Slayers Journeys IV: The Child, the Hawk and the Lorelei
by Vincent
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: The characters belong to Joss, ME, Fox and UPN. Just borrowing.
Spoilers: The events occur in the beginning to Season 7. Willow has just come back from England.
Note: This the fourth story of The Slayers Journeys Saga that will have 5 different parts. Hope you'll like it.
Feedback: Yes, please.
“And you let her! You let them? God, Will, it’s Faith we’re talking about! The psycho, the enemy, the gal who choked guys to death for pleasure! How could you let her…erm…make her moves to Buffy?”
Xander was pacing in the bedroom now. He was worried and mad! Willow had just told him and Dawn about Buffy and Faith’s new relationship and the news didn’t please him at all. How could the witch have accepted it. She had joined Buffy for the journey to protect her, hadn’t she? So, why the hell had she let things turn that way?
“You weren’t there, Xand! You haven’t seen the new Faith yet! She has changed!”
“Yeah! As if a single night trip in Neverland was enough to see those kinds of things. You hit your head bad, Will and so did Buffy! First Spike and now Faith!”
“Xander! Even if we only slept one night, our “trip” lasted a month! And Buffy had spent much more time away because of the time loops. She has had all the time she needed to make up her mind, to discover her true feelings for Faith! And I had the time to make up MY mind too!”
“It’s a trick, a spell or something, Will! Can’t you see that? Buffy + Faith equals wrong! You have to be blind not to see it! And now Buffy is running her ass off to jump on her as soon as she exited the prison she should never been allowed to leave! And think about Dawn! If Faith comes to live here…”
“Me? I’m cool with it!”
Dawn, who had remained silent till then, had just spoken. She was also surprised by the news but it didn’t shock her. In fact, to her amazement, she had discovered that deep down inside of her, she had always known that, somehow, there was more than a Slayer connection between the two women. So, her sister was dating a woman now… a really cool, leather wearing woman the teenager had always liked hanging with. She knew that her memories from this period were put in her head by the monks…but she also knew that they did a good job in doing it. Faith had always treated her well, even during her bad days, these memories reflected the way the brunette would have acted if the former key had really been there at that time. So, what did she think about Buffy and Faith being together? Hell, it was a damn good improvement in comparison with broody “Night Only” Angel and Macho “I have to be the man in this relationship” Riley! Her mind came back to the present and she saw that Xander was looking at her, obviously completely taken aback by her reaction.
“You’re cool with it? Dawn, she tried to kill us all. She is not good, she’ll never be, she killed people and should never be for…”Xander stopped and chastised himself. Once again, his mouth had been quicker than his brain. He turned his head towards Willow and saw what he had feared he would. The witch’s eyes were full of sadness. He had hurt her, badly! Yes, Faith had killed…but so did Willow recently. By suggesting to Dawn that Faith shouldn’t be forgiven because of that, he had implied the same for Willow.
“Will! I didn’t…I mean I didn’t mean…”
“You didn’t mean why, Xander? What I’ve been telling myself since I turned Evil Willow? (Tears were falling on her cheeks now). That I don’t deserve any redemption?”
“No! I was talking about Faith! Not you!”
“And what’s the difference between what Faith did and what I did?”
“You were guided by you pain, Will! Faith did everything she did by choice! That’s the difference!”
“You’re wrong! Faith shut herself completely from the light side because she didn’t want to feel remorse anymore. It was the way she had always reacted since she was a kid. She shut out everyone who cared about her because she didn’t want to feel anymore and later, she thought that the only way to totally erase these feelings was to turn evil….I did the things I did because of the pain I felt when Tara got killed and I ended up trying to destroy the world because I didn’t want to feel the suffering too. So, now Xander, tell me about differences.”
Dawn was silent. Willow’s speech had touched her in a way she couldn’t described. She felt her tears on her cheeks and saw that Xander was crying too. These memories were too fresh, they hadn’t completely dealt with them yet and the young brunette wondered if one day they would. She looked at Xander who remained speechless. He was probably trying to find a significant difference. He wouldn’t find it though because Willow was right, Faith’s story and hers were different yes but, the basis were the same. Pain had made them do wrong choices and they would both try to make up for them for the rest of their lives.
“I…I…” Xander couldn’t indeed find anything to retort to Willow’s last tirade. He was stuttering to find his words but knew that none would come out. His head was bowed and it probably would have remained that way if he hadn’t felt Willow’s hands on his shoulders.
“Xand! I repeat myself but you haven’t met Faith since three years, you haven’t seen Buffy with her. I don’t know how to explain this to you but their happiness radiated around them. It’s beautiful and it feels right, normal! I too was a little bit apprehensive when I found out what Buffy really felt for Faith but I changed my mind. They are good together, Xander. Give them a chance to prove it to you! For Buffy!”
The young man nodded before hugging his lifetime friend then, he opened his arms again to include Dawn in the embrace.
Faith looked at Magda. They had just came back from the cafeteria and were now facing each other. Breakfast had been calm. Faith’s bashers were glad to see the brunette leave the building but didn’t dare to show it too much while Faith’s gang was sad to see their leader going. As they knew that Faith wasn’t really fond of emotional display, they just patted her back before leaving the brunette and her cellmate go to their cell.
“So, this is it, hu!”
“Yep! In a few minutes, the guards will come to pick me up!”
“I…I’ll miss you!”
Faith smirked: “I thought we agreed not to get too emotional!”
“Sue me!”
Faith smirked again before looking in Magda’s blue eyes.
“I’d miss very few things in this place, Mag! And you’re one of them! Now, before you’ll ruin your make up by letting the flood run, can we change the topic?”
The thief smiled but could still feel the lump in her throat. “Sure! What are you gonna do now that you’re free?”
“I told you to change topic, not to be inquisitive!” The brunette said with a wide grin spread on her face.
“And what’s that grin for?” Magda asked ignoring her friend’s comment, knowing that it was just part of the attitude. In nearly a year, she had learned when Faith was only playing and when she was serious.
Faith stared at Magda for a few seconds, as if she was weighing if she would answer her or not. Choosing the former, she replied:
“My girl is outside, waiting for me!”
“Your girl? You never mentioned you had a girl!”
“It’s quite recent!”
“Recent? You haven’t met anyone except this broody tall guy since I came her! How could…”
“Faith! It’s time!”
Neither Faith, nor Magda had heard the guards coming. The two of them were now in the cell’s entry, waiting for the brunette to move. Faith nodded then, to Magda’s surprise, she hugged her.
“Just know that some dreams come true or are true! Take care of you, Mag and don’t forget, you need me, you phone me!”
She gave the girl a soft kiss on the cheek then made a u-turn and followed the guards without looking behind her shoulder. Soon, the only thing she could think about was that outside the gates, a wicked sexy blonde was waiting for her. She had no doubt Buffy would be there and wished only one thing: to hold her in her arms, this time, for real!
Buffy was pacing outside, looking at her watch every minutes. 1PM, it was 1PM, this was the time when Faith was supposed to be released so why the hell were these doors still closed? She put her hands through her hair and sighed. She had driven like crazy to be here on time, she had probably been flashed a dozen times and would probably become a lifetime fine payer but she had done it! She was here in time and these fucking doors remained closed.
Moreover, she hadn’t had the time to change her clothes. She was still wearing last day’s rumpled clothes that fortunately weren’t smelling her usual “Demon’s blood, vampire’s ashes” perfume, hadn’t had the time to wash her hair,…and the list went on.
Fortunately, she had had the time to brush her hair and put some makeup on her face and some perfume, REAL perfume. And now, they make her waiting by keeping her girlfriend locked in this place way too long! She was sure that it was a plot, a complot done by evil forces to make her have a nervous breakdown.
The blonde continued to pace, lost in her thoughts and only reacted when she heard the sound of two heavy doors closing. She raised her head and stopped pacing, stopped moving, stopped thinking, almost stopped breathing while her heart was beating so hard that she thought it would explode. SHE was there, standing in front of the doors with a huge grin on her face…her cute, lovely face, her girlfriend’s magnificent face, her Faith’s face.
A few minutes earlier, Faith walked in the corridor that was leading to the exit. She wanted to run in this corridor to get out of this place as soon as possible but succeeded in controlling her anger and anxiety. She only was a few minutes late, it wasn’t the end of the world…God, she just hoped that she wouldn’t deal with apocalypses before a few weeks or months.
The paperwork had seemed to last forever. They needed her signature on this paper, then on this one, had to sign a greenish ugly form for the municipality, etc…etc… Then, she had been led to a place where they had given here the things she had had when she had turned herself in. It wasn’t much. Just clothes and a few bucks…she had never possessed much after all. They had given her a little privacy so she could change. She had been glad to quit her outfit, savoured the feeling of leather on her skin again, even if the clothes smelled a little fusty.
The bright light of the sun blinded her when she arrived at the barbwired outdoor corridor that led to the exit. Finally, she was in front of these doors. Her anxiety increased a little more as her old insecurities came back. What if Buffy wasn’t there? She didn’t let the thought sink too deeply in her mind and quickly shook her head. The time loops existed, she and Buffy had been there and they were girlfriends now. Period and no insecurities allowed.
Her breathing rhythm increased while the doors opened, her heartbeats too. When they were completely opened, she hesitantly moved, walked past the doors and then saw HER, saw this angel who was pacing next to her car and seemed as nervous as she was. She was beautiful, Goddish to quote what she had thought on the pirate’s ship, just before their first kiss.
When the blonde finally noticed her presence, she couldn’t do anything but grin at her and was soon rewarded by a Buffy Summers atomic smile, the one no one could resist to. The dark Slayer wanted to move and take her girlfriend in her arms but she was unable to move, too captivate by the vision she had in front of her. She knew she had to have a ridiculous goofy smile on her lips but she didn’t care. Buffy was there in front of her and she couldn’t think about anything else or do anything but stare.
They stayed like this, only staring to each other, for a long time. Then, as if they were walking in a slow motion, they began to move toward each other at the same time, attracted to the other like magnets but still looking in each others eyes. When their feet stopped, the bodies didn’t and soon, they were in each others arms, kissing as if they wouldn’t be any tomorrow, unleashing their love and passion in this kiss. When the kiss ended, Buffy put her head on her girlfriend’s shoulder and closed her eyes, feeling Faith’s thumb beginning to trace patterns on her neck.
“I was going crazy waiting for you!”
“Sorry, their schedule sucks big time!”
“Don’t be sorry! It was worth the wait!”
They stayed in this position for a few minutes, just savouring the other’s warmth, the other’s presence, synchronising their breathing without even knowing it before breaking the embrace to share another passionate kiss. Then, Buffy took Faith’s hand in hers and they moved to the car.
“Come on, honey! Let’s get away from this place!”
Faith just squeezed the blonde’s hand before following her in the car.
Willow was sitting in the living room, holding in her hands the book she had just found in the “library room”. She had been sure that she had already seen this cover, the one with the image of the “twocorn” as it wasn’t really a unicorn because it had two horns. She had been sure that she had already felt the particular texture of this book in her hands and she had been right. “The Prophecies of Talgon the Leper” had always been in Giles possession. It was another irony of fate, the book that had been the centre of two of the Slayers time loops had always been within reach.
Before searching for the book, she had first looked into the computer files she had helped Giles to create in the computer, right before Dracula’s apparition. In these files, the former librarian had written summaries and comments about the books and manuscripts they had at their disposal. From “waste of ink and bunch of ineptitudes” to “highly documented”. She had quickly discovered what his comments on the “Prophecies” were.
According to Giles, Talgon had never been wrong. The Englishman had never talked about it because the last of these prophecies had happened in the seventies. Talgon seemed not to have seen any events posterior to this period. The question was now why the hell this book seemed to be the key of the Slayers time loops. Opening the book, the witch began its reading. Fortunately, someone had already translated the manuscript.
At first, Faith had thought that they would directly go back to Sunnydale and she was really surprised when she noticed that Buffy was driving to the centre of LA. The blonde saw her girlfriend’s puzzled expression and said:
“Just relax, F! We’ll be there in a minute!”
“Be where, B?”
Buffy gave her an enigmatic smile but didn’t say a thing. Faith didn’t insist, trusting her fellow Slayer and concentrated her attention on her girlfriend’s features. She was never tired of watching Buffy. Yep, she had fallen bad and there was no part of her that regretted it.
Two minutes later, when Buffy parked her car in front of one of the fanciest restaurant of LA, Faith looked at her questioningly. The petite Slayer smiled and explained:
“Just thought you’d like to eat some real food! I don’t think the crap they give you in prison was tasty and caloric enough to feed your endless stomach.”
“B! I’…This place is expensive like hell and…”
Buffy silenced Faith with a finger on the brunette’s lips and replied: “Nothing is too good for my girl!” Then, she kissed the brunette before leading her in the restaurant.
Faith followed Buffy without protesting, her brain constantly repeating in stereo the words Buffy had just said. MY GIRL! She was Buffy’s girl. Technically, she knew that but it was the first time Buffy had called her HER GIRL! And God, she liked every syllable of it. SHE WAS BUFFY'S GIRL!
