Part 36: After the War
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Xander was sprawled all over the couch, holding a bag of ice to his throbbing head. Anya was sitting beside him, but had nodded off some time earlier, her head resting on Xander's shoulder.
"Let's not do this again soon, okay?"
"You won't hear an argument from me," Willow added from where she and Tara were recuperating from the ordeal they had just gone through. Tara, having been on the outside, was merely exhausted. Willow was far beyond that. Willow was rather pleasantly surprised how good it felt to simply lean against the blonde witch and relax. There was that strange tingling in her belly that she could not quite make sense of yet, but she was too tired right now to spend much thought on it.
"Haven't had a hangover like this in decades," Giles muttered, massaging his temples in a vein attempt to get his headache to stop. Actually this was rather similar to one particular long weekend he had no clear memories of. Well, apart from the knowledge that it had involved a lot of alcohol, quite a few magical spells, and lots of sexual activity. There had been neither sex nor alcohol this time, but the magic they had invoked more than made up for that. Not that he remembered everything that had gone down this time, either.
They had come out of the joining spell and knew that the battle was over, though none of them was able to give any details of what had happened. Their memories were little more than a collection of random expressions and a feeling of limitless power that Giles doubted he would ever be able to put into words. He had been caught in the rush of black magic several times in his youth, but this was different. Better. Maybe even more seductive. He quickly decided that not remembering everything was probably a good thing.
"Shouldn't Buffy and Angel have called by now?" Willow asked, sounding extremely sleepy.
"They probably have a lot of cleaning up to do," Xander told her. "I don't remember much, but I think we kicked serious butt." He winced as his head started throbbing harder. "And may I just repeat once more, let's not do this again anytime soon."
"I think Buffy and Angel should have no problem handling things now," Giles agreed. "Let's just hope that an exercise like this won't be necessary again."
About five minutes later everyone in Giles' apartment was sound asleep, not particularly worried over what might be going on elsewhere in Sunnydale. After all, despite their lack of detailed memories, they knew they had just kicked serious butt.
#
Riley was still hurting all over and doubted anything less than a week of rest, hot baths, a long stay in the sauna, and some massages would suffice to make him feel even halfway healthy again. He did not doubt that most of his body was covered in bruises and every step he took was just one more proof that the world did not like him. How else could it justify making him hurt this much?
They had prepared for a huge battle and been armed accordingly, loaded for bear as the saying went. Over thirty men, all of them among the best fighters in the world, equipped with the latest in military hardware. All of them merely human, yes, but more than ready to prove that being human was more than enough to handle everything, including demonized super- soldiers.
Said proof had not been delivered and the big battle they had all prepared for ended within five minutes. Five short minutes. He shook his head, still not quite able to believe everything that had gone down. He had felt a lot of apprehension regarding his decision to call down an SDO raid on that motel despite Buffy's obvious decision to deal with Team 666 by herself. It had been a matter of trust, yes, and Riley had shown that he did not trust her. Which was, as much as it pained him, the truth.
He liked Buffy, he really did. He even liked Angel to a certain degree, as much as one man could like another man who happened to have the girlfriend he also wanted. What he did not like was what was happening to them. Okay, so maybe he should have talked to Buffy and Angel about his fears, but could anyone honestly blame him for being reluctant? Jackson King had almost killed Riley twice while possessed by this Huntsman thing, not to mention what its proximity had done to Buffy. Was it so hard to understand that he did not want to find out whether or not Angel had more of a handle on things than King had had?
Well, water under the bridge. All over with and done within five minutes. Just five minutes. He still had a hard time believing it. Had he not seen it with his own eyes, felt it in the form of his bruises, he would never have believed it.
Riley walked into the main room of SDO's auxiliary headquarters in Sunnydale and surveyed the scene. Burke and a handful of other SDO operatives were there, all of them looking just as bruised and tired as he himself felt. All of them wore identical looks on their faces, too. Looks composed of both anger and a respect that bordered on awe and fear.
The five members of Team 666 were also present, though all five of them were restrained quite thoroughly. Apart from that they were almost indistinguishable from the SDO operatives, looking just as beat, just as angry, just as awed.
The only two people with different expressions were Buffy and Angel, who stood in the middle of the room between the two factions. Both had their arms crossed across their chests and positively hummed with energy. Even if Riley had not experienced firsthand what they were capable of he would not have wanted to get either of them pissed at him right now.
Riley walked up to stand beside Burke, the two agents not exchanging any words. Both of them knew why they were here, what would happen now.
