Buffy blinked sleepily, her eyes fluttering open to be greeted by the sight of her room bathed in sunlight. She sat up and stretched, feeling much more refreshed than the nights before. She realized, for the first time since they had arrived at the house, she had actually gotten a decent night's sleep. There had been no nightmares last night, nothing had woken her up and she finally slept blissfully. She looked down, seeing she was still dressed in her clothes from the day before and snickered quietly at the fact she had obviously fallen into bed without a care.
She glanced to the other side of her bed and saw it empty. She felt confusion rise up when she saw it unoccupied. Usually if she had a nightmare, Spike would be lying next her having come in when she called for him. She had sensed someone in the room with her the night before and had assumed it was him. The presence she had sensed even in her sleep had been powerful and felt familiar. But if he was not there, had he just checked on her and then returned to his own room?
Stretching again, she thought back to the night before and felt a wave of regret wash over her as she remembered her harsh words to Spike. She could hear him downstairs, pottering around. Deciding to get up and speak to him, she swung her legs out of bed and headed out onto the landing. The delicious aroma of pancakes greeted her nostrils and, finally, her mouth watered at the prospect of food.
Padding downstairs, she turned into the kitchen and saw Spike standing by the stove, flipping said pancake in the pan with a plate of the tasty treats already sitting on the side. She quietly slipped into the room and took a seat on the island. He smirked, glancing at her over his shoulder.
"Morning." She smiled, leaning her chin onto her hand.
"Morning." She answered, "Smells good." She nodded to the pancakes. He chuckled, laying another on the plate, before adding another layer of mix to the pan. "Sorry about last night." He waved her off.
"Don't worry about it." She frowned, not liking how easily he accepted her apology. She had been very harsh with him, taking out her grief out on him when he did not deserve it.
"No, it wasn't fair on you. You've been taking care of me ever since I came back and then I say what I did." She looked down in shame. "You didn't deserve that." He chuckled and she looked up to see him gazing at her over his shoulder.
"Buffy, its fine. Better me than any of the other Scoobies. Since unlike them," he gave her a cheeky smirk, "I can take it." She guffawed, knowing he was hinting at her tendency to hit him on the nose whenever he annoyed her. "So we're good, no worries." She smiled. After finishing another pancake, he turned and got a good look at her for the first time that morning. He could see the difference already
She looked brighter, not quite happy, but brighter. The rings under her eyes had faded slightly and there was less strain in her expression. It seemed as though she had gotten a full night's sleep at last. His lips curled warmly as she tilted her head, frowning under his scrutiny.
"Sleep well?" She inclined her head, with a small smile.
"Very." She admitted. "It feels strange to actually sleep properly for a change. Even before I died," whilst Spike flinched a little at her blunt use of the word, he noticed the matter-of-fact manner with which she spoke, "I wasn't getting enough rest between patrols. So, to actually feel awake is weird." She gave him a smile. "Thank you." He gave her a confused look.
"For what?" A similar look of confusion took hold of her features at his question.
"For helping me sleep." She returned. "I mean, you sat by me while I was asleep, right?" He shook his head.
"I didn't." She blinked as he turned and went back to the pancakes, flipping the fresh one before laying it on the plate. She continued to watch him, perplexed as he laid the pancakes in front of her. She reached for the syrup when Spike handed it to her before he poured himself a glass of blood. She lathered her pancakes in syrup before grabbing her knife and fork.
"What do you mean you didn't?" She inquired, before taking a bite of her breakfast. She hummed, enjoying the taste of food like it was a long lost friend. Spike took a long gulp of his blood before sliding onto the stool opposite her.
"I never came into you room last night." He admitted, slowly. She swallowed her mouthful of pancake.
"But I sensed you. My Slayer senses told me there was someone in the room…"
"There was." He leaned forward, resting his arms on the surface as she frowned at him. "But it wasn't me." She licked her lips, partly to sample to lingering sweetness from her meal, partly out of bafflement.
"Then who was it?" She asked. Spike released a short breath, now came the tricky part. How to explain to the Slayer of current generation that a Slayer from centuries ago had been her room last night whilst she slept. This would either involve her punching him in the nose or the slim possibility of her fainting from shock.
