Chapter 12-October 31st, 1981
I suspect today was another turning point in my life, and not because of the Halloween Dance at school. I 'd managed to blow off the Homecoming Dance this year, but Todhunter, Rosso, and Mr. Synder conspired to ruin my Halloween by making me dress up in a costume and serve refreshments at the dance.
For the last couple of weeks our big project in home ec was to make Halloween costumes. Of course on the day we actually picked what costumes we were going to make, I had faked being sick and skipped school after staying out all night waiting for a very tardy rising vamp. Therefore Kim got to the make the costume decision for us two and she chose "Scooby Doo." Naturally she got to be Daphne and I was stuck with Velma. I should have figured she would have done that considering how much she and Daniel liked to get stoned and watch the cartoon.
So anyway we're stuck making the two costumes and then Kim blabs her big mouth to Rosso and he talks to Todhunter and is reminded that Halloween is the one night of the year when the real ghouls and goblins stay away. Pretty soon we are committed to making costumes for the whole Scooby gang and getting our whole gang shanghaied into coming to the dance. Rosso thought it would be a good way for us to take our minds off Nick. And Synder insisted that Kim and I work the refreshment table to make up for all the talking we did in class.
Naturally as soon as mom found out about the costumes, she insisted that we all come over to our house and take a picture before we go to the dance. So now there's a picture showing me as Velma, Kim as Daphne, Ken as Fred, Daniel as Shaggy, and Bill Haverchuck as Scooby. Mom will probably frame it and put it on the wall next to my "Star Trek" portrait.
So we left Count Harold and the Cowgirl at home to hand out candy and went to the dance. Where we were coerced by Sam into posing for another group picture--this time for the yearbook. Sam had joined the yearbook staff last year in order to spend time with Cindy Sanders, but like a sap he had stayed on it even after he broke up with her. He teased Bill by saying he should have dressed up as Daphne instead of Scooby. Considering that Bill had gone as the Bionic Women last year-with no one forcing him to do it-I think Bill might have chosen a girl's costume if he'd had a say so in the matter.
Then I had the thought that Nick would have been Scooby in a better world, one where he didn't have to die. That depressing line of reasoning got me thinking that I had about as much chance of ever being with a man as Velma did. At least she was probably a lesbian where I was just uptight, and the Slayer to boot.
When I dated Nick I didn't want to have sex. But if I had it to do all over again knowing then what I know now, I would probably go all the way. And not just because Nick had died. I'd always been afraid of intimacy, been afraid of exposing myself to strong emotions. But since becoming the Slayer I had engaged in life-or-death struggles and that had made me loosen up a little bit. If I could totally lose myself in the moment to fight a vampire, then I could probably unwind enough to do the deed with a guy. I just needed to find a guy I liked-fat chance of that ever happening though.
Neal kept getting punch from me, even though I knew it was impossible for him to drink wearing the big norseman mascot head. I saw Bill dancing with Vicki Appleby. I knew she would never do that if his face wasn't obscured by the Scooby head he was wearing. Ken and Amy and Daniel and Kim looked like they were having a good time dancing, despite bitching all week about having to attend. Todhunter sat in a far corner of gym and just took in everything. When there was a slow moment at the table, I talked with Rosso.
"So have you heard anything from the Council about Anya?" I asked.
"Todhunter has talked to a man named Travers who says their research hasn't borne any fruit yet, but Todhunter knows that man is better at politics than anything else. He's going to try and track down Merrick. If anyone can figure out a way to find Anya, its Merrick. He can be a very blunt and humorless man, but he's a great Watcher."
At that moment "Come Sail Away" started playing over the sound system and Eli came over and whisked me away to the dance floor. I barely had time to hand off the punch ladle to Rosso before I started dancing with Eli. At first we slow danced, then we separated a little once the tempo picked up in the middle of the song. Last year I had been so stupid to see Eli as retarded instead of special. He makes the best of what he has. I'm starting to understand how important that is. For the first time all night, I felt happy.
That was when I saw the vampire. Everyone was oohing and ahhing over how great the guy's costume was. If they only knew. He and I exchanged the traditional Slayer-Vampire look and then he cocked his head towards the door and started walking. I muttered an apology to Eli, ran back over to the table, grabbed my army jacket, and hurried out the door.
I followed the vampire to the back of the gym where he stopped and waited for me. "I thought you guys believed Halloween was too tacky to be out and about," I said. I was trying to work on my pre-fight banter.
