Doesn't Anyone Stay Dead Around Here?
Chapter 16
"…Xander tried to explain, but once I told him about my years in vengeance, he assumed I was the one needing to be exorcised. Can you imagine? He started waving a cross in my face and shouting, 'Out, evil fiend! Out!'"
Father Mike followed the small blonde woman into the Magic Box. Although he knew of the store, he had never been in it. Since it specialized in occult needs, he suspected there was very little he would find of use. He mentally cocked his eyebrow at the very blonde woman behind the counter who was speaking and waving a wooden cross around in explanation as he entered.
"So, what happened?" asked a dark haired girl, who was obviously a few years younger than the others.
The woman who had been telling the story giggled and the dark hair man next to her spoke.
"Anya grabbed the cross, and when nothing happened, he, uh, fainted," he explained.
Laughter followed the end of the tale, but died out when the group noticed Buffy and the strange man behind her wearing a priest's collar.
"I'm guessing a big 'NO' in the luck department for you guys?" she asked.
Xander nodded his head, while the redhead girl sitting behind a laptop computer looked up from her work.
"I've found some stuff, but I think we're better off with a professional," she said. Nodding at the priest behind Buffy, she added, "Which you seem to have found."
"Guys, this is Father Michael, er, Mike. He's going to try and help us." Buffy pointed at the others and introduced them individually. When she finished, she turned to Tara and looked between the blonde witch and the tranquilizer gun that lay on the table in front of her, a question in her eyes.
"Oh, he, um, woke up," she said. "He really wasn't being very nice and he was trying to break the chains, so I thought, um, better safe than sorry."
Buffy nodded at the girl and smiled, slightly. "How much?"
"A half dose. Should last at least an hour, hour and a half."
Father Mike cleared his throat and said, "Are you, um, speaking of the victim?"
The man, Xander, snorted at the priest's choice of words. "Yeah, he's a real victim."
"Xander." Buffy admonished him. She turned to the priest. "We were afraid he would, um, get violent, so we sedated him. It'd probably be best if you examined him before he woke up."
She led the holy man around a book case and gestured to a figured lying on the floor in chains. Father Gabriel was stunned that this group had chained their friend up and sedated him. Either they were seriously frightened or mentally disturbed. Or both. Certainly demons gave strength to those they possessed, but the chains looked more than adequate to hold the average human being, regardless of how much strength the demon lent him.
He knelt beside the man on the floor. Sorrow filled him as he recognized the creature for what it was. Suddenly the chains didn't seem like such an unnecessary precaution. However, he did grieve for these young people who had lost a friend and thought an exorcism could bring him back. He hated to destroy their hope, but knew they must recognize that their friend was gone if they were to move on.
He stood and took Buffy's elbow. Gently he guided her to the table and motioned for her to sit. She ignored the gesture and narrowed her eyes.
"You're not going to help us?" she guessed.
Father Mike took a deep breath before meeting her gaze. "You were right. There are things that go bump in the night. One of those things killed your friend. I know it may be hard to believe, but your friend is gone. He's a vampire now."
Buffy had grown more concerned as the priest spoke. When he finished, she didn't respond immediately, trying to decide how to explain what she had so far avoided.
He assumed her silence was due to shock and continued to explain. "When someone is killed by a vampire, their soul leaves the body and a demon comes to inhabit it. In normal demon possession, the soul is simply overpowered by the demon and once the demon is cast out, the soul regains control of the body. But with vampires, there's no way to separate the demon from the body once it takes hold. And even if you could, the soul is gone. Your friend is gone."
Dawn's laughter broke the silence that followed the priest's grave announcement.
He mistook her mirth for denial, even hysteria, and moved to comfort her. He stopped however, when she composed herself enough to ask her older sister. "You didn't tell him, did you?"
Dawn now turned her attention to the priest. "We know Spike's a vampire. He has been for years."
"Then why did you come to me?" the confused man asked.
"Long story short," Buffy said, "Spike's not the only demon in there anymore. We want to exorcise the second one."
***
Later, Father Mike munched on a jelly donut and sipped at his coffee as he listened to the various members of the group explain their perspectives on the situation. He was astounded by their reasoning and a little scared because it showed an extensive knowledge of demonology and vampires in particular. He was also a touch unnerved by the nonplussed manner in which they went about the discussion, as if it were an everyday occurrence.