"This is how it's going to be," Buffy said, seeing that everyone was present now. She paused for a moment, looking to see whether anyone felt like arguing with her laying down the law. No doubt most people present wanted to, but they all had too much common sense to actually do it right now.
"There will not be anymore stupid fighting," Buffy continued with a hard stare. "There has been more than enough of that. Instead we're going to do something radically different. We're going to sort things out in a rational way."
She turned to look at the members of Team 666, all of whom were fuming. "The five of you are going to stand trial for what you did. And I don't want to hear anything about how you had the right to do anything or how badly you were mistreated in the past. I know all that and I'm tired of hearing it again and again."
Stone fixed her with a scorching glare. "You are even crazier than I thought you were if you think they," he motioned at Stone and his people, "are going to allow this to go before a court of law."
Buffy turned towards Burke. "Oh, I think they will. Burke, You will treat these people as human beings, not some kind of animal to be put down. They will receive a fair trial, one that will take into account what was done to them in the past."
Burke shook his head. "Ms. Summers, I know you mean well, but my superiors will never agree to something like ..."
"Oh, I think they will," Angel interrupted him with a smirk on his face. "Because if they don't a friend of ours will make sure that this very comprehensive file we found about Project Inferno will find its way to several major news agencies."
Burke stared at him, openmouthed. "They ... they will never believe ..."
"Maybe not," Angel shrugged. "Ask them if they want to take the chance to find out."
Buffy took a step toward Burke, her face softening a little. "I don't want to do it that way," she said. "We're on the same side, Burke, we both want to keep the world safe from the monsters. But that does not mean we can simply put down people like animals. These are people, Burke. Yes, they have done terrible things, but terrible things have also been done to them. You owe them, Burke. Those bosses of yours owe them."
Burke was visibly torn. He was a decent man, or as decent as this business he had been in for many years allowed him to be. He had come to Sunnydale with but one intention, neutralizing a threat to the American people, making sure that the innocents were safe from these monsters. He certainly had not wanted to learn that the government he served had, in the past, created monsters of their own. No, not monsters, something far worse. Something that could not simply be put into a box labeled "EVIL" and be done with.
"We are not asking you to pardon them, Burke," Angel said. "We are asking you to treat them like human beings. Nothing more, nothing less."
Burke closed his eyes, thinking. His superiors would not be happy with him, that much was for sure. It had been his decision to invite Buffy Summers into the SDO and now that same girl that had proved to be such an asset for their operation was blackmailing him, was blackmailing the company into doing something that ... well, he could not quite convince himself to call it right, but it was somewhat close to that.
"How do you know I won't just have them shot the moment you turn your back?" he asked Buffy.
The Slayer smiled. She knew she had him.
"I want your word that you won't," she answered him. "You also know that I have friends who have ways of digging up even the best-kept secrets, don't you?"
There was a long pause while Buffy and Burk just looked at each other. Finally Burke sighed and brushed a hand through his hair, taking a step back.
"I will talk to my superiors about this. I can't promise you more than this right now."
"Talk to them then," Buffy nodded. "We'll wait here."
Burke gave her one last look, then left to look for a phone. The other SDO operatives moved away as well, not comfortable to share the room with people who had kicked their butts once too often. The only one who remained behind was Riley.
"I didn't want things to go down this way," he finally said after a minute of awkward silence. "I'm sorry."
Not it was Buffy's turn to sigh. "I can't say I'm happy with things, but ... I guess I understand why you did what you did."
Angel stepped closer to the two of them. "They were trust-issues on both sides here, Riley. We did not take you into our confidence and you did not trust us to handle things by ourselves."
"Does that make us even?" Riley asked with a hint of sarcasm in his voice.
"I think there is no such thing as even in a situation as messed-up as this, Riley. Just common understanding, I guess."
"We are getting a handle on this Slayer-Huntsman thing, Riley," Buffy said.
"I saw as much," Riley said, rubbing his aching jaw. His tone was not angry, though. He knew fully well how easy it would have been for Buffy and Angel to inflict much more than bruises on him and all of his colleagues. He had seen King kill indiscriminately without so much as a hesitation.
"I'm asking you to trust us, Riley," Buffy went on. "Trust us to know what we can handle and what we can't. Even after everything that happened I still think it's a good idea, in general at least, for us to work together with you. But we need to make sure that misunderstandings like this don't happen again, otherwise we might as well cut our ties right now and be done with it."
