Swapping the pieces around.
PG-13
All characters herein are the property of Joss Whedon (except the ones I made up, but even if he uses them, I'd be chuffed to bits) and are used here solely for the entertainment of others. No profit is intended.
Authors Note I have a set narrative in mind, but why don't you drop me a line telling me what you would like to see? Nothing smutty, mind, as FF.net is a squeaky clean place to be now. And I say yay! That means no more gratuitous snuff stories. Although there are deaths in this story, specifically this chapter, that might come across as harsh, however, death and vampires are kinda like jelly and ice cream, are they not?
+++ Sunnydale May 2000
Buffy decided to pay her mother a visit. She felt strange somehow, as if there were some drastic element missing from her life. At first she supposed that it was the loss of Angel, yet she was pretty happy with Riley. Plus Angel wasn't exactly her favourite person right now. They had argued over what to do with Faith, and had agreed to keep their distance. Still, she couldn't shake the feeling that someone else should be vaguely involved in her life. She decided it was nothing to do with the mystical forces of slayerdom, just the fact she was getting homesick. So, a visit to home was in order.
She opened the door to her Mom's house. "Mom, you home?" she asked. There was no answer. "Mom?"
She opened the door to her old room - and cried out at what she saw. Drusilla was laying on her bed, in the shade. She gingerly moved her fingers into the sunlight, where they fizzled for a second, and she drew them back in and kissed them, before giggling. Spike was laying down next to her, a lit cigarette in his mouth. But the truly vile thing was Adam. He had her Mom, impaled on his arm skewer. She had been drunk from, as she had two bite marks on either side of her neck. She had been dead for several hours..
"Y'know Slayer." Said Spike "Your Mum sure makes good Shish Kebab."
"Bastard!" screamed Buffy as she ran towards Spike. In a heartbeat, Adam dropped Joyce's corpse, and grabbed Buffy by the throat. He threw her through the window, and she was winded for a moment, whereas a normal human may have been seriously wounded, or wrose.. She got up from the ground, as Adam looked from above.
She wanted to run up there again, but instead knew that she was out gunned, she ran quickly, tears streaming down her face. She needed Giles.
+++ "I am unsure of this." said Adam as he watched the slayer go. "If you want to Sire her, as you say, why are you allowing her to flee?"
"Let her run." Said Dru "Let her soul stain her being, then her heart collapse like an over tired horse, and she will be happy to join our new family."
"A cryptic response" said Adam, as he scanned her sentence and tried to decode her metaphors and euphemisms.
"And that's why I love 'er" said Spike. +++
Giles tried to navigate his grief over Buffy's death by working out the mysteries - why were Spike and Drusilla suddenly involved with Adam? It was obvious that they were targeting those nearest and dearest to Buffy, but why now? What did he have planned?
"Giles we gotta do something, she's a mess." Said Riley.
"Well, what can we do. hm? Please tell me. Maggie Walsh's bloody monstrosity is striking close to home - Spike and Drusilla worked with Angel, who was intimate with Buffy. They know tons about her, as we've seen. With their knowledge about Buffy's circle of allies, and Adam's invulnerability, what can we do?"
"Well" said Riley "What about some hardware? I'll ask the initiative for help, maybe they can."
"Of course." Said Giles scathingly "Ask Frankenstein how to kill his monster."
"Look, Buffy's hurt. Xander and Willow are comforting her now. We gotta do something!" insisted Riley.
"Yes, you're right. We'll stay alive. Fighting Adam won't bring Joyce back, you're your death won't exactly help Buffy. We must play this carefully." At the same time, Giles wanted to 'lock and load' with Riley, and go out and tear Adam into his human, demonic and cyborg components.
"I guess you're right." Said Riley, clenching his fists at his side. "It just hurts me to see that. She's the strongest person I've ever known. and this."
Giles nodded. He'd seen Buffy in many states, but now, she was verging on despair. She was beginning to realise what he knew already - she was Adam's latest obession, and no one she cared about would be safe.
