Chapter 1
Willow sat starring out the widow at the huge
black raven perched in he big old oak tree in the woods behind their townhouse. <Yes
she said yes! > Willow thought for about the millionth time
She marveled at how much a simple three letter
word could affect her life. Just one syllable and her entire life up to now was validated.
All the heartache and pain every moment of self-indulgent teenage angst all made
worthwhile by a little three letter word.
She smiled wistfully as she remembered the way
Buffy had slid off her chair and onto her knees so she was face to face with Willow and
the tears of joy in both their eyes as she repeated herself over and over punctuating each
yes with a kiss.
Willow had no idea how long they'd remained on the
floor of the private dinning room in each other’s arms. In fact she didn't remember
leaving the restaurant but she did remember finally reaching their own bed and the next
few hours after that until both she and Buffy had collapsed
into an exhausted sleep. What she didn't remember
didn't matter to Willow all she needed to remember was: <Buffy said YES! >
................................
In an unimpressive little office deep in the
bowels of the Vatican library complex a very agitated old priest was franticly punching
keys on the computer facing him trying to call up the
files he'd been in charge of for over twenty
years. Panic gripped him when every code he put
in failed to produce the information he requested.
As a last resort he put in his private
code that gave him access to the library's main
frame but even accessing the hard drive failed to produce results. All he could get on his
screen was a picture of an intricate Celtic knot with two interlocking rings superimposed
over it. Frustrated, he finally had to admit failure and shut down his computer. He took
an official memo pad out of his desk and wrote his first and possibly his last note to the
Archbishop, it was short but carried far-reaching consequences, all it said was:
The
Black Files are gone.
Q
He put the memo into a carrier and put that into
the old fashioned pneumatic tube that went directly to the Arch-Bishop's private quarters
and look worriedly at the computer. “This doesn't bode well,” he muttered to
himself. He'd been afraid of this ever since all those dangerous old files had been put
into the system and an unexpected flood had destroyed all the originals.
Now all that knowledge and lore was gone lost
forever, he was right, this did not bode well at all.
If he'd been younger and his eyesight less dimmed
by years of staring at the computer screen
Father Quintin might have noticed the small dark
figure separate from the shadows, and slip out his door to take this news to his master.
..........................
It was late on a very dark night when the private
Lear jet landed at the small airstrip deep in the undeveloped Central American rain
forest. The heavily cloaked passenger was met by a black four-wheel drive vehicle with
dark tinted windows that took him to a well maintained but long forgotten stone mansion.
The dark stranger stepped out of the car and went quickly into the house without waiting
for an invitation. He went directly to the dimly lit study.
Sitting behind an expansive ironwood desk in a
large leather chair was a huge black skinned demon with glowing red eyes and sharp white
teeth. “It has been a long time my brother,” the demon said in a raspy nails on
a chalk board voice.
“Yes, fortunately, I was told you have a job
for me,” the dark figure answered his deep menacing voice clearly showing his
impatience. “I do not have the time for polite amenities.”
“Remember your place Count Kresis,” the
demon warned. “I come directly from our master and as his messenger I have the power
to have you destroyed.”
The dark figure threw off his black leather duster
revealing the tall dark haired dark skinned man like creature for the first time since
he'd left his home in the Romanian Mountains two days ago. He could have almost passed as
human if not for his glowing red eyes razor sharp teeth with long needle like fangs, and
long extra jointed fingers that ended in razor sharp talons. “Do not threaten
me,” he roared grabbing the edge of the desk his talons sinking into the hardwood,
“I am still a Count of the First Circle even if I am exiled in this backward
place.”
The black skinned demon cringed back from the
count's outburst fear clearly written on his features. Seeing that he had gotten his point
across Kresis calmed himself. “Now what does our master wish me to do?” he asked
impatiently. “More importantly what's in it for me?”
“The rewards are quite substantial,” the
demon said relieved to be back on familiar ground. He slid a list across the desk.
