Summary: Set post-Chosen. After the Slayers are activated, the balance between good and evil is disturbed, and the Scoobies are flung to the far corners of the world to respond to the crisis. In the midst of all of this, will they be able to keep their relationships strong? Or will they be divided by circumstances and torn apart by fate? Follows my short story Yesterday.
Rating: PG-13
1 :: 2 :: 3 :: 4 :: 5 :: 6 :: 7 :: 8 :: 9 :: 10 :: 11 :: 12 :: 13 :: 14 :: 15 :: 16 :: 17 :: 18 :: 19 :: 20 :: 21 :: 22 :: 23 :: 24 :: 25 :: 26 :: 27 :: 28 :: 29 :: 30 :: 31 :: 32 :: 33 :: 34 :: 35 ::
“…It’s strange here. There are fewer Slayers, but word on the street is that things are starting to calm down. The Brachen and the witches managed to kill the group that was trying to destroy all the half-bloods, and things in South America are downright quiet, which is why Giles has decided that it would be better if they disband the school there and divide the Watchers and Slayers between L.A. and Cleveland with only a few left behind. I just wish that Buffy could come home…” ~Excerpt from the diary of Dawn Summers
“How is Xander?” Giles asked, seeing the address on the email Dawn was sending.
She shrugged. “It sounds like things are pretty much back to normal there. He’s sending what Slayers he can to L.A., but the school is up and running again, and the Oribi are back to guarding their Hellmouth.”
Giles nodded, sitting down across from her. “Did I mention that you did a wonderful job here?”
“A couple of times.” Dawn forced a smile. “But it’s always nice to hear.” She took a deep breath. “I want to go to Los Angeles, Giles.”
“Have you spoken to Buffy about that?”
She shook her head. “No, but you know what she’s going to say. I need to be there. And don’t tell me that you need me here. You and Miriam are staying, and you can get anybody to do what I’ve been doing.”
When Giles remained silent, Dawn added, “Buffy needs me there, whether she’ll admit it or not.”
Giles sighed. “There’s an envelope in the top right drawer, at the bottom of the stack.”
Dawn raised her eyebrows and rummaged through the pile until she found the item the head Watcher was referring to. Her name was on the front, and Dawn immediately recognized her sister’s handwriting. “No.” Dawn glanced up at Giles, but his eyes were closed.
She tore the envelope open and quickly scanned the missive, then went back to the beginning to read it more slowly.
“Dear Dawn,
“I know you’re going to hate me for this, but I’ve made Giles promise not to send you to Los Angeles, no matter how much you beg him to. You’re going to say that I need you, and you’re right—I do. I want you here with me, but I think this is going to be a long mission, and I need to know that you’re safe.
“I’ve lost too many people who are important to me, and we’ve lost far too many Slayers here already. If anything happened to you, I don’t think I would survive it. So, for me, stay in England, or if you really want to go somewhere, help Xander or go to Cleveland. Anywhere but here.
I love you,
Buffy”
Dawn felt tears pricking her eyes. “How bad is it, Giles?”
His face was grim when he replied, “It’s essentially a few square miles of hell.”
“Then why aren’t you there?” Dawn demanded. “Why aren’t we all there?”
“Because Buffy decided that non-combatants would be more of a hindrance than a help, and only Slayers would be welcome.”
Dawn frowned. “Wesley’s still there.”
“Faith backed him up, and—” Giles hesitated before finishing, “Wesley isn’t as important to Buffy, and he’s proven himself several times over.”
“But Watchers—”
“There are no Watchers there, other than Wesley,” Giles said gently. “There’s no need. Buffy was right about that much.”
Dawn set her jaw. “All the more reason for me to go. I’m capable of fighting.”
“Your blood closed the portal, Dawn.”
This was a reminder, not new information. Dawn had heard the entire story, how the Slayers had worked to hold off the demons still coming through the portal, as well as those already present, so that Willow, Miriam, and the other witches could close the rift using the vial of her blood.
It meant that she was still the Key in some sense, that there were things about herself and her abilities that she didn’t yet understand. Still, she didn’t think that should prevent her from going to L.A.
“So?” she demanded. “I can’t be stuck here forever, Giles. You guys are going to have to let me out on my own soon.”
“You are going to be out on your own.” Giles’ expression was sad and wistful. “We lost half of the Cleveland Slayers, including Kennedy. I’m sending you and Oliver to take over.”
Dawn blinked. “Really?”
“Really. I need you there, Dawn.”
