The Chosen, Chapter One
Pairing: Rose (The Slayer) and 10th Doctor (Angel)
Summary: Destiny, monsters and the end of the world are a typical weekend for Rose the vampire Slayer. But when she meets a mysterious vampire with a soul, he challenges everything she's ever known about life and love.
Author's Note: Loosely follows the first season of Joss Whedon's Buffy series. Inspired by a prompted fic (prequel) found here: http://tenandi.livejournal.com/38014.html. Read it first for clarity and smoldering David Tennant goodness. Also, sorry for the terrible Doctor Who jokes within. You have been warned.
Rating: Adult, as usual
Rose froze at the entrance to the alleyway, which was steaming with water vapor from the recent rain. The smoke curled up around the dumpsters and brick walls, making it nearly impossible to see anything. But she knew they were in here. Not three minutes ago, she’d watched four vampires saunter back into the alley like they didn’t have a care in the world. And up until now, they hadn’t.
The Slayer walked carefully into the narrow space, knowing that it could be a trap as her Watcher had taught her comprehensively. Slowly, she loosened her stake from her back pocket and kept it low at her side as she went on.
In an instant, a female vampire jumped out and hissed angrily. Rose reacted instinctively, and ducked her first blow before jamming her stake up and into the assailant’s chest. The vampire screamed and deteriorated just as another came up behind her. This vamp was huge and had bigger fangs on him than Rose had ever seen, but she wasn’t intimidated.
Instead, she jumped back and used the dumpster to gain leverage for a powerful roundhouse kick that knocked Big Vamp to the ground. He rolled over a few times before regaining consciousness at the same time that a third vampire appeared beside the Slayer.
“What’s up Buffy?” the vampire taunted.
Rose narrowed her eyes and used her arms to ward off a series of quick jabs from the newest vamp, and used his strength against him as she flipped him back over his own toes.
“I hate it when people call me that,” she growled before staking the surprised villain.
“How about dinner?” offered the Big Vamp who had regained his bearings.
Rose nearly slipped when the vampire pulled her toward him, and tried to line up her neck for a serious bite, but she yanked away at the last minute.
“No, can’t say I like that one either,” she quipped.
The Big Vamp laughed while the fourth vampire materialized beside him. Apparently he'd been hiding in the misty alley.
“Two against one,” the Big Vamp challenged. “Hope you’re ready for this!”
Rose frowned and assumed a defensive stance.
“Bring it,” she ordered.
Rose found herself fighting two vampires at once, which wasn’t such an unusual occurance, but there was something off with her tonight. Her punches weren’t as strong as usual. She was lacking confidence. And then she remembered.
At school, one of the boys in her class had been getting on her nerves by blowing in her hair as she walked by. Like any girl would, she’d responded with all due gravity and repulsion…but maybe side-kicking him across the hall had been a bad move. Her classmates had stared at her like she was a total freak, and maybe she was.
“It’s not my fault,” she muttered as she punched one of the vamp’s in the stomach. “He was acting like a total jerk! He deserved what he got!”
She slammed into the Big Vamp and knocked the wind out of him while the other vamp paused.
“Uh, are you talking to us?” he asked uncertainly.
Rose glared as she realized she’d been talking out loud.
“No!” she cried defensively. “Just realizing that some people are complete idiots!”
The vampire was about to lunge, but held back out of curiosity.
“Bad day?” he asked sympathetically.
“You can say that again,” Rose answered as she threw up her arm and knocked it into the charging Big Vamp’s nose.
“It’s just like, why are people so prejudiced sometimes? It’s not my fault that I have special powers that make me different! Besides, in many ways I’m just like any other average girl!”
Rose took a second to position herself over the downed vamp and punched him hard in the face.
“I like flowers,” she stated before punching the vampire again.
“I enjoy pep rallys,” she continued as she pulled out her stake.
“And I really, really want to go to prom!” she finished before driving the stake through her opponent’s heart.
The other vampire nodded thoughtfully.
“Life is a pain,” he considered. "Let me take you out of your misery!"
The vampire widened his mouth and caught Rose off guard. She had just been spilling the intimate details of her day to him, after all. She tried to back up, but tripped over a sack of garbage on her way. In seconds, the vampire was upon her and smiling maliciously.
