SECOND
CHANCE
NOTE: I own none of the Scooby gang because they belong to mean old Joss.
A/N: I'd like to say thank you to everyone for the reviews that I've gotten so far. I have a plot planned out for this story but if you have any suggestions or requests then I might fill them in.
CHAPTER 8
Autumn rolled around in bed that night. Sleep was clearly out of the question considering the fact that her parents were going at it again. This time it had started right before dinner, causing Autumn and Jeff to order a pizza and retreat to their rooms. Autumn finally decided to climb out of bed. She changed into a multicolored sleeveless blouse and put on a pair of red overalls. Autumn slipped on a pair of white high tops before she went downstairs and out the door, the sound of her parents arguing muffled.
Maggie sat at the desk in her bedroom, writing in a notebook. It was one of those restless nights, possibly because she had just finished off a large bag of gummy bears, and she had decided to do some of her weekend homework. Suddenly there was a clank at her window. Maggie went over, pulled back the curtain of her window and saw Autumn standing there. Maggie pulled her window open and stuck her head out.
"Autumn, what the bloody heck are you doing here?" Maggie called down in a whisper.
"Got bored," Autumn replied coolly. "Feel like some fun?"
"I suppose but this doesn't involve vandalism, does it?"
Autumn looked at her strangely. "Uh, no. That's not what every American kid does at night."
Maggie looked slightly disappointed. "Oh, pooh. Well, so much for stereotype. I'll be right down."
A few minutes later Maggie left her house and ran up to Autumn. Maggie had changed into a white blouse and dark blue jeans. She also had a rather large bag on her back. Autumn gestured towards the bag.
"What is that?" the red head asked.
"Oh, you know, the essentials. There's yoo-hoos, zwizzlers, sour worms, air heads, and some chocolate covered raisins." Autumn looked ready to laugh. "What? I've got to stay up."
"If I didn't live for yoo-hoos I would really make a sarcastic comment."
Maggie shrugged. "So what's up for tonight?"
"I don't know..." Autumn replied all too casually. "... Vampire hunts?"
Maggie gasped. "That's dangerous, that's reckless, and that's positively brilliant."
"Thank you," said Autumn with a smirk.
"Do you have a stake?"
"Uh, no. Do they sell those at Wal-Mart or something?"
Maggie stared at her with an amused look. "I'll be right back." Maggie entered the house, grabbed a couple of Giles's stakes, and went back out, tossing Maggie one of the pointed objects. "Are you ready?"
"I'm a Slayer. So... I'm guessing the readiness thing comes with the job."
Maggie nodded and they headed off down the street.
Wesley made it home to his apartment late that night, as he had errands to run and had promised to council a few students when classes ended. When he opened the door to his apartment the British man was surprised to see Cordelia sitting on the couch in his living room, eating a small pint of cookies and cream ice cream. She wore jeans, a short-sleeved blouse, and a vest that matched the jeans. Her hair had gone back to brown and was shoulder length. Cordelia looked up at a taken aback Wesley.
"You know, Wes, you should try sherbet, always good."
Wesley took off his coat, placing it in a chair. "Um, Cordelia, a few questions. Number one, what are you doing in Sunnydale? Number two, what are you doing in my apartment? Number three, why the hell are you stealing my ice cream?" He asked all three in a strangely calm voice.
Cordelia stood up, sitting the ice cream on the coffee table. "Number one, I'm here to see you. Number two, I used a higher being teleporting thing-y. Number three, I got hungry waiting on you." She answered his questions equally calm.
"Cordelia, I don't know if you've heard of this but there's a law against breaking and entering. Not to mention the fact that I was looking forward to that ice cream." He stared at her for a moment. "Why are you here to see me? Is it about Angel?"
"No. Angel dragged Connor home with him, made a few threats, and now they're the Brady Bunch. Besides I quit Angel Inc. In fact I work for the watcher's council."
Wesley's eyes grew from the surprise. "You do? Why?"
She shrugged. "They pay better? Besides they wanted a higher being and Angel didn't really need me anymore. We went out... didn't work."
"Oh... I'm sorry."
"Yeah, that's all well and good." Cordelia put her hands to her hips. "Could we get off of me now?" Wesley nodded. "Great. Anyway I have a message for you. You might want to sit down."
Wesley did just that, a curious look on his face.
Autumn saw that as Maggie led them things seemed to get darker. An odd, creep feeling fell over Autumn when she found that Maggie was bringing them into a slightly fogged cemetery. Were cemeteries always foggy?
"So is this the place?" Autumn asked.
"Yes," Maggie replied, finishing off a twizzler. "My uncle's Slayer comes here sometimes."
"Well, what do we do?" Autumn inquired, looking the stake over that she held in her hand.
"Wait I suppose." She looked down the cemetery. "I'll check down there."
"All right. I'll... try not to get mud on these new shoes," Autumn joked, as she and Maggie divided.
Autumn walked down the cemetery, glancing at the tombstones. The night just seemed to get colder in such a dark and eerie place. Cemeteries always gave Autumn a serious dose of the creeps, anyway, even during bright daylight. They were just so dark and dreary. Autumn looked at a tombstone coming closer to it. She swiped her hand across it to remove the dust. The name on it was hard to make out. Autumn felt a tap on her shoulder and nearly jumped out of her skin, turning around. It was just a man, dark hair, around twenty.
"Hey. What's a kid doing around here?" he asked.
"I can ask you the same thing," said Autumn coolly.
"I asked first."
Autumn just shrugged. "Nothing better to do?"
