"Aauugghhh!" Angel's screams of pain filled the air as he fell to the ground.

"Angel!" Buffy ran over to him and threw her arms around her boyfriend. As spasms shook his body, she tried desperatedly to soothe him, all the while keeping an eye on Druscilla. The beautiful vampire smiled evilly as she witnessed the scene.

"I wouldn't get to close to him if I were you," she purred. "Angel's always been a bad boy. He just might hurt you."

"What?!?" Buffy gave Druscilla an incredulous look. "Angel would never hurt me." She turned back to Anget, who had miraculously stoppe shaking and was now lying silenly in her arms. She gently touched his face. "Are you all right/ What did she do to you?'

Angel didn't answer right away. Buffy stared at his turned away face, and felt fear slowly rising in her chest. Something was wrong... terribly wrong. But what? She glanced up at Druscilla, and the vampire smiled back at her.

Suddenly she realized what was wrong. The conncection between her and Angel was missing, that feeling that they shared when ever they were together... or apart... was gone. Looking down at Angel, she realized that she might as well be looking at a stranger.

At that moment, Angel shipped his head around. Buffy's face drained of color and her blue eyes widened in horror. It wasn't Angel staring back at her... it was the dmon that had killed him.

Before Buffy could react, Angel grabbed her wrists and smiled triumphantly. "Hello, Buffy," he growled. "So nice to see you."

"Angel?" Buffy whispered, tears filling her eyes. She looked desperately into his eys, hopng for some sign of his oul-the soul she had fallen in love iwth.

All she saw was the demon smiling back at her. Angel was gone and his place was this evil, horrible creature, Angelus.

At that moment, Giles, Willo, Xander, and Cordelia burst into the room. "Buffy!" yelled Willow, rushing over to her friend. "You're okay!"

Just as Buffy was about to shout out a warning, Angelus grabbed her roughly by the throat and squeezed. Gaspiing and choking, Buffy clawed frantically at Angel's hands, but his grip was like steel.

Fighting to stay concious, buffy lashed out with her boot and kicked Angel's shin. Then she dove her elbow into Angelus's stomach. As he doubled over in pain, she broke away from him and ran over to her friends, collapsing just before she reached them.

In an instant they surrounded her, forming a protective circle. "Buffy, are you all right?" exclaimed Giles, his eyes full of worry.

"What's wrong with Angel?" cried Willow.

"Buff, if he hurt you, I'm gonna snash his face in until he's dead... well more dead than he is now," said Xander.

"He's not himself," said Buffy weakly. "His-his sould is gone. He's a demon... just like any other vampire."

Giles' face drained of color. "Good God," he murmered.

Willow's eyes filled with tears. "Oh, Buffy," she said. "Isn't there anyway to bring him back?"

"I don't know," Buffy replied, trying to keep herself from crying. It was hard to believe that the guy she loved was gone. She turned to Giles hopefully. "Giles?" she asked.

"Well, we can't be sure until-" Giles started but was interupted as Angelus crashed into him. With just a single punch to the jaw, he knocked the watcher out cold. Slowly, he turned to the four teens, an evil smile on his face. "if you three are smart, you'd get ou of my way," he said to Cordelia, Xander, and Willow. "it's not you I want-it's my girlfriend, Buffy."

"I'm not your girlfriend," Buffy told him in a low voice. "Not anymore."

"But shouldn't we try to work out our porblems?" Angelus replied mockingly.

"You know, I've never liked you,' Xander said angrily. "But i was nice to ou, because of Buffy. Now, no more Mr. Nice Guy!" With a yell, he leapt over to Angel and socked him the jaw.

Without so much as flinching, Angelus retaliated with a punch to Xander's stomach. Then he picked up Xander and tossed him across the room. The three remaining girls watched in horro as he loudly slammed into the far wall and fell to the ground motionless.

"Xander!" cried Cordelia. She quickly ran over to him.

Angelus looked expectantly at Willow. She staed defiantly back at him although she was shaking so hard she thought she'd crack.

"Will, get out of her," Buffy commanded. She got up slowly to her feet, still weakened by Angelus's earlier attack on her. "This isn't your fight."

"You're my friend. If it involves you, then it's my fight too," said Willow stubbornly.

Angelus shrugged. "Fine. Have it your way." Grabbing Willow, he bared his fangs and sank them deeply into her neck. Willow squirmed frantically, but she was no match for Angelus's strength.

