Xander, Willow and Angel and I are stood in the alley to the Sunset Club "The only thing I could track down was this address. The Sunset Club. Still didn't find anything incriminating" Willow said looking around nervously like something would pop out and kills us at any minute.
"He leaves no paper trail, no records, that's incriminating enough" Angel says looking at us with a knowing look on his chiseled face. "Yeah, I'm gonna have to go with Dead Boy on this one" Xander says with a laugh as we walk to the door "Could you not call me that?" Angel growls looking at Xander who stopped short of the door.
I smirk as Xander stands back when Angel glares at him, knocking on the door I internally laugh as the view port opens and the doorman looks out "We're friends of Ford's" I tell him stoically and he nods opening the door for us.
We walking inside and look around, it's gloomy to the extreme "Boy, we blend right in" Willow says sarcastically looking down at hers and Xander's colorful shirts "In no way do we stick out like sore thumbs" Xander says to her in agreement as he looks around at the dark apparel everyone seemed to be wearing.
"Speak for yourselves" I tell them looking down as mine and Angels dark clothing "Let's look around. You guys check out downstairs" Angel orders nodding to Xander and Willow "Sure thing, Bossy the cow!" Xander says saluting in sarcasm as they head downstairs.
I stand next to Angel on the balcony as we look out into the club seeing people everywhere "So what are we looking for?" I ask him as he continues to scrutinize "Anything out of the ordinary" he says in his annoying monotone voice.
I nod sarcastically and open my arms up in no general direction "None of this seems out of the ordinary for you?" I ask as we begin to walk downstairs after not finding anything suspicious, we see Xander and Willow talking to a pretty woman.
"The Lonely Ones?" Willow asks her confused "Vampires" Angel mutters making Xander and Willow jump "Oh! We usually call them the nasty, pointy, bitey ones" Xander tells the woman laughing but she doesn't follow his jokes.
"So many people have that misconception. But they who walk with the night are not interested in harming anyone. They are creatures above us. Exalted!" The woman tells us animated as Angel gives her a look "You're a fool".
The woman stops as she looks upset by Angels deadpan words "You don't have to be so confrontational about it. Other viewpoints than yours may be valid, you know" she say walking away sadly, Xander and Willow turn to Angel annoyed.
"You really are a people person" Xander says sarcastically giving Angel a thumbs up "Now nobody's gonna talk to us" Willow tells him pouting as other people seemed to avoid us now.
Angel shakes his head as he looks around disgusted "I've seen enough. I've seen this type before. I mean, they're children making up bedtime stories of friendly vampires to comfort themselves in the dark".
Willow looks at Angel with a frown "Is that so bad? I mean, the dark can get pretty dark. Sometimes you need a story" Angel shakes his head and looks at us seriously "These people don't know anything about vampires. What they are, how they live, how they dress..."
I let out a laugh when a man dressed exactly like Angel comes down the stairs behind him and looks him up and down before continuing on, Angel clears his throat giving me a serious look as my giggle begin to get louder as he walks out of the club.
"You know, I love a good diatribe. But I'm still curious why Ford, the bestest friend of the Slayers, is hanging with a bunch of vampire wannabes" I frown when Xander says that it's so weird how Ford popped up out of nowhere and somehow knows Buffy's a Slayer.
"Something's up with him, you're right about that" Willow says looking at me as we follow Angel back out of the club. There is something up with Ford and I'm going to find out what whether Buffy likes it or not.
The next day I avoided Buffy like the plague I knew she was upset that we were all being a little secretive. Willow, Xander and I all sat on the stairs in the hall having a mini meeting about Buffy "So what do we do?" Willow asks me with her chin in her hands.
"Yeah Nikki you're the Slayer too, got any ass kicking ideas?" Xander asked me looking all excited I opened my mouth "We need to talk to...." I started before Willow jumped up "Buffy!" I shook my head "No I was going to say..." I started again before seeing my sister stood behind me "Ohh" I say understanding.
Buffy turns to face us but doesn't look happy about it "Did, uh, Angel..." Willow said playing with her hands nervously, smiling at me when I grabbed them to stop her. Buffy nodded silently as she avoided my gaze "He told me everything" Buffy said looking at us with a straight face.
I looked at my sister feeling bad that she was hurting and I helped that happen "I'm sorry we kept stuff from you" I whispered as Buffy looked over at me and smiled weakly "It's okay" I knew it wasn't ok and that she was upset but I also knew it was for her own good.
"When Angel came to my room he was just really concerned for you, and we didn't wanna say anything in case we were wrong" Willow told Buffy trying to justify all of us going behind her back but I this was something that was going to hurt Buffy more than we thought.
Buffy always wanted Ford's attention on her but never got it, he always liked laid back girls with chilled out attitudes something Buffy wasn't when we were at Hemery but now she had Ford's attention it was obvious he was using her for something.
"Did you find out what Ford is up to?" Xander asks Buffy after a moments silence "I will" she says and she walks off without giving us another look, We all watch sadly as she go, she was hurt but she was determined that was a dangerous but sure thing with Buffy she'd get the job done.
After a moment something clicks in Xander's head and he turns to Willow "Angel was in your bedroom?" Xander and I turned to Willow questioningly as she shrugged casually "Ours is a forbidden love".
Sitting in my bedroom doing my homework a knock at the window makes me jump, knowing who it was I opened the window and walked back over to my desk "we need to stop meeting like this Angel" I said with a laugh as I continue to do my homework.
