A/N: After forever I have written more. Hope you enjoy.
For those asking when Remy is going to show, hurrah for you! Inpending Gambit e.t.a very soon.
Oh, and for all you who don't know I was nominated and White Knight Awards for best crossover. (Did I work that in subtlely enough?;) Please vote for me. Please. At
VI: (b) Elisabeth
Play it Again Sam
My son looked old, old and hardened, and the look in his eyes... They weren't the eyes of innocence for darn sure. I tried to deny it, to rationalize it away, but I couldn't. My son wasn't deluded or hopped up on drugs. He was fighting monsters. Real monsters. Monsters are real.
"Well shit." The words came out harsh and leaden.
But what else was there to say? 'Let's go find a nice rubber room where you can't hurt yourself.' This was real. This was fucking real.
How did this happen? Demons are supposed to be fairy tales. When'd they come out of the closet?
Scared. He said he was scared. That meant- it meant bad things. What I've seen of my son leads me to believe he's no coward. Fear gripped me with icy fingers. I don't know much about vampires but in the movies humans usually end up as puddles of blood or as scattered body parts, a lot of humans. No. no. no. He's too young. He can't vote. He can't drink. He can't even die for his country yet!
Demands hovered on my lips. 'No. No more. You're to young. It's too dangerous. You'll stop this right now.' They died swiftly leaving ash in my mouth. He wouldn't listen. It was there in his eyes; in the past I could see trailing behind him. It was in the family curse that had led me here to this.
"Why?" Fear made my voice small. "Why do you fight these things?"
My son's smile was reckless. "I don't like them." He glanced back at the school. "Come on Mom. Let's go home."
Nodding dumbly with shock I followed him to the car. Because he dosen't like them?!
VI: (c) Snyder
Check For Nazis
This isn't how things were supposed to go. I glared at Martin. The fool didn't even have the brains to wince. Not even after the earlier browbeating I'd given him. Idiot. This could have turned out so well. Breaking up the Summers gang would have made the school much safer. Now I have to salvage this before the Mayor finds out and has my hide.
"I want your resignation on my desk by the end of the day." Shock replaced arrogance and for a moment I reveled in wiping the smug grin off the asshole's face.
"You can't do this!" He squawked. "Not over some whore and her bastard!"
"You know I don't care what you say to those snots. But you did it in front of a classroom of witnesses!" I shouted.
He waved his hand dismissively. "They're ignorant children. Not a one will know what I said."
I refrained from pointing out that he was supposed have taught them that. "Harris did." Martin turned beat red. "I'll have your resignation or this time the School Board will have your license."
Martin rose stiffly and stalked off in what I imagine he thought was a furious manner but instead resembled a chicken flapping its wings. I glowered after him. Fool. He'll never get another job. Not after being fired from three schools, one where he had tenure even.
Turning my gaze on my phone I contemplated the odds of Joanne actually being at her desk. The temp who had replaced the reliable Mrs. Winter, a woman who hadn't missed a day in her twenty years of service until she went missing two weeks ago, was as flaky as Summers. Which meant I had to start the search for another scraped of the bottom off the barrel teacher myself. Picking up the receiver I dialed a phone number I had memorized in my days as Vice Principal. Swinging my chair to face the window as I listened to the dial tone I saw the Harrises having an argument in the parking lot. Well then. It wasn't a total loss.
The phone stopped ringing and I swung back around. "This is Principal Snyder of Sunnydale High." I heard a snort and shot my eyes above pleading for patience. "Yes, again. We need-"
VI: (d) Elizabeth
As Time Goes By
Halfway home I snapped out of my daze. Turning my head I glared at my son. "Because you don't like them?! What in the hell kind of reason is that?!!"
Wide eyes stared back at me. "Um, a good one?" I glared at him. A loud blare sounded and I switched may gaze back to the road in time to jerk the wheel right. I heard the quiet click of his seat belt being fastened and a muttered, "fight denizens from hell and a Chevrolet is going kill me, great."
A wry twist curled my lips. God. That's my kid. Smartass with a hero complex. An instinctual quiver of fear accompanied my pride with another spurt of 'he's too young!' but I pushed it down. Still, part of me was suspicious that this was some huge joke, that any minute now Xander was going to say, "Surprise you're on Candid Camera." Part of me wanted that to be true though the leaden feeling in my stomach said it wasn't.
