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ravenya003 · 2 months

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Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Angel, S01E07

Remember in The Goonies when Sean Austin whispered: “it all starts here…”? That’s what this episode is for so much of what’s to come. It’s when the writers finally settle on who and what Angel is, and lay down the groundwork for the entirety of his story – not only in the next three seasons of Buffy, but in his own future spin-off. (Making it apt that the episode is simply called “Angel”).

As it marks such a turning point in the show, it’s fitting that it comes precisely halfway through this season, and it’s rather dizzying to watch while bearing in mind where all its main players (Buffy, Angel, Darla) will eventually end up. Heck, it’s even funny to consider that Cordelia is little more than a bit character here, given her later history with Angel.

Like Sean Austin said – it all starts here.

We begin in the Master’s underground lair, where some standard bad guy plotting is going on. He wants the Slayer dead, Darla is forbidden from interfering due to her personal interest in a certain someone who is close to Buffy, and the Anointed One says some generically evil stuff.

I was mildly interested to note that the Master calls him “Collin” (and he’s credited as this in the end credits) which once again makes me wonder what this kid’s life was like before he got vamped.

The Master decides to send a trio of warrior vampires known as the Three after Buffy, and they get a dramatic entrance with their game-faces already on, scattering a bunch of street thugs as they strut their stuff. Also, they wear armour. You’d think more vampires would think to wear armour. It instantly takes death-by-staking off the table.

Over at the Bronze, they’re celebrating the Fumigation Party, a supposedly annual event which (as far as I can recall) never occurs again during the entire run of the show. It’s so oddly specific and so utterly removed from any of this episode’s themes, that I have to believe one of the writers actually attended a real Fumigation Party at some point.

Buffy is moping about Angel and so decides to go home, only to run into the Three on the way. They attack her, and put up a surprisingly good fight (remember when vampires were an honest threat and not something that Buffy could dust without breaking her stride?) before Angel swoops to her rescue.

They make a break for the Summers’ house, and although Buffy does call out a quick “get in, c’mon” to Angel (I guess that constitutes an invitation) some hands of their pursuers manage to get past the frame in order to claw at the door and walls. As later episodes will demonstrate, the lack of an invitation will completely prevent any part of a vampire from crossing the threshold, almost like a force-field is in place.

So... continuity error. Though, I do like the theory I read years ago that the hands of the Three managed to breach the threshold because Angel had just passed through the door, and they briefly piggy-backed on the magic residue of his invitation. Or whatever, it’s not that big a deal.

The most important thing all this establishes is the invitation lore! A vampire has to be invited into a home before they can enter, though the nuances of this rule remain a bit iffy. For example, a building like a school or a mall can be breached since nobody actually lives there. But what constitutes a house, exactly? A place where you sleep? That you own? Where you keep your stuff? What if someone who doesn’t live in the house issues an invitation? Does that count? And how specific do you have to be in your wording? If a vampire asked: “can I come in?” and you said: “sure,” would that be enough to let them in?

Because I vaguely recall that vampires are able to breach dorm rooms when Buffy gets to college – or am I misremembering that?

Again, it doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things, but who is and is not invited into Buffy’s house is an important plot-point for this episode, so we’ll keep track.

Angel is wounded, which requires a shirtless scene, during which Buffy gets an eyeful of his back tattoo, something else that is rather nebulous in its application. I’m pretty sure we’ll see him shirtless again without the makeup artists having applied this particular detail to his back. The wiki tells me it’s a winged lion with the letter A beneath it, which is never stated in the show itself (I’d always assumed it was a bird of some kind) and never elaborated on again.

Honestly, we get the origin story of Jack’s tattoos on LOST, but not Angel’s? Was it there before or after he got vamped? Why a winged lion? What’s the story behind it? Unclear.

Their flirting is interrupted by the arrival of Joyce, who apparently didn’t notice any giant armoured vampires in her driveway. She doesn’t realize Angel is in the house until he deliberately steps forward to awkwardly make Buffy introduce him and – okay, I’ll say this for Spike: he handled Joyce better. I will give him that point.

Joyce goes upstairs and Buffy pulls the old “call goodbye out the door before smuggling the boy into your room” trick, though the pair of them should really be whispering once they’re in there. Pretty sure Joyce isn’t asleep yet, guys.

Buffy prods him for a little backstory as to why Angel does what he does, and he tells her that his family were all killed by vampires. For a second I wondered whether he was referring to his “family” of Darla, Drusilla and Spike (who were technically killed by vampires and currently lost to him) but it’s pretty clear by the end of the episode he’s talking about his human family. Which was comprised of... his father and a little sister? I’m surprised my memories are so fuzzy, but don’t tell me – I’ll find out all over again when we reach the flashbacks next season.

In any case Buffy accepts that it’s a vengeance thing (it’s not though) and the two of them have some cute banter when they settle down to sleep – Buffy in the bed and Angel on the floor.

The following day, Buffy is in the library, having told the rest of the team what went down the night before. (Sadly we don’t get to see how Angel handled waking up in a sunlit room. Did he just hide in the closet or under the bed or something? How’d he explain that?) Willow is melting, Xander is jealous, and Giles is unimpressed. He’s been researching all night and has identified the Three.

Another question: let’s say hypothetically that Buffy had managed to kill the Three the night before. Presumably Giles would have recorded this in his Watcher’s journal... but would he have contacted the Council so that they could update their records? I only ask because he shows Buffy a large tome with a picture of the Three inside it, which becomes obsolete by the end of the episode.

Because down in the underground church, the Master is having the Three staked by Darla for having failed him. This seems incredibly wasteful, since they were a formidable threat to Buffy during the one and only opportunity they got to confront her, and as far as I know, the Scoobies never actually find out what happened to them. For all they know for the rest of the show’s duration, they’re still out there somewhere.

(And yes I know that Giles tells the others that they’ll offer their lives to the Master as penance, but they never really know that for certain).

Which is why they actually shut down the library (complete with a keep out sign) so that Buffy can do some training. Plenty of Slayer training will go on in this library in the years to come, but I think this is the only time they take measures to actually keep people out while it’s happening.

Pedantic nitpick: Buffy is given a quarterstaff and makes a joke that she won’t be fighting Friar Tuck, even though it was Little John who is renowned for using that particular weapon. Sorry, I’m a Robin Hood fangirl, I can’t help it. This whole scene feels a bit like filler, though I suppose it’s to ensure that Buffy doesn’t get home until after dark and so avoid noticing that Angel can’t step out into direct sunlight. They’re gonna hang onto that reveal until the most dramatic possible moment.

Which is... the very next scene. Buffy gets home and Angel tells her he’s been hiding in her closet all day. There’s an awkward moment of misunderstanding when Buffy thinks he’s read her diary, which all plays out in a rather stilted manner... but then it leads into their first kiss, and I’d totally forgotten how good David Boreanaz and Sarah Michelle Gellar were at this.

Apparently, they’re too good at this, as Angel is so overcome that he vamps out. Buffy screams her head off, he dives through the open window, and Joyce rushes in to see what’s wrong. I have to admit, there was never a time in which I didn’t know that Angel was a vampire, so I never really got the full impact of this reveal.

Buffy tells Joyce she saw “a shadow” which is pretty weaksauce, but Joyce is still in her mostly-ditzy stage of characterization and accepts it.

At school the next day, Giles is delivering some important exposition on vampires: “A vampire isn't a person at all. It may have the movements, the memories, even the personality of the person it takes over, but it is a demon at the core. There's no halfway.”

This is important, because later on none of it will make any sense whatsoever when it comes to Spike.

Buffy is trying to rationalize the fact that Angel hasn’t tried to hurt her before last night, while elsewhere, Angel is also trying to grapple with this new development in their relationship. That’s Darla’s cue to break into his apartment and mess with his head.

As with the reveal that Angel is a vampire, the original audience back in the nineties would have had no idea of the history between these two characters (it probably hadn’t even been mapped out in the writers’ room yet) and so it’s amazing how much of their casual dialogue ends up matching what we’ll see in future flashbacks of their time together: kimonos, Budapest, an earthquake – all this is eventually dramatized.

And given the huge presence Darla will have in this show’s backstory (and in the spin-off) it’s almost hilarious that she dies in this, her second episode. Given the huge history and promise this character had, it’s not surprising they found a way to bring her back.

In any case, Darla’s goal is to try and bring Angel back to the fold, and taunt him over the fact that Buffy will never accept him for who he is. I’ve said it before, but I like that they deliberately make Buffy and Darla look physically similar (especially with the latter in a school uniform).

Giles has found information about Angel, also called Angelus (“the one with the angelic face”) in an old Watcher’s journal. I am immediately less interested in Angel’s backstory than in the implication that suggests Angel went up against a Slayer at one point. Unfortunately, this isn’t elaborated on, and we get the Spark Notes version of Angel’s history: two hundred and forty years old, originated in Ireland, cut a swathe of misery and bloodshed across Europe, then came to America about eighty years ago, where he shuns other vampires and lives alone.

The plot thickens.

Down in the Master’s lair, Darla is begging the Master for the chance to go up against the Slayer, and in doing so, bring Angel back into the fold. This is mostly expository dialogue, but it does reveal plenty about the characters involved – not only Darla’s manipulative streak (she plans to have Angel kill Buffy by sowing conflict between them) and that the Master really wants Angel back on his team.

We only get a few glimpses of the history between Angel and the Master throughout the show (I think it comes down to a single flashback on Angel) but I like that he sees him as an asset and not a threat. That he also has this line to Collin: “You see how we all work together for the common good? That's how a family is supposed to function,” and will later shed tears over Darla is a fascinating facet to his character: not only a deliberate wrinkle in Giles’s assertion that vampires are demons at the core (yet who apparently retain enough of their humanity to form and retain bonds with others) but also a deliberate comparison to the reveal that Angel killed his mortal family (though that said, the Master DID order the deaths of the Three, so it’s not a great family).

Willow and Buffy are studying in the library, but the talk soon turns to Angel. Unbeknownst to the girls, Darla is eavesdropping on their conversation and you can tell from the expression on her face that she’s pegged Buffy as a legitimate romantic threat. Willow is already poking holes in the impossibility of any future relationship, which Buffy tries to take on board given that staking Angel seems inevitable at this point.

Darla’s plan is certainly very fiendish: she goes to Buffy’s house, introduces herself to Joyce as a study buddy, and then gets herself invited inside. I’m pretty sure Darla didn’t account for Angel turning up at that precise moment (she probably just planned to drain Joyce and then hope Buffy would simply assume Angel was the culprit) but things work out incredibly well for her when he rushes inside to see her with a bloody, unconscious Joyce in her arms, who she then throws at him just as Buffy walks through the door. This could not have been timed more perfectly.

Buffy gets an eyeful of Angel holding her half-dead mother, having unfortunately missed the part where he’s tempted and then refuses to drink her blood, and throws him out the house. Like, literally throws him through the front window onto the lawn. How she explains that to her mother later on is never explained.

But the next scene not only gives us our first look inside Sunnydale General Hospital but contains the first official meeting of Joyce and Giles! Joyce is a little bemused that Willow, Xander AND the school librarian have all turned up at her bedside, but we’ll blame her lack of serious questioning on the drugs.

Buffy grabs a crossbow, while Darla taunts Angel at his house about how the Slayer coming to kill him and will never accept his “true face,” to the point where he seemingly snaps and is ready for it to be “finished.” They don’t delve into the implications of this, and they don’t really explain what Angel is attempting to achieve at the Bronze, but it all seems to be hinting that Angel is ready to commit suicide-by-Slayer. The psychological seeds are sown for the events of “Amends.”

Giles is talking to a woozy Joyce, and her mention of Darla brings the truth to light – now the remaining Scoobies rush out to find Buffy and stop her from killing Angel. Somehow all parties spontaneously decide to converge on the Bronze (hey, it’s a pre-existing set, so it makes as much sense as anywhere else) and Buffy fights Angel to a stand-off. She can’t bring herself to kill him though, which is another fairly pertinent bit of foreshadowing.

Angel tries to goad her into it by revealing that he killed his entire family and enjoyed it... only for his self-preservation to kick in a little when he goes on to tell her about the curse: he fed on a gypsy girl, and her people took their revenge by cursing him with a soul. Now he has to live with the horror of what he inflicted on the world for nearly two hundred years.

Ah, that gypsy girl. I think we get a brief glimpse of her in a future flashback episode, but she has got to be the greatest example of Small Role, Big Impact of ALL TIME. I don’t think she even gets a name, and we never really learn anything about her or why Angel targeted her, yet she’s the reason half this show AND the spin-off exist at all.

He admits he didn’t attack Joyce, and the pair of them lower their weapons – only for Darla to appear, having brought guns to the crossbow fight. Darla manages to tell Buffy that she and Angel were involved for several generations and that she sired him (so much consistent backstory in this episode!) though it hardly matters: after some gunfighting and hiding behind pool tables and the Scoobies trying to create a distraction, Angel sneaks up behind Darla and stakes her in the back.

Again, if you’re watching this for the first time, you cannot grasp the weight of her shocked little: “Angel?” before she dissolves into dust. That he kills her is a much bigger deal than we – or Buffy – knew at the time, occurring well before the two shows delve into the depths of their past relationship. So kudos to Julie Benz for infusing her (first) death scene with so much pathos, without even knowing the full extent of her character’s history.

The final scene is the post-fumigation party at the Bronze, in which Buffy and Angel try to call things off between them, and end up kissing instead. It concludes with yet another iconic moment between them: as Buffy heads off, we can see that the cross around her neck has left a burn-mark on the skin. Classic those two.

Oh, and did I mention that the song playing over this scene includes the lyrics: “and I remember [you]?” What a song choice, three whole seasons before the episode “I Will Remember You”!

This is the episode in which everyone sat up straighter and thought – wow, this is a great show. In figuring out Angel’s character, the writers also figure out an important component to the show’s mythos and its subsequent themes: the pain of love, the cost of fighting the good fight, the idea that the distinctions between good and evil aren’t that simple, and of course – making amends. Allying himself with Buffy is the start of Angel’s redemption quest.

The concept of “a vampire with a soul” is perhaps the centrepiece of this entire franchise, one that blurs the line between good and evil, and defines so much of these characters’ lives (even the ones that are only peripherally involved at this point, like Cordelia). And we haven’t even gotten to the all-important happiness clause yet!

Throw in some pondering over what exactly a vampire is and what they’re capable of experiencing in the emotional sense, and you’ve got an instant classic Buffy episode. One the one hand, Angel was an unrepentant killer who destroyed hundreds of innocent lives. On the other, a monstrous creature like the Master can refer to his minions as “family” and shed tears over Darla’s death. Likewise, Darla clearly had feelings for Angel and was shocked that he would kill her, while Angel doesn’t look remotely pleased or triumphant about doing the deed.

Shit is complicated.

There’s going to be plenty more exploration of this grey area when it comes to vampires and what they’re capable of feeling in future episodes, and the amount of setup “Angel” does in regards to this particular strand of the show’s mythology is pretty impressive.

Miscellaneous Observations:

Watching this episode, the thing that stuck out the most was that all the Narrative Filigree the script sprinkles throughout the story remains consistent throughout the show – the Master’s feelings on Angelus, Angel’s comment that he last saw Darla in a kimono, that they spent time together in Budapest, that Angel killed his family, that Darla was the one to bring him the gypsy girl – this all gets picked up again in later episodes and elaborated on.

They obviously didn’t know the finer details at this point, but a lesser show would have retconned half these comments.

This episode was written by David Greenwalt, but Joss Whedon clearly liked the mysterious comment regarding what Angel and Darla got up to in Budapest so much that he borrowed it for a similar Noodle Incident comment between Black Widow and Hawkeye in The Avengers.

On my DVD set at least, we get our first “previously on” and it’s still narrated by some random guy instead of Giles.

Cordelia only gets two scenes this episode (one of which involves Xander slut-shaming her, urgh) which is kind of funny, as in four or so years, she’s going to be neck-deep in this Angel/Darla drama.

Buffy refers to the Three as “the Fang Gang,” which is also funny as this ends up being the Fan Nickname for Angel’s circle of allies in L.A.

Interesting that both Darla and the Master refer to Angel as “Angel” and not “Angelus.” Obviously this was because the writers had not yet decided to use these names to denote the different parts of his dual-personality (that doesn't start until season four of Angel, as even in season two of Buffy, the Scoobies keep calling him Angel after his reversion) but it’s still an interesting choice for them.

In hindsight, it’s a little creepy to watch Buffy try and figure out why Angel was helpful towards her even though he was a vampire the whole time. These sort of mind games are precisely Angelus’s M.O., she just doesn’t know it yet.

In time, Darla’s comment that Buffy will reject Angel’s “true face” will be proved incorrect, but we’ll get there...

It’s a bit surprising that Giles takes Angel’s true identity in his stride the way he does – not just that he’s a vampire, but that he’s a good vampire. This is a guy that’s presumably been raised since childhood on the fact that vampires are bad and need to be killed... yet acts quickly the moment he realizes it was Darla and not Angel who attacked Joyce in order to stop Buffy from killing him. It’s unclear how exactly he views Angel at this point – valuable asset, perhaps?

It's also unclear where Angel is living at this point, though it seems to be some sort of basement apartment. Wherever it is, it’s certainly not the mansion that he’s ensconced in by season three.

Reading the shooting script, there are a lot of scenes that got cut – some pretty inconsequential (like Xander asking Giles why it’s called “tweed” at the hospital) but some that I wish had been kept in, like Joyce and Buffy talking about Angel at the dinner table (if not simply because Joyce mentions an “Aunt Lolly” who I like to assume was Celia’s mother, but we also get a little context to Joyce’s relationship with Hank) and one that shows Joyce at home after her stint in the hospital, with Buffy trying to get her to eat some vegetables. It was cute, and a necessary wrap-up to Joyce’s injuries.

I’ve often thought about the potential strangeness of Angel’s brooding guilt over what he did as Angelus, as according to the show’s own mythology, becoming a vampire is akin to being brainwashed or possessed. The human is dead, the demon is in charge, and an individual is simply not what they were as a human. You can’t technically blame someone for what they do if their soul or free will or brain chemicals have been messed with (especially if it’s done without their permission).

And yet, it’s more complicated than that. You cannot deny that something of the human self remains when an individual comes back as a vampire, or insist that someone like Harmony could ever come back as an Angelus. Even as a demon, she’s not capable of that kind of depravity. Nobody but the mortal who was once Liam could have become the vampire known as Angelus – that cruelty and sadism was always a part of him; that potential was always there.

Heck, it kind of reminds me of how red kryptonite takes away Clark’s inhibitions. He’s not acting how he usually would, but it’s still technically him. (Speaking of, Smallville’s idea of having Lana wear a kryptonite necklace so that Clark can’t get near her kind of reminds me of the cross burning into Angel’s chest after Buffy kisses him). As such, Angel feels that burden of guilt despite the argument that it wasn’t really “him”... because a part of Angelus was him – and of course, he remembers all of it.

