"Twilight for Anonymous…"

Disclaimer: Not mine but thine...O, Joss!

Archived at the Cicelyverse page of the Buffy Rebecca verse, or direct to story at www...

General audience level...

Summary: In a past life of Buffy and William, a certain story- and scene-stealing vampire gets his much-deserved desserts…

Part XIX…

The Great Hall of Essex House…

Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex, taking his moment to gaze into the eyes of Posterity…Essex smoothing lace cuffs and ruff…

His friend and most trusted associate, Edward DeVere, Earl of Oxford, by his gallant side…

Attempting gallantly to repress his amusement...As dear old wooden-headed Bob rallied the troops…

And God, what a lot…DeVere eyed the group of mostly anxious, some cluelessly heedless, some very few brave enough…And arrogant enough at the thought of confronting a mere Queen…

A bunch of pathetic weedy losers in lace and feathers…And I say that as a rather frail-looking vampiral aristocrat myself.

Though surely my sense of style is far more elegant and restrained. When will the simplicity of basic black and white lace catch on outside Espainge?

Hopefully the French will have some appreciation for minimalism, he sighed as he regarded Essex, then the motley crew of hangers-on. Ruined gamblers…Including our gallant leader himself…Third and fourth sons never to inherit…Owners of estates seized for family debt or on charges largely drummed up to the Queen's (unknowing and unwanting to know) benefit by her agents…Mothers' boys desperate to please distant or dead fathers, and of course, mothers…A handful of desperate adventurers…Sensible guards and mercenaries wishing desperately they were anywhere else and while duty bound to fight in the Earl's cause, ready to flee as soon as common sense suggested…

And of course, the vampire second-in-command, cutting a gallant and daring if somewhat languid as always, figure…

God, as a patriotic English subject, I'm rightfully horrified. What has happened to our aristocracy? But then, neronic Henry did take the best of us…Excepting me, of course.

Leading this clutch of fools to the gallows is a blessing for England…My positive Duty.

I wonder if I could persuade Shakespeare that it would make a fine tragedy. Though he rightly does tend to avoid touching on current affairs.

The dungeon area…

"Speak up, girl!" the lead guard demanded of the trembling Bella… "What's going on here?!"

"All the cells be secure, sir…" a guard at Shakespeare's cell door noted.

"Someone attacked the Sergeant and came down, was it you?!" the lead guard fumed, shaking the wan girl.

"Leave her be..." Shakespeare called. "She's not responsible. The man never came down, whoever he was. He must have fled on hearing you."

"I...Didn't..." Bella whispered, desperately.

"Hold her here while we report to Lord Essex." the lead guard ordered the last of the three guards. "Come Stephens, we'll have my Lord down to look into this. Don't let the girl go, Hawkins."

"No, sir." Hawkins agreed.

"Please...I should go tell my master, Lord DeVere." Bella tried.

"Lord Essex will inform him. You stay here and do as Hawkins orders till we know what's what." the lead guard insisted, softening just a bit at her woebegone stare. "If you've done no harm, you've nothing to fear."

"Yes, sir." she nodded.

"Stay on yer toes, Hawkins. There may be others tryin' to free this lot. The Papists will stop at nothing." the lead guard noted. Hawkins nodding...

The twp guards headed back up...Anne carefully eyeing the spot where invisible Willie had folded him under the bed.

"Just have a seat on the stool there, girl and don't try to move." Hawkins told Bella who wanly sat, glancing about her.

"I should tell Lord Edward...He'll be angry." she noted.

"The Lord Essex'll let him know, just keep your seat." Hawkins, sternly. She settling

"Will? The blanket helpin' ye?" Anne called to Shakespeare.

"Yes, it's much better. Thank ye, Miss Bella." he called to Bella who nodded, grateful smile.

"I'm glad, Master Shakespeare. Lord Edward didn't want you hurt."

"So…?" Hawkins eyed Shakespeare in his cell. "You're that Shakespeare bloke. I saw 'Romeo and Julie' at the Globe, twas not bad."

"Thanks..." Shakespeare nodded. "But it's 'Romeo and Juilet'."

