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The White Picket Fences	By : QueenB Category: -Buffy the Vampire Slayer > Het - Male/Female Views: 2826 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Buffy the Vampire Slayer (BtVS), nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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- 5
“Red sweater?”

“Check.”

“Extra stakes?”

“Check.”

“Favorite axe?”

“Check.”

“Mr. Gordo?”

“Check and double check.”

“Well, I guess that’s it, then. Buffy, you are officially packed for the mission.” Buffy grinned as she leaned on the suitcase. A little extra push of slayer strength and it clicked shut. She fastened down the snaps and leaned back to survey her handiwork.

Riley had come over to help her with last-minute packing. Dawn had departed earlier to get to what was probably her last day of school for a very long while and he had been hoping to spend some time alone with her sister. It had been weeks since they’d had sex and he was hoping that being with Buffy in her bedroom might put her in the mood or at least make the suggestion agreeable. Since Buffy had seen him in that vampire nest, she hadn’t touched him in anything like a sexual manner and he hadn’t wanted to push. The shame he felt at his own behavior had been too strong.

But after her birthday she had been so much more tender than before and he was hoping that she had at last forgiven him. He reached forward and pulled her close to him.

Buffy moved automatically closer and then stepped out of range. “Riley, we can’t.”

He swallowed and tried to hide his hurt feelings. “Buffy, I thought you said you trusted me.” Okay, maybe he needed to try harder. That sounded a little whiny to him.

Buffy sat on the bed without looking at him. “It’s not that.”

He sat beside her and covered one slender hand with his broader one. “Then what is it? Are-are you still angry about those…?” He couldn’t bring himself to finish. His recent misdeeds were still a sore subject, one they didn’t speak of openly, but they still hung in the air between them.

She shook her head in denial. “No, Riley. My mom is still here. She’s right next door. Do you really want her to hear us?”

Riley snatched his hand away as if he’d been stuck with a pin. Oh right. Mrs. Summers. [You idiot.] “Sorry. I-I didn’t realize. But if she weren’t here, would you…I mean…”

Buffy slid away from him and stood up. “You know, I should go help Mom. She probably has a few things she needs to pack away, too.” She avoided his eyes as she stepped quickly out of the room.

Riley sat there for several moments longer. She didn’t hate him but her love had taken a severe blow. He could still see doubt in her eyes sometimes when she kissed him. But she never failed to include him in her plans; she was determined to let him know about any new developments in her life. She was trying so hard to please him and keep him close.

He wondered if she had finally agreed to this extreme measure of running away from Glory just to make certain he wouldn’t take off to the jungle as he had once threatened. He inwardly winced. How could he have thought threatening her would be the way to make her love him? You couldn’t coerce people into loving you. It had been a nasty way to behave and even now he felt a little ill whenever he remembered it.

Did Buffy stay with him because of love or desperation? She often said she loved him. But since that night, a shadow would cross her eyes when she looked at him. Buffy thought he didn’t notice but he did. She probably did love him. She just couldn’t bear to touch him, not yet anyway.

Well, dammit, he wasn’t some horny teenager! He wasn’t going to demand sex as a way for her to prove her love. She’d come to him when she was ready. He’d just have to wait until then. Riley sighed and glanced at the open door. She’d been gone a while and he hadn’t heard anything from her mother’s bedroom.

He straightened up as she came into the room clutching the phone. Her face was frozen in a look of empty shock and an awful dread came over him. In an instant he ran to her side. “Buffy? What’s wrong? What is it? What’s happened?”

She looked up at him almost as if she’d forgotten he was there. “It’s Mom. She’s—I think she’s—she’s lying on her bed and…I called the ambulance.” He stared at her and then raced over to the Mrs. Summers bedroom.

The older woman was lying half on, half off the bed. She was fully clothed and staring up at the ceiling. She looked peaceful as if she’d just lain down to rest for a moment. But nobody rested like that. God, that unblinking stare. And she hadn’t moved when he came into the room. He paused for a moment in the door almost as if afraid of startling her. Then he moved gently to her side and grasped one of her wrists.

She was cold and there was no pulse under his fingers. Her hand was still fluid in movement; she hadn’t been dead long, maybe half an hour at most. The end had been abrupt judging by her posture and the lack of surprise or pain on her face. He moved his hands to close her eyes.

“Don’t!” The word was loud in the eerie silence and Riley jumped a little. Buffy was standing behind him. She still maintained her death grip on the phone. Riley walked up and embraced her and they stood there for a moment, silent in the face of death. “Buffy, she’s…”

“No! I mean, we have to wait for the ambulance. They’ll be here any moment and they’ll know what to do. They’ll take care of her.” Riley’s heart sank at the frantic denial underneath the strained words. He was certain Joyce was dead and beyond help. But perhaps this was just some sort of vegetative state. Maybe the trained paramedics would be able to perform some miracle.

Buffy twisted out of his arms and flew downstairs. He was stunned at the speed with which she moved and wondered if she were running away from the awful sight behind him. The next moment he heard what her Slayer’s ears had picked up before his: people were arriving at the door.

“She’s upstairs. You’ll see her….” The paramedics had arrived and Riley stepped quickly out of the doorway to allow them to pass. They moved the woman from the bed and began working on her, propping her mouth open and taking her vitals. Buffy stood just behind him and he pulled her into his arms again. This time she stayed rigidly in his embrace, her unwavering gaze fixed on the barely seen woman on the floor. She answered their questions automatically without tears. Once again, she didn’t seem to notice he was there.

After several breathless moments, the paramedics straightened. “Okay, call it,” one man said. He stood up and walked over to Buffy. “Miss Summers, I’m sorry to tell you this, but your mother is dead. She probably felt very little pain…”

Buffy didn’t move from Riley’s arms. She barely even seemed to breathe as the man’s words rolled over her. After the men had left, she pried herself away from him. The silence was oppressive as she shut the door of her mother’s bedroom.

“Riley, I have—I have to make some calls. Will you stay…?”

“Of course. Is there anything you want me to do?” She shook her head numbly and he didn’t press her. All she wanted was company and that he was happy to provide.

The rest of the day passed in a blur. The body was carted away in the blind efficient way these things were done. Buffy had gone to the school to pick up Dawn. The teenager had broken down crying in the hallway with all her schoolmates looking on. She’d sobbed brokenly for several minutes before she settled down enough for Buffy to take her to the hospital.

