This Week
by Hjmugillecuty
SUMMARY: Sequel to my previous story "Today". You should probably read that first.
RATING: FRT [MV] [SR] [AU]
SPOILERS: Through Season 3 of Angel and Season 6 of Buffy
DISCLAIMER: None of these characters belong to me and I make no money off of this piece of fiction. They all belong to their original creators.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: This is much shorter than my last story. There should be one more to follow. Thank you for the feedback. Archive permission is granted to A Whole New World and Blue Moon Rising. Hope you like it.
Wesley Wyndam-Pryce woke up to find himself alone in bed and his apartment alarmingly quiet. Alarming, because for the past week he had woken up with Winifred ‘Fred’ Burkle in his arms and to the voices of friends in his living room. Waking up to silence worried him because of the danger Angel currently posed to them. He quickly got out of bed, pulling pants on as he headed for the living area. He walked into the kitchen to see Fred sipping tea at the counter as she leafed through the newspaper.
“Ahem.” Wesley coughed.
“Oh Wes, you’re finally awake.” Fred approached and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. “I thought you were going to sleep all day. Not that you haven’t earned it, training Connor and Dawn every day.” She walked back to the counter.
“Well, Xander and Gunn have helped. Speaking of them, where is everyone?”
“Xander took Dawn and Connor to get more movies. Dawn wanted to pick up some popcorn too.
Wesley stepped behind Fred and wrapped his arms around her waist. He leaned over and started kissing her neck. She turned in his arms and began kissing him hungrily. He pulled her closer as she kissed his throat, covering his scar with her lips.
“How long will they be gone?” Wesley asked huskily, pushing Fred up against the counter and running his hands all over the back of her t-shirt.
“Not that long,” she replied, kissing his lips one more time and pushing him away.
“Are you sure?”
“I don’t want to spend our first time listening for the door.”
“I understand, love. I don’t want that either.” Wesley turned Fred around and again wrapped his arms around her waist. He rested his head on her shoulder and looked at the newspaper. “Anything good in the news?”
“No. I was going to read the comics. Dawn always steals them.”
“Little thief.”
“Don’t call her that. Xander said she got caught doing some shoplifting, but she’s behaving herself now.”
“Fine. So I won’t lock down the silver.” Wesley picked up a red file folder from the counter. “What’s this? It’s marked CONNOR.”
“Lorne brought that by last night. I’ve had him working on it since Connor came back from Quar-Toth.”
“Really?” Wesley lifted Fred up on the counter facing him. She wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him against the edge of the counter. He opened the folder. “Birth certificate for Connor Steven Angel, son of Liam and Darla Angel, in 1986. Social Security Card. Immunization and doctor’s records. High school transcripts?”
“Yeah, they’re from Sunnydale High. Xander had Giles get them for us. We figured he could help if there were any questions.”
“So this is everything he needs to be legal?”
“It should be. Also, I found out that the hotel and here are in the same high school district so we are going in tomorrow to register him for fall.”
“What form will we be registering him for?”
“Junior year, same as Dawn is. We need to find out what classes he’ll have so we can tutor him and get him ready.”
“You, sweet, are brilliant,” Wesley said, leaning his head forward to kiss her.
“My eyes! My eyes!” Wesley pulled his head back to glare at Xander in the doorway. Fred slid off the counter as Connor and Dawn appeared behind Xander.
“What’s going on?” Dawn asked.
“Nothing,” answered Fred. “We were just discussing tomorrow.”
“Must I go with you tomorrow?” Connor asked.
“You don’t have to.”
“Xander and Dawn said they would take me to a place called the mall. Dawn says people our age spend much time there.”
“That’s fine, Connor, as long as Xander agrees to take responsibility,” Wesley commented.
“Hey, they’ll take care of me,” Xander insisted.
“Very well,” Wesley said. “I’m going to shower and dress, and then we will start the day’s training.”
*****
Fred sat on the couch, which had been pushed against the wall, and watched Wesley and Xander lead Dawn and Connor through the Slayer training Wesley had learned as a Watcher. As Wesley had Connor and Dawn face off with some roundhouse kicks, Xander made his way to Fred’s side.
“You know, I’ve never seen this side of him,” Xander commented.
“What do you mean?”
“When Wes was in Sunnydale, he wasn’t much of a fighter. He was more likely to faint than fight.”
“I can’t imagine that. When I first met him, he was leading a group of Pylean rebels in a coup against the ruling Trombli.”
