Armageddon SagaBuffy followed Angel into the room. It was dark and is had the feel of long-term non-use.
Chapter Twenty-Seven:
The Catacombs: Angel's Hell Revisited part 2
By the Lady Sirona ladysirona@LadySirona.com
He lit a lantern that was on a small wooden table against the wall. The flickering light
made it appear to Buffy like she step back in the ages to the time of Angelus.The room was simple and plain, instead being done in the overly ornate gothic look she
had come to associate with vampires, and she called to herself "undead ugly". It brought
up the memory of his home she saw in Ireland before he was a vampire. The table was
well made but plain. There were several chests against the wall, and a small bed in the
corner.There were little pieces of interest that caught the eyes, including sketches she
recognized as Angel/Angelus' work on the wall. The room felt like Angel's apartment,
but with darker undertones. It bothered Buffy that Angelus’s’ home looked so much like
Angel's apartment. This had been Angelus' home while he had been with the pack. The
similarities to Angel were unnerving to Buffy. Maybe they were not as different as
she liked to think they were.A large chest was next to the bed where in addition to its storage use, it could act as a
small bedside table. There were small personal knick-knacks on the chest, and Buffy
drifted over to look closer. Small carvings, stones and jewelry adorned the top of the box.She looked closer at the bed as she came closer; it was no more than a large cot. There
was an exquisite wall hanging behind it of an Irish countryside. The colors of the
bedspread were matched by highlights in the wall hanging. Buffy was glad to see that the
bed did not lend itself to two people. Obviously, Angelus had at least slept alone! She
noticed that the bedspread looked as if someone had a quick round of sex on it. There
were shreds of what looked like cotton material from a woman's dress on the floor next
to the bed. Buffy swallowed her rising jealousy. *Was it that Antonia bitch?* She took a
deep breath and released her anger. *It was over 80 years ago! He hadn't been here in
over 80 years!* She chided herself."My Quarters while I ran with the Pack." Angel said simply and quietly. Buffy looked up
at him. He was standing in the middle of the room his body tense; he looked like he
wanted to bolt. She noticed his jaw was clenched, and he physically flinched when he
saw she had seen the scraps of material on the floor. Intuitively, she realized they were
not from a tryst with a lover, but were probably from the demise of a victim of Angelus'.He walked over to the chest and threw the small items on the top of it to the bed
uncaring if he broke anything. He opened the chest. He turned to Giles who was standing
in the doorway. "Your Watcher diaries are here Giles - take what you wish."Giles entered the room, and was walking toward the chest like a man walking before an
alter. To have access to Slayer diaries seen by no watcher but the one who wrote them!
Buffy watched with humor as Giles licked his lips in anticipation. He was so happy with
it. He looked into the chest and saw old handmade books. His desire to touch them and
read them was almost palpable to the others in the room.Xander looked around. It wasn't much different from Angel's current apartment and
that bothered him a lot. Before, he knew, he would have just slid into his easy hatred of
Angel, making snide comments and baiting him. Things changed after their adventure in
England. He did things with Angel he never thought he would ever do with any guy, and
he did it to save Willow. But now, he felt more for Angel. He could actually feel his pain
and his self-loathing and he regret as if it was his own. Something happened then, and
now Xander wasn't so sure what he thought of Angel anymore.Xander walked over and picked up a small sculpture of a horse. It was beautifully crafted
and pleasing to the eye. "You can have it if you want it." Angel told him. Xander looked
up into Angel’s eyes. The pain he was feeling by opening the room to their curious eyes
was enough to take your breath away. Before he would have gone after it with a
vengeance in a hope to flay his opponent alive, or in Angel's case, undead. Now Xander
just nodded. "Thanks." He could feel the emotion Angel had with the offer. He honestly
wanted to please Xander.
