Brave New World

Chapter 13
The demon lord Balthazar screamed in rage as his troops were cut down in front of him. "This is unacceptable!"he screeched and extending his flabby hands towards the leader of the attackers and concentrated. With an irritated wave of his hand, the Master deflected the magical force extending towards him, trying to draw him closer to the obese behemoth who floated in the stagnant pool.
"Without your little trinket, your powers are weak,"the Master sneered. As he dangled Balthazar's amulet before him, he taunted the demon. "Did you really think you could challenge me? I control the power of the Hellmouth."
Seeing a member of his own special guard fall to the cut and thrusts of three of Bathazar's Eliminati, he angrily added, "And I can use it against those who would challenge me."Raising his hand he reached out
towards the sword bearing vampires who had turn towards him. The vampires stopped and their faces glazed over. They turned towards Balthazar who watched in fury as his men were turned against him. They stepped into the shallow end of the stagnant pool and continued to advance towards him in the deep. With a shriek of anger, Balthazar submerged his vast bulk beneath the dark, fetid waters. Their armor weighting them down, the three vampires strode mechanically forward to the deep end and disappeared beneath the scum on top.
Within a few seconds the water became turbulent as Balthazar became embroiled in battle with the three mind-controlled vampires. After a few minutes, Balthazar's corpulent head reappeared above the now still waters. He looked around, only to see the last of his men fall to the Master's special guard.
They moved to stand on either side of the Master. Each one of them had once served in the US military as a Green Beret officer. The Master had studied and selected each one before personally turning them. He had wanted the best for his own guard and they were loyal to him alone. There were eleven of them with him now and another dozen in LA getting proceedings ready for the ceremony. The loss of one man verses the three dozen enemy who had been destroyed was an acceptable ratio for the Master. He had considered occasionally turning them loose on the White Hats who seemed to somehow remain as a constant thorn in his side. But then he would reconsider as the resulting destruction and devastation would no doubt frighten the rest of the populace into fleeing from the area. The Master knew human nature. Feed on them slowly, one-by-one, gradually increasing the severity of the attacks and the local populace would cower in fear, but remain right where they were thinking it won't happen to them. However, a sudden attack that killed too many people in a search for the White Hats would probably scare the people into abandoning their homes and fleeing the area. Besides, setting the new minions to hunt the White Hats, was an excellent means by which he could watch for any particular vampire's who truly had talent and whom he could groom for better positions.
The Master again lifted the amulet. "Wilson,"he called out, "Dispose of this."The guard to his immediate left took the amulet, walked over to the house wall and propped it on the window ledge. He then backed
off ten feet, raised his pistol and shot the crystal.
The shattering of the crystal released a large fireball of mystical energy melting the wall of the house in a blinding flash of amber light.
Balthazar realized that he was defeated, but he would not go easily "You may control the Hellmouth today,"he spat, "but when the Sisters open the Hellmouth you will be nothing to the Lords who come forth then. A gnat to be crushed. Revel in your power now, because the day of your destruction is coming soon."
"Oh dear, I am so frightened,"scoffed the Master. "Willow!"he suddenly called.
Striding confidently forward, Willow approached the pool carrying a glass jelly jar. She stood with the jar at the edge of the pool and smiled at the Master. Balthazar could see only a dark writhing mass inside the
jar. "What is that?"he demanded.
"Dinner guests,"said Willow simply, turning the jar and gazing in fascination at its occupants. The energies of the Hellmouth occasionally had an unpleasant tendency to produce mutations that would terrorize the local human populace. This particular mutation however was a terror to demons instead of humans. Borer Worms looked like fat earthworms with an average length of 5 inches and half an inch in diameter. They were brown with yellow rings along their length. They also could eat through all types
of demon flesh like a hot knife through butter, but would completely ignore human flesh. Willow had been experimenting with them to see why they ignored humans, but thus far, all she had discovered was that they were an extremely painful and messy way for a demon to die.
She looked to the Master. At his nod, she carefully unscrewed the lid, then dropped the jar into the murky water. The worms swarmed out of the jar and towards Balthazar at the far end of the polluted pool. He
flailed and screamed, but the worms were too small and fast to hold off, and he was too fat to escape from the pool.
Willow rose and moved to the Master's side to eagerly watch Balthazar's gory demise. The Master coiled an arm about Willow as the obese demon screamed in pain while the worms ate their way into his grotesque, fleshy body. Blood poured forth from hundreds of holes where the worms had penetrated. His screams were gradually becoming incoherent gurgles, and his thrashing became weaker.
"Willow, my dear, you constantly amaze me. That was a delightfully, horrid way for him to die,"commented the Master as Balthazar finally stopped screaming and thrashing except for a persistent trembling.
"It was over too soon,"pouted Willow, thought with that much fat, he would have lasted at least thirty minutes. He barely made ten."
"Yes, but it was wonderful while it lasted,"countered the Master with a grin. "Now, the late, unlamented Lord Balthazar referred to some 'Sisters' who wished to open the Hellmouth without my permission. I believe he meant the Sisterhood of Jhe, yet another irritating Apocalypse Cult. They have a reputation for causing trouble, and I believe this might call for an expert in dealing with troublemakers.

Oz was in trouble. He was learning how difficult it truly was to remain absolutely silent and motionless. His feet had sunk into the sludge at the bottom of this sewer drain. He did not dare to lift them for fear of making any suction noises. He was surprised the vampires hadn't discovered him yet. It seemed like every faint noise he accidentally made was amplified. He could not exit to the sewers as there was a grate blocking the drain hole. So he waited.
Five of the original vampires were now embroiled in an argument over what to do. It seemed this truckload was an offering to the Master as a gesture of good will from a vampire master in Modesto. Now with nothing to offer, they were debating over whether they should go report back to 'Master Chavez' or run as fast as possible to get out of California and possibly the Western Hemisphere.
Oz felt a small jolt of joy surge through him when one of the vampires had returned to report that the boy with the arrows had not only escaped, but had managed to kill a vampire named Big Jim. *Good job, Mitch,* he thought with a smile, *at least he got away.*
His happiness was short-lived as he caught sight of the last two vampires returned. Dragging a body. *Oh God no, not Giles!*

Henry Carson had been a big man. Now he was a big vampire. Six-foot-five and weighing 327 pounds it was not a good thing to get him angry. Right now he was pissed. His sire, Master Chavez, had been very clear about whose head would be on the chopping block if the were any screw-ups. The night was not only a total bust with the loss of their cargo, but to insult to injury, they had not recovered any of the escapees to feed upon. Tommy had come skulking back to report that the archer, who had subsequently escaped, had killed Jimmy. He had just decided that it might be a good idea to just keep on heading south to Central America and maybe get lost for a few decades, when Jose and Pez had brought back one old man, on whom they had apparently already snacked.
"Are you morons?"he screamed. "He's no good to us now! What the hell did you think, 'We'll just bring the Master our leftovers'!"
"Well, you see...he was fighting...um...and he..."started Jose but he trailed off as he noticed the glare Henry was giving him.
The ensuing embarrassed silence was broken by the sound of singing and approaching footsteps. *Now what?* thought Henry.
The group of vampires turned to look down the street and see a small girl strolling casually down the street. Swaying her hips from side-to-side in an exaggerated fashion, the girl walked down the center of the street while singing softly to herself and gazing at something in her arms.
"Who the hell is that?"murmured Henry.