+++
Tara shifted uncomfortably in her chair. She had only met Mrs Summers a few times, but she had respected the woman. She managed to raise Buffy, one of the best things in Willows life, and thus her own. She wasn't scared for her own life, she was frightened for Willow's, and life without her seemed more frightening than an entire army of Adams. Anya was sat with her, while Buffy, Willow and Xander were in Giles bedroom, and Giles and Riley talked.
"We should escape." Said Anya
"I sorta think that Adam wou-would find us wherever we go." Said Tara
"In that case, we should abandon Buffy. She is the liability. The rest of us can go on. You have Willow, and I have my Xander, and we'll all be happy in I don't know, Mexico."
"How can you say that?" asked Tara "B-buffy has saved our lives and that's a cowardly thing to say."
"You're right." Admitted Anya. "and I felt bad for thinking it, I just thought if I said it, then it wouldn't feel bad. But it feels worse."
Tara was about to respond when Willow and Xander came down the stairs. They both seemed tired and drawn. They and Giles had been close to Mrs, Summers, almost as if they were extensions of the Summers family. Xander kissed Anya on the head, and Willow brushed her hand against Tara's shoulder.
"How is she?" asked Tara.
"Sleeping now." Said Willow. "I think she's more frightened of Adam than upset about Joyce."
"I guess you get a little de-sensitised to fighting all the nasties that Buffy fights. When one actually takes the life of someone she loves, and she can't do anything about it. she freaked."
"Wouldn't you freak if someone could kill everyone you love, and knows where you live?" asked Willow.
"Everyone I love is here Will, and someone IS trying to kill us."
"Then we'll stop them." A voice said from behind them - it was Buffy.
"Buffy you should rest." Said Giles, coming over from the kitchen.
"No." said Buffy flatly. "Those bastards want to strip away my family and friends, fine they can try, but you know what they'll find at my core? 100% slayer."
"Buffy, Spike and Drusilla are formidable alone, but with Adam at their side, they're unstoppable. You can't go!" insisted Giles. "I know Mom meant a lot to you guys too, so you can come if you like. But do not try to stop me. You'll lose." Said Buffy. Her face was blank, she betrayed no signs of emotion in her voice either.
"OK." Said Xander "If I can help, I will."
Willow briefly looked at Tara before nodding "Count me in."
Riley nodded "I'm always there for you Buffy. Adam's going down."
If things were not so grim, then perhaps a great sense of camaraderie could be felt. But Giles disproved that.
"For the record, this is the stupidest bloody thing I've ever heard. I've failed you as a watcher if you insist on going on this damned fool's errand."
He removed his glasses.
"No, Giles the Watcher is not coming with you."
He walked over his weapons box and pulled out an axe. "But Ripper is!"
Anya raised her hand. "What about us." She said gesturing between her and Tara "Do we get to die horribly too?"
"No" said Willow. I want you two to do something very important. Willow wrote something on a notepad, and handed it to Tara. "Go here. Bring help."
It was the Address of a Private investigation company - in LA.
"Willow, it takes hours to get to LA. can they come in time?"
"No." began Willow. "These people fight the same fight we do. They might be able to help, if we fail."
"B-but. I want to stay with you." Said Tara, a single tear running down her cheek.
Willow smiled sadly "We can't stop the juggernaught we're on. Adam can't get the chance to destroy you. You're a powerful witch. If we fall, then maybe you can help Angel. Please, go for me, where I know you'll be safe."
Willow squeezed her hand. Tara nodded, loosening the tears on her face.
"OK." Said Buffy, interrupting the tender moment "Lets get to work."
+++
Spike sat in a charred swivel chair in the burnt remains of the school. Such a historic place - he first met the Slayer there, Dru killed a Slayer here, so it seemed only fitting that the Slayer should snuff it here.
