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Ivory caught Jesse at his locker immediately after school, asking if he was on his way home. When he said yes, she handed him a folded handwritten note and asked that he deliver it to Willow right away. Jesse stared at her questioningly a moment, then agreed to her request.
Ivory watched him walk away down the hall, hardly surprised when she saw him unfold it to read. However, she had coded it by writing, "Interview set up at the company you recommended, The Angel Software Corporation. Meet me in Suite 206 in an hour."
With a sigh, Ivory turned away, making her way first to the gym where Hannah and the other cheerleaders would be practicing. She watched the routine in silence, then waited for Hannah to approach her afterwards.
"Okay," the young redhead started off. "Has to be urgent, cause you never come here to observe. What's up, Ivory?"
The Slayer checked her watch, noting that they still had twenty minutes to make it to the warehouse. "You were anxious to hear about my Dad. Well, I'm gonna take you to meet him in person. How soon can you change?"
Hannah's eyes grew wide, but she was already edging towards the locker room. "I'll be back before you know it," she promised, scurrying off a second later. Ivory waited patiently for her friend to return, then the two girls were on their way.
They jogged the distance to the factory where Angel and Cordelia resided, and Ivory could sense Hannah's growing eagerness all the while. Finally, outside the warehouse, Ivory turned to her young friend, one hand on the doorknob poised to open it. "Look," the Slayer said. "Thing are going to get very bizarre from here on out. All I can ask is that you keep a very open mind, no matter what you see or hear. Can you do that, Hannah?"
Hannah hesitated, then nodded. "Geez!" she said after a moment. "You act like he's a demon or something."
Ivory didn't say a word, just opened the door behind her and turned to step inside. Behind her, Hannah followed with an uncertain smile. "Ivory, tell me you're kidding... please," she added.
They entered the main area of the factory within moments, and Ivory was quick to call out for her father and Cordelia, ignoring Hannah's inquiries for the moment. However, both she and her friend were startled when Angel suddenly appeared from around a corner. "Hey, he said, striding towards them casually. "What brings you here at this time?"
Ivory gave a sardonic smile. "First, let's do the introductions. Dad, this is Hannah. Hannah, my Dad," she said bluntly, turning to gauge her friend's reaction.
Hannah's eyes were practically bugging out of her head, as she stared at Angel in disbelief. "What the..." she started.
Ivory took pity on the energetic redhead. "The short version... He's a good vampire. He and my mother loved each other despite the fact they were mortal enemies, and I was the result of them getting together. Questions?"
Hannah shook her head, but didn't lose the bewildered look. Turning back to her father, Ivory added, "We've got problems... It's Nick. May be planning a bloodbath or something just as bad tonight."
Angel gestured for the three girls, Cordelia included, to sit at the table with him to discuss this at length. "What makes you say that?" he asked his daughter. "What's he done?"
Ivory sighed, quickly filling him in on the flyer and sign-up sheet at school. "What this gathering signifies, I don't know... But I know it can't be anything good if Nick is in any way involved. That's why I took precautions to prevent any hazards." She looked from her father to Cordelia, then her attention was caught by Willow as she approached. "I signed up both myself and Cordy for this. I need backup in case something goes wrong, and I didn't think he'd recognize her as a threat."
Willow sat down across from Ivory and Hannah, very much curious as to what was happening. "What did I miss?" she asked, prodding Ivory to run through it once more with a sigh. When the Slayer was finished, Willow said, "Sounds like a good idea to me. If Jesse or Risa are putting themselves in harm's way, I'd feel better knowing you were there to bail them out."
Ivory nodded, turning to Cordelia. "Think you'd be up to it?"
The brunette vampiress nodded. "Point me. I'm ready. Nick and his buddies won't know what hit them."
Ivory leaned back in her seat. "That's good," she said, taking a relaxing breath. "Now on to the next order of business." Looking at Willow, she added, "Stefanie thinks, and I agree with her, that I had my first prophecy dream last night... It was totally bizarre, I can't even make sense of it though."
Willow leaned forward. "Anything in particular you remember?"
Ivory closed her eyes momentarily. "Dad and I were fighting someone, in a cavern, I think," she replied, focusing on the disjointed images. "And I remember seeing myself in chains, being held prisoner or something... Oh, and when I woke up, I could have sworn I saw my Mom in the room with me. I don't know if it was an afterimage of the dream or whether she actually did make a brief appearance."
Willow was stumped, for once. "Well, I don't know what to tell you," she said after a moment of thought. "It sounds so jumbled, we may have to wait to see if any of it comes to pass... In fact, there's a chance that those two scenarios have no relation to each other. They may even happen weeks apart."
Ivory contemplated this, then abruptly remembered something. "Oh, before I forget, I also saw this creature in my dream. Big, scaly, totally grotesque... Almost reptilian, I think..."
Willow and Hannah both stiffened at this, recalling the ritual passage they had read last evening. Angel was the first to pick up on their discomfort. "That description bothers you. Why?" he addressed to the Watcher, leaning slightly forward.
Willow took a second to compose herself, then filled them in on Falmorean. "The way I understand it, four vampires, potentially good ones, are needed to call him. I can tell you right off that either you or Cordelia can be pegged as one such... 'requirement,' shall we say."
Angel narrowed his eyes, not liking the sound of this. "And the other three?"
Willow bit her lip. "One half vampire, one who has lost hope, and one who stands between darkness and light... I honestly have no idea who the others could be. But, odds are, if Ivory's seen Falmorean in her dream..."
Cordelia finished the thought. "Then someone has found or will find people to fill these descriptions," she said quietly, eyes wide with barely disguised fear. "What do we do if that happens?"
Ivory cut in. "I'll be there to stop it. This dream came for a reason, as a means to warn me... I mean, I saw a vision of this demon, so wouldn't that mean that I'd eventually encounter it for real?"
"Not necessarily," Willow put in. "Visions aren't always accurate, and don't always come to pass. At the very least, all that may be required is stopping this ritual before it's completed."
"When it comes to that, I hope I'm up to the challenge," Ivory replied. "Now, back to the roller rink situation...."
They discussed strategy for the next half hour, having all their plans laid out in no time. Before leaving the factory for home, Ivory mentioned to Cordelia that it probably wasn't a good idea for them to go together, as Risa and Jesse might ask one too many questions should a technical stranger join the group. Cordelia okayed this plan, adding that it would also work better if Nick and his cohorts didn't see her and Ivory socializing.
At home, Ivory showered quickly, then changed into a fuschia halter top and black lycra pants for the evening. In her purse, she packed a cross, two small vials of holy water, and at least two stakes, then retreated to the living room to watch some television before the big event. But all the while, her mind was focused on what lay ahead, and she worried briefly over her chances of success at her potential first battle as the Slayer...