Ares took a deep breath, he knew this wasn't going to be pleasant, he just hoped Cupid managed to stay in control of his temper.

"Son, while Hera was...sleeping...she had a vision. She saw the next King of the Gods. I'm sorry, Cupid, it was Xander."

Cupid gaped at his father and then a bright smile crossed his face. "Xander will be King? Cool! That will make my life so much easier. At least I know he won't be asking me to get new lovers for him. Oops, sorry, Hera. I didn't mean to bring back any bad memories."

Hera decided it was time she explained things to Cupid, Ares obviously wasn't getting through to him. "Cupid. When Xander becomes the King of the Gods, he'll be wed to me; not to you."

"What do you mean he'll be wed to you? No way! I love him; I'm planning on taking him as my consort! Get your own man, you can't have mine!"

Cupid's eyes started to flash green and his fingernails grew out to points, but Hera didn't back down; the fate of Olympus was in the balance. "Have you claimed him yet?"

Cupid actually growled at her. "Not yet, but I will."

Hera knocked the God of Love across the room with a single thought, "No, you won't. As you have not taken the steps to claim him yet, I can refuse you permission to do so."

Ares decided to stop this before it got any uglier, "Mother, wait. I'm sure Cupid will listen to reason, there is no need to set it in stone."

Hera stiffened her back, she didn't want to do this either, but she didn't see where she had any choice. One hand flashed out and a stone tablet formed in mid air, and each word she spoke burned into the stone.

"The boy known as Xander shall not be claimed as consort by C..."

Giles' voice interrupted the Queen of the Gods, "Wait! Please." All eyes turned to him and he nervously cleaned his glasses, "Madam, you said that something Xander did made the new king come about. Not that he was to be the new king. And as we have yet to find Zeus' Lightning Bolt, any ruling may well be premature."

Joxer backed Giles up completely, "He's right, you know. We need to stop fighting and get back to work. If we can't find the Lightning Bolt, no one will become the King of the Gods."

Hera nodded her head, "You're right, we need to concentrate on finding Zeus' emblem, but until we do find it..."

The stone finished what it had begun, "The boy known as Xander shall not be claimed as consort by Cupid, the God of Love, until he has permission from the Pantheon of Olympus."

Cupid shrieked in rage, "If we can't wake the others, there won't be a Pantheon. You would condemn us to an eternity apart? You bitch!"

Hera face turned cold and she knocked Cupid against the wall again; he lunged to his feet and rushed her.

Ares stepped between his mother and his son, "We don't have time for this! Stop it! Both of you!"

Cupid laughed insanely, "My curse on you, Hera! A curse from the God of Love! You shall never know love or happiness! Your life will be barren and cold! And any marriage you make shall never be consummated without my permission!"

Hera turned pale and staggered, she was more powerful than Cupid, but not even she could break a curse from the God of Love. "Cupid! What have you done? Would you damn all of Olympus for the love of a mortal?"

"For Xander? Yes I would. And there's not a damn thing you can do about it, Hera." Cupid said steadily.

"I can kill you, you impudent brat!"

Cupid flopped down on the cushion next to Strife and Spike; he threw his arms out wide and smiled, "Go ahead. If I die, the curse can't be broken, ever."

Strife threw himself on top of Spike to protect him from the blast, but it never came.

**********

Xander hugged Bliss a little tighter, he was thrilled that Cupid felt that way about him, but he wasn't going to be a prize for anyone.

Bliss whispered in his ear and Xander pulled away shocked. "Really? Are you sure?" Bliss very solemnly nodded his head. Xander sighed, "Okay, but let me talk to them first."

**********

"I think you people are forgetting one thing here." Xander amazed himself, he'd actually managed to sound calm and matter of fact. "No one asked me if I wanted to be the King of the Gods, or Cupid's consort. I'm not Greek, you have no control over me."

