Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. They belong to Joss Whedon and his company.
Reflections
I stood on the edge of what use to be the Hellmouth. The hole looked as deep as the Grand Canyon. However, it wasn't created by nature. It only seemed moments ago when the battle raged on. There were the exploding dusts and the tumbling earth, but in the end, it was the determination of those who stayed until the last minute that saved the world, yet again. I sighed.
I remember the last time I came down here. The Slayer died saving the world. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Some things don't change. As I looked on at the hole, I expected a hand to shoot up from beneath. There was a glimpse of hope that there is still a survivor buried within the rumble. Or that someone will come behind me and push me in. Then, I shook my head and chuckled a little. Sometimes, I think I am delirious.
However, I felt a presence behind me and slowly turned around. Sariel was standing behind me, smiling, "You have been here too often."
"Why?" I asked quietly, wanting to know the answer.
"The way it works." Sariel can make anything so simple. It is his answer to everything.
"This is the way that the Gods work?" I felt angry. "I sit up there everyday watching and writing while these people were here fighting for their lives, for the world. And I can't do anything about it."
"Have you ever thought about the consequences of helping them?"
"Does it matter?"
Sariel shrugged. He frustrates me with his cryptic puzzles. I guess the Archangels used it as a power thing. Sometimes, like now, I wish I could kick him in the shin.
"For seven years, I watched this town as it came under the war of the Gods. This is the reward in the end?"
Sariel smiled a little, "For the greater good, we must sacrifice. That is something you should have learnt a long time ago."
"It's not fair."
"Nothing ever is."
I sighed. As I returned my glare to the once Sunnydale, so many memories flooded my mind. In the end, to see the place fall, it feels kind of sad inside. There were those who had fallen, and those who sacrificed for the better of the world. Like the town, they went down, returning to the earth. Even the cemeteries were gone. The headstones are now not worth the money that has been paid. The words engraved are now useless, as they become buried deep within the earth itself.
But not all was bad news. There was a group of people that survived. A group of true champions that saved the world. Again. For seven years, they have fought the impossible. As they go forward, what will life bring them? Will they still remember the town that was once home to them? I think they will.
Suddenly, out of the corners of my eyes, I saw a shadow standing on the edge of the crater not far from us. It was the Slayer, her eyes glued to the hole. There were sadness and joy in her eyes. Buffy Anne Summers. Is she here to mourn for the deceased? Or she want to remember the town that she called home for seven years? Some things are hard to let go, especially after fighting your life for it. From her expression, I could the hope and faith that were there. I remember the day that the earth ate itself up. She smiled exactly like that. It was the end but it was also the beginning.
"We have to get back now."
I turned around, annoyed that Sariel broke my chain of thoughts again. He was right. We are needed back in the heavens. Even if I hated the way the world turns, perhaps it is for the best. After all, I have to put my faith in the Gods themselves.
I took one last look at the crater. Slowly, my eyes settled on Buffy again. She was still staring at the hole, but suddenly, she looked up. Her eyes seemed to look at me. My mind is playing with me again, as I know we cannot be seen by mortals. I smiled and teleported out of sight.
This is my duty, to lift up my pen and write down history. But it still does not compare to seeing the events that had happened before. The memories and the reflections.
It seems that the world survives for another day.