Gypsy Girl
Pairing: OC/Spike
Summary: When a travelling Gypsy from the Kalderash clan settles on the Sunnydale, she'll be no exception to the challenges of life on the Hellmouth. Alexandreina will survive though, she always does, but will she get a chance to live?
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CHAPTER SEVEN
"Ho korias phanaytie toutay... tay nuktee. 'The Master shall rise... and the Slayer must die"
Flash.
In his lair, the Master stands with his arms stretched out above him. "Yes! YES! Shake, Earth! This is a sign! We are in the final days! My time has come! Glory! GLORY!"
The quake is over as quickly as it started.
The Master looks over at Collin. "Whadaya think? 5.1?" The Masker grins evilly
Flash.
"I've checked it against all my other volumes. It's very real" Giles says
"Well, there's gotta be some way around it" Angel tells him in denial
"Listen. Some prophecies are, are a bit dodgy. They're- they're mutable. Buffy herself has, has thwarted them time and time again, but this is the Codex. There is nothing in it that does not come to pass." Giles sighs, not liking any of this any more than Angel.
Angel shook his head, "Then you're reading it wrong"
"I wish to God I were! But it's very plain! Tomorrow night Buffy will face the Master, and she will die!" Giles yelled
Flash.
"So that's it, huh? I remember the drill. One Slayer dies, next one's called! Wonder who she is..." Buffy said, a detached tone in her voice. "Will you train her, Giles? Or will they send someone else?
"Buffy, I..." Giles stuttered slightly, unable to think of something to say.
"They say how he's gonna kill me? Do you think it'll hurt?" Buffy asks, tears flowing freely from her eyes. Angel tried to hug her, but she put up her hands and quickly steps away. "Don't touch me!" She shouts before looking to Giles "Were you even gonna tell me?"
"I was hoping that I wouldn't have to. That there was... some way around it. I..." Giles looks down, unable to meet her eyes.
"I've got a way around it" Buffy announced, "I quit!"
"It's not that simple" Angel tried to say
Buffy shook her head at him. "I'm making it that simple! I quit! I resign, I-I'm fired, you can find someone else to stop the Master from taking over!"
Giles sighed, "I'm not sure that anyone else can. All the- the signs indicate..."
"The signs?" Buffy scoffs as she throws a book at him. "READ ME THE SIGNS! TELL ME MY FORTUNE! YOU'RE SO USEFUL SITTING HERE WITH ALL YOUR BOOKS! YOU'RE REALLY A LOTTA HELP!"
"No, I don't suppose I am" Giles says dejectedly
Angel sighed, "I know this is hard-"
Buffy shook her head at him with tears in her eyes. "What do you know about this? You're never gonna die!"
"You think I want anything to happen to you? Do you think I could stand it? We just gotta figure out a way..." Angel insisted
"I already did" Buffy shrugged, "I quit, remember? Pay attention!"
Giles pursed his lips, "Buffy, if the Master rises..." he trailed off unsure of what he was supposed to do in this situation. His loyalty to the world and his loyalty to this girl he mentors were clashing with no good outcome.
Buffy yanks the cross from her neck. "I don't care! I don't care. Giles, I'm sixteen years old. I don't wanna die" Buffy throws her cross down on the floor and storms out of the library.
Flash.
Giles stands in the library getting weapons out of the cage to prepare for a fight.
"Okay, so this Master guy tried to open the Hellmouth. But he got stuck in it, and now all the signs are reading that he's gonna get out, which opens the Hellmouth, which brings the demons, which ends the world." Janna was asking Giles
"Yes. That about sums it up, yes" Giles nodded. "Did you get in touch with your Wiccan contacts?"
"One man. He left a short message before he disappeared last night. Isaiah 11:6, which I dutifully looked up." Janna announced with a sigh
"'The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf, the lion and the fatling together, and the little child to lead them.'" Giles recited thoughtfully. "Aurelius wrote of the Anointed One, 'The Slayer will not know him, and he will lead her into Hell.'"
"So you think the Anointed is a kid?" Janna frowned
"If the vampire that Buffy killed was in fact not the Anointed, then it may well be" Giles agreed.
