Title: The Call of Blood
Summary: A new vampire in Sunnydale. A rather unusual vampire, who will change some lives. Early season 7. Buffy/Angel crossover..
Rating: PG, maybe PG-13
Pairing: I'm a 100% Buffy/Spike shipper, although Angel will be present in my story.
Timeline: September – October 2002.
Disclaimer: Buffy, Spike and Sunnydale, etc, are property of those who own them – Joss Whedon and others, they are definitely not mine. Same goes with Angel. But Kate, Jake and other characters that appear in this story are mine. I borrowed some aspects of the concept of a 'day-walker' from "Blade" (I love the movie :-)
A/N: This story takes place in Buffyverse, Angel is the only character from "Angel, the series".
A/N 2: Warning: this story is COMPLETELY result of my imagination. Any similarity to other authors' plots, characters, or events is PURELY COINCIDENTIAL AND ABSOLUTELY UNINTENTIONAL.
Blood Ties
Motel
Thu. Oct. 3
Morning
Jake didn't get any sleep since Kate bit him. When she passed out, he tried to wake her up, but she was still unconscious. He lifted her from the floor and put her on the bed. Her breathing was shallow and she was pale.
Jake just sat on the bed, staring at the TV screen when he heard a buzzing sound. He tried to figure out the origin of that sound and found it in Kate's pocket. That was her cell phone.
"Kate, it's Buffy."
"It's not Kate, it's Jake."
"Where's Kate?" wondered Buffy.
"Right now she's lying unconscious on the bed and I can't wake her up", said Jake, taking the remote control and switching to another channel.
"Why is she unconscious?" asked Buffy.
"Beats me! She bit me and passed out", replied Jake, casting a glance at Kate. She looked like she was in coma.
"SHE BIT YOU???" yelled Buffy.
"Yeah, and she told me that she didn't bite people." Jake winced, touching the bite marks on his neck. Though they didn't hurt and almost healed, he didn't like being bitten by a vampire.
"What hotel is she staying at?" asked Buffy impatiently.
Jake told her the name of their motel and the number of their room and disconnected the call.
"Kate, wake up." He shook her shoulder. No response. "What's the matter with you?"
*
Half an hour later Jake heard a knock on the door. He opened it and let Buffy and Giles come in.
"How long has she been like that?" asked Giles, pointing at Kate.
"5 hours", replied Jake.
"How did this happen?" wondered Buffy. "Did you say something to her that made her attack you?"
"No, she just burst into the room, slammed me against the wall and bit me. She looked very excited and a little crazy. When I pulled her away from me, she said 'Oops, I did it again' and passed out", explained puzzled Jake.
"Giles, what's wrong with her?" asked Buffy.
"Jake, she said that you had information about the day-walkers. Do you have any idea what could've caused the state Kate is in?" Giles turned to Jake.
"Well, this is not quite possible, but day-walkers can fall in this state when they have 'Slayer blood OD'", explained Jake.
Buffy and Giles exchanged glances. "Are you saying she passed out because of the overdose of Slayer blood?" Buffy raised an eyebrow.
"Yes. You're the Slayer, Buffy. She didn't bite you, did she?" asked Jake.
"I gave her some of my blood so that she could track my sister", answered Buffy. "But she didn't look like she was going to fall into a coma. She stormed out of my house and went somewhere."
"She just went to our hotel room to bite me", smirked Jake.
"Do you know how to awaken this 'Sleeping Beauty'?" asked Giles.
"Nope. I've never seen day-walkers in this state, only read about it", shrugged Jake, coming up to his bag and taking a book out of it. "In this book."
"Can I look at it?" asked Giles. A book about day-walkers was something new, something Giles had never seen.
Jake handed him the book and Giles grabbed it like it was some kind of Holy Grail.
Buffy and Jake came up to the window.
"Why did she have to track your sister?" asked Jake quietly.
