mystic falls | you're an island and my ship has run aground

[chalky]

Willow changes her grip on the steering wheel. She can feel the energy. Big mojo has gone down. And it isn't the first time. What she knows is that months back, before the summer even started something happened. The balance was upset. Something that happened shouldn't have happened and ever since, the spirits have been restless. Her network of witches kept her informed. It's hard not to monitor something like that when she can feel the shifts in energy in her bones.

Everything connects.

Outside of the crackle of energy, Willow is trying very hard not to ask Buffy about what might not even be a relationship. Slayers talk. The big hoop-la lately is whether or not Buffy and Riley are really Buffy and Riley. They might just be Buffy - and - Riley. Separate entities brought back into each other's orbits. Should Buffy want to talk about it, Willow is there.

"Welcome to Mystic Falls," Willow says, reading the sign they pass. "The sign is friendly," she says, glancing to Buffy. It doesn't give away anything. To the outside world, Mystic Falls is a small town in Virginia with a passionate historical society. Their website rivals other small towns. But, there's an underbelly. A big, honkin underbelly of vampire activity. There's a powerful witch somewhere in this town and she did something big.

"The town is big on celebrations. Very into its history. They have founding families and everything." Sunnydale had never been this into itself. No, Sunnydale did not have school or town spirit.

She glances over at Buffy again as they drive into what looks like the town square.

"Where to?" She slows down, taking note of the restaurant, the bench, the small shops. It's a very quaint small town. Truth be told, she doesn't exactly know where to start. She knows that the sun won't set for hours so they should be good on vampires. She pulls up to the curb so they can get their bearings. Putting the car into park, she gives their surroundings another look.

Comments

[kiss_evilgoodbye]

Buffy doesn't really want to talk about whether she and Riley are a she and Riley for the time being. She's still sorting things out herself and she doesn't want to feed the rumor mill any more than it already is. Personally, she's just glad that they're talking about something else. Something other than Alec and Bailey.

That particular lapse in judgement isn't going to be going away anytime soon.

She can't help the smirk that crosses her face when Willow brings up the sign, and she glances back over. "Our town was called Sunnydale, Will. I think the friendly sign might be a lie." Much like the name of their former city, once upon a time.

Once they arrive in the center of town, she climbs out and stretches her legs a bit, taking advantage of the fresh air for a moment before glancing around. "Anna says she's usually waiting tables at 'the Grill'? So that would probably be the best place to start if we want to find her."

[chalky]

Willow has zero problem not discussing Riley. As far as she is concerned it's nobody's business. Besides, she has best friend privileges and that's what matters. And best friend privileges means she hears about it first. Or, second, depending on where Xander is currently. But, she has no problem with second place.

In this case. (Normally, second place is unacceptable.)

She also would like Buffy to stop beating herself up about Alec and Bailey. They fooled the entire castle. But, she knows how much Buffy keeps on her shoulders. Reminding her of that won't help.

Buffy also had a point regarding the sign. Their sign looked the friendliest. When it was up. It definitely needed to be repaired twice. Nobody ever knew why.

"The Grill," Willow says, looking across the street. "The Mystic Grill?" Makes sense, she thinks, considering this is Mystic Falls. How apt, actually. She wonders if its inhabitants ever realize how ironic or fitting their name really is. "I think I found it. Do I get a cookie?"

[kiss_evilgoodbye]

Willow has all the best friend privileges. As far as Buffy is concerned, Xander and Willow are both tied for first, and it doesn't matter where either of them are. She'll usually try to find a way to tell them both at the same time if she can.

And she will. Eventually. But not right now.

Buffy turns to follow where Willow is looking and nods. "Sounds about right. And I will get you the biggest cookie I can find."

[chalky]

Which is why those bluetooths Giles hates? Are pretty handy. The telepathic connection, as well. Though, she uses that less lately. They don't need it when they have technology. It's harkening back to the Willow of yore.

Take your time, Buffy.

"On second thought, maybe a light salad," she decides, making a face. It's time to leave the vehicle. After Buffy closes the passenger side door, Willow locks the rental car with a beep, looks both ways (Ira Rosenberg would be so proud), and starts across the street. "Fill me in again on Anna's know-how."

[kiss_evilgoodbye]

"Anna is our Slayer in the area. She got wind of some major magic mojo going down, and she knows more about the vamps here than we do, so we're going to her for the lay of the land."

Buffy reaches for the door of the grill and holds it open for Willow to move in ahead of her.

[chalky]

Willow does, wondering how exactly vampires can be different.

"Don't tell me we have an uberv-" She stops herself mid-sentence as she spots a family waiting to be seated. "-mensch situation." She doubts Buffy would even get the reference but she counts on her to know what she means. "Permanent bumpy ugliness should be easy to see..."

[kiss_evilgoodbye]

She shakes her head, making her way closer to the hostess. "I don't think that's what this is. I think it's something different."

