Bonded

Chapter 10

Buffy and Faith pulled themselves to an abrupt halt at the bottom of the stairs, dropping all that they were carrying instinctively to free up their hands. Instantly their bodies stiffened, going on the alert as they stared at the blonde, slightly smirking hell god blocking their path. As usual, Glory was clad in a tight, low-cut dress that would undoubtedly not hinder her movements in the slightest…

Oh shit, oh holy shit… Buffy thought almost frantically as she unwillingly sucked in her breath, wanting to both fight and run, to find her mother and Dawn and also to keep them out of Glory's sight… and where were they? Did they know she was here? She hadn't hurt them, had she…she hadn't…

"Hello, girls," Glory said in a tone that almost could have been described as breezy, if it weren't for the obvious, intense anger in her eyes. She shifted her weight slowly, putting her hand on her hip as she smiled at them sardonically. "I'd engage in the usual human pleasantries, but seeing as I'm not human, and I really don't care about being pleasant… I don't' see why I should have to participate in one of your stupid rituals. I think we'd all prefer if I'd just cut straight to the chase here, don't you think?"

She took a step closer to them, smiling in a way that was somehow both friendly, and yet very, very pissed… and when she spoke again, Glory's voice reflected the same sentiments. Her tone was soft, but also very dangerous…

"You see, girls, when I sent out my snake a couple of days ago, it never returned to me. I waited and waited for it, and it never came… and when I went out LOOKING for it, I found out that SOMEONE had chopped it up into little bloody pieces," she said slowly, menacingly, and though Buffy could feel how stiff Faith was beside her, she could not tell if this were from anger, fear, or both. "Someone murdered my snake, so he never did get a chance to tell me about the key… seems rather convenient, don't you agree?"

Glory took another step closer to them, her voice dropping even lower, turning into a near hiss. Though Buffy and Faith didn't move, both were wondering uneasily why she was moving, whether they should be attacking- or escaping.



"SOMEONE killed my snakes, girls… and SOMETHING tells me that it was YOU- the SLAYERS," she spat, her eyes narrowing suddenly and sharply, eyebrows drawing together. "You didn't' want it to find my key, to come back and tell me about it, so YOU stopped it… and you know what that makes me think? It makes me think that YOU know where the key is… it makes me think that you know WHAT it is…"

Buffy could feel her features freezing. She knew all too well, especially in light of what Anya had shared with them about her, that Glory was not going to simply state her suspicions and leave. No, she was going to stick around, she was going to do what she could to find the key… to get out of them where and what the key was…

Dawn… where WAS Dawn? Was she okay, did she know Glory was here- did Glory know Dawn was there? She didn't know that Dawn was the key… but that didn't mean that she wasn't able to find out or that Dawn might somehow give herself away if Glory found her…

Buffy could hear the slight change in Faith's breathing and knew she was having the same thoughts… she stepped slightly closer to her, hoping that together they could keep Glory distracted, keep her focus on them, so maybe Dawn could hide or escape. God… where WAS she, where was-

"Oh, you think so?" Faith said cockily, raising and eyebrow and sneering, even as Buffy knew she was subtly looking over Glory's shoulder, trying to think of a way to catch her off guard, to hit her and make an escape into the kitchen. "You mean you can think, Miss Gucci? To be so down on humans, you're really kind of a label whore, you know that? Too bad you can't pull off the look- maybe if you lost a few pounds…"

Glory's eyes narrowed; she looked almost feral in that moment, hateful, like a cat about to pounce upon particularly infuriating prey.

"Oh, I THINK, little girl… and now I want to share."

Quite suddenly, she seized Faith by the shoulders, her fingers digging harshly into her skin. She did not shake her or throw her, but merely pushed her face up close to the brunette's startled, quickly infuriated eyes. Buffy's quick attempts to peel her hands off Faith and shove her away did not move in her in the slightest, to her panic. If Glory saw Dawn- if she somehow found out who she was- how would she ever stand a chance?



"I'm going to ask you again," Glory said in a tone that was almost pleasant… even spoken through gritted teeth. "Where. Is. My. Key."

Over her shoulder to Buffy, who was pulling her arms and shoulders with increasing, if somewhat foolish, anger, she called out casually, "Keep that up and I just might let you see how VERY much I'm not in the mood for this- your little girlfriend here would make my point pretty clear…"

Buffy took her hands off Glory immediately, knowing that she would not be bluffing. Even as she watched them closely, ready to hit Glory with all she had if she did anything to hurt Faith, she felt so helpless… for there really did seem to be nothing she could do.

"I. Don't. Know." Faith said through gritted teeth, in the exact same tone that Glory had. She looked Glory as close to in her eyes as she could get in her position defiantly, as if daring her to challenge her response, even as they both knew she would…

Glory stared at her darkly, seeming to be trying with her eyes to bore through Faith into her mind. For a few moments Buffy was suddenly terrified, certain that Glory would do exactly that, would 'mind-suck' Faith into blankness out of anger and frustration at her defiance. But she didn't', for whatever reason… probably, Buffy thought, because she was afraid that if Faith DID know, her knowledge would be lost to Glory if Glory allowed her mind or body to be too badly harmed.

