Author's Notes: I'm back and… I'm going to do something a little different than what I've been doing. Since the first of these two episodes I'm covering is Helpless, which doesn't feature Faith in any conceivable way (for obvious reasons), I thought I'd let our siblings have a solo adventure while Buffy deals with the Cruciamentum. It wouldn't be right for me to shoehorn them in when their presence isn't necessary to the plot. You're probably thinking, "Has that stopped you before?" No, but Helpless is too important an episode for me to tarnish with my insanity.
The Zeppo, on the other hand… that one has Faith and a particular scene that makes me a little icky. But I do have some stuff planned, especially having our half-demon boy reveal some surprises to the gang.
Disclaimer: I own nothing, I'm just playing with the cool toys.
That out of the way, here's chapter eight…
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Inside of Espresso Pump, Faith and Sean sat at a table in the very busy restaurant. Faith had a cup of coffee in front of her while Sean was drinking a hot chocolate. They seem to be having an enthralling conversation.
"So, wait a minute, your dad possessed my dad's body and slept with your mom?" Faith asked, trying to get something clarified.
Sean nods, "Because he used your dad's… well, you know, I am still technically still your brother if that's what you were worried about."
"Well, I wasn't worried about it… I'm just a little weirded out by it. Your bio dad used my dad like a sperm bank and banged your mom… to make you?" Faith said.
"Pretty much," Sean said as he sipped his hot chocolate. "I still don't know why he even did this. That's why I'm still trying to find answers."
"And trying to figure out how your demonic super powers work?" Faith asked as she sipped her coffee.
"I know all of this must be so weird for you, but I had to tell someone. It was literally driving me nuts." Sean said.
"I'm glad you did. Now we can figure out what's going on and maybe keep you from accidentally hurting creepy old ladies." Faith teased.
"I-I still don't know how I did that," Sean said, sounding guilty.
"Hey, Sour Puss. No need to get down on yourself. You did what you had to. No one is gonna hold that against you." Faith said, dismissing his guilt. "But I realized that we got more in common than you realize."
"What do you mean?" Sean asked.
"We're both warriors, kid. We were built for this." Faith said with a smile.
Sean seems rather surprised by her dismissive attitude. "I don't know if that's true. I'm just a kid."
Faith scoffs, "So was I when I became a Slayer- Regardless, I'm gonna train you to be the best little half-demon wizard."
Sean winces, "That's gonna involve more punching, isn't it?"
"Among other things," Faith said.
"Say, should I tell Buffy and her friends about this?" Sean asked, which annoyed Faith a bit. "I don't want to use my powers and hurt one of them. It wouldn't be right."
"I hate it when you have a conscience," Faith said, as she rubbed the bridge of her nose. "If you want, you can tell them about what you can do. Just don't tell them the weird possession thing. Not unless Giles asks about it."
Sean nods, "Got it."
•••
A few hours later, it had gotten late, and the siblings were walking home through the streets, heading to drop Sean off. Sean looked around nervously as he heard a twig snap behind them.
Faith noticed his anxiety and grabbed his shoulder, "You're gonna be fine. You got me with you. You'll be safe."
"I know. I just feel really weird, like I did something wrong." Sean said, mostly telling her the truth. He still didn't know what he was doing. Or what was going to happen to her? He was still in the dark.
"Kid, you didn't do anything wrong. You're you and that's all I care about." Faith assured him.
Sean nods quickly as they continue walking, when all of a sudden, a big burly vampire in biker attire jumps out of the bushes. "Faith!"
"I see em," Faith said as she whipped out a stake from her pocket. "Come on, Steve McQueen. Let's go."
The vampire charged at Faith, and the two of them exchanged punches and kicks as Sean hid close to the bushes.
Unbeknownst to Faith and Sean, a female vampire hid in the bushes close to Sean.
As she is able to get the upper hand on the vampire, Faith blocks a punch from him and stakes him with a flourish. Similar to how the battle-scarred version of Buffy dispatched Vampire Xander in the other universe.
Faith turns around and looks at her brother, only for her smile to become a frown as the female vampire holds Sean in a Full Nelson.
"Lose something, Slayer?" The vampire asked Faith.
"Let him go, bitch. You wanna fight, I'm right here." Faith said, doing her best to keep up her confident bravado, but still worried about Sean.
"Actually, I'd much rather take this little morsel home." The female vampire threatened as she went to bite Sean.
While she's distracted, Faith throws a rock at the vampire and hits her square in the forehead, causing her to lose grip on Sean and dropping him to the ground roughly.
Faith charges at the female vampire and tackles her to the ground.
Sean slowly tries to get up, bleeding from a gash on his elbow from the fall. He groans in pain as he grabs something from his backpack: a spare stake.
Faith and the female vampire exchange blows as they roll around on the ground. Faith hits the vampire with a ground and pound and keeps her pinned down, but the vampire uses Faith's anger against her and kicks her in the stomach to knock her down.
Faith lies on the ground as the female vampire jumps on her. Faith tries to reach for the stake she dropped, but the vampire wouldn't let up.
