TITLE: Chapter Six ~ Is this Action Replay or Something?
SERIES: The Reunions Series.
AUTHOR: LJSAngel
EMAIL: LJSAngel@supanet.com
DISCLAIMER:  Yeah right.  If I owned them, the world would be a happier place with an Angel that's human and kicks ass.  Also he would be locked in my house.  And chains.  Scantily clad. With a filthy grin on his face.  And cookie dough fudge mint chip ice cream.  "It'll go straight to your thighs.."  And time freezes so the moment keeps happening over and over... Like Action replay..
TIMELINE: Past "Eternity" on AtS and Faith is still comatose so it's before "This Years Girl"
SPOILERS: Up to them up there, and NMR.
SYNOPSIS: Buffy must face the Master all over again..
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Nope.
FEEDBACK: Yes.  "I'd celebrate the opening of my email box with a drink down the pub..."
RATING: PG-13 aka 12
RELATIONSHIP : Buffy and Angel; Anya/Xander; Willow/Tara; Willow/Oz
CONTENT: Little bit of violence.. yada yada yada.  Usual Buffy stuff.

Buffy stirred and opened her eyes.  She looked around and was confused. She looked to the foot of the bed where Giles silk red robe lay.  Buffy looked over to Angel who was sitting in the corner who had been watching her sleep.

“Hey,” Buffy said softly.

“Hey.”

“That’s two mornings in a row I’ve woken up to see you.  I mean, um, y’know,” Buffy said sheepishly.

“How you feeling?”

“Good.  Wide awake and ready to slay.  What time is it?”

“Nine.”

“Did everything really happen yesterday that happened?  I dreamt it all.”

“What did you dream?” Angel asked sliding off the chair and over to Giles silk sheets on the bed.  He smoothed her bed head down delicately.

“Being captured by the Initiative and drinking some disgusting stuff with herbs and blood in it.  Ooh!  And also, Giles beating up this little New Yorker.”

“Sorry to say you dreamed the last bit and not the others,” Angel said smiling.  He slowly slipped his hand into Buffy’s.  Buffy looked down at it and smiled.

“Me too.  It’s good Giles has the black drapes up here or I could be holding hands with a big pile of dust.”

“It is but it’s kind of overcast and raining so I’d just be smoking a bit.”

“Raining again?”

"Looks like," Angel mused staring at her lips move and dance around the words.

"Shame it isn't raining men and all.."

Buffy just stared at Angel for an age and then moved towards him wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing her mouth on his.  Angel gave in to that desire and returned her kiss.  He ran the back of his hand down her soft cheek.

“Hey, party people!” Xander said cheerfully shutting the door behind Anya who was holding his hand.  Wesley and Giles were the only people in Giles living room and they were both scouring books to find more information about the current situation.  “Hey British party people?” Xander ventured.  “Hey British mopey people ?”

“Xander.  What do you want?” Giles asked not taking his eyes off the page.

“I came to help research and stuff.  And to see how Buffy was,” he replied.

“She’s resting upstairs.  Angel’s watching her,” Giles said still reading the book.

“Oh yeah.  I see a lot of resting and watching getting down in that situation,” Xander said.  “Might as well give me a book.  Got any English speaking ones left?”

“Beside the phone,” Wesley pointed without taking his eyes off the page.

“Where’s Willow?” Xander said as he walked over to Giles desk.  As if on cue, the phone rang.  Surprised, Xander picked it up.”

“Hello?” Xander said.

“Xander.  Hi, Willow.  Put me onto Giles.”

“Can’t you tell me?” Xander said disappointed.

“You’ll only forget.  Giles,” she ordered.  Like an obedient dog, Xander handed the phone to the ex-librarian.

“Willow,” he said to Giles.  Giles took the phone from him and pressed it to his ear.  He had asked her to surf the net and find anything she could.  He hoped she had news.

“Willow.  Did you find something?”

“Yes.  I had to hack into several computers.  The list you gave me last night of the Blessed Three, I found out that one of them, Mortus the lord of Hell has passed through and is now in Sunnydale.  I’ve also got a sketch of him that I downloaded.

“Then I started chatting to this guy on this really weird site for demons and vampires to talk.  Anyway, he said he was a member of the Ring of Matrus.  He told me that they were planning to open the dimension walls before midnight on the new week.  Although that means tonight, since Sunday supposed to be the real start of the week.”

“The dimension walls?  Would that be for the Master?” Giles asked.

“I think so.  That leaves,” Willow flicked through some sheets of paper. ”Remana, the bloodlust vampire in Italy.  I started to think how they would get her out because she must be like the Master - imprisoned.  So I downloaded a bunch of stuff from the Met. office.  Dates of estimated eruption etc, etc.”

“This was legal?” Giles said surprised.

“Yes.  Maybe.  Not entirely.  No.”

“OK.  If you could bring over the data as soon as you can.”

“I was coming over now.  How’s Buffy?”

“She’s resting.  Although I fear she may not be at her full strength for the Master’s entrance tonight.  That and there is no telling what effect it will have on her, mentally.”

“We need to think of something.  We can discuss it later.  Is everyone there?”

“Everyone except you, Oz and Cordelia.  Joyce offered Cordelia a place to stay and Oz went to stay on campus at his old room I think.  Mrs Summers gave him a ride.”

“I’ll be there soon.  Bye.”