Shaking my head to clear it I remembered, "Oh yeah, your crossbow's in the back." I saw him jerk out of the corner of my eye and look back. "Darn thing nearly took my head off."
"Greatness. G-man's going be pleased. Been bugging me for weeks about it. Guess the Sock Demons didn't get it after all."
"Sock? Demons?" I couldn't keep the shock out of my voice. Demons are icky things with slime and claws. The thought of a rampaging gym sock just- didn't work. What'd it kill you with? Odor? My mind stalled.
"Yeah, you know the ones who always take the other sock."
I groaned. "Gah." God. That's my kid.
VI: (e) Xander
Transit Letters
Nothing surprised me more than when my mom reached over with her right hand and smacked the back of my head. "You Mister are terrible." Harassed laughter could be heard in her words.
I sat in shock for a moment. I can't believe she did that. Then a smile bloomed on my lips. Worry still hovered in the back of my mind but it was overshadowed at this very moment. Happiness, simple happiness, was singing Hey Didy Didy in my heart. This was a good moment. When I was scared and weary and I knew the world was going to come to a fiery crashing end I knew I'd remember this and keep fighting. "Piffle. Terrible is for amateurs. I, Madam, am a professional."
We pulled into our drive and she turned trying to scowl at me but I could see the laughter twinkling in her eyes. "Guess that makes you horrendous then." Before I could say anything she was out of the car and headed into the house. I watched her go and my smile slowly faded.
She was probably still in shock.
Oh, I figure she's accepted it intellectually but you don't really get it until you look into the eyes of something that is going to kill you and realize it dosen't even rate you as something worth thinking about. It dosen't really strike you until after you've killed them. Til you watch their death. Watch as they crumble into a dust pile that mixes with the air and blows away. Before that it's like a story and you think everyone's going to make it because the good guys always win, right? Closing my eyes for a moment as I felt the old familiar grief. Jesse.
Unlocking my seatbelt I twisted around and grabbed the handle of the crossbow. With a tug I pulled it up into view. Holding it there in my left hand I just looked at it. Medieval weaponry in modern form, refined and made with better materials and as deadly as ever. Giles taught me how to fire it. How to hit something and make it stay down. Made him rub his glasses frantically when I told him he was corrupting a minor. Turns out I was almost a good a shot as Buffy. Giles said I had a natural eye for it in a resigned tone that implied he expected me to put an arrow somewhere he knew he didn't want one. A brief grin crossed my face as I remembered some of the pranks that had flitted at through my mind when I swung the thing around.
Still I am a good shot. That's why I had the crossbow. There was a nest of More-titties, Mare-tummies. M something or others wanted to have a little party in the woods. Of course their guests weren't too happy to be there, the music was circa 12th century monastery, the entertainment consisted mainly of the old evil villain pep rally speech, and the food... Let's just say the May-trippers had no concept of fine cuisine. Luckily we brought our own food, we didn't want to mooch after all, and it was all very nutritious, full of iron. Willow and I brought the porcupine special, Buffy and Angel the three-foot longs, and Giles the head splitter- not alchol just an axe.
Between the work out and the pain from my cracked ribs- George and I have a lot in common when it comes to trees- I was wiped. Maybe Anthony was throwing his own party, maybe I was just delirious, but for some reason I must have thought it was a good idea to stash it in the closet. The next morning I woke up and all I could find were the bolts squashed under the bed. For a while Giles has been pestering me about it. Never thought to look for it in the closet, there could be a Gila monster living in there for all I knew. Since I was a little kid I've never opened that closet. There's this creepy mirror... well obviously I did open it or how else would the bow have gotten in there? Thank heavens Mom found it. I wasn't looking forward to paying G-man back for the "lost book".
Taking my "book"- How to Maim for Dummies- with me I climbed out of the car and headed for the house. I wasn't too worried about what I looked like; Sunnydale syndrome has its advantages.
I was half way up the stairs to my room when-
"Xander."
One hand full and the other on the railing I twisted my head to look down at Mom. "Yeah?"
She bit her lip shifting from foot to foot and reached up to pull on a bang. Then she released it definitatively and stilled. Oh, oh. Wonder if I should take cover. "I just want you to know," her voice had dropped a few octaves and she paused to take a deep breath, "I just want you to know I love you and I'm proud of you. Just in case..."
