Chapter 8
Life and Death

The four girls walked in silence all the way back to the house. Anger and hatred were plastered on the two slayers' face. They walked ahead of Willow and Tara. Tara felt the pain coming from Faith. She pulled Willow close to talk to her.

"I'm scared, Willow," Tara whispered.
"I know, so am I."
"I've never seen either of them this bad before."
"I have. When Faith first came, Buffy and her were rebelling against the council and being wild, it was weird. Faith had this animosity that really scared me. That's why when she first came back I was so angry. She nearly killed me, nearly killed Buffy, and tried to kill Angel. But that wasn't her, I know that now. She was lost and confused. Hopefully, neither of them will take his life."
"You don't think they will, do you?"
"Goddess I hope not. After they accidentally killed the mayor's assistant, Buffy was lost in guilt, and Faith, well; we know what happened there. I don't think they can do it, honestly. Buffy said something about someone owing her a favor. I pray she was right."

Tara nodded as they went back to silence. After awhile, they reached home, Giles was waiting for them when they arrived.

"What happened? Where is Kat and Erin?"
"He shot her, Giles. That bastard Quentin shot her," Buffy cried.

Giles hugged her tightly to comfort her. Faith ran inside and grabbed her car keys.

"Come on guys, let's get going. We need to know what is going on."
"Yes, Faith is right. Get to the hospital. I will stay here till Joyce gets home and then we will meet you there. I will let the group know what is going on."

Buffy nodded and let Giles go. She ran to the car and got in. Tara and Willow followed. Faith got into the car and started it up. She quickly pulled out of the driveway and headed towards the hospital. Giles quickly went inside the house and was about to make a phone call when Angel stopped him.

"No, Giles. We can't," Angel said.
"What do you mean Angel?"
"Do not call the council. This is in their hands now and they have to deal with it."
"But I must do something."
"No Giles. All you can do is allow them to do what they wish."
"Do you think they will kill him?"
"No, never. They aren't killers, and I know because I saved Faith. They will find a way."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, now get a hold of the group and let them know what is going on. And Giles let them handle this. They need to."

Giles nodded and called Xander. At the hospital, Kat was rushed into emergency surgery. Erin had just finished giving the head nurse all of Kat's information. The four girls arrived at the hospital about ten minutes later. They all started looking for Erin. Willow spotted her and ran over to her. Erin stood up and hugged Willow tightly.

"She's in surgery right now. They haven't told me much about the situation."
"Don't worry Erin. She is a really strong young woman. If anyone can survive, its her," Faith said.
"I pray that you're right."
"Me too."

Buffy placed a gentle hand on Erin's shoulder. Erin looked at her.

"Remember your promise ok. And I will get Quentin for you. I swear on my life I will."
"Thanks, Buffy."
"I know what it is like to nearly lose the woman you love. And I do anything to help my friends."

Erin let go of Willow and hugged Buffy tightly. Buffy wrapped her arms around Erin to comfort her. Tara had walked away to find a nurse. She really wanted to know the status of the wound. Willow went to go find Tara. She found her talking to a nurse. Tara sighed and walked away, bumping into Willow.

"Tara, you all right?"
"She's still in the OR, but they moved her upstairs. The bullet didn't hit her heart, so that is a plus."
"Yeah. That is always a good thing. Buffy is comforting Erin. And Faith is just looking lost. Go to her, ok."

Tara nods and they walked back to the waiting room. Tara went over and wrapped her arms around Faith. Faith held on tightly to her lover, not wanting to let her go.

"If anything ever happened to you, Tara, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself."
"Nothing will happen as long as I have you."

Faith kissed Tara gently on the lips, holding on to her.

"You tamed me when no one else could. Not even Angel could tame me. But you did. Tara, you are everything I have ever wanted in life. I thank the goddess every day."
"As do I, for you."

Faith smiled at the blonde Wiccan, kissing her forehead gently. Willow walked back to Buffy and Erin. Buffy looked up at Willow.

"Look after her. I need to go out for awhile."
"Where are you going Buffy?"
"A debt that needs to be repaid."
"Be careful."
"I will."
"What about Faith?"
"She needs to stay here. Just in case Quentin decides to show up. You would be defenseless if both us went. Besides, the woman who owes me the favor does not like Faith very much."
"Why?"
"Don't know really. But I gotta fly. I'll be back later."

With a quick kiss, Buffy was gone. Faith and Tara headed over to the other two.

