From: buffyfic-owner@xmission.com (buffyfic Digest) To: buffyfic-digest@xmission.com Subject: buffyfic Digest V1 #22 Reply-To: buffyfic@xmission.com Sender: buffyfic-owner@xmission.com Errors-To: buffyfic-owner@xmission.com Precedence: buffyfic Digest Saturday, August 30 1997 Volume 01 : Number 022 In this issue: BUFFYFIC: Sealed with a Kiss 9/11 BUFFYFIC: Sealed with a Kiss 6B/11 BUFFYFIC: Sealed with a Kiss 10/11 BUFFYFIC: Sealed with a Kiss 10B/11 BUFFYFIC: Sealed with a Kiss 11a/11 See the end of the digest for information on subscribing to the buffyfic or buffyfic-digest mailing lists and on how to retrieve back issues. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 28 Aug 1997 20:53:47 -0400 From: Anya Subject: BUFFYFIC: Sealed with a Kiss 9/11 Sealed with a Kiss Part 9/11 by Anya anya@interlinks.net DISCLAIMER:These characters listed below belong to Joss Whedon, WB and co. No infringement is intended. The characters of Cai and Carmilla belong to me! Part Nine Willow felt the scream tear from her throat, despite her best efforts to restrain it. Knives possessing incinerating heat seemed to be slamming into her body, slicing at her, through her and around her. Her brain was virtually on fire, the agony so intense. She was standing, or was it falling, within the Seal's circle. The warding glyphs surrounded her. Above her was the majestic rows of trees forming their domed ceilings, below her, a smooth marble floor, broken up only by the columns, glyphs and circle of power that formed the Seal. And the blood that was splattered immediately around her. Her blood. Willow knew nothing of where she was, or the world around her right then. All she knew, her world's entire expanse was consumed by the torment of her unknown assailants assault. As each blow rained on her, she struggled more and more to keep the power from lashing out at the Seal. But with each strike, it became harder to absorb the raging onslaught, and some of the energy flowed over to hit the Seal. The Seal still held, Willow knew that within the silent depths of her soul, but the energy drains on it's reserves combined with the lashing attacks was weakening it bit by bit. And the Hellmouth waited patiently for the Seal to fail. As suddenly as the attack came, it ended. This cycle of torture was pushing her near her breaking point, but as of yet, Willow had not succumbed. Each time she felt the attacks coming, she threw her awareness in the front, keeping the blows from striking the Seal. It was so tempting, though, so very tempting to just let the strikes hit the Seal, to protect herself from any more pain, but it was during the short reprieves that her resolve hardened. Each time, as her body slumped to the ground, she found herself looking down and *through* the Seal. The demons and monsters lying in wait to take back the Earth were straining against the Seal, sensing the tenuous fabric that held them back. And what refueled Willow's determination was these demons, they were the same creatures from her nightmares, the ones that would rend her loved ones from limb to limb. Their hideous visages was the most incredible incentive imaginable. Shakily getting back on her feet, Willow noticed the blood soaking through the white shift she wore. Each attack hurt her physically more and more. The astonishing thing was, the pain her body experienced was all mental. There wasn't a physical assault, it just FELT like a physical blow. Each raging inferno of energy, every blast of power occurred on a psychic level. Willow's connection to the Seal simply gave it the illusion and responses of a corporate form. "This is going to kill me...I'm sorry Xander, I lied." Willing tears away, Willow forcibily pulled herself together, seeking the self-composure needed to face the next attack. Her opponent seemed to be hampered somewhat, and unable to maintain a constant streaming assault. Whatever it was that created these pauses, Willow was grateful. Pulling in a deep breath, Willow looked around herself for the first time in a long while. The trees still stood firm, the ground level, despite Willow's own mental impression of tremendous upheaval. Looking down critically at the Seal, Willow saw the glyphs lightly glowing, a soft dull red colour, like the colour of cooling metal after having been pulled from a forge. "Oh god! The backlashing energy!" She stared in wide-eyed horror at the glowing marks. Each time the waves of power had pummeled Willow back, and spilt over, it had been the glyphs that took the first strike for the Seal. They were the Seal's groundings, keeping it anchored and protected in a magical sense. Moving on unsteady feet she approached the glyph closest to her. Sinking down onto her knees, Willow leaned forward to hesitantly touch the arcane symbol, and was startled to feel heat. "That's weird," she muttered, the energy in it didn't feel corrupt, it was very much akin to the energy of the Seal itself..only different..as if it was energy being changed and assimilated. Frowning, Willow tried to both rationalize the puzzle the backlashed but changed energy presented her, and, more importantly, figure out how she could make this puzzle work for her? - ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "I'm going to die." The thought was startling for it's simplicity, and Xander had to pause to admire it, even as he watched Cai's rapid approach. Buffy had momentarily turned her back to the little stubby creep, and didn't see Cai get up from where she had tossed him. She had assumed after watching the dwarf slam into a wall that he'd have the courtesy of being unconscious. Courtesy, Xander noted absently, wasn't one of Short and Ugly's better virtues. So while Buffy was scouring the floor behind the altar for the tiny gold amulet that would free the Guardian, Xander had watched Cai get up and make a beeline for the Slayer. And Xander had, foolishly he conceded, gotten into Cai's way. Again. Somehow, he