Chronicles of Wanderer

Hunter's Moon

By Michael Weyer

Based on an storyline by Tim Knight

Buffy the Vampire Slayer, all rights and properties owned by Mutant Enemy

Highlander, all rights and properties owned by Rysher Entertainment

Steve St Wolf, Randi and Brian Jessup and the Wandererverse created by Steve Pantovich

Shaw Hunter, Ulric Johannson and Jessica created by Tim Knight

Robin Goodfellow, Liam Danahure, Zev Mundac, Matthew Conners, Megan Maguire, Alice

Fairchild, Perry Leiter, Valerie Rosthon, Kyra Saunders and Jesse Manoau are my own creations

and belong to me.

SPOILERS:

1. Buffy died fighting the Master in Season 1 and became Immortal.

2. Buffy's death triggered Kendra as the Slayer. When Kendra was badly wounded, Faith was

called as a Slayer. Kendra is not dead and Faith is not evil.

3. Joyce Summers is alive and is a foster mother for Kendra and Faith.

4. Jenny Calendar was not killed by Angelus and is engaged to Rupert Giles.

5. Amy Madison is not a rat, nor evil.

6. Jenny, Willow, Cordelia and Amy are Amazons, blessed with fighting abilities by the Greek

Goddess Artemis.

7. Xander, Giles, Oz, Larry and Shaw carry equal empowerments from Robin Goodfellow.

8. Zev Mundac lives in Sunnydale, working as teacher at the college and helping run Joyce's

antiques shop while dating her.

9. Dawn Summers is the Key, a powerful source of energy made into human form with

everyone's memories altered to accept her. Only the Eternals (Robin, Liam, Artemis, etc) know

the truth and are keeping it quiet.

Tim came up with this idea and we traded a lot of e-mails on it. I feel it's only right that I bring his vision to life. I hope to do him proud. This is more his work than mine. Hope you enjoy.

Part one: In which a new term begins and some new faces are assigned to visit.

Joyce Summer's Home

Sunnydale, CA

September 6th, 1999

0729 Hours PST

     Joyce Summers had come to the conclusion that the duties of the Slayer were nothing

compared to the duties of a mother to three Slayers and another teenager.

     She was in the middle of her kitchen, in a nice dress, a phone pressed against her ear while

she tried to handle the three pans cooking on the stove. "Yes...yes, I understand but can you...yes

I'll hold," she sighed, mixing some eggs together on one plate.

     Dawn Summers entered the room, clad in a pair of jeans and a low-cut shirt that showed

off a bare belly, her brown hair nicely brushed behind her. She looked to the occupants of the

table. Her sister Buffy was wearing a nice mini-skirt and light blouse that went well with her

atlhetic form. Kendra was clad in a dark pair of slacks and purple top, her braided hair pulled back

in a ponytail. "You two seem pretty okay with going back to school," Dawn stated.

     "Benefits of college life," Buffy said with a smile as she bit into a piece of bacon. "We

don't have to worry about a strict class schedule."

     "Indeed," Kendra stated. "Our days are far less restrictive than------"

     "GANGWAY!" Faith Pryce yelled as she burst into the kitchen. Her dark hair was still

wet from a shower, her jeans and tight shirt obviously just thrown on and she appeared out of

breath. She grabbed a waiting glass of orange juice, downing it as she took a handful of bacon and

started to chow down on it.

     "Guess you shouldn't have killed the alarm, huh, Faith?" Buffy asked.

     "Shut up!" Faith mumbled through a mouth of food.

     "So, you can do that? Tomoorow? Excellent!" Joyce said through the phone. "No, no, my

partner will have the paperwork. Thank you very much." She switched the cordless off and turned

to the others. "Okay, I'm almost ready to-----" She stopped as she gazed at her younger daughter.

"Dawn, where are you going?"

     "Um, school?" the teen asked in confusion.

     Joyce shook her head. "Not dressed like that you're not. I am not having you show up at

school dressed like something out a music video."

     "Mom..." Dawn whined.

     Joyce simply pointed upstairs and with a sigh, Dawn turned to walk off. Buffy smiled at

Kendra. "Told you."

     Kendra shrugged. "I would have thought living with Faith would have eased Joyce's

intolerance for trampy outfits."

     Faith just glared as she wolfed down her breakfast. Buffy smirked at Kendra. "Notice how

she's not being so cocky about me being a freshman again?"

Apartment of Oz Green

0737 Hours PST

     As Willow's eyes opened, she saw the man she loved lying next to her, propping his head

up one elbow as he looked at her. "What is it?" she asked.

     "Nothing," Oz replied. "I just love watching you sleep."

     "I would have thought you'd love to see me in other situations," Willow teased as she

kissed him on the lips. She then cuddled into his arms. "I wanna sleep in."

     "Can't. Class."

     "Wanna sleep in," Willow pouted.

     "I thought you wanted to be the bright-eyed for college type."

     "You've been a bad influence on me," the redhead sighed as she reluctantly got ready.

     Oz smirked. "Hey, at least we're not as bad as Giles and Jenny."

     Willow frowned as she face him. "What do you mean?"

     "Well, they have to live in the same building underneath Xander and Cordelia," her

boyfriend pointed out. "Imagine how they're starting the morning."

     Willow did and then giggled.

Home of Robin Goodfellow

0740 Hours PST

     Amy Madison was a vision as she lay on the bed. Her blonde hair fell back on the pillow,

her face serene as her firm chest rose and fell with each breath. It was a sight that Robin

Goodfellow dragged out for as long as he could. Finally, with a glance at the alarm clock, he

snapped his fingers. From all around the bed came the music of "Reville" as if blasted over a THX

SurroundSound system.

     Amy sat up with a shriek, her head whipping around. There was another snap of fingers

and the Amazon witch found herself fully dressed as was Robin. At the table by the bed was a

stack of books and a cup of hot coffee.

     Amy glared at her boyfriend. "Why didn't you wake me up?!"

     "I did," he calmly answered.

     Amy sighed. "I meant in a normal way."

     "Because it would have taken you too long to shower, get dressed and get your stuff

ready."

     "So why didn't you wake me up so I could do all that?!"

     Robin smiled. "Because you look beautiful when you're sleeping."

     Amy's ire instantly vanished as she moved in and kissed him on the lips. *Damn, I'm

good* the faery thought to himself. *Plus it helps that, unlike Shaw and Liam, we don't have to

worry about cleaning up the house after a night together.*

Sunnydale University

0832 Hours PST

     Randi Jessup tapped her pen on her folder as she shuffled in her seat. She wore a nice red

dress with her blonde hair in a ponytail, a nice image for her first day of class. She looked at the

pile of books on her desk and sighed deeply. *Take languages, you said. How bad can the course

work be, you said...*

     The door banged open and the twenty-six students in the classroom all looked at the man

who strode in. Randi did as well...and felt a chill go over her. *Oh, God...I thought he was

joking...*

     The man plopped his briefcase onto the table, opened it and pulled out a stack of papers.

"Good morning. Welcome to Introduction to Languages. I'm your instructor, Zev Mundac."

     He began to hand the packets to each row of students. "Let me make this clear and to the

point right now. Do the work and be on time and you'll do all right. Don't and you'll fail. I am

giving a precise schedule of when assignments are due so I don't expect any attempt at

explanation if you fail to turn them in. Any attempts at plagirism or cheating shall be dealt with

severely." He returned to the desk and faced the room. "I am not going to be an easy mark for

any pity stories or excuses so save them. Anger me and I shall be sure to make your life a living

hell. Trust me, I have my experience in that subject." He smiled. "Let's begin, shall we?"

Steve St. Wolf's Home

1004 Hours PST

     On the third ring, Steve St. Wolf picked up the phone and spoke into it. "Hello?"

     "Steve? It's Joe Dawson," came the voice on the other end.

     "Hey, Joe, what's up?"

     "Well, I was wondering if you and the gang might be able to give me a hand with

something."

     Steve frowned. "Uh oh. What?"

     Joe sighed. "Well, it seems that we've got a problem with one of our Watchers. Valerie

Rosthon, third-generation Watcher. It seems she doesn't believe in the tape we had of what

happened in L.A. and doesn't believe in the Scroll either."

     "Oh, shit," Steve muttered. "I take it that means her Immortal doesn't either?"

     "Nope. And its Immortals, plural." There was the sound of shuffling papers. "Matthew

Connors. Died for the first time at Bunker Hill. He got a student in 1997, Alice Fairchild, senior in

high school. Mulder and Scully can tell you about them."

     "I'll give them a call. Anyone else?"

     "Jesse Manoau, 18. Died while surfing last year, didn't know it until this July. Other one is

Kyra Saunders, killed in a mountain climbing accident around the same time. Oh, there's also

Perry Leiter. He's a medical examiner and newbie Watcher."

     "So all of them think the Game is still going?" Steve nodded. "Yeah, we need to nip this in

the bud fast. I take it you want us to teach them otherwise?"

     "You got it," Dawson confirmed. "They should be there later tonight."

     Steve raised an eyebrow. "Really? You already called?"

     "No. I left that to...someone else."

Matthew Connor's Home

Hastings Bay, MA

1317 Hours EST

     Alice Fairchild had never realized how much she had missed having a friend.

     It shouldn't have been too surprising she had cut herself off from people. The last time she

had belonged to a group of friends, they had all been killed by the same murderer who made Alice

Immortal. Since then, she had kept mostly to herself with only Matt and Megan to talk to.

However, since Kyra Saunders had entered the Immortal picture, Alice had found herself bonding

with the other teen.

     It was ironic considering how dissimaliar the two were. While Alice was athletic and enjoyed

shopping, Kyra was a bit more studious and musically inclined. Even their styles clashed. Alice

was clad in a nice skirt and light blouse, her dark brown hair pulled back in a ponytail. Kyra was

wearing a pair of dark jeans and biker-style red top with long sleeves that ended with fabric

wrapping from her wrist and around a couple of her fingers. She sat in a chair in Matt's living

room, lightly strumming a guitar as she looked at a book.

     Alice watched her with a frown, her eyes on the book's jacket. "Wicca for Beginners?"

she stated. "I can't believe you're wasting time on that crap."

     "It's not crap," Kyra replied as she looked up at Alice. Her lush mane of curly brown hair

framed a pretty face with a sharp nose and deep blue eyes, bangs set over her forehead. "Wicca

has a long history that could be

real. Hell, Immortals and vampires exist, why not magic?"

     "Well, why do you want to learn it?" Alice pressed. "What, you want to be a Betwiched

Britney?"

     Krya's face fell. "Never compare me to her again."

     Both girl suddenly tensed as they sensed another presence. "Saved by the Buzz," Alice

sighed.

     Kyra shivered. "God, that is so weird."

     "You get used to it," Alice shrugged as they both looked at the doorway as Jesse Manoau

entered. He appeared to be 18, a good looking young man with short dark hair and skin that made

it easier to believe he had been born in Hawaii. He wore a pair of light shorts and a muscle shirt,

showing off the pineapple tattoo on one shoulder. "Ladies," he said as he wiped at his brow with

a towel. "How's it going?"

     "Hey, Jess," Alice said. She looked over his sweaty body. "You been working out?"

     He nodded. "Yeah, figured it was a good move. Need to stay in shape just in case, right?"

He took a long drink for a bottle of water. Alice noticed that Kyra was watching him out of the

corner of her eye, then turned away as Jesse turned toward her.