"Where did B go?"
"To get her wild card, so to speak."
"Alone?"
"Faith, she made it clear for you to stay here. Quentin could come to try and finish the job. She knows what she is doing. That is the thing about Buffy, she's always had a plan."
"Hope your right Red, I really do."

Buffy ran to the cemetery and headed to one of the crypts. She entered the one she needed too, and stood at the entrance.

"I know you are here, come out. It is just me."
"The dark one isn't with you," a heavy Irish accented woman asked.
"She is taking care of some friends."
"What is it you want, Slayer?"
"Moira, I need you to take care of someone."
"Why me?"
"Because you owe me, big time. When you do this for me, you can go where ever you want to."
"I can go home?"
"Yes Moira, you can go home."
"What do you want me to do?"
"Kill this man."

Buffy took out a picture of Quentin Travers and Moira took it.

"Can I keep this picture?"
"Yes. Will you do it?"
"Aye. You saved my life and gave me a chance to repay you. Thank you Slayer. I still owe you so much for allowing me to live."
"One last thing, tell him that his death was on my order. I don't care how you do it, just make it extremely painful. When you finished the job, you can stay or go, but I know how you want to get home. Be safe Moira, and thank you."

Buffy hugged Moira and left. Moira studied the picture and waited for the sun to be completely set before she left. She wasn't a vampire; she was a half-breed demon Buffy had saved from the Initiative. She owed Buffy more than just killing this man. But she would do this for her friend. Back at the hospital the group arrived, except for Giles, Angel and Joyce.

Buffy came back after about an hour of being gone. She looked at Willow and just nodded. Willow knew what that meant and she told Erin and Tara. Faith went over to Buffy.

"Things work out ok," Faith asked.
"Yeah. She'll do it for me. It is all taken care of."
"Good. I don't want that bastard to get off easily."
"Trust me, he won't."

Xander walked over to Buffy and Faith.

"What happened?"
"They wanted to take Quentin on their own, and she got shot. We got there to defeat the demons, but Quentin got away. He won't be alive for long," Buffy said.
"Buff, you aren't thinking of killing him yourself are you?"
"No. I have a friend who owes me big time to do it. She hates anyone who wants to kill her, and well Quentin will be on the top of her list now."
"Good, just checking. We don't need anyone flying off the handle here."
"Well, if you were there Xand, you'd fly off the handle too," Faith added.
"Your right, I probably would have."

Xander sighed and walked away, back to Cordelia. Faith bit her tongue.

"Sorry B."
"Faith, it's ok. We are all upset. You and I were there, he wasn't, you know. And Travers will pay. He will know why Moira killed him. And he will know for eternity that he has made the wrong choices in life."

Faith nodded as the doctor came out.

"Which one of you is Erin Mendall?"
"I am," Erin said, standing up.
"Your partner is in stable condition and is improving by the hour. It missed her heart and she will be released in a few days time. She is now on the third floor, in the Recovery ward. Everything is going to be all right, Ms. Mendall."
"Thank you doctor."
"Not a problem. You can go visit her now, if you like."

The doctor turned to walk away. Tara walked to Erin and hugged her tightly.

"She's going to be just fine," Tara said.
"Yeah, I know."

Erin sighed and squeezed Tara tighter. Everyone else sighed with relief. Buffy walked over to Erin.

"Go on. I'll bet she's waiting for you," Buffy said.
"What about you?"
"We'll wait for my mom and the others to show. To tell them the news, ya know. Besides, you should see her first."
"Thanks Buffy."

Buffy smiled as Erin walked to the elevator. Buffy looked over at the group.

"You guys can head out if you want. I am sticking around; cause I don't know where ass-wipe is hanging out at. And he may just want to show his ugly face around here."
"Let us know how she's doing, ok," Xander asked.
"You got it. See you guys later."

The group left, leaving Tara, Willow, Buffy and Faith. Buffy went and sat down on one of the seats, sighing. Willow sat next to her.

"Feeling better?"
"I'd feel better once that bastard is dead and buried."
"I know, Buffy. He'll get what is coming to him."
"I wish I could be there for that. But knowing me, I'd try to stop it. I want him dead."
"Don't worry, B," Faith started, "if this wild card owes you, then she'll do it."
"I know, I know."

All the girls sat there in silence till Giles showed up. He and Joyce came and went to talk to the girls. They told him what was going on, and a wave of relief washed over Giles and Joyce. Buffy then headed upstairs to find Erin. She found the room and peered in. She saw Erin holding Kat's hand. She smiled and entered quietly.

