Her Greatest Asset.
By James Carmody.
Disclaimer: BtVS/AtS is not mine, it belongs to Joss Whedon, and is his copyright property, till he elects otherwise. I forego any financial reward for this work of literary fiction.
Summary: Miss Summers discovers her greatest asset by complete surprise. Book one of "Slayer's Power" series, and sequel of a sort to "Persecutions by an Evil Empire" of mine.
Author's Story Notes: Set in Comics, Season 10, presumably just after Buffy and Spike come back from "Vampcon" having recruited their enemies to work with the militaries to fend off the "perdition dimensions"... the three of these have a little "sit down and chat", here's that story.
Pairing/Characters: Spike Pratt/Buffy Summers/Satsu.
Genre(s): Friendship, Spiritual, Supernatural, Drama, General, Romance.
Setting: Early in Comics, Season 10, San Francisco, California.
Feedback Request: Yes, Please.
Rating: G or K+ really... best to be cautious, so PG or T, yes, the latter is my rating, considering subject matter is probably better.
Point of View: Changing per chapter, if there're multiple chapters, which I plan on doing, if inspiration allows.
Chapter 1.): "Chatting Eachother Up".
Chapter 1 Summary/Author's Notes: Nothing much, no real intimacy involved here, just a little friendship and discussions, laughter, and being buddies.
Satsu's Point of View:
So, there I am, seated to the right of my ex-girlfriend, Elizabeth Summers; just enjoying the sunny day; on her other side is her boyfriend, William Pratt... got to say, NOT exactly the most comfortable here- and *physically* doesn't cover how I'm uncomfortable. I tried to push aside my feelings of romantic love for Buffy, but they're still there- I know we both have moved on; maybe it's something left over from my trysts with her... I don't know. But that brings up another viewpoint from my past.
You see, I was sent to a boarding school in the States, but my family is hereditary nobility in our native Japan; yeah, I'm a noblewoman! Anyhow, what was I saying? Yes... you see, while my family, including myself, are members of one of the traditional Japanese religions, I had been sent to a Catholic boarding school- NOT the easiest change, mind you, but I think I came out pretty much all right.
*That* was interesting to say the least! Here I am, seated to my ex-lover's right, my legs crossed, right over left, with my right hand resting on the same-side knee, and just mulling things over and over in my head... but the one thing I'm most grateful to the Principal of that school for was "selling" the behavioral standards of his faith to me; even though I'm still not convinced it'd be accurate, and if they're correct, I *better* be convinced before I join if I do- for what they say is that the entire future of the person depends on this choice, so it *better* be the correct one to begin with!
I remember any number of chats I had with him on numerous matters, including historical events like the destruction of some cities, namely Sodom and Gomorra- that was scary to me, but even worse was what the people in those cities were *doing* to oneanother: their acts I have to admit justified their obliteration; for crying out loud, they were committing *Rape*, and doing so on a completely massive scale! And sexual assault has always disgusted me!
So, there I am, seated next to a previous girlfriend, and reminiscing on my past; and speaking of my past, there was this "girl gang" in that school who constantly harassed me to no end, mostly about my liking other girls, but amazingly, once after World History class, they tried to comfort me... I guess my crying in the girls' bathroom touched them in the heart somehow... that gives me an idea!
"Buffy" I begin, now, both I and Spike are sort-of hugging her around the shoulders, the little petite American Englishwoman that she is... it's rather fun to just sit with someone you love... she looks at me in the eyes, as does her guy, and I elect to continue "ever notice how you got him to fall for you?" I'm making a point to her about her greatest asset in her personality: her love in her heart.
She looks at me blankly for a bit, roughly a minute, then it dawns on her... one thing I fell for her about is that A.): she's got a first-rate mind, absolutely brilliant, but can get B.): completely sidetracked so she's easy to blindside- this was fun in our sparring exercises some time ago.
Now I reach forward with my right hand, initially she thinks I'm going to scoop her up and sit her down in my lap like we sometimes did in that castle in Scotland- that was fun- but she clearly wants that time to pass by, so as much as it breaks my heart I don't scoop her up; it'd have been immense fun, though... instead, as I watch her cuddle moreso with her boyfriend Spike I put my right hand into a motion as if I'm holding an apple in it on the base of the fruit, and I make reference to their bond as I do so "That's your greatest strength, Liz." I say, and she blinks several times as if she's not getting it again, so I laugh lightly.
Initially she's mad, and sort of hits me, but it's a playful hit, not a violent one, but Spike, the poet he is, is getting what I mean- he knew it long before I met either of them: she got him to fall in love with her! And, if the stories I'm told are correct, especially by the dreams- a sort-of telepathic connection between myself and her by the way- he told her as much, in many a time and at least once in a private rock-concert! NOW *THAT* was romantic! What, just because I am attracted to my own sex does that mean that I don't recognize when an opposite-sex relationship gets romantic? I sure do, I tell you, and him singing to her with a private rock concert was Outstandingly Romantic! But that also meant he was a rival for her heart for a time, at least to me!
