Name: Amy Christine Madison

AGE: 17

DOB: 17 March 1981

Origin:

Amy was born in Sunnydale, California, to Michael Connors and Catherine Madison in 1981. Born and raised on the Hellmouth, Amy was born into a long tradition of things most people regard as myths and legends. Amy’s mother was from a long line of witches, a family tradition going back nearly four centuries (Hunter In Dark).

Amy herself showed little interest in her mother’s dual interests, witchcraft and cheerleading. Catherine had been an award-winning cheerleader in her teens, and desperately wanted to relive her glory days through her daughter, who simply couldn’t care less about waving pom-poms and screaming cheers at the top of her lungs. Magic, on the other hand, did hold some interest, but her mother’s unceasing pressure submerged her curiosity, leading to a potential waste of the affinity for magic that ran in the Madison family (as noted by Xander in the Buffy episode, Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered). Amy responded to the pressure by eating, leading to her becoming overweight by the time she was fourteen.

The pressure also strained Amy’s father who, unknown to Amy, knew that Catherine’s "hobby" was much more than that. Catherine, increasingly anxious about her advancing age, began looking into dangerous incantations. Michael, in his own anxiety, began seeing another woman. Eventually, Michael fell in love with the woman Catherine called "trailer park trash" and began divorce proceedings. When the split was finalized shortly after Amy’s twelfth birthday, Catherine received uncontested custody of Amy, as her father (upon advice from his mother-in-law) hoped that having to concentrate on raising Amy alone would turn her from the dangerous course she pursued. The outcome was that Catherine became even more obsessive, demanding that Amy try out for cheerleading and becoming a tyrant in the process. Amy’s continued refusal became too much once Amy finished her freshman year of high school.

Almost immediately after the school year ended, Catherine worked a spell that no decent person would ever consider casting. Claiming that Amy was wasting her youth, Catherine switched her spirit with Amy’s, trapping her own daughter in a body over twenty years older. Catherine, flush with her success and regained vitality, began an aggressive diet and exercise program to bring "Amy’s" weight down to an optimum level (The Witch, Buffy Watcher’s Guide, Volume 1).

When the new school year started that fall, "Amy" was ready to try out for the cheerleading squad. When the tryouts were held, Catherine was only able to make third alternate. Furious over her failure, Catherine began casting spells to eliminate those above her. She blinded Cordelia Chase, made Buffy Summers ill, and used a pyrotechnic spell on Lishanne Davis. Now on the regular squad, "Amy" was satisfied. However, elements were moving to ruin Catherine’s plan. Buffy turned out to be a mystical champion known as the Slayer, and she was suspicious about Amy. Her original belief that Amy had snapped under her mother’s constant pressure proved to be incorrect. Once the truth of the switch had been discovered, Buffy and her Watcher, Rupert Giles, worked on reversing the spell that bound Amy to Catherine’s body (The Witch).

Catherine sensed the counter spell being cast and moved to nullify that attempt, but was opposed by the weakened Slayer. Giles successfully completed his ritual and suddenly, Amy found herself in her own body and dressed in a cheerleading outfit. Catherine, once again a thirty-nine year old woman, tried to banish Buffy to another realm. Buffy used a mirror to reflect the beam back at its source, causing Catherine to be teleported to an unknown location (currently, only three beings know that Catherine is actually trapped in the trophy she won in high school; Robin Goodfellow, who discovered this quite by accident; Saint Michael the Archangel, who watches over the situation in hopes that Catherine might repent and discover what motherhood is about; and the Big Guy). After her mother’s disappearance, Amy moved in with her father and stepmother who, rather than being the "trash" her mother always claimed, was a fine and caring woman (or as Amy calls her, "cool" [Buffy Watcher’s Guide, Volume 1]). Amy also found out that she now had two little half-sisters. Cindy and Terri were thrilled to be getting an older sister to play with, and the feelings were apparently mutual.

The rest of Amy’s sophomore year passed without further incident as she quietly got used to her new family life. Amy flourished as a person and student, moving her grades from a low 2.0 to a 2.7, flirting with the honor roll as her improved situation made her happy for the first time in years. Part of this happiness was the young Madison recognizing that she’d become a good-looking teenager thanks to her mother’s work, so she continued to watch her weight. Another event that happened was that Amy finally began to experiment with witchcraft (Buffy Watcher’s Guide, Volume 1). Her reasons were simple at first; she feared that her mother might return to take vengeance on her and her family. She later came to feel that she should continue the family tradition. This was spurred by reading her mother and grandmother’s journals, which illustrated the rich family heritage that Amy herself had denied. After talking with her grandmother by phone and in person, Amy finally embraced her potential.