“That plus the master's support in the council on your petition to return.”
“Impressive” Kresis quipped as he read
the list, “For all this ‘generosity’ what is expected of me?”
“The Slayer and the Sorceress have become
aware of each other and their special bond,” the demon said. “If they complete
the joining they will be able to close the Hellmouth thus thwarting the master's plans and
as you know that will strand you here.”
“Where are they?” he asked “and
what is required of me?”
“You must stop them from joining,” the
demon said, then with an evil grin he added, “They reside directly over the Hellmouth
in a town the humans call Sunnydale.”
“This is ridiculous, you know I can't enter
the area of the Hellmouth,” the Count protested. “I'll have to use troops. What
are available for me to use?”
“The usual.” the demon answered.
Resigned the count collapsed into an overstuffed
easy chair, his heavily muscled seven-foot frame sprawled out casually. “Second rate
demons and vampires against the Chosen One and her Sorceress who also just happen to
Sisters of the Soul” he sighed. “I hope our master realizes the impossible task
he has set for me. I will do my best but to be honest I can only work with what I'm
given.” He rose and put on his leather duster then bowed slightly to the demon behind
the desk. “I will strive to follow the commands of our master." He said and
stepped out of the room and was headed back to the airstrip within minutes.
“What do you think?” said a disembodied
female voice from the shadows, “Will he succeed?”
“I truly do not know your grace,” the
demon said to the provocatively dressed darkly beautiful female disengaging herself from
the shadows. “There is much aligned against him, but fortune favors the brave.”
“In other words he will try and fail.”
she laughed, "The only question is will he live. Oh well, it
won't take much effort to open another portal and
our dear Count Kresis is expendable. Come my pet, I hear the inhabitants of this world are
quite a delicacy lets try some.”
“As you wish your grace,” the demon said
smiling wickedly knowing he would be allowed to feed well tonight, the mistress was in a
good mood.
She stepped to his side and let her taloned finger
trace the line of his jaw over his dry scaly
skin. “Maybe we will find one to play
with,” she purred and smiled revealing two rows of razor sharp teeth and fangs,
“before we use her for a late snack.”
“Gods I love my job.” the demon sighed,
his long forked tongue flicked out then back.
The female laughed maniacally as she led the way
out followed closely by her pet demon. She was pleased with her pet, he had performed his
part well, Kresis hadn't suspected a thing.
Chapter 2
Kresis sat sprawled out comfortably in the custom
made seat of his private jet as it flew steadily northward. He was contemplating the
latest twist of fate in his ill-fated existence. Somehow his name had been brought up to
the Darklord and Master of his kind. The only thing he was certain of was that somehow
Hela was behind it. She who had once been his mate had hated him ever since the council
had exiled him instead of having him destroyed, that made him a loose end and she hated
loose ends. At one time she'd been his co-conspirator in a bid for power but politics on
his home world, Tarsus, were competitive and often deadly and in the finest tradition of
the first circle Hela had betrayed him and turned him over to his rivals on the
council.
She had counted on them destroying him but they
had exiled him to this backward world instead of executing him. Now he was on his way back
to a gods forsaken place he hadn't seen since his first unpleasant day on this world.
<I've come full circle> he thought darkly <and still I'm not in control of my own
life>
As his plane streaked through the black velvet
night sky carrying him to his ultimate fate, cursing his mortal enemy, Hela, and trying to
figure out her place in all this. His thoughts were interrupted by the voice of his human
pilot coming over the intercom.
“We are getting ready to land Lord
Kresis,” the voice said Are there any further instructions?”
“Just land this blasted thing." Kresis
said irritably, “We should be expected, those fools on the ground are to be
ready.” <These humans have no imagination, they're only good for servants or
food> he thought disgustedly. <One way or another it ends here. >
...............................
Willow was beside herself with frustration, her
mother was slowly turning a supposedly simple wedding into a major social event. Every
time she turned around her mother was there making changes of some kind or another.
