Buffy wasn’t sure why Giles was making her do a sweep to look for Kendra so early in the day, it wasn’t like the girl wasn’t on the same nocturnal schedule she was; they were bound to run into each other on patrol. But no, instead of getting a few hours of chill time with her friends before she had to make her way back and forth across town on foot, she was given extra assignments with even more leg work.
She already checked the place Giles said she was crashing at but no dice, if it was any other girls room she would have said it didn’t look like she’d ever been there, but Kendra wasn’t exactly a high maintenance kind of gal. She could probably live in the same space for years and never leave a mark of her own anywhere in it. No sign of her in the cemeteries but then again it was still early for any real slaying so she didn’t really expect to see her there. Last stop before she called it quits and told Giles to try something else was the old abandoned factories and warehouses down near the docks.
Most of the big and nasty crowd tended to stay away since it was Spike’s turf, but that was the main reason she needed to check it. If anything had gone down with Kendra it was more likely that the fight went down here than some random alley or side street, for all that Spike ruled with an iron fist this was still the hot bed for most supernatural gossip besides Willy’s. The docks were where most demons either picked up their deliveries or shipped in or out of good old Sunnydale trying to fly under the radar. If Kendra was still looking for information about whatever got her shipped back here this would be where the trail would lead her.
After the fifth one was a total bust she decided to try one last look over at Spike’s place before reporting back to Giles. It wasn’t really likely that Spike decided to go toe to toe with Kendra again after what happened to him the last time she was in town, but it was just as likely that Kendra herself had initiated contact with the bleached menace after what they heard from Willy. Sure they hadn’t been able to find him that night, but Kendra was way dedicated to her slayer duties and it was possible she tried again after the two of them split ways.
Walking up to the doors she kicked them in finding a meditative kind of joy in the loud teeth clenching clang as metal hit metal. There was no need to be stealthy when the sun was still in the sky, she had the advantage and if Kendra was there her entrance would provide enough distraction for the other girl to get to her.
Seeing no movement she leaned a little farther into the actual building letting her eyes run across the parts of the main floor she could see from the door she was surprised that there were no minions running in to see what all the noise was about. Spike was paranoid about security, what with his psycho sire being a wilting flower and all, there should be minions pouring out of every doorway by now. Not to mention all the dust everywhere, Angel had told her once back when the dynamic duo first hit town that while Spike and Dru didn’t always live in the lap of luxury no matter where they were Spike always made sure it was spotless. A castle fit for his princess. This place looked like it hadn’t been cleaned in days, weeks maybe though she wasn’t exactly up on how fast old factories could gather such a legion of dust bunnies.
No minions, no clean surfaces, no Spike. Could they have left? Would they have left? Drusilla seemed pretty set on staying near Angel for as long as she could, and it wasn’t like Spike was in any position to argue with the crazy old bitty.
Taking a step farther inside she slowly made her way over towards the long banquet table they left behind, it was covered with a sheet but there was clearly something other than just oak under it. Maybe it was a clue to where they had gone. She knew she was supposed to be looking for Kendra but the fact that both Spike and Drusilla were seemingly in the wind gave her too much of the wiggins for her to just leave it as a mystery for another day. The idea of those two off somewhere she couldn’t see them was just disturbing on every level.
Gripping the sheet she pulled it back in one motion, and swallowed back the scream that got caught in her throat.
Angelus couldn’t stop the giddy feeling that was overtaking him, not that he tried to, he was a man of many pleasures after all. Buffy should be finding her little sister slayer right about now and the blow to her would be sweet to see. The death of another slayer, especially one so dedicated to her calling as Kendra would be one more in a long line of reminders that death was forever on the teenagers heels and she would break down in tears of woe over the unfairness of it all as she always did. She would run to Giles and turn to Angel for comfort and when she did the trap would spring.
He thought about drawing it out a bit more, maybe draining the girl during one of their “passionate” encounters of love, but he already had a steady supply of slayers blood on hand to keep him happy and Buffy was getting a bit clingy for his taste. She was starting to remind him strongly of Darla in all the worst ways, all the whine with none of the sex.
Speaking of sex.
His darling Cordelia was truly a thing of beauty, mewling in greedy need for his touch, her confidence shattered by her own actions meant to please him. He loved it. The slayers blood worked its magic as a potent aphrodisiac keeping him hard and horny for the rest of the night after they killed the girl and well into the next day and now so close to dusk he still showed no signs of stopping and she kept pace with him through all of it. Whenever one hole became too tender she simply offered up another for his use, begging him to take his pleasure of her until he was satisfied.
Thrusting harder into her slowly loosening ass he inhaled deeply scenting her blood in the air, oh that got him almost as hard as the slayers little gift did.
“Angelus, please.”
“Please what Cordy?”
“Please.” The girl was so far gone she couldn’t say anything else, her voice raspy from the screams he forced from her lungs for hours on end. That was fine by him though, he stopped listening to her wants before they even started. Today was about him, his victory and his reward.
“It all ends tonight, vixen. Do you hear me? The slayer dies tonight and you and I will celebrate all over again on top of her cold corpse. You would like that wouldn’t you, another celebration just like this one. Oh it will be sweet indeed.” Drusilla saw the lead up, but according to her the stars were hiding the ending from her and if he learned anything from listening to her natter on for years it was that when the stars weren’t feeling chatty it was because there was still a decision in play. The swing vote wasn’t in yet, so he would just continue on with his plan as normal and hope luck was on his side in this. After all luck, be a lady and the ladies did love him so.
