Destiny Lost
#1: In the Space of a Heartbeat
Authors: Sonya and Erin
E-mail: sonyajeb@swbell.net OR carynsilver@yahoo.com
Rating: PG-13
Category: B/X, AU, action/adventure, romance
Summary: An accident seconds before being chosen causes the Slayer Essence to skip Buffy, leaving her a normal girl. Then, a year and a half later, her mom's new job and her parents' divorce brings Buffy and her mother to Sunnydale, where Buffy comes in contact with the world of the night and a young man dedicated to its destruction.
Disclaimer: We do not own Buffy or any of the original characters or ideas from the show. They all belong to Joss, Mutant Enemy, etc. All we own is our own creative genius (unless that's too strong a word :) and any characters we make up.
Distribution: Sure, just let us know where it is!
Feedback: Love it! We want to know your likes AND dislikes. Flames are the only thing we do not accept.
Spoilers: Basic BtVS mythology and vampire/slayer lore
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Chapter 2
Buffy looked around the room a little nervously, unsure as to where she should sit. There were a couple of empty seats in the back, but that would mean walking through the room. Mrs. Jacobs touched her shoulder, and Buffy knew she should pick. (This isn't a hard decision) she told herself. Then her eyes lighted on a chair near the front. She smiled quickly at the teacher and slid into the seat gratefully.
She sat her backpack down on the floor and dug inside it for a notebook and a pencil. While her head was turned she caught a glimpse of someone behind her. Her eyes moved back and met the deep, brown eyes of a very handsome boy.
Buffy didn't know why she thought him so handsome. He wasn't the type of guy she used to go for -- slick, polished, charming, a class president or a football player (though he did have muscles evident under his T-shirt) -- but there was something about his eyes. Something serious in them that reflected the serious way Buffy had felt inside since the accident and since all her so-called friends had abandoned her.
Realizing that Mrs. Jacobs was starting class without her attention, Buffy flashed a timid smile at the boy behind her and then settled in her desk to listen to the lecture.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
As Mrs. Jacobs droned on and on about the proper structure of a Haiku, Xander tried his best to pay attention. However, every time he managed to get into the learning groove, he would catch a whiff of Buffy Summer's perfume, tickling his nose with the sweet scent of rose petals, and then his Haiku-oriented thoughts would scatter to the proverbial wind. Xander sighed, dropping his pencil back down on his desk and running a shaky hand through his dark hair, trying to regain his sense of composure. (What is wrong with you?) he berated himself harshly. (You're acting like you've never seen a girl before in your life, you doofus! Now quite drooling over the blonde and pay attention to what Mrs. Jacobs is saying before you end up flunking out of yet another class!)
However, before Xander could get his concentration fully back on the matter at hand, Mrs. Jacobs pulled a surprise out of her hat... namely a pop quiz on the Haiku. Every student in the class was to write at least two different Haiku's and turn them in at the end of the class period, which was in under 15 minutes.
Xander pulled out his notebook and flipped to a blank page. With his pen poised to write, he paused, trying to think of something to put down. (What is it they always say?) he thought to himself. (Write what you know) Xander began to chew on the end of his pen nervously as he tried to come up with something to write about. But what did he possibly know about poetry? Nothing, that's what. The only things he knew about were ambush tactics and the top 5 most efficient ways to kill a vampire, hardly prime literary material. (Oh, well,) Xander sighed. (I'm probably going to end up failing this class no matter what I write, so I can pretty much write about whatever suits me.)
Xander gave up trying to be cool and just started writing about whatever was on his mind. In less than a minute, he had written three different poems and was already working on filling up another page with them. Xander grinned. Maybe he wasn't so bad at this poetry thing after all.
Suddenly, the intercom buzzed and a voice announced, "Will Alexander Harris please report to the library?"
At the teacher's nod of permission, Xander stood and gathered up his books quickly, thrusting them inside his bookbag and hurrying up to the teacher's desk to turn in one of his Haiku pages. Then he made his way quickly out the door, heading for the library to see what doomsday prophesy Giles was carrying on about now. In the back of his mind, he regretted not being able to introduce himself to the new girl, but he shrugged it off as best he could, telling himself to forget about her. After all, now that he was spending most of his time killing vampires and saving the world, dating was delegated to the bottom of his priority list. However, even though he tried to convince himself that he was better off without the extra complications that dating someone would bring into his life, Xander still couldn't get the image of Buffy's golden hair out of his thoughts. Amid all of that introspective thinking, Xander failed to notice that one of his Haiku pages had fallen out of his bag and onto the floor next to a certain blonde-haired student's desk.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Buffy watched the dark-haired boy leave with a small bit of disappointment. She'd spent the whole, boring class thinking about what to say to him after the bell ring. Unfortunately, "Hi, I'm Buffy," was the best opening line she'd come up with, and now she wouldn't even get a chance to use that.
