Different Fight, Same Army

Author: Technocratic Sith Lord
Rated: PG13

Disclaimers: I own only original characters and plot.
Summary: During the battle of Sunnydale, Buffy’s past returns to her.

Changes:

Hermione and her family disappeared after Goblet of Fire, it was presumed Voldemort had killed her. Butterfly effect occurs, many minor and a few major changes happened in books 5, 6, and future. Buffy has a suitcase in her room with her name and a small red circle on it, along with many identical locks side by side.Buffy has never read the Harry Potter books, and refuses to watch the movies.

“Spell”

“EMPATHIZED SPEECH”

“Speech”

Thought

-“Telepathy”-

A/N: Just go along with it, tell me if you like it by REVIEWING, but keep the flames to yourselves.

And so it begins...

Chapter 1: The Battle of Sunnydale

Kennedy ran through the halls of Sunnydale High clutching the Slayer’s Scythe in her hands. She was running at speeds she had never even been able to attain before, and wasn’t even tiring.

“Kennedy.”

Kennedy stopped, and looked around. That was when she saw him. A man, maybe 25, walking towards her. He had dark brown hair, sky-blue eyes and an intense look. She had to admit he was cute, but nothing spectacular, though some girls would be all over him.

“You’re going to Buffy.” It wasn’t a question. “Give her this.”

He held up a seemingly normal wooden stick, maybe ten inches long, and tossed it to her. She caught in her right hand, transferring the scythe to her left hand.

“Tell her she has permission.”

Kennedy was very confused. A guy steps out of the shadows, give her a stick and says to give it to a friend? Very weird.

Her confused look must have shown on her face, as the man said “She’ll know what I mean. Now go.”

Kennedy didn’t move.

“GO!”

Kennedy took off, carrying the stick in one hand with the other holding the scythe.

The Ubervamps had gotten through. Andrew knew that. He could see them coming. He and Anya were standing there with their swords drawn, waiting for the fight they could not possibly win.

The Ubervamps were rushing them, with several Bringers bringing up the rear. There were five Ubervamps and maybe six Bringers. Three Ubervamps went at Anya, and two went after Andrew.

Anya exchanged a few blows with one, then dusted one. She swung her sword low and dusted another. Then she sliced down a Bringer that would have taken a slice out of Andrew. She felt something at her neck, then heard a whooshing sound.

Looking behind her, she saw a Bringer lying on the ground with a dagger through his neck, then heard the distinct sound of a Ubervamp turning to dust. Looking up, she saw a man with two daggers in his hands, two scabbards with swords in them on his back, along with what looked to be a shotgun and a crossbow.

He was fighting the Bringers and Ubervamps as easily as if he were shredding paper. Within seconds the Ubervamps were gone, and the Bringers lying on the floor, dead or dying. He helped Andrew, who was cowering on the floor, up. Then he turned to Anya, tossed her a dagger, swirled his trenchcoat, and dissapeared in a brilliant flash of blue light.

Kennedy ran down the stairs in to the basement of the school, then down in to the Seal, and out onto the platform on which her fellow potentials - no - slayers were fighting the First’s army. Locating Buffy, she plowed her way through the Ubervamps until she was at the senior slayer’s side.

“Some guy gave me this.” She handed the stick to Buffy, who looked surprised. “He told me to tell you ‘you have permission’ or something like that.”

Buffy was gaping, obviously shocked; this was hardly a good thing when you are battling a large number of powerful vampires.

One Ubervamp leaped on her back, knocking her to the ground. It was about to bite Buffy when she threw it off. She got up, with a strangely calm expression on her face. She pointed the stick at the Ubervamp and said one word.

“Incendio”

The Ubervamp burst into flames.

Buffy turned, and pointed the stick into the fray. She said four words, very, very, clearly.

“Incendio Maxima Protege Anima”

Bolts of orange light emerged from the stick, hitting every slayer and Spike. Then there was a white flash, and every Ubervamp spontaneously combusted.

Everyone turned to face Buffy, with very surprised looks on their faces. Buffy looked at them with a neutral expression. Then she suddenly looked very determined.

“Go! Everyone leave. Get out!” Buffy said. She had an expression saying do what I am telling you!

The junior slayers started to leave, but Faith and Spike remained behind.

