A Barely Breathing Story: Chapter Sixteen

[jesterladyfic]

Chapter Sixteen: Veronica and the End of the World

Veronica’s out of breath and panting and it’s simply not fair that even though she’s young and vital and in the best shape of her life she has no way of beating the Slayer and vampire running ahead of her.

Of course she’ll take that over her boyfriend bleeding out in the hospital.

And she feels guilty, she feels so guilty. Because it’s her fault he’s there at all. He moved to this town for her, he became involved in a supernatural war for her. He cautioned her against the dangerous life she’s chosen and now he’s paying the price for her folly.

The guilt slaps at her mind with every footfall to the ground, every ragged breath drawn, every wild beat of her racing heart.

But she can’t think of it now. Because magic may kill him, but she also knows that only magic can save him now. So she’s going to drag Willow back to the hospital if it’s the last thing she does. And it very well might be.

They reach the jail and head inside. Veronica distracts the guards while Buffy and Spike slip to the holding cells.

She’s reminded of countless other times she’s done this to get what she wanted but none of that matters now. This deputy isn’t Leo and there are lives on the line.

“You got a moral thing against stealing a cop car?” Spike asks Buffy, holding Andrew like a vise.

The nerd is writhing and attempting weak punches with every step and Spike winces only slightly. Jonathan, on the other hand, is standing meekly at Buffy’s side.

“Not tonight, I don’t,” she tells him.

Spike hotwires the car and they drive.

“Where are we going?” Veronica asks, because now it feels like they have no plan.

“Magic Box,” Buffy says and shoots her a quick glance. “I’m sure Willow will come there, but I don’t know how to protect them and maybe there’s some magic there that will help.”

Veronica isn’t exactly thrilled with the idea, but she goes along with it.

They get there and start digging through all the books and Veronica sort of wishes she had focused a bit more on the magic and less on the kick-assery bit of the supernatural.

“My shop!” comes a shriek from behind them and they turn to see Anya and Xander standing there, surveying the wreckage.

“We heard and went to the hospital,” Xander says.

“Uh, welcome home,” Buffy says, looking chagrined.

Veronica would be too if Anya were looking at her like that.

“Buff, what happened?”

Buffy explains the whole thing and she looks and talks as exhausted as Veronica feels, but she manages to get everything out in a mostly coherent manner and Xander and Anya simply fall in line with the rest of them in their shock, anger, grief, and worry.

Anya briskly pulls a book out from behind the counter and starts mumbling over it.

When Jonathan offers his help, Xander shoots him down quickly, but Veronica and Buffy exchange glances and then Buffy sends him over to explain that it is, in fact, Babylonian, and not Sumerian she’s reading.

“Now we just have to get Willow-“ Buffy says.

“Aww, it’s sweet that you missed me,” Willow says from the doorway.

She’s fairly crackling with energy now and Veronica wonders where she went to for the extra power. From the look on Spike’s face, she gathers he can guess. Actually remembering back to the last time she saw Willow like this, Veronica can guess that Rack is probably dead. Not that that bothers her very much.

“Willow,” Xander cries and goes toward her.

She sweeps out her arm and he flies back into the cash register.

“You lost your best friend rights when you married the demon,” Willow says.

Xander’s mouth gapes as he gasps for breath and Veronica can only guess how strange this must be for him. She knows they’ve known each other since they were small.

“Willow, stop!” Buffy cries. “Tara’s not dead.”

Willow stops cold and becomes like a statue.

“You’re lying,” she says. “I can’t feel her light.”

“She’s at the hospital and the doctors are working on her,” Veronica says. “She and Logan are both dying and they need your help.”

“Sorry, your boyfriend is at the back of the line but as soon as I assist other callers I might get to him,” Willow says and throws her hands up.

Veronica looks in horror but the nerds remain untouched. Then she notices Anya’s not there anymore.

Buffy steps forward again, holding out an entreating hand.

“Willow, I know what you want to do, but you have to listen to me. The forces inside you are incredibly powerful. They're strong but you're stronger. You have to remember you're still Willow.”

Willow advances forward threateningly.

“Let me tell you something about Willow. She's a loser. And she always has been. People picked on Willow in junior high school, high school, up until college. With her stupid mousy ways.”

“I know this hurts. Bad. But, Willow, if you let loose with the magics, it will never end.”

Willow smiles nastily.

“Promise?”

“You don't want that.”

“Why not?”

“Because you lose everything. Your friends, yourself.... Willow, if you let this control you then the world goes away. And all of us with it. There's so much to live for.”

“Oh, please! This is your pitch? Buffy, you hate it here as much as I do. I'm just more honest about it.”

“That's not true,” Buffy says and Veronica thinks she actually means it.

“You're trying to sell me on the world? The one where you lie to your friends when you're not trying to kill them? And you screw a vampire just to feel? And insane asylums are the comfy alternative? This world? Buffy, it's me. I know you were happier when you were in the ground. The only time you were ever at peace in your whole life is when you were dead. Until Willow brought you back.”

“Tara is still alive,” Xander finally says, stepping up and Willow glares at him as if resisting only one of her best friends at a time is the allowed limit. “You’ll hurt her if you do this.”

