Disclaimer: I own nothing below except the plot. All characters, locations, and concepts are owned under their respective copyrights.
Spoilers and Timeline: Buffy up to season 2 "Passion" Time frame: "I Only Have Eyes for You"
Author's note: As with all of my stories, suggestions about future plot developments are welcome and wanted, Reviews of any kind are appreciated as well.
Only Two
Chapter 6
Jenny Calendar had done some reckless things during her life. Many of those things had happened in the library at Sunnydale High. Her classroom had also been the scene of some of her more embarrassing and foolish moments, telling Giles she loved him being among the top ones. Her current situation could be considered unwise.
She was staying late at the school. The last time she had done that, well, Angelus had made her night rather horrifying. If it weren't for Giles, that would have been her last night. Now, while Wesley, Kendra, and Buffy were setting up for an attack against Spike and Drusilla, Jenny had some unfinished business with Angel.
The others would need Angel to try and rescue Buffy's mother. If all went according to plan the biggest threat to the town would be gone. Whether that meant they would be dead or just driven away, it didn't matter. Drusilla had already brought one potential apocalypse to town with the Judge. There was no telling what she would do next with all of the possibilities the Hellmouth offered. As an added bonus, Buffy's mom would be free and safe.
Coming back to Jenny, she was waiting nervously for Angel to show up. With everything going on, it would do her a world of good to have some insurance against the return of Angelus. As focused as she was on thinking about everything, Angel startled her when he entered through back of the library, he walked up behind her, and sat down across from her 'Just like last time, damn'
Angel heard the gasp and had seen that look far too many times. "Sorry, I'm too quiet sometimes, so what did you want to talk about?"
"I wanted to give you something, don't worry about the sneaking around, it's what you do, I should know." Jenny recovered from her surprise. It hadn't been that long ago since Angelus had scared her.
Angel well remembered the last time he had startled her. It wasn't a memory he was comfortable with, but it was there nonetheless. The darkness of her classroom, with only the light of her computer to see by, but for Anglus it was more than enough. "About that, I don't know what to say. It wasn't me."
"I know, just save any apologies. You know what happened, I'll just have to live with that." Jenny replied harshly, this situation was hard enough without rehashing what happened a couple of nights ago.
Angel was right there with her, it was a good thing that Giles was in a coma, Angel didn't think the Watcher could or should forgive him. "Thank you, what did you want to give me?"
"You're welcome, I never want to see Angelus again. I'll research the curse, see if there's some way I can change it so you don't lose your soul again. In the meantime, I have this." Jenny knew somewhat about why Angel was thanking her, she had restored his soul, allowing him back into the fight and letting him love and feel in ways Angelus or even Liam never could. What Jenny pushed across the table was a simple, silver ring, with nothing overtly distinguishing about it.
Angel didn't want that either, it was quite the experience. One moment, he was in the great afterglow of his coupling with Buffy, his last thoughts and actions being that he had to get away from her; he had actually felt his soul being ripped from his body, and the next moment he was in the middle of a street outside of Willow's house. Add in the new, terrible memories created by Angelus. The whole thing was something he didn't want to repeat. "Yeah, me neither, what's that?" Angel grabbed the ring and turned it over in his hand.
"Put it on your index finger and I'll tell you." Jenny had one last thing that she had to do to the ring, but it had to be on Angel's finger first.
Angel didn't want it to get in the way, so he put it on his left hand finger. He couldn't apologize to her, but he could make some amends by trusting her. Jenny whispered forcefully the final step in her plan "Semper idem" and Angel felt the ring heat up and tighten around his finger. It bit into his skin, causing him to wince in pain.
"Okay, now, what is this and what did you just do?" Angel was becoming slightly nervous, maybe Jenny had a little of her people's desire for vengeance in her.
Jenny smiled for the first time, and in relief. "That ring is my way of insuring that Angelus doesn't come back, as to the spell, now you can't take the ring off."
"What does the ring do?" Angel was intrigued. There wasn't much he could do about it now, so he let go of his worry.
