maryperk73703 (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
maryperk73703) wrote2012-08-01 12:27 pm
maryperk73703) wrote2012-08-01 12:27 pm
Memories Maketh the Man, Chapter 16
Order of Taraka is definitely in town and gunning for Buffy.
Chapter 16
Kendra trailed a few blocks behind the other Slayer and her vampire. They both moved at a fast pace while keeping on the alert for any attacks. Kendra’s Watcher had always warned her that things could be odd on the Hellmouth, but this wasn’t something that she’d anticipated.
When the other Slayer and vampire entered the local school, Kendra snuck in behind them. She followed their voices to the library where they were talking to several other people. Kendra found this all very confusing. Her Watcher had always told her that Slayers were supposed to work alone and in secret.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
“You were attacked by a human?”
“Yes, Giles, that’s what Spike said,” Buffy replied with a huff. “We searched the body, and we found this.” She handed a business card to the Watcher. All that was printed on the piece of paper was some kind of symbol that neither she nor Spike had recognized.
“Hmmm,” Giles hummed. He took the card and studied the symbol. “It does look vaguely familiar. I’ll take a look in my books. Hopefully, I’ll have something by morning.”
“Thanks, Giles. You’re the greatest.” Buffy grinned at Giles. She glanced at the clock and sighed. “We best get patrol over with, Spike. Tomorrow is the second half of career day, and I got roped into helping set it up. I swear Coach Goodletts is almost as bad as Snyder. I need to be here an hour earlier than usual.”
“Of course,” Giles said absentmindedly. He gazed up towards his research books. “I’ll see you in the morning then.”
While Spike and Buffy said their good-byes to Giles, Kendra ducked into a darkened hallway. When the Slayer and the vampire had passed by her and left the school, she went to the library door. She took a deep breath to brace her courage, and she knocked loud enough to get the Watcher’s attention.
“Come in,” Giles called out. He wondered who would be knocking at the door at this time of night.
A young dark-skinned girl shyly pushed to door open. Giles didn’t recognize the young woman, but Sunnydale High did have about 1500 students, and he knew he didn’t recognize a great many of them.
“Hello, sir. My name is Kendra, and I’m de vampire Slayer.”
“Oh, dear Lord,” Giles muttered.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
THE NEXT DAY
Joyce opened the front door on her way to work, and she gasped in surprise when she saw the short, balding man on her porch.
“Good day,” he said. “I’m Norman Pfister with Blush Beautiful Skin Care and Cosmetics.” He held up his case. “I was wondering if I might interest you in some free samples.”
Joyce shook her head. “No, I’m sorry. I have to be at work early today.”
Norman looked past Joyce into the house. “Maybe someone else in the house would be interested.”
“No, I don’t think so.” Joyce closed the door behind her while she crowded Norman off the porch. She didn’t like how the man was casing out the house. “Nobody living here is interested in any free samples.”
“Well, I’m sorry to have bothered you,” Norman said. “Do you think any of your neighbors would be interested?”
“I don’t know,” Joyce said. She decided that she’d call the school as soon as she got to work to tell Buffy about this encounter. “You’ll have to ask.”
“Quite right.” Norman tipped an imaginary hat at Joyce before he turned around to cross the street towards the house across the street from Joyce’s.
Joyce watched Norman until he was stepping onto the McNeil’s porch before she found her car keys to leave for work. She drove quickly, but safely, to the art gallery she managed. Once there, she called the high school library using Mr. Giles’ private extension.
“Sunnydale High School Library. Mr. Giles speaking.”
“Hi, Mr. Giles, this is Mrs. Summers. I know Buffy had to come in early to help with Career Day. I need to talk to her.”
“Is there something I can help you with?” Giles asked.
“Last night Buffy told me that I needed to let her know if I saw any strangers hanging around,” Joyce answered. “There was a man trying to give out free samples at the house before I came to work. I just thought she should know.”
