Welcome to Gaia! ::

Her eyes glistened like gifts from the sky as she approaches the mansion once more. Her hair remained loose and flowed with the caressing strings of the wind. Her timing was close. There was just a few mroe hours before sunset comes around. She took a deep breath as Hope finally rang the doorbell in search of Miss Summers.

Phoenix watched in awe at Kennedy scarfing down her food like a starving woman.
"Dude, don't they feed the freakin' slayers? I mean, damn, woman."
She grinned lopsidedly as she popped a bit of mozzarella stick in her mouth and chewed as she pondered. Swallowing and taking a sip of the new beer the waitress had just set down on the table, she licked her lips and answered Kennedy.
"Yeah - it was the whole slayer thing. My parents just wigged the hell out. My father especially. We ended up in an actual fight and I - well. Nevermind all that. I just wrote them a letter actually - and they wrote back, so we'll see. They're kinda like mellowing out and s**t now, so... I dunno."
She grabbed her knife and began to slice at the bloody steak in front of her, then looked up at Kennedy. She was looking much better, Phoenix thought to herself.
"Don't worry about it, babe. It's all good."
She glanced at her watch and thought about whether or not Buffy had left yet.. and what was going on back at the house.

XANDER FINISHED UP PACKING HIS SUITCASE. HE KNEW BUFFY WANTED TO GET THE HELL OUT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, NOW THAT SPIKE WAS BACK. CLOSING THE ZIPPER ON HIS BAG, AND SNAPPING CLOSED THE SUITCASE, HE HEADED DOWNSTAIRS.
"HEY BUFFY? BUFFY??" XANDER WALKED INTO THE KITCHEN, SEEING THE NOTE ON THE FRIDGE ADDRESSED TO DAWN. HE GRABBED A COKE OUT OF THE FRIDGE AND LEFT THE KITCHEN IN SEARCH OF HIS BEST FRIEND. AND WONDERED, SPEAKING OF BEST FRIENDS, WHAT WAS UP WITH WILLOW AND OZ. AND KENNEDY.
"BUFFY? WHERE ARE YOU?"

Oz pulled his seatbelt down until it buckled shut. His eyes met with Willow's. They had a nice twinkle in them. Almost mysical in a fairy dust type sense. He couldn't help but laugh a little at her comments. She seemed different now, but in a good way. They both did. The feeling just continued to float within them.

"I'm ready when you are! Let's chow down!"

Buffy looked at the woman in consternation. She had to go, and this - this she did not need.
"No, Kennedy's not dead. And from what I know, that thing - the Gauru - it made some freaky deaky deal with my best friend. And you owe me some answers, lady. Beginning with - who are you? I mean, really - who are you? And will you stop backing up!"
Buffy backed up herself and waved a hand at the room.
"Just come in, sit down, chill out. Tell me what I wanna know. Come on."
She waited to see what the woman would do.

Hope’s eyes widen as she examined the borderline of the doorway. Her breathing picked up some speed, but not much. Her mesmerizing eyes, eyes that could stop men dead in their tracks, such a pure emerald color, had a tint of grey as she slowly tilted her head toward Miss Summers. A little chill came with that stare. It was that cold touch that made the hair behind your neck stand up.

“A deal? Gauru do not make deals unless it benefits themselves. Do not trust them, Miss Summers. They will kill she who bares their mark. It is what they do. I recommend that you cancel whatever “deal” you or your comrades made with these creatures.”

Hope did not enter. There was no point now. The Gauru communicated with them. Hopefully her words would convince them to stay away. Suddenly, her perfect eyes, that innocent aura painted around shifted. Greyness misted its way all the way through her eyes. That cold feeling became a bit more potent than before. Hope’s image of innocence melted as all that was felt around her, all that became her, felt like one became a corpse. A dead, buried corpse. This was only for mere seconds, but it was noticeably there. No doubt about it. Hope made sure of that. Just as her new image flashed in, it flashed out. At the front door stood the sweet and innocent looking woman that came to Miss Summers before.

“What was done here cannot be taken back, Miss Summers. If you do plan to help, then I suggest eliminating the Gauru from pleasant entry to your home. I suggest ending any contract with them. As of right now, I cannot come into your home. It would not be wise for me.”

With that said, Hope politely bows, turns around and walks away. Her pace slightly quickened as she turned on the main road. This was not good. Not good indeed. This complicated things, meaning Hope had to do the dirty work herself.

The laughter and good company made this morning seem like a faint memory for Kennedy. She was too busy enjoy herself and getting to know Phoenix that she lost track of time. Her smile glistened from cheek to cheek as she and Phoenix shared stories and interest. The waitress returned to their table.

"I'm sorry but we're about ready to close."

Kennedy glanced at the waitress and then at Phoenix. Was it that late already? She couldn't help but laugh. It felt food. To laugh. She should do it more often.

"Oh, we're sorry. We'll leave now, thank you."

The waitress smiled and left. Kennedy stared out the window and didn't even realize that it was night time.

"When did day decide to become night? I feel like you just got here, Phoenix." Kennedy got up from the table. She couldn't remember how many drinks she had or what shots she got. All she knew was that she felt good and loose. Sometimes it's good to just let go.

"Ready to go, Phoenix?" She didn't stop her smile for a second.