Aug 29th - Training
Title: Training
Author: acswatwst (acs)
Rating: FR-18
Word Count: 1,287
Crossover: BtVS / Dr Who / Clifford B. Hicks: Alvin's Secret Code/Karate Kid
Disclaimer: This is a derivative work. All BtVS characters and concepts belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, Fox Television, and others. The BBC owns all things Dr Who (K-9, Romana, etc.). Riverton, its residents and the events that occur there belong the the estate of Clifford B. Hicks. Mr. Miyagi was played by Pat Morita and the Karate Kid movies are owned by someone who is not me.
Author's Note: Mr. Miyagi does not directly appear in this story but they talk about him a lot. Maybe someday I'll write about the time Joyce and Daphne spent with him, but not now. It needs more words than I have to spare to tell that story.This story takes place approx. a decade before first Karate Kid movie.
Summary: Romana picks up Joyce and Daphne, and Buffy gets a sparing partner. And Alvin gets some ideas.
They landed in a yard full of old cars. "I'll be right back," Romana said.
"I can't meet him?" Buffy said, pouting. "I was looking forward to this."
"It's not advisable," Romana said. "We're interfering with the timeline enough. Stay here." She left them in the console room and headed outside.
"She wouldn't let me out either when we brought them here," Alvin said. "These Time Lords are just winging it sometimes, I think. Some Time Lord instinct is telling her we can't meet this Mr. Miyagi, but she probably doesn't know why so she makes up the timeline excuse."
"Yeah," Buffy said. "But time's her thing. Just like slaying is mine and inventing is yours, or so I've heard."
"I've been an inventor since grade school," Alvin said. "I always come up with something that works, though I'm still learning how to make something I can sell."
"Does your sister have a thing?" Buffy asked.
"She was really good at keeping Shoie and me out of trouble. Not as much work now when it's only me," Alvin said sadly.
"How'd it go?" Buffy asked, as mini-Mom and Daphne rushed into the TARDIS. "Is he a good teacher?"
"He's very quirky," Joyce said. "Had us waxing one of his cars every morning before we started."
"I like the yellow one," Daphne said, bouncing on her feet. "He didn't let us drive any of them." She pouted.
"The Woodie is awesome," Joyce said. "My grandma had one like it."
"Was your time with him helpful?" Romana said, looking specifically at Daphne.
"Very much!" She said, stopping her bouncing to hug Alvin. "Much better ways to deal with things than by punching them hard."
"We'll have to compare notes," Buffy said. "All of my trainers have been stuffy Englishmen, not karate experts."
"He said I can come back once we deal with our monster problem," Daphne said. "He grew up on an island, somewhere near Japan, and had lots of advice for fighting sea monsters. His whole family specialized in that."
"Any advice for dealing with the Watchers?" Buffy asked. "I know you haven't run into them yet but they'll show up eventually, unless we find you a way out. Willow was researching that."
"Just to go with my instincts first," Daphne said. "He wasn't too impressed with the Watcher guys. Said they were more likely to watch and get me killed than to be helpful."
"Giles, my Watcher, can be useful," Buffy said. "But Willow did some digging in their records and they expected me to get him killed, like my first watcher, so they're in no hurry to give us help with the things my town attracts."
"We got a bunch of books," Alvin said, waving at the piles of books in the console room. "From Buffy's first Watcher?"
"Merrick," Buffy said, smiling sadly. "Crazy old coot sacrificed himself so I could get the job done. We grabbed his books and a few other things that should help you with these demons running around your town."
"Mr. Miyagi said you could show me some things," Daphne said. "Things only experience teaches."
"Does this buggy have a gym or dojo?" Buffy asked Romana. "A place we can use?"
"K-9? Show them the training room down near Hold H. It should have everything they need." Romana said.
"Yes, Mistress," K-9 said. "Please follow," he said.
"Come on Alvin," Daphne said, grabbing his hand.
"Rules?" Buffy asked, once they reached the small gym-like area. "You just spent a month with your Mr. Miyagi. I'm sure he had rules?"
"No maiming or knocking out?" Daphne said. "I accidentally knocked him out once before he taught me how to do more than brute force attacks. Sometimes a guided pinpoint attack can do more damage than just trying to beat them into the ground."
"It took me a while to get that," Buffy said, nodding. "Merrick was about results, the faster the better. Giles doesn't like me playing with vampires or demons but he lets me figure out the best moves to use against different demons, if he doesn't know their weaknesses."
-- -- --
"What do you think?" Joyce asked Buffy, during a break, after she and Daphne had been going at it for an hour in the gym.
"She definitely has the Slayer instincts, and what Mr. Miyagi taught her gives her the discipline to keep going, no matter the odds," Buffy said. "If she can survive these demons, she should do well, unless the Watchers interfere."
"I learned a few things also," Joyce said, "but I don't have whatever makes you and her learn so fast. So don't expect me volunteering for your training sessions."
"We'll have to test you at some point," Buffy said. "But maybe Mom-you when I get back."
"I'm sure she'll appreciate it," Joyce said. "Mr. Miyagi said there are other forms of karate that would work better for my Furling form."
"Hmmm..." Buffy thought. She took off a silver ring and put it in her pocket.
"You still need the ring?" Joyce said. "I have no problem staying Furling or human but switching back and forth takes a lot of effort."
"Going Furling doesn't help a whole lot with the slaying," Buffy said. "Another slayer showed up in Sunnydale last week, but she was really hardcore Council so I couldn't try going Furling against her." She frowned and started taking deep breathes. There was a faint pop, and she changed to her Furling form.
"Can we all do that?" Daphne said, coming over to them. "You look sort of the same like that, except Buffy is even shorter."
"Nope," Joyce said. "It's a family thing. We're related."
"Really?" Alvin said. "Are you both slayers?"
"Nah," Buffy said, stretching. "This is something completely different. I don't think slayer potential runs in families. At least the Council doesn't think so. They could be wrong."
"You want to try like that?" Daphne said. "Your clothes are going to fall off if you move too fast."
"The Wardrobe is close," Joyce said. "I'm sure there's something there that will fit better. My clothes wouldn't fit you even before you did that."
"Wardrobe?" Buffy said, perking up. "Clothes? Shoes"
"All sorts of clothes," Daphne said. "Too pretty for my taste but you do pretty girl a lot better than I do. But some awesome kick-butt shoes too."
"It drives Mom crazy," Alvin whispered to Joyce. "Daphne prefers jeans and t-shirts. Mom keeps trying to get her into fancy dresses. And take her to tea parties, but Daphne is real good at disappearing."
-- -- --
"That was fun," Buffy said, stepping back into the console room, followed by Daphne, Joyce, and Alvin. "We need to do that again. And I really want a magic Wardrobe of my own. It'd be awesome to always have just the right clothes for any occasion."
"It's not magic. Idris does that," Joyce said. "She's always in your head and knows just the right clothes to bring out."
"You'd have to come back here," Romana said. "We still don't know what traveling in time does to someone endowed with mystical slayer powers."
"Not sure what Mom will say to that. Doesn't seem to affect me," Buffy said, shrugging. "But Kendra is the newest slayer in my time so that might not mean much. Or it could be the Furling thing protects me from time shenanigans."
"I don't think we should experiment with Daphne," Joyce said. "If she's her timeline's only slayer."
"So, Riverton?" Romana said.
"Mr Link's house," Alvin said, nodding.
Romana leaned over and pushed buttons, flipped switches, and pulled levers, moving the TARDIS out of the time vortex and into real time.