[Reviews - 17]
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Microsoft Word Chapter or Story | ePub eBook Chapter or Story | Printer Chapter or Story

Has been viewed 1074 times

- Text Size +




Nice Try.

Angel really couldn’t believe it. It was impossible. It was completely impossible. How could all that have happened in the future? But there they sat. Both of them sixteen. And Spike was breathing.

Spike was human.

Spike had a soul.

WHAT THE HELL HAD HAPPENED?

“So you’re really twenty two?”

“Yeah.”

“And Spike’s human and sixteen?”

“Looks like it doesn’t it mate.”

“And you’re both from the future?”

He couldn’t get his head round it. They’d only told Angel the basics, skipping as many personal details as much possible and sticking to just the main plot line. They’d missed out relationship facts, specific big bads, and everything to do with the scobbies personal lives. So Angel was lost, looking at half a puzzle.


“Yes. Now Angel has successfully managed to repeated everything we’ve just told him, can we go save my friends?”

Buffy got up out of Spikes lap and held out her hand to help him to his feet as well.

“What are you talking about luv?” Spike asked brushing the dirt from the back of his duster, which was feeling annoyingly, and rather disconcertingly, large on him. He’d spent years having that coat as just the perfect fit on him, and now… It was wrong.

Buffy inwardly scolded herself for forgetting. She really had only just remembered the destruction and horror that had originally occurred that night, and she felt stupid. She’d gotten so caught up in Spike being back, and alive, that she forgot she needed to save her friends. Luckily she was still pretty sure she had a few more minutes before Jessie and Willow were taken off to the cemetery by Darla and that other one. But she would have to start hurrying everything up.

“Well, right after I talked to Angel last time, and he gave me the cross necklace...”

Suddenly, Buffy stopped talking, looked up, and held her hand out expectantly at Angel. After starring at the girl’s out stretched hand for a moment or two, Angel finally caught onto her idea and proceeded to pull a small black box out of his coat and pass it to her. Spike watched with a grin as Buffy pulled a silver cross necklace from the box, not even casting a look the broody ones way. She was so uninterested in Captain Forehead in was unreal. When the hell had that happened? Spike thought with overwhelming glee.

“Thanks,” she said sweetly, which made a quick rush of jealousy flood through Spike. But he remembered instantly that Buffy had not once so much as looked at Angel in any romantic manner since they’d arrived here, and suddenly he wasn’t so jealous any more. He’d got the girl. He’d come out on top. Sod Angel. He’d won.

“Yeah thanks mate. It’ll look right pretty on my girl,” Spike smiled as Angel let out a low growl.

“After I got the necklace, I went to the Bronze and ran into Willow. But a whole bunch of stuff happened and it wound up with Willow and Jessie being grabbed by vamps. And one of those vamps, will be Darla,” Buffy explained, looking Angel directly in the eye.

Angel cast his eyes quickly away from the look, jumping to the point. “So what are you going to do?” he asked, looking over at the blond couple. Who had, over time, moved closer and closer to each other again subconsciously. Which made Angel oddly angry. But still, mostly just confused.

“What do you mean me?” Buffy growled out at the vampire before her. “You are going to help us, she’s your sire.”

No way in hell was Buffy going to let Angel mope around and stay out of the fights this time around. If he wanted to help then he could help `

Buffy turned to look at Spike as she said, “I’d say we head down to the Bronze and see if they’re still there. If not, we head out after them and Darla.”

Angel shifted uncomfortably, hearing the name of his sire being used again. He had been hoping to avoid all contact with her if possible. But the fact they were both in the same town, and she was after the slayers friends, didn’t make that option look very likely. He didn’t want to see her when the Slayer was there, but she was endangering the lives of innocents. So, reluctantly, he set off towards the Bronze.

Buffy turned to look at Spike as Angel started to walk away and into the darkness. “Here, would you do my necklace for me?”

Before Spike could react, Buffy thrust the silver cross into his left hand, and he jumped into action. Instinctively, he dropped the cross to the floor and jumped back clutching his hand in shock. He was so focused on the event itself, that it took ex-vampire a moment to realize that his hand wasn’t burnt. It wasn’t even so much as smoking. In fact, the metal had felt cold against his warm skin.