Jenny had spent the last day working on this during those times when the library was empty of Scoobies and when she had free time during the day. Getting the ring ready had even given her some ideas on how to help Giles. "This ring will react to what you're doing. Especially if it's with another person. For example, if you and Buffy are making out somewhere, the ring will start burning you like a cross. Now here's where it gets a little dicey, if you go any further, I'm not sure exactly, but it could kill you."
"What do you mean it 'could' kill me?" Angel could see the reasoning behind the ring, but he still was shocked that she would go that far.
Jenny was a little ashamed here "Well, you see, I've never enchanted something like this before. I had some help online, but I still don't have much power. So, I don't know what will happen. If you and Buffy start to have sex, the ring might release enough power to destroy you, or it could just take your finger or hand off. It's not like I could test it."
"Oh" Angel didn't know quite what to say. But it made sense, Jenny was aware of his feelings for Buffy, and it wasn't likely that she could convince Buffy to wear something similar.
Jenny had come to that same conclusion, she wasn't naive enough to think that the Slayer and the vampire she loved would be kept apart by Jenny or anyone else telling them it wasn't safe, even knowledge of Angel's curse might not be enough.
Jenny had learned, love could cause people to do strange things. Giles had shown her that. "I know, but I had to make sure. I promise, once this whole thing with Rupert is dealt with; and if I can find away to alter your curse, I'll take the ring off." What she didn't say was that if the ring didn't kill him, it would at least hurt him visibly, giving everyone else some warning if Angelus did return; a one-handed vampire was also slightly less dangerous.
Angel stood up, it was going to be a long night and coming day "Thanks again, I better get going; they're probably waiting on me."
"Angel, be careful, I still might need you later." Jenny was covering all of her options when it came to Giles. If she couldn't find magic to save him, then Angel could turn him, and then Jenny could curse the new vampire with Giles' soul.
Angel wasn't about to let anything happen to himself, now that he'd been given what amounted to a third chance. He didn't respond, Jenny had her reassurance and he had taken a big step in reconciling with her. He was doing that for Buffy, Jenny wasn't her friend, but Giles was. And the Watcher obviously cared for Jenny, or else Angelus would have never done what he did. Angel left the library and ran full speed towards where he knew Buffy and the others were waiting.
Jenny sighed after Angel was gone, one problem solved, she hoped that she would be equally successful with Giles' problem.
Angel found Wesley, Buffy, and Kendra in a building near the factory. Buffy and Angel had past experience with its location and layout. Angelus would have been furious to know he was helping with the planning to destroy what remained of his vampire family. Angel had access to all of Angelus' memories.
Wesley was slightly out of his comfort zone. He was supposed to be here in an advisory role. Now he was thrust into the position of Watcher over two Slayers as well as an allied vampire. It was a situation that the Council, for all of its resources, had never encountered before. The books all said that in most circumstances, the Slayer should be at the front of any battle while her Watcher supported her. This support would consist of helping her when he could and staying out of her way when he couldn't. The Academy hadn't prepared Wesley for looking after with more than one person during battle.
Thankfully, Wesley's father had forced him to read countless books, most of which were mind-numbingly boring. The goal was for Wesley to become head of the Council eventually. Books on history, politics, and philosophy dominated Wesley's free time. This education served him well now.
He had finished telling Kendra and Buffy what their roles were in the coming fight. Kendra would go in first, hopefully drawing the majority of attention. Once Kendra was fully engaged, Buffy would attack from a different angle. Wesley turned to Angel and said "This is where you come in, you know Drusilla better than anyone here; she is your responsibility."
Angel nodded while Buffy interrupted "What about my mom?"
"Don't worry, that will be my job, while you three are fighting; theoretically there will be few of the remaining vampires paying attention to her." Wesley hoped he sounded confident, he would be hard pressed to face off against one vampire. More than that and he would be a dead man. Wesley was hoping to avoid combat. Just go in, get the cage open, and take Mrs. Summers out of the factory.
