Risen
Chapter 2
Just when she's about to hit me, end my life, somethin' slams into her side, knockin' her away. I nearly groan in disappointment, but then my curiousity forces me to look towards my rescuer and see who it is.
I see a flash of dark hair, and caramel skin as Kennedy fights Buffy mercilessly, tryin' to stake her every few seconds. Finally, Kennedy strikes out with her leg and twists, trippin' Buffy to the ground and pouncin' on her. I see the stake descend, and my mouth moves of its own free will.
"No!" I scream, startlin' both Buffy and Kennedy. Hell, I startled myself.
Buffy recovers first. She flips them over and sinks her fangs into Kennedy's neck. I'm too stunned to stop her as she drains her dry, then rips out her throat with her fangs. Kennedy won't be comin' back.
She looks at me, blood drippin' freely from her mouth, and she doesn't bother cleanin' up.
"Why?" she asks me.
Why? Why is a good question. Why did Buffy let that vamp get her? Why did Buffy come back as a vamp? Why was I still in love with her, a monster? Why couldn't I slay her? Why didn't Kennedy let me die? Why did I save Buffy's... undeath? There's only one possible answer.
"I don't know. I just did it." I answer.
"Not good enough. Try again."
"Like I said. I don't know. I... I love ya, B, but you're not Buffy anymore. You're a monster. I kill monsters."
"But you refuse to kill me." It wasn't a question.
"No. Not that I refuse. I just... can't. I can't kill you."
"And you can't watch me turn to dust, either."
"No." I agree. "I can't."
"Well, looks like we're in a bit of a predicament, then, aren't we?"
"How so?"
"You can't kill me. You can't watch me die. You'd let me kill you before you'd fight me. And I want to kill you bad... very bad."
"Then do it."
"But I can't. I mean, I could, but if I killed you, then I'm dead. Nearly a thousand Slayers in the Underground, and every one of them will want to drive a stake through my heart, or chain me down and watch me burn in sunlight, or give me a bath in holy water, or hang me with a string of garlic, or crucify me on a... crucifix. There are many different creative ways to kill a vampire, and they'll want to try them all out on me. I mean, I didn't have a choice in becoming a vampire, but since I was a Slayer, and now I'm a vamp, I'm some kind of traitor, right? You're my only chance of survival. I could kill you and run right now, but I wouldn't make it out of the desert before sunrise, so I'd be dead. I could kill you and hide back down in my grave, but they'd know it was me, and they'd dig me up and watch me burn in the sunlight. But since I'm dead, you're the highest ranking Slayer in the Slayers Army. That means you can keep me alive by telling people not to kill me."
Oh, I see. I'm supposed to be her meal ticket. That's just great.
"Or..." I say, "I could just go pick a fight with a big group of vamps. Probably take a bunch of 'em out before I get done in. I do the world a service, I get my release, and since I won't take my own life, it's technically not suicide, so I get a one-way ticket to Buffy. I get to be with the real Buffy, you and my body as a vampire get killed by the thousands of Slayers that'll be searchin' for us. It's a win for me. You lose, though. Sorry about that."
"Oh, but we both know you're feeling guilty."
"How's that?"
"For letting me die. Or, for letting Buffy die and become me. You couldn't get to her fast enough to save her, so you feel guilty for letting her die."
"Makes sense. But guilt doesn't really mean anythin' when you're dead. Or so B's told me."
"But you won't do it. Get yourself killed, I mean. Because of your guilt. You're going to protect me. We both know it's true. Because, to you, at least, it'll seem like you're making it up to Buffy."
I curse under my breath. I know she's right. There's no way I'm gonna let Buffy-vamp get killed if I can help it. And that means no suicide missions.
"Fuck." I say, and she smiles. I think she was bluffin', not at all sure that she was right, but now she's relieved. Now she knows she's right.
"There's a girl." She says, grinnin'. "Let's get outta here." She turns towards Kennedy's corpse. "What do we do about that?"
I don't like the way she says "that" instead of "her".
"It's a her. Not a that. Her name's Kennedy. You know that. You trained her yourself. It's Red's girl."
"Right, well, the thing is, I don't care. She tried to kill me, so I tried to kill her right back. Thing is, I'm the one that succeeded. Sucks for her and all, but I prefer it this way. Dust just isn't a good look for me, and I think you agree."
"B, just listen to me. This isn't gonna be one of those things where I'm your bodyguard, and you can do whatever you want because I won't hurt you. If this is gonna work, you're gonna have to do what I say this time."