He had wanted to correct the redhead when she had analogized a vampire demon to a soul. While the analogy was sufficient for their purposes, wishful thinking about such impossibilities as vampires with souls could and would get this group into trouble someday. The priest decided, however, that there would be plenty of time to discuss the finer points of the vampire mythos after they had dealt with the problem at hand.
"The only thing I'm unclear on is why you think I would help you save this, er, Spike," he finally said, stumbling on the vampire's name. "I understand that he's your friend, but vampires are inherently evil. He may be nice to you now, but he will turn on you. Once a demon, always a demon."
"See!" exclaimed Xander, happy that his opinion of Spike had been validated by the priest. "The man's right. Once a demon, always a demon."
"Is that what you really think, Xander?" Anya asked in a deceptively calm voice.
Father Mike noticed that the other women in the room suddenly became unusually interested in anything that was not the dark haired man or the woman who had questioned him.
Xander, unfortunately, did not realize just how thin the ice he was on had become. "Of course, honey. I've been saying it for years. I mean, look at Angel. He had a soul, but he gets a happy and poof! One psycho, homicidal Buffy-stalker, made to order!"
"You can't blame Spike for Angelus, Xander." When Buffy spoke, her voice was low and dangerous. "You want someone to blame for that, you blame me."
"Oh, come on, Buff," Xander replied. "Like sire, like childe, right? Spike didn't even need a happy to turn into creepy stalking guy. Besides, did you conveniently forget that he's tried to kill us on more than one occasion?"
"Did you conveniently forget that he's done a lot to help us since then, not to mention save your life on more than one occasion, Alexander LaVelle Harris?" Anya asked.
The use of his full name stopped Xander cold. When he looked at his fiancé, tears were streaming down her face.
He frowned in confusion and moved to comfort the woman. "An, honey, what's wrong?"
"Don't you dare!" She held up her hand to stop him and then angrily wiped the moisture from her cheeks. She stormed into the training room, slamming the door behind her.
Xander looked at the closed door, confusion evident on his face.
"What did I do?" he asked.
"You're kidding, right?" Dawn asked, unable to believe he was that dense.
Xander continued to stare dumbly, until Willow spoke.
"Once a demon, always a demon?" she prompted.
"Oh." Xander sat in stunned silence, the realization of what he had said slowly sinking in. "I am such an idiot."
Tara stood, and slid the tranquilizer gun in Buffy's direction. "I'll go check on her. Make sure she's okay. Not, um, contacting old friends or anything."
The others nodded.
Father Mike had quietly watched the argument, but now he had to speak since the fight had been started by his words.
"If I may ask, why is this such a sore point? It's not a matter of opinion, it's a fact. Demons do not change."
"Do you really believe that?" Dawn looked at him, and he felt as if he was being questioned by someone many years his elder in both age and wisdom.
"I thought you believed in free will, the ability to choose one's path," Willow said. "Are you saying that's impossible?"
"It is possible, for man. Every human has the ability to choose his or her path, his or her destiny," he said. "But demons aren't human, they are inherently evil."
"Where was I the day they were handing out destiny free lives?" Buffy muttered.
"Buffy, I'm sorry." Xander spoke up. "About the crack about Angel. I know it wasn't your fault. I don't blame you."
"Thanks, Xan," she replied. "But this isn't really about me. Don't you think maybe you should be apologizing to Anya?"
Xander nodded and moved toward the training room door. Buffy turned to Father Mike before he could question the reasons behind Anya's reaction. "Father, I understand what you're saying about demons. I used to think that, too. But I've known some that weren't all that bad. And I've met the worst of the worst."
The priest nodded.
"Spike can be a real pain in the-" she cut herself off, remembering with whom she was speaking. "He can be a real pain. But he does help us. And, it's not like we're turning a killer lose. He can't even hurt people."
Seeing the question forming on Father Mike's lips, Buffy explained. "A couple years back, this military group put a computer chip in his head that gives him migraines if he tries to hurt a human."
She paused, and when she continued, all traces of the flip young lady he had first thought her to be were gone. "I can't just abandon him. If you won't help us, I'll do the exorcism myself. I-, we owe him that much."
tbc
+++++
A/N: Sorry for the action challenged portion of the story if you're an actionaholic. However, it's important and necessary. My muse said so.
