Title: Of Demons and Souls, Chapter Ten: New found resolve
Author: AriellaGiselle
Spoilers: none
Disclaimer: Nope, I still don't own them.
*****
"Shut up, Dru! If you say another word, I'll rip your damn throat out!" Darla screamed. She ran her fingers through her long blonde hair, effectively flipping it over her shoulder.
"But, Grandmum, the moon is whispering such beautiful music in my ear!" Drusilla protested. Her back stiffened as she sniffed the air purposely. "Fluffy's near, so is my prince."
"He's not your prince. He told you to get lost, remember, Dru?"
"Grandmum's so mean, Miss Edith. We shan't share our cakes and tea with her. No, miss." Her song was soothingly soft, but her fingers were busy jabbing at the poor doll's eyes. She growled playfully at her gestures.
Darla rolled her eyes and peered around the cemetery. It was quiet, everything slept. Like the dead should.
Drusilla's gentle lullaby floated around the quiet air, the lyrics catching Darla's ear. "Moon and stars, play with me. Dancing with the runes, singing songs of the unseen. Jingle, jangle, come out to play. Moons and stars, and songs of Invisible Mice and Men."
"'Invisible Mice and Men'?" Darla asked, her voice dripping with annoyance. "Just hush. We don't want that fluffy bitch Buffy sneaking up on us, do we?"
"Darla." Every muscle tensed at the sound of her name on Buffy's lips. "Don't you want to come out to play with Mr. Pointy?"
She smoothed her white silk dress and stepped out from behind the mausoleum. "I never play with my enemies, Slayer."
"Well, neither do I, but I'm willing to make an exception. For you." The petite Slayer whirled around, planting a fierce kick in Darla's midsection. After recovering, Darla swung her fist into Buffy's face, causing the mortal's head to snap back.
"Buffy!" a new voice came from the walkway. "No!"
"Darien! Could use some help here!" she pleaded as Darla picked her up and threw her against the stone cold of the tomb, using Buffy's distraction to her advantage.
Darien ran toward Darla, who spun on her heels and decked him in the jaw. He turned his head to look at her. His anger swirled around inside him, and he latched his hands onto her throat. She laughed, "I'm a vampire! You can't choke me!"
"Maybe not, but that doesn't mean I can't hurt you." His grip tightened, and her blue eyes shimmered as her vampire features slid over her human ones. Suddenly, the now amber orbs glowed with a strange red primal light, and she lost consciousness, going limp in his arms.
Buffy adjusted her jacket and crossbow while walking toward Darien, who was still holding Darla in his arms. "What the hell happened?"
"I... I don't know," he replied honestly.
Drusilla's soft humming reached Darien's ears, and he passed Darla to Buffy. "I'll be right back."
"You never say that in situations like this," she mumbled, laying the sleeping vampire on the dewy grass.
*****
"Drusilla?"
"It's you," she hissed, clutching her doll tighter to her chest and creeping from behind the mausoleum. "So, Invisible Man, what does the moon whisper to you? Does it tell you that you've been a good boy? Or does it blame you for their deaths?" Her green vampiric eyes glimmered with malicious enjoyment.
"I don't ever listen to the moon, Drusilla. I like the punk bands of the early eighties."
"You're a smart boy. Kevin was right to choose you."
Darien snarled and pinned her against the metal gates of the graveyard. "You don't know shit about Kevin! Or me!"
"You love him, don't you? Your little tiger." She smiled, and for a moment she looked like a small child, a bloodsuckingly fiendish child, but a child nonetheless.
"That's none of your business," he whispered, mimicking his earlier movements, wrapping his long slender fingers around her unbreathing throat.
Moments later, the same crimson light that had overtaken Darla fell Drusilla, and Darien picked up to carry her to Buffy.
*****
"Darien, we believe that you are the Bambino cremisi dell' estinzione," Giles proclaimed.
Darien's brown eyes widened in shock and confusion. He shot an unsure look to Bobby, who grasped his hand. "What's that supposed to mean, Giles?" the stocky vampire asked, knowing that his partner wouldn't be able to ask it himself.
"Roughly translated, it means 'Child of the Crimson Redemption.' This person is the one vampire in all the world that can restore another vampire's soul with a touch," Claire explained.
"Restore their souls?" Spike asked. His gaze quickly travelled to Willow, who was pretending to only be listening to half of what was said, but he knew better. She wanted to be with him for eternity, but she couldn't because she had seen the vampiric version of herself, and she didn't like it one bit.
"Wait, how do you know that I'm this bambino whatever?" Darien questioned.
"An Italian monk in the 12th century reports a vampire with a 'light of humanity that brings the demon hoards to their knees, bowing in reverence to the Hand of God.' This monk also states that the vampire died shortly after her encounter with the monk. He did some research and recorded three other sightings of this 'Crimson Child'," Giles said, flipping the pages of the book he read from.
"So, does this restore a soul permanently, or is this like the Gypsy curse?" Buffy asked hopefully.
"The Gypsies wrote that ritual for Angelus specifically, Buffy. There's really no way to be sure," Giles said softly.
"Um, g-guys? A w-way to be s-sure," Tara spoke softly, holding up her hand.
Claire scooted her chair to sit next to the blonde witch and looked at the book Tara moved in front of her. "'The demons are gone! Their humanity is true, pure as God's touch. Ringraziare tutto il Dio potente!'" She tilted her head to look at Giles. "What does that mean?"
"'Thank the Almighty God."
