Disclaimer: I am not, nor ever have been, Affiliated with Mutant enemy and Joss Whedon. I own nothing, not copyright infringment is intended and these stories are for entertaiment purposes only. There is no financial gain to be had.
Author's note: As I said, I own nothing. No themes/characters/Slayers/supremely hott vampires (or basically, SPike.) no matter how much I want them. So, Joss went and ended the show, but he told us-his fans-to please write a lot of fan fiction. Now, since I owed him for concieveing Spike, i figured I could comply to his request.
Tell me what you think and I'll know to go on.
Chapter 1 - In Which Buffy Makes a Friend
"There's a kind of Hush all over Sunnydale." Buffy Summers said to herself as she walked through the cemetery. She giggled remembered the music she had heard earlier on the radio when Giles's station played some old fogie music. "There's a kinda of hushhhhhh all over the helllll-mouth…" she sang to the imaginary tune in her head.
Oh God. She was bored.
"Jeez, will some of you guys just rise already." She said frustratedly. "I mean if you've got me singing fogie songs then some things are just so not of the good and I need to kill something." The cemetery remained silent. She only sound was that of her boots swishing through the grass. "Even a little something?" She added hopefully.
Still nothing.
Damn.
She had been restless and a little down on herself since a few days ago when she had a run in with a vampire-a regular run of the mill vampire who managed to use her own stake against her. It made her realize she had gotten a little over confident and right now she really just wanted to kill something and get her confidence back. Convince her self that she wasn't off her game. Besides, she had fought against monsters with much more pressing physical problems.
Also, she really wanted to work out some pent up tension with all that was happening with her mom.
Basically, she just really needed somehting to kill.
The stake wound was nearly all healed and she was sure she could fend of a few fledglings and if the going got though, she knew that she could turn tail and make a tactical retreat as good as the next guy.
So her plan was set, she was even wearing her ass kicking boots, she had her plan. So of course, there were no vampires out to play.
"Okay, I'm off." Buffy said after ten minutes of fruitless walking around in a dark misty cemetery. She decided to leave Restfield and hit another on of Sunnydale's cemeteries of which they have too many. She was just about to clear the gate when she heard the bustling of a fight somewhere a little ways off.
Not caring how morbid it was of her to be happy that something was getting killed so that she could kill them, Buffy headed towards the ruckus.
As she was nearing she heard a hoarse shout, and Buffy sped up.
Instantly she felt guilty for her happiness earlier. How could she have forgotten that there were lives at stake here? Maybe he was some grieving husband here to put flowers on his wives grave.
Well, time to channel the guilt into something a lot more productive, ie, Vampire ass kick-age.
She was wrong, there didn't seem to be any humans in this fight. Just three vamps. Two men against a girl, and she seemed to be holding her own.
Uh oh. More than one, and that girl really didn't look like a fledgling. This meant Buffy bail-age, the last thing she needed was for three vamps to forget their grievances and team up against an injured slayer.
Anyways, if she was lucky they would just stake each other.
She was just about to turn tail and go but the girl seemed to have different ideas because she was suddenly on the ground a few feet away from where she was standing.
And she was in pain. Lots of it.
Buffy groaned as she felt the wound on her side open up and begin to seep blood into the bandages she had carefully put on before she left.
She didn't understand it, the vamp hadn't even gotten close to her! By the time she had stood, the other two vamps were gone, but she could detect faint pieces of dust falling to the ground.
The only vamp standing was the girl. Buffy was on her in a second, even before she had time to turn around. Buffy performed a perfect roundhouse that knocked the vamp down. Buffy grabbed her and turned her around, her arm cocked and ready to drive the stake she was holding unerringly into the vampire's chest.
And just like that everything stopped. Buffy was confused, she was telling her arm to thrust forwards and dust the creature of the night but she couldn't move it. She couldn't move anything.
What the hell was going on? Thrall? This didn't feel like anything that damn Dracula had her in.
The vampire got up and brushed grass off her pants.
