Willow dragged herself up the last few stairs and down the hall
to her room.
<What time is it? Two? Two-thirty? Thank God it's Friday.
But it's not
anymore, is it? It's Saturday.> A weary smile crossed Willow's
lips at that
thought. <I can sleep late. And maybe catch a few cartoons,
too, if I get up
in time.> She tossed her books on the chair inside the bedroom
door and
flipped the light switch, almost falling over as she tried to
kick off her
shoes at the same time.
"What took you so long?"
"Eeeek!" Willow jumped back against the wall, banging the back
of her head.
"OW!" <Did I just say "Eeeek"? I can't believe it. No one
REALLY says
"Eeek"!>
Her shook her head slightly to clear her vision and tried to
focus on the
direction the voice had come from.
"That must have hurt."
Willow looked at the vampire stretched out comfortably on her
bed. His black
satin shirt and black leather pants glowed in the soft light
from the bedside
lamp. The white of the pillows behind his head threw his dark
hair and eyes
into sharp contrast, and blended in with his pale skin. He lay
perfectly
still, staring at her, not moving, not breathing...just waiting
with a perfect
stillness no living person could ever achieve.
Willow tried to look away, but couldn't. She could feel her heart
start to
pound, and her breathing speed up as the fear poured into her.
<I should have
revoked his invitation this morning, no matter how late it would have made me.
But no, I couldn't ruin my perfect attendance record with a tardy.
I wonder if
being dead will count as an absence, or if they'll give me the
perfect
attendance award posthumously.>
"Willow, you really need to learn to relax." Angelus smirked
at her and folded
his arms behind his head, stretching and rearranging himself
more
comfortably
on the bed.
"Relax!?!" She asked, incredulous. Anger mingled with her fear.
"You want
me
to relax!?! You're a vampire, remember? The doesn't-have-a-soul
kind. The
kind
who attacked me at school, and gutted my fish, and stalked my
friends, and
killed my favourite teacher. I REALLY don't think relaxation
is an option
here."
The vampire on the bed heaved an exasperated sigh. "This isn't
going to be
any
fun if you keep doing the deer in the headlights thing every
time you see me,"
Angelus complained. " So, let's make a deal, shall we?"
"A deal?" Willow repeated suspiciously. She didn't know what
was going on
here, but she had a feeling she wasn't going to like it.
"A deal. A truce, if you will. I promise I won't kill you or
your little
friends...for the time being."
Willow's eyes narrowed. He actually sounded sincere. <Well, as sincere as a
blood sucking demon can get.> "And..." she prompted.
"In exchange for my not killing you or your friends, you agree
not to stake
me, or douse me in holy water, or whatever else is going through
your mind
right now."
He patted the bed next to him. "Come here, little Willow. All
I want to do is
talk. Is that so bad? Small price to pay for your friends' lives,
I'd say."
He looked at her expectantly. "So, do we have a deal?"
"Why should I trust you?"
The vampire shook his head mournfully. "I'm hurt, Willow. Truly
hurt." He
looked angry now. "I may have a few faults, but I don't break
my word."
Willow looked at him carefully, trying to make sense of the situation,
to see
what was going on in his mind. He certainly seemed sincere.
Should she -
could
she - trust him? Did she dare?
Before she knew it he was in front of her, grasping her shoulders
hard,
staring into her eyes.
"I was born and died in a time when honour meant something, Willow.
I have
never broken my word once...not as Angelus the man, or Angelus
the
vampire."
His grip, and his voice, softened a little." I give you my word
that I will
not hurt you or your friends until I'm through with you, as
long as you agree
not to try to hurt me." He backed up a little, giving her space.
"I don't think Buffy will go along..."
"This has nothing to do with Buffy! This is between you and me!
I can deal
with the Slayer...without hurting her, if I have to." He threw
up his hands in
exasperation and went back to sit on the edge of the bed.
"Trust in my word or it all ends here."
Willow wasn't sure what to do. <What ends here? What does
"until I'm
through
with you" mean!?!> Visions of lovely, mad Drusilla flittered
across her mind,
to be pushed away roughly by her practical side. This was a
n opportunity to
buy some time for her friends, to give them all a chance to
find a way to
bring back Angel's soul, or to destroy Angelus once and for
all. After all,
she only had to promise that SHE wouldn't try to hurt him...and
he'd leave
them all alone for awhile. Assuming he would keep his word,
of course.
It came as a shock to her, but Willow realized that she did trust
him to be
true to his word...and suddenly, she wasn't afraid of him anymore.
She sat
down on the bed next to him gingerly. He looked at her, his
surprise evident
on his face. Willow looked down and contemplated the carpet.
It seemed strange to her to be sitting next to him without being
afraid. It
was so...normal. Almost like sitting with Angel, or even Xander.
<Except Xander wouldn't be sitting on my bed with me. We'd
be downstairs,
watching TV or something.> A thought crossed her mind and she
turned to
Angelus, who was still watching her carefully.
"You know, I'm not supposed to have boys in my room."
(End Part 4a)
Angelus threw back his head and laughed. Willow flushed, not
sure what was
so
funny. The last 24 hours had seemed like one really bad dream,
and she
sincerely hoped she'd wake up some time soon. She stood up and
grabbed
her
books off the chair, moving them to her desk by her computer.
She kicked her
shoes into her closet, taking off her sweater and throwing it
on to the heap
of clothes on the floor before slamming the door shut, all the
time pointedly
ignoring the vampire on her bed.
"Willow."
She went to her dresser and removed her watch, dropping it carelessly
into a
ceramic dish overflowing with bits of jewelry and ribbon. The
feel of heavy
hands on her shoulders startled her, and her eyes grew wide
as she looked
up
at the mirror in front of her and saw only her own reflection.
She closed her
eyes. She considered turning around, but decided she didn't
have the energy.
She felt tired, and drained, and just wanted to be left alone.
"Pretending I'm not here isn't going to help, you know." He was
obviously
amused by her efforts at avoidance behaviour.
"Did I hurt your little feelings? I couldn't help laughing. You're
just so
unpredictable, little Willow! It's been a long time since I've
had so much
fun!"
A shiver ran through her as she felt the hands began to knead her shoulders.
"I know what a good girl you are." The voice was slightly condescending.
"I don't want you to worry about breaking the rule about entertaining
boys in
your room."
Willow felt a flicker of hope. It was quickly replaced by something
else as
Angelus' hands slid down her shoulders to her upper arms and
she was pulled
roughly back against his chest. She felt his cool breath ruffle
her hair as he
leaned in to speak softly in her ear.
"So let's get this straight, Willow. I'm not a boy. I'm a man.
Or a vampire.
Or even a demon, if you prefer. But I am definitely NOT a boy."
Willow swayed as his hands suddenly let go of her. She felt a gust of wind as
the french door to the balcony opened.
"Good night, Willow."
She rested her forehead against the mirror in front of her and
took a deep
breath. She wasn't sure what game Angelus was playing, but she
knew she
was out of her league...and that he'd be back. Soon