Sunnydale, California
Construction Site: Science Building
Walking together side-by-side through the dark construction site just outside the main campus of the new Sunnydale High School, Nick's eyes were mainly fixed Buffy. The last 24/hours was a mind twist. Nick still couldn't believe that this was actually happening. He was transported to the year 2003 and he was actually on a patrol with is mother—or his 'future' mother. Patrolling would've never ever happened in his time. He's asked her a zillion times and the answer was always the same. His father, the constant mediator, never helped and always agreed with her, never once taking Nick's side. Nick constantly seemed to walk into a losing battle against his mother—granted she was usually right and he was most definitely—probably in the wrong.
Nick still found it unfair.
Buffy felt his constant gaze on her, but decided to ignore it. She had come to the decision that this kid was harmless but that did not negate the feeling that she knew him. He seemed so familiar to her somehow.
He did not just feel familiar but he looked familiar. His high cheekbones, chin, and his eyes that were so brightly green. Buffy knew those eyes, she's seen them before but for the life of her couldn't put her finger on it. Her trailing thoughts of Nick were interrupted by his voice.
"Have you always lived in this town?" He asked, breaking the silence for the first time since trekking on this journey to find the Turok-Han.
"Um, no." Buffy kept her eyes surveying the darkness for anything abnormal lurking in the shadows. "I'm originally from Los Angeles. I moved here seven or eight years ago… something like that."
Scratching the back of his head, Nick felt awkward, hoping that her reply would've been a bit more than two sentences, giving him time to figure out how to bring up Giles. "Are you and Da—" Nick quickly caught himself, "Rupert a thing?"
Blushing, Buffy lowered her head, trying to hide her face from her instant embarrassment. "Excuse me? Huh?" She shakily laughed, finding it strange on the day she began to acknowledge her feelings and attraction towards Giles was the day Nick asked her if they were together. Coincidence or did he know something she did not?
"I just meant…" Nick stammered, "uh, you guys seem…"
"Me and Giles? N-no. No. no, no, no." Buffy nervously laughed. "We're not a… thing. Why would you think that we'd be a... thing?"
Nick shrugged, looking into the darkness for the UberVamp. "It's just weird that you're not together."
Buffy paused mid-step, grabbing Nick by his sleeve, forcing him to also stop. "Why would it be weird?"
"I dunno," Nick pushed back his hair off of his forehead, "I just think you guys look good together…" ... and I want to be born, he said to himself.
Buffy's face reddened, unsure how to feel about that.
On the way to the high school, Nick had found a flyer posted on a wall for a local farmers market in two days. "Maybe if you spend more time together…" He passed her the flyer.
Speechless, Buffy looked down at the advertisement, her thoughts circulating her brain a mile-a-minute. "Um…"
"Have you thought about it? Maybe? Perhaps?" Nick asked, stuffing his hands into the front pockets of his jeans.
Buffy narrowed her gaze on him, finding his interest in her personal life suspicious. "For not knowing us, you seem entirely too invested in…" her words died on her lips, hearing a metal clanking sound in the background. "Stay behind me." She pointed to the ground forcing him to stand behind him.
Spotting the bald-headed creature, Buffy took off after it, attacking it from behind.
Anticipating the attack, the UberVamp whirled around, knocking Buffy to the ground with a hard fist into her face.
Wincing in pain from the hard blow, Buffy unsteadily got back to her feet and looked at the UberVamp. She kicked her leg, aimed at the Turok-Han's face. The UberVamp ducked under the swinging kick. Buffy then punched her fist but it was easily blocked.
The UberVamp countered with a hard punch straight into Buffy's face and stomach, knocking the air from her lungs. The UberVamp dropped Buffy to the ground.
He then rolled her onto her back, picking her up by the front of her coat and dangling her off of the ground. Buffy spat blood into his face, startling him, and she managed to escape the UberVamp's clutches.
Running away, Buffy spotted Nick, gearing up to attack the Turok-Han when Buffy called out to him to stay where he stood.
Nick hesitated, but did as he was told.
Easily catching up with the Vampire Slayer, the UberVamp superman punched Buffy to the ground. She struggles to get back onto her feet when she is punched again into the stomach, forcing her to double over, clutching an arm across her stomach.
"Hey, dickhead!" Nick shouted, taunting the prehistoric vampire. "You want blood? Come and get it, fuckin' bastard!"
The UberVamp growled and turned his attention towards the sixteen-year-old and started sprinting across the construction site.
Nick's eyes widened with panic. "Oh, shit!" Not anticipating the Turok-Han's speed, Nick needed to get moving fast. He turned to a ladder leading up to a crane and decided to make his escape, giving his mother enough time to recover.
At top speed the UberVamp chased after the teen as he climbed up to the top of the crane.
Keeping his balance, Nick scolded himself for his arguably even dumber decision of climbing the job. "Bloody brilliant idea, git." He looked over his shoulder at the Turok-Han sprinting towards him. "Whoa!" At the last moment, Nick crouched to the ground, letting the UberVamp topple over him, falling 62-feet to the ground.