“That doesn’t bode well.” Giles glanced at the symbol on the card on his desk. He now knew that the symbol represented the Order of Taraka, a group of assassins that didn’t stop till their target was dead. He also knew that they worked in trios. “I will send someone by your house to check on that.”
“Thank you, Mr. Giles. He said his name was Norman Pfister.” Joyce hung up the phone, and she turned to do her work. Unpacking crates of art pieces was not as easy as people thought.
Giles slipped the receiver back on the cradle while he thought about whom to send over to Buffy’s house to check on the stranger. Just then Kendra and Xander came in the library door. Earlier, Giles had caught Xander, introduced him to Kendra, and asked the teenager to give the new Slayer a tour of the high school.
The night before had been a revelation for Giles who had not given much thought to the fact that Buffy had actually been dead for a few minutes the past spring. Kendra was the perfect Slayer in that she knew the rules and the lore of what a Chosen One really was. Unfortunately, Giles didn’t think the shy, modest girl would survive in the ways that Buffy had already managed to do in her short time as a Slayer.
“Xander, Kendra, I need you to check something out for me,” Giles said in lieu of a greeting. “Mrs. Summers called to tell me there was a man at her house trying to give away free samples. He might be one of the assassins after Buffy.”
“Will do,” Xander said in a cheery voice. “Anything to get out of U.S. History.”
“I thought you were excused to attend the Career Fair,” Giles commented while he looked over his glasses at Xander.
“Not from U.S. History. Mrs. Delany is really mean. She likes to flunk me just for the fun of it, I swear,” Xander answered.
Giles waved Xander away. “I’ll write you an excuse,” he said. “Be careful. If this man turns out to be an assassin, he’ll be ruthless.”
“We will be very careful, Mr. Giles,” Kendra said. She bowed her head at the Watcher.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
“I’m off to the law enforcement booth,” Buffy told Willow. “How exciting.”
“It’s not that bad.” Willow patted Buffy’s arm. “I think you’d make an excellent law enforcement officer.”
Buffy glanced around. “Probably.” She noticed a short, dark-haired, vaguely familiar boy staring at Willow from one of the couches. “Hey, Will, there’s a guy checking you out. He’s standing in the sun, looking pretty human.”
Willow looked over at Oz, and she gave the boy a little wave. “That’s Oz. He’s expressing computer nerd solidarity. We had a good time yesterday with the recruiter from the software company.”
“Doesn’t look like that to me,” Buffy whispered slyly. “I think this is the one you should carpe diem.” She slipped away when Oz stood up and ambled towards Willow. She didn’t want to mess up her friend’s chance with the cute guy.
“Hey,” Oz said.
“Hey,” Willow replied with a smile. “Oh, hey. Your hair is brown.”
Oz chuckled. “Yeah, sometimes. So, are you gonna be a Corporate Computer Suit Guy?”
“I probably should finish high school first. What about you?”
“I’m not really a computer person, you know, or a work of any kind person.” Oz shrugged. “I just test well.”
“Ah, so, if you’re not into work, what are you into?”
“E-flat, diminished ninth.”
Across the room, Buffy signed her name on the clipboard on the law enforcement table. Then, she joined the other teenagers who had also selected to learn about being a police officer.
A red haired female Sunnydale officer picked up the clipboard. “Good morning. My name is Patrice Bergeron. When I call your name, please raise your hand.” She looked down at the list. “Buffy Summers?”
Buffy raised her hand.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Cordelia glared at Angel. “You know what? I’m through with you too. I hope you spend the rest of eternity alone!” she screamed. She turned and stomped off in the direction that Angel and she had just came from. When she saw Klempt spying on them, she snarled viciously.
“Cow,” Klempt muttered contemptuously.
“Who you calling a cow, you great big green goober?” Cordelia growled.
“What’s a goober?”
“You are!” Cordelia stalked past Klempt. “Now, get out of my way. Queen C is going to rule this god forsaken place, or I’ll die trying.”