Buffy's mother was a little better but not much, it was Giles theory that both women were
trying to make up for whatever past mistakes they'd made by overcompensating with the
wedding arrangements.
One of their major skirmishes had been over Willow
and Buffy's choices for their wedding party.
Willow's mother had wanted them to have Willow's
cousins as bridesmaids but on this one they had stood firm. Willow was going to have
Xander as her best man (or man of honor, as Willow put it.) and Buffy was going to have
Cordelia as her maid of honor and Giles was giving her away.
They decided that since Willow had ‘popped
the question’ Buffy was the one to be given away.
Joyce had tried for several days to reach Buffy's
father and when she finally did reach him, he refused to even attend the ceremony let
alone be involved in it, he didn't want to as he put it
“participate in another of his daughter's
mistakes.”
It tore her mother's heart out to tell her
daughter, but Buffy had already figured on his reaction after the way he'd taken the news
of her ‘coming out’. Since Giles had been more like a father to her over the
years since she'd moved to Sunnydale she said that she would rather have him there anyway,
but Joyce could see the hurt she tried to hide and she silently cursed the man for his
insensitivity.
Buffy told the others that after he'd left her
mother she really didn't know him anymore, and since then he had become a stranger with
credit cards. Willow and Buffy invited Xander and Cordelia over for dinner to ask them to
join the wedding party. Xander had been easy he just stared for a minute then sputtered
out a yes of course. Cordelia’s reaction had them puzzled however. When Buffy asked
her to be her maid of honor, Cordelia had burst into tears and collapsed to the living
room floor. Willow sat down on the floor next to her while, Buffy
forcefully ushered a confused Xander out of the
room. She put her arm around the weeping girl's shoulders.
“What's wrong Cordy?” Willow asked
softly “Is it something we did? Xander? What?”
She couldn't seem to stop crying but she held her
hand up and shook her head. Buffy returned carrying three glasses and two bottles of wine.
“I gave Xander a tray full of cocktail
wieners and a six pack and told him to go bother Giles for a while.” Buffy said as
she sat down on the other side of Cordelia, “I told him we had some girl type
issues to work out, he couldn't get out of here
fast enough. Is it me or does Xander seem to be getting smarter every day?"”
They all three laughed
“Now” Buffy said focusing her attention
on the still sobbing girl between them. “What's the matter with our little Queen C
here?”
“Don't know Willow said with a shrug,
“All she's done is cry.”
Buffy poured three glasses of red wine and handed
Willow and Cordelia each one. Cordelia took a sip and after a second began to explain her
reaction. “I-I'm s-sorry,” she began, “It's just...well...I know you guys
didn't really like me before, even when I was dating Xander in high school. I knew you
only accepted me because of him. So when I left for LA with all my big plans and then came
back a failure I was sure you'd treat me like I treated you in school, I knew I deserved
it especially from you, Willow. Then Xander took me back, he never even talks about LA or
asks me what happened, he just says he's glad I'm back and that he feels lucky I still
wanted him.”
“Then you guys have been so nice about
everything even when I run my stupid mouth without thinking. Now you want me to be a part
of the most important day of your I'm just so overwhelmed and happy. I don't know how to
thank you.”
“"If you want to thank me then please
step in and do your famous Cordy party planner, maid of honor from hell thing,” Buffy
said as she refilled their glasses for the third time “I love my mother but she's
driving me nuts and so is Wills’ mom. So what we need you to do is to get between us
and our moms.”
“Look Cordy,” Willow explained I want
you to understand, we love you and we know how hard you've worked to create the new
user-friendly Cordelia and we really don't want you to change if you don't want to, but
what we need right now is the good old take charge Queen C. Like in high school. You know
what I mean we need you...”
“To be a bitch.” Cordelia finished
calling herself what she knew Willow was too nice to do.
Buffy and Willow looked at each other and smiled
then drained their glasses each hoping they weren't recreating a monster.
