As she hopped back into the transport, Buffy took a moment to look back at the delapidated, long-abandoned theatre in London's West End she and Angel had just checked out. "That was weird," she said.
"You thought so?" Angel asked. He touched the transport's panel and put the vehicle into motion. The transport's low rumble vibrated through the seats. "Looked pretty ordinary to me."
"That's what I mean," Buffy said. "If that's Kean's big hideout, then where are the vamps? The victims? The general accoutrements of mayhem?"
"It's not his big hideout," Angel said. "It's his theater. And my guess is he's not going to be spending that much time there until his opening."
"Places to go, people to kill," Buffy said. "And he's all done with the setup. I have to admit, they've pulled together cool some storm effects." Her hair was still tousled from the wind machine. Considering that she'd just finished recon on a vamp lair, she was in a ridiculously lighthearted mood. "Still, all the CGI in the world wouldn't get me to a vampire play. Are we sure actual human people are even going to this?"
"We'll see for ourselves in a couple nights," Angel said. He set about turning the clunky transport around a corner.
"I have to say, the cars of the future are unexpectedly lame," Buffy said. "I was expecting some cool Jetsons stuff. Instead it's like the world belongs to the Ford Aerostar."
"They get the job done," Angel said, patting the panel much as he might a horse's side. "But right before the plagues, we had some stuff you would have loved."
"All shiny? Glass domes?" Buffy put her arms up behind the headrest of her seat.
Angel chuckled. "Very shiny. And a little before that --" His face looked unexpectedly boyish for a moment. "We had flying cars."
"Oooh, way cool!" Buffy said. He actually grinned at her enthusiasm. "Why they don't still have those? Could come in handy, outrunning vamps. Can't afford to make 'em any more?"
"Actually, they were outlawed after just a few years."
"Outlawed? Why?"
"Think about how badly people drive in just two dimensions."
Buffy made a face. "Ugh. Good point."
Angel's smile was warm. It seemed to soften his entire face; he actually looked younger for a moment. For someone who'd been the same age for six centuries, Buffy figured, that was saying a lot.
How come I never saw him smile that much before? she thought. I mean, besides all the angst and misery and not being able to have sex -- well, I guess that's enough.
She looked over at him again, and saw that he was watching her with that same sleepy smile. Buffy was suddenly very aware of her disheveled appeareance, the tousled hair half-falling over her face, the curve of her body her upraised arms created. She didn't move, just studied him in turn and waited for the words, the move, that seemed inevitable.
Angel dedicated his attention to the road again.
Buffy let her arms drop and sighed.
This is going to make me crazy, she thought. I know he shouldn't kiss me. I want him to kiss me. We shouldn't, I know. It can't go anywhere, and we would just end up splitting again. And I don't think I could stand that, being stranded here without him. I need him more than I did before, and this is the only way it can work. So it's for the best.
And which one of us was actually on the kitchen table?
She glanced over at him again, now frustrated beyond belief. How can he be so freaking calm? Buffy fumed. Sure, he can stop himself from jumping me, but can't he, you know, fight it? How can he act like this? Like it doesn't matter? Oh, wait, no, for him something else matters. He's got a reputation to protect, people to please. And me, I'm just some bizarre complication from a scifi novel --
Buffy's inner rant quieted as she thought about what she'd said.
We're back where we started, she realized. Except we've traded places. I used to be the one who had to balance everything so carefully -- mom and school and slaying. He was one more element, one more thing I had to balance. I needed him so much, but he made it harder. And that's what I am for him, now. The lover from beyond the grave, the one nobody understands.
We have to be careful. That's all he's doing, being careful. I should tell him I understand that much, at least --
"Burnout," Angel said.
"Wha?"
He pointed to a dim, orangey light in the distance. "They're doing a burnout. Burning an inhabited building to drive victims out onto the streets."
"Oh, my God," Buffy said, leaning forward in her seat.
She could perceive the glimmering outline of a building, perhaps 15 stories high. It flickered ominously in the darkness, and as they drew closer, she began to hear the screaming. "How many vamps do this?"
"They'll have a gang," Angel said. His face was set as he motioned toward the transport's control panel. "Contact the Keep. We'll want as many Slayers here as we can get."
"Oh, tell me this is not a CB," Buffy muttered. "So Smokey and the Bandit."
"There's a lot of smoke," Angel said. "Bandits, I don't know --"
"Skip it!" Buffy said. "Uh, breaker, breaker, this is Buffy?"
A crisp Watcher's voice sounded over the speaker. "Is there trouble?"
"A burnout. At, uh," she peered at a battered old sign. "Wardour Street. Angel and I are on it, but send the others. And get some Watchers out here; they can carry crossbows too, right?"