And his nose hoped it was the latter.
"There was a Slayer in your room last night." She gazed at him with wide eyes as she processed the information. The funny thing was, she could see he was not lying. But there was only one other Slayer she knew of and to say she was in no position to be anywhere near her at the moment was an understatement.
"If you're about to tell me Faith was in my room with me, I swear to God, I will hit you for letting her walk out of here." He laughed. It was good to see some of the fire back in her at last.
"No, it wasn't Faith." He held up his hand as she went to interrupt. "She doesn't want me spoiling the surprise so to speak, she'll be back later on today to properly introduce herself." Buffy pouted.
"Oh, come on." He chuckled, shaking his head again.
"No, pet. She wants to speak to you alone and, to be honest, probably best that she does." He smiled at her. "She means no harm and she's very eager to meet you." She nodded, sulkily.
"Fine." He laughed, watching her for a moment.
"How're the pancakes?" He asked. She looked up and gave him a smile through a mouthful. He laughed at the sight. "That good, huh?" She nodded, swallowing her mouthful.
"They're great. Maybe it's because I haven't eaten in a few days but," she moaned into another bite and she sighed happily, "these are seriously amazing." As she swallowed her mouthful, he smiled and she gave him a confused grin. "What?" He shrugged.
"I just love watching you eat." She raised a brow, but her cheeks glowed with a hint of red. And her response caused him to snort with laughter.
"Freak."
…
A few hours later…
Spike watched from the sitting room as Buffy sat outside in the garden. She had asked to go outside a few minutes, well more phrased a statement in the form of a question when she opened the backdoor to head outside regardless. She sat down on the grass, her back against a tree and leant her head to side, enjoying the breeze in her hair.
Spike wondered if this was part of her healing process, feeling the sensation of nature around her again. He could only wonder just how that must feel in comparison to heaven. The poet in him envisioned the stereotype: lush fields as far as the eye could see, beautiful flowers and endless sunlight lighting the angel's playground as Buffy lay in her eternal paradise. But the realist in him knew that there were no words that could describe heaven so easily.
And the stereotypical image of the immortal utopia probably did not come close to doing it any justice.
He sighed, leaning against the window frame as he watched Buffy close her eyes and run her fingers through the grass. Even with her calling being what it was, regardless of how much time she spent in the dark, that was where she belonged. Sitting in the light of day, away from the creatures of the night.
"Good evening, William." He jumped and whipped around at the familiar sensual voice. His eyes were greeted with the sight of Mina Harker. She was dressed much the same as she had been the night before: blue blouse, dark jeans, stylish boots and her fiery hair falling half-way down her back. She gave him a cheeky smile. "What's this? The Slayer of Slayers caught off his guard?" He glared at her.
"If it hadn't already stopped beating, you would've given me a heart attack." She laughed, stepping up next to him to observe Buffy as well. He shifted his gaze back his Slayer as they stood in silence for a moment.
"She seems better." Mina pointed out.
"She has you to thank for that." Spike answered, scratching the back of his head. "It's amazing what a good night of sleep and decent meal can do." She nodded, eyes still on her Slayer sister. She could already see the improvement to her. Even though she had been sleeping the night before, Mina had seen the strain she was under.
She was glad to have relieved her burden somewhat.
"May I?" She inquired, tilting her head in the direction of the Garden. Spike shrugged at her request to approach Buffy.
"Don't need my permission, Slayer." He pointed out. He then jerked his head to the living room. "I'll give you some privacy." She gave him a grateful smile before he turned and headed to the other end of the house. She watched him go, liking how respectful he was being. Turning her gaze back to Buffy, she took a breath and stepped outside.
Buffy opened her eyes, sensing a presence with her in the garden. She glanced up and saw an extremely beautiful woman approaching her. Rising to her feet, she tensed as she felt the power emanating from mysterious woman. Whilst she sensed no hostile intentions, she was immediately on guard. The aura she could feel was incredibly familiar.
The woman came to a stop before her and the two of them gaze at each other for a long moment. Then a smile formed on the new arrival's face.
"We meet at last." Buffy frowned at the greeting, cocking her head to one-side and scrutinizing the woman before her.
