Chapter 1, Dracula Meets the Sultana
“Blast it.” Xander struck another match along the side the box. “I’m not having any luck making fire today.”
“Come on, Harris. How hard can it be?” Spike grumbled. “Man’s been makin’ fire for thousands of years now.”
Xander glared at the vampire. “I’d like to see you do better.”
Spike shrugged. He pulled his ever handy Zippo lighter out of his pocket, and he tossed it to Xander. “Lose it and I’ll break you.”
“Did he just threaten me?” Xander asked Oz.
Oz grunted his answer without opening his eyes.
“Don’t bother dog-boy there,” Spike said with a smirk. “He was up most of the night pleasing the witches.”
“I thought we successfully blocked last night,” Willow replied when she and Tara joined the men. They had tried to respect everyone else’s privacy by blocking their thoughts from the rest of the ‘family’.
Spike laid a finger on his nose. He winked at Tara. “The nose knows, Red. You’ll never be able to hide from it.”
Buffy strolled up grumbling under her breath. Behind her was Anya who kept glancing over her shoulder. Buffy plopped down by Spike.
“What’s wrong, pet?”
Buffy pointed up the beach. “We have a stalker. That man needs get the clue that I don’t need or want to be rescued.”
Spike growled in a menacing manner, but Tara said gently, “Ignore him. The best lesson is to show him you’re having a good time.”
“Good idea!” Buffy turned to Spike. “Mom is going to have a special mask display next week.”
Willow, Oz, and Xander looked at Buffy with wild terror filled eyes.
Buffy let out a giggle. “Don’t worry, guys. She’s having Giles, Reggie, and Serina check them over very carefully.”
“There’s a story in that, isn’t there?” Tara asked. Unlike Spike, she hadn’t heard the zombie story. She was quickly learning that the unique group had a lot of planned, and no so planned, adventures.
“Let’s just say that we haven’t had the best of luck with African tribal masks.”
Oz gazed towards the ocean. He felt unsettled when he saw an approaching storm. His unease caused the others of his clan to look at the incoming squall with concern.
Buffy gathered her things. “Let’s take this home. It looks like it’s about to rain. Besides, I hate the prying eyes.”
The others grabbed their belongings too. When they were half way to their cars the clouds rolled over the beach, and the predicted rain soon followed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Later that evening a tarp-covered truck pulled up outside a castle. The storm still raged, and the two men who vacated the vehicle wore rain coats. They went to the back of the truck, removed the tarp, and then they started to remove the large wooden crate.
“Come on, hurry it up,” Joe muttered. “I’m getting soaked.”
“I’m trying,” Pete growled. “Geez, this thing weighs a ton.”
Joe and Pete pulled on the crate again. The plywood box was slippery from the rain, and it fell to the ground where it cracked one corner. The opening was just enough to let some of the contents leak out.
“Nice. Good job,” Joe said in an annoyed voice.
Pete knelt next to the crate to examine the break. “Look at this. Guy’s carting dirt around.”
“Leave it. We’ll turn the box so that corner is on top.” Joe grabbed the box on his side. “Help me.”
Pete stood up, shaking his head. “Dirt. Man, rich people are…” He trailed off when an arm burst out of the crate. The long sharp fingernails slashed his throat, and he screamed while he staggered away.
Joe stood staring at his partner in shock. The blood gushed out of Pete’s neck. A breaking sound made Joe look back at the crate just in time to see someone burst out of the box. Joe let out his own scream when he saw the piercing, hungry eyes of a killer.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
THE NEXT DAY
“Thanks for the help, Reggie,” Giles said to his old friend.
Reggie grinned. “Well, it was a brilliant idea, Rupert. Archiving your library was inspired. I can’t believe everything that we found here.”
“Well after the incident with the Vahrall demons, I decided labeling my amulets and other artifacts was fortuitous.” Giles grinned. “It was Serina’s idea to index my diaries as well.”
Reggie threw his head back to laugh uproariously. “You’re bored, aren’t you? Admit it.”
“Possibly.” Giles plopped down in a chair. “But it’s always quiet after an apocalypse. Things will heat up soon enough.”
Reggie nodded. “That storm yesterday did have a sense of foreboding to it.”
“Hopefully it won’t rain during the coven’s grand opening. Serina and the girls have worked hard on it.”
Reggie leaned back to stretch his arms. “That wasn’t exactly the foreboding I had in mind. The change in temperature gave Joyce a hell of a headache.” He had a worried look on his face.
“Is everything okay?” Giles didn’t like the worried look on Reggie’s face.
“I don’t know.” Reggie shook his head. “When Spike and Buffy were over the other night, they noticed something was off.”
Giles raised an eyebrow. “Well, if they’re concerned, I say we should be too.”
