Touch of Evil
Part Seven
Author: Amanda Arlequin
E-mail: aca203@is8.nyu.edu
Rating: R/NC-17 overall (some parts are mild)
Summary: This is the story of the cat and mouse game Angelus plays with
Willow, and the romance that follows.
Spoilers: This takes place after Angel loses his soul but before Becoming,
which never happened in my 'verse.
I will keep and discard Buffy lore as I see fit.
Disclaimer: While I have taken the liberty of adding a few characters of
my own creation, all of the original BtVS characters and their world
belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, and The WB. All are used
without permission and no copyright infringement is intended.
"Um, Willow?"
"Yeah Buff, it's me."
"Oh, hey. So, uh, how have you been? Giles filled me in on what's been
happening… are you, you know, dealing okay?"
"I'm dealing about as well as can expected I suppose. After all that's
happened to me so far, none of this is really surprising. I'm getting used
to expecting the unexpected. I just wish I could put all of this behind
me, you know, finally begin to start my life again. Too bad Angelus has
other plans for me… Buffy, you still there?"
"Yeah, I'm still here. I just… I'm sorry Willow. This is all my fault. I
should have killed Angelus long before he ever went after you. I just… I
didn't know."
"It's okay Buffy, I don't blame you. You couldn't have known what was
going to happen. And, after all, you loved him."
"… Still do… Anyway, Giles is waving crazily for me to give him back the
phone. I think he wants to talk to Lydia again so he can sigh and get that
dreamy look in his eye for the rest of the day. Give me a call sometime
soon. I miss hearing from you."
"Okay, I will Buff. I miss you too."
"Bye."
"Bye."
Willow hung up the phone then went back to her seat besides Lydia in one
of the Council Headquarters main conference rooms. Her conversation with
Buffy had left her unsettled, as just about all their conversations over
the past 6 months tended to do. Though they talked regularly, just about
once a week, the conversations were never long and almost always
uncomfortable. The strain with which the two former best friends now spoke
to each other troubled Willow. It was as if each conversation was
overshadowed by the questions Willow knew were burning behind Buffy's
friendly inquiries into Willow's state of mind. They had never spoken of
the night Buffy had rescued Willow, or of the weeks Willow had been
imprisoned. Willow knew Buffy wanted answers, wanted her questions
answered, and the fact that Willow wouldn't be able to give Buffy the
reassurance she wanted left Willow feeling awkward and anxious whenever
they spoke. Buffy was still in love with Angel, despite the fact that with
each passing day it became more and more unlikely the Angel she had known
and loved would ever be coming back. And it didn't matter that it had been
Angelus, the demon, who was now fixated on Willow. In Buffy's eyes it
would always be the man she loved obsessing over her best friend, and so
now their friendship could never be the same.
Lydia handed Willow the book she had been reading from. "You'll be happy
to know that, though it has taken me a few days, I think I may have found
the right spell."
Willow closed the book briefly so she could have a look at the cover
title, then, being careful with the brittle, yellow pages, read the spell.
Willow nodded as she finished reading. "This sounds like it should work.
If done correctly, I will be protected in sleep and waking from psychic
attacks on both my mind and my body." Willow considered the spell for a
moment. "It sounds good Lydia."
Lydia nodded, "I know, thank God. I was really starting to get worried we
wouldn't find anything quite right but this is perfect. Now you'll be
protected from him while you sleep. As for physical protection, I know you
said you didn't see any reason to leave London but I feel I need to object
just one last time. Humor me." Lydia added when Willow moved to protest.
"Now you know I love having you with me and if I thought it was safe then
I'd keep you here indefinitely. I want you to stay with me and, hopefully,
go to Oxford and begin your training as a Watcher." Willow couldn't help
but smile at that. Though Willow no longer had any idea what her future
would bring, Lydia was always campaigning for Willow to enroll in the fame
school and become a Watcher. She said that with Willow's "field"
experience and knowledge of vampires and demons, she was a natural choice
for becoming a Watcher. Willow would always laugh off Lydia's remarks. At
17, Willow wasn't quite ready to make a lifelong commitment to the Council.