suspected that if the company which his parents had purchased life insurance for their son from knew any of this, the premiums would go waaaay up. Running as fast as he could, he found himself standing in front of the altar once again, looking at the bulldozer with the mug from hell coming straight at him. At best, Xander considered himself a temporary roadblock. "Buffy! Look out!" He yelled, even as Cai reached out for his neck. Twisting, Xander attempted to punch him, instead howling in pain. Before he could manifest any other defense, he was flying through the air, again. Thumping down on the ground, Xander was amazed to find he was still conscious. "I think I'm getting better at being beaten up." Pulling himself upright, he saw Buffy turned to face Gruesome. And Angel was closing up behind the little runt. Tearing his gaze from his friend, Xander dragged himself to the Watcher lying sprawled on the ground close to the imprisoned Guardian. Hesitantly, Xander touched Giles, reaching to check for a pulse with a distasteful expression on his face. The expression faded, though, as he felt the steady throb that represented Giles' heartbeat. "Great, both of our chaperons with matching goose-eggs." Xander muttered, seeing the purpling lump on Giles' forehead. "I bet he has a concussion too, just to round things off." He rubbed at his own aching head, trying to remember what you did for people with concussions. "Keep them awake? That would be difficult to do at this point. I'd have to get him to wake up first." A shout made Xander turn his head to see Buffy, Cai and Angel all cheerfully pounding the living crap out of one another. The Troll had recovered his staff, and was trying to stake Angel with it. *If only he could get a lucky strike in* The thought was wishful, but shocked Xander nonetheless. It had been habit to dislike Angel, but deep down, Xander knew that he didn't hate the vampire. It wasn't Angel's fault Jesse had died, nor was it his fault that Buffy had fallen for him. Angel grabbed the stave from the Ghoul, and threw it across the room. Ugly got even uglier at that point, like a small child who's favorite toy had been taken away, he threw a major tantrum. Angel's head, with his body attached, was slammed brutally into a stone wall. The vampire was down for the count. Buffy took this poorly. She went from interspersing her punches with sarcastic commentary to dead silent and deadly. With a rapid series of moves, she pummeled the gnome, alternating between rapid kicks, punches and throws. Amazingly, he kept getting up, but was so occupied with Buffy, he had no time to see anything else. "Child." the imprisoned being called out in her sweet melodic voice. She was on her knees, her posture perfect, but position supplicant. It took Xander a few moments to realize she was addressing him. "Child, please, while the Foul One is occupied, please fetch the amulet. It must be destroyed or I am unable to unleash my full Power." Xander frowned at her, looking quickly down at Giles, and then over to Buffy. She was getting as good as she was giving, evenly matched, it seemed, to Cai's strength. And Giles sure wasn't going anywhere in a hurry...but.. "Please! Your friend trapped in my Seal is dying...if you want to spare her, find the amulet!" Carmilla pleaded, her soulful eyes looking anguished and desperate. Xander's head shot up. "Willow's dying?" He croaked out, feeling a part of himself go cold at the thought. He scrambled out of his jacket placing it underneath Gile's head before turning back to Carmilla. She smiled sadly and gave a solemn nod. "Yes, she is. The Seal's power is too much for her fragile body to withstand. It is killing her with every moment that I stay imprisoned here. I am simply unable to help." "I'll get the amulet." Xander practically sprinted over the ruins and rubble to the altar. Keeping a wary eye on Cai, he was pleased to note Buffy was still pounding away. Her fury was sufficient to keep the Grisly-Little-Mutant-Cousin-of- Fluffy very busy. The amulet had fallen somewhere behind the altar, on the upper ground where a priest would have stood giving his sermon or performing some ritual. This raised platform, however, had been pretty much destroyed by Carmilla and Cai prior to Carmilla's imprisonment. Looking around at the ruined ground, Xander personally concluded he didn't want to be remotely near Carmilla when she took on Cai again. Darting around, standing only on ground that look sturdy, it took Xander a few panicked moments to locate the golden ticket to Carmilla's freedom. It had fallen in between two stones, only the slender gold chain lying exposed. Still keeping a careful guard out for Cai, Xander crouched down and pried the amulet out. He looked over to Carmilla, raising his hand to show the amulet. Her lovely face lit up with delight, a luminous and breathtaking sight if Xander ever saw one. Quickly piling the amulet into the palm of his hand, and closing that hand into a fist, he concealed the physical sight of the amulet. It made navigating back over the floor difficult with only one hand to reach out and clutch objects for balance, but Xander did it anyway. Keeping his gaze on Carmilla, Xander moved quickly towards the imprisoned woman, focusing only on her growing elation. "Weird.. I can understand her being relieved, but she's downright gleeful!" It seemed odd, but it wasn't for a Slayerette to question the emotional responses of a Guardian. Absorbed in his thoughts, the rock that thumped into his back came as a complete surprise. Falling with a roll, he was on his back to see Cai's advance. "Not again!" Xander moaned silently. The gnarled midget lunged, arms outstretched for Xander's neck, again. "I think he likes my neck. Fluffy likes my ankles, so of course, Fluffy's cousin likes my neck." - -------------Continued in Part 9B/11----------------------- ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Aug 1997 