A/N: My apologies for the delay. I really have no excuse. Other than the fact that for some reason I write better when I have 101 other things to do rather than during the summer when I'm free as a bird. Next chapter should be up sooner than this one.

Chapter 6 – A Slayer and a Time Lord walk into a bar…

Willy tried not to cringe as one of his customers slammed their glass down on their table. His bar was full, unusually so considering that sunset was still a few hours away, but there was a strange tension in the air that had everybody jittery, especially him. And for once, instead of everybody going into their boltholes, the tension had them all huddling together on neutral territory. Not that you'd ever get the various demons to admit it.

And people kept talking and whispering about something big on the way. Although what it was exactly, nobody knew. The rumours flying about were enough to give anyone pause and Willy had the sinking feeling that these rumours would inevitably bring unwanted company to his place in the form of an irate Slayer. He only hoped that the repair costs wouldn’t be too high. It helped a little that he knew someone in the construction business who could give him a discount. Constantly repairing the bar was hell on his budget.

Loud voices brought him out of his musings and he stared at the table of arguing demons and vampires in trepidation. He didn't need a brawl starting. Thankfully, after a bit more posturing, they settled down. This in itself was unusual, but Willy wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

Instead, he poured drinks in glasses and set about delivering them. Just because everybody was tense, didn't mean business stopped. In fact, there were a lot of new faces this evening. Well, afternoon. Perhaps he could hire some part time help?

"-if you asked me, he should have drained her dry instead of hauling her ass around-"

"-something odd about that bitch-"

"-was he thinking? I mean, the Slayer's turf-"

Disjointed bits of conversation floated to Willy's ears. He tried to look like he wasn't listening in, but he recognized a few of those vamps as Angelus' lackeys and it always paid to know what that particular vampire was up to. They were huddled together at a table, complaining about their job like any other self-respecting minions.

At a table nearby, a pair of cloaked demons was whispering furiously. Willy sidled to them casually and set their drinks down. They quieted when he approached, but he had managed to catch parts of what they were talking about. It seemed the psychic meltdown two days ago was still on everybody's minds. He was lucky to have gotten away from the whole thing with only a broken table when a Velnari demon had begun screaming about the stars going out and the world changing. And not only were Velnari demons highly psychic, they had the strength of a rampaging bull even when they weren't as distressed as that one had been.

Willy tried not to think too hard about it. If something was coming to Sunnydale that had even the demon underworld spooked, he didn’t want to have any part in it. But the thing was, none of them were really spooked by some specific thing. It was all rumours and conjecture. Like something out of legend was making a visit rather than some Big Bad. Of course, knowing Sunnydale, it was probably both. There had even been whisperings of Wolfram and Hart representatives nosing about and everybody knew that if they were around, it must be big. The bureaucratic nightmare they would be in with the Mayor would not be worth it otherwise.

And speaking of nightmares…The whole bar had suddenly gone quiet. Willy looked up from where he had been drying a few glasses and tried to suppress a groan. And who else but the Slayer had strode into his bar like she owned it, just to make his night complete? She was wearing that cheery expression that never failed to make him realize just how much his death would brighten her day. She wasn't alone either. With her was some new tall guy, an oddball by the looks of him, who was looking around with a look of total glee and wonder that was rather strange considering his surroundings. Really new guy then. Willy gave him maybe two minutes the first time he came face to face alone with one of Sunnydale's more unpleasant residents. And who wore a coat in this heat? Well, other than vampires, but the guy looked way too lively to be a member of the undead.

The demons that hadn't run out of the bar before the Slayer could glare them into submission were now either warily staring at her and her guest or studiously contemplating their drinks in an effort to avoid her notice. If it had been any other day, the sight of a violently pink Grishnor demon trying to hide behind his whiskey and soda would have been hilarious. As it was, Willy was just hoping something would be left of his place when the Slayer was finished with him. He had just finished the payments the last time someone had wrecked the bar. So instead of hiding under his bar and whimpering as he wanted to do, he plastered a fake smile on his face and greeted the Slayer.