Over the beginning of her junior year, Amy’s focus was on spells of an offensive and defensive nature, and she mastered several spells on both sides of the fence (New Beginnings). Amy studied other spells and found that she had a special gift for divination (detection and scrying) spells. She kept her slowly increasing powers to herself, but her secret was lost when Xander Harris came to her for help when two unknown vampire hunters arrived on the Hellmouth (New Beginnings). Although she’d kept herself aloof from the "whole good versus evil thing," the rookie witch agreed to help out in this case. She accompanied the Slayerettes to the Sunnydale Mall for the meeting arranged by Willow and the man calling himself Steve St. Wolf. After the meeting, Amy reported her findings to the team; a discrete spell had revealed that Steve’s amount of magical items nearly blinded Amy’s mystical senses. Amy agreed to show up for another meeting that was arranged the following day.

Amy was just as shocked as the others when St. Wolf revealed that he was an Immortal and had fought with some of the most legendary groups in the history of mankind. However, she was able to make him confess about the magical items he carried. In the end, the new arrival joined the Scooby Gang and began calling some friends to help take down Angelus and his crew of vampires. By the next morning, eighteen Immortals with centuries of hand-to-hand fighting expertise had arrived on the Hellmouth.

Buffy, Steve, and Mack Bolan drew the vampires into a trap in the gym at the High School. Once the entire vampire army (including Angelus, Spike, and Drusilla) entered the gymnasium, Amy magically sealed the doors with a warding spell that fried any vampire that tried to leave the place. While the Immortals went to work, Amy and the others watched from the safety of the upper level of the gym (New Beginnings).

After the battle was over, the Immortals went their separate ways after telling Steve and Buffy to call them if they ever needed help. On a personal level, Giles and Jenny quietly approached Amy and asked her to join the team on a permanent basis, having seen (and knowing from personal experience) the benefits of having an experienced (relatively speaking) witch available. Jenny cinched the deal by offering to take Amy on as a student, to close any gaps in her training, as Amy was basically self-taught. Over the following days, Amy and Jenny secretly cast spells to see if any of the other Slayerettes had a potential for magic. To their surprise, the technopagan and teen witch detected a strong reading from the shy computer expert, Willow. The redhead gladly accepted Jenny’s offer to begin exploring her potential.

At the end of February, Cordelia accidentally summoned Artemis, the Greek Goddess of the Hunt. Artemis realized that Cordelia had problems with the training that the kids had received from Steve and Buffy. Once she understood what Cordelia wanted, She made the popular girl an offer to receive her empowerment (How Cordelia Got Her Amazon Groove). The next morning, Cordelia’s strange behavior made her comrades suspicious, so the witches (Jenny, Amy, and Willow) managed to create a containment circle that held Cordelia prisoner (but only after they received a fine demonstration of Cordy’s skills). That was when Artemis appeared and explained what was going on. After being supported by Her brother Hercules, the Goddess made the same offer to the witches. Seconds later, Amy had joined her teammates as an Amazon. The very next night, another surprise manifested itself; Buffy’s mother learned about Slaying and Immortality (Dating Blues, Dating Sunnydale Style). For the Slayerettes, it was much more hazardous to their health to explain vampires and the Game to an overprotective Joyce than to fight two hundred vampires in a high school gym.

The spring months provided even more surprises for Amy and the team; Spirit Guardians that looked like puppies and kittens (Amy adopted a black German Shepherd she named "Blackie"), a collection of rare and lost tomes and supplies from a community of witches (Kitty’s Tale), tracking down a serial killer (Midnight Visitations), and attending a birthday party for a ten thousand year old dragon (How Buffy Got Her Sword).

In the first days of July, a deadly threat revealed itself. A vampire named Katherine Plantagenet planned to raise a demon from the First Circle of Hell. Steve called in several friends to launch of series of raids that eliminated hundreds of vampires but failed to gain the Slayerettes the information they desperately needed. Even though they lacked the information, the warriors who had connections began calling in reinforcements, because they knew the biggest battle was yet to come. When the warriors of the so-called Section Seven discovered the location of the ritual, they stormed the Los Angeles Forum in force. Unlike her fellow Amazons, Amy took part in the final battle against Throlog. The blonde witch demonstrated admirable courage and leadership abilities as she stood by Immortals and Special Forces teams, personally firing two magazines of silver bullets from her M-16 into Throlog’s head while snapping at the others to keep firing. In the end, the forces of Light seized the day, sending Throlog and the vampires back to Hell.