[chalky]

"Two please," Willow says brightly to the young girl, before turning back to Buffy. And before she can reply, she turns her attention to the hostess again. "Could we sit in Anna's section?" She smiles and finally turns back to Buffy. "Well, there's only one way to find out what this is." How different it is.

[kiss_evilgoodbye]

"Anna's at the bar today. Just head on in and have a seat."

"Thank you," Buffy nodded, before making her way to the bar. "All we have to do is listen to the infodump."

[chalky]

"I think we can manage that," she says with a smile, before tilting her head towards Buffy. "We can eat while we get the infodump, right?" She wasn't kidding about that salad Buffy. It's only a few short strides before they make it to the bar.

"Anna!" She slides onto a stool.

[hitchhiking]

Anna turns at the sound of her name and spots Buffy and Willow sitting at the bar. She flashes them a smile, before making her way over.

"Hey guys. You made good time."

[chalky]

"Buffy's good at giving directions," she says, giving Buffy all the credit! Whether or not she deserves it remains to be seen. "Could we have menus?" She looks at Buffy. What? She really is a little bit hungry.

[hitchhiking]

"Comin' up." She reaches for the two menus from behind the bar, and handing them over. "You guys want anything to drink."

"Ooh, can I get something fruity?"

"Sure. What about you, Willow?"

[chalky]

"Fruity, yes!" She says, looking back at Anna. "They all sound so good. Surprise us?" And then she's turning the pages of the menu. Salads. Salads. There! Not... the biggest selection. Pretty much the mundane choices. But, nothing is wrong with that!

"She's looking great," she says, leaning into Buffy. "The Virginia sun," she adds. Go figure.

[hitchhiking]

"She does. Seems like this place is agreeing with you."

"Or maybe it's just the fact that I've been able to keep busy." She drops her voice as she moves in closer, placing the newly mixed drinks on the bar in front of them. "Vampires seem to be pretty common around here. And more to the point, so are hybrids."

[chalky]

Willow takes hers in hand, sipping it. Sorry, Buffy, this is business. Business doesn't toast beforehand. She listens close. Willow frowns, wondering how common Anna's "common" means.

"Vampire-palooza?" The second word surprises her. "Hybrids? Hybrid whats?"

[hitchhiking]

"Vampire-palooza," she confirms. "And they're vampire-werewolf hybrids. Really hard to kill. You either have to take off their head, or I've seen some bodies with their hearts removed."

[chalky]

At this, she'll widen her eyes and look over to Buffy. Because, they weren't prepared with super-human vampire-werewolves. All Willow can think is what Xander would say. Someone slept with the wrong someone... Or, a line of someones. Except, vampires and babies.

"So... that means, werewolves. Were turned into vampires? Is... that possible?" Give her a second while she talks to herself. "Obviously, it's possible. They're here..."

[hitchhiking]

She shakes her head. "I don't know the specifics. And I don't know who to shake down for them. All I know is that they were tied to this guy, Klaus Mikaelson -- and he and his family are just gone."

[chalky]

"Poof gone or left, gone?" she takes another sip. Kudos, Anna, you are a mixologist Willow appreciates.

[hitchhiking]

"Left gone. Something happened a few days ago, and they left town like a bat out of hell. The only ones left are the mother, Esther, and the oldest son, Finn."

[chalky]

"Something that may have had to do with the surge of magical energy?" She glances at Buffy again. "Has anyone turned up dead?"

[hitchhiking]

Anna sucks in a breath, thinking for a moment before shaking her head. "Not by vampires. There's been these ... weird murders. I think someone was just arrested for them."

[chalky]

"A-ha!" A little louder then she'd wanted. But, she leans in again. "Magic that powerful, energy that... crazy, it doesn't come without consequences. It could be ritualistic."

[hitchhiking]

She frowns for a moment, before shaking her head. "I don't think so. One guy was stabbed with a stake like he was a vampire. The other was stabbed with an actual knife. The MO's were different, there was no sign of magic ... whatever."

[chalky]

"... Coincidence?" she asks, frowning. She thought she was on a roll. "So, something big went down - and this family up and left town. And now there's a killer on the loose. Talk about a fun puzzle. Buffy, what do you think?"

[kiss_evilgoodbye]

"I think that just because it doesn't look like a vampire doesn't mean it's not vampire adjacent." Nothing in Buffy's live ever isn't. "I'll check it out. Who's the medical examiner?"

" ... One of the victims? But there's another doctor filling in. Meredith Fell?"

"I'll track her down, make with the friendly. Maybe we can find out something we don't already know."

[chalky]

"Especially, since this is vampire town," Willow chimes in. Willow makes mental notes of everything.

"But, could the Mikaelsons have been a family of vampires? Have we seen that before?" And were they more Anne Rice, Louis-Lestat or... literal family? Because in history, most vampires killed their families. "You track her down and I'll track down where the spell took place. The residual energy is still potent. I can feel it now."

Oh, an their food is arriving. Delicious!