"Do I know you?" She got a shake of the head for a response.
"No. My name is Mina Harker." Buffy's eyes widened slightly as she took in the woman before her. Whilst she would be the first to admit reading was not her strong point, even she knew of Mina Harker.
"As in Dracula's Mina Harker?" She pressed. Mina nodded with a laugh as Buffy gaped a little. "Okay…so…you're a real person?" That got another laugh.
"You spend your life fighting vampires, demons and Hell Gods and you find it hard to believe that a woman out of a novel is real?" She shook her head, her lips pursed together cheekily. "There's something wrong with that image." Buffy blushed. "Especially since you supposedly met Dracula." She blinked at that.
"Supposedly?"
"The vampire you encountered is nothing more than a cheap pretender, trying to be someone he barely understands." Mina shook her head ruefully, stepping around Buffy to stand under the tree she had previously been sitting against. "Let's just say the real 'Prince of Darkness' is someone else entirely." Buffy followed her movement, her mind working overtime to try and figure Mina out.
She moved so smoothly and with such an elegant confidence that even Buffy was taken by it. But there was something else, something…deeper.
"Okay, seriously, are you sure we've never met?" Buffy asked, folding her arms and leaning her weight to one-side. "Because I really get the impression that I know you." Mina chuckled, turning to face her.
"You do know me, from a certain point of view." She answered, reaching behind her. Buffy's eyes widened when she pulled her stake from her belt. With an expertise that seemed so natural Mina twirled the stake in her hand, much in the same way Buffy herself did. Mina's light green gaze watched Buffy's response as her arms unfolded and her mouth opened slightly in surprise. "Right now, you probably feel like you're looking in a mirror." She stashed the stake back in its holster as Buffy swallowed.
It was impossible. It had to be.
"You're a Slayer, the one who was in my room last night." Buffy breathed. Mina nodded as her fellow Slayer shook her head in disbelief. "How…?"
"I'm not your typical Slayer, Buffy." Mina stated, smoothly. Her mouth curled slightly as she spoke. "I suppose you can call me 'The Eternal Slayer.'" Buffy shook her head slightly, her mind reeling.
"But…in order for another Slayer to be called…"
"The one before must die." Mina finished coolly. Her mouth curved sardonically as she took in the young woman's shocked features. "You're not the only one who has been brought back to life, Buffy."
Looking at Mina now, Buffy saw it. The burden that Mina bore, the burden all Slayers bore. The duty that they had to perform that was to maintain the balance between good and evil. To make sure one did not overshadow the other. She could see that the Eternal Slayer had carried that duty with her throughout her long life. And that that calling had been the both the death and the rebirth of her.
"Then how…are you…here?" Buffy managed. Mina took a step forward, her head dropping a little so her eyes were hidden.
"I was sent back by the Powers to keep the forces that are beyond the current Slayer's reach at bay." She raised her head, her eyes glowing with the wisdom of her long life. "As well as to keep their greatest warrior on the right path. You'll probably meet him soon." She added as an afterthought.
"Okay," Buffy muttered the word out slowly before pushing on, "then why're you here?"
"To help you." Mina answered. Buffy snorted.
"You can't help me." She grumbled.
"Yes, I can." Okay, now Buffy was getting annoyed. Mina had no right to assume she could just turn up and help her, regardless of who or what she was.
"Look, no offence, but I seriously doubt you can help me right now." She snapped. The Eternal Slayer just watched her. "You have no idea what I've been through." She added, walking past her to head back into the house, Mina following her movement.
"Oh but I do, Buffy." With an exasperated sigh Buffy turned around, folding her arms and pursing her lips.
"Really?" She returned, sarcastically. Mina slowly came towards her.
"Like you, I've tasted the joy and peace of heaven." Buffy's angry expression waned as she saw the truth in Mina's eyes. "Like you, I had to leave it behind." Mina stopped in front of her. "And," she opened her palm and slowly raised her hand so it as between them, "like you," Buffy's eyes widened when the Eternal Slayer's palm began to glow, much like hers had done on the night of her resurrection, "I brought a little something back with me."
