What is Normal?
By Ellf
Disclaimer: Buffy the Vampire Slayer and her contemporaries are creations of Joss Whedon. The World of Darkness, Vampire the Masquerade and related properties are owned by White Wolf Games, a subdivision of Paradox Interactive and are published by the Onyx Path
Chapter Four: Santa Monica
It occurred to Buffy, as she made her way down the street, that she should, perhaps, change her hair style. If she was to be stuck in Santa Monica, the place she disappeared from, and the police were any sort of competent, it was entirely possible that they might recognize her. That wouldn't be of the good at all. It was only too bad that Willow wasn't here to help her select a new hair style. She'd be able to pick out something that would work and frame her head well while giving her a look that'd be hard to identify her at first glance. It was only too bad that Willow was probably not real at all. Sunnydale, after all, had been simply a hallucination caused by the Slayer delusion… Except… The dream. Maybe there was more to it than she thought. Bored now. Need to find time to play with the puppy.
Buffy shuddered. She wasn't sure if that voice came from her own memories of a delusion or if it was one of the other voices she'd been hearing, but the tone was all too familiar. She didn't want to deal with a vampire Willow, even if she now was a vampire herself. The idea of staking someone with the face of a friend had always frightened her, sometimes even more than the idea of becoming a vampire herself. She'd had to kill Angel once, and it had nearly destroyed her. If she'd had to do the same to Willow, Xander or Giles? It would have. Somehow in the back of her mind, she'd known she'd have to do something to Angel at some point, but that didn't make it any easier to deal with Angelus. No friends, no family, no hope… what's left?
"Me." Buffy slipped into an alleyway on her way toward the beach, and she stepped out onto the street that ran right in front of the Asylum club. She heard the thrumming beat inside the club from where she stood in the street, and her hands curled into fists. Jeanette Voerman had a lot to answer for. The club owner probably knew what had happened with Sammy, and in all likelihood, it was probably the first place that anyone would look for her. Buffy looked around at the cars on the street nearby and grimaced. There. Her father's Toyota Matrix. Why the hell had he driven that thing to Santa Monica? Couldn't he have left the search up to the cops?
Damn. She'd have to cross that bridge when she came to it, but for now, she had a job to do. A job, which unfortunately, did not put Jeanette Voerman within striking distance. After she'd retrieved the explosives for Mercurio, however, she'd make sure that her displeasure with the club's owner was felt. She didn't want to kill her, but Jeanette definitely deserved a hard punch across the jaw for what she did. Still. The job. Explosives. Astrolite. Space is dangerous. Explosive decompression is the scariest thing to think of.
Following the street down, she came to the walkway that led to the Pier. The gate was closed and she could see police tape blocking off an alley just beyond the entrance. Oh. Right. A few people passing by mentioned something about hearing how the murdered person had been torn apart, and they looked like they'd been eaten somewhat. She remembered finding the body, and she couldn't really disagree. Dismemberment, and the wounds… And lack of blood. Maybe it had been a vampire, but what kind of vampire would blatantly break the Masquerade in that way? Another Sad Bat? Poor Sammy. She had been so distraught after seeing the body that Buffy couldn't help but agree to do whatever it was she wanted.
And after the Light Daughter of Janus had shown up, Sammy wanted to go wherever the woman led. Buffy shook her head. There was more than one way that she could go to get to the beach. She didn't want to scale the locked fence, not with people probably watching. Santa Monica wasn't Sunnydale, and she doubted that it had any of the normal things she'd associated with her hallucinatory town. So instead, she made her way through the tunnel that led to the beach, only to be stopped by the approaching of a dark-skinned woman with strange looking eyes.
"Up there, through that chainlink gate and up those stairs," the woman said, and Buffy narrowed her eyes. The woman felt a bit off. She was a vampire… of sorts. She didn't really feel all that strong.
"Come again?" Buffy cocked her head. She was pretty sure that she knew what the woman was talking about, but she needed to be sure.
"The men you're looking for. They're in the house up there," she said, and Buffy nodded.
"Thanks, miss…" Buffy trailed off, but the woman snorted and backed away, clearly having done her part. Maybe the woman was a seer of sorts, and Buffy made her way toward the chain-link. Spread out too thin, she sees but she does not understand. She does not hear, does not taste.
A group of other… of sorts vampires stood around a campfire, one of them shirtless, staring at the waves. Buffy looked up to the beach house and back to the man, grimacing. Mercurio had been a little light on the information about the people that had beaten him, left him for dead, but she couldn't really blame the guy with how he looked. Shoot. Maybe if she had a little bit more an idea of what was up there… The man. She'd talk to the shirtless guy. Somehow he still had a tan of sorts. Maybe he cheated and used spray tan or something.
"Evening," Buffy said, approaching the decently attractive shirtless brunette. "I was hoping you could—"
Buffy stepped backward when she saw the man drop into a defensive stance. His voice was tinged with an Australian accent. "Hey listen, I've told you people before, we're just here hanging out. We're not hunting or anything. Ask Julia at the Asylum, she'll vouch for us. There's no need to bother the weaklings."
Buffy raised her hands in a placating manner, and she grimaced. Thin Bloods or not. Harbingers of the apocalypse or not. They were mine, and a good Imperator takes care of her subjects.
"I'm not here to play bop the Thin Blood," Buffy said. "You haven't done anything wrong, right?"
"Right," the man said. "It's just…"
"I don't want to know, E." Buffy closed her held up hand. Where had that name come from? It seemed to be right, but she hadn't even heard it in a whisper. Still, he'd referenced Julia. Maybe she could get some more information about her sire out of him later if she offered to help him. Her voice softened. "Look… I just… I need some help. Some information about what's up there. Do you know how many guys there are?"
"How did you…?" E trailed off, and Buffy just looked at him. "Right, never mind. Probably like Rosa. There's about five guys up there, but four of them are usually blitzed out of their mind. Except the black guy. He's usually the worst. Not that you should have trouble with him. Your type usually manages well enough when hunting us."
Buffy nodded. "Thank you, E. So, they're just normal guys then, nothing wiggy about them?"
"Wiggy? You Americans…" E shook his head. "They're human. Least as far as I can tell. Definitely not like you."
Buffy smiled. He seeks answers in his lily.
"Thank you again, E," Buffy said, and she started toward the chain link gate. She'd have to figure out how to repay the guy at some point. He'd had no reason to trust her other than her sire's name, but she hadn't even mentioned that. As such, she also had avoided mentioning the fact that the Jester Prince had decapitated her sire the previous evening. Sure, she probably would have wanted to throttle Julia, but if she'd survived, Buffy doubted that she'd have actually tried to kill the older vampire. Sure, becoming a vampire had long been one of her fears, but it was one she'd gotten to face toward the end of her Sophomore year. Her fears had adjusted since then.
Besides, she was about eighty percent certain that she still retained something that resembled a soul, unlike the vampires that she'd encountered in the Sunnydale hallucination. This was a good thing, even if her morality was starting to change. Maybe it had something to do with the change in diet. Blood was necessary for life after all. She glanced to the top of the steps. These people would have plenty, if she needed it.
