Love, Lust, and L.A.: Hearthrob Pt. 1
by Psyche2
A/N: I am reallly sorry about spacin gbut I tried to space it like 2000 times and it didn't work so...ur kinda stuck with this. Ummm...I'm the new writer of this and I think we should give fatih_slayer89 a round of applause for writing this and doing such a great job! Ok well now, here's the story. This is the previously on Angel of the story. The next chapter will be what I wrote.
Chapter One: Catching Up
I hate summer vacation. In all fairness to the brainiacs who declared July and August to be summer vacation, though, I didn't always hate it. When I went to school and had homework and tests and exams and things and had some semblance of a normal life, I adored two months of kick-back time. I lived in New York City next door to my best friend David Harris and up the block from another friend of mine, Venus Rosenberg. And, okay, Mom was a Slayer and was in charge of the North American Slayer school. But -and a very big 'but'- she tried as hard as she could to keep my twin Celia and myself from becoming too involved in the supernatural. We went to regular public school and started training with her when we were thirteen, only because after that first vampire attack, she didn't want us defenseless. So, we lived as normal a life as we could, considering our parentage and the fact that Willow was a goddess and William was an ex-vampire-with-a-soul and Aunt Dawn used to be a big ball of universe-destroying energy.
Then Celia discovered some prophecy (those things are always screwing up lives) and realized that the two of us weren't supposed to have been born as twins, and that there's some big save-the-world-or-damn-it power that one of us will get. She was always kind of jealous of me (don't ask me why; she was the popular cheerleader with half the school trailing after her, while I only had Venus and David) and I guess the prophecy made her go a little loony.
That was when we were sixteen. About a year later, both Venus and David were dead, as well as their parents, our parents, Mr. Giles, Aunt Dawn, and pretty much everyone left over from the original Scooby Gang. Celia used magick to give her a little power boost, making her as formidable as any Slayer. After a little trip to the Oracles, I discovered the existence of the prophecy and who our father was. For some reason, Mom forgot to mention that he was the original vampire with a soul. Also that he went evil and hunted her down when she was pregnant with us and killed David's mother after Mom and him had sex. Gotta love those Gypsy curses.
New York City was in ruins and vampires pretty much ruled the Big Apple, with Queen C as their leader. The group of Slayers who's survived the bomb attack on the school went up against her. I never found out what happened to them. Celia and I had our confrontation, and as humiliating as it is to admit it, she kicked my ass good and proper. Then she worked some spell and opened up and gateway to place or other. In one of my less-intelligent moments, I followed.
I wound up in the Los Angeles of twenty years ago, and got my ass kicked yet again, this time by a couple of badass-wannabe vampires. I even got staked. Despite the potential fatality of what happened, I still appreciate the irony. Plus, I got to meet a cute guy. Cute guys are always a plus. Especially when they're not fangy and don't consider you a midnight snack.
Angel and Gunn found me in the park and took me back to the Hyperion Hotel for recuperation. I later learned that Angel was the original souled vampire, the one destined to be my father and go all evil. I haven't told him about the evil part yet. Don't wanna burst his bubble of atonement and redemption.
The cute guy that I met, it turns out he worked for Wolfram and Hart, the evil law firm that also had my sister as a client. Grey (said cute guy) got Angel Investigations out of the way and tricked me with pretensions of going to save some innocent people from vampires. One drugged Sprite later, I'm in Wolfram and Hart, being threatened to sign over my claim to the aforementioned prophecy. I refused. Mainly to piss Celia off. Petty reasoning, I know. But you try watching helplessly as your best friend is killed in front of you. You'd be feeling a little animosity, too.
Around the same time, Cordelia got a vision from the Powers-That-Be, which led Angel Inc. to find Lorne's cousin in this dimension. I should probably mention that Lorne is an anagogic demon from another dimension, called Pylea. Wesley and everyone worked this spell to send Lorne's cousin back to Pylea, only Cordelia got suck through, as well. Facing a tough decision (note the sarcasm), Angel decided to let the person who'd put me in Wolfram and Hart rescue me. Not one of his brighter ideas. Plus, the whole damsel-in-distress bit doesn't really suit me.
So, anyway, while the gang was having a grand old time in Pylea, I helped Grey. I discovered that Wolfram and Hart was blackmailing him; if he didn't do what they said, his entire clan would die. I should probably also mention that he's a demon. Albeit a hot one.
I worked a gateway spell similar to the one Celia did and sent Grey and his clan to a happier dimension. I will admit this nowhere but here, but I was sad to see him go. Grey, I mean. It's not like I forgot the Wolfram-and-Hart bit, but I get why he did it. And he was a decent guy, probably the only friend I'll ever have again. And did I mention the hotness?
Wolfram and Hart agents busted in just as the last of the Eros demons were going through the portal. I was half-dead, because working the spell took a lot out of me, but not long after, the carless cavalry returned from Pylea and came to my aid.
I think it was Newton's laws of physics (or some other scientific-y guy's priniciples of whatever) that said for every action, there's an equal and opposite reaction. Cordelia, myself, and an entire clan of Eros demons were saved from the evil clutches of Wolfram and Hart. The flip side? Angel Inc. arrived at the Hyperion to find Willow. Why did she come? Because Buffy died.
So I've spent my summer going back and forth between Los Angeles and Sunnydale. I stay on the Hellmouth during the week, and head back up to the city for the weekend. It's non-stop slaying, boys and girls. I haven't had a kick-back day in forever, and I sleep all day and slay all night. Personally, I don't think it's fair to me, because I'm not even a Slayer. I don't even have the slightly-enhanced abilities I used to have, not since I went through the portal.
But everyone's been pitching in more since Buffy died (I can't think of her as 'Mom'. Parentage might have been in the cards for her once upon a time, but she's dead now, because Celia and I came and fucked up everything. Excuse me if I seem testy. Lack of sleep will do that to a girl.), and Angel decided to take his stupid retreat. Both of the Champions are effectively gone, and I'm here wondering why the hell everyone doesn't just get Faith to come. From what William (oh, excuse me, Spike) used to tell me, she was called as a Slayer long ago.
So, yeah. Angel's on his retreat. Let's dwell on that for a moment, shall we? He volunteers me for this commuting back-and-forth gig, then leaves town and doesn't tell me. I hear it from Lorne. Personally, I feel like I had a right to find out about his leaving from him. Or maybe I don't. Maybe I'm reading way too much into this. Angel isn't my father yet. With Buffy dead, doesn't look like he will be. We are two strangers. Glad I figured that out. ...Except, after I found out who he was, and all the times he saved so many people, well, I practically hero-worship the guy.
But at least that's better than pining for a guy that's in a whole other dimension. I haven't been able to get Grey off my mind. Dawn even took me to the Bronze one night. Forget that the one guy who thought I was cute had fangs, and that that other cute guy was a cultist. I think I just have bad luck with guys. I wonder if it runs in the family.
So here I am, looking as pale as a vampire, sleeping the days away when I should be getting a tan. I'm on the beach, too. You would think the Powers-That-Be would have some sympathy, but I heard they're not very forthcoming with that stuff. The least they could do is team me up with someone else when we go group patrolling.