Cupid's face turned red and then went very white, "I'm sorry, Xander. I didn't mean...I mean I..." Cupid's head dropped down to his chest, "I love you. I wanted to ask you to stay with me, forever." The God of Love whispered, "I know you don't love me, not yet. But you seem to like me, and I was hoping in time..."

Hera cut off the rest of Cupid's sentence, "It matters little, Xander, if you agree to become the King of the Gods or not. You merely have to be struck with the emblem. You'll adjust to your duties in time."

Xander shook his head, "I don't really think you're understanding me here, lady. No one makes me do anything against my will, not even a God. And if you want to hit me with the emblem, you're going to have to find me first."

Xander and Bliss disappeared in a burst of gold sparkles.

*****

Hera sat down in her chair, stunned. Ares and Cupid both searched desperately for any sign of Xander or Bliss; but the two of them had vanished without a trace.

Ares threw his hands up in frustration. "This is just great! This is just fucking great! Could the two of you have done any more damage? Why don't you both just destroy Olympus now and get it over with!" Ares stalked out of the room, muttering about missing the peace and quiet.

Cupid turned on Hera and screamed in her face. "This is all your fault! Now Xander and Bliss are both gone. Are you happy now? Are you?"

Hera pulled her dignity about herself like a cloak, "I did what was necessary for the good of all. It was your selfishness that led us to this point."

The two bickered and snipped at each other until Giles was on the verge of screaming. Slapping both hands down on the table, he rose to his feet and glared at the two miscreants. "That is quite enough, from both of you. You're acting like children, undisciplined ones at that."

Hera started to berate the mortal who dared to insult her, but he held up one hand and cut her off. "Madam, you may be the Queen of the Gods, but you are not my Gods. That young man you drove from here means a great deal more to me than the fate of a bunch of forgotten Gods. And if it hadn't been for him, you would still be trapped in your dreams."

Hera turned red in shame; the fact that a mortal should call her on her actions was unconscionable. Giles finally took pity on her, he led her to a chair and handed her a cup of tea. "I realize that you've been gone for two thousand years and you're terrified that your friends and family are beyond your help, I can understand how you feel."

Hera sneered, "Do you really, mortal? Have you ever been powerless to save someone? Have you ever tried to live with the knowledge that everything and everyone you've ever known could be destroyed while you stood by, helpless? Have you ever had to break the heart of someone you love to save the rest?"

"Every day. I'm a Watcher, my duty is to train and aid the Slayer, and watch her die when I send her against something too strong for her to deal with. She faces the most horrific evil ever to threaten humanity on a daily basis. Xander, and others like him, aid her in her quest. He's saved her life, and mine, numerous times. I've seen that boy face down demons and vampires and never waver. He's been possessed more than once, and he still refuses to stand by and do nothing. You worry about Gods, beings more than capable of taking care of themselves. I worry about a small group of children, and humanity if they should fail. I think I am more than capable of understanding how you feel."

The tears in her eyes made it difficult for to see, but the words were engraved on her mind, there was no need to read them again. With a small flex of power, the stone tablet containing her law shattered in a cloud of dust. She looked at her Grandson, "I'm sorry, Cupid. So very sorry. I didn't know what else to do. With Zeus gone...it is my responsibility as Queen to save everyone I can. I hope you can forgive me someday."

Hera closed her eyes and reached out to her connection with the sleeping Gods. She ripped away the barriers between them and let her power flow. If she couldn't save them, at least she could buy them some time.

Cupid and Giles managed to catch Hera before she fell to the floor. Cupid scanned his Grandmother and screamed for Ares at the same time he started feeding Hera all the power he had.

*********

Xander was surprised when Bliss took them to house in the mountains. Made of stone and wood, it blended in perfectly with its surroundings.

Xander carried Bliss into the house; it was clean and looked really comfortable. But despite the fact that a fire burned in the hearth, the house felt abandoned. "Bliss? Where are we?"

