(O.O)
Drusilla
It is so unfair, you know...?
Everyone seems to be busy with something tonight. Either they are off fighting some naughty college boys who were summoning nasty lizard demons or they're researching for my cure, all while little old me was stuck inside this boring room all by my lonesome. I can't even play with my dollies because Grandmummy took them away because she wanted me to rest.
So unfair!
Suddenly, I felt dizzy, even though I was already laying on my bed. I heard voices and whispers from the damned and beyond. It grew louder as images of death, pain, and grief came to me. I couldn't take it anymore.
Oooh... My head...
Suddenly the vision passed and I knew that I was needed elsewhere.
"I must go now," I whispered to myself as got out of my bed and slipped out of my nightgown and got dressed for the dance that I would be attending this evening.
After applying the final touches to my ruby red lipstick, I opened my vanity's drawer and took out one of the stakes that I had hidden there. I placed it on the leather strap that was tied around my thigh and then slowly walked towards the door of my room.
"Going to help out the Sunshine's mum." I smiled happily and let out a small giggle as I quietly descended the stairs and silently walked down the hallway.
I was glad that I could not sense William or Grandmummy within the house. It made this escape of mine that much easier without them around. I still needed to avoid the minions though, because they tell my secrets. They adore and fear Grandmummy too much to not tell her I was leaving or stop me from going. Luckily for me, it seemed that the minions were all in the study, most likely still researching for my stupid cure, instead of the lobby where they usually hung out. But I still needed to be careful. They were vampires after all, and could possibly hear me trying to leave.
So yes, soundlessly I will go. I had been just a few steps to the door when a voice resounded behind me.
"Mistress Drusilla?"
"Dalton!" I cried out in surprised as I turned to face the other vampire. I glanced at the door leading towards the study to check if I had been heard by any of the other minions. When none came out, I sighed in relief.
"What are you doing out of bed?" he asked as he slowly approached, making me turn to face him again.
"I was hoping to get some fresh air." I had to lie, for I knew the minion in front of me would not agree with my plan to rescue a certain Slayer's mum. "I've been stuck in my room for so long that I wish to get out and stretch my legs."
"Well, Mistress, we can get that in the garden around back. You don't have to go out front," he told me, slowly approaching. His hand closed gently around my wrist.
"Oh, but Dalton, I do not want to get it there! I mean, I cannot go there!" I told him and subtly struggled against his arm that was leading me towards the gardens.
He stopped, thankfully, and gave me an inquisitive look. "Why, Mistress?"
"Um-I am allergic to certain plant there!"
Oh my! My lies just kept adding up, one after another. Miss Edith would truly be cross with me once I get her back from Grandmummy. So please don't tell her!
"Allergic? I didn't know vampires can be allergic." His brow furrowed.
"Oh, yes, we do. Some more nastily than others. We retain them from when we were still alive. I remember when William got stung by a bee once, he was all puffy eyed and red!" I said with enthusiasm but I winced inside, because I knew my Spike had not wanted me to tell anyone about that certain embarrassment.
He winced too, though I was not certain why. "I see. Then I guess the gardens would be a bad idea then."
"Oh, yes. A terrible, terrible one indeed!" I agreed eagerly. "Which is why I was heading out front."
"Alright, Mistress, let's go," he stated, slowly leading me again but this time to front door.
"Go?" I was not certain what he meant.
"Yes. You said you wanted to go outside for some fresh air, then we shall," he said, opening the door for me.
"We?" I repeated, stepping outside and not liking where this was headed.
"Yes, we. I can't very well let you wander off by yourself." The tone was so condescending that it made my blood boil.
"Why not?!" I asked angrily, turning to face him.
He looked surprised. He must not have expected me to be cross with him, but I was mad at his treatment of me. I rarely lose my temper, but it was because I was finally tired of being treated like this. Tired of being cared for and smothered by everyone. Tired of being thought of as a weak and hopeless little girl, instead of the dangerous century old vampire and seer that I really was. My demon has been craving violence and blood since my illness had began and tonight I finally had the opportunity to sate it, but this minion seemed to be standing in my way. Had I not liked him for being a constant reminder of my William, I would have just used my thrall on him or knock him to unconsciousness earlier when he appeared. But now he was being a nuisance and at the moment I was truly regretting not having done so.
