Touch of Evil
Part Nine
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.
Willow stood in the foyer for awhile, pushing aside the heavy velvet
drapes so she could watch Adrian out the window. He stood for awhile,
starring at the door looking stricken and melancholy, like an eager puppy
that had been kicked in the ribs by it's master. Willow's heart
constricted when Adrian stared at the house, his eyes haunted and
shattered. She almost went to him but an inner strength she hadn't known
she had helped her hold her ground. It didn't, however, keep the tears
from falling. Willow was being torn in two. She couldn't help but be
cliché and imagine how she would have laughed, a mere eight months ago, if
someone had told her she would one day find herself falling in love with a
gorgeous, courageous, perfect guy who felt the same way for her, while
simultaneously nursing a demonic attraction to Angelus.
Willow stayed at the window long after Adrian drove away, her sobs racking
her small body. How long, Willow wasn't quite sure, but eventually Lydia
found her. Thankfully, Willow's tears had long since dried. It was one
less thing to explain to Lydia. Willow hated it but the recent events in
her life were taking their emotional toll on her, and a direct result was
her continuing withdrawal from her closest friend.
"Willow, is everything all right?"
Willow plastered a bright smile on her face for Lydia's benefit. "Of
course, why wouldn't it be?"
Lydia smiled, obviously relieved. "I'm glad to hear it. How was lunch?"
"It was good. I had fun." At least it wasn't a total lie. Willow had
been having fun for most of the afternoon.
"Lovely. So how do you feel about performing the protection ritual. I've
gotten everything we need."
The truth was, Willow wasn't feeling incredibly eager to begin the ritual,
but it wasn't exactly a feeling she could explain to Lydia. Willow wanted
to be able to feel safe again, but deep down she knew that would never
again be possible. Especially since part of her looked forward to her
sleeping moments with Angelus.
Willow kept those feelings to herself. 'All right, let's do it."
In the days following their kiss, Adrian and Willow avoided each other.
Willow did it because she couldn't stand to see the unvoiced sadness and
longing in Adrian's eyes, nor feel its counterpart in her own heart.
As for the ritual, the whole procedure lasted about an hour and, as
evidenced by her undisturbed and peaceful, albeit lonely sleep of the past
few nights, Willow deemed the spell a success.
One morning later that week, Lydia entered the main library of the
watcher's headquarters to find Willow casually flipping through her high
school's orientation guidebook, which had just arrived in the mail the
previous day. Willow spoke without looking up from the catalogue. "Did
you know they offer classes in ancient mythology and folklore, and C++
programming. They even have film classes. I thought they only had those
kinds of classes in college. Xander loves movies- he was always making me
watch old films at his house. He used to get such a kick out of Chaplin.
He'd love a class like that. Maybe I should take it and broaden my
horizons. I mean, I am trying to begin a new life, right."
"Willow." Lydia quietly interrupted Willow's babbling. Looking up,
Willow saw she wasn't alone. Neil was with her, but also John Doyle and
Sebastian Chabrol, two Watcher's high in the Council ranks. One look at
their expressions informed Willow that something was wrong. Judging by the
tears brimming from Lydia's eyelids, very wrong.
Lydia, apparently too choked up to speak, gestured to Neil. The sympathy,
evident on his face as he took a seat in the armchair besides hers, chilled
Willow to the bone.
He placed a comforting hand over Willow's as he spoke. "I'm so sorry
Willow. We just received some news from Sunnydale. It's about your
parents. They've been murdered."
Willow supposed she was in some form of shock because, though Neil kept
talking, Willow didn't consciously hear another word he said. Sometime
later Lydia was speaking, but Willow didn't hear her either. She just
stared straight ahead, her eyes cast with a distant shroud of pain. Willow
was looking backwards, remembering the time when she was eight and her
father took her to the horse farm just south of Sunnydale. She could
remember every instant of that day because it had been one of the happiest
of her young life. She had been daddy's little girl, and though he wasn't
always around as often as she would have liked, when he was he dotted on
her. And now he was gone, but Willow couldn't really comprehend that. Her
mind refused to process the information but instead opted to replay that
day with the horses, over and over like a recorder programmed on an
endless, repetitive loop.
