To tell the truth, Willow had never once considered Buffy's reaction to Faith's reappearance and Willow's acceptance of her.  In Buffy's current ghostly state, Willow was still stuck in the assumption that she was all-knowing, all-forgiving.  She had certainly accepted Willow's romantic tryst with Angel easily enough.  But Buffy hadn't known about Casimir holding her soul hostage and she hadn't known about Angelus popping in whenever Angel's soul was weakened and Buffy definitely was not forgiving as she stood in front of them now.  She was standing with her arms braced at her sides, her lips compressed into a thin, flat line and her eyes narrowed in her I-don't-like-this- and-I'm-going-to-kick-your-ass stance.  It didn't bode well for Faith, who was still in shock over the sudden return of her dead nemesis.

"Buffy, it's okay.  Faith's..."

"No, no, not you too.  Please tell me you're not on the Faith's Redeemed Bandwagon of Angel's."  Buffy turned pleadingly to Willow.

There wasn't time to be dealing with Buffy's insecurity and jealousy right now.  Especially when Willow was fighting her own.  "Look, Buffy, I have to trust Faith.  I can't do this alone and there's no one else."

"What about Cordelia?  She could help."

Faith snorted.  "Yeah, by running straight to Angel."

"And why would that be a bad thing?  Because he would come up with another plan that didn't involve you being a slutty whore?"

"Buffy!"

"You aren't any smarter now that you're dead, are you, B?"  Faith's nostrils flared.  She stood up and faced Buffy.  Willow wasn't really worried.  Buffy couldn't touch anything and she couldn't be touched. She and Faith couldn't hurt each other.  Physically.  "You're still rushing in and making accusations when you don't have a clue what's going on."

"Well, that's a wonderful criticism coming from someone who rushed in and killed a man and rushed in and aligned herself with a guy who wanted to become a big, slimy snake demon.  I'll get right to working on that."

"At least I learn from my mistakes.  Who's still living in Buffy World? Everything's about Buffy.  Nothing could possibly happen that didn't involve Buffy.  They should have a show that's all about Buffy and what happens in her little vampire slaying world, would that make you happy?  Would that satisfy you?  Probably not, because it wouldn't win any of the big, important Emmies."

Even though it wasn't necessary, neither girl had moved closer to each other and Buffy could actually have moved through Willow if she really wanted to, Willow stepped in between Buffy and Faith.  "That's enough! If you two feel like you need to work things out by insulting each other, do it on your own time.  I can't play referee, I have Casimir and Angel and Angelus to deal with."

"An..Angelus," Buffy stumbled over the name.  The bluster left her stance and manner and she paled considerably.  Willow regretted blurting out the news like that, but she doubted if Buffy would have listened to her any other way.

"The number one reason why we can't go to Angel.  Sure wouldn't be a pretty picture if Angelus got his hands on your soul, I bet." Faith didn't resist the temptation to throw in one last barb.

"Faith, stop it," Willow snapped, but continued in a more placating and, frankly, more exhausted tone, "Could you please leave Buffy and me alone so we can talk?"

"Sure, I'll go on patrol, catch up with Caz, and get the wheels rolling on our plan."  Faith sauntered out of Willow's room without any parting word or smirk at Buffy.  Which was a good thing, because Willow was walking a very thin tightrope of sanity.  One word and she might have sent both of them into another plane of existence where they could fight to their hearts' content.  Either that or burst into a hysterical crying fit.

"I'm sorry, Buffy.  I didn't think there would still be animosity between you and Faith.  I don't know if I can trust her, but I have to."

"I thought Angel's soul was permanent."  Buffy was still wobbly.  The image of her actually wavered.  Willow would have offered her a seat, if she had thought it would help.

"It is, but the geis bound it to mine and when Angel and I are apart, his soul weakens and the demon takes control.  Do you see why I need Faith's help?  I have to get that paper back and find a way to get myself out of this marriage before it's too late for Angel."  Now Willow felt wavery.  She sat back down on the bench.  How was she going to do this?  She didn't even know where to start.  What if Faith couldn't be trusted?  Then what was she going to do?  It's not like she had a plan B or anyone else to turn to.

A refreshing coolness on her forehead as Buffy brushed back her hair and at her side as she sat down on the bench beside her brought Willow out of her distressing moment of collapse.  "Angel will be okay, Will. He's strong and even though you guys can't be together right now, he knows you'll always be there for him.  You do what you have to do, don't worry about my feelings, or Xander's feelings, or anyone else's. And don't worry about Faith, I'll keep an eye on her and if she can't be trusted, you'll know right away."

"Thanks."  Willow smiled at Buffy.  She felt a little calmer.  She had needed that pep talk from her best friend.  It was difficult to think about a time when she wouldn't be able to rely on Buffy for support, this ghostly assistance couldn't last forever.  Willow held out her hand, palm up.  Buffy's hand hovered over it for a moment before she allowed it to sink into Willow's in a strangely comforting embrace.

*****

The soft whoosh of the bedroom door brushing across the carpet woke Angel immediately.  With the gypsy and Spike both under the same roof, his senses were on red alert.  Hell, he didn't even trust Faith, although if it had been her in his room, he doubted that killing him would have been the first thing on her agenda.  Angel sat up as the door closed and the room darkened again.  It didn't matter, he already knew who his late night/early morning visitor was.  Her presence and scent were unmistakable.

"Angel?" Willow called out softly as she made her way to his bed.  She climbed onto the mattress and crawled over to him.  "I need you." She punctuated her declaration by running a hand up his bare chest and kissing his neck.  Angel's arms closed around her.  He rested one hand on her butt and the other he used to stroke her back.  She was wearing a dark colored silky thing that wasn't going to last very long.  His fingers dug into the frictionless material.

Something was wrong.  He should be saying something, not encouraging her.  They couldn't be doing this, the ring reacted to the simplest of kisses.  Why wasn't the ring reacting?  Angel certainly was.  The familiarly warm, pleasurable tension was spreading through his body as Willow kissed down his chest.  Her tongue teased each of his nipples in turn and her hand strayed toward the blankets pooled in his lap.  He really should say something to stop her.

Instead Angel leaned back against the headboard to allow Willow more access.  His fingers gathered up Willow's slinky nightgown, gliding the hemline up and baring her thighs and buttocks until it was bunched around her waist.  This was a mistake.  Angel had no idea why the ring wasn't burning Willow's hand to a crisp, but it had to be a trap.  If they took this any further, Willow could die.

Again his hands ignored the rational pleas resounding in his mind. They explored the tempting flesh of Willow's thighs like their signals to move weren't coming from his brain.  Completely unaware of his dilemma, Willow worked her way to his abdomen.  Her fingertips brushed the head of his rapidly swelling penis on their way to his testicles. She fondled and squeezed them.  Angel had an idea what was prompting Willow's seductive actions.  She had to be enthralled by the geis. She wasn't thinking clearly.

Even with his assumed knowledge, it didn't stop him from growling in frustration when Willow paused.  She looked up at him.  "I love you, Angel."  In a fevered bid to convince him of the sincerity of her words, Willow clambered up his chest and kissed him soundly.  Angel took the opportunity of having her laid out on top of him to slip his fingers into her moist folds and up inside her.  His thumb massaged her clitoris, causing Willow to break off her kiss with a gaspy moan. He hadn't participated in her sweet plundering of his mouth, which was weird because there was nothing Angel loved more than to kiss Willow.  Her tempting red lips were slightly parted and glistening from when her tongue had darted out to wet them.  Her eyes were closed.  She was so damn beautiful.

Willow rocked against him, moving in concert with his fingers. Abruptly, Angel removed his fingers from within her and rested his hand on her hip.  Willow's eyes blinked open in surprise.  Finally, he was showing some sense and putting an end to this wonderful, but dangerous behavior.  Angel folded Willow's delicate hand in his own and lifted it to his lips to kiss her fingertips.  Now he could tell her how much he loved her, that they could wait until everything was resolved before they acted on their feelings and then he could go take a cold shower.

He guided her hand back down to his throbbing erection.  Willow grasped his hard shaft, running her thumb up and down the length of it.  Her touch was both awesome and perplexing.  It was strange.  Not the way Willow was touching him or the fact that she was in his bed, but her motivation for being there at all.  She knew the consequences as well as he did and she wouldn't be taking this risk.  Willow wouldn't throw her life away for a chance to...what?  Have one night of perfect, mind blowing sex?  No, she wouldn't do that and neither would he.  This whole situation, the way she was acting, the way he was acting, it was like a dream.

It was a dream.  That would explain why the ring was suddenly dormant and why his actions didn't parallel his thoughts.  Angel mentally relaxed.  This was just a very good dream and now that he knew that, he could enjoy it.

Once the nagging of his brain was quiet, Angel could concentrate on the delightful sensations Willow was producing with her hands, lips, and tongue.  While her fingers continued in their artful manipulation of his aching member, she caressed his groin with her mouth.  In wide, arching sweeps her tongue anointed his sensitive flesh.  With her movements, her hair tickled his testicles.  Angel reached down and wove his fingers through the soft strands, sweeping it off her face. Using gentle force, he guided her toward his aching cock.  He needed her so badly.

This time, Willow didn't hesitate or tease, she took the head of Angel's penis in her mouth and slithered her tongue down the shaft. She sucked lightly at first, but soon increased the vacuum pressure. Her hands took care of the parts her mouth neglected, squeezing and stroking the rest of the shaft and cupping his balls.  It felt incredible.  In the back of his mind, Angel recognized the technique, a barmaid at his favorite tavern - Meghan, Madeleine? - had been very practiced at this particular art, but she had never elicited the response this dream Willow was.  He wanted to come, but held himself back because he also wanted to continue to experience this as long as possible.  Willow nibbled down the underside of the shaft, grazing his skin with her teeth.  Eventually, she reached the ultra-sensitive spot at the base where his penis met his testicles.  After a preliminary lick, she clamped onto it with her mouth and sucked hard.

It was too much, Angel roughly pulled Willow's head away from him, dragged her up and flipped her over onto her back.  Willow's breath left her with a soft "oof" and then was taken back into her lungs with a gasp when Angel parted her legs and entered her.  This once pleasurable dream was taking on a disturbing tone.  His actions were showing a decided lack of concern for Willow's welfare.  He was hurting her for his own enjoyment.  The slowly dawning realization that there could be another reason for his disassociated state was confirmed when he heard himself say, "Not bad, Witch, I should have skipped the Slayer and went straight to you the moment I came back all those years ago.  I believe a counterpart of yours once made a comment about riding humans like ponies.  I like that idea."

Angelus - not Angel, he knew that for certain now - nuzzled at Willow's throat as he began thrusting into her with long, slow strokes.  His hand reached between them and he massaged her clit.  Willow moaned, but it ended in a whimper as Angelus' fangs pierced her skin and pressed into her jugular vein.  Although his heart was breaking, Angel couldn't help but be aroused by the taste of Willow's blood in his mouth and the spasming clutch of her muscles as she orgasmed under him. Her fingernails dug into the back of his shoulders.

