Disclaimer: Joss made Cecily a bitch...Did I redeem her enough yet?

Author’s note: Once again, hugs and thanks to the great and wonderful BTL for the betaing!
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Chapter 36: OMG

Curiously the handwriting changed significantly as though someone new was writing in book. Here’s where Erixel killed her, Liz thought.

I don’t know how quite to start this entry into Buffy’s journal. She begged me to write in it just what has happened to her. I saw her today and she looks too frail, so small. I can’t help but think that she doesn’t look like the Slayer should.

She told me of her fight with Angelus and Darla and how she was bitten, but not drained and dropped from the balcony above the street. Giles saved her life, firing a flaming arrow at Angelus while he had his fangs in her neck. For once I am truly glad of Giles’ actions.

Unfortunately she is paralysed. She can’t move her legs. The doctors say that she will be fine in time due to her Slayer healing powers. But I know the truth, I hear the whispers coming from my father’s study.

Buffy is in danger from the Council. And I think that my father might be one of those planning her demise!

And her heart is not well. Mr Fairchilde has been killed and turned, the watcher guarding his grave was drained.

What more could possibly happen to dear sweet Buffy? She has had everything taken away from her because of her calling.

I must not tarry longer than I have. Buffy will be missing me in her captivity, because that is what it is, a captivity of body and spirit. I must tell her what I have heard and together we must plan to free her. Poor Buffy.

Reagan Wyndham

Liz eagerly turned the page, her attention not drawn by the tempting smell of the chicken wings that Spike was eating or even the food that was left on her plate.

Again I find it’s been months since I last added to your story, dear diary, began the next entry, in Elizabeth’s hand writing this time.

Liz was suddenly relieved that Elizabeth hadn’t been killed after all.

I must recount exactly what happened to me and why I am in the place in which I write this entry. I suspect future generations, if ever I choose to reveal this history to my progeny should I have any, it seems doubtful now, might be interested.

I was left with Reagan in hopes of a plan. We practiced spells and were very close to finding an escape from the Council’s clutches. Though I had nothing to live for, I had the will to live, paralysed or not. Too bad I didn’t get the choice in the end.

Reagan never came back after she went away for the ingredients for our next spell. And then no one came at all, for what seemed like days. Then they came. Four men, watchers, come to suffocate me in my sleep. How courteous of them.

It didn’t take. As I drew my last breath I muttered a curse and spell, combining two that Reagan and I had worked on. Whatever I did to the men worked towards my purpose. They ran screaming from the room.

Later I’ve discovered that I made their blood boil in their skins or some such horrible thing. They died. Nice and simple.

That’s probably not a nice thing to say coming from the Slayer.

While I lay in my paralysed state, wondering what was going on, what was happening with the screaming coming from the lower council chambers and why no one was coming to check on me, I was graced with the presence of a demon I had only heard tales of. A demon of legend you might say.

D’Hoffryn, master of Arashamahar was sitting at the foot of my sick bed. I can say that my emotions and sensibilities were a bit confounded. A demon was in my room and I was unable to do anything about it. He was a pleasant man, not hardly what I had expected, his calm and jovial manner was a delight after only being in the company of those that believed I was destined to die or remain paralysed for the rest of my life.

He explained my fortunate wording of the curse and congratulated me on my ingenuity and offered to elevate me to demon status.

No more Slayer! No more would I be confined to the sick bed.

Well it’s not me anymore, which is the important part. I am Elizabeth no more. I am Erixel from now on.

Erixel of Arashamahar.

So what does Erixel, vengeance demon do now that she is all elevated and such?

I found Reagan pushed down an oubliette, she was awed that I was a demon now, but wasn’t as judgemental as I thought she would be under the circumstances. Giles had thought me dead. The Council had told him that it was so. He unfortunately didn’t want anything to do with me again. Not a problem really.

But William. I found William hanging from the rafters in the same house that Angelus had caused my injury. He was bleeding and covered in scratches and wounds that looked painful.

What could I do but beg his forgiveness. I won’t go into the details, it was a humbling experience I would not wish to dwell on too long, though I suspect I’ll be reliving it every night of my long existence. He is no longer mine. He claims that he belongs to Drusilla, the one who made him. It is a bitter concept to swallow, that the man who wrote detailed poems about my hair could now be enraptured by another woman.

I left him there, tied to the rafters. He didn’t want to be let down. Even as a vampire I couldn’t help but love him. When Reagan had told me of his turning I still had those feelings. That was proof enough to me that I loved him beyond all consideration.

I can only hope that either he tires of Drusilla or that she falls on a sharp branch and dusts. She is mad after all.

Liz looked up at the demon who was cleaning up the takeout boxes. She didn’t look evil, and like Anyanka, she wasn’t evil through and through, Liz believed.