     "So, Matt still upstairs?" Jesse asked.

     Alice nodded. "Yeah. Still don't know what Val and Perry want with him. Sounded

important."

     "Great," Kyra said with a sigh. "Just what my life needed, more complications."

     "Such is our lot in eternal life," Alice remarked.

     It was at that moment that the teacher to the three teens entered the room. Matthew

Connors was clad in a pair of nice slacks and golf shirt, his face serious. Behind him was Valerie

Rosthon, as professional as always in a business skirt, blouse and jacket, her darkish hair in a bun.

Perry Leiter was dressed more casually, with jeans and a Hawiaan shirt and his dark hair.

     "So what's the haps?" Kyra asked.

     Matthew shook his head. "I'm not sure yet. Some bigwig from the Watchers is supposed

to be coming by later."

     "What about?" Alice asked.

     "I don't know," Valerie admitted. "But I don't like it. They rarely pay personal calls unless

it's important."

     Matthew snorted. "Maybe they've put together a special edition of that videotape."

     "Yeah," Alice threw in. "Maybe now we've got big monsters and people flying around in

it."

     "You think they know you don't believe in the Scroll?" Jesse asked with concern.

     "I don't see how," Valerie answered. "Even if they do, I don't think it'll be a real serious

matter."

     "And you'd be wrong, Rosthon," a deep voice cut through the room. Everyone turned to

see a tall man striding into the room, dressed in the uniform of the United States Navy, the bars of

an Admiral on his shoulder. He crossed his arms, the light seeming to gleam a bit off his balding

head. "Admiral James Chegwidden," he introduced himself. "Senior Watcher for East Coast

military operations."

     "How did you get in here?" Matt demanded.

     "I'm a military Watcher, we've got means," Cheggwidden said. He turned his hard gaze

on Valerie. "Rosthon...you are so far up shit creek, your paddle wouldn't make a dent in it."

     Valerie opened her mouth but the Admiral plowed on. "You have done a massive

disservice to both the Watchers and your charges with your bullshit games. If it was up to me,

you'd be bounced out on your ass but we're giving you a chance. You six are to pack your bags

and catch the next flight to Sunnydale, California."

     Valerie frowned. "Sunnydale? Why?"

     "So you can find out what Watchers are really supposed to do," Cheggwidden snapped.

He looked to the Immortals. "And you can find out what Immortals are supposed to do."

     Matthew crossed his arms across his chest. "I'm retired, Admiral. And it was from the

Army, anyway. I don't take orders from you."

     Cheggwidden's face glowered. "Then maybe I should call Sgt. Madison Summers."

     Matthew raised an eyebrow in surprise. "He's still around? Well, he was a bit of a hard-ass

but I don't see why------"

     "You might know him by another name," Cheggwidden interrupted. "Maximus Decimus

Meridas."

     There was dead silence as everyone stared at him in shock. "The...the...THE Maximus

Decimus Meridas?!" Perry blurted.

     Cheggwidden nodded. "Yep. And trust me, he's not happy about this either and is more

than willing to kick some ass to rectify the situation."

     Matt tried to remain calm and looked Cheggwidden in the eye. "Listen, Admiral. I don't

care who you call on or who comes over here. I am not dropping everything to go to California

for some stupid tape and I don't care what you say."

Flight 347 from Boston to Los Angeles

22, 000 feet over the Mid-West

1748 Hours CST

     "So, what did the lad say?" Megan Maguire asked as she sat back in her seat. Her lush mane of

curly red hair flowed behind her, accenting her beautiful face. She wore a tight green dress that

accented every curve of her voluptous body, especially her ample chest. She smiled as she sipped

at her glass of wine, her Irish brogue seemingly still hanging in the air.

     "You don't want to know," Alice stated, sparing a glance at a sour-looking Matt. He sat

next to Megan in the front, Alice, Jesse and Kyra behind them and Perry and Val were across the

aisle. All of them wore the look of people who still couldn't believe they were going on a trip.

     Valerie was staring out the window with a hard expression. "I just can't get over how he

was treating me. Like I was some sort of traitor or something!" She glared at Perry. "And you

weren't exactly jumping to my defense."

     Perry raised his hands. "Hey, I'm still low man on the totem pole here. I don't want to

make waves with a senior guy."

     "You know, this could be fun," Kyra stated. "I've never been to California. I've got a list

of music clubs in L.A. I wanna check out."

     Alice chuckled. "It's the malls for me. Always wanted to shop on Rodeo Drive."

     "As for me," Jesse added. "I've gotta find out how West Coast waves stack up against

Hawaii."

     Matthew turned and glared at them. "Let's make this clear," he said. "This is not a

sightseeing trip. We didn't choose to do this, we were shoved into it. We are going there,

spending one night to tell these people we don't need them and then coming back."

     "Ah, ease up, Matt," Megan stated. "A vacation will do ye good! Been a long time since I

was in California."

     "Really?" Jesse asked, honestly curious. "How long?"

     Megan thought about it. "Well, let's just say, last time I was there, baseball had yet to

make it to the West Coast."

     Jesse's eyes widened. "Wow. That long?"

     Megan sat back in her chair. "Ah, it will be nice to get a break from the club. Glad ye

invited me, Matt." She raised her empty glass up. "Barmaiden! A refill, if you will."

     An attractive flight attendant came over with a patened false smile on her face which

didn't match her eyes as she leaned in toward Megan. "Miss, you've already had five glasses. We

do have a policy and I'm afraid we can't just-----"

     Megan looked her in the eye and the woman's face went slowly blank. "A refill, please,"

Megan stated.

     "Sure," the woman said in a flat tone as she took the glass and walked away. Megan

smiled and leaned back in her seat, only to become aware of everyone staring at her. "What?"

     Kyra shook her head, leaning back in her seat next to the window. "God, that freaks me

out," she muttered. For someone who had a belief in the supernatural, Kyra simply wasn't

comfortable around the vampire.

     Valerie didn't bother hiding her disgust. As someone who had felt Megan's hypnotic

power, she didn't like seeing it used on people. "Was that really necessary?"

     "For the price we're paying for these seats, we deserve some perks," Megan defended

herself.

     Perry smirked. "Aren't you worried about karmic retribution?"

     Megan snorted. "I'm an Irish vampire who doesn't feed on innocent people. I think I've

got karma to spare." She smiled broadly. "Besides, how do you think we got first class anyway?"

Steve St. Wolf's Home

1834 Hours PST

     The entire Sunnydale team was gathered in the living room as Steve completed the

explanation of who was coming and why. "So, they should be here in about an hour or so. Any

questions?"

     "Yes," Zev spoke up. "Can I skip this?"

     Steve glared at him. "This is important, Zev."

     "Really, Steven. We all know how this is going to work. You're going to meet and greet

and then bring them into the training room, have the Amazons wipe the floor with the women

while Robin's empowered folks get the men, have a big long laugh at the whole thing, which will

be caught on video. Then, after their looks of shock, you'll go into the long litany of who and

what you all are which will take about twenty minutes, minus confused questions from them. Then

you throw in the inevitable proving that magic exists as well as the smart remarks from Shaw and

Faith and the not at all smart ones from Harris and Chase and let's not forget that at least one of

them will try to punch Steve for being with Buffy. Then there's watching the Guardians shift, me

popping my spikes and showing off my computer and for the grand finale, the half-hour long

litany of just what threats you've all faced and defeated in the last two years."

     There was a long silence as everyone stared, impressed by just how much Zev had gotten

out. "Damn, and I thought my wife knew me," Steve murmured.

     Zev sighed as he rose up to his feet. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go see if Joyce is

interested in having dinner tonight. The less time I spend in the upcoming insanity pit, the better."

He walked off as Faith looked toward Buffy.

     "Does he know that Joyce is out shopping with Dawn later?" the brunette asked.

     Buffy acted surprised. "Did I forget to tell him that?"

2008 Hours PST

     "This is it?" Alice said as she stared at Steve's house. "This is the command center the guy

was talking about?"

     Kyra and Jesse both broke out in snickers. Alice stared at them in puzzlement. "What?"

     Kyra smiled. "You just said 'command center,' Ranger-Girl."

     Alice glowered at them. "Don't start. Okay? Don't even start."

     Perry grunted as he pulled at one case in the trunk. "God, Alice, it's only a few days,

what'd you pack?" He tried to pull again but the heavy case didn't budge. Megan lightly pushed

him aside, grabbed the case and, with a slight tug, easily pulled it out and on the ground. She gave

Perry a small nod as she unloaded the rest of the trunk.

     Perry looked at Valerie. "You gotta admit, she's handy."

     Val just shook her head in disgust as she paid off the driver. She looked around as he

started to drive off. "I have to admit, I am not impressed. For someplace that's supposed to be

filled with demons, this town is pretty quiet."

     "That's cause you're not listening right," Megan stated as she gathered up the bags.

"Trust me...this town isn't Mayberry."

     Matthew took a step toward the house and then paused as the Buzz overcame him. He

glanced at his charges, seeing they all felt it as well. "At least three Immortals in there, maybe

more," he said in a clipped tone. "I'll take point, Megan, you've got the rear, keep it tight and be

ready to move."

     "Remind me never to invite him to a country club," Perry muttered as the group followed

Matthew up the stairs to the porch. Megan let her senses move out, hearing the heartbeats of the

people inside to count how many there were. She paused and took a long sniff with her nose.

*Funny...that almost smells like...naw, it couldn't be...*

     The Immortal soldier knocked on the front door, his arm ready to go for his sword if

needed. The door opened to reveal a handsome man looking at them all. "Hi," he said in a friendly

tone. "Steve St. Wolf. I take it you're the group from Hastings Bay?"

     Matt nodded. "Matthew Connors, United States Army, retired."

     Steve grinned. "Special forces myself. Come on in." He opened the door and one by one,

the group entered.

     Jesse was looking around the foyer. "Nice. Guy must do quite well to----" His words were

cut off as a shrieking sound came over their heads. Everyone yelled, and looked around, trying to

identify the noise. They turned to see Megan, having just come over the threshold, clapping her

hands over her ears and wailing at the sound. "What the bloody hell is-----"

     She looked up in time to see a dozen weapons from guns to swords to stakes, all aimed at

her direction. "Ah, bloody hell."

     Matthew looked to the team as he pointed at Mega. "See, *this* is a real vampire."

Chronicles of Wanderer

Hunter's Moon

By Michael Weyer

     Part two: In which meetings and greetings, old and new, are made.

Steve St. Wolf's Home

Sunnydale, CA

2010 Hours PST

     "All right, no one move!" Jenny barked, her hands tight on the pistol 

she had aimed at

Megan's head.

     "I was gonna scratch my nose, is that okay?" Jesse asked. He, Alice, 

Kyra, Matthew, Valerie

and Perry were all frozen, staring in wonder as the group aimed weapons at 

Megan. The alarms

had cut off and the Irishwoman was shaking her head. "Jesus, Mary and 

Joseph, what was that?!"

     Shaw scoffed. "A religious vampire. How unique."

     Megan glanced at her, her nose twitching. "You...you're not human, are 

ye?"

     Shaw shook her head. "No. However I am more than capable to deal with the

likes of you."

     Megan smiled as she let her eyes rake over the group. "I could have 

half of you down before you’ve even realize I moved."

     "Try it," Cordelia challenged, hefting up her gun.

     "Easy, all," an Irish brogue cut through. The group parted as Liam 

pushed his way forward.

