LEARNING
Le Banquet D'Amelia was the headlining movie at the Sunnydale Cinema.
A foreign film, that the three couples of the gang had gone to see. A week
had passed since the death of Allan Finch and Trick. The big deal over
the Deputy Mayor was eventually forgotten and swept under the rug just
like everything else. Probably at the Mayor's personal request. His plans
had to be on shaky ground.
Giles and Wesley had found nothing on the Ascension at all, and that
was a bad sign. Wesley wanted to do research on Richard Wilkins III, as
all their other avenues had dried up. While it made sense, they also didn't
want to do anything that would get his attention. They already broke in
once, and had to be careful from now on.
But besides abrupt closings of murder investigations and information
dead-ends, everything was back to normal. Actually, their personal lives
were back to normal; the town had never deviated from its bizarre definition
of the word. Willow wanted to get extra credit for seeing a French film
for class, and that's why they had gone. She had to do some begging to
get the rest of the gang to go.
Oz, as her boyfriend, was already in by default. She and Buffy were
in the same class, but the slayer had no desire for extra credit. It took
ten minutes of the "resolve face" to get her to come. Faith wasn't big
into foreign, subtitled films, but Buffy got her to agree. And Cordelia
was all for it, dragging Xander with her, in an effort to get him cultured.
Now, as they exited the theater, the brunette slayer's attitude toward
foreign films had changed considerably, and Willow was regretting her choice.
Well, maybe "regret" wasn't the right word. She should have found out more
about the film first though. They were all, very much, stimulated.
"Gotta love the French." Faith grinned widely.
"Did anybody else know you could do *that* with coconut?" Xander asked,
feeling strained.
"Nope, but I plan to do it now."
"You do?" Buffy asked with wide-eyes.
"Not *now* now. Geez, I didn't know you were into voyeurism, B."
"I hate it when you twist my words around!" The blonde pretended to
look upset, but then grinned as well. "I liked the part with the pecan
pie, myself."
"Water." Xander choked.
"Why do you always do this to him?" Cordelia asked. "Then I have to
hit him. And it's not fun." She eyed Faith. "Quiet."
The grin never left Faith's face, as she put her arm around Willow's
neck.
"I gotta thank you, Red. I mean, I've seen pornos before, but I never
knew they could be that classy. I don't think 'Carrie the Carpeter' is
gonna cut it anymore. American products. Total crap."
"I didn't know it was a porno!" Willow said loudly. They all looked
down, as passersby started staring at them. "Oz, really I -"
"I don't think anybody's complaining, Will." Her boyfriend said.
"When you're done writing your review of it for your class, lemme see.
I'll proofread it." The brunette offered.
"Oh God. I can't hand anything in on that...thing." The redhead blushed.
"Wasn't that a line in the movie?"
"Okay, we have patrol." Buffy said, pulling on Faith's arm. "Thanks
for inviting us, Will. It was...entertaining." She looked at her partner
with a smirk. "Let's go, you..."
"Horny She-Devil?" Faith offered.
"That'll do."
***
"The fridge well-stocked?" Faith asked, as they moved through Shady
Hill.
"Last time I heard, slaying was supposed to involve actual slaying."
Buffy said.
"When the vamps wanna give it a shot, they'll be slain. You gonna answer,
or do I have to be persuasive?"
"Hmm...thinking, thinking...persuade me. I'm thickheaded."
"I know, but I look past it." Faith backed the blonde up against the
wall of a mausoleum. A heavy make-out session then occurred. It involved
fingers through hair, massaging of tongues, possibly a few hickeys, and
nibbling of earlobes. It got hazy after awhile, but it was enjoyable for
both participants. "Answer? Or a second round?"
"Don't think I could handle..." She was trying to catch her breath.
"Mom just went shopping last night."
"Whipped cream?" Nod. "Hot fudge?" Nod. "Cherries?" Nod. "Just what
I need to make myself a 'Summers Sundae'. And there'll be plenty of experimenting.
To get the right flavor."
"What about me?" Buffy pouted.
"Oh, you're the key ingredient, B."