"Granpa Zeus' house. We play here. He gone now. Granpa said this was my place too. Granma never find us here, safe."

Xander tried to set Bliss down, but the young God wouldn't let go. He clung tightly to Xander's neck and let out a small whimper.

Xander rubbed his hand down Bliss' back, "Hey, what's wrong?"

Bliss sniffled and pointed one grubby, little finger at the stone mantel over the fireplace.

Xander walked closer, trying to see what was upsetting Bliss. Once he caught sight of the golden Lightning Bolt, he understood completely. "Oh shit."

**********

Ares slid across the floor on his knees. He grabbed his mother's face in both hands and looked deep. He didn't know if he should be pissed or pleased. He started dumping power into his mother's failing body as fast as he could, but he knew he wouldn't be able to last long. Cupid was already starting to turn pale and sweat beaded his face.

"What's wrong with her?" Giles asked, afraid that he'd pushed the tormented woman too far.

"She ripped open her blocks. All of her power is feeding the sleeping Gods, this much power could sustain them for centuries, but she's dying. She's doing the exact same damn thing Zeus did."

Strife scurried over and linked to his uncle, letting him pull all the power he needed. He didn't have much, but he was willing to give up everything he had.

Joxer knelt behind Ares and wrapped his arms around Ares' heaving chest, allowing the link that made him the Consort to the God of War feed more energy into his struggling mate.

Ares finally pushed them all away from Hera and severed his own link with his mother. "Stop." He gasped. "If we give her any more, we'll die with her."

Giles' mind was in overdrive, "Is there anyway for us to stop the flow of power?"

Ares shook his head, his sweat soaked hair clinging to his face, "No. Only the King of the Gods would have enough power to put the blocks back in place." Staring down at his mother, Ares was saddened to see her fading so rapidly, she had a few hours left at most and the damage would be irreversible.

**********

Xander took a towel from the bathing room and used it to pick up the Lightning Bolt. He didn't know what would happen if he touched it, and he didn't really want to find out. Shifting Bliss over to his hip, he bent his head and kissed the top of those blonde curls. "Bliss, we need to go see your Daddy now."

Bliss shook his head, "No. Don't want to."

Xander juggled the baby and forced a smile onto his face, "Hey, it'll be okay, don't worry. But we really have to go back now. We'll come back here again, I promise."

Bliss didn't like it, he was afraid Granma was going to make his Xanner become King and then he wouldn't be his anymore. But his Xanner had promised...

**********

The familiar tingle that was Bliss intruded on Cupid's exhaustion. He almost wished his son and Xander would stay away for a while longer. Bliss had lost so many people in his young life; he didn't need to see his Grandmother die too.

Xander hurried across the floor and knelt down next to Cupid. The God of Love was pale and shaking. "Cupid? What happened?" Xander asked worriedly.

"Hera..." Was all he managed to say.

Xander looked to Giles for details, "Xander, Hera realized that she was wrong and decided to help the only way she could. She's feeding all of her power to the other Gods."

"But won't that..." Xander didn't want to say anything else in front of Bliss, but he knew that this wasn't a good thing.

Giles nodded. "Yes. Unfortunately only the King of the Gods can stop what will happen."

"Oh crap." Xander pulled the bundle out from under his arm and handed it to Ares. "Bliss took us to Zeus' house in the mountains. I found this on the mantle. Is it what you're looking for?"

Ares unwrapped the bundle with shaking hands, Zeus' Lightning Bolt gleamed in the light from the fire and Ares could feel the power contained within dancing over his skin. "Yes. It's Zeus' emblem. Now we just need someone to give it to."

*****

Anya read the spell three times to make sure she had it right. After casting the circle, she started to chant in a low, sonorous voice. The language was harsh and grating; it made the hair stand up on the back of Buffy's neck.