[kiss_evilgoodbye]

"Sounds like a plan. Or at least the start of one. Once we know more, we'll be able to figure out how to handle it."

[chalky]

"But, we agree that something is hinky in the state of Denmark," Willow makes sure to say. She should've ordered dressing on the side, but, too late now. She's just hungry at this point.

[kiss_evilgoodbye]

"Definitely hinky. Definitely worth looking into."

[chalky]

"Then a plan we have," she says, smiling, before digging in.

[takescredit]

Elena Gilbert can get carried away. Truth be told, any one of the Mystic Falls residents can and have gotten carried away before. Including Damon. Usually, he's an impulsive, impatient guy. And he's made his fair share of sudden moves. But, Damon trusts Elena and her judgment and if Elena thinks there's something going on, then he'll take time out of his busy schedule to check out her suspicions.

After filling his brother in and sending him down Mystic Falls memory lane, he makes his way over to the Grill.

Inside, he eyes the newcomers and their familiarity with his favorite bartender.

Making his way to the bar, he takes a seat on the end. He orders his usual and sips. Hardly sips, really, he's concentrating. He wastes no time in listening in on their conversation which just involves bumpy times with some girl named Kennedy, a quick ending to the Riley subject and castle goings on. Castle? They... live in a castle? While that's strange, it doesn't seem suspicious. Just extravagant. The girls pay and part ways, Buffy, the blonde, and Willow, the redheaded lesbian agreeing to meet back here later. And then they're gone.

Damon takes all this information in. Information he really didn't need to, or care to, hear.

Well, it's not the first time Elena's been wrong.

But, Anna seems decidedly not occupied now. It wouldn't hurt to strike up a conversation. See if she mentions her old friends from the castle. Maybe it's a nickname for a club or something. He can't imagine anyone actually living in a castle. Not in America.

"Friends of yours?" he asks, when Anna comes back over to pour him another glass.

[hitchhiking]

Nope, Damon, that castle would be an actual castle. Anna noticed Damon's arrival when he first sat down at the bar -- she had to serve him after all -- but she still hasn't quite gotten a beat on him yet. While she doesn't mind Damon, given that he can provide interesting banter every once in a while, when living in a supernatural town, it's hard to tell who isn't supernatural.

She glances over with a bit of a smirk, letting the liquid swirl into the bottom of the glass. "From out of town. They just came in for a visit." She takes beat to put the bottle back, before turning back to him. "Why?"

[takescredit]

"Good old fashioned curiosity?" he asks. "Mystic Falls doesn't really do in from out of town unless they're originally from here. So, new people stick out. Where are you from, originally, Anna?" He realized he's never asked that. Suddenly, he's very curious.

[hitchhiking]

"Colorado. Avon?" She isn't sure how well traveled he his. Some have heard of it, some haven't.

[takescredit]

Yeah, that's not helpful.

"What brought you to Mystic Falls?" He realizes he's never asked, never thought anything of it. A new face, a new fresh female bartending face was welcoming. And he'd had a... last few months that would've stopped him from asking things like that.

[hitchhiking]

She shrugs. "I travel a lot. I was looking for a change of pace and this seemed to be a good fit. Plus, the guy who owns the place was willing to give me a job."

[takescredit]

"Passing through," he says. "Like your friends," he adds, eyes getting intense in his Damon-like way. "How long are they here for?"

[hitchhiking]

She shrugs. "Don't know. Willow's a big history buff so she probably wants to poke around all the Civil War sites."

[takescredit]

"Is she now?" he replies. "Clue her into the Battle of Willow Creek. Sure she'd love to hear about it." But, enough of that. "You know, the blonde was kind of cute in her blonde way." While this is true, he'd never usually put it like that. "Think I have a chance?"

Anna hopefully will just see this as Damon being Damon.

[hitchhiking]

"With Buffy?"

She tries really hard not to laugh. Because while sure, Damon was smooth, but he wasn't that smooth.

"I think she's seeing someone."

[takescredit]

"Is that her name?" he asks, pretending not to know it in the first place.

"Like that ever stops me," he jokes, half interested, really. "They're not together, are they?" Considering the lesbian information he'd overheard.

[hitchhiking]

She shakes her head. "No. Buffy's seeing a guy back home."

[takescredit]

Well, he tried. Not that he really was interested. This is a little bit of a wash. Also, it's a shame they're not together. They'd make a cute couple. He doesn't know if that would make them more or less suspicious. He's ready to call it what it is. Elena's paranoia.

They should really be focusing on the Alaric problem.

He'll finish his glass in front him.

"Good for her," he replies, unsurprised. Riley, he'd guess is the name of said guy. "Well, this was fun. I don't suppose you've seen my brother today?"

[hitchhiking]

"Stefan?" She shakes her head. "Nope. Haven't seen him since yesterday."

[takescredit]

Does he have another brother, Anna?

Either way, even though the answer is no, he stands up and puts down a twenty.

"See you around, Anna."

[hitchhiking]

"See you around, Damon."