Fic: RFJ 2: Higher, part 5/7

[beccaelizabeth]

Ripper
Fools Journey
2
Higher

Part: 5/7

Rating: I'm aiming for a tone much like Buffy or Angel, which are 15 to 18 rated in the UK.
Pairing(s): Giles and Ethan are in the same story, therefore it is vaguely G/E
Spoilers: Post Chosen, post Not Fade Away. Refers to earlier series canon.
Third in my Fool's Journey series, the rest in memories here or my fic tag. This one should basically make sense as a stand alone.

Summary: Rupert Giles and Ethan Rayne. Best mates, worst enemies, sometimes both at once. They've got a lot of history. So even when the Initative took Ethan away, Giles was sure he'd see him again, sooner or later... Now the late Ethan Rayne is turning out to be twice the trouble, and Giles must be the one to deal with it.


38000 words total, 7850 words this part

Disclaimer: Joss told us to "Write fan fic."
So they're still his toys, but he seems to not mind us playing with them.
No money, no harm.

Thanks to pinkdormouse for beta.

Author's notes and warnings:
Once upon a time, there was to be a series called Ripper.
It would star Giles, and it would be about ghosts.
Well, I'm still waiting.
In the meantime, I figured I'd write it myself.
Since ghosts are a central feature, character death is going to happen throughout the series. But that doesn't always remove them from the story. So sometimes the warning is character death, and sometimes it is more character transformation.

I used Tarot cards as inspiration for the 22 episodes, hence 'Fools Journey'. The Fool is card 0, The Magician 1. Card 2 of the Major Arcana is The High Priestess.



Part 1/7 here
Part 2/7 here
Part 3/7 here
Part 4/7 here

*** *** ***



Ethan elected to stay in the room rather than go shopping. He said only that the conditions outside were not ideal for a ghost. So Giles got to navigate the crowds and the glaring sunlight alone.

When he got back, he got a full commentary on all his purchases.

“One packet of pencils... Wooden, of course. You planning to prove the pencil mightier than the sword?”

“That would not be my first choice, no. They have a tendency to break, or get stopped by a decent shirt. I just happened to be out.”

“Baseball bats... Those are a bugger to sharpen. With a pocket knife?” Ethan shook his head.

“I don't plan to put a point on them. Unless we're stuck here a few days. A souvenir knife is... not the most useful I've ever owned. The blade is rather smaller than the corkscrew.”

“Don't worry, Ripper. What you lack in stature you make up for in technique.”

Giles gave him the expected glare, then peered into the plastic bag at the last two objects. He hesitated, but he really did need to get them out. They were no use in the presentation boxes.

“What's this... stakes? Actual gift wrapped stakes. In a little velvet box! I know you said there were a lot of Slayers now, but I didn't think they'd be a notable market for souvenirs.”

“They're nothing to do with Slayers. There's some kind of show here.” He got the box open, which unfortunately let the explanatory leaflet fall out, with its helpful illustrations.

“A show?” Ethan craned, to look, then grinned. “Aha, an 'adult revue'. Dancing vampire strippers!”

Giles tried to ignore him and worked on the second box.

“Of course, as a Watcher, your duty is clear. The innocence of the public must be protected.”

“We're not going, Ethan. They're just dancers. It's nothing to do with us.”

“Oh come now, Ripper. How can you be sure, without a close inspection? I'm sure your Council will understand. Tell me, do you do itemised expenses? Or do they make you pay for your own... stakes?” Ethan looked at the two pieces of wood.

Giles had one in each hand. He tested the grip, and found it satisfactory. The shape, however, might need a little work.

“Ripper... Are you sure those things don't need batteries?”

Giles pursed his lips and attempted to ignore him. He put one stake down and picked up the pocket knife. They were a bit... rounded, but he'd soon put a proper point on them. He carved off the first slice carefully, testing the quality of the wood.

“Ouch,” Ethan remarked.

Giles couldn't help but glare at him.

The ghost sat on the edge of the bed with a serene sort of smirk.

Giles went back to the stake. He asked Ethan, “Did you get any useful details about the location of the vampire?”

Ethan lost the smirk, and stood up to pace again. He crossed his arms, and rubbed along his left arm with his thumb.

“A couple of things. I think he's settled in for the day.”

“The wards?”

“Yes. Those weren't a five minute job.”

“You said they felt like blood.”

Ethan, now next to the window, looked out and down. “Yes.” He went to move the curtain, but his fingers went right through it. He closed his hand instead, and tucked it under his arm. “There was someone else there. At least one other. A woman, stretched out on the bed.”

“Dead?”

Ethan nodded.

“So he was in a bedroom. House or hotel?”

Ethan looked up into the distance and thought. “Could be either. En suite bathroom, television... Either a very bland home, or a hotel room.” He sighed, and turned to face Giles. “Which does not narrow it down one bit. What did he actually say?”

“He said he was in Paradise, making friends. I suspect that poor woman will rise again.”

Ethan half grimaced, and looked out the window again. “Paradise... could be anywhere on the Strip. And quite a ways beyond it. That's the official name for the area,” Ethan glanced at Giles as he explained.

“Wonderful. Well... We do have more information. The one person in the world who knows him best.”

Ethan inclined his head. “Much as I hate to be connected to that thing... Yes. So. You want to know what I know about Las Vegas?”