As Willow died from the blood loss, the fluttering of her muscles weakened and the pressure of her fingernails abated.  Angelus finished feeding and raised his head to look down at her as he continued to plunge into her body.  Her lovely green eyes that used to sparkle with life were now glazed over.  Her hand fell from his shoulder and dangled limply over the edge of the bed.  Angel turned his head and focused on it, unable to look into her eyes anymore.  The fidelity ring slipped from her finger and with a small "ping" it hit the floor and rolled under the bed.  He glanced back at Willow.  The light was steadily leaving her eyes.  Angelus reached out and stroked her cheek.  "You're all mine now."  He lifted his arm back up and ripped open an artery with his fang.  Then he held it out to Willow.  At first, the blood just dripped into her mouth and down her throat, a passive gift of eternal life.  It was when he felt Willow's mouth latch onto his arm and actively seek out his gift that he found his release.  Angelus came into Willow as she began her new life and both of their souls left them.

*****

"God dammit, Peaches, make up your bloody mind!" Spike slammed into Angel's room.  Angel sat up in bed, awake, but still disoriented. "Either it's a good dream or a bad dream, but keep it to yourself.  If you don't keep it down, I'll beat the hell out of you.  Just because beauty sleep won't help you, it doesn't mean the rest of us have to skip it."

"I killed Willow."  Angel stared into the darkened room with the image of Willow's dying eyes burned in his brain.  He would never forget it. "Angelus killed Willow and when the ring fell off, he turned her."

"Cut the gibberish.  Willow's not dead or undead.  I saw her myself just a moment ago, rushing down the hallway.  She was a bit grey and pasty, but I heard her walk out the front door, right out into the sunshine."  Spike turned the lights on and Angel blinked at him.  His words penetrated the sleepy fog hanging over his cognitive processes. It had been a dream.  Willow was okay.  And upset.

"I have to talk to her.  Where did she go?"  Angel was almost certain that Willow had experienced the same dream he had.  Her dream self had been too real to be just a figment of his imagination.

"Do I look like a bloody nursemaid?" Spike started to walk out the door, but curiosity got the better of him and he turned back.  "What exactly is going on here, Angel?"

Angel got out of bed and pulled on a pair of pants.  He thought about Spike's question.  "It has to be the geis.  It's linked up our dreams." Angel grabbed a shirt and pulled it over his head.

"And a hell of a dream it sounded like.  What was it about?"

Angel grimaced.  "I only want to go through this once.  I have to find Willow."

"Sounds like a damn fine plan.  You run right out and do that.  I would hold the door for you, but I'm light sensitive."

This couldn't wait until sundown or until Willow came back.  Angel felt a compelling urgency to see her.  He felt perilously close to losing everything before he truly had it.  Angel grabbed his childe by the scruff of his neck.  "Oh, I'm sure there's a more shady exit to this place or else you wouldn't be staying here.  Take me to it."

*****

Once again Willow found herself seeking refuge with Giles, only this time he was at his magic shop.  Cold sweat dripped down her neck and every muscle quivered.  She could still feel Angelus' fangs in her neck, feel her blood pumping from her body as she shuddered from the intensity of her orgasm.  All of these things upset her, but the thing that had shaken her the most was that she hadn't been asleep when she experienced the dream.  Somehow Angel's sleeping nightmare had infiltrated her waking thoughts and taken over.  Willow had had no control over it.

"Willow, you're here bright and early," Giles greeted her when she walked into the shop.  "Cordelia, Faith and I have just begun researching the ring and the geis.  Angel gave Cordelia the specifics of the spell he used...." He trailed off as he noticed her pallor.

"Did it mention anything about being able to invade my thoughts?" Willow looked at Cordelia, who shook her head.

"What do you mean 'invade your thoughts?'  What happened?"

Willow sat down on one of the comfy browsing chairs in the reading circle Giles had provided for his customers, but were more often than not used by the Scooby gang.  Two of the others were occupied by Faith and Cordelia, each with a book open in their laps.  Giles took a seat beside Willow.

"Wow, Red, you look like you've seen a gh..." Faith didn't finish her sentence.  She buried her nose back in the book instead.

"I had a dream, or rather Angel had a dream and I watched it.  I was in the bathroom, doing bathroom things, when all of a sudden I was dreaming, only it wasn't my dream, it was Angel's.  I couldn't stop it or change what was happening.  I just had to watch."

Giles signaled for Cordelia to get a book that was on a shelf a few feet away.  "What sort of dream was it?  What happened in the dream?"

"It was horrible.  Wonderful.  Awful.  Angel and I were...being intimate, but he started acting strangely and very un-Angel and that was because he wasn't Angel, he was Angelus.  He bit me and drained me and made me drink his blood.  Our souls left us.  They were gone." Willow finally gulped down a breath.  "But that can't happen, right, Giles?  Because I'm immortal and Angelus wouldn't be able to kill me to turn me.  Right?"

Willow hated to hear the cowardly pleading in her tone, but she needed Giles' confirmation.  He would tell her that she was safe from Angelus and it would be true.  "I don't know, Willow.  You are immortal, but you do technically die for a time until your body repairs itself.  It may be possible that you could be turned, although I'm not sure if you would lose your soul.  Cordelia, could you bring me that damn book, please?"

Not exactly the answer Willow wanted to hear.  What if the dream was a premonition?  What if it was Angelus's evil plan leaking into her and Angel's unconscious?  "Angelus is going to kill me."

"No, he's not."  Cordelia brought the book that she had taken her sweet time getting and handed it to Giles.  "I have something to tell you and you have to promise to not be mad."

"I promise."

"Okay, see, Angel just did this to protect you.  I thought it was a stupid plan, but I couldn't think of a better one and it's worked so far except for the scaring you part.  Angelus isn't going to hurt you, Willow.  He can't, because there is no Angelus.  Angel was faking so you would stay close to him and he wouldn't lose you to the fidelity ring's spell."

*****

The door leading from the basement to the magic shop creaked when it opened so Angel and Spike's appearance was no surprise for the group gathered there.  Angel knew something was wrong.  When Cordelia looked at him, she had a defiant, defensive tilt to her chin.  When Willow looked at him... She didn't look at him.  Her gaze passed through him like a ghost.  She had experienced the dream.  "Willow, I would never do...."

"What?" Willow interrupted him, suddenly angry.  "You would never make my worst nightmare come true as part of some game you've got going with the gypsy's that cursed you?  You would never treat me like the grand prize?"

"No, Willow, that's not how it was.  I told you that Angel only pretended to be Angelus to protect you.  Everything he's been doing is for you.  He loves you.  You're the one who married the gypsy!" Cordelia jumped to Angel's defense, probably because she felt more than a little guilty for telling Willow his secret.  Willow knew.  And she was angry.  But once they talked and he explained, she would see why he had to do it.  She would understand.

"How was Angelus going to protect me?  By turning me into a vampire? Do you know that I still have nightmares about him grabbing me that time in the school?  How could you do this to me, Angel?"

"I couldn't see any other way.  I couldn't leave you with him."  Willow would understand.  She would understand.  "He will hurt you."

"More than you?  I don't think that's possible." The bottom dropped out of Angel's world.  She didn't understand.  She never would and he had ruined any chance they had of being together.  He had interfered with her life.  He had terrorized her.  "I think you should go back to L. A., Angel.  I never want to see you again.  I hate you." Willow turned from him and walked out of the magic shop.

No one said anything.  There were no sarcastic sidebars from Spike, no criticisms from Giles, and no sympathetic comments from Cordelia and Faith.  Just silence.  And emptiness.  Willow had walked out on him. She was going to go back to her husband, the Gypsy.

"Okay, that wasn't supposed to happen.  She promised she wouldn't get mad." Cordelia walked over to him and hugged him.  Angel automatically wrapped his arms around her.  He didn't feel anything.  He never would again.  

^~Part Twelve^~

As soon as the bright daylight warmed her skin, Willow started to run. She didn't know where she was going. She wasn't crying. She wasn't trembling or shaking or sweating or any of the other things she had been doing since this whole mess started. It was time for that to stop. It was that kind of behavior that made Angel think he had to protect her. Willow cringed as she thought about what she had said to him. She didn't hate Angel. She hated herself. This was all her fault and in a moment of weakness she had blamed it all on Angel.

Willow slowed to a walk. She had to find a solution, she couldn't wait for Faith to get close to Casimir. She had to resolve things now before it got worse. Oh, who was she kidding, it couldn't get worse. She had broken Angel's heart before it had even been completely healed after his break up with Buffy. What she had done was unconscionable. What Angel had done was terrible too, pretending to be Angelus, but it's not like he could have known why it would upset her so much. Angelus was a horrible nightmare that terrified her, but not for the reason Angel would think. Willow was so mad at him for bringing back those awful memories, but she didn't hate him. If she were really honest with herself, she would also acknowledge that it wasn't the terror that she had felt that made the memories awful. It was the desire.

When Willow had first met Angel, Xander was the only male being who existed in her mind. She had thought that Angel was handsome of course, and perfect for Buffy, but really nothing beyond that until Angelus had shown up. Xander's relationship with Cordelia had shattered her girlish fantasies and Oz hadn't become a romantic factor yet. Angelus had held her close to him in a way she hadn't been held before, his touch had awakened less innocent dreams that hadn't involved her heart. Every encounter had revealed a darker aspect to her personality, a sensuality that had scared her. And she couldn't even tell her best friend about all these new feeling rolling around inside her.

After Angel had come back, her lust for him hadn't gone away as she had hoped it would. Willow had known he was back long before Buffy had seen fit to divulge it, but she had tried to convince herself that she was wrong. That the pull she had felt toward the mansion was in her imagination. That the dreams had been wishful thinking. In her efforts to forget about her phantom Angel, she had turned her lust back onto her childhood crush and so the infamous smoochie affair with Xander had begun. That had only led to disaster. Despite Buffy's devastation, Willow had been relieved when Angel had left for Los Angeles. It was easier to put the erotic dreams she had of him in the back of her mind when she didn't have to see him every day.

With a sigh, Willow looked up to take note of where she was, there was no use dwelling on the recent or distant past. Ironically, after that thought, she found herself standing in front of Xander's childhood home. The front yard was overgrown with weeds and the house sorely needed to be restuccoed. Nothing has changed. No one was home. That hadn't changed either. On a nostalgic whim, Willow picked her way through the tangled jungle of Xander's ex-yard until she had reached the back. A rusty tin shed sat in a corner of the backyard and leaned up against it were a few planks of plywood with a ratty old blanket covering the opening. It had been her, Jesse, and Xander's idea of a fort. The official meeting place of the I Hate Cordelia Club. Willow pushed aside the moth-eaten and moldy blanket and crawled into the small, sheltered space. It was cozy. She curled up into a ball, resting her head on her knees. God, she wished she were eight.

"You know, I should have moved into here instead of the basement. Could have knocked out the wall, expanded into the shed."

"He hates me, Xander." Willow didn't raise her head or explain further. Since Xander was here and Buffy had promised to keep an eye on things, she figured he knew what was going on.

"Angel doesn't hate you. Much as the whole situation gives me the jeebies, he loves you. If I were alive, I would stake him for it."

"I hurt him. I told him I hated him for pretending to be Angelus. I broke his heart. He won't ever trust me enough to give it to me again." Willow finally looked up. Xander sat across from her, curled in much the same position. She wished he could hold her. She needed to be held.

In answer to her unspoken plea, Xander reached out and pulled her into his arms. He was solid. Willow rested her head against his chest and closed her eyes. She was so tired. This was nice. She didn't have to think about anything. Not Casimir and whatever he had planned for her. Not Angelus and how he made her feel. And certainly not Angel and how much he must hate her right now. "Deadboy would be monumentally stupid not to give you his heart, Wills. You're the best, most wonderful person alive. Definitely unhateable. I love you, Willow," Xander whispered as she fell asleep.