Looking up at Buffy in bewilderment, he saw the slayer laughing at him.

“You’re an idiot, you know that right,” she giggled, her face changing color rapidly.

“Hey, why am I an idiot exactly Slayer?” Spike was starting to get annoyed again, still not understanding what had just happened. Which only ended up making her laugh more.

“Because you wake up a human, don’t even think to look in a mirror, and freak out the second a cross touches you. You really are a dope.” She was smiling up at him with a huge toothy teenage grin that he couldn’t help but match with one of his own.

“Yeah. I suppose I am a bit, aren’t I,” he said laughing at himself and running a hand through his hair, causing a few of the tightly geled back curls to spring free from their solid lock. And man did he look adorable when he laughed.

Buffy really hadn’t seen that sight very often. And that fact made her ache.

Spike though was feeling kind of dazed. He was still thinking like a vampire; the truth of what had happened to him was yet to still fully sink in. But he was happy, and he could hardly wait for morning.

“Stupid ex-vampire,” she laughed, picking the cross off cold ground and putting it on herself, having more successful results. And then it really hit her, even if it hadn’t hit him. “You’re just like me now,” she whispered softly, looking up into his eyes in wonder. Slowly she walked toward him. She placed one hand in his, and the other against his warm beating chest.

Spike looked down at the girl he’d love for so much, for so, so many years. And as those years had passed, the hope of her returning his affections had grown weaker and weaker. When he’d gotten his soul, he’d given up hope entirely. All he’d ever wanted from her were a few golden crumbs. But now he had the whole sodding baked cookie.

More than that, he was perfect for this prefect girl now. He had the heartbeat. He’d lost that annoying sun allergy (which he was yet to fully appreciate). He was still strong enough to fight at her side. And he was the same age as her. He’d just gained ownership of the bleeding bakery.

The whole thing was so amazingly perfect, it was really quite suspicious. But for now, he’d gotten the girl, he’d won the cup, so he was just too happy to pay any mind to it. As long as he had Buffy, it would be ok.

Stroking her hair with his free hand, he looked down at and said almost reluctantly, “Come on then luv. We better catch up to the brooding wonder up ahead, or else he’ll save your mates and nick all the glory.”

“Are you kidding, this is early days Angel. He’ll just make some cryptic remarks and see what happens. And then brood about what happens. So… yeah, I guess we should probably catch up,” she mocked. And with that she took off running after Angel, pulling Spike roughly along by the hand.

Angel, walking up ahead, was still unsure as to how he was supposed to take this sudden burst of news. His grand childe had a soul, how they hadn’t told him, and was human. And even more than that, he was clearly in love with the Slayer. Not to mention the fact she seemed to return the feelings. What had happened.

Not a few days ago had Angel been watching this girl from afar, seeing such a sweet lost little girl. An exceptionally young slayer that would for sure have a hard time dealing with her calling and the consequences it came with. Who had been kicked out of a school already, for things she couldn’t even control.

Now that girl was seven years older. No longer a sixteen year old dealing with being the chosen one. But an adult, who had accepted the calling completely. Who clearly knew now what she’s doing and how to do it. And doing it all with Spike by her side; not him.

Why did he want it to be himself so badly?

It wasn’t as if he was in love with her or anything. He hadn’t even spoken to the girl before tonight. But he defiantly knew he was attracted to her, a strong attraction. But she’d been sixteen, it was wrong. Every wrong.

But now she wasn’t really sixteen. She was over twenty. And he also wasn’t sure how to take her and Spike being together. He was starting to wonder how the two of them and wound up together in the first place, when the blond pair shot past him, giggling like crazed idiots.

“Yay I win,” Buffy smiled happily.

“I didn’t even know we were racing pet. So how the hell was I supposed to beat you,” Spike laughed pulling the giggling slayer into his arms.

“You weren’t. That was why it was so clever,” she said looking up into his eyes and rocking back and forth happily. “I’m so glad I got you back. I thought I’d never see you again,” she said her face suddenly serious. Her mood swings really where insane.