“What is Pylea? If it’s okay that I ask?”
“It’s the demon dimension that Lorne is from. I fell through a portal and ended up there.”
“What was it like?”
“All humans there were slaves. I managed to escape and lived in a cave. I remembered the words to open the portal, but I didn’t know how to tell where they opened. A creature, a Drokken beast, fell through one of my portals and ended up here in L.A. Somehow Cordelia got to Pylea, and the others came to save her. Charles and Wesley ended up with the rebels, and they saved me too.”
“Wow. Where…?” Xander was interrupted by an errant kick from Dawn that hit him in the shoulder.
“Oh. Sorry, Xander. Are you okay?” Dawn apologized.
“I’ll recover,” he moaned, holding his shoulder. “Maybe we should take a training break.”
“Sounds wonderful,” Wesley said as he sat next to Fred, wrapping his arm around her and kissing her on the head. “It seems to be time for a late lunch. I can cook, or we can order in.”
“Oh, how about Chinese?” Dawn begged.
“What?” Connor asked.
“It’s really good. Rice and noodles and spices. You’ll love it. Please?”
“Chinese all right with everyone?” Wesley looked at Fred's and Xander’s nodding heads. “Fine. I’ll order.”
*****
Fred interrupted Dawn’s narrative about her sister to ask the question that had been in her head since that morning. “Dawn, what are you planning to do at the mall tomorrow?”
“Window shop mostly. I only have a few dollars.”
“Actually, Dawn,” Xander said, “Giles gave me some money in case you needed anything, plus I got paid for my last construction job.”
“I was thinking,” Fred began, “that maybe we could give Connor some money and have you guys get him some new clothes, so he can stop wearing Wes’.”
“Good idea,” Wesley said. “Remind me to give you some cash tomorrow, Xander. Now, we should return to training. Xander, do you want to play the attacker or the victim?”
“Attacker.”
“Am I always going to have to be the victim?” Fred asked.
“Sorry, love,” Wesley answered, pulling her off the couch and into his arms.
*****
Later that evening, Fred and Wesley sat listening to Xander’s account of the wedding. Dawn was sitting with them, having not heard the details of Xander’s decision not to be married before. Wesley was sitting behind Fred, massaging her back. He looked towards the window. Connor stood there, looking out at the lights of Los Angeles. Wesley kissed Fred on the side of the neck and went over to Connor.
“What are you thinking, Connor?”
“Not much. The city is beautiful.”
“Yes. The lights…”
“Wesley,” Connor interrupted, “tell me about my mother.”
“What?”
“Dawn’s been telling me all day about her mother and sister, and Fred told me about her parents the other day. Holtz used to tell me how my parents were evil, soulless creatures. He was wrong about my father. What about my mother?”
“I…um.”
“Connor?” Xander had finished his story, and Fred had turned around on the couch in time to catch the panicked expression on Wesley’s face. “Connor, come sit with us, and we’ll tell you about your mother.”
Connor and Wesley joined the others at the couch. Connor sat next to Dawn on the floor while Wesley settled in next to Fred, snaking his arm around her waist as she leaned against his chest. Wesley racked his brain, desperately searching for a way to explain Darla to her son.
“Your mother,” Wesley began. “Your mother…”
“Your mother loved your father very much,” Fred jumped in. “She loved you, too. She couldn’t wait for you to be born.”
Wesley smiled at Fred’s choice of words and squeezed her waist for her to continue.
“But can you tell me about her? What kind of person was she?”
“Well, we don’t know what she was like before she was turned the first time. That information was never recorded. When she was paired with Angelus before he received his soul, they were particularly vicious. But that is the nature of the demon,” Wesley replied.
“So she was evil. She did everything Holtz said she did. She never had a soul?”
“She did once,” Fred remembered.
“When?”
“She had yours. When she was expecting you, she had your soul. But she knew that when you were born, she would lose the soul and forget all the feelings and the love she had for you. She was afraid.”
“Fred, how did Darla die?” Xander asked quietly.
“She couldn’t give birth naturally, and we couldn’t do a C-section because there was some force protecting Connor. We had been at Caritas, Lorne’s old club, when Holtz firebombed it. We made it as far as the alley when Darla couldn’t go any farther. Wesley and the others went to get the car while Angel and I stayed with Darla. She was scared. She knew that once he came, she wouldn’t be able to remember she loved him. So she told Angel that Connor was the one good thing they had ever done together and to make sure he knew that. Then she picked up a splinter of wood and staked herself, leaving Connor on the ground.”
