They arrived back at the Compound, daylight starting to shine over the horizon. Lights blazed inside and Faith shrugged at Buffy inquiring glance.
"I may have vented my feelings a bit on my way out?" She said with a small smirk. Buffy merely cocked an eyebrow and exited the car.
Entering the main hallway, Buffy was distracted by the groups of Slayettes forming into patrol groups and weaponing up. Catching hold of one of the younger Slayettes, she glanced at the axe she was holding and let the silence ask its question.
"There's a breach in the dining hall, general alert sounded!" gushed the young girl, before rushing after for patrol squad. With barely a glance at Faith, Buffy followed the young warriors to the Dining Hall.
To be greeted with what appeared to be an imminent battle apparently.
Slayettes were lined up in battle groups around the outskirts of the room, the Sunnydale Slayers leading each group as trained. To the side were the handful of witches that were a mix of teachers and new students – Giles had branched out at Willows suggestion and the local Coven's agreement. They were holding hands and chanting, purple protection bubble surrounded them while silver lightning sparked towards the centre of the room, only to stop and waver without touching a similar protection barrier, only in green. Green to match the really gross looking tentacle festooned demons floating near the ceiling. A portal glowed faintly behind the four mucusy, tree like creatures, with tentacles instead of branches or roots. Exactly like trees, with no faces or anything but barklike surfaces.
Slightly disturbing. Buffy thought. Where the mucus dripped onto the floor, not surprisingly, steam weaved up. Why does it always have to be acid? Buffy sighed.
It was only then that she noticed Giles, Willow ever present at his side, standing in front of them between the rows of tables. Hmm he looked so small.
"No. We will speak only with The Slayer of All. We will not converse with the Deceitful of Tongue"
Their voices made Buffy want to pull out her twitching hair, a feeling she could see echoed around her as Slayettes and staff flinched and tugged at their own heads. Buffy couldn't make out what Giles was saying, but whatever it was, didn't seem to make a single impression on their 'visitors'. One of the floating demons suddenly shot out a tentacle and merged it with the speaker in front. Oh eeww! Buffy thought.
As if they were all controlled by one person, all four tenti-trees turned and looked straight at her. Falling into battle stance, aware that Faith had done the same thing beside her, Buffy merely cocked her head. No more did she quip and insult randomly. That was for when it had been more like dancing, less like reminding death she would only go with a fight.
"Slayer of All, we have come seeking to fulfil our Blood Agreement."
"Really? Well then, as I haven't met you lot before, I'm guessing the agreement wasn't with us."
Faith and Buffy tensed as the apparent leader floated down towards them both, its protection aura stretching to allow the movement. The witches silver lightning struck the tree demon's barrier, but was merely absorbed instead of inflicting any damage. As it got closer, Buffy could see that it did possess a face of kind. Like you see in books where trees are protectors, craggy bark shaped, but still recognisable face. It settled it's 'roots' on the linoleum floor, the vinyl spluttering and smoking.
"We mean no harm to you or the Forgiven One" A flick of a tentacle indicated Faith, who snorted in surprise. Both women relaxed their stances slightly.
"Kinda not really believing it, what with the intrusion and acidy goodness here" Buffy repeated the gesturing motion, this time at the floor.
"Our apologies, this dimension is not as sturdy as our own." It seemed the tree demon drew its root tentacles up a bit and bowed slightly in apology.
Buffy relaxed completely, allowing her arms to hang by her sides. Distantly she was aware of the commotion around her, but as the protection aura surrounded both Faith and herself, it seemed to dim and quieten. Around the trunk of the huge demon, Buffy could see Willow and Giles gesturing frantically, and the witches upping the lightning, but it was if nothing affected them at all.
The demon twitched and a grating laugh caused Buffy and Faith to grab their jaws as the sensation felt as though their teeth would grind out of their very heads.
"Like the animals that gnaw at twigs on your trees, your companions lack the necessary skills to harm us. We will be gone long before they can succeed"
"ARGH! Let's get to the gone bit! You're starting to grind my bones here Oaky" Faith snarled viciously.
A slight bow again and it faced Buffy again.
"You are the Slayer Of All, the Original, with the Forgiven One by your side, as it was foretold to us.' Buffy gritted her teeth and ignored the louse like feeling in her hair. The less they interrupted, the quicker this might all be over and she could shower a few billion times to remove the feeling. 'The one you call The Angel saved our clan when he was with the Wolf Ram and Hart' Faith flinched mightily 'and we forged a blood agreement with him as thanks. At the time of his demise, we gave our shamans lifecycles as a power sacrifice to the War God to ensure the portals closed. In That, we are completed. But our Age High Shaman saw what else needed to be done and it is HIS Blood Agreement that we are here. Will you accept his Agreement?"
