(Untitled)

[rhia_talbot]

Welcome to Sunnydale.The quaint little sign by the side of the road flashes past me and I'd like to say that I relaxed a little. Except I didn't. I was as tense as ever, over the past few days, however long it was. Frantically driving across the country to California, to a place that I'd never seen and only heard of once. Without a real goal except

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[beccawhite]

((We'll say this is a couple of hours after Becca was at Buffy's house...))

I felt a bit strange after meeting Buffy and the others. Xander kindly dropped me off back at the motel. He said something about Faith having stayed there before. Didn't surprise me; she seemed like the kind of girl who might stay in dives like that. No disrespect to her, of course. I kind of liked her, even if she was a little intimidating.

I went back to my room and sat down on the bed. The mattress sagged in the middle. Great. I'd be having a brilliant night's sleep there. But Dawn had said something about Buffy maybe not minding if I stayed at their place, so perhaps I could do that. I guess I might as well use the room tonight though, since I've already paid. $20 for a bed, a sheet that might or might not be clean, and use of a communal bathroom. Lovely.

I had a sleep for about an hour, since I was pretty worn out from all the running around I've been doing lately. For the first time in ages I didn't have a nightmare. I guess coming to Sunnydale was a good idea, if only for my mental health.

After my nap, refreshed, I got up and headed over to the Espresso Pump, which faced the motel. Perhaps they were hiring.

There was no one in the coffee shop except for a bored looking guy behind the counter and a brunette girl at a table. I walked up to the counter to ask for an application form and nearly stumbled over the girl's handbag, whose strap was hanging onto the floor.

"Oops," I said, steadying myself against the table. "Sorry about that."

[rhia_talbot]

"Oh, 's alright, my fault." I guess being this exhausted and terrified makes me more kind to people, 'cause I reach down and pick my bag off of the floor and drop it on the table next to me. I look up at the girl. She has an accent from the motherland, like I do.

"God, this is California, I didn't think there would be so many English people here," I say with a half-hearted smile. I'm feeling uncharacteristically lonely and I could definitely use some company. Even if it's some clumsy girl with bed hair. At least we're both from England. It gives us something in common.

[beccawhite]

The girl has a kind of glossy look. Sort of like the gloss my mother has. Or had. I haven't seen her in two years, so how do I know? The look of someone who's used to living a good life. The kind of life I once had.

Plus she's English, which is a surprise.

"You can tell?" I ask. "Most people hardly notice my accent, since it's got all mixed up with American after living in Seattle for six years." Why did I just tell her that? She probably doesn't care. "So, um, how come you're in Sunnydale? It's not really big on the tourist trail," I ask. It would be kind of nice if she's moved here. At least I'd know someone who knew what Rich Tea biscuits were and drank tea instead of coffee all the time. Although I like coffee too. Problem with being not quite English and not quite American, I guess.

[rhia_talbot]

I laugh half-heartedly. "Yeah, I can tell, I've only been in the States a year or so, it's still fresh in my mind. It's not hard to spot."

I take a sip of my coffee and let the warmth and the caffeine wash through me. Feeling better already. Only not until I find... what's-her-name...

"I just came here from New York," I explain to this girl. Maybe she can help me. Although maybe not since she says she's from Seattle. "I'm looking for someone, a girl... has a weird name, and I can't remember it."

[beccawhite]

"I'm looking for someone, a girl... has a weird name, and I can't remember it."

I felt my pulse leap in my throat. Could it be she was here for the same reason I was? She didn't really look like a potential slayer - but then, neither did I.

"You're not, by any chance, looking for Buffy Summers?" I asked. "B-because if so, I know why you're here."

[rhia_talbot]

"Yeah, Buffy, Bunny, whatever-" I stop. If I had a mouthful of coffee, it probably would've gone all over the place right now. Good thing I'd never do something that undignified. Mostly.

I fix this girl with a stare. I don't even know her name, all I know that she's from Seattle and is English and knows what I need to know. "You know her?" I ask, trying not to be too eager or pushy. But... god, small world indeed.

"Did you come here looking for her too?" I ask, my voice is kind of shaking now but I manage to control it. Did someone kill one of her friends too? Did someone try to kill her like they tried to get me?

[beccawhite]

"Yeah," I say, looking at her carefully. I can hear a bit of a tremor in her voice. I think she's scared, and I think I know why.