Buffy strolled through the deserted streets of Sunnydale. She did not know why, but the urge to go into town when she had awoken this evening had been practically overwhelming. Now that she was here, she wasn't sure where she should go or what she should be doing. As she walked down the quiet streets, she vigilantly watched for either humans or other vampires. She did not really have much interest in meeting either.
Only knowing one other place in town, she had decided to peek in on the Sunnydale Watcher whom she had met when she had first arrived there. It was not that she wanted to meet with him. Since another slayer had been called, he would know she was a vampire, and she certainly did not feel like dodging crossbow bolts. No, she just had an odd need to check and see if he was still alive and fighting. However, when she wandered by the apartment complex where the Watcher had lived, she found it burnt out and deserted.
Disappointed, she wandered aimlessly about the eerily quiet town. After walking for several hours, Buffy faintly heard the sound of someone fighting in the distance. Having promised Spike that she would stay out of trouble, she was not certain why she had continued to proceed towards the sound. As she cautiously neared an alley, she heard the sound of people approaching. Buffy quickly moved to the shadowy side of the street and leapt up into a nearby tree. From the alley, two vampires emerged dragging a body. Oblivious to her presence, the vampires passed under the tree in which she had been hidden.
*Ah crap,* thought Buffy as she saw the body they were dragging. It was the Sunnydale Watcher. *Why can't anything be easy?* She dropped from the tree as the two vampires moved down the street and turned the corner. As she began to shadow the two vampires, she debated what she should do. She wasn't even sure that he was alive. *There were bite marks on his neck. I could kill both of those vamps only to find that he is already on his way to becoming a vampire right now. Shit! Spike is gonna be really pissed, but...what if he is still alive?*
She continued to debate whether she should do anything or not, when she saw the two vamps meet up with five others outside a truck in the street. *To hell with this,* thought Buffy as she moved out into the open and began to walk towards the group of vampires. *Spike can be pissed if he wants, but he's the one who told me to trust myself.*
As she approached the group, she cradled Mary in her arms while singing softly to her. "The itsy bitsy spider climbed up the water spout..."
Although she appeared to be concentrating solely on Mary, in truth she was looking over the vampires in the group in front of her. She didn't recognize any of them from the Bronze, but that did not mean that they didn't know of her. When the group turned towards her she was able to make out what they where saying about her.
"It's the Master's slut,"said Pez. "I saw her three months ago. She's supposed to be a loco but a real wild cat in the sack. Except he never lets her out."
"So what's she doing here?"said Henry.
"Maybe he got tired of her and kicked her out,"said Tommy.
"Maybe the little Chiquita wants to play with someone new,"suggested Jose as he adjusted his pants and smoothed his shirt.
"Yeah well you can wait till after your betters are done,"snarled Henry, not forgetting that Jose had already had a bite to eat, and thinking that some female company might not be a bad idea on his up-and-coming trip south of the border.
Buffy slowly strolled up to seven vampires. The body lay to the side near the back of the truck where it had been dropped. In her 'little girl' voice she spoke to the doll, "Look Mary, new friends."Her eyes moved to the body and she looked hungrily at it. "And they have food. Do you think they might share?"She looked at the largest vampire, tilted her head to the side, and then shifted to her pleading sultry voice. "I'm sooo hungry, and there is just nobody around anymore. All the little people just hide away at night."
"Well I don't know little girl. What do you think you can *do* for us if we give him to you?"Henry asked suggestively.
Swaying her body back and forth and thrusting her chest out, Buffy eyed the seven leering vampires. "You want me to *do* you?"she asked and slowly wet her lips with her tongue. The seven vampires all nodded at her.
"All at once?"she queried with a frown. Suddenly, she smiled brightly. "Sounds fun!"she chirped, but then she paused and said, "Mary can't watch though. She's too young."
"That's all right girl. Why don't you put her in the truck there? She'll never see a thing,"said Henry with a smirk.
Buffy seemed to consider this for a few seconds before saying, "OK."She moved to the back of the truck, shrugged off her jacket, set it on the truck bed and then placed Mary on it. Turning around, she found the vampires closing in around her.
"No!"she said sharply while holding her hand up. "Eat, first!"she demanded while glaring at the vampires that surrounded her. At Henry's nod, the other vampires backed up, leaving the way to the body open for her.
Buffy moved quickly to the side of the man. This close to him, she could now hear his heart slowly beating, low but steady. He was still alive.
From the sewers, Oz watched in horror as the strange vampiress leaned over Giles and her face morphed in preparation to feed. Never had he ever felt so helpless. As much as Oz desperately wanted to do something, anything, to save his friend and mentor, he could think of no way to stop her. If there had been the slightest chance for Giles to escape, Oz would have sacrificed himself without hesitation to draw the attention of the vampires away from him. But Giles was unconscious, and the only thing that Oz could do was watch in silence as he was murdered in front of him.
The vampiress suddenly sat back and looked up with an angry expression. "He's been chewed on,"she pouted. "Who did it?"
Pez pointed at Jose, and Buffy glared at him. Looking back at Giles' neck she grimaced, "Eww. Gross. You got spit all over his neck."
"Don't you be worrying about that, Chiquita,"said Jose. "By the time we're done with you, a little spit will be the least of your problems."
"You go last,"she said sullenly, and the other vampires laughed. Turning back to Giles, she pulled on the sleeve of her shirt and moved to wipe his neck. Watching from the sewer, Oz was startled when he saw the girl adjust a stake that was just peeking out of her right sleeve.
"Oops. I forgot,"Buffy said as she suddenly stood. "Mommy always said to give thanks before eating."Still showing her demon face, she moved to Henry and pressed her body against his. More than a foot shorter than him, Buffy stretched her arms around his neck to pull herself up along his body. "Oh, my. Is that a stake in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?"she cooed as she wriggled against his crotch.
"Oh yeah, baby. I'm really happy to see you,"he said with an approving rumble in his voice while grabbing her hips and lifting her up to wrap her legs around his waist.
"Well guess what?"she said coyly as she curled her arms around his neck, leaned up towards his right ear and flicking her tongue out to tickle the lobe.
"What, baby?"Henry asked lustfully, tilting his head back and towards the left to elude her tickling tongue. The other vampires had closed in around them wanting to get their own 'Thanks'.
Buffy leaned up and whispered into his ear, "I'm not happy to see you."Suddenly she sank her fangs down into his neck and yanked backwards removing a large portion of his trachea.
Before Henry could even raise his hand to clutch at his throat, Buffy was moving to thrust a stake which she had slipped out of her right sleeve into the hearts of 'T-Bone' and Frankie, the two nearest vampires on either side of her. The minds of the four remaining vampires were still trying to register what had just happened when Buffy turned to leap at them. Momentarily frozen in panic, Buster was easily staked by Buffy as Jose, Tommy and Pez stumbled backwards away from the crazed vampiress.
"Jesus-fuckin-Christ!"screamed Tommy just before a twinge in his chest made him look down to see the stake she had flung into his heart.
Pez fell backwards, rolled and scrambled to get to his feet in order to run away. A sudden weight slammed into his back and smashed him to the ground. A hard kick to his head left him stunned, and Buffy yanked a new stake from her left sleeve and rammed it into his back. She then spun about to face the last vampire.
Jose dove into the van, slammed the doors shut and locked them. For the first time since he had become a vampire, he was in a blind panic. *Fuck this shit,* he thought as he scrabbled into the front seat. *I'm outta here,* he reached to start the engine and was horrified to discover no keys in the ignition. He looked up to see no one outside the van in front of him except for the body of the man he and Pez had caught. He fearfully looked out his side window and then quickly turned around to look out the rear. Suddenly, the driver's side window exploded inwards. He spun to see Henry's head and upper body had been rammed through the window. Jose leapt to the passenger side. Frantically, he clawed to unlock the door, opened it and tumbled out of the van.
"Hey!"a voice called out and he spun about to see the vampiress leaping towards him from the top of the van. Her boot caught him in the face and he fell to the ground. Jose let out a scream of pain as he felt a stake plunge into his stomach from behind. In agony, he rolled over trying to get on top of the girl, but she was already standing at his side. "Looking for these?"she asked jiggling a set of keys in the air.
"What the fuck is your problem, bitch?!"the terrified vampire screamed as he tried to crawl backwards away from the deranged vampiress.
Without a word Buffy reached down and grabbed Jose's left foot and with a sudden sharp twist snapped the ankle. As Jose writhed in agony in the street, Buffy left to walk around the van, humming. When she reappeared she was dragging Henry, while singing in a low voice, "...Better not pout I'm telling you why, Santa Clause is coming, to town..."

