Chapter 1
Questions and Answers
“Well, they’re magical in origin,” Giles commented as he peered at the gauntlet of blades growing out of his son’s arm. Blades of every size and shape sprang in a haphazard, almost random fashion. Interlaced between the blades, purple streaks of light shot back and forth along the blades. “This black metal is like none I’ve ever seen,” he gingerly moved to trace one of the purple pathways. Dusk reached over and grabbed him with his hand.
“Bad idea, Dad,” he warned. Getting to his feet, he walked over to one of the walls and with a grunt, swung his bladed appendage into it. There was a crash as a hole no smaller than twice the width of his arm was made. Bits of concrete tumbled to the ground in fist-sized chunks. Dusk looked down at his arm. The black metal blades weren’t even tarnished, they just continued to glint in the light menacingly, crackles of purple energy coursing up and down it. Giles swallowed as Xander’s eyes bulged,
“Whoa,” he whispered, surveying the damage. Willow nodded,
“And how,” she replied. Dusk sighed and dropped back into the chair as Giles adjusted his glasses,
“Now son, you said these blades manifested once before?” he asked cautiously, Dusk nodded.
“During the Khulghaani attack,” he threw Willow a look, “When one of the vampires made it past our defenses in the altar room. I administered a pretty savage beating. These things just…popped out during the attack.”
“Were they exactly like this?” Giles asked. Dusk shook his head, gesturing with his free hand to the blades,
“No, they only started from here,” he pointed to a spot on the middle of his arm. “Now they’re all the way up to the elbow,” he traced the path of the blades with a finger. Sure enough, the last of the weapons terminated just below his elbow. Giles frowned,
“Does it hurt?” he asked.
“No, not really. Feels like pins and needles, and my arm doesn’t feel any heavier. I can’t use my hand of course,” he gestured to the four sharp knives each almost a foot in length one above, below and on each side at the end of his arm, surrounded by a ring of grasping, mechanized barbed hooks that twisted and clicked menacingly. Giles nodded,
“I see,” Giles frowned, “How did you feel, Alec, the first time?”
“Scared,” Dusk replied instantly, “Terrified actually, I thought that Dawn and Willow were going to die,”
“And just now, when the blades reappeared?” Giles asked.
“I was having a nightmare about the Deadlands,” Dusk replied. Giles nodded,
“Well it seems to react to stress, like a natural defense system,” Faith pointed
“THAT is not a natural defense system, that is a sixteen piece culinary set of kick-ass dimensions,” she grinned wryly. “He’s gone full-tilt Hellspawn,” she chuckled. Giles turned to her, puzzled.
“ ‘Hellspawn?” he asked. Faith nodded,
“Yeah, see, there’s this comic book called Spawn, and in it this guy has like hooks and chains that come out of his body, and a big red cape that can do like, anything. And when he’s freaking out all these wicked weapons come popping out of his skin,” she gestured to the blades coming out of Dusk’s arm, “D here did a trick at City Hall, he fell out of a window and the boy’s threads became like a huge parachute. It reminded me of the comic,” Xander turned to her,
“Really? Cause with all those purple little pathway thingies I was thinking ‘Tron”, he replied. Giles shook his head,
“Pop culture aside, we need to figure out what exactly these are,” he gestured to the blades. Dusk frowned,
“Wait a minute,” he chimed in, “During the fight with the Khulghaani, after I killed the vampire, these things went away,” he gestured to the blades, “I’ve been awake for a while now and they’re sill here,” he looked up at his father, who was regarding him thoughtfully.
“Alec, how do you feel, right now?” he asked carefully. Dusk considered,
“Freaked,” he replied evenly. Giles nodded,
“That would be it then, I believe these blades are reacting to your fear. They believe that you are in danger and thus have not yet…uh…” he struggled for the most polite term, “…retracted,” he finished carefully.
“Yeah, but Dusk and Buffy have been doing the ‘seek and destroy’ bit for months and Dusk’s never come back looking like The Shredder,” Xander chimed in. Giles frowned and turned back to Dusk,
“Dusk, has there ever been a time where you felt that your life was ever seriously in jeopardy?” he asked. Dusk shrugged as the glowing lines dimmed slightly,
“Sure. All the time. Vampire hunting isn’t exactly safe,” Giles snapped his fingers.
“There it is! Dusk, you’ve been fighting vampires with Buffy for months, but never once did you actually fear for your life anymore than the natural concern about fighting vampires,” he smiled slightly, “I suppose once you understand and accept the risks and are constantly exposed to them, they cease to become frightening. It becomes familiar.” Dusk nodded,
“That would make sense,” he replied thoughtfully, bringing his bladed arm up to his chin automatically in a gesture of thought.
“Alec!” Willow yelled out in warning. Dusk focused and jerked the bladed arm back, which had been only an inch or so from his face, before sighing and setting it down, placing his other hand under his chin instead.
“Hey D, what about when the blob came ripping through Buffy’s kitchen?” Faith asked. “Did you go all ‘Edward Scissorhands’ then?” Dusk shook his head,
“No, not at all,” he frowned, then his eyes widened, “But my jacket did react, it burst into a shield when the thing spat at me,” he sent his father a sheepish look, “Or at least it tried to,” he amended. Giles nodded,
“It would appear your powers are becoming more of a reflex then actual conscious thought as time goes on,” he frowned, “Has anything extraordinary happened to you in the last few hours that could explain this latest manifestation. He gestured to the blades.
“The Everstone!” Willow cried out, “When Alec lashed at the fire with his shadow whip, there was this weird purple light that shot out of the fire and zapped him,” she smiled slightly. “His hair was sticking up all the way back,” Dusk would have smirked if he weren’t still so completely wigged.
“What does this mean, Dad?” he asked worriedly. Giles sighed and shook his head,
“I don’t know son, I suppose I’ll have to-”
“Hey, what’s going on?” a sleepy voice called out. They turned to see Dawn entering rubbing sleep from her eyes. She noted Dusk’s condition with a start of surprise before her face broke into a huge grin, “Whoa! Cool! He’s doing it again!” she grinned wryly at him, “Are you going to go turn someone into chop suey?” she asked gleefully, Dusk couldn’t help but grin as he lifted the metallic arm up.
“Actually I was just getting ready to make coleslaw,” he cracked, gesturing to the multitude of wicked looking blades jutting out from his arm. There was a chuckle from the group as Dusk and Dawn shared a grin…and without any warning, the purple-lit pathways dimmed throughout the gauntlet and fell dark, there was a loud SNAP! Dusk’s arm convulsed violently as the blades folded into themselves and dived back under his skin. In seconds, he’d regained his right arm. The only sign of the blades that had just been there were some residual crackles of purple energy. Everyone gaped.
“And the fear was gone,” Xander commented. “Never doubt the power of a bad one-liner,” he quipped. Dusk just nodded numbly as he ran his left hand over his arm. The flesh was cool and completely undamaged, not a single cut or laceration. Even the hairs on his arm were intact. Giles took his glasses off,
“It would seem that way,” he acceded. “Whatever is residing in Alec seems to have strong reactions to fear and rage, and when those emotions are no longer present, becomes dormant again,” he gestured at Dusk’s arm. “And apparently, it’s also very gracious with its gifts. That much sharp metal protruding from his arm; the bone, muscle tissue and flesh, should be mangled beyond repair, but it’s clearly not,” he sighed and shook his head in puzzlement. “I don’t understand it,” he turned to Anya, who was sitting next to Xander,
“Do Keeper demons usually come equipped with…weaponry?” he asked. Anya snorted,
“You try getting one of those genocidal aristocrats to agree to an interview,” she waved a hand dismissively, “As far as I know though, the only thing Keeper demons have access over are the powers of night and darkness, sprouting overgrown can openers from random points in their bodies is a little out of their range of talents,” she finished dryly, Xander snorted,
“And the prize for ‘Most delicately phrased piece of information’ goes to…” he imitated a drum-roll, “Anya!” Let’s give her a big hand, everyone,” Anya glared at him and harrumphed. Giles shook himself,
“Yes, well, be that as it may, I think we should continue to examine Dusk until we can ascertain the cause for his…metamorphosis,” he finished dryly. Dusk got up, shaking his right arm, which was still feeling like pins and needles.
“I’ll ask DeGanon if he has any magic that would help,” he replied quietly. His stomach suddenly gurgled loudly. He blushed as everyone chuckled,
“And perhaps some food,” he added with a small smile. Willow wrapped an arm around him,
“You sure you’re okay?” she asked worriedly. Dusk smiled,
“Yeah, but I think until I get this under control, it’s going to be separate beds for a while. I don’t want to accidentally turn you into shish kebab the next time I have a scary dream,” he tried to quip lightly, perhaps thinking just how close something like that had come to happening. Willow’s face fell,
“We need serious Obi-Wan action. To the Grigori estate at once!” she decreed frantically. Giles nodded as everyone else exchanged wry looks at the witch’s vehemence,
“I’ll call ahead to see if Marlena would be willing to bend the rules long enough for him to be examined by her. We need to drop off Buffy and Angel there as well, so it shouldn’t be a problem.
“What shouldn’t be a problem?” Spike asked, yawning coming into the room. Giles turned to him removing his glasses to peer at him,
“Is Buffy…?” Spike nodded,
“Resting like a babe in mother’s arms, yeah,” he took in the crowd, “What’s going on?” he asked. Giles replaced his glasses on his face,
“We’re currently discussing Buffy and Angel being brought to the Grigori estate to recover from their wounds,” Giles sighed, expecting an argument from the possessive vampire. Spike just nodded his head,
“It’s a good idea. The whole lot of them went through Hell and back down there, they could both use a little ‘R and R” he commented thoughtfully.