When Angel and Wesley burst through the door to the Magic Box, Buffy motioned for them to stay silent. Wesley listened to the chant the ex-demon was using in her spell. It sounded more than vaguely ominous, but he couldn't quite recognize it. Until he heard a name and that name struck terror into his heart.

"Anya!" He screamed, "Don't call on him!"

Anya ignored the interruption and chanted louder, "Dahak, gutarla eck som eti con!"

A black mist formed in the center of the room, it swirled around and around before settling on the floor in the shape of an oval.

As soon as Anya stepped out of her circle, Wesley grabbed her by the arms and shook her so hard her teeth rattled. "What have you done?"

Anya pushed him away, "I set a spell for Xander, it will find him wherever he is and bring him here."

Wesley slumped down in a chair and buried his face in his hands, "You fool. You stupid, bloody git."

"What's wrong, Wesley?" Angel asked. He'd never seen his friend act like this before.

Wesley pointed one shaking hand at Anya, "The stupid little bitch called on him, the one who's name shall never be spoken aloud. He's been trapped for centuries and she just let him loose."

"Let who loose?" Buffy asked.

Wesley jumped out of his chair and started pacing around the room, waving his hands in the air. "Doesn't anyone ever listen? I said his name can't be spoken aloud. Do you want to bring him here?"

Anya crossed her arms over her chest and humphed, "I think you're lying. You just don't want me to get Xander back."

Wesley got right in her face, "If you would stop thinking with your twat instead of your brain, you'd realize that you just called on the most evil God ever to terrorize humanity to help you get your boyfriend back! Tell me, why is it that no one has killed you for blatant stupidity yet? They'd have done the world a favor!"

Angel tried to make sense of what Wesley was saying, "We'll fix it, Wes. If he was trapped once, we can trap him again."

Wesley's laughter was almost hysterical. "Trap him? You expect us to trap him? Are you insane? Hercules himself barely managed to get the job done. And he was a demi-god. What in the blazes do you expect us to do? Stab him with a pointy stick? Gods save us from fools." Wesley stopped in mid-rant "Yes. Yes. That just might work. The Gods, of course!"

Wesley kept babbling to himself as he pulled book after book off the shelves, dropping them on the floor when they didn't contain what he needed. "Where the Hell is it?"

"Where's what?" Buffy screamed. Wesley's behavior was making her just a little nervous.

"The bloody book I need. I know Giles has it."

"Giles took a bunch of books with him when he left with those two men."

Wesley grabbed Buffy by the arms, "Which two Gods was it? Did they say?"

"Uh, one said he was Cupid and he called the other one Father."

Wesley let her go and danced madly about the room, "Yes! Ares, the God of War, he's Cupid's father. We just might have a chance. Where is Willow?"

Buffy and Anya both found the floor very interesting. "Well, Miss Summers, where is she?"

"She and Tara went home after we told them that we would wait and not interfere. They said something about Hecate." Buffy whispered.

"Yes. I imagine they did. As witches, they would pray to Hecate for help in their spells. Go get them. We're going to need all the help we can get."

**********

Willow and Tara ran into the Magic Box, Buffy's phone call had scared them both. Willow stopped short when she saw Angel and Wesley waiting for them with the others. Willow immediately knew Buffy had done something stupid. "Buffy, you didn't. We told you to leave them alone. What did you do?"

Buffy defended herself, "I didn't do it. Anya did. She called on a God for help."

Tara turned pale, "Which one?"

Wesley looked up from the altar he was constructing on the floor. "The one who's name shall not be spoken. I need your help, ladies. We need to call on Hecate and see if she would be willing to carry a message to Ares for us."

Willow and Tara pitched in without any hesitation. "Why don't we just call on Ares directly? I'm sure he would answer."

Wesley shook his head. "When the Gods of Olympus were trapped by the Twilight, everything changed. It would take days to dedicate ourselves to Ares' service. The three of us already call on Hecate on a regular basis, but I'm sure the two of you are more familiar with her. If she is still trapped, we're going to need all the power we can gather to break the spell holding her."