"It's ok, lads and lassies. She won't bite."

     Megan's eyes widened, as did her smile. "I'll be damned," she murmured. 

"Tis you after all."

     Liam nodded. "Hello, Megan. Been a while."

     "That it has, laddie," Megan replied.

     Buffy looked at the way the two of them were staring at one another and 

winced. "Oh, God.

Don't tell me, she's------"

     "Number 203," Liam casually told her.

     Shaw glared at him. "Someday, Liam, I am going to make you write down a 

complete list."

     Alice looked at Megan. "Megan, you know this guy?"

     "We were married once," the vampire off-handedly answered.

     That brought quite a few stunned stares from her fellow visitors. "When 

was this?" Matthew

demanded.

     "Few decades back."

     Jesse frowned. "Then...how come he still looks.."

     "He's a leprechaun."

     Jesse blinked. "Oh. You mean like..." He suddenly shifted his voice to 

mock Mike Meyers

as Wayne. "Oh, the leprechaun, the leprechaun, the leprechaun!" His 

chuckling was broken by the

icy look on Liam's face.

     The leprechaun pointed right at him. "Ye do that again...ye die."

     Steve looked to Liam. "Liam...you're saying she's all right?"

     "Megan? Sure, lad! She doesn't even feed on innocent people, never 

has!" He smiled at

his ex-wife. "Sorry about the greeting but ye wouldn't believe the security 

problems these folks

have had."

     Slowly, the Sunnydale group lowered their weapons and tried to relax. 

"Ok..." Kyra

started. "Now what, rubber hose interrogations? Caning?" She looked at 

Alice. "I knew

Californians were nuts already but this..."

     Steve sighed and motioned to the living room. "Come on in, we'll try to 

explain."

     There was a pause as everyone cautiously made their way to the living 

room. As they

walked, Kendra looked closely at Alice, then turned to Buffy. "And you 

called *me* the Pink

Ranger?"

     "Okay," Kyra said as soon as the groups were gathered together. "Just 

who are you people?"

     Steve crossed his arms and started to motion around the room. "Buffy 

Summers, Immortal

Vampire Slayer, bearer of the sword Vampire Slayer. Faith Pryce, Vampire 

Slayer. Kendra,

Vampire Slayer." He motioned again to some of the others. "Rupert Giles, 

Earl of Leicester,

former curator of the London Museum, empowered Ripper. Jenny Calendar, 

Amazon Gypsy.

Willow Rosenburg and Amy Madison, Amazon witches. Oz Green, empowered 

werewolf.

Xander Harris, empowered man with the memories of a special forces soldier. 

Cordelia Chase,

Amazon Warrior Princess."

     He turned to the other side. "Randi Jessup, Immortal wielder of the 

sword of Joan of Arc.

Larry Blaisdell, empowered jock. Robin Goodfellow of the Faery Kingdom, NOT 

Puck. Liam

Devlin O'Shaunnesgy Patrick Dillion O'Hara Paddywick McHale Thornton 

Danahure of the

Leprechaun Glens. Shaw Hunter, alias Shawukay Redarrow, priestess of 

Mielikki" He turned to

the group. "And finally, I'm Steve St. Wolf-----"

     "Human subtitle machine," Xander interjected.

     Megan frowned. "Hold a mo. Steve St. Wolf?"

     Steve frowned as well. "You know me?"

     "Not personally," Megan stated as she started to tick off her fingers. 

"Faberge Egg, June

of '96. German harpsichord, January of '97. Persian Rug, May of '97..."

     Steve's eyes widened. "You're that Maguire? Damn, you had good bids 

going."

     Megan snorted. "The people I hired gave up too easily. If I had been 

there, I'd have

gotten it, trust me."

     "Remind me to show you the shops downtown before you go..."

     "Ah, scuse me," Perry spoke up. "But could we get a little more detail 

on that weird-ass

introduction you just did?"

     Megan frowned at him. "What? Makes sense to me."

     Kyra stared at her, then at Cordelia. "Okay...hold up. Amazons?"

     "Yes," Queen C stated. "And if the word lesbian exits your mouth, a 

painful death shall

follow."

     "Let me get this straight," Perry stated. "You gals are Amazons and 

these guys are

empowered by...him," he pointed to Robin. "Who is Robin Goodfellow put not 

Puck."

     "That's right," the faery said.

     Perry thought it over and nodded. "Okay, I believe it."

     Valerie stared at him. "You what?!"

     "Valerie, no one has the imagination to just make up something like 

that," Perry calmly

stated.

     Jesse scratched his chin. "Um, I don't want to be rude but aren't 

Amazons supposed to be

men-hating lesbians? I thought Artemis hated men."

     "Well, that's why it's called myth," Jenny pointed out. "Not all of it 

is true."

     Alice shook her head in disbelief. "You can't ask us to buy this. 

There's no such thing as

magic!"

     There was a long pause before Liam glanced to Jenny. "Ye want to handle 

this?"

     The gypsy let out a slight smile. "I believe this is more inclined to 

your type of

grandstanding."

     Liam nodded and shared a look with Robin. The two nodded and snapped 

their fingers

and six rats were scurrying on the floor around Megan's feet.

     Shaw frowned at Liam. "You did not change her?"

     Liam gave her a surprised look. "Shaw...she's an Irish vampire."

     Shaw pondered that and nodded. "Good point."

     Megan looked at the Slayers. "Hold a mo. I thought there could only be 

one Slayer."

     "Well, I died, so along came Kendra and she nearly died and along came 

Faith," Buffy

explained.

     "An Irish Slayer?" Megan looked Faith up and down. "Haven't heard of 

that one."

     "What can I say?" Faith said with a smile. "Can't mess with 

perfection."

     Megan laughed and looked to Robin and Liam. "Oh, I like her."

     The two Eternals snapped their fingers and the newcomers were in human 

form, all quite

bewildered by what had happened. "Whoa," Kyra said. "That was....whoa...."

     "That's my line," Jesse stated.

     Valerie shook her head. "Okay...what was that? Huh? You drug us or 

something?"

     "It's called magic, lass," Megan said as she took a Cuban cigar out of 

her pocket, placed it

into her mouth and lit it.

     "Um, those are bad for you," Willow piped up.

     Megan looked at her, her eyes briefly turning yellow.

     "Oh. Right."

     Matt glared at Megan. "Magic? Megan, come on. First the video, now 

this?"

     Megan frowned. "What video?"

     Matthew sighed. "I didn't want to tell you about it because it's so 

stupid. It says that

Immortals are supposed to fight demons and vampires but the vamps they had 

are nothing like

you."

     Megan's eyes widened. "What? Matt, why didn't ye tell me about this?"

     Matt blinked. "Why would I tell you such an utterly ridiculous story?"

     "Well, I could have told you it was all utterly true."

     Alice's jaw dropped. "It what?"

     Megan crossed her arms. "Demons are real, Alice. A whole lot of them. 

And there's more

than one type of vampire out there." She turned to the Sunnydale group. "The 

soulless ones,

right?" She nodded at their confirming looks. "I should have known. They're 

a lot more prevalent

than my kind and a hell of a lot nastier."

     "Just how do you differ?" Larry asked in honest curiosity."

     Megan sat back in a chair as she took out a cigar and lit it. "Well," 

she said as she took in

a long drag and blew out a cloud of smoke. "I've still got a reflection plus 

flight, strength, speed

and hypnotism."

     "Thank Goddess she didn't say the whammy," Amy muttered.

     "Wait a minute, wait a minute!" Valerie snapped. "Are you actually 

telling me that this

Scroll thing is for real?"

     "It is," Steve told her as he picked up the phone and dialed a number. 

"And by not

relaying that fact to Matt and the others, you've done some serious damage."

     Valerie sniffed. "I'm just trying to uphold the traditions my family 

has dedicated itself to. I'm not going to spit on their accomplishments because 

someone wanted to end

the Game."

     Steve just nodded as he waited for the person on the other end of the 

line to pick up.

"Hello? Yes, it's St. Wolf. Yes, she's here. Okay." He handed the phone to 

Valerie. With a

baffled look, she took it and spoke into it. "Um...hello?"

     "Valerie, I can't begin to express how immensely disappointed I am in 

you."

     At the strong male voice, Valerie's eyes shot wide open. "DAD?!"

     Charles Rosthon went on. "You've always been strong-willed and 

independent, Valerie. I

have accepted that and allowed for it. But this has gone beyond the pale. 

Regardless of your

personal feelings about the Scroll and the video, you had a duty to inform 

your charges of it. It

was something the Council all agreed upon. So by failing to follow that 

directive and then

knowingly lying about it for over a year to us is something that shall not 

go well for you. Do you

know how many people were demanding you be kicked out? I had to call in 

quite a few favors to

prevent that."

     "But...Dad..."

     "Valerie. The video is real, as is the Scroll. These people can show 

you the truth far more

effectively than I can. You will stay there for as long as it takes and I 

hope you can put aside this

pride of yours and accept this change. If you can't...well, it may be a 

while before I allow you to

come home again. Good-bye." The line went dead as Valerie just stood,

slack-jawed.

     "Interesting," Jesse remarked. "Squint a little and she looks a lot 

like a carp washed up on

shore."

     There was a banging from the front of the house and a minute later, Zev 

tromped in with a

sour look on his face. He glared at Buffy, who just smiled sweetly. "You 

knew they were

shopping, didn't you?"

     "Who, me?" Buffy asked.

     "Who's this?" Alice asked.

     The man turned to her. "Zev Mundac." He peered at her. "You------"

     "I know, I know, the Pink Ranger!" Alice exploded. "Get it out, get it 

all out!"

     "Who?" Zev asked in confusion.

     "The Pink Power Ranger? Mighty Morphin Power Rangers?"

     "Never heard of them." Zev was taken aback as Alice suddenly moved in and 

hugged him.

"Thank you," she whispered.

     Zev looked to the others. "I don't even want to know..."

     Perry looked Zev over. "So...just what are you doing here?"

     "Oh, such a question," Zev sighed deeply. He looked over the recent 

arrivals. "I would

advise you to get out of this town as fast as possible."

     "We've been getting that vibe," Jesse told him.

     Steve clapped his hands together. "Okay. How about we get down to 

business? I think we

should try to hold some sort of patrol schedule tonight. Give these guys a 

crash course in how

Sunnydale works."

     Jesse leaned in toward Kyra. "Whenever people start talking about you 

like you're not

around, it's a bad sign."

     "What and turned into a rat wasn't enough of a sign?" Kyra snapped 

back.

     Steve motioned to the center of the room. "Okay, let's get started."

     As the group started to move in, Alice and Kyra both caught sight of 

Larry. "Wow," Alice

remarked. "Is he single?"

     Faith smirked. "Sorry, honey. He's gay."

     "No!" Alice gasped. She turned to Larry. "Are you gay?"

     "I'm gay," he confirmed.

     "Bastard."

     Matthew raised an eyebrow. "Interesting." He turned to Steve. "Guess 

he's leaving, huh?"

     Steve frowned in puzzlement. "Actually no. He's part of the team."

     Matthew snorted. "Oh, please. You're military, St. Wolf. You know as 

well as I do that

there's no place in a military unit for gays."

     A very long and chilling silence went up as everyone stared at him, the 

Hastings Bay

residents showing more shock than the others. "Tell me he didn't just say 

that," Alice whispered.

     Matthew waved a hand. "I have nothing against gays personally. I just 

don't feel they

belong in the military. I need someone I can depend on."

