From: owner-buffyfic@lists.xmission.com (Buffyfic-digest) To: buffyfic-digest@lists.xmission.com Subject: Buffyfic-digest V2 #70 Reply-To: buffyfic@xmission.com Sender: owner-buffyfic@lists.xmission.com Errors-To: owner-buffyfic@lists.xmission.com Precedence: bulk Buffyfic-digest Sunday, March 22 1998 Volume 02 : Number 070 In this issue: BUFFYFIC: "Footsteps" (7/?) by Ingrid BUFFYFIC: The Raven's Cry (2/?) BUFFYFIC: The Raven's Cry (3/?) BUFFYFIC: The Raven's Cry (5/?) BUFFYFIC: The Raven's Cry (4/?) 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: Sun, 22 Mar 1998 14:16:40 -0500 From: ingrid29@juno.com (Ingrid E Stanton) Subject: BUFFYFIC: "Footsteps" (7/?) by Ingrid Disclaimer: Willow, Spike, Drusilla, Angel(us) and Buffy belong to Joss Whedon, The WB Network, Sandollar, Mutant enemy and Kuzui. (You know what I mean! Just don't sue me.) Summary: A continuation of my Willow and Spike story. This one takes place after some time has elapsed, as usual. Comments are wonderful to get- take some time and write to me! BTW, If anyone wants previous parts to this story, just write to me! I'll send them to you gladly. (Ingrid29@juno.com) Nobody is allowed to beat me up because I haven't written for a while! Major ac-dec competition all day yesterday, and I'm talking 9 straight hours of solid test-taking! Eww.... WARNING: There's one bad word in here... The "a-word." Don't yell at me! You've been warned! ********************** "Footsteps" by Ingrid Part Seven ********************** Willow ripped open the door and felt the cool night air rush towards her. The wind struck her hard, but it was not unwelcome. Her claustrophobia had been quick to set in, especially with the oppressive realization weighing her down. She felt Spike close behind her as they cautiously stole across the large open field. The landscape swelled and buckled, and they sped over it, seriousness removing all other considerations. She wanted nothing more than to return to the warehouse. The airy hall was where she felt the safest these days. It was her vampiric womb, and held a mystical power of infinite reassurance. They were coming. The knowledge became more and more real as she walked the way a sound becomes louder. They were closer. Closer still, as if they were sharks closing in upon her ordered world. Sharks of the past, out for blood. She couldn’t seem to run fast enough, yet Spike was struggling to keep up with her. A dark terror seized her heart; pounced upon her, as if just seeing them might freeze time. They were here, she thought, seconds before a tall male plowed into her, apparently in the midst of some sort of race. One shoulder knocked her down, and he nearly crushed her with his weight. It was Angelus, she knew, without looking up, and she froze. Irrational fear had her shaking. She finally leveled her eyes with him like a deer staring into the headlights of a speeding car. What she saw threw her for a loop. He looked gaunt and tired. The evil pleasure in his eyes had flown, and only raw terror and survival instincts remained. She waited to meet his eyes, but he picked himself up and sped off as if he’d tripped on a rock or some other inanimate object. Spike looked stunned behind her, his eyes wide in amazement as he watched the vampire’s retreating back. Moments later, he grabbed Willow around the waist. Before she had time to protest, he dragged her into a bush near the high school. Willow tried to speak, but he silenced her and gestured with his eyes towards the spot where they’d been standing. The slayer had just rushed into the clearing, breathing heavily. Her figure brought back a plethora of ingrained memories, but something was very wrong. Buffy wore simple, almost rustic looking clothes. A plain white shirt and dark pants that were frayed at the bottom hung upon her as if she were merely a sack of bones. Her eyes were tired, but what determination! Buffy was businesslike, certainly, but she almost looked bored. "Get your sorry ass out here, Angelus," she threatened in a husky voice. Silence followed, and Willow gulped. The slayer was not big on patience, apparently, even less so than usual. She took off in the direction Angelus had gone, and it was only when the slayer was a good 30 feet away, and heading further from them that Spike released his grip on her. "We’ve got to get back to the warehouse," Willow urged, not sure why the words were coming from her now. "But, why? Let the slayer work out her own problems with Angel. We don’t have a quarrel with her." "We need...you need to find out," she whispered nervously, "what happened to Drusilla." *** END, PART SEVEN _____________________________________________________________________ You don't need to buy Internet access to use free Internet e-mail. Get completely free e-mail from Juno at http://www.juno.com Or call Juno at (800) 654-JUNO [654-5866] - - ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 22 Mar 1998 12:27:05 +0000 From: "Jennifer Addis-Newton" Subject: BUFFYFIC: The Raven's Cry (2/?) Disclaimer: This story is a cross-over between a superheroic role-playing campaign and the television show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." All characters related to "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" are the creations of Joss Whedon et al. It is also entirely possible for additional well-known characters or ideas to appear in passing. I take no credit for these ideas, merely for reworking them so that they fit into the campaign world. Caitlin O'Riordan, however, is entirely my own creation. Feedback: Please! This is my first fanfic of any kind. If there's any way to make the characters more true to themselves, I'm all for it. Spoilers: None of which I am aware. My universe diverges from Joss' with "Passion" -- it didn't happen. Rating: Some adult situations and language -- I'd give the whole thing a solid PG-13. *********************************************** Part One: It had seemed like a good idea at the time - hit the Bronze and find a young girl desperate for attention. A few soulful glances and a kind word would persuade her to go outside, into the alley, for more desperate groping. She was harder to find than he had expected. She had to be awkward, someone who would die for his kisses. It was the easiest way to feed. Angel smiled grimly as he scanned the crowd. *If only I could find Willow.* Not exactly the original plan, but it would work well enough to catch the Slayer off-guard. He wanted to do something to ruin Buffy's day. At that moment, he saw his next victim. Sitting in a corner, hunched over her drink - sipping it intently while she read the book in front of her. Her hair was dark, her face was pale - not exactly ugly, but awkward enough to suit his purposes. Engrossed in her book, she did not notice him slide in the chair across from her. He placed one casual hand on the book and smiled ingratiatingly at the girl. "Mind if I join you?" The girl frowned, her slate blue eyes going hard as stones. "I'm waiting for someone." Angel knew she was lying, could see it in the way that her eyes darted from his face and to the door. She was nervous. Probably the most attention she's received in her life. He smiled at the thought, his eyes growing warm. "I could keep you company while you wait." To his amazement, the girl suddenly smiled. "No need. There she is." She nodded her head in the direction of the door. Angel turned in his chair. And there she was - the Slayer. *No longer wearing my jacket, I see.