Spike looked deep into the eyes of the girl standing before him as he realized something. A frown spread across his face as he asked, “I came here right after the hell mouth shut down, right. So how long were you there for after that? You didn’t just pop back, right?”

Buffy just pulled him closer to her, burying her face in his neck. She inhaled deeply, reveling in the smell that was Spike. He smelled like smoke and leather, and it was a smell she’d missed so much over the past few lonely months. Months of torcher and emptiness. No one but Dawn, who wasn’t even back with her yet. The council had finally turned her into nothing but a Slayer. And the council had been future Giles.

She took another deep breath before she replied simply, “longer.”

Spike wanted to know more. Know what his girl had been through. But he remembered the last time she’d given that as an answer to him, and he knew that he should wait.

She could tell from the look in his eyes he’d want a fuller answer from her later. But for now he just let it lie, as he stroked her hair aside and whispered, “ok.” And for that she was thankful.

Angel stood and watched the whole exchange. Even though the situation had been mostly explained to him, he was still finding it hard to believe Spike had fallen in love with a slayer. Killing them he expected him to do. But falling in love.

And what the hell had happened to Drusilla. Last time he’d seen Spike he was all over her, claiming their love to be eternal and forever. He wouldn’t have left her for just anything. Something really big must have happened in the future to tear them apart. Even if Dru wasn’t quite as devoted as Spike, she still wouldn’t touch anyone but him. Well, except for Angelus…

But just before Angel could go any further with that train of thought, he saw Buffy look up and run out of Spike’s arms towards a boy with dark brown messy hair, and a really bad shirt.

“Oh hey Buff, didn’t know you’d be coming here tonight. I was just about to go,” Xander said watching the hot blond who was running towards him with concerned eyes.

If Xander was leaving, not arriving, then she might be too late. And that could not happen.

“Xander, is Willow in there?” Buffy asked stopping dead in front of him.

“Nah, I persuaded her to go and talk to a guy, and they left a few minutes ago. All I could think was ‘go Willow, scoring at the Bronze,’” Xander proclaimed smiling widely. He loved Willow, but really not in that way. He was glad to see her talking to other guys. Any other guys.

“Crap, I’m too late. Right Xander you’re coming with us,” the Slayer said, grabbing his hand and turning to go.

“Hey, wait Buff,” Xander said pulling away. “What’s all this about, Willow’s gonna be fine, it was just a normal guy. Ok, albeit a very badly dressed normal guy, but still, no problem. ”

“No it wasn’t Xander, we need to find her before she gets hurt,” Buffy replied seriously.

How could she let this happen. God it was her fault.

“You’re serious about this.”

Her gaze was cold, and maybe a little scared. But he knew what ever happened next. He was in this now.

“I am, and if we don’t go now there’s gonna be two more dead bodies in the morning,” and with that she turned and marched towards the two guy’s who’d been standing behind her the whole time.

Quickly Xander chased after them all questioning, “two?”

**

After several minutes of running, the four of them began to approach the grave yard.

“Buffy what’s happening here? What’s going on?” Xander asked trying to keep up with the other three who were moving quickly through the graveyard with no sign of slowing. “And who the heck are these two guys?”

“Xander, I really don’t have time to explain this. But I promise I’ll tell you as soon as I can. But right now we need to run,” Buffy said, sighting the familiar crypt up ahead and breaking into a run a full Slayer run.

Spike and Angel closely followed behind Buffy, not even so much as breaking a sweat. Well, Spike’s heart sped up a bit. But unfortunately Xander, being deprived of the useful abilities of super strength and speed, was finding it a lot harder to keep up.

Coming to a grinding stop outside of the old crypt, Buffy turned to Spike and Angel. “Darla’s in there, and I know she’d recognize both of you in an instant. You’re gonna have to wait outside while I sort things out. The second you see Willow and Jessie get them to safety. No one gets hurt, are we clear.”

“Crystal slayer. But if you need a hand…”

“I’ll shout. Don’t worry Spike, two vamps, I can deal.”

