Damsel in Distress, My Ass

[Sleep is the twin of death."- Homer]

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Exhaustion is etched in her bones, seeping through her pores and curving her back with its weight. She’s been awake for over forty eight hours and she knows from experience she’s only good for about twenty four more and then she’ll sleep whether she wants to or not. She can push that limit but she can only push it so far. She’s a slayer, in fact if you ask some people she’s the slayer, but she’s human and she’s tired. She’s scared, her body aches and she’s hurting from something so much more than the bruises on her knuckles and cheek or the cut on her lip. She’s beginning to give up on finding Danny alive at this point but she won’t admit it to anyone, not even herself. She’s keeping the brave slayer face because it’s the only thing she knows how to do.

She stands outside Dawn’s building for a few moments then pushes away, slipping into the shadow of the alley. She pulls her cell phone out of her pocket and pushes a number on the speed dial. She knows Danny’s phone is off and expects it to take her straight to voicemail. She listens to his voice then hits the end button. She wants to cry, she wants to break down and her chest burns from it, instead she dials another number and waits until he picks up. She doesn’t say anything, just her breath in the phone as she listens to his voice.

“Buffy.”

“Talk to me. Please. Just talk.” She knows he can hear the threat of tears in her voice but she doesn’t care.

“Lucy is in Virginia right now. It worries me. She’s seeing this guy that works for the FBI. I did some research on him but someone is hiding most of his details pretty well. He works for who he says he does though. Behavioral Science. Jill is here though and she’s even quieter without Lucy around. She’s doing alright though. Scarlett makes sure she eats and they made me get this really big TV. It’s the size of movie screens in my day.”
“Angel, my TV is the size of movie screens in your day and it’s like thirty two inches,” she tries to joke.

“Yeah…well apparently I’m being dragged into this century whether I want to be or not.”

“It’s about time. I knew the girls would be good for you,” Buffy says. Her breath trembles across the phone and she stops to lean against a building. The deep, cool shadow of the alley falls across her and a shiver races across her skin. The weight of their silence stretches across the line.

“What’s going on, Buffy?”

“He’s been kidnapped.” Her whisper is small. “And it’s not vampires or demons or anything I can kill. They’re human, Angel. They’re evil and horrible and they’re going to kill him but I’m supposed to do nothing because they’re human.”

“I’ll be there in a few hours.” His response is automatic, more instinct than thought. She’s hurting and he needs to fix it.

“No.” Her answer is sharp, just as automatic. It’s a burst of breath fused with energy that she pulls from some place deep inside of her. “No. Before-we had a fight…a talk…something over you. He’s alright and he knows that we’re…” she swallowed hard. “When I find him, it’ll make things worse if you’re here. Tomorrow is his birthday.” The last is a little broken. She doesn’t want his birthday ruined the way hers is.

Angel sighs and she can almost hear the arguments that he doesn’t voice. “Is there anything I can do?”

“Tell me how to find him? Tell me where they’re holding him?” Her voice is pitched a little too high, wrung tight with exhaustion.

“Tell me what’s going on.”

She gives him the whole story, all the details as she knows them, which really isn’t a lot. She understands that Mac has to keep things confidential because Danny is an official case right now. She bites her bottom lip as she listens, waiting for him to tell her what to do.

“Ok, he’s still alive because they can’t get what they want if he’s dead so they’re going to be keeping him somewhere isolated or somewhere that no one will bother if he screams. Danny isn’t going to go down without a fight and they know that. I’ll check out some of the buildings that this Hirsch guy owns and let you know what I find out. You said there was a lot of blood in the photographs. I assume you’ve been working over the vamps around the city but you’re expending way too much energy and killing too many vamps. This isn’t a mission to save the world this time, Buffy. You’re going about it all wrong. Find one vamp that really likes being undead. He’ll find your blood faster than a police dog. Even if its days old. Humans don’t bleed that much and not clean it up. I’ll let you know what I find out about any real estate Hirsch might own that fits the bill.”

She pushes away from the wall with her back straighter and her chin lifts a little higher. I’ll let you know when I find him.”

“Be careful, Buffy. Don’t do anything you’ll regret and remember…they’re human.”

“Just barely,” Buffy says. “And Angel…thank you.”

We'd like to express
Our deep admiration
For your courage under fire
And your willingness to die

Part of the Sam's Army storyline. The Angel referred to is still_brooding the Danny is stillacrime Both are abused with permission

“So tomorrow when you’re watching my back, you think you could keep me from getting banged up too bad?” Buffy asked as she looked over at Angel. He was sitting on the hotel bed next to her running a polishing cloth over a broadsword that was already immaculant.

Angel quirked an eyebrow at her, waiting for her to give context to her request. Bruises, cuts, breaks and wounds came with the job, especially this kind of job. This was a battle; scrapes and bruises were inevitable, in fact they were the best case scenario.

Buffy shrugged, knowing what Angel was waiting on. She also knew he was patient enough to wait her out. “He doesn’t know. Okay? He’s everything you wanted me to have when you left Sunnydale which means…he thinks I’m a normal girl too. I go home bruised and I’m going to have to come up with explanations why.”

Angel’s brow furrowed and he laid the sword next to him on the bed. “So where does he think you are?”

“Here but he thinks I’m doing a teaching certification for Martial Arts,” Buffy answered. She reached over and picked up the takeout box on the nightstand. She poked at it with chopsticks, stalling for time. “He’s good to me and eventually I’m going to tell him. We’re just happy right now and I don’t want to mess that up.”

Angel nodded. Buffy could write a script for his silence but she was afraid to fill in all those words, emotions and thoughts. She’d rather slap the word taciturn on him and be done with it. “I’ll watch your back but you could stay another day. Anything minor would be healed by then.” The word major and its consequences hung in the air and they skirted around it much the way she and Danny ducked the punching bag hanging from the kitchen doorway.

Buffy shook her head and half smiled. “I want to go home.”

Angel nodded. He picked his sword up and started cleaning it again. “Are you ready for this? You know they’re going to look human.” It was a quick subject change but really it was something they’d been not saying all night.

Buffy toyed with the chopsticks as she bit her bottom lip and dragged it through her teeth. “I know. That’s part of why I want to go home.” She wanted normal and safe and far away from the blade of her scythe slicing through all too human skin. She wondered if it would feel like the knife going in Faith’s gut and she wondered if she would care. She looked up at Angel and attempted a smile that failed long before it made it out of the gate.

Angel sighed because he knew that look. He got up, walked over to Buffy and kissed the top of her head. “We’ll keep you safe tomorrow and get you home. Call him. I’m going to patrol.”

Buffy watched as Angel gathered up some stakes and walked out of the hotel room. She sat there for a moment, her back against the headboard, knees pulled up to her chest. She held her cell phone in one hand, staring at Danny’s number for a long while before she pushed the call button. She listened to it ring and the smile that curved her lips when he picked up was genuine. Tomorrow she would be ready. Tomorrow she would be the warrior, the girl that saves the world. Tonight she just wanted to be normal for a little while longer.