Xander was working hard today. After the late meeting of the previous day, it had been decided to increase the rhythm. The new mayor of Sunnydale wanted the High School to be fully built for the prom night and he had insisted that no delay were allowed. The young carpenter knew that it was possible but he also knew that it would require and lot of work too. He was glad he had to work this hard, it helped him not to think about the morning discussion with Willow.
He had been such an idiot! He had insulted Willow and it was the last thing he wanted to do. She had been his best friend for so long now, had supported him so many times and, now that she was going through a very hard and confusing time, he was supposed to do the same. Instead, he had hurt her badly. Sometimes he wished he was mute.
And Buffy! Sure, she had had a hard year too with her resurrection, being kidnapped from heaven by her friends – yeah, he was really good at unwillingly hurting his friends – the Spike affair, etc…But she was a grown up and she felt better, even he could see that. He had to trust her, trust her choices even if at first they seemed a bit…insane. He wanted to protect her but sometimes, he mixed protection and restrictions.
But it was Faith too! The girl had tried to kill them all. Wasn’t it normal for him to feel a little scared, worried? Yeah, he knew that Angel, Buffy and even Willow told him that she had changed. She had found the right path again but maybe it was part of another of her games, perhaps it was a big lie. He had to see the changes by himself to really believe it and it meant giving her a chance. Yes, he would give her a chance and he would see if she had really changed and if she didn’t…he would be ready!
Faith put the spoon inside her girlfriend’s mouth and could almost feel her tongue tasting the ice cream that was on it. They both shared a smile before Buffy returned the favour, giving Faith a taste of her own desert.
The brunette had never thought that a dinner could be so special and it wasn’t because of the food that was pretty good in fact. No, it was because of the sexy blonde she had in front of her.
Buffy had similar thoughts. Sure, she had been on dates before, had been to restaurants before but they had never reached the intensity of this one. If there was one word to describe what she was feeling now, it was complete. When she was with Faith, she never got bored, never got scared, all she could think about was this hot brunette she had in front of her and she didn’t want to think about anything else.
They had chatted, laughed, teased each other during this dinner but most of the time, they had remained silent, speaking with their eyes, holding hands, just enjoying the other’s presence again. Now, they were currently feeding each other with their respective deserts like two normal lovers. As Buffy had put the last piece of desert in Faith’s mouth, she removed the spoon, then quickly lean forward to kiss her partner. Faith closed her eyes, savouring the mixed flavours of the desert and her girlfriend’s lips. When Buffy broke the kiss and sat back on her chair, the brunette didn’t move, her eyes still closed, her lips still mid-opened. It was the cutest sight Buffy had ever seen and she couldn’t prevent a giggle to escape her mouth. Faith opened her eyes and smiled, sheepishly.
“Was it me or the desert that you were dreaming about right now?”
“The desert of course!”
Buffy tried to pinch Faith’s hand that was still on the table but failed as the dark Slayer reacted quicker and grabbed the blonde’s hand. Buffy playfully began to pout but soon couldn’t look away from her partner’s chocolate eyes that were staring at her with such an intensity that she couldn’t prevent a blush to come to her cheeks. Then, Faith put Buffy’s hand on her lips and began to kiss every finger tips, slowly, sensually before putting three of them on her plate, covering them with her melted ice cream.
Buffy gulped loudly when Faith took her hand back to her lips and began licking the ice creamed fingers, one by one, still looking in the emerald eyes of the blond Slayer. When she had cleaned them, she continued to lick them, suck them with even more fervour and sensuality than the minute before. Buffy couldn’t do anything but stare at her girlfriend…and feel the effect of the brunette’s deeds on her body. She was on fire!
Faith finally pulled the hand away from her lips, took the napkin and began to dry the fingers. She then entwined Buffy’s fingers with hers and whispered:
“Should have known, B! This was my real desert! I can’t get enough of you, of your taste! This day is perfect, B! This day was perfect the moment I saw you waiting for me at the gates!”
Buffy smiled but didn’t answer, she just put her now dry hand on Faith’s left cheek then, left her girlfriend take it to kiss it repeatedly. They stayed like that a moment before they agreed to leave the place and drive back to Sunnydale.
Dawn was on her way back. School had been boring today, well, it was usually boring every day but today would probably win the “I wish I had my pillow with me” award. The day had been eventful tough. Well, the first minutes of her day had been eventful to be precise. She had known that her sister was head over heels in love with her former arch nemesis and that she had rudely ignored them all to rush to Faith this same morning. But, as she had always really liked Faith, she couldn’t be mad on her because of that.
The same morning, right before her first class, she had gone to the principal’s office to tell him that Buffy couldn’t work today because of a “family problem”. After all, pickling her girlfriend up when she got out of jail could be considered as a “family problem” couldn’t it? Principal Wood had been polite enough not to ask details and she had been relieved about it, she didn’t know if she would have been able to invent the appropriate bullshit if he had been too inquisitive.
Dawn could see her house now and Buffy’s car wasn’t there yet. She hadn’t really expected to see it. Hell, if she was in Buffy’s shoes, she would probably take her time too. She smiled at the thought before entering the house, knowing that she would find Willow inside.
They were in the streets of Sunnydale now and Faith could only look at the sunset in front of her. Her first sunset as a free woman. She had watched it since her first day in jail. The sunset had been her companion since that time. Every night, she had stared at it, promising herself that one day, she would look outside the bars of her cell. She was now and she was enjoying every second of it.
She was still looking at it when she felt Buffy take her hand to her mouth to kiss it as she had done countless times on the road, a gesture they seemed to do quite often since her release. And, like the countless other times, she felt the blush come to her cheeks. The brunette wasn’t used to be the centre of so many attentions and she still felt a bit awkward when Buffy did such things. But she wasn’t gonna complain because it felt damn good too.
Seeing Buffy’s lips on her hand, she remembered the last moment she had felt them on her lips, on her neck, on her throat. It was right after they had left the restaurant. She had just climbed in the car when Buffy had literally assaulted her, crushing her sexy lips on hers as if there wouldn’t be any tomorrow. She had quickly returned the kiss with an equal passion. Then, slowly, she had felt the petite Slayer’s mouth made its way on the neck, kissing, nibbling it while her hot breath was sending shivers inside the brunette’s body. Their hands hadn’t remained inactive either…
When they had broken the embrace, they had had a hard time recovering their senses. The passion, the arousal that were theirs at that moment were so intense that she still wondered how they had been able to prevent themselves to tear their clothes apart. They had stayed in each other’s arms for a while before she had heard Buffy say:
“God! I wish my car had tainted windows!”
The retort had made Faith giggle, something she seemed to do more and more often since she was with Buffy.
“Got naughty ideas, B?”
The blonde smiled before replying: “Your fault! You got me so hot with your tongue and mouth on my fingers…nobody has ever did something so erotic, so hot with me!”
“If that makes you wet, just imagine what…”
Faith didn’t have the time to reply; Buffy’s lips were indeed back on hers. The kiss equalled the previous one and they were soon trying to catch their breath back again. Between two heavy breath, Buffy managed to say in her most sensuous voice.
“You’ll have…to…show me!…later…tonight!”
Then, after a last kiss, Buffy had started the engine and they had left LA to Sunnydale. And now, Faith was wondering who was the most impatient. She or Buffy? She didn’t know, couldn’t know but she wished they were tonight already.
While they were passing near the University, Faith, whose hand was free from Buffy’s grip now, put it on her girlfriend’s cheek, caressing the sweet and silky skin with the back of it. The brunette felt so good at that moment that she finally found the courage to say to Buffy words she had never said to anyone and never would have thought saying one day. Words that implied so much things, words that would let her completely open, defenceless in front of Buffy. Words that she understood the meaning for the first time in her life. Words she wanted to say with all her soul now.
“I love you!”
Buffy nearly lost control of her car when she heard these words. Her heart was beating like hell in her chest. These three words had awaken so many emotions in her and she could feel her tears beginning to fall on her cheeks. It was the first time that Faith had said these words to her, the first time she had expressed her feelings with words and it meant so much to Buffy. She knew that Faith wasn’t comfortable with her feelings, knew that all her life, the brunette had considered them as weaknesses. Hearing her say these words implied how deep she was feeling for her, how much she counted for her and it only made her love this woman more.
She stopped the car out of the traffic, looked at her girlfriend who was crying too. She wanted to say something but the emotion was so strong that she couldn’t find the words. All she could do was stare lovingly to her lover and hear her say:
“I know, it sounds silly but…”
“No, no! There is nothing silly about what you’ve said…it was beautiful! Earlier, you told me that this day had been perfect from the moment you saw me at the gates and if you had asked me then, I would have agreed…I just couldn’t imagine something that could make this day even more ideal…I was wrong! Now, it is perfect! I love you, Faith! With all my heart, all my soul…I’ve never loved someone as deeply as I love you!”
There was nothing to add and, after a last smile to Faith, Buffy started the engine again.
Thirty minutes later, Buffy parked her car in front of her house. They quietly exited the vehicle and, hand in hand, walked to the front door. They had barely reached it that it opened, revealing a very calmed teenager who was looking at them shyly. Not really knowing what to do at that moment.
“Hey!”
“Hey sis!”
“Hey D!”
Faith looked at Dawn a bit ashamed herself too. What could she say to the younger Summers? She was her girlfriend’s sister after all and she had always liked the kid. Well, a compliment was a good start, wasn’t it? Especially if the things she said were true.
“Thanks, D! My god, look at you! You’re a pretty thing now! I’m sure all the boys are drooling on your ass when you…aouch!”
Faith turned to look at her girlfriend who had just playfully slapped her in the back of the head.
“What was that for?”
“That’s my kid sister you’re talking about! No guy is allowed to drool on her ass!”
“Ow, come on, B! You talk like a mother!”
“Well, I kinda am her mother! A young and sexy one, I agree but still, there are some thoughts I prefer to avoid.”
Faith just nodded her head approvingly. It was probably the big sister syndrome and she had no clue about how to deal with it. She also felt better now and seeing the big smile she was receiving from Dawn, the awkward moment between the two of them was over. She winked at Dawn then followed the Summers sisters inside the house, taking Buffy’s hand in her own again as she had dropped it while she had talked to Dawn.
They quickly went to the living room where Willow and Xander were sitting. The witch gave a bright smile to Faith before standing up and hugging her. For someone who didn’t like the display of emotions, the day had surely been full of them. And somehow, she started to like it…even if she would never admit it to anyone but Buffy. Because with Buffy, she just couldn’t avoid it. When Willow broke the embrace, she gave another smile to Faith then said:
“So, Faith! How does it feel to be free again?”
“Less claustrophobic!”
“I bet it is!”
“What took you so long guys?” Dawn asked teasingly, the tone in her voice proving it.
“I took her for a long and romantic meal!”
“Yeah and I particularly enjoyed the desert!” Faith said while looking at Buffy, waiting for the blush that came quickly after the remark. It was probably not the more subtle thing to say and the others would probably imagine things but she didn’t care…and, once more, was looking forward for tonight. She broke the stare when she heard Xander clearing his throat. She then look at him, waiting for the tirade. She had already guessed that Xander would be the hardest to convince she had changed.
“Faith! I wish I could be as enthusiastic as the others but I’m not! Frankly, if it was just for me, I wouldn’t give you another chance.”
“Xander!” Buffy began to say, ice in her voice, but was soon cut off by Faith.
“No, B! Let him continue. He is right! After what I did to you all, it’s all I deserve.”
“But you’ve changed! I saw it, Willow too and Dawn…”
“You and Red have been with me for more than a month! Xander hasn’t. Don’t listen to them, Xander! Continue!”
The young man was a bit surprised that Faith was actually defending him against her girlfriend…Positively surprised. He didn’t show any sign of it though and said:
“As I was saying, I don’t trust you…but for Buffy, I’ll give you this second chance. Don’t screw it up, Faith!”
Faith just nodded in replying: “I won’t, Xander! I’ve got too much to loose!” The last part of her sentence was said in looking directly to Buffy who felt her anger vanish, soon replace by another point of happiness.
Deciding that it was the time to change the subject, Willow grabbed the book she had studied during the afternoon and showed it to the Slayers.
“Look what I’ve found!”
“The Prophecies?”
“How?”
“Wasn’t difficult. I remembered having seen it in our stock! Why don’t we sit down, have a drink and discuss about it.”
“OK, guys! Let’s have a drink, some snacks and we’ll talk about it!” After saying this, Buffy went to the kitchen followed by Dawn while Faith decided to sit next to Willow and wait for her girlfriend’s return.
Once the Summers sisters back with food and drinks, Willow waited for them to sit down; noticed that Buffy had, of course, chosen to sit on Faith’s lap then, began her speech.
“OK! First of all, you have to know that last of Talgon’s prophecies happened 60 years ago or was supposed to happen as I’ve found nothing about this event. So, I have absolutely no clue about why this book seems so important in this time loop saga!”
“It doesn’t mean that this event couldn’t have repercussions today, right?”
“Right, Dawnie, good point for you.”
“And what happened sixty years ago, Red?”
“Well, it’s not precise but the Prophecy mentioned the rise of the Primal Chaos Avatar!”
“So, big bad, bad day, bloodbath, any other bpocalyptic word we should worry about before the trip, Will?”
