Ms. Hunter Ash
A BTVS/Dark Shadows Crossover
rating: PG13
pairings: Xander/Anya, Willow/Tara, Giles/Angelique
# # #
Buffy hesitated to move as Glory made a
show of looking around the living room.
“So, this is where the Slayer eats,
sleeps, and…doesn’t dust? Oh, look at this photo, so cute!”
Glory picked up a photo in a frame and
showed it to Buffy and set it back down. “I can’t even stand it.
Personally, I need more space, but uh, this is good for you, right?
It’s so quaint.”
While the super-powered woman rambled,
Buffy turned to the fireplace and picked up the poker. When she
turned around Glory was right in front of her.
Glory sighed as she took the poker from
Buffy.
“Buffy, if I wanted to fight, you
would be able to tell that by being dead already. So play nice,
little girl,” she said as she sat down in a chair.
“What do you want?” Buffy demanded.
“The key, why else do you think I’d
come here? See, I think you know where it is and that’s a good
thing,” Glory said as she pointed the poker at Buffy.
“I’m glad you think so,” Buffy
said.
“Well, it’s the only thing keeping
you alive right now. Because you may be tiny queen in the vampire
world but to me, you’re a bug. You should get down on your knees
and worship me!”
Buffy’s eyes widened as Dawn trotted
down the stairs without looking around. The young teen hesitated
when she saw Buffy’s expression.
“Oh big deal, stronger than humans,
right?” Glory ranted. “Who isn’t? I could crush the life form
you as easy as you’d break a nail. But I need the key.”
Dawn swallowed and started back for the
stairs.
“Kid!”
Dawn froze.
“Come here a sec!” Glory called.
“Leave her out of this,” Buffy said
urgently.
“I’m not asking twice,” Glory
warned.
“This is between you and me,” Buffy
protested.
“No, this is between me and my key.
You just happen to be the thing in the way.”
Dawn moved around into Glory’s
eyeline. “And you are just the darling-est thing I ever did see in
my life. What’s your name, honey?”
“Dawn,” the girl responded.
“Dawn? Did you know your sister took
my key, Dawnie? And she won’t give it back! I bet you know where
she put it, don’t you?”
“She doesn’t know a thing,” Buffy
said.
“I know some stuff!” Dawn
protested. Who the hell was the woman?
“I bet she takes your stuff all the
time without asking, doesn’t she? Where’s my key, Dawn?”
“Go upstairs, Dawn,” Buffy ordered.
“You’re always talking about stuff
I’m not supposed to hear. I’m going to figure it out, you know,”
Dawn warned.
“Upstairs now!”
“Oh, I like her, she’s sassy,”
Glory declared and then grew serious. “And I’ll kill her. I’ll
kill your mom. I’ll kill your friends and I’ll make you watch
when I do.”
Buffy’s jaw clenched.
Glory stood up. “Obviously this is a
one-time deal. Next time we meet, something you love dies a bloody
death. You know you can’t take me. You know you can’t stop me.”
The hell god dropped the poker on the
floor and walked out the door.
“Oh God,” Buffy whispered. She ran
to the stairs and saw Quentin holding Dawn with a hand over her
mouth. “Good call.”
# # ##
Giles slipped out of the bed he was
sharing with Angelique and slipped on a pair of jeans and went
downstairs and pulled the cloth away from the mirror.
“I still know a bit of magic…” he
mumbled. “Mirror, cast your reflection away from this room. Show me
another, show me Nicholas Blair… where Nicholas Blair is…”
Giles smiled and sat down as Blair and
Tom Jennings came into view.
“I told you we should keep an eye on
that insane hell god,” Nicholas said. “What? Oh yes, almost
sunrise, isn’t it? Well, tonight you can feed from the witch again,
just don’t change her yet. Too bad Glory didn’t kill the Slayer
tonight when she had the chance. Yes, go! Go to sleep.”
Giles blinked and covered the mirror.
Buffy? Buffy had a run in with Glory? Quentin and Dawn were with her.
“Rupert?”
Giles looked up and smiled at Joyce.
“Just wanted to see if Nicholas was up to anything before grabbing
a couple of hours sleep.” He looked down at his bare chest and
feet. “I, uh, didn’t think anyone was awake.”
