The Harvest

(Nighttime)

(Restfield Cemetery)

Buffy helped Dawn up from the pile of her, Willow, and Xander, after making sure Dawn was unhurt she hugged her tightly, "Dammit Dawnie! What the Hell are you doing out here?"

"I just wanted to help. You hardly ever hang out with me anymore, so I thought if I could kill vampires too you'd want to be around me again." Dawn mumbled, staring at the ground, her voice wavering as tear threatened to fall.

"Hey Dawn, you don't have to be able to kill vampires for me to want to hang out with you, I'm sorry you're feeling left out, I don't mean to make you feel that way, I've just been busy trying to adjust to the move from LA. You really scared me tonight though, but I'm glad you showed up, you know you saved me right sis?"

"Yeah, you were pretty cool with that shotgun. My names Xander by the way and this is Willow." Xander said introducing himself and his red headed best friend to the young girl, both of them shaking her hand. "Um where's Jesse."

"Shit they must've taken him. Ok here's the deal I'll try to track down Jesse, Willow, can you and Xander make sure Dawn gets home and Xander can you take the shotgun with you so Dawn doesn't get in even more trouble. Dawn just tell her you followed me to the Bronze and I had them walk you home while I went on patrol. Thank you for your help Dawn, but I need to know you're safe at home now, that's the best way you can help me right now, okay?"

The eleven year old answered with a nod and hugged Buffy again before leaving with Willow and Xander. She knew Buffy was right, their mother was neither violent nor prone to yelling, but she had the ability to make you feel like shit with a glance. When the trio got to the Summers' house Dawn felt a bit nervous as she opened the door and motioned for Xander and Willow to follow, when your sister was the slayer you learned quickly to not verbally invite people into your house. As soon as the door clicked shut Joyce appeared and wrapped Dawn in a hug before holding her at arms-length and asking in an eerily calm voice, "Where the Hell have you been missy?"

"Um…Mrs. Summers? My name's Willow and this is Xander. Dawn followed Buffy to The Bronze, and then Buffy asked us to walk her home so she could do a quick patrol. Oh and yes we know about the slayer thing…it's kinda cool actually…well not really cause vampires are scary, Xander and I killed one…and it's not cool the whole demons killing people thing…I'm babbling aren't I, it's something I do when I'm nervous, but I'm going to shut-up now, yep gonna stop talking now." Willow said finally bringing her babble fest to an end; Joyce could not help but smile at the obviously shy red head.

"It's nice to meet you both and thank you for walking my daughter home." She said before turning back to Dawn and saying in a low voice, "You, young lady, had best get to bed; we'll talk about this tomorrow." Turning back to Xander and Willow, "Would the two of you like something to eat or drink and wait for Buffy, or do you need to be getting home."

"Well I know that no one at my house cares when or if I come home, so I can stay for a while. What about you Wills?" Answered Xander with surprisingly little bitterness in his voice, but it was still there if you listened for it.

"Pretty much the same, I think my parents are in Tokyo this time."

Both their answers piqued Joyce's interest; These kids seem like great people how can their parents not be involved in their lives? Joyce already knew she would be taking these two in just being the type of woman she was. She sat down and talked with the teens after making three cups of hot cocoa, getting to know her Buffy's new friends as they waited for Buffy to get back from patrol. The blonde walked in the door at about one thirty in the morning, Xander and Willow looked at her expectantly and she sadly shook her head, "Sorry guys, I couldn't find him. I'll look again tomorrow though."

"Buffy, really, what are the chances he makes it through tonight?" Xander asked somewhat rhetorically.

Buffy's lack of an answer was answer enough and Willow started to cry, Joyce instinctively embraced the teen trying to comfort her as Willow buried her face in the Joyce's shoulder and let the sobs overtake her.

(Next Day)

(Sunnydale High Library)

"This world is older than any of you realize, contrary to popular mythology, it did not begin as a paradise. For eons demons walked the Earth, made their home, their...uh Hell. In time they lost their purchase on this reality and a way was made for mortal animals…for man. What remains of the Old Ones, certain magics, vestiges, certain creatures…" Giles explained to Willow and Xander.