“I won’t say that the avatar is bad, Buff. Now, when we usually use chaos in a sentence, it means something bad but, this is the Primal Chaos we are talking about. It has no conscience of good or evil, it just acts, outside the laws of nature. According to some beliefs, it is thanks to this Primal Chaos that we’re here today.”
“Okay, okay! We got it, Red! But correct me if I’m wrong, I don’t think we’ve heard about this bloody Primal Chaos since its rising, right?”
“Who knows? Maybe it has already changed something in the past, maybe it is waiting for the right time to strike, maybe it had been defeated since then, maybe it is trying to help, I just don’t know!”
At that moment, Buffy sighed and said: “So, we don’t know much more!”
Willow’s smile widened when she replied: “If we had just the book at disposal, no! But we have a whole library and your past time loops to work with and even if the Prophecy isn’t that clear, it gives us a place. According to it, the rising had happened in Europe.”
“Erm, Will, Europe is still a big place!”
“I know, Xand! I know! If you let me finish, I’ll explain what I did with this information.”
Xander raised his hands in a gesture of surrender, mouthed a sorry to his friend then, imitated the others and listened to the witch.
“As I knew the approximate date of the rising and a geographical location too, I checked the Watcher’s diaries of this period. During their time loops, Buffy and Faith had seen the “Prophecies” twice, so it seems logical to me that there was a chance that another Slayer had been around when the rising occurred. There were two Slayers in 1943. The first one was a Danish girl, another was called when she died, she was Anglo-German. There was nothing unusual in the first diary but I found something odd in the second one.”
“Odd how? Come on, Will, stop the theatrical pause and tell us!”
Willow grinned to Buffy’s comment and continued: “You know how watchers are obsessed with details. They seem to put everything in their diaries. This watcher, Lothar Rüth, wasn’t different. There is a hole in the diary though. Two days are missing and I only see one reason that explains this hole. The Council or Rüth himself didn’t want to divulge what happened during these days.”
“And?”
“That’s all I’ve found about it! But if I’m right, your next journey would lead you to Berlin, in 1943!”
“Berlin! 1943! Weren’t we in war against the German at that time?”
“Yes, Faith! We were! It would be a dangerous time, Gestapo, SS, Hitler, etc…but I think we’ve already face much dangerous threat, haven’t we?”
“We? Why we? You don’t envisage to come with us, Will?” Buffy exclaimed.
“Why not?”
“Because it’s too dangerous!”
“I did come with you last time, didn’t I? And I’m still here!”
“You were almost sold as a slave, we fought demons etc…”
“So, what’s the difference with Sunnydale? It’s exactly what I do here!”
“Yeah but tonight…Well it’s “tonight”!”
“And?”
“We’d like some privacy tonight, Red!” Faith said, tightening her hold on Buffy’s waist. She knew that her girlfriend was probably red like 100 tomatoes now but, hell, she didn’t want to miss “tonight”. Selfish, yes but human too. So, if she had to explain her projects in details to have some time alone with Buffy, she surely would. She looked at the now wide eyes witch, noticed Dawn smirked and Xander stuttering before asking: “Anything else we need to know before the trip, Will?”
“Erm…not that I can think about now!” The witch replied shyly, still under the shock of Faith’s retort.
The brunette smiled at her then pushed Buffy away of the lap before lifting her up to take her in her hands like a young married men would do to her bride.
“OK, so, you won’t mind if I bring my girl upstairs?” And, without paying attention to the other’s reactions, she walked away, leading Buffy to the stairs. Yes, she was in love, yes, she wasn’t psycho anymore but, hell, she was still Faith and right now, all she wanted to do is making love to Buffy and no one or nothing would stop her.
Buffy was speechless! Since the moment Faith had told the others about the privacy thing, she had just watched and listened in disbelief. And when Faith had taken her in her arms, all she had been able to do was grin like a 2 years old kid in front of a giant candy. She wouldn’t have been as explicit as Faith but she didn’t mind, didn’t mind at all. She wanted Faith as much as the brunette wanted her. Her friends would understand. Noticing that she had been quite inactive during the last minutes, Buffy leaned forwards to kiss the dark Slayer, a kiss that made her girlfriend growl. She knew that the others could still see them and didn’t care. They were just expressing their love and it was soft…so no shame here.
She had never felt this aroused before. In fact, she had never felt this good before too. With Faith, everything seemed so intense, it was as if she was discovering the real meanings of love and passion. With Faith, she didn’t want to put a damper on what she was feeling, she wanted to show the world how wonderful the brunette was, how much they loved each other and the hell with the ones who could stand it. Even if she was thinking, Buffy hadn’t stopped kissing her girlfriend’s mouth or face. She was currently nibbling Faith’s ear before whispering:
“Bad, bad Faith! Look at what you did to them!”
Faith didn’t reply directly. Instead, she began to climb the stairs while nibbling her girlfriend’s ear too. When she reached the middle of the stairs, she managed to say: “At least, they would have something wicked cool to think about tonight, B…and who’s playing bad now, huh? Who is groping me noWWW?”
Buffy smirked when she heard Faith’s moan. She had just gently squeezed the brunette’s left breast and was really enjoying it.
“Stop talking, Faith! Hurry! I want you so bad that I won’t hold much longer!”
And Faith was all too happy to oblige.
The 10200 West Coast was one of the numerous goods train that crossed California and, even if it never stopped in Sunnydale, it passed through it on its way to Los Angeles. The 10200 West Coast was also one of these train tramps or stowaways frequently used to move from one city to another. This day, there was indeed a stowaway in the 10200 West Coast but, unusually for it, it wasn’t a human being.
Clovis had just opened the door of the compartment, breathing some fresh air after having been forced to stay locked with cows. The yellow skinned demon didn’t like to travel like this but sometimes, there was no choice. It couldn’t travel by either by car or plane. Goods train were its only option. Sometimes, it just regretted the good old days when travelling wasn’t that common and when the roads weren’t that crowded. That was one of the bad things when you were more than 700 years old, you had had time to gather lots of memories…and lots of nostalgia.
Clovis drove out of its thoughts and noticed that it was close to its terminus. Sunnydale, host of the hellmouth. It had heard about it, had heard about its potential, and the exploits of the Slayer who was in charge of it. She had vanquished lots of foes and had even come back from the death, twice. Not the kind of adversary you should underestimate.
But neither the Slayer, nor the Hellmouth, were the reasons of its presence in California. Let the light brains deal with these, its mistress had told it. No, Clovis was here to fulfill its mission and, as it had done for the last 600 years, it would succeed in it. Clovis waited that the train slowed down, then jumped and landed on its feet, effortlessly. It walked away for the railroad then took a box in its pocket.
“Okay, sweet babies. Let’s get to work.”
The demon opened the box and soon, hundreds of fireflies flew away from it, under the appreciative glance of Clovis.
“Find your target, sugars and do what you’ve been trained to do.”
And, with a last smile, it followed them.
The two Slayers woke up in the exact same time and, the first thing they noticed was that they were still in each other’s arms. Their lips curved lightly to form similar smiles on their faces. The last night had been amazing. None of them had ever imagined it could be that good. Sure, sex had always been a very pleasurable thing for the both of them but the previous night, it wasn’t only their bodies that had made love together, no, it was their souls too. It was as if they had melted into each other and the passion and pleasure they had brought to each other had been so intense that they couldn’t find words to express it. The previous night, they had discovered the difference between making love to someone with whom one feel good with and making love to someone who was destined to be loved by one.
Buffy, whose head was resting on Faith’s shoulder raised her head to look at her beautiful girlfriend. She could still feel the places where the brunette had kissed, touched, licked her places that covered her whole body in fact. If she listened to herself, she wouldn’t shower, ever, to keep this feeling forever. Gross, yeah but she didn’t care?
Faith had kept her eyes shut, enjoying the moment. She too was reviving the previous night, savouring every second of it. She was happy, felt whole and for the first time of her life, felt home in this splendid woman’ arms. She finally opened her eyes and locked them into her girlfriend’s emerald ones.
“Hey, B!”
“Hey! How is my sexy and very naked girlfriend doing this morning?” She asked with her most sensuous voice.
“Couldn’t be better! I have this gorgeous babe in my arms, what else could I ask for?” Faith replied, with an as sensuous tone.
They both noticed that they weren’t speaking in English but in German but didn’t say anything about it. They already knew that they weren’t in Sunnydale anymore, that they had time looped again and, if Willow, had been right, that they should be in Berlin now but it wasn’t the time to think about it, in fact, all they could think about at that moment, was how good, yummy the other looked.
“Well, this babe could do some…things I know you’d like…”
“Things like this?” And, while saying it, Faith leaned forward to take Buffy’s lips with hers, giving her girlfriend her first kiss of the day. The kiss began sweet and gentle but soon increased in intensity. Buffy had moved on top of Faith now and was responding with equal passion to the kiss. Their hands or rather, their fingertips were caressing their bodies, sending shivers down their spines. It was so good to love and being loved. They finally broke the kiss but never looked away from the other’s eyes. Their hands were still at work and it felt damn good.
“If…you continue that…way, B! We’ll spend the…whole journey here…in this bed.”
“Is…this a problem?” The blonde replied with sparky eyes.
“No cauz I’m as bad as you!” The brunette replied, her most sexy grin on her face.
“Wanna me to spank you for being bad, F?”
“Kinky much, B?”
“Softly! But I’ll tell you later…now, I have other plans in my mind!” Buffy had just finished her sentence that she felt Faith’s hand on the back of her neck, pushing her towards her lips that the petite Slayer was just too happy to meet with hers.
The colonel Uwe Bhass was analysing the last reports he had received from the African front. Since the beginning of the year, the enemy had won battle after battle up there and Hitler and the other VIP’s of the Third Reich didn’t like it at all. Bhass smiled in reading this. Hitler and his peers were just fools too blinded by their own thirst of power to really see what they had put their hands into.
He was sitting on a sofa, in his office based on the last floor of his manor, in Berlin. He had just come back from a meeting with Hitler himself. This small dictator with his tin moustache was perhaps the terror of the civilised world but Bhass didn’t fear him. In fact, it was rather the contrary. He knew that Hitler feared him and the Thulé. They were his allies, yes, but also his worst nightmare.
Bhass looked at the clock and noticed that it was time for him to make his report to his superior, the Lorelei. So, he stood up and began to undress himself. Slowly folding his clothes on a chair. When he was completely naked, he moved towards the window and opened it. Then, without even thinking about what he was doing, he jumped and transformed himself into a hawk, a fierce and proud bird as he used to describe it.
He liked it when he was a hawk. It was for him an experience of pure freedom. Being able to ride the air, to go wherever he wanted to, without borders or barricades as there were nothing like that in the air. The pride he had of being one of the rare human who had been judged worthy to learn the “Ways of the sky”, was higher than ever. He was the Hawk of the Thulé, their emissary in the Third Reich, the contact between them and the Fuhrer.
He was flying between the buildings of Berlin, avoiding them at the last moment, to feel this rush of adrenaline he liked so much. Then, he finally spotted his destination, a splendid villa in the richest district of Berlin. He made his way towards the window he knew would be open and entered, turning back human again. The yellow skinned demon, Clovis, was waiting for him, as it usually do, a dressing gown in its hand. Bhass took the gown then followed the demon to the Lorelei’s room.
Bhass didn’t know the Lorelei’s real name. All he knew about her was that she probably was one of the most amazing women he had ever met. She was gorgeous and her voice was hypnotizing. She was also her superior, the Thulé’s envoy in Berlin and he had to obey her without hesitation or second thinking. Those were the ways of the Thulé. When the door of the bedroom opened, he quickly drop on his knees.
“I’m honoured to see you again, Lorelei!”
The tanned woman he had in front of him smiled to him. She was wearing a silky white nightdress that made her skin stand out thanks to the light of the candles that were everywhere in the room. The curtains were indeed closed as it had always been the case when Bhass had visited her.
“Stand up, Uwe!”
The man obeyed to this magnificent voice and waited for the woman’s next words.
“So, how is it going?”
“Hitler asks for our help again. The situation in Africa is going from bad to worse. I told him I’ll see what we could do!”
“Good! We’ll do nothing but as long as he believes we will, he’s gonna eat in our hands as he has always done since we brought him where he is now.”
“Don’t you fear that, one day, he would rebel?”
“Hitler is too superstitious. He really believes that his destiny lies with ours. He wants power, we helped him reach it. He has never asked us to help him to keep it.”
“You’re right, of course but, there are other influential people in the Third Reich, people who have his ears too. They could be a danger!”
“We have Hitler into our thrall, Uwe as well as some of the influential men you’ve just talked about. You know since the beginning that this government, the mighty Third Reich was doomed in the short term. You know that the Thulé agreed to help him only to have access to some knowledge his conquests would bring to us, to make experience that could only be done under a dictatorial government. The ones who are gathering real power here are us, not this ridiculous sauerkraut dictator! We’ll suck on the Reich as long as it is useful, then, we’ll drop it!”
Husa paused a moment then asked: “Enough with that now! How is my sweet surrogate mother?”
“The delivery will happen soon, Madam! Afterwards, it will be all yours!”