Colorado replaced my Adams' Apple and I had trouble swallowing around it. "Thanks Mom." I choked out. She nodded solemnly her eyes unnaturally shiny with what I suspected were unshed tears. We stood there frozen for what seemed like forever. Guess she got it more than I thought. There was fear for me in her words and I can't imagine how hard it was for her to say them, it took more guts than I thought she had- more than I some times have because rejection is one of the scarest things I've ever faced, but after seventeen years of wondering it was nice to actually hear them even if it did remind me I was going to leave a pretty corpse.
Gathering myself from the puddle of mush I' been reduced to I nodded back breaking the temoltuous connection holding us. I turned and continued up the stairs. I took my hand from the railing and dug into my pocket retrieving the address Willow had gotten for me. Well Gramps I hope you have a good heart. I'm writing you a letter while my luck still holds.
VI: (f) Buffy
Aisle Five
Clothes lay strewn about me. My room looked like the aftermath of a closeout sale. I'd finally decided on the black dress that didn't scream ho but at the same time showed off all my assests. Not that I was worried about how Ford would think I looked. No. I went through every outfit in my closet every night. Yeah, sure. I glanced at my watch. No time to clean up. I'm late! Rushing I grabbed my purse and bee-lined for the door.
Mom yelled something at me as I rushed past but I didn't hear her and if she asked later that's exactly what happened.
Outside the door I paused to open my purse, checking for all the defensive nessecities. Stake, holy water, silver letter opener, lipstick, eyeliner, compact, yep all there. As I walked along the well trod path to the Bronze I took a quick look for baddies but didn't look too close. Tonight was a night for impressing former would-be-boyfriends with what got away and maybe making current boyfriend jealous so he'd stop chasing older brunettes. I frowned quickening my walk to a stalk. Angel better have a good explaination for Mrs. Just-Beginning-Lady-In-the-Park.
VI: (g) Angel
Stay With Me
Drusilla. Screams followed her name. I shivered trying to turn away from the memories. Making her I bathed in blood and destroyed with artistic style I gloated in. Twisted, cracked, insane and I had done it to her cut by cut. Angelus shaping her like a rough gem.
She was still beautiful. Still my childe, my responsibility, my family. It hurt to see her knowing with all my soul that I can't help her or stop her. My demon objected to the very idea and I flinched as the monster threw its contempt at me.
Entering the Bronze I flinched for an entirely different reason. '90's music tried to make up for lack of quality by pumping up the volume. Scents flitted through the air. Musk, sweat, desire, the result of packing hormonal teenagers in a small enclosed space. It made Angelus rattle his cage. He would have loved to add the coppery smell of blood and fear to the air full burning youth. Yet it was one of the few places where I could reliably find Buffy. Tonight I desperately need her to stave off the encroaching dark.
Drifting through the scantily clad I made my way to the bar. I caught the eye of the bartender, "Scotch." He looked me over, decided I was old enough, and retrieved a glass and bottle from beneath the counter. I dropped a five and picked up the glass waving him off when he tried to hand me the change. Money wasn't a concern for me Angelus was good at investing his victims assets. Taking a sip I let the burning liquid distract me as I scanned the crowd for Buffy and the others.
Over by the pool tables I spotted Willow and Xander. They were talking to some dark haired boy I didn't recognize. A flash of light on blonde hair declared Buffy's approach to them I watched her stop and their smiling faces turn to her. Laughter reached my ears even over the roar of the band's supposed lyrics and I took another sip of scotch. They looked so young and carefree if my heart still beat it would have turned over in ache. How could I compete with that. Over there was life I was just an animated corpse with a history of death and destruction.
Buffy left her friends and began making her way to the bar. I watched her approach with my usual mix of fear, nervousness, and pleasure. She looked beautiful and strong as she walked with assurance through those she was chosen to protect. My demon jeered at me for my sentimentality but I ignored it focusing on the girl.
Our meeting was awkard and left me confused. Following her back to her friends I tried to think of what could have left her so cold to me. Meeting her old friend I couldn't help but feel more out of place. The feeling that there was an invisible sign over my head that everyone could read but me crept up my spine. Some of Ford's reactions were just off. Even Xander seemed to be in on it, though it was hard to tell because the boy was always antagonistic towards me, watching Ford and me with something very like veiled suspicsion. After Buffy forsake me for Ford departing the Bronze I melted away leaving Willow and Xander to their life and pool. Buffy obviously wasn't going to talk to me, there was no reason to stay. Angelus and Drusilla mocked me with every step as I walked through the night.