The End

By Lois Aarhus (laarhus@home.com)

Disclaimer- I don't own any of the Buffy characters, they all belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, and WB. Don't sue!



Buffy swung at him with a perfect roundhouse kick, and her foot connected with a satisfying crack. The stake flew out of her pocket, and the newly risen vampire exploded into a cloud of dust.

"That's three. I'm outta here." she announced to herself. The quiet graveyard didn't respond.

"Alright then."

She turned to head home. The slayer had done her duty.

Then she stopped. A chill ran up her spine. Something was wrong--

"Hello, lover." Angel appeared silently, his handsome, evil face wearing a smile.

She shuddered, and sensed his pleasure at her discomfort.

She turned and gave him a disgusted stare.

"Hi hon. Just dropping by to say hi?" she snapped sarcastically. He hand tightened longingly around her stake.

His face didn't lose its sinister smile.

"I have bigger things in mind. How do you want to do this?"

"Violence sounds good."

Something crashed into her from behind. Stunned, she tried to turn around, but everything got foggy. Her world spun into red, and then dark black. Spike, holding an aluminum baseball bat, smiled from behind the fallen slayer.

"Happy to oblige."

Consciousness.

"Ugh... that was my favorite skull too..." she groaned to herself. She forced her eyes open.

Angel leered at her, just feet from her face.

"Hey slayer. Glad to see you finally woke up." Spike's sarcastic voice rang from across the room. Buffy suppressed a groan of dismay. This was really the last thing she needed.

"Spike. Behave. I wasn't sure if our slayer would wake up at all. Think you hit her hard enough?"

"I was just playing."

"Yeah sure. But we'll have time for that later." He grinned this time. Maybe it was because of her concussion, but he looked like a real, true demon, perfectly evil with no human in him. Buffy was scared. What would her mother do without her? She was her only child. And her father... would they pull together to make it through this? What would her funeral be like? A single tear rolled down her cheek.

"Gee Buff, this is pathetic. I didn't think you'd break so easy. C'mon, you've faced death so many times... what's one more step?"

"You're an asshole. Get it over with." she struggled in vain against the tight, painful ropes. Not even her fingers were free.

"That wouldn't be any fun, now would it?"

Spike laughed as Angel pointed to a box near the corner of the old room she was trapped in. A club was pulled out, like a large nightstick. Buffy dropped her head.

"Where is she?" Willie's eyes rattled as Giles shook him ferociously.

"I--don't-- know-ow-ow!" Willie shrieked.

"You're lying. I will ask you one more time before this stake goes through your heart."

"I'm not a vampire!"

"I know."

Buffy had been missing for eight hours now. Her mother was frantic, and Snyder, that wormy little troll... he threatened expulsion again. Giles was very worried. Buffy hadn't been the same after Angel lost his soul, and he knew somehow that she didn't have her old edge for fighting, sensing other demons, and protecting herself. He was worried. And now this little weasel of a bartender wouldn't tell her where she was. He knew that Willie knew.

"Okay okay okay! No need for further violence! Angel and Spike... they wanted to have a little fun. They went hunting for her. But hey, I've seen her in action. She can look after herself, right?"

Giles groaned. He tried to stop Xander from leaping up and punching Willie in the face, but his heart wasn't in it. Angel and Spike had Buffy. Two of the most notorious vampires ever to walk the earth had one heartbroken slayer.

"Xander!" Willow shouted, "is this helping Buffy?"

"This little... turd knew they would go after her. He knew!"

"We've gotta find Buffy now. This isn't HELPING!"

"Right then. Where did they take her?"

Buffy bit her lip. She wouldn't cry. He wouldn't make her. The club smashed her on the shoulder again, and she gave an involuntary cry of pain.

"That's what I like to hear. Do it again," Angel was inches from her face. "You know, sometimes, you just turn me on Buff."

"When I get out of here, this stake will be in your heart," she slurred. Her vision was fogging over again. She kept seeing white flashes of pain whenever she tried to move her shoulders, arms, head. Tears stung her eyes, but she wouldn't let them through. She felt blood trickle from her temple, and Angel's face moved closer to hers. He breathed faster now.