"Right. Right. Whatever you say."
"I mean it, B." I growl, and I think I get the point across, 'cause she just stares at me in surprise.
"Fine." She sighs. "What do we do?"
"I'm gonna take you back to the Underground and lock you up. If they think you're a prisoner, they might be more willing to let you... well, not exactly live, but not die, either."
"You realise they're going to make you assign a guard to watch me at all times."
"I know. Most of the time, it'll be me."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Seein' as I'm the one who didn't slay ya, you're gonna be my responsibility."
"Aww, that's sweet." Buffy-vamp taunted. "I guess we'd better get inside, then. Sun's going to be up soon, and like I said, dust isn't a good look for me."
Faith nodded as she escorted Buffy-vamp back into the tunnels that served as the Headquarters for the Slayers.
...
"What the hell were you thinking, Faith?" Giles screams at me from his seat around the Council Chamber.
Three weeks ago, I brought a Slaypire into the Underground, and no one is thrilled about it.
I look around at the Councillors seated around the cavern. Most of them are former Watchers from before the Watcher's Council was destroyed, though there are others here. There are two seats reserved for Slayers. I'm sittin' in one proppin' my feet up on the rail in front of me. The other seat belonged to Buffy, but passed to Kennedy when Buffy died. Now it was empty, since we haven't decided on someone to fill it.
Giles and Wesley Wyndham-Pryce are sittin' with the other Watchers. The other four are just some rich old British snobs that I didn't bothered to learn their names.
Red's seat's also empty since she locked herself in her chamber in grief after Kennedy died. Angel's sittin' in the only seat reserved for ensouled vampires, even though they're becomin' common 'cause of rituals done by witches and gypsies, and deals made with upper level demons, like the one Spike got his own soul back from.
Oz is silent, as usual, leavin' the rest of us to scream at each other. Dawn's here, too, in the last seat on the Council, and is actually handling herself well. She's really the only one takin' my side on this. It shocked the hell outta everyone when she was voted to her seat by a majority vote by the Slayers, even though she's just a human.
"I don't know, G. I was just thinkin' maybe we could find some demon or somethin' who owes us a favor, maybe get B's soul back. I mean, sure, she'll need to pass some kinda test, right? So what? It's no big deal. If that stupid vampire martyr, Spike, can do it, can anyone doubt that Buffy the fuckin' vampire slayer can do it? Eszpecially now that she's got the strength of a Slaypire."
"Faith, it's absolutely absurd!" One of the Watchers shouts, and everyone else agrees, 'cept Dawn, Angel and Oz.
"Look, all I'm sayin' is that I'm tired of havin' to cut the heads offa every Slayer who bites the dust, just to be on the safe side! It sucks!" I stand up, tryin' to get my point across. "I get to know these girls! These girls are out there every fuckin' day and night riskin' their lives so you Watchers can sit back on your asses and not do a thing! They're the ones out there gettin' their throats ripped out, or their hearts crushed, or their heads cut off, and we don't even give them any kind of markers or send their bodies back to their families, those that have 'em. We just go 'Oops, there goes another one. Hmm, there's as good a spot as any to bury her. Cut her head off so she doesn't come back and kill us then just cover her up with sand!' I'm out there with them, and the next time I fight might be my last! And all you dirtbags do is sit back and laugh while drinkin' tea and eatin' fish and chips or some shit like that! I'm twenty-one, and every birthday I see is less likely than the one before it! Chances were I wouldn't live to see eighteen, and when it happened, it was even more unlikely that I'd make it to nineteen! There's no way in hell that I'd have made it this far without B, so there's no fuckin' way that I'm gonna kill her! And there's also no way I'm gonna let her die like some dog, just lay down and take it!"
"Faith, could it be that you're letting your own personal feelings cloud your judgement?" Wesley asks.
"Watch it, Watcher. You're barkin' up at the wrong tree." I growl.
"Oh, come now, Ms. Lehane, it's not exactly a secret that you have... feelings... for Ms. Summers." Another Watcher says. "It's not unusual for Slayers to become attracted to other females. It's actually happened numerous times throughout history. In fact, I'd even say that eighty percent of the Slayers who made it to the age of sexual maturity carried on sexual relationships with another female. It's because of the connection they make with the girl. They envy normal teenage girls and their ability to have a normal life, and the desire for that life is so strong that they become attracted to one or more other females as an attempt to live vicariously through them. And since Ms. Rosenberg cast the spell that awakened all Slayers, it's become common for two Slayers to become attracted to each other as well, as is apparent by Ms. Summers' brief... rendezvous... with the young Slayer, Satsu."
