Where Darkness Leads

Chapter 3

The next morning, Giles was busy behind the desk, checking in books. He fondly remembered back to when Jenny had thought about how books were outdated and old-fashioned. The Internet and the information age were the thing now. No more looking up stuff in musty volumes.

"Giles, we need to talk," Buffy said, parading in.

"Excuse me?" Giles began looking up.

"I keep having this dream lately that's not going away."

"Do you think you're having another portent?"

'I don't know," she said, "but last night at The Bronze, I saw this woman. It was the same woman who has been appearing in my dreams every night."

"Did you speak to her?"

"No, she left so fast that I couldn't catch up to her. Completely vanished."

"Can you describe what she looked like?"

"I think so. She was blonde. Actually looked like she was close to around my age. Wore really outdated clothes. It looked as if no one was paying any attention to her."

"It could be a ghost you saw."

"Another spook?"

"Yes," he replied. "Anything else significant happen in your dream?"

"Not that I could tell except that I was in the cemetery. It was daytime, but then it turned completely dark from a bunch of clouds overhead. Then a bolt of lightning hits the ground, and I wake up."

For a few seconds, Giles ran through in his mind what Buffy could be experiencing.

"So what's the deal?"

"Honestly, Buffy, I don't know," he answered. "From what you have told me, this is unlike any other you have ever had. The dreams you had about Angel with Drusilla and The Judge were easily explainable, but this is highly different."

Buffy sank into her chair, feeling discouraged.

"Don't feel bad," he said consolingly. "As you know, most prophecies don't show themselves right away."

Buffy looked around at the library table, seeing the assorted books and other materials that were all normally used during their hours of research. Among the piles, she noticed what seemed like a new book. It was altogether strange that she would even remember most of the books in his collection. What would everyone think if the single place she spent the most time at school was in the library? She picked it up and scanned the binding.

"So you got another musty book?" she asked jokingly.

"Yes," Giles said as he lifted the other books off the table. "It is from an old friend of mine who is a historian. He discovered that book recently and knew I had a collection of rare occult books, so he gave it to me as a gift."

"What exactly is it?"

"A very old grimoire," he continued. "I know Willow will have as much interest in it as I do."

"I think she'll like seeing this."

"Like seeing what?" Willow said, walking in.

Buffy presented the book to Willow.

"Wow, this is very ancient," she said as she paged through the book. "These are spells in here that I can't come even close to mastering."

"It is probably better to keep it in the library," Giles said, carefully lifting the book from Willow's hands.

"Okay, I'll wait and watch to see if anything else not of the norm happens in the next few days," Buffy said.

"That would be best."

"What's going on, Buffy?" Willow said after walking down the hall with her.

"I've been having more dreams lately."

"It is like...?, you know?"

"Completely and totally."

"What do you think it all means?"

"I am not sure yet."

                                                                     **********

Angel sometimes found it hard to get to sleep. He awoke and walked out into the main room, standing in shock seeing the stone statue of Acathla with its sword drawn out of its chest. He heard a sudden noise coming from the outside garden. Suddenly, Angel saw his body hitting the floor with a sword in his hand. He looked up to see Buffy charging out of the curtains towards him. He watched himself quickly get up, parrying her sword. Both dodged and parried each other's attacks, approaching Acathla. As they stood in front of the stone demon, Buffy swiped his hand where the sword broke from his hand.

She gave him a fast kick to his face, which made him fall to his knees. Buffy raised the sword high at the same moment Angel felt himself being hit with something like a wave that washed through his whole body. He gasped in obvious pain, seeing a light grow brightly in his eyes and dim instantly. She could see how his eyes grew wide as he collapsed to the floor in relief. As he raised his head back up, his eyes were full of tears.

From his vantage point, he knew what that felt like the instant his soul was restored to him, along with the pain of remembering. It was like watching scenes from an old movie; however, it was all too real.

"Buffy?" he said. "What's going on?"

He looked around the unfamiliar mansion and slowly stood up.

"Where are we? I-I don't remember."

"Angel?" Buffy said, realizing it was safe to lower her sword.

Angel noticed the cut that was on her arm she had gotten from the sword fight with Angelus.

"You're hurt."

Buffy stepped closer to him as he embraced her in his arms.

"Oh, Buffy....God.....I feel like I haven't seen you in months. Oh, my god, everything's so muddled. I...." he said embracing her more closely, kissing her on the shoulder. "Oh. Oh, Buffy."

 He glanced behind himself, watching Acathla slowly open its large mouth.

"What's happening?" Angel asked after looking and seeing Buffy's concerned face.

"Shh. Don't worry about it."

He watched Buffy as he began to kiss her, and she returned passionately as Acathla's mouth was growing larger by the minute.

"I love you," Buffy said, pulling away from him, looking into his eyes.

"I love you."

"Close your eyes," Buffy said.

Angel gave Buffy an unsure look, but Buffy nodded reassuringly.

Once he had closed his eyes, Buffy had given him a gentle kiss and watched her draw back the sword, swiftly thrusting it into his chest where it went also went into Acathla itself. He could see the confusion on his own face whereas all that Buffy could was stand back watching the sword.

"Buffy..." he called, reaching his hand out to her.

The binding power of the sword began to mesh with the vortex until they were one. Angel became enveloped in the swirling vortex until, instantly, he and it were gone. Buffy just stood staring ahead at Acathla before she broke down crying, covering her face of fresh tears with her hands.

It was a sad reminder; however, it was what she needed to do. It was her duty to save the world, but Angel knew that sending him to whichever hellish dimension he was trapped in was the hardest choice she ever had to make in her time as the Slayer.

He woke up and saw he was still in his bed. He got up and dressed, noticing the sun had just about set from the windows. I need to see Buffy, I need to tell her what's happening, he thought. Whistler's cryptic message now became his primary concern.