Cloaked in Shadows

A/N: Thank you for reading and reviewing! Also, the lethifold mentioned in this chapter is an idea that was in JK Rowling's Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. The other creatures are my own ideas.


Chapter Three

Buffy had opted to pick up Willow, Giles, and Dawn at the airport herself. She wanted to fill them in on what she had learned so far before she took them to where Angel, Spike, Illyria, and Lorne were. Plus, she just wanted a little bit of time away from Spike. She felt so many feelings towards him, and she didn’t know what to do about any of them yet. She arrived at the airport, and they were soon all in Angel’s car to return to headquarters.

“Have you seen the creature, Buffy?” Giles inquired as he cleaned his glasses with a cloth.

“No,” Buffy said. “Angel, Spike, and I went to the Bloodsucker, but we didn’t see anything. It is really suspicious there though.” She glanced back in the rearview mirror at Willow and Dawn. Dawn was leaning against Willow’s shoulder as she was half-asleep from the long flight. It was really good to have them all there. It would only be better if Xander could come along. “We were hoping that you would have found some possibilities for us.”

Willow grinned. “We found a few, but we’re not sure if it is the creature or not.”

Giles placed his glasses back on. “We were hoping to discuss the possibilities with the others.”

Buffy figured as much. “We’re almost there,” she said as she went a little further and then turned into a parking garage and parked the car. “Soon, you’ll get to meet Lorne and Illyria,” she said. She was rather fond of Lorne. He could always make her laugh, but she didn’t know about Illyria, and she hated how she called Spike ‘pet.’

Carrying their luggage, the four of them went into the elevator to the top floor where Angel’s penthouse was. Buffy opened the door and motioned for them to come on. “This is Illyria and Lorne,” she said, motioning to the blue-haired Illyria who was sitting on the counter and green Lorne who was reclining on the sofa. “You know Angel and Spike.” Angel had stood up to greet them, and Spike was leaning against the counter.

A blur raced by the rest and right to Spike. “Spike!” Dawn shrieked gleefully as she jumped and clung to him. She would have knocked him over, if he hadn’t been leaning against the counter.

“Little bit!” Spike said as a huge grin pursed his lips. He wrapped his arms around her in a hug and twirled her around. He really had missed Dawn. She always felt like a little sister to him.

“I’ve missed you so much! Don’t ever die again,” Dawn said as she still clung to him.

Spike chuckled. “I’ll try not to, and I’ve missed you too, Little Bit.” Slowly, she let go as he released her. Then, he saw Willow. “Hello, Red,” he said, giving her a grin as well.

Willow smiled warmly and then gave him a hug. “It’s good to see you, Spike.”

“You too, Will,” Spike said as he did return the hug. She released him a lot sooner than Dawn had, and then he was standing in front of Giles. There was an awkward moment where the two of them didn’t know whether to hug or just shake hands. Finally, Spike stuck out his hand. “Good to see you again, Giles,” he said rather stiffly.

“Likewise,” Giles stated as he shook Spike’s hand very formally.

Buffy was amused, and she slightly shook her head and laughed.

Angel shut the door and looked at the guests he now had. “Would you like me to show you your rooms before we begin discussing the monster?”

Giles briefly considered this option. “Yes, we should take our belongings to our rooms. Also, thank you for permitting us to stay here.”

Angel smiled. “It was no trouble. Follow me.”

After they were settled in their rooms, everyone gathered around an executive table in Angel’s office. There were various books spread out as well as paper and pens for them to make notes. Giles was the first to speak to all of them. “I have taken the information that I have received to find some possible creatures this particular one could be.” He went to one book and began to read, “The lethifold is a cloak-like creature, which covers its prey and digests them, leaving no trace of its victim behind. It is found in tropical areas.” He finished reading this short passage and looked at them. “Although this creature fits the description of this shadow beast, it is unlikely to be one, since we are not in the tropics.”

“Then why are you telling us this?” Spike asked as he put his feet on the table.

Giles sighed. “We can’t rule out any possibility until we know more.”

Buffy looked at Giles. “Can that creature be killed?”

Willow shook her head. “From the research I’ve done on that creature, no one has found any way to destroy it.”

“Anything can be destroyed,” Illyria stated in a cold tone. “You just have to find out how.”

“Then how can we destroy you,” Spike stated with a smirk.

Illyria glared at him. “Be nice, pet,” she hissed.