* Followed closely by her partners in crime, so to speak: Willow and Xander. The trio headed in their direction. Buffy's eyes swept the room, as though she was sizing up every object as a possible weapon. Luckily, she had not seen him. "So, you're a friend of Buffy's?" Angel turned back towards the girl. She was gone - and the book had gone with her. Best to do the same before Buffy noticed him - he needed to feed and regain his strength before facing her again. He rose to leave, his preternatural eyes noticing a piece of paper on the table. He picked it up and scanned the contents. OUTSIDE. THE ALLEY. It sounded like more like a challenge than an invitation. Angel chuckled. "I won't keep you waiting long." Willow looked thoughtfully at Buffy while she placed her jacket over the back of her chair. "What were those things?" "I don't know." The Slayer looked confused. Vampires she could deal with - but little stick figures? Hundreds of them had attacked her and Willow on their way to the Bronze. One minute, they were walking down a perfectly still street. The next minute, sticks started raining on them from the sky. Animated sticks. It made no sense. Xander grinned at his friends. "Couldn't you just find a picture in the Slayer handbook?" "If there is one," replied Buffy, "it probably doesn't come with pictures." "Maybe I'll do some research tonight and see what I can dig up," said Willow. She remembered the way those legs had felt crawling over her arms and through her hair. Buffy's presence in her life had exposed Willow to all sorts of unusual creatures - the walking twigs were probably low on the Sunnydale scale of weirdness. Still, she had to know what they were. "You should ask Giles." Xander sipped his drink cautiously. "Sure." Buffy rolled her eyes. "It's probably in his Watcher's handbook." "Sticks, lots of them," added Xander, doing a passable imitation of the librarian's British accent. "You can kill them, Buffy, but you have to set each one on fire individually while chanting the appropriate incantation." He placed his hands up in the air. "Oh, little twig, be cast back into the pit of hell from which you spawned." Willow started to laugh at Xander in spite of herself. Ever since she discovered his secret romance with Cordelia Chase, she had been going out of her way to ignore his jokes. Now that she had Oz, she knew that a relationship with Xander was the last thing she wanted but. It was the principle of the thing. He still needed to suffer a little more. "Yep, that's what the watcher's handbook would tell him." Xander's eyes widened suddenly, and his voice trailed off as he began to watch someone cross the dance floor. Buffy turned in her chair to follow the movement. Her senses were heightened by a familiar feeling: vampire. * Just what I need - -- some serious slayage to take my mind off those sticks.* "Um," added Willow, recognizing the all-too-familiar figure in the crowd. "Maybe you should take a raincheck." Angel. Buffy would know the way he moved anywhere. How many nights had she sat in the same chair, watching him walk across the floor towards her. She blinked - the pain was still intense, but it was getting easier to control. He had underestimated her - they all had, really. The pain made her strong, gave her an edge. No more Miss Nice Slayer. The vampire did not even glance in their direction. He looked as though he was in a hurry to get where he was going. Buffy turned to her friends. "Stay here." Willow opened her mouth to protest but Xander shook his head, flashing a warning in his dark eyes. Willow closed her mouth, folded her arms in front of herself, and slumped back down in her chair. With a wary glance towards the door, Buffy slung her jacket back onto her shoulders and began to follow the vampire across the dance floor. *Tonight, it ends.* It was amazingly easy to find her. She was standing at the far end of the alley. She propped her hands above her on the edge of the fire escape. The moon hit her dark hair, still lank, and accentuated the white planes of her face. *How pathetic* Angel thought to himself. She was definitely making a show out of her casual attitude. "I thought you said you were waiting for Buffy." He moved to stand next to the girl, closing his hand over her shoulder. He had to give her credit - not one flinch. The girl shrugged her shoulders. "I had to make certain that you were who I thought you were." "Really." Her response had intrigued Angel. "How do you know me?" "Angelus, your exploits are legendary." She laughed. "A new town, a new leather jacket - but it's still you. You can't disguise that brooding stare." He looked into her eyes. She was not, he knew, a vampire - yet there was controlled power here, waiting to be unleashed. The cold look in her eyes, the smile on her face. She looked more like Dru than any human Angel had ever seen. He had to know more. "What do you want?" "There's strength here," she responded. "I imagine it's the Hellmouth." She giggled, and blinked once as she focused her eyes on the moon. "And I hear you run in circles that I might like to join." *Another wanna-be* Angel thought to himself disgustedly. He could see it now - the pale skin, the dark hair, the black clothes. How she had tracked him down, he had no idea, but here she was - and she had chosen him for her sire. He knew he should refuse, but the gleam of moonlight as she turned her face to the moon was impossible to resist. He felt the blood lust take him as he opened his mouth and leaned forward. "Not so fast," came a voice from behind him. *Not so fast! What kind of Slayer-speak is that?* Buffy blinked and immediately moved into a fighting stance, hands in front of her, as she watched Angel jump back from the girl and whirl to face her. He had already changed. "Buffy," was Angel's reply. "Have you come to dance?" He stepped forward, the girl almost forgotten. He would kill the Slayer and then come back for seconds. "I don't dance with you anymore, remember?" she promptly answered, eyeing him up and down. "I came to kick your ass." *Much better* she added silently to herself. Angel's dark eyes widened. "I am going to love killing you," the vampire drawled. He lunged forward suddenly, rocking into Buffy's left shoulder. It was a blow which would have knocked the average person onto their back - but the Slayer was not the average person. Buffy twisted with the blow and whirled to give the vampire a quick kick with her right foot. "Bullseye," she laughed as her foot connected with the back of Angel's pants and pushed him to the ground. Angel landed with greater force than he would have expected, his knees slamming onto the pavement in front of him. *That hurt.* She was mad - brute force would not overcome her. Better to go with plan B. He waited a few moments to get his beast under control, feeling the skin on his face alter, and remained kneeling before the Slayer. A few seconds more. "What's the matter," added Buffy, "I thought you liked dancing." Angel finally spoke. "Buffy." He shifted his body slowly. The look he gave her would have melted glass. "I'm sorry." It was the last thing that she would have expected - the sudden change of heart. Kneeling before her was not Angelus the vampire but Angel.just, Angel. She took a tentative step forward, feeling her heart twist inside her when she heard the words that she had imagined he would say so many times. "Angel." Her voice had lost its former bravado. Almost. The Slayer leaned towards him, all signs of fighting gone from her eyes. She was easy to manipulate when you knew the right buttons to push - and he knew them all. For some reason, he tried to remember the time when he could have spent hours merely listening to her breathe his name and gaze at him with her brilliant eyes. Those feelings were over. He reached his arms up towards her. "Save me from myself, Buffy." Her eyes widened again. She leaned forward to help him stand and felt his arms go around her. How long had she waited for this? Buffy reached a tentative hand down to caress his cheek. It was then that Angel struck, slamming a fist into her stomach and whipping behind her - suddenly holding her head away from her neck by grabbing a handful of hair. "Angel," she breathed again. How easy would it be to stop fighting now? Had to think of a way out. "Pitifully easy," he whispered, feeling the beast overcome him once more. He pulled harder on Buffy's hair, looking at the throb of her vein in the moonlight. "I almost hate to have it end this way, Buffy." "That makes two of us, dead boy," came another voice from the end of the alley. Angel forced himself to focus his attention, knowing that the slightest wrong move on his part would give Buffy the upper hand. It was Xander, holding Buffy's crossbow. By the expression on his face, he knew that Xander was willing to use it. Willow was trailing close behind, taking in the situation quickly. Angel grimaced. "Even if you were man enough to do it, Xander, there's still one problem." He tightened his grip on Buffy's hair. "Can you kill me before I kill her." Angel's words stopped Xander in his tracks. "And can you kill her once she turns?" "Do it, Xander," Buffy hissed. "Kill us both." *Better to take the bastard down with me.