"Sounds delicious." The short, horned demon said from behind them,
licking his lips. Faith whirled around, and grabbed him by the throat.
"Hey, hey! Joke, joke!"
"Forgive me if I don't laugh."
"You're protective, territorial. I can respect that."
"Whoa, hold it. You know that we -" Buffy started saying to him.
"Every demon in town knows about you two. Personally, I think it's
a beautiful thing."
"What do you want?"
"Besides a stake to the heart." Faith threatened.
"Hold it! Stake me now, and you never find out what I got for ya, huh?
Think about it. Demon seeks Slayers, highly unusual?"
"Talk fast."
"How would you like to get your hands on the Books of Ascension?"
"Never heard of 'em." The blonde slayer said.
"Books of Ascension. Very powerful works and I'm not talking about the prose. They deal with some, ah, dark stuff. And the Mayor would hate for somebody to get a hold of 'em before he, ah, well, you know."
"Don't know. Before he what?"
"Hey, hey, read 'em and weep. That's all I got to say. Tomorrow, I get the books. Meet me here and if the price is right, well, I give the books to you."
"Not really looking to trade with a demon."
"And if this were still a barter economy, that would be a problem. I want cash, princess, five large for the whole set."
"So you can buy, I'm guessin' here, some skin care products?" The brunette was sarcastic.
"Plane ticket. Out of the Hellmouth before it's adios, Slayer Loco.
So, five G's, what do you say?"
The slayers looked at each other. He wasn't much of a threat, and whatever
these 'Books of Ascension' had in them, could probably tell them all they
needed to know. But five thousand dollars?
"We'll get back to ya."
Faith let go of him, and he backed up slowly.
"Sure, sure. Think it over. But those babies are hot items, and I've got other buyers waiting. If you want 'em, decide soon."
"Thanks. We'll keep that in mind." Buffy said, annoyed at the little creature.
***
The slayers walked through the library doors the next morning, in mid
conversation.
"-believe you're still sticky." Faith said.
"Hot fudge and caramel, when used in great amounts -"
"Depending on where they're applied,"
"Tend to stay around."
"But we showered three times."
"The key word being 'we'."
"Hey, I had every intention of using that soap."
"You're easily distracted, I know. And some people may consider that a flaw, but I'm not one of them." Buffy shuddered, remembering. "Besides, I can survive being sticky and smelly for one day. It was worth it."
"I aim to please."
Of course, that's when they noticed the whole gang around the table, and the watchers, looking at them with mouths agape. Well, everyone except Oz.
"Guys...hi...um...how much did you...well, you see...uh...oh, what the hell. She really does. Please."
Faith clapped her hands together, with a grin. "Why's everybody slackin'? We gotta get to work."
Wesley coughed. "Quite right. Lots of work to be done." There were beads of sweat running down his face. "Pardon me for a moment."
The watcher walked quickly out of the library, and then Xander looked pleadingly at his girlfriend, asking for permission to make an exit as well. She shook her head. It was torture, she knew, for both of them actually, but she could control her "basic needs" better than he could. He'd get satisfaction when she was ready to give it to him. But on the other side, she had slept with lots of guys, but she wanted it to be special with Xander.
Sometime later, Buffy relayed their encounter with the demon, and his offer to sell them the Books of Ascension, to the gang. Faith just sat back and let the blonde take care of the specifics. Buffy was so cute when she was in "responsible slayer explanation" mode. So focused. It didn't matter if it was with clothes or without, she was always fun to watch. And stare at.
"And you say this demon wanted cash? That's very unusual." Wesley noted.
"Demons after money. Whatever happened to the still beating heart of a virgin? No one has any standards anymore." Giles was very troubled by that.
"Isn't that always the way?" Faith commented.
"Now, if we were teenagers during the eighties, things would make sense. I mean, Michael Jackson still had his original skin tone," Xander said.
"Madonna actually made okay music," Willow said.
"Prince was still called Prince," Oz contributed.
"Ugh! The headbands alone would put me in fashion hell." Cordelia cringed.
"Well, anyway," Buffy tried to veer back to the original topic, "he said the books were worth the price."
"If they're authentic, they could be very helpful to us in preparing
for the Ascension."