“She killed herself for him?” Dawn asked incredulously. “I’ve never met a vampire who would do that, except maybe Spike.”
“Dawn, we are not talking about that now,” Xander muttered.
“Spike?” Wesley asked, surprised.
“We’ll tell you later.”
Fred looked at Connor for some kind of reaction to the story of his mother. He looked like he was trying to sort things out in his head.
“She loved me,” he said softly.
“Connor, are you alright?” Wesley queried.
“She’s dead, so that’s all that matters now. She loved me, like Dawn’s mother loved her, and Fred’s mother loves her, and your mothers love you and Xander. I belong.”
“You belonged anyway Connor,” Fred said, leaning down to hug him.
Xander shifted a little uncomfortably. “Anybody want to watch a movie?”
“Yes. Connor and I will make the popcorn,” Dawn declared.
*****
After the movie ended and the others had gone to sleep, Fred and Wesley were cuddled in his bed. Wesley stopped in between kisses.
“You were wonderful tonight, Fred.”
“When?”
“When you told Connor about Darla. You were wonderful.” He started kissing her neck.
“Thank you. You weren’t so bad yourself.” She began tracing his earlobe with her tongue.
“Oh, I love you,” he said, pulling her close.
“I love you, too. Goodnight.” She gave him a final firm kiss, then curled up next to him and fell asleep.
“Goodnight,” he whispered, holding her closely.
*****
The next morning, Fred kissed Wesley awake to ensure that they would make it to their appointment with the school on time. Wesley gave Xander some money, and he left with Dawn and Connor for the mall.
Wesley and Fred took off on the motorcycle for the high school. Fred had borrowed a dress from Dawn since she was still raiding Wesley’s closet. The school turned out to be three miles from Wesley’s apartment and two miles from the Hyperion in the other direction.
“Now what is our story here?” Wesley asked, helping Fred off the bike and taking her hand in his own.
“Most of it is going to be the actual truth. We are Connor’s aunt and uncle, on his mother’s side. Connor is staying with us while his father relocates from Sunnydale. His mother died when he was born. And you have power of attorney to make decisions for Connor.”
Wesley pulled Fred to a stop. “Where did you get that? Tell me you didn’t forge that.”
“No. Remember when Connor was born, Angel gave you and Cordelia power of attorney to be used when necessary. Lorne was holding it for us, and he put it in the folder. Now, c’mon. They’re waiting for us.” Fred tugged his hand, and they went inside.
*****
“Well, everything here seems to be in order,” the school counselor said. “It’s so nice to see family taking an interest, Mr. and Mrs. Pryce.”
Wesley smiled at Fred, for she had told the principal they were married.
“We adore the child,” he said. “We’d do anything for him.”
“And how long have you two been married?”
“A year,” Fred replied, squeezing Wesley’s hand as she continued the story.
“How wonderful. Now, shall we go over Connor’s transcripts? I don’t see any extracurricular activities listed.”
“Oh, he runs track,” Fred said. “He just concentrates on that and school.”
“Well, we have a decent track team he may wish to join. I see he has taken chemistry, geometry, English, of course, world history, physical education and a few art courses. No foreign languages?”
“No,” Wesley replied, “but we were hoping to sign him up. I don’t suppose you have a Latin course he could take?”
“We have a small one. Beginning and intermediate levels only. Shall we sign him up for that?”
“Certainly,” answered Wesley.
“Then, of course, P.E. and the next level of each required course. That would be physics, pre-analysis, U.S. history, and English 11. There is room for one other elective. There are music classes or shop.”
“Shop,” answered Fred and Wesley in unison. They laughed, and Wesley explained to the confused counselor, “His father can’t sing at all, and we suspect it is hereditary.”
“All right then, we have his schedule set up. School starts September 5th. There is no school uniform, but here is a list of guidelines. It was a pleasure meeting you both, and we look forward to seeing Connor in the fall.”
“Thank you,” Wesley said as he took Fred’s hand and led her out of the building. Once they had made it to the parking lot, Wesley picked up Fred and swung her around. “How about that? We are the uncle and aunt of a high school student.”
“Calm down, sweetie. Let’s see if we can find the others at the mall, and we’ll get some books to start getting him ready. I figure you can prep him for English if you promise to teach him American spellings.”
“I don’t know if I can do that, love.”