Things slowed down for a couple of weeks as the Slayerettes rested from the battle. As the rest of the team went about their business as usual, Amy started to feel a great deal of frustration at being just about the only member of the team without a romantic partner. The others picked up on this but seemed unable to do anything about it, since there weren’t many boys left in Sunnydale who might be willing to date an Amazon witch (Libyan Assault/War of the Sections). Little did the Scooby Gang know that plans were in the works to solve Amy’s "problem."

The Oracles came to a fairy named Robin Goodfellow and asked him to give special empowerments to the male members of the Slayerettes, as well as their friends, Fox Mulder and Jarod Russell. When Oberon subsequently forced the fun loving sprite to take on human form, Robin and Amy decided to share the evening together as a "date."

Shortly after Robin’s arrival, yet another threat surfaced. A vampiric general had managed to gather enough prisoners to perform a ritual to open the Hellmouth, forcing the Slayerettes to form a hasty rescue operation. Two groups consisting of Slayerettes, Section One, Knights of the Grail, and a Bureau 13 team performed a flanking attack while a third group, all Immortals, descended from the ceiling of the Hellmouth chamber. It was with one of the flanking groups, amid a flurry of fireballs, lightning bolts, and force fields that Robin gave in to his attraction to Amy and asked her out. Overcoming the shock of a fairy asking her for a date in the middle of a spell duel, the teenager agreed, provided they survived the battle.

Robin and Amy had their first "official" date a couple of days later, leading the rest of the team to breathe a collective sigh of relief.

Threats began to show themselves again during the first week of Amy’s senior year while Steve and Buffy were on a long overdue (and Merlin ordered) vacation. The discovery of a prophecy that was due to pass in less than two weeks was highlighted by the return of Angelus, Spike, and Drusilla, who returned to the Hellmouth to avenge their defeat of six months earlier. Another arrival was an unknown vigilante that vampires called "the Hunter." While the distraction was bad enough, it didn’t help that Angelus was making the rounds, trying to gather information about the current Hellmouth situation while building up his numbers once again (Born To Raise Hellmouth).

As the Slayerettes continued to decipher the prophecy, the Hunter made her own moves. The mystery woman saved Amy from a vampire attack, but fled before Amy could thank her. The Slayerette reported the actions of her savior, creating even more questions about her. Days later, Angelus made his presence known and brought the arrival of a Cenobite to the attention of the Scooby Gang. The rest of the pieces started falling into place concerning Drusilla, the Cenobite, and the others involved in the prophecy once the woman masquerading as an exchange student revealed herself for who and what she really was. Among these revelations was that she was the descendant of a long lost ancestor of Amy’s. Amy originally tried to reject the possibility that the warrior priestess called Shaw could have any connection to her. Angry that she hadn’t been told sooner, the witch tried to catch her newfound cousin in a lie, a tactic that failed when the object of her ire stated that she would be willing to go so far as to risk her nonhuman nature (she was half-elven) being discovered through a DNA test to provide Amy with the proof she wanted. Still, Amy was less than receptive, even after Shaw expressed regrets for angering Amy.

Shortly after their initial meeting, the prophecy came to pass, resulting in the death of the Cenobite, the fracture of the Angelus/Spike/Dru triad, and a temporary death for Shaw. Amy was just as stunned at the half-elf’s actions as the rest of the Slayerettes, but it bothered her a bit more than she expected. She talked with Robin, who convinced her to give her cousin a chance.

Over the two subsequent months, Amy’s relationship with Robin grew stronger, although Robin did take a short vacation to visit his cousin, Coyote (Witch Hunt, Slayer in Black, Hunter in Dark). The couple became very close, but didn’t take the "big step," because they were willing to wait until they both felt ready. Robin was still on vacation when the call came to go to San Francisco to retrieve the Dragon Urn (Witch Hunt). As is the norm for the Hellmouth gang, the trip was far from boring. A group of Black Mages came to steal the items up for bid. The evil wizards bit off more than they could chew, engaging in a raging battle with Section Seven, the Charmed Ones, and Team Tunafish. Half of the evil mages died, but some managed to escape to continue their plot. The Section operatives eventually foiled their plans, but not before being forced to fight the most powerful vampire of them all, Dracula. After the final victory had been secured, the Scooby Gang headed home, unaware of the situation awaiting them.

