11153/In search of Answers

In search of Answers
Date of Scene:	10 March 2020
Location:	Masonic Cemetery, Sunnydale (TBD)
Synopsis:	Buffy takes out frustrations on vamps. Selene and Thomas help.
Cast of Characters:	Buffy Summers, Thomas Raith, Selene (Underworld)

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Buffy Summers has posed:
The sun has just set and Buffy is already on patrol after a long and stressful day of midterms, followed by double shoft at work and a series of sleepless nights. It's only been 24 hours since her sister Dawn went missing but for Buffy it feels like an eternity. After running around to check out her usual hangouts, Buffy is now determined to beat the crap out of every vamp she comes across. But as the day draws to a close, a strange sleep suddenly overtakes her and evening finds her in a restless sleep on a park bench in the cemetery.

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith as Buffy's boss, felt a little guilty about the young woman's status. He had, after all been the one to ask her to pull that double shift so that one of the other Bouncers at his club could be with his injured daughter. So once he is certain that the evening will be running fairly smoothly, he slips on his own hunting gear... jeans, a white leather jacket, and a pair of Kukri knives, and heads to where he expects that his lover will have gone. The cemetery. I mean some people would go to an Arcade to relax... or curl up with a good book...

Selene (Underworld) has posed:
So is Selene. The Hungarian vampire and her Death Dealers are, if anything,doubling their efforts tonight. Selene's been out as soon as it got dark. Not a moment to lose. No. chance. She's swishing through the cemetery in her long coat, and watching everything. She's moving quietly, deadly in her movements and her Death Dealers are fanning out to keep an eye on everything. Selene's not in the best of moods, really. She's down a bike. And walking everywhere sucks.

Buffy Summers has posed:
As The Slayer sleeps, the White Court lurks and the Vampiress slinks, it doesn't take long for the vampires to literally crawl out of the woodwork. Selene and her deaths dealers may have noticed the disturbing uptick in hostile vampires combined with the sudden surge in missing people. But the vamps are more drawn to The Slayer and The White Court, ignoring their fellow vamps for the time being. There are a lot out tonight, about ten in total. Five lunge with a growl towards Thomas, five more surrounding the tossing and turning Buffy, who seems to be suffering some sort of intense nightmare and has apparently not yet noticed the apparent danger.

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith has tasted Buffy's soul. It's a level of intimacy that is hard to explain beyond that. But as he sees the Vamps surrounding her he calls out to her, not just his voice carrying to her on a verbal level, but also on a spiritual one. "Buffy!" he calls loudly "Buffy wake up." His eyes going from blue to silver in an instant as he sees his lover in peril. His skin even taking on a sort of shimmering luminessance.

Selene (Underworld) has posed:
Selene has. She's throwing stars, and there's a stake hurled by a Death Dealer...points for ingenuity. Selene has UV bullets and slams them into her pistols. Time to open up on these guys...

Gunfire fills the night. Stakes thrown like javelins. Selene moves in a blur, and produces a sword. She's slashing and hacking at the vampires. Her aim? Distract them. Team up with the other guys. Her Death Dealers are rushing into the fight too. Watching them, and the fight, Selene is revelling in this, good. She enjoys the thrill of the fight.

Buffy Summers has posed:
The air is filled with gunfire and shooting stars and other sharp and pointy weapons. Of course some of the vamps are lulled into to a false sense of security, not expecting to be hit by UV buckets. Two of them explode instantly with a screech. The others turn on the Death Dealers with a shocked snarl, lunging at them with weapons of their own, teeth bared and engaging in deadly duels with their fellow vamps.

There are now only two vamps rushing at Thomas, one attempting to tackle him to the ground while the other attempts to bit his neck. Three remaining surround the slayer, laughing and licking their lips. "Stupid girl...This will be easy!"

The thing about prophetic dreams unfortunately, is that they can't really be interrupted until they've run their course. Fortunately that whole Slayer instinct and primal will to survive kinda overrules that, and as one of the vamps reaches down to grab her by the neck, e suddenly vanishes from view with a startled shriek as she drags him down with her, stabbing him point blank in the heart with an angry snarl.

"...Finally get some sleep and you pasty faced jerks just had to interrupt. Go figure.." she mutters, rubbing her eyes as she climbs to her feet a bit sluggishly. "Do you guys mind waiting a minute or two for me to wake up?" she barely dodges getting smashed with a boulder and sighs, engaging with the second vamp, proceeding to pummel him into a nearby tree. "Didn't think so.." she mutters, annoyance clear in her voice.

Selene (Underworld) has posed:
Selene meantime has got hit by a boulder, ank has a vamp hanging off a sword. Nah, he can suffer thank you very much. She just skewered him through the ribs and spine. Hey, anyone want t a bbq sword with a vampire? Well, Selene does.

