"I'm telling ya, she's acting weird."
"She has... what is it you call it? Issues? Big deal. This is no reason to be bothering me, Matthew."
"She's the Slayer's daughter, you know," Matt added quietly.
Nicholas, who had been raising his hand to signal his guards to take Matt away, lowered it slowly and turned to Matt again. "Go on," Nicholas said, trying to keep the interest out of his voice.
"And, uh, that... ex-vampire guy you're so obsessed with. Angelus? He's her dad."
Nicholas frowned. "Ex?"
Matt shrugged. "Hey, I don't know, but he was standing in pure sunlight when I saw him. And she introduced him as her dad, so..."
But Nicholas wasn't listening. "Angelus, huh? And the Slayer. Very interesting indeed," he murmured to himself. "This makes everything fall into place. I knew there was a reason I had chosen her."
Matt raised his eyebrows. "Is everything still going as planned?"
"What do you think, you moron?" Nicholas said, turning to Matt angrily. "How do you plan to seduce the daughter of a vampire and a Slayer with those tactics of yours? I need to make this prophesy work in my favor and she's the only one who will work for this."
"You think?" Matt asked. "There could be another one. That other Slayer you mentioned once? She's a fighter of the light. She could help us gain this power you speak of."
Nicholas looked amused. "By 'us,' do you mean to imply you will be included in this?"
"Uh, I meant you," Matt corrected himself. "But I still get my share, right?"
Nicholas ignored his question. "At any rate, it's too late for us to be looking for another 'fighter of light.' Evelynn has to work for us. But you..." He turned his glare on Matt. "You're on the verge of ruining everything. You're supposed to be the sweet, caring boyfriend. But instead, you are putting her on guard. If she leaves you, this is all for nothing..."
Matt held up his hands in surrender. "Yeah, yeah, I know," he said. "Sorry, okay? I'll try harder next time."
The glare Nicholas was still giving him didn't waver. Finally, Nicholas leaned back to held up his arm. "Take him away," he told two of the vampires standing nearby. Then he turned to Matt. "If you fail me..." he trailed off from his threat, knowing that Matt knew what he was going to say.
Swallowing visibly, Matt nodded and turned to leave willingly with the guards. Once Matt was out of earshot, Nicholas narrowed his eyes.
"Well, my old friend Angelus," he muttered into the empty room. "You're in for quite a ride, aren't you?"
******
"The gang is coming?" Buffy asked excitedly. "When?"
Giles smiled at his Slayer. "Willow, Oz, and Xander booked a flight for tomorrow and will probably here by three o'clock in the afternoon. As for Cordelia, I'm not quite sure when she'll be able to get away from some new movie she's starting soon."
Buffy turned to Angel, feeling like a teenager all over again. "This is so cool! It'll be just like old times, right? You, me, and the rest of the Scooby gang. And of course, the new additions," she said as she looked at Lynn, Daniel, and Jade, latter two were standing nearby with uncomfortable smiles on their faces.
"And if we all work together, we could figure out what this prophesy means," Lynn added. "I don't know about old times for you, but this should be fun."
Buffy nodded, too happy to be let down by the prophesy. Her friends... her best friends were coming to visit her and her family. The last times they had all seen each other had been three months before at her and Angel's wedding. And that had only been for the few hours they had spent together until it was time to leave for the honeymoon. Now they were coming for several days. Buffy couldn't help but be excited.
The library doors swung open and in walked Matt. Lynn say him and immediately tightened her lips.
"Hey, Lynn," Matt said softly.
"Hey," she answered.
"Can we talk?"
Lynn was about to turn down his offer when her gaze met Jade's. Jade raised her eyebrows and made a microscopic motion with her hands, as if urging her to go to talk him. Lynn sighed as she realized that everyone in the library awaited her answer.
"Yeah, sure."
Matt smiled and held out a hand. Lynn stepped forward, took it tentatively, and followed Matt out of the library.
"I'm sorry," was the first thing Matt said as soon as they were outside. "I shouldn't have acted like that, it's just that you've been acting weird lately and it's got me worried. Are you okay?"
Lynn studied his face for several moments, trying to gauge his sincerity. He seemed sincere enough. Finally, she relaxed her guard and nodded.
"Yeah, I'm okay," she answered. "I'm sorry, too. I've been a real jerk lately, haven't I?"
"No, I think I have."
Lynn chuckled. "Okay, we both have. Seriously, though,I have been avoiding you. What do you say we go to the Bronze tonight and really talk?"
Matt smiled. "Yeah, sure."
"Great," Lynn answered, just as the bell rung. "I have to go. I'll see you tonight, then?"
Matt nodded. "Yeah."
"Great!"
Matt stared after Lynn as she made her way back into the library. With a slight frown, he turned and walked away.
******
"Is everything better now?" Buffy asked Lynn as the latter started to get up to leave.
"Better?"
"With Matt."
Lynn frowned slightly, wondering whether she should tell her mother about her feeling. "We're gonna talk tonight."
Buffy eyed her critically for a moment. "Jade told me that there was, uh, some weird vibe you were getting from him?"
Lynn stared at her mother for several moments before turning her glare to her best friend, who was conveniently already heading outside. With a sigh, she sat down again.
"I've been getting the, uh, wiggins..." Lynn commented.
Buffy chuckled. "The wiggins," she said. "You think there's something wrong with him?"
"Maybe," Lynn answered. "But I'm not a Slayer, so I really wouldn't know."
"Maybe," Buffy replied. "But then again..."
She trailed off as she noticed that Giles was heading toward them.
"Is there a problem?" he asked them.
"No," they both answered in unison.
"Yes, well, I just, ah, recieved a call from Xander. Just confirming his arrival with Willow and Oz tomorrow," Giles said.
"And Cordy?"
Giles shook his head. "She might arrive by the day after tomorrow, but no one's sure."
Buffy nodded. "I should go," she told them. "We'll continue our conversation later." With a pointed look at her daughter, she got up and left.