Crown and Key
By Sandra and William Johnson
Chapter Two
“Another house guest?” Dawn Summers thought to herself as she stumbled down the stairs for breakfast the next morning. Fast asleep on the couch in the living room was a young woman about a few years older than her sister, with long dark hair that spilled across the white pillowcase like a black ribbon. Almost unconsciously, Dawn found herself being pulled towards her. She was unnaturally beautiful, with striking features that would have made even Faith jealous; Faith, who until this very moment was easily the most beautiful woman Dawn had ever clapped eyes on. At least, she was when she wasn’t trying to kill her sister. The woman’s high cheekbones and full lips, however, did nothing to hide the fact that under her pillow was a pair of guns. Guns made Dawn nervous; they had ever since Tara had died. A large duffle bag with the initials L.C. embroidered on it lay at the foot of the couch with a pair of worn hiking boots next to it. But Dawn could not tear her eyes away from the guns. She shivered as she took in how the woman was sleeping. She lay on her back with her face to the ceiling on an angle; in exactly the same position Buffy had found their mother laying dead on that same couch.
“Don’t think about that; don’t think about Mom.” Dawn scolded herself. This woman looked nothing like her mother, and yet, something about her felt very much like home to Dawn. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but it was there. There was a familiarity that Dawn couldn’t resist. As if in a dream, Dawn reached her right hand out towards the blanket that covered the woman’s shoulders and began to pull it back.
“Dawnny, come in here for a second.” Buffy’s voice staged whispered from the kitchen. Snapping instantly back to reality, Dawn ran her fingers through her waist-length, poker straight brown hair. She tiptoed through the foyer, being extra careful not to make too much noise and wake the sleeping stranger. Dawn entered the kitchen and was surprised to find not only Buffy there, but also Giles and Willow Rosenberg.
Come to think of it, Dawn wasn’t all that surprised. The gathering of these three people at this early an hour of the morning could only mean one thing; Apocalypse. Plastering a smile on her face, Dawn reached for the carton of milk in front of Willow.
“So, is it time to save the world again?” Dawn asked cheerily as she poured the milk into a glass. “I’ve been training really hard, haven’t I Buffy? Maybe this time I could help you out by doing more than just hitting the books.”
Her sister’s smile could have melted an iceberg. “Don’t worry, Dawn. It’s not the end of the world…yet.” Buffy joked as she affectionately ruffled her little sister’s hair.
“Oh, it’s just I saw the lady asleep on the couch, and then with Willow and Giles both being here so early on a Saturday I just assumed things were getting all bad and dreary again.” Dawn paused. “So. Who is she?” she asked.
“A friend of Giles.” Willow said as she got up from the table, carrying with her a thick book. “Her name’s Lara Croft, and she’s an adventurer; kind of. She found this really neat crown that she thinks might be magic, but she doesn’t know anything about working magic. So…”
“That’s great and all, but it doesn’t explain why she’s sleeping on the couch.” Or why I feel so close to her. Dawn took her glass of milk to the table and sat down, Buffy in toe.
“She got attacked by some vamps last night…” Buffy began.
“Really?” Dawn asked. “What did she do?”
“Well, I believe she, uh, shot them. With her guns.” Giles answered, pushing his glasses up onto the bridge of his nose. “Lara never was one to listen when someone reasoned with her.”
“It’s okay, though. I mean, not everyone is from Sunnydale. We can’t expect her to know that bullets don’t make a vampire go, well, all poofy like.” Willow said as she continued leafing though the book. Dawn could see now that the cover was written in a language she had never seen before, but the pictures seemed to be of artifacts. The only writing she recognized seemed to be the author’s name, written on the spine of the book, one G. Gygax.
“Anyway, when I found out she was looking for Giles, and didn’t have a place to stay, I offered to let her sleep here. Everyone always ends up here sooner or later, so I figured that we should be in on this one from the beginning, should things start to look like they’re heading into familiar territory.” Buffy finished.
“So how can I help?” Dawn asked as she slurped up the last of her milk and headed for the sink with her empty glass. Buffy smiled at her sisters enthusiasm, so unlike her own at times.