Looking over the fight, she bends backwards, then in a blur is by Buffy's side helping her out and throwing vampires every which way. She slams one into a headstone, then drives a knife through the heart of another, dusting off her hands.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers doesn't seem to need or want help, but Selene does take out the second vamp that creeped up behind her. And while Thomas is still engaged with two other vamps, Buffy just shrugs a shoulder as she continues to pummel the living daylights out of her own vamp. It's funny, she's in no real hurry to kill it just yet, and seems to be enjoying taking out her frustrations on the thing with a violent flourish. "I'm fine..." she mutters, an annoyed tinge to her voice as of Selene might put an end to her 'fun". "Go help the others!" There are still a couple of vamps remaining, although they're now outnumbered by the Death Dealers. Tonight was not a good night for them..

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith's kukri come from behind his back in a blurr of motion. He disarms one of the the vamps charging him and disheads the other... or is it beheads and bearms? English is weird. Irregardless of the appropriate syntax, he never takes his eyes off of Buffy, Primal rage drawing him to the slayers side.

Selene (Underworld) has posed:
Selene's by Buffy's other side greeting her dear friend in Magyar, her native language. She is Hungarian after all, and Selene is stood by the Slayer's other side, ready to fight to protect her. She gives a look to Thomas and nods. She looks pleased at the fight, and downs a vial of blood on a silver spike. That put away, she smiles, and licks the blood off her lips and smiles dangerously.

Buffy Summers has posed:
The remaining vamps are swoftly dealt with, leaving just Buffy's vamp, whom she continues to angrily pummel, uttering a surprising amount of swear words as she hurls it around and smashes it into another tombstone or two, before finally dusting in into a ground. With a sigh, she sinks to her knees, exhausted, bruised and covered with blood. But the physical exhaustion tonight doesn't even come close to the emotional exhaustion she currently feels at the sudden disappearance of her dear sister, as well as the new revelations that her most recent prophetic vision has brought her.

"....I hate this job.." she murmurs softly, squeezing her eyes shut, momentarily unaware of either her dear friend, or her lover, caught up as she is in her own, tortured world right now.

Selene (Underworld) has posed:
Selene reaches a hand to Buffy's shoulder. THe hand has a chocolate cookie in it. Just where Selene got that from? Who knows. She probably had a servant bake them, either way she's offering cookies to make the Slayer feel better. Thomas also has a cookie offered to him with h a nod, too. Mostly since, well, it'd be rude not to offer him one, too. Selene's got a bag of them with her. Hey, they work good for servants. And Bufy eats real food so...

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith touches her other arm, reassurance flowing from him into her as he smiles. "Now love, if you wanted to take a nap, I would have let you use one of the sofa's in the VIP room." He says playfully, as though he didn't have a giant bed in his apartment right above the club. A bed that she's been the only guest in for some time now.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers smiles faintly at Selene and nods, taking the cookie. Hey, cookies fix...Well, almost everything. "Thank you.." she murmurs softly, taking a slow, distracted bite. She glances at Thomas, gaze softening a bit and nods, climbing to her feet, grasping his hand and giving it a little squeeze. "I'm okay, just..." she sighs, rubbing her temple. Those prophetic dreams always leave her with a massive headache after, though she's trying her best to hide it. "She always looked up to me, always trusted that I would protect her no matter what..And I let her down..I failed her." she bites her lip, staring out into the distance, gaze unfocused.

Selene (Underworld) has posed:
Selene just....hands over the bag and mutters that she'll keep an eye out to Buffy. With that....she fades into the shadows again, but she's there. Isn't darknes a great thing? Selene thinks so

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith nibbles abscently on the cookie the Death Dealer gave him, sliding his arms around Buffy gently. "You haven't failed her Buffy. And you won't." He says in a gentle reassuring tone. "We'll do whatever it takes, I promise. Dawn is a good kid. Strong like her sister. She'll be fine.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers sighs softly, nodding slowly to Selene, resting her head comfortably against Thomas chest. She's been trying hard not to cry, mostly because she hates feeling weak and vulnerable..But maybe this is okay, for a little bit. Just a little.."..I finally understand now, all those mysterious messages and threats, people blowing themselves up..Murmurings of the Master's return..But this isn't the Master, I had a vision, and I know his plan now." She draws a deep breath, that distant look in her eyes again.

"He calls himself Armastus, a powerful, ancient vampire that may well rival the Master in strength. He's luring young people with promises of power by inducting them into an exclusive club, with the final intentions of turning them into an army to wipe out those inhabitants if Bludhaven..Taking the Slayer's blood would be his crowning glory, it'd make him even more powerful.."