As Spike strolled through the town he began to feel a nagging unease in the back of his mind. He had followed Buffy's trek through the town by placing a homing bug inside of the doll, Mary. The tracking device was one of several new 'toys' that he had recently acquired from various mercenary magazines. When Buffy had asked to go out, he'd had the sudden thought that this would be a good chance to test the thing.
It was child's play to follow the girl. Every so often he would stop, let her get out of range, and then move in to locate and track her down. The hard part was making sure he remained far enough back to avoid her detecting him. With this device, he was able to keep his distance but still follow.
Most people who still lived in this blighted town were hiding in their homes like frightened rabbits. Here, in the street, he could smell their fear as they huddled within. The sense of terror reminded him of times past with Drusilla, and he was startled to realize that while it still hurt to think of her, he was no longer overwhelmed by the feelings of loss, pain and despair. He was also startled to realize that the local populace's terror did not bring him any joy. Because deep inside he knew, Whistler had been correct. With the large growing population of vampires, the saying 'I'm gonna seize the world, and drain it dry' was no longer an empty boast. They were an idiot's last words.
Spike did not like the way things were going.
He also did not like what he was seeing at the moment. Buffy had stopped moving, and Spike had glanced around the corner of the street just in time to see Buffy move into the arms of one large vampire as several others pressed in close about her. A low feral growl escaped from his chest as he watched the other vampires start to paw and grope at *His* Buffy. Sheer rage flushed through him. He was about to storm out and start breaking some bones and removing some heads. Suddenly, however, Buffy was in motion, and blood and dust were all over the place. Spike's rage vanished as quickly as it had arisen and was replaced with admiration and pride in her. In a matter of seconds, five of the seven vampires were dust, one was apparently incapacitated and the last was trying to hide in the van.
Spike watched with pride as Buffy drove the last vamp from the van and proceeded to incapacitate him. She then went back grabbed the unconscious vampire's legs and hauled him over to where she had left the other one. Suddenly, Buffy turned about and swung the large vampire over her head and down on top of the other one. He chuckled in amusement at the sight of the tiny girl wielding one vampire, like a bizarre sort of club that was large than herself, and proceeding to beat the hapless vampire on the ground with it.
When the vampire Buffy was using finally lost his head and exploded into dust, Buffy proceeded to continue to kick and pummel the last vampire. After several minutes, and no sign of her stopping on her own, Spike finally decided to make his presence known.