Somehow Willow had been moved into the conference room, and still the
tears wouldn't come. Somewhere in the back of Willow's mind she noted that
she hadn't cried nor spoken for hours, but the hours seemed to pass like
minutes. Lydia was saying something about protecting Willow from Angelus.
It was Angelus who had done this, apparently a result of his realizing that
he could no longer get to Willow. The knowledge had sent him into rage, a
consequence the Council had failed to count on. Willow took in all the
information, but she couldn't process it. All she could see was the green
grass of the California countryside and the black satin mane of the horse
she had been riding.
Cool, slim fingers on her arm broke through the fog in Willow's mind.
Willow's own sad, green eyes locked on to sympathetic blue ones. Kneeling
in front of Willow's chair, Adrian moved his hands up to her shoulders, his
firm grip comforting Willow. Feeling safe for the first time that day,
Willow was finally able to indulge herself in the emotional breakdown that
had been hovering just below her consciousness all day. Sobbing
hysterically, Willow threw herself into Adrian's embrace, burying her face
in the soft fabric of his shirt. She clung to him with all her might,
reduced to a quivering mass of tears, babbling incoherently as she soaked
his shirt with her tears. Adrian allowed her this breakdown, holding on to
her as he whispered soothing words, giving her comfort by just being there
for her.
When Willow wouldn't calm down after a good half-hour of clinging to
Adrian, Lydia suggested Willow be taken home. Adrian insisted on
accompanying her, though no one had even thought of protesting since Willow
refused to let go of Adrian. She kept her arms firmly wrapped around his
waist and her face buried in his chest. Swinging her into his arms, Adrian
carried Willow out to Lydia's car, who graciously sat up front with Roger
so Adrian could pillow Willow in his lap.
During the drive home, Willow's tears slowly subsided until the gentle
lull of the car's motion and the soothing feel of Adrian's fingers stroking
her hair led Willow into a deep sleep.
When Willow finally awoke, night had fallen and she was in her own bed,
cradled in the recesses of Adrian's arms. Nothing had ever been as
comforting as the feel of Adrian's arms wrapped around her. His whole body
was strong and reassuring to her, a pillar of strength she could hold on to.
Turning her face towards his, Willow found he was awake and watching her
quietly. They stared at each other for awhile, not saying anything.
Willow wasn't quite sure who made the first move, and it didn't really
matter. Suddenly they were kissing, their lips moving expertly together as
if this wasn't only their second kiss but one of a thousand. She knew
Adrian- deep in her soul knew him. He was familiar, but at the same time
every moment with him was a discovery. Willow wasn't quite sure what it
meant, and she didn't care. Right now all that mattered was the feeling of
Adrian's lips and body against hers. Being close to him filled the
emptiness inside her, made her begin to feel almost complete again.
Adrian was the first to break away. His lips grazed her forehead as he
whispered, "I love you, Willow."
Tired of denying what she was feeling, Willow admitted, "I love you too."
They kissed for awhile longer until Adrian reluctantly pulled away and
suggested they find Lydia, who was very worried about Willow. The mention
of Lydia reminded Willow once again of her parents. She'd been able to
block out the memory while with Adrian, instead focusing all her energy and
emotion on her newfound love. Now there was no ignoring it. Her parents
were dead, by Angelus' hands, and suddenly the threat of Angelus coming
after Willow was guaranteed. Something had to be done before Willow lived
to regret it.
Stopping off to splash some cold water on her face, Willow followed Adrian
downstairs, where they found Lydia in her study. She and Neil were sitting
at the small conference table, papers and photographs concealing the wooden
tabletop beneath it. They were bent over a stack of glossy photographs
when Willow and Adrian entered the room. Immediately, Lydia stood and
hurried over to embrace Willow.
"Oh darling, I'm so, so sorry. How are you holding up?"
Willow breathed in the strong, commanding scent of Lydia's perfume as the
Watcher held her close. It was a nice scent, and languishing her attention
on such small, insignificant details would allow enough distraction to keep
her sane.