20:54:53 -0400 From: Anya Subject: BUFFYFIC: Sealed with a Kiss 6B/11 Sealed with a Kiss - Part 6B/11 by Anya anya@interlinks.net "You all died." Willow continued in a flat voice. Xander's head jerked back, stunned eyes wide. "Again, and again. Every night. You died. In the first dream, you were devoured entirely by that _thing_ in the catacombs. It blinded you and then swooped down and ate you. Whole." Xander swallowed hard. He opened his mouth to speak, but Willow kept right on talking. Her eyes were distant, seeing everything as she told it. "You were eaten every time you died. The worst was this monster...it looked like a giant lobster, carrion crawler kind of thing. It was hideous. It had tentacles coming out of it's mouth, and claws for hands. It grabbed you with those tentacles, something was holding me back..I couldn't help you..and you froze. You couldn't move, or struggle. You just screamed, again, and again." She took a deep shuddering breath. "And then it ate you. A bit at a time. You screamed the entire time." Her body convulsed once in disgust. Shaking her head as if it would chase the memories away, she looked at Buffy and Giles. Buffy had calmed down, and Giles was speaking to her earnestly. A sadness crept into her eyes, and her voice. "Buffy was killed by something she thought safe. There was this small dark tunnel..and she was walking ahead." Willow paused, gathering her thoughts. "It looked like a rabbit. A big one. And, Buffy went right up to it, saying something like 'Oh, look. A bunny.'" Eyes closed, Willow's face twisted into a pained grimace. "It was like straight out of Monty Python or something. Except the rabbit was the size of very large dog. That bunny bit her head right off. It was awful. Blood was everywhere, and then it lapped it right up." Xander tightened his grip, shaking her softly. "Willow, stop. Stop! Look at me." He waited until her eyes were clear, "It was your nightmare. It hasn't happened, and if we're smart, it won't happen." "There was more." She moaned softly. "Oh God. How much more?" Xander felt the hair at the back of his neck rising. "Lots. Everyone died. Everyone. You, me, my family, yours...everyone." Willow whispered tightly. "And all because Ms. Calendar got knocked out." Xander started violently. First looking at Ms. Calendar, still unconscious with Angel standing guard nearby, and then at the Seal. "Because the Seal wasn't protected" Willow nodded, glad that their discussion was hidden from Buffy's eyes. This would have upset her more than anything. "Yes." "It ain't going to happen." Xander said firmly. "I have no intention of dying, so it ain't going to happen." On purpose, he reached down and tugged a lock of her hair. " I got it, I'll stay here. You go beat up the bad guys." Willow's eyes went wide with disbelief. "How do you know this isn't where it all happened?" Xander frowned. "Okay, without descriptions..did it happen here?" "No, I died here. You died somewhere else, but I was still there." That confused Willow for a moment. "Great. Uh. Did you happen to get eaten?" Xander asked rather callously. Willow blinked twice."No. Actually. They didn't hurt me much. They always cut off my head as fast as they could. Like there was some sort of rush to get me out of the way." Xander just stared at her. "Y'know. I can't believe we're having this conversation..but while we're having it, I think I want to say, that your nightmares are biased. How come you get the easy way out?" The question was so preposterous and sadistic, that Willow laughed at the inanity of it all. It was a giggle just a inch short of insanity, but a laugh all the same. Xander leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Just remember, Willow. Right now it's all too insane. And if you can keep one step ahead, we'll beat the bad guys." Instinctively, Willow hugged her friend. Xander didn't often show this side of his personality, he was far more content to be their clown. But when he did let his caring side show, it never failed to amaze her. "Uh..guys?" Buffy called from across the floor. She was still standing beside the Seal. Her face was once again composed into an impassive mask, and her body language was relaxed. Buffy turned her blond head to look at Angel. The dark haired vampire frowned shaking his head in a quick 'no' with a jerk of his chin to indicate the Seal. It still made him uncomfortable, and short of an emergency, he wasn't going near it. It amazed him that the Master could have stayed in such near proximity to it for so long, and still want possession of the Hellmouth. Buffy smiled ruefully at him, before turning her attention to the three standing around her. "I think Giles has successfully proved his point. I'm not staying here, and we'll have to leave the Seal unguarded." At Willow's wide-eyed look, Buffy amended her statement. "If Ms. Calendar wakes up, then she can work on the Seal, otherwise, I don't know what choice we have." Willow turned to look at Giles, amazed that Buffy hadn't realized that there was another person present who could be the "Maiden", and it wasn't Xander. Surely by now they had realized that the prophecy meant that she was going to be the one to hold the Seal. Astonished, she silently questioned Giles. The Watcher, however, didn't give an indication of his thoughts. "So, what are WE going to do?" Willow asked, dismayed to hear a frightened note in her voice. "We're going to find our bad guys." Wandering around the perimeter of the Seal idly toying with a fancy raised flagstone with an engraved pattern on it, Xander looked up and grinned. "Oh goody. I was getting bored." Giles watched the boy with a bemused face. "Xander, I wouldn't do that. That's a power glyph." "A what?" Willow rolled her eyes, " A glyph. Or a special marking denoting a sign of power. In this case protection. It might hurt you if you keep kicking at it." "How do you know it's protective?" Xander asked, suddenly suspicious. Willow