Title: Revenant, Ch. 2
Author's notes: I haven't seen the Angel episode where W&H resurrected Darla, so I'm winging it on the special effects.
_*_*_*
"Screw you, blood-breath!"
"Bite me, Harris!"
Buffy sighed and turned back to Dawn and Willow. "Isn't it nice to see the two of them getting along so well?"
Dawn snickered, Willow and Fred got a confused look on their faces, then Willow did a double take, and burst out in laughter, too. Oblivious, Xander and Spike kept circling the pool table as they took their shots.
"You're right, for them, this is light-hearted playing." Willow chuckled.
"Y'know, if they'd just quit putting so much effort into hating each other, they'd actually like each other." Dawn added.
"Well, they don't actually hate each other, really, it's just.. Xander just.. After the 'bathroom' thing, well, he needed to hate Spike, he needed some kind of outlet for all the hurt from the whole leaving-Anya-at- the-altar, seeing-Spike-and-Anya-humping-on-videotape thing." Willow explained to Fred.
"Oh."
"And on that note, let's go toss our hats into the ring."
"Can we do that, Buffy? I mean, they're not wearing hats, we're not wearing hats, so we're pretty kind of hatless, so to speak."
"It's just a saying, Willow." Fred pointed out.
"I know that, but it's an odd saying, really."
Spike lined up his shot, aiming to knock the 7 into the corner pocket, when a cue smacked down on his own. "Listen, Harris, aren't you taking this a bit-"He looked up at Buffy, who held the cue in a classic bo- jutsu stance.
"C'mon, Spike, let's raise the stakes. New game. You and me, versus Xander and Wills."
"That's the teams, Pet, but what're the stakes?" He asked, a mischievous twinkle in his eye.
"Losers pay the winners tab."
"Tame so far, Luv. And?"
"Winners get the use of the Jacuzzi tonight."
"Well, then, you're on!"
Willow and Xander looked at each other, and gulped. They didn't want to end up paying for Buffy and Spike's drinks tonight, but did they want to end up in the hotels hot tub? The pair were best friends, but was this one time when winning meant losing?
"Don't look so put out, Red. The whelp's good, I'll give him that. Even with the eye-patch. He always used to close one eye when lining up his shots, anyway."
"Yeah, but Buffy has that superhuman eye-hand co-ordination thing going on."
"Not so sure that's much help in pool, Wills. Xander's won a few trips to the snack-bar, back at the Bronze off of me." Buffy added, racking the balls into the triangle.
Fred flipped the coin, and Xander and Willow got the break. Xander sank four balls in a row, then Willow sunk two, before Spike took his two. Buffy sank one, and scratched, letting Xander back into the game. Fred looked over in amazement to Dawn, who just shrugged as the Scoobies game ended in record time with Xander and Willow winning.
"Get used to it." She said to the Angel Investigations resident brainiac.
"Oi, are you sure Red didn't get all black-eyed and vein-y on those last three shots?
"What, two out of three, Captain Peroxide?" Willow asked, a mock-offended look on her face.
"Rack 'em, Xander." Buffy giggled.
Buffy and Spike won the next match, and Dawn began placing bets with some of the Wolfram and Hart personnel who came over to watch.
Willow broke, sinking the 3, the 5, and the 10, then took out the 7 and the 1 ball. Xander scratched, Spike sank the 2 , the 14, and the 12, and Buffy sank the 6 and the 4.
Willow sank the 11 and the 15, Xander sank the 9, and the 13, then ceremoniously sank the remaining even-numbered balls to the sound of applause.
Dawn and Fred tallied up the bets, and Dawn took her cut, then distributed the winnings.
"How did you know Xander and Willow would win?" Knox asked.
"Who do you think taught me how to hustle pool? Xander and Spike. Willow's okay with a pool cue, but the only thing Buffy knows about how to handle a stick is how to club a minion to death with it. Watch and learn!" She turned to the Scoobies. "I get to play the winners!" Dawn shouted.
Knox and Fred watched in awe as the youngest of the Scoobies then proceeded to lay the smack-down on the Witch and the Carpenter.
_*_*_*_*
Three figures chanted from the large tome in front of them, while fourteen vampire minions waited in restraints, chained to the walls of the chamber. Some huddled, some fought against the chains, but the three chanters ignored their struggles. The circles on the floor began to glow, then lit up in brilliant golden light. The candles fountained up like magnesium flares, and streamers of crimson energy shot out towards the minions. Tendrils of light penetrated each vamp, whose eyes lit up from within, glowing scarlet before the bodies of the minions crumbled into dust, one by one.
Inside the circles, the energy soaked into the few tiny personal items clustered there, and the two small piles of dust. The dust began to swirl up into the air like subterranean dust-devils, and within the circles, two somethings began to form.
Bones swirled inside, first small ones like teeth and finger-bones, then ribs, thighbones, radii and ulnas, pelvis' and skulls, assembling themselves like a twisted jigsaw puzzle. Tendons, tissues, and organs, skin and hair. Then, the indoor storm stopped, and two figures stood inside the designs.
"Welcome back to the realm of the living, oh favored servants of the Master. Hello, and goodbye, Luke, Penn." One of the chanters said, throwing back his hood to reveal the face of a vampire.