Reggie nodded in agreement. “All we can do is keep an eye on her. I don’t think all of Buffy’s stubbornness is from the Slayer.”
“You could be right.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Buffy tossed the vampire fledgling across the cemetery. It didn’t seem to matter that Spike was the Master of Sunnydale. There was always some idiot vamp showing up to turn more vamps. Buffy was patrolling alone. Spike was off playing poker with the minions and a few others. He had plans to join her later, but for now she was content fighting by herself. The other clan members were off at various functions, including the preparation of the coven opening.
Buffy was intent on the hunt. She didn’t notice the smoky fog with the face watching her every move. When Buffy staked the fledgling, she realized there was another unfamiliar vamp signature in the area. She whirled around to find a man gliding out of the darkness towards her.
“Very impressive hunt,” The man’s accented voice wafted through the air. “Such power.”
Buffy rolled her eyes. “You so need a new look, mister. The thin, pale look is lame, and the long hair went out with Fabio. Don’t even get me started on the cape thing.”
“You’re not impressed.” There was disappointment in the man’s voice.
“Takes a lot to impress me.” Buffy pulled a stake from a hiding spot. “Care to step up for some overtime?”
“We’re not going to fight.”
The creature’s confidence irked Buffy. “Do you know what a Slayer is?”
“Do you?” The vampire smirked.
“I asked first, hot shot.”
The man opened his arms wide. “I am Dracula. I assume you’ve heard of me?”
“You don’t look like Gary Oldman to me.” Buffy chuckled at her own joke.
“I am Dracula. Why are you not impressed?”
“I’m mated to the Master of Sunnydale. Kinda makes me hard to impress.” Buffy twirled her stake. “Besides if you’ve seen one Lestat wannabe you’ve seen them all.”
“Who is this Master of Sunnydale? Who must I eliminate to make you mine?” Dracula howled in anger. This was not going the way he had envisioned.
“That would be me, old pal.” Spike stepped out from behind a nearby mausoleum with Lawson and Brian.
William, what are you doing here?” Dracula couldn’t hide his surprise and dismay.
“Live here, you ponce, with m’girl.” Spike moved to Buffy’s side.
Lawson and Brian flanked the Slayer and Spike. Both were on the alert for possible tricks. They were on a beer run when Spike growled in a furious manner. The next thing they knew the three of them were stalking through a graveyard in search of the Slayer.
Dracula gestured towards Spike even though his words were directed at Buffy. “Why would you mate with such an unworthy specimen?”
“Oi,” Spike shouted. “If there’s anyone unworthy around here it’s you. Still owe me eleven pounds, you do.”
Riley swept through the cemetery. He knew he needed to find a way to show Buffy the error of her ways. Riley needed to save her from herself.
When Riley rounded the mausoleum, he found Buffy standing with four HSTs. He recognized three of them, but the fourth was a stranger. Riley leveled his weapon at the vamps.
“What the hell is going on?” Riley demanded. If any of the vamps gave him an excuse, he’d dust them in an instant.
“Who let you out of your cage, Captain Stalker?” Spike growled. He never took his eyes off Dracula.
“Who is this?” Dracula studied the newcomer for any weaknesses. He narrowed his eyes when he realized this human wanted the Slayer too. At least this one would be easy to eliminate.
“Unscheduled Scooby meeting?” Oz ambled up.
“Dracula’s here,” Buffy said in a bright voice.
“Oh hey, Riley.” The short redhead turned to the taller man. “I forgot you came as Dracula.”
“Oh, we need to make Halloween plans soon,” Buffy replied. She sent Oz a private message that he had meant the stranger not the stalker.
“Ah, I see.” Oz turned to give the newcomer the once over. “Just missing a Frankenstein monster, are we?”
Spike let out a snort of laughter. “We killed that monster already, Wolfman.”
“Huh?” Riley’s hand jerked on his weapon causing it to misfire. Dracula disappeared in a puffy of smoke before the projectile could reach his body.
“Darned gypsy tricks,” Spike grumbled. “Still didn’t get my eleven pounds.”
“How the heck do we fight a vamp that can turn to smoke before he can be dusted?” Buffy stared at the spot where Dracula just stood.
“Don’t know about him, but I know how to kill the old fashioned kind.” Riley turned his weapon on Spike, and he fired. He gave a feral grin when the projectile hit its target.
“Bloody buggering fuck that hurts.” Spike reached up to cover the spreading blood stain. “You stupid pillock. You’ve seen me in the sun. Didn’t it cross that pea brain of yours that I might be immune to wood too?”
Buffy turned on Riley, and she flashed her Sultana features while she snarled, “Get away from us, Finn. The last person to hurt my lover spent months in a wheelchair, and he had far superior healing.”
