Again, dedicated to my reviewers **sniff** what would I do without ya? Probably get closer to a sane life...aw, come on, I'm only kidding. Anywhoozle, there is a bit of a flash-back thingy at the beginning of this so...just to clear up any possible confusion. And if you ARE as confused as hell cuz ya skipped this note TOUGH LUCK ON YOU! Yeah, that's all really, thanx.
Disclaimer: You think I'm Joss Whedon and that I own Buffy etc.? COOL! Then let Reilly die cruel, painful and twisted deaths every episode and Dru and the Chaos demon come back! (I'm sure some of you will agree!)
Hey, WeaponX! If you read the second chapter, you'll find out that both Faith and Buffy are now dead. So no more reviews about my terrible continuity, 'kay?
OK, now I'm just playing for time. Saturday night, caffeine, and watching Buffy vids really do NOT mix too good. You have been warned! ;-D
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"How can you treat your family like this? How can you grind your family's honour and reputation into the dirt like this?"
Liam turned rapidly to face his angry father. The stupid fool was seething, his old face dark red with rage and his voice very loud. Over his shoulder, Liam saw his mother sitting silently in her chair, pale as she watched the unfolding drama fearfully. Her sewing lay forgotten in her lap.
"You spend our money gambling and drinking! And do you work like me? No- you think your time is better spent with harlots and your scum-of-the-earth friends!" he yelled. Liam glanced over to the fireplace. His sisters, Grace, Phyllis, and Kathleen (nicknamed Jane) had abandoned their game and were staring up at the men. His brother Patrick was also watching from his seat by the table.
Grace raised an eyebrow at him in a serious look he interpreted correctly as, "Listen and pay heed brother." He ignored her and glared back at his father.
"I see no reason why what I do should concern you." he told him coldly. "Whether it be gambling or drinking or talking to who I like. I am a man now, not a child who needs protection." He looked quickly back over at his young siblings, knowing that they were the ones needing protection. Phyllis seemed scared of the outbursts and was sucking her thumb whilst clinging pitifully to Grace. Patrick had moved over to her as well. Jane continued to look at him, her dark eyes doleful.
"Then act like one!" Mr. McCormack thundered, spittle flying from his mouth. "Act like the man you claim to be rather than a spoilt brat leeching off of his family's well-being!"
Ringing, deadly silence followed this yell. The air was tense with bated breath from each family member. Liam scowled at his father, sorely tempted to backhand him. He thought better of it, although the internal struggle of will and sense was fierce.
"I'm leaving," Liam said slowly and quietly. "Now."
He turned and stormed from the room. He pushed the door roughly open, stepped out into the dark streets of a Galway night, and slammed it behind him. The noise sounded like a volcanic eruption in the complete hush of the room.
Mr.McCormack growled, "That boy is out of the house forever by dawn." He stormed off to the back rooms, closely followed by his wife, pleading once again for patience and impossible lengths of understanding with their callow son.
In the front room, the children sat completely still. Eventually, Jane got up and began to toddle towards the door, in all the innocence of the sweet three-year-old she was.
"Where is my angel going?" she lisped, obviously intent on following her canonized (in her sight at least) brother whichever dank tavern he was set for tonight.
Grace got up hurriedly and swept the girl up into her arms, dark eyes staring at the door. Rocking her soothingly, she whispered, "He's not your angel any longer."
She did not know that in just over a week's time, she herself would be finding those six small words hard to believe even as her brother drained the blood from her body, from the very last of his relatives.
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Gracia had already decided what she would wear for her first day at Sunnydale High School, and so it didn't take her long to get ready on that bright morning. When she came down for breakfast at 8 a.m., she was wearing a strappy white top, bootlegged jeans made from faded denim, and the pointed black boots she had been wearing last night. Also, she wore the silver crucifix Angel had given her and her dark hair was tied back neatly into a French plait.