"Dawn went to her friend's birthday party and I totally forgot about it. I thought someone kidnapped her or something and freaked out. We ran out of options by the middle of the night and Angel suggested that we should call Kate. She came, drank my blood and tracked Dawn. The rest you know", answered Buffy. Being near Jake she had a strange feeling, a feeling of something very familiar and friendly.
"I don't understand how she could track your sister having drunk YOUR blood", said Jake.
"Dawn was the Key. The monks made her out of my blood so that I could protect her. Her blood is my blood", explained Buffy.
*
"God, I'm thirsty!" They suddenly heard a husky voice from the bed and turned to Kate.
She sat up, looking around, not understanding how it turned out that it was already morning and why Buffy and Giles were in the room. "What happened?"
"You don't remember?" asked Jake.
"Remember what?" wondered Kate, getting off the bed and heading to the mini fridge.
"Kate, I hope it's not blood thirst", said Buffy, looking at the vampire.
"I don't recall drinking tequila", shook her head Kate and took a bottle of mineral water from the fridge. She emptied it quickly and took another one. "What is wrong with me?" she murmured.
"It's the side effect of the 'Slayer Blood overdose'", said Giles, closing Jake's book and looking at Kate.
"What overdose?" asked Kate. "What are you talking about?"
"What is the last thing you remember after the last night?" asked Giles, coming up to Kate.
"I remember establishing contact with Dawn, then telling Buffy what I saw, and then I ran to my car. I remember parking near the motel, and then I ran to our room and ….HOLY SHIT!!!" She yelled, staring at Jake.
"What?!" asked Buffy and Jake simultaneously. Giles took off his glasses and wiped them. He knew why Kate yelled.
"HE IS A FUCKING SLAYER!!!" Kate yelled again. "That's what's been bugging me all this time – Slayer blood!"
"Only Slayer blood can break the effect of the protective ring", explained Giles.
"I knew there was something about his blood. I tried hard to resist the temptation to taste it again, and again, and again", murmured Kate, pacing in front of astonished Buffy and shocked Jake. "On the other hand, why didn't I want to drink Buffy's blood?"
"How can he be a Slayer? He's a man!" exclaimed Buffy.
"Jake, didn't you know?" asked Giles.
"I can't be a Slayer. Only girls can be Slayers", retorted Jake. He obviously didn't know that he was a Slayer.
"I want you all to calm down and we'll go to the 'Magic Box'. Jake, you'll tell us what you know about day-walkers and I'll explain Kate what I've found in McBryde's Chronicles. Questions?" asked Giles.
Buffy and Jake shook their heads, meaning they had no questions. Kate shrugged and took her backpack. They left the room and descended the stairs. Jake gave the key to the receptionist.
"Why are there so many women in pink?" asked Buffy.
"Mary Kay sales-ladies' convention. All hotels and motels are booked up, that's why I'm stuck with Jake in the 'honeymoon suite'", explained grimly Kate. She still was suffering from the side effect of the OD and was very thirsty.
*
They went to the parking lot and Kate got into her Toyota. Jake decided to go with Buffy and Giles. He still was angry at Kate for biting him.
"Kate, can you get Spike and Angel from the cemetery?" asked her Giles.
"Actually, they're in the mansion at Crawford Street", noted Buffy, standing near the car.
"I don't know where this is", said Kate.
"I'll go with you." Buffy sat in the passenger seat.
"Show me the way", said Kate and started the engine.
*
On their way to the mansion Kate made a stop at the supermarket, where she bought a pack of mineral water and the October issue of 'Cosmopolitan'.
*
Kate pulled over near the mansion. "What an ugly house!" she exclaimed, seeing the mansion.
"Angel used to live here when he lived in Sunnydale", said Buffy.
The girls got out of the car and entered the building. The ascended the stairs and entered the huge room.
"What's wrong with this picture?" murmured Buffy, seeing Spike and Angel sitting on the couch, drinking scotch and talking.
"Aren't they friends?" asked Kate.
"Not really. They were enemies", said Buffy.
"They look like friends to me." Kate shrugged and approached the vampires. "I see tequila wasn't enough for you and you decided to add some scotch."
