A/N: hopefully things are speeding up now and I can get a move on with the story. Also this wasn't meant to be like two BTVS in a row wizards are in it too.

Previously

Down deep below the earth, in the darkest filthiest pit there was a cracked and blood stained coffin.

Ghostly white fingers scrapped against the closed lid and, short breaths were coming from the small scandalized figure. Tears streamed down the little girls face and her long blond hair stuck to her pale cheeks.

"HELP ME PLEASE! WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS PLEASE LET ME OUT I'M GOING TO DIE I DON'T WANT TO DIE," the girl managed to scream out in-between sobs.

The darkness was starting to close in, whilst a scream of emptiness filled her, slithering into every pore of her body. Her breathing was cut off in a harsh, wheezing, choke.

Chapter fourteen, Eve, the apple and the white horse.

Theology

"No, the serpent did not

Seduce Eve to the apple.

All that's simply

Corruption of the facts.

Adam ate the apple.

Eve ate Adam.

The serpent ate Eve.

This is the dark intestine.

The serpent, meanwhile,

Sleeps his meal off in Paradise -

Smiling to hear

God's querulous calling."

Ted Hughes

A gleaming soft blanket of snow lay across the woods, sparkling and fresh in the crisp winter air. Newly settled, untouched by the muddy boots of a young child. Out of the thick interlacing trees came a brilliant white hoarse.

It galloped across the crunching snow, his silvery mane speckled by camouflaged snowflakes, network of atoms like filmy spun lace. The silence of the early morning was broken by the sound of a champagne bottle popping open, the horse leapt onto his hind legs.

The beautiful creature fell into the soft seductive snow. Sprawled out with his eyes wide open, black watery beads in his head. The snow was now marred by the striking site of pure innocent red blood crawling across it.

This is what Buffy dreamt tucked into a cocoon of her bed sheets. The sweet smells of camomile and lavender enveloping her. The thoughts of the Ministry and real life wiped from her mind, she was completely oblivious to anything even the fact that the far away pictures in her head were anything at all. They were just there.

The horse's lifeless body was decaying in front of her eyes worms and other bugs crawling in and out of the red rimmed eye sockets. The horse's chest ripped open his insides rotting like a soft apple on a warm summer's day.

His face swam changing into that of a little girl's her long silvery blond hair stuck to tear streaked cheeks. Her eyes were open in shock un-blinking. The girls face slowly started to decompose half her sallow skin now ripped away so only gaping holes of flesh and brief glimpses of bone could be seen. Her small half perished face suddenly snapped round her eyes glinting with vengeance, pure evil.

Buffy sat up abruptly in her bed; the sheets had tangled themselves round her legs and torso. She was sweating and her breathing came in thin gasps.

The room around her was just as she had left it, mahogany dresser, wardrobe, bed and large bay window looking out over the garden and distant houses. The once immaculate space was now possessed by her scattered belongings two large suite cases were blocking the doorway and a fair amount of clothes were strewn over the ground from her bleary eyed attempt to find some pyjamas and rid herself of the dirty track suits she had been wearing.

As she untangled herself from the white bed sheets and walked to the bathroom to get cleaned up she went over the day she had planed.

Go talk to Ministry.

Go shopping

Have a bath.

All in all it sounded like a good plan to her.

Once Buffy was washed and dressed in a fresh pair of blue jeans grey button top and brown suede boots she ascended the steps towards the kitchen. Everyone was already up aside Dawn.

"Good morning Buffy," Giles said softly from behind his news paper.

"Morning," Buffy replied with a half smile.

"I have booked an appointment with the Ministry for 7 o'clock this evening I propose this morning we spend some time…" but he was cut of by a profoundly excitable Willow.

"Buffy Giles says today we can go to Trafalgar square and all over London to look at it like go Londoning kinda, it's gonna be so cool I really wanna see the Tate and the river and The National Portrait Gallery and I just realised we wont have enough time to do all that and I'm babbling. Ok I'm going to stop now," Willow pursed her lips and sat down hastily.

"Sounds good to me Wills," Buffy gave her an encouraging smile she felt a rare surge of happiness and excitement that only nerdy Willow could bring out in her.

0000

The sky was a light pink blue, almost lavender in the afternoon light. Looming shadows of bare trees graced the walk way slender and opaque. Willow, Faith, Buffy, Lola and Xander were walking through Ken Woods in Hampstead.

Spike and Angel were at the West End production they'd promised to go to after saving Fred, Dawn was still sleeping and Giles was at the tea shop. It was a restful experience nice in its own boring way.

The sky was drizzling slightly although generally mild. Wet and squishy brown leaves coated the forest. Bubbles of laughter erupted every now and then from the five young adults a contagious happiness filled the air until, Xander quite suddenly fell through the earth into what looked like some kind of pit.