For some reason, whenever the pairs are called, I always get the Buffybot. I think it's because no one else can stand to have something that looks so much like Buffy be so close to them. And I think that I also remind them a little of Buffy. Spike (who's still a vampire in this time) caught the scent of my blood when I came home one night. Then he had a talk with Willow and the others. They've all been avoiding me, except Dawn and Tara. And Giles. He trains me, but he also gives me this weird lab-experiment look. It's freaky.
Sigh. It's a Friday. My least favourite day. After I make rounds around Sunnydale, I'll come back to Revello Drive to see Cordy or Wes waiting to drive me back to Los Angeles. Then, oh joy, I get to go and patrol around Los Angeles. Will the action never end? Seriously. I need a break. Maybe Vegas.
More than anything, I want my mommy. I want her here with me, to show me what to do, to show me how to fight. I nearly got killed one night in Weatherly Park, and if Mom had been there, I know I wouldn't have. I want her to be here so I can talk to her and tell her everything that I'm feeling, how alone I am. But she's not here. Dawn's a good listener - up to a point. I mean, she understands all the teenage angst-y stuff, but I can't tell her about the real important parts, like where she's my aunt, for instance. The only person I can talk to is in Nepal or Tibet, or some other cold place.
I hope he runs into demons.
I'm being petty again. I know.
But I'm used to being alone, so I guess I can't really blame Angel for not being here.
And anyway, less people I have to worry about, the better. I can concentrate on keeping myself alive longer.
Now if I keep telling myself that, and not think about the fact that a lonely life, albeit a long one, is worthless, I think I can get through the night all right.
And if that works, that'll be a first.
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Chapter Two: Trigger Happy
"...So what it all comes down to is this: Are you a veggie girl, or do you want meat, 'cause you can eliminate two-thirds of your choices right there."
"I...what?" Katherine stared blankly at Dawn.
"The Great Lasagna Cook-Off. ...Between Spike and Xander and Willow? Remember? Winner gets full bragging rights and doesn't have to baby-sit the Buffybot for a month...you have no idea what I'm talking about, do you?"
"Not a clue," Katherine admitted, going back to staring out the window.
"Gee, I wonder why?" Dawn asked sarcastically, coming up beside Katherine. She peered out the window intently. "I don't see anything."
"That's the point."
"Right. Drop the cryptic. What's up?"
"Someone's out there," she replied calmly.
"How can you tell? It's pitch black out there."
"I just feel it. And whoever's out there, he can see us."
"Okay, that's just freaky." Dawn pulled the thick curtains together, shutting out the eyes of the unseen. "Are you absolutely sure someone's out there? Watching us?"
"Someone's been out there for a long time now. Since I first came to Sunnydale."
"Are you serious? Why haven't you told me this before?"
"Didn't wanna freak you out. ...I've been having these feelings in Los Angeles, too."
Dawn's mouth formed a small O of surprise. "Oh my God. Did you tell Wes or Cordy or...Okay, guess you didn't," she concluded by the look on Katherine's face. "Um, do you want me to tell Spike or Willow? Maybe they can take a look outside, or find your stalker."
"Oh, God, don't say it like that. It sounds so..."
"Real?"
"Creepy. And besides, I'm a Slayerette; I can handle myself. If I can hold my own against vampires and other little ooglies, I can take this jerk, whoever he is. So when I wanna go look, I'll go look."
"So do you want me to tell Spike or Willow?" Dawn repeated.
"Yes, please."
"Niblet! Dinner!" Spike called from downstairs.
"Coming!" She yelled back. "Come on. We'll tell them after dinner. Now, listen. The most important thing you have to remember about this thing is that you can't be the last one to give your vote, 'cause then you'll probably end up being the tie-breaker, and that can get ugly."
"Not the last one. Right."
"Oh, and flattery. Flattery's always good."
"Uh huh. Flattery. Got it." As Dawn pulled her out of the bedroom, she couldn't help but steal one last glance at the curtained window.
He stood in the shadows of the streets, hidden in the depths of the darkness. He could see her perfectly in the light of the bedroom, an impassive, expressionless expression on her face. Her eyes betrayed her, though. Her eyes told the world that she was worried, that she was scared.
He saw the younger girl come from behind her and close the curtains, and then he could see no more. But he could tell that she was still searching through the darkness, he could feel it. But if he had his way, she'd never find him. Not yet, anyway.
"So?"
"So, I, ah...I loved it. All of it. Delish. Yummy yummy." Her bright smile faded on the scowling faces of Spike and Xander. Only Willow looked amused. As Dawn had predicted, she was the last one to speak up, and was now the tie-breaker between Xander and Spike.
"Pick your favourite, pet."
"Um...the veggie one?"
Willow beamed. "Thanks, Kat. Glad you liked it. Three-way tie," she said to her fellow competitors. "It's a draw."
"No, it's a two-way tie," Xander argued. "The Buffybot doesn't even eat. She only voted for Spike because..." He noticed Kat and Dawn's interested looks. "Never mind."
"Where is the Buffybot, anyway?" Anya asked. "She usually doesn't stay this quiet for so long. Is she asleep?"
"She's a robot, Ahn. She doesn't sleep."
"Well, technically she doesn't, not like humans do, but-"
"Whoa!" Dawn blinked several times. She was pinned to the wall by the sleeve of her shirt. Luckily for her, the shirt was loose.
"Oops." All heads turned from Dawn to the Buffybot, who held a crossbow loosely by her side. "I'm sorry, Dawn," she apologized, effortlessly pulling the arrow out of the wall and freeing Dawn. "I was cleaning the crossbow, and I didn't notice that the safety was off. I didn't mean to hurt you. You're my sister. I love you."
"Um...yeah. It's fine. I'm fine." Dawn subtley moved out of the Buffybot's reach, and everyone stood around uncomfortably.
"Dawnie, are you sure you're fine?"
"Right as rain, Buff." Unlike everyone else, Dawn treated the Buffybot like she was Buffy. It didn't have anything to do with displacing her feelings of her dead sister onto the robot. Nope. Not at all. The Buffybot meant well. She was nice enough.
"On that note, I think I'm gonna hit the streets," Katherine announced. "I feel the need to get my hurt on."
"You've been hanging around Gunn, haven't you?" Dawn asked, smiling slightly. She'd met Angel's friend at Buffy's funeral, and had talked with him several times when he had driven Kat up to Sunnydale.
"I feel up for a spot of violence," Spike added, grabbing his duster.
"What the hell," Xander shrugged. "Let's make it a family affair."
"There's a lot of vamps out tonight," Kat remarked.
"Your point?"
"Well, is it some kind of vampire holiday, or is it just the pull of the Hellmouth?"
"Bugger if I know."
"Well, I figured you would, since you're a vampire and all."
"You know pet, this is the first time you said more than two words to me all summer."
"This is the first time you've said more than two words to me all summer," Katherine countered, flipping a vampire over a tombstone and staking it.
"I've been in mourning."
"So have I."
"How d'you know the Slayer, anyways?" Spike asked casually, leading the way around a crypt.
"Friend of my mother's," she replied easily, then stopped in her tracks.
"S'wrong?"
"Nothing." She shook her head. "Nothing. I just got a feeling..." She dismissed it with a wave of her hand, but her senses were alert and ready.
"I've learned that it's better to trust your instincts than ignore them." He followed her line of sight to the old Alpert tomb. Eyeing her carefully, he hefted the broadsword. "Stay here, eh? If you need me, gimme a holler."
Katherine nodded mutely and kept watch for any vampires, wondering what Spike was up to.