*****

It felt exactly like dying. His head was light and all of his senses seemed detached from his body. Angel could hear Cordelia's profuse apologies and declarations to never interfere again, but his mind couldn't process the actual words. Willow was lost to him. Her anger would separate them, giving the Gypsy and his damnable ring the chance they needed. Willow would fall under their spell. "Willow's going to love him forever," Angel heard his toneless voice say. It didn't hurt to say it. At the moment, having a cement block smashed into his skull wouldn't hurt.

"Bullshit." Faith's harsh word snapped Angel back to the edges of reality. "That's bullshit. Willow doesn't even like the guy. The only reason why she married him was because he threatened to hurt Buffy and Xander."

"Buffy and Xander are dead," Giles informed Faith with a harsh bark. He turned away from them and faced a bookcase, taking out books and reshelving them with staccato-like proficiency. "I would appreciate it if you refrained from using them in whatever scheme you've concocted to gain Angel's favor."

Panic entered Faith's eyes. A panic Angel immediately recognized. She was afraid of losing the trust she had gained back from the people she had once betrayed. "I'm not scheming. I..I shouldn't have said anything. I didn't mean it."

"Yes, you did." Angel broke away from Cordelia's protective grasp and walked over to Faith. He grabbed her arms more forcefully than he had intended. "What did Willow tell you? Why did she marry Kalendash?"

"Why would Willow tell me anything?" Faith offered weakly. She was lying. Willow had confided something to her.

"Casimir Kalendash has the spell Willow used to strengthen the permanent soul restoration," Buffy answered for the other slayer. She appeared behind Faith. "The paper it's written on was soaked in Xander's and my blood. I was supposed to go to L. A. with it that night, it was in my pocket. He threatened to damn our souls if Willow didn't marry him."

Everything clicked into place. Of course Willow would offer herself to protect her best friends. He just hadn't counted on the Gypsy being cagey enough to use friends that were dead. Damn! He should have thought of this before. Why else would Xander and Buffy still be hanging around? "Why didn't you tell about this earlier?"

"Well, for one thing, it wasn't really my place. I wanted Willow to tell you. This soulmate thing isn't going to go very far if she doesn't trust you. As I recall, that was our biggest problem. If you don't count the whole vampire/slayer, 'I was born to kill you' thing. Of course, I also didn't realize that you were playing Angelus mind games."

Forgetting her earlier vows to never interfere in his life again, Cordelia piped up with her opinion. "I knew this was a bad idea. Didn't I say this Angelus charade was a bad, creepy idea?"

"And then you changed your mind and told me to fight dirty," Angel countered.

"That's good advice," Buffy interrupted before Cordelia could mount a defense. "And here's some more - kill him."

"I can't. If Kalendash dies by the hand of Willow's lover, the ring will punish us both by taking her life."

Buffy frowned with this new information. She half turned toward Spike, but he cut her off before she even opened her mouth. "Don't even look at me, Blondie. Bloody chip you and soldier boy thought best to keep in my head takes me out of the killing fun."

"But he's evil."

"And human. Forget it, slayer, I can't kill the bastard, much as I would like too, or else it would already be done," Spike grudgingly admitted.

"I can," Faith volunteered. "Like B said, he's evil, so he falls into the slaying category even if he's human."

This was what his grand plan to protect Willow had degenerated into, a debate on who could or could not kill the gypsy. "I can't ask you to do that, Faith. You're just starting to work your way back and killing the Gypsy could jeopardize your progress with the Council. Right, Giles?" Angel turned to the watcher for support, but found that he was in no condition to lend it. Giles clutched a book to his chest, his stunned gaze focused on the specter of his former slayer and nothing else. Angel doubted that he had heard a word anyone had said after Buffy had appeared. "Giles," he prompted again.

"What?" Giles dropped his book. He finally tore his eyes from Buffy and looked at Angel in bewilderment.

"Faith just offered to kill Kalendash."

"What! No, you can't do that...."

"Why not?" Buffy interrupted. "Faith is the Slayer. Kalendash killed an innocent witch so he could steal her power to conjure that thing that killed me and Xander. Then he had his family tell Willow she was cursed so she would be alienated from the rest of her friends and he could trick her into marrying him and steal her magic. This guy is evil. He's totally slayable."

"And he's human. Given Faith's previous troubles, it would be best not to put her in that position."

"You don't trust me. You think if I kill this guy, I'll go gonzo again." Faith stuck her chin out in defiance.

This was getting them no where. Angel felt this overwhelming need to have the Gypsy out of Willow's life by tomorrow. He had already lost Willow's love and any chance of a life of happiness with her, but he'd be damned if he left her in the clutches of the Gypsy. "The only way the Gypsy dies is when I kill him. After that ring is off Willow's finger. If she even wants that now." Angel ran a hand through his hair. "I have to go find her, make she's okay."

"She is," Buffy assured him. "She's with Xander."

"Where?"

"I don't know. I just know he's with her. And I think maybe you should give her a little time to cool off and sort things out. She'll come back to you once she's had time to think."

"She'll come back, but it won't be to me." Angel saw the pity in Buffy's eyes and he knew she realized he was right. Of everybody, Buffy was the one who understood that Angelus was an obstacle that love couldn't overcome. Buffy hadn't been able to forget and he hadn't even been completely responsible for Angelus' actions then. He was responsible for this. He had been in control when he had deliberately tormented Willow with Angelus' face and words.

"Well, you obviously need some Alone-in-my-Brooding time." Cordelia broke the silence. "Why don't you go wander the sewers, or find some other dark, dank, place suitable to mope. Buffy and Giles, find some quiet place to sort out your Slayer/Watcher, Dead/Alive guilt and emotional goo. I'll go call Wesley and Gunn to see how things are going in L. A. and if they've had any luck finding out anything about the Kalendash or the fidelity ring. Spike, Faith, go do whatever you do when you're not causing trouble." Cordelia gave Angel a decisive push toward the basement door.

Angel left them without protest. He closed the door behind him and leaned against it as relief flooded through him. Years of seeking solace in solitude had made it difficult to be around people when he was upset. He loved the people in the other room, they were his family - even Spike in a weird, twisted way - but they couldn't help him.

"I don't cause trouble." Angel heard Faith grumble from the other side of the door.

"I do," was Spike's reply. "As much as I can, anyway."

That was all Angel stuck around to hear. He descended into the cool, dark basement that soothed his soul and, perversely, his demon as well. He needed to think of a way to fix things with Willow. To at least regain her friendship if not her love and trust. And if another creature of the night happened to be lurking along his path and interrupted his thoughts, then he'd crush its spine. He needed that too.

*****

Willow wasn't sure what disturbed her more, the fact that she was dead or that it wasn't a dream. It was a memory. Angel's memory. And to be fair, it wasn't really her, it was the Other-her, Vampire Willow as they had dubbed her. Actually, she knew exactly what disturbed her the most and it was watching Angel run his hands over her Other's body after he pinned her up against the bars of the metal book cage in the old highschool library.

This must have happened while they had all left to find the appropriate spell to send the Other back to her world. They had left her with Angel, figuring that he would be the best one to handle her. And that's exactly what he was doing. His mouth sampled the taste of the expanse of pale flesh offered by the tight, low-cut leather blouse. Willow remembered how constricted yet strangely liberated the outfit had made her feel. Angel's fingers nimbly loosened the laces of the leather bodice, exposing her vampire double's breasts to his roving lips, before moving down to her waist and sliding between her thighs to cup her. The Other bucked against his hand, rattling the handcuffs that suspended her arms over her head against the bars. Her throaty moan covered the sound. Angel kept his eyes tightly closed. He concentrated on the taste of her skin and tried to ignore the coolness of her flesh. This was Willow. His Willow.

The stubborn assertions rang through Willow's mind, surprising her. This was what Angel had been thinking during his sexcapade with her Other. He had been pretending it was her, not giving in to vampire lust. But that was silly, Angel hadn't thought of her like that back then. He had loved Buffy. She had been Buffy's bookish, shy best friend. He hadn't wanted her in that way. He couldn't have.

"Willow," Angel moaned against the vampire's breast. "My dear, sweet, lovely Willow. So beautiful." His mouth traveled up her neck as he unzipped her pants and slipped his fingers into the wet folds. Her Other snarled and vamped. Angel nuzzled the side of her neck, his face shifting as well.

Her Other smiled when she felt the change in his features. She leaned in and purred into his ear, "Yes, Puppy, bite. Bite." That's not what Angel wanted to hear. He pulled away instantly and stepped back from her. Other Willow pouted contritely, but her eyes held that knowing gleam of mischief. "I'm sorry. Did I say the wrong thing? Does your Willow not like it when you bite?"

"I...I don't bite her." Angel cast his eyes down to the floor. What had he almost done? God, he wanted her, but not her...Willow. His sweet, delicate, strong, fierce, brave, beautiful Willow had looked magnificent dressed in her double's clothes. He hadn't been able to keep his eyes off her. But he couldn't have her. She was Buffy's best friend and she would always only see him as Buffy's on again/off again boyfriend. She would never belong to him.

"That's not the only thing you don't do to her," the Other Willow commented, bringing Angel's attention back to her. "Why not? She's yours just as Puppy is mine." Angel just shook his head in response. "Yes, you just have to claim her. Make her yours. Make her like me."

Angel winced and so did Willow as she felt his overwhelming disgust at the idea. "I could never make her a soulless monster like you."

The Other shrugged. "You're not soulless and it would be your blood that sired her. Maybe she wouldn't be soulless either. You could be together forever, long after the Slayer is a distant memory for you both."

Willow opened her eyes. Orange light from the setting sun slanted through the gaps of the lean-to. She was alone. She must have been asleep for hours. This time having Angel's thoughts in her head wasn't as terrifying. For one thing, there had been no hint of Angelus and for another, Willow had finally gotten the message. Whoever or whatever had made her privy to Angel's dream and memory of a past encounter with her vampire double, had done it for a reason. She now knew what she had to do. She had her solution. This would all be over by morning.

The sun slipped a bit further down into the horizon and the orange slats shifted. Willow crawled out of the haven she had found and stood up, stretching. A last lingering part of Angel's memory stirred her curiosity. When the Other had suggested that turning her might be different because he had a soul, Angel had been tempted. Yes, Willow would definitely have to ask him about that someday.

^~Part Thirteen^~

It wasn't difficult to find Spike, he was at Willy's bar trying to start a fight and get drunk. It had been harder sneaking into Giles' magic shop to get the book with the spell she needed. Willow slid into the stool beside Spike. "Shouldn't I be the one getting drunk in a bar, considering the fact that I'm married to a man who wants to steal my magic and kill me and in love with a vampire who pretends to be evil to protect me?"

"You are absolutely right, Luv. Barkeep, give the lady a double. She's got to catch up." Spike slapped the counter and gulped back what little there was left in the whiskey glass in front of him. "And another for me as well."

Willow shook her head slightly so the bartender would know that she didn't want him to pour the ordered drinks. "Acutally, I was hoping that we could go someplace quieter. I need to talk about things."

Without even one salacious remark or suggestive leer, Spike stood up. He tottered a bit, but he managed to keep his balance. "Let's go." He threw some money down on the counter and escorted Willow out of the bar.

