First, I've been back for a few days now, but I've had to recover a little. It was a super nice holiday and I'm NOT glad to be home. Except for the dogs...I missed Millie, Sadie, and Freckles TERRIBLY! But the trip was fabulous. Totally turned upside down (reversed) due to the Queen's passing, but it made sense to not have a ship load of people flooding into the UK on funeral day...plus, everything was closed that day (we were told).

Second, I realize I haven't responded to the comments from the last chapter...I'm off work tomorrow, so I should be able to catch up! Sorry. I always get a little annoyed by readers who don't comment, but I also get irritated by writers who don't respond to comments. I do not want to be one of those writers. *sigh* Sunday, I promise (or today after work if I'm not totally exhausted)!

Anyway, I'm back at work now and trying to stay focused on the hell that is my life...and thinking about the next holiday. While on the ship we purchased "future credit," so at least I know there's going to be another cruise at some point...one in the next 365 days (this is because we have a credit and only a year to use it)...and another within the next four years (this is the one we put money into). So yay!

Now...story. It's a SUPER short chapter! Sorry. I started "formatting" it as soon as I got home. Remember, I'm WAY ahead of you (I'm currently writing C46, but only posting C35). So...I'd forgotten that this one was so short. Just a few pages, but...some is better than nothing, right? I hope. Haha. I hope you enjoy...and that you tell me what you think after reading! Thanks!

Chapter Thirty-five
Impasse

It was somewhat late by the time Buffy and Edna walked into the house on D'Arblay Street. After their meeting with the vampire, they'd continued on with no further sign of him. They did, however, come across several others—others that weren't as intriguing to the Slayer and who did not get through the encounter. In the end, Edna had staked two of them and Buffy had taken care of the rest—not without ripping a few strands of hair from each, in hopes of finding that perfect magical substance that could be used to create a wand for her.

But Edna Giles was furious. While pleased that together they'd vanquished six vampires, she was still seething about the one that had gotten away—the one that had been allowed to walk away from them.

On their way home, Buffy had insisted—multiple times—that they wouldn't have been capable of following Mr Tall Dark Handsome and Fangy even if she'd wanted to—and that was because it would have required Buffy to leave Edna there alone in an apparently vampire infested cemetery, while she went off in pursuit. It was not an option, as far as the Slayer was concerned.

But all of this seemed neither here nor there to Edna Giles. In fact, it apparently irked the Watcher even more. The older woman had maintained that, if Buffy hadn't permitted it to leave in the first place, there would not have been reason to follow. Buffy had just scoffed, saying that sometimes a slayer had to make choices—and this was one of those times. Edna actually growled at the statement—then snarled that she'd never met a more impossible girl.

Buffy pretty much ignored the ranting Watcher. Instead, her mind was on Mr Fangy—not that they'd seen any fangs! No, the vampire hadn't even had to courtesy to show them his true face—and that had irked Buffy! Aside from it being odd, because...vampires seemed to want to go all bumpy—to scare the living daylights out of people—it was just rude that he'd ignored her totally polite request for a visual display. She might have even questioned its vampiric nature—since she'd seen no physical evidence of it—but it had sprung from the base of the Circle of Lebanon to the top of the sunken tombs. That was not natural—not human—which confirmed the creature's disposition.

In the cab back to the house, while Edna was busy giving her the cold shoulder—by way of silently glaring out the opposite window—Buffy's mind had gone to Angel. She missed him—not as much as you might think—and wondered what he was doing. Was he and everyone else still fighting the Master? Had they beat him or had he won?! Were they grieving for her loss? And did Angel miss her?

At the moment though, Angel was but a distant memory and, the longer she was away from him—out of her own time—the further away he seemed. They all seemed so much further away! This was the first time she'd thought about him in a few days, she realized. She'd been making every attempt to adjust and fit in—it was her only hope at surviving here.

After slamming the front door, Edna followed the Slayer through the darkened entrance corridor and into the ground level lounge—where Buffy had gone only because she'd heard voices. Yay for Vin and Sophie's presence, she thought as she approached them.

"Buffy!" Sophie burst as she entered the room—followed by a nod and a more subdued, "Edna."

Edna, of course, ignored the greeting as she all but stomped into the room—which caused Vin to roll her eyes.

"I see we're in a right mood tonight," the dark-haired sister said. "Why am I not surprised?"

"We were just talking about you, dear," said Sophie, patting the sofa. "Come sit."

"All good things I hope," Buffy quipped, not moving to join them.

Sophie waved a hand dismissively, then dissolved into giggles—Vin immediately began to chuckle.

"Nothing bad, I assure you, dear," Vin said, giving the sofa another pat.

Buffy eyed them, then slowly crossed the room.

