"Who..?"
Disclaimer: Not mine but thine...O, Joss!
Archived at the Cicelyverse page of the Buffy Rebecca verse, . or direct to story at ...
General audience level...
Summary: Events after the great Sunnydale battle have left Buffy seeking her past and present...With help from an Immortal source.
Part XXVI...
"Well, she is confirmed and clearly with the Slayers to back her…" Wyndham-Price quietly noted to Giles as they sat in his office…Open bottle of scotch whiskey on table…
"She now is the real power of the Council. Yes…Though I can deal with that…" Giles frowned.
"I was a bit disappointed that she learned of the cyborgs so quickly… I'd hoped I'd made more of an impression on young Wells…"
"She backed the plan for a probing mission to LA…"
"If anything she was too enthusiastic…She may still try to go herself. At least in borg virtual form…She wants Angelus dead, of course, though…Not retrieved. You saw she was anything but disturbed by the reports. A good excuse to the others for eliminating him…"
"We can't permit that to happen…" Roger shook his head. "Will you tell her what's at stake?"
"No…" Giles shook head. "She wants revenge and since we're currently too useful to her, the focus of that revenge will be Angel. As we hoped… Even if we dared bring her into our plans, if I felt I could trust her, we couldn't risk that she might let her anger get the better of her…Besides her sincere desire to believe in his acceptance of a position with Wolfram-Hart and his corruption by them is the best insurance for the plan's success. She'll do our work in convincing the Partners…"
"But if she insists on joining the strike team…Even if only in a borg copy?"
"I don't think she'll do it…" he eyed Roger, leaning back. "Somewhere there are memories of Angel and the rest of us, from Buffy's time, buried still in her…"
"She won't want to confront him?"
Giles sighed…No… "But it's not that. She'll know his best chance of being retrieved for us lies with her…That if he truly is on the edge, only Buffy Summers could drag him from the abyss. And she'll refuse to do it…At least under the conditions of our operation. Willow has already made it clear she would insist on going as well…And she wouldn't wish to act with Willow present…"
"Cicely hates him that much?"
"Oh, yes…" Giles nodded. "Just before she left for Europe she contacted me in secret and offered a promise of peace between us if I'd let her deal with Angel herself. In her own way, without questions…"
"I see…And?"
"I told her I would welcome it, if proof were obtained of his turning… But without it, much as I might want him destroyed for my own reasons, her friends would turn against us both. And should he not have turned, we would lose too valuable an ally in the fight. At which point…She very nearly threatened to kill me…" he smiled. "Though I must say she maintained an admirable calm, it was very clear to me. But she agreed proof was desirable and I promised to present it after she returned from Rome…It was interesting…" he paused.
"She never asked if I thought Angel might be playing along…Or if we could bring him back to our side. Cicely at least has no interest in saving him, Roger. And going to LA herself, as Buffy, with Willow and your people present, restraining her, there's always the chance that might be enough…" thoughtful look. "She's afraid of Buffy…Buffy returning to interfere."
"If the mission did succeed as planned, we'd be bringing him back…" Roger, hesitant. "She must know her friends at least would try to reach him…Win him back…"
"I've promised…She'll be the first to meet with him here if we retrieve him." Giles, coolly.
Roger was silent…
"So of course…She must not go with you…And we must fail…As planned." Giles nodded.
"Besides she has other matters to concern her right now…"
….
"Dawn…!"
"Amelia Dawn!" raised voice…No reply…
"Really…" Buffy sighed to Willow. "I do not believe that child sometimes. Excuse me…" she rose from the dining room table at which they sat and made for Dawn's bedroom. Opening the door without knocking…
"Mom!" Dawn's voice…The door closing behind Buffy…
Hmmn…Willow sat, a bit uncertain…Listening to the flow of voices… Dawn's rising, then Buffy's…
The door opened…Buffy emerged. Face set…Closing door behind her…
"I blame myself…The girl's had no discipline at all…" she frowned, taking seat. "What was I thinking?"
"She was your sis, Buffy…Not your daughter…" Willow noted.
"That is the only reason I'm willing to be mild with her now…" Buffy, grim look. "It's not true defiance…Just my failure to be a good sister and set a decent example. However, now that it's established that I am her mother…Things will be different."
"Buffy…She's not a child…"
"Even by the lax standards of this era, she's not an adult, Willow. So long as I have charge of her, she'll be raised as I think appropriate…"
"I don't mean to interfere…"
"No…I understand…I appreciate you're wanting to help me with her…"
The door opened and a frowning Dawn emerged. Bearing a folder…
"Nice of you to join us…" Buffy eyed her as she came to the table…
"I said I was working on them…" Dawn set the folder she'd carried down. Opening it…
"Have you found a place?" Willow, hastily.
"I got some picks…" Dawn nodded. "But I still like UCLA…"
"Out of the question…" Buffy shook her head. "I will be here in England for some time…And I want you living nearby, if not with me…"
"It's college, Mom…" Dawn, fuming a little. "I'd like to get used to living on my own…"
"If I'm paying for it…And I am…" Buffy frowned.
