The Senior Partners' dimension
The Wolf, The Ram and The Hart were around a mystical fire, chanting around it.
Then the fire was hit by a mystical blast, extinguishing it as they turned to see Strange hovering in the air.
"You dare!" They roared, hitting Strange together with mystical lightning as he held up his Tao Mandalas to defend himself.
"Our plans are falling apart!" The Partners fretted.
"That's just the beginning."
Strange hovered up in the air.
"Your dominion and reign has come to an end."
"Without us, there will be no one to hold back the storm that would come."
"That's where you're wrong. WE are the storm."
Projections surrounded the Demons, displaying the heroic feats of humanity and beyond have achieved, fighting everything the Senior Partners have thrown at them, and winning.
"The Wolf, the Ram, and the Hart."
The three Demons turned to face the sorcerer, as sparkling white magic surrounded his hands with a larger one appearing before him.
"You have been a leech for the Earth and the surrounding dimensions for too long, it ends now. Allow me to introduce you to the power of Agamotto," a blue magic circle appeared at the top of the white, "Hoggorth, and Oshtur." Green and red circles appeared at the sides, forming a triangle within the larger white circle. "By the will of the Vishanti, I say onto thee, BEGONE!"
Strange thrust his hand forward and a wave of power streamed from the magic circles. The Demons joined together to create a shield, but it broke like glass at the force of trio of magical entities summoned by the Sorcerer Supreme.
The three circles converged into one big gold Mandala in front of Strange and unleashed a stream of raw magic energy that engulfed the three beings and destroyed them bit by bit until nothing was left of them.
"You've been Lawyered."
Avengers Tower
In the med bay, Angel was being examined by Fred as Wesley, Lorne, Gunn, Connor and Spike all watched.
"So what's the verdict Doc?" Gunn joked lightly.
"It's true. He's human," Fred said in a bit of disbelief.
"Bloody Hell. I thought the Shanshu was just a bunch of bullocks," Spike muttered in disbelief.
"No one's more surprised than me. I snapped my fingers, thinking I was gonna die and here we are," Angel said as he sat up, looking at Spike. "You okay with this?"
"Never really wanted it, just tried to take it to spite you. Besides, we both knew it was always gonna be you," Spike pointed out. "So what happens now?"
"Yeah Angelcakes, what does happen now?" Lorne inquired and Angel was silent for a long moment.
"I don't know," Angel finally said. "For the first time in…a long time, I don't really have a plan or a path."
"Well, it seems you have the rest of your life to figure it out," Wesley said gently and Angel chuckled.
"Yeah, I guess I do," Angel said with a smile.
Around the rest of the Compound, everyone who had fought in the battle were reuniting with their loved ones. Dawn was tightly embracing Buffy, who was gingerly hugging his sister.
"I'm here Dawnie, I'm here," Buffy said soothingly.
Dawn didn't respond except to hold her tighter and Buffy heard a sniff. Her heart clenched as she could only imagine what Dawn had been through the last few months.
"It's been…really hard without you the last few months," Dawn finally, wiping her eyes as she let go of Buffy. "I tried to keep going, not to lose hope but…"
"I'm sorry I left you alone," Buffy said guilty and Dawn shook her head.
"It wasn't your fault. And I wasn't alone, I had Willow, Faith and Spike," Dawn said and saw Buffy purse her lips together. "Don't be too mad at him."
"Aren't you? He let us think he was dead for months," Buffy pointed out.
"And the first thing he did after Thanos was come make sure we were alright. Just hear him out. And try not to be too hard him. He's…been through a lot," Dawn said vaguely and Buffy looked at her oddly.
"Why do I have a feeling you're not telling me everything?" Buffy said after a moment.
"Not my story to tell. Just…go easy on him," Dawn told her.
"When did you get so wise?" Buffy asked after a moment and Dawn laughed.
"I just grew up," Dawn said simply.
Sharon was nursing a drink when she felt someone sit down beside her.
"Hey."
"Hey yourself," Sharon said as she looked over at Steve, smiling dryly. "Nice beard."
"Thanks. Thinking about keeping it," Steve said as he reached, feeling it on his chin. "It's good to see you Sharon. I'm glad Fury found you."
"You knew where I was?" Sharon asked in surprise.
"Who do you told him about you? He called me the day after I sprung others, gave me a lecture on how he 'couldn't leave you kids alone for five minutes without things going to shit'," Steve in a passable impression of Fury's voice and Sharon couldn't help but laugh. "I told him about you and he promised he'd take care of it."
"He never told me that," Sharon said in surprise.
"When does Fury tell anyone anything?" Steve asked pointedly and she laughed at how true that was. "I'm sorry Sharon. You helped me and I-"
"Stop right there," Sharon said firmly, holding up a hand. "I'm not some wide eyed teenager, I'm a grown woman. I made my own choices that day and I would make the same choice now. Helping you was the right thing to do; I believe it as strongly now as I do then. You're not responsible for that. And if you try to take responsible, I will shoot you."
"Fair enough," Steve said with a laugh.
"So what happens now? You gonna take up the shield again?" Sharon inquired.
