Standard disclaimer applies.

Hey everyone who reads this story. I'm feeling great today so I'm starting a new chapter for you to read. I got a great suggestion from someone and I think I'm going to use it. So, ready for the chapter? You better be, cause it's starting.

Aiwan: Ain't you the lucky dude? I revised and edited chapter 3 just for you... And yes, I will explain where Jason and others can draw their power from. So hang tight and keep track of the story.

Speaking of the story: here it comes...

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Chapter 4

-- Questions and relocations --

Jason had woken up, two days after the attack. He had spent those days in a healing sort of half-sleep. When he woke the first time, he relocated himself to a place with a lot more privacy. There, he'd eaten and drunk, to replace the fluids he'd lost in the short battle. Then, he'd placed himself in a healing trance. That trance boosted his already superior healing abilities. Now, two days later, the wound created by the bullet was almost completely gone. Only a small wound was still there.

He was on his way to meet up with Jarod, who he had sent away during the attack. He truly hoped that he wouldn't have to go to the Centre to free Jarod. But he practically knew that Jarod wouldn't have been captured. He was far too cunning for that to happen, especially with the training he already got.

He wandered in the vicinity of the beach they met on. No real need to wander on the beach itself, as he would feel it if Jarod was around just fine. He wondered just who the woman from the attack could have been. It couldn't have been Catherine, his first teacher, but she looked exactly like her. She was a werewolf too, of that he was certain. But he feared that her wolf aspect had been sealed away with strong magic. He couldn't imagine why that would have been done, but there must have been a reason for it.

Then, he felt it. The feeling that told him that another of his kind was near. The feeling diminished soon, but it was enough for Jason to inform him that Jarod was close. He looked around, searching for the familiar face of his friend. After a minute had gone by, he finally spotted his young charge. He walked to where Jarod was looking for him.

"Hello, Jarod. It's good to see that they didn't get their hands on you."

"Jason! Are you allright?" Jarod asked.

"I'm fine. The bullet wound is almost completely healed. In a day or two, nobody will even be able to tell that I've been shot."

"That's good. I was worried about you."

"No need to worry. After all, we are practically immortal."

They had started walking again. Jarod looked at his friend and mentor. He was dressed in loose fitting pants, a loose tank top that clearly showed a muscular pair of arms and chest and a pair of black sunglasses. His long black hair tied in a ponytail that hung half past his shoulderblades. There was no way that you could tell that he wasn't completely human by just looking at him.

Jason was aware that Jarod was sending discreet glances at him. He didn't mind because he knew Jarod was simply trying to reassure himself that he was indeed fine.

"Jarod, about the attack. The woman how was with them, who was she?" He suddenly asked. He had spent nearly every waking moment trying to figure out who she could have been, but he had come up empty.

"Why do you ask?"

"Because she lookes almost identical to someone I knew a long time ago..."

Jarod was silent. He had heard the note of sadness in his friends voice. He wondered what had happened to the person Jason had known. He figured that Jason probably would tell him if he asked. But he didn't think it would harm anyone if he told him who Ms. Parker was.

"Her name is Ms. Parker. She's the daughter of the Centre's middle man, Mr. Parker. She has the Pretender gene, but she was never given the training I got. We used to be friends when we were younger, but she went away to study in Japan or so. When she returned, she had become a highly trained opperative for the Centre. When I escaped, they assigned her to be the one to bring me back in. I've found some disturbing pieces of information about her past. She lost her mother to the Centre when she was only a child. She saw her mother's body only moments after she had been shot. Now, she hardly ever shows any emotion besides anger."

Jason took all of this in. The resemblance was just to great...

"Her mother... Her name wouldn't by any chance have been Catherine?"

Jarod sharply turned to his friend.

"How did you know that?" He demanded.

"So it was Catherine." Jason concluded. He could feel a spark of hope igniting in his mind. She was alive! At least, she was that many years ago. But Catherine had always been very careful about the fact that she was a Master Werewolf, so the chance of somebody finding out about that were slim to none.

"I know that because Ms. Parker is almost the spitting image of my first mentor, Catherine White. I met her soon after learning about my fate as a werewolf. That was 114 years ago. I've lost track of her when a mob came after us 2 years after I started training with her. The last I saw of her was that those people caught her. I never knew if she survived that assult. Now I know that she at least lived long enough to give birth to your friend, Ms. Parker."

