Thanks. It just occurred to me, when this damned thing started burrowing its way toward daylight, that I wanted to do a post-Chosen that incorporated the POV of some of the men out there - suddenly confronted with a reality in which there are thousands, maybe millions, of girls with supernatural strength, and most of them without a clue as to what it is, or how to handle it, or why it's there.

Also, I wanted to give Faith a shot at adulthood in her own right, away from the others, without any help but what she can find in herself.

I tried so hard to move the plot forward, but these people wouldn't let me. All they want is to stand around and talk.

MUNCH

I followed them...I don’t know why, but I did. I smelled Kay’s shampoo for miles and I followed them. I just needed to confirm for Kay that she was on the right track or something...I don’t know, I wasn’t thinking with my brain. When I got there, I hid in a hibiscus bush and waited for her to retrieve something from the car. She heard me rustling around and turned her beautiful head my way.

“Boo,” I said, after checking to see I was in human face.

“Son of a...Munchkin, my God. You’re the one with the letters, huh? Are you trying to kill me here?” For just one minute, I see the fear, the pain and strain. Detective Howard hides so much. I wished we were both different people so I could tell her it was going to be all right without feeling like I was blowing smoke up her gun belt.

“Only with kindness, babe,” I don’t know why I do that...I can see she’s really freaked, but still, alone with a beautiful woman, out comes this hipster bullshit.

“What are you trying to do here, huh?” Kay said. “I’ll tell you, Munchkin, I meant it when I said I wouldn’t stake you, given my druthers. But you make one move on that girl in there, and you are sediment, bunky. It would break my heart...I might even wanna eat my gun after, but swear to God, I’ll do it.”

“Who are you trying to convince? Me or you? I could have a hundred Cordelias, babe. Although that is an entertaining thought...do you mind if I pursue it for a minute?”

She nodded curtly at me, gesturing toward her purse, which I assumed contained a Giant Stake of Doom of some kind.”As long as we understand one another.”

“As much as we ever did,” I said. “Look, I’m not the danger here. I had to send those letters.”

”I understand why you want the Cordelias, John. I’d say that’s damn understanding, for a woman in my position. My stake’s still in my purse. Spill. And no fair peeing on my leg and telling me it’s raining. Cause you’ll know I know.”

“That’s another great thing about being undead, Kay. All that excretion stuff is history. Saves me hours a night.” I hadn’t intended this, but I could see her fighting of a smile. In the windows I could see lights flickering on and off. “Somebody...or, I should say, somebody else...wants you.”

“Oh, that’s probably just Dennis. In some ways, you never change, Munchkin, always with the distractions. What?”

I made a face just to aggravate her, and she said “You’ve got five minutes.” I hated her for that. I wanted to believe we were hanging around outside the squad together and she just had to bring reality into it, damn it. Life would just be happier if people would follow my script once in a while.

“Dennis? How many Effete Sweepstakes Winners are you fighting off out here, Howard?”

“None...well, ok, one. Wesley...well, actually, he fought me off...although why the hell I should be telling you anything after you jump out of the bushes and damn near give me a heart attack to go with my GSW is anybody’s guess. You don’t have to worry about Dennis...he’s dead.”

I cleared my throat and indicated myself.

“Not that kind of dead. Dead like invisible, huh? He’s a ghost...he’s got no body.”

“So, let me get this straight. I disgust you so you’re making time with a gay guy and Magic Fingers.” Unbelievable. Even after all I’ve been through, I still sometimes feel like the only guy who knows anything.

“He’s not gay. He’s a gentleman, huh? Classy. And he’s got a broken heart.”

“If he said no to you, his heart’s not the only thing that’s broken.”

My Connorcest story (Connor/Wes, after the mindwipe is undone) is up, though it ended up being sadly incest-deficient.

I promise to write smut for my next ficathon.

Feedback is love.

LJ, that's a honey of a story. Beautifully done, without a wrong note anywhere that I can see.

I love the story, LJ. And I am glad you didn't push the smut where it didn't want to be. You dropped enough hints and left the ending open enough that people can read into what they want. The part with Gunn was very funny.

I thought it was great. You can't force the dirty parts."Sorry about your memories!" killed me...bwah.

Thank you! I'm really happy with how it turned out.

And Erika, the story was called "Sorry About Your Memories" until the very last draft, when I decided it needed an artsier title. I really like the Harmony bit.

The Harmony bit is definitely great. I think you got everyone's voices very well.

Deb, can't wait to read more of the Faith -- well, I can, but I'm enjoying the start.

I could see her trying to take this in, but instead she pulled out a rubber band and twisted her hair back. Uh oh, I’m not just talking to Kay, I’m talking to her 100% clearance rate.For a minute, I hesitate, like I should get my story straight, but this is one time when I’m telling the truth. “Four minutes. Then I’m getting Cordy out here. She’s got lungs like a car alarm and she thought you were disgusting before she ever knew you were a vampire.”

“Wait...how?”

“Guess she’s not an art lover, Munchkin,” I swear I will not read anything into this little flash of levity. I won’t. I will take the earliest opportunity after foiling Wolfram and Hart to make my way to Marin and suck the life out of Brigitta Svendsen...no jury would convict me. Could they? Would they have to empanel twelve vampires?That wouldn’t be easy by the time the vampires ate all of the officers of the court and took time out to schtup each other. But they are my peers now, I suppose...and the Constitution guarantees...and Howard tapping her foot impatiently put an end to these esoteric legal speculations.

” Four minutes.” She warns me.

“OK, once I get started could we stop with the time reports? They really mess with my narrative flow.”

“Flow with this...” Kay said, and shot me a gesture I never thought I’d be happy to see. But she has a beautiful middle digit...I’ve seen it many times and never appreciated its shapeliness.
“ And to think I was worried you’d get all centered and mellow on me...start eating organic seaweed. Start acting mature...”

“Well, as you probably know, Kay, Shakespeare said ‘Kill all the lawyers’.”

“Any further Shakespeare references will result in a one-minute penalty, huh? I wanna hear what you know, not some dead guy....” her voice breaks just a little.(if I hadn’t been looking at her from across the room for five years, I wouldn’t even notice, but she was the one thing in that hole worth looking at.)

“Some other dead guy.” And, that fast, whatever it is was gone. I want to tell it’s all right, it hardly hurt at all, but I have a role to play in this thing, and if I’m not Montel Williams I’m sure not Phil Donahue.

“You’re no fun,” I say, and smirk.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?”

“If we did this in the rental car, it’d be like old times.”

”Why do you think we’re talking out here?”

So I tell her. Everything, minus my mental picture of her with her throat ripped out by Cujo...she doesn’t need to have that. I’ll take(another) one for the squad on that. But about Lindsey, Lilah, and Poppy, and the enchanted voting machines. About Lindsey’s(probably literal) hard-on for Angel, and his need for revenge.

erika, this is beginning to really smoke. Stuff building. He's doing the dirty on W&H?

Whoooooeeeeee.