Chapter 18: The Difference a Watcher Makes
A/N: I couldn't be cruel and drag this out any longer. Well, I could, but then it would just be mean for mean's sake.
Challenge: partially to answer a forum request/challenge by DeepBlueJoy for a story with a 'person of color' as a main character – who doesn't die immediately.
Warning: Character death.
Thanks to my betas: none tonight because I didn't think the readers would want to wait for them. Hope there aren't (m)any glaring errors.
Disclaimer: BtVS and AtS characters belong to Joss Whedon / Mutant Enemy. I claim no rights to any copyrighted material. Please do not copy or take this story without my permission.
Summers home
Backyard (Wes)
Wes' eyes took in the human threat immediately, even as his mind raced with various lines of thought.
The first one was that the lunatic sounded like a scorned lover. He heard Buffy growl the name 'Warren' under her breath, but if they had ever been lovers, the breakup had to be the worst she ever had – and when the list included sending Angel to hell, Wes didn't want to consider anything worse. Plus…he just couldn't see Buffy falling for a guy like that. Granted, after being dead and resurrected, her mind might not have been all there for a while, but still…
He grimaced; maybe he shouldn't be casting stones about sexual liaisons. Lately, he had been growing increasingly attracted to Lilah of all people. It was a good thing he left LA when he did, otherwise he might have grown desperate enough to act on that attraction – despite the fact she was evil.
From the corner of his eye, Wes saw that Buffy was only focused on Warren's face, not the rest of his body. Something he'd have to work on with her later. He knew that if Warren had been a demon, Buffy would have scanned his whole body for weapons, weaknesses, the whole nine yards. Just because her opponent was human, didn't mean they couldn't be a threat. Wolfram & Hart taught that lesson in spades.
Fortunately, his thinking processes were as fast as Willow's babble on coffee, so he was able to have all these thoughts in less time than it took for Warren to say his little rant.
In addition, the on-the-job training he got with Angel the past couple years increased his reflexes to almost supernatural proportions, so he was able to pull his gun before Warren could get his weapon fully raised.
Two shots rang out back-to-back in the morning air.
The bullet that hit the leader of the Trio directly between the eyes caused his trigger finger to twitch, making the second bullet speed towards its target.
Satisfied that the young man was no longer a threat, Wes turned to see Buffy on her knees, clutching her stomach. When she didn't respond after he called her name, the Watcher – both in name and in action now – instinctively put the safety back on his gun, holstered it and pulled out his cell phone…all in one motion.
As he was calling the ambulance, he started first aid on the wound. Laying Buffy down on the grass, Wes was relieved to see the bullet, despite still being inside her – didn't appear to have struck an artery or vein directly. That meant he had a chance of keeping her alive long enough for the paramedics to get there.
Maybe he should have been concerned that she wasn't panicking even a little, but the fact she was staying calm made his job that much easier.
Buffy's bedroom (Willow and Tara)
Tara heard Willow cry out as the door burst open and looked over at the doorway. The redhead appeared to have wilted against the doorframe in relief.
She left the broken glass that she had been kneeling to pick up and went to check on her girlfriend. "Are you okay, Willow?" Tara inquired softly. She wasn't prepared for the death grip that engulfed her when her words snapped Willow out of her shock.
"As long as you're alive, I'm the happiest girl in the world!" Willow exclaimed, kissing the blonde until they almost fainted from oxygen deprivation. They kept holding and caressing each other until the sounds of a siren broke them out of their little world.
"Oh no…Buffy!" Tara exclaimed. "She was outside with some guy I didn't recognize. I was going downstairs to start breakfast when I heard shouting, and then the gunshots made me drop my glass, and then you came in and…"
If she hadn't been so worried about her best friend, Willow would have teased Tara for her impressive babble.
When they moved to the window, the reunited not-yet-lovers-again were horrified to see Buffy lying on the grass while the EMTs worked on them. The desire to get to her side won out over the macabre fascination that wanted to hold them in place, watching the personal equivalent of a fatal car accident. They prayed to any higher power listening that this wouldn't be fatal too.
A/N: Am I forgiven now?