“Behold Spike, the rational vampire,” Xander commented, “I wonder what’s happened to the real one?” Spike casually dug out a cigarette ignoring Xander as Giles continued,
“Yes, well, Spike, you do realize that if Buffy and Angel do agree to this, that you’ll probably have to leave them behind?” Giles asked cautiously. Spike just nodded as he finished lighting his cigarette, snapping the lighter shut.
“Well,” he started, taking a drag off the cigarette and exhaling thoughtfully, “It seems to me, that Buffy and Peaches over there have put in their time. If a few days of kicking back and drinking Sangria in the shade will get them back into fighting trim, more power to them I say,” he commented thoughtfully.
“Okay, seriously now: who are you and what have you done with Spike?” Xander asked. Spike snorted and took another drag of the cigarette. Giles shook himself out of the surprise he felt at how rational Spike was being,
“Besides, if Angel does anything untoward, I’ll drive a spike through his forehead, crack open his skull and eat his brain like sorbet,” Spike finished calmly. Xander sighed in relief,
“Now there’s the homicidal maniac we’ve all come to love and adore,” he quipped.
“Speak for yourself,” Dawn muttered quietly. Giles cleared his throat,
“Well, then it’s settled,” he turned to Xander, “Take the others to the surface and get the camper ready, we’ll meet you there,” Xander nodded and hopped off the table he’d been sitting at,
“Aye, Aye, Captain Giles,” he saluted jauntily and gestured, “All that’s coming for the surface and all points past, let’s go!” The others filed out of the room, Willow stopped to give Dusk a kiss on the cheek,
“I think you make a cute can opener,” she commented demurely. Dusk chuckled and patted her on the rump,
“Thanks, lover. Go on, I’ll see you all in a bit,” she smiled cheekily up at him and left. Faith slapped him on the shoulder,
“Think you can teach me that blade trick, D? It would mean I could retire my wooden stake,” she lashed out with a backhand in the air, “Whap! Decapitated vampire!” she grinned and Dusk rolled his eyes,
“Scram!” he yelled. She laughed and headed away. Dawn reached out to place a hand his arm,
“You sure you’re okay?” she asked, concern permeating her features. Dusk winked reassuringly,
“As long as I don’t suffer from internal rusting, I’ll be good to go,” he commented wryly. Dawn smiled and gave his hand a long squeeze before following the others out. Leaving Dusk, Spike and Giles in the room. Dusk sighed and clapped his hands together,
“Okay gents, let’s get cracking,” he gestured to the back room “We’ve got an injured slayer and a weakened vampire, both of whom are far too stubborn to accept any help,” he grinned at the two, “So, who gets to deal with Buffy?”
“He does!” Giles and Spike cried out in unison, gesturing to each other. Giles turned to Spike,
“You’re dating her!”
“Bollocks! You’re her bloody watcher!” Spike retorted. Dusk sighed,
“Guys, I’m sure there’s a way we can work this out so you're both happy,” he said placating.
They slowly turned their heads to face him, Spike smiling wickedly.
“This really isn’t what I had in mind,” Dusk grumbled as he hoisted the injured Buffy carefully with a darkness tendril into the camper. The proud slayer had surprisingly put up little resistance to the concept of being helped. ‘Lack of sleep’ had been her only explanation. Spike snorted,
“Yeah well, your old man is helping the great poof into the camper and I need to check the sunproofing. That leaves you to deal with ‘Little Miss Sunshine,” he snorted. Buffy looked up from the cot that she was resting in, which was carefully being placed into the camper by Dusk.
“Come on guys, I’m not that bad,” she frowned at them then pouted, “Am I?” she asked meekly.
“Heh!” Spike and Dusk scoffed in unison as they finished getting her settled in. Xander closed the door behind them.
“Okay, kids, strap in and relax, cause we are outta here!” Amidst much celebratory cheers, the camper slowly pulled out of the park and lumbered onto the street. Spirits were high as radios were turned up loud, windows were rolled down and a general feeling of victory permeated the group as the camper sped down the highway. Giles turned to Dusk,
“What did DeGanon say about our departure?” he asked. Dusk shrugged,
“He said ‘Have a nice trip’ and ‘Thanks for saving my life,” he replied smirking. “He also gave us these,” Dusk dug into his pockets pulling up several twists of cloth. Giles frowned at them,
“What are they?” he asked, taking one of the colorful pieces of cloth in his hands. Xander spoke up,
“They’re called prikasa, they’re supposed to represent bad luck. We’re supposed to keep them until we lose them, sell them or someone offers to take them off our hands,” Xander turned to regard them, keeping one eye on the road, “That way, the kumpania manages to get rid of their bad luck,” he reached forward and took one of the twists of cloth, “and we get gypsy friendship bracelets,” he finished, tying one around his wrist with his teeth, keeping one hand on the wheel. Dusk looked at him wryly,
“Terrific, cursed gypsy friendship bracelets,” he sighed dryly. Tossing the others on the dashboard, he turned and headed back, gently easing past Anya, who was heading in the opposite direction to be with Xander up front. Spike was sitting with Buffy talking. Faith was tending to Angel, who looked better, but still resembled ‘Dead man walking’. Dusk smirked at his pun and sat next to Willow who was chatting with Dawn. She smiled as he sat down next to her,
“Hey you,” she smiled kissing his cheek. He smiled and turned to the pair,
“What are you girls up to?” he asked wryly.
“We’re plotting your untimely demise,” Dawn told him matter-of-factly. Dusk nodded,
“Oh, okay then,” he nodded his head sagely. Willow and Dawn burst into giggles,
“We’re playing ‘Truth or Dare,” Willow confided to him. Dusk lowered his face to eye her wryly through his bangs, “PG-13 version,” she added hastily. Dusk chuckled and nodded.
“Okay, so what’s the topic?” he asked bringing his hands together.
“We’re trying to figure out whose the cutest guy on the trip,” Willow told him. Dusk snorted wryly,
“Yeah, and you’re COMPLETELY objective,” Dusk put in sardonically. Willow and Dawn both grinned, looking for all the world, like two conspiring girlfriends ganging up on the guy.
“Well, trying to be,” Willow told him. Dusk smirked,
“So who’s in the running?” he asked. Dawn raised a Minnie Mouse notepad and consulted it.
“Well, first there’s Xander, who has the sense of humor angle working for him,” Dawn read off. Dusk nodded,
“Sense of humor’s important,” he agreed.
“Then there’s Giles, who has the accent going on and the ‘older man’ appeal,” Willow told him. Dusk scoffed,
“Terrific, I’ll be sure to mention this to my father,” Dawn and Willow gave him grave looks,
“Nothing said in the circle can be uttered to the outside world,” Willow warned him direly.
“Punishable by death,” Dawn added threateningly. Dusk pretended to be intimidated,
“Oh, of…of course, forgive me please. Your secrets die with me,” he assured them hastily. Smiling, knowing that they were being humored, the pair turned back to the list,
“Spike has got that whole ‘bad boy, Billy Idol’ look going for him,” Willow continued, “Both Dawn and I were raised on eighties MTV so that’s a big point in his favor. Also he’s got the accent working for him too,” Willow turned to Dawn who nodded.
“You two have WAY too much free time on your hands,” Dusk observed dryly. They ignored him and went back to the list,
“Angel’s got a serious ‘Brooding James Dean’ vibe working for him, great taste in clothes” Dawn commented, “Also he carries an air of ‘doomed hero guy’ about him. Definitely a babe magnet,” she grinned.
“Ah, you like martyrs, huh?” Dusk cracked. Dawn favored him with a wry scowl.
“A tortured soul is the sign of an artist,” she replied haughtily, “And a good artist…”
“…Is an attentive lover,” Willow finished expertly. Dusk put a hand over his face trying hard not to burst into laughter.
“There’s Dracula, too,” Willow chimed in, “Though I only saw him once, but he’s so ‘creature of the night’ mysterious,” she turned to Dawn and they both were blushing furiously, “And he’s got that voice,” she shivered dramatically, “Goosebumps,” Willow finished grinning.
“I sense the vampiric powers of mind control coming into play here,” Dusk replied sarcastically.
“There’s DeGanon,” Dawn pointed out, “He’s a gypsy and Willow tells me he looks a lot like Dracula. Plus he has the Romanian accent,” she grinned cheekily, “That’s irresistible,” Dusk sighed and cast a look at Buffy,
“Does Buffy know you have a thing for older men?” he asked wryly. Since he was watching Buffy, he completely missed the flash of vulnerability that washed over Dawn’s face.
“She’s…got an idea,” she whispered back. Dusk turned back to the pair,
“Okay, have we covered everybody?” Dusk asked, smirking. The girls shook their heads,
“Not even!” Willow exclaimed indignant, “We haven’t covered your assets yet,” she smiled demurely. Dusk rolled his eyes at her choice of words,
“Terrific, I’m on display,” he sighed, pretending he wasn’t enjoying every minute of this, “Okay,” he got to his feet and spread his arms out flamboyantly, “See anything you like?” he asked, once again facing them. They grinned naughtily.
“Could you um…turn around? Slowly, please,” Willow asked, batting her eyes innocently. Dusk sighed mock exasperated and obliged. And with horror, he suddenly remembered that he had changed out of his normal black jeans into a pair of extraordinarily tight brown leather breeches that DeGanon had given him. He groaned inwardly, they were going to have a field day with this. The two women tried their best to remain serious as they studied him,
“Nice pants,” Dawn commented dryly. Dusk closed his eyes as he could almost see the two girls turning to each other tittering madly.