Katherine.
She jumped, startled.
Katherine. It's me.
Katherine blinked and looked around, unnerved. "Willow? ...Where are you?"
On top of the Crestfield crypt.
"But that's on the other side of the cemetery..."
We're communicating by telepathy.
"Wow, cool. I didn't know you could do that."
Kat, stay on track.
"Right. ...Um, which track would that be?"
Where's Spike?
"He went into the Alpert tomb. Uh, he went to go check out something in there. Why? What's wrong?"
Dawn and Giles are over by the church. They're outnumbered. They need help.
"But Spike told me to-"
Go! Now!
Katherine nodded, then realized Willow couldn't see her. "Consider me gone." The fastest way to get to the church was to vault onto the tomb's roof, then race across the tops on the three other crypts.
"Let's see if I can still do this." She counted to three in her mind, then jumped and pulled herself onto a nearby tree. From the tree, she took a flying leap and landed in a heap on the stone roof.
"Well, at least I made it," she gasped, and pulled herself up. She scrambled over the slippery concrete, holding the crossbow away from her and trying not to fall. She went down anyway. She heard shouts but was only aware of her falling.
"Ow..." She moaned, lying on the ground, her eyes closed. She was just glad she didn't impale herself on her crossbow.
"God, who dropped the piano?" She heard another voice groan. It was then that she was aware that she had landed on someone.
"Spike?"
"Yeah?" She turned her head. The blond vampire stood a foot away, with a crossbow aimed at her.
"Spike?" Katherine asked again, more panicked. He came closer. "Spike?" He grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet. "Okay, ow." It felt like her arm had been torn out of her socket.
"Get up," Spike growled. "Now."
Katherine, massaging her arm, looked up to see the figure on the ground slowly stand up. "Oh, God, I'm hallucinating," she murmured. "That fall...oh, God."
"Did you gain weight over the summer or something? Because- Ow! You shot me!" Grey pulled out the arrow and clamped a hand over the bloody hole in his shoulder. He stared at her, shocked. "You shot me!"
"That was for the weight comment. Jerk."
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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Chapter Three: Uninhibited
"You know, I didn't know demons could be vampires," Katherine continued casually, loading the crossbow once more. "I guess you really do learn something new every day."
Spike gave her an odd look.
"What are you talking about?" Grey asked, panicked. "Don't point that thing at me!"
Katherine aimed the crossbow at his heart.
"Pet, I think you ought to know-"
"Yeah, Spike?"
"He's not a vampire."
"I -What?" She dropped the crossbow and the trigger went off, sending the arrow ricocheting into the trees.
"He's not a vampire," Spike repeated calmly.
Katherine turned to look at Grey with wide eyes. Her breathing became quicker and she backed away slowly, stumbling over a raised tree root.
Omigod omigod omigod...
"Pet?"
"Katherine?" Grey said gently.
"I-I'm sorry. ...I have to...I'm sorry..." Then she turned and fled into the darkness.
You shot him!
I shot him!
Yes, we've already covered that. The question now is why?
Katherine sank down at the bar in the Bronze, utterly confused and frustrated.
I thought he was evil! He was all stalker-y in the shadows...and he looked so pale...
Maybe getting chased down by a vampire and having someone literally land on him freaked him out. Or maybe it was said someone pointing a crossbow and shooting him with it that did it.
"What'll it be?" The bartender asked cheerily.
"Got any rat poison?" Katherine replied dully. The bartender froze. "Gimme a beer."
"Do you have any-?"
"Beer," she repeated forcefully. The bartender was young and inexperienced and didn't press the ID issue.
Oh God...I could have killed him! I could have...omigod...
Princess, you gonna start singin' a new tune anytime soon?
Katherine grabbed the cold mug of frothy liquid that had appeared on the counter in front of her and finished half of it in two gulps, wincing at the horrible taste.
God...
Okay, Princess. You just gonna stay here and drink yourself into a stupor, or are you gonna go home and get some rest, maybe talk to Tall, Dark and Injured, hmmm?
"'Home'?" She murmured quietly. "Where's 'at?" She picked up the glass and swallowed the rest, and shudder as the cold, intoxicated liquid travelled through her body.
Enough with the self-pity nonsense. Haul your ass up and go home, before you get so drunk you don't know which side is up.
"Can I get another?" Katherine asked the bartender, plunking the empty glass on the counter. The bartender served her another beer, then returned several more times within the hour as Katherine stupidly drank glass after glass. She was in the middle of watching the lights on the dance floor with interest when she felt two people sit down on either side of her. "Ever feel like life's one big box of chocolates, and all you get are the yucky cherry-center ones?"
"How many did you drink?" Right side.
"Not enough. It's still hurts," she slurred, her eyes becoming unfocused. "Still hurts..."
"C'mon. Let's get you home." Left side.
"Uh uh. I don't wanna go. ...I wanna dance..."
"Pet, you can barely stand. Let's go. Niblet's gone out of her mind with worry 'bout you." Left again.
"Dawn...Dawnie Dawnie Dawnie Dawnie," Katherine murmured, swaying to the music.
"How much did she drink?" Xander demanded to the bartender.
"Uh, I..."
"How many?"
"Twelve."
Spike blinked. "Girl can hold her liquor."
"I've 'ad practice," she chirped cheerily, still swaying.
"Uh huh. Good for you, Pet."
"Yeah. ...Me and David and Venus...uh huh, all three of the three of us...Uncle Xander said we shouldn't...only David...David was eighteen...whoo, eighteen...big frickin' deal..."
"What's she talking about?" Xander asked, eyeing her with confusion. "I don't know anyone named David or Venus."
"Then he went to go patrollin' with Mom...'cause she's the Slayah...whoo, take that, evil vampire," she giggled, poking Spike with a toothpick. Spike was unamused.
"I reckon we get her home before she tries to decapitate me with a plastic knife next."
"William was ba-by-sit-ting...didn't need no frickin' baby-sitter...I was sixteen...sixteen whole years...whoo, sixteen, I can drive...not real good, though...Mom couldn't drive good either..."
Spike and Xander exchanged glances.
"William wouldn't let us drink either, would ya, Willy?" Katherine clapped Spike on the back and giggled. "But 'at didn't matter, did it? Nope, no siree. Went to a party. Yep. Punch was spiked." She looked up at Spike. "Haha," she giggled. "'Spiked punch'. ...We had lotses of cupses of punch...Uncle Xander brought us home, didn't ya? Yep. After David called you...good ol' Davey." There was a sadness in her eyes.
"What's she talking about?" Xander murmured.
"Shhh," Spike said quietly. "Let her continue."
"...Didn't tell Mommy anythin' bout anythin'. Said ya didn't want her to think I was actin' like Faith. ...Poor Faithie. Not me, the other one. Daddy killed her. Evil Daddy. ...Now David has no mommy. Only his daddy. And Uncle Xander has no one...no one but Davey. ...But then Mommy founded out anyway. William got in trouble, didn't ya? Yuh-huh. 'Cause ya knew. And ya didn't tell her. And then ya told me, "Honesty's the best policy, Kat. 'Specially where she's concerned. Buffy knows everything, no sense in lying to her."
"Buffy?" Xander murmured.
"Buffy? The Slayer?"
All three heads looked up.
"Who the fuck are you?" Katherine asked shrewdly, getting up from the stool.
