The friends were sitting by Buffy's pool when shot rang out. The impact shoved the tiny blonde woman back from the table. Her small body slumped over in her chair, looking like a broken doll. Lorne rushed over to lay her out on the ground while Fred gently propped Buffy's head in her lap. Tears streamed down their faces as they screamed for help. Several armed weres rushed from the house, searching for the shooter before gathering up Buffy's body and carrying her into the house. Lorne helped Fred up, wrapping an arm around each other they slowly followed.
Edward snapped pictures as the drama unfolded. He knew it was a direct hit, and didn't see how she could have survived. Slowly making his way back into the house, Edward walked into the den to find Buffy curled up with her two vampire mates.
She saw him, and after extracting herself walked over to ask, "Did you get everything you needed?" He nodded, not sure that he could speak. "Good, you have two days, either bring me the boy and his mother safe, or tell me when, where, and how they died. Oh, and Forrest, just so you know, you couldn't have changed anything, it was fate." Buffy walked back to Asher and Damian crawling back between them.
"Don't call me that," Edward growled, taking a step forward.
"It's your name, the one they gave you, not some stranger's. Haven't you run long enough?"
"I'm out of here. Anita, I'll be in touch."
Edward met with Cecile Kennedy the next day to supply her with the evidence of Buffy's assassination. Cecile thanked him then started to cry, throwing her arms around him to hug him tightly. Edward left, but doubled back to follow her. He watched her meet a tall buxom brunette, to whom she gave the envelope. The brunette riffled through it before giving Cecile a brilliant smile, and shoving her into a van that screeched up beside them. Edward followed close behind, trying not to lose them.
The van pulled up to a seedy motel. A muscle bound man drug Cecile out of the automobile. The brunette, accompanied by what looked like the other man's twin, followed close behind. They entered a room towards the back, in the secluded area of the hotel.
Edward snuck forward in time to hear a door close somewhere inside, turning around to see them drive off in a different car. He walked in the room and found Cecile lying on the bed with her throat cut. Running for his car, he took off after them. It didn't take him long to catch them a couple of miles away at a much nicer hotel. This one had a front window, which he could easily see into. The brunette was taking on both men at once, and from the look of things, having a great time. Making his way back to his hotel to phone Buffy, Edward knew that the boy died the day before he was hired.
"Hello, Edward. How'd it go?" Buffy asked quietly. "I was afraid of that. Yeah, that's Cordelia Chase. No, don't worry about it, I'll take care of it personally. Thanks, anyway. Forrest, if you ever decide to stop running, I'd like to get to know you." She hung up the phone. Tears ran down her face for Cecile Kennedy and her little boy.
Angel was waiting for Cordelia when she got home. He could smell the two men she'd been with all afternoon on her body and in her blood. She held an envelope in her hand that she carefully placed in a dresser drawer.
Turning around, Cordelia shrieked when she saw him. "Angel, I didn't see you there. I thought you were going to be in a meeting across town until almost dawn."
"You thought I would be out, so you would what? Fuck two other men." Angel advanced on her like a panther stalking its prey.
"No, Angel someone grabbed me and I barely got away. I think it was some of Gunn's pard," she lied hoping he would believe her.
"Oh, so, they must have roughed you up. Strip."
"What!"
"Strip, I want to make sure that you are alright. Now, strip," he growled shoving her away from the dresser.
Cordelia's hands shook as she started unbuttoning her blouse. She placed each article of clothing on a chair then stood waiting for Angel's next demand.
"Come here." Walking slowly over to him. "Turn." Doing as he asked. "Bend over and spread your legs." She bit the inside of her mouth to keep from saying anything, but did this as well. "Wider, Cordy, spread yourself, so I can check you over thoroughly." Angel switched on a light before moving behind her, then proceeded to walk completely around her, touching her breasts, then moved back to run his hands over her ass, and inside her, squeezing and pulling as he went. "Cordy, Cor, or should I say whore! What or should I say who have you been doing, and what did you hide in the dresser? Naughty pictures?"
