The Anya Chronicles: True Forms
By Father Storyteller

Disclaimer: No claim to ownership is made to these characters or situations, which were originally created by Joss Whedon.

"Does it strike you as at all unfair," said Buffy, "that we save the world from seven types of hellspawn on a regular basis and yet demon girl Anya gets the smoochies?"

"I heard that at the Bronze last night they were doing that slow dancing thing," said Willow.

They watched as Anya and Xander finally ended their embrace. Xander left the cafeteria, and Anya joined Cordelia.

"I also heard that Anya and Cordy have been trading fashion magazines," said Willow.

"They do seem to be getting on well together," said Buffy. "They have something in common, I guess."

"They’re both demons in human form?"

"No. Well, they are, but I meant Xander."

"I wonder what Cordelia is saying. Hey, I don’t suppose you could abuse your Slayer powers to read their lips from here, could you?"

"Been trying. Can’t catch much. Let’s see: boom ... barfy ... impaled ... shoes ... "

"I need to know how you can tell if you’re in love," said Anya. "It’s not something I know much about."

"Oh, you’ve come to exactly the right person," said Cordelia. "Let me see, first there’s the squishy feeling inside, and a constant headache."

"Is that love, or a period?" asked Anya.

"Love, but they can be very similar. Then, when you see the person you think you might be in love with, your heart goes sort of boom-boom-boom and you feel a bit barfy. Aside from that, everything seems right with the world."

"Damn," said Anya. "Damn damn damn."

"And then, when it goes wrong, you feel like you’ve been impaled by a steel spike. Well, in my case that really happened, but usually it’s just a metaphor."

"Oh. Have you been in love much?"

"Well ... uh ... just the once. That was enough to last me for a while."

"And how do you know if a man loves you?’

"There’s only really one way," said Cordelia. She lowered her voice and whispered: "The shoes test."

"The what?" said Anya. "Should I be taking notes?"

"No, don’t take notes. This is secret girl business. You see, you get the man to go shopping with you. Then you try on fifteen pairs of shoes, minimum. More, if possible."

"Sounds good so far," said Anya. "And then you buy some?"

"You’re missing the point," said Cordelia. "You don’t buy any, you just try them on and ask his opinion. If he will sit in the store and wait, that’s a really good sign. If he doesn’t get upset when you don’t buy any, that’s even better. If he buys you a Diet Coke afterwards, it’s love."

Anya frowned. She sat back in her chair. "I had no idea it was so complicated," she said.

"Generally," said Cordelia, "I have come to the conclusion that men are not worth the trouble. Except the really agreeable kind."

"Not too long ago," said Anya, "I would have agreed with you. But they seem to be able to surprise you."

"You mean Xander, right?"

Anya nodded.

Cordelia gathered her books to leave. "Then you have my sympathy," she said, patting Anya’s hand.

" ... shoes ... shoes ... Diet Coke," said Buffy.

"Anya is evil," said Willow. "Evil, evil, evil. Oh, oh, she’s coming over!"

"Hi, Buffy, Willow," said Anya. "I need to ask you something."

"How can we be of help?" said Willow.

"I want to ask Xander on a date," said Anya. "He seems worried about something lately. Graduation tomorrow, I guess. You’ve known him longer than me. What does he like to do?"

"Aside from what you already do?" said Buffy. "Sports. Definitely."

"But Xander doesn’t much ... oh ... yes, definitely sports," said Willow.

"Sports," said Anya. "Yes, I’ve heard about men and the sports thing."

"You’d better ask him soon," suggested Buffy.

"I thought I would do it in English class," said Anya.

"English class?" said Willow. "Oh, Mr Curie will do Hangman."

"Hangman?" said Anya. "I haven’t done that. Should I have studied?"

"Yes," said Buffy and Willow together.

"How did evil girl get into the mix?" said Willow as she and Oz, hand-in-hand, entered the Library.

"Anya witnessed an Ascension," said Giles.

"Oh. That’s okay then," said Willow, as she sat down with the others.

Anya continued to recount the story – and then the Mayor entered.

He said what he had come to say, and then he was gone as suddenly as he had arrived.

Anya quickly gathered her stuff. "I’m outa here," said Anya, "before he gets the idea that I like you people." She ran out. Xander went after her, but returned to the Library a few minutes later.

"Well, at least now we have seen the face of the beast," said Giles. "One of them, anyway. Xander, do you think Anya knows anything more that could help us?"