Buffy noticed more about her now, she was short, maybe only an inch or so taller than Buffy, herself. She was holding her palm out, and a strange white light seemed to be emitting from it.
"Who are you?" the girl demanded. Her voice was kinda echo-y.
Yikes. Buffy thought. I don't thing this on qualifies for vamp status. I think this is a big check in the demon column.
"Buffy." She found herself saying. "The Vampire Slayer."
The demon's eyes widened in surprise as she took in the diminuative blonde who claimed to be the Chosen One.
"You are?" she asked eagerly, she has a crisp, clipped British accent. "Well, you're no more than a slip of a girl. I had expected someone at least taller."
Buffy scowled, she had gotten tired of all the height cracks a good long time ago, and yet they still kept coming.
"Just because I'm shorter does not mean you're going to beat me, demon girl." She bit out, glad that the demon had at least allowed her to move her mouth.
She seemed genuinely amused at the statement.
"Oh! So you thought me a demon!" she said conversationally. "Well, that clears things up. I was about to inquire as to what a slayer such as yourself was doing beating up humans in a graveyard. I actually thought you were a vamp, myself."
Buffy peered at her, it was all she could really do being immobile and all. She tried fighting against the magical bond but still couldn't seem to break out of it.
"You're human and you know about vampires?" she demanded. "What on earth are you doing taking a midnight stroll though the cemetery?"
The girl grinned.
"I seem to have handled myself, quite well, Slayer." She said. "You, on the other hand, leave a lot to be desired. I rather expected more from the famous Buffy Summers."
She dropped her hand and Buffy felt her hold dissipate. She arched a challenging eyebrow silently telling the slayer that she could renew that hold whenever she so desired. Buffy rolled her eyes and pocketed her stake in a show of truce.
"You know who I am?" she asked.
The girl nodded.
"You, my dear girl,are the reason I'm here."
Buffy rolled her eyes. If only she had a nickel for every time someone came to Sunnydale to challenge her.
"Right." She said. "I'd love to make with the epic battle right now, But I'm kinda beat.So can we do this some other time?"
The girl smiled and shook her head.
"I don't mean to fight you." she said. "I have been sent by my coven to figure out why you haven't died."
There was an awkwards pause as Buffy tried to think of just what to say to something like that. The girl however frowned.
"I have." Buffy said finally.
"Well, Permanently." The girl replied. "We've been studying slayers you see."
Buffy smiled grimly.
"Well, I wish I knew how I tick." She said remembering that she had to go to Spike of allpeople just the day before to figure things out."But I don't even have the benefit of the slayer handbook."
"Oh, We're not interested in that rubbish." The girl replied. "The whole 'chosen' issue has been addressed. We're studying life span. Do you know that you are the longest living Slayer in history?"
Buffy's eyebrows shot up.
"Yeah?" she said, the proud grin that spread across her face could not be helped. "Wow. Go me."
The girl smiled patronizingly.
"Yes well, the reason that you have achieved this title is really a mystery." She said. "You are quite sloppy."
Buffy lifted her chin.
"Sloppy how?"
The girl jerked her chin at the blood that was currently staining Buffy's taupe cotton top.
"You patrolled with an injury, outright looking for trouble." She said. "And you challenged a being who could so easily defeat you. You do remember that while you were defying me, you couldn't move because of a spell I put on you?"
Buffy rolled her eyes.
"You're not a baddie, remember?" sheasked in feigned nonchalance. She did realize the gravity of her sitaution, a fight with this witch right now would so be something of the bad."So slayer-sense, not so much with the noisy alarm bells in my head." She forced a grin. "So you're a witch?"
The girl nodded.
"I'm a Triste." She said as if it explained everything. Then she realized, off Buffy's blank look, that she needed to elaborate."We are acoven of witches known to maintain the balance, I specialize in research about slayers. My name is Charlotte."
"Right then." Buffy said with a bright smile. "Now that we're acquainted lets have sleep overs."
Charlotte rolled her eyes.
