The Whirlwind, Part Two – Return of the Native (Chapter 4)
By Mistress Ace (rosewood@i...) & Prophecy
(prophecy_gurl@y...)
RATING: Strong NC-17
CONTENT: Language, violence, sex – consensual and non, incest, torture
DISTRIBUTION: Finnatics, Angelus/Darla list, Definition of Bliss. All others please ask.
DISCLAIMER: This story is not in any way intended to infringe on copyrights held by Joss Whedon, David Greenwalt, Mutant Enemy or AOL Time Warner.
AUTHORS' NOTES: This is a sequel to `Ave Maria' – which you can read at http://www.geocities.com/prophecy_gurl/fic/maria.html
SUMMARY: After dispatching the slayer in Italy, Darla and Angelus discover the new girl is a little closer to home…
FEEDBACK: Send to both authors, please! We're dying to know what you guys make of this one!

The Whirlwind

Return of the Native – Chapter 4

Colin made his way through the mainly deserted streets of Galway. He'd arrived a few hours after dawn, had asked directions at the nearest inn and was almost to his slayer's home. It was a small
cottage on the very outskirts of the town.

He felt the first inkling of alarm when he noted that the front door was ajar. How could the girl have been so foolish to leave herself open to any kind of attack? Granted a vampire could not enter her
home without permission but that did not spare her from any other manner of demon. This did not bode well at all.

First he knocked on the door and when no answer came, he slowly pushed it open. The sight that greeted him almost drove him to his knees in shock. As it was, he spun quickly around and retched, emptying the meager contents of his stomach against the garden wall.

Once he had calmed himself, Colin pushed open the door again and walked into the small building to see if there was anything he could do for the obviously dead girl lying tied to her own bed.

Colin sat down on the narrow bed beside her, utterly appalled by the condition of her body. He had to rely on his strict watcher's training to deal with this... This abomination that had been
perpetrated on his slayer. She was bruised from head to toe, there was a pool of blood staining the sheets between her legs and more blood oozed from the puncture marks in her throat. It was painfully obvious what had happened here....

She was dead, his charge was dead and it had happened sometime the night before. Colin cursed all the delays that had kept him from his post. Had he arrived only one day earlier, this girl would still be alive.

He first cut the cloth that kept her legs bound open, trying to preserve a little dignity for the poor girl as he closed her legs and covered her abused lower body with a sheet. Then Colin reached for
the rope that held her right hand lashed in place and cut her loose. All he could do now was take care of her mortal remains, then make his report to the watcher's council....Such a pity, underneath all the dirt and blood, he could tell she had been a strikingly beautiful young woman.

As he cut her other hand loose, he heard something he had not expected, a moan.... She was not dead....

Consciousness returned slowly and Colleen's first coherent thought was a wish that it would not.. Her entire body throbbed, and her skin burned where her bonds were. Had that devil in her beautiful
cousin's body left her to die? Well, she'd make him regret that mistake... if she could get herself free - or even, as a start - breathe without aching.

Then someone freed her hands... A surge of adrenaline and fear coursed through her, and her right hand gripped her possible savior by the throat. She forced her eyes open to look at the unknown man, then tossed him onto the floor.

Painfully, Colleen got to her feet, and snatched up the stake on the bedside table that had so taunted her during Li-Angelus' attack. "Who are ye?" she rasped through bruised, bloodied lips.

Startled by her incredible strength, it took Colin a moment before he scrambled to his feet. He approached the injured young woman very cautiously, his hands held open and palms up. "My name is Colin Francis Brody. I'm your new watcher."

"W-watcher?" A near-hysterical chuckle escaped her lips and she let herself wilt slightly to sit on the bed. She dropped her head into her hands, the reality of her surroundings... how he'd found her…
hitting her. "Holy Mary..." she breathed softly, struggling for calm. For some measure of dignity.

Colin snatched her cloak off the peg by the door and wrapped it around her shoulders, covering her nude body. He felt an unwelcome blush rising in his cheeks and he quickly pulled a chair over so he could sit next to the bed but still keep a modicum of distance for decency's sake. "You would be Colleen O'Shea?"