gave the Seal a funny look, then shrugged. "I just do." the hacker replied. It bothered at Xander, this preoccupation for the Seal. Almost as if Willow was listening to it. Frowning, he absently pushed at the flagstone again. *THUMP* His heel was thrown back, tossing him a good four feet backwards. Hitting the ground with a thud, the air whooshed out of his lungs painfully. Buffy and Willow ran to his side, helping him up. "We told you so, Xander." Buffy admonished. "You can't just keep poking at things, or you're going to get seriously hurt one of these days!" Willow winced visibly, quickly moving away and back towards the Seal. This time, both Buffy and Xander watched. "What did I say?" Buffy mumbled. "Y'know how Willow said she hasn't been having nightmares?" Xander asked, being very careful to keep his voice low. He didn't particularly want Willow to hear him. Buffy nodded blankly. "She lied." Xander said quickly. "She's been dreaming our deaths for the past week. And we ain't been dying pretty." "Oh?" The blonde tossed him a funny look. "But they're just dreams." Xander shook his head. "Then why did she dream of that snake thing? And of you getting cut? And of a lot more gruesome things." He shrugged. "I don't think something was sending her nightmares, anymore. I didn't want to say it to her, but I think they're supposed to be warnings." Buffy frowned, throwing a look over her shoulder, she jerked her head at Giles. Curious, the Watcher gave up his examination of the Seal and joined them. "Tell him what you told me." She instructed Xander tersely. Moving away, she trained her sight on Willow. The girl stood so close to the Seal. Her hand raised contemplatively against the glowing column of blue light. Buffy took a few quick steps to her. "Willow, don't touch it. We don't know what it will do to you." Her words seemed to jar her friend out of a daze. Willow took a sudden jerky step backwards, moving away from the Seal. "I didn't realize I was so close!" A moan from across the room caught the girl's attentions, and they spun around to see Ms. Calendar struggling to sit up, Angel helping her. "Lo and Behold, the Crone awakes!" Xander said sardonically. Squinting, and her head pounding, Ms. Calendar shot the boy an acid look. "What do you mean _Crone_!" Standing, she wavered unsteadily. Buffy moved suddenly to help the woman. Xander paled suddenly. Spinning on heel, he pointed to Giles. "He said that you were the prophecy's Crone. I just repeated him" Giles glowered at Xander. "Do we not have more important matters to discuss than translations Mr. Harris ?" he commented vaguely. Willow nearly laughed. The look on both males' faces was priceless. But even more joyful was that Ms. Calendar was awake, and alright. She could protect the Seal! Tension drained right out of her body. Willow felt her entire back slump in relief, forcing her to take a step backwards. A gentle light suddenly flashed all around her, consuming her senses. Looking up, she saw Ms. Calendar's face. The teacher's eyes were wide with shock and, although strangely Willow couldn't hear the older woman she saw her mouth Willow's name before blue flames consumed her vision. **********************End Part 6************************* ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Aug 1997 20:59:59 -0400 From: Anya Subject: BUFFYFIC: Sealed with a Kiss 10/11 Sealed with a Kiss Part 10/11 by Anya anya@interlinks.net DISCLAIMERS: Cai, Carmilla, and Fluffy are MINE! I share well, but ask first! Buffy, Willow, Xander etc, etc are Joss Whedon's, Mutant Enemy's, Warner Bros' and whoever else has legal rights to them. No infringement is intended. They're just so darned cute, I couldn't keep away from playing with them! Part Ten Angel glared down at Buffy. Standing slightly crouched with her stake in hand, the Slayer sought for an opening to plunge the stake into the vampire's heart. It wasn't an act she looked forward to, and she knew that the destruction of this vampire would grieve her in a way that could handicap her job as Slayer. Xander, Giles and Willow's lives all depended on this, though. The former ally had the Amulet in his hand, and was trying to give it to the perpetrator of all this chaos. Carmilla stood confined, for now, within her invisible prison. Angel's willing hand-over of the Amulet, the key to that prison, would change everything. And Buffy knew she had no chance against a angel fallen from heaven's grace. Shifting her weight for a lunge, she suddenly sensed the air fill with a feeling of static. Angel's free hand shot up, a ominous red glow enveloping his fist. A shattering crack of thunder ripped through the room. The earth erupted in a violent shower of stone fragments beneath Buffy's feet as a storm of unholy bolts of pure force issued from Angel's hand. Reacting without a second to spare, Buffy tumbled forward in a somersault. Hastily pulling out of the roll she found herself inches away from Angel. Regrouping, she reached deep within herself for all the power of a Slayer, and moved with a supernatural speed to plunge her stake at Angel. Angel kicked forward, his foot striking powerfully into Buffy's face, while her lunge only scored a simple flesh wound along his left leg, falling short of the its intended target.. Buffy's world went momentarily dark, her head slamming into the ground. Seconds that felt like hours passed before the Slayer regained awareness. The metallic taste of blood in her mouth, startled her. She could feel her split lip with her tongue and from the pounding agony from her nose, and the sticky stream of blood indicated a likely broken nose. Angel proceeded to try and cross over Buffy on his path toward the locket which held Carmela in place. "That's it!" The Slayer growled. She grabbed his foot and pushed upwards in a sudden vicious motion, putting all her strength behind her shove. Angel to tumble backwards, hitting the ground hard. "All this