"Do not think me as a helpless human, Dalton, for I am not. I am a vampire and I can take care of myself. True, I am weakened due to my illness, but I am not useless. I can still rip your heart from your chest with my bare hands and my soul shall not feel no regret of it, minion," I told him with a sneer, though again it was a lie. I would never harm Dalton, unless he gave me a very good reason to. I was simply trying to make him understand that I was not as helpless as he had pegged me to be.
"I know, Mistress Drusilla," he said in such an unusually calm tone that it surprised me. "I didn't mean to offend you, Mistress, and if I did, I'm sorry." He bowed his head at me before turning to face me again. "I only really wanted to come with you to make sure you would be safe. I know you can take care of yourself and yes, I have no doubt you can dust my worthless hide if you wanted to, but you need to remember that you're not at your full strength and you can seriously get hurt if you're not careful." He took my hand into his and stared in to my eyes with such a kind and gentle expression that it reminded me of how my papa used to look at me when he had yet to know of my gift. "And a lot of us would feel really sad if anything were to happen to you. Not just Mistress Darla and Master Spike, but myself also. I couldn't stand losing you, Mistress, because I've come to care for you so very much. Please, let me to accompany you."
All the anger from earlier melted at the sincerity of his words and I felt warmed by them. I smiled at the minion, who for the first time since I met him looked extremely brave in front of me. He was truly like my William. So warm and caring, so unlike the monster he was supposed to be.
"Very well, you may come with me to the party," I told him as I walked away and headed towards the direction where I knew the tragedy would occur.
"Um, pa-pa-party, Mistress? I thought we were just going to get some fresh air?" he said as he scurried after me.
I smiled a little at how quickly his usual nervousness returned.
"Oh, I lied about that part." I gave him a sidelong glance and saw the confusion in his eyes, making my smile grow. "In truth, I plan to attend a dance party tonight, Dalton, for as you can see that I am dress for it." I indicated my pretty attire for the evening. "The stars have whispered something tragic into my ears. I need to put a stop to it, or many will shed tears." Tossing my hair I continued walking.
His confused look was immediately replaced by fearful realization as he caught my meaning. "Oh, god! A vision? M-mistress Drusilla, you had a vision?" I ignored his questions, not breaking stride. "M-m-mistress, if you had a vision, then I believe we should try and inform either Mistress Darla or Master Spike of it. You don't have to prevent it all by yourself." He was continuing to run after me.
When he finally caught up to me, I took pity and answered. "Yes, Dalton, I did have a vision, a terrible one. But I cannot wait for Grandmummy and my Spike to prevent it, because they would too late to stop it. So I must be the one to do it. If we wait the Sunshine's mum would not survive," I informed him. "Besides, I am not alone. I have you after all." I giggled at his surprised and clearly fearful expression.
"B-b-but Mistress Darla will be returning soon from the post office with the new books. I-I'm sure she will be a better fighting companion than me!" he tried to reason, but I had chosen to ignore his words. Instead I focused on finding the shop I knew the Slayer's mum was in.
A few more minutes of wandering, with Dalton complaining and attempting to reason with me, I found the Gallery of Arts and Antiquities, where I knew the Slayer's mum worked. I smiled when I saw the beautiful art piece on display in the window. I recognized its brush strokes and the art style, it was a painting from the eighteenth century, when I'd been alive. The painting was of an angel and a woman that looked like she was confessing her sins while a demon dragged her towards a red pit that was probably hell. I was not familiar with the artist or the painting itself, but it seemed authentic. I stared at the painting and I fell in love with it and how it seemed to depict my own life.
I had once been on the path to Holiness, but had been forced to stray from it upon catching the attention of the devil, Angelus. I had been tortured, defiled, and many other evil deeds had been done unto me by that monster. And at the end of it all I had been deprived of my eternal rest and turned into the same kind monster that'd tormented me. I shook in anger as the memories of what Angelus had done to me overwhelmed my heart. My soul still wanted retribution, even after all these years, even after knowing that Angelus was no longer the same devil he had once been.
"Wrong!" screamed the pixies in my head.