Now that she had Spike alone, Willow was nervous. They were heading back to her house, but they couldn't go there. Too many people had free rein of the place. The last thing she needed was to have Angel or Faith walk in while she was doing the spell. The wrought iron gates of the Courageous Light cemetary caught Willow's attention. She grabbed Spike's hand and pulled him through them. "I want to visit Buffy and Xander."

"I thought you wanted to talk, Red," Spike whined, but still followed. "About Angel and I can handle a discussion about his deficencies, but you're not going to talk about them, are you? Because if you are, I could just go back to the bar...." Spike's threat was cut off as Willow abruptly yanked him into a newly built stone crypt. "Whoa, what the hell are you doing? This isn't the last resting place of Buffy and Xander...."

Again Willow interrupted him, but only because if she didn't catch him off guard, she didn't think he would let her do it. Willow pressed her lips to his and mumbled under her breath so that he couldn't make out what she was saying. "I use this kiss to establish the nexus through which was borrowed shall be returned."

Spike pushed her back gently, breaking the embrace. "Look, Willow, a year ago - okay let's be honest - ever since I kidnapped you and tried to make you do that love spell, something like this would have made me a very happy vampire, but there's Anya now. Not to mention my sodding grandsire. He'd stake me without thinking twice about it if I shagged you."

"I don't want to have sex with you, Spike." Willow stepped back. She lit a torch on the wall of the crypt and took the small, leather bound spellbook from her pocket. She had found the spell when she been looking for the spell strengthening ritual. She hadn't mentioned it to anyone since it hadn't been relevant at the time, but she'd filed it habitually into the back of her mind, just in case it would be needed. Tonight she needed it. May Spike forgive her. "I want you to turn me."

Anyone else would have been shocked or scandalized by her request, but not Spike. He merely looked intrigued and suddenly sober. "You know I can't do that. Turning involves biting, which involves harming you, which I can't do. Why the sudden determination to have fangs?"

Willow didn't answer. Instead she opened the book to the appropriate page marked by a thin stilletto daggar. She quickly scanned the spell in an uneeded attempt to refresh her memory. She could do this. "You don't have to bite me. I'm offering it." The daggar bit into the soft flesh of her arm as she opened up the vien. She held up her arm, blood dripping from it onto the grey marble floor.

Spike's nostrils flared and his eyes glazed over. Willow knew he hadn't tasted fresh human blood since the chip had been installed. He wouldn't be able to resist it, she was counting on it. Spike took a step toward her, fixated on her bleeding arm. Almost hesitantly he reached out and slid a finger along the wound and then lifted it to his mouth. He closed his eyes as he savored the taste. Spike was still for so long, Willow started to think she was wrong, that he wouldn't be overcome by temptation. The book with the spell slipped from her slack fingers and she swayed on her feet. The loss of blood made her head tingly. Willow tried to step back, but Spike caught her as her knees gave out. She looked up into his yellow eyes and watched with detached fascination as his fangs sank into her open wound. The sound of slurping became so entrancing that Willow almost forgot to utter the words of the spell.

"My blood is the connection. I call the demon inside to me. Possess my body, but leave my soul free." Willow's eyes fluttered closed and her breathing slowed until it finally stopped.

*****

He was in the sewer beneath the Bronze. The thrumming bass beat of the music made an excellent tempo for beating in the skull of a Yanic demon. The stout, but surprisingly fast, clay colored demon was the last of the trio that Angel had run across in his wanderings of the sewer system of Sunnydale. They had been about to chow down on a small puppy when Angel had interrupted them. It wasn't exactly evil in epic proportions, but he had needed the tension breaker.

The Yanic's thick skull finally shattered, spattering mud-like brain matter onto the concrete ledge. Angel stood up. The Yanics had been distracting, but their deaths hadn't satisfied him. There was only one death that would satisfy him, one kill that he craved - Casimir Kalendash. Once he was dead, it was possible that Willow would forgive him for the Angelus charade. Once her mind was no longer clouded by the ring, she might understand. Of course, her mind would still be under the influence of the geis. It would keep her with him even if she didn't want to be there.

Angel leaned against the wall. He was a total bastard. If he was really honest with himself, he would have to admit that he wasn't much better than the Gypsy. For a moment, Angel mistook the searing pain in his chest for guilt and regret,but it soon became all too familiar. The white-hot pulse intensified, knocking him to his knees. With a snarl, he briefly shifted to vampire form. It was all over. Because of his selfish behavior, The Powers That Be had decided that he wasn't worthy of a soul. god, he hoped they had the wisdom and mercy to kill him as well. The thought of what Angelus would do to his beloved Saileach was the last thing on Angel's mind as he finally passed out.

*****

It was strange coming back to life and not being alone in her own body. Willow also knew immediately that the spell hadn't worked the way she had intended. It wasn't Spike's demon that currently resided inside her, it was Angelus. Willow's eyes opened. Spike hovered over her, his vampire face gone, worry etched into his features instead.

"Willow, Luv, you're okay. You had me worried. What the hell were you trying to do? I could have killed you! I did kill you." Spike wiped at the blood still freshly smeared around his lips. She hadn't been dead for very long.

Willow's lips curved into a smirk. "It's obviously been a while for you, William. I would hardly call what you did killing." The words tumbled from her lips and Willow couldn't stop them. She also couldn't stop her hands from shoving Spike back onto his ass and her legs from standing her up. "Yer a poor excuse fer a vampire. Ya finally get rid off the wheels only to pick up a chip in the brain that makes ya useless."

The Irish brogue in her voice caused Spike to quickly regain his feet and put more distance between them. "Angelus?"

She didn't have control. Willow needed control of her body and the demon. She hadn't expected to control Angelus. She couldn't control Angelus. Panic ripped through her and the accompanying adrenaline pushed the demon back. Willow quickly used the advantage to envision chains wrapped tightly around the demon. It worked. "Spike, I'm sorry. That wasn't me...."

"You're bloody well right it wasn't you. What the fuck did you do?" Spike stayed at the far end of crypt from her. His eyes didn't leave her and he looked like he expected her to strike at him like a cobra. There was nothing she could do to reverse what had happened. She should have known that her bond with Angel and the fact that he had also drank from her would prove stronger and that the ritual would call to his demon instead of Spike's. Willow could feel Angelus straining against the mental chains. They wouldn't last long and Willow didn't want to waste Angelus' energy on Spike. She needed to have control of the demon if he was going to do what she wanted.

"I'm sorry. It wasn't supposed to happen like this, my bond with Angel was stronger. I have to go." Willow rushed from the crypt and darted behind the caretaker's shed. She waited there long enough to make sure that Spike wasn't going to follow her before heading back toward her house. Casimir would show up eventually and when he did, she had to be firmly in command.

A slight snap, like a rubber band breaking, stilled Willow's footsteps. The rapidly darkening night went silent except for the occassional trill of a night bird and the rustle of small animals in the bushes. Underneath that, Willow could detect the rush of their ever-pumping warm blood and further away she could discern the same sound, only coming from a much larger prey. Willow resumed her journey. Her husband was in for a rude awakening and he would pay with his life for what he did to her. And maybe, if she was lucky, one of the others would show up and they could pay for interrupting her. She hoped it would be Faith. Slayer's blood would hit the spot right about now.

*****

The pounding of the music overhead was accompanied by the similar pounding pulse of blood moving through Angel's normally dormant circulatory system.  He wasn't dead.  Literally.  Angel sat up and immediately wished that he hadn't as pain lanced up his spine to his brain stem.  His fingers and toes tingled from the rush of blood.  He took a deep breath.  He was alive.  How the hell did that happen?

"Angel!  Angel!" Cordelia's panicked yells echoed through the sewers.

"Over here," Angel called back as he stood up cautiously.  No pain beyond the pinpricks needling up his legs as the blood flowed unrestricted.  This couldn't be what the scrolls had promised him - his humanity.  It was too soon.  And the way the demon had been ripped from him...just like his soul had been after that one night with Buffy. The Gypsy.  It was another gypsy curse.  Kalendash was behind this and whatever he wanted with the demon, it couldn't be good.

"Angel," Cordelia gasped as she rounded the corner and spotted him. "Willow...Spike...vision...bad vision." Cordelia grabbed his hand and dragged him to the nearest exit up into the street.  She didn't notice the uncharacteristic warmth of his hand or complain about the sewer sludge clinging to her new shoes.  Bad vision might have been an understatement.

"Willow?" Angel hefted himself out of the sewer.  He had forgotten how weak his body was when he was human compared to his vampire self.  If Willow really needed him, he couldn't save her like this.  "What's going to happen?"

"Deja vu, if we don't hurry." Cordelia pulled Angel to his feet.  She hauled him down the street at a brisk pace.  "Only this time the skank with fangs will be Willow and not some carbon copy from a parallel universe."

They were heading toward one of the newer cemeteries in Sunnydale.  The one where Buffy and Xander rested.  "Spike...Spike wouldn't do that... he can't." Angel fought for air.  Breathing and keeping up with Cordelia was difficult.

"Well, from what I saw in my vision, he found a way." Cordelia paused for a moment while she surveyed her surroundings.  "It was the usual crazy flashes, but I clearly saw Spike snacking on Willow's arm and then Willow with a bad complexion and in dire need of an orthodontist. They were in some crypt thing.  Like that one!" Cordelia grabbed the lapel of Angel's jacket and pulled him to the open door of a crypt. Flickering light spilled out onto well tended lawn around it.

The closer they got to the crypt, the more the fear twisted and writhed inside of him.  What was he going to do?  If Spike had somehow overcome the effects of the chip, how was he going to stop him like this?  He couldn't.  That had to be Kalendash's plan.  Angel couldn't protect Willow and Angelus certainly couldn't make good on his threat to kill the Gypsy.  Even as the doubts and insecurities battered him, Angel still followed Cordelia through the open door of the crypt.  He would think of something.  He would bluff his way through it if that's what it took to save Willow.

She wasn't there.  One look around the mid-sized room built for the dead told him that.  Spike sat on a large stone burial tomb reading a book.  Hardly the picture of a frenzied demon who had just attacked his best friend.  Blood droplets stained the floor in front of him.  Angel inhaled, but his dulled senses told him nothing.

"You!" Cordelia pointed an accusing finger at Spike. "What have you done?"

Spike looked up.  "She made me.  Can't blame a vampire for taking what's offered.  Little witch could have told me what she was up to, though." Spike glanced back down at the book and grinned.  "Hubby's not going to know what hit him.  And I suspect neither did you, Peaches." Spike raised his eyebrows at Angel.

"Willow did this to me." Angel was about to ask why when a fractured image from his nightmare flashed into his mind.  The ring hitting the floor with a ping as Willow died.  He had no idea how she had done it or what she hoped to accomplish in the end, but she had turned herself.

"Did what to you?" Cordelia demanded, spinning around to confront Angel.  "Why aren't you staking him?  He turned Willow into a vampire!" She stepped closer to him and this time she noticed the things she had overlooked before in her panic.  The slight rise and fall of his chest, the warmer tone of his skin, and, when she reached out and touched the side of his neck, the throbbing beat of his pulse.  "B...but there haven't been any plagues.  Some fiends, an apocalypse or two.  No plagues."

"This isn't the prophecy.  Willow did something...somehow she took the demon from me."

