jedibuttercup

PG-15; B:tVS, DOOM. 400 words. (Part 20/21 of the Handle ID Slayer series).

The peaceful sounds of nature were a pleasant shock after the violent chaos of battle.

Title: Welcome Home
Author: Jedi Buttercup
Disclaimer: The words are mine; the worlds are not. I claim nothing but the plot.
Rating: PG-15
TtH Prompt: #12, Sunshine
Summary: The peaceful sounds of nature were a pleasant shock after the violent chaos of battle. 400 words.
Spoilers: B:tVS post-"Chosen"; "DOOM" (2005)
Notes: Movieverse. 20th of 21 posts in the Handle ID Slayer flashfic sequence.

The warmth of sunlight was a welcome caress on Buffy's skin as she, Sam and Reaper popped into existence on the lawn behind Willow's house in England. The metallic taste of blood in the air was suddenly drowned out by the sweet scents of crushed grass and old-fashioned roses, and the peaceful sounds of nature were a pleasant shock after the violent chaos of battle. Buffy breathed out a huge sigh of relief, then sat down heavily, fighting to stay upright as the adrenaline stopped flowing and the energy-drain of quick healing took its toll. She felt kind of like a puppet whose strings had been suddenly cut.

John was still unconscious, but his color was better; Buffy's only other experiences with Chromosome 24 before Olduvai were all magically induced and Slayer-related, so she had no idea what his recovery timeline should be like, but if the mutation rate from the UAC tests was any clue it would probably take at least another half-hour before any change was apparent.

She had to say, now that she'd seen the original template? She couldn't imagine how the Shadow Men had got their hands on a "demon" in the first place, never mind how they'd discovered they could use magic to transfer its "gifts" to selected people to create superheroes. Their imperfect understanding of genetics had mucked up the results, making C24 only partially effective in most Slayers, but the fact that they'd done it at all was disturbingly impressive. She had to wonder what their failure rate had been like.

Sam had gone quiet, a little wild-eyed but mostly focused on her brother; Buffy was grateful for the lack of hysteria. She knew Sam must have all kinds of questions, but comforting and making with the explanations weren't exactly core Buffy skills, especially when she was exhausted and recovering from a head wound.

The tapping sound of a cane on flagstone caught Buffy's attention, and she looked up to see Willow herself coming out to greet them. The witch's hair had gone completely white over the years and her face was marked by hard-won experience, but she was still beautiful.

"Buffy," she said cheerfully. "You're back early-- and all in once piece! And I see you've brought..." Her eyes widened dramatically as she took in the Grimms. "Oh, goddess. They really are his, aren't they?"

Buffy replied with a wobbly, bittersweet smile.

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