"Seems to me the shield is in good hands," Steve said, his gaze drifting across the room to where Sam was talking to Nick.
Wanda was sitting on another couch, drinking some water when someone sat down next to her. She didn't look up, already knowing who it was. She was surprised it had taken him this long to seek her out.
"How you doin' Wanda?" Clint asked as he looked at her in concern.
"Better. Not good, but I'm getting there," Wanda said, seeing no point in lying to him. "I assume Sam told you about everything that happened?"
"Yeah. I'm sorry you had to go through it all alone. I'm sorry about Vision," Clint said and Wanda was silent for a few moments.
"You know the strange thing? I haven't even thought about Vision in weeks," Wanda confessed. "Even before, while I missed him, after I killed Thanos, it was more about how guilty I felt over what I did than how much I missed him. And I did, I still do but…does that make me a horrible person, that the man I love dying didn't bother me as much as hurting my friends?"
"No, it doesn't make you a horrible person. We all deal with grief in our own way. There's no right or right when it comes to how you feel," Clint told her gently. "And listen, if you ever feel alone or overwhelmed or if you just need someone to talk to…call me and I'll be there. And from the sounds of it, Laura's kind of adopted you, so you have her to."
Wanda couldn't help but laugh at Clint's lame attempt at a joke. But she did appreciate the sentiment all the same. She'd felt alone, really alone, since after Ultron. She didn't have her brother or her parents or even Vision anymore. But she had The Avengers. That was good enough.
Wesley was staring out the window at New York, deep in thought. Feeling someone walk up beside him, he didn't need to turn to know it was Angel.
"Thinking about Lilah?" Angel asked and Wesley nodded.
"In a million scenarios I imagined, never in my wildest dreams did I imagine one where Lilah would help save the world," Wesley admitted.
"Yeah. Whoever thought Lilah would be the unsung hero in all this?" Angel asked, laughing at the sheer absurdity of it.
"I wish…I wish there was a way we would talk to her. Let her know that we did it. We won," Wesley said lowly.
"Knowing Lilah, I'm sure somehow, she knows," Angel promised him and Wesley smiled weakly.
"I don't doubt it," Wesley said and it was silent as they stared out at the city. "How does it feel? Being human?"
"Great," Angel said with a grin. "I can't wait for the sun to rise."
Spike was walking down the stairs when suddenly, Buffy walked up to him, blocking his path.
"Hey," Buffy said.
"Hey," Spike echoed and it was silent between them for a moment.
"Why didn't you tell us you were alive?" Buffy blurted out and winced. "There was more to that when I was thinking about it but…yeah, why did you let us think you were dead?"
Spike thought of giving her the same excuse he'd given Harmony when she'd asked him. But after everything he and Buffy had been through, the good and the bad, he decided Buffy at least deserved the truth.
"Angel," Spike said and she was confused. "When he gave you the amulet, you kissed him."
"I thought we were passed this-" Buffy started.
"No," Spike cut her off firmly, taking Buffy aback. "I put it aside because I didn't want to spend what could have been our last night together fighting with you, but I didn't get passed it. You kissed him Buffy. It makes a bloke wonder if I was ever anything more than a stand in because you can't have the real thing. Makes me wonder if that's all I'll be for you, if you've gotten over him or ever will. And that is why I didn't tell you I was still alive. Because having you think of me as the guy who died saving the world was better than wondering if I'm just your Angel stand in."
Buffy opened his mouth, wanting to say something, anything. But no sound came out. Spike stared at her a long moment with an unreadable look on his face before he walked passed her without a word.
"So, we both lived," Faith noted as she sat down next to Bucky.
"We did," Bucky agreed. "So…can I take you out on that date now?"
"You really are just an old fashioned guy, aren't you?" Faith asked with a chuckle. "Most guys would have taken off once they got what they wanted from me."
"I'm not most guys. So, can I?" Bucky inquired and she was silent for a moment.
"Once things calm down a bit, let's go for a drink and see where things go from there," Faith finally said.
Bucky opened his mouth to speak when a familiar hissing sound was heard. They all turned as a portal opened and Strange stepped out.
"Well?" Angel asked and Strange turned towards him.
"The Senior Partners are gone, forever this time. They won't be able to influence humanity or others ever again," Strange said, to the relief of everyone.
"Then I guess there's only one thing left to do," Angel said, his eyes hardening as the room grew somber.
In the lab, The Avengers, The Scoobies, Team Angel, plus Peter, Bucky, Connor, T'Challa and Strange stood looking down at the six Infinity Stones, which had been carefully assembled on the table.
"I had thought they were only legend," Giles said, seeming like he wanted to reach out and touch one.
"Aren't we all?" Spike said dryly.
"You should know better than anyone Giles that all legends have some basis in reality," Wesley pointed out and Giles nodded.
"Fair point," he mused.
"So what do we do with them? I assume we're not destroying them," Xander noted.
"No, that would be a bad idea," Willow said immediately.
"Ms. Rosenberg is right. The stones are an integral piece of reality. Even Thanos was wise enough not to mess with such a thing. Destroying the stones would destroy reality as we know it," Strange warned.