Willow grinned, "I have an idea." She opened the big bag she had brought in with her and pulled out her laptop. She hooked it up and was online is seconds. One message went out to several lists at the same time. Responses started pouring in immediately.

Wesley looked over Willow's shoulder, "I say, that's bloody brilliant. Tell them to begin in one hour, that should give us enough time to finish the altar."

Willow's face turned red, but she grinned happily. Techno-Paganism was the way of the future.

**********

Xander backed away from Ares, holding his hands up between them. "Uh uh, no way. Not me. I am not going to be the King of the Gods; I'd be really bad at it. Ask Giles, he'll tell you. I barely made it through high school. You do it. You're already a God and you know what needs to be done. I wouldn't have a clue."

Ares looked at the Lightning Bolt he held in his hand and laughed. "At one time, this was all I wanted, and I was willing to do anything to get it. But not anymore." Ares focused his intense gaze on Xander. "I'm the God of War. It's not just what I am, but who I am. The King has to be neutral, not giving preference to anyone. I couldn't do that. I don't want to do that. And there is the fact that the King will be wed to the Queen, who happens to be my mother. As Gods, we don't have the moral restrictions of humans, but not even the worst of us would be willing to go that far."

"We'll find somebody else. How about Giles? He'd be good at it." Xander said desperately.

Giles shook his head, "I'm sorry, Xander. My responsibility is to Buffy."

"What about someone else? There has to be someone who wants to be King of the Gods."

Cupid shook his head, "Anyone who wanted to be King wouldn't be a good king."

"Do you want me to do this?" Xander asked him seriously.

Cupid smiled at him, but tears were welling up in his eyes. "No. No I don't."

"Good, then we're agreed. Find someone else." Xander folded his arms across his chest and tried to look defiant, but only managed to look terrified.

Ares sighed; they were going to hate him for this. "I'm sorry, Xander, but there's no time. Hera is dying. If we don't do this now, it will be too late."

The God of War shifted his grip on the Lightning Bolt and hurled it straight at Xander's chest. He heard Cupid scream, but it was too late.

Bliss stamped his foot; he didn't want his Xanner to be the King. He wanted Xanner to stay with him and Daddy. As soon as he saw his Grandpa Ares throw the Bolt, he called up his bow. His hands blurred as he set one of his darts on the string and let it fly.

Xander threw up his hands as the Lightning Bolt came at him, just before it hit, a tiny silver streak slammed into it and knocked it away. There was a concussion followed by the smell of ozone.

The first words out of the mouth of the new King of the Gods were eloquent and to the point.

"Bloody Hell!"

*****

Spike yawned and tried to stretch, but the wiry body wrapped tightly around him prevented movement. Snarling, he pulled the grasping hands off and sat up, stretching his arms over his head. He shifted into his demon form when something slammed into his chest. "Bloody Hell!"

Spike tried to yank it out, but couldn't get a grip on it. He looked up at the shocked faces staring down at him, "Would one of you wankers please get this thing out of me?"

Ares gaped at the bacchae, "How? What?"

Spike smirked at him, "You and the whelp wouldn't happen to be related would you?"

"Hey!" Xander shouted.

Ares shook his head and grabbed the Lightning Bolt, he tugged, but it wouldn't move. The God of War braced himself and pulled as hard as he could, Spike screamed. The vampire started thrashing around on the floor, a faint whisp of smoke rising up from his chest. "Fuck!! Get it out! Get it out!"

Strife latched onto his bacchae and held him down; Ares knelt next to them and placed his knee on the bacchae's chest. He grabbed the Bolt with both hands and heaved backwards.

The Lightning Bolt flew into the air, and hovered. It vibrated with power and started to spin. First one way and then the other. It lunged down towards Xander, but stopped before it touched him. Next it flew to Cupid and Bliss, giving them the same examination.

