Buffy:

Okay, this is weird… more so than most things in my life. When I was Eve, there were just three people that cared for me in the entire world. There was my brother, Matt. He's sweet, really, and he looked out for me just like older brothers are supposed to, but he never really knew me. I suppose no-one did for that matter.

There was Edward, who raised us both as his own. He took care of all of the basic things that neither of us really understood. He fed us and he clothed us, he taught us about the world. But he had a mission, he had a world to save, and I was nothing more than his protectee.

And then there was Jackie. Of the three, she was the only one who really cared for me, who understood who and what I was… perhaps it was that bond that Slayers have. I wonder if she ever dreamt about my past life. I don't doubt that others loved me in their own way, but she was the only one who showed it. And now she's dead. Or we thought she was dead. It turns out that she's actually standing right in front of me. I guess that isn't as weird as I made out. Resurrection isn't exactly unheard of with us Slayers. What I want to know is why.

"How are you alive?" I ask, once we get moving again. Somehow she knows where the summit is being held, so she's taking me there. "We all thought you were dead."

"Not quite dead," she tells me. "I was bitten, that's true, but the one given the task of killing me was none other than our recent turncoat, Jericho. Wait a minute, why are you talking?"

"I finally had something I needed to say."

"I mean, sometimes when I was with you, I thought that you were speaking to me, even if it wasn't in words."

"So Jericho saved you?"

"Yeah, you could say that. So how's Matt, is he okay?"

"He's doing well."

"Oh, good. That's good. It's this way," and she sets off down another hall.

"How did Jericho manage to convince everyone that you were dead?"

"He bit me, drained quite a bit of blood, then told me to stay down until the room was empty. How did you get stuck in that stairwell anyway?"

"It just kind of locked me in." Suddenly, I stop. "Why are you here, anyway? Surely the first thing you would have done is gone back to the bookstore, but we never saw you there."

"Well, I saw you…"

"And you can't have joined us as we came here because there were people who knew you all over that group, and someone would have seen you. There was plenty of time while we were waiting outside the building for you to have reached one of us on the frontline. Which means the only possibility is that you were here first, and that means…" Suddenly, Jackie's smile falls away and her eyes become cold as ice.

"So you finally figured it out. You always were slow."

"You're still dead."

"I wanted to kill you with Matt watching, but I guess I'll just have to finish you now. Shame really, me telling him isn't really going to have the same effect as him watching the life fade from your eyes. You know, I could show him the body. That ought to get some reaction."

"You may be in for a surprise," I warn her, raising the sword that I brought with me.

"We'll see about that," says the creature that had once been my friend as she vamps out. Jackie snarls and charges.

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Angel:

Pandemonium breaks out in the summit room. We hardly have to do anything. These so-called leaders are running around like headless chickens. One of them, hidden by shadows in the corner, even jumps out of the window. And we are a very long way up. One or two think they can take us but we set them straight quickly. The only one that is perfectly calm is Gene, standing staring at us in the middle of the room.

Without warning, Jericho charges headlong into the centre of the room, swinging his daggers in all directions. Bodies hit the ground and blood soaks into the carpet. Some even sprays across Gene's cheek and still he stares at me. I'm not sure what he wants, but I know we've got to stop this. Jericho is killing humans. Evil humans, but they're still humans. I rush forward as he stands behind Gene, his fangs evident now as he bends to drink. Matt just looks on in horror and Gene continues to stare impassively.

My fist connects with Jericho's face just as his teeth break the skin, and a trickle of blood runs down his collar. There was a time when I would have had to fight the urge not to give into bloodlust. Now I have to fight the urge to vomit. Gene moves for the first time, wiping the blood away with his left hand then staring at it glistening on his fingers. There is something imitating surprise on his face. But I'm not watching him, I'm just standing over Jericho, wondering how he could have done this terrible thing. As far as I can tell there are only three people left alive in this room.

"What are you doing?" I scream at him.

"I'm doing what we came here to do."

"We didn't come here to kill people."

"How else was this going to work? You expected that you'd just show up and they'd admit defeat? This is war, your Slayer said that herself. In war you expect a few casualties."

"I thought you cared about honour. What honour did you do these people?"

"These people did not deserve honour. They would not have shown it to any of us if the situation was reversed."

"Honour isn't about deserving it, or earning it! It's about doing the right thing, no matter what the outcome, what the circumstance. If you don't understand that, you don't have any honour. You don't have a soul."

"What do you mean I don't have a soul? I helped you!"

"Spike helped before he got a soul, but he was still evil. Just because you want to do the right thing doesn't mean you can. Not yet."

"Not yet?"

"I can't kill you, not even for doing this, it wouldn't be just. But there's this little thing I know about vengeance. Soon, you'll understand why what you just did is wrong. Then maybe you'll know what honour really is."

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Buffy:

I've fought a lot of powerful enemies in my day: vampires, demons, robots, even a god. Some were stronger than me, some weren't. Jackie, now that she's turned, is strong. She's exactly a match for me, just as strong and just as fast. No sooner have I gained the advantage than she gains it back again. And that's strange for a few reasons. One, she's a vampire, and most vampires that I've ever fought are pretty weak compared to most demons. Angel was strong, but he was Angel, and the Master was powerful, but he was thousands of years old. Jackie is newly made, and she can still match me, blow for blow. I guess that's what happens when a Slayer is turned. And if she's this strong now, what will she be like when she gets old?

I can't win this here and now. I have to retreat. I'll fight this battle again on my own terms, and then we'll see.

As I turn and run she stops and shouts after me,

"Run, little Eve! Run now and watch as I kill all your precious innocents. Run and know that you could not save them! Give my love to Matt!"

I didn't realise I had come off so badly in that fight. There's an open wound on my leg, and I can't feel my arm. And I'm having trouble keeping my eyes open.

Why am I so tired?