Klempt stared at the cow in astonishment. She was a queen! This was the perfect opportunity for his family to gain some power. He dropped to his knees, and he laid his face on the ground. “Your majesty, how may I serve you?”
Chapter 16
Kendra trailed a few blocks behind the other Slayer and her vampire. They both moved at a fast pace while keeping on the alert for any attacks. Kendra’s Watcher had always warned her that things could be odd on the Hellmouth, but this wasn’t something that she’d anticipated.
When the other Slayer and vampire entered the local school, Kendra snuck in behind them. She followed their voices to the library where they were talking to several other people. Kendra found this all very confusing. Her Watcher had always told her that Slayers were supposed to work alone and in secret.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
“You were attacked by a human?”
“Yes, Giles, that’s what Spike said,” Buffy replied with a huff. “We searched the body, and we found this.” She handed a business card to the Watcher. All that was printed on the piece of paper was some kind of symbol that neither she nor Spike had recognized.
“Hmmm,” Giles hummed. He took the card and studied the symbol. “It does look vaguely familiar. I’ll take a look in my books. Hopefully, I’ll have something by morning.”
“Thanks, Giles. You’re the greatest.” Buffy grinned at Giles. She glanced at the clock and sighed. “We best get patrol over with, Spike. Tomorrow is the second half of career day, and I got roped into helping set it up. I swear Coach Goodletts is almost as bad as Snyder. I need to be here an hour earlier than usual.”
“Of course,” Giles said absentmindedly. He gazed up towards his research books. “I’ll see you in the morning then.”
While Spike and Buffy said their good-byes to Giles, Kendra ducked into a darkened hallway. When the Slayer and the vampire had passed by her and left the school, she went to the library door. She took a deep breath to brace her courage, and she knocked loud enough to get the Watcher’s attention.
“Come in,” Giles called out. He wondered who would be knocking at the door at this time of night.
A young dark-skinned girl shyly pushed to door open. Giles didn’t recognize the young woman, but Sunnydale High did have about 1500 students, and he knew he didn’t recognize a great many of them.
“Hello, sir. My name is Kendra, and I’m de vampire Slayer.”
“Oh, dear Lord,” Giles muttered.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
THE NEXT DAY
Joyce opened the front door on her way to work, and she gasped in surprise when she saw the short, balding man on her porch.
“Good day,” he said. “I’m Norman Pfister with Blush Beautiful Skin Care and Cosmetics.” He held up his case. “I was wondering if I might interest you in some free samples.”
Joyce shook her head. “No, I’m sorry. I have to be at work early today.”
Norman looked past Joyce into the house. “Maybe someone else in the house would be interested.”
“No, I don’t think so.” Joyce closed the door behind her while she crowded Norman off the porch. She didn’t like how the man was casing out the house. “Nobody living here is interested in any free samples.”
“Well, I’m sorry to have bothered you,” Norman said. “Do you think any of your neighbors would be interested?”
“I don’t know,” Joyce said. She decided that she’d call the school as soon as she got to work to tell Buffy about this encounter. “You’ll have to ask.”
“Quite right.” Norman tipped an imaginary hat at Joyce before he turned around to cross the street towards the house across the street from Joyce’s.
Joyce watched Norman until he was stepping onto the McNeil’s porch before she found her car keys to leave for work. She drove quickly, but safely, to the art gallery she managed. Once there, she called the high school library using Mr. Giles’ private extension.
“Sunnydale High School Library. Mr. Giles speaking.”
“Hi, Mr. Giles, this is Mrs. Summers. I know Buffy had to come in early to help with Career Day. I need to talk to her.”
“Is there something I can help you with?” Giles asked.
“Last night Buffy told me that I needed to let her know if I saw any strangers hanging around,” Joyce answered. “There was a man trying to give out free samples at the house before I came to work. I just thought she should know.”
“That doesn’t bode well.” Giles glanced at the symbol on the card on his desk. He now knew that the symbol represented the Order of Taraka, a group of assassins that didn’t stop till their target was dead. He also knew that they worked in trios. “I will send someone by your house to check on that.”