“Faith. Go. Get everyone out, onto the bus. Get as far away as possible. Spike, go with her.” Buffy said, then waved her stick and pointed it at him “Solaris Evesco”

“The sun won’t harm you. Now GO!”

Faith and Spike both looked confused, but wisely chose to leave Buffy and go up the stairs and out.

Buffy turned and faced the Hellmouth Cavern. She summoned up her courage, and pointed her stick in front of her.

“Puresco Maxima”

Large bolts of orange light emerged from the stick, hitting all points of the cavern. The stalactites started falling down, crushing the ground beneath them.

Buffy sighed, her work done. Then she turned and ran.

There we go...

Chapter 2: First Interlude

June 18th 2003, London, England, Europe, Eurasia, Earth, The Solar System, The Milky Way, The HP universe.

Harry Potter looked at the headline of the Daily Prophet and was surprised to see that it had nothing to do with an attack by Voldemort’s supporters.

“Muggle entertainment producer has knowledge of Wizarding World.”

The article went on to say that the series finale of the American ‘TV Show’ had included 4 real spells being used. One had been a sun-blocking spell, another an evil cleanser, and two versions of the fire-invoking Incendio spell, one with an addition of...

Harry stopped reading, horribly shocked. The other Incendio had Protege Anima added to it. Tears of an old memory in his eyes, Harry re-read the sentence just to be sure. It was definitely Protege Anima.

Harry reached for the ordinary-looking mirror on the other corner of his desk, and pulled it in front of him.

“Ron Weasley” He said to the mirror. Within five minutes, the face of his best friend appeared in the mirror.

“Hey Harry, what’s...” Ron trailed off as he saw Harry’s face. “Blimey, mate, what’s the matter?”

“Did you see the Prophet today?”

“Oh, yeah, amazing, isn’t it? Some man uses spells in his - what did they call it - tv show.”

“Did you see what spells?”

“O’course. A sunblocker, a cleanser, and a couple of Incedios, nothing to get upset about.”

“Ron, the second Incedio, did you see the addition?”

“Yeah, what about it?”

“Protege Anima. Ring a bell? Towards the end of fourth year, maybe?”

“I don’t... Merlin! Her..mion” He choked of.

“Exactly. Our attempt to block the killing curse. Where did Mr. Producer learn that? We never told anyone, right? We didn’t want to embarrass ourselves, trying to block the unblockable.”

“I never told anyone.”

“Neither did I. So that means that it is either a big coincidence, or else” He paused, working up the courage to say the name that, out of sadness and regret, was harder to say than most people considered Voldemort’s. “Hermione.”

“But, how?”

“I don’t know. But I think I know how to find out. Ron, pack your bags. We’re going to America.”

Chapter 3: Spainifications

June 18th, 2003

The Hyperion, LA, The USA, North America, Earth, The Milky Way, The Buffy Universe.

Buffy stood in the lobby of the Hyperion, with all of the newly activated potentials, along with the Scooby gang and AI crew. Given that the battle with the army of Ubervamps had gone faster than they had expected, there were very few people who had gotten seriously injured, most of the slayers had barely been scratched. Normally, Buffy would have been glad, but in fact, she was feeling worse than she had ever felt, except maybe right after being resurrected and clawing out of her coffin.

Because she now had to explain her life, in full, and truthfully. She had to explain how she’d single-handedly beaten all the Ubervamps, then closed down the Hellmouth and turned Sunnydale into a large crater. It wouldn’t be easy.

But thankfully, she would not have to go into detail about where she had learned to do what she did, cause they already knew. Because her life, and that of her two of her best friends were chronicled in a hugely successful series of books. Which would be good and fine if the books had been biographies, but they were ‘works of fiction’.

“So Buffy,” Willow said, “what happened? Or, more to the point, how did you do what you did, cuz we already got the lowdown on what happened from those who were there?”

Buffy took a deep breath, then slowly let it out. She was ready for this. She hoped.

“Well, what I did there were examples of things that I learnt during the time I was 11 through till the summer I turned 15.” Buffy paused. “I think it would be easier if I just showed you, actually.”

She turned to Dawn.

“Dawnie, could you go and get your set of the Harry Potter books? I know you brought them,you had them on the bus. Also, could you get my suitcase? You know, the one with all the locks.”

