ACT TWO

INT. WAREHOUSE – NIGHT

Sitting cross-legged atop a dusty looking CRATE is DRUSILLA – garbed in an eloquent looking gown of red and black silk. Ever the temptress, if a bit dark for most tastes. She's in a perfect state of calm. A trance state.

Aside from the crate, and Dru, the warehouse is a vast open space, completely empty. The lone light in the center of the ceiling creates a ring in the middle of the room, encircling Drusilla.

CLOSE ON DRUSILLA – eyes closed, head tilted slightly up. Her eyes flutter open, not in an instant like Buffy earlier, but instead as if exiting a dreamy, peaceful sleep.

SWING AROUND to reveal Spike, lit cigarette between his lips, coming towards his sire.

SPIKE
What do you want, Dru?
Slayer tisn't gonna be
at all pleased, me being
here with you. Seems there
were some misgivings last
you came to town.

DRUSILLA
She's all around you, still.
Floats about. I can see it – she's
infected you.

SPIKE
If this is the preamble
for a long speech about
how I'm wrong for her
and can't ever have
her – save it. I've heard it
all before. Doesn't change
what I feel.

DRUSILLA
But it does. Love changes
all. You love her, and
you change. Not feeding, not even
picking off the old and the lame.
Scavenging… Scavenger, became
William the Bloody, killer of two
Slayers, who always took the
best prey, the ones in their prime.
You killed the lovely. The beautiful.
The strong. Now you feed on pigs
blood left over from the human's
lunch.

She looks about. Licks her lips.

DRUSILLA
All because of the one girl
you couldn't kill.

SPIKE
I get the point. You think
it's not real, it's some obsession
cuz she lasted longer than
the others. I don't care.

DRUSILLA
No. You don't.
It terrifies me, that. It tears
at me. Splits the skin. I feel
you when I sleep. You're content.
And it hurts me. The
urge is barely even there.
The cattle you carry on with,
they think you're still a killer
beneath the surface,
but there's no lust for it.
I can feel it.
Or rather, can't feel it.

Drusilla looks up. Lifts herself down from the crate.

SPIKE
Make no mistake, Dru – I'm still a killer.
Just not at random.

DRUSILLA
Harsh words for your love.

Spike doesn't respond. Drusilla, for her part, despite having said it, knows it isn't true – she's no longer his love.

SPIKE
What's in the box, Pet?
Present?

DRUSILLA
Most lovely beautiful gift.
To hold and to cherish.
For all eternity.
For you.

She TWIRLS around like a music box ballerina and smiles that insane grin of hers.

DRUSILLA
Love.
I thought I couldn't
help you. But I can love you
still, even if you won't love me.
Love changes all…
and now love is changed.

She MORPHS with these last words, THROWS the lid off the crate, and knocks out one side. This causes the other sides of the box to FALL OUTWARDS, revealing the contents.

BUFFY, bound hand and foot, unconscious.

DRUSILLA
Forever yours.
My child. You lover.
Not like us. New. Better.
Not a creature
of darkness. Baptized in
the blood of the Cynaid,
anointed before being turned.

SPIKE
What are you rambling on about?
What the hell did you do?

DRUSILLA
I made a new species.
And gave her to you.

Spike rushes to the unconscious Buffy's side, and as he does Drusilla steps back into the shadows.

DRUSILLA
(O.S.)
Love changes all…

It comes out as a whisper, she's already fleeing into the night, knowing full well that Spike will not take kindly to her gift at first sight.

SPIKE
(kneeling over the slayer)
Buffy? Oh god.

CLOSE ON BUFFY.

INT. DORM ROOM – DAY

Back to the present. We're still in the dorm room, and everyone remains huddled together. SPIKE continues to rest on the floor, knees up, and – no longer able to fight the urge – sparks up a cigarette. Hauls deep. The rest – WILLOW, TARA, DAWN, XANDER, ANYA – are in or around the bed.

XANDER
So your twisted ex-girlfriend
did this? Buffy is turned
because you have poor relationship
skills?

SPIKE
Oh, like you never had one
act crazy?

ANYA
He means Cordellia, right?
Now she was a crazy bitch!
And so obsessed with mon-
(stops before betraying her own obsession)
Clothes! Obsessed with clothes.

We won't even mention Inca Mummy Girl.

EXT. PARK – DAY

ON BUFFY – running through the park – it's really only a jog though. There's a bounce in her step and newfound glee at her ability to be in the sun. She's wearing her normal, human face.

Coming towards her, a jogger. They both stop.

JOGGER
Say, aren't you…?
We went to high school
together. You ahh…
you kinda saved my life,
that time those gangbangers
on PCB crashed the school…

ON BUFFY, who makes no reply.

ANGLE on them both, and our healthy friend continues to stumble his way along – through the conversation that is.

JOGGER
Would you ahh…
Would you want to
grab a bite to eat?
You know, we could catch up
on things? I know we ran
in different crowds and all,
but it could be, ahh…

BUFFY
(monotone)
I'm meeting someone
for lunch.
(suddenly cheerful)
Maybe some other time?