"If Trick hadn't ordered me to do this, I would've still done this for free." The vampire goaded as she tried to pin Faith down.
All of a sudden, the vampire felt a sharp pain from behind her, which caused her to jerk. After that, the vampire turned to dust as Sean had staked his first vampire.
Faith looked up at her brother, who was still in shock after staking the vampire. She quickly gets up and goes to check on him. "Hey, hey, you okay?"
Sean catches his breath, "I-I did that?"
Faith smiled as she gently hugged Sean, "Yeah, you just staked your first vamp."
Sean exhales as he checks his bleeding elbow. "Damn, I'm bleeding."
Faith noticed the wound, "I'll take ya back to my place. You're basically a walking, talking happy meal for these freaks."
Sean nods as Faith helps him up, and the two of them walk back to the motel.
From out of the shadows, Mr. Trick watches them leave. Once he's seen that Faith is nowhere in sight, he pulls out a handkerchief from his suit and uses it to soak up Sean's blood.
With that, Mr. Trick smiles and whistles off down the opposite end of the street.
•••
At the Mayor's office, Trick sits in front of Richard Wilkins, who is holding the handkerchief with Sean's blood on it. The Mayor takes a sniff of the blood and rears back a bit.
"Got a problem with blood, boss?" Trick asked.
"The blood's not my problem. It's how potent this blood is." Wilkins stated as he stared at the handkerchief. "I can't believe it. The grandchild of an Old One."
"Anyone in particular. My old boss used to rattle off about these… Old Ones now and then." Trick said.
"As a matter of fact, I do know who his… grandmother is. One of the more powerful and merciless of them… And before you ask, she poses no threat to me or my plans." Wilkins said as he put the handkerchief on his desk. "The boy's father… that's a different story. Sort of owe him a favor."
"Must be important if you don't want us to kill this kid." Trick replied.
"Well, he did lead me to finding the Hellmouth in the first place. I owe that man a measure of loyalty." Wilkins stated. "That's why I want no harm to come to that boy. I don't want a repeat of what happened tonight."
"I'll make sure to let the committee know." Mr. Trick said as he stood up from the chair.
"That includes you, Mr. Trick," Wilkins said adamantly. "Not one hair will be harmed on that boy's head."
Mr. Trick nods as he leaves the office.
Richard Wilkins looked at the handkerchief and chuckled. "Balor's son is the little brother of a Slayer, who would've thought?"
•••
Back at the Sunnydale Motor Inn, Faith was patching up the cut on Sean's elbow as Sean still held the stake he used to stake his first vampire.
"Hope I'm doing this right, I'm not the best at the whole first aid thing." She told him.
"I still don't know how you do all this? Shoving that stake into her was tougher than I thought it would be." He said as he haphazardly played with the stake.
"It's not easy the first time. But hey, you got the heart first try. That's impressive, especially since you did it when her back was turned." Faith told him.
Sean raised an eyebrow, "This is you trying to make me feel better?"
"This is me paying you a compliment, dumbass. You need a confidence boost considering how mopey you've been lately." Faith replied.
"I know I haven't been myself lately, but what happened with that old lady but… I'm just scared… scared of killing someone. I don't know if I can face that." Sean said, sounding more mature than his current youth conveys.
Faith smiled, "You're not a killer, kid. You've got too much of a good heart to be one. Especially how you grew up, that's a miracle."
"We'll figure it all out, okay? We'll figure this out."
"It's too late…"
"No…"
Sean blinks to shake off the stray thought. "Uh… didn't you say we grew up the same way or whatever?"
"Well, let's be clear on something: it's a little too late for me… You, on the other hand, have much more growing up to do." Faith explained. "Besides, being here gives you more of a chance to be a stable person."
Sean smirks at the idea: him having some stability? That's a thought he never considered or even thought was possible.
"In that case, let me be clear on something: I'm not leaving you behind, no matter how stable my life gets," Sean said with a smile.
Faith smiled as she hugged him, "You got yourself a deal, kid."
Sean sees how late it is and sighs, "I think it might be too late for me to head back to the Summers' house."
"I would try again to get you back there, but you're still injured. I don't want any more vampires to smell a meal on you." Faith said. "You can stay here tonight. But I'm taking you back to the Summers' in the morning."
Sean nods, "Got it."
•••
Later that night, Faith and Sean both had fallen asleep on the bed. Both of them have a less than restful night's sleep as Faith tosses and turns while Sean tries to get adjusted despite his injury.
Sean starts to have a dream where his sixteen-year-old body sits up and finds himself in Joyce's room, only it was decorated in a slightly different way. He looks around and finds Tara staring out the window of the room, expectantly.
"Tara?" Sean asked, "You okay?"
Tara turned around and smiled at him, "I'm sorry. I'm just… reliving a memory."
"Okay then… I take it since you're here, you're going to give me some cryptic warning that I won't understand until it's too late?" Sean asked.
"Well, nothing like that has happened yet. I'm here to check in on you, to see how you're feeling." Tara said as she sat down next to Sean on the bed.
