Fic: Delicate Cruelty (5/?)

[Erin <erin@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Here's chapter 5, thanks to everyone who stuck through the Buffy and
Faith-less chapter 4. :) I think you'll like this one a bit better.

Oh, and chapter 6 is going to be delayed a little bit; blame it on
Diablo II. :) I'm having difficulty managing my addiction.

Thanks!

Erin

TITLE: Delicate Cruelty
AUTHOR: Erin (erin@xxxxxxxxxxx)
SPOILERS: Through Season 4 BtVS and Angel
RATING: R, because of some language, violence and adult situations.
It is a Buffy/Faith fic, so if that bothers you, or it's illegal to
even think of two Slayers getting it on, then just don't read it. Or
move.
DISCLAIMER: Buffy the Vampire Slayer and all characters (except mine)
belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, and Fox. I'm just borrowing them
for a bit. I'll put them back when I'm done, no worse for wear (but
maybe a little happier).
ARCHIVE: Anyone who wants to archive my stories is welcome to, just
let me know so I can add you to my website links. Thanks.
FEEDBACK: Constructive comments are encouraged.
WARNING: Contains some character death, character undeath, and
torture. Reader discretion is advised.
SUMMARY: (Buffy/Faith) A sadistic vampire's plan for domination
forces Buffy and Faith to join forces.


Chapter 5

"So who was she?" Willow wondered aloud, after Giles had finished
describing his late-night encounter with the mysterious vampire. "And
who do you think sent her?" The hacker shivered at the thought of
another cunning vampire stalking the night in Sunnydale; not for the
first time, she wished she had been able to get ahold of Buffy, and
tell her the news. As it was, the best she could do was to leave a
message with Mrs. Summers to have Buffy stop by as soon as she could.

Giles shrugged from where he lay on the couch, propped up by a few
pillows Tara had gathered from upstairs. He was starting to look
stronger, probably due to the rest he was getting and the orange juice
that the girls kept plying him with. Well, that, and the healing
spell that Willow and Tara performed probably had something to do with
it.

"I don't know. I should have known that girl was no teenager; she was
far too polite." Willow and Tara both gave Giles a look, and he
quickly continued. "I'd like to have you two start going through the
Watchers' diaries, looking for someone who fits her description. From
the way she spoke, it seemed as if she were from the nineteenth
century, perhaps earlier." His brow furrowed, and the ex-Watcher
pinched the bridge of his nose, as if to stem a rising headache. Tara
had brought up the fact that he shouldn't be given any pain-killers
because a lot of them thinned the blood, and Giles already had
dangerously low blood pressure.

The hacker nodded, busily jotting down some notes on the vampire's
description. "What book did she take? I mean, it's probably
important, considering she took the book and left everything else in
the house alone. Except for you, I mean." She gave the older man a
half-smile in apology.

Giles looked over at his bookshelf, his brow furrowed in thought. "I
believe the one she took was a translation of the early teachings of
Simon Magus. Yes, that was the title, _The Teachings of Simon
Magus_."

Tara looked back and forth between Willow and Giles. "Who's Simon
Magus?"

Giles cleared his throat in preparation for what Willow called
'lecture mode.' "Simon Magus was a famous magician who lived during
the reign of Emperor Claudius of the Roman Empire. Depending on whose
account you read, he was either the first Gnostic or the first
Christian heretic. Supposedly he would travel the land casting out
demons, healing, raising the dead, and so on..."

Willow shared a glance with Tara. "Sounds familiar," she murmured.

Giles nodded at the two girls. "It should. He also claimed to be the
Son of God. According to him, if someone would accept his Gnosis, or
knowledge, they would be saved from the demons of the lower planes.
Many followers gathered behind Simon, and according to the stories,
they were taught the ability to perform magical acts as well.
Eventually, as the tale goes, Simon finished his work on Earth, and
his last act was to ascend into Heaven.

"The Gnostics, with their emphasis on knowledge and the wisdom of the
self, soon ran afoul of the early Christians, who emphasized faith and
community. They were branded a heretical movement, and actions were
taken to attempt to wipe them out."

"So what's in the book?" Tara asked, listening intently.