Buffy was doubtful of the plan and said so "That sounds nice and safe. Just one problem though, Its way too slow. We should all go in together, that way we can watch out for each other."
"I agree, like you said Wesley; I know Spike and Dru better than you do. You've got to go in fast, otherwise Buffy's mom is a goner." Angel had to agree.
Kendra chimed in at this point "Hold on, I think Wesley's right. There are more than four vampires in there. If we all go together, they'll swamp us."
"Thank you, that's exactly it. We're dealing with superior numbers here. We have to use surprise and initiative to gain an advantage." Wesley smiled at Kendra. He did see the merit in Buffy's suggestion, but he also knew his limitations. He would just end up getting killed if they made a direct attack.
The plan was perfect except for one small detail, Drusilla. With Giles out of commission, neither Angel or Jenny had told Wesley about Drusilla being able to see the future somewhat. With everything else going on, they just plain forgot about that crucial piece of information.
Kendra's attack was textbook. Buffy had told her all about the factory. Buffy had been there often enough in the past few days to know all of its entrances. Kendra began her attack loudly, directly, and far away from the cage that held Mrs. Summers. After a minute or so, she was fighting more vampires than she could handle alone. That's when Buffy made herself known. The group fighting Kendra was blind-sided by the blonde Slayer.
There were more minions, those who had held back from the initial attack. They saw an opportunity to make their own surprise attack on Buffy. Unfortunately for them, Angel chose this moment to hit this second group. This was the first mistake during the attack. Angel was supposed to keep an eye out for Drusilla. His concern for Buffy took first priority, leaving Drusilla to do whatever she desired. Kendra and Buffy had annihilated their opponents. The two Slayers joined with Angel as they all plunged into the second group. The battle was going well.
Wesley waited until the second effort began to make his way towards the cage. When he reached it, he found something terribly wrong. The cage door was unlocked and open already. He was about to enter the cage when a voice behind him chilled him to the bone.
"Ms. Edith knew this would happen, but my Spike wouldn't take the risk of killing or turning mummy." Wesley partially turned before being backhanded by Drusilla, which was more than enough to take him out of the fight.
Joyce had woken up when Kendra came into the factory, she had watched with fascination and awe at what the girl and then her daughter were able to do against monsters that shouldn't exist. She was hopeful and then alarmed when Angel appeared, she wanted to cry out, to warn Buffy that the weird boy/vampire who attacked her was here. She was surprised then when Angel began to fight with Buffy instead of against her.
Her alarm returned when Drusilla had rushed to the cage door and opened it. Joyce wanted to leave the cage but was stopped by all of the vampires still out there. Drusilla disappeared during Joyce's brief considering. Joyce felt hope return when a clean-cut young man had appeared far from the fighting and had moved towards the cage. He was nervous and he seemed to on alert for threats, which told Joyce that he wasn't a vampire. Then Drusilla had come back.
Drusilla looked down at Wesley's still alive but hurt and unconscious form "Tsk, Tsk, trying to sneak around to get to mummy, bad boy." She looked at Joyce with undisguised hunger "I wanted to see what mummy tastes like, be in me."
Joyce wanted to scream, to cry out, to do something. But she had looked into Drusilla's eyes and was unable to move a muscle, Drusilla rarely used this ability to feed, but this was an important meal, it wouldn't do to be interrupted. The vampire moved in, changed into her demon face, and sank her teeth into Joyce's neck.
Joyce was held in thrall until Drusilla bit down. By the time she was aware again, it was already too late. She lacked the strength to scream, she could only watch the battle outside of the cage. Her last sight was her daughter fighting and destroying monsters, matching them in speed and strength. Little details became apparent to Joyce, Buffy's face was grim but her eyes were fiery and more alive than Joyce had ever seen them. Her last thought was 'She was born for this, I just hope somebody will take care of her when she's doing everything else.'
Drusilla felt the body she was feeding on slacken, its strength leaving it. The vampire held the woman up for a moment longer, savoring every last bit of her life. She only let go when the blood stopped flowing. Drusilla dropped the body and turned back to the battle.