"I cannot believe you allowed that thing to leave!" the Watcher growled as she watched Buffy flop down onto the sofa with Vin and Sophie—who stopped their giggling as she landed between them. "It will continue to feed and kill, Buffy!"

"It might not," said Buffy as she examined her fingernails. She'd chipped a nail and wasn't pleased about it. She'd also scuffed up her new boots and had dirt in her hair.

Edna glared. "Do you really believe that?"

Looking up, Buffy shrugged. "Well, he promised, so..."

Edna shook her head. "They are notorious liars, Buffy. They cannot help themselves," she insisted. "I'm sure you are aware of that."

Buffy frowned. She knew this and yet... "This one...he seemed different."

"Different? What do you mean by different?" asked Edna.

"I don't know. Just... different." The Slayer shrugged again. "I got a totally different vibe from this one."

Edna huffed. "A totally different vibe," she repeated. "What does that mean?!"

Buffy shrugged again. "Like. I don't know. He didn't trigger my spidey senses. He was just...different, okay?"

"This is not all right, Buffy," Edna said as she reached up and pinched the bridge of her turned up nose.

"Goodness Edds, you need to relax some," said Buffy. "I mean, I'm the one who fights the fight. If he becomes trouble, I'll take care of—"

"You expect me to go back to the Council with... I don't know. He seemed different?! " Edna interrupted, mimicking the Slayer. "They'll laugh, and then dismiss me if I tell them that."

Trying to keep her features neutral, Buffy looked Edna in the eyes and said, "Will they really? Laugh, I mean, because I don't think that Council of yours can even crack a smile, let alone laugh. You know, due to the giant sticks—like Vlad the Impaler sized—shoved so far up their ass—"

"Buffy..." Vin cut in warningly—but she was grinning with amusement—and Sophie had started to giggle again.

Edna was glaring fiercely at all three of them—and continued to do so when her dark-haired sister popped up and said, "Refill?"

Sophie nodded. "Most definitely."

The blonde sister had looped an arm through Buffy's and was leaning against her on the sofa. "Tell us all about your outing, dear," she said.

"Cemetery, peaceful. Vampires, not so much," the Slayer said. "Except the one. He was relatively interesting. And not so bad to look at."

"It is not a he, Buffy!" Edna snapped shrilly, utterly exasperated. "You cannot attach humanity to these creatures. They are monsters through and through."

Buffy ignored Edna—and accepted the glass of wine that Vin had poured for her with a nod of thanks. She'd rather have had a Coke in a tall glass of ice, but she knew she was unlikely to get that here, so...wine it was.

"Tell us about the encounter dear," Vin said as she handed Sophie her glass and sat down across from the seated blondes—ignoring Edna as well.

"He was different," she started, then glared at the Watcher when she opened her mouth to respond. "I'm telling you that he was! Give me some credit here. This isn't my first rodeo, you know. It's my calling and...I'm not stupid."

Dropping into the only other chair, Edna sighed. "I don't think you're stupid, Buffy. I just think your priorities are...skewed. You're a young girl and he was handsome."

"Ah ha!" Buffy burst. "He, she says." Her eyes went to Vin and Sophie triumphantly—causing both women to smile and nod.

Edna rolled her eyes. "We cannot afford to allow these creatures to get away. They are a serious danger to humanity."

After taking another tiny sip of her wine, Buffy leaned forward and put her glass down and looked at Edna. "Do you think I don't know that? I've been doing this for a fair amount of time now and, aside from one, I've found them all to be just plain evil. But, I can assure you, there are be exceptions. I've learned that much."

Edna shook her head. "There are no exceptions."

Buffy shook her head. "You're wrong."

"Explain," Edna demanded.

"Well, I once knew a guy...a vampire who did good things. He fought along side me and...he was capable of love," Buffy said quietly.

Edna shook her head again. "Vampires don't love, Buffy," she said. "They are incapable of it."

"Sure they do. Or can," Buffy argued.

Edna shook her head, emphatically this time, but before she could say anything, Buffy went on, responding with a shake of her own head. "You're wrong. I know one who can love. He loves me...or so I've heard. And before me he had some sort of emotion for his sire. Maybe not love, but...something."

Edna frowned. "That's...impossible."

"You would think, huh? But it's true. He even staked her to save me."

Edna tilted her head to the side and examined the Slayer. "I imagine, there's more to that story."

Buffy shrugged. "So much more. But I shouldn't reveal anything or it might alter history. My future might depend on everything running its course."

Edna continued to frown. The Slayer could be right or... "Perhaps revealing what you do know could keep the future on its course."

"Maybe," Buffy said, biting her lip. "But I can't know which it is, can I?"

The Watcher stared at the Slayer. They were at an impasse, but one thing was for certain, there was much much more to Buffy Summers than met the eye.