[Why’s it taking so long? Wait, time is relative. Yeah, isn’t that part of the theory of relativity? Seconds, minutes, hours—those are the things that people came up with. The gods didn’t make up a system of counting time. We did that.] The thoughts were inconsequential and had little to do with the matter at hand, but Willow couldn’t help them. To think about what was happening in another room, what the morgue attendants were doing to Joyce, wasn’t something she could touch on for more than a minute at a time.

As usual, one discretion-challenged ex-demon had no problem bringing up the unspeakable. “Are they gonna cut the body open?”

They all froze in shock as they stared at her. “Oh my god! Would you just stop talking? Just shut your mouth, please!” Willow cried. She had never liked Anya and goodness knows she had tried to for Xander’s sake. But at this moment she positively hated the insensitive blonde. She wanted to hit her with a fire blast, or some other kind of spell, she was that infuriated.

“But I don’t understand. I don’t understand how this all happens, how we go through this. I mean, I knew her and then she’s—there’s just a body. And I don’t understand why she just can’t get back in it and not be dead any more. It’s stupid. It’s mortal and stupid. And Xander’s crying and not talking and I was having fruit punch and I thought, well, Joyce will never have any more fruit punch ever and she’ll never have eggs or yawn or brush her hair, not ever, and no one will explain to me why.”

Her voice cracked at the last word and then she was in tears. Xander hugged her as tightly as she could and Willow was ashamed of herself. Of course Anya was hurting; they all were. She had said what they were all thinking at one moment or another. She simply lacked an internal censor that prevented her from saying things that might upset others. Even if it was what they were all thinking.

Willow’s face fell in at the thought of Joyce being laid on some cold slab while impersonal hands worked over her. The next moment she was crying and she soon had companions in her misery. The tears were low and muted in the hospital corridors but for several moments all of Buffy’s friends were drowning in grief as they mourned the loss of one of their own.

Buffy, Riley and Dawn sat across from them. Dawn bit her lip and rocked back and forth, glancing down the corridor where they had taken what was left of her mother. She didn’t understand it either. [Mom was all right! She was all right yesterday, last night and this morning when I left for school. What happened? How could the doctors have missed something like this? Why didn’t Buffy hear anything? What was she doing when my mother was dying?]

The thoughts were unfair. She knew it and she struggled against them. Buffy had found her mother dead and she had no idea what that must have been like for her. She glanced at her sister. Buffy’s face was white and tearless and her eyes were opened wide, wide, as if she were afraid to close them. [What did she see when she found Mom? What did Mom…look like? Why doesn’t she cry?]

A tall mental patient in a hospital gown was shuffling down another corridor when he saw them huddled together. The patient cocked his head, running his gaze aimlessly over the Slayerettes hunched on their chairs. As he lit on Dawn, a glimmer of awareness flickered in the man’s vacant eyes.

“Shiny girl,” he mumbled, his eyes fixed on the younger Summers child. “Shiny, shiny girl.” he reached up and scratched absently at the mark on his forehead and the former Knight of Byzantium was led away.

__________

It was just an aneurysm. Nothing supernatural. Nothing magical. No mystical attack by Glory or one of her minions. Only a ticking time bomb in the head that had gone off silently and fatally while Joyce had been planning to accompany her daughters away from a dangerous threat. It was something none of them could have anticipated. And now the final preparations had to be made.

Buffy bustled around trying to do a dozen things at once. But there was simply no way to speed up these things. Burial clothes had to be picked out, a coffin chosen, certificates needed to be filled: all the minutiae and forms to be dealt with and followed.

They all rallied around Buffy, all the Scoobies. She refused to cling to anyone, though. She wouldn’t rest and she wouldn’t cry, at least not when Riley was around. At one point, she drew him aside quietly and inquired about the military transport. He was taken aback; he had almost forgotten about it. He was certain she had. But now, more than ever, she was bent on protecting what was left of her family.

The transport wouldn’t be in town for two more days yet. That was a plus. A burial wasn’t something you could rush through.

The funeral was simple. At such short notice, there was barely time to inform Joyce’s friends and co-workers about the ceremony. Buffy hardly heard the words of the priest, as she stood upright by the grave. Riley himself felt antsy and nervous. He wasn’t certain why. Perhaps with departure so imminent, he was merely anxious to be gone. The thought was disrespectful but he couldn’t help it.

But no, there was something else bothering him. All throughout the ceremony, he had experienced the disturbing sense of being watched. He kept telling himself that it was an idle notion borne of sleeplessness and sorrow. But his military training was too deeply ingrained for him to dismiss the feeling entirely. Time and again he cast his head up and scanned the trees for any sign of watchers. But there was nothing.

As the mourners began dispersing, Buffy finally noticed his anxiety. “Riley, what is it?”

He shook his head, peering with careful eyes around the cemetery. I’m not sure. It’s probably nothing.”

Buffy watched him for several seconds and then appeared to accept his explanation. “Riley, could you do me a favor?”

“Sure. Anything. Just name it.” She threw a quick glance back at where the machine was shoveling dirt on her mother’s grave. “I-I want to stay here for a bit. Will you see Dawn home with the others and stay with her until I come back?”

Riley opened his mouth to refuse. The nervousness that had almost disappeared a moment ago returned with a vengeance. He was certain they were being scrutinized and he didn’t want to leave her alone here. One look at her pale face, however, and he reluctantly nodded. “All right. Come home soon, will you?”

“As soon as I can. I just need some time.”

Buffy watched them pile into the car and drive away. She watched the gravediggers finish their task. She stood there like a statute as the sun slowly angled across the sky and sank in the west. Then she felt cold fingers wind in her own. “I came as soon as I could.”

She looked up at the dark-haired vampire beside her. “Angel.” Her face crumpled and at last she cried. She wept like a child and he held her without speaking while the storm swept through her.

Angel didn’t offer any platitudes or soothing words. He didn’t tell her how she would feel better or the pain lessen in time. He simply let her weep without stopping.

They rested underneath a tree, neither speaking for long moments. Buffy felt comfortable in Angel’s arms. But there wasn’t the pull of attraction there had once been. It was because of Riley and Angel seemed to sense it. He made no real attempt to get closer; he simply allowed one arm to drape casually over her shoulder.

He whispered quietly. “Willow called. She said it was an aneurysm.”

“Yeah. They said these things just happen. Makes you wonder what we pay doctors for, huh?”

“Do-do you want me to stay in town for a bit?”