He moved towards the dresser and Cordelia tried to stop him. "No, Angel, it's a surprise for you. You'll spoil it."
Angel shoved her away, searching through the dresser until he found the envelope. He pulled out the pictures of Buffy, Lorne, and Fred laughing, then shuffling though, he almost drops them. Turning around growling, his eyes twin amber flames, Cordelia was running for the door. Angel caught her, just as she turned the knob, backhanding her across the room.
"Why do you have those pictures, bitch? Answer me." He opened his shields, blasting her with his power. Cordelia shrank back, their bond leaving her no choice, but to answer when he forced the issue. She tried to keep the truth from him by closing the bond. Angel wasn't going to allow this. He grabbed her by the throat bringing her face up to his. "Tell me the truth," he whispered.
The words rang in her head over and over. "I hired someone to kill Buffy, and those pictures are the proof." Angel dropped her stumbling away. "She had to pay, Angel, for what she did to you. Buffy had no right. I will always protect you, Angel. I love you."
"You didn't do this for me, you did it because you were jealous. Buffy is everything you could never be. How did you do this?"
She explained about Cecile and Edward. "Go to bed, Cordy," Angel sighed, unable to look at the woman he had spent more than twenty-five years with.
"You're not going to punish me?"
"I'm sure that I will punish you for the rest of our lives, Cordy, but you are still useful for your visions and your body. Since you are willing to use your body to get what you want, I might as well add it on the negotiation tables. Plenty of my associates would enjoy an opportunity to fuck my human servant."
"No, Angel, please." Cordelia started to approach him, only stopping when she saw the warning on his face.
"Go to bed!" He walked out of the room never turning back.
Buffy waited to hear what the Powers' decision would be regarding Cecile and her son, and whether Angel would be judged along with Cordelia. She heard wings fluttering and smiled when Mercury, the messenger of the gods, appeared.
"Hi, Merc." Buffy kissed his cheek.
"Hello, sweet Buffy. The Powers are sorry, but the balance is too delicate right now for you to be able to save the two innocents. Many spirits are being released back to Tartarus, but the scales are still not balanced."
"I was afraid of that. What about Angel and Cordelia?"
"He knows about her actions and has chosen to ignore them. You are lost to him again. He will continue on his path and destructive relationship with the demon seer." Mercury gave her a sympathetic pat on the shoulder.
"I'll leave in an hour. Thanks. Oh, Merc, next time come and see me when you aren't just delivering a message."
Buffy appeared outside Angel's bedroom. She listened at the door and heard murmured voices. Opening the door, she walked in and locked the door behind her. The guards down the hall didn't see a thing. Buffy watched Cordelia brush her hair while she walk towards the bed where Angel lay naked waiting for her. She looked at him closely wondering how a vampire got heavy, high cal plasma. The years hadn't been good to him.
"Hello, lover," Buffy purred.
Cordelia screamed, "What are you? You're dead! There were pictures."
"Shut up Cordelia," Buffy growled at her high school nemesis.
"Buffy, you're alive, you came back to me." Angel started to get up from the bed to rush to her.
"Oh, get over yourself, Angel. Your pet puts out a hit on me, murders a little boy and his mother to cover it up, and you don't care enough to do anything. Oh wait, you could lose those visions. How are those working out for you, Cor? Did you have one tonight? Cause gotta say, if not maybe all that bleach shorted you out, or something. In fact, when was the last one you had?"
"Cordelia," Angel roared. He looked between the two women unsure what to do. "Buffy, I gave up when you died again."
"Shut up, Angel. I'm here to judge you for your actions, and pass sentence." Green eyes changed to royal blue as Buffy gathered her power.
"Judge us? Who are you? You have no right to judge us," Cordelia scoffed. A malicious gleam entered her eye. Dressed in a barely there teddy, Cordy joined Angel, pushing him back, sliding her body suggestively along his.