“Okay, you can turn around now,” Willow bade him. Dusk opened his eyes and slowly turned around. Sure enough, the two girls were biting down on their lower lips in hormonal glee. They began to pick him apart,
“Great taste in clothes,” Dawn commented, “Leather works for him nicely,” Dusk’s eyes nearly bulged out of his head. Where had the shy fourteen-year-old girl who he’d watched Monty Python with last week gone? He turned an accusatory glance at Willow,
“Is this your handiwork, luv?” he asked. Willow shook her head,
“Nope,” she grinned and blew the white lock of hair out of her face, “She seems to be coming into her own here,” Dusk snorted.
“Terrific,” he muttered sardonically.
“Quiet!” Dawn barked out, “We’re studying,” Dusk snorted but fell silent.
“He’s got the double-name thing working for him,” Willow noted. Dawn sighed,
“Yeah, but so does Spike, so that doesn’t work,” Dawn replied forlornly.
“Yes, but remember, Angel has the good taste in clothes too, so we can't exclude things taken by other people or else this will be a very short list,” Willow explained.
“Good,” Dusk replied dryly. They scowled at him then went back to their analysis.
“Okay, good wardrobe and the cool double name, what else?” Dawn asked. Willow pursed her lips, deep in thought,
“Well, there’s the accent, very Pierce Brosnan,” Willow commented. Dawn nodded,
“Nice eyes,” she added. Willow nodded and gestured for Dusk to lean closer to them. He sighed and did so.
“Black with green and purple in them, very nice,” Willow commented.
“One might even say penetrating,” Dawn replied. Willow smiled slightly,
“There is that,” she smirked. Dusk sighed and straightened.
“Ladies, much as I love being likened to a prized breeding animal, can we PLEASE wrap this up?” Dawn sighed,
“I suppose,” she breathed wistfully. Dawn and Willow composed their thoughts.
“He’s got the tall, dark look, but without the angst vibe. That makes him accessible, which is a point in his favor,” Willow commented.
“He can fight, too. Very Brandon Lee in the ‘The Crow,” Dawn put in. Dusk frowned at her.
“When did your mother let you watch that movie?” he asked. Dawn grinned,
“Who said she ‘let’ me?” she replied demurely. He shifted his glance to Willow, gesturing to Dawn,
“And you’re telling me this ISN’T your influence?” he demanded. Willow shook her head,
“Nope, not me,” she replied, grinning prettily. Dusk gave her a skeptical look, before the two girls turned back to the list,
“Okay then, we’ve got the accent, bravery, being an older man,” Willow looked up, “I think we have our winner,” Dusk smirked,
“What an honor,” he replied wryly. The girls shook their heads,
“Nope,” Dawn grinned,
“Sorry, Alec, your dad beat you,” Willow informed him, shrugging, “He was in a band,” she offered as explanation. For a moment, Dusk looked back and forth between the two, gaping.
“You’re dead,” he whispered. Both the girls started to giggle, moving away from him.
“Oh no, you don’t, mister,” Willow forbade him as she and Dawn moved closer together.
“Oh yes I do!” he roared and charged them. They squealed and threw up their hands as Dusk pounced on them, tickling them both savagely. Before long, the three of them were in a heap on the floor, howling with glee. Dusk looked up to see his father staring down at the three of them, vaguely admonishing. Willow was on the bottom, Dusk on top of her and Dawn on top of them both
“Alec, what are you doing?” he asked mildly. Dusk grinned up at his father,
“Truth or dare, dad,” he replied grinning. Willow craned her head up,
“PG-13 version,” she added, grinning,
“Ah,” Giles said as if that totally explained the three of them in a tangle of arms and legs on the floor. Shaking his head bewildered, he headed to go check on Buffy. Willow looked up past Dusk’s shoulder at Dawn, who was face down on his back.
“Dawn?” Dawn peered over Dusk’s shoulder to look at the witch, who was lying on her back, Dusk on top of her,
“Yeah, Willow?”
“GET HIM!” and with a growl Willow began attacking Dusk from the bottom, Dawn from the top. Dusk realized with horror that he was sandwiched between two, very mischievous women.
“Spike!” he cried out to the blond vampire, “Help!” Spike turned and snorted at the spectacle, taking in the flailing man and the two women assaulting him.
“Amateur,” he replied grinning. “Back in the heyday, two women were considered breakfast for me,” he chuckled, “And they’ve got you begging for mercy,” he leveled a warning finger to the other man, who was trying desperately to scramble away, or at least doing his best to LOOK like he was desperately trying to scramble away,
“Better not let them get you behind closed doors, mate. They’ll eat you for lunch,”
That gave Willow a fabulous idea and with a mock vampire snarl, she began biting Dusk. Dawn followed suit.
“Ow! Hey, no biting! Ow! Quit it!” Dusk glared at Spike, “Thank you ever so much, Spike,” he growled. Spike waved it away,
“Oh, no worries, mate,” he replied grinning before turning his attention back to the slayer on the cot. Dusk continued to howl in despair for quite some afterwards.
A few hours had gone by, Giles had taken over for Xander, the latter claiming that driving the camper was like driving ‘a really big Pinto’. Giles was still skeptical but he seemed to be handling himself well. Angel was up front with him to give him pointers. The others were gathered in a large circle, continuing with Willow and Dawn’s truth or dare game.
“Okay, a little off the subject but I have to ask,” Xander put forth, “Xena and her sidekick: were they or weren’t they?” he grinned.
“No!” all the woman cried out.
“Yes,” all the men stated simply, earning them all disgusted looks from the women.
“That is so male,” Buffy, stated, “Two women can’t have a deep, loving relationship, without being-”
“Buffy, they were naked together in a medieval hot tub,” Xander interrupted. Buffy’s face fell in mid-lecture.
“Oh,” she whispered meekly, before grumbling and settling back against Spike, who was grinning madly.
“Okay, I have to ask the guys this,” Faith chimed in, “What IS it with you guys and watching two girls kiss?”
“Yeah!” all the girls exclaimed. The guys sent each other long suffering looks. How best to explain this?
“Its simple, luv,” Spike answered, “All women are insane. The fact that a man and a woman can get together long enough to suck face is amazing. The sight of two double X chromosome lunatics managing it, is a spectacle to be regarded with the same amount of awe and reverence as Halley’s Comet, or you know, a Sex Pistols reunion tour,” he finished grinning. The men roared with laughter the women began muttering angrily.
“Uh-oh,” Xander commented noticing the unrest.
“Duck!” Alec cried as a barrage of pillows came hurtling towards all the men in the group. They threw their arms up to protect themselves from the onslaught of projectiles.
“Okay, okay, we give!” Xander cried out. The attack ceased as the woman looked at each other, supremely satisfied. Dawn put forth the next question,
“Okay, I have one: What signifies most the difference between a girl and a woman?” she asked, trying hard not to stare at Dusk.
“Knockers!” Spike cried out, earning a hard slug from Buffy.
“Shut up, honey,” she retorted. Spike rubbed his shoulder and grinned wryly.
“What, you want to tell me that the sudden onslaught of funny feelings towards the opposite sex didn’t coincide roughly with the purchase of your first ‘Over the shoulder boulder-holder?” he asked. Dusk nearly died with laughter, flat on his back howling with glee hands over his eyes. Xander wasn’t much better as the woman regarded Spike with outrage.
“SPIKE!” Buffy cried swatting him with the pillow over and over. He laughed as he parried the blows,
“Well, am I right or aren’t I?” he demanded. Buffy just glared at him before turning back to the group.
“Anyone who has a PULSE,” she shot a glare at Spike, who just winked and chortled, “want to answer Dawn’s question?” Dusk sat up and raised his hand, earning bemused smirks from the girls.
“My brother will now attempt to tell us what it means to be a woman,” Buffy cracked. Faith laughed,
“Way to get in touch with your feminine side, D,” she chortled.
“I’d like to hear what he has to say,” Dawn put in. Everyone quieted down thought there was still some snickering. Dusk cleared his throat,
“Well, I just think, that as far as women go, their emotional growth can be summed up in one sentence,” he held up a finger.
“ ‘I feel pretty! Oh so pretty! I feel pretty, oh so pretty I feel GAY!” Spike screeched at the top of his lungs, sounding like a cat being put in a blender.
“SHUT UP, SPIKE!” everyone yelled. The blond vampire sniggered and settled back against the wall, smirking.
“Thank you for that, Spike, I needed to be reminded what true suffering was,” Dusk grinned and stuck a finger in his ear, wiggling it around to clear it out of Spike’s awful melody before continuing, “No, I think that the difference between a girl and a woman can be measured by how she loves someone and more importantly, what she’s willing to give up to realize that love,” There was a stunned silence as the women and men regarded each other in awe at the fairly profound insight.
“Clarify,” Buffy implored. Dusk thought,
“Well, as far as kids go, I mean, they get crushes. And it’s great, you know? This person is their whole world. But it’s unattainable so there’s no fear of sacrifice, I mean, what’s the point of giving something up to be with a person you can never fully have?” he asked, Buffy nodded and gestured for him to continue, Dusk took a deep breath,
“But a woman, I mean, she falls in love with a guy…or a girl,” shooting Spike a wry look, who smirked and gestured for him to carry on, “And she’s willing to do what it takes to make that love a reality. Give up what has to be given up and willing to put blood, sweat and tears into it. Because she’s old enough to realize that he IS attainable and that with enough effort, maybe she can make it happen,” he finished. Faith frowned,
“Okay, so question: what makes a guy attainable?” she asked.
“Yeah is it like whether or not he has a girlfriend?” Anya chimed in.