He left a nice cryptic note on the corpse of the Slayer's Mum - meet at the beginning. The Slayer was a clever girl, she'd figure it out. Spike sighed, sure the Slayer had humiliated him for over a year, but deep down, he would miss this. The thrill of combat made Spike's life worth living, and now, as the last chapter in his feud with the slayer drew near, he was kind of sad that it would be ending.
+++
Xander inhaled deeply. They had arrived at Buffy's house and they had found the note. He hadn't gone into the room where Joyce's body was, but he could smell the death. Now, on the way to the high school, it was finally beginning to dawn on him. He would not be coming back. He shifted in the backseat next to Willow.
"You scared?" he asked in a whisper
"Xander, this is what we do. I'm used to it, we fight demons all the time." Willow said half heartedly.
"Me too." Said Xander immediately understanding. I just hope, we can get through this, I mean, we've closed the gate to hell, restored a Vampire's soul, and averted the apocalypse so many times, but now, something just feels it's the final scene, and its only going to be death. and I don't mean in the heroic 'T-800' way."
Willow shrugged "I suppose. but, the fight will go on, even if we fail. Angel, Wesley and Cordy. They'll keep on fighting for us."
"Hey!" said Riley "Adam may be tough, but no one's unbeatable. Don't talk like that."
"Right" said Willow "I mean that prophesy book said that The Master was gonna kill Buffy, yet there she is, still here in all her Living Slayerage."
"Yeah, but he did kill me Will." Said Buffy.
They continued on the rest of their journey in silence.
Adam stood in one of the former computer labs in the school, looking out into the night. He inhaled the scents of smoke and ash and nodded. His GPS tracking system alerted him that a vehicle was approaching. His enhanced demon vision saw the car approaching the school.
He was able to identify each of the five occupants from the school's electronic records, which he had reconstructed in the wait. In the driver's seat was Rupert Giles, formerly the School Librarian. Buffy Summers, aka the Slayer sat in the passenger seat, her record showed her to be a handful. Adam liked that. Alexander Harris and Willow Rosenberg, two students whose records were spotless until they allied themselves with the Slayer - Adam liked that too. The fifth occupant was not in the school records, but Adam knew him from the databases of the Initiative. Riley Finn.
Buffy stormed out of the car as soon as it parked up. She had armed herself with a crossbow and sword.. Xander had chosen a crucifix and stake, Willow had a spell book and Giles had another crossbow. Riley followed, armed with an AK-47 he 'Borrowed' from the Initiative.
Written above the door were the words 'Slayer Demon Night, in the Gym' in spray paint. One of Spike's little games no doubt. Buffy was no longer angry, no longer scared, no longer saddened over her mother's death. Her first priority was to wipe out the three occupants of that high school. They were scum, and the universe would be better off with them erased from it.
Wordlessly, they marched into the Gym. Sitting atop the collapsed bleacher, was Drusilla. She was preening a half singed pom-pom like it was a small puppy. Spike was dribbling a basketball on the charred hardwood. When he saw the Buffy, he slammed the ball onto the ground violently. Chunks of burnt floor and soot flew up.
"I never liked basketball myself." Said Spike "I preferred footy. Chicago Bulls? Give me Manchester." Spike ducked to avoid an arrow.
"Oh come on Slayer!" said Spike "I help kill Mum, and now you won't do me the courtesy of joining me in a touch of repartee?"
"No chat, no jibes, just death." Said Buffy.
"I entirely agree!" said Adam from behind them. Giles and Buffy unloaded with their cross bows. One hit him in the chest, the other in the arm. Riley aimed his gun - and hesitated for a moment.
"Riley. Take out everyone but the Slayer." Said Adam.
To Buffy's utter horror, Riley complied. She watched as Giles, Willow and Xander fell to Riley's volley. Riley seemed to have a pained expression on his face - like he was resistant to do it. As Buffy stared, open mouthed at Riley, she felt a thud at the back of her skull, and she fell to the ground, unconscious.
"Like you said." Smirked Adam. "Just death."
