Riley's loud and regular snores were rolling over the bedroom. Buffy was unable to sleep. Since they were in the Big Brother house, his snores had become quite annoying. She threw herself from one side to the other until she decided she would not get any sleep that night. Sighing, she got dressed to do something for the week's task. It was a warm summer night.

From the doorstep she could see she was not the only one who did not sleep. Someone was working on the pool.

Judging from the silhouette against the moonlit night sky, it was Angel.

Buffy approached slowly.

He looked up. "Shouldn't you be asleep." It was more a statement than a question. "It's a bit... noisy in the bedroom, maybe." Did she hear amusement in his voice?

"No," she said. "What about Toby's new home?"

"Couldn't be better."

"Can I help you?"

"The basin must be deeper still. But the ground is hard here."

"I see." Buffy took the tools and began to dig up the ground.

They worked silently for some time. Buffy thought it safer not to use her special abilities, so she would look like a normal girl to the cameras. After a while, she felt sweat breaking from her skin. Such hard work without her powers was strenuous, and she was breathing deep.

Angel watched her furtively. He began to worry. If Buffy kept working like that, the following morning she would feel the pain in every muscle. Angel saw how she pushed her hair back, how the shirt began to stick to her body due to the sweat. Spike's voice still rang in his ears. If I were you, I'd think about running the risk, I mean, sleeping with Buffy under the cameras' eyes and Riley's, vamping out, becoming a demon, would definitely raise audience ratings.

Angel understood why almost everyone had nominated the vampire. He was always surpassing the limits of taste, he was tactless, and his arguments beyond discussion. If I were you, I'd think about running the risk, I mean, sleeping with Buffy under the cameras' eyes and Riley's...

"What do you think, who's gonna leave?" Buffy suddenly asked.

"I'm not sure. I don't think Faith will have to go."

"Not as long as she keeps presenting her... virtues under the shower," Buffy agreed. "I could use a shower as well." She looked around and saw Toby dozing lazily near the pool. "But as long as Toby's not interested, I prefer the pool."

Angel looked shocked. "What, now?"

"Why not?" Without waiting for an answer, Buffy jumped into the water just like she was, wasting no thought on whether Toby might want to join her.

Angel watched her, shaking his head in disbelief. They were getting along so well. As friends, of course. If only Riley had been on the list.

They could only hope it would be Spike who had to leave. If I were you, I'd think about running the risk...

*

A loud scream from the women's bedroom woke Wesley. Alarmed, he jumped from the bed and rushed to Cordelia's rescue.

"What's wrong?"

Cordelia's face was ghastly white. "F....F....F....," she stuttered.

"She's got company," Spike said with amusement.

Wesley covered up the sheets. In the middle of the satin sheets, there was Fluffy, sitting on Cordelia's pillow.

Wesley shot Spike a warning look and tried to supress a smile.

"I had to work outside, and didn't want our little one to feel lonely," Spike admitted.

"Monster!" Cordelia cried.

*

"You can calculate it any way you want," Giles said, standing at the blackboard like a patient teacher in front of a class of six year-olds, "Either way, we're on a low budget, and we must feed animals on it, so we'll have to reduce the list of orders each of you has given to me."

"Fine," Buffy said, "No cigarettes for Spike."

"Why me?" Spike exploded, "Look, I don't eat, I don't drink, I don't paint my face, and now I'm supposed to give up smoking?"

"We all have to refrain from some of our wishes," the slayer smiled.

"I'm glad you're so sensible, Buffy," Giles announced proudly, "Then you'll surely be prepared to set a good example and buy a cheaper shampoo."

"What?" Buffy asked, displeased. "I need this shampoo, without it, the color of my hair gets dirty, and it doesn't shine, I just ordered what I really need."

"Sorry, Buffy," Wesley supported Giles, "We have to be satisfied with less. Look, we ordered TEA BAGS – that's more of a sacrifice than a shampoo."

"No," Buffy protested, "I'm doing most of the work on the pool, and the two of you just sit here and calculate what we can afford or not afford! I think I deserve some luxury."

Wesley was about to give a sharp reply, but he was silenced by Angel. "It's okay, Wes," the vampire said calmly, "I don't really need my part of the budget, I don't... eat that much either. And I don't smoke. Let her have the shampoo."

