Under My Thumb

Willow backed away. "You said you wouldn't kill me here."

"Who said anything about killing?" Angelus said silkily. His eyes were fastened on her slim white throat and they held a glimmer of green.

She noticed where his attention was directed. "You are going to kill me."

"No, I'm not." He didn't say anything about not biting though, he wasn't going to leave here without tasting her pure blood. Without marking her.

"Has a vampire ever bitten you before?"

"No." Willow inched closer to her desk. She had an enormous unabridged dictionary laying open on it. If she whacked him with that, she'd be able to knock him out.

"I'll have to remedy that." Angelus said. His fangs began to elongate.

"See!" Willow said fiercely. "You're getting ready to bite me, you big liar!"

He chuckled, her fear was mouth-watering, whetting his depraved appetite for her blood. He wanted more of her fear too. "Didn't you just say that you don't have to keep a deal with a homicidal maniac? Why should I keep my deal with a young virgin?"

She backed into the desk, her small fingers scrambling behind her to pick up the heavy book. "I knew it! I knew you'd try to kill me eventually!"

He grasped her arms and pulled her forward, holding her slender body immobile in his embrace. "Now, now, young lady. There will be none of that. I'm wise to your affinity for blunt objects and your obsession with striking unsuspecting vampires with them." He couldn't keep the smile off his face. " You really were going to smack me with that big book, weren't you?" He shook his head, taking a moment to marvel at her resourcefulness. "And probably give me a few choice words from it, too."

"N-no, I wouldn't do that." Willow denied.

Angelus pinned her with his eyes. "Don't do that. There won't be any lies between us."

"Why do you keep saying things like that? Like I'm going to be alive in few minutes?"

"We're going to have a serious talk about this death wish of yours, my sweet. It's not healthy."

"You aren't going to kill me?"

"Haven't we talked about this already?" He sighed. " No, I'm not going to kill you tonight." He frowned, his mind winging in a new direction. "Is that how your other relationships ended? With the other party dead?"

Willow choked back a giggle. "No, of course not. Well. . .actually I haven't had any other relationships." She looked at him crossly. "Hey! Who said this was relationship?"

"I did." Angelus said, standing taller.

"Oh." Willow needed to think about that some more.

Angelus smiled and ran one finger down her pink cheek. "If you don't want to argue anymore, I have more pressing concerns."

"You're going to b-bite me?"

"Yes." He waited to see how she would react.

"You w-won't take t-too much?" He shook his head solemnly and she relaxed a little. Being bitten was better than being dead. "Does it. . .does it. . .hurt?"

"At first." He said truthfully. "But then there's only pleasure." He thought back to the night he was turned. "Exquisite pleasure that burns you up inside, makes you weak and leaves you shuddering."

Willow took a shaky breath. "Oh. I guess it's okay then." She was probably going to need some intense therapy for this.

He closed his eyes as his features morphed into their true form. She merely looked up at him with glazed eyes. Angelus was overwhelmed by that small measure of trust. He gently tilted the white column of her throat to the right and pressed his nose into the vanilla scented heat of her neck. He traced the path of her blue vein with his tongue and she shivered in his arms, hands clutching his coat. He pulled impossibly closer into his arms, pressing one leg in between her thighs. He could hear her blood singing to him, willing him to taste it. He pressed his sharp hard fangs at the place he would enter and pierced her neck swiftly. Then he began to pump his fangs into her, letting her honeyed blood fill his mouth, bathe his tongue.

Willow tensed at the slight sting in her neck but as Angelus began to take her blood, his fangs were no longer a painful intrusion. They were a source of gratification, the root of rapture. She clutched at him, her fingers sliding into the thick wool of his coat, her hips rotated on his muscular thigh between her legs. She'd never felt anything like this, the pleasure was unbearable as if she were climbing to some apex, striving for some nameless goal.

Suddenly he pulled from her with a cry, gasping in an unneeded breath. He looked sated, satisfied."No," Willow wailed, trying to press him back inside her but he merely cleansed her wounds with his tongue until the blood stopped flowing. Then he pressed his cool lips to the puncture marks, a reverent gesture. He slid her down his body, holding their hips apart even as he held her.

Angelus pulled back to look down on her, smoothing the damp hair from her flushed face. "So beautiful." He crooned.

"B-but I—"

"Shh." He put a finger to her lips. "I can't take anymore of your blood tonight, it'd make you sick." He lifted her effortlessly in his arms and brought her to the bed, He pulled back the covers and laid her down. She tried to speak again but he shushed her with a look. From his pocket, he pulled the necklace and fastened it around her throat with a smug smile. He was careful to avoid her wounds. He leaned down and removed her shoes with care and then brought the covers to her chin. Willow felt her eyes starting to close and bent to press a kiss on her rosy lips. "Sleep, Willow." And she did. **********

Willow sat in the back of the class room with Buffy. The French teacher was asking all of them what they did last night. She really hoped that he didn't call on her and if he did the whole class would be learning some brand new vocabulary words. She ran a hand through her hair, every time she closed her eyes she could see them together, feel Angelus pressed against her. "Earth to Wills, where are you?"