Finn: I'm not big on Monopoly money (or snack-sized kittens for that matter), but chocolate coins or reviews are acceptable forms of currency. ;)
Chapter 16
"…Xander tried to explain, but once I told him about my years in vengeance, he assumed I was the one needing to be exorcised. Can you imagine? He started waving a cross in my face and shouting, 'Out, evil fiend! Out!'"
Father Mike followed the small blonde woman into the Magic Box. Although he knew of the store, he had never been in it. Since it specialized in occult needs, he suspected there was very little he would find of use. He mentally cocked his eyebrow at the very blonde woman behind the counter who was speaking and waving a wooden cross around in explanation as he entered.
"So, what happened?" asked a dark haired girl, who was obviously a few years younger than the others.
The woman who had been telling the story giggled and the dark hair man next to her spoke.
"Anya grabbed the cross, and when nothing happened, he, uh, fainted," he explained.
Laughter followed the end of the tale, but died out when the group noticed Buffy and the strange man behind her wearing a priest's collar.
"I'm guessing a big 'NO' in the luck department for you guys?" she asked.
Xander nodded his head, while the redhead girl sitting behind a laptop computer looked up from her work.
"I've found some stuff, but I think we're better off with a professional," she said. Nodding at the priest behind Buffy, she added, "Which you seem to have found."
"Guys, this is Father Michael, er, Mike. He's going to try and help us." Buffy pointed at the others and introduced them individually. When she finished, she turned to Tara and looked between the blonde witch and the tranquilizer gun that lay on the table in front of her, a question in her eyes.
"Oh, he, um, woke up," she said. "He really wasn't being very nice and he was trying to break the chains, so I thought, um, better safe than sorry."
Buffy nodded at the girl and smiled, slightly. "How much?"
"A half dose. Should last at least an hour, hour and a half."
Father Mike cleared his throat and said, "Are you, um, speaking of the victim?"
The man, Xander, snorted at the priest's choice of words. "Yeah, he's a real victim."
"Xander." Buffy admonished him. She turned to the priest. "We were afraid he would, um, get violent, so we sedated him. It'd probably be best if you examined him before he woke up."
She led the holy man around a book case and gestured to a figured lying on the floor in chains. Father Gabriel was stunned that this group had chained their friend up and sedated him. Either they were seriously frightened or mentally disturbed. Or both. Certainly demons gave strength to those they possessed, but the chains looked more than adequate to hold the average human being, regardless of how much strength the demon lent him.
He knelt beside the man on the floor. Sorrow filled him as he recognized the creature for what it was. Suddenly the chains didn't seem like such an unnecessary precaution. However, he did grieve for these young people who had lost a friend and thought an exorcism could bring him back. He hated to destroy their hope, but knew they must recognize that their friend was gone if they were to move on.
He stood and took Buffy's elbow. Gently he guided her to the table and motioned for her to sit. She ignored the gesture and narrowed her eyes.
"You're not going to help us?" she guessed.
Father Mike took a deep breath before meeting her gaze. "You were right. There are things that go bump in the night. One of those things killed your friend. I know it may be hard to believe, but your friend is gone. He's a vampire now."
Buffy had grown more concerned as the priest spoke. When he finished, she didn't respond immediately, trying to decide how to explain what she had so far avoided.
He assumed her silence was due to shock and continued to explain. "When someone is killed by a vampire, their soul leaves the body and a demon comes to inhabit it. In normal demon possession, the soul is simply overpowered by the demon and once the demon is cast out, the soul regains control of the body. But with vampires, there's no way to separate the demon from the body once it takes hold. And even if you could, the soul is gone. Your friend is gone."
Dawn's laughter broke the silence that followed the priest's grave announcement.
He mistook her mirth for denial, even hysteria, and moved to comfort her. He stopped however, when she composed herself enough to ask her older sister. "You didn't tell him, did you?"
Dawn now turned her attention to the priest. "We know Spike's a vampire. He has been for years."
"Then why did you come to me?" the confused man asked.
"Long story short," Buffy said, "Spike's not the only demon in there anymore. We want to exorcise the second one."
***
Later, Father Mike munched on a jelly donut and sipped at his coffee as he listened to the various members of the group explain their perspectives on the situation. He was astounded by their reasoning and a little scared because it showed an extensive knowledge of demonology and vampires in particular. He was also a touch unnerved by the nonplussed manner in which they went about the discussion, as if it were an everyday occurrence.