“Let’s do this then,” Angel said as Xander caught up with the group, leaning over and breathing hard.

“Ok, so running, not fun,” he huffed as his lungs ached.

“Come on Xander, this is our cue,” Buffy said striding readily up to the crypt.

“Pet,” Spike said before Buffy went in. “Watch out yeah. Darla may seem stupid, but she’s got a lota years on us all. Be careful.”

“Always,” she promised solemnly, locking eyes with his for the briefest of seconds. Then she turned, and entered the crypt.

**

“You’re not going anywhere. Until we’ve fed,” Darla hissed at Willow, who stumbled back onto the floor with a scream.

It didn’t look like there was going to be any way out of this. Trapped in a crypt, with a badly bleeding friend and two bloody thirsty monsters. Unless she somehow developed super powers in the next three seconds, or it started raining holy water inside, the two friends chances were seeming dishearteningly less than slim.

Well she’d lived a good life she supposed. Made some memories, had some close friends. So what if she’d never been all that popular with the cool kids, or at all. That wasn’t so great, right. Lots of mean fake friends who follow you around and pretend to like you, who wants that, really. Having Xander as her closest friend all those years, and Jesse when he’d arrived, that was way better right?

As Willow’s thoughts clouded her mind, threatening to take her over completely with their intensity and hopelessness, the crypt door flung open with a bang. She was knocked out of her daze by the noise just enough to notice that someone new had come in.

“God I really hate you vampires,” Buffy said charging into the dusty room, and suddenly Willow was filled with instant hope. “All high and mighty with your strength and immortality.”

“Who the hell are you?” Darla growled at the new comer who was so rudely getting in the way of her hunt.

‘God am I gonna have to reintroduce myself to everyone’, Buffy thought as she pulled a stake from the back of her trousers. All ways good to keep one tucked there.

“I’m Buffy, the vampire Slayer. And you’re Darla, the bid pile of dust. Now get away from my friends,” Buffy snarled back advancing on her prey.

“Buffy, we bail now right?” Xander called from the entrance where he stood and watched. He really didn’t like the look of these guys and was majorly hoping that they could just grab Willow and Jesse and run. Plus, there was something up with their faces.

“Not yet,” the other vampire answered, prowling towards Buffy. He didn’t so much as cast an eye to the sixteen year old boy at the door. He was nothing but a week child. But this one; she reeked of power. It was intoxicating.

“Oh please, you have no say in the matter mister I’m so 80’s,” Buffy said snidely, turning staking the vampire in one swift move, proving exactly how deadly her power was. “Man, fledges are so annoying. They think the all big and evil ‘cause they woke up dead… or something that makes sense.”

“He was young and stupid,” Darla said almost timidly as Buffy turned to her, frowning at her own comment before rejoining the battle.

“Yeah, and you’re old and stupid. Xander get them out of here. Now!” Buffy ordered.

He couldn’t believe what was happening. Vampires. Actual real vampires. And one had turned to dust, right in front of his wide and bulgy eyes. In all honesty he was too confused to argue, or even think coherently for that matter. Nothing was making any sense, and he really didn’t think that there was much time to figure it out right at that particular moment. So mindlessly, he stumbled into action.

Reaching down and helping Willow to lift Jessie up so that he was slung between them, the three teens made it out of the crypt. One completely unconscious, and the other two dazed with fear and confusion.

As soon as they made it safely out of the crypt containing the monsters, they were greeted by the two men Xander had seen from earlier.

“Hey men in black, mind giving us a hand here,” Xander laughed trying to defuse the tension of the situation, somewhat unsuccessfully.

Spike ignored the boy’s comment, instead jumping straight to his main concern. “Oi, is Buffy alright in there?” he asked, taking one side of Jessie from Willow who was struggling with the weight.

“Yeah, she was dealing fine last I saw. But I say we get out of here. Stat,” he stated back in fear.

“Good plan, come on,” Angel said beginning to move away with speed. And just momentarily afterwards, the others began to followed.

