"Okay. All systems are go. Fire, check. Spell, check. Baby, check."
"No, Angel, we lost the baby some way back. It's just us now."
Angel smiled and ruffled her hair. "Your sarcasm is so cute sometimes, Buffy." His glare let her know of the sarcasm in his own voice.
She stuck her tongue out. "Your can be so paranoid sometimes, Angel. Why can you just see the glass as half full? Everything's gonna be fine. All the ingredients are set, Millicent's hyped about doing this spell, and nothing could possibly go--"
Angel clapped a hand over her mouth to cut her off. "Don't even say it. You know better."
He moved his hand and Buffy gasped. "I can't believe I almost just said that. Are you sure you double-checked everything? Everybody's clear on how they have to stay out of our way? Oh my god, I'm so nervous now!"
"Welcome to the real world, Mrs. Glass Half-Full."
Despite Buffy's misgivings, everything was going smoothly. Millicent had all the ingredients for the spell. She was reasonably confident that everything was going to happen exactly as planned. She could already feel the energy flowing through her veins in the form of anticipation. Sweet-bitter anxiety flooded her mouth and made it taste like metal.
She had never worked something so big before. She was excited to do it, but the preparation and the act only reminded her of what she didn't have. She looked at Angel and Buffy, at their strength and courage and love, and she felt envy. She wished with all her heart that she could be like that. That she could have the courage of convictions to do what was right, to save the world.
She sighed and brushed her hair out of her face. Some people, she supposed, were just special. Some were chosen to be martyrs, and the rest, sheep. It all depended, she decided, on what a person decided to make of it. She readied her materials and prepared to cast circle.
She may not have been a Slayer, but she would still do her part when it came to saving the world.
Matt stood outside the imposing hotel. Everyone else had scattered. The hotel was empty, aside from Millicent, Buffy, Angel, and of course, the unborn child more powerful than all of them, Irene.
He wanted to be there. He wanted to be a part of all this. Now that the chips were down, everything that had happened before seemed petty and cruel. He felt like a moron.
When it came down to it, he loved Buffy. He wanted to be near her. He wanted to love her, to help her. But he couldn't. He couldn't because of his own jealous, violent, childish nature. Because of the way he'd behaved, the way he'd reacted.
He wanted all of those things from her, but he would settle for one. He could still help her. Angel didn't trust him, and with good cause. Buffy didn't even trust him, and that was why he was here. Outside, with the others, instead of helping the way he knew he could.
He knew it. He knew that they would need him.
He turned his back on the outside, and stepped in through dirty glass doors to face whatever destiny might hand him.
Buffy and Angel stood like silent sentinels on either side of the doorway. Millicent was in the middle of the room, candles set at each of the points of her pentagram. Purple sand marked the shape of the circle, and the room filled with the scent of the burning incense set at the middle.
Millicent lit the two tall white candles in the middle and began to chant slowly. Buffy watched intently as her face flushed and she began to sweat. She wondered where it was, exactly, that Millicent was expending all her energy. Where was all that power going, that she couldn't even see it?
Then she noticed the orange-colored light that coalesced like dust particles around the perimeter of the circle. As she watched, the light became stronger and began to creep away from its center, which, it was now evident, was Milli. It came toward them slowly and inexorably, like the tide. It brushed its curious fingers against her ankles, then her knees, her stomach, where Irene kicked in protest, and then her face. She took in a sharp breath, trying not to panic. She could almost see the light settling in her lungs like cigarette smoke.
She released her breath and looked over at Angel. He gave her a slow, reassuring smile. In return, she gave him the thumbs-up. It wouldn't do for the Slayer to be afraid of a little dust. No, sir.
The light had moved out into the hallway by now, and it was still getting brighter. Then, Buffy heard a surprised cry from Millicent. Lines of bright fire expanded along the dust, burning rapidly and excitedly. Buffy fought the urge to scream. Again, she looked to Angel, who was also looking paler than usual. He had an excuse. Fire was one of the few things that could kill a vampire. She remembered vividly the light settling inside her, and looked down at her chest fearfully, as if that, too would ignite.
But she trusted Millicent. If she said this would work, it would. Irene was still shifting uneasily in her womb.