Willow was looking into the chests like Giles and found a small box of jewelry that
caught her eye. It was full of chains, beautiful beads and pearls. She glanced up at Angel
and he nodded. She smiled and quickly picked up the box and started to look through the
jewelry, Buffy joined her."You guys stay here. Look around." Angel started to walk toward a wall hanging on the
back wall. "I'll go get the talisman" The pain and self-loathing in his voice caused Buffy
to pull away from the treasures that Willow was looking through.She got up and walked after him as he walked up to the hanging, and saw that it hid
a door with a dark opening. He walked through the door into the darkness and Buffy
followed him silently unnoticed by the others occupied with their finds.Angel walked sure and precise in the darkness. He thought to himself that he knew the
way very well, where he disposed of his own kills on this path after he finished toying
with them. He instinctively stepped around the little irregularities in the stone, which
would trip the unwary. He turned when he heard someone behind him stumble. "Go
back." He called to the follower. He didn't want any of them to follow him to his
destination, but deep down he just knew it was Buffy. *Drat the girl. Couldn't she leave
this alone? *"No Angel. I need to go too." Buffy replied ruefully as she rubbed her knee where she
struck it when she stumbled. He heard her soft plea in her voice and he closed his eyes
and sighed. *Damnit, I wanted to do this alone!* He thought to himself."Buffy PLEASE! I don't want you to see this." He implored her. He didn't want to think
what effect seeing his disposal pit would do to her. He didn't want to see the pit, never
mind have the woman he loved and who carried his child, see it. Would she hate him after
realizing what a monster he really was? Would she choose to end the pregnancy rather
than give birth to the child of a monster? "Please, Buffy, please go back." He implored
her. He felt like his whole world was bleeding."Angel," She stood when she felt him come near, and reached out and touched his
face when he appeared silently at her side. "I need to go, I need to see it. Otherwise, my
imagination will make it worse." She stroked the soft skin of his face and felt the wetness
of his tears."I doubt your imagination can come up with anything as disgusting as a vampire's refuse
pit." he grumbled and turned back the way he came. He walked with the resignation of a
man going to his execution.She sighed and followed him agreeing in her mind. "I just don't want you to hate me
Buffy." She kept her silence as he bared his soul. "I'm scared Buffy. I am scared you
will see the monstrous thing I did, and will realize what a real monster I am, and hate
me.""Was, Angel. Was. I know what kind of a demon you were. You forget I saw it up close
and personal for those long months while it was in control." She stepped quickly and put
her arm around him hugging him tightly and stopping his walking. They stood there
and hugged, her love flowed into him while he calmed down his fears. Slowly they
disengaged and walked together arm in arm.She was glad for his agreement to let her see. She knew she just had to see. After this
there would be nothing worse... no more surprises. She knew that anything that
reminded him of the "hunting time" as he once called it, made him hate himself, and sent
him into a serious guilt trip. If she could see this and still accept him, maybe he would let
up on himself.They walked along together quietly, arm in arm. She could almost pretend they weren't
walking toward a pit, which held the human remains of Angelus' victims from so long ago.She tried to distract herself but her mind always skittered back to the thoughts of the
deaths, and of Angelus' time as a killing vampire. Never had it seemed so real as it did
recently. She knew she couldn't avoid it any longer. She was a vampire Slayer, in love
with a vampire, who, while without a soul, was notorious even among his own kind for
being cruel, mean and vicious.She came out of her reverie when she started to smell a sickening sweet, rotting smell. It
smelled like old clothes and musty attics with a rotted meat undertone. She remembered
smelling a whiff of it from their entrance into the catacombs when they walked by the
entrance to the main pit. Her "delicate way" was having no part of it this time, and she
found herself vomiting off the side of the path.Angel was at her side supporting her as she lost the last remnants of her dinner. She
hated vomiting and she had been doing all too much of that lately. She could feel the
worry in his hands as he supported her. She was too busy trying to breath to be able to
reassure him. She sputtered and gasped for breath.Eventually she could speak. "I'm ok," She lied. She didn't want him to feel she was
throwing up because of him. She spit out the last bit and turned toward him. "I hate this
puking thing." She joked. It sounded off in her ears and he didn't laugh."It's the pregnancy Buffy. You have morning sickness." He pulled her into him. Life
was so unfair. God, who would have thought he could get her pregnant? My god, she
was carrying his child, and was still a child herself! She was so precious to him... if he lost
her... *No* he told himself. *This is the twentieth century. One out of two women don't
die in childbirth, like they did in 1700's* He held her and her precious cargo. Praying it
wasn't the last time.When they were ready, the walked closer to the edge of the crevasse. She breathed
through her mouth so not to smell that smell again. He stopped at the ledge and turned
toward her, his face lit by her flashlight, his eyes twin pools of pain. "We are here. Wait
here, I'll go get the talisman." He begged her with his eyes not to follow him into the pit.
