Author's note: Every great story starts at the beginning, and this just happens to be the beginning for our two star characters, Sheba and Linda. But The Event is NOT a BtVS focused story arc! This particular story came from a project I started years ago, and by pure chance it happens to fit in. It is necessary to post this first, because let's face it, I'd confuse the heck out of you in the future every time I mention Sheba being the "Slayer". I hope you enjoy!

Beginnings

The shrill beeping of the near-ancient alarm clock was one of the last things the weary sixteen-year-old redhead wanted to hear. For several moments, she tried unsuccessfully to drown it out, throwing her arms up over her head to clamp the pillow more securely over her ears. But it was a lost cause. Because not thirty seconds into it, the beeping was echoed by the only sound in the world she couldn't try and ignore…if only for the fact that its source was the provider of her only source of income at the moment.

"Sheba! It's time for school! Come on, wake up. You have a big day today."

Sheba groaned into her pillow, blindly swinging her hand around to smack at the alarm clock. It took a few tries, but she managed to find the tiny switch that flicked the annoying beeping to a slightly less annoying morning news show.

"Good morning, Sunnydale! It's a balmy 68 degrees on this beautiful California day. Expect lots of sunshine as the temps rise into the mid-eighties. Perfect day for a stroll along our beautiful beaches. Except for you young'uns out there! Remember, today's a school day for you!"

"Sheba!"

"I'm coming, Mom!"

That, she knew, bought her maybe five minutes. But there was no point in being stubborn today. She knew by the tone of her voice that her mother wasn't going to be in any mood to put up with her normal routine. She had to be Miss Efficiency this time. So with only one other groan of protest she pulled the pillow off her head and pushed herself into a sitting position.

"Welcome to Sunnydale," she said quietly to herself. "Yeah…right."

Sheba sighed as she looked around her small room. It was only half the size of her old one. But she had come here knowing that space was not going to be optimal. Her mother had chosen to relocate them from a nice house in Colorado Springs to this tiny two bedroom apartment in even tinier Sunnydale, California. Still, she had to give it some credit. The ocean view outside her window was nice. It was better than the view inside her window. Almost all of her stuff was still stored away in the stacks of boxes around her. Even her bed sheets were still in one of them. She had spent the night in a sleeping bag on top of her bare mattress. Her bed was still in pieces against the opposite wall.

It didn't take long for her to get up and get changed. Her movements were quickened a little by the smell of the coffee brewing down the hall. If there was one thing her mother was good at, it was making fresh brewed coffee. She paused at her dresser long enough to make sure her hair wasn't a complete rat's nest, and then she headed out into the hallway and towards the kitchen. Her mother, Linda, was pulling dishes out of a box on the counter. Her boring blue blouse and beige slacks were only slightly wrinkled, evidence that she had packed her clothes a lot more carefully than Sheba had done. Her t-shirt's design was practically warped beyond recognition with the wrinkling it had suffered. Linda turned as she approached, immediately rolling her eyes.

"I see you listened to me when I showed you how to pack your clothes," she said.

"Good morning to you too, Mom," Sheba replied.

Linda chuckled and shook her head. She produced a mug from the box.

"Excited over your first day?" she asked, handing the mug over. Sheba took it and poured herself some coffee. "I read some good things about this school. Sunnydale High will be a good place for you."

"Yeah," Sheba replied, sighing. "I'm…okay." She smiled slightly, giving her mom a look of reassurance. "I do like the look of this town. And you can't beat how close to the beach we are. It's just…this apartment doesn't have as much room as I'm used to. But it's not like we needed all the extra rooms in the old house."

She sighed heavily, realizing she was rambling. Linda laughed, rubbing her shoulder.

"I promise, the attic renovations will be done by the end of the month. We'll make it into a nice big TV room, just for the two of us. And there will be nice big windows that look out over the ocean."

"You always know just what to say," Sheba replied, allowing a true smile to cross her face.

"Good, because I'm not done yet." Linda leaned back against the counter. "I know California is going to be a lot different from Colorado. I went through a very big adjustment phase when I was starting college. But I really enjoyed my time in this state. There's…a special atmosphere here. I know you'll find it too."

Sheba scoffed.

"Oh please," she said mockingly. "The only reason you like California is because you met the man that helped you make me here. Your fondness comes from old sex memories."

"Do you need any other reason?" Linda shot back, an eyebrow raised.

Sheba groaned.

"I am so not going any further into this conversation with you." She gulped down the rest of the coffee. "Come on, if we don't get going, we're both gonna be late."

