The Runaway Slayer Part One
Title: The Runaway Slayer
Fandom: TGWTG
Characters: Linkara, Spoony, Rachel, Jaeris, Snob, Scarlett, Critic
Rating: PG
Warnings: Allusions to sexuality
Summary: She never thought she’d actually do it. But she did, and she can’t stop running.
Notes: Rachel created by achika_chan. Used by permission. This story takes place after the “ How It Would Have Ended” summary.
“Are you sure about this?”
“Yes. I can’t stay here anymore. I have to warn him.”
“Once you climb out that window, you know you can never come back.”
“I know.” She glanced around before tossing her bag down to him. “They were saying the city’s enchanted. That no one from either the Order or the High Council can get in anymore.”
“I’ve heard that too. Do you think we can?”
“I’m not fully trained, so I don’t count. And you’re not on the High Council, so you probably don’t either.”
“True.” He held out his arms and she leapt lightly down. He caught her gracefully. It would have been romantic if she wasn’t so scared. “Okay,” he said, setting her on her feet. “Let’s get going before someone catches you.”
She picked up her bag and took his hand. With another glance around, they started running.
And they wouldn’t stop until they reached safety.
*
Linkara was not in a good mood. Spoony could see that from the moment he stepped into the Denny’s. Maybe letting him check over the protection spells on his own hadn’t been a good idea. The Slayer stomped over to the table and threw himself in his usual place next to Spoony, laying his head on his arms.
“If anyone even mentions ‘Baconalia,’ they are getting a stake in the heart,” he grumbled.
“Okay, what’s wrong?” Spoony asked, waiving the waitress over.
“Protection spell’s not as strong as I thought,” Linkara answered, raising his head and sitting up.
“Meaning?”
“It’s holding, but if they pool their resources and hit it hard enough, they might be able to break through,” he answered. “We can probably reinforce it, but it’s gonna take a lot of effort and we’ll have to find everyone who helped cast it in the first place.”
“Great,” Spoony muttered. “How long do we have before it entirely breaks down?”
“Hard to say,” Linkara answered. “Since it was cast somewhat hastily, it probably won’t be very long.”
“How likely is it that we’ll be attacked, though?” Scarlett asked. “Since they were driven out…”
“We can’t risk it,” Spoony snapped. “The Order and the High Council still aren’t happy with us, and if they thought they could break through, wipe us out, and take back the city, they would do it. Snob, have your vassals gather up everyone we need so we can reinforce it. Have them all in court tomorrow.” Snob nodded and Spoony turned back to Linkara. “Anything else?”
“Not that I saw,” Linkara answered. “But I’ll be keeping a closer eye on anything…”
The bell on the door rang. Normally, no one would have looked up, but as soon as the door had closed, every vampire had whirled around and was staring at the new arrivals. Linkara looked up when he noticed no one was paying him any attention and his eyes widened.
“Rachel?” he called.
The girl’s face, which had been terrified a moment before when she was the center of attention to a large group of vampires, resolved into sharp relief as she grabbed the hand of the pale boy beside her and pulled him toward the table. “Linkara!” she gasped. “Thank God I found you!”
Linkara stood up and caught the girl as she fell, sobbing, into his arms. “Hey… hey, it’s all right… you’re safe now…” He shot a warning glance at all the vampires. “What are you doing? How did you get here? Are you hurt at all?”
“Friend of yours, Linkara?” Spoony asked, his voice tight. Linkara released Rachel as he remembered where they were.
“Yes… Spoony, this is Rachel, a… former trainee from the Order.” He smiled reassuringly at the girl. “Rachel, this is Vampire Lord Spoony.”
Spoony smiled mockingly as he took Rachel’s hand and kissed it gallantly. “Enchanted,” he said. He glanced at the boy. “And this is…?”
The boy stepped forward and made a proper bow to the vampire lord. “My name is Jaeris,” he said quietly. “And I humbly ask to join your court.”