Xander was staring into space. Willow nudged him.

"What?" he said, starting. "Anya? No, probably not. Anyway, she’s gone and I don’t think she’ll be back."

The sun was setting as Anya, sitting in her car, looked again at the sign saying ‘Sunnydale City Limit’. She had been looking at it for a long time. The road to Aruba stretched away before her. Then a van screeched to a stop in front of her. It took her a few moments to realise what was happening. Two vampires – the Mayor’s vampires – got out. Before she could say a word, they had forced her into the back of the van.

At the Mayor’s office, they put her in a chair and stepped back. The Mayor came in, wiping his hands on a tissue.

"Well, well," he said. "Hope my men didn’t cause you undue surprise. But I thought it would be useful if you and I had a talk."

"I’m not on the doofus team, if that’s what you think," she said. "In fact, I’m on my way out of town."

"Yes, I know," he said. "But I thought you might like to consider a better offer. You see, I know what it is you want, and I might be able to procure it for you."

"How would you know what I want?" she said.

"It’s my job to know these things," he said. "And after all, what is a wish demon without an amulet?"

She gasped. "You know about that?" said Anya. "You could get my amulet back?" He smiled. "Maybe. But you would have to do something for me. You see, Buffy and her little friends are a constant annoyance. They can’t stop me, of course, but I am afraid they might give me a little indigestion. I would give your amulet back to you if you made sure that that sort of thing didn’t happen."

"You’re going to kill them all, aren’t you," she said.

"Of course. After tearing each of them limb from limb. The Watcher, the good vampire, the witch, the werewolf boy, even that really annoying fellow Xander. Buffy gets to go last. Not the pretty girl with the hair, though. My colleague Patrick – " he gestured at a vampire behind him, one of his personal guards – "has got dibs on her."

"The annoying guy is fairly harmless," she said. "You can afford to let him go."

"Your special friend? Hmm ... I’m not so sure. In any case, I promised little Buffy that all her friends would meet a sticky end, and we have to keep our promises. That’s the trouble with this country, isn’t it. No sense of commitment. Hey, you’re really scared of me, aren’t you?"

Anya realised that her body was trembling. So this is fear, she thought. But then she felt something else, as her pride and anger began to rise. She leaned close to the Mayor.

"I am a demon of the Dark Lords," she said. "I have been around for eleven centuries and will be around for much longer yet. I have seen and done things you could not dream of. Your plans and plots are of little conern to me."

"Whoa!" said the Mayor. "Didn’t mean to get you upset, girl. Hell hath no fury like a woman’s scorn – and we know that to be true, don’t we? I just hoped we could make a deal, that’s all."

"Here’s a deal, then," said Anya. "You give me my amulet and don’t kill Xander, and I’ll see what I can do."

"My, you do drive a hard bargain. But ... no, I don’t think so. Amulet or Xander, one or the other. And you work for me."

Anya leaned back in her chair. She flicked a speck of fluff from her jacket onto the Mayor’s desk. He stared at it disdainfully. Then he took a little brush from a drawer in his desk and brushed the offending fluff into his wastebasket.

"I don’t think there’s anything we can do for each other," said Anya.

"Really? What a shame," said the Mayor. "Oh well, it was worth a shot."

"Can we eat her now?" said Patrick.

"Dear me, no," said the Mayor. "We wouldn’t want to start any demon feuds, would we? And we really have no quarrel with her. She’s not even from around here. And, in her favour, she dislikes Buffy nearly as much as I do. Take her home. So long as she agrees not to fight against me in the title bout. Fair enough?"

"Yeah, yeah," she said.

"Promise?" said the Mayor. "Demon word of honour?"

"Cross my heart and hope to die," said Anya.

The Slayerettes were poring over maps of the schoolground. "Oh, I like being the Key Guy," said Xander.

There was a knock on the Library door. It opened, and Anya was standing there. They all looked at her.

"There’s something I have to tell you," she said. "I think the Mayor has a Window of Toranz."

"I love you too," said Xander.

"Window of Toranz?" said Oz.

"Oh, that would explain a lot," said Giles. "A Window of Toranz. I should have thought of it."

"Well, what is it?" said Buffy.

Giles was sorting through the bookshelves. "There were originally three Windows. They had the power to let the owner see other places, even other times, as long as they had been there themselves." He took a book from a shelf and blew dust from it.

"And the Mayor came here," said Xander.