* "I can't." The pained expression on Xander's face was priceless as he lowered the crossbow. Angel smiled. "Pity." His mouth opened as he leaned forward for the kill. A shock of lightning flashed at the back of the alley. It was not much, but it served to distract Angel long enough for Buffy to wrest herself from his grasp. She fell forward to the ground, landing roughly on her knees in an unconscious imitation of Angel, and tried to roll out of the vampire's way. He dived for her. She pulled away and kicked forward with her foot. "Now, Xander!" The Slayer cried. From the back of the alley, footsteps made their way towards the struggle. A figure was quickly approaching the fight, a figure holding a staff in its hand, and it looked like no one Xander had ever seen. She was wearing thigh-high black leather boots and a black outfit he would have sworn was copied from the costumes from Sailor Moon, a Japanese superhero cartoon - a modified sailor suit, complete with a cobweb bow. As she came closer, Xander saw that the staff was actually a long-handled broom. Her blonde hair was pulled back into a thick, waist-length braid - tied at the end with another cobweb bow. The vision spoke. "I think this has gone on long enough." Even the voice was beautiful. "What the - " began Angel, all but ignoring the Slayer kneeling before him. The vision blinked ingenuously, her blue eyes bright in the dim light of the alley. "Hermes translocation!" The figure cried, pointing its broom at the bewildered vampire. Angel shimmered suddenly and disappeared - the only remnant of his passing was the sound of air rushing in to fill the space he had once occupied. Buffy rose to her feet and whirled at the girl standing before them. "Did you kill him?" "No. I need him alive." She walked towards the trio. A pained expression crossed her face. "Bad choice of phrase," she added softly. "Who are you?" Willow asked softly. "Sunnydale's newest visitor," the figure replied. She stood in front of Buffy, looking her up and down with her blue eyes. "And you would be the Slayer." Buffy's eyes widened at the statement. "Almost the Slayee," the figure continued. "Here's some advice: stay out of my way." She shimmered, leaving the area with another small pop of air. ************************************* (Part One continued in next installment) ************************************************** Jennifer Addis-Newton AKA Branwen ferch Modron whiteraven@pipeline.com http://www.pipeline.com/~whiteraven "For if that which you seek, you find not within yourself, you will never find it without." - from "The Charge of the Goddess" - - ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 22 Mar 1998 12:27:05 +0000 From: "Jennifer Addis-Newton" Subject: BUFFYFIC: The Raven's Cry (3/?) Disclaimer: This story is a cross-over between a superheroic role-playing campaign and the television show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." All characters related to "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" are the creations of Joss Whedon et al. It is also entirely possible for additional well-known characters or ideas to appear in passing. I take no credit for these ideas, merely for reworking them so that they fit into the campaign world. Caitlin O'Riordan, however, is entirely my own creation. Feedback: Please! This is my first fanfic of any kind. If there's any way to make the characters more true to themselves, I'm all for it. Spoilers: None of which I am aware. My universe diverges from Joss' with "Passion" -- it didn't happen. Rating: Some adult situations and language -- I'd give the whole thing a solid PG-13. **************************************** Part One: Cont'd It was a disconcerting feeling. Angel felt as though his entire body had been pulled apart and smashed back together -- with a few pieces missing. He lurched forward and fell into one of the stacks of crates before him. He knew instinctively that he was in the abandoned warehouse where the vampires had set up new headquarters in anticipation of Dru's newest "game." "There y' are, mate!" Spike slammed into his leg with the wheel of his chair. Angel fought to keep from lurching forward again into the crates. He was not successful. "Good to have you back on your feet." Spike laughed and helped Angel to his feet. "Sorry about that." "No you're not," Angel replied automatically. Ever since he had returned, things had gotten a little, well, hostile between himself and Spike. It was over Drucilla - Angel was her sire, but Spike was the lover who had remained with her throughout the years. She appeared to love them both. "I just can't control meself, mate," Spike continued. "Dru did it." Angel groaned inwardly. "What did she get this time? Trolls?" "The big time," replied Spike. Angel shrugged his shoulders. Dru's latest plan in ridding Sunnydale of the human infestation was more far-fetched than usual. Since demons were unable to do the job, Dru decided that it was time to call upon a new group of otherworldly creatures: the faery. So far, she had conjured every variant that he could have imagined - and several he had not. Except for two or three giants, the denizens of faery who had walked through Dru's gateway did not appear to be much help in the "ridding the world of humans" department. He swatted a pixie out of the way as he followed Spike into the main room of the warehouse. Dru was sitting in the midst of her faery entourage, giggling madly as they whirled around her. Sitting beside Dru, outside the circle of faeries, was another woman. She was tall - taller than any woman Angel had ever seen, wearing a cloak of raven feathers that matched the sweep of her hair. Her eyes burned with a dark fire, and she smiled grimly at Angel. Her mouth was a splash of blood in her white face. "Angel," Dru giggled. "Have you met my friend?" She gestured towards the woman and then looked towards Angel. "I did it, Angel." "Did what, Dru?" He asked softly. "I found an old one," she replied. "An old faery." The mad vampire giggled again. "I found the Morrigan." Angel recognized the name. His people had spoken about her, in hushed tones, passing down the stories of the old ones. She had been called a goddess of death, the carrion crow who stalked battlefields in search of the slain. He looked at the woman, a smile spreading on his features. *This could get interesting.