Wesley stated the obvious.
"And we still have no idea what it is, right?" Xander asked.
"Um...no. Not really a common term in demonology."
"What about the date of the thing? I know I recognize it." Buffy wondered.
"June 12th. I have no idea." Giles said.
"Come on, Giles. You're faculty and you don't know what that date is?" Cordelia asked. He stared at her blankly. "Graduation! Get a calendar!"
"Graduation's a big un-fun now? Big un-funs are really...un-fun." Willow complained. "Ooh ooh! The Marenschadt Text. I think in the section on genocide, they mention Ascension." She remembered suddenly.
"Well, we have a winner." Buffy said with a smile.
"And, more importantly, two losers." Xander chipped in.
"Big ones." Faith added.
"Where did you find that volume?" The librarian asked, addressing the redhead.
"In the top of your book cabinet with the stuff you try to keep hidden."
He went to go get it.
"Hidden? Are there any engravings I should know about? Uh, frolicking nymphs of some kind?" Xander questioned.
"Pa-thet-ic." Faith broke the word down, drawing it out.
"It's your fault."
"Is not." Faith defended herself.
"Is too." Xander shot back.
"Not." She countered.
"Too." He returned it.
"Not." She came back again.
"Too, infinity." He pulled out the big guns.
"Not, infinity plus one." Xander opened his mouth, but didn't speak. "Amateur."
"Children." Giles returned with the book, and was flipping through it. "Ah, yes, here we are. There's a reference here to the journal of Desmond Kane, pastor of a town called Sharpsville. 'May 26, 1723. Tomorrow is the Ascension. God help us all.' It was the last anyone heard."
"Of Kane?" Wesley asked.
"Of Sharpsville. The town more or less disappeared."
"So Ascension possibly not a love-in." Buffy said, expecting confirmation.
"I think you should meet with this demon."
"Yeah? Anybody got five thousand dollars?"
They all looked at Cordelia.
"What?" The cheerleader realized what it was they wanted. "Does he take MasterCard?"
"Probably not."
"Then you can count me out of this."
"We could do a school fundraiser...make up some excuse?" Willow offered.
"People didn't even give the football team money for new uniforms. I don't think they're gonna help the school weirdoes."
"I think our official name is 'The Freak Club' now." Xander clarified.
"It's a step up from, 'Those people who hang out with that guy who likes books'." Oz realized.
"Tell you what. Why don't we try to find this demon sooner rather than later? Perhaps persuade him to lend us the books free of charge." Wesley said.
"Persuasion. Like the sound of that." Faith grinned.
"Do we know where he is?" The blonde asked.
"Nope. But I can fix that. Willy's always fun to mess with." She got up, and gave Buffy a kiss before walking towards the doors. She turned to look at Xander. "Is not."
***
Buffy excused herself from class, and was walking the hallways. She
was getting nervous waiting for Faith to come back with information. As
she passed by the computer lab, she caught a glimpse of red hair. Smiling,
she backtracked, and entered the air-conditioned room. Her lips curved
downward, though, as Willow came into view.
After the year was over, she might never see the hacker again. Willow
had yet to decide where she where she was going to college, and that was
probably because every educational institution wanted her to enroll with
them. Not that Buffy could blame them, but Willow was her best friend,
who was supposed to be there at her side forever.
She couldn't say anything to affect her decision, though. She had to let Willow make it on her own. Faith had been right about that.
"Buffy!" Willow said happily when she saw the blonde. Then her brow
furrowed.
"Shouldn't you be in class?"
"Possibly. I don't really remember..." The slayer said innocently.
"Buffy." The second time Willow said her name, it had a sterner edge to it.
"Fine, fine. If you don't want me around..." She pouted.
The redhead sighed, feeling guilty. Buffy was good at that when she wanted to be. She pulled out the swivel chair that was for the computer next to the one she was using, and pointed to it.
"Sit."
"If you insist." She took the offered seat. "What're you up to?"
"Looking at Wicca sites, seeing what I can learn. Breaking into the
Mayor's files. And I tried searching for anything on the Ascension."
"Any luck?"
"Nope."