     "We depend on Larry," Xander told him.

     "Then you're an idiot."

     "Loath as I am to disagree with such an excellent judge of Harris’

character..."

     "HEY!"

     Zev continued. "I must say that this is a rather backward form of 

thinking, even for an

Earthling."

     Matthew sighed as if tired. "Look, if I'm in a battle, I would rather 

not have to worry

about the guy next to me more preoccupied with how I look naked."

     "You know," Larry piped up. "I've gone through a lot of misconceptions 

about being gay

but the one that pisses me off is what idiot came up with the idea that 

being gay automatically

meant I want to sleep with every single guy I see? Do you want to sleep with 

every single woman

you see? No, I think not, same concept, let's move on."

     Zev glanced at Faith. "He's fast approaching you as my favorite."

     Matthew tried to go on. "Listen, I just want to say----" He stopped as 

he caught the icy

cold look in Steve's eyes. The Wanderer calmly strode forward and glared at 

the other man.

"Listen and listen closely," he bit out in a cold voice. "Larry is on this 

team. He's more than proven

his worth to us. I don't give a damn about his sexual preference because 

it doesn't play one bit

into how well he fights and what he believes in. I can't stop you from 

feeling the way you do but

while you are here, you will not make any disparaging remarks about him, no 

slurs, no insults, no

snide jokes and you will not shoot him down because of your own prejudices. 

There's no room in

this place for bigots so treat him with respect or I will turn you over to 

three people who will

concoct a long and very painful punishment for you."

     Matt just stood there, trying to keep his calm in the face of the 

verbal assault. Alice looked

to Buffy and grinned. "Can I switch teachers?"

     "Sorry," the Slayer laughed. "I saw him first."

     "Come on!" Alice half-begged. "You don't know what it's like to hang 

with him! We've

been thrown out of a half-dozen ball games because he insists on singing all 

five stanzas of 'The

Star-Spangled Banner!'"

     Steve frowned. "There's only four stanzas."

     "He wrote another one!"

     Jesse suddenly started and looked at Zev. "Ah...wait. Did you use the 

term 'Earthling?'"

     Zev nodded. "I did."

     Kyra looked uncertain. "Um...if we're Earthlings...what are you?"

     "Reudian. Lovely planet a few dozen light-years away."

     Even Megan was taken aback by that revelation. "An..alien?" she 

stammered. "You're a bloody

alien?"

     "Ye got it, Meggie," Liam said.

     "Meggie?" Matt, Alice, Kyra and Jesse said.

     "LIAM!"

     Shaw smiled at Amy. "I told you I was not the only one who could scream 

out his name

like that."

     "Great Jurden, change the subject," Zev pleaded.

     Perry was staring at him in wonder. "You're a real alien?"

     "Actually, from where I stand, you're the aliens," Zev pointed out.

     "It's our planet," Matthew was quick to state.

     "Old Reudian saying: A race may inhabit a planet. No race can own it."

     "I don't believe this," Valerie muttered.

     Zev sighed and put a hand on her shoulder. "My dear lady," he said in a 

sympathetic tone.

"You haven't even plumbed the depths of unbelievable here."

     Twenty minutes later, the Hastings Bay group stared in stupefied 

wonder at the group,

taking in all they had heard. Kyra slowly leaned in toward Jesse. "Am I high 

or are they?"

     Valerie shook her head in utter disbelief. "Demon cults, invading 

Libya, ninjas from other

dimensions, time traveling, body switches, what's next, you going to another 

reality and meeting

your doubles?"

     At the bemused looks on their faces, she threw up her hands. "For God's 

sake, I was

joking!"

     "All right, here's the teams," Steve announced. "Zev, you and Megan can 

take the west

side."

     Zev stared at Megan, then at Steve. "You're sending me out with an 

Irish vampire ex-Mrs.

Danahure?" the alien asked in disbelief. He bent his head forward. "Steven, 

there's a small nerve

cluster in between my fourteenth and sixteenth vertebrae. Just give it a 

quick twist, it's faster and

far less painful."

     "You're not sending him with Shaw?" Amy asked.

     "Well, I don't want them feeling inferior," Steve said.

     "Then why are you sending her with me?" Zev asked.

     Robin chuckled. "Zev and Megan. Battle of the egos. I'd pay good money 

for that."

     Ignoring him, Steve nodded to Xander and Cordelia. "You two can take 

Alice."

     "Steven, please, must we make the poor girl suffer?"

     "Willow and Oz, you can take Kyra. Shaw and Amy can bring Jesse along. 

Giles and Jenny,

you get Valerie and Perry. And..." He paused and smiled. "Matt can come 

along with me, Buffy

and Larry."

     Matthew glanced at Larry, who beamed and rolled his eyes. "Oh, I hate 

you people."

     There was a noise as the front door opened and a moment later, Joyce 

and Dawn entered

the room. "Oh!" Joyce said, stopping as she looked at the large crowd. "Ah, 

sorry, I didn't know

we had so much company."

     "These are the guys from Massachusetts I was telling you about," Buffy 

told her. "Guys

this is my mom, Joyce and my sister, Dawn."

     Kyra looked at Dawn. "Okay...and what are you? Amazon? Angelic warrior? 

Mermaid?"

     Dawn snorted. "Nope. I'm the one normal person around here."

     With great effort, Robin and Liam managed to avoid throwing each other 

a look.

     Matthew looked at Joyce. "So you're just a regular mom?"

     "Well, I wouldn't just call myself 'regular,'" Joyce remarked.

     Matthew smirked as he looked at Larry. "So you help her out with the 

cooking and

cleaning? Maybe wear an apron while you do?"

     "Matthew, in the seventy-five years we've known each other, I've never 

seen you acting

like such a horse's ass," Megan snapped with more than a dash of ire.

     Joyce frowned at Buffy who sighed in response. "He has..issues with 

Larry being gay."

     "Oh," Joyce said. She turned to Matthew. "Um, Mr...Connors, was it? I 

think you should

try to give Larry more of a break. He doesn't need to be judged by how he 

feels about other men.

It would be better if you just cut him some slack."

     "And what if I don't?" Matthew said. "Are *you* going to make me?"

     "Oh, no, he DIDN'T!" Dawn yelled.

     Zev glanced at Buffy. "May I?"

     The Slayer spread out her hands. "Be my guest."

     Zev nodded, walked forward and smacked Matthew across the head. The 

Immortal yelled in

pain as he rubbed his head. "Watch it, pal! I've seen more combat than you 

in the worse spots

imaginable!"

     "I've worked for the CIA," Steve mentioned.

     "Ah, so you haven't done any real fighting."

     Steve raised an eyebrow. "I take it you don't like the CIA."

     Matthew snorted. "I'm a soldier, not a spook, St. Wolf. I belong on a 

battlefield, not a

desk."

     "Actually, Matt, you're a teacher so you are usually behind a desk," 

Alice pointed out.

     Ignoring her, Matt stared at Steve. "So just what experience do you 

have?"

     "Joined the Army in '75 at the age of sixteen, spent two years with the 

82nd Airborne

before being transferred to the 5th SFG at Bragg, six years and 131 missions 

before I died. Three

Bronze Stars, two Purple Hearts, Medal of Honor and Victoria's Cross."

     Buffy wore a proud smile as Matt just stared in amazement at Steve. 

"Wow," he finally

got out. "Not bad for a kid."

     Steve smirked. "Plus, I got involved in one mission for the CIA in '91 

you might approve

of. The raid on the slaver auction in 1991."

     "Whoever named you was a number off," Matt remarked. "Because you 

people are

certifiably Section Eight."

     "I take it you're having difficulty accepting this," Zev said.

     "That's right," Jesse replied.

     "Of course it's right. I said it. Therefore, it's right."

     Matt looked at Steve. "You let him stay here?"

     "Yes."

     "You're crazy."

     "Old Reudian saying," Zev piped in. "Who's crazier? The crazy man or 

those crazy

enough to follow him?"

     Valerie rubbed her head. "You people need industrial strength therapy."

     "We have a shrink on the payroll," Willow said.

     Valerie rolled her eyes. "Oh, lord help him. He'd need the patience of 

a saint to put up

with you people."

     "Yeah, Joanie has trouble with that," Randi stated.

     Alice frowned. "Who's Joanie?"

     "Joan of Arc," Randi matter-of-factly replied.

     There were more baffled stares and Valerie closed her eyes in pain. "I 

can't accept this."

     "Well, better get to accepting it," Buffy announced. "You go out there 

thinking it'll be

easy and that'll get you killed."

     "You will be going into areas fraught with danger," Shaw announced.

     "Miss," Perry said. "We just got off a flight from Massachusetts. It's 

a bit late to use

words like 'fraught.'"

          "Everyone be careful," Steve said. "We don't need any mistakes."

     "I don't make mistakes." Megan paused to think about that. "Wait a 

minute, there was

one time...Oh, wait, that wasn't my fault, so, no, never, my mistake."

     Shaw had a small smile on her face. "I do know of one mistake you made, 

Megan."

     The vampire frowned. "What?"

     Shaw leaned toward Liam. "You let Liam get away from you. Very big 

mistake." She and

Liam shared a kiss as Megan stammered.

     Steve nodded as he walked to the hallway. "Come on. Let's get them 

loaded up."

     "Good God," Matthew breathed as he saw the armory. "When I fought for 

the right to

bear arms, I didn't expect people to take it to this level."

     Perry was staring at a rack of high-powered assault rifles. "I'm 

positive some of this stuff

is outlawed by the Geneva Convention."

     "I'm positive some of this stuff isn't known to the Geneva Convention," 

Jesse added.

     Perry crossed his arms, a nervous expression on his face. "I don't like 

guns very much," he

explained to Steve's confused look. "You see as many dead bodies riddled 

with bullets as I have

and you'll understand."

     Xander peaked up. "That how you found out about Immortals?"

     Perry nodded. "Yeah, two came to life in front of me. You haven't lived 

until you've seen

a return from the dead."

     "There's philosophy I've never heard before," Kyra remarked. "Least not 

til I first died."

She paused as she saw a row of quivers, bows, arrows and stakes. "Ah, isn't 

this a little low-

tech?"

     "Oh, no, wait," Valerie sarcastically said. "We forgot. Bullets won't 

work on vampires."

     "Actually, they can if we have them blessed and filled with holy water 

and garlic," Buffy

explained. "We also have lots of magic tricks as well."

     "Oh, yeah," Valerie dryly stated. "Magic. Of course."

     Perry looked at her. "Valerie...are you forgetting we were----"

     "Mass hallucination," Valerie snapped. "We may have been drugged, you 

know?"

     Buffy rolled her eyes. "Oh, great, we've got a live one here."

     Steve cocked his pistol before putting it in his holster. "Let's make 

sure she won't become

a dead one."

Chronicles of Wanderer

Hunter's Moon

by Michael Weyer

based on an idea by Tim Knight.

     Chapter three: In which regular patrols lead to irregular meetings.

St. Marcus Cemetary

2201 Hours PST

     A cloud of smoke hung in the air over the two figures. The dark smoke 

of Megan's cigar

mingled with the slightly green tint of Zev's pipe. The alien and the 

vampire calmly strode along

the pathways with their separate humidors.

     "So," Megan began. "Gonna ask about Liam and me?"

     "No," Zev said simply.

     "Not curious at all?"

     "That would require my caring enough about it to be curious."

