A/N: So sorry for the delay! I got sidetracked because I had to write another chapter for my guild's round robin. This chapter isn't too too long, but it is important. Sorry if it isn't my best work, I just have limited time and really wanted to get this out. This fic is going to have 12 chapters. This one is still angsty. I'm sorry! I don't know if I am going to write part 10 next or start the third installment of my D/C series, but there will be another update soon! My first anniversary as a fanfic writer is coming up, November 14th! -beams- Well, enjoy, and please review! Please?
Part 9
Monday, June 26th, 2020
"Mmmm..." Buffy moaned, as the sunlight hit her eyes, waking her up.
She reached up and rubbed her eyes. She turned her head to see Angel sleeping soundly beside her. Glancing over at the clock, she sat up straight.
"Angel, wake up!" she said frantically, shaking him.
"What?" he asked, eyes still closed.
"Serena! Where is she? It's nine o clock!" Buffy said, panicking.
He opened his eyes, smiling slightly. "She spent the night at Liz's. They had an exam this morning. Mrs. Chester was taking care of transportation. We're picking Serena up at school at eleven," he said calmly.
Buffy relaxed. "I guess you thought of everything."
"That I did. Also, since it is only nine, we have some time to kill," Angel said, pulling his wife close.
"What are we ever going to do with ourselves?" Buffy asked, pretending to be deep in thought.
"I've got a few ideas," he said, rolling on top of her. She found that she was suddenly very much awake.
"Well I'm open to suggestions," she said, before he started to kiss her passionately.
Later that morning they rode in silence to Sunnydale High. "Are you ready to do this?" Buffy asked nervously.
Angel nodded firmly, not taking his eyes off the road. "We don't have any choice. It's not going to be easy, but together, we can handle anything."
Buffy couldn't help but smile. "You know, I really do believe that now."
He reached over and grabbed her hand after stopping for a red light. "You should. We promised each other that we are never going to let ourselves get so far apart again. And I plan on keeping that promise."
"Have I told you how amazing you are?" Buffy asked.
"Not today," Angel said, grinning. He leaned in and kissed her. They were interrupted by a horn honking. Buffy looked up, noticing the light was green.
"You better drive," she said, sitting back in her seat, laughing. Angel quickly pressed on the gas.
They watched as Serena exited the school, chatting happily with Liz. She spotted them and waved. Then she said a quick goodbye to Liz and walked briskly to the car.
"One down, four to go," she said happily, climbing into the backseat.
Buffy smiled back at her, trying to conceal her sadness. "How was the exam?"
"Not bad, actually," Serena chirped. "So what's up for the afternoon?"
Angel glanced over at Buffy as they drove away from the school. "We'll talk about it when we get home," he said quietly.
When they walked into the house, Buffy looked at Angel, who nodded. "Serena, sweetheart, can we talk to you?"
Serena frowned. "Sure. About what?"
"Why don't we sit down," Angel said, leading his daughter into the living room. He sat on the couch with Buffy, while Serena took a seat in the chair opposite them.
"You're starting to scare me," Serena said nervously.
"We don't mean to." Buffy looked down, uncertain of how to begin. "I guess there's no easy way to say this, so I better just say it."
"Are...are you getting a divorce or something?" Serena asked, sounding fearful.
"Oh, no! In fact your mother and I have never been happier." Angel grasped his wife's hand and squeezed it. "Serena, we know about the dreams you've been having."
She suddenly sat up straight. "What? Oh my God, did Grandpa Giles-"
"It wasn't Giles's fault," Buffy interrupted. "He only told us because he found a cause for the dreams. Something that affects all of us."
Serena sat back in her chair, feeling betrayed and frightened all at once. Truth be told, she had pushed the dreams out of her mind. She hadn't experienced one in two nights now, and with her focus on exams she hadn't given it much thought since her conversation with her grandfather. "I trusted him," she said, not knowing what else to say.
"And you still should. Sweetie, Giles only wants what's best for you. What I don't understand is why you didn't come to us right away," Buffy said soothingly.
"Because I didn't want to freak you out. You have enough to worry about," Serena said, becoming upset.
Buffy sighed. "I know. I know we've both been distant, and we cannot ever apologize enough for that. But from now on we are going to be there for you one hundred percent."
"It's true," Angel added.
Serena looked down. "Did he find out why?"
Buffy closed her eyes briefly. "Serena, many years ago when I was first called to be the slayer, I started having dreams."
"What are you saying?" she said quickly. "I know the drill, one slayer cannot be called unless the first one dies. And you are right here in front of me," Serena said confidently.
"That's what we thought too. But your Grandpa Giles found a...loophole. A clause in the prophecy." Angel hesitated. "It says that if a slayer lives long enough to have a daughter, that daughter will eventually take over as the slayer. Even if the mother is still alive."