T.B.C.
Author's notes: I haven't seen the Angel episode where W&H resurrected Darla, so I'm winging it on the special effects.
_*_*_*
"Screw you, blood-breath!"
"Bite me, Harris!"
Buffy sighed and turned back to Dawn and Willow. "Isn't it nice to see the two of them getting along so well?"
Dawn snickered, Willow and Fred got a confused look on their faces, then Willow did a double take, and burst out in laughter, too. Oblivious, Xander and Spike kept circling the pool table as they took their shots.
"You're right, for them, this is light-hearted playing." Willow chuckled.
"Y'know, if they'd just quit putting so much effort into hating each other, they'd actually like each other." Dawn added.
"Well, they don't actually hate each other, really, it's just.. Xander just.. After the 'bathroom' thing, well, he needed to hate Spike, he needed some kind of outlet for all the hurt from the whole leaving-Anya-at- the-altar, seeing-Spike-and-Anya-humping-on-videotape thing." Willow explained to Fred.
"Oh."
"And on that note, let's go toss our hats into the ring."
"Can we do that, Buffy? I mean, they're not wearing hats, we're not wearing hats, so we're pretty kind of hatless, so to speak."
"It's just a saying, Willow." Fred pointed out.
"I know that, but it's an odd saying, really."
Spike lined up his shot, aiming to knock the 7 into the corner pocket, when a cue smacked down on his own. "Listen, Harris, aren't you taking this a bit-"He looked up at Buffy, who held the cue in a classic bo- jutsu stance.
"C'mon, Spike, let's raise the stakes. New game. You and me, versus Xander and Wills."
"That's the teams, Pet, but what're the stakes?" He asked, a mischievous twinkle in his eye.
"Losers pay the winners tab."
"Tame so far, Luv. And?"
"Winners get the use of the Jacuzzi tonight."
"Well, then, you're on!"
Willow and Xander looked at each other, and gulped. They didn't want to end up paying for Buffy and Spike's drinks tonight, but did they want to end up in the hotels hot tub? The pair were best friends, but was this one time when winning meant losing?
"Don't look so put out, Red. The whelp's good, I'll give him that. Even with the eye-patch. He always used to close one eye when lining up his shots, anyway."
"Yeah, but Buffy has that superhuman eye-hand co-ordination thing going on."
"Not so sure that's much help in pool, Wills. Xander's won a few trips to the snack-bar, back at the Bronze off of me." Buffy added, racking the balls into the triangle.
Fred flipped the coin, and Xander and Willow got the break. Xander sank four balls in a row, then Willow sunk two, before Spike took his two. Buffy sank one, and scratched, letting Xander back into the game. Fred looked over in amazement to Dawn, who just shrugged as the Scoobies game ended in record time with Xander and Willow winning.
"Get used to it." She said to the Angel Investigations resident brainiac.
"Oi, are you sure Red didn't get all black-eyed and vein-y on those last three shots?
"What, two out of three, Captain Peroxide?" Willow asked, a mock-offended look on her face.
"Rack 'em, Xander." Buffy giggled.
Buffy and Spike won the next match, and Dawn began placing bets with some of the Wolfram and Hart personnel who came over to watch.
Willow broke, sinking the 3, the 5, and the 10, then took out the 7 and the 1 ball. Xander scratched, Spike sank the 2 , the 14, and the 12, and Buffy sank the 6 and the 4.
Willow sank the 11 and the 15, Xander sank the 9, and the 13, then ceremoniously sank the remaining even-numbered balls to the sound of applause.
Dawn and Fred tallied up the bets, and Dawn took her cut, then distributed the winnings.
"How did you know Xander and Willow would win?" Knox asked.
"Who do you think taught me how to hustle pool? Xander and Spike. Willow's okay with a pool cue, but the only thing Buffy knows about how to handle a stick is how to club a minion to death with it. Watch and learn!" She turned to the Scoobies. "I get to play the winners!" Dawn shouted.
Knox and Fred watched in awe as the youngest of the Scoobies then proceeded to lay the smack-down on the Witch and the Carpenter.
_*_*_*_*
Three figures chanted from the large tome in front of them, while fourteen vampire minions waited in restraints, chained to the walls of the chamber. Some huddled, some fought against the chains, but the three chanters ignored their struggles. The circles on the floor began to glow, then lit up in brilliant golden light. The candles fountained up like magnesium flares, and streamers of crimson energy shot out towards the minions. Tendrils of light penetrated each vamp, whose eyes lit up from within, glowing scarlet before the bodies of the minions crumbled into dust, one by one.
Inside the circles, the energy soaked into the few tiny personal items clustered there, and the two small piles of dust. The dust began to swirl up into the air like subterranean dust-devils, and within the circles, two somethings began to form.
Bones swirled inside, first small ones like teeth and finger-bones, then ribs, thighbones, radii and ulnas, pelvis' and skulls, assembling themselves like a twisted jigsaw puzzle. Tendons, tissues, and organs, skin and hair. Then, the indoor storm stopped, and two figures stood inside the designs.
"Welcome back to the realm of the living, oh favored servants of the Master. Hello, and goodbye, Luke, Penn." One of the chanters said, throwing back his hood to reveal the face of a vampire.
T.B.C.