**

Back inside the crypt Darla and Buffy where still trading blows with more ferocity than ever. They were sore and aching, and Buffy was near desperate to take her out.

“Seriously Darla, what is up with the whole school girl get up? Aren’t you like four hundred or something,” Buffy said between strikes, then punched Darla so hard she flew right across the crypt.

“Who are you?” she asked again, pulling herself up and glaring dagger’s at her opponent.

“Don’t you know?” Buffy snarked back, pulling out her stake again.

But Darla didn’t have a chance to respond, because suddenly a cold rough hand grasped Buffy tightly around the back of her neck, and pulled her up into the air.

“I don’t care,” Luke growled, before throwing her violently across the crypt.

Buffy crashed into the wall with a hard thud, and winced as she felt the wind rush brutally out of her lungs. Being thrown into walls was never a pleasant experience, and no matter how strong became, that fact wouldn’t change Buffy had found.

Picking herself up off of the floor, Buffy cursed herself for forgetting about the sudden surprise attack that she’d thought she’d remembered so well. The fight with Darla though had caught all of her attention and she’d been foolish enough to let down her guard for a moment.

Luke had been a strong opponent if she recalled correctly. One of the only few vampires to not meet a dusty fate apron their first meeting. As a matter of fact, she would have died that first time they’d met had it not been for luck and a necklace she’d gotten less than an hour before. But she wasn’t going to get lucky this time; she was going to win from power, skill and good old Slayery charm.

“You were supposed to be bringing an offering to the master. We’re almost at harvest, and you dally with this child,” Luke growled to Darla who stood in the corner, looking scaredly at Luck. Like she was afraid of him?

“We had someone, but then she came. She killed Thomas. Luke, she's strong,” Darla whimpered.

“You go. I'll see if I can handle the little girl.”

“God, I’m standing right here,” Buffy scowled, dusting herself off, and walking forward confidently over to Luke as Darla fled the room. She was going to go and get back the others as soon as she could.

Had Spike and Angel not been waiting out there to protect her friends, she would have ditched Luke for now to run after Darla and take her out straight away. But the two of them could easily handle it. Spike was more than a match in a fight, and Angel had taken out Darla once before as she remembered. So she stayed where she was, and focused on killing the dick before her.

Luke, not bothering to wait to be attacked by the small girl, dived in to punch Buffy hard in the face. But she quickly blocked it, completely unfazed by his attack, and punched him in the stomach. The force of the blow sending him stumbling back a few steps.

“You’re strong,” he noted.

But before he could move in to attack again, Buffy leaped forward kicking him hard in the head. The power behind the attack had been so great and so unexpected, that the ancient vampire flew across the room, his back slamming into the side of a sarcophagus with a slam.

Piece of cake.

“More than strong,” she retorted pulling out her stake with fire burning in her eyes. “More than you anyway.”

**

Spike and Xander struggled to move as fast as they could with a half conscious Jessie slung between them, haphazardly. For a start, Spike wasn’t tall enough in his current state to hold Jesse off the floor properly from his side, so the teen’s feet dragged limply behind the two as they tried to run. Not to mention that Xander wasn’t fast enough to keep up with the others without Jesse, let alone whilst trying to carry him.

“Oi, brooding wonder, give us a hand would you instead of running of ahead you great ponce,” Spike called agitatedly after Angel, who was speeding of ahead with Willow close behind.

“How about you pick up the pace boy!” Angel shouted back, otherwise ignoring the annoying blond and focusing his attentions on getting the girl behind him to safely.

Spike sighed as he witness the start of Angel’s hero complex come into light.

He couldn’t let the poor defenseless damsel fall into harm’s way, now could he?

“And so it begins,” the Blonde groaned.

They’d managed to get about half way back towards the entrance to the cemetery, when they were ambushed by at least seven vampires from all sides, snarling at the ready.

“Bollox,” Spike cursed, him and Xander coming to a grinding halt.

“Grab Jessie off Spike,” Angel instructed Willow, as he prepared for a fight. Being careful not to fall into gameface.

“I’m getting the feeling that this is not good. Like Armageddon meteor kind of not good,” Xander said mockingly, scanning the area for more attackers as Willow took Jesse from Spike.