The Bolt went back up towards the ceiling and vibrated faster. It spun and lurched towards the other occupants of the room, finally coming to a stop in front of Giles. It hovered there and slowly moved a little closer. Now Giles could hear a faint whine coming from the Bolt, but every time he tried to move away, it followed.

Giles finally stopped running. The Lightning Bolt moved up to him and waited. Giles reached out one hand towards it. The Bolt glowed brightly and settled into Giles' waiting hand. The glow became so bright, not even the Gods could stand to look at it anymore.

When it had finally faded, Giles had changed. Not a lot, but it obvious to anyone that knew him. The former Watcher stood confidently, all traces of insecurity burned away. The knowledge that had always been such a part of Giles was now openly visible in his eyes.

Giles crossed the room and knelt next to Hera's still form. He pulled her into his arms and closed his eyes, using his newfound knowledge to reach out to Hera's mind. The connection between them was easy to achieve, healing the Queen of the Gods wasn't that simple.

Giles panted for breath, waves of pain and pleasure were slamming into his body over and over. He could hear several voices, but couldn't understand what they were trying to say to him. Giles felt something, someone, touch his mind. He reached out desperately for that contact, using it as an anchor and allowed it to lead him.

He found the wounds in Hera's mind and wrapped his mind around hers, blanketing her in comfort and warmth. Giles fully merged their minds, allowing both of them to learn all there was to know about the other.

**********

Strife had no time to worry about Hera or the new King, his bacchae was hurt. Strife moved Spike to his temple with a thought and put him into the bed. Strife stripped the clothes from both of them before climbing into the bed next to Spike. He cuddled him close and pulled Spike's face to his neck. "Drink."

Spike pulled back and stared at the strange young God. "Wha? You sure?"

Strife grinned at him, "Yes. Now drink."

Spike wasn't going to argue. He could still taste the blood from before and he wanted more. His fangs slid easily into the pale skin and he heard Strife groan. The erection stabbing him in the belly made it painfully obvious that Strife was enjoying himself as much as Spike was.

Spike rolled Strife onto his back and slid between his thighs, never losing his connection to the vein in Strife's neck. Moving quickly, he pulled one incredibly white leg up onto his shoulder and slid one finger into Strife's pliant body. The tight passage was already lubed and gave way easily. Spike growled into Strife's throat, removing his finger from the God's warmth, he rammed his cock home without any further preliminaries.

The God of Mischief giggled and then wrapped his free leg around Spike's waist, pulling him in deeper. The harder Spike thrust, the more Strife giggled and moaned. Soon the two immortals were slamming together so fiercely, the bed began a skittering dance across the marble floor.

Spike could taste the orgasm building in the God's thick, red blood. Pushing his hand between their tightly wedged bodies, he fisted Strife's erection hard and fast. The God arched up with a wail and came hard.

The blood pouring into Spike's mouth became incredibly sweet and the vampire knew he was addicted. Mortal blood would never be enough after this. Spike withdrew his fangs as he came so hard the muscles in his back and legs spasmed uncontrollably. He collapsed on Strife's chest, shuddering in reaction.

Strife moved Spike off of him and pulled the bacchae's face up so he could see his eyes. Stroking the ridges on Spike's face, he said quietly, but forcibly, "You're mine, Spike. Mine and mine alone; for eternity. No other may claim you."

Spike didn't even try to argue, Hell, he didn't want to argue. Smiling wickedly, he nodded once.

Strife cupped Spike's face in his hands and kissed him, hard. Spike kissed him back just as fiercely, then sighed quietly when Strife pulled the blankets up over them. Spike laid his head on Strife's chest and let the God's steady heartbeat lull him to sleep. Maybe he'd finally lost his mind, but what a way to go.

*****

Giles withdrew from Hera's mind, but left their connection open. The Queen of the Gods regained consciousness quickly. She smiled up at Giles and accepted the hand he extended to help her to her feet.