"Fucking hell!" Faith swore as he hit the bottom with a resounding thud.

"I'm ok, hang on I think there's something down here," he turned round subsequently his eyes bulged out his head, a small yelp escaping his lips.

Lying still on the ground decaying like a putrid fig was a silver haired little girl startling grey eyes stared up at him as if they were always following him her clothes were ripped and covered in ominous symbols. Xander stood aside a hand over his mouth.

The four women looked down to see what all the commotion was about. Lola went ghostly white and started to retch by a tree, unshed tears prickling her eyes. Faith just swallowed seemingly disgusted, Willow seemed shocked and revolted but Buffy was having flash backs from her dream.

'His face swam changing into that of a little girl's her long silvery blond hair stuck to tear streaked cheeks. Her eyes were open in shock un-blinking. The girls face slowly started to decompose half her sallow skin now ripped away so only gaping holes of flesh and brief glimpses of bone could be seen. Her small half perished face suddenly snapped round her eyes glinting with vengeance, pure evil.'

"No stop don't go near her get out of there she's evil! STOP!" Buffy screamed horror stricken.

00000000

"Her name was Eleanor Malfoy; she went to Bauxbatons School for magic and belonged to a family of Death Eaters," Giles stood sombrely in front of the assembled group.

They had called Giles about the dead little girl and he had insisted on bringing her back to the house, to discover who she was using his contacts at the Coven. The Scoobies were sitting on brown leather sofas in the living room, all clutching tea and onto the hope this wasn't a trap.

"We need to send her clothes back to the council and get the Mystics department to discover what those symbols mean," Willow said, glancing up from her bare feet, cold against the tiled floor.

Buffy glanced at the gold clock hanging over the mantle piece; she told them they better get going to talk to the Ministry her petite figure curled up protectively. Buffy's mind was reeling that girl had been a witch belonging to a family and know one had been out looking for her, these people are sick, she thought.

Professor Albus Dumbledore looked around the auditorium he was in, the walls lined with benches and a judge's chair at the fore front. It was the same room he'd been in almost a year ago for Harry's hearing. The atmosphere was even more on edge than that day if possible. Next to him sat the Minister and a few of his trusted associates.

Sitting in three strait backed chairs below him was the Watcher Mr Rupert Giles his Slayer Buffy Summers and her Wicca witch friend Willow Rosenberg.

"Mr Giles you called this meeting upon what terms?" Scrimgeour said from his regal chair.

"A week or so ago we were attacked by a few of your men, then a couple of days ago we were attacked again by some more wizards claiming to be 'Death Eaters?'" Giles said sternly.

"Well yes I did send some aura's out to attack you we are in a time of war and can not take any chances a source of mine informed me you may be working for you know who, I had to take action!"

"Well we can't be working for this Voldywart cuz like we said he. Attacked. Us!" Buffy seethed.

"How can we believe you the signs have all pointed to the fact that you're whole organization are working on the dark side. Vampires, The key and countless numbers of these so called slayers what ever that means!"

"In every generation there is a chosen one. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer. But we changed that so now every potential is a slayer and the vampires have souls! Dawn 'the key' is my sister and just as human as the rest of us!" Buffy shouted defiantly.

"And what makes you think we're going to trust you, for all I know this could be a trap," Scrimgeour sneered.

"What makes you think we can trust you," The redheaded Wicca Willow talked for the first time distain evident on her face. "Today in the woods we found a little girl, dead. We found out she was a witch called Eleanor Malfoy. How can you not have had anyone looking for her? How could you've let that happen to one of your own people?"

"I wasn't even aware she was missing! Brocklehurst did you know?" Scrimgeour directed his question towards Mandy Brocklehursts father who was deputy head to the missing persons department. Dumbledore looked towards the black haired man and briefly realised that Faye Brocklehurst his niece looked a lot like him, they even had the same stance.

"No sir it was never reported to me," he replied stiffly.

"As you can see we had nothing to do with neither her murder nor the fact that she was never found," Scrimgeour said.

"Then to the point please never attack us again," Giles said.

"I can not promise you that as we all know Eve was seduced by the serpent and thrown out of the light to the side of evil, taking Adam with her," Scrimgeour retorted.

"Meaning?" Buffy asked.

"Since the beginning of time women have found the dark side irresistible and you ask me to put my trust in an army of them? No, a truce shall be made we will not attack you if you do not attack us. If you leave us to our own devices we will leave you to yours."

"Fine a fucking truce you little sexist cunt!" Buffy spat. Scrimgeour smirked and produced a binding magical contract which Buffy, Giles and Willow were to sign.

The room was silent and cold as the contract disappeared with a pop leaving behind a thin trail of smoke. No one spoke but they all new they were dismissed.