Strange Occurances: Part 1
by Jayme Stone
This story is written for the fun of it and I intended to make no money from it in any way. The characters, ( Buffy, Angel, Giles, Willow, Xander, Faith, Cordelia, Joyce, Oz, Mr. Trick, The Mayor, and Principal Synder) all belong to someone else except the character of Mariah, who may not be used without my express permission. This story would be a continuation of the series following the episode involving the alternate time line. Enjoy.

Part One

The room was musty and dimly lit. It was night outside, but inside it was always night as were the habits of its occupants. A stylish man sat at an elegant table in the middle of the room. He seemed to be contemplating something of great importance, while two strange faced men stood to one side of the massive room.

"She always seems to be able to beat me, one way or another. Why can't I beat her?" The man muttered. He wasn't a bad looking man. He was black and looked to be about six feet tall, however there was something about him that made him seem different.

He yelled at the two men, "There has to be some way to stop her, someone or something that can do it." The two men looked confused, what were they suppose to do about it. Finally the man said, "You two, go out and kill something." Quickly the two men left the room, eager to go out into the night and do as their leader had told them.

* * *

Sunnydale High School looked like any high school would on a Friday morning, bright and cheerful, because every student knew that after a day at school they would only have to worry about what trouble they would get into during the weekend. However one group of students already knew what they were doing this weekend.

"Buffy, why can't we just go to the Bronze and forget about impending doom for once?" Xander asked as he sat down beside the two girls.

"Because, Xander," Buffy said, "Giles told me since their hasn't been any recent vampire activity lately, he thinks something big is up or at least they are planning something big." Buffy looked at the other girl in the group. "Willow, what's wrong?" Buffy asked her best friend.

"Buffy, well, . . . um . . . , I know impending doom and all is important, but shouldn't you be worried about your big math test today?" Willow said in a rather small voice.

"Oh shoot, that's today. I thought it was on Monday. Xander, can I borrow your notes, I seem to have forgotten to take any at all." The Slayer, as she was known to a select few, responded with worry.

Xander answered, "Buffy, why are you asking me? It's not like I pay attention in any of my classes." Xander and two girls of the group walked into the school.

As they walked down the hall, they passed a rather fashionably dressed girl who glared at them. "If it isn't the freak squad. Kill any demons recently. Wait, do I care? I think not." The girl said as she walked on by.

"I have to say the Cordelia is in rather good form today. I actually had no come back for that one." Xander said as he turned to look at her walk away.

"Don't let her get to you Xander. She isn't worth it." Buffy said in support to her friend.

They each broke off as they approached their respective classes. Xander and Buffy walked into class together and noticed a girl sitting in a seat up front.

"Is that girl new to our class?" Buffy asked as she continued to watch the girl.

"I don't know."

As they walked to their seats, Buffy still had her eye on the girl. The bell rung and the rest of the class filed into the room. An older man walked into the room and set his stuff on the teacher's desk.

"I'm Mr. Jones. I'll be your sub for the test while your regular teacher is away. However, before I hand out the test, Principal Snyder wanted me to introduce a new student." The girl sitting in the front of the room stood up and turned around. "This is Mariah Gray." The girl smiled and sat back down.

Xander leaned over towards Buffy. "She has no idea what she's gotten herself into."

"Absolutely none," was all Buffy said.

* * *

Later that day, right after school, Buffy and her friends gathered in the library, along with Faith, the second Slayer, and Giles, the school librarian and the Watcher for the two Slayers.

"Giles, last night, I saw a total of two vampires. Two! Something definitely is going on." Faith complained.

"I know your concerns, but . . . ." Giles stopped suddenly. The new girl, Mariah, had just walked into the library. She stared at the group not knowing if she should stay or go.

Buffy walked over to her. "Everyone, this is Mariah. She's new here in Sunnydale. Xander and I have her in our math class. But she's in one of my other classes. Now, what is it?" Buffy struggled for the answer.

As Buffy tried to think of what it was, a voice replied, "It's History." The voice had a smooth quality to it. Buffy stared at Mariah.

"I'm glad to know that you can actually speak. You didn't say anything in either class." Buffy said.

"Well, I'm not much into having conversations with people I don't know. And by the way sorry for being rude, earlier. You introduced yourself right when I was trying to figure out where my next class was. I just didn't feel like getting lost for once." Mariah spoke with great sincerity. She was about five foot four inches, with shoulder length brown hair. Her eyes were a shade of dark brown, yet they sparkled, as if they were glass. She wore a pair of lose fitted jeans and a dark blue baby tee.

"Oh, let me introduce my friends," Buffy said as she gestured to rest of the people of room, "Mariah, this is Willow and Xander, who both go to school here. That's Faith, whose sort of a special exception to school rules. And then there's Giles, whose the school librarian."

"Hello," she replied as each waved to her in turn upon introduction. "Now back to the reason I came in, I need to find some of the books I haven't had a chance to buy yet. I need a Spanish dictionary, a history book and an English book." She looked towards Giles, "I hope those won't be any trouble to find Mr. Giles.

"None at all. I believe I have all of them back in my supply closet." Giles walked away to find the books as the rest talked about their evening plans. Buffy invited Mariah to come to the Bronze with them. Even though she knew she would have to go on patrol, she decided to go any way just to show the new girl a good time.

* * *

The Bronze, the only decent place in town for teenagers to go to, was dark and noisy as was customary on a Friday night. Buffy and her friends sat or rather lounged on several couches that were place to one side of the room. They seemed to be completely relaxed, almost lazy.