He had wanted to correct the redhead when she had analogized a vampire demon to a soul. While the analogy was sufficient for their purposes, wishful thinking about such impossibilities as vampires with souls could and would get this group into trouble someday. The priest decided, however, that there would be plenty of time to discuss the finer points of the vampire mythos after they had dealt with the problem at hand.
"The only thing I'm unclear on is why you think I would help you save this, er, Spike," he finally said, stumbling on the vampire's name. "I understand that he's your friend, but vampires are inherently evil. He may be nice to you now, but he will turn on you. Once a demon, always a demon."
"See!" exclaimed Xander, happy that his opinion of Spike had been validated by the priest. "The man's right. Once a demon, always a demon."
"Is that what you really think, Xander?" Anya asked in a deceptively calm voice.
Father Mike noticed that the other women in the room suddenly became unusually interested in anything that was not the dark haired man or the woman who had questioned him.
Xander, unfortunately, did not realize just how thin the ice he was on had become. "Of course, honey. I've been saying it for years. I mean, look at Angel. He had a soul, but he gets a happy and poof! One psycho, homicidal Buffy-stalker, made to order!"
"You can't blame Spike for Angelus, Xander." When Buffy spoke, her voice was low and dangerous. "You want someone to blame for that, you blame me."
"Oh, come on, Buff," Xander replied. "Like sire, like childe, right? Spike didn't even need a happy to turn into creepy stalking guy. Besides, did you conveniently forget that he's tried to kill us on more than one occasion?"
"Did you conveniently forget that he's done a lot to help us since then, not to mention save your life on more than one occasion, Alexander LaVelle Harris?" Anya asked.
The use of his full name stopped Xander cold. When he looked at his fiancé, tears were streaming down her face.
He frowned in confusion and moved to comfort the woman. "An, honey, what's wrong?"
"Don't you dare!" She held up her hand to stop him and then angrily wiped the moisture from her cheeks. She stormed into the training room, slamming the door behind her.
Xander looked at the closed door, confusion evident on his face.
"What did I do?" he asked.
"You're kidding, right?" Dawn asked, unable to believe he was that dense.
Xander continued to stare dumbly, until Willow spoke.
"Once a demon, always a demon?" she prompted.
"Oh." Xander sat in stunned silence, the realization of what he had said slowly sinking in. "I am such an idiot."
Tara stood, and slid the tranquilizer gun in Buffy's direction. "I'll go check on her. Make sure she's okay. Not, um, contacting old friends or anything."
The others nodded.
Father Mike had quietly watched the argument, but now he had to speak since the fight had been started by his words.
"If I may ask, why is this such a sore point? It's not a matter of opinion, it's a fact. Demons do not change."
"Do you really believe that?" Dawn looked at him, and he felt as if he was being questioned by someone many years his elder in both age and wisdom.
"I thought you believed in free will, the ability to choose one's path," Willow said. "Are you saying that's impossible?"
"It is possible, for man. Every human has the ability to choose his or her path, his or her destiny," he said. "But demons aren't human, they are inherently evil."
"Where was I the day they were handing out destiny free lives?" Buffy muttered.
"Buffy, I'm sorry." Xander spoke up. "About the crack about Angel. I know it wasn't your fault. I don't blame you."
"Thanks, Xan," she replied. "But this isn't really about me. Don't you think maybe you should be apologizing to Anya?"
Xander nodded and moved toward the training room door. Buffy turned to Father Mike before he could question the reasons behind Anya's reaction. "Father, I understand what you're saying about demons. I used to think that, too. But I've known some that weren't all that bad. And I've met the worst of the worst."
The priest nodded.
"Spike can be a real pain in the-" she cut herself off, remembering with whom she was speaking. "He can be a real pain. But he does help us. And, it's not like we're turning a killer lose. He can't even hurt people."
Seeing the question forming on Father Mike's lips, Buffy explained. "A couple years back, this military group put a computer chip in his head that gives him migraines if he tries to hurt a human."
She paused, and when she continued, all traces of the flip young lady he had first thought her to be were gone. "I can't just abandon him. If you won't help us, I'll do the exorcism myself. I-, we owe him that much."
tbc
+++++
A/N: Sorry for the action challenged portion of the story if you're an actionaholic. However, it's important and necessary. My muse said so.
Finn: I'm not big on Monopoly money (or snack-sized kittens for that matter), but chocolate coins or reviews are acceptable forms of currency. ;)