Buffy shook her head. “No, Riley’s people made arrangements to have us leave town for awhile. It’s complicated and really long-winded and I wish we’d kept in touch more so you wouldn’t be at a loss like this. But we won’t be able to talk to you or any of the L.A. gang for a long time.” She snuck a sidelong glance into his face. He was still as handsome as ever and he would always be the first man she’d ever loved. That was over now but a tiny part of her couldn’t help hoping that he’d miss her.

“I-I understand.” This is why he’d left her, after all, so that she could find love with an ordinary guy. He just hadn’t expected to be replaced quite so easily. Whatever danger she was in, surely she could have run to him and his team. They would have protected her just as well as this Finn guy.

Angel firmly pushed the thought away. He glanced at Buffy again and noticed something shiny around her neck. At first he had thought it was the silver cross he gave her. But this was another piece of jewelry altogether. Buffy noticed his look and couldn’t resist teasing him.

“Do you like it? Riley gave it to me for my birthday.”

He managed a tight smile. “Yeah. It’s very pretty. Could you explain something to me though?”

“What’s that?”

He touched it lightly. “Why is it beeping?”

Her face took on a comical expression. “You can hear—oh right. Vampiric hearing. Uh, it’s actually part jewelry, part tracking device. For the Slayer who has everything—my very own bit of spy equipment.”

“Ah. This his way of checking up on you?”

“More like keeping track of me,” she countered sharply. “He wants to be able to find me if I’m lost or injured. It’s the perfect boyfriend gift.” She smirked seeing the flash of jealousy on his face. [That’s right, Mr. You’re-the-Only-Girl-I’ve-Ever-Loved. You didn’t give me anything for my birthday. So what do you think of that?]

Angel couldn’t think of anything to say in response to that. Yes, he hadn’t gotten her anything for her lately but he had given her a silver cross. He thought that was the perfect Slayer gift. Looks like he’d been trumped.

Abruptly he felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise. He went utterly still as he sniffed the air around him. The scents of human males wafted to him, clear in the night air. They should have made more noise but they were moving stealthily through the darkness—too much so to be up to any good. He leaned his head down to Buffy’s ear as if he meant to kiss her. “Buffy.”

Instantly responsive to his change in mood, she snapped to alertness. “What?”

He whispered softly, “I think we’ve got unwanted company. There are several human males making their way towards us. I smell a heavy concentration of metal on them.”

She stared into his eyes. Disbelief, shock and finally rage swept over her face and she hissed, “The Knights of Byzantium.”

It was Angel’s turn to feel shock. “The Knights of Byzantium? They’re here?” She pulled away from him and assumed a fighting stance as her gaze swept the site. “I take it you’ve heard of them.”

“Yeah, I crossed paths with them briefly while touring France. Disagreeable bunch of fanatics. Why are they here in Sunnydale?”

As the first of the medieval soldiers approached, she said, “I really don’t have time to go into it now. Let’s just say a mystical Key and a whorishly dressed hellgod are involved.”

Angel stared blankly at the explanation and then stood back to back with her as the Knights closed in. The soldiers hesitated briefly as they drew near; they had expected to find the Slayer alone and instead she was with a strapping male. However, it was just the two of them against a dozen and the man appeared to be unarmed. Taking care of them should prove easy.

One of the knights thrust his sword at Angel’s torso. The vampire easily dodged the blow and with superhuman speed grabbed the man’s wrist and twisted the weapon from him. The man gaped in astonishment at his empty hand and looked up just in time to see the hilt of the weapon brought down with crushing force on his skull.

As the battle raged, Angel began to be uneasy. The men had fallen back and regrouped when they saw he wasn’t to be easily defeated but now they made no more killing rushes. Instead they feinted, swung and ducked back. They swiftly moved to intercept Buffy and Angel whenever it appeared they would escape from the spot and finally it hit him.

“Buffy! They’re not trying to kill us!”

“Looks like it from here!” she grunted as she lashed out with her foot, cracking her fighter’s kneecap.

“No, I mean, they’re trying to keep us here!”

Buffy paled and her eyes met Angel’s as she understood. Oh no. “Angel, I’ve got to get out of here. Can you handle them?”

Angel grinned ferociously. “No problem, love. It’s been awhile since I’ve danced with the Knights. It’ll be just like old times.”

“Great. Meet me at the house.” The knights redoubled their efforts as they realized Buffy intended to escape. But with Angel’s help she quickly broke through and took off at a dead run towards the house on Revello Drive.

__________

Riley, Xander and Giles sat around the living room. The women were upstairs in Mrs. Summers’s bedroom. Occasionally, they could hear their voices rise and fall but nothing else. No one wanted to talk or seemed to know what to do. Riley felt he should say something but he’d never had to deal with the death of a civilian before. Besides the apprehensive feeling he’d experienced at the graveyard simply wouldn’t go away. If anything, it was getting stronger…

“Riley, why do you keep staring out of the window? Buffy will be here soon. You needn’t worry about her.”

The Iowan looked up at Giles’s words and shook his head. “That’s not it. All throughout the ceremony, I kept feeling as if there were eyes trained at the back of my skull—or a gun. When you’ve been in the military as long as I have, you learn not to ignore your instincts.”

Giles approached him with alarm written on his face. “Good Lord. You don’t think—could it be Glory or-or one of her minions?”

Riley shrugged and rubbed the back of his neck. He wasn’t certain he could sense the presence of demons like Buffy could. All at once, he fiercely wished that she were here. Why was she taking so long?”

“I think we should be prepared. Xander, you and Giles get some weapons out of the chest. I’m going to go out and see if I can’t find…” Suddenly there was a crash and then a piercing scream came from upstairs. The men looked at each other and then charged towards the stairs. There was a moment of confusion as three large male bodies bumped together in the effort to get up the stairway.

A moment later, another large body, this one clad in chain mail, came hurtling through the air. He hit the upstairs wall and came tumbling down. He collided with the trio and they all went down in a heap.

For several seconds, there was utter confusion as Riley, Giles and Xander wrestled with the Knight of Byzantium. The knight brought his elbow up in a vicious jab that connected with Xander’s ribcage. The air went out of his lungs and he yelped in pain. As his hold loosened, the knight whipped out a dagger and sank it into Riley’s stomach. The Iowan grunted and stared down in shock at the hilt protruding from his belly.

There was another scream from upstairs. Startled by the noise, Giles was distracted long enough for the knight to club him senseless with one mailed fist.

