HOPE'S SERVITUDE
by Liz
DISCLAIMER: I do not own the characters of Buffy, Spike, Xander, Willow or Dawn and am in no way affiliated with Joss Wheadon or Mutant Enemy Productions. I am not profiting in anyway from the writing of this story
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story does not follow any story or season line from the show.
Oh yes and before I forget, Cheers to Evie for beeing my proofreader and critisizer (kidding), You helped with this alot!
"Do you wish it of me?"
Buffy Summers bolted up from her bed, misted in sweat from head to toe. It took her a moment to register her surroundings in the dark and she pulled her long hair from her face. "ugh not again" she sighed rubbing her eyes. "My eyes are so baggage bound!" She settled back into her bed, but didn't close them, she knew it wouldn't do her any good, sleep wouldn't be returning tonight. Instead she pondered the dream.
It always started the same; silent and Grey. No light, no sound, complete and utter nothingness. then the images would come. A girl fighting, always fighting. Every time she looked different but buffy knew she was the same, as if form could not negate the presence held within it. She held so much power in her often bruised or misshapen hands, more power the buffy could begin to imagine. A benevolence radiated from her, a goodness seeming to push away the mists that always surrounded her. Buffy would watch her transfixed as she disposed of her enemy's with a swift and ruthless grace and then she would turn. Different eyes would look out and seem to see buffy. The voice would come to her and the words would Eco over and over in her mind until she awoke
"Do you wish it of me?" Every night for six long weeks Buffy had the dreams, always beginning with mist and ending with the question. Something was coming, buffy could feel it, and she wasn't sure if she was happy about it. In her dreams the presence was very clearly good, but Buffy's dreams, though often prolific could be problematic because rarely was anything as it seems. Buffy sighed again and threw off her covers. "No rest for the wicked" she thought to herself as she put on her slippers. The others would be awake in a few hours, and she was sure she could find something to occupy herself until that time came since she wouldn't be returning to the mists again that night.
"Late night love?" Buffy jumped and her coffee cup landed on the counter with a clattering bang that was amplified in the stillness of the night.
"Don't you ever knock?" His blue eyes sparkling maddeningly spike leaned against the countertop and grinned good-naturedly at her.
"In case you've forgotten, it's four in the morning. I don't fancy getting my head torn off by your sister for waking her up in the middle of the night." He reached over and righted Buff'y's coffee cup. "Are you ok? you're not usually this jumpy. Didn't you enjoy your girl's night out tonight? I was just on my way home and saw the light, thought I'd have myself a look see, boyfriendly duties and all that."
Buffy chuckled to herself. "Boyfriendly duties? Is that a PC way of saying you were coming to crawl in bed with me?"
"Maybe"
"Well maybe I'd get some sleep then."
Spike looked her over carefully. The drawn features and tight mouth, the bluish purple beginnings of bags under the eyes... "Did you have that dream again?" Buffy nodded and leaned against him. Spike gently placed his hands on the back of her neck and began to rub at the tension knot that had formed their. "Same one?"
"Yea, except she was kind of dwarfed this time."
"So slayer mine, new big bad coming to play?"
Buffy shook her head "she's not bad, I can tell. I'm not exactly sure WHAT she is... but she's not bad." Buffy righted herself and began to pour the coffee, but Spike stopped her.
"No coffee for you. Now you need to march yourself right back up into bed and get some sleep. I love you but you look like hell."
"I don't want to go back to sleep, that dream, it's so creepy. Every time I close my eyes, all I see is mist and all I hear is... well nothing, it's like a big steaming vat of nothingness, and I'm sorry, but i just don't want to go back there tonight." But Spike would have none of it.
"March, or I'll carry you myself." A sexy sideways smile spread across his face. "Or is that the gameplan?" buffy leaned up and brushed her lips against his.
"Maybe....."
"So anyways I told Trina that I was all into yoga and she looked at me like I had a third eye made of glass! I swear what's so bad about yoga? It's all bendy and flexibility and I feel a lot better after - Hey Buffy, glad you decided to join the living this morning." Buffy made her way down the stairs with a scowl
"Give me a break Dawn, it's Saturday. Besides, I needed to catch up on some beauty sleep."