Mercurio wanted these people to suffer for what he'd been through, but all she needed to do was get the explosives. If she managed to get back Mercurio's money in the process, that'd be great, but it wasn't completely necessary for this. All she needed was the explosives, and it didn't matter how she got them.
Buffy climbed the steps, and she walked up toward the house. The beach house was in terrible state of repair, with odd stains covering the wooden walls. One of the windows was broken, the glass still littering the ground beneath it. Out front of the house, a shirtless white guy, likely one of the junkies, stood lighting a cigarette while holding a baseball bat. Buffy was fairly certain she could take him if need be, but he might make too much noise. So, instead, assuming she could keep it together long enough, she would channel her inner valley girl.
Buffy sauntered up to the junkie. "Like, oh my God, is this the place where the stuff for the party can be gotten? I mean, I totally must have blanked and gotten lost. Do you know, is this where Dennis lives? And he likes to party, right?"
"I like to party," said the junkie, whose name really wasn't all that important to Buffy at the moment. She smacked his hand away as he started to reach for her chest. She'd made sure to do it lightly, but she wanted to grab it and bury her fangs into it, draining the guy and…. Okay then. Step back a second. It wasn't worth it.
"Like, eww…" Buffy scrunched up her nose. Darkness will claim him soon enough. "Is this Dennis's place or not?"
"Fine, yeah… You can go in."
"Thank you!" Buffy shook her head once she was past the big guy. She must have been starting to get hungry, as it had taken an act of self-control to not tear that guy's arm off and feast on his innards. Hopefully Dennis would be reasonable, and she'd be able to get the explosives easily.
Buffy stepped inside, and she stepped through the house to a room she could see through the front window. Two people were inside, a sharply dressed black man, and a white guy in a hoodie. The sharply dressed guy had to be Dennis. But where's Mr. Wilson to rein in his menace?
Both men noticed Buffy, but it was Dennis who approached her in a confident gait. "Now, what could a cutie like you want from a place like this?" Buffy got ready to open her mouth to speak, but Dennis held up a hand. Rude. "Nah, I'm speaking right now, girlie. You look good, but I just figure I should give you the warning first. Before we do business. Before any money changes hands at all, I need to tell you this. You need to hear it. If you try to cross me, I will fuck you. If you tell the cops about me, I will find you, and then I will fuck you. If you are a cop? I will fuck you and your whole family, including the squirrel in the front yard. Now that that's out of the way, what can I do for you?"
"That's a lot of fucking," Buffy said, using his own word against him. "Is that the only way you get off? Because I mean, I could pretend to cross you and help you in that matter."
"You a whore?"
"Not exactly, no…" Buffy shook her head. "I'm here for the astrolite. You know, the explodey kind? Best kind of party."
"You know, you're the second person to ask me about that shit tonight. Considering that's definitely not a popular item, I have to wonder why you thought I might have some." Dennis sneered, crossing his arms across his chest. Dennis the Menace explodes on his own.
Buffy crossed her own arms. As much as she hadn't really wanted to walking in, it seemed like Mercurio might be getting some of his wish after all. "How about we do this the easy way, Dennis? Give it to me, and you'll walk out of here."
"Little thing like you?" Dennis smirked. Oh, this guy had everything coming to him. He indirectly threatened her family, he threatened her, and he did something to poor Mercurio. "You're what, one hundred fifteen at most? Girlie, you have no idea what you're messing with. Load the boat and get it ready, boys! We're going shark fishing tonight!"
Buffy slipped into an offensives stance, jumping forward at Dennis. Her fangs flared in the low light, but she didn't intend on drinking. Instead, she slammed a fist into the well-dressed man's chin, right under the jawline. She followed up with a shot to his neck, and then she heard a gunshot and she felt the bullet penetrate her from the back and out the front. That… felt odd and strangely wrong, but it didn't scare her so much as increase her rising anger. These people were scum. These people were trying to kill her. These people… They… They… They deserved everything and anything.
Another bullet struck Buffy in the chest, and she could hear something from Dennis about finding her family. No. He wouldn't. Buffy's vision tinged red, as she wrapped her body around Dennis and drove her fangs into his neck. She drank deep and long. The man had threatened her family. He'd lost all rights. These junkies would follow him through anything. They'd follow him into the grave. As Dennis's last bit of vitae ended in her stomach, she snarled bestially. Great rage leads to great madness.
She gave in. She would show these junkies just what they had unleashed.
When Buffy came out of her rage, she couldn't quite stop the momentum of her fist as she splintered the desk. She looked around the house, her vision no longer tinged red, and she simultaneously felt a sense of satisfaction and disgust. She wasn't hungry anymore, as she'd had more than her fill from the scumbags that had lived here. Buffy breathed out a breath she no longer needed. What she saw as she passed through the house… Buffy couldn't believe that she had done it. She made her way into the beach house's bathroom and looked into the mirror. She hadn't known what to expect, as she didn't really think she'd have a reflection, but it turned out she did have one; it should have horrified her.
Buffy's chin dripped with blood that had escaped her mouth when she'd drank her fill. Her blouse, which she'd bought only a week prior to this point, was ruined. Bullet holes, rips, tears, blood stains, and more all adorned her blouse and pants. Her once-white blouse matched the red dripping down her face, but the revealed skin underneath was unblemished save for the drying blood. Whatever wounds she'd taken had healed, completely. Always about the blood. Blood is life.
Buffy stared at her reflection, which cocked its head at her with a smile. "Run and catch… run and catch… the lamb is caught in the blackberry patch… How the kine run, how they hide, they fight, and they die. Look at how powerful you are, how lovely and right this is. To be adorned, to be loved by the very life-giving essence."
"Okay," Buffy said, stretching out the O sound as she stared down her reflection which gestured to her, stepping out of the mirror toward her. "So, the weird thing is that entirely made sense. Care to make with the 'splainy? What happened?"
"You ripped their grubby little hearts out," Her reflection moved around behind her, snaking arms around her into a hug. "Tore out their throats and fed greedily…"
"I was going to…" Buffy shook her head as she felt the arms on her. "I was going to leave them alive."
"The Fleet-Footed God or the Jester Prince would have finished the job had you not," her reflection laid its head on her shoulder, so it could speak directly into her ear. "And it was so nice doing so, was it not? Killing without a care?"
"Want. Take. Have," Buffy said, echoing Faith's motto from her hallucination. To a hallucination. She could feel skin on her skin, breath on her cheek, and the weight settled on her shoulders. Her reflection had left the mirror entirely and she now stared at a blank surface, reflecting what was behind her, rather than the two that stood in front of it. "I've heard it before, and it feels nice… but I need to think about the Masquerade. Not everywhere has Sunnydale's tendency to ignore things."
Buffy noted that she really didn't feel all that guilty about killing the men. They'd threatened her family, after all, and she couldn't allow anyone to threaten her family. There was a reason her mother and Dawn were typically left alone in Sunnydale, and whether that was real or not, she couldn't see herself applying a different philosophy here. Family was off-limits. Period. While she was certain her reflection had more to say, she didn't want to hear it. Stepping forward, she turned on the faucet and started washing the blood off her face. When she looked up from the sink, her reflection once more was in the mirror, and her face was nearly clean. Close enough. Her clothes were a lost cause though, and she'd have to do something about that before getting back into town unless she wanted to go through the sewers. Under the ground lurk rats and beasts and the most intriguing small structures.
