Disclaimer: Joss & Co. own just about all these characters. I'm only playing in their sandbox with a few of my own toys.

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"And here we are..." Cordelia drawled out as Angel parked the convertible across the street from the dilapidated building. "Costa Roja. What's that mean, anyway?" She was sitting in the back squeezed between Gunn and Xander; Wesley was riding shotgun next to Angel. Cordy had complained bitterly about the arrangement, but in reality she didn't mind. She felt safer surrounded by these men. She was comfortable next to Xander; it was a warm and friendly feeling. Times had definitely changed.

"It's Spanish, right? Don't look at me. I took French," Xander said.

"You 'failed' French. And I so wasn't asking you," Cordelia retorted. Gunn snickered.

"Red Coast," Wesley answered drily. "I believe that these vampires have a sense of humor."

"Great. I love it when they're all witty," Angel said. It was the first time he had spoken since they left, and Cordelia knew it was because he was still unhappy she was there. It was a recurring theme, even though in truth she didn't often come along any more.

"So do we have a plan for going up against the Bloods here, or are we gonna do it the usual way?" Gunn drawled as they all spilled out of the car and Wesley distributed weapons.

"The building seems to be unguarded..." Wesley began tentatively.

"Seems to be," Angel said absently.

"Of course, that's probably not the case. I'm thinking a standard flanking attack, Xander, Gunn and myself spreading out and entering from behind while Angel comes in from the front and Cordy..."

"I'm with Angel," Cordelia said quickly. Wesley frowned at Angel, waiting for him to protest, but the vampire said nothing. Cordy realized he was lost in a memory. From his expression, not a happy memory. Something from the Angelus collection, she deduced.

"That's it. Give!" she said harshly, snapping her fingers in front of the vampire's face. His eyes snapped back into focus. She waved towards the building. "You've got something, what is it?"

"Spike, Darla, Dru and myself...we took a bunch of kids once, from an orphanage."

"And you held them in a building like this?" Gunn guessed.

"Actually we just ate them. But that sign..." he gestured towards a small sign that was hanging towards the side of the building. The others had to squint to read it.

"It's in French," Wesley said, surprised.

"It's the same as the sign that was on that orphanage," Angel said flatly.

"What's it say?" Gunn asked, still squinting.

"One billion children served?" Xander quipped. Cordy elbowed him. "Ow...whoa, that brings back memories. What do you expect, with the failing of the French?"

"It says 'The Children Welcome All Visitors,' Cordy snapped. "Oh, and also, 'Delivery Entrance at the Rear,' but that's in English."

"Thank you, Cordelia," Wesley said drily. "Angel, you do realize what this likely means?"

"It's a trap," Angel sighed. "And I think it's pretty obvious who it's for."

"You," Xander nodded. "But the question is, who's behind it?"

"Darla." Angel, Wesley, Gunn and Cordelia had said the word in unison, and Xander stared at them all like they'd gone insane.

"Darla? Okay, we're talking about the Darla that made you the dead guy you are today? The Darla who vamped my best friend? The Darla you staked YEARS ago? That Darla?"

"Pretty much...it's a really long story," Angel said, clearly growing more and more uncomfortable with the subject.

"Bad guys brought her back," Cordy said.

"Apparently not so long," Angel finished with a shaky laugh.

"She skipped town with that wacky broad a while back," Gunn offered.

"Dru," Angel said to Xander, whose expression grew dark.

"Dru almost killed Buffy, you know," he said, directing his comments to Angel alone. His voice was quiet but angry. "You couldn't pick up a phone?" Cordelia grabbed his arm hotly, making him look at her.

"Hello! Harmony, friend of mine, vampire! Must take you days to clean all the glass in your house!" The two were standing nose to nose, glaring, and Angel had the sudden sick feeling they were going to kiss. He almost sagged with relief when Wesley took charge of the situation.