"Oh well. Something'll go our way eventually." She was quiet for a
few moments; the only sound was the clicking of the mouse. "So you really
want to do the magick thing, huh?"
"Yep. Ever since I did the...Restoration spell...the power...it's amazing.
And imagine what I could do if I got really good at it." Then she had her
'worry face' on.
"But?"
"If I go away, what good will it do me?"
"You could turn the dean into a goat."
"Why would I want to do that?"
Buffy shrugged. "Every TV show I've seen says deans are evil."
"I dunno what I wanna do. It could affect the rest of my life, you
know?"
"Uh huh." 'Mine too.' The blonde thought. "Relax, though. You
have time."
"So...Faith's not back yet?" Buffy shook her head. "I'm sure she's
okay."
"I'm sure she is too." She paused. "You get that fluttery feeling in
your stomach when you think about Oz, right?"
Willow nodded with a dreamy smile. "Mm hmm."
"I had it four years ago with Faith. I didn't know what it was then,
but now I know that I've always...even when we had to say goodbye, and
I got older, she was in the back of my mind all the time. It's just so
perfect. The only black cloud was Allan, and it was tough..."
"I remember."
"But we made it through. It could have gone badly, but it didn't. God,
Will...I think, if neither of us," She wasn't going to say the 'D' word,
"well, I think I could spend the rest of my life with her. It sounds crazy,
and it's still early in our relationship, I know, but now that I have her,
I don't wanna let her go."
The redhead was stunned into silence.
"Not crazy." She found her voice. "You're so happy. I love seeing you
happy."
"I definitely like it." The slayer smiled. "Can you see that happening
with you and Oz?"
"I think about it a lot. I'd really like it to happen. Depending on where -" Willow stopped when she saw the brightness fade a little from her friend's face. "You want me to go to college here, don't you?"
Buffy was having an inner struggle with herself, but couldn't hold it
in.
"Faith told me not to tell, cause I shouldn't influence your choice, but
yeah. I want you to stay. If you left I...my happiness level would drop.
Plummet. It wouldn't be..." She sighed. "I'll support you, whatever you
do."
They hugged.
***
Faith had gotten the demon's address from Willy easily. She still couldn't
figure out how a coward like that was a proprietor of a bar for demons,
and how come they hadn't torn him apart. Then again, she guessed that they
liked the guy who got them drunk. Or whatever demons came there for. She
didn't want to know, really.
Making a side-trip to Restfield, she stopped by Allan's grave. She
made a habit of it. She didn't stay very long, just a minute or two. Didn't
bring anything either. Faith just went there to remind him, and herself,
that she didn't forget him or the promise she had made. She wouldn't heal
completely, or get full closure, until the Mayor was dead. He probably
couldn't truly rest until his ex-boss was dead, either.
Thinking about that, she had to hurry to get Buffy, so they could look
up the demon that had the books. Once they got them, it'd put them one
step closer to stopping the Mayor. And the sooner they could end his plans,
the happier she would be. Then she, Buffy, and the gang, could take a breather.
It would be summer, and she already had something in mind for a vacation.
They could go back to where it all started. Back to simpler, less stress
filled times. Back to where they first met and fell in love. She could
go back to her roots a free, changed, person. One who found what she had
fled for. She searched and searched, and it had paid off.
She was in deep now, and had no intention of trying to get out.
***
The slayers did eventually track down the demon. Several parts of him
lying on the floor of a motel room. They searched the place, but whoever
killed him, took the Books of Ascension. Even though they despised the
Mayor, they had to give him credit. He knew how to cover his bases. Exactly
how he knew everything that was going on was still a bit of a mystery,
though.
There was no getting around it now. Finding out more about the Mayor
was priority. He had to have a network of vampires and demons to do his
dirty work, but how did he get that network? Getting to be the top guy
in a town on a Hellmouth had to take some time and power. It didn't just
happen overnight.
And there was another thing too. For two years nobody heard a peep
out of City Hall, and they had never suspected anything. Suddenly, this
year, it became a big deal. The Mayor hired Trick. His deputy fled. Why
now? It was probably a good assumption that, whatever the Ascension was,
there was a reason it was happening now, and that it probably directly
affected Richard Wilkins III.