“And the party you’re hosting tonight? You know how I feel about it!”
“I tried to cancel it but can’t. The Big Shots really want to party. Himmler thinks that it would be a good way to show the officers that they have nothing to worry about. That, even if the German army had had some defeats lately, it will take the lands it has lost back.”
“Couldn’t you simply say that it was a PR party? This propaganda bullshit makes me sick. You shouldn’t listen too long to this crap, Uwe.”
The man lowered his eyes as a kid who feared his parent’s wrath.
“I…I’m sorry! They didn’t want to change the place either. I shouldn’t have chosen one of the biggest building in Berlin to live in.”
“Now, it’s too late to whine, Uwe!”
Searching a way to change the topic of the conversation, Bhass asked: “Back to the mother, do you want me to move her elsewhere?”
Husa seemed to ponder this possibility then shook her head.
“During my existence, I learned that changing plans often leads to disasters. Double the guards and check up on her regularly.”
“Yes, Madam!”
“You can also count me in for tonight!”
“Tonight?” Bhass was surprised by what he had just heard. Since he had arrived in Berlin, five years before, he had never seen The Lorelei attend a party or whatever manifestation in the city.”
“Yes, tonight…and tomorrow. I’m moving in at your place, Uwe.”
“My…my place?”
“You’ve just told me that the delivery was expected soon, right?”
The soldier nodded.
“I wouldn’t miss it for an empire! And remember, no other woman will be allowed around her when she’ll produce it! Is that clear?”
“Yes, Madam, it’s clear!”
“Good boy! Now, get back to your place. You have a party to prepare.”
“Yes madam!” And, after a last reverence, he left the room.
Clovis didn’t follow him. The demon moved towards his mistress and said:
“I’m still astonished about how easy it is!”
“Men listen to my voice and couldn’t resist it, my dear! You should be accustomed by it now.”
“Do I have to begin to pack our stuff, my lady?”
Husa smiled at her servant and nodded. The demon knew her so well that it seemed to read her mind sometimes. Like now! She watched it leave the room. Her perfect minion, the only being on Earth she really trusted. Then, her thoughts were back on the upcoming event. After so many centuries, she would finally reach her objective. After so many years of waiting, her ultimate weapon will come soon.
The two Slayers were in the same position than the one they had when they had awakened. Faith laying on her back with Buffy’s head on her shoulder, the blonde’s chin being near her left breast. Their minds were both gliding in this stoned world their lovemaking had sent them to, feeling the joyful dizziness brought by ecstasy and none of them wanted to come back to the real world, or at least, this reality, too focused on last weeks events, on those that had made them discover the love that was theirs.
“Penny for your thoughts!” Buffy asked, seeing the brunette in deep thoughts.
“I was just thinking about fate!”
“Fate? Going philosophical?”
Faith chuckled, widened her eyes in horror and vigorously shook her head in denial which made Buffy giggle soon followed by her girlfriend.
“No! I was thinking about the previous time loops!”
“And?”
“We’re sent to our past lives, right?”
“Huhu.”
“And the past Buffys and Faiths seem to do the reincarnation gig at the same time, right?”
“Again huhu!”
“Do you think we are meant to be together? I mean what were the chances for “us” to reincarnate and meet in Babylon, Carcassone, Tortuga and now Berlin?”
Buffy took a minute to think about what Faith had told her. Sure, as they were sent to their past lives, it was normal for them to band together…but it was true too that they were already in the same regions when it had happened. In Babylon, Nazra (Faith), the Slayer, had been on her way to meet her new watcher who had been Rana (Buffy)’s father. In Carcassone, they had been sisters. In Tortuga, Angelique (Buffy) had escaped the day Demona (Faith) had come back from her last raid and now, in Berlin, they were obviously real close, waking up naked in each other’s arms. Yes, Faith could be right! Then, something hit her?
“When you say together…you really mean together cause if that was the case, there is a big ewwwww in Carcassone.”
Faith giggled at the remark and it was music to Buffy’s ears. It was so rare that she let herself go like that.
“If you want to see things like that, I would say possible for our Babylonian gals, join you in the ewww department for the Baulieu sisters, add bondage and SM for our pirates friends and end with wicked hot couple for Berlin. Seriously, B! What I meant was: could it be possible that all of them could love each other, in a dirty of sisterly way?”
“I don’t know! It’s possible and frankly, all I care about is us, us in love in a romantic way, us in love in a tender way, us in love in a dirty way…”
“Hum! I like the way you think, B!” Faith said, her hands now beginning to caress Buffy’s back again.
“Faith, stop!”
Faith grinned and looked to the blond Slayer in her arms. “You really want me to stop, B?”
Buffy pouted and replied : “No! If I could, I would stay like this the whole day and you know that but, we are also here for a purpose. Remember Primal Chaos Avatar?”
“Don’t think about it, B! There is nothing to worry about. The mission will come to us. It has always been the case in the other time loops. Besides, it couldn’t work otherwise, we don’t know shit about this town!”
Buffy smiled came back. Yes, Faith was right! In Babylon, Sidouf had organised a meeting with Nebuchadnezzar where Faith almost died…and that led them to the priest of Baal. In Carcassone, the burning of heretics had been the key that helped them figure out what their mission was. In Tortuga, Gawain had come to them with his mission. They had never had to search for their missions, they had come to them. Relieved, Buffy let herself appreciate the caresses on her back then, slowly, she kissed Faith’s shoulders then moved on top of her to give her a deep kiss that made the brunette moan and, at that time the only door of the room opened.
“Girls, are you ready to...oh, Goodness, sorry!”
The man who had just entered the room was blond, tall and wearing a tailor made suit. He had small spectacles on his nose and had become full red when he had noticed where the Slayers were and what they were doing. He quickly made a u-turn and exited the room saying: “I…I’ll wait outside for you to be ready. I have important things to tell you. How…how long would you need to get ready?”
“Twenty minutes” Buffy replied without thinking, anger and frustration noticeable in her voice.
“Good! I’ll come back in twenty minutes.”
Once the man out, Faith sighed heavily and said: “God, sometimes I hate being right!”
“Yep, sometimes I hate you to be right either!” Buffy said in a teasing tone while sitting on Faith’s. When the petite Slayer saw the look in her girlfriend’s eyes, she knew that she was in trouble for saying it and she was right. Soon, Faith’s pillow connected with her face and she lost her balance. Then, she felt Faith move on top of her and the brunette began to tickle her. Soon, tears in her eyes, Buffy begged for mercy. She felt Faith stop the tickling then welcomed the dark Slayer’s lips on hers for a short kiss that sent them shivers down their spines. Then, Faith moved away from Buffy, letting the petite Slayer exit the bed. She was frustrated but her frustration quickly disappeared, replaced by the satisfaction she had of the sight that was in front of her. A naked Buffy moving in the room. Definitely yummy. She licked her lips, a move that didn’t go unnoticed by Buffy who blushed a little.
“No no no! No time for this, we have to shower!”
“Mind if I join you?”
A wicked smile on her lips, Buffy replied: “Well, the timing I gave…erm…him was rather short…twenty minutes…we won’t be able to be ready if we take separate showers.”
That was all that the brunette wanted. She jumped out of her bed, took the hand Buffy was extending to her and the two Slayers rushed to the bathroom.
Romy Schwanz watched as her assistants were bathing the rhinoceros. The animal had just suffered from a rare flu and they needed to bathe it to purify its skin and purge it from any germs that could have remained. It was her who usually did it but she couldn’t anymore. Not with a belly that looked like a soccer ball.
She signed to the nurse that was pushing her wheelchair and the two of them began to inspect the other residents of Uwe Bhass personal zoo. She had already told Bhass that she didn’t need a nurse, that she felt just fine but her boss had insisted and she had finally agreed. After all, she owed so much the guy.
When she had come to Berlin, following her fiancé to the capital of the Third Reich, she hadn’t wanted to stay at home like an ordinary housewife. She wasn’t that kind of person, she had already had a hard time convincing her parents to let her become a veterinary, it wasn’t to stay at home, raising their future kids. The problem was that no one seemed to trust a woman to take care of their animals and during 6 long months, she had gone from disappointment to disappointment and it was with little hope that she had come to this place, had met Uwe Bhass who had just moved in Berlin, bringing with him his zoo. And, to Romy’s surprise, he had hired her and she was grateful for that.
She had thought that it was the beginning of a new life, that everything would be good for her husband and her. But nothing was eternal, and, soon, the war had come, sending her husband away, sending her husband to the battlefields. Seven months before, he had been killed in a fight against some rebels, leaving her alone with her expected child who would never know his father.
She was angry but not with the one that had killed him. No, she was angry with Hitler and this Third Reich. They seemed completely oblivious of the German’s sufferings. They seemed completely lost in their delusions of grandeur. She hated them and their xenophobic propaganda.
It was also the reason why she hadn’t trusted Bhass at first. He worked closely to these guys but, as time flew by, she had had to admit that he had always been a gentleman with her. When he had heard about her husband’s death and the coming of the child, he had proposed her to live in the lodge he had in his garden. Knowing that she wouldn’t been able to pay her rent without her husband’s pay, she had accepted the offer. At first, she had feared that he had some hidden ideas behind this proposal but she had been wrong, nothing had changed between them. And now, she would soon deliver her baby.
She signed the nurse to stop in front of a cage then, stood up and slowly entered it. Freya was there. The 4 years old baboon was waiting for her. It was her favourite pet, she had seen her birth, had seen her mother die during the delivery and had feed Freya in its place. Since that time, they had developed a unique relationship and she was the only one Freya would let approach her without trouble. There was a link between them, a kind of friendship if something like that could be applied to explain the link she had with the animal. She saw it come to her and put its hand on her belly. It had become a ritual, every morning she came inside the cage and spent a couple of minutes with the animal’s hand on the place where her child was growing. It had been like this since Freya had discovered Romy was pregnant, even before the veterinary had known her condition. And, strangely, the young woman felt calmer after this ritual. It was strange, weird but she indeed felt better.
Thirty minutes, Lothar had been waiting for the girls for thirty minutes. Sometimes he wished he could turn back time and prevent their meeting. It had been so much easier when he had to worry about the Slayer only. But now, with these two lovebirds, who were worse than bunnies, who couldn’t control their needs, his hair were becoming wither with each passing day.
He was about to lose control and enter in the room again when the door was finally opened, it was his Slayer who invited him in. He quickly entered and said:
“About that time! I suppose I don’t have to ask you what took you so long?”
The two women looked at one another and blushed lightly.
“That’s what I thought. Anyway, are you ready for business talks now?”
They nodded, knowing by experience that when confronted to time loops, they have to listen first, talk later.
“OK! The recital will begin at 9 P.M. It’s an easy program, partitions you know by heart so we won’t need any rehearsal. That’s a good point because our program is quite full for the day with dresses to find, weapons to hide, etc…etc…That was the reason I asked you to join me early this morning but as usual, you never listen to good old Lothar_”
The Slayers didn’t caught the sarcastic remark of Lothar. When they had heard the word recital, the Slayers had looked at each other questioningly. What the hell was that about? Buffy was the quickest to react.
“Erm, when you said an easy program…”
“Four symphonies from Wagner! You know how Hitler and his assistants love the ones he wrote based on German legends. Be sure your violins are well tuned and everything will be alright.”
The two slayers felt similar lumps in their throats. Violinists, they were violinists and they were supposed to play for the nazi big board the same night! They didn’t like the idea, didn’t like it at all.
“OK, back to the mission! Ingrid!” While saying it, Lothar looked at Buffy. The blonde smiled at him encouragingly, glad to know the name she had in this period.
“The man ritually slaughtered we found yesterday, he had symbols carved with a knife on his abdomen, remember?”
“How could I not?” Buffy replied convincingly.
“I was right, one of these symbols was indeed the one of the Thulé! You know that they have helped Hitler since he became chancellor. The blood we found in the place proves that they are working with them and if they have performed a ritual, it could only mean that they are up to something…something big. We don’t know much about the Thulé but we do know who is their contact in Hitler’s entourage. And guess what?”
“What?” Said both Slayers at that moment. There was no doubt this guy worked for the Council. He had the watcher’s ability to get on their nerves with light speed.
“He is the one who owns the manor where tonight’s party will take place. Uwe Bhass is his name. So, this mission we’ve originally planed for Hannah becomes double. Ingrid, tonight you will try to find as much data as possible on the Thulé and its plans while Hannah’s mission won’t change: find information about the German’s positions in North Africa and their strategy changes further to their recent defeats there. I don’t have to remind you how important it is for the Allies, Hannah! The Intelligence Service really needs this information. Questions?”
The women in front of him remained silent, trying to digest what the watcher had just told them. Hearing no question, the man stood up and walked to the door. Before leaving the room, he added:
“OK, I’ll be in my room. Dinner in an hour and don’t be late! Now, it’s time for work.”
Once the door was closed, the two girlfriends stared at each other for a long time, their minds still analysing what had been told to them. Faith who was sitting on the bottom of the bed, let herself fall backward on it then exclaimed:
“That’s fucking great!”
“Oh yeah! Violinists, I don’t even know how to pinch chords, well, except in bows or crossbows!”
