Chapter Two<\/b><\/p>\n
Rifling through her bag, Cordelia finally came up with her car keys and purse. Buffy waited for her patiently at the head of the table. \u201cMy car\u2019s in the parking lot,\u201d Cordy informed the blonde needlessly as the two began to head for the door, with Buffy in the lead.<\/p>\n
The Slayer was almost to the library\u2019s entrance when she realized that Cordelia was no longer following her. Turning, she saw the other girl stopped only a few paces away from the center table, her wide-eyed gaze fixed upon the book cage in front and to the right of her.<\/p>\n
\u201cCordelia?\u201d she questioned. When the brunette didn\u2019t respond, Buffy started to get irritated. Enough had happened tonight already that they didn\u2019t understand, and Buffy was sick of being confused and scared. \u201cCordelia!\u201d she called again.<\/p>\n
Cordelia waved a hand to silence her. Her eyes remained focused on the caged area of the library, and on the dark shadows between the bookshelves inside where she was certain she had seen a slight movement.<\/p>\n
With the overhead fluorescent lights casting their sickly glow down upon the room, the shadows weren\u2019t too deep, and as she stared into them Cordelia began to distinguish the faint outline of something small huddling in one of the slim spaces, hidden in the darkness.<\/p>\n
A little girl.<\/p>\n
If she hadn\u2019t moved Cordelia wouldn\u2019t have even noticed her, and she felt another pang in her heart. First, the woman left to die alone in Giles office, and now\u2026 How long had she been in there? How long might she have remained there, unnoticed and ignored by them all, if she hadn\u2019t moved? Cordy knew what it felt like to be ignored. By Xander and Buffy and their friends. By her parents.<\/p>\n
Within her hiding place the young girl was so still now that Cordelia didn\u2019t dare turn her gaze away for a second, for fear of losing her amongst the shadows once more.<\/p>\n
By now Buffy had returned to her side, turning her blue eyes in the direction Cordelia was facing to try and discern what she was looking at. Xander, Willow and Oz were watching from the table, and even Giles had noticed the brunette\u2019s fixated stare, drawn out of his contemplations by her faltered steps.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is it, Cordelia?\u201d he asked gently.<\/p>\n
\u201cShhh!\u201d Cordy hissed. Ignoring their questioning looks, she took a small, slow step towards the cage, trying not to scare the girl inside.<\/p>\n
No more movement came from the shadows. Cordelia continued her slow advancement towards the girl\u2019s prison, keeping her own movements as unhurried and unthreatening as possible, until she stood in front of the mesh enclosure, just to the right of the locked cage door.<\/p>\n
With her hands in plain sight, she eased herself to the ground. She now sat cross-legged on the cold linoleum, so that her face was almost at the little girl\u2019s eye-level, and her form was less imposing. \u201cHi there,\u201d she said gently, smiling tenderly into the shadows.<\/p>\n
No reply.<\/p>\n
Behind her she could tell that the Scoobies were confused by her actions, but Cordelia didn\u2019t stop to explain. Her concern was for the little girl. \u201cMy name\u2019s Cordelia. You can call me Cordy if ya like.\u201d She didn\u2019t ask for a name in return. She didn\u2019t want to frighten the child any more than she had to be already.<\/p>\n
\u201cI go to school here. Well, not now, because its nighttime, but during the daytime I do. This is the library. It\u2019s full of really old, really dusty books that smell funny.\u201d She scrunched up her nose in a comical expression of distaste, still smiling. \u201cI don\u2019t like to read them much. They\u2019re boring.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cordy\u2019s genuine smile never wavered, her voice was soft, and her tone was rich and warm, comforting the small girl. If she looked hard enough into the darkness, Cordelia could see two round glistening eyes watching her as she spoke.<\/p>\n
By now the others had realized that there must have been a child locked inside the book cage. Giles discreetly resumed his search for the keys, while the others stayed silent and still, not wanting to startle the child.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you like to read? I never liked it much at all. But I like fairytales. Magical places and castles and beautiful princesses with lots of pretty dresses. Brave handsome knights fighting big scary dragons. It\u2019s so exciting,\u201d Cordelia continued on.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou wanna know what else I like? I like dancing, and playing games, and I like to sing, but I have a really horrible voice!\u201d she admitted with a conspiratorial grin.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll say,\u201d Buffy mumbled in good-natured agreement, smiling a little.<\/p>\n