"Precisely what the title says. The magical rituals and teachings
that Simon passed down to his followers. Healing the sick, changing
water into wine, calming the seas, that sort of thing," Giles tossed
off, seemingly unconcerned.

Willow's eyebrows came together in alarm. "All that and ascending
into Heaven too?"

Giles nodded. "That's in there too, of course. The ultimate magical
ritual."

"You don't seem very concerned about this, considering how powerful
those spells are," Willow noted, worry evident in her voice.

"Willow, it's all hyperbole and metaphor," Giles countered. "There
isn't really a spell you can do from that book to control the weather,
or change water into wine, or ascend into Heaven. It's all about
seeking inner wisdom, and once you've achieved that level of
self-awareness, you're supposedly able to perform those acts, like
Jesus did, and like Simon did."

"S-so why would a vampire want to steal that book?" Tara asked softly.

Giles frowned, his eyes taking on a grim cast. "I wish I knew."

* * *

"I want her off my couch, Angel!" Cordelia fumed.

The vampire spared a look for the person in question, a brunette
Slayer who was sprawled on said couch, busily munching popcorn and
watching the latest Tae-bo infomercial on television.

"She never cleans up around here, she expects me to do her laundry --
as _if_ -- and I never get the remote control!" Cordelia crossed her
arms as if that were the last straw. "If I want to watch my shows, I
have to get Dennis to change the channel for me."

"Cordelia, you know this is just for a few days--"

"It's already been a few days! Actually, it's already been several
days, Angel. Just when do you think that new place of yours is going
to be finished, anyway?"

"Probably a little while longer." Angel looked at Cordelia, staring
at her with that 'soulful pleading' look that was always so good at
getting him what he wanted. "Look, she needs our help, right now more
than ever. I think I'm getting through to her, we just need a little
more time."

Cordelia stood there, arms crossed, and regarded Angel for a long
minute. If the vampire had to breathe, he would have been holding his
breath right at that moment.

"Ok," she finally replied, "but just three more days. And it's not
because of that brooding look you're giving me, either."

"I was going for soulful," Angel replied sheepishly, allowing his
satisfaction to show only as a small twitch at one corner of his
mouth.

"Well, they all come out looking like 'brooding'," Cordelia grumbled,
stalking off toward the refrigerator.

Angel sighed as he turned to regard Faith, seeing more than just her
outward appearance. The fire, the energy that always shone in her
eyes just beyond mortal ken had seemingly been extinguished. She
seldom bothered to respond when people spoke to her anymore; after
that night Angel found her, she had flat-out refused to talk about the
past. Faith just lay there, day after day, eating whatever they put
in front of her, her flat brown eyes staring at the television.

Angel knew that Faith was used to action; she used to proudly tell
people that she never felt more alive than when she was fighting.
More than once, Angel wondered if maybe he should take the girl
slaying; he really wasn't convinced that it was the right thing to do
so soon, however. She still seemed to have nightmares about the blood
she spilled long ago; he didn't want to put her in a position where
she'd have to spill blood again. And yet, Faith just lay there,
unwilling to visit the sins of her past, and unwilling to participate
in her future.

"Yeah, just a few more days," Angel whispered, feeling as unsure and
lost as Faith looked.

* * *

Buffy practically skipped through the front door of her home, tossing
her purse on a convenient chair in the living room. She was in an
uncommonly good mood, lately, and why shouldn't she be? Vampire
activity was way down since Adam had been dealt with, leaving her
spending less time on patrol, and more time doing the stuff that she
wanted to do: like going to the mall, with Riley; sitting in coffee
shops, with Riley; and just generally hanging out -- with Riley.

Buffy knew that she was spending an awful lot of time with her
boyfriend recently, and probably, to some small extent, falling back
into the habit of neglecting the other people in her life. But they
all had stuff they were doing too, didn't they? Her mom had the
gallery; she was working there really hard recently. Willow had Tara,
and Buffy knew those two were spending a lot of time together. Xander
had Anya; they had gone on some road trip up to the San Bernadino
mountains, a place Anya said she hadn't seen since she granted some
wish to have a cheating ski instructor shot to death. Giles...he was
probably doing some Giles-y stuff with books. Or maybe writing
letters. Giles seemed like the correspondence type.