Linda laughed, her coffee cup almost slipping from her fingers. Sheba snorted as her mother fumbled to keep from spilling.

"I am so glad I don't get my coordination from you," she said, setting her mug on the counter. It slipped into the sink and cracked in two next to the drain. Sheba stared at it for a moment, frozen in her surprise.

"You so sure about not getting your coordination from me?" Linda asked coyly.

"Oh, shut up," Sheba growled back.

******

The campus of Sunnydale High looked no different from any other campus in America. Students were everywhere, talking and laughing as they gathered in small groups or filed in through the front doors. Sheba followed the general flow of the crowd. The letter with her instructions on how to pick up her schedule and who to talk to was clutched in her hand. But in the end, she wasn't left wandering the hallowed halls for very long. Not five minutes after picking up her schedule from the front office she was practically accosted by a short balding man in a gray suit.

"In my office, Miss Lewis. You and I need to talk."

Sheba was unceremoniously herded into what she was very quick to realize was the principal's office. She sighed as she sat down on a hard uncomfortable wooden chair in front of the desk. She glanced at the clutter atop it. A stereotypical plaque in the middle boasted the words "Principal Snyder." The man sat down in his chair and gave her a haughty glare. Sheba twitched, not appreciating the scrutiny at all.

"I suppose as principal, I should be the first to welcome you to Sunnydale High," the man said in a flat, bored voice. "We haven't had a lot of luck with our new students lately. For your sake, you'd better break that mold." He lifted a file off his desk briefly. "Your record is satisfactory. It had better stay that way. We don't tolerate bad behavior at this school, Miss Lewis. Break the rules, and life will be made very difficult for you here. But toe the line…and you might just survive." He gestured towards the door. "Let's hope I never see you in here again."

Sheba blinked, surprised at the abrupt dismissal. But she wasn't about to make the man repeat himself. She quickly stood and let herself out, only just barely trying to keep from looking like she was outright running. It was only when she was back amongst the swarm that she allowed herself to roll her eyes in annoyance.

"Great first impression of this place," she growled to herself. "This is gonna be just a swell few ye…"

"Hey, Wil! There you…oh! You're…not Wil."

Sheba turned around. A girl had come up behind her, blonde hair tied back in a high ponytail. A brown bag hung over her shoulder. Sheba shrugged, slightly bemused by the surprised expression on her face.

"Sorry," she said. "My name's not Will."

"Oh, I know," the other girl replied. "You just…look like Wil. From the back. You both have…red…hair…"

The girl flushed a little. Sheba laughed.

"Glad I'm not the only redhead around here," she said. "I was almost a freak back in Colorado."

"So you're the new girl." The girl shifted her bag. "Welcome! Did you just come from Snyder's office?"

"Unfortunately." Sheba rolled her eyes again. "Friendly sort of bastard, isn't he?"

The girl blinked, looking surprised.

"Nice way to put it," she said.

"Sorry," Sheba replied. "Sorry. It's a really bad habit. My mom has to buy more soap every week for the number of times she washes my mouth out."

The girl laughed nervously. Sheba sighed. Two seconds in and she was already making herself sound like a dork. She tried again.

"I'm Sheba," she said.

"Sheba?" the girl asked, raising an eyebrow. "You mean like cat…"

Sheba glared at her. She hated that comparison to her name. It wasn't her fault her mother had been on some sort of freaky ancient history kick when she was born. The girl flushed even redder.

"Sorry…foot-in-mouth syndrome…I'm Buffy."

For a second, Sheba was tempted to make a snide comment of her own about the other girl's name, but held her tongue at the last moment. She gave her another smile instead.

"Nice to meet you, Buffy," she said sincerely. She opened her schedule and glanced at the first class. "Can you tell me where American Government is?"

"Sure!" Buffy said brightly. "It's right this way."

Buffy led her through the crowded corridors towards an open door across from what looked to be the school's central student lobby. Several people turned to look at her curiously as she passed them.

"Thanks," she said. "You take this class?"

"Afternoon," Buffy replied. "Lemme see your schedule."

Sheba handed it over. Buffy looked at it for a moment.

"You have AP Biology with Wil, so you'll be able to meet her there. But I don't think you have any classes with me."

"Sorry to hear that," Sheba said sincerely. "Thanks for the help."

"Anytime," Buffy replied with a smile. "Tell Wil—her full name is Willow—that I sent ya. She'll help you get caught up if you feel a bit behind. See you later!"

"Bye," Sheba said, waving weakly as Buffy turned and disappeared into the crowd.