Buffy wanted to roll her eyes. Did Cordelia actually think the show is making me jealous? Please, my yummy treats put Angel to shame. "The Powers did. Didn't you wonder about why you didn't wake up until Angel tricked someone into helping you - someone good? How about those visions, Cor, when no one was there for you to save even you had to think something was wrong. Maybe that evil you brought back with you left a little residue, or maybe it just wiped away the glamour you've been wearing this whole time. Didn't matter it worked for you, you got your man, now, you could let your hair down. Thanks goodness, you got rid of the Anna Nicole look ya had going."
She turned to look at Angel who looked like a deer caught in the headlights, still lying nude on the bed. "Angelus, no, can't call him that, he's not up to that caliber. Liam over there was supposed to figure out that you were his next big project. He royally screwed that one up, didn't he. Literally, and from what I've heard it's been up, sideways, and backwards, if you know what I mean. Your demon brought out your true character. If you had changed or were a stronger person, you would have fought it and won. You aren't a warrior, Cor, although you have the boobs for it. Your judgment starts now, Cordy. Let's look at what you have done and weigh it against your 'good' deeds. The scythe and balance will decide the outcome."
Buffy called the scythe to her. Her royal blue eyes shown brightly, illuminating the room. When they dimmed, a large scale sat beside the bed. A swirling portal stood behind it. Images of Cordelia's life could be seen as she worked beside Angel, getting the visions, becoming half demon, the events leading to her coma, Angel taking her as his human servant, Cecil's son's murder, Cecil's murder, both done by Cordy, the events rolled on and on. Each one caused a single beam of white or black light to be placed on the scale's ever growing mass.
Finally, the events ended, and Buffy looked at Cordelia. "You have been judged. Each being makes choices, you used powers available to you for selfish reasons, which harmed and killed innocents along the way without regard. Your sentence is death." Buffy's voice was an eerie combination of two voices overlaid on each other. Eyes glowing even brighter, the scythe humming in her hand, she stepped forward and swung. Cordelia's head fell to the floor, seconds later her body turned to ash before disappearing.
Angel was frozen in place on the bed, until he saw Buffy swing the scythe, and he screamed. "NO!" Jumping up, he tried to stop her, but his legs wouldn't obey him. Angel watched his lover disappear, realizing that he was going to be alone, again. He couldn't conceive that Buffy was here to judge him as well. She could never kill him, he had his soul, and wasn't Angelus. Of course, this was asinine on his part, because she sent him to hell with his soul. Angel saw the portal close and the scales disappear.
Buffy turned and walked over to him, the scythe held firmly in her hand and her eyes still glowing royal blue. "Angel," she murmured softly.
"Buffy," he interrupted, "I'm so glad that you're alive. With Cordelia gone, no one is standing in our way. I understand that you were jealous, but I didn't have a choice. Her visions were important. That's why I bound her to me. I made a lot of enemies over the years, and the visions saved my life more times than I can count."
A harsh bark of laughter escaped her lips. "You have got to be kidding me. Your ego is amazing, Angel. No wonder you left when I was eighteen. If you would have stuck around, I would have matured past this egotistical bullshit." Buffy shook her head at the waste of her youth, the hours she spent pining for this man.
"You can't deny that you were always jealous of Cordelia. You know that you still love me and want to be with me. Now we can." Angel smiled at her.
"Why would I leave my bond mates; guess you forgot about them? They give me everything I could every want - emotionally, spiritually, and mmm yes, physically." Buffy walked around Angel, eyeing him and finding him wanting. She raised a hand, pushing out to force him against a wall, and magically binding there. "Now, I don't think Asher and Damian would appreciate that, gets them all testy. I sure as hell don't want whatever it is that you've become to touch me."