Buffy gave him a radiant smile.

"Not necessary," Riley replied, sounding offended, "I can spare the costs for the shampoo. Giles, put Buffy's shampoo on my list. Forget about the fresh milk, I can do without it."

Giles shook his head. They were such children sometimes.

Anya pushed Xander hard in the side. "Why don't you buy me a shampoo?"

Xander thought about it for a moment. "Well," he said, "'Cause you don't need it, you look beautiful as you are."

Anya seemed flattered, but remained a little sceptical.

"Back to the cigarettes," Spike said, "I'm not gonna beg, I'll just order them."

"For me, too," Faith agreed.

"I'd prefer this to be a non-smoking household," Cordelia said, "If the air is full of smoke, some of us in here can't breathe... well... some actually needn't breathe... but..."

Giles shot her a warning look. "I think we know what you would like to say."

"Oops... right. We're just some HUMAN guys in a TV show, with CAMERAS and MICROPHONES, right," Cordelia murmured, more to herself than to the others.

"Let's come back to the list," Giles suggested. "What else do we have?" He looked through the list. "Faith, I do not think we need any garlic."

Most of the group looked at the slayer with annoyed and reproachful eyes.

"What?" Faith asked, "I wanted to try a recipe my Italian cell mate taught me."

"I support the request," Riley agreed.

Buffy shot him a warning look.

"Refused by the group," Giles decreed and deleted the entry from the blackboard.

"That's democracy," Riley grumbled.

"I love America," Spike replied.

"We have to come to a consent here," Giles announced, "Can we agree to spend half our budget on food, and the remaining budget is divided among the group so everyone can buy something in addition for themselves? I think that way we'll come to more agreeable results. We're a community, after all, so we should cooperate. For fairness reasons, Spike and Angel will get a larger budget than the others because of their special... diet."

The live audience were watching the huge monitors that showed what was happening in the house during the special feature. The station had decided on doing regular shows except for the Saturday night show after audience ratings had reached a new peak.

A renown star psychologist, Dr Eleanor West, had been hired to comment on the events of the first days of Big Brother.

"Our opinion polls on the world wide web are clearly showing a favorite – despite his... unusual behavior, and despite his nomination, Spike is on top of the list. How do you account fo that?" the host asked.

Dr West smiled at the camera. "Spike is the classical rebel ideal, the incarnation of James Dean in the house. He opposes to the social structures set up by Rupert and the others, and he follows his own tendencies. He seems ruthless, but we can assume he basically is kind and caring."

The host frowned. "Faith is also kind of a rebel, but for some reason she is not as highly estimated by the viewers."

"I think it is because men are afraid of so self-assured a woman, and women see a rival in her, she's the 'bad' girl the others don't dare to be."

"The others, like Buffy?"

"Buffy is a strong leader, and Faith clearly is a challenge. For Buffy, Faith is a potential threat, not only in this respect, but because she had an affair with Riley, and Angel seems to see himself in the role of Faith's protector, almost like an elder brother."

"We have another expert here, Madame Arcadia. She is a famous horoscoper, and we've asked her for some information about the stars."

Madame Arcadia was a dark-haired woman in her late thirties, wearing a dark blue dress with small plastic gems. "The constellation in the house is one of great passions, but also great tensions," she explained, "And you can see something very striking as well. Both Spike and Faith are isolated in their astrologic positions in the house. Spike is a leo, and like a typical lion, he defends his territory and struggles for power, but he feels he is superior, too, and regards the others from a distanced, ironical position. Faith as a sagittarius is an energetic dancing queen, addicted to attention, which we clearly saw when she starred in 'Interview with a vampire'. She felt Riley and Xander were ruining her performance, so she quitted. Like Spike, Faith wants admiration – the two of them would make a good couple, from the astrological point of view."

"Nonsense," Dr West interfered, "Both of them are exhibitionistic and eccentric, they would ruin each other."

Madame Arcadia ignored her.

"Is there something like an ideal couple in the house?" the host asked.

"Well," Madame replied, "Buffy and Riley are both Capricorns."

From the audience, an audible protest arose.

