Title - Three in One

Summary - Something has started playing. Buffy and
friends meet...Buffy...and friends...and more friends?

Author (and feedback) - memark@yahoo.com

Disclaimer - The following work is based entirely on
characters by Joss Whedon and whomever he has shared the
fortune with. The idea comes from a Star Trek:TNG novel,
Q-Squared by Peter David, and a challenge from Jenn. I
make no profit whatsoever from this and do it only for my
own satisfaction.

Spoilers - Makes references to events of seasons past, but
no major spoilers involved.

Rating - PG

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THE EDGE

The Clown was having fun. Seeing the Chaos leak was
the most fun it'd had in a long time. He had managed to
rip Chaos. Watching the result, he put his fingers in and
pulled it open a little more.

-----------------------------------------------

THE GOOD

Xander knocked on the door again. He knew Buffy was
home. He could hear her in there talking. He was about
to knock on the window, as he looked in, and stopped cold.
It looked like the place had been trashed. It was dark.
He saw movement. A closer look revealed-

He stopped and backed up. No freaking way! He wiped
his eyes, shook his head and looked again. There was
nothing but Buffy and Dawn sitting on the sofa. Nothing
was out of place.

"Ok. There's a simple explanation for what I just
saw. I have no idea what in the hell it is, but I'm sure
there is one."

Thinking he had just seen Jesse in Buffy's house
really rattled his nerves.

-----------------------------------------------

THE BAD

Buffy climbed the steps of the house. The man who
called himself Giles had told her she could stay here.
Apparently, she had really pissed off that red haired
vampire. She hadn't done anything to her, but the vampire
was pissed. Giles and Buffy had been talking when the
vampire walked into the room. Giles was instantly on his
feet.

"Relax, Englishman. I'm not here to fight. I heard
there was a slay-"

She stopped when she saw Buffy. "You."

Before Buffy could reply, the vampire - Giles said
her name was Willow - changed into her game face.

"You sent me back here. You couldn't leave it
alone."

Buffy looked from Willow to Giles, then back to
Willow. "I don't know who in the hell you are. Now, you
know I'm the Slayer, and I know you're a vampire. Two
plus two still equals four, so I guess that means I'm
supposed to dust you."

Giles held Buffy back.

"I'll see you again, Slayer. Pretend all you want,
but you're going to pay. I could have had a lot of fun
with Red."

Buffy tried again to go after the vampire, but Giles
wouldn't let go.

"What the hell's wrong with you? I came here to kill
those things!"

"I know. There's some history with that one. She-
she used to be a friend."

"Used to be. Now she's a vamp and vamps die. What
part of that don't you get?"

"No. That one doesn't die yet. She's as close to
civil as we get with them here. Occasionally, we're able
to get some information from her. It would seem that in
some other world, we didn't kill her and she feels she has
to repay that. A vampire with morals. Of sorts. Odd."

"Huh? Another world? Like a soap opera? Because
that's what it sounds like to me. A make believe story."

"I know. I know. As long as she's of use, we'll let
her live."

"If you say so. But I'm telling you, if she looks at
me funny, she goes."

Giles nodded. "Understood."

Now, standing in the doorway of the house, she
wondered if she had done the right thing by coming here.
She knew it was bad, but not this bad. She turned the
corner into what used to be a living room and saw a
teenager sitting on a couch.

"Oh. I'm sorry. Someone told me-"

The girl was gone. So was the couch.

-----------------------------------------------

THE GOOD

"BUFFY!"

The elder Summers ran into the room. "Dawnie?
What's wrong?"

The teen was about to tell Buffy what she thought
she'd seen. When she had looked up, she'd seen Buffy
in the door. A very blonde Buffy. With scars. And not
knowing Dawn. Apologizing. Thinking about it, Dawn knew
how odd it sounded and figured it must be because she was
tired - she was seeing things.

"Nothing."

Just then, there was a knock at the door. Dawn
looked out the window to find Xander standing there.

"I just wanted to let you know Xander's here."

-------------------------------------------------

THE WORSE

Jesse was reading one of the books he'd found in the
library of the old school building. He never did
understand why Mr. Giles had kept these books, but they
did come in handy quite often. In the middle of a spell
to ward off counter-spells, he felt something. It was
something strong. He looked around, not sure why he felt
so uncomfortable. He felt as though he was being watched.
He felt like Xander was near. Just as quickly as the
feeling had come over him, it left.

"What's the what?"

Jesse looked over at Faith, who had been sleeping in
one of the chairs they'd scavaged.

"Nothing."

"Thinking of him again, aren't you?"

"No," he lied.

"J, come on. Don't lie to me. You were. What's
up?"

