Angel raised out of the room and checked the bathroom, then down stairs, and in a last resort panic he checked the other bed rooms without notice to the other people in them. Drawing attention with all of the racket Angel began to have followers asking him, no demanding him as to what he was doing. Finaly, "Buffy's missing. I went downstairs for a few minutes and when i returned she was gone." As he finished almost on cue, he walked back in to Buffy's bedroom and suddenly realized the open window. The curtains blews with the rythum of the wind. "Damn." Under his breath, Angel realised his frustration.

Angel was not alone in the search but he felt as though he wished he had been. Everyone was thinking, "she's-only-going-through-a-rouch-time," thoughts where as Angel was thinking more along the lines of "a distracted Buffy is a dead Buffy." He knew how much she could just give up the will to live when things like this came to close to home. Not too many peope had witnessed it, but Angel and her both knew that it was there. A distracted Buffy is a dead Buffy. Angel repeated. A distracted Buffy is a dead Buffy. a distracted Buffy is a dead B-

"Wait!" Caela almost unsuspectantly half collapsed to her hands and knees, calling after the group which had grown ahead of her. Everyone turned around, still focused at the task at hand.

"Well...What is it?" Angel of course was frustrated as it was, but Caela understoof and brushed it off. "We haven't got time, Buffy is still-"

"She doesn't know where she is!" Trying to meet everybody's range of hearing.

"What?" Everyone either said in unison or looked at her with the same question.

"You mean she's been kidnapped?" Giles was quick to interpretaion.

"No..." She closed her tightly as if bareing pain at the same time. "She...She...She's dreaming." Looking up, Caela realized that she wasn't the only one conmfused.

"Wha-" Willow was going to be the first to ask before Cordelia could jump in.

"Great! She's walking around in the middle of the night and she's still getting more sleep than I am. Thats just not fair." Cordelia wasn't entirely talking to the group, but she didn't mind lletting her thoughts out to the public.

"Sleepwalking!" Xander's brain clicked.

"Caela." At the immediate tone of Angel's voice Caela's head shot up. "Can you tell us where she is? Give us a land mark? Anything?" He pressed on. They stood there watching her and Caela closed her eyes in what seemed to be a strivful way to get rid of a headache. "Well? What do you see?" Angel knew they were running out of time.

"The graveyard!" She earged after interpeting a vision of tombstones and other statues.

Buffy screamed as she frailed her arms about. It looked as if something was holding her. Pinning her to the ground. But to anyone else standing on the side they could see nothing. Her hair was full of mud, her sweats and tee shirt were covered in grass stains. Angel came running around a group of bushes after hearing her distinct yell. He knew exactly what she was doing, but he didn't know with whom she was doing it to. She seemed to be fighting whatever was holding her to the soft but firm grassy ground. Angel reached for her arms, only to loose his grip on each one with her determination to get loose from whatever demon was holding her down in her dreams. He tried to straddle her, to hold her still so that she wouldn't hurt him or herself in the process to calm her down. Not even the call of her own name seemed to snap her out of it. Frustrated, Angel readied his hand to slap her across the face. Only to stop just before his skin met her's, remembering that those who sleep walk must not be woken up forcfully, but gracefully and gently. Thinking of only one thing as she still moved feircely beneath him. Angel, kissed her. Sofly at first. But she then began to move her head out of his way, pushing him away from her lips. Knowing that the kiss had not done it's intended job he took her face in his hand harshly enogh to keep it still and repeated his trial. Smashing his mouth against her numourous of times. He wasn't sure if she was still asleep and only "kissing" him in her dreams or if she had already worken up and decided that she was truely enjoying herself.

As soon as the kiss began to deeped further than it already had, Riley stepped into the clearing of the bushes of which Angel had as well and stood in amazement to what he found. And in shock.