“There’s really not too much to do now, sweetie. But you could keep Willow company while she’s going through that tome.” Buffy paused “Oh! And you can look things up on the Net if needed.”
Seeing the look of utter boredom on Dawn’s face, Giles came to her rescue. “I believe Lara will need someone to show her around town, without getting into the rather unsavory areas.” He stated. “I’d do it myself, but Anya and I rather have our hands full with the Magic Box in shambles-“
“Sorry Giles.” Willow whispered, tears forming in her eyes. Buffy placed a comforting hand on her arm. “It’s okay Will.” She began in a soothing tone. “Nobody expects you to be fine. Everybody deals with grief in their own way.”
“Yeah, but most people don’t try to destroy the world because they’re hurting. They don’t dismantle their friends business…” her voice trailed off. Willow looked down at her hands, the tears spilling over. “Giles, can you ever forgive me?”
The tall, stuffy Englishman rose from the table, crossed the kitchen, and enveloped Willow in a tight hug. “There’s nothing to forgive, Willow.” He began. “Well, there is, but actually you did me a great service. I was getting bored with being a shopkeeper anyway. What you need to do is forgive yourself.”
“Everyone knows you’re hurting, Willow. I miss her too.” Dawn said as she pushed a lock of Willow’s red hair behind her ear. “But it’ll get easier.” She placed one of her hands on top of both of Willow’s, which were clenched so tightly together her knuckles were white. “Sometimes I miss Mom so much I think it will never go away. Sometimes, I even forget she’s gone. Like, when I do really well on a test at school, I still think ‘Wow, Mom’ll be so proud of me’. Then I remember she’s gone, and it all comes back. That’s when it’s the toughest. But the rest of the time, I think about what she would want me to do. I know she wants me to be happy and do all those things that I miss her the most during. But that’s what makes them worth doing in the first place.”
Willow looked up from the counter, summoning all her inner strength as she did so. She looked from Dawn to Giles to Buffy, and knew that it would take time but eventually she would be okay. She would never stop missing Tara, but things would get easier. She swiped at her eyes and smiled.
“The kid’s smarter than she looks.” Willow joked, giving Dawn an affectionate wink before continuing. “I am lucky to have all of you in my life. Thank you.”
The girls hugged Willow from both sides as the kitchen door flew open. Xander Harris bounded in, carrying two large bakery boxes.
“Have no fear, Doughnut Guy is here!” He announced as he gently set the boxes on the tabletop. “I got two dozen fresh from the oven, and I managed to hit everybody’s favorites.” He paused for dramatic effect. “And yes, there are even a couple of bear claws for the stuffy Englishman who doesn’t like sprinkles.”
“We should probably see if our guest is awake before diving in.” Buffy excused herself as she went into the living room to wake Lara. Xander turned to Dawn and waggled his eyebrows suggestively.
“Guest?” He asked. “Would this guest be of the female persuasion?”
“She’s a friend of Giles’.” Dawn said as she opened one of the boxes and inhaled the sugary aroma.
“Oh, well, then she’s probably old and boring and not interested in having fun of any kind; including doughnuts. Guess that means there’s more for…uh, uh, uh…” Xander’s voice trailed off when he turned around to face the entrance to the foyer, a jelly doughnut halfway to his mouth. A monumental event occurred that morning. When he caught his first glimpse of Lara Croft, Xander Harris was struck speechless. He stared at the attractive brunette with the hip hugging shorts and tight shirt who had the sweetest smile he had ever seen on someone who just woke up.
“Good morning.” Lara began as she strode into the kitchen. “I trust you all slept well.”
Buffy pushed her way past the still gaping Xander and led Lara to one of the vacant chairs at the table. “Sorry about having to put you on the couch, but we’re a little short on room at the moment. “
“It’s perfectly all right. I slept like a baby.” Lara smiled as she looked at the two boxes of doughnuts on the table. “Are there any jelly ones left, or should I serve up your shirt?” She directed this question to Xander, who, while he stood gaping at her didn’t even notice the blob of jelly that had leaked from his doughnut and landed square in the middle of his white shirt.