"And vampires," Buffy added.

Xander, who didn't want to believe, replied, "See, here's the problem, we're talking about vampires…having a talk with vampires in it…"

"Isn't that what we saw last night?" Asked Willow from her chair.

"No those weren't vampires those were just guys in major need of a facial, or maybe they had rabies? It coulda been rabies. And that guy turning to dust? Just a trick of the light." Buffy answered Xander's disbelief, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "That's what I said the first time I saw a vampire…well after I was done with the screaming part."

"Oh, I…I need to sit down." Said Willow in shock.

"You are sitting down." Buffy told her.

"Oh. Good for me."

"So vampires are demons?" Asked Xander.

Giles answered, "The books tell us that the last demon to leave this plane fed off a human, mixed their blood. Vampires are humans that become permanently possessed basically. He bit another, and another. And so they spread plaguing the Earth since. Waiting for the Old Ones to return."

(Underground Unknown Location)

The female vampire that Buffy fought in the crypt brings Jesse to present him to her Master. A vampire so old he lost the ability to take human form, now permanently in his true demon face. "Is this for me?" Asked the Master.

"An offering Master, he's a good one, his blood is pure."

"You tasted it? I'm your faithful dog, is that it Darla? You bring me scraps?"

"I didn't mean…"

"I have waited for three-score years I have waited. While you come and go I am stuck here! Here in this house of worship!" He gestured to their surrounding which were that of a sunken church, "My ascension is almost at hand, pray that when it comes, He said wrapping his clawed hand around Darla's throat, "That I'm in a better mood. Where is Luke?"

"Forgive me master we had more offerings, but there was a girl, she was strong and fought well, she knew of our kind. Luke nearly beat her, but her younger sister surprised him and took his head off with a shotgun. She and the other humans killed four others before I could get away with this one."

"A slayer?"

(Sunnydale High Library)

"So Buffy's the slayer? Chosen one whatever?" Xander asked.

Giles answered preparing for a nice long speech, "Yes as long as there's been vampires there has been the slayer. One girl in all the…"

"He loves doing this part." Buffy interrupted.

"Alright," Giles said exasperated, "A slayer hunts vampires, Buffy's the slayer, don't tell anyone. I think that's about all you need to know about vampires."

"Except for one thing, how do we kill them?" Asked the teen boy.

"You don't I do." Said Buffy.

"Jesse…"

"He's my responsibility, I let him get taken." Buffy interrupted again.

"That's not true." Xander said.

"Yeah, if you hadn't shown up they would've taken us too." Willow added, Does anyone mind if I pass out."

"Breathe," Buffy said placing her hand on Willow's shoulder. "I heard them say something about an offering to the Master, now if they weren't just feeding Jesse may still be alive."

"This may be a dumb question, but shouldn't we call the police? I know we can't say vampire, but…" Asked Willow.

"They couldn't help anyway," Buffy answered, "They'd only come with guns."

"Yeah but that's how Dawn saved you Buffy, with a gun. I know it was she decapitated it with a shotgun, but is there a way to make the bullets lethal? Soak the leads in holy water? Carve a cross into the type? Make the bullets out of wood?" Xander asked.

Giles was ready to shrug off the notion but he paused instead, "Xander, you may have something there. Wooden bullets might be doable, or the crosses carved in the tips. We'll look into that later though." He looked between the two normal students, "If the two of you are serious about being involved and helping I will train you, and I can always use help with the research." Turning back to Buffy he asked, "You're certain you didn't see where they went?"

"I looked around, but once they got clear of the graveyard they coulda just fwooom." She replied.

"They can fly?" Xander asked.

"They can drive."

"I don't remember hearing a car." Willow added her input.

"Let's take a huge intuitive leap here shall we, and assume they went underground." Giles offered.

"They do love sewer systems." Buffy explained, "You can get anywhere in town without catching any rays, but I didn't see any entrances there."

"If we had a diagnostic of the tunnel system it would be most helpful. We could go to the building commission."

