Thursday
School cafeteria
The next day, lunch hour had Joliene and Ashley eating together.
"You find out about her?"
"Yeah. Easy." Joliene was nonchalant as she prodded her vegetable matter half heartedly. Annoyed at being kept waiting, Ashley pressed the point.
"Easiest way." You over think things, Ash."
"What? You said you slept with her boyfriend and need the name of her clinic?"
Joliene didn't rise to the bait, setting down her fork and starting in on the Taco Salad. "No. said the bitch owed me money. Anyway, she was a real crackpot. She's a foster kid at St. Michaels-" She referred to the only local youth group that took girls. "- apparently her parents were killed and it traumatized her. She's in therapy and everything."
"How'd you figure that out?"
"Girl I know had detention with Mrs. Kelsy- that's right next to the counselor's office. Counselor was talking about how sad it all was and everything."
"Okay, where does she live?"
"What, like I know?"
"You're a delinquent. Don't you have tracks into student records?"
"What about you? You're a straight arrow."
"What, because I actually show up for class? Doesn't make me a hacker."
"Well, I just thought…" Jo trailed off, but Ashley didn't like the look in her eye.
"Thought what?"
"That you had to be good at something."
With a put upon sigh, Ashley headed towards the office. If you want something done right…
Thursday Night
Cemetery
"So she's a missing wack job." Mike's eyebrows found a new region in his forehead. "That's a plus how?"
"It really isn't."
"Great. We need to find this chick
before something eats her."
A few minutes later, they found themselves following a trail through the woods that framed the cemetery. As the dark closed in over them, Jo suddenly stiffened.
"What?" Ashley whispered, only to be shushed. Jo half turned, studying the way behind them. "What!"
"Shut up!" Joliene shoved past Ashley roughly, jogging back the way that they'd come. "What's up with her?" Mike asked, trampling over to where Ashley stood. "She just freaked out. A crack pot hunting a-"
"There's fighting!" Vicky jostled past them.
"Are Slayers like dogs?" Ashley grumbled as she and Mike loped after the much faster girl.
A high paced fight had erupted in the cemetery- Joliene was kicked into a nearby grave and tumbled to the ground. Vicky leapt in to aid her, aiming an open palm into the vampire's nose. Her head snapped back as the brunette followed up with a roundhouse kick, knocking the vampire away from Joliene. Then Joliene was back into it, hurtling herself bodily at the vampire and tackling it to the ground. In the few minutes that she was pinned down, one could see that she was a brunette woman- a young woman really, didn't look much older than her teens. Her natural eye color was obscured behind the malevolent glare of the demon in her body. Her head came up suddenly, smashing into Joliene's face. Joliene seized her head and was kicked aside.
Vicky leapt forward- but the vampire seized her by the arm and contorted it into an unnatural position. Vicky screamed as she was brought to her knees, her arm contorted behind her back.
"Hey!" Mike yelled, racing up- and a simple backhand from the vampire knocked him to the ground. Wincing in sympathy, Ashley crouched beside him. His cheek was puffy already, but he'd be alright. Which was more than-
-Vicky screamed as the vampire wrenched her arm. "You smell of her." The vampire hissed. "You've been with her. Where is she?"
"Who?" Ashley wondered, hauling Mike up from the ground. "Stop hurting her!"
"My child. My sister, my family…"
"Let her go!" Ashley insisted, racing forward. Vicky's face was paling, pinched with pain. " I said-"
The vampire's other hand was suddenly around Ashley's throat. Breathing was impossible. Pain seemed to course through her as her lungs screamed for air. She kicked feebly- and then collapsed onto the ground.
Mike was clubbing the vampire on the back with his bat- and then just like that, the bat was gone and the vampire was on top of him, pinning him to the ground. Joliene leaped onto the vampire's back, wrestling her off of Mike. Flipping up to her feet, she kicked the vampire away from Mike and Ashley and then kicked again just as savagely. Her next kick met the kneeling vampire's ribs, kicking her across the grass.
"Not fair, going after the sidekicks." She snarled, stomping at the vampires exposed hand. With a snarl, the vampire sprang forward. Colliding with Joliene, she slammed her back against a nearby headstone. Feral in her fighting, she slammed the dark skinned girls head back against the headstone repeatedly.
The FWWWPT of electricity cut through the air. Stiffly the vampire released Joliene and stumbled away, jerkily. Ashley followed it with her Taser, preparing for another jolt. Before she could, the vampire was already moving- straight at her. The Taser fell harmlessly as the vampire slapped Ashley aside. The girl fell heavily on her side, wincing in pain.
"Stop!" A woman screamed- Ashley looked up jus in time to see a blond woman collide with Janna. Where had Janna come from? Stumbling to their feet, the group surrounded Janna in preparation to go after the vampire again- and realized that this wasn't her.
"That's not a vampire." Ashley breathed, her eyes already on the horrible thing in Janna's hand. The blond gaped wordlessly as Janna gasped, nearly hyperventilating. Janna released the knife that she'd stabbed into the blonde's stomach. Blood pooled from the wound, the same blood that glittered darkly onto Janna's outstretched hand. The blonde's hands closed over the knife as she doubled over, falling to the ground.