(Oh, well) Buffy told herself with a small smile, (there's always tomorrow.) And then she got a downer thought. What if Alexander already had a girlfriend? He probably did. Most good looking guys already did, so what were the odds that this one was free and interested?
When the bell rang, Buffy gathered her papers and shoved them all into her backpack. There was one paper laying on the floor. Buffy figured it was hers, too, and added it to the bunch in the backpack. On her way out of the room she handed Mrs. Jacobs her poems about dark eyes and never-ending love (cliche, she knew, but all she could come up with on the spur of the moment). Then she made her way to her next class, history. It wasn't far down the crowded hallway, so she didn't get lost. In fact, she got there early, introduced herself to the teacher, and he directed her to a prime seat near a window. Buffy smiled and sat down. She began rifling through her backpack for her notebook, when a piece of paper fell out.
"What is this?" she muttered, not recognizing the handwriting. It was three Haiku's written in a masculine hand.
"I'm living alone in a world full of danger no one understands
Night falls around me shadows overtake my soul. How can I escape?
Golden Angel, come rescue me from endless night. Help me find myself."
The passion of the exercise in poetry made Buffy sit back in her seat. Then she looked up and saw Cordelia, of all people, coming into the room followed by a bevy of giggling girlfriends. Buffy quickly folded the paper and slid it into her pocket. There was no way she was going to share this with anyone. It had to have been written by Alexander. No other boys had been close enough to drop it into her stuff.
Cordelia walked right by Buffy's desk and nudged it with her hip, sending Buffy's pencils rolling to the floor in three different directions.
"Oops," Cordelia said with a fake smile. "Sorry, Muffy."
"It's Buffy," Buffy growled, bending over the pick up the pencils.
"All right, Buffy," Cordelia corrected herself with a raised eyebrow. Then she turned to her friends and sat down in her seat, two behind Buffy and one row over. "Jeez, some people have no compassion."
Buffy rolled her eyes but didn't respond. Instead she thought about the dark-haired Alexander and the poetry in his soul.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"There you are," Giles snapped impatiently when Xander finally entered the library. "It's about time."
The librarian looked haggard and tired. There were purple circles underneath the eyes hidden by wire-rimmed glasses, and his brown hair was not impeccably combed as usual, like he'd been running his fingers through it.
Before Xander could respond, Giles looked at the pseudo-Slayer with worry in his eyes. "I need you to go and find Sonya. I'm worried about her. She didn't check in either last night or this morning."
His voice trailed off as he thought about the events that had led them to this point. He was the first Watcher whose Slayer had been paralyzed in battle. If the Council knew about Sonya's medical problems, they would recommend termination. It was the Council way -- saving the world was more important than one girl's life. But Giles didn't agree with that. He'd worked with Sonya for a year, and he knew that she deserved to live. If not for Xander volunteering to slay, Giles couldn't have kept the secret. But with the lad's help, and some from Angel - the vampire with a soul - they'd been able to figure out a workable routine that kept the Council in the dark and the bad guys terminated, for the most part.
When Giles was in Watcher training, he remembered hearing rumors of a healing spell that was so strong it could cure even paralysis and other major medical problems. Now Giles and Sonya's main quest, aside from training Xander, was to find that spell, if it existed. If it was real, it was very well hidden. The Council looked down on anyone using magic spells with power of that magnitude for obvious reasons.
But there was one problem with Giles' quest to keep Sonya alive -- well, one main problem. She wasn't convinced that she needed to stay alive. Sonya had been a bit bipolar after the accident. Sometimes she cried in Giles' arms, begging him to help her learn to live again now that she wasn't whole. Other times, Sonya got angry, trashing the house the two of them shared and demanding that he kill her so the next Slayer could be called.
It was a never-ending balancing act that always kept Giles on his toes between the Slayer and the Council. Giles drew his thoughts back to reality and the boy standing in front of him. He realized his tone had been sharp, and Giles knew that he didn't always show Xander enough gratitude or respect. Xander was all that kept Giles' balancing act from collapsing in ruins.
Softening his tone, Giles said awkwardly, "I'm afraid that something dire happened after you separated from her after patrolling, or that she's done something dire herself. She's been gone all night. Sometimes she shows a predilection to do that, so I did not worry until I got here. But when she stays out she always checks in with me here in the morning."
Xander's face went from placid to worried in a split-second. Giles knew that Sonya and Xander had become friends of a sort during their training periods together, and the librarian was glad for the ally in finding the missing girl. "Don't worry, Giles. I'll find her," Xander vowed, determination evident in his voice and in the set of his jaw. Then he turned and headed for the doors at a run.
"Good luck," Giles called. "Don't worry about school. If anyone notices, I'll cover for you, and let me know what has happened as soon as you get back."