So, Buffy and Faith went back and told Giles and Wesley the disappointing
news. Everyone hated dead-ends. After awhile of thinking, however, Oz came
up with a brilliant idea. To go to the Hall of Records and check up on
the Mayor and the history of the town that way. The files were open to
the public, and it would arouse nobody's suspicions.
They were killing time at the Bronze for a few hours, waiting until
later at night to go to the Hall of Records. Wesley, Oz, Willow, Cordelia
and Xander were on research detail there, and Buffy and Faith were just
going to do a regular patrol. In case the Mayor had things keeping tabs
on them. Right now, the hacker, the werewolf, and the slayers were sitting
at a table. Their two other friends were dancing.
"They liked your plan." Willow said, proud of her boyfriend.
"It was a good plan." Buffy agreed. "Logical, practical...the foundation
of a good plan."
"I outdo myself sometimes." Oz was monotone.
Faith was drinking a root beer float. It was the closest she'd ever
get to real beer in the club. It wasn't helping her mood. She was pissed
at not getting the books and letting the Mayor get to that demon. The small,
horned creature might not have been a saint, but he wasn't hurting anybody.
He just wanted out, and the Mayor didn't even give him a chance. Another
death she couldn't prevent.
"With us?" Buffy moved her hand up and down, in front of Faith's face.
"Huh?" Faith asked, zoning back in.
"Where'd you go?"
"The Land of Chocolate."
"Chocolate's half-price there, you know." Oz said.
"That's the last time we watch a twenty-four hour Simpsons marathon."
The blonde swore.
"I can't believe FOX didn't have anything else to put on." Willow commented.
They all smirked.
"The X-Files." The guitarist pointed out.
"Dumbest thing I ever heard. Who would believe that aliens actually
exist? You'd have to be a real idiot." Faith said. "I mean...come on. People
should focus on reality."
"Like vampires, werewolves, witches and zombies?" Buffy asked with
a smile.
"Exactly."
"Stuff, that up until a few years ago, wasn't supposed to exist?"
"I already said -" Faith realized what Buffy was saying. "Shut up."
She muttered quietly, in a mixture of anger and embarrassment.
"You're so cute when you're angry."
"Think so?"
Buffy put her hand on the brunette's cheek, and nodded.
"I think...we'll just get Xander and Cordelia...go information gathering."
Willow said, getting up with her boyfriend.
"Good luck." The blonde said, closing in on the other slayer's lips.
"Yeah...good luck." Faith's voice was barely audible.
***
"Um...Faith? Why are we not going towards a cemetery?" Buffy asked as
they walked along the street.
"Cause we're goin' to City Hall to get the Books of Ascension." Faith
stated, as if it was completely obvious.
"Oh. Okay." What was she saying? "No. Wait. Not okay. The Mayor probably
beefed up security. We have no idea what could be waiting for us."
Faith turned around. "I'm sick of this guy. Do you always wanna be
one step behind him? Gotta be willing to go the extra mile, B."
"Course I'd like to be ahead for once, but we could die, and I really
don't want to."
"You think I do? We could bite it if we went into one of the cemeteries
too. But the difference is that, if we kill a few vamps, it gets us nowhere.
If we get the books..."
"I see your point." Buffy conceded. Even though the odds were against
them, her reasoning made sense.
"So you're in?"
She was silent for a second.
"I'm in."
The brunette smiled, and they continued on their way.
"Good." She remembered what she had been thinking about earlier. "How do you feel about takin' a trip? After this is all over and school lets out?"
"Where?"
"Where everybody knows your name."
"Washington D.C.?" Faith laughed. "Oh. Cheers? Boston!" She was excited now.
"I have no idea how we'd get there, but -"
"That's a great idea. Mom's got tons of frequent flyer miles. And the gang! We could show them everything...you think the tree's still there?"
"We'll find out, I guess." She hoped it was. "But first..."
Buffy sighed. City Hall was just down the next street. They could see it clearly, and their faces hardened at the sight of the building. Giving each other a look, confirming that they were ready and had each other's backs, they took deep breaths and went to get it done.