Serena took that in. "So...I'm..."
"You are a slayer. Like me," Buffy said, trying to hide her sadness and sound reassuring. Silence filled the room.
"What happens now?" Serena asked quietly, looking down.
Angel glanced at Buffy. "Well, Giles thinks the Watcher's Council probably knows already. So I guess they will send someone here to be your Watcher. Unless Giles can-"
"No. I don't want him," Serena said firmly.
Buffy sighed. "Honey, this is not Giles's fault. We were going to find out eventually anyway."
"Do you expect me to just be okay with this?" Serena said loudly. "You just told me that my life is changed forever."
"We know. And we know this is going to be a big adjustment for all of us. But we are going to deal with it together," Angel said confidently.
Serena stood up. "Mom, being the slayer ruined your life. And now you just told me that I am stuck with that destiny too."
"It did not ruin my life Serena. It was very difficult, yes, but I got through it. And now look where I am," Buffy said.
"Yeah, I see where you are mom. You're miserable. Ever since you lost Liam you have been miserable," Serena shot back.
"I know. But I promise you that is changed now. Last night your dad and I had a long talk and we have moved on. We are ready to be there for you one hundred percent!" she said pleadingly.
Serena shook her head. "Mom, I have plans for the rest of my life. Next year, I am taking advanced art classes. And I'm going to write for the school paper. And Liz and I decided that we want to go to our Homecoming. And now you're telling me that I might not be alive to do any of that because I am doomed to spend the rest of my nights in some dark cemetery fighting vampires?" she said incredulously.
"Serena, we want you to be able to do all of those things. The last thing we want is for your future to be limited in any way," Angel said, trying to remain calm.
Serena looked around. "I need to get out of here. I just need some time to think about all of this."
Angel nodded. "Of course. Where do you want us to go?"
She stared at him. "Not 'us'. Me. I am going to Liz's." She turned on her heel and stormed towards the door.
Angel shared a worried glance with his wife before following their daughter. "At least let me drive you. But Serena, at some point we're going to have to deal with this."
She was already out the door. "Whatever." She walked straight to the car and climbed in the passenger seat, staring blankly out the window.
"I'll drive her," Angel mumbled, giving Buffy a quick kiss. Nodding, Buffy sat down on the steps with a sigh. She watched as Angel started the car and drove away.
Angel stopped the car in front of Liz's house. Serena immediately jumped out.
"Serena, I am so sorry that you are upset. Please, call when you're ready to come home," Angel said softly. Serena didn't respond, she just turned away and walked briskly up the walk to ring the doorbell.
Liz answered. "Rena! Hey. What's up?" She opened the door wider to allow her friend to enter.
Serena looked down. "Can we talk?"
"Sure," Liz said, looking concerned. "Let's go up to my room."
The two girls walked up the stairs to Liz's bedroom and entered, closing the door behind them. "What's wrong?" Liz asked immediately, sitting down on her bed.
Serena paced around a little, looking down. "If I tell you something, do you promise to just listen, and not say anything until I'm done, even if you think I'm crazy?"
Liz frowned. "Rena, you're scaring me."
Serena sighed. "Okay, well you remember the other night when I had that nightmare?" Liz nodded, listening intently. "Well that wasn't the first time. It happened a few times. And it really freaked me out. So I told my Grandpa Giles about it and he thinks that it's happening because I'm being called to be the next vampire slayer." She waited for her friend's reaction.
To her dismay, Liz burst out laughing. "Good one, Rena."
Serena threw down her arms in frustration. "Liz, I'm not joking. My mom is one too. In every generation, there is a chosen one, one girl in all the world who has to fight the vampires and demons. Which, by the way are real. My dad fights them too. But now I guess there is some loophole in the prophecy and I have to be a slayer now. Which I really don't want to do, because I've spent my whole life hearing about everything my mom had to go through because she was the slayer. And I'm just really scared," she finished, a tear escaping her eye.
Liz's expression had changed from incredulous to dead serious. "Wow, you're really not kidding are you?"
"No, I'm really not. If you think about it you know it's true. How many weird things happen in Sunnydale? That's because it's on a Hellmouth. That's why my mom lives here in the first place," Serena said, relieved that Liz seemed to be believing her.
Liz stood up, a strange expression on her face. "Serena, have you been sleeping lately?"
Serena raised her eyebrows. "Yeah, except for the dreams."
"When was the last time you ate. Do you have a fever?" Liz asked.
Serena opened her mouth to respond but stopped when she realized where this was going. "Oh my God. You don't believe me, do you?"
"Serena, I think you should see a doctor," Liz said, sounding very concerned. Serena also noticed that she was inching towards the door.
"You think I'm crazy!" Serena said, louder than she intended.
"No, you probably just have the flu or something. Serena, do you know what you were just saying?" she asked.