"NO!" Buffy yelled. She leapt into the air and kicked Angelus as ahrd as she could. He stumbled backwards, releasing Willow who fell to the ground, unconcious.

Angelus stood up, rubbing his jaw. "At last- just the two of us," he sneered. "What a guy has to do to be alone with his girl."

"What do you want?" asked Buffy.

"He wants what all of us wnat," spoke up Drusilla, walking over to Angelus and putting he arm though his. Buffy fought the wave of jealously she felt as Drusilla leaned her head on Angelus's shoulder.

"And waht's that?" Buffy replied.

"To see you dead," said Druscilla. As if by some silent signal, they both leapt into the air towards Buffy, their fangs bared. Summoning what energy she had left inside of her, she dodged to her left as fast as she could. She managed to avoid Angelus's grasp, but Drusilla had pinned her on the ground.

"So little slayer," Drusilla said with triumph. "Are you scared?"

"Of you?" Buffy retorted. "Diets give me more of a wig than you!? Buffy tried to excape from Drusilla's grasp but failed. From the corner of her eye, she saw Angelus standing.

"Angel!! Please!! Help me! I don't know what she's done to you, but I know you're there somewhere.!"

Drusilla smiled at her, amused, an evil gigle escaping from her throat. "Your precious Angel is gone, and I didn't do a thing to change him. "She leaned in and whispered in Buffy's ear. "You did." Drusilla bared her fangs and leaned into Buffy's neack.

"No!" Cordelia cried out. she ran towards Drusilla and Buffy but Angelus stopped her. She tried to struggel free.

"Stop!" ordered Angelus. "Drusilla stopped. Buffy's heart cried out. Maybe he's not gone, she thought hopefully.

Drusilla looked up, shocked. "What!" she hissed.

"I get to kill her." Drusilla grinned. She got to her feet and dragged the slayer along with her.

"No," Buffy pleaded, tears trikling down her face. "Angel, it's me, Buffy." Drusilla began to hand her over when suddenly the room became craamped and stuffy for the two vampirs. Something knocked the two on the head, something wcich cause their skins to burn at the boint of contact. Their grip on the two girls were released. Thinking quickly, Buffy sung her leg under her and triped the gampires. Buffy look at the object which had helped her gain the advantage.

Garlic.

The stench continued to affect Drusilla and Angelu. They both growled.

Buffy looked up to see who had thrown it. A tall, dark, female figure stood in the doorway.

"I am Kendra, the vampire slayer."

The two vampires began to lunge towards her but Kendra whipped out a large wooden cross to keep them at bay. Cautiously, she stepped over to Buffy. "Are you alright?"

"I'm okay," she replied meekly.

Kendra helped her to her feet. "I'll get Giles."

Cordelia had her arm around Xander. "I've got Xander," she said.

Willow, who was light as a feather, was heavy for Buffy's tired arms, but she didn't complain.

"Let's go," Kendra said. Still holding the cross betwen them and the vampires, she and the others and the others backed away out through the door. Once across the threshold, Kendra dropped the cross on the ground. Then she pulled from her pocket a vial of holy water, which she then smashed on the threshold.

"That'll hold 'em for awhile. Let's go!" The three, each with a passenger, made a run for it."

The two vampires in the room growled in anger.

* * * * * *

Sunnydale High School was quiet. The nightwatchman was in his office. His television screen blared out and he laughed at Conan O'Brien's stale jokes. He didn't notice when 3 girls who were carrying 3 other people walked by.

They went into the library and set the injured ones on the ground, making them confortable as possible.

"They'll be okay," stated Kendra. "'Tis nothing serious."

Buffy sighed with relief. "Thanks Kendra." She looked at her fellow colleague. "Not that I'm not greatful or anything, but what are you doing here?"

Kendra placed a bundled up cloth underneath Giles' head. "My watcher and I came across an old prophecty. It said somthin' lik 'a moment of happiness brings a lifetime fo pain'."

"Where did that prophecy come from?"

"A gypsy book of prophecies and curses." "Gypsy?"

"My Watcher and I didn't understand it. Gypsy prophecyies are one ot the most cryptic. We were setin' it aside, thinkin' it wasn't of much importance, but then my eye caught the word'slayer'. We didn't know what to make of that. A few days after readin' it, i felt a feelin', the same on I felt the first time I went to Sunnydale. An evil feeling. I had to come see what was wrong."

"You didn't stow away n the cargo of a plane again, did you?"

