Just Us

Chapter 3


“Hey, guys! Buffster. Wills. G-man. So, I hear we got another situation that calls for some Scoobyage!” Xander near enough yelled excitedly.

Buffy smiled and cocked her head. “Hey, Xan. Been on the sugar again, sweetie?”

“Who, me? Erm…yeah, why not?”

“Ooookay. You’re weirder than usual.” Buffy laughed and shook her head. “Which isn’t that unusual at all.”

A shadow appeared and loomed at the door and Buffy’s bright smile faltered and drooped. “Angel. Hi.”

“Hello, Buffy.”

“Hi. I already said that, didn’t I?”

“Well, who doesn’t repeat themselves now and again?” Xander asked, in an attempt to break the sudden tension that really wasn’t so sudden from his point of view. “I know I certainly do. And Giles does it *all* the time, don’t you, G-man?”

“Don’t call me that. And yes, I find myself repeating myself every minute of every day, Xander.”

“See?”

For the first time in his un-life, Angel struggled to keep his face expressionless. He wanted to at least give Xander a crooked grin or even an affectionate eye-roll, but Buffy was gazing at him with a look that was a cross between a wide-eyed deer and a slightly crazed stalker. Even the slightest sign of behaving like he was happy was going to arouse suspicion.

“Giles, do you have the books?”

“Yes, yes. This way, Angel.” Giles led him to the table and pointed to two enormous black books. “There. Do you know what they are? Are these the ones?”

“Yes. The Books of Damnation,” Angel confirmed with a nod.

“Chilling,” Xander commented.

“Why do you suppose these books always have such unsettling titles?” Willow asked. “Why couldn’t it have been The Books of Fluffy Kittens?”

“Probably because of the lack of fluffy kittens?” Buffy suggested. “But I know what you mean. Why couldn’t it have been The Books of Stuff That You Might Not Like So Much?”

“Catchy,” Xander said with a smile. “You should be in publishing. Do they have people to name books or do the authors do it themselves?”

Giles sighed and ran his hands through his hair. “Angel, do you have any suggestions for what we might do with them?”

“Er, well, you could try keeping them apart. Maybe keep them away from chocolate when they’re all together…”

“No, I meant the books.”

“Oh. Right. I don’t know exactly. My experience with them is limited.”

“But you’ve had some experience?”

“A long time ago, yes. I was given the fourth in the series by an acquaintance.”

“And what happened?”

“I had to let it go. There were a lot of people that wanted it. Angelus wasn’t interested enough to fight for it. He used it a couple of times then threw it at the first person that came close enough.”

“Angelus used it?” Buffy asked. Her face clouded over and expressed a mixture of guilt and heartache.

“What did you do?” Xander asked, as easily as if he’d asked what the time was.

“What did Angelus do,” Willow whispered to Xander, loud enough for everyone to hear.

Xander shrugged. “Okay. What did Angelus do?”

“Nothing too horrific, surprisingly. Angelus was going through a…childish phase at the time. He turned a few people green, gave a couple of cats some extra legs, made it light when there should only have been dark.”

“Nothing drastic, then,” Buffy said sarcastically.

“Could have been a lot worse, ducks,” Spike said. “Angelus was only playing. Even I would have run for it he’d ever worked out what the books were really capable of.”

“So, they’re spell books?” Xander asked.

“Yes, *very* powerful ones. It’s said that they hold the key to the destruction of the world and all its dimensions.”

“Really? Huh. They look kinda…cheesy. Like one of those Books of Shadows that you can buy in the mall with all the pentagrams and skulls on the front. Kinda tacky. And I suppose they’re meant to be bound in some kind of human skin. Looks more like rubber, to me.” Xander stretched out a hand to prod one of the books.

“NO!” Angel reached out and snatched Xander’s wrist, pulling him back and away from the books. “Don’t touch them! Don’t ever touch them!”

“Hey! What’s the big deal?! Giles touched them. Why can’t I?”

“It’s okay, Angel. I put a binding spell on them the moment they came into my possession. They’re quite safe to touch.”

“For now. But we have no reason to believe that the spell will hold indefinitely.”

“Yes, of course. Quite right, Angel. It would be wise to be cautious.”

“Why did you have to put a spell on it?” Buffy asked, turning her back on Xander and Angel and walking around the table to peer suspiciously at the two books.

“It taints souls,” Giles explained. “It draws the soul to the books and binds it to them. That soul is then filled with darkness and will stop at nothing to assemble the ten books and ultimately destroy the world.”