Slowly through the crowd, Mariah pushed her way. She was dressed in a pair of high healed black boots, a pair of tight black pants, and a long sleeved midnight blue crop top. She easily spotted Buffy and the rest, for they seemed to be the only people in the room who weren't enjoying the music, along with the crush of the crowd.

As Mariah approached, she said, "You five look like you're really enjoying yourselves." Her voice dripped with sarcasm.

"We're always the life of they party." Xander replied without really knowing who it was that spoke. Then he realized who it was and looked up, "Oh, Mariah, didn't see you come in. You look great." His male libido replying to the manner in which she was dressed, which only got him a glare from all the girls in the group.

"Glad you got here all right." Buffy offered.

"Yeah, it's sometimes rather easy to lose your way in Sunnydale," Willow shyly stated only earning stares from rest of the group that knew it implied something rather different. "Well, it is."

"I actually did get lost, Willow. That is your name right?" Willow nodded sweetly. "I'm sorry for not being sure, but there are so many new faces and names to remember when you arrive in a town. Well, it just confuses me." Her answer told them that she hadn't noticed the glances they had been exchanging throughout the conversation.

Faith had stayed quiet until know. "That raises an interesting question. Where are you from?" Buffy scowled angrily at Faith. "What," was all Buffy got from Faith.

"That's all right Buffy, I don't mind. Faith, my . . . um . . . family . . . travels a lot, so I really don't call any place home." Mariah seemed to be very distracted all of a sudden. "I just remembered, I have to go home and unpack. Maybe I can do something with you guys tomorrow?"

Everybody else noticed the change in mood. Buffy answered, "That sounds good, meet us at the school library tomorrow afternoon." With that Mariah turned and quickly left.

Buffy looked at Faith. "Now look what you did. I think you upset her."

"Well I don't care. There's something about her that makes my hair said on end. I'm going to follow her." Before anyone could respond, Faith had vanished.

Before any of them could respond to what Faith had said or done, Cordelia walked by. For a minute it looked like she missed them, but that quickly changed. "I thought you all would be out saving the world and would be leaving us normal people alone. But that is a little too much to ask for."

"Cordy, don't you have anything better to do then harass us. I mean you could be doing your hair and all." Xander said as Cordelia quickly raised her hand to her hair.

"What's wrong with my hair?" Cordelia said, hurt.

"Nothing, if you like that bride of Frankenstein look." Xander replied as Cordelia stormed off. Xander looked at Buffy and Willow and saw how they were looking at him. "Hey, she was asking for it."

* * *

Mariah walked along the dark cold streets, knowing full well that she was being followed and by Faith.

< How does she know? I wasn't that obvious, was I? I thought I hadn't left anything to chance. > Mariah thought as she continued on. She thought about a great many things, about what was the meaning of her life, and why fate had landed her in a town that had two slayers.

Out of nowhere, two men leapt at her. She had ended up in the graveyard, some how. < Oh that was smart, Mariah. > Quickly she dodged one of the men. As the other man came towards her, his face changed and he had fangs. Before he could get the drop on her, she put a hand against his chest. Once she had done this, he withered in pain, it seemed as if his power was being drained away. Suddenly, he burst into ashes almost as if he had come apart at the seams from pain. Mariah glanced over her shoulder and saw Faith heading for her. Before Faith could help her, she executed the same move on the other man. She slowly became one with his power as her soul embraced it. Faith called to her, but all Mariah did was run away as fast as she could.

* * *

"You have to believe me, they just evaporated when she touched them. And when I went to see if she was all right, she just ran away." Faith spoke frantically about last night's event. She was sitting in the library with Buffy, Giles, Willow and Xander.

Giles looked at her. He slowly removed his glasses and wiped them off. "Faith, it is a possibility, but are you quite sure she didn't have a stake of some kind with her," he said as he replaced his glasses.

"Giles, I'm sure. Can't you just check your books of demons and see if she fits any of the descriptions?"

Buffy finally spoke up. She had been silent through Faith's whole story as had Willow and Xander. "Maybe Giles should wait till after she comes. She should be getting here at any moment."

As if on cue, Mariah walked through the library doors. She looked around at the solemn faces and became rather uncomfortable. "Did I do something I don't know about?"

"Yeah, you're an unholy . . . ." Faith started as a hand went over her mouth. Xander had used his quick reflexes to stop a disaster from occurring.

"What Faith meant was . . . um . . . is that you . . . um . . . left rather suddenly last night and we were all worried about you." Willow interjected to save the day.

"Oh, well, as you can see, I'm fine. So what are we going to do this afternoon for fun?"

Xander stood up and walked over to her, taking her by the arm to led her from the library. "Buffy and I are going to show you around Sunnydale." Buffy quickly followed.

Yeah, but what about Willow and Faith? Aren't they going to come with us?" Mariah said as she kept her eyes focused on Faith.

Willow responded before Faith had the chance to, "We have to do some work for Giles."

As soon as they had left, Faith commented, "Yeah, Giles, where are your books on soul sucking demons?"

Buffy and Mariah sat at a table in the Bronze while Xander went to get them something to drink. From one side they heard Faith's voice over the din. They couldn't tell what she was saying, but it had an element of anger in it. When Faith saw them, she stopped talking and Willow, who was right beside her stopped as well.