“Don’t they darling?” Her answering moan of pain was music to his ears.
Jenny made her way towards the school library to find Rupert, she had agonised over her decision not only over what she should tell him but if she should tell him anything at all. She could admit to herself that all she had was a theory, a strong theory but no actual proof to show to convince anyone who hadn’t grown up with her people. Yes, Rupert Giles had been raised by a watcher and become one himself, so he knew the tales of Angelus but her people lived those warnings every day, they knew that his curse could be broken and that one day it would be. That day had come, and now she needed to warn everyone, she only hoped he believed her because if he didn’t she would be forced to face the boogeyman of her people alone.
Pushing through the swinging doors she found Rupert among his books surrounded by his dusty tomes and had to stop to drink in this moment, it might be her last with him if this didn’t end well.
“Rupert can I talk to you? Alone?” She watched him blink and slowly become aware of not only her presence but of the teenagers that swarmed around him constantly as well.
“Yes, of course. I believe we have done enough for today, you lot can run along home now and Buffy can fill you in tomorrow if there’s anything new you should know.” Watching them all get up and shuffle towards the exit she was saddened to see them go in a way. Once they left they would take with them her last barrier, Jenny Calendar would crumble and Janna would be left to face the consequences born of her own decisions.
“What can I help you with Jenny?” Taking a deep breath she dove straight in, better to get as much as possible into the open before he stopped listening.
“My uncle came to see me recently and he was killed in his hotel room.”
“Oh, Jenny I’m sorry. Is there anything I can do to help, maybe help with the arrangements?” He truly was a kind man, even with everything he already had piled high on his plate he was willing to take on one more task if it saved her from even an ounce of suffering.
“You’re a sweet man Rupert, but if you really want to help me you’ll just listen.” She hoped he would listen all the way to the end, because if he didn’t… the alternative did not bear thinking about.
“Yes of course.”
“My name is not Jenny Calendar, my name is Janna and I was born of the Kalderash Clan. My people have held their vengeance against Angelus in their hearts for over a century and let me tell you the fury has not lessened with time, so when Angel came to Sunnydale and began to form a relationship with Buffy and the rest of you the clan elders sent me here to keep an eye on him, to make sure his curse remained.”
“Good lord.” She watched as his legs seemed to give out and he fell into the chair behind him, his glasses now in his hands like he couldn’t bear to see her right then. She couldn’t blame him either, she had lied to him and now he knew it.
“Everything was fine at first, but now I don’t think it is anymore. I think the curse has been broken and Angel has lost the soul my people gave him. He killed my uncle and I fear he may kill the rest of us as well if we don’t act quickly.” Time truly was of the essence here, oh how she wished she could let him have all the time in the world to process everything but she just couldn’t. If Angelus was killing so blatantly as to kill her uncle and leave a message above his bed in his own blood practically announcing himself, that meant he was ready to take on the slayer. The only trouble with that was that while Angelus would be fighting a slayer, Buffy would be fighting Angel and she didn’t think the teen had it in her to land the final blow if it came down to it.
“Are you sure? What proof do you have? Angel has been a stalwart ally for Buffy and I shan’t turn against him without cause.” He said he wanted proof, but she could already see the doubts crowding behind his eyes, he was practically drowning in them even without her saying another word.
“I have nothing but my word, which I know might not be worth much to you right now, but please if you ever cared for me then listen to me now. You’re all in danger.” Buffy most of all.
Buffy rushed towards the library, her mind filled with the images of Kendra she couldn’t shake even after her brisk run to get back to the school. Back to Giles. He would know what to do, he had to. Then again she knew what to do too. Kill Spike.
Before he and his nutjob girlfriend had been on her radar, but while they had been the “biggest bads” for a few months now they hadn’t really made any big moves yet to bump them up the list of people she needed to deal with. She was sure they were feeding every night, but in a town full of demon summonings and attempted world ending rituals and everything else under the damn sun two vamps having a meal or two weren’t really high up on her priority list. Now they were the list.
Kendra’s body had been splayed out, naked and bitten, her every joint run through with a fire poker pinning her to the table. It was obscene. She knew the shy girl would have been humiliated by the display and that only made it worse somehow.
She should have gone looking for her earlier, she shouldn’t have assumed that the other girl was just slacking off like this was a vacation. The other girl didn’t do down time. She turned the corner trying to keep the tears she could feel pooling in her eyes from falling, she knew once she started crying she wouldn’t be able to stop and she needed to be able to tell Giles what she found.
She was so distracted she ran right into Willow, knocking the other girl back against Xander behind her.
“Hey Buffster, what’s the hurry?”
She opened her mouth to tell them, she wanted to tell them, she should tell them but she just didn’t know how to start. They had all been friends with Kendra too, she and Xander had even been inching slowly towards maybe being more than friends though they were moving at a snail’s pace about it. How could she tell them that the sweet, shy, duty obsessed girl they knew was gone. Not only gone but… No she couldn’t let her mind go there. If she went there she wouldn’t be able to hold it together for Giles.
“I need to see Giles.”
“Yeah we got that from the speedy pace, what’s up?”
“Giles.” If she could just get to Giles, he would make it all better.
“Yeah, okay I’m just guessing here but I think she might be looking for Giles. Well, he’s in the library with Ms. Calendar, we just left them so maybe stomp your feet as you approach, give them both a chance to pull apart completely before you blind yourself again.” Library right.
She had been headed that way before she had run into the others. Just one step to the side and she would be on her way again, no more distractions.
She moved around them intent on reaching her goal, then the lights went out.
Kasey1939 