* The faery returned the smile. "I've been expected." ************************************* Intermission One: Mairrighana remembers.. The sun, the sun so bright, like Dulloran's hair. The flowers, his blue eyes as he handed her the flowers. Did she see them? Giggling in the bushes, waiting for Dulloran to give her flowers. Small bright suns in their hands, red blood in Dulloran's hair. The scream of the iron, cutting. Pain. Where is Dulloran? Where are the pretty flowers? Hard rope, biting rope. Rocky ground. Where is Dulloran? Humans. Too many humans. They have Dulloran's sword. His hair, so bright, like the sun. Where is Dulloran? Must escape. More iron, all around me. Must find Dulloran. A cart, a village. More humans. Small humans. A tree, more iron. Humans watching, throwing rocks. Tall human with Dulloran's sword. Laughing. A sun in his hand. Sun thrown at my feet. Dulloran's eyes in the sun, washed with blood. Take her down. Make magic babies. No! Dulloran's eyes. Laughing. Humans laughing. Rough hands. Bite. No! Do not do this! Do not make me! Please stop. Dulloran's sword dropped. Struggle. Kick. Bite. Do anything. Get Dulloran's sword. A raven's cry. Black wings. Dulloran's sword. Humans want magic? Dulloran's sword in my hand, liquid fire. Humans scream. Must kill humans. Kill all humans. No humans left. For Dulloran. ************************************** Part Two: Giles took his glasses off of his face, rubbing them absentmindedly on his handkerchief. He had spent the last few hours looking for as much information as he could regarding Sunnydale's latest visitor but his prophecies mentioned nothing about her possible identity. *Perhaps Jenny* he caught himself thinking before firmly shaking his head. Giles had been shocked when Buffy had explained her unnerving encounter with Angel the evening before - and the mysterious young woman who had come to their aid. *Why save Buffy's life only to threaten her.* It was one thing for the young woman to save Buffy's life; it was quite another for the young woman to spare Angel simply because "she had need of him." "And this spell she incanted?" He asked softly. "Hermes translocation," replied Buffy. "What does it mean?" "Hermes was the messenger of the gods in Greek mythology. He was generally depicted with winged shoes -" "Like the guy in that florist commercial!" Xander interrupted quickly. Giles rolled his eyes. "Quite." "Hermes translocation," repeated Buffy thoughtfully. It reminded her of the incantations that Amy had used on Valentine's Day. "Do you suppose she could be a witch?" "The broom didn't give that away?" It was Xander's turn to roll his eyes. "Come on, Buff - the Slayer should have figured that one out without the handbook." He looked as though he was going to continue with his conversation, but the librarian's curt cough and the stern glance of his eye made Xander think better of continuing in the same vein. "It wouldn't be the first time that a witch joined forces with a vampire," mused Giles. "I don't think she's really a witch." Willow had stopped typing on her keyboard and peeked her head out from behind the computer in the library. "I mean, she wants everyone to think that she's a witch, but she's not one." "What did you find?" Giles was halfway across the library before he had even finished asking the question. Buffy and Xander followed closely on Giles' heels. The trio crowded around Willow's chair and peered at the computer screen. Willow had already printed several photographs and began handing them to the rest of the group. The screen itself was brandished with the logo for The Rocky Mountain News, and Willow appeared to be cataloguing several articles from the site. "There she is! Sailor Moon meets the Addams family!" Xander handed his picture to Giles. The librarian stared at it intently. The scene in the picture was similar to many he had seen in comic books as a child. Two groups of figures in brightly colored suits were battling, presumably for justice to prevail. In the midst of the fight, a young woman with blonde hair and a broomstick was standing with a ball of fire poised in her hand. He handed the picture back to Xander. "Are you absolutely certain?" "That's her," Buffy replied. "Who is she?" "She's a superhero," said Willow. "Surely you're joking?" Giles closed his eyes, half hoping that the conversation would not take the inevitable path that it seemed to be following. "Minor occult figures are one thing but a superhero?" Humans with "super" powers had become more prevalent in the world during the last twenty-five years or so - several theories postulated that it might be the effects of chemicals or radiation. He had enough to deal with as it was with the Hellmouth. Willow shook her head. "Yep. She's actually kind of cool. I mean, for a vampire savior." She took a deep breath. "Her name is Nightshade. She's part of a superhero group that is based in Denver. She infiltrated a high school where a supervillian was recruiting teenagers with superpowers to use for his evil ends. Only he didn't know that she was working for the good guys, which she was." "I am getting too old for this." Giles sighed. It sounds worse than one of those pulp novels. "Cool," yelped Xander. He pointed towards a man standing next to Nightshade. "Is that a lightsaber?" Willow nodded. "His name is Jedite. He's a Jedi Knight." "That's original." Giles smiled weakly. Buffy leaned closer to take a better look at the picture. "So that's my new enemy? She doesn't look all that powerful." "That's what bothers me. She shouldn't be an enemy." Willow pointed to one of the articles on the screen ahead of her. "I've gone through lots of articles about the group and never once does anyone have something really bad to say about her. Sure, there's some problems that she has with Eric Dermann -" "Who's Eric Dermann?" asked Giles quickly. He latched onto the first item in Willow's explanation that he could, fearing that she might continue indefinitely if no one stopped her. "That name sounds familiar. I seem to remember some documents about a family in Germany named Dermann. They were rumoured to have a strong psychic gift." "Oh," replied Willow. "He's the dashing millionaire playboy in the group. I'm not certain what he really does but his family does come from Germany.." She pointed towards a young man wearing a double-breasted suit in a picture depicting the superhero team at a press conference. "He is dashing," added Buffy. "Every superhero team needs a dashing playboy," was Giles' resigned reply. Xander nodded. "Let me guess. He dresses up in a rubber suit to avenge the murder of his parents?" Willow merely raised an eyebrow and continued with her original explanation. "Well, she has problems with this Eric Dermann because he's always hitting on her and Dryad - that's the girl who looks like a tree - so the two of them cooked up some practical jokes to keep him in line. Anyway, he doesn't seem to have very good things to say about either of them lately and he's even gotten into public fights with the other members of the group." "And this fits in how?" Buffy asked, turning to gaze at Willow quizzically. "Well, she's supposed to be a good person but what if she got fed up with being in Denver and decided to move." Willow's brow wrinkled as she considered the thought. Giles continued with Willow's explanation. "Killing vampires would make a name for one's self, if one did it openly." "But how did she know I was the Slayer?" Buffy turned to Giles quickly. Giles shrugged his shoulders. "Calling it a lucky guess would most likely be premature." "So all we need to do is keep an eye out for someone with a broom." Xander spoke matter-of-factly. "I think we can handle that." "Xander, I want you to help Willow find out as much as you can about this Nightshade." Giles walked away from the computer and back towards the stacks near his private office. "I am going to try to find any references in the prophecies which might clarify the situation." "I'm going to see if I can find her myself," Buffy stated. The tone