"Right, beauty sleep, is that what you kids are calling it these days?" Both Dawn and Willow sat on the couch, with identical smug looks on their face and Buffy could feel herself starting to redden.
"You saw him hu?"
"Only in a literal way" Dawn made room for Buffy to sit down and finished wrestling her long dark hair into a ponytail. "Spike joined us for breakfast this morning, as he's been prone to do lately, you however were noticeably absent, long night?" Willow and Dawn both laughed and Buffy shook her head in disgust.
"Get your brain off the naughty train, nothing happened, he saw the light on last night and stopped by....he just helped me to get some sleep is all." Willow chewed her lip thoughtfully.
"You've been missing a lot of sleep lately. Are you having some prophecy like dreams that we should know about?"
"No... just a funky recurring one is all. what are you guys working on?" Buffy noticed for the first time open books and newspapers scattered around the floor, Dawn and Willow were obviously in full research mode.
"Just checking up on that surge of mass vampire killings we've been having lately. Actually" willow said her grin returning "I'm kind of glad Spike was here, he had some information for us. He did a little more hunting after your last pass last night and found kind of a den. We've got a bunch of vampires working together on this one, but it shouldn't be to much of a hassle, Spike said that they were ill equipped and fighting amongst themselves. Dawn and I were just checking to see if their were any important occasions coming up that would make them want to be so clingy but nothing so far." Buffy laid back deeper in the sofa so the mid morning sun could envelop her more fully. "Ok so we've got a bunch of slow majorly ignorant vamps working together. No big, I'll go on the hunt tonight, flush them out, make with the staking and hopefully be home in time to catch the news." Dawn looked at her with abject horror on her face.
"The news? Buffy I fear you."
"You know I really don't need the committee" Buffy said with mock terseness as Willow Xander and Spike followed her through the dark and silent parkway. "You know I'm capable of multiple slayage"
"Just a precaution pet, there were at least 15 of them that I saw, and dumb or not, it'll be tough going if you've got to take em on at once" Buffy smiled into the night and squeezed Spike's hand harder. She was glad to not be alone, not that she was afraid of the vampires, even in great numbers if they were as witless as Spike and Willow thought, she could take them. No, it was something else, something she couldn't quiet grasp. She commanded her stride to remain in tack and tried to relieve the tenseness in her legs. Buffy was always tense on the hunt, a slayer had to be, you never knew when something big, evil and ugly would pop out. Tonight was different, the stress in her limbs was painful, like she was slowly being stretched....yes, something was different about tonight, it was in the air.
"SNAP!" Buffy was startled into a swift turn around by the noise only to find Xander has stepped on a twig. "Xander, you about gave me a heart attack!"
"I know I know I'm sorry." Xander gave her a sheepish grin "Bad twig, Bad!" he chided hoping to get a laugh, but all he got was a swift elbow in the ribs from Willow""Jeez sorry, not like i was conspiring with the twig here to make you jump out of your skin buff." Xander stamped his feet into the grass. "We've been through this part of town three times already. I'm thinking our big bad Vampire Gang are some big bad no shows."
"Maybe they gorged themselves on so much blood last night that they aren't hungry.." Willow said her foot making identical kicks into the grass.
"Or maybe they've decided to pull up stakes.... get it, pull up stakes?" She smiled at her corny joke and Xander laughed. "Or maybe they aren't as witless as we've made them out to be" Spike finished, peering out into the darkness. "I don't like this Buffy, something's not right. I can't put my finger on it but something..." Buffy shook her head,
"In any event I don't think they'll be coming out to play tonight, you guys might as well head home, I know you've got a major test tomorrow willow and Xander....well I'm sure there is missing glass in a house somewhere that needs re-furbishing"
"No way" Xander began but Buffy held up her hand to silence his protest and then turned to spike.
"You to, go on home, I'll be fine."
"I don't know Buffy something's brewing, something strange."
"And I'll handle it, just go home, I'll finish my pass and then I'll stop by." Spike pulled her close to him and threaded his fingers through hers.
"Is that a promise?" Buffy pressed against him for a long moment and then pulled away and after fishing around in her pocket pulled out a small silver handcuff key.
"It's a promise."