***
In the Hall of Records, Willow, Cordelia, Xander and Wesley were standing around a table, covered with books. So far, they hadn't found anything out of the ordinary.
"Hey! I know a way to make investigating the Mayor even more boring. On second thought, no, I don't." Cordelia said sarcastically.
"It is rather disheartening." Wesley admitted.
"You'd think there'd be a little bit of a paper trail." Xander said.
"He's careful." Willow frowned. "And I always thought that was such a good thing."
"For him it is. Just not for us."
"Hey, whoa." Oz remarked, bringing a book over to the table, and laying it down. He pointed to an old photo from the 1800's. It was the Mayor in the attire of the time, with facial hair. "Not careful enough."
"Whoa. Big hey whoa. Guys, check this out. Wow, like father, like son." His girlfriend said.
"How about like exact same guy, like exact same guy?"
"Mayor Wilkins is over one hundred years old. He's not human." The watcher realized.
"So what's this mean? Besides the fact that he's found the Fountain of Youth?" Cordelia asked.
"That he achieved his status, his power, over nearly a century. He has been preparing for this Ascension for quite some time, it seems. If he was indeed human once, his long life span was probably earned by working with various demons."
"He gives them a town to live in, they give him anything he wants. Like immortality." Xander said.
"Dealing with the Devil." Oz simplified it. "Or devils."
"So does that mean he can't die?" Willow wondered.
"Not necessarily. Immortality means that your body stops aging, and will never deteriorate. Never slow down..."
"Can he die or not?" Xander wanted to cut to the point.
"I was getting to that. Not by natural causes."
"Which are?"
"Old age and illness, which his body can combat. As long as Mayor Wilkins doesn't succumb to anything fatal...a well-aimed gunshot or stabbing...even tripping down a flight of stairs and breaking his neck, he could live for millennia. But they would all kill him." Wesley explained. "It's a gift as well as a curse."
"That's a rip off." The cheerleader remarked.
"But it's good for us. Finally." Willow said. "A weakness he overlooked."
"Yes. There may be hope yet." Wesley brightened.
***
"You know what I said about beefed up security? Forget it. It still
sucks."
Buffy and Faith walked into the Mayor's, unlocked office to find it
empty, after encountering no resistance trying to get in. An even bigger
shock, was that the five-volume set of books on the Ascension, was sitting
right on his desk. They were practically asking to be taken. Faith walked
up to the desk and flipped through the book on top of the pile.
"We got 'em. Let's split." She said.
Buffy's senses kicked in, then.
"Hang on. How come this feels like..."
"A set up?" The Mayor asked, appearing in the doorway. "Cause it sure
as heck is." He walked in, and they backed up, instinctively. Taking
his handkerchief out of his pocket, he began to clean the spot where Faith
had touched the book. "These are priceless. And that's why I couldn't pay
that grotesque looking fellow for them. It just...well, it just wouldn't
have been ethical."
"Ethical? You son of a -"
Faith started to step forward, as the Mayor sat behind his desk. Buffy put her arm in front of the other slayer, stopping the brunette's advance.
"That's what he wants." Buffy told her.
"It's wonderful to finally meet you girls. The stories I hear...it amazes me how motivated young people are today. Can I offer you something?" He reached into his desk and pulled out two Blow-Pops. "Lollipop?" They shook their heads as he looked at the candy. "How do they get the gum in there?"
"I don't...really know."
"Oh well. I guess some mysteries have to remain unsolved, huh?" He chuckled.
Was he evil or not?
"Sure..."
"What's the deal?" Faith was getting impatient.
"The deal, Miss Adams?" He smiled as he saw her disbelief at the fact that he knew her last name. "Two things, actually. First, I wanted to personally thank you for tying up a loose end for me. They can be such nuisances sometimes.
"I had such high hopes for Allan, but ultimately, he just became more and more of a detriment to my administration. He simply wasn't a team player, and you know, I just couldn't have that." He shook his head sadly.
"I didn't do it for you. I didn't even mean to do it." She said, her teeth clenched.
"Nevertheless, you still did, and I appreciate it."