“Thank you, Mr. Giles. He said his name was Norman Pfister.” Joyce hung up the phone, and she turned to do her work. Unpacking crates of art pieces was not as easy as people thought.
Giles slipped the receiver back on the cradle while he thought about whom to send over to Buffy’s house to check on the stranger. Just then Kendra and Xander came in the library door. Earlier, Giles had caught Xander, introduced him to Kendra, and asked the teenager to give the new Slayer a tour of the high school.
The night before had been a revelation for Giles who had not given much thought to the fact that Buffy had actually been dead for a few minutes the past spring. Kendra was the perfect Slayer in that she knew the rules and the lore of what a Chosen One really was. Unfortunately, Giles didn’t think the shy, modest girl would survive in the ways that Buffy had already managed to do in her short time as a Slayer.
“Xander, Kendra, I need you to check something out for me,” Giles said in lieu of a greeting. “Mrs. Summers called to tell me there was a man at her house trying to give away free samples. He might be one of the assassins after Buffy.”
“Will do,” Xander said in a cheery voice. “Anything to get out of U.S. History.”
“I thought you were excused to attend the Career Fair,” Giles commented while he looked over his glasses at Xander.
“Not from U.S. History. Mrs. Delany is really mean. She likes to flunk me just for the fun of it, I swear,” Xander answered.
Giles waved Xander away. “I’ll write you an excuse,” he said. “Be careful. If this man turns out to be an assassin, he’ll be ruthless.”
“We will be very careful, Mr. Giles,” Kendra said. She bowed her head at the Watcher.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
“I’m off to the law enforcement booth,” Buffy told Willow. “How exciting.”
“It’s not that bad.” Willow patted Buffy’s arm. “I think you’d make an excellent law enforcement officer.”
Buffy glanced around. “Probably.” She noticed a short, dark-haired, vaguely familiar boy staring at Willow from one of the couches. “Hey, Will, there’s a guy checking you out. He’s standing in the sun, looking pretty human.”
Willow looked over at Oz, and she gave the boy a little wave. “That’s Oz. He’s expressing computer nerd solidarity. We had a good time yesterday with the recruiter from the software company.”
“Doesn’t look like that to me,” Buffy whispered slyly. “I think this is the one you should carpe diem.” She slipped away when Oz stood up and ambled towards Willow. She didn’t want to mess up her friend’s chance with the cute guy.
“Hey,” Oz said.
“Hey,” Willow replied with a smile. “Oh, hey. Your hair is brown.”
Oz chuckled. “Yeah, sometimes. So, are you gonna be a Corporate Computer Suit Guy?”
“I probably should finish high school first. What about you?”
“I’m not really a computer person, you know, or a work of any kind person.” Oz shrugged. “I just test well.”
“Ah, so, if you’re not into work, what are you into?”
“E-flat, diminished ninth.”
Across the room, Buffy signed her name on the clipboard on the law enforcement table. Then, she joined the other teenagers who had also selected to learn about being a police officer.
A red haired female Sunnydale officer picked up the clipboard. “Good morning. My name is Patrice Bergeron. When I call your name, please raise your hand.” She looked down at the list. “Buffy Summers?”
Buffy raised her hand.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Cordelia glared at Angel. “You know what? I’m through with you too. I hope you spend the rest of eternity alone!” she screamed. She turned and stomped off in the direction that Angel and she had just came from. When she saw Klempt spying on them, she snarled viciously.
“Cow,” Klempt muttered contemptuously.
“Who you calling a cow, you great big green goober?” Cordelia growled.
“What’s a goober?”
“You are!” Cordelia stalked past Klempt. “Now, get out of my way. Queen C is going to rule this god forsaken place, or I’ll die trying.”
Klempt stared at the cow in astonishment. She was a queen! This was the perfect opportunity for his family to gain some power. He dropped to his knees, and he laid his face on the ground. “Your majesty, how may I serve you?”