Room 306, early Saturday morning

[demonbelthazor]

Waking up in the early morning hours, Belthazor yawned and snuggled closer to Phoebe. It was Saturday, so there was no point in getting up yet. Might as well enjoy the break from classes and sleep in.

Then he realized something was wrong.

Phoebe wasn't blonde. Nor did she have such firmly muscled arms and thighs.

"What the hell?" he said aloud.


Callisto woke immediately upon hearing Angel's question. She rolled over and grinned at him.

"Mornin'."


"Ahhhh!" Bel jerked upright and scooted to the edge of the bed. Callisto? "What? How? Where am I? How did I get here?" he babbled in shock.


"You're cute when you flail," Callisto grinned. That didn't stop her from surreptitiously sliding a hand between the mattress and the wall for the stake hidden there. "You don't remember last night? I'm hurt," she pouted.


"But...but..." he stammered. Okay, for all that he didn't like Callisto's personality, she was hot, but he wouldn't do that to Phoebe. "I couldn't have!" he protested, giving voice to his frantic thoughts. "I wouldn't do that to her."


"Do what to who now?" Callisto frowned and adjusted her grip on the stake. "Angel, you have a bad dream or something?"


"Angel?" Bel said. It may even have been a squeak. He looked down at his hands. Not his hands. Not his arms. Not his legs. Not his.... Oh, hell. "Dream, right, this has got to be a dream."


"Not a dream. You don't get sore muscles in dreams. Or hickies." Okay, Callisto was just gonna slide that stake up into a good striking position. "Angel, that is you right? Soul and all?"


The spell. The spell must've kicked in while he slept, but instead of just pulling Angel's soul out, it put his in instead? Angelus was going to kill him. Phoebe was going to kill him. And if the way Callisto was hiding her hand between the wall and matress was any indication, Callisto was going to kill him first. "I'm fine, I'm fine," he said quickly. "I just had a really weird dream."


Callisto relaxed. A little. "Earl the miniature giraffe weird, or DEATH making condom animals weird?"


"A little of both, I think," Bel said, "but leaning more towards Death and condoms." He started to get up from the bed. "I, uh, have to go. I just need to, um, check on a few things."


"What kind of things?" Callisto was almost sure Angel was still souled, but there was something fishy going on here. She reached out to try to grab his shoulder. "Surely nothing that couldn't wait a little while at least."


Bel jumped as Callisto touched him. "Dreams sometimes mean...bad things," he said lamely. "Have to check...make sure nothing's going on. Uh, Bel might be up to something. It could be a warning."


"You are jumpy today," Callisto sat up to watch Angel more closely. "Look, there was sex, yet the soul is still there, this is a good thing. And Belthazor's always up to something. His puppyish devotion to Angelus would be almost cute if he wasn't a grown man."

"At the very least stick around long enough to shower," she decided to skip the offer of showering together for now. "Your hair's a mess."


"Shower. Yes," he agreed, nodding. Even though it wasn't his body, he had an overwhelming desire to wash Callisto off him. "I'll just shower, then check on things, and we can, um, get together later, okay?"


"Sure," Callisto grinned. "Just remember not to use all my shampoo."


Bel got up from the bed, trying desperately to keep the sheet wrapped around his waist. He headed for the door, but upon seeing the six locks, realized that must be the way out. Looking around in confusion, he saw a set of double doors and one single door. That must be the bathroom.

Once in the bathroom he shut and locked the door, then quickly showered. And then realized he didn't bring any clothes in with him. Wrapping a towel around his waist and opening the door, he poked his head out and said, "Could you, uh, pass me my clothes?"


"Just a moment," If Callisto was bothered by her state of undress, she didn't show it. She also didn't try to salvage the shirt Angel'd worn last night as that was well and truly ruined. Instead she handed over Crichton's her red Snoopy t-shirt.


Bel tried not to stare at Callisto. Tried. When she handed him the clothes, he tore his eyes away. "Thanks," he said, shutting the door again and quickly dressing, grimacing at the t-shirt.

He braced his hands on the edge of the sink, looking in the mirror. "Okay, Bel, pull yourself toget--." The lack of reflection startled him more than it should have and he couldn't suppress a noise of surprise.



"Angel? You okay in there?"


"I'm fine!" he called out, then opened the door. He began to edge toward the room's exit. "So, I'll call you, okay?" he said.


"You'd better, otherwise I'll kick your ass from here to the mainland." It might have only been a joke. Might.

Callisto frowned. "Angel, look out for th-...tripwire." Oh well, at least it was only a noose-snare.


Bel tried to keep his balance as he tripped over the wire, but the noose snared his foot and jerked him off his feet. Flailing, he fell forward as the wire pulled him. "Help!" he yelped.


Callisto was not laughing. Really.

"My hero," she deadpanned as she knelt to undo the trap. "Maybe we should do this in your room next time, otherwise you're going to get yourself dusted."


Bel got to his feet. "Probably a good idea," he said. He eyed the door warily. "Uh, can you get that? I'm worried about what it may do."


Still not laughing. Nope.

"Sure thing," Callisto quickly undid the locks and opened the door with a sweeping gesture. "Go, do your hero-ing thing."


Bel carefully stepped through the doorway, watching for more traps. Anxious to fix this...whatever this was...and get away from Callisto, he gave her a little wave. "Right. Time to go save puppies and kittens from the forces of evil. I'll, um...later. Right."


"Later." Callisto blew him a kiss as he exited. After shutting the door she frowned. "Okay that was odd."

Angel, was not acting like Angel. But he wasn't acting like Angelus, either. She'd better call Parker.

Pity she was so distracted she missed another of the traps...

Which left her in a remarkably similar position to one Vala was in near the start of last term dangling upside down, stark naked, with the phone handset lying just outside her reach. "Frak!"