"Aside from existential dread as well as the fear for my life, I feel great," Sean said.
"I know this isn't easy, but you're doing well. You're opening up and learning how to use your powers." Tara reassured him.
"Haven't picked up anything new. I can't even shape shift, which is supposed to be something I should be able to do." Sean bemoans.
"That might be a little too advanced for your current skill level. In time, you'll be able to figure it out." Tara stated. "I might suggest learning a few things from Witchcraft."
"Witchcraft?" Sean asked.
"Well, your father is a sorcerer. Maybe learning how to use magic might help you adapt and discover your other abilities." Tara encouraged him. "It might be good if you learn from someone like Giles. He practiced magic in his youth but also understands the consequences of abusing magic."
"What about Willow? I mean, Past Willow? Couldn't she train me?" Sean asked.
"Willow, at this point in time, is coming into her own in magic. She's a student of the craft, not at the level where she is the master of it." Tara told him. "Your best bet is definitely Giles."
"Ask Giles to teach me how to use magic, got it," Sean said, as if he was making a mental note of it. "Anything else?"
"Be careful not to be overly reliant on magic. The abuse of it can cause you serious harm or, at worst, kill you." Tara warned.
"Okay… I think I can do that." Sean said confidently. "But if I'm not supposed to over-rely on it, how am I supposed to stop my dad?"
"That's going to be something you figure out on your own. But you won't be alone, I promise." Tara said sweetly.
Sean nods, still not feeling confident about being a potential wizard or witch. "It's funny, all this magic stuff is something my friends and I would've made fun of in grade 10."
Tara smiled as she stared at him intently. "Your aura reads differently than your thoughts convey. There's a… sincerity there. Honesty. An honesty that sort of reminds me of a friend of mine and Willow."
"That so?" Sean said, not sure what she meant by that last remark, but didn't correct her or ask any further questions. "Any other advice you can give me?"
Tara smiled, "Keep Willow safe. She's going to need someone like you in her corner."
Sean noticed that the sun was rising through the window, "Think it's time for me to wake up."
Tara nods, "Looks like it. If you ever need me, meditate and call for me. I'll visit you in your dreams whenever you need any help."
"Thanks," Sean said as the sun shone through the window.
Sean woke up in Faith's room and saw that Faith was getting ready for the day when she saw Sean was awake.
"Morning, how ya feeling?" Faith asked her brother.
"A little bit better," Sean said, a new mission in mind. "I take it you're taking back?"
"Yep. Buffy called, she said she was celebrating her birthday today and asked if we wanted to come over." Faith told him.
"She wanted to invite us? You, I can understand because you're Ms. Life of the Party. But me?" Sean asked.
"Think of it as you being my plus one. Also, you can tell them about your powers then and there." Faith stated.
Sean shrugged, "Guess that's true."
Faith smiled and tossed him his bag. "Get your stuff. We don't wanna keep 'em waiting."
Sean shakes his head, amused as he gathers his belongings.
•••
A few hours later, Faith and Sean walked into the Summers' house. They looked around the room and noticed the place didn't look like it was decorated for any kind of party.
"Hello? Anybody home?" Sean called out.
"In the kitchen!" Buffy is heard saying.
The siblings exchanged expressions and headed into the kitchen, where they found Buffy, Willow, Xander, Oz, and Joyce in the kitchen making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Willow was handing a mildly embarrassed Xander a jar of peanut butter.
"So, this is where the party is happening," Faith said cheerfully.
"It's not much, but it's less eventful than last night, which I appreciate," Buffy said with a smile.
"What happened last night?" Sean asked.
"Giles got fired!" Willow said nervously.
Faith's eyes widened at the news, "No way. What happened?"
"Apparently, because I was turning 18, the Watchers Council decided I needed to be put on some kind of Slayer rite of passage," Buffy explained. "They made Giles temporarily strip me of my powers and force me to fight some psychotic vampire by using the skills I learned so far."
"Geez, I didn't know that was a thing," Faith said, horrified.
"Don't you turn 18 next year?" Sean asked as Joyce handed him a sandwich she had made.
Faith realized this, "Well, that's something I don't look forward to. So how did Giles get fired?"
"His boss, a stuck-up prick named Quentin Travers, fired him because he told me about the test. That and the fact that Giles cared too much about me." Buffy explained.
"Hopefully the next one isn't evil or some limp wristed ball bag," Faith said, making Joyce clear her throat.
"Um, it's okay, Mrs. Summers. I've heard her say much worse." Sean told Joyce.
"So, what about you? What did you get up to last night?" Buffy asked to pull the conversation away from what she endured last night.
"We got jumped by a couple of vampires," Sean announced before Faith could soften the blow.
"Oh my goodness, were you hurt?" Joyce asked, sounding quite concerned.
"Nah, it was nothing I couldn't handle… but my baby brother here staked his first vampire," Faith said.
"Really?" Willow asked eagerly.
"Nice," Oz said, being encouraging in his way.
"It was no big deal. The only reason I could was because the vamp was distracted, wrestling with Faith." Sean said, downplaying his achievement.