"Hey, kitten. Good morning to you too", said Spike cheerfully.
"What are you so happy about?" wondered Kate.
"I don't have a headache anymore", answered Spike. "But you look like you've had a rough night."
"Giles wants you to go to the 'Magic Box'", said Buffy. "He has something to tell us all."
The vampires put aside their glasses and stood up. They took the blankets and followed the girls.
Downstairs Spike covered himself with the blanket and ran to the car. Angel did the same and Kate and Buffy took their seats.
'Magic Box'
Same day
Still morning
Kate parked the car behind the shop and the vampires got out of the car. They entered the shop through the backdoor. Kate took her backpack, 'Cosmopolitan', and the pack of water and followed them and Buffy. Giles and Jake were already there, besides Willow was helping Anya serve the customers.
"You're here, good", said Giles, placing the laptop on the table. He put Jake's book near the laptop and sat on the chair. "Have a seat. It will take long."
Kate found the chair, put the water near it, took one bottle and emptied it.
"Still thirsty?" asked Giles sympathetically.
"Yep", nodded Kate, sitting down on the chair. Spike and Angel sat beside her.
Buffy was sitting between Jake and Willow.
"Ok, now listen to me. As you know, day-walkers are very unusual vampires. They have strong sides of the vampire race – strength, relative immortality (they don't age like humans and live long, but can be killed), vampire hearing and vision. They have strong sides of the human race – the ability to walk in the sunlight; they breathe, eat, and drink like humans. Like humans they are not afraid of things that vampires don't like – holy water, crucifixes, garlic, etc. Technically, they belong neither to the vampire race nor to the human race. They are different.
Slayers exist to keep the balance of things between the humans and the demonic creatures. Female Slayers are born to fight them. But they can't fight the day-walkers. They just don't sense them. Kate, can I have some water?" asked Giles, interrupting his narration.
"Sure." Kate took a bottle from the pack and handed it to Giles. He took a sip from the bottle and continued. "Long time ago one of the Slayers managed to have a normal family. She had children – three boys and a girl. The girl had the genes of the Slayer, but the boys also had these genes. When they grew up they became 'Blood Trackers'."
"Are you saying that the male Slayers were able to sense the day-walkers?" asked surprised Buffy.
"Yes, exactly. They hunted the day-walkers like the female Slayers hunted the usual vampires and demons. They did a good thing because almost all day-walkers were evil. That made them more dangerous than the usual vampires. Although there was a chance that a day-walker could be a good one if he had the Bouddong Ring, the protective ring made by a very powerful warlock 6 thousand years ago. Last time that Ring was seen on a day-walker was two thousand years ago. Then it was lost until Charles McBryde, the man who found Kate when she was sired, gave it to the young and beautiful female day-walker – Kate. This was written in McBryde's Chronicles and I found the description of the ring in Jake's book. McBryde found it in Mexico during the archeological excavation of one of the burial sites of some ancient tribe. Female day-walkers are the enigma among the day-walkers and the vampires in general. Kate, are you listening to me?"
The enigma Giles was talking to was sitting on the chair, no, actually she leaned back on it so that it stood on two legs, and was reading the magazine. "Yeah, sure. I'm all ears."
"I doubt that. Anyway, the peculiar thing about female day-walkers is that they are born once one thousand years and when one dies, the other one is conceived that day. Kate, your predecessor died in January of 1857 and the very same day you were conceived."
"How the hell do you know?" asked Spike. "I don't think you were present when mom and dad were making me a baby sister."
"Spike, your mom and dad didn't make you a baby sister. Someone else did", said Giles, looking at Kate. She was reading 'Cosmo' and seemed to be not very attentive.
"What do you mean? She isn't my sister?!" exclaimed Spike, staring at Giles.
"Yes. Let me finish. The other thing peculiar about the female day-walkers is that they are born only by the Slayers."
"Cool, my mommy was the Slayer. Who was the daddy?" said Kate, still reading the magazine.
"Angel."