Spike turned slightly pink from embarrassment and glared back at her.

Buffy rolled her eyes. “Can’t we just continue with the next possibility?”

Giles nodded and picked up a thick book that was already opened to the page he needed. “Then, there is the Umbra. It is an ancient shadow creature that would slink upon its victims and eat them. It did leave traces as it would regurgitate the remains. Did you see any bones?”

Angel shook his head. “Unless they cleaned them up, there was nothing like that to be found.”

“It’s unlikely to be that one too,” Spike said as he was growing rather weary of this. He would much rather be out there fighting this creature than trying to figure out what the bloody hell it was!

Buffy agreed with Spike. She doubted that everything was covered up so well, if the creature left behind bones. She sighed. “Do you have anything else?”

Willow took a book. “There is another creature. It’s called the Blood Shadow. It is summoned by dark magic. It is particularly attracted by blood, which is how the creature is lured in the first place. It’s none to look like a regular shadowy blob but only thicker. There is a spell to rid a place of such a creature, but it is rather complicated. I could do it though.”

Illyria looked at Willow and tilted her head. “Are you a witch?”

Willow nodded. “Yeah,” she said as she slightly blushed. Although Illyria looked rather scary, she was really beautiful too.

Buffy thought that this was likely their creature. “Do you think you can get the ingredients for the spell?”

Willow nodded. “I have some of them. I just have to find cobra venom and dragon’s blood.”

Giles appeared pensive for a moment before he spoke. “Personally, I believe that this is the closest possibility for the creature. I suggest that Willow gets the supplies she needs. We also need to find a way to get into that club when no one is there.”

Spike smirked. “That shouldn’t be too hard. It closes at two, and it doesn’t open again until the next night.” They could always break in, perform the spell, and have everything be right again. There was a part of him that almost hoped that it wouldn’t be that easy. He knew that as soon as the creature was destroyed, then Buffy would leave for Italy and the Immortal. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes at that thought of her being with the Immortal.

Buffy thought that this was likely to be the best chance they would have. “As soon as you get the ingredients, Willow, we will return to the Bloodsucker and get rid of this creature once and for all.”

Everyone else agreed. This was the only solution they had, and it seemed the most likely. They decided what each person was going to do, and then they went their separate ways. Illyria and Lorne were going to find some cobra venom. Angel and Giles were going to discuss some strategies if this didn’t work. Dawn went to bed. Willow decided to read the spell over and memorize it. Buffy and Spike were alone together.

Spike looked over at her. “I guess when all of this is finished that you are going back to Italy.”

Buffy nodded. “Yes, I am,” she said. There was a part of her that didn’t want to leave, but she had a perfectly good life back in Italy waiting for her.

He put his feet back on the floor. “Angel and I saw you when we were in Italy.”

She blinked. “You did? Why didn’t you say anything?” If she had seen them, she would have said something. She hadn’t even realized they were there.

He shrugged. “You were having too much fun with the Immortal. We didn’t want to interrupt.”

“Oh,” she said and blushed slightly. She often went places with the Immortal. She was rather fond of him, but she didn’t love him.

He was so curious to ask her questions about him, but he decided against it. “Do you know that Drusilla was with him many years ago?”

Her eyes widened. “No, I didn’t know that.” She was really beginning to wonder if everyone she was with had been with Drusilla first. It almost seemed that way at times! “The Immortal doesn’t speak too much of his past.”

He scoffed. “He probably doesn’t.” He stood up. “I guess you are going back to return to him.”

She rolled her eyes. “No, I’m not. Why? Are you jealous?”

He went and leaned over her, whispering into her ear. “Why would I be jealous, love?” He straightened up. “You have made it rather clear that it is over between us now.” He turned and walked off.

She shifted in her seat to say something, but she couldn’t. She had not given him any sign that she still wanted to be with him. She had been the one to continually push him away until she finally admitted that she loved him before he died. A sigh fell from her lips. She wasn’t certain of her feelings for him. She thought that he was dead for a long time. She had moved on. Hadn’t she? Yes, of course, she had. It was silly to continue to think about things that would never be. She didn’t need him. She had her life in Italy and the Immortal. That was where she belonged. “Isn’t it?” she softly asked herself as she was growing more uncertain. She just hoped that this creature would be destroyed because the longer she stayed here, then the less certain about things she felt.

A/N: Please review! They are greatly appreciated.