Best Line: Buffy: “Do you snore?” Angel: “I don't know, it's been a long time since anyone was in a position to let me know.” It’s cheesy but it’s cute.

Worst Line: Not trusting the audience to get the fact that Joyce explicitly said “come in,” we also have to hear Darla tell her: “it's very nice of you for inviting me into your home.” Yes show, the vampire has been invited in – we GET IT.

Best Shot: Together but apart, thinking about all the sex they're not having:

Best Scene: As mentioned, I do love Darla’s shocked little “Angel?” when she realizes he’s staked her, especially as it’s given added depth and poignancy in later seasons, after we’re able to grasp the full extent of their relationship. Angel killing her is a Big Deal, but we don’t have the context to fully realize it yet.

Best Subversion: It’s subtle, but any other show would have had the Master specifically forbid Darla from going after Angel (only for her to flout his orders and get killed as a result) but here she operates under his express permission. His comment at the end, about how Angel was meant to sit at his right hand, makes me disappointed that the show never really delved further into their relationship (technically, he is Angel’s grand-sire!)

Most Random Scene: Still trying to wrap my head around the Bronze Fumigation Party, in which you get a free drink if you catch a cockroach. Is it meant to symbolize that the cockroaches who survive it are stronger for having gone through the ordeal? Or something? I’m just trying to make it fit!

Death Toll: A vampire called Zachary, killed off-screen by Buffy so I won’t count him. The Three, staked by Darla. Darla, staked by Angel.

Grand Total: Twelve civilians, twelve villains.

#buffy the vampire slayer #rav's watching log #rav's buffy rewatch #buffy season one

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melodiiesxfmadness · 1 year

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__________________________ headcanons!

- still has the cross necklace that angel gave her, however she no longer wears it ( keeps it in a little sealed baggy for safe keeping ). before leaving sunnydale, she got herself another one along with a ring that bears a cross too ( as an added measure when fighting vampires ). - after “bad eggs”; buffy no longer will eat eggs – scrambled, fried, as an omelet, etc etc, — she also has an aversion to scorpions as well. ( just eggs by their lonesome where she has to visibly see them, otherwise? she’s fine. ) the eggs make her physically sick and she will stomp the hell out of any scorpion, should she encounter it. ( alas that leaves her out of ever having pho. ) - after the incident with having to work at the Doublemeat Palace, buffy also no longer will eat hamburgers, cheeseburgers or even plant based impossible burgers. all of it ( just like eggs ! ) makes her physically sick. ( she can eat sausage patties and vegetables on their own. ) - buffy sold the house six months after joyce passed away in 2001, for a while she lived in the back room at the magic shop before getting an apartment with dawn and willow near UC Sunnydale. ( the potential slayers were trained in the back room of the magic shop, some would sleep there on the training mats as well until giles had the storage space above the magic shop refurbished into a living space for the remaining potential slayers to call home. ) - buffy still has nightmares about what happened with Adam & The Initiative ( along with her trauma from having to crawl out of her own grave ). - remember when angel gave buffy the claddagh ring? well, she gave it back after that visit to los angeles because they weren’t together anymore & she CLAIMED to not want any further past attachments. well, she was hiding a secret from him. buffy has a claddagh ring tattoo on her upper back, on the left side with a crack in the heart. - buffy still has trauma from having to crawl out of her coffin, she no longer sleeps under blankets or with the door closed as a result of it. as a matter of fact, for many years after coming back ? she’s attended group meetings at the nearest church for those who have ptsd from traumatic events in their life. - giles opened up a second magic box in downtown los angeles months after the final battle. willow some of the new slayers work there, as does buffy who is part time security. willow and dawn also teach magic classes to witches who show actual potential with mentoring from giles. - willow & giles are also in the long haul hunt to locate & train descendants of the Svear priestesses in order to reform the powerful cult and hope to make them allies. - as of 2018, buffy has been taking several life skills classes – whether it’s online through skill share or in person at the local high school. ( she did consider going back to college but since sunnydale was swallowed into a crater, she’d never be able to get her transcripts. )

- added February 8th 2023 - With Giles restarting the Watcher's Council, and there being a smaller ( but slowly growing in allies / local assistance ) on Oahu? slayers will begin to get a daily allowance/per diem when the funding is large enough. the council will also be paying for plane tickets, rental vehicles, hospital bills, room/board and clothing *again* once the funding is big enough. ( on oahu they're trying to renovate a home big enough to potentially house a few slayers who decide to visit or stay, probably put bunk beds in each room depending. )

— buffy wasn't ever really IN LOVE with riley, there was chemistry yes but the connection wasn't the same. the events with The Initiative also made her less and less inclined to want to be intimate / vulnerable with him so when they broke up? she was far from upset, more indifferent about it. — never won fiesta queen ( which is similar to may queen at Sunnydale high ) — spike was the last victim to the scythe while the Slayers were down in the depths, fighting off the hellmouth legion. ( to eradicate any remaining evil – chemical bombs had been set off as they were driving out of town to get to safety. so, her sunnydale is an irradiated zone and sealed off by the government. the crater still happened. ) — after angel left sunnydale & buffy saw him / came to los angeles that one time ? ( where he became human because of that demon & time got reversed so he could stop it. ) their connection hasn't been the same since, even less so after he helped faith out ( and they fought about it ). she no longer has any romantic feelings / a deep seeded connection to him, however she doesn't hate him either. she's grown a lot in their time apart, learned to love herself and realized that wishing she could've changed the past was holding her back. – she is a Kemetism practitioner, specifically Kemetic Orthodoxy. ( link one, link two. )

added November 2nd 2022: buffy loves foreign films. this stems from that one time where her, will and xander were watching that old hindi/Bollywood movie ( episode reference - reptile boy ). much to the annoyance of dawn, buffy will also change the language ( dubbing it ) of any movie they own on DVD ( made in english first ) if she can. or she mutes the movie and changes the subtitles to another language.

added November 3rd 2022: since about her brief stint in college, buffy takes vitamins. women's dailies, d3, tumeric and ginger, b12, vitamin a, calcium, and iron. despite the fact that a slayer's genetics are different than others ( her healing fast after angel fed from her in graduation part i ), she's not as young as she used to be and it's still important to maintain her best physical condition.

( added December 16th 2022 ): After Joyce passed away, Buffy definitely withdrew / became a little more hesitant when hugging ANYONE. Even her friends. It wasn't something any of them did, and they know that ... it was just - there's a hole that was left after losing her mom and she was someone that Buffy could always run to for comfort. And then one day, she couldn’t anymore. So, it's been a challenge for her.

( added December 19th 2022 ): buffy enjoys spicy asian food. specifically korean, thai, and vietnamese food. if something is not spicy enough for her, she adds two teaspoons of thai chili oil.

— THESE ARE GONNA BE SOFT HEADCANONS. Because hard days / nights / weeks happen & she who slays needs to find comfort in the three bedroom / three bathroom apartment she shares with Dawn & Willow. —

— Buffy has a collection of bath bombs, bath salts, various essential oils, & face masks she keeps on a shelf in a basket in her bathroom. — There's also a diffuser in her bedroom along with diffuser sticks. Seated on the bureau / chest of dresser drawers in the corner. — her foot massager tub is kept under the sink, or sometimes on a little stool in the bathroom. she will use mainly Epsom salt or sometimes bath salts, depends on her mood. – Speaking of mood ! Buffy has another shelf in the bathroom that houses candles or an incense burner, which she uses also depends on her mood. – Several playlists are used for when she's needing to calm down after having a hard day / night. — Journaling always happens for about an hour or two post feel better bath, usually with a cup of chai tea that Willow will make for her. — Buffy also meditates / still does Tai Chi in the very early mornings ( in her bedroom or in the living room with incense burning — in the living room if Dawn & Willow aren't home but neither girl minds truthfully ).

added, september 4th: Buffy will often go walking after a really bad fight ( vs. the supernatural ) or if she can't sleep while it's raining out. She tends to get looked at a little funny because she'll wear rain boots to keep her feet dry, but still get soaked in the process. There's been a few times where she's had cuts and bruises forming or fully visible and people stop her to ask if she's okay. Her response? "I'm breathing, this will all heal soon." And keeps walking.

added, september 5th: the reformed Watchers Council has two headquarters now. One in Los Angeles which is the chapter that Giles is in charge of and in one Hawaii, specifically on the island of Oahu. Every three to four months, Giles leaves LA for a couple of weeks to discuss in person with the head of the council ( currently unnamed ) there what paranormal occurrences are happening. Giles has mentioned a few times before that they're also looking to add two more new council chapters. One in Europe and one in Russia. Buffy's eyeglasses - They're not like regular eyeglasses, although in appearance they certainly seem to be. They're actually Schufftein glasses ( hellboy reference! ), making it easier for her to see the true form of things that are otherwise hidden to the naked eye / mere mortals. faeries, wesen ( when woged ), hellhounds, Shadowhunters ( when using the glamor rune ). ( added fact: Buffy does not wear the glasses 24/7, nor are they always with her when she's out and about. Due to being a rare and highly valued item, they're protected by magic and will only appear to her should she need them. If stolen ? They will immediately return to her or to where they're hidden. )

#( headcanons: buffy summers. )#misslikestxfiight

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violenceenthusiast · 3 years

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call me a cunt and a hater whatever i don’t care neither dean nor cas would ever actually wear a cross and you all know it

#the only legitimate version is if it’s buffyverse au #and one of them is a slayer and wears a cross like buffy does even tho she’s like ew christianity?#wait hello again this is NOT about sobrenatural #fern posting

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council-of-readers · 3 years

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Faith and Buffy's (seperate) S/O gets injured headcanons

Request: Hi, would it be okay to request separate head canons about how Buffy and Faith would react to their s/o getting injured during a fight?

I don't even know how long it's been since I've posted. I hope you enjoy the mini return!

~•~

Buffy:

She stops whatever she is doing to help you. Everything else falls to the wayside. She gets you to a safe place and makes sure you aren't in any immediate danger from your injuries. If she's in the middle of the fight when you get hurt, she finishes it as quickly as she possibly can.

Buffy is incredibly concerned about you. Even if it's a small injury, she wants you to be okay. She's definitely Nurse Girl for a while, focusing on getting you back to either her house or yours .

Patching you up turns into a sweet mini date night. She tends to your injuries, and you to hers, if she got any. Buffy has gotten quite good at first aid, so anything small she can handle. She will take you to the ER if you need, but doesn't cross her mind unless you've broken something. She's also quite careful to avoid your hurt areas once you've been bandaged and cleaned up.

I'm not saying that if you get a cut on your forehead or cheek that you'll get kissed while she cleans you up, but I'm definitely saying that.

It's really intimate for her. Once the concern wears off, and she knows you're okay, she starts to enjoy the moment a bit. The two of you curl up on the couch once you've both been taken care of. It's hard for Buffy to be vulnerable, and it's hard for her to talk about what she goes through as the slayer. Having someone who can see her injuries, and see how she got them, is heart melting. Especially when they're willing to tend to her and make sure she's going to be alright.

It means so much to her that you're someone she can trust with this.

If you got hurt while you accompanied her on patrol, you won't be allowed back for a long while. Sorry, it's just how it is. Even if you were just out on a walk and you got attacked she'll still be hesitant to let you go out. Buffy knows you're capable, but she also knows you aren't as capable as she is. Seeing you get hurt brought up a load of new anxieties. Bear with her and be gentle. It's just because she cares.

Anything more than a minor scrape and you are babied. She promises she isn't trying to infantilize you, but she ends up doing it anyhow. You're so precious to her! That's the excuse, anyhow. In reality, Buffy is happy to finally be the one to take care of you.

Whenever she gets hurt, you always help her heal, and she feels good returning the favour. She dislikes feeling indebted to anyone, so it also relieves a bit of internal stress for her.

Overall, it's love and care until you're 100% again, even if you're fully fixed within a few hours.

She can't help it!

Faith:

No matter the circumstance, if someone else hurt you, they are getting hurt in the same way, and then some. Faith is the very definition of 'eye for an eye'. Someone caused you pain and they will suffer for that.

Of course, she'd never admit it. If you ask why she went after them so hard she'll do nothing but deny it.

"Bloodloss is making you crazy, babe. Didn't go hit them more than I did anyone else."

You're barely bleeding as she says this, and she can't make eye contact.

When you get back home, she is less likely to be all over you than Buffy is, but you will still be looked after. Depending on the severity of your injuries, she'll either patch you up herself or take you to the ER. She's not fantastic with first aid, but she knows the basics. Faith will offer to give you stitches if you need. Do not take her up on it. Go to a doctor.

She won't make things worse, but it will hurt worse than anything you got in the fight.

After any bleeding has stopped and everyone's been bandaged, Faith will go off on her own if you let her. She'll either wander off to a bar or to her room. If you ask, though, she will stay and hang out with you. And you should ask.

Her preference for after-fight hangout time is watching TV together. She's not much of a cuddler, but Faith won't poke fun at you if you rest your head on her shoulder. In fact, she secretly enjoys it.

If she's being honest with herself, which she usually isn't, it terrified her. Even if you were only scratched, Faith's heart stopped in that moment. You were hurt. Everything she loved; everything that mattered. You could have been taken from her.

Even if it was illogical. Even if you were always, in all timelines, going to come out of that fight okay, Faith didn't. You got hurt. On her watch.

She spends the next few days beating herself up about it. Her internalized anger slowly becoming less internalized. She appears to be angry at you for a while, but I promise she's not. She's just scared. For you, for herself, for your life together.

She feels secure with you. She feels loves. She feels like maybe the world isn't evil and unforgiving. She won't risk it, or you.

Faith won't baby you, in fact she takes on a tough love approach. She will distance herself from you in the following weeks, and it'll be on you to reconnect.

As with all things in your relationship with her, you need to remember Faith is traumatized. She won't ever hurt you on purpose, and she loves you, but it's hard to understand her and her motivation sometimes. Try, though. She'll notice, and it'll mean everything.

Eventually, things will go back to normal, and Faith will relax again.

She loves you. She really does.

#faith x reader #faith lehane x reader #faith lehane headcanons #faith lehane #buffy summers #buffy summers x reader #buffy summers headcanons #btvs #buffy the vampire slayer #angel the series

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nileqt87 · 3 years

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Ramblings about Lucifer referencing Bones, “Close your eyes.” and shows influencing each other

That was never just a Bones reference being made and the season finale admitted it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jv_1dJk5yEM

David Boreanaz played the ironically-named Angel on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel: the Series. His character has *so many* parallels with Lucifer (far more than Booth outside of the law enforcement/crime procedural connection).

Angel's spinoff also has noir crime drama aspects mixed with the supernatural starring an immortal protagonist with a dark past and infamously villainous reputation fighting evil as a supernatural private detective in the City of Angels (a city known for its dark underbelly juxtaposed with fame and glamor, broken dreams and chasing eternal youth) and navigating human law (including the LAPD and evil lawyers) while not legally existing.

Angel also fell in love with a blonde human heroine (Buffy Summers) after lifetimes of self-destructive, not-so-heroic behaviors (getting his soul back did *not* make Angel a hero and human Liam was a lecherous drunk with unfulfilled ambitions and father issues) who inspired him to become a better man and make human connections.

AtS made heavy use of sprawling nighttime Downtown L.A. cityscape shots, which Lucifer also shared an abundance of.

During both of their first cases, they failed to save the troubled blonde girl they were trying to help (Tina and Delilah, respectively). They also have a connection inside the LAPD through a blonde cop who also takes their identity secrets pretty badly (Kate Lockley in Angel's case).

Note that Buffy not only screamed (twice, given it repeated during her memory loss in Halloween), but also came after Angel with a crossbow when she thought he'd attacked her mother (it was Darla), so Chloe taking the Devil face reveal (Monster Reveals are iconic old horror imagery) poorly to the point of considering poisoning is par for the course. However, it only took Buffy seven episodes instead of three seasons to get the identity reveal via seeing the horrific second face (arguably also an accident on Angel's part).

They are metaphorically or literally Hell's angels. They also had long stays in Hell or a hell dimension.

Lucifer and Angel are also both Prodigal Sons with long-held grudges against their long-absent fathers (patricide in Liam/Angel(us)'s case) and they're later faced with a situation where they have unexpected, thought-impossible offspring who show up as adults (neither got to raise their miracle child) wanting revenge. Yup, major Connor/Rory parallel there.

Angel is also in a constant struggle with the Powers that Be manipulating his fate and free will (like Lucifer, he's a champion of free will no matter the cost) and making him prophecy's bitch.

Bones famously got jokes about how Booth is Angel getting his Shanshu (made human), since the character is given constant Angel-isms like references to a dark past having killed people (Booth is also named after a historical murderer, in addition to having been a sniper), both being Catholics full of Catholic guilt (note that the Buffyverse is most accurately polytheistic, though Angel does face off against a take on the antichrist--Angel has constant biblical imagery/themes and not just because of vampire iconography), kicking down doors (just not off their entire frames--LOL), turning on a dime and threatening people up against walls, constant wink-wink references to the Buffyverse (familiar casting, references to the Hyperion Hotel, etc...), etc...

The Lucifer finale used the words "Close your eyes." right before Lucifer is sent to Hell. This is literally the BtVS season 2 finale where Buffy kisses Angel and sends him to hell for a century with a stab to the gut (see the season 5 finale, not to mention Lucifer giving up his life for Chloe's à la I Will Remember You).

Note that D.B. Woodside was on BtVS (playing Robin Wood, whose Slayer mother Nikki Wood was killed by Spike). Aimee Garcia was in both episodes of AtS (Birthday--she's older than she looks!) and Bones. See her also playing a cross-wearing religious girl on Supernatural who was slaughtered in a police precinct by Lilith. Kevin Alejandro was also in an episode of Bones.

Tricia Helfer was in an episode of Supernatural playing a ghost who reenacts the night of her death every year. BtVS also had an episode along those lines, but with Buffy and Angelus possessed (not to mention Phantom Dennis!). Lucifer having Dan as a ghost is yet another thing they all have in common (ditto referencing Ghost, Patrick Swayze and/or Unchained Melody--Vincent Schiavelli a.k.a. Ghost's subway ghost was Jenny's uncle Enyos, whom Angelus killed).

Lucifer name-checked Castiel and Supernatural referenced Lucifer using their Lucifer (crime-fighting angel in L.A. made it a double-reference whammy). Supernatural returned the favor again by having Castiel forced to sing in Enochian. Lucifer's reference to his singing voice was already a zing about Misha Collins having to put on that monotone gravel voice and Enochian being far from melodious.

