Merry Christmas, I wish the best for everyone on this new year coming up. I wish you health and love which to me are the most important. Thanks a lot for all of those who have supported this story and read it. Thanks a lot guys, see y'all on the 2005.
I will be taking a break, not because I want to but because I have to, I'll be going to spend New Year's eve and well... new year with my grandparents and we'll be staying there until the first week of january, so I suppose I'll see you when I come back! I hope to have more than one review. If I don't, it doesn't matter I'll keep writing this story 'cause I love it, I already think of it as my baby.
Now all of you take care, if you are going out, drive safetly; if you drink, don't drink too much and well be grateful of all you have now!
CONSEQUENCES:
Chapter 23: Realizations
"How do you know they aren't from ours?" He asked leaning on the tree. She looked at him worried.
"I haven't ordered for anybody to come here," She answered frowning. "Why would they be there Giles, it's not a coincidence, I know it isn't"
"It would be extremely accurate if it was" He said putting his glasses off and proceeding to clean them with his shirt. "So our suspicions were right after all"
"Yes they were" The slayer said not ecstatic about being correct. "Do you think they know?" She asked staring at her house.
"I doubt it, there have been many distractions," He pointed out.
"That kept their respective attentions from here," She added still staring at the house but now with a spark that had been seen there before, while she formulated a plan. "Did you ever cover yourself with a barrier while you were gone?"
"No, we thought the less we used would help the avoidance of unwanted attention" He explained.
"Then why did we loose contact so easily?" She wondered.
"Because someone made you look where you weren't supposed to look" Giles said a smile appearing on his lips.
"They distracted us, they made us believe the real problem was outside" Buffy said as she reasoned. "That's why they took us to the Council, not because they wanted to hide the murders, they wanted Sunnydale slayer free"
"They wanted no one to be here to suspect or find our what they were doing," Giles continued.
"But …. What were they doing?" The slayer asked worriedly.
"I think I might have an idea"
---
"But we just arrived here!" Molly whined.
"Change your boots we are going out now" Buffy replied sternly. "We will divide as I said before, and I don't want to hear anymore of your complaints" She added as she looked the about to complain faces of the potentials. "Now grow up, grab a weapon and let's go"
---
"Buffy we are heading back to the clearing?" Mandy asked to the alert slayer besides her.
"Yup" The slayer answered shortly.
"And are you planning on explaining this mission to me?" Mandy asked looking with disgust the still wet ground.
"Nope" The slayer gave a small jump and once again took the lead. She went to the place she knew too well and as she got closer she also got quieter, calmer. She moved some branches that had served to cover them when they went there before and as she pushed them she stepped into the clearing. With a relaxed look she saw the place was empty, a complete contradiction from before when it had been crowded by … no she must not think about them now, she'll have time later… at least she hopes so.
"Here it is!" She announced breaking the tensed silence that was spread on the area.
"From this we walked off?" Kennedy asked looking disappointed at the branches.
"No, there was something else" Molly said looking still cautious at her surroundings. "A lot of somethings" She said trying to smile a bit.
"You felt it?" Mandy was incredulous. The potential slayer nodded uncomfortably.
"Impossible not too, every fiber of my body felt it, it was…"
"Dark" Mandy completed. The potential once again nodded but her glance was attracted by the slayer who was examining the floor.
"This is weird," The blonde girl said frowning.
"Why?"
"This trees, they feel weird," The slayer explained.
"How s-" The witch stopped looking at the floor. "Of course" She said as she kneed and grabbed something on the floor. As soon as she grabbed it the trees disappeared completely leaving an empty lot. "An illusion" She saved the rock she grabbed in one of her pockets and looked with her eyes fro something else.
"Then, there must be wizards here" Molly said looking terrified at her surroundings.
"Or warlocks" Hilary, another potential announced. Some people gave a look at the quiet girl, who had given the first words since they met her.
"But why would there be wizards here?" Kennedy asked. "As you told us, wizards were now licking your feet"
"Not every wizard" Mandy snapped. The slayer smiled shortly but returned to watch the floor beneath her. "What's wrong?" The witch asked looking at the deeper frown the slayer was making.