“Bye,” Giles said as he pressed the talk button and handed the phone to an impatient Xander.  Xander placed it back on the set.  Giles took off his glasses and ruffled his hair.

“It’s bad, isn’t it?” Anya said flippantly, crossing her legs on the coffee table.

Angel and Buffy broke away but Angel still caressed her cheek.  He kissed her forehead and started placing little kisses all over her face until she started giggling uncontrollably.

“Listen,” Buffy ordered calming down and referring to the conversation going on downstairs.  She could make out faint mumbling.

“We should go down there.  See what’s going on,” Angel said brushing his lips over Buffy’s forehead.  He stood up and held out his hand.  “C’mon.”

Buffy crawled over the bed and took Giles’s red robe and slipped it on.  She took Angel’s hand and unsteadily walked down the stairs following him.

“Hey Buff,” Xander said which signaled to Giles to stop talking.

“Buffy.  I trust you slept well,” Giles said trying to cover up what they were discussing.  He offered her his seat.  Buffy sat down and Angel stood behid her as if he was watching over her and protecting her.

“What were you guys talking about?” Buffy asked slowly.

“Nothing,” Xander said unconvincingly.  “In fact, less than nothing.  Minus nothing.”

Giles sat down on the coffee table facing her.

“To open the Hellmouth, the Brethren need all three points of the triangle,” Giles said.  “Do you remember when a vampiric Willow came to Sunnydale?”

“Yes,” Buffy said narrowing her eyebrows.

“She came from another dimension,” Giles said.

“That was from when Cordelia wished that you had never came to Sunnydale.  During my vengence days. I miss them.....” Anya said.

“Quite.  Anyway, the Brethren have manged to find a way to bring someone back from this dimension that they need,” Giles said softly.  “They’re going bring the Master back.  Tonight.”

There was a silence.  No-one sure how Buffy was going to take the news.

“Oh,” Buffy said quietly.  Angel put a hand on her right shoulder.  She put her right arm up to hold it.  “It’s not running low on dramatic tension, is it?” Buffy said as she laughed weakly.  “After yesterday and everything.”

Everyone looked at her except from Anya who was flicking through a magazine.

“Buff.  Are you OK?” Xander asked.

“Of course,” she said forcing a smile.  Buffy had prayed that she never had to face the Master ever again.  “We need a game plan.  Where will the Master be?”

“Um, all the signs point to the Library,” Giles said.

“Can we stop the dimension thingy ever opening?”

“I’m afraid not.”

“Then I’ll have to kill him when he comes through,” Buffy said.  She was trying to build up confidence in herself.

“Buff.  You’re not up up to your full strength,” Xander said gently.

“It’ll do.  I’ve took him down once, twice even if skeleton crushing is counted, and I can do it again.  Hell I did it just after i died.  I’ll find a bigger stake than the last one in this dimension and he’ll know real pain in the three seconds he turns to dust,” Buffy said standing up and souding very commanding.  “Giles, is it all right if I call my mom to bring some clothes round ?”

“Of course.”

Willow put down the phone and turned on the bed to Tara who was teasing the kitten with a piece of string.

“Giles said she’s fine.  The spell worked.”

“That’s great,” Tara said biting her lip concerned.  “I just hope she doesn’t suffer the side effects...”

“What?  The side...” Willow said shocked.

“I’m kidding !  No side effects.  Promise,” Tara said crossing her heart.

“Tara..Can we talk,” Willow said.

“Sure.”

“About Oz.”

“Oh.”  There was a drawn out silence.

“It’s just.....  My head’s all dizzy.  This, for a long time, was what I wanted so badly.  Now it’s here and I have you, I don’t want it anymore, or at least I think I don’t.  I’m just so confused.  And this is gonna hurt people and I don’t want to do that.  To anyone.  It’s just so complicated.  I think.....I think I need to talk to Oz.  Would that be, OK with you?”

The blond witch nodded.  Tara touched her hand and then gradually slipped hers in Willows.

“We’ll still...we’ll still be friends.  I want you to do what makes you happy.”

Tara reached up with her other hand to wipe away a tear.

“Thank you,” Willow sobbed slightly and hugged Tara.

Oz took his guitar out of his case and strummed a little unplugged.  When he heard a knock at the door he set it down on the bed.  Climbing over a suitcase, he arrived at the door and opened it.

It was the person he had hoped for.  His red headed hacker turned witch.

“Hi,” Willow said smiling and waving slightly.  “Can I, uh, ....”

“Sure,” Oz said and opened the door for her.  Willow stepped inside and looked around.  Oz shut the door slowly.

“It’s kind of messier than last time,” Willow remarked trying to break the ice between her and her ex boyfriend.

“Willow.  I have something to tell you.  I’ve wanted to tell you since I came back.  But I thought with us breaking into a government building and everything, it could wait.  You could sit down,” he offered.  Oz threw some shirts and underwear onto a chair from the bed.

“What is it?” Willow said.

“I went to a lot of places and I think I’ve found the answer to the reason why I left.”

“You left because of the full moon fever you had..” Willow said puzzled.

“Yeah.  Well, I travelled to the place in South America where the Incas lived and a traveller told me about a secret village there.  This village was like going back in time.  Everything was like it was 5000 years ago.  I met with their leader who said he knew someone that could help me with the wolf.  They tried to expel the wolf when I was changed on full moon.  It worked.  I changed back during a full moon.  They did the same for the other two nights that month.  All I have to do now is inject myself, with a syrum for the next two months full moon days and the wolf will be gone. I think.”