Russell T Davies was quite heavily inspired by the Buffyverse when he revived Doctor Who and spun off Torchwood, so there are absolute tons of Buffy, Angel and Spike respectively in Rose Tyler, the 9th/10th Doctors, Captain Jack Harkness and Captain John Hart (right down to the actor). School Reunion is the episode where the Buffyverse inspiration is most on the nose, complete with Anthony Stewart Head saying "shooty dog thing" in a school setting and a Mayor/Angel-esque speech about the curse of immortality. The Time War gave the Doctor a huge genocide-level guilt complex. Note that the creator of DC comics' version of Lucifer, Neil Gaiman, has also written for Doctor Who and is also the co-creator of Good Omens (the show is brimming with Doctor Who Easter eggs thanks to David Tennant). A barely-recognizable Tom Ellis played Martha Jones' ex-fiancé Tom Milligan during the Year that Never Was, as well.

A lot of shows take inspiration from the Buffyverse and you've probably seen some of them. It isn't just the copycat vampire romance stories either.

Angel's forerunners in turn were a mix of guilt-stricken, rat-eating Louis de Pointe du Lac (his Jekyll/Hyde-esque alter-ego Angelus is closer to the pre-retcon, fully-evil Lestat de Lioncourt, who got woobified into an antihero rocker not unlike Spike--the entire Fanged Four mirror Anne Rice's character lineup), sword-wielding, immortality trope-influencers Connor/Duncan MacLeod of Highlander fighting for the Prize of humanity (akin to Pinocchio becoming a "real boy"--see also Barnabas Collins of Dark Shadows, though he was before vampires became antihero superheroes, not just sympathetic antivillains) and Nick Knight of Forever Knight (vampire detective).

Additionally, Tom Welling was famously the longest-serving Clark Kent of them all (Smallville) on the old WB (there's that DC comics connection, too), so it's not just a Fox shows thing (though Fox, not just Warner Brothers, did indeed own the Buffyverse). One of the least-known things about Clark is that he also has an immortality problem where he wouldn't age parallel to Lois (they wouldn't be able to have kids either) without a workaround. The Kryptonite line directed at Cain/Pierce by Lucifer was quite on the nose! Lucifer and Smallville sort of crossed over even further in Crisis on Infinite Earths, so Tom is canonically the face of both Clark and Cain in parallel universes of the DC multiverse.

Supernatural had quite recently had their own takes on Cain (played by Timothy Omundson, who also played God Johnson) and the Mark of Cain when Lucifer did it. Dan's killer Le Mec was, of course, Rob Benedict, who was God a.k.a. Chuck Shurley, the ultimate villain of Supernatural. Richard Speight, Jr., who was archangel Gabriel/Loki the Trickster, directed a lot of Lucifer's later episodes in addition to being a prolific Supernatural director.

Supernatural and Lucifer use the exact same font for their titles (Supernatural Knight).

The X-Files (which Supernatural referenced constantly) and Supernatural also had stories about nephilim (see the apocryphal Book of Enoch). Lucifer ultimately had two nephilim (forbidden interspecies offspring of angels and humans), even if not saying so as a known concept. Connor can also be compared to the vampire equivalent of being something like a dhampir, though he's not quite that (mostly-but-not-quite-human offspring of two vampires instead of a human/vampire hybrid--see Blade for an actual dhampir). Supernatural has also covered the even rarer cambion species (human/demon hybrid).

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there-must-be-a-lock · 4 years

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Big Damn Heroes

A Supernatural / Buffy the Vampire Slayer crossover!

Characters: Sam, Dean, Cas, Charlie, Buffy, Willow, Spike, Xander, Giles, Anya, Faith

Word Count: ~4930

Warnings: Flirting, play-fighting... it’s sexy but not smutty. 75% banter, 20% geeky references. (No, seriously, SO MANY. If anyone can spot all the easter eggs/quotes from Supernatural, the Whedonverse, and beyond, I’ll give you a cookie.)

A/N: For @impala-dreamer and @deanwanddamons, and the I Do Understand That Reference Challenge! I’ve been wanting to write a SPN/BtVS crossover since I first started watching Supernatural; I’ve been imagining some of these character interactions for a while. Thanks for giving me an excuse to finally do it!

Major thanks to @stunudo and @thoughtslikeaminefield for the reading and cheerleading. This was the most excited I’ve been about writing in a hot minute and I was so happy that you guys were excited to read it.

This bears very little resemblance to either show’s canon/timeline. No Dawn, no Tara. Just go with it.

“Okay, stand super still for me?” Charlie asks apprehensively. She twiddles a few knobs on the gadget she’d built, and a little fan of laser beams shoots out one end. She points it at Dean, who grimaces and shields his junk protectively as the lights sweep up and down his body.

Sam rubs at the tension headache that’s developing between his eyes. “You sure about this?”

“No?” Charlie says, voice squeaking slightly, and Sam’s headache throbs again. “But… I think so. It should work. I don’t think you understand how ridiculously complicated this whole thing is.”

“You are bringing their alternate selves here from an entirely different universe,” Cas says skeptically, arms crossed as he looks critically at the scene. “There are a lot of variables at work.”

Charlie points the device at Sam and scans him as she nods firmly. “Yes. Thank you. What Cas said. What’s the worst that can happen, right?”

Sam raises his eyebrows and sees Dean and Cas making near-identical expressions of disbelief.

“Right. Probably not a good thing to ask around here, huh? You guys are like the living embodiment of Murphy’s Law. I don’t think I’m gonna, like, blow anything up though, so that’s something!” Charlie cuts off her own nervous babbling and takes a deep breath. “Well, here goes nothing.”

Sam's ears start to ring, and he feels a tug somewhere in his chest. The bunker fuzzes and fades around them.

The last thing Sam hears is Cas saying flatly, “Well that can’t be good.”

***

Dean’s drawing his gun before the room even comes into focus, fighting a dizzying surge of nausea. He looks around wildly, turning to scan his surroundings. There’s a redhead in an eye-poppingly colorful sweater sitting on the couch, looking at him open-mouthed; a cute, tiny blonde at her side; a cozy, utterly suburban living room; and most importantly, a total lack of Sam, as far as he can see, and that’s a problem.

“Whoa, hey, take it easy,” the blonde says sharply. “Drop the gun.” She’s standing, coming toward him with her hands raised, and she’s clearly not a threat, but Dean’s not letting his guard down yet. He eases his finger off the safety but keeps it pointed at her.

“Where’s my brother?” Dean snaps.

“You just Apparated into the middle of my house, buddy, how ‘bout I ask the questions?” she says, unfazed. Which. Fair. Dean lowers the gun slightly.

The second he starts to relax, the blonde is whipping around like a goddamn ninja and kicking the gun out of his hand. She settles back into a fighting stance, looking way more serious than anyone wearing sparkly lip gloss has any right to look. Dean’s so stunned he doesn’t even try to fight back; he stares for a second, torn between the urge to pull his other gun out of the back of his pants, just to make a point, and the urge to propose on the spot, because wow.

“Um, hi, answers now?” the redhead says, still sitting on the couch, staring incredulously.

Dean takes a deep breath. “I’m Dean Winchester. I’m pretty sure this was a fuckup of gigantic proportions. Where am I? Who are you? How did you…”

“Sunnydale, Buffy, and mystical forces-of-evil-fighting Slayer powers,” she rattles off, with a little smile at the look of astonishment on his face. “Yeah, I get that a lot.”

“Buffy?” Dean says, smirking, and she raises an eyebrow.

“That’s really not the part most people fixate on,” she says bemusedly. There’s a phone ringing somewhere in the next room, and Buffy shouts without taking her eyes off Dean: “Xander? Would you get that?”

“I’m not most people.”

***

“Yes, quite. We’ll be right over,” Giles says, and he hangs up before turning back to Sam with a long-suffering expression. “Your brother is safe and sound. I’ll take you to him and we can try to sort this mess out.”

Sam lets out a long sigh of relief, following Giles to the door. He looks down at his phone again as Giles locks up, but it still displays “no signal.” Sam frowns.

“Where are we?” he asks.

“Sunnydale, California.” Giles leads the way to a tiny European car. Sam has to fold up like a pretzel to get in the passenger seat.

He watches out the window as Giles drives, frowning to himself as he tries to figure out why they’re here of all places. He’d been so busy with the whole Apparition thing that he didn’t question Giles’s initial reaction to a stranger materializing in the middle of his living room, but his expression had definitely been more resigned and exasperated than astonished, like maybe this sort of thing happened to him a little too often.

“Is there such a thing as magic in this world?” Sam says, with a sneaking suspicion that he already knows the answer. “Or… ghosts? Demons?”

Giles blinks a few times. “Magic, yes. Demons, quite. Ghosts… not that I’m aware of, but stranger things have happened on a Hellmouth, I’m sure.”

“A what?”

“Hellmouth. Sunnydale sits on top of a literal gate to hell, and as such, there is a convergence of mystical energy here. It tends to draw monsters and… well, general disaster.” Giles sounds like he’s repeated this little speech a few times before.

“Averted any apocalypses lately?” Sam asks wryly, and that does get him a very polite, British expression of surprise.

“Well, yes. A few, as a matter of fact. Buffy does stay busy.”

“Buffy?”

“Yes, the friend I called when you arrived. The Slayer. Do they have one of those in whatever world you’re from?”

“In my world, Slayer is a band,” Sam says with a shrug. “So… you’ve never heard of me? Or my brother? Dean Winchester?”

Giles gives him a skeptical sideways look. “Should I have?”

“I think I have a theory.”

“It’s not bunnies.”

“What?”

“Never mind. Go on.”

***

“This is where you live?” Dean asks, looking around at the big windows and unlocked door. “Are there protective spells or anything, at least?”

“No. And thus, the neverending construction,” Xander says mournfully, nodding toward an unfinished window frame.

Dean’s still processing how normal it is. They’re all sitting around in the incredibly ordinary living room on comfortably mismatched couches, and the coffee table in front of him has a copy of Cosmo on it, for fuck’s sake. He’s never met a hunter of any kind who’d be reading about “Why Wet Kisses Make Men Horny.”

He looks up hopefully when he hears the door, but it’s not Sam; there’s a bleach-blonde guy coming in, shaking off the ratty blanket he’d been wearing like a cape.

“Oh, great, you’re back,” Willow grumbles.

Buffy gives him a look that’s borderline murderous, which would be about as threatening as a newborn kitten if Dean didn’t know what she’s capable of. “Why, exactly, are you back?”

“Bored. Not much to do in a crypt.” The guy shrugs, looking Dean up and down with an appraising gleam in his eye. “Who’s the pretty boy?”

Dean’s still processing “crypt.” Before he can decide how he feels about the flirtatious tone, Buffy answers for him: “Spike, this is Dean. Dean, this is Spike. Spike, you can fuck right off now. Dean, you want a glass of water or something? Sorry, all the alternate universe talk made me forget my manners.”

“Got anything stronger?”

“If by stronger you mean orange juice?” Buffy offers apologetically, but Spike pulls a flask out of the inside of his long coat and passes it to Dean with a smug half-smile. Then he makes himself at home in one of the armchairs, raising an eyebrow at Buffy as if to make it extra clear that he has no plans to “fuck right off” any time soon.

“Cheers,” Dean says gratefully.

Spike winks at him, obvious and shameless, and drawls, “You just let me know if you need anything else.”

Buffy’s got her arms crossed, glaring daggers at Spike, and Dean can tell there’s something going on there, but he can’t really resist flashing his most charming grin in Spike’s direction.

The front door opens again, and Dean breathes a long sigh of relief when he sees Sam.

***

“What makes you think there’s a version of you in this universe, anyway?” Willow asks, and everybody pauses to think about that one for a second. “I mean, if there are all these different worlds, why are you guys the heroes in every single one?”

“Bit bloody full of yourselves,” Spike says. There’s no reason for that sentence to sound as suggestive as it does, but that seems to be his default tone. Sam tries not to notice the way Spike’s staring at his brother. Not like Dean is aware of it; he’s too busy staring at Buffy.

“There’s a world with nothing but shrimp,” Xander chips in unhelpfully. Sam shakes his head like that might clear his ears.

“Chuck said -” Dean starts, and Sam cuts him off with a gesture before anyone can ask who “Chuck” is. That seems like a surefire way to derail this barely-coherent conversation, and Sam wants to figure out how to get the hell home.

“It’s not a bad point,” he says. “So if Charlie programmed the thing -” Willow opens her mouth like she really wants to interrupt, but Sam plows on, “- to bring us from a world that didn’t have an us, maybe that’s what made it glitch. It couldn’t bring anyone to us, so it brought us here instead.”

“But why would it drop you with us?” Buffy asks.

“You guys seem to be the ones who deal with the apocalypses around here,” Dean says, shrugging.

“We are the local experts at the saving people and the hunting things,” Buffy agrees.

Spike smirks. “Big damn heroes, is what we are.”

Buffy shoots him a withering glare. “You are not included in this.”

“But why split us up?” Sam muses, rubbing the bridge of his nose. His headache has not improved in the slightest. When he looks up, Dean’s eyes are darting between Sam and Giles, who has his glasses off and is pinching his own nose in the exact same spot.

“Wow, Sammy,” Dean says, an infuriating grin spreading over his face.

“What?”

Dean turns to Buffy. “So this whole Slayer thing. Kind of a birthright? Destiny?”

She shrugs. “I guess so. There was this whole group of old British guys with sticks up their asses, but... ”

Sam rolls his eyes, starting to see where Dean’s heading with this, and asks Buffy, “Ever died, by any chance?”

“Twice, actually,” she replies, without batting an eye. She looks back and forth between them. “Wait, have either of you -”

“Trust me, you don’t wanna know,” Dean says ruefully. “Sacrificed yourself to save someone, I’m guessing?”

“That’s me, self-sacrificey girl,” Buffy says, matter-of-fact and borderline chipper. “Kind of my specialty. That and the quipping.”

“Let me guess, you handle the research,” Sam says to Giles.

“Well, yes, I suppose. Although I’m not exactly helpless in a fight. I do know a bit of magic as well.”

Sam buries his face in his hands for a second.

“So when the program couldn’t find a match for either of us, it sent us to… someone as much like us as it could find,” Dean says.

Willow jumps in quickly. “What sort of computer -”

“What was that about shrimp?” Dean asks at the same time. Everybody starts talking at once, and Sam sighs heavily. He almost rubs his forehead again, but he stops himself when he notices Giles doing the same thing.

***

Dean’s trying to explain the whole Chuck situation when he sees the distortion in the middle of the room, and he trails off in the middle of the sentence, watching anxiously as Charlie blurs in and out a few times before solidifying in front of them.

“Okay, weird,” she blurts out, looking around wide-eyed and overwhelmed.

“Holy fuck am I glad to see you,” Dean says fervently.

“Right back atcha,” Charlie says. “Somebody want to tell me what the fuck is going on?”

“Ooh, are you the one who beamed them up?” Willow asks excitedly. “Actually… you look weirdly familiar, have we met before?”

Charlie blinks at her a few times, a smile spreading across her face, and shakes her head. “I don’t think so. Pretty sure I’d remember you.”

“This is Charlie, she’s our resident computer genius,” Dean says, and they make the rounds of introductions yet again.

Charlie gives everyone an awkward little wave. “Charlie. Um. I like LARPing, pretty women, and long walks on the beach.”

Dean doesn’t miss the way Willow perks up at that, and he bites the inside of his cheek to hold back his laughter.

“Hey, where’s Cas?” Charlie asks, finally tearing her eyes away from Willow long enough to look around the room, as if Cas might’ve hid behind the bookshelf when he arrived.

Dean’s stomach sinks. “He came with you?”

“Yeah, we -” Charlie starts, but she’s interrupted by the door opening, and much to Dean’s relief, Cas is walking through it next to a frazzled-looking girl.

“I’m hoping one of you can explain why this man materialized in my car?” the girl asks irritably. “As if parallel parking wasn’t hard enough without surprises.”

“Hi to you too, Anya,” Buffy chirps. “Glad everybody could join us for what was supposed to be my relaxing day of solitude.”

“I’m not a man, exactly,” Cas interjects.

Anya tilts her head to the side inquisitively, glancing very blatantly down at Cas’s crotch for a second, and Dean snorts.

“Would it be rude if I asked -” Anya starts.

Giles answers before she can finish: “Yes, it undoubtedly would be.”

“I’m an angel,” Cas says nonchalantly.

“Judging by everyone’s faces, Anya’s not an angel, then?” Sam asks, looking between the two of them.

“Only that one time, for Xander’s birthday,” Anya volunteers, and Xander splutters an incoherent protest. “But that was a sexy angel, not a real angel. I don’t think we have those here.”

“She used to be a revenge demon,” Buffy explains.

“Used to be?” Cas asks.

“Oh, I’m human now,” Anya reassures him.

Spike adds, “Not that you’d know it, talking to her.”

“Considering how primitive and strange humans are considered to be by most of the known universe, I wouldn’t say that’s a bad thing,” Cas says mildly. “Some of your customs are utterly incomprehensible to an outsider.”

“That’s what I keep saying!” Anya exclaims. “I mean, how am I supposed to know exactly which reproductive habits are acceptable for public discussion?”

“They do have some very arbitrary rules about appropriate behavior,” Cas says. Dean notices Sam and Giles rubbing their foreheads in tandem again.

***

By the time they finish asking all their questions and comparing apocalypses, Sam’s actually kind of having fun, but he knows it’s time to get back to work.

“You ready to get out of here?” he asks Dean, during the next lull in the conversation. Dean looks more than a little put out as he sneaks a glance at Buffy, but he shrugs.

“Probably should. Charlie? Hey, Earth to Charlie.”

Charlie looks pretty dazed as she turns to face them. “Hmm?”

“We should probably get home,” Sam says apologetically.

Charlie’s face falls. “Really?”

Dean gives her a sympathetic look. “Worlds to save, and stuff. Still need to find a way to warn all those other Sams and Deans. Sorry, kiddo.”

“Maybe you can come back sometime, if you… y’know, survive the apocalypse?” Willow says, with a hopeful smile. Charlie grins at her.

“We also have places to be,” Anya says cheerfully. “Very important things to do.”

“Subtle,” Xander mutters. They wave their goodbyes and head for the door, followed by a somewhat sulky-looking Spike. Then again, that might just be Spike’s face; Sam can’t really tell.

Cas, Charlie, Sam, and Dean huddle in the middle of the living room, and Charlie says resignedly, “Strap yourselves in, I’m gonna make the jump to lightspeed.”

“You don’t have to scan us again, do you?” Dean asks, eyeing the gadget with some mistrust.

“Nope. We’re all saved in the system. Ready?”

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Dean says, with one last half-smile in Buffy’s direction. Charlie hits the button.

Nothing happens. Charlie frowns and hits it again.

“Charlie?” Sam says hesitantly.

“No, obviously that’s not supposed to be happening,” she retorts. She fiddles with a couple knobs. “I think I know what it is, though. There are all sorts of parameters for, like, which Earth you’re coming from and which Earth you’re going to, and I think the weird glitchy thingy might’ve scrambled the algorithm.”

Dean leans in to look. “Did you try hitting it?”