Cordelia ignored her completely, but she noticed the youngster inside the cage start slightly at the quiet sound of Buffy\u2019s voice, and quickly resumed. \u201cAnd I like horses. I have a horse named Keanu. He\u2019s so beautiful. I like kitty cats too. Do you like kitties? Ya know, one Halloween, I dressed up as a big ginger cat, with a long fluffy tail, and long whiskers! It was really cute!\u201d<\/p>\n
She decided to leave out the bit about everyone\u2019s Halloween costumes coming to life and turning the children into demons and ghosts and army soldiers. Absently twirled a lock of chocolate hair around her fingers, she searched for something else to talk about.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have pretty hair.\u201d The girl\u2019s voice was quiet and hesitant, but she shifted a little closer to the edge of the shadows enveloping her tiny frame. Finally seeing movement and hearing the child talk, some of the others gasped, having not really believed that Cordelia was actually seeing anything in the dark recesses of the book cage until now.<\/p>\n
Cordelia\u2019s smile just widened however, and she reached up and removed her hair from its ponytail, shaking her head until the thick dark glossy mane fell in soft curls over her shoulders. \u201cThank you! I\u2019ll bet you have pretty hair too. Would you like to come out and let me see it?\u201d she asked gently.<\/p>\n
Cordelia could sense the girl\u2019s uncertainty and fear, and she didn\u2019t want to push her. She smiled brightly and spoke to the young girl in an easy and warm voice that she was surprised to find was coming naturally.<\/p>\n
There was no one to act for here, no one to impress or protect herself from. Just this little girl and something in her heart that made her want to reach out and hold her, and keep her safe.<\/p>\n
\u201cI promise that you\u2019re safe. You don\u2019t have to come out of the cage. But I\u2019d really like it if you would come out of the dark and show me your pretty hair. No one can hurt you in there, sweetie, and these people,\u201d Cordy gestured behind her, \u201cthey are good people, and they are my friends.\u201d<\/p>\n
She pointed over at the small group of her fellow teens at the center study table. \u201cOver at the table there, the girl with the red hair? That\u2019s Willow. And the boy next to her is Oz. The dorky-looking one is Xander,\u201d she added with a smile.<\/p>\n
\u201cHey!\u201d Xander objected indignantly.<\/p>\n
Cordelia grinned briefly, and heard a giggle from the shadows. She moved her hand to point behind her left shoulder to Buffy. \u201cThat\u2019s Buffy. And behind her? That\u2019s Giles,\u201d she finished the introductions.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re safe here. They won\u2019t hurt you. I won\u2019t let anyone come closer,\u201d she vowed honestly, even as she realized that the girl had no reason to trust her either.<\/p>\n
To her amazement and delight, she saw more movement in the shadows. Rising to her feet between the walls of her hiding place, a small dirty sock-clad foot emerged first as the girl stepped out into the light.<\/p>\n
Dressed in dirt-smudged light yellow flannel pajamas adorned with small brown monkeys, her slim little body was swallowed by a man\u2019s large black leather jacket. The bottom of the jacket swished around her legs just above her ankles as she inched her way along the back wall until she stood opposite Cordelia.<\/p>\n
In the dip of her open collar rested the same silver sun-and-three-stars pendant that the woman in Giles\u2019 office wore. Her round cheeks were smeared with dirt and still wet from recent tears. Dark circles from days of restless sleeps surrounded reddened blue eyes that glistened with fresh moisture. Her hair was dirty and limp, but a beautiful caramel brown that would have fallen in soft curls, like Cordelia\u2019s own, down to the middle of her back.<\/p>\n
The small girl\u2019s hair and angelic features were exactly the same as those of the woman lying on the sofa, whom Cordy had long since guessed was the child\u2019s mother. Clutched tightly to her chest was the ring of keys Giles had been fruitlessly searching for. She looked to be only four or five years old.<\/p>\n
Cordelia\u2019s smiling lips trembled and her eyes filled with tears at the sight of the drying blood staining the girl\u2019s pajama pants, the bottom of her top, and her hands. She was so scared for this little girl, and so angry at whoever had locked her in a cold dark cage and left her mother to die in the next room. But she couldn\u2019t let it show.<\/p>\n