“What ? That’s great for you!  You mean the wolfie gone forever?  That’s fantastic,” Willow jumped up and hugged him.  She softened her tone  “That’s wonderful Oz.”

Oz held both her hands.

“I’m sorry Willow for the months I put you through.  I’m sorry.  I came back here to make it up to you.  To be what you needed when I was gone.   I don’t know if you have a new guy or not.  Even if you do, I still want to be here for you.”

Willow exhaled and looked at Oz.

“I need time and this whole thing with the world ending isn’t great timing either.  I need to think and..and I can’t right now.  So I have to go, OK?  I’ll, um, see you later.  At Giles,” Willow said as she stood up and walked out of Oz’s room.

Everyone was at Giles house preparing for the Masters second coming.  At eleven, the whole gang armed with axes, crossbows, crosses, the occasional mace, and the standard issue stake supply.

The plan was to hide where Buffy and Xander did some re-con earlier and when the Master arrived, start with the air raid of crossbowed stakes and in Xanders case, rocks.  Then Angel and Buffy would attack on foot followed by everyone else.  The rest would be determined on impulse.

Angel walked over to Buffy who was drinking a glass of milk in one go.

“Sure you’re OK to do this?”

Buffy jumped and placed down her glass.  She turned round and looked Angel in the eye.  She studied his dark brown eyes.

“You know I am,” she told him.

“I’ll be there, the whole time.  I won’t leave you,” Angel promised.  Angel touched her cheek and then passionately kissed her.  They were interrupted by the eleven chimes of Giles clock.

“I’m ready,” Buffy whispered to him.  She turned to everyone else.  “We ready?”

The Slayer led the Scooby Gang through the once familiar entrance to Sunnydale High.  The crouched and ran to the Library.  Pausing every so often to look for guards.  When they finally arrived on top of the mound that was once the Giles’s library wall, Buffy, Angel, Xander, Giles, Willow, Oz, Wesley, Anya even Cordelia were assembled in the before discussed positions.

They waited.  They watched.

The Scooby gang saw the vampires reciting an ancient incantation and lighting the ten podiums around the room.  Three vampires formed lines with their backs against the wall and another three did the same about a foot away.  It was like they were guarding an invisible door.

On Xanders watch, it was 11:55 and the Brethren and stopped chanting and lighting the fires.  The vampires wearing brown robes bowed down while Mortus and Dredus stood still.  On the wall adjacent to the Hellmouth, a white light seemed to be cracking through the rock.

Minutes later, the Master stepped through, dazed but somehow he had the sense that he knew what was happening to him.  He looked around at this new, unknown world to him.

The Master’s appearance was no change from the vampire king that had walked in this reality.

Buffy swallowed and felt Angels supportive hand on her arm.  She looked at him gratefully saying more than words could.  Buffy nodded to him and everyone else.  She counted backwards from three and then signalled to start the air assault.  While everyone else’s arrows were hitting the Brethren and some, not, Buffy aimed for the Masters heart.  Almost replicating the move in their first fight, the Master caught it and snapped it.  Buffy loaded it again and caught his shoulder, to get his attention.  The rest of the Scooby Gang weren’t doing too bad and they dusted about 30% of the Brethren Vamps.

When the arrows were used up, The Chosen One herself made an appearance.  She roundhouse kicked a vampire coming to meet her and quickly staked him in the back.  Angel quickly followed by swinging his axe and severing the head of another brown cloaked Brethren vampire.  When it stopped rolling and hit the wall, the head combusted into ashes in synchronised time with the torso.

Xander was next and he had called ‘mace’ back at the house so now was his chance to put it to good use.  Xander spent last summer trying to travel America.  His car broke down he ended up washing dishes and doing....other things at a Ladies Night Club.  While he was staying in the middle of nowhere, Xander made use of their gym.  He now worked out kind of regularly now and it came in useful when the Big Bad came to visit and it came down to battles like this.

I’m gonna see what this baby can do, thought Xander pulling the mace out of his Adidas rucksack.  He picked his way down the rubble that was once a wall and was faced with Brethren vampire.  Xander swung the mace with all his strength and it hit the vampire in the temple.  From the impact of the blow, the vampires head decapitated and exploded into dust in mid air along with the body.

“Now, that’s what I call a mace.”

Oz, Anya and Willow forced a smaller vampire forward onto a stake that Cordelia was holding and it combusted.

“Eeehh,” Cordelia complained brushing the ashes of her new trousers.  “I’d almost forgot what this ickiness was like cuz Angel does this.  Now I remember.”

Xander spotted a drunk vampire drinking from a bottle of whiskey slumped against the corner.

“Hey you!”  The vampire didn’t look up. Xander held an axe that he had traded Angel for his mace at the ready and advanced very slowly.  “Hey, you want my card for undead alcoholics anonymous?”

The vampire looked up and Xander swung his axe.  Taken by surprise, the vampire turned to dust leaving only the whiskey on the ground.  "Not that I have one."  Xander picked it up with his free hand.  “Idea.....”

Wesley put up his ‘guard’ as a vampire advanced on him.

“You chose the wrong rogue demon hunter friend,” he said trying to sound threatening.  “I happen....”  Wesley never got to finish because the vampire grabbed his jacket and threw him onto a pile of bricks.  Another vampire grabbed his shoulders and dragged him up.  He bared his fangs and pulled Wesley closer him to bite his neck.  The vampire dropped Wesley and looked down at the stake that was impaled in his back and had been stabbed straight through his rib cage, but it had missed the heart.  He turned around and saw Giles standing there holding a wooden cross out at arms length.