Recovering from the fall, the UberVamp gets back to its feet and locks eyes with the Vampire Slayer. He comes at her again, and she drops to the ground, avoiding the blow. He continued to beat her body into submission by kicking and punching her. Buffy heard her ribs crack. She sucked in a painful breath when he punched her in the head.
The Turok-Han grabbed her by the front of her coat, manhandling her and backhands across the face then flung her 25-feet across the construction site.
In no time at all, the UberVamp caught up to her, grabbing her from behind and throwing her into a concrete wall. Buffy staggers backwards, still standing, when the UberVamp crawls up the wall to gain momentum and height to kick her in the face, knocking Buffy to the ground.
Then he kicks her in the head again before grabbing her by the arms and throwing Buffy through a concrete block wall.
The wall crumbles down on top of her, the roof caves in, covering her.
"Mum!" Nick jumped off of the ladder, only a short distance down to the ground and looked around the surroundings to see that the UberVamp had disappeared.
He sprinted over to his mother, hidden under a pile of rubble and lifted off part of the metal roof that had fallen on top of her. What was under the roof made him sick to his stomach.
Buffy laid still on her back. Her face, covered in blood and knocked out cold.
Gathering her up into his arms, Nick pushed the strands of her blonde hair off of her forehead. He wrapped one arm under her back and the other under her knees, carrying her away from the scene.
1630 Revello Drive
Kicking at the front door, Dawn opened it and was in shock to see Nick frantically carrying an unconscious Buffy into the house.
"Help!" He cried, unsure what to do with this severely injured 'future' mother. "I need help!"
From the living room, Giles, Xander, Willow, and the others ran into the foyer to see the bloody Vampire Slayer in Nick's arms.
Immediately, Giles went to Nick's aid, transferring Buffy from the teenager's arms and into his own. "What happened?" He asked, ignoring the clenching of his heart in his chest.
"The Turok-Han…" Nick struggled to find his voice and looked Giles directly in the eye, "She's hurt, make it better." He ordered.
"Upstairs." Giles ordered and turned to Willow. "Get me the first aid kit in the closet."
Hot on his heels, Nick followed Giles up the stairs, down the hallway, and into Buffy's bedroom.
Standing in the background, Nick watched his 'future' father carefully lay Buffy down on the bed. Giles looked over her for a moment and began to unfasten the buttons of her coat, needing to check the severity of her injuries.
All Nick could do was stand in the background, staring at the horrific scene in front of him. He had never felt that level of panic and fear in his entire life before. The images of his mother being tossed through a brick wall and repeatedly beaten to a bloody pulp will give him nightmares, he was certain of it.
He half expected her to get right back up and dust herself off but his heart fell into the pit of his stomach when she didn't move.
Never in his life had he ever seen anyone so hurt—let alone his own mother. Blood stained half of her beautiful face.
His eyes winded, catching a glimpse of Buffy's broken ribs. Her torso looked dark purple.
Stepping aside for Willow to enter with the first aid kit. She walked out of the room giving Giles space to help the Vampire Slayer.
Taking a small step forward, Nick's eyes were latched onto his unconscious mother. "Will she… Will she be okay?" He asked, finding his voice.
Rolling her shirt back down her torso, Giles ripped open a santazing packet and gingerly began to clean the wounds and certain bruises on her face. He carefully dabbed away the blood, trying hard not to play the scenario of her third death in his head.
"I'm not sure." Giles answered with honesty. "She's unconscious now. She needs time."
"How much time?" Nick asked, a bit impatiently, but his fear for his mother's life was clouding any other rational thought he had.
Giles remained patient and took Buffy's hand carefully not to aggravate her injuries. "As long as it takes, I suspect."
Nick swallowed, his eyes fixed on Buffy lying on her back broken and beaten.
2 Hours Later
Dining Room
Huddled in the corner, holding his arms tightly across his chest, Nick stared into the abyss, the fight against the UberVamp replaying over and over in his head. Pulling the tin roof off of his unconscious mother would be an image that'll haunt him. He had no idea it got like this, the danger and the violence she faced—all of them.
To his own regret, he never thought about how his parents got into their positions at the Council, only that they were there and they've always been there. He hated himself for so long resenting his mother for sending Slayers into the fry without ever going herself. He had always figured it was like Parliament. They declare war but they never go and actually fight it.
"Giles, she looks bad." Willow's voice tore Nick from his thoughts.
Nick blinked from the nothingness in front of him and looked across the room at his wiccan aunt.
"She does." Giles said, standing against the wall beside Nick. "I'm afraid there may be internal bleeding."
Nick's eyes widened, now even more terrified for his mother. "Wha-what does that mean? Will she—"
"Die? I don't think so. I don't know." Giles bowed his head, looking down at his shoes.