Dawn’s eyes widened in confusion. It was a well known fact that Buffy would not touch the Harry Potter books, yet here she was asking for them in a use in an explanation? Weird.

“Please Dawn. It’ll make sense soon.”

Dawn left the room, and came back about two minutes later holding the six books of the Harry Potter series, and Buffy’s suitcase. Her copies of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone(A/N: I live in Canada, where we call it by its British name, Philosopher’s Stone), the Chamber of Secrets, The Prisoner of Azkaban, The Goblet of Fire, The Order of the Phoenix, and The Half-Blood Prince were all well torn and ripped from the trip on the bus, and from all the abuse they’d gotten over the years.

Buffy took the books and her suitcase from Dawn, despite the looks she got from almost everyone present. She opened the first book to page 41,(not sure, just guessing, haven’t got a copy on hand) and read to her suitcase “a girl with bushy brown hair.”(once again, just guessing)

Then, she pulled out a knife, pierced her right index finger, and let a drop of blood fall on the red circle on her suitcase.

“Reveal the truth of light, that it may outshine all others.” She said. And she waited.

About fifteen seconds later, the name engraved into the metal plaque below the circle changed. Where it had once said Buffy Summers, it wavered, letters switching position and changing into...

Hermione Elizabeth Granger.(The middle name is my own creation.)

“Buffy? What on Ea...” Giles was very confused.

“Now, I can explain.” Buffy interrupted plainly.

“Everything you know about my past is a lie. I was not born in Los Angeles. In fact, I was not born in this country. Heck, I wasn’t even born in this dimension! I was born in London, England, in a Dimension that, in this dimension is fictional. I lived for 10 years as a normal girl, then got this letter to a magic school, and whabbam! My life changes. And if you want to know about it, you can read these books, that I really don’t like, cause its all about Harry, and I’m the bookworm know-it-all friend who I tried to distance myself from when Drake brought me here!”

By this time, Buffy was going into a babble that rivalled any Willow had ever done. Everyone was trying to digest what Buffy had just told them, but Faith caught something that it seemed noone else had.

“Umm, Buffy, who’s Drake?”

“Oh crap. I so did not mean to say that.”
Far, far away, in a separate sub-dimension, in a nice comfortable chair, logged between two advanced looking computers was a man, looking at a hologram projection of his favorite slayer/witch who had just mentioned his name. He got up, walked to a closet, said “Attire, Fight, with wand and crossbow accessory”, then, in his new uniform walked slowly to his modified alien craft, got in, sat down, and set the dials to head to a dimension he had visited not even a standard day before.That all for now, folks.

Chapter 4: Splainifications pt 2

“Umm, Buffy, who’s Drake?”

“Oh crap. I so did not mean to say that!” Buffy said, shocked, and whitened. She spoke to the air, fantically.

“I’m really sorry, I didn’t mean to say that. Can I please tell them about you? Please? I don’t think they’ll let it drop.”

Everyone perked up as they felt a gust of air blow around the room. The wind stopped, massing in a form of visible energy just in front of Buffy. The energy slowly produced letters in the air, glowing blue letter trailing blue fire. It formed a message.

MY DEAR, WHEN I SAID YOU HAVE PERMISSION, I MEANT THAT YOU HAVE PERMISSION TO DO ANYTHING, INCLUDING TELLING YOUR FRIENDS ABOUT ME. GO AHEAD. I MYSELF WILL BE COMING, YOU MAY WANT TO TELL ANDREW TO PREPARE TO BE SHOCKED. DRAKE IAORRI

Buffy watched as the letters faded out, then the energy dissipated, slipping away in to the corners of the rooms and out through the walls. “Trust him to show off his ultimate knowledge” she muttered to herself.

“Well, I guess I can tell you then.”

Buffy pulled up on of the many chairs that had been brought into the lobby, and sat down. She looked at everyone else, many of whom were also sitting, all of them had very confused expressions, though a few also had a touch of wonder in their eyes.

“Okay. So. The summer just after I turned 15, I had been preparing to go to this place in London, where a whole lot of people had gathered. If the books cover it, you would know it as the Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix.”

Willow nodded.

“I think it was about three days before I was heading there when this guy appeared out of nowhere and introduced himself to me as Drake Iaorri. He said he was a dimensional traveler, and said that I was needed elsewhere. He said that I had been called as a slayer, entirely accidentally, and the fate of another dimension required that I either die or come with him. It turned out that there weren’t supposed to be slayer in that dimension, and that another dimension, this one, was without one as long as I was there.”

