I CAPTURE THE SUN
Pairings: Buffy/Legolas. I might as well point out that at this point, it will be eventual
Teaser: Buffy ends up in Heaven, which happens to be Middle-Earth. But not everything is as heavenly as it seems as she's come in the middle of a war and finds a piece of Heaven worth fighting for.
Rating: T, by the new fanfiction standards. There is a little blood and gore, but that is about it. It should be suitable for anyone who has ever read Tolkien or watched the show.
Revised Summary: Buffy Summers had been given a new life and for thirty years she lived as the powerful, feared leader of a warrior clan of women… and then her friends pulled her out of Heaven. Now she lives in a world she no longer understands surrounded by people who cannot help her. Friendships will be tested and loyalties will be stretched to their limits but she will never rest until she fulfills her last promise and fights in the war she knows has come.
Disclaimer: Buffy the Vampire Slayer belongs to Joss Whedon. The 'Lord of the Rings' book series belongs to J.R.R. Tolkien. The plot is (hopefully) my own.
Timeline: The story is currently set approximately fifty years before the start of the Fellowship. At this point, we're at the same time as the Fellowship (or set partway through Return of the King, if you want specifics).
Gratitudes: And now comes the payoff…
Sukera - I tried, really.
XinnLajgin - Forgive me for the delay? At least I got one part right.
Christy - Yes, it is. Darn that real life stuff.
General Mac - Yes, she gets to go back. No, she cannot take her Scoobies with her. That would not be very fair for the others, would it?
Toniboo - All right. And, yes.
TortureofPersephone - If only that story could go on to that point. I have a feeling that this story is nearing its end.
vampy the chosen one - Thank you very much. And no, it would not seem right if she were to pretend everything is okay. From what she is used to, this is the exact opposite of what she is used to.
candycanelane - thank you.
Azzie - well, she is not exactly immortal as she is already dead, but it is a gift few possess. As for the song, it is something that I crafted myself, created with the tune of a song from a movie, I believe.
Part Summary: Sacrifices are made, alliances are won and families part as the greatest battle of their lives begins.
Notes: This is your payoff chapter. Not only does Buffy return to Middle Earth, but she returns in style. The timeline will take us to the attack from Dol Guldur on both Lothlórien and the Mirkwood Realm by Sauron as he also stages his attack on Minas Tirith. The rest of the Fellowship journey has already happened. Buffy has missed out on nearly ten years of life in Middle Earth, but she returns at a critical time… this is a two-part chapter with the next. I do hope to post the following chapter sometime next week. I just need time around school, work and family life.
x-x-x-x
Part XVII
x-x-x-x
"We don't have much time…"
That had been Tara's parting words the night before. Even as Buffy sat at the Magic Box with her feet upon the chair across from her and a book on her lap, she could only focus on the dire warning given by her unlikely ally the night before.
It didn't help that Dawn had been in tears when Buffy had outright demanded her sister go to school.
"You mean you do care!" Dawn moaned, throwing her arms around her startled sister. "I think there's hope for you yet."
"I'm not kidding," Buffy had said sternly, giving her sister a dry look. "I'm not writing a note. And Willow's not your legal guardian. So go. I'm not going to have you be late."
Dawn had been giddy as she had skipped off. She had been babbling about shopping after school. She had babbled about doing a movie that weekend. She had even babbled about ordering pizza that Buffy wouldn't be disgusted to eat. Buffy could only sit and smile sadly as Dawn ran off to school. She felt slightly guilty in withholding the truth about what that night would really bring, but she didn't have much of a choice. She had to act as though everything were normal. She and Tara were the only ones that had a clue about what that night would bring.
Tara had received some message through whatever outlet she had that something big was about to go down. That news was delivered to her by the return of her former Watcher, Rupert Giles. For a moment, he could barely speak. The next thing she knew, she was being hugged as though there was no tomorrow. Only when he started gasping and complaining that his oxygen supply was running out did she let him go. After thanking her for her show of strength, he charged into a twenty minute long talk about how tonight was supposedly the night some vampire cult of some religious sect was set to steal something-or-other from a recently-dug gravestone that was quite near her own.
It was an irony of ironies.
