Author's Prenote: For this story, I decided to switch up the vampire mythology-so no complaining, cause it's my story and I can do what I want. Anyway, this story is short, compared to "As it is Written…" but I guess it's short for any story, since it's only a little over ten pages. It also takes place after Prophecy Girl, where the Master is dead, and Buffy hasn't left for L.A. yet. The mythology for this story says that if an old enough vampire bites you-it's only a matter of time before you become a vampire yourself. But, hey, a story's a story-just read it. And if it's not perfect, give me a break-it's only my second fanfic, and I wrote in like a day and a half.
Buffy Summers walked up to Sunnydale High School. It was bright outside, and Buffy was finding the sunlight a little too much for her, so she was wearing her sunglasses. Buffy walked up the stairs, and bumped into her friend, Xander Harris.
"Hey Buff," Xander greeted her.
"Oh, hey," Buffy said.
"So, Giles is burying the Master's bones next week, you gonna be there?" Xander asked.
"Sorry, but I'll be L.A. woman next week," Buffy reminded him.
"Oh yeah, I forgot," Xander replied.
"Uh…I'd love to talk, but I've got to see Giles, okay?" Buffy said.
"No problem," Xander headed off down the hallway. "I'll see you in class."
Buffy nodded at Xander, then turned and started towards the library. Walking through the hallway, Buffy was shocked that she had class that day. After everything that had happened, Buffy didn't expect there to be classes-and the library was in even worse condition.
Buffy came up to the library entrance where two doors used to be and stepped inside. She saw Giles leafing through a book at the front desk.
"Ever heard of TV?" Buffy asked him. "It's a healthy substitute for reading musty books in a totaled library. I'm serious-for out of five librarians recommend it."
"Oh, hello Buffy," Giles looked up at her. "Did you say something?"
"No, nothing at all," Buffy replied. "Look-I have to talk to you. It's about the Master."
Giles closed his book.
"Yes?"
"I think his bite may have affected me," Buffy said.
"Bite?" Giles was confused. "I was under the impression that you drowned."
"I did-but the Master-he bit me before I drowned," Buffy informed him. "And ever since then…I've been feeling really strange. Like, today, I started feeling faint."
"Oh dear," Giles muttered.
"Oh dear? `Oh dear' is never good-what's wrong?" Buffy demanded.
"This book I've been reading," Giles grabbed the book and handed it to Buffy. "It mentions what happens if you are bitten by a vampire as old as the Master."
"Giles, w-what happens?"
"Buffy, you're infected," Giles said slowly.
"Infected?"
"It means you are slowly changing into a vampire," Giles told her.
"How long?" Buffy asked.
"Well, there's no definite-" Buffy cut him off.
"How long?!" Buffy repeated.
"Twenty-four hours," Giles told her.
"That's tonight," Buffy choked. "I-I have to go."
Buffy turned and began to leave.
"Buffy, wait!" Giles called after her.
Buffy ignored Giles and ran out into the hallway. Looking around, Buffy saw all of the damage caused by the Master and his minions. All of that death-and pain…all of it was because of the Master. And Buffy realized that the Master had won after all. Even in death-he was controlling her fate.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"So Buffy's gonna be a vampire?" Xander was shocked. "C-Can we change it?"
"I'm not sure," Giles said.
"But there has to be a way!" Willow cried. "We can't let this happen."
Willow, Giles, and Xander were walking through the quad, discussing Buffy's current situation. Willow and Xander knew how Buffy must feel-they witnessed how she reacted to becoming a vampire before, when a comatose child was bringing their nightmares into the dream world.
"I-I'll try to find a reversal spell," Giles said. "But I can't guarantee anything."
"Will she be like a half-vampire?" Xander asked. "Or a souly one like Angel?"
"No, she'll be a pure vampire," Giles said. "She'll take on the characteristics of the vampire who bit her-which in this case, is the Master."
"So, she'll become the Mistress?" Xander joked.
Willow glared at Xander.
"Have you seen Buffy today?" Giles asked Willow.
"No, I guess she skipped," Willow said.
"Yes, well, it's better she did," Giles said. "The sunlight would be too much for her to bear."
Buffy cried out in pain as she felt her skin burning. She yanked off her necklace, and dangled it in front of her. She stood up and looked in the mirror, seeing that the cross' outline had burned into her skin.