rolling about on the ground would be considered rather kinky, if I wasn't trying so hard to slay him," Buffy realized absently. With little effort Buffy pounced onto the vampires prone body, snatching her stake from the ground beside him in a blurring motion. The vampire's face shifted back to it's normal angelic form and a faint "Buffy" escaped his lips. His eyes seemed to change colour, before her eyes. "I'm sorry..I can't... mhhhhggg...." And then the eyes hardened again. Surprised, Buffy hesitated for the fraction of a second, but a pause long enough for Carmilla to reclaim control of Angel's body and strength and pry the stake from the Slayer's hand. The possessed vampire within tried to fight her, but Carmilla directed the enslaved body to roll into a position where the wretched human girl obstructing her freedom was pined down. Two cold large hands clenched onto Buffy's throat, tightening restrictively. Buffy struggled frantically beneath Angel, desperate to get out of his choking grip. Panic raced through her, as gasps and struggles increased ebbing into feeble shudders as her world became fuzzy, and her lungs began to burn from lack of oxygen. Her hands on his forearms dropped away in a loose motion as her consciousness fled. Impatient for her freedom, Carmilla directed Angel to rise. Buffy was breathing, faintly. Livid bruises lined her throat, and the rise and fall of her chest was not strong. The Slayer could still die without further intervention, but Carmilla did not anticipate that happening...not yet. The natural gifts of the Slayer would sustain the feebled body, long enough for Carmilla to finish the kill with her own hands. Anticipating the thrill of freedom, followed immediately with the delight of a kill, Carmilla let a small pleased smile cross her lips as she watched Angel approach her, her thoughts in complete control of that handsome body. ******************************************************** In a far off chamber, the Seal gave a tremendous flare of power, and a young woman directed her will and thoughts to both her enemy and her friends. In a sudden burst of energy, Willow stood as nothing more than an apparition in the altar room. Her physical body still inside the Seal's wards, she had let her soul leave the confine of it's mortal body to find her opponent. The Seal was stabilized now, no longer did it require Willow's conscious defense. Now the young girl wielding the Seal's power was taking an offensive position to end all this misery. Tracking the rapidly dissipating threads of energy back to the source, she had found herself in the same chamber as her friends. Surveying the room with a cold eye, and a steeled heart, Willow was drawn immediately to the imprisoned creature that had attacked the Seal. Carmilla radiated the very same energy that had so ferociously battered at the Seal. She was not an immediate threat to Willow, not as long as she remained imprisoned. Turning to look for her friends, Willow was horrified to see Buffy battling Angel. *That's NOT Angel!* Horror ripped through Willow. Carmilla, while confined, had still seized control of Angel's body. It wasn't Angel, Buffy fought, just his body. The mind and soul of the man Buffy knew was struggling for control against the monster that held him, even as his body betrayed his heart. *Buffy won't be able to slay him! And he isn't strong enough to resist that witch!* Willow was vividly aware of her friends limitations. From the destruction and devastation she could see, their struggles had been just as difficult as her own. Eyes sweeping around the room, starting with Carmilla, she spotted Giles unconscious. His head rested on Xander's blue jacket, tilted in such a way that Willow could see had been hurt on his head. His pulse was still strong, and his aura showed no indications of permanent harm. Looking further, she found Xander sprawled on the cold stone floor, his head lolling to the side to show the matted hair and blood. *Xander? XANDER!?!?* The slightest thought, and she was kneeling down beside him. Willow let her mind touch him with a feather light caress, relieved to feel his essence still inside his body. He didn't look good, at all. Whatever or whoever had hurt him and come within an inch of killing him outright. Running a ghostly hand along his cheek, Willow struggled not to cry. Despair rushed through her, and she flung her gaze away from Xander, as if to deny what her eyes told her. Stone-gray rubble cradled the body of a gnarled little man Even in her distressed state, Willow instinctively knew that he was a Guardian. It was strange, but she felt she _knew_ him. His mismatched and filthy clothing aside, there was a shining honorable personality within, one with a dark grief to it. She blinked a few times, uncertain as to how she could feel or think these things, but trusting her senses anyway. Buffy's strangled scream drew Willow back to the present reality. The Slayer had a stake raised, but stopped suddenly. Willow saw Angel's lips move, watching from across the room, a spectral voyeur. Willow jerked power from the Seal, ready to level it at Angel even as his hands closed around Buffy's neck. Her own bad angled position, and Buffy's struggles against Angel's grip stayed Willow's hand. So violently did the Slayer's body heave against her assailant, that a blast from the Seal's conduit would likely hit her. Agony and horror nearly overwhelmed Willow. Xander lay dying beside her, Giles was out cold..the Guardian could not help her, and now she was paralyzed watching as Buffy faded to unconsciousness. Angel rose from his victim's still living body. Silently screaming, Willow watched Angel walk towards Carmilla. The evil one stood with clear anticipation marked on her beautiful cold face. Her eyes were somewhat glassy, her mind focused entirely on controlling Angel's body and responses. Willow somehow forced herself to focus, stroking Xander's face with one last tender gesture, Willow rose. The Seal's past Guardian's had left their marks on the Seal's awareness, and the Seal now fed her with the knowledge she needed.. Unless Angel was freed from Carmilla's control, none of them had a chance. Carmilla's arm lay outstretched, palm upwards and closed. Looking quickly at that arm, Willow turned sharply realizing that Angel mimicked her pose the golden talisman cradled in that closed hand. Willow opened herself up completely to the Seal, letting it mold her into what it wanted, and reached to touch Angel gently from behind. Her hand made contact with his neck, and she flooded her power into him, helping the soul regain footing in the body. Instinctively, Willow masked her personality from Angel. *Follow what she wants...