"I think we need to go back to The Sunset Club" I turned around to look at Angel weirdly "Why we went we saw and all that's there are some vampire wannabe's" I told him laughing remembering how all the teenagers there were talking about better lives in the afterlife.
I heard Angels sigh and sit on my bed "Were missing something" he mumbles to himself and maybe me but I just shrugged continuing to scribble on my homework hoping I was giving the right answers although I was guessing most of them.
A few minutes go by and I thought about what I had said "Vampire wannabe's" I said out loud making Angel look at me confused "What?" he asked looking at me with his dark eyes "Why would Ford be hanging around with vampire wannabes?" I said out loud until my eyes widened in realization "unless he wants to be one too?" I muttered looking at Angel who looked at me in surprise.
"But who would be willing to turn him?" Angel asked standing up and pacing across my bedroom "It has to be someone who wants something in return. What could Ford have that a vampire would really want enough to turn Ford into a vampire?" Angel says out loud as he continues pacing trying to think
I frowned in thought "what could Ford have now that he needed to move to Sunnydale to get?" I question to nobody as I get up and start to pace with Angel "Even more why would he come to school if he didn't need to?" I say aloud as Angel and I cross each other both still deep in thought.
"Slayers" Angel growls out and I looked at him as we both stop and face each other "You said Buffy told you Ford knew she was the Slayer, how did he know?" I shrugged and remembered something "Buffy told him I was a Slayer too but why? What vampire would want to get close to Buffy or I?" I ask Angel with a small laugh.
Angel and I went silent before we both looked at each other with fury in our eyes "Spike" we growled in unison as the smile dropped of my face, Ford was just a trap to get Buffy but I still didn't know what he was getting as payment for Buffy.
Grabbing the phone I called Willow "Get Xander and meet us at The Sunset Club.. It's Buffy she's in trouble" I looked at Angel who was still stood in the middle of my room "Well that's a first" I mumbled grabbing my coat ready to kick some major vampire butt.
Angel and I meet up with Xander and Willow at the Sunset Club "What's going on? Is Buffy ok?" Willow asks as her and Xander run up to us "It's Spike" I growl as we all begin to march to the door of the club.
I sigh with relief when I see a tired looking Buffy walking out of the building "Buffy!" I shout as I run to her and pull her in for a hug "Are we too late?" I ask with a frown as I look around seeing people crying and leaning on each other.
Angel, Willow and Xander walk up behind us as Buffy shakes her head "You guys are just in time" we all sighed in relief and look around at the chaos "Are there vampires?" Willow asked quietly wrapping her arms around herself in comfort.
Buffy nodded as she mimicked Willow's comforting stance "They're contained. They'll get out eventually, though. We should probably go. We can come back when they're gone" we all frowned at her as she rubbed her arms "Come back for what?" Xander asks her softly.
Buffy turns back and looks at the club "For the body" I gasp and realized "Oh Ford" Buffy nodded and lay her head on my shoulder as Angel rubbed her back "I'm Sorry" I whisper to her as I feel a few tears roll onto my arm.
I felt her shake her head "I should have listened to you but I didn't" She whispered so the others couldn't hear her, placing a small kiss to the side of her head I placed my arm around her protectively "I'm just glad you're ok B".
Standing in the cemetery with Buffy and Giles I sighed as I looked at Ford's headstone, Buffy has tears in her eyes as she lays a bouquet of red roses on Ford's grave, she stands up again and I put my arm around her shoulders as we walk back to Giles.
"I don't know what I'm supposed to say" Buffy says as we get to Giles, he just smiles softly at us "You needn't say anything" I nodded in agreement, Buffy told me all about Ford's tumors and why he did it. I gave me sister a small smile "There's nothing that can be said Buffy he knew what he was doing".
"It'd be simpler if I could just hate him. I think he wanted me to. I think it made it easier for him to be the villain of the piece, really he was just scared" Buffy said quietly like a small child who needed help "Yes, I suppose he was" Giles agreed, I pulled Buffy to me again and sighed.
"I think Ford didn't want the diagnosis he was given and tried to change it, selfishly but I guess he didn't see any other way out" I said looking at my twin sister who smiled at me softly with tears in her eyes.
"Nothing's ever simple anymore. I'm constantly trying to work it out. Who to love or hate. Who to trust. It's just, like, the more I know, the more confused I get" Buffy told us and Giles laughed "I believe that's called growing up".
"I'd like to stop then, okay?" Buffy says with a small pout as she crosses her arms looking like a child making me smile "I know the feeling" Giles retorted making me and Buffy laugh at his expense, Giles could always make us feel better/
"Does it ever get easy?" I ask him looking at the ground as Ford suddenly rises from his grave, a vampire just like he wanted and attacks Buffy. She plunges a stake into his heart with no more effort than swatting a fly, Ford steps back and looks at the stake protruding from his chest then looks back up and bursts into ashes.
"You mean life?" Giles asks looking at us as Buffy puts her stake away "Yeah. Does it get easy?" I ask him again as Buffy and I look at him seriously needing him to answer the question "What do you want me to say?" Giles asks quietly obviously wondering whether to tell us a lie or the truth.
"Lie to me" I say as Giles looks down and thinks "Yes, it's terribly simple" We begin to walk out of the cemetery "The good guys are always stalwart and true, the bad guys are easily distinguished by their pointy horns or black hats, and, uh, we always defeat them and save the day. No one ever dies, and everybody lives happily ever after"
I look at Buffy who huffs out a laugh before I turn back to Giles with a small affectionate smile "Liar"