Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Found: http://archiveofourown.org/works/727159?view_full_work=true
This is a fanfiction book set in the Buffy the Vampire series universe shortly after the last episode, 'The Gift', in season 5.
During a battle with one of those demons/gods/powerful beings people, Buffy ended up going through a portal. She, and others, expected/suspected that she'd die if she went through it, but she did it for the greater good, and stuff. That's the television episode - and I'm being super vague on purpose.
The book opens with Buffy resting on the ground outside. She blinks and looked around, confused as to how things didn't look heavenly and/or adjacent to heavenly (like, say, near some pearl gates). She then spots a woman beating up a vampire and is super confused. For the woman is one she knows, and one that should be in jail . . . but isn't.
Faith and Buffy interact, but Faith hasn't a clue who Buffy is, and might have left her there to her own devices, but for Buffy mentioning the name 'Giles'. So, Faith takes Buffy to Giles. Whereupon - Giles exclaims in shock - for it's Buffy! Who had died a good while back under the hands of 'The Master' (Buffy: 'but Xander gave me CPR!'; Giles: 'he didn't get to you in time').
Relatively quickly it comes out that Buffy is on a different version of earth. There are some significant differences, and some significant similarities. Most of the people are roughly the same, maybe different jobs, or the like, though mostly the same. Except for Buffy, of course, because she's dead. And Faith - who, well, I don't want to reveal everything, but let's just say that everyone apparently ended up 'better' with Buffy dead. For reasons. Faith is the resident Slayer in Sunnydale (well, the Slayer on that earth, but...), and has a girlfriend. As was the case on the other world - Giles is there; as is Willow (still dating Tara), and Xander (still engaged to Anya) . . . and the like.
Buffy is quite taken with that world. It's a nice world. And being that she's not the slayer of that world, she's in kind of vacation mode. She's not constantly worrying, training, fighting - she's just . . . allowed to be herself.
She's still kinda freaking out about Faith, though, because the Faith she knows was always fighting her and kinda went evil. While this Faith never knew Buffy (Buffy died, Kendra became Slayer, Kendra died, Faith became Slayer), and had some support she didn't have on the other world. Buffy adjusts, though, and, well, realizes certain truths she had not allowed herself to see before. Truths about why Faith acted the way she did, sometimes, why Buffy herself acted certain ways. Why that one time when Faith had her locked up in chains with a knife near her, Buffy was kinda aroused. And stuff.
But, as already noted, Faith has a girlfriend. And this isn't really her Faith, though there are strong similarities. She's still not the same, though.
Then Buffy has one of those 'Slayer dreams' the kind where more than one person can be present. Well, Faith's in there. They talk and stuff. Shortly before the dream ended, Buffy suddenly realized that it hadn't been altra Faith she had been talking to, but her Faith.
A deep soul searching was conducted. A spirit quest. Into feelings and stuff. Buffy had been kind of blasé about getting back to her own world, but now - she has to get back! Seconds later, Giles informs Buffy that there's just no way to get Buffy back. They'd, basically, have to get that God that Buffy had been fighting to power the portal. And that's not going to happen. Seconds later Buffy is feeling lots of pain.
Somewhere along the way I'd have said something like 'and that's spoiler-y, so I won't say . . . ' but . . .. We aren't even at the halfway point, and the book promised a Faith/Buffy relationship. And one isn't happening, and can't happen because of that other girlfriend, and . . . stuff. Sooo - after the waves of pain release Buffy, she blinks and looks around, and finds herself on her own world again. Super eager to visit Faith. Who, recall, is in prison.
Buffy and Faith begin a tentative relationship. Stuff happens. Some people react badly, some well. More stuff happens.
Book came to a satisfying conclusion. Except, then, a few more paragraphs appeared. That appeared to be setting up a sequel - which the end notes proclaimed - would never happen now, because the author got busy with other fandoms. And so - the book both ends satisfactory, and ends abruptly (since we have like the first chapter in the next book tacked on to the end of the other book (well, not really but . . .).
There was sex. Occasionally graphic, occasionally non-graphic.
The characters seemed to correspond to how I recalled them (and I had seen an episode somewhere during the reading process, so I had some fresh remembrances to check with). Plot kind of meandered, but was readable and enjoyable.
Overall - a good solid read.
Rating: 4.00
September 14 2017
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