And then a stupid, crazy thought enters her mind. "If he learns that Dawn is my sister..Maybe I can make a trade. He won't hurt her as long as I can give him what he wants.." she frowns. This is a terrible idea. And Buffy doesn't like to surrender, ever, to anyone. but she's running out of time and she'd do anything, absolutely anything, no matter how stupid, for Dawn's sake. "I need to go.." she stands upright suddenly, looking around, "There's not much time. She's still alive, I can feel it!"

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith grips onto her gently to prevent her running away from him "Buffy, Stop. Think. You're not going to do Dawn any favors by rushing off. You are exhausted physically and mentally. And if the look on your face is anything like the identical look Harry sometimes gets, you are considering doing something monumental stupid.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers pauses, glancing back at him, a look of wild desperation in her face. "I can't! I can't leave her there..lt's already been 24 hours! He won't keep her alive for long.." she squeezes her eyes shut, fighting back the tears that threaten to come. "I promised her..This is my job...Protecting.." she draws a deep breath, he's right. She's exhausted, sleepless. She needs to rest, recuperate, form some kind if a plan, but.."Do you have a better idea?"

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith says, "I do." He says simply. "WE go back to my place. You get a minimum four hours horizonal. Meanwhile I'll send up the Bat signal as it were. I'll Call Harry, any friends of his that we can pull together. I'll call Willow send out word along her lines. We'll render him so low that his former allies will have to get down on their hands and knees just to spit on him. But I won't let you run off on a suicide mission. If nothing else think what that would do to your mother.""

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers pauses, considering that. If she weren't so out of her mind right now, worrying about Dawn..If she were thinking clearly, it would have been the logical next step. She nods and smiles faintly, turning back to face him. "I know..You're right of course...I'm sorry I've been so...Irrational tonight. What was I thinking? I'm just so tired.." she sighs, rubbing her eyes. "...I found her diary, maybe I'll find some clues in there."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith cups her face lightly with both of his hands and kisses her, gently and deeply. his hands stroking her face. "It's a bit of a walk back to my place. We can talk about it on the way. Then dinner, a shower, bed... And then we fight." He promises her softly.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers closes her eyes briefly, relaxing considerably in his grasp as she returns the kiss. "Yeah.." she smiles faintly, a bit of that familiar wiseass tone creeping into her voice again, "Heh, you sure know how to distract a girl from her problems..No fancy car tonight?" Buffy laughs a bit and wouldn't normally care as she walks everywhere anyway. Except that she's a mess tonight. But hey, maybe the cool air will keep her awake. She grasps his hand, following alongside him out if the cemetery. "Well, I guess it was a refreshing walk in the park at least. Think I could do with a shower too. I'm such a mess right now.." she laughs.

Thomas Raith has posed:
The pair look much lke what they are as they walk to the private back entrence to the Blue Moon. A pair of young lovers taking a late winter stroll, enjoying Queen Mab's temperate mood as late as Spring approaches. "so tell me about this diary." He says softly, holding her close.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers has been pretty quiet fir the rest if the walk, just staying close to him, a million thoughts running through her head as they step into some place more private, away from the crowds. "I feel bad, looking through her personal diary. I know how I'd feel but..". shrugs, "Desperate times I guess. I didn't realize how very misunderstood she felt. Like she doesn't fit in, like she isn't *real*. A few times my mom looked at her and asked "What are you?" but you know, my mom's not exactly in her right mind either." still, it makes Buffy wonder, but she's also tired and doesn't thing too hard on it. "Guess it can't be easy being the Slayer's younger sister, huh..I wasn't helping any, constantly hiding her a way, trying keep her out of trouble. I made her feel useless but I just wanted to protect her."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith smiles a little bit. He punches in the security code for his private apartment outside and leads her up the back stairs inside. "Did you know I have a younger sister?" he asks softly, smiling at her. "She's even younger then Harry actually. Her name is Inari. And I would do anything in the world to protect her from what's coming down the pike for her. I can't. My father's seen to tha.. But if I could I would die to protect her. So I really do know how you feel."

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers smiles and nods, "Yeah, you mentioned her before. I'm still hoping to look her up, make sure she's okay..She's lucky to have a brother like you.." she hovers a little, waiting as he unlocks the door, following him up, before pausing a little at the top. "....I'd do the same for you too.." she murmurs softly , then steps back a bit, shaking her head. "I'm sorry.." no, she shouldn't have said that, she's not supposed to get too close..

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith turns around and gives her a bit of a smile. "I know you would, but you would die for a stranger on the street if you thought it would save them. You're a hero Buffy. No more, no less." he caresses her cheek and adds, "You're also exhausted. Food then shower while I make some phone calls or vice versa?"

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers frowns a bit, considering that. She has risked her life for total strangers before but..."Yeah...I'm just tired. Don't pay too much attention to what I say." she just nods wordlessly, biting her lip as she disappears into the shower room, gone for several minutes.