     Megan chuckled as she took out her cigar. "So...tell me about Shaw. 

What kind of person

is she?"

     Zev glanced at her as he puffed on his pipe. "You want information on 

the woman your

ex-husband is dating?"

     Megan shrugged. "Just want to make sure she's good enough."

     "Oh, she is. Believe me, she'll be the first to tell you that."

     Megan sighed and smiled as she thought back. "Ah, it was a good time 

with Liam, I have

to admit. He was always charming, good-humored. Oh and the sex..." She 

shivered. "He was able

to match me, which very few can. After all, as a vampire, I'm capable of 

things other women

aren't. Ye want me to go on?"

     "I beg you to stop," Zev insisted. "I get quite enough of that from 

Harris and Chase."

     "Picked up on an odd vibe between you three," Megan noted. "You've got 

some sort of

love/hate thing going?"

     "No, just hate," Zev answered. He paused and bent his head to one 

side. Megan saw

the look on his face and stopped as well. Her own ears twitched as she 

picked up a sound nearby.

"Three of them," she said.

     "Four," Zev corrected. He turned toward the nearby bushes as they 

parted and a quartet

of vampires approached them. One was sniffing at the two. "Well, you two 

definitely aren't

human."

     "Thanks for the compliment," Zev remarked as he removed his pipe and 

calmly emptied it.

     The lead vampire crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. "Maybe you can 

help us out?

We were planning to check out this sleep over a few houses down." He grinned 

and licked his

lips.

"Pre-teens always taste great, you know?"

     Megan took a drag on her cigar as she glanced at Zev. "It's the ones 

like these that give

vampires a bad name," she coolly remarked. "You armed?"

     "Thank Jurden Harris isn't here for an easy line like that," Zev 

muttered as he glared at the

lead vampire. The creature was starting to realize these two weren't in a 

mood to become allies as

Megan calmly took another drag on her cigar. With a flash of movement, she 

flicked it right into

the face of one vampire, the hot end striking it in the eyes. As he howled 

in pain, Zev popped out

his spikes and attacked. Megan also moved in, her eyes glowing and 

fangs out as she

blasted a vampire with a pair of punches. He fell back against a tree as 

Megan leapt up, grabbing a

branch and snapping it off. She landed, brandishing the makeshift stake as 

the vampire stared at

her face. "You...you're one of us!"

     "No, laddie," Megan said. "I'm not. My kind? We've got style." With 

that, she plunged the

branch into the man's heart as Zev's spikes slashed through another's neck.

Sunnydale Park

2208 Hours PST

     "I can't believe I'm doing this," Valerie muttered as she kicked a 

loose pebble on the ground.

Her hands were pushed into her pockets, her head bent down low. She was 

walking beside Perry,

Giles and Jenny, the quartet marching along the pathways of the park. Giles 

and Jenny glanced about, on the alert for any possible dangers. Perry was a bit

more 

nonchalant as he

smiled at his fellow Watcher. "Come on, Val. The town doesn't look that 

bad."

     "It's not the town, it's the company," Valerie snapped. She stepped 

back a bit and leaned

in toward Perry. "Perry, these two act like they'll be able to blast magic 

at attacking vampires!"

     "Servants of Twilight."

     Valerie blinked in confusion. "What?"

     "Servants of Twilight," Perry went on. "Dean Koontz, 1982. A woman and 

her son are

chased by a cult convinced the kid is the Antichrist. Course, as the book 

goes along, you start to

wonder if just maybe they're right."

     Valerie shook her head. "Perry, you can't try to tell me you believe 

these lunatics. Reality

check: Magic isn't real."

     Perry shrugged. "Valerie, six months ago, the idea of Immortals and 

vampires would have

been crazy. If there's one thing I've been learning, Val, it's that life is 

an expert at throwing you

curve balls." His eyes were caught by a movement and he focused on two 

figures coming up a

walk before them. "And here's a damn good example."

     He picked up his pace, his face breaking into a wide smile at the two 

people. "Beth!

Johnny!"

     The two people stopped and looked at him in surprise. The man looked a 

bit like Perry, if

a bit beefier with lighter hair, in jeans and leather jacket. The woman was 

rather attractive, with

short curly blond hair framing a pert face, in a dark black dress. "Perry!" 

she called out. "Fancy

meeting you here."

     Perry smiled as he looked to the others. "Oh, yeah, Val, this is Johnny 

Masters, my best

friend and Beth Masters, my ex-wife."

     Valerie was a bit taken aback before smiling at the woman. "Oh. Hi, 

yes, Perry has spoken

of you a lot."

     Perry laughed as he looked at Beth. "Wow, you look great! It's been a 

while."

     "Yeah, well, we've been...busy," the woman said with a smile on her 

face. Behind Perry

and Val, Giles and Jenny suddenly tensed, both of them sensing something 

wrong with this

picture.

     Perry didn't notice, instead turning to Johnny. "So, buddy, how are the 

kids? What brings

you into town."

     "Oh, just hunting for fun," Johnny said with a wide smile. His eyes 

glinted with an evil

light. "And what do you know? We just found some." His face changed, 

shifting into the warped

features of a vampire. Beth's face changed as well as the two moved toward 

the stunned Perry

and Valerie.

     A blast of light swept forward and knocked the two vampires down along 

with Perry and

Valerie. Jenny stood there, her arms outstretched as Giles pulled out a 

short sword and moved in.

He had only gotten a few steps when a trio of vampires stepped out to back 

up Johnny and Beth.

One lunged at Giles, who deftly sidestepped and swung out his sword. It 

neatly bisected the

vampire's neck, turning him to dust.

     Jenny was moving in, leaping up to launch a flying kick at the two 

other vampires,

knocking them both down. She ducked one's punch and nailed him with two of 

her own, reaching

into her coat to pull out a stake. She turned, booting one in the sternum 

and then drove the stake

into his heart.

     Beth had gotten back to her feet and, snarling, charged at Jenny. Giles 

muttered under his

breath and threw out a hand. A blast of air knocked Beth down into Johnny, 

the two tumbling on

the ground. Jenny was backhanding the remaining vampire to the ground. He 

tried to get up but

she cast a spell that ignited his clothing. The vampire howled, rolling 

on the ground in a futile

attempt to put out the flames. His howls were finally cut off as his body 

combusted and left a dark

stain on the grass.

     Beth and Johnny had gotten back to their feet, both realizing they were 

way out of their

league. With a shared look, they took off at high speed, vanishing into the 

darkness. Giles and

Jenny watched them go, then turned their attention to Valerie and Perry.

     The two were sitting next to each other, both with stunned expressions 

on their faces.

Perry's was more horrified, unable to accept what he had just witnessed. 

"They...they just...they

just...she was a...a..."

     Valerie stared blankly forward. "It's real," she whispered. "Oh, my 

God, it's all real. It's

all true. All of it."

     Giles and Jenny looked at each other with grim expressions. "I think 

her reality check just

bounced," Jenny remarked.

North Campus of Sunnydale University.

2214 Hours PST

     "Not bad," Alice remarked as she looked about the campus. "Pretty nice 

school for such a

small town."

     "Yeah, it's not too bad," Xander agreed. "Course, not as many 

skyscrapers as Angel Grove."

     "Oh and pink for the new term?" Cordelia threw in. "Forget about it, 

honey."

     Alice closed her eyes. For the last half hour, she'd had to put up with 

one crack after another

about Power Rangers. Even for someone who had put up with such jokes for the 

last few

years, Alice was hitting her last nerve. *If only they were Immortal, then I 

could kill them.*

     Cordelia pointed toward one building. "So, engineering is over there 

along with science

labs."

     "Both of which I guess you're familiar with," Xander interjected.

     Alice glared at the duo. "Well, if anyone should know about pink, it's 

you," she told Cordelia.

"I bet your gal pals at the local biker bar would agree."

     Cordelia shot her an ugly look. "Hey, no need to take your teacher's 

homophobia on."

     Alice pointed a finger at her. "Don't knock Matt, ok? He's a good guy, 

he's helped me a

whole lot. I wouldn't be where I am if not for him."

     "But has he ever given you a fancy coin for a gift?" Xander asked.

     *That's it* Alice thought, her hand going for her sword. Before she 

could pull it out, she

felt the Buzz. Her head whipped around, trying to find the source.

     Cordelia and Xander both recognized the look and also looked about. 

They all saw a figure

coming forward. She was a tall woman with Asian features dressed in a tight 

leather outfit with

long coat. Her black hair was pulled back in a severe bun, her green focused 

on Alice as she came

to a stop a few feet away from her. She lifted her head and spoke in a 

surprisingly deep voice. "I

am Shen Mai Lao of the Mako Court."

     Alice licked her dry lips. "Alice Fairchild." She paused and looked 

Shen in the eye. "We don't

have to do this."

     The woman let a thin smile come to her face. "I've been doing it for 

600 years. I am in no

mood to stop now." She reached under her coat and pulled out a long and 

sharp blade.

     Alice winced as she looked at Xander and Cordelia. "So the day I find 

out the Game is a fraud

I get into my first duel. Irony really stinks."

     "Tell us about it," the two said.

Southern Campus of the University of Sunnydale

2214 Hours PST

     "I thought the point of this was to split up?" Willow stated. She, Oz, 

Kyra, Shaw, Amy

and Jesse were walking through the other side of campus, checking their 

surroundings. The two

groups had run into one another a few minutes earlier after quiet patrols 

for them all.

     "We're still giving them a tour of the town," Amy pointed out. "Maybe 

in bigger numbers

will be better."

     Jesse glanced at Kyra. "So, how's your pair been?"

     "Not too bad," Kyra said. She nodded at Oz. "Nice to talk to someone 

about the latest

rock styles."

     Amy glanced at Willow. "Oz talked?"

     Willow shrugged. "Yeah, he was actually babbling about guitar 

comparisons."

     Kyra frowned. "He said maybe twelve sentences."

     "That's babbling for Oz."

     Kyra sighed as she looked at Amy. "So...you're really a witch, huh?" 

She smiled. "I've

actually been reading up on that for a while. Maybe you can teach me 

something?"

     Amy smiled. "It's not like teaching bike lessons, Kyra. You have to 

have the potential

inside you in order to make magic work."

     "And I don't?"

     Willow frowned. "Hmm....she's got a point there, Amy. I didn't know I 

had any only a

year ago."

     "Perhaps we should do a check," Shaw stated.

     "On the to-do list," Amy affirmed with a nod.

     Jesse chuckled. "A witch rocker. I've gotta see that next time you play 

at a club."

     "So how about you, Jesse?" Willow said, looking at the man. "You got 

any interests?"

     "Surfing," Jesse immediately answered. "Which, as you can imagine, 

isn't that big in

Massachusetts." He smacked his head. "Damn, I forgot my board. I wanted to 

try the West Coast

waves. Surfing always makes me feel alive."

     "Which is ironic considering it's how you first died," Kyra pointed 

out.

     Jesse just waved. "Ah, it was worth it. That wave..." He closed his 

eyes and his face took

on a look of fond remembrance. "The curl...the breaker...the way it rolled, 

just perfect...The

spray in my face, the challenge of keeping the board steady as I went..." He 

let out a deep sigh.

"After that...sex is probably a letdown."

     He opened his eyes to see everyone blankly staring at him except for 

Kyra. She sighed and

brushed at her hair. "I'm really not looking forward to him in winter."