“It’s quantum physics, Dean, you can’t just keymash until it works,” Charlie says, rolling her eyes and holding it away from him. “Unless you want to be stuck in shrimp-world or something.”

“How long do you think it’ll take to fix it?” Sam asks.

Charlie shrugs. “Could be a couple hours, could be a day or two.”

“I could help you,” Willow offers. Charlie looks like Christmas came early.

“You guys are welcome to stay, it’s no biggie,” Buffy offers. “Not like you’re the strangest thing that’s ended up in my living room.”

“I’m flattered,” Dean says with a grin.

Sam sighs, but he can think of worse worlds to be in for a day or two. At least they’re not surrounded by shrimp.

***

“So this is what you do every night?” Dean asks, as Buffy hops the fence with zero visible effort. He might have actual hearts in his eyes.

“Pretty much,” she says cheerfully. Dean follows her. He does okay, even if he doesn’t stick the landing like a Russian gymnast.

Sam had stayed home, after some silent pleading in eyebrow-speak, so it’s just the two of them, and it’s nice, for a graveyard. There’s something about the idea of “patrolling” that Dean likes. He imagines coming here night after night, recognizing the mausoleums, getting familiar with all the paths. It sounds stable.

“Do you like it?” Dean asks. “The whole Slayer thing.”

Buffy wrinkles her nose adorably at him. “I’m not sure like is the word I’d choose. What else would I do, though? Not like I could just walk away from it. I tried, once. The weird follows me wherever I go.”

“Sorry, if you don’t want me to follow you any more I can just…”

She laughs at that. Dean feels butterflies in his stomach, like he’s just a middle schooler with a crush. It’s been a minute since he put actual effort into flirting with somebody, beyond the easy one-liners. Dean fiddles with the stake she gave him, twirling it in his fingers, trying to keep an eye on his surroundings instead of just staring at Buffy.

“Sometimes I wonder,” she says softly. “Y’know? Like, why me?”

“You’re basically a superhero,” Dean says. She can probably tell how hard he’s geeking out about it. “That’s what heroes do.”

“It’s not just that, though! Like… I was bored out of my mind trying to be normal.”

Dean laughs. “Normal was a disaster.”

“So even if the weird wasn’t following me, I’d go find the monsters myself. Who does that?”

“Crazy people,” Dean agrees. “I can’t imagine doing anything else, though. Never gonna have a normal job, never gonna have a normal relationship, and yet.”

“So you’re not - there’s no relationship?” she asks, exaggeratedly casual.

“Nah.” Dean tries to hide his grin, and then he asks cautiously, “What’s up with you and Spike?”

She stops dead, mouth open, staring at him. “Wait. Oh god. Please don’t tell me Faith is already running her mouth, I told her -”

“No, it’s cool, I just… guessed, earlier,” Dean says sheepishly. “Don’t worry, I don’t think anybody else noticed.”

Buffy makes a face and rolls her eyes, and they start walking again. “It’s complicated, the… thing with Spike. It’s definitely not a relationship though.” She stresses that last bit, and Dean really shouldn’t feel relieved, at that, but he does.

“Isn’t it always complicated?”

Buffy sighs. “There’s the whole undead creature of the night thing, for starters, which. Oddly enough, seems to be a type for me?”

“Yeah?”

Something must show on his face, because Buffy frowns. “Oh, Jesus, don’t tell me you’re some sort of demon too.”

“Would that help my chances?” Dean asks wryly. “Cause I kinda used to be.”

She stares for a second. “You’re joking, right?”

“Really not.”

There’s a moment where she’s clearly deciding whether she wants to go there, but then a familiar voice rings out behind them and interrupts: “Thought you were heading home, pretty boy.”

Dean turns, grinning in spite of himself. “Change of plans.”

“Lucky us,” Spike drawls. “Mind if I join you for a walk, pet?”

“No,” Dean answers, just as Buffy lets out a resigned, “Kinda.”

Spike catches up to them and slings an arm around Dean’s waist, pulling him against his side. Buffy lets out a huff, but she’s laughing too.

“Are you really trying to make me jealous?” she asks Spike.

“Is it working?”

Dean disentangles himself and looks back and forth between the two of them. “Yeah, this is obviously healthy.”

Buffy laughs, but Spike just retorts, “Like you would know a healthy attachment pattern if it bit you in the ass.”

Dean considers protesting, but he doesn’t really have a leg to stand on there.

“Guess it’s in the job description. Are we gonna go fight some monsters, or what?”

“Yeah, let’s go find the monsters,” Buffy says, grinning at Dean. “That’s what heroes do, right?”

***

Sam zones out of the discussion around the time Cas and Giles start talking comparative theology through the millennia. He slouches back on the couch and watches them fondly as Cas answers question after question. His eyelids feel heavy and he’s comfortable, and even though he knows he should take the opportunity to learn more about this totally new Earth, all he really wants to do is sit, and breathe, and rest.

Cas and Giles end up heading back to Giles’s house for tea and… something about an old book of etchings? Sam can’t really follow Giles’s breathless, excited rambling. He waves them off, thinking that he might actually go to sleep early, for once.

Sam goes to the kitchen, chugs a glass of water and then fills another, and he just stands there for a moment, one hip leaning against the counter as he looks around. It’s such a normal house. Even on their most domestic days, they’re still in a bunker. Must be nice to have a little bit of normalcy, no matter how crazy life gets. There’s faint music and the occasional giggle from upstairs, but otherwise, the house is quiet.

Of course, just as he has that thought, the front door slams open and someone shouts, “Yo, B! Ready to go?”

“She went out already,” Sam says, bemused.

He gets an impression of red lips, dark hair, and leather as the girl closes the door behind herself, moving whirlwind-quick. She plants her feet (loudly, in big stompy combat boots) and crosses her arms, looking at Sam suspiciously. Neither of them move for a second.

“I’m Faith,” she announces eventually. “Who the fuck are you, why the fuck are you in B’s kitchen, and where the fuck is she?”

“Sam, and… it’s a long story. She’s out patrolling with my brother, they left about an hour ago.”

Faith seems to make some sort of decision about him, and suspicion turns to mischief as she gives him a broad grin. “If your brother looks anything like you, can’t blame the girl for ditchin’ me.”

Sam’s mouth twitches as he tries to hold back a smile, and he takes a sip of water to cover it.

“Aww, you shy?” Faith teases. Her voice is low and raspy, kind of absurdly sexy, and she clearly knows it. “Must be one of those nice guys I’ve heard so much about.”

Sam doesn’t answer. He watches Faith stalk toward him.

She’s a fucking force of nature, Sam can already tell, all aggression and attitude as she comes at him with a challenge in her eyes. He doesn’t move when she gets up in his space, looking Sam up and down like she’s inspecting him. He has a feeling she’s used to people backing away before they let her get this close.

“Sam, huh? What brings you to Sunnydale?”

“Just passing through,” Sam says calmly. “What about you?”

“How do you know I’m not from around here?” she asks, looking up at him coyly.

Sam doesn’t dignify that with a response, just smirks and waits. She takes a step back and leans against the counter, mirroring his pose. Her eyes are sparkling.

“Fair enough. I’m a Slayer, figured I’d stick around in Sunnydale and help B for a while. Always seems to be somethin’ around here that needs its ass kicked.”

Sam cocks his head to the side, considering her. “So you fight vampires?”

“And whatever else is askin’ for a fight,” she retorts. “Why, is your brother a vampire?”

“What?”

“Buffy’s got a type. A demonic kinda type, if you know what I’m sayin’. Don’t worry, I won’t stake him.”

Sam laughs. Figures. “I wasn’t worried. Just curious if the superpowers are all they’re cracked up to be.”

“You better believe it,” Faith says proudly. “Strength, speed… stamina.” She says the last with a sly, unsubtle smirk, watching Sam to gauge his reaction.

“Show me,” he challenges. He doesn’t specify which one he means, and Faith raises one eyebrow.

“Right here? I figured you’d be the candlelight and Al Green type.”

Sam smiles. She’s not the first person to make that assumption.

The first punch is light, and he lets her see it coming; she dodges it easily, without so much as blinking. Sam’s left hand snakes out, lightning-fast this time, and she sidesteps neatly, grabbing his wrist instead and holding his arm in place. She’s stronger than he expected, and she’s grinning like this is the most fun she’s had all week.

“Sure about this? I wouldn’t want to hurt you,” she says, sugary-sweet.

The next punch is in earnest. She blocks it, throws one of her own, and then it’s a blur for a moment, a flurry of blows one after another, none of them landing. Neither of them are moving their feet much, trapped in the narrow space between the counter and the kitchen table; they’re just testing each other.

“Not bad,” Sam admits.

“Right back atcha.”

She takes a couple steps backward, out into the open space, and Sam follows, watching closely. This time she lets loose with a flashy spin-jump-kick thing like something out of a cheesy action movie, and Sam’s laughing as he ducks.

“Points for style, but not for substance,” he teases.

She comes back at him twice as hard and almost gets him this time, but then he snatches her wrists and slams her back against the wall with a thunk that’s a whole lot louder than he expected. They both wince and freeze.

“Everything okay?” Willow yells from upstairs.

Charlie’s pissy voice adds, “Please don’t tell me that was a monster.”

“Just tripped,” Sam shouts back. He looks down at Faith, taking a half-step closer so that there’s maybe an inch of space between their bodies. He’s still got her wrists pinned over her head. She’s definitely not trying to get away. He has a feeling she could, easily, if she wanted to.

“Not so nice after all, then,” she purrs, looking up at him through her lashes.

Sam shakes his head slightly. “Not so much. You giving up, then?”

“Not a fuckin’ chance. Just thinkin’ maybe we should have the rematch back at my place. You know, in case you ‘trip’ again.”

“Sounds like a good idea.”

***

Probably good they only stayed for a day, Dean thinks, looking around the room. Nobody, from either world, looks particularly happy about the departure, but they’ve all said goodbye often enough that they don’t draw it out. Charlie gives Willow one last little wave, and then she hits the button. Everything goes fuzzy.

It’s disorienting, for a moment, but the bunker comes into focus around them. After the dizziness has passed, Dean gives Charlie a wordless hug.

“I’m gonna go read a book with pictures in it,” she says glumly, and shuffles away. “And eat ice cream.”

“Research time, I guess,” Sam says. “Back to work.”

Cas heads to the kitchen to make some coffee as Sam starts flipping through his notes. Dean settles down at the table and looks at the nearest book without really seeing it. He feels fucking off, almost sad, as if he could’ve possibly gotten attached to that other world in less than twenty-four hours.

“That was… kinda a nice universe, right?” he says. “I dunno. There was something about it.”

Sam gives him a knowing look. “Yeah.”

“Ever wish we could just… stay somewhere else?” Dean says, and he can’t keep the bitter note out of his voice. “I mean, why do we keep coming back to this world? What’s so great about it?”

“It’s ours,” Sam says, with a shrug. “I mean, the other one wasn’t our responsibility, you know? Of course it was nice, not having to worry, but… this one’s ours. Gotta take care of it.”

Dean twirls a pencil between his fingers and wishes it was a stake. He smiles, slightly, as he remembers.

That’s what heroes do.

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lookimtryingmybest · 3 years

Text

“How to accidentally die, meet a shady ghost and become a half demon” A story by Logan Freud.

Part 1 Part 2

It was a quiet Sunday morning. Logan had left a note for his parents on the kitchen counter, grabbed his keys, and left the house. He played some music in his headphones as he made his way to the location where he had agreed to meet the others. The street noise was something he’d rather not deal with this early in the morning.

He knew the way. He knew which crossroads were dangerous. He knew to be more aware of his surroundings. Logan wasn’t going to be completely deaf to the world. He knew what he was doing.

Logan spotted Virgil on the meeting point, just across the street. Early as always, he noted.

He was going to cross safely. He swore to himself over and over that he was going to do it. Wait for the speeding cars to pass and then cross.

But he couldn’t ignore the kid he spotted, standing in the middle of the road.

Without thinking twice, something Logan didn’t have the tendency to do, he started running. He moved to grab the kid’s arm and pull him away.

He passed right through him.

The kid stared at him, and Logan stared back.

“You can see me?” The kid asked.

And before Logan could respond, he got hit by a car.

Virgil cursed when he saw Logan run and just stop. In the middle of the road.

He screamed when he got hit.

He doesn’t remember much of what happened later. His legs moved for him, and someone called an ambulance.

The ambulance wasn’t fast enough.

Virgil’s memories started becoming more vivid after his parents got him home. He explained that they just wanted to meet and go have fun in the park. They just wanted to enjoy the swings and the slide without being looked at weird by the little kid’s mothers.

He stayed in his room for the rest of the day. His friends called. He ignored every one of those calls.

His mind kept repeating the accident. How Logan ran.

He never thought Logan could do something so careless. So stupid.

Virgil curled up in his bed, buried under blankets. He didn’t try to stop the tears.

“What the fuck has just happened.” Logan said, as he opened his eyes again. He remembered a kid, with golden eyes, and being on the road. Then everything became blurry. He thought he might’ve heard Virgil screaming over twenty one pilots’s ride.

He looked around him. He was standing up. And dressed up in a suit. How did he wake up this way?

He saw Virgil from a distance, along their mutual friends. Logan smiled.

He ran to them.

“Virgil!” He shouted. Virgil didn’t react. “Virgil?”

Logan moved to grab his shoulder. He passed through him. He tried again. “Virgil? Virgil, listen to me!” He kept trying to grab him, failing.

He turned to the others. Patton was holding back tears, as he held Remus’s hand. Remus was a mess, not even trying to hold back on his sobbing. Roman kept drying away his own tears, smudging his eyeliner beyond recognition.

“Guys?” Logan said, trying to get their attention. “Remus? Patton?” He tried to grab them. He passed through them. “Roman?”

He turned again, trying to understand what they were so upset about.

Oh. That made sense.

Logan saw himself, wearing the same tux he was wearing now, laid down in a coffin. Lilacs on his hands. Lilacs were always his favourites.

He gulped. No, this couldn’t be real, right? He couldn’t be dead, he was still here. He just needed for the others to see him.

Logan didn’t believe in ghosts.

Oh, the irony, he thought, once he had calmed down. After the funeral, his funeral, ended, not knowing which of his friends to follow.

Something on the back of his mind told him to follow Virgil. And so he did.

Virgil’s house was old. Very old. Remus liked to joke it was haunted. It was a running gag now, Virgil had even made up Dennis, the ghost that lived in his house and that liked pushing his stuff to the ground like a bastard cat.

That joke didn’t seem so funny now to Logan.

He followed Virgil to his room and watched him burry himself in homework as a distraction. Logan could hear the music blasting from the headphones.

He looked around his room, not knowing what to do. He tried touching things. Anything. Nothing worked.

Logan looked around the house. He saw Virgil’s parents. They were talking. Logan decided it wasn’t his business.

He went to the living room.

And there was the kid from before, watching the TV.

Logan stared at the kid. They should be around his age, probably younger. He was dressed in dirty pajamas, no shoes on. His hair was a mess of brown curls and his skin was dark.

The kid turned to face him, and Logan saw the other half of his face.

He screamed.

The kid jumped to his feet, startled by Logan’s presence.

“Virgil, did you leave the TV on again?” Virgil’s father asked, entering the room. Both ghosts watched him as he turned off the TV and left.

Then they went back to staring at each other.

“Aw, man, I was watching that…” The kid complained, turning to the TV. He avoided Logan’s gaze.

“What happened to your face?” Logan asked, trying not to look to half part of the kid’s face.

The kid grimaced. “Rude.” He said, sitting on the carpet again. “Why are you still here?”

“My apologies.” Logan said. He considered sitting next to the kid. “I was simply… surprised.”

The kid scoffed. “You mean disgusted? Yeah, I get that a lot. Why are you still here?”

“What do you mean?” Logan said, sitting next to the kid. The kid moved away from him.

“Move on, continue your business, however you wish to call it.” He said. “Why haven’t you done that already?”

“I can do that?” Logan asked.

“Yes.” The kid said. “Everyone does so. So just do it and leave me alone.”

Logan stared at the kid. He tried to do what he was doing. Move on. But he didn’t know how to do that.

“I’m afraid I can’t.” Logan said. “Who are you?”

The kid turned to face him again, frowning. Logan made an effort not to stare at the burned flesh. “What do you mean you can’t? Everyone can!” He said, gesturing widely.

“Well, if everyone can, why haven’t you moved on?” Logan asked.

The kid dropped his arms, staring at nothing for a few moments. “Almost everyone can. I can’t.”

“Well, then, I suppose I’m in the same situation as you.” Logan said. He held out his hand for the kid. “I’m Logan Freud. And you?”

The kid stared at his hand before shaking it. Logan noticed how his hands were dirty with blood and ashes. “Janus.” He said. “Although Virgil calls me Dennis. He got the idea of that weird show about vampires. I really like that show.”

“Buffy the vampire slayer, yes, I know that sho–wait you’re who?” Logan said.

“Janus. Yeah, I’ve been bothering Virgil for a while now. He’s fun to mess with.” He said, trying to sound causal. He failed, being far too awkward for this.

“Oh my fucking god.” Logan said. “I thought you were a joke”

“Yeah, Virgil thinks so too.” Janus said, scratching the burn tissue on his hands, avoiding Logan’s gaze.

“I’ve laughed at the mere idea of you existing.” Logan said.

“Yeah, I know.” Janus said, getting tired of the topic. “I was there.”

“I… god, fuck…” Logan said, laughing. He didn’t even know why he was laughing. “I’m dead. Fuck, I’m dead.”

“Yep.” Janus said. “Welcome to the club.” He stood up. “Imma leave ya to your existential crisis and go bother Virgil.”

Logan stared at the TV, as he heard Janus left. He stood up after a few moments.

He didn’t notice he was heading to his home until he passed through the door. He heard their parents talking in the kitchen.

Logan couldn’t decipher what his parents were saying. He heard the words, but he couldn’t just figure them out.

His parents weren’t crying. They weren’t grieving.

They didn’t care.

Logan went back to the living room. He traced his fingers through his old piano. He should’ve played it more often when he was alive. It’s not like he loved doing so, but it was a good de-stressing method.

He pressed his hands against the keys. He jumped back when sound came out. After a few seconds of staring at the piano, he tried to grab the pillows on the sofa. Nothing. He passed through them.

He hesitated before placing his hands against the keys. He started playing a melody he knew from back when he was five.

He stopped when his mother entered the room, looking paler than usually. Logan moved away from the piano, smiling.

“Mom, I–” He dropped his smile when his mother walked straight through him.

He watched her close the piano’s lid and push the stall under it. She didn’t even bother putting the protective cloth on the keys before slamming the lid close.

Logan bit back tears as he tried to get the lid to open. It didn’t. He screamed in frustration and tried to hit something. He just kept passing through the furniture, which didn’t help calming him down.

He crumbled to the ground, hugging his knees. He let the tears ran down.