She struggled to hold up her friend’s weight, but Xander, being taller, was doing most of the work.

“It’s really not good,” Angel confirmed, falling naturally into a battle stance.

Willow and Xander both stood stricken with fear and clinging desperately to Jessie, as the others began to fend off the approaching monsters. They could feel their hearts pounding furiously in their chests, as they each struggled to keep their sleeping friend from tumbling to the floor.

Angel pulled out a stake from one of his inside coat pockets and dusted one of the younger vamps before lunging into another attack from the side. He fought, blocking punches and kicks, as two more of the beasts circled him. Analyzing every move the master vampire made in a desperate search for any flaws.

Spike on the other hand, had ran round to the other side of the three teens huddled in the middle, in an attempt to stop the approaching vamps from getting them whilst Angel protected them from the opposite side. But unfortunately, unlike Angel, Spike didn’t have the luxury of a stake. So as he pushed off the first two vamps, he realized he was going to have to use the more advanced moves in his arsenal to keep the attackers at bay without an immediate way of disposing of them.

The worst part was, because Spike was now human, most of the vamps identified him as the weaker of the two, even though it was far from the truth. The fact he was without a weapon only added to their assumptions. This meant that most of the beasts chose him as their target instead of the git fighting on the other side. Spike was in for a fight.

But all the while Spike and Angel battled, neither of them managed to notice the smiling blond vamp watching eagerly from the shadows. Hidden deep in the clouds darkness, out of sight from human eyes, Darla smiled.

“Looks like almost the whole family has come to town,” she laughed. “Reunions are always so… violent.”

It was going to be a whole lot of fun.

**

“Hey Luke… didn’t you know… if you take on something as hot as this.” Her stake slid deeply into his chest. “You’re gonna get burned,” Buffy quipped happily. The dust exploded around her in a violent burst, causing the old tattered crypt to look even filthier than it had done before. The ashes coating the floor as well as Buffy in a fifthly mess. Which, unfortunately, Buffy managed to somehow breathed in.

“Note to self. Pun then dust,” Buffy chocked and coughed as she wiped the remains of the vampire off of her tongue with the back of her sleeve.

But before she could brush the hideous demons dust from her clothes, a blood curdling scream rang out through the crypt, echoing of the walls and twisting through the Slayers head.

And before the sound of the scream had even so much as left her ears, buffy rushed out of the crypt and into the night.

Her friends needed her.

**

Angel had dusted about four vamps when he found himself completely free from attack. The last one who’d come at him had just about managed knock him out with an all-out punch to the face. But luckily he’d recovered just about quickly enough to block the next blow and shove the stake quickly through his unbeating heart.

Now he found himself vamp-less, and using the momentary break to his advantage, he turned round to check on all of the others. Willow, Xander and Jesse at some point during the fight had realized that all of the vampires attention was being completely drawn in by the two men who’d been protecting them. So using it to their advantage, the pair had begun to flee the scene, taking Jesse with them.

Spike on the other hand, was about twenty feet away. And he was surrounded by the unconscious and lifeless bodies of around six vamps. Each of them with clearly broken bones in several different places, and had he not know them to be vampires, Angel would have assumed them to be corpses.

Angel pondered (brooded, if you will) for a moment why Spike hadn’t simply dusted them, as he watched two more fledglings approach his former grandchilde. He knew full well Spike had never had any trouble with killing his own kind in the past. It was all just violence in the end to him. Of course he had been evil back then, so maybe it was different now.

But as Spike threw the smaller one swiftly over his back, then blocking a punch to the stomach from the other, Angel realized Spike’s little problem.

“Are you going to pass me a stake, or just stand there gawking at me like bloody idiot?” Spike shouted angrily at his motionless former grandsire. Who stood there doing nothing while Spike spun the big vamp into a head lock.

But the fledge quickly dropped his body weight, throwing Spike over the top of him as he did it.

“You think you can kill me,” the nameless monster hissed as he held Spike to the floor from behind. “I was a black belt in jujitsu before I was even turned. You don’t stand a chance you fool.”