"What?"

"What are you thinking about?" Buffy said, eyes alight with mischief. "I know that look. Who's the lucky guy?"

"Guy?" She whispered back, keeping an eye on Mr. Voorhees who had his back to the classroom, writing away on the chalk board. "There's no guy."

"Are you trying to tell me something?" The Slayer rose one manicured eyebrow. "Is there a girl?"

"Nope. No girl either." Willow tugged the collar of her turtleneck up.

"I know who it is -- that cute guitar player. What's his name? Oh, I remember -- Oz!"

"Oh, Oz. Yeah, h-he's great." Haven't thought about him for a while.

"Did you two exchange smoochies?"

No, but I gave the demon whose wearing your boyfriend's face a taste of my blood. And what's worse. . .I really liked it. "Something like that." Willow said, not meeting Buffy's eyes.

"Well, I'm glad. You can't wait around forever for Xander Harris to get a clue. Mark my words, he'll be sorry he passed you up."

"Uh-uh. Yep, probably kick himself for it. Yep."

"Ms. Rosenberg, since you seem so chatty right now, why don't you tell the class what you did last night?" Mr. Voorhees leaned back on his desk and crossed his arms.

Cripes! *********

"There is nothing wrong with drinking an orange." Willow grumbled. "Cuz, hello! Orange juice. He probably drinks it everyday for breakfast." When she'd been so rudely cornered by the teacher she said that she had ate dinner last night and that she had drank an orange. How humiliating, especially because she got A's on the tests in that class. Even Buffy had let out a giggle.

Willow savagely plunged her chicken mcnugget into the golden hot mustard sauce and took a bite. "At least I got some Mickey D's today." She turned her attention to the history work before her, she had time for more self-flagellation later.

"What are you doing, Willow?"

The hacker jumped up about two feet off of her chair. "Angelus!" she hissed.

"You should be more careful, little one. There's all sorts of nasty things in Sunnydale." He gave her a wicked smile, clearly proud of himself for scaring her. Angelus walked over casually and sat down on her desk. He eyed the greasy paper bag her food had come in with disdain. "And just what is that?"

"Dinner." She said, biting into another nugget.

"A piece of compressed chicken dipped into a sauce. Sounds delicious." He said, his voice laced with sarcasm. What was wrong with her? She should be having caviar, champagne, and filet mignon -- not food from an establishment who idolized a clown with tacky footwear.

Willow picked up another nugget and gestured with it. "At least my food doesn't talk to me." Best not to tempt fate on the Hellmouth. She frowned at the square piece of fried meat and when no mouths appeared she ate it. Thankfully no cries of 'help me' issued from within her mouth. "Besides, you don't eat food, so how can you critique it?"

"No, Angel doesn't eat food. I'm a gourmet." He seized one of her nuggets.

"Hey! I was going to eat that."

"Now, I am." He dipped it in the sauce and brought it to his mouth for an experimental bite. He chewed and swallowed. Mmmm "I didn't think this would taste that good." He popped the rest in his mouth and seized another nugget.

"Fast food, gotta love it." Willow said with a grin, she pushed the carton of nuggets between them. "Have some more." In a few minutes they polished off all of them.

"Do they have anything else besides chicken?"

"Yes, you should experience wonder of french fries." She wiped her greasy hands on a paper napkin and picked up her pen once more, determined to finish the homework. Angelus would just have to deal, she wasn't going to be his entertainment this evening.

"Wait just a minute! I didn't come over here to be ignored."

"Too bad." She said with irritation. "I have some history homework to do."

"What's the topic?"

"The tower of London, I'm writing an essay on what it must've been like for the inhabitants." She sighed. " It's this new idea of 'living history', its supposed to make it more interesting.

"You're in luck, my sweet, I can be some help in that area. It just so happens that I visited the prison."

"Really?" Wow! It was weird and cool and yuck all at the same time.

He stood up as if addressing a prized pupil. "Yes, Darla and I went there shortly after I was sired. You could say that it was part of our honeymoon."

"You were imprisoned there?"

"No, of course not. As if a prison could hold me." His gave her a haughty smile. "We leapt over the wall one night and decided to visit again and again. We did the usual stuff. We fed the ravens, ate some guards. . ." His voice turned hoarse. "Played in the torture chamber."

"Oh." She squeaked. Time for a subject change."So, what was life like for the prisoners?"

Angelus began to explain his time at the prison and Willow was mesmerized by his deep voice and the way he made history come alive for her. Of course, it was a dark and bloody history but it was still a first hand account and it fascinated her. Willow took notes while he talked and asked him questions along the way. She sometimes forgot just how old Angel/Angelus was and what he had witnessed.