"Ah, better..." Hawkins agreed. "You know I rather like to fiddle with the playwriting meself from time to time...Perhaps you'd care to hear an idea or two I've had?" eager note, the guard moving closer to Shakespeare's cell. "I was thinking about this epic where a hidden son of a defrocked priest turned to the Devil's Order seeks to join a Protestant order to acquire the True Faith for the power to save his father and the world from the mighty Dark Lord who's taken mortal form and seized the world…."

Oh God...Anne rolled eyes...

"Well..." Shakespeare, diplomatically… "Sounds rather sweeping..."

"Oh, I focus on character as well...Arggh!" Hawkins gasps, stabbed by Bella through the chink in his armor on the neck. Falling to floor, Bella backing from his dying body…

"You...Bitch…!" Anne gasped.

"Oh, my..." Frances, stunned.

"What the hell?" Shakespeare stared…

Though hmmn, interesting idea to have a supposedly weak girl turn out to be a mighty force of Evil, or Good, concealing her true nature till…

But, of course, poor fellow…

"I had to...I have to tell Lord Edward..." Bella murmured, dropping the knife she'd kept concealed up a sleeve. "I must go. Please don't try to escape..." she glanced round at the group in their cells.

"You killed this man and you'll pay for it, bitch!" Anne cried. "Thought you could fool me? Hah!"

"Let me out, Bella!" Frances tried. "Lord Edward would want you to!"

Bella pausing...Staring at Frances…

"No...That's not so..." she noted. "You are his prisoner...You betrayed him. I'm sorry, I have to go."

"Damn you girl! I'll see your head on a pike when the Queen learns of this!" Frances insisted.

Bella, shaking head...Apologetic sigh. "He shouldn't have kept me from leaving, I'm sorry." She hurried to the stairs and went up.

"Well, there's your sweet victim, Will!" Anne noted grimly.

"She can't help herself, Anne." Shakespeare sighed. "Hawkins? Hawkins, lad? Are you alive?"

"He's dead." Anne shook head. "Give the bitch credit, she's good with dagger. Frances?! What was that? Trying to slip out on us, again?!"

"Lady Frances or My Lady to you, Mistress Shakespeare!" Frances, angrily.

The door above to the dungeon groaned and shut…

"All right, Willie!" Anne hissed. "She's out."

"Be careful, sweetheart." Frances called as Willie slipped out from under bed, decloaking as he did.

"Mistress Shakespeare, I hope this ranks as payworthy service to your Council..." Flitch noted as he examined Anne's manacles.

"Hardly likely, Willie. They've never got round to even paying me expenses...Though I provided receipts." Anne noted. "But ye may take anything here or of DeVere's ye like."

"Slayer?!" Frances, shocked… The idea of violating personal property. Even that of the Evil Undead…

"Anne, that does seem a bit...Extreme..." Shakespeare agrees.

"Hell, the Queen'll seize everything left anyway." Anne frowned.

"That is her royal prerogative, girl..." Frances shook head.

"Suppose we get you all out first, then decide on recompense..." Willie suggested.

"The devil you say…?" Essex eyed the two guards, now accompanied by the injured sergeant who confirmed their tale. "Someone tried to free our Papist plotters? The Pope himself must have spies in our midst. Call Lord DeVere to me, at once, boy!" he turned to a nervous page who nodded and hurried off. "You men return to the dungeon and see no one enters."

"That girl of DeVere's was there, she was with them." the former lead guard noted. "Hawkins is watching her, she might be compromised or one of the Pope's spies."

"Too true, too true..." Essex nodded. "So hurry down and see she's secured as well. At least till Lord DeVere and I can examine her."

"There she is…!" the other guard pointed as Bella emerged from the dungeon stairway door and hurried off.

"Well! Seize her!" Essex cried. "Don't let her run off! I'll send more men down to the dungeon!"

"My word...What's the commotion?" DeVere had come from the front of the Hall where he'd been arranging with his remaining men for the securing of the actors and their escape should the Queen's Men truly march on the place. Said men rather as relieved to have such duty as the nervous actors.

Naturally, gallant hero as he was, DeVere would be staying by his friend to the glorious triumph, or the bitter end…

Either way, he'd manage to slip out…

"Edward! It seems your girl Bella may be a Papist spy!" Essex, excitedly.

"Should I seize him, my Lord?" the injured but recovering Sergeant eyed Essex.

