|
|
Cordelia sat on the railing of the bridge and sighed impatiently. The sun was almost set, and all the beasties of the land would be coming out to terrorize them. < And what are we doing? We’re waiting for the stupid troll to come up with a favor for us to do for him! > Growing more frustrated by the minute, she glared at Angel. He was staring obliviously into the night but somehow managed to catch her furious gaze.
“Don’t worry. I have a plan,” he whispered to her. She didn’t feel much better.
“What’s the plan? Are we gonna wait him to death?” she hissed back. He gave her a look and she sat back, crossing her arms in typical Cordy fashion. Angel rolled his eyes and they both turned their attention to the troll, who appeared lost in thought.
Suddenly, Ugly’s eyes lit up. “I’ve got it!” he exclaimed to the two above him. “There’s this… Well, you have to see it to believe it. Hold on a minute, I’ll go get it,” the troll said excitedly. Obviously, whatever it was, he was relieved to be getting rid of it. Ugly walked under the bridge and out of their line of sight.
Angel turned to Cordelia. “Run,” he said casually.
Cordelia stared at him, incredulous. “Run? That’s your fantastic plan?” she spit out. Instead of responding, Angel grabbed her arm and broke out into a sprint across the bridge, pulling her along. Even with those chunky heels on her feet, Cordy managed to keep up with him. They were already over the bridge and halfway across the field when they heard the troll shouting angrily behind them.
“Hey! Stop right now!” They did no such thing. Instead, they continued to run until Cordelia was out of breath, her lungs burning. She could hear Angel beside her, his breath coming out in short, ragged gasps. Still they ran, and didn’t stop until they reached the base of the mountain. She collapsed exhaustedly on a large rock and looked around, still trying to catch her breath. The first thing she saw was Angel.
She scowled at him. “I can’t believe you! I thought you were like ‘Buffy, the male version.’ You know, fight before running and all that. But ‘run’? How pathetic was that?”
Angel looked behind him, a strange expression on his face. “It got us out of there didn’t it?” he asked. Cordelia returned the statement with a withering look. Angel turned back, took one look at her angry face and began to laugh. Hard.
Never, in all the time she knew Angel, did she ever see him laughing. It was sort of strange to see, but not disturbing. She watched him for a moment, eyebrows arched. < This has to be the strangest day I’ve ever had. > After he finished she smiled weakly and rolled her eyes, then looked around her.
The troll was nowhere in sight-it had given up chase a long time ago. It was probably a good idea, decided as a result of the swiftly oncoming darkness. The sun was gone now, hidden behind the horizon. The mountain shadowed the enormous field they crossed, shrouding it in complete darkness. Despite the lack of good light, she could still see the golden path they were trying to follow.
“So what’s the plan now, Genius?” she asked as her eyes followed the path.
Angel ignored her sarcasm and replied, “The best thing to do now is find somewhere to stay for the night. For all we know, this could be far worse than Sunnydale.” Then he, too, began to stare off. Black eyes seemed to focus on something farther in the distance. He lifted his hand and pointed to a location slightly to the right of the castle. “There. I see a light in the distance. It may be a cabin. We can stay there for the night, then continue walking in the morning when we’re better rested.” Satisfied that he had an answer, the ex-vampire looked back at Cordelia and frowned at her expression. “What’s wrong?”
She sighed dramatically. “A cabin? We’re in a land chock full of magic and the best we can do is a cabin?”
Angel just shook his head and gave her a look. It was beginning to be his universal response to everything she said. He then replied, “You know, you never fail to amuse me.”
“Well, you know me. Always here to please,” she retorted, then gestured vaguely towards the path. “Lead on, fearless one.” He grinned at her, then began to walk.
It took Buffy a moment to realize the screaming came from her. < What am I doing? I’m the damn Slayer, I don’t scream! > Recovering quickly, she instinctively raised her fists into a defensive position. Eyes darting around frantically, the Chosen One looked around herself trying to figure the odds. < This is so not good. > Surrounding her was a small army of men wearing black robes, their faces shadowed by the attached hoods. They all had their own defensive positions, complete with balls of flame, waiting for a reason to attack. The only thing that comforted Buffy was the presence of a tense Xander standing next to her. He, too, was in a defensive stance.