He was dead, he no longer cared.

No one could see him.

Not even his parents cared.

Roman had thrown himself into sewing. He grabbed his latest project right after breakfast and spent hours on it.

He didn’t notice how thirsty he was until Remus forced him to go eat lunch. He almost didn’t believe how much time he’d spent focused on his dress. His hands hurt.

Remus didn’t look better either. He had stayed in bed until three o’clock, ignoring Roman. And the world. He hadn’t even bothered changing clothes since the funeral.

They sat at the kitchen, as Remus forced his twin to eat some fruit.

“Logan’s parents called” Remus said, peeling an orange with numb fingers. “They’re leaving for the month.”

“Oh.” Roman said, watching Remus struggle with the peel. He’d usually bit into the orange like an apple and spit out the peel later. “Ok.”

“They’re asking us to watch over the house while they’re gone.” Remus said leaving the peeled orange on the counter. He wasn’t hungry anyways.

“Ok” Roman said again. “Jerk move. But ok.” He gulped down his chocolate milk. “You should eat as well.”

“I know.” Remus said. “I will.” He took the orange and contemplated it.

“Are they asking us to go inside?” Roman asked, watching his brother munch on the orange as if it was an apple, juice dripping down his arm.

“Yeah.” Remus said, his mouth full. “Once per day, to check for squatters.”

“As if people were dumb enough for choosing an obviously occupied house.” Roman said, bitterness slipping into his tongue. He had never liked Logan’s parents much. “Let’s get this over with for today.” He stood up, leaving his mug on the sink. “I want to finish the dress today.”

“You said it would take you a few weeks to finish…” Remus said, following him. Orange juice dripped to the floor. None of the twins mentioned it.

“Did I fucking stutter?” Roman asked.

Remus just shrugged. “They left the keys under the doormat.”

“Stupid decision.” Roman pointed out. Remus hummed in agreement.

Roman contemplated the option of changing clothes. The pajamas were comfortable, though, and he wanted to get this over with as fast as he could. Get into the house, check the rooms and go back to sewing until his hands fell off.

Remus opened the door and clicked the lights on. Neither of the twins made any attempts to move inside the house.

Roman grimaced. “Let’s get this over with.” He said, brushing his brother as he entered.

They passed through the kitchen, the living room and Logan’s parents’s room.

If Remus noticed how Roman purposely ignored Logan’s room, he didn’t dare to mention it.

Remus looked at the old piano. It was closed. Logan hated it when people closed his piano.

Without thinking twice, he opens the lid and brushed his fingers against the keys.

He jumped away, falling to the ground, when the piano played on its own.

He heard Roman approaching.

“Remus, stop playing the piano, we have to–” He stopped, staring at Remus in the ground. He blinked twice before looking at the piano, that kept playing.

Then he fainted.

Remus felt like screaming. Instead, he crawled to his side, trying to ignore the piano as it kept playing. He poked his brother in the face.

“Please don’t be dead.” He said, barely above a whisper. “Roman, please, don’t be dead.”

The piano music stopped. Remus felt a breeze pass through, sending shivers through his body.

Then Roman opened his eyes, and stared at the ceiling.

“Remus, what the fuck?” He said, sitting up. He rubbed the back of his head, feeling a numb headache coming.

“Ah, thanks, I thought you just died.” Remus said, trying to smile.

“What has just happened?” He asked, getting up.

Remus looked at the piano and then at Roman.

“Bold of you to assume I have any idea.” He said. “The piano is automatic, or something.”

A chord interrupted him.

“Never mind, it’s haunted.” Remus said, smiling nervously. “Let’s fucking leave.”

“Wait.” Roman said. He approached the piano. “Ok, eh… can you hear us?”

“What are you doing?” Remus said. “It’s a piano it can’t respond you, let’s just fucking lea–”

A single note interrupted him. A ti.

“Ok, B. What does a B mean?” Roman said.

“Why are you asking questions to a piano?!” Remus said. He was starting to lose his composure. “Roman, please let’s just go home, I’m seriously freaking out.”

“B meant ti, right?” Roman said, ignoring his brother’s panic. “In like, the British English?”

“Yes, Roman, B means ti or si.” Remus said. “Congratulations, you remember music lessons, can we now go away?”

“Si. Sí. Yes. He’s saying yes.” Roman said. The piano played a few other tis, as if it wanted to confirm it.

Remus ran his hands through his hair. “It’s a piano! Not a person!” He said, voice filled with desperation. “Please, Roman, I really need to leave.”

“You leave.” Roman said. “I’m going to…” He sighted, looking at the piano. “I’m going to talk to Logan.”

“You what?” Remus exclaimed. “Are you out of your mind? That’s not Logan!” He gestured to the piano like a maniac. “It’s a piano!”

“His piano.” Roman said. “He could be playing it.”

“He’s not. Logan’s dead, there’s no way.” Remus said. His voice cracked. “There’s no way. He’s dead.”

Roman looked down, guilt pooling in his stomach. He inhaled deeply before turning to the piano. “Are you Logan?”

A ti note played again.

“Roman, quit it, it’s not funny” Remus pleaded.

“Ok, Do for no, ti for yes.” Roman continued, trying to ignore the tears that went down Remus’s face. “If you are Logan, did you like peaches?”

A do. Logan hated peaches.

“It’s not Logan, it’s just tricking us.” Remus said, drying his tears. “I’m leaving. Stay with the damn piano all you want.”

“Wait.” Roman said, reaching out to grab Remus arm. “Please?”

Remus hesitated, before pulling his arm from Roman’s grip.

“You have one more question.” He said. “Choose wisely.”

Roman sighted. He turned to the piano again. “If you really are Logan, play Remus’s favourite song. You know the one.”

There was silence for a few seconds. Remus scoffed, turning away.

Then Pop goes the Weasel started playing. And Remus froze, not knowing what to do.

“Ok…” He said. “Ok, stop!” He snapped, and the melody stopped.

“…Remus?” Roman asked, reaching out to him.

“We need a notebook.” Remus said. “I have an idea.”

Logan watched Remus and Roman leave his house. He stared at the half eaten orange that had been abandoned in the floor. Gross.

He stayed by the piano, playing soft tunes. He hadn’t meant to scare anyone, he just wanted to talk to his friends. He didn’t want to make Remus cry ever again.

He stopped playing when the main door opened again. How long had he been playing?

The Twins rushed into the living room. Remus was holding a stack of cut out post-it notes. Without hesitation, he started sticking them to the piano’s keys.

Logan was almost mortified by such thing done to his beautiful piano, until he noticed the letters written on the notes.

Remus was smart, he noted.

In fact, he had also added a comma, a point, interrogation and exclamation points. And numbers.

Remus was very smart.

“Ok!” He said. “If you’re Logan, –I’m still not sure about that one– talk to us! Say anything, whatever you want!”

Logan eyed both twins. Roman held his notebook, waiting to write down whatever Logan played. He was shaking slightly. Logan couldn’t blame him.

He placed his hands on the piano and thought. What should he say?

An idea clicked on his mind and he started playing, slowly enough so Roman could write everything down.

“The birds work for the bourgeoisie.” Roman said. He stared at the piano. “Really? Out of all the things you can say?”

Logan didn’t even bother holding back his laughter. “It was the first thing Remus told me in history class.” He said, as he started playing the sequence of keys.

Roman read the sentence out loud and looked at his brother. “How am I not surprised?”

“So it is him.” Remus said.

‘Of course it’s me’ Logan played out. Roman read it out loud again.

“Should we call the others?” Roman asked. “I think we should tell them.”

‘Dennis is real, btw. His name is Janus’ Logan played.

Roman frowned. “Repeat that slower, I didn’t copy it right.”

Logan sighted, doing so.

“What did he say?” Remus asked. “I got lost after the second n.”

Roman stared at the sentence he had written. “Dennis is real. The fucker in Virgil’s house is real.”

“I knew it!” Remus said, bouncing up and down. “I fucking knew it!”

“Ok, that’s it, Imma go call the others.” Roman said, handling the notebook to Remus. “You keep Logan company, I’ll try explain this without causing them to freak out.”

Logan watched as Roman left. Remus grabbed the notebook and sat on the piano stool. He passed right through Logan. It was a weird feeling.

“So… how is it being dead?” Remus asked.

Logan thought about what to answer for a few seconds. ‘Lonely’

“What about Dennis? Can’t he keep you company?” Remus said.

‘His name isn’t Dennis. And he wasn’t sociable.’ Logan played.

“Lol.” Remus said. Logan sighted. He hated when Remus said text slang out loud. “So… do you know how to get you back?”

Logan smiled fondly. He sighted, before playing. ‘There’s no way, Remus, I’m dead.’

Remus’s smile dropped. He stood from the stool. “Right” he muttered, getting away from the piano. “I’m going to check on Roman”

Having said that, he left.

Janus floated behind Virgil as he made his way to meet the twins. Janus liked the twins. They were funny.

He frowned when they passed the twin’s house, walking straight towards Logan’s.

Logan wouldn’t have been able of communicating with them, right?

If Janus hadn’t managed a single thing after fifty three years of trying, it was imposible for Logan to have communicated in just a few days.

They entered the house, and went straight into the living room. Janus ignored the twin’s explanations of what they were doing in Logan’s house and went to the living room.

Someone had filled the piano with stick notes.

He looked at Logan, who was standing there. With his hands over the piano keys.

“How the fuck did you manage that?” Janus asked.

Logan shrugged. “I don’t know. How did I see you when you were a ghost?”

“I dunno, I didn’t do shit that time.” Janus said. “I was just waiting to see what the fuck you five had planned, and if it was worth it to watch.”

“We were planning on… well, vandalizing the park sounds a bit too crude, doesn’t it?” Logan said. “We just wanted to paint on the ground with chalk.”

“Meh, probably worth it.” Janus said, shrugging. “Anyways, what did you do?”

“Oh, right!” Logan said, turning to the piano. “I managed to do this:”

He placed his hands on the keys again and started playing a soft melody. Janus heard Virgil and Patton curse, and yelp in surprise.

Logan stopped.

“How the fuck?” Janus said.

“Language” Logan reprimanded. “And I have as little idea as you.”

“Logan?” Remus called. “You’re still there, right?”

Logan played a series of three notes. Janus noticed the papers sticked to them spelled ‘yes’.

“I’m going to tell them about you.” Logan said. “It’s that alright?”

Janus thought it for a moment. “Yeah… It’s ok…” He could work this into his favour. He could actually make this work.

Logan started playing a series of notes. Janus got lost after the third note. He was never a fast reader.

“Yes. Janus is here as well.” Roman read out loud. “Who’s Janus? It sounds like a middle school librarian name.”

“Another ghost?” Patton asked. “I thought ghosts weren’t real…”

Virgil shrunk back into his hoodie, sitting on top of the couch. “If this is a sick prank, I’m murdering you two.”

“It’s not!” Remus said. He grabbed Roman’s notebook and gave it to Virgil. “Copy the messages and watch for yourself.” He turned to the piano. “Look, Logan, can you tell us who Janus is?”

Logan sighted and started playing again.

After a few seconds, Virgil spoke, with a shaky voice. “The ghost that lives with Virgil. Dennis.”

Everyone stared at Virgil for a few seconds. He looked moments away from fainting.

“Holy fuck, I’ve been living with a ghost.” He said. Patton rubbed his arm, trying to calm him down. “For how long?”

“How long?” Logan asked.

“Eh, I’ve been dead for fifty three years, so since always.” Janus said.

Logan sighted. “How am I not surprised?” He said, as he started playing again.

“Fifty three years.” Virgil read. “Oh, god, he saw me as a stupid little kid.” He blushed, hiding his face with his hoodie. “God, why?”

“Tell them to get a fucking ouija. I’ve been waiting years for Virgil to get one, but the damn emo won’t do it.” Janus said.

“Virgil is too scared to do so. And so is Remus, no matter what he might say.” Logan said. “I’ll ask them for one.”

Virgil scribbled down Logan’s message.

“He wants us to get an ouija.” He explained.

“But we already got the piano.” Roman said.

Logan played again. Janus didn’t even bother trying to decipher it.

“He says Janus can’t use the piano.” Virgil said. “God, getting used to an actual ghost being in my house is going to take a while.”

“Yeah, I think getting used to all this is just… not going to be easy.” Patton said. “I think my cousin Remy has a ouija. I can go ask him to lend it to me, and we’ll meet here tomorrow?”

“That sounds like a good idea, padre.” Roman said. “At the same hour?”

“Yeah, sure, I don’t have anything to do on Sundays anyways. Except apparently talk to a ghost. Oh, god, he heard me sing” Virgil said.

“He sings well when he isn’t trying to hard to hit the high notes.” Janus commented. “Who are you going to follow?”

“I’ll stick to Patton.” Logan said. “I want to see Remy. He’s a cool guy.”

“Yeah, I know, I was with Virgil when y’all met him, remember?” Janus said.

“Right. I tend to forget you actually existed.” Logan said. He turned to the piano and played a message.

Virgil groaned as he struggled to write everything down.

“He says he’s gonna follow Patton. And he wishes us good luck.” He said.

“Aw, thanks Logan!” Patton said. “It’s so nice to be able of talking to you!”

“Ok, let’s get the fuck out of here, I can’t handle this shit more.” Remus said. “My heart is going to fucking explote.”

“You ok?” Roman asked.

“Ha. No.” Remus said. “Too much adrenaline for today. I’m going to go back to bed now.”

“You’ve been out of bed less than an hour today.” Roman said. “It’s not healthy.”

“Fuck healthy, I do what I want.”

“Gays, don’t fight.” Patton said. “Let’s just go out now, I’ll call Remy when I get home.”

“…fine.” Roman said.

“See ya, Lobot” Janus said, following Virgil. He floated right through the door.

“How the fuck does he float?” Logan wondered to himself, walking behind Patton.

It took Virgil a lot not to panic when he was alone on his room again.

Dennis, or should Virgil call him Janus, was real. He had been watching him.

God, that was so messed up.

Virgil groaned, throwing himself to bed.

“If you’re still there, fuck off.” He told the ghost. “I don’t want to live with a ghost.”

There was no response. Seconds later, Virgil’s pencil case fell to the ground, scattering its contents.

“Jerk.” Muttered Virgil, getting up to pick it up.

He couldn’t help to smirk, though. There was finally an explanation to all the weird falling things in his house.

As fucked up as it was.

Remy had a ouija board. He hadn’t used it twice, after almost dying of a heart attack when Emile decided to prank him and his friends while they were playing. Shutting down the lights was not a pleasant experience for neither of them.

Remy knew about Patton’s friends. He had met a few.

He knew about Logan’s accident.

And that’s why he didn’t think it was a good idea giving Patton the Ouija board.

“Remy, please, just for one night” Patton pleaded. “One night. And I’ll give it back.”

“This shit doesn’t work.” Remy said. “Patton, I know you’re hurt, but this is not way to cope.”

“I know.” Patton said. “But I need it. Just one night. Promise.”

Remy looked at his cousin, who was giving him the best puppy eyes performance Remy had ever seen.

He sighted. “You promise not to tell our parents and to be careful?”

“Yes!” Patton said. “I do!”

Remy looked at Patton. He shook his head as he went over to his closet, were he kept the ouija board, under dozens of other board games.

He blew the dust of it.

“Here.” Remy said. “Have fun. Ghosts aren’t real, and I don’t know what you’re attempting to do, but be careful.”

“Thank you!” Patton said, pulling the ouija board close to his chest. “Thank you thank you thank you!”

Remy was left alone, watching as Patton left his house. He was lucky his parents weren’t there. They would’ve been more strict, yet Remy had always had a soft spot for Patton.

He shivered when he heard a thank you. Patton was nowhere close. He was home alone.

“Ghosts aren’t real.” He said to himself, bracing himself and trying to believe his words. “Ghosts aren’t real.”

Remus drew the curtains closed, not for the ambient, but because he didn’t want anyone to see what they were about to do.

It was Sunday. Their parents had left for work, leaving the twins alone at home.

Roman had called the others, asking them to come over. Remus started making space on the living room, moving the table away and getting enough pillows for everyone to sit down.

He contemplated getting a pillow for Logan. He was a ghost, ghost wouldn’t be able of sitting, right? He got a pillow nonetheless.

He sat down and waited for the others to arrive.

Roman entered the room, followed by the others. Patton had a cardboard box under his arm.

“Ya got it?” Remus asked.

Patton nodded, sitting down in between the twins. “I had to disguise it so my parents didn’t notice.” He explained, taking the ouija board out and setting it on the middle of the ground.

“You’re sure about this?” Virgil said, fidgeting with the ends of his hoodie. “It always ends poorly in movies.”

“We’re not a movie.” Roman said. “And it’s Logan, Logan wouldn’t hurt us.”

“Janus could try…” Virgil said. “I mean, he’s been living with me and hasn’t tried anything, but still…”

Patton placed the wooden triangle on top of the board. “How does one use a ouija board?”

“Oh, it’s easy” Remus said. “We ask questions, put one hand each on the triangular thingie and wait for an answer.”

“Oh, ok, Logan?” Patton said, looking at the empty pillow in front of him. “Are you there?”

“You forgot about the hands on tri–” Roman started saying, only to be left speechless when the triangle moved on it’s own.

It slid through the board, towards the ‘yes’.

Everyone stared at it for a few seconds.

“Ok, is Janus here as well?” Virgil asked, biting his lip.

The triangule raised on the air and fell to the ‘yes’ once more.

“Do any of you two want to hurt us?” Remus asked. “Whether it’s killing us, torturing us physically or psychologically, mutilating us, sewing our li–”

“Remus, please don’t give them any ideas.” Roman said, interrupting him.

The triangle moved to the ‘no’. Then it continued moving.

Roman struggled to scribble down the message.

“I’m not letting you get hurt.” He read aloud.

“Aw, thanks,”–Patton said, bouncing on his pillow–“but if Janus turns out to be an evil poltergeist, you won’t stand a chance.”

The triangle moved again. “Rude.” Roman read.

Remus laughed. Virgil hid a laughter as a cough. Patton pouted.

“I’m not rude!” He said, childishly crossing his arms.

The triangle moved to the ‘yes’ space. Patton pouted even more, before breaking into laughter.

“I wanna say something too.” Janus said, trying to grab the wooden triangle. Logan pushed him away.

“Wait for your turn.” He said, answering another dumb question from his friends.

Janus tried to grab the triangle again. “You’ve been at it for long enough, my turn.”

He grabbed the wood piece, snatching it from Logan’s hands.

“Hey!” Logan exclaimed, trying to get it back.

Janus held it away. “It’s my turn, fuck off!”

“They’re my friends, fuck off!” Logan said, grabbing the triangle and pulling. Janus didn’t let go of it.

“I’ve been dead longer, fuck off!” Janus said, trying desperately not to let go of the triangle.

“Well I’m dead because of you!” Logan yelled, pushing Janus away.