Willow considered her answer and opted for honesty. She'd kept so many of
her feelings secret recently, she felt Lydia deserved the truth. "I'm
devastated, Lydia. I never thought it would feel this way. I mean, I know
my parents weren't the most involved. Well, my dad tried, even though his
career made it hard, but my mom just never seemed to put much effort in
getting to know her own daughter. Still, they loved me. I know that. And
I loved them so much. I just can't believe they're gone. It's like
there's this hole inside me now, and it's never going to go away no matter
what I do to try and fill it. But right now we need to move on and plan
what we're going to do next. I'm ready for that."
Lydia nodded, her eyes filled with the grim understanding of someone who's
been through the same experiences and lived to tell about it. Willow had
seen the same look in Adrian's eyes earlier, and she saw a shadow of it in
Neil's. It came with being part of a worldwide club who knew the secret-
that life was an unfair game and people were sometimes taken out of it
before you were ready for them to go.
After a moment of silence, Lydia walked back to the table where she
resumed her seat among the mountain of papers. There were things to be
done, so the pain would have to be stored away in the name of practicality
and self-preservation. Willow had already accepted this fact.
Instinctively, Willow extended her hand behind her and felt a surge of
strength when Adrian took hold of it. They followed and took their seats
across from Lydia and Neil. The latter was starring at her, perhaps
noticing the fierce determination shrouding her emerald eyes, and his
respect and admiration were obvious. "You're quite a woman, Willow. I
just want you to know that."
Willow felt a surge of pleasure at the compliment, and the smile on her
face was genuine. "Thank you, Neil."
Neil smiled back, then glanced at Adrian before reaching for a stack of
photographs. Neither Lydia nor Neil said anything about Adrian's presence,
which made Willow wonder at how much they knew about their relationship.
It was still so new to Willow, yet how much did other people realize her
dependency on him.
Willow's wandering thoughts were reined in by the content of the
photographs on the table. She reached for one and drew in a sharp of
breath of surprise. Willow used the hand holding the photograph to gesture
to Lydia. "What's the meaning of this?"
"Angelus took them Willow. Buffy found them in his room at the mansion,
or, more accurately, plastered all over the walls of his room. All of
these photos, actually. Buffy went to the mansion early this morning but
Angelus had already skipped town. All that was left were these photos, a
sort of makeshift shrine."
Willow flipped through photo after photo of the same subject- her. "How
did you get these so fast."
"Well, these are copies, obviously. I had someone in Sunnydale scan them
and email them here where we reprinted them this afternoon."
Willow looked at Lydia skeptically, "Giles didn't do it." It wasn't a
question, merely a statement of fact.
Lydia couldn't help but laugh. "Of course not, I sent computer
specialists in to handle the situation. Once Buffy told me what she had
found I wasted no time in getting all the information documented and sent
here. There's quite literally no time to spare since we can't pinpoint
when exactly Angelus left Sunnydale. All we have is a wide time frame of
sunset last night, which is when he visited your parents," Willow couldn't
help but wince at Lydia's wording and wondered if she'd be receiving a
similar visit sometime soon, "and around sunrise this morning when Buffy
discovered he was gone. Now, worst case scenario: Angelus left Sunnydale
in the very early evening yesterday and is already well into his second
night of travelling to England. In the best case scenario, he didn't leave
Sunnydale until much later in the evening and still has some ways to go
until he arrives here. Either way you look at it, Angelus is on his way to
see Willow, but the more time we have on our side before that happens, the
better."
Willow nodded absently. She was still looking through the mountain of
photographs. The first pile she had looked through were ones taken during
her captivity in Angelus' special prison. She had never even imagined
photos from that time existed, but there they were, in revealing black and
white. Shots of Willow, spread eagle on the bed as Angelus stood before
her, his hands roaming over every inch of her body. Shots of Angelus,
lying on top of Willow with his fangs buried to the hilt in her neck.
Shots of Willow, alone and crying, the tears causing strands of hair to
stick to her cheeks. There were even photos of Willow on her knees,
grabbing Angelus as he turned to leave. Willow's cheeks turned bright red
at the thought of Lydia and Neil, not to mention Adrian, seeing such
private and degrading moments of Willow's life, but she shoved them aside,
her fear having a much firmer hold on her than her embarrassment.