     Shaw's ears seemed to perk a bit and she whipped her head around, her 

eyes sweeping

their surroundings. "It would appear," she softly began. "That the night is 

about to take a turn."

She hefted her blade. Instantly, Willow, Oz and Amy were on guard as well 

with Kyra and Jesse

exchanging puzzled glances.

     They looked up to see eight people walking forward, all college age, 

all dressed in loose

clothing. They paused at seeing the teenagers and a few smiled. "Hey there," 

their leader said in a

polite tone. "We're checking out this big party, you want to come with?"

     Shaw narrowed her eyes at them. "That depends. Does this party involve 

a slaughter of some

sort?"

     The man chuckled. "You know...it does." He smiled wider as his face 

changed. The rest of

the group also shifted into game faces.

     "Oh my God," Kyra breathed, her eyes wide in shock. Jesse's mouth was 

also open, as

frozen as she was. His eyes bulged further as Oz suddenly shifted into wolf 

form. The Sunnydale

residents were prepared to move when the vampire leader snapped his fingers. 

Two of his party

stepped up and suddenly revealed they were holding bows with arrows already 

notched. They let

them fly, one streaking toward Shaw, the other toward Oz. The werewolf moved 

but the arrow

struck him in the upper shoulder, causing him to emit a loud howl. Shaw 

swiftly dodged the arrow

aimed at her as Amy threw up a shield to stop it.

     Willow's eyes darkened as she saw the wounded Oz. With a snarl, she 

held up a hand and

threw a blast of magic at the vampire that had shot him. The creature howled 

in pain as he felt his

skin blister and blacken. He fell back, the bow flying away as he rolled on 

the ground. The

Scoobies swiftly moved to the attack. "Head and heart," Shaw informed Kyra 

and Jesse.

     She twirled her sword in her hands as she struck out at a vampire. The 

blade slashed

across his chest, causing the creature to howl in pain. He staggered back as 

Amy threw a force

bolt from her hand, sending another vampire flying back.

     Jesse swallowed as he pulled out his short sword and moved into a 

fighting stance.

Matthew had done well teaching both him and Kyra how to fight over the last 

few months but

that was against humans, not demons. *Can't be that bad. Just ignore the 

face, go for the weak

spots.* He launched a kick at the demon's sternum but with inhuman speed, 

the vamp dodged it

and punched him in the face. Jesse gasped as he went down hard. *Okay...not 

so easy.*

     Kyra did a little better as she managed a kick that stunned one 

vampire. She twirled

her sharp English blade as she jammed the tip into the vampire's chest. The 

vampire staggered,

then took on a sick grin, shaking his head. "Wood, not metal, baby." With 

that, he backhanded

Kyra savagely, sending her to the ground.

     Willow spin-kicked a vampire in the face and jammed a stake into his 

heart. She heard a

howl and turned to see Oz tearing the throat of one vampire and then 

launching himself at

another. "Oh, Goddess," Willow whispered. She knew that her lover was in 

pain from the arrow

and the pain was overwhelming his reason. She flexed her hands, ready to 

cast a sleep spell if need

be.

     Kyra gasped as she felt a sharp kick in her ribs, hearing one crack. 

She rolled on the

ground, trying to get her breath back as the vampire moved in. The creature 

yelled out as Jesse

smashed the hilt of his sword in his head. He staggered forward, turning 

just in time to see Jesse's

blade coming at him. The swift stroke sliced through his neck and both Kyra 

and Jesse stared in

amazement as the vampire turned to dust. "Wow," Jesse whispered. "Megan 

never said they do

that."

     Kyra looked up to see the rest of the group still handling the 

vampires. Her eyes fell on the

bow and arrows one dead vampire had dropped. Before she knew it, she 

grabbed them,

hefted the bow in her hands and knocked an arrow into it. She aimed it at 

a vampire who was

moving toward Shaw from behind. "Head and heart," Kyra whispered as she let 

the arrow fly.

     The vampire was about to reach Shaw when she felt a pain in her chest. 

She had just

enough time to look down at the arrow piercing her heart before she 

disintegrated. Kyra was

already aiming another arrow at another vampire. He moved just as she let go 

so the arrow buried

itself into his neck. He fell back, gasping and clawing at his throat, 

giving Amy the chance to bury

a stake in his heart.

     Oz had just finished tearing a vampire's head off when Willow reached 

him. "Oz!" she

hissed as she grabbed him around the neck. "Ease down! Breathe! Ok? Let me 

help you!"

     The werewolf tensed and Willow was afraid he was going to fight. Then, 

his body relaxed

and sank down. Fur slowly receded as Oz came back to human form, the arrow 

point still buried

in his shoulder. He looked at it and sniffed. "Ow."

     Willow held him tight before moving her hands to begin a healing spell.

     The remaining vampire had figured it was time to get running and was 

backpedaling furiously

away. Kyra raised her bow but Jesse stopped her. "This one's mine," he said 

as he took the arrow

off the bow. He held it up carefully, peering at the vampire, his hand 

extended above and behind

him. He threw it out, his wrist snapping forward and the arrow flipped 

through the air. It buried

itself into the vampire's heart just as he was turning. He died with arms 

extended outward and a

surprised look on his face.

     Kyra nodded at Jesse. "Not bad."

     He just shrugged. "Old soldier guy back on the islands taught me. It's 

great if I want to make

some money with darts."

     Amy wiped at her brow as she looked at the bow in Kyra's hands. "Wow. 

That was pretty

damn good. How'd you...?"

     It was Kyra's turn to shrug. "Had to learn something at summer camp and 

needed one athletic

course."

     "Funny," Amy remarked. "I would have thought Alice would be the 

archer."

     Kyra rolled her eyes. "Amy...do us a favor and knock off the Power 

Ranger comments. Trust

me, we'll all be grateful." She looked over at Willow and her eyes widened 

as she saw Shaw

joining them. The Harper held a hand over Oz's shoulder, a glow 

emitting as the wound

slowly knit itself. "Holy shit." She glanced at Jesse. "I gotta learn how to 

do that."

     Jesse frowned. "Um, Kyra, we can do that on our own."

     "I meant the magic," she answered.

     They all started as a ringing sound went out. Amy quickly pulled out 

her cell phone and

opened it. "Hello?" Her eyes widened. "Oh, shit. Okay, we're there." She 

hung it up and looked

at Kyra and Jesse. "It's Alice."

     Alice felt a whisp of air as she managed to duck the tight swing. She 

backed up, her sword

held in a defensive stance. Mao had a sneer on her face as she moved in 

swiftly, her blade

whipping in arcs in the air. The two had been dueling for several minutes 

now and Alice could tell

Mao was damn good. She had strength and speed with a special agility that 

rivaled Alice's own

gymnastics. Plus, she had more experience, which was making all the 

difference.

     "Keep moving!" Cordelia yelled. She and Xander stood by, watching the 

duel, both knowing

they couldn't interfere. "Come on, use the Ranger speed."

     Alice rolled back to avoid a swing and came up to her feet to glare at 

Cordelia. "Listen...you

stop the Power Rangers jokes and I'll stop the Amazon cracks. Deal?"

     "Deal."

     With a nod, Alice went back to the fight. She spun around as Mao came 

at her again and then

made a lunge with her blade. She was rewarded with a grunt as her blade 

slashed a piece of Mao's

arm, tearing flesh and cloth. The Asian hissed, her eyes flaring with anger 

as she stepped back and

whipped off her coat, then swung her blade in wide arcs.

     *Oh, great. Now she's pissed.*

     Both of them paused as they felt a Buzz. Alice peered out of the corner 

of her eye to see Kyra

and Jesse leading the charge toward the area. "Guys...this is my fight." She 

turned her attention

back to Mao, shrugging off her coat for better movement.

     Mao leaped at her but Alice swung her coat out to hit her in the face. 

Mao stumbled back as

Alice lashed a kick to her gut and followed it up by driving her elbow into 

the Asian's face.

     "Not exactly fair," Oz noted.

     "One thing Matt drilled in is the mantra of the US Armed Forces," Jesse 

said. "Never be afraid

to cheat if necessary."

     Mao pulled away the coat and soon found herself on the defensive as 

Alice moved in,

utilizing a series of feints and parries that kept the older Immortal on the 

edge. Alice seemed to

have found her second wind, dodging and ducking Mao's swings and answering 

with her own.

She saw an opening and by instinct struck out.

     Mao yelled in pain as the tip of Alice's sword pierced her wrist. Her 

blade automatically

fell from her limp hand as she backed away. Alice moved in and put her blade 

right at Mao's neck.

The Asian woman froze, her eyes narrowed at the younger woman.

     They stood there for a moment, glaring at one another as everyone held 

their breaths for

what came next. Slowly, Alice backed away and pulled her sword back. Mao 

blinked, her face

taking on a flabbergasted look. "I..I don't understand..."

     Alice lowered her sword. "I don't want to do this. I don't need to do 

this." She gave a

brisk nod with her head. "Just get out of here." She turned on her heel and 

marched away.

     Mao stared at her, then bowed her head. She took a deep breath, then 

moved forward,

picking up her sword and charging at Alice.

     "ALICE!" Kyra and Jesse both yelled out.

     Instinct took over. Alice ran to a bench before her, placing one foot 

on it and using it as

leverage. She bent and then pushed up to launch herself in the air. She 

flipped backwards, using

the skills she'd built in over years of practice to somersault over the 

charging Mao. Alice landed

on her feet and rose up as Mao, off guard by the unexpected move, tried to 

stop and turn. Before

she could even register what she was doing, Alice was swinging her blade in 

a long arc that sliced

Mao's neck from one end to the other.

     The corpse stood there for a moment before collapsing onto the ground. 

Mao's head

bounced along, her face frozen in amazement. Alice let out a breath as she 

stared at the body,

realizing for the first time what she had done. As the cloud of light exited 

Mao's body, Alice took

a deep breath. *Oh, God. Here we go.*

     The teenagers watched as the cloud entered Alice. She gasped and 

stiffened as bolts of

electricity began to strike her. The air was charged as a wind came from 

nowhere to blast the

area. Alice staggered as the bolts hit her, her hair whipping around her 

face and memories of

Mao's life filling her mind. She threw her head back and screamed as the 

Quickening took hold,

racking her with pleasure and pain in equal doses. She arched back as it 

took her, trying to keep

her sanity amidst the massive influx of power.

     As quickly as it had started, the Quickening died. Alice slowly 

collapsed to her knees,

heaving for breath. Kyra and Jesse were soon there helping her up to her 

feet. "Oh, man..." Alice

breathed. "Oh, man...that was...whoa..."

     "Damn," Kyra remarked. "Are you..okay?"

     Alice nodded. "I guess...I just feel...wow...I feel so...powered up..." 

She managed to point

a finger at Cordelia and Xander. "Not a word."

Steve St Wolf's home

2305 Hours PST

     The mood in the living room was obviously tense as Steve, Buffy, Larry 

and Matthew

came in. The soldier looked at where Jenny, Giles, Amy and Shaw were 

gathered. "Where are

they?"

     "Alice is upstairs with Kyra and Jesse," Jenny answered. "And Perry and 

Valerie are in the

basement."

     "How are they?"

     "Well, Perry saw the woman he was once married to as a vampire trying 

to kill him and

Alice cut someone's head off." Jenny sipped from her drink. "How do you 

think they're doing?"

     Buffy looked around. "Where are Willow and Oz?"

     "Resting up after a healing spell," Shaw answered. "Oz was injured in 

the battle."