“You think I haven’t got a black belt,” Spike snarled. “I’ve got at least twenty fighting style black belts on you mate. And several illegal one to.”

Spike reached up and grabbed the vampire’s wrist as he thrust his body from the ground, twisting said wrist as he went until the demon had to flip to avoid breaking it. Unfortunately, Spike hadn’t expected the vamp as quick as he was, and before he knew it they were both facing each other again, back on their feet and ready to continue the fight. But now, the smaller vamp Spike had thrown earlier was back up and ready to join his friend in the brawl.

“Fantastic,” Spike moaned sarcastically. “Jump in any time Angel.”

Angel had in fact been planning to help Spike, and whilst Spike fended off the apparent black belt, he been running around staking all of the unconscious vampires so that they could not go after the blonde again. He had been helping… Really!

But before he could reach the Spike to really jump into the fight, he had heard a voice. Her voice. And he instantly forgot about Spike. He forgot about Buffy. He forgot the world.

And he turned to face his sire.

“Hello lover,” Darla smiled, as she pushed forward a terrified Willow, and held up the unconscious form of Jesse by the scruff of his shirt.

And instantly, Willow screamed.

**

Buffy felt her heart pounding in her chest as she ran full slayer speed toward the sound of her terrified friend. She could feel the blood pounding in her head to the point of a dull, mind numbing pain; the deafening wind gushing through her ears in a rush; the cold night air biting at her face. She could feel it all, but she could only think one thing.

Gotta get to Willow.

She knew exactly what had happened here the first time around, and she would NOT let it happen again. It couldn’t happen again.

Jesse was not going to get taken. He would not be turned. And Xander defiantly would not have to stake his best friend. Not again, not ever. No!

She didn’t care what was happening behind her, or if anything was going to get in her way. She was going to save Jesse, because that’s who she was. Buffy Summers the vampire slayer. She beat the bad guys, because that’s what the good guys did best. They won. And that’s the way it was. It’s how the world worked. How it was meant to work.

But she knew that that wasn’t true.

Anyone could die.

**

Xander didn’t know what the hell had happened.

One minute, he and Willow had been limping out of the cemetery with Jesse hung between them weakly, whilst moving as quickly as they could. Even though every few seconds they had to stop to rearrange their unconscious friend in an attempt to get a better grip. If they dropped him, all hope would be lost, because they’d never get him up in time.

Then suddenly, out of nowhere a grinning blonde female vampire appeared in front of them. Her Cheshire Cat smile gleaming as she eyed up her meal. She was small and slim, dressed in a sort of catholic school girl get up, but Xander guessed instantly that was almost definitely an act. No way this evil hell bitch was holy enough the even touch a cross, let alone worship any kind of Righteous God.

She’d grabbed Xander by the front of his shirt, ripping the sides a little, and flung him across the graveyard. It all happened in the blink of an eye. Before the boy even had the chance to scream, his head hit against a tomb stone and he was knocked out cold.

Darla laughed as she prowled over to grab the fearful Willow and limp Jesse.

The brunette awoke a few minutes later, lying next to a crumbling, and slightly bloodied, tomb stone. His hand going to his head as the pain gurgled below the surface. It was not a nice feeling.

But he didn’t have time to dwell on his fun new head wound, because the next thing he knew he could hear Willow screaming from close by. Not to mention the fact that Jesse was also nowhere to be seen. So, ignoring the throbbing pain in his head, Xander scrambled to his feet, and ran in the direction he’d heard Willow terror scratch his ears from.

**

Willow was terrified.

So terrified she couldn’t think straight.

Blood run cold, eyes glaze over, heart stop beating terrified.

She’d thought for sure they’d be saved when Buffy and the two boys dressed in black had appeared. They looked like they were pretty good at fighting, not to mention they knew what the hell was going on. And then when Buffy’d turned that one to dust and the other two had taken on at least seven between them, Willow was sure that they’d really make it out fine.

That everyone would be ok.