"Watchers do not patrol --"
"Go past the lecture portion, okay? Get some help here, pronto!" Buffy snapped off the speaker and began re-arming herself. "We get out, start kicking ass, hang on til the others get here?"
"Sounds like a plan," Angel said, with that look on his face he always got before battle -- half-grim, half-glad.
They stopped a block short of the melee and jumped out; Buffy had her crossbow at the ready, as did Angel. He leaned forward, sniffing the air in a manner that would have been funny if it weren't so useful. "Strange --" he said.
"What?"
"Not so many as I would've thought. Come on," he whispered, "we can take them."
Buffy ran forward, saw a vamp tackling a man to the ground. The arrow was away almost before she thought about it. FOOMP, went the vampire, and the man who had been screaming found himself coughing from a cloud of dust. She heard another vamp shriek behind her, knew Angel had just speared one himself.
Where are they, where are they, she thought to herself. She spied another vampire and scuttled toward him sideways, keeping her bow tight against her shoulder. Wait for the shot -- wait for the shot --
A woman came running around the corner, clutching a bundle to her chest. The vamp attempted to tackle her, and Buffy fired. He had time to look over at her accusingly before dissolving into powder.
The woman was looking at her suspiciously. "You," she said, her voice wary. "It's you."
Buffy blinked and squinted through the darkness. In the shifting firelight, the round face did sort of look familiar -- what was the name -- "Tam?"
As Buffy took a step toward her, Tam took a step back. "Why did you lie to me? Why did you pretend you were one of us?" Tam said.
"Hey, come on," Buffy said gently. Of course the poor woman was freaked out, with her home burning to the ground right behind them. "I didn't lie." She paused, turned sideways and fired at another vamp, which made a satisfying cloud of dust. Without missing a beat, she turned back to Tam. "I'm not used to just telling people I'm the Slayer."
Tam was shaking, her eyes filled with tears. "You didn't tell?"
"What? The witchcraft?" Buffy shook her head. "No way. My best friend was a witch, you know -- oh, dammit, get down!" Another vamp went FOOMP, and Buffy began peering about in the darkness. "Is that it? Any idea how many there were?"
"No -- I don't know --" Tam looked bewildered, shook her head. Her long hair swung behind her. "This is -- this is the work of vampires?"
"No, they just came to huddle around the fire, maybe make smores. Of course this is vamps."
"I -- I should have realized," Tam said. "It's just so terrible -- and we have so many things to protect --" Her arms were still clamped tightly about her bundle, which Buffy realized included a few sheets of the precious paper.
"It's cool," Buffy said. "And you don't have to -- UNHF!"
She landed hard on the ground almost before she had time to register that something had tackled her. The vampire grinned down at her, his face feral in the flickering light. His hands were clamped down hard on her forearms, forcing them to her chest; Buffy twisted in a desperate attempt to get herself free --
The vamp's face went blank, and then he looked down. Buffy followed his gaze to the arrow tip that was protruding from his chest. Their eyes locked again just as he turned to dust.
As the cloud cleared, Buffy could make out a dark form standing in front of her.
"A bit sloppy for a legend," Sky said, letting her crossbow drop.
"Rub it in," Buffy muttered, springing to her feet. She looked around; Tam was nowhere to be seen. "What's the story?"
"Just got here, but it looks about cleared out to me," Sky said easily. "Angel's doing the last one, I think."
A growl of anger and a howl of pain behind her told Buffy that Sky had reported accurately. She looked at the still-blazing building. "Do we still have a fire department?"
"There's fellas who come to take care of these things," Sky said. "So long as they happen by day."
Buffy made a face. "At least it's almost sunrise. They might be able to save it --"
"Doubtful," Sky said. "Maybe they can salvage the solar reflectors, though. Be able to set up another home for these people faster that way."
"Each building powers itself," Buffy said absently. Her attention was shifting to the people she could see in the shadows. Some were crying quietly; some were motionless with shock. "Who looks after them?"
"The Council will send people out in a couple hours," Sky said easily, putting her long arm around Buffy's shoulders. "Bring 'em food, blankets, the like. Isn't that so, McGregor?"
Sky's Watcher nodded as he came around another corner. "They'll be all right."
"It just sucks," Buffy said. "Losing your home --"
"You there -- get back until you can control yourself!" Buffy was shocked at the roughness in McGregor's voice; she was even more shocked when she turned around and saw he was speaking to Angel, who had indeed turned away.
"What is your damage?" Buffy snapped. She turned to follow Angel, called after him. "Are you all right?"
"Fine," Angel said distantly. He wouldn't turn to face her. "Just give me a second --"
"Are you hurt?" Buffy pulled him around. He looked fine, albeit vamped out. Though, now that she looked at him -- "Angel, your game face -- it's changed!"
