“Me,” Gunn murmured. “’Cause if I’m not mistaken, they just said they were that thing y’all need to fight the Vraiyl.”

“So what do we do now?” Buffy continued. “They’ve turned into this thing, and we still can’t use it.”

“I thought they said they were the Altenalium,” Connor said from the corner he’d been hiding in.

“They are, I guess,” Angel told his son. “But regardless…”

“Then maybe you should just ask them to fight the Vraiyl,” The teen continued.

“They can’t be trusted to do the job,” Angel grated out.

Connor stepped forward, obviously angry. “Why not? You trusted them to go get the thing! You practically forced them to,” He spat, glaring at Cordelia. “Even though none of them really wanted to. You decided they were the ‘expendable’ ones, so you dumped them into another dimension to do your dirty work. Now you don’t like how it’s turned out.”

Fred glanced from Connor to Angel. The vampire was not happy that Connor was taking Wesley’s side in the argument.

“Excuse me, Connor,” Buffy snarled, “But we had good reasons for doing it. What would’ve happened if Angel and I hadn’t gotten back?”

“You think you’re that important?” Connor replied harshly. “That there’s no one to take your place? No one else who can fight? I can understand sending the demon—who cares what happens to a vampire anyway?” He glared at his father as he said that last bit. “And I know why Cordelia and Angel weren’t too concerned about Wesley—yeah, *Dad* doesn’t trust him, but he also doesn’t care if he dies. He wants him dead. What about Xander? What has he done to deserve this?”

Willow looked up from the table. She’d pretty much sat through the events of the past day in something of a trance. “He hasn’t done anything.”

Giles frowned. “No, he hasn’t. However, he is quite capable of performing rather amazing feats when the situation calls for it. Also, he tends to find interesting alternatives to the usual solution for a given problem. I felt he was more than qualified to obtain the Altenalium.”

“Then why were you so mean to him?” Connor accused. “You belittled him and Wesley too.”

“Xander gets on Giles’ nerves,” Willow murmured. “And Buffy’s. Angel’s never liked him, and Cordelia holds a grudge. That’s why they were mean to him and made him go over there.” She stood up; her eyes clear for the first time in ages. “I can’t believe I sat here and let you all treat them that way!”

“It’s Spike!” Buffy snarled. “He’s a…”

“I know what he is,” Willow replied. “And I know what he’s not. And if you’ll remember, he’s not a vampire anymore. I’m not sure what he is.”

“Maybe we moved too fast,” Fred whispered. “I mean, we just sort of pushed them, you know?”

“You didn’t say anything,” Gunn reminded her. “It’s not your doing.”

“We let them,” Fred retorted. “We could’ve said something.”

“Like what?” Buffy growled. “Wait; let’s let a bunch of people get killed while we fiddle around?”

“I had a vision,” Cordelia began. “It had them…”

“Yes, but was the outcome of this vision set in stone? Or did it depend upon us acting as rashly as we did?” Giles asked wearily. “Fred may have a point; we acted rather impatiently.”

Connor rolled his eyes. “Nobody thought.”

“No, we didn’t,” Giles agreed. He was ashamed, desperately so. The older man hadn’t acted so irresponsibly in years, if not decades. Why hadn’t he thought through this more? There was sure to be some other solution. Unfortunately, it was too late now.

“So what do we do now?” Buffy repeated.

Giles sighed. “We wait until they have rested. After that, we find out what they know about the Altenalium and how to use it against the Vraiyl.”

“Then we figure out how to make it up to them,” Willow murmured.

“You can’t,” Connor spat.

“We shall see,” Giles replied quietly, rubbing his eyes.

“First, though, we’ve got to get Xander away from Spike and Wesley. Who knows what lines they’re feeding him,” Buffy stated harshly. “They’re up to no good, I’m sure of it.”

“Wesley shouldn’t be left alone with either of them,” Angel agreed.

Connor just shook his head. Holtz might have been insane with revenge, but Angel was little better.

•••

“I take it your latest project is going well,” Hollingsworth murmured, taking in the evil grin gracing Lilah’s face.

“It’s amazing how easily played the Slayer and Angel are,” Lilah confirmed. “He actually thought that killing off one hacker would stop me from changing the bitch’s visions.”

Hollingsworth laughed. “So they have the Altenalium?”

