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When we arrive at the library, I try to hang back. I am no longer sure of my choice to tell Giles. Angel notices this and tells the girls to go on in, we'd join them shortly. Buffy and Willow both nod, then go into the library, leaving Angel and myself in the hall alone.
" Dru, come on. It's time to try to find out what's happening to you. I know that you're scared, but you need to face your fears now." He takes my hand and leads me into the library. I want to run, but Angel refuses to let me go.
Giles looks up as Angel and I walk in. He reaches for the stake that's on the table quickly. Buffy notices it and steps between us. " Buffy, move. I need to stop her."
" Giles, please hold on. Give me a second to explain why Dru is here before you attack her. It was my idea that she be here when we spoke to you about this. There is something odd that has occurred, and we were hoping that you could help explain it. Dru has been in town for about two weeks now, and hasn't fed off of a human yet. She also let me go when Spike captured me for a present for her. I admit, I'm not fond of her being here, but I also don't like unanswered questions. And right now, I have lots of them. Won't you please help us to find the answers? I doubt she'll attack anyway. Yesterday, Willow returned her soul to her. I know, I was there."
Giles watches Buffy carefully, then he looks at me. " I want you to move, Buffy, right now. She has you believing what you want to believe about her. She has that ability."
" Giles, please, just talk to her, let her explain. You know that I wouldn't do a spell on anyone without their permission. Curses, yes, but not a spell. Dru can tell you everything better that any of the rest of us could. Please, Giles, try?"
He looks to Willow noticing her reactions to everything, then back to Buffy. He is still tense, still convinced that I have done something to both of them. I can see it in his eyes, the anger and some confusion. I slowly start towards Buffy. Angel still has a hold of my hand and tries to hold me back. I turn towards him and nod my head. " I have to Angel. It's the only way." I whisper to him. He nods and slowly lets go of my hand.
I walk up behind Buffy and place a hand gently on her shoulder. She tenses at first, the relaxes once she realizes I mean her no harm. " Let me try, Buffy. Go ahead and sit down. I will just talk to him and explain things. I have to try. It may be the only way to get him to understand. If he attacks me, it's ok. " I speak softly to Buffy so that I don't startle her. She glances over her shoulder at me, then heads over to the table to sit next to Willow.
Angel picks a chair up and brings it over to where I'm standing. He sets it down behind me. I take a seat and watch as he joins the others at the table. I look at Giles, he hasn't made a move towards me yet, at least that's good. ' Well, I started this, might as well finish it. ' I think.
" Giles, I can understand you reaction to my being here. I remember what I did to you to get you to tell me about Acathla. I'm sorry. I know that causing you to remember Jenny and to see her turn into me was torture. I have done a lot of things to make you hate me, including the killing of a slayer, Kendra. I can't change what I've done to everyone, but I am experiencing some changes. I don't understand then, but it is happening. I haven't harmed anyone here or on the street since I got here. If you still wish to stake me and leave the questions that your slayer has unanswered, be my guest. I won't fight you. But if you want to help her answer those questions, then I am the only one who can give you the information needed to start you research.
Giles is still watching me as I finish speaking. His face betrays him. I can tell he is quite shocked with the clarity of my sentences and thoughts that I just used. He slowly sets the stake on the table, then takes a seat near Angel. He doesn't say anything about what was said for quite a while. He looks into the faces of everyone seated near him. When he finally looks at me again the shock is gone and appears to be replaced with curiosity. "You made sense, Dru. You used words that made sense. It is something I never thought possible. I must admit that I now have unanswered questions. What started this? How long has this been going on? Does Spike know? Is he the same way, not able to harm us? Oh, I guess that maybe I should let you tell this your way. But before you do, please join us." He motions to the empty chair near Angel at the end of the table.
I get up and slowly walk to the open chair. I am not sure about his sudden change from attack mode to research mode. I take a seat and try to figure out the best way to begin. I finally settle on starting from Brazil and Spike's return. Giles pulled out some paper and a pen for notes apparently. "Now Dru, you don't have to go all the way back, just start from where you first noticed the changes. We'll go from there, OK?"
" OK, Giles." I started and explained everything from the time that I woke up tied to that chair, till yesterday. Giles listened eagerly to me and wrote down bits of what I was saying every so often. There was only about an hour till sunrise when I finally finished speaking. He was still watching me.v I wasn't sure of what he was thinking, but I was hoping I would be allowed to live for now.
When he finally spoke, he spoke quietly. " Well, Dru, there appears to have been a lot of changes in you recently. But I doubt that any of them allow you to see the sun. You and Angel should head home. I'm going to start researching some of this in one of the best sources I know of." I watch as he goes over to the counter and pulls a rather large book out. I've seen it before, and my uncle's, but what is it doing here? I must have looked shocked or something, because suddenly Angel and Giles look at me with concern in their eyes. " Come on Dru, we need to go." He slowly guides me out of the library and away from that book.