“Missed the heart old man,” he sneered as he twisted his arm round his back to pull it out and he did so with success.  He threw it on the ground.  Giles stepped back slightly.  Wesley groped around for a weapon but found the stake.  Wesley picked it up and threw it over the vampires head to Giles who caught it elegantly in his free hand.  The ex watcher plunged it into the undead flesh of the vampire and into his heart.

“Did I?  I’m sorry,” Giles said as the vampire turned to dust before his eyes.

Willow shrieked as a vampire tried to bite her neck from behind.  Oz grasped hold of the vampires broad shoulders to try to pull him away but the vampire shrugged him off like a mosquito that had landed on his arm.  Oz sprawled out on the cold floor.  Cordelia groped inside her bag for a cross and found one.  She pressed it against the vampires back and it sizzled and clouds of steam rose off it.  The vampire let go of Willow and swung round.  His arm hit Cordelias face and set her crashing into the wall.  The cross skidded across the floor to where Willow was crouched.  She noticed that a chunk of wood had snapped off the bottom, creating a point.  Still in agony, the vampire walked over to where Oz lay unconscious.

“Hey!” Willow shouted bravely holding the cross in the air like a stake.  The vampire spun round and before he could react, Willow stabbed him in the heart and left the cross cum stake in his chest.  She stood back as he and the cross, exploded into dust.

She rushed to Oz’s side and rolled him over.

“Oz?  Oz can you hear me?” Willow said trying not to panic.  Cordelia, holding her burst lip came over and towered over Oz.

“Step aside, I’m good at this,” Cordy said kneeling down.  She drew back her hand and hit it at the side of his face.  She repeated it about three times before Willow caught her hand in mid air.  Anya came over with a bottle of water.  She unscrewed the cap and poured it over Oz’s face.  Spluttering, Oz sat up, partially wet.

“What’d you do that for?” Willow asked concerned for Oz.

“It woke him up didn’t it?  What more do you want?  A show tune and host of cabaret performers to complete the moment?” Anya said taking a drink from the bottle.  “I learned that quip from Xander.  He said it to the delivery man last week when he purchased new items.”

“No kidding,” Cordelia droned.  “I thought they had that kinda wisecracking in demon dimensions too.”

Dust flew up in Buffy’s face as she staked another vampire.  When the air cleared from the flying particles of what was a vampire, Buffy saw the Master watching the battle from the back.  Buffy fixed her stare on the Master.  She started walking towards him.  She gripped her stake firm in her right hand.  Her eyes blazed with anger more and more with every step she took.

Angel, in his vampire visage, pinned a vampire down on the charred ground by the shoulders.  He turned round and saw Buffy heading for the Master alone.  He quickly staked the grounded vampire and ran to stop Buffy.  He ran in front of her and came to a halt.

“Buffy, what are you doing?” Angel asked her trying to hold her back by putting his hands on her shoulders.

“Angel,” Buffy paused. ”I’m ready.”

“Let me h....”

“No.  I can do this.  Let me do this, Angel.  Please.”

Angel didn’t say anything.  He just stood out the way and watched as Buffy walked past him and to the Master.

“Is this action replay or something?” Buffy said folding her arms and tapping her stake against her bicep.

“Slayer?” The Master hissed.  “You’re dead?”

“OK, OK.  You said that last time.  Get's kinda old,” Buffy droned.

“I killed you Slayer.  I broke your neck at the opening of the plant,” The Master said.

“Ouch.  Now that’s gotta hurt.”

“Dredus, when I arose here did I not fulfil the prophecy by killing her?” The Master asked without taking his eyes off Buffy.

“She drowned and then was revived,” Dredus snarled.

“Then killed me?” The Master asked Dredus.

“Bingo,” Buffy said pointing her stake at the old vampire.

“I think I deserve a rematch,” The Master said edging forward slightly.

“Maybe you do,” Buffy said moving forward.  Buffy stared into the familiar evil, glowing red eyes of the Master.  After what seemed like hours, she roundhouse kicked the vampires chest.  The Master staggered back a bit.  Buffy threw a punch at his jaw and the Master blocked it.  He twisted her arm around and held her in the position that the Master had her in before he bit her.  Buffy felt completely powerless against the old vampire and knew what happened next.  The Master turned her to face Angel who looked on in despair.

“Angel...” Buffy strangled out.  Her eyes said, ‘I’m so sorry.’

“Angelus,” The Master said.  “Still soulful in this dimension?”

“Let her go,” Angel demanded growling.

“Let her go?  Why would you demand that Angelus?” The Master asked.  He studied at the way the vampire and the Slayer looked at each other.  “In love with the Slayer?  That disgusts me Angelus.”

“Take me, take me instead of her,” Angel said.

“Now that’s no fun.  Why would I do that?  You’re just a traitor but this, this is the Slayer.”  He traced Buffy’s jaw almost tenderly with his sharp nails

“I killed Darla,” Angel said quickly fuelling the Masters eyes.  He growled and his head shot up.

“Darla?” The Master said. She was maybe the one vampire that he kept close in his family in the other dimension.