* Willow whispered directly to his soul. *Let her think you will surrender the Amulet to her* Her other hand slipped down to his outreached hand, slipping into the closed fist with intangible fingers. The Amulet, in response to her touch, pulsed, practically leaping into Willow's hand. Power shielded the talisman from physical sight, and Willow pulled away. Angel walked on, covering the short distance to Carmilla. His facial expression had not changed, nor the momentum of his movements. Control, had, though. Carmilla still felt that she was controlling him, such was the illusion the Seal's power created with Willow's mind setting up the framework. Inside the vampire was grieving for the actions his body had committed. He couldn't move his head to look at her, nor allow his personal guilt show, but he knew he had hurt Buffy terribly. His mind, now truly his own again, replayed the scene again and again. Each time that he envisioned Buffy's collapse, his hatred for Carmilla increased, as did his resolve. "Come to me, my little Angel.." Carmilla crooned sweetly, oblivious to the vampire's hidden rage. A delighted smile crossed her face. "I think I shall spare your body, little Angelus...after I destroy your immortal soul! You shall sit at my right hand when I acquire dominance over the Seal and loose the Hellmouth!" Angel snarled silently, the soft presence that gave him strength the only thing that restrained him. He wanted to wrap his hands around HER neck and show her the selfsame treatment she had forced him to hand to Buffy. *No. We will not act as she does. Hold her still!* The voice commanded. Carmilla's fingers beckoned his to extend his own hand, the one that had held the amulet. He reached through her prison easily, it had not been designed to contain anyone but Carmilla, his hand hovered above and parallel to Carmilla's. Her fingers stretched out, palm bared to receive the key to her freedom. *********************Continued in Part 10B/11************************** ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Aug 1997 21:00:08 -0400 From: Anya Subject: BUFFYFIC: Sealed with a Kiss 10B/11 Sealed with a Kiss - Part 10B/11 by Anya anya@interlinks.net Carmilla's fingers beckoned his to extend his own hand, the one that had held the amulet. He reached through her prison easily, it had not been designed to contain anyone but Carmilla, his hand hovered above and parallel to Carmilla's. Her fingers stretched out, palm bared to receive the key to her freedom. *NOW!* A dark smile ripped across the enraged vampire's face. His two arms shot to either side of the fallen angel, locking her body into a rigid position. "What are you doing!" Carmilla screeched, unable to raise a hand. Her release of a physical manifestation of power depended on have a focus point, a hand or something to direct the power through. Angel having pined her arms down had stayed that avenue of protest. Willow stood behind the woman, speaking aloud for all to hear for the first time, the words coming from the Seal's awareness. "I abjure thee, foul one. Be enjoined with those that you would free. Be imprisoned within the Hellmouth!" Carmilla screamed as the Amulet she had lusted the destruction of instead was wrapped around her neck. As the Amulet itself touched her chest, it's power was loosed. Angel's hands dropped away, he drew back from the intense radiance that consumed Carmilla. Raising an arm to block the light, he turned partially. For a brief fraction of a second, he saw a feminine outline in the light, behind the vanquished Carmilla. Thin, and very slight, his eyes widened, and then closed in response to the incandescence. Forcing them open again, the silhouette was gone. And so was Carmilla. Stumbling he approached Buffy. Dropping to his knees, he gathered her close. "I'm sorry.....I'm so sorry!" He would have cried if he could, but instead, he rocked her in a gentle embrace. Unseen, Willow leaned down beside him. Her own personal grief was intense. Thoughtlessly, she reached out to touch Buffy's hand where it rested on Angel's thigh. *This isn't right! THEY SHOULDN'T DIE!!!* The hand that rested on top of Buffy's felt flooded with heat, jerking Willow from her grief. **Heal them, young Protector...Heal them with the Power** And power cascaded from her being, a intense solid pulse originating from her soul and spiraling outside in a giant circle. It was a benign wave, gentle, caressing, and full of healing energy. It touched Buffy instantly, and then Angel. Buffy's broken bones mended, bruises faded and her breathing eased immediately. The Slayer's own natural healing gifts kicked in, and Buffy began to stir. Angel found himself drifting for a moment, memories and guilt fading to distant impressions. He looked down in wonder, for the sudden surge of joy, relief and atonement his soul experienced, as much as pleasure at Buffy's whispered call of his name. Across the room, Xander was pulling himself up from the ground, looking around in confusion. Beside him knelt the creepy gnome they'd been fighting..except no one was hitting anyone anymore. "Did I miss something?" He asked. Cai grinned tightly at the kid. "What haven't ya