Kate fell off the chair. "THIS. IS. NOT. A. VERY. FUNNY. JOKE." She said distinctly, lying on the floor.
Everyone, except Giles, was in shock. Anya left the counter and came up to the table. "Angel is Kate's father?" she asked surprised. "How is that possible?"
Kate rose to her feet and sat on her chair. She looked at Spike who was upset, having heard that Kate wasn't his sister, then at Angel who was crushed by the fact that he had a daughter.
"Giles, will you explain how this is possible?" asked Buffy, trying to comprehend Angel's ability to have children.
"Let me explain you one thing. Slayers have Watchers. Day-walkers have Watchers too. They keep an eye on them, record their lives and help them. Even the fiercest of the day-walkers respected their Watchers. Charles McBryde was the Watcher of Katarina, the day-walker whose death triggered Kate's conception. One cold January night Katarina, a neutral day-walker, met a Slayer. Both were tired and angry, one thing led to another, Katarina vamped out and tried to kill the Slayer. The Slayer was stronger and she killed the day-walker. Two people were watching the fight – Charles, who couldn't do anything to help his day-walker, and Angelus, who liked the beautiful black-eyed Slayer. After the tiresome fight she was very weak and he attacked her. But instead of killing her, he raped the girl." The last words Giles said very silently. Angel got deadly pale. Giles reminded him of something he wanted to forget. Angel couldn't look Kate in the eyes.
"That night Kate was conceived. Nine months later, on the 31st of October, on Halloween the Slayer gave birth to a beautiful girl. All this happened in London. She couldn't keep the child as it reminded her of that horrible night in January. She took the girl and left her on the porch of the first house she came up to. That was the house where Spike lived with his parents. Charles kept an eye on the Slayer all the time. He wanted to know where the potential day-walker would live."
"Gee, it's like some soap opera", chuckled Kate, trying to lighten up the situation. Everyone was so serious. Jake was still under the impression that he was a male Slayer, Spike tried to get used to the idea that Kate wasn't his biological sister and was Angel's daughter, Angel was afraid to look at Kate, Buffy tried to get used to the existence of male Slayers. Willow and Anya just waited what would happen next.
"C'mon, people. It's not the end of the world", said Kate. "Giles, how are vampires able to conceive a child? I thought they were sterile?"
"After the death of the day-walker another day-walker had to be conceived. Angel just happened to be in the right place in the right time."
"Who named me Kate?" asked Kate, turning to Spike.
"I was four when my parents showed me the baby and said that it was my sister. Mom said that her name was Katherine, but it was too complicated for me and I named her Kate. When she was growing up she was so cute, that everybody called her 'kitten'." Spike smiled sadly.
"I'll continue. Charles McBryde kept an eye on Kate for all these years. He knew that sooner or later she would become a vampire and he wanted to be there when it happens. He had the protective ring, which he found in Mexico two months before Katarina was killed. He knew that it was too late to give it to Katarina", said Giles.
"It happened a month later after William died. We all missed him, I missed him most of all. One dark evening, when I was returning home from my friend Betty, I bumped into a group of people. Two men and a woman. One of the men looked like the exact copy of William. But I knew that William was dead and buried. What happened next, scared me so much, that I had nightmares for a year. The man who looked like William grabbed me and the other man told him. 'Do it, William, she's so fresh, young and tasty'. That William bit my neck and almost drained me. I felt so weak and wanted to sleep. But that wasn't enough for them. The woman came up to William, opened his shirt and pierced skin on his chest. When the blood appeared he made me drink it. Then I passed out and when I woke up I was in some room and a man in his forties sat beside my bed. He told me that everything would be alright and gave me the ring. I had to wear the ring all the time and never take it off. He explained what had happened to me and who I was. Eventually I got used to the idea of being a day-walker and in time I forgave William for what he had done to me", said Kate and looked at the vampires who were responsible for that. "Guys, relax. I forgave you." She took another bottle from the pack and emptied in several gulps. "When will this side effect wear off?"
"It depends on how much blood you've drunk", said Jake.