“So fighting is out of the question, huh?” he asked, only half-joking. She smiled weakly and watched as the men parted before her. A man dressed in a red robe stepped forward. At least she thought it was a man. The hood of his floor-length robe was pulled over his face, preventing her from getting a good look.
“There is no escaping us,” he informed them. His voice was deep and foreboding.
< That was a little spooky. > Buffy’s thoughts had her shaking on the inside. One the outside, however, she was still the Slayer. The blond stepped out of her fighting stance, but did not let her guard down. She placed one hand on her hip and tried her best to look confident.
“What do you want with us?” she asked.
“Master wants you immediately.”
“What if we refuse?” Xander asked defiantly. The man’s face turned to him and the Slayerette quickly changed his attitude. “Uh, not that I plan on refusing or anything. Let’s just call it curiosity,” he stammered as he moved a little behind Buffy. Despite the situation, Buffy smirked.
“Not a possibility,” the red-robed mage said shortly. Then he raised his hands over his head and began chanting loudly. Almost immediately, a blast of light blinded them. A strong wind surrounded them and beat against them furiously.
Beside her, Buffy could hear Xander say, “Woah, Déjà vu.” Just like before, the chaos built up until everything went black. There was one difference, however. This time, Buffy did not lose consciousness. The darkness only lasted a second before the dimly lit walls of a dungeon replaced it. Bars surrounded her on three sides and a gray brick wall covered the other. She immediately looked around for the culprits.
The robed men were gone, but Xander stood behind her still. She turned to face him and placed a hand on his shoulder. His eyes were glazed over and his hands were shaking, but besides that he appeared unscathed. “Xander, are you okay?” she asked tentatively.
Slowly, brown eyes focused and turned to her. He quipped weakly, “We really need a new travel agent. The transportation around here sucks.”
Buffy smiled in relief and replied, “It’s depressing how happy I am to hear you say that.”
Xander gave her a curt nod, then asked, “Where are we, anyway?”
Buffy shrugged. It was obvious they were locked up in a dungeon of some kind. Beyond that, she had no idea. Her eyes darted around the small cage and it’s medieval decor. “Didn’t this look go out, like, a million years ago?”
Giles sat at the head of the library’s main research table feeling both helpless and frustrated. When the night began, he had no problems. As the day began, he had a little bit of hope. At the present moment, however, he had really big problem and no hope of solving it. Amy Madison was his last leap of faith, and at best she was failing miserably. The powerful young witch sat before him with her eyes closed, chanting the same lines repeatedly.
Her words came out so silently he could barely make them out: “Goddess Hecate, aid me in my task. Show me those who cannot see their way home.” Earlier, they discovered spell in their research. It said something about helping to find the lost. They figured it was worth a try. For the past two hours, she attempted to use it and had yet to be successful.
Oz cleared his throat. “So how does this spell work? Witch radar?”
“Nicely put,” the librarian muttered. Then he removed his glasses and wiped them off with a handkerchief. “She pleads for assistance from Hecate, the Goddess of darkness and sorcery. Then…well…I’m not, uh, completely positive on how the spell works. But I do know that it will send out magick to find and show them to her through the eyes of someone nearby.”
“But you’re not sure?”
The librarian glanced nervously at Oz and said, “Perhaps this was a bad idea.”
Oz nodded in agreement. “Little bit late,” he said simply. Then he looked over to Amy, expressionless. Giles sighed wistfully and did the same. He sorely missed Xander’s meager attempts at humor, Buffy’s sarcasm, and Willow’s laughter. Because the Watcher wasn’t there when everything happened, he felt responsible for their disappearance. < I should have been there. > His guilt was interrupted when Amy’s eyes suddenly fluttered open. She looked around, disoriented for a moment. Her brown eyes focused on Giles and she frowned. Bad news.
“What is it?” he asked. In all honesty, he was afraid of the answer.
“I saw them. They aren’t in this world anymore, but they didn’t enter the Hellmouth either. They’re in another dimension and I…I can’t bring them back. They have to find the link between the two worlds, and it’s Willow who’s going to bring them back. I’m not strong enough,” Amy said shakily.
Giles was confused. “I thought you were more powerful than she.”
Amy nodded and answered, “Yeah, magically speaking. But in order to do a spell like that you have to be physically strong enough to handle it. I don’t know how Will managed, but if she was strong enough to get them there, she’s strong enough to bring them back.”