"She used this." Spike tossed the book at Angel, who caught it.  "Old, obscure spell somewhere in between a possession spell and an exorcism. In the dark ages, some priest from a village in the middle of nowhere used this spell to get rid of the vampires invading his little burg. A willing - or unwilling, it really didn't matter - young girl was chosen as the vessel.  The demon was ripped out of the poor, unsuspecting vampire once he fed upon the girl and housed within her. A vampire without a demon is just a corpse, easily dispatched with fire.  Neat trick, really."

"Why would Willow want Angel's demon?" Cordelia's hand flew to cover her mouth as a possible answer occurred to her.  "Oh, God, she doesn't hate you that much, does she?  She doesn't want to kill you?"

"The only person Red wants dead is her husband," Spike offered.  He was about to add something when Angel cut him off with a shake of his head.

"This is Willow we're talking about.  She doesn't want anyone dead. She must have had some other reason for...borrowing my demon."  Angel scanned the spell and then desperately turned the pages of the book. "God, I hope she only borrowed it.  Did she say anything, anything at all about her plan?  Is there a way to reverse this?  You've read the damn book!" Angel threw the book away from him in frustration.  He started to pace.  Willow wouldn't do something this drastic to just get the fidelity ring off her finger, besides it wouldn't work.  Once she was alive again, the ring and the vow would be activated again. What the hell was she thinking?  And why didn't she tell him!  Angel glared up at Spike.

Spike smirked back.  "First of all, Willow didn't want your demon, she was after mine.  She mumbled something about the two of you having a stronger connection.  Secondly, it was her intention to only borrow my demon.  She kissed me and...."

"She what?" A dangerous edge tinged Angel's voice.  He might be human, but he would rip Spike to pieces if he had touched his girl.

"Oh, don't get your knickers in a twist.  It was hardly the snog of a lifetime, she barely touched my lips.  I've seen people use more passion kissing the Pope's ring.  But that's not the point.  If you had read the last spell in the book, instead of getting tantrummy, you would have known why she did it."

Angel picked up the book and opened it to the last page.  "What was shared shall be the nexus used to return the demon taken."

"And what you and Willow shared was stronger, so it's your demon she borrowed.  Guess you got some tongue action."

"Okay, so this is just another wacky Willow spell, but we still have the same question.  Why does Willow want to borrow a demon?  Angel's right, it isn't about killing Casimir Kalendash.  She couldn't do that and even if she wanted to, I'm pretty sure the fidelity ring would stop her." Cordelia spoke up before Angel could react to Spike's comment.

"Till death do they part," Angel explained.  "Willow is dead.  The fidelity ring is inactive while she's dead."  I'll kill him slowly and leave him on the grave of the librarian's gypsy whore.  The foreign, but terrifyingly familiar thought laced itself through Angel's consciousness.  Through Willow's eyes, Angel caught a brief glimpse of her room reflected in an empty mirror.  Then he was seeing out of his own eyes again, looking at Cordelia and Spike waiting for him to continue.  It seemed that he and Willow were not only connected through their souls, but the demon as well.  "I don't think Willow has a choice about who dies."  

^~Part Fourteen^~

Hidden in the back of the closet was the perfect outfit. At the time, Willow had wondered what had ever possessed her to buy it, but now she knew. It reminded her of the outfit the Other, the Vampire Willow, had worn. It reminded her of freedom, power, and pain. There was power in pain. Willow fingered the supple dark red leather halter of the blouse. She picked up the diaphanous black silk sleeve and rubbed the soft material across her cheek. She had to get out of these confining clothes.

With quick, nimble movements, Willow undid the buttons of the blouse and jeans she was wearing. She shed the clothes without a second thought, dropping them to the floor. Humming softly to herself, she slipped into the halter blouse and matching dark red leather pants. She buttoned the leather cuffs at the end of the sleeves and walked toward the mirror, momentarily forgetting that she wouldn't be able to survey the results. It didn't matter, she knew it was perfect. Fully clothed and she felt naked. The front door downstairs opened and closed and the soft murmur of voices floated up to her. Two voices. Two beating hearts. Casimir wasn't alone. Willow smiled and licked her lips. She was hungry.

No, she wasn't. She had raided Spike and Angel's stash of blood in her fridge before she came upstairs. Much as the thought of drinking blood repulsed her, Willow knew that there was no way she could maintain control over the demon if she was hungry. So, what was she thinking? Willow closed her eyes. She visualized an open space, a blue space like the sky or the ocean, and in this space there was a darkness. The darkness was bound by bands of flashing silver. As a precaution, she visualized the bands tightening. She was nervous. Spike's demon she could handle, it was always straightforward about the bloodlust and quick to kill. Angel's demon had its own name - Angelus - and Angelus liked to play games.

Willow shivered. She opened her eyes and stared into the empty room reflected in her mirror. "Don't be silly. You are in control." Then why did the thought of killing Casimir and leaving him on Miss Calendar's grave weave its way through her brain? Why was she suddenly craving the taste of her friends' blood? "I'm just getting into character," Willow's lips whispered the answer to her pesky conscience's questions out loud. "I would never hurt my friends." A husky, seductive laugh rumbled from below. Her husband and his lady slayer were getting comfortable. Willow ran a hand through her hair. It was time to end her marriage. It was time to take a chance and release the darkness - a little. It would be okay. She would be in control the whole time. She would not kill anyone. Willow walked out of her bedroom. Of course she wasn't going to kill anyone - right away. It was much more fun to taunt them cruelly and kill the ones they love first. After all, that was his style.

It was a cozy scene Willow happened upon in her living room. Faith sat close to Casimir on the love seat, her hand suggestively toying with the buttons of his shirt before moving lower and out of Willow's line of sight. Funny, she didn't feel the irrational surge of raging jealously that had consumed her when Faith had merely touched Angel's arm and here she was groping her husband. The ring really was dormant. It would have been easy to back out and leave Faith to her plans of seduction, neither of them had noticed her yet, but Willow knew Faith's efforts were in vain. Casimir had his eye on a prize he hadn't yet obtained - Willow's magic - and Faith wouldn't distract him. Willow had been shown the only way out of this sham of a marriage and she had already sacrificed her friendship with Spike and any shred of feelings of trust and love Angel had left for her. She couldn't back out now.

As if to unconsciously bolster her decision, Casimir leaned back and protested mockingly, "I'm a married man." Although he didn't seem concerned about the whereabouts of the Slayer's hand.

"So?" Faith leaned in and purred. "You don't love her like Angel does and he was actually enthusiastic."

"You bedded the vampire?" Casimir raised his eyebrows in disbelief.

"It's not so hard to believe. Willow devastated him and he turned to me for comfort." Using her quick Slayer agility, Faith straddled Casimir. "You can turn to me too."

"Wow, you are working hard for that redemption, Faith," Willow announced dryly as she stepped into the room. "Although, I must confess, I've never known anyone who used the whore technique to gain it."

"Willow?" Faith scrambled off Casimir's lap and sent her a confused look. "I was...I was just..."

"She knows what you were just doing," Casimir said with amusement. He turned to look at Willow. His eyes traveled up and down her body. "My dear wife, you look...."

"Your type?" Willow cut him off with a smirk. Casimir sat casually, his body language conveying his complete unconcern with the fact that his wife had caught him in a compromising position. He thought he was so clever, manipulating her. He thought she was weak, that she would roll over and do whatever he wanted just because he threatened her friends. Her dead friends, no less. Soon, soon he would know fear, and not just that little thrill of adrenalin that provoked the fight or flight response. Real fear. Palatable fear. Sweet, paralyzing fear. Willow licked her lips.

"I'm surprised you find the thought of Faith seducing your vampire lover so appetizing. Maybe the ring is finally allowing you to realize your love for me." Casimir's sarcasm broke through the fantasies of torture and abasement the darkness in Willow's mind was creating and, to her utter disgust, she was actually enjoying. But that was part of the act, part of her vampire character.

"Faith is a liar." Willow's eyes were on his prey as she slowly advanced. One step. "I was with my sweet Angel all day. Or so I thought." Two steps. Faith was frowning, Casimir merely curious. "Poor Angel. Faith was right about one thing, Willow devastated him. It was too much for his soul to bear." Now the damn Gypsy was the one frowning. Faith was just worried and more than a little scared. Three steps. He was now only two paces away from the love seat.

Casimir stood up. It was a futile and pathetic attempt to regain control. "What exactly are you getting at?"

It was the first time she had done it and Willow had always wondered how it was done and what it felt like. It was surprisingly easy. He wanted it to happen and it did. Her face shifted. Her canines elongated and her facial bones reformed into the familiar ridges. Her vision became sharper, the shadows in the house becoming nonexistent. As a whole, the change it didn't hurt as, in her naivete, she had assumed it would. It was natural. It was good to be back.

"Angel's soul is gone and so is mine."

*****

"Angel!" Cordelia's frustrated shriek didn't slow him down. He had to get to Willow before the demon did something she couldn't live with. If he hadn't tricked her into thinking that Angelus was slipping to the surface then she would have trusted him enough to tell him her plan. He could have convinced her to find another way. Or, once that didn't work, he could have at least helped her control the demon. Been by her side while she confronted the Gypsy. But, no, Willow was all alone with Angelus influencing her every thought and action and the Gypsy too stupid to cut and run. She was going to kill him and have to live with it for the rest of her life.

One minute Angel was charging through the graveyard, intent on saving Willow from his demon and damning himself back to hell for putting her in this situation, and the next he was on the ground. A sharp pain stole his breath and he gasped to catch it again. Spike stood over him, holding his head and cursing fluently.

"I..I have to get to...Willow." Angel struggled to stand up, only to be shoved back down to the ground by Spike.

"And do what? Bloody hell! This is for his own good! Doesn't this stupid, soddin' chip know the difference between hurting someone to help a thick-skulled stubborn arse and just plain hurting someone because you like it? Why the hell do I have to always suffer for the bleedin'Poof?" Spike pounded the heel of his hand into his forehead as if that would dislodge the chip implanted in his brain. "I hate to break it to you, mate, but you're human and you have no idea what Red's got planned. Or Angelus. I would call you a few more names, but there is a lady present, sort of."

"Thanks ever so much for sparing me. I hate to say it, but Spike is right." Cordelia finally caught up to them. "You and Willow have been running around trying to protect each other and trying to save each other and all you've accomplished is this convoluted mess that gets even more complicated every time one of you does something." Cordelia knelt down beside him and softened her tone. "Angel, please, just stop and think about what you're going to do. Think about why Willow's doing this. And hey, while you're at it, why not think about asking your friends for some help."

"The wicked cheerleader of the west has a point." Spike stood over them and smirked. "Looks like you need us now that you're light in the demon and evil-ass-kicking areas."

"No," Angel immediately refused, but relented a bit when he looked at Cordelia. "I do know that whatever Willow had planned, it's not going to work. She can't control the demon. If the worst happens and I'm too late, it's possible that Willow can eventually live with the fact that she killed Kalendash, but if she were to hurt you or Giles or even Spike...."

Cordelia nodded her understanding. She squeezed Angel's hand. "What about you? The demon must hate you. Willow couldn't live with killing you either."

"He won't hurt me. He's part of me and because of the geis bond, Willow won't let him." Angel rose to his feet. "You guys go back to Giles' and warn everyone to stay away from Willow's house at least until morning. Hopefully this will all be over by then."

