Real Estate
(or, "A Unique Fixer Upper")
by Cynamin and NutMeg

Angel Investigations
On call day and night for all your demon problems
Nights are always better

"Angel Investigations. We help the hopeless."

There was a long pause on the other end of the phone line. Cordelia rolled her eyes, ready to hang up. "Hello?"

When there was no answer, Cordelia went to put the phone down. she almost missed the voice on the other end. "Cordelia?"

"Buffy?" Cordelia asked in surprise. She glanced around, glad to see that Angel had not yet come upstairs. "What do you want?"

"I...I need to talk to Angel."

Cordelia was instantly wary. "Why?"

Buffy sighed. "It's...call it a business call, Cordelia. It's about the visitor Angel had."

"Are you going to be nice? Is he not going to be moping around the office for the next week after he talks to you?"

"Well..." There wasn't much Buffy could say to that, and she knew it. "I *need* to talk to him. It's important."

Cordelia was considering telling her that Angel was busy and hanging up. After all, no good could come of this. Still...

The decision was taken from her, though. Appearing next to her desk, Angel spoke softly. "Who's on the phone?"

Cordelia sighed and handed it over without a word, not trusting herself to speak, and having the feeling that he *needed* to take this call.

Angel took it, a little confused, and with more than a little apprehension. "Hello?"

"Angel..." an achingly familiar female voice came over the line. "It's me."

Angel felt his heart seize up -well, it was more of a phantom pain- at the sound. "Buffy." Why was she calling? He realized she was waiting for him to say something. "It's uh...what's wrong?" *Smooth move Mr. Articulate.*

"It's about the visitor you had," the Slayer replied. "And her warning."

"Oh, God. Is everyone okay? Have you met her sisters? What's going on!"

"Relax, Angel," Buffy cut him off sharply, but she sounded a little pleased that he was concerned. Then again, he could have been imagining that part. "That's why I'm calling. We've met them. Willow and Anya both say they check out okay."

"Anya?" Angel was incredulous. "What would she know about them?"

"Apparently they were friends at some point. That's not the point though. It's that their OTHER sister, the one who told you to stay away, is the dangerous one," Buffy explained. "She has apparently done this kind of stuff before. Causing mischief where she doesn't belong. Meddling in people's lives. Be careful, there's no telling what she might do."

Angel could hardly believe what he was hearing. But it made a certain kind of sense. The way she appeared suddenly, mysteriously. Her pleasure in making him uncomfortable. That…goddess...was certainly trouble. But then, could this be one of her tricks too? Something told him he was just being paranoid. He didn't like being dropped in on in his boxers. Unless, of course, that visitor were Buffy. He sighed. "Thanks for the warning. We'll be on the lookout. Is there anything we can do to help?"

There was a significant pause on the other end of the phone line. "No," she said briefly. "Just...be careful, okay?" Then the phone line clicked off without even a goodbye.

Giles' Apartment
Perfect for meeting to save the world
Vampires not invited

Buffy hung up the phone, her hand shaking slightly. She tried to hide it, but Willow noticed.

"What's wrong?"

Buffy turned away from the phone and chewed her lip slightly. "I don't know if he believed me," she said after a moment.

Willow was about to reassure her when a clatter sounded loudly in the quiet room. The red haired goddess was walking quickly from the house, her chair having fallen over in her haste to get up. She was paler than usual, and then she was out the door and gone. Her sister looked back and forth at the other people in the extremely silent room. She stood abruptly and followed.

The apartment was dead silent in their wake. Seeing two immortal, powerfull beings that disturbed about anything could not be good. "I'll...see what's going on," Willow offered. No one made a comment as she went to leave the apartment as well.

Everyone heard Cynamin's scream when Willow opened the door, though. "It was supposed to be easier than this!" she cried.

Willow hastily shut the door behind her. Neither goddess registered her presence. Cynamin was pacing, clearly agitated, her sister watching her worriedly.

"It was supposed to be..." Cynamin was saying. "You know, come in, get them together, fix that eancy weency curse problem, and poof! Everything solved, happily ever after!" she nearly yelled. "How are they supposed to live happily ever after, though, if they won't even come to the same town!"

Willow gasped audibly, and backed up against the wall, as if to avoid being noticed. *They want Buffy and Angel together? Why? Oh wow!*

NutMeg was comforting her sister. "Come on, it'll happen. Some things can't be stopped. This is one of them! So what if our troublesome sib thinks she can out smart us?"

"But she IS outsmarting us!" Cynamin snapped. "She doesn't even LIKE this world!"

Willow listened eagerly. *This WORLD?*

"I know. So she can't know EVERYTHING about it," the blonde goddess reasoned. "We just have to guess what she'll throw at us next."

Cynamin seemed to relax, her pacing suddenly ceased, and she slumped slightly. "Guess what she'll throw at us next, huh? You make it sound so easy."

"Of course it's easy! She wants to cause trouble for us. What would you do if you wanted to cause trouble for us?"

Cynamin thought for a moment. "Well, she's already ruined our trustworthiness with Angel," she said reluctantly. "I guess...the next step would be to destroy what trust we've built here."

