As is the normal, all characters and places by Joss Whedon are his sole property and i own none of it. The song Die With Me By Type O Negative belongs to them and their affiliates only. I do own Tallulah, and her companions. Please any and all feedback would be greatly appreciated!! Thank you and enjoy.
***
Shadows lay deep, sparked here and there, by the pinpricks of civilized light, which are at contrast with the wild stars above. The night is hushed as the watcher gazes down on this small picturesque town above the Hellmouth. Down there are the ones she seeks, the ones who are fighting the darkness with passion in their heart. Down there is the chosen Slayer and her Watcher.
They, the Slayer and her watcher, are different from those from before. They are not alone in their battle against the vampires, demons and forces of evil, they have a band of friends who help them. Four of them are human, a boy, two girls and a woman, who is a witch but not a witch. The last one is inhuman, one of the undead, a vampire with a soul. That in and of itself is something one does not see everyday, the night watcher well knows. A vampire with a soul is a strange bird, especially, when he is attracted to the one who is sworn to rid the world of vampires.
Looking down the night watcher smiles, as she contemplates the days ahead. Glancing at her companions she strokes their heads and murmurs softly to them, "Time to go make some memories, my friends. Way past time."
* * *
The Bronze. The one place in town where it’s OK for young people to hang out. To listen to bands and relax. As usual, it’s smoky and rich with the noises of people having a peaceful evening listening to various bands. The dance floor moves like a wind blown grain field, as couples dance slowly to the sounds of a romantic song. In a dark corner, a young girl is in the arms of someone much older than she. Her fair hair is spread out over the black velvet shoulder of her companion, his head near hers as he talks into her ear. Near them a boy and a girl sit comparing notes on the snobbish Cordelia. Looking over the fair haired girl throws in a rude comment about the brain capacity of said Cordelia and the little band of merrymakers laugh and smile.
As the last dance ends, the stage darkens as a gauzy curtain falls across the front. A hush falls over the Bronze as the crowd waits for the next offering to be made at their sacrificial alter. The sounds of a changing of the bands is heard and then silence.
Silence and darkness.
Out of that silence comes a soft tinkling of ivory piano keys being touched gently. Slowly in the darkness, a tune is built with just that one instrument singing it’s soul. The tune is quiet, soothing, reminiscent of a brook babbling over well placed stones.
The fair haired girl, who’s name is Buffy, feels the man next to her stiffen as the piano music changes. The music becomes less whimsical, and more dark and brooding by the second. Looking up at her companion she whispers, "Angel?"
The man looks down at her, his face a mask of agony, his eyes so full of pain that he looks like a stranger.
"Angel what is it?" she whispers again, touching him gently on the arm. "Please, what is the matter?"
He rudely shakes off her arm, and tries to insist that it is nothing. But as the music plays on Buffy sees that he is getting more and more disturbed. Then the thin layer of gauze the only barrier between the crowd and the band is raised. Seated at a baby grand piano is a young woman. It is her hands that touch the keys, evoking emotions that are at once raw, throbbing agony to hear and yet oddly gentle, soothing to the soul.
Buffy hears her friend Xander inhale sharply as the young woman is revealed, and with good reason. She is in a word, beautiful. Her flawless pale skin offsets her dark eyes and ruby red mouth. About her shoulders tumbles a wild mass of hair, it’s blackness haloed in a burgundy sheen. Her outfit is simple, a long hunter green velvet dress, draped about her and spills out onto the floor. At her feet sprawls a large silver ruffed wolf who’s green eyes are fastened on Angel. On top of the piano, a black cat lays elegantly, it’s green eyes are also fastened on Angel. The intensity of their gazes cause Buffy to shiver, it’s as if these creatures know who and what Angel is.
As Buffy notices all of this, the music reaches it’s soul wrenching climax and then there is silence. Wrenching her gaze from the stage Buffy looks up at Angel and says to him quietly, "who is she Angel? At least tell me that."
Angel looks down slowly at her and in a pain edged whisper replies, "She is the one who gave me back my soul at the command of the Romany. She is the one who brought me again into this world as close to a human as a vampire can be. She is called Tallulah, the memory maker. She is more to me than you can even guess."
As the last words leave his mouth, he turns his back on Buffy, on the once again tinkling music and flees the Bronze. He never sees the shock registering on Buffy’s face, never sees the woman at the piano smile sadly as she watches him leave.
* * *
"Hey Buff, what was that all about? Did Angel get a little frisky with you?" a slightly mocking voice breaks into Buffy’s shock. Shaking her head slightly she looks over to see her friends Xander and Willow watching her.
Xander is leaning into Willow, an arm thrown casually around her shoulders, a smile on his face, eyes guiless. Beside him with her arm around his waist and trying to not fall over, Willow stops smiling. She has noticed that Buffy is genuinely disturbed, and her eyes darken with concern. "Buffy what is it?" she asks.
Still shaking her head Buffy, replies softly in a hurt edged voice to Xander’s previous question, "No he wasn’t getting frisky. He ... he said that the girl on the stage was someone out of his past. That she was the one who made him human."
Xander’s eyes widened as he grasped the meaning in Buffy’s words. "That.. that would make her a ... a ... help me out Will, what the word I am looking for?" he asked desperately.
Speaking at the same time Willow exclaimed, "But that would make her a witch! And she’d be at least a hundred years old by now!"
Raising his eyes to the ceiling Xander breathed a sigh of relief, "Thank you Willow, that was the word I needed." He gave her a quick hug to tell her no harm should be taken by his sarcastic words.
"Yeah, really, that’s what she’d be and that’s how old she’d have to be. But unless my Slayer senses are bugging out on me now, they are also telling me that she is also a vampire. A very powerful vampire." Buffy replied, her tone dry.
"A Vamp? Man, why are all the beautiful girls of the supernatural kind?" Xander exclaimed.
Behind them, the object of their scrutiny gets up from the piano, steps gracefully over the wolf and goes up to the microphone.
"Good Evening everyone. My name is Tallulah and I want to thank you for having us here." her voice was rich, sophisticated the slightest accent burring through her words. Behind her other members of the band came out onto the stage, carrying the various implements of their instruments.
"We have a few songs of our own, although we are still at the stage where covers of other band’s songs are a major part of our repertoire. We hope you do not mind. For our first song we would like to do is a song by Type O Negative, called "Die With Me."
Behind her a tall man with a guitar starts to strum at the stings, opening his mouth at the appropriate place he begins to sing,
"Now like a bird She flew away
To Chase her dreams
Of books and praise
Still I miss her
Yeah I miss her
Since she’s gone..."
Over the music, Buffy turned to her friends and said "Let’s go see Giles. He might have a clue as to what is going on," she considered what she had just said very carefully, "Then again maybe not.. but I need to get out of here." Grabbing her purse and leather jacket Buffy started for the door.
Xander looked at Willow and they both shrugged. "To the library it is then... Hey Buff wait up!" They raced after her.
Behind them the band played on, the singer asking plaintively,
"If this time were the last time Could I hold you all life long?
Since this time is the last time
Can I hold you all night long?
Still I miss her
Yeah I miss her
Since she’s gone"
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