It Takes Two

Willow, Xander, Faith and Oz stood in the hallway waiting for Giles to let them back into the library. Angel stood a few feet away listening.

"What do you think is going on in there?" Willow asked.

"Giles is probably roughing him up a little," Xander answered.

"I kind of feel bad for the guy...he's been wailed on all day."

"Will...we're talking about the guy who turned us into our costumes last year...who sent our best friend back in time," Xander retorted.

"I think he could stand a little more fist to face contact," Faith muttered.

"So...it sounds pretty quiet in there. Maybe we should check in," Oz suggested.

"Yeah...good thinking," Willow said, reaching for the door.

She was about to turn to address the vampire when he disappeared. She looked confused for a moment, her hand lingering on the doorknob.

"You ok?" Oz asked.

"I don't know...I was going to say something but...now I don't remember...it's like before...when we all forget the same thing."

"Did we all forget something again?" Xander gasped.

"I don't know." Willow pulled the door open. "Giles, we're coming in!"

They walked back inside to find Ethan and Giles simply glaring at each other darkly. The librarian looked up.

"Everything alright?"

"Yeah...we're fine. How about in here?"

"We think we all forgot something again," Xander blurted.

"What now?"

"We...don't remember."

"Yes, brilliant," Giles muttered. He turned his attention back to Ethan.

"Don't look at me. I'm not making you lot forget anything."

"Oh yes because meddling with black magics doesn't have any sort of consequence."

"Didn't say that, mate. We both know it does."

"And yet here you are, not seeming to give a damn."

"Guess that's the difference between you and me, Ripper."

"Xander, please gag him."

"Happily."

Xander and Oz pulled Ethan's chair away from the table and gagged him. Willow sat down at the table and just laid her head in her hands.

"I don't know what else to try...we've read every book there is to read."

"Watcher Diaries?" Oz asked.

"We looked already."

"I mean...if Buffy's changing stuff in the past...wouldn't the diaries change too?"

"Wolf Boy's got a point. Could happen. I mean if she's as buddy-buddy with the Council then as she was in our time, they're bound to write about her," Faith agreed.

"Don't call him Wolf Boy," Willow grumbled.

Faith just shook her head and leaned over the table. "These the diaries?" she asked.

Giles nodded. "But I don't think those volumes will be useful. They predate Buffy's arrival in the past. I have the more relevant ones in my desk."

He disappeared from view for a moment, leaving the four teens to glance around anxiously. None of them could deny that there was a growing feeling that things wouldn't end well.

"Here we are," Giles announced, carrying a stack of books, their bindings surprisingly unworn.

"Don't use these bad boys much, do you?" Faith asked.

Giles cleared his throat and looked away. "I'd appreciate if you did not repeat that to anyone."

"Lips are sealed."

He nodded once more and set the books down on the table. Willow grabbed the top book and began to flip through it. Xander and Oz followed suit.

The evening passed by as they all sat, combing over every page and entry in the diaries.

"Oh, I think I found something," Willow exclaimed.

Her excitement roused Xander who had fallen asleep on the open book in his lap. "Huh...what?"

"I found something. See, look."

Giles bent over her shoulder to examine what she'd found. His brow furrowed, as if he were trying to recall some dim memory.

"Yes...that would make sense. I remember that."

"What?" Xander asked.

"The prophecy...was irrevocably changed in 1880 with the emergence of a second Slayer in London. The Council spent four years searching for her."

"Two Slayers? I mean yeah it's possible but...is it necessarily a good thing?" Willow asked, avoiding eye contact with Faith.

"Well it appears the other Slayer was located in China. I suppose two Slayers in two locations would be beneficial to the control of the vampire and demon populations," Giles posited.

"Way to go Buffy...defying even ancient prophecy," Willow giggled.

"B never was much for following the rules," Faith interjected.

Oz flipped through the pages of another book. "I found another reference to Buffy."

"Good I hope."

"Says she slayed the vampire Angelus in 1887."

Faith leaned over his shoulder, reading the description of Angelus. "Says here this Angelus was all kinds of nasty. Way to go, B."

"Yes, I'm sure Buffy was quite pleased with herself," Giles murmured.

"So what do we do now? I mean…she's done some major slaying in the past…and she even changed the Slayer prophecy." Willow let out a sigh. "I'm starting to think Xander was right…what if she doesn't want to come back."

"I was right? Oh…that can't be good."

"So…hang on a minute." Faith stood up and began to pace around. "If Buffy changed history…made it so that the Slayer line now has two Slayers at all times…then why hasn't another one shown up here in Sunnydale?"