Buffy was only a block away when she heard her sister’s scream rend the air. Redoubling her speed, she approached just in time to see Dawn being carried out of the house. “Buffy!”

The large man holding her was trying to keep her still and Buffy ran up to him and slugged him hard in the face. Her anger and grief fueled her punch and the man fell like a stone, dragging Dawn with him. “Dawn, are you all right?”

Dawn struggled out of his loosened grip, her face still blotchy and wet with tears. Then she looked over Buffy’s shoulder and her mouth opened to cry out a warning. Buffy swung around and saw what had caught her sister’s attention.

More men were appearing from all over the street, each wearing that ridiculous chain mail. [How can they wear things like that in this heat?] “It’s not you we’re after, Slayer. Simply give us the Key and we’ll leave.” The man speaking fastened his eyes on Dawn and Buffy’s hands clenched reflexively. She didn’t know how they’d learned of it, but the Knights knew the truth. She glanced about her, calculating the odds of a pitched battle here in the street. There were about two dozen that she could make out. There were too many of them and she had no weapons. As the men surrounded her, raising their swords, she threw up her fists. She wasn’t letting her sister go without a fight.

Suddenly the men were swept aside as if a giant hand had mown them down and Buffy looked up to see Willow and Tara holding hands in the doorway. The wiccans were staring at the warriors and Buffy could feel their magic as it blew past her, tumbling the soldiers like so many bowling pins.

[Yay girl power!] She picked up a dropped sword and began slowly pacing towards them. “Boys, you picked the wrong day to screw with me. I buried my mother today and I was hoping for some grief time but you couldn’t let me mourn in peace. Now I ask you—is that chivalrous behavior?”

For a moment, there was silence. And then the knights leaped up ready to take her on. They didn’t know about the magic that had just hit them and they didn’t care. They were on a mission to destroy the Key and they weren’t about to let a bunch of women stop them.

However, Giles came staggering out of the house, phone in hand. “I think you gentlemen might like to know that I’ve alerted the authorities to your presence. Unless you want to explain to them why you’re carrying antique weapons, I suggest you depart at once.”

The men in chain mail hesitated. Hearing the wail of sirens in the distance, they seemed to reach an unspoken agreement. They began to melt away into the adjacent trees, hauling away their unconscious comrade. In moments, not a single one was visible.

Buffy hugged her sister hard and pulled her back into the house. Giles gestured at the weapon and said, “You might want to hide that before the ambulance get here.”

She nodded sharply and looked around. “Ambulance? I thought it was the police. What’s happened?”

“The women appear to be unscathed. I was knocked unconscious for a minute or two and Xander received a severe knock in the ribs. But it’s Riley I’m concerned about.”

Hearing the anxiety underneath his voice, Buffy’s throat closed up. “Riley? Why? What’s happened to him?” She suddenly realized her tall boyfriend was very conspicuous by his absence. Without waiting for an answer, Buffy ran into the house.

She stopped, terrified, at the awful tableau spread before her. Anya was sitting next to Xander, trying to hold him without hurting his ribs. Xander was sitting up, holding onto his side, next to a silent Riley coiled on the floor. She fell to her knees beside him and touched him lightly on the arm. “Riley?”

He lifted glazed eyes to hers and shifted slightly and that’s when she saw the hilt of the dagger sunk into his stomach. Her hand instinctively darted towards it only to be caught by Xander’s. “Don’t. I wanted to but Giles warned me…Riley could bleed to death.” He looked at her horror-stricken face and noted the dried tracks of tears. “He’ll be alright, Buff. It’s a gut wound and the ambulance is on its way.”

She stroked Riley’s sweaty brow. “I should have been here. I could have stopped this.”

Anya replied, “Even though you weren’t here, Willow and Tara hit the Knight in the upstairs bedroom with a burst of telekinesis. You should have seen him go flying through the door. It was far more impressive than Slayer strength.”

Buffy felt tears welling up in her eyes again. “I waited too long. I let my guard down, I got distracted and those Dungeons and Dragons dimwits at the cemetery got the drop on me.”

Xander stiffened and then gasped as the abrupt tensing caused a sharp twinge to shoot through his side. [Right, Xand. No making with the sudden movements. Pain bad. Drugs good. Where the hell are those medics with their nice drugs?]

“Buffy, did you say there were more of these Round Table rejects at the cemetery?”

She nodded adding, “Yeah. A bunch of them attacked—” She glanced down at Riley and hastily amended what she had been going to say, “—me at the graveside. When I realized it was just a diversion, I broke free and ran here as fast as I could.”

“Trying to separate us from the Slayer, huh? Great ploy for a lot of Lancelot-wannabes. But how did they figure out Dawn was the Key?”

“I don’t know, Xander. They’re gone for the moment but they might be back. Since mention of the cops drove them off, maybe the presence of hospital security will keep them off.”

She bent to kiss Riley’s forehead. He hadn’t said a word throughout her low conversation with Xander; he merely lay still, breathing in short, panting gasps. She whispered, “Keep still, love. The ambulance will be here soon. They should know the way by now.” He managed a pain-filled grimace at the tiny joke and closed his eyes.

Buffy eased herself up carefully and walked out to find Willow and Tara. “Buffy, the ambulance is here. What do we tell them?”

She patted Willow on the arm. “Unless they ask for specifics, nothing. Just that he was attacked on the street. Not here. We don’t need that kind of attention.” As Riley was carted away with Xander and Giles bringing up the rear, Buffy lowered her voice and spoke to Willow. She didn’t have much time. “Wills, I met Angel in the cemetery.”

“Ang—!” Willow squeaked.

“Sssshhh! Not so loud!” The redhead lowered her voice, glancing uneasily in Riley’s direction.

Willow lowered her voice. “What did Angel want?”

“You called him—and thanks, by the way, I really appreciate it—so he came to pay his respects. The knights caught the two of us there and Angel held them off while I escaped. The thing is, I told him to met me here and he hasn’t show up yet so—”

“So you want me to watch out for him. Gotcha. Will do. Do you want him to meet you at the hospital?”

Buffy considered this for only a second and then reluctantly rejected the idea. “No. Riley doesn’t need to see Angel and I haven’t been hurt so Angel doesn’t need to look out for me. Just tell Angel what happened here. Don’t tell him about Dawn being, well, you know.”

Buffy, Anya and Dawn climbed into Mrs. Summers’s car—an unfortunate legacy of her death—and followed the ambulance.