Janus fell through Roman, who couldn’t help a shiver. He turned in the air as if failing with no gravity.

Logan dropped the triangle, his hands flying to his mouth.

Janus straightened himself, standing up as if he was alive.

“Janus, I’m so sorry.” Logan said. “I didn’t–”

“I’ll be going now.” Janus said, bitterness dripping into his voice. “Have fun with your friends.”

“Logan?” Remus called, gaining his attention. “Is everything alright?”

Logan sighted, grabbing the triangle. He kneeled next to the board and placed it on the ‘yes’.

‘Janus wanted control over the board. We argued. He left.’

He waited as Roman read aloud the sentence.

“I have an idea.” Virgil said. “It might be stupid.”

‘Go ahead’

Roman read it aloud once more. Virgil nodded, shifting on his pillow. He reached out and grabbed the triangle. He raised it to his face, peering over the hole.

Logan scoffed. “Like that’s gonna work…” He muttered to himself.

Virgil drew in a shaky breath, his hands shaking. “It does, though.” He said.

#sanders sides #fanfic #ghosts #pianos playing by themselves #ouija #car accident #logan sanders #virgil sanders #patton sanders #remus sanders #roman sanders #Janus Sanders #Remy sleep

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deathstakes · 3 years

Text

How to be Buffy Summers — A Slayer How-To Guide: Tips, tricks and wood chips.

PREFACE: So you want to be the Slayer, huh? Well, newsflash. Everyone wants to be the hero. In the movies, it is flashy and cool. Well, here is a newsflash. Slaying isn’t exactly glam-o-rama. The movies really pump up the whole what it is like to be a hero, and let me tell you, it isn’t as cute.

Disclaimer: You might have heard a lot from the fang-population. They like to spread their gossip faster than a bunch of ladies sipping their afternoon tea. I’m here to clear the rumours and give you the insiders scoop.

I am more than just the Slayer. I am also Buffy. They go hand in hand like…. Hands going in hand. I like my weapons as much as I love a good sale. There’s nothing wrong with liking pink, dressing cute and also being able to kick some major ass, and trust me, if you ever doubt it, I can show you what a Slayer really is.

TIPS, TRICKS AND WOODCHIPS

1. There is nothing fashionable about eye bags. Concealer is your best friend.

Patrol usually ends around 3 a.m, if the vampires aren’t biting much. If I am lucky, I get about four hours of sleep a night, and if I am even luckier those four hours are free of nightmares or weird, cryptic-y apocalyptic messages. Most of the time, I am not, and my dreams aren’t steamy with Swayze but the uglies, but we never go past second base because they always seem to die when they try to handle my stake.

Those sleepless nights are going to make you want to wear a caffeine drip. Speaking of, coffee will be your other best friend. Thank me later.

Oh, and you’re also going to need a concealer for the bruises. Trust me on this, you’re going to find bruises in places you didn’t even know you could have bruises. Those rough tumbles aren’t without consequence. Sure, they’ll go away in a bit, but in the meantime, do what Elsa said. Conceal, don’t feel. Cover it with translucent powder to really set it in and don’t forget to colour correct! This works for both bruises and for those vampire bites. Totally hickey-proof.

2. Sisterly duties.

Make sure Dawn is up for the school day. I used to get up much easier, in my opinion. Also, remember to pack a stake in her lunch and some holy water, just in case. You never know when she is going to need them considering she has a habit of getting kidnapped every other Tuesday. Replenish the supply every so often and get your witchy best friend to put in protection trinkets that you can slip into her backpack.

IMPORTANT: When it comes to her safety, nothing is off limits, at all. Monsters will play dirty if they have to, and the ones closest to you are the most susceptible. It’s a hard knock life.

3. Because this gig isn’t really big on the paying front, you also need a day job. Glamorous.

Remember that thing about how being a superhero isn’t like how it is in the movies. I was being dead serious about that. There isn’t a batmobile or really cool headquarters, unless you want to count the Magic Shop, and oh, that thing about getting paid? Hah. Yeah, you’re not really going to be rolling in the dough unless it is cookie dough. It is a whole, long-winded thing, so just make sure you have some resistance to temptation when you see a really, really good shoe sale. I am talkin’ goes with everything, cute but also practical heel. Don’t do it.

You might have to play pool shark, might need to flip some burgers and learn how to give your Buffy best smile while being dead inside, or you might need to bust an undercover demon black market. Get creative. Just don’t rob a bank. Morals still apply, you know.

TIP: Having a boyfriend who is good at forging credit cards is really helpful. Though, sometimes, he gets too crafty with the aliases.

4. Unchipped manicures? Puh-lease.

I’m going to give it to you straight, so it doesn’t get hard later on. You know that feeling of freshly painted nails? Don’t get used to it. There has yet to be a patrol that I go on that doesn’t end up with me chipping my polish.You’d think someone would get into the market for this stuff and break the bank, but nope. Well, considering I would probably be their only customer... Don’t even think about acrylics, who has the time and also, not great for grip. Gel? You’d think it would hold, but let me tell you, not even the best formula can stand against the roughest of tumbles.

Having pretty, polished nails was nice while it lasted. That isn’t to say I don’t do my nails, now, because I do. I’m not letting fangs take that away from me. They already took away my sleep.

5. Healing.

So, right about now, you might be starting to realize that being a superhero isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be. So, let me throw in a decent thing. This isn’t to get recruits or anything. This job position is filled until further notice (or until I get the axe.) One of the good things about the gig is that you heal faster. That isn’t to say you don’t get hurt, because oh boy, do you get hurt. The pain aspect is still there, but you’ll heal a broken bone in days compared to weeks only to break it again. I’ve made with the stabby, and gotten out of the hospital the same night because I was healing quickly. Other than the limping, the bruises that go away in a day or two and the scars are barely there scars, you’re golden.

But that doesn’t mean that I am invincible.

If Slayers were invincible, I wouldn’t be here.

I still have my scars (the ones that can be seen) on my neck. From the Master, from Angel and those couple rounds with Dracula that I went, but that’s for another time. The naked eye can’t really see them, but get me under some great selfie taking lighting and it's there, just a sheen paler than my skin tone.

TIP: If you are trying to hide fresh ones, try scarves. Fashionable, but practical. Ascots if you’re into looking like Fred Jones, hubba hubba.

6. The weapon of the tongue. No, not that weapon.

Anyone can learn high kicks and how to throw a punch. Well, most anyone, anyways. But if you really want to know the inner workings of how to be Buffy, try me on for size. I only come in a small, though. When I do my rounds, I like to provide a double feature slayer combo, you know? Throw in a pun or two between my punches, give them a real show. You know why? It gets them going. It drives them crazy, and they get angry. That anger helps fuel the whole show. Also, I am great at talking circles, so sometimes, you just keep going and going and watch their undead brains try to scramble it together, and while they are doing that?

PRESTO-POOF-O.

It really is a Buffy skill, even if Giles doesn’t think so.

Well, except when it gets me in trouble because part of being me is realizing that my mouth speaks faster than my brain tends to comprehend and then it just becomes a whole intangible tangent that really shouldn’t even be called a tangent, because really, who---

7. Sacrificing fashion for slayage.

This one hurts me to write. This one hurts me because it is still something I struggle with, but what can I say? I’m a lifelong learner, dedicated to becoming the best. Nerd alert. There was a time when I used to dress cute. You know, the minis and the halters? The to-die-for booties? Well, guess what? Long gone are those days. Now, I aim for pr… for… prac… for practical. Sorry, it is still a touchy thing.

That doesn’t mean you still can’t dress cute, because you totally can. Have I given up my style? Nope, not a chance, and hey, sometimes my halters still see the life of patrol because I believe when we look and feel our best, we slay the best (Can I get an amen?) I wear booties all the time, but it’s because I know how to run in heels.

Body con dresses and tight skirts? Save them for a day you aren’t slaying, because otherwise, you’ll be sitting in a bank and suddenly be faced with a bank-robbing demon and you’ll have to slit your favorite pencil skirt with shears so you have enough leg room to fly-kick that ugly.

That was a nice skirt, it was.

8. Accessorizing is important.

It is no secret that accessorizing can make an outfit go from nay to yay. Come on, that is a given. But, being the Slayer, there are some accessories I have to make sure that I am wearing at all times. Keeping a cross on you all the time would be too bulky, and it isn’t for the religious aspect of things, so what do I do? Cross necklaces, chokers, rings or little dangly earrings can be the perfect way of making a vampire weak in the knees. Also, punching with rings really hits differently. For them, not me.

Keep some scarves on you, too, because well, it isn’t any of my business what happens to your necks, fangy or not.

TIP: Scrunchies? Make great face flingers if you need a real quick distraction to get out of a fangy situation. Just some tricks of the trade, you are welcome.

9. That appetite.

Let’s get personal, here. You think that you’re going to do all that cardio and vamp-ass slayage and not feel like you could eat a horse? Oh, it’s bad. Sometimes, the first thing I do when I am done patrol is hit whatever place is open or go straight for the fridge. It’s never cravings for a salad, either, nope. It’s 3 a.m, and all you want is a stack of double chocolate chip pancakes, some sunny side up eggs, hash and extra greased up bacon, maybe even some triple scoop chocolate shakes.

Dawn says she always feels like she is interrupting the fridge and I when she walks in on us, because my head is just always sticking inside it, but what do kids know, huh?

Also… there is another kind of appetite. This is why this book isn’t in the kids section. We’re all grown ups here. Sometimes, all you need is to get rid of that tickle that seems to always find a place. It’s explosive until you give in and have to do something about it. It’s kind of why I prefer solo-slaying, it gets real intimate.

A low-fat yogurt does the trick, too.

10. Weapons, ooh.

So, we talked about the power of words, but here comes the good stuff. Let me tell you, nothing feels good as the first poof after a freshly shaven stake. I never thought I would ever admit to that, but here we are. It is important to always keep your weapons ready to fight like it was the end of the world, because most times? It is.

Try to keep a knife in your boots. Pockets are important because you can slip in stakes discreetly enough, but don’t make them too bulky. Keep important spells on your phone because you’re not carrying around books everywhere you go. Never forget your phone, your gloss, crosses and holy water. You know, the essentials.

My favourite weapon? My precious baby. My scythe. It looks sweet and is just as killer. I like it for its double functionality because it does both the beheading mucho smoothly and the point of the stake? Talk about hot.

…. Yes, we all get attached to our weapons.

As for guns, they are still pointless.

Keep your weapons hidden. Somewhere they won’t be found. I went through storing them in places I knew my mom wouldn’t bother looking (crosses and holy water vials between the bookshelves, stakes in the closet…) Maybe build a trunk for it, for all your storage needs. This is where I plug Xander Harris. He built me a beautiful trunk on my 21st birthday. Give him a call.

11. Do NOT sleep with vampires.

So, here’s the thing. I don’t want to be a hypocrite but, sometimes, I just have to say it. Do not sleep with the enemy. Here’s the thing. I get it. I know. There’s this whole mysterious aspect to it, and sometimes at the end of it all, you just want to knock your boots with someone, BUT DO NOT SLEEP WITH THE UNDEAD. It never works out good for anyone. There are too many complications, like the loss of souls and dignity. The only shaft they should be getting worked is the stake.

There are plenty of living, breathing, normal human fish in the sea.

Seriously, screw vampires. By that, I mean don’t.

This message was brought to you in part by the Learn from Buffy’s Mistakes Association, because clearly she never did.

12. Don’t let it turn you into stone.

I’m going to get real with you. Being the Slayer… it is so easy to cut yourself off. From the world and everyone around you, because you think that it is easier that way. That it’ll hurt less if you keep this unbudging wall between you and the people you care about. Somewhere along the way, the hard heartens from all the losses that turn you into a ghost of who you were. Somewhere along the way, you stop wearing your heart on your sleeve because you’re not that innocent or naive girl anymore.

Being the slayer… it makes me different. It makes me different in a way that I don’t think anyone will ever truly understand, even when they say they do. I’m not saying that because I think highly of myself or I am trying to keep people at bay. It is just the way it is. This is a fight that belongs to the Chosen One, even when she didn’t ask to be Chosen.

It is about trying to find that balance. For a long time, I cut myself off, and sometimes I still find myself having a hard time letting other people in because I tend to swallow in myself when things get hard. I don’t like putting that on other people… they deal with enough just by slayer association. Now, I try.

I try to embrace the way my emotions give me power, the way they make me feel, even when I feel the most vulnerable - even more than I am mid-battle.

13. Don’t fight it, just accept it. - stop being so hard on yourself, you’re one girl.

One girl in all the world...

I used to hate it. I used to despise Destiny and wanted to give it the finger. For a long time, I hated this life. Hell, there are still times when I wish I wasn’t ‘the One.’ Being the one sucks, sometimes. The losses, the sacrifices, the constant worrying about everyone around you?

It hits harder when I think about the ones I couldn’t save. Yeah, I saved a bunch of people, but what about the ones I couldn’t? That is on me and only me. This is the heavy, so-not-star spangled stuff that sleeps with me every night. The guilt. The could-haves, the should-haves…

I have grown from not accepting this role to embracing what I bring as the Slayer. I know I am damn good at it, total humble-brag. Hey, longest lived for a reason, okay. My stats are impressive.

Sure, there are days where my bones are downright tired. There’s an ache I can’t really explain, and hurt that never goes away and sits in my chest. I have to remind myself that if it is not me, then it is some other girl and I want to save that girl and have her live a normal life for just a little bit longer, you know? She might have something important to get to. She might be Dawn’s age. I could never do that to her.

Every day, I am doing the best I can. There’s only me, and sometimes, only me needs to cut herself a break. Just like most everyone needs to cut themselves a break, sometimes. Have a break, have a Kit-Kat.

*** BONUS TIP: Practice safe necks. Just, please, people. We live in Sunnydale, this should be obvious. Don’t give into Sunnydale Syndrome, have a little awareness.*

CONCLUSION: There you have it, folks. A little intel about the oh so (not) glamorous life of a Slayer. Not coming to a theatre nowhere near you because books on my life are enough, thank you very much. If you have any questions, please contact your local library or that idiot named Carver Edlund. Spam him, spam him good, maybe even send him some hate-mail while you are at it.

END NOTE: If Giles finds this, I repeat, I did not write this. This was written by someone else who knows way too much about me. Probably Dawn because she reads my diary all the time.

A Buffy Summers Publication ™

#✞ :: | ✦ ❛ Drabbles of the Chosen One

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impalementation · 4 years

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“Back! Get back, demon!” -Xander, 3.16 Doppelgangland

“Back! Creature of the night! Leave this place!” -Wesley, 3.16 Doppelgangland

"She talked of summoning the Slayer here, now, at this time, and you didn't kill her?" "Well, they had crosses" -The Master & Vampire Willow, 3.09 The Wish

buffy season three imagery: crosses

[commentary under the cut]

This is such a specific motif, that I’m hesitant to count it as a type of imagery, exactly. It’s not “conceptual” imagery the way, say, season six’s collapse imagery is. But it’s still very much a repeated image with some meaning attached to it. Although every season features vampires, no other season but three features so many instances of characters warding off a vampire with a large cross. I think it makes sense to see this motif in the context of season three’s propriety and rebellion stuff. I’ve mentioned how church-y and conservative Buffy’s outfits are this season, and how the villains--especially the Mayor--tend to speak a language of near-religious properness. Although Christianity is not directly name-checked, I think the show could assume that the audience would recognize the Mayor’s rhetoric as the Christian think-of-the-children rhetoric that characterizes many parts of American culture and politics.

With that in mind, I see the cross/vampire imagery as the show referencing the roots of what that symbolism really means in vampire literature: it’s Christian purity warding off the deviant forces that vampires represent. Which is fitting imagery to use because one of the things that season three does is it asks, well, what actually counts as a deviant force? What things do you actually want a society to ward against? And how much will that warding really help you? What makes rules and authority good or bad? And what makes disobedience good or bad? I think it’s significant that there are moments where the cross gets deployed against people who are actually “innocent.�� Wesley uses it against Angel in Consequences and Enemies, and Xander uses it against Willow in Doppelgangland. The point of those mis-deploys against Angel is probably in part that Wesley, who is a figure of the conservative institution that is the Watcher’s council, uses this symbol of purity against a character who hasn’t actually done anything wrong, instead of against Faith--who has. Also of interest is the fact that in The Wish and Helpless characters aren’t using the cross to suppress some interloping evil. In those cases, the human characters are at a distinct disadvantage. It’s an almost pathetic stopgap. The only really “conventional” use of the cross is against Vampire Willow in Doppelgangland, but even then it’s distinctly played for humor. In other words, I think this imagery is mostly used to point out the fragility or ambiguity (or just: existence) of what convention thinks of as dangerous or evil. But how people also have this sort of desperate desire to protect themselves from it regardless.

Although it doesn’t quite fit the pattern of the rest of the images, I was really interested in that big old cross that Xander is wearing in Dead Man’s Party when he first runs into Buffy (top right). It’s pretty stark to have that icon hanging between the two of them, made even more obvious by the white contrast against Xander’s black shirt. And I think it emphasizes the way that Buffy herself perhaps feels like a deviant interloper. She stands outside her mother’s door at the end of Anne and outside Giles’ in Dead Man’s Party, waiting like a vampire to be welcomed back in. Buffy feels outside of her community in those early episodes, and will struggle for the rest of the season to feel part of it again.

#season three imagery series #starting a new thing where i stop putting the writing in the tags #s3

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oveliagirlhaditright · 4 years

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A Buffy fic for @palizinhas‘s birthday (set in season six of Buffy and season three of Angel), because I had to. And I hope it’s okay for you, even though I don’t know if you like Bangel or Angel that much. But this was the only thing I thought I could write decently for the fandom with my first attempt at it. So...

But happy birthday regardless, hon!

Into the Light

"Angel... you can't just drop that news—that you've found a way for all vampires to become human?—and leave it there," Buffy said somewhat in a disapproving manner—surprising even herself, as she crossed her arms—since the reality of the situation hadn't quite hit her yet. She wasn't letting it. Angel walked through the swings on this playground, in order to get closer to Buffy. And the smirk he was wearing now reminded her much of when they’d first been dating, and they’d snipe at enemies together. Despite itself, her heart began beating fast in its ribcage. "I can, if it's your friend Tara working on it… and she maybe wants most of it kept a secret until she does or doesn't figure it out. Respect her wishes, Buffy."

Angel really had gotten better at acting, Buffy couldn’t help thinking now… Not that she thought he didn’t mean what he said—or that he wasn’t as excited to have found a way to be with her as he was letting on—but he’d figured out just the right words, tones, and facial expressions to up the ante on every single thing he did. And Buffy found herself getting lost in him.