"Hi, Mariah. Did you have fun seeing the town?" Willow said with a tad bit to much enjoyment and volume.

Mariah answered, not noticing Willow's tone or at least it seemed, "Yeah, it was really fun, but there isn't much to see here in good old Sunnydale." Mariah quickly changed the subject for no apparent reason. "So, did you guys get all the work done you needed to do for Giles."

"For the most part, but we didn't find what he wanted." Faith offered.

Xander had come back. He precariously balanced three drinks. "Oh, Faith, Willow, you're back."

"Thanks for the drink, Xander, but I should probably be going now. See you all on Monday, I hope." Mariah grabbed her drink and pushed her way through the crowd.

"See, I told you something was up with her." Faith growled. She hated the fact that no one believed what she had seen last night. Usually she would have taken care of this her own way but decided that she would do it the way Giles and Buffy thought was best.

"She seemed to be having fun today. Just like any normal teenager would." Xander added as defense. He liked Mariah, not in the way he liked Willow, Cordelia or once Buffy, but he liked her as a person. He didn't know why everyone was being so critical of her.

"Well, we still should follow her. We do live over the Hell Mouth and strange things are known to happen." Buffy said as the small group filed out of the Bronze and saw Mariah just turning the corner. Buffy liked Mariah and thought that they should just leave her allow. If Mariah had killed two vampires, the less she would

have to deal with. Buffy didn't need any more problems complicating her life at the moment.

"We need to keep our distance from her. We don't want her to know that she is being followed." Buffy whispered as she quickly followed Mariah.

* * *

Mariah knew that they were there, all four of them, just as she had known that Faith had been there last night. < Humans are so predictable, > Mariah thought as she continued on her way to the graveyard. < I might as well have some fun tonight. > As she entered the graveyard, she weaved her way through the tombstones, but all of a sudden there was a rustle in the bushes. Two vampires leapt out of the bushes and advanced on her thinking that she would be easy prey. < They have no idea what they are getting themselves into, do they. Oh, well, too bad for them. > As one was about to grab her, she dodged him and kicked him in the rear for good measure as he went by her. Before the second one could react, she kicked him in the face, using a high round-house, which landed him on the ground.

Mariah looked around and noticed a sign on a stake. Quickly performing a front hand spring and a front flip, she rolled over to the stake and broke it in half. < Just what I need, two stakes for two vampires. > She sprung to her feet, just as the two vampires as well as the two slayers advanced on her. < I should probably take care of the two vampires first. > She did a back flip to add some distance between her and her prey. One of the vampires had his guard down, so she quickly dived by him gabbing the stake into his chest. As he burst into ashes, Buffy and Faith ran up and Mariah tossed her other stake to Buffy. Faith and Buffy quickly dealt with the vampire while Xander and Willow helped Mariah to her feet.

Once the calm had returned to the situation, Faith said harshly to Mariah, "What was that all about?"

Before she could reply, Buffy interjected, "Maybe you should wait, Mariah, and explain when we get to the library and have a chance to talk to Giles." Slowly, the group disappeared in the direction of the school library.

* * *

Giles paced back and forth in front of the table that stood in the center of the library, after having heard about all that had happened. "Well it seems to me that Mariah needs to explain."

"I destroyed a vampire, what else is there to say." Mariah replied as she looked at the disgruntled faces around her. "Oh, you mean what happened last night. That would be a lot easier to explain if I had a little help. Giles, by any chance do you have the Apocryphal encyclopedia."

Giles looked at her with astonishment, "Yes, I believe that I do." He walked behind the counter and pulled out a huge bulky tattered book. "Here, it is, I believe."

Instead of getting up to retrieve the book, since it didn't look like Giles was going to bring it to her, Mariah simply waved her hand, almost beckoning the book towards her. The book lifted from its resting place and towards her. She sat at the far end of the table with a slayer on either side of her as a precaution. Each slayer and everyone else in the room for that matter had an amazed look on their face. The book stopped in front of her and the pages turned as she waved her hand.

"Oh, here I am." The book fell to the table and turned towards Buffy in one fluid motion.

Buffy looked down at the page the book was open to. She saw that there was no picture as was customary in all of Giles book, but she read the bold lettered words. "The Supreme Being, the last and most powerful of the original nine heavenly/demonic beings."

Giles looked at Mariah not knowing exactly what to say to her. "You're the Supreme Being, the most powerful of the original beings. I'm quite amazed and astonished to actually meet you."

"The pleasures actually mine, I've never met a Watcher before and I have only heard briefly here and there about the legendary slayers that have existed throughout time." Mariah smiled pleasantly. She actually didn't seem to be angry about the way that she had been treated and Giles looked almost giddy with joy.

"Excuse me," Xander interrupted, "but what is the Supreme Being?"

Giles and Mariah started at the same time, but Mariah allowed Giles to go ahead. "As the legends go about the mystical beings, in the beginning, the world was controlled by evil. Eventually, whatever godly force there is and the evil one came to an agreement to end the chaos. They decided to create ten beings, five good and five evil. Since evil already ruled the world, it went first, however it was the vampire and it killed one of the pre-formed creatures. So after each side had created four beings, there was one left over to be dealt with. They decided to make this one better than any of the ones that had already been made, getting the name Supreme being. They made it a perfect balance of good and evil, a perfect balance of everything there was. But from there on the records are few and sketchy. But the majority of people believe that only bits and pieces of the legends are true. " With that Giles sat down at the other end of the table.

