I'll Be Seeing You by inell

I'll Be Seeing You

[ - ]

Willow Rosenberg looked up when she heard the door open. She smiled when she saw who it was. "Hey."

Riley smiled, sitting on his girlfriend's bed. "Willow. Why are you here?"

"This is my room" she said, laughing softly.

"I mean, I thought you were coming to the party with Buffy" he clarified.

"You know that I hate parties" she said, rolling her eyes. "I think the better question is why are you here instead of there?"

He shrugged, laying back on Buffy's bed, his eyes watching Willow. "I'm not that crazy about them either. Besides, I was worried that something might have happened to you."

Willow smiled, "Thanks for worrying. But, I'm fine. Now, you'd better get down the hall to the party before she gets mad."

"She won't get mad. She knows that you and I are friends" Riley said, not worried at all. "Hell, you're the one that helped me win her."

"Was there a contest?" she asked, laughing.

"Have you given any more thought to my idea?" he asked, not wanting to talk about Buffy.

"About me joining the Initiative?" she wrinkled her nose. "Riley, you know my thoughts on that. I don't like what you people are doing. I respect your right to make that decision, but I don't want any part of it."

"You just don't get it" he protested, looking at her pretty face. She was so damn beautiful. He asked again, "Just come with me to the compound. You'll love it. I know Xander said you used to be really into science before all the magic stuff. Well, we have a lot of scientific experiments we're working on. Just give it a chance."

"No" Willow said softly. She couldn't really tell him that the reason she would always refuse was because of what they had done to Spike. He didn't even know they knew Hostile 17 much less that she was slowly falling in love with the blonde vampire. It wouldn't do for that to be known.

"Fine" Riley said, getting to his feet. He looked at her and smiled crookedly, "I'd better get back or she might send out a search party. I'll be seeing you."

"Bye Riley" Willow called out to him, watching him close the door and leave. She let out a sigh when he left. She liked Riley and thought he was good for Buffy, but she hated when he started talking about the Initiative. She knew the slayer thought everything they did there was fantastic, but she had to disagree. From what she had heard, it just wasn't a good place. She really couldn't believe that Buffy was helping them. She shook her head free of her thoughts as she stood and stretched. She glanced at the clock and saw that Xander should be home by now. Since he and Anya had cooled their relationship, he was usually home by nine most nights. She had been spending a lot of time with him over the past few months. They had finally regained the friendship that she had feared they lost back in high school.

She left her room, walking in the opposite direction of the party. She had no intention of running into Buffy or even Riley again. She just wanted to make it to Xander's and sit on his sofa while they walked some cheesy old movie together. She felt someone watching her and turned, frowning when she didn't notice anyone. The hall was empty save for the people at the party at the opposite end of the corridor. She laughed, shaking her head as she reached the staircase. She was getting more paranoid as time went by, she realized. For the past week she would have sworn someone was watching her at various times. Every time she looked up, no one had been there. She walked into the crisp night air, pulling her coat a bit tighter around her as she walked towards Xander's house.

********************

"I don't know. I just don't like him" Xander said, making a face.

"Maybe because he's a bastard?" Spike volunteered, his attention focused on the telly in front of him.

"Yeah, what Junior said" Xander laughed.

"He isn't that bad" Willow protested. "I mean, he seems to care for Buffy. She needs that."

"And it's always about Bitchy" Spike added, rolling his eyes. "You two are so bloody amusing. The slayer's little wind up toys. Always doing as she wants. Never realized the center of the universe was her."

"How could we always do what she wants when she's hardly around anymore?" Willow asked pointedly.

"I think I've seen her less than a dozen times since school started" Xander added.

"Lucky bloke" Spike said, laughing dryly.

"I just wish he would stop asking me to join them in the Initiative" Willow said, picking up the conversation where it had dropped off.

"They're bad news" Spike said, glancing at her. "You aren't stupid enough to work with them."

"Thanks, I think" she said softly, her face flushing slightly as she looked away from him.

Xander almost laughed. For the past two months, the three of them had taken to spending their evenings in his basement. He had watched his best friend flirting around her attraction to Spike as the blonde did the same. At first, he had hated the idea of them being together. He had just known that Spike would hurt her. But, now, he was convinced that the vampire was the only person who loved her as much as he. "I don't trust him myself, Wills. That whole leading the unit thing rather turns my stomach."

"Yes, Dad. I'll be careful." She laughed, sitting back against the couch. "I have no intention of joining that stupid little band of soldiers."

Xander frowned as he noticed her looking behind the sofa. "What is it?"

She laughed, "Nothing. I'm just letting the hellmouth drive me nuts."

"Don't think it took much" Spike said, his lips curling slightly.

"Seriously" Xander said, glaring at the back of the blonde's head. "Something is bothering you."

"I told you. It's nothing" Willow said, making a face.

"Wiiiiiiill...." he called out, smiling as he began to take her hand. "Tell me..."

"I've been getting the feeling that someone is watching me even when no one is there. See? I'm just going crazy." She laughed, kissing his cheek. She noticed Spike stiffen at the sound of the kiss but before she could think of what that might mean, Xander had slung his arm around her shoulder.

"Yeah, I have to admit that is just the normal hellmouth at work. I've lost track of how often I've felt unseen eyes on me." Xander laughed.

"Just wishful thinking" Spike said, turning to grin at them. "Chubs is always wanting someone to pay him attention."

"I am not fat" Xander said, rolling his eyes. "Anyway, you should talk. If you keep eating like you have been, you might not have to buy a new pair of jeans."

"Oh, bollocks" Spike said, glaring as they both laughed. He turned back to watch the TV ignoring his Red and the moron.

"I think he's mad" Willow said, whispering loudly.

"What makes you think that?" Xander asked back.

Willow laughed, "I dunno. Well, guys, it's been fun but I'd better get back. I have class tomorrow which means an early morning."

"Want me to walk you back?" Xander asked.

"Nah...it isn't that far" Willow said, smiling as she stood. "Besides, Buffy and her boys should be patrolling in case of emergency."

"If you're sure" Xander said, getting comfortable on the couch. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye Xander." She looked at Spike, "By Spike. I'll be seeing you...."

"See ya, Red" he called out without looking at her. He heard her soft sigh and resisted the urge to look at her...to call to her...to hold her....to kiss her....groaning softly, he turned his blue eyes to the images flickering on the screen.

********************

Willow left the library, her books in her arms. She was thinking about Spike again. He was always on her mind it seemed. Every time that she closed her eyes, his image was there. In the beginning, she had believed it was merely a crush. But, as time passed, she had realized it was much more. Each moment she spent with him, her feelings had escalated. She was now full in love with him. She looked at the sky and noticed it was getting late. The sun was still overhead, but it was close to setting. She was so busy looking above her that she failed to see the man in front of him until she had run into him. She dropped her books, going to her knees to pick them up, "I'm so sorry."

He laughed, "You need a keeper Will."

She looked up, surprise on her face. "Riley? Good grief. I didn't mean to run you over."

He laughed, "Think nothing of it. I was a bit distracted myself. Are you ok?"

"I'm fine" she rolled her eyes, standing with her books. "Just embarrassed."

"What were you thinking about so intently?" he asked, falling in step beside her.

She glanced at him, frowning slightly. "Weren't you walking the other way?"

"Oh, yeah. But, I decided to head back to the dorm instead of going to the library. Buffy is meeting me there soon." He said, smiling a friendly smile.

"Oh. That makes sense" she said, walking towards her dorm. She didn't want to make Riley mad, but she really preferred being alone. She did like him, but this was growing rather ridiculous. He always seemed to be around lately. Every time she turned around, his grinning friendly face was there. She was getting tired of his constant presence. She really wished that Buffy would free up some of her time for him. Willow knew she was his friend, but he was dating Buffy. That's who he should be with. Especially when she wanted to think about Spike. "You don't have to walk with me. I can make it fine alone."

Riley's steps faltered slightly as his face became tense. "You don't want me here?"

"Oh, no. I didn't mean that" Willow protested. "I just figured you'd want to rush ahead to meet Buffy."

"I have time" he said, his eyes watching the people passing them by. He could tell she didn't want him around. He wasn't happy about that. Not at all. His eyes narrowed as he listened to her soft sigh, realizing she wasn't happy that he was there. "So, anything fun planned tonight?"

"I'm going to see Xander. We're going to a movie I think." She laughed, "He wants to see some new action flick that started Friday."

"You've been seeing a lot of him lately, haven't you?" Riley asked, keeping his voice calm. "More since he and Anya broke up."

"He's my best friend" Willow said, smiling as she thought of him. She wasn't aware of the love that shone in her eyes, but Riley noticed it. His jaw tensed as he looked away from her face. "After he broke up with Anya, I guess we realized how badly our friendship was deteriorating. I've loved these last few months."

"You seem happier" he said.

"It's nice having such a good friend" Willow said.

"Didn't realize you were lacking in friends" he said crossly. He looked at her and saw the startled look on her face, "I thought we were friends."

"We are but Xander is the best. I've known him forever" she said, laughing softly. "I've missed him over the past year."

"We're at your dorm" he said, looking at the building.

"Give Buffy my best" she said, smiling as she walked inside. "I'll see you..."

"Sooner than you figure," he said softly, his eyes watching her walk inside.

He turned and walked towards the dorm, his mind on what had just happened. He was losing her. He felt a flood of anger that she would dare try to forget him. He had spent too much time on this. It was not going to be wasted. He walked into the dorm, going to the elevator and hitting the down button. He walked out of the elevator, grimacing as arms went around his neck and lips kissed him sloppily.

"Hey honey. Where have you been?" Buffy asked, wiping her lipstick off of his cheek as she looped her arm through his.

"I hadn't realized I was supposed to be here at a certain time" he remarked, thankful again that she was such a selfish bitch.

"You weren't, silly" she said, laughing as she walked with him through the halls towards the lab. "I just assumed you'd be here sooner."

He kissed her briefly, wishing it were Willow in his arms instead of this dumb bitch. Not much longer, he told himself. He had been after the innocent beauty since school had started and he had run into her at the bookstore. Of course, Buffy had had to ruin that. Actually, though, it had brought him and Willow closer together because the redhead was so eager to help her friend. He had been working on this for months. Since she had started hanging around Xander so much. He wasn't going to lose her. He'd do whatever it took to get her into his arms...into his life...into his bed. "Dr. Walsh. Are we ready?"

She looked up and nodded. "When you are, Riley."

He rolled the sleeve of his jacket up, offering his arm. "Test number 25?"

Maggie nodded, "Are you sure you want to do this? We can test it on someone else."

"NO!" Riley said, lowering his voice slightly. "I mean, I'm the one that has been testing it the last six weeks. I know what works and what doesn't. I want to test it."

"If you're sure" she said again. She saw the determined look in his eyes and his nod. She filled the syringe, testing to make sure it was working. She put it into his arm, sending the liquid into him. She pulled the needle out, saying, "This is going to be different than what we've tested the last six weeks. It won't fade away after six hours as the other has. It is much stronger. Dr. Felding has predicted that this will last for nine days. You think you know how to bring yourself back?"

He nodded. "I told you. I've gotten used to it. I know I can control it."

"Are we ready to start patrol?" Buffy asked, blowing a bubble.

"Yes" Riley nodded, concentrating. He felt the drug working through his veins as he felt it begin its work. "I'll be seeing you."

Buffy smiled as he disappeared, knowing he was still standing there beside her. "I don't think I'm ever going to get used to that. I'm dating the invisible man." She laughed as she saw the door open and knew Riley was leaving.

********************

Willow followed Xander as they left the movie theater. "That was such an awful movie."

"I loved it" he said, grinning. "How could you hate that?"

"Well, there was no plot, the acting was horrible, the situations completely unrealistic and the effects weren't even that good." She listed off various reasons on her hand.

"Well, despite that." He said, laughing as he put his arm around her shoulder. "Come on Wills. You liked some of it..."

"The popcorn and the milk duds" she said, laughing.

"Food. Oh, dinner. Let's get some" Xander said. He hadn't mention their outing to Spike, deciding that it was only fair he spent some alone time with Willow. Besides that, he knew she was more relaxed when they were alone. She had seemed tense when she had first opened the door that he had decided it was a good friends only night.

"Sounds yummy" she said, smiling as they started walking towards the twenty-four hour diner. "I am really enjoying tonight, Xan. Thanks for suggesting it."

"See? I have good ideas sometimes" Xander smiled, looking up and frowning suddenly into the darkness.

"What's wrong?" she asked, noticing the smile fading on his face.

"Nothing. Could have sworn I felt someone watching us" he shrugged, "That hellmouth paranoia must be going around..."

Willow nodded, the smile fading as she realized that weird prickliness was back. "Let's just go eat."

"Sure babe" he followed her into the diner and sat down. They spent over two hours talking and eating, forgetting about the weird feeling that had taken them over outside. Finally, he stood, knowing Spike was probably doing a good imitation of Brood boy. Xander sighed softly, remembering how horrid he had been to Angel. Well, he was making it up now. He had almost become Spike's friend. He shook his head, taking her hand and smiling. "Let's go toots."

Willow walked with him back to her dorm. She had planned to go back to his place, but was feeling tired. So, she had decided to just go get some sleep. "Ok, sugar bear."

"Oh God" he groaned, laughing at the reminder of their childhood. "I'd forgotten that...or tried to..."

"Thanks a lot, Xan" she said, amusement in her eyes.

"We're at the door to the castle, my lady" he said, mock bowing. "Will there be anything else? Would you like me to tuck you in?"

"Go home, Xander" she groaned, kissing him chastely on the lips. "I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Tonight was fun, Wills. I've missed this" he said, brushing his lips against her forehead. "Love you, babe."

"Good night, Xan" she said, shutting the door.

Xander smiled as he walked out of the dorm. He began to whistle some eighties song he hadn't thought about in years, just thinking about how happy he was that he and Willow were friends again. He suddenly felt something push him from behind. He turned, not seeing anything. Frowning, he looked around. "OK Harris...you're going crazy. Nothing there, man."

He turned and began walking again. He had gone two-dozen feet when the push was back. This time he felt forward, hitting the sidewalk. His face hit the cement with a crack. He turned, feeling sticky wetness on his face. He had hit his mouth and nose rather hard. "Who's there?" he called out, not seeing anyone. He sat up, crying out when he felt something that he honestly swore could have been a kick in his ribs. He fell forward, groaning in pain. He heard a harsh whisper and struggled to hear.

"Stay away from her. She's mine" the voice hissed on the wind. "You've been warned."

Xander tried to stand, falling back as the force hit him in the stomach. He landed with a crack as his head hit the cement and the wind was knocked out of him. Her? Who was her? was his last thought before blackness overtook him.

********************

Willow paced nervously around the room, her eyes on the man sleeping in the bed. She felt hands on her shoulders and looked at Spike. Her eyes were wet and swollen from the crying. She went into his embrace, breathing in the scent of tobacco and leather filling her senses. She felt his arms tighten around her and felt safe. "He's still drifting. He's woken up a few times but he goes back to sleep."

"He'll be ok, luv" Spike said huskily. He had been shocked when he had gotten the phone call, hearing Willow hysterical from crying. He had made it to the hospital shortly before dawn, thankfully. He had no intention of letting Willow go through this alone. His blue eyes found the form of Xander, flinching slightly. Someone had roughed the kid up. There were bruises on his face, his nose was broken and the rest of his body was covered with bruises that rivaled the ones on his face. He had passed out from pain and been found by a couple of students coming in late from a party.

"He looks so bad" she whispered. "Why would someone do that? He still had his wallet. That's how the doctors knew to call me. So, it wasn't a theft. And it wasn't a demon or he'd be dead."

"Could have been anyone, luv" he said, stroking her back. He inhaled the sweet scent of her. Apples with baby powder and peaches. Unique to her. He couldn't smell either apples or peaches now without getting hard.

"Why Xander? It wasn't even that late. He left me at the dorm around midnight. I wish he'd wake up and tell us." She said, sniffling.

"I didn't see him" a voice croaked from the bed.

"Xander!" She cried out, moving from Spike's comforting embrace and rushing to Xander's bedside. "How do you feel?"

He made a face, "Everything hurts. Things I didn't even know I had hurt."

"You didn't see him?" Spike asked, frowning. With all the damage that had been done to the boy, he should have seen his attacker sometime. "Was he wearing a mask?"

"He just wasn't there" he said, looking confused. "I felt him but I never saw him."

"Hellmouth paranoia?" Willow whispered. She squeezed his hand. "It doesn't make sense."

"Well, tell that to my body" Xander said, grimacing as a pain shot through his back.

"I'm so glad that you're OK" Willow said, kissing him on the forehead.

"Get outta here" Xander said, laughing softly causing more pain that he could have imagined. "You have class. Don't want you missing it for me."

"Class can wait" she said, "I'm not leaving."

"Spike's here. He can baby-sit until you get out of class" he said, smiling at Willow.

"Are you sure?" she asked, not wanting to leave.

"I'm not going to be the reason you fail a class. So, get going sugar bear."

"I love you Xander" she said, kissing him again before she turned and looked at Spike. "Keep an eye on him, ok?"

"Nothing will happen to him, pet" Spike assured her. He waited until she left before turning to face Xander. "What didn't you want her to hear?"

"That thing...whatever it was that did this to me?" Xander said, catching Spike's eyes. "There was a whisper, She's mine. Stay away from her. This is a warning. I didn't realize until I woke up and saw her sitting here that this thing was talking about Willow."

"Bloody hell" Spike cursed, starting to pace. "I hate hospitals. They don't let you smoke when you need to."

"Spike, I'm worried. I swear I never saw this thing the entire time he was beating me up. Willow's in trouble and it appears that I won't be fight worthy for a week."

"Damn...damn...damn" Spike said, trying to ignore the feeling of fear that went through him at the idea of Willow being in danger. He moved to the phone, dialing the number.

"Who are you calling? Don't call Buffy" Xander said, moaning as another wave of pain went through him.

"I'm not calling that bottle blonde bitch" Spike said, glaring at Xander. "I'm calling someone that will actually care....and can help."

"Giles?" Xander asked, struggling to sit up against the pillows.

Spike snorted, "Not bloody likely. Where the hell is he? He never goes anywhere until I fucking need him, miserable bastard." He cursed softly, tapping his foot impatiently as he waited. "Peaches? This is your baby boy. There's a problem and you're needed. So, get that brooding ass up here pronto." Spike listened to his sire bitching and scowled. He rolled his eyes, knowing he was whupped completely. He'd never hear the end of this from dear old Dad, that he knew. He was in love with Willow, he had to be to be about to do what he was going to do. He groaned, saying softly, "Please, Angel? I need you."

********************

"Why call Angel?" Xander asked, munching on some chips that Spike had managed to sneak in for him.

Spike looked at him and frowned. He finally shrugged, "He's my sire. He'll be able to help."

"Sure you shouldn't have called Buffy or Giles?" Xander asked, frowning at his own question. "Never mind. As if Buffy would care and Giles is too wrapped up in his life of leisure to care either. Ok. I admit, Angel was probably the best bet."

"Duh" Spike said, smiling slightly before turning serious. "Angel and I can't be with her all the time. If someone is after her, we need you to get better."

"Tell that to my ribs" Xander said, laughing. "I'm worried about her. If this thing is really after her and we can't see it, how are we supposed to fight it?"

"We'll think of something" Spike said, frowning. "Hopefully it won't come to that."

"We need to tell Wills" Xander said, knowing she needed to know that there could be some invisible thing after her. Something was rather possessive and didn't mind hurting anyone it saw as a threat. He felt more fear go through him as he realized that they had no idea where to even begin.

"Tonight. After Peaches gets here" Spike said, agreeing that there was no way to keep this from Willow, not that he wanted to. She needed to know what was happening. "So, is that Jerry Springer chap on yet?"

"In ten minutes" Xander said, flipping the channels until he found it.

********************

Willow couldn't concentrate knowing that Xander was still in the hospital and whatever had attacked him was out there somewhere. She sat on the bench, the feeling of the sun warming her through her shirt. She hadn't had time to go home and change before school had started so she was wearing the same jeans and shirt she had worn the day before. She had pulled them on frantically after receiving the phone call about Xander. She felt like just saying fuck it and going back to the dorm to shower and heading to the hospital. She couldn't concentrate anyway.

She nodded, a determined look entering her eyes. That's what she would do. She was about to stand when she felt someone sit beside her. She smelled his cologne and almost groaned. She looked up, smiling as well as she could. "Hey Riley."

"Willow" he said, seeing that she was wearing the same clothes as she had the day before. He frowned, "You ok?"

"I'm fine" she said, deciding not to mention to him that Xander was in the hospital. She didn't understand why she didn't want him to know, but she easily glossed over the truth. "Just a bit tired."

"You were at the hospital" he said flatly. He looked at a tree in front of him, not wanting her to see the anger in his eyes.

"Hospital? Why would I be at the hospital?" she asked softly, watching the tension in his body. When he looked at her, the look in his eyes riveted her in place. She felt a rush of fear go through her. She didn't understand it. This was Riley. Her friend, albeit an annoying one at times. She shouldn't afraid of him. Yet, she was at this moment.

"Xander" he spat out the teen's name. He had been so tempted to simply kill the brat the night before, but he had known that Willow would never have been open to his advances if the kid died. She would have been upset. He didn't want to upset her. Now, he wished he'd simply killed Xander.

"How did you know?" she asked, holding her books tightly against her chest.

"Buffy must have told me" Riley said, smiling a charming smile. "I do hope he's ok."

Buffy didn't know. Willow had several questions going through her mind as she thought about the weird way Riley was acting just then. She felt the need to get away from him. She stood, "He's fine. I really have to go Riley. I'll talk to you later."

Riley watched her leave, his eyes narrowed. She was running back to her precious little Xander. He stood, his anger radiating around him. Why had she seemed scared of him? She was supposed to love him, just as he loved her. He began to follow after her, concentrating as he disappeared just as she entered her dorm.

********************

Willow walked into her dorm room, dropping her books on the bed. She glanced at Buffy's side of the room and wasn't surprised to see that the blonde must not have made it in at all. She stretched, her hand going up to knead the muscles in her neck. She was so tense. The entire Riley spookiness thing added to Xander's attack and the unknown thing watching them lately was just making her crazy. She sat on the bed, falling back as she sighed. She reached for her phone, not moving from the bed. Dialing the number that she was a bit too familiar with, she waited for it to pick up.

"Sunnydale General" the woman said.

"Xander Harris please" Willow said. "Room 453 I think."

"ello?" a voice answered. "Den of debauchery."

Willow had to giggle, "Xander. I guess that means you feel better."

"Willow, my Willow. Why aren't you in class young lady?" he asked, laughing at the television.

"Skipped class" she said, "Needed to take a shower. I feel all grimy and gross. Besides, I wanted to come by and see you."

"Aw, my lovely Florence Nightingale. You'll be an improvement over Spike that's for sure." Xander said.

"I doubt he'd look that good in a nurses costume" Willow said, giggling at that mental image. "Ok. I just wanted to make sure you were doing ok. I plan to take a quick shower and then I'll meet you at your room."

"Good. We've got some stuff to discuss" Xander said, "See ya in an hour?"

"About" she said, "Bye Xan. Love you."

"Love you too Wills. Be careful" he added, hanging up and finishing watching the television.

Willow hung up and stood. She got a fresh change of clothes and her shower stuff and left the room. She yawned, realizing that she had gotten very little sleep the night before. She entered the bathroom, glad to see that it appeared deserted. Everyone was in class, she guessed. She went to the farthest stall, pulling the curtain to the side as she walked inside. She turned the water on, letting it warm as she stripped her clothes off. Stepping beneath the spray, she closed her eyes, letting the water wash away the tension. She believed the only good thing that had happened in the past day was Spike's holding her at Xander's room.

She poured some shampoo in her hand and began working it through her red hair. She massaged it into her hair, turning her head as she washed the soap out. Taking her sponge, she put some body wash in it and began washing her body. She brushed the soapy suds over her breast, her mind still thinking about Spike. She felt her nipples harden as a rush of cool air from the air conditioner made its way into the stall. She brought her other hand up, closing her eyes again as she began to knead her other breast. She wished it was Spike touching her in that way. She let the sponge fall to the floor of the shower as her hand drifted past her stomach to the wet curls between her legs. She continued to knead her breast, teasing her clit with her free hand. She removed the hand from her breast, looking at the faucet. She turned it on colder, needing to feel something close to Spike.

She slid down to the floor, her legs spreading slightly as she leaned against the wall. She slid her fingers inside herself, her thumb brushing against her clit. She felt the cold droplets of water on her skin, causing goosebumps to appear. She began a rhythm that was all too familiar of late. She had never masturbated her entire years in high school, but when Spike had come back, she had found her hands often drifting over her body as she fantasized that it was him. Her head went back as she moaned softly, chewing her bottom lip into her mouth. She felt herself arching up against her hand, her thumb hurriedly brushing her clit. She groaned, saying his name over and over in a whispered mantra, "Spike...Spike...Spike" as she felt her muscles tighten as her release hit her.

She let her hand fall from her breast, looking at the wall of the shower as the cold water continued to cascade down her chest. She stood, finishing her shower before turning the water off. She turned, surprised to see the shower curtain standing partially open. She listened but didn't hear anything. Her face flushed as she realized someone might have been there watching her fuck herself. She pulled the curtain shut, her arms going around her body as she caught her breath. She dried off, pulling her clothes on as quickly as she could. She left the shower stall, not seeing anyone. She had thought the entire floor was deserted, not having seen anyone when she had returned. She frowned as the cool air wafted over her. Maybe it had just been that. The air had caused the curtain to open slightly. She walked towards the door, not noticing the broken mirror above the sink or the door staying open after she had walked out.

********************

Willow entered the hospital, moving towards the elevator. She hit the button for the fourth floor, glad to be going to see Xander and Spike. She had again felt that weird prickling on her arms as she had left her dorm, but thankfully it had faded as she moved farther away from the university. Maybe it was just some weird school thing. She hated it really, not having any sort of logical explanation to why she sometimes felt it and other times didn't. Of course, ever since she was small she had sometimes had the feeling she was being watched. Everyone did. After meeting Buffy, she had begun to wonder if it could have been ghosts or demons. She still didn't know. She did know that this recent feeling was not comforting as it sometimes was. This prickling rather frightened her. She was just going insane. She moved to Xander's room and knocked.

"Ent" Xander's words were muffled as she heard a loud cursing, recognizing Spike's voice.

"Bloody hell, idiot. Just allow anyone in here" Spike cursed, rolling his eyes. "Would think you twits would learn....who is it?"

"Willow, oh untrusting one" Willow called out, smiling as the door opened just partially to show her Xander and Spike.

"Hush you silly chit" Spike said, his lips quirking slightly. He pulled her into the room, shutting it immediately. He had no idea what was after her, but he knew he didn't want it in this room. Not until they had an idea how to kill it. "Why aren't you in class young lady?"