Willow looked at the former Watcher with concern on her face. "What do we do if she can't fight, if she can't beat this thing?"
Pacing back and forth, Giles removed his glasses and took out a clothed lens cleaner from his pocket. The Slayers-in-training sat around the dining room table, along with Dawn and Anya, Willow, and Xander.
"We're back at square one," said Giles, exhaling a heavy sigh, rubbing a hand over his exhausted face.
"Which square would that be, exactly?" Xander asked.
Giles frowned, wishing he had more of an answer for their concerns, but didn't have a clue. "I'm not sure. The First predates everything we've ever known, or can know. It's everywhere. It's pure. I don't know if we can fight it."
Nick was the first to see Buffy enter the dining room. He stood up straight from his leaning position against the wall as the rest of the room turned to the Vampire Slayer, appearing just as surprised to see her walking around.
"You're right. We don't know how to fight it." Buffy said, her voice is low, tired, but confident. "We don't know when it'll come. We can't run, can't hide, can't pretend it's not the end, 'cause it is. Something's always been there to try and destroy the world. We've beaten them back, but we're not dealing with them anymore. We're dealing with the reason they exist. Evil. The strongest. The First."
"Buffy, I—I-I know you're tired…" Giles felt worry for her standing already after her injuries.
Standing resolute, Buffy looked at the former Watcher, then carefully at each face surrounding her. "I'm beyond tired. I'm beyond scared. I'm standing on the mouth of hell, and it is gonna swallow me whole. And it'll choke on me."
Nick stared at his 'future' mother. There was an awe inspiring power to her that Nick had never noticed before. It was no wonder everyone in the Council, including every world leader followed her.
Buffy continued, "We're not ready? They're not ready. They think we're gonna wait for the end to come, like we always do. I'm done waiting. They want an apocalypse? Oh, we'll give 'em one. Anyone else who wants to run, do it now. 'Cause we just became an army. We just declared war. From now on, we won't just face our worst fears, we will seek them out. We will find them, and cut out their hearts one by one, until The First shows itself for what it really is. And I'll kill it myself. There is only one thing on this earth more powerful than evil, and that's us. Any questions?"
A surge of pride shot through Nick's entire body, standing a bit taller, raise his chin a little higher, feeling a surge of confidence in his surname that he hadn't felt before.
He turned his gaze to Giles, who was looking at the blonde similarly, except his gaze was filled with love. Nick was certain he had just witnessed his father falling head over heels for his mother. A small smile tugged at the corners of Nick's mouth, kind of enjoying this front row seat to his parents' love.
Next Morning
Kitchen
Opening the basement door a bit sore from the flat cot he'd been sleeping on, Nick rubbed his lower back as he stepped into the kitchen.
"Rough night?"
Nick's head shot up to see Buffy leaning back against the counter with a coffee cup between her hands. Shutting his mouth closed, Nick knew he probably looked like a cod fish with his mouth agape.
His eyes wandered around her face, shocked to see the cuts fully closed and the bruises were totally gone. He knew that Vampire Slayer's healed quickly, but not that quickly.
"Should you be walking around?" Nick asked, taking a seat on the stool at the counter island.
Buffy shrugged. "Probably not. But I can't sit around all day."
Nick smirked oddly pleased that this restless trait of hers remained the same. His mother was always on the move and rarely sat still for more than three minutes, unless his father coasted her into it, usually by affection.
"I don't think you walking around like this is a good idea." Nick raised a brow, watching Buffy turn to the toaster once the burnt bread popped up.
Smiling softly as she spread grape jelly onto the toast, Buffy said, "You sound like Giles. I'll live. Getting my ass kicked comes with the job. I'll be fine." She faced him, taking a bite of the toast.
Nick decided to drop the subject. He extended his arm across the counter island for the cereal box left out and poured it into an empty bowl, which was also left out.
"Hey,"
Nick lifted his chin, looking up at Buffy.
"Thanks for what you did back there." She sheepishly said. "You lured the Neander-vamp to save me—"
"He still hurt you." Nick said with guilt in his voice. "Nearly killed you."
Buffy pensively pursed her lips for a moment then shrugged, giving him her comforting half-smile. "Even still... what you did was very brave—Incredibly stupid, but brave."
His stomach twisted with excitement that Buffy seemed to feel more relaxed and trustful around him. "No problem." He replied, fighting the smile on his face.
Buffy used the coffee cup to hide the smiling forming across her face.
From the kitchen entrance, Giles entered, surprised to see Buffy and Nick foolishly smiling at one another. His gaze focused on the blonde, looking at her carefully. "Buffy, why are you up? You should be resting."
Buffy shot Nick an 'I told you so ' look, which made the teenager laugh. "See?" She passed between the two men as she made her exit with the coffee cup in hand.
"See what?" Giles frowned.
"Nothing." Nick slid off the stool and patted a hand over Giles' shoulder. "Absolutely nothing."
Giles remained in the kitchen feeling utterly confused.