"Why couldn't you? Didn't want his blood on your hands?" Buffy challenged.
"Absolutely not." Could he have a conscience? "Blood has all sorts of germs, diseases...very unhealthy." He cleared his throat. "Now, if you'd allow me, I'd like to show you something."
"Do we have a choice?"
He reached into his desk again, and this time, he brought out a knife with an intricately carved, metal handle. He set it down on the edge of the desk, blade facing him, and nodded to it. Faith stared at it, admiring the craftsmanship.
"It's an eye-catcher, all right. A real beauty. Go on, Faith. Pick it up." The brunette was suspicious, but did as she was told. The Mayor spread his arms out. "End my life. End both your troubles. Free shot."
Faith looked at her partner, then at the knife, and then at the Mayor. What was he trying to pull? She could hit him with it before he could even move. It would avenge Allan and all the others he had to have killed, and there would be no more Ascension. It would be so easy. It was so tempting too. She could stop him right now. She raised the knife, and pulled her arm back.
She was going to do it...she was going to do it...she...
Wasn't going to do it.
Setting the knife back on the table, she closed her eyes. Both in relief, and in anger, at not doing it. He might have been evil, but he was still human. And she couldn't do that. She couldn't kill another human being. Not again. She felt Buffy's hand on her shoulder, showing her support for making the right decision.
"I won't." Faith said.
"Then I will."
He picked up the knife, and shoved the blade into his chest. The slayers gaped, nearly jumping, at the unexpected move. They waited for blood, or any kind of reaction from him, but it never came. After a moment, he slowly pulled it out. The blade was covered with blood, but he was perfectly fine.
"That was...slightly uncomfortable." He began cleaning the blade with his handkerchief.
"H-how...?" Buffy stuttered.
"When I gave that Morte demon his tribute all those years ago, he promised the immortality, that I asked for in return, would be risk-free. Well, when I found out it wasn't..." His eyes got uncharacteristically dark. "He's no longer with us. Soon after, I came to realize that if I wanted some things done, I'd have to do them myself.
"So I did. And now I'm invincible. It was a...lengthy wait, but worth it. My point, kids," He chuckled again, "is that there's nothing you can do. Allan became unnecessary, as well as any 'security'. My Ascension will take place, so everything you've done to try and prevent it was useless, I'm afraid. It always upsets me when I see youth being wasted."
Vampires rushed into the room, and grabbed the two girls.
"Then again, it's always nice to have some security around. You can
never be too careful, am I right?" He addressed his employees. "Outside
please. I hate carpet stains." They started dragging the slayers out. "And
gosh, thanks for stopping by."
***
Behind City Hall, the six vampires threw the slayers down on the ground,
each pulled out a nine millimeter, and aimed.
"Guns? Isn't that too modern for you guys?" Faith asked, frozen.
"He wants it clean. Fast." One of them said. "We do what he wants."
"Loyalty's always a good quality." Buffy said, as she tried to back up.
"Stay still."
Buffy and Faith looked at one another. They were frightened. These were
their last moments on Earth. Never for a second did they think they'd ever
die in such a normal way. Of all things, they could've gotten their blood
drained, eaten, beheaded, poisoned, spontaneously combusted...but no, bullets
were going to kill them. At least they'd die together. They grasped hands,
drawing on each other for strength.
"I hope those guns are registered." Angel said, standing behind the
group of vampires. As they whirled around to face him, his face shifted
into its demonic visage. "If they're not, that means you're breaking the
law, and you need to be punished."
Their answer was a chorus of growls. Angel did a front kick, knocking a pistol out of one's hand. He kicked it away. He grabbed another pair by their heads, and smashed them together. They fell to the ground, dropping their weapons as well. The souled vampire's arrival let the slayers get up, and stay alive.
"'Breaking the law, and need to be punished'?" Faith asked Buffy with a smirk. "I think he should stick to the silent hero act."
They joined the fight, picking up the two stray guns they could reach. Faith struck a vampire in the temple with hers, and as he thudded to the grass, she took his gun into her other hand. Buffy swept another's legs, and he fell onto his back. She shoved the barrel into his mouth, and he gagged.