"Not much", shook her head Kate. "Wait a second. When I grabbed you, you were wearing a towel and you were wet."
She suddenly recollected a strange thing.
"I was in the shower when you burst into the room", said Jake.
"I didn't see any bandage on your shoulder. Where the hell did your gunshot wound go?" asked amazed Kate.
"I don't know. It's gone, there's only a scar left", shrugged Jake.
"Maybe it's the Slayer healing", supposed Buffy.
"Jake, you're an expert on day-walkers, explain me one thing. What will happen if the day-walker's blood mixes with the human's?" asked Kate.
"The human will get the strongest sides of the vampire. OH, DAMN IT!" shouted Jake, realizing what Kate was driving at.
"Exactly", nodded Kate. "It's the Slayer healing plus the vampire healing."
"What?!" exclaimed everyone, including the vampires.
"When I fell on the wounded Jake, after Gentry had shot me, I cracked the tube with blood. I think the blood from the tube mixed with Jake's blood or it somehow got into his wound", explained Kate.
"Are you saying that Jake is a vampire?" asked Anya.
"No. To become a vampire a person has to die first", replied Kate. "Right, Jake?"
"Yes. Besides, day-walkers can't sire people. It's the job of the usual vampires", said Jake.
"What else can you say about the day-walkers?" asked Giles.
"When the day-walker loses his Watcher he can choose his next Watcher", answered Jake.
"How?" wondered Kate.
"The day-walker senses the potential Watcher."
Kate got deadly pale. "Congratulations, Jake! You're my next Watcher!"
"Excuse me?" Jake raised an eyebrow. "What did you just say?"
"You are my next Watcher. I sensed you", replied Kate. "Every time you were around I had this weird feeling, I can't describe it."
"Let me get this straight", said Anya, who listened to everything very attentively. "Kate is Angel's daughter, she was raised in Spike's family, she has a ring which is 6 thousand years old and this ring prevents her blood thirst. But somehow the Slayer blood broke the effect of this ring and Kate drank Jake's blood. Jake turned out to be a male Slayer and he also acquired the strongest sides of the vampire race, besides Kate sensed her new Watcher in him. Am I right?"
"Yeah, I see you've got the concept", nodded Kate.
"Um, one question. How does the day-walker's blood affect the vampire?" asked Spike, addressing Jake.
"The vampire acquires some of the advantages of the human side of the day-walker", answered Jake. "Why do you ask?"
Spike stood up and ran to the door. He opened it and went outside.
"Spike, NO!!!" yelled Buffy, seeing what Spike was doing. "You'll burn!"
5 minutes later very much alive and very happy Spike returned to the shop. He came up to Kate, grabbed her and hugged her. "Thank you, kitten, for making me invincible."
"Spike, let go of me, you'll crush my bones", hissed Kate, wincing in Spike's tight grip. "Spike, my ribs…"
"Oh, sorry." He let go of her and smiled widely. "I'm invincible."
"Great, I've created two monsters. One thinks he's invincible, another one won't age, besides he's my Watcher", murmured Kate. She still was thirsty and took one more bottle of water. "When will this bloody thirst end?!"
"So, is Spike really invincible?" asked Angel. He also wanted to be able to walk in the daytime.
"He still can be killed like any vampire, but the sunlight is no longer a threat to him. He also won't be afraid of things vampires don't like", replied Jake.
"Gee, we should thank the 'Initiative' one more time for implanting a chip in Spike's head. Can you imagine what he would do if he still was 'evil' Spike with the ability to withstand daylight?" said Buffy.
"It's easy to imagine", nodded Willow.
"Now, Jake, it's time to start talking about your 'employer'", said Kate,
looking at Jake. "You remember we had a deal. Why did he want my blood?"
"Our 'employer' never told us his name. We called him 'Boss' and we started working for him in 1999, when he gave us the first assignment – to get the blood of the day-walker. That was a male day-walker; after we got his blood, we killed him. He was one of the fiercest day-walkers. Ian Hayes, 897 years old, incredibly cautious, and trusted nobody. Still we tracked him and brought his blood to the 'Boss'. Since that time we killed four more and a month ago 'Boss' asked us to bring the blood of the female day-walker."