Ethan wandered back across the room, thinking. “It's all surface, like a cheap glamour. Everyone's looking for an edge. Attraction spells on anything and everything, to the point they just cancel out.”

He sighed and turned, paced slowly down the side with the bed, not pausing for furniture. “There's no one much around here I know, except in the Biblical sense. No one with a name. Present company excepted.” He shrugged. “No one I'd go to in particular... Although...” He turned again, paused, face grim. “That woman... I keep thinking she looked familiar.” He shook his head. “I don't know.”

“Describe her?” Giles asked, gently.

“Blonde. Probably tall. Shapely. Very shapely. And even with the state she was in, drop dead gorgeous.” He grimaced. “Which covers a good sixth of the people I've ever slept with. More, if they bleach.”

“Yes, well... Whatever the vampire's preferences... I suspect he could find suitable company anywhere.”

“Right.” Ethan sighed, then started to pace again. “So... I don't have a favourite place. I've only really been here on business.”

“What business?”

“My own,” Ethan replied quickly, then gave an apologetic sort of frown. “Not exactly relevant now.”

“It might be a place to start.”

“I suppose.” Ethan paced a moment more, back next to the table now. He paused a moment, then said, “It was for the Excalibur. Or would have been. We couldn't come to terms.”

“They didn't like the price?”

Ethan smirked in that particular self satisfied way that he had about his own magic. “They couldn't find a willing employee. There were plenty that wanted to be the dragon, but the old man? And then to go live in the moat.” Ethan shook his head.

“What was it, some security thing?” Giles tried to imagine.

“You've not seen the place? They built a castle, right out of a fairytale book. Every night some fake magician fights off the fire breathing drake. I think they went with puppets, eventually. You never know, though. Might have been another contractor.”

Giles just stared at Ethan for a moment.

“What? It's all true. You can go up there and check.”

Giles went back to the stake, now the second one, half finished.

“So... They didn't hire you. Was it... amicable? Would the vampire hold a grudge?”

Ethan shrugged. “Vampires seem to rise with a grudge against the world. But I've got to admit, I really do kinda hate that place. They've got fake Merlins everywhere, and little kids running around in pointy wizard hats, just to feed coins into all those shiny boxes.” He grinned wickedly. “What I could do with the gift shop and a statue of Janus...”

“So, possibly the Excalibur then. Or the one in the pyramid.”

“Oh yes. I could definitely see myself putting that to better use.”

“Anywhere else?”

“Aside from most of the Strip, and the rest of Las Vegas?” Ethan shrugged.

Giles, exasperated, put the stake down, as finished as it was getting. He folded up the knife and dropped it in a pocket, then added the stakes, one on each side. He pushed the shavings to one side with a bit of paper, then pulled the little telltale box in front of him. The two gold ovals still glowed above it, faithfully telling him Ethan was standing in plain sight.

“You'll use that for a locater?”

“It will take some modification. It works on line of sight only, with a range of... I think it was thirty feet. More than six, less than sixty. It only had to work across the hall.”

He ran his fingers around the edge of the box, carefully feeling for the seam. Then he got a grip on it, top and bottom, and started easing the pieces apart.

The top came off with a barely audible pop, and the light went out.

“What's powering it, then? Anything you can modify?”

“I believe so. If I can find... Ah, the spell diagram.” Giles pulled out a carefully folded piece of paper, and put the rest of the box to one side.

Ethan peered inside, then passed a hand over it. He frowned, then tried again a little lower, moving his hand through.

“You made this yourself... But there are pieces of me in there. Looks like hair... and blood?”

“Broken glass from the kitchen. Remember?”

“Yes... A small but memorable explosion.” Ethan sighed. “You know, I really didn't mean to...”

“And yet you did. Such a surprise,” Giles replied absently. Having unfolded the paper, he was studying it carefully. He pulled out one of the new pencils, and put three careful dots around the circumference of the circle drawn there. “Yes... Yes, I can definitely increase the range... If I don't mind it burning out in... Ah, about a day.” He looked closer at the lower left quadrant. “Make that half a day.” He sighed. “That might be enough.” He looked up at Ethan, then shook his head and checked the spell again. “I shall have to make it switchable, somehow. Try not to use it up in one go.” He got out a fresh sheet of paper, and started making a new diagram, whispering quietly as he worked.

Ethan, for once, remained quiet and still. He watched Giles intently. Every now and then, he licked his lips.

Eventually, Giles put down the pencil and sat back.

Ethan opened his mouth, then tasted the air again, and stayed quiet.

Giles smiled at him slightly absently, and held up a finger. He pushed the chair back, went over to the mini bar, and got one of the smaller bottles out. He whispered to it as he stepped back to the table, then opened it and poured it over the new paper.

Instead of soaking the paper, it turned into faint light on the way down, and settled in between the lines on the page.

Giles put the bottle down and yawned. “There. Done.”

“Interesting offering.”

“More of a top up. Everything necessary is already in the box. I'll have to swap the papers out.” He looked dubious. The little box looked a little fragile and full to be fiddling with. He sighed. “And I'm still not sure how much use it will be through obstructions.” He looked at the box a moment, then folded up the original paper and placed it back inside. He eased the lid on gently, and once closed the gold light appeared. “A small test to start... Ethan?” He looked up.