“Well for lack of a better term,” Willow
began as Buffy refilled their glasses “Yes, we want you to be a bitch, but in a good
way.”
“Yeah Cordy you know," Buffy took over
“use your powers for good and not for some skanky evil.”
They spent the rest evening finishing off the wine
and making plans not only for the wedding but for the future as well. By the time Giles
had had enough of Xander and sent him back to Willow and Buffy's, the three girls were
more than a little tipsy. Cordelia and Xander ended up spending the night in the girl's
spare bedroom and in the morning the dreaded and widely feared Queen C. appeared and tool
over control of the wedding plans.
................................
The black skinned demon entered his mistress’
private quarters and found her still sleeping. Next to her on the bed was the nude form of
a once very pretty, young, dark haired girl. Her once flawlessly soft skin now covered
with cuts and bite marks all still oozing blood. Her dark brown eyes open and starring
blankly at the ceiling, a line of drool seeped from the corner of her swollen battered and
bleeding lips, a pool of blood had formed between her wide spread legs. “It is time
to leave your grace.” the demon said, “The vehicle is here to take us to the
plane.”
She stretched and smiled at her loyal pet, then
she sat up and looked down at he catatonic girl next to her. She ran her fingers down the
girls’ abused and tortured body her razor sharp talons leaving thin trails of blood
to mark their passage. “Sooo pretty but oh so fragile” she mused, then plunged
her hand into the nameless girl's chest and pulled it out holding her still beating heart.
The female took a large bite of the warm quivering organ.
“They are delicious though” she laughed
as she chewed slowly relishing the unique flavor. She pointed to the body with her free
hand, “The rest is yours.”
“You are too kind your Grace,” he said
pulling the rapidly cooling corpse from the bed. He knelt and began tearing the flesh from
the girl's body, and loudly enjoying his feast as only his kind could.
She pulled a bell cord and licked the blood from
her fingers while she waited for one of the human servants. A huge muscular Latino man
entered the room. He paled visibly at the sight and sounds of the demon tearing and
consuming human flesh. “Yes Countess Hela,” the man said softly trying hard not
to be sick.
“We are leaving, Max.” she said,
“Close this place up and join us in Sunnydale.”
She reached out and ran a bloody talon down his
cheek looking deep into his big brown eyes with her glowing red ones, causing him to
shiver in terror. “Don't take so long that I have to come back here and fetch you, I
promise that wouldn't be pleasant.”
“As you wish Countess” the man said fear
filling his voice, he didn't for a second doubt her threat.
“Hurry up pet,” she said over her
shoulder after the servant left. “I'm sure none of us will go hungry in
Sunnydale.” The sickening sounds of the demon feasting and Countess Hela's shrill
maniacal laughter filled the mansion.
Chapter 3
July 18, 2002
13 Days to the Wedding
Cordelia was walking up to the door of the
townhouse shared by Buffy and Willow, determined to get the two love birds out of the nest
and downtown to the seamstress for their final fitting.
She'd finally won the battle with Giles and Xander
and had gotten them to the tailors for their tuxedo fittings the day before.
Willow had gone into her own funds and bought the
two men their tuxes saying that it was only fair, after all the brides maids always got
their outfits paid for so why not the guys (besides, she
confided in Buffy, this way she knew Xander
wouldn't show up in some powder blue monstrosity).
Cordelia reached the door and knocked. After a few
minutes with no answer she tried again, after the third time Cordelia noticed a trail of
dried blood leading up the sidewalk to the door. Worried about her friends she got out the
keys they'd given her and let herself in. She slowly opened the door calling out their
names as she entered the townhouse.
“Buffy....Willow?” She called out
“anybody home?....Come on guys it's me Cordy.”
She saw an eerie green glow emanated from the
oversized couch. Investigating Cordelia found them laying on the couch Willow curled up
next to Buffy her head resting on Buffy's stomach. Cordelia could see the source of the
blood trail, there was a deep cut on Buffy's cheek and a long deep gash down her forearm,
both were healing as she watched. She also noticed both girls were crying in their sleep.