__________

Angel hadn’t enjoyed himself like this in a long time. A few of the warriors dueling with him had tried to take off after Buffy. Turning their backs on him proved to be a huge mistake as he effortlessly caught up to them, knocked them out or threw them into their other comrades. He received at least three vicious sword thrusts but the high of battle was such that he hardly noticed. The only thing missing was Buffy fighting by his side.

All at once, as if by some pre-arranged signal, the knights froze and retreated into the shadows. Angel debated going after them but the pain and blood loss from his wounds were starting to make themselves known. As he prepared to leave, his eye caught sight of a shiny object glinting on the ground. He bent down to pick it up and recognized the locket Buffy had been wearing.

[Typical. Expensive locket, cheap clasp. That’s about what I’d expect from that boyfriend of hers. Still, she’ll probably want it back.] He pocketed the small bauble and straightened, grimacing at the agony that attended the movement.

Slowed as he was by his injuries, he didn’t discern the swift movement behind him until it was too late. He swung around and the last thing he saw was a large tree branch coming towards his face.

__________

Xander’s and Giles’s respective injuries had been relatively superficial and Riley’s wound tended and dressed but it was clear that the ex-commando was going nowhere for the time being. When she was allowed to see him at last, Buffy was upset to see him looking so pale. His gentle hazel eyes were closed, the lashes dark on his white cheeks. But they flicked open when she ghosted quietly to his bedside. “Hey.”

“Hey yourself.” She paused briefly. “What did the doctors say?”

“Not to stick knives in my stomach.”

Buffy snorted in spite of herself. “And to think Mom only warned me not to run in the house with scissors.”

Riley laughed a little, stopping with a short gasp, when the action tugged at his wound. “I heard what you said to Xander. Did those knights hurt you?”

She ducked her head, laying her hand atop his. “Naw. They never touched me.”

“I wish I’d been there for you.”

A pang of guilt flared when she remembered Angel and she was glad Riley couldn’t see her eyes. “And I wish I’d been with you. I was supposed to be protecting Dawn and instead she nearly got caught and you were nearly killed…”

“Nearly being the operative word. Buffy, you can’t be everywhere. That’s why you’ve got friends, remember? That’s why you’ve got me.” The silence stretched out comfortably between them as Buffy lifted her head and gently ran her hand through his hair. Riley sighed at the tender caress and then his gaze sharpened. “Buffy?”

“Yes?”

He lifted one hand to brush her throat. “Where’s the locket? Didn’t you have it on at the funeral?”

She glanced down her blouse and her eyes widened. Shit, it must have come off during the fight. She lifted stricken eyes to Riley. “Oh, no. Riley, I’m sorry. It must have fallen or been pulled off and I didn’t notice.”

“Stop apologizing. You had other things on your mind. When we get back, you can use my watch and find the locket yourself. It should be in the closet with the rest of my things.” She pulled out the timepiece and frowned. “How can your watch help?”

“It’s got a built-in tracker. Just press that upper button and you should see a red light that shows you where your locket is. As you get closer to your target, the red light moves until it’s dead center in the watch. That means you’re right on top of it.”

Buffy did as instructed and watched the display silently for a moment. She looked up at Riley and smiled. “Thanks, sweety. You military guys give the best presents.” She glanced at the watch. “Uh, Riley? What does it mean when the red light is flashing?”

He raised his eyebrows and looked down at the watchface. “It means the target is…moving.” His eyes met hers. “Someone or something’s taking it.”

An unreadable expression came into her eyes. “The hell they are. That’s my birthday present from you and I’m not losing it.”

“Buffy, it’s just a locket…”

“That you gave me. Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon.” She silenced his protests with a kiss and quickly left the room. He couldn’t help fretting at his helplessness as he watched her depart. [I’m starting to get worried every time she does that.]

[It’s moving. Somebody’s got it. Who? The Knights of Byzantium—or Angel?] She picked up one of the hospital phones and dialed her home number. “Hello, you’ve reached the Sum—” “Hello?” Buffy spoke quickly. “Willow, it’s Buffy. Did Angel get in?”

“No, he hasn’t. Do you think he’s all right?”

Buffy looked down at the timepiece again. “No. No, I don’t think so. I’ve got a feeling—I mean, I always knew when he was in trouble.”

“And you think he’s in trouble now? What do you want to do?”

She thought hard. This was what she was good at, what she was trained for, and in moments a plan had formed in her mind. “Willow, are you and Tara up for some wicca action after your spell with the knights this evening?”

The redhead felt a little nervous but was determined not to fail her friend. “You betcha. That was just a little ‘kinetic storm. No biggie. What’s the plan?”

“Xander, Riley and Giles are still on the sick list, so I’ll need you two to help me. Gather some weapons and meet me outside the house.”

Buffy hung up the phone and turned around only to bump into Xander. “Xander! Are-are you okay?”

“Just jim dandy—though I never understood that phrase. Who’s Jim and why should he be more dandy than say, Joe or Silent Bob? Anyway, what’s the haps? What are you and our resident witches up to?”

Buffy chewed her lip and debated telling him. Xander had never liked Angel and she knew how much he approved of Riley as her current boyfriend choice. She wasn’t certain she could trust him with this news. But he had overheard her conversation, at least part of it, and she was tired of hiding things from her friends.

“Angel’s in town,” she stated bluntly.

Xander’s eyes turned hostile at the mention of the souled vampire. “Really? What’s Deadboy doing here? Didn’t he get the idea the last time he crashed Sunnydale that he wasn’t welcome?”

“He came to pay his respects. He fought beside me when those knights showed up.” She glared at Xander and let that sink in for a minute.

“He was there? How come you didn’t mention—oh, right, Riley. I don’t think he’d be too happy to know your ex was in town, would he?”

“That’s right, Xander, and you’re not going to tell him. That’s why I’m going off with Willow and Tara.”

She had been jogging out of the hospital and was nearly running when they got to the front sliding doors. Xander barely managed to keep up with her and grabbed her arm to halt her progress. “Wait a gosh-darned minute! Riley, Giles and me get hurt protecting Dawn, but Angel shows up so you forget about us? Thanks, Buffy, you’re a real pal.”

She drew a deep breath and slowly counted to ten. When she turned to face Xander the leashed anger in her gaze was enough to make him quell inwardly. “Xander, if you and the others were still on the sick list, nothing on earth would tear me away from you. But Angel helped me the way he always does—without accusations, grief or bitchiness. You guys are all right, the hospital staff is taking care of you. But Angel’s AWOL. He’s been missing since we fought those knights and I’m worried that something’s happened to him. I’m going to help him and I don’t need your permission for that. I know this will hurt Riley when I tell him—”

“Oh, so you are going to tell him. That’s a plus.” Another cold stare and his mouth snapped shut.