Joyce chuckled. “I can see that. Oh,
I hear the Jeep.”
“Good,” Giles said. He sighed with
relief when Buffy opened the door and she was followed by Dawn and
Quentin. “Nicholas mentioned to Tom that you had a run in with
Glory. I was worried.”
“Yeah,” Buffy said. “She showed
up at the house and threatened to kill everyone around me if I don’t
give her the key.”
“What the hell is the thing, anyway?”
Dawn asked.
“I’m not telling,” Buffy said.
“Uh, interesting lack of clothes, Giles. Damn, you’re kinda
furry.”
“Yes, well, I’m going back to bed
for a few hours,” Giles said. “Let’s hope she doesn’t find
this place. I’m glad you’re all are okay.”
“Love you too, Dad,” Buffy said
with a smile.
# # # #
Buffy smiled as Giles adjusted his tie
at the courthouse later that day. “You look good, Giles.”
“Too thin, too pale, I know,” he
said but smiled. “I may keep the beard.”
“I like the goatee, that looks really
good on you,” Buffy commented. “On Nicholas it… looks like
he’s being a villain. On you it looks… dangerous.”
“Interesting,” Giles said and his
smile widened as Joyce and Dawn walked down the hall from the ladies
room. “Hullo.”
“Hi,” Joyce said and accepted his
hand.
Buffy thought how odd it was that he
was marrying her mom while sleeping with Angelique but…it would
keep the Council from suspecting who his actual bedmate was and her
mom and Giles were fairly comfortable around each other.
As long as Buffy and Dawn weren’t
teasing them.
“Are you two ready?” Buffy asked.
“Maybe you guys can do a ceremony with the best man and everything
later.”
“Make at sunset and make it a
three-way,” Dawn suggested.
“A what?” Giles stammered.
“You’re kinda marrying Mom…
spiritually or something and Angelique….”
“Let’s go inside and see the
judge,” Joyce said quickly.
“I’ve got the camera and Dawn has
the birdseed,” Buffy said with a grin.
In twenty minutes, Joyce Summers and
Rupert Giles were married and outside the courthouse Buffy and Dawn
threw birdseed at the couple and then hugged them both tightly.
“Let’s go move some of your stuff
in that’ll fool immigration and the Council,” Buffy suggested.
“I agree,” Giles said. “Quentin
will probably be here tomorrow morning. I’ll open the shop and
wait for them.”
“Such joy shall be had by all,”
Buffy predicted. “Not.”
# # # #
// Barnabas! Barnabas! //
The vampire struggled to focus.
// I’m… here. //
// Thank gods // Willow sent. // Blair
said you were fading quickly into madness from the hunger //
// It’s… difficult. I’m injured
and… delirious. How long…? //
Had he dreamed about the strange man
and woman? Was it a vision? Was it an actual spiritual trip where he
had been given a choice?
// Tonight is the fifth night since
they grabbed you. Barnabas…please try to hang on // Willow begged.
// I chose to be here. Here, right now.
I’ll hang on… just… if you are here when they break open the
wall get any humans out of my reach… I won’t have control. //
Barnabas warned.
// Okay. They’ll find us! I know they
will. // Willow sent to the vampire.
// Hard… // Barnabas let his mind
begin to wander again. Anything to ignore the pain.
// Barnabas? // Willow bit her lip and
touched the newly reopened wounds. She felt as weak as a kitten but
she had to get free and get help for both of them! She reached under
her pillow and pulled out a small piece of metal from the cot and
began working at the lock on the shackle.
# # #
Angelique smiled when she opened her
eyes to find Giles waiting with a mug of blood. “Good evening,”
she said. “How did things go? Are you a married man, Rupert?”
“Legally, yes,” Giles said.
“Emotionally… I’m fond of Joyce and things might have developed
a couple of years ago but that passed us by, my love. Are you really
going to be all right with this?”
“Yes,” Angelique said with a smile.
“I’m not as jealous as I once was and I don’t feel like you’re
leading me on and putting me aside.”
“Like Barnabas did?”
“That’s how I saw it and he
admitted it,” Angelique said and took the mug from the Watcher.
