A/N: YOU GUYS. I know it's been forever. Please forgive me, kittens. I'm drowning in grading this semester, which leaves very little time for writing fiction. But I promise I haven't abandoned ship. Hope you're still out there, too. Also, I just started a new twitter account just for my fanfiction and original stories. Follow me at ElizaLentzski for updates
Buffy took stock of her joyless surroundings. After being tased, she had groggily awoken to discover she was now someone's or something's prisoner. She had no idea how long she'd been unconscious, but she didn't feel terribly hungry which was a good sign that she at least hadn't lost multiple days.
Her jail cell was empty with nothing on which to sit or sleep besides the smooth, stone floor. High vaulted ceilings soared above her. A narrow beam of natural sunlight flooded into the cell from a small, rectangle opening about 15 feet above the ground.
She tested the metal bars that contained her. The bars were thick and sturdily made. She tried prying them apart, but with no success. She stuck her leg through a narrow opening and tried to shimmy her hips through, but the gap was too small for even her boyish hips.
Next, she placed her hands on the rock walls and tried her fingers against the material. Maybe she could climb up to the window and wiggle out the opening if it wasn't barred shut, too. Her fingernails slipped uselessly against the polished walls. There was no way she'd be able to scale the smooth surface without suction cups or being bitten by a radioactive spider.
She listened for any sounds that indicated if she was just one of many prisoners, but she only heard the incessant dripping of water, hollow and echoing in the cavernous prison.
The relative silence of her surroundings was interrupted by the protesting shriek of rusted metal. Her eyes narrowed when she felt the ground beneath her quiver, just as it had above ground right before she'd been rendered unconscious. She hated concussions almost as much as being drowned.
The same lumbering demon that had attacked her earlier came into sight. Buffy rushed the bars of her cell. "You!" she hissed. She uselessly shook the metal rods.
"Slayer." The demon nodded once in greeting, but looked unimpressed by her show of anger.
"Dagmar?" came a small, girlish voice. "Who's that?"
Buffy's anger fell away when a small girl who looked to be no more than 4 or 5 slipped out from behind the massive demon. Her light brunette hair was loose and hit the tops of her shoulders, curling slightly at the ends. She wore a light blue dress that fell above two knobby knees, paired with white dress shoes. Even in the dim lighting, Buffy could make out bright green eyes that peered curiously back at her from beneath bangs that fell across the girl's forehead.
The girl cautiously approached the bars that separated her from the slayer. "You're pretty," she said, cocking her head to one side.
"Thank you," Buffy said with a small smile. "I'm Buffy," she introduced herself, sticking one hand through the bars. "What's your name?"
The girl took a step backwards and glanced up at the demon beside her. "Why is she locked up?" she whispered, ignoring Buffy's outstretched hand and question. The girl's gaze returned to the captive slayer and her green eyes narrowed slightly. "She doesn't look dangerous."
The demon took the young girl's hand in its own giant paw. "Looks can be deceiving, young one." It gently turned the girl away and glanced back just once at Buffy.
The little girl didn't appear alarmed to be led away by the massive, stone demon. She flapped her free hand from side to side in an exaggerated wave. "Bye, Buffy!" she chirped with the enthusiasm and naivety of youth.
The demon unlocked a thick metal door at the rear of the prison. It squeaked noisily on its heavy hinges. The girl went through the doorway without looking back and the demon shut it again once she was all the way through.
"Your name is Dagmar, huh?" Buffy shot out to her demon captor.
The monster seemed unfazed. "Do not test me, slayer," it said emotionlessly. "I've just done you a great kindness."
Buffy's features crumpled when she realized what the demon was referring to. "That's her, isn't it?" she said in a defeated voice.
The demon gravely nodded. "Yes," it confirmed. "That's your daughter."
Faith felt like her head was in a vise. She was convinced that it was just a matter of time before the pressure enveloping her head would crush her skull like a rotten piece of fruit. She felt nauseous and disoriented, and didn't know how much longer she could remain conscious.