I look around to check no one is listening in who will decide I'm crazy, then say in a low voice:
"Did they try to kill you? Those... men or demons or whatever they are? Because you're a potential slayer?"

[rhia_talbot]

Once again I start talking before what she said really hits me. "Yeah, they came after me-" I gotta learn not to do that. What can I say? I'm a flawed human being.

"Wait, demons? Potential what?" I look closely at her. What is she talking about? On one hand, demons? What? But she seems to know why I'm here, it's not like it was a very good guess that she made. So I figure I'll just tell her what's going on and we'll talk crazy together.

"They got one of my friends," I say softly, gesturing for her to sit next to me. At least no one else will overhear. "In New York, we weren't close, but she was someone I knew. And I saw her - them - well. You know. But before it happened, this man, he was telling her to go to Sunnydale. And she didn't, and now she's dead."

I pause. I'm completely babbling but it's good to have it out. Even to a complete stranger. And if I sound insane, well, she was the one talking about demons.

"A couple days later, they came after me. I figured they noticed me or something, when my friend... Thank god for boarding school security. I just got the hell out of there, drove clear across the country. Figured if she would've been safe here, I might be too."

I fix this girl with a stare. "Tall guys, dark robes?" Really hoping we're on the same page here.

[beccawhite]

I listen to this girl tell her story. It's familiar in that I'm-terrified sort of way.

"Tall guys, dark robes?"

I nod.
"And a bad case of no eyes," I say grimly. "How do they find us, I wonder? Do they, like, have a great sense of smell?" I hold in a hysterical laugh, because that will make this girl think I'm crazy. I think that this last fortnight has made me a little strange, but I'm not ready to be certified yet. Instead I take a deep breath. "Yeah, they tried to kill me. They got my Watcher." She looks at me blankly - the same way as when I mentioned Potentials. Oh darn. She doesn't know, does she?

"Do you... Do you not know about, um, the Slayer?" I ask timidly. "And Potential Slayers and all that?" It seems she doesn't. "Well, um, you'll probably find what I'm going to say hard to believe, although the whole eyeless murderer thing might have, um, made you more receptive to crazy ideas," I add reflectively. "I'm probably not the best person to explain this, so I'll keep it short. Vampires, demons and all that - they're real," I say awkwardly. I realise how crazy this sounds. "And the person who is, um, appointed to kill them is called the Slayer. Only one at a time. Whole mystical destiny thing. But there are lots of girls who could be slayers. They are potentials. We might get chosen, we might not." I shrug. "I'm guessing you're one. I think that these... robed guys, whoever they are, are trying to kill potentials."

[rhia_talbot]

I have to take a minute to gather all of this information in. Vampires? Demons? The Slayer? Potentials - and me one of them?

"Right. Figures when something really freaky goes down, I don't get the memo." I have to laugh bitterly. This girl could totally be bullshitting some crazy story to me, but I don't think she is. I think she's telling the truth, or at least she believes it herself.

"So okay. There's a girl, chosen to fight evil and whatever, and then there are other girls who might be chosen? And it could be me, or you, or some random chick in Romania? And these guys, they somehow know who all the Potentials are, even when the girls themselves don't know, and are trying to kill them? And Buffy - I'm gonna guess she's the Slayer."

I pause. This sounds like the plot of a bad B-rate horror movie. Except I saw my friend get killed, I almost went under myself, and it's not a movie. I'm in Sunnydale and it's all very real.

"Holy shit," I say softly, staring at my empty coffee cup. I'm gonna need something stronger if I have to deal with this stuff.

[beccawhite]

"Shit is right," I say. I look at her sidelong. She's taking this better than I thought. She hasn't laughed and said I'm crazy, and she hasn't gone hysterical. These are good signs.

"Yeah, I don't know how these guys know we're all potentials. Not even the Council knows. The Council is the organisation meant to be in charge of the Slayer," I say hastily. "They track down potentials too and assign them watchers. They don't always find us, though. The world's pretty big. And you're right ,Buffy's the Slayer." I wonder whether to complicate this with telling her about Faith, but decide now isn't the right time.

"You know what?" I observe after a minute of silence. "I never introduced myself. I'm Rebecca White, but people call me Becca."

[rhia_talbot]

"Hi, I'm Rhiannon Talbot," I reply, glancing over at her, not very enthusiastic. Not her fault, just my mind still stuck on the bit about the demons and the vampires and the potential slayers. "But people call me Rhia."

