(no subject)

[stbethadettes]

It's the first time someone's tried to enter the church since she's been back, and yeah, it kind of surprises her.

Sitting there on the front pew, her open book in her hand, Beth listens for a minute.

The amazons wouldn't bother with just trying to open the front doors. They'd get down to business, maybe shoot an arrow through another one of her goddamn windows. She doesn't expect decorum from those chicks.

Whoever it is will probably go away when they realize the doors are locked.

There's another push on the door, this one harder, and Beth quietly closes her book, putting it down, and stands up, just waiting.

They can't get in. They'll have to leave.

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[no-real-hero.livejournal.com]

The light's even more visible in the upstairs window from the back, half of it's open, letting in the night air.

"Beth?"

First time Yorick showed her the envelope with that name on it, she did a double-take. But his Beth's in Australia, so...

"I'm looking for a woman named Beth." Her voice echoes loudly in the stillness of the sanctuary. The grass in the graveyard, long and untended, would be tickling at her ankles if she didn't have on a good snake-proof pair of riding boots. "The front door of your church was locked, so I hopped the fence back here, and--"

[stbethadettes]

One well-aimed arrow is fired from the half-open window in response.

(All that target practice with Spike was good for way more than just flirting.)

Beth had told that kid Ichigo when she met him that if he started acting funny and there was a demon problem, they'd see just how fast pregnant chicks could move, but she got her chance to find out the instant she heard her name being called and started upstairs, crossbow in tow, to look out the church's topmost back window.

Who the hell is this? And how does she know my name?

[no-real-hero.livejournal.com]

The arrow just barely misses the top of her sleeping bag, rolled into a pack on her back, and hits the trunk of the tree next to her.

Good thing I heard that coming. Arrows: she know what that means.

Thanks a lot, Yorick. This is one weird church you sent me to. That figures.

Without hesitation, she draws her gun. "Fun. Been looking forward to killing an amazon."

[stbethadettes]

Whoever this is, she's fucking nuts.

"I'm not an amazon!" she shouts out the window. "Just go away!"

[no-real-hero.livejournal.com]

Then why the hell are you shooting first and asking questions later? Dumb bitch, you could have...

"Are you Beth?"

Tombstones make really good cover. They probably always, always have, and she wonders if this is the first time that Rebecca Johnson, 1899-1985, has provided protection from beyond the grave.

Probably not.

[stbethadettes]

Trying to get a slightly better view of the cowgirl with the gun out there while not letting herself be seen too well, she keeps the crossbow raised and ready and visible.

"Who the fuck wants to know?"

[no-real-hero.livejournal.com]

Well, that's better; she peeks out from behind Rebecca Johnson's tombstone, a red envelope in her hand. Why red, she has no fucking idea but she holds it up anyhow. Maybe it's the post-plague equivalent of a white flag?

Could be.

"My name is Hero."

You listening to me, Beth?

"I'm Yorick's sister. He wanted me to give you this letter."

There. Mission fucking fulfilled. Now she can get back to what she has to do.

[stbethadettes]

Beth's jaw drops, and before she knows it, she's hurrying back down the stairs and opening the back door just a crack so she can peek out.

"Yorick?"

She stares almost uncomprehendingly out at Hero and the red envelope.

A letter for her? Did he guess she was pregnant?

He must be okay if he's sent his sister with a letter, and that idea is more of a relief than she would've thought it'd be.

(Is that a slight family resemblance she sees? And what's the deal with the Shakespearean names?)

She lets the door swing open more, but she doesn't put down the crossbow. "You're related to Yorick?"

[no-real-hero.livejournal.com]

What the...

She's...

What the FUCK?!

"But... but all of the men died like, three and a half years ago."

She's so pregnant.

"Except..."

Fuck! What the fuck is it with Yorick and people named Beth?

"That fucking dog."

[stbethadettes]

She closes her eyes for a moment and almost smiles, one hand resting on her belly.

(The crossbow isn't going anywhere, though. Hero's gun is still out, after all.)

"It's not like that." It really wasn't, and she's not pissed off at Yorick and feeling used or holding him responsible. Hero shouldn't be, either. "Your brother was a gentleman. He told me about his girlfriend, his other Beth, but I..."

Well, let's be honest here. It takes two to tango, but she knows what her role in that little drama was.

"I kind of seduced him. We--"

[no-real-hero.livejournal.com]

Wait, wait, wait, wait. She doesn't want to know who did what to who, she's not stupid and she knows how it works. She's a goddamn EMT, for Christ's sake.