She left the bathroom and headed to find Dennis's corpse. She needed to get the astrolite and possibly Mercurio's money as well. With everyone up here dead, she was sure it wouldn't take all that long to obtain the items, assuming she didn't destroy them while she was pissed. Dennis's corpse laid where she left it, untouched, unlike the junky whose entrails decorated the room she was in. She really hadn't been all that subtle in taking them down. Crouching down, she patted at Dennis's clothes, looking for anything that stood out. There! In his lapel pocket was a wallet, and she opened it. Inside the wallet was identification for a Mercurio Steele along with a decent amount of cash, entirely in one hundred dollar bills. If this was what Mercurio intended on paying for the astrolite, it seemed to be an expensive product. Ah, there we go. A keycard.
Dennis had a vault around here somewhere. She walked along the walls until she reached a certain point along the interior wall and brushed off the entrails, licking her fingers afterward. It might not have been fresh blood anymore, but it still tasted better than the blood pack she had in her fridge. It only slightly disturbed her that she was willing to do something like this. It must have been something about being a vampire, even if she still had her soul. Underneath the entrails was a poster which she easily moved aside, revealing a small electronic vault. She used the keycard on it and it popped open with ease. More money sat inside the vault, which she pocketed. Want, take, have, and she grabbed the container of what must have been the astrolite from within.
Clearly this wasn't the mission that the Jester Prince wanted her to go on, not if Mercurio was supposed to retrieve the explosives. It didn't make sense for him to want a group of junkies eliminated. He probably wanted her to do more, which meant when she got back to Mercurio, he'd have something else for her. Lovely.
Oh hey, one of the more intact junkies had a leather jacket. She just needed to reach down and manipulate him so that… Okay, this was a little gross. Sure, she'd killed the guy, but now she was touching a dead guy and taking his jacket.
"Copying me now, Slayer?" Spike asked as she finally got the jacket off the body.
"It's nice, and I'm covered in blood," Buffy said, slipping the jacket on over her bloodstained clothes. "Nothing like you and Nikki Wood."
"Mmm, keep thinking that, cutie. Love your handiwork, by the way. 'Swhat they get for threatening Joyce."
"And Dad," Buffy said. "Dad's important too."
"And your bird, except I think that was more implied. It's good the Nibblet didn't see." Spike appeared near a body. "Could you imagine her reaction to this? Or maybe you'd have killed her too…"
Buffy shook her head. "I couldn't… She's not—"
"Real?" Spike asked, smirking. "All right, love, have it your way. Vampires aren't real and neither was Sunnydale. Except, hey."
Buffy pushed past the hallucination and left the house, leather coat trailing behind her in the wind. She couldn't let herself dwell on what Spike said, not when she had so much to deal with already. Sunnydale couldn't be real because this was reality. Vampires didn't die when a stake went through their heart; they were just paralyzed. Vampires didn't lose their souls upon turning, which was important because it meant she still had her soul. They just… Well, near as she could tell, she felt for the humans less. In her hallucination, the only time she'd killed anyone was when those knights were after Dawn. She supposed she could equate killing Dennis and his Menaces to something like that, except she'd drained them dry. She was a vampire now, and she'd… She'd either accept it, or she'd let herself die. Death might have been her gift, but she just couldn't take it right now. She didn't want to go into the final embrace. Some gifts can be returned. Just need to bring the right receipt.
Still. She'd have to adjust to the situation. She didn't fully understand her situation yet, and even with the help of the voices, she still needed more information. She didn't have a Watcher or confidant yet, and with Mercurio working for the Jester Prince, Lacroix, she wasn't really sure she could trust him. Maybe, just maybe, she might be able to trust the people down by the beach, but she needed to know more about them first. What was a Thin Blood, exactly? The voices had provided the name, and she'd used it like she knew what she was talking about; she didn't though. Maybe E would have some answers that she could use. If not, she could always get them to give her some clothing. She really didn't want to walk the streets of Santa Monica while covered in blood, especially not when there were cops out and about.
Buffy made it down the stairs and out the chain link fence onto the beach. Several of the people that had been gathered around the fire were now lying down on the sand, but E just stood there, watching her as she approached.
"Hey, you," E said, giving her a once over once she got within range. "Looks like you managed to deal with those guys up there just fine, didn't you?"
"Just call me Power Girl," Buffy said jokingly, and then she winced as she remembered Celia. "Or Batgirl or Batwoman or Miss Marvel, I mean, I'm not really wearing a costume, and capes are kinda tacky. But they all take out the bad guys and I did it and they won't really be hurting anyone again."
"Okay, slow down, miss," E said, shaking his head. "I'm not so sure one of your type really counts as a superhero anyway."
"Why not?" Buffy asked. "I have super powers, and I can totally be a hero if need be."
E just looked down at her blood-soaked clothes, and Buffy felt like blushing. She couldn't, obviously, with no blood able to color her cheeks, but that didn't change the fact that she felt like it.
"That reminds me," Buffy said, trying to play off her embarrassment at being called out. "I need a change of clothes. I don't suppose any of you have spares, do you?"
"We might," E said. "What's in it for us?"
He searches for the lily he threw away… Buffy cocked her head as she listened to the voice. "Maybe I can help you find your lost flower… Why did you throw it away?"
"Flower? You mean… Lily? She's not lost. She's gone. Probably on with some other guy now and ruining his life. She's the reason I'm like this, you see? The reason people like you want to hunt me down like I'm some harbinger of the apocalypse."
Buffy frowned. "I don't want to hunt you down, and my sire didn't either… You said that Julia did things to help you. Did she explain to you what you are?"
"Nothing beyond Thin Blood, which she probably told you," E said. "Other vampires don't like us, and I don't really know why. Maybe you might know."
Buffy shrugged. "Julia's not so much with the talky now. Given that the Jester kinda had the Sheriff kill her."
"Wait, what?" E shook his head. "I'm not hearing you right. Julia's dead?"
"Dust in the wind," Buffy said with a sigh. "I nearly was too. The Jester plays for power as his influence wanes. He holds me under his thumb and I wriggle…"
"Sorry, what?" E asked, and Buffy frowned. She had been perfectly clear there. Maybe she needed to explain things a little better.
"He tries to grasp this city in his fist, but things slip between his fingers." Buffy shook her head. She needed to get control of this. Metaphors weren't the best for being used here. "Never mind. He killed Julia and he has me working for him. That's all you really need to know."
"But if he killed Julia, what can we do about it? She was supposed to be our protection, our help. Without her around, who will keep the others from hunting us for sport?"
"I will," Buffy said. These Thin Bloods hadn't done anything wrong other than be sired poorly. They felt weaker than she did for certain, closer to human than vampire, but they still were vampires. "So long as you don't give me reason not to, I will protect you."
"Oh thank you, miss. Uh..." E paused and scratched the back of his head. "I… don't think you ever mentioned your name, fa—"
"Finish that statement, and I'll make sure the next blood you drink is through a straw," Buffy said with a sunny smile. "I'm Buffy."