“N-no, I think there are a few more.” He said, blushing to the roots of his hair.
“Lara, this is Xander Harris, Willow Rosenberg, and my kid sister Dawn.” Buffy said as she pointed to each one in turn. “Guys, this is Lady Lara Croft.”
“Lady?!” Willow, Xander and Dawn exclaimed in unison.
“I prefer to be called Lara, if that’s all right.” She remarked rather dryly as she helped herself to the remaining jelly doughnut.
“So, what brings you here from merry old England?” Xander asked, having recovered the power of normal speech. “And how long do you plan on staying?”
Lara smiled as she launched into her tail of the map, the crown, and the vampire fight, omitting only her encounter with the man named Spike, per Giles request. As she spoke, Xander’s opinion of the woman only increased.
Giles held his hand out to Lara, “Would you mind if I looked over that letter from your father, and the map he sent you? I may find some things even MI-6 missed”
Lara nodded and pulled the note and map from the back pocket of her tan shorts and handed them to Giles.
“So, what do we know about this Morganna?” Dawn asked.
“According to the research I’ve done, she was an aspect of a Hell God, though I’m not sure which one, and may be the Morganna of the Arthur Legends. She terrorized most of Europe for almost a century, and was only defeated after a, how did that one book put it? ‘After a group of brave heroes from across all of Europe and chosen by God had been assembled to defeat the vile Morganna.‘ Apparently when she was vanquished, her soul was imprisoned in a large stone known as The Ruby of Eternity. The rest of her was imprisoned in what the books call ‘a prison where no man can harm her, nor she harm man’ whatever that means.” Lara finished with a sigh.
“And you said you saw her when you removed the crown from its resting place?” Giles asked with interest. Lara nodded. “One of her many powers were the ability to shoot ice through her eyes.”
“Sounds like a big bad is a brewing.” Willow said as she put away the milk from the table. “Where do we start? Research?”
“Research.” Giles confirmed. He looked from Dawn to Xander. “I have, uh, pressing business to attend to. Who wants to help?”
***
Somewhere far away, in another galaxy even, the sun was not shining on a little planet called Eternia. A tall, attractive woman of twenty-two, with long blond hair and deep set blue eyes, stared silently out her bedroom window. She wore a red collared leotard over a long-sleeved white blouse. Her legs were bare, except for her knee high red boots; as per the women’s fashions of this world. An ancient silver sword sat on her lap as she dangled her feet out the window. She absentmindedly fingered the gaping hole where a large stone was once inset in the center of the sword’s blade. She felt at home here, she really did, even though she grew up on another world. If only she hadn’t returned to Eternia for her twenty second birthday. If only she hadn’t been so careless in that last fight with the Horde, she may not have damaged the sword. It was more precious to her than anything; the sword was her entire identity.
“Hey, sis, don’t jump. It can’t be all that bad.” A male tenor voice said from behind her. Turning back to the room, the woman came face to face with her blond haired, blue eyed and extremely well built twin brother.
“Oh Adam.” She said with a smile. “Things never look as bad when you’re around.”
Adam’s eyes crinkled up at the corners when he smiled. “You’re not still worried about not being able to---“
“Man At Arms said he was going to see The Sorceress this afternoon and that he’d contact me if she was able to figure anything out.” She paused. “Adam, I don’t know what I could have done to make that gem come out of the sword.”
“Adora, you didn’t do anything!” Adam exclaimed. “You said it yourself; you went to bed with the sword at your side, and when you woke up the stone was gone.” He pushed his sister’s hair out of her face. “If it was there the last time you used it, you didn’t do anything to it.”
“You’re right.” Adora said, squaring her shoulders. “There’s no use crying over it. It will all work out. I just wish Man At Arms would contact me.”
Adam blushed. “Uh, that’s kind of why I’m here.”
Adora blinked. “Huh?”
“The Sorceress contacted me last night about an urgent matter. She wants to see both of us right away at Castle Greyskull.”