"Well, then we need to warn her" Janna stated
Giles shook his head sadly. Looking away from Janna as he spoke. "I don't intend on involving her at all"
"What do you mean?" Janna demanded with narrowed eyes
"Buffy was right. She shouldn't have to face the Master and die. So she won't. I will" Giles declared with more confidence than he genuinely possessed
"No, you're won't" Buffy appeared in the library, grim determination on her face.
Flash.
They reach the entrance of the Master's lair. Collin stops, and Buffy looks at him. He points down below, inviting her to enter, and leaves the opposite way. Buffy watches him go but then quickly turns and makes her way down to the floor below. There are hundreds of candles burning everywhere in the dark dank cave.
"Welcome" The Master's voice seems to be coming from all directions at once.
"Thanks for having me." Buffy snarks to cover her fear. "Y'know, you really oughtta talk to your contractor. Looks like you got some water damage."
The Master steps into the light. "Oh, good. The feeble banter portion of the fight. Why don't we just cut to the-"
Buffy spins around and launches a bolt in the direction of his voice. With his lightning reflexes the Master catches it right in front of his chest. "You're not going to kill me" the Master laughs
"Don't be so sure" Buffy warns him
"You still don't understand your part in all this, do you? You are not the hunter. You are the lamb" The Master taunts but his words ring true.
Buffy turns around and the Master knocks the crossbow out of her hands. He grabs her by the neck and wraps his hand around Buffy's throat. Buffy swings up with her arm, knocks his hand away and starts to run. He holds his hand out toward her and she freezes, caught by his hypnotic powers. She looks back at him, beginning to panic when she finds she can't move. He approaches her, making slow twisting motions with his hand. He comes up behind her, gently taking off her leather jacket and letting it fall to the ground with taunting slowness. "You tried. It was noble of you. You heard the prophecy that I was about to break free and you came to stop me. But prophecies are tricky creatures. They don't tell you everything... You're the one that sets me free!" The Master gloats. "If you hadn't come, I couldn't go. Think about that!"
Buffy is frozen with fear, knowing she wasn't getting out of this.
This is it.
The Master bends down and bites the base of her neck. He drinks a few sips and lets her go, "Oh, good! The power!" He throws his head back in pleasure
But Buffy falls to her knees.
"And by the way... I like your dress" The Master laughs as he watches Buffy fall face down in the pool of water. He steps over to the edge of his confines and pushes against the field. He forces his hand through, and his confines break down in a burst of light and energy. He starts up and out of his lair with manic laughter.
Flash.
Xander and Angel run into the Masters lair. They spit Buffy and rush to her side. Angel pulls Buffy out of the water, checking for a pulse. "She's dead" Angel realises in absolute horror
"No. She's not dead" Xander insists
"She's not breathing" Angel tried to put it gently. Far too old to be in denial over things like this. No matter how much he wished it weren't true.
"But if she drowned, uh, there's a shot! CPR!" Xander yells
"You have to do it. I have no breath" Angel says quickly as he realises there could be a chance to get Buffy back.
Xander takes off his jacket and lays it over her. He kneels down by her face and looks at her a moment, then puts his mouth on hers and blows into her lungs. He lets go and begins to pump her chest, "C'mon. C'mon!"
Flash.
"You laugh when my Hell is on Earth?"
"You're that amped about Hell..." Buffy muttered as she grabs the Master by the neck "Go there!" She lifts him up and flips him over herself and through the skylight. He falls down and is impaled on the table. He slowly turns to ash until only his skeleton is left.
Buffy watches from above.
The Hellmouth creature quickly disappears back into the floor. The vampires are all gone.
Flash.
With the memory of her latest vision in mind, Alexandreina stood in front of her bedroom mirror. She eyes her outfit critically. Using the clothing as a way to distract and procrastinate. She was still unsure of why her visions seemed to revolve around the Slayer lately. It wasn't as if Buffy needed her help, and Alexandreina wasn't offering it.
Not willingly at least.
Her visions weren't calling for her to step in an alter events though. They were merely giving her answers to council the Slayerettes.
Alexandreina didn't want to council the Slayer though.
She didn't want to help them.