"Back off" She ordered. The potentials immediately stepped back. "More" She said and they continued walking backwards. "Give me the axe," She ordered stretching her arm to receive the weapon, one of the potentials threw the axe at her and she grabbed it gracefully. She kicked the floor softly. It sounded hole. She waved the axe suddenly and gave one nice swing before she hit the floor hard. It immediately gave in. The bad part was that Buffy's floor also fell down. She obviously fell with it, she fell in a cave. "Argh" She rubbed her back as she stood up and looked up to find the worried faces of the potentials staring back at her.
"Are you alright?" She heard.
"Yes, I'm fine" She answered. "I have to stop falling in caves," She muttered to herself.
" Do you want us coming down?" Some one asked.
---
"… Was built on a caves system," Giles explained as he spread on the table a map of the city. "Was this the oldest you could find?" He asked Xander.
"Yes, I practically stole it from the deposit" He said as he sat on the table's border.
"But why was there a cave system in Sunnydale?" Hermione asked.
"There used to be mines on Sunnydale" Willow explained. "I think it closed about a hundred years ago, probably more," She said. She looked at the history book she had on her lap and gave one glance to the witch in front of her. "Did you find anything there?" She asked nicely.
"No, it's difficult to find the history of hell mouth's" Hermione said smiling slightly.
" Maybe I could use one of the books from the old magic shop" Giles suggested.
"I have them on the basement" Anya answered. "I thought this would be the only place that would need them"
"I'll go to look for them," Harry offered.
"I'll go with you mate," Ron said standing up rubbing his eyes from his nap. Both wizards left the room.
"What do you think we should do with … you know?" Draco asked.
"I'm still not sure, we'll wait until she gets back," Giles said as he looked the old passages of the caves and searched for some location particularly.
"Man, it must be great having Buffy as a leader" Jonathan said from his seat opening a book from now and then just to look as if he was helping.
"I suppose" Willow answered cordially. "Even though we don't consider her as a leader" She explained smiling.
"Yeah, she's more like a friend with super powers" Xander explained.
"Oh" Jonathan said looking at the frame of one of the books in the pile. "Hey, Hermi what was the thing you said you were looking for?" He asked with his eyes stuck to the frame. Draco chuckled on his seat and was met by a cold glare from Hermione.
"It's Hermione" Dawn corrected from her seat.
"History of-" She started but was interrupted.
"Hellmouths?" Jonathan asked with half smile.
"Yes" She answered without looking at him, but with her eyes on the paper as she searched quickly for the information. "What about it?" She asked as she saw he didn't answer. Jonathan pulled the book from the pile and let her read it' cover. SUNNYDALE'S HELLMOUTH by Duphileas Turbus. She grabbed the book quickly as she muttered 'so stupid'. "Thank you Jonathan, you've been really helpful" She smiled specially to him but her smile cut short as she saw her boyfriend's horrified expression. "What's wrong Ron?" She asked quickly worried.
"All of the books are gone, they are not where Willow showed me they were" Harry explained as he entered.
"All of them?" Giles asked with his eyes wide open. "Are you sure, maybe they are somewhere else…"
"We looked everywhere in the basement, they are not there Giles" Harry said.
"But how could they …" Giles eyes widened once again as he left to the kitchen. The sound of him making a phone call was heard soon after.
---
"Did you feel that?" One of the potentials whispered to the other.
"It was my foot, you dork," The other answered while rolling her eyes.
"Shut up both of you" Mandy ordered. She saw through the hole and saw the last potential going down with the help of a rope. "You'll be staying with me"
"Guarding?" The first potential asked.
"Exactly" Mandy said. "Everything alright down there?" She asked.
"Yup!" She heard, she sighed in relief, but the relief was brutally taken away when she heard one of the girls screaming.
---
"Stop it already Mary" Kennedy said turning and glaring at Mary who was practically on the other side.
"Stop what?" The second girl asked confused.