“I staked her in the back.  Before she turned to dust, she saw it was me.  Darla died with a broken heart.  She died in pain, without honour.  I could see it... all in her face...” Angel said trying to tempt the Master away from Buffy.  It worked.  The Master loosened his grip and dropped Buffy to the ground, gasping for breath.  He walked up to Angel and wrapped his sharp-nailed white hand round Angel’s neck and lifted him off the ground.

Holding her throat, Buffy looked up and saw Angel dangling off the ground.  The Masters plan was that if he pulled tight enough to break Angelus’s neck it would sever it from it’s body,

“Angel!” She yelled.  Buffy scraped round for a stake and saw a mace lying on the ground behind Angel.  Buffy crouched down and ran to the mace.  She picked it up and with her remaining strength, swung it at the Masters back.  He released Angel and was thrown across the old library into three of the vampire ‘guards’.

Buffy ran to Angel who was quickly recovering from the attempted decapitation from the Master.  They looked up when they heard a bottle smash in front of them.  The lovers ran back as it engulfed in flames and separated them from the Master and the other vampires.  Buffy turned round and saw Xander punching the air.

“What..?” She asked coughing from the smoke.  Buffy and Angel ran over to the others.

“Neat huh?” Xander said proudly as they ran up the mound of bricks and rocks away from the fire.  “I ripped a part of my shirt and pushed it in a whiskey bottle one of the vampires had, then lit it from one of the fires.” He offered Buffy a hand to get over the top of the pile and pulled her up.  “Do I not rule?” He said smiling.

“Yes, you rule Xand,” Buffy said grabbing the supplies bag and running for the exit holding Angels hand.  He was a little weak from the Master.

“Yeah I do!”

“Hey Giles, you got any coke or soda in here ?” Xander shouted from the kitchen.

“No I don’t think so.  The orange juice is in the fridge,” Giles said tending to Buffy’s gashed head while perched on the edge of the coffee table.

“Ouch,” Buffy complained and drew back a little but then leaned forward again to let Giles dab it with a cloth.

“Plain or coloured?” Giles offered.

After a seconds consideration, Buffy decided, “Coloured.”

“Blue, red, yellow or green?” Giles said arranging four packets.

“Blue.”  Giles opened the packet and placed the plaster delicately on the Slayers head.

“Oh,” Buffy said squinting.  “Thanks.”

“So they now have two of the Blessed three,” Giles said shifting to a chair.

“And we all have four limbs, a head and a torso, thanks to Xander,” Angel said as he shut the bathroom door.  He held a wet towel to his neck.  It was in bad shape after the full on claw treatment from the Master.  Cordelia, holding a frozen steak to her lip with on hand, was patching up Wesley who was regularly complaining about her being ‘too rough on my delicate skin.’  Cordelia took no notice but then started discussing moisturiser.  Oz held a bag of frozen peas against his head where a bruise seemed to be appearing.  Willow was going to clean her cuts after Oz’s.  Anya, who was almost untouched, ate a green apple and looked through a witchcraft book.

“Praise the Xand man,” Xander said throwing himself into Giles couch with a bag of Doritos, cheese dip and the carton of orange juice.  Anya sat on the far side and rested his feet on her lap.

Buffy went over to Angel to check his neck.  He lifted off the hand towel to reveal deep purple and red lines and scathing nail marks from where the Master gripped him.

“How does it feel?” Buffy asked.

“Like a someone tried to decapitate me without a very sharp blade to make it a little quicker,” Angel replied pressing the towel back on.

“OK, so now we go after this Italian chick,” Xander said crunching Doritos.

“Does this mean a field trip?  To Italy?” Willow asked.

“I’m afraid it might as we can’t risk facing her here with the whole of the Brethren ready up in arms to defend her,” Giles said.  “Not that she needs it.  She is the most blood thristy vampire of all.  The patron saint, if you will, of the vampires need and will to drink.  The first to taste a Slayer.”

“Wait a minute......” Willow said vacating the wooden chair opposite Oz.  She pulled an old, worn book from her bag and flicked through it.  “We could do what the Master did.  ‘Transportation using demonic energy,’ “ Willow read from the top of the page.  She handed the book to Giles.

“Translate?” Cordelia asked wringing out a water and blood soaked towel.

“It’s about moving from dimension to dimension in a matter of minutes,” Willow explained.  “But because where we want to go is in this world, we’d have to go to a different dimension then back again.  It would take an hour tops.  And we could go at night so Angel could come.”

Giles scanned the page and looked up at the red-headed witch.

“You’re sure you would be capable of doing this?  In the other dimension you would have to find the other location to exit from.  That means going into the unknown.  Where all of you probably have doppelgangers and things are not as they are here,” Giles warned.  “Like Willows vampire, eh, twin.”

“I resent that,” Willow said firmly.

“Double then,” Giles said.  “Whatever she is, she resides in the world that you will be facing.”

“I’m not sure she does.  It wouldn’t be that dimension because it’s already been tampered with.  They’ve left open a channel for the Master to travel in so that one’s a no-go.  It’d have to be a completely different dimension,” Willow said.

“So how many dimensions are there?  How many Anyas are there?” Xander said mischievously.

“I don’t know,” Willow shrugged. She then caught up with what Xander had just said.  “Xander, euugh!”

“Hundreds, possibly thousands of dimensions with the same basics as our own but all different chracteristics,” Giles said looking up from the book.

“So it’s basically take your pick,” Buffy said taking a cookie off the plate on the breakfast bar.

“Yup,” Willow agreed.