“Bored now,” Willow says and throws her hands up again. Nothing happens again. “Damn, that is one effective counter-spell. But that’s okay, cause I don’t need magic to beat you. Just beating you will work fine.”

She points her fingers at herself and lightening appears to strike her.

She smashes her fist across the counter and it crumples revealing Anya crouching behind it.

“Ah, the little ex-demon,” Willow crows, beckoning, and the book flies out of Anya’s hands.

The bubble surrounding Andrew and Jonathan vanishes and they look panicked. They grab some swords off the wall but Veronica wonders exactly what they’re going to do with them.

“Get them out of here,” Buffy cries and Xander and Anya hustle the nerds along.

Veronica’s about to go with them, but she lingers.

She watches as Buffy and Spike both advance on Willow.

There’s nothing good about it, but it’s fascinating to watch. Veronica has always loved watching Buffy and Spike fight. They’re fluid and fast, working well together, but Willow’s raw power and rage and that works too.

She’s throwing them around like rag dolls and Veronica doesn’t know how much longer she can do nothing.

She’s starting to panic cause she knows Willow’s her only chance to save Logan, but Willow’s also about to kill her other friends. She literally has no idea what to do.

She hears a noise and turns around, startled.

“You know, I get it now, Buffy,” Willow says, standing with her foot on Spike’s back, trapping him, while Buffy lies slumped in front of her, bruised and bleeding. “Being a Slayer’s about power.” A fireball lights up from her fingers and she stares at it. “And there's no one in the world with the power to stop me now.”

A blast of energy flies from the doorway and hits Willow, throwing her to the ground.

“I'd like to test that theory,” Giles says, brushing past Veronica. “Vincire!” More light flies at Willow and she flies back. “Go, Veronica!”

Veronica turns and runs, flying after where Xander and Anya disappeared.

She catches up with them just in time to see Jonathan put his sword against Andrew’s neck and Andrew lower his from Xander’s.

“We have to keep moving,” she yells.

“This way,” Xander yells, turning them towards the cemeteries.

There’s a loud whistling sound from overheard and Veronica hears shouting. Spike is running toward them yelling and waving his hands.

She looks up and there’s a huge meteorite whipping overhead, hurtling toward them. She dives to the left, pulling Jonathan along with her.

There’s an explosion and heat and dirt all around her. She coughs and heaves her body upwards, feeling it ache absolutely everywhere.

Jonathan starts moving directly to her right and she puts out her hand in caution lest he roll into the huge crater suddenly opened up before them.

“Oh, man,” he groans, scrambling back. “This isn’t what was supposed to happen. This is too much.”

“Should’ve thought of that before you bowed down to the misogynistic bastard,” Veronica snaps and stands up. “Spike!” she yells.

“Down here, pet,” Spike yells back. “Got me and the Quivering Wonder down here.”

“We’re over here, thanks for asking,” Xander says, helping Anya to her feet to Veronica’s left.

There’s more yelling and Veronica turns again to see Buffy advancing on them.

“What’s going on?” she asks.

“Proserpexa?” says Buffy, like it's a question.

She wipes blood from her nose.

“Who's she?” Veronica asks.

“Uh, way up there in the hierarchy of she-demons,” Anya says, walking toward them, favoring her right arm. “Her followers intended to use her effigy to destroy the world. They all died when the temple got swallowed up in the big earthquake of ‘32.”

“So now seventy years later, Willow's going to make their dreams come true,” Buffy says. “She's going to drain the planet's life force, and funnel its energy through Proserpexa's effigy and-and burn the Earth to a cinder. But Giles said no magic or supernatural force can stop her. She took his power and decided to end the world’s suffering.”

“What does that mean?” Xander asks, “no magic or force can stop her?”

“Don't know. He-he said, ‘the Slayer can't stop her,’ and then he said a bunch of other stuff. He really wasn't too clear.”

“You have to try,” Xander says anxiously. “We have to try.”

“I know,” Buffy says, looking determined.

“So…now what?” Veronica asks.

“A little help?” Spike yells from down in the pit.

“Anya, Giles is really weak and…and not good,” Buffy says. “Can you please go help him? Get him to the hospital if he’ll let you.”

Anya nods determinedly.

“I will. I have some last minute things I need to ask him about the shop anyway.”

Xander laughs a little and pulls her close to him, kissing her quickly and hard.

“Be careful, Ahn.”

“I think you should be more careful than me,” she tells him, tears in her voice. “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” he tells her.

She runs off into the distance and Buffy looks around, Veronica guesses she’s looking for something to help them out of the pit with.

“Oh, no you don’t,” comes the creepy, disembodied voice of Willow floating through the trees. “Can’t have you messing anything up now. Only fitting you should all go out fighting.”

There’s an earthquake and a rumble and Buffy pitches headfirst into the crater, Veronica grasping for her too late. Jonathan’s sword tumbles down with her.

Veronica turns to look for Xander, but he’s gone. She can only guess where.

“You gonna help me or run?” Veronica asks Jonathan.

He hesitates for a second.

“I’ll help.”