She reached down to touch Willow to try to wake her but when her hand came in contact with
the green glow an electric like jolt ran up her arm forcing her to step
back, the glow disappeared, and Willows eyes flew
open She launched herself off the couch and went into a defensive stance, a ball of
intense blue flame forming in her hand.
“Geez Willow, paranoid much.” Cordelia
said taking another step back.
“Oh...ah...hi Cordy” Willow said
groggily, she noticed the flaming sphere and flushed, “Sorry
bout that.” She willed the flames to
dissipate. Willow looked down at her still sleeping lover and gently ran a finger over
partially healed wounds. She saw the tears flowing from Buffy's
eyes and her mind went back to the night before.
****They
were just finishing their patrol and were getting ready to go home when Buffy's slayer
hearing picked up the sounds of someone in serious trouble. True to form they ran to help
whoever it was. When they turned the corner into an alley near the Bronze they came on a
vampire holding a young teenaged girl getting ready to sink his fangs into her neck.
“Shouldn't snack this close to bed
time,” the slayer quipped. "Didn't your sire teach you anything?”
“My my Slayer,” came a hissing demonic
voice from behind them “I was beginning to think that
you and your little red-haired bitch were going to
miss our little party."
They turned and found themselves facing a group of
six vampires and three minor demons. They'd walked into an ambush again.
“Let her go.” Buffy said twirling her
stake in one hand and one of the dirks in the other. “It's us you want or don't you
think you've brought enough help.”
“I'm hurt Slayer,” the demon hissed.
“Here I went to such lengths to provide you with the proper entertainment and you
worry about the expendable extras.”
“They always gotta talk,” Buff said to
Willow, then without hesitation she attacked. Between the two of them they fought as hard
as they could, and although Willow wasn't physically touched there some kind of strong
dark magic reinforcing the lead demon's own magic and it was taking nearly all her
strength to hold him back. Buffy was winning but just barely the air was filled with the
dust of destroyed vampires and Willow managed to dispel one of the demons
completely.
Buffy had a deep gash down the entire length of
her forearm and the demon she'd taken out had laid open her cheek to the bone. Blood was
flowing those and several smaller wounds. Both girls were exhausted and Buffy was very
nearly at the end of her reserves when Willow released an explosive ball of blue flame
that blew one of the lead demon's arms off. After that the two remaining vampires grabbed
their leader and ran off but before the now one-armed demon left he turned to the vampire
still holding the frightened young girl.
“A little something to help them remember
me,” he hissed angrily. “Finish her!” The vampire instantly sank his fangs
into the girl's skin at the pulse point where her neck and shoulder joined and began
feeding as quickly as he could. Buffy finished off the vampire she'd been fighting and saw
what was happening.
“NO!” she screamed and dove at the
feeding beast ramming the stake through its heart, it burst into a cloud of dust. With all
the speed given her by her Slayer genetics Buffy was able to catch the girl's limp body
before it hit the ground but she was too late. The vampire had succeeded in draining her
enough that the girl slipped away while Buffy was holding her.
“I didn't know,” were the girl’s
last words.
Buffy hugged the girl's limp body to her chest and
began to gently rock her as if trying to ease the pain of her death like she hadn't been
able to when the girl was alive. When Willow finished setting up wards and barriers to
protect them from further attack she turned to find Buffy holding and rocking the girl
moaning softly, tears flowing unchecked down her face mixing
with her blood and dripping on the dead girl's
face. The sun had risen just above the horizon by he time Willow had gotten Buffy to let
go of the innocent victim's body and slowly made their way home.