But the blond monster had turned up out of absolutely nowhere. She’d just jumped in front of them and thrown Xander effortlessly to the side. Was he ok, was he alive. Willow didn’t think she’d be able to bear it if she lost Xander. He was her everything.

He’d smile at her lame jokes. He’d take her to the Bronze when everyone else had a date. He was her world. She loved him.

So now, huddled on the floor behind the nearest gravestone she could scramble behind, she felt completely terrified.

Vampires were real. Xander could be dead. Jesse was unconscious. And it was all too much.

Just too much.

Her own scream still burned in her ears, making almost all other sounds dull and fuzzy. She squeezed her eyes shut as tight as she could and she covered her ears with her hands as hard as she could. Curling into the smallest ball possible in her inflexible body, Willow wished she could escape.

And she prayed, she prayed that everyone would be ok.

**

Xander grinded to a halt at the scene he finally reached at the end of his blood pumping sprint.

He wasn’t entirely sure what he’d expected to find upon reaching his red headed friend… but this.

He was shocked. Frozen still to the spot as time slowly ticked past, and he couldn’t feel a thing. He legs were stone numb; his lungs painfully still; his eyes wide. He couldn’t even try to look away if he wanted to.

All he could do was watch.

**

Spike’s back crashed hard into an already crumbling head stone, crushing it to dust as the larger vamp threw him flying over his side, laughing.

“You cannot beat me. For I am Dan, the indestructible.”

“Oh for Christ’s sake, fledges get more and more deluded every year now don’t they,” Spike grumbled, flicking himself swiftly of the wet ground.

He was only facing the larger vamp again now. As shortly after the little one had once again regained consciousness, he had dived for Spike. But deciding he needed to focus all his attention on the black bet, Spike decided it would be best to simply kick him hard in the head and knock him straight back out, leaving him in a fair fight again. Well, a fair fight with Dan the indestructible.

Suddenly a scream rang through the air, jolting Spike out of the fight for the barest of seconds.

But before he could turn to find the source of the shrill terrified voice, a hard punch knocked him back into the moment. He had a bad guy to deal with.

“I think you are the one with delusions here. I’m a powerful vampire beast, whereas you are nothing but a weak feeble human,” the vamp teased heartily as he circled what he’d thought was bound to be his tasty pray. He was enjoying the battle, and the screams in the air simply sent shots of glee to his undead heart.

All the taunting and terror only did one thing to Spike though. It pissed him right off.

Flying into a series of well-timed, anger fueled punches, Spike became the hunter. “Really. Could a weak feeble human do this?!” Finally he punched the black belt demon so hard in the face that he flew across the graveyard, and smashed against the side of a crypt, cracking the wall around him.

Once satisfied, that his opponent wasn’t getting up anytime soon, Spike turned to find Angel and his stake.

But instead, his eyes widened with shock. It certainly wasn’t something he’d been expecting. And his only thought was, ‘I really don’t think Buffy was planning on that happening.’

**

She would make it. She had to make it. She was GOING to make it, Buffy repeated in her head as she rapidly neared the source of Willow’s scream. There was only one more turn and she’d be there. One more twist and she could save them. Just got to get round that one last…

It took her less than a second to take in the scene.

And in less than a second, it was over.

It was over.

Willow was curled into a small ball with her hands clamped over her ears, cowering behind one of the only undamaged gravestones. Xander was stood across on the other side of the scene from the red head, by a small dark dreary tree, frozen to the spot and shaking like a leaf. Spike was closest to her, turning away from a vampire that he had presumably just knocked out, coming face to face with the horror at almost the exact same second as Buffy.

But all of this was just background information, nothing but subplot. Seeing the center stage, Buffy’s attention instantly locked solid onto the action occurring within. And she hurtled towards it as fast as she could.

Darla was standing tall about twenty feet away from the racing Slayer. Her demonic mouth was curved into an evil smile directed at Angel, as she grasped Jesse firmly around the head with both hands. Menace shining bight in her eyes.

And Angel.

Angel was lunging towards Darla with all the force his body could muster. His eyes dark and hopeless as he flew towards her.

And then less than a second later…

Crack.





You must login (register) to review.