"Great," Buffy mumbled. "So now I'm cattle."
She sat her necklace on her dresser, then walked back over to her bed. She plopped down on the bed and frowned. She hoped that Giles would be able to reverse the effects of the Master's bite. Because she certainly couldn't defend the world from herself.
So I'm going to be a vampire, Buffy thought. At least Angel and I will have another thing in common.
"I can sense something," Colin, the Anointed One, turned to look at his servants. "Something is happening-something big."
Colin smiled and looked at his servants.
"But I grow tired," He told them. "Bring me something to eat."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Buffy walked through the cemetery, looking for some vamps to kill. Though she was soon to become a vampire, she still had a sacred duty-and that duty was to kill vampires. She glanced around, trying to see if there were any in the shadows.
Buffy heard someone screaming, and Buffy ran towards the sound. Since she was the Slayer, she was able to move fast-but Buffy seemed to be moving faster than usual. She came across three vampires attacking a teenager and her boyfriend.
"Hey, bloodsuckers!" Buffy called out to them. "How about biting someone that's not helpless?"
The vampire holding the teenage girl dropped their victim and turned to look at Buffy. They growled at her, then starting running after her. Buffy lunged forward and kicked the vampire in the stomach. She pulled out a stake and stabbed the vampire in the heart with it. The vamp burst into dust and blew away in the wind.
Buffy cartwheeled towards another vampire and kicked it in the face, knocking the vampire backwards. The vampire fell to the ground. Buffy then attacked the vampire feeding on the girl's boyfriend. She staked the vampire, then pulled him off the boy.
The vampire flew through the air and turned to dust while it was flying. Buffy turned to face the third vamp. She found herself growling at the vampire.
"What the-?" Buffy cried out.
"Why are you fighting us?" The vampire demanded.
She looked at him, confused. Buffy had no idea what he was talking about.
"Excuse me?"
"You're one of us…why are you killing us?"
"I am not a vampire!" Buffy jumped into the air and kicked the vamp in the face.
When she landed on the ground, she crouched down and performed a low-kick on the vampire, tripping it. Buffy grabbed the stake that she let fall to the ground, then she plunged it into the vampire's heart. Buffy stood up as the vampire burst into dust.
Buffy suddenly felt strange. She was staring at the blood on the teenage girl's neck, and she was aroused by it. Buffy wanted to her and drink the girl's blood. Buffy backed away from the girl.
"Y-you save our lives," The girl said to Buffy. "How can I-"
When Buffy stepped under the light of the full moon, the girl saw Buffy's face and screamed. She and her boyfriend scrambled to their feet.
"You're one of them!" The girl screamed.
She and her boyfriend ran off in the other direction, leaving Buffy standing alone. Buffy reached up and touched her face, finding that she was already changing into a vampire.
"No," Buffy whispered. "No…"
Angel was at the Bronze again, lurking in the shadows. The same place he'd been when Buffy was nearly killed by Darla-the same place he'd been when he killed Darla. Angel stopped walking when he heard someone entering the building. Angel whirled around, coming face to face with Buffy.
"Buffy!" Angel cried. "What's-oh my god."
"Angel, the Master bit me," Buffy said. "I-I'm turning into a vampire."
Buffy hugged Angel, and he hugged her back. Tears rolled down Buffy's eyes as she rocked back and forth in Angel's arms. Only there did she feel safe. Safe from the world…safe from evil…safe from her destiny.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Giles closed the book he was reading and headed for the door. He had to find Buffy, and tell her that he'd found a way to reverse the effects of the spell. He opened up his door and dashed outside, only to be grabbed from behind.
Giles cried out as he was dragged away into the night. Two vampires stood at his door, watching as Giles was taken. They smiled, then ran to catch up with him.
Buffy left the Bronze, feeling a bit better. She headed over to Giles' apartment to see if he had come up with anything. Walking down the street, Buffy walked past a boy her age. She had to fight the urge to drain his blood.
God, what is happening to me? Buffy started running instead of walking.
When Buffy reached Giles' place, the door was wide open. Buffy tried to step into his apartment, but an invisible barrier was preventing her from doing so. After a few more tries, Buffy fell into Giles' apartment.
She stumbled into the living room and looked around for Giles. She couldn't find him anywhere.