"But we so don't have time."

"Uh guys…" Willow interrupted Giles and Buffy's back and forth conversation which wasn't going anywhere. "There may be another way."

A few minutes later Willow was sitting in front of a computer with the blueprints of the town's sewer, electrical, and drainage tunnels.

"So all the city plans are just open to the public?" Giles asked.

"Um…well…i-in a way, I-I sorta stumbled onto them, when I accidently decrypted the city council's security system." Willow tried to explain her "accidental hacking.

"There's nothing there though, I shoulda been more prepared, I thought I had everything under control, but then Luke came outta nowhere…" Buffy trailed off remember what happened the moment Luke showed up.

"What is it?" Xander asked.

"He came outta nowhere…He came from behind me. I was facing the entrance and he came from behind me. The tunnel access in in the mausoleum! They must've doubled back with Jesse and gotten past me. God! I am so mentally challenged!"

"So what's the plan? We saddle up and go after em right?"

"There's no we, Xander, I'm the slayer and you're not. I know Jesse's your friend, but you haven't been trained. I can't worry about keeping you safe on top of saving Jesse. I would love to have you guys' help but the only other one here with the training necessary is Giles and he needs to start researching the harvest thing." Buffy tried to decline his help as gently as possible.

"Yes I could certainly use the help, from what I've found so far the harvest is a pre-ordained massacre, rivers of blood, quite charmless. Let's get started on that while Buffy goes to rescue Jesse. I'm a bit fuzzy on the details of the ritual, perhaps you can arrest some information from that dread machine." Giles said to Willow while nodding his head toward the computer.

The three teens just stared at him for a few seconds before he spoke again, "That was a bit…um…British wasn't it?"

Willow got to work searching the internet for anything to do with the harvest and Buffy headed out to find Jesse. Later on Xander and Willow stood outside of class talking about how much their lives changed since just yesterday how they had this big secret now and nothing was really the same. "Don't worry about Buffy, Xander, whatever's down there I think she can handle it," said Willow.

"Yeah I do to." Xander agreed.

"So do I," Willow reiterated.

(Mausoleum Restfield Cemetery)

At the mausoleum Buffy found a locked gate and as she was about to break it open the mystery man showed up again. She asked him if he happened to have a key and he told her that they really were not fond of him dropping in, when she asked why he explained that they really do not like him. "How could that possibly be?" She asked sarcastically.

"I knew you'd figure out this entry way sooner or later, actually I thought it was gonna be sooner." He answered in a condescending voice.

"Okay if you're gonna be popping up with the cryptic wise man act going can I at least get your name?" Buffy asked.

"Angel" He replied.

"Pretty name," Buffy said before turning back to the gate.

"You shouldn't go down there and put yourself at risk. Tonight is the harvest and unless you prevent it the Master walks." Angel warned.

"Well if this harvest thing is such a suckfest, why don't you stop it?"

"Cause I'm scared." He answered honestly.

Buffy kicked the gate open and Angel left after saying "good luck" and Buffy entered the tunnels. She wandered around for a bit before running into Xander who had followed her. She was mildly upset and told him to stay behind. Xander realized after a while that he hadn't picked up any weapons so Buffy handed him a cross.

(Sunnydale High)

Giles was busy researching and found a passage talking about a "vessel".

Willow was sitting in computer class listening to Cordelia complain about the assignment and then she started putting Buffy down. Willow tried to defend her new friend and Cordelia snapped at her. Turning back to her assignment Cordelia looked over the readout on her computer screen and asked no one in particular, "Ok, now how do I save it."

Willow answered, "Press "deliver"." Before she left the room.

Cordelia looked at her keyboard then pressed a button that read "del" and her screen immediately went blank.

(Underground Tunnels)

Xander and Buffy were getting close to the vampire lair. They soon found Jesse who was chained to the wall by his ankle. Buffy broke the shackle and they soon were headed back the way they came when Jesse told them it was a trap, which put Buffy more on guard. Their path was soon blocked by vampires and they found their way to a supply closet with an air vent. They were trapped, "We can't fight our way through those things. What're we gonna do?" Xander asked.