During their mission, Shaw Hunter had somehow become unstable and dangerous to those around her. She had fled Sunnydale in order to find a cure and protect her teammates from herself. When they discovered that she was in Seacouver, Amy joined four others to bring her home. The team arrived too late to catch her, but Amy did have a surprise waiting for her. Duncan had taped a conversation with Shaw, hoping she would leak her next destination if she ran again. As the team flew to New York (where Shaw was going to meet Connor MacLeod), Amy listened to the tape. The things she heard gave Amy a picture of how relative saw things, not to mention details over an old pain that she wished to tell Amy about, but had been unable to muster the courage to discuss. Amy realized that she and Shaw had been acting in the same manner, waiting for the other to make the first move. The Amazon decided then and there that once the situation was resolved, she and Shaw would finally sit down and have a long overdue talk (Hunter in Dark).

The situation grew dangerous when a Bureau 13 team impulsively fired upon Amy while looking for a demon in Central Park, where Shaw was attempting to meet with Connor. During a number of battles, Shaw became separated from Steve, Buffy, and Connor and came across Amy’s battle. Amy was forced to shield the rookie Agents when her cousin attempted to kill the Ghostbusters for attacking Amy. Amy went ballistic on the Ghostbusters for ruining her chance to bring Shaw home, but cooler heads prevailed, preventing any further problems. It was a good thing, as one of the Ghostbusters (Kylie) was involved in the fight with Ares when he tried to personally kidnap Shaw from under the Slayerettes’ noses. Amy (with aid from Artemis) managed to deal a good amount of damage to the God of War using her spells. In the end, Ares’ plan was thwarted and the team returned home.

While awaiting their teammates, Amy and Shaw had their talk. Even with a rocky start (including some screaming on both sides), the two managed to clear the air between them, discovering that they both wanted to have a family-style relationship, should such a thing be possible. After some tearful confessions, the cousins took their first steps towards bonding, including a "Madisons only" trip to the Mall for Shaw’s birthday. It was the same day that Amy introduced Shaw to her parents, leading to the discovery that her Dad had known all along about her witchcraft, much to Amy’s embarrassment (since she knows he’ll rub it in once in awhile).

During the intervening weeks, Amy and Robin made up for lost time, growing closer to taking the step into the next phase of their relationship. The night they were going to finally take the plunge, they were interrupted by a phone call from Steve, who thought that Willow had been turned into a vampire (Be Careful What You Wish For). When the situation involving the doubles and the trip to the Wishverse were finalized, Amy was angry to discover that she was being left behind, mostly to have her "pose" as Buffy, but also to help out Kendra and the few allies they managed to have on hand. It also angered her that it had been Robin’s suggestion that she stay behind, although upon further consideration, she was touched by his concern (not to mention thinking about how she was one of those in charge). Although she missed out on the "fun" of the alternate reality trip, she still had to help plan and execute an information raid on the law firm, Wolfram and Hart, a group of lawyers with some clients that were best left unmentioned. Amy also did her share of patrolling, having vampires screaming that the Slayer was now a witch, which of course only led to vampires running for their unlives, citing that the Slayer was bad enough without having her throw spells at them.

When her friends returned, Amy learned that her own double had come to help out against the Master, filling the metaphorical shoes left empty by her staying behind. Of more interest to her was that in the other reality, Amy and Catherine had always had the best of relationships, because her mother had never been a cheerleader. Despite her original dread at the thought of her double being bisexual (and now dating Vamp Willow, thanks to her own boyfriend, Robin), Amy came away feeling happy (and a bit jealous) of her twin. It also led Amy to think about her own relationship with her mother. Over the next month, Amy looked through her mother’s journals again and came to realize that despite everything that had happened between them, she still loved her mother and hoped that someday, she could mend the rift that had led to her mother’s vanishing.

On Christmas Eve, Amy and Robin finally managed to consummate their relationship, making love for the first time. It apparently meant a great deal to Robin, who told Amy that their first time was "the best Christmas present he ever got." The two had entered a new phase of their romance, and both eagerly looked forward to it.

The day after Christmas, Amy and Shaw went to visit Amy’s maternal grandmother and other relatives to introduce them to Shaw (and vice versa). Amy also set up her cousins by convincing Anna and Elizabeth (diehard role playing fans) to drag Shaw with them to the local Ren Faire. She then used magic to hide her Amazon abilities to turn their own attempted prank back on them. Amy also played counselor to Shaw, helping her to relate to her Earth family. By the end of the day, Amy had helped the other-dimensional woman immensely (How The Big Bad Stole Christmas). The following day, the Madison clan ventured to the Faire again. After another fun-filled day, someone tried to ruin things and paid for it. When Elizabeth was overdue from a restroom visit, Amy and Shaw went looking for her.