"Considering what you can do, that's impressive," Faith said, ruffling his hair.
"That's what my mom says when I bring home a decent grade." Xander joked.
Faith nudged Sean on the shoulder, encouraging him to tell them about his powers.
Sean sighs, amping himself up for the reveal. He raises his hand at the jar of peanut butter Xander was struggling to open. This action mildly confused the group as the jar wobbled a bit by an invisible force.
Suddenly, the jar goes flying into Sean's hand. As if Thor caught Mjönir in his hand.
Everyone stands in shock and awe at this as Xander's shoulders drop.
"Oh come on! He has superpowers?" Xander said, bemused by this revelation. "Was I sick when they were handing them out?"
Willow got up from her chair and hugged Sean like a proud sister. "This is amazing! I knew you were special." Sean gives her a look because of the statement. "I mean, I didn't know, but I had a feeling you were."
"Chill, Will. You're gonna give him a complex." Buffy said supportively.
"This is… I'm at a loss for words." Joyce said.
"I think a lot of us are," Oz said softly.
"Can you do anything else?" Willow asked him excitedly.
Sean scoffs at that and nods. He sat on a stool in front of the kitchen counter and went into a trance.
The gang seems a bit confused by what was going on. Willow did have some idea what was happening, but didn't say anything.
"Did he fall asleep or is he just messing with us?" Xander asked.
All of a sudden, Sean popped up behind Xander and got in his ear. "Boo."
Xander jumped back in a panic as everyone saw an exact duplicate of Sean standing where Xander was before he was scared off. "Great Googly Moogly! What was that?"
Sean's astral projection laughs as it disappears, and Sean wakes from his trance. "From what I read, it's called astral projection. I can send my consciousness to different places. It's not teleporting or anything, but it's pretty cool… Once I can focus on where I wanna go."
"That's amazing," Willow said happily. "Are you a witch… or wizard? I've run into very few male magic users. Except Giles… Ethan Rayne… or-"
"Will, you're stammering." Buffy pointed out.
"Right, sorry. I got a little too excited." Willow said with a shrug.
"It's cool. I don't mind all the questions. I'm just glad I don't have to hide my secret anymore." Sean said.
"So, where do your powers come from?" Willow asked. "That's kinda why I asked if you were a witch."
Sean sighs, he wasn't ready for this reveal, but did it anyway. He shut his eyes and braced himself for the backlash that would come from this news. "I'm… I'm half demon."
Sean closes his eyes tightly but slowly opens his eyes and sees that there was no real negative reaction to what he said.
"Cool." Oz simply said.
"What kind of demon?" Willow asked.
"Uh… I don't know. I just know that my dad is a demon." Sean said.
Xander looked at Sean closely, which made Sean uncomfortable.
"Xander, stop it. He's just a kid." Buffy scolded her friend.
Xander puts his hands up and backs away from Sean. "Sorry, kid. I have trust issues when it comes to the demonic."
"It's okay… but if you stare at me like that, I'll make rocks rain down on your house." Sean threatened playfully.
Xander is taken aback by the reference. "Huh, I was not expecting the Stephen King reference, but I appreciate it all the same."
Sean shrugged; he was glad he had been forced to do a book report on Carrie in English class.
"Maybe you should tell Mr. Giles about all this?" Joyce asked, speaking up through the antics. "I know he's no longer your Watcher, but it might be good for him to know about what Sean is."
"That's actually our next step. Sean is kinda adamant that Giles teaches him about witchcraft and about his demonic powers." Faith told them.
"Oh," Willow said, sounding a little disappointed.
"No offense, Willow. I know you're good at what you do, but I think Mr. Giles might have more answers about my dad." Sean said, trying to make Willow feel better. "If you want, I can try to show you how I astral project? I mean, once I have it all figured out…"
Willow smiles, "You don't have to do that."
"I know. I thought I'd be nice." Sean said with a shrug. He knew Tara would appreciate that.
"But I take it you're gonna need me to fully take Slayer duties?" Faith asked Buffy as the gang started heading into the living room.
Buffy nods, "Just until I get my strength back. You okay with that?"
"Five by five. As long as Sean doesn't decide to come with me." Faith said.
"I've staked one vampire, I think I've had my fill," Sean replied in a good-natured tone.
"In this town, once you pop you can't stop." Xander teased awkwardly.
"That's what scares me," Sean said under his breath.
"So, what's next on the not-so-birthday birthday party docket?" Xander asked, distracting everyone from his bad joke.
"We can do a movie marathon," Willow suggested eagerly.
"Sounds like fun. We can each pick a movie and make a day of it." Buffy replied, then looked at Sean. "And maybe find a nice cartoon for-"
"Please don't pick a kids' movie because I'm here. I can handle whatever it is you can." Sean pleaded.
"Don't bother trying to talk him out of it. Kid's stubborn, you can't talk him out of something once he's set his mind to it." Faith warned.
"Good to know," Buffy said with a smile, which made Sean feel surprisingly better.