Once there Willow had taken care of Buffy's wounds
and sometime during that Buffy had fallen asleep. Not wanting to wake her, Willow laid
down next to her on the couch and as they slept Willow's subconscious put up wards around
them and as her powers reached out to heal her soulmate their minds touched and Willow
felt the new indelible wound on Buffy's soul she began weeping in her sleep knowing that
her lover would go through the rest of her life
carrying the memory of the innocent girl's death
and blaming herself for it.******
It was afternoon when Cordelia found them and
accidentally disturbed the wards protecting the lovers and that is why Willow had come
awake ready to defend Buffy. Willow explained what had happened to their friend and the
new caring Cordy kicked into gear.
“It's okay Willow,” Cordelia told Willow
patting her hand to reassure her that someone else cared about her and Buffy. “Tell
you what, you go take a shower and I'll fix you guys some breakfast. I'll call and
reschedule the fittings. Then I'll help you take care of her.”
“Sure Cordy.” Willow said stunned by her
friend's cool efficiency and obvious concern about them. I'll..ah..go shower.”
upstairs bathroom, she could hear Cordelia in the
kitchen doing whatever it was she did there.
Willow chuckled thinking about how even the two
people chosen to battle the forces of darkness couldn't get away from the mundane everyday
tasks of living. She adjusted the water temperature and stepped into the shower getting
ready to face another day.
......................................
Kresis sat on his high backed makeshift throne his
leg casually draped over an arm of the chair.
He was impatiently tapping his talons on the table
next to him as he drank his favorite thick red mixture of twenty year old single malt
scotch and AB negative and listening to a badly wounded and recently one armed demon,
snivel about how they had once again failed him and their master. Knowing the Slayer and
her witch still lived enraged him beyond reason. Growing tired of the sycophant's
simpering he rose from his throne and slowly stepped down to stand next to the pathetic
excuse for a demon, he put a reassuring hand on the demon's unwounded shoulder.
“Don't worry my friend, you will never again
fail me,” Kresis said sarcastically and with out warning he tore the demon's head off
with a single hand. “No one fails me twice.” He threw the head down next to its
still quivering body and walked to the door.
“Clean that up” he ordered a frightened
red skinned demon cowering in a corner as he walked out the door. The Count was seething
he'd already been here three weeks and not only were the Slayer and her soulmate still
living but they had depleted his forces so badly that he was
forced to send out a call for recruits. He cursed
at the shortsighted idiots on the council. They'd been so afraid that he'd return to wreak
havoc on them they'd laid this ludicrous curse on him that kept him away from the
Hellmouth. He knew if he could just get at those two bitches then one way or another
all this would be over. He wasn't desperate enough to attempt getting closer to the
Hellmouth yet but time was getting short and if things didn't work out soon well then
just maybe.
........................
Hela, Countess of the First Circle, matriarch of
the house of Red Swords of Tarsus, sat in her make shift throne room smiling slightly as
she listened to the report from one of her spies from Kresis camp. She knew it wouldn't be
long before her ex mate would be susceptible to her offer of assistance and that would be
his down fall. Like the majority of males Kresis made the mistake of underestimating his
opposition if they were female. He'd obviously underestimated the Slayer an her lovely
little witch, and now she was sure he'd underestimate her ambition and her capacity for
hatred and soon he'd be at her not so tender mercies.
For centuries she chafed at the thought of her ex
still alive and able to enjoy life's pleasures after she'd done her best to destroy him.
Exile had never been good enough for her and she was sure that once she controlled the
Slayer or her soulmate or better yet enslaved them both the council and even the Darklord
himself would fear her, so they wouldn't dare act on her decision to rid herself of that
arrogant bastard Kresis.
Hela herself had observed last night's ambush and
had to laugh at the incompetence of Kresis and his troops.
She chuckled at her own cleverness.
Chapter Four
Buffy cradled the young girl's lifeless body
weeping softly. She looked down at the innocent face, the dull death clouded eyes opened
and turned toward her.
“Why did you let me die?” The girls
hollow soulless voice echoed in her ears “Why didn't you stop them?”
“I-I-I t-tried.” Buffy stammered stunned
by the accusation “It's not my fault. I couldn't...”