Old name, old money. Nobody recognizes it here, and that's what I wanted, right? To get away from my parents and just be my own person, not 'one of the legacy' or such. I can't help but laugh. This is pretty far away from them and everything that I knew. Somehow I don't think 'potential slayer' was on their list of occupations for me.

"So something out there's trying to kill us," I say slowly. "And so is Buffy going to protect us?"" I don't think it's really going to hit me until I meet this Buffy. Or see a vampire or something. Of course, I could always just think that this whole town's on drugs. Doesn't change the fact that someone tried to kill me, but I'm sure there's a more reasonable explanation than... this.

"Oh, god, I need tea," I groan. Coffee just isn't cutting it.

[beccawhite]

Talbot... The name rings a vague bell. My parents probably went to one of their parties or something. Rhia looks like the kind of girl who would have posh parents my family would like.

"Nice to meet you," I say.

She asks if Buffy will protect us. I shrug.
"I guess. It's, um, sort of her deal, stopping evil. I-I hope she can help anyway. Those... things looked pretty strong," I say softly, looking down at my hands. Memories of Geoffrey's body broken on the floor come to mind. His face had been a mass of blood.

"I miss tea," I say. "The only stuff they have in these places is usually herbal." I grimace. "Geoffrey - that was my watcher - got our tea specially imported from the Motherland," I smile. "I have a packet in my room. There's a kettle up there too. It's kind of an icky place though," I add. "I'm just staying in the motel over there and I don't think it's been cleaned since the 80s. But I'd be happy to brew up some tea in the kitchenette if you want to risk it."

[rhia_talbot]

I watch the emotions change over Becca's face and feel bad for her. This Geoffrey guy, her watcher, they must've been close. I mean, I don't think she came to Seattle for boarding school. And now he was dead and some eyeless freaks were after us.

"We can still get it shipped here," I suggest when she talks about tea. I haven't been away from England long enough to be fully Americanized, and I've always liked tea, it wasn't just a habit. "Of course, we'd need an address to get it shipped too..."

I glance across the street at the motel and wrinkle my nose. I can't help it. I'm spoiled, I admit it. Even Becca herself said it was icky and I doubt she's used to the high standards that I am. Was. Wild guess, but I guess that life is behind me.

"Look, isn't there a better place here in town? I don't fancy risking good tea to waste in a place like that. If it hasn't been cleaned for as long as you say, there's probably mice in the kettle or something. Let's find a better place." She looks at me and I shrug. Okay, so I'm flashing Daddy's plastic, so what? I figure it's a worthy cause for once. "Besides, don't people die more in shady places like that?"

[beccawhite]

I almost roll my eyes at Rhia but don't, because, well, I'm polite and also she's also been scared, and I don't want to lose a potential friend. She's obviously led quite a privileged life though, and although I too was quite well off until recently, a couple of weeks of living rough had made me less fussy.

"Well," I say carefully, "I would've stayed somewhere fancier, but I have about $20 to my name now." A worry line creases my forehead. "I was actually coming in here to see if they were hiring, because I doubt any money is going to fall into my lap soon. I could get in touch with my parents, but..." I shrug. "I haven't seen them in two years and I think that's how they like it. Besides, I'd have to explain to them that my watcher's dead and then they'd probably want to send me to boarding school, which isn't really me." I'm rambling. I'm sure Rhia isn't that interested in my back story. "But I can help you look for somewhere to stay, if you like," I offer. "I hitched my way in and I noticed a hotel which looked like it had a couple of stars at least tagged to it."

[rhia_talbot]

Okay. So she's broke. But she doesn't get it. I'm not. Or at least, my parents aren't. And I can tell that she probably doesn't want to accept money from almost-strangers, but sometimes you just have to do stuff you don't want to do. I reach out and grab for my purse.

"Didn't like boarding school either, huh?" I remark off-handedly. Well, that gives us something else in common. On a very short list, but we'll just have to deal with that. "Look, my parents - well, I can imagine they're something like yours, with wanting us away and all." I pause. "Only mine? They'll fork over any amount of cash to make sure that I'm away and not coming back for anything. So this hotel room, it's on me. I'd rather both of us stayed in a place with at least some door security." I look at her, eyes narrowed. Like hell I'm going to leave her alone in a place like this. "Consider it my parents' contribution to us not dying."