Betaed by Maria and Flight Of Fancy.

Arriving at her mother’s home, Buffy tried to let herself in, but ended up almost knocking her head into the door when it wouldn’t open. She began to frantically knock at the door, worried that something had happened to her mother. “Mom, are you in there?” Buffy’s thoughts were scrambling. Had the Scoobies ignored what she’d told them about Angel? Did the brooding vampire manage to lose his soul and attack her mother? Did the spell she’d cast to protect the home fail? Suddenly, the door opened and an impatient Buffy fell into Merrick’s arms.

“Your mom is okay, Buffy. Whichever spell you cast, it kept her safe and him out of the house, even with a fresh invite.” Buffy spotted Joyce, waiting patiently behind Merrick. Pushing the Watcher out of the way, the women embraced.

“Are you okay, Mom?” Buffy pulled away a little, and attempted to look her mother over while still holding her close.

“I’m okay, Buffy. Angel was here, but he couldn’t get in, even when I invited him. He lost it then, and started screaming and threatening to rip my throat out. I won’t lie to you, Honey, I was terrified.” Joyce leaned back a little and cupped Buffy’s cheek in her hand so she could look directly into her daughter’s eyes. “Merrick told me it was your spell that kept me safe. Thank you, Buffy.”

Buffy couldn’t resist hugging her mother close again. “I had to keep you safe, just in case the others didn’t listen.”

Merrick moved behind the women to relock the front door, and then followed them as they walked to the kitchen, still arm in arm. Buffy nodded a greeting to Giles and to Willow, but stayed by her mother, instead of joining them at the table.

Taking matters into her own hands, Joyce said, “Let me make you a cocoa, Buffy. Go have a seat.”

“Thanks, Mom.” Buffy took a seat beside Merrick, placing herself across the table from her former Watcher and her school mate. “What’s going on? The front door was locked, and you guys are here, so I know something is up.” Buffy looked at the people around the table. Merrick was looking satisfied, but Giles and Willow wouldn’t look at her directly. Narrowing her gaze, Buffy decided she wasn’t in the mood to pussyfoot around their latest problem. “Giles, it’s pretty obvious you know what’s happened, so why don’t you just tell me.”

“Oh, yes, well. Oh dear. It would seem that I was not as successful as I had hoped, when I was conveying your concerns to Cordelia. A..a..about the possibility of Angel losing his soul, I mean. It would appear that at some point, night before last, Angel and Cordelia, well, they...they were intimate,” Giles got out, as his face turned an unflattering shade of red and he focused his eyes on his necktie, as he tried to straighten out a few imaginary creases.

“Are you serious? Angelus is loose out there?” For some reason, the Light wasn’t the least bit surprised at the information.

“I’m afraid that is so,” Giles confirmed.

Buffy sighed. “Is Cordelia alive?”

For the first time, Willow spoke up. “She’s alive. Cordy’s in the hospital now, and we don’t know when she’s going to be released.”

“She’s lucky he didn’t kill her, just for fun. How bad is it?” Buffy got up from her seat.

“I’m afraid that Angelus struck her, quite severely, in the face. Her jaw has been wired together, she’s lost some teeth, and she’s had facial reconstruction surgery to repair a crushed cheekbone. Physically, she’ll recover in time. Mentally, I’m afraid this will leave long-lasting scars.” Giles followed Buffy, as she left the kitchen and headed towards the hall closet, where she kept a bag of stakes and other weapons. Without fussing, the Light concealed several stakes in her clothing.

“Sorry, Mom, but it looks like I’m not going to be able to stay, after all.” Buffy turned to look at Giles and Willow. “It would probably be best if you both spent the night here.” Then she turned to Merrick. “Will you meet me at my place in about twenty minutes?” Finally, she turned to Giles again. “Where is Kendra?”

“Well, you see, I don’t know, exactly. She left to patrol earlier today, before Angelus stopped by, and she hasn’t returned yet.” He pulled his glasses off again.