in her voice made it clear that she would win any argument before it even started. Giles sighed. "I was hoping to give the Slayer a night off, in light of last evening's excitement." "Sunnydale is safe from vampires and mystery guests whenever I'm around," replied Buffy in a fair imitation of the voice actress who played the character `Serena' from Sailor Moon. "In the name of the Watcher, I will protect the innocent and triumph over the undead." *And that means Angel* she added silently. The smile on her face hid any feelings she might have had on that regard; no one stopped her as she quietly left the library. ******************************************** Intermission Two will begin the next installment. ************************************************** Jennifer Addis-Newton AKA Branwen ferch Modron whiteraven@pipeline.com http://www.pipeline.com/~whiteraven "For if that which you seek, you find not within yourself, you will never find it without." - from "The Charge of the Goddess" - - ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 22 Mar 1998 12:27:06 +0000 From: "Jennifer Addis-Newton" Subject: BUFFYFIC: The Raven's Cry (5/?) Disclaimer: This story is a cross-over between a superheroic role-playing campaign and the television show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." All characters related to "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" are the creations of Joss Whedon et al. It is also entirely possible for additional well-known characters or ideas to appear in passing. I take no credit for these ideas, merely for reworking them so that they fit into the campaign world. Caitlin O'Riordan, however, is entirely my own creation. Feedback: Please! This is my first fanfic of any kind. If there's any way to make the characters more true to themselves, I'm all for it. Spoilers: None of which I am aware. My universe diverges from Joss' with "Passion" -- it didn't happen. Rating: Some adult situations and language -- I'd give the whole thing a solid PG-13. ************************************* Intermission Three: Date sent: March 17, 1998 2:30 AM PST To: Archie@oak.ash.thorn.org From: nightshade@ouray.cuden.edu Subject: The bird has flown Archie, Let Alex know that his suspicions were confirmed. A rare type of bird was sighted in Sunnydale. Please research any related appearances in the Sunnydale area over the last few months and reply in care of jcalendar@sunnydale.hs.edu. Yours in the Audobon Society, Shade ******************************** Part Four: Jenny Calendar resolutely took a deep breath and placed her hand on the library door. It was difficult enough knowing that she was responsible for the Angel's change, far worse to remember that she had betrayed them all by never speaking the truth regarding her past until it was too late. But she knew something far more dangerous than usual was happening when she scanned her e-mail that morning and noticed that she had received an attached document from "Archie." No one really knew Archie's identity but he was one of the forerunners of the technopagan movement. He had been "connected" far earlier than most within Jenny's online circle, and his knowledge demonstrated a vast depth of experience that few technopagans would ever attain. If something was going on around the world, Archie would know who was involved and how it would affect the rest of them. It was uncanny - his help was never given lightly, nor were his "requests" ignored. So, here she was, with her right hand on the door to the library and a document from one of the leading techno-occult figures in her left hand.and all she could think about was the fact that she might never see Rupert smile at her again. Funny how the mind worked. Jenny smiled wanly and opened the door. Giles was hard at work. He looked as though he had stayed in the library all evening. Books and papers were piled around him, and the hum of the computer was unmistakable. Jenny could hear fingers moving on the keyboard. *Willow.* Hopefully, the document she had been sent would help to enlighten them all on the situation. "Rupert," she said softly. Jenny had tried speaking to him once, on Valentine's Day, with somewhat disastrous results. The computer teacher looked around quickly for Xander - another person she had been studiously attempting to avoid, and not just because of his friendship with Buffy. A love spell had made the teenager irresistible to women, and Jenny had also succumbed to his magical charm. Giles looked up from his book, rubbed his eyes tiredly, and said, "I'm not certain this is the time for our." His voice trailed off uncertainly. "This is business, Rupert." Jenny handed him the document she had printed. It detailed every strange occurrence that had happened in Sunnydale over the last several weeks - beginning with the love spell that had worked entirely too well. "I was sent this by Archie." A snore erupted from across the room. Jenny saw Xander sleeping on a couch. Giles ignored the noise and began to peruse the document. He motioned for the computer teacher to sit down at the table. She looked down and picked up the nearest piece of paper; it was a picture of someone she recognized, more by reputation than regard. "Is Nightshade involved in this?" The librarian looked up from the document. "What do you know about her?" "She's a superhero who thinks she's a witch," replied Jenny. "Apart from that, she's never been connected to real occult circles." "Although I have quite a following with male technopagans. I've seen the screensaver," returned a soft voice from across the room. Jenny turned in her seat to see two figures standing in the doorway. Buffy she recognized; like everyone else, the Slayer appeared to have stayed up all evening. The other was a teenager who looked to be of similar age as the others in the room. The newcomer's blonde hair had been pulled into a long braid, and she was dressed casually in jeans and a black tee-shirt. Jenny narrowed her eyes. *Put her in a witch's costume and give her a broom.* "What are you doing here?" "Nightshade is with me." Buffy's voice was cold. "What are you doing here?" "Jenny is here because Archie asked her to be," Nightshade replied. She crossed the room and reached the table, glancing at the papers which had been strewn across it. "Or, more to the point. She's here because I asked Archie to send her some research." She smiled at the computer teacher. "Looks like I'm connected to real occult figures after all." "I don't want her here." Buffy's voice was soft, and she crossed her arms dangerously. "Buffy, I'm -" Jenny began. She always tried to apologize. Buffy raised her hand for silence. "Giles has what he needs. Now leave." "I'm sor -" Jenny tried again. "I don't want to hear it," the Slayer replied. "Maybe you should leave, Ms. Calendar." Willow had come out from behind the computer, a concerned expression on her face. She tried to smile wanly at the computer teacher - whose anguish was obvious to every eye in the room. Save for one. Buffy had turned her back on the computer teacher. Jenny stood to leave, an apologetic glance in Giles' direction. He glanced as apologetically back. The sound of Xander's snoring filled the room. Nightshade glanced at Buffy, and back to the computer teacher. Jenny began to walk towards the door. "Wait," said Nightshade. "If she can help, she should stay." Buffy whirled on the superhero. "We don't need her kind of help." "You're fighting more than vampires, Buffy," Nightshade replied. There was a stubborn look in her blue eyes. "We're going to need something a little bit more powerful than the Slayer." "Who are we fighting?" Willow asked softly. Buffy shrugged her shoulders. "She called herself the Morrigan." "What?" Jenny started at the word. "Did you say Morrigan?" Giles