It was a stalemate, the vampires still had the advantage of numbers. But they were up against three foes who had years of experience in killing their kind. Angel knew how much damage a vampire would take before it was vulnerable. Buffy made each one vulnerable by attacking whenever and however she could. Kendra was more direct, she alternated between attack and defense, she only fought long enough for a quick staking.
It was Kendra who saw Drusilla move away from the cage. The Slayer noticed the bodies the vampire left in her wake. One was still alive, the other wasn't. From what Wesley and Buffy had said before the fight, the body inside the cage could only be Buffy's mom. Kendra charged, she tried her best, but Drusilla was always on the lookout for the stake. However, Kendra forced her back. They moved in a slow, battling arc that found Drusilla with her back to the wall. With increasingly less room to maneuver, Kendra could see the end of the fight. She could take comfort in avenging Buffy's mother, the other Slayer would appreciate that. It wouldn't stop the grief at her loss, but it would help in the long run.
Spike had watched the battle up until now. He saw his minions get divided and mostly destroyed. He watched as Dru dealt with Wesley and had killed Joyce. The Slayer had broken their truce, all bets were off there. Then he became concerned when that other bothersome Slayer had attacked Dru. He wasn't worried, his lover could look after herself, even against a Slayer. However, he became concerned when she was cornered. Spike hadn't told Dru, or that ponce Angelus, but he had healed enough to be rid of the wheelchair. He stood up, kicked the chair away, and charged towards the Slayer who was about to kill Dru.
Kendra was very focused on her fight with Drusilla, the fact that the vampire was still alive was a testament to her power and skill. Kendra barely caught Spike's charge in her peripheral vision. He caught her in mid-turn. He didn't do anything fancy, it was a simple tackle that took them both to the ground. Kendra was knocked woozy from the move, not for long; but for Spike it was enough.
He thought to get that stake away from her, but he realized if he simply killed her, the stake wouldn't be a problem. Quick as he could, he grabbed her under the chin and put his other hand around the top of her head.
Kendra came around just long enough to see the vampire on top of her, she made to punch and roll to get him off of her. Before that could happen, she felt a sharp pain as the vampire twisted her head sideways and an everlasting darkness consumed her.
Buffy and Angel were still fighting, the number of minions were steadily decreasing. Spike and Drusilla entered the fight. Things were not looking good at all.
Where Wesley and the others didn't account for Drusilla, the visionary vampire neglected Buffy and her friends. She was unique among Slayers in having friends who would follow her into the fight. She didn't want them anywhere near this battle though. But they were stubborn.
Buffy knew that things had gone wrong. She noticed Kendra and Wesley were not fighting anymore, and Spike and his freaky girlfriend had joined with their remaining minions in pressing their attack. Angel was getting really worried, fighting Spike and Drusilla would be hard enough if they were alone; but the half dozen or so other vampires made this whole situation inevitably fatal.
Again though, Buffy's friends were sometimes quite literally her saving grace. They came through yet again. The first sign was a wall of the factory having a hole busted through it, courtesy of Oz's van. The remaining Scoobies exited the back with various weapons and, with the exception of Cordelia, moved to join Buffy and Angel in the battle. Willow, Oz, and Xander were all armed variously, according to taste and fighting preferences.
Cordelia wanted to stay near the van, so she had insisted on a crossbow. Most of the vampires in the factory, except Angel and including Spike and Drusilla, had bolts sticking out of various places by the time Cordelia ran out of ammunition. Sometimes her shots provided just the distraction needed for one of the other fighters to dust a vampire they were fighting. Willow and Oz both owed their lives to this help.
The battle ended when Spike grabbed Drusilla and retreated, the Slayer and Angel were bad enough, but now they had help; plus there was a hole in one wall of the factory. Spike reasoned that they had worn out their welcome. Plus, by killing the Slayer's mum; Spike was sure she would be relentlessly murderous. Even more so than she already felt, being the hunter and killer of his kind. Spike would apologize to Dru later, but for now they had to run and leave this town far behind.
