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(This is original creative material copyright Chris Kenworthy, based on characters that he has no right to owned by someone else blah blah biddy blah...) |
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"I was wondering," Angel said to Vanessa, "if now that things have calmed down somewhat, there was anything that could be done as far as... investigating the causes of... my condition."
"Your pregnancy?" Vanessa clarified. "Yes, I think there are some experiments we might try. I'll round up my people, and talk to the Watchers, after the party. Oops - I need to have a word with Buffy. Excuse me, please?" The elegant witch crossed over to Buffy.
"Hey there," she said to the Slayer with an expectant smile.
"Hi," Buffy replied, curious as to what Vanessa wanted.
"Back when we first came to you," Vanessa started, "you said you didn't ally with people whose motives you didn't understand. Later events made our alliance a fait accompli, but I feel as if I still owe you some information. But it'll have to be privately, and kept between us. Even my own circle doesn't know what I'm about to tell you."
"Uh, okay," Buffy said uncertainly. "We'll, um, set something up."
Suddenly the lights switched off. "Happy birthday to you," Willow sang, walking into the living room with a muchly-candled cake. "Happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Xander, happy birthday to you." She set the cake down on the coffee table in front of Xander. "How come no-one joined in?" she inquired in a stage whisper.
"What, and completely ruin the performance?" Buffy joked.
"Yeah, I like your singing," Xander said. Willow blushed bright red.
"Well," Buffy prompted, "what are you waiting for, birthday boy? Make a wish and blow!"
Xander paused a moment in thought, gathered a deep breath, and blew. All the candles winked out impressively. For a second the room was lit only by Limbo-light through the windows, and someone rushed to flick the lights back on.
"I always said you were full of hot air," Oz joked as Xander made the first cut and started serving out cake.
* * * *
"So," Xander said, dropping down beside Buffy on the couch. "Does... mmph!"
Buffy took a few seconds finishing Xander's birthday kiss, since it had to be a good one, then broke off and let him start his question over again.
"Does the whole 'if you tell anyone your wish it won't come true' thing count," Xander started, "if the person you tell your wish to could help it come true?"
"Ooh," Buffy whispered in a scandalized tone. "Well, baby, that depends on how far this person would have to go." She winked teasingly at him.
Xander broke out in nervous laughter, then composed himself. "No, no, it wasn't that kind of wish, Buff. This time, at least... though if you're offering..."
"Na," Buffy replied with a waving gesture. "This offer valid only on genuine birthday wishes made while blowing out candles." She giggled. "So, what is it?"
"I want you to teach me how to fight."
Buffy's jaw dropped. "Huh? I, um, mean... what??"
Xander smiled weakly. "I don't mean to fight as well as you; I know you can't teach that. But, well, given that I'm going to be getting into tough spots as long as we're in each other's lives, I thought I should finally learn to defend myself." He paused to try to decipher the look on Buffy's face, then made one further attempt at persuasion. "You did it with Willow - she's the student watcher and she knows how to take care of herself in a fight now. That's what I want."
Buffy found her voice. "Are you sure? It's not gonna be easy - Willow'll tell you that."
"I'm sure."
Buffy considered a moment. "Done, then. Meet me in the basement after lunch. Wear... um, those clothes should be fine."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Xander whined back, a slightly hurt tone in his voice.
* * * *
"That is enough!" the white-robed woman called out in a deadly voice. Quickly she strode across the room to help the Watcher to his feet. "If you have questions, I shall answer them. But you will treat me and my people with respect!"
"Why?" Darla snarled. "Who the hell are you?"
"You don't remember me, Darla? I'm offended. Queen Kaliya."
"Oh, right," Darla said, memory returning at last. She had been the ruler of a local vampire territory in France, back when she and the Master had been still working the Master's homeland in Germany.
"I am also the one who has restored all of you to undeath."
"What is he doing here, milady?" said one of the others, the one that Darla had thought was vaguely familiar. Apparently he recognized both this Queen Kaliya and the Watcher, whom he was pointing at.
"Mister Giles has become one of the brethren. He is my right-hand man. Anyone who has a problem with him has a problem with me... and trust me, you do not want me to have a problem with you."
"Fair enough," Darla said. "But I hope you're not naive enough to think that you can force or threaten us into working for you. I am Darla the Defiant, Consul of the Order of Aurelius, and I will not be compelled." She turned to face the Watcher and asked him, "What became of my Master? Of our order??"