asked quickly. Buffy nodded. "Angel's latest fling. Hangs around with a raven and a really big sword." "That is not precisely what I wished to hear," replied Giles. He frowned suddenly and looked at the superhero. "Can you add anything more?" Nightshade sighed. "She truly believes she is the Morrigan. When I attempted to use one of my spells against her, she was offended by the fact that I `dared' to call upon her own province of power." She turned to look at the window, her eyes going wide. Giles looked at Jenny. "Can your friends help?" "Archie is the best contact any technopagan could have," Jenny replied. "He sent you all the information he could find." "What's the big deal about Miss Raven Lover, anyway?" Buffy followed Nightshade's movement across the library. The superhero tugged at the latch on the window. "She was an Irish goddess," Jenny said. "The goddess of death and battle." "The Irish gods were beings known as the Tuatha de Danaan," added Rupert. "The Children of the Goddess Dana, roughly translated. They were once inhabitants of Ireland, according to the legends. They were all powerful magic-users." "She's powerful." Buffy's replied with a flat tone of voice. She remembered the way that the Morrigan had restrained every person in the Bronze the evening before. "I don't know what bothers me more," Xander's voice said from the couch. "The fact that I can't even sleep through these conversations anymore or the fact that we're fighting a death-slinging goddess." He covered his eyes as Nightshade opened the window. "Sleep, definitely." "If it's any consolation," Nightshade replied, "You're technically not fighting a death-slinging goddess." She peered out the window. "I am. In three days." "But a goddess." Willow's voice trailed off. "Maybe if you call in enough of your friends, we could combine forces and." "I think it's probably best if I leave my friends out of it, for the moment. A villain in a mechsuit is one thing; this takes a bit more of an open mind and I'm not certain that they're ready for that yet - even Jedite, and he's the most mystical of the bunch." Nightshade smiled at the hacker. "Besides, the Morrigan was never a goddess. Only a faery. Even she would not have presumed to call herself deity." "Since when did you ever hear of a death-slinging pixie?" retorted Xander. "Besides, faeries don't exist." A small figure, approximately six inches high, flitted in the window. It hovered, made a chirping sound, and flew into the library. Its movement was a blur. Nightshade spoke in a soft voice, and the figure moved to hover near her. She held out her hand and a small pixie landed there, one wing missing. The superhero did not say a word - the expression in her eyes was enough. "That's a - " Xander pointed. "Whoa." Willow added. "We live in a world where a man can wear his underwear on top of his pants and shoot lasers out of his eyes without anyone even blinking. Why is it so impossible to believe in faeries?" Nightshade shook her head and turned her attention to the pixie in her hand. It was speaking to her in a high-pitched voice. The superhero nodded and whispered something to the pixie. Before their eyes, its wing began to heal and the creature flew back out the window. Giles looked at the superhero. "Was that a." "A pixie. Perhaps one of the more common species of faery," the superhero replied. "Brought through to this world, I suspect, by a gateway created for such a purpose." "Drucilla." Buffy rolled her eyes. "This sounds like something she would do." "I heard rumors to that effect," replied Nightshade. "Archie had correlated the different faery sightings and determined a general area from the pattern. Then he overlaid the pattern of faery sightings with that of recent vampire sightings." Jenny inclined her head towards the document Giles was holding firmly in his hands. "He calculated the frequency of the sightings to determine a radius and possible starting point for both." "Exactly," added Giles, looking at the document. "Ingenious, actually." "You might want to refrain from letting how know that." The superhero smiled brightly. "He's impossible to deal with as it is." Buffy smiled back, still wondering how the superhero had managed to put all of them at ease despite their initial contact. "So, where do you fit in?" "I came to investigate the gate. I was hoping that it had opened spontaneously but I couldn't ignore the vampire connection based on Archie's calculations." The superhero closed the window and latched it firmly. "I decided to make contact with one of the vampires." "Angel," Buffy stated. Nightshade shrugged her shoulders. "He loves to be the center of attention. He's the easiest one to find." "Not the Angel I knew." Buffy felt better for making the statement. Oddly, she realized that the pain which she swore would never leave her somehow felt easier to bear - simply by admitting, to all her friends, that Angel was gone. She looked at the computer teacher suddenly - although she could say no more, the angry storms in her eyes had disappeared. It was enough. Jenny breathed a sigh of relief as Buffy continued. "And I interrupted contact." Nightshade nodded. "I did manage to cast a spell which allows me to track him, but I still didn't know whether or not the vampires were the ones who opened the gateway." "Until you saw Angel giving smoochies to Miss Raven Lady in the Bronze last night." The pieces were finally falling into place. Buffy turned to Giles. "Do the prophecies mention anything about this situation?" "No, but we can start looking up basic spells to counteract faery mischief," replied the librarian. "Actually, it's more difficult than that. A basic milk and bread spell is not going to work against the Sidhe," replied the superhero. "Although it might serve as a distraction to the little ones, it's also not going to stop the vampires or the larger creatures that wandered through the gate." "I am getting a very bad feeling about all of this," Xander said. ************************************ (Part Four continued in next installment) ************************************************** Jennifer Addis-Newton AKA Branwen ferch Modron whiteraven@pipeline.com http://www.pipeline.com/~whiteraven "For if that which you seek, you find not within yourself, you will never find it without." - from "The Charge of the Goddess" - - ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 22 Mar 1998 12:27:06 +0000 From: "Jennifer Addis-Newton" Subject: BUFFYFIC: The Raven's Cry (4/?) Disclaimer: This story is a cross-over between a superheroic role-playing campaign and the television show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." All characters related to "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" are the creations of Joss Whedon et al. It is also entirely possible for additional well-known characters or ideas to appear in passing. I take no credit for these ideas, merely for reworking them so that they fit into the campaign world. Caitlin O'Riordan, however, is entirely my own creation. Feedback: Please! This is my first fanfic of any kind. If there's any way to make the characters more true to themselves, I'm all for it. Spoilers: None of which I am aware. My universe diverges from Joss' with "Passion" -- it didn't happen. Rating: Some adult situations and language -- I'd give the whole thing a solid PG-13. ********************************** Intermission Two: Mairrighana remembers. The baby, always the baby. Dulloran wanted a baby. Ripped from her, ripped from him. Humans. Kill the baby. No! Do not make me! Please, do not make me! I do not want to. Dulloran? What flowers bloom in your dead eyes, love? What suns burn in your sky? Remember the dancing, Dulloran, under the bright moon? Flowers all around us, your smile. The sun. Where