The fire expanded. The room seemed to be burning, but the walls weren't on fire. It was the air, the air that was burning. And the fire had no smoke. It became more surreal by the second, as the fire began to grow transparent. It was working. They were shifting out of their own dimension into someplace that was other.
The fire faded and faded, as did the orange light, until it was gone. Buffy breathed in deeply of the clean air, only to notice that it smelled different. Like reptile skin and wet dirt. She looked at Millicent, but the girl was passed out on the floor, breathing deeply and peacefully.
The world they now found themselves in was, at first glance, not unlike their own. Buffy stepped out into the hallway, followed immediately by Angel. He touched the small of her back protectively, letting his hand rest there as they walked.
They came to the lobby of the hotel and looked out the windows with horror. Something had gone horribly, terribly wrong.
They were supposed to be in a dimension so close to there own as to be virtually indistinguishable. This world was very distinguishable.
For starters, everything was coated in a thin sheen of ice. Instead of quasi-normal buildings, there were craggy rocks that looked to be made of solidified magma. The sky was dull, a steel gray that indicated heavy cloud cover, and the occasional streak of hot blue lightning. Everything was illuminated in blue, icy light, merely adding to the perception of cold.
They were situated at the bottom end of a dark valley. Mountains, sharp and irregular, rose steeply on either side of them, but in the distance, toward the other end of the valley, Buffy could make out a structure that looked vaguely human in nature. There were tiny twinkling lights on that mountain, leading her to believe that there would be people there.
Although she shuddered to think what the people of this world would look like.
They didn't go outside for awhile. They wanted to wait for Milli to come to, and to discuss their options before they did anything. But they couldn't entirely tear themselves away from the shocking landscape outside, so they sat in the lobby, seated in comfortable armchairs as they watched the electric storm rain unceasing electricity on the barren earth outside. Angel wondered uncomfortably how likely they would be to be struck by lighting if they went out there. There were no trees in view of the naked eye. Only rock and ice.
"I'm worried about climbing," Buffy said. She gestured down at her obvious stomach. "I don't know if I'll be able to make it up there. I can try, but..."
"That's alright, in fact, I really wish you wouldn't try. I keep picturing you getting off-balance while climbing and then falling off those rocks to the valley, splatting on the..."
"Okay, Angel, that's enough of that. Are you trying to freak me out? But I don't want you going alone. And no offense to Milli, but if there's a fight, I'm the only one I trust to have your back."
"I can take care of myself, Buffy."
She gave him a look. "Alright, well, how would you feel if it was me going out there alone?"
There was a long silence. Angel took a deep breath, conspicuous by its irregularity. "Okay, I understand how you feel. But Buffy, there's no help for it. What are we going to do, wait here for you to give birth, recover, and then go find Willow? Kind of defeats the purpose if Irene's already here by the time Willow can get here."
Buffy sighed and drooped. She slid down in the chair and pouted. She was defeated. Angel was right; he was going to have to go alone.
Just then, Millicent appeared from the hallway. She was a little wobbly on her legs, a little pale, but she had her jaw clenched and looked determined.
"Why don't you have a seat, Milli? You look like you're about three seconds away from collapse," Angel said. He helped her to a chair.
She flopped down and took a couple of deep breaths, looking out the window the whole time. "Well, we're not in Kansas anymore, folks."
Buffy gave her a wry smile. "Yeah, we kind of figured. So, do you think it worked? Is Willow here?"
Millicent smiled weakly. "Well, something's here. Something or someone very powerful is giving off vibes from that castle on the hill there. If Willow's as powerful and distinctive as you say she is, then it might be her. I don't know how to explain it but...the aura tastes like strawberries."
"That's her," Buffy said, voice heavy with conviction. She vividly remembered their conversations about Rack and the way he'd told her she tasted of strawberries.
Milli gave her a quizzical look. "How do you know?"
Buffy shook her head. "Don't ask. It's not a happy stor--ahhh!" She didn't finish her sentence because a wave of pain rippled through her midsection. She grabbed her stomach. A second later, she felt something wet and sticky between her legs.
"Oh, my," she said softly. Angel and Millicent were staring at her. Speaking up, she said, "You'd better hope we're in the right place, because I don't think Irene's going to wait any longer. My water just broke."