Ethan was still looking at him, just a little oddly.

“You stopped doing magic,” he said, quietly.

Giles looked away. “Magic for pleasure or gain. This is necessary.”

“Ah, of course.” He looked distant, then blinked, and smiled. “Sure. I'll take a stroll.” He turned around and walked towards the corridor. That took him through the bathroom wall. “One wall... And a bath tub. Any change?”

The lights faded, but did not quite go out. “It can see you... Just about. I wonder if it's because the door is open? Hang on...” A slight rearrangement, and back to check the box again. “No, still lit. A little further?”

“Okay.” A moment's pause, then, “Two walls and a pot plant. Still see me?”

“No... No, it's dark now.” Giles blinked and looked up. “But I can hear you. And you...?”

“Heard you fine,” Ethan replied, strolling back in the way he'd left. “I'd guess we're not exactly talking.”

“That would make sense... Or else someone would have wondered about the disembodied voice by now.”

“They'd just wonder why you had a speaker phone,” Ethan told him, with just a hint of disdain.

Giles got out a fresh sheet of paper, but instead of drawing he started making notes.

“New plan?”

“Hmm? Yes... Just, thinking what we'll need.”

“A tidy little list being the obvious first thing.”

Giles looked up, gave Ethan a slightly exasperated look. “Ethan, this is one of your less convincing poses. Magic requires careful preparation, whatever goal you have in mind. And I know for a fact it took you weeks to get the costume shop ready. Not to mention the chocolate.”

“Magic requires nothing more than imagination, and the will to move a bit of power around,” Ethan corrected him.

Giles rolled his eyes. “Magic with predictable effects then.”

Ethan grinned.

Then shook his head as Giles went back to the list.

“Put it away, Rupert. You need these 'eyes' to see through walls, right? Get a clean piece of paper and put the box in the middle of it.”

Giles looked at him somewhat dubiously, then tapped the table a couple of times as he thought.

“Necessary risks, Rupert. Work with me. I promise, you don't have to enjoy it.”

Giles gave him a look, then turned, and did as Ethan asked.

“Unless you want to,” Ethan added.

Giles sighed. “What do you have in mind?”

“The box was part of Janus, for a while.”

“I hid it behind the carving. I'm not sure that counts.”

“Close enough for this. Those lights are the eyes of Janus, and Janus can see into the past and the future. A couple of walls aren't really going to be a problem for him.”

“Are you sure? There's nothing in the book about Janus based scrying. Rituals, omens, yes, but...”

“Trust me, Rupert.”

Giles gave him a very old fashioned look at that.

“All right, just trust that I know my own patron deity.”

Giles nodded, and looked back at the paper again.

“So... A new spell diagram?”

“Just draw Janus. One face on each side. Get the eyes lined up right, I'm sure he wouldn't appreciate a squint.”

“Ah. How, ah, artistic, does this need me to be?”

Ethan grinned. “Don't worry, Ripper, I've seen your little sketches. Just concentrate on the deity. This is an offering. Skill is not required, just sincerity.”

Giles hesitantly put pencil to paper. He drew rather slowly, but using only one continuous line. The end result could be seen as two faces looking opposite directions. Very simple, and not quite symmetrical, but with the 'eyes' of the box in the right place.

Giles sat back and sighed. “Looks a little like that candlestick picture.”

“Relax, Rupert. Janus is a very forgiving deity. He puts up with me.” Ethan grinned, then moved around to face the new Janus squarely.

“Now what?” Giles asked, moving the chair sideways to give him space.

“Now I pray,” Ethan told him, then started whispering in Latin.

Giles tried to hear exactly what he was saying, but the words didn't quite reach him. He watched Ethan closely, trying to get some idea from lip reading.

Ethan looked intently at the image of Janus, expression serious, with just a hint of reverence. Giles could think of no time outside of casting that the man focused in quite that way. And even then... Ethan's face changed, filling with something else, something that made him smile. A grin that made Giles just a little uncomfortable.

Then his eyes went wide as he faded out again.

“Ethan?” Giles asked the now-empty room. He looked around, then down to check the lights. They were faded to almost nothing. “Ethan, if this was part of the plan... Ethan Rayne?” The eyes lit again, and Giles looked up, but Ethan still surprised him.

“No plan, Ripper. Remember?” He stepped up beside Giles and grinned at him, but it didn't quite reach his eyes.

Giles looked at him dubiously. “Where did you go this time? To the... other one?”

Ethan looked away. “More like the other side.” He looked down at the paper. “Or the gate to it, anyway.” He looked distant for a moment, then looked up at Giles, face serious again. “I think you'll have to take it from here. Magic...” He looked away, then shrugged. “Everything changes.”

“Last night, the vampire... It seemed to have your power. Or some corrupt version of it.”

“It has everything. Twisted...” Ethan grimaced, disgusted. He closed his eyes a moment, and when he opened them his old attitude was back. “So, you'll have to get it done.” He looked at Giles, then gestured at the paper. “You're strong enough. And what's left of the spell is simple. Basically, ask Janus nicely.”

“Just ask?” Giles raised an eyebrow dubiously. “And he'll ask for what, in return?”

“From you? Very little. You'll have to make the offering, of course, but a drop will do.”