“Not that, silly! I was talking about the dress!”
“What?” Buffy said with a giggle.
“I just don’t like it, I’ve never felt comfortable in a dress. It’s just not my style! Have you ever seen me in a dress, B?”
“No! In a skirt, once but no dress!”
“Skirts are different! I’m not a fan but as long as they’re not too long, I can move as if I was in pants. So, no complaints here.” While she was saying this, Faith raised her body to rest on her elbows and looked at Buffy who was now trembling, her right hand on her mouth and then, she exploded, burst into laugh. Completely surprised by the sight of her girlfriend laughing her ass off, she asked slightly irritated: “What’s so funny?”
Buffy managed to control herself a little and answered: “Us…having fashion talks…that’s something I would never have imagined.” And then, she began to laugh again. Now knowing why the petite Slayer had so much fun, Faith could see the irony of the situation and soon joined her girlfriend into laughs. A few minutes later, when they had recovered their breaths Buffy said:
“Oh God! It’s been a while since I laughed that much!”
“Yes, for me too!”
“So, you’re not afraid about the recital thing?”
Faith smiled, yes, she had been afraid about it at first but then, she had remembered something she had discovered during their last time loop. She sat on the bed, then said:
“Hey, I’d probably have a bunch of butterflies in my stomach but that’s standard procedure for artists. So, no not really!”
“FAITH! We have never played violins!”
Faith didn’t answer, she just grinned at her girlfriend then scanned the room, quickly spotted what she was looking for, stood up and went to grab it. It was a box, the kind that was used to transport violins. She opened it, took the violin and the bow then put the instrument under her chin and began to play.
Buffy couldn’t believe what she was seeing, what she was hearing. Faith was playing violin like a pro. It was beautiful and she looked so pretty while doing it, so cute with the frown of concentration on her face. The brunette played for a minute then stopped with a wicked smile on her lips.
“Faith! That was beautiful! You never told me…(at that moment, the brunette handed her the instrument) What? No, I can’t…I don’t know how…”
“Try it, B! Trust me!”
The confidence in Faith’s voice and the love that Buffy was seeing in her eyes convinced her to give it a try. She grabbed the instrument, took the position, and began to slide the bow on the chords and, to her own surprise, she saw her fingers move with the notes, her brain knowing them by heart. She was playing violin too, effortless as if she had played it for years. She stopped and looked at Faith, amazed.
“Did you really think, we’d be dropped here without tricks? I never knew a damn thing about sailing but since Tortuga, I can command a sailing ship like nobody else. I just guessed it was the same for violins and us. Looks like I’m right!”
“Ok, so, we won’t be ridiculous tonight! Good, I feel better now. I would feel even better with a kiss!” The blonde said while walking toward her girlfriend.
“God, B! You’re insatiable! I should be the one to take such initiative!”
“Why? Because you’re taller?”
“NO, because I’m James Bond in this reality. You’re just the girl who falls in my arms right before the credits.”
Buffy jumped on Faith, too happy to equal the score with the brunette regarding the tickling department. When Faith pleaded her to stop, they cuddled in each other’s arms.
“Remind me to never start a tickle match when I’m not the Slayer, B! No fair game here!”
“The big James Bond with boobs has found her superior?”
“Hey! I don’t have the gadgets he has!”
“True!”
“I have something he hasn’t though. A mighty girlfriend!”
“True bis!”
“Wow! Listen to you Miss blasé!”
After a last giggle, they remained silent, enjoying being in this position for the rest of the hour, then exited the room to join Lothar. The busy afternoon had just started.
When Romy woke up after a short afternoon nap, the first thing she did was to call her nurse in agitating the bell she had received from Bhass. She wanted to enjoy the rest of this sunny afternoon in the garden. She waited for her regular nurse but was surprised to see two men answering her “call”.
“W…what are you doing here? Where is Greta?” She asked them, suspiciously. They hadn’t the time to answer her questions. Indeed, at this moment, Uwe Bhass entered her room, giving her his best toothpaste seller smile.
“Don’t worry, Romy! They are professional male nurses!”
“But…why? Where is Greta?”
“I’ve sent her back home. I’m sorry, Romy, but this is standard procedure!”
“What do you mean by standard procedure? I don’t understand.”
“You know that some of the most important members of the Reich will attend the party tonight?”
“Yes!”
“There is a service in charge of their security! The men in charge are paid to be paranoiacs and only trust their guys. So, when I said that I had a friend living in the lodge, that she was pregnant and had a nurse taking care of her, they were a little sceptical. They agreed for you to stay but insisted that the medical staff that would keep an eye on you was theirs. I repeat, don’t worry, they are trained male nurses and there is an obstetrician in the living room. Just in case the baby decides to come tonight. I’m sorry if this is bothering you but I had no choice. It’s only for the night, I promise!”
Romy didn’t like the idea but also knew that she couldn’t change anything about it. Besides, she trusted Bhass. If there was an obstetrician in the lodge, what could she risk?
“OK! Do you think I can go out and relax a little in the garden?”
“Of course, as I said, they’re here to keep an eye on you, not to lock you inside your room.”
“Let’s go then!”
The men helped Romy to sit on the wheelchair then pushed her outside the room under the satisfied glance of Bhass. No women for the delivery had said the Lorelei…mission accomplished with no complain from the future mommy. Why did men always use violence when you could achieve the same results with words?
“Aouch! Watch out with your needle! And stop tightening this fucking dress like that! I need to breathe!”
Buffy couldn’t stop giggling and seeing the look Lothar had right now wasn’t helping her. She couldn’t see either Faith nor the tailor but she could easily imagine the picture of Faith wearing her dress while the tailor was making alterations to it…Since she had entered with the tailor in the cabin, the dark Slayer hadn’t stopped complaining…about the colours with her “Are you crazy? There is no damn chance you’d see me wear a something pinkish!”, about the length and her “Hello! I’m not a fucking nun! My skin needs air too!” and countless other retorts that weren’t for all ears. Buffy was almost pitying the poor girl locked in there with her girlfriend.
On the other hand, she was also impatient to see the brunette exit the cabin. What would she look like? What had she chosen? What the hell is taking so long? Those were three of the questions she kept repeating herself.
Taking her eyes away from the curtains that hid the inside of the cabin, she looked at Lothar who seemed both bored and nervous. The recital was due in less than 5 hours and he was surely wondering how long they would stay in this shop. They still had someone to visit and a bath to take before going to the manor when the recital would take place.
Buffy’s eyes came back on the curtains. She was more and more impatient to see Faith coming, her Faith in a dress. Sure, she had seen the brunette in a toga in Babylon or with a big and very covering dress in Carcassonne but this time, it was different. This time, Faith would wear a real dress, the “Designed to kill” kind of dress or what was the closest to this description in this period and she couldn’t wait to see it so, when the tailor appeared to open the curtains, she could hear her heart beating faster because of her impatience…and suddenly, her angel was there and Buffy could only stare at her, her mouth open in awe. God, she was gorgeous!
She was wearing a black dress (how surprising!) that ended right below her knees. She knew that it was quite daring for the period…but, once again, Faith and standard puritan procedure didn’t mix well. But the dress was shaping her body perfectly, showing enough to attract the attention but not enough to be labelled a slut! Refinement, sensuality and sobriety were the three words that came in the blonde’s mind when she first saw Faith. Faith who was looking at her sheepishly, waiting for her comments.
“S…so?”
“So what? You’re splendid, marvellous, gorgeous, perfect…looking delicious!” She said while approaching the brunette to whisper the last adjective in her ear. She was satisfied to see a wicked grin on the dark Slayer’s lips. Then, seriousness was back and Faith focused her attention on Lothar, asking him: “Good enough for you?” The watcher nodded and hadn’t the time to add something because Faith was already moving back to the cabin.
“OK! Perfect! Game over, Guys! Now, it’s time for me to quit this…thing for real clothes. The ones you feel free in.”
Buffy just shook her head while hearing it. She began wandering in the shop, picking some dresses she found interesting then, when Faith exited the cabin, wearing the pants she had found in their wardrobe in the hotel room, she took her place, brushing the brunette’s hand in her way. No public display of affection Lothar had said…at least, no visible public display of affection, they had concluded.
Buffy had closed the curtains for a few minute only when Faith heard something behind a door that separated the room they were in from the actual shop. She knew that two other girls were working behind that door so, she shouldn’t have paid attention to this noise…normally. This time, her intuition told her that she should have a look behind that door. So, she slowly approached it, then carefully opened it. Before seeing anything, she heard a huge crash soon followed by other ones then, she froze for a minute in seeing a huge demon creature crashing everything on its way…and its way led to their room. The creature was green with a big mouth and very small eyes. But what was the most disturbing was the left part of its head…it was human. Knowing that she couldn’t do anything for the moment because she wasn’t a Slayer here, she shut the door and moved towards the curtains.
“B!”
“Busy, honey!” The reply came from the cabin.
At that moment, the demon crashed the door and entered the place.
“It’s kinda an emergency!”
In hearing both the crashing of the door and her girlfriend’s anxious tone, Buffy knew something was wrong. She had just put the purple dress she had chosen but hadn’t buttoned the higher part of it. she didn’t care though. The only thing that mattered was the her Faith was in danger so, she quickly opened the curtains and spotted the demon that had just came in. She didn’t have the time to analyse the situation further as the demon ran to the petite Slayer as soon as it had noticed her.
Without thinking, Buffy jumped on the floor to make a somersault, barely avoiding the demon’s claws. In the process, she heard a crack coming from the lower part of her dress and looked at it. There was a huge slit on its left part, starting from the end of the dress to her thigh. It was kaput now but the good point was that the blonde was now totally free to move as she wanted to.
Faith and Lothar were looking at the fight that had just started in front of them. They both could see the poor and terrorized tailor trying to hide herself behind the cabin curtains. They also quickly noticed that the fight could last a long time as the two opponents seemed of equal strengths. Turning to Faith, the watcher asked:
“Her weapons, where are her weapons?”
“Still in our hotel room!”
“What? You didn’t bring them with you?”
“Hello, Tweedman! I perfectly remember you telling us to let them there, that they wouldn’t be needed and could only attract unwanted people’s attention. You even give us a failed joke in adding something like “Unless you feared that the dresses would attack us”. Well, next time, remind me not to follow your silly advices, dumbass.”
The watcher didn’t answer the retort and looked away from Faith. The dark Slayer focused on the fight again to see Buffy’s sweaty face. The demon, on the other hand, didn’t seem to feel any kind of tiredness yet, which means that, unless Buffy quickly killed the monster, it would progressively have the upper hand in this fight…and it was something unacceptable for the brunette. She scanned the room again and this time spotted the old sewing machine that was standing in a corner…her eyes glued on the big needle that was on it…a needle that gave her an idea to help her girlfriend. Pushing the watcher rudely towards the machine, she yelled to Buffy right after reaching it.
“B! Bring it here!”
Buffy who was beginning to wonder how to kill the thing she was fighting against, heard Faith’s voice and gave a quick glance to her direction. She spotted the machine and the needle too and understood the plan. Focusing on the demon again, she redoubled her efforts, pushing it slowly towards Faith and Lothar.
Lothar who had also understood what Faith had in her mind. Without talking, they had began to push on the pedal bellow the machine like fanatics, making the needle move frantically thanks to it. Now, everything was between Buffy’s hands…and feet.
The petite blonde and the demon were very closed to the machine now. Buffy was waiting for the right moment that finally came when the beast tried to cut her throat open with its claws, putting too much excitement in it which gave Buffy an opening on its right side. Buffy didn’t hesitate and, putting all her strength in her move, she kicked the monster on the side, sending it towards the needle, head first. The next thing everyone heard in the room were flesh cutting and skull breaking sounds. Then, they saw that the demon’s head was now opened in two…vertically. They had won!
The two Slayers looked at each other, relieved to see that none of them was hurt.
“Well! Four down, three to go, Ingrid! I hope we could relax a little before the next one shows up!”
Buffy and Faith looked at him, puzzled but the watcher didn’t seem to notice. He was already on his way to join the tailor. Three to go? Did that mean that there were three other creatures like this lurking around?
Three hours later, Buffy was finishing drying herself after a long bath, her thoughts still on the events of the afternoon. She didn’t know what Lothar had told the tailor but, five minutes after she had killed the demon, she had come back with new dresses as if nothing had happened. 30 minutes later, the petite Slayer had an ocean blue dress ready for the recital. Then, after a quick stop in a dark alley where the watcher had met someone, they had been back at the hotel and Buffy had headed to the bathroom.
The blonde was clasping her bra when she heard the bathroom door open and saw Faith coming in. She extended her arms, inviting the brunette in an embrace then, a tender kiss.
“I hoped you’d join me in the bath.”
“I would have loved to but Mr. Killjoy didn’t want me to.”
“And since when do you listen to watchers?”
“Since they can’t keep their mouth shut and give me some very interesting info, my dear! Now, continue to dress. We only have 10 minutes before he gets nosy!”
Buffy nodded and, as she putting her dress on, Faith was slowly undressing herself. The two Slayers continued their talk but wicked glances were continuously cast to the other’s body.