I got an idea," Jesse said now in vampire face, "You can die."

Buffy quickly grabbed Jesse and threw him out of the room and with Xander's help managed to get the door shut and locked. They climbed into the air vent and crawled until the found an exit at and old factory escaping into the sunlight. One vampire grabbed Buffy's leg, but Xander grabbed her wrapping his arms around her waist before the vamp could pull her back down. After a brief struggle the vamp let go when it's hand got burned by the sun. Xander and buffy fell back from suddenly having no opposing force to fight against.

(Sunnydale High)

Giles is sitting at the table in the library when the door opens, "Buffy?" He asked.

"Just me," Willow replied walking over with some papers in her hand, "No word? Well I'm sure they're great."

"Did you find anything of interest?" Giles asked changing the subject.

Willow showed him what she had found in old newspaper articles before a big earthquake that talked about a streak of murders. "Well it's starting to come together." Giles said, "I rather wish it weren't."

(The Master's Lair)

Darla was brought before the Master to be prepared as the vessel. Her being the oldest and strongest of the Master's underlings now that Luke was dead. She kissed the Master's hand before drinking some blood from his wrist. "My blood is your blood, my soul is your soul." Said the Master.

"My body is your instrument." Answered Darla finishing her part of the ritual as the Master began drawing a symbol on her forehead.

"On this most hallowed night we are as one. Darla is the vessel. Every soul she takes will feed me and their souls will grant me the strength to free myself."

(Sunnydale High)

Willow looked up when Buffy and Xander entered and they told her about Jesse. "I'm sorry Willow, we were too late and they were waiting for us." Buffy explained.

"Well at least you two are ok."

Xander kicked a file cabinet, denting it, "I don't like vampires. I'm gonna take a stand and say they're not good." Xander went into Giles' office to start carving crosses on the bullet tips for the custom matte black Colt 1911 his great uncle had given him, it was specially built and had a fourteen round magazine instead of the usual seven. He left the door open so he could hear what was said.

Giles told them what he and Willow had discovered so far. That the Master had come to Sunnydale sixty years ago. And that the Spanish who founded the town called it "Boca del infierno", or "the mouth of hell", or simply "hellmouth". The Master had intended to open the hellmouth, but was trapped in a church that sunk into the Earth during an earthquake. They also discovered that the harvest only comes around once per century and would be happening that night. Giles went on to tell them about the vessel and drew a copy of the symbol the vessel would be wearing, a three pointed star. "So I dust anyone with that symbol and no harvest?" Buffy asked.

"Simply put yes." Giles answered.

"Any idea where it's gonna take place?"

"Well there are a number of possibilities."

"There goin to The Bronze." Xander said, done with preparing the bullets, "Come on all those tasty young morsels all over the place."

They all left in a hurry stopping by Buffy's house first for supplies. And then heading for the Bronze as the sun was setting.

(Summers Residence)

"Buffy?" Joyce called as she stepped into Buffy's room, "What's going on, whatever this is it feels bigger than a regular patrol."

"It is mom I need you and Dawn to stay in tonight until I get back. Try not to worry, I have my new watcher with me and Willow and Xander are there for back-up too. I'll be careful I promise, but you know this is something I have to do."

"I know Buffy, just make sure you come home to us. Oh and you need to be a bit more careful, your principal called and said you left campus. I know sometimes you have to leave school, but be sure it's for something that won't keep til after schools out for the day."

"Ok mom I will, and this was an immediate emergency. Willow and Xander's friend, Xadner and I found him, he's been turned, Willow and Xander took it hard, especially Xander."

"Alright tell everyone to be careful, and I wanna see you all after this is over so don't be too late."

Buffy finished changing into clothes she could actually fight in then grabbed a bunch of stakes and left to meet the others after hugging both her mom and sister.

