Mountain Potential

It had been about a month and a half and today we had had a very exhausting day of training the Potentials again, and now at nightfall, I was getting ready to head out and make Cleveland safe for the citizens who occupied her. I pulled on my trusty and broken-in Wrangler jeans and a white wife beater over my plain white cotton bra and underwear. Pulling on my boots and grabbing my trusty rope, a button-down shirt into whose pockets which I placed a stake. Then I walked out into the hallway to wait for Spike to come and join me. We had become something of an unofficial tag-team on patrolling. It was different to have someone to watch my back, as well as having to watch his back in return. But it was nice having someone to talk to, I hardly ever cried myself to sleep anymore at the end of each night.

He was easy to be around; I was never uncomfortable around him or nervous. We teased and fought a lot, but it was all in good fun and I enjoyed his company on patrols.

“Ya ready yet? Mercy, ya take longer’n a girl to git ready boy! An’ ya don’t even use no mirror, so what in the world could possibly take ya so long?” I shouted through the closed door as I banged on it with my fist. “Hurry on up or I’ll bust down this door so help me! Yer pale ass done got three seconds. One,” I ticked off the first second, “two,” I held up a second finger and got into position to plant a kick to the door, “three!” and just as I kicked out, Spike threw open the door smirking and caught my foot.

“Tsk, tsk pet. Such impatience and temper, let’s go.” And shoved me backwards, still carrying that eat-shit grin. I laughed and headed on out, knowing he was following, over my shoulder I called to him:
“Oh, and by the way, more of the Potential groups are out tonight, so be prepared to help them, watch or whatever is needed.” I reached inside my room by the doorway and grabbed my rope along with my semi-automatic rifle and continued my way out of the mansion.

The night was winding down and the two of us had not run into any trouble, which pissed me off; I hated nights when I didn’t get to hurt or kill demons. Frustrated and ready to head back to the mansion, we both of us heard the macabre scream of a young girl and we took off at a full sprint. We rounded a corner and saw two nasty-looking demons crouching over the motionless body of Lexi, one of the more promising of the Potentials. Hearing our arrival they both looked up and one snarled.

“Slayer.” And it began to advance on me. I hadn’t even had the chance to raise my gun when I saw Spike throw himself at the two; I quickly joined him in the fight. He was busy dealing with one and I was left with the other. As it advanced on me, I stood there looking at it with pure loathing. I swung my rifle around, got onto one knee and shot out what appeared to be its kneecaps, rendering it immobile.

“Spike!” I yelled as the monster writhed on the ground in pain; Spike had just been slammed into a nearby brick wall and I heard a sickening crunch. My heart seemed to stop when he didn’t get back up and the demon began to go after him. It got two steps, and in those two steps I had unhitched my rope and lassoed it around the neck, yanking tightly and dragging it to the ground. It fought me tooth and nail, and it took me quite sometime before I got the rope wrapped around my arm securely enough to climb up the nearest fire escape. There were a few metal pipelines that ran in between the two buildings, probably made for gas and heat, but I didn’t care I was just glad they were there. I hoisted myself up and stood on it, pulling tightly upon the rope ensnaring the creature below, then I leaned back and jumped down; I used my weight and strength to pull the rope over and across the pipe and hoisted the kicking demon up off the ground a good number of feet. Tying the rope off and walking around to the front of it, I glared angrily at it.

“Ya demon mother fucker, ya think ya can just waltz on in to my town and kill one of my gals? And then hurt Spike? Just what the hell do ya guys want?” I asked the squirming and slowly strangling demon.

“We won’t be the last to come for you, your blood will run in rivers and we will bathe in it.” He choked out, tugging at the rope around his throat.

“Well, that’s what ya think, but ya know what?” I asked rhetorically while reaching into my boot and withdrawing my large Bowie knife, twirling it a few times as I approached the demon. “Ya got another thang comin’.” And I sunk the blade deep into its chest, delighting in its hair-rising outcry. “Ever wonder what ya look like on the inside?” I asked pseudo-sweetly as I cocked my eyebrow at it, watching its eyes get wide. “Let’s find out together shall we?” and with that I effortlessly brought the blade down, slicing through its tissues and sinew before stepping back as the demon’s innards pooled underneath its dangling feet.
I shoved the knife back into my boots before going to undo my rope from the makeshift noose. I walked calmly over to the second demon that looked up at me with fear in its eyes while I hog-tied it, leaving a fair amount of rope to use to drag it behind me before heading over to Spike’s limp form. There was a small pool of blood at the base of his skull, and I gingerly lifted his form onto my shoulders and slung the rifle on my free one, grabbing the loose end of the rope I drug the demon back to the mansion with us to see what the Watchers and Willow would decree on it.
*~*~*~*~*~*

I awoke to a throbbing and aching head. “Ugh, what happened?” I moaned.

“Spike? Oh thank goodness!” I heard before two warm arms were flung around my neck. I looked down and saw that Ellie was holding on to me for dear life. I gently smoothed her hair before pulling her away to look at her face; it was tear stained.

“What are you crying over luv?”