She wasn't the type of person who got off on saving the world. She didn't have a hero complex. Nor were her morals exactly in line with those of the Slayers own. Alexandreina wasn't that good of a person and she was perfectly comfortable with that. She wasn't looking to change - she's too far gone for that. Alexandreina had been through too much to ever be so pure.
Which is why she didn't understand the purpose of her visions.
Alexandreina pursed her lips in annoyance. She ran her fingers through her long dark hair that reminded her of Ella Eyre before the woman died her ends blonde, of course. Alexandreina admired her reflection, focusing intently on her appearance as a way to postpone the inevitable trip to console the upset Slayer.
She hated this.
Even hated herself a little bit for it.
Alexandreina sighed and scooped up her large mass of ringlet curls, twisting it into a messy topknot on her head.
Maybe a little beautification will help with her mood?
Probably not.
But it's worth a try anyway, if for no other reason than to delay having to seek out Buffy. Emotions were something Alexandreina knew how to fake well, but that didn't make them any less uncomfortable.
She wasn't the emotional type.
In fact, Alexandreina was rather stunted in that department. Her entire early childhood had been a minefield of emotion and physical abuse, after all. The only way she had been able to cope was to lock that shit down. Tears never did anything but provoke a harsher torture. So, Alexandreina had learnt only to feel what she had to feel.
If it didn't concern her survival, Alexandreina was indifferent to it.
But then what was left?
What does that leave for her to care about now that she's surviving just fine on her own?
Maybe that was why she was having visions of the Slayerettes. Some fucked up way of getting her to make friends or something.
"Yeah, right..." Alexandreina huffed out a laugh at the mere thought.
She rolled her eyes and placed a pair of long dangling silver earrings that brushed along her collarbone as she moved. After pushing her hand through a collection of silver bangles, she fixed the 4 diamonds studs in her ear to match the stud in her nose. Alexandreina looked back towards the mirror and brushed a hand over the ruffles in the tightly fitted emerald green crop top she wore. Her tightly fitted pants flared out at the bottom, the material a dark boho pattern that went nicely with a simple pair of black heels.
She was dressed and ready to go out... and yet she hesitated, searching for any minute detail that could delay her exit.
Only she couldn't find one.
Alexandreina groaned in annoyance and snatched up her purse with more force than necessary. With effort she made her way out of her home to begin the trek into the suburbs of Sunnydale. The only condolence was the calming breeze as she walked through the streets.
She sighed.
Unable to keep her mind from wandering back to questions of why she was doing this in the first place.
Alexandreina let out yet another sigh as she reached Revello Drive. Spotting the house in question she cut across the lawns to reach it. Careful not to let her heels sink into the grass as she did so, and ignoring the glare from the lady sitting on her porch. Alexandreina approached the Summers household - finding herself curiously glancing around at the house. Not living in a house herself, it made her curious about the differences to her own home. The house was nice looking; trimmed hedges, green grass, car parked out front. It looked like one of the houses one would see on an all-American family movie. All it needed now was a dog and a flag.
Alexandreina knocked on the door.
An older blonde woman answered with a confused but welcoming smile. "Hello?" the woman greeted
"Hi. I'm Alexandreina. I'm looking for Buffy" Alexandreina told the woman, assuming this to be Buffy's mother.
Joyce Summers.
"Oh, yes, a friend of Buffy's" Joyce smiled kindly and opened the door wider to welcome her inside. "I'll just go get her. She just got back from studying with Willow"
Sure she did.
Alexandreina, despite knowing that wasn't true, nodded her head anyway. She watched the woman walk up the stairs and disappear down a hallway. It only took a few seconds but Buffy rushed down the stairs with Joyce in tow. She could read the wary confusion on the Slayer's face but only offered a calm and collected look in response. Alexandreina opened her mouth to explain why she was here, but Buffy rushed to cut her off before she could.
"Mom!" Buffy practically yelled to stop Alexandreina from speaking. Buffy's eyes were wide as she gestured between her mother and Alexandreina. "Mom this is Alexandreina... and Alexandreina this is my mom, Joyce"
"Lovely to meet you, Alexandreina" Joyce smiled, "And that's quite a beautiful name"
"Thank you" Alexandreina nodded, "It's nice meeting you too Mrs. Summers" she said respectfully while casting an odd glance at Buffy when Joyce wasn't looking.