"Your Master was destroyed," Giles said, with a slight bragging tone in his voice, "by the Slayer, as the gates of Hell were opening. The order, under the Annointed one, attempted to restore him, but Summers stopped that too. William the bloody slew the Annointed one and pressed what remained of his followers into his own service. As I understand it, the order of Aurelius lies in ruins."
"Damn her!" Darla swore.
"I've never cared for 'Orders,'" Kaliya interjected, "except for the orders I give to those I command. But if revenge would satisfy you, joining me will mean taking part in the final defeat of the Slayer Summers."
"That," Darla told her witheringly, "I can do myself."
"I wouldn't be so sure," Kaliya said with a smile. "She has taken stronger vamps than you, Darla. And this isn't the world you remembered. We are trapped in a dimensional Limbo between Earth and Hell."
"Well, I would explore this limbo and consult with my compatriots before making decision on your offer, your majesty." Darla said the last two words mockingly.
"I need no time to decide," the other vamp said. "I stand with my lady, as I did in days gone by."
"No, Jasper," Kaliya told him. "Go with them. Speak to them as my representative, since you know me. They cannot deny you, for you are one of them." She looked over to Darla. "Can you?"
Darla considered. "No," she said. "If he wishes to come and tell us of you, we will listen."
* * * *
The music coming from the door to Cordelia's room was fairly loud, and Willow put a good deal of effort into her knock, trying to make it noticeable.
"Who is it?" Cordelia called out hollowly.
"It's Willow."
A few seconds later, the cd, (Dar Williams, maybe?) stopped. "Come in."
Willow tentatively opened the door and stepped inside. "Hey, there." Cordelia's room was elegantly furnished and decorated, and quite a mess at the moment. Cordy herself was sitting disconsolately on her bed, wearing, (and Willow gasped at this in spite of herself,) sweats. Willow wouldn't have even thought that Cordelia owned sweats.
"What is it?"
Willow took the two books out of the crook of her arm and waved them a little in the air. "Watcher diaries. We thought you'd want to read the parts about your mother."
Cordelia gasped just the tiniest bit, and her face took on a little more interest. The recent crisis had revealed the possibility that Cordelia's long-lost mother had been a Vampire Slayer, and Willow's research into the Watcher diaries had confirmed it.
But Cordelia didn't hold out her hands for the books. "Well? I'm sure that you've read them. Summary?"
Willow sighed. "She was named Julia Caplin, grew up outside Portland, was found by Richard Dennon, her watcher, at fifteen. When she was eighteen, her parents were killed by the Sect of Sadrinum, an order of vampires who try to 'control' the number of watchers and potential slayers through arranged murders. They had been trying for Julia.
"Dennon became her guardian and took her to Sunnydale, to monitor the Hellmouth. There she fell in love with a young entrepreneur, Lear Chase, and after a few months they ran off to Las Vegas to get married. Dennon wasn't happy about that, thought they had been kidnapped by vamps or something, and the argument was big enough that Dennon was persona non grata in the Chase-Caplin house until he helped Julia fight off an attack of vampires during the christening of Julia's baby. That would be you, by the way, Cordy."
Cordelia acknowledged that with a curt nod.
"Julia started training again with Dennon after that, and a month later the active Slayer died and Julia was called to full service."
"Wait a second... she wasn't a vampire Slayer before?"
"She was a pre-Slayer. Like Kendra was before Buffy died the first time. In training, but not in full action." Cordelia nodded. "She and Dennon had to go off to Europe to stop someone there from ending the world, and Julia didn't think she could tell Lear and bring him and the baby with him. So she left him. They kept in touch by mail, and Dennon was trying to persuade Julia to tell him and ask them to come, but she wasn't going to do it. Then, Julia died, wiping out a cell of the Sect."
"And Dad got the news on my first birthday," Cordelia said, probably remembering when her father had told her his side of that story. "Whoa. What happened to that Sect, by the way? It's not like I can do anything about it, but I kinda have a score to settle with them."
"I think Buffy's predecessor finally wiped them out," Willow said. "They were kind of a priority threat. But there might still be some former Sect members running around... like that guy Damien, perhaps." Cordelia's face flashed over with pain, and Willow realized that this was still a difficult subject and changed the subject.
"You're not the only one who has a family secret in these diaries, by the way." Cordelia looked up in a silent question. "There's a mention in Richard Dennon's account of my father. He was the son of a Watcher, and meant to possibly be a Watcher himself, but he didn't make the cut." She smiled to herself. "I should have guessed that, maybe; Ira means 'watcher.'"
Cordelia smiled. "Thanks, Willow."
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