Shit, this Beth looks like she could drop the kid any minute. And all Hero has are the supplies on her back. Using the gun like a pointing stick without even realizing it, she motions with it at Beth.

"How far along are you?"

Tell me now, because if you're gonna have that kid any minute, there's preparation to be done.

She told her parents so long ago that being an EMT might make a difference to someone somewhere some day. She just didn't ever expect this.

[stbethadettes]

Beth raises her eyebrows at the gun.

"Just shy of eight months."

A little over a week before she hits that milestone.

[no-real-hero.livejournal.com]

Oh. Good.

She can breathe a little easier. "Who else knows about this?"

Now there are a whole bunch of other concerns to think about.

[stbethadettes]

The way she's waving that thing around during the conversation is just not working out for Beth. She's damn sure Hero wouldn't appreciate having the crossbow in her face.

She lowers her chin and points a finger at the gun as if to remind Hero that she's still got it in her hand.

"Do you maybe want to holster that thing before we--"

[no-real-hero.livejournal.com]

All her life, people haven't been answering her questions. And yeah, this is a shock, and the rational part of her has to think that if it's a shock to her, it's going to be an even bigger shock to Yorick.

He would have said something.

Right now, there's only one thing to do, and that's protect her fucking family the only way she knows how. She doesn't lower the gun. Instead, she gets right in Beth's face.

"Who else knows about this?"

Maybe more than anyone, Hero's good at keeping secrets. She only hopes this Beth girl is too.

[stbethadettes]

Beth lets out a little exasperated sound that's almost a laugh. "Does it look like I've gone shopping for maternity clothes?"

Okay, so she has. But you couldn't tell by looking at her because she doesn't fucking have anything here. These pants are doing okay, but none of her shirts can even make an attempt to stretch over her belly. They have a hard enough time with her breasts.

She wishes she had half the things she and Spike bought on Europa and Mars.

(But she'd be more than happy to just have Spike.)

"Nobody around here's gotten a glimpse of me in months."

Longer than that, really, but she can't tell Hero that. And then it was just that one kid, the little girl who might've seen Spike the first time they came here.

It feels like it's been years and years since then.

[no-real-hero.livejournal.com]

At least she's as smart as she should be. For such a dipshit, her brother's good at surrounding himself with smart women.

But if no one's gotten a glimpse of her in months...

"So you haven't even been to a doctor yet? You don't even know what sex this baby is?"

Jesus Christ and Queen Victoria: there's suddenly a fuck of a fucking lot to do.

Yorick always leaves so much shit in his wake.

[stbethadettes]

Beth smiles instantly. "Oh, it's a boy."

Screw the crossbow. Propping it up beside the door, she lovingly rests both hands on her belly.

"There's not a chick on the planet who can kick like this little bastard."

She knows.

[no-real-hero.livejournal.com]

"Jesus."

That baby boy won't survive out here: tucking the gun away, her hand covers her face.

Life always was a complicated mess and it's not that this problem can't be fixed. It's just that the plague's made it a lot more complicated.

[stbethadettes]

Well, at least the gun's put away. Now they can move on to more important things than waving guns around. Like... oh, that red envelope with her letter in it.

"Can I see what he wrote? I... I wonder if he suspected."

He must have if he sent Hero here, right?

[no-real-hero.livejournal.com]

The letter: she forgot all about it. Understandably so; she hands it over.

"I can't believe I'm gonna be a goddamn aunt."

She watches as Beth opens the envelope and takes it out, reading quickly.

"Well?"

[stbethadettes]

She takes her time folding the paper and slipping it back into the envelope. "It's just, uh..."

It's just kind of surprising.

Dear B., he'd scrawled, Don't tell the woman standing in front of you, but if you're reading this note, it's because I've sent my sister to deliver it to you. She might seem a little... off, but something tells me she just needs a friend, and that's not really something I can be to her right now. You certainly don't owe me anything, but any help you can provide in this matter would be greatly appreciated. (And sorry to sound so fucking businesslike, but I haven't written an actual letter since about fourth grade.)

Yours,
Y.

It's a little more than kind of surprising, and it sure as hell puts her on the spot.

She thinks fast. "Just a goodbye letter."

It's a small gamble. She's not entirely sure if Hero's going to buy it.

"He thanks me for what we had, but he says he has to keep looking for his, um, true love."

At least she's pretty sure that part'll be believable.

[no-real-hero.livejournal.com]

Jesus.

She's always known her brother could be pathetic and she's always known he could be stupid, but this...

Jesus!

"Holy shit."

This is fucking pathetic and stupid and just downright disgusting of him. Why the fuck would he have...