+++ What a cliffhanger huh? Please R and R
All characters herein are the property of Joss Whedon (except the ones I made up, but even if he uses them, I'd be chuffed to bits) and are used here solely for the entertainment of others. No profit is intended.
Authors Note I have a set narrative in mind, but why don't you drop me a line telling me what you would like to see? Nothing smutty, mind, as FF.net is a squeaky clean place to be now. And I say yay! That means no more gratuitous snuff stories. Although there are deaths in this story, specifically this chapter, that might come across as harsh, however, death and vampires are kinda like jelly and ice cream, are they not?
+++ Sunnydale May 2000
Buffy decided to pay her mother a visit. She felt strange somehow, as if there were some drastic element missing from her life. At first she supposed that it was the loss of Angel, yet she was pretty happy with Riley. Plus Angel wasn't exactly her favourite person right now. They had argued over what to do with Faith, and had agreed to keep their distance. Still, she couldn't shake the feeling that someone else should be vaguely involved in her life. She decided it was nothing to do with the mystical forces of slayerdom, just the fact she was getting homesick. So, a visit to home was in order.
She opened the door to her Mom's house. "Mom, you home?" she asked. There was no answer. "Mom?"
She opened the door to her old room - and cried out at what she saw. Drusilla was laying on her bed, in the shade. She gingerly moved her fingers into the sunlight, where they fizzled for a second, and she drew them back in and kissed them, before giggling. Spike was laying down next to her, a lit cigarette in his mouth. But the truly vile thing was Adam. He had her Mom, impaled on his arm skewer. She had been drunk from, as she had two bite marks on either side of her neck. She had been dead for several hours..
"Y'know Slayer." Said Spike "Your Mum sure makes good Shish Kebab."
"Bastard!" screamed Buffy as she ran towards Spike. In a heartbeat, Adam dropped Joyce's corpse, and grabbed Buffy by the throat. He threw her through the window, and she was winded for a moment, whereas a normal human may have been seriously wounded, or wrose.. She got up from the ground, as Adam looked from above.
She wanted to run up there again, but instead knew that she was out gunned, she ran quickly, tears streaming down her face. She needed Giles.
+++ "I am unsure of this." said Adam as he watched the slayer go. "If you want to Sire her, as you say, why are you allowing her to flee?"
"Let her run." Said Dru "Let her soul stain her being, then her heart collapse like an over tired horse, and she will be happy to join our new family."
"A cryptic response" said Adam, as he scanned her sentence and tried to decode her metaphors and euphemisms.
"And that's why I love 'er" said Spike. +++
Giles tried to navigate his grief over Buffy's death by working out the mysteries - why were Spike and Drusilla suddenly involved with Adam? It was obvious that they were targeting those nearest and dearest to Buffy, but why now? What did he have planned?
"Giles we gotta do something, she's a mess." Said Riley.
"Well, what can we do. hm? Please tell me. Maggie Walsh's bloody monstrosity is striking close to home - Spike and Drusilla worked with Angel, who was intimate with Buffy. They know tons about her, as we've seen. With their knowledge about Buffy's circle of allies, and Adam's invulnerability, what can we do?"
"Well" said Riley "What about some hardware? I'll ask the initiative for help, maybe they can."
"Of course." Said Giles scathingly "Ask Frankenstein how to kill his monster."
"Look, Buffy's hurt. Xander and Willow are comforting her now. We gotta do something!" insisted Riley.
"Yes, you're right. We'll stay alive. Fighting Adam won't bring Joyce back, you're your death won't exactly help Buffy. We must play this carefully." At the same time, Giles wanted to 'lock and load' with Riley, and go out and tear Adam into his human, demonic and cyborg components.
"I guess you're right." Said Riley, clenching his fists at his side. "It just hurts me to see that. She's the strongest person I've ever known. and this."
Giles nodded. He'd seen Buffy in many states, but now, she was verging on despair. She was beginning to realise what he knew already - she was Adam's latest obession, and no one she cared about would be safe.