"Watch your mouth. I'm your worst nightmare." A backhand sent her tumbling over the counter.
"Yeah, yeah. How many times've we heard that one before?" Spike asked, giving the Flegerick demon a solid kick in its midsection.
"Actually, never," Xander clarified. "Still. It lacks originality."
From behind the counter, Katherine blinked, dazed. The bartender stood in a corner, petrified. Her fighter's senses snapped on, and the drunken stupor of before was somewhat dulled as an adrenaline rush overcame her.
"God, I seriously need some coffee. Oh. Eh, good enough." Katherine grabbed a handful of ground coffee beans from a paper bag and starting swallowing. "Ugh, this tastes like...ugh!"
"Why - won't - you - die?!" Xander asked furiously, whacking the demon over its soft, fleshy pink head with a metal chair as its grip on Spike tightened.
"Sa- sal-" Spike choked out, trying to break the demon's powerful grip on his throat.
"Salisbury? Saltines? Salami?" Xander tried, still hitting the demon with everything he had.
"Hello, salty goodness," Katherine quipped, dumping a bag of salt over the creature's head. It began to move painfully as it sizzled and smoked into nothingness. "Huh. 'Worst nightmare', my ass."
"Salt," Spike spat out once he was free, glaring at Xander. "It was a Flegerick demon."
"Well how was I supposed to know that? Actually, how'd you know that?" Xander asked Katherine.
"One of 'em crashed the science lab at school a few years ago. Lucky it was only me and my friend David in there." Katherine spoke more clearly and seemed more alert, though she didn't appear to remember what she had accidentally told Spike and Xander. They seemed to realize that, too. "But, we took care of it using good old sodium chloride."
"Sodium chl-?"
"Salt."
"Oh."
"Which I was trying to tell you," Spike reminded him. "And salisbury?"
"Hey, I was feeling up for some steak. Well, not now, 'cause..." He kicked at the shriveled demon corpse with his shoe. "Yeah."
"Can we go home?" Katherine asked in a small voice. "I just wanna sleep, for like a week. And I feel all icky. Haven't felt this bad since I was sixteen and-" She looked up at Spike and Xander.
"Yeah?" The prompted.
"I broke into my dad's liquor cabinet and drank an entire bottle of vodka," she lied, leaning on Spike as they walked towards the door.
Spike and Xander exchanged glances. Xander was torn between talking to Katherine about what she had said and forgetting that she had ever said what she'd said. Spike wanted answers. He wondered if they had a couple dozen bottles of beer in the fridge. He'd need twelve himself after Katherine explained her whole story.
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Chapter Four: Heartthrob, Pt. 1
"Do hangovers always feel this bad?" Katherine asked, burying her head in her arms the next morning. She sat like that, resting her head on the counter in the kitchen, while Willow poured her a cup of some thick greenish-blue liquid.
"Drink up."
Katherine eyed the glass. It was smoking. The last time she'd had to drink that, it was bubbling. She guessed that because Buffy really wasn't a practiced Wicca, the potion didn't come out too well. But it was enough to scare her away from drinking again. Until now.
"Bottoms up," she said, then downed the contents in one gulp. It tasted like tomato and milk, with a hint of peanut butter. "Oh, ew. This tastes worse than beer. ...Oh. But on the plus side, I feel better."
"Good to know. But I don't ever want to have to make this for you again, okay? Stay away from alcohol."
"Oui, mon capitaine," Katherina saluted. "Beer bad. Gotcha."
"Katherine, don't take this so lightly."
"Willow, relax. Believe me, I've totally learned my lesson." She took a big gulp of coffee, trying to wash away the taste of Willow's potion.
"That's not what I mean. Frankly, I don't care if you learned your lesson or not."
Katherine raised her eyebrows. "Meh?"
"Since you came here in June, you've become such good friends with Dawnie. And you're older than her, which means that you automatically fall into the role model category. If Dawn sees you drinking-"
"Willow." Katherine held up a hand to silence the redhead. She had noticed a high level of protectiveness coming from all of the Scoobies where Dawn was concerened, and figured Buffy's death played a major factor in it. "Chill." She rose from the counter. "She didn't actually see me, thank God. And she does have a mind of her own, you know. She's not going to go and chug a six-pack just 'cause I did one incredibly-"
"Stupid thing that could have gotten you seriously hurt?" Grey leaned against the doorframe and glared Katherine.
Katherine bit her lip and resisted the urge to turn all the way around. From the corner of her eye she could make out blue jeans and blue plaid shirt and unruly dark hair. The memories of last night that she'd been trying so hard forget came pounding through her mind. His angry expression certainly didn't help.
Oh, wow. He looks so-
Don't think it.
But-
Don't. Go. There.
"Yeah." She jerked her thumb backwards. "What he said. Dawn's a hell of a lot smarter than that. 'Sides, I think after a close encounter with Xander's fist, the bartender'll actually be checking ID at the Bronze. ...Dawn left for school already?"
"Yeah. About fifteen minutes ago. She didn't want to wake you up. Since you weren't feeling so hot."
Katherine sighed. "I'll go back to Los Angeles in the afternoon, then."
"No. Cordy called. They need you back now. ...You good to drive?"
"Yeah...I just didn't wanna leave without telling Dawn bye."
"You can phone her later."
Katherine sighed. One stupid, stupid course of action, and now she was getting the cold shoulder from everyone and didn't even get to say bye to Dawn. Dawn was the closest friend she'd had since she'd came to California, and in their line of work, she might not get to see Dawn again.
"So I guess I better motor now."
"You're going?" Xander asked, walking into the kitchen with a slice of toast in his hand. "So soon?"
"Yeah huh. L.A. calls. Or, more accurately, Cordy calls." She grinned feebly at her own small joke.
"Sure you can drive?"
The phone rang shrilly in the living room, and Katherine could hear Spike answer it with his usual, "What do you want?"
"Trust me. I'm way more adept behind the wheel than my mom was."
"Phone's for you," Spike said, carefully walking into the kitchen, avoiding the large patches of sunlight that shone in through the window.
"'Was'?" Xander asked casually, ignoring Spike. "What happened to your mother?"
Spike's interest was suddenly captivated.
"Xander," Willow scolded, though she too was interested in Katherine's response. She'd never heard the girl talk about her family before. All she knew was that Katherine was somehow connected to Angel and his friends.
"She, um, died. A couple years ago."
"Was it a car accident? You know, because you said-"
"Oh, she hardly drove at all. I mean, she had her license and everything, but when Mom drove...we all pretty much feared for our lives in that car. No. She, was, um, murdered."
Willow looked at her sympathetically and Katherine shuffled her feet uncomfortably.
Why didn't you go with the car accident story? Xander practically handed that one to you. No. You had to go and say she was murdered. ...Smart ass.
"Was it vampires?" The redhead asked.
Katherine stole a glance at Grey, who was watching the whole scene with an interested, amused expression on his face.
"Well?" He asked. "Was it? Vampires?"
She swallowed and tightened her grip on her coffee cup, her eyes never leaving him. "No," she said calmly. "It wasn't vampires. Just a regular person."
"Oh," Xander said, somewhat disappointed.
"Mind if we continue this discussion that's in no way painful next week? I've really got to get going. I hate being out on the road in the middle of the day. It's all hot and icky."
"Can I get a ride?" Grey asked. "The buses for L.A. don't leave for another couple of hours."