"I skipped" she said, grinning at him before moving to Xander's side. She glanced at them both, studying them. "Do I want to know why the door was hardly opened or why there is such a need to know who is outside?"

"How was class?" Xander asked, not wanting to have to explain twice. He still wasn't sure if he was going crazy or not. He was worried about what it would mean if he wasn't. Something was after Willow that they couldn't even see. How were they supposed to save her if they were fighting blind?

"Uh oh...not so subtle change of subject" Willow frowned, "Come on guys. You're beginning to worry me here...."

"Not yet, luv. We're waiting for someone" Spike said, wondering when his sire would be there. It was daylight which might pose a problem but he knew Angel well enough to know his sire would risk it if he were needed.

"Ok" Willow said softly, wondering who they were waiting for but deciding they'd probably not tell her anyway so why ask. "Class was fine. At least, the ones I went to. Ran into Riley on the way to the dorm. I really think he needs to get some sleep. He seems strange."

Xander snorted, "You mean stranger than normal."

"Shagging the slayer would make anyone strange" Spike said, snickering.

"After that I took a shower and headed over here. My day summed up in less than thirty words." Willow said, laughing softly. "Gawd, I need a life."

"Aw Wills" Xander said, taking her hand. He squeezed it, smiling crookedly. "Remember? No pity. We have each other which is more than most people can say."

"I think I'm gonna puke" Spike said dryly, laughter flashing in his eyes as they glared at him in unison.

"Jealous, pet?" Xander said, smirking at the vampire.

"Of you? Not likely" Spike said, rolling his eyes, trying not to let the moron see how close his query truly was. He was jealous of how easily Willow touched and spoke to the teen. He often felt that her nervousness around him, wishing she were as comfortable as when she spoke to Xander.

"Uh huh" Xander said, a knowing gleam in his eyes as he smiled at the glaring vampire. "Keep telling yourself that" he said, brushing his lips against Willow's forehead. He saw Spike's mouth tighten and laughed. "Man, you've got it bad."

"What are you talking about?" Willow asked, curiosity on her face as she looked between her old friend and the vampire.

"Moron" Spike threatened, his tone low and warning. Before he could say anything else, he stiffened. A slow smile spread across his lips at the felt presence, "Aw, Daddy's here. The party can finally start."

********************

"Angel? What's Angel doing here?" Willow asked, frowning.

"I called him" Spike said simply.

"You are not going to tell me are you?" she said, glaring at him.

"Not yet" he said, starting to pace.

"Xander?" she asked.

"Sorry Wills. Gotta wait for the poof." Xander smiled, wondering where said Poof was. It was taking forever for him to get to the room.

"Fine. Be that way" she said, pouting.

"Don't fret, pet" Spike said, smiling slightly. "It isn't personal. We just don't want to start explaining to you only to have to re-explain to him if he ever gets brooding ass here that is."

"Always the impatient one" an amused voice said from the doorway.

Spike stood, moving quickly. He pulled a surprised Angel into the room, shutting the door behind them. "Nice to see you, Dad."

Angel glanced at Willow and saw a similar look of confusion on her face as he knew must be on his. He turned and looked at Xander, frowning as he saw the bruises on the teens face. "What's going on?"

"I got beat up last night" Xander said, shrugging. "Looks worse than it feels."

"By whom?" Angel asked, rather surprised by the teen's attitude. The Xander he remembered would have been whining and using such an experience to earn points from Buffy. He glanced around, not even seeing the slayer, thankfully. He was past that but didn't want to put that conviction to the test.

"That's the sixty four thousand dollar question," Spike said, sitting down. He pushed the chair out for Willow, gesturing for her to sit.

"Xander didn't see anyone" Willow said softly, sitting down. She was still trying to understand why Angel had been called.

Xander sighed, "See? That's where the problem is."

Angel frowned, having spent the entire drive up to Sunnydale trying to figure out why his childe would have called him. And not only call him, but practically beg him for help. He looked around, not seeing another chair. Figured. He said, "Why don't you explain it to me?"

Xander watched Angel shift on his feet and smiled slightly. He moved his feet, "Sit on the end of the bed. I don't bite."

Angel heard Spike's snicker and frowned. What the hell had happened in Sunnydale during his absence? He sat on the bed, looking at Xander. "Thanks."

"Hey, I can be nice sometimes" Xander said, winking at Willow.

"Get on with it Xan" Willow said, wanting to understand.

"The guy or thing that beat me up? You know I couldn't see him. I don't understand it, but he wasn't there. I mean, I felt him. He did this to me. But, there was nothing there."

"It was invisible?" Angel said, groaning softly. This was not what he had expected.

"There's more" Spike said quietly, moving to take Willow's hand as casually as he could. "Tell them, Xan."

Angel's eyes narrowed at the familiar way Spike spoke to the dark haired teen. Spike had a nickname for him? God, this was getting worse. "Yes, tell us."

"He gave me a warning before I slipped into unconsciousness" Xander said, frowning as he remembered. He glanced at Willow, his eyes catching hers. "He told me that this was a warning. That I had to stay from her because she was his."

"Her?" Angel said, stiffening as he looked at the frightened redhead. "He meant Willow."

********************

"The invisible man is after me?" Willow asked, laughing weakly. "This has to be some sort of Hellmouth Candid Camera. Where's the old guy with the camera?"

"It's not a joke, luv" Spike said, frowning at the look of shocked disbelief in her green eyes.

"Have you felt his presence before this?" Angel asked, gesturing at Xander and his injuries.

"This can't be happening." Willow said, not wanting to believe that some weird thing was hunting her. But, things were suddenly starting to make sense. That strange feeling that someone was watching her.

"She's felt someone watching her for weeks" Spike said, holding tightly to Willow's hand as she began to realize that there was truth in their suspicions.

"Weeks?" Angel said, groaning slightly. "And no one felt that this was important?"

"Chill, Deadboy" Xander said, not liking the automatic assumption from Angel that they had done something wrong. "I've felt it too, but it was never anything that seemed real. Just that weird feeling you get sometimes. I mean, we joked about it. Called it the Hellmouth feeling and stuff. Trust me when I say that the idea of some sort of invisible stalker never entered our minds."

"Spike?" Angel asked, shifting a bit sheepishly for having almost blamed them for not realizing sooner they were dealing with something evil.

"I've never felt it" the blonde said simply. His blue eyes caught his sire's, "but they mentioned it. Past six weeks or so I guess. Becoming more common this last week or so. Before that, it was a casual mention maybe once a week."

"I've felt it for almost seven weeks" Willow said quietly. She looked up at them, "Like Spike said, it's only been the last week or so that it's gotten noticeable. I mean, before that it was just once every little bit. Didn't even really become a joke until three weeks ago, when Xander felt it too. Then, I don't know" she shrugged, sighing. "I started to feel like someone was following me between classes and at night every couple of days. You know, it never seemed real. Just that weird feeling you sometimes get. I mean, I've felt it before but never quite this strong."

"Xander felt it too?" Angel said, glancing at the teen.

"Yeah, a few weeks ago after a movie. Just like someone was watching but there was no one there. I got chills on the back of my neck, but they went away. Then, last night, I got beat up. Hospitalized by some invisible man. What a manly thing." He groaned in disgust, knowing he should have done something to fight.

"You couldn't very well fight nothing" Spike said, rolling his eyes. "Stop the pity party. We need to focus on the problem at hand."

"Willow's safety" Angel said, his eyes narrowing slightly at the familiarity between Xander and Spike. He didn't feel jealous. Not at all. Why should he be envious of the easy friendship that seemed to exist between the human and his childe? "If he almost killed Xander, we have no idea the lengths he will go to protect what he seems to believe is his."

"Today" Willow spoke softly, pulling her hand from Spike's and wrapping her arms around herself. "I think he watched me take a shower."

"What?" Spike demanded, his demon pushing forward at the idea that some creature had watched his Willow bathe. Had seen her glorious body nude. This damn thing would die, he resolved.

"The curtain was open slightly" she said quietly, feeling horrible that some thing had seen her naked....had probably watched her masturbate while she had fantasized about Spike. Oh God, she'd forgotten that. Her face flamed as she looked at the floor. "Gawd, I so don't like this."

"Me either" Spike said, visions of torture flashing through his mind.

"It's going to be OK Willow" Angel said softly, catching her eyes. "We'll figure this out. Don't worry. We won't let him hurt you."

"Yeah, Deadboy is right. We'll keep you safe" Xander said, smiling crookedly at her. He received a small smile, sighing mentally as he wondered how on Earth they would keep her safe from something they couldn't even see.

********************

Riley walked down the hall, knowing that Buffy was with Walsh. He glanced around, making sure no one could see him as he turned the knob. He walked into the dorm room, shutting it quickly. He walked towards her bed, cursing the restrictions on this damn experiment. He wasn't allowed to go out of a five-mile radius of the campus. A way to prevent the soldiers from taking advantage of the power devised by the good doctors. He knew it was just another way they were keeping him from his love. Everyone was against him, it seemed. Trying to prevent them from being together. Well, it wouldn't work. She was his and nothing would keep them apart.

He relaxed, allowing himself to become visible again. He moved to her dressed, sitting at her table and looking in the mirror. She had pictures of all her friends taped around the edges, causing him to smile at the happiness in her eyes. He brushed his fingers over her face, every detail already memorized from hours of studying her during various lectures he had snuck into. His eyes narrowed at the abundance of that brunette moron in them. He removed one, ripping Xander out of the picture. He smiled, liking it all the more with just Willow smiling. He tossed the remains of Xander into the trash, picking up another photo and again removing the offensive boy. He proceeded to fix all of her pictures one by one. He put a better one of her into his pocket, knowing just where to keep it so that she was with him always. He could always see her smiling face and those pretty eyes no matter where he was.

He stood, knowing that the annoying bitch would be coming in soon. His girlfriend, he amended silently. He had to remember that he loved Buffy, at least until Willow was finally where she belonged. By his side and in his bed. He glanced at her bed and stiffened, imagining her underneath him crying out his name as she came over and over. Soon, he vowed. He would keep the rest of her belongings for a future exploration he decided. He didn't want to risk Buffy coming in on him. He concentrated, looking in the mirror to ensure that he had become invisible. When he was confident that no one would see him, he opened the door and stepped into the hall. The picture of Willow in his back pocket as he walked away, leaving the remains of her photographs on her dresser. Soon she would realize she belonged to him and come to him. Of that he was sure.

********

Angel walked beside Willow, knowing Spike was behind them. He looked at the pretty redhead, seeing the worry in her eyes and sighing, "This will be OK, Willow."

"Can you promise me that?" she asked, smiling reluctantly.

"Yes" he said, smiling in return. "And I never make promises I can't keep."

"Luv, since Peaches is here to see you home, I think I'm going to look for some information about our invisible friend. You going to be OK?" Spike asked, wanting to make sure she was fine with his leaving.

"I think Angel can protect me, Spike" she said, smiling softly at him. "Be careful."

"Eh, you know me, pet. I can handle the demons" Spike said, staring into her eyes, wanting nothing more than to kiss her. He glanced at his sire and saw the amused look in the dark brown eyes and looked back at Willow. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Willow watched him walk away and sighed softly, looking at Angel. "So, you're staying at Xander's place until he gets out of the hospital. That must be something interesting."

"Rather surprising offer" Angel admitted. "But, at least I don't have to stay with Spike."

"You don't hate him, do you?" Willow asked.

"God, no" Angel said, startled by the idea. "I love him. He's my favorite childe. He just doesn't like being around me very much. Too many memories between us."

"I'm sorry" Willow said softly. "You and Spike...you were both lovers weren't you?"

Angel glanced at her, nodding. "Yes. A long time ago. I forced him into some things when I lost my soul...let me just say that his love for Drusilla was not the deciding factor in his deal with Buffy."

"Oh" she said quietly, things making more sense. "Thank you for coming to help despite that unease between you two."

"I do love him, Willow" Angel confessed, "I'd do anything for him."

"Me too" she said softly, smiling shyly at him. She saw him smile at her, the knowing look in his eyes making her aware of how obvious her love for Spike was.

"Do you have any idea what this demon could be?" Angel asked, accepting her feelings for Spike without question.

"No" she said, making a face. "Why am I always the lucky one that seems to attract the vampires and demons?"

Angel had to laugh, "You're special. I guess even the evil see that."

"Aw, you charmer you" she said, laughing as she felt his arm go around her shoulders. He squeezed her shoulder reassuringly as they walked on to her dorm. She laughed as she walked up the stairs to her floor, trying to forget what might be following her. "Would you like to come in? It's still early."

"I don't know" Angel said.

Willow smiled, "Buffy is with Riley so you don't have to worry."

"Ok then. I'd like to see your room." Angel smiled as she opened the door.

"Come on in" Willow said, letting him before shutting the door again. She turned the light on, walking towards her bed. "This is our humble little abode."

"It's pretty nice for a dorm room" Angel said, looking at what was obviously Buffy's side and not feeling anything except a fond memory. He was really over her.

Willow smiled, "I guess." She laid her bag on the bed as she took her watch off. She moved to set it on her dresser, dropping it in shock as she looked at the top of the wooden surface. "No...oh God..."

Angel turned, watching her face turn white as she looked at him, her eyes wide with terror. He glanced at the dresser, a feeling of dread when he saw the torn photographs. He bent down, picking up a ripped picture of Xander. "He was here" he said simply, standing and taking Willow into his arms as she began to cry.

********************

Spike tossed the remainder of his cigarette to the cement as he opened the door. Smoke came out to greet him. He walked inside, his blue eyes scanning the occupants. No one struck him as being knowledgeable. He scowled, moving past several vampires towards the bar. He sat down, ordering a whiskey as he turned back to face the room. He turned and got his drink, downing it before ordering another. He looked to his right, seeing a man sitting beside him. A large demon with three horns and an intelligent gleam in his red eyes.

"You looking for someone?"

Spike nodded, "You could say that."

"The name's Krimsty," the demon said, taking a drink.

"I'm Spike," he said, wondering if this demon could give him some answers.

"Ah," Krimsty said, recognizing the name.

"Ah?" Spike said, frowning. "What's that mean?"

"I've heard of you. What are you looking for?" Krimsty asked, having heard that the vampire was assisting the slayer now. Looking at the man, his information didn't seem accurate. This vampire did not radiate goodness and light.

"An invisible demon," Spike said, wondering if that sounded as stupid as it seemed.

Krimsty frowned, "An invisible demon?"

"Yeah. Someone's stalking my...friend," Spike said somewhat weakly. He had almost said his mate, but caught himself.

"Stalking you say? In what way?" Krimsty asked, his mind wandering through every one he knew that was in Sunnydale. The list was rather short lately.

"Following her. Beat up a guy friend of hers. Claims her as his. That sort of thing." Spike said.

"Why does it interest you?" Krimsty asked, wanting to know why the vampire was concerned.

"She's mine." Spike said simply, his eyes flashing slightly.

"Ah, that explains it." Krimsty said, shaking his large head. "Sorry. I honestly don't know of anything like that at all."

"In town or at all?" Spike asked, his eyes looking around the bar.

"Nothing comes to mind, but I'm not by any means claiming to know everything."

Spike snorted, "Damn. Are you sure?"

"Yeah. With that organization going around capturing all of us and doing those horrible experiments, well, we aren't having too many demons come to town." Krimsty said, shaking his head. "They're scared to come to Sunnydale. I doubt there is anyone here that I haven't heard of. Most are in hiding, not openly stalking girls."

"That damn initiative is that feared?" Spike asked, his obvious hatred for that group evident in his tone.

"Is that what they're called?" Krimsty asked.

"Bloody bastards. Wouldn't be surprised if they weren't behind all of this," Spike muttered.

"Somehow I doubt that they would turn invisible and stalk a girl."

"Wouldn't put it past them," Spike said, glaring openly at the other occupants in the bar. Damn, he had hoped to find answers for Willow. He hated the idea of her being scared. He also didn't like the idea of someone watching her in the shower and hurting the people closest to her. He had to protect her. He just had to figure out how.

"Well, my friend, I shall keep my ears open," Krimsty said. "If I hear anything about your invisible problem, I'll get in touch with you."

"Why?" Spike asked. "Why help me? The others call me traitor."

"You were a victim to that group, so I heard. Adapting is not traitorous. Fighting your own kind just for kicks, well...that I can overlook. Your feelings for the girl are evident. Call me a romantic at heart, but I will help you keep her safe."

"You want to know how to find me?" Spike asked, trusting the demon for some odd reason.

"I'll find you if I find out anything," Krimsty said.

"Thanks," Spike said grudgingly. He had hoped for some immediate answers but he guessed that would have been too easy. He downed another whiskey before getting to his feet. He decided to check a few more places but doubted he'd find anything. After that, he might go check on Willow. Frowning, he realized that wouldn't be wise. That damn bitch might be there. He frowned, deciding he'd just talk to her the next day. Angel was with her at the moment anyway. He didn't want to see her again until he had some answers.

********************

Willow felt tears of frustration in her eyes as she held on to Angel. She felt his arms around her, offering support and comfort. She pulled back, looking up at him. She saw the yellow flecks in his eyes, realizing that his demon was close to the surface. She ran a hand over his cheek, making him look at her. "He was here."

"Yes, he was," Angel said, brushing his thumb under her eye and swiping a tear.

"I am so scared, Angel," Willow confessed, moving to sit on her bed. She chewed her bottom lip, avoiding looking at the dresser. "He was watching me take shower! Do you have any idea how embarrassing that it? And now this. He has been in my room....torn up my pictures."

"I won't let him hurt you," Angel promised, moving a chair from her desk to sit in front of her. He took her hands, seeing that she was shaking. He squeezed them, wishing he could simply make it all go away. Willow did not deserve this.

"What if you can't stop him?" she asked softly, looking into his eyes.

"I will stop him. We will stop him," Angel amended, knowing that Spike would do anything to keep her safe.

"Why does he hate Xander?" she asked softly.

"What?" Angel asked, frowning. He was surprised by the question.

"He beat him in the commons. Put him in the hospital. Now, he's ripped all of my pictures of Xander. Why Xander? He's my friend." She blinked back tears.

"I honestly don't know," Angel said softly. He stiffened when he realized that Xander was now laying helpless in a hospital bed. In a public room. He didn't want to try to understand why he was so worried about Xander. He didn't even like the boy. "Would you like me to stay?"

"No...I'm ok. I just freaked out," Willow said, smiling softly. "Buffy may be back and I don't want to deal with questions or her attitude. Thank you, though, for asking."

"I don't like leaving you here alone," he said, frowning. "He got in here once. It isn't safe."

"I think I may block the door. I mean, if Buffy does come back, well, she can just go sleep with Riley. I don't really care anymore," she said honestly.

"OK. I'll go, but only if you promise to block the door. I really think you may want to think of staying somewhere else. I don't like the easy access to this room."

"It isn't that bad. I can go buy a lock from the hardware store tomorrow. I'm sure I can put one up myself. I don't think the dorm would be all that happy with it, but fuck them," she said, smiling at him.

"If you're sure," Angel said. He stood, looking around. He sniffed the air, smelling no sign of any familiar demon. All he could smell were the scents of humans. Too many people had come into this room for it to be very accurate.

"Are you heading back to Xander's place?" she asked, wanting to know where he was if she needed him.

"Yes," Angel said. He had seriously contemplated going to the hospital but knew there was no way he could explain his strange worries. "If you need me, call."

"I will, Daddy," she said smiling softly. She followed him to the door, hugging him tightly as she whispered, "Thank you," into his shoulders. She smiled, shutting the door behind him. She went and picked up the chair, fitting it underneath the doorknob. She went to her dresser, picking up the torn pictures of Xander and placing them on her dresser. She then moved to her bed, crawling underneath the covers and crying silently as she wondered why this was happening to her.

********************

Riley listened to Buffy's braying as she came, her head falling back on the pillow as she smiled. "That was great, honey."

"Yeah," he said, pulling out of her and grimacing as he stood. He had gotten to the point where he couldn't even stand to touch Buffy. Everything about her disgusted him. Compared to his Willow, well, she was nothing. He couldn't believe that he had been so caught up by her exterior beauty that he failed to see how selfish and stupid she truly was. Sex with her left him cold.

"Where you going?" she asked lazily, watching his trim ass as he bent over to pull his boxers up.

"Need a shower," he said, adding mentally, to rid myself of your smell, bitch.

"Want some company?" she asked, yawning.

"No. That's fine. You're tired. Just sleep," he said, wondering if she really thought that the fucking they did was great. It rarely lasted more than half an hour, his only need being to give her release so she'd quit trying to seduce him. He didn't want her. He wanted his Willow. The only way he could even cum with Buffy was to close his eyes and picture Willow writing underneath him. Then, and only then, did the sex with the blonde become bearable.

"If you're sure," she said, sinking back onto the bed to sleep.

"Quite sure," he said, leaving the room and walking barefoot to the shower.

Once inside a stall, he turned the water on, washing her juices from his cock. He made sure to get the stench of her perfume off, the scent too strong. Willow always smelled so natural. Like fruit and baby powder. Apples one day, peaches the next, raspberries the next. He had never found fruit exciting until her. Now, the scent alone reminded him of her and could make him hard instantly. He closed his eyes, his mind bringing forward a familiar fantasy. Willow was laying underneath him, begging him to touch her...to fuck her....to make her cum. He moved from this scene to another. His mind brought forward the image of her from the shower. Her nude body wet and pushed against the shower wall as he thrust into her. He now knew exactly how she looked as she came, her mouth opened slightly and her breasts arched. He began to stroke his cock, wishing that it was her hand on him. Soon, it would be. He wouldn't have to wait much longer.

He didn't fool himself into believing that she had been whispering his name as she had cum in the shower. He hadn't been able to hear the name, but knew it had to be that bastard. Xander. He gritted his teeth as he thought of that prick touching his Willow. He wished he really had just killed him that night in the commons. His problems would have been over. He forgot about Xander, for the time being. There would be time to deal with that in the future. He felt the water cascade down his back as he began to thrust forward into his hand. Soon, he was breathing hard as he imagined pushing into Willow's tight cunt. He groaned, shooting his seed onto the shower wall.

Riley straightened up, opening his eyes as he released his softening cock. Soon, she would be his. He would not be forced to have her this way, only in his mind. She would be the one laying in his bed, spent from hours of fucking and making love. Of course, he would not be leaving her for the shower. He wouldn't let her alone for that long. She would be in the shower with him. He smiled, imagining her on her knees in front of him, bobbing up and down on his cock. His eyes narrowed as he realized that there were several things standing between them still. He was going to have to start taking care of them. He had waited far too long as it was. No, it was time to remove all of the obstacles keeping them apart. She was going to be his and anyone that stood in their way would die. He began to whistle as he finished his shower, happy in the knowledge that she would soon be his.

********************

Spike frowned as he stalked to the door. He knocked loudly, pushing past his startled sire when the door opened. "I couldn't find a damn thing."

"Hello, Spike. Why don't you come on in," Angel said sarcastically. He saw Spike glare at him and sighed, realizing how worried the blonde was. "Sorry. I was sleeping."

"Sleeping?" Spike raised an eyebrow, looking pointedly at the couch and then back at his sire's still dressed form.

"I was thinking about sleeping," Angel said, smiling sheepishly. He sat down and looked at Spike, asking, "You found nothing?"

"Not a damn thing," Spike grumbled. "Met some demon that said he hasn't heard of anything like it. He also promised to get in touch with me if he hears anything."

"You trust him?" Angel asked.

Spike shrugged, "Don't think he has a reason to lie. Said that with the Initiative shit, most demons were staying away. How's Willow?"

"Scared," Angel said, frowning when he realized that Spike didn't know about the visitor. "Spike, why don't you sit down."

Spike scowled, "Why?" He saw the way Angel was avoiding his eyes and demanded, "What happened? Something happened."

"I walked Willow back to the dorm," Angel said, "She was fine until we went into her room."

"If you don't speed this up, I'll rip your fucking tongue out and see how fast it takes it to grow back," Spike threatened.

"He was there," Angel said, knowing that Spike meant every word he said.

"What?" Spike said, his tone low and angry.

"In her room." Angel sighed, frowning, "He ripped Xander out of her photos."

"He what?" Spike said, surprised.

"All of her pictures. He tore Xander out of them and tossed them in the trash," Angel said. "For some reason, he seems to have something against that moron."

"Xander isn't a moron," Spike corrected automatically. He was the only one that could make fun of Xander.

"Since when did you two become such good friends?" Angel asked, his tone slightly jealous.

Spike would have smiled if he wasn't so worried about Willow. His sire was still a royal poof. He wouldn't be surprised if the older vampire hadn't had a hard on for Xander from the beginning. He could have used this knowledge to needle his sire, but his thoughts were occupied with worry about Willow. To hell with it. He couldn't resist a little. "Our common love brought us together. What can I say? He knew who the better vampire was..."

"Fuck you," Angel hissed, pushing his demon down.

"Sorry, never was my cup of tea, Peaches," Spike said, his grin giving no doubt to where his mind was.

"Spike, so help me...." Angel said, looking heavenward.

Spike snorted, "He's all yours Peaches. Underneath the baggy clothes, he's not that bad, for a moron. He loves Willow, so he has some redeeming qualities."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Angel asked, confused.

"Denial must be a wonderful place. You seem to live there constantly," Spike muttered under his breath. "So, this demon thing was in Willow's room. And you left her there?"

"She insisted," Angel said, trying to figure out why Spike would think he would want Xander.

"And you let her?" Spike asked again, his anger evident.

Angel smiled sheepishly, "As if I could have talked her out of it. You know Willow."

"Stubborn little thing," Spike said, smiling. "Got to love her."

"She was blocking her door as I left and promised to buy a lock tomorrow," Angel said, wanting to reassure Spike.

"God, I hate this," Spike said, groaning.

"Willow doesn't deserve this," Angel said softly. "I didn't smell a demon in her room."

"What?" Spike said, frowning. "No demons?"

"Just human smells," Angel said.

"Hmm...that's odd," Spike said, thinking. "Maybe a scentless demon?"

"Who knows? I really don't like Willow being there alone, but I guess she is as safe there as she would be anywhere else."

"I'll go over tomorrow night and make sure a lock gets put up," Spike said. "I hate feeling so useless. I mean, what can we do? I searched all over this damn town and no one knows anything."

"I'm afraid that things are not always easy to answer," Angel said, "Patience is a virtue."

"Gawd," Spike groaned, "not with the endless clichés now, Peaches. On that sappy note, I think I'll head back to my place. Maybe check a few more avenues."

"Just let it rest for the night," Angel said. "It's almost dawn."

"Always the smart one, eh, sire?" Spike said, moving to the door. "Sleep well, Peaches."

Angel moved to lock the door and went back to the fold out bed. He turned off the light, laying back on the bed. The scent of aftershave and Xander overwhelmed him as he sunk into the pillow. Groaning, he shifted on the bed. His worry about Willow and Xander occupied his thoughts as he tried to go to sleep. Tomorrow night, he would hopefully have some ideas on how to help Willow.

