Chapter 2
No Slayer Strength,
Still Slayer Duty
The next night Buffy, Dawn, Willow, Xander, & Anya were all watching a lame vampire movie on TV.
"Look at his make-up! Totally unrealistic from the real thing, which I should know. Been around them enough," Xander said, stuffing his mouth with popcorn.
"They should make a movie about vampire bunnies. Now, that would be scary. This movie's just stupid. We can be more scared by just going out to the cemetery than of clown face, there!' Anya said.
"Hey! I'm afraid of clowns, thank you very much!" Xander said, staring up at Anya, who was sitting on a chair to the left of him. Xander was leaning up against the coffee table.
"Sorry, baby." Anya stroked Xander's hair lovingly.
"They over-do the evilness, too. I mean, that laugh? Please! And most vampires don't take forever to bite a girl," Dawn said.
"Yeah, and that girl's make-up is terrible," Anya added.
"Plus, the slayer's a guy. We all know that that's wrong," Willow pointed out.
"Yeah, like guys can do everything and they're all-powerful or something," Xander said, and everyone stared at him. "What?" Everyone smiled while Xander looked confused.
"Buffy, are you doing OK? You've hardly said one word all night," Willow asked, concerned. Buffy was sitting between Willow and Dawn on the couch.
"I'm fine." Buffy looked at her friends. "I'm just kind of bored, I guess." There was a brief pause and then Buffy said, "I should probably go patrolling." Buffy got up and put on her jacket and headed for the door, but Dawn got in front of her.
"You shouldn't be going patrolling after the other night," Dawn told her sister. "Buffy, you almost died. You can't go out there until you're completely back to normal. I mean, you have barely any strength, and I don't want to lose you again."
"I have to, Dawn. You should know that." Buffy tried to go around Dawn.
"At least take someone with you." Dawn blocked her again.
"Who? There's no one here strong enough to protect her," Xander pointed out, looking over at Dawn and Buffy.
"Spike's strong. Take him," Anya answered, staring at the TV screen and eating popcorn.
"I don't need anybody. I'm the slayer. I'm the one who's supposed to protect, not be protected. It's my job. I'm going alone." Buffy looked sternly at her friends and turned around and went out the backdoor.
"Watch out for bunnies!" Anya called after Buffy as she slammed the door behind her as Dawn stared at the backdoor.
"Don't worry about her. She's right. She is the slayer and she protects people and all that stuff. She'll be OK," Anya said, still not taking her eyes off the TV.
"She had all her slayer strength the last time, too. You see what happened to her," Dawn responded, and Anya's normal care-free face turned dim.
"Hadn't thought of that." Anya said quietly.
"Buffy's gotten us through a lot of stuff, guys. She'll be fine. And if we go after her it won't do any good." Willow said.
"You're right, Wil. She'll be fine," Xander said.
After a few minutes, Spike walked into the living room and looked around at everyone.
"Where's Buffy?" he asked.
"Out patrolling," Willow responded, looking up from the TV at him.
"Patrolling? She just got home from the bloody hospital today!" Spike's face turned tense and angry.
"She said it was her duty or whatever and she left," Anya told him. "And you just let her go out on all her bloody own?"
"She said she'd be alright," Dawn answered.
"That, and trying to stop a slayer, even a weak one, is no easy task," Xander explained.
"Well, one of you lazy people could have stopped stuffing your bloody faces and gotten up and went with her!" Spike was furious now.
"What help could we be? We're no stronger than her," Willow defended.
"Oh, bugger you lot! I'll go after her myself." Spike turned and went out the front door, slamming it behind him.
"That guy has got to work on his temper," Xander remarked, shaking his head.
"Ya think?" Anya asked.
END OF CHAPTER 2