Whistler pronounced with a wave of his hand.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Angel could tell they were in the basement of Buffy's house. A cot was against the wall and he could see where Spike's infamous duster was tossed across one end of it. Angel watched as Spike approached Buffy.
"Where's the trinket?" Spike asked.
"The who-ket?"
"The pretty necklace your sweetie-bear gave you. The one with the all the power. I believe it's mine now," the vampire informed the Slayer.
"How do you figure?"
"Someone with a soul, but more than human? Angel meant to wear it, that means I am the qualified party," Spike said as he held out his hand towards Buffy.
"It's volatile. We don't know..."
"You'll be needing someone strong to bear it, then. You planning on giving it to Andrew?" Spike scoffed.
Buffy looked down at the amulet in her hand and then back up at Spike, "Angel said the amulet was meant to be worn by a champion."
Spike looked down at the floor, the disappointment very apparent in his facial expressions, but Buffy approached him, opened her hand and let the amulet spill from her hand into his.
"Been called a lot of things in my time," Spike remarked.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Whistler waved his hand one more time and the two men were back in the white marble chambers of the oracles. Angel sat down heavily in the marble chair he had sat in before.
"The promise of humanity isn't all it's cracked up to be these days. The one person who would have appreciated it not a year ago, has moved on. I wish to return to the way I was. Become a soldier for your cause again," Angel told Whistler.
"You'll have to give something up, Angel, something important to you. There is a prophecy that you were supposed to have learned of at a later time. One that says a vampire with a soul, who would help prevent the apocalypse would become human. That is the price you must pay. In order to return to your vampire status, you must give up any and all hope of ever being human again. Is it worth it to you, Angel?" Whistler questioned even though he knew the answer already.
Angel silently nodded his acceptance of the terms to Whistler's apparition.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Tasha betaed this chapter for me. I have some 'flash forwards' in this chapter that come directly from the show. Much thanks to Tami Brandt for being my Angel dialouge generator.