are all the dances you promised? Dead. Dead. Dulloran's sword in the hands of the human. Dulloran's sword on the ground. Breathe. Breathe. The human cannot hurt you. Close your eyes. Think of Dulloran. No! Do not make me do this! I will hurt you. Yes, hurt humans who killed Dulloran. The sword is the key, Dulloran's sword. The baby. Kill humans for Dulloran and the baby. ******************************************* Part Three: "How would you like a night on the town?" Angel sat down next to the Morrigan. He had spent hours talking to the faery. She was fascinating - not just because she was beautiful. She shared the same dark beauty as Dru but it went much farther than that. The Morrigan had taken death to extremes; in the old days, his people had considered her a goddess. She understood the poetry of the kill. The Morrigan turned to face Angel, a bright smile on her beautiful face. "And what does one do on a night like this, youngling?" If the sound of war could be musical, it would have been fashioned into her voice. "I feed," the vampire replied. The faery looked at Angel with a serious expression on her face. "I suppose I could feed as well." She opened her hands and a large raven - the likes of which Angel had never seen - appeared between them. She spoke to the raven in a language the vampire did not understand. The raven cocked its head, flew up into the rafters of the building, and then landed suddenly on her shoulder. "Ah, nice trick," commented Angel. *Finally, a babe with some style.* "Macha has not fed in a long while." The faery rose to her feet, her silken dress clinging to the curves of her body. She was wearing red so dark that it looked like dried blood; it matched her smile. "Where is the battlefield?" Angel returned the smile. "We call it the Bronze." "An appropriate name for a battlefield." She extended her hand to Angel, somewhat delicately. The vampire took the faery's hand. "I thought you might like it." "It's not fair," sighed Dru. She was holding a small pixie between her hands, delicately ripping its left wing from its body. The pixie's mouth opened in agony, but its language was unintelligible. "Angel stole my old one tonight." Spike wheeled closer to his beloved. "You can always find a new one, love. You've still got the gateway." "But she was such a nice old one, Spike." When the pixie stopped its strangled, high-pitched scream, Dru looked at it thoughtfully. The pixie, although frightened, was doing its best not to show it. "I don't like these pixies anymore." She dropped the pixie in her hand abruptly. Spike watched the pixie scrabble its way across the floor. He toyed with the idea of following it with the wheelchair but noticed the expression on Dru's face. He moved closer to place a comforting hand on her shoulder. "We'll get you a new old one, Dru." Dru's face brightened with a smile. "I want a powerful one, Spike. More powerful than Angel's old one." "And you shall have it," replied Spike, pulling Dru closer to him for a kiss. After visiting several of the "vampire hot spots" in town, Buffy decided to head back to the library by way of the Bronze. She knew that she had more important things on her mind - she had to find out Nightshade's connection to the vampires - but she had a strange feeling about the local hangout. She paused with her hand on the door, half expecting to feel guiltier than she did, and walked into the Bronze. As soon as she opened the door, she knew instinctively that something was wrong. It was quiet - too quiet - and darker than usual. Although the band was still on the stage, someone had apparently piped the jukebox through the sound system. Tori Amos' "Little Earthquakes" was filling the room, its melodic beat almost hypnotic in the gloom. She tentatively touched the nearest person. The young man did not flinch. His body swayed with the motion of her arm and stopped moving once the body was tilted against the wall. Buffy gasped, and spotted movement out of the corner of her eye. Two figures were still dancing on the dance floor. One was Angel. The other was a woman, taller than she had ever seen, wearing a red velvet dress. The woman leaned back, enraptured in her dance, and laughed. It was almost as hypnotic as the music. Buffy clenched her fists as Angel wrapped his arms around the woman, kissing her exposed neck softly. His teeth left trailing marks of blood against the woman's neck, but she did not seem to mind. *What's going on?* The Slayer thought to herself. *A new vampire?* A raven's harsh croak filled the room. The woman laughed again, held up her hand, and a large raven landed on her hand. She spoke softly to the bird, the musical language unintelligible, and the bird flew towards one of the band members. It landed on the drummer's head and began pecking. *Time to size up Angel's new girl toy* Buffy thought to herself as the raven screeched one more time and continued its pecking. *Is that blood?* Buffy stepped forward resolutely. "Is this a private party or can anyone crash?" The Slayer asked brightly, stepping onto the dance floor. The woman merely raised an eyebrow at Buffy's approach. Buffy could see the puncture wounds on her neck. They appeared to be healing. The woman turned to Angel, her voice warm in the quiet room. "Is this another of your friends, my angel?" Angel grinned at Buffy. "Not a friend, exactly." "A lover," the woman responded, her voice a purr. Angel laughed outright at the comment. "Only in her teenage dreams." *Typical.* Buffy's outward reply to the statement was to jump forward and attempt to hit Angel in the shoulder with a flying jump kick. No sooner had she begun to move did the tall woman turn in her direction and begin to wave her hands in an intricate pattern. Buffy fell to the ground, paralyzed. She tried to struggle but the movement only increased the invisible pressure which was holding her motionless. Angel laughed quietly. The sound of his boots on the floor echoed sharply through the room. The vampire walked casually to where the Slayer lay and kicked her soundly in the side. Pain lanced through her body, but Buffy could not roll away from his blows. Angel knelt suddenly, caressing Buffy's side in the exact spot he had kicked. "This is so like you, Buffy. Why don't you just lie back and enjoy it?" He rose to his feet and kicked Buffy again, much to the amusement of the tall woman who watched the scene with brilliant eyes. "I thought I would just kill you, Buffy. Make it quick." The vampire walked around her slowly. "But there's something satisfying about torturing the Slayer." His foot cracked against her ribs. "Maybe it's just me, Buff, but that one sounded like it had to hurt." "Let me help," the woman said. She stepped forward, holding a wicked-looking knife in her right hand. "I am uncommonly fond of torture." The knife glinted in Buffy's eyes. The raven screamed again and was abruptly silenced. Buffy watched it arc its way across the Bronze, landing between the woman and herself. *What?* The pressure was gone. Buffy experimentally made a fist and rolled to one side. Jumping to her feet, she stepped back to appraise the scene. The woman in the red dress stared open-mouthed at the raven and dropped her knife, rushing to the raven's body. Angel strode protectively to her side, glaring at the Slayer. *How can this be my fault?* Buffy turned her head just in time to see a dark figure jump from the stage, twirl in the air, and land on the dance floor. "Nightshade!" Buffy was not entirely surprised to see the superhero standing next to her. "Slayer!" Nightshade returned with a friendlier smile than Buffy would have anticipated, given the conversation from the night before. "Fancy meeting you here." *Alright, let's go with this.