Roles Reversed
by Bwriter
part three
[reviews]
Part three - Reasons
Walking through Restfield cemetery, Willow just knew that someone was watching her and she had a feeling she knew who it was. Stopping, she'd had enough.
"You know, stalking? Not really that much of a reassurance these days Buffy."
Buffy stepped out from behind the headstone/statue she had been lurking behind.
"Hey."
Willow's eyebrows raised slightly.
"That's it? You disappear for a month and all I get is 'hey'?
Buffy stopped walking closer to the Slayer, trying to judge her mood.
"Miss me?" Buffy didn't no why but she held her breath, even though she didn't exactly breathe, while she waited for Willow's answer.
"Actually yes. It's been pretty boring around here lately."
Buffy gave her a smile before walking the rest of the distance to stand beside. Just as she reached her side a demon attacked.
"God, you and your big mouth."
"Oh please, trouble just seems to follow you-"
"Excuse me but when you two are finished I have an important message for the leech there."
Buffy took offence to that and soon the demon found himself on the ground with and angry Vampire on top of him.
"Leech!? Leech!?"
Willow tapped Buffy on the back to get her attention but she got snarled at for her trouble. Rolling her eyes she walked back a few paces, put her thumb and pinkie of her left hand into her mouth and blew. Loudly.
Buffy stopped and looked over at the Slayer before sighing and standing up.
"Good. Now that's over, what did you want to tell Buffy?"
The demon offered Willow a smile which wasn't returned. Buffy was trapped between glaring at the demon and pouting at the Slayer for ruining her fun.
"Right well, my boss told me to tell you that he knows what you've been up to and he's not happy. Says he wants a word. Tonight."
Buffy had no idea what he was on about and her confusion was echoed by the look on the Slayer's face.
"Okay, run that by me one more time but tell me who the hell your talking about."
The demon sighed and shook his head before turning his back and walking away before throwing over his shoulder;
"Tonight. The old factory. Midnight."
"Damn it." Buffy really hated not knowing what was going on. Looking at her watch she saw it was just past eleven thirty.
"Gotta go see what that was all about. Guess I'll see ya around Slayer.
Willow stopped her with a hand on her arm. Both of them felt the electricity of that one touch but neither could face its meaning just yet. Willow pulled her hand back.
"Want me to tag along? Might be a trap."
Buffy was about to say no when she thought about the possibility that it was indeed a trap.
"Sure."
They each walked in silence until Buffy couldn't take it anymore.
"So, what's been happening while I've been gone?"
"Do you really wanna know?"
Buffy actually let out a small laugh at that one, shocking the hell out of Willow.
"Wouldn't have asked if I didn't."
"Well lets see. No new big bads. So nothing new to report of the demon front that I've heard about, though your new friend may change that. Oh the new Slayer arrived. Her name is Faith, she's Kendra's... anyway if you want you can tag alone when I go meet Giles later and meet her yourself."
Giles. Buffy suddenly remembered the book. Taking it out of her pocket she handed it to the Slayer.
"Take this to your Watcher now, I've got a feeling I know what this boss guy wants. Don't linger anywhere around town, just head straight to the library and I'll meet you there."
Willow took the book before turning it over in her hands.
"Why is it so important?"
Buffy shook her head before answering.
"Did that Watcher teach you nothing? Forget it, take it to him and he can tell you everything. I'll meet you there now go."
Buffy watcher the Slayer run off before continuing on to the factory.
Willow burst through the library doors and headed straight for her Watchers office saying nothing to her friends, who were looking at each other wondering what was going on.
They were about to go back to their conversation when they heard a shout come from the office.
"Where the bloody hell did you get this?"
Giles looked at his Slayer in awe. In her hands she held the book the Watchers council had tried to find for over two hundred years.
"Buffy's back. She gave it to me and told me to get it to you. What is it anyway?"
Giles wondered just what Buffy was doing. This book in the hands of a Slayer would be fatal to nearly any enemy.