"Sorry," E said, a little cowed. He looked down at Buffy's blood-stained clothes again. "Uh… right. I think Jenna has some spare clothing that might be your size. Oi, Jenna, come here a sec."
A light-skinned redhead pushed herself off the beach and walked over to the pair.
"What do you want, E?" asked the girl. She felt about as weak as E, but that didn't matter. What mattered was the look that came over her face when she looked at Buffy, something halfway between admiration and terror. "Oh God, what's she doing here? We haven't done anything! God, why are you here?"
Buffy couldn't help herself. She wanted to assuage the girl's fears, but something just… well, she wanted to do this too. She put on her best Austrian accent and said, "Your clothes… give them to me."
"What?" Jenna looked confused, and Buffy couldn't blame her. Still, the girl looked to be about her own size, and Buffy needed something clean before she could go back to Mercurio.
"E says you have some spare clothes. I need them," Buffy said simply. "Could you go grab them?"
"S-Sure, whatever you say, miss…" Jenna backed away. E seemed to be looking on like nothing was out of place, but Buffy knew it was a little wrong of her to just demand the clothing. She was going to offer to pay, but Jenna had backed away too soon. Buffy watched as the girl went around the fire to grab her pack, and Buffy stepped a little further away from the campfire as she did so. Not that she expected anything to happen, but she just didn't want to stand too close to it. The clothing is brought to you by the letter E and his mouse.
Jenna brought over a backpack full of clothes, and Buffy took it, giving the girl forty bucks for them before making her way closer to the water and out of sight of most people. There really wasn't a perfect place to change where nobody would see her, but she made the best of the situation she had. Pulling the clothes out of the bag, Buffy looked them over. Okay, they really weren't all that embarrassing, just a skirt that'd stop at her mid-thigh and a midriff-baring tube top. She'd be able to wear the leather coat over it and look somewhat presentable. Oh hey, there was a pair of cute stockings in here too. That'd work. She'd probably buy some new underwear later, but for now she'd stick with what she had on for bottoms, as for a bra, she'd just wrap her chest a bit.
These clothes would have to do for now, but the moment she could, she was going to go shopping. Surely some clothing stores were open after dark. Buffy buried her bloodied clothes in the sand after she finished changing, and she brushed as much of it off herself as she could before she started back up toward Santa Monica.
Buffy passed by the woman who'd told her of the men at the beach house on her way out here, and she paused. The woman stepped closer to her as if to get a look before clutching her head slightly, as if she felt a headache.
"You have been… no, you will go to China," said the woman. The red rose speaks truths and lies. Discerning the difference is half the trouble.
"Huh?" Buffy articulated. China didn't really sound so bad. It was only too bad that the only Chinese food she could really enjoy now were the Chinese. "China?"
"Why's he smiling? Is he the father? Is it the father behind him?"
"What?" Buffy couldn't quite focus on this. Something sounded off here. She knew things.
"No, A basement… a crypt, it's open. No, don't open it… From beneath… It rises… You pushed your way through the dirt… No! From beneath you it devours! Don't open it!"
"Rosa," Buffy said, drawing on her limited Spanish. "What are you talking about?"
"I'm sorry… I see… nothing—disregard what I said." Rosa shook her head.
"You see things," Buffy said. "Like a seer? How often do your visions come true?"
"I don't know," Rosa admitted. "But they feel…"
"Real enough," Buffy nodded.
"No, never mind. I don't know what I'm talking about. Please forget what I said."
"Tell me," Buffy said.
"Not for free," Rosa said. "This is not your destiny. Every time I sleep, the future plays out before me. I know the ending… it will end over and over until I cease to dream. I know your questions. For one hundred dollars, I will tell you the answers that you don't want to hear. I need to get out of Santa Monica. To get somewhere away from here."
"When the end comes, Rosa," Buffy said, looking at the Thin Blood's eyes. "Nowhere will be safe. It takes people willing to fight against it to stop it."
"If you do not pay me, I cannot answer you. I will not."
Buffy shook her head. "I don't need to know the future that badly, Rosa. I'm not going to be Prophecy Girl. Good luck to you."
Buffy made her way back into the city, avoiding the Pier. She'd seen the shape the body was in already, and she didn't need to see it again. Something definitely did it to that person, but judging from how most of the vampires acted, she doubted it was a member of the Jester's side. Buffy wouldn't let that stop her from finding out what the source was, especially now that she knew it probably was supernatural, thus she needed to find it and kill it. She'd do that later, however. She needed to get back to Mercurio with the astrolite and his wallet.
Buffy paused once back on the street, thinking if there was anything that she was missing. Given the shape that the Fleet-Footed God was in, he probably needed some sort of helpful drug or something to ease the pain. Unfortunately, that meant Buffy had to go someplace she'd always hated when she was alive, especially after spending six years in one: a hospital. Santa Monica's hospital was just down this street, and she'd be able to get there soon.
"STOP!" A voice cried as Buffy got ready to cross the street to get on her way. Buffy frowned and turned toward the source of it. It was red, octagonal, and it stood there on a pole, mocking her. Four letters, just sitting there in the middle of its face, and it just sat there. Smug.
"No, you stop," Buffy had to answer it back. It just made perfect sense. Dumb sign. Telling her to stop.
"STOP!" It did it again! Why did it do it again? It was a sign. It didn't have any authority over her. It just was there, jutting out at her. Smug little thing.
"You stop!" Buffy glared at the sign. It just… Grr… stupid sign. If she had an SUV, she'd make sure that it didn't do anything more.
"STOP!" The sign was getting on her last nerve here. It just needed to not tell her to stop. That's all. All it needed. But the power behind the sign had to come from a demon. They always popped out of nowhere. Stop signs. Just sitting there. Smug. Telling people to stop.
"Grr… you stop!" Buffy growled and the sign remained unchanged again. Still, she just… No. There was no further point in arguing with it. It wasn't going to change its nature. Signs. "You've made a powerful enemy today, sign…"
Buffy turned and walked away from it, ignoring the sign's cries of "STOP" as she did so. She made it across the street before it hit her. She'd been arguing with a sign. An inanimate object. A smug inanimate object, but it still wasn't going to change ever. The only way it could change would be if someone painted over it. It was also telling the cars to stop, not her. All things are real. All things speak. It just takes the right kind of listening…
Regardless, she was steps away from getting what Mercurio needed. She just needed to go into the building that was right there, the Santa Monica medical center.
"Hey! Hey you!" A high pitched nasally male voice stopped her on the stairs as she was on her way into the medical center's emergency room. She turned toward its source, a college-age white man dressed in a grey sport jacket over a grey shirt with khakis. God, was he going to hit on her? He wasn't even cute. "You're a vampire, aren't you?"
Buffy brought a hand up to her face. She thought she was supposed to be the crazy one. This guy was human, definitely not a vampire and he was asking about the vampires. He must have been some kind of conspiracy nut. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Come on, yeah you do. I ain't gonna tell anyone. Don't bullshit me, lady. I know a vamp when I see one. I just wanna talk."
Buffy raised an eyebrow. She didn't know how old this kid was, but something was off about him in her senses. He felt almost a little like Mercurio. "About what?"
"Ah, hell yeah. I knew it! I knew it from the moment I saw you. I could just sense it, you know? You had to be a vampire. The name's Knox, Knox Harrington. Pleased to meet you."