"So, we'll keep our eyes out," NutMeg said, trying to reassure her. "What else can we do?"

Willow quietly went back inside, wondering what she'd heard meant...and fearing the answers.

Angel Investigations
Sunny Dispositions, Dark Interior
Some form of payment preferable

Angel set down the phone and abruptly turned away from Cordelia's asking eyes, going into his office and shutting the door. Why couldn't life be simple? Just once! One week it was demons...the next three goddesses running around in Southern California. And to top it all off he had no idea which ones were to be trusted. Of course, his gut instincts told him he should trust Buffy when she said that the two Anya had vouched for were on their side. But then, Anya *had* been a revenge demon.

"Okay, Mr. Broody. What did she say to you this time?"

Angel looked up at Cordelia, who stood back-lit in the doorway. He sighed slightly. For a guy that didn't breath he seemed to do that an awful lot. "She...had news about the visitor we had."

"That's it?" Cordelia asked. "Not even a 'hi, how are you?'"

Angel flinched slightly. "It was...just a business call, Cordelia."

"And people say *I'm* rude," Cordelia replied. At Angel's glare, she changed the subject quickly. "So, what about the really weird one in the outfit that screamed 'I haven't read a fashion magazine in 200 years'?" Cordelia asked lightly.

Angel smiled very slightly at that. Same old Cordelia. "That would be the one," he agreed. "It seems the sisters she warned about have shown up in Sunnydale. They're not a problem apparently, though. They warned about *their* sister - our guest. And...Anya knows them. She vouched for them."

Cordelia laughed. "Well, that's a rousing endorsement," she said sarcastically. At Angel's continued pensive look her amusement faded. "What are you going to do?"

Angel didn't answer immediately, mostly because he had no answer to give. What *was* he going to do? "Cordelia, which would you trust more, your instincts or your mind?"

She looked a little startled at the question. But then, Cordelia's idea of instincts was the primal need to shop. "It would depend on the problem," she replied.

"If your instincts said to trust people you've always trusted, but your mind says that everyone can be tricked."

Cordelia laughed slightly, trying to lighten the mood. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, gloom-and-doom. That sounds like you being super-skeptical again."

Angel couldn't help but smile at his friend's honest statement. "That's true. I guess the best thing to do now is wait. If we don't do anything right away, *someone* or some*thing* will have to make a push to forward their plans. We can wait and see which goddesses do what. I expect we'll get another visit from Her Darkness."

"Oh great," Cordelia groaned. "She gave me the creeps."

Angel looked up sharply. "Really?"

Cordelia nodded. "Yeah. She was way-out-there freaky."

*Trust to instincts* the thought came unbidden from the Vampire's mind. "Then maybe we already have our answer."

Cordelia looked confused. "What are you talking about?"

"She gave me the creeps, too," Angel replied. "And while I'm doubtful of Anya's endorsement, Willow also said they were okay apparently."

"Then what's that problem?" Cordelia asked, sounding slightly exasperated with him.

Angel leaned back, trying to figure out why exactly this situation still bothered him. "We had one goddess come here and warn against going to Sunnydale. Specifically, she warned me about her sisters. Then these sisters show up in Sunnydale, and they give the opposite warning. I'm not sure who to trust."

"Then trust your friends," Cordelia said as if it was the simplest solution in the world. "What? The dark lady gave both of us the creeps. The other two have apparently gained everyone else's trust. As much as I don't like her personally, Buffy is the Slayer. She's usually pretty good at figuring out who's trustworthy."

Angel smiled slightly. "Yeah, you're right," he agreed.

Cordelia grinned at him and went to leave him alone once again. Part way out the door she turned around. "Angel?"

"Hmm?"

"Did you say our visitor warned you not to go to Sunnydale?"

"Yeah, she did," Angel affirmed. "Why?"

Cordelia was perplexed. "Why warn you? I mean, you weren't *planning* on going to Sunnydale. Were you?"

Angel looked up at Cordelia with a look she might have described as having an epiphany if she had only studied the SAT vocabulary. "Maybe we should make a trip to Sunnydale. I, for one, don't like being left in the dark."

"Really?" Cordelia chuckled. "I thought that was what you liked best."

"Cordelia," the Vampire warned. "Call Wesley. I need to talk to him."

"Yes, sir," she gave him a mock salute and a grin. "Just promise me you won't do anything to go all evil on us again, okay?"

Angel gave her a stare she immediately translated as *don't go there.* She nodded and picked up the phone.

Lowell House
Good friends, good parties, lots of fun.
Good food if you don't mind your meat bloody.

Riley paced as he waited for Buffy to arrive. She had promised to be over soon for their date, but had called to say the meeting had run late and she was just getting out of the shower. He was looking forward to a romantic dinner and some time alone, but the warning of the dark, mysterious, and breathtakingly stunning woman he vaguely remembered in a kind of hazy dream. It was an interesting thing to remember, especially since he could not have picked her face out of a crowd on the street. His mind felt fuzzy. All he knew was that he HAD to make sure Buffy was warned about the two goddesses out to destroy her. He couldn't let that happen!