Mrs. McCormick, her adoptive mother, was busy in the kitchen making toast and coffee. She was wearing an old baggy shirt with the sleeves rolled up and an even older pair of leggings. Both items of clothing were paint stained, as she had yesterday begun on re-decorating most of the house. At the moment, cans of paint of every colour lined a spare work surface in the room.
"Hi honey," she said, smiling at her as she tied back her dirty-blonde hair with an old scrunchie. "Looking forward to a new school?"
Gracia smiled slightly. "Sure thing. And whilst I'm looking forward to a new school, I'll just collect that cheque for a million pounds."
"You'll be fine," her mother assured her. "Don't worry about it."
"It's dollars now, not pounds. Get your facts right, this is America, not the U.K." said the girl who just entered the room. Brianna was eleven, and Gracia's sister. The dirty blonde hair she had gained from her mother was cut in a short, ragged style around her face and her blue eyes shone brightly. Trotting by her heels was the puppy she had been given when they first arrived in the country, a Doberman called Scrappy.
Gracia smiled wider and shrugged. "I didn't notice."
Brianna sat down and picked up a piece of toast without looking at it. "Good luck at school. I don't start 'till tomorrow!" Triumphantly, she bit into the toast and almost instantly pulled a face as she spat out a soggy mouthful of chewed up food. "Eurgh. Marmite." She passed the morsel onto the dog, who instantly began tearing it apart and smearing marmite and margarine all over the newly cleaned floor.
"Brianna!" Mrs. McCormick scolded. "How many times do I have to tell you not to feed that dog at the table?"
"Many, many times before the message homes in on her brain." Gracia said as she took a sip of coffee. Brianna pulled a face and stuck her tongue out at the older girl, earning a, "Brianna! Stop that!"
"He's not up the table Mum, he's under it." she protested. Gracia's smile became a grin.
"Fifteen-love." she remarked. Her father came in at that point, ready for work. He laughed at the chaotic scene unfolding.
"Come on Gracia, I'll give you a lift to school if you're quick," he said. "I'll drop you off on my way to work."
"Consider it done." Gracia went out into the hall where her sky-blue jacket and white shoulder bag were waiting for her departure. Mr. McCormick followed her into the room after saying goodbye to his wife and daughter. "Let's go."
*****
The new Sunnydale High was built on the exact same site as the old one. Once the debris had been cleared from the aftermath of Class of '99's graduation, the council had decided to rebuild the school in an almost identical fashion, but larger and with several features that were more modern and eficient, such as more computer facilities. By the time Gracia stepped out of her dad's car and onto the pavement outside the sprawling building, the area was alive with masses of teenagers intent on 'feeding and mating' (to quote the now deceased Principal Snyder) rather than their classes.
Trying desperately to hide her nervousness, she clutched her bag strap and started to make her way through the jostling groups up the wide steps and across the lawn. She glanced curiously around, taking in sights and making mental notes and first impressions. Nobody paid her any attention-after all, she was just another face in the crowd even if they'd never seen her before. But when she pushed open the large glass doors that were the entrance and stepped into a bustling corridor, she was almost knocked over by a man who greeted her.
"Are you Gracia McCormick?" he asked. He was a short middle-aged guy with sparse greying hair, with a harassed expression. Startled by this hurried introduction, she couldn't answer immediately.
"Er-yeah. Yeah, that's me," she eventually managed to reply. "Why?"
I can't be in trouble already, can I? she thought.
The man began to direct along the corridors until they reached a door with 'PRINCIPAL'S OFFICE' emblazoned on the frosted glass. He directed her in and they sat in chairs on oposite sides of the desk.
"I am Principal Walker, and let me be the first to welcome you to a new start at Sunnydale High School," he said hurriedly, bringing out what she recognised as her permanent record. He opened it and began to look through all of her papers, all the while talking. She wasn't listening but caught the occasional phrase such as 'we know you'll fit right in' and 'just ask if you're not sure of anything'. Typical headteacher speech for the new student. She answered neutrally when she had to, more intent on what the reports said about her. He was now checking a reference from Belfast Central Secondary Modern, the school she had attended in Ireland.