"So let's not do that," Connor said dryly.
"Then what do we do them?" Tony asked.
As if in answer, a bright light powerful enough to temporarily blind them filled the room. When it faded, a woman in a white cloak stood in the room.
"Who are you?" Thor demanded, about to call Stormbreaker when Willow and Angel were suddenly in front of him.
"Hey, Thor, calm down, she's not a threat," Angel quickly assured him.
"She's a member of the Coven of the Netherworld. They're a coven of dead witches; they're like the Anti-Senior Partners. They actually showed us how to get the stones back," Willow explained and Thor lowered his arm.
"It is an honor," Strange said as he bowed.
"Rise Stephen Strange," the witch said, lowering her hood to reveal an older woman. "You have all done well, played your parts. Now we must play ours."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Steve asked wearily.
"The stones have proven to be too dangerous to be left unchecked. So the Coven has decided to take them back with us," the witch explained.
"And we're just supposed to let you?" Buffy asked wearily.
"Buffy," Willow said and Buffy turned to her. "You have to be a saint to be considered worthy of being a member of Coven…Tara is one of them."
A moment of silence passed as Buffy, Giles and Xander all stood in shock at this new piece of information. Then, Buffy nodded.
"If Tara is one of you…I guess that's good enough for me," Buffy said as she looked towards the witch.
"Besides, removing something so dangerous, taking the stones where no one can get them, seems like a good idea to me," Natasha mused.
The Witched nodded, waving her hand. In a flash of light, the six stones vanished. She then turned to Willow.
"You played your part well Willow Rosenberg. The Coven has decided to reward you," the witch said.
"Respectfully, there's nothing the Coven can give me that I want," Willow said, surprised to see a smile cross the witch's face.
"I wouldn't be too sure about that."
The witch waved a hand and there was another flash of blinding light. When it faded, the Scoobies, Spike, Angel and Faith were stunned to see Tara Maclay stood in the room, dressed in the same clothes she had died in, minus the bullet wound.
"You will rejoin us when your time comes Tara. Enjoy your second life," the witch said before vanishing in a flash of light.
"I'm not hallucinating, right? You guys see her to?" Xander asked just to be certain.
"You're not hallucinating Xander. It's really me," Tara said with a smile.
Dawn suddenly launched herself at Tara, wrapping her arms around her. Tara stumbled momentarily before steadying herself, wrapping her arms around Dawn.
"It's me Dawnie, I'm here," Tara said gently.
One by one, the other Scoobies all joined, forming a group hug as they made sure Tara really was alive. All but one.
They entangled themselves from Tara as they turned to Willow, who was staring at Tara in a state of shock. Cautiously, Tara approached Willow as she seemed to come back to herself.
"Tell me this isn't a dream. Because I don't think I'll survive if it is," Willow almost whimpered.
"It's not a dream Will," Tara said gently, reaching out and taking Willow's face in her hands so Willow could feel her. "I'm really here. And I'm not leaving you this time."
Losing all restraint, forgetting they weren't alone, Willow grabbed Tara's face and pulled her into a sloppy kiss, needing the reassurance that she was really back. Tara returned the kiss as she wrapped her arms around Willow, just happy to be back with the woman she loved.
Avengers Compound, a few days later
Morning
Once the wreckage of the Compound had been cleared out a bit, they had decided to make a sort of memorial to those killed in the battle. In the center of the battlefield, conjured by Willow and Tara, was a marble pillar with the words 'in memory of all those who gave their lives to prevent Thanos and the Senior Partners from succeeding' carved into it. Below it, the names of Gamora, Loki, Vision, Kennedy and everyone who had died in the battle of Wakanda and against the Senior Partners were carved into it.
Sam stood in front of the stone before turning to address the crowd.
"We all lost someone. They gave their lives to make sure we could all live, but that doesn't make it any easier," Sam noted. "They're gone. And now it's up to us to figure out how to go on. But if we can't rise above to live our lives the way they would have wanted us to…there was no point in us surviving. We have to live our lives, for them. We're the masters of our own fates now. Let's make it count. Let's make every day matter. Most of us have seen what the last three months have been like, and for those of you haven't, every day from now on is a gift. We can't waste this gift that has been given to us. It's time to rise above the pain and tragedy that we've all endured and make this world the best we can."
Because while they had lost more than they had ever thought they could, they were still here. They had pressed on, come out the other side victorious. Just like they always did. And just like they always would.
The scene where Strange takes out the Senior Partners was taken from Aragorn II Elessar's story 'Angel and Devil at law'. Thank you to him for letting me use it.
Honestly, I hate the Buffy/Angel kiss in 7x21 because it is so OOC for both of them, as both have long since moved on from their relationship. Joss Whedon admitted he really just did it to pander to the Bangirl fangirls and it honestly wouldn't surprise me if he did it as part of his vendetta against Cordelia/Charisma. But what really bothers me is how Spike is expected to just shrug this off, that took Spike and Buffy's relationship back a few steps IMO. So here's me addressing it.
And Tara is back, because how could I not bring her back?
So, one more chapter to go.