“I was so worried! I thought that damn demon had… well, never mind what I thought.” She said as she wiped her eyes and sniffled.

My mind just registered what she had said and my eyes grew wide. “Are you okay? How did you get us away from those demons?” I asked worried as I looked to see if she had all her limbs.

She laughed and playfully smacked my hands away. “I’m perfectly fine, and I killed the one demon that had hurt you. The other one… well, it has been taken care of as well, but not before I got some information out of it.” And I saw her face fall a bit.
“Bad news pet?”

She nodded. “It’s about the forthcomin’ Apocalypse, and why so many demons are gatherin’ but not doing much. We managed to get out of the demon that the Big Bad behind this one needs the longest livin’ Slayer in love with a vampire, along with the vampire who loves her; basically…” she trailed off looking at me.

“Buffy and Angel.” She nodded her head at my statement.

“And it needs them in a few days. But at least we have one thang in our favor, neither of them are here yet, so we can call them to make sure that wherever they are it is separate from each other, and also to warn them to be cautious and watch their steps.” She said with a hopeful look in her eyes. “So c’mon, git yer ass up, let’s go make some phone calls!” she said tugging at my arms. I smiled as I let her get me out of my bed.

As we climbed the stairs up to the first floor of the mansion, I posed the question that had been bugging me. “Ellie, pet?”

“Hmm?” We entered through the first floor doors.

“Exactly how did-” but I was interrupted by Ellie’s exclamation.

“Fuckin’-A! Why the hell are they freakin’ here after all this time of bein’ a no-show? Could this night git ANY worse?!? Do you people purposefully try and make my life a livin’ hell?” and she threw up her hands in utter frustration, stalking forward towards the group of people.

Seeing the three people she was heading towards, my heart dropped, the only thing we had had going for us was now shattered; as Ellie stormed up to them, Buffy, Red, and Angel turned to face her.

Red left the powder keg to talk, or it would better be described as yelling, with Angel and Buffy. “Glad to see you’re back in the game Spike.” Red smiled as she came and stood beside me.

“Yeah, too bad the two people who need to be in this town the least are now here, making our job just that much harder.” And I smiled as Ellie said something harsh to Peaches that made him back up in a hurry; Red saw me smile and laughed. “What?”

“You really care for her huh?”

“Well yeah, I mean part of me feels responsible for her since I was the one who helped bring her here, but the rest of me admires her strength and fire… the passion that’s inside her. She’s something else.”

I saw Willow shudder and hug her arms. “Yeah, she is…”

“You okay Red? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing it’s just… well,” and she turned to me, “it’s Ellie.”

I felt the borrowed blood drain from my face. “What about her?”

“Oh no Spike! I mean she’s fine… I think. It’s just, well tonight the Watchers and I got a view of a side of her we didn’t even know existed.” I looked at her puzzled. “Well, she brought the one demon back and proceeded to inform us of where the body of the Potential was, and we were left to try and get information out of the remaining injured demon, only we couldn’t. So after hours of getting nowhere, Ellie asked if she could have the demon to herself, to have permission to use any means necessary to obtain information about the Apocalypse.” I nodded my head.

“Well, she got the information we needed which is good, but it was the means that she used that disturbs me.” She looked at me. “She skinned it alive Spike. Taking strips of flesh off, peeling them slowly, in order to make the demon talk. And it didn’t seem to faze her in the least. Not only that, but when the Watchers returned with Lexi’s body, they informed me that that other demon had been gutted like a deer, seemingly while still conscious.” My eyes grew wide as I turned my gaze to the young brunette standing a ways away going at it verbally with Angel and Buffy and holding her own.

“Ellie? My Ellie did all that?” I asked shocked beyond belief. Red merely nodded.

“I didn’t think her capable of… well, of the sheer brutality and savagery that she did it with. I mean, the last Slayer who was even remotely that vicious was…”

“Faith.” I finished for her, remembering my first impression of Ellie in that alley the first night I had been back in town. Willow nodded again as we looked at Ellie standing with Buffy and Angel; she was a little taller than Buffy and used her height to her advantage when dealing with a superior. “Well, I don’t think Ellie is anything like Faith. I mean, sure she has a physical strength that she exerts at times, but it’s never been used against a human in a negative way. I don’t claim to understand her slaying methods, but it works for her. I mean, out of her whole group of Slayers she ‘graduated’ with, she is the only one left; that’s got to count for something, right?”

“True, but I know for a fact that as of tonight the Watchers and the New Council will want to keep a closer eye on her. It can’t be avoided; I mean, after Faith… we cannot afford to take any chances with another rogue Slayer on our hands.” I nodded understandingly; but Willow was looking at me awkwardly.

“What is it Red?”

“Well, it would seem that you’ve been elected as the ‘closer eye’.” I gave her a sharp look.

“What?” I demanded.

She shifted on her feet uncomfortably. “Well, you two are usually out on patrol together, you train together, and you sleep next door to one another. So it seemed the most logical thing to do.” I sighed.

“Fine, but it won’t do any good. I know as much about her as you do.” And at that we had to end our conversation because Ellie was storming over to us with Buffy and Angel in tow.
*~*~*~*~*~*