“Willow has super-powers now,” Oz explained.
< That’s it! > Realization hit Giles like a brick wall and he slapped his forehead. “Of course! How bloody stupid of me. I should have realized it before!” The two teenagers next to him looked up, startled. “Spike must have known, and wanted her to open the Hellmouth.”
“Okay, we have that information now,” Amy said, “but what do we do with it?”
Finally happy to have a lead, Giles waved a hand towards his office. “We research.”
Willow wiped the tears off her face, walking forward from the doorway and down the porch steps. Sitting down heavily, she shook her head in amazement. < What was that about, Will? Spike’s a vampire. Well, most of the time. You don’t care what he does or feels. Do you? > She wrapped her arms around herself and leaned against the railing. < Now how are you supposed to go back in there after that little scene? What’s gotten into you? >
Willow was used to berating herself, but not for something like this. She had never spoken so freely about herself to anyone like that before, not even Xander. It was strange that her mortal enemy was singled out to see the real Willow. < Oh, God. What did I do? I can’t go back in there. >
Pushing those thoughts out of her head, the hacker tried to focus on the world around her. It was dimmer outside than in, but her eyes adjusted quickly. The sun was almost set, its final rays peeking out from behind the horizon. It was colored bright orange and lit up the sky in a fiery storm of red and yellow. The already-dim rays of sunlight were blocked out by mountain peaks which the landscape an eerie surface. Shadows were cast sporadically across the land. A cool breeze swept past her, rustling trees and sending a cold chill up her spine. Willow wrapped her arms around herself and leaned against the railing.
“It’s a nice night. I’ll just go to sleep out here. Spike can sit in there all he wants, I don’t care,” Willow mumbled to herself. < Yeah, I believe that. Really, I do. > Smiling slightly at her rebellious declaration, she closed her eyes and tried to picture her friends in a happier moment.
The sound of a creaking door disturbed Willow’s conscious dreaming, but she didn’t open her eyes. Footsteps on the porch grew louder as they neared. Strong arms wrapped around her, picking her gently off the floor. “Who-,” she began, but stopped herself. < Don’t be stupid, Willow. It can only be one person. But why would Spike care that I’m outside? He’s evil… or at least really, really mean. > She tried telling him to leave her alone, but her words died softly as they reached her lips. Willow was carried out of the cold darkness into the warmth of the brightly-lit room. Her eyes squeezed tightly closed in protest to the light and she buried her head in his shoulder. He took a few more steps and she could feel herself laid gently on the bed. A blanket was pulled over her shoulders, and a soft hand gently brushed hair out of her face. < I don’t understand. > She tried lifting her heavy eyelids, and failed. “Spike?” she inquired softly.
He hushed her. There was silence for a moment as they both observed the undeniable tension between them. Finally, he said, “I’m going to get some firewood. Go back to sleep.” She listened to his steps. The door closed quietly and her eyes popped open.
“Oh, God,” Willow whispered to the ceiling. She was unsure what his act of kindness meant, and unanswered questions raced in her head. Faced with her first real dilemma since she arrived, Willow’s brain switched into analytical mode.
She was so busy with her thoughts that she didn’t notice the cottage door opening. Two people walked in and froze when their gaze landed on her red hair and confused expression. Her train of thought wasn’t broken until a hand reached out and shook her frantically. Unfocused green eyes turned to the nearest of the visitors.
It took a moment for her to recognize him, and she whispered his name to be sure. “Angel?” He smiled.
“Is she okay?” A female voice asked from behind him. Willow looked up to the second visitor and saw Cordelia. She peered down at her fellow Slayerette a look of concern on her face. < Cordelia cares how I am? This has to be a dream. > The brunette was dressed fashionably as usual, but her clothes were rumpled and she looked as exhausted as Willow felt.
“Willow, are you alright?” Angel asked. His voice was raw with concern for her. “Did he hurt you?” Her brows furrowed in confusion and she looked up at him. < He? Oh, Spike. >
“I’m okay,” she assured him with a smile. Her hand went to her forehead as she tried to separate reality from daydream. < But Angel and Cordelia are here, so it must be a dream. > “I’m just waiting to wake up.” Willow pinched her arm and jumped when a jolt of pain shot up. Her eyes widened, “You guys are really here!” Willow jumped up excitedly and threw her arms around the pair. “I never thought I’d see you guys again,” she said, her voice muffled as she spoke into Angel’s shoulder.