* Buffy grinned. "You know us Slayers - we just don't like it when we're not invited to parties." "It's past your bedtime, Buffy," snapped Angel. His dark eyes were fuming, and he snarled as he stepped closer to the superhero. "But I'll start with you." He flexed his fingers dangerously. "Nuke the vamp," Nightshade responded, raising her broom. "I'll take the witch." "Gladly," Buffy replied, not quite fast enough to step between the raging vampire and the superhero standing before him. "Oh, no you don't!" Angel growled, jumping forward to grab the broom from the superhero's hands. "Thanks for the present." He was not prepared for Buffy's blow. She stepped forward, unconsciously adapting a move from the tai chi class she had started taking. Her teacher had explained that blows dealt from the palm of the hand were powerful, due to the chi which was expelled through a person's palms. *What do you know - it works.* Angel rocked to the ground, a grim smile on his face. The broom was still in his hands. "If only it were that easy," Nightshade replied. She made no attempt to retrieve the broom and whirled in a circle. "Touch of the Morrigan!" When she completed the circle, a ball of dark energy was balanced on her wrists where her hands had crossed. The woman's shoulders went straight as the superhero incanted her spell and moved to a standing position. Her voice was soft and all the more deadly. "Child, you play with powers you don't understand." A cloak of dark feather's seemed to appear on her back, and it flowed to the ground behind her. A giant sword, gleaming silver, appeared in her right hand. Buffy tensed, waiting for the next move. *If I kick her wrist it's just possible that I can get the sword out of her hands.provided I can get in the kick before she paralyzes me again.* Angel was standing too close to Nightshade and the swirling ball of fury she held for Buffy to chance grabbing the broom. "I don't play," Nightshade replied with a defiant toss of her blonde braid. "I win." "Never against me, child. The Tuatha de Danaan destroyed countless thousands of your race," the woman replied. She stepped slowly forward, her sword gathering all the light in the room. Its keen edge dripped with blood. "Invoking power in my name, to use against me." Her voices was soft. "I am the Morrigan." The faery now stood before the superhero, and her sword made a slow ascent into the air. "Feel the bite of Dulloran's blade." The sentence had an electrifying effect on the superhero. Nightshade's blue eyes widened and her face went chalk-white with anger. Giving an inarticulate cry of fury, the superhero threw the ball directly at the sword making its way towards her. The sword seemed to encompass the energy, growing brighter than before. The faery smiled. The energy coalesced and shimmered, bursting into black sparks within the sword. It exploded soundlessly, taking most of the Morrigan's right hand with it. The faery's mouth widened with the pain and she stepped backwards to look at the superhero. When she spoke, it was in a contained voice. "You will pay for that, child." The Morrigan looked at her right hand, and narrowed her eyes. It throbbed and began to heal. "Time for Angel to feed," the vampire interjected. "I don't think so," Nightshade replied, in a voice unlike any Buffy had ever heard. The anger in her eyes had diminished - barely controlled. The superhero pointed a finger at the faery. "By the bright moon and the dark forests. By the sweet water and the shimmering fire. By the binding spirits of the shining ones." "No!" There was fear in the faery's eyes. "How?" "You are called, Morrigan ferch Danu, to the fior-comlann." Nightshade dropped her hand. "In three days time." "On the darkest night of the moon?" The Morrigan smiled. "You are a foolish child." Nightshade shrugged her shoulders. "Do you accept." "I do," the faery replied. "I choose the weapons. Do you choose the place?" "I will find you, Morrigan ferch Danu." The superhero's voice sounded more like itself, and she sighed suddenly. "In three days time." The faery turned to face the vampire. "We leave, my angel. In three days time, this world will be ours." "I can scarcely wait," Angel replied. He viciously cracked the broom he was still holding over his knee and threw the broken pieces at Nightshade. "Oops. Did you need that?" He smiled. With a shimmer similar to the one used by Nightshade the night before, the vampire and the faery suddenly disappeared from the center of the dance floor. Buffy lowered her hands and turned to the superhero. There was an emotion far deeper than sadness on Nightshade's face. Buffy placed a hand on the superhero's arm. "Are you alright?" "Yes." Nightshade picked up the pieces of her broom, tried to put the two pieces together, and sighed again when it fell apart. "I lose more brooms this way." "Can't you just use magic?" Buffy asked, flicking her fingers awkwardly. Nightshade laughed, although her eyes did not change expression. "It's just a broom, Buffy. I only carry it to look the part." Her eyes brightened to match the smile. "You realize, of course, that I'm divulging a trade secret." "Speaking of brooms, it's clean-up time," Buffy replied, turning to look at the figures in the room. "The drummer," she remembered suddenly. "He'll be fine." Nightshade replied. "Being able to heal people is one of the perks of the job." She muttered something under her breath which Buffy did not hear. The Slayer nodded and began to make her way through the room, assessing the condition of the onlookers. A few had already been bitten - it looked as though Angel had been taking his time. "Got a few live ones here." "Vampires?" Nightshade asked from the other side of the room. She was looking intently at someone Buffy recognized - Harmony, Cordelia's friend. "This one doesn't have the marks." Buffy sighed. "I'm not certain how I would have explained that one to Cordy." She began to make a mental inventory of those in the room who had been bitten by Angel. "Looks like I'll be spending the next couple of nights in the cemetery." "I'm going to need your help in three days," returned Nightshade. There was a thoughtful expression on her face. "Doesn't fire kill vampires?" Buffy nodded. "I did the same thing to." A thought suddenly occurred to her. "You're not going to burn down the Bronze, are you?" The superhero appeared next to Buffy, a ball of fire in her right hand. "No. If you would be so kind as to point out the first target?" Nightshade's blue eyes followed Buffy's finger. She peered at the girl's neck, nodded slightly, and whispered softly to herself before touching the girl's body with the ball of fire. Buffy folded her arms across her chest, watching the fire burn its victim - and only its victim. The superhero moved onto the next of Angel's prey and slowly repeated the process. She thought over the only two words she had been able to hear before Nightshade had burned the first victim. *Forgive me.* Buffy echoed the sentiment silently as she scattered the ashes that remained. *************************************** (Intermission Three begins the next installment) ************************************************** Jennifer Addis-Newton AKA Branwen ferch Modron whiteraven@pipeline.com http://www.pipeline.com/~whiteraven "For if that which you seek, you find not within yourself, you will never find it without." - from "The Charge of the Goddess" - - ------------------------------ End of Buffyfic-digest V2 #70 ***************************** To subscribe to buffyfic or buffyfic-digest, send the command subscribe buffyfic-digest or subscribe buffyfic to majordomo@xmission.com. You will need to go through a confirmation process, and the listowners have to manually approve your subscription request, so it may take some time. 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