“Then give him a good excuse. You can also start him on the Latin. I’ll handle physics, of course, math and history. He doesn’t need to be prepared for P.E.”
“Someone will need to tell him the rules of the games.”
“Oh. I guess we can figure that out.”
“And Xander works construction, so he can help with shop.”
“Perfect.” Fred kissed Wesley hard. “Let’s go.”
*****
Fred and Wesley had finished their book shopping and had also stopped to buy her some clothes. Wesley then waited on a bench while Fred stopped in Victoria’s Secret for a few purchases. As he sat waiting, Xander, Dawn and Connor walked by carrying a number of shopping bags. Xander saw Wesley and stopped.
“Hey, Wes. How did the meeting go?”
“Wonderfully. We purchased the books we’ll need to prepare Connor for his classes.”
“Where’s Fred?”
“In there.” Wesley nodded to Victoria’s Secret. “She’s doing some shopping.”
“I wondered why you were wearing the silly grin.” Xander punched Wesley’s arm.
“Not a word, Xander. So, what did you all buy?”
Dawn rooted through the bags. “We picked up some jeans and nice shirts, plus some t-shirts. Pajamas too. Then, we found the sporting goods store.”
“Yes. We found this wooden battering implement.” Connor pulled a baseball bat out of the bag in his hand. “Also a new crossbow. But no stakes. I suppose we must make our own.”
“Yeah, Connor, they don’t sell stakes in L.A.,” Fred said, coming up behind them. She glanced at the bag from the sporting goods store. “Oh, hockey!”
Everyone stared at her in surprise.
“Is this a new curse you’re using, love?” Wesley asked.
“No, remember we told the counselor that Connor runs track? I just remembered that Angel wanted to teach Connor hockey. Because the games are indoors and at night. And instead we pick an…”
“Outside daytime sport. Oops,” Wesley finished for her.
“Oh well, you’ll work it out later. Are you guys done shopping?” Xander queried.
“Yes. Could you take our bags for us? There’s no room on the motorbike,” Wesley replied.
*****
Wesley and Fred had beaten the others back to the apartment and were bantering about what she had bought at Victoria’s Secret when suddenly Wesley was grabbed from behind and thrown against the wall. Fred screamed, for the attacker was Angel.
“Fred! Get inside now!” Wesley called from the floor. He tossed the keys to her, but Angel caught them in midair.
“You just stay there, Fred. I’m only here for Wesley, but I advise you to stay out of my way.”
“No, Angel, I won’t let you kill him.” Fred ran forward to pull Angel away, but a slap of his hand threw her to the ground.
Angel addressed Wesley, “I smell Fred on you. Does she know who I smelled on you last time?”
Fred looked up at Angel and Wesley, confused.
“I’m only going to ask you this once before I kill you, Wesley. Where is my son?” Angel approached where Wesley had pulled himself up the wall.
“Right behind you. Dad.”
Angel turned to see Connor holding a crossbow pointed at his heart and Xander wielding the baseball bat. Dawn was helping Fred stand. Xander stepped over to Dawn and handed her the key Wesley had given him. “You and Fred get inside, now. Leave the door open for a quick getaway.”
Dawn and Fred inched towards Wesley’s front door, watching the standoff between father and son.
“They keep telling me you are good,” Connor started. “But I haven’t seen it. You keep hurting us. You keep trying to kill Wesley. Maybe you don’t have a soul.”
“Connor, don’t you see?” Angel said desperately. “He keeps taking you away from me.”
“So you decide to kill him?” Xander scoffed. “Yeah, that’s a great way to get your son back, kill his friend.”
“You are not involved in this, Xander,” Angel snarled.
“Yes, I am. My friends are in trouble, and just like old times it’s your fault.”
“How is this my fault? Wesley is the one who took him away!”
Dawn and Fred were now standing in the door of the apartment.
“You never came after me!” Connor shouted in response.
“I tried,” Angel pleaded.
“No, you didn’t. If you had really meant to, you would have gotten Wesley’s help.”
“Did he tell you that?”
“He didn’t have to.” Connor shot the crossbow, sending an arrow into Angel’s shoulder. “Leave us alone.”
Xander turned to Wesley, still standing against the wall. “Get inside.”
“But…”
“Now!” Xander rushed Angel, who hit him in the face. Wesley ran for the door, making it inside just as Connor began some roundhouse kicks aimed at Angel’s chest. They watched as Connor and Angel fought to a draw. Connor repeated, “Leave us alone.” He raced through the door followed by Xander.