Now, sidebar please: "Liz" is also the name of my katana, in fact, I named the thing after Elizabeth Summers, my former girlfriend!
I think, I think that Spike was telling her in that song that she has him so wrapped around her little finger that he's saying that all she has to do is mention that she wants him to do something and he'll comply- that'd be his input from his passage about being her "willing slave", "No need for the beatings, Mistress, all you have to do is ask and it'll be done, exactly as you say..." that kind of an idea; and that gives me an idea of her greatest asset: charity!
Now I'm grinning like a maniac, and I know it's freaking her out a bit as I mention that her greatest asset is the ability to make even her enemies fall head-over-heels completely in love with her! If you can make your enemy your friend, they are no longer your enemy- well, that works for humans of any form, but for things of non-human nature, it'll only backfire, and believe me, in that High School I studied things like theology as well, and those gave me really good ideas!
But, from what I know of their previous relationship, and that's based on both the "dream connection" that I share with her, but also upon stories about their past relationship, as well as the "word on the grapevine" as it were, so really, I gathered some details about their relationship; and it amazes me to no end that they got together in the first place: when their relationship began, from what I could tell, it was rooted only in lust and abuse... and usually, but not always, it was *her* that was the abuser! It amazed me that any relationship not rooted in the sweetness of true love could last, so there had to be something else to their bond besides abuse and seeing oneanother as a sex-object... they had to have grown to get their relationship to work!
Then it dawns on me, something in her desires what a guy can give her, though our relationship was far sweeter in how we treated eachother; she and I were profoundly gentle with eachother, so as a result, I find myself feeling both love for them but also a rather intense degree of jealousy over their bond.
"Elizabeth" I address my ex-lover, "if you can turn your enemy into your friend you acquire a quality asset in all available degrees and also eliminate an adversary with one move; however, it often requires a good degree of expenditures to enable, instead of brute force... the beauty of it is that it enables you to regain the strength far more rapidly than if it were in manpower losses." for a moment she's lost, then it must dawn on her, for I see a glimpse of recognition in her face and both she and William nod knowingly.
Then we drink a few cups of tea, and while I'd like very much to stay and watch videos with my friends, I have to go back and report to my bosses in the US military about this mission- it was unusual, but her gifts have acquired a good quality labor force for us to employ in this effort to keep our friends and families safe; there's also the threat however of what I've heard tell of in the base, of whispers of a possible future persecution of "mystical beings", beings granted somehow unbelievable "spiritual powers" by some elements of the service. One of my "associates" a woman by the name of "Jordan" seems entirely too enthusiastic about this upcoming "purge" for my taste, I'll have to keep a close eye on her, if at all possible. I don't trust her at all, as it turns out- there's something entirely too happy about this whole turn of events; she ought to know that, if those people get what they want, she herself will be stripped of her preternatural gifts, and rendered effectively defenseless! Something's wrong with that woman in the head, I think. I don't know, maybe I'm jumping at straws here...
I do dread what Jordan might do, even to herself, if someone gave her what she wanted- there's something scary about someone like that, to put it mildly!
"Buffy, your greatest power is not the ability to beat back the monsters in a physical sense, but rather to turn them into your associates without losing your own virtue- indeed, I think it's your virtue that's most attractive about yourself, to everyone." I told her as I finally walked out the door to get into my transport vehicle and go back to my base to report.
She smiled happily and in a friendly way about that, and informed me that despite our fight, I'm always welcome in her home- and believe me, I am interested in her adventures with Spike, I rather like the pair, but as friends of mine now.
There is, of course, the matter of how I'm both nobility and working with the US military, and not as an attache, but rather as a member: my family is of the aristocracy in Japan, but I've moved to the US, partly to be closer to my associates and friends, and partly to do my work. That's a brief summary of it.
To Be Continued...
End Chapter 1 Author's Notes: Well, this is largely based on headcanon, but also based on the comics; Satsu is seen using some Japanese swords from time to time, and that's a clue, as well as the house they stay at- presumably hers, and at least once, in "Swell" they do stay at her home, and it's pretty big; those are clues to her family's place in their society.
Here she's mostly thinking and discussing her ideas with the reader, it's almost a journal entry of a sort; her mentality is that of a "modern Samurai female" of a sort, but only "modern" in the sense that she's in modern days... she's largely a dame in how she acts- here she's talking with her ex about what she thinks her ex's greatest power is, and the topic really is about "what a slayer's power really is" in the context- her attitude, which may or may not be discussed later on in this, if it is continued, is that their strength is the same as any other human's strength- and what she fears really is a form of lawlessness she sees in this "Jordan" character's heart; they know eachother, and really don't agree on how to reply to the problems coming up!