missed, kid? Ya got to learn to duck, or get outta the way. Your gray matter's shaky enough without rattling it around all the time!" Xander's expression grew even more confused. Turning, he looked at Buffy curled into Angel's embrace. "Why isn't anyone hitting him? Isn't he the bad guy?" Buffy laughed openly, pulling away from Angel to hug Xander. "Nope! He's the Guardian." "Was the Guardian." Cai corrected mildly. He wandered away to retrieve his stave. Picking up the rune wood staff, he thunked one end down on the ground. "I'm retired, now." "What happened?" Three voices chorused the words to Angel. The vampire shrugged. "I really don't remember!" A shadow dropped over Buffy and Xander. "I find this conversation fascinating, given that I'm completely in the dark. Do you suppose we could continue this after joining Ms. Calendar and Willow?" Giles straightened his glasses, frowning at the new crack in the lenses. **********************End Part 10************************ ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 28 Aug 1997 21:00:20 -0400 From: Anya Subject: BUFFYFIC: Sealed with a Kiss 11a/11 Sealed with a Kiss Part 11/11 by Anya anya@interlinks.net DISCLAIMERS: Cai, Carmilla, and Fluffy are MINE! I share well, but ask first! Buffy, Willow, Xander etc, etc are Joss Whedon's, Mutant Enemy's, Warner Bros' and whoever else has legal rights to them. No infringement is intended. They're just so darned cute, I couldn't keep away from playing with them! Part Eleven ----The Finale!!! "Open." Cai raised his right hand to the giant bronzed doors to the Seal's chamber. A second's hesitation, and then the sound of massive hinges squeaking open. Dust spewed into the air, choking the four other's standing in the passageway. "Open?" Buffy asked incredulously. "Do you have any idea of how much pounding I put on that door just to get it to open a crack? And you just _speak_ and it opens?" Cai shrugged with callous disinterest. " Didn't your momma teach ya any manners? If ya'd just ask the doors to open nicely, they woulda. Ain't my fault yer clueless." He sauntered through the door, looking up at the doors corners. "You broke 'em!" He turned to Buffy with a sour expression. "Can't ya look after anything nice?" Buffy glowered at him, biting back a snarl, and marched straight into the room. She stopped dead, eyes shooting wide. In the dead center of the room the Seal glowed brightly, the flames a strong vibrant blue, arcing high from floor to ceiling. But, it was empty. Willow no longer hung suspended within the circle it formed. "Willows gone!" Xander's voice reflected his shock. Strangely, they had expected to return here and find everything precisely as they left it. Looking around the room he struck upon another realization. "And so is Ms. Calendar, but our bags are still here!" Angel hovered outside the doors, the Seal's power was much greater now that it was no longer under attack by Carmilla. The sensation of itching he had experienced before was magnified many times fold now. Catching Buffy's enquiring gaze, he nodded shortly, thrusting his chin out towards the Seal. Buffy turned back to the Seal, moving to the bag lying a few meters from it. Ms. Calendar had been sitting about here when they had left. Buffy bent down to gather up the bag, her fingers lightly brushing the stones, and coming up wet and sticky. Raising her hand to her nose, she sniffed. *Blood?* "Get a flashlight over here!" She commanded sharply, eyeing the dark ground. It was hard to see, given the darkness of the stone, but there was a trail of blood. Following it to it's source, Buffy repressed the urge to scream. Deep with the fires of the Seal a great deal of blood lay splattered and drying on the arcane symbols that formed the Seal's base. "That's blood!" Xander's voice sounded dull, like any further surprises and shocks couldn't be felt anymore. Turning to face her friend, Buffy grabbed him by both shoulders. "That doesn't mean it's Willows! It could be Carmilla's..." She gave a quick shake. "We have to believe that Willow is okay. She wouldn't just let herself die! She'd fight!" Xander didn't look to convinced, his eyes fastened exclusively on the bloody mess of Willow's prison. "She promised she wouldn't leave..." The words were little more than a whisper. Buffy looked frantically around for support. She could see the shock growing in Xander's eyes. This was not the ideal time for him to realize the full extent of Willow's importance in his life. "Oh my, " Giles spoke suddenly. The Watcher pointed down to the ground, his flashlight shining on a small spot. Shaky disjointed letters formed out a phrase. The markings were blotted and sloppy, as if hastily made. Dragging Xander with her, Buffy looked down at the writing. "See Xander, Willow's fine. If she weren't, Ms. Calendar wouldn't have moved her." Cai ran a finger over the writing, "Yeah, but the kid's running more than a few pints short. The only pen ink your Ms. Calendar had was blood." Xander started suddenly, "Blood? That's...." Buffy herself was turning green. Strangely, it was with absolute clarity she imagined Ms. Calendar, dipping a finger into a puddle of blood and writing on the cold stone. Looking down, she read the message once more and shuddered. "Let's get going." She suggested quietly, pushing Xander to the door. Giles watched them for a moment, glancing down one last time at the message the flashlight scoring across it before turning to follow the Slayer and her friend. The words written on the stone ground in Willow's blood now engraved in his mind. *Willow and I are at library. Meet us there. ASAP* ******************************************************** Willow hadn't intended to leave the Seal's Chambers before the others returned, but watching Ms. Calendar fight off hysteria at the very sight of her blood soaked clothes had been incentive. The girl's locker room should have been locked by this time in the