"Be smart. How much pain do you think you'll be in?" She said, pushing on the trigger. He handed over his gun. "Thanks so much. Now get gone."
The five weaponless vampires ran off. There was one who was sticking around. He was still armed.
"Following your buddies is a real good idea." Faith advised.
The vampire grinned, turned, and shot Angel in the stomach. The brunette didn't waste a second. First she shot the vampire's gun out of his hand, and then she shot him in the head. With both her pistols. She would have staked him, but their intended assassins took their stakes and destroyed them before they left the building. He wasn't getting up for awhile, so she joined Buffy at Angel's side.
"We gotta take it out." The blonde said to her.
"The mansion..." Angel said, grimacing.
"Fine, we'll move ya, Big Guy. But I'm tellin' you now, it's gonna hurt." Faith warned him. "So curse if you gotta."
***
"Just get me the kit." Faith said. "I told you that you didn't have
to get it out."
Buffy saw it on the mantle of the fireplace, and grabbed it. She knelt
beside Faith.
"Now what?" The petite slayer asked.
"Now he's gotta raise his arms so I can get his shirt off, and you
can get me tweezers outta there."
Angel did as he was told, and Faith pulled his white muscle shirt over
his head. She inspected the wound. The bullet wasn't that deep. She could
see it, and took the offered tweezers.
"It'll be okay, Angel. Just try not to move." Buffy told him.
"Ssh." Faith hissed.
"Sorry."
As she took hold of the object, she grinned. "You curse more than me."
With that, she yanked, and Angel gritted his teeth as the projectile came
out. Buffy cringed, looking away.
"How are you doing?" The vampire asked.
"Better than you." She reached into the kit and grabbed a bandage.
"I'm five by five. Thanks for savin' our lives."
"Yeah, Angel. Thanks. I mean it." Buffy said with a smile. "I thought
we were done for."
He didn't say anything. He just smiled back.
"They're here!" Willow called back to the gang, entering the mansion.
"We've been looking all over for -" She saw Faith applying the bandage.
"What happened?"
"Where should we start?" Buffy asked. "The whole thing was like a bad
mobster movie."
Everyone else came in. Giles too. After Faith was finished, Angel put
his shirt back on, and slowly stood up. The slayers followed suit.
"We found out about the Mayor." Xander said.
"Us too."
"Real nice guy. Until he tries to have you killed." Faith said sarcastically.
"You spoke to him?" Wesley asked.
"Are you all right?" Giles wanted to make sure.
"Uh huh. Angel came in the knick of time." Buffy assured them.
"How do you manage to do that, anyway?" Faith asked.
"It's a talent." The vampire said.
"There's good news...actually there is no good news, is there?" Cordelia
said.
Wesley opened his mouth to speak, but the brunette slayer cut him off.
"Trust me, Wes. It's all bad news."
***
The girls decided to have an unannounced sleepover. The hopelessness
got to them, and they figured being around each other would help take their
minds off it. So far it wasn't working. Buffy and Faith kept reflecting
on the close call they had barely escaped earlier, Willow was thinking
that her debate over which college to pick would be pointless, and Cordelia
was struggling with a more personal problem.
Never before had they had no options whatsoever. No apparent way to
beat the big evil. It wasn't looking good, and as Buffy and Faith sat on
the couch, and Willow and Cordelia sat up against it, they pretended things
were looking good, half-heartedly laughing at a sitcom. On the slightly
positive side of things, they were all still alive, and as long as they
were, there might still be a chance at stopping the Ascension.
But they still weren't making any long range plans. Especially not
a return trip to Boston. Buffy scooted down on the sofa, and laid down
so her head was resting on Faith's lap. The brunette started stroking her
hair softly. Willow grabbed the blonde's hand, and Cordelia grabbed hers.
They stayed that way until the four of them were tired enough to go
to sleep.
--
"I wanna set the record straight. I thought the cop was a prostitute."
(Homer J. Simpson)
"You think you know? What's to come? What you are? You haven't even
begun."
(Tara to Buffy, BTVS)
"Since when is there a cowboy in 'Death of a Salesman' anyway?" (Willow,
BTVS)