Spoony and Linkara exchanged a look. “Why are you asking to join my court?” Spoony asked, every inch the Vampire Lord.
“We ran away,” Rachel said quietly. “I overheard the Elders plotting to take back the city… and… they weren’t intent on letting either of you live. I had to come… and Jaeris agreed to bring me here… we can’t go back. The Order and the High Council will be hunting us.”
Spoony nodded. “Thank you for the warning, Rachel,” he said. “I will consider your request and give you an answer tomorrow night.”
“Do you have somewhere to stay?” Linkara asked.
They shook their heads sheepishly. Linkara nudged Spoony, who sighed. “Snob, can you take these two in for the day?”
“Of course,” Snob answered. He smiled, and Rachel seemed to shrink at the sight of his fangs. “I’ll take good care of them.”
“Good,” Spoony snapped. “We’ll be holding court at the manor tomorrow to check the protections and decide this matter. Send word out that everyone is to be there, and I do mean everyone. Understood?” The vampires all nodded. “Good. Dismissed!”
The assembled court rose and left a few at a time. Snob gestured to Rachel and Jaeris, who followed him, Rachel throwing a fearful glance at Linkara as she went. The slayer smiled reassuringly at her.
Spoony and Linkara watched the others go before Spoony paid the bill and they headed back to the mansion. As they walked, Spoony looked at Linkara. “Okay, Linkara, what’s the deal with that girl?”
Linkara sighed. “Trainee from the Order. Seventeen years old. Lot of promise, but a bit rebellious. Last time I saw her, she confessed to sneaking out and meeting a vampire boy. And apparently, she’s decided to pursue it.” He looked at Spoony. “You can’t throw them out. They have nowhere to go.”
“I know that,” Spoony muttered. “But I’m not sure they should stay. Human girl, vampire boy… Linkara, you realize what could happen…”
“I know. But we’ve dealt with dhampirs before. If they’re under control…”
“If I allow them to stay, to join my court, and to have children, we’ll be overrun. Not just from them, from everyone who wants to escape from the Order or the High Council. They’ll all come here. The city will become a breeding ground for everything that passes through. And not just vampires, either. If I allow them refuge, there will be all sorts of shit coming in. Werewolves and Fae and Santa Christ knows what else.”
“There’s already a lot of weird people here,” Linkara pointed out. “And this is already a breeding ground for all of it. Besides, you can’t turn everyone away. They’ve come to us, they’ve asked to be a part of the court.”
“He asked. She’s not going to be.”
“Why not?” Linkara asked. “It’s not just your court anymore. We run it together.”
“Why do you want them to stay?”
Linkara was silent for a moment. “She’s my responsibility,” he finally said. “I encouraged her, I gave her advice. If it’s anyone’s fault that they’re here, it’s mine.” He sighed. “And… I’m not going to live forever, Spoony. You know that. And if something happens to me, there should be another slayer here. I can finish training her so she can take over when I’m gone.”
“We did fine without a slayer before.”
“The city was a mess and you know it. And if there’s no slayer here, you’ll be easy prey to every hunter and slayer and rogue vampire out there, even with the protection spell. You need to have someone here. And if they do have children…”
“Are you saying you’re going to start your own Order?”
Linkara shrugged. “It would be different. We’d follow your rules over the Order’s, and there would be more grey morality… and dhampir slayers would have an advantage, wouldn’t they? They live longer, and they have more abilities…”
“I don’t like it, Linkara. Having a lot of dhampirs around would attract a lot of attention.”
“It won’t be soon. She’s only seventeen; I doubt she has babies on her mind.” He looked at Spoony seriously. “They won’t last out there. Even if you choose not to let them be part of your court, you can’t throw them out of town. And if they’re not part of your court, they’re out of your control.”
Spoony nodded. “I know.” He was silent as they returned home and went upstairs. As they climbed into bed, he said, “There can’t be any children until we’re sure the protection will hold. And they have to follow our rules.”
Linkara smiled. “So they stay?”