Amy checked near the jousting field and came across her old enemy, William the Bloody. When Spike berated her as a "Slayer sidekick wannabe," Amy showed him her own skills. After making him dodge a few spells, Amy went hand-to-hand with the vampire. He managed to connect with one blow, but in the end Amy simply outclassed him. Just as Amy was about to deliver the coup de grace, Shaw intervened, telling her that he could not be killed. Despite her reluctance, Amy nodded before knocking Spike out with a headbutt.

Two days later, Spike showed up to meet the Hunter. The Slayerettes in town sprang their trap, paralyzing Spike and performing the ritual to restore his soul. After convincing him and the newly souled Drusilla to become their undercover agents in the vampire community, Amy told Robin that next month, she and Shaw would get the visit right, and Robin would be dragged along to meet Amy’s grandmother.

Shortly after New Year’s, the Scooby Gang was called to Atlanta, Georgia when Spike, Dru, and Charlie reported that the master vampire Kakistos and Angelus were preparing to raise a vampiric army in the Southeast (Faith’s Story). Amy accompanied the team to Atlanta and performed her usual duties. When they returned home, they brought a new face to the Hellmouth; Faith, a recently chosen Slayer activated when Kendra temporarily died on the operating table (Calling Out the Clan).

As January progressed, Amy took Shaw and Robin to San Luis Obispo for another visit with her grandmother and cousins. While they were out of town, a demon known as a Silerwor came to Earth with the purpose of killing Immortals. The trio was already on their way home when they heard the reports of mysterious "lightning storms" in towns up and down the California coast. They made tracks back home, arriving in time to meet the elven Lord who’d followed the demon to Earth. When Arrin Parkin left Sunnydale to explore Earth and track the Silerwor, the demon captured Larry Blaisdell and tortured him for information (Drake’s Play). After gathering at the hospital in the wake of the attacks that left Xander and Sheila Rosenberg with injuries, Steve sent Amy, Shaw, and Oz to Larry’s to check up on him. Upon finding the trashed residence, Amy’s group began tracking the demons. A short time later, they found the warehouse that served as Drake’s hideout. Against her better judgment, Amy used magic to craft magical disguises for the others, who bluffed their way in under the illusion of joining the Silerwor’s army. Amy called Steve and Buffy, only to find out they were already on their way (The Scooby Gang Strikes Back). After decimating the vampires, the Slayerettes scoured the base, but the headhunter had escaped once more.

Amy and Shaw talked in private, Amy having words with her cousin over what she considered to be reckless actions. Shaw didn’t understand Amy’s vehemence, stating that Larry would likely have died if not for her and Oz’s finding him and guarding him while the others attacked. Amy brought up Shaw’s being shot in the arm, to which the half-elf replied that it was much easier to treat a bullet wound than that of an arrow, since her healing spell just pushed the bullet out (as opposed to having to break an arrow and pull it out an inch at a time). Amy told Shaw that she could have been killed and couldn’t stand the thought; she worried about her. Amy asked Shaw to promise her not to try such "crazy shit" in the future. Not wanting Amy to worry, she agreed.

A short time later, Amy and Cordelia noticed Shaw talking to a gentleman at the Bronze and noticed how well the two seemed to hit it off. The next night, Amy "put the moves" on Jacob Devonshire, who politely rebuffed her, saying he had company already. Reassured that he wouldn’t just walk out on Shaw, Amy waited for the ranger to go into the restroom. Amy promptly had her butt chewed over what Shaw saw as interference (and a transparent attempt at matchmaking). Amy told Shaw she was just looking out for her; family did that. Amy kept on Shaw and convinced her to ask Jacob out. Amy and Cordelia got great pleasure out of helping Shaw get ready for the date, and at the prospect of her getting a boyfriend, but the pleasure ended when the Slayerettes found out that the Amazon matchmakers had inadvertently nudged their teammate into dating Jack the Ripper. Amy got her comeuppance in the end (along with Cordelia) when Shaw played a joke on them with aid from Artemis and Faith. Still, Amy began keeping her eyes peeled for potential partners for her single cousin (Dating Blues 2).

In the first week in February, Amy received some good news; she had been accepted to (and plans to enroll at) UC Sunnydale, and began making plans for her post-high school life. With her immediate future looking bright, the Amazon witch went about her business as usual, attending school, training, and growing closer to her boyfriend and cousin.