“Say goodbye Buffy!” he sneered.
Rose didn’t have to, because the vampire was dematerializing right before her eyes. Behind him, she saw the outline of the one person she’d been dreaming of for the last three weeks.
“Saved by an angel,” Rose gasped happily.
The vampire with a soul smiled slightly.
“Is that what you’re calling me?” he asked.
Rose took his proffered hand and stood to her full height in front of him.
“It seems to fit,” she answered.
“Unlike Buffy,” he added. “Who is Buffy exactly?”
He cocked one eyebrow as he pocketed his stake in a billowing overcoat.
“Someone from a comic book,” Rose replied crossly. “The vampires think it’s funny, apparently. So now I’m getting teased by vampires and humans.”
“I heard that,” Angel replied as his eyes turned serious and pointed down at her. “It’s not easy being different, is it?”
Rose checked his face for sarcasm but didn’t find any.
“No,” she agreed. “And by the way, I could have handled that vamp by myself, you know. I really don’t need a savior every time I get into a fight.”
“I didn’t interfere when you fought that werewolf last week,” Angel countered. “Or when that student turned into a gelatinous cannibal…”
“You’ve been watching me this whole time?” Rose stared in disbelief. “Do you have nothing else to do or something?”
“I have plenty to do,” Angel breathed as he moved closer to her. “But I prefer watching you.”
Rose felt her heart constrict as she looked up in to his eyes that were so dark and beautiful. She’d never seen anything like them.
“And do you watch me all the time?” Rose asked.
Angel’s smile widened, and Rose couldn’t help but stare at his perfectly pointed incisors.
“You sleep,” he said headily, “like an angel.”
A shudder went down her spine, but Rose didn’t feel even the slightest revulsion. Instead, her body reacted the complete opposite way, and swayed toward him of its own will. She imagined him staring into her window as she slept, splayed over half of her covers with her hair spilling over her pillow, completely unaware. The thought shot a red-hot spark of desire through her center.
Angel must have sensed the chemical change, because he leaned down and brushed one finger up her throat.
“You’re not wearing the cross I gave you,” he said gravely.
“No,” Rose replied unsteadily. “I forgot…”
“You’re unprotected,” Angel observed quietly. “I might take advantage...”
“Please,” Rose pleaded, uncertain of what she was asking for.
Angel tilted his head and Rose watched his lips as they moved scant centimeters over her own.
“I’ve been patient,” he breathed. “I’ve waited for you Rose.”
Rose swallowed hard and felt his hands pressing over her sides to draw her closer. His body wasn’t cold like she’d expected, but warm and alive as any human being. The heat from his breath was intoxicating, and she wished he would kiss her and end her suffering.
Just as Angel was about to close the distance between them, a harsh voice rang out in the night.
“Get away from her!” an old man commanded.
Angel and Rose both flicked their attention to the man, who was holding a battered crossbow in his hands.
“Wilfred! No!” Rose shouted. “He’s different!”
“That’s what they all say,” her Watcher warned. “Move away from him, Rose!”
Rose came to stand before Angel, who looked darker and moodier than ever.
“Put it down!” Rose pleaded. “He’s not going to hurt me!”
“He knows it,” Angel growled from behind her. “You know it, don’t you Watcher?”
The old man squinted and lowered his weapon as he made out the grainy outline of the vampire.
“Oh my god!” Wilfred stuttered. “It’s you!”
Rose stared at her protectors in turn.
“What are you talking about?” she demanded.
Wilfred came to stand beside her and stared hard at the vampire.
“Angelus,” Wilfred sighed.
“You know him Wilfred?” Rose exclaimed.
“Know of him,” Wilfred corrected. “Read about him in my books...but I’d never believed it til’ now. Tell me Angelus, what business do you have with my student?”
“Not business,” Angel replied. “Pleasure.”
Rose shivered. She wished Wilfred would go make himself useful someplace else.
“That’s a bad idea,” Wilfred warned, his green eyes flashing. “And you know it.”
Angel stepped back from Rose and frowned gravely, as if he were reliving a heartbreaking memory. Wilfred stared angrily at him until he flinched.
“Right,” the vampire answered quietly before turning away.
Rose was flabbergasted, and didn’t understand what had just taken place.