Riley did not know how any sort of future cooperation between the SDO and Buffy, or Buffy and Angel now, was supposed to work. Right now he was not even sure whether there would be an SDO, not with the way things had gone wrong. Threat of public exposure aside, he doubted many people in Washington and Langley would be happy about all these past sins coming to light. A lot of effort had gone into forgetting everything connected with Project Inferno and the supernatural in general. If the trial Buffy wanted for Team 666 were to take place, even in a closed, non-public way, all these buried bodies would have to be dug up.
Not that it would necessarily be a bad thing for the company to deal with its own failings, but he doubted that many other people would see it that way.
"I don't want that," Riley finally said. It was the only thing he could be sure of right then and there.
They waited the better part of an hour for Burke to return and Buffy and Angel were surprised by the fact that they were barely tired, at least physically. Their state of mind was a completely different matter and both of them longed for some rest, as well as some time to work through everything they had done today.
They had taken out over thirty armed professional soldiers and five super- powered half-demons in barely five minutes. Even for people who were used to doing super-human feats on a daily basis this was no easy pill to swallow.
When Burke finally came back he looked even more tired than before and the near-permanent scowl on his face seemed deeper than ever. It had not been an easy conversation, that much was evident.
"I talked with my superiors," he said after a moment, "and they have agreed. There are conditions, though."
"Those would be?" Angel asked.
"One, that the two of you continue to work with SDO." He did not need to add that this was mostly so the government could keep an eye on them. "Second, as soon as the trial is finished you will hand over all the data and records you ... acquired from the CIA database, as well as helping our security people to make sure that such a breach can never happen again."
"That should be doable," Buffy said. Willow would probably get a huge kick out of helping the CIA fortify their database against magical hacks.
"There is one more thing," Burke continued. "You signed a non-disclosure agreement, Ms. Summers, about not involving anyone except Mr. Giles in SDO business. You have clearly violated this agreement, which gives us the right to press criminal charges."
He paused, waiting for Buffy to acknowledge this. She simply nodded, not as concerned as she probably should be. After what had happened today she found it hard to be concerned about anything.
"Considering the situation we are willing to let it slide for the moment," Burke told her, "but only for the moment. To be frank, my superiors do not like to be blackmailed. Neither do I. Should any information about what happened here ever reach the public we will press charges against you. You will spend the rest of your life in prison, even if we have to build one especially to hold someone with your power levels."
Looking into his eyes, Buffy realized that he meant every word he just said. It was not an idle threat, either. The government knew who she was, where she lived, and even with her vastly increased power levels she would not be able to fend off an entire country's worth of law enforcement, military, and secret agents. Plus, she had indeed violated the law by telling her friends everything about SDO. And could she really blame Burke for threatening her back when she had threatened him first?
After another moment's consideration, plus a quiet exchange with Angel, she held out her hand.
"It's a deal, Mr. Burke."
Burke shook her hand, though there was nothing friendly in the gesture. Buffy did not know whether they would ever regain the rather amiable working relationship they had had in those early weeks after her joining SDO. Odds were against it, she guessed. Still, they did not have to like each other to fight monsters together. It would be easier if they did, but they could work around it. Or so she hoped.
"A transport will arrive shortly to bring Team 666 to Langley," Burke said. "You have my word that nothing will happen to them until the trial. That trial will be a non-public one, of course, only the Senate's Intelligence Oversight Committee will be involved."
"I understand. I expect to be called as a witness, though."
Burke paused for a moment, but then nodded. "That can be arranged."
Some more words were exchanged, then Buffy and Angel turned to leave. Both of them were longing for some downtime, and a lengthy discussion with their friends about their shared experience was also in the cards. Before they left, though, Buffy turned to look at Stone and his people one last time.
"I hope you don't expect any thanks," Stone growled at her.
"Certainly not. I just hope you will make the best of this."
"They are never going to let us go again, you realize that? Even if they don't find some way of sentencing us to death, they will lock us away for life. They can't have things like us walking in the streets."
Buffy just nodded, aware that Stone's were true. She and Angel had debated long and hard about what to do, but this was really the only way. Stone and his people were murderers, no matter the circumstances. They could not simply let them go and neither did they have the means to imprison them for any length of time. Turning them over to the government, while trying to ensure something of a fair treatment, was the best thing they could do. Not perfect, no, just the best out of many bad choices.
"Let's go, beloved," Angel murmured to her as he led her out of the building. They were other things they had to do, things they had to worry about. Prophecies, signs, portents, upcoming apocalypse, you name it.
Right now, though, maybe they would be able to get at least some peace and quiet. Just for a while.
