Chapter 3

Sunnydale, California

October 29th 1998

John Tate stood in the kitchen getting ready for school. Which as usual mostly involved making coffee. It helped not only with staying awake in his morning classes, but also with dealing with the fact that his mother taught at his school.

"Caffeine is not a food group." his mother informed him, coming in. It was an old argument. Even when he'd hit his growth spurt he hadn't been all that interested in breakfast. He preferred big lunches and dinners. Also she didn't like him putting chemicals into his body.

"We're out of Percadan." he retorted.

Touche. But that was different. She needed the medication to control the nightmares and anxiety that plagued her otherwise. He just drank coffee to stay awake.

She didn't feel like arguing today though, so she let it go. "You got mail." she said, changing the subject. "It's from your dad." She handed him the envelope. The size and shape left little doubt as to it's contents.

John resignedly opened it. He had little attachment to his father, who had left when he was rather young. He heard from him rarely, and saw him even more rarely. As expected, it was a birthday card. Happy 17th Birthday it said. There was money inside, which was always appreciated.

"Birthday card." John announced wryly.

"Only two months late." Keri smirked. "I'm impressed."

"The cash is good. It'll come in handy in Yosemite."

"You're not going." Keri kept her tone light, but she suspected that her desire not to argue was going to go unfulfilled.

"Yes I am." he countered. His own tone was calm, also light, but determined. Keri recognized that tone. Yep. Argument. Though she did notice that he'd poured himself a bowl of cereal. Was he trying to negotiate?

"No." she said, more firmly. "You're not." She handed him the milk.

He poured the milk. "Yes," he said, his tone also more firm. "I am. And with your full blessing. And you know why? Because today is the day. I can feel it. Today is the day that you realize, that I'm 17 years old. And your over protectiveness and paranoia is inhibiting my growth process."

Well look at him with his big words and psycho-babble. She was so proud of him. She still had no intention of letting him out of her sight though. Not this close to that night.

"You wanna go camping I'll take you camping."

Yeah, to John's mind that was not a workable compromise. It wasn't his fault they hadn't asked her to be one of the chaperones.

"I don't want to go with you." he said. He wanted to go with his friends. And his girlfriend especially.

"Sorry." Keri suspected Molly was a big reason he wanted to go. And that was one of the many reasons she did not want him to. Teenagers alone, in an isolated area around Halloween? She couldn't think of a more dangerous situation.

"Dad would let me go."

Keri gritted her teeth. "Your father, is an abusive, irrational, methadone addict."

"And who would attract someone like that?"

Low blow John. Low blow. "Ouch." she said, just short of snapping at him.

"And just think Mom, he left you."

She shut the refrigerator door a fraction harder than necessary.

"Look John, I know you get your smart mouth from my side of the family, so I'll give you a break. But point check. You're going too far."

"Mom, help me out here. I need a little open air. I know it's almost the day-"

"Oh really? And what day is that?" she snapped.

He paused, debating whether to continue to push this. "Halloween." he said at last. The word hung on the air between them. And even he felt the chill he saw in his mother's eyes. It was an almost taboo word.

"I hadn't noticed." she lied badly.

"Mom we're through with all that." he said soothingly. Sometimes it seemed like they were taking turns raising the other. He certainly did his share of comforting and reassuring. "We really are." He took his bowl of cereal to his room then, to get his bag.

Keri tried to center herself. She had a class to teach today after all.

"Yosemite. Isn't that a cartoon character?" Buffy asked, looking at the permission slip in her hand. Giles gave her an incredulous look. "How is it possible I know more about your own country than you do?"

"You have to work harder at it." she smirked. "I'm teasing Giles, mom and dad took me to Yosemite all the time when I was a kid."

"Thank God. I was beginning to think perhaps those blond jokes might actually be true."

"Hey."

"Why don't you go Buffy?" Willow suggested. The Scoobies, as they often were, were gathered in the library. "Halloween is quiet time for Vampires and stuff. You could go on a vacation."

Buffy grimaced. "Camping? No thanks. I grew out of that a long time ago."

Cordelia whole heartedly agreed. "Plus it's gonna be cold. Now if we were staying in a hotel or something I could see it."

"Never thought I'd see the day where you two agreed on something." Xander mused.

"Yeah, it's kinda scary."

Xander, Willow and Oz of course had opted out themselves. This past summer when Buffy had been, on sabbatical as Giles had once tactfully put it, they had had a rather unpleasant camping experience. "Well if we're gonna be here, why don't we do something?" Xander suggested.

"Shindig?" Oz guessed.

"What was it last time?" Cordelia asked.

"I think that wound up being a hootenanny."

"Is there something between Gathering and Shindig?"

"Well not at my house." Buffy said. "Last time didn't go so well."

"Yeah it's funny how the living dead always manage to kill a party." Xander agreed. After a moment, they all looked at Giles.

"What?" he said helplessly. Then realization dawned on him. "No." he insisted. "Absolutely not. Not here."

They kept looking.

"And don't think you can change my mind either."

"Oh, of course not." Buffy said impishly.

Boulder Colorado

"I can't believe we got stuck with this job."

The dark van drove through the streets looking for a few good meals. Two Vampires rode in the front, with two more in the back.

"Yeah well you wanna eat on Halloween or don't you?"

"Whatever. Hey Annie?" He turned to the girl lounging in the back seat.

"Yo."

"Ready to play the damsel?"

"Sure thing."

The van pulled over, and the two Vampires in the back got out. Annie turned to the boy, who's name was Tommy. "So, you wanna do the usual thing or switch it up?"

"As much as I love being stalked by you Annie, I'm pretty sure folks are more likely to fall for the damsel in distress act. Not many people are gonna come to the rescue of a guy stumbling down the street screaming 'help me'."