"Dang!" Willow and Xander said in unison and buffy smiled. "Way to make with the kinky!"
"Go" Buffy said to all three of them "March!" Xander and Willow bid her good-bye and started off to Buff'ys house but Spike stayed rooted in place
"Buffy..." He began but buffy silenced him with a kiss. She took the tiny key and placed it in his hand, and folded his fingers over it.
"I'll be just fine, now please, go." Spike sighed he knew when to back off with buffy, when she had her mind on something she was unmovable so after a peck on the lips he turned and slinked off toward his crypt and Buffy was finally left alone to face the night. And she walked on...
...and thought of Spike. They had been through a lot together, and Buffy was amazed everyday at how they managed to get to the place they were now. They were together yes, but their was no pressure involved anymore. Spike didn't push her to say "I love you" and Buffy didn't push him away. They'd grown so close Spike could almost predict Buffy's thoughts and patterns and for once in her life; Buffy didn't mind that. Neither had forgotten what they had done to each other in the past but Buffy was no longer afraid of them having a future together, in fact she looked forward to it and she knew he did too. Xander and Willow didn't understand how Buffy could love such a man, but she did and noticed how they had been trying so hard to be personable to him, and that meant a lot to her. Dawn... well Dawn never ceased to amaze Buffy. Of all the people in her life, Dawn was the only one who accepted Spike without question, without hatred and with genuine happiness at them being together. Buffy realized with a flash of insight just how blessed she really was, and how many important wonderful people were in her life, and the familiar lurch of fear in her stomach appeared.
Buffy was afraid of only one thing in her life, failing to protect those she held dear. That fear was what drove her to hunt more then any obligation to mankind could. At it's purest Buffy's drive to slay that which was evil was simply the want to protect those whom she loved. She'd lost some of those people, some naturally, some not, and every time the fear gained strength until it was one of the driving forces of her life. Fear and Love was what kept her world going, and the fear was growing steadily stronger day by day.
Buffy was so emerced in her thoughts she almost didn't hear the twig snap behind her. "Xander, is that you? I thought I told you to go-UUHH" The sentence was sliced in half as a sharp kick to the back sent her sprawling onto the ground, but she wasn't their for long. With a timed flip she was on her feet again and staring into the face of a great number of vampires. Teeth protruding from their ghastly faces, they stared at her, eyes burning with hunger. She didn't know if they were fifteen of them, but the were many.
"Well it's about time you showed up, I was about to throw in the towel."
"Save your strength slayer, you'll need it" Came a rasp from the rapidly closing circle of vampires. Buffy poised herself, stake in hand waiting for them to make a move and yawned.
"Can't tell you how many times I've heard that one, and ya know? It never seems to get any scarier. Can't you guys come up with anything original or was that part of your brain you know.. evaporated somehow?"
With a collective snarl they advanced and Buffy was off. She punched, she kicked, jabbed flipped and stabbed but their were just to many of them, for everyone she killed two came in it's place and it wasn't long before she was pinned to the ground and panting.
"What was that all you've got? Come on, I'm just getting started." She was prevented from saying more when a large vampire in front placed his boot on her throat and began to none-to-gently step downward. "Your blood will taste victorious on our lips" He said with a ghastly grin. Buffy fought for breath but his foot slowly bore down on her air hole until he could no longer breath.
Darkness began creeping over her vision.
"No!!" Her voice screamed in her head.
"Fight, don't go down like this, not to a gang of halfwits, fight!!" She tried to move but couldn't The darkness became more pronounced and Buffy began to slip into uncontiousness when she heard the voice again in her mind. It was but a whisper.
"Do you wish it of me?"
Without hesitation she shouted into her mind "yes, Yes, i wish it!!!"
The flash of light was so bright Buffy couldn't see nothing else. Instantly the pressure from her throat was gone and she gulped the air and tried to make out where the vampires had gone. She could hear them mumbling in confusion. and then she heard it, the voice from her dreams. No longer in her head the voice was calm and almost nonchalant.
"Dust."
In an instant every one of the vampires exploded into dust as if staked in unison. They blasted air and ash into Buffy's face and she coughed and sputtered. The white light began to fade and as the dust began to settle Buffy was able to see her benefactor. Buffy stared, transfixed.