Kendra smiled briefly at the joke. "What happned tonight?" she asked in a serious tone.

Buffy's mind went through the events of the night. She and Angel ahd been ambushed and they ran to Angel's apartment for some recovery time. One thing had led to another and they spent a night of passion together.

In the middle of the night, Angel had awakened, crying out Buffy's name in agony. She had quickly thrown clothes on herself and went to Angel's side. Out of nowhere appeared Drusilla.

"Buffy?" Kendra said, breaking Buffy's trance. "What happened?"

"I, uh, I don't know. Everything happened kinda fast.:

"Giles stirred. "Giles?" the slayers asked in unison.

"Hmm..." he mumbled. "Where am I?" Suddenly Giles leapt up. "Buffy!!! Are you okay? Where's Angel?"

"Chill, Giles," said Buffy. "Everything's okay. Kendra came and saved the day.

"Kendra?" Giles looked around, finally noticing the girl. "oh, uh, yes, how are you?"

"Fine," replied Kendra, lowering her yes.

"How are Willow and Xander?" asked Giles.

"They're fine," spoke up Cordelia. "Just a little groggy."

Buffy walked over to her two friends and looked at them closely. Xander had a large bruise on his jaw but appeared to be okay. Willow, who was leaning on Xander's shoulder, was still pale but her color was slowly returning.

"I think you guys had better get home. It's late, and you need sleep," Buffy said.

"I think we all need sleep. It's been a long day and we have a lot to do tomorrow," spoke up Giles.

Buffy sighed and nodded. She was exhausted, but she doubted that she would get any sleep tonight. Angel was gone. The guy that she loved more than anything in the world was now a cold-hearted emon. Until she found a way to bring him back, she would never sleep easy.

As everyone was leaving the library, Buffy turned back and lloked Glies. He was sitting at one of the tables looking at some books. It didn't look like he had any intentin of leaving the library. "Uh, Giles You're not planning to stay here all night are you?" Buffy asked.

"What? Oh, no, of course not. I'll be leaving shortly. I've just got to... uh, look up something quickly," replied Giles, pushing his glasses higher up his nose.

Buffy shrugged. "Okay. See you later," she said as she walked out the door.

Giles watched as she left, then gave a sigh. "Time to get to work," he murmered tiredly.

* * * * * *

Kendra waited as Buffy unlocked her front door. "Are you sure it's alright I stay with you?"

"Of course," Buffy replied. "Even thought my mom's outta town, she'd love for you to stay if she was here." They stepped into her house, closing the door behind them.

"Hungry?" Buffy asked.

"No, just tired." Buffy nodded and led her upstairs.

"You can sleep in my mom's room." Kendra stepped into Buffy's room and looked around. "If you need anything, just ask." Buffy turned to leave but Kendra grabbed her arm.

"Buffy, are you okay?"

"Why would you ask? I'm fine."

"It's just, well, I mean, um, everyting that's happened tonight and all."

Buffy smiled for Kendra's benefit. "Don't worry about me. I'm a slayer and a trooper." Kendra, although not fully satisfied by Buffy's responses, turned and went into the room.

They exchanged their good-nights. Buffy went into her room and closed the door behind her. Nothing out of the ordinary was in her room. She turned on her radio.

She didn't know why she had lied to Kendra. She didn't have any reason to. Kendra was her friend, not to mention she and her were the most unique in the world, the only two slayers in the world. Of course, she didn't have any reason to tell her either. It was simple.

She wouldn't have understand.

She had lost her Angel.

She wasn't okay.

She walked over to her bed and laid down, not bothering to change her clothes. She felt her neck. There was her cross necklace.

Her Angel had given it her.

A single tear rolled down her cheek. She closed her eyes. Behind the eyelids she saw an angelic face. "Don't worry, I don't bite."

More tears fell.

"You have no idea what it's like to have done the things I've done... and to care."

Somewhere in the background a song played.

"...outside I see the rain is falling, inside I'm slowly dying, but the rain would hide my crying, crying, crying, and you, don't you know my tears will burn the pillows..."

Tears flowed freely down her face like a river.

"I love you. I try not to but I can't stop."

The radio blocked out the slayer's sobbing.

"I gave you my love in vain, my body never knew such pleasure, my heart never knew such pain, (and you) you leave me so confused. Now I'm all cried out over you..."

Sobes filled her body. The tears wouldn't stop.

"Angel," she whispered to no one.