Annie sighed. "Yeah. It's weird how the gender roles still remain the same. Girls still aren't supposed to ask boys out either."

"I blame the media. There just aren't enough forward girls represented. Shy guys like me who like being pursued aren't-"

"Hey!" the driver of the van, Marcus, shouted. "Save the Whedonesque banter for later kids, we don't have all night."

"It's more Kevin Smith than Whedon but point taken." Tommy turned to Annie. "Alright lets get this show on the road. Grr. Argh."

Annie snickered, then turned to run. After getting a good enough head start, she turned the run into a pathetic stumbling gait, casting fearful glances over her shoulder. The plan was to attract would be rescuers to her side, where she could knock them out and then she and Tommy could load them into the back of the van. They would do this for a few hours then head back home, with plenty of food for Halloween. It was a plan that had served them well for a long time.

Tonight their luck would change.

Tommy followed after, and soon enough, he spotted someone. But they weren't coming to Annie's rescue. The shape seemed to just be standing there in the alley. Watching her. Apparently they had a weirdo on their hands. It happened sometimes. Someone who rather than wishing to come to the rescue of the damsel in distress or flee whatever danger was apparent, would instead try to take advantage of the situation.

Those could be just as, if not more fun than the heroes. There were few things as satisfying as watching the expression on such a person's face change from whatever kind of loony self assurance they had when they realized they were faced with a real monster.

Tommy whistled, signaling Annie to cut the damsel act for a bit. Then he walked casually up to the watching figure. As he got closer, the shape stepped out of the alley to face him.

The proximity to Halloween made the creepy Shatner mask not quite so unusual, as it might otherwise be.

"Hey man. You know the big night isn't for a night or two."

No answer. The shape just stood there, looking at him. Breathing calmly, steadily. In, and out. Tommy noticed something he hadn't before. Glinting in the street light, was the blade of a large kitchen knife.

Ooh, this would be fun indeed. Normally Tommy would draw something like this out. But the mask, and the knife, he just had to. He grinned, slipping into his game face, fangs bared, yellow demonic eyes glaring.

The man before him was supposed to react in surprise. Terror even. Maybe even some false bravado. But Tommy found himself a little unnerved by the reaction he got. Nothing but a curious tilt of the head. Okay. I'm a Vampire and I'm creeped out.

Annie had stopped to see what was going on. Ah, a weirdo. Those were fun. But what was going on? Tommy was in Vamp Face, and said weirdo wasn't doing anything but cutting Tommy's throat?!

Tommy gagged as what little blood he had left spilled from the sudden wound. One hand going instinctively to cover it. The look of shock on his face changed to one of rage, and he lashed out, seizing the figure by the shoulders, slamming him against the wall hard enough to kill.

But the figure, though staggered, did not fall. Tommy had barely enough time to register this fact before his intended victim grabbed him by the throat, and smashed his head into the same brick wall. Then again. And again.

Annie was frozen in horror as Tommy's head was reduced to pulp, then finally destroyed, her friend's body turning to dust before her eyes.

Then the figure turned to look at her.

"Oh shit no." she gasped, turning to run for the van. Somehow they had run afoul of some kind of Demon. They had to get out of here!

Behind her, the silent figure began to walk after her.

Thanks to Vampiric speed, Annie reached the van quickly. The passenger, a fairly new Vampire named Bill, opened the side door. "What's going on? Where's Tommy?"

"Tommy's dead. We have to get-"

She didn't finish. From seemingly out of nowhere, a hand grabbed Annie's hair, and another hand, this one holding a large knife slit her throat. Bill stared in shock as her assailant yanked back on her hair. Her throat had been cut so deeply that the masked man was able to rip off her head, reducing her to dust.

"Jesus!" It was not a common exclamation for a Vampire to make. Particularly an older one like Marcus. Bill tried to shut the door, but the masked man grabbed it and jerked it open. Going to 'game face' the Vampire dove out of the van, tackling the assailant to the ground.

Marcus watched, fascinated as the two rolled. Somehow Bill failed to retain the upper hand, and soon their mysterious attacker was on top, stabbing and slashing at Bill over and over.

Finally, leaving Bill behind to heal, the man rose and came for Marcus. Marcus was no brash young demon to rush into battle, or be intimidated by a slightly over powered human, or even a demon with a thing for knives.

He reached for the tire iron he kept by his seat and got out of the van. "What do you want?" he asked the silent figure. He got no answer. He hadn't fully been expecting one.

Moving with blinding speed, Marcus knocked the knife from his opponent's hand, and pressed the advantage. He battered the man mercilessly, sending him reeling into an alley. Another massive blow to the head knocked him sprawling into a pile of crates, smashing them to splinters.

Cautiously, Marcus approached. He kicked the limp hand of the man. No response.

"Alright now let's see if you're a psychotic human or a demon." He reached out to pull the mask from the prone body.

Suddenly, the man's hand closed on a broken off slat from one of the crates and neatly staked Marcus through the heart with it. He watched the aged Vampire disintegrate, and then looked down a the stake, head tilting curiously.

Bill was starting to recover from his many injuries, and stared in horror at what had happened. By the reaction, he could swear that this guy, this thing, had had no idea the wooden stake would kill Marcus. He'd just reached for the nearest convenient weapon.

The masked man rose, and walked to the van. His breathing continued, steady, calm. He got into the driver's seat and saw that the keys were in the ignition. Then he started the engine, and backed up over the still lying down Bill. His aim was off a bit, only crushing the rib cage. So he tried again, this time getting the head.

With all four victims dead, Michael Meyers headed west.

to be continued...