"Willow, this book is said to hold the secrets of the Slayer. Where your power comes from, how to increase that power and more importantly what it actually means to be the Slayer. I have no idea where Buffy found this but its a bloody miracle that she did. The council having been looking for two centuries."
Willow looked from the book to Giles then set about telling him about the demon attack and that Buffy was meeting with its boss right now and would come straight here after it.
"...so you can grill her on it then."
An hour had passed and Buffy still hadn't arrived yet, but Faith had. The gang all sat around the main desk, with the exception of Oz who was at band practice.
Willow was worried and trying not to let it show. Over the past month she had been feeling like she was getting back to herself after the whole Dru incident. she still wasn't one hundred per cent but she felt that she was slowly getting there. She didn't like the feeling that had settled in her stomach when she thought about Buffy in danger.
Not being able to take the waiting anymore she stood up making the rest, apart from Faith, jump.
"I'm gonna see if I can find her."
Faith had no idea who everyone was waiting on, but she knew she was bored so she offered to go with Willow.
Just as they were turning to leave a dishevelled Buffy appeared with blood running from a cut above her eye and limping on her left foot.
The meeting had gone exactly how Buffy imagined it would. She arrived and was surprised to see Regan sitting on a chair in the middle of the room.
He was a small demon but held a lot of power. He was an orange/reddish colour with jet back eyes and short stark white hair. Around him stood twelve Vampires, some of whom Buffy knew.
"Hello Regan, long time no see."
The demon simply smiled, though it looked more like a grimace.
"Buffy so nice of you to come."
"Well you know me. Always was curious."
She stopped a few feet away from where he was seated.
Regan shifted in his chair. He had met this Vampire before and he knew of her reputation.
"Lets not waste time on pleasantries. Where is the Latorth?"
Buffy smirked. She knew she was right. He wanted the book.
"Now what would a demon like yourself want with that musty old girly book?"
Buffy could have sworn that his eyes flashed upwards but she never took her attention off him. There was something in the room that oozed power but it wasn't sitting in front of her
"Do you have it?"
"I did. Guess who does now? Your boy was slow. Instead of checking me for it he walked off licking his wounds."
Regan was scared. Buffy could smell it and it left her feeling almost giddy.
"If that's all you wanted them I'm just gonna head. It'll be surprising what happens is a few months. If I was you, I'd get outta town fast."
"Why did you do this? Your a demon yourself. That book in the hands of that Slayer will be... she will be unstoppable. I'll make you a trade. I will let you leave here alive or er dead, and you bring the book back to me."
Buffy pretended to consider that for a moment.
"You know what, think I'm gonna pass. Can't wait for the fireworks."
That's when the Vampires attacked.
Faith looked at the girl in front of her wondering why Willow was hovering while Giles cleaned up the cut on her face.
Buffy looked from the new Slayer to her Slayer and shook her head. She could smell the power coming off her Slayer in waves, but this new one had something else in the mix as well. Buffy wasn't entirely sure but she wasn't worried.
Finally the Watcher was done. Buffy had told him he needn't have bothered but he wasn't put off, so now she had stitches. She was pissed that one of the Vamps had ruined her favourite leather coat. The back had been sliced open. She would have to go to the store in L.A and get a new one now.
"So what did you say when he offered the trade?"
Buffy looked towards the Slayer before answering.
"What do you think I said?" She was hoping that the Slayer trusted her but if she asked that question, maybe she didn't. Least she hadn't asked how Buffy fed yet.
Willow locked eyes with the Vampire before her and thought of everything that had happened from Buffy first arrived in Sunnydale 'til the present time.
She nodded her head at Buffy before walking into Giles office and coming back out with the book.
Buffy let a relieved breath out. She couldn't get over that one pesky human quality she no longer needed.
"What's with the book Will?" It was Faith that had asked and it was Giles who took up the story.
The gang looked to Buffy wondering why she had brought Willow this book when Faith spoke up.
"Who the hell are you anyways?"
Buffy looked at Willow and saw her looking at Faith. Shrugging her shoulders Buffy Vamped out before letting her face return to normal.