"It's hard Faith. It's so hard. You don't know. I
can talk about it to you till I'm blue in the face, but I
can't make you understand. I know to you he's just a
vampire waiting to be dusted, but to me he was blood. He
was my soul mate. I know that sounds really gay, y'know?
And it wasn't like that, but we were more than friends.
We knew each others thoughts, we sensed each other.
That's what being together every day of your life does, I
guess. Y'know? No. You don't know."

His voice broke.

"It's hard Faith, I miss him every freaking day and
it hurts. I know in my heart we have to kill him. He's
one of the more powerful ones out there, turning people
everyday. And it kills me to think about it."

The Slayer stood up and walked over to him. She sat
on his lap and put her arms around him.

"I know, baby. You're right. I can't understand it.
I've never had any kind of friends, much less a friend
like that. But I can see how much it hurts you, and that
hurts me. I won't dust him. Not until you tell me it's
time."

"I feel like he's watching me sometimes."

"Jess, he probably is watching you. It wouldn't
surprise me if he was across the street waiting for you to
come out unprepared. He can't wait to turn you."

"If that happens-"

"I will."

"You will what?"

They both jumped when they heard the third voice.

Xander was standing there watching them.

--------------------------------------------

THE GOOD

Buffy and Dawn looked at Xander, just standing there.
He seemed to be in a daze. Then he spoke.

"You will what?"

Buffy touched Xander on the shoulder. "Xander?"

He jerked, as though he had been shocked. "What?"

Buffy sighed. "You just asked if I will what? What
what?"

"What?"

"Yeah. What?"

"Wait. What did I say?"

"You said 'You will what?'."

"Oh. I think I was day dreaming. I could have sworn
I just saw Jesse sitting there with Faith in his lap. She
told him she would do something. I guess I was talking to
her, not you."

"Oh."

"I'm tired guys. That's why I came over. I wanted
to tell you I wasn't up to going out with you guys
tonight."

Dawn went to him and took his hand. "Xander, come
on. You've been like this since Anya left. You have to
get back to normal."

He snorted. "Normal? In Sunnydale? The place where
one second you and your best bud are laughing and the next
he's a vampire? The place where a guy leaves his demon
bride at the altar because the monster his dad was is
worse than the monster that his fiancee was? The place
where the ex-bride-to-be kills twelve guys and then brings
them back before she walks away forever? Oh, ok. I'll
get back to normal."

Before either girl could say anything, he turned and
walked out. Dawn made a move to stop him, but Buffy held
her back.

"Dawn, let him go. He needs time for himself. He's
hurting. There's nothing we can do for him right now."

Dawn sighed. She knew her sister was right, but it
didn't make it better.

------------------------------------------

THE EDGE

This was fun. What happens if the hole gets a little
bigger?
-------------------------------------------

THE BAD

Giles felt it. He didn't know how or why, but he
knew something wasn't right. He'd given thought to
Willow's claims of visiting another dimension. He sighed.
He couldn't stop thinking of her as Willow. She would
have to die sometime, but until he was able to get past
her being Willow, it wasn't going to happen.

He had a feeling. Almost like knowing you were late
for something without actually knowing what time it was.

---------------------------------------------

THE WORSE

As quick as they they were surprised, Xander was
gone.

"Did you-"

"Yeah, he wasn't-"

"No, he was-"

"Alive."

----------------------------------------

THE BAD

Giles went to the library. No one used the school
anymore, and most of his books were useless. Still, it
brought him some peace. This was where he felt closest to
Jenny.

He heard a noise and was about to investigate when
the doors swung open, almost as if in slow motion.

His heart missed a beat when he saw who it was.

It was Wesley. A vampire Wesley. His first thought
was that Angel hadn't told him that Wesley had left, nor
that he was now a vampire. His second thought was that he
himself should not be standing behind Wesley in full
vampire face.

--------------------------------------------------

THE GOOD

"It's not good you know. No good at all. Might be
good for you, it might, but it's not good. Stop it."

He stood up straight. "Bloody, bleeding nutter.
That's what I am you know."

"I know, I know. Nutters. We're nutters. This is
bad. Bad, bad clown."

"Bad clown. When I stop talking to myself, I'll tell
the Slayer."

"Tell the Slayer we will."

He stopped moving and look straight into nothing. He
could see it.

"You're a bad, bad clown you are. The Slayer won't
like it. The Witch won't like it."

--------------------------------------------

THE EDGE

The Clown paused. Had the insane vampire actually
been talking to him? To the Clown? It wasn't possible.
Pish posh, no time for such matters. The game was just
starting. Pulling on one of the realities, he chuckled as
more of it spilled out.

---------------------------------------------

THE GOOD
THE BAD
THE WORSE

Spike screamed. It hurt.
Spike screamed. It hurt.
Spike giggled. "No, they won't be pleased at all."