"Oh...oh, dear." Principal Walker suddenly said. Gracia raised her eyebrows slightly.
"What's the matter?" she asked, dreading the reply. If it said anything about her battling half the night with vampires affecting test scores, she would have to think up an explanation quickly.
"It says here that you appeared not to put much effort into your work for about the last two months of your school year there." He shot her a quizzical glance. "Now why was that, hmm?"
What was she going to say, 'I was out saving the world from blood-sucking demons'? Not likely.
"Well, you know, what with the strain of emmigrating, my help was needed especially around the house with packing and stuff. But we're not moving again soon, so I can concentrate on my studies." Silently she added, "If the demons don't trouble me too much."
It was the typical 'I-will-try-harder' new student reply to targets set, but Walker seemed to be buying it. At least, that was what she hoped his new expression meant. That, and the fact it possibly didn't metion the fact she had gotten into a huge fight on the last day.
"Very well, you'd better get along to class," he said. "Wouldn't want to be late on your first day, would you?"
With the forced laugh that tells teachers you appreciate their lame jokes, she stood up. Then she remembered something else.
"Where is my first class?"
*****
Gracia's first class was English and the lesson was five minutes underway when she found the room. The teacher, a friendly dark-skinned woman in her fifties, welcomed her and told her to find a seat. The only one left was in the middle of the room, and she took it.
As the lesson started up again, the girl on her right leaned over.She was thin and fairly short, dressed in a long-sleeved stripey top and tie-dye trousers, all in red-like colours. Her hair was long and reddish-brown, swept up into a high ponytail on top of her head, and large golden hoops were strung through her ears.
"Hey. You're new?" she asked. Gracia nodded.
"My name's Gracia. What's yours?"
"I'm Keisha. There's usually my twin brother too, but I think he's skipping this class. He can't stand English. So, where'd you move from?"
"Washington D.C. But I come from Belfast in Ireland really."
"Cool. I've never lived anywhere but here, and god does it suck after a few years."
Gracia laughed. At least someone was acknowledging her presence and trying to be friendly. "So what's it like here?"
She shrugged. "From my point of view, it's dreadful. But then I'm considered a freak by all, so I don't know whether my opinion counts for anything. You have all your usual divisions-the 'in' crowd and the outcasts, so it just depends where you want to be accepted."
"That's certainly a cheering view," Gracia commented wryly. "But I'm sure I'll slot in somewhere."
Their discussion continued brokenly throughout the lesson, and it was with Keisha that Gracia went out of the class with when the bell rang. Chatting, they walked along to Keisha's locker, as she had to unload some books. Leaning against the rows of green metal doors was a tall guy with blonde hair, who looked up and grinned as they came to a halt.
"Hey Keisha, hey person-I-don't-yet-know-the-name-of," he said cheerfully. "What did I miss in English?"
"A hell of a load of work." Keisha replied. "Shift."
He moved so that she could open her locker, and stood facing Gracia, staring at her with turquoise eyes identical to his sister's. She smiled in a slightly shy manner.
"Hi. I'm Gracia, and I'm new here," she told him.
"I'm Luke." he replied
"And a pain." Keisha said from the depths of her locker. She eventually emerged with some fur-covered notebooks. "Come on, we have Biology next and that's on the other side of the school."
Gracia soon found out that Luke and Keisha were really easy to get on with and by the end of the science class she felt like she'd known them for ages. She left them briefly and was just getting a drink from a corridor water fountain when she heard a scathing voice above her.
"Is it me, or are these freaks multiplying?"
She looked up slowly and found herself being stared at by four cheerleader-types, the ringleader being an icy brunette with a haughty expression and a cold stare.
"What do you want?" Gracia asked in identical unfriendliness as she drew herself up to her full height, just a few inches smaller than the tall brown-haired girl. Her dark eyes met those of her enemy's in a hard look.