INT. DORM ROOM – DAY - CONTINUING

Right where we left off in the conversation.

WILLOW
I don't get it – Buffy's a new
species? Of Vampire?

SPIKE
Dru did something.
Something that made her different.
Maybe that can be undone.
It's plain she didn't just vamp her.
You've got books – look it up.
Blood of Cynaid. What, just
'cause the Watcher isn't here
you can't research?

With a guilty look Tara retreats to the bookshelf.

ANYA
I don't think Xander's ex's even
compare to yours you know.

XANDER
An…

ANYA
I mean, ok Cordellia was a little
nuts, but this Drusilla? And Harmony?
Harmony, for the love of God, what
was that about.

XANDER
(dry)
Convenience.

SPIKE
Point being? I'm a hundred
and some bloody odd years
old. You think I'm not old
enough for a little casual sex?

XANDER
But Harmony!?

SPIKE
Point taken. It's just she-

DAWN
Hey! Child in the room!
For once, I don't want to
have to hear this.

TARA
(from the bookshelf)
We need to be getting back
to the point…

XANDER
How about putting a point in
Drusilla?

OFF some startled reactions.

XANDER
A stake!

SPIKE
Bloody hell.

XANDER
Still carrying a flame for her?
After this!

SPIKE
It's not easy.
We were together longer
than you-
(re: Anya)
longer than most of
you have been alive.
'Sides, we might need
her alive to fix this.

WILLOW
He's right about that.

TARA
(looking up from the text she's
scanning through)
This is too weird.

ANYA
Find a reversal spell?

TARA
I meant – the situation.

WILLOW
If there is such a thing as "too
weird" for Sunnydale. We're not
exactly the poster child for normality.
I just keep… thinking, if Giles were here,
what would he say? What would he say
to do? Maybe we should try again?
To reach him…

TARA
Honey, we can't.
He's exus communicato
for the next few days. Any
time we waste...

ON Willow. She pouts.

SPIKE
Wanna know what ol' Rupert would
do? First, he'd mourn Buffy. Then,
he'd hunker down all determined-like
and find a way to get her back. Which is
exactly what we're going to do.
The Watcher isn't here, we are. It's
time you stepped up, Red.
(beat)
It's time we all did.
Magic's got consequences,
and I'm presuming this play
Dru's running is fueled by magic.
And the bonus of that, kiddies,
is that what's done can usually be
undone, so far as the black arts go.

TARA
(distracted)
It makes sense.

SPIKE
See? One of you knows
common sense when you hear
it.

TARA
No. I mean yes.
I mean huh?
(quizzical look)
I found it. What Drusilla
did. It's in this text Giles
lent to me. I can't
believe I found it…
Giles always spent hours
at this research stuff.
I guess some luck's with us.

XANDER
So what's lady luck got to say
about getting Buffy back
to her usual peaches, slaying,
and cream self?

TARA
Drusilla baptized her
in the blood of the Cynaid…

ANYA
There's that word again.

TARA
It's a demon nearly as old
as the Earth itself. When
the uh… demon inhabitants of
the planet left this plane, it
was one of the few that stayed
behind.
(pause, then confused)
They left?

XANDER
So how come it didn't skidaddle
with the rest of the nasties?

TARA
The Cynaid is umm…
described as being the size of
a house… embedded in the rock
of the pit of… Alsinewa?
(stumbles over that name, then continues)
In South Africa. It's immobile,
but is fed by an ancient sect of
followers… who sacrifice to it
every second child born to their tribe.

SPIKE
My Dru does get around.

ANYA
So it's a pure demon.

WILLOW
(understanding)
Right.

TARA
Pure demon?

ANYA
Must we go over this again?

Off Tara's confused stare.

ANYA
Oh, that's right. You missed the mayor's
ascension.

TARA
I heard it wasn't much fun.

WILLOW
There was chaos.

ANYA
And punch! But mostly
chaos. Anyhow, most
demons left this plane eons ago.
like the book says. Those here now
are impure – tainted by humanity,
like vampires.

The ex-demon nods towards Spike.

ANYA
Pure demons – the ones that
left – they're much bigger.
And more powerful.
Apparently this Cynaid
was left behind, stuck in
that pit of what's it called
for centuries… I wonder
how many others…

SPIKE
I don't. So move it along.

Tara goes back into the text. Flips a page.

TARA
According to this entry,
the Cynaid is impervious
to mortal wounds, but bleeds as
the result of intense indigestion.
(under her breath)
Too many sacrifices…
(back to normal tone)
It's blood conveys
this impunity to the
deceased… the sect that
worships the demon uses
the blood on zombie
troops used in tribal
warfare.

DAWN
And Drusilla used it on Buffy… making
her what, immortal? Aren't all vampires
that?

SPIKE
You know the routine, bit.
Stakes, sunlight, decapitation – there's
a surprisingly numerous amount of
ways to kill an immortal.
(stops, realizes the implication)
Dru was right. A new species.

XANDER
A new, hard to kill species.

ANYA
Why didn't Drusilla just use it on herself?
Become… you know, more immortal
than she already was.

SPIKE
She was never so obvious.