********************

Xander paid the taxi driver, turning to face his house. The upstairs was dark, which figured. His mother had moved to LA after leaving his Dad a few months before. After that, his Dad had started working even more, never coming home. Xander personally believed he was working more at his secretary's house than the office but he didn't care. A quiet house was definitely good. He let himself in, moving towards the kitchen. It was barely past dawn. He had checked himself out of the hospital, rather illegally. He had simply left. Told the nurses that he felt fine and that they couldn't keep him there against his will. It had been so early that they had gone to find someone to work with him and he had snuck out. Security around the hospital was weak.

He sat down with the sandwich he had made, cringing slightly. He was still in pain, but it wasn't that bad. He had suffered far worse. He had lain in his bed after the others had left, lost in his thoughts. Willow needed him. He couldn't be any use to her if he was laying in a hospital bed. So, he had left. He finished eating, putting away his plate and glass. He yawned, realizing he hadn't slept in hours. He really hated hospitals so the idea of sleeping in one hadn't settled well with him. He had mostly laid there awake and in deep thought. He wanted to know who was after Willow and why. He had to stop this demon thing before it hurt his best friend.

He thought of Spike and smiled. That blonde was so in love with Willow it was almost funny. It had taken this scare for him to realize it too. Xander hoped if he ever fell in love that it wouldn't take near death for him to recognize the emotion. Willow and Spike fit somehow. To Xander, he couldn't really imagine anyone else with them except each other. They loved each other. Finding something that pure was rare these days and he really hoped they would be happy together. He yawned again, deciding that he had put off sleep long enough. It was still too early to call Willow and tell her he had checked out. He'd call her after class that afternoon. That would give him several hours to just rest.

He walked down the stairs to the basement, pulling his shirt over his head and tossing it onto the floor. He pushed his blue jeans down, careful not to disturb the bandages on his body. He'd hate to have to go back to get them redone. He kicked his jeans off, standing in his boxers beside the sofa bed. He saw a lump under the cover and frowned. Suddenly, he remembered. Angel. He had told the vampire he could use his place while he was in the hospital. Damn. In his eagerness to get out of that prison, he had forgotten the dark haired vampire. Of course, how he could forget Angel he didn't really know.

Not going there, Harris, he scolded mentally. He pushed away the fantasies about the vampire that he had had during high school and that still sometimes came to him. He sighed softly, wondering what Angel would think if he knew about the lust he felt. It had startled him when he had first realized the jealousy he felt and hatred was not because of Buffy but because he was attracted to Angel...to another man. He had not wanted to acknowledge this and took it out on Angel for making him feel those things. Now, he could accept that he was gay. He had tried loving a woman but it hadn't been right. He had told Willow his secret back when he had first realized, having to talk to someone. She had hugged him and told him that she loved him.

Of course, she had no idea that it was Angel that had first made him realize it. When the dark haired vampire had left, moving to LA, Xander hadn't minded. Telling himself that it would be good to have his enemy out of town. Only, after awhile, he had started missing Angel. Missing him! They had never even really spoken unless it was to insult each other or glare. He had done a lot of thinking, having to come to terms with the idea that he had feelings for the vampire. He had had a crush on his good friend's boyfriend. It was rather clichéd, he had to admit. He had been able to see Angel that night and feel a slight twinge that he could now identify. But, it was nothing serious. He could deal with it. Angel still hated him and it was just something silly he needed to work through. Maybe they could at least be friends. Spike had become a friend. Of course, there was none of that sexual tension he felt when around Angel. God, add this to Willow's situation and his week was so not going well.

He found himself yawning again, his body starting to throb in pain as his medication started to wear off. He had to lay down. He looked at the double bed, knowing there would be more than enough room for them both. Angel seemed to be in a deep sleep and may not even realize he was sharing the bed. He sat down, cringing as he laid down and adjusted his body. He pulled the sheet over his body, wondering how the bed could look so large until he had laid down. His body briefly touched Angel and he sucked in a breath, praying that the vampire wouldn't wake up. Talk about an awkward situation. He let out the breath when Angel didn't move. Closing his eyes, Xander drifted into slumber, laying beside Angel as they slept.

********************

Willow sat in class, not hearing anything that was said during the entire lecture. She was tired, having not been able to sleep all night. Every time that her eyes had closed, she had heard a noise that had made her sit up. The chair had remained under the doorknob the entire night, but she couldn't help being worried that he was there watching her. For all they knew, he could materialize and didn't even have to open the doors. In actuality, they knew nothing about this demon except that they couldn't see him. That fear had just added to the others, making it impossible to sleep. So she was now almost drifting off during a lecture about Victorian literature.

Thankfully, class ended. Today was her early day, her last class ending at 1. She decided to go back to the dorm to grab a nap. Somehow, sleeping during the day didn't seem as scary as sleeping at night. She'd then call the hospital and go see Xander later in the afternoon. She left the hall and started walking towards the dorm. She wondered idly if Buffy might decide to make it home that day. She seriously hadn't seen her friend in days, not that she was that upset. With everything that was happening, it was probably better to avoid the slayer anyway. She stopped and turned when she heard her name being called. She sighed seeing that it was Riley.

"Hey Will. What world were you in?" he asked, smiling at her.

"Just tired," she said, shrugging. "Couldn't sleep last night."

"Are you OK?" he asked, worry evident in his eyes.

"Yes. I just had a headache and couldn't sleep," she explained, continuing to walk towards the dorm. She felt guilty for her negative thoughts about Riley. Sure, he could get annoying, but he was over all a nice guy. She shouldn't be so curt with him. "So, how are you?"

"Well," he said, walking beside her. "Things seem to finally be coming together."

"In what way?" she asked, curious.

"Just everything. Life, school, love. I dunno. It seems that I am finally going to get everything that I want." He said, grinning his aw shucks smile.

She laughed, "Just remember. The man who thinks he has everything usually has nothing at all, or he doesn't have happiness."

"That's not true," he argued, watching the way sunlight set her hair on fire. "I think I'd only need one thing to really make me happy."

"What's that?"

"The woman I love," he said softly, his eyes raking over her pretty face.

"Ah, that's so sweet," she said, sighing. She wished Spike would speak that way about her. "Buffy is a lucky girl."

"Buffy?" he frowned, wondering why she couldn't see that he was talking about her. "Yeah, I guess so."

"I'm glad she has you, Riley," Willow said, facing him when they reached the stairs to her dorm. "She loves you. I haven't seen her truly this happy in awhile. You're good for her."

"Yeah," he said, hating not being able to kiss her...having to let her go yet again. He smiled, "Hey, want to grab some lunch?"

"Not that hungry," Willow said, yawning. "Sorry. I really didn't sleep at all. What class do you have next?"

"I have a meeting with Walsh," he said, shrugging. "Well, you'd better get some sleep young lady. Can't have you walking around half awake. Especially around Sunnydale."

"I plan to," she said. "I need to call Xander but I plan to take a nap after that."

"How is he?" he asked, hoping she couldn't hear the distaste in his voice.

"Fine. He's doing better. I'll tell him you asked about him." She said, starting to go up the stairs. "Give Buffy my best. I'm sure you'll see her before I do."

"Sleep well, my love," he said softly as the doors shut behind her. He turned, anger flashing in his eyes as he thought about Xander. Soon, there would be nothing standing between them. He smiled as he imagined going into her room and waking her pleasantly from her sleep. Those images relaxed him as he walked towards the initiative.

********************

Riley walked down the stairs towards Walsh's office. He knocked, hearing her call for him to come in. He opened the door, seeing three men sitting in her office with her. He smiled, shutting the door behind him. "Dr. Walsh. You asked for me?"

"Oh yes, please sit down Riley. You know doctors Martin, Smith and Kent don't you?" Maggie asked.

"Yes. Good day, gentlemen," he said nodding at them as he sat down.

"We need to ask you some questions concerning the serum," Dr. Smith said, referring to his note pad. "You have been under its effects for almost seven weeks now?"

"Yes sir," he said.

"Have you noticed any changes in attitude?" Dr. Martin asked.

"Not at all," Riley said.

"Good," Dr. Kent replied. Seeing Riley's quizzical look, he elaborated, "In the test animals we used before trying it on you, we noticed heightened aggression, lack of sleep and an almost obsessive compulsion concerning.."

"That's enough," Dr. Martin said. He glared at Kent, wondering what had made the man detail the failure of the serum in the mice. The mouse they had chosen to use had been a bad apple. For some odd reason, he had gone on a rampage, brutally killing several of the other mice. They had monitored the behavior and realized that one female mouse was constantly being watched by their test subject. It was then that they had noticed the pattern. The mice that were killed had had contact with this female. They had declared that experiment a bust, deciding that it had been flawed. The next one they had done had been a single mouse with fantastic results. After that, they had moved into the human field with Agent Finn. So far, things were going as smoothly as the first experiment. "You believe the serum would be helpful in the fight against evil?"

"Yes," Riley said. "Without a doubt. I have used it to watch several groups of demons unseen. It has allowed me to gain the upper hand and led to their capture."

"Good," Maggie said, nodding. "We have decided to continue doing a bit more research on the drug. We appreciate your volunteering to test it, Riley."

"What?" he asked, frowning.

"We will not need you to test the drug for any longer," Dr. Smith said, smiling pleasantly. "You will be able to go back to your normal life now."

"But, it works. Why not use it?" Riley asked, not understanding why they would want to stop the experiment now.

"Go to the lab with the doctors, Riley. They are going to give you an anti-serum to counter the effects and remove the traces from your blood stream," Maggie said.

"We have concluded that our research in this field is finished," Dr. Kent said, standing. "We have far more elements to test before using this drug regularly. I am still not convinced that it does not release chemicals that mar a person's behavior. Only when I am convinced will we do further testing with humans. I was not told of the experiment involving you, Agent Finn. I would never have allowed it."

"But, you can't take it away. I need it," he said softly, following the doctor past the cells and down the hall. It was the only way he could watch Willow...to make sure she was all right. He had known Dr. Walsh did not want him with Willow. He had already figured out that she was an obstacle keeping them apart. Constantly pushing him to patrol and write reports when he needed to be with Willow. But, it appeared that this doctor was also on her side. He stopped, realizing that the entire initiative was against them. None of them wanted him to have Willow. He had made plans on how to get rid of Walsh, but it appeared that his plans would be changed. Oh well. Life was full of change. In the end, he would have Willow. That was all that mattered. He glanced at the cells as they passed, a smile creeping onto his face. He reached into his boot, removing his knife. Moving behind Dr. Kent, he grabbed the man's head and pulled it back, easily slicing his neck. Riley let the doctor drop to the floor, wiping the blood from his knife onto the man's lab coat. "You won't be able to keep us apart, bastard. Nothing will keep me from having her. She's mine."

With those words, he moved to the cell release button and pushed down. He saw the demons stumbling from their cells, moving towards the lab quickly. He heard screams and shots being fired from outside as the demons fought their capturers. He searched the office, finally finding the serum. There was a large vial, enough to last several months. After that, well, he'd force someone to make more for him. He searched the desk, finding the disk that had the information concerning the serum on it. He tucked the disk and vial into his coat pocket before he faded away. Moving through the halls, he saw his men falling to the floor dead. Good. They had tried keeping him from his Willow. He smiled, stepping over the body of a demon as he started up the stairs away from the initiative. First obstacle out of the way.

********************

Xander sighed in his sleep, flinging his arm over the mattress beside him. Angel woke from his sleep when something hit his nose. He rubbed his nose, freezing when he felt warmth against his side. He turned his head, eyes widening when he saw Xander sleeping beside him. The teen's arm was across his chest, the sheet bunched past their waists. He could clearly see the navy blue boxers that caressed the contours of Xander's ass. He felt himself harden as he felt something against his leg. He knew it was Xander's own erection that was thrusting so gently against his upper thigh. He stopped the erotic thoughts that suddenly plagued his mind. This was Xander for lord's sake. He was not supposed to be getting hard from his touch.

Xander whimpered in his sleep, feeling his dream Angel's hands on his cock. He began to thrust into the cool grip of Angel, his cock aching for release. In this dream, he had already been tortured by hours of teasing and torment from his lover. Angel had run his tongue over inch of his body, leaving no space free from his exploration. Xander had never imagined anything that pleasurable. He had cum several times without even being touched by Angel. Now, though, his love had finally whispered that it was time. He felt the tension building as his speed increased. He needed to cum.

Angel felt his hand sliding down to his cock as Xander began to thrust against his leg. He could feel wetness against his thigh, knowing by the scent that it was pre-cum. He ran his thumb over the head of his cock, spreading his own leakage across the tip as he began to stroke himself. He couldn't believe he was so turned on by Xander of all people. He began to thrust into his hand, telling by the frantic jerks from Xander's body that he was nearing release. Angel grunted, spilling his seed over his hand and stomach. He glanced over at Xander's sleeping face, watching the youth's face tense. He was so handsome in sleep, Angel realized. Lashes any woman would envy, beautiful lips and a muscled chest with a very light scattering of hair. Angel let his eyes roam farther down to the cock that was pushing against his leg. He saw it pushing against the silk of the boxers, straining for freedom. He used his free hand to push the material down to Xander's knees. He had a moment of hesitation, feeling like a louse for taking advantage of the boy in his sleep. That thought left his mind when he saw Xander's naked cock.

Long and thick enough, it stood out hard against the brown curls that were rubbing so softly against his thigh. He moved his seed covered hand over to wipe against Xander's cock. He heard Xander hiss in his sleep and smiled slightly. He hadn't felt this kind of attraction since a night in a London alley some hundred and thirty years ago. He hadn't felt another man besides Spike since then. Angelus was always choosy to who he chose as lovers, and Angel had never allowed himself to feel attracted to anyone. He didn't deserve to find pleasure in another being. But, Xander wouldn't know. He was caught up in the identity of his dream lover, whoever that was. Angel found himself stroking the sleeping boy, giving in to the reckless abandon he was feeling.

Xander hissed when he felt the coolness of Angel's palm against his cock. The dream became even more vivid as he felt himself being stroked. He couldn't hold off his release any longer. He thrust once more, spilling his seed into his lover's hand. Xander groaned at the much-needed release, listening to his lover's whispered words of love. He fell to his knees, taking Angel's hard cock into his mouth and eagerly sucking, wanting to give his love as much pleasure as he had received. In his sleep, he murmured, tossing and laying on his back, his softening cock laying limp against his thighs.

Angel let out an unneeded breath as he sat up, running a hand through his hair. He glanced at Xander, wondering what the boy would say if he knew what had just happened. Probably be mortified and embarrassed. Angel sighed, knowing he would not mention it at all. He carefully pulled Xander's boxers up, tucking the teen's limp cock back into the silk. He then got out of bed, the mixture of their juices on his stomach and thigh. He grabbed his bag, heading towards the small bathroom to clean up. He didn't want to be near the bed when Xander woke up, not wanting to make the boy uncomfortable. Xander was trying to put their past behind them. This would not help matters at all. He stepped into the shower, confused about what had just happened and wondering when it was exactly that he had developed this attraction to Xander. And why it didn't really bother him.

********************

Willow heard the door open and voices following. She opened her eyes, sitting up and look towards the other side of the room. "Buffy, what's wrong?"

Buffy looked towards the sleep redhead, frowning as she looked back at Riley. "The initiative. It's been damaged."

"Damaged?" Willow said, looking at both of her friends. "What happened?"

"A demon got loose and let the others out," Riley said softly, his eyes on Willow as Buffy continued to cling to him. He had thought it best to find Buffy and make an appearance, just in case someone knew he had been at the lab during the attack. Buffy would be his alibi. "I had just left from my meeting or I would have been there."

"God, that's awful," Willow said quietly. She couldn't believe the demons had overrun the initiative. She felt sorry for everyone that had probably died.

"I was lucky," Riley said, pleased at her obvious concern for him. Maybe she was tired of ignoring the love between them.

"I ran into Riley as our pagers were going off," Buffy said, "Man, Wills. You wouldn't believe it. There were so many people dead. Ripped apart, even. It was a massacre. Demons and humans alike."

"Luckily, most of the unit was in class," Riley said. "We are going to have to organize a search party to recapture some of the demons that got loose."

"It was mostly some doctors and day time workers that were killed. The soldiers that were around pretty much took care of the demons," Buffy explained to Willow.

"I wanted to come by and tell you to stay in tonight," Riley said softly as Buffy went to the closet, looking into Willow's surprised eyes. "There are some very nasty things out there right now, Willow. I don't want you hurt."

Buffy found the sweater she was looking for, turning as Riley finished his statement. "Yeah, he's right, Wills. You need to stay inside until we get these nasties taken care of."

"I'll be careful," Willow said, knowing that she was going to see Xander as soon as they left.

"No," Riley said sharply. He felt Buffy look at him and almost groaned, "Just stay in this one night. I'm sure Xander can do without you for once."

"Oh, yeah, we'd better call Xander and let him know not to get out," Buffy said, snapping her fingers.

"I'll call him," Willow said, frowning. "You two go on and take care of business."

"Ready, honey?" Buffy asked, smiling at Riley.

"Sure," he said, moving to allow her to pass. He looked back at Willow, "I'm serious Willow. Stay in tonight. It's going to be dangerous out there."

"Sure thing, Riley," she said quietly, "Thanks for warning me. I might have gone out if you hadn't thought to tell me."

Riley smiled at her, resisting the urge to kiss her worries away. He nodded, "Not a problem, Willow. I always think of you. I'll be seeing you."

*******
Spike heard the constant ringing in his ears. Scowling, he flayed on the bed, his arms hitting the empty space beside him. His eyes opened when he realized the ringing was that of the telephone. He scowled, picking up the white receiver and barking, "What?"

"Someone wakes up rather cranky, don't they?" an amused and vaguely familiar voice said.

Spike frowned, "Who the bloody fuck is this?" he demanded, his blue eyes searching for a cigarette. He found one laying on the table beside his bed and felt relief go through him.

"You don't remember me?"

"Should I?" Spike asked, lighting the smoke and taking a long drag.

"Ah, now I'm hurt," the man said, chuckling softly.

"Krimsty?" Spike asked, recognizing the laugh.

"Yes, it is I," Krimsty said.

"What do you have for me?" Spike asked, hope evident in his blue eyes.

"It might mean nothing, but it might mean something," Krimsty said, his tone serious as the amusement left it.

"Get on with it already," Spike said, rolling his eyes at the demon's dramatics.

"The Initiative, as you called it, has been destroyed."

"What?" Spike said, his mouth opened slightly. He forgot about the cigarette until it fell on his leg. He cursed, picking it up from his leg and rubbing at the burn it had made. Talk about a wake up call.

"It was destroyed," Krimsty repeated softly.

"What a laugh," Spike said, smiling. "How?"

"That is actually why I phoned you," Krimsty said. "I want into a bloke that was being kept there. He told me that they had made him crazy. When I asked him to explain, he said he saw the handle go down as if someone was pushing it."

"What fucking handle are you talking about?" Spike asked, trying to follow the demon's words.

"The one that released the cages. He then told me that he saw a gun picked up and that it floated in front of his cell. He believes it was aftereffects of the drugs. I of course immediately thought of you and your search."

"You're saying this thing stalking Willow went into the Initiative, released the demons and such and then shot some of the soldier boys?" Spike asked.

"No, I'm merely saying that it is an odd coincidence. Don't you think?" Krimsty said.

"Very odd," Spike replied. "I don't know whether to hate the guy for stalking Willow or thank him for destroying those damn soldiers."

"I would suggest thinking of ideas to why he would destroy that group in particular. There must be some justification for his actions, in my opinion," Krimsty said.

Spike nodded, "Yeah, you're right. You know, you're a smart one, Krimsty."

"I do try," he replied in an amused voice.

"Thanks for the information," Spike said, his mind already trying to decide why, beside good taste, and how a demon would enter the headquarters of the initiative and destroy it. He needed to talk to Peaches and the others. They might have some ideas.

"If I hear anything else, I will phone," Krimsty said.

"Hey, wait, chap. Let me give you a number where I can be reached," Spike said, knowing he wouldn't be home until dawn. He gave the demon Peaches's cell number. "If a poofy-sounding twit answers, you got the right number."

"I will be in touch, Spike. And good luck," Krimsty said, smiling slightly as he hung the phone up.

"Gotta talk to Peaches," Spike said standing and heading towards the door. He stopped, glancing down. "Clothes first, then Peaches."

********************

Willow sighed as she paced around the room. She had called the hospital, not surprised to hear that Xander had checked himself out the night before. She had to smile wondering how Angel had enjoyed that surprise homecoming. She had called Xander's house, telling him about the Initiative. He had surprisingly agreed with Buffy and Riley by telling her to stay home. She was already going crazy being cooped up inside. She wouldn't be able to see Spike, which was really tough. She was starting to fall more deeply in love with him and being away from him wasn't easy. It was stupid really, since she had no idea how he really felt about her. Sure, he was acting all protective but it could be just because he considered her a friend. At times, it seemed like so much more. The way he would look at her...the things his eyes said without being verbalized. Of course, she could be reading anything into those looks.

She sat down, groaning. How could people not leave their rooms? She turned the TV on, hearing nothing on the news about the dozens upon dozens of dead people that were laying at the headquarters for the Initiative. She wasn't surprised. She flipped channels wishing there was something interesting on to occupy her mind. She also secretly hoped that Spike would either sneak in to see her or call her to check on her. She found an old Cary Grant comedy on AMC and decided that it was better than nothing. She stood and left the room, walking towards the bathroom. She really hated using the dorm restroom now, knowing that someone had watched her shower. She found herself looking around nervously, not having any idea if *he* was there watching her.

She hurriedly did her business, washing her face and such. She went back to her room, seeing that the door was still shut. She went inside, shutting it immediately after her. She stood in the center of her room, relaxing and trying to feel another presence. She sighed in relief when she felt nothing. She went to her bed, sitting cross-legged as she became involved in watching Cary Grant being wooed by Katherine Hepburn. She laughed, trying to forget about everything that had happened. She continued to glance at the phone during commercials for the first half of the movie. Finally, she found herself just watching the film. When the phone did ring, she jumped. Laughing softly at her own silliness, she answered the phone.

"Hello," she said, her voice still slightly breathless from her nervousness.

"Red? Everything fine?"

She smiled when she heard Spike's worried voice, "I'm fine. I was just watching a movie and the phone ringing surprised me."

"Glad that was all," he said quietly. "Heard about the demon hunters getting killed. Suppose we aren't lucky enough that Slutty was there, huh?"

She laughed, "No, Buffy is fine as is Riley. Don't know any of the others."

"Just my luck," he said, smiling as he heard her laugh. He saw the slight smirk cross his sire's lips and frowned, turning away from the knowing look in those brown eyes. He could give his own knowing looks from the scent of his sire's release that practically covered the fold out sofa bed. He didn't see the moron acting guilty so he didn't think anything too tasty had happened, but if Angel had cum, well, that would be enough for a few knowing looks in his opinion. "So, really, you're fine? You don't need me to come by and check on you or anything?"

Xander snorted at Spike's rather blatant attempt for an invitation to visit Willow. He leaned closer to Angel, trying to ignore the attraction he felt. An attraction that only intensified the more time they spent together. He whispered, "Could he be any more obvious?"

"Subtlety was never Spike's best quality," Angel said dryly. He smiled when he saw Spike's middle finger aimed in his direction.

Willow sighed softly, wishing Spike was there to simply hold her and whisper in that seductive voice that everything would be fine. "I wouldn't mind some company, but it's getting late. Buffy might be back tonight, depending on what they find I guess. She didn't seem all that worried about me, but there was a slight twinge of worry, which could mean something. Did that make as little sense as it did to me?"

Spike had to laugh, "No, I understood you. Hmm...should I be worried about that?"

Willow laughed, "Oh hush. I guess it would be better if you stayed in tonight. I'd hate for you to get hurt by accident during their sweeps tonight. Why don't you stay with Xander? Besides, with Angel there, they need a chaperone."

Spike snorted, "Think I might be a tad late for that, pet."

"Oh really?" she asked, curious. "What happened?"

"Just some interesting smells," he commented lazily, glancing at his sire and seeing the dark haired vampire shift in his seat. Oh yeah, he had some ammunition now.

"Sounds...smelly," she said, laughing softly. "Thanks for calling, Spike."

"Had to check on my pet," he said softly, wondering if he sounded as sappy as he thought. God, he was pathetic. He heard her soft sigh and smiled. Who gave a bloody fuck anymore anyway? For her, he could be pathetic.

"Keep an eye on Xander for me, K?" she asked, her finger playing with the phone cord. "I worry about him."

"Of course, luv," he said, hating to hang the phone up.

"Take care of yourself too, Spike. Promise me you'll stay there tonight, OK? I don't want to worry about you...."

"Promise," he said, touched that she would be concerned about him. "You'd better get some sleep. Class tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah," she said, "Good night, Spike. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Tomorrow," he echoed, adding before he hung up the phone, "Sweet dreams, luv."

********************

Buffy sighed, "Riley, I think we've found the few demons that were stupid enough to stay in Sunnydale."

"You may be right," Riley said, taking a deep breath and counting slowly to ten. If he had to hear much more of her whining, he honestly thought he might rip her tongue out.

"Can we go back to your room then?" she asked, glancing down and grimacing as she saw the dirt and goo covering her clothes. "I really need a shower."

"Yeah, you do," he said, agreeing with her. "Why don't you go on back and take a shower?"

"Where are you going?" she asked, watching him stare into the thick trees of the park.

"I'm still a commander, Buffy. Even if the Initiative has been destroyed, it is my duty to make sure everything is safe and secure. I probably won't be back until the morning."

"I can stay and help," she offered, hating when he used the chosen duty excuse. She knew it all too well, having used it herself for years.

"No, that is quite all right," Riley said. "I just plan to do a final sweep through town and check on the others."

"If you're sure you don't need me," she said, wondering what was happening between them. He had been changing the past few months and she had to admit that she didn't like the changes.

"I don't need you at all," he said, "be careful on your way back to the dorm."

"You too, sweetie," she said, kissing him. She frowned when he moved his head, his eyes staring at something in the distance. Her lips connected with his cheek instead of his mouth, much to her chagrin. She sighed, walking away from him as he continued to stare into the trees.

When he was sure that Buffy was gone, he turned and headed back towards the campus. It had taken all his patience not to simply send her away today. She was so damn annoying at times. And what was worse was that she seemed to have no idea how undesirable she really was. She was too damn stupid to realize he had no interest in her. He couldn't wait until it was finally time to claim his Willow. Soon, he knew it would be time. The initiative was gone. They no longer stood between him and his love. Soon, nothing would be keeping them apart. He smiled as he headed towards her dorm, willing himself invisible as he stepped onto campus.