“Oh, yes,” Lilah said. “They actually sent those three idiots over there. You know, I wasn’t sure they would. For a minute Angel was ready to dust Spike and throttle Wesley, just to keep them from going.”

“But they did,” The older man replied. “And now?”

“It’s only a matter of time,” Lilah hissed. “The Slayer and Angel are so intent on splitting the men up that nothing will stop them.”

“Which one will die first?” Hollingsworth asked.

Lilah considered the question. “Spike. Once those two realize just how much power they’ve given to their favorite punching bag, he won’t stand a chance.”

“But you’re sure you can control the other two?” He pressed.

“Easily,” Lilah assured him. “Without him, they’ll be unbalanced. We can help them cope. Besides, hate is an easily twisted emotion, as you well know.”

The elder lawyer nodded. “I noted, however, that not all of your players seem intent on the path you’ve chosen for them. The Watcher, and Angel’s son. The witch, too, is shaking off the compulsion you put on her.”

Lilah shrugged. “She doesn’t matter. By the time she gets to where she can actually do anything, the damage will already be done. Besides, the compulsions were only on her, Giles, and Angel’s lackeys—and they’re not the ones I was worried about anyway. That was just a bit of mind clouding. Angel and the Slayer didn’t need any help to get the way they are and neither did Cordelia. She is very confident about the accuracy of her visions.”

“You discount Mr. Gunn and his plaything?” Hollingsworth asked curiously.

Lilah smirked. “No, but they’re also easily disposed of. The right word to his old ‘gang’ and they’ll be dead by morning. He thinks they still respect him.”

“You do seem to have all the details in order,” Her boss murmured. “Be sure to actually succeed this time. The senior partners have several plans that hinge on obtaining the Altenalium.” He turned to leave. “And be sure to get rid of the Vraiyl. They’re annoying.”

•••

When the sun set, Cordelia led Angel, Gunn, Fred and Connor away to get some food and rest. Supper was a tense affair; even without Angel’s presence. Connor slunk away and remained as far from Cordelia as he could, obviously disgusted with her. He’d been that way ever since they’d arrived in Sunnydale. Gunn and Fred talked quietly, both troubled by the current situation. Gunn wasn’t sure what to make of it and he wasn’t positive that Wesley could be trusted. He knew he didn’t trust Spike. Leaving so much responsibility in their hands seemed like a very bad idea. Fred was more cautious, wanting to give the men a chance.

Cordelia fumed. The Powers knew what they were doing. She had utmost faith in her visions and the connection to her bosses that they represented. After all, they were the ones who wanted her to ascend; she’d only come back to be with Angel. This situation was killing him, having to rely on two of his worst enemies. She wasn’t pleased by Xander’s participation, but it was required.

“Come on, we’re all done here,” She muttered, gathering everyone out of the dingy little diner they’d chosen for their meal. They drove back to the hotel they were staying at, trying desperately to not talk about what was on their minds.

“Cordy?” Angel murmured as she returned to his hotel room, Connor in tow. She let him go so that the teen could go sulk in a corner, while she talked to his father.

“This is going to be the death of us,” She told the vampire. “We’re all falling apart. Connor’s worse than usual, Gunn and Fred are both worried and second-guessing themselves, and Buffy’s lost all control of her people.”

“I noticed,” Angel said, grimacing. “We just have to resolve the Altenalium situation and get rid of the Vraiyl. Then we can go home.”

Cordelia sat down next to Angel on the bed, leaning against him. They hesitated to touch each other much; despite knowing how they felt about each other, they were wary. “Just two things, huh? Something tells me it’s not gonna be that easy.”

“It never is,” Angel confirmed. “Did I ever thank you for getting me out of the ocean?”

“Yeah, but feel free to do it again,” She replied, ignoring Connor’s growl. “It was a lot of work.”

“How did you get the diver to not look?” He asked.

“Your coat covered the window, so there wasn’t anything to see,” Cordelia explained. “Gunn knew how to use the winch.”

“Thanks,” Angel said yet again. “And thank you.”

Cordelia laughed.

•••

“May we go home?” Willow asked Giles. It was well past dark and Buffy had already gone out for a quick patrol before heading home to Dawn.

Giles glanced up at the clock. “Yes, it is rather late.” He stood and gathered up his papers. “A fresh mind might be of use tomorrow.”

“I hope so,” Willow murmured. “I can’t believe I didn’t think about Xander yesterday and today. What was I doing?”