Lydia continued, " I'm not saying you still can't do these things, or
anything you want. But right now I'm afraid London isn't the safest place
for you. Angelus obviously has something planned for you, and if the spell
works and he finds he can no longer reach you from Sunnydale then he could
very well come to London to find you. Just because he's left you alone the
past few days doesn't mean this is all over." Willow bit her tongue as
Lydia repeated Willow's lie back to her. Just last night, like every other
night for the past week, Angelus had visited Willow in her dreams, but
Lydia didn't know that. For reasons Willow was uncomfortable admitting
even to herself, she had begun to lie about Angelus visiting her. As far
as Lydia knew, Angelus had temporarily taken a break from his torments.
A noise behind the two women caused Lydia to break off as they both turned
towards the doorway. Colin O'Hara, Neil Waters, and Adrian Carrington,
three members, stood at the entrance to the conference room looking
hesitant. Willow bit her lip on a smile. She knew all three of the
Watchers, especially Adrian who Willow knew harbored a not so secret crush
on her, and was glad to see them. The past week, Lydia and Willow had been
so wrapped up in their research that Willow had found little time to spend
with any of her new friends in London (which consisted mainly of Council
members). She was glad to see them, especially since their interruption
saved Willow from having to repeat her lies to Lydia. Willow glanced over
at Adrian and found he was starring openly at her, a secret little smile on
his lips. Automatically, Willow blushed and looked away.
"I hope we're not interrupting anything Lydia." Neil walked over to stand
between Lydia and Willow as he spoke, "but there's some matters I need to
discuss with you." Neil turned towards Willow. "I'm sorry dear, but I
must steal Lydia away from you for the moment, but I do promise to be as
quick as possible."
Willow smiled brightly at Neil. With his salt and pepper, neatly groomed
hair, thin framed tortoise shell eyeglasses and kind eyes, Neil always
reminded Willow of her grandfather. "It's no problem Neil. I could use a
break from Lydia's endless thirst for research anyway. I was starting to
think the head Watcher was actually a slave driver in disguise." Laughing
good-naturedly, Neil and Lydia turned to each other and quickly fell into
deep and boring conversation over various Council agenda. With a quick
hello to Willow, Colin soon joined in the conversation.
Tuning out the watchers, Willow glanced sideways at the doorway where
Adrian was casually leaning against the frame, arms crossed over his chest
in a look that was slightly at odds with the tailored black suit that
adorned his well built frame. Though his eyes were downcast, the smirk on
his lips let Willow know he was very much aware that he commanded her
attention. Willow couldn't help the blush that crept into her cheeks and
made her face burn, but at the same time she couldn't tear her eyes away
from him.
There was no doubt about it. Adrian had a commanding presence, due, in no
small part, to his smoldering good looks. He was in a sense, similar to
Angel/Angelus in that way. Both men (or all 3, depending on your point of
view) had a way of draining your attention to only them when in a room, and
they both were blessed with a breathtaking beauty that in no way diminished
from their masculinity.
There was no denying Adrian's beauty. Willow would have to be blind not
to notice it. Seeing him was like a shock to the system, as if each time
was the first. Looking at him was like a dip in a chilly pool on a hot
summer day. It left your body feeling more refreshed and alive, your every
nerve ending tingling like they never had before. Angelic and perfect were
words often used to describe him by women.
There was, first and foremost, his hair. It was the color of midnight-
not true midnight, but the kind of midnight people associated with the
word. It fell to just below his ear, level with his jaw, in soft waves of
silk. If he tilted his head a certain way, the light would dance off the
strands and reflect haunting rainbow lights, much like the wings of a
raven. Other times, when there was moonlight reflecting on his hair, blue
glints would appear, complimenting the crystalline color of his eyes.
