Chapter 11
Mouth still agape, Buffy had been expecting Ellie to answer the door. She wasn’t ready for this! And that bastard KNEW. He’d called her ‘kitten,’ just like in the dream. Shaking from her shocked stupor, she became very angry. “You...you!” she stuttered.
“Me...me.” Spike replied with a chuckle.
“Oooh!” she grunted. Reaching for the stake in the waistband of her skirt, she was stopped by a soft sound from inside the house.
“None of that now Slayer,” Ellie called. “We have work to do. Y’all can be mad at me later.”
Suspicions confirmed, Spike rolled his eyes. Looking back to the Slayer, he said simply, “We can suss this out after this ritual. The bit’s right, we do need to get this show on the road.”
Eyes narrowing, Buffy reluctantly acquiesced. In a low voice, she coldly stated, “We WILL be talking about this later, don’t try to weasel your way out of it.”
Grinning, Spike nodded.
As the group filed into the house, Willow cornered Buffy. “What was that all about?” she asked.
“I don’t know Will, but if Ellie’s involved, you can bet on magic.”
Curious, Willow merely nodded thoughtfully.
xxx
Though her outward appearance didn’t show it, Drusilla was excited. She would be well again! No more would she be under Angelus’ thumb. No more would she wait patiently for her ‘Daddy’ to return. And finally, she could release Spike from his role as her Dark Knight. Without insanity to cloud her mind, she would be free.
xxx
Angel too, was excited. He could right this blight upon his soul, bringing him one step closer to true redemption.
xxx
Buffy made her way down the steps into the candle-lit room with trepidation. Giles followed, nervous as to the possible outcomes of this folly. Xander clomped down unrepentantly, oblivious to the delicate nature of the event which they were all about to witness. Willow was beside herself, hoping against hope that she would be able to help. Angel trailed down last, eyes glued to Drusilla.
Finally reaching the area, Ellie welcomed them all. “Hey all, welcome to the party.”
“Party?” Giles began, affronted. “I hardly believe that this could constitute...”
“Ah, you must be the Watcher.” Ellie cut in. At Buffy’s nod, she continued, “You can help then.”
Startled by her abrupt dismissal of his thoughts, Giles merely nodded once in affirmation.
Ellie’s eyes and senses scanned the room, quickly landing on Willow. Head tilting thoughtfully, Ellie said, “Would you like to help as well, little witch?”
Scared out of her wits at the attention the obviously powerful vampire had placed upon her, Willow gave a quiet ‘Eeep!’ When she realized that she would be able to actually HELP with the ritual at hand, she shook her head vigorously in the affirmative.
“Just don’t get too excited. For all my down-playin’, this will be rough on all of us. We’re gonna make it through though, you’ll see.”
Motioning towards Willow and Giles, Ellie continued, “You all are on herb duty. They’re here to purify the area and calm the mind, so just keep em burnin’ at a steady rate.” She pointed out the herbs used quickly, and placed the two ‘herb-burners’ at opposite points of the pentagram. Looking towards Buffy and Angel, she withdrew two identical daggers from her pockets. The daggers were beautiful in their simplicity. Bright silver blades were framed with delicate crystal-encrusted hilts. Handing one each to Buffy and Angel, she said, “Just a shallow cut to the right palm is all we need. Just enough for three drops of blood into the bowl.” Nodding in affirmation, both Slayer and souled-vampire were then placed kneeling at the two remaining ends of the pentagram. Finally Ellie placed a small gold bowl filled with only a tiny sphere of crystal onto Drusilla’s stomach.
With one last look about the room, Ellie was satisfied with placements and preparations. Taking a deep, unneeded breath, she said, “Time to play.”
xxx
Closing her eyes and breathing in the soothing herbs, Ellie began chanting softly in an ancient and unrecognizable tongue. This continued for long moments, and a soft breeze began to blow through the room, sending the candles and tea lights to flicker more rapidly.
As the chanting droned on, Buffy became more and more nervous. The crystal in the bowl began to glow golden, its hue bright to her eyes. Breathing deeply, she tried to calm herself.
Ellie’s voice grew more forceful. The wind filtering into the room picked up and her eyes opened wide, irises black as night. Her words switching to common English, she said, “With the blood of the Sire and the blood of the Slayer, I call thee Osiris! Heed my words and grant peace to this woman, this vampire!”
Knowing that this was their cue, both Buffy and Angel made the aforementioned shallow cuts to their right palms. Leaning forward, they both took turns allowing three drops of blood into the bowl. In violent response, the crystal rolled around the bowl, picking up the small amount of liquid. When it was covered in a thin sheen of red, still glowing brightly, it began to float into the air. Coming to rest in the center of Drusilla’s forehead, it changed into a shimmering mist and was absorbed quietly into her mind.
As Ellie slumped forward, palms catching her fall, Dru’s eyes shot open wide. Gasping, Drusilla looked frantically around the room, terrified. Eyes finally landing on Angel, she began to shake. Quickly gaining her feet, she ran to Spike, who was leaning nonchalantly against a visible stud in the unfinished walls. As Spike went to embrace her, comfort her, she insistently cowered behind him.
Murmuring soothing words, Spike made out her infinitely small whisper. “He hurt me. You took care of me.” Eyes glassy with unshed tears, she finished with a soft, “Thank you.”
Regaining some of her usual carefree attitude, Drusilla turned her head towards Ellie. In a more confident voice she said, “I can think clearly again, my daughter, and I thank you as well.”
As the shock from her sudden return to the land of the sane began to wear thin, she embraced both of her children in turn.
Watching the touching scene, Angel was both relieved and saddened. As it became clear that the ritual was an astounding success, he looked on in thoughtful awe and happiness as his family embraced on the other side of the room.
The more he watched, the funnier he felt. It started as a dull thud in his stomach, and the pain grew in intensity as it moved into his chest. When a sudden urge to move struck his body, he followed it willingly. Rising quickly, he made to quit the chamber, when he was stopped briefly by Buffy’s words.
“Angel...? What’s wrong?”
“I don’t feel right Buffy,” then with more venom, “I need to get out of here; I’m obviously not needed.”
As Angel left the room, all eyes returned to the joyous reunion of Ellie, Spike, and the now sane Drusilla. Fear returning, Dru whispered, “Daddy’s home.”
[Reviews - 41]
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Chapter or Story |
Chapter or Story | 
Chapter or Story
Has been viewed 919 times
- Text Size +
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Chapter or Story |
Chapter or Story | Chapter or Story - Text Size +
Author's Chapter Notes:
Now we FINALLY get to the ritual, and guess what kiddos? The true Big Bad is revealed! Not like you didn't know it was coming, but still, I hope the way I did it was interesting and original.
Chapter End Notes:
Thank you again for reading. I'm not really sure about this chapter, so tell me what you think!