Everything happened so fast. Faith had a stake out and raised, Buffy had stood up taking a defensive position and Willow had stepped between them.
"Faith put that away. Buffy, sit down."
The rest of the gang was surprised that Buffy did infact sit down. Faith however stayed standing.
"Red, move now. She's a Vamp and my job description is very clear," she pointed at Buffy with her stake, "Vampire," then pointed to herself, "Slayer. Dead Vampire."
Buffy snorted trying to hold in her amused laughter. The rest of the gang turned to face her apart from Willow who held Faith's gaze.
Buffy had had enough. Standing she moved over to Giles side, appearing to ignore what was going on around her, but having her senses trained on her Slayer at all times.
"Can I have a word with you?" Giles nodded before leading her into his office and closing the door, getting the feeling that it was important.
Offering her a seat on the couch, he took the desk chair.
"What can I help you with?"
Buffy stood back up and paced over to the window before speaking.
"I did you a huge favour tonight and I need one in return."
Giles stiffened. He didn't want to be indebted to a demon.
"What's the favour?"
Buffy turned to face him and could almost read his thoughts from his expression. Deciding not to linger she began at the beginning.
"When I was turned, I wasn't a normal Vampire. Not at the beginning. In life I had loved my family. My father was killed by a horse when I was ten so it was just me, my mom and my little sister. I would have died for them, in fact I did, but that's another story. When I was turned I had no desire to hurt them, but I knew that Dru and Angelus would, so I staged their deaths with two bodies that had died in a house fire."
Buffy paused, lost in memories. A discreet cough brought her back.
"I moved them to the countryside and got Dru and Angelus out of England. We ended up in Europe. Mom and Dawn were living a happy life. We wrote occasionally but I never visited, but I did have someone check up on them every so often, to make sure they were okay. One July 19, 1780, I got word that they were dead. Dawn was only twelve."
Buffy turned to face Giles and he was surprised by the tear that ran down her cheek. When they locked eyes, he was taken aback by the amount of pain and hate in them.
"Guess who killed them? Can't? Well let me tell you. Seems the Watchers Council didn't like Dru and Angelus and me by association. I don't know how but they found out about my mom and Dawn and went for a visit.
When mom denied knowing I was a Vampire or where I was, they raided the house. They found the letters and accused Mom and Dawn of being demon worshippers. They never even gave them a trail, just slit here throats. Now you've read my files Giles. When did I get violent?"
"1780." Came the whispered reply.
"Right. 1780. I wasn't really the Vampire who enjoyed the killing. Oh don't get me wrong I loved the violence, still do, but humans never put up much of a fight, that's why I attacked demons from the day I was turned. Dru could never understand it. Drove her nuts.
From the day I found out about their murders I became every bit the Vampire Dru and Angelus wanted me to be. I had no ties to my humanity anymore. No reason to hold on, so I gave into the demon in me. Let it free. I wanted revenge. To tell the truth, I still do. So I went after the Watchers and Slayers. Killed myself hundreds of Watchers and two Slayers, but never found the men who killed my family."
Buffy stopped pacing. She looked towards the window of the office and saw the Slayer still trying to calm down the new girl.
"The favour is this. Find out the names of the bastards that murdered my family."
"What good will it do? They'd be long dead by now."
Buffy smiled but it wasn't a happy one.
"It would give me closure."
Giles swallowed past the lump in his throat. He never thought that he would feel sympathy towards a demon that had no soul yet had some special quality about her.
"Can I just ask, why have you suddenly stopped the killings? There hasn't been an increase in bodies since you came back to Sunnydale."
"That's because I haven't been killing the victims. It's surprising how many humans get off on the rush of a Vampires bite. They survive the experience and I get to feed. Everyone goes home happy."
Giles nodded his head. He had heard of places where humans went to basically be willing meals. The rush was supposed to be amazing but addictive.
"Yes but why have you stopped killing humans?"
Buffy looked back towards Willow and Giles followed her line of sight.
"I have a reason again."
tbc