evening. Somehow, the janitor's had missed the access through the gym. Stripping down, Willow had left the clothing on a bench just outside the lockers. Peering around the concrete wall that divided the showers from the lockers, to ask for the soap and a rag to use for a washcloth, she noticed that the clothes had vanished, and that a gym t-shirt and team track pants were laid out. "They weren't that bad, were they?" She wondered bemused. Ms. Calendar had given her a strained look. "Yes, they were. If Xander and Buffy had seen them, they'd have a nervous breakdown." The teacher had set a towel down. "The towel's from my gym bag, you can return it later." Willow had nodded once, and disappeared back into the showers. Hearing the door to the locker room shut, she turned the water on full spray and scrubbed. She leaned forward, into the stream, soaking her hair. Taking some soap, she washed it, rinsed, and washed it again. Pulling her hair into a ponytail, rinsing the water out of it as she twisted it around. Looking down at the drain, she grimaced to see the reddish stain of blood in the water. Dropping her hands away from her hair, she stretched catlike, enjoying the soothing feel of the warm water. It was soothing on a tired body. She scooped up the bar of soap Ms. Calendar and obtained, and gave herself a final lather down. The Seal had yanked her back, right after the others were healed. Willow didn't know why, it just had. A few moments of intense bliss, and she found herself awakening within the rings of fire. It had been so easy to walk out of those fires, it was kind of like standing within this stream of water, soft, gentle and caressing. The softest, warmest kiss on her soul, a benediction. Willow wasn't almost sorry to let go. It had taken her a few minutes to calm Ms. Calendar down. Leaving the message had been Willow's idea, and watching the contortions on Ms. Calendar's face as she wrote it had been highly entertaining. In hindsight, Willow realized she should have written it herself, but for some reason, Ms. Calendar seemed to think that she might break. Turning off the water when it finally began to drain clear, Willow quickly toweled off and dressed. The others should be back by now, and she really wanted to let them see that she was alright after her little adventure in la-la land. ******************************************************** The yelling could be heard all the way down the hall. It was very fortunate that the custodial staff had left the premises by 9pm on Friday nights. Pushing the massive library doors open, Willow walked in completely unobserved. The melee going on required the squabbling participants full attention. Pausing to watch for a moment, Willow allowed a smile to spread across her face. It was so good to see them all alive and breathing, or at least, in Angel's case, present with souls intact. Buffy was in middle of a tirade at Ms. Calendar and Giles, her one free arm swinging all over the place. The other hand was full of Xander's collar, griping it from the back to keep him from running off. It was very flattering to realize that they were so concerned over her well being, but the Slayer was in danger of pounding her Watcher with those wild swings. And Xander was in danger of foaming at the mouth. Xander was yelling at Buffy, trying to force her to let go of his shirts collar. The Slayer was paying him no heed whatsoever. So, the poor teenager simply thrashed about, snarling about disloyalty and such nonsense. Ms. Calendar was taking this all very well, her voice calm and reasoning. It was too bad she had forgotten so much of her own adolescence...and how a teen didn't want to be reasoned with, a teenager simply wanted immediate justification and satisfaction. Wandering closer, her amusement clear on her face, Willow observed Angel, and the Guardian. Those two worthies were studiously avoiding the entire debate. Instead, Angel appeared to be trying to introduce Cai to the wonders of the technological age, and computers. They thumped enthusiastically on the keyboard, Cai's eyes wide and fixed on the screen in wonder. "Never seen a computer before?" Willow guessed as she stood beside them. Angel shot out of the chair like someone had rammed a stake into him. "WILLOW!" He shouted. The gambit worked. Buffy and Xander stopped cold, turning slowly in unison, jaws both dropped. Willow found herself being smothered by two fierce hugs. Buffy squeezed so tight, Willow imagined she could hear her ribs crack. Xander pulled her clear off the ground, and didn't seem inclined to let her go. *This is nice,* she mused, enjoying the closeness and scent of him. Opening her eyes lazily, she caught Buffy's knowing grin, and winked. Strangely, that small action released all the tension out of Buffy. Pulling away reluctantly, she shared a warm smile with Ms. Calendar and Giles. "So, anything good happening?" Giles patted the girl's shoulder, "I can't speak for the future, but I can right now. It's very nice to see that you've come from ordeal unscathed." Her lopsided smile was again bestowed around the room. "Okay, okay, you're all happy to see me. The feeling is very much mutual. What happened after you guys left the Seal?" She feigned ignorance, something deep within advising that she keep all the details of her sojourn within the Seal to herself. "Oh, it's not much of a story, "Xander pontificated. He was keeping quite close to his pal, afraid that if he let her out of his sight, she'd vanish. "You played with the fire, we went and pounced on the bad lady, we won..you're out..we're back, we can all go party now!" ******************Continued in Part 11B/11*********************** ------------------------------ End of buffyfic Digest V1 #22 ***************************** To subscribe to buffyfic Digest, send the command: subscribe buffyfic-digest in the body of a message to "majordomo@xmission.com". 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