Buffy stared at the glowing hand between, her eyes flicking momentarily to Mina's serious face before flicking back. It was the same energy she had felt, she could sense it. And it frightened her yet also reassured her that she was not the only one. Tentatively, she reached out towards Mina who watched her carefully. After a moment's hesitation, the image of Spike's burnt skin appearing in her mind, she laid her palm on Mina's.
There was no pain, no burning sensation. Just a feeling of warmth spreading through her. She took a shaky breath, the pleasant feeling washing through her body as she met Mina's gaze. The Slayer before her gave her a gentle smile.
"Like you, Buffy," Mina said softly, glancing at her glowing fingers, "I've been touched by heaven." Buffy gazed at her, stupefied beyond words. Trying to slow her thoughts and calm her heart, she licked her lips.
"What…what is it?" She asked. Mina gave her a smile, a dazzling and gentle smile before she answered.
"It is a gift.
…
"Willow, are you sure that'll work?" Xander questioned as he gazed at his friend. They were sitting in the Magic Shop and had just finished discussing the situation with Buffy and Willow had suggested something. Make Buffy forget about heaven. That way she would have little reason to be depressed and she would also see that being around Spike was wrong, especially when she had friends who cared about her. "I want Buffy back as much as you do, but are you sure about this?" Willow gave him a look.
"You and I both know that if Buffy would see just how bad it is to be around Spike if she didn't have a reason to think he was looking out for her." She stated, dropping her eyes back to the spell book. It was a long shot but it could work. "If she only remembers the time before heaven and not the in-between to then and now, she'll come back and we'll have our Buffy again."
"And I'm all for that…but what if it goes wrong?" He questioned. In truth, he did not see anything wrong with the idea. As long as Buffy was away from Spike, that was fine with him. "I want her away from Spike as much as you do, but if it goes wrong…"
"It won't go wrong, Xander." She cut him off, irritably. People were always questioning her ability and it was getting tiresome. She could handle it, she already proven how good with magic she was. She had made a mistake with Buffy, but she could fix it. She knew she could. "Trust me, we'll have Buffy back before you know it." Xander nodded. As usual, his hatred for Spike was clouding his judgement.
"Okay, so how do we…?" They both looked up as the door to the shop opened. And Tara came striding in. They were both surprised to see her, too surprised to notice look of abject fury on her face.
"Tara!" Willow exclaimed standing up. She was hoping to see her today, it would good to see if her spell had worked and they could put their issues behind them. "Hey, I was hoping to you would…" She never got to finish.
The sound of skin cracking against flesh echoed through the room as Willow's head snapped to the side. Xander gaped as she raised her hand to her cheek, eyes watering from the sting of the slap that Tara had just given her. She looked up in shock, only to see Tara's furious, tear streaked face glaring down at her.
"Jesus, Tara…" Xander began.
"You charmed me?!" Tara shrieked, her body shaking under the magnitude of her emotions. "You put a spell on me?! How could you do that to me, Willow?!" She demanded. Willow's trapped look only served to fuel her anger. When she had found the bramble that Willow must have slipped into her room using magic, she had been heartbroken and furious. Never had she thought Willow was capable of that.
"Tara, I don't…" Willow began but the words died in her throat when Tara shoved the Lethe's Bramble in her face.
"Lethe's Bramble, Willow! Did you really think I wouldn't recognize it?!" She shook her head harshly. "It's even worse that Dawn actually had to remind me that we had that argument last night, but I can't remember what was even said, yet alone what it was about." She bit her mouth, trying to keep more tears from spilling free. "You took away my memory…how could you…?" she trailed off, her voice quivering too much for her to speak. Willow reached for her as Xander watched awkwardly, but Tara shoved her away. "Don't touch me!"
"Tara, I was only trying make things right!"
"You can't do that with magic!" Tara snapped, swiping at her eyes to get rid of the tears. "Making things right means you talk it through, you reach a compromise. You don't force your will onto somebody just because they say something you don't like!"
"Hey, hold on now." Xander came in, about to defend Willow. Tara was overreacting just a bit, okay so Willow had done a spell on her but she was only trying to make things better.
"It wasn't like that…" Willow began again, desperately trying to plead her case. She was only trying to make things good between them again.