Katherine was tempted to tell him to fuck off, but thought better of it. "Half an hour," she snapped. "Be ready, or I'm gone."
"I'm gone, too, guys. I've got a Lit class in...oh," she paled, looking at her watch. "Five minutes." She grabbed her bag on the kitchen counter. "Gotta go," she waved.
"I'm gonna go and pack up all my things." Katherine quietly padded out of the kitchen and up to Dawn's room in her fluffy pink bunny slippers that she could only wear whenever Anya wasn't around. She could hear the guys talking quietly downstairs, and discretely slipped into Willow and Tara's room. Willow, ever the neat freak, kept all of her spell ingredients and books on a large bookcase that was on the wall across the bed. Katherine made sure the door was closed and began to search the top shelf of the bookcase, hoping that what she wanted was there. Sure enough...
"Thank you, Willow," she muttered, taking a bit of Lethe's Bramble out of plastic bag. Willow had showed her how to do the spell once, and only because she was doing all the wrong way and was in actuality doing a spell to turn Celia into a carrot. She'd successfully done the spell only once, on her sister.
She pulled a small red plastic lighter and small whitish stone out of her pocket. She flicked the lighter and smiled slightly when a tongue of bluish-white flame flicked out. It soon grew to a yellow glow, and Katherine held the Lethe's Bramble up to the flame.
"Goddess Hecate, work thy will.
With these words, I will it so.
As the bramble burns, the stone turns black.
As the stone turns black, the one I will it upon will-
Thud.
The door slammed open and Katherine looked up, startled.
"Whatcha doin'?"
She sighed, relieved, then remembered she should be angry with him. "None of your business. Get lost."
"You're in Willow's room," Grey observed. "Without Willow. And I'm also betting, without her permission."
"How very astute of you."
"Are you doing a spell?"
"You know, you're like the annoying little brother who won't go away."
"'Brother'?" His voice sounded strange.
"Just go."
"No, actually. I wanna see how this is gonna play out."
"How what's gonna-? Oh...shit."
After the girls and then Grey had left, only Spike and Xander remained in the kitchen.
"She was lying, you know."
"About what?"
"How her mother, how Buffy died."
"Spike, we agreed. We'd just forget about it."
"Which is why you were playin' Twenty Questions, yeah?"
"Oh, okay, fine. I want to know what her deal is just as much as you do. ...But how d'you know she's lying? She didn't sound like it."
"Her heartbeat. It went crazy."
"Vampire hearing. Gotta love it."
Grey stood right in front of her, but she could still see Xander and Spike in the doorway. Katherine carefully slipped the stone, lighter, and bramble into her pocket.
"Um...hi! This isn't what it-"
"We want to ask you a little something," Xander said, and Katherine was surprised by his forceful tone. "Uh...right?" He asked Spike.
"Right," Spike repeated.
"Right. So. Who are you and where did you come from?"
"Um, okay. Xander, what's with the spaceage? You know who I am, and as for where I came from, didn't we all learn that in grade school?"
"Wanker means who your family is, Pet. You said some things last night, put little nagging questions into our minds. Now we want answers."
Katherine blinked, thrown. "Omigod, I will never go ten feet near alcohol ever again. What did I say?" Truthfully, she had a feeling what she had said. It was why she was going to do the memory spell in the first place, so Xander would forget his suspicions. She didn't know she had to worry about Spike, too.
So, Princess, how are you gonna get out of this one?
"Said some stuff about Uncle Xander here, and some kids named Venus and David. And you mentioned me, Buffy, and Faith being killed. Which is right odd in itself, seeing as you've never even met the girl."
"Oh Lordy. ...Uh, why don't you guys have a seat? There are some things...oh, God, this is going to take awhile."
Spike ignored her and remained standing by the computer desk, but Xander sat down on the bed across from her. She launched into her complicated story, giving them the cliff notes version. When she came to the part about Spike and Buffy getting blown up, the vampire in question accidentally knocked over a cup of pens, but otherwise, they listened quietly. From time to time, Katherine stole glances at Grey, who looked bored as hell.
"...And, yeah, that's about it, up until the start of the summer. ...Any questions?"
"Yes!" Xander exclaimed, as Katherine took out the lighter and the bramble. "How in the hell does he turn human? And where's this crazy sister of yours now? And-"
"Harris, slow down. I've got a few questions myself."
Katherine flicked the little wheel and a little burst of flame erupted.
"No smoking in the house, Bit."
"I've got answers to all of your questions," she assured them.
"Yeah?"
"Yeah." She touched the bramble to the flame, and as it caught on fire, she felt the stone in her pocket grow warm.
"-Forget."
"You're friggin' unbelievable," Grey muttered, taking a tentative sip of his Coke. They'd been on the road for nearly three hours now, and Katherine had stopped only once for a bathroom break.
"I prefer to think that I'm a friggin' genius. But, you know. To each his own and all that." After she had uttered the last word of the spell, Xander and Spike were clueless as to why they were all in Willow's bedroom. She had played along, and so had Grey, to much delight. Spike and Xander, thinking it might have been the work of this week's creature feature, went out to scour the streets, even though it was barely lunchtime.
Katherine had bid them goodbye as she packed her suitcase into the car trunk. On impulse, she stopped by Dawn's school on her way out of Sunnydale. She, Summers Jr. and Grey had enjoyed lunch at the bakery across the street, then she dropped Dawn back at school before heading off to L.A.
"That spell'll come back and bite you in the ass, mark my words."
"Doesn't matter. They're off my back now."
"You shouldn't mess with people like that, Katherine."
"You should talk."
Here we go. He had expected this ever since he had seen her. They hadn't talked properly all weekend, with her avoiding him at first, then with them trading mindless insults for the second half.
"I can't believe - how you could - ugh!" She jerk the wheel sharply to the right and just barely made the turn for a local diner. She pulled into the parking lot and shut off the ignition.
"So, what? We're gonna have it out it the parking lot of some cheap diner? You can't wait till we get to Los Angeles?"
"No, I can't," she replied bluntly, staring straight ahead, the tinted lenses of her sunglasses blocking out most of sun's blinding light. She turned towards him, but still didn't face him. "Why didn't you let me know you were around? What, did you get some sort of peverse pleasure having me go completely out of my mind with paranoia?"
"No. I - I don't know why-"
"Or was it fun, the whole I-can-see-you-but-you-can't-see-me part?"
"No, I-"
"You know, here I am, finally ready to just start over and forget everything except fighting baddies with the rest of the gang, and you pull this stupid crap and just totally mess up my life!" She saw the hurt on his face. "I didn't mean that," she quickly amended. "I didn't mean it."
"Yeah, you did. And it's true."
"No, it's not-"
"I, I don't know why I didn't tell you I was around. After everything that happened before the summer, I guess I wanted to make sure that you were okay. But I didn't want you to take chances to protect me. I saw you do it for everyone, even for people like Spike and Willow who can hold their own, and even for the Buffybot."
She stared at him for a long time, and he didn't know if that was a good thing or not. While the thought gears rotated in her mind, he took the chance to commit her to memory. The way her hair stubbornly fell in her face and came just short of her breasts- God, don't look there, pervert. -The way her eyes could both beckon him forward and threaten his very life if he did make a move.
"Ugh, how do you do that?" She asked in annoyance, slumping back in the driver's seat, staring out the windshield.
