Drusilla
Drusilla wondered into the playground. She liked the merry-go-round, it was like flying. She glanced at the oretty yellow ring on her finger. She might be crazy, but she wasn't stupid. She'd never dare enter the Slayer's house without protection. Dru stared at the starry sky, waiting for her pretty kitty to show up.
Nyx
Nyx swerved her bike down the roads, engine purring between her legs. Getting away from the Slayer had been a little difficult, but after she'd told her that she was going hunting, Buffy had turned green and couldn't get her out of the house fast enough. Spike was...odd. He'd been watching her while she'd been talking to Dru. Now, where that girl had found a computer and figured out how to use it was a mystery. But Nyx was glad she had. She'd gotten lots of weird looks when she kept giggling because of Dru's replies. Whipping Spike, indeed! And turning him over her knee to spank him? Even now, a smile spread across her face as the wind whipped her hair into a frenzy. Nyx saw the playground up ahead, and a woman dressed in period costume with dark hair sitting on the merry go round. Nyx pulled the bike up and jumped off it, letting it crash to the ground. "Dru!"
Dru
"Pretty Kitty!" Dru cried running to embrace the beautiful woman. "Don't the stars smell pretty tonight? They look like a small child's eyes, open wide in aazement. And you, my pet, look a picture. California looks good on you." Dru laughed as she held the other woman's hands and spun around in circles. "Did you see my pretty ring?" Dru showed the sparkly yellow gem to Nyx, smiling. She had her ways, and she always got what she wanted.
Nyx
"It's lovely, suits you. Let the mean Slayer try and stake you now, my sweet. Bad Slayer, bad! Do you think California suits me? I like it so far. There's old friends and new ones. Pretty girls who smell of chaos, and people not telling me secrets." Nyx giggled and leant into Dru. "I can smell 'em. Pretty, pretty shiny secrets wrapped up in darkness. Speaking of pretties, where's your new pretty boy, hmm? I would have brought my pretty girl to show you, but I want to make sure you're safe before I bring the slayer into it." Nyx purred and licked up the side of Dru's face with a raspy tongue. "I like you, Dru, and I like so few people who stay around."
Dru
"I don't need him anymore. He shan't last long in the Slayer's home, so I sent him find us a pretty home for when we're not at the Slayer's Too many people might make the stars mad and then won't talk to pretty Dru." Dru sighed.
"Take me to my William? He needs a whipping, and Anyanka needs a kiss, and I want to smell the pretty boy who didn't want enternal life. I missed the Hellmouth" Dru mounted the motorbike behind Nyx, but the way she jump on made it look like a dance. Drusilla had the ability to make just about anything she did look like dancing.
"If Miss Edith hadn't been naughty she could have seen the Slayer's face, but no, she must stay behind." Dru said to the dolls that nobody could see but Dru. She knew where they were, and that's what mattered. Before long they were at the Slayer's house.
"Pretty Kitty, I'll need an invite, and will you warn them that I won't hurt them? They're like mice, I just want to watch the run around afraid. I swear to not hurt a single person that resides in the Slayer's house."
Nyx
Nyx took Dru's hand, and led her up the steps. "Helloooo?" Nyx called out, opening the door, but still holding onto to Dru's hand and staying outside. "Invite kinda needed here, for my girl who sings to the stars."
"Hey, Nyx..." Xander came to the door and stared at Nyx's guest in horror.
"This is Dru, anyone stakes her, I will bring the apocalypse around a lot sooner then you thought. I'm quite protective of my friends, and she's promised not to eat anyone. Haven't you, sweetie?" Nyx rubbed her head against Dru's arm, eyes fixed on Xander's shocked face.
Nyx
Nyx led Dru into the house. If she'd been in cat form, her nail would have been twitching nervously. "This is Drusilla." Nyx waved at Dru, mischief dancing through her eyes. "These are the Potentials, Willow you know, Spike my goodness do you know him, Dru pet, Xander is your dark kitty, and we have Dawn, who people haven't been telling me about. Tsk, tsk. I don't like secrets about people I like. Oh, and now we have the Slayer entering the picture! My my, the fur will fly, Drusilla my sweet."