Buffy nodded. “I’ll go have a look for her.”

Merrick gathered his things, and joined Buffy at the door. “Do you have a stake for me?”

“Sure,” the Light replied. “Grab one from the duffel bag in the closet.”

Merrick took one for each coat pocket, and one to hold in his hand.

Ignoring Giles and Willow, Buffy gave Joyce a hug and then headed out.

“Promise me you’ll be careful, Buffy,” Joyce called after her.

“I promise.” Buffy ran back and gave her mother another quick hug, before disappearing into the dark night.

Buffy and Merrick split up at the end of the road. Merrick headed to Buffy’s warehouse home, and the Light paused in the quiet, trying to sense where Kendra might be, without success. Either Kendra was too far away for Buffy to sense, or she was already dead.

Knowing that she wasn’t likely to find Kendra on a public street, Buffy set out for the nearest cemetery. A quick check through the tombstones, and it was obvious that Kendra wasn’t there. She wasn’t in the second or third cemetery that Buffy went to, either. Tired of wasting time looking for the Slayer, the Light decided to change her tactics. Before leaving the third cemetery, she found a peaceful vantage point on top of a mausoleum. Sitting quietly, she closed her eyes and focused her attention on one outstretched palm, while silently casting a spell in her head.

After a few moments, she opened her eyes and was rewarded by the sight of a small, white, flickering flame, bouncing on the palm of her hand. Happy with the success of her spell, Buffy whispered to the little light, “Show me the way to the Slayer, Kendra.”

The flame immediately turned a deep red, indicating that Kendra was alive and healthy. It flickered again, and then appeared to lean to the right, while still remaining on Buffy’s palm.

Buffy jumped from the mausoleum, and began to follow the little flame like a compass tuned to Kendra. She started to jog, moving along at a quick pace, and it wasn’t long before she heard the sound of fighting up ahead. Speeding up, Buffy began to jump over tombstones, anxious to find the young Slayer and provide what assistance she could. Coming around a small copse of trees, Buffy found Kendra battling a Chaos demon. She knew that Kendra would have no trouble with the slimy monster, so the Light blew out the little flame on her palm, and then focused her attention on the surrounding area. The last thing the Slayer needed was to be jumped by Angelus while in the middle of another fight.

After she decapitated the Chaos demon, Kendra turned to Buffy with a smile. She indicated the large corpse with a gesture and asked, “Hey, Buffy. Don’t suppose you want to help a sister Slayer out?”

“Sure,” Buffy said, as she reached for the dead demon’s legs, while continuing to monitor the area.

Kendra was quick to pick up on Buffy’s excessive alertness. “Is there something wrong?”

“Nothing we can’t fix. Angel is Angelus right now, and he’s on the loose. I don’t want him sneaking up on us, and I didn’t want you to have to fight him alone.”

Kendra instantly pulled her stake out, holding it at the ready and doing her own scan of the cemetery. “What happened? How did he lose his soul?”

“Apparently nobody took my warning seriously. They all thought I was just being jealous,” Buffy explained calmly. “Let’s get this guy into the trees, and then get you home. It’s not safe out here right now.”

“I’m not going home. It’s my duty to find and kill Angelus.” Kendra pulled at the Chaos demon’s arms, dragging him further into the trees.

“You can’t fight him right now, Kendra. He’s very strong, and completely vicious. He’d kill you and, if he didn’t, Drusilla would,” Buffy told her. “Come on, Mom is worried. Let’s get you home.”

“But, I’m the Slayer. It’s my duty to go after him.”

“You’re right. You’re the Slayer, and it’s your duty to kill him, not to let him kill you. Don’t be foolish.” Buffy placed her hands on Kendra’s shoulders and looked her in the eye. “Trust me when I tell you, you can’t take them. There are some things that I know for sure.” Buffy was dead serious.