"How did you track them?" wondered Giles. "Your 'Blood spell' has a limited range; you had to find them first."
"Male day-walkers had female Watchers. We charmed them and got all necessary information about their day-walkers."
"Why did you kill Victor?" asked Kate quietly.
"We didn't. When we came to your Glasgow mansion, he was already dead. "
"How did you find out about me anyway?" wondered Kate.
"Your butler sold you and your Watcher. Chris got the information that Victor McBryde could be the Watcher of a female day-walker and we went to Glasgow. But MdBryde was already dead. His death was staged as a suicide. Your butler told us where you went and we followed you to the States. First to Indianapolis, then to Los Angeles. Then we used 'Blood spell' and came to Sunnydale", answered Jake.
Kate reached for her backpack and found Victor's letter. She opened it and started reading.
"When I called the Watchers' Council they already knew about McBryde's death", noted Giles.
"Victor wrote that there was a traitor in the Council", said Kate, raising her head. "The day-walkers' Watchers were a secret branch in the Council. The list of the watchers and their vampires was highly classified and only few members of the Council knew that."
"So, it means that someone in the Council sold the list to someone who was interested in getting a day-walker's blood", supposed Angel.
"Yes, and Victor found out about that. That's why we moved from Paris to Glasgow and that's why he sent me away. Maybe the traitor tried to cover his tracks and because of that Vic was killed", nodded Kate. "The question remains: who wants this blood and why?"
Angel took Gentry's driver's license from his pocket. "I took it when we were at the cemetery."
"Willow, can you find something about this man?" asked Giles.
Willow nodded. "I'll try." She took the license and opened the laptop.
While the ex-witch was working with the computer, Kate and the others tried to find answers to their questions.
"Jake, what does my ring do? When Nick saw it, he was surprised and said that it could h… What's a 'h…'?" asked Kate.
"It can heal. To be exact, the vampire, who's been wearing this ring for some time gets the gift of healing", answered Giles instead of Jake who got pale when he heard these words.
"I didn't know that", whispered Jake. "I haven't read the book attentively and my brothers are dead."
"I didn't know that either", shrugged Kate. "Cool. I have a gift of healing. What else?"
"Maybe you can fly?" smirked Spike.
"Very funny. " Kate turned to Spike.
"I found him", said Willow. "The man's name is Daniel Gentry. He lives in Seattle and works at the 'Center of Recombined Genetics' as a lab tech."
"Somebody wanted to play with my Slayer/vampire/human genes. Nice", murmured Kate. 'Why does the name of this center sound so familiar?' she thought.
"Willow, look for something about this center", said Giles.
"Guys, do you mind if we take a little break? I'm hungry", said Kate. "Let's go eat something." Buffy and Jake supported her idea.
"You go ahead, I'll stay", said Willow, looking for information in the Internet.
"I'll stay too. I have an idea and want to find something to prove it." Giles stood up and went to the bookshelves.
"Spike, Angel, or should I say 'Daddy'? Are you in?" Kate looked at the vampires.
"Kate…" Angel didn't know how to behave himself with Kate, knowing who she was to him.
"Angel, please. I'm not mad at you and Spike. I already said that. Though I'd like to take a look at my real mother, but uh…she's gone." Kate sighed and murmured. "Why do I have the feeling like I'm stuck in some cheap soap opera – my brother is not my biological brother, my real mother left me, my father is a vampire…?" Giles cast a strange glance at her and returned to his books.
*
When the vampires and the Slayers left Willow asked Giles. "What idea do you have in mind?"
"I want to bring Kate's mother from the past. I mean the Slayer", said Giles, looking for some book on the shelf.
"Why?" asked Anya. "The spell is complicated and there's no guarantee that it will work."