"Buffy." She looked at the overeager man.
"Wait, that's the name of the girl that fine piece of ass is looking for at the Asylum, isn't it? What was her name again?"
It took an extreme force of will for Buffy to not reach over and throttle the man. "Samantha. Her name's Samantha."
"Oh, shit. You must have been turned recently if someone's looking for you."
"Okay, hold up," Buffy held up a hand. "How do you know any of this at all?"
"Well, I'm a ghoul. I really didn't know any of this until a few months ago, when my master found me. He showed up and, all of the sudden, bam. Vampires are real, and all sorts of other shit. Blew my mind." Knox just seemed so eager. Like an annoying puppy. Ruff. Rabid puppies get the shot. Rrruff!
"Small words, Goldie. Ghoul part first. Make with the 'splainy."
"Splainy? Oh, right! Well, you see, what I was told is a ghoul is made by a vampire sharing its power with a human through feeding the human some of their vampire blood. They get a little bit of a boost, become smarter, stronger, faster than the average human. Heal better too. That's what makes them a ghoul."
Buffy nodded. That made a bit of sense with how Mercurio was and how he was holding together after all of this. "And what are you doing here?"
"Well, I shouldn't be telling you this, but the master gave me a secret mission. I'm supposed to do something for him, and oh, right. It's been really great talking with you, Buffy. But I should probably get going. Important stuff to do and all that."
"Yeah, good luck with that." Definitely an annoying puppy. Whoever made him a ghoul probably regretted it somewhat.
"Good luck with whatever you're doing…"
Buffy shook her head and made her way inside. Her skin crawled the moment she stepped into the hospital. Even if she wouldn't ever need to be examined by a proper doctor again, hospitals just made her feel wrong. Still. This was the likely place that would have what she needed to get for Mercurio, so she walked up to the person at the front desk.
Sitting at the front desk was a brunette woman dressed in a blue floral print blouse with dirty blonde hair. She wore a professional amount of make up on her face, and Buffy could see from her pale skin that she likely hadn't been in the sun recently much, likely due to working the night shift. After all, the woman was human.
"If you'll wait your turn, you'll be seen," the woman said, an exasperated tone hanging on her voice. Buffy frowned. She wasn't really sure how she'd get past this woman without alerting way too many people to her presence. She didn't exactly want to wait for the doctors, after all. There had to be a way. My childe, use your instincts. Share yourself with her.
Buffy frowned. That sounded like Julia. Buffy supposed that it'd work. She just needed to get through.
"Excuse me, I just need to get back into the back there," Buffy said, focusing on sharing herself. Showing the woman what she saw, how she saw things… "That's okay, right?"
The woman hadn't been looking Buffy in the eyes, but Buffy saw it happen. A shudder came over the woman, and her face shifted from exasperation into a smile. "Of course, Doctor Smith. You should be able to just go in fine. I'll buzz you in since you don't have your keycard."
"Thank you, miss…" Buffy said as she slipped by. Whatever she'd done, the human hadn't resisted it at all. She felt a little bad about it, but all she was doing was sharing herself. It'd wear off eventually, she was sure.
Buffy paced the halls, looking for the pharmacy cabinet or something where she could get something strong for the Fleet-footed God when she passed an open doorway. She could see into the room beyond, a young brunette woman laid face down on an examination table, but Buffy could smell the blood. Buffy stepped inside to look at the girl, who laid down in a pool of her own blood on the table. She seemed to be nearly gone, both in body and mental capacity, but that wasn't what surprised her.
She recognized the brunette. It wasn't Sammy, thank God, but it was someone else. Someone whom she hadn't really expected to ever see again, given that the last time she'd seen the woman, Buffy had been in Sunnydale. Cordelia Chase, or a woman who very much resembled her, was sprawled out in the room, dying, and Buffy couldn't let that happen. What happens when the city of angels has no Angel left?
Buffy strode across the room, grabbing a scalpel off of a nearby tray, and she made her way to Cordelia's side. She brought the scalpel to her wrist and slit open the vein. The only way she knew of to save this young woman was what Knox said outside. Vampire blood lets humans heal. She'd heal Cordelia.
Buffy rolled Cordelia onto her back and placed her bleeding wrist near the brunette's mouth, letting blood pool into it. After a few seconds, Cordelia brought her arm up, wrapping it around Buffy's own, pulling it closer to her as she drank from Buffy. After a little bit, Buffy pulled her arm away, and the girl started stirring properly.
"Mmm…." Cordelia pushed herself up a bit. "You… wait… what did you do? What did you do to me, Buffy?"
"Wait… you recognize me?" Buffy asked. "I didn't do anything…"
"No… you did something… I can feel it. I kissed your wrist. What did you do? Why do I know you, Buffy Summers?"
"Nothing," Buffy said. "Leave it… Forget it happened, please. Go back to sleep. When you get up, I'll be gone."
"But…" Cordelia fell forward and back to sleep, thankfully. Buffy walked out of the room. She needed to get Mercurio the medicine so she could go deal with him. She could focus on the fact that Cordelia was here and that Cordelia knew her later. The implications of the situation struck her. At least this isn't a world without shrimp…
Buffy made her way into Mercurio's house, having retrieved some morphine from the hospital after dealing with the local Cordelia. Maybe, just maybe it was possible that there were alternate universes involved, or maybe she'd seen Cordelia around somewhere and incorporated the woman into her hallucinations as a face to use for a friend. Of course, that didn't quite follow with Cordy knowing her. Of course, that could also have been something to do with her blood. Knox hadn't been exactly forthcoming on what it meant to be a ghoul other than his increased vitality, healing, etc. Frankly, the man had reminded her perhaps a bit too much of Owen with his enthusiasm for it. Whoever his vampiric master was, he or she must have had his or her hands full. It's always difficult when the unknowing leave the nest.
Maybe Mercurio would know more about ghoul status, assuming he was any more healed than before. Of course, given that he'd managed to drag himself from wherever Dennis had dumped him, (off the cliff with that fool) Buffy was certain that he'd probably be in somewhat better shape when she managed to get to him, even if he still was on that couch. Buffy pushed open the door to Mercurio's living room, and she frowned. Mercurio laid face down on the couch, unmoving from the bloodstain there, but it looked like a few of his wounds had stopped bleeding altogether. His breathing seemed to be quite a bit steadier as well, but it was possible that the man had passed out rather than deal with the pain.
Buffy took out a bottle of the morphine and a syringe. There really wasn't any helping it. After pulling the sterile syringe out of its packaging, she withdrew some of the morphine from its bottle and moved closer to Mercurio.
"Fleet-footed God guy, you awake?" Buffy frowned. She knew his name. She wanted to say his name correctly, but somewhere between her brain and her mouth, it kept getting changed. It's not like she actually thought the guy was Mercury or Hermes, (which would be kinda neat, mind), but it was almost like a compulsion to not refer to him correctly. "I've got something for you…"
Mercurio stirred on the couch, pushing himself back into a posture that let him look at Buffy. Choosing to ignore the smell of blood, among other unpleasant smells, Buffy injected the morphine into the likely ghoul's arm. Mercurio breathed out a sigh of relief.