"Oh yeah?" she said back to Faith, her voice deadly quiet and dangerous. "If that's true, SLAYER… then you won't mind me having a little look around, right?"

At that, Glory released Faith abruptly, shoving her back against Buffy so that both girls stumbled, almost falling. Buffy's arms locked instinctively around Faith's waist in a fashion that was both protective, to keep her close and reassure them both, and practical, to keep them from falling over at the impact of her weight. She had barely done this before Glory had stalked out of the room, heading straight for the living room and kitchen.

Releasing Faith hurriedly, her heart leaping up her throat in alarm, Buffy took off after her, Faith a step behind. Obviously Glory hadn't seen Dawn and Joyce yet, or she would have been harassing them too… unless she'd already hurt them. While she and Faith were up there screwing around, laughing and kissing each other, she could have been down there with them,she could have hurt them, she could have-

No! NO, she couldn't think of that- no-

To her relief, as Buffy and Faith burst into the kitchen a few seconds later, barely catching themselves from slipping on the wet floor, they saw Joyce sitting at the kitchen table, seeming perfectly fine, if bewildered. Glory was standing in the middle of the floor, looking about in frustration at everything in the kitchen from the salt shakers to the window, clearly none the wiser as to where and what her desired key was.

But where WAS it- where was Dawn?! Buffy and Faith looked about frantically…but the fact remained that they simply did not see her. Had she run out the room, gone outside, maybe, before Glory came in? Was she hiding? Glory didn't seem to know that she had been there at all…

"Er… I'm afraid I don't' know who you are, or what you're doing standing here in my kitchen at this hour," Joyce said to Glory in a polite but baffled voice, giving her a tight little smile. "If there isn't some kind of emergency at hand, or if you aren't my daughters' friend, then I will have to ask you to leave…"

As Buffy and Faith both looked at Joyce incredulously then, Buffy thought at first that Joyce was sincere, that she truly didn't' realize who Glory was and so was acting accordingly. But as she met her mother's eyes, it became quickly apparent to Buffy that she did… Joyce Summers knew very well who the woman in her kitchen must be, and what it was that she wanted. Of course she was playing dumb… it was the smartest thing for her to do.

She knows where Dawn is, Buffy realized, and her relief at this was strong, almost overwhelming enough to cause her to sag with gratitude against Faith so near her. She knows… she knows, she's safe, she's just protecting her. She must have seen or heard us with Glory somehow, and she hid Dawn…

She tried not to look around the room, to give Glory ideas as she thought of where Dawn might be. The laundry room? In the food pantry, which was like a small room- under the sink? In the closet? Outside? There were only so many places someone her size could fit… Buffy hoped that Faith understood the same as she did, that she would not look around the room either.

Glory completely ignored Joyce's words to her; she didn't appear to notice the water all over the kitchen, but then, she hadn't noticed or cared that Buffy and Faith were wet either. Obviously, the only thing on her mind right now was the key… the key, and how to get her hands on it.

Her eyes darting about the kitchen, Glory's scowl deepened, and she only seemed to grow more frustrated. Letting out a little growl, Glory stalked into the living room for a few moments, looking around it rapidly. Coming back into the kitchen hurriedly, she made her way over to Joyce, who had just stood, starting to head over to Buffy and Faith. Knocking them both back against the sink with an impatient sweep of her arm, Glory grabbed Joyce, locking one arm tight around her waist, pinning her arms down, and the other partly around her neck. She turned toward the girls aggressively as Joyce's eyes widened, backing away from them with Joyce as her proffered threat.

"So…you're still thinking you don't know where my key is?" she said harshly, holding Joyce hard against her as she backed further out of their range, toward the doorway to the living room. "Does THIS give your memory a little jolt, maybe?"

She squeezed Joyce's neck, not hard enough to actually choke her, but enough that her eyes bulged slightly, and she gave a little cry of pain. Buffy stiffened, feeling her jaw tighten and her face heat with anger, but it was Faith who reacted immediately.

Throwing herself forward, Faith launched herself at Glory, all hot rage and righteous fury… but still holding Joyce to her casually, Glory kicked out one foot, catching Faith in her solar plexus. Faith flew across the room, smashing into the kitchen table and actually breaking it as she fell to the floor. She wasn't seriously injured, but she was clearly in pain, her breath knocked out of her. She wouldn't be able to get back up for a little while…

As Buffy gasped sharply, calling out Faith's name in horror, she didn't know what to do, who to go to… there was her mother, uninjured but currently in Glory's vengeful grasp. There was Faith, struggling to draw breath in the broken remnants of the table, her face pale and stunned with her pain. And there was Dawn… somewhere there was Dawn, and Buffy could not let Glory find her, could not let her get to her, above all else…

"Listen up, CHILD," Glory snapped, her rather Valley Girl voice sounding vicious now, almost unrecognizable. "I don't think you get how serious I am. I want my key. I don't' care what I have to do to get it… or what I have to do to your little friends, your little family, do you understand? So now that that's all clear to you… where is my key?"