Forcing herself to keep smiling, Cordelia ignored the cries of concern that came from behind her. \u201cSee, you have very pretty hair too,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The girl\u2019s small button nose scrunched up in a similar fashion to how Cordelia\u2019s had, and despite her distress Cordy couldn\u2019t help but grin at the action. \u201cIt\u2019s all yucky and dirty,\u201d she told the older brunette, pulling at the slightly oily tendrils.<\/p>\n
\u201cWell, that means when it\u2019s clean it\u2019ll be even prettier,\u201d Cordelia promised. \u201cIt\u2019ll be just as beautiful as your eyes. They\u2019re a very pretty blue, ya know? Like a summer sky. I like summer. Do you like summer? Do you like to play in the sun?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s warm and nice.\u201d The little girl shrugged. \u201cNighttime\u2019s better. The stars are all twinkle-y, and I like the Moon, \u2018coz She\u2019s bright and pretty,\u201d the girl said, giving Cordelia a shy crooked smile that melted her heart and almost made her forget about her concern and anger.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, She is pretty,\u201d Cordelia agreed, mildly surprised by the young girl\u2019s use of the pronoun \u2018She\u2019 when referring to the moon. \u201cYou\u2019re not afraid of the dark?\u201d Cordy asked. Caramel curls bounced around her face as the little girl shook her head. \u201cWow! You\u2019re really brave! I was always afraid of the dark. I still am sometimes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cordelia paused for a moment, thinking. She was still worried about the little girl, especially now that she could see her properly, and was wondering if she had any injuries, or if all of the blood was her mother\u2019s.<\/p>\n
Cordelia didn\u2019t want to ask though. She didn\u2019t want to bring up the girl\u2019s mother, because that would lead to questions that she didn\u2019t think she could bear to answer. But she couldn\u2019t leave the girl locked up in the cold book cage any longer.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know you\u2019re scared, sweetie. And I know you don\u2019t really know me. But I\u2019m really scared too. I\u2019m scared that you might be hurt, or cold, or afraid. Will you come out of there for me? Please? You\u2019re safe here. I won\u2019t let anyone hurt you.\u201d<\/p>\n
The girl bit her lip as she took an instinctive step forward towards the warm comforting woman speaking to her. She had promised her daddy that she wouldn\u2019t come out unless it was Angel, and she wasn\u2019t supposed to give the keys to anyone but him.<\/p>\n
But her daddy had always told her that she should always, always<\/i><\/b> listen to her instincts. She hadn\u2019t known what \u2018instincts\u2019 were when her daddy told her that, but he had knelt down in front of her, and placed his large rough hand over her beating heart.<\/p>\n
\u201cListen here,\u201d he had told her, then placed his other hand to her tummy, \u201cand listen here. Heart and tummy. If these tell you something, you do it, no matter what. You trust these, okay babygirl? Because they will never lie to you.\u201d<\/p>\n
And right now, her tummy and her heart were telling her to trust Cordy. Her tummy and her heart weren\u2019t sure about Cordy\u2019s friends, especially the Slayer and the Watcher, but they were sure about Cordy.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not s\u2019posed to come out unless it\u2019s Angel,\u201d she told Cordelia quietly, even as she moved a little closer to the edge of the cage.<\/p>\n
The cheerleader\u2019s eyes widened. Similar reactions of shock and curiosity ran through the rest of the Scooby Gang, while the Watcher stiffened in apprehension and suspicion. Oblivious to his growing concerns, Cordelia\u2019s complete attention remained on the young girl.<\/p>\n
\u201cAngel? You know Angel, sweetie?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n
The child nodded mutely.<\/p>\n
Cordy gave her a genuinely warm smile, but inside her thoughts were a mess. Her instincts were telling her something. They were telling her that this little girl not only knew the ensouled vampire, but actually knew who and what he was as well.<\/p>\n
Something in those expressive light sapphire eyes gave Cordelia a feeling that this child knew that the things that went bump in the night and the monsters under her bed were real, and yet wasn\u2019t afraid of them.<\/p>\n
Even so, she was reluctant to talk to the girl about vampires and risk terrifying her more if her intuition turned out to be wrong.<\/p>\n
Taking a deep breath, Cordelia decided to go with her gut feeling, and prayed that it was right. \u201cI know Angel too. He\u2019s special, isn\u2019t he? He\u2019s not like us. And that makes him very special.\u201d The girl hesitated, eyes wide and round, but she slowly nodded once more.<\/p>\n
\u201cI beg your pardon?! Cordelia\u2026!\u201d Giles tried to interrupt her disapprovingly, however Cordelia darted a glare at the man that instantly silenced him.<\/p>\n