She stared at the letter that lay on the desk in front of her, then carefully folded it and placed it back inside the envelope. “Have you talked to Oliver?”
“He’s ready to go, whenever you are. I’m sorry that there was nothing the coven could do to help him.”
Dawn nodded. She had known for a long time that magic couldn’t fix everything.
~~~~~
“How did Dawn take the news?” Miriam asked as Giles entered their bedroom.
Giles sighed. “As well as might be expected. I wish I could send her to Buffy. I think Dawn is right; Buffy is going to need someone.”
“Wesley and Faith are there,” Miriam reminded him, “as is Ellen.”
“She’s busy with Dana.”
“Dana doesn’t need her as much anymore,” she corrected him. “She’s doing quite well, considering.”
“Considering that she can kill demons morning, noon, and night, and be quite content with that?” Giles had been given the chance to see Dana in action, and she had frightened him. He had been honestly grateful that they hadn’t brought her back to Bath with them.
“It’s something of a miracle that Ellen even managed to channel her rage in the appropriate direction.”
“Not that much of a miracle when you consider that she’s your cousin.” Giles touched her cheek and busied himself shuffling papers on the bedside table.
“Have you spoken to Buffy recently?”
“No. Communication is still spotty, even with the satellite phone. According to Wesley’s latest call, they are still regularly besieged.”
Miriam frowned. “Perhaps we should have stayed.”
Giles shook his head. “No, Buffy was right about that. Slayers are some of the very few with even a chance of survival, and we had the children here to think about. We will need to train more Slayers, and girls are still being located.”
She was quiet for a moment, then she asked, “Do you think she’ll eventually forgive you?”
Giles’ smile was bitter. “In truth, no. I have betrayed her trust too many times for that.”
~~~~~
Xander shivered in the cold spring air. Between growing up in southern California and spending the last year in Africa, he wasn’t ready for the cold—even if Giles’ lightweight jacket seemed to indicate that it wasn’t all that chilly.
“It was good of you to come, Xander,” Giles greeted him. “I know you’ve been busy in Pretoria.”
He shrugged. “Corey’s capable of handling things for a week. What about Buffy?”
“She’s not coming.” Giles sighed. “She said that she’s not leaving L.A. until she finds Spike.”
“I’d do the same in her shoes.” Xander felt a stab of sympathy for his friend. “Any word?”
“All the coven can say for certain is that he’s alive, and he’s in another dimension.” Giles shook his head. “The conclusion they seem to have reached is that the Senior Partners took him during the first incursion.”
Xander winced. “That can’t be good for Spike.”
“No, I daresay it isn’t. We’ll talk about what we’re going to do when we get back to headquarters.”
Xander understood why there was a debate. When the Senior Partners had made the push, they had overreached, and the balance had been reinstated. There were still several active Hellmouths, and there would continue to be, but it was doubtful that they would see the push they’d seen recently.
Now, there was the question of who would be stationed where, and how their forces would be apportioned.
Xander knew where he would be, of course. There was no way he was leaving Africa; it was home now, and he was happy there.
Council headquarters was in an old building that felt like an old boarding school—which is essentially what it was. In fact, it felt a lot like Hogwarts, only without the shifting staircases that he’d seen in the movies.
“Cool place you’ve got here, Giles.”
“Thank you. We like it.” Giles led him up to a bedroom. “This is yours. If you don’t mind, we’ll start the meeting in about an hour.”
“No, that’s fine.” Xander used the time to clean up a bit, then unpack a few things. Once that was done, he found he still had half an hour before the meeting was supposed to start. Wincing at the what the next phone bill was sure to be, he dialed the number for Corey’s direct line.
“This is Corey.”
“Hey.”
“Xander! You made it safely?”
“Yeah, I’m at headquarters now, but I had some time before the meeting was supposed to start.”
“It’s good to hear from you.” She paused. “I miss you already.”
“Same here. How are the girls?”
“Good. Nàtali slept with me last night.”
Xander sighed. “Her nightmares are still that bad, huh?”
“Yeah, but she’ll be fine. Kids are resilient.”
He didn’t like to think about the fierce light in her eyes; she had lost some of her innocence, and much of her playful spirit during the time she’d been held by the enemy forces. None of the children held captive had been willing to talk about what had happened, and Xander found that he didn’t want to know.
If he knew, he’d have to resurrect some of the enemy dead just to kill them all over again.
They talked for a few more minutes, and Xander reluctantly bid her farewell, promising to call again when he could.