"Huh?" Angel looked dazed. "Oh, right. I mean, you add ridges with years --"
"Like tree rings or something?" Buffy laughed, a little punchy. She put her hands up to his face; he started as her palms made contact with his skin, but didn't pull away. "So you're showing your age after all. Getting way crinkly here."
Angel was quiet until she dropped her hands. Then he said, softly, "I forgot."
"What's that?"
"I forgot you didn't mind."
Buffy smiled up at him. As he smiled back, his face shifted back into its human form. "There ya go," she said. "Let's go be rude to Sky's prick Watcher."
"Let's make nice," Angel said, more firmly. Buffy mock-scowled at him.
"Is all the fun already over?" Xiaoting came bounding toward them, by all appearances genuinely disappointed. "We scarcely saw a thing all night, and I was really hoping for a little action -- speaking of which, how are you two?"
Buffy made a face at her, but the joke seemed to sail right over Angel's head. "Fine. We took care of it."
"Don't forget me!" Sky protested.
"Where are the others?" Angel said.
McGregor, who seemed to consider a human-like Angel acceptable to speak to -- just barely -- answered. "Agatha and her Watcher were far south of here. Haven't heard a report from Sumiko and Markwith. And Noor's Watcher appears to have lost Noor again."
Xiaoting snickered. "Noor's so eager to be rid of that poor Watcher But she'll never get a transfer at this rate."
"Don't suppose she will at that," Sky said.
"She's making her own rules, isn't she?" Buffy sighed, a bit wistfully. Angel caught her tone of voice and smiled.
"Getting a bit close to morning for me," Angel said. "Let's head back."
Buffy collapsed into the passenger seat of the transport gratefully. Angel began steering them toward home, and they traveled most of the way in companionable silence. Normally, after a bout of slaying, Buffy's hormones would have been cranked up to a very inconvenient level. But the crossbow method didn't seem to get her worked up the same way. Now she could just relax and let her exhaustion and the transport's humming soothe her halfway to sleep.
Almost to himself, Angel said, "Strange."
"Hmm? What?"
"Normally, they'd have at least thirty to forty vamps for something like this. A group of people that large could have overpowered them -- might have, if they'd had some time to get organized. So the vampires usually work in numbers. But I don't think you and I killed ten altogether."
"Maybe this time was different," Buffy mused. "This lady I talked to, Tam -- she's a witch, and she lived there. I think maybe some others did too. Do you think they might have been after her? Or some magic stuff she had?"
Angel raised an eyebrow. "Could be. We should try to track your friend down, talk to her about."
Buffy snuggled back into the seat. "Why is magic forbidden anyway?"
"It's restricted, more than forbidden," Angel said. "Right after the plagues, people were desperate. A lot of people who should never have dabbled in the black arts did so. The results were almost as bad as the plagues themselves."
"But there's no problem with people who know what they're doing, right?"
"Most people who know what they're doing are regarded with suspicion, if not actual hostility," Angel said. "As far as I'm concerned, we could use more of them."
"I'd think you'd be teaching everybody magic," Buffy said through a yawn. "Or, you know, everybody that could learn. You could set up, like, magical barriers and stuff. You'd only need a few good witches to really start making a difference."
"You're right," Angel said. "I never thought of it quite like that before. But maybe we could talk to Ishak --" Angel's voice trailed off.
"Whatsamatta?" Buffy mumbled. "Cat got your --" She caught a glimpse of Angel's face and felt her heart drop. "Oh, no --"
She sat up straight and looked in the direction he was pointing.
In the courtyard of the Keep was a pole. Atop the pole was a sign. Hanging from it was a dead body.
Angel stopped the transport, and they both jumped out. It was close enough to dawn that the sky was turning a lighter shade of blue. There was enough light for Buffy to make out the writing on the sign.
DO YOU FEEL SAFE?
"Buffy --" Angel's tone was a warning, and she didn't understand why until she got another look at the dead person's face.
Buffy's body went cold. She choked out, stupid with shock, "I -- I didn't recognize her with her hair down --"
Noor was swinging slightly from the rope, her feet a few inches from the ground.
**
Two hours later, Buffy and Angel were part of the group crowded into Ishak's Hall. She huddled in her chair, arms wrapped around herself; Angel stood behind her, not touching her, yet somehow giving her the sense that he was standing watch. They were probably the only two people in the room not talking at once.
"This could only have been Kean; only a master vampire could kill one of the legendary --"
"-- defiance of the Council, an attack upon the people's trust in us and in our Slayers --"
"I tried to keep up with her! She wouldn't have it, and I could only stay on her trail so long --"
Ishak finally held his hand up for silence, and the volume in the room fell to a low rumbling. Xiaoting was still crying quietly in one corner. "Let us begin with what we know," Ishak said. "Frances?"