She had not meant to get so carried away; however, once she had begun to vent a little of her anger, eight months of suppressed rage began to pour forth from her which she could not seem to stop. Visions of the Master and Willow and a hundred other vampires who had used and abused her while she lived at the Bronze flashed in front of her eyes and incited her to punch or kick harder. Jose just happened to be the unfortunate vampire on whom she had decided to vent.
Not wanting to be accidentally staked, Spike stopped about 10 feet from her. He had expected to hear her snarling or growling as she pummeled the vampire. Instead he was startled to hear her finish singing 'Frosty the Snowman' and proceed into 'White Christmas'.
"So! This is your idea of 'Being Good' is it, Luv?"asked Spike loudly. At the sound of his voice, Buffy snapped out of her fight-induced trance. She spun about to see Spike standing in the street. Spike lit up a cigarette before he continued. "Pet, enlighten me here. As a foreigner in your country, I realize that there are certain words and phrases which have different meanings here than they might in my country, but I really thought that the phrase 'Keep a low profile' meant avoiding fights."
"Well..."Buffy stalled for time while trying to kick her brain into gear *Come on, think verbal*. "It wasn't really much of a fight."
"Oh I know that, Luv,"Spike said before he took another drag on his cigarette. "What I saw was more like a bloody slaughter-fest, but you my pmy point."
Buffy looked down at the bloody vampire lying, or rather, smeared on the ground before her. She felt an immediate surge of regret and remorse for letting her rage get so out of control. She pulled yet another stake from under her shirt and quickly ended his suffering. The demon inside of Buffy however was enormously pleased with her actions and was not about to let Buffy's conscience rain on her parade.
*It was fun and you can't deny it,* came the demon's thought.
*No...I can't. But it doesn't make it right,* countered her conscience.
Buffy looked up to see Spike looking at her with a frown. She realized he was still waiting for her answer. "I...I know...it's just..."she let out a deep sigh and lowered her head in shame. Not for killing the vampires, but she hated that Spike had seen her lose control. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to disappoint you, but... something just sort of came up,"she finished lamely.
Spike moved towards her, reached out one hand and tilted her head up to look into her eyes. "You didn't disappoint me, Luv. I thought you were beautiful. I just wanted to know 'why the ultra-violence?' "
Buffy grimaced, "I think I have some issues with rage that I still need to work out. Maybe I need a couple of anger management courses. It's just...when I got started, well, everything just sort of came pouring out, and it felt so good...Do you know how long it has been since I fought to actually kill someone? It's...it was incredible. Did I mention how good it felt?"Buffy was beginning to get aroused just remembering it. *I cannot believe that I am getting turned on right now.*
Nodding, Spike smiled reassuringly at her, "I know, Luv. It's the violence. Gets you all worked up."Hesitantly Spike moved closer to her. Watching her eyes rapidly move up and down his body. He thought that she looked as if she wanted to jump him and have her wicked way with him. Which would have suited him just fine, except for the fact that he kept wondering if he was not just projecting his own wants and desires on her. *Dammit, what the hell's wrong with me? This isn't how I used to think. Look at 'er. Fresh from a nice scrape, standin' there all covered in blood and lookin' like she needs me ta lick 'er clean. Take her. Take her now. She'll be delicious.* But instead he stood there and watched the way she stared back at him with her green eyes wide open and the way her tongue kept peeking out as she wet her lips. He moved his eyes lower.
Buffy realized that she was breathing heavily and it was not from the fight. Spike seemed to be intently watching the rise and fall of her breasts with each breath she took. His eyes again move up to meet her. He dropped the cigarette.
*Hello! He obviously wants you. Just throw yourself into his arms and get busy on him. He'll melt in your mouth like the yummy piece of white chocolate that he looks like.*
She moved closer to him. They were now standing so close now that they were barely a fraction of an inch apart. Buffy barely had to tilt her head to keep staring into his icy blue eyes. *He's going to do it. He wants me and he's going to take me right here in the street and I want him to. Hell it's not like anyone else is around, it might as well be a bedroom. Just him and me and the stars...OH!*
Spike could feel the bucket of ice water come splashing down on him when he saw her eyes suddenly widen, take a step backwards from him and heard her exclaim, "Jeeves!"
"Who?"Spike muttered darkly, still trying to work out how he had lost control of the moment.
"Jeeves,"she said again simply as if that name explained it all, and suddenly, she did a summersault over to Giles and then bent down next to the unconscious man.
"What do you think you are going to do?"asked Spike. "You know you can't keep him, and I know you aren't going to kill him. Just leave him, pet. I'm sure someone-"
"He was already bitten when I got here. I'm not leaving him out here, Spike,"Buffy said instantly as she checked on the condition of Giles.
"Didn't your mum ever warn you about taking candy from strangers?"Spike asked with a grumble.
Buffy ignored that and went on, "He's a friend of mine...or used to be a friend when I was alive."
A nasty thought began to creep out from the back of Spike's mind. "When you were alive."Buffy nodded. "When you were a Slayer."Another nod. "A Slayer. With friends,"he said doubtfully.
"Well...actually, more of a passing acquaintance."
"How passing?"asked Spike with a grim look.
"OK. I met him for like an hour or two when I first came to this damn town, and he tried to stop me from going to face the Master alone, but I didn't listen, and that really doesn't matter, and why the hell are you
bothered over my knowing him anyway?"
Spike sighed in relief. Local chap. "Sorry, Luv. I just was concerned you were gonna insist on bringing home someone from the bloody Watcher's Council or something,"he said with a laugh. "I mean, from what I know of the handbook and all, Slayers are only allowed to associate with Watchers."
Buffy cleared her throat. "Uhm...well..."
Spike stopped laughing and looked at Buffy. She gave a weak smile. He closed his eyes, "Who is he?"
Bracing herself for the coming storm, Buffy said in a quiet voice, "He is a Watcher."
Spike did not explode. Instead his voice became very low and intense. "No. We are not taking him home. No strays. Look after we've dealt with the Master, then you can play all you want to with whomever you
want to but until then... What are you... Are you listening to me?"
As Spike had talked, Buffy had stood up gone over to the van, unlocked and opened the side door and gone back to the unconscious man. She then proceeded to gently pick up Giles, carry him to the van and carefully set him into the back seat of the van. She then went back to the truck and picked up Mary and her jacket.
Spike was still talking to her, "What is with you girl? Are you out of your mind, Luv? We hunt them or they hunt us, so kill him or dump him. What are you planning on saying? 'Hi there. I used to be your pet Slayer, but I'm a vamp now. But it's OK. I still have a soul and don't feed on people.' He won't believe it. Even if he does, what's to say he won't get himself caught again and is turned. He'll run straight to the Master first thing, he will, and there goes everything wot we've been workin' for."
Buffy held up the keys, "Do you want to drive or shall I?"
Spike snatched the keys from her hand, "Give me that."He moved to the driver's side door opened it and glared at the glass all over the seat. After sweeping the broken glass off of the driver's seat, Spike got in the
van, "This isn't over yet, Luv."
"Of course not, Spike,"Buffy said with a smile as she shut the sliding door.
Spike started the engine, paused then turned to look at Buffy sitting next to the unconscious man in the backseat. "And another thing, Pet. What's with the Christmas carols?"
Buffy shrugged, "Well, I didn't know all the lyrics to 'Singing in the Rain' so..."

Oz scrambled to get out from the sewer. The strange behavior of the two blonde vampires had him completely baffled. On the one hand he was extremely relieved that the female had not killed Giles but the question was 'Why?'. The male had seemed to want to leave Giles, but the female who had butchered the first group of vampires had refused to leave Giles and had seemed to want to protect him. He had not been able to make out more than bits and pieces of their conversation, but what he had heard made no sense.
*What the hell is going on?* he thought as he watched the van disappear up Gingham Street. He began running to get to his van. If he could follow them, find out where they were taking Giles, maybe he would
have a shot at rescuing him. He had written down the license plate number on his arm. Gingham Street led to only three areas: the Oakwood Apartments, the El Camino Condo's or the more exclusive homes of Sunnydale, the Gold Ridge Estates.