“Ingrid has been called four months ago! Lothar is quite proud of her and is her watcher for 7 years now. They are based in Germany cause since the rise of the fucking nazis, it has become Evil Bastards Playground.”
“And I suppose the recitals are a good pretext to move in the country.”
“Yep! The band we play in has quite a rep here!”
“And you? I mean Hanna. You know…how did they end up together?”
“Three months ago, the British needed another agent working in Germany, Hannah. I don’t know what the links between the spies and the tweedy watchers are but they sent Hannah to play in Lothar’s band with Lothar as her contact.”
“I’m not surprised! These watcher guys have always been paying with everybody’s minds. They’re like occult spies.”
“Yep. Anyway. Between Ingrid and Hannah, it was a love at first sight thing. They met, they kissed, they screwed…not in the same night but pretty quick. Lothar still doesn’t know how to handle this.”
“Well, screw him! If they love each other…”
“Nah, it’s not the fact that they’re both girls that bothers him. You know watchers, B, their job comes first, they don’t know what a private life really is. I bet half of them haven’t scored yet! I’m sure they have a really firm wrist now!”
Buffy chuckled while finishing buttoning her dress. Faith, who had just threw her panties on the ground entered the bath.
“And what about the demon I fought this afternoon?”
“One of the first mission Ingrid had to accomplish was to prevent an asshole to become the host of a very unsympathetic demon.”
“An Ascension?” Buffy chastised herself as soon as the words had escaped her lips. The Ascension reminded her of the Mayor and she was sure that it would bring back bad memories to her girlfriend. But Faith didn’t seem to be affected by it and she continued.
“Not really! According to Lothar, it was like a prelude to the Ascension. The demon would possess the host’s body but would only have a limited access to its power. So, the Ascension is the logical next step.”
“OK! But why seven demons?”
“Ingrid stopped the ritual! The host exploded in seven different parts. Normally, Lothar would have call it the end and they would have partied to celebrate…but the demon chose to screw the party idea up in possessing the seven parts and that’s the gross part of the tale. From each part, the demon grew a body and that’s the reason why that demon’s face was half-human.”
“OK! I think I get it! The demon is mad at them and follow them through the country.”
“Correct! Seven minus four means that there are still three of them chasing Ingrid and Lothar.”
"OK so, Primal Evil, Nazis, Spies and a vendetta! This time loop is getting more and more interesting."
“Well, it has its good sides!”
They shared a smile then, Buffy walked to Faith, leaned forward to give her a quick kiss and whispered in her ear before exiting the room.
“Next time, I will soap down your body.”
A wicked grin appeared on the brunette’s lips while she was watching the blonde leave the room.
Sitting in her chair in the garden, her eyes closed, Romy was focusing her attention on the kicks the baby was giving in her belly. He or she wanted to go out, it was clear. Giggling at the thought that, really soon, she would hold her child in her arms, the veterinary watched cars and busses enter the manor.
It wasn’t the guests yet, just waitress, stewards, the catering service and the band that would play some classical music for the Nazis that would soon arrive. She didn’t want to see them coming, didn’t want to see the faces of her country’s master, the faces of the ones who were responsible of her husband’s death. Grabbing the bell, she shook it to call the male nurses. Tonight was about giving birth to her baby! She didn’t want these bastards to spoil the magnificent event. She signed the male nursed to lead her inside and they quickly obeyed.
“A manor! That’s great. No caves or ugly stinky dirty places for once.” Buffy stated. She and Faith were sitting in seats in the back of the bus, looking around the place. They had joined the other six members of the band thirty minutes earlier before stepping in the vehicle. It had been a bit awkward as they didn’t know anything about the others but, fortunately, the tight schedule had prevented them to make mistakes that would have blown their “cover” away. Thinking about what she had just thought made Buffy grin. A day in the world of espionage and she was already beginning to talk spy. Faith’s voice drove her back to the present time.
“B! Look!” The brunette was looking at something through the window.
“What, honey?”
“See the woman in the wheelchair, next to the tiny house?”
“The one the men are escorting inside?”
“Yes! It’s not clearly visible now but I’d swear she is knocked up and very round!”
“Really?” Buffy replied, understanding what Faith was implying. Tonight, if Willow had been right, The Primal Chaos Avatar would rise, come to Earth…what if it this baby was this Avatar? That seemed even confirmed by their past experiences in the time loops. The events had always led them where they had to act or witness something…and now, they were guiding them to this manor where a woman was pregnant, the night of this rising. Coincidences? Possible, but the blonde Slayer doubted it and seeing her girlfriend’s serious expression, she wasn’t the only one. Leaning forward, she whispered in Faith’s ear.
“I think we should find a way to look inside this lodge tonight!”
“You’re reading my mind, B!”
They watched as the woman was disappearing inside the lodge then, felt the bus stop. It was showtime.
At the edge of the forest, it had a perfect sight of the city of Berlin. It didn’t know the name though, its intelligence had indeed been split between the seven entities it had become when the Slayer and her watcher had interrupted the ritual. Now, the demon was only guided by its instinct and its instinct was telling him to find the Slayer, screaming for revenge.
It smelt the air and knew it had found her, knew that another part of it had already fought her and lost and this news only increased its anger, made its blood boil in its veins. Soon, it would feed on her. Focusing on the vibe the Slayer was sending, the demon ran to the city while the last rays of the sun were bathing it.
They were gathered on a stage, in the garden. The guests were now sitting on chairs waiting for the recital to begin. The musicians were ready and the Slayers were sitting on their chairs too, their partitions in front of them. Lothar was next to them, giving them his last instructions. He had just showed them who Uwe Bhass was and was now telling them the last details.
“OK! In 45 minutes, there will be a 20 minutes pause and as we have been told to leave the manor as soon as the recital would be over, you’d have to act at that moment. Play well and good luck, girls!”
They both nodded then, checked their instruments a last time while the watcher was moving away to direct the recital. Suddenly, Faith felt Buffy’s hand on her shoulder and heard her say:
“Faith! Third row! On the left side!”
The brunette looked at the direction her girlfriend had indicated her and gasped. She had no trouble in recognizing the woman who was sitting there.
“Husa!”
Romy listened to the music coming from the garden and relaxed a bit in hearing the sweet melodies played by the musicians. If she wasn’t so disgusted by the nazis, she would have probably asked Bhass if she could attend the recital. Then, she felt it, felt the baby move inside of her, felt the first contractions, felt it. She looked at her feet, instinctively, as if she wanted to have a visual confirmation of what she was feeling. Yes, her waters had just broken. Both exited and scared about the upcoming minutes, Romy took the bell and shook it like crazy.
The male nurses reacted quickly and, seeing what was happening, didn’t waste time and put her on a shaft. Romy let them lead her towards what she thought would be a hospital but soon realised that they weren’t planning to exit the lodge but were instead leading her to the basement. She wanted to yell at them, ask them what the fuck was going on but couldn’t, the contractions were more and more frequent now and it required a lot of energy to control the pain they were causing. When they reached the floor of the basement, Romy was pulled out of the shaft. She then felt the sensation of a cold stone when they laid her on a flat surface. She didn’t have the time to wonder what was going on as she heard someone coming, someone who wasn’t a male nurse. Raising her head to see who was coming, she could just stare at the man who was standing next to her, wearing a ceremonial dress and she understood, understood that she was doomed and so was her child…and the yellow skinned demon that suddenly appeared next to the man only reinforced this conviction.
They were playing for 30 minutes now and the Slayers were both amazed of how well they were playing violins. Secretly, they both hoped they would keep this skill when they would be back in Sunnydale because it was damn impressing and they both knew that their friends would be impressed.
They were beginning a new symphony when they saw Bhass speaking to one of the male nurses they had seen with the pregnant women when they had arrived to the manor. They continued to play but didn’t stop looking at them, knowing, feeling that something important was about to happen. Then, they saw the German colonel stand up and walk to Husa to whisper something into her ear. The vampire smiled then, it was her turn to stand up. They gave a last look toward the band before vanishing into the night, moving towards the lodge.
The two Slayers looked at each other, both knowing that they shouldn’t let them go like this, that they had to follow them, that stopping them was surely the reason they were here. The question was how could they follow them with all these soldiers around? How could they be discreet when following Husa and Bhass involved giving up playing a recital a hundred of people were attending…they continued to look at each other while their hands were continuing playing the symphony, trying to find a solution in their eyes. They both had already figured out that they needed a diversion but what diversion? They were stuck in the middle of a stage, playing violins! How could they organise a diversion in such a position?
Suddenly, they heard a big crash followed by screams. They stopped playing and followed the glances some guests were throwing behind them while others were running their ass away from the stage, screaming like possessed, scared as hell. What was happening?
Then, they saw it, coming right into their direction. Demon number five was running to them but was soon stopped by shots that were coming from the soldiers that were busy to empty their guns on the monster that changed direction to deal with them first. The Slayers could also see that other soldiers, coming from all the sides of the manor were also converging to the beast to help their colleagues. It was their chance and they knew it.
“For once, its timing doesn’t suck!” Faith said putting her violin back into its box.
“Yep! Soldiers busy, no one between us and the lodge. That’s what I call a diversion!”
They were ready to move when they saw Lothar coming to them.
“That’s our chance, Girls. Bhass’ office is in the last floor of the manor and…”
“We’re not going in the manor, Lothar.” Buffy said, cutting him off. Surprised, the watcher replied:
“What? But the orders!”
“We have no time to explain, Tweedboy! Just know something big is going on here. In the lodge. Do you trust us?”
Taken aback by the question, Lothar could just nod.
“Good! We’ll probably need some back up here! The nazis would want us at all costs so, we’d need a way out of the country. Could you arrange this, Lot?”
“Err, yes, I’d have to contact a few persons but…”
“Perfect! Do it! And don’t go back to the hotel. We’ll meet at the tailor’s shop. They wouldn’t wait for us there.”
“Yes but could I know…”
“Sorry, chap! Top secret! Just do what I told you. Explanations later! OK”
“OK but…”
Faith didn’t let him finish. she jumped out of the stage and, followed by a grinning Buffy, ran away to the lodge.
“What’s so funny, B!”
“I love when you do that!”
“Do what? Put a man’s balls into his mouth so he had to follow my lead?”
“When you take everything in charge! You’re wicked sexy when you act like this!”
“Well, you’re not that bad either when you do the same thing, B! Especially when it involves fighting a demon with an open dress that doesn’t hide much! I just wish I had had more time to take advantage of the view, you know!”
“Well, I can replay the whole scene for you, one day if you want.”
“And what would be the cost?” The brunette asked teasingly.
“No cost, honey! Besides, I had my own personal show seeing you strip for bath this afternoon.”
They both exchanged a last grin before reaching the lodge. They remained silent, entirely focused on their surroundings, in full Slayer mode. It wasn’t the time for banters or games anymore. this time, they were entering the lion’s mouth.
Wolfgang Trüer was excited. In fact, he had never felt this kind of excitation before, even when he had been accepted amongst the Thulé. Sure, this acceptation was recent and he had not witnessed much so far but still, somehow, deep inside of him, he knew that the events that were occurring in the basement would change the face of the earth. And, he would have a full view of it. After all, if the mythic Lorelei, one of the three founders of the Thulé, was present here, it had to be something big.
A loud bang at the door brought him back to present time. He quickly looked at the man who was on guard with him and saw him shrug. Their instructions were clear. They weren’t allowed to let anyone enter the lodge. So, Wolfgang decided not to move, hoping that whoever was knocking at the door would soon give up.
Two minutes passed and the bangs were becoming louder and louder, getting on both guards nerves. Finally, they couldn’t support it any longer and, after a last glance to his peer, Wolfgang moved to the door and opened it quickly then, pointed his gun to the brunette who was behind it threateningly.
"What?"
Wolfgang could now detailed the girl. She was pretty in her black dress but he noticed that she seemed scared too. It was at that moment that he saw that she wasn’t alone, a pretty blonde stood behind her.
"Let us in, please! It’s coming!"
The tone in her voice was the tone of someone who was scared too, confirming Wolfgang previous statement.
"What are you talking about?"
They didn’t answer and showed a direction with their fingers. Keeping an eye on them, Wolfgang gave a quick look to the direction they were showing and froze, his eyes glued on the demon that was currently fighting the German soldiers.
"Goodness!"
Wolfgang seemed unable to unlock his eyes from the sight of the demon, he didn’t even noticed that the girls were now inside…but the other guard did and slowly raised his arms, aiming his gun to them.
"Wolfgang? What’s happening?"
Wolfgang didn’t reply and, instead, moved inside and closed the door as if he was possessed.
"Wolfgang, What the hell is…"
The second guard didn’t have the time to finish his question. Indeed, as he was lowering his gun, his attention completely focused on Wolfgang and his strange behaviour, he didn’t pay attention to the Slayers anymore, slowly approaching his colleague as if he wanted to shake him up, to drive him away from the panic that seemed to have overwhelmed him. He thus didn’t see Faith extend her foot in his way. He stumbled on it, awkwardly trying to find his balance back and coming closer to Buffy in the process. Once he reached the blonde, she punched him on the face, knocking him down. She didn’t look at him fall as she was already turning to repeat the procedure on Wolfgang who didn’t have the time to react too. Now, the two Slayers were inside and the guards were down.