“You need to sleep tonight or you’re going to be a mess when your
potential boss gets here in the morning.”
“I’m afraid you’re right,”
Giles agreed. “I’ve been getting short periods of sleep here and
there but that’s not really restful in the long run.”
“We have to find Barnabas and Willow
soon,” Angelique added. “If Tom Jennings is feeding on her
regularly it won’t be long before…”
“She dies and becomes a vampire,”
Giles finished and the vampire witch nodded.
“With Nicholas and Tom Jennings to
guide her,” she added.
“Sod that,” Giles muttered. “What
about finding Roxanne? You’re close to Barnabas and he’s the one
that turned her.”
“We can give that a try,” Angelique
said after a moment. “How can she find him if we can’t? Tara is
also a vampire because of him.”
“I don’t know,” Giles admitted.
“Julia suggested it and didn’t really know why she suggested it.”
“Interesting. Let us try it.”
# # # #
Buffy watched as Giles slept on the
sofa while Tara and Angelique worked to try and find their family
members or Roxanne.
She glanced over as Quentin walked up
beside her.
“He’s not getting enough sleep,”
Buffy said softly.
“Which is why I slipped him some
herbs in his tea that are slightly…well, they’re light
sedatives,” Angelique said. “He won’t wake up if you carry him
up to the bedroom.”
“That was underhanded,” Buffy said
with a frown.
“But necessary and he had mentioned
that he had to get some sleep but that his mind won’t slow down,”
Angelique said. “I suspect that happens a lot.”
“Yeah, he often falls asleep on his
sofa,” Buffy said. “When will he wake up?”
“Around 8am,” Angelique responded.
“Give or take an hour. Enough time for him to drop by your house to
coordinate with your mother over any messages he received, to brush
his teeth and open the shop while waiting for your Watchers.”
“Don’t make a habit of it,” Buffy
said after a moment.
Angelique chuckled softly and turned
back to her mirror.
Nicholas stepped back into the shadows
of the upper landing on the 2nd floor. He calmly walked
to the end of the hall and down the back stairs to rejoin Tom at
Nicholas’ car.
“Well?” Tom demanded.
“There are times when it’s good to
be me,” Nicholas declared. “They are as lost as ever. With
company coming tomorrow they’ll be even more confused and off
balance. Soon, Tom, very soon and you will have all the blood you
want.”
“Good,” the vampire muttered.
# # # #
Dawn smiled as Joyce grabbed Giles’
arm and handed the Watcher his car keys. It was just so…domestic!
Maybe Angelique would go away and not come back… She wouldn’t
mind if her mom and Giles made it a real marriage.
“Buffy said she and Quentin would be
at the Magic Box shortly,” Joyce told her ‘husband.’
“Good, Travers said they would be
there shortly after I open the shop,” Giles said. “See you this
evening.”
“Just be careful,” Joyce urged.
Ten minutes later Giles was setting up
the Magic Box for the day, getting the till ready, sorting through
the mail and turning on lights that would highlight the crystals and
other objects for sale. He dialed Buffy’s number and smiled when
she answered quickly.
“Hullo, it’s Giles,” he said. “I
thought I’d give you a heads-up. Quentin Travers sent a rough
outline of the review they want to do and I’m afraid its bad.”
“We’ll be there in 2 minutes,”
Buffy replied.
Giles hung up the phone and took a sip
of tea and smiled when Buffy and Quentin Collins walked in. “Hullo,
sorry to bear bad news but you should know what to expect. I had Dawn
print this out.”
Buffy took the paper and frowned as she
looked over it. “Council history? What classification is a Lei-Ach
demon? Testing on various forms of combat… what’s this one?”
Giles glanced over her shoulder. “A
form of Japanese fighting.”
“Have you taught that?”
“Some of it, yes,” Giles said.
“Without the Japanese words.”
“Latin? They want me to translate
Latin?”
Giles nodded.
“Okay, I’m going to read this while
we go pick up breakfast,” Buffy said. “We’ll bring you back
food. Mom said you didn’t eat this morning.”
Giles chuckled. “Should I just wave
a white flag? With three Summers women watching me like a hawk I’ll
put on weight soon enough!”