She turned back to the girl. Cordy gave her a reassuring grin. \u201cHe\u2019s, ya know\u2026 grr<\/i><\/b>,\u201d for a second her fingers curled into pretend claws in the air beside her head and her face scrunched up again, this time in an imitation of a vampire, curling her lip back over straight white teeth and non-existent fangs, before her expression returned to normal as she finished, \u201cisn\u2019t he?\u201d<\/p>\n
The girl\u2019s eyes grew even wider, this time with surprise, joy, and just a hint of indecision as well, even as an amused smile lit her face at Cordelia\u2019s impersonation.<\/p>\n
It was clear that she understood Cordelia\u2019s meaning, and she stepped even closer to the cage\u2019s mesh barrier. \u201cDo you really<\/i><\/b> know him, Cordy?\u201d she asked quietly. Her intelligent gaze searched Cordelia\u2019s hazel eyes hopefully. She didn\u2019t ask if they all knew him, just Cordy.<\/p>\n
Cordelia beamed. \u201cYou bet I do!\u201d she assured her. \u201cAnd we can bring him to you. Will you wait for him out here with me?\u201d<\/p>\n
The girl grinned back at her. Her heart and tummy were still sure about trusting Cordy. She shuffled her sock-clad feet over to the door and raised the ring of keys in her small hand, holding them up to the access slot, just inside the cage.<\/p>\n
Slowly, Cordelia stood and also moved to the cage door, extending her hand palm up through the opening to allow the girl to place the keys into her waiting hand. The child did so without hesitation.<\/p>\n
Rather than ask Giles, Cordelia simply tested a few of the keys until she found the right one and finally heard the click of the lock releasing.<\/p>\n
She swung the door open, then gently extended her hand towards the little girl, and waited.<\/p>\n
A small hand slipped instantly inside hers, and Cordelia held it tightly, reassuringly, as she led the girl out of the cage. \u201cThank you, sweetie,\u201d Cordy told her, her words filled with relief and happiness. \u201cYou did great!\u201d Still smiling, she turned to face Xander at the table, tossing him the keys to her Corvette.<\/p>\n
\u201cTake Buffy to get Angel. I\u2019m staying here with her,\u201d she informed them all, nodding her head down to the girl in question.<\/p>\n
Both Xander and Buffy looked towards Giles in unison to see what the Watcher was making of both the situation and the command issued by the cheerleader. But Giles could only shrug in response, still too confused and conflicted by the turn of events to even think of arguing against Cordelia\u2019s resolve.<\/p>\n
His thoughts revolved around the tokens of Aurelius that adorned the throats of both this young girl, and the murdered woman \u2013 her mother \u2013 in his office<\/p>\n
Buffy sighed heavily, and then beckoned to Xander with a movement of her blonde head. \u201cC\u2019mon, Xand. Looks like you\u2019re driving.\u201d<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Angel slammed down the receiver of the phone, running a hand through his hair in frustration. Elbows leaning on his knees, he dropped his head into his hands and tried to fight back the tears that burned in his eyes, begging to be allowed to fall.<\/p>\n
Still no answer. Not on the home phone or the cellphones. And there\u2019d been no answer for four days now.<\/p>\n
Angel was terrified about what that might mean.<\/p>\n
With no answer by now, despite countless calls over the past few days, Angel knew that the family had long since left their home. The only thing keeping him from jumping into the Plymouth and speeding out of Sunnydale to find them was the knowledge that he wouldn\u2019t know where to even start looking, if they had gone to ground.<\/p>\n
And more than likely, they were eventually headed his way anyway.<\/p>\n
So Angel stayed where he was, seated on the edge of his bed, worried, aggravated, and growing more and more scared with each moment that passed.<\/p>\n
And he dialed again.<\/p>\n
The phone at the other end of the line had just rung for the fourteenth time when Angel heard the sports car rolling up the driveway outside the mansion. Even distracted and anxious as he was, the vampire recognized the rev of the engine as that of a Corvette.<\/p>\n
The Corvette owned by Cordelia Chase. His senses were also alerting him to the sudden presence of the Vampire Slayer. Primal instinct rose up within as the demon in him reacted to the nearness of its natural enemy.<\/p>\n
As always though, the small part of him that was remotely human shoved away those violent feelings and the bloodlust that accompanied them, but it was harder this time. His baser demonic instincts were already too close to the surface as it was in his current agitated state-of-mind.<\/p>\n