Just as her vision began to dim and she felt herself start to slip away, the pressure instantly lifted. The darkness of the portal was replaced by blinding light, and she fell hard to her knees. No longer burdened by the insufferable pressure, she breathed in deeply. She felt like a deflated tire whose pressure had been restored.
Faith stood up on wobbly knees, glad to once again be on solid ground. She leaned against a building and took long, deep breaths until her equilibrium returned. Before she could fully recover, she felt a familiar tingling in her tendons. Demon, it warned her.
She crouched behind a mailbox and waited on the balls of her feet. She was shocked to see, in broad daylight, a Serparvo Demon walking down the sidewalk.
She quickly assessed the situation. Serparvo Demons could only be killed by water. How am I going to find water? she silently worried. She had no idea where she was. This could be a waterless dimension for all she knew, which would account for why the Serparvo looked so cheerful. Maybe I can spit on it to death she grimaced. She'd grossed herself out with that thought. Still with no plan, she tensed her leg muscles and readied herself to spring out from her hiding spot and attack.
She stopped only when she felt a tight hand grab onto her elbow and hold her back. "Stop! You'll get yourself arrested!" a man hissed as he dragged her to her feet. "Violence against demons is the highest crime."
"What?"
Faith took a moment to really take in her surroundings. Nothing looked out of the ordinary about this new dimension – unless you counted that tentacle'd demon family playing in a playground nearby as unusual. Or the fuzzy creature delivering the mail. Or the giant-toothed monster holding a stop sign at the crosswalk while an assorted group of mini demons, all tethered together, walked across the busy intersection.
Even though she'd recovered from the portal jump, Faith felt dizzy again. "What the hell is this place?"
The man's features scrunched. "You're not from around here, are you?"
Faith shook her head.
"Well don't ignore my warning; a woman was imprisoned just a few days ago for attacking a demon. It's all over the news. They charged her with a Hate Crime. There's no tolerance for human-on-demon violence of any kind here in Gafka."
"A Slayer?" Faith demanded excitedly. Buffy. She'd found her. The spell had worked.
"Not so loud!" The man looked around to see if anyone had overheard her. "That word is blasphemy here," he whispered.
"Where's this prison?" Faith demanded. She tried to keep her emotions in check to avoid drawing unwanted attention to herself.
The man regarded Faith. "Are you…" He cleared his throat and looked around. He lowered his voice and leaned in. "Are you a slayer, too?"
"Yes. Now where did they take my friend?"
The man hesitated. "If I help you. You must help us."
"Us?"
"The anti-demon movement has been quietly gaining momentum underground." The man's dark eyes flashed. "Not everyone agrees with the laws that protect those things," he spat venomously. "They take our jobs, they send their spawn to our schools, they even want to get married in our churches. We've been waiting on the leadership of someone like yourself."
Faith eyeballed the man curiously. "Huh. So you're like a member of the anti-demon Ku Klux Klan?"
The man looked confused. "I don't know what that is."
Faith held up her hands. "Listen, I don't get involved in politics. Not even in my own world. And the last time I was put in charge of a group, people ended up getting blown up."
"Without our help, you'll have no chance to save your friend," the man warned. "The laws are more lenient for demons. They get little more than a slap on the wrist for harming a human…if they even have wrists," he shuddered. "But if your friend is found guilty, she'll be transported to another dimension, and she'll be lost forever. That's the penalty for humans."
Faith weighed her options. She could align herself with a band of bigoted humans or risk Buffy being forcibly sent to another dimension before she could form an independent plan. It appeared as if she had no choice. "Alright," she said with a tense nod. "I'm in."
Buffy looked up when she heard the telltale sound of gates and locks being unlocked and opened. Her face fell, however, when she recognized Dagmar, the demon that had imprisoned her. The little girl, however, had not come along this time.
The monster offered no greetings or pleasantries. It simply unlocked a small, horizontal door at the base of Buffy's cage and slid a tray of food through the opening. Buffy was grateful that the food looked recognizable and edible, but she let no visible emotion betray her feelings.
