****Author's Note: Thanks to all those who've reviewed already. I was
going to wait a little while longer to put up the next couple of chapters,
but I didn't expect this many reviews so quickly.******
Act 3: First Quarter
"Okay, everybody. Listen up!" Buffy began. Xander, Anya, and Dawn sat at the table in the Magic Shop, across from a tall brunette in a maroon dress who looked quite anxious. "This is Dierdre. She claims she needs our help."
"So, Dierdre. What kind of beasties do you need us to kill today?" Xander smiled, leaning towards the woman. He wasn't very subtle at trying to impress her, and considering that his mouth was full of the cookies the lady had brought when he spoke, he wasn't doing a very good job.
Suddenly, the woman's face seemed to lose all color. "I'm hoping it won't come to that, actually." she said, her voice thick with a foreign brogue. "I need you to help my squire and I to get our people back to our own dimension."
"Ooh! Which one?" Anya asked eagerly.
Dierdre cleared her throat. "The Kingdom of the Fae." As she said it, she seemed to do some sort of salute, thumping her fist against her breastbone.
Xander began to laugh. "So you're a fairy?" Buffy and Anya looked at him sternly. He stopped with an uneasy glance.
Dawn, however, didn't pay much attention to this. "So...you're not human, are you?"
"No, Dawn. Like Xander so rudely said, Dierdre's one of the Fae." Anya crisply pointed out.
Dawn looked the woman over, puzzled. "You look pretty human to me."
"That's only because I'm in disguise. Besides, if I were in my true form only those unscathed by mundanity could see me anyway." Dierdre answered.
"What she said." said Xander, then shrugged.
"What she means is that if you believe in the mystical that if she's in her Fae form you can see what she really is." Anya explained.
"I wanna see!" said Dawn, excitedly. "Please?"
"Dawn!" Buffy shouted. "Let her tell the rest of the story first."
"Fine." the teen slumped back into her chair. The Fae gave her a sympathetic look.
"I will show you all afterwards what I really look like. It will be important since you will need to recognize my kind when we try to bring them back home." Dierdre smiled at Dawn, who perked up again.
"So, how did the Fae get into this dimension? I thought they left more than a millenium ago." asked Anya.
"We did. And then a little more than a year ago, a rift opened up in our dimension and some of us found ourselves on this plane. Before we could even figure out what had happened, the tear closed up again, leaving us stranded in your town."
Buffy groaned as she realized how they must have gotten to Sunnydale. "Glory." she muttered. "The ritual. We wondered what might have come through."
"We still haven't found out what became of that dragon." said a British-accented voice from the doorway.
"Giles! Willow!" Xander stood up abruptly.
"Hi guys." said Willow meekly.
***
Even though the welcome was awkward, the hugs were pretty decent. After Buffy introduced Giles and Willow to Dierdre, and after filling them in, they sat down with the group to hear more of the story.
"Our kind managed to find an abandoned warehouse in town to stay in while we tried to figure out how to get home. After a while, something went terribly wrong. We started to lose our Glamour, the energy that keeps us alive."
"So what did you do?" asked Dawn.
The woman sighed. "I, being old enough to remember the tales of how my kind survived on Earth, taught the others how to feed off the Glamour of humans without harming them in any way. We all did this, for a while...until somebody was reckless and killed a human as they fed." She looked down, ashamed. "Contrary to what I expected, this particular Fae enjoyed the kill, and told of it in secret to the others. It was only through my squire that I even found out about the murder."
"Oh dear." Giles said, cleaning his glasses. "I can only guess where this is going."
"Yes. The others turned against me and my squire and began killing humans for Glamour instead of the way they had been told to by the ancestors. This kind of behaviour is what cost our kind the ability to live in this realm in the first place." Dierdre's face was dark and angry. "This is why I need to get them home. Before they can do any more harm. Please!" She turned to Buffy. "I was told you were the Slayer, and I've heard you are a great warrior. I don't know where else to turn for aid in subduing the others."
"Um, could you wait a second, Dierdre. "We have to talk about a few things." Buffy and the others got up, leaving the woman at the table, and began to talk at the counter.
"So, you guys think she's legit?" asked Xander.
"She feels legit." answered Willow. Its' kind of hard for me to be around her. "She's absolutely soaked with magic, but not any from this realm. Its not celestial or demonic either. In fact I don't think I've dealt with this before. Don't get me wrong, I think I can handle the shop in small doses, but this?"