Buffy smiled and hugged him. “We’ll
be back in about 30.”
Ten minutes later Giles glanced up from
the accounting books and saw Quentin Travers and four other Watchers
enter the store. Giles frowned as one of them turned the OPEN sign
to CLOSED and locked the door.
“What the hell?”
“They’re going to investigate your
items to see if you’re contributing to the darkness surrounding
this town,” Travers said. “It will remain closed until we’re
done with our review of the shop, your job performance and review of
the Slayer’s abilities.”
“There’s several items that could
be dangerous here,” a Watcher called over to Travers.
“Get the hell away from my items
unless you intend on buying something,” Giles snapped. “I had
assumed we were going to discuss things.”
Travers nodded at the round table in
the store, “Let’s discuss things.”
Giles glanced at the Watchers. “You
all stand around and look somber.”
The one-time Watcher rolled his eyes.
“Good job.”
“You used to respect us, Giles. You
used to be one of us,” Travers scolded.
“You used to pay me. If you recall,
firing me was not my idea.”
“Touche,” Travers said. “But you
were on the inside once. You know what sort of resources we command.
We’ve discovered information about this creature, your Glory. Some
of it is clearly vital and the rest merely extremely disturbing. And
it won’t be handed over until we’re convinced that you and your
Slayer are prepared for it, thus the review.”
“I’m not having you put her through
another one of your insane tests,” Giles said as he leaned over the
table.
“It’s not a test, it’s a check of
her methods. We need to know this information is safe.”
“Of course, you can trust her, you’re
being ridiculous,” Giles grumbled.
“We’ll see. Now where are those
misfits that aid you?”
“My partner is off on a buying trip,
Xander is working, Willow and Tara are out of town researching for a
university paper Willow is working on and… hmm, who else?”
“Mrs. Summers and Buffy’s sister,”
Travers said.
“I can have her and Xander come over
but you are not speaking to Dawn,” Giles said firmly.
“What?”
“American teenage girls aren’t
especially… forthcoming when it comes to their older sisters,”
Giles said. “They’ve all been under incredible stress. Joyce is
undergoing treatment for a tumor in her brain. The girls have been
worried and, in spite of that, Buffy has continued with her duties.”
“Very well, we’ll decide after
talking with Mrs. Summers,” Travers said and Giles went to the
phone.
# # # #
Buffy hesitated and then opened the
door to the Magic Box with her key and stepped inside with Quentin.
“Hi, we brought Giles breakfast, Mom
said he didn’t eat this morning,” she said cheerfully. She
resisted laughing at Travers’ confused expression and she could
tell by the smirk in Giles’ eyes that he hadn’t told the Council
of his recent nuptials.
“Your mother knows that Rupert didn’t
have breakfast?” Travers asked as Quentin Collins unpacked the
Styrofoam boxes of food from a bag.
“Well, duh,” Buffy said. “She did
manage to get his socks to match.”
Travers looked at Giles with a look of
surprise. “You… spend much time with Mrs. Summers?”
“Well, yes, actually,” Giles said
calmly and held up his hand, showing off the gold band on his finger.
“We decided to make it official.”
“You… married your Slayer’s
mother?” one of the Watchers questioned.
“Well, did you want me to marry my
Slayer?” Giles asked and Buffy dropped a stack of napkins.
“Giles!”
“Sorry,” Giles said with a laugh.
“Ask your boss, he recognized my feelings for Buffy as that of a
father, after all.”
“This is most irregular!” the lone
female Watcher exclaimed. “Field Watchers don’t get married until
they retire from the field!”
“Need I point out that I’m not
officially a Watcher?” Giles countered.
“When will her mother… your wife
and step daughter arrive?” Travers asked.
“Mom and Dawnie?” Buffy asked.
“The Council wants to talk to them
and all your friends,” Giles said.
“You gotta be kidding!”
“And we are also curious as to who the tall gentleman is,” another Watcher said.
“And we are also curious as to who the tall gentleman is,” another Watcher said.
“Quentin Collins, I’m in California
on business,” the immortal responded easily. “Rupert is
acquainted with some of my family through mutual interests and I came
over from the Bay area to meet him and I’m finding Buffy’s
company very enticing.”