“We’ll I’m in favour of this plan.  So when do we go dimension hopping?”

“The best time would be..” Giles said, holding his glasses in his mouth and flicking through the book that Willow had given him minutes earlier.  “Not tomorrow night but the next night.”

“So who goes?” Xander said, mouth full of Doritos and cheese dip.

“Me, obviously,” Buffy said chewing her lip.  “Angel?” He nodded.  “Willow, if you want to.  We need you when it comes to the occult end zone and all.”

“Sure.  I wouldn’t not go,” she said.

“All right.  Giles, Wesley, you’re maybe better staying here.  It’s not that we couldn’t use you, we need home base,” the Slayer said.

“I’ll come and be backup guy,” Xander said firmly.

“Xander, I don’t....” Buffy started.  She was afraid of putting Xander in danger.

“No use arguing Buff.  I’m coming.”

“Does that mean I should volunteer too?” Anya said.

“You stay here,” Xander told her.

“Cordy, you’re better staying here,” Buffy said.  “Visions and all.”

“Uht, uht.  Angel goes, I go,” Cordelia said.  Everyone looked at her, surprised at her loyalty.  “OK, it’s not that,” she admitted.  “But who here would pass up an opportunity to go to Italy free ?”

“Cordelia, we’re going there to kill a very, very old vampire so the world won’t end,” Xander said.

“Does that mean we can’t do a teeny, weeny bit of shopping in Milan ?  The home of fashion.  Versace, Gucci...” Cordelia said.

Buffy shrugged.  She really wanted to check out those shops for herself.

“Oz ?” Buffy offered.

“I’ve gotta go see Aunt Maureen and Uncle Ken on Thursday but before that, I’m good,” the guitarist said.

“Then we’ll all meet here, at half seven,” Giles said.  “We can get it done for ten.”

“OK, scoobies dimismissed,” Xander said jumping up.  “I gotta go home, then to work in the morning.  See ya all for the great event.  An’, you comin’ ?”

“Of course.  You perform better after some fighting and a bag of Doritos,” she said casually and followed him out.

After they left, Willow stood up.

“I should go to bed too,” Willow said.  “Buffy you...”

“Um, no.  I’ll go to my moms.  Oz, you can crash on my bed if you want,” she offered.

“Thanks.  Cordelia you want it ?” He offered in a gentlemanly manner.

“Listen to lovers memory lane all night ?  It’s OK.  This couch is surprising comfy.  I’ll stay here.”

“OK,” he said taking his coat and following Willow out the door.  “Goodnight,” they called back.

“And I’ll occupy this chair here,” Wesley said in a particularly British tone.

“That leaves you and Angel,” Giles said to Buffy.

“My moms home,” she reminded him.  “With no physical contact.  My mom being there and all.  Her house.  And she’s there.  Did I mention she's like a hawk ?  With sharp eyes.  And CCTV.”

“All right, I’ll see you in the morning,” Giles said going to make some more tea.

Buffy led Angel out.

Angel woke up in the morning and looked at the sleeping Slayer.  She stirred and opened her eyes.  Buffy smiled.  Waking up against Angel’s smooth, flawless chest every morning would be something she couldn’t do without.

“Angel, morning,” she eventually said.

“Morning,” he said.  “Want some breakfast ?”

“I would say the same as you’re having - but not the best idea.”

“No.  Not the best idea,” Angel agreed.

“Can I get the cereal with the marshmallow shapes in it ?”

“You’re just a little Slayer inside,” he said kissing her head and slid out of bed.  He pulled his white jumper over his head and pulled it down.  He pulled up his trousers and buttoned them.

Angel descended the stairs and found Joyce making tea.

“Morning Joyce,” he greeted.

“Angel, good morning.  Is this not, um, a little early for you?”

“It’s a change,” he admitted taking the packet out of the cupboard.

“You eat.. solids?”

“For Buffy,” he explained smiling.  “I’m fixing her breakfast.”

“That’s good of you.  Angel, I know this is going to sound strange, you being older than myself but....”

“You’re worrying about Buffy,” he said.  Buffy silently descended the stairs and listened.  “Joyce, you know how i feel about Buffy and being what i am, it isn’t easy.  But I would never hurt her.  I would go to Hell all over again before hurting Buffy.”  Buffy smiled and then listened as Angel continued.  “Before, when you asked me to leave town, I knew it was the right thing to do- for Buffy.  It was killing me staying away.  I don’t know if I could do it again.  I’m sorry.  I know you want the best for Buffy and I know i’m not - the best for her.”  Buffy couldn’t listen to it anymore and made her presence known.

“You told Angel to leave?” Buffy said in a tone of disbelief to her mother.  “You’re the reason why Angel left me?”

“Buffy I only...” Joyce started

“...Wanted the best for me.  Yeah well I’m the Slayer mom.  My job doesn’t have alot of perks.  One is that I have to live life for now.”

“Buffy,” Angel said holding the cereal packet.

“Angel I thought I knew why you left.  But it was because you were ordered out by my mother.  But we are gonna make this work.  We have to make it work.”

“Then you will,” Joyce said for Angel.  They both turned to look at her.  “Before you came in Buffy, I was about to tell Angel that i was glad he came back.  I know how hard it has been for you.  And Angel leaving has been a part of that.  I want you to be happy Buffy.  As long as....”

“Not an issue,” Angel said quickly.

“Good.  Then I better go get dressed,” she said exiting.