At Maggie's end of the cemetery something just didn't seem right. She decided to turn around and look for Autumn. When Maggie got closer to where Autumn was Goosebumps formed over her skin. That's when she realized it. That person she was talking to was not a man.
"Autumn! Get away from him!" Maggie shouted, running towards her. "That's a vampire!"
Autumn gasped as the man's face bumped up and his fangs extended. "Why do they always travel in pairs? Oh, well, more of the meal."
"Back off!" Maggie ordered in her best American voice, attempting to stab her stake into the vampire's chest.
It caught her wrist. "Cute." With that he tossed her into a tombstone, making it smash. "Bulls eye."
"Maggie!" Autumn exclaimed, attempting to go to her.
The vampire grabbed her next. "Hey, wait, red, you still haven't answered my question."
"Don't plan to," Autumn told him, her voice as serene as it could be.
She gave the vamp a swift kick, knocking him down. It quickly shot back up and knocked Autumn across the face, barely phasing her. Autumn and the vampire began to go blow for blow, Autumn apparently having the advantage.
Back at Wesley's apartment he sat in his armchair utterly frozen. After five minutes he spoke. "You care to repeat that, Cordelia?"
Cordelia sighed frustrated. "For the millionth time, Brit boy, the watcher's council is giving you another chance to be a watcher."
"But... I... I don't understand. They aren't what you'd call forgiving. Why would they give me a second chance?"
She shrugged her reply. "A pity thing?"
"This is all a lot to take in," Wesley told her, trying to reason with it all. "It would be a great opportunity. That's for sure."
"Yeah, well, is that a yes or a no? Some of us have a schedule to keep." She glanced at her watch.
"Well, I suppose I could—" He was caught off with Cordy shrieking in pain. "Cordelia!" Wesley rushed to her. "Are you all right?"
Cordelia held her head and slowly came through. "Whoa. I'm fine."
"What happened? A vision?"
"Yep. By the way, it might interest you to know that your new charge is about to get herself killed."
Wesley looked confused for a moment then deep in thought.
Punch, kick, kick, punch. That's what were happening with Autumn and the vampire. When one tossed out a blow the other either punched or kick. Finally Autumn kicked him as hard as she could in the nuts, knocking him down. Without hesitation she jabbed the stake into his heart, melting him in a sea of ashes. She sighed with relief and went over to Maggie.
"Are you all right?" Autumn asked, kneeling down to her.
Maggie held her head. "Ouch, blasted! That thing wasn't joking."
"Well, I got him," Autumn told her. "Happy ending."
Maggie's eyes widened. "Uh, Autumn, think again."
Autumn turned and gasped. Three more vampires had circle the ashes of their fallen brother.
"Two for the price of one," one of them commented. "Gotta love those odds."
"This is new," Autumn gulped.
She stood and unwisely rushed all three vamps. Two of them grabbed her by the arms, while one came up on her. Autumn kicked him under the chin, knocking him down. She managed to toss the vampires that held her off of her. The one that she made fall approached from behind and grasped her around the waist, in a suffocating squeeze. Autumn groaned in pain but coped. The vampire threw her into a tree, making her hurt her head hard. Next all three vampire's circled her.
"Well, that was easy."
"I believe it just got hard." The vampires turned around to see Spike.
Autumn held her head groaning. "Who is—?""Spike!" Maggie shouted happily, seeing the bleached blonde vampire.
"In the flesh," Spike told the teenager. He turned back to the other three vampires. "Now I believe you were about to do something that would completely piss me."
"Easy, man," one vampire said. "This ain't your fight."
"It just became it." Spike vamped out, taking Autumn by surprise.
"He's one of them," she whispered to herself.
Spike began tossing the three vampires about with ease. Maggie crawled over to Autumn and put an arm around her, asking if she was all right. Autumn just nodded a little, still clutching her head, and watching Spike move. He took out two of the vampires with just a tree branch and sending the last one down with a heavy punch to the face. Spike knelt down and stabbed him in the heart, making him join his two companions as dust.
"Are you all right?" Spike asked the two girls.
"Ouch," Autumn replied.
"Thanks, Spike," Maggie smiled.
Spike held out his hands and helped the two of them stand. "Now what the bloody hell are you doing here?"
"I was just about to ask the same." All three of them turned to see Wesley who had just driven up.
"Bring on the pouf," Spike muttered.
"Wesley?" Autumn inquired. "How did you—?"
"You're hurt," Wesley told her, walking up. He touched a bad cut on Autumn's forehead.
"I feel fine," Autumn told him. "In an in need of aspirin kind of way."
"What were you doing out here?" Wesley asked Autumn.
"Doing what I'm supposed to?" Autumn answered in the form of a question.
"Did you listen to nothing I told you earlier?" Wesley questioned exasperatedly.
"Yes, I did," Autumn defended herself. "You said for every generation... and then... training and... sorry. Short attention span."
Wesley sighed deeply. "This is not going to be easy," he said, putting his head in his hands.
"But I'm OK. I mean that's what matters, isn't it?" Autumn attempted to reason.
Wesley just glared at her. "Get in," he said, gesturing to his car.
"I'm guessing that's not a request." Wesley's deadly grimace got the young red head moving and in the car in no time.
Maggie and Spike followed her also getting inside. Maggie sat next to Autumn in the back, also feeling a headache coming on and felt a cut on her cheek but the bruise wasn't as bad as Autumn's. Spike joined Wesley up front without a word. Wesley got in and drove off, also silent.
A/N: Coming up, there will be Scoobies/Autumn interaction, AI should show up soon, lots more Spike goodness, and I would like to know if you have any requests. I'll see if I can fit them in. Please review.