By Heather Martin

Spoilers- Set during and after Smashed. I borrowed a few lines from Wrecked as well. Has spoilers for everything up to that point. Goes AU after that

Summary- B/S T/W A/X Something goes funky with Spike and Buffy after their coupling in the abandoned house. Meanwhile, a demon and a mysterious girl come to Sunnydale from the future.

Chapter Seven- Lies?

Willow blinked a couple times. “So, let me get this straight. You are from the future?”

“Yes,” Alexis confirmed.

“And I thought we came across it all. Evil vamps. Big snake nasties. A hell-God.” The red-head shook her head.

“Ever come across a Gestalt demon?”

“A what?”

“Buggering hell,” muttered Spike.

The slayer looked over at the ex-vamp in inquiry.

“Never came across one, mind you. But I have heard of them. Nasty blokes. Ugly. Rip apart anything they can get their hands on. Massive jaws and teeth that break through bone.”

“Aren’t they only a legend?” Anya asked. “No one has ever really seen one.”

“Oh, I think people’s seen em, they just haven’t lived to tell the tale.”

“Well, I’ll be the first then,” declared Buffy. She looked over at Alexis. “Tell me about this Gestalt thing. Where is it? Do you know how to kill it? Is that why you are here?”

“I have no idea where it is. All I can say is it is here in Sunnydale. It came from the future where I’m from. As for killing it . . . Decapitation often works. And yes, this is why I am here,” Alexis answered all three questions.

Xander leaned forward in his seat. “He’s from the future too? How many people took this little trip through time?”

“Just me and the demon. At different times,” the girl said.

“What does this demon want?” Buffy questioned. Deep down she knew the answer. What did every evil demon dream of?

Alexis met Buffy’s gaze with saddened blue eyes. “To kill you.”

Silence fell over the store. The vacancy of Buffy was still too fresh. Memories of the summer without her ate away at their hearts. They didn’t want to have to go through another one.

“Figures,” Buffy said. “What do I do to piss him off exactly?”

Alexis fidgeted with her fingers. “It isn’t something you do, although you help.”

“What do I help with? Must be more than Shake ‘n Bake.”

The teenager scanned the people in the room. “This is all because of me.” There were tears beginning to glisten in her eyes.

Willow frowned, sympathetic. “What do you do, sweetie?”

“I have this big destiny. Sort of like a slayer does. I rid the world of vampires and demons. The vampires turn human and the demons are all sent to hell. The world is cleansed.”

“Sounds like a big yay to me,” Xander remarked. “What goes wrong?”

“Judas. He was-is a vampire. He will become human. But the thing is he doesn’t like it one bit.”

Spike huffed.

The blond slayer turned toward Spike. “Care to comment?”

He shook his head. “No, carry on. Just that I can relate is all.”

“He tried to kill me,” Alexis went on. “Apparently he didn’t succeed. He came up with a better plan than revenge instead. He summoned the Gestalt demon from hell, and sent it here to prevent the cleansing from taking place.”

“By killing me?” Buffy asked.

“Yes.” Alexis paused. “You discover a prophecy about the cleansing. It mentions me. You find me to perform it.”

“So that’s how you know us? We find you?”

“Y-yeah. I’m the prophecy girl. We sorta . . . become friends.”

“All right. I think I get it,” Buffy said. “If he kills me we never find you and the cleansing never happens. Then this Judas can remain fangy and dangerous.”

“That’s about it.”

“Why didn’t this guy come here himself?” Xander wanted to know. “What is it with villains and not wanting to get their hands dirty?”

“It wasn’t by choice this time. Judas can’t come back to the past. It is too risky. If a person touches themselves they . . . I don’t know. Giles wasn’t very explicit about that. They die somehow. Atoms can’t exist two places at once. That’s why I was sent. I know I’m only fifteen, but I can fight. And I’m not around to accidentally touch myself.”

“Wow,” Xander voiced. “This is making my head spin.”