Flashes of images suddenly came to me but they were all jumbled and muddled. I could not see clearly what they were but I knew they all involved that nasty Angel-beast. But it was all so confusing.
Why couldn't I see them clearly? Something was blocking my visions! But why and what? This had happened to me once before, a few weeks back, but I had not thought much of it and simply reasoned that it'd been caused by the illness. But having the clear vision of the Slayer's mum dying tonight was enough to prove to me that it was not the illness that was hindering my Sight, but something entirely different. I couldn't tell whether the ones responsible for the block were good or evil. It was all so disturbing that it made my head spin.
"Mistress Drusilla?" Dalton's voice shook me back to reality. I found that I was leaning up against other vampire, his arms wrapped protectively around my body. "Please, mistress, tell me what's wrong. Tell me how I can ease your pain." His voice was panicked, but gentle. I stared into Dalton's brown eyes and was reminded of a set of different colored eyes that'd once stared into me with the same loving expression.
Oh, he was so much like my William.
I missed my boy, even though I have not yet lost him. I have always known that Fate and Destiny would take him from me, but my heart still broke at his leaving. He was the only good thing that I had created since my turning into a beast. His light was always bright, even though he was dead, even though he was a monster, even though Angelus had made him his pupil. William still retained his ability to love and care for others, namely me. And upon the return of his soul, his brightness had only grown. No longer did my William belong in the dark, yet he choose to stay there for others like me; the evil, the nasty, the wicked and the damned. He was our light, the star and the moon of our night. Effulgent. That was my William. And one day, he will lead beasts far worse than us back into the arms of the Father. I'd seen that this would happen many years ago. His soul would purge Evil and its soldiers, closing the Gates of Hell forever. That was his destiny.
My hand raised and cupped Dalton's cheek. This minion's light was not as bright as my William's, nor was his destiny as great as his, but he possessed those two nonetheless.
He smiled at me and asked if I was alright. I returned his smile."I'm fine. The naughty pixies were at it again. But thanks to you, they went away. You sent them away and brought me back. Thank you, my dark protector."
I noticed how his eyes widened at the name. Curious. Why would he be surprised to be called that? It was what he was: my protector. The one who, one day, would be willing to serve me even if it meant his death. A death that would once again leave me alone. I closed my eyes and brushed away such thoughts.
Silly little me, thinking about that tonight. It was not important at the moment. No sense breaking my heart twice this evening.
I straightened up and left his grasp, giving him a grateful smile.
"Are you alright now, Mistress?" he asked me.
"Yes, Dalton. No need to fret about little old me anymore."
A scream resounded in the air, alerting me tof trouble and reminding of the tragedy that I was meant to prevent. I ran towards the back alley where the scream had come from, Dalton hot on my heels.
We arrived at the scene and saw six horrid vampires holding two unconscious women captive. Two vampires were draining the blood of one of the women, while three others waited beside them to take their turn. That left one vampire, who stood in a corner, glaring at his companions while holding the Slayer's mum in his arms.
"Hurry up already, we want our turn with the meal!" one of the vampires hissed.
"Oh shut up, Bob, and don't be an idiot! This is only one human, it ain't gonna be enough to satisfy all of us," snarled one of the eating vampires.
"Yeah, so why don't you go hunt another one of your meal because there's about to be bone dry!" the second feeding vampire added.
Bob was peeved. "We don't have time to hunt another meal! Especially since the boss told us to bring the Slayer's mother back to her immediately after we've taken her!"
"Why? It's not like there's a reason, besides that one, to hurry back to the nest. The boss will still be there waiting anyway." The vamp turned back to its meal.
"Yeah, also it's not like the Slayer's going come and take her away from us. She's probably still busy stopping a bunch of idiots from summoning a demon!" one of the other vampires pointed out. "So just go and hunt your own food, no one's going be able to stop you anyway."
"I would not be too sure of that, little puppies." I stalked towards the group. "I shall only tell you naughty doggies this once: let the pretty lady and the Sunshine's mum go, and I might consider allowing at least one of you to live beyond this night."
They laughed at my words, which made me feel confused then insulted. Why would they laugh at their eminent deaths? I tilted my head. "What's so funny?"
"There, guys, looks like dinner just delivered itself to you!" one of the vampires who had been eating giggled.