Buffy was looking at the clock then to the door every so often now, as if she expected someone to appear there, which she actually did.

“He said that it was entirely his fault I was called, cause he had had a link, some kind of portal, between these two dimensions when the slayer before me had died, and somehow the slayer essence had passed through the portal. I was skeptical at first, I thought he might be some death eater in disguise, but he showed me many things that eventually made me believe him, and I let him take me here, along with my family. He then changed my appearance: my hair color, my eye color, even my height. When I asked him why, he said ‘If you should be seen or described’. Then he took me here, gave my family fake memories, gave us new identities, and dropped us off in a house in LA.”

Dawn was now bursting with questions. Finally she let it all explode out of her.

“So you’re saying you’re a character in one of my favorite sets of books, who dissapeared, and you met a guy who told you you had to leave your friends and you came to LA and then Sunnydale in a separate freaking dimension? And you changed our memories? And you’re British?” Dawn was goind red in the face from lack of air, but was still retaining an imposing demeanor.

“Umm, yeah. You see, what’s fiction in some dimension is actually reality in another dimension. If you jumped dimensions enough, you could find almost anything you want.”

Then Buffy heard something, and froze. It was the distinct sound of the air cracking. Which she had heard before when...

Everything seemed to go in slow motion, Buffy yelling “Get Down”, running and leaping into the assembly, everyone being knocked backwards. Visible cracks appearing in the air, breaking open to reveal blue light pouring through, then a massive object smashing through , emerging out of the gap, tearing through the ceiling, then hitting the ground, gliding for 3 meters or so, coming to rest in the middle of the lobby.

There was silence for about 5 seconds before Andrew, recognizing what it was stated “Holy Shit!”. Then many other people recognized it.

It was an Attack Craft from the movie Independence Day.

But it wasn’t really. It looked like one, shaped like one, could even have been one to start, but it wasn’t one now. There were rows of flashing lights one the sides of the headpiece, and two large multicolored cones with grooves coming out the back. It was also painted bright orange with black line running all over it.

The back hatch opened, and out stepped a man. Kennedy recognized him as the person who had stopped her the day before, and Anya recognized him as the man who probably had a very nice penis who had saved her life.

“Hello.” said the man.

“Drake!” Squealed Buffy, running at him and throwing her arms around him, kissing his cheek. Spike scoffed.

“Hey Princess” Drake said. “Are you going to introduce me to your friends?”

“Don’t you already know them?”

“Yes, but still, isn’t it nice to be formally introduced to people?”

“Have it your way then. Everyone, this is Drake Iaorri, dimensional traveler extraordinaire, and official ruiner of my life.” The last comment was added as an afterthought.

“Hey, you accepted my apology, and you know what I did was for the best. And if I hadn’t, lots of people would have died. Probably everybody here, and a large amount of people back there.”

“Like who?”

“Well, Sirius for instance, as would be, umm... I don’t know, but Sirius would defintely be gone. I know that much.”
Meanwhile, far away...

In an old building in the countryside of England, a man entered a heavily guarded room, and prostrated himself before his master.

“You have news for me, Wormtail?”

“Yes master.” Wormtail kissed the rim of his master’s robes. “We have located her.”

“At last! Finally that thorn in my side shall die. Her annoying little actions against my forces shall cease, and I will be free to rule all dimensions!”

And Voldemort, Heir of Salazar Slytherin and the Entity calling itself the First Evil laughed.

Chapter 5: The Action Begins

Harry woke up drenched in a cold sweat. Given his normal nightmares, this wasn’t anything special. However, what was different was that, for the first time in a long while, his scar was hurting. This meant that either Voldemort was really happy or really angry and lost control of the occlumency keeping their minds separate.

He could barely remember what he had dreamed about, but he was pretty sure it had to do with some girl who was always messing up his-no-Voldemort’s, plans. She had been found.

Harry realized he did not know anything more than that. No feeling of who it was, no amount of hate, just cold want. But if there was no emotion, then why had Voldemort’s control slip.

Unless of course, it hadn’t...