No one could hear her sobs or her cries for an angel. She cried until she fell asleep. She dreamed when she fell asleep. She dreamed of one thing.

Angel.

* * * *

It was drak, a few minutes before dawn. Most of the occupants of the building were going to sleep. Except for one.

he sat in a wheelchair. It was debateable whther or not he was angry or worried. The sun was about to rise and his mate still had not returned.

"Dru..." he growled slightly.

He heard a soft laughter come from the dorrway and turned towards it.

"Dru?' he called out.

A female entered the room. Her face was hidden from the light of a nearby lamp.

"I'm not Dru," the voice spoke.

"Who the bllody are you?"

"Just someone whose looking for a place to take up shop." The stranger stepped out of the shadows. "Pleasure to mee you, Spike," she said sweetly with a smile. Her eyes then narrowed and her grin became devilish. "I'm moving in."

* * * * * *

The next morning, Willow and Xander walked into the librar to find Giles asleep at a desk, surrounded by books. Xander tapped him on the shoulder.

"hey, Giles, wakey wakey."

"Just five more minutes, mummy," Giles mumbled. Willow and Xander looked at each other.

"I don't know whether or not that's funny or scary," Xander remarked.

Willow shook Giles. "Giles!"

Giles jolted up and looked around, confused of his surroundings. It took awhile for him to recognize the library and Willow and Xander.

"What are you two doing here?"

"It's school, we're students. Put the two together," said Xander teasingly.

"At his hour?"

"It's 7:30 AM."

"It is? Oh. I must have dozed off."

"Didn't you go home last night?" asked a concerned Willow.

"No, I had research to do."

Buffy and Kendra walked through the doors. Buffy's expressiong was unreadable, as was Kendra's.

I guess slayers are notorious for hiding emotions, thought Giles. "Good morning," he said aloud.

"You stayed all nit didn't you?" Buffy accused.

Giles grinned sheepishly. Buffy took a seat across from Giles and his books. "So did you at least find anything useful?"

"No, not really."

"Well, Kendra can spend the day with you and help, while I go to class." She got up and left the room.

"Well, that was kind of abrupt," remarked Xander.

"Yes," agreed Giles. "Kendra? How is Buffy? I mean, is she feeling well? Emotionally, that is."

"To tell you the truth, I don't know. I asked her but... well, she-"

"-made a joke?" Willow said, finishing off Kendra's statement. Kendra nodded. "It's an obvious case of Buffy Syndrome. Buffy makes jokes to hide her real feelings. She must feel horrible."

"About what?" asked Xander. Everyone looked at him with questioning glances. "No, really, what?"

"Angel," stated Willow. "Duh."

"Him? Why would she get all worked up over him? Just because his true colors showed. She's way better off without him. Besides, it's about time she moved onto livelier ground, namely, me." He gave a smile. Everyone just looked at him disgusted.

"Xander!" scolded Willow.

"What?" a look of innocence plastered his face.

Willow rolled her eyes. "I'm going to class." She left the room with Xander following.

"Hey, Will! Wait up!"

Giles sighed, then turned to Kendra, who simply shrugged. "The earth is doomed," he said amusingly.

* * * * * * *

Gies sipped his coffee and read the Gypsy prophecy Kendra had directed him to. She sat across from him, patient ly waiting for a response.

"It is quite vague," he mumbled. "We need a connection. But where?" Just then, Jenny Calender came into the walked in.

"Morning Ruper."

Giles' face lit up with Miss Calender's presence. he stood up when she entered the room.

"Good morning, Miss Calend- uh, I mean Jenny."

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"Uh, going over an old gypsy prophecy. It's very vague..." he trailed off when Miss Calender backed away from his gaze to the open book of Gypsy prophecies.

"Gypsies?" she asked.

"Yes."

The blood was curiously draining from her face. "What does it say?"

"Well, it is quite vague. It mentions the slayer. There's a line that says 'a moment of happiness brings a lifetime of pain' but it doesn't say specifically hwo the slayer is involved." He chuckled. "We don't even know which sllayer it involves."

Miss Calender didn't respond. She just stared at the written pages of the book.

"Jenny, what's wrong?"

Miss Calender snapped out of her trance. "huh? Oh, nothing's wrong. I was just... it's not important." Her expression was nervous. "I just remembered. I have an errand to run." She almost ran out of the door. Giles noticed her apprehension, but didn't remark anything about it.