"Stop this right now! We are no longer at Sunnydale High. I had hoped we had all matured beyond this." Xander and Cordy gave him apologetic looks. Wesley nodded but continued speaking in the same no-nonsense tone, addressing his remarks to Angel. "Now, I believe it's safe to assume," he said, not seeing Xander sticking his tongue out at Cordy, "that the goal here is to kill Angel," he continued. Cordy made a face at Xander's childishness.

"You never did know how to use that properly," she muttered. Gunn snickered at Xander's wounded look. Another withering glare from Wesley quieted them down and the three focused on the task at hand.

"No, she wants me undead and evil," Angel replied.

"Hey la, hey la, my boyfriend's back," Xander quipped softly. To his surprise, Angel nodded, grim amusement in his eyes.

"Bring back Angelus, always number one on the Darla hit parade."

"So...what? We can't leave those kids to be eaten. The Powers obviously want you to go in there and duke it out with the über-bitch. Which I'm all in favor of, by the way. I'll hold your coat," Cordelia said.

"She wants me to know it's her," Angel said. "Which means she's sure she's got something in there that's gonna knock my soul out no matter what I do."

"Naked Tyra Banks," Gunn breathed. They all stared at him and he shrugged. "I'd lose my soul."

"Does it matter what it is? The answer's pretty simple. Angel sits this one out," Xander said.

"And then everybody dies, including all of you. She's gonna be ready for that. Sounds like a great plan, Xander."

"I've got it! Stunt double!" Cordy cried out joyfully. The others looked at her questioningly. "Come on, you know. The star needs to be in the shot, but it's kinda dangerous and you can't risk that something bad will happen to him...granted, it's usually not soul-loss, cause in Hollywood those are mostly gone way before...anyway, so you have someone else nobody cares about that looks enough like him to pass pretend to be him." They continued to stare at her, then one by one their eyes were inexorably drawn to an increasingly red-faced Xander.

"Thanks, Cordy," Xander hissed. "I'm overcome by the love and affection."

"Get over it, Xander," she snapped. "You know what I mean. We need to set a trap for Darla, right? We need to find out what she's got planned for Angel, which won't effect you the same way."

"No, it won't. It'll probably just kill me," Xander answered fatalistically. Cordy's eyes swung to Wesley for support, but the former Watcher just shrugged.

"We have no idea what we're dealing with. Xander may be right."

"Besides, no one's ever going to mistake Harris for me, especially not Darla," Angel scoffed. Xander glared at him momentarily. Gunn cleared his throat.

"I dunno, Angel. Not up close, but from a distance, maybe. We'd need to do something about the hair. Get the boy some hair gel."

"I'm on it," Cordy responded, rummaging through her purse.

"You can't be serious. This is absurd. There is no way Xander Harris could pass for me."

"He looks more like you than Wes does, and he was able to pass for you just fine," Cordy responded, raising the hair gel with a small cry of triumph. Xander instinctively took a step back at the predatory look in her eye.

"She'll see through this in a second," Angel protested again. Cordelia stopped her stalking of Xander and turned to the vampire, her expression firm.

"Maybe a second is all we need. To see what they've got planned for you and stop it. Look at the alternatives, Angel. We can't risk you losing your soul. We can't let those kids die."

"Vampires can sense other vampires. That's what I'm trying to tell you. There's no way that any of the vamps in there would fall for any human trying to pretend to be me."

"I might have an answer to that," Wesley said quietly. Once he was certain he had their attention, he continued, "After the...incident Cordy just mentioned, where I had to pretend to be you, Angel, I began researching possible way in which I could make such a ruse more effective if it was ever needed again. I found a spell that can transfer a vampire's energy signature temporarily to an object or talisman; any human being wearing that talisman would register as the vampire."

"Meaning Xander would register as Angel on the ole bat sonar. Or whatever it is you people use to keep tabs on each other," Gunn said.

"Yes. And Angel would register as a human."

"Nice trick, Felix," Gunn said, his tone admiring, slapping Wes on the shoulder. Wesley's modest smile faded when he saw Angel's glare.

"And you never mentioned this before because..." Angel said.