"What the......." End of part 1
DISCLAIMER: I do not own the characters of Buffy, Spike, Xander, Willow or Dawn and am in no way affiliated with Joss Wheadon or Mutant Enemy Productions. I am not profiting in anyway from the writing of this story
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story does not follow any story or season line from the show.
Oh yes and before I forget, Cheers to Evie for beeing my proofreader and critisizer (kidding), You helped with this alot!
"Do you wish it of me?"
Buffy Summers bolted up from her bed, misted in sweat from head to toe. It took her a moment to register her surroundings in the dark and she pulled her long hair from her face. "ugh not again" she sighed rubbing her eyes. "My eyes are so baggage bound!" She settled back into her bed, but didn't close them, she knew it wouldn't do her any good, sleep wouldn't be returning tonight. Instead she pondered the dream.
It always started the same; silent and Grey. No light, no sound, complete and utter nothingness. then the images would come. A girl fighting, always fighting. Every time she looked different but buffy knew she was the same, as if form could not negate the presence held within it. She held so much power in her often bruised or misshapen hands, more power the buffy could begin to imagine. A benevolence radiated from her, a goodness seeming to push away the mists that always surrounded her. Buffy would watch her transfixed as she disposed of her enemy's with a swift and ruthless grace and then she would turn. Different eyes would look out and seem to see buffy. The voice would come to her and the words would Eco over and over in her mind until she awoke
"Do you wish it of me?" Every night for six long weeks Buffy had the dreams, always beginning with mist and ending with the question. Something was coming, buffy could feel it, and she wasn't sure if she was happy about it. In her dreams the presence was very clearly good, but Buffy's dreams, though often prolific could be problematic because rarely was anything as it seems. Buffy sighed again and threw off her covers. "No rest for the wicked" she thought to herself as she put on her slippers. The others would be awake in a few hours, and she was sure she could find something to occupy herself until that time came since she wouldn't be returning to the mists again that night.
"Late night love?" Buffy jumped and her coffee cup landed on the counter with a clattering bang that was amplified in the stillness of the night.
"Don't you ever knock?" His blue eyes sparkling maddeningly spike leaned against the countertop and grinned good-naturedly at her.
"In case you've forgotten, it's four in the morning. I don't fancy getting my head torn off by your sister for waking her up in the middle of the night." He reached over and righted Buff'y's coffee cup. "Are you ok? you're not usually this jumpy. Didn't you enjoy your girl's night out tonight? I was just on my way home and saw the light, thought I'd have myself a look see, boyfriendly duties and all that."
Buffy chuckled to herself. "Boyfriendly duties? Is that a PC way of saying you were coming to crawl in bed with me?"
"Maybe"
"Well maybe I'd get some sleep then."
Spike looked her over carefully. The drawn features and tight mouth, the bluish purple beginnings of bags under the eyes... "Did you have that dream again?" Buffy nodded and leaned against him. Spike gently placed his hands on the back of her neck and began to rub at the tension knot that had formed their. "Same one?"
"Yea, except she was kind of dwarfed this time."
"So slayer mine, new big bad coming to play?"
Buffy shook her head "she's not bad, I can tell. I'm not exactly sure WHAT she is... but she's not bad." Buffy righted herself and began to pour the coffee, but Spike stopped her.
"No coffee for you. Now you need to march yourself right back up into bed and get some sleep. I love you but you look like hell."
"I don't want to go back to sleep, that dream, it's so creepy. Every time I close my eyes, all I see is mist and all I hear is... well nothing, it's like a big steaming vat of nothingness, and I'm sorry, but i just don't want to go back there tonight." But Spike would have none of it.
"March, or I'll carry you myself." A sexy sideways smile spread across his face. "Or is that the gameplan?" buffy leaned up and brushed her lips against his.
"Maybe....."
"So anyways I told Trina that I was all into yoga and she looked at me like I had a third eye made of glass! I swear what's so bad about yoga? It's all bendy and flexibility and I feel a lot better after - Hey Buffy, glad you decided to join the living this morning." Buffy made her way down the stairs with a scowl
"Give me a break Dawn, it's Saturday. Besides, I needed to catch up on some beauty sleep."