********************

Willow hung the phone up, a surprised look on her face. She had just gotten a call from Xander. It seemed that Buffy had left him a message on his machine telling him to stay in that night and explaining about the Initiative. He hadn't heard the message until just then when he had noticed the blinking light. He had called her to get her to chat and find out how boring staying in the dorms truly was and had just remembered to mention the call. She couldn't believe that Buffy had actually called him. That was something the pre-college Buffy would have done. Since she had gotten to college, actually since she had gotten involved with Riley, she had changed. And unfortunately, it was not good changes. She had been pretty much ignoring Willow and Xander most of the year. Willow could understand the slayer's reasoning when she seriously thought about it. Her understanding did not make it easier to deal with. She had lost her friend, being pushed away in favor of some group of guys that used guns and did experimentations. That was what really hurt. The easy way that Buffy had discarded her, Xander and Giles. As if they were never needed at all.

She sighed, trying to fit the call of warning to Xander into Buffy's attitude of late. She really must have been worried about these demons. Of course, Willow had to understand that the blond had lost numerous friends at the uprising that day. Maybe that had forced her into remembering that her old friends were still alive. Willow looked at the phone, deciding to make the call. She spoke to Giles for a few moments, having woken him. He confirmed that Buffy had also phoned him shortly after the uprising to warn him to stay inside that night. Willow told him to get back to sleep and hung up, a small glimmer of hope that Buffy might be slowly coming back to normal. Either that or she knew that with the others all dead, she would need them. Willow knew it was rather crass to think of her friend in such a way, but she knew Buffy. She had learned to accept the slayer, good and bad. And, one of the girl's worst qualities was her tendency to be self-centered and her habit of using people close to her.

Willow knew that is was unlikely the girl had suddenly realized she had pushed all of her friends away, but she also didn't think Buffy's first thought about finding out that the initiative had been destroyed was that she would need more people to use. It wasn't likely she would ever understand Buffy, so she didn't see any reason she should start trying to now. If Buffy wanted to rebuild their friendship, it would take some time but she wouldn't refuse to try. She missed having a female friend, but there was so much between them now. And her feelings for Spike would definitely not cause a good reaction. She got up and grabbed her towel, knowing she had to take a very fast shower. Thinking could wait. She'd just wait and see how Buffy acted and let time be the deciding factor. If they couldn't rebuild their friendship, well, she didn't really care either way. She had Spike and Xander and Angel after all.

She went to the bathroom, showering quickly. She wasted no time in lingering, and showered facing the curtain. That way she could see if it moved. She didn't want to have a replay of the other time when some unknown person had watched her shower. She finished her shower, dressing again before walking back to her dorm room. She went inside, again pausing to see if she felt some weirdness in the air. When she felt nothing, she smiled, turning off the light and getting into bed. She glanced at the clock and saw that it was four am. She hadn't realized it was so late, smiling as she realized that she and Xander were both wide awake when most normal people were sleeping. She knew part of it was because of the nightly patrols they had grown accustomed to performing during high school and the other reason was their friendship with Spike. They had started keeping vampire's hours sometime during sophomore year and she hadn't stopped. She lay awake for awhile before drifting into an easy sleep.

Riley waited until he heard the soft even breathing before moving from the closet. Willow's smell covered her clothes and he had spent his time waiting for her to fall asleep simply smelling them and running his hands over the material. He walked into the room, his eyes finding Willow where she lay sleeping on her bed. He moved to her bed, sitting on the edge. He brushed his fingers over her face, watching her mouth open as his finger outlined her lips. He watched her tongue creep out and run along her lip as she whimpered in her sleep. He felt himself harden from her gesture and reached down to unfasten his pants. He freed his cock as he slowly moved the sheet down her body. His eyes took in her pert breasts straining against the soft cotton of her tank top. He left the sheet around her waist, not wanting to wake her.

He began to stroke his cock as he watched her sleep. She was so damn beautiful. So unaware of how striking she truly was. He let himself listen to her breathing, hearing the soft noises she made as she dreamed. He moved his free hand to the bottom of her tank top. Gently, he started to move it up towards her breasts. He continued stroking his cock as her flat stomach came into view. He jerked his hand away when she moved, her hand flying to her left as she adjusted herself on the bed. The action caused the shirt to ride up to below her breasts. He quickened his strokes as he moved his hand over her breasts, not touching but getting as close as he could. He leaned over, brushing her lips with his as he felt himself cum. He sat up, his eyes still on her face. He removed his hand from his cock, wanting her to taste him. Needing her to taste him. He moved his finger to her lips, outlining them with his cum covered finger. He leaned over and ran his tongue over her lips, cleaning his seed off of them. He got to his feet, knowing that he needed to leave.

He tucked his cock back into his pants, wiping his hand on a washcloth he found near Buffy's bed. He then moved back to Willow's bed, pulling her tank top back down and moving the sheet back up to cover her. Kissing her lips one more time, he whispered, "Soon," before moving towards the dorm room door. He frowned as he realized that anyone could walk in and hurt her. He would have to see about getting a lock for the door. He knew he could convince Buffy that it would be for her safety. He could even get a key from Buffy. It would be a way to keep everyone away from his Willow. Everyone except him, of course. He looked back at her and smiled, wondering if she would have any memory of the special night they had just shared. Well, soon she would be right there with him. Begging him for more and pleading with him to take her to heaven. He sighed, hoping that it wouldn't be much longer. He hated living without her. He left the room, closing the door as he left her to her dreams.

********************

"She's bored out of her mind," Xander said as he faced the two vampires after hanging up the phone.

"Could you imagine being stuck in that small room alone for hours?" Spike asked, shuddering in disgust.

"Better than being stuck with alone with you for hours," Angel remarked dryly.

"Sod off, you bleeding wanker," Spike said, rolling his eyes. "She sounded ok though? Just bored?"

"She was fine," Xander said, sharing a smile with Angel. Spike had been pacing like a caged animal most of the night, much to his amusement. The blond had finally calmed down when Xander had started telling Angel stories about his childhood with Willow. Then, of course, when Xander had gotten hoarse from talking and answering questions about Willow, Spike had been on his feet again moving like a caged tiger. Angel had finally been the one to suggest calling Willow and checking on her just to get Spike to settle down. It was when Xander went to make the call, after Spike had said he had already talked to her once that day and had no intention of appearing desperate around her, that Xander had noticed the blinking light. He had been surprised to hear Buffy's voice of warning. "Bored, but fine."

"Good," Spike said, sitting down and tapping his foot on the table. "Can't believe I'm stuck here with you two wankers all day."

"As if being with you is a treat," Angel said, rolling his eyes at his favorite childe.

"You used to like being with me," Spike said with a smirk.

"William," Angel snapped, his tone warning.

Spike raised his eyebrow at his sire's tone before he looked away. "Do we have any ideas who this bastard is that is stalking Willow?"

"Nothing more than we knew yesterday," Xander said with a sigh. He grimaced, a slight pain running through his body as he bumped into the table. He grunted in pain, sitting down where he stood. "Ow. That hurt."

"Did you take your medication?" Angel asked, frowning as he looked at Xander sitting on the floor.

"Yes, Mom. I took the pain pills. They weren't meant to help if I stupidly run into a damn table," Xander said, getting to his feet and moving to the couch.

"My source said that he heard rumor that an invisible man started all the trouble at the damn soldier place," Spike said, having planned to wait to share this news until Willow was with them. But, if he was stuck with the two sods for another day, well, maybe they would think of something he hadn't.

"You're joking?" Xander said, laughing dryly. "Great. Just great. This guy sure gets around doesn't he?"

"Why would he want to destroy the initiative?" Angel asked, his expression thoughtful.

"Why wouldn't he?" Spike asked, his hatred for the organization that had given him the damn implant evident in his tone.

"Well, from stalking Willow to beating Xander up to destroying an entire military operation...it doesn't make a lot of sense," Angel said.

"Maybe he felt the initiative was a threat to Willow," Xander said.

"What?" Spike asked.

"Nothing," Xander said, shrugging. "Just a stray thought."

"Xander, what did you mean?" Angel asked softly.

"I mean, he beat me up because he considered me a threat for some reason. Maybe something with the initiative was threatening Willow. I mean, you got Buffy involved with it plus all her little friends. It could have been any random thing really. Hell, who said he has to have a reason. He is some demon after all," Xander said, sighing as he ran his hand through his hair.

"You look tired," Angel said, "Why don't we discuss this tomorrow? We can ask Willow when she gets here if anyone involved with the initiative has threatened her in any way or if someone could have mistaken her relationship with any of the members as this guy appeared to do with you and her."

"Sleep?" Spike said, his tone disgusted.

"Yes, sleep," Angel said, knowing that Xander was in more pain than he wished to admit. "This problem will still be here tomorrow. I don't think we need to come up with a solution immediately."

"Fine," Spike spat out, moving to the armchair and sitting down. "We sleep then we figure out who I need to kill to protect Willow."

"I'm with Spike on that one," Xander said, yawning. "Tomorrow, we brainstorm once Wills arrives. Maybe she will know something that will help."

Xander got up and walked into the bathroom, moving slowly. He had thought he was doing much better, but running into that table had hurt like hell. Angel watched him and heard a snort. Facing his childe, he raised an eyebrow and looked at Spike. "Not a word, brat."

Spike snorted again as he shifted in the chair trying to get comfortable, "Sure, Daddy. Whatever you say. Sweet dreams, Peaches."

********************

"Where have you been?"

Riley frowned as he faced Buffy. He had assumed she would be asleep by now, three hours having gone by since he had sent her to his room. "I was doing a final sweep. After all, making sure the students are safe is part of my duty."

"We did a sweep of most of the campus before we headed towards the city," Buffy reminded. "Remember? We said that it would be better to ensure the students' safety before leaving the grounds?"

"I can fucking remember what I said," Riley said sharply. He saw her flinch and calmed himself. He thought of Willow and how she looked while sleeping. He felt himself begin to harden at the image of his cum on her sweet lips.

"Well, excuse me," Buffy said, her tone miffed as she looked at him toss his keys on the dresser. "I was just worried."

"Sorry, but it's been an extremely long day," Riley said, running a hand through his hair. "I lost quite a few friends and mentors today. Forgive me for being a bit preoccupied."

"Honey, I'm sorry," she said, moving to stand and walk towards him. She frowned when he moved to avoid her comforting embrace. She moved back to his bed, sitting down and watching him with curious eyes.

Riley pulled his shirt over his head, the muscles in his back flexing from his movements. He glanced down and saw the remains of scratches that Buffy had made the week before. Thankfully, they had almost faded. He couldn't go to his Willow with marks from that whore on his skin. He'd have to fuck the slayer until it was time to make Willow his, knowing that that was the only way to keep her away from his redhead. He had no intentions of his Willow being tainted by that nasty bitch. He glanced at Buffy, trying to hide the disgust in his eyes as he looked at the woman he had honestly thought he could love all those months ago. Why had he been so stupid? So blinded by her smile and body and face that he had not seen what the pretty face concealed. He had not seen the blatant selfishness, the lack of goodness in her soul, the casual disregard for those around her. Now, his eyes were open. He could see exactly who Buffy Summers was, and he didn't like her.

"Taking a shower?" she asked, trying to keep the annoyance out of her voice.

He nodded, "Yeah. I'm pretty sweaty from all that fighting." He considered his options for the evening. He could shower then fuck her then shower again or he could fuck her then shower or he could simply fuck her in the shower. The latter sounded better than the other choices, just because it saved him time. He could wash her juices off of him before he smelled of her. With that decision in mind, he asked, "Want to shower with me?"

Buffy looked into his eyes, expecting to see desire. Instead, she saw complete disinterest. He did not want her. That knowledge stunned her and all she could do was shake her head. She smiled, "No. I'm pretty tired. I think I'd like to sleep."

"If you're sure," he said, relief evident in his voice. He grabbed his stuff and headed towards the shower.

Buffy watched the door shut and frowned. Riley didn't want her. She found herself wondering if this was something new or if it had been there before and she just hadn't seen it. She also wondered if it was only because he was tired and had had a tough day with everything happening at the Initiative. That had to be it, she decided. He was just too tired to make love. Content, she smiled as she laid down to sleep. She truly was tired, worn out from the exhaustive search for demons all night. She closed her eyes, deciding to give Riley a couple of days to recover from his loss before becoming worried that he no longer wanted her.

********************

Spike moved around the room, his blue eyes searching the darkness. He saw his sire laying on the fold out bed, the mortal laying beside him. He smiled slightly, wondering if those two knew they were lusting for each other. Remembering how his sire had treated the boy that evening, he realized that it could very well be more than just lust. He hadn't seen Angel look at anyone like that in a long time. Memories of his early days, before the soul and Drusilla flashed through his mind. A time when he and Angelus had made each other happy, killing and shagging and just having fun. He shook his head slightly, freeing his mind of those memories. He hated to admit it, but he was rather disappointed in how he had been back then. He knew that Willow would never tolerate those antics and through her eyes he could see just what a fucking wanker he had been. He had matured over the years, even though it had taken a red-haired Goddess to make him realize it.

He heard the even breathing of Xander, noticing the slight hitch in breath every little bit. The poor bloke's ribs must be hurting something awful, he realized. It was a bit difficult for him to believe the boy had just been in the hospital not two days before. Xander was a strong one, even if he didn't know it. Spike turned and began to pace again. He was restless. He hated this, being cooped up in the basement. He knew that he had promised Willow that he wouldn't go out. She was already worried enough about this stalking demon without him adding to her burden. Of course, he could rationalize that she would never have to know he had left the basement. But, knowing his damn luck, he'd get caught first thing. Then, she'd hate him and never trust him again. He groaned, cursing the all too human emotions that went coursing through his veins while thinking of her.

He hated humans. They were weak and needy. Never very intelligent and always bloody impossible. Yet, he had fallen in love with one. No one could ever accuse Willow of being stupid or impossible or even very weak. He had seen her fight off demons and vampires alike with nary a hair falling in her face. She was strong, even if she only saw the strength as a connection between her and the damn slayer. He could see her strength, even if she could not. He had spent months observing her and her little friends. He could honestly say that he knew them all pretty well, from the dork to the slayer to the watcher. Not that he would ever admit that. No, he'd rather them think he couldn't stand them at all. That forced them to let their guard down in a way that he enjoyed. He didn't bloody care for the slayer at all. Even if she hadn't been his mortal enemy, she was a daft bitch. The watcher wasn't all that bad, except for his taste of clothes. That man definitely needed to see the inside of a mall. The moron had grown on him. Another little truth he would never speak aloud. In a way, Spike realized that the boy was a bit like him in his youth. His human youth. Before the war and the murdering began. When he had still been a bit innocent and optimistic.

That was before he met Angelus. Before he knew that humans could be as evil as any demon. He was not a nice man when he had been turned, his reputation known widely around Europe in certain circles. That had been part of the attraction on Angelus' part, he knew. The desire to corrupt someone already so far gone. After the experiment with him had come Drusilla. That time, Angelus had gone to the other extreme. Innocence and purity instead of intelligence and evil. He had grown though. Angelus leaving him with Drusilla, forcing him to accept the care of her....the emotions he had started to feel for her once he had allowed himself to enjoy her...they had in a way made him grow up. He knew it was ironic to consider a man that age, at that time he should have been fifty three, as finally maturing, but it was the truth. He had had to grow up and take over their little family after Angelus hasty departure. He could admit now that it had been nice. Being needed like that. He had enjoyed becoming a master. He still loved the chase and the scent of fear tinged blood, even if the damn implant prevented him from doing anything about it. But, he knew in his heart that he would never be what he had been even a year before. His feelings for Willow had moved him to an entirely different level than even Drusilla had moved him. For her to look at him with love in her eyes...for her to choose to remain with him for eternity...for that, he could give up the pleasure of killing. He would never drink animal's blood if the implant ever was removed, but, for her, he would stop feeding before death claimed his victims. Spike sat down on a stray barstool, a thoughtful look in his eyes.

He hadn't realized until that moment, after the internal conversation he had been having during this moment of insomnia, that he felt so deeply about her. Sure, he knew he liked her, wanted to shag her, might even be real close to loving her. After they had found out someone was watching her, wanting to hurt or possess her or whatever the fuck the damn fool wanted, well, his demon hadn't been happy with the news that his Red was threatened. That moment, the moment when he had realized that even his demon wanted to protect her, he knew he was a goner. A vampire in love with a human. If he wasn't the poster child for pathetic loser, he didn't know who was. But, he thought smiling as he pictured Willow's face and the way he could just imagine she would look as she breathlessly whispered his name after cumming, pathetic wasn't all bad.

He frowned as he realized that that moment would most likely not be happening until this damn stalker was taken care of. He was seriously worried that this demon was the one responsible for the fiasco at the Initiative. While he had no problems with the damn place being destroyed, it took this stalker to an entirely different level. The demon had beaten Xander, sure, but there were a hell of a lot of differences between beating some wimpy mortal up and completely destroying a military installation and the dozens of people that had been there. If this rumor of the invisible demon being behind the attack was true, well, it moved things to an entirely different playing field. It meant that Willow could be in far greater danger than he had originally believed. If she continued to anger this demon for whatever reason, it wouldn't be long before she was the one getting hurt. Spike growled softly at that idea, not able to control his reaction to the idea of her being in such danger. He would see her soon, he realized. Not many hours until dawn and then she would be there beside him, where she belonged.

He stood again, moving restlessly through the dark room. He wanted to hurt something. To take out his frustration at being so bloody helpless in all this mess. He couldn't do a damn thing to help her. All he could really do was protect her and keep her safe. And he had plans on doing just that. Maybe together the four of them could figure out some leads. The next night he could possibly sneak away and do some hunting of his own. Try to find something, anything. Until then, he was stuck feeling so fucking weak it almost hurt. He moved away from the wall before he could give into the impulse of kicking it or hitting it. He heard a soft sigh and glanced at the bed.

"Spike," Angel spoke softly, having listened to his childe's constant pacing for what seemed like hours, "get some sleep."

"I can't," Spike said, his voice whining slightly.

Angel smiled slightly in the darkness, knowing that his favorite childe was worried about his chosen mate. "You won't be much use to Willow if you're too tired to help her. Now, get some sleep."

Spike smiled at the tone in Angel's voice, remembering a time past. He laughed softly, moving towards his chair. He sat down, getting comfortable before replying, "Yes, Daddy."

"Cheeky damned brat," Angel cursed softly before unconsciously moving to snuggle closer to a sleeping Xander.

********************

Willow yawned as she stretched. She sat up in bed, making a face as she tried to wake up. She had had the most pleasant dream, starring her and Spike. Like that was anything new. She sighed, wondering what he was doing at that moment. Probably trying very hard not to kill Xander or Angel. She hoped that he had done as he promised and stayed in the night before. She hated to think that some of the patrols might have found him. No, he had sworn he would remain at Xander's. She trusted him.

She got to her feet, running her tongue over her lips. She frowned, tasting something on her lips. Deciding she must be going crazy, she ran the back of her hand over her mouth. She must have bitten her lip during sleep was the only thing she could think of. She shook her head, knowing that she needed to get ready to visit the boys. She was skipping class that day, knowing that with so many people dying the day before, most of the classes would be cancelled anyway. That is, if the school decided to acknowledge the Initiative and it's fallen members. Either way, she wanted to check on Xander and to see Angel and Spike. More Spike than Angel of course. It had been weird not seeing him the night before. She had gotten into a routine of spending every night with him for at least a little while. Staying in the dorm alone had been tougher than she would have imagined.

She moved to her chair, cursing softly when she kicked the trashcan. Frowning, she rubbed her toe. It had not been left there. She always kept her trash beside her desk, not near the dresser. She glanced at Buffy's half of the room, seeing nothing that seemed to be out of place. She struggled to remember if she had moved it the night before. No, she knew that when she had gone to sleep it had been by the desk. She closed her eyes briefly, trying to ignore the conclusions that this made her draw. Someone had been in her room as she had slept. Someone had moved her trashcan. She let out a breath, her arms wrapping themselves around her body. She began to shake, hating this demon for making her feel so frightened in her own room. It was bad enough not being able to walk around freely at night or to visit with her friends openly for fear of someone ending up in the hospital. It was quite another to have someone in her room going through her things...watching her sleep....watching her shower. She moved to her closet, pulling out a pair of jeans and an old sweatshirt. She pulled the clothes on, deciding to postpone a shower that morning. She'd shower at Xander's before coming back to the dorm in the evening. That way, she wouldn't have to worry about anyone sneaking in an watching her.

She had just finished dressing when the door opened. She saw Buffy and Riley enter and sighed. She moved to sit and began to brush her hair. "Hey guys."

"Hey Will. Everything all right here last night?" Buffy asked.

"Nary a sound," Willow said, shooting her friend a smile. "Did you guys find anything?"

"Yeah. We retrieved several hostiles, but many got away." Riley said, moving to sit on Buffy's bed. He kept his eyes on Willow's face, able to see her reflection in the mirror. She was so beautiful in the mornings. Not like Buffy, who needed make up to even look half way decent. No, his Willow was glowing all on her own. "Thankfully, they seem to have left Sunnydale."

"That's good then," Willow said, glancing in the mirror towards Riley. She saw his eyes on hers in the mirror and frowned. She looked away, laying the brush on the dresser. When she looked back up, Riley was watching Buffy. She let out a breath, realizing that this stalking demon was driving her insane. She was starting to suspect her friends of watching her now. She really hoped this nightmare ended soon.

"Actually, I'd like to suggest getting a lock for your door," Riley said, keeping his eyes on Buffy. He didn't want her to get suspicious. Not yet.

"A lock?" Buffy said, frowning. "Why?"

"Because, not all demons need an invitation," Riley said patiently. His mind flashed an image of ripping her head off and fucking Willow beside her unseeing eyes...letting her see in death what she was too damn stupid to see in life.

"That's actually something I was going to suggest," Willow said, turning in her chair to face them. She was rather surprised he had mentioned it. She smiled, glad that he cared enough about Buffy to want to protect her. "With all the weirdness going on at the campus lately, I would feel much safer with a lock."

"I guess I can see that," Buffy said, realizing that while she often spent most nights with Riley, Willow was stuck in the room alone. She nodded, "Yeah, that's a good idea. We can get a small lock. God, that means another key I have to keep up with."

Willow smiled at her friend's groaning. "It won't be that bad. You don't drive so it will be like your only key."

"We can make a couple of copies too. That way, you can give an extra to someone for safe keeping in case you lock yourself out," Riley said smoothly.

"Well, that means you'd get a key," Buffy said with a smile and a wink.

"I can give one to Xander," Willow said, adding Spike's name to her mental list.

"Yeah, you can give one to Xander," Riley said tightly. "I'll see about buying one today and installing. It shouldn't be too difficult. And with Walsh's death, class is going to be cancelled so I'll have time."

"Thanks Riley," Willow said, sincerely. She would sleep much better knowing that there was a lock keeping that bastard demon outside. "I'd better get going. I'll see you guys later."

"Are you going to class?" Buffy asked, having no intention of spending her day in classes.

"Nah. I thought I'd drop in on Xander, maybe grab some lunch and do some shopping," Willow said, knowing that she planned to spend all day with her friends.

"Have fun," Buffy said with a smile.

"I'll try," Willow said, grabbing her laptop as she left the room.

"Guess that leaves you and me, honey," Buffy said, her voice seductive.

"Oh yay," Riley said, his tone dry. He stood, "I'll head to the hardware store and find a lock. I'd like to have it in place today."

"Well, can I come?" she asked, wondering again if she was merely overreacting or if Riley was getting tired of her.

"Sure," he said, making a face as he glared at her behind her back. Soon, he would no longer have to be around her. Soon, Willow would be by his sire where she belonged instead of hanging out with that moronic Xander. She was his, god damn it. He felt a hand on his arm and looked down, pushing away his anger as he smiled falsely at Buffy. "Let's go."

********************

Willow knocked on Xander's door, frowning when it did not open. She sighed, deciding that they must still be sleeping. She had forgotten that it was so early. She used her key to open the door and entered the dark room. She smiled as she saw Xander laying on the bed, one arm covering his eyes and another hanging off the side of the bed. Her eyes widened slightly when she saw the arm around his waist. She followed it up to Angel's naked chest. She smiled softly, realizing that the two of them together somehow made sense. At the moment, that appeared to be one of the only things that did. She moved to the side of the bed, a wicked smile crossing her face as she sat on the area of sheet beside Xander.

She found a piece of string hanging off the sheet and ripped it off. She moved it above Xander's nose, letting the frayed end touch his upper lip. She saw his lip twitch as he shifted in his sleep. She laughed softly, waiting a moment before moving the string over the tip of his nose. He groaned in his sleep, moving his hand to swat at his face. She saw Angel shift in his sleep, moving his arm higher along Xander's waist. She wondered if either of them was aware of how the other felt. Knowing the men in her life, she figured that they were completely oblivious. She moved the string along Xander's face, wishing that he would wake up already.

"Having fun, Wills?" Xander asked, his dark eyes opening and staring at her sleepily. His lips twitched in a grin as he saw her smile.

"I didn't know if you'd ever wake up," she responded in a whisper, knowing that Spike and Angel were still sleeping.

"You couldn't simply push me real hard and yell, Xander wake up?" he asked, wondering what time it was. She seemed particularly bright and cheerful for far too early in the morning. He glanced at the clock and saw that it was after ten.

"Where's the fun in that?" she asked impishly.

"I take it you enjoyed your night of house arrest?" he asked, starting to sit up. He glanced down, his eyes widening when he saw the arm across his waist. He looked at Angel, seeing the vampire's sleeping face.

"You ok?" Willow asked softly.

Xander nodded, "Yeah...just um...well, I understand why I slept so well."

Willow smiled, knowing that it was not the time to discuss Xander's feelings for Angel. Maybe after this entire mess was over the two men would be able to talk and figure out where they exactly stood. She had known about Xander's crush on the vampire, but she had never been too sure about Angel's feelings for Xander. At times she had thought there was something there, while at others she had thought herself completely crazy. Having seen them sleeping beside each other, the way that Angel had held Xander in sleep...well, she was more certain there was something growing between them. "I slept pretty well too."

"Did ya?" he asked, relief in his voice. He knew since this had started happening that she was having trouble sleeping an entire night. "How many hours?"

Willow smiled, "More than five, Dad."

"Good," Xander said, reluctantly moving Angel's arm from around his waist and getting to his feet. "I need to go to the bathroom. Don't go anywhere."

Willow rolled her eyes as he smiled at her. She moved off the bed, knowing that she didn't want Angel to wake up and mistake her position. She turned on the overhead light, deciding that the vampires would surely waken upon hearing her and Xander talking. She froze when she saw blue eyes watching her. "Spike....you startled me. I thought you were sleeping."

He smiled slightly, "Felt you come in. Everything ok luv? You seem flustered."

"Things are fine," she said, deciding to wait to mention the moved trash can. It was probably her imagination anyway. "I stayed in all night and didn't run into any invisible demons."