The other photos were even more shocking. There were photos of Willow
before she had been captured by Angelus, of her life in Sunnydale, which
made her realize he had been planning her abduction for a long time. There
were scenes from school, sitting in class, at the Bronze, in the library.
A couple of photos of her in her bedroom, changing for bed, were mixed in.
Another pile contained photos from Willow's life in London. Willow
recognized events from months back. There were day and evening shots,
which meant the pictures had been taken by a human. Most probably some
unsuspecting detective who's been paid a ton of money to follow around a
teenage girl. He'd probably assumed she was a runaway. Willow's heart
skipped a beat when she caught sight of the latest photos. They were
pictures of her and Adrian, seated at the outdoor café. Adrian leaning
forward to whisper something in Willow's ear. Willow with her head thrown
back in laughter. Then, two figures on the front porch of the house, their
bodies melded together. Her red hair made her unmistakable in the picture,
even though her face was obscured. In those pictures, black magic marker
defaced the photo. Angelus had all but obliterated Adrian's image from
most of those photos. It was as if Willow was kissing a black hole. In
some, Adrian was visible through the huge black X marking his figure. The
markings gave the photos a life of their own. They were suffused with
Angelus' hatred and jealousy. Just looking at them, and what he had done
to the image of Adrian, chilled Willow to the core.
Adrian stared at the pictures, his face a mask of fury over the photos,
concrete evidence of the total invasion of Willow's private domain. When
he saw the photos of their kiss his expression didn't change. There was no
fear, which Willow supposed some would consider foolish, but Willow found
it incredibly brave and romantic. Adrian's main concern was for her. She
knew how hard it would be for him to protect her from Angelus, but his eyes
told her he would die trying. In that moment, her love for him expanded to
fill her entire heart.
Lydia patiently waited for Willow to look through all the photos. When
she was finished, Lydia continued speaking. "Buffy said the besides these
photos, Angelus had some of your belongings on a dresser top. There were
also some occult supplies Buffy couldn't identify, but she did recognize
them as ingredients that would be used in a spell. Giles is working on
identifying the materials. It's obvious they were used in spells relating
to you, though."
A mental image took hold of Willow. Angelus, standing before his
makeshift alter as he stared at her photos, creating scenes in his mind of
their inevitable reunion as he worked magic to bring that day closer and
closer. The scene was straight out of a made for TV movie of the week made
to warn single girls about the dangers of getting involved with strange
men. A Stalker's Obsession: The Willow Rosenberg Story. Willow bit back a
hysterical giggle.
"Needless to say, we think it's imperative you leave London as soon as
possible, Willow. Tonight even."
Willow frowned. She knew it was what had to be done, but she had no idea
where she was going to go. Would it even matter? If Angelus was this
obsessed with her he was going to find her wherever she went.
Neil seemed to read her mind. "We know it'll be hard to find a place
that's safe for you, but I've already contacted some people I know in
Italy. We already have a residence for you. It is quite well hidden, deep
in the countryside of Italy, just north of Venice. The people who reside
in the town will not give you away, and there is absolutely no vampire
activity there. To guarantee your safety, Lydia and I have discussed
providing you with a Watcher, and under the circumstances, we think it
would be best if that Watcher was Adrian."
Adrian appeared startled. "You want me to be Willow's Watcher?"
Neil nodded. "I know you are still in training, but that is merely a
technicality. You were more than ready to be a Watcher when you were only
13. You know as well as I do that you are more than capable of fulfilling
the duty."
Lydia interrupted quickly, "Besides, how could we separate two people so
obviously in love as you two." She winked at Willow, and the two women
shared smiles. "Now, as long as everything's settled, we'd like to get you
two packed and on a plane before morning. All the arrangements have been
made. I'd say if there are no other questions we might as well go pack."
Saddened at the prospect of leaving, but nonetheless aware that it was a
necessity, Willow nodded her agreement. Adrian said nothing, and Willow
knew it was because, in his mind, there was no question as to where he was
going. He would remain at Willow's side for as long as she wanted him,
perhaps long after that. The four discussed some last minute details, then
slowly rose and went their separate ways to prepare for Adrian and Willow's
journey.
On to
Part Ten
Back to
Part Eight
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