"Well for all we know there is another operating in some other region of the world," Giles replied.

"So call the Council…see what's going on."

"Well I…I'm not certain how much they know of our current situation."

Behind them, Ethan mumbled something though his gag. The group ignored him. They had more pressing issues. Willow leaned back in her chair, looking sullen. She didn't like the way things were turning out.

"I guess this means even if we had a way to bring Buffy back…we couldn't. It would make things go all screwy everywhere…more screwy than they are currently."

"I don't know what to tell Joyce. I…I can't tell her we can't get Buffy back. It would break her heart."

"Are we even sure Mrs. Summers is around…I mean with Buffy not here…never coming to Sunnydale…maybe she didn't either. Call the number and see who picks up." Faith suggested.

"Yes, alright. I'll…do that."

--

Shortly after Buffy slayed Angelus, she'd found herself with child. She had to admit it was just as frightening as she'd envisioned. Feeling a life growing within her only made her patrol more. She knew the threats that lay in wait for her child and it scared her. Despite both her and William's concerns, they were momentarily washed away by the arrival of their daughter, JoAnna on August 7, 1888.

"She is beautiful," William whispered against Buffy's sweat covered forehead.

The newborn cried in her mother's arms and Buffy couldn't help but cry. "She is, isn't she?"

"You have done an amazing thing, Anne."

"It takes two, William. And I am certain she will have a doting father to love her and watch over her"

"Always. She is perfect."

Raising a child while continuing her Slayer duties proved to be more work than Buffy had anticipated. She worried that having to tend to the needs of her daughter would detract from her abilities to fight off the vampires and demons. Much to her surprise shortly after the new year arrived, so did a letter from the Watcher's Council.

"What is it?" William asked, carrying a drowsy JoAnna in his arms.

"I don't know. It's from the Watcher's Council." She picked up a letter opener and slid it beneath the wax keeping the envelope closed. As quickly as she could, Buffy pulled the sheet of parchment from within and read it.

"It says they are aware of our current circumstances and assure us that we needn't worry. There is another Slayer in China and she will take the mantle of the prophecy until I am ready to take it up again," she explained.

"That is fantastic news." William took in his wife's facial expression and took a step closer. "Isn't it?"

"I…I suppose so. I just…slaying has been what I do for the last ten years. I don't think I can just suddenly give it up."

"You don't have to give it up forever, Anne. Just until you are ready…once JoAnna is older."

"You're right. It's only temporary."

Temporary became semi-permanent in 1890 with the arrival of their second child; Matthew. As Buffy sat at the bay window in what had become the nursery, she couldn't but wonder how many more children she would have, how long she would be away from slaying. There was something inside her the urged, gnawed at her to get out and fight. It was her destiny, her calling. She couldn't just give it up, no matter what the Council said. She turned her attention to the sleeping infant in the cradle and gave him a kiss on the top of his head.

"Sleep tight," she whispered before leaving the room.

As quietly as she could, she made her way downstairs and picked up a shawl. The weather had begun to get cold again. She pulled a stake from the boot chest by the door and slipped outside. The night air filled her lungs and it invigorated her. Buffy walked through the busy London streets as quickly as she could, eager for the adrenaline rush of the fight. No doubt the vampires would be out in full force. She had been out of commission nearly two year after all. She had just enough time to step onto hollowed ground before a group of vampires advanced on her.

"Slayer," one laughed.

"Miss me?"

The fight lasted all of five minutes. She slew four of them in record time, landing a kick to the fifth one's chest. He fell to the ground and began to scurry backwards on his hands.

"Not bad for someone who just had a baby, huh?" Buffy asked before slamming the stake through his heart.

With a smile and a new found spring in her step, Buffy returned home. Just as she shut the door, William appeared from the stairs.

"Where have you been?" he asked.

"I just went out. I needed some air."

"Air from the cemetery?" he pressed.

Buffy looked down at the stake and let out a hiccup of laughter. "Yes."

William ushered her towards the parlor, a fire roaring in the hearth. Two-year-old JoAnna lay curled up beneath blankets on the love seat fast asleep. Buffy sat down beside her daughter and gently ran a hand through her hair.

"I just couldn't sit around and do nothing anymore, William. It was like something was calling to me. I took out five."

"Five...at once?" William looked surprised.

Buffy nodded. "I should have told you where I was going. I apologize," she murmured, taking his hand in her own.

"I was not that worried. You are…well you are the Slayer."

Buffy grinned and looked down at the little girl by her side. "I am…but I'm a mother and a wife now too. I guess I'll just have to find the right balance."