Willow was sitting in her room in the Hyperion, thinking. She was still amazed to find out that her one of her best friends was actually a character from one of her favorite book series. She was also slightly annoyed that help for her, when she had been addicted to magic was very close by, only a drop of blood away, as she had learnt. However, she could understand Buffy’s lack of telling given that if she had told them before she had permission, ‘bad things’ would happen to her.

She also remembered what Drake had told them about fiction and possibilities. “If you look far enough, you can find anything.” Did that mean it might be possible to find a world where Tara was still alive? She banished those thoughts in an instant, not willing to open old wounds.

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN, I HAVE TO GO BACK” Willows thoughts were interupted as Buffy shouted. Willow got up, confused, and went down the hall to Buffy’s room, where the noise was coming from. She saw Drake and Buffy standing in the center of the room and arguing.

“Harry needs you, Buffy. He thinks your dead. He thinks he is responsible for Dumbledore’s death, Cedric’s death, and YOUR death. His conscience is too fully loaded down. It isn’t good for him, it broke him. Now he needs to fight Voldemort, and I honestly do not know if he’ll win if he’s as broken as he is now.”

“But it’s been what; 7 years since I left? Surely he’s gotten over it by now.”

“He hasn’t. It hurt him more than either of us predicted. He really liked you, you know. And anyways, he’s not the only reason it. Big V is in the Hunt a Buffy game now. As far as my intelligence services know, Voldemort located you sometime yesterday. He has it out for you, my spy reports, but currently I have absolutely no idea why. And, given how Voldie acts fast I wouldn’t be surprised if he sent Death Eaters after you.”

Buffy thought about Drake had told her. Then something leapt out at her.

“How could he send them here? They’d have to cross dimensions, wouldn’t they? Please tell me they did not steal one of your ships.” Buffy said very fast as she sat down on her bed.

“No, Buffy, they did not steal one of my ships. I keep a closer eye on them than on you.” Buffy gave Drake a slightly hurt look, and Drake smiled. “Not that much closer, Princess. But they have magic. Voldemort developed a new spell to make portals on the go. I don’t know how, though, but my spy says it’s unbelievably comples.”

“Who is this spy you keep talking about. Anyone I know?”

“Actually, yes. He’s a guy who wants redemption. He did a few bad deeds, but overall he’s a decent, but I won’t say good, guy who happened to be raised in a harsh environment.”

Buffy groaned.

“Oh. Let me guess. Draco Malfoy.”

“Yup. When I met him, he was going to kill himself. He held himself responsible for Dumbledore’s death, even though he actually didn’t do it himself. We had a talk, he decided he didn’t actually want to die, and he accepted my business offer. I made him immune to any mind reading, impossible to force to give up secrets, and gave him an amulet to divert some pain should he be hit by a Crucio. In return, he tells me all the goings on in Voldemort’s inner circle, and most of the time all of the major plans.”

“You are not going to be able to convince me he is on our side, Drake. You know I hate him. He was such an asshole to me when I was there. I won’t ever...”

But Buffy never got a chance to say what she would never, as they heard a booming sound coming from the floor below. Buffy jumped up from her seat on the bed, and rushed out the door, sparing barely a glimpse at Willow, as she ran down the stairs. Drake and Willow hurried after her.

They raced down the stairs, and saw a large group of people, all wearing billowing cloaks darker than the night sky, and masks looking like a mutated version of Scream masks. Buffy stopped. She stared at them, gaping. She backed up slowly, and didn’t try to act afraid.

“Can we help you?” She asked.

“Actually, yes. Tell us where the mudblood Hermione Granger is or,” He paused for dramatic effect, and Buffy recognized the voice. Severus Snape. “We kill you all.”

“Oh. Is that so? You know, I really don’t like being threatened. And I don’t give up the locations of friends, either. Especially to people who would probably kill them.”

“Insolent girl. Tell us or you all feel the consequences of your stupidity.”

That was when Buffy lost it.

“I am not stupid! And you, you evil, traitorous fool. You killed Albus Dumbledore, you submitted Harry to the Cruciatus! You don’t deserve to live, Severus Snape!” The last two words were pronounced as if they were the greatest insult ever.

“You!” Another voice, female and high-pitched. “You’re the mudblood! You disgusting freak! You...”

The Death Eater, for that was what they were, went flying backwards, colliding with wall, and slumping to the ground. And Willow slowly lowered her hand.