We walked to the mansion in silence, but my mind is going non-stop. I have seen that book before, I just know it. Even without seeing the title, I know it was one word, "Vampyr." My mind is racing trying to understand how that book can be here now, when I read it so many years ago at my uncle's. I barely even notice that we have arrived at the mansion and that Angel has guided me inside. I start towards my room, but I am stopped. "Dru, want to tell me what's wrong? Your face showed shock and confusion when you saw the book. I'm not sure why though. We'll be going back to the library later tonight. Are you going to be able to deal with that?" I turn to face him. My voice is quiet, like that of a child when I finally speak. "I'll be able to handle going back. I just had a feeling that I couldn't shake when I seen the book that's all. I can't describe what type of feeling it was, but it was there. Now we both need some rest or we won't be of any help with the research later." I just lied to Angel, and I think he knows it. I can't tell him that I've read that book. That the book showed me what it was that killed my family and how to kill it. I turn and start back towards my room again. As I get to the hall, I hear Angel's soft voice saying something to me. It is barely above a whisper, but I hear it. " Dru, I'm not the only one who saw the look. Giles did too. I'm not sure why you just lied about you reaction to the book, but I hope you will find enough courage to tell the others the truth. Night, Dru." I can feel tears stinging my eyes at the sound of his voice. I hurt him by not telling him the truth. Once I get to my room, I collapse on my bed in tears. I feels so bad about what I have just done. I fall asleep with Angel's words and the sight of that book still on my mind.
Dru is sitting in her sister's room. She is trying to get her two year old sister to lay down for a nap. Dru is about 14 at the time. She can hear her mum and dad fighting with their guest in the other room. Her mum keeps asking this lady why she would want to teach such a devil child as Dru. The lady kept saying that Dru had been chosen and that it was time to start training her to her future. Once Anne was asleep, Dru quietly went and sat outside the room her parents and the lady were arguing in. She wanted to hear everything.
"Now, Miss Howe, we know Dru is different. She has been touched by the devil himself. She is a cursed child. I don't know what she has done to cause the devil to want her, but he does. There is no reason for her to see the future. Only the Lord is supposed to see anything before it happens. There is no amount of teaching that will ever change that. I'm sorry, but I am not turning Dru over to anyone till after I figure out how to lift the devil's curse from her."
"Dru is chosen. She is the youngest ever chosen for this type of training. Please, you must let me take her with me. You wouldn't have to worry about the curse. If you let her come with me, I will find a way to get it lifted. She is a very special child, and very few are born as special as she is. She can become a young lady without the worry of this curse if given a chance. Will you give her that opportunity?"
"We'll need some time to discuss this. Now I'll see you out. Be careful though, the sun is nearly down and there have been a lot of murders recently. We will discuss this and get back to you later this week." Dru goes back to Anne's room quickly so that they won't know that she was listening to the conversation.
About a week later, a book arrives for Dru. She looks at the letter that came with it. "Read this to start you training, Miss Howe." Her mom seen Dru with the book and took it from her. "You will not be reading anything from that woman. I won't have her filling your mind with more of the devil's ideas. We are going to rid you of this curse ourselves. You understand this is a curse. Your visions are an affront to the Lord. Only he can see things before they happen. Vampyrs are the devil's creatures. I won't have you learning about them. Now it's almost time for school you better get going."
The visions of her mom and Dru cloud over and is replace by another dream of Dru at about age 17 in her uncle's library.
"Uncle, where did this book come from? It's so big and appears to be out of place here. Is it new?" She runs her fingers over the word Vampyr on the binding. "Yes, Dru. It just arrived. I haven't looked through it yet, but you can if you want. It came from a friend of your mom and dad. I can't remember the name though. Oh well, you are free to read any book here. Enjoy your self Drusilla." Her uncle leaves and Dru starts to follow him, but then turns back to that book. She walks over and pulls it out. She sets down at the desk and opens it. She finds a letter tucked in between a few pages marking a chapter on hunting and killing vampires. She looks at the envelope, then opens it. She reads the letter inside.
Drusilla,
You and I have met only once, but I was supposed to train you in how to deal with these creatures. Your visions are not a curse. They are a gift for a very special calling. Study this book. It will help you till I can get there to train you. I tried once with no luck. Take care Drusilla. Remember you are chosen for this, and that makes you special. I'm sorry I'm so late with your training.
Miss Kathy Howe.
Dru folds the letter and puts it in her desk in the room.
On the night of the family's death, Dru goes to the desk and take out the letter. She places it in the bag with her clothing. She hears Angel calling her.
I wake to the sound of Angel's voice. He wants me to join him for dinner
before going to the library. I sit down and enjoy dinner with him. I don't
tell him of my dreams, but I know that I will have to and soon. They could
be the key to what's happening to me.