Chapter 21 - Lessons

So. She was a Slayer.

Correction. The Slayer. And it was her sacred duty to slay vampires. Right.

Contrary to what one might think, Buffy had no problem in believing this; however, completely accepting it was another thing entirely. And while certain bizarre things had been happening lately, she had been kind of hoping to leave the bizarre behind, sometime at least.

But it looked like she wasn’t getting out of this Chosen thing.

And well, she sort of believed in fate, so surely there was a reason for it to be her. So she’d flipped though the books, trying to get an idea of what she was getting into.

Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. She could take it slow or something.

Wesley had left her to it, going into his office and messing with paperwork. Around noon, Fred had brought Chinese food by, and after being informed of Buffy’s new status, asked her how she was.

“Okay, I guess,” she said. “A little overwhelmed.”

“I’ve never met a Slayer before.”

“I’m still the same.” Buffy shrugged. “Besides, I’m sure it’s not that big a deal.”

“But it is,” Wesley said. “One girl in—”

“In all the world,” Buffy finished for him. “Yeah, I read that part.”

“And?”

“I guess I can try it.”

It seemed like Wesley wanted to say something else, but he didn’t speak.

“So,” Buffy said, picking through her takeout, “Vampires, the 411. Sunlight, beheading, or a stake through the heart. And they don’t like crosses.”

“They can also be killed by fire, and are vulnerable to holy water and certain other consecrated items. However, staking is the most common method. That or a crossbow, which is the equivalent. There is nothing mystical about the stake itself, it’s merely wood though the heart.”

“Wesley did one with a chair leg once,” Fred put in.

“Right,” Buffy said. “And you become a vampire if you suck their blood—after they suck most of yours, of course. A whole big sucking thing.”

“Correct,” he said. “Vampires also need an invitation to enter a residence, though not public buildings such as this. You should never invite someone in, especially after dark, and especially now that you’re the Slayer. However, the silent, open-palmed ‘this way’ gesture is not enough for a vampire to enter.”

“Right.”

“Every night a vampire walks someone dies, Buffy,” he said seriously. “It’s your duty to prevent that as much as possible.”

“I know. Really. I’m just still dealing.”

“In addition to strength, you will find that you heal much faster, as well as have increased coordination and skills. And though you’ll still need to learn techniques and weapons, you now have quick adaptation and a natural ability. You need to train, but mastery will by no means take years.” He paused. “Why don’t we try a few things out?”

“Uh, sure. Where?”

Wesley stood and gestured to a door at the side of his office door. He unlocked it and they went in. There were several mats on the floor and weapons of all shapes and sizes lining the far wall. Crossbows, axes, swords—

“You have permits for all these?”

“Not as such.”

He pointed to a punching bag suspended from the ceiling. “Try it out.”

Buffy punched the bag several times, finishing with one that had it rocking on its chains. “Wow.”

“Indeed. Why don’t we start with the basics? A stake is the simplest method, and a stake is fairly easy to conceal on your person. While it’s sometimes difficult for an ordinary person to use a stake, you should have no trouble doing so with Slayer strength.”

Buffy picked up a stake from a table and tossed it around, marveling at how easy it was to twirl. She hadn’t exactly been clumsy before, but it was suddenly nothing to flip the stake in her hands or spin it up in the air and catch it.

“Hit them in the heart,” she said. “Got it.”

Wesley took the stake away from her. “And do you know where the heart is?”

“Well, yeah. Who doesn’t?”

“Hit me in the heart.”

Buffy jabbed him with two fingers.

“To the left.”

She poked him again.

“Lower.”

“Okay, fine. You win.”

He took her hand and placed it on his chest. “This is directly above the heart.” He let her hand drop. “Fred, come here for a moment, please.” Wesley turned Fred around and pointed to a spot on her back. “This is where you would stab to hit the heart from behind. You need to be able to find both instantly and without hesitation. You won’t get a second chance in the field. Now, just let me set up the camera.” He fiddled with some keys and unlocked a file cabinet.

“Camera?”

“It will help us to see your strengths and weaknesses, monitor your fighting style as you progress…” Setting the camera on top of several books, he checked the angle. “There. Now—”

Wesley handed her a thin, yellow foam cylinder.

Buffy raised an eyebrow. “Is this from a Nerf gun?”

“Yes, well—”

“How do you think I learned to shoot the crossbow?” Fred asked. “Wesley made me practice on him.”

“It seemed the least dangerous way to hit a moving target, for Fred and the target. For now, it’s your stake. And we’re your vampires.”

For the next few hours, Buffy ‘staked’ Fred and Wesley, until he felt confident that she was hitting the heart unerringly. They moved on to some basic moves and techniques, which were then combined with the staking. She was pleasantly surprised that taking gymnastics until she was thirteen was coming in useful. And hey, she might not be able to do the full splits like she could when she was a cheerleader, but with her newfound strength, doing a back flip was turning into doable again. And she was all over the handstands. Not that handstands would probably help with the slaying, but it was encouraging nonetheless.

She spent the entire day there, and after a dinner of Chinese leftovers, she promised to come by for the rest of the week. Wesley said they would begin other weapons tomorrow or the day after.

“Until then, however, take this.” He handed her a stake. “You probably won’t need it yet, but you should always be prepared.”

Buffy tucked the stake into her purse.

“Okay. See you guys.”

Walking to her car, she was caught by surprise when two vampires tried to grab her. She gave a half-scream before something clicked and she reached into her bag. She gripped the stake and drove it home in an instant. The vampire exploded into a cloud of dust, something she’d known would happen, but wasn’t completely prepared for.

She didn’t miss a beat, however. Still running on instinct, Buffy spun around and rammed the stake through the heart of the other vampire, watching in satisfaction as he also turned to dust. There was another burst from behind her, and she saw Wesley at the door with a crossbow. He’d shot a third one who had been hanging in the shadows and preparing to jump into the fray.

“I did it!” she exclaimed. “Did you see that? I just did it, like I knew or something.”

“You did well.”

“Those seemed like the same ones from the alley. Or, sort of.”

“It seems they go after girls before they’re Slayers, as they were attempting to do with you.” He looked like he wanted to say something else, but didn’t. “I got it from a source,” he finally said. “Keep on the alert, but I doubt they’ll be back now that you’ve been called. As well as the fact that we took out three of their number.”

Physically and mentally exhausted from everything that had happened that day, Buffy drove home and immersed herself in a hot bath. As she dried off, she noticed that the bruise on her neck had already completely disappeared.

-----
-
-
-
Sunnydale, 16 hours earlier:

“Any last words, Faithy?”

“Fuck you.”

“Again?” He laughed. “Well, going out with a bang always was my favorite.”