“Or maybe he’s older?” Dawn added, trying very hard to sound casual. Dusk shook his head,
“It isn’t any of those things, I mean, a guy may be older or younger than the girl, or he may have a girlfriend and that can certainly be a hurdle. But the biggest thing is one simple question: Is he willing to be receptive to her love?” Dusk opened his hands, “If he is, then he’s attainable, if not, forget it,”
“So how does a girl know if a guy’s receptive to her warm fuzzy feelings?” Willow asked, leaning back her head to gaze at her lover wryly, she had found a comfortable spot, leaning against Dusk’s upraised knees. Dusk pondered,
“I guess you just have to ask whether or not what he says, and more importantly what he does, shows he has enough care and consideration to be open to her loving him,” he replied uncertainly.
“Okay, and now for the sixty-four thousand dollar question…” Buffy began.
“…What actions does a guy do that says love?” Faith finished.
“Trust,” Dusk replied unhesitatingly. “If what he does and says inspires trust in you. Like he could tell you anything and it’d be cool, and vice-versa, then you know there’s someone who’s receptive to being loved and thus attainable,” he waved a hand, “I’m not talking about someone who has things to hide, we all do. Cryptic people can still be trusted,” Buffy shot a look up at Angel, and frowned slightly when she noticed Faith doing the same, “But if underneath all the elusiveness, there’s a sense that this person really IS looking out for you, really does want nothing but the best for you, you know? Puts your needs before his own, no matter in how subtle a fashion he does it in, then there’s a shot.” He exhaled hard and shook his head clearing it, he turned to Dawn,
“That answer your question, petite?” he asked wryly. Dawn had a shocked look on her face. A look that quickly melted in an expression of sheer rapture.
“Totally,” she beamed at him with sheer joy.
“Bravo!” Buffy clapped, everyone else joined in applauding the other man’s insight, except Spike who snorted,
“You’re not going to start taking an interest in interior decorating and memorizing the casts of Broadway musicals now, are you?” he asked derisively.
“Sod off,” Dusk retorted. Spike chuckled and shook his head.
“Okay, next question who’re better in bed, the living or the dead?” Faith asked. Every head in the group turned to face Buffy, who blushed deep red.
“Ummm…” she looked down, Spike was grinning,
“Go on, luv, who makes a better bedmate? Ol’ Captain America or the Big Bad himself?” Spike grinned jerking a thumb towards his chest. Buffy bit her lip and looked back and forth.
“Giles!” Buffy cried, “Isn’t it time for more herbal medicine?” she asked shrilly. Everyone laughed as Spike sputtered,
“Luv?” he wailed forlornly. Buffy just patted his hand. Dusk smirked at the outraged vampire’s wounded pride.
“Okay, okay, Let’s cut the wounded protector of truth and justice a break, before her boyfriend decides to hitchhike home,” he chuckled, “Next question?” There was a round of laughter from everyone as Spike struggled to salvage his dignity. The conversation quickly dissolved into a series of ‘Q and A’ of personal intimacy. Spike was draining a bottle of beer. When he finished, Xander gestured to the empty bottle.
“Hang on a second, ‘Big Bad,' ” he grinned and took the bottle away from the glaring vampire. He held it up, “Who remembers THIS game?” he grinned waggling the bottle.
“I do, but I gotta tell you, there are too many people here and I’m WAY too sober to participate,” Faith spoke up. Everyone slowly turned to look at her with expressions ranging from wry amusement to mute horror. Faith grinned, “or where you talking about another recreational party game?” she asked coyly. Xander was still mulling over Faith’s implications, Anya swatted him hard on the arm.
“Huh? What? Oh,” he shook his head, “No, I’m talking about ‘Spin the Bottle,” he hastily explained. Faith grinned widely,
“So am I,” she replied evenly.
“FAITH!” everyone yelled.
“What? I’ve explained a good night slaying’s effect on me!” she grinned.
“Yes, and may it never be repeated,” Buffy chimed in. Faith laughed as Xander put the bottle down in the center of the circle.
“Okay, so who goes first?” he asked.
“You do!” everyone chimed in, Xander flinched but sighed and spun the bottle, it landed on Willow. He smiled sheepishly at Dusk,
“You gonna kick my ass, buddy?” he asked. Dusk smirked
“Assume ‘yes’ and take your chances,” he replied. Willow leaned back to glare playfully at him,
“Be nice, Alec Giles, Xander’s my bestest childhood buddy,”
“He’s your ONLY childhood buddy,” Dusk retorted wryly. Willow sighed mock exasperated and leaned over giving Xander a quick peck on the lips. Xander slowly put his hands up away from Willow, moving away from her slowly, never taking his eyes from Dusk, who was debating whether or not he should conjure up some shadow stuff just to freak him out.
“You may live to see another day,” Dusk assured Xander, he sighed in relief. Xander turned to Spike,
“You’re next, man,” Spike rolled his eyes,
“This is so bloody juvenile,” he muttered, he gave the bottle a spin, and groaned in dismay when it landed on Dusk.
“There’s no bloody way I’m kissing a bloke!” Spike growled angrily. Dusk arched an inquiring eyebrow,
“Gee honey, was it something I said?” he asked wryly. Spike snarled at him. Dusk laughed and stuck out his hand,
“Consider it a failed date, ending in a firm handshake,” he grinned. Spike snorted and gave his hand a shake.
“Kissing a bloke, I don’t bleedin’ think so!” he muttered under his breath. Dusk grinned and turned to the group,
“What do you want to bet he’s never going to even call?” he asked, folding his hands over his heart, sniffling pitifully. Everyone laughed as Spike just muttered angrily under his breath.
“Whose turn is it now?” Xander asked.
“Mine,” Buffy leaned down over the edge of the cot and gave the bottle a spin, and snorted wryly when it landed on Spike. Spike grinned,
“Pucker up lover!” he grinned as he kissed the slayer full on the mouth, easing her back down onto the cot amidst much appreciative applause and hooting. They parted and grinned at the pair,
“Now THAT’S more like it!” Spike roared happily.
“What happened to the game being ‘bloody juvenile?' ” Xander asked. Spike snorted,
“Yeah well, if I get a beautiful woman’s tongue in my mouth, it ceases to be ‘bloody juvenile’ and becomes ‘bloody brilliant!” he replied grinning. There was a round of laughter at Spike’s outrageous statement.
“Next?” Buffy asked. Faith walked up,
“My turn,” she grinned and gave the bottle a good hard spin, and grinned wickedly when it landed on Buffy. Buffy’s eyes widened in alarm,
“Now hold on there, Faith,” she warned. Faith just grinned as Spike, who looked like he was about to die (again) laughing, moved out of her way to grant her a clear line of fire at the blond slayer.
“Yeah, B?” Faith asked slowly stalking over to the prone blond slayer. Buffy jutted out her hand,
“A firm handshake for a failed date,” Buffy said finally. Faith grinned and moved to take the hand, before suddenly dipping her head and gathering the surprised slayer’s mouth in a long kiss. There was a stunned silence followed by a roar of approval by the men.
“Good show!” Spike cried out.
“Oh, my…God!” Dusk howled with laughter, his eyes wide as dinner plates. Xander was nearly in fits as he took in the kissing slayers slack-jawed. Finally Faith released the struggling Buffy,
“My dates don’t fail, B,” she winked at the other woman, who was sputtering madly. She turned and gathered hard high-fives from all the guys.
“Was anyone else aroused by that?” Xander asked.
“Yo!” Dusk and Spike called out in unison, raising their hands enthusiastically. Buffy swatted Spike and Willow socked Dusk on the arm.
“That wasn’t funny!” Buffy cried, trying not to laugh.
“Yes it was,” Dusk, replied, rubbing his arm. Buffy turned around and grinned reluctantly,
“Yes it was,” she admitted. She gave Faith an appreciative look, “Teach me that trick sometime, huh, Faith?” Faith grinned,
“Your bedroom or mine, B?” she asked demurely.
“Mine!” Spike chimed in earning laughter from the group, “and only if I can get a hold of a good quality camcorder,” he added. Xander held his hands out before him,
“ ‘Vampire Slayer Vixens Unchained,” he envisioned, “It’d be pay-per-view material,” he declared. Everyone else laughed.
“I’d order it,” Dusk commented wryly. Another round of laughter echoed in the trailer as Willow rolled her eyes,
“Well, THAT was interesting,” Dusk chuckled, shaking his head in amusement as he reached for the bottle, to take his turn. Dawn held her breath, hoping against hope, Dusk gave the bottle a spin and it landed…
…On Anya. Dawn bit her lip to keep from wailing in disappointment. Dusk smirked wryly.
“One good turn deserves another, huh Xander?” he grinned at the younger man, who looked pretty uncomfortable,
“Just make it quick,” he growled. Anya didn’t look too pleased either. Dusk cordially took her hand and kissed it before grinning at the both of them.
“Was that acceptable?” he asked wryly. Xander nodded and Dusk settled back against his feet as Willow took the bottle and gave it a spin, it spun a few turns and before landing on Spike. The vampire grinned,
“This is just my night,” he replied chortling. Dusk shot him a warning look as Spike walked over and planted a kiss on the witch’s cheek.
“There we are luv, proper as could be,” he winked as Willow sighed in relief, she got on her hands and knees to hand Anya the bottle and Spike lashed out and gave her upraised rump a resounding SMACK! Willow gasped in surprise and nearly fell on top of Anya as everyone laughed. Spike straightened and bowed,
“Thank you, thank you, no applause please,” he held up his hands in mock humility. Dusk chuckled as he gathered the furiously blushing Willow in his arms. She sputtered red-faced pointing at Spike,
“He slapped my butt!” she cried out accusingly. Spike grinned and nodded. Willow growled at him and raised her hands to cast a spell, “I’ll show him,” she muttered. Spike looked alarmed as Dusk gently placed a restraining hand on her arms,
“Now, now luv, let the vampire have his laugh,” he grinned and kissed her face gently, patting her stinging backside appreciatively, “He could not have found a finer derriere to smack,” he assured her. Willow grinned, made a happy sound and snuggled closer to Dusk. Dawn rolled her eyes and made the gesture of gagging with her finger. Dusk smirked at the display as Anya spun the bottle, it fortunately landing on Xander,
“Good,” she muttered as she leaned in to kiss her boyfriend, “Because I don’t want to kiss any of you other people, I only want to kiss Xander,” Xander chuckled and silenced her with a kiss.