Buffy approached him, the scythe held firmly in her hand with the end pointed at his chest. It started to glow. She saw his childer's strands and carefully separated Wesley's. Noticing there were only four others, which were dark and murky, but not dark enough for sentencing, Buffy separated them as well. The last one intrigued her, it glowed a pale yellow. Looking deeper, she gasped when she realized that it belonged to Drusilla, and carefully severed the line. Buffy knew how sensitive the vampiress was and didn't want to cause any unneeded damage. Peering deeply into Angel's aura saddened Buffy; it was dark, covered with black spots or choked by black cords. Her shoulders slumped at how far her old lover had fallen. His greed, cruelty, and vanity were blaringly obvious, marked by bitterness and anger.
"Angel, you made a deal with evil and replaced it with a greater evil - you. You had choices and you always chose the easiest path. The Powers watched you closely, hoping that you would change your ways, but Cordelia's last act was the final straw. Your complacency regarding her cruelty against innocents sealed your fate."
"Buffy, you know that you can't kill me. I have a soul, and besides you still love me."
"Don't you remember that was the case the last time too. Goodbye, Angel, you won't be coming back this time." She swung the scythe, causing him to burst into ash.
Angel fell for what seemed like years, until he hit the floor. He looked around what appeared to be a cell with a caged door. Shivering, he realized that he was nude, there was nothing in the cell to cover with, and nothing to lay or sit on but the cold hard floor. Angel leaned against the far corner to wait. Trying to remember the time previously spent in Hell, nothing came to mind except never-ending pain. A shudder raced down his spine as he tried not to anticipate what lay ahead of him. Angel heard someone yelling, then realized that it was Cordelia. Yep, he really was in Hell.
Cordelia was in a similar cell, screaming for someone to let her out because she had rights. She was a seer for the Powers and the human servant to the Master of Los Angeles.
A large man appeared. He was handsome, with black hair and eyes, a large muscular build and pale skin. He looked down his regal nose at Cordelia and said in a quiet commanding voice. "Be quiet." She immediately shut her mouth. "Bring her." He motioned to two guards. They walked by Angel's cell, stopping while a guard opened the door. "Step out." The handsome man ordered and Angel found himself unable to disobey.
"I am Hades, god of the Underworld, you have been sentenced here by the Fates for crimes against humanity. The Guardian left your punishment up to my discretion."
"Who is this Guardian that everyone keeps talking about?" Angel found that he could finally ask.
"You know her quiet well. She is my niece, Buffy," Hades smirked.
"What!" Cordelia screamed, trying to break free from the guards holding her.
"You would do best to hold your tongue while you still have it. If I remove it, it won't grow back. Now, come with me, so that you may see what your punishment for eternity will be." Hades walked away, knowing that they would follow, they had no other choice.
They walked down a long corridor to an opening, stepping out onto the side of a tall mountain that allowed them to see down into a valley below. Demons moved about, as far as the eye could see, every type imaginable, dragons flew overhead, swooping down to capture some unlikely prey. Hades waved a hand to open a portal. It showed people working in their homes with children laughing and playing. The portal panned to the outside revealing that millions lived there.
"Those are the innocents killed because of you two. The demons you see below represent the results of your actions. You will service them for the rest of your lives as punishment."
"No," Cordelia whimpered, thrashing in the guards arms, tears running down her face. Angel paled as he remembered, looking from the portal to the valley below.
Hades snapped his fingers. Angel and Cordelia found themselves spread out and chained by an ankle to a wall. Each on an opposite corner of a room, beside a cot, their heads snapped up when they heard laughing and feet shuffling. A Fyarl demon entered the room heading for Cordelia, while a bull-like creature resembling the Minotaur went to Angel.
Angel saw that there was a long line waiting just outside the door for them. The Minotaur was on him in an instant, slamming him into the wall as it entered him. His screams joined Cordelia's. Looking over he saw that the Fyarl had her on the cot. It was huge and had bitten clean through her breasts.
Buffy appeared before a large home in Hyde Park. She grinned to herself, acknowledging Drusilla's good taste. Knocking on the door and waiting, a large vampire resembling Lurch opened the door. Buffy tried not to laugh, but she expected Hand or Cousin It any moment.
"Madam is waiting for you in the parlor."