Mariah stood up and walked towards Giles. The Slayers were about to make her sit down, but they though better of it. If this creature was more powerful than a vampire, they would have no chance. "That was very good and as far as I know that is the truth about how I came to exist. It was so long ago that I really can't remember what the beginning was really like or maybe I just pushed it from my mind as I have done to many things.. But I'll tell you more about myself. Things other people have never known except a few I have trusted. I am more then just a perfect balance of good and evil. I feed of the souls of all creatures. Maybe I shouldn't say soul, but power or life energy. I am also an immortal being, who is judged every mystic year on how many good and evil acts I have done. If I do more evil acts than good ones, I become good and vice versa."

"Is that change to good or evil permanent?" Willow interjected.

"Yes, it is, Willow, however some how it always works out evenly. But even though I have great powers, I can be hurt as well as be taken control of by magic."

"But what are the other beings, besides you and vampires?" Faith asked, intrigued. Faith knew now that what she hadn't liked about Mariah was her ability to be so friendly to others without doubt. < But it probably came with the criteria for being a mystic being, > she thought as she waited for Mariah to answer her question.

"The good beings were unicorns, the little people, angels and humans. The bad beings were demons, monsters and black magic beings. But throughout time they have effected one another or have advanced. Unicorns were even wiped out."

Buffy finally spoke up. "This is amazing stuff that you're telling us, but Mariah, we're all tried. Why don't we continue this tomorrow." They each collected their stuff and slowly left the library. As Buffy left, Mariah patted her on the back and muttered "Thank you."

* * *

The next evening, Buffy and Mariah walked through the dark streets of Sunnydale, heading towards an old, dark mansion. They had been talking about all the strange things that had happened to Buffy while in Sunnydale. Buffy found comfort in Mariah's presence and felt like she could tell her anything. They had a bond of some type, perhaps coming from both their inability to led normal teenage lives.

". . . and then we took the babies back to the hospital."

"Buffy, that is so funny. Parents acting like teenagers. Oh, by the way, why did you bring me here? This place reminds of all those old horror movies, where people go in the house and never come out."

"There's someone I want you to meet." Buffy and Mariah walked up the steps and slowly opened the door. There was a faint light ahead of them. They walked towards it, then they entered a large room, seeing the muscular bare back of a man in the midst of doing a relaxation routine. Mariah watched in awe as the six foot man moved his body in long fluid motions. He had wispy blond-brown hair, or perhaps that was just the light playing on it.

As Buffy stepped forward, her shoes made a noise on the ground and the man turned to face them. He had a kind face, however it seemed to have been through much. He stared at Mariah, he looked like he had just seen a ghost, but there was recognition in his eyes.

"Mariah, is it really you standing there or is it just my imagination?" he said as he walked to stand before her.

"Yes, it is me, Angelus," she said as he took her into his arms. There were almost tears in her eyes, and she would have cried if she had the ability to do so.

Buffy stood there, watching the emotions pass between the two faces. "Well, there seems to be no need to make introductions."

"Buffy, I've known Angelus or Angel, since he is good, when he was originally evil until about two years after his transformation from evil to good." Mariah stayed in Angel's arms as he held her close, almost as if he received some strength from her.

"Well, I'll leave the two of you alone." Buffy left, glad that both of them had some one to draw strength and comfort from as well as love.

After Buffy had left, Angel led Mariah to the couch so they could talk. Mariah sensed that much had changed since they had last been together. "So Angel what have you done recently for excitement."

"Well, besides destroy an all powerful weapon, I returned to this world after being thrown into the demon dimension by Buffy, my ex, in order to save the world. So what have you been doing?" Angel said as he took her hand in his, holding it in order to make sure she didn't slip out of his life again.

"Nothing much, except escape one more tomb of death I got my self trapped in." Mariah took her other hand and touched it to his lips. She was remembering times when they had been together, both in bed and in polite society, before he had become good. Then when he changed, she had no choice but to support him in his time of need, the transition form evil to good. Eventually, she had to leave because he refused to be helped and had just pushed her away.

"Things are different now, Mariah. I understand how to be good and how to survive." He kissed each of her hands in turn before claiming her lips with his own. In their kiss, he showed her how much he still felt for her and drew further strength from her.

"Angel, can I stay here with you tonight? I have this feeling that something bad is going to happen," she said as they parted.

"Of course. And I will make sure you're safe from all harm." She then curled up on the couch as he laid a blanket over her and planted a kiss on her forehead. He then went back to his routine, but kept an eye on her.

As he went through all the movements, he thought of the times they had been together. When she would dress up in the evenings and together they would go out to party. And afterwards she would help him find someone to prey on, just so he would stay alive, while she would feed off another unsuspecting person. And when they returned home they would spend the rest of the night in each others arms. But things had changed, when his change had occurred. She had known that happiness was the key to his return to evil, so she had kept her distance, not chancing the fact that she might cause it. She knew that there was justice in his becoming good and tried to support him, but he couldn't bear the distance that had formed between them. And on the night she abandoned him, he fell deeper into despair.

These thoughts continued to float through his mind as the woman he once loved lay asleep on the couch.

Around six-thirty in the morning, Buffy returned to the mansion, hoping to find Mariah, since she had not returned to sleep at Buffy's as they had planned. As was usual, Angel was doing his pre-"bedtime" routine, however Buffy noticed Mariah asleep on the couch.