“And for that, we are grateful,” Dusk commented wryly as the group broke into a round of applause. Finally Dawn was the only one left,
“Okay, I guess that leaves you, little lady,” Xander told her. Buffy frowned and was about to protest before she remembered how old she had been when she’d played her first game of ‘Spin the Bottle.” Dawn tentatively reached forward her eyes squeezed shut in prayer,
She pleaded within her head. Giving the bottle a hard spin she watched it spin with enormous intensity. The bottle spun, then slowed then stopped. She looked up her eyes wide,
“Well, petite,” Dusk chuckled, “Guess that leaves you and me,” he observed wryly.
Dawn nearly cried out in joy. Buffy noticing the look on her face, smiled but didn’t mention it.
“First kiss, D?” Faith asked. She nodded to Faith as she slowly leaned towards Dusk. Faith grinned,
“Hell of a pick,” she replied chuckling at the younger girls good fortune. Dusk cast Buffy a look,
“You’re not going to kick my ass, are you?” he asked worriedly. Dawn whipped her head around a tiny sound of what almost sounded like barely-restrained pleading escaped her lips as she implored her sister with soulful eyes. Buffy pretended to consider the question, as Dawn looked ready to explode.
“Nah, not this time, Alec,” she smiled as her sister's taut face collapsed with relief. Dusk chuckled and turned to Willow,
“Don’t look at me, mister, do your duty!” Willow replied to his unspoken question, gesturing to Dawn. He smiled and leaned towards Dawn, who was reaching out to his face with a shaking hand. Gently, he took her hand in his and reached up to brush a strand of hair out of her face and stroked her cheek with his thumb. Dawn closed her eyes expectantly as she tilted her head to meet his mouth with hers. Their mouths were two inches apart, than one. She could feel his breath against her lips, she held her breath, her heart pounding…
…And with a screech of brakes, the camper skidded to a stop, sending Dawn tumbling into Dusk. Dusk caught her as everyone fell to one side.
Dawn raged quietly, tears of frustration leaking out of her eyes. Dusk didn’t notice as he cast a look to the front of the camper.
“Nice parking job, Dad,” he commented dryly. Giles stepped to the back of the camper as everyone climbed back into their seats, except Dawn, who was still clinging to Dusk’s shirt, white-knuckled.
“I’m terribly sorry, everybody,” Giles apologized, “For some reason, I didn’t see the entrance to the estate until we were right on top of it,” Dawn glared at him with eyes filled to the brim with murderous intent. Dusk chuckled and got to his feet, helping Dawn to hers. He stroked her face and winked,
“Rain check, huh, petite?” he grinned at her. Dawn just nodded. Leaning forward he kissed her hair and followed his father off the camper, trying to ignore a powerful feeling that he had missed something important. Buffy walked over to Dawn,
“It could have been worse,” she commented, “Remind me to tell you about my first kiss with Angel,” she wrapped a comforting arm around her sister and led her off the camper.
The group got off the camper, the sun had just set as Buffy stretched out her arms and sighed, being mindful of her knee.
“Ah, good to be back in the Slayer’s Howard Johnson,” she looked around puzzled. The guards were gone, the gate open, “Ummm…is it just me or is it awfully ‘dark and lonely’ out here?”
“It’s just you, Buffy,” a voice called out. She spun around, just in time to see dozens of small wrens come together. The birds flocked into a humanoid shape and within seconds, Marlena was standing there, pushing back a feathered cowl. She smiled as everyone began applauding.
“Judges, give her an eight,” Xander chimed in.
“Eight-five on account of plumage,” Dusk added as Buffy limped over and hugged the older woman. Marlena smiled.
“Busy couple of days?” she asked wryly. Buffy rolled her eyes,
“You have no idea,” she replied. Marlena pursed her lips thoughtfully,
“Actually…” she let the insinuation hang in the air before gesturing, the ruby red tortoise plodded over to them as Marlena helped Buffy onto its crimson back. “Take a load off,” she advised wryly. Buffy smiled and leaned down to pat Aeon on the head. It grunted slightly. She smiled and gestured,
“Okay, introductions, this is Faith,” she gestured to the younger slayer who grinned and nodded, “And Dawn,” she finished. Dawn smiled shyly and waved. Marlena curtsied,
“It’s a pleasure to meet you both,” she smiled and winked before straightening to address them all. “I’ve spoken with the residents here, and they’ve all agreed that you are welcome to be your guest for as long as you like,” she informed them. Giles smiled, pleased,
“Thank you for that, Marlena, we’re grateful, of course,” Marlena waved it away,
“No more grateful that we are for your assistance in the defense of our home,” she replied evenly, taking his arm and leading them the manor. Buffy frowned and looked around, being borne along at a steady plodding pace by the giant turtle.
“I don’t get it, Marlena, this place usually looks like an Alcatraz throwback. Guards' day off?” Marlena smiled slightly,
“I thought that perhaps the sight of men with guns might disquiet you all, so I took the liberty of excusing them for a half an hour.” Buffy snorted,
“Remind me to tell you about the Initiative, sometime,” she replied. They came in full view of the manor and everyone who hadn’t already seen it gasped.
“That’s…big,” Xander commented dryly.
“And spooky,” Willow added. Buffy smiled at them,
“It’s much nicer on the inside, trust me,” she assured them.
“Uh-huh,” Willow replied in a small voice and swallowed as the group bypassed the massive gates. Sure enough, they were overwhelmed by visions of gold and gleaming marble inside. Jaws dropped,
“Do you see…?” Spike gaped.
“Uh-huh,” Angel replied.
“Can you believe…?”
“Uh-huh,”
Spike was leaning to stare at a solid gold statue. He reached out to touch it with trembling hands
“Can we just…?”
“No,” Angel replied, swatting his covetous hand away from the gold statue.
Marlena grinned as they walked over a large white marble circle inlaid in the center of the chamber. As they were crossing it, Dusk jolted to a stop. He frowned and nearly fell over, Willow turned to him,
“Alec?” she asked concerned. Dusk just kept frowning struggling against an unseen force.
“Uh, I can’t move,” he replied. His body shook with the effort of locomotion, it just wasn’t happening. Everyone turned around,
“Hey D, what’s the hold up?” Faith asked, Willow turned to face her.
“He can’t move,” she explained worriedly. Faith frowned and walked over to him.
“Come again?” she asked. Marlena followed.
“We’re right above the prime mystical convergence,” Marlena explained as she pointed at the marble circle, “Beneath this circle is the highest concentration of magical energy here at Grigori,” She frowned at the paralyzed youth, “You can’t move at all?” she asked. Dusk tried to shake his head but that wasn’t going to happening either. Marlena sighed and gently placed a hand over his forehead, chanting a few words, there was a bright blue flash of light and Marlena hurriedly drew her hand back and wrung it in pain.
“That stung,” she said mildly, sucking on her fingers.
“What happened?” Willow asked concerned. Marlena waved away her concern,
“I cast a minor incantation to see if your young man here was reacting to the node. The response was an overwhelming ‘affirmative’,” she explained. Reaching into her pocket, she sprinkled some dust over Dusk’s head. There was a humming sound, like a tuning fork and without any warning, Dusk pitched forward, nearly falling flat on his face. Marlena caught him easily,
“There we go,” she commented wryly, helping him stand. “Better?” she asked. He nodded,
“Yeah, thanks,” he replied. She smiled slightly as he shook out the pins and needles feeling that his entire body had been enveloped in. Willow looked at him with concern,
“You’re sure you’re okay?” she asked. He exhaled and nodded,
“I’m good. Let’s…” he gestured to the others who had began to drift away. She nodded and wrapped an arm around his leading him away from the enchanted circle. Marlena was busy giving everyone the grand tour. She opened one door revealing, of all things, a massive video game arcade. Dawn, Anya, and Xander rushed forward, requiring no further prompting, and were delighted to realize that none of the video games required quarters. Within seconds they were blasting away aliens, laughing. The group turned and walked away. Dusk stopped to give Dawn a lingering look before departing, the near miss in the camper springing to mind. He shook his head, sighing and left. Dawn looked up from her game, just long enough to catch him looking at her. He didn’t notice, lost in his thoughts as he was and she frowned unhappily. Something was bothering him, and that was something she didn’t like at all. Sighing she turned back to the video game.
Marlena opened another set of marble doors, revealing an absolutely sprawling swimming pool, complete with miniature waterfall and lagoon. Buffy and Faith grinned; they both loved swimming. Even Giles seemed pleased, admitting that a few hours in a hot tub might do his back wonders. Marlena mentioned swimsuits and a changing room and the Slayers were off, Faith helping the limping Slayer into one of the changing booths, before entering her own. Giles smiled slightly and casting a concerned look to his son, which Dusk waved off, he had felt no other side effects from his temporary paralysis, Giles headed to another changing booth. The air in the pool room was warm, and didn’t stink of chlorine. Willow inhaled appreciatively,
“Hey Alec, you want to go swimming?” she asked excitedly. Dusk shook his head,
“In a little bit, love, I’m going to talk with Marlena for a while,” she frowned, disappointed. He smiled reassuringly and kissed her, “Go. Make sure Buffy doesn’t drown or something,” she smiled prettily and bounded off to the changing room. Dusk shook his head, chuckling as Spike approached him,
“Question, mate,” Spike chimed in, “Just how do you endure that much perkiness?” Dusk looked up at the blond vampire,
“Really. Good. Sex,” he replied, emphasizing each word. Spike nodded,
“That’s what I thought,” he chuckled. Marlena gestured to the changing rooms.