"I have to go to work. Buffy, make sure to keep the house clean." Joyce said as she grabbed her purse and headed out the door. "I'll be back later tonight."
Sean watched as Buffy hugged her mom, then saw Joyce leave the house.
Buffy smiles that her mom was safe and okay. She sighs and looks at her friends, "I'll go make the popcorn."
"I'll help," Willow said as she followed Buffy into the kitchen.
As Faith makes herself comfortable on the couch, Xander tries to sit next to her, but Sean quickly sits down next to his sister to keep her away from Xander.
Xander stammered as Sean glared at him. "I was just-"
"You were keeping your distance from my sister, dude." Sean threatened in a stern, almost mature-sounding voice.
Xander backs away a bit as Oz watches with a smile.
Faith ruffled Sean's hair as Buffy and Willow returned with two bowls of popcorn. Willow went to sit next to Oz while Buffy took a seat on the other side of Faith, leaving Xander to sit on the floor.
The movie marathon began in earnest as the quiet evening began.
•••
Later that night at Giles' apartment, a loud knock at the door disturbed his quiet evening of reading. He set down the book he was reading and walked over to the door. The last uninvited guest he had was Angel, he wasn't going to take any chances.
Giles slowly opens the door and finds Faith and Sean standing at his door. "Oh." He said softly, relieved it was the Slayer and her kid brother.
"Bad time?" Faith asked as Sean looked at the floor.
"No, please come in," Giles said as he welcomed them inside.
"I would've waited till morning, but the kid was insistent he come see you," Faith told Giles.
Giles looked at Sean as he glanced around the apartment. "Is that so?"
Sean focused on Giles, "Yeah, I-I know it's been a while since you said this, but..you told me that if there's anything you can do to help to not hesitate to ask?"
Giles nods, "I remember a bit of that, yes."
"Well… there's something I need to umm… show you," Sean said.
Giles watches as the boy raises his hand towards the book he had put down and sees the book start to hover in place. His eyes widen at the sight of this as the book goes flying into Sean's hand, catching similarly as he caught the jar of peanut butter.
Giles stumbled a bit in surprise. He removed his glasses and started to clean them. "Oh my…"
"I think you left him speechless, dude," Faith said to her brother.
Sean sighed as he held up the book and went over to hand it back to Giles. "Here's your book back."
Giles stared at the young boy, then put on his glasses, getting down to business. "This- This is quite the surprise." He said as he took the book from Sean's hands.
"You have no idea," Faith said. "Listen, I gotta head out on patrol. Doing double duty since B is out of commission. Do you mind if I leave him here with you?"
"Oh, yes. He can stay here." Giles stated as he looked at Sean. "I have a feeling we'll have a lot to talk about."
Sean nods, agreeing with Giles' statement.
Faith ruffled Sean's hair, "Don't give Giles too much trouble, got it?"
"Got it," Sean replied.
Faith nods as she heads out the door. She looks back at her brother, a look of melancholy on her face, as she shuts the door.
"Please, have a seat," Giles said, ushering the young boy to the couch.
Sean nods as he sits on the couch.
"First things first, do you have an inkling of where your powers come from?" Giles asked.
"Ummm… this might be a little hard to explain but… what I do know is… I'm half demon." Sean admitted.
Giles nods in understanding, "Do you know what kind?"
Sean shakes his head, "No clue. I only know that my bio dad possessed the body of Faith's dad and used it to… uh have sex with my mom."
Giles' eyes widened in surprise, "I see. That is an odd but not uncommon way some demons procreate. Mostly done by certain upper-level demons."
"Upper level? Are there different levels of demons?" Sean asked, a bit of the teenager slipping through.
"Yes, in fact, there is a hierarchy within certain demons. Especially the incredibly powerful and more dangerous demonic beings in this and all the planes of existence." Giles stated.
"No offense, but I'm still trying to come to terms with the fact there's a hierarchy in demons, I don't need to start questioning my existence… if I wasn't already," Sean said, more and more of his teenage self poking through.
Giles noticed how overwhelmed the young boy was and switched from Watcher mode to father figure mode. "I am sorry. I know that you've been through quite a lot and I can't tell you how you should feel, but I'm trying to understand what's happening so I can properly help you."
Sean sighed, he stared at Giles, then smiled. "Really wish I had a teacher like you back in school."
Giles nods, half understanding but mostly confused by the statement. "Do you think you're ready to answer some of my questions?"
Sean nods, "I'm ready."
Giles nods. he might not be a Watcher in an official capacity but he would find a way to help this boy. Like he was going to find a way to help Buffy and Faith.
•••
•••
•••
•••
•••
•••
I feel like everyone is looking at me weird.
Sean sat on the floor of Giles' apartment, writing in his journal.
Ever since I've let everyone in on my little secret, I keep getting looks. Willow keeps asking to see me move stuff or asks me if I can do anything else. I don't know what to tell her because I don't even know. Xander just stares at me. It wasn't bad enough before when he did that. He must really have trust issues with the demonic. Buffy seems nice about it. She and Faith get everybody to calm down with the question-and-answer sessions. Oz is… well, I can't get a read on that guy.
