Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters. The characters all belong to their respective studios and creators. I am just borrowing them for my story.
Author's Note: This story is set after the end of season 2 of Roswell (after Tess has already left) and in the beginning of season 6 of Buffy, the Vampire Slayer- after Buffy and Spike have gotten together, but before Willow was addicted to magic and before Willow and Tara broke up. Also, Giles hasn't left yet. Sorry for the confusing time lines, but this worked best for my story.
A/N 2: I know it's been a while and I'm sorry for it. As always, real life barges in unmercifully on my writing time and makes it really hard for me to actually get any writing done. Plus I think my muse may have gone on vacation. Ah well, anyway, thanks to all of you for sticking in there and I hope you enjoy this part. And thanks especially to Bloodstar. You are awesome!
Chapter 13- Giving in to Emotion
Michael and Maria sat in a glen, a beautiful wooded one, filled with aromatic plants. They sat on a blanket; Maria was in front, and was leaning back into Michael, his arms wrapped around her waist. As she sat there, listening to her breathing and the occasional calls of birds, she felt a deep peace and contentment wash over her. She felt safe and loved. She felt cherished.
She craned her head back slightly to look at Michael. His eyes were half closed in the drowsy afternoon. His breath was soft and warm against her cheek. She smiled at him and placed a light kiss on his lips. Pulling back, she softly whispered that she loved him, and then she turned her head back around.
There was silence for several moments, and then Maria felt a change. It was a minute change, so small that at first she wasn't sure she had even really felt it. But she had, she knew she had. She couldn't at first readily identify it, it was so small, but then she felt it more strongly. The peace and comfort was gone from the glen, erased, and in its place was a cold emptiness, a nothingness that haunted. The very air around them had changed, and been tainted.
Maria shivered involuntarily, chilled by the lack of feeling. Michael's arms tightened around her. It seemed that he had felt it too. She took comfort in that, in him. But then his arms continued to tighten, past the comfort level, until she was having trouble breathing.
"Michael," she managed to gasp out, as she tried to free herself. Now his arms were so tight she couldn't breathe at all. As she struggled to capture a much-needed breath of air, her head turned and she saw him. He was different. What she saw of him now scared her so badly that if she had had any air to, she would have screamed. As it was, she barely had enough left to keep her eyes open to see the animal that had taken Michael's place, and to struggle for air. For that is what his face had become, that of an animal. Her struggles ceased then, as she looked at him, for she simply did not have enough air left anymore, and her vision was beginning to fade, as she grew more and more lightheaded. He smiled cruelly at her before lowering his fangs to her exposed, and in that position, elongated neck. As his teeth tore at her flesh and her life's blood spilled and stained the floor of the forest, her vision darkened, until the only things she could make out were the thing that was destroying her and the red mud she now sat in. Her last thought was of pain and a deep sense of loss before she collapsed, her oxygen totally spent.
* * *
Maria sat up quickly in bed and took a long deep gasp of air. Her hands flew to the side of her neck where the michael thing had bitten her, but discovered nothing there but smooth, unmarred skin. 'It was just a dream,' she realized, breathing a deep sigh of relief. That relief was short lived however, as she remembered the reason that she was having such a dream. Michael had become a vampire. Well, not exactly become, but close enough, until they could figure out how to switch them back. And he had tried to bite her earlier that day. She closed her eyes in pain. She would not think of that now. She needed some oil.
Getting up, being careful not to disturb Isabel and Liz, who were her roommates for this little trip, she crossed the motel room to her suitcase and knelt down. She fished around until she found a bottle of her most calming oil and inhaled some deeply. She felt slightly better after that, but knew it would be a long time before she would be able to go back to sleep.
She decided that some air might do her some good and she could use a cold drink anyway, so grabbing her flip-flops and a bottle of holy water (Buffy had given them each one and told them to carry them with them at all times before they had separated earlier), she headed down to the snack machines. Walking out of the room, she looked around carefully while locking the door. She continued to watch everything around her as she made her way down. Turning the corner of the snack area, she found Max sitting at the table, eyes downcast and looking desolate.