But since their co-dependence had caused problems for them before—and she’d grown since then—Buffy tried to fight back against it, even if all she wanted to do was jump into his arms and cry right now. "But don't you think we should ask Willow instead?" Buffy argued... But she also somehow knew that she shouldn’t be. Both Willow and Xander had told Buffy of the dreams they'd had—when the first Slayer had tried to kill them all--where Willow had been cast in darkness, while Tara had always been in the light. And while Buffy didn't want to believe it meant anything, she also knew that it did. Slayer dreams always meant something… and if Tara really was the light in the darkness here, perhaps it was she who was perfect for this.

"Buffy, don't you know how perfect this is?!" Angel interrupted Buffy’s thoughts, almost as though he had read them. He was even closer to her now, and holding her hand and getting her all flustered… Which really shouldn’t have happened, given all that she’d done with Riley and the tame things she had done with Angel in comparison, but maybe Angel really was a livewire where she was concerned. Buffy wasn’t quite sure what to do with that information. "We can lead normal human lives together now. We can-"

“We can grow old and gray in a retirement home together, and talk about our glory days?” Buffy couldn’t help asking, as she was pulled back into a conversation from so many years ago—perhaps the best year of her life—and suddenly she was drowning in Angel, and all the could-have-beens they would have had, if the mayor had kept his big, fat mouth shut. And when Angel tried to kiss her here, she didn’t resist.

Since it was them, it didn’t take long for it to get heated: with the two of them somehow on the ground together, as Buffy ran one hand through Angel’s hair and another slipped under his shirt… and as he placed his lips to her neck and was then going down towards her stomach… which reminded Buffy of something.

And that perfect day of when she was with him in Los Angeles—really with him: as in Angel had found a magical way to become human alongside her, with him—came back to Buffy in flashes of white light behind her eyes, gasps for air, and tears down her cheek.

Buffy was on her feet in an instant, since she didn’t want to get hurt again, as she wrapped her arms around herself and started babbling both loving and amazed words, and accusatory ones."Angel... wait. I remember now. You were- you were human, and we were happy! But you- you gave it up—gave me up—so I, and the world, would be safe… And though it kills me, I understand why you did it! …So why are you acting differently now?" And seeing her cry seemed to awaken some protective instinct in Angel, like it often did. He stood up, too. And the vampire’s eyes widened, as he seemed to awaken from some sort of trance. "Oh, Buffy! I- I’m sosorry that I somehow made you remember that. I never wanted you to...

“I- I never should have come here, or selflessly bought into Tara’s promise, if she isn’t even sure she can make it. But everything with Connor has made me- But we don't belong to ourselves, Buffy. You're right. I should-" "Go, you said," Buffy repeated another long conversation of theirs, without even thinking about it. And this one was only natural to do so. Because at this point in her life, Angel leaving was just inevitable for so many reasons... even if it was the last thing she ever wanted. But if Angel were to leave now… Buffy knew she would never recover from it. And be even more of a shell than she’d been since Willow had revived her. Having the dream that she’d always wanted dangled in her face again, like a carrot, and then ripped away would have just been too cruel. So even though she wanted to protect her heart and not lose sight of her duty as the Slayer again… Buffy thought that maybe she did owe it to both of them—and to Tara—to give this possibility a chance.

"Angel, wait!" And Buffy's hand was now on her love’s arm, the way she had dreamed of it being there the night he left her life forever, as he walked between those firetrucks. "…It might notbe a lost cause, because... Even though we'd have to make sure Tara would be okay, and that no bad could come from this, what if this is the answer? The way to save countless vampire souls, your soul… maybe even Faith's, oddly enough... and mine? We could really have an answer here. But to figure that out, we have to talk to Tara, and you need to-"

"Stay." Angel finished Buffy’s thought again… but this one that was so uncharted, it made her happy and giddy at the thought of the new.

In that moment, Buffy wouldn't have said Angel’s smile was big, per se. How could it be, with the few things he’d recently told her about his son? …But it also seemed to completely light up this outdoor park in the dead of night.

And Angel did it. He stayed. As Wesley headed up Angel Investigations for him in L.A. and fought a few more apocalypses there, as Buffy and Angel dealt with some end of the worlds in good old Sunnydale. Then he was human.

A new memory was made in the light, as Angel kissed Buffy in the sunlight and she cried tears of joy... and Buffy noticed that Dawn stood in the background, approving of them for the first time ever.

Author’s Note: The last line is inspired by how Dawn said Angel always made Buffy cry, and she didn’t seem to like him for this, so as he gets her to cry tears of joy here and stays… Dawn finally approves. Yep.

And I left it up to the audience whether it was Tara’s spell that turned Angel human or the Shanshu Prophecy.

#gift #palizinhas #fanfiction #oneshot #buffy the vampire slayer #bangel #my work #mine #Shanna writes #my writing

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melodiiesxfmadness · 1 year

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Buffy Anne Summers

( au: cursed immortality. ) | ( headcanons. )

Full Name: Buffy Anne Summers Nicknames: Anne, Belinda, Joan, Buffster, B, Bunny, Goldilocks. Date Of Birth: January 19th, 1981 Times she died: 1997 ( bitten & drowned by The Master, revived by Xander ). 2001 ( resurrected by magic & pulled out of heaven by her friends. ) Place Of Birth: Los Angeles, California. Current residence: Los Angeles, California. Past residence: Sunnydale | Chicago | London Gender: Female Species: Human, Slayer. Orientation: Pansexual greyromantic ( multi ship. ) Past relationships: Angel, Riley Finn. Height & Weight: 5'3", 122 pounds.

Hair & Eyes: brown ( dyed golden dirty / bronze creamy or cool ash blonde ) & blue. Measurements: 38-26-36 inches body type: voluptuous, athletic. sizes: 10 ( dress ) | 8.5 ( shoes ) favorite colors: mauve-taupe, lilac. Piercings: two in each ear. Tattoo(s): claddagh ring ( upper back, on the left side with a crack in the heart ), a series of purple outlined fleur de lis ( all the way down her right arm in a spiral to her wrist ). Occupation: Part time consulting detective for LAPD's supernatural investigations unit. Part time security for The Magic Box #2. Parents: Hank ( father ) & Joyce ( mother, deceased ). Education: Hemery High School ( kicked out ), Sunnydale High School ( graduated ), UC Sunnydale ( dropped out junior year ).

Religion: Kemetism practitioner, specifically Kemetic Orthodoxy. ( link one, link two. ) Affiliations: Scooby Gang, Summers family, Watchers Council, UC Sunnydale, Angel Investigations, Slayer Organization, Magic Council. fighting style: kickboxing, boxing and street-fighting. hobbies: ice skating, journaling. Vehicle: 2018 Harley-Davidson Sportster 883 SuperLow. Weapons of choice: Stakes, holy water, crosses, single shot crossbow, mʔ ( the scythe ), sledgehammer, rocket launcher. about buffy's glasses: They're not like regular eyeglasses, although in appearance they certainly seem to be. They're actually Schufftein glasses ( hellboy reference! ), making it easier for her to see the true form of things that are otherwise hidden to the naked eye / mere mortals. faeries, wesen ( when woged ), hellhounds, Shadowhunters ( when using the glamor rune ). ( added fact: Buffy does not wear the glasses 24/7, nor are they always with her when she's out and about. Due to being a rare and highly valued item, they're protected by magic and will only appear to her should she need them. If stolen ? They will immediately return to her or to where they're hidden. )

Powers/Abilities. Physical combat: As with every Slayer, Buffy possessed a natural proficiency with virtually all forms of weaponry and unarmed combat styles, and in addition to this she had years of combat training to hone in her skills using various martial arts (particularly jiu jitsu and aikido). Buffy tended towards a more improvisational approach to fighting, utilizing her emotions and anything in her environment that could help best her enemy. Her insistence to "go with the flow" during fights was sometimes looked down upon by others who considered her technique too "sloppy," but Buffy believed this gave her the upper hand. Even without her Slayer powers, Buffy retained her fighting skills and years of training; when temporarily stripped of her powers in the Supernatural Crisis Act, she was able to take on a human MMA fighter and defeat him.

Senses: Slayers possessed a heightened awareness of their surroundings, allowing them, with experience, to know the position of an attacker and fight them blindfolded or in the dark. As example of this, Buffy was able to pinpoint the position of invisible Marcie Ross by standing silently for a few seconds before landing a perfect punch; throw a ball at Giles after being spun while blindfolded; and sensed a trio of invisible demons quietly entering the room, alerted just in time to turn around and block an attack. However, Buffy never fully developed the Slayer power to sense supernatural activity, not knowing Angel and Willow were vampires until they revealed their demonic visage. Buffy normally relying on her wits to discern demons and vampires from humans, such as dated clothing indicating an immortal creature.

Psychic link: This link collected the memories of all past Slayers, experiences helped hone their skills and aid them in future battles. It allowed communication between coexisting Slayers through dreams, as Buffy and Faith shared several dreams when Faith was in a coma, providing the first cryptic reference to Dawn's arrival and Buffy's own death. Prophetic dreams: This ability allowed Buffy to foresee events such as various of her foes for her first year in Sunnydale,Angel losing his soul, Jenny Calendar's deception, the arrival of the Gentlemen, and the deaths of the Potentials Slayers by the Harbingers of Death.

Intellect: Although she was sometimes considered a dumb blonde by herself and others, Buffy frequently showed herself to be quite intelligent, possessing strong leadership skills and having a natural flair for tactical planning. Prominent examples of Buffy's intelligence included her near-perfect S.A.T. score, her defeat of Zachary Kralik by using his dependency on anti-psychotic medication against him, her quick deduction of the Buffybot's true nature, her rapid deduction of Riley's affiliation to the Initiative based on weeks of evidence, and her immediate realization of Katrina Silber's true murderer upon hearing her name at the police station. Mystical protection: After becoming the leader to the activated Slayers, Xander commented that Buffy had some degree of mystical protection over her then, at least while she slept. To that end, her protection meant even daggers split apart so as not to pierce her skin.

Mystical link with Willow: After years in their friendship and alliance, Buffy was able to initiate a telepathic conversation with Willow. Their connection was strong to the point that even when unconscious, Willow could channel an amount of her power at will through Buffy, allowing her to conjure up a shield and a fist-enhancing gauntlet made out of green magical energy.

!!: Canon Divergent #01 - Dawn is not acknowledged as her sister. When she arrived in season five it was solely as something to be protected by the Scooby Gang in the guise of a human. !!: Canon Divergent #02 - When Sunnydale got swallowed by the crater, those remaining got on the bus and headed to Los Angeles to help out Angel Investigations in their final battle against the legion of hell.

face claim: olivia taylor dudley

#( character bio: buffy summers. )#( divergent canon character )#misslikestxfiight

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runnfromtheak · 4 years

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fanfic author’s tagging game (yay!)

Thank ya darling for tagging me!!!! @boyblunder-thedarkheir!!!!!

AO3 Name(s): LostandLonelyBirds aka RUNNFROMTHEAK

Fandom(s): Primarily Batfamily (so, Dick Grayson) and Young Justice (along with DCU obviously, but I also dabble into Miralculous Ladybug, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Harry Potter, and MCU (none of which I will ever seriously write for? Idk man).

Number of fics: 22 I will admit to (how do you have so many, my dear @boyblunder-thedarkheir? What is your secret?)

1. Fic you spent the most time on: Are we talking writing or thinking about writing, cause those are two very different answers. I spent the most time writing this bitch of a fic I’m working on right now, and the most time thinking about the two latest installments of my main series, Death is But An Illusion (aka How Could He and How Could It Be). I agonize over every goddamn detail with Dick’s anger, Jason’s Jason-ness, and every person’s every move and word. I am a mess, and I’m going to be murdered if I don’t update them soon. I am not sorry about that XD

2. Fic you spent the least time on: You Came Behind Me Secretly and Shattered Every Piece of Me (There's Blood On My Hands) aka my pick-your-own-canon clusterfuck of Dark!Dick Grayson and Dick Grayson being traumatized and tortured with no comfort (Some of them are so fucked up I question my own mind). I take less than an hour to write 80% of them, cause they’re short, and they very rarely take any time to plan. Fun and easy!

3. Longest Fic: At present, he had a chest full of heart and a body full of scars (pain became the only way that he could ever learn) is my longest, but the fic I’ve been hinting at on my other tumblr, @lostandlonelybirds is easily double the length (why do I do this to myself? Why am I like this?) the long boi (named one, not the one I won’t shut up about) is easily my best fic at the moment, and I’m so excited to write a sequel whenever I get the chance.

4. Shortest Fic: With Bated Breath and Pain You See (We're Nothing More Than Memories) technically, I have one shorter than that, but it’s a collab that wasn’t my original idea so I’m not counting it :)

5. Most Hits: You Came Behind Me Secretly and Shattered Every Piece of Me (There's Blood On My Hands) why do you people like this trash-fire so much? I don’t understand

6. Most Kudos: How Could He which does not surprise me.

7. Most Comment Threads: Technically, How Could He followed by the trash-fire AU title thing I’m too lazy to type again, but I’m gonna love on this one: Just Close Your Eyes (No One Can Hurt You Now) because it’s my baby, and it deserves it okay?

8. Fave Fic You Wrote: Ooo we are doing a top five.

5. How Could It Be (Jason is precious and sad and Dick is oblivious, and I love one-sided pining wayyyy too much)

4. How Could He (I put my life force into this stupid fic, so ofc it’s here)

3. I'm Scared to Live But I'm Scared to Die (I'm Numb Inside) (the suicidal boy, major trigger warning)

2. I See Things That Nobody Else Sees (And It's Slowly Killing Me) (the only fic I’ve ever written from Cass’s perspective, and definitely one of the creepiest and most fucked up. Bruce does not look good here)

1. he had a chest full of heart and a body full of scars (pain became the only way that he could ever learn) (so ummm Bruce doesn’t look good here either? RHATO #25 if DC wasn’t cowardly and let Dick react how he actually would, aka fuck Batman is the new motto)

9. Rewrites?: Fuck. All my older ones? Everything? Who knows.

10. Share a bit of your WIP or share a story idea that you’re planning:

Let’s do two. I’m nice.

First comes from How Could It Be:

“You loved him,” Donna says, ignoring his barb. “You loved him, and no one’s seen you or heard from you and I’m concerned, damnit.”

She punches his shoulder roughly, and he’s reminded of her strength, no matter how small she seems in her dead best friend’s sweater.

“I’m fine. Peachy-keen. Couldn’t be fuckin’ better. Honestly, you should be more concerned with Replacement, don’t think he’s slept in—”

“Jason.” Her voice is firm, even as her eyes swim with tears and she holds her arms tight to herself, breathing in the well-loved item’s scent. Jason wonders when Dick wore it last, if Donna had taken it from his abandoned Gotham Penthouse or his Chicago Apartment. He wonders if he’d left it draped over the couch, like the natural disaster he was, or if it had been folded neatly in a drawer.

For someone who prides himself on not being sentimental, Jason suddenly wishes he had something of Dick’s too.

“I’m here because I care, and because if Dick was here, he’d be doing the same thing I am.”

“But he ain’t here,” Jason snaps, “Is he?”

Donna’s head falls, and he feels like a giant jerk. He just… reacts poorly to that name, hasn’t heard it spoken since the transmission and subsequent funeral, since the guy he’d had the hots for since wearing the scaly panties had his mask ripped away and his life taken in front of Bruce’s eyes (who, to absolutely no one’s surprise, failed to save his son).

In the aftermath, no one said Dick Grayson’s name, always Nightwing, or some inane nickname the superhero community had for him. Last time he said it was to Damian, a failed attempt at comfort. But even Jason’s form of mutual grieving had been better than any of Bruce’s shit ideas. Bastard immortalized the ripped costume from his own son’s corpse (not that it had been the first time) and hadn’t even had the decency to give it a plaque (No ‘Good Soldier’ or ‘Good Son’, just a bare glass case with a bloody suit). Which… was weird. Jason was far from B’s best friend, but even he noticed something seemed strange, off, just not quite right. Like the funeral he didn’t speak at, like the breakdown none of them had witnessed beyond a one-off rage fit

“B, what the fuck happened down here?”

The Batcave was a disaster, dents glaringly obvious in several vehicles and a large spiderweb crack across the Batcomputer. Bruce closes the screen down, but Jason manages to catch a spiraling eye.

“Nothing, just…”

Bruce looks at the spare Nightwing costume none of them had taken down yet, still clean and ready for use (too bad its owner died and would never wear it again).

“Dick?” Jason questions, and the way Bruce’s eyes snap to his face is almost suspicious, almost enough to arouse concern.

“Yes. I—”

Jason sits next to Bruce on the desk, crossing his arms over his chest.

“I miss him too, Old Man. Don’t mean you need to be an ass about it.”

A memorial next to Jason’s own, but Dickhead’s is empty and broken from Damian’s fists and grief, and Jason’s is just gone. No one told him why, it was just gone.

Kind of like Dick.

He wonders if Bruce would have told him if the video hadn’t been broadcast, if he would’ve told anyone. B did love his fuckin’ secrets.

“No,” she whispers, and he can hear the tears in her voice, can feel her grief as keenly as his own. It’s palpable, tangible, “He’s dead, and I’m alive, and I don’t know how to handle it.”

And then, to Jason’s mounting horror, she starts crying openly.

…..

Second comes from my one I’m working on rn with Stray!Dick called I See Sunset In Your Eyes (I Hate This Part Right Here)

“Come on,” Wally says with a pout, dragging an overly amused Jason and Dick with him through the karaoke bar doors. “Donna and Roy are waiting for us, and Dick had to take forever to primp.”

Dick shrugs with a grin.

“Beauty takes time, time I can tell you did not take.”

Jason snorts, and Wally glares at him.

“At least I don’t take five hours to finish getting ready.”

“At least I can last longer than five minutes.”

“Ouch!” Roy butts in, throwing an arm around Jason and Dick’s shoulders. “Claws are out tonight!”

“Speaking from experience?” Jason asks, eyebrow raised.

Dick smirks without comment, sauntering past the group towards the table Donna’s lounging at.

“Hey gorgeous twin of mine,” He greets with a kiss to her eyes. She smirks, rolling her eyes at him.

“You’re just stroking your own ego with the twin tacked on, Wonder Boy.”

Dick bumps his shoulder against hers.

“Can’t I stroke both our egos?”

“You can stroke mine,” Wally mutters, turning red when Stray winks at his phrasing. Jason and Roy both facepalm, groaning. “Not what I meant guys!”

“Why Kid Idiot,” Dick replies, hand on his heart, “I had no idea you could be so forward~!”

Wally glares, waving over the waitress.

“Round of shots, on this dick,” he jerks his thumb at Stray, offering up his fake ID. She doesn’t bother checking it, probably because this is Gotham, and they were all in uniform. “Whisky, please.”

“Trying to get me drunk?” Jason jokes. It is, after all, his first big outing with the Titans for non-mission reasons. Stray had practically dragged him out of the Manor with a wink at Alfred and a middle finger for Bruce, saying that Jason needed to have fun outside of books.

Jason knows better than arguing with Dick Grayson-Kyle when he wants something, Stray trained him well.