After greeting both Anya and Willow, who were sitting inside the Magic Box waiting for something other than a dead-Buffy-back-to-life greeting and a doomsday speech, they launched into step two, which was the same intensive research projects that normally bored Buffy to tears. But today she picked up a book and actually attempted to read it. Flipping through the pages idly kept her mind on something other than the fact that tonight was the absolute worst night for anyone to show up and ruin her one chance to get back to the world she so belonged to.
"Are you all right, Buffy?"
"I'm good," she said dully, turning the page and staring at the middle of it, her eyes not taking anything in.
"You've been awfully silent… how have you been?"
"Alive and kicking."
"That's not what I've heard."
Buffy glanced up, her eyes meeting Willow's. Sure enough, the redhead shifted guiltily in her seat and looked pointedly at her book as she continued to search for something she likely knew wasn't there. "What do you know?" she asked coolly.
"I know you're not yourself and as someone who has been training you, I figured I would—"
"You think you know me?" she asked, sharply closing the book. Anya, who had been shuffling around with her feather duster, let out a small gasp as Buffy slammed the book on the table. "You know nothing," she hissed, rising and striding to her training area.
Exchanging an uncomfortable look with Willow, the former Watcher quickly followed.
"Buffy, I…"
"You can't possibly know what I've been through these past few months," she spat, turning to face him. When he saw her eyes, he saw something primal, something that chilled his heart to the core. This was something beyond his Slayer, because he had never seen this look in her eyes before, even when she had returned from the dead for the first time. "You know nothing," she repeated.
"Perhaps you would care to enlighten me," he said, quickly removing his glasses and setting them aside. "We need a square head on your shoulders tonight, Buffy. If this sect gets what they're after—"
"The world is doomed, blah, blah, blah," she retorted, snorting in mirthless laughter. "We all die, blah, blah… sing me a new story, Giles. I've been through this in this life and in my other one."
"Your… other life?" he asked lightly. One might assume he was just trying to correct her, but she knew better.
"Yeah, the other life that actually liked me and didn't expect me to fight vampire sects trying to find the Holy Grail," she growled. Her eyes were flashing again and he felt the goose-bumps on his arms rise. "This is pointless, Giles. We can sit here and verbally spar all afternoon and you still wouldn't get it."
Apparently he didn't. Something had changed with her. There was darkness around her that he rarely got to see. There was also something with her eyes, which seemed ageless, as though she had experienced a century in hell but came back perfectly normal. "Be ready," he said in a warning tone as he turned to leave. "And if you feel that it's beneath your holy feet… well, do it for the rest of us who would gladly throw ourselves off the tower given the chance."
"But you didn't, did you?" she asked, her voice breaking. He heard the rage as the door closed behind him. "Because that's always going to be my fate."
Heaving a heavy sigh, he collected her book and returned to his spot at the table. Behind him, the door opened and Tara entered, her arms full of books. Glancing around, she frowned. "Where's Buffy?"
Both Anya and Giles pointed to the training room. Looking politely puzzled, Tara dropped her books off at the table and hurried towards the door. After watching her disappear behind it, Anya moved to the table and took Buffy's abandoned chair. "I think she knows something."
Giles glanced up, looking wary. "Even if she did, it wouldn't help us out tonight."
"What about you? You have power."
"Yes," Giles said, throwing the book back onto the table. "Let us talk about your power."
Willow, who had been making shushing motions towards Anya let her hand fall to the side as her head dipped. Lifting her eyes, she met Giles' cold gaze and shrugged. "I did what I had to do."
"You rank, arrogant amateur," he grumbled as he gestured wildly to the abandoned books. "Does anything about her seem the normal person that went into the ground?"
"I did the best I could," she said in a firm tone. "I followed every direction, did every incantation…"
"Any fool… any idiot could see that that's not my Slayer," Giles said angrily, pushing his chair back. Sighing heavily, he turned his back on her. "I don't know what you've done, but that's not Buffy. The Buffy I knew would be out here, planning to take down this latest threat to our very security. She wouldn't be hiding in a hole trying to bury herself alive. You brought back a corpse, Willow. I don't know how you did it, but you did."
Willow was fighting back tears. First Tara and now Giles… this wasn't her fault! "Giles… I brought her back. Even if she's not herself… it's still her. Sometimes when I think I did the wrong thing, she'll look at me…" Her voice broke as she pressed a trembling hand to her watering eyes. "Giles… it is Buffy… she's just been through something so horrible that she can't deal with it on her own. We've tried to reach out to her. Tara's done everything she can to reach her… and I think it worked."