"Just until I can get more scholarship money…" Dawn replied.
"I don't mind the expense…Outrageous as it is…" Buffy shook her head. "But I want you where I can keep an eye on you. I still have enemies you know. One of whom recently tried to kill us…"
"We don't know that. And this isn't about your enemies…" Dawn replied. Hard look… "You want me to be your little girl forever…"
"Certainly not…" Buffy was a bit less stern. "Though it's only natural I want a little more time with my daughter…"
"We'll have time. But I gotta do what I wanna do…" Dawn, firmly.
"Ridiculous…" Buffy shook her head… "You're my daughter…Under age. And you'll do as I say…Now show me one in Europe…What about Cambridge?"
"You keep pushing Cambridge…I understand it was Dad's university but I don't like the English schools…"
"What? In my day, a girl would be grateful to have the chance to study at the greatest university in the world. And your lack of ability in languages doesn't leave you with much other option…"
"I'd rather go to an American school…"
"But I say no…" Buffy, smiling coolly. "And I am not a modern mother who delights to see her little spirit child fly free as on that dreadful television program the other night. Which all I can say is the flimsiest excuse for poor parenting…The liberation of women was never…" she continued…
"Yeah, yeah…You're an old-fashioned mom. But I want some choice…" Dawn cut in…
"And you have it…So long as you choose a school near me here in Europe…"
God…Dawn fumed… "Willow…?"
"Miss Rosenberg isn't your mother. And if you take the Lord's name again in that tone, I'll lock you in your room until you are of age. Then you may choose whatever school you can afford…"
"You never had to put up with this…" Dawn, sputtering now.
"I believe I went to university in Sunnydale. Barely two or three miles from home…" Buffy looked to Willow.
"Four…" Willow said, helpfully.
"I'm offering you a chance to choose from dozens of schools. Just not so far away as America…I need my daughter, Amelia. At least within relatively easy reach…" somewhat plaintive tone at end…
"Oh, please…" Dawn frowned. But sighed…"Anywhere in Europe?"
"Assuming you can be accepted, yes. And I think that's rather generous…"
"And when I'm 'of age'? I can transfer if I want…?"
"Transfer?" Buffy looked to Willow.
"Change schools midway…Kids do it all the time these days…"
Damn modern intercommunication…Buffy thought.
"Yes…Fine…" she snapped a little…
"I'll think it over…" Dawn noted.
Buffy looked yet again to Willow. She'll what?
Willow giving Do Nothing look…
"So when do we call Dad up…Forth…Whatever?" Dawn asked, problem solved. "Are you set yet, Willow?"
"I've gone over all the séances I know…Pooled the best of the best. There's a new moon coming up which for some cases helps, so I guess, if you guys are ready…"
"We have everything I could collect from the Council, plus Henri's contributions of my own things…" Buffy noted. Still clearly a bit miffed…
She'll graciously let me know?
"So we gotta do this at night?" Dawn asked.
"Maybe it's old-witches-and-wives…Witches do get married like other people you know. Tales…But the general opinion is it's better. The new moon thing seems to have a lot of support as well…"
"Tomorrow night, then…" Buffy nodded.
"Ok…" Dawn's attitude became rather more somber…Even apprehensive… "Mom?...If Daddy…"
"I'll go and get him then…" Buffy said, quietly. Then relaxing…A smile… "But he's not in Hell, Dawn…That much I'm sure of…Lost somewhere, yes… But not in Hell…"
She nodded firmly and Dawn, slowly…Ok…
"I do kinda like Milan…" she smiled a bit. And got up… "I'm meeting Stephanie to go shopping downtown…"
"Back for dinner…" Buffy, firmly.
"Yeah…"
"And be careful…London's not the best place for two young girls…"
"Girl and Slayer girl…" Dawn corrected. "I'm covered, Mom…You said yourself Stephanie's one of the brightest…"
"Just be careful…Dawn?" hurt tone as Dawn headed for the front door in a rush, grabbing for the hallway closet door.
"Right…You know I feel ridiculous doing this…" Dawn frowned. But taking out a jacket from the closet, returned quickly to them and pecked at Buffy's cheek with hasty kiss. "See ya at dinner…Bye, Wil'…I'll let you know what we find…" she hurried to the door and went out. Closing door firmly…
"She'll think it over?" Buffy frowned at Willow.
"You won, she's staying in Europe. Take the silver and go home…" Willow shook her head.
Hmmn…?
"So…You know he's not in Hell…?" Willow, diverting.
"Not if there is even a moderately just God…" Buffy eyed her friend. "But of course I don't 'know'…Whatever I feel…But what did you expect me to tell her?"
"And we're bound for Hell if he is? I mean, 'cause there's no way you'd go without me…"
"We are…And I'd need you to open a portal anyway." Buffy, wry smile.
"Giles'll love that…"
"That grieves me…"
"He did help you out at the meeting…"
"He saved his Council from an irreparable split that would have left it powerless and did the minimum possible for those who've done the real fighting for centuries. But…I'll keep my end of the bargain if he does his…"
"And if he objects to you…To us…Going after William?"
"Then I pray he does nothing more than object…"