TARA
Wouldn't have worked.
The recipient of the blood
must be newly dead.

WILLOW
All very informative.
But how do we get her back?

TARA
An antidote exists… the bile
of the beast. It has to be mixed...
with a part of the person
exposed to the blood. Hair, skin, their
saliva...

XANDER
More fun with fluids.

DAWN
This is too gross.
Like a bad horror flick,
with less popcorn and
convoluted death scenes.

TARA
The antidote will undo the effects
of the blood… and
can also restore life
to the deceased. But
again, it only
works on the recently
dead.
(pauses)
It doesn't say how recently.

ANYA
Question.
(beat)
How do we get this
antidote? I mean,
Africa is a long way off,
and I doubt that book gives
directions to the pit of
Alsa-whatever.

TARA
Alsinewa.
And actually, there's a map.
Very detailed.

SPIKE
But it won't come to that.

TARA
I wouldn't think so.
Will Dru...?

Tara seems to have more of an understanding of the entire situation than the rest. Relationships, both familial and romantic – she sees deep into them.

SPIKE
Dru will have it.
It's her game.
(not quite hostile – almost fondly)
Twisted bitch.
(back to normal, with a shake of the head)
Make me come crawling back.
Or just make me suffer.
But she's not one to dispose of
something like this. She'll have it. As
insurance. Keep me in line
and playin' nice.

As he speaks he is fiddling in his coat pocket with something. Very discretely. No, it's nothing dirty. Get out of the gutter.

XANDER
Just where are we
supposed to get a part of
Buffy? We what, ask her
real nice to borrow some spit?

TARA
Maybe Dawn... could find an
old hairbrush or something at home?

Spike is now out of the pocket – and can be seen to be fiddling with a strand of blond hair. He's completely delicate with it. Dawn takes notice.

DAWN
Is that…?

Mixed reactions from the group. Willow frowns, slightly. Xander looks disgusted. Anya and Tara look… awkward. Dawn looks curious, and surprisingly ok with it.

XANDER
(groans)
Oh god. That's disturbing.

SPIKE
What? Like it's that much
of a crime? Get off it. I just
happen to have a strand of two
of her hair tucked away. In
case… well in case of something
like this.

DAWN
(disbelieving)
In case we need Buffy's hair in a death
or life situation?

SPIKE
It's nothing evil.

XANDER
Maybe we just see the monster
in you.

DAWN
I don't-

She comes to his defense, but the vampire cuts her off to make his own stand.

SPIKE
Yeh, well, there's more to
it than that.

XANDER
How? Everything you do,
you do out of love for Buffy.
because you're in love with Buffy.
That doesn't make you a better
person. It doesn't make you
a person. You come off
looking like more of a psycho.

This is so not about the hair.

SPIKE
I can think of far worse reasons
to do things.
Love so bad in the end?

XANDER
Look where it got Drusilla.

SPIKE
Drusilla's disturbed. The rest
of you lot – humanity – greed,
envy, you pawn these off on society
every day with nary a second thought.
(girlish voice)
"Oh, that's pretty, I want it."
(normal voice, in a bit of a rant)
so I'll go work, build something,
teach someone, help someone,
but in the end it's still about
what a bloke wants.

XANDER
It's honest.

SPIKE
Honest? It's the biggest scam of all.
It's a bloody game of charades.
A bad one. Most of you are selfish
to the core. A few of you overcome
it – what then. Death and dirt. At least I'm
honest about my motivation. I want
something, I take it. I love a girl…

Trails off.

ON DAWN. She moves to the window Spike was staring out earlier.

DAWN
Quit it already! None
of this is helping get
Buffy back. Whatever
the reasons, that's what
we all want, right?

WILLOW
Dawn, it could be dangerous,
I don't think it's a great idea if-

DAWN
No! You are not cutting
me out of this. She's my sister.
My blood. She died for me. I don't care
how dangerous it is – I'm part of this.

XANDER
Alright. We can't argue that.

DAWN
I just want to get Buffy
back to normal. A hard life
is better than what she is
now...

ANGLE ON Dawn, who looks to Spike, realizing the implications of what she's said. But when we see Spike, he just gives her a look of understanding.

SMASH CUT TO:

The window. CRASH. From behind DAWN, it SHATTERS. We see VAMPIRE BUFFY, decked out with fangs and bumpy forehead. She's leaning in (torso up) and grabs a hold of Dawn, who yells.

DAWN
(pleading)
Buffy…

ON BUFFY

BUFFY
Who says I want to be normal?

Spike charges the window, hits the sunlight spilling in, and falls back.

Xander makes a move, but we focus on Buffy, who has a deadly grip on her younger sister's neck. There's no need for anyone to say a word – they all realize the cost of making a move at this point. Xander freezes. Buffy then retreats, pulling Dawn out the window with her. We don't see how Buffy manages to drop safely to the ground, sister in hand, but it's assumed that she does. All this has taken place in a matter of moments. The impact will be felt for much longer.

ON THE SHATTERED WINDOW for our final shot. The curtains blow out into the wind.

BLACK OUT

END OF ACT TWO