"Because you needed to be present for the spell to be effective, Angel, for one. And the spell's effects wear off much too quickly to be of much use under the circumstances I was envisioning at the time. And, also, I forgot all about it," he admitted.

"How quick is quickly?" Xander asked, trying to sound cool and businesslike. Not easily done when he was being set up as bait this way.

"Fifteen minutes, give or take. Five. Minutes." There were a few moments of thoughtful silence as they absorbed that sobering information.

"What about the talisman?" Angel asked quietly.

"It doesn't have to be any specific object; the spell can be accomplished through just about any trinket. I'm certain we could fashion something. Looking sympathetically at Xander, who had yet to speak, Wesley continued, "Given the inability to predict how long the spell would last, Angel would need to perform the incantation immediately before entering the building. And hope that we have time...it is a risk. Xander, no one would think any less of you if you said no to this."

"I would," Cordy interjected matter-of-factly.

"We could try the ruse with myself, perhaps."

"Okay," Xander breathed.

"I do have experience in the role..." Wesley continued before he realized Xander had said something. "Do you mean okay that I should, or okay that you will."

"I will. Be Angel. If we're going to do this, we should figure out the hows and whats and whens soon. I mean, they probably know we're here, and they're in there wondering..."

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

"What's taking them so long?" Carlos seethed, trying to follow his mistress' model and sit still. It was impossible, knowing that the most dangerous vampire in Los Angeles was plotting something outside. Adding to his foul mood was Lise, who had joined them a few minutes ago. Darla and Lise had been engaging in an intimate whispered conversation ever since, darkening Carlos' mood considerably.

"Patience, Carlos. My dear boy has to think this through. He'll be here presently. He's probably trying to talk the others into leaving. I swear, I'm going to gag on that nobility of that damn soul."

"The soul's as good as gone," Lise said in her breathy voice. "Angel is sticking close to the girl, as you predicted."

"Yes, his concern for his friend will be his undoing," Darla growled, spitting the word 'friend' harshly. "She's part of what keeps him on the path of good. Stupid whiny little bitch has the sight. Angelus will rip her eyes out. And then he'll be mine." Carlos felt another pang of annoyance. Darla still hadn't seen fit to let him in on the plan, whereas Lise apparently knew all about it. Another reason Lise was going to be acquainted with a stake very soon.

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Given the need to keep Angel and Xander in the same place until the last possible second, a two pronged attack seemed the best plan. Wes and Gunn were going to enter through the back; Xander, Angel and Cordelia through the front. The spell Wes had taught to the vampire was simple enough. Cordelia's necklace functioned as the ideal talisman, although Xander did grumble that it wasn't very manly.

"Why aren't we sneaking in again?" Xander asked. Wesley sighed, a sound so like Giles that Xander had decided they must teach it in Watcher school.

"The spell has an unpredictable and brief duration of effectiveness. We need to draw attention to Angel, er, to you," Wesley corrected himself at Xander's raised eyebrow, "as quickly as possible if we have hope of thwarting Darla's plans."

"Besides, that's how he always does it," Gunn added offhandedly.

"No longer Stealth Guy, huh?" Xander said to Angel. Again the vampire gave him an amused look.

"I have range," Angel deadpanned. Xander was beginning to realize that the vampire's sense of humor was not that different from his own. Up until today it had never occured to him that Angel even had a sense of humor. He gave him a grim smile of his own.

"You've been in L.A. too long."

"Can we save the cool guy banter until after we rescue the innocents for once?" Cordy suggested meaningfully.

"Yes. Quite. We're all ready then?" Wes said, but it was a rhetorical question really. He knew that the plan, such as it was, was fully understood by all.

As they crept towards the building, Xander suddenly found himself thinking about Anya and that stupid fight. That stupid, petty, meaningless fight. Xander felt a wave of desperate longing to see Anya, to kiss her and smell her hair and make her laugh. He vowed to himself that if he survived this latest attempt to get himself killed, he would go back to Sunnydale and beg forgiveness. Every moment of every day for the rest of his life if that's what it took for her to take him back. He wondered what she was doing right now.