Angel attempted to enter the apartment but was unable to. He dropped Wesley’s keys and stormed away, leaving them to catch their breaths.
Fred checked over Xander and Wesley, bandaging their cuts. While fixing a gash on Wesley’s cheek, she asked the question that had been burning inside her.
“Who did Angel smell on you?”
“What?”
“He asked if I knew who he had smelled on you before. Who was it?”
Wesley ducked his head, dreading to answer this question.
“Wesley, who?”
“Lilah,” he whispered.
“Lilah? Lilah! How could you?” Fred got off the couch next to him and stormed to the door.
“Fred, it’s not safe.”
“I don’t care. I can’t see you right now.” Fred began crying and ran out the door.
Wesley stood up but was stopped by Xander. “I’ll go after her. I suggest you think of some way to fix this.”
*****
Xander caught up with Fred just outside the main doors. “Fred, wait up,” he called.
Fred turned to him, tears streaming down her face. “Go away, Xander. I want to be alone.”
“It’s not safe for you to be alone,” Xander insisted.
“All right, come with me but don’t say anything.”
They walked over to the park where just weeks before Wesley had been fighting for his life. They settled under one of the trees, and Xander wrapped his arm around Fred as she burst into tears again. Xander tried desperately to comfort her and silently prayed that Wesley was doing something to fix this.
“Fred. Fred, what happened?”
“He…he slept with Lilah.”
“Who? When?”
“Lilah Morgan from Wolfram and Hart. He slept with the enemy.”
“When?”
“The night before y’all came, I guess, if Angel had smelled her on him.”
“Were the two of you together then?”
“No. I was still with Charles.”
“Did Wes have any reason to believe things would change?”
“No. I had gone to the hospital and told him to stay away because Angel was ready to kill him. But I’m not upset about him sleeping with someone, not much; it’s just that it was Lilah. It’s like if Anya had slept with a vampire,” Fred answered, choking back sobs.
Xander grimaced at Fred’s analogy, but she didn’t notice. “Maybe you should talk to him about it. He may have a very good reason. Besides, he loves you, and you love him. Let’s go inside.”
“Not yet. I want to compose myself a little.”
*****
Meanwhile, in the apartment, Dawn and Connor were watching Wesley pace and mutter to himself.
“How do I fix this? Why didn’t I tell her? How could I have been so stupid?” He picked up a copy of Dante’s Inferno and hurled it to the floor. He then collapsed onto the couch, holding his head in his hands. “What do I do?”
“Flowers,” Dawn piped up. “You buy her her favorite flowers, and when they get back, talk to her in your room, and we’ll have Xander take us for ice cream.”
“Right. Flowers.” Wesley raced for the phone book. “Wait. I don’t know what her favorite flower is.”
“Yellow roses,” Dawn told him.
“How did you know that?”
“She told me. Just in case.”
Wesley quickly ordered three-dozen yellow roses to be delivered immediately. They arrived moments before Fred and Xander came inside. Fred saw the flowers, and her eyes filled with tears again. She ran into Wesley’s arms, and he wrapped them tightly around her, burying his head in her hair. “I am so sorry. So sorry.”
Fred pulled his head up and looked into his fear-filled eyes. “Tell me about it,” she whispered.
He led her back into his bedroom where they could talk privately. Dawn looked at Connor and Xander. “Ice cream,” they chorused and headed out the door.
*****
Fred sat down on Wesley’s bed and looked up at him. “Why, Wesley? Why Lilah?”
“It was a mistake. I was stupid.”
“How did it happen?”
“She wanted me to come work at Wolfram and Hart.”
“Why did she think you would agree to that?”
“Because I was a traitor, I had been abandoned by my friends, and I had lost you. She seemed to believe that would dispose me towards evil. But I refused. Then, that night, I was at the pub, despondent that no one had told me that Connor had returned, when Lilah showed up. We argued for a while about traitors and Connor and what I had done, then somehow we ended up here. It meant nothing to me, and the whole time I was wishing I were with you, so it would mean something. I was going to tell you, but I didn’t know how.” He knelt on the floor in front of her. “I am so sorry and sorry you had to find out like this. Can you forgive me?”
Fred lifted his head from where he had laid it on the bed next to her. She held his chin and leaned forward. “I forgive you.” She breathed. “But promise…”
“Never again,” he whispered. Their lips met passionately. Each felt the other was attempting to devour them. Wesley laid Fred down on the bed and began to climb over her, kissing her neck, when she suddenly sat up.