*****
end part ten
Author: AriellaGiselle
Spoilers: none
Disclaimer: Nope, I still don't own them.
*****
"Shut up, Dru! If you say another word, I'll rip your damn throat out!" Darla screamed. She ran her fingers through her long blonde hair, effectively flipping it over her shoulder.
"But, Grandmum, the moon is whispering such beautiful music in my ear!" Drusilla protested. Her back stiffened as she sniffed the air purposely. "Fluffy's near, so is my prince."
"He's not your prince. He told you to get lost, remember, Dru?"
"Grandmum's so mean, Miss Edith. We shan't share our cakes and tea with her. No, miss." Her song was soothingly soft, but her fingers were busy jabbing at the poor doll's eyes. She growled playfully at her gestures.
Darla rolled her eyes and peered around the cemetery. It was quiet, everything slept. Like the dead should.
Drusilla's gentle lullaby floated around the quiet air, the lyrics catching Darla's ear. "Moon and stars, play with me. Dancing with the runes, singing songs of the unseen. Jingle, jangle, come out to play. Moons and stars, and songs of Invisible Mice and Men."
"'Invisible Mice and Men'?" Darla asked, her voice dripping with annoyance. "Just hush. We don't want that fluffy bitch Buffy sneaking up on us, do we?"
"Darla." Every muscle tensed at the sound of her name on Buffy's lips. "Don't you want to come out to play with Mr. Pointy?"
She smoothed her white silk dress and stepped out from behind the mausoleum. "I never play with my enemies, Slayer."
"Well, neither do I, but I'm willing to make an exception. For you." The petite Slayer whirled around, planting a fierce kick in Darla's midsection. After recovering, Darla swung her fist into Buffy's face, causing the mortal's head to snap back.
"Buffy!" a new voice came from the walkway. "No!"
"Darien! Could use some help here!" she pleaded as Darla picked her up and threw her against the stone cold of the tomb, using Buffy's distraction to her advantage.
Darien ran toward Darla, who spun on her heels and decked him in the jaw. He turned his head to look at her. His anger swirled around inside him, and he latched his hands onto her throat. She laughed, "I'm a vampire! You can't choke me!"
"Maybe not, but that doesn't mean I can't hurt you." His grip tightened, and her blue eyes shimmered as her vampire features slid over her human ones. Suddenly, the now amber orbs glowed with a strange red primal light, and she lost consciousness, going limp in his arms.
Buffy adjusted her jacket and crossbow while walking toward Darien, who was still holding Darla in his arms. "What the hell happened?"
"I... I don't know," he replied honestly.
Drusilla's soft humming reached Darien's ears, and he passed Darla to Buffy. "I'll be right back."
"You never say that in situations like this," she mumbled, laying the sleeping vampire on the dewy grass.
*****
"Drusilla?"
"It's you," she hissed, clutching her doll tighter to her chest and creeping from behind the mausoleum. "So, Invisible Man, what does the moon whisper to you? Does it tell you that you've been a good boy? Or does it blame you for their deaths?" Her green vampiric eyes glimmered with malicious enjoyment.
"I don't ever listen to the moon, Drusilla. I like the punk bands of the early eighties."
"You're a smart boy. Kevin was right to choose you."
Darien snarled and pinned her against the metal gates of the graveyard. "You don't know shit about Kevin! Or me!"
"You love him, don't you? Your little tiger." She smiled, and for a moment she looked like a small child, a bloodsuckingly fiendish child, but a child nonetheless.
"That's none of your business," he whispered, mimicking his earlier movements, wrapping his long slender fingers around her unbreathing throat.
Moments later, the same crimson light that had overtaken Darla fell Drusilla, and Darien picked up to carry her to Buffy.
*****
"Darien, we believe that you are the Bambino cremisi dell' estinzione," Giles proclaimed.
Darien's brown eyes widened in shock and confusion. He shot an unsure look to Bobby, who grasped his hand. "What's that supposed to mean, Giles?" the stocky vampire asked, knowing that his partner wouldn't be able to ask it himself.
"Roughly translated, it means 'Child of the Crimson Redemption.' This person is the one vampire in all the world that can restore another vampire's soul with a touch," Claire explained.
"Restore their souls?" Spike asked. His gaze quickly travelled to Willow, who was pretending to only be listening to half of what was said, but he knew better. She wanted to be with him for eternity, but she couldn't because she had seen the vampiric version of herself, and she didn't like it one bit.
"Wait, how do you know that I'm this bambino whatever?" Darien questioned.
"An Italian monk in the 12th century reports a vampire with a 'light of humanity that brings the demon hoards to their knees, bowing in reverence to the Hand of God.' This monk also states that the vampire died shortly after her encounter with the monk. He did some research and recorded three other sightings of this 'Crimson Child'," Giles said, flipping the pages of the book he read from.
"So, does this restore a soul permanently, or is this like the Gypsy curse?" Buffy asked hopefully.
"The Gypsies wrote that ritual for Angelus specifically, Buffy. There's really no way to be sure," Giles said softly.
"Um, g-guys? A w-way to be s-sure," Tara spoke softly, holding up her hand.
Claire scooted her chair to sit next to the blonde witch and looked at the book Tara moved in front of her. "'The demons are gone! Their humanity is true, pure as God's touch. Ringraziare tutto il Dio potente!'" She tilted her head to look at Giles. "What does that mean?"
"'Thank the Almighty God."
*****
end part ten