Angelus was enjoying himself, he loved the role of teacher or sire as the case may be. Willow was an apt pupil, asking insightful questions and listening carefully to his answers. After it was over, she typed up a quick essay and he read it over adding one or two suggestions. As she printed it out, she was staring at him.

"What?"

"Nothing." She said at first and then sighed. "I never imagined that you could be so--"

"Knowledgeable?"

"No, I knew you were smart. But. . .what's the word I was looking for? Nice?'

Angelus grinned. "You think I'm nice, little one? Do you think a demon ever does something for nothing?"

She gulped. "You want some sort of payment?"

"No, this is bartering. You got something from me, now you will give something to me."

"I could buy you some french fries." She offered halfheartedly.

"No, I'm not hungry for food."

"Then w-what do you want?"

"Come here and I'll show you." Angelus pulled her over and into his arms. She could feel her heart pounding wildly and the blood roaring in her ears. He bent over her, placing his head on her shoulder and peeled the fabric of her turtleneck away from her neck to expose his bite mark. She tensed in anticipation but he didn't bite. He merely pressed a soft kiss there and moved to whisper in her ear. "I've marked you, Willow Rosenberg. No other vampire. . .or man for that matter will ever have you."

"Are you going to bite me again?"

"Not tonight, my sweet. You lost too much blood the last time."

"Oh. Then what are you going to do?"

Was that disappointment in her voice? He could only hope. Instead of answering her, he kissed a line from her jaw to her mouth. When he reached her lips, he kissed her wildly putting all of his thirst for her into it. Then it came to him. This. . .thing with her wasn't about revenge or the need for power. It wasn't about his anger at the soul or sticking it to the Slayer. It wasn't even about passing time anymore. This was about Willow. Willow and himself. He pulled away from her, looking down into her glowing green eyes with a stunned sort of wonder. Angelus kissed her forehead lightly. "Goodnight, my sweet." And then he was gone, using his vampiric strength to get the hell out of there, the moisture from her kiss still on his lips. ********

The next night Willow sat at a table by herself at the Bronze. She didn't know why she'd let them drag her here. Cordelia, Xander, and Buffy were dancing in the middle of the floor in a bizarre threesome. She took a sip of her mocha and sat back further in her chair, thoughts of Angelus and his hasty exit furthermost in her mind.

She didn't know what it was about him, but she was starting to have feelings for him. It didn't bother her that he had an all access pass to her house, even though he was a killer. She liked talking to him, getting to know him. She enjoyed the sound of his voice, the smell of leather and tobacco smoke, and the way his large hands cupped her face as he kissed her. She craved his touch and longed for him to take her innocence, make her his own. She loved the way his fathomless eyes stared into her as if he wanted to absorb her. Willow loved the way he made her feel when he bit her, as if she was the center of his universe. Willow loved. . .him.

With the unwelcome realization came a huge wave of guilt. For Angel and Buffy together and separately. For the other scoobies, for loving a demon. Willow pressed her hands to her mouth and to stifle a moan of horror. She was evil. Wicked. How could she want him? He killed people! He tortured them! And he enjoyed it. She wasn't innocent to his ways, she'd read the accounts of his activities. She knew exactly who and what he was. . .and she didn't care.

She stood up shakily, ready to bolt from the door when a hand captured hers. "Willow?"

She turned. "Oz." She hadn't seen him since the night they had blown up The Judge.

"How are you? I called a couple of–"

"I know. I've just been busy. How have you been?" She really didn't feel like doing this but there was really no choice.

"Good." He nodded. "Seen any more exploding dust guys?"

The night of Buffy's party, she'd staked a vampire in front of him. "Uh, no actually. How are you dealing with that?" It was a shock to find out monsters were real. . .and that they could be lovable.

"I'm okay." He spoke in a conspiratorial tone of voice. "Did you know that Sunnydale is crawling with them?"

"You don't say." She smiled then. He was amusing in his calm acceptance of cosmic forces and doom.

"Really, it's no lie. What are you doing here tonight?"

"Drinking mochas." She pointed down to her beverage.

"Chocolate and coffee, can't beat that combo." He nodded his head, then looked at her again. "I've run out of casual conversation, so now I'm going to stand here in slightly uncomfortable silence and hope you'll invite me to sit with you."

"Oh! I'm so sorry. Please, sit down." She hastily gestured to another chair.

He sat down and flagged a waiter, requesting two more mochas. When the drinks came, Willow happily surrendered her lukewarm beverage for the fresh one and listened to Oz speak about his band and school. She felt relaxed in the young man's presence. He seemed like a nice guy and she could use the distraction.

Just then, Buffy, Xander, and Cordy came back to the table. The Slayer winked at the redhead knowingly and Willow flushed an interesting crimson color. She introduced Oz and they all talked for while. She was pleasantly surprised at how well he fit into their group. Everyone seemed to like him. In the bathroom, Buffy told her he was cute. Xander thought he was funny. Even Cordelia said he was 'halfway decent'. That was high praise from Queen C, who was impossible to please. This might be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.