"Aye, Sir..." she nodded, wrapping the cloak tighter as she began to shiver. She raised her head to look at him, shaking her head a little to move the long auburn curtain from her face. "As ye can
tell, no doubt, I, uh, wasn't anticipatin' company fer breakfast..." Colleen tried to lighten her own mood with the mild humor. What she really wanted was to scream in rage and to weep until she'd purged the feeling of weakness from her body.

"Had breakfast on the road, so no worries there." He swallowed, fighting down a resurgence of his earlier show of weakness. **And promptly lost it when I saw ye trussed up like a lamb after the
slaughter.**

Colin leaned forward, mindful that he did not touch her but wanting to show her a quiet sense of support for the ordeal she must have endured the previous night. His voice was soft as he asked, "What happened here?"

She blew out a long breath. "I was a fool... My cousin, Liam..." she pressed her lips into a fine line to swallow a sob. "I... I was told he was killed here under th' massacre... But he arrived on me
doorstep last night before I patrolled... Running, frightened fer his life... I got him inside... An' well, tae cut a long story short... He was the one that... that killed the entire village all those years
ago..."

She pressed her fist to her mouth before regaining her composure. "I- it was entirely me own stupid fault, Sir..."

Colin nodded, he had suspected something along those lines. This was the reason why the council never wanted a slayer left out in the field without a watcher. It was the watcher's duty to protect the
slayer from these types of horrors. It was not uncommon for a slayer to be attacked by a family member that had been turned.

A lock of coal-black hair fell across his forehead as he placed his chin in his hand. He wanted to take the girl into his arms and comfort her but she was the slayer. Coddling her would not get the
job done. "There is no blame tae be laid on yer head, Colleen. Any blame in this is tae be givin' tae the right bastard who shamed ye last night. And I'm here tae help ye with that."

Something dawned on her, and a real smile curled her lips. "Yer no' English..."

Colin chuckled, midnight blue eyes twinkling just a little. "No....County Cork, born and bred, lass. The Council thought it would be better tae gi' ye a son of Erin tae work wi'. Mighty wise o' them, don't ye think?"

"Makes a change fer 'em t'show some sense..." she grumbled slightly, the smile still there. "I didn't know if they were really sendin' anyone... Let th' old girl get hersel' killed..." Colleen shrugged,
there was no malice in her tone. She had just assumed...

"I was delayed far tae many times....First by weather, then by thieves in Dublintown and finally by a broken carriage wheel at dusk las' night." He looked down at his hands, his mouth twisting a
little. "Wish I'd made them push through tae get here las' night. I could hae prevented this...." He glanced at the stained sheets and then looked away.

Colleen reached out and patted his hand, a little awkwardly. "Don' blame yersel', Sir. Ya couldnta known.. An'.. an' the delays sound unavoidable..."

Colin gave her a rueful smile, despite himself he was growing to like the young woman more every minute. He knew that he should keep his distance, after all she was the slayer and her days were numbered from the moment she was chosen. But there was something about her, such a depth of character that made him want to protect her with his very life if need be.

He cleared his throat and spoke very carefully, not wanting to cause her any further embarrassment. "Colleen....Shall we get ye cleaned up a little? I can heat some water and if ye'll show me where yer clothes are....."

Her cheeks flushed. "Water would be good, Sir... B-but I think I c'n dress m'self..." Painfully, she got to her feet and pulled her other nightgown from the chest containing her clothing. She dressed as modestly as she could, with her back to him.

Colin went over to the hearth and started a small fire to heat some water. He kept his back to her, allowing her what little privacy could be afforded in the small house. "Once ye are dressed, do yae
want me tae go wi' ye to the church? Ye may want to confess and seek absolution, lass."

Colleen groaned softly, and gripped the wall to stop her knees giving out. "A-aye... But what DO I t-tell th' priest?" Her voice cracked in spite of herself, and she wiped furiously at the tears.

Taking pity on the distraught girl, Colin reached out with one hand and gently touched her arm. "If ye want...I can hear yer confession, Colleen. I was in training tae be a priest before the Watcher's
Council found me."

She nodded, looking up at him with grateful green eyes. When he took a seat, she knelt at his feet and blessed herself. "Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. It's been three days since my last
confession...."