“If you boys would like to join the ladies, there are plenty of bathing suits to go around,” Spike looked down uncomfortably.
“I um...not interested,” he mumbled. Marlena frowned,
“You don’t like swimming, Spike?” she asked.
“He can’t swim,” Angel answered, smirking slightly. Spike snarled at him,
“Push off!” he growled. Angel snorted,
“Look at it this way, Spike, you can’t drown either,” Spike pursed his lips together, he hadn’t thought of that. He sighed and padded over to the changing rooms, Angel followed, leaving Dusk and Marlena alone on the rim of the pool. She turned to him,
“And you, young man, what’s your pleasure?” she asked.
“A gym,” he replied, “I need to work out some tension,” Marlena nodded, seemingly, and completely unsurprised by his request.
“This way,” she replied, gesturing to a flight of stairs. Dusk followed and was brought into a dimly lit work out room, complete with weights and a punching bag. Dusk nodded,
“This’ll do,” he informed his hostess. She smiled slightly,
“Any particular reason as to this tension?” she asked mildly. Dusk sighed,
“Yes, I’m having weird feelings about my surrogate sister's kid sister and metal keeps popping out of my arm,” he replied, sighing heavily. Marlena nodded,
“I see,” she replied, placing a finger to her lips, thoughtfully. She shook her head,
“I’ll come by later, see if I can’t bring you something that would help,” she patted his arm affectionately and headed out, leaving the dark man alone in the dim room.
The others were having the times of their lives in the pool. The girls were splashing around; the men were lounging around in the shallow end sipping drinks. Marlena had dug up a pair of some sort of amoeba-like creatures that once she applied them to Buffy’s shoulder and knee, guaranteed that water would not get it and that it would accelerate the regeneration of damaged tissue. To Buffy, it felt like having a jellyfish lodged on her skin minus the stinging, A little creepy, but after a while, she forgot about it and was whooping along with everyone else. Giles, Spike and Angel were sitting in the shallow end, sipping brandy and talking.
“I’m really not sure what to make of Dracula’s counsel,” Giles explained, “The Everstone was at least an object, this ‘Wordless Psalm,’ it’s all terribly vague,” he sighed. Spike snorted,
“Yeah, who’d ever think, Count Chocula being elusive?” he shook his head in derision and turned to Angel, “What is it with you pretty boys and not being able to give a straight answer?” he asked, without any real malice. Angel scoffed,
“I don’t know, what is it with you homely guys and not being able to figure out our answers?” he replied evenly. Spike sent a spray of water at the other vampire. Angel frowned,
“The old guy in the gem room said something about ‘a Hebrew word that meant truth and also death,’ he shook his head as Giles frowned,
“That actually sounds familiar, the Jewish people have a very rich mystical culture, dating back several thousand years. You know, if I-”
Suddenly his head pitched, flinging his glasses into the pool, as a volleyball ball collided hard with his head.
“Oops!” Buffy blushed, “Sorry!” she called out apologetically. Giles sighed as he rubbed his head; Spike hurled the ball back at the girls and tried not to burst out in laughter. Angel fished around in the water and found Giles’ glasses,
“Here you go,” he offered, handing the drenched spectacles back to the watcher. Giles sighed and accepted them,
“Thank you,” he replied wearily.
“Nice shot, B,” Faith commented as the girls gathered around in a circle to chat. Buffy looked sheepish.
“Sorry, a little too much slayer in that last toss, I suppose,” she smiled and gestured to the men who were in deep discussion, “What do you think they’re talking about?” she asked. Faith shrugged,
“What else? Us,” she replied grinning. Willow rolled her eyes,
“I’m sure they have more interesting things to talk about than us,” she replied calmly. Faith shook her head,
“Say what you will, Red, but the greatest mystery to man is the female mind,” she grinned crookedly at the witch, “Why do you think they put up with us?” she asked wryly. Buffy snorted,
“Because if they didn’t, they’d have to bring their mothers to prom,” she replied. The girls laughed. Willow sighed and cast another look back at the door Dusk had left out of. Buffy caught her look,
“He’ll be fine, Will, he probably just needs some time to vent,” she reached out and sipped from a glass of ice tea that was floating on the water, without tipping. Such casual violations of the laws of physics were by this time, largely unnoticed by the group. “We’ve all been under pretty tight quarters,” she explained, “Alec’s always been a little…space-requiring,” she placed a wet hand on her friends shoulder, “Don’t take it personally, Boys are weird,” Willow smiled slightly at that and shrugged,
“I know, and I’m not worried about that, it’s just…” she sighed and cast another look for the door, “He hasn’t been the same since we got back from the Deadlands, he’s lost a lot of his confidence,” she turned back to the slayers, who were wearing expressions of concern, “He blames himself for me dying and everything and its sort of shish-kabobed his faith in himself. So he’s getting himself all wound up,”
“Wound up too tight you think?” Buffy asked, concerned. Willow nodded,
“I’m worried he’s pushing himself too hard. Like he has something to prove to all of us,” Willow explained. Faith sighed,
“I know what that’s like,” she shook her wet hair, “You just gotta understand him, he’s a fighter, he fights a lot and he fights well. Now over a sudden, he’s lost a fight, and someone he loved died, he’s pretty wigged,”
“Yeah, plus don’t forget the…” Buffy gestured to her arm and pantomimed things springing out of it. Willow sighed and nodded,
“That’s just it, he needs downtime,” she frowned unhappily, “He’s always been a Giles’ man, when it came to duty, but I seriously think he needs to cut himself some slack,”
SLAM! Dusk wailed on the punching back, lashing out with taped-up fists again and again into the black canvas bag. He stepped back, he was clad only in a pair of black sweatpants. He growled and whirled around, hitting the bag with a roundhouse kick that almost split the skin on his foot. Landing lightly on the ball of his foot, he pivoted thrust out a kick, before crouching and slamming a long series of strikes into the bag, sending it swinging away. He caught the bag with a hard forearm strike, before sagging against it, chest heaving.
“You weren’t kidding,” a voice called from behind him. Dusk turned around to see Marlena regarding him kindly, “You are tense,” Dusk sighed and mopped away a bead of sweat from his brow with his hand. The woman sat down,
“You want to talk about it?” she asked. Dusk shook his head, sending droplets of perspiration flying.
“No. Not really,” he replied, going back to the punching bag. Marlena nodded,
“Okay,” she watched him vent on the canvas bag for a while, “Wouldn’t have anything to do with that burst of necromantic energy I felt the other night would it?” she asked. Dusk snarled and lashed out with a particularly punishing blow to the bag, sending it swinging away. He placed a hand on the bag and turned to her,
“Yeah, it might,” he replied tersely. Marlena nodded,
“Willow?” she asked. He nodded,
“Yeah,” he muttered.
“She died?”
“Yeah,”
“And Buffy brought her back?”
“That’s right,” Dusk replied, turning his attention back to the bag.
“And you blame yourself for her dying?” Marlena observed. Dusk didn’t answer he just hit the bag harder. Marlena nodded in understanding.
“Is there anyone else I should blame?” Dusk growled as he continued to pummel the bag.
“Mercurio?” she asked mildly. Dusk snorted and whipped around with another roundhouse kick.
“He’s dead,” he growled, landing on his feet and thrusting two back punches to the bag. Marlena nodded,
“I imagine so. So if he’s dead, and Willow’s safe, then why are you still angry?” she asked gently. Dusk didn’t turn to look at her,
“Because it never should have happened,” he bit out through clenched teeth. Marlena nodded,
“No, no it shouldn’t have, but it did, and you need to figure out how to deal with it,” Dusk scoffed and continued hitting the bag.
“I am dealing with it,” he replied coarsely. Marlena walked over to him and placed a hand on his damp shoulder. He turned around and Marlena took his hands in hers, holding them up.
“This,” she gestured to his bloody, split knuckles, “Is not dealing with it,” Dusk just shrugged and watched as the wounds healed over. “Beating yourself up is not dealing with it,” she dropped his newly healed hands. Dusk growled and began resuming his beating.
“Were they demons?” he asked, slamming into the bag, “No. Were they vampires?” he snarled and slammed another fist into the bag, “No! What were they?” his teeth were clenched together so hard, Marlena could hear the molars grinding, “They were just stupid, rotten walking corpses,” he raged, punishing the bag and himself,
“And I,”
Slam!
“Couldn’t”
Slam!!
“Do,”
Slam!
“Anything”
Slam!
“About it!” he finished and roared slamming his fist into the bag and wasn’t surprised to see black metal sprouting out of his arm, impaling the canvas bag, transfixing it to the spot and causing sand to leak out. He panted for a while and with a grunt ripped his transformed arm out of the bag, ripping it almost in half. Sand continued to pile up on the floor as the shredded half of the bag dangled by a few strands of canvas. He gestured at Marlena with the bladed instrument,
“And then, there’s this,” he gestured with disgust at the weapon. Marlena walked over to him carefully, putting a hand to his shoulder.
“Easy,” she soothed, stroking his damp hair from his eyes, “Relax, Let the rage drain out of you,” he scowled and shook his head,
“Willow died and I couldn’t do anything about, where were these…THINGS then?” he demanded gesturing to the blades. Marlena sighed and shook her head,
“The Weapon doesn’t work that way,” she explained. Dusk frowned at her.