"S-slayer! What a…pleasant surprise! Can I interest you in anything? I've got some great new whiskey, straight from-"

His babbling was abruptly cut off when the Slayer slammed her hand down on his bar. Willy winced slightly at the crack that formed under her palm and mentally started tallying the amount of money he would need to fix that.

"Willy, cut the crap," she said, oh so sweetly, "now, you know what I want and as much as I hate to delve into clichés, we can either do this the hard way or the easy way."

Willy gulped and chuckled nervously.

"I-I-I have no idea what you mean, Slayer-"

She dropped her cheerful façade and glared at him. He smiled weakly, not liking the direction this was going. His gaze darted about, trying to find a way out of the pain he just knew was coming. For a moment, he forgot all about the Slayer when he saw her friend making a nuisance of himself, trying to have a chat with a Fyarl demon of all things.

"H-honest! And as much as I appreciate your, er, visit, don't you think you should keep an eye on your buddy there? He's about to become a smear on the wall."

"Right, like I'm going to fall for that," she said flatly.

Willy winced when the Fyarl demon roared and lifted the Slayer's friend only to slam him against the wall. It was holding him up with one big, clawed arm and growling something into his face. Strangely, the guy didn't seem all that worried or affected by the arm around his neck. In fact, instead of cowering in fear like a sensible person, he seemed indignant.

The Slayer blanched at the noise and whipped around to see the newest floorshow, an expression of shock on her face.

Willy breathed a sigh of relief when the Slayer's attention was diverted away from him. He didn't really want to get a reputation of blabbing things to the Slayer. Not that he had anything against her personally, but some of his customers might not take to kindly to that. And everybody knew he was a coward, but Willy liked to think he was a coward with at least a little bit of integrity. That meant that you didn't go around gabbing secrets and information without there being something in it for him. Luckily, avoiding bodily harm definitely fell into that category so nobody really gave him a hard time when the Slayer threatened. After all, if he was out of business, they'd have to go somewhere else for drinks and demons, as a rule, weren't all that fond of change.

"Your friend over there, he have a death wish or something?"

"He will when I'm through with him. I told him not to wonder off!"

Willy did not want to be in the guy's shoes when the Slayer caught up with him.

In front of them, the new guy sputtered at something the Fyarl had growled out at him.

"Oi! Now that's a bit rude! What did I ever do to you? I was merely-"he gurgled a bit as the Fyarl tightened it grip and grunted something out.

"What has that got to do with anything, you-" what followed was a string of sounds Willy vaguely recognized as Fyarl. He was also pretty sure human vocal chords weren't supposed to be able to produce them. He was a little impressed, despite himself. Wasn't every day you saw someone willing to talk back to a Fyarl demon. Of course, that might be because most of the idiots who did that didn't survive the experience.

Whatever the guy had said to it, the Fyarl grew even angrier. It roared into the guy's face before rearing its head back. Willy winced again. If the Fyarl was bringing the mucous out to play, the guy was really in trouble. And he seemed to realize it too.

The guy's eyes widened. With a muttered 'Oh dear', he started fumbling for something in his coat. The Slayer had already started towards the two, but her way was barred by some of the demons who had ringed around to watch the guy get beaten to a bloody pulp. She'd get there too late, no matter how willing she was to bulldoze through the crowd.

But after a few moments, it became clear that her friend didn't need any help. He had taken out some silver flashlight thing and buzzed it in front of the Fyarl's face. The tiny little thing had an instant effect on the room. Every demon flinched away from it and held their ears as though something had hurt them. It had an even stranger effect on the Fyarl, which had started to choke and gasp. It released the guy, who landed on his feet with an indignant sniff. The Fyarl crashed to the floor and was still. Willy found that he had to close his gaping mouth. The guy had killed a Fyarl just by waving a flashlight at it?

Everything was silent for a moment. The crowd dispersed under the guy's haughty glare as the Slayer forced her wide-eyed way through.