Race: Human.

Description: Amy has what some call the "California girl" look; shiny blonde hair, blue eyes, an attractive face, and a trim figure. The Slayerette stands five feet, six inches tall and weighs around one hundred fifteen pounds. Once overweight, Amy has continued to keep herself looking beautiful the last two and a half years. She’s rightfully proud of her figure, and knows that some (especially a certain fairy) appreciate her good looks.

Amy has an attractive body, but that attractiveness is sometimes ignored as people focus on what many privately consider to be Amy’s most endearing trait; her eyes. Her eyes can draw someone into their gaze and are the types that seem to change color to reflect her moods. Normally a medium-dark shade, they can range from a twinkling sky blue color when happy to a disconcerting black color that matches her pupils when she’s been pushed to the breaking point. Amy’s eyes are widely believed to be her most attractive feature, as recently (although unknown at this point) the entire senior class of Sunnydale High School actually voted that Amy has the best eyes in school (Sunnydale High Yearbook).

Abilities (uncommon): As an Amazon, Amy has had most of her physical abilities (such as strength, stamina, and agility) enhanced to higher than human levels. This allows her to match power with the Slayer and any soulless vampire she comes across. Also enhanced are her fighting skills, which are currently equal to that of someone who possesses multiple black belts, or (according to Steve) equal to or more skilled than the "average" member of Delta Force. Her Amazon blessing doesn’t limit her to unarmed combat; she is also adept at picking up the skills necessary to use nearly any weapon in existence, from medieval swords to the most modern assault rifles.

Even with the warrior’s blessing she has received from Artemis, Amy’s first love is witchcraft. Amy’s family has a tradition going back centuries, belonging to the branch of the Craft that calls upon the Goddess Hecate (the Greek Goddess of Magic, and mother of the legendary sorceress, Circe) to power her spells. While these entreaties might be similar to the prayers that pagan priests use to cast their enchantments, Amy’s spells are witchcraft, not clerical magic. Amy has mastered several spells of an offensive and defensive nature, including shields, fireballs, and lightning bolts. She also has some capability for teleportation, and seems to be experienced enough that the spell doesn’t wear her out or render her unconscious from a single casting. Amy has confessed that she doesn’t like using transmutation or polymorph spells, perhaps from her own experience of having been trapped in her mother’s body. The area of expertise in which she has the most talent appears to be divination (detection) magics. Her two prides and joys are a scrying spell which makes any magical object glow blue in color (the shade and intensity depending on the level of magic in the item) and a spell of her own creation which drastically enhances a Slayer’s ability to detect vampires from the normal one hundred feet to nearly half a mile. Steve has hinted at "risks" concerning the latter spell, but there have not seemed to be any side effects in the few times Amy has cast the spell on Buffy.

Another ability Amy has, from being a witch or inherited in part from her line, is a gift often referred to as magesight. This allows Amy to shift her perceptions a bit into the mystical realm and see how much magic a person or object possesses. This ability is raw compared to more discriminating scrying spells, but Amy has learned how to tell certain types of magic using her special sight, usually magics that she’s exposed to every day. Among those are: Hecatian magic (her own type), Wicca, technopagan, Romany, White Magic (Merlin and Giles), Norse Pantheon (from examining the Fangs of Tyr), Olympian/Greek Pantheon, Finnish Pantheon (Shaw’s type), Slayer magic, and fairy magic.

Abilities (learned): Amy has a number of skills that cover a fairly wide range of fields. She has the basic education of an American teenager, giving her basic math and computer skills, as well as a high-school understanding of various sciences (Amy has a better understanding of chemistry, since she sometimes uses it for magical rituals [Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered]). Amy has knowledge of various herbs and other items and their uses in magical spells and ceremonies. Among her other talents are the ability to research arcane texts, identify magical items by examining them, and a working knowledge of a few languages. Besides English, Amy is quite fluent in Latin (as indicated by her membership in the Latin Club at Sunnydale High School (Sunnydale High Yearbook)) and speaks a fair amount of French (from high school classes) and Elvish (learned from her cousin), and speaks a little bit of Greek and Celtic (self-taught with Willow and Jenny).

Current Status: Active member of the Slayerettes and Section Seven. Senior at Sunnydale High School, former alternate with the Cheerleading Squad, current member of the Latin Club. Citizen of the United States with no criminal record. Amy is not an Immortal or Pre-Immortal.