“Tell me about it,” Willow agreed.

Reaching in her pocket, Alexis drew something out. It was a folded piece of white-lined paper. She opened it up, handing it over to Willow. The witch examined the writing. Then she looked up, her eyes wide.

“This is the spell to transport you back to the future?”

Alexis nodded. “Yeah. When this mess is all sorted out that’s all ya have to do.”

“I . . . I can’t,” Willow whispered. She gave the spell back to Alexis.

Confusion spread over Alexis’s face. “Wh-Why?”

At that moment Willow looked small. Her lips trembled. “I almost did something horrible,” she confessed.

“What happened?” Buffy demanded.

“Amy took me to see this warlock named Rack.”

Spike hopped down from the counter. His expression was stern. “What!?”

Ashamed, the red-head shifted her gaze to the floor.

“Who is this Rack?” Buffy commanded to know.

It was Spike who answered. “Rack is dangerous. He’s into the dark stuff. Black magic.”

“I left!” Willow defended. “He wanted me to open up to him. I did, but . . . When I felt him, felt his evil, I left.”

No one knew quite what to say. They were relieved that Willow left, but also worried that she would even consider going to such a place.

“Don’t you see now? I can’t do this spell. I don’t trust myself. Not yet. Not with something this big.”

“What about Tara?” Alexis asked.

“T-Tara?” Willow had difficulty saying the name.

“Could she do it?”

“Maybe. She is so much better than I am.” Willow let out a sob.

Seeing her friend in distress, Buffy stood up. “Let’s go home. It’s late. We’ll continue this tomorrow.” She glanced at Willow. “I think everybody’s tired.”

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Alexis had two choices. She could either sleep on the couch or the cot downstairs. She chose the couch. It wasn’t pitch black in the living room. She couldn’t stand the dark. It was something she was born with. Not exactly a phobia. No, it didn’t frighten her. It filled her with loathing. She had always hated the dark. Her mother had told her stories about when she was a baby. Ever since birth she would only fall asleep with a light on. It didn’t have to be much light, but there had to be some. As a small child she grew up with a Sesame Street Count nightlight. It was her father who gave her the pink lava lamp as a replacement. She was very grateful for it. She no longer had to go through the embarrassing explanation when she had a sleepover.

There wasn’t a nightlight that night. Alexis was all right, though. Moonlight streamed in through the window. It was enough illumination so that she could vaguely make out the furniture and television. She wasn’t as needy as she used to be. A little light-Light at all was enough. It kept her from feeling as if she was being suffocated. That she had to battle the shadows before they engulfed her.

She rolled over in the fold-out bed, bringing the covers up to her chin. She was having trouble sleeping. Not because of the light issue. Because she felt bad.

She kept telling herself she hadn’t been lying. She simply wasn’t telling the whole truth. It was necessary. There would be grave consequences if they knew everything. Giles had been very clear on that. He told her not to tell the scoobies their future. It might change it.

Still, Alexis wished she could spill it all. She despised lying. No! I’m not lying, she reminded herself. I’m only bending the truth a tad. That’s all. Like Dad when he dented the car. He hadn’t told Mom about that telephone pole for her own good.

Alexis shut her eyes. Right then she wanted to be back in the future. She wanted to be with her family again. Not with these strangers. They weren’t strangers, but they seemed like it. They didn’t know her.

Stupid girl! Alexis screamed at herself. You are acting like a baby. You aren’t four years old. You are strong. What would Mom do in this situation? She’d get the job done. She wouldn’t be silently whining about going home. You have a duty. An important duty. Everyone is counting on you. If you don’t do this you’ll die. Buffy will die.

Alexis dispelled the thoughts from her mind. She made herself drift off to sleep. She needed her strength if she was going to kick this Gestalt demon’s ass.

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So, people think they have this figured out, huh? *smirk* I’m not saying a word. Thanks for the reviews, though.