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Chapter 8

When they woke, Buffy’s thoughts immediately turned to Anne – ma-ma as she had been instructed to call her.

“Ill be sorry to go in a way – I mean, not that I’m not a fan of 21st century plumbing and electricity and all that it brings but…your mom is so sweet, I’ll miss her”

William was looking sombre too.

“I know – and I know deep in my heart of hearts what I am to become, and what I am going to do over the century, and it…” William forced his knuckles to his mouth and slightly turned away from her.

Buffy felt her eyes flood with tears, she held William tight

“I know baby, I know…but think of it like this, we CAN’T change history, it’s all really gone and past, done and done with - and we wouldn’t be together in our own time now, if things hadn’t happened the way they did…” She felt William nod and he sniffed deeply.

“Giles has given me something to put in the water so that your mother and the staff will forget all about me, all about us being here and us two being married, so when you do come back from America empty handed, she won’t be any the wiser”

William nodded – at least he’d made his mother happy once, even if he wasn’t quite able to manage it in ‘real life time’ for him.

Holding her tight, William had his head in her soft fragrant neck

“Thankyou”

Buffy turned her head, softly kissed his cheek and whispered,

“What for?”

“For helping me make my mother happy and proud of me, at least once, even if it WAS all a big façade”

Buffy bought her hand up to William’s other cheek. She had to swallow the lump in her throat and she whispered

“William, your mother loved you and was SO proud of you anyway, I didn’t –“

“No, don’t…let’s not say anymore huh? – Time to go, get things done”

“Are you going to say goodbye to your mother?” Buffy asked

William shook his head no and replied,

“I come home from America in 6 days time, well I did, and as she’s not going to remember this, I’d rather remember her the way I did, when I left for America all those years ago”

Buffy nodded and was careful to do a ‘sweep’ of the room to make sure she left nothing behind. Quietly slipping down the back stairs that lead directly to the servant’s quarters, Buffy slipped the powders Giles had given her into Anne’s carafe of drinking water, and into the servant’s teapot.

She headed back upstairs and between them they made the bed careful to leave it turned down just the way the maid would have left it.

“Right, ready?” William asked, and Buffy nodded.

Opening the window onto the flat roof of the morning room, William and Buffy carefully climbed out, bringing their luggage with them.

Dropping down onto the pavement they quickly walked away towards town. They were lucky to find a coachman who had fallen asleep, and was willing to take them into town, as he had to go that way.

Arriving at the hotel, Buffy and William put their cases with the others.

“Right, everybody know what they’re supposed to be doing?” Giles asked

Buffy looked around. With a few ‘Hallowe’en’ supplies from the 21st century, plastic fangs, rubber hands with claws, some stick-on horns and face paint, and for Cordelia some Lurex fabric to make her a cape, a ‘touch globe’ that flashed like lightening with the warmth of a hand and some glitter gel on her face and hair, it had transformed them into convincing monsters and a witch. Buffy dressed as a boy again, it would be easier for her to move and fight if necessary.

They made their way to the cemetery as stealthily as possible. Two carriages passed them on the way there, and each wondered whom they contained…

By the crypt that they had gathered by last time, Giles gathered everybody close.

“Now remember, if you see the book, and have a chance to get it without causing immediate danger to either yourself or anyone of us, then take it and take off, the portal to the 21st century is where we came in, at the railway station. If the worst comes to the worst, we can always follow who buys the book if we have no other chance okay – and our watchword here is CAREFUL – and try not to make eye contact with each other while we are in there – we are all supposed to be independent buyers for the book, now you go first Gunn, then you Wesley, then you Cordelia, I’ll follow you in with Buffy, William and Xander you bring up the rear, try and keep out of sight as much as possible – and try to avoid getting hurt at all costs!”

Moving closer to the crypt that was the venue, Cordelia said she would be the first to go in…

She knocked on the door and ‘Bull’ opened it

“What do you want?”

“I am here to seek the Ars Daemonicus”

“Yeah, well show us yer money!”

Cordelia flashed a wad of notes at the huge lug, and was allowed in.

Gunn went next, scratched the door with his false hands. Bull opened it and Gunn waved a wad of paper notes stating he was there for the auction and was also allowed in

“Right when these strangers have gone in, you William, Xander, you two be ready to do your stuff, have you the chloroform ready William?”

“Yes!”

“Good, have you the netting to throw over him Xander?”

“Uh huh”

Buffy kissed her husband and wished him good luck.

The strangers were let into the venue and William went to the door before it could close.

“You, come here, look at this” William said to Bull

“Look at wha – I don’ wanna look at naffink”

“Oh but you must, all this money, just lying here, must belong to someb-“

At the word ‘money’, the big lug came ambling out and Xander threw the net over him, where he began to struggle like a wild thing, Bull roared and William jumped on his back, and managed to slip his hand containing the thick pad with the chloroform on it over his mouth, soon William felt the great lug’s muscles relax and he sank to the floor in an undignified heap. Careful to keep the pad over his mouth, William taped it into position while Xander tied him up. The rest of the gang, including Buffy went inside and closed the door after them.


