TITLE: What You Are (Part 9/9)
EMAIL: LaVelleBelle@aol.com
RATING: PG-13
DISCLAIMER:Joss owns all, including my heart. Thank you Joss for giving me so much.

Xander had been running for the last ten minutes, unsure of where exactly he was going. He had watched as Wesley had been shot point blank in the chest and he feared for the rest of his life, he would see the man fall to the ground over and over. He needed to find Angel- to find Giles- to find anyone that could save his friends' lives.

He held his breath as a pair of headlights nearly blinded him, and he waved his arms, pain flaring in his back as he did so.

The car screeched to a halt in front of him and the door opened, Willow running towards him. "Xander!" she called out. "What's going on? Where's Wesley?"

Xander nodded, looking up at Angel and Giles who had met them in front of the car. "He's- they-"

Angel shook his head, knowing fully what Xander meant. "No."

"I'm sorry, Angel."

"Where are they, Xander? Is Buffy alright?"

"They're at a factory," Xander said, struggling to catch his breath. "I can show you, but we need to hurry. He's going to kill them."

"Who?" Willow asked. "Who is he?"

"Quentin Travers," a voice said from behind them. Willow turned around and smiled, seeing Tara there. She automatically pulled the girl into a hug, but after a brief second, Tara pulled away. "I'm sorry," Tara said, frowning. "We have to move fast. Something is horribly wrong. This wasn't supposed to happen."

"What do you mean?" Giles asked. "How would you know?"

"Let's talk in the car," Angel said, anger seething in every word he spoke. "We need to get there fast. I'll be damned if someone else dies tonight."

Giles nodded. "Quite right. Let's go."

*****

"The Cruciamentum was a suicide mission," Buffy repeated, her eyes once more moving down to Wesley's still body. "Tell me something I don't know. I've seen demons from hell show more compassion than you. But what I don't understand is why this healing thing is such a big deal. I figured it'd be a big yay for you guys. I stand a better chance against the forces of darkness now. So tell me why I'm on your hit list?"

"Genevieve Moreau," Travers answered.

"And? Who is she?"

"She was a Slayer, quite like yourself. There was no Cruciamentum back then in the 1500's. She was the first Slayer to live past 18 and she developed- those powers. She became invincible."

"And?"

"She became unstoppable."

"That's kind of the point."

"To us. She became unstoppable to us. Invincibility is a very powerful thing, Ms. Summers. It tends to go to one's head. She turned against the Council, as you did as well. She sided with the evil- loving the sheer power of it and she almost took the world down to Hell with her."

Riley looked at Buffy, holding on to her tight as he saw the fear in her eyes. "How did you stop her?"

"From all accounts, it was a terrible affair. It took four men to hold her down; hours to cut her apart into small enough pieces. They traveled months scattering her remains across the world. An explosion will have to do for you Buffy- we do not have time to do the same this time. After all, after taking care of Ms. Summers, we have the matter of Faith to attend to. Her 18th birthday is next week, if I recall correctly. We have a lovely- affair - set up for her already."

Buffy swallowed hard, her whole body shaking, half from fright, half from anger. "You won't hurt her."

"And how are you going to stop me? You will, of course, be dead at this time."

"You underestimate me," Buffy said, breaking away from Riley. "You tell me all the secrets- all the power I can have if I simply grab it," she said, and with one quick motion, the gun was out of Quentin's hand and in her own. "You know- there's two things you need to learn from this situation and hopefully grow from."

"What is that?" Travers said, backing up.

"1. You talk too much and 2.," she said, pointing the gun at his head. "You really should know better than to piss a Slayer off."

"Buffy, no!" Giles called out, rushing into the factory towards his Slayer.

Buffy turned towards Giles, tears in her eyes. "I have to, Giles. I have to kill him."

"No you don't," Tara said, moving past Giles and towards Buffy. "I was wrong. You can't kill him, Buffy. If you kill him- you validate everything he just told you. You become what needs to be killed."

"I've killed already tonight, Tara. You told me I had to," Buffy said, her hand shaking.

"You killed to survive, Buffy. If you kill him now, you're doing it only out of anger. We're all here now- he's the last one. It's going to be alright," Tara said, moving close to Buffy and placing her hand over hers.

Buffy relented and dropped the gun to the ground, falling against Riley's chest, sobbing. Riley held her, his hand soothingly running along the side of her face.

"Where is Cordelia?" Xander asked, stepping up to Travers, who looked like he had been given a new lease on life. "Tell me or I'll kill you myself."