When the dust cleared and Buffy had the chance to look around. She first saw Kendra's body. Next she saw Wesley getting to his feet by the cage. When she looked inside the cage, she ran towards it as fast as she could while screaming "Mom!" and sobbing once she skidded down next to her mother's body. The rest of the Scoobies held back as she hugged and rocked the body back and forth. Losing Kendra was bad enough, she was the one person who knew exactly what Buffy was going through. Her mother was a whole different story.
When she first came to Sunnydale, Buffy had just wanted a fresh start. She wanted a normal life. Her mom was a central part of that, now her largest bit of normality was gone.
Jenny remained in the library, she had researched about Giles until sleep claimed her. Her efforts were rewarded, she had found something that might reverse Giles' spell while also keeping her alive. Ordinarily, the magic would be inadequate for this, but Jenny was all but certain that the Hellmouth would cause her healing spell to go all wacky. She had learned and seen enough to know that spells and other things were extra powerful due to all the mystical energy generated by the dimensional opening.
When she awoke, it was already morning. She realized that she didn't know how last night had turned out. She didn't have long to wait. The reason she woke up was that Xander had seen her asleep and thought she was uncomfortable, besides she needed to hear the news from last night. Xander woke her up with a simple "Ms. Calendar?"
"Xan-Xander? What happened last night?" Jenny sleepily replied, she glanced at the book that she had used as a pillow, it held the key to reversing Giles' condition. She smiled slightly, he would find it funny that it was his books rather than her computer that led to his restoration.
Xander saw the smile and hated the fact he had some bad news to share. Unless something happened with Giles soon, Ms. Calendar wasn't going to have much to be happy about in the near future "Good news first, Spike is gone. We ruined his hideout and killed most of his vamp friends." Jenny yawned and nodded for him to continue. She knew there had to be some bad news, the only question was how bad? "Right, well, Kendra, the other Slayer. She's dead."
"That's horrible, how's Buffy taking it? She was really happy when Kendra arrived, I'm not sure, but I think she was someone who knew what being a Slayer meant, and Buffy could connect with her in ways that none of us could." Jenny was taking Kendra's death rather hard as well, it seemed easier to ask after Buffy, to mask her own shock. Kendra and Wesley had taken some of the burden off of her, now half of that support was gone.
Xander was dreading this next part "Uh, she hasn't really dealt with it yet, her mom was killed before we could get to her. So Buff's been kinda broken since."
"Oh my god, where is she now?" Jenny gasped and put her hand over her mouth. Losing one's mother had to rank right at the top for the death of family members. Jenny still remembered her uncle's disemboweled corpse when Angelus first appeared, that was shocking. She had heard stories from the elder woman about various losses suffered by her people in the same vein.
Xander didn't respond right away, he remembered Buffy sobbing over her mother, how when it had finally stopped, she was led away from the factory with a vacant expression, her world was shattered. She didn't speak for the rest of the night. "We took her over to Willow's, we didn't think it was a good idea that she should go back to her house, and there was no way in hell she was ever going to stay with me and my screwed up family."
"That's good, if Willow has a hard time, for whatever reason, Buffy can come and stay with me." Jenny was already thinking about how that would work. If everything worked out as she hoped, Giles would be awake later today. Either way, Buffy needed support, now more than ever. She always did, of course, being the Slayer and a teenage girl could wear anyone down.
Xander hadn't expected this, though he supposed Ms. Calender would make that kind of offer. But there were still the major problems that needed to be addressed. With really no Slayer around, the town was liable to descend into chaos. Also, there was Giles; whether he would survive or not. Xander voiced both of these concerns "That's great, in the meantime, we're down a Slayer with another who's a lump. And let's not forget, Giles has been out for awhile."