Buffy glanced at Faith, both women's faces pinched from the torment of the demon's speaking.
"What's the agreement before I agree to it?"
"Truth. For it will be needed in times ahead and if you remain rooted in the stone of ignorance, you will die, as will those you hold dear. Age High Shaman saw death to few, but the network of destruction it causes will ensure collapse of many forests." Buffy struggled with understanding for a moment, then realised what the demon was saying. She would die, big whoop, but others would too and it would cause a chain reaction. God dammit! She hated apocalypse type prophecies.
"That sounds real end of world type stuff, but honestly, can we wrap this up quick? You and my ears are NOT besties tight now" With that, she succumbed to the insane desire and scrubbed her scalp viciously with her nails. Faith groaned as she watched Buffy do what she ached to do, but while Buffy may drop her guard, Faith certainly wouldn't. The demon smiled with the crack in its bark lips and reached out a dripping tentacle. At the Slayers freezing, it slowed its movement and slowly wiped the protrusion across the lower half of its trunk. Acidic mucus clung to the barklike skin before soaking away, leaving the tentacle dry and scaly. Slowly, so as to give the women time to move away, the demon wrapped it around first Buffy's hand and then Faith's, holding the back of their hands together in its tentacle.
Images flooded Buffy's mind.
It was like watching a DVD on super fast forward. But at the same time, she could see everything happening in minute by minute playback.
It was Buffy's life. But as though from someone watching it like a TV show. Which, if it's from the demons perspective, kinda was she guessed.
She saw Merrick and Pike, Her parents, the gym, the divorce, the move to Sunnydale, Giles, Willow, Zander, Oz, Angel, Darla, the Master, Spike, Dru, Dawn, Anya , Tara... everything and everyone. She saw decisions and reasons. She witnessed love and tears and hate and death. Betrayals and loyalties. Cruelties and kindnesses. She saw faces of those she had lost, and those gone anyway.
She saw her deaths and her lives.
She saw.
And she knew.
Buffy opened her eyes and realised that she was lying on the floor, her hand grasping Faiths like a lifeline in a heavy sea. The Argdon demon was above her, knowledge flooded through her but the sight of the demon stalled the flow. Instead of its sickly glowing green colour, it was a sludgy grey. Mucus no longer dripped from its tentacle branches, now it stood dry and brittle, like a houseplant left to die on a windowsill. Buffy scrambled to her feet, Faith still unconscious. Reaching out a shaking hand, she went to stoke the demon, but it shifted minutely away from her hand.
"No, Slayer Of All. While I appear dry, I am more dangerous to your dimensional being than ever."
Buffy peered around the tree and looked up at the three remaining demons floating up by the ceiling. She went to call them down but the whisper soft voice halted her words.
"Cease Slayer, I am not afraid of the cycle. My seedlings will live on to great heights, deeply rooted in the honour of my Truth" Its voice, now a sensual caress, faded away as Buffy watched the demon fade from grey to brown. A smile crossed the craggy face and a tentacle – Buffy hoped it was the same one as before – reached out and gently touched her face. "My seedlings would be blessed to be as strong and supple as you. For you see what has happened, yet your foundations are still firm. Remember always, that the winds and earth that shake us do not destroy us, but make us stronger. For it is with those tests that make our roots travel deep, anchoring us for the years ahead. The shallow sapling falls and dies in the first storms of the seasons, never to see the light and feel the sun. But the deeply planted sapling grows strong, survives and sees the forest grow green and lush around them. Buffy, you have faced storms and earth movements and you planted yourself deep. You will see more, for every year brings the storms. But as the years pass, the storms affect us less and we then take delight in the elements. Your time for delight will come, so very soon, my sapling. Be strong. Grow deep." With a sigh, the demon seemed to deflate into itself, as though it truly was a tree that had simply collapsed into itself.
Fresh green tentacles appeared, wrapping around the still demon and gently, so very gently, drew it up to the portal. Buffy felt tears gather as she watched as the three other tree demons wrap it up until no sign of the demon could be seen.
"Our Blood Agreement is completed" and with an explosion that sent every single person to their knees, the portal slammed shut.