"What is that looney doing in my house?" Buffy asked slowly, fury evident in her stance.
"Keep your knickers on, blondie. Dru promised not to eat anyone, and she's been telling me stuff about Dawnie girl." Nyx looked a little bit angry. "You coulda told me she was the freaking key. I disliked Glorificus immensely. She was not one of our gods and she was wrong. Not right in our world. I truly detest secrets being kept from me. Makes me nervous, and when I get nervous, people usually get hurt. But tonight, I have my Dru, my seer who sees and I know now."
Dru
"Buffy," Willow spoke up, "If we can keep Dru in check, she might be an asset to us. She is a seer, and she might be able to help us know what's going on. Spike is her gift reliable?"
"Dru's visions have never been wrong. But Dru, why are you here?" Dru hissed, and then smiled.
"My William, you have been a naughty boy. First I must punished. Mummy must turn you over her knee and give you a good caning. But I also have a gift for you. It atches mine. I don't think you deserve it, but the stars want you to have it." Dru opened her palm, and revealed a ring that was identical to the Gem of Amarra, and identical to the ring on Dru's finger.
"Dru, my goddess, where did you get that?" Spike asked, amazed as he slipped the ring onto his finger.
"I'll never tell!" dru sang, laughing. She pulled Nyx into her lap and licked the side of the girl's neck, behind her ear. Nyx purred in complete happiness.
Nyx
"Dru, been so long since New York. I been hanging round there, dancing again. I met a werewolf with a silent howl, white knight noble through and through. Missing the witch and pinin', poor thing. He's a sweetie, is Oz." Nyx leant back, eyes half closed in pleasure as Dru stroked the back of her ear, sharp nails sliding over her skin. "And Spike is a bad, bad boy. No biting, Dru." She reminded the vampiress as sharp teeth glided over the nape of her throat. "You do remember what happened the time William tried to sip?"
"So bleached wonder, what happened?" Xander asked eagerly, always looking for another way to embarrass the vampire.
"S'like a drug, her blood. So filled with magic and power. You people don't get what she is, she's old."
"Not that old. Just older then all of you. And I'm still running scared because something killed my sorta cousins in LA. Dru senses it coming too, don't you? Stars singing of something in the wind..."
Dru
"Something big is coming. The stars are singing!" Dru put her hands up in front of her face, and stood up, rocking back and forth. "Oh it's coming, it's COMING! And it's going to be bad. Bad bad bad. The ground has teeth. It'll swollow it all, it will. Stuck in the belly of the earth we will be, I can taste it, can hear it, the stars are warning me, it's coming, and it's darker than black" Dru ran to the corner and curled up, her knees against her chest, and she sobbed and moaned.
Spike ran to Dru. They hadn't been together for almost 4 years, but he was still the only one who knew how to calm her down, how to handle her when she got like that. How she had survived this long without him or Angel, he had no clue. They had been together for over 150 years, and he knew how to deal with her fits.
"It's alright, kitten. It'll be okay. The Slayer can stop it, she'll stop it all. I'll stop it all." He cooed into her ear, and pulled her into his arms. Stand up, holding her close, he gently swayed back and forth. Dru rested her head on his shoulder and felt absolutely peaceful. She was with her William, and she was home.
The others were quite shocked at this display, barring Nyx and Anya, of course. Buffy was seething. As much as she refused to believe that she was in love with Spike, or that he truly loved her, to have him show affection to anyone other than her drove her mad.
"What does he think he's doing?' She hissed. "She's evil! He's supposed to be good now! Why is her doing this?" She was outraged as she watched Spike gently rock Dru back and forth as he sang her an old British lullaby that none of them recognized. Everyone else, however, was quite touched by the site. Everyone that wasn't currently Buffy.