“You know for sure? But...oh. That’s...how I died? In your time?” Kendra had tears in her eyes. “Who...?” Her voice trailed off, and it was easy to see the horror in her eyes.

“It doesn’t matter, Kendra, because I’m not going to let the same thing happen again. Come on, mom’s waiting.” With that, the two girls set out at a quick pace for the house on Revello Drive.

Walking Kendra to the front porch, Buffy told her, “I’m going to see if I can find out what Angelus is up to. Unless he’s come up with something new, tomorrow we’re going to have to find and destroy a statue. Might want to tell Giles to read up on a guy named Acathla.” With that, Buffy turned to head off again, pausing for a moment on the bottom stair. “Kendra? Take care of them, please.”

Before Kendra could answer, Buffy was gone.

Arriving at the factory where she knew Spike and Drusilla had made their home, Buffy took a moment to clear her head and calm herself, before moving closer to the ramshackle building.

Buffy couldn’t help but wonder what she was going to find inside. At least this time she knew that Spike wouldn’t be trapped in a wheelchair, being neglected by his Sire and slowly starving to death. This time, Spike may very well still be with Drusilla. Buffy hadn’t seen the insane vampiress out and about, but Spike could be bringing home take-out for her. It was going to be difficult for Buffy to see Spike with his Sire, knowing that he was utterly devoted to the beautiful vampiress right now. She had to have faith that things would change, and that Spike would come to love her once more. This time, she wasn’t going to let anything stand in her way. Buffy loved Spike, and she would shout it from the rooftops once she knew he returned her feelings. Buffy shook her head to clear it, and wiped away the bittersweet tears that had formed in her eyes.

Silently, Buffy crept closer to the building. She could see two burly vampires standing guard at the front door and, thanks to a minion who was late leaving to catch his supper, she saw at least two more vamp security guards stationed down the main hall from the doorway. Buffy didn’t know if Angelus had put on extra guards because he was expecting some kind of attack from Kendra or herself, or if he just liked to come home to his very own honour guard of vamps. Either way, it wasn’t the entrance that Buffy wanted to use to gain access to the building.

Buffy slowly made her way around the building, looking for an unlocked window, a piece of loose siding, an open fire door, or some other way in. She’d never been around the back of this particular factory before, and she smiled when she saw a fire escape mounted to the exterior of the building. She’d have to be careful, because the rusted metal was likely to be very noisy, but it was a good way in, and would even give her access to the upper floors without having to fight her way through all the vampires on the lower level.

Whenever the opportunity presented itself, Buffy took a quick peek through the dirty windows she passed on her way to the ladder. The first room she saw was crowded with minions playing cards, watching TV, and sleeping. She definitely didn’t want to announce her presence to them. Starting up the ladder, she reached the first floor and carefully wiped some of the grime off the window closest to the fire escape.

A quick peek in the window confirmed a few things for her. First off, Drusilla was apparently healthy and whole. Second, Angelus was in the factory, and was currently very busy. Unfortunately for Buffy’s eyes, the two vampires were rutting like animals. The Light could have gone her whole life without seeing that and wouldn’t have felt like she’d missed anything important. Buffy made a face of distaste, and then continued up the fire escape ladder.

She moved without making a sound, not wanting to alert Angelus and his minions. Reaching the next floor, Buffy again looked through the window, but this time she found what looked like an empty store room on the other side of the glass. Using all the stealth she possessed, she carefully slipped the lock on the window, and then gently pushed the rusted frame until the window finally opened. Listening intently for rushing feet and cries of alarm, Buffy let herself into the factory.

The room she was in had long been neglected. There were old sheets on the pieces of furniture that remained, and there were boxes and crates stacked on one side of the room. Walking as lightly as she could, very conscious of the two Master vampires in the room below her, Buffy made her way to the door of the room.