"I can smell your blood Slayer. I can smell power in it. It will taste so good."

She spit in his face, and her head rocked back from his blow. Then his mouth was pressing on hers, and he forced his tongue inside. She tried to pull away, and gave a muffled cry of pain as his sharp teeth sank into her tongue. He tasted blood and smiled as he felt tears run down her cheeks. The slayer wouldn't last much longer.

"Come on Angelus. My turn now. I get to have some fun too," Spike held up two railroad spikes, grinning. Angel turned to him in irritation.

"Whose idea was this? I set it up; it's my turn to play. Go find Dru," he snapped. Spike narrowed his eyes.

"Look, you can have her later. I'm working on something right now. Give me three hours."

"She won't live three hours."

"She'll live fifty hours if I want her to. Don't worry, you'll get your fun."

Spike snarled, but left to find his princess. Maybe they could both have fun, later on. His demonic face smiled.

"Please. Just get it over with." Buffy was a hair from begging. Angel grinned at her.

"It won't be over for a long time. Longer than you think. Even when you're dead, you won't be. You and I will be together. But we'll be together my way. I bet you'd make a wicked demon," He leered.

Buffy broke. Fourteen straight hours of torture, mind games, and she knew Giles wouldn't find her in time. Her friends couldn't save her. She would feel his teeth in her skin, and she would leave, and when her body woke up, it would kill and kill until someone staked it. She burst into tears, and screamed at him.

"NO! You kill me now! I don't want to be a vampire! Please! I can't be a demon!" She babbled incoherently, until his cold finger touched her lips.

"Shh, Buffy. It's okay now. I knew you would snap. Actually, I thought it would be a lot sooner. Fourteen hours, that must be a record." Angel comforted her sarcastically. Exhausted, she slumped forward, ignoring the pain. She couldn't hold her head up any more.

Angel stared at her, fascinated. She was so small, so delicate looking, but so incredibly strong. He was transfixed with her. She was unconscious now, the dark circled under her tired eyes betraying her terrible exhaustion. Even beaten and tortured, she was still beautiful. She would be so good as a vampire. Skilled as if she was a century old, and young enough to be naïve about his world. He reveled in her pain, even as she slept. She was tormented by dreams, but part of her was too scared to be awake.

He walked behind her, and untied her ropes with a few jerks of his hand. She slumped forward, but he had already circled around to catch her. She collapsed into his arms and instinctively lay against his chest breathing softly in relief that some of her pain was lessened, but he could feel her shiver subconsciously. In the arms of her enemy, how poetic. He barely restrained himself from taking her right then, draining her and kissing her until she was his, a dark, beautiful demon to be at his side.

"No, these ropes are going back on. But we'll make you a bit comfy first, shall we?" Her only response was a small sob in her dreams. She thrashed wildly for an instant, before he tossed her easily onto his bed. The ropes went on again, but looser, only to hold her in place.

She drifted regretfully, painfully back into consciousness. But she was more comfortable, lying on sleek black silk sheets. She was confused. The past sixteen hours were a blur for her. She didn't remember anything. She started to get up, wincing at the throb in her shoulders, the back of her head, and her stomach. Her tongue hurt- had she bit it?

Harsh, thick ropes jerked her abruptly back down. She sat partially up, barely able to move.

"Where am I?"

Angel appeared, and the past day flashed back in a rush of horrific memories. She shrieked and tried to pull away.

"Don't bother. They're tied tight. I thought I'd give you a rest before the big one. Torture always was my specialty, but one can only wait so long. Those
little sighs you have in your sleep, the blood I can smell; It's drivin' me wild Buff. Besides, Spike will be back in an hour, and the last thing I want is a deformed slayer slash vampire. You remember how he got his name, right?

"Get away from me!"

It was a stupid thing to say. He only moved closer, pushing against her until she fell back on the bed and he was hovering over her. She struggled futilely.

"I'm a slayer. We don't just become vampires!" she tried to scream, but it came out as a whisper.

"I'm a vampire. We don't like slayers," he breathed back.