"Yes, I do, and I am not sick, and I am not crazy. Liz, I came here because I thought I could talk to you, I thought you could help me! You're my best friend!" Serena said, becoming very upset.
Liz opened the door. "Yes, and that is why I am going to go call your parents, and tell them they need to take you to the hospital." She started to walk away. Serena ran after her, grabbing her arm.
"No! I cannot BELIEVE you! I thought that I could tell you anything," Serena said, not releasing her arm.
"Rena, let go, you're scaring me," Liz said nervously.
Serena let go quickly. "Fine. Well then I guess I'll just go check myself into the looney bin. Hey, maybe I'll even find a friend there, because someone would HAVE to be crazy to believe anything that comes out of my mouth!" With that she turned around and ran down the stairs and out of the house.
Mrs. Chester hurried upstairs. "Liz, what just happened? Why did Serena leave?"
Liz forced a shook her head. "I don't know. I guess she's just in a bad mood...I don't think she's been sleeping well."
"Well the poor girl did have that awful nightmare the other night. Do you think I should call Buffy?" Mrs. Chester asked.
Liz slowly shook her head. "No. I think Serena will work this out on her own," she said uncertainly.
"Angel, I don't know what we're going to do," Buffy said quietly as they sat on the couch together.
Angel sighed. "I think she just needs time."
"What do you think she told Liz?" Buffy asked, looking at him.
"Hopefully not the truth," Angel said frankly.
"Do you think she would believe her?" Buffy asked softly.
"I don't know. I don't really know Liz well enough to make that judgement. But you can't say that all of this doesn't sound crazy," he said sadly.
Buffy nodded. "Even Willow and Xander didn't believe it at first."
The sound of the door opening echoed in from the hall. They both jumped up and rushed to see who it was.
"Serena. There you are sweetie," Buffy said, glancing at Angel. "Did you walk home all this way?"
Serena nodded, not making eye contact. "It's not far. Look, I have an exam tomorrow, and I'm really tired, so I'm just going to go up to my room." She was already up the stairs and out of sight before they could reply.
Buffy stared at Angel worriedly. "Angel, what do we do?"
He pulled her into a hug and kissed the top of her head. "We wait until she's ready to talk."
Upstairs, Serena forced herself to read over her math notes. But her mind was completely elsewhere.
"Screw this," she muttered to herself. Her head was starting to hurt, and she figured that passing the exam didn't matter anymore, now that she might not live to see sophomore year. She crawled over to her bed and lied down, staring at the ceiling. Before she knew what had happened, she had fallen asleep.
When Serena woke up, it was dark outside. She rubbed her eyes and glanced over at the clock. 10:45.
"Oh my God," she muttered. She had slept for almost seven hours. "I guess I lost more sleep because of those dreams than I thought."
She noticed someone had put a blanket on her. Then she saw a note lying on the night stand. She picked it up hesitantly.
Serena,
We're glad you got some sleep. We went to bed, if you need anything, or want to talk, please come and wake us up. We love you.
Mom and Dad
She crumpled the note and threw it into the trash. She sat there for a moment, before a thought struck her. She quietly stood up and opened the door. The house was dark.
She carefully made her way to the stairs, walking carefully as to not wake her parents. Entering the living room, she turned on one of the lamps before walking over to the shelf that housed the family photo albums. She selected one of the ones in the middle. Taking it over to the couch, she sat near the lamp and opened it.
This album contained pictures from when she was in her early elementary school years. She smiled as she looked through the first set of photos, from her 6th birthday party.
"Thank you Aunt Tracey!"
Buffy laughed. "Tracey, she's only six."
"Well every girl needs to start accessorizing early!" Tracey said, beaming at Serena, who was trying the small pink purse on her arm.
"Serena, it's time to blow out the candles!" Joyce said, her camera ready. In the background, Willow and Tara lit the six candles on the chocolate cake.
Angel lifted her into the chair with all the balloons tied onto it. "Okay, ready to sing?"
Serena smiled happily, gazing around at her family and friends. Buffy, Angel, Willow, Tara, Xander, Anya, Joyce, Giles, Tracey, Wesley, Cordelia...
"Make a wish!" Buffy said, snapping a photo.
Serena thought carefully before bending over and blowing as hard as she could...
She turned the page, smiling sadly at the fond memory. She laughed out loud when she saw the next set of pictures, from their family vacation to Disneyland later that summer. Angel had been such a good sport, riding all the rides with his daughter. She smiled at the one of she and her parents with Mickey Mouse. They all looked so happy. What happened to us? She thought to herself.
She looked through the rest of the album before grabbing another. Before she knew it she had started crying. Unable to stop, she held her hands over her mouth. How many more photo albums would there be? Would all the rest of her memories be of graveyards and death? She closed the photo album, wiping away the tears that landed on the cover. When the tears stopped, she just sat there staring into space.