"You saw Buffy and her boy toy today didn't you?" he asked, placing the familiar scents and ignoring them.

"Yeah," Willow said, knowing from experience that Spike could tell anytime that she had been around Buffy, Riley, Xander or Giles. He told her that they were familiar smells, therefore his demon recognized them and usually ignored them. She wondered what it would be like to smell people like that. Somehow, she didn't think it would be that fun. He had mentioned that he usually ignored this particular trait of being a vampire. "They came in this morning before I left. Said that got some of the demons last night but quite a few escaped town."

Spike frowned, "No mention of our demon I suppose."

"I don't think he would be stupid enough to get caught by the slayer," Willow said softly, remembering that he had spent part of the night before in her room watching her sleep. Shuddering, she made a face.

"It's OK, luv. We'll figure something out as soon as Peaches wakes his lazy carcass up," Spike said, mistaking her look for fear instead of disgust.

"I'm awake," Angel said, his voice sleepy. He sat up, running a hand over his face. "Does my hair look as bad as it feels?"

"Always worried about the damn hair," Spike said, rolling his eyes.

"Well, it is his best feature," Willow said, her voice teasing.

Angel lifted an eyebrow and glared at her, "And you want my help?"

"I love your hair, Angel," she said, laughing. "It is always so...poofy."

"Yeah, poofy is right," Spike said, grinning at his sire.

"It's too early in the morning to deal with either of you," Angel said, listening to Willow laugh. He got out of bed, pulling his shirt on as he stretched. "Is there blood?"

"Eeeww," Willow said, wrinkling her nose. "It's too early for that mental image."

"We got to eat to survive, pet," Spike reminded her as he moved towards the small kitchen area. "Your boy is taking a shower so you'll have to fix the hair out here."

Angel glared at Spike's reference to Xander being his boy but chose to ignore for Willow's sake. She'd hate him if he beat Spike to a bloody pulp. "Quit talking about my damn hair," he muttered, moving to find a brush.

Willow smiled, leaning back in the chair as she watched Spike fix his and Angel's breakfast and Angel as he brushed his hair. She could hear the shower and knew that Xander was there. For the first time in more than a day, she felt safe. Smiling, she turned on the television and began flipping until she came across Hey Arnold on nickelodeon. Settling down, she began to watch Helga fight Arnold while pining for him from afar. She sighed, knowing exactly what Helga was going through. Unrequited love was a bitch.

********************

Xander walked into the room, a towel around his bare shoulders as he dried his wet hair. He caught sight of Willow sitting in front of the television, a soft smile on her face. Spike was sitting in the chair by the couch, his eyes on Willow. Xander could see the unreadable expression lurking in the blue depths and found himself wishing that he could read minds. Remembering Buffy's brief experience with that particular trait, he decided he was better off not knowing what was on Spike's mind. And, in a way, he was pretty sure he knew. The invisible demon that was tormenting Willow. He sighed softly, frowning as he thought again what his friend must be going through. He looked up, his hand steadily running the towel over his hair. He froze when he caught Angel's dark eyes on him. He felt a tremor of desire pass over his body as he saw something very much like lust burning in those dark eyes. He gulped, wondering if he was seeing things or just dreaming. He moved to the sofa and sat next to Willow, deliberately shaking his head and sending drops of water on the amused redhead.

"Xander!" she shrieked, turning away from the television to glare at him. "I didn't even hear you! You really have been hanging around vampires far too long. Their stealthness is beginning to rub off on you."

"You think I'm getting vampy sneaky?" Xander asked, a smile on his face as he let the towel fall over his shoulders. He felt a few random drops of water drifting down his chest and wiped at them as he smiled at Willow. He heard a low groan and glanced at Angel, awareness crackling between the two men as Angel shifted in his own chair. He heard Spike's knowing chuckle and felt his face flaming. He glanced at Willow and saw her smile. He rolled his eyes, glaring at her look of approval. "I'm gonna kill you," he whispered to her as he stood.

Willow just laughed, having witnessed the tension and attraction that existed between her friends. She watched Xander move to his dresser, pulling out a faded gray t-shirt. "Aw, you're getting dressed?" she whined, grinning. "And here I was enjoying the view."

"Pet," Spike practically growled at her from his seat. He didn't mind her being friendly with the moron. After all, the twit was going to be his sire's lover soon. But, there were limits. Flirting overstepped the boundaries.

Willow looked at Spike, a small frown on her face at his harsh tone. "Spike?"

"The moron needs to get dressed," Spike said, glaring at her for being amused at flirting with the mortal. He knew in his mind that she was teasing the boy about the attraction that was so obvious between him and Angel. But, he couldn't tell his demon not to react in jealousy.

Xander had to smile at Spike's obvious discomfort with Willow's teasing. He contemplated flirting back but decided that Spike may very well rip his throat out, implant be damned. Deciding that he rather liked his throat where it was, he pulled the shirt over his head. He then moved to sit back by Willow, deciding the best course was to ignore these feelings for Angel and concentrate on the matter at hand. "Fine, Fang. Since the sight of my bare chest does nothing for you, I'll keep my shirt on."

"Thank God for small favors," Spike said, causing Willow to giggle. He felt a bit ridiculous at his reaction to the simply teasing and he really hoped that no one reminded him of it. He glanced at Angel and saw the amusement in those dark eyes. Somehow, he knew that that was not going to happen.

"Can we hold off the serious discussion until Hey Arnold is over?" Willow asked, trying to keep her tone light. She knew they would be discussing her stalker and that was a subject she had no desire to dwell on at the moment.

"Hey Arnold's on?" Xander said, smiling because he knew Willow well enough to know that she was putting off the heavy discussion. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Quit whining!" she scolded playfully. "You've only missed the first episode of a three hour block. "It was the Dino episode, which I know you've seen."

"I missed Dino?" he whined, putting his arm on the couch behind her, careful not to touch her by accident for fear of Spike killing him. "I love Dino."

"And here I thought they were mature," Spike said, having to smile at their reaction to some silly cartoon.

"Children at heart, it seems," Angel said, thankful for the light moment. After the humiliating incident getting caught ogling Xander, he was glad that they seem to have forgotten it in their reaction to the cartoon. He couldn't forget it though. He was acting like some randy schoolboy, he decided in disgust. Like he had never been attracted to anyone before. Yet, in a way, it was rather nice having such a reaction to someone again. It had been over a hundred years since someone had occupied his thoughts this way. Glancing at Spike, he had to smile as he remembered that particular experience. Over a hundred years, and the attraction was still there, in a secret part of his soul that he rarely allowed out to play. It was better that way, forgotten in the past. He had to believe that he and the blond might one day become friends, of sorts. It almost seemed as if that was beginning on this trip. Yet, he would never understand Spike so he would not even begin to try to predict what the blond was feeling.

"Hush!" Willow said, smiling at Angel. "Have you ever seen the show?"

"I do not watch cartoons," Angel said, his tone lofty.

"You don't know what you're missing," Xander said, smiling at Angel. He kept eye contact a moment longer than needed before reluctantly looking back at the television.

Spike sighed, "We'll watch the damn cartoon then we talk."

He moved towards the couch, glaring at Xander pointedly. The boy looked at him with a confused look on his face before he started to smile. He chuckled as he stood, saying, "I think I'd like something to eat. Wills? Hungry?"

"I could use some caffeine. Soda or coffee. Wait, you'd be making the coffee. Never mind. Soda is fine. Do you have any doughnuts?"

"Do I have doughnuts?" Xander asked, gaping at her. "I will choose to ignore the coffee comment because I love you. But you dare ask me if I have doughnuts?"

"I'll take that as a yes," she said, smiling as Spike sat beside her in the spot Xander had vacated. She tried not to look at the vampire, but found her eyes drawn to his face. He was smiling slightly, his arm on the sofa behind her head. She sighed, watching Xander smirk before heading towards the kitchen area. She settled back on the couch, Spike's arm falling slightly to touch her shoulder.

****
"It's over?" Spike asked, his tone whining.

Willow laughed as she hit the remote to turn the television off. "Sorry. It's over. It was on for three hours."

"I pity that little Helga chit. She should bloody well chain that bloke to a bed and torture the little wanker into loving her," Spike said, grumbling.

"Spike, honey, they're like seven or eight years old," Willow said, having to smile. "At that age, you do not chain each other to beds and torture for affection."

"Well, she still should," Spike said, frowning. "Silly damn cartoon, anyway."

"You liked it," Xander said, laughing. "You didn't move for hours."

"It was better than I would have believed," Angel admitted, somewhat reluctantly.

"Now that it's over, can we get a bit more serious?" Spike asked, having actually spent most of the past couple of hours thinking instead of watching the telly. Sure, the cartoon was a tad better than he had thought it would be, but how could they expect him to watch some silly show when Willow was in danger. Blood damn fools.

"Do we hafta?" Xander asked, sighing. He knew they had put it off as long as they could, but he still hated talking about it when they had no ideas. It just made everything seem even more bleak and hopeless.

"I guess it is time to try to figure this out," Willow said, frowning. "I do have something to tell you guys."

"What is it Willow?" Angel asked.

"He was in my room last night," she said, gnawing on her bottom lip.

"What?!" Spike demanded, glaring at her.

"I think," she added, shrugging. "I don't know. I feel like I'm going crazy or something. I feel like someone is always watching me even when I know it isn't possible. This morning, the trashcan was moved. At least, I think it was. I honestly thought it was beside the desk when I went to sleep. I just don't know anymore."

"It's ok, Will," Xander said softly, hating the desperate tone in her voice and the slightly dazed look in her eyes. He hated seeing her like this. So hopeless. "It's going to be ok."

"You don't need to stay in that damn room anymore," Spike said, hating her being so unprotected there.

"It's ok," she said. "Riley is getting a lock today to install. He is worried about Buffy with all those demons that escaped."

Angel noticed that he felt nothing at those words for his former lover. He was glad that she had moved on with her life, as he hoped to do soon. His eyes found Xander before he could stop them. "I'm glad that problem will at least be taken care of."

"Yeah," Spike muttered, not liking that the farm boy had stolen his idea to keep Willow safe. Damn blond moron. Spike had never liked that bastard much anyway. Too wimpy and slayer whipped, from what he had heard. Luckily, he had never met the prick, though he was sure the man had been part of the force that had captured him. For that, added to the fact that the idiot had shagged the slayer willingly and repeatedly, the fucker deserved to die. Though, shagging the moron was a torture in and of itself, he decided wryly. Oh well, at least Willow would be safe in her room finally. "Makes him a real prince among bastard soldier boys."

"If it keeps Will safe, I don't care what he does in his spare time," Xander said, having to agree with Spike about their mutual dislike of Riley. That one of several things that he and the vampire had found in common.

"You said that your source believes our invisible friend was the one that set about the destruction of the initiative," Angel asked Spike, receiving a nod from the blond. "Then, we must ask ourselves why. Why risk capture to destroy the organization?"

"And, if Willow is the reason, why?" Xander echoed, already getting a headache.

"What?" Willow squeaked, looking at them. "You think I'm the reason the initiative was destroyed? Good grief. That's ridiculous."

"Pet, he beat Xander up for no apparent reason. If he believed that someone there wished you harm, it is very logical he'd destroy it."

"But why? I mean, think about it. What threat does, or rather did, the initiative hold to me? I have no contact with any of them except Buffy and Riley, and hardly any with them. It just doesn't work. I mean, sure in theory it sounds right, but in practicality, nope," she sighed. "There must be another reason, not having to do with me."

"Maybe it wasn't even our demon," Xander said, his eyes lit with hope. "As Willow said, it doesn't really make sense that our guy would go from beating me up, leaving me alive I may point out, to arranging for several dozens of people to die. There would have to be a good reason, I'd think."

"Maybe they caught him and planned to do some of their god damn experiments," Spike said, his tone angry at the fallen organization.

"That I might believe," Willow said, nodding. "If it was him, that is the only logical explanation that I could think of. He was caught and managed to escape their grasp and arrange for their destruction."

"Geesh, I feel like I've wandered onto the set of some detective show," Xander said, rubbing his temples. "I hate playing Clue."

"That's because you never win," Willow said, smiling.

Xander caught her eyes, "This time it's important though. I'll win if it kills me, if it means saving you."

"No one is going to die," Angel said, his tone giving no room to argue.

""Yes, Daddy," Spike said with a slight smile. "I think at dusk I'll head out to find my contact. He might have heard something new since last night. Maybe some idea who our guy is or at least who destroyed those pathetic bastards."

"I'll see Willow home," Angel said, knowing the blond would not want her to walk across campus alone at night.

"Thanks, sire," Spike said, nodding in approval. He glanced at Willow and saw the shell-shocked look on her face. "Peaches will make sure you get in safely. I'll phone you if I hear anything."

"OK," she said, sighing. She ran a hand through her hair, saying, "I really just wish I had some idea who this demon was and why he had chosen me. I think it would make things a bit easier to deal with if I at least knew that much."

"Come on. We got several hours before dusk. Why don't we turn on Jerry Springer and enjoy some good fighting?"

"That I can handle," Spike said, a wicked gleam entering his eyes. He loved trashy talk shows that included arguing.

Willow looked at Angel and snickered, "And he said we were immature for liking Hey Arnold?"

Angel just smiled as Spike and Xander began to yell at the television.

********************

Riley looked at the tree and frowned. If she didn't shut up soon, he was going to take a knife and slowly slice her tongue out. Slowly because he wanted her to suffer as much as he was from listening to her constant babble. It wouldn't be so horrible if she was actually talking about something of interest. But, no, Buffy Summers had to talk about mindless, useless bullshit. Even a glare in her direction had not made her shut up. She was oblivious to everyone except herself. Selfish bitch.

"And I think that Xander might really love Willow, and I know she's always loved him," Buffy continued, a smile on her face as she imagined her friends finally being happy.

"What did you say?" Riley demanded, turning to face her as he finally comprehended what she was babbling about.

Buffy looked over at him and frowned, surprised by the anger she saw in his eyes. She forgot about patrol as she faced him, no longer able to ignore the obvious. He was drifting away from her. "I said that I am happy that Willow and Xander seem to be getting together, finally."

"Finally?" he hissed, his eyes narrowing at the mention of his Willow's name linked with that moron.

"When I first met Willow, she was so in love with Xander. They have been friends forever, but until recently I never thought he might be interested. But, it seems that someone is on Willow's mind, and she is constantly with Xander lately. Since he broke up with Anya, well, I think he might finally have realized what he could have with Willow."

"She loves him?" Riley said, disgust evident on his face. "That weak, annoying bastard?"

"Xander is not weak," Buffy said, defending her old friend. She may not have seen him lately, but she considered him a friend. Hell, she had hardly seen Willow much either, her connection with the initiative taking up most of her time, with Riley taking up the remainder, yet she still thought of the redhead as her best friend. "He's one of the strongest people I know."

Riley snorted, remembering just how strong the boy had been as he had laid on the sidewalk being beaten. "Oh yeah, real strong."

"Not physically, but he has strength in his heart, where it really counts," Buffy said, studying Riley with suspicion. "What does it matter to you anyway if they get together?"

"It doesn't," Riley said, turning to look at the moon. He felt tension coursing through his body, mixed with anger. Did Willow think he was going to allow her to be involved with Xander? He should have simply killed the moron when he had had the chance. He had stupidly thought his warning would ensure that the boy stayed away from his Willow. Instead, it seemed to have stopped nothing. He didn't share. Xander Harris would learn that lesson, right before he died. Riley smiled as images of Xander's death flashed through his mind.

"Yes it does," Buffy said, studying her lover. "You're pissed. I want to know why!"

"Well, sorry. Sometimes Buffy doesn't get what she wants. Learn that now, sweetheart." Riley said, glancing at her and seeing the shocked look on her face, had to smile.

"What?" she said, just staring at him in surprise. It was the first time she had ever heard him speak up like that. He was being plain mean.

Riley looked at her, sighing as he realized she was too stupid to understand. "You are not the center of everyone's universe, Buffy. Contrary to what you seem to believe, there is life that does not revolve around you."

"Why are you being such a bastard?" Buffy demanded, fighting the tears.

"Just shut up and I'll fuck you later? How does that sound?" Riley asked, speaking to her as if she were a child.

"Fuck you!" she said, wiping hot tears from her cheek. "Just leave me alone. I don't want to see you anymore. You are so not who I thought you were."

"Get over it, little girl," Riley said, his eyes amused by her outburst.

"Stay away from me!" she yelled, looking at him as if she had never seen him before. In many ways, she realized that she hadn't ever truly seen him. "And stay away from my friends. I don't want you anywhere near Willow or Xander."

She turned, not believing she was so stupid. Had he ever cared about her or was it all just for a fuck? She heard a low growl and glanced behind her. No one was there. She stiffened, calling, "Riley? Where are you?"

"She's mine," the words were whispered in the crisp night air.

Buffy turned, not seeing him but knowing he was there. "Willow? My God...you want Willow! You leave her alone you bastard! If you touch her, I'll kill you." She gasped as she felt a sharp blow to her ribs. She moved, her hands going up as she fell into a fighting stance. "Show yourself, you coward."

Riley laughed at her attempt to be frightening. "Oh, I'm real scared slayer. You forget, I know you, Buffy. All talk, no play." He watched her stumble as she searched for him. Lazily, he kicked out, catching her in the stomach. She groaned, but kept standing. He moved behind her, watching her strike the air in front of her. He lashed out, capturing her hair and pulling her head back. "Stupid bitch. Did you really think you could keep me away from her?"

"Leave her alone!" Buffy demanded, doing her best to keep standing and not cry out in pain. She couldn't die. If she died, Willow would never know Riley was after her. For her best friend's sake, she began to struggle. "I'm going to kill you! You will never have her, you bastard."

Riley laughed, moving his mouth beside Buffy's ear, "I already have her, you stupid bitch. She just doesn't realize she's mine yet. You really think you could protect her? She can't stand you. Everytime she looks at you it is in disgust. You've pushed her away, Buffy. She's not your friend anymore. Are you so blind that you can't see that?"

"No...you're lying," Buffy said, her voice breaking slightly as he tightened his hold in her hair. "Will is my best friend."

"No she isn't," Riley said. "You don't deserve her even speaking to you."

"NO!" Buffy said, pulling away and yelling at the pain of her hair being pulled. She turned to face where he was, kicking as hard as she could. She heard his surprised groan and pushed her hair from her face. "She is my best friend, you miserable asshole. You aren't going to touch her as long as I'm alive!"

Buffy tuned everything out, concentrating on the sound of his breathing. She cocked her head to the side, swinging and feeling her fist come in contact with him. Smiling, she licked the blood from her lip. She cried out as she felt him hit her hard in the chest again, stumbling backwards. She felt tears of frustration at the strength he seemed to have. He had never been so strong before. She felt his hand hit her chin, knocking her head back and causing her to see stars. She blinked, feeling blood drip into her eyes from a cut on her head from a rock she had fallen against. She tried to stand, crying out in pain as he began to kick her ribs. She started to crawl, trying to get away. She had to warn Willow that Riley was insane. She felt her head pulled back as lips brushed against her cheek.

"Sorry, Buff. You lose," Riley said, kissing her cheek before he pushed her head forward against the hard ground. He stood, looking down at the body of the slayer laying at his feet. He knew she wasn't dead, but she was passed out and laying in a pool of blood in a cemetery. He glanced into the shadows, feeling the vampires. He laughed, calling out, "Feeding time, boys. Slayer blood all nice and warm and fresh."

He walked away from her body, giving it one last kick even though he knew she would never feel it. She would never feel her death either, something he almost regretted. He had planned to enjoy killing the nagging bitch slowly, but this was rather fun too. Perfect excuse would be her death by vampires. Poor Willow would need a friend. He knew it was almost time. Soon, Willow would be his. He glanced back at Buffy's body, already seeing a figure approaching and leaning down to taste the slayer blood. Whistling, he fingered the key to the new lock installed on the dorm door and decided that it was time to pay Willow a visit.

********************

Willow laughed as she leaned her head against Xander's chest. It had been decided before leaving his house that it would be better for him to escort her back to the dorm and Angel could go with Spike to see what they could find out about the demon. She and Xander were moving slowly, just leisurely walking through the campus and talking about general nonsense. She knew he was in a bit of a pain, the tight lines in his face giving her a pretty good idea that he was not healed yet. She felt stupid for having him walk her, knowing that he had just gotten out of the hospital. What if the demon tried to attack him again? She knew she could never live with the idea that Xander had died because of her.

"Dime for them," Xander said softly, seeing the look in Willow's eyes.

"Huh?" she shook her head slightly to look at him in curiosity.

He smiled, "Well, I figured your thoughts were worth much more than a mere penny, so I raised the rate." Hearing her laugh, he felt a sense of pride. "So, whatcha thinking about?"

"Everything," she confessed softly.

"Whoa. That's a broad subject," he said, brushing a lock of hair from her forehead. "Want to talk?"

"Not really," she responded. She saw him accept that and smiled, loving that they had refound their friendship. She had missed him so much. "So, what's up with you and Angel?"

"Huh?" he asked, turning to look at her.

"The tension between you two tonight was noticeable, Xan. I honestly thought that he was going to shove me and Spike out the door so he could shag you to almost death," she said, laughing as Xander turned pink. "I also thought you were tempted to do the same...."

"Just shut up," he mumbled, wondering if his feelings for Angel were that obvious. If so, the vampire must be laughing his ass off.

"Xander's got a crush," Willow teased softly before allowing the subject to drop. On impulse, she had to add, "He has one too, you know."

"What?" Xander asked.

"Angel. He is definitely interested in you," Willow said with a smile. She knew that Xander lacked any sort of confidence in himself and would never believe that Angel liked him unless he was forced into seeing it.

Xander snorted, "Yeah right. I can so see him interested in me. Good one, Wills."

"Fine, don't believe me," she smiled a small smile. "He'll show you when he thinks you're ready."

"Like Spike is showing you?" Xander asked, deciding to turn the tables on the redhead. He watched in satisfaction as her face flamed.

"Spike doesn't show anything," she said, frowning. "He runs hot and cold and I have no idea what he's thinking ever. I don't know if he is so worried about this demon thing because he likes me or because he wants to be the one to kill me."

"Oh, Spike doesn't want to kill you," Xander said, chuckling. "Not unless it is to fuck you to death. And even then, he'd stop before you died."

"Xander!" Willow laughed, rolling her eyes. "Spike has no interest in me like that. I'd think that I would notice."

"Will, you never notice what is right in front of you," Xander reminded with a grin. "But, we'll drop it for now. Trust me though when I say that the blond moron wants you bad."

"Just like Angel wants you," she said with a soft smile. She had to wonder if Xander was right. Did Spike want her that way? Over the past week or so, it had seemed at times that he actually cared for her. She had convinced herself a few times that it might be love, but then she'd start doubting herself.

The two moved on from the subject of the vampires in their lives as they began to discuss a new movie that was opening soon that they both wanted to see. Soon, they had reached Willow's dorm. "I'll see you to your room," Xander said.

"How do you think you'll get up the stairs?" Willow asked, glancing pointedly at his ribs that she knew were still bandaged.

"Damn stupid building. No elevator is a crime," Xander said, hissing softly. "I can climb the stairs though. It is only the second floor."

"Are you sure?" she asked, concern in her eyes.

"I can rest in the room before coming back down," he added, knowing he couldn't climb them and come right down. "Maybe Buffy will be in and I can thank her for actually remembering me last night."

Willow smiled, "OK. Fine. BUT, I'm helping you climb."

"Yes ma'am," he replied with a smile before opening the door for her. He followed her inside, determined to climb the stairs without one whimper of pain. He wanted to make sure she arrived safely so that he could tell Spike that he had seen her close the door. They continued to talk about movies as they made the short climb to the second floor.

********************

"Finally here," Willow said, smiling at Xander as she opened her room door. She walked inside, noticing the new lock with a smile. "Good. Riley got that lock installed."

"Do I get a key?" Xander asked, moving to fall against her bed with a sigh. "Man this feels great."

Willow looked at him and smiled, "You must be worse off than I originally thought if you think that bed feels good. And yes, you get a key."

She moved to her dresser after shutting the door and found two keys hanging from a silver loop. She took one off, leaning over to hand it to Xander. "Don't lose it, 'k? I'll probably get a copy made for Spike tomorrow so that there is another extra."

Xander smiled, laughing wickedly, "You just want him to give in to temptation and sneak into your room one night and have his wicked way with you."

Willow snorted, "Yeah right. Stop already or must I bring up a certain handsome brunette vampire's name?"

"Aw, look at the time. I think I need to go," Xander said, his face again pink. He thought it was rather wimpy of him to turn pink at just the mention of Angel's name. God, what would he do if ever faced with a half naked Angel? Or a fully naked Angel? Images began to flash through his mind causing him to groan softly as he adjusted his position on the bed. He was hard.

"Chicken," she taunted playfully. She saw him flinch and mistook it for pain. Turning serious she said, "Actually, you should probably try to get back. Do you want me to call a cab? I can see if anyone is around that has a car. Maybe they could give you a lift?"

"I should be able to make it," Xander said.

"With all those demons running around plus our invisible friend? No...it isn't safe. Hell, it probably wasn't very safe for us to walk here alone anyway. Let me go see if Angela is awake. She is right down the hall plus she has a car," Willow said smiling. "She owes me so she might take you home."

"All right," Xander said, knowing it was pointless to argue with Willow when she had her mind made up. He laid back on the bed, closing his eyes as he waited for Willow to talk to her little friend. Pretty pathetic that he couldn't even walk home alone. How could he defend Willow when he was so damn weak and useless? He heard the door open and Willow came back inside.

"Xander, this is Angela. She said she can give you a lift home," Willow said, motioning to a girl a bit taller than her that had reddish brown hair. Mischievous brown eyes that looked at him from behind a pair of glasses.

"Yum," the girl said in a faint southern drawl.

Willow giggled, "Ang, stop it. You might frighten him."

"But, Will," the girl whined, smiling playfully. "He's yummy. He's also laying in your bed looking rather tired. Why on Earth are you sending him home instead of"

"ANGELA!" Willow yelped, turning red. "Xander is a friend. Besides, I'm not his type, if you know what I mean."

"God, Will! Tell everyone why don't you," Xander said, laughing at the other girl's ability to embarrass Willow.

"Oh, damn," Angela said, making a face. "Why are all the good ones gay?"

"They aren't," Willow replied, thinking of Spike. Then, remembering Angel, she amended, "well, at least some are bi and prefer women."

Angela laughed, "OK. You got me there. I'm gonna get changed and I'll meet you downstairs in thirty minutes, gorgeous."

Xander watched the girl leave and laughed, "You've got some strange people living in this dorm."

"Angela isn't strange. She's just a big flirt. Other than that, she's harmless." Willow smiled slyly, "I'd just be sure to watch her hands as she drives you home."