"You get out of our way now, freak." the brunette sneered. Gracia raised an eyebrow and laughed slightly.
"Whatever. Like I'd want to be around you lot for long anyway. Your limited vocabulary may start to affect me" she replied in an equally scathing voice as she pushed past them. She rounded the corner and found Luke and Keisha there, having listened to the conversation.
"Ah, so you too have felt the full extent of Bridget's friendliness," Luke said, pulling a face. "You're now officially one of us."
"Great." Gracia smiled. "I want to be one of you lot, rather than shoved in that tarty little clique."
The trio all laughed, and then Keisha spoke up.
"Hey, d'you want to come to the local club with us tonight? The band that's playing is pretty cool."
"I can probably come. Where is it?"
"It's on the other side of town. It's called the Bronze..." Before she could launch into a detailed list of directions, Gracia felt a flash of remembrance.
"I know where that is," she interrupted. "I went there last night."
The twins gave her a questioning look and Luke asked, "I thought you were new?"
"I, um, went there when I was looking around town last night. I met up with someone," she explained.
Luke was still confused about her knowing anyone. "Again, I thought you were the new girl?"
"Let's just say I know him from before." Literally, she added mentally, thinking of how much her brother had altered since she knew him first.
"Anyway, where shall I meet you? At the club?" she continued, desperately wanting to distract them from a possible slip-up on her real life. Within three seconds, she was chatting away like any normal teenager, and not a vampire Slayer who was worrying about her demon brother.
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When Brianna opened the door of her sister's bedroom to ask to borrow something, she immediately jumped back at the sight. Her sister had managed to empty the entire contents of her wardrobe onto her bed, searching for a decent outfit to wear out.
At the moment, she was doing her make-up at the desk. She was dressed in tight black trousers, a long-sleeved form fitting black top, and high black shoes. When she saw the blonde girl staring from the reflection in her mirror at her she raised an eyebrow.
"What, Brianna? You've seen Scrappy mauling some poor helpless person and realise how bad he is?" she asked sarcastically. Brianna scowled slightly then replied, "Since when did you care so much about your appearance?"
"We aren't all tomboys, Brianna," Gracia said hurriedly, screwing the top back on her mascara tube and blinking experimentally. "Some people do actually want to look nice."
"Does Mum know you're going out?" Brianna demanded, coming in and perching on the bed. Picking up her hairbrush from where it lay on the make-up table, Gracia pulled out the fastenings of her plait and brushed it out until it began to crackle statically.
"Of course. Oh sorry, did you want to get me grounded? Maybe next time." She wound her hair back into a simple tidy knot against her neck and tied it in place with a black hairband.
Brianna meanwhile was watching her reflection. "Hey, Gracia?"
"Yeah?"
"Where'd you get that necklace from? I've never seen you wearing it before."
Gracia thought up something quickly. "Oh, they gave it to me when I left Belfast Secondary. I lost it for a while and only found it last night. Decided it might be a good luck charm." She turned to her sister. "How do I look?"
"Like an old black and white cartoon." Brianna got up. "I'm going."
"Thank you for that charming view," Gracia called after her. She picked up a black jacket from the bed and left quickly. Then she returned and slipped two stakes into her jacket pocket.
'Cause I should be on duty tonight, but what the hey...
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Keisha glanced boredly from the band playing on stage to her brother, who was watching the door without realising what he was doing. She rolled her eyes.
"Hey Luke, I never realised you found the entrance so fascinating," she said suddenly. He looked around at her and pulled a face when what she had said registered.
"Whatever, Kiesh." He looked back at the door, deliberately this time.
Keisha chewed at her almost non-existent nails (a long habit that occurred whenever she was nervous or bored) as she looked at him. Eventually she shook her head and glanced back at the band. There was about a minute's silence between the twins until she spoke again.
"Gracia's gonna show, y'know." Luke didn't reply to this, and silence dominated once more.
About a minute and a half later, however, Luke suddenly sat up quickly in his seat and tapped Keisha's arm, almost knocking over her drink. Keisha looked over and raised an eyebrow at her brother's turned head.