“A drop of wine,” Giles insisted, getting up to go to the mini bar again. “Wine is a widely accepted libation.”

“Like sacrificial VISA,” Ethan agreed. “But really, is it much of a sacrifice?”

“At mini bar prices?” Giles found a suitable bottle, and a use for the corkscrew.

Ethan shrugged and nodded.

Bottle opened, Giles paused. “Just ask, you say?”

“In Latin would be best.”

“Ah.” Giles put the bottle down and pulled the notepad over. He muttered to himself as he quickly translated. “I want to see Ethan...” He shook his head and started over. “I need to find the vampire that was once Ethan...”

Ethan peered over his shoulder to read. “Little convoluted... Try something a bit more straightforward.”

Giles looked over at the new Janus, and the telltale box. He looked back at the paper, translating easily this time. “Let the magic in this box work no matter what gets in the way.”

He looked up at Ethan, who nodded agreement.

Giles got a drop of wine on his finger, then hesitated with it over the Janus face. “Please...” he started, then sighed, and let the drop fall on one sideways facing mouth. It could have been his imagination, but the eye glow seemed stronger. He called up his power, let it fill the Latin as he spoke. This time magic flowed through him unforced and unopposed. It felt like a cool drink, refreshing. After a moment, he got a second drop, and gave it to the other mouth. “Thank you.”

Now the Janus face looked just a little smoother than he recalled.

As he looked at it, one of the golden 'eyes' went out, for just a moment. It looked for all the world like Janus winked.

Giles blinked and sat back away from it.

Ethan leaned forward, grinning again. “Janus...” He raised a hand, held it over the image. Then the grin faded, and instead he looked tired and worn. He snatched his hand back and put it in his pocket. “Right then...” He blinked, then spoke without looking at Giles. “I'll keep going until you say stop, or I get out the other side of the hotel.” Ethan walked away.

Giles picked up the bottle, then put a bit of paper under it and wrote in large letters 'FOR JANUS'. A cleaner would probably still get rid of it, but it would at least not be his fault.

“Three walls,” Giles heard Ethan say.

The lights stayed on.

“Four...” said Ethan, and then his voice faded. The box stayed lit a little longer, but soon faded out as well.

“Ethan Rayne,” Giles said, and the spirit was back by his side in a second.

“Did it work?”

“Stopped working just before I called you. But this is the short range spell. I believe the walls were not a factor.” Giles looked at the box, and the paper, and his brow furrowed. “There is the question of portability...” He picked up the box carefully, and found the paper came up with it. He put his hand under it, trying to support it flat.

“Just roll it up,” Ethan said. When Giles looked at him in surprise, he amended, “Respectfully, of course.”

“All right...” Giles gingerly complied, turning the paper until he had a neat tube.

Then he turned it around again, to check, and sighed. “No lights. Wonderful.”

“Hold it still a minute,” Ethan told him.

Giles held it sideways in his hand.

Ethan walked past the end, watching carefully.

“Turn it around about a quarter turn... There. Right...” He stepped back again, until the tube was pointing directly at him, then grinned.

The golden eyes were visible again, hovering above the paper.

Ethan stepped back beside Giles, and they gradually faded out.

“Directional... Perfect. That was the last hurdle,” Giles said, grinning for just a moment.

Ethan grinned back at him, triumphant. Then the smile gained a bitter twist, and he looked off into the distance. His face fell, and he turned away.

Looking down at the table again, and the wood shavings from the stakes beside the knife, Giles became equally cheerless.

Ethan looked out the window. “You're going up the tower again?”

Giles checked his pockets again, then started pulling together the rest of what he'd need. “Yes, I think so. The extra height might give me a more precise idea of where this is pointing.” He picked up the rolled paper, trying not to crease or crumple it. He looked around, then got one of the empty boxes the stakes had been in. It fitted inside with plenty of room to spare. He packed the second spell diagram in beside it, and a spare bottle from the mini bar, just in case.

When he looked up again, Ethan was still next to the window. He stood in the sunlight, translucent again. He had one hand pushed through the glass, holding it outside in the sun. As Giles watched, he grimaced and pulled it back in again, crossing his arms. He stepped sideways into the shade. Then he looked up, chagrined when he noticed Giles.

“Does it... hurt?” Giles asked, quietly.

Ethan looked away. “No. Not at all.” He looked very tired for a moment, as he added, “It's not even warm.” He sighed, then rubbed his face. “You go ahead. Go... find it. Stop it. Do your duty.”

“Ethan... Are you sure? This isn't the only...”

“Rupert, please.” Ethan turned to face him, and for the first time Giles could see plain desperation. “I've thought about the options. I know what I could do. And so does that thing. Every last idea I ever had, that demon can use. If you think you've seen the worst of it you haven't thought it through. Go. Stop it. Hope it sleeps through daylight, or I don't know how much time I have...”

Giles closed his eyes, turned his face away and tried to stop the wave of grief that suddenly caught up with him from showing, with limited success. He stayed that way a long moment, swallowed and took a calming breath.

He felt something against his face, a chilled tingle, like he'd felt once before. He jerked back before he even opened his eyes.

Ethan had his hand out, trying to touch. He was standing very close. For a moment all Giles saw were his eyes, dark and glittering, with feelings achingly familiar.

