Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Buffy the Vampire Slayer. BtVS belongs to Joss Whedon, et al., and isn't my intellectual property. This episode was written by Douglas Petrie, and dialogue is taken from the episode transcript at Buffy World, occasionally corrected using the DVD subtitles. No financial gain is made from this, it's purely for entertainment purposes. Do not taunt Happy Fun Ball.
A/N: I started writing this over the weekend as a mental palate cleanser from the Term Paper That Ate My Brain. Ten pages on Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead in terms of modernist theater, anyone? I'm working on getting out of dry academic language and back into fiction, and am focusing on description and detail with this one, so that ideally someone who hasn't watched the episode would have almost as clear a mental picture of what's going on as if they'd seen it. It's all third person past tense, but I added just a pinch of characterization, so if it's something Buffy-centric, there should be a hint of her style here and there, and the same for Spike. Just stretching my writing muscles a bit before I get back into original AU stuff. It's a straight canon rewrite of Fool for Love, which is one of my favorite episodes, so spoilers through the end of that.
The cemetery was dark and devoid of mourners; somewhere in the distance, an owl called. The seeming peace was broken by a loud grunt and the sound of a blow landing. Buffy was dressed for a cool evening in a soft blue sweater, a dark blue scarf wrapped casually around her neck, and her blonde hair pulled into two messy braids. The vamp she fought was a hopelessly carbon-dated hair metal reject, with a wild mane of dark hair, and a black leather jacket decorated with a brightly spray-painted anarchy symbol. The pair traded punches briefly, then Buffy sent him flying. The vamp gathered himself back up to stand, as Buffy quipped and taunted him.
"You know, it's probably none of my business, but I just gotta ask. You smell this bad when you were alive?" She spun and kicked him into a nearby headstone. "'Cause if it's a post-mortem thing, then boy, is my face red. But just so you know…" Buffy punched the vamp hard enough to send him spinning over the headstone to land, spread-eagled, on the ground behind it. "The fast-growing field of personal grooming has come a long way since you became a vampire."
Buffy took out a stake, then jumped, flipping herself over the headstone. She landed in front of the vamp, stake raised and intending to dust him, but his hand caught her wrist before she could lower it for the killing blow. He whirled himself around, still holding Buffy's arm, pulling it down as he spun. The stake, so recently poised to pierce the vamp through the heart, slammed into Buffy instead, entering just below the ribs on the left side. Buffy clutched herself and looked down, grimacing in agony and surprise.
Buffy's head came up, staring at the vamp for a moment of disbelief, then she clenched her teeth and angrily hit him with left fist, her right still holding the stake that now protruded from her. The vamp collapsed, and Buffy looked back down at herself, letting go of the stake to see the blood that now covered both her hands and was rapidly soaking through her sweater. Steeling herself, she gripped the stake tightly in both hands, grunting as she pulled it out, the wound making a horrid squelching sound as the stake exited her body.
She turned and began to limp away from the vampire as fast as she could, looking back over her shoulder frequently to see if he was following. Finally thinking the coast was clear, she turned fully forward and was trying to run faster when the vamp vaulted over a nearby grave and landed in front of her. "You're going? But you were having so much fun a minute ago!"
Buffy gasped and backed slowly away from him as he strode toward her. He threw a punch. She got an arm up in time to block it, but he hit her from the other side and sent her tumbling into a nearby mausoleum. She stood panting, gripping the corner to hold herself upright. The vamp knelt, picking up the stake Buffy had dropped when he hit her, and walked toward her. Buffy stood, her eyes wide as she gasped in pain and fear, knowing that she couldn't escape, that this might be the end. The vamp raised his arm, preparing to stake her.
Suddenly, a dark shape hurtled into the vamp and knocked it to the ground; Riley's patrol route had intersected with Buffy's. He knelt over the vampire and dealt it several strong blows before taking out his stun gun, the blue arc of electricity crackling as he prepared to shock the vampire into submission. Buffy slowly sank down the wall she leaned against, grimacing as the remnants of her adrenaline-fueled energy ebbed and the full pain of her wound hit her again. The gun discharged, but the vampire appeared unhurt, throwing Riley off of him and running off through the graveyard. Riley scrambled to his feet preparing to give chase, before glancing back to check on Buffy.
Noticing that she was wounded, he let vampire make its escape. Riley ran to Buffy, kneeling in front of her, concern on his handsome face. "Buffy! What happened?" She looked down at her hands, covered in her own blood. Riley gathered her into his arms, cradling her as she began to collapse. "Oh my God", he breathed, as he saw the blood drenching her. He held her for a moment, stroking her forehead.
To be continued...
A/N, part the second: Just in case you're wondering about the Riley's "handsome face" bit... I'm Spuffy all the way, but don't feel the need to bash Riley. They both made huge mistakes, and relationships are hard, y'all. Plus, while I don't usually go for the big, corn-fed types, Marc Blucas is a fine looking man, and I didn't mind in the slightest having to re-watch that scene several times while writing this. ;)