She understood his need and nodded. She also had no desire to get any closer to the
rotting corpses.As he climbed down, she turned her flashlight down into the pit to assist him to see where
he was going. Or at least that was what she told herself. She stared in macabre curiosity
at the contents of the pit.Her heart stood still. It was a picture not dissimilar to the Nazi holocaust pictures she
remembered seeing in school. Dead bodies were flung down there like rag dolls. Total
disregard for them, just flung like garbage. Somehow, that was more upsetting to Buffy
than the fact they were dead.The corpses were many, the flesh worn away, just the bones and tatters of clothing left
to show they were ever human. There were enough, to cover the pit and prevent the
floor from being seen, the number wasn't even calculable. Tears streamed down her face
for their lost lives.Angelus had killed every one of them.
Everyone killed by the hands that now held her with such love and caring. Every one
with their blood drained through the lips that now kissed her with such passion. Everyone
a death that now ate at Angel like acid. Just a small token, a small part of the lives he
had taken in the century and more, that he walked the world as a killing, feeding,
vampire.While Buffy looked down at the pile of destruction, and deceased humanity, Angel made
his way down into the pit and toward the area he knew he had thrown the body of the
healer Mira. He avoided looking at the bodies beyond finding Mira. He didn't want to
get caught in a morass of shame and guilt with Buffy on the edge watching him pick
through the deceased like a dark vulture.Buffy watched in morbid fascination as he walked over to the body of a woman, if one
could judge by the dress. He bent over the body and doing such it hid his actions from
her gaze. Angel stood up and appeared to be holding something in his hand.She watched as he turned away and started to walk a ways, only to turn back and bend
over the form again. He then left the body and moving with the speed only seen in the
undead as he scrambled from the pit.Angel climbed up to Buffy, terrified he had lost her. She could only be repulsed by him
now, his life was over, if she wouldn't allow him to at least guard her, to hell with his
promise to Tirla. He would await the sunrise. He was in a black depression by the time
he reached her.He found her on the edge of the crevasse, tears streaming down her face. She was
crying in silent waves of tears. She didn't wait for him to come closer, she knew he
wouldn't. She immediately came into his arms when he was standing upright, and buried
herself into his embrace. He closed his arms around her instinctively, astounded she
would even touch him after seeing the horrors she witnessed."Oh Angel, so many..." She cried into his chest. He hugged her tightly, knowing this was
nothing; in the past he had killed this number in a rampage in a single night..."I'm sorry Buffy, you have no idea how sorry I am,” He whispered into her hair as he
held her. "Come on, we need to go back." He drew her away from her mourning for the
unknown bodies, and led her back to his quarters. The walk was silent.They arrived to find his quarters were empty. The others were obviously scrounging
though the other parts of the catacombs. It was rare for a lair to be left undestroyed,
after the vampires were defeated, so Giles was making the best of the opportunity to
gather what he could.Buffy just stood in the center of the room hugging herself, looking and feeling like a lost
little girl. She was upset, but Angel didn't feel like she hated him. He expected hatred,
disgust or at least a passionate dislike. This lost little girl in pain was unexpected, and he
was at a loss how to support her.Buffy watched with unseeing eyes as he went over to a chest, removed a cloth and
wrapped whatever he was carrying in it. He then repeated the process with something
else. His movement’s graceful and oh so masculine.... She walked over to him. She knew
what she needed."Hold me Angel," She commanded softly as she slid into his arms and hugged him with
almost a frantic desperate feel to her. She reached up and pulled him into a kiss. She
kissed him roughly, with great passion and a increasing flavor of desperation."Buffy, maybe we shouldn't." He started to say but was cut off by her soft mouth
commanding he do other things than speak. He sank into her kiss, and felt the love in her
embrace. *She loves me! * Was his only thought.
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