"Doctor?"

He sniffed again and tugged at his coat jacket. He flashed a bright grin at the Slayer while adjusting his tie.

"Yes, hello! Had a bit of a spat, nothing to worry about!"

The guy, the Doctor apparently, sounded entirely too cheerful after being threatened by a demon.

He stepped towards the downed Fyarl and leaned over it, whipping out a pair of thick-rimmed glasses.

"Hm, Fyarl demon if I'm not mistaken and I rarely am. Nasty little fellow, the mucous was a nice touch, but a bit unfortunate for him since I've got my screwdriver with me." He waved the gadget about, "My handy screwdriver, love my screwdriver. Anyway, bad idea to have something I can solidify with it in your sinuses and can I say that was extremely rude!"

He frowned down at the Fyarl as though it could hear him.

"And what is it with Fyarl demons in this town, anywa-" he paused suddenly and seemed to come to a realization, "Oooooh. Well, that's solved then," he grinned. Willy decided that sanity was not one of this guy's strong suits.

"Doctor?" the Slayer said again, her expression vying between amused, confused and impatient.

"Yes?" he looked up from poking at the body.

"On a mission here?" the Slayer reminded him. The Doctor's face brightened and he bounded – almost skipped – to the bar.

"Right, yes, information. Don't let me stop you, you were doing wonderfully," he grinned widely at her. Willy was a bit bemused when the Doctor aimed the grin his way and leaned on the bar, propping his head on his arm to better watch them. He gave off an air of a particularly attentive student. Willy decided the guy was a total whacko, if a completely harmless one. Well, until Willy remembered the dead Fyarl on the floor of his bar. That was going to be a bitch to clean up.

The Slayer gaped a bit at the Doctor before she shook her head. Refocusing, she glared at Willy.

"Now Willy, I don’t like it when there is trouble in my town. And kidnapping my friends, on my turf? That's trouble. And I don't take kindly to trouble."

Willy had heard better threats, but the Slayer had the ability to actually act on them.

"It's a tragedy, Slayer and I'm sorry if you can't keep track of your friends, but I can't tell you anything about it," however, he had gotten his second wind and was determined not to cave in as quickly as he usually did. He still had a bit of pride left in some dusty corner, after all.

"Can't, or won't, Willy? Think about it carefully, or you'll be making the acquaintance of my fist."

"Oh, I see what you're doing there!" Willy laughed nervously, "But you can't touch me! I'm human, against the rules to hurt me." He hoped. Hadn't seemed to stop her before. He gulped.

"And you’re absolutely correct!" a cheerful British voice interrupted the two. Willy had almost forgotten about the Doctor guy and it was a bit jarring to have the usual script interrupted. The Slayer flashed an annoyed look at the Doctor, to which he seemed totally oblivious.

"Buffy here, nice girl. A bit violent, but it comes with the job, I suppose. However, you'd be surprised what you can live through and her job only says no killing humans," the Doctor's tone was cheerfully innocent, but the shrewd look he cast Willy's way was starting to frighten him. Dead Fyarl demon, Willy reminded himself. This guy was far more dangerous than he looked.

"Now, hopefully, we've established that Buffy can successfully make you wish you've never been born."

It was chilling how quickly the cheerful exterior vanished. Willy gulped when he met the Doctor's eyes. There was a storm brewing behind them and they seemed far too old to belong in such a youthful face.

"But I can make it so you never were," the Doctor said quietly, but dangerously, still staring straight at Willy. It felt like the Doctor's gaze was searing through him, judging him and finding him wanting. Willy was just thankful he had already emptied his bladder before this whole thing had started, because he sort of believed the guy. It was one thing to be beaten to a pulp, but having never existed in the first place? Willy wasn't much given to philosophical thoughts of any kind, but that idea had a way of frightening him more than any stay in a hospital.

"Now, Donna Noble. She's been taken. Who took her? And where?"

Willy took a step back at the angry intensity in his voice.

