Buffy sat down, her posture deflated. "Angelus?" she whispered, tears forming in her eyes.

Xander growled, "What do you mean, *Angelus*? Is he back, Spike? Are you two really planning on killing us and torturing Willow?"

"No, of course not," Spike scowled. "If I were planning such a glorious victory over you, do you think I would have the patience to sit around and listen to the lot of you bloody blab about nothing all day?"

"Er...he has a point," Giles pointed out. "Spike's not the most...patient enemy we've faced."

"Wait," Anya said, "I don't understand. She never said a name. How do you know?"

"That's what is so frightening about this, pet," Spike said softly. He liked Anya, she was blunt, AND she had a violent history, AND, due to the loss of her powers, she understood why he was generally in a bad mood. He just couldn't understand what she saw in Xander.

"What do you mean?" Xander asked.

"Several things. What she was describing.... those were things Angelus and I... would sometimes do. We DID terrorize people, you must remember. But I brushed that off, assuming she'd read through the Watcher's Journals. All of that is documented fact." He shrugged. "Angelus liked having people know we visited.

"But it was the other things. She called me William. No one calls me William, but Angelus. *Peaches* doesn't even call me William. And then the clincher was when she said something about him and his beloved. Bloody wanker would get off on that, referring to me as his beloved to his victims. Lulling them with a sense that what we did together was out of love for each other. Of course, in a way it was, but vampires just don't go around spouting out love sonnets to their dinner." He sighed, sitting back. "But he's not here. Angelus is not here. After the last time he was here, I know what the difference is, in the way he feels. I would almost bet that if we called his home, he'd be reading a book right now."

Giles picked up the phone. "It's a bet I'm hoping you will win," he murmured, dialing a number.

"Hello?"

"Angel?"

"Rupert!" Angel said, a small smile on his voice. "How are things in Sunnydale?"

"Almost normal. Angel, have you been having any....any....er...well..."

"What, Giles?" Angel asked, becoming worried. Something was wrong.

"Well..."

Angel heard his childe growl in the background and grab the phone.

"Bloody hell, Peaches, has Angelus gotten loose?"

Angel blinked in surprise. "What?"

"You heard me," Spike said through clenched teeth.

"Spike. How can Angelus get loose if I'm sitting right here talking to you on the phone?"

"Bloody hell, Peaches, I don’t know! I just want to know why he's terrorizing Red."

"WHAT?" Angel stood up, not quite sure how to take that.

"She's having nightmares, Peaches. Things we used to do, we are doing to her in her dreams. And she's saying things...."

"What....kind of things?" Angel asked, scared to know the answer.

"She's calling me William."

Angel sighed a breath of relief. "So? It's your name."

"And she is saying that Angelus is whispering to her, telling her all the things he and his beloved are going to do to her."

Angel hissed. "Shit. Spike, that's not good at all. No one but our victims know about that."

"I know," Spike said quietly. "Peaches, what's happening to her? I don't want Red to get hurt. I don't want to be the one hurting her."

Angel sighed. "Maybe I should just come to Sunnydale."

"Maybe you should," Spike agreed. "I'll even call a truce till this is all over."

"Good. We can actually work together to solve this problem."

"As long as we don't go evil and become the problem."

"Right," Angel said. "I'll leave now, be there soon."

"See you then." He hung up and turned to the worried humans. "Peaches is coming."

*-*-*-*

Willow made it home safely. She ran upstairs, her body shaking in fear. <How could I have done that? How could I have told William off? He will kill me for sure now.> She crawled into bed. <Please, Goddess, watch over me tonight, let me sleep peaceful.> She was out in moments, her exhausted body finally giving up.

A hand shook her awake. She covered her face with her pillow. "Noooo, I'm sleeping, don't make me get up..."

"Wake up, my little Red Witch. It's not as much fun if you are asleep."

Willow's body froze. She pulled her head out from under the pillow and looked at the person in her room. "A...Angel?"

Angelus laughed, sitting on the bed beside her, running his hand along her side under her shirt. "Try again, precious. I'll give you three guesses, and the first two don't count."

"Angelus," she hissed. "How did you get in?"

"You invited me, remember? Right before I left Sunnydale. When I came to say goodbye. The soul tried to stop you, but you wouldn't listen. You never listen, always doing what you think you should." He ran his fingertips along her cheek. "Such trusting Willow," he murmured.

"Angel...don't..." she whispered.

He backhanded her. "I'm not Angel, little girl. You'd best remember that."

She looked at him, her head held high in pride, tears of pain in her eyes. "Angelus. I know who you are." Rage filled her body. "You are a sorry ass demon who has nothing better to do than try to break some little girl. In her dreams, no less."

Angelus smirked. "My boy always told me you had a fire in you. I knew that you did." He leaned down and kissed her hard, holding her body to his.

She struggled, and finally jerked her head away, breathing hard. "Stop it," she hissed. "I don't want you."

"Not yet, my little witch, but you will." He ran his fingers through her hair softly. "You know what I love about my boy William? Hmm? Aren't you interested to know?"

Willow closed her eyes, feeling him run his fingers through her hair. She tried to ignore the tiny feelings of lust forming -- it was Angelus, for goddess sake! But he was being so gentle....and it had been so long.... "Mmm?" she whispered.

He gripped her hair and pulled it hard, making her look up at him. Tears filled her shocked eyes. "He enjoys the pain as much as he enjoys the pleasure. To him, it's all the same. I have him that conditioned."

He smirked as Willow rolled those words around in her head. Her eyes widened as they finally made sense. "You are going to make me enjoy the pain?" she whispered, tears falling down her cheeks from the tight grip he had on her hair.

He released her hair and patted her head soothingly. "I was always impressed with your smarts. That airhead of a Slayer would have never gotten it."

"I don't understand something," Willow whispered. "Why me? Why not her?"

Angelus laughed. "Couple of reasons. First, you put that blasted soul back into my body. Second, I've always wanted to break your innocence. Since the first moment I laid eyes on you. Why do you think the soul never let you get too close? He was scared I would hurt you."

He brushed his fingertips along her neck. "And I wanted to, that night in the hallway at the school. I wanted to take you away from all of them and break that innocence."

He sniffed the air. "Of course, Dogboy took your most important innocence, but that's ok. You are still innocent enough to be virginal."

Willow gasped. "Angelus... please...goddess, please don't hurt me."

"Not tonight. Not enough to scar, anyway." He laughed. "Tonight, I teach you what it is to enjoy pleasure and pain."

She whimpered.

"Ahhh, I love your little Willownoises. So precious." He leaned down and brushed his lips against hers.

He growled softly when she didn't respond. He could feel her trembling beside him, it was all she could do not to. He smelled her arousal, knowing that thus far, her body had betrayed her mind.

He slipped his hand under her shirt, softly running his fingertips along her stomach. She gasped. "Good Willow," he whispered against her lips before plunging his tongue into her mouth.

She gripped his shoulders and kissed him back, with the desperation of a woman who wanted to live. However, it didn't take long for the desperation to be replaced with something else....a need to be next to him, a hunger for him to please her.

It wasn't long before she was responding with a passion Angelus was unaware she owned, but thankful that she did.

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