Post-Chosen bit... Andrew finds a rare gift.


Epitaph

Andrew couldn't believe his eyes. After finally going through his bag a month after the destruction left over in Sunnydale, he had found his video camera, buried underneath the crosses and small bottles of holy water undoubtedly put there by the newest slayers.


He pulled out the technology and examined it, finding a few scratches here and there. With a sharp eye, he pulled his sleeve over his hand and scrubbed at the dents in the metal, then gave up when he received a small shock from his efforts. Flipping the device over, he saw the small panel of buttons and the eject button. Ejecting the tape, he saw that it was nearly used up.


Cursing, he glanced at his bedroom inside the Best Western in Cleveland, where the original Slayer and all the new ones had taken up residence until they could find a home of their own. He would have to buy another tape to use it again.


Slipping the tape back inside, he rewound it and pressed the play button on the panel and lifted it up.


His speech before he turned off his camera surprised him. He had never sounded so depressed nor morose in his life. The tape ended and the sounds of horizonal grey lines and the familiar buzz of an ended tape sounded. He reached for the stop button to end it, when suddenly he heard a slightly familiar voice.


"Is this piece of technology on or not?"


"Anya?" Andrew asked, turning his attention back to the device which allowed him to watch his tape.


"Of course it's on. It's not like there's a curse on it or not." Anya's pretty face suddenly froze into a mask of terror as she reached forward, tapping with her index finger on the lens. "I guess you don't talk back to me, either."


Andrew forced himself to laugh. Anya could always be trusted to not understand what was in the now compared to what it was like in the then.


"I heard Andrew make a confession into his tape player, so I decided it would be my turn." She paused for what seemed like an eternity before continuing on. "I don't really have anything to confess that the scoobies don't already know. They know I was a vengeance demon. They know I was once married to a troll. They even know that I've had a lack of identity." She finally stopped rambling and looked up at the camera. Andrew was stunned to see tears sparkling in her eyes. "And I still don't. I don't know who I am or what I'm supposed to be. All I know is that the world is going to come crashing at an end and for the first time in my life, I'm a victim of that curse. I've followed the Scooby gang and the Vampire Slayer loyally for years. But I'm like those who have been chosen and have no power. My only super power is my understated wit and sarcasm. I don't have special muscles. I don't have witch powers or the powers to see and perceive. I have my loyalty. And my wit and unscrutiable sarcasm, of course."


Her voice began to waver. "What I found with them was that they're stupid. They fight so they can die. Buffy has proved this twice. But one thing she hasn't done was give up the cause. She's just like our little slay gal, keep on fighting. Just like the energizer... bunny... I have found myself among stupid people and a loyalty that will never die. I told Andrew before that I didn't love humans. I don't. I like them though. Like like even. They're weaker than your average demon, but when the going gets rough, they take it on their chin and keep fighting to the end.


"The world will not end. I trust in Buffy and the rest of the army to believe that it won't. I may even act like them, fighting to the end. With a human shield, possibly that tart little hostage if I can find him again." Andrew's lips flickered into a smile. "I know that my end is near, and if you are watching this, I'm dead. Gone. Forgotten. By most of you who thought I was an annoying twit. I'm sorry, Giles, was that too British?"


Anya glanced down and said in a hushed voice. "I know I have done a lot of terrible things in my time. I want to make it right. And if trusting my life in the hands of the Slayer is the way to be, I guess my time will come. I will miss you all, especially Xander, who although broke my heart into a thousand shards came through for me at the end. I'll miss retail. I'll miss my money. And I'll miss my life, whatever it was."


Anya glanced up and smiled, a bright cheerful smile she seemed to pull out of nowhere, a smile that radiated her lovely face. "Time for me to go now. If the end is as nigh as we all think it is, I'll see some of you soon. I'll miss you."


She leaned forward to turn off the machine. "Good-bye."


Andrew whispered the words back to her before turning off his own machine. When the time had come to show the tape, he would show it. Yes, indeed he would.