"Sweet merciful Christ, that's the stuff," Mercurio said, a genuine smile ending up on his face. "So, you have anything else?'
"The explode-y goodness? Yeah, I've got it." She'd had to do far too much to get it, but she got it.
"Yeah? Did you waste those sons of bitches?"
Buffy felt torn between wincing and preening with pride. The men had deserved everything they got, but she'd lost control. It felt way too good to do that. She wasn't entirely sure what she'd need to do to keep control, and without a sire around, she really didn't have anyone who had the responsibility to teach her. Jack had helped in a limited manner, but it wasn't his job.
"They felt like shark hunting. I used them as bait," Buffy said. Might as well give the illusion that she didn't actually care about killing them. Maybe she wouldn't.
"Good, I hope it was painful. You uh, didn't happen to get my money back, didja?"
Buffy reached into the leather jacket, pulled out Mercurio's wallet and tossed it to him. "There. Try not to lose it again."
"Oh, good… I'll be able to get some new kidneys with this. Thanks, fledge, you're a lifesaver."
"Buffy." She crossed her arms.
"Huh?" Mercurio looked a bit confused.
"My name. It's Buffy."
"Fine. Buffy." Mercurio looked her over. "Wait, weren't you wearing something different earlier?"
"Messy work, dealing with your mess. So, the explosives. What's the what with them?" Buffy just wanted to get this done and over with. Whatever Lacroix had planned, whatever job he needed done, she just wanted it done so she could have the jester out of her hair. Right now, she wasn't so sure she wanted to actually slay the guy, but she was certain that if she had to interact with him much more, that would probably change.
"Ah, right… The astrolite. Basically that stuff's about twice as powerful as TNT. Instant demolition. You want to be really far away when you engage the timer. You need to make a place disappear—a warehouse. It's supposed to be some sort of Sabbat interest."
"So I'm after the sad bats again. Okay. Where do I go?" Buffy cocked her head. The voices seemed to be whispering in unison, but she couldn't make out anything clear at the moment. Not more than a feeling. "Or you… really don't know, do you?"
"Not really. But I know who does. There's a guy, he's like you. I never met him, but I've heard a lot about him through the grapevine. If there's anyone in the city that knows more about it than me, it's him." Mercurio shifted on the couch, trying to push up a little more.
"And do you have a name and location for this man of mystery, oh God of Messengers?" Buffy asked.
"Name, yes. Location… not so much. His name's Heinrich Nest, but it seems like he's in hiding right now for the moment."
"Why?"
"He's managed to piss off Therese… Therese Voerman, you know her?"
"Club owner, right? Asylum? Jeanette's sister?" Buffy tried not to let her anger with the Light Daughter of Janus overshadow any information she might be able to obtain on the other one.
"Yeah. Her. Word on the street says that she and Nest are feuding for some reason, and she's called some sort of blood hunt on him. Nest has gone underground and I don't think he'll come back up 'till Therese calls it off."
Buffy rubbed the bridge of her nose. "So I can't find out where this warehouse is unless I get this feud called off."
"Well… there might be another way," Mercurio said. "Nest supposedly has a group of friends. They might know where to find him. Occasionally they go into the Asylum as well."
"Friends." Who befriends a vampire? Other vampires perhaps? But were they actually friends or where they just allies? "And do you have information on these friends?"
"Not much. They're like you, but they keep to themselves mostly. I wish I could tell you more about them, but I've only heard about them. Your best bet is probably convincing Therese."
Buffy nodded. Nest could probably be helpful, but she needed to get him to the point where he could actually help her. It seemed like she'd be dealing with Jeanette a lot sooner than she'd thought. Maybe she'd be able to figure out just what that vampire did with her friend.
"So, what's your story?" Buffy asked. "Why are you here?"
"Eh, not much to tell. I can get anything that anyone wants at any time… It's something I've always had a talent at, 'til the astrolite anyway. Well, back east, some major shit went down. Big Apple, can't go back. Christ, I hate L.A., but whatta you gonna' do?"
Buffy nodded. "Well, if I need anything, I'll know who to ask. Thank you."
Buffy left Mercurio's house with a destination in mind this time. The night still had some time left yet before she'd have to return to her haven and sleep. She'd head to the Asylum, vent some rage onto Jeanette and then talk to her sister. Therese had to be the more reasonable of the two, and this Nest guy could come out of hiding. Of course, something twigged her about the name. Heinrich Nest. Something was far too familiar about that name. Maybe if she managed to find one of his allies, she'd be able to actually find him, but Mercurio had been spectacularly unhelpful in giving them shape. Masters hide within holes. Under the ground, trapped within.
Buffy glanced along the street as she walked to the Asylum, keeping an eye out for her father's car. When she'd passed it earlier, she'd been worried. Maybe her parents had gone into the club to look for her, and knowing what she did now, she definitely hoped that they'd made it out okay. Given that the car she'd seen earlier, her father's Matrix, no longer sat in the parking spot, she could reasonably assume that they'd given up for the evening. Given that Knox guy had mentioned Sammy asking about her in the club, it was safe to assume that she'd made it home okay the previous night, but Buffy still had a bone to pick with Jeanette along with some questions to ask. Hopefully Sammy had gone home. Buffy didn't want to have to explain her new condition to her friend. Not yet. Not until she had Lacroix off her back.
When Buffy had been at the Asylum as a human, she'd noted the differences in aesthetic between what she'd been to before in her hallucination and the real world, but she'd left with Julia before the club had gotten too crowded. Tonight, however, she was arriving closer to the middle of the night, and she could see the difference. She could feel the difference from the moment she stepped inside. The music thrummed through her, its beat neatly echoing through her body, giving her the approximation of a still-beating heart. While there really weren't all that many more people, they felt like they were more real. Perhaps that came from her new sense, the smells, the tastes, the sounds. The club was full of food, of people, and she could sense them.
Of course, the moment she crossed the threshold into the club proper, she spotted a familiar face, pulling away from the crowd of people. She still had her hair in pigtails, and she wore a red choker. Tonight she wore a white blouse that was open far enough to see the red bra she wore underneath, and she sashayed over toward Buffy on heels that were high enough that they could almost be considered stilts. They showed off her bare legs that poked out of her miniskirt. When she got close to Buffy, she smiled.
"Well, what do we have here? Cutie, I barely recognize you, fresh out of life and in my club… You smell so new, like fresh morning dew made of pineapples and roses on newly planted blossoms. Buffy, right?"
"You remembered," Buffy said, her fingers twitching at her side. Buffy glanced toward the bartender, frowning. He was Kindred as well, and if she just attacked Jeanette here, there was no guarantee he wouldn't join in. No, she needed to be subtler. Decking Jeanette right here would accomplish nothing. "Miss Light Daughter of Janus herself remembers. Do you remember my friend, too? The girl whose neck you were sucking that night?"
"Ooh, yes, she was all dolled up for someone she liked. It was too bad she didn't receive anything in return until I came across her. What were you waiting for with her, anyway? A more open invitation? Let me tell you, gorgeous, that girl was deliciously sexy. We got along just like fire hoses…"
"Fire hoses," Buffy said flatly.