“See, we can make this work,” Buffy told him kissing his nose.  “OK, where’s my breakfast?”

"In the packet," Angel teased.

"This is so surreal.  I mean us.  In a kitchen.  Discussing breakfast."

"It is," he agreed.  He poured the cereal as Buffy slipped her arms round his waist.

"Want to go back to bed and snuggle?" Buffy yawned.

"Beat you there," Angel challenged.

Willow stirred and opened her eyes.  The first thing she saw was Oz perched on the end of Buffy's bed watching her sleep.

"Hey," he smiled.

"Hi."  She pushed back the covers and swivvelled round to sit in the same position he was.  He grinned a little.  "What?"

"You.. you got bed hair," he said leaning over and flattening it softly.

"Oh," she said quietly looking at his eyes as he touched her hair.  "Thanks.. for that."

For a moment, Willow felt every Oz related thought coming back to her.  He leaned forward slightly.  Willow hesistated then did the same.  Oz paused.

"You're not sure," he told her.  He sat back down on Buffy's bed.  "There's something you're not telling me."

"There's nothing," she said almost unconsciously only witnessing the words slip out of her mouth.

"Sure ?"

"A-Absouloutely."

"OK," he nodded.  "We should get breakfast."

"Yup," Willow agreed, glad to get extra time.  She put on her coat that was lying over the back of her chair.  "Ready."

"Forgetting something ?" Oz said amused.

She looked down at her silk blue Pyjamas.

"Oh.  I meant to do that.  I'm such a goof," she laughed nervously.  "Now that I know - about my goofiness, I'm gonna go.. change."  Willow took her toilet bag and clothes that she always set out.  "Back in five."

Cordelia walked down a long stretch of deserted road.  She had been walking for hours even though she had just left.  Left from where ?  She wasn't sure.  She looked at the sky.  It viciously darkened and growled loudly.  Cordelia looked at the road again and it seemed to be longer.  She looked back and could see Sunnydale High unclearly.  Was that where she came from?  Cordelia turned back round.  She jumped with fright.

"Xander.  You scared me."

He just stared at her.

"What?  Xander?  I don't have time for..."

"Me?" He offered.  His voice made the sky grow angrier.

"Where did you come from?  Why am I here?" Cordelia said as she squinted to see him.  Suddenly, everything seemed blurred.

"Does it matter ?"

"OK, stop with the cryptic.  Angel much?"

He leaned forward and became clearer to her.  He softly kissed her.  She remembered every kiss they had ever shared.  Xander pushed back her hair.  "You have to decide."

"What?"

"Where you're going.  What, who, you want."  The sky cracked and rain poured unmercilessly.  Lighting electrified the sky.

Cordelia rolled over and woke up suddenly.  She fell off the couch and onto Giles's living room floor.

"Ouch," she grumbled.

"Are you all right?" Both English voices called.

"Fine," she said helping herself back onto the couch.

"Waffles?" Giles asked from the kitchen.

"Love some," she said holding her head.  "Is there a dream demon ?"

"A scream demon?" Wesley asked walking through from the bathroom.

"A dream demon," Cordelia repeated.  "A demon that gives you gross, horrible, confusing dreams. Not PTB kind of dreams but.. other sorts."

"I believe that the Austrian dream demon was killed in Denmark in the 1950's," Giles said placing a plate of waffles in front of Cordelia.

"The earthquake of 1959," Wesley said smiling slightly that he had remembered a trivial fact such as that.

"Thank you for your oh so accurate memorisation of the history books Wesley," Cordelia said.  "Weren't you asleep like any other normal person in Watchers useless history class?"

Wesley's face crumbled.

"Oh, sorry.  Cranky after my dream," Cordelia quickly apologised.  Rare occurance.

"It's quite all right... Perfectly understandable...  If you'll excuse me for a minute, I need to.." Wesley said standing up and walking back to the bathroom and instantly shutting the door.

Giles sat down with his own plate of pancakes and waffles

"Don't worry about Wesley.  Sensitive soul that he is," Giles said to Cordelia.

"I didn't mean to.  I just.."

"Did.  As you have always done.  Now you have to deal with the consequences of your words and actions.  Much like Angel."  He swallowed a forkful of pancakes.  "It wasn't all you really.  The next couple of days mean something to Wesley.  He'll be pre-occupied with that."

"What?" Cordelia asked.
  "It's not really my place to say.  Just, alot of memories may surface for Wesley in the next week.  Not the best of timing I'm afraid."

A couple of hours later in the Summers household, Buffy woke up and turned over.  She reached for Angel but found herself clutching a teddy instead.  She opened her eyes and saw that Angel wasn't in the bed.  Buffy sat up like a shot.  Angel was looking at pictures in a photo-album.

"Angel," Buffy said softly.

"Buffy.  Morning."

"Something wrong?"

"No.  Woke up earlier and I found this by your bed."  He was dressed in a deep blue shirt and dark blue trousers.

"What is it?"

"Junior year- Best Of," he read from the cover.  Buffy slid out of bed and walked over to her vampire.  "Here's you, Willow and Xander at the Bronze on Valentines Day."

"Yeah, before Xander worked the mojo on Cor that eventually turned me into rat Buffy."

"And here's the semi-formal.  Oz and Willow, Cor and Xander.  Then you and Giles," he said quietly.

"Cor was still trying to get over Xander in Speedos after the whole swim team cum fish episode in their romance."