"Right, beauty sleep, is that what you kids are calling it these days?" Both Dawn and Willow sat on the couch, with identical smug looks on their face and Buffy could feel herself starting to redden.
"You saw him hu?"
"Only in a literal way" Dawn made room for Buffy to sit down and finished wrestling her long dark hair into a ponytail. "Spike joined us for breakfast this morning, as he's been prone to do lately, you however were noticeably absent, long night?" Willow and Dawn both laughed and Buffy shook her head in disgust.
"Get your brain off the naughty train, nothing happened, he saw the light on last night and stopped by....he just helped me to get some sleep is all." Willow chewed her lip thoughtfully.
"You've been missing a lot of sleep lately. Are you having some prophecy like dreams that we should know about?"
"No... just a funky recurring one is all. what are you guys working on?" Buffy noticed for the first time open books and newspapers scattered around the floor, Dawn and Willow were obviously in full research mode.
"Just checking up on that surge of mass vampire killings we've been having lately. Actually" willow said her grin returning "I'm kind of glad Spike was here, he had some information for us. He did a little more hunting after your last pass last night and found kind of a den. We've got a bunch of vampires working together on this one, but it shouldn't be to much of a hassle, Spike said that they were ill equipped and fighting amongst themselves. Dawn and I were just checking to see if their were any important occasions coming up that would make them want to be so clingy but nothing so far." Buffy laid back deeper in the sofa so the mid morning sun could envelop her more fully. "Ok so we've got a bunch of slow majorly ignorant vamps working together. No big, I'll go on the hunt tonight, flush them out, make with the staking and hopefully be home in time to catch the news." Dawn looked at her with abject horror on her face.
"The news? Buffy I fear you."
"You know I really don't need the committee" Buffy said with mock terseness as Willow Xander and Spike followed her through the dark and silent parkway. "You know I'm capable of multiple slayage"
"Just a precaution pet, there were at least 15 of them that I saw, and dumb or not, it'll be tough going if you've got to take em on at once" Buffy smiled into the night and squeezed Spike's hand harder. She was glad to not be alone, not that she was afraid of the vampires, even in great numbers if they were as witless as Spike and Willow thought, she could take them. No, it was something else, something she couldn't quiet grasp. She commanded her stride to remain in tack and tried to relieve the tenseness in her legs. Buffy was always tense on the hunt, a slayer had to be, you never knew when something big, evil and ugly would pop out. Tonight was different, the stress in her limbs was painful, like she was slowly being stretched....yes, something was different about tonight, it was in the air.
"SNAP!" Buffy was startled into a swift turn around by the noise only to find Xander has stepped on a twig. "Xander, you about gave me a heart attack!"
"I know I know I'm sorry." Xander gave her a sheepish grin "Bad twig, Bad!" he chided hoping to get a laugh, but all he got was a swift elbow in the ribs from Willow""Jeez sorry, not like i was conspiring with the twig here to make you jump out of your skin buff." Xander stamped his feet into the grass. "We've been through this part of town three times already. I'm thinking our big bad Vampire Gang are some big bad no shows."
"Maybe they gorged themselves on so much blood last night that they aren't hungry.." Willow said her foot making identical kicks into the grass.
"Or maybe they've decided to pull up stakes.... get it, pull up stakes?" She smiled at her corny joke and Xander laughed. "Or maybe they aren't as witless as we've made them out to be" Spike finished, peering out into the darkness. "I don't like this Buffy, something's not right. I can't put my finger on it but something..." Buffy shook her head,
"In any event I don't think they'll be coming out to play tonight, you guys might as well head home, I know you've got a major test tomorrow willow and Xander....well I'm sure there is missing glass in a house somewhere that needs re-furbishing"
"No way" Xander began but Buffy held up her hand to silence his protest and then turned to spike.
"You to, go on home, I'll be fine."
"I don't know Buffy something's brewing, something strange."
"And I'll handle it, just go home, I'll finish my pass and then I'll stop by." Spike pulled her close to him and threaded his fingers through hers.
"Is that a promise?" Buffy pressed against him for a long moment and then pulled away and after fishing around in her pocket pulled out a small silver handcuff key.
"It's a promise."
"Dang!" Willow and Xander said in unison and buffy smiled. "Way to make with the kinky!"