“Noone talks about my best friend like that!”

At this point, the rest of the Death Eaters decided it was time to attack. They pulled out their wands, and started firing curses and hexes at them. But the attempt was negated by a shield conjured by Willow. Meanwhile, the five-or-so slayers who had come down to see the happenings were ducking out of the way of the various spells and were slowly, but surely, knocking out the Death Eaters, who were barely defending themselves.

Soon, there was only one left standing. Snape was standing in the middle of an advancing circle of Slayers.

He muttered to himself “I must not fail the mission”.

Then he pointed his wand at Buffy, who had also raised her wand.

“Avada Kedavera!” Snape shouted, at the same time as Buffy shouted “Protege Anima!”

There was a green flash.

There was an orange flash.

There was an explosion.

Then there was silence.

Chapter 6: Intelude and afterattack

Harry Potter was annoyed. He and Ronald Weasley were sitting in an office in a muggle building in bloody America, meeting with a muggle to see if he had had contact with a friend of theirs. The muggle, Joss Whedon, had probably not guessed four real spells and one possible spell. In fact, it was so unlikely the odds would say it was impossible.

So here they sat, waiting for a late muggle, in an office that smelled to much like the Dungeons back at Hogwarts.

They had gotten in as British ambassadors sent directly by the Muggle Prime Minister of Britain, who, it seemed, would do anything to get the two wizards out of his office. They had taken a portkey into a train station in California, and had gone directly to the building they were in now.

Harry was about to summon a muggle chess set when in came the muggle they were there to meet.

Joss Whedon moved around the desk, sat down and faced the two wizards.

“Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley. What can I do for you?”

“We were wondering what you could tell us about the scripts to Buffy the Vampire Slayer, particularly about the last episode.”

At this, Whedon’s face blanched. Ron noticed this, pulled out his wand and said “Veritassus.” Whedon’s eye’s glazed over, then quickly were back to normal.

“Well, we don’t really know much about the scripts. They appear on the scriptwriter’s desk, along with a couple of pictures. We don’t have any idea who they come from. Whenever there is someone new, a file appears with the actor to get to play the person, as well as pictures of makeup and such stuff.”

“So, you’re telling us that the scripts magically appear on a desk, and noone knows where they come from?” Harry asked, confused.

“That is correct.”

“Are you sure that NOONE knows where they come from?”

“Absolutely noone has any idea. The security system doesn’t see anyone. One second they’re not there, the next, they are.”

“That is unfortunate. Thank you for your time, Mr. Whedon.” Harry pulled out his wand, pointed it at Joss Whedon’s head, and said “Obliviate.”

Whedon’s pupils dilated, and Harry and Ron walked out of the room.

“That was not very helpful” said Ron.

“On the contrary, my friend. Its very helpful. We know whoever is creating them can be invisible.”
Every single person in the Hyperion felt the explosion. It rocked the very foundations of the building. Yet, there seemed to be no damage done to the building, or to any furniture, or anything.

Except for the two crumpling forms who had been at the centre of it. Immediately, Willow rushed forwards to see what had happened to Buffy. She felt for a pulse, and was amazed when she found one.

“Guys! She’s alive!” She exclaimed.

Everyone but Drake looked extremely relieved. Drake, however, merely nodded, and proceeded to move towards the other newly fallen body. Crouching down, he pulled of the mask, and felt the pulse of Severus Snape.

Once he found one, he quickly clapped his hands, and a pair of handcuffs appeared. He bound Snape’s hands, then searched for his wand. Finding it, he snapped it in two, then four, then eight, and whistled a soft tune. The pieces of wood burst into flame, and were totally gone in less than a second.

Then he heard Xander’s worried voice. “Um, I don’t know about you guys, but I think her wand is gone.”

Drake spun around, and moved to Buffy’s limp body. There was definitely no wand in either of her hands, and it wasn’t anywhere close to her. Standing up, Drake looked around the room, thinking it might have been blasted out of her hands. He did not, however, see it.

Deciding he’d deal with that later, he crouched back over Buffy. He placed one hand on her head, and another in the centre of her chest.

He muttered to himself the things to check. “Smooth breathing, check. Steady heartbeat, check. Normal body temperature, check.” Then he pulled out something that, to Andrew, looked very much like a tricorder. Waving it over her body, he looked at the small screen.