“Wait.”
Wesley sat next to Fred. “I’m sorry. I thought you…”
“No.” She smiled, kissing him again. “It’s just…I bought something. I’ll be right back.” Fred walked into the bathroom.
Wesley kicked off his shoes and had just pulled his shirt over his head when Fred came back in, dressed in a white silk teddy. She walked over to the bed and straddled his knees.
“You look amazing,” he whispered.
“Thank you,” she replied and kissed him hungrily.
*****
Xander opened the door to the apartment and quietly ushered Dawn and Connor inside.
“Do you think they made up?” Connor asked.
“Let me see.” Xander carefully opened the door to Wesley’s bedroom. Glancing inside, he saw Fred and Wesley lying together, fast asleep. He slipped out. “I think everything is okay now. Should we start dinner?”
*****
The next morning, Wesley lay in bed, running his fingers through Fred’s hair as she lay sleeping soundly next to him. He was pondering how lucky he was when he heard a knocking on the front door. He got up carefully so as not to disturb Fred and pulled on his pants. He walked carefully through the living area, where Xander, Dawn and Connor were all fast asleep. The knocking continued, and Wesley opened the door to reveal Lilah Morgan.
“Go away,” he said.
“Now, is that any way to speak to me?” Lilah pushed her way inside and turned to face Wesley. “I came to see if you reconsidered my offer.”
“The answer is no. Now get out.”
“And I was wondering if I may have left…”
“Wesley?” Fred’s voice interrupted Lilah. She was standing behind Lilah, wrapped in a blanket.
Lilah turned to see her, crossing her arms and shifting her weight to hide her shock when she also noticed Dawn and Connor on the couches. “So, I see you have your friends back.”
“Yes, he does. I suggest you leave,” Fred said firmly.
“Did he tell you about me?”
“Yes. Get out. You do not belong here.”
“Why should I leave?” Lilah said defiantly.
“Because Winifred and Wesley have requested that you do so. I advise you to listen.” Fred, Wesley and Lilah turned to see Groo standing, sword drawn, at the front door.
Lilah shrugged and began to walk out.
“Wait,” said Wesley as he walked over to pick up the copy of Dante’s Inferno she had given him. “You can have this back.” He tossed it to her. “Goodbye.”
Lilah walked out, silently fuming. Groo watched her walk down the hallway and then turned to Wesley. “May I enter?”
“Yes, of course.” Wesley turned to Fred. “Sweet, are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“I thought the two of you handled that remarkably well,” Xander’s voice came from the floor.
“Thank you, Xander,” Wesley said. “This is Groo. Groo, this is Xander Harris.”
“An honor to meet a friend of Wesley,” Groo declared.
“Groo, I thought you left town,” Fred said, hugging him.
“I did. But I wish to return to Pylea. I cannot open a portal myself. I came to ask Wesley to assist me.”
“I’ll have to have Lorne locate a hot spot, but I could send you back tonight,” Wesley agreed.
“Wait, you can’t,” Fred interrupted. “I meant to tell you yesterday. I was reading about the ritual we have to do to save Cordelia. There are different requirements for different types of people. To rescue Cordelia, we need three men who have kissed her in the circle. We have Xander and now Groo; we just need a third.”
“Me,” Wesley said.
“You’ve kissed Cordelia?” Fred asked, incredulously.
“Yes. When we lived in Sunnydale. It was dreadfully unsuccessful.”
“Oh. So not like this?” Fred giggled, then pulled Wesley to her for a kiss.
Groo looked on in amazement.
“Xander,” Wesley requested, “could you explain what’s going on to Groo while we go take a shower?”
“Not a problem.”
*****
The next four days passed in a rush. Groo joined Wesley and Gunn in training Dawn and Connor, and Fred started the tutoring to prepare Connor for high school. Lorne came by every now and then to check in.
Finally, it was the night of the full moon. The group gathered in the park outside Wesley’s building. Because Wesley, Groo and Xander had to be in the circle, Connor and Gunn were sent to keep a lookout. Fred would be assisting Wesley with the ritual while Dawn and Lorne, both armed, stood outside the circle.
The circle was prepared, and the candles lit. Fred lit a match to burn the herbs as Wesley, Xander and Groo began the chant. After several minutes, the sky above them began to shimmer, and then a body fell to the ground. It was Cordelia.
TO BE CONTINUED…
© September 2002
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