"And I was off nailing puppies to doorframes," Angel mumbled to himself.

"What?" Buffy asked not hearing what he said.

"Then here's the junior Prom.  Few nights before Acathla's sarcophagus was discovered.  You look beautiful.  Looking at it you wouldn't think that your ex-boyfriend was trying to kill all of your friends."

"Angel..."

"Just reminds me how apart I am from you, from the world," he said putting the album down on the bed.  "Xander, Willow, Giles.  They're in your life.  They can be without hurting you.  But I can't.  I can't."

"You're not looking hard enough," Buffy said pulling a box from under her bed. She opened it.  She showed him a variety of mementoes.  From the silver cross to a cinema ticket stub to other stupid things.  "One thing I don't have is a picture since vampires don't show up on fugi colour film."

"They do," Angel told her.  "It's a whole meta-physical thing but we show up on film and in photos.  It's a myth that we just end up black squares."

"Oh.  Wait here," Buffy said and disapeared.  She reappeared seconds later with a camera.  "OK.  Say cheese."

"Wait, wait."

"What?"

"You're serious?"

"About what?"

"You want a pale 245 year old demon in your scrapbook?"

"No.  I want my pale 245 year old demon boyfriend in my scrapbook."

"All right," he smiled slightly.  "Wait.  It's been a long time since I got my photo taken.  It's been never.  We got portraits done back in the day.  That was torture, sitting still for as long.  What do I do?"

Buffy put down the camera and took his hands  She sat him down on the bed.  Buffy leant over and kissed him softly.  "Look at the camera and smile."

Angel nodded and braced himself on the bed.  Buffy focused and clicked.  The picture fed out the bottom.  She took it and left it on the chest of drawers.  Then she sat on his lap and flicked her hair over her shoulder.  Buffy put her arm round Angels neck.  With the other one stretched out holding the camera.

"What are you doing ?"

"We've got to have a couple picture," she explained.  "Now do that sexy brooding pout."  Buffy pushed the button and the light flashed.  She pulled the picture out and took another one.  Then Buffy walked over to the drawers and looked at the first photo of solo Angel.  It was perfect.

"Look," she said handing it to him.  "You don't look that pale."

"I don't?"

"OK, maybe you do but it's cute," she grinned.  She took the second picture and looked at it carefully.  "Picture can say a thousand words."

"What does this say?"

"That you're not as apart as you think you are.  And that I love you."  She kissed his head.

"You know I do too," he said taking the picture.

"You keep that one and I'll keep the other," Buffy told him.  "Frame it maybe.  Wallet good also."

She went to kiss him again.  The phone interrupted.  Buffy leaned over to answer it

"Hello?"

"Slayer," said the hustly voice at the other end.

"Who is this?" Buffy asked puzzled.  Angel's attention focused.

"Slayer.  Is this the Slayer?"

"Xander?  Who are you?  How did you get this number?"

"I need help."

"That's not all you'll need when I catch up to you Xander.  Not funny.  Angel and I weren't with the groin and you don't need to check up every five Xander."

"Who's Xander?"

"You're not Xander?"

"No."

"Well who are you then.  Who told you I was the Slayer?  Thing is, I don't have a big patience thingy.  Who are you?"

"Tonight, you have to go tonight."

"Where?"

"You have to find Remana toni--"  A long loud ring tone followed.

"What happened?" Angel asked as Buffy replaced the reciever.

"The phone went dead.  He said we have to find Remana tonight."

"The vampire of bloodlust.  Call Giles."

Six 'o' clock at Giles' house and everyone's assembled.  Tara's standing at the side with various crystals setup.

"So under my theory, if this works we'll be standing in Giles front room in an alternate universe.  Then we go to the Hellmouth and we'll get to Italy in this world ," Willow explained.  She flicked through a witchcraft book and walked back and forth.

"Willow, you're wearing out the carpet," Buffy said.  "Sit."

"But.."

"Sit."  Willow obeyed.  "OK, now breathe."

"No time.  OK.  Everyone form the same pattern as the crystals."  They all formed a circle with Willow in the middle.  "Chant 'I am the dust, the earth, the water, the life.  Take thy unto the place were I will be twice'."

"Huh?" Xander asked.

"Just do it.  And everyone, you need to carry a necklace with the stone that you're represented by.  So Buffy, here's a clear crystal.  Angel, a blue one.  Orange for Xander.  Cordelia, yellow.  Oz, this green one.  Tara--" Willow started as she placed the red stone in Tara's hands.  She grazed Tara's wrist softly.  "--Red.  And I've got the um, purple one."

"No offence Will, but this looks like a rock on a piece of string," Xander said dangling it.

"Do I really have to stand next to him?" Cordelia protested.

"Ssh !  These rocks on strings are the only thing that can bring us back.  During chanting touch rocks with the person to the right of you," Willow ordered.  "Now start."

They all chanted, getting louder and louder each time.  Buffy turned to Angel and they touched points.  Cordy turned scowling to Xander and they did the same.  Oz turned to a sheepish Tara and touched rocks.  Willow, trying to stay focused, lifted hers up and the energy charged towards her own rock.  It shot like a bolt of lightening and filled the room.  Giles and Wesley shielded their eyes and Anya's at the same time.

When they opened them, they were gone.

**END OF CHAPTER SIX**
 

"The old order passes away and the new order is come.  He that is first shall now be last and he that was dead shall now arise."

"And he that does not FEEDBACK shall now depart."
 
 

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