Giles slowly awoke to pain. His neck throbbed, and his back burned. He could feel dozens of scrapes, cuts and bruises on his arms and legs. Terror coursed through his mind as the memories resurfaced. Vampires had captured him. *Oh, Bloody Hell!* he thought as his eyes snapped open.
It was dark. He was in a van. He was feeling cold and weak as a kitten. *Blood loss* came the analytical thought from some part of his mind that was functional and not gibbering in terror.
Buffy watched the man as he woke. "Hello, Jeeves,"she said in a soft voice as she turned on the overhead light.
Giles stared in horror. The face was slightly different, devoid of the terrible scars that he had seen on it the last time he had seen her. Her hair had been drastically cut back to about three to four inches in length. Most of all, the eyes that had been so jaded now seemed filled with a haunted longing. It was, without a doubt, the Slayer whom he had last seen going to face the Master. Who was now dead. *...or rather undead as it turns out,* he thought in dismay as he realized that the red on her cheeks was blood on the outside of her face.
"Miss S-S-Summers,"he stammered out.
She gave him a wry crooked smile, "Relax, Mr. Giles. You're quite safe now."
"Forgive me if I don't share your attitude,"he stated coldly, his voice surprisingly steady. He may have been doomed, but he was damned if he would give them any satisfaction of toying with his emotions. He knew that was what they were doing. They were demons after all. Offer him hope now, and, once he was convinced that they were going to let him go, they would then snatch it away and laugh at his despair.
A male voice with a definite British accent suddenly spoke up from the front of the van. "I wouldn't make any bets on that either, luv."
Buffy looked out the front window as Spike approached the estate.
Two large black Cadillac's and a black stretch limousine were stopped in front of the gate. A brilliant flash of red hair on the vampire lounging on the limo left no doubt as to who was waiting for them.
"Bitch,"hissed the former Slayer. Although he was already cold, Giles would swear he felt the temperature drop even further inside the van.
Spike slowed the van to pull over and stop. "Pet,"he said quietly. "There's no need to panic. Stay calm, follow my lead, our plans haven't changed. Right?"
Buffy nodded, "Gotcha. Right. Vacuous bimbo-Buffy coming right up."
As Spike exited the van, Buffy turned to Giles. She stared at his worried and frightened expression for a few seconds while chewing on her lower lip. "Listen up,"she said in a firm low voice. "We have no time for explanations and whether you believe me or not, I don't want to kill you or see you vamped. Believe this, however, the vampires out there would just as soon have you for a quick snack as look at you. Particularly the nasty bitch with the red hair. She's the Master's chosen, gonna be made his Queen in a couple weeks. If you want to live, do not say anything to antagonize her in any way. And whatever you hear just go with the flow. Gt?"t?"
"W-What?"Giles figured that he must be delirious from the blood loss.
"Look, I'm trying to save your life here. Do you understand?"she hissed insistently seeing Spike waving at her to come out of the van. She snatched up a doll that he had not noticed from the floor.
"Yes,"he answered quickly even though he was still confused about what the hell was going on.
"Show time,"she muttered as she open the sliding door.

Willow lounged across the hood of the limousine. She enjoyed the heat from the engine and the knowledge that she looked good while doing so. She knew she looked good because anyone who said otherwise would find themselves experiencing a horribly, painful and final death. She relished teasing and flaunting her body just to torment others who knew they could not have her because she belonged to The Master. That thought brought a smile to her face. While many of the older vampiresses seethed with jealousy and hatred for the position of power which she had achieved, they did nothing but watch and wait, certain in their belief that the Master would eventually grow tired of Willow's obvious unfaithfulness and dispose of her in an appropriate fashion. In truth, Willow was quite happy to be his exclusively and had absolutely no intention of letting her new position of power slip away. She kept notes on who responded to her advances and how susceptible they were to the idea on encroaching on the Master's property.
Most had turned her down due to their fear of the Master. A few had accepted her advances and had been disposed of.
Only one had turned her down in favor of another vampiress. Spike. Who had claimed to desire the pathetic 'Childe'. Willow couldn't even remember what her actual name had been. Muffy? Fluffy? It was not really important. Of course, she knew he had done it to save face.
Having the Master snatch her from Spike's grasp must have burned his pride terribly. He could not have publicly challenged the Master, and had therefore grabbed for the first thing that Spike had thought would strike back at him. The 'Master's Pet'. The day after, when she had noted the lack of a bite mark in the showers had proven to Willow how little Spike had really wanted Childe. His pride was what had made him make the request for her from the Master. The fury he had been suppressing was evident in his fight with the Gorch Brother's. To Willow, it had simply shown how much he had wanted her.
Although she had been disappointed in no longer having Childe to torture, she had found other amusements to occupy her time. The Master had taken to instructing her in certain dark magics, and she was thrilled by
what the Master had shown her in just the few short months since he had announced that she was to be his queen. He had been educating her in the use of a few of the powers that he had harnessed from the Hellmouth, and she had been a very eager and attentive student.
Still, Spike's refusal of her in the shower had grated at her in the back of her mind. He had insulted her. Mocked her. And she would never forgive that. She had decided to take advantage of every chance to throw herself in his face and impress upon him what the Master had denied him.
She'd had her limousine block the drive so that he would have to meet her here in the street rather than in his home where he would have the advantage. When Spike had arrived home, she smiled at his ill-concealed anger at seeing her.
"Hello, Spike,"she purred seductively.
"Willow,"he said nodding his head in acknowledgement. "Having a spot of trouble with your car, or is there some reason you are blocking my driveway?"
She noted his tone with a smirk, *Definitely still bitter.*
"Heinrich wanted to see you,"she said with an uninterested tone of voice. She had purposefully used the Master's first name to remind Spike to whom she *now* belonged.
Spike didn't show any reaction except to say, "So what he's got you playing messenger girl?"
Willow smiled while thinking, *Bastard! OK let's see what damage I can do to his 'Pet project'.* "No. I wanted to see how you had been treating Childe. Is that her in the van? Why don't you bring her out
here?"she inquired.
Spike saw her smile and knew she was looking for trouble. He hoped Buffy could hold herself together long enough to not rip the bitch's head off. After her earlier performance, he was a bit concerned. He waved to Buffy to join him.
A second later he saw the sliding door opened and Buffy emerged with the human. She held on to him as if he might attempt to run, even though in his weakened condition it was obvious that he would not get more than a few yards before collapsing. Buffy dragged the man over to where Spike stood with Willow. She growled at him to keep his head down and forced him to his hands and knees. Looking up at Spike she smiled with that empty eyed gazed that he hated.
"You beckoned, my Lord?"she asked in her most subservient voice.
Spike barely repressed a smile. *Damn, she's good. If I hadn't seen her at that moment...what I might have missed.*
Willow slid off the car and approached her. "Hello, Childe. Has Spike been taking good care of you?"
"Yes, Mistress,"Buffy said with a subdued tone and a lowered head.
"I have so missed our times together,"she sighed dramatically while moving close to Buffy. "Hum, you've been out playing I see."She tilted Buffy's chin with the tips of her fingers. "But my, my you are a messy
eater,"she commented, noting the residual blood on Buffy's face and shirt.
She stepped back rubbing her fingers as if to flick some dirt off of them. "And I see you brought home a doggy bag,"she added as she looked at the man on the ground. Something about him disturbed her. Without a word, she kicked him hard in his ribs. The man let out a grunt of pain and fell over, clutching his side. Willow grinned evilly as she saw who it was. Thoughts of tormenting Childe and taunting Spike vanished. She could do that anytime. This was going to be special.
"Well, well, well. Look at what we have here,"she cooed as she used her foot to push him fully over onto his back. "It's 'Watcherman'."