"Um...do what?"
"Make me get all understand-y and not want to totally kick your ass?"
"It's a gift," he grinned, relieved.
"I'm sorry I shot you," she said quietly.
"You thought I was a bloodsucking creature of the night. It's understandable."
"Don't make jokes."
"I'm not. ...My shoulder still hurts like hell, but what do you want me to do? Bitch about it for the next hour an a half and make you feel guilty...er?"
"Fine, fine. Point taken. ...I really am sorry, though."
"And you really are forgiven. So forget about it and drive already."
Katherine shook her head and turned the ignition. "Just so we're clear on this..." She looked into the rearview mirror and carefully backed out of the parking lot.
"What?"
"We're not okay, okay? There's still issues between us...so we're not friends or anything like that."
"Fine," he agreed, draining his Coke and opening another. "Then why don't you tell me what we are?"
"That's a good question," she murmured.
"Bonjour, Aloha, hello to all," Katherine called, dragging her suitcase and weapons bag in behind her.
"Katherine, hey!"
"Cordy!" Katherine squealed. It had been weeks since Katherine had seen Cordelia, seeing as the younger girl had only been at the Hyperion for the weekends, often missing most of Angel Investigations since they were busy with cases.
"There's something different about you..." Katherine muttered, studying Cordelia. When she finally got it, she gasped. "Your hair! It's blonde! Well, blonder. Still."
"Looks nice?"
"Looks great."
Cordelia beamed. "Thanks. So, anyways, I-" She stared at a spot over Katherine's shoulder. "That guy, the one by the door..."
"Yeah?"
"Boyfriend?"
Katherine snorted.
"I'll take that as a 'no'."
"Take it as an 'I don't even know if it's a no or not'."
"Ah, young love," Cordelia giggled as Grey made a hasty retreat. Katherine rolled her eyes.
"I'm going to go put my stuff up in my room."
"Okay."
Katherine made it halfway up the stairs when she turned back. "Oh, did Fred come out of her room yet?"
Cordelia sighed. "No. And we're getting really worried about her. I think Angel's the only one who can get her out of there."
"And God knows when he'll be back," she muttered, thudding the rest of the way up the stairs.
Two hours and one bubble bath later, Katherine was eating takeout chinese food out of the carton and watching reruns of Passions in Angel's basement loft, seeing as it was the only room in the hotel with a TV.
"Sheridan, no! Don't go there! It's a trap, do you hear me? A trap! ...Oh, for the love of-" Her rant was cut off by a loud scream. "Yeah, Sheridan, scream louder, like anyone can hear you..." Something clicked into place in her mind as she recognized the scream. "Omigod, Cordy!" She grabbed a broadsword hanging on Angel's wall and charged upstairs.
"Where is it? Where's the demon?"
Gunn, Wesley, and Cordelia exchanged looks. "Demon?"
"I heard...a scream...you screamed," she said to Cordelia. "Uh...right?"
"Nope," Cordelia grinned. "That was Mr. Badass-Demon-Fighter."
"Gunn? Wow. You sound so ladylike," she snickered. "Why'd you scream though?"
"Mouse."
"Mouse?"
"We're setting mouse traps in the hotel. Gunn saw a mouse-"
"It ran over my foot, okay? ...Those things are just..." he shuddered.
Katherine giggled and lowered her sword. "But there's no demon, right?"
"Nope."
"Y'all want some help with the mouse traps?"
"That won't be necessary," Wesley spoke up. "You can go back to watching television."
"Okey dokey," she replied, and barely made it halfway down the stairs when she heard another scream, one that she was positive belonged to Cordelia. She charged back up the stairs and collided with someone coming in from the side entrance. Their feet tangled together and she went down hard, the broadsword flying out of her hand and skidding several feet down the hall.
"Sorry," Grey apologized, pulling her up. "I was walking by, and I heard the scream..."
"Thanks. ...Aw, I got ketchup on my jammies! Or, no, wait, is that blood?"
"Katherine, who screamed?" Grey asked her, bringing her back to reality.
"Oh! Yeah! ...Uh, Cordelia, I think." She jogged the length of the hallway and picked up the broadsword, then charged into the lobby. "Okay, there better be a demon I can kill."
Everyone was crowded around the chair, entranced by something she couldn't see. At the sounds of her voice, all four of them looked up.
Four? ...Wait a minute...
Katherine, unknown to herself, began to grin, slow and wide, like a kid waking up and realizing it was Christmas morning. "Hi," she said shyly.
If it were anyone but Angel, she would think that he wanted to smile. "Hi yourself."
"How was your vacation? Get a lot of relaxation?"
"Yeah. ...When I wasn't fighting demon monks. Which was, you know, always."
"Oh."
"Yeah. I should've went to Vegas."
Katherine and Cordelia giggled.
"Told you," Gunn said. "Get drunk, get some girls, and then-"
Angel cleared his throat loudly, pointing subtley at Katherine.
"Oh," Gunn said. "Right."
Katherine rolled her eyes good-naturedly.
"So," Cordelia began brightly, "I'm sure you did a lot of travelling, went into different shops and stuff, saw a lot of really neat, interesting things-"
"Fishing for gifts?"
"Uh huh!"
Angel grinned and reached into his bag, pulling out a small greenish-brown shrunken head.
"Oh," Cordelia said, trying to muster up some enthusiasm about the head. "Well, that's...nice."
Still smiling, Angel tossed the head to Gunn, who caught it deftly.
"Cool! Thanks, man."
Next, Angel pulled out a long, sheathed dagger.
"Wow, it must've been hell gettin' that through customs," Katherine observed.
Angel handed the dagger to Wesley, who looked at it shrewdly.
"Angel, is this-? I thought it was lost!"
"Found it in a marketplace, next to a banana."
Everyone took a few minutes to ponder that thought while Angel reached into his bag of goodies for the next present. Wesley, meanwhile, had unsheathed the dagger and was making slashing motions in the air with great delight.
"Ooh, pretty flower," Katherine smiled shyly, accepting the white rose from Angel.
"Watch this." He pulled out a lighter and lit the snow white petals on fire. It became a flower of fire, the petals now bright, sunny yellow, the edges tinged with fiery red.
"Oh, wicked! Thank you so much!" Katherine gave Angel a tight, one-armed hung, being careful not to make the rose of fire touch him.
"You're welcome," he replied.
"This is just so-!" She beamed and gave him another hug. "Thanks!" She padded over to Grey to show off her rose, and tried to get him to touch the fire.
"A shrunken head, a long-lost dagger, and a rose made of fire. How're you gonna top tha- Oh..my..God." Cordelia's jaw dropped at the sight of the sapphire necklace in Angel's hands. "Angel-"
"You're welcome," he said firmly, knowing that Cordelia was about to refuse the gift.
"Actually, I was gonna say, 'Angel, you should go away on vacation more often', but thank you's good, too."
"So, did you guys really miss me?"
"'Hell yeah' would be something of an understatement," Katherine grinned.
"Got any twos?"
"Go fish," Katherine replied glumly. She had awoken to the sounds of shouting, and by the time she was downstairs, all she had seen was a wan-looking Cordelia, who'd had a vision and had sent the guys off to the UCLA campus to fend off a vampire attack. She felt slightly miffed that no one had bothered to wake her or anything. She'd gotten used to being one of the gang and being on the frontlines of the fights; being bumped back to second-string stung.