“Of course, Batboy,” Roy replies, “It’s not a Titans outing if Stray is fully dressed and everyone’s sober.”

Dick shrugs.

“You’ll have to get some real liquor in me if you want me to do anything like last time.”

“Last time?” Jason asks, looking to Donna for an answer. Dick snorts. You get near naked one time…

“Boy Blunder ended up in just his boxers in a dancing cage drunk of his ass. Everyone thought he was one of the strippers, and he made, what, three-hundred dollars in bills?”

“Five-hundred,” Dick replies proudly, offering the waitress a twenty as she came back with their drinks. “Keep the change, darlin’!” He adds with a wink.

She flushes, making Jason frown.

Stray, of course, notices this and elbows Jason.

“Don’t get jealous, Blue Jay, it’s not becoming.”

Jason does not blush. He doesn’t, and that’s the hill he will die on.

“I’m not. On an unrelated note, pass me a shot.”

Jason is the master of changing the subject, Stray thinks sarcastically, passing him a shot and downing one of his own.

“Five bucks says alley cat blacks out,” Roy says smugly as Dick makes a face, the way he always did with heavier liquors. He glares at the redhead, who shrugs unapologetically.

Donna eyes them both speculatively, taking a sip of her own drink.

“Twenty says he gives a lap dance before he blacks out.”

Roy snorts.

“I’ll take it,” and to Dick, “Don’t do it, for me.”

Dick bats his eyes innocently.

“Lil’ old me? I would never do something so…” He trails a finger down Roy’s chest, making him swallow roughly. “Scandalous.”

Donna grins victoriously as Roy groans, trying and failing to hide his excitement.

“I hate you. I hate you both.”

Tagging whoever sees this, I suppose?

#dcu #dick grayson #my writing #stray!dick

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thenightling · 4 years

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The Dodged Bullet

Warning: This is deliberately bad!

The dodged bullet:

The following is the horrific notion of what would have happened if The CW, Fox, or Syfy adapted Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman instead of Netflix. This is going to poke fun of common tropes of Fox and CW shows. See if you can spot them all.

I am going to deliberately write this very, very badly.

The generically attractive young man in his early-twenties walked toward the crime scene. He wore a long leather jacket, designer sneakers, expensive brand-name jeans, and a stylish and perfectly fitted black polo style shirt under the jacket. It was rumpled but just so as to hint at what a great body he had under it. He had thick, dark brown hair. Brown eyes, a smoldering gaze and a dazzling smile. He’s Caucasian and generically attractive. He’s thin but not rake thin, more like sexy male model thin. He’s got muscle tone.

At the moment he looked stoic, hands resting in his pockets. He crosses the yellow crime scene tape without anyone stopping him. No one questions his presence but he is not invisible. This is “grounded” in reality, folks.

The Sandman solves crimes! The Sandman is a private investigator with a secret. He is a real Sandman! Hidden in his jacket is a leather pouch which will probably get used maybe once or twice an episode (budgetary reasons). And he gets confused by certain social cues and pop culture references but otherwise he’s just a generic hot guy.

He’s probably portrayed by a Tom Mison type. He might be American. There’s an English accent but it’s so slight (so hidden by Americanisms) that it’s almost undetectable. He approaches the pretty, ninety-pound, college age female detective with perfect, blond hair. She looks up at him.

“Hey, Murphy.” She says in a friendly tone. Yes, Murphy is his alias. She thinks he’s just eccentric and thinks he’s The Sandman but he gets results!

“Detective Walker.” He smiled with obvious affection. He crushes on her, pines for her. But she mustn’t ever know the truth. It is forbidden for one of his kind to be with a mortal. Even if she is a Vortex. And her great power may one day destroy the world… or save it! That’s the real reason he was here, to watch her. He had never expected to fall in love with her…

The show has almost no scenes in The Dreaming and when there are it’s about 90% CG over green screen, like the Enchanted Forest sets of Once Upon a Time, or the under-whelming Hell of Lucifer. There’s probably a throne room with a starry night sky behind it, and an under-whelming “vast” library on par with Belle’s library in Once Upon a Time that will be shown very rarely.

“We’ve got another one.” She said gravely. “Eyes torn out. Pretty girl. Whoever this creep is- this predator must be stopped!” The implication here is the victims are all damsels who have been targeted by an evil man targeting them for misogynistic reasons. But don’t worry! The show is totally not sexist! Detective Rose Walker kicks ass! And in season four she’ll be raising her own long-lost little brother! Even though it’ll take her at least five seasons to learn Murphy’s secret (if she ever does).

“I thought the ‘me too’ movement would have at least reduced some of this.” She said with a shake of her head in disappointment at the world.

The line of dialogue doesn’t actually really make sense under easy scrutiny. Why would “Me too” actually make a serial killer reconsider his life choices? Oh, well, the audience doesn’t have enough time to question it.

“Me too?” The adorable, awkward, pretty “Murphy” questions.

“Boy! Where have you been? In a cave?” “Actually I was trapped inside a prison cell for a hundred and five years and before that I resided in another dimension.”

She rolls her eyes. “Not this again. Tell me you can at least figure something out with your ‘Dream powers’” she said cynically. He might have been insane and socially inept but he got results!

Morpheus knelt down next to the body and placed his hands on the corpse. There isn’t even any SFX for this. He’s just sensing something. He grunts in a sexy portrayal of sexy CW level pain.

“What? What is it?”

“I think I know who did this…”

“Who?”

“Corinthian…”

(Opening credits here. Maybe the opening riff of Enter Sandman by Metallica. No, wait, Fox and CW can’t afford that. It’s Mr. Sandman by the Charlottes! It kills the mood but everyone knows the song. You’ll be sick of it by episode five if you weren’t already. And it will get a LOT of use since the song is cheap / practically public domain.)

The next scene is not present day. It’s a flashback. And by flashback I mean a hastily put together set in Vancouver Canada. It’s probably someone’s private stables being passed off as a medieval village. No, wait. Its eighteenth century. There’s a sexy other character wearing slightly anachronistic style sunglasses hiding his eyes (No CG here, the production team figures the glasses are enough). In fact his eyes might not even be weird at all. He just likes sunglasses! There, that’s better, no wasted money here. He’s wearing a badly fitted white wig over white hair.

“My king,” the sunglassed man says with a bow. We have to be blunt for our easily distracted audience, so there’s the reminder that this is the dream king. “Thank you for letting me accompany you to the waking world. There are such delicious things here.”

“Yes, the food is rather pleasant.” Morpheus replies. His costume is decently fitted but obviously borrowed from another show, possibly a left over from Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Those props and some period costumes still get use. Isn’t Morpheus adorably oblivious, though?

Morpheus is wearing a dark blue frock coat and lace. His trousers are exceptionally tight to show off the actor’s perfect ass.

The Corinthian’s costume is cream colored. There was a behind the scenes fight and as small victory for the one crew member who actually read Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman in getting the cream outfit. Others working on the show wanted the costume to be black to make it more obvious he was the bad guy.

An attractive, tall, black man (probably American), under the age of thirty, is behind Morpheus. This is his loyal manservant, Lucien. But it’s totally not racist making the dreaming librarian / butler black when the show hasn’t had any black characters yet. No, it’s inclusive!

The attractive black man speaks. “My Lord, I think he intends to do harm to the mortals here.”

“Nonsense, Lucien. I’m certain it’s fine.”

The Corinthian wandered away from his master and he soon drags off attractive young female into an alley, hand over her mouth. No, The Corinthian isn’t gay anymore in this version. But it’s okay. Hob Gadling, Morpheus’ immortal friend (who now runs a bar for some reason) is gay! He’s very gay. In fact that’s the extent of his entire personality. But isn’t this diverse and inclusive?! And there’s no more problematic gay nightmare, even though in the original comics The Corinthian gets uncreated and the second Corinthian is a relatively decent guy for a nightmare.

After some persuasion Morpheus finally listens to Lucien and walks down into the alley. He stops in his tracks when he sees The Corinthian has killed the girl and his licking his fingers, having obviously already eaten her eyeballs (gotta keep that TV-14 rating!) He lets out a gasp. “Corinthian, what have you done?”

We cut back to present day and “Murphy” is walking into the bar owned by his friend, Hob Gadling . Hob sees him and smiles. “Murph, oh, honey, you look like Hell! Come sit down and tell me all about it. You know I love juicy gossip.” He says in a naisly, lisping voice.

Imagine this scene was written by some very straight guy whose only exposure to gay people were 1990s Will and Grace reruns.

Hob places a shot glass in front of Morpheus and Morpheus downs it quickly. “Have you seen Matthew?”

Matthew was Morpheus’ straight human friend and roommate. He had learned Morpheus’ secret in the pilot episode when Morpheus rescued him from a car accident using his dream magick. Ha! And you thought we’d have talking birds in this thing. Lol! No! Grounded, remember?

“Matt? Oh, sweetie, you can do better than him. I keep telling you, he’s just not your type.”

Morpheus raises an eyebrow but says nothing about the implication about his sexual identity. There will be a LOT of queer baiting on this show without confirmation in regard to his sexuality.

“I need to talk to him. One of my nightmares is loose in the city.” You can tell this was written by a New Yorker because they take for granted “The City” to mean New York.

“One of your Nightmares? Why couldn’t it be one of those sexy wet dreams?” Get it? Because if the character’s gay he has to always be horny!!! Ha-freakin’ –ha.

(Please know I don’t actually feel this way. I’m mocking bad TV writing. This whole thing is a spoof.)

There’s an awkward pause intended for the viewers to laugh.

“I don’t believe any water nymphs have escaped The Dream dimension.” Morpheus replied in confusion.

He calls it The Dream Dimension in the show because “The Dreaming” didn’t sound hip enough according to some executive.

“I’m afraid it’s The Corinthian. So now I have two problems.”

Hob nodded sympathetically. “The detective you might have to kill…”

“And now this.” This is an idiot proofed recap for people turning on the show late or just watching it in passing while doing other things or playing on their phone. CW does this sort of in-story forced, shoe-horned exposition all the time.

The episode plays out a little bit like an episode of Lucifer mashed into an episode of True Blood.

While they’re trying to find the killer, Detective Rose Walker meets Murphy’s roommate, Matthew, and the two hit it off while chatting about Murphy’s weirdness. They decide to start to date. As Morpheus has feelings for Rose that he won’t admit to this causes a strain between him and Matthew Raven (There’s that bird reference! What? That should be Lucien’s last name? Naw!) And between him and Rose Walker.

Morpheus lashes out rather than admit to what he is truly angry at and he and Matthew argue over something petty and this leads to recovering alcoholic Matthew to start drinking again as sad music begins to play.

Morpheus eventually finds The Corinthian and is forced to destroy him. He had to kill his own creation so he is kneeling in angst crying prettily while the sand left over from the uncreation slides through his fingers. Some new female cover of Queen’s Who Wants to live Forever? Is playing in the background. The original version is “too old” and too expensive for use. So here’s a very generic sounding cover done in a style that makes it blend in with every other pop song played during the forty five minute mark of a CW show’s run time (including commercial breaks).

The song plays as we cut to Matthew drinking alone sexily in an alley. He’s sweaty and wet, but he just looks like a wet fashion model. Morpheus is sexy crying over the sand that was the Corinthian, and Rose going to sleep prettily in her bed, no bed head here. Oh, and she sleeps in perfect makeup! There’s no scene where she even remotely looks like she’s out of makeup.

She’s having strange dreams but they look pretty mundane. Like real-world mundane. It’s her living room set that we probably saw a few minutes ago, just dimmer lighting and some haze to make it clear this is a dream. Because even with a show about The Dream Lord, dreams have to have an old fashioned camera fringe haze. Murphy is there with his back to her. He looks sad. He turns to look at her and she gasps. She sees a star (lense flare) from Murphy’s eyes in the dream as he looks at her in surprise like he wasn’t expecting her to see him. She wakes up with a gasp, and everyone in her apartment building also wakes up at the same time, signifying that their dreams were connected.

And so ends what was probably the third episode of CW (or Fox’s) The Sandman.

And that is pretty much how CW or Fox would have done The Sandman.

#The Sandman fan fiction #The Dodged Bullet

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ifeveristoday · 4 years

Text

follow the bread crumbs

According to this interview, the first year of Boom!verse was already plotted out prior to the announcement/publishing of the first issue. So I decided to go back to the very beginning and see if I could find the clues that lead up to Hellmouth and character beats as the series evolve.

Spoilers/references for the whole series, but starting with Issue 1

The twist is that Xander’s internal monologues are superimposed over shots of Buffy, so the audience assumes it’s Buffy’s thoughts.

“I just think it’s difficult to tell people what’s really going on in my head.”

Xander - but this applies to Buffy and Willow as well. Xander can’t admit to people that he’s depressed and lonely (and says in the beginning that it’s hard for him to make friends - Willow being the notable exception), Willow can’t tell Rose what she’s done for Xander and how it’s changed her as a person and her identity as the Willow that Rose loves is gone, Buffy can’t reveal to her best friends what she’s struggling with as a girl and the Slayer because she feels like she’s losing them anyway.

“Can’t really make a lot of friends when you’re not honest about who you are, I guess.”

Buffy, Willow, and Xander all accuse/point out each other’s difficulties with being truthful - Buffy and Xander about Willow lying to Rose, Willow at Buffy about keeping her Slayer identity secret from everyone else.

“Being strong is a challenge but being vulnerable...feels impossible.”

Vulnerability to certain people specifically: Buffy and Xander can’t admit their respective crushes to each other - Buffy’s on Robin, Xander’s on Buffy. Willow is their shared confidant. Willow tells Xander and Giles about her feelings after the soul-sharing ceremony but doesn’t tell Buffy. Buffy confides to a complete stranger (Angel) the whole past month of issues: Willow possibly ghosting her, her whatever with Robin, her confusion about what her life is outside of being a Slayer.

Cordelia’s popular, effortless charisma cracks in issue #9 when she admits everything is horrible post the Hellmouth opening.

Joyce’s fear in the aftermath of the museum attack, and how to let that side out without Buffy being there. Giles’s brusque, hurtful behavior as he brushes aside Xander’s very valid feelings and stomps all over Jenny’s choices.

The words Stalk, Dare, Library, Strange, Us, Witch are emphasized in Xander and Willow’s dialogue. Incidentally, these are possibly the most clunky faux Whedonism attempts in the comic’s short history.

Giles’s dialogue to Buffy emphasizes Supposed, Responsibility and he asks her if she understands the concepts of discretion and caution.

Xander comes to her defense and points out that Buffy saved him. Giles dismisses him and Willow and that he needs to talk to Buffy privately. The line between Slayer and Watcher and Everyone Else is explicitly drawn.

In Buffy and Giles’s first argument - he says she needs to do better, and she snaps back how is saving two lives not good enough, and that maybe she could do better but he never stops to think if she’s already doing her best. The phrase not good enough is emphasized - but it’s clear that Buffy is extremely aware of how high the stakes are in her calling, and takes Giles’s criticism personally.

Her next retorts have Pressure to Overachieve, and Teenage Confidence bolded.

Buffy’s character as described by others over the series: Weird, Hot, Deceitful, Self-Absorbed, Troublemaker --

and then Xander’s “I’m so exhausted. When am I going to have some time to find out what I’m about?”

superimposed over Buffy resting on a marble slab.

Xander’s struggle with his vampire identity/human self and the fear that he hasn’t suppressed the monster inside him, and he’ll be in an unfinished state forever. Willow feeling she’s less than she used to be and is a freak - and also incomplete now. Buffy not knowing what she wants to do with her life aside from being the Slayer, and how to deal with her evolving friendships and relationships with her mother, Giles, and even Eric. And presumably, the man in the devil mask, Angel.

“Like, when am I going to know what I want to do with my life? Not just doing what everyone says I’m supposed to do.”

Xander essentially worried about his human soul and if he even has a life to look forward to, Willow chafing under everyone’s assumptions about her and a hard look at who she is and becoming. Buffy struggling with both her and Giles’s expectations for herself and choosing to be the hero she doesn’t think she’s good enough to be. Angel doubting Lillith and Everyfreakingbody Else that he has a specific reason to be in Sunnydale and it’s not just about the end of the world. Giles realizing he’s compartmentalized Buffy over everything else in his life and how damaging that is, almost too late.

Spike being used to doing whatever Dru commands he do, his whole unlife is devoted and because of her. If he’s not Dru’s, who is he?

This panel is drawn so we’re looking down on Buffy as she is in a fetal position splayed on a slab, but the background makes it look like she’s in a pit, with crosses prominently displayed.

Religious symbolism and Buffy as a Christ type figure implications continue to pop up in the next issue.

“Guess it doesn’t matter what I want, there’s always something more important.”

Xander lists the various connections people have in life and laments that he’s not good at any of them - and these are overlaid on scenes of Buffy fighting in a cemetery ‘ particularly Parent to please, and Friend who needs you.

Both of them have issues with these connections - Xander feels abandoned and misunderstood by his friends (and presumably family) and they don’t need him as much as he needs them, Buffy is afraid she’s not good enough for the expectations her friends and family have for her.

Anya’s whole dialogue:

“...no one wants to accept responsibility for creating something so heinous. Absolute immortality. Of course, you’re a vampire. But you’re not actually immortal, are you? It’s beautiful that even cursed to live forever, you’re still mortal in so many ways.”

Hello, Drusilla, Angel, and Spike.

“Beasts and men are quite alike.”

Issue 10 deals with the Sunnydale men enthralled by Drusilla and turning on each other.

A banner on Sunnydale highschool reads, WelcomeEat Freshmen - in Hellmouth, one of the students is killed by Drusilla at the school. Don’t know if she was a freshman, but her life was eaten.

Hanging out with the Scoobies:

Batboy - a possible reference to Camazotz, the bat god who helps slayers, or Bat Man - er, Angel.

Buffy’s response: “I’ve yet to meet Batboy but that doesn’t mean he’s not out there, looking for a friend.”

In Angel, much is made about Angel needing to go to Sunnydale and making ‘friends.’ (And then we learn in the free comic book day story, that he and Anya were murder friends.)

Buffy says to Willow - “Anyone could be a witch! Even you, Willow. It’s just about having the right spellbooks and sacrificing to the right Dark Lord, I think.”

Willow muses that “some are probably beautiful, kind, sensitive, [and] smart.”

Those are pretty much words Rose has used to describe her.

“Please, I get it from all sides as it is. I just want to have a normal night, with normal people and feel like a normal teenager.”

Famous last words, Buffy. Neither her, Willow, or Xander get to be normal in the issues to come.

Anya reveals she does business with Wolfram and Hart, who show up in Angel Issue #6, most notably Lilah.

Drusilla’s ending words. “No, Anya. I think I’ll take what I want now.”

And that’s her character in a power suit wearing nutshell.

#boom! studios #instead of writing fic #this is what i do #boom! verse #buffy comics #connect the dots

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