Angel saw her enter. "Good Morning, Buffy. Mariah stayed here because she wanted me to keep an eye on her." Angel found some need to explain, Buffy could tell. Perhaps it was because of their former relationship, but that wasn't important anymore, Buffy knew that.

"No need to explain, Angel. You and Mariah are old friends and probably rather close. I bet she found comfort in having you around." Buffy found herself getting over Angel in that one simplistic statement of fact. Maybe, she was finally over Angel and all he had done to her.

All of a sudden, Mariah stirred on the couch. Buffy walked over to her as she sat up. "What time is it? Oh, Buffy, you're here."

"Yeah, I'm here and it will be seven soon. We have to get ready to school. Why you need to go to school, I don't know." As Mariah stood up, she had clothes on that were different from last night. She wore a long black duster over a short black skirt and a cropped white t-shirt that had a small aplica of a halo and wings, in honor of Angel. Mariah registered Buffy's comments but made none of her own.

Angel came over to her and gave her one last hug before she and Buffy left. She said nothing to Angel, but gave him a look that said she was glad she had found him. Magically, as they walked along in silence, a backpack appeared on Mariah's shoulder. Mariah could tell that Buffy was upset in a manner of speaking that Mariah was having a relationship with Angel and not her. < But it doesn't seem to be a deep anger and at least she's taking it well, almost as if she weren't really angry. I have to say this for Buffy, she doesn't seem to hold grudges, > Mariah finished her thoughts just as Buffy started to speak.

"Mariah, I'm glad that Angel has someone who is there for him. And in a way I'm really glad it's you." Mariah looked at Buffy, confusion in her eyes. "I do mean it, Mariah."

Buffy turned towards her and they stopped right before the school. "I'm glad you think that and I'm glad you've been here for him." With that, they went to meet their friends.

* * *

At the same time, the man who hated the Slayers, Mr. Trick, was also coming to a conclusion. His men had seen Mariah absorb the energy of those two vampires and fight with the other two. He saw in Mariah a way to destroy the Slayers. He knew that Mariah was the Supreme Being and he knew a way to control her, but it would take some time.

"All I have to do is contact the Mayor tomorrow evening and she will be completely under my control in a few simple days." Mr. Trick laughed as his plan fell into place.

* * *

Buffy, Willow and Xander sat in the lounge at school. It was lunch time and they had been kicked out of the library by Giles. He had wanted to talk to Mariah about some of his theories. Everyone could tell that she was reluctant to stay in the library when she had the chance to act like a normal teenager, but she lad relented and stayed. So now Buffy and friends were chatting about the changes that had occurred since Mariah's arrival.

"I don't think we should be so critical of her. She didn't chose to be what she is." Willow uttered in her defense.

"You're right, Will. She didn't chose her life and she really didn't want to stay in the library with Giles." Xander responded. "She did seem a little put off that she had to do more work after being in school half the day."

Willow and Xander continued on to other topics, but Buffy drifted off into her own world. She was contemplating last evening's events and those of this morning. Buffy had not felt a pang of jealousy, only a sense of peace coming over her as she saw Mariah with Angel. < At least he has someone to be with for the rest of his life or should I say death, > was the thought that continued in her head over and over.

"Earth to Buffy," Xander shouted as he got her attention, "it's time to go to class."

Buffy stood up. "I'm sorry. I drifted off for a little bit. Let's go to class."

As they hurried to class, all Buffy could think was that something dreadful was going to happen and soon.

* * *

It was evening and the usual group was gathered in the library plus Faith and Buffy were getting ready to go on patrol. But as always they were arguing with Giles.

"It's not really necessary that I go along with them." Mariah interjected between comments.

Giles quickly responded. "She is correct. Buffy, Faith, you are the Slayers, Mariah is not. So I believe it's best that she stay here."

"But if I do go with them. I will be able to feed, if you catch my drift."

"See, Giles. Mariah wants to come with us." Faith offered into the conversation.

"Why don't you let her decide for herself. She is a lot older than any of you." A voice said. It had come from the direction of the door. Everyone turned and saw that it was Angel. He had seen none of them since the incident with the ex-watcher and it was a bit of a shock. He was dressed in his regular black and had his hands in his pockets as was usual. "I guess no one's glad to see me." He said as he stepped forward towards Mariah.

She walked towards him and gave him a hug. "I'm always glad to see you, Angel." She whispered to him as she gave him a peck on the cheek.

"I'm . . . um . . . glad to see you Angel. I wanted to thank you again for saving my life." Willow said with hesitation. Xander spoke next. "Mariah, you know Angel?" His words had a sense of shock in them. He didn't think a girl like Mariah could be involved with Angel even though Buffy had, once.

"Yes, I've known him a long time. Actually even before he was good for the first time." Mariah said as Angel rested his hands on her shoulders.

"Well, this is an interesting development." Giles said as he played with his glasses. He would always be uncomfortable around Angel after being tortured by him for hours, when he was still his evil self.

"Buffy, Faith, I'll go along with you guys if having Angel along isn't any kind of problem."

"That's fine," Faith said bitterly, "well, let's go."

* * *

Mr. Trick slowly entered the Mayor's office. He did this because he was never quite sure what to expect upon entering.

The Mayor sat behind his desk. He looked calm and reserved, which was how he always looked. After Mr. Trick entered, the Mayor had a wide smile on his face.

"Mr. Trick, it's a pleasure to see you even though it is rather late, but I know it can't be helped. So, what was so urgent that you had to see me immediately, and at this time of night?" The joke was rather obvious.