"Well, hello, young lady." A voice stopped Buffy dead right at the
foot of the stairs. Putting on her best, brightest smile, she turned
to face the speaker.

"Hi mom! Back from the gallery this early?"

Joyce leaned against the entryway separating the foyer from the dining
room. "Yes, I decided to take a long lunch break, since I've been
working so much overtime."

"Hey, that's great. You have been working hard, you deserve some time
off." Meant to be a conversation-ender, Buffy turned toward the
stairs. It wasn't that she was avoiding her mother, exactly, the
Slayer realized, just that she was avoiding the lecture which was sure
to come any minute.

"Maybe I do. Maybe you deserve some time off, too. All this Slayer
stuff must really be taking up a lot of your time, considering how
many nights you've been gone," Joyce replied smoothly, with an arched
eyebrow.

Buffy winced internally. "Um, yeah, kinda. Well, you know how it
is..."

"I know exactly how it is," Joyce responded with a motherly stare that
told Buffy she knew precisely how her daughter was spending her time,
and with whom. "Buffy, I know you're the Slayer, but that doesn't
mean--"

"Mom, please," Buffy interrupted gently. "Later?" She fixed her
mother with a pouty, pleading stare that she knew always worked to
good effect. Sure enough, her mother sighed, breaking off the
impending lecture.

"Just as long as there is a later," her mother replied wearily.

Buffy immediately brightened. "I promise. I gotta run and get my
swimsuit. Riley's new apartment has a pool!"

Joyce smiled, Buffy's enthusiasm proving contagious. "Ok, but before
you go, Willow called. She said she had something really important to
tell you, and she needs you to meet them at Mr. Giles's house."

Buffy frowned a bit, her curiosity piqued. "Huh. I wonder what's up.
Ok, I'll stop by there on my way back to Riley's. You're the best,
mom." Giving her mother a quick peck on the cheek, Buffy raced
upstairs to gather her things.

* * *

Willow set down the book she was reading, and rubbed her tired eyes.
She, Tara, and Giles had been looking through his extensive collection
of Watchers' diaries, trying to find some reference to the vampire
he'd described. So far, they had covered everything from the present
back to the early 1800s, and found nothing.

"Either she's a real stickler for privacy, or she's a lot older than
we thought she was," the hacker said, breaking the dusty silence.

Giles nodded absently. "I have to agree. Perhaps her path and that
of the Watchers do not cross that often."

"Or maybe she just kills everyone before they have a chance to talk
about her," Willow muttered, with uncharacteristic pessimism.

Tara looked over at her girlfriend worriedly. "You ok?" she asked,
rubbing Willow's knee softly.

Willow gave the blonde witch a half-smile. "Yeah. I'm just getting a
really bad vibe from this, y'know? I mean, summers are supposed to be
calm, a time for us to rest and recoup from all the horrible stuff we
see the other nine months."

"We've fought things during the summer before, Willow," Giles
responded, looking at her with concern. "Granted, this feels
different somehow..."

"That's just it," Willow replied glumly, "it feels different. This
isn't just your regular vampire gang, or heart-eating demon. She had
a _plan_, Giles." The hacker sighed heavily. "I just wish Buffy were
here."

"Well, wish no more, my Willow-shaped friend," Buffy said, closing the
front door behind her. "I'm here. So what's got you guys in such a
gloom?"

* * *

Buffy listened as Giles recounted his story of the previous night,
particularly his description of the vampire who had invaded his home.
Well, as much of an invasion as a vampire could manage, since they had
to be invited inside.

"So, you think she was working with this other vampire, the one you
dusted, to create a diversion so you'd let her in?" Buffy asked, all
business now.

Giles nodded. "First she tried to get me to invite her in using the
broken down car trick. When that didn't work, she tried something a
little more elaborate. I'm ashamed to say it worked."

"And this was all so that she could get her hands on that book?" the
Slayer asked, trying to work out the angle. "Why would she need that
book so badly? And excuse me for asking, but why didn't she just kill
you and enter your house once you had died?"

The ex-Watcher blinked; it appeared that was something he had not
considered. "I-I'm not sure why not. She had ample opportunity to
kill me, but she didn't. She even went so far as to make a point of
telling me that she wouldn't kill me." He lapsed into silence for a
moment, as if considering for the first time exactly how lucky he was.