"I know, I've got a plan, if everything goes well, Rupert will be awake today. Then we can get Buffy back on her feet." Jenny was going for the best case scenario here. Also, she couldn't help but slip in Giles' first name when referring to him. She unconsciously added some affection to the name. She had taken to using that name when they were together. With the children she tried to refrain from letting her feelings show, they already knew, no good could come from her constantly reminding everyone about his condition and her role in putting him there. She wasn't very successful, nobody else used his first name; but she did it often, and she said it with a softness that seeped into her voice.
Xander smiled at the teacher, he had seen the same thing. Giles hated nicknames, and he expected Buffy and the rest to be respectful of his position, both as a librarian and a Watcher. Ms. Calender said either of his names with a certain inflection that showed just how she felt about him. Xander noticed this same thing when Buffy talked about Angel, or Willow about Oz. He was guilty of doing that when telling about his and Cordelia's relationship. "That's some good news, with all that's happened, we could really use a win."
"Yeah, by the way, you never mentioned what happened to Wesley? I'm curious, how did he do last night?" Jenny had noticed, Xander hadn't mentioned anyone except Buffy, Kendra, and Joyce. Jenny could safely guess that everyone else was alright. That they were alive at least. Jenny was curious because Wesley was the other half of her support.
Xander scowled at the mention of the name "Oh, him, he's at the hospital right now. Spike's girlfriend put him there, honestly I think he got Buffy's mom killed. He should've included us in the plan, it's a good thing Willow wanted us to follow Buffy, otherwise..." Xander trailed off, he remembered when they had crashed the party in the factory, Buffy and Angel had almost been overwhelmed. Also, Xander had helped to move the bodies of Joyce and Kendra. The former was bad, her skin was grey from all of the blood loss. However; it was Kendra that really stuck with him. Her lifeless form was a great contrast to when she was alive. He had seen her fight before, she was alive with energy, motion, and controlled ferocity. Xander knew why he was initially attracted to Buffy and then for a moment there, Kendra, it was that Slayers were beautiful. It didn't really matter what they looked like, when they were fighting, they were awesome.
"I see, well I have to get ready, I'll talk to whoever is around after class. See you later, okay?" Jenny wondered at Xander's hatred, when he loathed someone, he didn't hold back or try to conceal it. Aside from the casualties, Wesley must have done something more than Xander had mentioned. Aside from vampires, Xander needed a reason to hate. Jenny stood up and stretched, sleeping in a chair was not designed to promote comfort.
Xander mirrored Jenny and stood up. He promised promised to make sure Buffy and Willow had all of their homework. "Good luck with everything Ms. Calendar, just be careful, we've all seen magic go haywire." Xander knew that Jenny wouldn't need the details of that particular warning, they had been on opposite ends of that love spell that had sent half the town after him in an amorous craze.
"Thanks for the warning." Jenny was actually counting on the magic to perform beyond its expectations. If a love spell directed at one person could have such a wide effect, then she was hoping a spot healing spell would get enough of a boost to reverse what was happening to Giles.
Since the night Jenny was killed, Giles had come to know what it meant to lose someone. It was somewhat like having a limb removed. At times he expected her to show up in the library or be in her classroom. Of course she was never there, and she would never be anywhere again. But Giles had experienced something strange at the hospital, it was similar to his expectation of Jenny being there; only this time he had felt warmth on his hand and had heard forceful and determined whispers. He couldn't make out their meaning, they were overly soft.
At the time Giles had dismissed it as the aftermath of his conversation with Joyce about Jenny and then chalked it up to the Kindestod demon that Buffy had eventually destroyed. Either way it wasn't what he hoped, he was going to have get over it. In time Jenny would become just another in a long list of casualties in the fight against evil.
He had just had a moment of unbalancing discomfort. He thought his grief over Jenny was spent, that he was finally starting to heal; or at least have a scar over the gaping wound her absence had caused in him. That hadn't lasted very long. When he had walked into the computer lab, Willow had mentioned Jenny. The teacher had left excellent lesson plans. Giles couldn't help the distress that showed. Willow saw this, plain as day. She thought of something that might help.