Then he took a step back, and crossed his arms. He blinked and managed a bitter sort of smirk. “If you need me, call,” he said, and faded out.

“Ethan?” Giles said. “Ethan Rayne?”

This time there was no sign of him.

Giles closed his eyes and sighed, then softly swore.

*** *** ***

“Ethan Rayne.”

He'd called him twice already, once when he reached the top of the tower and switched to the long range paper, and again when he first got a sign from their spell. Now he was back inside the glass. Yet still, no answer.

“Ethan?”

He sighed and rubbed his face.

“Ethan, I could buy you a drink...”

“Don't waste time,” Ethan told him, appearing in the seat next to his. His brow furrowed as he looked around the table, with most of a large sandwich still in its wrapper.

“I'll eat on the way there,” Giles assured him. “I just needed to check... Are you sure the vampire wasn't going anywhere?”

“Did you get a location?”

“Roughly. Somewhere up past the pyramid and castle. Which could mean the airport.”

Ethan shook his head. “He isn't going anywhere yet.”

“Are you sure? Knowing he's hunted... If he could put himself on a plane, even as cargo, he'd have the whole world to hide in.”

“Knowing when to walk away is one of my strengths... But not when it involves you,” Ethan said. “He'll be here, somewhere.”

*** *** ***

Somewhere, it turned out, could be anywhere in a wide area past the end of the strip. That the telltale worked at such a distance was something of a miracle – if such a word could be used about the gifts of the most likely god. That it lost some precision was no surprise.

But it did leave Giles requiring a rental car, a map, and rather a lot of time.

The sun stood high in the sky, for now. He made the necessary arrangements as swiftly as possible, and headed out while that remained true.

With no knowledge of the ground and nothing but magic to go on he had to keep the car pointed in the same direction as the rolled up spell. Unfortunately, at first, that took him down the whole length of the strip. Traffic there was terrible, cars and taxis and buses and wandering tourists crowding together along it. He rolled past the various hotels slowly, with ample time to take in details. Each of them appeared a different kind of fairyland, borrowed styles of adornment pasted on with a heavy hand, and everything covered in glitter and lights. By night the whole of Las Vegas had appeared a multi-coloured starscape, or some kind of firework show. By day the concrete holding up the lights was visible, bleached and aged in desert sun, and it lost a little of its magic. But the more literal enchantments Ethan had warned him of nagged from every doorway and billboard, as varied and excessive as everything else about this town.

The road bent south at Caesar's Palace, and the telltale lights got stronger. Up ahead was the castle of the Excalibur, and beyond it the Luxor pyramid. From the top of the Stratosphere tower, with Las Vegas spread out below almost like an aerial view, Giles had been fairly sure that was the closest the vampire might be. From down here he only had a direction, and massive buildings blocking every view. He drove past slowly, a wary eye on the entrances, but the telltale didn't flicker. Further south, then.

Beyond lay the airport. Massive, bustling, full of opportunities. Giles hesitated, then drove past with no attempt to park. Ethan was sure. And besides, hunting there would be a bureaucratic nightmare. If the vampire could get himself out through all that security it was probably better hidden than Giles was prepared to deal with anyway.

South of the airport, the telltale lights flickered, then faded out. Giles pulled over, into a side street, then somebody's driveway. He got the map out and marked it, then turned the spell until it lit again. He drew a line across the page.

Then he looked around.

Somewhat to his surprise, he couldn't see a hotel. Or a casino. Nothing here had neon on it. Very little glittered, mostly the polish on parked cars, or the windows of vehicles moving past. The buildings around him looked, more or less, like an actual town. Like the south west United States in fact, which was to say, rather a lot like Sunnydale.

Giles was at once reassured and reminded of all the reasons to worry. He was out here hunting one vampire. Only one, thus far. He had the resources to manage that, even alone. Many more than that would be a problem. And the vampire had said it was making friends. If by that it meant raising new vampires, they likely had until sunset. If it meant instead it found some here... In a place like Sunnydale, there would certainly be some to find.

But no place on earth was quite like Sunnydale, not even the place itself, these days.

He checked his pockets, and made sure both stakes were to hand.

Then he drove on, slowly, checking the spell and his surroundings carefully.

Even with the car's air conditioning, Giles could feel the heat of the day intensifying. That was probably all the reason that the streets were so near to empty. But by contrast with the bustling hordes of tourists, it felt unnatural.

Not that there was anything natural about this city. Carved out of the middle of the desert, depending on tourism for its lifeblood.

The further he drove, the less there was to tempt any tourist. Every shop he passed had a few slot machines inside, but nobody much seemed to be playing them. Instead he saw women loading shopping into the back of cars, or hurrying along with young children in push chairs. Or at least, at first glance, they seemed to hurry. When he thought about it he realised they merely moved with purpose. No gawkers here. Just an ordinary day.

At the next corner a man waited, staring across the road. In one hand he had a black rubbish bag, bulging with unnamed things. In the other he had a bottle, wrapped in a paper bag. As he raised it to drink Giles could see under his hat. He paused a moment, looking for other traffic, and wondered idly if the man were part demon, or just very unfortunate in his looks. Then he moved on.

He drove steadily, no longer impeded by the stop start of taxis or bus stops. Despite himself he began to relax.