"What?"
"You're right Keish, she is here."
Keisha followed Luke's gaze over to the door where Gracia had just come in, the darkness of her clothes a vast contrast to the bright colours most others were wearing.
Gracia herself was quite daunted by the size of the place, and she glanced around as she moved inwards at the chattering friends, the dancing couples, and the band on the stage. Suddenly she sensed someone blocking her way and stopped, turning her head to face them.
It was Angel, and she smiled happily, earning a small smile back from him.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, the smile spreading steadily into a wide grin.
"I could ask you the same question." he replied quietly. She shrugged and said, "Meeting up with some friends. So how are you?"
"As always."
With a small smirk, she answered, "I remember a time when that meant drunk and rowdy."
Although his expression did not alter and he said nothing, he was pained at the memories of the callow, uncaring Liam he had deserted in Galway more than two centuries ago.
Noticing the hurt lurking in his eyes, she pulled a face and winced. "Sorry. Didn't think."
"That's OK," he assured her, desperate to make his sister smile again. He couldn't stand to cause her even more torment than he had already in past lives. "It doesn't matter. Seriously."
A small smile appeared and she drifted past him towards where her friends sat. He turned and watched her as she glanced back briefly to say, "Come on."
So he followed her to where two children of her own sixteen years were seated, a brunette girl and a blonde boy, both with blue-green eyes. They smiled at her, and the girl's eyes slid past to look at Angel, her expression something like shyness.
"Hey Gracia," the boy said, nodding at her. "Glad you could make it."
"Hi," the girl said, taking her eyes off of Angel and looking at her friend. "What he said."
"Hey," Gracia replied. "This is Angel. My...friend. Angel, this is Luke and Keisha."
The twins greeted Angel, and vice versa. An uneasy silence fell over the group, and Gracia glanced from her brother to her new friends, praying for some type of intervention. Luke noticed her expression and spoke up.
"So, Angel, how'd you know Gracia?" he asked suddenly.
Angel replied with the first thing that came into his head. "We used to live in the same street back in Ireland, we've known each other for ages."
Gracia smiled as she realised it was more true than any of them could guess, her tenseness fading. Maybe everything would be fine. Maybe now she had her brother and her friends, she would be able to live as normal a life as a Slayer could.
Maybe she could.
Maybe, but she couldn't ignore the fact that this place was obviously overrun with vampires.
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Principal Walker was working late that night, at a time when only he and the caretaker (mopping the corridor floors somewhere else) were in the building. Paperwork was piling on, what with mock exams, new students, and new staff all part of the current high school regime.
There was a soft knock at the door and his head snapped up from the forms he was filling in.
"Enter."
A blonde youngish woman dressed in a smart black suit came in, look slightly questioning and movements showing a bit of shyness. She shut the door behind her and walked forward.
"Sorry about the lateness of this meeting, but I couldn't come any earlier. My flight landed an hour ago and I'm on my way to my new home. I thought it would be better to see you now rather than delay it until I start my job here." She extended her hand towards the watching man. "Cecelia Rees, librarian."
He stood up and shook the hand of the woman who spoke with the English accent. "Welcome, Ms. Rees. So glad you put in the effort when you must be exhausted from your journey."
"Oh really, it's no trouble." A small smile tugged at her lips.
"Are there any problems as to when you start, or anything like that?"
She laughed shortly. "Oh no, nothing like that. I just thought I should introduce myself before the day, as packing and all that will probably take me the rest of my time."
The principal smiled. "Then welcome to Sunnydale High."
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Hmm, Keisha and Luke seem a bit too much like Willow and Xander. Bear with me, I'm trying. This is like my second fic for Buffy, so....yeah, just so you know. BTW, as I don't watch Angel (damn T.V. schedules, cutting Angel off the TV), can someone please explain to me what's going on about Darla, etc. Sorry to be so ignorant. Thank you!

-Shady Shadowz