"...but that is quite problematic for a relationship. A Capricorn normally has a strong sense of duty and is quite engaged in his job. If two of that kind come together, their relationship may lack passion, and their daily tasks may consume them. They are getting exhausted, burnt out, married to their jobs. I haven't been informed what Buffy's job in real life is, but I bet it's very strenuous, and she needs someone who makes her forget her responsibilities, who can make her dream. Someone who is loyal and romantic. I'd suggest a Taurus."

"You can see now what a nonsense astrology is," Dr West said with satisfaction, "Obviously Buffy and Riley are very happy together, despite their so-called incompatibility."

The host interfered. "Why, that's interesting. According to our opinion poll on the web, our viewers see Buffy and Angel as the perfect couple. Would you be so kind as to tell us Angel's astrologic sign, Madame?"

Madame Arcadia smiled triumphantly. "He's a Taurus."

"You do not have any sense of responsibility," Dr West exploded, "What are you up to? We can be glad they can't hear us. Personality has nothing to do with the stars at all. If it were thus, Rupert and Wesley would have to be of the same sign because they like to organize, are rather intellectual, and they are both English."

"In fact," Arcadia answered proudly, "They are both Pisces. By the way, Anya and Xander are both Arius. They have a lot in common."

"You just told us a relationship between two identical signs would be horrible?"

"Well, in this case it promises violent quarrels, but also explosions of energy, and a passionate sex life."

"Which the chickens will surely confirm," Dr West added sarcastically.

*

Night had fallen. Angel was working out at the pool alone, Spike was still with the chickens – they had agreed to schedule their occupation of the barn, if they always dined together, it would just arise rumors - , and the others were probably asleep. The vampire reflected on the past few days. The evening had been quite calm in the house. Riley had been complaining about his aching muscles from all the work by the pool, and Anya had remarked she was worried about Esmeralda's refusal to feed. Giles had tried to explain to her snakes could even live a year without having to eat, but the ex-demon did not seem convinced.

Angel had discussed the nomination with Wesley. After all, his employee was not too happy in the house, and he wondered whether the viewers would vote him out. Angel hated to admit it, yet for a viewer who wanted to be entertained, both Faith and Spike were likely to be more interesting than Wesley. Well, a viewer did not have to suffer the two of them for twenty-four hours a day. A viewer could turn off the box if Spike was getting on his nerves, and a viewer did not have to live with Faith and Cordelia's permanent siege of the bathroom.

Angel made a mental note he would mention that in his first interview after moving out. Might be in two weeks, might be a hundred days away, and he was already beginning to feel caged. In a madhouse, with nymphos like Anya and neurotics like Riley. However, he would not give them the satisfaction to leave voluntarily. He had his reasons for being in the house, his responsiblity for the agency. And living here without having to fight demons for some time was not that bad, after all. It had nothing to do with Buffy, of course.

A flickering light in the relatively dark house caught his eye. What was it? Looked like a torch. Who could possibly have a torch with him? Electronics of any kind were not allowed by Big Brother, and there were cameras everywhere. Who would risk being disqualified for breaking the game rules?

Buffy was awakened by a flickering light out on the corridor. She looked around in the bedroom. Angel's and Spike's places were empty, as usual. Who was outside? One of the girls?

"Spike?" she asked into the emptiness. "Angel?"

No answer.

Curious, she crept out of the bed towards the door. A dark figure with a torch was walking about the house with soft steps.

A torch? Buffy frowned. The rules forbid torches.

She watched the figure more closely. This obviously was a man in a dark jumpsuit, wearing a skiing mask. He was carrying a backpack, and he was searching through the closet.

This was none of the inhabitants. A joke by Big Brother? Or a true burglar?

Buffy decided to find out. She turned on the lights abruptly. "What are you doing?" she asked in a sharp voice.

The man whirled around. He drew a knife. "Not a sound," he warned her.

Buffy looked up. The red light of the camera above her was not on. Neither was the camera in her back. He must have deactivated some of them.

The Slayer did not hesitate. She knocked the man off his feet quickly, his attempt to block her attack was entirely futile, he groaned as he hit the ground a a sharp pain went through his body. Buffy knocked the knife from his hand and took it.