"I need your help in getting control of an extremely powerful being. A being that feeds off the life energy of other creatures, be it vampire or human."

The Mayor's eyebrows went up. "I assume that you are speaking of the Supreme Being, the most powerful of the original nine. And you want to take control of it. I think with a little help from me, you can have it done by tomorrow night."

"Thank you, mayor, your help is much appreciated." Mr. Trick said, with a laugh as he left to prepared the spell for tomorrow night.

* * *

Buffy, Faith, Angel and Mariah walked in silence. Mariah had tried several times to start a conversation, but every attempt had died. She didn't understand the lack of friendship between the three. They had everything to gain from an alliance, but they seemed reluctant to become involved with one another. She had to do something about that. She just couldn't think of what to do.

Finally, Mariah just stopped. Everyone turned to her, but remained silent. < This is getting on my nerves. Why won't they say something? They are all just too stubborn for their own good. > Mariah thought, as they stood in silence.

After a few minutes, Angel spoke, "Mariah, is anything wrong?" He actually sounded concerned. < That's a good sign. >

"Right now, I have a problem with all of you. If none of you are going to speak to one another, I just might as well go back to the library. You guys could gain so much from working together." Mariah was extremely angry at all of them.

Buffy looked at Faith and vice versa. "We're sorry. There was an incident a few weeks ago with Angel, a little deception, an ex-Watcher, and a rather powerful glove, that has left us all a little sore." Buffy said, in a low voice, yet with sincerity.

"Well, we will have to finish this later. We have four rather hungry vamps to take care of." Faith said as she dived away from one of the vampires that tried to attack her.

Each person/good vampire/mystic being took a vampire. The battle was short and sweet, the world's heroes not much phased by the attack. They turned to one another when the fight was over and started to laugh. They had all realized there previous conversation was trivial compared to a good fight.

"Now you can all see why I was so upset with you. You won't talk to one another, but you'll fight together." Mariah said breathlessly as they all stopped laughing.

Faith looked at Angel and Buffy and spoke to them in turn. "Angel, sorry for all the hostility. Buffy, sorry for being so distant." They each nodded in response. Mariah, however, could still see a trace of anger, or perhaps it was resentment, in Faith's eyes. < Well, at least, it's a start. >

Mariah tossed the stake she had used to the ground as Angel took her hand in his. "Well, Angel and I are going back to the mansion." With that they turned and left, happy to be alone, as Buffy and Faith continued on with their patrol for the undead.

As soon as they left the graveyard, a gloved vampire came out of the bushes. He walked slowly towards the stake Mariah had dropped on the ground. He quickly picked it up and ran back to his leader, Mr. Trick. "He'll be glad I got this. Something touched by the Supreme Being, is just what he needs to complete that spell." The vampire mumbled as he disappeared into the night, back to his master.

* * *

The next day, school was short because they were getting out for the Christmas Holiday. Most schools had gotten out last Friday, giving them a full week before Christmas, but Sunnydale High was different and got out two and half days before Christmas. Buffy and friends were not excited about the break, too many strange things were known to happen on their holidays.

"My mom actually wants me to be home on Christmas Eve. I tried to explain to her that evil doesn't take a winter vacation, but she wouldn't listen to me." Buffy remarked with annoyance in her voice.

Mariah quickly chimed in, "If you want, I can patrol with Faith on Christmas Eve. I've always been able to take care of myself and I don't have any plans. It wouldn't be any trouble at all."

"See, Buffy. Now, you and your mom can spend Christmas like one big, happy family. Well, actually, your family isn't really big and your mom isn't-"

Xander cut Willow off, "I think she understands what you're getting at Will. I think you should take her up on that offer Buffy."

"That sounds good, Mariah. Thanks a lot. If you want, on Christmas day, you can come spend it with me and my mom." Buffy suggested.

"Thanks, Buffy."

As they entered the library, they saw Giles working with Faith on her fighting techniques. It was safe to do this since almost everyone had hurried home after school was dismissed and Principal Synder had been away for a few days already. Everything seemed to be normal. Life was running its course, but soon there would be something in its path to upset everything.

It was night and Mr. Trick was in his headquarters as you might call it. He sat before his desk, reading from his magic book. He was very happy, he had everything he needed to make the spell except for one ingredient. Slowly, one of his men entered the room, carrying a small pouch.

"The herbs, I presume," Mr. Trick said as he was handed the bag. Everything was ready.

He stood up and quickly walked towards the table in the center of the room, where a steaming bowl sat. He opened the pouch and dumped the herbs into the bowl. He quickly chanted several phrases over and over again. The mixture slowly boiled as he said the words and it changed colors.

When he stopped chanting, he quietly said to himself, "Soon the Slayers will be gone and I will finally be able to take control of the world piece by piece with not a single person to stop me."

* * *

Buffy, Faith and Mariah walked through the dark streets of Sunnydale on patrol for vampires or any other creatures who go bump in the night. They had talked about a lot of things, from their love life's to general topics. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary.

Slowly several vampires came out of nowhere. Instead of attacking all of them, the vampire headed for the two Slayers. Mariah didn't quite no what was going on but she knew that she had to help them. There were far to many for them to take on by themselves. Mariah quickly took action and tried to fight a few, but they ignored her. Finally she moved to a more unorthodox method of taking care of them and started to stab them in their backs.