“Yes you could have, Buffy.” a familiar
voice said from behind her. She turned toward the
voice and saw he first watcher, Merrick. Blood
still oozed from the gapping hole in his chest.
“You could have saved her Buffy,” he
repeated shaking his head sadly “Just as you could have saved us all if only you had
tried harder, just a little more effort and none of us would be dead.”
As he spoke he was joined by all the innocent
victims she'd missed saving over the last several years. Each voice joining the growing
cacophony of accusers in her head driving her insane with guilt. “You could have
saved us,” the voices screamed, “If you had tried you could have saved us,
if you had really wanted to you could have saved us all.”
“NO NO NO NO!” Buffy screamed trying to
be heard over the crowd. “I tried I really tried please believe me. PLEASE!!!!”
........................
Buffy came awake still crying out please.
Realizing it was just another nightmare she choked off her screams trying not to wake her
beloved soulmate laying next to her. The beautiful redhead stirred slightly and mumbled
something in her sleep. Once Willow settled back into deep sleep Buffy slid out of their
bed, she quietly made her way to the downstairs bathroom, stopping by her dresser to pick
up a special item. Buffy closed the bathroom door, making sure it was locked and sat down
on the back edge of the bathtub.
She then studied the small knife she held in her
left hand. She admired the way the tapered black plastic handle fit her hand perfectly.
The shining surgical steel blade reflected the harsh
fluorescent light into her eyes. She laid the flat
of the blade against her cheek enjoying the feel of the cool steel on her fevered skin.
Buffy slowly drug the blade across her cheek to her lips.
As she brushed the dangerous implement over her
lips Buffy's tongue flicked out over the needle sharp point causing it to just barely
piercing her tongue, she gasped and pulled it back into her mouth. Buffy moaned as the
coppery sweet taste of her own blood filled her taste buds.
She closed her eyes and leaned her head back
feeling her entire nervous system tingle as it carried the pain from her tongue seemingly
throughout her body where in ended up a burning knot in her belly. A dark voice from deep
in Buffy's subconscious surfaced calling for more pain more blood. In answer Buffy lowered
the razor sharp blade until it rested against the soft highly sensitive skin of her inner
thigh.
Buffy slowly drew the blade up her thigh, baring
down enough so it sliced through her flesh. The pain was exquisite. “At last I feel
something.” Buffy hissed and repeated the process on her other thigh. She was panting
heavily as the nearly orgasmic pain took control of her mind and body. Buffy turned on the
water and let it mix with her blood and carry it down the drain.
She ran her finger across her skin coating it with
the blood flowing freely from the cuts. She put the finger in her mouth and sucked and
licked the blood from the digit. Buffy was lost in her own world of pain, blood and dark
voices urging her on, demanding more pain more blood.
Demanding she do it in payment for her numerous
past failures, telling her that only her own suffering could possibility pay for causing
all the pain and death that surrounded her life. Buffy was so lost in this world that she
didn't hear Willow knock and call out for her, she didn't hear
Willow unlock and open the door. She didn't hear
her walk into the room, she did hear Willow scream.
........................
Willow woke up trembling from the disturbing dream
she'd just had. In it Buffy was being chased by a mass of pure evil. She couldn't seem to
get away from it and it was killing her in
slow stages. Every time Willow tried to help her
the magic attacked Buffy instead weakening her even more. Willow shook her head to clear
it of the terrifying vision, she reached for her lover but found she wasn't there.
“Must have gone to the bathroom.” Willow
mumbled to herself. She sat up in their bed and
waited for wayward soulmate to return to bed. When
Buffy hadn't returned after a half hour, Willow decided it was time to go searching for
the missing girl. She checked the bathroom upstairs and found she wasn't there. Willow
expanded her search first t all the rooms upstairs when those were found to be empty also
she moved to the main floor. A careful examination of the rooms there still didn't yield a
clue to Buffy's whereabouts. Willow was getting worried and was about to call Giles when
she noticed the light coming from under the downstairs bathroom door. Relieved and curious
as to why Buffy would come all the way down here Willow knocked
on the door getting no response Willow called
Buffy's name.
nightmares again, > Willow thought angrily.