The day passed as normally as the first day at a new school could be expected to. Only two of the teachers made her stand in front of the class and introduce herself. Sheba was slightly comforted by the fact that very few people seemed amused by her name. She suspected it was a California thing. A lot of the kids in the school had unusual names. Twice in the hallway people ran up behind her calling her Willow. So Sheba was very eager to meet her apparent twin when AP Biology finally came around. She was easy enough to spot, being the only other redhead in the room. Plus, she was gesturing towards her and smiling widely.

As Sheba approached, she resisted the urge to roll her eyes. They didn't look that much alike. Sure, they both had red hair, but the other girl's was a visible shade brighter and in a completely different style. But Sheba returned the girl's eager smile as she sat down in the empty chair next to her.

"Hi! I'm Willow. You must be Sheba. Buffy told me you met this morning."

"Nice to meet you, Willow."

They chatted quietly for most of the class, as the teacher was doing nothing more than showing them some sort of science movie. She was very cheerful and informative, eager to answer Sheba's questions about the school and the town.

"So what do you do for fun around here?" she whispered around the end of class.

"Oh, that would definitely be the Bronze," Willow replied.

"The Bronze?"

"It's a club on the other side of town. All the kids hang out there. They have live bands sometimes, and good food and coffee drinks."

"Sounds great," Sheba replied.

The bell rang. The teacher flicked on the lights while everyone started gathering up their stuff. Sheba stuffed her notebook into her backpack and slung it over her shoulder.

"Thanks for the chat," she said. "Will you be at the Bronze tonight?"

"Yep. Me and all my friends."

"Then I'll see you there?"

"I'll save you a seat!"

Sheba nodded and turned to leave. But at the last moment, Willow cleared her throat.

"Oh, Sheba, one more thing."

Sheba glanced back at her.

"Um…don't wander Sunnydale too much after dark."

"Excuse me?"

Willow looked nervous. She twitched slightly, as though she were trying to think fast.

"We have…gang problems here. It's not really safe to stray off the main streets."

"Uh…okay. I'll keep that in mind."

The confusion caused by Willow's strange warning lingered in Sheba's mind for the rest of the day. After the last bell rang she swung by the library to pick up her textbooks, and noticed a copy of the Sunnydale Times at the edge of the counter. While the librarian fumbled with the computer, she flipped it open, looking for clues to help explain what Willow had been talking about. She didn't see any news reports that looked like gang activity. But she did notice the size of the obituary section.

"Jeez," she said. "A lot of people died this month."

The librarian gave a visible start, turning a wide-eyed gaze to her. She stared back at him.

"Sorry," she mumbled, embarrassed. "I've just never seen an obituary section like this." She grabbed her textbooks off the counter. "Um…thanks."

She turned and left before the librarian could comment. Her mother was waiting for her out in the parking lot, a relaxed expression on her face. She tossed her stuff into the backseat before sliding into the passenger side.

"How was your day?" Linda asked as she drove into the slow stream of cars leaving the campus.

"Alright," Sheba replied. "Classes seem to be okay, and I met a lot of new people. What about you? How was the office?" She noted that her mother was no longer wearing the blouse from the morning, but a plain gray t-shirt.

"Oh, I think we'll get along," Linda replied. "My boss let me go home after lunch, so I was able to get some unpacking done. But I will definitely need your help moving the furniture around."

"Okay. I didn't get much homework today," Sheba replied, shrugging.

Linda gave her a sideways glance.

"Everything okay?" she asked.

Sheba glanced out her window. The town was passing by slowly around them. It looked completely calm and peaceful. No evidence of graffiti on the buildings, no vandalism, no excessive police presence.

"One of the kids told me this town has gang problems," she said. "Have you heard anything about that?"

Linda nodded.

"A few people at work were telling me that they've had some gang problems here recently," she said. "There was a really big fight at your school a few months ago during Parent-Teacher night. Two people died. But I keep hearing how much of a good town this is. I don't think we'll have anything to worry about. I know you are too smart to fall into a crowd like that."

"Thanks for the confidence, Mom," Sheba said.

"You let me know if you ever feel threatened," Linda pressed. "At school or anywhere else."

"I will," Sheba replied.

It turned out that her mom hadn't been kidding when she had said she had made progress on unpacking. The kitchen was almost done, and the boxes that had been stacked in haphazard piles had been sorted into the rooms. Sheba spent about an hour doing her homework while Linda finished the kitchen, and then slaved in the living room pushing furniture around until dinner.