"I will never understand the rubbish you call humor in the colonies." She said with good natured scorn.
Buffy smiled. She liked this Charlotte person, she reminded her of someone, with her quick humor and smug confidence. She was a little like Giles, but a little like someone else. It annoyed Buffy that she couldn't put her finger on it.
"Well, if you're sticking around you're going to have to get used to it, Char." She said, making a mental note to ask Giles about the Triste coven.
Charlotte frowned.
"Please don't ever call me that again." She requested politely.
Buffy meant to smile at her mischievously but saw that Charlotte was being perfectly serious.
"Right." She said.
"And I suppose I will be sticking around." Charlotte agreed. "But this is really too long a conversation to be had in a graveyard."
Buffy shrugged chancing one long lok around the quiet graveyard. They seemed to be the only two beings up and about.
"It's been a slow night." She informed the witch.
"I see." Charlotte conceeded."Never the less, I'm not partial to graveyards myself, so please, take me to your watcher."
Bufy nodded.
"Right, sure." she said jerking her head to tell the with wordlessly to follow her. "Its only a little ways of to the Magic Box."
Charlotte followed Buffy to the Magic Box and they spoke en route about non-consequential things like the temperate weather of Southern California and the size-or lack of it-of the town of Sunnydale. Before they kew it they were standing right in front of the Magic Box.
Charlotte seemed surprised.
"Well, that took-"
"Less time than you thought?" Buffy cut in. "Well, we don't have a lot of town here."
The British witch nodded.
"So, I can see." she said.
Buffy smiled and opened the door. A 'ding' sounded in the small shop, announcing their presence to Giles and Anya.
"Hello, Buffy." Giles said as he spotted her, he didn't seem to notice Charlotte. "You're late."
Buffy smiled.
"Hi Giles, nice to see you too." She said. "Oh yeah, My day was totally of the good, thanks so much for doing to polite thing and asking."
Giles studied her for a moment and then dismissed her statement as one of her bizarre Valley-girl comments.
"Oh yes, well very good." He said absent mindedly. He was about to address the girl that had entered with his charge,but then caught the smidgeon of blood that had marred her tank top. "Er, Hello there." He said with a quick smile. "Would you excuse us for a moment, Buffy, come here, it seems you're bleeding. Anya, the kit."
Buffy looked down at her tank top and then glared at Charlotte. Anya handed Giles a first Aid kit from under the counter and then proceeded to ignore them, focusing instead on counting the day's take.
"You couldn't have healed it or something, super witch?" she hissed, she walked down and sat on one of the chairs as Giles fiddled with the mercurochrome and gauze. Charlotte raised her hand but Buffy waved her off.
"How did you open this up again, Buffy?" Giles asked as he dabbed the wound and put a fresh bandage over it.
"I, uh, Fell." She said quickly lying through her teeth, she remembered Giles telling her not to patrol with such a deep wound in her abdomen. She was barred for at least a week. "Tripped on a shoelace and hit the concrete. I even got a round of applause."
Charlotte sent her a disbelieving look but Buffy shook her head. She silently begged the witch not to rat her out.
Giles looked between her and the other girl.
"Hello." He said. "You look familiar, do I know you?"
Charlotte shook her head. Buffy looked back at her new friend. Come to think of it, she did look familiar. She just couldn't place how.
"No, mister Giles." She said smoothly. "I, however, know you."
Giles frowned.
"Oh?" he said. "Were you sent by the council?"
Charlotte shook her head.
"Mister Giles, I am Charlotte, a witch of the Triste order." She said. "And I have come here to learn all that I can about your charge, the slayer."
Giles was silent for a moment. He had heard of the order but had never seen one of them, he was under the impression they had died out
"A pleasure." He said nodded sagely when she didn't present her hand to shake. "You just met Buffy on the street?"
Charlotte hazarded a glance at Buffy but decided to cover up for the slayer, she realized that buffy was not supposed to be patrolling with her apparent injury.