Colin looked down at her bowed head and almost fumbled for the words that he should know by heart. She had suffered so much at the hands of that monster, how could he remain impartial after hearing the horrific details that would surely pour forth for her bruised lips?

With an almost imperceptible sigh, he closed his eyes and intoned in a deceptively calm and steady voice, "Tell me yer sins, my child..."

Colleen was trembling slightly, not sure why she trusted this new watcher so quickly and so completely. The kindness in his eyes? The wonderful legacy Simon had left? Well, whatever it was, it was saving her from breaking her heart, talking to Fr. McAleenan.

He listened to the flood of words that came out of the young woman at his feet. As she spoke, her voice calmed, her body straightened and he could see what a magnificent woman she truly was.

That realization cemented within him the determination to kill the creature that had brought her so low. He would use everything within his power to make sure that the monster's last moments on this mortal plane would be nothing but searing agony. There was that poison he'd read about in the watcher's journals.

The incredibly painful one.....

********

Dressed, washed and absolved, Colleen gathered her wits. Things had to be cleaned up, a new bed needed to be gotten from the carpenter and there were the day's chores to attend to. Starting with cleaning up the mess that bastard had left - starting with her bed. She stripped the soiled sheets from the bed and wrapped them in a blanket. "I'm headin' down tae the river... gotta wash these
things..."

She pulled on her cloak. "There's bread, potatoes and broth - please.. help yersel', Sir..."

Colin rose from his seat by the small hearth. He gathered up a book from the table beside him and his sketchpad. "If ye don't mind... I would like to accompany ye tae the river. There are things that need doin' about yer attacker, lass."

"Like what? He's nae gonna be around durin' the daylight... I'll find him an' stake him t'night..."

He tilted his head a little and held out the book. "Watcher's Journal, Colleen... Surely yer Simon kept one? There's nae tellin' if he'll be back tonight... If he's tha one that killed little Maria
DelGrazio, he's a cunnin' one indeed..."

Colin dug through his pack and pulled out two more volumes as well. They were very old and wrapped in an oilskin cloth to protect them from the damp. Within their pages he would find the things he needed to combat the beast that had defiled his charge.

Within the first one was a spell that would revoke the creature's invitation to her hearth and home while the other contained the information he needed on the ancient poisons. Colin fully intended
that the right bastard would not find such a warm welcome when he returned.

"Well, c'mon then..." she gestured with her head, then blew away the auburn strands that fell in her eyes due to the gesture. "Its still early an' I don't want an audience when I'm washin' these sheets..."

A crooked smile crossed his lips as he thought what a heyday her neighbors would have if those sheets were spotted. Slayers and Watchers were above the morals and mores of the day but it still paid to be circumspect. Enough whispers would be circling the town once it became common knowledge that a man resided in her small home with her, if a set of bloody sheets were discovered as well....

"Very well...." Colin followed her out the door, ducking a little so he didn't hit his head on the low lintel.

Colleen studied her new watcher subtly as she led him down to the river. He'd established from the very beginning that he was kind and intelligent, strong enough to get up after she'd thrown him across the room in her panic. He couldn't be much older than she was... which was nice, but rather curious. She'd always imagined Watchers as stuffy -except Simon- old Englishmen.

She didn't shake out the blanket, but rather opened it and let all the bedclothes fall directly out into the water... hiding the evidence of her shame. Tucking her skirts and sleeves up, she began
to scrub at the sheets. "So... what d'yae need tae know?"

Colin briefly considered helping her with the chore, not wanting her to be forced to wash away the stains herself, but somehow he knew his help would be flatly refused. So instead, he took a seat on a rock near the water and pulled out his sketchpad. "What did he look like? And did he have a name that he gave ye... other than his birth one."

"He looked like me cousin Liam..." she started, a little snidely and then sighed. "Sorry... H-he called himsel' 'Angelus', like the prayer... Uhh..." How to describe him to a stranger? He's as tall as
you... Dark, dark hair an' eyes. Angular, but very handsome facial features... I wonder if I have th' old family portrait somewhere..." she mused.

Colin stiffened, growing very quiet and still as he stared at her. "Did you say he called himself Angelus?"

"Aye..." she nodded. "What of it?"

He rummaged through his Watcher's Journal and pulled out a crudely done sketch. Colin handed it to her, his eyes completely focused on her reaction. "Is this tha monster that was in yer bed last night, Colleen?"

