Brethren, Where Art Thou?

Diversionary Tactics And Books

He was furious. Several chairs lay broken and several walls were marked with large chair shaped scrapes down them.

“What the hell did she do to me!” he yelled, his throat hurting from shouting too much, throwing an antique vase against the carpet which made him scream even more when it didn’t smash. Why did vampires need bloody carpets anyway? He felt like tearing it up and fell down to his knees clawing at it. “This was not part of the plan!” Spike threw his head back and howled, his vampiric features taking over his face. His frustration was more than a little too obvious as Angelus stood against the doorframe, smirking.

“Did she turn you down, Spikey?” The elder vampire jeered happily, his arms crossed against his chest, that irrepressible grin widening as Spike jumped up, moving quickly towards him and then put a firm hand around his throat.

“Don’t piss me off, sunshine.” The blonde vampire warned, growling deep in the back of his throat. He pressed harder for a second and then let go, dancing into the middle of the room, rage surging through his system. “I kissed her! You want to know why?!” He looked at Angelus. “Because she put some sort of bloody spell on me, making me all, I dunno! Want her?”

Spike calmed down a little and his yellow eyes returned to blue, the bumpiness of his forehead reducing somewhat. Angel just looked at him, smiling smugly; there was something that he knew that Spike didn’t. “You been reading the books again, Angelus. Know something your ol’ pal Spike doesn’t, don’t you, peaches.” The younger vampire stepped toward his sire cautiously, Angelus’ smile widening.

“I like to read up on my current affairs…no wait...just yours.” He was teasing him, speaking slowly and calmly, his eyes steady, watching the bubbles of fury brew again as Spike grew redder and redder. “My advice, childe, is to read up on this little obsession of yours. Quite an interesting tale, about you and her.” Angelus folded his arms, rubbing the younger vampire’s nose in the fact that he knew more than his master. “Books of Shakar. Look ‘em up.” With that, he turned and left the room, leaving Spike to ponder.

He had heard of the Books of Shakar, old legends passed on by word of mouth, but he’d have to do what Angelus said, and it pissed him off when Mr Sun Shines Out of My Ass was right.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Morgan trotted into the library, feeling like she was walking on air.

“Any joy?” Giles asked, looking up at her and smiling.

“There was joy.” The slayer answered, swinging her arms from side to side.

“You got laid!” accused Xander, pointing his finger at her. Morgan shook her head.

“No, we didn’t go that far. Just kissing and all that jazz.” she blushed, smirking in Willow’s direction. The redhead joined her in the middle of the library.

“So, do I know him?” Willow inquired, rubbing her hands together with excitement.

“Kinda, but I can’t tell you who it is, not yet.” said the slayer and Willow pouted out her bottom lip. “I can’t, not in front of them, but I will.”

“Okay.” Willow was disappointed, she wanted to know everything and now. “Was it good?” she grinned again at Morgan whose smile broke out into a wide beam of happiness.

“The best!” She closed her eyes. “He pressed his body against mine, and ooh! God was it bloody amazing, I dunno what even came over him, we were just talking and-” She stopped mid-sentence. There it was again, that feeling. Building inside her stomach and surging throughout her entire being.

“What is it?” Willow asked quietly, looking around, knowing Morgan had sensed something.

“Ssh.” The slayer walked swiftly to the weapons cabinet and pulled out an axe and 2 swords. She handed an axe to Willow and a broad-sword to Giles.

“What about me!” Xander complained a little too loudly and Morgan tutted, turning back to the cupboard and pulling out the lightest sword there.

“Here. Now shush.”

Giles moved out of the space he was reading by and into the middle of the open floor space with Morgan. Willow held her axe tightly. Since Buffy had been turned, Giles had been teaching her a few moves. Plus, whenever Morgan trained, Willow would watch, taking mental notes on the way the slayer moved. But that did not chase away her fear, the terror spreading throughout her body and making Willow shiver.