Xander laughed, rolling his eyes, "I think I can handle her. So, we got half an hour. What's on TV?"

Willow hit the power button and moved over towards the bed. She lay down beside him, curling up and laying her head on his chest. She always felt so safe in Xander's arms. After the past few weeks, it was such a pleasant feeling. "Let's find out."

********************

Riley finished climbing the stairs of the dorm, a desire to see Willow consuming him. Every day it seemed that his need for her grew. He had to see her, to smell her, to hear her. He was not able to concentrate on anything anymore. All he could see when he closed his eyes was her face. He could only cum while thinking of her. She was his, despite what Buffy may have said. That dumb bitch didn't know his Willow, not like he did. He knew exactly what Willow wanted...what she needed, even more than the redhead herself. She was still so confused. Well, no more. That was what he was for. To make her see how things were supposed to be. Xander was not important. Buffy was not important. All that mattered was the two of them. The rest of the world could fall away and they would survive. He had only one more obstacle standing between them now that Buffy was dead. Xander.

Riley frowned as he thought of the stupid moron that seemed to have his Willow's heart. What did she see in that guy? No, he wouldn't dwell on that. Willow loved him, not Xander. She may not know it yet, but she did. She belonged to him and he had no intention of allowing that bastard to see her, much less talk to her or touch her. No, Xander needed to be removed from Willow's life. Permanently. Riley had to smile at that, knowing that Willow would have then lost both Buffy and Xander. She would turn to him for much needed comfort in dealing with their loss and then he'd have her. He would never let her go. He remembered suddenly that Giles was still around. Would Willow go to the older man that seemed to be a father figure before she would come to him? Realizing that she would, Riley decided that Giles had to go too. No one would stand between him and his Willow. No one.

He reached her floor and started to her doors. He froze when he saw the door open and the bane of his existence step outside. Xander. They had been in the room together. He saw the wrinkles on the boy's shirt and noticed that a couple of buttons were undone. He felt anger race over him as Willow leaned up and brushed her lips against Xander's mouth. She whispered something to the boy that he could not hear and he froze. That wasn't right. She was not supposed to whisper things to that bastard. He was the only person she was allowed to whisper to. Did she not see that? Why did she not see it? Even Buffy had seen it, and she had been an oblivious bitch.

Willow just needed a reminder, he decided. He watched Xander walk away, resisting the impulse to follow the boy and kill him. No, there was enough time to kill Xander. Now was the time to give sweet little Willow a lesson in ownership. Remind her that he owned her and would not tolerate her fucking Xander or any man. He calmed himself, knowing that anger would ruin his plans. He let out several breaths before becoming visible again. He went to her door, knocking as he allowed his face to become upset and worried.

"What did you forget?" Willow asked, smiling as she opened the door. The smile faded as she saw Riley instead of Xander. "Hi Riley. Buffy's not here. Is something wrong?"

Riley nodded, blinking back tears. "It's Buffy. She's...she...oh God, she died!" he said, before moving to hug Willow as he cried.

Willow felt shock and despair wash over her as she felt Riley's arms around her, heard his sobs in her ear. She began to cry, knowing that she and the slayer hadn't been as close this year but they had still been best friends regardless of the lack of time they had spent together. "No...she can't be dead."

Riley felt her body collapse against his as she began to cry against his shirt. He smiled, a wicked gleam entering his eyes as he kicked the door shut and moved them to sit on the bed. He kept her against him, wondering if she would notice the erection that was straining against his jeans. Just the feel of her finally in his arms could make him so hard. He listened to her soft crying, brushing his lips against her hair and inhaling her sweet scent. She smelled so good, he could just eat her up. With Buffy's death, she was in his arms. Once Xander and Giles were dead, she'd be in his bed, he decided. For now, he was content to listen to her sob and feel her warm body pressed against his. Her lesson could wait for just a little while. Besides, he had no intentions of allowing her to see his face yet. It was not time. But, soon. She would be finally be where she belonged.

********************

Spike kicked at the gray slate and cursed. "I can't believe no one knows anything!"

"It's going to be ok," Angel said softly, having not seen his childe this upset in quite a long time. In fact, he could hardly remember a time that Spike had let anything get to him, except maybe when he had lost his soul. Even then, Spike had not been so angry.

"How do you know?" Spike spat in disgust. He glared at his sire, the events of the last few weeks getting to him finally. "This demon has already gotten Xander once. He destroyed the entire fucking initiative for hades's sake and he wants Willow. How can we protect her when we have no idea what he is? Hell, we can't even see him! He could be here right now laughing his demonic ass off at the lack of progress we're making and we wouldn't even bloody know! So, don't sit there with that brooding little smirk and tell me everything is going to be all right. Happily ever after doesn't often happen in the real world and sure as fuck not on the hellmouth!"

Angel kept his eyes on Spike's, his demon straining at the tone of voice Spike had used with him. He knew his childe was upset and was doing his best not to lash out and knock the blond on his ass. "You think this helps?"

"What?" Spike asked, glaring at his sire as he lit another Marlboro. He was glad he was all ready dead. Since they had learned about Willow's stalker, he had started smoking even more. If he were human, he'd probably be dead.

"Yelling and stomping around like some child who didn't get their way. Throwing a temper tantrum is not going to give you any answers," Angel pointed out softly. He could understand Spike's reasoning, in a way. He too wanted to find this demon and kill him for what he had done to Xander and Willow.

Spike smiled, "It sure does make me feel a bit better."

Angel snorted, having to smile, "Why don't you find a demon to beat up?"

"I'm trying," Spike said, rolling his eyes. Suddenly, he stiffened. He sniffed the air and dropped his smoke. Glancing at Angel, his eyes narrowed as they flashed yellow. "Slayer blood."

Angel caught the scent in the air at the same time as Spike. He nodded, knowing that smell by heart. "Buffy."

The two vampires moved through the cemetery at a rapid speed, drawn to the scent of the blood. Spike felt a rush of worry go over him as he connected the slayer with the initiative and then connected them with Willow and the demon stalker. He saw a fledge leaning over someone laying on the soft ground and growled, causing the new vampire to look up. He saw blood on the man's face and charged. He easily killed the fledge before looking at the figure it had been feeding from. The slayer.

"Good grief," Angel said, coming to a stop beside the fallen slayer. He knelt, taking her hand in his. He felt her wrist, looking up at Spike. "It's very weak."

"Fuck," Spike cursed, knowing who had done this. His eyes ran over her body, seeing the bruises and blood. Exactly like Xander, except this time, she had been left for dead. No short hospital stay for the slayer. He could see the blood and knew she had lost a lot. He could barely hear her heartbeat, listening to her ragged breath as she lay dying in her own blood. He hated the bitch, but no slayer deserved to die like this. This was going to hurt Willow more than he even wanted to imagine. She still considered the blond her best friend in her heart. He knew that even while she griped about never seeing Buffy, the two girls were loyal friends. This was going to kill Willow, knowing that her stalker had been responsible for this. Sure, Spike knew it was not proven, but he could see the similarities between Buffy's body and Xander's.

"It was him," Angel said softly, watching the many emotions flicker over Spike's face. "She's not going to make it. Too much blood lost. Feels like some broken ribs and her right write looks broken."

Spike cursed, moving to kneel at her side. "Damn stupid bitch. Why did she try to fight him?"

"That's just Buffy," Angel smiled sadly. "Always fighting without thinking she might lose."

"Aye, that I know," Spike said, remembering just how many times he had lost to the stubborn blond girl. "This will kill Willow."

Angel nodded, sighing an unneeded sigh. "Yes, it will. She will blame herself regardless of what we tell her."

"Fuck," Spike said, running a hand through his hair. He leaned down, licking at a streak of blood that covered Buffy's forehead. He felt Angel looking at him and he glanced up, catching his sire's eyes. "I love Willow, mate. Tell anyone, and I'll stake your broody ass."

Angel nodded at Spike's threat, already knowing his childe's feelings for the redhead. He watched curiously, not sure what Spike was doing.

Spike bit into his wrist, moving his blood to the slayer's mouth. He sighed as he allowed just enough to fall into her mouth to cause her to cough. He glanced at Angel and shrugged, "She still might die, but with my blood, she might live. All I can do for the chit. She needs a hospital."

"Spike?" there was a croaking sound below them. They looked down into glazed blue eyes as Buffy woke up.

"It's ok, luv. We're gonna get you to a hospital," Spike said, knowing this was as low as he could possibly get. Helping save a damn slayer for Lord's sake. And he still figured she'd die, which made it all seem so pointless. Even with his blood, she was barely breathing. But, she had woken up. That might be a good sign.

"Willow," Buffy said, grimacing as a wave of pain assaulted her body. She struggled to breathe, hoping that Spike would listen to her. She had to know that someone was going to save her best friend. "Save Willow."

"Willow?" Spike said, watching as the slayer fought to stay alive. She was an annoying self-centered bitch a majority of the time, but she was a fighter. He'd give her that.

"Save Willow," Buffy said again, each word a struggle to say. "Please."

"I'll go get her now," Spike said, watching as the girl smiled softly at his words. "I'll save her. Count on that, slayer."

"Good," Buffy whispered before closing her eyes again. She felt everything fade to black as she sunk into unconsciousness again.

"Bloody hell, get her to a damn hospital," Spike said, standing. "She sure as fuck had better survive. I don't share my blood with just anyone."

"Go to Willow," Angel ordered. "Buffy seemed scared so something had to have happened. I'll call Xander and have him meet me at the hospital."

"Aye," Spike agreed, turning. "I'll get Willow and contact you on that phone of yours."

"Be careful Spike," Angel whispered softly, watching his childe race through the gravestones. He looked back down at the battered and bloody face of his old lover and felt a tear on his cheek. He picked her up, listening intently to her heartbeat as he carried her towards the nearest hospital.

********************

Willow slowly came awake, frowning as she tried to remember falling asleep. She sat up, running a hand through her short red hair. She glanced down, thankful to see that she was still dressed. She looked at the door and saw that it was closed. A note from Riley was laying on her bedside table. She read it, reading that he had gone to his dorms, needing time alone to deal with losing Buffy. If she needed anything, he had included his pager number. She sniffled, still not believing that Buffy was dead. She laid back down on her bed, wishing the past few months would just disappear or start over. Everything except getting close to Spike and regaining her friendship with Xander. Those were the only two good things to come out of it all.

She closed her eyes, wondering if Joyce knew about Buffy yet. Goddess, did Giles even know? Since he rarely heard from the slayer after patrols, Willow doubted it. She needed to call them, but first she needed some sleep. She stood up, stripping her shirt off and pushing her jeans down. She stepped into her boxer shorts and slid a tank top over her head. She decided against walking to the bathroom for fear of running into her invisible stalker. That was all she needed to make the day perfect. She laid back down, laying on top of her covers instead of getting under them. It was rather warm in the room and she was already feeling a soft sheen of sweat on her back.

She was laying there, lost in thought and memories when she heard something. Suddenly alert, she listened intently. It sounded like footsteps. She frowned, glancing at the door and seeing that it was still shut. The lock appeared to be fastened, though from her angle it was hard to tell. She felt a wave of fear roll over her as she hoped that she was just hearing things. Another footstep and she'd bolt, she decided. She might make it to the door faster than whatever the demon was. She closed her eyes, praying that she was hearing things. When she failed to hear another footstep, she sighed in relief. Goddess, she was hearing things now.

She suddenly felt something over her mouth. Her eyes widened as she looked down and saw nothing. She gulped, pressing up and finding her head held down. Her hands went up and she felt something. She began to struggle, her legs kicking out as the force stayed on her mouth. She was breathing through her nose, clawing at the unseen arm. She knew it had to be an arm, the fingers of the demon covering her cheek and wrapping around her chin in a tight grip. She tried to scream, hearing nothing except a whimper. Her eyes searched where the demon had to be standing, seeing nothing. Goddess, what if she was crazy and nothing was there. She heard the bed shift and gasped as she felt a weight settle on her stomach.

She again screamed to no avail. Her hips were pushed against the mattress as her attacker pushed against her. Tears fell from her eyes as she realized she was completely alone locked in a room with someone that could not be seen. A hand tore at her tank top, the sound of it ripping causing her to kick out. A rough hand kneaded at her breast, causing her to cry out in anger and disgust. She was going to be raped. This was far worse than anything she had ever experienced. The knowledge that she could not fight him off. That she honestly had no idea what he even was. She arched up, deciding he wasn't going to go without a fight. She tried to buck him off, but he was so heavy. The hand tightened around her mouth, a finger suddenly blocking her nose. Her fingernails dug into the air as she found that she couldn't breathe at all.

Spike heard his Red's heart racing with fear and anger and stopped outside her door. He listened intently, hearing her struggle to breathe. He turned the knob, pushing it open and freezing. She was laying on the bed, her shirt torn open, revealing two perfect breasts. Her hands were clawing at the air around her face as her body arched against the bed. Someone was holding her down, he realized. He saw her eyes catch his, their green depths glazing over as she obviously struggled to breathe. His own eyes narrowed and flashed yellow as he saw his mate in pain. He moved forward, growling softly at whatever demon dared touch what was his. He bared his teeth, flinching in pain as he fell to his knees, his hands moving to his head.

Confusion crossed his face as he realized this wasn't a demon. It had to be a human. He looked up, his eyes watching Willow's face her breast began to move, giving him no doubt that her attacker was ignoring him completely and continuing with his assault. He saw that she was breathing now, still struggling against the hand holding her mouth. He got to his feet and concentrated on her face. Seeing the pain that she was in and the disgust in her eyes as the human (?) touched her without permission. He gathered his strength and moved, running right into the area above her body. He fell to the floor, someone underneath him. He heard Willow's gasps of air as she struggled for breath. The pain from the implant blinded him momentarily but he kept fighting, knowing that if he lost this thing would get his Willow. Soon, the pain faded and there was nothing except sheer joy in hurting this demon.

Willow watched Spike fighting, sucking in deep breaths as her vision began to clear. She had seen him fall, wondering if it had been the chip. If so, that meant her attacker was a human. She didn't see how that could be possible so there had to be another reason. She saw the blood form on his mouth as he lashed out. It was hard for him, not being able to see his enemy. She glanced at the blanket, remembering a cheesy old 80s movie that she and Xander had seen once. She got the blanket off the bed, forgetting for a moment that her shirt was hanging open. She tossed it over Spike and the demon, watching as it formed a shape over the demon. She smiled as it worked. Spike growled, hitting the area of the demon's head, knocking him off long enough for him to stand and jump over Willow's bed. He grabbed her hand, pulling her after him and out the door as the demon struggled to free itself of the blanket.

Willow ran after Spike, holding the sheet around her chest as they ran. She was glad she'd remember to grab something to cover herself with before leaving. She could just see running around campus half nude. Of course, knowing what was chasing them, she didn't mind. She followed Spike, never letting go of his hand as they entered the library. She frowned as he led her to a door, glancing behind her to make sure no one was watching them. She ducked in front of him, feeling him behind her as he closed the door.

"This way, luv," he whispered, pushing against the wood as a second door opened. He held on to her, leading her down a staircase into the tunnels that run under Sunnydale. They ran a bit more until he felt that they were far enough away to stop. He slowed down, looking into her eyes. "Are you ok?"

She nodded, chewing on her bottom lip. "Because of you. He was going to...he touched me..."

"Shh, pet," he said, pulling her into his arms. He closed his eyes briefly, deciding that this creature was going to suffer more than anything he had ever tortured. "Come along. We'll go to my place until tomorrow. Then, we'll find Angel and Chubs. You are *not* going back to that dorm room."

"Ok," she whispered softly, knowing that she couldn't argue. She'd never be able to lay on that bed again without remembering his hand on her mouth and his hand on her breasts. She shivered, watching as Spike shrugged out of his coat, pulling the leather around her. She breathed in the scent of cigarettes and old leather and apples. Apples? She looked at Spike and smiled softly, the unique scent seeming to fit him perfectly. She took his hand, following him through the tunnels as he led her to his lair.

********************

Xander walked down the sterile white hallway, his dark eyes searching for room 390. Finding it, he paused, taking a breath to steady himself. He couldn't believe he was at the hospital again. Of course, this time he wasn't the patient, but it was still almost frightening. He moved his hand to the handle, the cool metal causing his fingers to twitch slightly. He turned the knob, walking into the room. His dark eyes found Angel's immediately before settling on the pale form laying on the bed. He felt his mouth dropping open as he stared at the girl, surprised by the tubes that were hanging from her arms and face. "Buffy?"

Angel tore his eyes off of Xander, relieved to see that the boy had made it to the hospital unharmed. He had been more worried than he wanted to admit about the boy, especially upon finding Buffy's body. He wasn't planning on letting the teen out of his sight until this demon was found and killed. "Did you run into any trouble?"

"No," Xander said, his voice quiet. He moved towards the bed, his eyes sad as he looked into the broken face of his old friend. "Is she...is she ok?"

"She's stable but still unconscious," Angel said softly, seeing the stunned look in those dark brown eyes. "Several broken ribs, a sprained wrist, a lot of blood lost and there was internal bleeding. She was in surgery for a couple of hours, when I first brought her in. The doctors have done all that they can."

"If she wakes up," Xander asked, glancing from her face into Angel's, his voice stumbling over the word if, "will she be all right?"

"We won't know until she wakes up," Angel said. He moved his hand, capturing Xander's in his. He squeezed it in a reassuring way, not wanting Xander to think there was anything to it except friendship, but wishing the boy could understand half of what he was feeling at the moment. "She will wake up, Xander. Buffy isn't going to let that bastard be her end."

"Yeah," Xander said, not moving his hand from Angel's. He smiled a shaky smile at the vampire, not wanting the man to see how comforting the simple feel of his hand against his was. "I mean, the Buffster has faced and defeated the master. She even came back from death on that one. And the Mayor? She kicked his ass. There's no way some stupid invisible coward is going to be her death."

"Don't forget Angelus," Angel said softly, his dark eyes looking at the bruised face of his former lover. "She survived him, she can survive this."

"Don't," Xander said quietly, studying the handsome man and seeing the frown on his face. "No brooding. It's not allowed. Got it?"

"I wasn't brooding," Angel objected, glancing at Xander's face and seeing the small smile on his face. "Ok...So I might have been sort of brooding."

"Sort of?" Xander said, laughing softly. A sharp beep caused the smile to fade as he glanced at the girl laying on the bed. He sighed, reaching over with his free hand to brush a lock of brownish blond hair away from her face. She was always the strong one, the slayer that protected them even when they didn't need it. Now, she looked so fragile. Her body was broken, her heartbeat weak. He closed his eyes, seeing an image of her that first year, a large smile on her face as she looked at them with love and friendship. What had happened to their family? He opened his eyes again, looking into her face as he whispered, "She's going to be OK. And Spike is going to save Willow and Buffy is going to wake up and we're going to get a second chance to be friends again." He looked at Angel, his eyes shimmering with unwept tears, "Aren't we?"

********************

Willow sat on the cool marble slab, her eyes watching Spike pace back and forth across the crypt floor. He had gone through three cigarettes and they had only just arrived at his whatever this was. She couldn't really call it a home because no matter what he was, she couldn't see anyone being happy living in a crypt. She'd heard him talking once about finding an apartment, but she didn't remember off hand if he had actually moved or not. She pulled the sheet around her, the chilly night air making her shiver.

Spike tossed the remainder of his cigarette to the ground, turning when he heard Willow sigh. He watched her, seeing the obvious discomfort she was feeling with the cool night air and the thin sheet wrapped around her body. He moved forward, unbuttoning his red shirt and handing it to her. "Put this on."

Willow took the shirt, her eyes wide at his gruff tone. Why was he acting so angry? She put the shirt on, buttoning it and letting the sheet drop to her lap. She was still cold, but this helped a bit. "Is everything ok?"

"No," he said, looking at her in surprise. "You bloody well could have been raped tonight, or worse. If I hadn't come in when I had, well..."

"But you did," she said softly, watching his face. "You protected me, just like you promised."

"But I almost failed you," he said, his eyes looking into hers. "I almost lost you tonight, pet."

"That upsets you?" she asked, her smile crooked.

"It bloody well scares me to death," he admitted in a quite voice. He moved towards her, his eyes never leaving hers. "When I walked into that room tonight, seeing you fighting and being attacked, I lost it. I almost failed, luv. For some stupid reason, I couldn't fight him. Just froze with that damn headache."

"But you did," she reminded again. "You got him before he could do anything worse than touch me. If you hadn't come in when you did, my god, he'd have raped me and I never would have seen his face! I was so happy to see you come in tonight. Seeing you, well, I knew everything would be all right. You make me feel safe for some silly reason."

"Safe, eh?" he repeated, not sure if he liked making a human feel safe. He saw her small smile and the deep green in her eyes and sighed, his hand brushing against her cheek. "I don't understand this, pet."

"This?" she questioned.

"This," he made a gesture with his free hand, "whatever is happening between us. I'm a killer, luv. Or I will be as soon as I get this damned implant removed. And you're a human. A sweet, innocent, wonderful human that has one of the purest souls I've ever met. We shouldn't be here, like this. I should just take you to the moron, let Chubs watch after you until I find this demon and destroy it."

"Who says?" she asked, a flash of anger making her eyes light up. "I don't remember receiving some sort of rule book about love. I mean, if you did, please share the copy with me because right now I can't stop myself from feeling what I feel for you. I think it could be love, but I honestly can't swear it. I know that I love to be with you, love to see your face and hear your voice. I feel safe with you, protected. And I want you. I want you to be the one to take my virginity, to wake up in your arms and feel your body against mine. I've never felt that before with anyone. Is that love? Because I'm feeling so confused right now, and I'm scared to death that you're going to run away from whatever this is without even giving it a chance. The thought that this might be the last time I see you, feel you, well, that scares me more than the demon ever has."

"You're upset," he said roughly, "you don't know what you're saying or feeling. This can't happen between us, doll. No matter what I feel for you, I'm not the one meant to be in your life."

"How do you know?" she asked, hope flaring in her eyes at his words. He felt something for her, or so he said. "Maybe this *is* what was meant to be. How can you just leave without finding out?"

"Easy," he said gruffly, moving towards the door. "I'll find the moron and tell him where you are. I'll let him know when I kill that bastard demon."

"Fine," she said, wiping the tears of frustration and fear and anger off of her face. "Run away like a scared little boy. That's all you do, isn't it? Never take any chances for fear you might find yourself happy. God, you're worse than Angel. At least he's trying for a life with Xander, even if neither of them realizes it yet. Just leave. I hope I never see you again, you coward!"

Spike turned to face her, his eyes narrowed and yellow. He knew what she was trying to do, knew that she didn't really mean her words. She was confused, maybe even had a slight crush on him. He saw the look of desperation in her eyes and faltered. Could she really have feelings for him? Knowing what he was, what he had done. Could she really love him? For a moment, he forgot the demon that was stalking her. He forgot about the slayer, his sire or the moron. He forgot about Drusilla and the hell she had pulled him through. He thought only of the beautiful redhead innocent that had become his life the past few months. Moving forward, he saw her eyes begin to widen. "When I saw him obviously touching you, I could barely control the demon. You're mine, it screamed inside my head. The demon wanted blood, pet."

"Yours?" she whispered, mesmerized by his husky voice and the yellow-blue of his eyes.

He smiled, his hand snaking behind her head as his mouth moved towards hers. "Mine," he said, giving her a moment to run or say no. When she only nodded her agreement, he felt a peace enter his heart, his demon merging with his mind as his lips claimed hers.

********************

Riley opened his eyes, his vision blurred as he tried to place his surroundings. Remembering, he frowned. He stood, looking around the quiet dorm room. Willow had gotten away. Not only that, but she had fought him. She had moved away from his touch, the look of disgust evident in those green eyes. She hadn't known it was him, he reasoned. But, she should have known his touch. She should have craved it as he did hers. Why was she denying the truth? She belonged to him. This did not change that knowledge. If anything, it just made him more determined to see Xander Harris lying dead at his feet.

It had been dark in her room, but he knew Xander was the one that had saved her. That moron always seemed to be around, trying to take Willow away from him. He had honestly thought he would have a free evening with his Willow. He'd teach her what love felt like and, when she was begging for his touch, he would show her his face. Let her know who had brought her such pleasure. That bastard had ruined it though. Sneaking in and catching him off guard that way. He knew it was partially his own fault, letting his defenses down. He should have locked the door, but in his haste to be buried inside her finally, he had forgotten the most trivial thing. Next time, he would know better.

No, he corrected mentally, next time Xander would be dead so there would be no threat. He looked at the bed, wondering where Willow had gone. He frowned, knowing she must be at the basement with that little prick. He let his concentration fade, not wanting to waste the last of the drug that was in his system. He glanced down, seeing his body materialize in the soft glow from the lamp. Willow must be so confused right now, he decided. Knowing she belonged to him but having that bastard trying to keep them apart. He sighed, his hand on his belt. He unfastened his pants, pushing them down and kicking them off. Moving to her bed, he pulled his shirt over his head. He stood nude, his eyes remembering how she had looked underneath him. Like a goddess, with her red hair framing that beautiful face. Her perky breasts the perfect size for his hands, her nipples hardened against his palm as she had pushed against him. Those long legs, muscular and pale thrashing against his body. His cock hardened, the tip leaking his white seed as he continued remembering her body in detail.

He knelt on the end of her mattress, crawling up the bed as her scent began to soothe him. He laid down, his face buried in her pillow. His hand blindly reached for her tank top, finding the torn scrap by the bed. Bringing the material to his face, he inhaled her scent as he began to thrust slowly into her bed. His eyes closed as he began to move, his ass cheeks clenching with each thrust. He could imagine her underneath him, her scent helping the fantasy. He moved his hand, running her cotton shirt over his chest as he moved. His nipples hardened into dark brown buds from the roughness of the cotton as he ventured lower. He grasped his erection, arching against his hand. He began to move faster, the feeling of the shirt wrapping around his cock too much for him to control. He groaned, his seed spilling onto her bed and her shirt as he came. Collapsing, he opened his eyes and saw that he was alone. He moved his hand and brought her shirt up to his face. His tongue snaked out and licked at the milky white substance. He found himself wondering what she tasted like. Soon, he would find out.

He was tired of Xander keeping them apart. He had disposed of the initiative and the slayer for getting between him and his Willow. He had thought Xander would stay away after the attack, but that stupid boy didn't seem to want to get the hint. Well, he was finished with playing silly games. By the end of the week, Willow was going to be his, whether she liked it or not. That decision made, he closed his eyes and snuggled deeper against her smell. Contentment washed over him as he slowly drifted off to sleep.

*******
Xander sipped the coffee, making a face. "This stuff is terrible."

Angel smiled softly before looking back at his newspaper, "You actually
thought it might be good?"

"I was hoping," Xander grumbled, moving to pour out the offensive beverage.
"Bet this is how they make their money. Get visitors to drink that stuff and
then they have to be admitted themselves."