     Matthew paced with anxiety. "How did they do?"

     "Actually, Kyra kicked ass with a bow and arrow," Amy remarked. "They 

seemed to

handle themselves well."

     Matthew smiled. "I knew they would." He glanced about. "Anyone got a 

drink?"

     Steve stared at him. "You aren't going to see Alice?"

     Matt shook his head. "I'll give her a bit of time first. She still 

needs to process it all. First

time is always the hardest." Buffy and Steve nodded in agreement. "Besides, 

I'm sure the others

are giving her all their support."

     "Oh, well, a touch of gray, kinda suits you anyway, every silver 

lining's got a...touch of

gray..." Kyra sang softly as she strummed her guitar. She was sitting on the 

other bed in the small

bedroom, Jesse on a chair beside her. Both of them faced the bed where Alice 

was laying, staring

up at the ceiling.

     "I will...get by..." Kyra sang. "I will...get by...I will...get by, by, 

by, I will survive..."

     "Kyra," Alice suddenly said. "I know you're trying to help but don't 

make me smash that guitar

over your head."

     Kyra frowned as she stopped playing. "No need to be nasty."

     "Sorry," Alice sighed as she rubbed her face. "It's just...I'm still 

trying to process it."

     Jesse bit his lip before speaking. "What's it like? Really?"

     Alice was silent as she tried to find the right way to say it. 

"It's...God, it's so hard to describe.

You feel power, you get flashes, images...I actually know a few phrases in 

Chinese now and I'm

pretty sure I can make a fan if I had to. But still..." She closed her eyes. 

"I killed her. I mean, I

actually...killed someone."

     "You knew you were probably going to have to," Jesse said. "It was her 

or you, you know

that."

     "I know," Alice agreed. "But...it still doesn't make it right." She was 

silent as Kyra and Jesse

exchanged looks, uncertain of what to say.

     The three started at a knocking on the door. It opened and Joyce stuck 

her head into the room.

"Hi, I hope I'm not interrupting." She opened the door to reveal a tray with 

three steaming cups

on it. "I thought some coco might help."

     "Um, thanks," Kyra said as she took a cup. Jesse did as well but Alice 

just shook her head.

"Sorry, Mrs. Summers, I'm not in the mood."

     "Call me Joyce," she said. "Makes me feel a little younger." She looked 

at Alice with

sympathy. "I know it's rough. I saw Buffy after she had to do it. I've seen 

it myself, so I know

how crazy it is."

     Alice just lay, looking up at the ceiling. "I killed someone, Mrs. 

Summers. I don't think

you can know how that feels."

     Joyce sighed. "It was self-defense. You know that. I once...wanted to 

kill someone in cold

blood. She hurt Buffy and Dawn and the others and I was just overwhelmed 

with hate and

anger...I was so close to doing it, to finishing her off..." She sighed and 

shook her head. "It wasn't

something I want to repeat."

     She focused on Alice. "But you're not like that, Alice. I know it may 

sound trite but

killing doesn't automatically make you a killer. You've been trained by a 

soldier, someone who

knows that. Maybe you should remember what he's taught." She gave Alice a 

small smile.

"Despite some of his ideas, he does seem to care for you. I'm sure he can 

help you out."

     She turned to walk away when Alice spoke up. "Joyce?" As Joyce turned, 

she saw Alice

looking at her gratefully. "I really wish I'd had a mom like you."

     Joyce smiled. "I get that a lot."

     "So where are Perry and Val?" Matthew asked.

     "Kitchen," Jenny answered. "Nursing a handy bottle of scotch."

     Matt sighed. "I guess I'd better-----" He stopped as he looked toward 

the doorway where

Zev and Megan were entering. They were both smoking, their faces smudged 

with dirt and dried

blood, clothes torn and satisfied looks on their faces. "What in hell 

happened to you two?"

     "Oh, just having a spot of fun," Megan said with a smile.

     Buffy looked at her, then at Zev, then grimaced. "Oh, God. Please, 

don't tell me-----"

     Zev's eyes widened. "Great Jurden, no!" he yelled. "We were just 

fighting a group of vampires

and a passing demon decided to join in."

     Megan blinked at the Slayer. "Hold a mo. You thought me and...." She 

laughed out loud. "Oh,

no, no, no. No offense but..." She winked at Zev. "Ye couldn't handle the 

ride."

     Zev grimaced. "I can barely handle the thought." He glanced behind him 

as he felt Willow

coming up with a somber expression on her face. "What's wrong?"

     Willow sighed. "I did some checking on Perry's ex-wife."

     "Why?" Megan asked.

     "She and her current husband showed up," Jenny explained.

     "Oh? Good for Perry."

     "They were vampires," Giles stated.

     "Oh. Bad for Perry."

     "It gets worse," Willow spoke up. "I found their records and..." She 

bit her lip. "I think I need

to talk to them." She headed toward the kitchen as everyone looked at her.

     "Damn," Xander said. "This is going to be hard for Perry. I know."

     "Do you?" Zev asked.

     Xander glared at him. "Yeah, I do. I had to kill my best friend."

     "Yes," Zev stated. "You had to stake him when he was a vampire. And 

from what I've

gathered, your vampire doppelganger killed that version of him. Which means 

that in two realities,

you have to live with the guilt of killing your childhood friend. Whatever 

else I think of you,

Harris, not even you deserve pain like that."

     Xander blinked in amazement. "Why, Zev...that's the nicest thing you've 

ever said to me."

     The alien scoffed. "Don't expect me to make a habit of it."

     There was silence in the room as Perry sat, staring at the table. 

Valerie sat across from

him, just as somber. Nearby at the counter, Robin and Liam, having just 

arrived, were sipping

from cans of beer. "So...how ye doing?" Liam asked.

     Perry slowly turned his head toward him with a disbelieving expression 

on his face. "How

do you think I'm doing? My ex-wife just tried to kill me!"

     "Don't they all at one time or another?" Liam muttered.

     "I heard that," Megan said as she entered behind Willow. She gave Perry 

a small smile. "Hang

in there, lad. You're gonna need it."

     "Why?" Perry asked, certain he wasn't going to like the answer.

     Willow's deep sigh confirmed it. "I...did some checking," the computer 

expert began. "I

came across a police report from about eight months back. Your ex-wife and 

her husband

mysteriously vanished...just before someone discovered their children were 

dead."

     Perry blinked, his face going pale. "Dead?" he whispered.

     Willow nodded. "Massive blood loss for two of them, broken neck for the 

other.

It...wasn't very pretty."

     "Oh, God," Perry moaned, placing his face in his hands. "How...how 

could this have

happened? Why? How could they have done that?"

     "They didn't," Megan said. "It wasn't truly them."

     Valerie stared at her as she patted Perry on the back. "Megan, you just 

heard that----"

     The Irish vampire shook her head. "Lass, ye don't get it. When I was 

brought across, the

changes were physical, for the most part. I still have my mind, my soul, I'm 

still Megan Maguire.

But for your ex and friend, when they were turned, a demon took over their 

bodies. It's not them,

Perry. It's really not."

     "That surprisingly doesn't help," Perry said as he suddenly rose up and 

walked to the

door. Valerie moved to follow him as Megan rolled her eyes. *Lord, get a 

room and get it over

with.*

     "Perry, wait," Valerie stated. She sped up to catch up with him as he 

stopped in place to face

her. She could see a light sheen of tears in his eyes that made her stomach 

clench. "Perry...I'm

sorry. I know you must feel bad..."

     "Bad?" Perry let out a mirthless laugh. "This is way beyond bad, Val. 

And what makes it

worse is that I have no possible handle on it. It's not like I can quote 

something like *Along Came

a Spider,* James Patterson, 1992, where Alex Cross finds out his FBI lover 

is behind the

kidnapping scheme or *Nobody Lives Forever,* Stanley Gardner, 1986 where 

James Bond gets

betrayed by about three different people but this is my LIFE, Valerie!" He 

paused to wipe at his

face. "I just saw a woman I used to love and a man I've known for years as 

soulless monsters, ready and willing to kill me no matter what." He shook his

head. "I can't 

just...get over that."

     Valerie was silent for a moment before speaking. "Everyone's lost 

someone, Perry. All

those people in there have. Matt and Megan have seen friends and lovers grow 

old and die. Shaw

lost family, Faith and Kendra grew up without theirs and my God, Zev lost 

his entire planet.

Everyone knows guilt and loss, Perry. It's how you handle it that ensures 

what kind of person you

are and what fate has in store for you."

     Perry sighed. "It's hard to figure any way to get through this."

     Valerie shrugged. "Well, it's what Elsie, Brenda and Annie got their 

lives back on track

after getting dumped."

     Perry stared at her quizzically.

     "*The First Wives' Club.* Olivia Goldsmith, 1992."

     Perry stared harder.

     "Hey, I read."

     Perry just sighed and turned away. Valerie stared at his back for a 

moment, then turned

and walked back into the house. Perry crossed his arms and stared at his 

feet. His mind whirled as

he thought about his time with Beth, the good and the bad. He couldn't help 

but note the amazing

irony of it all. The major reason Beth had broken up with him was because 

she felt he spent too

much time working with dead bodies. Now, she was one.

     "Was it a good marriage?"

     Perry yelled as he turned to see Zev standing behind him. "God, can't 

you warn

someone?"

     "Why?" Zev crossed his arms as he studied Perry. "You didn't answer my 

question."

     Perry sighed and brushed his hair. "It was. For a while at least. 

But...it didn't last." He

looked away sadly. "Look, if you just came here to tell me to try to get 

past the pain, save it. I

know that already."

     "Oh, good, that saves us time."

     "I just won't do it."

     "Dare I ask why?"

     Perry shrugged. "I got too involved with them already. With Matt, 

Alice, Jesse,

Kyra...Val. They're my friends."

     Zev frowned. "And that's a bad thing?"

     Perry fixed him with a glare. "I don't need friends, Zev. I don't 

deserve them. I just end up

hurting people."

     Zev snorted. "Jurden, and people say I'm a downer."

     "It's true," Perry insisted. "Just about every personal relationship 

I've had has gone down

the tubes, mostly after shit I did. So, after my divorce, I decided it was 

better if I just didn't get

close to anyone anymore."

     Zev raised an eyebrow. "That's a lonely life, Perry."

     "Loneliness is a very underrated concept." Perry looked away. "I can't 

hurt anyone if I

don't know anyone."

     "That's not true," Zev said. "You're hurting yourself. I know about 

loneliness brought on

by guilt, Perry. Believe, I know far more than anyone else on this planet 

can. And I too thought it

best not to connect with others." He stepped forward to look at Perry 

closely. "But since I came

here, Perry, I've met people. People who have made me realize what I was 

cheating myself out of.

People who have accepted me, trusted me, helped me. And it's good, Perry. 

It's a good feeling,

better than I had imagined."

     Perry stared at him for a long moment before shaking his head. "Anyone 

ever tell you how

big a pain in the ass you are, Mundac?"

     "Only every other person I've met since I came to this planet," Zev 

responded with a small

smile.

     Megan was doing her best to clean some blood off her coat when Alice, 

Kyra and Jesse

entered the living room. Alice glanced around. "Where's Perry and Val?"

     "Perry left a few minutes ago, guess Val went with," Megan stated.

     Kyra frowned. "Are they safe on their own?"

     "They're not alone," Steve said. "I told Sherlock to tail them."