As they blew into pieces, something came over Mariah. It felt like she was losing control, like her mind wasn't her own. She felt funny all over and there was nothing she could do. Suddenly, she stopped fighting and started to walk away from, Buffy, Faith and the fight. When Buffy finally broke away, she went after Mariah.

"Mariah, what's wrong?" When she didn't answer, Buffy walked into her path. All this got her was a shove out of Mariah's way as she continued on her way.

Buffy looked to Mariah and then towards Faith. Seeing Faith's distress, Buffy abandoned her attempts with Mariah and went to help Faith with the two vampires that were all over her. As soon as that was taken care of, the two Slayers turned to face one another.

"What happened with Mariah? She just seemed to lose it back there." Faith sounded worried. She liked Mariah because she was a misfit sort of like she was, but just kept going on her merry way. That took a lot of guts, Faith knew all too well.

"I don't know. Let's go talk to Giles he might have some idea what's going on with her. The supernatural is his department."

* * *

As they entered the library, they saw that Angel was there and Giles was actually talking to him. That was amazing in itself, but they did have a lot to offer one another. Willow and Xander were also there, they seemed to be doing some kind of research for Giles. When they all saw the looks that were on the faces of the Slayers and that Mariah wasn't with them, they knew that something was up.

Angel spoke with worry. "Where's Mariah? We were suppose to meet here after you guys went on patrol."

The Slayers told their story of the events that had occurred. They tried to make sure they got every detail correct. They explained the attack and the strange way Mariah had acted.

Willow's face lit up with recognition. "It sounds like someone used a mind-control spell on her." Everyone looked at her. "Well, it does."

"This could mean a lot of trouble. From past records of the Supreme Being, it has been said that the being has only been taken control of once." Giles went over to his book collection and pulled a rather dusty book out. He flipped through the pages and stopped with a jerk. He set the book down on the table where everyone could look at the pages. He continued, "When she was taken control of, the island of Atlantis and all its inhabitants were destroyed." The picture on the page showed what looked like an explosion and people running in terror.

Everyone looked at Giles, knowing that they were all in big trouble. Since in the time of Atlantis, weaponry had been limited, in this era, the Supreme Being could cause even more destruction.

"We have to find a way to break the mind-control or we might have to stop her permanently for the sake of the world." Buffy uttered with great regret in her voice.

* * *

Mr. Trick still stood before the bowl where he had done the spell. He knew the spell had worked because the mixture had done everything it was suppose to do. All he had to do now was the final part of the spell, which involved issuing his commands to her and who she would be obeying. He knew the stories of the destruction of Atlantis. The stories said she had wiped out an entire battalion with a wave of her hand and with a glance she destroyed half the buildings in the city. She was said to be the perfect weapon, indestructible and immortal, but for over a thousand years, she had kept her powers in submission, thinking she would harm less people and that she wouldn't be recognized for who she truly was. He hoped, however, to bring her powers to the foreground.

All of a sudden, there was a commotion at the door then silence. Mariah walked into the room, her face blank. She had lost all her warmth, all her emotion through the power of one spell. She stopped in front of Mr. Trick and a grin spread over his face.

"You are the Supreme Being?"

"Yes," she responded.

"I am your master and you will obey no one but me. You will abandon all your emotions and take on those of death destruction, mayhem, and pure evil. You will be my warrior, none shall come before you. How do you reply?" Mr. Trick said this all very carefully, using the style and manner the spell had called for. He wanted everything to work perfectly. All he had to do now was wait.

A shadow passed over Mariah's face. She felt another change coming over her, one she had no control over. Her true self was still there, but it had been pushed to the back of her mind when she had lost control the first time. Now she was losing control further as evil took over her body. It reminded her of the time in Atlantis, when she had destroyed it and its people. She had hated that and she hated this. She fought with all her might, but she had no chance of overcoming the magic that possessed her.

She fell to her knees, "How may I serve you, master?"

Mr. Trick laughed. It had been too easy. "You will destroy the Slayers and take control of Sunnydale. And eventually the world."

"As you say, but first, I must tell you," she spoke as she rose to her feet, "that you're down about two guards. I was just a tad bit hungry on the way in." She laughed as her eyes turned a sinister shade of black.

* * *

Two voices, far in the back of Mariah's mind, spoke, but she couldn't hear them. She had always thought of them as her conscience, but they weren't. One voice was that of a woman, while the other was that of a man and they were arguing.

The lady spoke first, < If she stays evil, you know that you will lose her forever. She will become good, until the end of time. >

The man responded, < I know our agreement, but I can't get through to Trick. He is my demon and all, but I can't be held responsible when I can't control him. >

< But you were held responsible for Atlantis and she had a chance to redeem herself. This time, however, she will have no chance to. She will be mine. > The woman's voice had a sense of triumph in it that showed these were no ordinary voices.

< She is lost to me forever, unless I can find someone to heal her. Perhaps that good vampire, what's his name? Ah, Angel, that's it, can save her for me. He does love her, but I never understood why. > The voice felt a triumph of its own, but it needed to move quickly. Time was running out.

* * *

Back at the library, everyone was frantically searching through all of Giles' books for a cure. So far they had found almost every cure there was for mind-control in reference to humans and demonic beings, but nothing that would effect the Supreme Being. Angel had stopped looking and had sat down at the library table. He was deep in thought. There was something in the back of his mind that he knew would help, but the couldn't think of it. Buffy came over and sat down beside him. She put her hand on his shoulder to help comfort his pain.