(Nighttime)

(The Bronze)

Buffy met Xander, Giles and Willow outside the club she gave Giles a couple stake and a cross, Willow she gave a stake, a cross, and a squirt gun full of holy water, Xander already had the gun so she gave him a cross that had one end sharpened. There was no bouncer outside and the front door was locked so Buffy sent everyone to the back door while she climbed up to the roof. By the time everyone was in position Darla had already drained on person and was feeding on another, when she finished with that one she tossed the dead body aside, "I feel our master getting stronger. Bring me another!"

One minion grabbed Cordelia from where Jesse was holding her and took her to Darla on the stage. She was about to begin feeding when Buffy crashed through the skylight, landing on the pool table. Upon hearing the glass breaking Giles, Willow, and Xander came silently through the back door and began ushering people to safety. When most of the people were gone the vampires finally took notice and all Hell broke loose. Buffy fought her way quickly to the stage to fight a much more prepared Darla. Xander and Giles were holding the vampires at bay in the middle of the room with their crosses while Willow kept the exit safe with her squirt gun of holy water. Once everyone was out but them and the vamps Xander decided to test out his gun the first vamp he shot he missed the heart but in two more shots the demon turned to dust. "It works!" he shouted as he found another target, even when he didn't hit the heart it still hurt and injured the vampires. Son there were only a few vamps left one had Xander cornered and he was out of bullets Buffy saw it and removed a cymbal from the drum set on stage she threw it and it decapitated the vamp. At the same time Giles staked a vampire before being tackled by another, which Willow doused in holy water before it could bite the librarian.

Buffy focused back on Darla, the vessel. Buffy and Darla circled for a moment and now that there weren't so many vampires around, Buffy could sense that Darla was indeed powerful, a master vampire in her own right. Buffy realized that she truly had caught the female vamp off guard last night to have beaten her so easily. As they fought she noted that while Darla wasn't as strong as Luke she was a more skilled fighter. Finally as she was beginning to tire Buffy tried a distraction, "You know there was one thing you didn't take into account when planning this gathering here."

"Oh, and what's that?" Darla asked.

Buffy picked up a microphone stand and threw through the window letting in the light from the streetlight outside, "Sunrise." Darla turned and instinctively threw her arms up to try and protect her face, "It's is six hours moron." Buffy added swinging her stake at the vamp. Darla realized the trap just in time to dodge the stake by diving through the window and escaping. She turned in time to see Jesse confront Xander.

"I'm so sorry this happened to you buddy." Xander said staking his former friend before the vampire could reply.

"Come on guys, we're all going back to my place. Mom wants to see that we're all ok herself before she'll be able to sleep, and I'm sure Dawn's worried about us too." Buffy said as her friend followed her to the house on Revello Drive.

(Summers Residence)

After seeing that everyone was unhurt Joyce made all the teens a cup of hot cocoa and made herself and Giles a cup of tea. "So you figured out how to kill vampires with bullets? Can I see the gun?" Dawn asked looking at Xander pleadingly from where she was seated on the couch between Xander and Willow.

Xander looked to Joyce who gave a nod, so he ejected the magazine and pulled back the slide to ensure there were no rounds loaded before handing the gun to Dawn, "Yeah I took the bullets and carved crosses in the tips, a shot to the heart makes for a dusted vampire, but even if you don't hurt the heart it still hurts them."

"Cool." Dawn said as she examined the weapon, "Custom modified Colt 1911 made from high carbon steel and a polymer grip instead of wood to make it lighter. Enlarged magazine well, custom high capacity magazine, I'm guessing fourteen rounds plus one in the chamber."

Xander, Giles, and Willow looked at Dawn dumbfounded. Before Joyce explained "Dawn and Hank, her and Buffy's father, used to go shooting at least once a week, she was hooked the first time and has been studying everything she can about guns and ammo since. She's what you might call an expert. When Hank died he left in his will that Dawn inherits his guns when she's old enough. Though your more safe around her with a gun than me with one."

"Yeah, mom's great with a bow, but anything with a trigger she will shoot her foot, true story." Buffy added and everyone laughed quietly, because by this time Dawn had fallen asleep with her head laying on Willow's shoulder.