Bob walked towards me with a predatory smile.
"Hey, there pretty girl. Are you lost? How about you let good old Bobby here take you home?" He draped his arm around my shoulder and I shuddered.
They didn't even notice that I was a vampire! How foolish! I was insulted. Miss Edith would have been mightily cross with them too had I brought her with me tionight.
I immediately took hold of his hand and twisted the offending appendage until I heard it pop, his wrist shattering, before using my other hand went to grab his throat. His scream was cut short as I ripped out throat. I shoved him away and ended his pain with a swift blow of my stake to his heart.
"Disrespectful puppies shall be punished," I threatened while I licked the blood off my hands.
"Bitch!" One vampire screamed as two of them ran towards me.
I graciously stepped to the side as one of the two vampires tried to grab me. I tooked the collar of his shirt and threw him into his companion so both struck the alley wall. I ducked to avoid a punch from the third vampire, before elbowing his stomach and hitting his nose with the palm of my hand, breaking it. While he was bent over, preoccupied with the pain, I dusted him. I was grabbed from behind by the fourth vampire. He was trying to squeeze me hard enough to crush my spine.
"Mistress Drusilla!" Dalton hollered.
I ignored his worried cry and continued to struggle against the nasty puppy's hold.
"You're not going anywhere now, little birdie. You're going to pay for dusting Bob and Bill," he whispered to me ear, making me scrunch my face at the fetid smell of his breath.
"I do not think so." I twisted my arm around and stuck my finger into his eye. In his agony, he released his hold on me, and I whipped around and sunk my stake in. His dust floated to the ground.
I turned to the remaining vamps, finding the first two that'd rushed be back on their feet.
"Are you two waiting for an invite?" I taunted.
The two immediately took up my challenge and ran at me again, only this time, instead of avoiding them, I faced them head on. I delivered a kick to one vampire, sending him flying to the dumpster and scratched the face of the other one, but not before he'd landed a single punch to my face. It wasn't enough to detour me and I quickly dusted both him and his companion, who'd been stunned from hitting his head.
As they crumbled to dust, I felt my demon inside of me roar with pride and happiness. Too long, I felt it say, too long since I felt the blood from my veins rush in such a way. Too long since I'd tasted the blood of my enemies. And far too long since I'd last felt this free! I closed my eyes to savor the feeling. My soul was quiet as I let the beast glory in the violence.
More...
I knew what it meant and understood what it wanted. So I turned to face the last of the vampires, the one who had the Slayer's mum.
"Who the hell are you?" he asked, taking a step back from me.
My eyes narrowed at his slow attempt to retreat. "Oh, how rude of me." I smirked as I ambled towards him. "Allow me then to introduce myself." He halted, cornered against the building. "I am Drusilla, childe of Angelus of the line of Aurelius. Some call me mad, others called me the Enchantress." I stared into him eyes, drawing him inside of me. "How about you, puppy? Who are you?"
He shivered before answering. "I'm Michael, ugh-I don't really have a s-sire or a bloodline to answer to."
He tried to look away by moving his head to the side, but I would have none of that. I traced a finger along his jaw and slowly directed him to look back at me. "Tell me, Michael, why do you want the Slayer's mum?" He seemed hesitant, so I pulled him further into my mind. I grabbed hold of the demon and whatever humanity was left in him. "Stay with me, puppy. Stay inside of me. Be with me, be in me, stay with me," I muttered, not taking my gaze off of his. He finally relaxed and his eyes took on a glassy sheen. He was in my thrall. "Michael, answer me now: What do you want with the Slayer's mum? Why were you trying to take her? Who were you taking her to?"
"Revenge, mistress. My boss wanted revenge against the Slayer for killing her brother. She planned to turn her mother and send the woman to kill the Slayer."
"I see. And does your mistress have a name?"
"Freya, mistress. Her name is Freya, but she prefers to be called Lucinda or Lady Lu. She is the favored Childe of Njord of the Order of Vanir. Her brother was Freyr, or Lucius as he usually was called, he was the one who the Slayer killed on the Night of Saint Vigeous."