Cordelia uncomfortably wrapped one arm around the red headed Slayerette. “Wow, Will. I’m glad to see you’re alright and all, but why are we here?” Cordelia asked. Willow smiled at her friend’s unusual display of sincerity. She answered, “Well, Spike wanted me to send Angel and Buffy to hell as revenge for Drusilla. But I couldn’t do it. I sent Angel, Buffy and I to this dimension. Except I brought Spike with me, and well, apparently Angel brought you.” Cordelia turned to Angel and frowned. Willow caught the unanswered question. “Where’s Buffy?” she asked. Both Cordelia and Angel looked at her blankly for a minute.
“Buffy?” Angel asked vacantly. His expression told her that he never thought the Slayer would be there too. Willow nodded slowly. “I haven’t seen her.”
“It was supposed to be me, you and Buffy. I hope she’s okay.” A million horrible scenarios flashed in Willow’s head.
“She’ll be fine. She’s Supergirl,” Cordelia broke in. Willow nodded, but she didn’t feel much better. Cordy’s next question came as an afterthought, “Spike’s here, too?”
Willow wasn’t listening. She was still concentrating on Buffy. Something caught her attention and her worried gaze turned to the opening door. Spike had returned. She heard a loud thump as all the firewood fell to the floor. It caught the attention of Cordy and Angel as well. Before she realized what was going on, the latter was charging towards Spike, growling menacingly. Willow quickly muttered a short spell that Amy taught her.
Both men froze in place, their feet stuck to the floor. Willow let out a sigh of relief and walked over to them. They turned to her questioningly, not used to her take-charge attitude. Frankly, neither was she. “This spell will hold you until I turn it off. That won’t happen unless you guys declare a truce.” She crossed her arms and plastered on her resolve face.
“Let me go, Willow,” Angel said, glaring at his vampire child.
Willow shook her head. “No, Angel. Then you’ll hurt each other.”
Angel’s eyes turned to her, disbelieving. “Willow, he kidnapped you.”
“Yeah, twice, what of it?” Spike demanded.
Willow threw him a warning glare, then turned back to Angel. “That’s my fight, not yours. Leave him alone,” the redhead countered. In all honesty, she had no idea why she was defending Spike. He felt no remorse for kidnapping her or the damage it caused. Still, she felt something for him. She just didn’t know what it was yet.
“Doesn’t this get old for you people?” asked Cordelia. Her comment was ignored.
“And you. Act your age, Spike,” Willow demanded. < On the other hand, Angel is my friend and he’s human right now. He could get injured, too. >
“But he killed Dru,” Spike protested.
“And you’ve been a saint since you came to Sunnydale,” Cordelia pointed out sarcastically.
“Please don’t do this now,” Willow said quietly. “If you want to fight when we get home, that’s fine with me. But please, wait until we get there.” Anger flashed in Spike’s eyes, but his raised in mock surrender. She glanced back at Angel and saw he did the same. “Can I let you guys go now?” They both nodded their heads toward her, glancing at each other cautiously. Willow almost laughed at their synchronized movements. “Are you sure?” she asked again, uncertain. Both men turned their glares to her and she put her hands up defensively. “Alright, Alright.” She mumbled the release spell under her breath and then opened her eyes to see they were free.
With that finished, Willow turned and began to organize the firewood. Often, she would get on her computer and surf the net or clean her room when she had a lot on her mind. The organization gave her a feeling of control that helped her make decisions. Angel walked over and kneeled down next to her. Willow could tell something was bothering him, but he didn’t say what it was outright. After they were almost done with the pile, he finally turned to her and said what was on his mind.
“How can you protect him after all he’s done?”
“We made a deal.” Willow answered vaguely, as if that explained everything. She glanced back at the blond vampire that was currently pacing back and forth in front of the window. As if he could feel her eyes on him, Spike stopped and caught her gaze.
“Willow?” Angel spoke her name softly, but it was loud enough to pull her attention away from a pair of mesmerizing pale blue eyes. She blinked, then shifted her attention back to Angel. Her head felt fuzzy.
“Sleep,” she murmured in return. “I need sleep. We’ll talk tomorrow, okay?”