+++
Tara shifted uncomfortably in her chair. She had only met Mrs Summers a few times, but she had respected the woman. She managed to raise Buffy, one of the best things in Willows life, and thus her own. She wasn't scared for her own life, she was frightened for Willow's, and life without her seemed more frightening than an entire army of Adams. Anya was sat with her, while Buffy, Willow and Xander were in Giles bedroom, and Giles and Riley talked.
"We should escape." Said Anya
"I sorta think that Adam wou-would find us wherever we go." Said Tara
"In that case, we should abandon Buffy. She is the liability. The rest of us can go on. You have Willow, and I have my Xander, and we'll all be happy in I don't know, Mexico."
"How can you say that?" asked Tara "B-buffy has saved our lives and that's a cowardly thing to say."
"You're right." Admitted Anya. "and I felt bad for thinking it, I just thought if I said it, then it wouldn't feel bad. But it feels worse."
Tara was about to respond when Willow and Xander came down the stairs. They both seemed tired and drawn. They and Giles had been close to Mrs, Summers, almost as if they were extensions of the Summers family. Xander kissed Anya on the head, and Willow brushed her hand against Tara's shoulder.
"How is she?" asked Tara.
"Sleeping now." Said Willow. "I think she's more frightened of Adam than upset about Joyce."
"I guess you get a little de-sensitised to fighting all the nasties that Buffy fights. When one actually takes the life of someone she loves, and she can't do anything about it. she freaked."
"Wouldn't you freak if someone could kill everyone you love, and knows where you live?" asked Willow.
"Everyone I love is here Will, and someone IS trying to kill us."
"Then we'll stop them." A voice said from behind them - it was Buffy.
"Buffy you should rest." Said Giles, coming over from the kitchen.
"No." said Buffy flatly. "Those bastards want to strip away my family and friends, fine they can try, but you know what they'll find at my core? 100% slayer."
"Buffy, Spike and Drusilla are formidable alone, but with Adam at their side, they're unstoppable. You can't go!" insisted Giles. "I know Mom meant a lot to you guys too, so you can come if you like. But do not try to stop me. You'll lose." Said Buffy. Her face was blank, she betrayed no signs of emotion in her voice either.
"OK." Said Xander "If I can help, I will."
Willow briefly looked at Tara before nodding "Count me in."
Riley nodded "I'm always there for you Buffy. Adam's going down."
If things were not so grim, then perhaps a great sense of camaraderie could be felt. But Giles disproved that.
"For the record, this is the stupidest bloody thing I've ever heard. I've failed you as a watcher if you insist on going on this damned fool's errand."
He removed his glasses.
"No, Giles the Watcher is not coming with you."
He walked over his weapons box and pulled out an axe. "But Ripper is!"
Anya raised her hand. "What about us." She said gesturing between her and Tara "Do we get to die horribly too?"
"No" said Willow. I want you two to do something very important. Willow wrote something on a notepad, and handed it to Tara. "Go here. Bring help."
It was the Address of a Private investigation company - in LA.
"Willow, it takes hours to get to LA. can they come in time?"
"No." began Willow. "These people fight the same fight we do. They might be able to help, if we fail."
"B-but. I want to stay with you." Said Tara, a single tear running down her cheek.
Willow smiled sadly "We can't stop the juggernaught we're on. Adam can't get the chance to destroy you. You're a powerful witch. If we fall, then maybe you can help Angel. Please, go for me, where I know you'll be safe."
Willow squeezed her hand. Tara nodded, loosening the tears on her face.
"OK." Said Buffy, interrupting the tender moment "Lets get to work."
+++
Spike sat in a charred swivel chair in the burnt remains of the school. Such a historic place - he first met the Slayer there, Dru killed a Slayer here, so it seemed only fitting that the Slayer should snuff it here.