"L-l-look, I-I don’t know anything about a Donna Noble-" the Slayer raised a fist in warning and Willy cringed, "w-w-wait! D-don't know anything about anyone with that name, but word on the street is Angelus has nabbed himself something. Something valuable. There's been rumours everywhere that the highest bidder gets the prize. Now, I don't know what it is, but it's got the upshots in an uproar. Apparently it's rare – rarer than rare! A-a-and some of his lackeys were complaining the whole day about something – someone - they'd taken from right under the Slayer's nose. It's all I got, I swear!"

The two exchanged a meaningful look before the Slayer rounded on Willy again.

"You sure about that, Willy?"

"Y-ye-well, there's been some talk about the psychics going crazy, but everyone knows about tha-"

'What do you mean?" the Doctor interrupted, frowning. Willy looked from the Slayer to the Doctor, nervous, confused and a little bit terrified.

"Where've you two been? Everyone knows about it."

"Busy," the Slayer said flatly.

"Out of town," the Doctor said, a hint of humour now threading through his voice.

"It's all over town; psychics screaming about the stars going out and a storm coming," Willy tittered nervously, "If I didn't know better, I'd say we were talking apocalypse." Apocalypses had the nasty habit of being felt worldwide, portents everywhere. As far as Willy had been able to make out, this was strictly a local phenomenon. Weird, creepy, but local. Still - "We're not, are we?"

"Not that I've head of."

Willy only felt slightly reassured by the Slayer's statement, but he had a feeling she'd take care of it even if there was one brewing. She seemed to be really good at things like that.

"What did you mean by the stars going out? What storm?"

Willy's attention snapped back to the Doctor. He seemed very intent on the answer.

"Look, I don't know the details, alright? But two days ago, all the psychics went crazy, started spouting out some cryptic crap. The only sense anyone could get from them was that Sunnydale was getting a few visitors and a storm front was coming in. It's got everybody on edge and with Angelus getting ready for that fancy thing-"

"How do I not know these things?" the Slayer interrupted him somewhat petulantly and completely inappropriately for the mood. Willy gulped and glanced from the Doctor to her, slightly incredulous.

"Well, all due respect to your ability to beat things to a pulp, Slayer, but if I'm your only source of information on what's going on in Sunnydale, that's not saying much."

He had a sudden feeling that the Doctor was very amused by what he had said. The Slayer, on the other hand, was staring at him in disbelief.

"What? You're giving me tips on how to do my job? I'm getting tips from Willy the Snitch?"

"Hey, now! No need to get insulting!"

They both gave him an exasperated look, although the Doctor still seemed more amused than anything.

"However true it may be. I've got a reputation to keep. And uh, it looks like we're having a pretty friendly chat here, so if you could just threaten me some more, you know, make it look like I didn't cave in so easily?"

"You are a very peculiar man."

"Thanks, Doc, tell us something we didn't know," Buffy quipped, "Right, you want threatening?"

She grabbed Willy by his shirt and yanked him halfway across his bar.

"If I find out you've been holding out on me, Willy, there is nowhere in this universe that you'll be able to hide from me. Clear?" she growled into his face. Willy gulped.

"C-c-crystal," he said nervously, "Much obliged."

"Oh, I wouldn't be thanking her yet, Willy," the Doctor said, lightly bouncing on his feet, his body language completely at odds with the look in his eyes, "Because after she's through with you, it'll be my turn," his tone darkened, "And remember what I've said about that."

Then he grinned. And just like that, the dangerous aura around him vanished and he seemed nothing more than an eccentric man. An eccentric man who could down Fyarl demons in seconds and was far too good at threatening people. Only in Sunnydale.

"C'mon Buffy, we've got ourselves a companion to find."

The Doctor twirled around, long coat swishing behind him as he headed for the exit. The demons seated nearby cowered away slightly and refused to meet his eyes. After giving Willy a cheerful, and therefore disturbing, smile, the Slayer almost skipped after him. They left the room and Willy sagged against the bar, heart racing with fear.

TBC