"Good work, honey! You’d make a terrific actress!"
"Possible but no way, B! Dresses, pastels, flashes, galas, bows…not my kind of crap, you know me! I like discretion!"
"Well, I can say that sometimes, you’re not very discreet, F!"
Buffy grinned while seeing her girlfriend blush. She loved the teasing games she had with her but now, wasn’t really the time to continue them and they both knew it. Nodding to each other, they made their way towards the door the second guard was standing in front of and soon descended to the basement.
A few minutes before, Husa was watching with a growing impatience the pregnant woman in front of her, putting all her strength in the delivery, completely unaware of her surrounding thanks to the spell Thress had cast just before her arrival. She had just arrived in the room, led by Uwe and was glad to se her minion, Clovis, already there. She had given it the mission to keep an eye on the lodge, to prevent Uwe to play any double game and had had no doubt that it would fulfill it with its usual zeal.
They weren’t the only ones present there. The male nurses she had under her thrall thanks to her mermaid voice were there too…as well as Thress and his disciple. They were the most capable mages of the Thulé, the ones who had designed Romy as the bearer of the Primal Chaos Avatar, the ones who were currently guiding her through the delivery.
She then remembered the long road she had had to follow before witnessing this event. Her early days as a vampire in Mesopotamia, the discovery of a bad copy of the Prophecies of Talgon the Leper mentioning the arrival of the Avatar, the streets of Carcassonne and the scent of the old rags she had worn there. Then, she remembered the good old days in Yucatan and her participation in the creation of the Thulé that was now one of the most powerful occult underground organisation on Earth. Yes, after millenniums of patient waiting, she was reaching her goal.
She focused her attention back on Thress who was playing the obstetrician now, seconded by his assistant who was ready to capture the child in a kind of energy field that would prevent him from using whatever power he would have…at least long enough for Husa to put him under her control. The others were also entirely concentrated on the scene, completely oblivious of the girls who had just entered the basement and were spying on them through the bars of the stairs.
"So, B! What’s the plan?"
"Well, obviously, we can’t jump on them. Too dangerous for the girl and the child."
"Well, maybe we’ll be obliged to kill the child if he is what we think he is!"
"I don’t know! Remember what Willow told us last night? He is not necessarily evil!"
"I know, B. Just checking here! But you’re right for the mother. Besides, a very old vampire accompanied with the fucking demon that killed you in Carcassonne, two wizards and a bunch of thugs…that’s a lot to deal with, even if we were both Slayers."
"And don’t forget that the next piece of monster puzzle will probably join the fun soon. I’ve always said that groupies could be very dangerous!"
At that moment they exchanged a look. They’ve just had the same idea at the same time and the glances they had just exchanged confirmed it.
"That’s probably the craziest idea we’ve ever had, B. You know that?"
"We need some back up, don’t we?"
"Yeah, but usually the back up don’t dream about stabbing you in the back!"
"Have a better idea?"
Faith sighed and answered: "No! Fuck, B, you know we’re insane, right?"
"In your case, I know it’s desperately true but I have still some hope for me to recover!"
"Very funny! Aren’t lovers supposed to share everything?"
"Well, a little insanity could be good, otherwise, life would be boring." And, while saying that, Buffy began climbing the stairs back. "I’ll be right back!"
"Careful!"
The blonde gave a last look to her girlfriend whose eyes were glued on their enemies before running upstairs to find the demon.
When Buffy reached the door leading to the garden, she carefully looked outside, trying to catch any demon related move. All she could see from the place she was standing in was grass and bodies laying everywhere. The stage had been completely destroyed in the fight that had just occurred but there was no trace of the demon.
That wasn’t the most worrying thing! No, what was truly scary was the silence that seemed to have taken possession of the manor. There were no bird singing in the trees, no cat running in the grass, no noise coming from the outside, from the civilised and normal world even the sound of the wind in the trees was absent as if the place had been completely cut off of the rest of the universe…and no sign of the demon.
Slowly, the petite Slayer exited the lodge and made her way on the grass, eyeing everything around her, attentive to any sound that would break the oppressive silence she was feeling the weight on her shoulders. What could have happened here? Did the soldier succeed in killing the demon? Was it scared by something? Maybe it has felt the coming of the Avatar and had ran away from the manor, its instinct telling him to avoid any contact with it.
She looked behind her and noticed that she was nearly 30 feet away from the lodge and there was still no trace of the demon. She then spotted a piece of the stage that had been thrown in the lodge’s direction. Realizing that she would have a view on the whole garden if she climbed on the piece, she carefully moved towards it and was soon standing up on it. Thankfully, the demons hadn’t break the lamps that were lightening the park. Keeping her balance wasn’t a piece of cake but she finally managed to achieve it.
She began to scan the area next to the manor. She could see a dozen of bodies there, all humans, all soldiers. The doors of the manor were closed now and she frankly doubted that they would have remained intact if the monster had entered the building. Her eyes moved towards the zoo she had seen when coming in the manor with the bus. The fence was closed too, the demon hadn’t gone there either. There was nothing in the stage, nothing on her right too.
Her eyes finally came back to the lodge, the small house seemed even tinier from her point of view and…suddenly, a move in the branches of the trees, above the lodge attracted her attention. Soon, a form coming from them landed on the roof of the lodge. A green form with red eyes that were looking directly to Buffy. The monster kept looking for a while before jumping on the ground, condemning any easy access to the lodge’s entry. It didn’t move and seemed to wait for the Slayer.
"Oh God! I’ve got the one with the brain! Looks like it won’t be that easy to lead it where I want to!"
Husa’s excitation was on its paroxysm! She could already see the baby’s forehead. She was so close now, so close from absolute power. She had just heard her wizard, Thress, ordering his disciple to be ready to cast the spell that would create the energy field. She was so close now.
On her left, Clovis loved to see the look of complete satisfaction its mistress had at that moment. The yellow skinned demon had been Husa’s faithful servitor for so many centuries now, had seen her slowly building her empire, had seen her slowly gathering the elements she had needed to achieve her goal. After so many years of patience, she would reach the destiny she deserved and Clovis was proud of being part of this.
On Husa’s right side, Uwe Bhass was as excited as his companions. He still didn’t know exactly what was happening there but the looks on Husa and Clovis’s faces didn’t let any doubt that it was huge and the German colonel knew that he would be rewarded for his commitment and loyalty once the Lorelei would obtain what she was looking for, the baby and whatever power or importance he could have.
The vampire, the demon and the colonel watched in silence as Thress was slowly pulling the baby out of his mother’s womb. The disciple was ready to cast the spell that would create the energy field as soon as Thress would ordered him to, the second Thress would cut the umbilical cord.
They waited, more anxious than ever, their eyes glued on the baby that was slowly pulled out of her mother by the wizard. First the head, then the torso, then the legs and finally the feet. The baby didn’t scream when he first saw the world outside his mother’s womb. The spell was forcing him to remain silent. Husa didn’t like baby cries.
When Thress put the baby in the small basin her had prepared for him before taking the scissor, they all retained their breath. These were the last moments of patience. In a few seconds, they would hold pure power in their hands. Thress cut the cordon off and shouted to his disciple:
"Hugo, now!"
The young man opened his mouth to recite the words he knew by heart but didn’t say anything. He shut his mouth and looked from the baby to the mother with absent eyes, as if he was shocked like hell. It was only when he felt a cold sensation on his throat that his brain seemed to connect back with Earth. Glancing at his throat, he saw a knife ready to cut through it and, standing on the other side of the weapon, Clovis was looking at him, threateningly.
"You’d better obey!"
"I can’t!" Then, fearing for his life, he added quickly: "I can’t feel anything magic! It’s not him! It’s not the Avatar."
"What?"
Husa who had signed Clovis to deal with the young man’s apathy a few seconds before, rushed towards him with her vamp face, her eyes sending icy darts to him. She was pissed off like never before. She was so close from success and now, this prepubescent man was telling her that this baby wasn’t the good one? What the hell was going on? Reaching the man, she quickly pulled Clovis away from him before lifting him in the air by holding his throat.
"Explain yourself or I kill you, slowly, painfully, little boy!"
"The texts! They say that once the Avatar was born, magic would rise around him, turning his environment into chaos for a few minutes. There is…there is nothing here…he…he is just a baby! It’s not the Avatar!"
The exactness of what the disciple had just said hit Husa in the chest like a 20 tons hammer. How could she have missed it? It was so obvious that the boy was right. She had read the texts so many times too and she hadn’t noticed that the birth had been too calm, too normal. She had been too focused on the event in itself to see such an obvious thing, too sure that Romy Schwanz was indeed carrying the Primal Chaos Avatar! Dropping Hugo to the ground, she turned her eyes on Thress and walked towards the old wizard, concentrating on her voice, using the mermaid’s powers to prevent him from doing magic.
"Master Thress, don’t move! Don’t talk unless I tell you so!"
The wizard seemed to freeze on the spot, he didn’t even seem to breathe, his eyelids didn’t move either. Satisfied with herself, Husa put her index on the man’s torso, right above the heart and said with a tone that wasn’t hiding her anger:
"YOU told me that she was the bearer, that YOU couldn’t be wrong. And now, it’s quite clear that YOU fucked everything up in a really big way! Do YOU have something to say for your defence?" And, while saying it, she began to enter her finger into the man’s torso, slowly, millimetre by millimetre.
"Arghhh! I don’t understand Lorelei! I…we…when we scanned the city…she was the only pregnant woman of the zone and…"
"Idiot! You don’t deserve the right to work for me!" And right after saying it, Husa sank her teeth in the man’s throat and drank his blood to the last drop before letting his body fall on the ground. Then she turned her head towards Hugo and said in the same tone she had used since she had discovered that they had chosen the wrong mother:
"You have two hours to find the good mother! Once this deadline is over, the child would become normal for the next 20 years, we wouldn’t be able to track him anymore. And I’ll make sure that no one would be able to track what would remain of you if it happened. Am I clear?"
She waited to see the young wizard nod then, turned her head towards Bhass and continued: "Uwe! I want all your men on this hunt. They’re under Hugo’s orders! No failure would be allowed!"
"Yes Ma’am! And what about them?" The colonel said signing towards Romy who was recovering from the spell that had made her completely oblivious of her surroundings and her baby.
"Kill them! I have no use for them!"
"NOOOO!" The scream came from Romy who was still a little groggy because of the spell but conscious enough to understand what was going on, what Husa had just said. Her scream only made them laugh…till they heard coming from behind them:
"I think she disagree!"
The vampire, the male nurses, the wizard, the demon and the colonel turned their heads to the newcomer, to this brunette who had just dared to intervene, this brunette they recognised as one of the violinists who had come with the band for the recital. She was standing right in front of the stairs, her arms crossed in her chest and seemed to bear a confidence that was far from normal.
Faith was looking at her adversaries, ready to strike if one of them moved into her direction. She had the pistol she had taken to the guard in the right hand, hidden under her armpit. As long as she didn’t uncross her arms, they couldn’t see it. She had also the riffle, taken on the same guard, laying on the stairs but she doubted that she would have the time to grab it if things turned bad…something she was sure would happen soon enough.
While she was waiting for Buffy to return, she had witnessed the whole scene. She had wanted to intervene when she had seen that the baby was coming, to try something stupid to stop whatever ritual or spell was due to be cast, but her intuition told her not to and she had been relieved to see that she had taken the right decision in following it. But when she had understood that the mother and the baby were in danger, she couldn’t stay in the stairs and do nothing. So she was now standing in front of them, showing a confidence she wasn’t really feeling, hoping that Buffy would be there with the "back up" soon. Where the hell was she staying?
She noticed that the nurse boys were slowly making their ways to encircle her. She didn’t move though and, as the others remained still, in front of her, the two thugs were quickly on each of her sides, waiting for the right moment or Husa’s order.
"Who are you?"
Faith grinned at Husa. At first, she had thought that the vampire would recognize her. After all, they had lived in the same house in Babylon. Thinking about it had made her realise something! How could she and Buffy have the same bodies incarnation after incarnation? They were sent in their past lives but it wasn’t possible for them to have the same physical attributes every time they travelled to the past. How could it be possible? That’s something she would have to ask Willow. She finally answered the Babylonian vampire. After all, the goal was for her to gain time! Conversations were a good and safe way to achieve this goal.
"A pain in your ass! You know, Husa, I can call you Husa, right?" The stupefaction in the vampire’s face brought a little bit more of confidence in Faith. She had raised the Babylonian’s attention, which was a good start. Without waiting for an answer; she pursued.
"I would have never thought that a bloodsucker as carbon dated as you would still threaten a mother and her baby. Well, I guess you’re just a hot chick with nothing in the brain department."
Husa was completely taken aback by the insolent girl in front of her. She was so sure of herself, keeping an eye on them to prevent them from any action but mocking them at the same time. She finally recovered her senses and asked her one of the many questions she had.
"How do you know my name?"
Faith took a minute before answering. She acted as if she was thinking about the best way to answer Husa’s questions. Earlier in the night, Buffy had told her that she would have been a good actress. Well, she hoped it was true because she would need a Best Actress Award kind of performance to get out of the shit she was now in.