“I’m going to tell him but only after this is over. Riley’s injured and doesn’t need to hear this right now. I’m going to find Angel and Willow and Tara are going to help.” She tried to step through the hospital doors but he blocked her path again. “What?”

“Buffy, I know I may not be in top fighting shape now, but Riley came up with a backup plan in case Glory’s scrabby minions jumped us before the transport got here.”

Buffy raised her eyebrows. Riley had come up with a backup plan? When? This must have been recently otherwise he would have told her. She had to concede that this was pretty solid thinking; chalk it up to his military background. “So what is this second plan?”

Xander hesitated and glanced back down the hospital corridor. Buffy tapped her foot impatiently; she was anxious to be gone and this was already taking way too long. “What is it now?”

“Don’t you think we should tell the others what we’re doing?”

Buffy wasn’t so certain that was a good idea. Giles would insist on coming and she wanted him to take care of Dawn. “Okay. Tell Giles. But we don’t need him to come. He-he should look after Dawn. She’s going to need someone…she shouldn’t be alone. If I knew what we were getting into, I might let one of you go and I’d stay here with her. As it is…”

“Don’t worry, Buffy. I’m sure the G-Man will take good care of the Dawnmeister.” Xander stepped back into the corridor and then halted, frowning at her. “You won’t take off without me, will you?”

She opened her mouth to retort and then reconsidered. He had every right to mistrust her; she had been about to leave without telling him. “No. But hurry up.”

She sat inside the car, every nerve screaming at her to leave. She glanced at the device on her wrist. It was rather oversized and kept slipping around so she had to readjust it constantly. The red blip had stopped moving about three minutes ago. She didn’t know whether that was good or bad. Finally she saw Xander hurrying out of the hospital doors. “Drive us to the Magic Box.”

“What? Why?” She glanced at the watch again. She wasn’t that up on navigating from a little blip but she was fairly certain it wasn’t moving anywhere near the Box.”

Xander strapped himself in. “It’s about that plan Riley came up with. I’ll explain on the way.”

“Fine. But we still need to meet with Wills and Tara.”

“Yeah, you bet. Because they’re part of the plan.”

Buffy gaped at him. “This plan? Did everybody know about it but me?”

Xander grinned. “Well, we didn’t tell Dawn or your mom.” He drew in his breath sharply. This was the first time since the funeral that he had talked about Joyce to Buffy. The momentary silence from his slip threatened to grow into something painful and uncomfortable. Unnerved, he slipped into his trademark babbling humor.

“This plan is kinda a last resort plan. A last-ditch-attempt-to-avert-the-apocalypse type of plan. Not that this is apocalypty as such, I mean, we’re only up against a hellgod, diseased hobbits and wacky Monty Python knights of Camelot wannabes. We’ve faced a lot tougher than that.” He paused briefly. “You know, like Sunnydale High School.”

Buffy sighed and threw the car into gear. Xander blanched, gripping the dashboard. Buffy wasn’t the best of drivers usually and now she was anxious about Angel. He hoped they’d make their journey in one piece.

__________

“Goddess…heavy.”

“Well, the Glorificus did say…big, hulking…”

“…should have…the others…”

“No, this way…all the honor…to us…the elevator…”

Angel was thrown unceremoniously onto a hard surface and vaguely felt the floor rise underneath him. [Where…? Wh-what’s happen…? Jesus, my head hurts. Okay, last thought was a little more coherent. Where’s Buffy? Have they captured her, too?] Concern for his lovely Slayer caused the last vestiges of unconsciousness to dissipate. He began struggling only to realize his entire body was rather skillfully tied with rope. When the elevator stopped, he was hauled out roughly and dragged the rest of the way.

Glory was lying down in her posh suite. It was nothing like the gorgeous flame pits of home that she craved. But it was among the best this dimension had to offer and she would settle for nothing less no matter what rotten world she found herself in. Plus, thanks to her minions bringing her human brains to eat, her terrified neighbors had long since cleared out. No more wretched human offal nearby to disturb her.

She looked up idly as her penthouse suite door flew open. Five of her miserable followers were lugging a large fleshbag and dumped him with intense airs of self-satisfaction at her feet. With irritation, she noticed the thing was bleeding all over her very costly rug. [Damn stupid minions. I’m going to flay them for this. Ooh, flaying is always fun. Haven’t done that for awhile.] “Okay, what is that doing here and why is its hair standing up like that?”

They all began talking almost at once, each tripping over themselves to be the first to inform her of the good news. “Oh great and wonderful Glory, we bring you the Slayer’s mate,” Jinx intoned, gesturing at the prone figure twisting in its ropes.

“We went to the graveyard after the burial ceremony for the Slayer’s mother…”

“…you had said he probably knew where the Key was hidden…”

“…and while observing them, we saw the Knights of Byzantium attack…”

“He fought by the Slayer’s side with the strength of ten men…”

“…and when the Slayer ran, and he stayed to fight, we realized that they were both battling with the same purpose—to protect the Key…”

“…then the knights disappeared and left him badly wounded…”

“…and so we took the opportunity to capture him”

Glory had been absently inspecting her nails during these obsequious speeches as if she didn’t even register Angel’s presence. Finally she got up and approached the bound victim. One of the minions cautioned her, “Be warned, Mistress. He fights like a demon.”

She sniffed Angel inquiringly and straightened. “That’s because he is a demon.”

Confusion appeared on the minions’s leprous faces as they glanced at each other. “Demon? How-what kind of demon, effervescent one?”

She clucked her tongue in annoyance. “He’s a vampire, you idiots.”

The minions were getting more puzzled by the minute. Jinx murmured, “The Slayer’s mate is a vampire?”

Glory’s patience, never at its best under any circumstances, ran aground at this point. “The Slayer’s mate is not a vampire! This isn’t the Slayer’s mate! Can’t you scabby little morons do anything right?”

“But he fits your description perfectly, magnificent lord of everything you survey. He is tall.”

“Broad.”

“Powerful.”

“With wide shoulders.”

“Rippling muscles.”

“Strong thighs.”

“Massive, though well-defined, buttocks...”

She waved her hand sharply. “Enough!” She knelt down in front of Angel. “You’ll have to excuse them. It’s so hard to get good minions these days.” She yanked the tape off his mouth. He resisted yelling at the sting and smirked at her instead.