"Giles?" Buffy called out to him.
There was no answer. Buffy was scared, because she knew Giles wouldn't have gone somewhere and left his door open like that. Something had to be wrong, and Buffy had a hunch it involved her situation.
Willow hung up the phone. She had been trying to reach Buffy all day, but there was no answer. Willow stood up and walked towards the door. She was going to sneak out and find Buffy-she had to. Willow slowly opened up her bedroom door and crept into the hallway. She closed the door behind her and started down the stairs.
I've got to find Buffy, Willow thought. I have to help her somehow.
Deep beneath Sunnydale, the Anointed One stood before Giles, who was tied up and on his knees. Colin smiled at Giles.
"Hello," Colin said. "I know you're the Slayer's Watcher-and something is happening with her, isn't it?"
Giles didn't answer Colin.
"I can feel it," Colin continued. "So don't try lying to me."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Buffy walked towards the entrance to the Master's lair, and bumped into Willow and Xander. Buffy cried out, then she saw who it was. Buffy backed away from them, as she didn't want them to see her face.
"Buffy, are you okay?" Willow asked her.
"Don't look at me," Buffy turned away from them. "Please…don't."
"Buff, it's okay," Xander reassured her. "You're not wigging us out or anything."
"Look, I have to go down there," Buffy said. "Giles is there…I think. And in a few minutes, the change is going to be complete. I don't want you guys to see that."
"Buffy," Willow said. "W-we've been through a lot together. And whatever you have to face-we're going to face it together."
"All for one," Xander agreed.
Buffy gave up and forced a smile. She turned to look at the entrance, then started down towards the Master's lair. She remembered the horror of being in there, and she remembered everything that had happened to her.
That's where she died…and she could never forget that. As Buffy reached the end of the tunnel, she entered the church where the Master had been trapped. The church she drowned in.
Buffy glanced around and saw that everything was still the same, except for it was a little roughed up-due to the earthquake. She spotted Giles, and ran towards him. As she headed towards him, she saw that he was gagged-but he was trying to tell her something.
When Buffy reached Giles, she took off his gag. Giles looked up at her, worried for Buffy's life.
"What is it?" Buffy asked him.
"I-It's a trap," Giles told her.
Buffy heard growling from behind her. She turned around and saw that she was surrounded by vampires. Buffy gulped.
"I guess it is," Buffy said. "Xander! Willow! Help Giles!"
Buffy pulled out a stake and ran after the vampires surrounding her. She kicked one of the vamps in the stomach, while punching another in the jaw. Buffy then performed a roundhouse-kick on a third vampire.
She staked one vampire then quickly pulled the stake out, staking another vampire. Seeing a vampire running after Willow and Xander, she threw her stake at the vampire, hitting him in the heart. The vamp exploded into dust.
Needing another stake, Buffy cartwheeled towards a wooden crate. A vampire ran at her and she flipped them onto the crate, shattering it. Buffy grabbed a piece of wood and stuck it in the vamp's heart. As the vampire turned to ash, Buffy grabbed another piece of wood and turned to fight the other vamps.
"No! No! No!" Colin cried angrily from a distance. "We have to leave-I can't let the Slayer find me."
Colin turned with three of his vampire servants, then ran off down the end of another tunnel.
Once Buffy was finished staking the vamps, she turned to Giles. She felt the change coming on, and she had to stop herself before she could kill her friends.
"Giles," Buffy handed him a stake. "Use it."
"Buffy, we can use a spell!" Willow cried.
"No, Will," Buffy said. "It's too late-Giles, you know what you have to do."
"Yes," Giles stepped up to her. "Buffy, you were like no other girl I have ever met. I will truly miss you."
Giles gave Buffy a hug, and kissed her on her forehead. Then he plunged the stake into her back. Giles held Buffy tighter as she hissed and turned to dust. Giles fell to his knees, crying.
Willow began to cry too, and Xander helped her walk towards the tunnel. But Willow stopped and stood next to Giles, where Buffy's ashes were. And Xander stopped walking also. He walked back towards his friends-but he didn't say a word.
He stood in silence.
~ Chris Summers
Author's Note: Okay, the story is done…now let's see if people can actually review it. Just one will do…really. I know it wasn't as good as it could have been, but I was tired and I didn't feel like writing it over, so there it goes anyway.