"I saw you! I saw you in the skin of this poor dirty slave in Babylon, enjoying it when a priest of Baal was beating the crap out of you. Saw you when you betrayed Sidouf for him…in other words, I saw you before you restyled your life in a bloodsucking way."
Hugo, Uwe, Clovis and the male nurses were listening to the conversation between the two women, incapable of moving, captivated by the scene. Besides, they knew that they wouldn’t be allowed to move before Husa gave them the order to.
Husa whose eyes and jaw were now wide open was completely stunned by what the brunette was saying. No one knew about her past. She had never said to anyone who she was when she had been alive, when she had been an abused slave spying Sidouf for the priests of Baal. No one knew who she was before Zeishan sired her.
"Who…who the hell are you? Where did you learn my past?"
Faith smirked. She was in fact enjoying the situation. She, a Slayer in the skin of a normal human, was trying to gain time for her girlfriend to come back with a bloodthirsty demon to help them fight a bunch of very powerful beings for the sake of a mother and her child…AND SHE WAS SUCCEEDING IN IT SO FAR! That was so unexpected, she was in total control of the situation right now and had a hard time to hide her satisfaction. Still, she was experimented enough to know that things could change fast in these situation…and a change would be lethal in her case.
"I am old enough to know the things I just told you. Old enough to remember you in your smelly rags, Mrs the enigmatic Ghost."
Husa flinched. Once again, this girl had unveiled something from her past. Something only her and Clovis were aware of. Once again, the same question came out of her mouth.
"Who the hell are you?"
"Someone who knows lots of things about you, Husa bitch! I know the name of the demon you sold the Prophecies to. Talnoc…the late Talnoc." At that moment, Faith made a pause. Her Slayer hearing had just caught a noise coming from upstairs, a noise that looked a lot like the ones caused by a fight. Hoping silently that she wasn’t wrong, she added: "Who am I? All I can tell you is that I am just a gal who’s waiting for her girlfriend to come."
"What?"
Even if the question was coming from Husa, Faith could see that the others were completely taken aback by her answer, sharing Husa’s perplexity. Who was this girl who seemed to know so much about the powerful vampire and acted so strangely? Was she mad or so confident in her powers that she dared playing with them? After all, they didn’t see who or what could possibly know so much about Husa’s past without possessing some dangerous abilities. What would be her next move?
Husa didn’t know what she was supposed to do with her. In all her millenniums of existence, she had never felt so confused about a human being’s fate.
Suddenly, a crash resounded in the basement, coming from the top of the stairs. They all turned their heads to this direction and soon saw a petite blonde falling on the stairs before landing roughly in Faith’s feet.
"Aouch!"
Still keeping the pistol hidden in her right hand bellow her armpit, Faith gave Buffy a quick glance to check if she was all right before turning her head towards the audience saying:
"See? That’s my girlfriend!"
Then, before anyone had the time to try to understand what was going on, they heard a big growl coming from upstairs, followed by heavy footsteps in the stairs. Soon, two monstrous legs were visible through the bars. In the meantime, Faith had helped Buffy to get on her feet.
"And this guy, I assure you, he is not part of my family."
And, as if Faith retort was the signal they were waiting for, the Slayers took advantage of the stupor that had gained their enemies to jump forwards, only two seconds before the demon, that had had the same idea, landed on the floor with a loud noise. At that moment, everything went quick.
Knowing that if the wizard had the time to use his magic on them, they were screwed, Faith targeted him with her pistol and fired. The young magus didn’t have the time to react. Touched by the bullet right in the head, he fell backwards, lifeless.
At the exact same time, Buffy was on Clovis who had had the reflex to move to protect its mistress who was the petite Slayer’s real target. Unfortunately for the demon, this move had forced him to drop its guard, allowing Buffy to grab it by its shirt before sending it on the puzzle demon. The puzzle demon that was busy killing the evil male nurses who hadn’t had the time to run away from the monster’s claws. The two demons connected roughly before beginning a fight that promised to be epic.
Taking advantage of Clovis’s protection, Husa backed up and, seeing that the situation was far from turning to her advantage, decided to make a strategic retreat. She quickly moved away from the fighting place and sent a mechanism in action, a mechanism that opened a secret exit in which she quickly vanished, grabbing Uwe by the collar in the process. She still needed the colonel.
Satisfied by the way things were going, the Slayer had no intention to wait to know who was going to win the wrestling match between Clovis and the puzzle demon. Without even exchanging a word, Faith walked towards the baby, then took him in her arms before touching the wall to find the mechanism Husa had just used. In the same time, Buffy helped a very weak Romy on her feet. Noticing that the woman would slow them if she let her walk, she took her in her arms before joining Faith who had just opened the secret exit. They left the room without even looking behind.
Husa and Bhass had just reached the end of the tunnel they had followed since entering the secret exit. The vampire hadn’t said a word since she had grabbed the colonel. She wasn’t in the mood. Her plans had been seriously jeopardized, they had no idea who was really bearing the Avatar and she still didn’t know who this brunette was. The blonde was the Slayer. She was sure of it. But who the hell was this brunette?
Reaching the bunch of trees that hid the secret entry from the manor, the two fugitives could hear trucks and cars coming in the manor’s direction. Some guest or soldier had probably asked for help. A help that was now arriving. Better late than never! Finally, Husa looked at Bhass and said without stopping walking.
"I don’t know how you’d do it but you’d better find the real Avatar in the deadline…for your own sake!"
The colonel just nodded. Even the threatening and harsh tone in Husa’s voice was carrying the effects of the Mermaid’s power, a power no man could resist to.
"Good! I’ll be in the manor! Call me if you find him…or the mother."
"Yes, Lorelei dear! But…What about Romy and the two girls?"
Yes, that was a good question, Husa thought. What about them? Yes, she was intrigued and wanted to know more about them. And yes, letting them go could cause other problems later. But she had always known what her priorities were and, even if she was dying to know more, she had to have the boy tonight.
"Forget them! We have more important things to do!"
"Yes, Ma’am!"
And with a last sign to his superior, the colonel Uwe Bhass ran towards the men who were now stepping out of the vehicles that had just came in the manor.
The Slayers weren’t far behind Bhass and Husa when they reached the end of the tunnel and the first thing they saw were the vehicles stopping in the gardens, blocking the exit and the way to the manor. Of course, they also ignored the orders Husa had just given Bhass.
"Fucking shit! They’re already there!"
"Yep! We have to find a place to hide and wait till the way is safe!"
"I just hope they won’t find the Avatar while we’re stuck here!"
"I don’t think we were supposed to find it! It’s not like we had lots of choice since we landed here!"
"Sure! So, where do we go?"
"I…I think I know a place where we could hide ourselves!"
The Slayers looked at Romy who had just spoken. It was her first words since they had saved her life and her baby’s. They smiled at the young mother and nodded. After all, she knew the place better than them.
Clovis screamed when it felt the demon’s claws enter its back. He had just received a powerful kick from the creature, a kick that had made him fell on the ground and the ugly bastard had taken advantage of it. The yellow skinned demon couldn’t let its opponent keep the advantage in this fight. It would be lethal. So, it grabbed the demon’s arm which claws were still in its back and push on it, breaking it in the process. It was the puzzle demon’s time to scream as it backed away from Clovis giving both demon time to catch their breaths.
Spotting the knife Thress had used to cut the umbilical cord, Clovis took it and attacked the creature. Keeping the weapon in its closed hand, it waited for the right time, kicking, punching the demon or dodging, blocking or taking blows when its adversary hit. Then, seeing an opening, the French demon threw the knife that soon ended its course in the puzzle demon’s eye. Surprised by the move, the demon focused its attention on the pain for a few seconds, seconds that were enough for Clovis. The yellow skinned demon took the end of the knife but, instead of pulling it out of the eye, Husa’s faithful minion, pushed it inside, going through the eye then, right to the monster’s brain. When Clovis felt no more reaction from the demon, it knew that it had won. It let the now dead monster fall on the ground before moving towards the exit. It didn’t had time to search the secret exit, it knew where to find Husa and, as long as she didn’t order it to do something else, its mission was to be at her side, to protect her.
The two Slayers, the mother and the baby had discretely reached the area of the manor dedicated to the zoo. It hadn’t been easy with soldiers running everywhere to clean the mess caused by the puzzle demon or following Bhass to whatever destination the colonel was sending them to. To describe it in a short way, there were more soldiers around than male bees in the Queen’s alcove at copulation day. Fortunately, the baby had remained calm. They didn’t think they would have done it if he had begun the cry all the way.
Now, they were approaching the cage that Romy was indicating them. They had briefly explained the situation to the veterinary on their way, omitting the time loops part of course. Even if the girl had seen lots of strange things in the last hours, certain things had to be kept secret. After a last glance around them, they walked to the door of the cage that Romy opened with the keys she always had with her. There were bars only in one of the four sides of the cage, the rest was made of brick and the door was fitted in the left side. Once the cage was open, they quickly entered it and closed the door behind them.
"Now, stay there! I don’t want you to scare Freya!"
Buffy and Faith nodded. The brunette was still holding the baby in her hands. The little boy had never left her arms. Romy was feeling much better than when they had escaped the lodge and was now able to walk on her own but she didn’t feel strong enough to hold her baby for too long yet.
The Slayers looked at Romy disappearing behind a huge stone that was hiding Freya’s quarters from them. It was invisible from the open part of the cage, a kind of place where the ape could have some privacy and it was the reason why Romy had thought about the cage as an ideal hiding place. They frankly doubted that the soldiers would look after them in a wild animal’s cage.
So, the two Slayers waited for Romy for quite a long time and were beginning to get worried. Buffy was about to go look after the young woman when they saw her come back, pale as a ghost. It wasn’t complicated to see that something was wrong. Buffy was the first to ask the question that was on both Slayers lips.
"Romy, What’s wrong?"
Uwe Bhass was looking at the squadron he was about to send to the Northern part of Berlin. He had just received the reports he had asked to the hospitals. Reports that mentioned all the pregnant women in Berlin and particularly the ones that were close to delivery. He didn’t like what he had decided to do but he didn’t have the choice either. The Lorelei had been quite clear. It was the baby or him and he really wanted to stay alive. So, he had decided to kidnap the women of the list he had in his hands then, he would identify and keep the Avatar’s mother and kill the rest of them. He couldn’t let compromising witnesses live even if it cost him his place in the German army.
Facing the first of the five squadrons he intended to send to the pregnant women hunt, he took a deep sight and said: "Valliant servants of the Third Reich! The mission I will give you is particular but extremely important for the Fürher himself! "
He remained silent a few seconds in order to let them digest the information. At that moment, he noticed a few soldiers who seemed distracted by something but didn’t comment. He would deal with them after his speech, make them understand who the boss really was.
"As you probably know, most of the Reich higher representatives were present here tonight for a recital and…"
Bhass saw that more and more soldiers were looking at the same direction than the distracted ones he had noticed earlier, some of them were even whispering prayers while others seemed shocked. Intrigued, he turned his head and looked to the same direction then gasped loudly.
On his right, in the zoo area of the manor, yellow, red and blue clouds were gathered above a single spot, blue and red lightening were circling around them silently. Except from the previous mentioned clouds, there was nothing in the sky that was a perfect blue…which wasn’t normal as they were still in nighttime. What the hell was going on? And then, he understood and this understanding brought a smile on his face. Turning to his men, he ordered:
"Grab your weapons and follow me, soldiers! And hurry!"
The German colonel began to run to the zoo as soon as he had given his orders, followed by his not so confident soldiers.
Bhass wasn’t the only one who had noticed the clouds. From the balcony of the manor, Husa had a splendid sight of the event too. Moreover, this sight had brought hope back in her heart. Since the failure of the ritual, she had been convinced that she would have to wait a few more years again and was beginning to accept it. Now, there was still a possibility for her to have the baby in her hands this same night.
Hearing someone enter her room, she looked behind her and saw Clovis. She smiled. The yellow skinned demon had once again survived a fight and Husa was glad it did. After all, loyal minions were so rare these days. She let the smile on her lips long enough for Clovis to notice it then saw its clothes or rather what had been its clothes before the fight.
"My God, Clovis! You look like a tramp. Go in your room and put something decent on you! We have a gift to pick up! A gift from the sky!"
Clovis gave her a puzzle look but didn’t try to know more. The Lorelei would tell it more if she wanted to. In the meantime, its mission was to serve, not to understand. Thus, it nodded and went to its room to change its clothes.
Buffy was now in front of Romy and had just put her arms on the veterinary’s shoulders, to calm her. She was obviously both afraid and nervous about something. The young woman seemed to calm down but didn’t seem capable of speaking. So, she just raised her hand to show a direction to the petite Slayer. Buffy followed it with her eyes and soon, she saw the baboon, Romy had called Freya, laying in a corner of her "private" quarters. The blonde didn’t see anything odd at first but, as the ape moved a little, she noticed what Romy had probably seen: Freya was pregnant.
While Buffy was trying to comfort Romy, Faith was looking outside, ready to gave a signal to the others as soon as she spo