Giles reached for his chair and sat down, calmly reaching for the book. He had nothing left to say to the tearful witch, no kind words of comfort. Anya just crossed behind the redhead and patted her awkwardly on the shoulder. "There, there," she said in a voice of mock cheer. "Even if you brought back a psychotic former has-been… at least she still looks like our Buffy."
Willow just sighed and buried her face in her hands.
Inside the dark training room, Tara was explaining that evening to Buffy.
"Well apparently you can't resurrect me into my own time," Buffy said staunchly, "because there's going to be some doomsday vampire cult searching for some mystical whatzit and I have to stop it."
"We can't delay the transformation," Tara said firmly. "To do so would tip the balance in this world. You're needed there, now, more than ever."
Buffy scoffed. "What are we going to tell the others? Sorry, you had to kill me so good luck trying to fight the doom and gloom?"
"No," Tara said simply, "we'll just have to resort to a little… timing. You'll have to deal with the cult. I mean… I could do something magical, but if I did, it could push Willow over the edge."
Buffy nodded gravely. "She's already looping close to crossing that line as it is," Buffy muttered darkly. "Is there any hope for her? Any hope at all?"
Tara nodded. "There's always hope. But let's take care of you, first. We need to be at your gravestone at the time I marked. The transformation will begin even if you're not there. Even if stale air is transformed back to Arda, at least I'll know it worked."
"You must have done something huge to do this," Buffy said tentatively.
"There are some of us who would move mountains and drain oceans just to get you back where you belong," Tara replied. "Many died when you never returned to aid them. In the future, all will be gone. All will be forsaken. All will go dark. All will just fade away. The side of good will endure, but the cost will be too great. There is much for you to do, so much. And the time has come now… sooner rather than later. If we wait too long, it'll be far too late. And sometime… hopefully soon, I can show you what I mean."
"Oh, great," Buffy sighed, dropping her head against the wall and lightly bouncing it on the cold steel reinforcement. "Fight the apocalypse, go back in time and fight another one."
"You are a great defender of those who have none," Tara reminded her. "It's time to protect the weak from the strong. There is darkness coming… the darkness so strong it can swallow the world. Time and time again it fails, but not without consequence. It's time for you to return and protect yours from that price. The cost may be your life here, but if you remain the balance between good and evil will be tipped and evil will fight back. You're damned if you stay and… there is hope if you do not."
"Let's do it," Buffy moaned. "But I don't want Dawn to know. I don't want any of them to know."
"Giles is already suspicious," Tara warned her. "I could see his face. He knows that you're not yourself."
"And he'll blame Willow, as I have done so many times," Buffy replied bitterly. "She brought me back from a place I knew I belonged. She captured me from a world that needed me."
"She didn't know," Tara whispered. "She couldn't have known."
"The fact is, she'll never be sorry for it," Buffy replied, shaking her head angrily. "She'll never be sorry about ripping me from Heaven…" Her voice cracked and she sighed again. "I don't want Dawn involved."
"We'll leave her with Spike," Tara nodded. "He'll look after her."
"He knows," Buffy added. "He knows everything."
"You confided in him?" Tara asked in disbelief. "You would rather confide with the evil undead than your own friends and family who love you?"
"In his own twisted way, Spike loves me, but it doesn't matter," Buffy said, shrugging. "I feel nothing for him."
"It's the other one," Tara surmised, smirking.
"It's not him either," Buffy said with a dry look. "No, it's just… how can I love him when I feel like we've been separated for thirty-odd years?"
"Buffy…" Tara whispered.
"How could I love either of them? I can understand why Spike cares… but the other one? I don't know if he'd even remember me. I've been gone for weeks now. That has to be years in that time… so many years."
"I don't think you're as forgotten as you may think," Tara replied slowly. "Sometimes people may surprise you."
Buffy gave her a tired smile. "I think I've just about had it with surprises," she murmured. "Oh, I just want to get this day over with. I just want everything to turn out the way it's supposed to be. Tonight, I want to know that I'll be comforted because I'm going back to a place I consider home. Tonight, I am going home."
x-x-x
Dinner that night was more intense than anything Buffy had experienced since her return. Slowly spooning boiled vegetables in her mouth, she watched her friends and sister quickly eat. Dawn was rambling about everything from math homework to this fantasy shopping trip she must have been dreaming up. Pushing her peas on her plate, she watched Dawn quietly as she engaged Giles in excited conversation. It seemed as though everyone was happy to have this man back in their lives.