"You know…" Kennedy's eyes widened as she saw something past Mary. Buffy turned around quickly feeling her spider senses going wild. And she saw the …vampire being Mary grabbing her neck and quickly breaking it. The girls all ran to the other side of the cave and Buffy found her self in the front line, the vampire was different from the millions of vampires she had slayed after being called, she had never seen something like this. The vampire growled and he jumped to attack the frightened girls. Buffy punched him and found her hand numb after the hit. Yup, like nothing she'd seen before.
"What's wrong?!" She heard Mandy yelling over them.
"There's a monster!" One of the girls shrieked.
"…Girls, there's more than one" Molly announced looking with horror at the other vampire coming from the dark as Buffy fought the first one. Kennedy grabbed her cross bow and shoot at it with perfect aim, if it wasn't because the skin of the vampire seemed to be of rock instead of …well skin, the vampire would be dead by now.
"Plan B" Kennedy announced.
"What's plan B?" Hilary asked looking how the vampire was preparing to attack again.
"All attacking at once?" Kennedy said uncertain.
"That could work" Molly supported. "At the count of three girls, one, two… THREE!" The girls attacked the vampire, at first it looked as if they were winning but after some seconds most of their weapons where broken or too far for them to reach. Buffy was fighting hard enough with her vampire and it was still in one piece, but you couldn't say the same thing of the older slayer. She kicked once more at the vampire and it went to the other side of the cave bumping harshly to the rocky wall, Buffy didn't wait for him to stand up, but in stead looked at the other vampire and grabbed one of the broken weapons on the floor she hit as hard as her tired body could let her and threw him at the same place where the other vampire lied and started to recover.
"Go up, NOW!" Buffy ordered. The potentials started climbing the rope as quickly as they could and Buffy saw as the vampires started to recover and stood up as if they had only been shaken a little bit. "Give me your sword" Buffy asked to Kennedy besides her. The potential tossed the weapon quickly and Buffy waved it a little bit until the vampires where ten feet from her. "Kennedy go now!" She ordered as she noticed the potential was still with her and the rope was free for her to go.
"But I.."
"Now Kennedy this is an order" The slayer snapped. Kennedy started to climb the rope and she momentarily saw beneath her to watch how Buffy was bitten by one of the vampires.
"You have to help her," Kennedy said as she got up, to Mandy.
"I'm on it kid" The witch muttered and on her hands appear two balls on fire. "This will distract them long enough" She threw the first between the vampires and Buffy and the other she tried pointing it to one of them, but at the end it didn't physically hurt them. Buffy started to climb the rope and as she got up she laid on the grass gaining her breath once again.
"I don't want complaining tomorrow about the lack of action" She said before starting to stand up, as she did so she winced once or twice. Mandy without being asked passed Buffy's arm over her shoulders to help her to walk, the potentials walked silently behind them.
---
As the potentials came into the Summer's residence Giles appeared quickly in the door and was shocked to see his bruised slayer. "What happened?" He asked worriedly as he supplanted Mandy's hand and helped his slayer to the living room. Buffy winced as she changed of helper and Giles took her to the couch on the living room. The rest of the searching squad went into the living room immediately and saw the scratches on the potentials and the bruises of the slayer.
"What happened Buffy?" Dawn asked worried.
"I stumped into a not so friendly vampire," She muttered looking as Giles got out the medicines kit they kept on the living room.
"A vampire?" Draco asked looking confused at Buffy. "But you play with vampires, you toss them around and then stake them… you were tired from patrolling right?"
"I'd love to say yes but no, we were there for barely twenty minutes before the vampire and his buddy appeared" Buffy told as Giles cleaned her arm's wounds.
"But you killed them right?" Dawn asked still looking at her sister worried.
"Nope" The slayer said wincing slightly because of the product Giles was using.
"But they were monsters… they weren't like those Buffy showed us the other day… they were way too strong… and they were so … primitive" Molly said carefully choosing her words.
"They were different," The slayer confirmed. "Not like those I fight everyday with" She explained.
"Maybe I could help with that," Jonathan said appearing from one of the doors.
x
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Next chapter on January.
Thanks to: tina7610813 for being the only reviewer of chap 22, thanks a lot!
Don't forget to review.... Merry Christmas!