Suddenly, the front door opens and Giles, Buffy, and Faith walk through the door. Sean closes the journal and goes to the notebook Giles gave him.
"You're back," Sean said as he got off the floor.
"Yeah, we had a busy night," Buffy said, acknowledging the boy.
Sean sees Faith holding a large sword in her hands. "I can see that… especially by the look of that sick-looking sword."
"Yeah, used it to kill a badass-looking demon chick," Faith said as she tested the weight of the sword.
Sean gulps at the mention of the word 'demon', which Giles and Buffy noticed.
"It's alright. They had horns and scaly skin. You're safe." Buffy reassured him.
"Yeah… then again, I haven't hit puberty yet, so maybe the horns and scaly skin come later?" Sean guessed, still not sure if doing all this would harm him when he gets out of all this is over.
"I mean, if you do start to grow horns, we can always use you like a coat rack." Faith teased.
Sean glared at his sister for the off-the-cuff comment. "So, are these demons coming back?"
"I'm afraid there might be something bigger going on than we realize. I'll have to do some research to see if my suspicions are correct." Giles stated. "Now… Did you finish what I asked you to do?"
Sean understood what he meant and pulled out the notebook he had. "I wrote down some of the different practices of magic. Mostly focused on Witchcraft, but I did sneak a peek at Alchemy until I got a little bored. I also wrote down some of the different types of magic: conjuration, transmogrification, glamouring, and divination. I stayed away from the stuff about flesh magic. That seemed a… gross."
"Very impressive. I usually have to pull teeth to get Buffy to do any kind of Slayer studies." Giles stated. "Not unless it's important."
"I'm just surprised I did all this studying. I'm not big on taking notes… not unless it's important." Sean said, which made Buffy smile. "But I take it my note-taking days aren't over yet, are they?"
"Well, if you're certain about learning how to harness your abilities as well as practicing witchcraft, I would suggest that you continue your education when it comes to this." Giles insisted, acting more like a stern teacher.
"I know. I just- I wish this stuff would magically pop into my head or something." Sean said, sounding annoyed.
"Believe me, if that were the case, I wouldn't need to go to school," Buffy replied.
"It's why I dropped out. Don't need anything from a book I didn't learn on the street." Faith retorts.
Sean makes a face, "Not sure if that's a stellar recommendation on your part."
Faith scowled at her little brother to match the glare he gave her earlier.
"And that's the cue to take him back home," Buffy said, to break the sibling tension.
"Yes, I'll try to find out about this new threat. It shouldn't take me long… I hope." Giles said as Sean gathered his belongings.
"I know you'll figure it out," Buffy assured her unofficial Watcher. "Right now, my bed is calling me."
"Same… I mean, I didn't kill any demons or anything, but the note-taking and studying strained my eyes." Sean replied.
"Uh, Faith, would it be possible for you to bring Sean to the library in the morning? I would like to start some more work with him if at all possible." Giles asked Faith.
"Sure thing, glad kid's doing something besides being a pain in my ass." Faith joked.
"Oh ha ha," Sean said sarcastically as he left Giles' apartment with the two Slayers.
•••
The next morning, Faith brought Sean into the library where Giles was reading from a book. He looked exhausted and horrified at what he was reading.
"Hey, G," Faith announced, which got his attention. "I brought him here for you."
"Yes, thank you, Faith. That's very much appreciated." Giles said nervously.
Faith noticed how nervous Giles seemed, "You okay? You look more flustered than usual."
"Uh, yes. I need to speak with you alone for a moment." Giles said as he led her to his office. "Sean, start practicing some of your abilities until I get back."
Sean nodded as he sat on the table next to the book Giles was reading while Giles took Faith into his office. He watched as Giles was explaining something to Faith, whose smile turned into a frown.
Sean sees that Giles and Faith weren't paying attention to him, so he walks over to the open book. He began to read it, and it was a passage about the Sisterhood of Jhe and the last bit horrified him: the end of the world.
Sean stormed into the office as Giles and Faith were talking and wasted no time asking questions, "End of the world? Those demons want to end the world?"
Giles and Faith stared at each other, then at Sean. "I take it you read that book."
"Yeah, I did. Apocalypse Cult? That's what they are?" Sean asked.
"I'm afraid so. The Sisterhood of Jhe is intending to bring about the end of the world." Giles admitted to the boy.
Sean gulped as he looked at his worried sister. He exhales deeply and looks at Giles, "How do I help?"
"Kid, you're not getting involved in this," Faith said insistently.
"Why not? Why bother studying my magic if there's no world to study in?" Sean asked. "I know I literally have no power to do anything about all this but… I wanna help. Or at least not feel useless."
Faith looked at Giles, who remained quiet to let the boy speak. "What do you think?"
"Well, I think he should be maintaining his training… but an extra pair of eyes couldn't hurt," Giles told her. "You know what you have to do?"
"Check for any of these scary demon ladies and where they could be hiding? I think I got it." Faith said.
"Good. I'll have Sean help me look for a few bits of research while he's training." Giles said as the three of them left his office.