"You don't have to be here, Willow, if you're not prepared." Giles put a hand on her shoulder.
"I'll help, guys, if you want. I just can't be around her. Okay?" Willow looked anxious.
"All right, then." said Buffy. "So I guess we're hunting Faeries tonight." She turned to Dierdre. "So, show us this true form you've been talking about."
Dierdre nodded. Willow instinctively clutched on to Xander as the woman at the table rose and her skin began to shimmer. The change was quick, seeming as if a person made out of clay were being remolded, and the group was stunned to see the Fae standing there in her true form. Her hair had gone from brown to a shocking pink, and it was pulled back in a ponytail on top of her head. She seemed to be wearing a version of full body armor that appeared to be made of some sort of thick vines.
'Very form fitting.' Xander thought to himself. Anya glared at him as if she could read his mind.
The Fae stepped forward in order to be examined. On her hip was slung a large scabbard, where the jewel encrusted handle of a sword lay. The armor even framed Dierdre's face, which was a shimmering gray, and jewel-like eyes stared out at them. "This," she said in a ringing voice "Is how all Fae knights are attired."
"Not bad." Xander mumbled, getting another glare from his ex. "What?!" he exclaimed.
"Nothing." Anya answered, and turned away abruptly.
Dierdre looked confused, but continued. "The majority of the others are not armed in this way, but they look similar. Besides, in their current state, they are not in need of arms. The killings have...changed them. They are barely themselves at all. I hope, though it is dim, that we will not have to kill any of them. Some of them have been good friends to me before this. Inside, they are good, really."
Willow suddenly felt quite sympathetic with these people she had never met, considering her recent history.
"And where are these friends of yours now?" asked Xander.
"I'm not sure." answered the Fae.
"So, let's go find them." Buffy said, pulling a sword out of her bag.
"Wait a second." Giles interrupted. "Didn't you say that you had a squire, Dierdre?"
"Oh! Yes. She's just sitting outside the store." the knight answered.
"Isn't it raining out there?" Willow asked, concerned. "Why didn't you ask her to come in?"
Dierdre looked puzzled by the question. "Monkey!" she called, "Enter the store!"
A very wet, teenaged girl walked in wearing a hooded, grey sweatshirt and baggy pants. Her short, mouse-brown hair was soaked, and plastered to her face. She eagerly looked about and smiled brilliantly, as if she were the happiest girl in the world.
"Monkey! Properly address your betters." Dierdre ordered in a stern voice.
"Oh, there's no need..." Buffy started, but the girl quickly saluted in the manner that Dierdre had, then bowed deeply. When she came up again, her hair stuck up wildly.
Dawn knew she shouldn't, but a laugh managed to escape her before she could cover her mouth.
***
Fifteen minutes ago, in front of the Magic Box:
"Well, hello there little lady. What are you doing out here in the rain?" said a certain floppy-eared demon in a poncho. "And its' chilly too. You're gonna catch a cold." he scolded.
The girl just looked at him, her brow furrowed.
"Hmm. You're not scared of me. Well," said Clem, "if you'll excuse me, I just have to get in." He went to grab the door handle, but found the girl's hand on his wrist. She looked at him sternly. He pulled back. "Its' okay. I just have to talk to..." The girl crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head.
"Oh, its' like that then is it? Well, I guess I'll just try and meet up with her later. Could you tell her I stopped by? I have to talk to her about something important."
The girl didn't say anything in response.
"Ooookay then." Clem sighed, and walked off. Monkey watched him go, with a sad look on her face. Then, she shoved her hands deep in her pockets, and continued to wait for her Mistress.
***
"All right then." Buffy said, leaning over the top of her chair. First off, somebody needs to take Willow home."
"That'd be me." Xander raised his hand. "Got some catching up to do, anyway. Right?"
Willow smiled, looking a tad uneasy.
"Okay, the rest of you guys are on research mode, while Dierdre and I go find the other faeries. Is your squire coming with us too?"
"No. Monkey is not permitted to fight until she is Called. She may stay with your friends and assist them here." The Fae scowled at her squire, who lowered her gaze immediately.
"Well, then. We're off." Buffy and the knight began to head out the door.
"You ready, Wills?" asked Xander, getting up from his chair.
"Yep. See you guys at home." She waved, and followed the others out.