"So he could be watching us right now," said Willow.

They looked at each other, then grabbed the plans and maps and ran into a nearby empty classroom.

Giles still held the book he had selected, and started leafing through it. "Two of the three Windows were certainly destroyed in the Na’rakesk Wars, and it was always assumed that the other one was too. It was definitely broken. But perhaps not destroyed."

Anya told them about her encounter with the Mayor, leaving out what had been said about Xander. "He knew everything, as though he had been watching," she said.

"It would explain why he always seems to be a jump ahead of us," said Giles.

"And it would let him see the past?" asked Willow.

Giles flicked through more of the book. "Only those aspects of the past that he has personally been associated with," said Giles. "According to the book, the Window can even be used to manipulate the past ... but only by the virtuous. Yes, that makes sense. Tinkering with the past is a dangerous thing. It has to be done in a way that won’t affect any future events."

"Virtuous, eh?" said Buffy. "Cuts the Mayor out."

"Fortunately," said Giles. "Anya, this information is of enormous value."

"Good," she said. "So all my debts are paid, et cetera, et cetera. Now I’m hitting the road." She turned to go.

Xander was stroking his chin. "Guys," he said. "Key Guy is getting an idea."

Xander was hurrying down the empty hall when Anya stepped out of the shadows. He started in surprise.

"What are you doing here?" he said. I thought you would be in Aruba by now."

"Hey, I’m packed. My car’s right outside," Anya said. "But I had to ask ... " she trailed off.

"What?" said Xander softly.

"You could come with me," she said.

"Come with you? You mean that?"

"Why not? We could just get in the car and drive. No-one would miss us. We could take turns driving. Keep each other awake." She looked into his eyes, and Xander could see a tear starting to form. "You’re going to die if you stay here."

Xander nodded. "I guess I might," he said.

"When I think that something could happen to you, it feels bad inside, like I might vomit."

Xander smiled. "Welcome to the world of romance," he said.

"It’s horrible," said Anya. "No wonder I used to get so much work."

"Well, I’m sorry I gave you barfy feelings."

"Come with me," she said. They were almost touching. Xander could smell her perfume.

"I can’t," said Xander. He stepped back from her.

"Why not?" she said, her voice beginning to tremble.

"I got friends on the line."

"So?"

He smiled again. "That humanity thing’s still a work-in-progress, isn’t it," he said.

"Are you really going to be that much help to them? I mean, you’ll probably just get in the way."

"Whoa. Your stock’s plummeting here, sweetheart."

"Fine," she said, suddenly angry. "You know what? I hope you die."

Xander smiled grimly. He turned away and walked down the hall.

"Aren’t we going to kiss?" she called after him.

The hall became quiet. Slowly, in the darkness, Anya began to sob, as if her heart had been pierced.

Then the door at the end of the hall opened and he was standing there.

They used Anya’s car to pick up Willow’s requirements from the magic shop, and to take them to her. They were driving back through the darkened streets of Sunnydale when Xander, looking straight ahead, said: "Yes, you should go. By tomorrow, all this – " he gestured at the surrounding town " – might be gone. You’re not a part of any of it. Anyway, I can’t listen to any more of your demon stories. I won’t miss you, believe me. The horizontal part has been okay but that’s all I’ve wanted from you. And I’m pretty bored with that now."

"Oh, don’t worry, I’m going," said Anya. "Human existence might not be much but I don’t intend to throw it away. But first we have to stop here for something." She pulled into the parking lot of a still-open store.

"Here?" he said. "Sunnydale is hours away from being burger and you want to go here?"

"Yes," she said.

He smiled, even laughed. "Okay, demon girl," he said.

They got out of the car and went into the Sunnydale 24-Hour Shoe Store.

Xander, Willow, Oz, Buffy, and Cordelia lay back on the grass, exhausted. The eclipse was passing.

"Guys, we survived," said Oz.

"It was a hell of a battle," said Buffy.

"Not the battle," said Oz. "High School. We’re taking a moment ... and we’re done."

"Why do demons even come here?" said Willow. "I mean, don’t they know how bad we are?"

"Pretty good plan, Xan," said Buffy. "The vampires never expected the second group. That made the difference."

"That’s what the Mayor gets for peeking at our term paper," said Xander.

"Ick," said Cordelia. "I broke a nail."

"Well, I have to go and find Mom," said Buffy. "Make sure she’s okay." She got up and staggered away.