#1: In the Space of a Heartbeat
Authors: Sonya and Erin
E-mail: sonyajeb@swbell.net OR carynsilver@yahoo.com
Rating: PG-13
Category: B/X, AU, action/adventure, romance
Summary: An accident seconds before being chosen causes the Slayer Essence to skip Buffy, leaving her a normal girl. Then, a year and a half later, her mom's new job and her parents' divorce brings Buffy and her mother to Sunnydale, where Buffy comes in contact with the world of the night and a young man dedicated to its destruction.
Disclaimer: We do not own Buffy or any of the original characters or ideas from the show. They all belong to Joss, Mutant Enemy, etc. All we own is our own creative genius (unless that's too strong a word :) and any characters we make up.
Distribution: Sure, just let us know where it is!
Feedback: Love it! We want to know your likes AND dislikes. Flames are the only thing we do not accept.
Spoilers: Basic BtVS mythology and vampire/slayer lore
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Chapter 2
Buffy looked around the room a little nervously, unsure as to where she should sit. There were a couple of empty seats in the back, but that would mean walking through the room. Mrs. Jacobs touched her shoulder, and Buffy knew she should pick. (This isn't a hard decision) she told herself. Then her eyes lighted on a chair near the front. She smiled quickly at the teacher and slid into the seat gratefully.
She sat her backpack down on the floor and dug inside it for a notebook and a pencil. While her head was turned she caught a glimpse of someone behind her. Her eyes moved back and met the deep, brown eyes of a very handsome boy.
Buffy didn't know why she thought him so handsome. He wasn't the type of guy she used to go for -- slick, polished, charming, a class president or a football player (though he did have muscles evident under his T-shirt) -- but there was something about his eyes. Something serious in them that reflected the serious way Buffy had felt inside since the accident and since all her so-called friends had abandoned her.
Realizing that Mrs. Jacobs was starting class without her attention, Buffy flashed a timid smile at the boy behind her and then settled in her desk to listen to the lecture.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
As Mrs. Jacobs droned on and on about the proper structure of a Haiku, Xander tried his best to pay attention. However, every time he managed to get into the learning groove, he would catch a whiff of Buffy Summer's perfume, tickling his nose with the sweet scent of rose petals, and then his Haiku-oriented thoughts would scatter to the proverbial wind. Xander sighed, dropping his pencil back down on his desk and running a shaky hand through his dark hair, trying to regain his sense of composure. (What is wrong with you?) he berated himself harshly. (You're acting like you've never seen a girl before in your life, you doofus! Now quite drooling over the blonde and pay attention to what Mrs. Jacobs is saying before you end up flunking out of yet another class!)
However, before Xander could get his concentration fully back on the matter at hand, Mrs. Jacobs pulled a surprise out of her hat... namely a pop quiz on the Haiku. Every student in the class was to write at least two different Haiku's and turn them in at the end of the class period, which was in under 15 minutes.
Xander pulled out his notebook and flipped to a blank page. With his pen poised to write, he paused, trying to think of something to put down. (What is it they always say?) he thought to himself. (Write what you know) Xander began to chew on the end of his pen nervously as he tried to come up with something to write about. But what did he possibly know about poetry? Nothing, that's what. The only things he knew about were ambush tactics and the top 5 most efficient ways to kill a vampire, hardly prime literary material. (Oh, well,) Xander sighed. (I'm probably going to end up failing this class no matter what I write, so I can pretty much write about whatever suits me.)
Xander gave up trying to be cool and just started writing about whatever was on his mind. In less than a minute, he had written three different poems and was already working on filling up another page with them. Xander grinned. Maybe he wasn't so bad at this poetry thing after all.
Suddenly, the intercom buzzed and a voice announced, "Will Alexander Harris please report to the library?"
At the teacher's nod of permission, Xander stood and gathered up his books quickly, thrusting them inside his bookbag and hurrying up to the teacher's desk to turn in one of his Haiku pages. Then he made his way quickly out the door, heading for the library to see what doomsday prophesy Giles was carrying on about now. In the back of his mind, he regretted not being able to introduce himself to the new girl, but he shrugged it off as best he could, telling himself to forget about her. After all, now that he was spending most of his time killing vampires and saving the world, dating was delegated to the bottom of his priority list. However, even though he tried to convince himself that he was better off without the extra complications that dating someone would bring into his life, Xander still couldn't get the image of Buffy's golden hair out of his thoughts. Amid all of that introspective thinking, Xander failed to notice that one of his Haiku pages had fallen out of his bag and onto the floor next to a certain blonde-haired student's desk.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Buffy watched the dark-haired boy leave with a small bit of disappointment. She'd spent the whole, boring class thinking about what to say to him after the bell ring. Unfortunately, "Hi, I'm Buffy," was the best opening line she'd come up with, and now she wouldn't even get a chance to use that.