Worried that Buffy may have fallen and hurt her
self Willow got the door key from the hall
table and let herself in. What she found was far
more disturbing than anything Willow had imagined. “Buffy, what are you doing?”
Willow yelled when she saw all the blood splattered all over the bathroom, then she
realized what her roommate was doing. “You stop that right now,”
Buffy looked up into Willow's eyes and saw the
horror reflected in them. She looked down and saw what Willow saw. The insides of both her
thighs were criss crossed with deep cuts, her blood covered hands were holding Faith's
knife. Buffy dropped the knife and began crying uncontrollably.
Willow knew she would never forget the sight,
Buffy was sitting on the back edge of the small bathtub, her beloved's blood was every
where and Buffy was just finishing the last of several cuts on her inner thighs. When she
finally got Buffy's attention Willow knew she'd never forget the look in Buffy's eyes. Her
pain and fear were evident but there was another more subtle emotion just under the
surface and it frightened Willow as well, Buffy was aroused. Reacting on her first
instinct Willow ran to knell at Buffy's side. “Honey why?” Willow asked her
voice soft and full of compassion. “How could you do this to your self.”
“I let them die,” Buffy said in a tiny
little girl voice. “I have to feel the pain they felt when they died.”
“I don't understand sweetheart tell me what
you are talking about?” Willow insisted quietly but firmly. “Who did you let
die?”
When Buffy couldn't seem to give her an answer
Willow went a head and got Buffy out of her blood soaked clothing. She examined the cuts
Buffy had inflicted on herself and while they had bled freely the weren't serious and with
Buffy's Slayer healing powers they would probably be mere memories by tomorrow, a memory
Willow knew she wouldn't soon forget. Willow tried to pry an answer from Buffy about where
she'd gotten the idea to hurt herself like that but all the Slayer could do was weep and
shrug her shoulders. In order to keep Buffy from withdrawing further from her, Willow
decided to let the subject drop for the time being. She also was persuaded by Buffy to not
tell Giles or her mother about the incident.
That was possibility one of the worst decisions
she could have made.
.......................
Countess Hela was overjoyed as she watched the
couple in a glowing green sphere. Her devious and complicated plan was coming together
perfectly. That idiot Kresis had been stupid enough to attack those to head on, once again
under estimating his opponent. The Slayer's little witch kit had thrown everything right
back at him weakening him even further. Her own mystical attack had been much more subtle.
Hela had gently probed the fringes of the two girls psyches
looking for an exploitable weakness, carefully
peeling away the layers of their id until she found exactly what she was searching for.
Deep in the Slayer's subconscious was a deep
seeded guilt over the deaths of a few innocents
that she'd not been able prevent. For some reason
that Hela couldn't understand, the Slayer
felt responsible for the incidental fatalities
that occurred during her war with darkness.
After some careful manipulations of the youngsters
subconscious Hela was able to control
Buffy's dreams. By doing this she was able to
undermine the Slayer's abilities and by doing that it kept her little witch kit
preoccupied and unable to combat Hela effectively.
“Soon little one.” Hela said to the nude
blonde female chained to the Countess' throne. The broken vampire nuzzled Hela's leg and
Hela stroked her hair smiling at the new pet's response. “It won't be long before I
get you some new playmates. You'd like that wouldn't you?”
Unable to speak the vampire nodded her agreement.
“Oh you poor thing,” Hela said with mock
sympathy, “Maybe I shouldn't have pulled out your tongue, but you wouldn't shut up
and I was hungry.”
Hela let the sphere dissipate then took the chain
holding her pet to her chair and using it as a leash the Countess led her toward her
private quarters, the female vampire was visibly trembling in fear.
She had every reason to fear.