He'll watch over them, Buffy thought, comforted by this thought. He'd been somewhat of glue in the past. She just had to believe he would be that same glue again. Turning, she excused herself from the table and went upstairs. She heard the silence in her wake, but it didn't bother her. It never really bothered her all that much anyway.
A hot shower seemed perfect. The warm water eased some of the tension in her back and shoulders as she ran her fingers through her dripping hair. The steam was intoxicating her with the scents of lavender and vanilla, both scents she had yet to find in Mirkwood, but scents that she happened to appreciate more. Everything in this moment had more meaning as she knew she would never feel the same way again as she felt now. She sponged off her shoulders, inhaling the deep aroma and letting her neck fall back. Water sprinkled into her face and she shook her head, the sparkling arc of water spraying in the opposite direction. Laughing, she turned the faucets off and stepped out of the shower, wrapping herself in a warm towel. Even in the steamy bathroom felt relaxing as she stood in front of the vanity, her hand wiping away the fog. The reflection in the mirror was fuzzy, as though looking at herself from within a prism. She took great care in toweling herself dry and spreading the warm, scented lotion on her frame.
Inside her bedroom, which was distinctly colder, she quickly dressed as she realized she'd been dawdling. Pulling on her coat and tucking a few things inside the pocket, she hurried for the steps. Downstairs she heard voices in the living room. Pausing on the bottom step, she finished buttoning her coat just as the doorbell rang.
Dawn met her in the entry, glancing at her sister's attire. "Going out?" she chirped brightly as she pulled the door open. Seeing Spike on the other side seemed to shake her slightly as the vampire pushed his way between the two Summers' women and inside the house. "What's going on?"
"We're going on patrol," Buffy said firmly, stalking past Dawn towards her makeshift weapon's chest. Opening the lid, she tucked a stake inside her coat pocket and added a dagger to her boot. Xander and Willow immediately went to her side, Xander reaching for a battle axe strapped to the top of the box.
"How bad is it?" For the first time in a long while, Dawn's voice shook in fear.
"You're staying here," Buffy replied matter-of-factly as she closed her chest and lifted her spare stake in her hand.
"What? Like I'm twelve?" Dawn protested, quickly rushing to cut her sister off as her so-called friends moved around her, trooping one-by-one outside.
"You're staying here," Buffy repeated, speaking slowly and enunciating carefully. "I'm not going to put your life in danger. Not again. Spike, watch her."
"You can count on me, love," Spike said, watching as Buffy turned her back, the front door slamming behind her.
Dawn sighed as she turned on Spike. "You knew about this?"
"There was some cult thing tonight looking for some mystical key to unlock some treasure toll," Spike said in a bored voice, turning from the door. "Nothing the old gang can't handle."
Dawn didn't look convinced as she stared at the door, glowering out the window. She could see her sister and her sister's friends already moving away.
x-x-x
MirkwoodForest
Spring 3019
"My Lady," an exhausted voice called out. Siri turned to see four women on horseback riding quickly towards her position. "We have word from the rear guard at the south post nearest Dol Guldur," a young woman gasped as she dismounted and approached her lady, bowing her head slightly. Siri watched as the woman attempted to catch her breath before continuing. "Their word is that the Nazgûl have left Dol Guldur and have headed south towards Gondor."
"The Elf was right," Siri said, mildly impressed with the strange being's intuition.
"There is more," the woman said, taking deep gulping breaths of fresh air. "They spoke of an unforeseen enemy with the ability to set fire with a single breath. They also spoke of one that they have seen, but have heard from the Orcs in passing… one sent to lead them. They will strike soon and they will strike hard."
"The order has already been given for the town to be deserted," Siri informed her. "I have sent Jarrod and all of those who are able north towards the old caves under the mountains."
"If they do not freeze to death, those hideous creatures that breathe fire will kill them," the young woman replied humorlessly.
"I will not let it come to that," Siri said, laying her hand on the woman's shoulder. "I will do all I am able to protect this city and all of those that live within it. I'm asking that the rear guard be withdrawn and sent back to the north. We will need all the help we can get."