Those left in the shop all looked at their new guest. The girl called Monkey grinned, walked up to Dawn, and shook her hand vigorously.
Act 3: First Quarter
"Okay, everybody. Listen up!" Buffy began. Xander, Anya, and Dawn sat at the table in the Magic Shop, across from a tall brunette in a maroon dress who looked quite anxious. "This is Dierdre. She claims she needs our help."
"So, Dierdre. What kind of beasties do you need us to kill today?" Xander smiled, leaning towards the woman. He wasn't very subtle at trying to impress her, and considering that his mouth was full of the cookies the lady had brought when he spoke, he wasn't doing a very good job.
Suddenly, the woman's face seemed to lose all color. "I'm hoping it won't come to that, actually." she said, her voice thick with a foreign brogue. "I need you to help my squire and I to get our people back to our own dimension."
"Ooh! Which one?" Anya asked eagerly.
Dierdre cleared her throat. "The Kingdom of the Fae." As she said it, she seemed to do some sort of salute, thumping her fist against her breastbone.
Xander began to laugh. "So you're a fairy?" Buffy and Anya looked at him sternly. He stopped with an uneasy glance.
Dawn, however, didn't pay much attention to this. "So...you're not human, are you?"
"No, Dawn. Like Xander so rudely said, Dierdre's one of the Fae." Anya crisply pointed out.
Dawn looked the woman over, puzzled. "You look pretty human to me."
"That's only because I'm in disguise. Besides, if I were in my true form only those unscathed by mundanity could see me anyway." Dierdre answered.
"What she said." said Xander, then shrugged.
"What she means is that if you believe in the mystical that if she's in her Fae form you can see what she really is." Anya explained.
"I wanna see!" said Dawn, excitedly. "Please?"
"Dawn!" Buffy shouted. "Let her tell the rest of the story first."
"Fine." the teen slumped back into her chair. The Fae gave her a sympathetic look.
"I will show you all afterwards what I really look like. It will be important since you will need to recognize my kind when we try to bring them back home." Dierdre smiled at Dawn, who perked up again.
"So, how did the Fae get into this dimension? I thought they left more than a millenium ago." asked Anya.
"We did. And then a little more than a year ago, a rift opened up in our dimension and some of us found ourselves on this plane. Before we could even figure out what had happened, the tear closed up again, leaving us stranded in your town."
Buffy groaned as she realized how they must have gotten to Sunnydale. "Glory." she muttered. "The ritual. We wondered what might have come through."
"We still haven't found out what became of that dragon." said a British-accented voice from the doorway.
"Giles! Willow!" Xander stood up abruptly.
"Hi guys." said Willow meekly.
***
Even though the welcome was awkward, the hugs were pretty decent. After Buffy introduced Giles and Willow to Dierdre, and after filling them in, they sat down with the group to hear more of the story.
"Our kind managed to find an abandoned warehouse in town to stay in while we tried to figure out how to get home. After a while, something went terribly wrong. We started to lose our Glamour, the energy that keeps us alive."
"So what did you do?" asked Dawn.
The woman sighed. "I, being old enough to remember the tales of how my kind survived on Earth, taught the others how to feed off the Glamour of humans without harming them in any way. We all did this, for a while...until somebody was reckless and killed a human as they fed." She looked down, ashamed. "Contrary to what I expected, this particular Fae enjoyed the kill, and told of it in secret to the others. It was only through my squire that I even found out about the murder."
"Oh dear." Giles said, cleaning his glasses. "I can only guess where this is going."
"Yes. The others turned against me and my squire and began killing humans for Glamour instead of the way they had been told to by the ancestors. This kind of behaviour is what cost our kind the ability to live in this realm in the first place." Dierdre's face was dark and angry. "This is why I need to get them home. Before they can do any more harm. Please!" She turned to Buffy. "I was told you were the Slayer, and I've heard you are a great warrior. I don't know where else to turn for aid in subduing the others."
"Um, could you wait a second, Dierdre. "We have to talk about a few things." Buffy and the others got up, leaving the woman at the table, and began to talk at the counter.
"So, you guys think she's legit?" asked Xander.
"She feels legit." answered Willow. Its' kind of hard for me to be around her. "She's absolutely soaked with magic, but not any from this realm. Its not celestial or demonic either. In fact I don't think I've dealt with this before. Don't get me wrong, I think I can handle the shop in small doses, but this?"
