BtVS Ficlet: Halloween
Title: Halloween
Fandom: BtVS
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Buffy, Angel, Spike, Scoobies, and random monsters
Rating: G
Spoilers: Halloween.
Summary: Buffy and the team become what their costumes represent.
Word Count: 448
Written For: juliet316’s prompt ‘BtVS, S!2Buffy, she'd been so looking forward to a night off. Then she chose that costume.’ at
fic_promptly.
Disclaimer: I don’t own BTVS, or the characters. They belong to Joss Whedon.
Tucked away at the back of her mind, she’s still who she should be: Buffy Summers, slayer of vampires, demons and things that go bump in the night. But that little voice is being overruled by a new persona, a sweet, innocent Southern belle, terrified to the point of swooning by the hideous creatures that seem to be everywhere. She has no idea how she came to be in this strange place full of things she can’t begin to understand, but all she wants is to go home.
A young woman in lewd clothing, and a soldier of sorts help her to safety in one of the small dwellings where she finds a picture that could be of her, except that she would never dress in such low attire. Nothing makes any kind of rational sense.
The tall, handsome man who suddenly appears seems to be an able protector, and for a brief time she almost feels safe in his company, until he turns with his face changed beyond recognition, and she realises that he too is a monster. The world has gone completely insane; it’s simply too much for her, so she opens the door and flees for her life, out into the night.
Everywhere she turns, there are low men seeking to steal her virtue and monsters thirsting for her blood. Fear freezes the blood in her veins, almost paralysing her, until help arrives in the form of the soldier, the catwoman, and the vampire. She cowers in fear, but they vow on their honour that this one is a good vampire. With no choice but to believe them, she must allow him to sweep her off her feet and carry her to safety, though her very flesh crawls at his touch; or so she tells herself.
Their safety is short-lived, however and they are forced once more to flee, out into the perilous streets, where vampires and monsters corner them, holding her protectors captive. The vampire who stalks her now is most assuredly not the good kind, and she fears her life may be over before it has properly begun, until suddenly…
It’s such a relief for Buffy when she snaps back to normal again. Spike looks almost comical standing there with her wig in his hands, but she doesn’t give him a chance to collect his scattered wits, laying into him, unleashing all her frustrations. This was supposed to be her night off, and instead it’s been a nightmare.
As Spike heads for the hills, Buffy feels a tremendous sense of satisfaction. As much as she complains about her lot in life, she realises she doesn’t want to be anyone except who she is.
The End