Suddenly, all the windows smashed behind the stacks, making them all jump in surprise, all except Morgan. She moved the weapon around in her hand. Blades were her favourite weapons, but usually too big to carry on normal patrols. Police would be more wary of a large, metal, pointed weapon than a sharp pointy stick. She could hide stakes in a number of places around her body. The back of her waistband, the front of her waistband, but being careful not to get splinters, and both inside and outside pockets. So she could usually take 6 stakes with her every patrol if she felt she needed to.

She counted the vampires quickly. Four on the right, Six down the middle and another four on the left. Fourteen vampires that were there for a reason, mostly because of her. In a way, it was quite flattering.

Morgan nodded as Willow, Xander and Giles drifted to the right, hopefully they could take four of them alone, leaving the slayer with the remaining ten. Willow swung her axe around and around, no vampires daring to go near her…except one. The first one dusted. Xander tried the same technique only to be punched in the nose, throwing him on to his rear-end.

“Hello, oww!” The teenager moaned, jumping to his feet as fast he could and sweeping his sword through the air towards a vampire. Two down. “Cool.”

With Morgan around, they got a lot more freedom when it came to slaying. They were allowed to fight because even Giles knew that she could take care of them even if she was mid-fight with more vampires. And at that time, she was.

The vampires she fought were fast, faster than the others, and due to the fact there were only 7 of them left, you could say she was winning. There was still only the one her, but she couldn’t help wishing there were at least two. Morgan ducked, kicking out and sweeping the legs away from two vampires. She pulled a stake from her waistband and she staked them both. For a moment, there was space for her to flip back to her feet. She smiled. Violence was the biggest turn on, and since she was born to do violence exceedingly well, she must have been a turn on too. Well, Xander seemed to think so. She could feel it whenever he hugged her. Morgan couldn't help letting out a tiny giggle.

The slayer swiped her sword through the air, but the vampires moved too quickly for her to even slice them just a little bit. She glanced over to the others, they were battling one other vampire, but Willow wasn’t using her weapon.

“Willow, chuck me that axe!” She shouted, frown turning into a smile as Willow obeyed very quickly. The slayer lept into the air, catching the axe and on her way back down she beheaded three vampires that hadn’t the sense to see what she was doing. Only two left. Morgan kicked one in the stomach and her left fist connected solidly with his chin, hurling him through the air. The other watched his fellow soldier of the night tumble to the ground, only to discover that a wooden stake had been thrust into his heart. His mouth shaped a little ‘o’ before he turned into dust. The last vampire recuperated rather quickly and bounded for an exit.

“I’ll be right back!” The Slayer called, making chase after the retreating vampire. Giles smiled, mopping his forehead with the handkerchief that he always kept inside his pocket.

“Well…that was, invigorating.” Just then, another vampire entered the library, but through the front entrance. Everything fell into place inside the three humans’ minds. The others were just a distraction. But this one, he was after the real treasure. “Get out.” Giles ordered.

“Would if your slayer wasn’t such a big whore, Rupert.” Spike said, settling down in a chair as Willow and Xander backed away towards the stacks.

“What do you want?” The Watcher asked, his voice quivering.

“I’m not going to hurt you, watcher, I’m only part animal, you know. I use what’s up here sometimes, too.” He pointed to his blonde head, grimacing slightly. “I just need you to look up some books for me. The Books of Shakar to be exact.”

Giles looked puzzled. “The Books of Shakar? You’ll never find them, there’s only a precise way of finding them and that is for a vampire and a slayer to fall in love because they are the key to retrieving them, and the only people I know who matched that description were-”

“Buffy and Angelus, yes, but Peaches says there’s something about those Books that has to do with me and the slayer. And as sure as I know as my own fangs, I know I do not love that bloody slayer, or her curly blood coloured hair, pretty little kitty-cat eyes, those sexy curves.” He moved his hands in the shape of those particular curves, just the way he had felt them in his arms. He held his breath. Spike shook his head and his nose screwed up. “Nah, she’s not my type of slayer.”

Giles frowned at him and rolled his eyes. Of all the annoying vampires to destroy the world with his second slayer, did it have to be Spike?

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