"Mom, there's this club in town called the Bronze that a lot of kids were going to tonight," Sheba said while they ate their hastily microwaved TV dinners. Her mom hadn't had a chance to go on a proper grocery shopping trip yet. "Can I go? Check it out? I won't be gone long."

"I think I heard someone mention it at work," Linda replied, nodding. "Do you want me to drive you over?"

"No, I'll walk. This town isn't that big."

"Are you sure?"

"I'll be fine, Mom."

Night had fallen, but the town was brightly lit by an overabundance of street lamps. Sheba headed down the street with her hands in her jacket pockets, gazing around with mild curiosity. After a few intersections, the homes gave way to businesses, almost all of which were dark. But a few restaurants, coffee shops, and an old cinema had people milling around them. The atmosphere was warm and calm. Nobody seemed overly concerned.

Sheba was distracted by looking around. It took a few minutes for her to finally realize that she had neglected to do one very basic thing…ask for directions. She had no idea where the Bronze was. She tried following a small group of people that looked to be about her age, but they ended up going into one of the coffee shops.

"Great," she mumbled to herself, looking around. "Smooth move."

She crossed an intersection and started down a new street. Her attention was almost immediately distracted. The buildings stopped not too far ahead, opening up into what had to be the biggest cemetery she had ever seen. She approached curiously. The property was surrounded by an old stone wall just above waist high. And within there was a maze of tombstones and mausoleums mixed in with tall ancient-looking trees. It was how she had always imagined a creepy haunted cemetery to look. And as she stared among the tombstones, she caught a flicker of movement in the distance. She froze, staring, barely breathing. But after a moment, the figure reappeared from behind a mausoleum for a second, and she got a better glimpse.

"Buffy?" she said aloud, confused.

Buffy had not looked like the kind of girl that spent her nights in graveyards. She had seemed more of a cheerleader type. Maybe she was lost too? Sheba stepped over the wall and moved deeper into the cemetery, trying to keep Buffy in sight. But the other girl was too far ahead, and she quickly lost sight of her. She stopped, sighing and rolling her eyes.

"Why bother chasing after her?" she mumbled to herself. "I'll see her tomorrow. It isn't my business whatever she's doing here." She turned and started back towards the street.

A dark figure suddenly appeared out of nowhere to her left. As Sheba spun to face it, she felt powerful hands clamp down on her shoulders and shove her backwards. She yelped as her back struck the side of a mausoleum, the hands pinning her against the cold stone. She tried to struggle, but it was no use. The grip was too strong.

"Well, well, lookit what we have here," a dark, hissing voice said mockingly. "It's the Slayer's little redhead friend."

Sheba blinked, watering eyes finally staring into the face of her captor. Her breath caught in her throat, a bolt of ice shooting down her spine as she began to quake in terror. A man was holding her, an even bigger man standing behind him. And both had twisted, ridged, gruesome, horrible faces. Animal-like yellow eyes stared at her hungrily. And from their throats came deep demonic growls.

"Any last words before I rip your throat out?" the one holding her snarled.

Sheba felt nauseous, the fear in her heart almost painful.

"Just…one…" she stammered.

Both of the men began to laugh, but the sound was drowned out as Sheba opened her mouth and let out an ear-splitting scream. The grip holding her faltered slightly, and she took advantage of it. She threw herself forward, ramming her shoulder into her attacker's chest and shoving him backwards. He staggered and tripped, his back striking a nearby tree. A wide eyed expression of shock formed on his face. For a second, Sheba thought he was just surprised she had fought back. But then she saw the jagged end of the tree branch sticking out of his chest. Her strike had impaled him on one of the tree's lower broken branches.

"Oh my g…" Sheba began, terrified. But then, the man exploded, vanishing in a cloud of dust.

"Bryan!" the other man roared, making her jump a foot in the air. "You're gonna pay for that, bitch!"

Sheba was frozen in her shock and terror, unable to move as the hulking beast staggered towards her. But then he was grabbed from behind and yanked away from her. Sheba watched as he was thrown aside, rolling across the ground. Buffy was standing between them now, her body tensed, a wooden stake clutched in her hand.

"Sheba, get out of here!" she shouted at her over her shoulder. "Run!"

The man on the ground jumped to his feet and lunged at Buffy. She met his charge with a powerful kick to the chest that knocked him backwards again. But he recovered fast, and was upon her in seconds. The fight became a blur of movement that Sheba could barely follow in the haze of her shock. Despite being much bigger and clearly stronger, Buffy seemed to be holding her own. Even when he landed a few punches that would have put Sheba in a coma, Buffy simply shrugged them off.