"This is boring," Cordelia said bluntly, throwing her cards into the middle.
"You were winning."
"I don't care. It's still boring. Why are we playing Go Fish at two in the morning anyway?"
"Because we got bored of Monopoly about a half hour ago?"
"That's not what I mean. Why are either of us here right now instead of at UCLA fighting vamps?"
"'Cause you still look like hell from your vision and Fred still won't come out of her room and we can't leave her by herself?"
"Oh. Right. ...Well, what do we do now?"
"Sleep?" Katherine suggested, yawning.
Cordelia gave her a sympathetic look while she picked up the cards. "Go to bed, Kat. It's so late. ...Or early, depending on your point of view."
Katherine yawned again. "Nah, it's okay. If you're staying up, I'll wait with you."
"Are you sure?"
"'Course I am," she replied airily, settling herself down behind the front desk and booting up the computer and logging onto MSN. Minutes later, her arms were cradling her head and she was fast asleep.
A man that would have looked no way out of place in Accountants R Us held a silver platter of cheese slices. "I wear the cheese. It does not wear me."
"Right," Katherine replied, raising an eyebrow. "Yeah. Good luck with that." She moved down the gray, smoky corridor, away from Cheese Man and towards a figure hidden within the darkness. She couldn't see who it was, but only knew that she felt an incredibly drawn to him.
"Anima," he murmured.
"Animus," she replied, her voice full of the same longing he felt. "Can I see you? Who you are?"
"You already know."
"No," Katherine said slowly. "I don't." She stepped forward and Animus retreated into the darkness. "Okay, I'm really not up to a game of hide-and-seek right now."
"You'll see when you're ready."
"...What if I am?" She countered, stepping forward boldy. He countered by shrinking further into the darkness.
"You aren't, Anima. Trust me."
"You don't know that," she replied sullenly.
He laughed, and a spark of familiarity went off in Katherine's mind. "If you were ready, you'd see me," he replied, dropping the mystical tones. "That's how this works, for some reason."
"Can you see me?"
"Clear as crystal, Katherine."
"Well, that's not fair."
"That's life."
The sound of very loud chimes woke Katherine with a sudden start, causing her to tip over a cup of pencils and pens. As she bent to pick them up, she glimpsed the computer monitor, her eyes still cloudy with sleep.
..::(li)::.. DawnOfANewWorld ... < keygal88@hotmail.com >says:
omg, why r u up dis early?!?
It took Katherine a few moments to shake the sleep off and type a coherent response.
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
fell asleep @ the comp. last nite. ...wat r u doin up so early?
..::(li)::.. DawnOfANewWorld ... < keygal88@hotmail.com >says:
school, remember? g2g in a couple of min. ...juss came on 2 remind mera 2 bring my sci. notes
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
oooh, ic ic ... mmmm, i miss goin 2 school
..::(li)::.. DawnOfANewWorld ... < keygal88@hotmail.com >says:
u've gotta b jokin
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
lol, no i'm not. ur so lucky dawn...u get prom & graduation & university & a future...
..::(li)::.. DawnOfANewWorld ... < keygal88@hotmail.com >says:
assumin i survive dat long...
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
u will, hun...carpe diem
Katherine's stomach began to growl, so she tried to wrap up the conversation.
..::(li)::.. DawnOfANewWorld ... < keygal88@hotmail.com >says:
fish of the day? :S
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
lmao!! nah..carpe, not carp, lol ... it means "seize the day"
..::(li)::.. DawnOfANewWorld ... < keygal88@hotmail.com >says:
lol, i'm slow dis mornin, havent had my caffeine yet...mmm, i dun think i wanna "seize the day"...sounds a bit risque...
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
oooh, sum1's improvin her vocab
..::(li)::.. DawnOfANewWorld ... < keygal88@hotmail.com >says:
;) i try ... guess school not completely worthless after all
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
lol...i meant, juss enjoy each day...ur right, in wat we do, we could end up dead any day
..::(li)::.. DawnOfANewWorld ... < keygal88@hotmail.com >says:
thanks 4 de pep talk, coach
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
haha, vry funny...u kno wat i mean...
..::(li)::.. DawnOfANewWorld ... < keygal88@hotmail.com >says:
yeah yeah, i juss (L) buggin u...ooh, my bus is comin...ttyl buffy
..::(li)::.. DawnOfANewWorld < keygal88@hotmail.com > is offline.
Katherine stared at the lonely conversation window for a moment before closing it. "Well...that was weird." Dawn had never called her 'Buffy' before, and Katherine's heart went out to the younger Summers sister, who was still obviously grieving over the loss of her Slayer. But even weirder than Dawn's closing comment was the pop-up that came next.
< apolcalypse_fighter80@hotmail.com > has added you to his/her MSN list. Do you wish to accept?
Puzzled as to who this person was, Katherine clicked 'yes' to find the answers she wanted. The thought that it might be Angel flitted through her mind, before she remembered that he couldn't even work his cell, let alone have an e-mail account. But before she could figure out who apocalypse_fighter80 was, he messaged her.
< apocalypse_fighter80@hotmail.com > ... says:
Hiya, Cryptic Girl! :D
Katherine stared at the screen, eyes narrowing suspiciously. But even as she typed in her question, she had a feeling she knew the answer to it.
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
who r u? n talk fast...i get impatient quickly
< apocalypse_fighter80@hotmail.com > ... says:
Not exactly talking here, are we Kitten?
Katherine took a deep breath and sighed, suddenly feeling the aching of her muscles, having slept in an odd position the previous night. She wondered if it was easier to blow someone off online than it was in person. Then she mentally admonished herself for thinking such a thing, even though she didn't feel up to conversing with him without a nice strong cup of coffee to fully waken her.
< apocalypse_fighter80@hotmail.com > ... says:
Kitten...you really don't know who I am? I'm hurt.
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
not as hurt as ur gonna b if u dun stop callin me "Kitten", grey
< apocalypse_fighter80@hotmail.com > ... says:
So she does remember...and I thought you'd forgotten me.
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
and how could i possibly do that?
< apocalypse_fighter80@hotmail.com > ... says:
You can't see me, but I'm smiling.
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
u kno wat i meant...
< apocalypse_fighter80@hotmail.com > ... says:
Not sure I do, actually. But it's too early to talk about our...issues with each other. So, how about we talk about your impared writing skills?
She chuckled, rolling her eyes good-naturedly.
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
on MSN hun, u use short terms n slang...faster 2 type...u have so much 2 learn...
< apocalypse_fighter80@hotmail.com > ... says:
Wanna teach me, Kitten?
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
n wat did i say bout callin me kitten?
< apocalypse_fighter80@hotmail.com > ... says:
Didn't think you were serious.
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
ehhhh...it juss makes me sound like a stripper or sumthin
< apocalypse_fighter80@hotmail.com > ... says:
That's something I wouldn't mind seeing...;)
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
...
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
...
< apocalypse_fighter80@hotmail.com > ... says:
Have I finally rendered you speechless?
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
u've rendered me willing to hurt u very badly...does dat count?
< apocalypse_fighter80@hotmail.com > ... says:
Cute.
< cryptic_girl82@hotmail.com > ... says:
i kno
< apocalypse_fighter80@hotmail.com > ... says:
I meant you.