"I will pass the appropriate orders," the woman replied, nodding.
Siri watched as she left. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw the last few stragglers in the distance, working their way north. The ground was still thick with snow and small flakes were blowing with the wind. Brushing her hair aside, she watched as one large catapult machine after another was rolled out the eastern gates. A large group comprised of both men and women were gathering arrows into their quivers. Even more were at the smithy, sharpening their swords.
Siri's hand fell onto the girth of her father's old sword. There was much power beneath her touch. Her father had died using this sword. Buffy had fought many battles with this blade. And now that power had been given back to her. She walked quickly over to where her forces were gathering in full strength and drew her captains closer. It was time to set up a defense, one that could make or break their future.
x-x-x
"Where did you say the jewel was?"
"In the bottom of that coffin," Anya squealed, leaping towards Xander as a vampire pirouetted into dust before her. "Oh, dear."
"Well, do you think you could get it?" Buffy asked breathlessly as she sailed in front of them, only halting her vicious progress by catching herself on a passing gravestone.
"Maybe," Anya mumbled. "Could you at least get them first?"
"Anya! For God's sake, just do it!" Giles muttered. The clash of swords sounded behind them as Xander leapt over, his battle axe flashing in the midnight aura. Anya groaned audibly as she bent down and, screwing her face with utmost disgust, reached around the hollowed bones feeling for the silver 'x'-shaped jewel on the bottom. Her progress was halted by a cold hand that suddenly stopped atop hers.
Screeching as though it would actually accomplish something, Anya stumbled backwards, falling into Xander, who nearly fell onto his blade. Jumping purposefully over them, Buffy bent down and pushed the vampire away from the crypt before executing a perfect roundhouse kick that sent him spiraling into the darkness. "Will you two quit playing around?" she snapped to Xander and Anya, who kept falling over one another as they attempted to get up. "Get that jewel out."
Another figure appeared as Willow was suddenly standing at her side, looking worried. "Buffy…?"
"I can't handle any more screw ups right now, so just keep it to yourself," Buffy moaned. "Just get it done."
Willow opened her mouth to argue, but Buffy was taking off after the vampire, her golden hair flying behind her. A second later, she was gone. Turning, she saw Anya scramble towards the coffin and gaze inside. "Crap," she muttered.
"What now?" Willow asked in a small voice.
"That… that evil undead guy took the 'x'," Anya whimpered, scampering back to her feet. "Oh, she's going to be pissed."
"We'll worry about that later," Willow said, turning around. "Right now, I'm thinking up a protection spell that will—"
"Willow, no more magic," Giles said from behind them, his sword in hand. He sounded out of breath and there was a distinct bruise forming on his lower jaw. "The others will be headed towards the Hellmouth. We should hurry."
"Giles, a spell could repel them," Willow said, hurrying off after him. "At the very least it could…"
Anya and Xander watched silently as the other two hurried off.
"As if things couldn't get worse," Anya muttered under her breath.
Xander was looking around, concern filling his gaze. "Uh… where's Tara?"
Across town, a small bag was dropped in front of a gravestone. Tara slowly hitched up her skirt and got to her knees, pulling seven white stones from her bag and placing them in a circle in front of the old marker. Despite the fact the ground had been torn up, it had been patted back down and looked depressingly like a cemetery. She set the stones down and reached for her bag, removing a small, flat box. Inside was a sapling of a tree. Pulling it out, she began to plant it in the center of the circle. She knew she was unprepared for the chaos that was erupting around her. But Buffy only had a few minutes left…
Dust from the vampire took to the wind as Buffy claimed the jewel, flipping it into her hands. "It's just a stupid piece of costume bling," she said with a triumphant sigh as she tucked it in the waistband of her pants. "It's nothing really to—"
"Buffy, behind you!"
At hearing the unfamiliar voice, Buffy spun around. Instead of seeing one foe, she saw dozens. They were all advancing on her. Suddenly aware of her proximity to the old high school, now completely aware that the new Sunnydale High was being rebuilt from the bottom up, she took off running towards the sound of the voice, but found herself face-to-face with someone she never thought she'd see again.
"Down!"
Buffy threw herself onto the ground as a flurry of arrows gracefully arched towards the snarling, advancing vampires. At least a third of the front line fell into dusty spirals from the first volley, and three separate bows were lowered.