TO BE CONTINUED
#
Xander was sprawled all over the couch, holding a bag of ice to his throbbing head. Anya was sitting beside him, but had nodded off some time earlier, her head resting on Xander's shoulder.
"Let's not do this again soon, okay?"
"You won't hear an argument from me," Willow added from where she and Tara were recuperating from the ordeal they had just gone through. Tara, having been on the outside, was merely exhausted. Willow was far beyond that. Willow was rather pleasantly surprised how good it felt to simply lean against the blonde witch and relax. There was that strange tingling in her belly that she could not quite make sense of yet, but she was too tired right now to spend much thought on it.
"Haven't had a hangover like this in decades," Giles muttered, massaging his temples in a vein attempt to get his headache to stop. Actually this was rather similar to one particular long weekend he had no clear memories of. Well, apart from the knowledge that it had involved a lot of alcohol, quite a few magical spells, and lots of sexual activity. There had been neither sex nor alcohol this time, but the magic they had invoked more than made up for that. Not that he remembered everything that had gone down this time, either.
They had come out of the joining spell and knew that the battle was over, though none of them was able to give any details of what had happened. Their memories were little more than a collection of random expressions and a feeling of limitless power that Giles doubted he would ever be able to put into words. He had been caught in the rush of black magic several times in his youth, but this was different. Better. Maybe even more seductive. He quickly decided that not remembering everything was probably a good thing.
"Shouldn't Buffy and Angel have called by now?" Willow asked, sounding extremely sleepy.
"They probably have a lot of cleaning up to do," Xander told her. "I don't remember much, but I think we kicked serious butt." He winced as his head started throbbing harder. "And may I just repeat once more, let's not do this again anytime soon."
"I think Buffy and Angel should have no problem handling things now," Giles agreed. "Let's just hope that an exercise like this won't be necessary again."
About five minutes later everyone in Giles' apartment was sound asleep, not particularly worried over what might be going on elsewhere in Sunnydale. After all, despite their lack of detailed memories, they knew they had just kicked serious butt.
#
Riley was still hurting all over and doubted anything less than a week of rest, hot baths, a long stay in the sauna, and some massages would suffice to make him feel even halfway healthy again. He did not doubt that most of his body was covered in bruises and every step he took was just one more proof that the world did not like him. How else could it justify making him hurt this much?
They had prepared for a huge battle and been armed accordingly, loaded for bear as the saying went. Over thirty men, all of them among the best fighters in the world, equipped with the latest in military hardware. All of them merely human, yes, but more than ready to prove that being human was more than enough to handle everything, including demonized super- soldiers.
Said proof had not been delivered and the big battle they had all prepared for ended within five minutes. Five short minutes. He shook his head, still not quite able to believe everything that had gone down. He had felt a lot of apprehension regarding his decision to call down an SDO raid on that motel despite Buffy's obvious decision to deal with Team 666 by herself. It had been a matter of trust, yes, and Riley had shown that he did not trust her. Which was, as much as it pained him, the truth.
He liked Buffy, he really did. He even liked Angel to a certain degree, as much as one man could like another man who happened to have the girlfriend he also wanted. What he did not like was what was happening to them. Okay, so maybe he should have talked to Buffy and Angel about his fears, but could anyone honestly blame him for being reluctant? Jackson King had almost killed Riley twice while possessed by this Huntsman thing, not to mention what its proximity had done to Buffy. Was it so hard to understand that he did not want to find out whether or not Angel had more of a handle on things than King had had?
Well, water under the bridge. All over with and done within five minutes. Just five minutes. He still had a hard time believing it. Had he not seen it with his own eyes, felt it in the form of his bruises, he would never have believed it.
Riley walked into the main room of SDO's auxiliary headquarters in Sunnydale and surveyed the scene. Burke and a handful of other SDO operatives were there, all of them looking just as bruised and tired as he himself felt. All of them wore identical looks on their faces, too. Looks composed of both anger and a respect that bordered on awe and fear.
The five members of Team 666 were also present, though all five of them were restrained quite thoroughly. Apart from that they were almost indistinguishable from the SDO operatives, looking just as beat, just as angry, just as awed.
The only two people with different expressions were Buffy and Angel, who stood in the middle of the room between the two factions. Both had their arms crossed across their chests and positively hummed with energy. Even if Riley had not experienced firsthand what they were capable of he would not have wanted to get either of them pissed at him right now.
Riley walked up to stand beside Burke, the two agents not exchanging any words. Both of them knew why they were here, what would happen now.