"Well, back to work," he mumbled, turning to Kendra.

* * * * * *

Jenny Calendar was greatful that her next two periods were free. She left the school in her car ina rush. She drove through the streets, focusing on one destication. Driving deep into the bad side of twon, she stopped behind an old apartment building. Walking briskly, she approached an apartment on the third floor, and knocked impatiently.

"Open the door, I know you're in there."

Reluctantly, the occupant opened the door.

"Jenny," a male figure said. "How nice to see you again." She came into the room.

"It's happened."

"Whatever do you mean, dear sister?"

"I thought you said you could stop it."

"Sister, a prophecy is a prophecy. You can't stop it."

"Then why did you say you could?"

"Don't you know me by now, dear sister?"

"Stop calling me that!!"

The male figure got up off the armchair he was sitting in. He glared at Jenny.

"Why? Ashamed that I am our brother?! Ashamed that we are your family?! This is your clan!"

"I- uh..." Jenny stammered.

"What? Were you actually begining to believe that you are Jenny Calender? You are Yana! Descendent of Yashina!"

Jenny stared in silence.

"You remember Yashina, don't you? She was killed at the hands of Angelus! Or have you forgotten your history already?"

"I know!" she exclaimed bitterly. "And I'm tired of it. It happened over 240 years ago! Why can't we forget?"

He slapped her across the face. Her head snapped to the side but she stood her ground.

"Don't you forget why you are here," he said quietly but threateningly.

Jenny turned and left the room and silence.

* * * * * *

"I sstill don't know what my bad feeling is," said Kendra, who was flipping through an old volume of prophecies. "I mean, Angelus emerging again can't be it all, can it?"

Giles sipped his coffee, deep in thought. If he was a cartoon, a light bulb would have appeared at the top of his head, for suddenly, a thought occured to him.

"Of course!" he exclaimed.

Kendra simply stared at him confused. Giles began and incoherent mumbling as he searched through all of the books on the desk for a specific one. Kendra only caught bits of his mumbling.

"... curse... prophecy... gypsy..."

Kendra stopped him. "Mr. Giles, what are you talking about?"

He looked at her momntarily confused. "Huh? Oh. Angel.. The reason he is good is because of a curse placed on him 240 something years ago by a clan of gypsies." Kendra's eyes began to lighten up as a realization slowly dawned on her. "Angel," Giles continued, "has recently turned evil agin. It's because of the prophecy! It is a prophecy made by Gypsies."

"But it could be pure coincidence."

"But Gypsies have been known for these kind of prophecies. It's not so much a prediction as it is a fact, or a warning. You see, this is why there was no specific date of occurence. They didn't know when it would happen or if it would happen. It was their way of telling us how to end the curse."

* * * * * *

Buffy sighed as she walked down the hallway to the library. her heart ached for Angel. Why, she kept asking herself. Why did it have to happen on the one night she and Angel had given their whole selves?

Muffled voices were heard from the other side of the library doors. She opened the doors and an accented female voice floated to her ears.

"So, you're saying Angel's curse was lifted by a moment of happiness..."

A familiar phrase came to her. A moment of happiness brings a lifetime of pain.

A British accent filled her ears. "Which will now-" She finished the statement, already knowing the answer.

"...bring a lifetime of pain." They turned to see her standing in the door way, shocked to know that she was in the room. "A lifetime of pain for all the victims he'll encounter during his existence." Tears formed in her eyes as a question rang in her ears. Whose lifetime will it really bring pain to? She reached for her cross. It was already tearstained from the night before.

"My lifetime of pian," she stated to no one but herself. She turned and ran from the room, away from Giles' concerned call for her. On her way out she encountered Willow and Xander.

"Hey Buff," said Xander. She ignored them both and kept running, leaving behind two puzzled friends. She had no direction, she just wanted to be alone.

Her running took her to Sunnydale Park. She was exharsed by the amount of energy she had exerted and collapsed to the ground, breathing heavily, which soon turned into heavy sobs.

Giles did not trully no the reason why she had run away. He hadn't known the whole story. Angel had become Angelus because of her. It was her fault.

Angel's and her's happiest moment had now become her worst nightmare.

She didn't know how long she had stayed there when a bony finger tapped her on the shoulder. She looked up to see an old hag staring at her.

"Who-who are you?' she stammered out.

The old woman eyed Buffy and tlted her head knowingly and slowly nodded to herself. "Yes... yes, I can help you."

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