And this time only served to remind him of how futile it had been when he\u2019d tried to separate man from demon in the recent past. He had tried for the sake of Buffy, her friends, Hell, even Rupert Giles. It was easier for them to think that he was one of two opposing entities within the one body \u2013 man and vampire.<\/p>\n
But there was no separating them, because the man didn\u2019t exist. The soul didn\u2019t change who he was, or what he\u2019d done. He was still a vampire, a murderous demon with all the instincts and desires of his kind. He was still capable of all the atrocities he had committed in his past, just as he was equally capable of enjoying it.<\/p>\n
The soul just made him care.<\/p>\n
Angel dropped the receiver heavily into its cradle on his bedside table again and pressed the heels of his palms into his eyes. He took several deep unneeded breaths to calm his nerve-wracked body, then angrily swiped at the moisture welling in his eyes and stood abruptly, not even bothering to avoid the debris still strewn about his bedroom as he headed for the stairs.<\/p>\n
Shards of glass, ceramics and wood crunched under his heavy combat boots where they littered the floor throughout most of the rooms of the mansion.<\/p>\n
Windows were shattered, furniture overturned or completely smashed, and every now and again walls bore crumbling scrapes and holes from where some piece of furniture had been thrown, or even where Angel\u2019s fist had impacted, the force of the blows leaving deep gouges in the stone.<\/p>\n
With no contact from the family for four days, and no way to help them, Angel\u2019s frustration, anger and fear were taking over him. His knuckles were still raw and bloodied. He shoved his hands deep into his pockets as he reached the bottom of the staircase and stopped.<\/p>\n
Waiting there for a moment, he realized this was the first time Buffy had come to the mansion since she had told him that they couldn\u2019t see each other anymore. And it didn\u2019t surprise him that the realization didn\u2019t hurt as much as it once would have. He\u2019d known that things between them couldn\u2019t work ever again since he\u2019d returned from Hell.<\/p>\n
Angel had tried, just in case he could be wrong, but he didn\u2019t feel the same way anymore. He couldn\u2019t. Not when they couldn\u2019t accept each other for what they were. Slayer and vampire. Girl and demon. A part of him still loved her, but he could never love her completely, and he could never be what she wanted him to be \u2013 human. Normal.<\/p>\n
He closed his eyes against his thoughts. Right now, he couldn\u2019t even feel bitter about the loss. Maybe all that he had really lost had been a fantasy, but he wished he could feel the hurt. Even that would be better than the numbness he felt about it right now. Anything to distract him from the fear and helplessness he felt at the loss of contact with the family.<\/p>\n
Restlessness and dread had driven him to insomnia.<\/p>\n
This was the first time in four days that he had even closed his eyes for more than a few moments, other than crying, and he hadn\u2019t yet really allowed himself that particular luxury either. And the anxiety had grown worse tonight. He felt something, something close\u2026<\/p>\n
The vampire opened his eyes again as he heard the two heartbeats approaching the front door, and a low, dangerous growl escaped his throat upon recognizing the scent of Buffy\u2019s companion as Xander Harris. The boy\u2019s presence wasn\u2019t likely to help his agitation. He could already feel his demon roaring beneath the surface of his outwardly human features.<\/p>\n
Angel\u2019s jaw tightened and his hands clenched into fists in his pockets, determined to fight back the change. He just wanted to find out what they wanted and then get rid of them. As much as he might have wished for a distraction, the truth was that if they got in his way right now he was likely to tear their throats out. He didn\u2019t want to be thinking of anything else but the people he really cared about.<\/p>\n
Buffy didn\u2019t knock as she pushed open the heavy oak door and peered into the darkness beyond. \u201cAngel?\u201d she called out tentatively as she stepped into the foyer, with Xander close behind. The immense building was usually only dimly lit with lamps and candles anyway, but tonight there wasn\u2019t even a fire going in the hearth to light the living area.<\/p>\n
The dim moonlight filtering through the windows only offered enough of a glow to prevent her from running into anything as she moved to the center of the atrium. The soft echoes of her boots on the stone floor made the entire building seem empty, lifeless.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve got a bad feeling about this,\u201d Xander drawled quietly, Han-Solo-style. He crossed his arms over his chest, tucking his hands beneath his armpits, and started to bounce from one foot to the other in an effort to block out the bitter cold.<\/p>\n