The diary had been an eye opener. She believed that the Council was capable of killing a slayer, especially one that was useless to them. They had wanted to kill Faith after her walk on the wild side. Nothing about what she had read so far was surprising. Except for the truth of it.

That was the surprising part.

And it was then that she had concluded that Erixel was in fact the Slayer Elizabeth Underwood.

“So you didn’t die?” Liz asked.

Buffy looked over at the Slayer and nodded. “I’m still alive and kickin’,” she tried to joke.

“The Council tried to kill you?” asked Liz, more still processing the information than anything else.

Buffy nodded again.

“I wonder how it got changed to Erixel killing the invalid Slayer then?” Liz pondered.

“Well, first it was Elizabeth takes her own life, and then they found out about D’Hoffryn from Giles. I don’t suppose it is very difficult to jump from D’Hoffryn to Erixel.”

“Do you believe her now?” asked Dawn, annoyed.

Liz looked down at the diary wanting to read more, then back at Erixel.
“I...I don’t know,” she muttered, hesitation in her voice.

“God! Make up your mind!” cried Dawn. “Erixel’s a Summers! Why can’t you see that.”

“I haven’t seen any proof of that, Dawn,” Liz yelled back just as angry as her sister. “All I know is that Elizabeth Underwood was elevated to a vengeance demon. That is all I see from this diary,” countered Liz.

Buffy sighed, reaching over to squeeze Spike’s hand. With an imperceptible nod, Spike let his mate know that he was ok with Liz reading the rest of it.

“Keep reading then,” said Buffy sadly. “If that diary convinces you, then I am glad I kept it all these years.

Liz’s eyes went back to the last paragraph she had read.

I can only hope that either he tires of Drusilla or that she falls on a sharp branch and dusts. She is mad after all.

It was like a light went off in Liz’s head.

“Oh my god! Spike is William Fairchilde?” exclaimed Liz.

“That was quick,” noted Buffy dryly.

“Are you saying that Spike is like our great grandfather or something?” Liz spat.

She looked from Erixel to Dawn, to Spike and back to Dawn.

“That’s what I’m saying,” offered Dawn. “Doesn’t it make you feel icky?” taunted her younger sister.

Liz cringed and threw down the diary.

“I think I’m going to be sick. Did you know?” she asked the vampire.

Spike shook his head emphatically even while Liz started pacing the room and Dawn dissolved into a fit of giggles.

“Dawn you aren’t helping,” chided Buffy.

“But it’s funny!” cackled the teen.

“I have to leave,” muttered the Slayer, “I need to think.”

And with that Liz left the crypt.

The vampire, the vengeance demon and the key all looked at each other with equal parts mirth and worry on their faces. Not one of them knew just how Liz would react to this news.

“Give her some time to digest it, everything will be ok,” offered Dawn. “She’s just way weirded out by the kissing. I’m way weirded out by the kissing. Ugh. Ok, I’m going. Do you know when you’ll be back in Sunnydale?”

“Not as such Bit,” responded Spike. “Got to keep our distance, don’t want another big bad coming to your town.”

“The Immortal can’t be worse than, ‘from beneath you, it devours,’ that’s our latest happy hellmouthy problem.”

With a hug to each of them, Dawn departed the crypt. The two demons left to their own devices looked at each other perplexed.

“From beneath you, it devours?” questioned Buffy.

“Got me, love,” responded Spike, just as confused as she was.

“Wonder if D’Hoffryn knows.”

“Can’t hurt to ask the wanker,” sneered Spike.

“Be nice, vampire!” Buffy playfully ordered. “He’s my boss.”

“You don’t need a bloody boss. Perfectly good at what you do without one. That’s what so bloody good about vampires. No one tells me what to do.”

Buffy smiled at her mate. “’Cause you have no purpose in life, except to exist and cause mayhem.”

“I thought loving you was purpose enough...” Spike offered with a smile.

“Sweet.”

“I try.”

Buffy leaned down and planted a kiss on his lips. “Love you,” she whispered.
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Buffy appeared before her boss, his audience chamber full of demons from all across Arashamahar. Their worried looks and whispered nervous babblings were evident even to Buffy as she walked towards the floor towards D’Hoffryn.

“Erixel, you have come at last,” began D’Hoffryn. “I hope you have had your fill of the hellmouth for the time. There is something afoot.”

Buffy raised an eyebrow as she stepped back into the crowd and watched as D’Hoffryn began his explanation of just what he’d discovered from the other dimensions and his contacts with the gods.

“The First Evil is rising. We will have to choose which side we will be on in the final battle. I realise that many of you have loyalties to the humans, you work closely with them, some of you may even have promised support to their cause, but it is in vain. This is not something that I can decide for you. It is up to each and every one of you to decided who you support, the evil or the good.”

Buffy sucked in a breath.

“From beneath you, it devours,” she whispered.
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tbc...