“Dramatic much?” Buffy asked with raised eyebrows. “So, it didn’t affect Angel…”

“Angelus,” Willow prompted with another whisper.

“It didn’t affect Angelus because he didn’t have a soul. That’s why he only ‘played’ with it and ditched it once it got too hot to handle.”

“Give the girl a cigar, a medal and a lifetime subscription to ‘State The Obvious Monthly’.”

“Shut up, Spike, before Mr Pointy gets to be Mr Happy. Or something else with no double meaning.”

While Buffy and Spike bickered, Angel let go of Xander’s wrist and allowed him to pull his hand slowly away. As fingers and palms brushed, they both chanced a small, apologetic smile. “Sorry,” they said together.

“…burn it? Are you bloody thick as well as stupid?”

“Excuse me?!” Buffy put her hands on her hips and glared.

“If it was as easy as burning it, I think someone would have tried it a bloody long time ago.”

“Giles, tell him.”

“I’m sorry, Buffy. As much as it pains me to admit it, Spike is correct. The books are impervious to fire. In fact, they are pretty much indestructible.”

“Pretty much?” Willow asked.

“It is said that any person who tries to destroy or harm the books will be engulfed by the fires of Hell itself.”

“Ouch,” Buffy said with a wince.

“Indeed,” Giles continued. “There is only one way to destroy the books that we have here and all the others in the world with them.”

Angel nodded as he remembered the legend.

“And that is?” Xander asked.

“Love.”

“Love,” Xander repeated. “As in the art of?”

“No, Xander, as in ‘only a true love of mind, body and soul - a perfect connection - can defeat the evil of the Damned'. The legend says that it would take the ultimate sacrifice in the name of love to stop the books forever.”

Silence reigned as the seriousness of the situation finally hit home. They could not let these books get into the wrong hands.

“I’m afraid that we must translate this legend and do whatever it takes before the spell breaks and our souls are dragged into evil and despair.”

“Right,” Spike said. “Well and truly buggered then, aren’t we?”

“Spike, don’t say that,” Willow pleaded. “We’ll find a way. Love always finds a way,” she added, with a chuckle that died a death before it really started.

“What're we gonna do then, eh? Kiss them? Make sweet love to them? Quote poetry, offer roses and get down on one knee in front of them? How the hell does love destroy a couple of books?”

“Oh, I don’t know, Spike. Maybe you should call Cordelia and you two can kiss in front of them. That’s enough to make anyone combust.”

“Oi! Say what you like about me, but if you slag off my Cordy again, I’ll break both your sodding arms!”

While Spike and Buffy began bickering again, Angel turned to Xander and opened his mouth.

“No,” Xander said, getting in first. “I’m not leaving. I’m not going anywhere without you, not for my safety or for anybody else’s…not that I’m a danger to anyone else…I’m not, right?”

Angel shook his head no. “I just want you to be safe.”

“So make me safe. Just don’t send me away.”

Angel nodded and smiled. “I won’t. Just don’t…”

“Touch them. Yeah, I got it. No touching, no way, nope, not me.” Xander took a deep breath. “You know, I have Giles’ spare keys. We could try out the ‘making love in front of them’ theory later tonight?”

“Bloody bitch!!”

“Blond freak!!”

“Right, that’s it!” Giles bellowed. “Anyone else who feels like an argument, please go somewhere else to do it. I have neither the time nor the patience!”

Silence

“Thank you. Now, unless there are any other suggestions, I propose that we order in pizza and get started on the research.”

“I have some books in my car; they might help.”

“Wonderful. Xander, would you assist Angel in getting them?”

“Sure! I mean, yeah, if I must.”

“Spike, please order the pizza. And Willow, I’d like you to make a start on finding a stronger binding spell. I don’t have much hope that this one will hold for more than a few days. Buffy, a quick patrol, if you wouldn’t mind, and then straight back here to help with the research.”

“But…” Buffy considered arguing, but decided it would be useless. Giles was clearly in one of his moods. She looked longingly at Angel for a moment and then grabbed her weapon and started towards the door. “Okay, a-vamp huntin’ I must go. See you later and save me some pizza, guys,” she said with a final wave.

The door shut behind her and Xander struggled not to sag with relief.

“That should give you two some breathing room,” Giles whispered to Xander and Angel. “I’d say you have about twenty minutes. You really should have told her at the start, you know.”

Two jaws dropped. “How did you…? Do you…? You know?!” Xander stammered.

“Of course. They don’t call me a Watcher for nothing.”

TBC…