"No, no..." impatient wave. "My Lord, it's quite true. Someone tried to free the...Edward?" as DeVere raced for the dungeon door at unthinkable pace. Smashing it open and racing on down...

My God...Never would have thought Edward capable of...

"Lord Essex! We have the little bitch!" Stephens, the junior guard, triumphant, he and another guard dragging a terrified Bella down the hallway…

"Sir! You must tell my Lord someone is trying to free Master Shakespeare and the Slayer!" Bella called, desperately.

Oops...Don't think my Lord will like my mention of the Slayer...Bella thought, squirming in the guards' grip.

"Bring her! We must get down and help Lord DeVere!" Essex commanded. "Tell us, girl! Are there more about? It will go hard with you if you lie!"

"Sir...No..." Bella tried. Her brief burst of adrenalin fading, the guards dragging her along and all heading through the dungeon door and down the stairs…

In the main dungeon hall…

"Shakespeare!" DeVere, furiously demon-faced…

Oh...He blinked at the group still in their cells…

Still here?

Now what the Devil is going on?

"Anything wrong, my Lord?" Shakespeare eyed him. "We heard a ruckus and your girl Bella was taken here...Killed this poor fellow here to go and tell you."

Anne, eyeing DeVere quietly…

"Trouble, DeVere?"

"Quiet, you peasant sow!" he glared. "Shakespeare, when will you learn how to handle a woman properly?"

Guess the bloom is off our would-be illicit romance...Anne thought, smiling.

"Hardly worthy of you, sir." Shakespeare, angrily.

DeVere, grimly eyeing him…

Still, man has a point...An aristocrat, even a vampiral one having a somewhat busy day, should never lose his aplomb.

"My apologies…You are quite right, a bit of a ruckus." he glanced round, eyeing Frances in her cell who stared back at him

"Seems..." he smoothed down askew hairs. "Someone has come to your rescue...Or tried to..."

"Lord Essex even suspected it might be my own dear Bella...But, I think that unlikely..."

Cries from above…

"Edward! We're coming!" Essex's voice…

"Ah, seems you're not the only one who has a dear friend coming to their rescue..." DeVere grinned.

"It's fine, Bob!" he called. "The prisoners are secure...But we'd better make a sweep round."

He returned to face Anne and over in his own cell, Shakespeare…

"You know, I almost think I'll let Bob examine Bella as to her role...I know of course she'd never betray me, not even the best of your Council could break my hold on her, Slayer. But it would be rather amusing and good practice to try..."

"Arsehole!" Anne cried.

"Leave the poor thing be..." Shakespeare sighed.

"Perhaps...If you reveal who it was who came and where he or she or they, are now?" DeVere smiled.

"Frances? This applies to you as well, dear..." he turned to her in her cell. "I might reconsider my decision as to your release if you cooperate here. Well? Anyone?" he glanced round.

Essex and three guards, two holding Bella came into view on the stairs…

"Bob! Thank God!" DeVere turned to them. "I'm fine and these traitors are secure but someone's killed this poor fellow yonder..." he indicated the dead guard.

Pity no time to scoop up just a pint or two but really after all these years, I actually do prefer the unique blood of a single cow. Especially one in the family… He eyed Bella.

Sorrowful look in his eyes immediately to meet her anxious one…

"Bella? Tell me you've not betrayed me? Sold us out to the Papists?"

"No, no my Lord!" she cried. "Never! Never! I went to fetch help when I saw the Sergeant had been struck down, after I checked to see the prisoners secure."

"And this poor man? Left to watch over you and them? How did he die?" DeVere, sternly.

"Well?" he insisted.

"Speak, girl!" Essex commanded. "None shall harm you if you speak the truth..."

"Surely it was a Papist assassin, Bella?" DeVere noted. "You could never have killed such a fine soldier..."

"Yes...Lord...A papist assassin..." she agreed, wanly.

"Now, girl..." Anne called. "Don't go all fearful. Remember yer duty to His Holiness..."

Smile to Shakespeare, who frowned.

Anne?

"His...My Lord?" Bella, confused.

"She's the best Rome has to offer..." Anne smiled. "But like us, ready to die in the great Cause."

You...Bitch… DeVere eyed her.

I think I am in Love, he smiled.