"Giles, the book?" Buffy prodded gently.

That seemed to snap him out of it. "Ah, right, the book. As far as
that goes, we're not sure why she wanted it. It's not exactly freely
available, but many scholars have copies of it. Why she'd need it
here, and now, I'm honestly not sure."

"We've been reading through the diaries to try to find some background
on her," Willow piped up, "but we haven't found anything yet."

Buffy nodded sharply in acknowledgement. "Ok, you guys keep looking,
let me know if you find anything." She scribbled out Riley's phone
number on a piece of paper. "If you do, call me. I'll keep an eye
out tonight when I go on patrol, and see if I can get anyone to talk.
Someone has to have seen her. And don't worry, guys," Buffy said,
giving them her most confident smile. "Once I find her, she'll be
dust. No problem." Giving her friends a small wave, Buffy left.

Willow smiled to herself, and started flipping through her book again.
She knew she could count on Buffy, they all could; she was the Slayer,
and now, she was on the job.

* * *

Night had fallen, and Trinity crept silently through the bushes,
watching the entrance to the small, filthy crypt. Horrendous places,
these stale tombs and dank caves; not for the first time, she wondered
why any vampire would be caught dead, no pun intended, in any one of
them. And yet, most vampires _chose_ to live in those rank places.

Thank God that Father Sedona loved his creature comforts. Since her
Turning, Trinity had lived in spacious villas, luxurious townhouses,
and elegantly-furnished hotel rooms. She had certainly lived better
when she was a vampire than when she was alive, sharing a two-room
thatched house with her parents and three siblings. Before it had
been burned down by the English, that is; just their bad luck to be in
the way of one of Cromwell's armies, she thought bitterly. The family
had travelled hard after that, trying to reach her father's sister in
the hope that she would be able to provide them with some shelter.
Trinity never got that far, though, the men came to take her away long
before that...

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sight of a shadowy figure
emerging from the crypt, a tall, lean man with short-cropped blonde
hair so light it was almost white. He looked around cautiously, more
like a rabbit than the wolf he should have been. Trinity shook her
head sadly, and stepped out of the bushes.

The rustling vegetation caused the man to start, and he gave her a
sharp look before relaxing somewhat. "Christ, but you gave me a
fright," the man said, his punk British accent annoying her. "Who are
you, lurking around like that?" He pulled out a pack of cigarettes,
and lit one with only mildly shaking hands.

"William, I've warned you before about taking the name of Our Lord in
vain," Trinity replied with a small smile. "Besides, is that any way
to greet an old friend?"

The man looked at her more closely this time, his eyes registering
shock. "Trinity? Is that you?" He took a half-step backward before
collecting himself, gathering indifference around him like a suit of
armor. "How have you been, luv?"

"Very well, William. I'm glad you remember me. I certainly remember
you." Trinity gave him a wide smile, meant to reassure.

"Yeah, well, you're a hard one to forget. And I should know. What
has it been, eighty, ninety years?"

"Closer to ninety, I believe. In Prague." Trinity took a deep
breath, her voice filled with memory. "Walking along the Golden Lane
by gaslight. And that old Romani woman that your Drusilla was so
interested in. Speaking of whom, where is dear Drusilla? I don't
picture her easily living in some old, musty crypt." Trinity made a
show of glancing around, but it was simply that: a show. The Father
had already informed her about several pertinent details of William's
life.

William rubbed a hand over his jaw. "Yeah, well, me and Dru split up
awhile ago. I got other things going on now. Plans. Big plans. Ah,
by the way," his eyes shifted about nervously, "if you're here, does
that mean...?"

"Oh yes," Trinity said smoothly, "the Father is here as well. Which
is part of the reason why I came to talk to you, you see, he's very
interested in your help, William. If you can delay some of your big
plans, that is."

He nodded reluctantly. "Ah, sure. And...call me Spike. Everyone
else around here does, anyway."

Trinity smiled. "Certainly. Follow me, Spike."

END Chapter 5
-- 
Friends don't let friends eat natto.
*email: erin@xxxxxxxxxxx
*web: http://www.heckman.net/erin