Meztli’s Bright Smile

I had been among the Slayer and her friends for almost a month now, trying to glean information without being too obvious – I needed their trust first, which was why it was taking me so long. Not that I minded much, most every night I spent with Spike, I stayed in his crypt in the bed he had arranged downstairs while he slept upstairs on his sofa couch or marble slab (much to my distaste) because I had no where else to stay; the two of us talked and relaxed together, I was introduced to American television soap operas and it was another thing we enjoyed together, we also trained together as well. But those were nights, during the daylight hours I was doing busy work, and today was no different.

Willow, Dawn, Xander and I were all convened at Giles’ establishment, researching something or other; I really didn’t pay any attention. My mind was half distracted by trying to get a very important question answered, but not knowing how to phrase it, while the other half was filled with thoughts of Spike, who happened to be out with the Slayer looking into a possible lead. I tuned back into the conversation that was going on at the table I was seated at.

“Nothing.” Xander said exasperatedly as he closed yet another old and dusty book. “Ya know? It’s times like these that I wish we could still talk to the Council.” The other two agreed, but I was confused.

“What is the Council?” I asked.

“They are a group of British men and women who have vast amounts of literary and historical data on many prophecies, apocalypses, demons, and most importantly Slayers. They train Watchers, like Giles, and the Watchers in turn train the Slayers, both of whom answer to the Council. The Slayer is the tool that the Council wields against the evil of the world.” Willow informed me.

British men and women with knowledge of prophecies and demons; sounds like the M.O. of the men who originally came after me. I thought to myself. “So this Council, they are the superiors to Giles and Buffy? They give them orders which are then carried out without question?”

“Well, yes and no.” Xander began. “Most Slayers and Watchers would mindlessly and unquestioningly do whatever the Council demanded, but Buffy and Giles never did. And the last time we saw or heard anything about them was when we faced Glory, an ex-god from a hell dimension. And even then, Buffy ended up taking no orders and merely retrieved the information she needed before we did our own thing.”

So it was never the Slayer who was after me, merely those who were above her in status. So perhaps I don’t need to kill her after all, it is this Council that needs the killing. I thought, and looking around at the group of children gathered around the books I was irritatingly relieved that I would not have to kill any of them; the more time I had spent among them, the more I had grown fond of them – despite their mortality and humanity. Just then Buffy came into the building holding a medallion in her hand; she was badly bruised. I immediately jumped up from my seat in worry.

“Where’s Spike?” I asked, and when I saw her eyes and the anger that was mingled with regret within them, my anger began to rise. “What happened?” I demanded. Buffy commenced to tell us that her and Spike had been jumped by a legion of vampires near the mausoleum they had been sent to go to for an old scroll that was buried with someone; all of the vampires had been robed in scarlet velvet and all of them wearing a medallion like the one she held in her hand. Her and Spike had been immensely outnumbered and in the course of the battle, she hadn’t noticed Spike was gone until after killing a handful of the vamps when she suddenly found herself alone. “I’m going after him!” I said as I got up and headed towards the door.

“Ana!” Buffy called out. The tone of her voice made me pause and turn around. “I know we don’t see eye-to-eye on a lot of things, but you going out after Spike without the slightest idea where to begin looking and without any weapons for that matter, is suicide. We will think of a plan, look up this medallion, and go out as soon as we can to get him back.”

“And if it is too late Slayer? If it is too dark to see anything at the battle ground?” I asked, staring deep into her eyes. She met my gaze and something passed between us, a comprehension was reached in silence and she nodded her head to say that she understood my emotions.

“I have a gut feeling that they will not kill him, not until they have whatever it is they needed from us in the first place. And tonight we’ll have the full moon’s brightness to help us in our search.” She said. My head snapped around in a panic as I looked out the front door towards the setting sun. “Ana? Something else wrong?” she asked.

“I need something, I will meet you back here, but if I am running late leave without me and I will catch up.”

“Ana can’t this thing wait?” Giles asked.

“No. Remember, if by dusk I haven’t returned go on and begin without me.” I said as I took off. I knew I wouldn’t be coming back to them, so I circled around and hid where I had a good view of the front of the Magic Box. Why tonight of all nights? I cursed in my head. I had lost track of the days since being here and had Buffy not mentioned the full moon tonight, there could have been hazardous results. So instead I waited for night to fall and the full moon to rise, and in due time it did. In silence, I swallowed my grunts of pain as I fully morphed and ceased to be in my human form, but rather that of my purely feline one. All but the very smallest of consciousness in my mind remained, I was an animal running on instinct, but the voice of reason that remained kept me from hunting… it reminded me that the man I loved was in danger, and so I waited. Before long I saw the group emerge from the shop, look around and then head off. I silently followed on the rooftops and in the alleyways, listening to bits and pieces of information.

Once we got to the site of the attack and battle I couldn’t get close enough to them, I kept getting the urge to just go try to find Spike on my own and kill anything that got in my way, but the very small part of my mind that was still coherent reminded me that doing things that way would take longer, so I waited as the group looked around. Willow did a small spell and a little light glowed in front of her for a second before darting off; everyone hoisted up their weapons and followed after it, and I followed after them. The light dissipated in front of a large abandoned hotel, and the gang went inside, but my feline senses screamed to not go inside after them, so I stalked around the perimeter until I found a window and could glance inside.

Through the glass pane I saw the entire group unarmed and surrounded. There were a few piles of dust which showed that the Slayer and others had fought, but a couple of vampires had Xander and it appeared that they used his safety to get the others to toss aside their weapons before taking a hold of Willow and Giles as well. Mate? Where’s mate? Was the only question that occupied my mind, I could not see Spike at all, and my anger began to rise.
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