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith nods as she heads off to the Incubus' deluxe shower and gets out his cell phone. Calling friends. Calling favors. Calling those he doesn't mind being indebted to and he thinks can help.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers returns several minutes later, dressed in comfy, sporty looking black pyjamas with white pin stripes. She's also sporting a little bracelet like the one that Willow once gave Fred..Along with the ring Angel once gave her. She'd been wearing it all day but it's perhaps more noticeable now as she curls up on the sofa, peering at Dawn's diary. "I know Angel will come, and Willow..Dean and Karrin.." she once had more allies but they e been busy with,, Well, life,..

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith comes over to her on the sofa, holding slices of reheated pizza and carrying a pair of Mac's beers. He settles down next to her on the sofa, putting his arm around her. "I've got some feelers out in some other places. Don't know what will come of them. But I will be there.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers nods slowly, distractedly as her eyes skim over the diary. But she can't think clearly tonight and after a while she outs it down with a sigh. "..Thanks. I'm sure it'll be okay..I'm sure Angel will come too.." she idly plays with the ring in her finger. She's maybe mentioned Angel once or twice but not in much detail. Clearly he means a lot to her though.

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith looks a bit...well not jelious persay, but a close cousin to it. It's not like he didn't have more then his fair share of lovers before meeting Buffy. "This would be the ex?" he asks calmly. He pops the top off his beer, sending it flipping into the air like a coin. then he swats it out of the air and sends it to the trash can without looking.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers nods slowly, hugging her legs. She doesn't want to upset him but does want to be honest. "I suppose so..I mean it wasn't exactly like we hated each other..It was more like he was cursed to become a bloodthirsty monster should he ever experience a moment of true happiness.." she smirks and shrugs, "Guess I'm kinda cursed to always have a tragic love life. But I still.." Buffy still plays with that ring. "We're still...Friends.He'll help me in a pinch."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith considers for a moment and then take a bite of his pizza, nodding slightly. "I can live with that love." He says simply. "Lets be honest, I never thought the idea that I /could/ have a monogamous relationship would be possible. I am really not the jealous type." Hell didn't he, albeit teasing, tell her he'd be open to a threesome in either direction as long as she was willing to reciprocate? "You don't have to feel jumbled up about this guy. Not on my account. I promise.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers shakes her head, staring at the pizza, she should really eat but.."I don't. Even if I wanted to have a romantic relationship with him again,I can't, not without releasing Angelus, and that would be bad, although.." she shrugs, staring straight ahead. "Not so sure I could ever have a 'normal' relationship with you either, I mean.." she swallows, "If I care too much, love too much, I burn you, quite literally." she laughs a bit nervously, readjusting that strange bracelet again, "But that'll never happen, of course."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith gives her a lopsided sort of smile. "Buffy, please try to understand... the love that is fatal to a white court? It's...an extreme case. Couples that are happily married for decades sometimes never have it. It's as rare as winter roses. In my life I can count the number of couples that have had it on one hand. I promise you, what I feel for you is real. And you can feel real with me. If it ever comes to us having to go through the crucibal that forges that sort of love between two people? We'll go through it together.

Buffy Summers has posed:
"I know..." she shrugs, "Guess I just worry a lot, you know, because I'm a pretty epic person. What I said about dying for anyone? I would. I'd give up even more for people I care about. And I care about you...A lot." she holds up the arm with the bracelet, "See this? I asked Wil to make me one too, because I wasn't sure if what I felt for you is real but..Even with this on, dampening your powers, I still feel the same way. This isn't just an illusion..To me at least."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith nods slightly at that, apparently appreciating that fact. "I thought it looked familier." He says amused, tilting his head slihtly. "So do you plan to keep weasring it then?" he asks mildly amued. "Since apprently you don't need it." He says playfully, though he doesn't push. He simply holds her, enjoying the closeness of having her next to him.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers laughs, shaking her head as she flicks it off, shivering a bit as his touch. The bracelet dampened his powers a bit, but it kinda feels nicer to feel a bit extra nervous, excitable around him. "Nah, I think I've proven my point..If only to myself and you..Wish the others understood though." with a shrug, she climbs into his lap, wrapping her legs around his waist, arms around his neck and smirks. "Nice job in distracting me from Dawn by the way. And for the record? I think I'd be a bit jealous if I saw you with someone else. Guess I'm a bit possessive that way."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith smirks just a bit, wrapping his arms around her to support her and give her a little room to lean back so that he can still hold her and look in her eyes. "Oh if there is one thing I am very good at, it's being distracting." He says in a wicked tone, adding "And I bet ytou are cute when you are jelious." He adds playfully, though with nothing but teasing in it. He's commited to at least tring this to the end. "Now I believe I recomended at least 4 hours in bed... how much of it do you want to spend sleeping?"