Proficient weapons: As an Amazon warrior, Amy is proficient with numerous weapons, including swords, staves, bows, and modern firearms (her preferred weapons being the M-16 and Uzi 9mm). Amy is a multiple black belt, mainly in the arts she currently trains in, including karate, tae kwan do and kung fu. She also takes training in various weapon styles from both the Orient and Europe.

While Amy has the same potential as her fellow Amazons, her current level of fighting expertise is marginally lower than Cordelia and Willow (as well as Xander). The basic reason for this is her family’s tradition of witchcraft; whereas Cordelia and Xander are warriors and Willow is still growing in her magical abilities, Amy grew up in a magical environment. This has the effect of Amy looking to use magic to defeat an enemy first, before resorting to fisticuffs. Another advantage Xander and Cordelia have is that their warrior training isn’t combined with fine tuning magical potential like Amy, thus giving them an edge in how quickly they pick up new styles.

Current beliefs:

As 1999 goes into its second month, Amy has a few things on her proverbial plate. She continues her senior year with her friends, and recently breezed through her midterms. She’s excited about starting college in the fall and is currently trying to decide what she wants to major in. Whatever courses she does take, she jokingly tells the others that cheerleading is not in the running.

Amy continues to train with the Scooby Gang, gradually growing in power and experience. Her motivation has also reversed itself; a year ago, the witch was frightened that her mother would return and wreak havoc on her family. Over the course of her tenure with the Slayerettes (and later Section Seven), she has come to consider them her family, too. This, along with the surprising amount of power and potential she currently exhibits, has eased her worries since she thinks that she and her friends can handle anything a returning Catherine could throw at them (an example of this confidence being her giving orders to Immortals ten to fifty times her age in the fight in Los Angeles). Amy isn’t the same person who didn’t want to get involved in hunting vampires in late 1997; she’s now a courageous young woman who’s willing to lay down her life for her friends.

Amy does have three relationships that bear notice or watching, since they greatly influence her life (and vice versa for two of them). Those are her relationships with Artemis, Robin, and Shaw. Amy was raised in a family that has called upon so-called "pagan" Gods for a long time. She always believed in God and Jesus, but she was never what some would call religious (like Willow with her Jewish heritage). When she calls upon Hecate for her spells, it’s just her calling out a name. Artemis changed that when she brought Amy into the Amazon sisterhood. For the first time, she found a "spiritual" side. Artemis is a "hands on" Power; she has a genuine interest in her worshippers’ lives (and happiness). Artemis has become a spiritual mother to all of the Slayerette Amazons, and Amy truly basks in the love the Huntress has for her (even though one of the first things Artemis did was tell Amy that using magic to hand in invisible homework was *not* something She approved of, since She feels that Amy was only holding herself back by not putting forth the effort. But She did agree to keep it between them; Giles and Jenny will not find out unless Amy tries such antics again). Artemis has also shown Amy what it was like to have a mother’s love; while Rhonda Collins (Amy’s stepmother) cares about Amy, it just isn’t the same. Amy doesn’t have a problem with that, as her relationship with Rhonda is very good.

Amy’s romance with Robin continues to grow deeper, although the couple has yet to figure out if they are truly in love. They continue to grow closer despite the age difference (which Amy doesn’t know is THAT great; see Robin’s bio for his true age), and both are having fun with the relationship, although they are also quite serious about it. Both eagerly look forward to finding out what direction their relationship will go in. As it is now, their bond has grown to the point where Amy spends almost as many nights at Robin’s apartment as she does at home. Her father and stepmother have guessed why, but since it’s obvious to see Robin makes her happy, they approve as long as the couple is happy together.

The relationship between the Madison twins (as Faith has teasingly named them) is still somewhat complicated, but for different reasons than it was previously. With the talk they had in November, Amy and Shaw have spent a lot of time together and started to bond as teammates and cousins. An example of this is in that in the first two months Shaw was in Sunnydale, the two never spent time together outside of school and training except for group activities. Another example is that the two never patrolled together until Halloween. In the last two months, the cousins have made significant progress in their relationship. Amy knows that Shaw loves her, as her first known family in half a lifetime and as her "closest" living relative (generation differences aside). Amy, on the other hand, isn’t sure how she feels; she cares about Shaw and worries about her, but she’s not sure if she loves the half-elf like she does her sisters and teammates. Amy is proud of one thing; Shaw has started to open herself up in recent weeks, gaining friends outside of the team, participating in activities without aid from her friends, experiencing things for herself, and even going on a date. While the last episode turned out badly, Amy takes pride in knowing that she’s helping Shaw learn about dealing with living in the world. At the same time, Amy’s been getting some feelings of envy and sadness; as Shaw makes friends and her own life, her dependence on advice from the Amazon lessens. Amy has some conflicting feelings on that; she’s proud of Shaw making the attempt, but when she succeeds, it means that there’s something else that Shaw is doing herself and not sharing with her. Robin suggests that Amy enjoys "having Shaw to herself," as she doesn’t have any other female relatives "her own age" (her sisters are five and seven, and her cousins Anna and Elizabeth are only twelve). Amy has thought about it and decided that he’s right, a fact that Robin enjoys reminding her of at every opportunity.