“What is your business, Mr. Collins?”
Travers asked. “And what sort of mutual interests? This is
something of a private conversation.”
“The occult and supernatural
happenings,” Quentin answered calmly. “My family and I are
considering expanding our business to the west coast and I’m
investigating the pros and cons. We are in the fish canning business
and processing of fresh caught fish in Maine.”
“The occult?” Travers asked with a
frown.
“Yes, my cousin is psychic and has
had many experiences,” Quentin said. “She knows a Dr. Adam
Spektor who knows Rupert and the ball rolls downhill. There aren’t
a lot of people that one can take seriously in the community, after
all. That’s about the extent of our conversation, Mr. ….?”
“Travers, Quentin Travers,” the
other man said. “We have many questions for friends of Rupert and
Buffy.”
“And I have a fondness for keeping my
private life private,” Quentin said firmly. “I don’t discuss
vampires, werewolves, curses, the Leviathan, Old Gods and ghosts very
often with strangers.”
“Leviathans? You’ve had experience
with the Leviathans?” the woman with Travers asked, her eyes
widening.
“Yes,” Quentin said. He glanced at
Giles and the Englishman nodded ever so slightly. “That was one of
the main reasons for coming to California.”
“I was sent a Naga box from my friend
Dr. Adam Spektor who specializes in the occult but was going out of
the country,” Giles said. “A sorcerer and witch were working to
open a gate that would allow the Leviathan to enter our world and
eventually blast the gate open for the Old Ones. With help from
Quentin, Buffy’s strength and intelligence and my research we were
able to thwart them.”
“What happened to the sorcerer and
witch?” Watcher #3 asked.
“The witch was also a vampire and I
staked her,” Giles said. “After she had bitten me twice.”
“And you managed to stake her?”
Travers asked.
“Yes,” Giles said. “The sorcerer
apparently pissed off his master, he disappeared in flames.”
“And my boyfriend, a Green Beret
soldier, was killed,” Buffy added.
“And the box?” Watcher #3 asked
anxiously.
“Destroyed on the altar, the only
place it could be destroyed,” Giles said.
“The only place?” Watcher 3
repeated.
“What, you don’t know that? Well
then, you probably didn’t know about the prophecy book that only
those in the hive mind with the Leviathan can read, right?” Giles
asked and Buffy worked hard at not smiling. “Hmm, I thought you
always had more information than us.”
“Enough,” Travers said firmly.
“We’ll discuss the Leviathan later. Right now, we are dealing
with the review.”
“No, we aren’t,” Buffy said
firmly.
“Buffy, I can sense your resistance
and I don’t blame you,” Travers said. “I don’t believe that
your Watcher has reminded you lately of the resolute status of the
players in our little game. The Council fights evil. The Slayer is
the instrument by which we fight. The Council remains, the Slayers
change, it’s been that way from the beginning.”
“Well, that’s a very comforting,
bloodless way of looking at it, isn’t it?” Giles said scornfully.
“Rupert, let me talk to Buffy because
I think she’ll understand me. Glory is stronger than you. She’s
a more powerful instrument, if you will. We can help you. We have
information that will help. Pass the review and we give it to you
without reservation. Fail the review, either through incompetence,
or by resisting our recommendations…”
Giles moved from around the counter
quickly. “Resisting your recommendations? She fails if we don’t
do whatever you say! How much under your thumb do you think we are?”
“How much to you want our help?”
Travers asked.
Two of the Watchers grabbed Giles as he
started towards Travers. “She’s not your bloody instrument and
you have no right to do any of this!”
“I understand you think this is
unfair,” Travers said easily. “But there are factors which
should motivate you to go along with the review. Now, I don’t want
to do this but obviously we could shut this place down permanently.”
“You can’t do that, you don’t
have that kind of power,” Buffy protested.
“Of course we do, and a great deal
more. In fact, if you insist on fighting us, we’ll arrange to have
Rupert deported, marriage or not. Never to set foot in this country
again. Now perhaps you’re used to idle threats and sloppy
discipline, Miss Summers, but you’re dealing with grownups now. Am
I making myself clear?”
Buffy frowned.
# # # #