"Let me help you with that," an unfamiliar voice said, taking her hand and helping her to her feet. "What's going on?"
"Trying to keep this from them," she said, holding up the ruby 'x'. "But I…"
"Angel, what are you doing here?" another voice asked as Willow and Giles came running from the left. They both looked irritated and out of breath.
"Protecting the world, doing the right thing," he said as he joined her. "Got a call this morning."
She looked up at him, realizing what he meant. "Oh," she uttered.
"We'll reminisce later," Cordelia said, lifting her sword in her bony hands. "Right now, I feel like getting my Slayer on."
It was six against about thirty, which would have been terrible odds, had Xander and Anya not distracted the group from behind. Instead of facing thirty vampires head-on, they scattered.
"Crap," Buffy moaned, taking off after the main group. After exchanging a dark look, Angel and Cordelia followed her.
Willow and Giles quickly met with Xander and Anya before they parted into pairings, this time Willow was going with Anya. The four took off after the group. The tall, good-looking African American man and the former British Watcher just glanced at one another as the chaos seemed to spread outside their little bubble.
"Let's do it, English," Gunn said with a smile as the two burst back into battle, cutting down the few vampires that remained.
Stuck inside the house, Dawn glanced outside the living room window as Spike paced the living room. The look on his face was getting stranger and stranger.
"Want to go to bed, Bit?" he asked her uncertainly.
"I'm waiting for them to come home," Dawn said stubbornly, refusing to retract her gaze.
Spike looked as though something were tearing him apart as he sat down, glancing up at Dawn. "She's not coming home, pet."
"She… who?" Dawn asked, distracted.
"Got you to turn away," Spike said with his slow smirk.
"There's something else, isn't there?" she asked, frowning slightly as Spike glanced away. She felt as though something had collapsed in her lungs. "Spike…?"
"I… I can't, Dawn," he said, watching as she stood up, looking alarmed. "I'm sorry."
Just looking into his face, a face of a man in love with the Slayer, was enough to send Dawn into histrionics. "What do you mean you're sorry?" she asked, her voice gaining in both power and fury. "What the hell aren't you telling me?"
Spike couldn't reply. Ever since Buffy had told him what was going on that afternoon, he had sworn to her that he wouldn't say a word. He wasn't going to go back on his word now. Not for the world.
Dawn it seemed had had enough. Growling in frustration, she stomped towards the door and flung it open. "If you won't tell me what you're talking about, then I'm going to find Buffy and I'm going to bring her home." There was a hint of a sob in her voice as she ran into the night.
Knowing the danger that Dawn was facing, Spike was after her in a split second. "No, Dawn, don't… Dawn!"
One vampire went flying as an axe was whipped through the air, conveniently beheading the undead creature and as it stumbled into dust, a hand reached out to catch the blade. From behind Xander, Buffy charged onwards, kicking one vampire before staking a second. A third growled and attempted to jump her, but she ducked and the vampire rolled over her back. Once on her feet again, she sent the third vampire into the first. Cordelia was mysteriously there, staking both vampires before they could retaliate.
"Thanks," Buffy grinned.
"Anytime!" Cordelia smiled. "Anything I can do?"
"Take this," Buffy said, tossing the silver 'x' towards the other woman. "Just keep it safe until the evil undead are… dead."
From her position on the ground, Tara suddenly glanced up, her hand flat in front of her face. A small beam of white light began to dance across her palm. "It's time," she said in a soft, echoing tone.
From the white stones a pure light began to circle before positively exploding into the air.
There was a sharp gasp from the vampires converging on the cemetery. They nearly backed over one another in their haste to escape the powerful white light. As the glow spread over Buffy's face, she suddenly felt a great pull in the opposite direction.
"Buffy!" she heard Giles yell from somewhere to her right.
"Go," she heard her own voice shout. "Just go."
As the others went after the vampire army, Buffy scaled the fence and dropped to the other side. She was nearly out of time.
Dawn had stopped, panting as she saw the white light directly forward. Knowing that this couldn't mean anything good, she continued onwards.
Buffy found Tara at the edge of her gravestone. There was white light emanating from Tara's outstretched hand. "What do I do?" she asked, turning to face Tara. The woman looked up at her and smiled. Buffy was completely taken aback when she saw the immortal glow from behind Tara's eyes. Though she was concentrating hard on whatever it was she was trying to do, she managed to tip her head towards the small circle set with seven white stones.