Giles sat miserably, head in his hands. Willie honestly didn't know where she was. His beloved slayer. Whom he loved like his daughter, was being tortured or killed. Maybe she was already dead. He shuddered, thinking about how Spike got his name.

He had failed Buffy miserably. Willow sat in the corner, crying softly. They had checked everywhere, she was no where to be found. Xander was still out, searching in vain. She had been gone for twenty hours or more. There could be no chance of her being alive, or unhurt anyway. The police would be out looking for her in four hours, but it wouldn't do them any good. It wouldn't do Buffy any good. He choked back a cry of pain over the certain loss of his slayer.

Buffy was breathing raggedly. More torture, but mental torture now. Angel was talking in a one sided conversation about how they were going to kill all her friends. It wasn't that the death's he described were that horrible- she'd seen worse- but she knew that everything he said would come to pass by her hands. He was right. He was terrible and unstoppable. He loomed over her, and she could do nothing. She was completely immersed in sheer misery.

"And Willow; Willow will be fun. I wonder, will her blood be redder than her hair? I'm sure you'll find out," he told her. She willed herself not to beg him to kill her, let her go, go away.

"Stop."

"Hmm. Spike will be back in twenty minutes. Just in time to find a new member of our happy little family. You ready, lover?"

She tried to pull away. It was useless. Her mind screamed for Giles to save her. She wondered vaguely what the new slayer would be like. Maybe like Buffy. Maybe stern and harsh, a by-the-book slayer. She looked away.

Angel jerked her head back, and tilted her chin so he could see her. "No, you can watch this 'till the end." Her tired eyes widened in fear.

He was kissing her, and she felt honest open hatred for him. People were not meant to feel this hatred, she knew. But she wouldn't be a person anymore.

"It's started already. I haven't even bitten you, but you've lost some of your humanity 'cause you hate me so much... That's good," he murmured against her. He repulsed her.

He moved down, to her jaw, and then her throat, lips sliding along tender flesh. Her heartbeat quickened, but it was because of fear. He drew closer to her neck, where he could smell blood, feel her jugular. His teeth pricked lightly against the skin just under her jaw, where he could actually see a pulse throbbing. He taunted her- didn't break the skin, but close enough for her to feel. She moaned softly, terrified. anything but this.

Oh Giles, where are you? She didn't have it in her to scream. She was so tired; she welcomed.

The pain brought her back into awareness. His sharp fangs sunk into smooth flesh, with a delicious sense of victory and satisfaction, and she found the strength to scream once. He gave a smile against her throat., feeling the throb weaken. This blood, so powerful. He knew that this was like a beginning. For him anyway. He drained.

Buffy felt her head going light. It hurt to be killed like this. No blood, no life. She shivered, and gave a small, gasping sob. It drove him wild, and he bit deeper, harder. She groaned. Oh, it hurt so much. Two points of fire in smooth skin, promising a lifetime of evil.

He pulled out, blood dripping from his lips. She stared at him dazedly through half closed eyes. She felt like she was flying , but his smile brought her down again.

"Buffy. It's almost over, you know that. One drop of my blood, and your new life starts. Ready?"

She pulled away weakly. He kissed her again. She felt life slipping away. If she could only die before he bled. Calling upon all her slayer strength, she jerked her head away, and head-butted him. He flew back. She sank back weakly, but she was smiling faintly. She had no energy at all in her.

"You little bitch!"

Impossible as it was, her dying smile widened. "Disappointed, lover?" she whispered. She exhaled.

He was on top of her. He bared his teeth and slashed his own wrist: pushed it to her bruised lips. They parted, but she didn't swallow. He waited.

"Buffy!" Giles cried in unspeakable relief as she walked into the library. She gave him an odd smile.

"I took care of Spike and Angel," she said casually.

"Oh. I-I-I'm so glad Buffy! Are you all right?" he wrapped her in a hug, but fell back in shock as a razor pain lodged itself in his neck. Buffy pressed herself against him.

"You don't need to watch what happens now, Giles," Buffy hissed.

The End?
I don't know, maybe there's a story to come after this, a sequel or something