"Who are you?" he asked, puzzled.

"I could ask YOU the same question."

Angel rushed into the house. "I heard noises," he said, then he saw the intruder.

"The situation's in control," Buffy said calmy.

Minutes later, the others were woken by the noise of the fight, and policemen - to Anya's delight, many good-looking men in sexy police uniforms - swarmed into the Big Brother house and arrested the man.

"It remains a mystery why someone would break into the Big Brother house," Wesley pondered. "The whole world knows we are not to own any luxury in here. Certainly nothing worth stealing."

"Perhaps he was some kind of pervert," Cordelia assumed, then panicked, "He could have been after me!"

"Not even a pervert would stalk YOU," Faith remarked.

"He told the police he didn't know this was the Big Brother house," Tara suggested.

"No, how could he," Spike said sarcastically, "Tara, there are huge signs with the logo all over the walls and at the fences around! And there are cameras all over the area, one couldn't possibly take them for security cameras! He must be blind and dumb if he didn't know where he was!"

"I hate to agree," Angel said, "The man knew perfectly how to de-activate the cameras."

"What worries me is that he overlooked some of them," Giles said, "Buffy's knocking him down was proably broadcasted."

Buffy shrugged. "It's no secret I know Martial Arts, and that guy was really lame."

"I just suggested we should be more careful about... you know."

"Still," Angel said, "I can't help it, I still think he broke into the Big Brother house on purpose. I wonder what he was looking for."

*

The whole large building was dark. Except three windows on the top floor. A secretary was typing articles into the computer like a madman.

The editor in chief was walking about the conference room, restlessly.

"Read that out to me once more, Derek," she said.

"Oh, okay. THE STARS DON'T LIE – BUFFY TO DUMP RILEY?"

"I hate this. It's not spectacular, our readers will want something more exciting. That Buffy-Angel-story is not attractive as long as nothing happens. When will we get our hands on Angel's portrait? Damn it, Michelle!"

The blond woman that was almost falling asleep at the conference table suddenly came to life. "I'm sorry, I'm working on it."

"You've been telling me so for a week, and so far you haven't been able to produce so much as a photograph! Especially our female readers flood our mailbox with requests for a special feature, he's extremely popular. The web was down when he was in the shower, so produce your article by Monday, or you can go and look for a new job. Do we understand each other?"

"We do," Michelle said helplessly.

"Fine," the editor in chief continued, "If we don't get any new ideas soon, our sales figfures will decline further. We're not the only gossip magazine in the States, and Big Brother is our chance, I don't have to stress that. What about you, John?"

"I'm still on the report on dangerous pets. The interview with the guy from Kansas who lives with fourty-three snakes is ready."

"Right, but, as I said, we've written about such freaks a thousand times. Listen, guys, I wouldn't keep you here at night for meetings if it wasn't important, I'd rather be home with my little daughter as well, but we have no choice. The publisher has cut down our budget already, and he threatens to replace the whole magazine, so if you don't want to sweep the streets, GET ME SOMETHING NEW!"

For a moment, there was silence. The editors and reporters meditated upon their articles. Not that they were not aware their situation was serious. The times they had been on top of the sales lists were long since gone, and they had lost readers concentrating on subjects like Madonna's wedding and George Clooney's new girlfriend. The prospects were not excactly bright.

Then the door flew open.

The editor in chief looked up. "Dave."

"I'm sorry I'm late, but..."

"No, Dave, not just 'sorry'. When was the last time you were punctual?"

"Sheryl, I know I've been busy lately, but I'm..."

"You're fired."

Dave looked shocked. "No, listen to me. When you've heard me out, you won't want to fire me. I have the story that can save all our jobs."

Sheryl hesitated. Dave had disregarded her authority as rédactrice en chef too often. Firing him might add to the work ethics of her staff.

"Please." Dave looked at her with pleading eyes, a sparkle in them that reminded her of their brief affair.

Demonstratively, she looked at her watch. "You got two minutes."

"I have a Big Brother story."

"John already interviewed the guy from Kansas."

"No," Dave insisted, "This is much better. It's about Angel."

Sheryl yawned. "Michelle's doing the feature. And the horoscoper is our title story for the next edition."