"You stole my memory from me." Tara shook her head, looking at her ex-girlfriend like she had never known her at all. "You took away my memories, you took away my choice to be angry with you. You might as well have raped me." Willow stumbled back as if she had been physically struck, gasping at those words, unable to believe that her actions were anywhere close to such a horrendous action.
"Hey! That's not fair, Tara!" Xander snapped, coming forward to put his hand on Willow's shoulder. "I know she did something wrong, but it was just a mistake…"
"Don't you dare, Xander!" Tara shot at him, angered at his defense of her actions. "A mistake is something that you admit to and know it's accidental. A mistake is not stealing someone's memories because you don't like what they're saying." She suddenly saw the spell book on the table and realized that they were planning on doing the same thing again. She snatched the book up and ripped out the page, much to dismay of the two in front of them. "And by the look of things, you were planning to do the same again. To Buffy, I'd wager." Both of them glanced at the shred of paper in Tara's hand, swallowing nervously.
"Tara, you're angry, I get that." Xander started, "but we're just trying to help Buffy see where she needs to be." He licked his lips as she glared at him, holding the ripped page up and in between them. "I know Willow's done wrong by you…"
"That's funny," Tara sneered, "just a second ago, you were saying it was a mistake." She shook her head, her mouth curled in anger. "You're unbelievable."
"Please. Just give back that page and we can put this all behind us." Xander tried again. When she remained still and silent, only staring at him angrily, Willow spoke up.
"Tara, put that down and we can talk. I know you're angry but I can fix this…I need to fix this, that way Buffy can…" it was those words, 'fix this' that crossed the line for Tara. There was no fixing this, no fixing Buffy and certainly not what she had done to her. Even as Tara's heart broke in two at what that meant, she also knew it was right.
"Incendo." At that single Latin word, the paper in Tara's hand burst into flames. As Willow and Xander watched in horror at that, she dropped the burning rag to the floor. As their eyes followed the tiny ball of flame, she stood before them resolved in her decision even as it pained her to do it.
"What the hell was that?!" Xander demanded. She just gazed at him.
"That was me doing the only I can do." She answered, quietly. "I can't let you play around with Buffy's memories or anyone else's again, Willow. And I can't let you encourage her either, Xander." She stated calmly, even as it took everything she had not to break down in front of them. "Buffy wouldn't and doesn't want to forget heaven, why would she?" She looked between and shook her head at Xander's anger and Willow's scandalized expression. They were so caught up in their own little worlds that they saw nothing else. "As of right now, neither of you are welcome in Buffy's home anymore. You're not allowed into the house without my or Dawn's express permission. And Willow," she waited to Willow's nervous gaze met hers before she finished, "it's over." She turned to go as Willow's eyes widened in disbelief and sorrow, unable to stand being around them anymore.
"Tara!" She exclaimed, dashing forward a few steps, "Wait, I'm sorry…" Tara whirled around, her eyes blazing with anger once again.
"Sorry? You're sorry?!" She demanded incredulously. "Fuck your sorry!" Both of them flinched at Tara's words. She had never cussed around them before, this was something they had never expected. "You messed with my mind, you stole something from me you had no right to. No amount of 'sorry' will ever make up for that!" With that she stormed out of the shop and into the night, leaving Xander to try and comfort the now devastated Willow.
She lost track of how long she walked and how far, but eventually Tara came to a stop in a small park and she realized she was unable to go any further. She slumped against a wall, the moisture in her eyes finally breaking free from the dams she had held together and she collapsed into tears. As her body was wracked with sobs, she slowly slid to the floor and dropped her face into her hands.
She wailed into her palms, the ramifications of the events that had transpired in the last half-an-hour finally falling upon her. She felt empty both at the fact her trust had been so utterly broken and how her mind had been so utterly violated. And what was worse: it had been done by someone she had loved so dearly. As the distraught witch continued to cry, her chest heaving in her grief, she failed to notice the footsteps that approached her carefully.
Even when two booted feet came to a stop just next to her, she did not notice them
"A lady should never walk alone at night," her head shot up with a gasp, finally acknowledging the presence that stood next to her. She looked up to see the handsome features of Alucard, his icy blue eyes shining with concern as he gazed at her softly.
"There's no telling who she might come across."
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