Suddenly, Angel stood up and started talking, "I remember now a way to reverse the spell. Mariah told me long ago in case something should happen to her. Very few know what the spell is. But it might take some time to get everything."

"What do we need to reverse the spell, Angel? I have a few rare herbs that might help. I hope." Giles commented. He had grown attached to Mariah, She was someone he could talk to about his theories and she would always understand. He wanted very much to help her.

"I don't think those will really help. The reverse spell involves getting something from all the other beings. A human's blood, the ashes of a vampire, those will be easy to get. The others are a little hard to find, a chip of a unicorn's horn, a dragon's tooth, a witch's hair, a feather from an angel's wing, the skin of a demon and pixie dust. We can find some of them at mystic shops and the rest at some rather obscure sources." Angel didn't know where all this knowledge of the spell came from, but he was glad it was there.

"Well, I'm a witch, sort of. Do you think that might work? But what do we do once we have all of it?" Willow was glad to help Mariah. She thought Mariah was a wonderful person, or should she say mystic being. Also she hoped that Mariah could help her further her knowledge of magic.

"It should work, if you have done any kind of magical spell. Once we've made the mixture, it has to be tossed on to her to work. Let's get to work. I feel for some reason the great need to hurry. I think something is going to happening." Angel and the rest quickly left the library hoping to find most of the ingredients before the night was over.

* * *

"We won't you go out now and destroy them? You have your powers and you're evil. Why won't you listen to me? I'm your master." Mr. Trick was very upset. He had hoped that by the end of the evening, the Slayers would be destroyed and he could take over Sunnydale tomorrow. However, his mystical being wasn't obeying him.

Mariah looked at him with disbelief. < Why do I always get stuck with the short fuses? I didn't do anything to deserve him. > Mariah was tried of being yelled at by this, . . . , this, . . . , this vampire. "I'm not going out to destroy them, yet. First, I need to restore my powers to full strength, which I'm doing as we speak. Second, I'm going to find out what their fighting skills are, which will be accomplished tomorrow night. And finally, I will destroy them on Christmas Eve. One might say, it's my Christmas gift to them." Her voice sounded tired.

All Trick could do was stare at her. But he realized the logic behind what she was saying. 'Rome wasn't built in a day,' was the quote that came to him as he thought over her plan. < I've finally gotten someone who has brains, working with me. This is a new twist, a smart and evil creature. I'm beginning to like her. >

"I believe that I will follow your advice. Rest and restore your strength. Tomorrow, work on destroying the Slayers." With that, he turned and left the room.

Mariah was alone. She felt tired, far more tired than she had in a long time. < Why does my life always have to be so complicated? I didn't do anything to deserve this. I didn't even ask to be the Supreme Being. Maybe I should just leave town before I do something I'll regret. > That thought was quickly pushed from her mind.

< I really don't have any choice in the matter. He performed the spell, which makes him my master. I'll just destroy the Slayers and move on. He doesn't seem to understand that the spell is a one time deal. > Her mind spoke the truth.

Many had thought that after the destruction of Atlantis, the Supreme Being would go on to destroy the next civilization that got in her way. But she hadn't. This was because the spell only worked for one bout of destruction, well actually it said in the spell 'May only be used to perform one act, be it good or bad. No two acts my be performed.' This meant that only Mr. Trick first command, 'Destroy the Slayers,' was actually going to be performed by the Supreme Being.

Mariah laughed. "He has no idea what he's doing."

* * *

It was dawn. Angel had returned to the mansion and Faith had returned to her lodgings as well. Buffy and the rest returned to the library to review what ingredients had been acquired during the course of the night.

They had the witch's hair they had carefully removed from Willow's head, a pint of human blood they had gotten from the local hospital and the dust of a vampire from several unwilling vampires. Besides the things they had easy access to, they had gotten, the skin of a demon from what they had kept from The Judge and a dragon's tooth, which they got from a magic shop. They also ordered an angel's feather and pixie dust at the magic shop. The lady there had seemed happy to oblige them, even though she didn't like to do single orders. The stuff would arrive by this evening, since it was already morning. The piece of a unicorn's horn was a little harder to get a hold of. Giles had contacted a friend and he would arrive with it in Sunnydale by Christmas Eve.

They were all tired from staying up more than twenty four hours, but they knew they had to get everything before it was to late. Angel had explained to them that the mystic year was almost at a close, even though he didn't know exactly when. The spell had to be reversed before then or the judging wouldn't be fair.

"I'm so glad that none of the stuff was hard to find. Giles, I hope your friend is prompt." Buffy declared, breathlessly. She knew her mother would be worried, but it was more important to protect the world, than to make one's mother happy.

"Yes, Peter is very prompt. He's part of the Watcher research department. He knows how to get a hold of anything you need. He will be here." Giles spoke with great conviction. He knew they needed to be quick, he had explained this all to Peter.

"Well, I know that we could keep on talking for another day, but I'm tired. We're all tired. So let's go home and get some sleep." Xander urged. He wanted to help Mariah, but being tired when she needed help was not the highest thing on his list of things to do. He would go home and sleep for ten hours, then he would help Mariah. Hey, she was working with vampires, she'll strike at night.

Willow decided that it was her turn to be motivational. "Come on, Buffy. Let's get you home before your mother has a conniption or has a chance to call the police." Buffy and Willow gathered their stuff, but called back that they would met Xander and Giles at Angel's, right before sunset.



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