Buffy followed, not surprised that Dru knew that she was coming. The psychic's visions used to give Buffy the wiggins, now they were almost like e-mail. Walking into a room straight out of a romance novel, standing beside the fireplace was the willowy vampiress. Dru looked the same; red velvet dress, long dark hair, large blue eyes, the major difference was the sanity in those eyes.
"Hello Little Star, the moon told me that you were coming. You had to punish Daddy and send him away along with that nasty girl." Dru smiled, lighting up her entire face.
"Hi, Dru. Mom's been whispering in your ear telling you the latest gossip." Buffy knew that Dru saw a lot; it was only her insanity that kept her from being able to make sense of it all.
"She is very beautiful your mother, but your father is very loud. He gives me a headache, oy."
Buffy laughed, shaking her head in agreement. "Are you happy here, Dru?"
"I get lonely, the others are scared of me." She pouted prettily.
"Would you like to come stay with me?"
"Oh yes, I could help you free the Moon's children and even teach others how to as well. I promise to be good, Buffy." Tears filled the large blue eyes; she was still an innocent lost little girl inside. Angelus should have left her to become a nun, her soul was too pure to have been broken by him. Dru reminded Buffy of Warwick, they both had an innocence about them that no matter what they became couldn't mar their souls. It would be interesting to see them together; maybe they could help each other cope.
"Dru, the Powers are proud of you, of what you chose to do with your powers when you got your soul back. They led me to you. Please come home with me." A dark headed nodded happily. "Do you think that between us we could teleport to my study?" Another happy nod, before a pale slender hand joined a much smaller golden one. "We can send for your things later. Is there anything that you want to take now?"
Dru snatched Miss Edith off the mantle. They felt the power rise between them. Buffy focused on picturing the study in her mind, and they disappeared. Seconds later, a large pop could be heard in the study and Warwick ran to see what was going on. He found Buffy and a beautiful dark haired vampiress.
"Hello, Warwick, meet Drusilla. She's going to be living with us. You two get acquainted. Could you show her around? I'm off to see my mates." Buffy ran from the room, with a devious smile on her face. Warwick and Dru stared at each other, mesmerized, not even realizing that she had left the room.
A week later, Anita entered Buffy's study and found her reading a book. She heard Anita enter. Looking up she gave the other woman a warm smile. "Thanks for coming. How are things going for you?"
"Okay," came the one word response. The Executioner sat down to wait for Buffy to explain why she wanted this meeting. Anita's feelings were still mixed where Buffy was concerned. She equally admired and resented the small blonde.
"I wanted to let you know about some information, then let you decide what, if anything you wanted to do about it. Jean-Claude and I had a conversation," Buffy started.
"You what! You were talking about me. We are none of you business," Anita growled, jumping to her feet, already heading for the door.
"Do you ever listen to a complete sentence?" Buffy asked, with a sigh. Anita stopped, but didn't turn around. "I asked him about something unrelated to you and politely asked if you were doing alright. He seemed worried that you were becoming involved with Micah. I simply told him not to give up hope. He said he would wait for you. I wanted to know if it would allow you two a chance, would he be willing to close off the arduer from you? He said yes, without a moment's hesitation. Now, I wanted to ask you if you would be interested."
Anita didn't say a word. "I don't know if I trust him, if I want to lose control like that again."
"It's up to you. I just thought that I would let you know that you had options. Sometimes, you gotta take a risk. Spike taught me that. Take some time and think with your heart, ignore what your friends try to convince you is right or wrong, and make up your own mind. Anita, you can't live for them, and you can't keep making others pay for the shitty way you were treated in the past. If you really care about Micah, that's good; but if he's just safe, then that's crap and he doesn't deserve it. There is another option, you could love them both; it's been known to happen. I'm talking about me, by the way. Let me know what you decide."