"Got it." Sean nods as he walks over to hug his sister. "Be careful."
"You too, kid," Faith said as she hugged him back.
Sean watched as Faith left the library to go explore the city.
"Follow me, Sean. I'll need your help finding these books." Giles called out.
Sean nods as he goes over to help Giles.
•••
End of the world. This was something I never considered. I mean, it's not like it never came to mind. But nothing like what I heard.
Sean was back in the Summers' house later that night. He was sitting on his bed again, writing in his journal.
The way I heard Giles and Buffy talk about all this made me a little nervous. This… Hellmouth was literally underneath the library. What's weird about it, I felt this energy in there. Maybe it's the half-demon in me that senses something is wrong. Or maybe there's a part of me that wants all this to happen? I don't understand what it wants from me.
"Sean! Dinner's ready!" Joyce called out from downstairs.
Sean set his journal down and went to wash up for dinner. As he washed his hands, Sean stared into the mirror and saw the battle-scarred version of himself staring back at him.
"You again," Sean said. this event was becoming routine at this point. "Look, unless you're gonna tell me something, I'm going to dinner."
Sean faces away from the mirror, but something happens that surprises him.
"This isn't your future… unless you want it to be."
Sean turned back and saw that his reflection was back to normal.
"Guess I can't escape the cryptic warnings even when I'm awake," Sean replied as he headed downstairs towards the kitchen.
Sean walks into the kitchen and sees Joyce setting down two plates for dinner. "So… I take it Buffy isn't coming home for dinner?"
"She said she'll be home late. She and Faith are going to do some patrolling tonight." Joyce told him. "It's just you and me tonight."
Sean nodded as he took his seat at the counter. "I hope you're not freaked out by me being half demon."
"Sean, I've had to come to terms with a lot since I found out about Buffy being a Slayer. You being part demon isn't the strangest thing I've come across." Joyce said as she sat down next to him.
"It can't be easy for you. It wasn't easy when I found out about Faith being a Slayer… especially since it left my parents… It's just not easy." Sean admitted as he took a bite of his dinner.
"It can't be easy for someone your age. Dealing with all of this and being partly a demon." Joyce assured him.
"Worst part is I don't even know what kind of demon I am," Sean told her. "Guess I'll find out when I'm older…"
"Mr. Giles hasn't figured that out yet?" Joyce asked.
Sean shakes his head, "He has very little to go on, considering I look like a regular person. Aside from my powers, I look like a normal kid."
"Is that why you've been staying at his place for the past few days?" Joyce asked.
"Sorta. He's been teaching me a lot about witchcraft and magic." Sean admitted, making Joyce a little nervous. "He thinks it'll help me learn about how to use my powers."
"It's not ideally what I would want for you… But you aren't going to give up even if I say no, are you?" Joyce asked.
"Sorry, Mrs. Summers, but I want to know what I am and what I can do. It means I have to get out of my comfort zone." Sean told her. "Which is basically… everything."
Joyce smiles as she moves a few loose strands of hair from his face, "You remind me so much of Buffy when she was growing up."
Sean chuckles at that; he knew for a fact that he and Buffy had very little in common. "Thanks… I think."
"How about we watch a movie after dinner? I have the Wizard of Oz if you want to watch it." Joyce offered.
Sean smiled. If something bad was going to happen, he might as well enjoy life to the fullest while he could. "Sure, that'd be great."
Joyce smiled as the two of them continued having dinner.
•••
The next day, Sean sits in the library with Willow and Buffy as they are researching the potential upcoming apocalypse. Sean tries to get the girls to pass him a book they were preoccupied with talking about Xander and his inferiority complex.
Sean sighs and lifts his hand as the book hovers past the two teenage girls and gently floats into his hands. The two of them give him an odd look. "Sorry. I didn't want to interrupt."
"It's okay. Next time you need something, just nudge." Buffy said politely.
"You've definitely gotten better with that." Willow compliments. "I can levitate a pencil and that's about it."
"I had a lot of practice. When I discovered it, it would come out in big, strong bursts. I-I broke a lot of windows." Sean said sheepishly.
"Hey, if you want any help practicing, I'd be happy to give you a hand." Willow offered.
Sean smiled. "That'd be cool. Give my hand a break from the constant note-taking Giles has me doing. He thinks I should learn more about the craft before diving headfirst into it."
"You're learning witchcraft?" Willow asked excitedly.
"Trying to, yeah," Sean said, blushing. "Thought it would help me with understanding how my demon powers work. Maybe find out what else I can do."
"Guys, how about we focus on stopping the Apocalypse before we start making plans?" Buffy chimed in.
"Yeah, you're right," Willow said nervously.
As they continue reading, Sean looks at a passage in the book he was reading, but it had more to do with his father than the Sisterhood of Jhe. He reads it and sees that Balor had made dealings with certain entities in the material plane and other dimensions. Most notably, Pylea and Quor'toth. Sean wrote that in his notebook and put it away as he continued reading.
"Find anything useful?" Buffy asked which broke Sean's focus.