He heard something grinding against the stone beneath one of his sneaker-clad feet. \u201cHuh?\u201d Xander stepped aside and squinted down at the floor, but it was too dark to make out anything.<\/p>\n
Angel remained silent and allowed himself a small predatory smirk at the fear he could sense emanating from the boy, and even from the strong young Slayer. He pressed himself deeper into the shadows as he silently moved around the perimeter of the room.<\/p>\n
Calling his name again, Buffy winced, hearing a little of her fear creep into her voice. A cold shiver shot down her spine, and the fine hairs on the back of her neck stood on end as her body instinctively tensed in readiness.<\/p>\n
She could sense the vampire somewhere in the deep shadows, but Angel was too good to allow her to know exactly where. What the Hell did he think he was playing at? One of her hands unconsciously moved to rest over Mr. Pointy.<\/p>\n
Angel itched to toy with them some more, but he wasn\u2019t in the mood to deal with an irate Slayer afterwards. Still, as he moved noiselessly behind them he couldn\u2019t resist slamming the door closed with a loud crash, causing the boy to shriek as both he and Buffy jumped and spun around towards the startling sound.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t do<\/i><\/b> that, Deadboy!!\u201d Xander exclaimed. He hoped no one noticed his still slightly shrill voice, or his shaking hands, nor the embarrassed red flush of his face.<\/p>\n
Buffy glared at Angel, though she was barely able to see his face in the dappled moonlight spilling across his pale features, and tried to force her body to relax. The vampire stared back at her without a trace of emotion, except for the small quirk at the corner of his lips.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat do you think you\u2019re doing?\u201d she demanded heatedly.<\/p>\n
Angel\u2019s eyes narrowed slightly as guilt warred with the demonic thrill he felt at scaring the two teens, and he growled imperceptibly at the slip of his control. He knew he shouldn\u2019t be taking his frustration out on these innocent kids. The sooner he found out why they were here and got them to leave, the better. For them.<\/p>\n
Probably safer too. \u201cSorry,\u201d he muttered, mostly sincere, his usual expressionless mask slipping back into place. He walked across the living space, deliberately making a noise with each step now, and, after righting it from its resting place on the torn sofa cushions, he switched on the only unbroken lamp for the humans. He could see just fine in the darkness.<\/p>\n
Buffy blinked rapidly against the sudden illumination and allowed her eyes time to adjust, then gasped as her eyes took in the sight of the trashed living area. Almost every piece of furniture was destroyed, most lying in various broken heaps of wood, fabric and metal at the bases of the walls. Small fragments of rock dusted the piles and the surrounding floor, dislodged when the items had impacted the bare stone above.<\/p>\n
Most of the heavy drapes still hung from the shattered windows but now bore large rents and tears where the smashed panes of glass had shredded them. Personal belongings were interspersed amongst the wreckage \u2013 books, scattered papers, artworks and sculptures, weapons, a destroyed antique clock; all ripped from their rightful places and thrown or smashed in rage.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh! Ugh!\u201d Xander complained as he looked down, sounding thoroughly revolted. His face was contorted into a grimace of extreme disgust. Buffy followed the direction of his gaze, where they could now see what Xander had stepped on. \u201cBelieve me when I say I\u2019ll be burning these shoes when I get home!\u201d the boy continued.<\/p>\n
Thick curved splinters of ceramic lay at his feet, tinted dark reddish brown from the dried blood that coated them, and resting within a larger splattered pool of more dried blood. The mug of pig\u2019s blood had exploded against the stone where Angel had thrown it more than a day ago, spraying its contents everywhere.<\/p>\n
Many of the bloody slivers were now embedded between the treads and in the soft rubber sole of Xander\u2019s battered sneakers.<\/p>\n
Biting back her own nausea Buffy returned her attention to the vampire still standing silently across from her and Xander. Two or three days worth of stubble roughened his chiseled jaw, his hair disheveled and without product.<\/p>\n
His shoulders were tense, muscles corded and rippling beneath his black shirt, and though his expression was as unreadable as always, he was giving off a darkly dangerous vibe that heightened her worry. \u201cWhat happened here?\u201d she asked him softly, the worry evident in her voice.<\/p>\n