The sun was a little lower now, casting short shadows before him as he travelled. The light was still fierce. It beat down brightly from a brilliant sky, quite strange to eyes used to British grey. He recalled how colors always seemed brighter here.

He found himself wishing for sunglasses, though he'd always managed to avoid them before. Instead he merely squinted, and anticipated a headache.

Soon enough, the telltale went out again. He stopped once more, and drew another line on the map. Now he had a box to work inside. He was getting closer.

On the far side of the search area was Paradise Road. That would fit. It would be just like Ethan to practically give him the address.

His mouth was dry. He turned around and went back to the last shop he'd noted that sold bottled water.

Now things got more complicated. The telltale, useful as it was, lacked a few refinements. Such as some way of indicating if he was getting closer. If the spell could make a precise bearing he could triangulate, but it seemed at a distance to be more of a fuzzy cone. The area the bearings overlapped was still quite large from here. And it was a maze of drives and avenues, twisting and turning. He'd have to get right in there and search methodically, until he could get close enough the telltale only worked on one precise line, as it had in the hotel room.

He rather hoped it did not require him to be quite that close.

With pencil, map, and water, he set off again.

A proper search pattern meant turning around frequently, now with the sun at his back, then in his face again. The spell sat on the dashboard of his car, more often than not in direct light. As he reached to turn it once again, he hoped that was the only reason it seemed so warm. Bad enough if the spell gave up too soon, without it burning out in quite so literal a fashion.

He finished the water, and the shadows grew long again.

But he was getting closer.

Eventually, he narrowed it down to just the one street. Matching suburban houses all around it, soullessly identical. But here a contrast. On one side run down houses, many standing empty, with real estate signs set out on dried up lawns. On the other, new building sites. Some of them were barely staked out, only the outline of future houses there. At the other end the houses were complete, new, and mostly still for sale.

Somewhere along here, the vampire was hidden. The spell was now quite clear. The eyes glowed brightly, for just this street.

He picked up the telltale, and had to juggle it from hand to hand a moment, surprised by the warmth. Quickly, he unrolled it, then pulled the top off. The spell diagram looked a little singed around the edges. He frowned, and got out the box with the replacement paper. Shorter range, this one. But perhaps enough.

He got out of the car, the heat hitting him immediately. He kept his jacket on. One hand stayed in the pocket, wrapped around a stake. The other held the telltale box up, trying to shield it enough he would not miss even a fading light.

The sun was at his back now, very low. His shadow stretched out along the street, and the sky before him had begun to darken.

He hesitated, then checked his cellphone again. Still no messages. No contact from the Council at all. His worry about that would have to wait. What it meant right now was he would have to do this without a Slayer.

He considered calling up the ghost. But that would only put Ethan in danger, if the vampire had any plans or defences. And it would render the spell useless.

Alone, then.

He squared his shoulders and stepped forwards.

He walked on the side with the construction sites. They offered little concealment, and nothing that would fit the description of 'a very bland home'. But that allowed him to concentrate on the other side of the street, which was filled with homes that seemed very bland indeed. The stucco came in three different colors, all now headed for a sort of off white. The garage doors all matched. And most of the gardens were empty, as well as dead.

He saw movement, and froze, eyes on the window opposite. The spell in his hand was still warm, but not lit.

The figure moving behind glass was far too wide to be Ethan, and did not fit the description of his victim. Provisionally, Giles decided it was just a local resident.

He moved on.

Down the end of the street the new construction was finished. Taller, bigger, better built than the places across the street. Most of them looked empty, no curtains at the windows, blank windows all dark. But at the far end was a building with a 'Welcome' sign outside, a show home. Which, for a vampire's purposes, was not a home at all, just a furnished building and an invitation.

This one Giles was going to have to check more carefully.

He gripped the telltale spell more firmly. He already had a white knuckled grip on the stake.

He walked up the short driveway, to the front door.

He sensed nothing out of the ordinary. No blood soaked cobwebs across the porch. But if the wards were only set inside... Reluctantly, he let his magic fill him, concentrated on that sense, and stretched out. Carefully. Ethan knew his magic very well. If anyone could set a trap for him...

But he felt nothing.

The telltale spell stayed dark.

Giles considered the door. The lock looked simple enough. He hadn't practiced much lately, but last time he'd needed it he hadn't lost the knack. If he could open a door with one of Cordelia's hair grips he could certainly manage with the tools he had to hand.

Still, the building wasn't so very huge. The spell should be able to sense inside it from out here. So he turned, and started a careful circuit of the building.

Whenever he crossed a window he glanced in. The curtains were all open on the ground floor, and there was no hint of movement within. Neither was there unnatural stillness, a shape that should be moving but would not. The spell stayed dark.

The back of the building was in shadow. Giles hesitated. But in truth, everywhere was shadowed now. The setting sun offered less and less protection. He turned again.

Still nothing.

By the time he got back to the street he was sure, and swore quietly at the wasted time.

But now he walked up alongside the smaller, older, houses, and with luck the spell should have power enough to read them from the pavement.

He walked more quickly. He didn't have to squint from the sun. It was just a red glow on the horizon.

The signs on this side told him many of these were rented accommodation. Likely bland enough, and enough like a hotel. But too many curtains were drawn still for him to make any inferences from that.