Ares was more than a little shocked at Hera's appearance. She looked years younger and all signs of stress had disappeared. But what surprised Ares the most was the fact that Hera actually looked happy. His mother kept sneaking glances at Giles and blushed every time he smiled at her.

Ares dropped into his chair, trying to figure out just what this meant for him and for Olympus.

**********

Willow and Tara knelt on the floor and clasped hands over the altar. As soon as Willow's laptop chimed, indicating that all of her online friends were ready to begin, Willow and Tara began to pray to Hecate.

Goddess Hecate, hear our prayer. We offer our lives and our power to your worship. May our offering of blood be worthy of you.

Wesley extended a dagger over the altar. Willow and Tara ran their joined hands along the edge of the dagger, letting their blood mingle before it dropped onto the surface of the altar.

Goddess Hecate, we beseech your aid against the darkness that opposes your law. The One who shall not be called by name has been summoned from Tartarus to our realm. Goddess Hecate, hear our prayer.

The altar began to glow with a faint light and everyone in the room felt the hair on their arms stand up. Willow and Tara continued their chant, their voices growing stronger as the power in the room increased.

A mist boiled up from the floor, there was a spark and then a flash of light. A tall, dark haired woman emerged from the mist and smiled at the witches. "My children, I've been waiting for you for so long."

**********

Willow, Tara and Wesley sat huddled around the Goddess Hecate. Willow and Tara were so awestruck that they could barely speak so Wesley was acting as their spokesman.

"Goddess Hecate. Thank you for answering us. We dearly need your help." The young Englishman said.

Hecate smiled at the dark haired man. "You are not one of mine, young Wesley. Who is your patron?"

Wesley turned red, "I, uh, don't really have one, Goddess Hecate."

"Wesley, please. Just call me Hecate. There is no need to be so formal. I must admit, I have never been called so strongly. How did you do it? There were hundreds of voices calling my name and offering their service, but I only see these two here that are bound to me."

Wesley put his hand on Willow's shoulder, "Willow used some of our modern technology and sent out a message to all of her friends. And they called their friends. We weren't sure if you had been caught in the Twilight and we desperately need to contact Ares."

Hecate paled slightly when Wesley mentioned the Twilight. "I managed to evade the Twilight when it took the others. I scattered myself amongst all of my worshipers, tying my power to theirs. Every time they called my name, some of my power fed theirs, at the same time that power came back to me threefold. It kept me alive and aware all through the ages, but I wasn't strong enough to become active until you called me so forcibly. Now, tell me why you need Ares, and how do you plan to wake him from the Twilight."

Wesley explained that Ares was awake and active and that Cupid had awoke just days before. Then he told her about Anya and Xander. And what Anya had done to try to get her boyfriend away from the God of Love. Hecate looked at the black oval on the floor and saw the trap for what it was.

Small sparks of light danced in her eyes and she practically floated to her feet. The Goddess faced Anya and glared at the former demoness. "I should kill you where you stand for what you have done. Your selfishness may well bring about the end of the world. But your fate is not for me to decide. If we survive this, the Pantheon shall deal with you. But until then..."

Hecate waved her hand, encasing Anya in a sheath of crystal. Buffy jumped up and got in Hecate's face. "What the Hell did you do to her?"

Hecate raised one brow at the annoying blonde gnat standing before her. The Goddess looked at Welsey, "Who is this? Does she have a death wish?"

Wesley didn't smile, but the corners of his mouth kept twitching. "This is the Slayer, Buffy."

Buffy pushed the woman, "Hey! Don't ignore me!"

Hecate threw Buffy across the room with a wave of her hand. Angel vamped out and lunged at Hecate. He joined Buffy in a crumpled heap against the wall. Hecate brushed a speck of dust off the sleeve of her robes. Smiling at the witches and Wesley she said, "Well, how would you like to come to Olympus with me? I have an overwhelming urge to visit my nephew."

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