Sixteenth Spool of Thread-[Voice]

[so_shik]

Um...guys? Just a heads-up that All Passions will be temporarily closed for a little while. I'll still take orders and make things, but I won't physically be at the shop for a long time, not until I can be mobile again anyway. Sorry for that.

Buffy, looks like we're going to have to postpone the lake-date for a while, but how about you drop by House #10 for dinner sometime this week to make up for it?

...actually I think it might be okay if anybody who needed something made or just wanted to talk to me can drop by House #10 during the day, so there's that too. Such an inconvenience, sorry again.

Comments

[so_shik]

As vampires? No, never. They always looked pretty human to me when I saw them, but hen again I've only seen them once or twice each. Why?

[herotypical]

When a vampire is drawing on his full strength, or feeding on someone--or, just being creepy? They get these scrunched up foreheads and beady yellow eyes. Oh, and the fangs. It's a sight to see.

[so_shik]

Are you kidding me!? That sounds completely gross.

[herotypical]

Yeah, it's not pleasant. I've only met one vamp who could do the fang thing without the alarming facial features. Otherwise, it seems to be a package deal.

Oh, also? If the face thing isn't going on, it's not too difficult to spot a vamp by his fashion sense. Just keep an eye on the ones who look like they've been living underground for the last few decades. They never quite get trends.

[so_shik]

See that might make me assume a lot of people are vampires though with the way some people dress...but that's a good thing to be aware of.

So...like in Angel's case, he's not really dangerous unless he's going all Angelus on us, is he?

[herotypical]

Right now, he has all the same abilities as Angelus--super strength, super hearing, super healing, super smell, super lots of things. But he's not actually a threat to anyone good so long as he has his soul. He fights evil, though. So, I guess he's still dangerous to evil types?

[so_shik]

Well considering I'm not an evil type, I guess that's okay.

[herotypical]

But there is a less-than-good vamp hanging around these parts. I can't remember if I've mentioned her before, or maybe you've met her? Only, I hope you haven't met her. She's this terrifying mix of evil and absolutely insane. Her name is Drusilla--back when Angel was still Angelus, he turned her into a vampire.

She's cruising for a bruising, if you ask me. If I could just actually find her, I'd stake her myself. But if you run into her, please run the other way. She's kookier than a bus full of monkeys.

[so_shik]

On the bright side, I haven't met her. I generally try to stay away from the crazy ones. What's wrong with her, exactly?

[herotypical]

Besides the nasty vampirism? Well, back when he was pre-soul, Angel--or, Angelus, rather--sorta maybe kinda applied enough emotional torture to the girl, before turning her, to send even the soberest judge to crazyville.

[She shakes her head.] It's not really the nicest story.

[so_shik]

...and how exactly did somebody like you get sucked into all of this?

[herotypical]

[Honesty time! It had to come, sooner or later.]

I'm a vampire slayer. Previously the vampire slayer. As in, one and only. But now, there's more than one of us. Long story, really.

[so_shik]

I remember you told me the vampire slayer part, but I didn't think that meant you were the Slayer. There's more than one of you now though right? That should at least make it easier...and you don't have to tell the long story if you don't want to, I'll just take your word on it.

[herotypical]

When I was fifteen, a stuffy old English guy--a different one, this time--came up to me and told me that I was the Slayer. The one girl in all the world charged with protecting humanity from the vampires and the demons and the other things that go bumpity in the night. It's like a destiny thing, inescapable. I never picked the Slayer gig, it picked me. There was only supposed to be one for each generation so when one Slayer died, and they had pretty often expiration dates, another one would be called. Well, like I told you before? I've died. So that's when another girl was called and there were two of us. Then she died--Drusilla killed her, actually. And Faith was called into Slayerdom, she's the other woman living with Angel and me.

But about a year and a half ago, my friend Willow cast a spell, activating the potential Slayers around the world. All one thousand and eight hundred of them.

[so_shik]

...that...is insane. So now all one thousand and eight hundred of the slayers in existence are, well, existing and fighting bad guys? Talk about a support system.

[herotypical]

Five hundred are under my personal command at our headquarters in Scotland. Other squads are are in Italy, England, Chicago...other places, too. But there are a lot of rogue girls. Some who don't take kindly to our organization and others who just don't realize what they are, yet.

So, as you can see, I'm not exactly too fussed about getting a little vacation from my world. Essentially, I was a glorified babysitter for a bunch of super strong teenage girls.

[so_shik]

...yeeeah definitely can't say I blame you at all. Sounds more like a nightmare than a help. At least here you're down to one...well two, if you count this Faith chick. And last time I checked, the vampire count was down too.

[herotypical]

Yep, considering the odds used to be a world full of vamps versus little old me, these new numbers aren't exactly disheartening. The tough part is how many of the vampires around here claim to be good. Angel and Spike were massive exceptions to the rule. I don't trust any of them.

[so_shik]

How many other vampires are here?

[herotypical]

I've met four, besides the ones from my world.

[so_shik]

Wow, somehow I completely missed that.

[herotypical]

Well, two of them break the normal vamp rules by being able to go outside in the sunlight. How disgustingly overpowered is that?

One of them's named Edward--the other? Eeh, I don't think I got her name.

[so_shik]

...you probably mean Rosalie. I met her when she first got here, kinda vain but she is really pretty.

[herotypical]

Pretty? I guess. For an undead thing.

[Don't mind her--she's been groomed to hate vampires. But it's not just spite. There's also a healthy dose of apprehension in there. The vampires from Rosalie's world are way out of Buffy's league, and that alarms her.]

[so_shik]

...maaaybe we should talk about something less morbid.