Title : Raindrops on Roses
Rating : We're just gonna go with PG-13, at the moment it's like G or PG or something, but I know eventually that's gonna change, so lets just keep the whole thing PG-13...of course if I bring it into R territory then I'll have to change it.
Summary: A girl from Spike's past shows up in Sunnydale bearing ominous news.
Disclaimer : I own nothing, not even a teeny bit. Tisn't mine. I only kidnapped the lil' charries for a bit, but sadly enough they all belong to Joss Whedon and ME.
Setting : This is up to season 6 somewhere then AU. Not sure of the exact episode where I would place this. Spike and Buffy have started doing the horizontal rumba. Also in my little universe Willow never got all addicted to magic, so Tara never left. Umm…well, as of yet I have no idea what else I'm gonna change, but don't be at all surprised if things really don't follow what happened
A/N: This is my first fan fic -ever-. I'd be eternally grateful if you'd R + R, like to know whatcha all think of my attempt. J Thanx ever so much to all those who reviewed! Makes me very happy. Heh. I know last chapter was really short, so this one is a little better. I was wondering, I've been chopping my chapters up and only posting like half of them in order to get things updated quicker. Would you guys rather the short chapters and quicker updates or longer chapters and a little bit less quick updates? Let me know.
Chapter Four : A New Evil
Anya and Willow walked into the Magic Box the next morning, Anya to open up the store and Willow to grab a crystal for a spell she wanted to try. The former vengeance demon made her way over to the cash register to 'check on' her money, smiling happily when she opened it to see the little green pieces of paper that came second only to sex in her list of priorities. Glancing up she saw a book lying open on the floor of the shop, a scowl moving over her face.
"Hey! What have I told you people about putting the books back after one of your little research parties? Neat stores get more customers and sub sequentially more money."
Willow frowned -- she didn't remember leaving any of the books out last night -- then shrugged, gave Anya an absent apology, and went over to put the book back were it belonged. She crouched down to pick it up and her gaze landed on the gruesome beast that was pictured. The red-headed witch gave a slight shudder, now there was something she sure wouldn't want to meet. Curious, she scanned the text, stopping when she came to an vaguely familiar sounding passage.
"And from the yawning maw, infernal legions he shall summon…Oh, my…"
Anya looked up from her money counting.
"What?"
"I think I found something that might have to do with that dream Buffy had the other night. C'mon we better get the others."
* * *
The Scoobies, minus Dawn since she was at her friend Janice's house for the day, once again gathered around the table in the Magic Box.
"So, when you came in this morning the book was just laying there open to this page." Buffy asked.
"Yeah, some coincidence, huh?" Willow replied.
"Hmm…yeah." She said noncommittally, having learned a long time ago that rarely anything was ever an innocent coincidence. Pushing that to the back of her mind she looked back at the leather bound book.
"So, this Moreodd…" Buffy began.
"Muerab." The Wicca interjected.
"Right. This Muerab demon is some sort of general guy or something who leads the hell soldiers I dreamt about."
"Not leads." Anya corrected, "He creates them. A Muerab demon uses the very essence of evil and gives it solid form."
The rest of her explination was cut short when the tinkling of the bell and the slamming of a door announced the arrival of one chipped vampire. The familiar blanket he used to hide from the sun was smoking on the edges as he threw it in the corner. He walked nonchalantly the rest of the way in, ignoring the stares of the Scoobies.
"What are you doing here?" Xander glared at the vampire.
"Feeling a bit peckish, wanted some more burbaweed for th' blood."
Buffy looked at him reproachfully.
"You couldn't of waited until night? You know, that time where you don't combust and turn into a pile of ashes."
He smirked at her.
"You worried about me, pet?"
"Not likely," She snorted.
"You should know that I've some insatiable appetites, luv." He leered at her and Buffy fought a blush, glancing nervously at her friends, but they mercifully remained oblivious of the exchange. "Was too impatient to wait."
"Whatever. Sine you're here you can help research." She shoved a book in his direction and he made a show of reluctance before agreeing -- there wasn't anything he wouldn't do for the blonde slayer.
"Anyways, as I was saying," Anya continued with her explanation. "A Muerab demon doesn't lead an army, he creates it. The army doesn't need any leadership. They are embodied with their duty when they are created."
""Nasty little buggars they are." Spike put in his two cents. "Cause more destruction in a night than the magnificent poof did in his unlife. Last time I remember any of their kind made an appearance was during the second world war. They aren't really there. No feelings, no wants. So you can't buy 'em off or anything. They just want to complete the task they're made for."
"And what is that task?"
"Your guess is as good as mine, Slayer. Muerab demons rarely raise the armies on their own. Someone or something normally coerces them into doing it. So the task would be whatever that person or creature wants."
"So are they here in Sunnydale?" Tare questioned.
"No. Like I said, they wreck complete havoc wherever they go. They probably haven't been summoned yet. If they were anywhere in the world even the intensely daft human population wouldn't fail to notice. Might not realize it's demons, but they'd notice." Spike explained.
"So, is their anyway to stop them from being summoned in the first place?" Willow asked?
"Kill the Muerab demon?" Xander suggested.
"Right. So, how would I do that?" The slayer looked to the vampire and ex-vengeance demon who both shrugged. She sighed and sat down at the table. "And back to the books we go."
And so the group resumed the tedious pastime of research. Over on the checkout counter of the magic box a display of charmed jewels, stones, and crystals sat. A turquoise stone in the center trembled once then rose from the group to float a few inches above the countertop. A second later, its neighbor a rose quartz began to lift from the display to float the barest bit above the stone. Suddenly both fell to the counter with a loud clatter. The Scoobies looked up with a start from the books and tomes they had been reading.
"What was that?"
They all looked around the shop, but didn't notice anything out of the ordinary -- which is saying something for anyplace in Sunnydale. Exchanging glances, the group turned their attention back to the books with a mental shrug, figuring it to be nothing.
All except Spike that is. He stood rigidly beside the stairs, appearing to concentrate intently.
"There's something here."
"Something here?" The blonde Wicca said. "I-I don't see anything…"
The rest of the gang looked around once more, still not seeing anything.
"Your delusional." Xander told Spike.
"No…" Buffy interrupted, her slayer sense kicking in. "I think Spike's right, there's something here."