"Wh—"
"You don't have to explain it, Jeanette. What did you do with Sammy?" Buffy asked, crossing her arms. She couldn't let herself get sucked in by this girl, nor could she let Jeanette piss her off enough that she attacked her here and now. No, there'd be a time for that later, and she could feel the power that the other vampire had. It seemed greater than her own, yet not quite.
"Oh… a little of this… a little of that… I think the better question is what didn't we do. That girl was freaky and awesome, and I had her screaming with delight. All… Night… Long… but when she got up afterward, the only thing she could do was worry about her crazy friend who disappeared on her. Now, how could her friend do something like that?" Jeanette asked with a smirk, glancing down at Buffy. "Oh, not that I'm condemning you, cutie. I think you're better off."
Buffy clenched her hands into fists, and very carefully did not take a swing at Jeanette. She couldn't do that to her yet. No matter how much the club owner deserved it. "What happened to her?"
"Oh, Mister McDonald drove her home after speaking with Therese. Speaking of, I really do have some business to attend to. As riveting as this conversation is, and as much as I'd like to do to you, cutie… we'll have to put a rain check on that. Toodles." Jeanette turned from Buffy with a flick of her hair and started toward an elevator in the corner. Judging from what she saw, that had to be what led to the office level. The Light Daughter of Janus consorts with kine and unclean things.
Gritting her teeth, Buffy made her way over to the bar and took a seat. The bartender hadn't seemed to notice her yet, but she was sure he would eventually. Buffy needed to get up to talk with Therese to see about dealing with Nest. She felt someone approaching, but she was still focused on what she wanted to say to the bartender.
"That woman, lass, is just fifty pounds of crazy in a ten-pound bag," a male voice said near her, Irish accent prevalent. Buffy clenched the counter for a second. She recognized that voice, even if the accent was thicker than she'd ever heard from him. "But then, I've always enjoyed the lunatics. Malkavians always seem to be the most interesting conversationalists."
"Angel…" Buffy breathed out as she turned to the man… the vampire. His long dark hair was pulled back into a braided ponytail, likely with some gel to hold it in place. He wore a lightly colored collared shirt and a dark sport jacket with dark slacks. Two buttons of his shirt were undone, revealing the top of his pale chest, which matched his equally pale face. She felt this one's presence, and he felt much like Jack had in power. The one with the angelic face stands before thee. Does he hunt, does he sleep?
"Now that's a new one," the vampire said. "No, no, lass. The name's Liam. You're that new fledge that Julia sired, yeah?"
"… Yes, I am," Buffy said. "She is me. I mean, I am she. And we are we, and here are we with me and… Okay, I'll stop that…"
"Got away with you there, did it?" Liam smiled. "Shame about your sire. Awful shame. And you're already running errands for the Camarilla, eh?"
"The jester prince calls it 'mercy.'" Buffy shrugged. Cordelia was already real here, why not another thing from her hallucination. Even if this wasn't Angel, he was close… "He wishes to consolidate his power with me as an example."
"Mmm… So, what now?" Liam asked.
"I need to talk with Therese Voerman about some sort of blood hunt thingy…"
"On the Ma—on Nest?" Liam asked. "Good luck. I think they're both up there at the moment arguing. You can probably take the elevator up there, lass."
"Buffy." Buffy said. It didn't sound right to have Angel calling her 'lass' when he should know her real name.
"The poof should call you Slayer." Spike's voice echoed around her, but he didn't appear. She looked up to try and see, but he didn't seem to want to appear.
"Right, Buffy. When you're done talking with Voerman, maybe you can come talk with me some more. There are some people I'd like to introduce you to." Liam placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. "Give you a little more perspective on things."
"You'll tell me more about Julia?" Buffy asked.
"If you want," Liam said. "Now, you should probably go while you can still catch her. I'll get you clear with the bartender."
"Thanks a lot…" Buffy said, and she stood, heading to the elevator. It was time to talk to another daughter of Janus. Beginnings and endings, light and dark, smooth and creamy, or is that just peanut butter?
When this finished, Buffy would make sure that Jeanette understood exactly how displeased she was with her. The Light Daughter of Janus didn't need to die, but she definitely needed to suffer a bit. She would. Buffy'd make sure of it.
Buffy wished that there had been stairs. While she wasn't exactly scared of elevators by any means, something about being in an enclosed box spoke to a primal part of her that had nothing to do with being what she was now. When she'd returned to Sunnydale, in the hallucination, from what she'd then thought was Heaven, she'd had to break out of her own coffin and dig her way back to the surface. Even if Sunnydale hadn't actually been real, it had been real to her, and it was at least as real as everything else she'd been experiencing since her embrace. It was easy to see why going anywhere in an enclosed box gave her the wiggins, even if it was to ascend only one floor. It wasn't really a phobia, just a general feeling of unease.
She definitely did not kiss the ground once the elevator opened. That would be undignified.
Still, as she stepped off the elevator, she noted the wood-tiled floors and red painted stucco walls. The walls clearly had seen better days, but overall they looked to be in better shape than the actual club downstairs. Buffy heard two voices coming from a closed door further down the hall. One of the voices, the sweet and manipulative sounding one, clearly was Jeanette which meant that the cold icy voice had to be coming from Therese.
"…why can't you just trust me for once?" Jeanette asked from behind the door.
"Because you always ruin things!" The cold voice accused. "You're irresponsible and what you do with the kine and… others… ugh… Childish."
"Well, you're a control-freak! You never want to have any fun, drive that stick any further up your butt and you'll be paralyzed!"
"You ruin everything, Jeanette! You take delight in doing so! You make it a habit to do everything you can to make my life more difficult!" Therese's voice reminded Buffy a little of Cordy in Queen Bitch mode. She wasn't really sure she wanted to interrupt the family argument, so she'd wait it out. "Sometimes I wish I'd just let you die instead!"
"You bitch!" Jeanette's voice rang out, hysterical, and Buffy heard her crying, running away and then slamming a door further down the corridor. Hearing Jeanette cry gave Buffy a strange sense of satisfaction. Not since her days at Hemery had she heard someone so effectively reduced to tears in a way that Buffy actually enjoyed. The Light Daughter of Janus wears her heart on her sleeve. The Dark Daughter conceals it.
Buffy nodded, and she noted a ring on the floor. Maybe it belonged to someone and she'd have to find them later. She picked it up and pocketed it in her pack before knocking on the door.
"Enter," Therese's voice came through imperiously, and Buffy stepped inside. Buffy nearly had to do a double take on seeing the woman's face. She looked identical to Jeanette, albeit with better kept hair, less crazed make-up, and a pair of glasses that sat on her face. She also wore a sharp businesswoman's suit that only hinted at showing cleavage with its neckline. "Please, come in. I must really apologize for my sister's crassness if it made you uncomfortable at all. She's got a bit of a scandalous personality, but in the club business, it's something that's almost necessary."
Buffy waved it off. "It wasn't her crassness that bothered me, Dark Daughter of Janus, just how she treated my friend the other night."
"The other night…" Therese narrowed her eyes. "The kine that she brought back to her room. My sister, consorting with them. Disgusting. She only does it to anger me, you know. To ruin the reputation I have and ruin my plans."