Lights came on in the house next to him. He froze, checked the telltale box, and wondered if the spell was still working, all in one panicked instant. Then the curtains were drawn back by a balding man in a faded t-shirt. He yawned, and scratched himself as he turned away. No guarantee he was alive, but he was definitely not Ethan's type. Giles ignored him and hurried on again.

He heard a car starting, somewhere ahead of him. He sped forwards, but he was still thirty feet away when the car pulled out of the garage and reversed onto the street.

The telltale lit, now Giles didn't need it. The car windows were lowered, and the driver leaned out to grin, with fangs showing.

Giles pulled the stake and ran, but the car pulled away. Giles hesitated only an instant, aware the house might be full of those 'friends' it had mentioned. But he had one vampire in his sights now, and he couldn't risk it getting away. He raced for his own car instead. Inside, spell on dashboard, keys in the ignition, and a quick u-turn. He reached the next corner just in time to see the vampire's car turning.

The chase that followed was not exactly the stuff of Hollywood. There were more cars on the road now, and more pedestrians. Giles had to drive with due care.

Ethan's driving had always been careless, since he felt the rules of the road no more binding on him than any other laws. It was even worse now he could just eat any police that tried to stop him. He kept getting ahead.

Somehow Giles kept him in sight, or at least in range of the telltale spell.

The road became more crowded now, and larger. They took a different route than Giles had taken on the way down, so he didn't recognise the place until the vampire's car was already at the junction. Giles, stuck further back, didn't quite recognise the hotels on either side of him. But across the road, there were two very familiar shapes. The pyramid, and the castle.

The vampire pulled out into traffic, and Giles couldn't see which way he went. But when he reached the junction in his turn the spell was quite clear – the castle, that called itself Excalibur. Giles pulled in to the parking circle just in time to see the familiar figure step inside.

*** *** ***

“Ethan?” Giles spoke quietly, almost whispering. He was tempted to shout, try and get the vampire's attention, but this really wasn't the place. “Ethan Rayne.”

Giles looked around the lobby of the Excalibur, spell box in his right hand, left hand wrapped around a stake in his pocket.

Ethan appeared promptly this time, but scowling. He tried to dodge out the way of a family group, but they spread out so much there was nowhere to dodge to, and the youngest walked right through him. The child stopped, shook his head, and shivered. He looked around, then settled his small wizard's hat more firmly on his head and ran to catch up.

Ethan crossed his arms and tucked in as close to Giles as he could without touching him. Giles tried not to shy away.

“What?” Ethan asked, looking at everything except Giles.

“I was going to ask at the desk... What names would it be likely to use?”

“Depends when he wants you to find him,” Ethan answered absently. He edged back from a large woman with a larger suitcase, and this time Giles had to step back from the chill.

“Don't you mean if?” Giles asked.

“Not likely. It's never as much fun without an audience.” Ethan turned to look at him. “And he already called you with an invitation.”

Giles looked away. “Ethan Rayne, then.”

But no such man had checked in. And the ghost was gone again by the time Giles finished talking.

Reluctantly, Giles got out the search spell, and found a quiet corner to swap the papers once again.

It heated up almost immediately. He rolled it quickly, then brought it around in a quick circle. He thought he saw it blink, but was going to fast to be sure. Despite the rapid heating he had to slow down, check the whole arc carefully.

He'd just got the bearing again when the scent of smoke reached him.

He unrolled the paper with a quick twist, then grasped the box firmly. Heated, it didn't want to separate. “Come on...” he entreated. Another second, and the lid came off with a sharp pop.

A quick flare of flame rose to greet him, and the box slipped from his fingers.

“Ow! Bugger!” Giles stamped out the tiny fire, sucking his fingers and trying to keep what was left in the box from spilling. Then he scooped up the remains, checked to see if anyone had noticed, and crossed to a space nearer where the spell indicated.

He sighed and poked at the somewhat diminished ingredients. The glass was still there, with the old blood stain, though the hair was amongst the ashes. He folded the paper carefully, and put the lid back on. The whole thing was a little darker, but basically intact. He sighed, and tried again. “Ethan Rayne.”

Ethan appeared slowly. The lights were even slower. And harder to see. In any decent lighting he would have to concentrate to make them out.

“Is it here?”

“Yes, somewhere in there.” He gestured behind them, towards the casino.

Ethan looked around and grimaced. “Under the magician's watchful eye. You'll have to be careful. Casino policy...” His voice faded out along with his image, and Giles was once more left alone.

“Ethan? What policy? What do you... Ethan Rayne!” Repeated summons did nothing to bring him back. Giles shook his head, then turned to examine the new hunting ground.

The clattering, crashing, crescendo of coins and slot machines that was the casino beckoned, stretching out quite far enough he'd have to walk it all with spell in hand, dodging hyperactive children under the blank gaze of over embellished dragon statues and ridiculous false Merlins.

He'd sold kitsch like that, albeit on a smaller scale. He'd even worn some clichéd wizard's robes a time or two. Yet what had seemed amusing at the time lost all appeal when done on Vegas scale.

“Ethan... Are you sure you can't get another look at it?” He asked the empty air. “Ethan?” No appearance, no answer. No choice then.

Giles stepped in, past the photo opportunity dragon, to the crowds all trying to steal their piece of its gold.