"Go" Buffy said to all three of them "March!" Xander and Willow bid her good-bye and started off to Buff'ys house but Spike stayed rooted in place
"Buffy..." He began but buffy silenced him with a kiss. She took the tiny key and placed it in his hand, and folded his fingers over it.
"I'll be just fine, now please, go." Spike sighed he knew when to back off with buffy, when she had her mind on something she was unmovable so after a peck on the lips he turned and slinked off toward his crypt and Buffy was finally left alone to face the night. And she walked on...
...and thought of Spike. They had been through a lot together, and Buffy was amazed everyday at how they managed to get to the place they were now. They were together yes, but their was no pressure involved anymore. Spike didn't push her to say "I love you" and Buffy didn't push him away. They'd grown so close Spike could almost predict Buffy's thoughts and patterns and for once in her life; Buffy didn't mind that. Neither had forgotten what they had done to each other in the past but Buffy was no longer afraid of them having a future together, in fact she looked forward to it and she knew he did too. Xander and Willow didn't understand how Buffy could love such a man, but she did and noticed how they had been trying so hard to be personable to him, and that meant a lot to her. Dawn... well Dawn never ceased to amaze Buffy. Of all the people in her life, Dawn was the only one who accepted Spike without question, without hatred and with genuine happiness at them being together. Buffy realized with a flash of insight just how blessed she really was, and how many important wonderful people were in her life, and the familiar lurch of fear in her stomach appeared.
Buffy was afraid of only one thing in her life, failing to protect those she held dear. That fear was what drove her to hunt more then any obligation to mankind could. At it's purest Buffy's drive to slay that which was evil was simply the want to protect those whom she loved. She'd lost some of those people, some naturally, some not, and every time the fear gained strength until it was one of the driving forces of her life. Fear and Love was what kept her world going, and the fear was growing steadily stronger day by day.
Buffy was so emerced in her thoughts she almost didn't hear the twig snap behind her. "Xander, is that you? I thought I told you to go-UUHH" The sentence was sliced in half as a sharp kick to the back sent her sprawling onto the ground, but she wasn't their for long. With a timed flip she was on her feet again and staring into the face of a great number of vampires. Teeth protruding from their ghastly faces, they stared at her, eyes burning with hunger. She didn't know if they were fifteen of them, but the were many.
"Well it's about time you showed up, I was about to throw in the towel."
"Save your strength slayer, you'll need it" Came a rasp from the rapidly closing circle of vampires. Buffy poised herself, stake in hand waiting for them to make a move and yawned.
"Can't tell you how many times I've heard that one, and ya know? It never seems to get any scarier. Can't you guys come up with anything original or was that part of your brain you know.. evaporated somehow?"
With a collective snarl they advanced and Buffy was off. She punched, she kicked, jabbed flipped and stabbed but their were just to many of them, for everyone she killed two came in it's place and it wasn't long before she was pinned to the ground and panting.
"What was that all you've got? Come on, I'm just getting started." She was prevented from saying more when a large vampire in front placed his boot on her throat and began to none-to-gently step downward. "Your blood will taste victorious on our lips" He said with a ghastly grin. Buffy fought for breath but his foot slowly bore down on her air hole until he could no longer breath.
Darkness began creeping over her vision.
"No!!" Her voice screamed in her head.
"Fight, don't go down like this, not to a gang of halfwits, fight!!" She tried to move but couldn't The darkness became more pronounced and Buffy began to slip into uncontiousness when she heard the voice again in her mind. It was but a whisper.
"Do you wish it of me?"
Without hesitation she shouted into her mind "yes, Yes, i wish it!!!"
The flash of light was so bright Buffy couldn't see nothing else. Instantly the pressure from her throat was gone and she gulped the air and tried to make out where the vampires had gone. She could hear them mumbling in confusion. and then she heard it, the voice from her dreams. No longer in her head the voice was calm and almost nonchalant.
"Dust."
In an instant every one of the vampires exploded into dust as if staked in unison. They blasted air and ash into Buffy's face and she coughed and sputtered. The white light began to fade and as the dust began to settle Buffy was able to see her benefactor. Buffy stared, transfixed.
"What the......." End of part 1