Vanir? I knew of this Order. They hailed from Northern Europe, and never ventured too far from their territory. Cowards, that's what Grandmummy used to call them, for they never did anything remarkable or significant that would make their name stand out for fear of being hunted by the Council or the Slayer. So why would they come to the Hellmouth and directly attack the Slayer and her family?
"What are the Childers from that Order doing here?" I asked.
"They have lived separately from the Order a few years after they were turned in the early seventies, mistress. They have long since wanted to claim the Hellmouth as theirs, but the Master of the Order of Aurelius was here. He still held great sway, despite the fact that he was trapped inside the Hellmouth."
"I see."
So they were only foolish children who wish stand out above all the fishes. Well, that was disappointing, don't you think?
"Thank you, Michael," I then told him and patted his head like one does for a good puppy. Then a wonderful thought came to my mind as I stared at the still entranced fledgling in front of me. "Michael, can you do me a favor?" I asked, mirth in my tone.
"Anything, Mistress."
"Release the Slayer's mum and hand her over to Dalton," I commanded the enthralled vampire while gesturing at my minion to take the unconscious woman.
Once the Slayer's mum was in Dalton's hands, I immediately used my stake and dusted the vampire. I smiled in satisfaction as I glanced around at the remains of the vampires, who had planned to murder an innocent woman tonight. I was proud of myself for being able to not only save the said woman but also for being able survive this dance without my illness acting up.
"Little lamb was not so pretty until she met up with Mary and found her fleece all bloody," I sing-songed in glee. "Am I right, Dalton?"
"Uh-" was his ineloquent reply as he shifted the unconscious woman in his arms.
I pouted at the fact that he didn't understand my words. I only meant to inform him that I had had fun and that dancing tonight had helped me forget my illness and allowed my demon some release. It was not that hard to understand. William seemed to always be able to understand me, so why couldn't Dalton, or anyone else for that matter?
"Do you know how frustrating it is for the river to flow downwards instead of up?" I asked conversationally , earning myself another confused look. I sighed. "Never you mind."
Instead of further explaining my words I settled for inspecting the Sunshine's mum's unconscious form. She was still out, but I saw no other physical injuries aside from a bloody gash on her forehead.
Hmmm, a head injury would explain why she wasn't waking up. Did she need medical attention?
I bit my lip, unsure of what to do next. I'd only seen how the Slayer's mother's death would affect the Sunshine, but I had no thought of what to do after preventing it.
"Perhaps, Mistress Drusilla, it would be best if we send this woman to the hospital. She has a head wound and those can be very dangerous for humans." Dalton answered my unvoiced question.
"A wise idea," I agreed with a smile.
We left immediately with the two unconscious women.
The other one was still alive, blessed be the Lord for his mercy.
Upon our arrival at the hospital, we were immediately greeted by medical personnel that took the women out of our hands and asked us questions about what had happened. Over the years I'd become an expert at hiding to the humans the truth of our existence, so it was natural to me to invent a situation to explain it all away. After answering their inquiries, Dalton and I had decided to finally go home for the night. But before we could make an exit one of the doctors attending the Slayer's mum called us and told us that the woman had wanted to meet up with us, her saviors. I saw no reason to avoid the woman so we visited her room.
"Hello?" I called as I entered.
"Hello," the woman on the bed said with the kindest smile. It felt really familiar to me. "You must be Ms. Mallard and Mr. Abercott."
"We are. Though I prefer to be called Drusilla and this here is Dalton," I answered her question and pointed to the minion who stood behind me. He squirmed under our gazes which made me think that he looked cute. "He does not talk much," I explained to her the minion's shy behavior. "But enough about us, I am more concern about your health. Are you alright now?"
"Yes, thanks to the two of you," she frowned. "If you two hadn't found us earlier, I don't know what those thugs would've done to us."
"They'd have done real nasty things to the both of you, especially you, madam," I said with venom in my voice. Her eyes widened. I felt bad for scaring the poor woman. "Pardon me; I had not meat to-"
"No, you're right," she cut short my apology. "If you hadn't come to our rescue, we would've been dead by now. Which is why, again, I really want to thank you. I'm Joyce Summers, by the way." She introduced herself and smiled at me again. It was then that I had realized who it was that she reminded me.
"Mummy?" I whispered with realization.
"Excuse me?" she asked.