Angel was the first to hear Riley's footsteps and sudden hault. Sensing the fact that it was a bit of an awkward situtaion to be kept in he pulled away from Buffy almost immediately. He had known that she was awake, she she still looked drowsy and the fact that she had appeared to use an awefull lot of strength to ward off the demons in her nightmare didn't help her look more awake either. Angel realized that she must have been cold, exhausted, scared, hurt and above all very confused as to where she was and how she had gotten there. Angel quickly grapped underneath her waist and back and hefted her up to scoope her in his arms once again. Riley's anger began to raise, who was Angel to come around and take the position of being Buffy's knight in shinning armor? But he knew that there was no time to argue, and that he would have done the same if he had been the one hovering above her limp body. She barely had the strength to hold onto Angel's neck and shoulders to help herself into an upright position.

Racing upstairs, Angel still had a firm grip on Buffy. Everyone followed soon behind, closing the door behind them. Instead of returning Buffy to the comfort of her bed Angel pushed his way deeper into the hallway and into the bathroom. Sitting on the side of the tub, he did not set her down, he held her in his lap. Mixing the water temperature, Angel began to wait for the tub to fill to an even amount. Riley came storming in just as Angel had turned on the water.

"What are you doing?" Although his voice was low his anger and frustration made him seem to be yelling.

"She's in shock, and she's filthy." Angel thought it was needless to explain, for the obvious reasons that sat in front of both of their faces. But still didn't want to fight with anyone at the moment. Angel freed a hand after readjusting Buffy's weight on his lap inorder to keep her steady with even suport. His empty hand began to fumble at Buff'y simple blue, buttoned down, blouse. With impecable, it was then that everyone flooded into the small room.

"Whats going-" Xander immediately turned his face to look in the opposite direction as Buffy's becomingly bare chest. Her shirt had not seperated enough yet, but it was an enevitable event.

Everyone began to subconscienciously gawk at Angel's actions, in astonighment. "Willow, do you want to help me out here?" A little frustrated, Angel mumbles as he focused on the removal of Buffy's night wear.

Without hesitation, Willow turned off the water and- "Xander..." Giving a "help me out here" look, Willow gestured towards the crowd.

"Come on everybody." Quickly getting the hint, Xander began to scoot everone out of the bathroom, closing the door behind him. Riley hadn't moved. A knock at the door disrupted them of their task once again.

"Yeah!" Answering from afar, Angel gave a quiet yell. Xander reopened the foor and walked over to Riley without distraction. Putting his hands firmly on Riley's shoulders, he bgan to pull him towards the door. When Riley stopped to protest, Xander hardened his expression and firmness in his hand muscles. Xander was no longer being sympathetic, instead he seemed upset with Riley's reluctance. He had always loved Buffy, and he had to admit to at least himself that if Buffy was in trouble and he couldn't do anything to help, personaly, he would chose Angel over Riley any day. Angel had known Buffy longer, understanding where she was coming from, her true past, her secrets and weaknesses. Riley, although liked the idea of having a girlfriend who can take care of herself, didn't exactly grasp the pain and final destination that a slayer endrures and faces. Instead, he looked at Buffy's stories as iver embelishment. A simple bit of haming it up.

Xander was finally able to lure or ,rather, pull Riley out of the room and left the two to tend to Buffy.

She sat on her own, surprisingly. Hunched over slightly as she kept a tight hold on Angel's hand. Willow worked the dirt out of her friends hair with water only. They didn't want to have to deal with soap at the moment, it seemed to much of a hassel.

"I'll go get her a shirt to wear." Willow explained her reason's for leaving Angel to help Buffy out and to dry her off.

He pulled the plug out of the drain as he reached for the nearest towel off of the rack. He wrapped the fluffed towel over her back and plucked her out of the tub and again to his amazement she stood on her own. She was gradually coming out of what seemed to be her comotose state. After riding her of the excess water on her skin he did his best to do the same with her hair. Willow returned with what seemed to be the longet shirt she could find, thinking that it would be too difficult to put something over her legs. She slipped it over her head and helped her find the arm holes. It hurt Willow to thinkt hat her friend was sick. And it wasn't the type of illness that was cureable. This was something that she would just have to go through and see if she makes it with her sanity intact.

Angel carried her to her bed once again and slid up behind her, slidding his hand around her waist so that they were both comfortable as she continued to hold his hand resolutely. Angel was thankful that he was able to fall enough into deep sleep in order to contain his sanity, for her sake, as well.

Part Eleven

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