"So that's it?" she spat out bitterly. "I'm your prisoner forever?"
"You're not my prisoner," Dagmar said gruffly. "I'm just the nanny."
"Nanny?" Buffy echoed. The creature looked far too intimidating and imposing for such an innocuous label.
Dagmar's chest swelled and fell as if releasing a massive sigh. "My kind is hired to protect the children of the rich, powerful, and influential."
"My daughter?"
The demon nodded slowly.
"What does she need protection from?" Buffy questioned.
"She has no destiny, if that's your question," Dagmar replied. "She's just a human child."
Buffy couldn't help the feeling of relief despite her current situation. All she'd ever wanted for her unborn child was a normal life. But Dagmar's admission didn't give her much reprieve. "If she has no destiny and is human, why was she taken from me?" Buffy demanded. "And why is she so grown?"
Dagmar hesitated. It was clear to Buffy that this conversation was not protocol. She wondered if the monster was even supposed to be bringing her food. "The child and I have been to 45 dimensions since she was taken. In some of those other worlds, time worked differently. You may feel like she's been gone a month, but she's about 5-years-old now in your human years."
Buffy choked back a sob. Her baby. Her little girl. 5-years-old. She blinked rapidly when she felt her tear ducts start to betray her. "Why all the dimension hopping?"
"We never stayed in one place for too long to avoid detection," the demon said simply.
"Detection by me." Buffy said the words not as a question, but as a statement.
Dagmar nodded.
"But you slipped up. You stayed here for too long and I found you," Buffy growled, feeling her grief turn to anger.
Dagmar shook its head, a look of pity on its normally emotionless face. "No. It was not a mistake, Slayer. The time was finally right. It wanted you to find us."
Something about the way Dagmar said It made Buffy's bones ache with foreboding. She waited silently for the demon to continue.
"As to your first question, Slayer, why your child was taken, I can only guess." It shrugged its massive shoulders helplessly. "Punishment? Revenge? Isn't that usually how these things go?"
"Why did you want me to see her?"
Dagmar hesitated. "I have no particularly allegiance in this matter. My priority is the child."
"If have no allegiance, then get me out of here!"
The demon frowned. "I don't have that kind of influence," it explained. "I'm just the nanny."
Buffy made a frustrated noise. "I'm her mother for Gods sake. She should be with me. Isn't that in her best interest?"
Dagmar held out its giant, stony palms in a gesture of peace. "I am sorry, Slayer. But that is not for me to decide."
"I demand a lawyer!" Buffy hollered. "I've been unfairly imprisoned. Bring me to your leader. Your king or queen or president or CEO or something! I'm an American! Don't I have any rights?" Buffy's voice bordered on frantic.
"You tried to kill a citizen of Gafka, unprovoked," Dagmar gently pointed out.
"But I didn't know!" Buffy protested. "I'm a slayer! I see a demon and my instincts tell me to slay!"
"I'm afraid it doesn't work that way here."
"I just want to go home!" Buffy cried.
"And abandon your child now that you're sure she's alive?"
Buffy clutched at the unmovable bars of her cell. "Who, Dagmar?" she pressed. "Who took my baby?"
Dagmar blinked once. Its face was an unreadable as a mountain. "The First," it answered. "The First Evil captured your child. And now It has captured you."
At those words, Buffy fell silent. She swallowed hard and felt all the energy seep from her body.
Dagmar nodded in understanding. "I'll leave you to your thoughts." The demon hesitated briefly. "I'll see what I can do about procuring you a cot and blanket."
Buffy nodded numbly. "Thank you," she said thickly. "Any kindness and comfort is appreciated."
The demon looked like it wanted to say more, but instead it turned its back and walked away.
When Dagmar was out of sight, Buffy sat back down in her cell. The cold seeped through the seat of her pants. She sat, head in hands, and mourned the child she would never know, the firsts she would never witness – first steps, first words, first potty training. And ironically it had been the First who had stolen those moments from her.
She was sure that eventually this grief and shock would fade to anger, but for now, she just tried to keep it together.
TBC