"Okay, so a quick run through of the plan. Me and the PTB prom queen run to the rest of the gang of do-gooders and tell them to circle the wagons until morning while you do the perfect imitation of a kamikaze mission and walk into that house with nothing but the belief that your mere presence will help Willow control the demon and that her undying love for you will stop her from ripping open your throat and sucking all that newly pumping blood from your veins. It could work. Really. If you don't ask yourself how you're going to get that pesky little spell that is the key to sending Slutty and the Xapper's souls to hell? Or what if instead of just killing you, our newly Angelusized Willow decides to re-vamp you? Didn't think of that, did you? And exactly how are you going to get rid of the husband? Are you going to let Red kill him? That would certainly get rid of most of the problems in your brilliant plan." Spike's eyes lit up at his solution to the holes he had poked into Angel's line of attack.

"No. None of that is going to happen," Cordelia shot Spike down this time. She turned to Angel. "It's not going to happen like that. You will help Willow control the demon and you will reverse this spell. I'll be sorry that you're a vampire again, because you deserve to be human and happy, but I'll also be glad that Willow isn't a vampire because she deserves the same things. And I know how you two can be together. I was on my way to find you and tell you this when I had the Spike/Willow vision and that took precedence. Anyway, Gunn called. He and Wesley found a way for a fidelity ring divorce."

"And you were waiting for what to let this little tidbit go?"

"For you to shut up and for Angel to stop acting like an idiot," Cordelia hissed at Spike. "As Giles said before, the ring was made to keep Guinevere true to Arthur and we all assumed vice versa because Casimir told you that he had to keep his vow as well, but that's not what he meant. We forgot what abnormal time period we were dealing with. The husband can cheat all he wants and he also has the power to dissolve the marriage either by asking for the ring back or just taking it back. That's what he meant when he said he wouldn't break his vow."

It couldn't be that easy. Not after all he and Willow had done to thwart the Gypsy. It couldn't be that simple. "If he thinks Willow is dead and a vampire, he might ask for the ring back. Her magic would be useless to him, it doesn't transfer well to the dead."

"Or, if he had half a brain, he might run screaming for the hills."

Angel ignored Spike. Instead he swept Cordelia into a hard hug. "Thank you. This will be over by morning. Go find Giles and stay safe."

"Same goes for you." Cordelia hugged him good-bye. "Come on, Chip for Brains, lets go hold down the fort until morning." Cordelia offered Angel one last good luck smile before she shoved Spike ahead of her. "PTB prom queen! Was that the best you could do?"

"I wouldn't go all critical, missy, Chip for Brains is hardly an example of raging originality. Now the 'wicked cheerleader of the west,' that was a classic."

Their nattering voices faded as they walked away and Angel turned his attention to more important things. He needed a better plan. Spike and Cordelia were right, he couldn't go charging in unprepared. Angel started back on his journey toward Willow's house. Cordelia had also been right about him needing some help. He just needed help that Angelus couldn't kill. "Okay, I know you guys are there somewhere and you know what's going on. I need help."

"The Great non-Vampire calls, the petty phantom underlings answer." Xander popped up on his left side. He wasn't looking too friendly at the moment.

"Xander," Buffy curtly reprimanded him as she popped in on Angel's other side. "We're always here to help you, Angel."

"I'm here to help Willow," Xander clarified. He glared at Angel. "I can't believe what you've gotten Willow into. I asked you to help her, not to curse her and torment her by pretending to be Angelus and giving her the crazy idea to become him herself. I knew this whole Willow-and-Angel-belong-together thing was a wacked out idea."

"Xander, that's enough! This isn't Angel's fault. What do you want us to do, Angel?"

It took most of the will Angel possessed not to take Xander's words to heart. They struck the guilt cord perfectly, but wallowing in guilt would get him no where. He would do it later. "Nothing. Right now." Angel stopped in front of Willow's house. The living room lights were on, casting a comforting glow out onto the lawn. He doubted that what was going on inside was quite as soothing. "I'll go in there and try to defuse the situation and help Willow control the demon. After that, we have to work on getting that spell paper back from Kalendash. I'm hoping you two could distract him." The plan was still a little thin, but it's not like he had a lot of time to think of a nice air tight one. Angel knew that he was still basically winging it.

"What about Willow? You're not going to leave her like that while you rejoin the land of the living, are you, Deadboy?"

"Of course not." Angel hadn't even considered the idea. The return of his humanity had hardly been a blessing because he knew what it had cost Willow. It would be a relief to have the demon back where it belonged - locked inside of him. "I'm going to lead Willow up into the attic and lock the door. The spell book had a reversal spell, if it works then Willow and I'll leave the room before dawn."

"What if it doesn't?" Buffy asked softly.

"If it doesn't, Willow will probably try to leave alone. I'll try to stop her, but...."

"Don't worry. The door won't open no matter how strong she is."

"But the skylight..." Xander sputtered. "She'll die."

"Her soul is still with her, Xander. Trust me, she knows what the demon is doing, she will feel it every time he kills." Angel needed Xander to understand why this had to be done. He needed his approval. The boy was Willow's best friend, if he agreed to this, then Angel knew it was the right thing to do. If the demon couldn't be returned to him, then both the demon and Willow would have to die.

"I thought you weren't planning on being one of the living."

"I'm not." If Willow had to die, then so did he, either by her hand or his own.

*****

People were so expressive. Confusion, shock, fear, and anger all danced across her unfortunate soon-to-be dead husband's face. The Slayer was just afraid. She wouldn't be able to kill her. Of all of them, it was Willow's forgiveness that she craved the most. Willow's lips pulled back in a smirk. He liked the feel of her lips moving across her fangs.

"An..Angelus," Faith stuttered. She looked nervously behind her, like she expected him to be there. He wasn't. He was right in front of her and she didn't even know it. "He turned you."

"This is a trick," Casimir hissed. "I'm a gypsy, you don't think I know a vampire glamour when I see one?"

A delicate snort issued from Willow's nostrils. "Your family's gypsy magic was lost generations before you came along. If you were anything but the faker that you are, you would know that this is no simple glamour. " She stalked up as close as the love seat between them would allow. "The ring's magic is old and strong. It knows my true nature."

The petite alabaster hand with the glinting gold ring was tempting bait. As soon as he held it out, Casimir snatched at it. He squeezed her knuckles together cruelly, but Angelus shrugged it off. It was an old and familiar macho game that he knew and played well. No one bested him. With a swiftness that surprised her, Willow seized the curls at the base of Casimir's neck and dragged him across the loveseat. She hadn't intended to do that. What was she doing? His pulse thrummed at the jugular. Willow licked her lips and stole a glance at the Slayer. The girl was paralyzed. A ticklish trendle of fear almost made Willow plead for her help, she wasn't so sure that everything she was doing was her idea, but that impulse was quickly stamped out by her next thought. She couldn't trust Faith. What exactly had the Slayer been doing with Casimir? She had probably wanted to get her hands on that bloodied spell to have control over Buffy and Xander's souls herself. Besides, Faith couldn't help her, look at her, trembling like a small animal. She never did have the stuff to make a slayer. Much as he had loathed Buffy, at least the whore had made a worthy opponent. This one was nothing.

"I'll save you for later. This one dies now. Good-bye, Gypsy," Willow whispered as she placed a soft kiss on Casimir's vulnerable neck. He struggled, but it was useless. She wasn't gentle. The skin tore under the sharp pressure of her teeth, the blood spurting up into her mouth and splashing down her throat in delicious coppery gushes. It tasted heavenly, much better than the reheated cow's blood from her refrigerator. Faith would be next and her blood would be even better. Nothing compared to Slayer's blood. Eons of warriors flowed in their life essence. He wanted to taste that strength once again. Although he doubted that Faith would be half as co-operative as Buffy.

It took a few seconds for the horrific scene to sink in. Angel stood in the doorway and watched as Willow bit into the Gypsy's neck. A ghost of a metallic aftertaste settled in the back of his throat. Blood seeped down Kalendash's neck. The wound wasn't clean. He would die soon. Unlike the time he had locked the Wolfram and Hart lawyers in the wine cellar with Darla and Dru, Angel wasn't even tempted to wait until the Gypsy was dead. This was about Willow, not saving Kalendash. That was just an unfortunate side effect. "Willow." Angel stepped forward.

He was here. Willow had felt his presence through the demon as well as the geis and she had heard his heart beating the moment he had stepped into the house. Angel was human. She released her husband, watching disinterestedly as he fell onto the loveseat. "Angel."

The mention of his name gave Angel hope as it chilled him. In that one word he could hear them both. Willow had given his name its soft edges, speaking it as an endearment, but underneath there was a harshness that spat the name like a curse. Angel knew that harshness well, it had colored his world for over two hundred and fifty years. It was difficult to face as a part of himself, heartbreaking to face as a part of Willow.

"Angelus." The involuntary shaky utterance made Angel turn his head. Faith looked at him with fascinated fear. What the hell was she doing here?

"Uh oh," Willow's voice sang softly, coyly. "A Slayer in trouble. Too bad she's not blond or she would be just your type."

"Faith, run." The desperate command hung in the air. Faith's eyes darted from him to Willow. He blocked her way to the front door, Willow denied passage to the kitchen and the back. Angel stepped aside so that she would be able to pass. "Trust me, please."

Faith took a step toward him. "That's exactly what he said to me." Willow's words stopped her. Once again her indecision was displayed in her darting gaze. The gypsy moaned as he started to regain consciousness. No one paid any attention. "What game are we playing now, my love? Turning the Slayer was part of the plan. Do you want to play first? Make her trust you, make her think that you're going to be her hero and let her go and then kill her?" As Willow spoke, Faith backed up until her back was pressed up against the far wall.

"I'm not the one playing games, Willow. He is. He has control, Willow, he just doesn't want you to know it." Angel forgot about Faith for the moment. The important one was Willow.

The gypsy moaned again. Willow looked down at him. "He doesn't look like he's in command."

"I'm not talking about the damn gypsy! You know who I'm talking about." Angel stepped further into the room.

The damn gypsy picked that moment to sit up. "I would like to know what the hell you're talking about. You wouldn't turn Willow into a vampire."

Willow leaned down and whispered into her husband's ear. "Angelus would." She nipped Casimir's earlobe. He jerked away, the sudden movement causing him to slide off the loveseat and thump to the floor. Willow just smiled and flashed an amused glance to Angel. "I told you this would be fun."

"You can't kill me." Casimir scrambled back. He dug into his pockets until he found his bargaining chip - the bloodstained spell. "I have this. After you and your childe threatened to kill me, I cast a spell. If anything happens to me, your friends are damned."

"I. Don't. Care. They are not my friends and they are dead. Do whatever you want with their souls." Willow shrugged, bored with the subject and the gypsy. Their women had always been more fun. He would rather torment Angel and get even for the years spent locked up. He directed his next line to him. "Willow's soul is gone."

"No! Willow, fight him. He can't control you." Angel closed the distance between them, reaching out and grasping her arms. His dark eyes pleaded, searching hers for some sign of the sweet, good woman he loved. "You're stronger, Willow. I know you are." He was so earnest, so detestedly faithful. He deserved a little something for being such a sap.