Giles turned to Anya, who was sitting at the table and flipping through the pages of 'Cosmopolitan' Kate had brought. "
"Do you know a spell for this?" he asked surprised.
"Yeah, but I'm telling you it may not work", shrugged Anya. "Besides, it requires a very good knowledge of magic."
"Why do you want to bring her mother back?" asked Willow. "Remember how Buffy felt when we brought her back from the dead."
"It's not that. I want to ask her how she killed Katarina. Jake's brothers are dead and I don't know if there are other Blood Trackers who can hunt and kill the evil day-walkers. Anya, what do we need for this spell?"
"Kate's blood, for starters. Then a powerful witch would be useful", answered Anya. "Oh, the customer!" She put the magazine aside and went to greet the customer.
"Willow, I know that it's too much to ask, I know that you've just recovered from this addiction, but this is necessary." Giles hated himself for asking Willow to use her magic again.
Willow smiled. "Giles, don't worry. I can control myself. I learned a lot about magiñ and as Kate said I can't quit my powers. I'll do it."
"Good. Anya and I will back you up", said Giles and went to Anya. She just sold one of the expensive items and was counting the money.
"Besides the witch and the blood, what else do we need for this spell?" he asked impatiently.
Anya thought for a second. "I'll get everything ready." Then she returned to the pleasanter thing – counting money.
Giles took the phone and dialed Kate's number, but she obviously switched off her phone. He decided to call her later.
*
Meanwhile the vampires and the Slayers bought some Chinese food and went to the mansion on Crawford Street.
"I want to go to the movies", said Kate, trying to eat the noodle with the sticks. "How do they eat using these things?" she grumbled. The noodle kept falling off the sticks all the time.
"Good. Go to the movies and I'll finally get some sleep", said Jake. "First these 'El Mariache' didn't let me sleep, then you bit me and again I couldn't sleep."
"Who are you calling 'El Mariache'?" asked Spike, sipping fresh pig blood, that Kate had bought for him and Angel.
"You and Angel of course", replied Kate, losing her fight against the sticks and taking a fork.
"I'm not following what you are talking about", said Buffy.
"Stage 2 of 'Blue Agave' syndrome. I almost turned gray when we went through the customs. I feared that they would start singing. Can you imagine the faces of the customs officers if they heard singing coming from the coffins?" asked Kate.
"They started singing in the plane. Loudly. I couldn't sleep", added Jake.
"Neither could I. Actually, Spike has a nice voice, but Angel… Sorry, daddy, but you have absolutely no voice", said Kate.
"Kate, don't call me 'daddy'. It's too … freaky." Angel looked at his daughter and at the same time great grandchild.
"Spooky", added Spike. "What did we sing?"
"You sang in duet. When I heard 'The Ketchup Song' I almost died of laughter. By the way, when you sang 'Belle' IN FRENCH, Spike sang for Quasimodo, Angel for the Priest, and then you both sang for the Soldier. It was pretty cool." Kate laughed, remembering the flight. Buffy joined her, imagining the 'singing vampires show'.
"Do you remember 'One Wild Night'?" asked Jake.
Kate nodded. "Oh, yeah. That was really a wild night."
Angel grabbed his head, hearing the description of his and Spike's escapades. "Somebody, stake me", he moaned.
"If that's what you want…" smirked Spike.
"So, do you still want to go to the movies?" asked Jake, hoping to get the bed in his own disposal.
"Yes", answered Kate. "Buffy, do you want to go with me?"
"No, I can't. But you could take Dawn with you. She wanted to see 'xXx'", said Buffy.
"Ok. By the way, when did she come home?" wondered Kate.
"In the morning. And she was very surprised when I didn't scold her", replied Buffy. She looked at her watch. "Oh, crap, I should go. I have to be at work in 20 minutes."
"I'll give you a lift", said Kate, standing up. Jake also rose to his feet. "Can you drive me to the motel?" Kate nodded.
"Let's go", said Buffy. "Bye, 'singing vampires'." She looked at them and laughed.