“Why’d you say that?” she accused her Watcher as she watched Angel walk away. "What did you mean by it?"
Wilfred came to stand beside her and crossed his arms.
“I’m your Watcher, Rose,” he replied. “I can’t apologize for trying to protect you.”
Her face reflected her confusion, and her pain at seeing Angel leave. She knew Wilf was trying to do the right thing, and she trusted him implicitly- he’d been the closest thing to a father she’d known since her real dad passed away when she was seven- but it didn’t mean he was right about everything.
“You don’t understand, he won’t hurt me!” she protested.
Wilfred lowered his eyes and stared at the wet asphalt beneath them before glancing back at his young Slayer's face.
“Not in the way you’d think, love,” was his only reply.
Rose let Wilfred leave her too, and stood by herself in the alley, puzzled and frustrated from recent events.
“Who are you Angel?” she whispered to the air.
Chapter Two
Rose slept fitfully for the next two weeks. She suffered from repetitive nightmares where some demon force was trying to come back to life. She would watch the shadowy red imagery burn before her eyes, like a light just coming into being. But behind the light was something insidious, and it scared her to her bones. In the night, she would awaken in a cold sweat, sometimes desperately grabbing at her pillow. And it was getting worse.
One night, Rose woke up screaming and crying in tandem. She was so delirious that she hardly noticed someone crawling in the window to her room. The next thing she remembered, she was lying down in someone’s arms. She could hear his voice coming low and soft, bringing her back to reality. It was Angel.
Rose sighed contentedly and shifted to fully hug his body against hers. The sensation was enough to set her soaring, especially when he hugged her back so hard.
“You can sense it, can’t you?” Angel probed, breaking her concentration on his incredible arm muscles.
“I sense darkness,” Rose answered. “Something’s coming.”
“I feel it too,” Angel revealed. “And it’s growing stronger.”
“You’ve been watching me again,” Rose noted, promptly changing the subject.
Angel surprised her when he laughed low and easily.
“We were talking about an impending evil about to befall London and you’re wanting to chat about me and you?” he said with a smile.
“Why not?” Rose challenged. “There’s not much we can do about the rising forces of darkness right now. I don’t think it’s ready yet…”
“No,” Angel agreed. “Whatever it is, it’s been taking its time. I think that worries me more...”
Rose snuggled closer to him and made his breath hitch. Her thigh had come to part his, and rested comfortably between his legs.
“Angel?” she whispered.
He looked down at her and wished he hadn’t. She was so beautiful, and in the cool light of the moon, he could see she was scared. She needed him.
“Slayer,” he stated formally, disliking the way it sounded in his ears.
“You came back for me,” she said softly. “Even after Wilfred tried to scare you off.”
“It was impossible not to,” Angel admitted before brushing her hair behind her ear.
“Tell me who you are,” Rose pleaded. “I need to know I can trust you.”
“I don’t think you would trust me if you knew the things I have done,” Angel said in despair. “I’ve been a vampire for too long. I only gained my soul back a few decades ago.”
“What were you like before you turned?” Rose pressed on, hoping to keep him beside her as long as possible.
Angel went silent and then laughed inaudibly.
“I was a doctor,” he replied. “I received my medical degree in 1895, and I practiced for several years before I lost my mortal life.”
Rose considered this for a moment before speaking again.
“Doctor who?” she asked.
“What?” Angel replied, coming out of his reverie.
“Well, I have a feeling you weren’t called Dr. Angelus,” she elaborated. “What was your human name?”
“Oh,” Angel said softly. “I’d rather not say. Brings back too much for me.”
Rose was disappointed, but tried to understand what he must have been feeling.
“So Angelus then,” she offered as a compromise. “Where did that come from?”
She stared up into his dark, unfathomable eyes and blushed slightly.
“That is a long story,” the vampire countered. “And some people need to be up early for school tomorrow.”
“I like bedtime stories,” Rose said coyly, but Angelus was already starting to move away from her.
“Another time,” he promised as he leaned down to kiss her forehead.
Rose savored the feeling and closed her eyes briefly.
When she opened them, he was gone.
She hid her disappointment in her pillow, but turned toward the window once more as the wind shifted and blew the branches of a tall oak against the glass. She knew he was out there watching her and protecting her. The comforting thought allowed her to close her eyes and finally fall asleep.