"Seven stones," Buffy whispered as she walked towards the circle. She pressed her hand through the circle of light and felt a great charge spread through her body. The ordeal was almost over.
"Buffy!"
The scream came from somewhere beyond the graveyard. She whipped around and saw a group of vampires chasing two figures. Knowing that she had to help, she took a step towards them.
"No!"
It was an echoing cry. She saw Tara trembling on the ground on her other side. "Tara?"
"Please, go… can't hold it much longer," she moaned, keeping her hand outstretched. "The others…"
She heard the sound of metal on metal and relented, turning back to the circle. Taking a deep breath, she stepped inside.
There was a soft pop as Buffy stood upright. Her breath was coming in shorter, more rapid gasps now. Tara was now leaning on the ground, barely managing to hold the link together. "See you on the other side," the other woman said with a serene smile.
"Buffy!"
Buffy couldn't move suddenly, paralyzed in the white light that was slowly draining her.
"What's going on? What is she doing? What are you doing to her?"
"Tara! What's wrong? What the heck is going on here?"
"Buffy! Buffy, can you hear us? Buffy?"
"Tara?" Willow asked, watching as Giles, Xander and Anya were gaping at Buffy. Tara was on her knees, one hand outstretched. There was a small twirl of white light in her hand and it seemed to be feeding the endless circle that was surrounding Buffy. "Tara?" Seeing what Tara was trying to do and suddenly understanding something that she couldn't possibly begin to comprehend, she turned and linked her fingers around Tara's loose hand. Instantly the white light grew stronger. Buffy's chin suddenly snapped up, her hazel eyes glowing white as the light began to surround her. A slight hum came from the circle of white stones.
"I can't break the link," Tara sighed, her strength renewed with Willow's solid strength by her side. "The link… will send her home."
"Home?" Anya asked. "You mean she's not home?"
"Buffy!"
"Dawn!"
The younger sister came pelting out of nowhere, shoving Xander and Anya into Giles as she came to a skidding stop in front of the white cylinder of light. "Buffy!" She reached out to touch the light.
"No!" Willow suddenly shouted. "Don't!"
Dawn looked startled as a figure came up behind her. Two strong arms wrapped around her frame and pulled her back.
"What are you doing to her?" she screamed shrilly as Spike held onto her, despite Dawn's best efforts to bite, kick and scratch at him. "What the hell is going on here?"
"Tara?" Giles asked.
"I'm sending her back," Tara said, closing her eyes.
"Buffy!" Dawn cried, her voice a half-sob.
Buffy blinked then, her catatonic spell broken. "Dawnie?"
"Noooo," Dawn moaned as she flung Spike away and ran towards the light. "Buffy, no… you can't leave me… not again!"
"No choice," Buffy said, smiling serenely. "Life at stake… my girls are waiting for me."
"Your… girls?" Willow asked, her voice trembling as Tara righted herself. Though their hands remained linked, the power was coming almost solely from Tara now.
"My children are waiting for me," Buffy said, her voice sounding misty and far away. "I'm going home to them. I'm going to Heaven, Dawnie. I'm going back."
Willow's eyes widened as the realization that she had pulled her best friend out of Heaven slammed into her. "I… I didn't…"
"I'm not," Buffy said, darkness in her voice. "But I forgive you… I only hope you can forgive me…" She looked at Dawn as her body seemed to fade away. "Good bye."
There was the sound of an explosion and Buffy seemed to vanish into thin air. As the white light began to recede, Tara got to her feet, pressing her hand into the glowing circle. "My gift…" she added. As the light disappeared completely and the stones turned to dust, Tara fainted backwards.
"Oh my God… Tara!"
There was the sounds of hurried footsteps as the four from the Los Angeles club suddenly arrived, looking triumphant. "All gone!" Gunn said, exchanging a handshake with Cordelia. "All dust and we still got the bling."
As Willow and Anya turned to help Tara up, Dawn stared at the place where her sister had been just a few seconds before.
"Where… where did she go?"
x-x-x
MirkwoodForest
March 3019
There was a small flash of white light as a body floated from the sky, landing hard on the snow-covered ground. Buffy gasped as she felt the chill from the snow. Everything seemed to be a blur as she looked up, all around, panic-stricken. As the white light closed from above her, plunging her into darkness, Buffy tripped backwards, falling into a tree. Deep breaths seemed to be in order as she struggled to regain control of reality. Something had happened. Something was wrong.