The driver hardly noted the vandalized 'Welcome to Sunnydale' sign as he sped past it. Beside him, the girl however sd wid with sadness and a touch of anger at the word 'Hell' that had been painted over 'dale'.
The world should never have been this way. She could feel it in her bones. They had failed to hold back the tide of darkness, and it was now her duty to some how stop it. But she did not know where to start, and she was beginning to suspect that neither did anyone else.
She shifted about in her seat and looked at the man driving the car. They had been moving from city to city for months. Staying for a few weeks, reducing the local vampire population, and then moving on. They had been in San Francisco for the last two weeks and were now heading to LA where a meeting was to take place about more effective methods dealing with the vampire threat.
"Hopefully, we will be able to locate Mr. Giles at this address, and then we can be on our way to LA with a minimum of trouble,"said the driver.
The girl nodded. She didn't want to say anything. This town was obviously in need of help, but she would not be allowed to stay. So many of her illusions had been shattered over the past several months that she no longer argued about where she was sent. She was supposed to be saving these people.
Watching the shuttered houses pass by, the sense of wrongness deepened. She was needed here. Someone had to help those who had lost hope.
But they would not be staying to help. The man had been insistent that they needed to be in LA soon to prepare for the meeting.
*Maybe we could come back afterwards,* she thought to herself. But deep inside, she knew it wishful thinking.

Wincing in pain, Giles looked up at the red hair vampiress. The night's events had taken their toll on him, but he easily recognized Willow.
He clearly remembered the last time he was this close to the demon. Apparently, she did as well. Apprehensively, he watched as she moved to squat down on him. "The last time we met, you were in a big cage,"she said as she settled on his chest. "It doesn't seem like your position has improved any. For someone who is supposed to be a Watcher you don't seem to be doing too well."
Giles didn't know what to say. The vampire who had been the former slayer had said she wanted to save him. At this point, he had no choice but to hope that she had not been lying to him. However, whether or not she had lied was irrelevant. The advice she had given him about not upsetting Willow was sound. The problem was she had focused in on him like a cat on a mouse. She wanted entertainment and he apparently was it.
Willow bent forward, her demon's face emerging, her fingers extending into claws. She placed the tips of her claws near his eyelids. "Perhaps if we remove these, you'll be able see better."
Spike had watched Buffy as Willow began to climb on the human. No one else could have noticed the subtle shifts in her body as Buffy readied herself to attack. Spike had no doubt that she could have taken out Willow and the eight guards by herself, but that would screw-up his plans. The ceremony would be cancelled. He needed to issue his challenge in front of an audience that would demand the Master face him. As Willow leaned in to remove the man's eyes, Spike caught the gleam in Buffy's eyes and knew he
had to stop her.
"Willow, Luv,"he said stepping forward. "I was under the impression that you were here because the 'Master' wished to see me. Not to raid my larder."
Willow looked up and smiled. "Oh don't worry. He'll be alive afterwards."
"Yes, but without his eyes, pet. And they won't grow back after I turn him."
Willow looked surprised. "You planned to turn him? Why? I wouldn't think he'd be your type at all."
Spike chuckled, "Simple. He's a Watcher. He's got all sorts of interesting little tidbits of information inside his brain for me to sift through."
Willow allowed her demonic features to recede and frowned at Spike. She hated when she had to restrain herself. However, she doubted that the Master would be pleased with her if Spike refused his request because she had wanted to indulge herself. Still, there were other ways to torture a human, and this one really didn't give her the impression that physical torture would have much of an effect on him. "Alright then,"she said with a shrug.
Willow swiftly stood up, grabbed his hair and pulled him up into a kneeling position. He let out another grunt of pain but again said nothing. She moved behind him and again knelt down. She then slid her hands along his chest and placed her chin on his right shoulder so that her mouth was near his ear.
"Well then, I suppose I should say 'Welcome to the family'. Hmm?"She flicked her tongue to lick at the blood that still trickled from his neck wounds from earlier. "Tell me 'Watcherman', what do you think your
wife will do the next time she sees you?"
Giles said nothing, but Willow could feel as his breath caught for a moment. Willow grinned; she knew his soft spot.
"Do you think she'll scream and run. Poor little wifey, all alone. And with a baby on the way."Willow heard Giles gasp when she said that.
"Yes we know all about your baby,"she purred as she felt his heart beat begin to increase. "We've kept tabs on you. I wonder whether you will want to just kill her or turn her. Hmm?"She felt Giles began to shudder in horror at that thought. *Time for the coup-de-grace,* she thought. "Of course, you won't appreciate the thought now but later you will understand. If you capture her, and wait for the baby to be born..."she moved her lips until they just barely brushed against his earlobe, "...then it can be her first meal after you turn her."
It was too much for Giles. He yanked his head and twisted his body to get away from the vile demon. He found himself falling face forward onto the street, however, as Willow had suddenly removed her arms from his chest. He rolled onto his back, sat up, and glared with fury at the grinning red-haired vampiress.
"You-, You-,"he sputtered trying to think of a curse vile enough to spit at Willow. "Goddamn bi-aurgh,"he gasped as he was kicked in his left kidney from behind. As he fell again to his side he felt a foot press down on his throat. He stared into the face of the former Slayer.
"Naughty, naughty,"she scolded while wagging her finger in f of of his face. "If you use the dirty words then we have to wash your mouth out with soap. Right Mary?"She said the last to the doll she was still
holding. He stared at her, still confused by what was going on, but he held his tongue as his rage from a moment ago slowly dissipated.
Willow sighed. This was not turning out to be as much fun as she had wanted. Yes she had gotten a reaction finally but she really wanted to tear someone's arms off.
Then Spike spoke up. "Buffy, Luv. Please take our guest inside and secure him. I need to go see the Master. It may be a while, so 'No Feeding'. Understand?"
Buffy turned to smile at Spike, "Of course, My Lord."She then bent to grab Giles by his arm and lift him up into a standing position. "Come on,"she snarled yanking him towards the entry gate that led onto the
estate.
Spike turned towards Willow and lifted his hand towards the limo. "After you, my Queen,"he murmured softly.
Willow smiled upon hearing those words. *Perhaps there still is some fun to be had,* she thought with a purr.