She pressed her ear to the wood, listening for signs of activity before she exposed herself. When she heard nothing but silence, she decided to move further into the factory, leaving the door to the store room open so she would have a clearer escape route, if discovered. Buffy had been filled with a sense of foreboding before she’d approached the building, and that feeling was steadily getting worse. She didn’t think it was coming from Angelus or Drusilla, though they were certainly a threat to her safety. She didn’t think her subconscious fear stemmed from the collection of minions on the main floor either. Something was wrong though, very wrong, and the only person unaccounted for was Spike.

Slowly, Buffy made her way down the hall, hugging the wall and walking silently. There were only a few doors on that floor, and she stopped and listened intently for movement at each one. The whole floor appeared deserted, and it was making her edgy. She tightened the grip she had on her stake, and continued on until she came to the stairs.

Buffy stopped at the top of the stairs, pausing to carefully listen for vampires before she began to descend. She hugged the wall, hoping that the stairs wouldn’t betray her presence by creaking. She made it to the landing, and it was only then that she realized that Drusilla and Angelus were making enough noise to muffle the sounds of her approach. In fact, they were making so much noise, they probably wouldn’t have heard her, even if she’d been clumsy enough to trip and fall down the stairs.

Clearly, the two vampires had claimed the upper floor of the factory as their own territory. Buffy took a quick look down each of the hallways, but didn’t sense that any of the other rooms were occupied. Knowing that now was not the time to take on Angelus, she decided to continue her explorations and head to the ground floor.

Travelling silently down the stairs, she kept her eyes and ears open, alert to the possibility of discovery. She knew the minions were on this floor, and there was a much greater chance of running into someone by accident. Finally at the bottom of the stairs, she knelt down, back against the wall. Another quick check to make sure she was alone, and then Buffy peeked through the large doorway and into the next room.

The bloody footprints on the floor were the first thing that registered. She followed the trail backwards, as the footprints led across the room to the far wall where they ended near a pair of black boots. Buffy’s heart started racing so fast, she was sure every vampire in the building must be able to hear it.

Her eyes trailed upwards. Black jeans, below a back that looked like nothing more than a chewed up piece of raw meat. Tears flooded her eyes when she saw the platinum blonde hair.

Buffy stared at the viciously beaten vampire, for a moment so overwhelmed that she was unable to move. Her survival instinct ended the paralysis, when she registered footsteps on the stairs behind her. Quickly ducking into a storage cupboard, Buffy held her breath and hoped that nobody would find her hiding place.

Staying silent, Buffy heard a rattling sound from in the room. When she dared to crack open the cupboard and look, she saw Angelus unhooking one of Spike’s arms, and moving the chain to another hook, turning the captive vampire so he faced into the room. Though barely conscious moments before, Spike couldn’t help but scream when his ravaged back was slammed against the wall.

“It’s time to end this charade, Willy boy.” Angelus whipped out a stake, and slammed it through Spike’s chest before Buffy could react.

It was all Buffy could do to contain her screams. As it was, she was fortunate that her own agonized moan was lost in Spike’s pained howl. She couldn’t move, frozen in the cupboard with her eye to the gap in the door.

Buffy barely registered Angelus leaving the room, a truly evil laugh trailing behind him. Her eyes were glued to the unconscious vampire now pinned to the wall like a broken butterfly.

Not dust, not dust, not dust, she chanted to herself, as she moved closer, one ear open in case Angelus should return.

Trying to wipe the tears from her eyes, Buffy finally reached Spike. Gently, she reached up and cupped one of his bruised and swollen cheeks with her hand. Though she could spend days looking at his face, her gaze was drawn inexorably down to the stake that was protruding from his chest.

Buffy couldn’t help herself. She touched the stake, and then touched in again, sure that her eyes were deceiving her. Plastic. The stake in Spike’s chest was plastic wood grain, made to look authentic.

One look at Spike’s face confirmed that he was still unconscious so, after a quick check to see if she could hear anyone nearby, Buffy wrapped her hand around the stake, said a short prayer to the Powers, and pulled the cruel weapon out of the vampire’s chest.