"This is how it's going to be," Buffy said, seeing that everyone was present now. She paused for a moment, looking to see whether anyone felt like arguing with her laying down the law. No doubt most people present wanted to, but they all had too much common sense to actually do it right now.
"There will not be anymore stupid fighting," Buffy continued with a hard stare. "There has been more than enough of that. Instead we're going to do something radically different. We're going to sort things out in a rational way."
She turned to look at the members of Team 666, all of whom were fuming. "The five of you are going to stand trial for what you did. And I don't want to hear anything about how you had the right to do anything or how badly you were mistreated in the past. I know all that and I'm tired of hearing it again and again."
Stone fixed her with a scorching glare. "You are even crazier than I thought you were if you think they," he motioned at Stone and his people, "are going to allow this to go before a court of law."
Buffy turned towards Burke. "Oh, I think they will. Burke, You will treat these people as human beings, not some kind of animal to be put down. They will receive a fair trial, one that will take into account what was done to them in the past."
Burke shook his head. "Ms. Summers, I know you mean well, but my superiors will never agree to something like ..."
"Oh, I think they will," Angel interrupted him with a smirk on his face. "Because if they don't a friend of ours will make sure that this very comprehensive file we found about Project Inferno will find its way to several major news agencies."
Burke stared at him, openmouthed. "They ... they will never believe ..."
"Maybe not," Angel shrugged. "Ask them if they want to take the chance to find out."
Buffy took a step toward Burke, her face softening a little. "I don't want to do it that way," she said. "We're on the same side, Burke, we both want to keep the world safe from the monsters. But that does not mean we can simply put down people like animals. These are people, Burke. Yes, they have done terrible things, but terrible things have also been done to them. You owe them, Burke. Those bosses of yours owe them."
Burke was visibly torn. He was a decent man, or as decent as this business he had been in for many years allowed him to be. He had come to Sunnydale with but one intention, neutralizing a threat to the American people, making sure that the innocents were safe from these monsters. He certainly had not wanted to learn that the government he served had, in the past, created monsters of their own. No, not monsters, something far worse. Something that could not simply be put into a box labeled "EVIL" and be done with.
"We are not asking you to pardon them, Burke," Angel said. "We are asking you to treat them like human beings. Nothing more, nothing less."
Burke closed his eyes, thinking. His superiors would not be happy with him, that much was for sure. It had been his decision to invite Buffy Summers into the SDO and now that same girl that had proved to be such an asset for their operation was blackmailing him, was blackmailing the company into doing something that ... well, he could not quite convince himself to call it right, but it was somewhat close to that.
"How do you know I won't just have them shot the moment you turn your back?" he asked Buffy.
The Slayer smiled. She knew she had him.
"I want your word that you won't," she answered him. "You also know that I have friends who have ways of digging up even the best-kept secrets, don't you?"
There was a long pause while Buffy and Burk just looked at each other. Finally Burke sighed and brushed a hand through his hair, taking a step back.
"I will talk to my superiors about this. I can't promise you more than this right now."
"Talk to them then," Buffy nodded. "We'll wait here."
Burke gave her one last look, then left to look for a phone. The other SDO operatives moved away as well, not comfortable to share the room with people who had kicked their butts once too often. The only one who remained behind was Riley.
"I didn't want things to go down this way," he finally said after a minute of awkward silence. "I'm sorry."
Not it was Buffy's turn to sigh. "I can't say I'm happy with things, but ... I guess I understand why you did what you did."
Angel stepped closer to the two of them. "They were trust-issues on both sides here, Riley. We did not take you into our confidence and you did not trust us to handle things by ourselves."
"Does that make us even?" Riley asked with a hint of sarcasm in his voice.
"I think there is no such thing as even in a situation as messed-up as this, Riley. Just common understanding, I guess."
"We are getting a handle on this Slayer-Huntsman thing, Riley," Buffy said.
"I saw as much," Riley said, rubbing his aching jaw. His tone was not angry, though. He knew fully well how easy it would have been for Buffy and Angel to inflict much more than bruises on him and all of his colleagues. He had seen King kill indiscriminately without so much as a hesitation.
"I'm asking you to trust us, Riley," Buffy went on. "Trust us to know what we can handle and what we can't. Even after everything that happened I still think it's a good idea, in general at least, for us to work together with you. But we need to make sure that misunderstandings like this don't happen again, otherwise we might as well cut our ties right now and be done with it."