“Yeah, I know what that’s like. So since I’m not the guy you’re looking for, I’ll just be on my way and no hard feelings…” As he tried to sit up she casually shoved him back onto the floor. He attempted to move again and realized to his growing dismay that his efforts were making no change in his position. This diminutive woman, hardly bigger than Buffy, was holding him pinned to the floor with only one hand and no sign of strain on her pretty face. [Those guys were babbling about a Key. Buffy mentioned a Key—and a whorishly dressed hellgod. Uh oh.]

“Just a sec, handsome. I’m trying to clear up a few things here. I know the knights are after the Key and I know the Slayer has the Key or knows where to get it. So the question is where does a vampire fit into the picture? Why would the Slayer be fighting with a vampire instead of killing it?”

“I wasn’t fighting with the Slayer. I was trying to get close to her so I could kill her. I wanted the credit for taking down a Slayer and I didn’t want those knights interfering.”

“That is untrue, mighty goddess of shining grace! He was holding the Slayer, patting her shoulders, showing her affection. He was protecting her from the Byzantium warriors, we swear by our paltry lives!”

Angel snarled angrily at them, letting his gameface show. “Don’t believe those fools. They’ve already screwed up once tonight. You said so yourself!”

Glory smiled and there was a chilling menace in the expression. “Oh, they’re fools, all right. They stumble, they fall, they lag in carrying out the simplest orders, they make dumbass mistakes but you know what? They never lie to me. They’re blindly loyal to me and I love ‘em for it.” The five who’d mistakenly brought Angel in bowed and groveled in true servile fashion at this praise. Glory threw them a fond look and then continued.

“Vampires, on the other hand, are notoriously deceitful and unreliable. So here’s what I’m thinking. The Slayer hid the Key someplace I’d never think to search for it and where better than in the lair, crypt or underground den of one of her sworn enemies?”

“That’s just crazy. Why would I or any other vampire help the slayer?” Angel demanded. He really didn’t like the way this conversation was going. Glory shrugged and yanked Angel upright by his ropes. He looked down to see his feet dangling several inches off the floor. [Oh, this is definitely not good.]

“To get protection perhaps. To keep from being staked. I don’t know and I don’t care. I’m really not interested in the motivations of petty creatures like vampires.” With that she hurled him through the air to land on his back across her bed. She was on top of him so quickly he blinked at the movement. She made vampire speed look like turtles sinking through molasses.

“What I want to know is…where is my Key?”

He made another attempt to plead ignorance. “I don’t know about any Key, you stupid cow, so let me up—” Glory shoved his head back and jabbed one sharp-nailed finger through the soft flesh of his stomach. Angel’s body went rigid and he gasped at the piercing agony. Glory smiled almost tenderly at him.

“Wrong answer.”

__________

Buffy drove carefully. She wanted to press her foot down on the pedal but the cargo they were carrying in the trunk made that a bad idea. She adjusted the watch on her wrist once more as they finally pulled to a stop.

Willow and Tara got out of the car after her as Xander struggled with the bag of weapons they’d brought from the Summers home. There were axes, daggers, a couple of swords and throwing stars as well as a few other sundries. The bag wasn’t really heavy, merely cumbersome, and Xander had some difficulty in balancing it. Buffy casually pulled it out of his hands and hefted it onto her shoulder.

They walked over the spacious grounds in front of them and then paused indecisively. “Buffy, what is it?” Willow found herself whispering and she wasn’t sure why. There wasn’t anybody around that she could see and the clearing was well lighted. This part of Sunnydale was rather high-toned compared to other places. It was just the sort of place where people would want to raise their children. Still, the whole place was giving her a creepy-jeepy vibe.

“I remember this place, I think. This was where that snake demony thing that Glory’s minion conjured up was headed after it zipped out of the magic shop.”

“Oh.” Then “OH!” as all four of them got the same thought at once. They all looked up at the large building towering over them.

This was Glory’s lair. It had to be. It was fancy and obviously well above their combined tax brackets. Just the sort of place a Cordelia-Chase inspired deity would hang out. And if Angel was there that meant Glory did have him. The last of her tenuous hope disappeared.

The agony. It was beyond excruciating. Glory had gotten tired of using her fingers to puncture Angel like a piece of embroidery and had graduated to makeshift tools she had about her suite. Knives, broken glass, nail files, the heels of her stiletto shoes, even a couple of hairpins lit with a match had been called into play. At one point, she’d picked up a small bronze statuette and belabored his ribs with it. He was in serious pain and she was just getting warmed up.

“Boy, you really are a glutton for punishment. I don’t get why a vampire would help the Slayer like this.”

Angel tried to focus on her through the one eye that wasn’t swollen. “Told you. Don’t know anything… about a Key. I wanted—”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, you wanted to eat the Slayer. I still don’t believe it but you are starting to convince me. Which means that I’m going to wind up staking you and then beat up on some very unhappy minions.” Said minions managed to cringe and bow at the same time, a gesture Angel would have found interesting if he hadn’t been one big agony ball.

Glory picked up a knife and tapped it thoughtfully in her palm. She looked at the wounds that were already starting to heal. “That’s what I love about torturing vampires. They heal so quickly. Give ‘em an hour and they’re ready to go again. But I wonder—if I cut your nuts off, just how long will they take to grow back?”

She waved the blade in front of his eyes and knelt down. The terror barely had time to register in his mind before he heard the door behind him fly open.

“Hi, everybody! Sorry we’re late but traffic was a bitch.” Buffy stood in the doorway with Willow and Tara. She took in Angel, strung up by his wrists, and a couple of minions who stood frozen in shock at seeing the Slayer on their doorstep. “Darn, they started the party without us. See, they’re already playing hit-the-vampire piñata. Speaking of bitches, what are you doing with my vampire?”

Glory straightened and walked around the vampire, shoving his body so that it swayed slightly in its restraints. The hellgod poked Angel with her knife. “Your vampire? My, my, aren’t we the possessive sort? And since when do slayers keep vampires as pets anyway? But don’t worry, honey. You can have him back just as soon as I have him fixed.” She snapped her fingers and her minions surged forward.

Buffy punched one of them, knocking him into what looked like a very expensive lamp. Glory’s gleeful expression vanished as the object went crashing to the floor. “Hey!” They all looked up at her angry shout. “Don’t do it in here, you jerks! I don’t want my things getting ruined.”