"That kine is my friend, Dark one," Buffy said, practically growling. "She has a name, Samantha."
"You were kine when you were brought in here, and now you're not. Not since your embrace. You should not allow yourself to be caught up in the affairs of your food," Therese sneered. "Unless you like that… Never mind. I know you were Embraced here, but what brings you back to Santa Monica?"
"The prince's ever-present thumb," Buffy said, and as she blinked her eyes, Spike appeared behind Therese. "He presses me into doing something for him, which requires access to a Kindred named Nest. A Kindred, whom I'm told you want dead."
"Oh, I doubt she wants him dead, Slayer. But letting people think she does? This bitch is cold," Spike said, peering over Therese's shoulder. Buffy chose not to engage him.
"Nest chose to exile himself, I assure you. But there's no reason that I shouldn't hate the loathsome Nosferatu scoundrel. Bloody Nosferatu. They're so… unclean." Therese gave a visible shudder, and Buffy frowned. She'd seen that movie once, and she remembered some of the worst looking vampires she'd seen in Sunnydale. Kakistos, the Master… they'd looked just wrong. Still, so did Clem, and he turned out to be a relatively nice demon. Judging them on the fact that they looked off and were vampires seemed to be hypocritical when she too was a vampire. Nest nests in his nested nest.
Helpful. Buffy cocked her head at Therese. "So, what's the what with this Nest guy? What did he do to you?"
"What didn't he do? He interferes with my affairs. He thinks that just because he has his little knitting circle it means that he has a right to deal with things his way rather than bending the knee to me. The only positive thing I can say about him is his effect on my sister, but even that doesn't last. If you were in my place, would you let Nest compromise your authority? Certainly not. I'd quite like it if I never had to hear that name again."
"Bloody bint is racist." Spike laughed. "That's got to compromise her a little."
"So I take it this means you won't announce the feud over?" Buffy asked.
"Why would I do that? Nest has made it exceedingly hard to gain any standing in my dealings with the Camarilla. He and his partners seem to sabotage my every effort to purchase or invest in any sort of properties, and the other day they ruined a good chance of a partnership in a crucial piece of one. Worse, they have a lawyer on retainer that locked me out of it. Luckily, I have one of my own who will help with the remaining ventures, but one of them in particular has been, to say the absolute least, an ordeal."
"Right, I'm out. I'm not dealing with any bloody real estate discussion." Spike winked out of view at that.
Buffy rubbed the bridge of her nose. Professionalism be damned, she needed Nest out of hiding, and the only way was to deal with this woman. Therese wasn't really any better than her sister, but at least she wasn't trying to taunt her about Sammy. Buffy didn't feel like slaying the Dark Daughter of Janus, nor did she feel like hurting her as of yet.
"Well, maybe I can help," Buffy said suddenly. "I'm good and handy when dealing with anything too ordeal-y."
"Maybe… I suppose that I can put the word out that my grievances with Nest have been swept under the rug if you help me deal with a rather burdensome spirit at a property I'm looking to invest in. Specifically, I'm looking for its removal."
"Wait, I'm not exactly an exorcist-y type of person. I'm more a go in and smashy smashy kind," Buffy said, not even questioning the fact that ghosts exist. Ghosts, mummies, demons, werewolves, leprechauns… Buffy frowned. Leprechauns totally didn't exist. Just like coincidences.
"All I'm asking you to do is to retrieve a personal item of the ghost. Assuming it is a ghost in the Hyperion Hotel. Go in, retrieve a personal item, and come back. I should be able to use it to excise the ghost from its haunt."
Wait. She thought the Hyperion was in LA proper. Now it was in Santa Monica? That had to be a difference from her hallucination to real life.
"What if it's not a ghost?" Buffy asked.
"Then deal with whatever it is and bring me proof that it's dealt with," Therese said. "Then I'll call off the feud. You'll find that dealing with me is on the whole better than dealing with some of the egomaniacs among my peers. So long as you don't cross me, my word is gold."
"Right. I guess I should go and be the one you're gonna call," Buffy said, getting ready to leave.
"Before I forget, the only way to access the area the Hyperion is in at this time of night is through a tunnel in the sewers. You'll need this key to open the gate for the tunnel." Therese pressed a key into Buffy's palm, and Buffy pocketed it, frowning again.
"Sewers… But I just got new shoes…." Buffy practically whined. "Fine, Dark Daughter of Janus, I'll do what I need to do…"
"You'd better," Therese said. "If you'll excuse me, I've got some situations to set straight."
The Dark Daughter of Janus made her way further down the hall, and Buffy reversed herself, pausing only to look up at the painting on the wall of a bald man in a suit next to a pair of twin girls in pink dresses. Their father, perhaps? Maybe Janus was the vampire that sired the both of them, or maybe it had something to do with their being twins. Light and dark are two sides to the same As.
When Buffy finally made it back to the ground floor of the Asylum, Liam almost immediately walked up to her.
"Oh good, the poof's back," Spike commented from behind her. "He looks even more like a poofter than the broody poof. The hair does not do him any favors."
"Buffy, how did the talk with Voerman go?" Liam asked when he was in range.
Buffy shrugged. "She has me doing something for her."
"Well, how about we get out of here to meet with the people I wanted you to meet with, and you can tell us all about it…" Liam suggested, meeting Buffy's eyes. Buffy felt something coming from the other vampire, but as it tried to grasp her mind, it slipped right off. Whatever Liam had tried, it hadn't worked. Not at all.
"Oh, that's it," Spike said. "At least be straightforward about it. Poof can't get it up if he's not in control."
Buffy narrowed her eyes, and her voice came out in a light songlike portion. "Liam, Liam, burning bright, how is it you wish to die this night?"
"Silly Liam, Miss Edith scolds you. Bad. My cousin is strong," an English-accented female voice said as its owner approached Buffy and Liam. Buffy recognized the woman on sight. While her hair was shorter than the last time she'd seen her, she wouldn't forget the beautiful, albeit pale, face. The woman wore a pair of leather pants and a red cardigan though, rather than the silk dresses she remembered seeing her wear.
Spike and Buffy spoke in unison, upon seeing her. "Drusilla…"
"Hello cousin," Drusilla smiled, and Buffy swore she saw the fangs. "The Dark Daughter of Janus sends you into the lion's den with a steak around your neck. We can give you a spear."
"A spear?" Buffy sighed. She'd mostly understood that. It was funny because Drusilla here didn't quite seem as insane as the Dru back in Sunnydale, yet Buffy could tell that the term cousin was correct. Drusilla was definitely a Malkavian. "But that's only good for stabby goodness... It's not much better than a stake."
"But it gives length which helps to push back against the oppressive thumb."
"So many thumbs on me, I wonder if any wear gloves." Buffy answered back.
Dru giggled. "Come, cousin. We must talk about the Dark Daughter's plans."
"All she wants me to do is help with a ghost in the Hyperion Hotel," Buffy said as she allowed herself to be pulled across the club to a booth.
"Well, that'll be a problem," Liam said as they finally reached the booth.
"Why?"
"Because, it isn't a ghost in the Hyperion, lass," Liam said.
"It's a demon." Drusilla laughed.
Author's notes:
I'll try not to take too long on the next chapter, but no promises. This is still fun to write.