But how to stop them? He didn't even know what they looked like. He didn't know who they were. He couldn't just say to Buffy "there are two evil goddesses in town out to get you." This may have been Sunnydale, but not everything was that simple. Buffy would brush it off, probably, saying that she knew things around here better than he did and that she could take care of herself. Simply telling her would get nothing accomplished.

So Riley continued to pace and pondered the strange warning he had received, the warning he believed whole-heartedly. If he couldn't just tell Buffy to be wary and have her actually do so, he'd have to take more immediate action.

"What's with the carpet pacing?"

Riley looked up with a start. He hadn't even heard Buffy open the door. He smiled and pulled her close in a warm, tender kiss. "I just couldn't wait to see you," he replied. Not mentioning his former train of thought.

Buffy smiled. "That's sweet. So, are you going to take me to this surprise destination of yours or not?"

"Of course," the TA grinned as he escorted her out the door. As they walked he put an arm around Buffy's shoulders. "So, how was the meeting? Did I miss anything?"

Buffy sighed. "You wouldn't believe all that's going on. I'll just give you the short version if that's okay." When Riley nodded she continued. "Well it seems that our two new friends are actually goddesses here on some kind of mission of good. Their mischievous sister is also in our world making trouble and trying to keep them from accomplishing their task. I know this probably sounds completely wacky, but it's true. Willow and Anya both vouch for them, and they sure don't feel like evil-creepies."

Riley felt sick. Those girls...*those* sisters... They were the ones about whom he had been warned, and he had led them right to Buffy. Why, they were probably working on their nefarious plan right now!

Some of his horror must have shown on his face, for Buffy placed a gentle hand on his arm and looked at him in concern. "Riley? What's wrong?"

He said nothing for a moment and pulled slightly away. He gave her an empty grin and lied. "Nothing's wrong," he assured her. "So...uh, where are they staying?"

Buffy shrugged. "You know what? I don't know. Last I saw them they were at Giles', though. I think they're still there. Why?"

"No reason," Riley said falsely. "No reason at all. Um...did they say why they're here?"

Buffy got an odd look on her face as she thought for a second. "No...no, they were rather vague on that."

*So they aren't all on the up and up,* Riley thought. "Shouldn't someone have asked?" he queried.

Buffy glared at him. "You don't think Willow's right about trusting them?" She asked, clearly pissed that he was questioning her friend, and her own judgment.

"Now, Buffy," he held up both hands, palms toward here in a placating gesture. "It's not that I don't think you and Willow can tell when someone's good or bad. I just think that if we're dealing with goddesses, who knows what kind of spells they could have cast on anybody?"

Buffy still maintained an expression of anger, but he could see doubt creeping into her eyes. "You don't think someone would have noticed a spell being cast? Willow, or Giles - he played with a lot of magic in his time. Or Tara or Anya maybe? Or, I don't know, me? You don't think I can tell who's trustworthy and who isn't?"

"They're goddesses, Buffy," Riley explained slowly. "Who knows the sort of magic they possess. Maybe they could distort our whole reality and we wouldn't even notice!"

Buffy opened her mouth to argue, but fell silent instead. Her anger disappeared. "As much as I hate to admit it...you're right."

Riley kept himself from rejoicing at that minor victory. He noticed Buffy's hesitation. "Then what's bothering you?"

"It's just...if you're right, why doesn't it *feel* right?"

Riley shrugged. "I don't know. But you can't trust these two at face value. You simply can't." Buffy nodded, then looked at him strangely. "Why not?"

"You *can't.* They aren't like us."

"Like we're all normal, right?" Buffy asked, sounding a little ticked off.

Riley sighed. "You know what I mean."

"No, I don't think I do," she replied. "What DO you mean?"

"Buffy!" he said back in exasperation. "They aren't human! You don't know what they want. You don't know what they can do!"

"That's it, isn't it?" Buffy said in sudden understanding. "All that's human is automatically good, and all that's isn't is evil. Is that the way it's always going to be with you?"

"That's not what I meant," Riley defended himself. *Not that it doesn't seem to hold true most of the time...*

Buffy's gaze seemed to go...cold. "I should hope not. Because I've seen some terrible, evil things, and they were caused by human hands. And I've known ... others that were far more 'human' in their ways, good 'people' who weren't people at all."

The conversation was taking a very different turn, and he wasn't sure quite where he'd lost control of it. "This isn't the point, Buffy. Those girls aren't..."

"Aren't what?" Buffy demanded. "Aren't like us? Maybe they're closer to us than you think. How human are we, Riley? I'm the Slayer. I can do things no other human being can do. And you, with your strength enhancing drugs and demon technologies...who knows everything they've done to you?" She paused, looking a bit bitter. "How human are we?"

Riley opened his mouth to respond, but Buffy cut him off. "Nevermind, I don't want to hear it right now. There's a lot to be done. If you want to help, come to Giles' tomorrow morning. If not..." She didn't finish the thought, but instead turned heel and left.

As the door slammed behind her, Riley's mouth closed. *I've got to do something to save her from them.*

Part Five

Feedback

Go here for more of Cynamin's stories.

This page hosted by Get your own Free Home Page