There was a loud cry, two thudding crashes and the acrid smell of smoke. Turning her head, she saw a hazy red glow on the horizon. Biting her lip, she struggled a few steps forward, only to collide with another tree. Falling onto her backside, she groaned. The snow was cold and her hands were not covered.
As though she had been expecting it, she heard the sound of a soft voice inside her head. She suddenly felt her old confidence return. Her vision returned, including her Slayer-enhanced night vision. She stood up as the chill from the cold night fell away. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out her only weapon – her stake.
Flinging herself from tree to tree, she headed towards the misty red light, flickering over the treetops. She boots glided harmlessly off the top of the soft snow pack as though she were lightless. Something had happened to force her to suddenly wake up, instead of facing a three-month groggy dream that had been Sunnydale. But she didn't have time to think about that. She heard the sounds of a familiar voice through the trees.
"Siri," she breathed, a smile brightening her face as she paused.
But the sound soon disappeared at the dark growling she heard a few hundred paces back. Turning her head, she saw two Orcs approaching, a torch held in the air between them.
"Could have sworn I saw a light," one of them growled, looking around eagerly. The second, with a runty, pinched-look about him, grumbled.
"Must have been those delicious Elves," he said, picking a bit in his black tooth.
Buffy felt as though her lungs had collapsed. The Elves had been attacked? These Orcs had eaten them?
Without thinking and without feeling anything, she pulled out her stake and spun, flinging herself at the two Orcs. One was quickly downed, the stake going straight through its skull. The second attempted to run, but she was must faster. A single kick felled it to the ground. After tipping it with her toe, the Orc was flung in a graceful arch to a tree. With a sickening thud it fell to the ground and moved no more. Bending down, she retrieved one of the axes the Orc had had with him.
"You must have missed it," she said, grinning as she turned back around. The clearing was slightly ahead. Seeing the fiery haze above her, she turned her head to follow the sound of metal clinking against metal. "Siri!" she shouted into the night.
Her voice was drowned out by the sound of a low hiss and a menacing growl. Turning around, she saw something that made her heart stop. More than a dozen furry creatures were converging on her. In the distance, a single figure stood upon a hill, a graceful bow arched across his back. Her Slayer sense tingled as it usually did when she sensed eminent danger. She knew that this graceful being wasn't Legolas or any of the Elves she had befriended. This was something else.
One of the hideous creatures snorted and a stream of fire lit the dead Orc at its front claws.
"Crap," she muttered, backing into a tree. She had heard the sounds of a vicious fight behind this tree-line, and if it was Siri, she owed her daughter the time to escape. Besides, she thought as she faced down this dark creature, she had a feeling that this was something she needed to take care of first.
But her first problem was the advancing guard of those growling creatures, sprouts of fire four feet long emanating from their snarling snouts. Feeling as though her heart weighed at least a ton, she pushed her hand outwards.
There was only one thing she could do.
She screamed.
The sound that came back was a howl that sounded all too eerily familiar to her. The creatures lifted their heads to face her. The Dark Elf on the hill smirked as he began to draw towards her, his hand slipping around the hilt of his curved sword.
Behind her, Siri turned at the cry. "I thought she said they had gone to the south!" She made a motion to the woman next to her, ordering her to sound a retreat for fear of the Nazgûl in this one-sided battle thusfar.
Buffy's cry cut off in alarm as she saw the advancing creatures. Screaming the shadow's call hadn't been the most intelligent thing, she thought. "Nice… evil monster thingies," she said, eyeing them nervously. "I promise I'll feed you a nice dead Elf if you leave me alone."
One of the creatures leapt at her, snapping jaws with bleeding fangs.
"Oh," she gasped, pressing her back to a tree. "So you want to play rough, huh?"
Despite her surging confidence, she was stuck with a dented, dull Orc axe and her only other weapon had been driven through the cerebral cortex of her enemy. Knowing that she had to buy precious time at the cost of a few limbs, well, she was willing to do that.
Otherwise, they were all doomed.
x-x-x-x
To be continued…
x-x-x-x
The next part… Buffy returns to the assault on the Mirkwood Forest as human and Elvish allies are reunited for a battle under the trees…