Xander, Willow, Oz and Cordelia watched as fire engines arrived and started to douse the fires in the school.

Then, from under the collapsed presentation dais, something started to stir. Rocks and pieces of metal were pushed aside as something rose up out of the debris.

The Slayerettes began to scramble for cover. But they were too late. The monster leaped over them, cutting off their escape.

It was a vampire, but huge: ten feet tall and with savage fangs and claws, and unaffected by the sunlight. He held a length of twisted metal in his hand like a sword. He growled savagely at the exhausted crew.

"One of the Mayor’s bodyguards?" said Willow, as they backed away.

"And I would say he’s been snacking on the Mayor’s munchies," said Xander.

Oz picked up a piece of fallen timber and lunged but the vampire swatted him away, sending him flying. He struck out at Willow, knocking her down with a single blow. Then he saw Cordelia. His mouth broke into a vicious smile, and he started to reach out for her. She turned to flee but fell on the debris. The vampire grasped her ankle.

"Hey! Hey! Over here, bug-breath!" Xander shouted. He picked up a rock and flung it; it bounced harmlessly off the vampire.

The creature turned towards Xander and started after him. Xander started to run. But he was close to exhaustion. In a few steps, the vampire was on him. It knocked him down and stood over him, ready to deliver a killing blow.

"I knew it," muttered Xander to himself. "Knew that I wouldn’t make it."

"Get out of the way!" shouted someone. Xander looked up as Anya charged forward out of nowhere, a fire-axe in her hands. He desperately rolled aside.

The vampire was caught by surprise. The axe swung and chopped into its throat. It fell to its knees, howling.

Anya raised the axe again, poised to decapitate the monster. But before she could do so, it slashed out at her with its weapon, catching her as the axe fell. With a final howl, the vampire exploded into ashes.

Xander, Willow and Oz ran to the fallen Anya. She was alive, but only just. Xander cradled her head.

Anya reached up and stroked Xander’s cheek. "Couldn’t leave," she said softly. "Not without a last kiss." Her eyelids fluttered as she dropped into unconsciousness.

Xander looked at Oz, who was examining Anya’s wounds. Oz shook his head. "I’m not letting you go," Xander said to Anya. "Not this way."

A car suddenly braked to a halt next to them. Cordelia was at the wheel. "Get in," she said.

"Where did this come from?" said Willow, as they lifted Anya onto the back seat.

"Snyder’s," said Cordelia. "He won’t miss it. Hospital?"

"No," said Xander. "The Mayor’s office."

With Cordelia driving, it took only a few minutes to reach City Hall. As they carried Anya into the deserted building, Xander said to Willow: "When you were a prisoner here, you saw a cabinet where the Mayor kept a lot of magic-type stuff. Take us to it. We have to find the Window of Toranz. Did Giles’ book say how it worked?"

"I don’t really know," said Willow, leading the way. "According to the book, a person who wants to see something from their past just thinks about it. But only a virtuous person can ... well, I think they sort of reach through the window. What are we trying to do, exactly?"

"Get Anya’s amulet back," said Xander.

They reached the cabinet in the Mayor’s office. Willow found the catch that opened the secret compartment in the bottom.

She and Oz searched through the collection of talismans, skulls and scrolls. "We don’t even know what we’re looking for," said Willow. "It could be anywhere."

"Found it," said Oz. He held up a piece of crystalline glass, about the size of a book, with jagged edges.

"But Anya’s unconscious," said Willow. "She can’t call up the past. And it only works if you were there."

"Not Anya," said Xander. "Cordelia."

They all turned and looked at her. "Me?" she said.

They put the Window of Toranz on the desk, and Cordelia sat in the Mayor’s chair before it, Xander at her side. "Think about the time when you made the wish," he said. "You know, you were really angry with me. And Anya had her necklace. Remember?"

"Of course I remember," said Cordelia. A frown crossed her face as she tried to concentrate. In a few moments, a flickering image appeared on the glassy surface. It was an image of Cordelia, speaking with Anya.

"What can I say," said the Cordelia in the glass, "except: men!"

"Second it," said the Anya in the image.

"This is cool," said the real Cordelia.

"Cordy, concentrate," said Xander. "You’re going to have to reach in and grab the amulet just before you make the wish."

"See a problem," said Oz.

"Virtuousness," said Willow.

Xander looked at Cordelia. "She’s the most virtuous of any of us," he said. "In her own way."