"I-Sorry. What I had meant to say was that you are very welcome and it is very nice to meet you, Joyce." I gave her a shaky smile.
It was her! But not really her, she just looked very much like my poor mum. The hair and eye color were slightly different and she looked older, but the differences were minor, she looked almost exactly like my mum.
Mother. I never thought I'd see her again...
I could not help the little tears falling from my eyes at the sight of her.
Oh, where was Miss Edith when I needed her. She always made things better. She always knew what to do in these situations.
"Oh my, are you alright?" the woman asked, alarmed.
"I'm fine. I'm just really glad you are alright." I wiped away the tears, but it ended up being a futile attempt. Oh dear, the tears just wouldn't stop. "The stars are shining far too bright tonight. Dalton?" The minion handed me a handkerchief to which I used to dry my eyes, after I had successfully stopped myself from crying, I apologized: "Sorry, I'm really emotional when I am happy."
"It's okay. My daughter gets like that sometimes. I believe your teenage hormones are responsible."
My eyes widened as I realized that she must not know that I was a vampire. It also made me believe that she didn't know about the existence of vampires and demons, nor did she know of her daughter's destiny to hunt and kill them. I found the information a strange thing. The Slayer's mother not knowing about the darkness in town and the Slayer herself keeping such a secret hidden. It was a very peculiar and dangerous way of handling things. It wasn't really my place to tell her, but had sudden need make sure that the woman knew the truth.
It'd keep her much safer.
However, even as I was about to reveal the truth about my kind, the door behind me opened to reveal a very angry Slayer with an equally very pissed off Master Vampire.
"Buffy!" Joyce called.
"William!" I cried at the same time.
The two of them entered and the Slayer approached her mother's side, while William came to me. He stood in front of me and glared at both Dalton and I.
"Drusilla," he started with an edge in his voice. "I believe it is time for us to get along home."
"Yes, I believe so, too," I agreed with a tight smile. I turned to face Joyce. "I'm glad I was able to meet with you Ms. Joyce Summers. Although I wish that next time you wouldn't let the little doggies bite your tree." Both the Slayer and her gave me confused looks, which was irritating.
"What she meant to say was that next time avoid traveling after sundown so you won't be attacked," William explained.
See? I told you that my William could understand me.
"I'll keep that in mind, Drusilla," Joyce said firmly. "And it was nice meeting you, too."
I bowed my head and dropped a slight curtsy. Old habits truly die hard.
After that, William grabbed my arm and dragged me outside the room with Dalton trailing closely behind us. Once we left the hospital, William released me from his hold and stomped ahead of us. Dalton and I cautiously followed. He was very angry. It was obvious by the absence of his usual swagger. I walked faster to catch up with him but he just ignored me. He had to be very upset to do that.
I bit my lip as guilt and fear ran through my chest at the knowledge that'd I made William this angry. Guilt was from the soul, of course, but the fear came from my years of being with Angelus. It wasn't logical terror, but Angelus had ruined me in such a way that I always associated anger with punishment. The kind of punishment that hurt and went on and on.
"I'm sorry," I said, tears falling. "I'm really, really sorry, William." More tears came, making it hard for me to see as William stopped and turned toward me. "I was only doing what I believed was right. I did not mean to make anyone angry. I'm sorry, William, I am so, so sorry. Please don't punish me. I don't want it, please, William-I promise not to be bad girl... Please..."
My body shook as the memory of the things Angelus did overtook me; the lashings, the beatings, and tortures I had no name for. Oh God, they'd been horrible, and at that moment I was sent back to that. I felt my soul crying in agony and my mind breaking.
Strong arms wrapped themselves around me. "Oh, Dru. There, there. No need for tears, pet. No one's gonna punish you." His gentle words should have comforted me but so often Angelus had said the exact same thing to me, to give me hope before snatching it away again.
No, I didn't want that!
I struggled against the hold of that monster.
"No! Let me go! Daddy, please don't hurt me!" I cried and screamed.
"Drusilla, don't! No, I'm not him, Dru! Stop it, Dru!" I heard the words but I couldn't seem to get out of the past.
I scratched and kicked and punched and bit hard using my blunt human teeth.
"Ow. God dammit, Dru!"
Pain...
Numbness...
Blackness...
(O.O)