When he opened the door to his room to try and find the conference room—and maybe something to eat—he found Willow and Oz on the other side. “Will!”
She hugged him tightly. “You’re looking good!” Willow stepped back to get a better view. “Really good,” she added.
Xander knew that she was referring to the twenty-five pounds he’d lost, as well as the tan he’d gained. “Thanks. You, too. How are you, Oz?”
They shook hands. “We’ll show you where we’re meeting,” Oz said.
“And where to get some food?” Xander asked hopefully.
Willow laughed. “I think we can arrange that.”
~~~~~
Willow looked around the table at those present; she couldn’t help but think of those who were missing. Buffy and Faith were in L.A., and Spike was in an unknown dimension. They had lost at least a dozen Slayers in the last two weeks, and they would likely lose more in Los Angeles, given how bad things were there.
They had lost Kennedy and another one of the girls that Faith had trained. The L.A. Slayers were in one piece, however, as were Vi and Audra, and Willow’s girls had made it through as well.
Still, the losses were a heavy burden to bear.
“I think we can begin,” Giles announced. “It’s good to see you all again.”
Xander raised his hand. “I’d like to say that I’m staying in Africa.”
Giles raised his eyebrows. “Oh?”
“We’ve got a good thing going there with the Oribi,” Xander said, “and there’s a Hellmouth. I want to stay. That’s home for me now.”
Giles nodded. “I see. Anyone else?”
Willow glanced at Oz, and he nodded. “We’ll go wherever you need us, Giles,” Willow said. “There’s no Hellmouth in Brazil, and the demon activity is way down since the thing in L.A.”
“I’d like you to come back here, then,” Giles said. “We’re going to centralize our teaching centers.” He nodded at Xander. “Save for the areas where there are Hellmouths. We will need to send a few more experienced Slayers to Cleveland, and probably a few more to Pretoria as well. Those too young to be stationed on an active Hellmouth will come here.”
“What about Munich?” Dawn asked.
“Erna assures me that she has it well in hand, but you make a good point, Dawn,” Giles said. “As soon as we have someone ready and willing to go to Germany, we’ll send another to back her up.”
“What about L.A.?” Xander asked. “If it’s that bad, shouldn’t we be sending everyone we can?”
Giles shook his head. “No. Buffy was adamantly against that idea. She claims that too many Slayers will be just as bad as too few, and that only the most experienced should go. I agree with her assessment. Ideally, all Slayers with training and experience will eventually wind up in Los Angeles, but the existing Hellmouths will do for training ground.”
Willow saw the shock on Xander’s face. “How long are we talking here?”
“Months,” Giles admitted. “If not years.” He rose. “I think that takes care of everything. We’ll work out the rest of the details over the next few days.”
Willow stopped Giles before he could leave. “Can I talk to you privately?” She waited until the others had filtered out before she said, “I think you should send me back to Los Angeles, Giles.”
He shook his head. “Willow—”
“Buffy needs me.”
“That’s the same thing Dawn said.”
“And you’re sending her to Cleveland,” Willow replied. “Look, I know Ellen is there, but she’s going to need another witch. Send me and Oz. I owe her that much at least.”
Giles sighed. “She doesn’t blame you, Willow.”
“But she blames you and Miriam still,” she said knowingly.
“I don’t think she will forgive me this time.” His head was bowed, his shoulders slumped. Willow didn’t think she’d ever seen him so defeated.
“If Spike comes back safely—”
“What chance is there of that?” Giles rubbed his eyes. “I’ll send you and Oz, if that’s what you want, Willow. I’m sure you’ll be very useful there.”
Willow stayed behind, staring out the window onto the wide expanse of lawn. She could see several young children playing soccer in the grass—or football, she supposed. In truth, she didn’t want to go back to L.A.; the living conditions were primitive, to say the least, and the despair from the ruined city was almost palpable. Although the army was still there, it was mostly to keep people out, because there were a number of evacuated residents who kept trying to get back in.
And it was their shrieks that could often be heard when they were captured and killed.
She had spoken the truth, however. Willow owed this to Buffy; she had been one of those responsible for the current situation, and the fact that Spike was missing. Perhaps the alternative was worse, but Buffy wasn’t living the alternative.
“Did he agree?”
Willow nodded and felt Oz’s arms come around her from behind. “Thank you for going with me. I wouldn’t want to do this by myself.”
“I can understand why.”
She said nothing more, simply leaned her head back against his shoulder and watched the children play, soaking up the peaceful sight.
It was the last opportunity she would have for a very long time.
Submit a Review!