"The bitter fruit of the Harvest shall spread its contagion throughout the world."
"Once fallen, now revived. The soulless one who sought vengeance shall instead find the salvation for the World."
"Out of the shadows of fear, up from the ashes of destruction, shall the Warrior arise, and the sword shall be turned against its creator - In the year of our Lord, 9999."
- Excerpts from 'The Completely Inaccurate Prophesies of Agnes Nitt'

Jenny read with fascination the book that Catherine and Amy had brought over. Agnes Nitt had been a very strange seer. For 350 years, not one of her prophecies had come to pass. Miss Nitt was a woman who claimed to have been plagued with visions of things that, according to her prologue in her book, would not or should not ever come to pass. Agnes had written that if by some chance any of her prophecies did come true, they would then continue to come true until the original mistake had been corrected.
Jenny looked at the clock 12:48 am. Rupert would be home soon, and, despite the exhaustion of staying up, he would no doubt want to immediately start reading this. She briefly thought about hiding it until he was rested. *No,* she thought with a smile. *A few hours with a new book will probably be more restful to him than a week of sleeping.*
A sudden pounding at the front door roused her from her musings. By the time she got up and reached the hallway, Derrick, Glenn and Chris had unlocked the door. Mitch tumbled into the house drenched in sweat, gasping and panting for breath. Glenn and Chris bombarded him with questions: 'What happened?', 'Where's Oz?', and 'Where's Giles?' being the primary ones. Mitch tried to explain what happened but he was too out of breath to speak.
Jenny stepped forward to take control of the situation. "Derrick go get some water. Glenn, Chris, back off give him some room. Mitch, are you injured?"she asked, crouching down next to the boy. Mitch shook his head to indicate 'No'. Jenny stood up and looked at Glenn and Chris, "Help him to the den."As they moved Mitch out of the foyer, Jenny closed and locked the door. As she slid the last bolt into place, she leaned her head against the door. *Oh, please Goddess. Don't let him be dead,* she prayed. Bracing herself, she straightened up and moved into the den.

Buffy punched in the code to unlock the front door. Helping Giles inside she closed and reactivated the lock. Leading Giles though the den, she tossed Mary onto the couch and directed him into the kitchen.
Giles was utterly confused. The vampire was seething with rage. He could feel the anger radiating off of her in waves. However, as soon as they had been out of sight of the other vampires, she had released the
painful grip on his arm by which she had been pulling him and had slipped under his arm to help support him. She was a vampire. So why the act which she had put on in front of Willow? Could she really have meant what she had said in the van? He needed time to think. He was still very weak, but his chances for escape from one vampire were a lot better than from two.
Entering the kitchen Buffy jerked out a chair. "Take off your shirt and sit,"she directed before moving to the sink. She opened a cabinet pulled out a pot and began to fill it with warm water. Turning she found
Giles still standing, leaning on the back of the chair for support and looking as if he was getting ready to make a break for it.
"Oh, please,"she said in exasperation. "Would you just sit down before you fall down?"When he made no move, she sighed, picked up the pan of water and moved it to the table. Leaning over, she opened a drawer and snatched a hand towel from it. She dipped the towel in the water then wrung it out and looked at the baffled man. "I'm going to clean your wounds. I hope you've had a tetanus shot recently 'cause I can't help you there."
"Why are you helping at all?"asked Giles with suspicion.
"Strip. Sit. And I'll tell you,"she said firmly. He stared at the vampire standing in front of him. Even though she was almost a foot shorter than he was and probably closer to half his weight, he knew she
could break him in two if she wanted to.
Hesitantly, Giles began to unbutton his shirt. *What the hell. Might as well play along,* he thought with resignation. *Hang in there, Ripper, old man. We're not dead yet. Wait a bit. Get your strength back. Look for the opportunity.*
When he had finally sat down in the chair, Buffy moved in to start cleaning the wounds on his neck first. Giles clenched his teeth to brace himself against the pain, but the girl was surprisingly gentle. Watching
her face as she cleansed the bite area, he saw that she showed no emotion, no hunger, but rather, only a cool professional look. From another cabinet she pulled out a first aid kit. At Giles arched eyebrow, she simply
shrugged and said, "Vamps get injured, too."
She got out a large bandage and some antibacterial ointment. Placing a large dollop of ointment on the bandage she carefully placed it over the bite wound. She rinsed out the towel and began to gently clean the
numerous wounds on Giles' back.
The silence was beginning to grate on Giles' already frayed nerves.
"You...You said-,"he started to say.
"-that I would explain all,"she finished. At his nod, she hesitated for a second before continuing. "Well, let me see, where to begin. Once upon a time there was a cocky slayer who though she could fight anyone..."

Oz swore as he sped out of the driveway for the El Camino Condo's. First the apartments had been a bust, and now here. That only left the estates. This was going to be difficult. Not for the first time he wondered if he should have gone back to the house to get help. But that would have taken time. No. Better to first find out where Giles was, then go and assemble the A-Team.
The fences around the estates were a problem. Some were electrified. Plus, some of the estates had a lot of plant growth that made it difficult to see the houses therein, not to mention the driveways. Additionally, how would he see the van if it was in a garage? Oz decided to not stress on that possibility, yet. He would move as fast as he could, scanning each house and move on if he didn't find the van right away. He would have to get the others, if he didn't find the van soon.
Oz had parked the van near the fence of one estate in order to climb on the roof and look onto the grounds. The moon was bright enough that he was able to scanning with his binoculars and saw there was no van. As he moved off the roof, he heard the sound of approaching vehicles and crouched down. A few seconds later a limousine and two Cadillac's passed. He waited till he was sure they were well and truly gone, before getting up and getting back in the van to move to the next house.
"Hang in there, Giles,"he whispered aloud. "I'm coming for you."