Buffy left Anita still standing there thinking about the possibilities. The thought of being with Jean-Claude again caused her pulse to jump. Micah was great. He didn't pressure her and understood that she could take care of herself. He was a were, but human, unlike Jean-Claude. Was that enough, did she love him or could she? Did she really want her life to be with him. Anita walked back out to her car knowing that she had a lot to think about. Her decision would not only affect her life, but Jean-Claude's, Micah's and the pard's.
Several days later, Buffy called a meeting, asking Jean-Claude and Marianne to join them. "Okay, I have I plan, but will need your help on the details. The plan to free the weres is slowly progressing here. The problem is, I can't be everywhere at once. When I was a Slayer, I had friends to help me out. That's what I need now, Fred, you, Dru, and Marianne are powerful enough to perform the spell with a little training. You and Lorne open portals allowing us to get back and forth without teleporting. We just need to make sure only one team uses a portal while the another uses the jet. One can work close to home, fanning out in to the neighboring cities. We can rotate, so that we get to be together part of each week. There isn't any need for anyone to burn out. Marianne, I was hoping that you could start training others to help so that we could create other teams. This is a big world and we have a lot of ground to cover."
Wesley didn't skip a beat when she stopped talking. "Exactly what details did you leave for us to help you work out?" Everyone laughed.
"Scheduling, how we find new people, and what to do next. Lorne, do you and Fred think that the portals sound doable?"
Lorne nodded, remembering telling Angel that all portals were closed in this world. He knew couldn't be a party to the consequences of Angel's schemes.
Fred chirped up, excitement making her expressive eyes dance. "Oh, yes, with an influx of magic into the proper slipstream we should be able to better control a portal. The problem is finding the proper slipstream. You have to be able to see in quadrant space, and I've tried, but was never able to get it right. All I got was cross-eyed and my lab went kablooey several times. I stopped because An..., it was making people angry."
"Fredikins, you're causing my ears to bleed."
Buffy joined the others laughter at the two's antics. "Cool, portals a go. Marianne, are you interested in being Head Witch?" She smiled at the plump grey haired woman, who reminded Buffy of the fairy godmother in Cinderella.
"I'm sure my coven will be interested, but most are from the Southwest. I don't know how many are up for traveling around the county, let alone the world."
"But they could help you train others and help locate potential candidates for teams, right?" Marian smiled in agreement. "Ah, my favorite Master of the City, I bet you want to know why you are part of this meeting. Why, for me to pick your brain of course. I was hoping that you, Asher, Damian, Warwick, and Dru could compare notes on people that you know who could be part of the team. Several of the weres here are interested in rounding out the teams that I have in mind." She smiled at the elegant French vampire, giving him her most innocent little girl look.
"Ma sorcière, does your mind ever stop? You have plans within plans. How many other Ulfrics, Nimir Ras, and other leaders have you contacted? Do you know all the packs and pards as well?"
"JC, I was never good at remembering stuff, just ask Wes. I never pronounced the name of anything right." She batted her eyelashes at him, giving him an innocent smile.
He threw back his long curled head and laughed, causing pleasure to race down everyone's spines. "But, I have seen you greet over a hundred people at the Circus, each from different groups, each by their given name. The jig is, how you say, up."
"Well, it did get me out research a lot. They never did wonder how I could come up with info or a strategy to defeat the Big Bad." She shrugged an elegant shoulder.
"You mean it was all an act?" Wesley exclaimed, mentally slapping his forehead.
"Did you see my SAT scores? You don't score that high being stupid. I got a full ride to Northwestern, plus several other schools."
"But your grades in school…"
"Mostly bored and sleepy. Never failed, did I? Passed all my tests with A's and B's, even if I never did the homework. Exactly when would I have had time to study, Wes?"
"I can't believe we underestimated you all those years."
"No biggy, and yes JC, I've made new friends in the cities that I've visited. Networking is very important; people have to know you to trust you." A blindingly bright smile lit up her face. "Training and recruiting needs to start ASAP, but before that we party. The club is ready and the grand opening is in two days. We are going to let our hair down and shake our groove thing. Wait till you see it, everything turned out great."