"You don't have to be here, Willow, if you're not prepared." Giles put a hand on her shoulder.
"I'll help, guys, if you want. I just can't be around her. Okay?" Willow looked anxious.
"All right, then." said Buffy. "So I guess we're hunting Faeries tonight." She turned to Dierdre. "So, show us this true form you've been talking about."
Dierdre nodded. Willow instinctively clutched on to Xander as the woman at the table rose and her skin began to shimmer. The change was quick, seeming as if a person made out of clay were being remolded, and the group was stunned to see the Fae standing there in her true form. Her hair had gone from brown to a shocking pink, and it was pulled back in a ponytail on top of her head. She seemed to be wearing a version of full body armor that appeared to be made of some sort of thick vines.
'Very form fitting.' Xander thought to himself. Anya glared at him as if she could read his mind.
The Fae stepped forward in order to be examined. On her hip was slung a large scabbard, where the jewel encrusted handle of a sword lay. The armor even framed Dierdre's face, which was a shimmering gray, and jewel-like eyes stared out at them. "This," she said in a ringing voice "Is how all Fae knights are attired."
"Not bad." Xander mumbled, getting another glare from his ex. "What?!" he exclaimed.
"Nothing." Anya answered, and turned away abruptly.
Dierdre looked confused, but continued. "The majority of the others are not armed in this way, but they look similar. Besides, in their current state, they are not in need of arms. The killings have...changed them. They are barely themselves at all. I hope, though it is dim, that we will not have to kill any of them. Some of them have been good friends to me before this. Inside, they are good, really."
Willow suddenly felt quite sympathetic with these people she had never met, considering her recent history.
"And where are these friends of yours now?" asked Xander.
"I'm not sure." answered the Fae.
"So, let's go find them." Buffy said, pulling a sword out of her bag.
"Wait a second." Giles interrupted. "Didn't you say that you had a squire, Dierdre?"
"Oh! Yes. She's just sitting outside the store." the knight answered.
"Isn't it raining out there?" Willow asked, concerned. "Why didn't you ask her to come in?"
Dierdre looked puzzled by the question. "Monkey!" she called, "Enter the store!"
A very wet, teenaged girl walked in wearing a hooded, grey sweatshirt and baggy pants. Her short, mouse-brown hair was soaked, and plastered to her face. She eagerly looked about and smiled brilliantly, as if she were the happiest girl in the world.
"Monkey! Properly address your betters." Dierdre ordered in a stern voice.
"Oh, there's no need..." Buffy started, but the girl quickly saluted in the manner that Dierdre had, then bowed deeply. When she came up again, her hair stuck up wildly.
Dawn knew she shouldn't, but a laugh managed to escape her before she could cover her mouth.
***
Fifteen minutes ago, in front of the Magic Box:
"Well, hello there little lady. What are you doing out here in the rain?" said a certain floppy-eared demon in a poncho. "And its' chilly too. You're gonna catch a cold." he scolded.
The girl just looked at him, her brow furrowed.
"Hmm. You're not scared of me. Well," said Clem, "if you'll excuse me, I just have to get in." He went to grab the door handle, but found the girl's hand on his wrist. She looked at him sternly. He pulled back. "Its' okay. I just have to talk to..." The girl crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head.
"Oh, its' like that then is it? Well, I guess I'll just try and meet up with her later. Could you tell her I stopped by? I have to talk to her about something important."
The girl didn't say anything in response.
"Ooookay then." Clem sighed, and walked off. Monkey watched him go, with a sad look on her face. Then, she shoved her hands deep in her pockets, and continued to wait for her Mistress.
***
"All right then." Buffy said, leaning over the top of her chair. First off, somebody needs to take Willow home."
"That'd be me." Xander raised his hand. "Got some catching up to do, anyway. Right?"
Willow smiled, looking a tad uneasy.
"Okay, the rest of you guys are on research mode, while Dierdre and I go find the other faeries. Is your squire coming with us too?"
"No. Monkey is not permitted to fight until she is Called. She may stay with your friends and assist them here." The Fae scowled at her squire, who lowered her gaze immediately.
"Well, then. We're off." Buffy and the knight began to head out the door.
"You ready, Wills?" asked Xander, getting up from his chair.
"Yep. See you guys at home." She waved, and followed the others out.
Those left in the shop all looked at their new guest. The girl called Monkey grinned, walked up to Dawn, and shook her hand vigorously.