Riley did not know how any sort of future cooperation between the SDO and Buffy, or Buffy and Angel now, was supposed to work. Right now he was not even sure whether there would be an SDO, not with the way things had gone wrong. Threat of public exposure aside, he doubted many people in Washington and Langley would be happy about all these past sins coming to light. A lot of effort had gone into forgetting everything connected with Project Inferno and the supernatural in general. If the trial Buffy wanted for Team 666 were to take place, even in a closed, non-public way, all these buried bodies would have to be dug up.
Not that it would necessarily be a bad thing for the company to deal with its own failings, but he doubted that many other people would see it that way.
"I don't want that," Riley finally said. It was the only thing he could be sure of right then and there.
They waited the better part of an hour for Burke to return and Buffy and Angel were surprised by the fact that they were barely tired, at least physically. Their state of mind was a completely different matter and both of them longed for some rest, as well as some time to work through everything they had done today.
They had taken out over thirty armed professional soldiers and five super- powered half-demons in barely five minutes. Even for people who were used to doing super-human feats on a daily basis this was no easy pill to swallow.
When Burke finally came back he looked even more tired than before and the near-permanent scowl on his face seemed deeper than ever. It had not been an easy conversation, that much was evident.
"I talked with my superiors," he said after a moment, "and they have agreed. There are conditions, though."
"Those would be?" Angel asked.
"One, that the two of you continue to work with SDO." He did not need to add that this was mostly so the government could keep an eye on them. "Second, as soon as the trial is finished you will hand over all the data and records you ... acquired from the CIA database, as well as helping our security people to make sure that such a breach can never happen again."
"That should be doable," Buffy said. Willow would probably get a huge kick out of helping the CIA fortify their database against magical hacks.
"There is one more thing," Burke continued. "You signed a non-disclosure agreement, Ms. Summers, about not involving anyone except Mr. Giles in SDO business. You have clearly violated this agreement, which gives us the right to press criminal charges."
He paused, waiting for Buffy to acknowledge this. She simply nodded, not as concerned as she probably should be. After what had happened today she found it hard to be concerned about anything.
"Considering the situation we are willing to let it slide for the moment," Burke told her, "but only for the moment. To be frank, my superiors do not like to be blackmailed. Neither do I. Should any information about what happened here ever reach the public we will press charges against you. You will spend the rest of your life in prison, even if we have to build one especially to hold someone with your power levels."
Looking into his eyes, Buffy realized that he meant every word he just said. It was not an idle threat, either. The government knew who she was, where she lived, and even with her vastly increased power levels she would not be able to fend off an entire country's worth of law enforcement, military, and secret agents. Plus, she had indeed violated the law by telling her friends everything about SDO. And could she really blame Burke for threatening her back when she had threatened him first?
After another moment's consideration, plus a quiet exchange with Angel, she held out her hand.
"It's a deal, Mr. Burke."
Burke shook her hand, though there was nothing friendly in the gesture. Buffy did not know whether they would ever regain the rather amiable working relationship they had had in those early weeks after her joining SDO. Odds were against it, she guessed. Still, they did not have to like each other to fight monsters together. It would be easier if they did, but they could work around it. Or so she hoped.
"A transport will arrive shortly to bring Team 666 to Langley," Burke said. "You have my word that nothing will happen to them until the trial. That trial will be a non-public one, of course, only the Senate's Intelligence Oversight Committee will be involved."
"I understand. I expect to be called as a witness, though."
Burke paused for a moment, but then nodded. "That can be arranged."
Some more words were exchanged, then Buffy and Angel turned to leave. Both of them were longing for some downtime, and a lengthy discussion with their friends about their shared experience was also in the cards. Before they left, though, Buffy turned to look at Stone and his people one last time.
"I hope you don't expect any thanks," Stone growled at her.
"Certainly not. I just hope you will make the best of this."
"They are never going to let us go again, you realize that? Even if they don't find some way of sentencing us to death, they will lock us away for life. They can't have things like us walking in the streets."
Buffy just nodded, aware that Stone's were true. She and Angel had debated long and hard about what to do, but this was really the only way. Stone and his people were murderers, no matter the circumstances. They could not simply let them go and neither did they have the means to imprison them for any length of time. Turning them over to the government, while trying to ensure something of a fair treatment, was the best thing they could do. Not perfect, no, just the best out of many bad choices.
"Let's go, beloved," Angel murmured to her as he led her out of the building. They were other things they had to do, things they had to worry about. Prophecies, signs, portents, upcoming apocalypse, you name it.
Right now, though, maybe they would be able to get at least some peace and quiet. Just for a while.
TO BE CONTINUED