"Mom we're gonna go upstairs. I have to give Alexandreina the notes from History class today" Buffy rushed out before practically dragging Alexandreina up the stairs and into a bedroom. Only once they were alone in the room and Buffy had securely locked the door, did the Slayer actually calm down. "What are you doing here? Did something happen?"
"Your mom doesn't know, does she?" Alexandreina asked
"No. She doesn't" Buffy sighed, "Now. What exactly are you doing at my home?"
"I had another vision" Alexandreina said, moving around the room as if it were her own. She casually took a seat on the edge of the bed and got comfortable. Only then did she look back at Buffy who seemed conflicted about whether or not she wanted to ask about the vision. Alexandreina knew the Slayer needed to hear what she had to say though, whether or not Buffy wanted to, so she continued. "The prophesy says the Master will rise and the Slayer will die" Alexandreina stated factually. "It doesn't say that the Slayer has to stay dead"
"What?" Buffy asked, shocked
Alexandreina shrugged, "I've seen it in my visions. You can't beat the Master on his turf - he's had decades to get familiar with it"
"But how can I get him up here then?" Buffy asked. "He's trapped"
"Everything will work out in the end, Buffy, but I can't tell you too much. I'm not here to change events, I'm here to tell you to trust yourself and your friends" Alexandreina told the Slayer seriously.
She couldn't risk changing things.
Not when things only just narrowly go right for the Slayerettes.
Buffy sighed.
"Look, all I can tell you is that you're going to make it out of this alive in the end" Alexandreina tried to assure the blonde with as much confidence as she could muster. She knew it was true, she had seen it, but that didn't mean she could risk explaining it to Buffy.
"How are you so sure this vision is true?" Buffy narrowed her eyes
Alexandreina just smirked, "They're always true"
"Cocky much" Buffy rolled her eyes but seemed to relax a fraction at the confidence in Alexandreina's tone.
"What about the advice the cards gave you? Did you figure that out?" Alexandreina wondered, partly curious and partly as a distraction.
Buffy nodded, "The guy - not so much a guy. Or, well, he's, uh, a vampire guy actually. With a soul. And still as dreamy as ever"
She snorted.
But, wow, a vampire with a soul?
There are very few cases where a vampire has a completely intact soul after their transformation. Though having partial remaining parts of a soul is not that uncommon in vampires. In fact, a good portion of vampires retain fractions of their souls in their undead life. Usually it just translates into a few 'personality quirks' and the likes for most vampires.
A fully intact soul is rare.
Interesting.
"The cards did say that there was a path you can take that continues your relationship with him" Alexandreina reminded Buffy
"Yeah. I've just been a bit busy lately" Buffy sighed. "The whole your going-to-get-killed thing, y'know?"
"Right" she nodded in understanding
"I really hope your right, Alexandreina" Buffy muttered, "But even if your not... I don't think I can allow the world to go to hell"
"I'm right" Alexandreina stated before standing up and heading towards Buffy's door. She paused and looked back at the upset blonde. "By the way, I like your dress"
"Thanks" Buffy smiled reluctantly
"You can do this, Buffy, I've seen it" Alexandreina reminded the Slayer before she took her leave. Walking herself out of the Summers household without an issue. Alexandreina gave Joyce Summers a small nod as she left the Summers house. There was nothing more she could do, even if she had wished otherwise.
Not that she did.
Either way, Alexandreina had to let the events play out as they were destined to. Interfering in them could set off a chain of events that change everything.
That was too much of a risk.
If she doesn't want the world to be overrun with vampires and demons then she needs to stay out of it.
It wasn't her place.
This was the Slayers job.
In the meantime Alexandreina knew of a big party at the local collage campus. Knowing there would be music, guys and free beer - she headed that way straight from Buffy's house. There wasn't any more she could do anyway, she had done her part tonight by giving the Slayer hope of surviving this fight. Now it was time to make sure she hadn't wasted all that time getting dressed up for nothing.
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