"I'm sure it can't be any worse than Cordelia's coffee," Angel remarked,
making a face. "Completely toxic."

Xander laughed, "As if you expected it to be good?"

Angel rolled his eyes as his own words were tossed back at him. He folded the
paper, glancing at Buffy. He sighed, "I wonder when she will wake up."

"Dunno," Xander shrugged, "Doc says it could be ten minutes or ten days. So
far, everything is still stable so that's good."

Angel moved towards the window, looking into the night. "Sun will be rising
soon. I can't stay much longer."

"Yeah, I figured," Xander said, looking at Buffy then at Angel's back. "They
have my number. That cute little blonde nurse said she'd call if Buffy wakes
up, so I think we're safe to leave."

"You aren't staying?" Angel asked, turning to look at the boy as he tried to
ignore the jealousy that ran through him as Xander spoke about cute nurses
and such.

"No," Xander shook his head, looking back at Buffy. "If she slips into a
coma, well, it could be days or weeks before she wakes up. I'm here for her
when she wakes up, but we've got a lot going on at the moment. I think she'll
forgive me if she finds out I was helping keep an eye on Willow."

"She probably will," Angel said, asking, "Should we call that boyfriend of
hers? Riley?"

"No," Xander said, looking at the vampire. "I don't like him. Who says he
wasn't with her and ran like the coward that he is when they were attacked?
He doesn't need to hear from me."

"I could call him," Angel said finally. "Just so she has someone."

"We can call Giles. He never has all that much to do anymore anyway. He can
keep an eye on her and protect her in case that demon tries to finish the
job," Xander said. "I trust Giles."

"I'm sure he'll be elated to hear that he was considered because he has
nothing to do anymore," Angel said drolly, watching Xander smirk at him.

"Hey, I never forget the G-Man!" Xander said, moving to pick up the phone. He
dialed the number and spoke briefly, smiling as Giles said he'd be there
soon. "Done, Deadboy. Reenforcements on the way. Then maybe we can go home
and get some sleep. What I wouldn't give to just crawl into bed and sleep for
a few days."

"Um, yes, well," Angel stuttered, not wanting Xander to have any idea what
visions those words brought to his lust crazed mind. He glanced at Buffy,
feeling more guilt at his thoughts. His ex-lover was laying in a coma barely
alive and all he could think about was forcing Xander to his knees and
sinking deep inside that tight warmth. "Bed sounds nice."

"Yeah," Xander said, licking his lips as he studied the handsome vampire. He
shifted in the chair, looking at the floor and cursing himself. His
medication must be having some weird affect on him. All he could think about
was what Angel tasted like and felt like. He sighed, running a hand through
his hair. He really hoped that they found out who was trying to hurt Willow
soon. If he had to be around Angel much longer, he honestly didn't know if he
could keep control of the lust that went through him just from a simple look.
"Bed would be great."

Angel glanced at the boy then, freezing when he saw the undeniable lust in
those dark eyes. He watched as Xander's eyes widened, the faint flush
covering his cheeks as he looked away hastily. He sat back in the chair,
truly stunned at his revelation. He was about to speak, to confront what he
had thought he had seen, when the door opened and the doctor came in to check
on Buffy. Instead, he kept his mouth shut as his mind whirled in activity. If
he had not seen that look of desire, he never would have believed it. But, he
couldn't ignore it, even if he had wanted to which he didn't. Wonders would
never cease, he decided. Xander Harris wanted him.

*****

Willow felt Spike against her, his coolness making her warm for some strange
reason. She opened her mouth against his, his tongue moving in and laying
claim. She whimpered, needing him closer. She shifted on the marble alter,
moving closer to the edge. She moved her tongue against his, her hands
holding onto his shoulders as they kissed. It seemed to last forever, though
she knew it was only moments. His mouth left hers, kissing a trail across her
cheeks and down her neck. She sighed, her head falling back and giving him
better access to her neck. She knew this was crazy, falling in love with a
vampire. But, she couldn't control it anymore. She loved him, needed him. She
felt him pull away again and looked into those deep blue eyes, touched by
what he could not hide.

"This isn't the right place," he murmured against her lips. "Your first time
should be in a bed of roses or at least a bed."

She smiled, running her fingers across his sharp cheekbones, "Shh. You're
here. That's all that matters. Now shut up and kiss me again. Please?"

He smiled, claiming her lips as he moved her against the slab that served as
his bed. He wondered briefly if he should move her to the couch, but she
arched up against him and all thought felt except giving her the pleasure he
had imagined for so long. His hand moved up her legs and under the tail of
his shirt. He heard her gasp as his cool fingers made contact with her
stomach. He continued feasting on her mouth, their tongues dancing as he
began to unbutton the shirt with one hand. Soon, he felt it give and spread
open. His hand found her breast, the nipple hard from the cool air and the
excitement she was feeling. Her arousal was thick in the air, intoxicating in
its scent. He counted slowly, knowing that he was close to simply ripping her
panties away and sinking into her with no regard to her humanity. He had to
go slow, this being her first time he wanted her to remember it always as
being pleasurable.

He teased her nipples with his finger as he moved his mouth from hers. He
kissed down her neck again, his tongue slowly moving across first one nipple
then another. He listened to her moans with a smile, his hand moving back
down her stomach and sliding into the waistband of her thin panties. He
listened to her gasp as his finger brushed against her clit, his teeth
scraping against her nipple as he sucked it into his mouth. He began to tease
her clit, her juices coating his hand as he ran his tongue down her stomach.
He kissed several freckles that lightly sprinkled her pale flesh, deciding
that at another time he would find each freckle that covered her body and
kiss it. He moved his head, running his tongue over her cute belly button. He
licked the inside, hearing her heartbeat jump as he moved closer to her
essence.

He took the waist of her panties into his mouth and ripped, looking at her as
the lace scrap hung from his lips. He tossed them to the side, his eyes not
leaving hers as he leaned down and inhaled her scent. Smiling, he ran his
tongue along her lips, tasting her for the first time. He closed his eyes in
rapture, leaning back down to taste more. She groaned, moving against his
face and finger. He began to lick her lips, sinking his tongue inside her
cunt as his nose brushed against her clit. She tasted heavenly. He moved his
tongue inside her as deep as he could, not wanting to miss any of her juices.
He listened to her breathy moans and rapid heartbeating. She was so close. He
felt his face change at his command and ran his fangs over her lips. The
ridges of his forehead brushed against her lower stomach as he ran his teeth
over her clit. He heard her babbling, begging him to let her cum. Smiling, he
sucked her clit into his mouth, his finger sinking deep inside her warmth. He
nibbled on her clit, sending her over the edge. Her thighs tightened around
his head as she arched up from the slab, her cries filling the empty crypt as
she exploded, her juices coating his hand.

He looked up at her face, wanting to see her as she came for the first time
at his hands. "Beautiful," he whispered before he unfastened his jeans and
pushed them down. He pulled his shirt over his head, wiping his face on it as
she continued to writhe in ecstasy. She was so responsive, so sensitive to
his touch. He ran his thumb over the head of his cock, coating it easily with
the steady flow of pre-cum that was leaking over the round head. He moved
onto the crypt, his knees spreading her legs as he settled between them. He
saw her eyes, glassy with passion, look down and widen at the first sight of
his cock. He smiled, feeling pride at the desire that was in her face. He
knew he wasn't as long as his sire, but he was thick, often stretching even
Drusilla. He moved his mouth against hers, trying to relieve her doubts. He
brushed the cock against her lips, soaking it even more. She was so ready for
him, but he wanted to be careful. He didn't want to hurt her.

He heard her whimper as she arched against him again. He kissed her gently as
he began to move inside her. He buried his mouth in her neck and hair as he
slowly stretched her. He began to move slowly, easing her open with each
thrust. Soon, he felt his cock pushing against her barrier. He kissed her
ear, whispering, "Some pain soon, pet. But give it time. It will all be
better."

"Goddess, please, Spike," she whispered, her fingernails digging into his
back as her body felt more pleasure than she ever imagined possible.

He moved his mouth over her neck, nibbling at her flesh as he sunk deep
inside her. He heard her loud scream of pain as he broke through her barrier.
The soft scent of her virginal blood teased his demon as he began to move
inside her. She was so damn tight...so warm. He never wanted to leave her, he
realized. This was where he belonged. Inside her, with her body sweaty and
writhing underneath his. He began to speed up when he heard her begin to
moan, her hips rocking up to meet his thrusts. He teased her nipples as they
moved together, his release nearing. He moved his free hand down between
them, rubbing her clit with solid strokes. He felt her tighten even more
around him as she dug her nails into his back, her cry of release music to
his ears. He moved once, twice, three times before he sunk his teeth into her
neck, his seed spilling inside her grasping cunt. He tasted her blood,
startled that the implant had allowed him to bite her. He realized that she
must have wanted this, wanted him to bite her, to claim her. He licked at the
wounds on her neck, listening her ragged breathing as she came down from her
orgasm. He nuzzled her neck, pulling her against his body as he found his
duster, covering them up as she sleepily moved against him.

"Love you," she mumbled, her eyes closing as she fell asleep in his arms.

"Love you too," he whispered huskily before closing his own eyes, his arm
possessively wrapped around her sleeping body.

**********

Xander walked into his basement room, flipping the light switch on before
facing Angel. "You want something to eat?"

"No," Angel shook his head, moving to sit down. "I'm not very hungry."

"Are you sure? Got some nice O positive," Xander tempted, smiling slightly as
he opened the small refridgerator and pulled out a beer.

"Quit trying to tempt me, Harris," Angel said, knowing that his words went
far beyond talking about blood.

"Ok, fine. Don't feed. Not sure how you're going to help Willow if you're too
weak to fight, but waste away. See if I care," Xander said, knowing that the
vampire had not fed during their time at the hospital.

"Fine. Give me the damn blood," Angel said, almost growling.

Xander turned, smirking at the fridge as he opened the door and took out the
blood. "Oh, my bad. It's AB, not O. Think you can deal, Deadboy?"

"Like it really matters? It's all animal," Angel muttered, walking towards
Xander and grabbed the bag from the boy before moving to pop it into the
microwave.

"Does it ever bother you?" Xander asked, moving to sit on the sofa, a bag of
potato chips opened beside him as his dark eyes watched Angel.

"Does what bother me?" Angel asked.

"Not having human blood anymore. I mean, Spike whines and moans about it all
the time. Does it bother you that way?"

"Spike always whine," Angel said, smiling slightly as he thought of his
childe. "But, no. It doesn't bother me. I'm rather used to it now."

"I figure Willow will let Spike drink from her," Xander said, his eyes
looking at the chair as he thought.

"Does that bother you?" Angel asked, removing his warm blood and pouring it
into a coffee mug before taking a seat.

"What? Will and Spike?" Xander glanced up, and smiled. "Nah. They fit, you
know? He will protect her and keep her safe. She deserves that. And, even
though it sounds corny, she makes him a better person."

"Not corny," Angel said, sipping his blood. "Truthful. I've noticed the
changes in him. Slight but meaningful. He does love her, you know? When Spike
loves someone, well, it's forever."

"He still loves you," Xander said, watching the vampire look at him in
surprise. "What? He and I are friends. He cares for Willow more, but he does
still have feelings for you. Hell, he cares about Drusilla too, in his own
way. That's sort of what makes him so likable. He lets himself care."

"Yeah, he does," Angel said quietly, drinking his blood in silence. "He
always has. That's one thing that irritated Angelus so much. So, Giles said
he'd call if Buffy's condition changes?"

"Yep," Xander said, noticing the abrubt change of subject and deciding to
allow it. It had been a long night for both of them, more so for the vampire
since it was his ex lover laying in the hospital in a coma. For Xander, it
was just a friend and ex crush. "He's staying with her until she wakes up."

"That's good. She'll have someone there," Angel said softly. "Joyce said she
was on the first plane out of Chicago. She should be back soon enough."

"I wonder if Willow is all right," Xander said, glancing at the phone. "Maybe
I should call her."

"Spike was going to get her. I doubt he allowed her to stay in the dorm.
Especially considering this demon had access to that room. No, if I were to
guess, I'd figure he has her back at his place. He'll call if they need us."

"That makes sense," Xander said, finishing his beer. His eyes kept darting
over to Angel, examining the handsome vampire and memorizing every detail for
those fantasies that he had nightly. "Well, I'm not that tired yet. Did you
want to go to bed or do something else?"

Angel stilled, images of going to bed with Xander flashing in his mind. His
hardened cock pressed against the material of his slacks, causing him to
squirm in his chair. He really hoped this case ended soon because if he
didn't get back to LA soon, he may not be responsible for his actions.
Someone else could accept the blame if he found himself pushing Xander to the
bed and thrusting into that tight warmth. Groaning audibly, he covered his
eyes with his hand, pushing that particular fantasty out of his mind. "Not
bed. Not now."

Xander frowned, watching the vampire. His eyes widened when he noticed the
rather prominant bulge pushing against those black slacks. He gulped, licking
his lips as he found himself wondering what had made Angel so hard. His own
cock pressed against his jeans, the wet spot on his underwear growing as he
fidgeted on the sofa. He stood quickly, knowing he needed to take care of his
problem before he did something stupid, like beg Angel to fuck him hard and
fast. "Bathroom. Must go to the bathroom."

Angel glanced up, his eyes taking in the front of Xander's jeans and smiling
a slightly predatorial smile. "Need any help with that?"

"Huh?" Xander glanced at the vampire, his mout hanging open as he gurgled
slightly.

Angel gracefully got to his feet, his own arousal heightened by the scent of
Xander's and the look of pure lust in those chocolate brown eyes. His eyes
narrowed as he stalked towards Xander, watching the teen begin to back up.
"You were planning to run into the bathroom and wank, were you not?"

"Angel, what are you doing?" Xander asked, his tone slightly breathless as he
continued to move away until he felt the wall behind him.

"Helping you?" Angel said innocently, moving his large hand towards the front
clasp of Xander's jeans. He leaned in, his mouth by Xander's ear as he
listened to the boy's heartbeat racing. "Do you object?"

Xander gasped as he felt cool hands on his bare stomach, the sound of his
heart and the lowering of his zipper the only sounds breaking the silence. He
moved forward into Angel's hand as he whispered, "Don't stop. Please, God,
don't stop."

Angel chuckled, running his tongue along Xander's cheek and ear, "Why, my
boy, I've only just begun."

*********

Willow snuggled closer to Spike, seeking comfort in his coolness. She smiled
when she felt him wake, his hand running along her shoulder. She looked up at
him, the smile softening, "Morning."

"You OK?" He asked softly, reaching up with his free hand to touch her cheek.
He saw her smile and chuckled, "Guess that's a rather silly question, isn't
it?"

"I think after the fifth time, it became a bit null and void," she said, her
eyes sparkling with mischief.

"You counted?" he said, raising his eyebrow and watching her blush prettily.

"Well, yeah," she said, grinning sheepishly. "What? Don't look at me like
that. I wanted to remember each and every time."

"Luv, if you start keeping track of every time we shag, that mind of yours is
going to get filled up within a week," he said, his tone amused. They had
spent the entire night and early morning making love. He wasn't foolish
enough to say that it was fucking or even shagging. He loved the little
redhead, more than he had ever loved anyone, even Drusilla. Not that he
hadn't loved Dru. He had, still did in fact. Just in a completely different
way than he loved Willow. Both women were too different to even compare, not
that he would anyway. Willow was the one in his heart, in his arms. Drusilla
was a memory that was growing more distant with every passing moment.

"I don't think I'd complain," she said, running a finger along the contours
of his chest.

"Why do I not doubt that, spitfire?" he said, catching her hand and forcing
it open. Her palm lay against his chest, her warmth soothing him. His eyes
trailed the bruising along her throat, a rush of anger entering him as he saw
her perfect skin marred.

Willow smiled softly, seeing the look enter his eyes as he glanced at her
throat. She knew she had a bruise from the attack the previous night. In
fact, she had several marks along her arms and chest from the demon. Spike
had placed gentle kisses over them during their time together, making her
forget for those hours how she had received them in the first place. Now,
though, seeing his anger, she was reminded vividly of that attack in her
room. She sighed, keeping her eyes on his, "Don't be angry, Spike. I'm fine.
You saved me. Remember?"

"I want him dead," Spike said, his tone resigned. "I'll see him dead, luv.
Don't doubt that."

"I don't," she said, gently. "I know you'll protect me, Spike. That's the
only reason I wasn't as scared when he was attacking me. I knew somehow that
you'd save me. I, well, I trust you..."

"I'll always keep you safe," he vowed, knowing that when he found this demon,
it would die a slow and painful death. It had not only touched his mate and
hurt her, but it had also hurt Xander. And hurting the moron had hurt Willow.
Thinking of his sire and the boy, he almost smiled. Somehow he thought that
Peaches might get in a bit of torture himself. Maybe that damn soul wouldn't
interfere for once. "I love you."

Willow almost didn't hear him, his words were spoken so softly. She looked at
him, her eyes disbelieving, "What?"

He smiled, kissing her tenderly, "I love you, Willow."

"Are you sure?" she asked.

He laughed, "You amaze me, pet. Yes, I'm sure. Well?"

"Well what?" she asked innocently.

"Willow," he growled softly.

"You took the words right out of my mouth," she said softly with a smile.

"What?" he asked, slightly confused.

"I love you, Spike," she said. "I was trying to say it earlier, but I was too
scared."

"You don't have to be scared with me, honey," he said, smiling a large smile.

"I guess we really need to go find Angel and Xander. Tell them about the
attack last night," Willow said, reluctantly.

"Oh bloody hell," Spike cursed, remembering suddenly about the slayer. He had
forgotten the dying blonde when he had found Willow being attacked. Then,
afterwards, he had been caught up in Willow. Buffy had slipped his mind. He
hated it, but he felt slightly guilty. After all, if it hadn't been for
Buffy, he might have lost Willow. He looked at Willow, taking her hand in
his, his expression growing serious. Sighing unnecessarily, he said, "Luv, I
have something to tell you...."

Willow looked at Spike and frowned, "What is it?"

"Luv, it's about the slayer," Spike said quietly.

She gasped, having forgotten Buffy during the struggle and everything that
had happened, "Oh God. I'd forgotten. She's dead."

He frowned, "She might be by now. She was barely hanging on when I left her."

"What? You left her?" Willow asked in confusion.

"Peaches and I found her in the cemetary. She was barely alive, pet. She
asked me to find you, to keep you safe. He was taking her to the hospital
when I went to your dorm." Spike said quietly. "She was real bad, honey.
She's strong though. If anyone could survive, it would be her."

"She has to be alive," Willow said, shaking her head. "Who did it? Or do I
need to ask?"

"I'm sure it was him," Spike said, his eyes narrowing. "She knew you were in
danger. She asked us to save you."

"Now I feel even worse," Willow said, wrapping her arms tight around her
body. "If she dies, it will be my fault. Another person hurt because of me."

"It isn't you," Spike said, pulling her against him. "I'm sure the slayer is
fine. We need to find Angel and the moron, tell them what has happened and
find out about the slayer. Get some sort of plan together to capture this
damn demon."

"I need to find out if she's ok," Willow agreed, hating the rush of guilt
that spread over her. Here she found out that Buffy had laid dying and still
thinking of her safety while she had been shagging Spike over and over. She
felt tears enter her eyes as she snuggled closer to Spike, thankful that he
was there. Spike sighed, hating that she was in such pain, both emotionally
and physically. He wanted this damn demon out of her life, wanted to see her
laughing and smiling again. He reached for his cell phone, thankful that his
sire had forced him into taking it. He hit the memory button, dialing up
Angel.

***********

Angel heard the distant ringing, coming out of his deep sleep with a frown.
He shifted on the bed, looking down into Xander's sleeping face. Last night
suddenly came back to him in a flash as he remembered tight warmth and wet
lips. He smiled slightly, brushing a lock of hair from Xander's face. He
glanced at the ringing cell phone and reached for it, only answering it
because he knew that only Spike, Giles or Cordelia would be using it.

"Hello?" he said sleepily.

"Peaches, wake up. We've got to talk," Spike said.

"Morning to you too, Sweets," Angel said. "What happened?"

"First off, how's the slayer?"

"She's still unconscious last we heard. Giles is with her so that we could
get some sleep."

"Sleep?" Spike chuckled before growing serious. "If you hurt the moron, I'll
kill you."

"Didn't know you cared," Angel said tightly, glancing down at Xander. His
voice softened, "I won't hurt him, Spike. I know what mistakes not to repeat."

"So I'm a mistake now?" Spike asked.

"You were never a mistake," Angel said. "I made the mistake in letting you
go. Enough about that. What happened?"

"The demon had Willow," Spike said, looking down at the redhead in his arms.
"He was attempting to rape her when I arrived. Couldn't see a damn thing. I
fought him, got her out and we ran through the sewers to the crypt."

"He got that close?" Angel said.

"Yeah," Spike said, growling.

"How is she?" Angel asked, knowing his childe's anger.

"Bruised and scared, but she's alive," Spike said. "I took care of her."

"Let this be my time to warn that if you hurt her, you die painfully," Angel
said casually.

"I won't," Spike said. "We're coming over there. We need to figure out some
plan of action. I'm tired of being one step behind this fucking bastard. So,
get the moron up and dressed. We'll be there within the hour."

Angel sighed as he closed his phone, looking down into dark brown eyes that
looked at him with anxiety, affection, curiosity and lust. He smiled softly,
knowing that Xander must be dealing with a lot. He leaned over, brushing his
lips against the boy's before saying, "Time to get up, Xan. Company's coming."

*******
"Will!" Xander called out in greeting as he opened the door. Frowning, he
continued, "You look like shit."

"I love you too," she said, rolling her eyes and smiling slightly at him as
she moved into his basement room.

"She looks beautiful," Spike defended softly as he walked in, lowering the
coat that had been concealing him from the sun and giving the teen a warning
look before moving behind Willow. His hand moved to the small of her back as
he guided her to the couch. "Peaches."

Angel nodded at his childe's greeting before looking at the petite redhead
that was leaning against the blonde. "Willow, Spike told me about last night."

She sighed, resting her head against Spike's chest as she smiled wryly,
"Yeah, I know. That bastard got to Buffy and then came after me. I'm getting
so tired of it all."

"It's gonna be fine, Will," Xander said, sitting in the lumpy brown chair he
loved. He smiled a slight smile at her as he leaned back, "Our vampies will
find the demon and kick its ass."

"Our?" she said, raising an eyebrow and glancing at Angel with a smile. "I
see."

"Told you he was a poof," Spike muttered in her ear causing her to giggle
slightly.

Angel glared at his childe, before saying, "Buffy is still unconscious but
her vitals look good. The doctors told Rupert that she should survive, though
they do not know when or if she will wake up. He's going to call us if
anything changes."

"Poor Buffy," Willow said quietly, the humor of Angel being with Xander
forgotten as she thought of her fallen friend. "You know, it's funny. Just a
couple of weeks ago I was so mad at her that I could spit. Now, I feel like a
part of me is dying with her in a coma. I never realized just how important
she really is to me. I feel bad for hating her back then."

"Hey now," Xander said getting her attention. "She deserved some dislike a
few weeks ago. She was being a major bitch and treating us both like shit.
But, she's always been our friend. That never changed even if we did resent
her connection with the Initiative."

"I know that," Willow said, "it's just, I dunno. Hard to explain, you know?"

Xander smiled, "I know."

Spike glanced at Angel and rolled his eyes as he mouthed the word, humans.
Angel smiled slightly before growing serious. "I'm sure she will wake up. I
don't see her allowing that bastard to get the best of her. She stayed alive
quite awhile by sheer will power after all. What we need to concentrate on is
who is after Willow, where can we find it, and how do we kill it."

"Here, here," Spike echoed, smiling at the thought of killing the demon that
had caused such misery for his redhead. "I vote for torture first, then kill,
though."

Angel smiled cryptically, "We'll see."

Seeing that smile, Xander felt himself begin to harden as he gulped, "Um,
still souled right?"

Angel winked at him before nodding, "Still souled. Just not brooding. Now,
Spike, Willow. Tell us what happened last night. Try to remember everything.
Even the smallest detail could be something important."

Willow laid her head down and closed her eyes as she began to describe the
events of the night before, pausing to answer random questions from Angel.
When it got to the part that Spike saved her, he began to add his own
description. Hearing the depth of emotion in his voice and feeling his arm
tighten around her shoulder as he described being almost paralyzed with fear
at the thought of losing her, she realized just how much he loved her. When
they had finished, Angel asked a few more questions. Then, they sat in
silence for several minutes.

"Well, that told us absolutely nothing except that Spike loves Willow,"
Xander pointed out, "and we already knew that."

"We know that he is growing more obsessive. He tried to claim Willow last
night after almost killing her best friend. He's getting impatient and that
is causing him to get sloppy. I think he's about to really mess up," Angel
said quietly as he continued to think.

"Let me check my source and see if he knows anything," Spike said, pulling
out his cell phone and calling. "Hey, it's me. You heard anything yet? Uh
huh. Yeah, we know. Really? Hmm...Ok. If you do get anything from him, let me
know. Thanks."

"Well?" Willow asked, looking up at him.

"Not much. He'd heard about the slayer. Someone says they saw someone with
her fighting before she went down. Couldn't see a face or anything. Just said
it was a tall, broad shape. That's it, but he does have a meeting with some
demon that supposedly saw something at the Intitiative before it was
destroyed. This guy told him that he could give a detailed description for
the right incentive. He's meeting him in a couple of hours," Spike said,
again feeling rather helpless. He hated waiting and that seemed to be all
that he had been doing the past weeks.

"Uh, guys," Willow spoke up after a few minutes. "Did anyone call Riley and
let him know about Buffy?"

"No," Xander said, his dislike at his friend's boyfriend evident. "He didn't
need to know."

"Xander!" Willow said, rolling her eyes. "He loves her. Last night, he was so
upset when he thought she was dead. He was crying. He needs to know that
she's at least alive."

"You can call him," Spike said, glancing at Xander. Yet another thing they
had in common, their mutual dislike for Riley.

"No, he said that their lines went out in the dorm after the Initiative was
destroyed. He gave me his pager number, but I think I should really tell him
in person. I mean, he was so devestated last night when he thought he lost
her, I know he'd want a friend today when he finds out she's still alive,"
Willow said, knowing that she would in the same circumstances.

"I don't want you going off alone," Spike said, almost growling.

"It's daytime," she pointed out reasonably. "I haven't seen my stalker at all
during the day."

"Actually, hon, you haven't seen him at all, period," Xander pointed out.

Willow continued logically as if Xander had never spoken, causing the teen to
stick his tongue out at her, "Besides, I think I'll run by parent's house and
take a shower and get some new clothes. Much as I love you, Spike, I can't
really see wandering around in your shirt all day."

"You look lovely in my shirt," Spike said, giving her a devilish smile, "and
out of my shirt and on my bed..."