Though Spike couldn’t help a low moan when the stake was removed, he hadn’t regained consciousness and nobody had overheard his cry. Quietly dropping the stake to the ground, Buffy removed her own blouse and used the fabric to create a makeshift bandage for the gaping wound in Spike’s chest.

She held the fabric in place for a few minutes, putting pressure on the injury in an attempt to slow the bleeding. She knew, however, that a bandage wouldn’t save Spike if they were discovered by one of the other vampires in the factory. Leaving Spike hanging in the cuffs, she explored the cart that held Angelus’ toys, and was overjoyed when she found the key to the manacles right on top.

With the iron key in hand, she rushed back to Spike. First, she unlocked the chains on his feet, and tried to manipulate his legs into a position where he might be able to take some of his own weight when the other cuffs were released. Then, she wrapped an arm around Spike’s chest, and managed to undo his left arm. With that arm draped around her shoulders, Buffy released the final restraint.

Spike slumped into Buffy’s arms, his pain so intense that it roused him to consciousness. In agony, he opened his mouth to scream out in pain.

Trying not to drop the blonde vampire, Buffy quickly threw a hand up to cover his mouth, fangs and all. “Shhh.”

Spike’s golden eyes blinked in surprise, as he realized who had finally come to help him. He shook his head, but was unable to shift from his demon face.

Hyper-vigilant for sounds of discovery, Buffy got Spike to his feet, with one of his arms over her shoulders. She held tightly to that wrist, and then looped her other arm around his waist, grabbing a blood-soaked belt loop on his jeans in an attempt to keep him upright.

Spike had given up his efforts to retract his demon face, and was now just trying to remain awake. He was in so much pain, even that was almost more than he could handle.

Taking stock of their situation, Buffy realized that there was almost no chance she would be able to get Spike up the stairs unnoticed. There was even less of a chance that she would be able to get him down the fire escape without discovery, and if Angelus caught them fleeing, she knew that death would be a merciful release if and when he finally chose to grant it.

There was no other option; they had to use the front door. Using that door meant they avoided stairs, which would have been very difficult with Buffy trying to support most of Spike’s weight. It also meant they wouldn’t be getting any closer to Angelus and Drusilla than they were now, a definite bonus in Buffy’s eyes. The trick would be to deal with the guards in the front hall without alerting the whole factory.

Buffy propped Spike up against the wall, near the doorway to the room he had recently been tortured in. She whispered to him that she needed him to be silent, then brushed a gentle kiss over his brow before moving to take out the guards.

The first guard was just outside the room. The second, half-way down the hall, and the third and fourth were standing just inside the front door. Apparently they had moved inside, instead of remaining outside where they had been when Buffy first scoped out the building.

The two guards at the door were talking together, with the third guard trying hard to follow the conversation. The fourth guard, too far away to hear what was happening, was leaning against the wall and looking bored.

Buffy took a silver dollar out of her pocket, and silently rolled it across the doorway of the room she and Spike were in. As hoped, the fourth guard couldn’t resist jumping through the door to pick up the coin. When he did, Buffy quickly covered his mouth with one hand, and staked him with her other.

The lighting in the hallway wasn’t the best, the torches leaving some areas in darkness. Now that the guard closest to them was gone, she could make use of the darkness to get closer to the next guard.

When the conversation between the two vamps at the door became heated, Buffy made her move. The guard on his own didn’t even realize what had happened; one minute he was laughing at the others, and the next he was in Hell, only his dust left to litter the floor of the hallway.

There was no way to get around the two vampires left at the door. Buffy would have to take them out at the same time, and she would have to do it without raising an alarm which would bring Angelus and Drusilla crashing down on them. Rather than stealth, Buffy chose to be brazen this time. She walked right up to the vampires, who were completely stunned by her appearance inside the factory. They had been expecting an attack from outside, not within. A moment of confusion was all that Buffy needed, and soon they had joined their hall-mates in Hell.