"Oh, Angel." Willow leaned forward until her head rested on his chest. Angel's heart beat strong and steady. It was a sound she had never imagined she would hear. Angel was human because of her. His arms circled around her. She was safe. She knew who she was and what thoughts and feelings were hers. There was no struggle in Angel's arms. He gave her strength.

"How romantic. The vampire lovers together for all eternity." Casimir's bitter words reminded Willow why she was battling a demon for control of her body. She leaned back in Angel's embrace and brought her left hand between them. The silver ring gleamed on her finger. "I hope you two are happy being dead together."

When Willow looked up at Angel, her eyes gleamed wickedly. "I'm happy. And you...Angelus?"

Angel took the opportunity. He didn't know why Willow wanted the gypsy to believe that he was Angelus, but he would play along to get what he wanted. "I'm happy." Angel closed his hand around hers. He dipped his head and placed a lingering kiss on her lips before slipping the ring from her finger. "But I would be happier without this." He held up the ring for both of them to consider. "What do you think? Should we melt it down into something pretty for you? A brand to mark your victims, perhaps?"

"Yes! I like that." Willow looked up at Angel with mingled surprise and glee, like a child unexpectedly offered her favorite toy. "You know me so well."

"Yes, I do." Angel brushed her hair behind her ear and caressed her cheek. "Both of you," he whispered.

"You don't want to fight me, do you? You want her so badly, you'll take me too." Willow's head tilted. "A cross is redundant. How about a heart. Each kill can be a pledge of our undying love."

"No." Casimir shouted before Angel could respond. "That's my ring. I want it back."

"Okay." Willow shrugged. She moved to take the ring from Angel, but he held it out of her reach. Her eyes glowed gold and narrowed with suspicion.

"I want the bloodied paper."

"Why?" Willow's mouth bowed to a pout. "You still love her, don't you?" Her arms pushed her body away from his, Angelus' disgust overwhelming the glimmer of hurt in her eyes.

"I love you. If you let anything happen to Buffy and Xander, it would hurt you, Willow." Angel turned to the gypsy. Kalendash held the paper in an unsteady hand. He was still weak from Willow's earlier attack, it would be easy to just walk over and take the paper from him. If Angelus would let him. Angel glanced at Willow as he edged toward the gypsy. She didn't....

The sudden lightness of being tossed through the air ended abruptly with dazzling lights as Angel's head hit the wall. "You bastard," he heard Faith growl before her fist connected with his jaw, beginning the light show once again.

Willow watched the Slayer toss Angel across the room and jump on top of him. The ring slipped from Angel's grasp and rolled across the floor. She was torn. Should he kill the girl for daring to touch her man? Angel wasn't so bad now that they didn't share a body and his love for the witch's soul made him much more reasonable. It could be fun, making Angel give up his principles, his friends, his redemption. All the things Angelus could never tempt him to do while they inhabited the same body, he would do readily for the witch.

As he considered the many and varied ways he would make Angel pay for keeping him a prisoner, Angelus noticed Casimir pick up the ring and stumble for the door. He still had the bloodied paper Angel was so hot for. Oh, well. The gypsy was definitely no fun and now that the witch was a vampire, they were rid of him. He grabbed Faith by the hair and yanked her off Angel.

"Kalendash!" Angel gasped. He tried to get up to stop him, but fell back against the wall. "Stop him!" His eyes pleaded to Willow to no avail.

"Sorry, lover, not my priority." Willow's hand caressed Faith's neck. "I have a Slayer to turn. I always did like this one."

Angel struggled to stand. To save Faith or stop the gypsy, he didn't know. He didn't know if he could do either. Angelus had given up all pretense that Willow had control. He was going to lose her. "Willow. Please fight him. Please." Angel made his decision and stepped toward Willow and Faith. They would have to track down Kalendash later and hope that he didn't have time to cast any spells.

"Going somewhere?" Buffy appeared in front of the gypsy, blocking his way to the door. She used her intimidating stance to make up for her obvious transparency. Angel smiled his thanks for her help.

The sound of Buffy's voice was a less pleasant experience for Angelus. Even dead, that bitch would have to keep her nasty habit of turning up to ruin his fun.

^~Part Fifteen^~

"What are you going to do?" Angelus challenged Buffy using Willow's voice.  "Rattle chains in his attic?  Creak the floorboards in the middle of the night?  Leave, Gypsy, before I change my mind and snap your neck because you annoy me."

"No!  The paper," Faith yelled and struggled in his grip.  Angel was still leaning against the wall for support.  He wouldn't be saving the day anytime soon.

Angelus cradled Faith's chin in Willow's hand and pulled her hard against Willow's body.  "Shh, don't fret.  You won't care about what happens to the Slayer and her lapdog's souls after I'm through with you."  Angelus placed a soft kiss on Faith's neck and ran Willow's tongue across her skin.  "You, Angel, and I are going to have so much fun together."  He shot a mocking glance at the ex-vampire.  "Won't we, lover?"

While the others waited for Angel's answer, Casimir seemed to overcome his stunned fear of Buffy and moved to the door. As he passed through her, Buffy spoke up, "I knew you loved me."

Willow's head whipped back toward her.  "Don't say that!  I don't love you, that was Angel.  I'm letting the Gypsy damn your sorry soul to hell, bitch."

"Because you can't do it yourself."  Buffy's smile was smug.  Angel watched the gypsy struggle with the front door which wouldn't open. "You're going to let someone else do the dirty work because you can't bear to do it yourself.  You love me.  I win."

"It's the witch.  She doesn't want me to have your souls because she knows what I would do to them would be far worse than whatever that gypsy could come up with.  I have her body.  I have her magic." Willow's grip compulsively tightened on Faith's neck.

"No, you're not my Wils." Xander appeared beside Willow.  "You were right when you said Willow's soul was gone.  This is all you.  All talk, no action.  Remember when he used to prowl around and leave you love drawings on your pillow.  You were sleeping.  Never did kill you, though."

"I know.  He obviously loved me too much." Buffy nodded her head in agreement.  Angel could feel some of his strength, what little of it there was, return as his head stopped ringing.  He also couldn't help noticing Willow's eyes snap green fire as Angelus' anger grew.  Faith was turning purple.  She was going to have bruises.  Buffy and Xander were playing a good game though, and Angel could tell it was working. Angelus was getting too mad to think.

"Yeah, he had it bad.  You know, Buf, I think he actually had it worse for you than Angel."

The roar that followed Xander's last comment reverberated through the house.  Kalendash ceased his useless rattling of the doorknob.  Angel had a brief moment of concern for Willow's throat before he was thrown back against the wall as Angelus shoved Faith into him.  He pounced at the gypsy, catching his hand and bending it back.

"You're human," Faith murmured hoarsely as she clutched at Angel's chest.

"It's only temporary, I hope." Angel gently pushed Faith toward the kitchen.  "Leave now while you have the chance.  I'll take care of this."  He nodded at Xander, who did his ghostly best to guide Faith from the room and out of harm's way.

The sharp snap of Kalendash's arm breaking and the bone-crunching crackle of his hand as Angelus crushed it using Willow's petite hand made Angel wince.  God, he hoped Willow would be able to live with this.  He hoped that he could fix it so that she would be alive after this.  Angelus was right, if he didn't kill her now, he would end up giving up everything for her.  He would hurt people for her.  People they both loved.  Angelus seized the bloodied spell paper from Kalendash's useless hand and threw him up against the door.  Willow's eyes glared at her best friend's ghostly form.  "It's mine now, bitch. I'll see you burn in hell like I did for a hundred years and then things will get interesting."  Angelus made a grab for Kalendash, but the front door suddenly flew open and he tumbled down the steps out of reach.  The door slammed shut.

"Thank you."  Buffy smirked at Angelus.  Her expression was less triumphant when she looked at Angel.  "Two problems solved, one to go. Now it's up to you.  Good luck."  She faded, leaving Angel with Willow and his demon.

It was interesting to watch the demon survey the now nearly empty room. Incredibly, Angel could see his own mannerisms that the demon had adopted for centuries mixed in with Willow's.  He also found himself looking for Willow in her movements.  He needed to know how close to the surface her soul was.  As if following his train of thought, the demon turned to him.  "Looks like it's just the two of us.  Or three." Angel didn't rise to the bait.  It was too obvious, too easy.  The demon knew him better than that.  "What will you do to save her, Angel?  Will you kill for her?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it's just that when I kill, then that means the witch kills. That would hurt her.  The thought hurts her now.  But, if we had someone to do it for us...."

"Willow would still feel responsible.  Her soul would still be in pain."  Angel looked into her cool green eyes, searching for a glimmer of that pain.  "Yes, I would kill for her."  There it was. Pain for him.  He knew that she would feel his pain before she would acknowledge her own.  Willow was the type to sacrifice her soul for someone she loved, but she would never sacrifice his - Angel was counting on it.

Then it was gone.  The brief glimpse of Willow was snuffed out by the demon's cunning, mocking glance.  "It won't work.  The witch won't give me back."  Willow's body was so close to his, but there was no warmth.  A cool finger traced down his cheek, the side of his neck. Her palm rested on his thumping heart.  "She likes you like this, heart pumping tasty blood through your body.  She gave you the gift you wanted so badly.  So, tell me, Angel, how does it feel to be human again?"

Angel thought about the question.  How did he feel?  His skin was warm, his lungs took in air, and his heart did beat, but it was deader then when he had been a vampire.  Without Willow, his heart had no purpose beyond its biological one. "It means nothing to me.  I need her."

This was fun.  Angel all hurt and vulnerable, naked pain shining in the depths of his dark eyes.  The witch had done a number on him. Bound him by love worse than the Slayer had - Angel had been able to free himself from that abomination.  At least the witch was worthy. "Then you need me."  Angelus pressed Willow's lips to Angel's in a brief kiss.  "If you're a good boy and do as I ask, then I might let the witch out to play with you.  Will you do as I ask, Angel?"

"I already agreed to kill for her, what else do you want from me?" Frustrated anger flared and Angel grabbed Willow's arms.  "I'll play your game, any game!  Just let me have her.  Let me love her." Angelus was pulled into Angel's embrace as he hugged Willow to him.

"Not today," Angelus whispered against Angel's strong, hard chest. Angel's desperation was turning him on and Willow's body was responding to his touch.  He looked up at the handsome face that had once been his own.  No wonder it had been so easy luring innocent maidens into a dark corner.  "Today I want you to show that you love me."

An involuntary bark or laughter escaped Angel.  "I don't love you."

Willow's fingernails dug into Angel's chest through his shirt.  "Fake it."  Angelus pulled Angel's head down to meet Willow's lips and tongue.  Angel responded to the kiss, immediately opening his mouth and allowing the entrance of her tongue, as Angelus knew he would. After all, it was Willow's soft lips, her tongue, her taste, her body pressed up and rubbing against him.  Angel would respond to her touch as her body reacted to his and hate himself for it because it was all controlled by the demon he despised.

As games go, Angelus would never tire of this one.  He couldn't stop the husky rumble of laughter that escaped her mouth when Angel gripped Willow's waist and lifted her up.  Angelus wrapped her legs around him as Angel carried them upstairs.  He was finally going to win.  Beat the Soul down and break him so that he could never be fixed.  The best part was that he was going to use Angel's weakness for love to do it. Already Angel had capitulated, his tongue demanding in Willow's mouth as he carried them to the closest bed.