"How is she," Buffy whispered?
"Good. She just drifted off to sleep. It's the pain medication. They think she'll be out of here soon."
"That's good. I know we'll help you take care of her. She is family, we have too."
"Family?"
"Hey, you fight evil, in my eyes that makes you family and an official member of the Scoobie Gang."

Erin smiled at Buffy. Then she looked out the window, hearing a weird singing. Buffy heard it too.

"Wow, whom ever that is has a very powerful set of lungs to be heard here."
"Yeah, wow. Its Gaelic."
"How do you know?"
"I know the woman singing it. Her name is Moira, a half demon from Ireland. I saved her life. I just couldn't kill her. She does have a soul. And she fights on our side. I just didn't know before hand. A demon thug tried to kill her and I came to her rescue. She sings on this day every month. It is her burial song."
"Burial song?"
"Her lover died. She misses her greatly."
"That is sad."
"Yes, I know. And she can't wait to return to Ireland, to mourn properly."
"When can she do that?"
"When Travers is dead."
"He will pay for this. I don't care who he works for, or what he does. He tried to kill me and my girlfriend."
"Trust me, I know."

Buffy placed a gentle hand on Erin's shoulder. Erin looked up at the slayer and smiled. Buffy smiled back then looked towards Kat, sighing slightly. Buffy left Erin alone and headed down to the lobby. Erin stayed there with Kat for the next couple of days. Both Faith and Buffy took turns watching the hospital for Travers, while Giles gave the hospital his picture and requested no one to see Kat except for them.

A week later, a very quiet week at that, Kat was allowed to go home. After much deliberation, Kat and Erin went back to Kat's apartment, while Tara and Faith made a residence in the Summers' spare bedroom. That night, Buffy walked alone in the graveyard. Moira was there, waiting for her.

"He's gone," Moira said, sadly.
"Gone?"
"As in he left California. He is back in England, according to my sources."
"Thank you Moira. Go home, ok."
"Nay. I made a promise to ye slayer, and I tend on keeping it. My lover is in my heart, and I'll get home one day. And thank ye for your concern. Now, go home and tell them that he's gone. I'll let ya know when he comes back."
"Thanks Moira."

With that, Buffy ran off into the night, towards home. When she got there, she saw that Erin and Kat were there. When she went inside, everyone stared at her.
"Where have you been Buffy," Joyce asked, "did you forget about the dinner party?"
"No, I didn't. But I had business to attend to, very important business regarding Quentin."
"What about that bastard," Kat growled.
"My source tells me he has left and returned to England. She'll let me know if and when he comes back."
"Can your source be trusted," Giles asked.
"She is very respected amongst her kind, so yes, she can be trusted."
"Buffy can I speak to you alone please," Willow asked.

Buffy nodded and they headed out onto the porch.

"Why didn't you tell us?"
"Remember that phone call I got? Well it was Moira, and if I told you, you most likely would have liked to tag along and meet her, but that would have scared her off. She trusts me and me only. She doesn't even like Faith. I'm sorry Wills."
"Its ok. I was just worried. I mean we hadn't heard from Quentin, Angel went home, and I was just worried."
"I wasn't gone more than a half hour. But I understand your concern. If and when he returns, he'll realize that his shadow horse has come to take him to hell."
"Shadow horse?"
"Navajo myth about death. If you are near death, you see your shadow horse come to take you to the after life. I did minor in mythology."
"Is this the person you got to take care of Quentin?"
"Yes, Moira is going to kill him. Then she can finally go home, even though I told her she could tonight. She said she would do this for me, the leave. She'll get home one day."
"Slayer, we got trouble," she heard a voice yell.
"Moira?"

In the distance they saw Moira run at them full speed. She crashed onto the lawn and got up. She shook her short ebony hair and stared at Willow and Buffy.

"Moira, what is it?"
"After ye left, one of my sources came to me. She had just gotten a call from her sister, who is an insider on the council that they are scrambling together a small army to come here and put an end to you and your loves."
"Son of a bitch. When do they leave for here?"
"She said soon. They'll be here within forty-eight hours slayer. Anything I can do to help?"
"Know of anyone who will ally themselves with the slayer and fight for good?"

She gave them both a feral grin.

"Aye lass. They'll be here shortly. They'll do anything to kill some English bastards who try to take away their lives when they are no different from you or I. My Celts will help us. I will rally them and return tomorrow night."
"Thank you Moira."

Moira disappeared into the night and Buffy had her slayer face on.

"Game time."