"Noor died very early in the night," Frances said. "Perhaps within the hour of leaving her Watcher's side. Her neck was broken, though not by hanging, we don't think. More likely a combat injury, to judge from some cuts and scrapes on her arms and face."
"And we believe Kean to be responsible," Ishak said heavily. "He has haunted us a very long time, but never before has he actually destroyed one of our Slayers."
"Only Kean would be strong enough to destroy one of these Slayers," McGregor said, making a gesture that included all of them besides Sky.
"That's not true," Agatha said. "I didn't meet my death at the hands of a master. Virtually any opponent can have the combination of strength and fortune to defeat a Slayer. Even a very good Slayer. I learnt that in very unpleasant fashion."
"Someone besides Kean?" Markwith said. He appeared slightly dazed.
"No," Buffy said. "It was Kean. I'd bet anything."
"Why do you say that, Buffy?" Ishak asked.
"The whole big setup," she said, trying to keep her voice from shaking. "The sign -- Kean said something to me about the Council knowing they weren't safe. And besides, it's such a big, stupid melodramatic thing -- total theater club, you know?"
"If I understand you, what you're saying makes sense," Markwith said. 'It is the sort of gesture Kean might appreciate, if this talk of his running a theater is actually true."
"It is true," Angel said firmly.
"A poster scarcely counts as proof," Markwith replied with a disdainful lift of his eyebrows.
"We told you what we saw tonight --" Angel said.
"That might have been there forever --"
"Hey!" Buffy said. "You two can go pee on all the bushes later. Are we all agreeing that Kean killed Noor?"
"That seems most likely," Ishak said. "Continue your investigation. If the location you described proves to be Kean's lair, then this Council will spare no expense or manpower to see that justice is done."
"Until then, I want one thing to be clear," Markwith said. He was addressing the whole room, but Buffy could feel the words aimed at her like physical blows. "This tragedy should make it clear how very much our Slayers do still need our help and protection. And how vital it is that our rules for their safety are obeyed. Kean might have done darker work tonight if he'd been able to find more than one of our Slayers alone."
Buffy felt Angel's hand brush against her shoulder, so quickly she almost missed it.
"We shall be careful," Agatha promised.
The room was quiet for a few moments. "Very well, then," Ishak said heavily. "The service for Noor will be this afternoon. Announce a day of mourning for the city."
**
Noor's body lay on a funeral pyre in the courtyard outside the Keep. .
Buffy stood between a sobbing Xiaoting and a silent Agatha. In their group of Watchers and Slayers, Sumiko and Sky stood on the other side of Ishak, with Markwith hovering slightly behind Sumiko. Buffy couldn't make out their expressions for the tears that kept welling in her eyes.
That's what we're here for, she told herself. That's the first thing I heard Angel say, and I didn't pay any attention to it. They brought us back to life just to die again.
Throngs of people surrounded the courtyard, keeping a respectful distance. They swayed together, half-chanting, half-singing, some dirge that Buffy guessed was all too familiar by now.
Ishak stepped forward and held up a gleaming knife. Buffy had only a moment to wonder what he intended before he lifted up one lock of Noor's hair -- uncovered as it had been in death, as it had never been in life -- and cut it free. Then he stepped away and let the Watchers light the pyre.
As the flames surged up, filling the air with smoke and heat and smell, Buffy felt herself go cold.
They took her hair, she thought. They took a part of her. In case they want to get her back again --
What if they never stop? What if I never finally die? What if I just come back, over and over and over, losing everyone until I finally lose myself?
Buffy hugged herself tightly, wishing stupidly, uselessly for Angel to appear, somehow immune from the blazing afternoon sun. He would know how it felt, to never be able to really die --
Xiaoting choked out, "I can't seem to get ahold of myself. It's -- it's almost as if I liked her." She was so sincere that Buffy couldn't bring herself to take offense on Noor's behalf.
Besides, Buffy decided, if Noor appreciated anything, it was honesty.
"I fear for her soul," Agatha said.
Buffy looked over at her, alarmed. "You -- you think Kean could have cursed her or something?"
Agatha seemed bewildered. "Curses? No, dearest. I meant -- Noor was a Mohammedean. I attempted to speak with her about the Church of England once, but she had very little patience for it."
"Oh," Buffy said. "God stuff."
"I am certain it would be no sin to pray for her soul," Agatha said.
"Yeah," Buffy agreed. "Besides, think about all we do. Gotta be some celestial reward for it all, right?"
"I used to think so too," Xiaoting said, her voice uncharacteristically harsh. "But then I ought to have spent quite a bit of time in heaven, and I don't seem to remember any of it. Do you?"
"No," Buffy said. "Not a thing."
*