Adora leapt to her feet and slid the sword into the scabbard she wore across her back. “Well what are we waiting for? Let’s get going!”
The journey to Castle Greyskull only took a few minutes by hover-cycle. Once outside the bluish walls of the ancient Castle, Adam and Adora moved to the entrance.
“Sorceress!” Adam shouted, “We’ve come as you asked”
As Adam spoke, the drawbridge inside the mouth of the skull shaped entrance opened, and the two entered inside. With a clang, the drawbridge drew up behind them.
“Adam! Adora! It’s a good thing you got here so quickly” Adam’s longtime friend, Man at Arms, said as the two entered. “The Sorceress has traced the gem down”
Adora’s face lit up at that, “She found it? Great! Where do we have to go?” eagerness filled the young woman’s face
“She asked me to meet you and lead you both to the viewing chamber. She would have come herself but she’s busy keeping the viewing portal open.”
“Let’s go then” Adora almost shoved the two men over in her eagerness to find out where the gemstone was.
Man At Arms led the two young people down the corridor, and through a closed oaken door. Inside, shadows leaped on the walls from the light given off by the viewing portal, a shimmering pool of water in the center of the chamber. A woman sat before the shimmering scrying pool, her legs crossed. Her head was covered in an eagle like helmet which led to the feathered cloak that cascaded down her back, barely concealing the very feminine body covered only by a white and blue leotard, similar to Adora’s red and white one. Inside the glowing pool of water, two women fought valiantly against several large looking men. One, a brunette with a braided ponytail flowing down her back, pulled two weapons that resembled the blasters Adam and Adora were familiar with. The weapon cracked several times as she fired at one of the approaching men. The other woman, a blonde, carried only two pointed sticks, Adam stared at the blonde for a moment, his eyes fixated on her as she tossed one of the sticks to the brunette, “My god, she’s beautiful,” he whispered. His sister elbowed him in the side to keep him quiet.
At the sound of his voice, the woman in the eagle helmet looked up and the vision faded, leaving the room in a dim light, “Ah, Adam, Adora, you made it.” The Sorceress said. “I have traced The Stone of Earthly Magic to its destination. Ironically, it has found its way to your mother’s home world.”
“You mean it’s on Earth?” Adora asked, “Then, we can’t reach it. There are no portals to Earth.”
“Yes, it is back on Earth. However, Adora, there is one portal, that has not opened for centuries. One for which I do not have the key.”
“Then how does that help us?” Adam asked skeptically.
“The key to opening the portal already resides on Earth. In fact, the Key itself is in the same location as the Stone. We have but to wait for the Stone and The Key to come into contact with each other.”
“But, that could take for ever.” Adora asked
“Have faith child, I am preparing to make contact with the one who will bring the Key and the Stone together.” As The Sorceress spoke, the scrying pool again filled with the image of the blonde, this time, sleeping soundly with her head resting on her arm at what appeared to be a kitchen table. The image pulled back to show the woman inside the room of a house much like the one Adam’s mother described to him many times in the past. As the image continued to pull back, the twins could see a young woman, maybe 16 or 17 years of age lounging in the room and quietly observing the others. The room also contained the brunette from the previous image as well as a lanky young man with dark hair and a perky red head sitting behind a strange gray box, and apparently speaking to someone inside the box. As Adora stared at the image, she realized the box must be some form of primitive computer or communications device.
“Soon, children. Soon the Key and the Stone will meet, and then the portal will open and you must both go through to Earth to retrieve the Stone and to locate something else of great importance. The Ruby of Eternia has also found its way to Earth, and if it should fall into the wrong hands, there will be dire consequences for people everywhere. Observe the people within the pool, both of you, for they can aid you in your endeavors.”
The twins focused their attention on the pool as the blond cried out in her sleep; at exactly the same instant The Sorceress fell to her knees; her one hand to her forehead as if she were trying to see the premonition she was receiving more clearly.
“Sorceress!” cried Man At Arms as he scooped her up in his embrace. She trembled as she watched the image play through her mind. In the scrying pool, the blond girl trembled too.
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