"Forget about the horoscoper. Now imagine." He saw the headlines before the mind's eye. "All women love Angel, right? The horoscoper contributed to it, the loyal, romantic Taurus that fits the dutiful, responsible Capricorn so perfectly, right? The understanding ideal man to dream about, a Prince Charming on a white horse, right? And now imagine --- he may have a darker side, a secret side nobody knows about." Dave smiled.

Sheryl tried to look as bored as possible, yet he made her curious. "And what would that be?"

"Have you never thought about it? Have you never wondered why you never see him eat on the show?"

"It's obvious," Michelle remarked, "If he ate a lot, he wouldn't have that body - he would look like you."

Dave ignored her. "Have you never asked yourselves why he takes so much care of the chickens? And why there are no cameras in the chicken's barn? Never wondered what he's doing there, often with Spike?"

Sheryl giggled. "Oh, Dave, you haven't learned anything about selling newspapers. If you tell our readers Angel and Spike are gay, you won't sell a single copy."

"You're missing the point," Dave disagreed, "I'm not saying they're gay, that's not what I suspect. But think about it! They don't eat, we haven't seen photos that weren't taken by Big Brother with digital camera technology, they disappear into the barn and look very satisfied when they return, and they only work outside at night! And then, the task about 'Interview with the vampire' --- have you seen Angel's face?"

"That was pretty cool," Michelle said, "I still wonder how he came to such a good mask that fast."

"Maybe... it wasn't a mask," Dave said in a scary tone.

Sheryl looked at him as if he had gone mad. "What?"

"Angel is a vampire, and Spike, too."

Again, a dreadful silence.

Then Sheryl burst out laughing. "You're becoming very inventive with your excuses for being late at our meetings. But that won't save your ass, you're fired."

"My two minutes aren't over yet," Dave said. "I did some research." He placed a folder on the conference table. "They say he's a private investigator, but he has no license. I've checked it. Then, I interviewed some of Buffy's old classmates.

While Angel was living at Sunnydale, the rate of violent death cases that were never solved rose dramatically during the time he and Buffy were apart --- including a teacher at Buffy's high school that happened to be Rupert's girlfriend. Then they were seen back together, and the mysterious killing stopped."

Suddenly, Sheryl skimmed the pages of the folder with interest. "Tell me more."

"I have a source at the LA police department. Angel gets regular tickets for false parking --- strangely enough, always in front of the local slaughterhouse. Blood, you know."

"Creepy," Sheryl agreed, "But no proof."

"Last year, one of Angel's employees disappeared under mysterious circumstances. Officially, he has been reported missing, but we can assume him dead. Then, I found Angel on a video tape together with Rebecca Lowell."

"The aging soap star?"

"Yes, he was her bodyguard for a short time, and then she fired him without any apparent reason."

Sheryl looked fascinated, but still sceptical. "She faked attempts of assassination on her to get into the headlines again."

"I know, but I talked to her, and she swears Angel attacked her and tried to kill her, that she saw him drink blood. We have a prominent eye witness, Sheryl."

Sheryl thought about it for a moment. "What else do we have?"

"I hired a private investigator to find out more. Unfortunately, he was arrested yesterday for burglary. He broke into the Big Brother house to find new evidence to support my suspicions."

Sheryl raised a brow. "How stupid does one have to be to do that?"

Yet Dave's zeal impressed her.

"I have an appointment with a member of the LA police department tomorrow, she asked me not to reveal her name. Angel was involved in some of her cases. I'm sure she'll tell me some interesting facts about him."

The editor in chief sighed. "Let's say I'd give your story a chance, X-file-monster-of-the-week-like as it sounds. I can't publish this out of the blue. Do we have anything solid?"

Dave handed her a photograph.

"Sleeping beauty," Sheryl said sarcastically, "That's Buffy, asleep in the Big Brother house. So what?"

Dave smiled. "Well, that may be sleeping beauty. But I'd call it beauty and the beast. Normally, her hair covers her neck, but I had this photo magnified, and that's what I got..." He handed her another, larger version of the picture.

Buffy's flawless skin showed two marks right above her aorta, two scars, like left behind by fangs sunk into her skin long ago.