"Uh, no. Still looking though." Sean said with a small smile.
As he continued reading, Giles came in and explained more about what the Sisterhood was planning and when. Sean remained quiet so that they could focus on what was coming.
•••
Once Oz arrived for his Wolf Time session in the cage, Faith came by the library and took Sean back to the Summers' house.
As they walked down the street, Faith sensed how nervous Sean seemed. "You okay, kid?"
"I'm fine. Just a little freaked out over this whole end of the world thing." Sean said.
"Don't worry. From what I've been told, the Slayer has to prevent this sort of thing on a regular basis." Faith told him. "There are two Slayers, so twice the success rate."
"Or twice the ways things can go wrong," Sean said worriedly.
Faith sighed and turned to face him, "I'm gonna be fine, okay? And so will you. You got my genes, you're tougher than you look."
Sean bit his lips and nodded. "Just promise not to die on me."
"You have my word. I'll make sure to live through this." Faith said as she hugged him. "Now let's get you home. You need to keep Joyce company while we save the world."
Sean sighs and continues heading back to the Summers' house with his sister.
•••
In his room, Sean was pacing around the room nervously. He wasn't sure whether or not Buffy and Faith were going to succeed in saving the world. Then remembered that this is technically the past, and the world is still here long after this point in time.
Unless he got put into the body of himself in a timeline where they failed. Would that even make sense?
Sean sits on the bed, frustrated. "I hate multiverse theory." He lies on the bed and stares at the ceiling. He closed his eyes and tried to drift off to sleep.
Sean opened his eyes and looked around. He was sixteen again and was walking through a cemetery in Sunnydale. He checked his surroundings until Faith appeared in front of him.
"Oh, hi," Sean said nervously. He noticed how Faith looked, tired, pale, angry, slightly deranged. But she was the same age she was in the past. "You don't look so good."
Faith said nothing and pulled out an ornate and menacing-looking knife. "I'm five by five, kid." She holds the knife to him. "But you're not gonna look good in a bit."
Sean instinctively raised his hands and used his telekinesis to send the evil-looking Faith flying backward. He started running through the cemetery to get away from Faith.
Suddenly, Sean falls into an open grave. He stands up and sees the deranged version of his sister staring down at him from above.
"Nowhere to run, kid." This version of Faith told him.
Without hesitation, she jumped into the hole, and the sounds of a scuffle were heard. After a minute of fighting, the sound of a knife colliding with a squishy body is heard.
A hand poked out of the open grave as Sean clawed his way out of the hole. He looked around and saw his hands were covered in blood. His sister's blood.
Sean woke up in his eleven-year-old body in a start. He catches his breath as he looks around. He was back in the Summers' house.
"It was just a dream," Sean said to himself. "It was just a dream."
Sean looked at his clean hands and remembered the blood covering his hands. Almost in the same way, he was drenched in Rick's blood.
He hoped it was just a dream.
•••
The next morning, Sean awoke to a knock at the door. After his dream and a few tremors from the Hellmouth, he had gone to the closet and stayed there.
The closet door opened as he looked up and saw Joyce standing there.
"I take it that was your first earthquake, huh?" Joyce asked.
Sean gulps as he gets off the floor. "Something like that."
"From what Buffy told me, we just avoided the end of the world," Joyce admitted.
"Is everyone okay?" Sean asked as they headed downstairs.
"You can ask us yourself."
Sean looked down and saw Buffy and Faith standing at the bottom of the stairs. He saw Buffy's right arm was in a sling, and Faith's face was a little bruised up and had a deep gash on her forehead that was stitched up.
Sean smiled as he ran to hug both his sister and Buffy. Both Slayers wince in pain at the sign of affection.
"Feeling the love, kid, but still sore," Faith said in pain.
Sean pulled away from the hug once he realized he was hurting them. "Sorry."
"It's alright. We're just glad we got through it." Buffy said. "It got pretty rough out there."
"But you guys did it. You saved the world." Sean said, looking around.
"World's safe for another day," Buffy assured him. "I better get to school. Make sure everyone is okay."
"Hey, can you tell Willow I'd be happy to do some magic studying with her. If she's up to it." Sean said.
Buffy smiled as she ruffled his hair. "I'll be sure to tell her." She gingerly hugged her mom and then headed to school.
"I'll go get started on breakfast," Joyce said as she headed into the kitchen.
"See, told you we'd do it," Faith told her brother.
"Sorry for having my doubts," Sean said weakly.
Faith sees how anxious he is around her. "You okay? You look a little pale."
Sean has a flash of his nightmare where he had killed Faith. He shakes his head, "I'm fine. A little stiff after sleeping in a closet."
Faith smiled as she hugged him. "Glad you're okay too, kid."
Sean hugged his sister back tightly. The dream was not leaving his thoughts. He was scared of what might happen next.
•••
•••
•••
•••
•••
•••
And that was chapter eight. A little unconventional than what I've written so far, but I had my reasons for doing it.
Next time, it's Faith's fall from grace and how Sean has to deal with it.
Until then, see you guys soon…