"I'm... I'm sorry. I never would have brought it all this way if, you know..."

Jesus Christ, what a fucking bastard. Damn it, Yorick, you sent me here for that?

"Fucking dog."

This could so easily have been a total waste of everyone's time.

[stbethadettes]

"Don't worry about it, Hero."

Sliding the envelope into her pocket, Beth takes a step backward, holding the door open, and gestures inside with a jab of her thumb.

"You want to come inside? Freshen up or whatever?"

She can be friendly, hospitable. And Hero... well, this has probably all been a hell of a shock for her, too.

[no-real-hero.livejournal.com]

Shit, she's not even sure she belongs in this place at all. Not after everything that's happened over the past years. Still, she no harm in taking a break for a couple minutes.

"For a second, I guess, but I've got another fool's errand to run, so I can't stay long." With a deep breath, she walks into the church.

No Queen Victoria here. It's both sad and reassuring at the same time; she realizes she's still wearing her hat. "Sorry, been a while since I've set foot in one of these. Should I take this off or...?"

It's Beth's church. Hero can be a fuck of a lot more polite than her dog of a brother any day.

[stbethadettes]

Half-turning to look at Hero, Beth shakes her head. "Don't bother. This place isn't exactly functioning these days. It's more of a hideout."

That's exactly what it is now.

"Besides," she adds almost conversationally, her shoulders shrugging, "haven't you ever read first Corinthians? Women have to cover our prideful locks when we pray, to show God that we're under the authority of men."

Yeah, right.

Spike would've had no clue what the fuck she was talking about, and he probably wouldn't have cared. And for a second she misses him so fucking intensely.

It's funny that after nearly a month of being here, sometimes it can actually feel like she never left.

Sometimes. The Venusian vanilla shirt, despite not smelling like Spike anymore, is always a sharp reminder.

"And yet," a new voice interrupts her train of thought, "as woman came into existence from man, so men come into existence by women. Corinthians also reminds us that the two are equal in the eyes of the Lord."

Eyes widening, Beth looks from the three women blocking their path -- a nun flanked by two chicks in Swiss Guard uniforms -- to Hero.

"What..." How the hell did they get in? She can't fucking believe she let herself get fooled. "What the fuck? You set me up?"

[no-real-hero.livejournal.com]

No way. No fucking way. Her eyes move from Beth and her huge belly to the nun and the pair of leftovers from some bad Euro art film who flank her, then rivet on Beth again. "Don't look at me! I thought these freaks were with you!"

There's only one thing to do now, and it ain't gonna be pretty.

[stbethadettes]

Beth barely has time to wonder if Hero's telling the truth, to take in the stony-faced nun and the Swiss Guard chicks with the halberds, to do anything but wish she hadn't left the goddamn crossbow by the door.

"We have had you under surveillance for several days, signorina," the nun cuts in again. "We decided to secure you and your little one when we saw this outsider invade your sanctuary."

Beth puts a protective hand on her belly. "Secure?"

[no-real-hero.livejournal.com]

That's it. No one gets to pull this shit, not on her time.

"Like hell."

As one of the chicks in armor rushes forward, she reaches for her gun. "Don't--"

And then she fires. BLAM! The bullet hits the metal chest of one of the girl's armor and she falls; it ricochets off with a sick metallic thudding sound.

Fuck! And I didn't ever want to do that again! The EMT that's never stopped living inside her, not even the moment Joe died in her arms, steps forward; the soldier or whatever the fuck she is just... lies there on the ground, not moving.

Jesus.

"Oh, my God. Are you...?"

Fuck!

The next thing Hero does is make a loud and completely incoherent sound as that girl's staff meets her chin, hard.

And that's all she knows.

[stbethadettes]

The other guard's got her hand on Beth's arm as if to keep her back, keep her from interfering, keep her safe.

"Stop it!"

This shouldn't be happening, and it's all going so damn fast.

This was always a pretty safe place and what do they want and why is this chick trying to grab her arm and what the hell is their definition of secure?

The nun steps in front of Beth, blocking her view of Hero, just as the guard's hand leaves her arm. "Just breathe normally. The more you fight it, the worse the side effects will be."

The what?

Beth doesn't have a chance to question or to scream. There's just a muffled protest from her as the guard covers her mouth and nose with a cloth.

"Blessings on this journey," the nun tells her, and she wants to say go to hell, wants to say they'll fucking regret it if they hurt her or her baby or, hell, even Hero, but her eyelids are drooping and her limbs are going limp even as she struggles against it, breathing anything but normally.

Her body slumps.