     Alice blinked. "Um...no offense but what good is your dog going to be 

against them?"

     Steve smiled. "What if I told you he was capable of turning into a 

giant wolf?"

     "I think I'd like to buy back my introduction to you people."

     "Too late," Zev said as he entered. He looked at the teenagers and 

nodded. "Well, I see

you survived your patrol. My compliments."

     "The vamps weren't too bad," Kyra tried to casually say.

     "I meant surviving your first night with them," Zev said, motioning 

toward the Sunnydale

teens. "You can do that, you can do most anything."

     "We're not that bad," Randi said.

     "Maybe not you," Alice remarked. She fixed her eyes on Xander and 

Cordelia. "But

hanging out with those two makes me glad I never hung out with the 

good-looking but brain-dead

crowd at school."

     "Hey, watch it!" Cordelia snapped. "You're starting to sound like Zev!"

     "After hanging out with you two for half the night, I think I *know* 

why Zev's the way

he is!" Alice yelled back.

     "I have to admit," Jesse said. "You people could learn a lot if you 

just installed filters

between your mouth and brains." He paused and nodded to Oz. "Well, actually, 

you have a dam."

     The guitarist just shrugged as Willow frowned. "Hey, we can be tactful 

if we need to be!"

     Zev burst into a loud and braying laugh that caused everyone to jump. 

"God, I hate it

when he does that!" Buffy yelled.

     Zev smirked as he wiped at his eyes. "Well, be grateful Harris isn't 

amusing."

     Jesse snickered himself as he looked at Xander. "Yeah, dude, seriously. 

Gallagher wants his

material back."

     Xander glowered at him. "Oh, sure, the beach boy is giving me tips on 

humor. Like you've

got skills besides surfing!"

     "I do. I skateboard too."

     Kyra rubbed at her head. "Okay, can we not start this? It's been a long 

night already, Alice

is still on edge and I think the last thing we need is to let the 

testosterone be flashed."

     "Good idea," Alice said as she tromped toward the front door. "Come on, 

let's check that

Bronze place out before we head back to the motel."

     "You guys okay on your own?" Buffy asked.

     "We're Immortal," Kyra pointed out. "Besides, what are----"

     Jesse clamped a hand over her mouth. "Don't tempt fate," he said just 

before yelling as

Kyra bit his hand.

     Cordelia snorted. "So you're just going to drown your sorrows?"

     Alice paused and fixed her with a hard gaze. "Tell you what, Chase. 

Next time you cut off

someone's head and absorb 600 years worth of memories, you can join me. In 

the meantime,

please piss off." With that, she turned and marched off.

     "I still would have liked talking to Xander," Jesse remarked.

     "Ah, it wouldn't be fair," Kyra said, patting him on the shoulders. 

"When it comes to a

battle of wits, you've got him outgunned."

     Zev leaned against the wall, watching them leave and rubbing at his 

chin. He glanced

toward the others in the room. "You know," he said in a bright tone. "I'm 

really starting to like

those three."

     He couldn't resist a slight kick at the looks of dismay that welcomed 

that proclamation.

Sunnydale Motor Lodge

2358 Hours PST

     The walk had been in total silence. Perry didn't want to say anything 

and Valerie didn't

want to press him. He'd kept his head down for most of the time, kicking at 

loose rocks and such,

his face drawn and his usual humor vanished. Frankly, it was starting to 

worry Valerie quite a bit.

     As the motel came into view, she decided it was time to try talking. 

"Look, Perry-----"

     "Not now," he said in a bitter tone.

     Valerie sighed. "Perry, you can't just close up here like nothing 

happened."

     "I just...don't want to talk about it, Valerie," he said, waving a 

hand. "I just want to go in,

shower, sleep and try to forget about...them."

     "Aw, Perry...am I that hard to forget?"

     The two froze as they heard the voice behind them. They slowly turned 

to see Beth, her

game face on with a wicked grin. She stepped forward carefully, licking her 

lips. "Come on,

honey...I was so looking forward to us rekindling the flame."

     Perry and Valerie began to back away, eyes fixed on the vampire. 

"Beth..." Perry began.

"Let's just...just talk about this..."

     "Why?" she briskly replied. "Talking never did that much for us when we

were 

married. Why

should this be any different?"

     Valerie stiffened as she felt her back running into a solid form. She 

peered around and saw

Johnny standing behind her with a sick grin on his face. He grabbed Valerie 

and tossed her aside

like a rag doll. The Watcher slammed into some nearby bushes and lay on the 

ground, stunned.

     Perry's attention was fixed on Val so he didn't even see Beth approach 

until it was too

late. She hauled back and let loose a blow that sent Perry stumbling 

backward. He shook his head

to try to clear it as he gazed at her. "I heard about the kids...how 

did...tell me you didn't..."

     Beth laughed. "Ah, kids. You raise them, feed them, try to care for 

them but do they put

up with a little lifestyle change?" She lashed a boot into Perry's stomach, 

doubling him over.

"Maggie made a nice snack. Virgin blood is good but when it's a kid, it's 

even better. I tried to

get at Sandy but she wouldn't stop screaming and screaming. You know how 

six-year olds are.

So I snapped her neck." She stood Perry up and punched him so hard his head 

rang. "That left

Marty and Johnny was hungry for that himself."

     She held a stunned Perry up by the front of his jacket and looked him 

in the eye. "So, what

to do...Just feed you? Or maybe turn you? I have to admit, the idea of you 

and me getting back together is

intriguing." She let her fangs shine in the moonlight. "What do you think?"

     Perry coughed as one hand slid under his coat. "It's funny...I never 

really believed in

heaven or hell before...but I really hope the latter exists."

     Beth seemed intrigued. "Why?" She suddenly gasped as she felt a pain in 

her chest. She

looked down to see the point of a stake piercing her left breast. She looked 

up to see Perry's cold

and hateful expression. "Because that's where you belong," the coroner 

hissed as he thrust the

stake in. Beth backed up, her face carrying surprise just before she turned 

into dust.

     Johnny had been holding back a bit, enjoying the sight of Beth smacking 

Perry around. He

was stunned to see his lover suddenly destroyed, frozen in place. Then anger 

took him and he

charged toward Perry, a howl at his lips.

     He was almost at Perry when he saw a blur of motion and something in 

front of his path.

He barely felt the effect of the stake that he literally ran into. He 

actually kept going for a few

steps before breaking apart, a cloud of dust flying into Perry's face.

     Perry stared at himself, then at Valerie, who still stood with her arm 

extended, stake in her

hand. She seemed as stunned as Perry at what had happened, their eyes 

meeting. Perry brushed at

the dust on his shirt and shook his head. "He never did know when to stop. 

Never."

     Perry opened the door and turned on the light to illuminate the small 

motel room. Valerie

was behind him, shutting and locking the door behind her. She removed her 

blazer, pausing to

shake some dust off it before looking at Perry, who had sat on the edge of 

the bed, holding his

head in his hands. "Perry?" she quietly asked. "Perry, are you ok?"

     "Oh, sure," he dully replied. "I just staked my ex-wife and my best 

friend, my world's my

fucking oyster."

     "They were vampires," Valerie said, not believing she was actually 

saying it. "Creatures

 that were going to kill us. You didn't have a choice, you know that."

     "It doesn't make it right," Perry snapped as he got to his feet. "It 

doesn't make it hurt any

less! Dammit, Valerie, this is not what I wanted, I wanted to stop hurting 

her and I ended up

killing her!" He rubbed his face as Valerie moved closer. "I can't process 

this, I can't put a handle

on it, I don't know how to cope with-----"

     Valerie strode forward, cupped his face in her hands and pulled him as 

she kissed him on

the lips. He was startled even as he instinctively kissed her back, his 

hands going to her hips. They

broke apart and stared at each other. "What are you doing?" Perry asked.

     "Coping." With that, Valerie kissed him again, even harder and Perry 

could feel the

passion driving her, a passion that he soon felt himself. They backed toward 

the bed as Valerie

fumbled with the buttons on his shirt.

     Perry suddenly broke away to look her in the eye. "Um, I have to know. 

Is this just a one-

night stand to make me feel better? Or is it...something more?"

     "Damned if I know," Valerie answered as she kissed him again. "We'll 

talk about it in."

Kiss. "The." Kiss. "Morning." Kiss.

     "Oh." Kiss. "Okay."

     With that, they fell onto the bed and spent the next several hours 

doing their best to make

the other feel better.

Main Street

September 7th, 1999

0008 Hours PST

     After nearly a decade of living on the streets, Suzanne Baker thought 

she had seen every

danger there could possibly be. However, she now realized that not even L.A. 

gave her horrors

such as she was know witnessing.

     It was ironic, really. She had become used to being invisible to 

people. In her forties, her

hair going gray, face showing dirt, age and the weight of too many years on 

her own. Her body

was thin, clad in various items of clothing and rags, a shopping cart her 

only set of belongings.

Just another homeless person people ignored. Now, when she needed to be 

noticed, no one was

around to help.

     The two beings who had cornered her in the dark alley were tall with 

dark green skin and

large horns, ringlets in their nostrils and large claws on their hands. They 

wore loose clothing and

their faces were marked by oversized mouths with long sharp teeth. One 

smiled as he stepped

toward Suzanne. "Ah, just when we thought we'd be going back empty-handed, 

we find a nice

morsel for our leader."

     Suzanne whimpered as she stepped back. "Please...please, just let me 

go...I..I don't want

to die..." It was an ironic statement given how she'd turned her back on 

life long ago, after the

death of her husband and bankruptcy. But Suzanne realized it was true...she 

didn't want to die.

*Too bad that realization comes a tad late.*

     "Let her go," a strong voice spoke out. The two demons turned to see a 

woman standing

at the head of the alley. She looked to be in her mid-forties wearing a 

business suit with

fashionable flats and a duster. Her attractive face was hard as she glared 

at the two demons.

     The older of the two laughed. "Oh, really? And what are you going to do 

if we don't?"

     In response, the woman reached under her coat and pulled out a large 

and old-looking

double broadsword. The blade seemed to glow with a deep blue light as the 

two demons paled.

"By Satan!" the other one said. "Not one of the NINE!"

     The woman aimed the sword and whispered under her breath. The blade 

glowed and a

blast of fiery energy shot out to engulf one demon. The monster howled as 

the flames covered

him all over and proceeded to incinerate him from the inside out. The other 

demon snarled and

stormed at the woman, determined to take one of the Nine down with him. The 

woman simply

stood until he was almost upon her. Then she ducked down and swung her sword 

upward in a

wide cleaving motion that sliced the demon from head to toe. She spun and 

rose to her feet as the

creature collapsed, his body splitting apart.

     Suzanne stared in amazement as the woman hid her sword away, then 

turned to face her.

"All you all right, madam?"

     Suzanne blinked. "How...how did you----"

     The woman chuckled. "You would be surprised what one learns in the 

East. But here..."

She reached into her jacket again and brought out a small pouch. "Find 

yourself someplace to

sleep, child. You deserve better than this."

     Suzanne opened the bag and stared in awe at the large collection of 

gold coins inside. She

looked up but the woman had vanished. Suzanne held up a few coins and let 

them flow from her

fingers. "Thank you," she whispered as she quickly moved away, her mind 

already whirling at the

new life she could make for herself.

     "You're welcome," whispered the woman from her place in hiding. She 

brushed at her

coat as she went back for her walk, her mind preparing for the meeting that 

was to take place the

next day.