Jarod couldn't believe his ears. The gentle person he had known as Catherine Parker had been a werewolf. Not only that, but if taken in account that werewolves are practically immortal, there was a good chance that she was still alive. Then, realisation sunk in.

"If the Catherine I knew to be Ms. Parkers mother and the Catherine that was your mentor are the same, that means that Ms. Parker is a werewolf as well..." Jarod said, half in a daze.

"Yes, and she's powerfull. She has allready transformed at least once, Jarod. She's no Latent, but an active werewolf. At least, she would be if it wasn't for the very powerfull spell that keeps her wolf side surpressed."

"Spell?"

"Yes. It was something I noticed after you left the warehouse. She feels like a werewolf, but there the feeling was strongly distorted. Something I've learned to recognise as magic interference."

Jarod was stunned. His friend and would-be-captor was a werewolf being who's wolf side was being held back by a magical spell. There was a chance that her mother was still alive. Next thing he knew, they'd be siblings!

"We have to tell her about her mother. She deserves to know that there might be chance that she is alive."

"Jarod, I understand your sentiments about this. But if you say that she believes her mother dead, and she turns out to be alive... Your friend might feel betrayed by her mother for keeping her survival a secret. I suggest that we first try to find out wheter or not she is alive. I for one, would very much like to see my mentor again if possible."

"That sounds reasonable. But what about the spell that has been cast over Ms. Parker? Is it harmfull? Is she in any danger?"

Jason laughed at that. You had to be Jarod to worry about wheter or not the person that has orders to capture you are in danger.

"Jarod, to be thruthfull, I don't know. I only know that the spell was powerfull, so I assume that all her were abilities are negated. If so, she ages like a normal human and if hurt, heals like a normal person. To have more information, I'd have to get pretty close for a while, so I could get a more accurate reading about the spell."

"If that becomes necessary, I can arange that. But if you don't think it's harmfull, I suggest we try to locate her mother. But how do you suggest we do that? I mean, I have a rather large range of sources, but I wouldn't know where to begin to look for her."

"There is one thing about werewolves, Jarod. We allways help eachother. We could be mortal enemies, but when help is needed, we forget about those feelings until the situation is cleared. When I lost Catherine for the first time, I didn't have the connections in the supernatural world that I have now. I'm quite well known among supernatural creatures."

"Good, that gives us a place to begin. Where do we start?"

Jason pondered this for a minute. There were a number of places they could visit to begin their search, but for some reason, his mind kept bringing up the name 'Sunnydale'. He knew what was located there and wasn't really keen on going back there. But something else popped up in his mind. A little while before he'd met Jarod, he'd heard some strange rumors. Namely that the Hellmouth was guared by not one, but two Slayers. This had spiked his interrest, but not enough to warrant a trip the the Hellmouth. Now, however, he had a second objective. And if there truly was a Slayer there, or two at that, there was bound to be a Watcher looking out for the girl, or girls. Maybe he could ask them for help.

"I think that we should go to Sunnydale, California. There might not be much to start there, but I think we'll encounter some... unique people."

"But, if there isn't something there to start the search, then why are we going?"

"Because while we're searching for Catherine, I plan to introduce you to people and places that could come in handy one day. Ther reason we're going to Sunnydale is that a while back I heard rumors that two Slayers guarded the Hellmouth. In and of itself this wouldn't be such a strange thing, if it weren't for the little problem that only one Slayer can be active at a time."

Jason could see that Jarod was lost. He grinned. Breaking Jarod into the real world of supernatural would be interresting to say the least.

"A Hellmouth is a place where the dimensional barriers that separates our dimension from a Hell dimension is weakened. Creatures such as vampires, low class demons and others evils are attracted to places like this. A Slayer is a teenaged girl that is given the speed and power to fight these evils. When one dies, another is Called. So the fact that there are two Slayers active has peaked my interrest, but not enough to visit Sunnydale again. But seeing that we're going to find out if Catherine is still alive, we might as well visit that town again. Besides, I still owe the vampire population there a great deal of pain and suffering."

Jarod didn't know what to think of the way his friend spoke about causing pain and suffering, but then again, he didn't know how a typical vampire behaved, so he wouldn't judge until he knew more about them. He was intriged to meet these Slayers too. If they fought against vampires, they would have reasons to do so.

"Let's go then. The faster we find whether Catherine is still alive or not, the faster we can inform Ms. Parker."