Blushing slightly, Katherine's embarrassed grin gave way to an expression of stun and then rage, as the computer suddenly shut off. In fact, the power to the entire hotel was out.
"Oh, this isn't good."
< apocalypse_fighter80@hotmail.com > ... says:
I meant you.
Grey waited eagerly for Katherine's response, but when she didn't type anything back, he wondered if perhaps he'd gone too far into territory he shouldn't have been ten feet near. His fears were confirmed when the conversation window said that she'd logged off. Wanting to call and explain, maybe apologize for his slip of the electronic tongue, he took out his cell and went to go stand in an unoccupied stack of books in the back of the library. But when the operator said the line was unavailable, his fears of Katherine rejecting him morphed into Katherine being in danger. Sprinting outside, he mounted his bike and took off for the Hyperion.
"Angel...did you forget to pay the electricity bill?" Cordelia called out somewhat nervously, coming out of the kitchen. "Angel?"
"Nope, just me here," Katherine waved, rising out of her chair and stretching her limbs. On an ordinary day, the power outtage wouldn't have freaked her out. But today, outside was as dark as night, with rain pouring down in torrents and lightening flashing and thunder crashing dangerously.
"Kat, hey, you're awake...you have any idea what caused this?"
"Nope...maybe it's just the storm."
"Yeah, maybe," Cordelia replied, clearly not convinced. Katherine wondered what could make her so uneasy, because Cordelia Chase was not one to be easily intimidated. Just then, Angel came thudding down the stairs.
"Hey."
"Hey," Katherine replied. "What do you think has caused this? The storm or something, 'cause I'm getting a little freaked out."
Angel crossed the lobby in long strides and picked up the telelphone. Hearing nothing but silence, he caught Cordelia's eye. "Or something."
Katherine looked back and forth between the two, Cordelia looked anxious and afraid, while Angel seemed tense and waiting as if someone was going to jump out from behind him. Which, knowing Angel's attraction to trouble, was a distinct possibility. "Um...is there something here you guys aren't telling me, 'cause I'm getting the feeling like we're in trouble here."
"James," Angel murmured. "He's here..."
"Are you sure? Maybe it really is just the storm-"
"Cordelia, trust me. I sense his presence..."
"Um, s'cuse me, guys? Who's James? And what-?" She jumped, startled, as the front doors to the Hyperion crashed open. Angel instinctively grabbed her to him, as she was closest to the door. Katherine's heartbeat gradually returned to normal as she recognized the looming figure.
"My God, you scared me," she breathed as Grey took off his helmet.
"Sorry," he apologized. "I opened the doors and the wind just blew 'em open. ...What's with the confined blackout?"
"Question of the day," Cordelia muttered. "What are you doing here, anyway?"
"We were talking online," he said, indicating Katherine and himself. "Then the computer went off, and when I tried to call, the operator said the number was unavailable. I figured there was trouble and thought I should head over."
"You figured right," Angel said darkly, walking over the weapons case.
"Angel, drop the cryptic," Katherine said, sounding so much like Buffy that the vampire had to do a double-take. "What's going on here?"
"Just get out of the hotel and as far away from here as you can," he replied sharply.
"Okay, first off, I cannot go out there," she said, pointing to the storm which raged outside, "in this." Her nightclothes consisted of a black tank top and black sweats. "Second of all, I'm guessing that there's gonna be lots and lots of fighting. No way am I leaving you here to have all the fun."
"You have to," he replied shortly. "This isn't-"
"Angel," Cordelia interrupted meaningfully, "do you really think it's safe -for any one of us- to go out there by ourselves?"
Angel pondered this question and turned to Grey . "Did you see anyone outside?"
"No...but I can't be sure. It was pretty dark."
Sighing, Angel handed Katherine a loaded crossbow with several bolts. "Go. Now."
"But-"
"Go. Please. It's dangerous if you stay here. I don't want you to get hurt. Please."
Breathing in deeply, Katherine took the crossbow and bolts. "I don't like this," she assured him. "I don't wanna leave you here like this...I especially don't like even knowing what it is I'm supposed to be hightailing my ass away from...but I'll do it. Since you asked so nicely."
"Thanks."
"Thank me by kicking the ass of whatever's behind this, okay?" She smiled slightly.
"Take her far, far from here," Angle instructed Grey , and he nodded, pulling Katherine towards the door. "Cordy," he began, turning towards the brunette, I want you to-"
"I'm staying right where I am, so don't even try it." From somewhere inside the hotel, they heard a loud, ominous crash. She whimpered and moved closer to Angel. "Okay, maybe not right where I am."
The biting cold of the rain put Katherine on full alert, and ignoring the squishy feeling of walking in the rain in her Scooby-Doo slippers, she kept watch for any sudden movements in the darkness.
"Where're we going?" She asked Grey \, shivering slightly.
"To my bike," he replied, shrugging off his jacket and placing it around her shoulders.
"Thanks," she murmured, pulling it closer around her shoulders. "Since you were so nice about the jacket, I'm not gonna tease you about riding a bike."
He smiled. She liked that smile. "Somehow, I don't think you're going to have any problems with this bike." He led her to the curb, where he parked his motorcycle, then groaned when he saw that his tires had been slashed.
"Oh, this really isn't good."
"Actually," Angel replied, holding Cordelia close, "I was going to tell you that I wanted you to call Wes and Gunn while I drove us the hell away from here."
"Oh."
"Yeah."
"Well...I say let's go." They made a run for the front door, but were blocked by Katherine and Grey running out of the rain and back in.
"My tires were slashed," he explained.
"I think yours might be too," Katherine added to Angel, wiping her wet hair out of her eyes.
"So we're effectively trapped in here, then." Cordelia said it as a statement, not a question.
"We could run."
Which was when a door upstairs banged open. Aiming her crossbow at the moving shadow upstairs, Katherine lowered it when she made out Fred's shape.
"Angel! Hi! It went all dark, and it's really kinda creepy up there, so I came to ask you why all the lights went off," Winifred Burkle babbled in her Texan drawl. "See? I came out of my room, all by myself! I-"
"Go back to your room, lock the doors and stay there!" Angel ordered. "Don't let anyone in! Go!" Wide-eyed, Fred crossed the foot of hallway from the stairs to her room and Angel could hear the satisfying thud of her door closing.
"So I'm guessing it's vampires we're up against," Katherine mused. "How many?"
"Don't know."
"Should we all go back to our rooms, or-?"
"We should get out of here."
"But Fred-"
"He can't get in if she doesn't invite him in, which she won't. And I doubt he'll know she's even here. But we've got to go."
"Angel, how? Whoever's in here, by now they could be anywhere, hidden in the shadows." Which was when they heard the scuffling upstairs.
"Go, go," Angel urged, shepherding towards the basement door. Cordelia was in front and pulled the door opened. Intimidated by the direness of the situation and Angel's protestations of them leaving, Katherine uttered the smallest of screams when she saw the vampire on the other end of the threshold. She was glad it was dark, so no one could see her blush. She was also glad when Grey grabbed her hand.
"You weren't thinking of leaving, were you?" The vampire asked, crossing the threshhold into the lobby of the hotel and causing the others to back up. "The party's just getting started."
Katherine heard the growls and saw their sneers as maybe a dozen vampires appeared out of the shadows. Gripping Grey's hand tighter, she realized that they were surrounded, trapped.
"Oh, this really, really isn't good."
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