Everybody looked around, Buffy counted two vampires, a styk demon, and in the corner, trying to keep out of everyone’s way, was a Chaos demon, with drippy horns.

“Can you see him?” Buffy hissed behind Giles

“No, not – ah!”

With a bright flash, Rack appeared at the back of the crypt, holding the book. It was obviously heavy and he wasn’t sorry to lay it down on top of the sarcophagus.

“Are there any more to come Bull? – Bull – where are you…Bull!”

“He’s outside, seeing off some grave robbers” Giles said helpfully

Rack nodded and said

“Well, we all know what we’re here for, so somebody start the bidding”

A vampire up the front said

“Ten shillings!”

Rack frowned

“If you’ve come here just to insult me and waste my time, then I’ll have Bull-“

“Er ten pounds!” Wesley said, and Rack looked up

“That’s better, but still nowhere near enough”

“Fifteen” Cordelia said

“Twenty”

“Lets not waste time, fifty!” Gunn said making Rack smile

“Sixty!”

“Now we’re getting somewhere!” Rack rubbed his hands together

Buffy began to edge around the room towards the sarcophagus where the book was

“Seventy five!”

The Chaos demon held up some money and said something nobody could understand, except Rack, who looked at the demon and then said in the same language,

“Don’t be a fool – fifty six, he’s already bid seventy five!” the demon looked at the money in his hand and seemed confused

“One hundred pounds!” Wesley said grandly

Rack came forward towards Wesley

“You better not be messin’ me around – show me the colour of your money…anyway what sort of demon are you…never come across one like you before”

Wesley counted out £100 while Rack practically salivered up at the wads of crisp notes this strange demon was holding.

“All of yous without at least a hundred pounds – get out, now…” the two vampires left, annoyed and game faced

The Chaos demon stuck his arm out holding the money in his fist and said something like

“Muck-lalla – muck-lalla!”

Rack rolled his eyes and sauntered over to him, trying to mind the pools on mucous on the floor

“Told you – ew that’s disgusting…fifty-six pounds isn’t enough, no go…GO ON, GO!” Rack pushed the money towards the demon and pointed to the door.

Defeated, the Chaos demon left, taking his dripping horns with him

The only ‘people’ left in the room besides the gang, were a couple of troll-like demons, who up until yet hadn’t spoken.

Giles looked at Willow and made a circular motion with his finger.

Willow understood and subtly pointed towards the book, which slowly began to rise in the air behind Rack

The two troll demons suddenly became animated, and started making un-human noises, and suddenly they both grew in stature and were about eight feet tall, and about five feet wide each, this growing caused Gunn and Wesley to stumble and be pushed out of the way, and caught Rack by surprise – he didn’t know what to do, and wasn’t expecting what had happened with the trolls.

Willow swung her finger back and forth and the book backed up in the air and came swooping down, catching Rack on the back of the head, knocking him forward into the two now massive demons

Cordelia ran to the crypt door and opened it, and Willow, guiding the book with her finger sent the book outside.

Xander and William saw it and took their chance, William made a leap in the air, caught it and he and Xander took off with it, Willow behind them.

Meanwhile, the others thought that it was probably prudent to stay put, they couldn’t incur Rack’s wrath if they disassociated themselves with what had just happened

The occurrence happening in mere seconds, Rack stood up and looked suspiciously at who was left

“Where’s my book – YOU – where’s MY BOOK! BULL – BULL COME IN HERE!”

Gunn gave a ‘roar’ and threw Rack’s hands off his neck.

“How DARE you insult me like that – do you think any one of us would still be here if we had your precious book?”

In a mysterious voice, Giles pretended to be ‘mystic’, cracked open a coloured smoke-bomb from a joke shop for effect and pointed to the two trolls, who had begun to shrink back to normal size, grunting and shuffling.

“It is them…when they grew………the book disappeared”

Cordelia turned and went to the door

“Where are you going?” Rack asked her sharply

“The book is gone – great magicks have been used by these demons, my time here is done”

Gunn strode out muttering about his time been wasted, and Wesley left too with a flourish.

“Give me my book back – I’ll turn you into stink beetles – where is it, what have you done with it – tell me – TELL ME!” Rack getting angrier by the second banged his fists against one of the trolls chests, and again the troll began to grow, Rack began to scream

“BULL…BULL WHERE – AHHHRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!”

Not appreciating being pummelled, the trolls began laying into Rack with their claws, roaring guttural sounds. Rack fearing for his very existence tried casting spells, but his magic was practically useless, he didn’t have anywhere near the power he was used to – nothing crackled at his fingertips, nothing burned through his veins – he was useless………

Giles flung his cloak around his shoulders, and held his hand out to Buffy, who went to him like a child would, and they left too, very swiftly indeed!





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