“It looks like she’s in a coma.” He said.

“Well? Isn’t there something you can do?” Asked Giles, frantically, worried his slayer wouldn’t wake up.

“Sorry, for all that I could do, I cannot bring her out of a coma. She’ll have to come out naturally.”

“Should we move her?” Willow asked.

“Yes. Hold on for a sec.” He moved over to where his ship was sitting, invisible. He had fixed the ceiling and had shrunk the ship so that, while the space inside was the same, the space it took up on the outside was much smaller.

Drake reached up the ship’s ramp, and unhooked a stretcher from where it was hooked on the side of the ship. He took it out, and brought it over to Buffy. Willow, Xander, Giles, and a surprisingly silent Dawn helped lift Buffy onto the stretcher, which was floating two feet above the ground.

As they placed Buffy gently onto the stretcher, her right arm flopped down. Willow let out a soft gasp, and pointed to Buffy’s wrist. Looking down to where Willow was pointing, everyone saw something very surprising.

On her right wrist, where the butt end of her wand had touched, was a scar. It was shaped like a lightning bolt.

Chapter 8: Coma Girl

Buffy was in a room totally surrounded by white. There were no doors, no windows, no furniture, just endless white, as far as the eye could see.

It looked like something out of ‘The Matrix.’

Out of nowhere, a voice sounded. It echoed in the room, giving it a metallic sound.

“Buffy Summers, arc Hermione Granger, arc Aurona Veltas. Helt in faltas veran, juman di inciltor ganoma veron. Septis noma kree yanos veltaurac. Rotac ters nim, nur vaca di anomoro des proter ains, oc vilri ters nim, nur reltaus dan proter ains nur gourn.”

It was a language that Buffy did not know, but yet she knew what the words meant.

‘Buffy Summers, also Hermione Granger, also Aurona Veltas. You are among us, the higher powers, the beings the one you call the Powers That Be bow to. You should be dead now. You are faced with a choice. You may die, and leave the task of protection to your friends, or live, and continue to protect you friends and your world.’

A being shimmered into existence. It appeared to be a human woman, yet her skin, hair, and eyes were neon orange. She seemed to have a shadow moving before and after her, and as she walked, the two shadows moved slightly after her.

She approached Buffy, and pulled out a knife. The hilt on the knife was shaped like an angel, wings outstretched to create a pommel. She lunged it into the white flooring, lodging it in well. Then she pulled out another knife. This one was dark, and the contrast with the white room was abnormal. The hilt was engraved with figures, all of whom Buffy knew. At the top, were figures from her old life. Harry Potter, Ron Wealsey, along with friends from her elementary school. Then there were figures from her travelling time. Mistress Daina, the woman who had been her friend at Drake’s Dimensional Utopia, and of course, Drake Iaorri himself were also engraved. Then were figures from her newest life. Willow, Xander, Dawn, Giles, Anya, Faith, Angel were all engraved. There were even figures going outwards to create an elegant pommel.

“Yetas virtun elent od vilrum, nur yetas virtun nocay od morlrus. Veltauraci” ‘The white sword-that-is-short is death, and the black sword-that-is-short is life. Choose.’

Buffy thought. She knew what heaven was, she had been there. She knew the happiness knowing that her friends were okay, and that she was free. She wanted that. She wanted peace.

She began to reach for the white knife, but stopped. It was a lie. The peace in heaven was a lie. I felt that my friends were okay, but they weren’t. They told me what it was like. Had I not been pulled out, they would have been dead.

She pondered another long while. Then she made her choice.

She reached for the black knife.
The room was hot. There were no windows. There were many people, all intensely watching the young woman lying on the bed. Most were sleeping, but three were still awake.

All three men were startled when a machine next to the bed started to beep. It beeped louder and faster, until everyone was slowly waking up.

Angel watched the heart-rate monitor, as the rate started to drop. It slowed to half, then to a quarter of norm. And the beeping stopped, and was replaced by a buzzing sound. The monitor displayed a blank line. Almost instantaneously, everyone was standing next to the little bed.

Many people had tears in their eyes, and two were openly crying.

Then, the unexpected happened.

Buffy Summers, who supposedly was dead, given she had no heartbeat, stirred.

Her eyes flew open.

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