“ ‘The Weapon?” he asked puzzled. She nodded and gently reached out to his transformed arm. Dusk instantly drew away,
“Shhhh,” she soothed, gently touching the arm, “It’s okay,” she whispered. Lightly, she danced her fingertips over the myriad of blades and hooks. The blades crackled with purple energy. She smiled slightly,
“The Weapon usually takes a more…poetic form,” she gestured to the brutal looking instrument, “This is unformed, all it is, is reflex and emotion. And judging by how unpleasant it looks, I’m going to say that emotion is blinding rage,” she stroked a long curved, serrated blade jutting out from his wrist and sighed, “It need not be so,” she told him. Dusk sat down on a bench,
“What is this thing?” he asked quietly. Marlena sighed and settled into a tale,
“The Weapon is like the Key in some ways,” she began, “However, unlike the Key, the Weapon comes for a darker place. It can be used for either noble or evil purposes, but always for violence,” she sighed, “It’s an instrument of battle, whether that battle be to protect or to destroy,” she smiled slightly and reached out to touch Dusk’s forehead and instantly he was awash in a sea of images. He saw a king with a glorious sword. Feeling his arm tingle, he looked down in shock to see that what had once been nothing more than a collection of hooks and knives, had become an exact replica of the sword, its golden hilt terminating at his wrist. Marlena smiled slightly,
“When Arthur used it, it was called Excalibur,” she stated quietly. Dusk looked up at her in shock and gestured to the sword coming out of his arm,
“This is…” Marlena nodded, smiling,
“The one and only,” she replied. She regarded the weapon, “Of course, it wasn’t grafted to his arm at the time. Dusk frowned,
“How…?” he began to ask. She smiled.
“Go ahead, give it a shot,” she gestured to the blade. Frowning Dusk reached down and wedged the fingers of his left hand between the hilt and his wrist, startled to find indeed, that there was purchase for his fingers. He grunted and with hardly a whisper of protest, the blade slid free from his arm with the sound of a sword being removed from its sheath. He caught the blade in his left hand and gaped down at his right arm, now once again ending in his hand. He looked back at Marlena, who smiled approvingly,
“See? Isn’t that better?” she asked.
“What? How?” Dusk stammered, Marlena leaned back and considered.
“The Weapon isn’t a spell, rather it is a spiritual artifact, that is grafted to someone’s soul before they are born. Like the Slayer, one is chosen every generation to bear the weapon. Unlike the slayer, sometimes the wrong person gets chosen. She reached out and placed a hand over his eyes and instantly he was in London, there was a scream and a man was dragging a knife across the throat of a young woman, dumping her body to the ground. Dusk shuddered and opened his eyes, looking down in his hand; the sword had become the scalpel in his vision. Dusk paled,
“Yes, sometimes the Weapon winds up in the wrong hands,” Marlena gestured to the glittering blade, “Jack was a bad idea,” she commented quietly. Dusk looked up his face tight with horror,
“Jack? As in Jack the Ripper?” he asked, aghast. Marlena nodded quietly.
“Like I said, the Weapon can be used for good or evil, but always for violence,” she sighed and shook her head, “But there are better uses,” she smiled and touched his head again, instantly he was awash in memories. France, during the reign of Louis the Fourteenth and a man named,
“D’Artagnan?” he asked in disbelief gesturing to the now-rapier in his hand, “This was used by THE D’Artagnan?” Marlena grinned,
“One for all and all for one, young musketeer,” she chuckled, “But your missing the point,” she gestured to the foil in his hand, “The Weapon whether tis used for good or ill, it’s a force, that imbues its wielder with its…” she smiled slightly, “…double-edged gifts, if you’ll forgive the pun,” Dusk looked down at the sword, then back at Marlena,
“How do I…?” Marlena smiled,
“Just will it; it’ll respond,” Dusk looked back at the sword and focused, the blade began to sink into the skin of his arm, flooding it with an overwhelming pins and needles sensation. Within seconds, it was gone, leaving only numbness and a purple electric residual.
“The Force is strong with this one,” Marlena quipped wryly. Dusk flexed his fingers and turned back to Marlena,
“What does this have to do with my darkness powers? You told my father that the Keeper demon chose my soul to bound with for a reason, why?” Marlena smiled,
“What better weapon for the Keepers to wage their war on rest of demon-kind with than THE Weapon,” she shook her head, “Those shadowy aristocrats have a vicious sense of irony. Besides, your darkness powers, like the trick with your coat, all of it responds to will and focus. It’s always better to visualize what you want rather than trust instinct and reaction to interpret your emotions correctly” Dusk focused on his hand, and instantly three claws popped out of between his middle knuckles. Marlena smirked,
“I see we’re a comic book fan,” she commented wryly. Dusk tested the claws experimentally, before turning to the shredded punching bag, the bottom half still dangling by a few threads of canvas. He turned to look back at Marlena, she smiled and gestured, Dusk reared back, and with a roar lashed out with the claws, the bag was sliced in half sending the dangling bottom part flying across the room to hit the wall with a resounding thud. Marlena applauded,
“Upper deck!” she cried out, laughing. Dusk smiled slightly and the claws retracted under his skin. He frowned,
“You mentioned the Key…” he began, Marlena nodded.
“You make a pretty good protector for her,” he shook his head,
“That’s not what I meant, I mean, why do I feel this…overwhelming need to protect her?” he asked. Marlena sighed and threw up her hands exasperated.
“Alec, did it ever occur to you that the reason you want to protect her is because you love her and that you’re a good person?”
“Not really,” he replied evenly. Marlena sighed hard,
“THIS is what happens when young men live a hundred years in a demon realm without any human contact, Alec,” she placed a hand on his shoulder, “You’re a GOOD man. Believe it or not, you are, you fight the war on evil without thought of reward,” Dusk shrugged,
“So? So does Buffy and my dad and everyone else,” he replied. Marlena nodded,
“And they’re good people, right? So why don’t YOU count yourself within that category?” she asked, sounding a little frustrated. Dusk sighed and shook his head,
“Because how can I be a good person when I love two different people?” he finally asked. Marlena smiled and stroked his cheek affectionately,
“Love. Real love, in your heart, can do no wrong. As long as you let that love guide your actions, you have nothing to worry about,” she smiled, “As I said before, Willow, you love with your heart,” the radiant woman placed a hand on his bare chest, “And Dawn, you love with your soul. And believe it or not, the ONLY one who is having a serious problem with this, is you,” she finished, “And you know, Dawn is very much in love with you,” she added. Dusk turned around to regard her with shock, which caused Marlena to laugh,
“Trust a man to remain oblivious to the obvious,” she commented wryly. She gave the half-nude man an appraising look, “Well, at least she has good taste,” she observed, a hint of feminine humor leaking into the comment. Dusk colored slightly and tugged on a shirt.
“Enough of that…AUNT,” he replied, stressing the last word. Marlena chuckled and shook her head,
“My loss, I’m sure,” she quipped before laughing a silver bells laugh. Suddenly, Dusk’s stomach erupted in a ferocious growl. He colored and wrapped his arms around his offending stomach as Marlena grinned,
“That reminds me, using the Weapon, it increases your metabolism rate. You’re going to come down with a major case of the munchies after every use,” she gestured out of the door, “The uh…cafeteria is this way,” she pointed. Dusk nodded and collecting his coat followed the other woman out of the room, not noticing that as he closed the door, the gym, the damaged bag, everything quickly faded into gray and then nothing.
Dusk came into the poolroom after eating and looked around smiling. The girls were all playing a game of volleyball against the guys. Dawn, Xander and Anya had returned and were whooping it up with the rest of them. Faith saw Dusk enter and called a time out as everyone turned to look at their reclusive friend. Willow turned around and frowned concerned,
“Alec, is everything okay?” she asked. Dusk smiled slightly and came to he edge of the pool, taking a deep breath,
He told himself. Opening his eyes, he lifted his foot up…and stepped out onto the open water. His coat opened up and darkness curled around his back to support his foot. Not breaking his concentration, he walked along the surface of the water, each footstep being supported by a piece of darkness, behind him trailing a colossal shroud of darkness that scraped the ceiling with countless tendrils. The others gaped.
“Bloody hell,” Spike muttered quietly. Dusk reached the end of the pool and with a bound, leapt off the top of the water onto the concrete rim. Turning, he regarded his friends. They were all looking at him in stunned disbelief, darkness whips and exploding coats was one thing, walking on water and behemoth shrouds of blackness was another. Holding up his hand, Dusk focused and the three claws sprouted out of his knuckles, smiling slightly, he turned to the wall, and with a shower of sparks, began carving something. Everyone looked at each other, puzzled. Willow was swimming up to him, Dawn was hanging back, afraid to make it obvious that she wanted to be there. Dusk stepped back from his work and revealed it to everyone else.
‘Scooby Gang was here!’ it read. There was another silence, followed by first Xander laughing, then Buffy and pretty soon the whole room was howling with amusement at the sheer absurdity of it all. Dusk retracted the claws back under his skin and helped Willow out of the pool. The dripping witch hugged him tightly,
“You’ve learned to control it?” she asked. He nodded,
“Never doubt the expertise of silver-haired slayers,” he replied. She smiled and kissed his face…and then promptly shoved him into the pool. There was a loud splash as Dusk hit the water, arms flailing. Everyone laughed and pointed,
“Way to go, Red!” Faith cheered. Dusk surfaced, sputtering but not entirely surprised.
“Never doubt the craftiness of concerned girlfriends,” Willow responded glibly to Dusk’s shocked look.
Sometime later the group had toweled off and were gathered in the common room. They were sitting in a circle around Dusk as he was obligingly demonstrating his newfound power.