(Oh, well) Buffy told herself with a small smile, (there's always tomorrow.) And then she got a downer thought. What if Alexander already had a girlfriend? He probably did. Most good looking guys already did, so what were the odds that this one was free and interested?
When the bell rang, Buffy gathered her papers and shoved them all into her backpack. There was one paper laying on the floor. Buffy figured it was hers, too, and added it to the bunch in the backpack. On her way out of the room she handed Mrs. Jacobs her poems about dark eyes and never-ending love (cliche, she knew, but all she could come up with on the spur of the moment). Then she made her way to her next class, history. It wasn't far down the crowded hallway, so she didn't get lost. In fact, she got there early, introduced herself to the teacher, and he directed her to a prime seat near a window. Buffy smiled and sat down. She began rifling through her backpack for her notebook, when a piece of paper fell out.
"What is this?" she muttered, not recognizing the handwriting. It was three Haiku's written in a masculine hand.
"I'm living alone in a world full of danger no one understands
Night falls around me shadows overtake my soul. How can I escape?
Golden Angel, come rescue me from endless night. Help me find myself."
The passion of the exercise in poetry made Buffy sit back in her seat. Then she looked up and saw Cordelia, of all people, coming into the room followed by a bevy of giggling girlfriends. Buffy quickly folded the paper and slid it into her pocket. There was no way she was going to share this with anyone. It had to have been written by Alexander. No other boys had been close enough to drop it into her stuff.
Cordelia walked right by Buffy's desk and nudged it with her hip, sending Buffy's pencils rolling to the floor in three different directions.
"Oops," Cordelia said with a fake smile. "Sorry, Muffy."
"It's Buffy," Buffy growled, bending over the pick up the pencils.
"All right, Buffy," Cordelia corrected herself with a raised eyebrow. Then she turned to her friends and sat down in her seat, two behind Buffy and one row over. "Jeez, some people have no compassion."
Buffy rolled her eyes but didn't respond. Instead she thought about the dark-haired Alexander and the poetry in his soul.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"There you are," Giles snapped impatiently when Xander finally entered the library. "It's about time."
The librarian looked haggard and tired. There were purple circles underneath the eyes hidden by wire-rimmed glasses, and his brown hair was not impeccably combed as usual, like he'd been running his fingers through it.
Before Xander could respond, Giles looked at the pseudo-Slayer with worry in his eyes. "I need you to go and find Sonya. I'm worried about her. She didn't check in either last night or this morning."
His voice trailed off as he thought about the events that had led them to this point. He was the first Watcher whose Slayer had been paralyzed in battle. If the Council knew about Sonya's medical problems, they would recommend termination. It was the Council way -- saving the world was more important than one girl's life. But Giles didn't agree with that. He'd worked with Sonya for a year, and he knew that she deserved to live. If not for Xander volunteering to slay, Giles couldn't have kept the secret. But with the lad's help, and some from Angel - the vampire with a soul - they'd been able to figure out a workable routine that kept the Council in the dark and the bad guys terminated, for the most part.
When Giles was in Watcher training, he remembered hearing rumors of a healing spell that was so strong it could cure even paralysis and other major medical problems. Now Giles and Sonya's main quest, aside from training Xander, was to find that spell, if it existed. If it was real, it was very well hidden. The Council looked down on anyone using magic spells with power of that magnitude for obvious reasons.
But there was one problem with Giles' quest to keep Sonya alive -- well, one main problem. She wasn't convinced that she needed to stay alive. Sonya had been a bit bipolar after the accident. Sometimes she cried in Giles' arms, begging him to help her learn to live again now that she wasn't whole. Other times, Sonya got angry, trashing the house the two of them shared and demanding that he kill her so the next Slayer could be called.
It was a never-ending balancing act that always kept Giles on his toes between the Slayer and the Council. Giles drew his thoughts back to reality and the boy standing in front of him. He realized his tone had been sharp, and Giles knew that he didn't always show Xander enough gratitude or respect. Xander was all that kept Giles' balancing act from collapsing in ruins.
Softening his tone, Giles said awkwardly, "I'm afraid that something dire happened after you separated from her after patrolling, or that she's done something dire herself. She's been gone all night. Sometimes she shows a predilection to do that, so I did not worry until I got here. But when she stays out she always checks in with me here in the morning."
Xander's face went from placid to worried in a split-second. Giles knew that Sonya and Xander had become friends of a sort during their training periods together, and the librarian was glad for the ally in finding the missing girl. "Don't worry, Giles. I'll find her," Xander vowed, determination evident in his voice and in the set of his jaw. Then he turned and headed for the doors at a run.
"Good luck," Giles called. "Don't worry about school. If anyone notices, I'll cover for you, and let me know what has happened as soon as you get back."