Oz knew how mad Buffy was through the clan link. He wasn’t very pleased himself, but he grabbed Riley’s arm to drag the man away from Spike and Buffy.
“We’re gonna have to get that wooden bullet out before you can heal,” Buffy grumbled. Everyone who can, meet at our house, she called through the link. Except you guys, Doyle and Cordy.
Thanks, Buffy, Cordelia said in return with just a touch of sarcasm. Couldn’t come anyway. We’re on our way to the funeral of the woman we found living in the Hyperion when we spirit-fumigated it.
“Go back to the mansion, and lie low, mates,” Spike told Lawson and Brian. “With that idiot shootin’ wooden bullets, you’re in danger.”
“Right, chief.” Lawson and Brian knew better than to argue with Spike. The two vampires headed off to the safety of the mansion.
After a few minutes, Oz turned back up alone. “Graham,” he said as a simple explanation of where Riley ended up.
The three clan members made their way to Spike and Buffy’s house. Tthey removed the wooden bullet while they waited for the others.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
“What were you thinking, Riley?” Graham shook his head.
“Buffy needs some normal friends. Not those weirdos she hangs out with,” Riley protested.
Graham shook his head. “You’re an idiot,” he muttered under his breath.
Neither man noticed that their steps were shadowed by a wolf. After a few minutes Graham left Riley at his apartment door with an admonishment to stay home and out of Buffy’s way.
Riley fiddled with the key for a few seconds. Then, he felt a presence behind him. Riley whirled around to find the tall, pale cloaked man from the cemetery behind him.
“Here for a second round, are you?” Riley looked the vampire over. “You’re not so big.”
“Silence.”
“Yes, master.” A glazed looked crossed Riley’s face.
Dracula lifted one hand. “You will be my emissary. You’ll be my eyes and ears in the daylight.”
“Your emissary. Yes, master.”
“Serve me well. You will be rewarded.” Dracula raised an eyebrow. He wasn’t above lying to get what he wanted. “I can give you what you’ve always wanted.”
A look of pleasure crossed Riley’s face. “Buffy.”
Dracula had no plan on sharing his prize, but he wasn’t going to tell the human that. “Go now and serve me.”
“Sure.” Riley brushed past Dracula. He turned to ask what was needed to do, only to find the vampire gone. “What an exit.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
“Poncy bugger owes me eleven pounds,” Spike scoffed. “Old rivals till he got famous, and he forgot all his foes.”
“Is there anything pertinent you can tell us though?” Giles asked. His pen posed above his paper.
“He’s all about the gypsy tricks.” Spike paused while he gathered his thoughts. “He’ll have his luxury estate. So, check any castle type buildings.”
“Castles aren’t the norm here in Sunnydale,” Xander replied. “Closest we have is Skald Hill Manor. Did you know that it was originally called Skald Mannish Manor?” He shrugged. “Fifth grade written reports strikes again.”
“He’ll have his bug-eating servants and his special dirt.”
“Special dirt?” Giles looked up from his notes. “I thought that was a myth.”
Spike rolled his eyes. “It is, but Drac’s into the mythos, and it focuses his mojo.”
“We hung out a few times,” Anya spoke up. “Maybe I can get him to talk to me.”
Buffy sighed. “Honestly, I could care less. Tall and dark doesn’t stand a chance with me, but he wasn’t happy with Spike being my mate.”
“He can’t hurt me, pet.” Spike sounded offended. “I have the gem as white bread so aptly demonstrated.”
Giles pointed at Willow. “Check the Internet for Vlad the Impaler. Find out what you can. We need to separate fact from fiction.”
“What about the dirt?” Oz asked.
The others looked at the werewolf with expectant eyes.
Oz shrugged. “Maybe Anya could steal it. No dirt. No mojo.”
“Hmm, I wonder if Drac brought his brides? They’ll be hard to get past.” Anya clicked her tongue.
“Brides?” Buffy looked at Spike. “He’s married?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Later than night, Buffy rested in her bed next to Spike. She was still awake, and surprisingly restless considering the sexathon she and Spike had just participated in.
Buffy jumped when a startled scream sounded from outside the house. Buffy sat up. A quick search through the clan link told the Slayer that whatever she’d heard wasn’t any of them.
Buffy rose to her feet, and she crossed the room to the window. She stifled a laugh when she saw Dracula laying on the ground below.
“What have you done?” the downed vamp yelled. “I need no invite, yet your house rejected me.”
“Apparently you need one when blood magic is used.” Buffy shook her head with a smirk.
Dracula’s eyes flashed. “I have searched the world over for you. I have yearned for you ... For a creature whose darkness rivals my own.”
“God, where do you get you lines? That one is so trite.”
Dracula growled. He again saw that this wasn’t going the way he had planned. “You will be mine.” He pointed at Buffy. Then, Dracula turned into a puff of smoke and disappeared once more.