The utter cacophony of slot machines chirping and bleeping all around him was at first almost overwhelming. The people on every side were all concentrating on the next blinking money box, and he pinballed between them trying to stay in the empty spaces. The shining, blinking, glittering lights flashing on everything he passed made it all the harder to concentrate on the telltale box in his hand, yet he couldn't devote all his attention to that. The room was a vast cave of artificial lights. There was nothing in there to even slow a vampire down.

He got to the other side of the hall, walked down a few rows, and turned around to come back.

He had his left hand in his pocket. He had to keep his weapon hidden there. He twitched every time some machine lit up yellow or orange or gold, mimicking the glow he was waiting for, had been waiting for all day. Since this happened at least every third step, he was rapidly becoming very tense indeed. Yet when he finally got the sign he was looking for, he almost missed it. Just for a moment, he looked around for gold on a slot machine, and nearly missed the man. Then he saw through the crowd a dark red shirt, a slim back moving in a familiar way. He pulled the stake out, kept it flat along his arm, and brought it around to shield the telltale box.

Two golden eyes looked up at him.

He looked around the crowd again, swore quietly, and quickly rolled the paper around the box. He lost the lights for a moment, then got the thing lined up again, and quickly pushed forwards to follow.

Near the end of a row now, hurrying with attention split between the box and checking every figure in the crowd. He stepped out past the last machine, and the crowd thinned, leaving him with a clear view.

Ethan stood in plain sight, leaning against a wall, hands in his pockets and smirk on his face.

“Ethan,” Rupert growled, and stepped forwards.

Only to be pulled up by heavy hands on his shoulders.

He tried to pull free, stake ready, but the two very large men beside him got a firm grip.

“If you could just come with us, please, sir,” one said, in that flat tone that made it clear they were not pleased with this at all.

It gave him pause, the lack of expected gloating, and he realised they were wearing uniforms. Hotel security, both of them, with more approaching.

The vampire started to laugh.

“Please, you've got to listen – that man, he's...” What? A vampire? A ruthless killer? What would get their attention? “He's a thief and a cheat. He's here to take advantage...”

“Of course, sir, I'm sure you can explain it all.”

“Listen to me!” Giles struggled now, but four men were emphatically encouraging him towards an office door. “Ethan! Ethan Rayne!”

The vampire stood straight, and waved at him. A flash of silver showed where he, as usual, had too many buttons open on his shirt. Then it turned away, and the last Giles saw was its retreating back, as the guards pushed Giles out of the casino.



*** *** ***

Part 6/7 here

Comments

[shannoscubie.livejournal.com]

I like it that Las Vegas is the most perfect chaotic location!

And Ethan and Giles have such a...layered relationship. Nothing simple or easy, so many things unsaid and so many things said over and over but never resolved.

But I do think Giles isn't so completely humorless that an onslaught of battery-powered "stake" jokes wouldn't have made the Ripper in him crack at least a little reluctant smile. ;-)

[beccaelizabeth]

But I do think Giles isn't so completely humorless that an onslaught of battery-powered "stake" jokes wouldn't have made the Ripper in him crack at least a little reluctant smile. ;-)

There's the thing where he's sharpening them so he can stake his Ethan. Rather takes the humour out of it, from his point of view.


glad you like the relationship and setting and story :-)

[(Anonymous)]

Yes, but...he knows his "Ethan" is no more, that it's just the vampire now. After all, the Ethan he's always known is right there with him, making silly wisecracks.

I only imagined Giles would, at the very least (finally), give Ethan a purse-lipped half-smile since, after all, that must have been what Ethan was fishing for. Because if Giles didn't keep giving Ethan at least a bit of what he came for, Ethan wouldn't keep coming back to him.

Ah, well. I'm sure you know both Ethan and Giles far better than I do, having delved much more deeply into their psyches than I've ever had the opportunity to do. ;-}

[beccaelizabeth]

If he'd had more time to adjust he'd maybe know which is 'his' Ethan, but right then they're both pretty disturbing. I figure.

Other people's Ethans and Gileses can be different.


If Ethan was only fishing for smiles he'd have been gone long since. But he can get by with glares. :eyeroll:

[julia-here.livejournal.com]

Two more bits, eh?

{sigh}

So far my favorite line is "There are several outstanding promisary notes." figures that Ethan would be like Bialystock in The Producers figuring that when the time for accounting occurs, having 1000% of your stock outstanding isn't the biggest problem you'll have.

Julia, and you've done a great job of showing Vegas, in sight and sound

[beccaelizabeth]

:-)
yaays about Vegas

I do not know the reference, but yes, Ethan would so offer 1000% and worry about it later.

[anne_d]

Wonderful work. Your Vegas is real and alive.

Ghost-Ethan is still Ethan, poor baby. And poor Giles - for all his knowledge and experience, he's got to be feeling like Xander with vampire Jesse. No matter what happens, he's going to hurt.

What was I going to say? Oh, yes, I guess these days someone talking to himself would be assumed to be using one of those cellphones you stick in your ear - I've seen enough of them lately.

Off to read the next part.

[beccaelizabeth]

glad Vegas works :-)

yup, just like with Jesse, only with a lot more knowledge. Xander was still getting used to the idea of vampires, so there was more confusion than anything else. Giles knows way too much about them, so he can skip straight to the hurt.