Nyx
Nyx's eyes narrowed at Buffy's tone, and she swaggered over to the Slayer, one thumb hooked into her belt loop. "It's because he has a heart, Slayer, unlike you." Nyx got up in the startled Slayer's face and hissed venomously, "Because they loved each other, because they fed together, because they lived linked for over a hundred and fifty years, because they suffered Angelus together. He may be good now, but Dru weren't always evil. She was going to be a nun, for the sake of the Eternal Mother." Nyx turned her back disdainfully on Buffy and went over to Dru and Spike. Spike made room for her to cradle Dru, and Nyx started to purr comfortingly while he continued to sing softly.
"Whoa," Willow said softly. "That was intense."
"No offense to you sweetie, but your sister has a problem with emotions," Nyx tossed off a comment to Dawn, before resuming her soothing purrs. "Dru, lovey, shh now. Me and Spike is here, isn't we? Loving you, knowing you, we'll keep the stars singing. I like stars, and my mother looks through them. She sees you as well, does my mum. Shh now, Drusilla, sweetie. She likes you. Likes Wiliam too, she does. Hush, sweet one. I'll beat it into litle pieces, we will, me and your William. Rip into bloody shreds and we'll dance on them. Eat them up with your big vampire teeth, hey Will?"
"You bet." Spike answered solemnly.
Dawn
Dawn's heart melted at the sight. She knew that both Spike & Nyx had souls, but it never struck her how nearly human they were until now. Dru was so scarred, by Angelus, who shared a body with a man she considered to be good. That's when it hit her.
"They're different," she said quietly.
"What, sweetie?" Willow asked her.
"Good an evil,they're different than black and white. The line isn't solid, is it? Dru is evil, but she seems so innocent at times. Nyx is good, but she can be devious, and she doesn't seem to mind vampires killing people. Spike has a soul so he tries to be good now, but he still loves her. Buffy is good, but she can't avoid the darkness. Faith killed, but she still had a soul, and she tries to be good now. Good and evil doesn't mean black and white, does it?" Willow was shocked at the revelation that someone so young was able to make.
Buffy felt the tears begin to well up at the corner of her eyes. She had heard it all, slayer hearing and all, and she suddenly realized that Dawn might be right. Good and evil were relative.
"All right, Dawn, girls, I think you should all head to bed. Spike, why don't you and Nyx take Dru down to the basement. There should be another fold-up cot in there. Nyx, do you think you'll sleep down there tonight? We can leave the basement door ajar, so you can sneak through if you want to come upstairs." Everyone was amazed at how Buffy was tlaking to Nyx, and treating Dru. It was as if her heart had instantly softened.
Nyx
"Thanks, Slayer. you know, you should try to be nice more often. C'mon, pet, let's go to bed." Nyx and Spike helped Dru stand up, the vampiress still crying and Nyx sent Spike to take her down to the basement. Nyx went over to Dawn and enfolded her in a fierce hug. "Thanks, sunshine. You see it, the difference." Nyx stepped away and the others in the room could see the sheer age in her eyes. It was totally incogreous with the youthful body she wore. "And Spike is a dark grey, like me. I can't be good, and I'm not evil. I told you, I'm the trickster of the Shades. I'm grey, through and through. So many, many beings don't get that the difference between Good and Evil is so, so small."
"I think we're learning," Willow said quietly.
"I can see you've touched the darkness, witch. And I do sorta mind vamps killing people, but they've got a right to survive, don't they? I'm a predator myself, so how can I be snotty about them being predators?"
"But they kill people, and you kill mice." Buffy interjected. Nyx swung to face the Slayer, small sad smile on her lips.
"Who's to say mice don't have souls, Slayer? I'm going to comfort Dru. It can get pretty bad." Nyx went out the door quietly, and the now thoughtful people went to bed. Later that night after Dru had settled down, Nyx slipped upstairs and slept curled up on the end of Dawn's bed. Spike slept in the basement, one arm wrapped around Dru.