*She doesn't even know where I am.* The thought made him feel horribly alone.

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"Where is he?" Anya demanded stridently. Giles tried to walk past her to reshelve The Post-Modern Demon and Clan Identity, but she blocked his path quite effectively. Finally he looked her in the eye sternly.

"I've told you, Anya. Xander is running an errand for me and will be out of town for several days."

"I don't believe you. He wouldn't just...he wouldn't leave me. He promised! I mean, just because I told him I never wanted to see him again, ever..." Anya trailed off forlornly. Giles was distressed to see how distraught the girl had become. Fearful of needing to comfort her tears, he spoke in a gentle but firm voice.

"Anya. I may not know what's going on with the two of you, and quite frankly I'm well out of it, but I am certain of one thing. Xander Harris loves you very much. He'll be back in a few days, and the two of you can sit down and talk this thing through."

"Really? You think we can fix it?" Anya sniffed, crying anyway. Giles gave her a half-smile and pulled her into a hug.

"If the gods are kind," he breathed in a quasi-prayer. He said nothing to Anya about his own worries about Xander. Not having heard from him, he had taken it upon himself to call Los Angeles shortly before Anya's arrival. The intriguing woman who had answered the phone at Angel Investigations had been pleasant enough, but had been pointedly evasive about the whereabouts of Xander, Wesley and Angel. *I do hope you're not getting yourself into trouble, dear boy. You've got so many good things to come home to. You don't even know it.*

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Carlos was interrupted from his plotting of his rival's demise by the frenetic entrance of Hector, a fledgling who happened to have been a distant cousin of his. It was a small world after all.

"Mistress, they're moving," Hector panted. The other vampires began whispering to each other excitedly, but Carlos was too busy seething to react to this news. Hector was acting just like Lise. It was ridiculous.

*We're vampires! Don't need to breathe, people! Immature...stupid... Imitating humans, how pathetic!* Carlos' dark thoughts were cut off by Darla's clap for attention.

"Remember. Angelus and the girl must be separated from their companions."

"Can we kill the others?" one of the fledgling asked, and Darla hissed in annoyance.

"Of course. Kill, maim, eat or jump rope with them, I don't care! Just keep them out of my hair and away from Angelus and his seeing-eye dog."

All the minions except for Lise headed off. Darla noticed the dark look Carlos flashed as he left the room and it made her smile. She so enjoyed a good struggle for power amongst vampires, and it definitely appeared Carlos had it in for Lise. That could get interesting. Drawing her thoughts back to the task at hand, she gestured to the girl who was currently her favorite.

"Do you have what I need?" Darla asked harshly. Lise nodded and went to her knapsack. She drew out a small bag of powder and a purplish pink crystal. Moving to hand them to Darla she hesitated.

"You're sure you want to do this yourself, Mistress?" Lise replied worriedly.

"I am. I want Angelus to know who was responsible for his return. And as the soul is ripped from him I want Angel to know who made that happen," Darla said, the confidence in her voice masking pain. She doubted any of the others would have heard it, but Lise did. She was well-acquainted with the kind of pain a woman might endure at a man's hands. Without further comment she placed the magickal items into Darla's waiting hands. Darla headed towards the front entrance.

"How can you be sure he'll use the front entrance?" Lise said nervously.

"I can feel him. Can you not feel the presence of Angelus?" Darla said dreamily. Lise nodded but Darla didn't even see it. "It's been much too long."

Lise fell into step behind her mistress. She could, and it made her shiver. If she had been able to pray, she would have been praying her heart out. This could all end very badly for all of them. Lise vaguely remembered playing with dominos in her human childhood, before the darkness took over her existence. Lining them up and tipping them over repeatedly to watch the rippling patterns. There was something both calming and frightening about the inevitability of it all, and she had learned. Once you set things in motion, they fall. Whether you want them to or not.

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