Max had been there for a while, as he was not able to sleep either, his guilt weighing too heavily on him. He and Liz had had a long talk earlier while they were supposed to be researching, and for the first time, he had felt how deeply he had truly hurt her. During his whole Tess stupidity, he hadn't really stopped to think about how it would affect her, his Liz. He had known that he was being idiotic- hell, he had even known he was being idiotic when he was having sex with her- but he still hadn't stopped himself. Maybe a part of him had wanted to get back at Liz for hurting him, maybe that's why he hadn't stopped. He didn't know. All he knew was that his desire for Tess had been irrational and tremendously foolish. He hadn't stopped to think and he had hurt people, namely Liz and Alex, but the whole group had also been affected, in the process.
And that was another thing. Because of him, Alex had been killed. If he hadn't encouraged Tess, she wouldn't have needed him to translate the book and he would still be alive today. He was a fool and a murderer. It was his fault Alex was gone and he could never do anything to make up for the fact. And then the way he had acted after, towards those he loved. It was shameful and degrading of his feelings for them. In some small part in the back of his mind, he had known all this, but he hadn't really realized it until he had begun talking with Liz earlier that afternoon. It was then that he understood just how deeply he had wounded her, Alex and the others- how much he had screwed everything up. And he had been trying to explain things to her, to see if they couldn't work things out. Now he wasn't sure if he should. He had hurt them all badly.
Then when everything with Michael had happened, Max had felt even more responsible. If he had been concentrating on being a leader like he was supposed to be, instead of worrying about his romantic life, he would have been able to stop all of this from happening. And if not stop it, at least not let it get to the point where it was, with Michael nearly hurting Maria today. Michael had managed to stop himself, but still, it had been close. It was after that that the group had called a halt to the day, deciding they would all be fresher with some sleep. Before they had left however, Max and the others had made sure that Spike was staying with someone else- it was too dangerous for him to be alone right now. He was- he was staying at Buffy's house, because in his "human" form (to the Scoobies) he couldn't defend himself in his crypt. Max had felt a little better after that. He knew from Isabel that Spike wouldn't try anything in front of her. At least he had done one thing right.
It was, though, as Max had watched Maria back away from Michael earlier, fear and pain in her eyes, that it had really hit home about how bad a leader he was. He never should have let things get to this point. And now, even after spending a day researching, he still had no idea how to fix them. It was thoughts of this nature that had kept him from sleeping and had him at the snack area of the motel at 2 in the morning. And it was because of this that he did not notice Maria approach.
He jumped up startled when she said softly, "Hey girlfriend."
As they looked at each other, they both could see the anxiety and the pain in the other's eyes. And both knew that there would be no sleep for either one of them that night.
"If I had been a monster, I would have gotten you before you would have even noticed me, Max," Maria told him quietly as she sat down next to him.
He just shrugged, still on the self-loathing kick. "Maybe I deserve to be gotten."
Placing her hand on his shoulder, Maria forced him to look at her, "No you don't, Max. Don't say that, please."
Looking at her, Max felt some of his self loathing leave him, he had done appalling things, but now was not the time to dwell on them, now was the time that Maria needed him and he would be there for her. He could dwell on his faults and wrongdoings later, but now she needed him more. He was finally going to do what he should, and put aside his own feelings, so he could be there for a friend in pain.
"I'm sorry," he said simply.
Tears gathered in her eyes as she felt the hurt surge to the surface again. "Me too," she said before the clouds overcame her and she buried her head in his shoulder, giving in to the emotion. He held her and watched over her as she cried.
* * *
Wow, this one got a little angsty. If you can tell, I just watched the end of the second season of Roswell again, and I think I may have picked up some of the anxiety from that. The story will get more lighthearted soon, I hope… And there will be more of the other characters in the next part.