It was just as Sheba was regaining enough feeling in her limbs to consider running that the man knocked the stake out of Buffy's hands and kneed her in the stomach, sending her flying into the mausoleum. She slumped to the ground, winded. The man was upon her in seconds, clamping his hands around her throat and hoisting her into the air.

"I'm gonna break your neck, Slayer," he snarled into her face.

Sheba wasn't thinking. She reacted on sheer instinct. She ran forward, grabbed Buffy's stake off the ground, and lunged towards the man. With all the weight and power she could muster, she slammed the stake deep into his back. The man let out a roar of surprise, and then he too vanished in a cloud of dust. Buffy staggered to her feet, rubbing her throat. Sheba stared at her speechlessly.

"Come on," Buffy said, grabbing her arm. "Let's get out of here."

Sheba couldn't protest, couldn't argue. She followed Buffy mechanically, forced to lean upon her to keep her balance. Buffy supported her easily.

"Come on," she repeated. "It's okay. We're safe now. Just keep moving."

Sheba didn't pay the slightest bit of attention to where they were going. She only started coming back to herself when Buffy dragged her through a pair of double doors, and the musty smell of old leather filled her nostrils.

"Sheba, sit," Buffy commanded, and Sheba felt herself being deposited on a hard wooden chair next to a long table. Her hand was still firmly clenching the stake.

"Good heavens, Buffy. What happened?" a British voice demanded.

"I was on patrol, and heard her scream," Buffy responded. "She had two vamps on her. Got there in time to see her dust one against a tree. The other one knocked the stake out of my hand, but she staked him while he had me pinned. She saved my life, Giles." There was a pause. "And I think she's gonna faint."

The next thing Sheba knew, she was sprawled on the floor, and more than one person was leaning over her. After a second, the faces of Buffy and the school librarian came into focus.

"Huh?" she groaned.

"Are you okay?" Buffy asked.

"Where am I?"

"In the school library," the librarian said. "Buffy brought you here."

"The…library?"

With Buffy's help, Sheba managed to sit up. Sure enough, she was sitting on the linoleum floor in the middle of the Sunnydale High School library. Apart from them the room was deserted.

"Back in the chair," Buffy said, hauling her to her feet. Sheba had only time to gasp before she found herself back in the wooden chair. She stared at Buffy, amazed at her strength.

"What's going on?" she demanded breathlessly. "Buffy…what was that? Why did those guys...did I just…did I kill those guys?"

"Kind of," Buffy said. "They were already dead. Vampires."

"Vampires?!"

"Welcome to Sunnydale."

For almost an hour, Buffy and the librarian, Giles, tried to give her a general explanation of what she had just been through. In the end, she was left beyond bewildered. But she couldn't deny what they were saying-she had seen them with her own eyes.

"I'm really starting to miss Colorado," she mumbled in the end, the only intelligent response she could think of.

"You held your own rather impressively," Giles said encouragingly.

"Dumb luck," Sheba replied. "I panicked."

"And saved my life," Buffy added.

Sheba bit her lip. She couldn't take credit for that. She had been panicking then too.

"I won't tell anyone," she said instead. "But…what do I do now? I can't just ignore it. I mean, I can kinda fend for myself, but if that had been my mom…" She shuttered. "Buffy, I want to help you. Whatever you need me to do, I'll do it."

Buffy and Giles exchanged a glance. Sheba stood and faced them, forcing herself to remain steady.

"Give me a little time, and I'll get over the shock," she vowed firmly. "It's not like I don't know how to fight. My mom made me take ti-kwon-do classes for two and a half years in middle school."

Buffy arched an eyebrow.

"Really?" she asked. "I wouldn't call screaming like a banshee good fighting skills."

Sheba grinned. She saw the playful challenge in Buffy's expression.

"Benefit of the doubt, they were my first vampires," she retorted. "But it wasn't my first fight." She crossed her arms. "I can put those two and a half years to good use. Right here, right now."

Buffy scoffed. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Giles roll his eyes and disappear into his office.

"Are you challenging me?" she snapped back.

Sheba raised her hand, gesturing boldly.

"Bring it, Slayer."

The End.

And here we are, the promised short story, the one and only finished fanfiction from the original spree so many years back. At least, one that I'll admit to. I have to confess that Sheba went through a lot of changes since her creation. If I recall, I once had her playing the "old childhood friend" angle...glad I learned my lesson. Cliché is not my style. Not most of the time anyway.

And for those curious to know how this particular scenario ended...Buffy kicked Sheba's ass. But they became friends afterward.