Buffy’s grin was slow and malicious as she took in the expensive furnishings. “Is that a fact?” She turned to the wiccans with her. “Ladies, what say we do a little damage?”

Willow and Tara linked hands. A telekinetic blast erupted from them and threw Glory and her minions along with several costly bits of objets d’art across the room. Buffy drew an axe from the bag and hacked at Angel’s chains until he came loose. As he sagged in her grip, she stared in horror at the sight of his mutilated body.

She turned a grim look on the goddess who was already picking herself up from the floor. “You are so going to pay for this.” Glory charged towards her and slugged her in the jaw. Buffy crashed into the opposite wall and slid to the floor in a daze.“I’m going to pay? Oh, I don’t think so. But I’m going to take that lamp out of your hide, you piece of human shit.” She stomped over to where Buffy lay only to be tripped up by Angel. Before she could recover, he grabbed her hair and smashed her head into the floor with all the strength he had left in him.

She clucked in irritation and slapped him off, hard. The wiccas hurriedly opened the bag they’d brought. Glory brushed herself off and sneered at them. “Ooh, whacha got there? A bag full of tricks?”

“Bag full of knives,” Willow spat. Several shiny knives flew out of the bag and towards the hellgod. They tore at her clothes but seemed to do her no damage at all. She swatted at them and the cutting projectiles flew around the room like straight-edged mosquitoes, tearing up everything they touched. Buffy staggered upright and ran over to where Angel lay prone on the floor.

“Girls, I hate to break up the party early, but we’re going to have to get out of here now.”

She heaved Angel up as Glory surged forward again. “Oh no, you don’t, that’s my vampire!”

Willow snapped, “Thicken!” and the air separating them from Glory turned into a magical forcefield. The goddess ran right into it and fell backwards onto her ass.

Xander abruptly appeared in the open doorway with a broadsword. “Hey, guys, what’s the holdup? I’ve got the Key in the car and I’m ready to—”

The human women glared at him as the goddess stood up, her eyes widening. “They Key? You brought it here? Oh, this is too delicious. It won’t take me a minute to get out of here—and when I mean out of here, I mean out of this magic field, this sorry dump, this apartment, this town, this whole stupid mortal coil crap. I was going to tear all your throats out but now I don’t even have to bother.”

“Xander, you jackass,” Buffy hissed. She carried Angel half on, half off, her shoulder, as the wiccans came after her.

They carried the wounded vampire away to the elevator as Xander stumbled after. “What? What did I do? I thought the plan was to get the vamp and the Key and hightail it out of town.”

“And now she knows it, thanks to you,” Buffy shot back without looking at him. “Willow, how long will that forcefield hold?”

The two wiccans glanced fearfully down the hallways as the elevator arrived. “Not long, maybe a coupla minutes or so. I can feel her punching at it. Buffy, she’s really strong.”

As the elevator arrived and they piled into it, Buffy dropped the act and turned to Xander. “You know, we may really have a chase on our hands. This is an apartment building, not an empty lair like I was expecting. We can’t use the plan; we’d be killing innocent civilians.”

“No…no one else.” They all stared at the wobbling figure of the vampire. It was the first time since they found him that he’d actually spoken.

Buffy peered into his downturned face. “Angel? What do you mean, no one else?”

“The building’s…empty. Glory…chased away the humans. Ate them…or something.” The others grimaced as they recalled Glory’s many brain-sucked victims.

“So no human lives to create a prob. Original plan. Or plan B. Whatever. Let’s get going.” The elevator stopped and they entered the lobby only to see a blur of movement rip past them. The door of the apartment complex blew outwards in a mini explosion of wood and glass fragments as the hellgod hit it, heedless of the damage. The others watched as several minions charged down the stairs after her and paused, glaring at the intruders.

“You do not insult Glory by escaping!” one yelled as if the very idea was a personal affront to their god.

Glory called from outside. “Forget them! They’re unimportant! I want you to get your useless butts out here and help me with this thing.”

The minions wavered and then bustled out the door past the humans and their vampire. Buffy, Willow, Tara and Xander watched as the minions hammered ineffectually at the lid of the car trunk. “Oh, for pete’s sake!” Glory groused as she wrenched the trunk open herself. The lock popped open and she stared at the box hidden inside. She opened the box and lifted out the trollgod hammer Buffy had managed to wrest from Anya’s ex-husband Olaf. “Wow. Mama like. Will you look at this. I can just feel the mystical energy humming off this baby.”

She didn’t notice as Willow and Tara softly chanted a teleportation spell and all the Scoobies disappeared from sight. She hefted the hammer and frowned. There were thin wires trailing from it to a device that had been hidden underneath. “Uh guys?”

“What is it, powerful, omnipotent…thou?” One of the minions babbled as Glory looked at the display with red numbers quickly ticking downwards.

“Why is this thing beeping?”

The three women, Xander and Angel collapsed on the front lawn of the Summers house as the spell faded. Xander recovered first and picked up Willow as Giles and Dawn came running out of the house. Giles cradled the still form of the other wicca as he worriedly noted the blood oozing from her nose. “I take it by your arrival that the plan worked?”

“Well, we’ll know soon enough. Riley said the explosives had the capacity to blow up a small—” He didn’t get a chance to finish as they saw a massive ball of flame fly up into the night sky. For a moment it became as bright as day and a second later the sound of the boom hit them like a wave. “Yep. I’d say the plan worked,” was Xander’s offhand remark.

“Great,” Willow mumbled. She was also hemorrhaging, although she was still conscious. Her head rolled bonelessly in Xander’s arms as she tried to get her bearings. “Tara?”

“I’ve got her, Willow. She’s safe. We all are…thanks to you.” Giles gentle voice was low and reassuring as they carried her lover into the house. Willow wanted to say that she hadn’t done it all, really. It had been Riley’s and Xander’s plan, their cunning. She and Tara had just provided muscle. Magic muscle. The last thought made her giggle foolishly before her head fell back against Xander’s shoulder and, as the psychic backlash from the teleportation spell washed over her, she lost consciousness.

And that was the end of Glory. For the next few days, in between tending her wounded boyfriend (who’d put up too much of a fuss to be kept in the hospital), seeing that Angel got an adequate supply of blood to heal his injuries and tending her grief-stricken little sister, Buffy relentlessly patrolled. She wanted to reassure herself that there was no trace of the mad Glory to reappear and attack at some unforeseen point in the future.

TBC
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The White Picket Fences