"Ah yes, ordinarily we wouldn't leave our crypts on this night, but I've already wasted enough time looking for you," A tall, well-built man with long red hair and wearing eighteenth--century style clothes said as he walked out of the shadows.
I got goosebumps all over. It was Lothos. Todhunter had told me about him after I described the vampire from several of the many dreams I had where Slayers got killed. This vampire had been around since the eleventh or twelfth century and spent most of his time hunting down and killing Slayers. The rest of the time he spent in slumber, attended to by his minions. Due to my encounter with Spike and Drusilla and several disappearances reported in the area in the last week, Todhunter had a suspicion that Lothos would be coming after me. Very few Slayers had ever seen him and lived. None had defeated him.
"I can tell by the fear in your eyes that you know who I am," Lothos said with his melodic voice.
"Not fear, just revulsion."
"You'll find me much more pleasant in awhile. Sorry for the delay in finding you, but you are one of the few Slayers I can't seek out with my own resources. I had to rely on information from that dimwit Spike. He found your name and the name of your school, but neglected to find out which city or even which state you lived in. I had to sire several private investigators and librarians to locate you."
"I'm sorry you had to go to so much trouble just for me," I said. It was a pretty lame comeback, but the best I could think of. I was scared, more scared than I had ever been in my life. I needed to control that fear. If I didn't, then I would surely die tonight. I knew I shouldn't let him keep talking, but I couldn't bring myself to land the first blow.
"I've lived for a millennium and killed dozens of Slayers. What's a few months compared to all that," he said as he looked past me.
I heard the sound of footsteps behind me. Somehow I could tell they were human, so I didn't turn around to look.
"Lindsay, are you okay?" Kim asked as she, Ken, Daniel, Rosso, and Todhunter gathered behind me.
"I'm fine, I was just talking to my friend Lothos here," I said. I so didn't want them here, but I didn't want to show how anxious I was.
"I was wondering when you would show up," Todhunter said.
"I can tell by your stink that you are her Watcher. I may let you live so that you can tell this tale to your next Slayer," Lothos said.
"Kim what are you doing here?" asked a figure that stepped out of the darkness behind Lothos.
"Chip is that you?" Kim asked.
"Yes, its me little sister. Lothos has made me a new man," Chip said as he put his vampire face on.
"What have you done to him, you monster!" Kim shrieked as she tried to run to Lothos. Daniel caught her in his arms before she could take more than a couple of steps. Chip had been missing this past week, but Kim just assumed it was like all the other times he disappeared. He had a bad drug problem, which was made even worse by the lingering after effects of a beating he had gotten from the police a couple of years ago. Kim was always worried Chip would get into bad trouble. Now he was in the worst trouble imaginable.
"Your sister is friends with the Slayer? Why didn't you tell me that?" Lothos asked Chip in a withering tone of voice.
"I'm sorry master. I didn't know she was the Slayer. In fact I barely remember seeing her at all. I told you I've been out of it for a long time now," Chip said as his body cringed away from Lothos.
"I'm surrounded by incompetents. But no matter, it shall be over soon," Lothos said.
"Yeah Lindsay's going to be dusting your fop ass in a couple of minutes," Daniel said.
"I think not," Lothos said as he looked deeply into my eyes and said, "Your life is not a blink of my eye, not a single breath. I have lived in the shadows, in the......"
Lothos was interrupted by Todhunter, who took out his cruxifix and ran towards the vampire shouting, "Stop, you fiend." Lothos knocked the cross from Todhunter's hand and then drove him against the brick wall and kneed him in the small of the back. Todhunter crumbled to the ground. He looked dead, but he had saved my life. Lothos put me under his spell with his words. I would have been an easy kill.
"Bah, enough of this-another time Slayer," Lothos said as he turned around, flared his cape in a dramatic manner, and walked back into the shadows. Rosso and Ken went over to check on Todhunter and I tried to follow Lothos. But the vampire from the dance blocked the way. I was so angry from my pent-up fear and my helplessness and at seeing Todhunter get hurt that the vampire didn't stand a chance. I buried Nick's drumstick deep within his chest. But he did delay me long enough for Lothos to get away. Chip also disappeared. Kim sat with her back against the gym wall and sobbed as Daniel tried to comfort her.
Ken called an ambulance and we all went to the hospital. Todhunter lived, but he might never walk again. Just one more thing Lothos needed to be held accountable for.
