Part 8: Reality Sucks

Catherine sat on the training mat and surveyed her people. J'Nal was flopped on his back, still muttering that one more mass transportation spell like that and they'd be mopping his brains off the closest wall. Charlie fussed over him with the scanner, although everyone within listening distance knew the only thing that was going to make the witch feel better was a good night's sleep.

Ms. Tikri was crouched in a corner and furiously scribbled on her MemePad. No doubt she was finding the right suitably flowery words to puff up the occasion to even greater legendary heights. Either that, or she was sharpening her verbiage to do a more thorough job of knifing everyone in the back.

Ruda bopped around the room, stopping to oooh and aaaa over every piece of exercise equipment and weapon. "Do you think they touched this? Do you, Catherine? Do you?"

"I'm sure they did," Catherine said. "It's their training room."

"Do you think they'd mind if I touched this?" the Slayer asked, hand hovering over a long wooden pole.

"Knock yourself out," the Watcher Honoria said dully. She thought about it and quickly added, "I don't mean that literally."

Ruda already had the staff in her hands and was executing an elaborate thrust-and-parry exercise, twirling the weapon so fast that it was a blur. "Do you think they'd let me train with them? Do you?"

"I don't know." Catherine looked at the basement stairs with a worried frown. "I really don't know what they're going to do."

"They're going to help," Ruda said firmly as she bounced to Catherine's side with the staff still in her hand. "Of course they're going to help. How can you believe they won't? You of all people…"

"Key word is people," Catherine pointed out. "This isn't the history books. This is not legend. They're people, real people."

"But it's Harris-rah-sen and Lanoire-rah-sen," Ruda said as if this was all she needed to know.

"And they're that, too," Catherine agreed with a smile. "But right here, right now, who knows who they are. And who knows how we've changed that. Gah! If things weren't so desperate…"

"We wouldn't be here in the first place," Charlie interrupted.

"How is he?" Catherine asked with a nod to the witch.

"I gave him a mild sedative, so he's sleeping," Charlie said. He sat on his haunches next to the Watcher Honoria. "You should get some rest, too."

"Not until we get an answer," Catherine said.

"Look, they have to figure out whether they're willing to even trust us before they hear our case," Charlie pointed out. "If we got faced with a bunch of people claiming to be from the future and from places we've never heard of, we'd be doing the same thing."

"I know, I know." Catherine winced and waved her hands.

"She just lacks faith," Ruda giggled. "Well, actually, she doesn't lack Faith, just…"

"We got the pun the first time, little girl," Catherine chuckled as she playfully swatted her Slayer on the arm. "Maybe I'm a little disappointed."

"Why?" Charlie asked. "As you pointed out, they're as human as we are."

"And that's the problem," Catherine admitted.

"Why's that a problem?" Ruda asked.

Catherine drew out the book again and sighed as she despondently studied the cover. "You hear stories, you read stories, and you get certain ideas. Family history. Council Honoria archives. Hada, even the futching Council Educationary archives. There are even artistic likenesses that were created long after everyone here turned to dust half-a-galaxy away that shows them as bigger and better than real life. So you develop this picture in your head about these people you've never met and, if you're anyone but me, will never meet. Then you meet them and you can't get reality to match up."

"You've read too many power funnies," Ruda stated. "You think powerheroes should be perfect like ScoutWoman."

"I don't," Catherine protested. "And, hey, you can do worse than read ScoutWoman, who is not perfect for your infor. At least she tries to do the right thing."

"And they'll try too, which is what you told me is the point," Ruda said with crossed arms.

"It is the point!" Catherine exclaimed. She deflated. "I'm not sure what I mean. I'm not even sure how I feel right now."

"I vote confused," Charlie said. "I can see where you're coming from, though. I guess I expected we'd be asking a pair of tough, grizzled experts for help and we got…well, what we got."

"Whatever we got," Catherine glumly said.

"What are you talking about?" Ruda asked. "We got the real deal. Of course they're going to help." And on that note, she was back to replace the staff, firm in the belief that Harris-rah-sen and Lanoire-rah-sen wouldn't let her down.

Catherine found herself fervently hoping they wouldn't.

TBC…