Giles frowned. “You are still recovering, Willow. Such lapses are to be expected.” He didn’t say that he wasn’t sure why he hadn’t thought more about the boy, or about the situation in general. It was very odd, but perhaps to be expected considering the gravity of the situation.

•••

Buffy swung through yet another cemetery, looking for something to slay. She needed to blow off some steam and get a bit of the awful tension she was feeling out of her system. The Slayer couldn’t believe that Giles would question their judgment! He’d even helped them.

She was about to turn around and head home when a light-and-dark streak caught her attention. She followed the creature, tracking it as it headed for campus. The thing was fast, but not so quick she lost sight of it. Once they were well inside the campus, it slowed, watching the students walk along the pathways. Both it and Buffy were hidden in the shadows of a clump of trees.

“Hey, buddy?” Buffy called out, stepping closer to the demon. “You, ah, looking for someone?”

The demon turned around slowly. Pale gray skin glimmered in the moonlight. “Perhaps,” It hissed, narrowing its eyes. “You, perhaps.”

She grinned. “I don’t think so, but thanks for offering.” The demon took a step forward, pulling a long knife out of thin air.

“Perhaps yes,” It murmured, brandishing the weapon. “You will do nicely, Slayer. I have a great need for a new concubine.”

Buffy didn’t wait for the demon to attack; she jumped up and swung one leg out to catch the knife. The only problem was that the knife disappeared, along with the demon. She landed and spun around—to find herself face to face with the ugly creature. “Nice, Slayer, but slow.” The demon flashed forward, whipping one hand across her face. She spun back, stunned. Drops of blood welled up on her cheek where the knife had cut her. When it came at her again, she ducked and rammed into its midsection. It huffed and fell backwards, quickly regaining its footing. She charged again, managing to get in a few good punches.

“Pretty Slayer, but still too slow,” The demon commented. She was going at it with all her strength. The demon wasn’t even exerting itself. Buffy growled and pushed herself harder, hating to be bested by anyone or anything.

The demon laughed and danced out of her way, easily moving beyond the reach of the stake she held. Buffy grew winded, unable to keep up the pace. Every hit she got in was met with four or five more to her own body and she was fading fast. The demon must have gotten bored, because it abruptly stated hitting harder, knocking her down and drawing more blood.

“Hey! What’s going on over there?” The demon’s attention was caught by the worried and curious voice that carried across the green. Buffy looked over at its source—some student walking across campus.

“Or perhaps not,” The demon whispered as it retreated into the shadows. Buffy jumped up, searching for it, but found nothing.

“You ok?” The student asked, having run over to the girl.

“Yeah, just some overeager frat boy,” Buffy said absently. “Thanks a lot, though!”

“Sure. You gotta watch those types. Walk you home?” He offered.

“Nah, I’ve got a car,” She lied. “But thanks again. I need to get going.”

She walked off quickly, thinking about that demon. It reminded her a bit too much of the drawings of the Vraiyl that Giles had shown her. If they were indeed on the move, it was a very bad thing. “And they said the Vraiyl wouldn’t attack tonight. Idiots,” She hissed as she walked home.

•••

“Ah, Buffy,” Giles greeted as the Slayer entered the shop. “I suspect that Xander and the others will arrive soon.”

“Good,” She muttered. “Because those demons they’re supposed to be fighting? They’re here.”

“Good lord,” He cursed. “You saw one last night?”

Buffy nodded. “Fought it, too. They’re fast and strong. Smart. Bad breath,” She added. “Have you figured anything out?”

“No,” He admitted. “I am hoping that Xander will be able to shed some light on the Altenalium. If the Vraiyl have arrived here, we have very little time. They are sure to target the Hellmouth.”

Cordelia and her coworkers showed up a few minutes later, Angel hiding under a blanket. Once again Connor took up a spot as far from the others as he could. Giles noted that none of the new arrivals looked like they’d slept much.

“Would you like coffee?” Willow offered.

“Please,” Cordelia replied. “Lots of it.”

“I’ll help,” Fred stated, following Willow into the back room.

“You don’t need to,” Willow murmured. “I can make coffee.”

“Are you doing better?” Fred asked. “You seemed a bit down yesterday.”

Willow nodded. “Yeah, I think it’s just recovering, you know?” Fred and the others had been told a little about her ‘problems.’

“I hope you get better soon,” Fred said quietly. “Do you want me to carry anything?”