Just Us

“You do? Why?” Buffy asked.

Angel stepped away from the counter and rubbed at his temple. It wasn’t often that vampires got headaches. “The hotel is under siege.”

“Siege?”

“E’baye demons. They’ve surrounded the hotel. Apparently, Wesley managed to insult one of them last week when he returned their mail. It had come to us by mistake.”

“Oh, dear,” said Giles. “That’s very unfortunate.”

Angel flapped his hand dismissively. “It’s okay; we always get everybody else’s mail. We’re used to it.”

“No, I meant that you should never present an E’baye demon with a sealed envelope. It would be the equivalent of telling it that its mother is the offspring of a Gems’teevee demon.”

“Is that bad?” Xander asked.

“Very.”

“Oh, well, no wonder you keep getting their mail. I bet the postmen in LA are smarter than they look,” Xander continued.

Angel sighed and rubbed at his temple again. “I have to go.”

“Perhaps, as you are facing a very angry clan of E’baye demons, you’d better take Buffy with you,” Giles suggested.

Everybody froze at that. Including Giles, who wanted to kick himself in the groin. And he would have, if it were possible. Which it wasn’t.

“You can count on me, Angel,” Buffy said, firmly. Good. Now she had a purpose. Now there was something that she could focus on. Demon bashing was definitely doable. Every time she looked at Angel, her heart broke. Gods, she wished she had the guts to tell him that she didn’t love him anymore, that she was ready to move on. But she couldn’t. She just couldn’t hurt him like that.

Okay, so going to LA with him *alone* probably wasn’t the smartest of ideas Giles had ever had, but she was pretty sure that Angel wouldn’t bring up their past relationship while they were in the car. Hopefully. “I’ll just grab some weapons.”

As Buffy left to get her gear from the training room, Xander resisted the largest, longest and loudest sigh that he would ever be capable of emitting.

“I’ll be back. Tomorrow night, if not tonight.”

“Yeah, I know. Don’t come back as Angel Chunks. Be careful, yeah?”

“Always. And you, Xander. Be careful with the spell.”

“Oh, I don’t think Giles will let *me* do the spell,” Xander laughed. Was Angel crazy?

“I don’t know, Xander,” Giles said thoughtfully. “I don’t see any reason why you can’t be involved. The spell does require two spell casters.”

“Really? Aren’t you scared I’ll magic up a giant bowl of spaghetti sauce to rain down on us all?”

“Not at all. You won’t make the same mistake as Willow; I won’t let you.”

Xander grinned. It was a particularly wide grin that was distinctly coat hanger shaped. “Cool.”

Angel smiled back at him. He loved to see Xander happy, to see him smile and to watch as his eyes glistened with excitement. He looked beautiful like that. Jesus, Spike was right, he really *was* a ponce. A complete and total one. Not that he really cared. In a month's time he was going to have Xander by his side and in his bed everyday. He couldn’t wait. “I’ll miss you,” Angel whispered, moving to stand directly in front of Xander, so close that he would barely have to move in order to kiss him.

“Hey, guys, cut that out! There’s no need for…manly displays…or whatever.”

“Buff…”

“No, Xand, I don’t want to hear it. I wish you two wouldn’t fight.”

Xander’s grin turned mischievous. “But Angel said he didn’t like your cooking. It makes him gag. I was only defending you, is all. Totally on your side, Buff.”

Buffy was dismayed. “You don’t like my…Right. Fine. We’ll see about that, buster. When we get back I’m going to cook you *all* my homemade lasagne special. Then you’ll see how much my cooking is appreciated.”

Xander’s heart drooped. Damn, his clever plot to get Angel into trouble had seriously backfired. Or at least *they* would be backfiring after Buffy’s famous homemade lasagne special. He wondered if Angel ever farted. He knew Spike did. *God* did he know that Spike did. Spike Farts smelt like the inside of a rhinoceros’ stomach. Not that he really knew what the inside of a…

“Xand? Honey? You okay?”

“Yeah! Sorry. Zoned.”

Buffy patted Xander's cheek and looked mournfully at him. “Don’t worry, Xand. This whole thing will be over soon. And when it is, I’ll make you *all* the lasagne you can eat.” She patted his cheek again and headed for the door.

Xander’s expression told of infinite woes and a life of pain. He managed a small, discreet smile at Angel as he left and then turned around to face Giles. “Couldn’t we just keep the books and end the world?”

**

It was two hours before Spike and Willow arrived back with the spell ingredients. And then it took another three hours to set the spell up. Giles found himself doing this alone when Willow, Xander and Spike all fell asleep.

When, finally, the last candle was lit and the spell was ready to go, Giles coughed as loudly as he could.

Spike was the first to jolt awake. “What?! Eh?! Willow’s got the arse!”

“No, actually, I have the arse,” Giles said dryly, pointing to the hog's buttock in the centre of the table.

“Are we ready to start? Do you need me?” Willow asked as she rubbed her eyes sleepily.

“No, no,” Giles answered. “Xander and I will be performing the spell.”

“Xander?! That’s not fair. He can’t do magic!”

“Um, hey, Wills, you know I love you, right? But neither can you.”

“Hey, no fair! I can so do magic.”

“Yes, but not very well, pet. Never mind, luv, you’ll get better at it.” Spike patted Willow’s knee. “Now, let’s step back and let Xander have a crack, yeah?”

“No! I will not! I’m the witch around here!”

“Yeah? Best get on your broomstick and fly the fuck off, then!”

“Oh, you are such a…such a…bloodsucker!”

“Oh, Red, I’m offended, really. Blimey, that the best you can come up with?”

“No, but this is!”

“Ow! What the bloody, buggery bollocks was that for?!”

Exactly twenty minutes later, Willow and Spike had finished fighting and had made up with a cuddle and perhaps a few tears. Although, if asked about this, Spike would deny it vigorously.

Also, Giles and Xander had completed the spell.

“Oh, I missed it,” Willow complained.

Xander bounced in his seat at the table. “Oh, my god, I was awesome. I was, like, all…witchy and stuff!”

“Nice one, luv. Spell work, did it?”

Xander looked to Giles for confirmation.

“There’s no reason to think it didn’t. There was a small glitch about halfway though. The books seemed to…spit.”

“Spit?” Spike asked. “As in they gobbed at you?”

“In a manner of speaking, yes. Or perhaps ‘sparked’ would be a better term for it. But it only lasted a second and then the spell seemed to take hold.”

Willow peered at the books uneasily. “Is there a way to test it?”

“Only by touching.” Giles leaned over the table and rolled up his sleeve. To an untrained eye he looked like he was preparing to play Operation and remove the funny bone rather than just prod some books with his index finger. “If the spell is not properly in place, I’ll feel the power and evil of the book surging through my veins. You must pull me back immediately.”

“Right. Got it. I hear you.” Spike stood behind Giles in his best football stance and got ready to lunge and pull him back if needed.

“Right. Get ready, everyone. I’m going to poke it.” Giles’ finger hovered over the tome for several very long seconds before, finally, with a small shake, it descended.

“AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!”


TBC…