Liquid blue pools of crystal; the kind of eyes girls drowned in. Then
there were his lips. Pale pink, strong, and sensuous. They were just full
enough so that he always appeared as though he'd just been kissing some
lucky girl till she fainted. When he smiled his lips oozed sensuality.
Then there was his body. All six feet, one inch of slim muscles and light
olive toned skin. He wasn't beefy like other guys, but you could tell just
by looking at him how strong he was. His presence was strong and
domineering, perhaps just as domineering as Angelus' though his frame
wasn't as wide. Willow had seen him only once without his shirt on, at a
pool party Lydia threw for her birthday, and Willow had almost strained her
eyes starring at Adrian's half naked body. Willow often found herself
comparing him to an Adonis without any hyperbole. And thought Adrian was
outrageously classy, his wardrobe the epitome of cutting edge fashion and
runway chic, the glint in his playful blue eyes and the sparkle from the
single diamond stud he wore in one ear revealed Adrian's wild streak.
When Willow first met Adrian she had found it hard to believe he was a
Watcher. Well, Watcher in training to be specific, but still. Adrian was
young, outgoing and a bit wild. In Willow's mind he was the antithesis of
Giles and the other stuffy, traditional Watchers. But Willow knew Adrian
was a symbol of the changing times, a new era of the Council being ushered
in by Lydia. Even though Adrian came from a long line of Watchers. Willow
knew it was Lydia's influence that allowed for Adrian to remain so
different from the other Watchers.
Adrian ran a hand through his hair, long slim fingers brushing the strands
away from his face as he raised his head and looked at Willow. "So Will,
how have you been the past week?"
Willow felt her insides flutter as she fell into the endless core of his
eyes. They were as wildly beautiful and innocent as Nordic Fjords. "I've
been pretty busy, you know, researching."
Adrian merely smiled charmingly. "I hope you haven't forgotten about my
promise to take you out to dinner. I'm still waiting for you to take me up
on the offer."
Willow's heart began to thump loudly in her chest. "Yeah, well… " There
she was blushing again. As much as Willow had changed in the past 6
months, her inability to flirt with guys, especially one as gorgeous and
self-assured as Adrian, had yet to change.
Adrian used the muscles of his back to push against the door frame,
propelling himself forward and away from the wall. His suit jacket fell
open to reveal white dress shirt that clung to his chest like a second
skin. Willow couldn't help but stare at the definition of his chest as he
walked towards her. He extended his hand towards her invitingly. "Well,
how about lunch then. I know for a fact that you and Lydia have been
locked in this room all day, so you must be starving."
Willow felt the panic begin to rise up in her chest, as it always had
since her time with Angelus, when any guy got physically close to her. Her
throat would constrict and her palms would sweat. All of a sudden she'd be
right back in that windowless, empty room. Her body weak from loss of
blood and unbidden desire; a whirlpool of conflicting emotions: shame,
disgust, desire, longing, terror. Willow would begin to feel trapped, and
even the most innocent of invitations, like the one Adrian was presently
extending to Willow, would throw up all her emotional walls.
Willow tried to get her lips to form a no around the tight vise of her
constricted throat, but before she could say anything, Lydia was speaking.
Apparently she had heard Adrian's offer over the din of Neil and Colin's
voices. "That sounds like a wonderful idea Willow. You must be famished.
I would take you to lunch myself but I must attend to some matters with
Neil. Roger can drive you and Adrian wherever you'd like to go. In fact,
you don't have to be back till 6. I'm going to send a messenger to collect
the supplies we need for the spell and we'll cast it tonight. Until then
you're free to enjoy yourself." Feeling the matter was settled, Lydia rose
from her chair, squeezed Willow lightly on the shoulder, and left with Neil
and Colin in tow.
Before she could say a word of protest, Adrian's slim fingers fixed a firm
grip on Willow's wrist as he gently lifted her from the seat and followed
the others out of the room. "Great, I know a wonderful place for lunch.
I'm sure you're gonna love it."
On to
Part Eight
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Part Six
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