Already unapproachable, Angel folded his arms across his chest in a move far more threatening than casual. He heard the Slayer gasp again as she saw his bruised and blood-encrusted hands. \u201cNothing,\u201d he answered her gruffly. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t concern you.\u201d The tone of his voice warned her that the subject was closed.<\/p>\n
Buffy blinked, incredulous. Okay, so she had told him that they had to stop seeing each other, but that certainly didn\u2019t mean that she didn\u2019t still care about him. When she had found him in the woods in nothing but trousers, his mind lost and animal, she had spent every moment that she could trying to help him get better.<\/p>\n
His recovery had taken weeks. Weeks of slipping out during the night to bring him blood from the butcher, of staying with him for an hour here or there when she could get away with it, of talking to him in his feral state until one night when she stopped by he was finally becoming more lucid. After that, each time she had stopped by to see him she had found him even more coherent than the last visit.<\/p>\n
Until finally he had almost seemed himself again. His tortured body still ached, he wasn\u2019t up to his full strength, and both his sleeping and waking mind were haunted by nightmares of the centuries of pain and torment that he had endured, but he was getting better. And she\u2019d realized that he didn\u2019t need her to take care of him anymore.<\/p>\n
So she\u2019d walked away, because them being together was too dangerous.<\/p>\n
But looking at Angel now, and surveying the destroyed furnishings of the mansion, perhaps she\u2019d been wrong to leave him so soon. What if he was descending back into the madness she had slowly dragged him out of? He seemed on edge, distant.<\/p>\n
Buffy stared into his intense obsidian eyes, seeing something wild, primal and dangerous dancing in the gold flecks that had crept into his irises, but also intelligence and recognition. She had never really been able to understand Angel\u2019s expressions and emotions, but the signs she read in his gaze gave her hope that it wasn\u2019t too late to help him again.<\/p>\n
She took a cautious step closer, raising a hand reassuringly toward Angel.<\/p>\n
Suddenly Angel was directly in front of her, his hand painfully gripping her extended wrist with an immovable strength that suggested he was far more recovered than she had believed. More than he had ever let her know.<\/p>\n
Fear spiked in the pit of her stomach as his chest rumbled with a deadly snarl and his human features melted away to be replaced by hard angular lines, thick bone and gleaming razor-sharp fangs. His nostrils flared once as his blazing amber eyes slid from her face to the hand clutched firmly in his grasp.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet her go!\u201d Xander cried out, the only thing he could do against the powerful demon restraining his friend. Now his entire frame trembled in fear. The vampire didn\u2019t even acknowledge his presence.<\/p>\n
\u201cAng–\u201d Buffy began to whisper timidly.<\/p>\n
Topaz orbs snapped back to her blue, silencing her protest. \u201cWhere is she?\u201d he demanded. His voice was quiet, but so full of fury and desperation that it chilled the human children to the core.<\/p>\n
When Buffy didn\u2019t immediately answer him, Angel\u2019s grip tightened, instantly bruising the delicate flesh of her wrist and eliciting a whimper from the girl. He heard bone grind together as it threatened to snap. Right now, Angel didn\u2019t care about the pain he was causing her.<\/p>\n
The small trickle of fear that he had enjoyed earlier was now a crashing river of terror. He barely noticed it. His senses were reeling from the familiar scent on her hand and her flesh.<\/p>\n
Emily.<\/p>\n
And blood. Emily\u2019s blood.<\/p>\n
Buffy had touched Emily. Tonight. And while there was none of her blood anywhere on Buffy, the heavy coppery scent of it clinging to her skin and clothing told Angel that a lot had been spilled. His concern and fear multiplied tenfold. What about\u2026?<\/p>\n
\u201cWe came to get you!\u201d Buffy blurted out, almost desperately, pained tears slipping from her eyes. It didn\u2019t matter to her how Angel had known why they were here, or even which of the females he was asking about. She just wanted him to let her go.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s at the library!\u201d<\/p>\n
Just as suddenly as he had grabbed her, her arm was released, and Buffy at once stumbled back to Xander\u2019s side, clutching her injured arm close to her chest. Angel still didn\u2019t care. His vampiric face shifted back to human, or as close to human as Angel would ever be, and he swept passed them towards the front door.<\/p>\n
His boots crunched heavily through the broken shards of bloodied ceramics.<\/p>\n
\u201cTake me there.\u201d<\/p>\n