Disclaimer: Joss Whedon created the Buffy and Angel characters and settings. I own only the plot and this particular AU.
X X X X X
Wesley had never taken extensive training in spell casting. Watchers were expected to know magic, to know its effects and how to counter them, and how to perform certain rituals on occasion. But Wesley had never really gone beyond that.
Still, for the moment at least, he was the second most experienced person here, not counting Willow, whose opinions were distinctly unreliable, which is why he was here and not hitting the books about the Scythe.
It felt odd to be doing research with Rupert Giles and have Giles treat him as an equal, considering the way their previous relationship had ended. Had circumstances been different, he might have speculated as to why. As it was, he knew why, unfortunately.
At the moment, he was reading through a spellbook, while Giles was trying to contact various higher beings, so far with no luck.
After the third such attempt in about two hours -- in which he'd tried to call the minor god Espada, who was the deity of weaponry in all its forms -- Giles came over and said, "Any luck?"
"I've found the right general section of the correct book," Wesley said. "I'm paging through spells on how to tell the history of an item. So far, though, all the spells I've found either require some incredibly rare ingredient, a human sacrifice, or tell us far more about the object than we'd want to know."
"How so?" Giles asked.
"Imagine someone writing your biography and starting with the first fish to walk on land." Then he handed over the book. "Perhaps you'll have better luck."
Giles took the book from Wesley's hands and began to hurriedly page through it. Wesley, in the meantime, started gathering up the books and the summoning devices, keeping aside one on methods of viewing past events. This one was far better organized, and he was able to locate a couple of basic spells within ten minutes or so. He marked their place in the book and began researching a third when Giles said, "Found it! All we need is five people and a diagram drawn with something green."
"That shouldn't be too hard to locate," Wesley said. "If necessary, we can use a permanent marker. It isn't as though we're going to be back here very often." He looked around. "This is kind of the last hurrah for the Hyperion."
"Yes," Giles said. "I understand you're taking over the local branch of Wolfram & Hart. Are you certain this is the right course of action?"
"No," Wesley said. "But Angel is. And if he turned evil again, rest assured, I'd be the first one to tell you."
"I'm not so much worried about blatant evil as I am in its ability to slowly corrupt," Giles said. "I've seen it happen. With Willow, once upon a time. And Faith."
"I'm not entirely sure what convinced Angel," Wesley said. "I know that the promise of their finest physicians to care for Cordelia has something to do with it."
"Cordelia?" Giles said. "What happened to Cordelia?"
"I guess in all the confusion no one got around to telling you," Wesley said. "While you've been dealing with the first we had to deal with a goddess named Jasmine who wanted to, essentially, enslave the world and make it a paradise. She accomplished this by possessing Cordelia and forcing the poor woman to give birth to her. Cordelia, unfortunately, has been in a coma ever since." He paused. "You do realize I'm only giving you the briefest of summaries. I can tell you at greater length if you'd like, but now really isn't the time."
"No," Giles said. "Damn. While Cordelia and I never completely got along, I always felt she had many admirable qualities. I sincerely hope she recovers fully."
"As do we," Wesley said. "In any event, I have also located a couple of time-viewing spells should we need to see the actual events surrounding what happened in the Hellmouth with the Scythe. I realize you may not want to."
"May not want is far too mild a term," Giles said. "I would sooner watch my own arm being sliced off. Still, if it's necessary, I will do it."
"Shall we go downstairs?"
"Let's."
X X X X X
Andrew looked away from the screen for a moment. The lovely Fred -- beautiful woman and she loved comics, under other circumstances he'd have been in Heaven -- was taking a break, trying to engage Willow in conversation and not having much luck.
But Anya had died in front of him. And the heroic Spike had perished saving the world. And the brave Buffy and the redemption-seeking Faith, so much like Xena --
No. It trivialized Faith to do that. And Faith was not trivial. None of those lovely, wonderful, courageous women were trivial.
They were real, and they were heroes.
And they were dead. They'd died and he was still alive.
He'd be lying if he said he hadn't been tempted just to kill himself over the last day or so. The only thing that kept him from doing it is that he knew his path wasn't done yet. He needed to redeem himself. And no matter whether everyone else around here hated him for living, he had to keep doing it.
But he was grateful to Dawn for making the effort to come up and draw him out. He knew they still blamed him; he still blamed himself. But he appreciated that she was willing to lie to try to make him feel better.
And when he found out that the amazing Kennedy and Willow were in need of assistance, of course he had to put aside his own problems to help.
That's what people searching for redemption did.
And he liked them.
So, anyway, they'd found the original website and had it set aside and now, after Fred had found another one, he was reading up on how magickal weapons of great power could be used as the focal point for spells. He thought he understood it, but he was more of an expert at demonology than actual conjuring. So he called Fred over -- who it turned out was an expert in physics and the sciences.
Between the two of them, using his knowledge of magic and her knowledge of the laws of the way the world worked, they were able to come up with a working theory.
When Giles and Wesley came downstairs, they came over to see what everyone had found. After Xander said, "Sorry, Giles, I got nothing," and Dawn basically shook her head and said that what she was reading would be more useful after it was all over, it was Andrew and Fred's turn.
""Basically," Fred said, "What I think happened in this case is some kind of blowback. Like, the spell was so powerful that even though Willow was done its effects were still being felt throughout the world by all those Potential Slayers y'all were trying to activate. So when they all died at once downstairs part of the spell came rushing back through the Scythe -- where it affected Kennedy -- and back through her to Willow, who was the caster. It's kind of like firing a machine gun at an open doorway through an unbreakable pipe. If someone closes the door the bullets are going to come rocketing back at you. Whoosh."
"But the bullets that are already through," Andrew said, "will keep going."
Wesley nodded. "That would fit with the reports I've been receiving of all the activated Slayers."
"Of course," Fred said, "This is only a theory. You two are the ones who can work the big magic and see whether it's true or not."
Giles said, "Let's get to it, then."