"Very well, we'll leave immediately. But we'll have to be carefull about the Slayers. They should be trained to deal with other evils other than vampires. So until we can prove that we are in control of ourselves, they might consider us a threat."

"Allright. Let's go." Jarod said, anxious to begin the search for Catherine Parker.

The two werewolves left, both having learned to be able to just get up and leave everything behind. They went directly to the airport and left an hour later for California. They arrived a few hours later and had to rent a car to drive the last few kilometers to Sunnydale. Jason told Jarod all he knew about vampires. He also knew and told about a different 'race' of vampires, known as the Kindred. Jarod couldn't really imagin a real vampire, but it they were evil, then they would be dealt with.

"Can you feel it, Jarod?" Jason asked as they drove closer to Sunnydale.

Jarod nodded. "I feel something, but don't know what it is."

"What you're feeling is the power of the Hellmouth. It's faint for now, but it'll grow in strenght. The feeling will eventually lessen as we stay longer near it. It'll take about a day or so."

They drove in silence after that. Finally, after another 10 minutes they saw the signs that said 'Wellcome to Sunnydale'. The 'Dale' part had been crossed out and 'Hell' had been written above it. They drove into the town and searched a real estate agent. They managed to rent a house. What disturbed Jarod was the fact that the price was beneath the average. He'd ask Jason about it later. They opted to wander around town a bit to get familiar with the surroundings. Jason had been in the town before, but that had been quite a while ago and he didn't really remember what the town looked like.

As they strolled trough town, the sun had begun to set. Jason told Jarod that pretty soon the vampires would come out of hiding. Neither were really concerned about getting attacked since they knew they'd be able to handle it.

They continued strolling until they arrived at what seemed to be a club. "The Bronze" the sign said.

"Wanna check it out? I'm kinda thirsty." Jason asked.

"Sure. I could use a drink too."

They entered the club and immediately, their senses were assulted by a multitude of smells, sounds and too bright spotlights. While Jason began to methodically tone down the signals he was recieving, Jarod didn't have the knowledge on how to do so. But luckely for him, his normal senses addapted fairly quickely to the huge amount of stimulations.

Before his senses had completely adapted, he noticed something.

"Jason, do you smell something... out of place?"

Jason looked at him and sniffed. It took him only a moment to notice the smell of death. Vampires.

"I do. Want to meet your first vampire?"

"Sure, but only if we kill it afterwards." While Jarod wouldn't normally be so eager to end someones life, this was different. Vampires were demons that inhabited dead bodies, disturbing their last rest.

"Sounds good to me, let's find out which ones are vamps and try to draw them out of the club. No sense in dusting them in here." Jarod agreed and they walked to a booth and sat down.

-Other side of the Bronze.-

"Yo, B."

Buffy looked up from her drink to her sister-in-arms, Faith. "What's wrong?"

"Check out the hotties that just walked in." Faith said with a predatory grin on her face.

Buffy turned to look at the entrance and had to agree with her. The two guys who just walked in were handsome. Both wearing black jeans and a long black coat. The first wore a bloodred sweater, while the other wore a white one. Both about the same height and both had black hair. The first one wore his hair in a long ponytail by the looks of it and the second had his hair in spikes. They looked around a bit, as if trying to find something or someone, then walked to a booth.

"Waddaya think, B? Good looking or what?" Faith asked, still wearing that predatory grin on her face. The grin that said she was about to do something either dangerous or unappropriate. Either way, she probably wasn't going to like it.

"Faith, whatever you're planning, no." Buffy grabbed the forearm of her fellow Slayer before she could do whatever she was planning. Faith pouted.

"But, B, I was just gonna ask if one of them wanted to dance. Come on, no harm in that, is there?"

Buffy couldn't believe it. Faith, tough dark Slayer Faith, was pouting. She was so stunned that her grip on her arm loosened enough for Faith to free her arm and begin walking in a sensual manner to where the two guys sat. By the time she recovered enough of her higher brain functions, it was too late to do anything about the situation.

-Jason & Jarod's table-

"Hello boys, would one of you be interrested in a dance with me?"

Both men turned to the voice that asked the question. Jarod only saw a young, couldn't be more then 15, maybe 16, blackhaired girl that looked like she was ready to party all night long. Jason, who had a little experience with magic, could feel that she was more then she appeared. He had only met a Slayer once, and even then it had been very brief, but it had been enough to enable him to identify the girl as a Slayer. He briefly debated what he would do, then made up his mind.