The 'singing vampires' winced. "Bye, 'singing Slayer'" teased her Spike. "Kate, how about a poker game? Tonight? At my crypt? Jake, you'll be the fourth."
"No problem", said Kate. "C'mon, Slayers, let's go."
They left the mansion.
*
Kate drove Buffy to Sunnydale High, Jake to the motel and went to the 'Magic Box'.
When she entered it, she saw Giles, Willow and Anya vigorously discussing something.
"What's up, guys?" greeted them Kate. "Have you found anything new?" She approached the table. She saw a microscope and some lab equipment on the table.
"Where have you been? I've been calling you for an hour", reproached her Giles.
Kate took her cell phone. "Oops, I must have switched it off. Why were you looking for me?"
"We need a sample of your blood", said Willow. "I want to make some tests."
Kate shrugged. "Ok. It's not that you want to use it for some bad purposes. Right?"
"Sure. Just some tests", assured her Willow. She took a syringe and drew some blood from Kate's right hand. Kate winced.
"Oh, did I hurt you?" asked Willow.
"Nah, just bad memories", replied Kate. Her cell phone rang.
"Kate, it's Dawn."
"Hey, Dawn", smiled Kate.
"Buffy said you wanted to go to the movies. Let's meet at 4.50 near the movie theater." Dawn explained Kate how to get there and disconnected the call.
Kate looked at her watch. "Looks like I'm gonna have to hang out with you until 4 a.m."
Cemetery
Spike's crypt
Same day
Late in the evening
Three vampires and a Slayer were playing poker. Jake was winning and was very happy about that.
"Kate, you're a lousy poker player", noted Jake, collecting the money. "Learn how to bluff."
"Shut up", snapped Kate, dealing the cards.
"We should play 'kitten poker'", said Spike, taking his cards.
"What's a 'kitten poker'?" wondered Kate.
"It's when you play for kittens, not for money", explained Spike.
"Why kittens?" asked Kate, thinking how to play.
"They're delicious", answered the blonde vampire.
"Ew!" shuddered Kate. "That's disgusting!" Then she started humming quietly
Adrenaline keeps me in the game
Adrenaline you don't even feel the pain
Wilder than the wildest dreams
When goin' to the extremes
It takes adrenaline
"Pay attention to the game, Kate", reminded her Angel, taking one card. "What are you humming? Did you drink tequila?"
"No, Dawn and I went to the movies tonight. It's the song from 'xXx'", answered Kate. "By the way, Vin Diesel is so…Uh" she sighed.
"Why is it so noisy outside?" asked Jake, ignoring Kate.
"It's Buffy on patrolling", answered Spike.
'Magic Box'
Same day
Simultaneously with the events at the cemetery and Spike's crypt
"Is everything ready?" asked Giles for the tenth time.
"Yes, Giles. Don't worry", assured him Willow, lighting the candles and checking if everything was on its place.
Anya locked the shop and closed the blinds. She switched off the light and the room was lit by the candlelight.
Willow sat on the floor, crossed her legs and started chanting:
I beseech this blood to break the darkness of the years and join its source
She poured Kate's blood in the bowl and put herbs there. The content of the bowl made 'puff' and a slight smoke appeared. Nothing else.
"Did it work?" asked Giles.
"Do you see anybody else beside us?" wondered sarcastically Anya. "I told you the spell was complicated and unreliable."
"It didn't work", sighed Willow sadly.
Cemetery
Outside Spike's crypt
Simultaneously with the events in the 'Magic Box'
Buffy was fighting with three big vampires. She already dusted two and was fighting against a rather annoying vamp that was good at martial arts and she couldn't kill him easily. Finally Buffy made a strike but then something really strange happened. The vampire she was about to dust, changed somehow and the stake hit human's chest. Buffy saw blood and heard screams of two dark-haired girls who appeared out of nowhere. "YOU BITCH! YOU KILLED HIM!"
The End
A/N That's all, folks. I hope you enjoyed this story. The song is from 'xXx' OST. It's 'Adrenaline', Gavin Rossdale.
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