Her jaw clenched and her green eyes clouded slightly. She handed the sketch back to him with a slightly trembling hand, but her voice was calm and even. "Aye, that's me Liam, or whatever he's callin' himsel'..."

Colin tucked the sketch safely away and leaned forward, trying to hide his fear for her. But his voice cracked as he muttered under his breath. "Jesus, Joseph and Mary....'

He struggled for a moment to keep his composure. "Tha's a drawing done by Richard St. John of the vampire that killed Maria... How much dae ye know about her death, Colleen? Sometimes the next called can feel what was happening at the time of their predecessors passing..."

She bent back to scrub at one stubborn sheet, biting her lip as the dream came flooding back vividly. "I-I dreamt... Oh, God... It WAS him..." She felt a wave of dizziness and a cold sweat broke out on her brow.

Colin reached out in sympathy, his hand lightly brushing her cheek. "Sae sorry I was delayed..."

From behind them came a strident voice, ringing loudly in the morning air, "Well... Colleen O'Shea... What brings you out and about on such an early hour? Doin' yer sheets and it's not even wash day?" Colleen flinched away from the comforting touch that she needed more than she'd realized. It took her a moment of stammering to get her equilibrium back. "K-kathleen... How are ye this beautiful mornin'?"

A raw-boned brunette looked her up and down before turning her very curious stare on the handsome man seated so close to Colleen. She glanced at the sheets in the water, noting with satisfaction a telltale ribbon of red in the clear water. That faint stain was enough to cement her suspicions about Colleen's changed status.Kathleen's mother had come in earlier with a comment about some stranger asking after Colleen's address. Feeling a need to protect her brother from possible shame, she had first gone to the O'Shea home and upon finding it empty, made her way down to the river.

"I am well, Colleen O'Shea... And ye? How dae ye fair on such a fine day?" She looked pointedly at the stranger, sizing him up and feeling a frisson of jealousy. This was a fine figure of a man...

"I'm well," Colleen said simply, not liking the way Kathleen was eyeing her Watcher - as if he were a prime slab of meat, or a stallion from good breeding stock. "Where are me manners? Kathleen
Dougherty, this is Mr. Brody..." she introduced them, deliberately omitting her watcher's first name. No need to give the shrew anything more than she needed to know.

Colin rose to his feet, moving subtly so he blocked her view of the river and the stained sheets. "Pleased tae make yer acquaintance, miss."

Kathleen simpered, flushing a little at his gallantry. "The pleasure is all mine... Be ye a guest o' my brother's future wife, Mr. Brody?" Taken aback at that bald pronouncement, Colin narrowed his eyes a little. He'd been unaware of Colleen's impending nuptials and was at a bit of a loss of what to say on the matter. Slayers rarely married and never outside of the Council's ranks.

He glanced over at Colleen and noting the blind panic on her fully flushed features, he made a quick response. "I'm family... Distant cousin from County Cork."

Colleen swallowed, grateful for his quick mind. "What brings ye down here, Kathleen?" she asked, a little gruffly. **As if I need tae ask...**

She had been putting off speaking with Connor and freeing him from their betrothal... He deserved someone who would grow old with him, someone who could devote herself to him and give him children. She couldn't do that for him anymore, but it was a selfish desire to cling to something of her old life that had caused her delay.

"Oh... Just on my way tae market and thought I would stop in for a brief visit... But I can see yer busy..." Kathleen gave the tall, dark-haired man one last look before turning back toward the town. He was the prettiest thing she had seen in a very long time. "Mr. Brody... Seein' as Colleen's taken, if ye are free sometime, I'll be happy tae show ye the sights o' Galway..."

Colin stifled a snort of irritation at the woman's overly bold manner but decided discretion was the better point of valor. He gave her a small smile before replying lightly, "I might take ye up on that... Later in tha week."

With a flounce of her skirts, the other woman was gone and silence reigned for a moment between the two. Colin finally cleared his throat and shook his head. "Well... that was bracing..."
.
Colleen chuckled. "An' you're very polite, sir..." she remarked."Ye gather more flies wi' honey than vinegar... Though that one has a face that looks like she drank a whole bottle of that sour stuff..."
Colin lowered his head and peeped at her from beneath his lashes, pleased greatly by the change in her features. The grimness from earlier was fading, being washed away by laughter.