As noted above, the one black spot in Amy’s life is her relationship with Catherine; while Amy does still hold concerns about what may happen if her mother ever returns, she finds herself hoping that her Mom will change and that the two can repair the burned bridges left behind when Catherine vanished. Despite the violations she performed on Amy, Catherine is still her mother, and she loves her. Robin feels Amy’s pain, but he’s not going to mention the secret of Catherine’s fate unless Amy asks him for help in locating her mother. There’s also the fact that Amy’s healed from the wounds, and Robin fears that he may reopen them, something he refuses to do to the woman he’s falling in love with. For now, he keeps the truth a secret, since he knows Cathy’s still not a happy camper (or cheerleader, as the case may be).

As it is, Amy’s feeling good about herself and has no reason to think that’s going to change. As spring dawns, Amy’s gotten over the past, enjoying almost every minute of the present, and looking forward to the future. She continues as she has since last winter; spending time with her families (blood and chosen), serving a Goddess who loves her, and having a great time with her boyfriend.

What is the one most important thing you can say about the character?

Amy is a character that is fun to write for, for reasons like Faith. One, she’s only appeared in a handful of episodes (Four, to be exact). But this is enough for us to get some background on her and an idea of how she works and thinks. It’s also enough "empty space" to give us a lot of space to play with (for example, the year and a half between the first two episodes Amy appeared in, The Witch (set in September or October of 1996) and Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered (February 1998)). This gives us a lot of potential development for the character, as well as to "flesh out" not only her background, but also her activities during that timeframe.

The second thing that makes her fun is that we also have later episodes in which Amy appears, and we see how she’s grown (or shrunk, in the case of Gingerbread <G>). In The Witch, Amy’s stuck in her mom’s body while her mom is trying out for cheerleading. Even worse, Amy’s stuck doing her mom’s homework <G>. In BBB, Amy’s working on the witchcraft, but rather than fighting evil or trying to take over the world, she’s using it to make her school life easier (the homework thing again. Maybe we came blame Catherine for that, too…). She doesn’t like Xander blackmailing her, but she still agrees to try the love spell, and you can tell by the smile on her face that she enjoys experimenting and pushing her craft to new levels. In Gingerbread, we see more progression of her character; when Michael is attacked by the jocks at school, Amy puts herself on the line by standing by her fellow mystic. She defends him against jocks who are likely twice her own weight rather than take the route of self-preservation. Yes, she ends up being tied to a stake and ends up sitting in one of those wheel thingies in a rat cage, but she still grew enough to defend her friend. The difference in the Wandererverse is twofold; one, BBB never took place (which is good in that Xander and Cordelia never had that problem in their relationship <G>, but it still would have been fun to imagine Robin and Amy comparing their misadventures with love potions, hehehe. . .), and Amy’s growing, becoming a fine woman and perhaps a hero, came about much sooner than it did in the Buffyverse.

And perhaps the third thing is that we see how Amy’s life progresses (as well as the lives of the others Scoobies) as the timeline goes on. Amy might not have joined the team if not for seeing how people were willing to selflessly interrupt their normal lives and come to Sunnydale to fight vampires that she’d been ignoring the last two years (New Beginnings). In Calling Out The Clan, she’s a seventeen year old barking out orders to Immortals. By the time Slayer Run rolls around, she’s getting frustrated since she’s the only Amazon not getting any smoochies <G>. Of course, Artemis (and Mike) changed that quickly enough. We not only get to watch how she helps save the world on "another Tuesday night in Sunnydale," but also to see how her mundane life goes. And that’s half the fun.

Favorite quote: "Within each of us is something that makes us capable of changing the world. Of course, some of us should just leave it where it is." (student quote from the Sunnydale High Yearbook)

Nicknames: Mad-woman, Sabrina, Teen Witch, Blackeye.

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