She gave Joyce a little shake to emphasize her point, her hand still around her neck. Buffy wanted to rip Glory's hand off her, to simply twist her head off her shoulders and throw her body 

hard enough against the wall to dent it inward… but both would be impossible, and any attempts would result in Glory inflicting damage upon her, her mother, or Faith.

Still, better not to show how helpless she felt… better to be confident, to act as if she knows exactly what to do, how to defend herself and her loved ones…

Buffy looked Glory straight in the eye, putting all the steel and aggression she had in her tone and expression as she tried to sound very, very sure of herself. "You get your hands off my mother and get out of my house, or I'll-"

"You'll WHAT, little girl?" Glory sneered back at her, eyebrows arching in amusement. She wasn't intimidated in the slightest. "You're just a SLAYER- what is it YOU think you can do to ME, a GOD? What CAN you do to me- nothing! But maybe you'd better think real hard about what I can do to you, to all your fragile little human friends…"

She looked down pointedly at Joyce, who she was still holding hostage against her, and then over at Faith, who was standing up now, but still seeming to be concentrating on normalizing her breathing. Faith was not making a move toward Glory again, yet at least, and for that small favor Buffy was thankful. She didn't' want or need Faith getting herself hurt any worse right now.

Still looking Glory in the eye, keeping her voice low and as menacing as she could get it, though she knew deep down that it would do nothing, Buffy said to Glory sharply, "Get the hell out of my house. You're not getting your key here, so you better start looking elsewhere if you want it so badly, huh?"

Glory's eyebrows raised, and she smiled incredulously, actually giving off a dry little chuckle as she continued to hold Joyce against her. Joyce was staying quiet and still, but her eyes darted from her daughter to Faith rapidly, worry, fear, and dread flashing across their surface. She was very pointedly looking at nothing but the two girls- probably, Buffy realized, because she didn't' want to inadvertently give away where Dawn was…

"Oh, you think so, huh?" Glory replied, her tone as amused and humoring as her expression. "A little touchy, are we… you like to play it tough, but you get all huffy when the stakes are raised. Oh, I'll leave your house, SLAYER… but I'm not leaving YOU. I'll be here all the time… you're gonna see me in every corner, everywhere you look, in the faces of all your little friends… in the faces of each other. You're going to look into your girlfriend here's eyes, and all you'll see is me… and I'll get my key from you. You can count on that, SLAYER."



And with that, Glory deliberately took Joyce's head with the arm that had been locked around her waist… and still holding her neck with her other hand, she jerked her head to one side, snapping it with a horrible cracking noise that for a few moments, stopped both the Slayers' hearts…

Joyce's eyes bulged, and as her head fell, heavy, loosely lolling to the side, her neck broken, Glory let go of her casually, letting her fall to the floor at her feet in a puddle of water. Joyce lay there in a crumpled heap, unblinking… it could not have been more obvious to anyone in the room that she was dead.

Glory only stayed for a split second after she had killed her, just long enough to watch the blood drain from the girls' faces, to see the stark horror and shock sink into their eyes… and with a self-satisfied grin, she was gone, vanishing as abruptly as she had come. Which was a good thing… because not even three full seconds after she was gone, shrill screaming filled the air.

"NOOO! MOM…MOM, NO, MOM!"

It was coming from the kitchen pantry, a small, walk-in closet with a white door with slits in it, a door that, if one were hiding inside it, could easily peek out through between the slits and see what was going on. As soon as they heard it, the girls knew for sure where Dawn had been,where Joyce had hurriedly hidden her… and that she had seen the entire terrible scene.

Buffy couldn't move, couldn't think… this was Dawn all over again, Dawn bleeding in the bathroom as she stood immobile, and she could not bring herself to help… only this wasn't Dawn, this wasn't the same thing at all, no de ja vu. This was her mother… this was her mother, and she was dead. Glory had killed her…

She could hear Dawn screaming, her voice so raw and piercing in its grief and horror that Buffy knew she would be barely able to make a sound later in the day. She heard Faith's loud, painful intake of breath, heard her hoarse cry of denial as she ran to the older woman's unmoving form. She heard Faith's harsh sobbing, saw her shoulders heave with the violence of her crying as she pulled Joyce's head into her lap, trying to straighten out her neck, as if she could somehow undo it, make it right again.

"No…no, no, oh fuck, fuck, that fuckin' bitch… you can't do this, you can't fuckin' DO this!! Nooo…no…"



She saw and heard everything, and yet somehow it seemed unreal to her, as if it had nothing to do with her and her life. Somehow it all seemed very far away…

Leaving the kitchen, Buffy walked with slow, deliberate steps, carefully avoiding the water puddles, and made her way into the kitchen. Picking up the phone, she stared at it for a moment, not quite remembering what it was she had intended to do. As she carefully dialed 911, she felt light-headed, unsteady, as if any moment the ground would literally, as well as figuratively, give way underneath her…