“Anything wrong, Slayer?” Spike’s sleepy voice sounded from the bed.
“Nothing I couldn’t handle.” Buffy turned back to the bed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Riley spent the day rolling around with Dracula’s female minions, otherwise known as the brides. His body was littered with bites from where the brides enjoyed his succulent blood. Riley’s cock was raw and limp after being fucked many times over. It hadn’t hurt this bad since the female Fyral demon had gotten loose in the frat house. At least these demons looked human.
Riley reluctantly pulled himself away from the vampiresses. He managed to dress before he stumbled from the stone mansion that was magically superimposed on an abandoned hotel. Riley had the task of bringing the Slayer to the master.
Riley went to his apartment for a few supplies, including a tazer. Then, he went to lay in wait for Buffy. His patience paid off when Buffy crossed Restfield Cemetery without any of her friends. He made his move, and within seconds Buffy was tazered unconscious.
Riley spirited the Slayer away to Dracula’s castle where he left her with the master. Then he returned to the seductive embrace of the brides.
Dracula waited for the Slayer to awaken. Now that he had her away from William, he was sure he’d be able to tame her. When she groggily opened her eyes, he said, “You’re awake, my love.”
“When I find Riley, he’s dead meat,” Buffy grumbled. She put a hand to her throbbing head.
“Soon you will not care about such mundane things.”
Buffy would have rolled her eyes if she thought it wouldn’t make her head hurt more. “No, it’s you who won’t care. Spike and the others are on their way.”
Dracula rose to his feet. “Their efforts are futile. You will embrace your darkness now.”
“That’s where you’re wrong.” Buffy turned to face Dracula. She let her Sultana features slide forward. “The clan Sultana-Aurelius knew where I was the second I woke up. I’ve already embraced the darkness. Now it’s tiime for you to embrace the light.”
Dracula’s jaw dropped in astonishment when he saw Buffy’s iridescent green eyes and fangs.
“A Sultana? It can’t be. Sultana’s are a myth.”
Buffy raised her hands into the air. With one word, a bright light emanated from her body.
Dracula scrambled away from the light, but it passed through him. He fell over screaming even as the wave continued to flow away from the Slayer.
Riley looked around in confusion when three things happened at once. Dracula’s mind control over him disappeared as did the castle disguise, and the three brides started to scream in agony. “Where the hell am I?”
Riley stumbled to his feet to find his way away from the weirdness he found himself amidst. It was too bad that he couldn’t as easily distance himself from the memory of the pleasure he had received at the hands of the three female vampires.
Buffy lowered her hands. She watched Dracula for a few moments before she stood up. She went to him, touched his shoulder, and uttered another word.
“What did you do to me?” Vlad whispered. “I have not felt so free since I was a very young child, before my father sent me to the enemy as a hostage.”
“Heck if I know. Just felt right.” Buffy raised her eyes to the door. “Guess I should go check on your minions.” She left the room.
Vlad continued to lay on the floor in a daze. He was free from the evil and cruelty that had ruled his life for centuries. He felt a reasonable helping of guilt for his actions, but there was a stronger urge to start repaying society for said actions.
The brides crept into the room. The red haired one crawled closer. “What do we do now, master?” she asked cautiously. She knew that her Sire had always been easily angered when questioned, but she felt the changed come over her link to Dracula. She was confused.
Vlad looked at the three women. “First of all my name is Vlad, not master.” Then, he shrugged. “I guess we follow in Angelus’ footsteps and help those in need.”
“Not here, surely.”
“No, my dear, let’s go home. There is plenty for us to do there.” Vlad held out his arms, and the three vampiress’ flocked to him. In a puff of smoke, they disappeared.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Joyce grabbed her purse. “I’m going out, Buffy. Reggie and I are going to the movies.”
“Okay! Have a good time.” Buffy waved at her mom.
“Could you keep an eye on your sister for me?” Joyce checked her makeup in the mirror.
“Mom, I’m eighteen! I don’t need Buffy to babysit me!” A tall, dark haired girl stepped into the room.
Interesting, Buffy thought. This is the sister I’ve heard about.
I remember her, Spike’s reply came.
Yet, I remember life without her, Willow piped up.
But where did she come from? Buffy finished.
“Don’t think of it as babysitting,” Joyce said. “Think of it as sisterly bonding, Dawn.”
Dawn rolled her eyes. “Whatever, mom.”
“Why don’t we go to my house?” Buffy suggested. “The gang’s coming over for a cookout to make up for the rain out at the beach.”
“How fun,” Dawn said sarcastically.
Buffy gave Joyce a sly wink before she said, “Lawson’s invited.”
Joyce shook her head. “At this rate, I’m never getting any grandchildren.”
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