She would need to rebuild her strength of character after such a brutal assault but Colin had no doubts on that score. Colleen O'Shea had all the markings of a great Slayer.

"Well, we can be expectin' a visit from Connor later..." she remarked when her chuckles faded. "Part o' me wonders if now is gonna be th' worst time tae break me engagement or what? Kathleen is such a gossip.. An'... ugh..." She wrung out a sheet fiercely and tossed it onto the grass.

"I apologize for Kathleen, sir..." she said, scrubbing at another sheet now.

"Breakin' the engagement is tha best thing ye can do at this point... I'll no be leavin' ye alone in tha' house with Angelus loose in Galway. And I can't see yer young man bein' tae understandin' about a
another man under yer roof." Colin shook his head slowly and apologized in a low quiet tone. "I wish I could spare ye the town gossips. But the Council is adamant about this. Slayers and Watchers
share quarters..."

"I understand... an' I'm fine with the sacrifices - I'm proud tae be Chosen, sir," she told him honestly. "An' it'll be nice not tae be alone..."

Colin gave her a very direct look, his eyes lighting up just a little in the now mid-morning sun. "You'll never be alone again, Colleen. Long as this body holds breath, I'll be at yer side..."

She wiped one cold, wet hand on her skirts to dry it, and suddenly gripped his hand. Colleen had no clue why she did it - she was never the most tactile of people. But she'd needed that contact and
something in his gaze told her it would be all right, that he wouldn't be alarmed by her. "I'll do my best to be a slayer you can be proud of, Mr. Brody..." she said quietly.

"The name is Colin..." He leaned toward her, feeling a pull like no other before in his life. Her green eyes were sparkling and clear, her breath warm on his cheek. His mouth was mere inches from hers when the cry of a woodthrush startled both of them.

Colin ran one hand through his hair, shaken a little by the oddity of his reaction to her. He'd been around many beautiful women in his life but had always be unaffected by them... until now. "Are ye done here, lass? Can I help carry anythin'?"

For a moment there, she'd been convinced he was going to kiss her - and her heart still hammered in her chest in reaction. She let go of his hand reluctantly, still reeling slightly as she finished up the sheets. "You've got yer books... Colin..." she tried out the name. It didn't feel as odd as she'd thought it would, and she smiled. "I'm fine here, thanks."

Colin waited until she had the wet sheets tied in a neat bundle then gathered up his books. He followed her back to the house, noting along the way several of the herbs he would need to make the poison that would lay the monster low. His heart was content with the task at hand, kill the monster, help his slayer, keep her alive and safe as long as he could... It was simple really...

Leaving the sheets out to dry, Colleen joined him back inside the house. "Are ya hungry yet? I baked a fresh loaf yesterday... And the broth's really quite good..." Her smile was a little shy, noting how domesticated she was sounding.

"Aye... lov... Colleen. Food would be most welcome now." Colin set his books down on the bed, using them as a stark reminder of his duty as he cursed his almost slip of the tongue. "While ye dish up tha food, let me check somethin' in yer garden..."

He exited the house swiftly, running his sweating palms down over his trousers. This should not be happening, she was his charge, his slayer... Not some little light-skirt from Bow Street. He had to keep his distance, maintain a sense of decorum where she was concerned.

Colleen set the table quickly, lost in thought. How long would it take Connor to come around after Kathleen arrived home? Would the carpenter arrive with the new bed or send his boy with the message that she had to come get it? How would her sweetheart react to her breaking their engagement? How would she tell him? And why was she obsessing as much? Colin and slaying - that was her future now.

It was a proud calling, and she was far fonder of the new watcher than she'd thought possible. He was... endearing.

Colin took a deep breath and set about gathering some of the herbs he had spotted earlier. Seeing to his watcher's duties should help clear his mind of his errant thoughts. Thoughts filled with auburn hair, grass-green eyes and long slim legs....

Cursing his own male nature, the watcher ranged further afield. **Make the poison, Brody. Kill the beast that violated that wonderful girl Once the monster is dead, then you can think of other things...**

PART 5