"Ahem," Angel cleared his throat, able to smell the faint hints of arousal
beginning to come from the redhead and his childe and knowing if things did
not stop, they'd be shagging in front of him and Xander soon. As his cock
hardened at that image, he shook his head, knowing this was not the right
time for that particular fantasy to come to life. "Willow, I'm sure it would
be safe enough if you go home and change, but could you wait until dusk
before finding that boy?"

"It's barely early afternoon, Angel. If I wait too long, Buffy could get
worse or something. I'd feel horrible if something happened to her and Riley
didn't even get to go to the hospital. I'll just run by and tell him she's
alive and then I'll come straight back here. It shouldn't take more than an
hour and a half, two hours tops," she said, starting to feel a bit smothered.

"Give me time to shower and I'll go with you," Xander volunteered, not liking
the idea of Willow being alone not even a day after being almost raped in her
own dorm room.

"I don't need a babysitter," she said, trying to keep her words light though
her tone was rather sharp. "Guys, I love you all and I really appreciate you
being so protective, BUT, I'm just going by my house and to see Riley. I
think I should be safe enough."

"I don't like it," Spike said finally, his tone low. "This guy is getting
desperate. Whose to say he won't strike during the day, especially after his
attempt last night was thwarted. At least let the moron go with you."

"You know, I could have already gone and been back by now," she said with a
soft smile. She leaned over and kissed him gently before looking directly
into his eyes. "I'll be fine. If I start to feel threatened, I'll ask Riley
to drive back here with me before he goes to the hospital. Then I'd only be
alone during the time it takes to get to my house, which is down the street
and then to the dorms."

"You're not going to listen to me, are you?" he said, a bit irritated.
"Stubborn, strong willed little brat."

"Love you too," she said, smiling impishly.

"Take my car," Angel said, tossing her his keys. "Make sure all the doors are
locked when you get home and when you get out at the dorms. That should keep
you safe."

"Quit encouraging the brat," Spike muttered, glaring at his sire before
giving him a thankful smile. He wouldn't worry as much if she wasn't out in
the open walking. "Be careful, luv."

"Always," she said, kissing him again. "Don't worry, old man. I'll be back
before you know it."

"Give Riley my regards," Xander said as he made a face. "Seriously, though,
be careful, Wills."

"Yes, Dad," she said, giving him a brief hug and a kiss on the cheek. She
whispered, "Thank you for everything," in his ear before doing the same with
Angel. She heard Spike's soft growl as she hugged his sire and looked at him,
"No growling."

"Don't touch him then," he shot back, standing and bring her against his body
and claiming her mouth in a seering kiss. He pulled away, smirking as he saw
the slightly dazed look in her green eyes. "Hurry home."

"I will," she said, collecting herself before picking up Angel's car keys and
leaving. "See you guys soon."

********
Riley hit the bag again, his mind envisioning the face of Xander Harris. He
felt a rush of adrenalin as his fist made contact, shattering that face into
a million tiny pieces. He smiled slightly, hitting yet again. He had not been
able to sleep after leaving Willow's room the night before. He had looked
everywhere for her, having no idea where she may have gone. He didn't think
that even Xander was stupid enough to take her back to his place, so he had
avoided that neighborhood, but just about every where else he had searched.
He had found no trace of his love or that idiot that had stolen her away. Why
couldn't Xander recognize that Willow wanted to stay with him, Riley wondered
as he continued to hit the punching bag. It was obvious to him that she had
not wanted to go with Xander the night before. She had cried out and Riley
knew that she had finally realized that she belonged with him. It might take
awhile, but he would find her. Xander could not keep her hidden away forever.

Riley wiped the sweat from his forehead as he leaned over and picked up a
bottle of water. He drank half of it down easily, closing his eyes as he
remembered the smell and feel of Willow. Feeling his cock stirring in a
familiar fashion, he groaned. Just the thought of her made him harder than he
had ever been in his life. He reached for his medicine, taking his dosage.
Turning invisible was becoming easier with every passing day. Soon, he
wondered if he would even need the medicine. That made him smile slightly.
The idea that he could condition his body to become invisible without the
drugs just seemed too perfect. It would be one of the few good things that
had come from the Initiative. Not only could he watch Willow without her
knowledge, just to make sure she stayed loyal to him, he could fight evil
without being seen.

He put the now empty bottle of water in the trash as he made his way to his
bed. He laid down, propping two pillows behind his head as he closed his
eyes. He inhaled deeply, remembering the scent of vanilla and peaches and
roses that had covered Willow's sweet body. The scents had merged into an
intoxicating perfume that would not leave his senses. His hand drifted over
his chest and down his stomach into the waistband of his shorts. He frowned
momentarily, wondering when he was finally going to be able to stop having to
use his hand and could at long last sink into her tight warmth. Feel her red
curls brush against his cock as he thrust into her. Feel her breasts against
his chest, her hard nipples pushing against his skin as he devoured her
mouth. Moaning silently, his large hand encircled his cock as he began to
stroke himself. In his mind, he heard her begging for more, causing him to
speed up his actions. He saw her face, damp with sweat and eyes glazed with
desire, her perfect lips half open as moans and cries spilled from them, her
hips thrusting up to meet him as her muscles tightened around his length. He
felt the slight rush that signaled his release and tightened his hand on his
cock, fighting the urge off. He sat up, grimacing as he restrained himself
from coming. He was going to save it for her, for his sweet Willow. He pulled
his hand from his shorts, licking away the precum that coated the palm and
fingers. Hearing a soft knock on the door, his eyes narrowed. He got up,
grabbing a stray t-shirt and pulling it over his head. Opening the door, he
froze as a large smile crossed his face. Finally, she knew. She did belong to
him. It was fate, just as he had expected. She had come to him.

"Willow!" he took her hand and pulled her into the room, shutting the door
and locking it before facing her with a smile, "Please, make yourself at
home."

***********************

"Jim Morrison, you bleeding wanker," Spike yelled at the TV in disgust.

"Spike, they can't hear you. They're on television," Xander said, stressing
the last word.

"Fucking morons," Spike cursed as the contestant gave the wrong answer. He
glared at Xander, "What time is it?"

"Five minutes after the last time you asked," Angel said in an amused tone.

Spike moved his glare from the moron to his sire, "Didn't ask you, Peaches."

"I answered," Angel shot back, raising his brow in warning.

"Soddin' poof," Spike muttered, looking back at the TV. "Where is she? It's
been over an hour and a half."

"She said give her two hours," Xander reminded as he called out the correct
answer to the next question. He and the vampires had been watching the Game
Show network for the past hour, turning it on after not finding anything else
that they would all agree on to watch. Unfortunately, Spike was getting
worried about Willow and that concern was coming through in loud, abusive
waves as the blonde screamed every obsenity ever uttered at the television.

"I damn well know what she said. I was right here," Spike said.

"Spike," Angel warned, seeing the slightly panicked look in those familiar
blue eyes. "I'm sure she's fine. She might have gone to the hospital with
Riley, to check on Buffy. If something had happened, she would have called."

"And what if she couldn't?" Spike asked, needing to hear a reasonable answer.
He hated this fear of losing her, of finally finding someone that made him
happy only to lose her so soon. His eyes begged his sire to say the right
words to make everything all right, to dispel the fears and calm him down.

"I," Angel started, catching himself as he stared into Spike's eyes. What
could he say? There was no easy answer in this situation. They were still in
the dark about so many things. Before he could finish, Spike's cell phone
began to ring. Thankful, Angel motioned to it. "Why don't you answer that."

"Yeah, what?" Spike asked as he spoke into the phone.

"Do you think she's ok?" Xander asked his lover softly, his dark eyes
watching Spike and seeing the obvious tension in the blonde.

"I really don't know," Angel said honestly. "I think she is, but she is
taking longer than I thought."

"You're vibrating," Xander said suddenly with a grin.

"Huh?" Angel responded, looking down and smiling sheepishly as he saw his own
cell phone going off. He flipped it open and spoke, "Angel here. Giles? She
is? How is she?"

"He did?" Spike said, listening to his own conversation and ignoring his
sire. "What did he say? Really? So he saw this bastard? Ok. What?"

"That's great," Angel said sincerely. He looked at Xander, "Buffy's awake.
She's still very weak but the doctors think she'll make a full recovery. What
was that Giles? No, I was talking to Xander. Willow left a couple of hours
ago to run some errands."

"Did he see what he looked like?" Spike asked sharply, tired of hearing
meaningless details. "I want descriptions. Did he know what kind of demon it
was? What?! It was a human? What the fuck...."

"I'm sure she's fine, Rupert," Angel said, beginning to scowl as he heard the
obvious worry in the man's voice. "Buffy? Shouldn't you be resting? Willow
isn't here. She was going to go home and change and then she had someone to
see. Excuse me? Where do you get off....Nevermind. Trust me when I say that
we all tried to prevent her from going but you know Willow. She's stubborn.
She wouldn't listen. I'm sure she's fine though."

"Fuck me," Spike cursed, glancing at Xander and his sire. "What did the
bastard look like? Tall, built, light brown hair." He froze, a sinking
feeling entering his body. "Did the bloke have a big head? Goofy smile and a
'shucks ma'am' aura?"

"Buffy, calm down," Angel said softly, glancing at his childe and seeing a
look of pure fear and anger mixed in the depths of the blue eyes. "What
attacked you last night? What was after Willow?....God, no. Please tell me
you're joking."

"What is it?" Xander finally demanded, catching bits of two different
conversations and trying to understand them both. He looked at both his lover
and Spike, needing to know something.

"Riley," sire and childe both said softly, blue eyes caught by brown as a
feeling of dread washed over them all.

*******
"I'm sorry I didn't page you," Willow said, entering Riley's room. She
covered a yawn, having not gotten much sleep the night before. With her
attack and then Spike, she had caught barely a couple of hours. It had caught
up with her when she had gotten home, causing her to nap for almost an hour.
She knew Spike must be getting worried, and had been tempted to stop off to
assure them she was still ok before stopping at Riley's. But, she wanted to
get this over with, still not crazy about being alone with the man. There was
just something about him that still creeped her out. "And I couldn't phone
before coming over."

"You're always welcome here, Willow," he said, moving to sit on his bed. The
scent of her washed over him, reknewing his erection easily. "Sit. What can I
do for you?"

"I just wanted to stop by and check on you. Last night, you were pretty
upset," she said, sitting as far away from him as the small bed allowed. She
frowned when she looked in his eyes, her own quickly sweeping over him and
taking notice of several things. He did not look heartbroken as he had
appeared the night before. In fact, he seemed to not know what she was
talking about. Did he care so little about Buffy? If so, then why the act the
night before? Why pretend to be so forelorn over his girlfriend's death? She
again ventured a look into his eyes, seeing the same thing. Lust and desire.
She felt her heartbeat begin to speed up as she glanced at the door,
wondering if she could leave. He was scaring her.

"Last night?" he said, drinking in her beauty. He couldn't believe she had
actually come to him. He could already see her red hair spread out over his
pillow as he rode her hard and fast. It had been too long, too many days of
foreplay. He wanted her. "Oh, Buffy. Yeah. I can't believe she's dead."

"Me either," Willow said quickly, wondering what the hell she had done. Maybe
she was overreacting. It could just be everything that had been happening,
now she was suspicious of her friends. But, no. He was scaring her. That look
in his eyes bothered her. Like he owned her and she had finally come home.
She needed to leave. "Well, if you're OK, I think I'll be going. I'm supposed
to meet Xander in half an hour...OW!"

Riley had waited until she had gotten to her feet and was near the door
before striking. His hand tangled in her hair as he pulled her tight against
his body. "Willow, where do you think you're going?"

"Riley, please," she begged, tears in her eyes as he shoved her against the
door hard, his hand still in her hair.

"Oh, honey. Don't beg. Not yet. We've barely started," he said, pushing his
cock against her jeans covered ass. "Wait to beg until you can't stand not
having my cock in you. You'll forget all about Harris after you've had me. We
belong together, Willow. You know it. That's why you're here. He took you
from me last night so you found me today."

"Riley, just let me go. I'll forget all about this," she said, her mind
reeling. He thought she and Xander were involved? Her eyes widened as she
gasped, realizing what he had said. Last night.

"You will never forget me, Willow," he said roughly, pulling her back and
throwing her against the bed. His eyes narrowed as he looked at her, "You
belong to me. Oh, they tried to keep us apart but it wouldn't work."

"They?" she whispered, disbelief in her eyes. She moved across the bed, away
from his nearing figure.

"First that moron, Harris. Did he really think he deserved you? He wasn't
good enough to look at you, much less claim you. And Professor Walsh and the
others. They wanted to take me off the drugs, to get me away from the one
thing that brought us so close together. Well, I showed them. Their entire
little project, gone. They should have let us be together, Willow," he said,
his eyes looking lovingly at her.

"Goddess," she said, shaking her head. "No. This can't be...."

"And then there was Buffy. That stupid bitch actually thought she could stop
me from being with you. As if I would ever choose that common little whore
over you. I made sure to tell her everything that you and I would be doing as
I killed her. She was so envious, Willow. She wanted to be you. I know it.
But, she could never compare to you. She never could. You've always been the
one for me," he said, wanting to make her understand. He reached his hand up
to caress her lovely face.

"NO!" she yelled, tears on her cheeks. "Don't! Why? That's all I want to
know. Why me? Why did you do this to me?"

"Because, I love you," he said, looking at her with a hurt expression. He
sighed, "You don't realize it yet, do you? Even now, after everything that
I've done for you, you still refuse to see the truth."

"Please, let me go," she said, waiting until he was distracted before moving
off the bed and running for the door. She cried out when he grabbed her from
behind, pushing her to the floor. She felt his hardness against her ass and
closed her eyes, fighting him with every bit of strength she had.

"I'll never let you go, Willow. You're mine," he hissed in her ear. "I was
hoping that it wouldn't come to this, but you continue to insist on being
obtuse and not seeing that we belong together. I'm going to just have to
force you into seeing things my way."

"Get off of me. Let me go, damn it," she said, pushing up against the solid
muscle of his chest. He just laughed, his hands moving around her wrist and
tightening as he began to rock against her body, his mind playing out exactly
what he was going to do to her.

"I believe the lady told you to let her go," a drawl said from the door.

Willow heard it and felt relief as she looked up, crying out as Riley pushed
against her back. "Spike. Help me."

Spike struggled to get into the room, unable to get past the door. "Luv, I
can't. Come to me."

Riley began to laugh, "Some saviors. Two silly vampires caught by some
ancient superstition. Well, you boys can just stand there and watch me fuck
her if you like. Seems that it wasn't only that moron sharing the little
whore's bed. Did you fuck them both too as you continued to ignore me? I
asked you a question, bitch."

Willow felt herself being moved on the floor, her head hitting the floor as
she now faced a very upset Riley. She struggled against him, feeling a moment
of helplessness as she heard Angel and Spike outside the open door. Without
an invitation, they were unable to help her. "Yes I did. Both of them at the
same time. And Goddess, was it fantastic. And Xander joined in too. All three
of them with their cocks rammed into me. They're so big and cold, mixed with
Xander's warmth. You could never compete with what they've shown me, with
what I've learned from them. And I loved fucking them all. Everywhere and
every way. Spike could snap his fingers and I'd be down begging for his cock.
I'll never beg for you, Riley."

"You little slut," he said, disgust in his eyes as he listened to her words.
"You don't deserve me, whore."

"I don't want you. I'll never want you," she said, hoping that her words
would anger him enough to get off of her so she could make a run for the
door. "You are nothing compared with them."

"Just words," he said finally, catching her chin in a bruising grip and
causing her to cry out. "When you feel me inside you, you'll forget them all.
You'll be my whore, bitch."

"I don't think so," Xander said, swinging the bat and hitting the back of
Riley's head. He watched the man topple over to the side as he reached for an
upset Willow. He hugged her close, listening to her cry as he whispered,
"It's going to be OK, honey. I'm here. We're all here. He's not going to hurt
you ever."

"I love you, Xander," she mumbled, hugging him again before turning and
moving into Spike's arms. She could see the tension in him and knew he was
blaming himself for not being able to get into the room to help her. He must
be going insane knowing that he owed her life to Xander. She kissed him as
she whispered that she loved him, catching his eyes to make sure he knew she
did not think less of him. When she saw him smile softly, she knew it would
be OK.

"Boys, I've got you a prezzie," Xander said with a slight smile as he pushed
Riley's unconscious body towards the doorway.

"Aw, didn't know you cared," Angel said, sweeping in and giving his lover a
harsh kiss. He couldn't explain the anger that his demon had felt at seeing
Willow at that bastard's mercy, but he rather liked it. He looked down at the
youth, smiling a slightly cruel smile as he looked at Spike. "Why don't we
have some fun, m'boy?"

"Thought you'd never ask," Spike said, licking his lips as he caught the
familiar look in those dark eyes. Seemed Peaches was going to let Angelus out
to play. What fun. He looked at Willow, having to know she would be OK with
this. "Luv?"

"Make him regret ever meeting me, Spike," she said softly, her hatred for
Riley making her forget her morals for just a moment. "Angel, make sure he
never forgets Buffy and Xander and what he did to them."

"Aye, luv, will do," Angel said, leaning down and tossing the boy over his
shoulder. He couldn't wait to get started. He glanced at Spike again, his
eyes eager. "Shall we, childe?"

"Whelp, make sure she stays safe," Spike said, glancing at Xander.
"Andthanksforsavingher," he mumbled quickly as he turned. "Let's go, Sire. We
have a toy to torture."

******
Spike ran his tongue over the whip, collecting the blood as his yellow eyes
stared at the bloody human chained in front of him. He felt his sire behind
him, cool arms going around his waist as he looked back. He smiled as Angel
leaned over, catching his mouth. The dark haired vampire's tongue swept
inside, collecting the blood and sharing it with him. Spike groaned as his
cock throbbed again, his sire's hand squeezing it as he pulled away.

"Are we almost done with him?" Angel asked lazily, regarding the boy with a
cruel smirk. His hand moved out, picking up one of a dozen knives of various
length and size and pushing it into Riley's abdomen. He closed his eyes
briefly, knowing that he needed to enjoy this. His soul was still present,
reminding him that this was wrong, that no matter what Riley had done, he was
still human, but even the soul could not argue that he deserved to live. So,
he had let his demon have some fun, and it felt damn good. It had been so
long since he had enjoyed the sheer pleasure of torture with his childe. He
glanced at Spike and saw the similiar look in those blue eyes. They were both
in love with humans, which meant this would be the only time they could truly
recapture that hunger and thirst for revenge. To have his childe back in his
life, to have Xander and whatever awaited their future, Angel could accept
controling the blood lust.

Riley was too weak to move, his arms hanging above his head as blood dripped
from his wrists. His entire body was covered with marks made from various
instruments that the vampires had used to play. They had beat him and cut him
until he had grown hoarse from screaming. When he could no longer speak,
Spike had removed his tongue, knowing that it was that tongue that had
caressed Willow's bare neck. His hands had long since been destroyed, fingers
removed in a leisurely fashion as he had screamed, palms cut from knives that
Angel found fascinating. He knew his death was inevitable, having seen the
look in their eyes as they had tortured him. He had listened to Spike speak
about Willow and of fucking her. The verbal torture still continued, from
both of them. They seemed to enjoy telling him exactly what they planned to
do before they did it, taking their time and allowing his mind to create such
horrible images. He simply wanted to die.

"Aye, that we are," Spike said, his eyes coldly looking over the human. He
had to smile though, having realized shortly after they had begun torturing
the boy that he was indeed still human. Somehow, that night at Willow's dorm,
something had happened to his implant. He had several theories, the foremost
being rather sappy even to him, but making the most sense. When he had seen
her in danger and had known her life was on the line, his feelings for her
and the need to protect his mate had short circuited the implant. He knew it
was most likely some scientific thing having to do with the destruction of
the initiative and satelites and chips and such, but he prefered to think it
was his love for Willow that had made him normal again. The ironic thing was
that now that he could actually hurt humans again, he was in love with one
that would frown upon him feeding from her kind. So, he was destined to
remain non threatening until he turned her. Or, he smiled slightly, unless it
was some miserable human that deserved to be killed like this bastard.

"Good. I'm growing bored with all this," Angel said as he winked at Spike. He
moved towards Riley, going behind the youth. He ran his tongue over the
bloody back, hearing the weak heartbeat begin to speed up.

"Besides, Willow is waiting for me. Been a day already," Spike said, smiling
as he thought of his redhead. "Yeah, let's finish this."

Riley's mouth opened in a silent scream as two sets of fangs sunk into either
side of his neck. His eyes fluttered shut as his last thoughts were of how
thankful he was to finally die. Spike pulled away when he felt death claim
the boy. He frowned as he moved away from the body, glad in a way that it was
finally done. He glanced at Angel and saw his sire wiping the blood from his
mouth, his eyes still yellow.

"You OK?" Angel asked softly, ruining the image of bad ass vampire with his
concerned words.

Spike had to laugh, "Only you would ask me that, Peaches."

"What?" Angel defended as his features became normal. "I care."

"I'm fine. Just eager to get back to my Red," Spike said. "And glad this is
finally over."

"Yeah, me too. I hated seeing Willow go through this hell."

"And the moron and the slayer getting dragged into it all," Spike said,
pulling a shirt over his head. He looked at Angel who was also finishing
dressing. "Ready to go back to our lovers?"

"Ready, willing and able," Angel said, smiling as he headed to the door of
the warehouse.

Spike cast one last look at the corpse of Riley before moving forward to join
his sire. He let the door swing shut as he headed into the night, ready to
see Willow.

********
Spike caught Willow's mouth as he continued to thrust into her. Her
fingernails dug into his back as her legs circled his waist. She moved up to
meet each stroke, her muscles clenching around him as they moved. He moved
his hand under her skirt, his thumb brushing against her clit as she cried
out. His tongue swept over hers as he began to move faster. He could feel her
nipples straining against the cotton fabric of her shirt, pushing into his
chest through the cotton of his own shirt. The hand he had under her ass
shifted her, causing him to sink deeper into her. When he had her balanced
against the wall, his hand moved under her shirt to knead her breasts as they
continued to move together.

Willow moaned as she felt his cool hand on her breast. She had not worn a bra
for the visit, having decided instead to wear one of Spike's shirts and a
knee length skirt. She knew subconsciously she had hoped for this. In the two
weeks since Riley's death, she and Spike had become even more close. They had
spent hours talking and sharing and shagging. It was great to have someone
that she complimented so well. There things that they had in common, but
there were also things they disagreed on. They would often argue about those
things, always ending the argument with a passionate coupling. She loved to
feel him, even in a non sexual way. Just his hand resting on her shoulder or
his leg brushing hers. It was weird, but it never failed to make her feel
reassured. In the distance, she heard an intercom announcement and remembered
exactly where they were this time. She almost felt embarrassed to be fucking
in the stairway, but that added element of danger of maybe being caught made
her excited too. She tightened her muscles again, hearing him hiss in
pleasure. Smiling, she moved her mouth down his cheek and along his neck.
Again, she heard his pleasure as she teased his tender flesh between her
blunt teeth. She felt her body tense as she bit into his neck. She felt his
own teeth enter her neck as they came, her head resting on his shoulder as
she caught her breath.

"Love you," she said, letting her feet find the floor as she straightened her
skirt and shirt.

"Love you too," he said, tucking his cock into his pants and zipping them.

"You know," she giggled playfully, "I need to get some of those little
cleaning napkins if we are going to continue to have sex wherever the urge
strikes us."

"I'll remind you when we go shopping tomorrow," he said, kissing her before
opening the door and leading her into the hallway of the hospital.

Willow was still laughing as she walked into Buffy's room. "Buffy, how are
you doing today?"

"Obviously not as well as you," Buffy said dryly with a slight smile as she
took in the fresh bite on her best friend's neck plus the mussed hair and
clothes.

"Someone got lucky," Xander taunted with a large grin as Willow stuck her
tongue out at him.

"You're just jealous because you're vamp is too modest to fuck in the
stairwell," Willow said, smirking at Angel.

"I am not modest," Angel said, causing everyone to laugh.

"Angel, honey, I dated you off and on for two years. You're the king of
modesty," Buffy said, smiling at her former lover. She glanced at Xander
resting beside Angel and had to roll her eyes. She never would have expected
three weeks ago that she would be dealing with her former lover becoming
involved with one of her best friends. One of her best male friends, no less.
And on top of that, the obvious love between Willow and Spike was something
to get used to. And those completely paled next to the truth that her lover
had been stalking Willow and had killed several people and tried to kill
several others all in some drugged induced mission to claim Willow. In the
long run, she should have seen the signs of his illness and dependency before
they ever got to be dangerous. She blamed herself in some ways, though Willow
would smack her if she knew. Because of Riley, she couldn't really say all
that much about Xander's relationship with Angel or Willow's love for Spike.
It might take her awhile, but she would accept them. They did seem happy and
that is all she had ever wanted for her friends. Seeing Angel's narrowed
gaze, she laughed, "A complete gentleman, I mean."

"A sodding poofster is what he is," Spike said, sliding into the hard chairs
that sat in Buffy's private room. "When do you break free of this place,
slayer? I hate these damn chairs."

"Doctor said things are going well and mostly healed. Should be sometime this
weekend. Thank God," Buffy added. "I hate this place. I've felt fine for
weeks. They're just soaking the insurance company is what it is."

"Ah, a true cynic speaks," Willow said with a smile. "It shouldn't be much
longer. And you're fine. That's what is most important."

"Yeah, she's right," Xander said with a smile. He had been surprised at how
Buffy was trying to deal with his whatever it was with Angel. He had expected
tears or anger, but instead she had smiled and said it made sense. He glanced
at his lover, smiling slightly. "I don't mind the modesty."

"It's not modesty!" Angel said, glaring at them all. "Why did I ever move
back here?"

"Cause you're lusting for the moron," Spike said helpfully.

"Cause you'd miss us if you stayed in LA," Willow said, smiling as she moved
back against Spike's arm.

"Cause LA is never as exciting as it is here in Sunnydale," Buffy said.

"Cause you like us more than you like Cordy and Wesley," Xander said, winking
at Willow.

"Argh," Angel growled, his lips twitching slightly. Everything they said had
been right. He would miss them, his new family. He wasn't sure what he had
going with Xander, but he did know they felt something a bit more than lust.
Was it love? Could be. Time would tell. And he had plenty of time. Standing,
he grabbed Xander's hand. "Come on, brat."

"What? We just got here?" Xander protested before seeing the look of lust in
Angel's dark eyes. "Um, yeah, ok. Going now."

"I'll show you modesty," Angel muttered, glancing at the amused faces of his
family. Smiling slightly, he shoved Xander out the door, intent on finding a
stairwell and ridding himself of the image of being a fuddy dudd, as Willow
would jokingly call him. He called over his shoulder before the door shut,
"I'll be seeing you."

********THE END**********************