"It's not over, you know. I may be the last one here but-"

Xander cut him off, his fist delivering a mean right hook.

Travers looked up after a few seconds, defeated. "She's in the car outside."

Xander didn't wait for instructions and he ran outside, looking for the only car he didn't recognize. He found it quickly and opened the rear door. There lay Cordelia, bound and gagged, and from the looks of it, crying for the last few hours.

Xander quickly undid the ropes and the gag and pulled her body to his, holding her there in the car for what seemed like forever.

*****

"Angel?" Buffy said, her voice low. "Are you going to be OK?"

Angel stared, fixated at Wesley's body which had been mercifully been covered with a white sheet by Giles a few minutes before. Another friend- another fallen comrade and he could hardly think. "No," Angel said, looking up at Buffy. "He didn't deserve to die."

"I know," Buffy said, frowning. "I-- I could have saved him."

"No," Angel said, shaking his head. "Buffy- Xander told me what happened. You couldn't have known that he would have killed him."

"He died for nothing, Angel. He died because of me."

"He died for you, Buffy. I know- I mean, I knew Wesley, and I know how much he regretted not meaning more to you. This sacrifice of his- he would have wanted to die like this."

"I'll never forget him," Buffy said, wiping a tear away as Riley came up next to her, wrapping his arms around her and solemnly nodding at Angel.

Giles sighed as he joined the three, his hands in his pockets. "How are you all holding up?" he asked.

"Not good," Buffy said, looking up at her Watcher. "You?"

"Myself as well. This whole thing rather disgusts me and to think that a man like Wesley lost his life because of it- it makes me want to shoot Travers myself."

"Get in line," Angel said, growling as he leaned against a car.

"Will they- keep coming after me?" Buffy asked, her head rested on Riley's chest. "After us?"

"I don't know," Giles said, removing his glasses. "I believe that the elders of the Council will try to take it over once more and bring back order. You will be assigned a Watcher, whether you like it or not, I suspect. They will want to keep an eye on you ensure you do not turn out as Ms. Moreau."

"Did you know about her, Giles?" Buffy asked.

"No, I didn't. Apparently, she was the black sheep of the Slayer family."

"To say the least," Riley said, smiling weakly.

"I don't want to be like her, Giles."

"You never will," Giles said, reaching a hand out to her. "I truly believe that."

"And Faith?"

"Faith will have a Guardian of her own," Angel said, looking at Buffy. "Look, I know that you think-"

"No," Buffy said, shaking her head. "Thank you. That's the best thing you could ever do for me- to take care of her."

Angel nodded, his eyes once again on that white sheet. "We need to take care of him."

Giles nodded, unable to look. "We will."

******

Tara stood over Wesley's grave, the dirt freshly laid on top. She had stayed after the funeral and had been in the same spot for the last hour. She didn't know what to say to anyone- how to explain how horribly she was reacting to losing someone whom she had never truly met.

"Tara?" Willow called out, her voice weak from crying. She had sat in the car waiting for Tara to join her for an hour and was starting to worry for her girlfriend.

"I didn't know," Tara said, turning back to Willow, tears in her eyes. "I thought- I couldn't see what was going to happen."

"It's not your fault, Tara," Willow said, reaching for Tara's hand. "They didn't show you."

"I don't understand it," Tara said, a tear falling down her stained cheeks. "Why didn't they? I left him there- I thought I just needed to show you the way to Buffy and everything would be fine. I didn't know I left him there to die."

Willow sighed, pulling Tara to her and placing a soft kiss on her lips. "Maybe it was just his time, Tara. You can't help that."

Tara sobbed into Willow's shoulder, her arms pulling the redhead close to her.

*****

"You have to leave?" Buffy asked, holding Xander's hand. "I don't know what I'm going to do without you."

"Make those pizza runs yourself, I think," Xander said, smiling. "I just- I want to be with Cordelia and her life is in LA and there's not much keeping me here. I mean- there's you guys but I can come visit all the time. Plus Angel's a little shorthanded-"

"I know," Buffy said, nodding as she moved into Xander's tight embrace. "I miss you already."

"Take care of yourself," Xander said, removing himself from the hug and stepping into his car. "Take care of each other."

"Always," Buffy said, watching as Xander pulled out into the street.

Buffy turned, walking into her house. She walked up the stairs, wanting nothing more than to lie in bed and take a nap- to be some semblance of a kid again.

She laid down in her bed and closed her eyes, drifting off to sleep.

~~~You think you know ... what's to come ... what you are. You haven't even begun. ~~~~~

THE END....

((Or maybe there will be more in a sequel!!))