“They stay.”
Fandom: TGWTG
Characters: Linkara, Spoony, Rachel, Jaeris, Snob, Scarlett, Critic
Rating: PG
Warnings: Allusions to sexuality
Summary: She never thought she’d actually do it. But she did, and she can’t stop running.
Notes: Rachel created by achika_chan. Used by permission. This story takes place after the “ How It Would Have Ended” summary.
“Are you sure about this?”
“Yes. I can’t stay here anymore. I have to warn him.”
“Once you climb out that window, you know you can never come back.”
“I know.” She glanced around before tossing her bag down to him. “They were saying the city’s enchanted. That no one from either the Order or the High Council can get in anymore.”
“I’ve heard that too. Do you think we can?”
“I’m not fully trained, so I don’t count. And you’re not on the High Council, so you probably don’t either.”
“True.” He held out his arms and she leapt lightly down. He caught her gracefully. It would have been romantic if she wasn’t so scared. “Okay,” he said, setting her on her feet. “Let’s get going before someone catches you.”
She picked up her bag and took his hand. With another glance around, they started running.
And they wouldn’t stop until they reached safety.
*
Linkara was not in a good mood. Spoony could see that from the moment he stepped into the Denny’s. Maybe letting him check over the protection spells on his own hadn’t been a good idea. The Slayer stomped over to the table and threw himself in his usual place next to Spoony, laying his head on his arms.
“If anyone even mentions ‘Baconalia,’ they are getting a stake in the heart,” he grumbled.
“Okay, what’s wrong?” Spoony asked, waiving the waitress over.
“Protection spell’s not as strong as I thought,” Linkara answered, raising his head and sitting up.
“Meaning?”
“It’s holding, but if they pool their resources and hit it hard enough, they might be able to break through,” he answered. “We can probably reinforce it, but it’s gonna take a lot of effort and we’ll have to find everyone who helped cast it in the first place.”
“Great,” Spoony muttered. “How long do we have before it entirely breaks down?”
“Hard to say,” Linkara answered. “Since it was cast somewhat hastily, it probably won’t be very long.”
“How likely is it that we’ll be attacked, though?” Scarlett asked. “Since they were driven out…”
“We can’t risk it,” Spoony snapped. “The Order and the High Council still aren’t happy with us, and if they thought they could break through, wipe us out, and take back the city, they would do it. Snob, have your vassals gather up everyone we need so we can reinforce it. Have them all in court tomorrow.” Snob nodded and Spoony turned back to Linkara. “Anything else?”
“Not that I saw,” Linkara answered. “But I’ll be keeping a closer eye on anything…”
The bell on the door rang. Normally, no one would have looked up, but as soon as the door had closed, every vampire had whirled around and was staring at the new arrivals. Linkara looked up when he noticed no one was paying him any attention and his eyes widened.
“Rachel?” he called.
The girl’s face, which had been terrified a moment before when she was the center of attention to a large group of vampires, resolved into sharp relief as she grabbed the hand of the pale boy beside her and pulled him toward the table. “Linkara!” she gasped. “Thank God I found you!”
Linkara stood up and caught the girl as she fell, sobbing, into his arms. “Hey… hey, it’s all right… you’re safe now…” He shot a warning glance at all the vampires. “What are you doing? How did you get here? Are you hurt at all?”
“Friend of yours, Linkara?” Spoony asked, his voice tight. Linkara released Rachel as he remembered where they were.
“Yes… Spoony, this is Rachel, a… former trainee from the Order.” He smiled reassuringly at the girl. “Rachel, this is Vampire Lord Spoony.”
Spoony smiled mockingly as he took Rachel’s hand and kissed it gallantly. “Enchanted,” he said. He glanced at the boy. “And this is…?”
The boy stepped forward and made a proper bow to the vampire lord. “My name is Jaeris,” he said quietly. “And I humbly ask to join your court.”