Cordelia glanced at Xander and smiled. Then she looked back at the image. "Oh, oh, I think its coming up!" she said excitedly.

" – it’s just that we kept getting into these life-or-death situations, which are always kind of sexy," said the image-Cordelia. "And anyway, it was Buffy who made him halfway cool by hanging out with him."

"Perhaps it’s all Buffy’s fault," said Anya.

"It sure is," said Cordelia. "You know, I wish – "

"Now!" said Xander.

Cordelia plunged her hand into the glass. It went in as if into a pool of mercury.

" – that Buffy Summers had never come to Sunnydale."

"Got it!" said Cordelia, pulling her hand out.

"Done!" said Anya.

In the image, Anya was feeling her bare neck, as if wondering where the amulet had gone.

"And I wish that Xander Harris never again knows the touch of a woman. And that Willow wakes up tomorrow with monkey hair."

"Done!"

"In fact, I wish that all men – "

"That will be enough of that," said the real Cordelia. As she ceased concentration, the image shimmered and vanished. She opened her hand; she held the amulet. Giving it to Xander, she said: "You owe me one, Nighthawk."

Xander rushed to Anya, lying on the Mayor’s couch. He placed the amulet around her neck. In a few seconds, the crystal embedded in the silver began to glow. Anya moaned and shifted. Weakly, her eyes opened. She saw Xander, and reached out to touch his face. He took her hand in his own and kissed her fingers.

"Welcome back, wish demon," he said.

"Are you sure you didn’t change anything?" said Giles, when they were back at what remained of Sunnydale High, in the wrecked gym.

"As sure as we can be," said Xander. "In the Sunnydale created by Cordelia’s wish, you smashed the crystal. That sent Anya and Cordelia back to the point where Cordy made the wish, except Anya didn’t have the amulet. She told me that about a million times. We just closed the circle, so the wish never came true."

"Hey!" said Willow. "Monkey hair!?"

Cordelia shrugged. "Let’s not forget who turned out to be virtuous," she said.

"Our Cordelia?" said Buffy.

"Wouldn’t have picked it," said Oz.

"Perhaps you don’t understand women," said Xander.

"Mmm," said Oz.

"Cordelia, I have to tell you something," said Anya, whose strength had returned under the influence of the amulet. "Twenty-two. And a Diet Coke."

Cordelia paled. "Twenty-two," she murmured. "Twenty-two pairs, and I threw it away."

"So now you have what you most wanted," said Willow to Anya.

"Yes, I suppose I do," she said. "I’m a demon again, and can go on my way."

"So you can," said Xander.

"After all, it is what I am, and I can’t ignore it," she said. "No matter what."

"Do you think you will be ... you know, less bad ... after all this?" said Willow.

"Of course not," said Anya. "But ... Xander, I’m sure the Dark Lords wouldn’t mind if I granted you a wish. Any wish. Anything at all."

"Anything?" said Xander.

"Anything. Even .... something you might want."

Cordelia suddenly tugged on Xander’s arm. "Let me talk to you for a moment, hero boy," she said. She pulled him into a corner of the wrecked room, away from the others.

"She wants you to wish for her to be human again," she said.

"She does?" said Xander. "How do you know?"

"Because I’m a girl, moron. Trust me. It’s what she wants. She just can’t say so."

"Cordy, she’s a wish demon. She’ll never really be happy being anything else. She might want to be a human right now, but eventually ... "

Cordelia sighed. "Brick-brain," she said. "Well, I tried."

They re-joined the others.

"I wish ... " started Xander.

"Yes?" said Anya.

"Well, I wish ... "

"Yes?"

"I wish ... I would like to see you in your true form, just once."

"I ... I ... " stammered Anya. "I ... alright. Done."

Before their eyes, she changed into her demon form. She looked at the floor, hanging her head.

Xander took her in his arms. He gently tilted her face towards his, and then kissed her on the lips. It was a long, tender kiss.

They stepped back from each other. "I have to go," she said. She wiped her eyes.

She made a portal. "Goodbye," she said. "Goodbye to all of you." She stepped through and was gone. The portal closed.

"Well, Xander, that was really rather noble of you," said Giles.

"And sweet," said Willow.

"Hear hear," said Oz.

"Looks like our boy’s all grown up," said Buffy.

"Doofus," said Cordelia.

Xander was staring at the spot where the portal had been. "I suppose," he said, "it’s my graduation."

The End