"Won't you join us for a drink?" He asked. Jarod looked at him rather strange, but he didn't say anything. Faith obviously thought she scored and readily sat down. After ordering a drink for her, Jason debated on how to ask if she really was a Slayer. He was almost completely sure of himself, but there was always a chance that he was wrong.

"Allow me to introduce myself and my companion. My friend's name is Jarod and I'm Jason. What should we call you?"

"I'm Faith. So, you new in town, cause I don't think I've seen you before."

"It's a pleasure, Faith. And yes, we are new in town. Only just arrived today."

"Ah, and what brings you to Sunnydale?"

"Bussines. I'm hoping to find somebody or at least get a lead on where she might be. I'm also hoping to confirm a rumor that I've heard about this town and in the process, show Jarod some of the...less known things in town." He hoped that with a subtle hint, he might get some reaction from the girl. And a reaction he got.

Faith stiffened almost imperceptible, but he'd seen it. Her eyes shot to a table on the other side of the club, to where a pretty blond was sitting and watching them. He'd also seen that.

"So, are you here alone or just looking for some variation in dancepartners?"

"I'm here with a friend, but she doesn't dance all that much." Which was true, since Buffy was a little down cause of the Angel bussines. Sure, he was back from Hell and had his soul again, but they weren't a couple anymore and her friends didn't trust him anymore. So, she felt a little under the water lately. Faith had hoped to lift her spirits a bit, but so far she had very little succes.

"You mean you left your friend sitting all alone? Now that's not nice. Why don't you ask if she wants to join us instead off sitting alone."

"Sure, I'll go ask. Be right back." And with that, Faith stood and walked over to Buffy. Jarod waited until she was out of hearing range and turned to Jason.

"What was that all about?"

"Remember what I told you about the Slayers and the rumor that there are two of them now?" At Jarod's nod, he continued. "I'm almost possitive that that girl is one of them. But I'll explein later, cause here she comes back."

Faith had managed to get Buffy on her feet and was practically dragging her towards the table. When Jason felt the same kind of magic in her friend as she carried, he was sure. These girls were the Slayers and there were two of them!

"B, this is Jason and Jarod. Guys, this is B." and with that, Faith sat down, leaving Buffy standing, embarrased and the men confused about her name.

"Faith, when you introduce someone to someone else, at least use their full names."

"Alright allready. Guys, meet my friend, Elisabeth Anne Summers, but she likes to be called Buffy." Faith grinned and Buffy was even more embarrased and she quickly sat down to hide it.

"Pleased to meet you Buffy. And thank you Faith, for confirming the rumor I spoke about earlier." When both Buffy and Faith looked confused and just a little alarmed, he elaborated.

"Well, the rumor that I've heard is, that somehow, two Slayers now co-exist and work together to prevent the Hellmouth from reopening. Now, judging by your shocked faces, you start denying everything any second now, but that won't do you any good. You see, I can sense the magic that gives you two your Slayer abilities. I wasn't sure about Faith at first, but when you both came back and I could sense the magic in both of you, I was possitive I was right."

While Buffy looked like a trapped animal and ready to deny everything, Faith was scared too, but she could also see that Jason was completely calm and it appeared like he knew what he was talking about. His friend however, looked a little unsure and curious at the same time.

"Alright, what do you want?" Faith said in a tone that left little to the imagination.

"Want? Nothing. But I would like to get to know you better. My previous encounter with a Slayer was a bit brief to learn more then the basics."

This shook Buffy out of her shock. "You've known other Slayers?!?" She wispered/screamed.

"Just one, but do you mind if we continue this some other time? I wanted to introduce Jarod to a real vampire and give him the 411 on how to kill them. And since their leaving the building right now..."

The Slayers stood and were ready to run for the exit when a hand landed on their shoulders. "Slow down, this is supposed to be Jarod's initiation, so let us handle it. If things get out off control, then you can step in." Jason said in a tone that didn't leave room for arguing. And with that said, both Jarod and Jason walked towards the exit, leaving the Slayers dumbfolded behind.

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Done with this chapter... Finally, I thought I'd never get around to finish it. Don't mind any spellingerrors, cause I'm too lazy to run it trough the spellchecker.

Anyway, question. I've been toying with the idea of making Buffy and Faith a couple while J&J are in town. Does anyone think I shouldn't do this? I promise, it wouldn't be all fluffy and stuff...

Until next time and REVIEW!!!