Giles found himself out in the hallway. He marveled at the resilience he had just witnessed. Willow had taken Jenny's death hard. Buffy told him how she had broken down after his call. He was readily able to hear her voice when he told Willow what had happened. Her frantic denials and subsequent sobbing had mirrored Giles own reaction after his rage had subsided. He put the rose quartz necklace in his pocket for now. When the wound wasn't so raw anymore, he would consider wearing it; but not today.
When the possessions started, Giles was sure it had something to do with Jenny. The violence of each encounter had brought to mind the manner of her death. He even discounted Buffy's vision of a lover's quarrel between a student and a teacher. The historical aspect of the vision didn't sway Giles in the slightest. Jenny had to be a part of this. He had told Buffy, Willow, and Xander rather harshly that their theory was wrong.
He overheard them when they talked about his fixation. He had to admit Buffy was right, he did miss Jenny. But she was so far off the mark. Missing someone, that could happen when they went on a trip. For Giles, it was something entirely different. Jenny was taken from him, she was targeted and killed. It wasn't random, it was sadistic and cruel. Other than her feelings for him and the help she gave Buffy in the past, Giles didn't even know why she was killed.
When the mystical battle began in earnest, Giles was left on the sidelines. Buffy, Willow, and the rest had went ahead with Buffy's vision and the events that happened long ago at the Sadie Hawkins dance.
The spirits fought back. Giles became part of the fight. Finally he came across Willow. She was being sucked into a portal in the floor of the school. Doubtless one of the spirits wanted to kill her. Giles raced over and tried to pull her out. He was having some success when the rose quartz necklace that Willow had given him started to vibrate and warm up. It also enveloped him in light and sapped his strength. He was pulled down into the portal with Willow. He thought for sure he was going to die.
Giles had expected to be crushed instantly or sent to some horrible alternate dimension. He was surprised to find that he could feel that his body had settled on a bed. It was unfamiliar. He could smell antiseptic and a hint of something he never thought he would smell again. The last time he knew this particular scent was when he was standing in Jenny's classroom. That was the last time he had seen her alive. Perhaps he was indeed dead, if that were the case, this afterlife business was certainly making a good first impression.
He felt like he was wearing a loose gown. He also seemed to be covered with a light blanket. There was a heaviness on one of his hands. It was wrapped and he felt some devices attached to it. He tried to lift it and stopped when a pain shot through it. Okay, it was possible that there was something sticking into it. Maybe he wasn't in such a good place after all.
His mouth was dry. However, he was not thirsty. He tried licking his lips, they were parched. Just as he had finished, a soft hand lifted his head and a cup of water was put to his mouth. He opened up and drank. This place was really confusing. There were interesting smells and touches, as well there seemed to be an effort to make him comfortable. Of course the pain couldn't be discounted.
He finally decided to end all doubt and open his eyes, assuming he could do such a thing. He could feel the rest of his body, so he was fairly certain that he still possessed the ability to see. Though the vagaries of a hell dimension would suggest that he would be forever trapped in blindness and uncertainty. Tortured by both hope and pain, eventually dreading both.
But open them he did. What he saw confirmed his fears, he really was dead. He knew Jenny was dead, but here she was. She was looking down at him with tear-stained cheeks and watery eyes. He wanted to be sure this was real, whatever this happened to be, so he spoke with a raspy voice "Jenny?"
She nodded, smiled, leaned down, kissed him, and responded fondly "Rupert"
"Where are we, I was helping to drive some spirits from the school, Willow was being pulled into a portal, I tried to pull her out. But I was sucked in as well." Giles couldn't help the nagging suspicion that this was no alternate dimension, hellish or otherwise. He also noticed that Jenny was holding the same rose quartz crystal that Willow gave him not so long ago. It had a few drops of her blood on it.
Jenny was shocked, it seemed as if Rupert didn't remember what he had done for her, she answered worriedly "We're at the hospital. You collapsed at Willow's house after we did the spell to restore Angel's soul."
