ACT FOUR
EXT. CHURCH – NIGHT
TRACKING SHOT of GRILLANDUS moving swiftly through the courtyard up to the entrance of the Church. He looks straight ahead as he walks. Reaching the door he THROWS IT OPEN with a smash. The noise rouses FATHER LEVACK, who comes running to Grillandus' side.
FATHER LEVACK
Master. The witch. Is it done?
Are we free from her trickery?
Grillandus makes no response, and looks as if he will ignore the old priest. However, after a moment he stops, turns to LeVack, as if to speak. In his eyes is… sympathy.
ON GRILLANDUS, who BARES HIS FANGS and PLUNGES THEM into Father LeVack's neck. Drinking deep, the priest doesn't last long. There's an unmistakable CRUNCH of a broken neck, then the monster casts LeVack's limp body aside, throwing it on top of a pew.
GRILLANDUS
(softly)
Your faith waned.
Mine… is forever.
BUFFY
(O.S.)
So this is God's work you're doing?
ARC around to find her in the doorway of the Church. Slung over her shoulder is a mean looking crossbow. In her hand is a stake. BUFFY means business.
ON BUFFY.
BUFFY
Killing one of his priests?
She impatiently taps the stake in her palm.
GRILLANDUS
The Reverend LeVack
no longer had his heart in the
task. It's been clear for some time
that his faith was waning.
BUFFY
Tough gang you've got here.
Forget quitting the crew, questioning
the goal gets you dead. What, you've
never heard of a priest with a crisis
of faith before? Maybe he tired of
the killing.
GRILLANDUS
The cause is just.
BUFFY
The methods are deplorable.
GRILLANDUS
It must be done.
For the Lord.
BUFFY
Really?
This isn't God's work you're doing, it's
yours. You spent a lifetime persecuting
witches, and when it looked like time
was running out, you stole eternity
and damned yourself because you had
a job you liked. That's all this is.
Your personal inquisition. The only
thing I don't get is why you keep
up with the charade.
(mocking)
Servant of the lord, against magic.
(incredulous)
You're a vampire nesting in a Church.
Posing as a priest. It's pretty damn clear
you're using magic just to stay in here.
GRILLANDUS
My power stems for the God.
He made me his soldier.
Would you dare defy him?
BUFFY
No. I wouldn't. But you know what?
(beat)
Killing you won't be defying him.
In fact, ten to one says it makes
his week. For all your righteous
yammering, you missed something
Father LeVack knew on sight – the
only soldier of God around here
is me. Not to be egotistical or
anything.
GRILLANDUS
Enough. You associate with
witches, you suffer their fate!
BUFFY
I'll pass.
GRILLANDUS
You'll burn.
With a motion of the Vampire's hand, Buffy is sent FLYING BACK, into a row of pews, knocking them over.
BUFFY
Two can play at that game.
To the left and right of Buffy appear WILLOW and TARA, back from their errand. Each witch is in a state of intense calm, and in PERFECT UNISON RAISE BOTH HANDS PALMS FORWARD and utter a familiar line:
WILLOW/TARA
Thicken.
Instantly an unseen BARRIER is set in place, one which is given away only when Grillandus pounds against it – it SHIMMERS.
GRILLANDUS
So the conniving witches
finally show themselves.
All the better. You die
together.
BUFFY
You shouldn't be so confident.
Let me let you in on a little secret.
That shield –
(draws the crossbow, aims)
It only works one way.
SWOOSH. She fires, and the wooden arrow flies out towards Grillandus – but stops in MIDAIR halfway between the vampire and the slayer. It hovers there – more to the point, it's FROZEN IN PLACE – it doesn't move at all.
BUFFY
Huh?
WILLOW
He's found a way around the
shield.
TARA
But only partially.
He can't physically
leave it.
WILLOW
For now.
BUFFY
So it's a stalemate?
Why must killing Vampires
be so infuriatingly difficult?
GRILLANDUS
These girls will soon weaken.
When they do, you will
discover just how difficult
it is.
BUFFY
Ohh, threats.
Not so high-and-mighty
when you're in a pinch,
are you. I've got one
word for you, pal – Spike.
ANGLE ON SPIKE – in the rafters above Grillandus. We see him from below. He's HANGING by his LEGS, which are folded at the knee. His arms are crossed, and he looks very much like a bat perched in a cave. He's actually facing away from the vampire below. No matter. Grillandus never sees him until it's too late.
ON GRILLANDUS
GRILLANDUS
What game is-
ON SPIKE again. At the mention of his name, he's begun to drop down from the rafters.
ON THE RAFTERS AND SPIKE – he actually SWINGS down in a fluid motion. Hanging by his knees, he raises one arm – clutches the beam – and allows his body to drop down. In doing so, he no longer has his back to Grillandus. Hanging by that one arm, he drops to the floor behind Grillandus, decked out in his leather coat, looking deadly. This sequence takes place in SLO-MOTION.
SPIKE
But it's William to you, cleric.
As Grillandus turns, Spike KICKS him once, hard, square in the chest – the blow sends him flying – THROUGH the barrier – and he lands at Buffy's feet, winded.
Buffy wastes no time – a series of uppercuts and roundhouse blows knock Grillandus back.
GRILLANDUS
What you're doing…
BUFFY
Is God's work.
The stake finds its mark at last, and the centuries old monstrosity, once an over-zealous witch hunter, TURNS TO DUST.
BUFFY
Ridding the world of evil.
SPIKE
Well most of it.
DAWN
(O.S.)
Cool. That was some kick.
SWING AROUND TO FIND DAWN and XANDER in the doorway of the church.
TARA
The strength potion. It was easier
to make for vampires.
BUFFY
Dawn?
(re: Xander)
What is my sister doing
here?
XANDER
She wouldn't take no for
an answer. She's stubborn
as a mule.
WILLOW
Must be something that runs
in the family.
OFF Buffy's pseudo-hurt frown.
DAWN
I got tired of missing all the good stuff.
INT. WILLOW & TARA'S DORM ROOM – NIGHT
We open on the door to the witch's dorm room, as it swings inward. TARA and WILLOW enter, Tara carrying a purse, Willow a sweater over her arm. Both look exhausted. They fall down on the bed next to one another. The sheets are already pulled back – the bed was never made.
WILLOW
Do you ever wonder…
She trails off.
TARA
What?
WILLOW
You ever wonder if it's worth it?
The risk… we put our
friends in danger.
Just because of what
we know… what we can
do.
TARA
Buffy does that every day.
WILLOW
She's the Slayer.
TARA
I didn't mean…
WILLOW
I know. But she doesn't
have a choice. We do…
That thing, it came for me
because it knew what I was
capable of.
TARA
It was sick. In many ways…
It was a shell of the personality that
once was. All the demons of that man's
life, magnified by a hundred.
WILLOW
But the danger…
Maybe he was right in a way.
You said before… it frightens
you. My power.
Tara rolls over, looks into Willow's eyes.
TARA
I'm afraid for you. I can't
help that.
It's not like I can control…
I love you. And in no
way was he right.
There's always going to
be danger. But there's
less if we go through
it together.
There's a moment as the two lie together in silence, settling in.
WILLOW
Buffy isn't enough, is she?
TARA
I don't know.
WILLOW
What's coming… I can feel it.
I don't know what or why or
even how. But she needs
us. That makes it worth
it.
Smiles at Tara.
WILLOW
You make it worth it.
The sheets are PULLED UP to their shoulders. Without hands. Magic.
BLACK OUT
END OF SHOW