"I uh- Knew whoI was looking for." she said earning a grateful glance from Buffy and cemeting thier new friendship.
Anya suddenly decided to make her presence known.
"A Triste?" she asked eagerly. "One of the immortal witches?"
Buffy glanced away from Charlotte and over at Anya to see the former-demon smiling curiously. She actually looked a little impressed. Buffy had never seen Anya impressed at anything that wasn't green and fold-y.
Charlotte followed the slayer's eyes and found herself loking a skinny blonde girl who was smilling at her with interest. There was something off about the girl, so Charlotte studied her for a few more moments before coming to a conclusion.
"You're newly human." Charlotte observed.
Anya nodded, beaming.
"Yes I am," she said."Thanks for noticing."
"Wait, a second, you know what a Triste is?" Buffy demanded of her friend's girlfriend.
Anya nodded.
"You mean you don't?" she said incredulously. "Really Buffy, I would have thought you'd know about them. They're really very-"
Giles cleared his throat signaling for Anya to go on.
"Alright, alright I'm getting to it." She said with a roll of her eyes. "To becomes a Triste one must have a lots and lots of magical ability, once you're accepted you become immortal and are given a task that you have for your lifespan, however long it may be."
Buffy nodded then turned to Charlotte for verification and the blonde witch nodded sagely.
"That would be one way of explaining it." she said.
"You said something about protecting the balance." Buffy replied with a nod. She remembered someone had told her about how important'thebalance' was a few years ago. The little guy with the really bad suit."You don't happen to know Whistler do you?"
Charlotte nodded.
"We greatly depend on Whistler to advise the leaders of the order." She said solemnly. She ignored the look of disbelief from Buffy, and clarified what she had said. "He helps distribute assignments."
Buffy grimaced.
"You take orders from a short weirdo who doesn't seem to get that sometimes matching clothing is of the good?"
Charlotte frowned but seemed to be unable to come up with a proper retort. She herself, had often thought that Whistler was often partial to out-fits that er-didn't suit him.
"Enough about the order, " she said. "I came hereto learn more about the Slayer." She turned to Buffy. "And that's you, So I'd like to see how your training sessions go, Whoose influences you use in fighting, things like that."
Buffy rolled her eyes.
"Uh-huh." She said. "Out of all the Billions of choices they could have made, they chose me to be one of the two girls who get to be the 'One girl in all the world'" she paused and looked at Giles. "Have I mentioned how you should totally change that tag line? The whole Chosen ONE thing, dosen't work when there are two girls walking around bearing the name 'slayer'."
Giles nodded jerkily.
"Er, yes." He said, "I trust you know this part of the story, Charlotte."
The witch nodded.
"I've read about your vairous histories, extensively." she said and then off Buffy's spooked look, added, "I know how that sounds but you really are an enigma. All of us have been trying to findout what's so different about you."
Giles nodded thoughtfully.
"We seem to have similar queries." He said. "Lately, Buffy's been interested in finding out what makes the Slayer's last fight different from all the rest."
Charlotte glanced down at the newly bandaged wound on Buffy's belly and nodded in understanding. She had wondered what had happened to Buffy.
"Well," Buffy said, drawing Charlotte's attention away from the wound and back on track."We read all the stuffy watcher's diaries but really they get a little stingy with the details when it comes to the slayer's deaths."
"Indeed." Giles agreed, pulling off his glasses, cleaning them and replacing them on his nose.
Charlotte frowned.
"So you weren't able to find anything?" she asked.
Buffy raised her hand.
"Uhm, I actually kind of get it."
Giles and Charlotte look at her expectantly.
"Remember yesterday when I bailed, Giles?" she asked.
The watcher nodded. His face twisted in annoyance, Buffy had rather left in the middle of their important research and had ignored him when he called her.
"Well, That's because I knew someone who had been survived the fights. And I got all the information I need." She explained.
"Buffy-"
"Who could you have possibly spoken to that would have that sort of information?" Charlotte asked.
Buffy smiled sheepishly.
"Spike."