Or not.  Angelus broke away from the kiss as he felt Angel mounting another set of stairs.  They were heading for the attic bathroom. Angelus growled, he knew about the skylight.  Without Willow's lips to satisfy him, Angel turned to her neck.  His blunt teeth nibbled under her jaw and when he reached the patch of skin over her jugular, he gave it a sharp nip.  Angelus snarled and vamped, no longer concerned with the skylight.  It was night and Angel's intentions were clear. He wanted the witch - demon or not.

It was driving him crazy.  Angel let Willow's body slide slowly down his, her hands clasping around his neck.  He looked down at her vampire face.  His Saileach was in there somewhere.  He would let the demon play his games because eventually it would lead him to Willow.  But deep down, he also knew that a part of him really really liked this - and he couldn't blame the demon this time.  As weird as it sounded, he wanted to dominate the demon inside of Willow using Willow's body's sexual urges - make the demon want him, beg for his touch.  Then he would submit to his own body's demands and take her.  If he was lucky, it would be the answer to getting Willow back.

The demon stepped Willow's body away from him.  Her head tipped up toward the skylight, cold blue moonlight touched her face, casting shadows along the ridges.  "And what are we doing here?"

"You know."  Angel trailed the back of his fingers over her cheek. "You still have my memories as well as hers.  You know what I want."

An unholy light shone in Willow's dark golden eyes.  "You saw her in the sunlight, but could never have her there.  You decided to settle for the moonlight instead and take her under its colder rays.  Funny, now she's the one with the aversion to the sun.  Do you still want her, Angel?"

His answer was a kiss.  Not harsh and demanding as before, but a soft brush across her lips and then a gentle pressure as he coaxed her mouth open with the flutter of his tongue.  Angel grasped Willow's waist and pulled her tightly against his body.  His hands roamed carelessly over her body - flitting from her back to her abdomen and up to her breasts. He undid the first two buttons of the leather halter, exposing her cleavage even more than the low-cut blouse had offered.

"Yes," Willow's voice hissed in his ear.  Her fingernails raked down his back under his shirt.  They moved to the front and he heard the dull clatter of the buttons of his shirt hitting the floor as she ripped it open.  Her cool-touch caused goose bumps along his warm flesh.

Angel buried his nose between her breasts, snaking his tongue along the underside of each one.  He kissed the scarred flesh where he had marked her as his own.  He slid his arms around her and attempted to lower them both down to the floor rug on the hardwood floor, but Willow pulled away.  Her face had settled back into human features and she smiled sweetly at him.  If Angel had been more naive and hadn't known the demon so well, he might have actually believed that it was his Saileach smiling at him and looking at him with such love in her eyes.

"Ioniun," the demon mocked him.  Willow hadn't known what the Gaelic word had meant.  "My beloved Angel."  Willow's lips caressed his chest, lingering over his nipples to let her tongue bath them both.  She undid his belt buckle, unfastening the button, and unzipping his pants in a quick succession of movements.  Angel didn't protest or interfere as the demon stripped him.  He would submit until it was time to take control.  When the demon least suspected it, when he thought that Angel was broken, that would be his chance to get Willow back.  The demon would relax and Angel knew that Willow would wrest control from him long enough to complete the reversal spell.  Now he just had to do whatever the demon expected of him and hope that he didn't enjoy it too much.

Done with him, the demon started to undo the buttons of Willow's leather and silk blouse where Angel had left off.  He was moving much more slowly now, exposing Willow's white flesh without haste.  The garment slipped from her shoulders and fell to the floor.  The demon brushed Willow's thumb over the old bite mark on her breast.  Her eyes locked with Angel's.  "She liked it when you bit her.  It turned her on.  Did you like it?  Did you like the taste of her blood?"

"Yes, but that was you."

"Really."  The lazy finger traveling back and forth across Willow's chest dug down into her skin, leaving a shallow trail of blood. "Taste it again?"

It wasn't an order or a demand.  Angel could have refused.  He wasn't a vampire anymore - the blood didn't call to him, it didn't incite his hunger.  Still, Angel found himself leaning towards the wound, his tongue licking at the red liquid.  It tasted good - as sweet as he remembered.  Angel didn't want to analyze that thought or his actions. He certainly didn't want to think about why he was sucking harder, drawing more blood into his mouth.  Willow's fingers wove through his hair and she started to purr.

Angel wrenched himself away, angry, ashamed, and disgusted at what he had done.  "What's the matter, Baby?"  Her finger traced idly up and down his chest.  "Getting to know yourself a bit too much for comfort? Starting to realize that it's you, not me, that's not good enough for the witch's love?  She would have left you eventually - she was too pure in spirit to love someone as low as you - but now I'm a part of her.  I'll never leave you."

"Promise?"  The word came out ragged, desperate, and way more needy than Angel wanted to be at that moment.  The demon had hit a vulnerable point in his quest to convince Angel that he should stay within Willow. Being a demon, he didn't understand love.  He didn't understand that Angel would rather give Willow up than see her soul dominated by the demon.  That was Angel's advantage.  He reached for her once again, placing his hands on her hips, his fingertips touching soft velvety skin and the smooth supple leather of her pants.

"I promise."  The demon made its pledge as Willow's body pressed up close to his so she could reach up to nibble his lower lip.  "I'll be good to you and you'll be good for me."  There was satisfaction in the purred words.  As far as the demon was concerned, he had already won. Angel didn't want to guess at what he would have to do to be 'good' - kill their friends, slaughter innocents - anything that would decimate what little hard-won redemption he had earned so far.  This time when he lowered them both to the rug, the demon didn't protest.  His hands passed over her body in intimate caresses, reacquainting themselves with each dip and curve.  His ears drank in the sound of each breathy sigh, gasp, or deep-throated moan when he hit particularly sensitive areas.

It had been too long since Angel had touched Willow's body.  He was tempted to savor this opportunity - who knew when he would have the chance again - but another part of him was too aware that her reactions were actually the demon's.  He would use this night as a taunt - no matter whose body he was housed in.  Extending the foreplay would only give him a weapon he would relish using in the years to come. Reluctantly releasing a rosy nipple from his mouth, he placed soft kisses and lingering licks down her abdomen.  He undid her pants and eased them down her hips and legs until they were kicked aside.  She wasn't wearing underwear.  The smell of her arousal mixed with the musk of the leather.  Angel couldn't resist, he slipped his tongue into her wet folds knowing she would taste as good as she smelt.  His thumb massaged her clit and her body bucked underneath him.  He ached to be buried deep inside her.

"Stopping so soon?" the demon mewled with disappointment.  "I was just starting to like being the girl."

"I need her."  Angel's voice was rough with lust.  "Now."  Even though his body shook with desire, Angel waited for the demon's permission. He knew that his sign of submission would be seen as him acquiescing to the demon.  He was being 'good.'

Willow's legs opened and her hands brushed through his hair.  "Okay, but the next time I'm expecting a bit more control.  We'll take our time."

There was no reason to reply to the dictate.  As far as Angel was concerned, there wasn't going to be a next time for him and Willow. The demon would either be back in his body with these past events having done irreparable damage to their relationship or they would both be dead by sunrise.  He thrust into Willow's responsive body.  Her legs wrapped around his hips and she moved under him, with him.  He leaned down, supporting most of his weight on his elbows, and nuzzled and licked her neck.  He used his body to tease her, moving in slow, lazy strokes.  Willow's hands clutched at his shoulders and her fingernails dug into his back.  "Faster," she rasped.  Angel picked up his pace and slipped one hand between their bodies to tease her clit with a pinch.

"Yes!" Willow shouted as she shuddered in orgasm.

"Willow," Angel whispered.  He slowed his thrusts, ignoring his own need for release.  Now would be the best time for Willow to fight the demon and gain control.  He looked down into her eyes.  They fluttered open and their gazes locked.  "Saileach, please."

Her mouth opened, her breath still ragged.  "I..release the demon to the nexus..to return from whence it came.  The connection...is reversed.  This is my will, so mote it be."  Her eyes shut once more. Angel stopped moving.  He cupped her face in his hands and waited for the demon to possess him.  Nothing happened.

"Willow?" Angel shifted and pulled himself from Willow's body.  What if something had gone wrong?  She could be hurt.  "Willow."

Her eyes didn't open, but her hands moved to his chest.  She was okay.. she shoved him away from her and he fell back.  Her face shifted and when her eyes opened there was only Angelus.  "Sorry, Soul-boy, spell didn't work.  Looks like the witch is stuck with me and if you want her, so are you."  Willow's lips twisted in a cruel smirk.  Her hand fondled his still erect penis.  "I did promise to be good to you.  Even though you were a very naughty boy."  The cool cavern of her mouth engulfed his hard shaft.  Angel groaned from the pleasurable sensation despite his despair over the spell not working and losing Willow.  At the very least this would keep the demon in Willow's body occupied until morning.  Dawn was less than half an hour away.  The demon's fangs scraped down his cock as he took its full length into Willow's mouth. On his way back up, the demon punctuated his journey by sucking harshly at intermittent intervals, ending with sucking at the head. Angel wasn't going to last long enough to wait for the first rays of sunlight.  He could feel his balls tightening in anticipation as Willow's tongue teased the head of his cock.  As her mouth closed over it again, Angel moaned and felt his seed shoot down Willow's throat. The demon sucked at it greedily until his orgasm ended.

"Well, that was fun."  Willow's tongue snaked out and licked her lips. She moved to straddle his stomach, sitting down onto his hard abdominal muscles.  He could feel the dampness from her still wet curls against his flesh.  "See, it won't be all bad, at least I know what a man likes.  Now, I get what I like."  With a harsh snarl, Willow's head bent and her fangs sank into the tense muscle of his left pectoral.

A painful gasp escaped Angel's lips as his less-giving flesh was torn into.  His chest burned.  Searing pain filled his mind and he felt it. Pure, white-hot rage and frustration as the demon re-entered his body and was promptly stuffed back into his cage.  He didn't go quietly, but worry for Willow gave Angel strength to fight the demon.

Willow felt it the moment the demon left her body.  At first, relief at being alone in her mind and body overwhelmed everything else.  Soon, the coppery taste of Angel's blood mixed with the lingering saltiness of his semen penetrated her senses and she swallowed reflexively and backed away from him.  Reluctantly, Willow looked at Angel to gage his reaction to her.  His eyes were closed and his features shifted between vampire and human as he fought the demon.  Willow turned away.  She couldn't watch him struggle with the demon, not when it was her fault that he had to fight.  She also didn't want to see the look in Angel's eyes when he finally opened them and saw her.  The contempt that she couldn't fight the demon and had let him control her.  The things the demon had said and done using her voice and body and the things he had threatened to do to Angel.  She couldn't stand to see the love that used to fill his eyes be replaced by hate.  She had lost him and his love.

Angel opened his eyes and saw Willow's naked back huddled in front of him.  She didn't want to even look at him.  He must disgust her.  Now she knew what kind of monster lived inside of him and what kind of monster he was even without the demon.  He had agreed to kill people, he had relished the taste of her blood.  She hated him.  He had lost her and her love.

"Blood and sex was our connection, the spell didn't work until I took your blood," Willow finally spoke.  Her voice was low and shaky.  She still didn't turn to face him.

Angel didn't reply.

"It's almost sunrise."

"I know."

Silence stretched between them as they both thought about what they could say to the other.

"I have to go back to L. A."

"I know."

The End.    

read the sequal 'Tarnished Heart'

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