Everyone in the house was up. Not for the first time, Jenny wished she could have a drink. Instead she sipped the tea which Mrs. Johnson had fixed for her. On the outside, she was calm and in complete control. On the inside, she was a wreck.
Mitch had not been able to tell them what had happened to either Oz or Giles. After hiding for half an hour he had attempted to get back to the van, only to find it missing. Mitch had expected to find either Oz or Giles or both here at the house. Now, however, he didn't know if they had taken it or maybe one of the rescued 'victims' had stumbled across it and had hot-wired it to get away.
When a knock was heard at the door, Jenny was the first on her feet. Derrick & Chris had their crossbows out and ready. As Jenny held her breath, Glenn unbolted the door. As Glenn yanked the door open, he held a cross out before him to face...a tall, nervous looking man wearing a three-piece suit and a scowling, dark skinned girl holding a crossbow at the ready.
"What do you want?"demanded Glenn suspiciously.
"Um...I do apologize for the lateness of the hour, but we saw the lights were on and figured that someone might be up. We are looking for a Mr. Rupert Giles and this was the last address that was giving to me."He spoke hesitantly eyeing the large number of people looking at him. And the subtle array of weapons pointing in his direction.
"I can assure you that we mean you no harm."The man spoke with a very polished English accent.
Jenny stepped forward. "You're from the Watcher's Council, right? Is she the Slayer?"she asked. The man and girl exchanged glances. They looked surprised that she knew about the existence of the Slayer.
"Yes,"he replied. "To both your questions. May I inquire as to how you would know of such things, Madam?"the man asked suspiciously.
"Because Rupert is my husband,"she explained. "Enter if you are able to do so. My name is Jenny,"she said stepping further back inside the house and pointing to the large crucifix on the wall next to the door.
"Of course,"said the man as he stepped forward and placed his hand on the cross. Without a word the girl followed and repeated his actions.
"Well,"said the man as Glenn closed the door behind them. "I suppose some introductions are in order. My name is Wesley Wyndam-Pryce, and this is Kendra, the Vampire Slayer."

"...and so, for the last few months, Spike has been training me, building up my strength, preparing for a show down. Come September, the Master is going down, once and for all."Buffy pressed a last bandage onto a cut on Giles' stomach, "There. As good as...well, let's just say you'll survive. Which is a lot considering who you've been playing with tonight."Turning she began to gather up the bloody towels and other items.
Giles sat in the chair in a state of shock. She hadn't told him everything. It didn't matter. What she had told him had been enough. Her discovery of Angel at the Bronze. Their valiant but vain attack on the
Master at the factory. Angel's death and what it meant to Spike. Her own death and rising the next day with a soul. Her life under the Master and her 'rescue' by Spike. Their plans to eliminate the Master. It was quite fascinating and he would really need for her to tell him it again when he was in a more coherent state of mind.
Because the one point that kept on buzzing about in his mind was that she had risen the next day, January 8th, with a soul. The day Jenny had returned. The day they performed the spell to...
"Oh, my lord,"he whispered aloud.
"What?"asked Buffy turning back to see him staring off at nothing.
Giles blinked and refocused on the girl. He took a deep breath, "Tell me Miss. Summer's, how do you truly feel about the fact that you are a vampire with a *soul*?"
Buffy gazed levelly at Giles. She stifled the flip remark that she was about to say when she noticed how intently he was watching her. "Well, I have to admit it was pretty hellish while I was the Master's Pet. If it
wasn't for Spike,"she shook her head and looked down, "I would probably still be there or be dust. I had to...I've done things...to survive...that I never dreamed I was capable of doing...horrible things...but...at the same time...if I hadn't kept my soul...I might have become a worse monster than Willow."She shuddered at that thought and was silent for several moments.
Finally, she looked up and notice the way Giles was watching her. "Why?"
Now it was Giles turn to hesitate, "Because, it's just too much of a coincidence. You rose with a soul? The demon was never in control? The following evening?"
"Check, check and check,"she said. "Now why is that important? Aside from the obvious."
Giles licked his lips and swallowed. "Er, well, it is important, you see, because, um, well, I believe that, quite possibly, I, and my wife, might be responsible for your still having a soul."

January 10, 1999 (Near dusk)
"I don't understand,"said Jenny in frustration. "Why it itt it working?"She glanced at the clock. Another 35 minutes and the sun would be down.
Giles had his glasses off and was rubbing the bridge of his nose. He was exhausted, having been up all night attempting to summon the demon Anyanka and worrying all day about the missing Slayer, not to mention Oz and Larry who had yet to check in. "Jenny, I appreciate the concern you have for stopping th-this Angelus. God knows the last thing I want is another vampire roaming the streets, but considering the siege we are under right now, I don't think it will really matter. Also, it might be better if we waited until we are more rested."
Jenny sighed and slumped back in defeat, "No. It won't matter then either. I just haven't got the right power to cast this spell. I thought that my being a gypsy would allow me, but...I mean, I can do readings, castings..."she trailed off, scowling at the orb in the middle of her preparations on the coffee table. The Orb of Thesulah simply sat there, looking very much like the paperweight that Giles had bought it to be. It had faintly glowed while Jenny had been performing her spell but then when she had completed the incantation, the glow had simply faded.
Jenny suddenly raised her head to look at Giles. "What if it doesn't need to be a gypsy to be cast? Rupert, you said you've done a few spells in the past..."
"Yes, well, apparently the past is where my spell casting abilities have remained. You will note my complete lack of success in attempting to summon Anyanka,"he said, waving his arm towards the desk where his own spell casting components had been laid out.
"Rupert, please, give it a try,"Jenny begged, getting up and moving to grab his hand.
Giles looked at her and resigned himself. "Alright,"he sighed, "but I don't know how it is going to work when I've never even seen him."Jenny, however, was already moving to grab her briefcase and pull out several pieces of paper.
"Here,"she said, thrusting the papers in front of his face. "You just have to visualize him while reciting the incantation. These pictures were drawn of him when he was in New York."Giles looked at the drawings. Some were from a distance, some from close up. They showed a man with long, dirty, tangled hair who lived in an alley. *Correction. Existed in alleys,* he thought as he looked at the next drawing and saw the vampire's face as he was shown feeding on a rat. The cursed vampire's misery, pain and suffering were clearly evident in his face on every picture.
"Th-They're very well done,"he said as he looked up at Jenny, questioningly.
"Yes,"she replied, "and to answer your question, No, I did not draw them.
My aunt did, back in the '70s, when she was assigned to watch him."
Giles wondered why, if he was so miserable, the creature had never committed suicide, or if it couldn't do the deed itself, why it hadn't sought out a slayer to kill it. That thought, however, brought to mind the slayer who had come to town last night. He was worried about what had happened to her, and feared that she had been killed.