He left a nice cryptic note on the corpse of the Slayer's Mum - meet at the beginning. The Slayer was a clever girl, she'd figure it out. Spike sighed, sure the Slayer had humiliated him for over a year, but deep down, he would miss this. The thrill of combat made Spike's life worth living, and now, as the last chapter in his feud with the slayer drew near, he was kind of sad that it would be ending.
+++
Xander inhaled deeply. They had arrived at Buffy's house and they had found the note. He hadn't gone into the room where Joyce's body was, but he could smell the death. Now, on the way to the high school, it was finally beginning to dawn on him. He would not be coming back. He shifted in the backseat next to Willow.
"You scared?" he asked in a whisper
"Xander, this is what we do. I'm used to it, we fight demons all the time." Willow said half heartedly.
"Me too." Said Xander immediately understanding. I just hope, we can get through this, I mean, we've closed the gate to hell, restored a Vampire's soul, and averted the apocalypse so many times, but now, something just feels it's the final scene, and its only going to be death. and I don't mean in the heroic 'T-800' way."
Willow shrugged "I suppose. but, the fight will go on, even if we fail. Angel, Wesley and Cordy. They'll keep on fighting for us."
"Hey!" said Riley "Adam may be tough, but no one's unbeatable. Don't talk like that."
"Right" said Willow "I mean that prophesy book said that The Master was gonna kill Buffy, yet there she is, still here in all her Living Slayerage."
"Yeah, but he did kill me Will." Said Buffy.
They continued on the rest of their journey in silence.
Adam stood in one of the former computer labs in the school, looking out into the night. He inhaled the scents of smoke and ash and nodded. His GPS tracking system alerted him that a vehicle was approaching. His enhanced demon vision saw the car approaching the school.
He was able to identify each of the five occupants from the school's electronic records, which he had reconstructed in the wait. In the driver's seat was Rupert Giles, formerly the School Librarian. Buffy Summers, aka the Slayer sat in the passenger seat, her record showed her to be a handful. Adam liked that. Alexander Harris and Willow Rosenberg, two students whose records were spotless until they allied themselves with the Slayer - Adam liked that too. The fifth occupant was not in the school records, but Adam knew him from the databases of the Initiative. Riley Finn.
Buffy stormed out of the car as soon as it parked up. She had armed herself with a crossbow and sword.. Xander had chosen a crucifix and stake, Willow had a spell book and Giles had another crossbow. Riley followed, armed with an AK-47 he 'Borrowed' from the Initiative.
Written above the door were the words 'Slayer Demon Night, in the Gym' in spray paint. One of Spike's little games no doubt. Buffy was no longer angry, no longer scared, no longer saddened over her mother's death. Her first priority was to wipe out the three occupants of that high school. They were scum, and the universe would be better off with them erased from it.
Wordlessly, they marched into the Gym. Sitting atop the collapsed bleacher, was Drusilla. She was preening a half singed pom-pom like it was a small puppy. Spike was dribbling a basketball on the charred hardwood. When he saw the Buffy, he slammed the ball onto the ground violently. Chunks of burnt floor and soot flew up.
"I never liked basketball myself." Said Spike "I preferred footy. Chicago Bulls? Give me Manchester." Spike ducked to avoid an arrow.
"Oh come on Slayer!" said Spike "I help kill Mum, and now you won't do me the courtesy of joining me in a touch of repartee?"
"No chat, no jibes, just death." Said Buffy.
"I entirely agree!" said Adam from behind them. Giles and Buffy unloaded with their cross bows. One hit him in the chest, the other in the arm. Riley aimed his gun - and hesitated for a moment.
"Riley. Take out everyone but the Slayer." Said Adam.
To Buffy's utter horror, Riley complied. She watched as Giles, Willow and Xander fell to Riley's volley. Riley seemed to have a pained expression on his face - like he was resistant to do it. As Buffy stared, open mouthed at Riley, she felt a thud at the back of her skull, and she fell to the ground, unconscious.
"Like you said." Smirked Adam. "Just death."
+++ What a cliffhanger huh? Please R and R