“Good, then get something to help them out of that hole.”

There’s the sound of clashing swords and Veronica peers over the edge and blinks in surprise at the sight of Buffy and Spike, back to back, fighting with swords against skeletal creatures attacking them, pulled, presumably, from the graves all around.

“You gonna be okay?” she asks them.

Spike throws back his head and laughs, obviously enjoying himself.

Buffy smiles grimly in the dim light, but Veronica thinks she just might like this situation too.

“Don’t worry about us,” Buffy says. “Get to Willow.”

“Jonathan might or might not help you,” Veronica says.

“Don’t leave me. I’m sorry I called you names,” Andrew wails from down in the pit.

Veronica doesn’t stay to hear more. She runs instead.

She runs toward the bluff that she’s only heard tale of, which Logan once tried to get her to visit with him.

Her legs pump and her heart feels like it might give out, but she keeps going, memories and feelings running across her mind’s eye. All she can think of is Tara,comforting her while she was in Buffy’s body, baking her pancakes, making dry remarks when nobody expected t. And she thinks about Lilly, dancing at the carwash on the day of her death, poking fun of Veronica’s clothes, sauntering through the halls like she owned them.

There are too many people in the world already gone through whatever means. Lilly and Duncan and Meg and her mom and Buffy’s mom and Logan’s mom and why won’t all the mothers quit leaving?

She thinks of her dad and Wallace and Mac, sitting with Dawn in the hospital. Belatedly she wishes she’d thought to call Weevil, just to say…something. She thinks of Buffy and Spike fighting in the pit and whether they’ll ever be able to accept each other for who they are.

Mostly she thinks of Logan and she swears that if she ever speaks with him again she won’t fight with him anymore. She won’t treat him like he’s second class or second guess him or worry about where their relationship is going.

And she knows all she’s doing is making promises in the heat of the moment, lost in the grief of the unknown, but all she wants is for him to live so she can break every single one of those promises to his face.

The sky lightens as she runs and she pushes herself further and faster. The world is shaking now, vibrations of some unknown power. She can guess what it is.

The sun bursts on her face as she clears the woods and heads up the bluff and there…there’s Willow and Xander.

She’s sobbing on the grass and he’s holding her and her hair’s red again and Veronica feels hope for the first time since she watched Logan being loaded into the ambulance.

She approaches them and hugs them on the ground. They might not be best friends and she’s not Buffy, but she does love them and wants them to be happy and she wouldn’t want anything to happen to them.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry,” Willow sobs.

Veronica hates to do it, but she needs Willow now.

“Willow,” she says quietly. “Willow, you can still save Tara. And Logan.”

“She’s really alive?” Willow asks. “I can’t-I can’t.”

“She was when we left the hospital. We have to hurry.”

Willow wipes her eyes and stands up.

“The power, it’s fading. We have to hurry. Hold my hands.”

They do and there’s a faint melting of the background and reforming of the hospital walls.

Dawn’s standing there with eyes open wide and there’s skeletons lying at her feet.

“You!” she shouts, brandishing a long cane that seems to have been snatched from a senior citizen.

“She’s here to help,” Veronica assures her. “Are we too late?”

“The doctors say Logan has minutes. Tara’s almost stable.”

“Please…” Veronica says, looking at Willow with everything she’s ever felt in her eyes.

“Where is he?” Willow says after only a moment of hesitation.

They walk quickly down the corridor and Veronica’s heart feels like it’s about to stop when she sees him.

He starts to code, the machines wailing.

“Hold them back,” Willow says, raising her arms. “I’m going to get the bullet out.”

The hospital starts to shake and the lights flicker while Veronica closes the door and she and Xander hold it against the doctors and nurses trying to get in.

Logan shakes too and starts to rise like he’s being pulled by invisible strings and Willow holds out her hand. Her eyes are black, but her hair stays red.

Then there’s a flash of light and Logan falls back on the bed. The machines stay bleeping madly for a minute and then fall quiet. His heartbeat becomes steady.

“Open the door,” Willow says and then addresses the doctors. “I got the bullet out, but you need to make sure there’s no internal bleeding.”

Veronica wonders if that’s something Willow knows or if she’s watched too many hospital dramas. Either way, she stands in the corner of the room and watches the doctors work until they make her leave and then she watches from behind the glass.

There’s a soft presence up from behind her and she turns to see Dawn.

“Tara’s gonna be okay, Willow didn’t even need to do anything,” Dawn says, putting her forehead on the glass. “How is he?”

The doctors turn and give her a thumbs-up and Veronica sags against the glass in relief.

“Okay, okay,” she mumbles and slides to the ground, resting her head back against the glass.

“Are you okay?” Dawn asks.

“Might have run…too much.”

She doesn’t know if she can ever move again.

But she staggers to her feet and she sits by Logan’s side and for the moment she can reconcile everything. She has so many worlds that she lives in. She has the world of the detective and the world of the supernatural and for now they rest at peace with each other. There's still a little room for improvement in all her worlds, like the world of the independent woman and the world of the woman in love, but she's okay with that right now.

She sinks her head onto his bed, holding his hand, and lets herself rest.