Re: Fic; Life: Version 2.0 (3/?)

[JDMeans@xxxxxxx]

In a message dated 5/13/2003 9:25:26 AM Pacific Daylight Time, 
danspector@xxxxxxxxx writes:

> The idea that Willow falls prey to the flu instead of Buffy works
> well—she's the one who's emotionally vulnerable and we know that can
> affect the immune system. Sorry to see Will hasn't gotten around to
> filling the group in on pending menaces yet, not just for the kids the
> Kindestod is after, but I really wish someone would pull the swim team
> out of the steam room. (Gage, at least, doesn't deserve it, IMO.)
> 

Thanks for the feedback, Dan. This little story is definitely growing beyond 
its original parameters. Truth be told, my original plan was to have Spike 
go totally mad after Dru's death and have him attempt to summon Alcaltha.  
Then, however, I realized that without Dru torturing Giles and impersonating 
Jenny, I couldn't come up with a suitable way for Spike to discover the 
proper spell. Oh well, planning was never Spike's strong suit.

I'm hard at work on Chapter 4, then I plan to follow up with Life: Version 
2.02(or something like that, any suggestions?), which will follow season 
three. If you crave details, follow the

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Okay, still there?

Chapter four deals with the ramifications of Joyce learning about Buffy's 
night job. Don't worry, she takes it better than she did in canon. Only 
just, though. Meanwhile, Willow slowly recovers from the flu, but reveals 
that she intentionally infected herself in an effort to fight Der Kinderstod 
herself and not worry Buffy. This naturally worries Buffy no end, but the 
two of them work out a plan to take down DK("Left hook, Buffy! Two feet 
lower! To the right! Your other right!" Or not.).  

V 2.02; Willow slowly finds her groove as she relives the last four years of 
her life. Jenny has taken to instructing her on magic, specifically the 
discipline and understanding needed to control her powers and not let them 
control her. Jenny and Giles have married, and while on their honeymoon they 
locate Tara, confronting her family and taking legal custody of her. Now 
Tara is a student at Sunnydale with Willow and Buffy, leaving to some 
interesting relationship possibilities(no, I'm not doing a three-way).  
Willow deals with her emotions for Tara, who doesn't know her that well and 
is kinda thrown by this more intense Willow.

Then word comes from the Council that Kendra was killed in battle with 
Kakistos, and the new slayer Faith enters the picture. Willow feels a 
connection to the dark Slayer, recalling her own bout of darkness, and hopes 
to save her from herself. This newfound closeness between Willow and Faith 
gets under Buffy's skin and may light a fire under her butt as re: a certain 
redheaded hacker.

And of course there's the whole matter of Mayor Wilkins and the Ascencion.  
Thanks to an anonymous tip, Mr. Snyder has been fired from his post as 
principal for turning his back on the swim team coach and the school nurse 
dispensing performance enhancers. The school board then appoints Giles as 
the new principal, and while Wilkins is willing to let Snyder twist slowly in 
the wind, he's not pleased to have a principal he can't manipulate(example, 
his decision to have the school band sell raffle tickets instead of candy 
bars)(Actually, Tony McD wanted to see a band candy plot involving a possible 
three-way between Ripper, Jenny and Joyce! Even I have my limitations!).  
Naturally, Willow informs the Scoobs about the Ascension, and the gang search 
for the Box of Gavrok before Hizzonah can get his mitts on it. However, 
Mayor Wilkins has been around for over three centuries. He's got at least 
one back-up plan that Willow doesn't know about...

A few plotlines I haven't figured out how they'll work in the 2.0-verse, and 
some I probably won't do; since Willow plans to sidestep the Fluke(Lover's 
Walk), Cordy won't dump Xander and make her wish around Anya, and we probably 
won't have Vamp Willow. Also I haven't worked out how I'm going to handle 
the Cruciamentum(will Willow confront Giles, or will Giles hypnotize her to 
forget about it?), or Earshot. If you have any ideas, let me know off-list.  
Thanks.

Hope that scratches your curiosity and whets your appetite for more. Talk at 
you later, 

Kirayoshi