“Okay, okay,” Xander laughed, “Now do Freddy Krueger,” he implored. Dusk rolled his eyes but obligingly stretched out his fingers and claws slide out from under his fingernails. He held up the claws for the group to appraise. There were chuckles from everyone as Giles took off his glasses,
“The Weapon, my own son,” he shook his head amazed, “The Weapon has a history stretching back to Dark Ages, to find it now, here…” he shook his head in awe, “It’s possibly one of the most significant magical re-discoveries since…” he shot a look at Dawn, who was oblivious to the conversation, she was too busy enthralled with Dusk as he shifted the claws to a massive axe-blade and held it up for her to examine,
“…Since, well for a very long time in any case,” Giles finished. Buffy caught his glance and nodded understandingly.
“Question,” Willow chimed in, taking in Dusk and Dawn’s byplay with wry amusement, “The Weapon combined with the Slayer and the raising of the Hellmouth,” she looked back at Giles, “Doesn’t it all seem a little too…coincidence-ish?” She finished. Giles nodded,
“It would seem that there are events that are quickly coming together,” he frowned, “Forming a pattern that is almost cataclysmic in scope,” Anya looked up at him,
“Huh?” she replied.
“The fits about to hit the shan,” Faith put in. Buffy nodded and started counting off on her fingers,
“Two slayers, Dracula, the Everstone, a third slayer back from the grave, the Hellmouth rising,” she looked at Dawn who was still giggling at Dusk’s antics. She leaned in to whisper, “The Key, and now this ‘Weapon’?” she shook her head. “This is getting bigger and bigger,” she breathed out hard.
“If this is going to be as big and bad as we all think its going to be,” Dusk turned to her, his hand reformed into a normal hand, “Then we’re going to need all the help we can get,” he held up his hand causing claws to spring out of his knuckles, “If these will help us deal with whatever the Hellmouth is planning on tossing at us, so be it,”
“Right on,” Spike chimed in toweling his hair dry, “ After all it’s just like I’ve always said, ‘There’s no such thing as ‘overkill’, only ‘just enough kill,” he finished. Angel smirked wryly,
“Words to live by,” he commented dryly. Buffy nodded and turned back to the group,
“So, what’s the next move?” she asked. Giles sighed and replaced his glasses on his face,
“Well, we have the stone, now we need this ‘Wordless Psalm” the watcher advised. Marlena nodded,
“There’s a place, down in Manhattan, a lot of demons hang out there. The maitre d’ there is supposed to be pretty connected,” she told them. “It’d be a good place to start,” she finished. Dusk nodded,
“Oh goody, back to New York,” he commented dryly. There was a round of chuckles from the group.
“No subway,” Xander put in hurriedly. Buffy smirked,
“Don’t worry Xand, I’ll ask DeGanon if he can spare an escort once we get back to the city,” she assured him. Xander nodded,
“Good, cause the subways just aren’t safe,” he stated matter-of-factly, “Vampires, sewer monsters…”
“…Rude attendants,” Dusk finished wryly. Another round of smirks from the group.
“Okay, where’s this place?” Buffy asked. Marlena sighed and thought,
“I’ll make sure you get the address before you leave,” she gestured to the slayers bandages wounds, “Those are healing, but you still need at least another day of recuperation before I’d send you out against the forces of evil,” she commented dryly. Dusk nodded,
“Dad and I are going to hit the library here, do some serious research,” Giles nodded.
“Can I help?” Willow asked perkily. Dusk smiled wryly, touched by her enthusiasm,
“Deal, lover,” he replied.
“I want to help too,” Dawn chimed in. Dusk smiled indulgently,
“It’ll mean a lot of hitting of books,” he told her.
“Yeah and sometimes, if you’re reading the old books that have gone cranky, sometimes, they hit back,” Willow added laughing. Dawn nodded enthusiastically,
“Oh no, that’s okay, I like reading,” she replied hurriedly. Buffy sent her a shocked look,
“Since when?” she demanded incredulously. Dawn shot her a nasty look,
“Well, at least I knew what Hogwart’s was,” she replied haughtily, sticking her tongue out. Buffy chuckled and decided not to goad her sister any further. Giles nodded,
“All right then, that’s what we’ll do. Alec, Dawn, Willow and myself will do research,” he put a finger to his lip thoughtfully. “I’d recommend for the rest of you to recover and recuperate for the remainder of the day and the next,” Xander grinned,
“Cool, the G-man has officially sanctioned party time for the Scooby gang,” he smiled. “So who wants a pool tournament?” he put forth. Spike and Anya raised their hands,
“Prepare to lose your shirt, mate,” Spike challenged.
“Prepare to lose more than that,” Anya added with a very naughty smirk. Alec turned to regard her in amazement,
“Is that ALL you think about?” he asked disbelievingly. Anya thought,
“Yes,” she replied evenly. Xander put a hand over his eyes blushing.
“Oh,” Dusk replied, “Okay then. Good that you have priorities,” Giles sighed and turned to Marlena,
“Marlena, would you be willing to assist in research?” he asked. Marlena smiled prettily,
“Okay,” she began. Giles looked relieved.
“But only if you agree to let me make dinner for you,” she added. Giles suddenly blanched as everyone hooted in glee,
“Way to go, Ripper!” Alec cried out. He reached behind him as Buffy slapped his hand.
“The woman’s waiting for an answer, Rupert,” Buffy commented. Giles sighed and covered his eyes with his hand. He sighed and looked up at the pretty ex-Slayer.
“I’d certainly, I mean if it’s not a problem,” Giles sighed again and cleared his throat, taking off his glasses and regarding the woman calmly, “I’d enjoy that every much, Marlena. Thank you,” Marlena smiled and reached out to pat his face affectionately,
“See? That’s wasn’t so hard, was it?” she replied laughing gently. Everyone else was trying very hard not to burst into fits of laughter, some succeeding more than others. Dusk, chuckling, put a hand on his father’s shoulder,
“It’s okay, Dad, tonight you date, tomorrow we do the research bit,” chuckling he got to his feet. Smiling he focused on his hand. It transformed into a metal hammer, “I hereby declare this meeting of the Scooby gang adjourned,” he grinned and tapped the hammer in the table, Judge Judy style, everyone laughed. Dawn and Willow smiled prettily at him, although there was definitely more than a hint of indulgence in their expressions. Dusk chuckled and reformed his hand. Shaking out the pins and needles, he frowned and turned back to the cafeteria, “And I’m getting something to eat,” he added definitively. Buffy nodded,
“Amen,” she replied, hopping off the table she was sitting on. She grinned at Dusk, “Do they serve Mexican?” she asked, Dusk grinned,
“This place serves EVERY-thing,” he replied grinning, “Mexican, pizza,” he narrowed his eyes grinning, “Lasagna,” he added slyly. Buffy’s eyes widened,
“Okay, that was the clincher, bro,” she commented hurriedly.
“Everybody’s got their price,” he replied, following the quickly fleeing blond slayer. Faith got up to follow,
“I wonder if I can get a decent plate of fried shrimp,” Faith added thoughtfully. Dusk turned and nodded,
“Golden batter and a never-ending supply of tarter sauce,” he informed her with a grin. Faith’s eyes widened,
“Yo B, wait up!” she cried out brushing past Dusk and following at a pace that screamed accomplishing the 100-yard dash in five-five. Dusk chuckled,
“The simple pleasures are indeed the best,” he nodded dryly. Willow patted him on the rump and wrapped herself around him,
“Come on, lover, fetch me a hot-fudge sundae, and we’ll talk about the simple pleasures in life later,” she whispered demurely, kissing his ear. Dusk chuckled and tousled her hair affectionately. She blew him a kiss and took off after the slayers. Xander and the others filed out of the room, Marlena on Giles’ arm, he noted wryly. Dawn was the last to leave, Dusk put a hand on her shoulder gently restraining.
“Hey,” he said gently, she turned to look at him with wide eyes.
“Yeah…Alec?” she asked eagerly. Dusk held up his hand before her,
“This doesn’t change anything, I mean, I’m still me,” he looked at her hopefully, “You know that, right?” he asked cautiously. Dawn smiled and wordlessly reached over taking his hand in hers before gently nuzzling her face against his hand. Dusk unclenched his hand and gently stroked her face. Dawn closed her eyes and sighed contently. Dusk shook his head affectionately,
“I guess this means we’re cool?” he inquired gently. She opened her eyes, slowly and kissed his hand. Dusk's eyes closed as a feeling of peace washed over him.
“Always,” she replied quietly. Bringing her fingers to her lips, she kissed them and gently stroked his lips. Dusk’s eyes opened and widened as he placed his fingers over her own, in an expression of amazement. The moment hung tense in the air. The man of darkness and the girl of endless light gazed at each other, both of them trying to find the right words. Xander ran back in,
“Hey Dawn!” he yelled out. The pair sprang away like magnets pushing away from each other. Dusk looked down and away from the young woman. Dawn cleared her throat, not noticing that she had been holding her breath,
“Yeah…yeah, Xander?” she asked shyly. He gestured behind him,
“They got great hotdogs, ball-park style,” he grinned. Dawn nodded hurriedly,
“Okay, be right there,” she turned as Xander fled back out the door for seconds. She opened her mouth to speak,
“I…” she struggled for words. Dusk shook his head,
“It’s all right, Dawn, I know,” he frowned slightly, “Well, I THINK I know, anyhow,” he sighed and shook his head, smiling at the younger woman, “You and I have this connection, and I don’t know how it works or WHY it works,” he reached out and cradled her face in his, “But I know it’s there,” he whispered, “I know that it does work,” she nuzzled her face against his hand, “And I know that it's important,” he finished. Dawn turned her head to kiss his palm and nodded, tears of emotion in her eyes,
“It’s important to me too,” she replied quietly. He nodded and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, leading her to the eatery.
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