Spoony and Linkara exchanged a look. “Why are you asking to join my court?” Spoony asked, every inch the Vampire Lord.
“We ran away,” Rachel said quietly. “I overheard the Elders plotting to take back the city… and… they weren’t intent on letting either of you live. I had to come… and Jaeris agreed to bring me here… we can’t go back. The Order and the High Council will be hunting us.”
Spoony nodded. “Thank you for the warning, Rachel,” he said. “I will consider your request and give you an answer tomorrow night.”
“Do you have somewhere to stay?” Linkara asked.
They shook their heads sheepishly. Linkara nudged Spoony, who sighed. “Snob, can you take these two in for the day?”
“Of course,” Snob answered. He smiled, and Rachel seemed to shrink at the sight of his fangs. “I’ll take good care of them.”
“Good,” Spoony snapped. “We’ll be holding court at the manor tomorrow to check the protections and decide this matter. Send word out that everyone is to be there, and I do mean everyone. Understood?” The vampires all nodded. “Good. Dismissed!”
The assembled court rose and left a few at a time. Snob gestured to Rachel and Jaeris, who followed him, Rachel throwing a fearful glance at Linkara as she went. The slayer smiled reassuringly at her.
Spoony and Linkara watched the others go before Spoony paid the bill and they headed back to the mansion. As they walked, Spoony looked at Linkara. “Okay, Linkara, what’s the deal with that girl?”
Linkara sighed. “Trainee from the Order. Seventeen years old. Lot of promise, but a bit rebellious. Last time I saw her, she confessed to sneaking out and meeting a vampire boy. And apparently, she’s decided to pursue it.” He looked at Spoony. “You can’t throw them out. They have nowhere to go.”
“I know that,” Spoony muttered. “But I’m not sure they should stay. Human girl, vampire boy… Linkara, you realize what could happen…”
“I know. But we’ve dealt with dhampirs before. If they’re under control…”
“If I allow them to stay, to join my court, and to have children, we’ll be overrun. Not just from them, from everyone who wants to escape from the Order or the High Council. They’ll all come here. The city will become a breeding ground for everything that passes through. And not just vampires, either. If I allow them refuge, there will be all sorts of shit coming in. Werewolves and Fae and Santa Christ knows what else.”
“There’s already a lot of weird people here,” Linkara pointed out. “And this is already a breeding ground for all of it. Besides, you can’t turn everyone away. They’ve come to us, they’ve asked to be a part of the court.”
“He asked. She’s not going to be.”
“Why not?” Linkara asked. “It’s not just your court anymore. We run it together.”
“Why do you want them to stay?”
Linkara was silent for a moment. “She’s my responsibility,” he finally said. “I encouraged her, I gave her advice. If it’s anyone’s fault that they’re here, it’s mine.” He sighed. “And… I’m not going to live forever, Spoony. You know that. And if something happens to me, there should be another slayer here. I can finish training her so she can take over when I’m gone.”
“We did fine without a slayer before.”
“The city was a mess and you know it. And if there’s no slayer here, you’ll be easy prey to every hunter and slayer and rogue vampire out there, even with the protection spell. You need to have someone here. And if they do have children…”
“Are you saying you’re going to start your own Order?”
Linkara shrugged. “It would be different. We’d follow your rules over the Order’s, and there would be more grey morality… and dhampir slayers would have an advantage, wouldn’t they? They live longer, and they have more abilities…”
“I don’t like it, Linkara. Having a lot of dhampirs around would attract a lot of attention.”
“It won’t be soon. She’s only seventeen; I doubt she has babies on her mind.” He looked at Spoony seriously. “They won’t last out there. Even if you choose not to let them be part of your court, you can’t throw them out of town. And if they’re not part of your court, they’re out of your control.”
Spoony nodded. “I know.” He was silent as they returned home and went upstairs. As they climbed into bed, he said, “There can’t be any children until we’re sure the protection will hold. And they have to follow our rules.”
Linkara smiled. “So they stay?”
“They stay.”