I feel myself tense up at the mention of the only girl B ever slept with.
"It's all in the past!" Dawn screams back at the Watcher, and I'm grateful that the attention's been shifted from me. I didn't exactly ask to be a part of the Council. Like I told B once, I'm no leader. But I figured I might as well have my say in how things get done. "Who cares if Faith had the hots for my sister? The point is, Buffy saved everyone in this room, as well as every one else, both ignorant and knowing, in the world numerous times! She died saving everyone from the Master, she stopped the Mayor of Sunnydale from taking over the world as a giant worm demon, she took down a demon/robot hybrid thing and stopped a secret governemt agency from creating more of them at the same time! She beat a hellgod who tried to destroy the world, and she stopped the First from... doing whatever it was going to do! How many of you have ever even actually slayed a vampire outside of your "controlled circumstances"? I've logged more actual field time than most of you, Giles and Wesley excluded, of course.
"I think Buffy deserves another chance." Dawn adds, then sits back down.
"Ms. Summers, Ms. Lehane, I understand you have personal feelings involved in this, and that those feelings are clouding your judgement in this matter." The first Watcher says softly, trying not to raise his voice. "But what you have to realise is that any Slayer, let alone one with as much strength and experience as Ms. Summers, is dangerous as a vampire. One of these... Slaypires, as you call them, could cause havoc amongst the organization. Imagine what Ms. Summers herself could do?"
"That's why Faith is suggesting we find a demon capable of restoring Buffy's soul." Angel counters. "If we restore her soul, she won't be a danger to the organization."
"Well, the idea is intriguing, but I'm afraid we cannot sanction this." The second Watcher replies.
"I think that that should be put to a majority vote." Oz says.
"Very well." A third Watcher agrees, this one female. "But there is something I think we should address first."
"What might that be, Vera?" Giles asks.
So her name's Vera?
"I believe that a number of the present Councillors are too emotionally attatched to the matter at hand to provide unobjective insight as to howwe might handle this. As such, I believe we should put it to a majority vote to determine whether or not Ms. Lehane, Ms. Summers, Angel and Mr. Giles should be allowed to vote on this matter. Do I have a second?"
One of the other Watchers raises his hand, and I know where this is goin'.
"Very well. Article 14 of the Slayer Organization Covenant states that in matters pertaining to one or more Council members and their eligibility to participate in deciding the outcome of any business the Council addresses, said Council members are forbidden from voting themselves as eligible due to emotional connection to the case. Therefore, Councillors Angel, Summers, Lehane and Giles are forbidden from voting on this matter. As such, I vote them ineligible." Vera says, and I can see the contempt in her eyes as she glares at me.
"I vote aye as well." The first Watcher said, the same look as Councillor Vera in his eyes.
"Nay!" Wesley shouts, outraged, but I already know how this is gonna end.
"Aye." The other two Watcher whose names I still can't remember, vote.
"Nay." Oz sighs, but it's two to three. Angel, Giles, Dawn and me are outta the vote.
"Now, to address the matter Councillor Faith has brought up, the matter of the restoration of Buffy Anne Summers' soul. I vote nay." The first Watcher, I think his name is something like Charles or some stupid British name like that, says.
"Nay." Two of the other Watchers agree, and I think it's all over. Even if Wesley and Oz both vote in favor of it, Vera will vote against it, and Buffy's gonna die.
"Aye." Oz says, but he's done the math, too, and he looks helpless as I feel.
"Aye." Everyone turns in shock to Vera, who, if I heard right, she just voted in favor. I think I remember reading somewhere in the rule book or somethin' that when we're talkin' about something that might end up helpin' us in the long run, and the Council votes on it, and it ends in a tie, then whoever was the one who brought up whatever we're votin' on votes again, and that vote decides what we're gonna do. Which means I'm about to vote to get B's soul back.
But then it all falls apart when I notice Wesley hasn't voted yet, and he won't meet my eyes.
"N-n-n... nay." He mutters.
"I'm sorry?" One of the Watchers asks.
"Nay." Wesley whimpers.
I slump back into my seat.
"Faith, we can't allow Buffy even the slightest chance to escape." Wesley pleads with me. "And we can't bring a demon here, it would risk him leading other demons here!"
"Shut up, Wesley." Giles growls, and everyone starts shufflin' outta the chamber, 'cept Dawn, Wesley and me.