"What's going on here, the last time I saw you, you were dead. I stood over your grave. Nearly got myself killed attacking Angelus on the night he killed you." Giles was almost overwhelmed by the contrast and babbled in response. Jenny's lifeless face was nothing compared to her right now. Her eyes were so wide and fixed, now they were practically dancing with emotion. She was alive. That word held a much deeper meaning now.
Jenny was taken aback, he really didn't remember. Everything he had done. Bringing her back from the dead, showing through words and action the love he held for her. The spell he used had much more of an impact than she ever imagined. "Oh, Rupert, all of that, anything that happened after I died, it was just a horrible nightmare."
"You're really alive?" Giles was still grappling with this new information. The horror of the past few weeks was seemingly an intensely vivid dream. That thought brought a flood of other questions, the most important being 'When did I break with reality?'
Jenny sniffled and said "Yes, you didn't attack Angelus the night I died, you used a spell that resurrected me. We were able to give Angel his soul later." She was trying to keep calm. Giles as she knew him was most likely gone.
"A resurrection spell? Did I happen to label it a transfer spell, and did I say I learned it at the Watchers' Academy?" After Jenny nodded he went on "Ah, how did it not kill me right off?" Giles was honestly curious, that spell was very hazardous.
Jenny tried to answer as best as she could, she still didn't know everything about the spell. She was still trying to deal with the side effects. "Well, from what I can tell, and from what Wesley said when I told him, it looks like the Hellmouth messed with the spell."
"Who's Wesley?" If he believed everything Jenny was saying, it sure looked like he'd been out of action for a bit.
This question brought Jenny out of her concern over Rupert, and it brought up something he had given her back at his apartment "He's the researcher the Council sent along with Kendra. Um, Rupert, if you'll excuse me, I need to call the kids, let them know you're awake."
"The last time I saw you, well, you were dead. The fact that you're here and alive, you don't have to ask for anything. Just let me tell you one thing before you go, I love you, Jenny." Giles remembered all of his regret that he was never able to tell her that, when he was standing at her graveside, that's what he told Buffy.
Jenny sobbed a little, she tried to imagine what he must have gone through in the nightmare "I'll be right back, okay?" Giles couldn't help but agree, he had some help when she kissed him again; this was no quick peck, It was filled with passion and relief at having him back.
Jenny was out in the hallway. She was reviewing the status of the group. One Slayer was dead, while the other was emotionally shattered. One Watcher was injured severely, while the other had amnesia. For the rest, there was a werewolf that was uncontrollable when transformed, two regular humans, and a possible witch. In fact the only reliable member at the moment was Angel, and he was limited by his nature.
These facts led her to make a call. Once the call was answered she said "Hello, my name is Jennifer Calender, Rupert Giles told me to call you in case something happened to him."
"I am Quentin Travers, Mr. Giles told me of your connection to him, did he also give you the trigger word?" The man on the other end of the line seemed to be very stressed, his voice was clipped and cold, he had no wish to waste time. Especially with this civilian woman who knew far too much for her own good.
Jenny wasn't put off by the insulting tone, she had a job to do and no pompous boss of Giles' was going to get in her way "Yes, Mr. Travers, Trafalgar."
"Right, Ms. Calendar was it, we'll be there in double-quick time." with that he hung up. He stood up from his desk and made his way to the nerve center of Council operations. Most heads turned in his direction as he entered.
"Everyone, we have a new mission. An active Hellmouth is now undefended, we will mobilize most of our resources to secure it, call in any potential Slayers and Watchers that we can. I want all the intelligence and information on this Sunnydale that we have, once we're ready, we will move on the town and surrounding areas and cleanse them of vampires and demons." Travers watched as his subordinates moved to get everything ready.
In a very short time, the full might of the Council would make itself felt on the Hellmouth. Jenny had no idea about the force she had just unleashed. For the average, unaware human in Sunnydale, the town would become much safer. For Buffy, Jenny and their friends and lovers, the Council would make their lives much more difficult.