Freefall, Part One

"Freefall, Part One " was the first story from the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Nine.

''With the destruction of the seed, the fight against Twilight was brought to an end, and magic’s connection to our earth was severed. No more Slayers will be chosen. No more Slayer army. No more gang: Buffy is a waitress sin San Francisco; Dawn and Xander are attempting normal domesticity; Willow is struggling with the loss of her powers. It’s a new(ish) world, but there are still demons and vampires to slay – even as their popularity with the masses continues to grow – and Buffy is on point to do what she has always done…She is the Slayer. ''

Summary
Buffy wakes up the morning after a party in bed naked and can't remember why.

Flashback to the party the night before: Buffy greets Xander and Dawn as they arrive. Buffy is happy that she has her own place. She shares the apartment with a woman named Anaheed and a guy named Tumble. Next, Willow arrives with Aura.

In the present, Buffy sees Willow come out of the shower and is worried that they slept together, but Willow says they didn't. Willow says Buffy '"brought the house down." Elsewhere, Detectives Dowling and Cheung find a dead girl in an alley but she has no wounds. It's the third girl they've found this month.

Flashback to the party the night before: Buffy greets Riley, Spike, and Andrew when they arrive.

While at the party, Buffy attempts to connect with Andrew about how it feels to no be in charge of the Slayers anymore, but when Andrew says that he took several of his former Slayer squads and started a disaster-relief organization, this makes Buffy feel small. Shortly after this, Spike tries to tell Buffy that something is coming after her.

The present: In an office, a man and woman hand a picture of Buffy to a demon. The man says "it has to be dealt with."

Buffy reports to work at the coffee shop the next morning but her boss has her shift covered because he didn't think she would be in shape to work after what happened at the party the previous night.

Elsewhere, a group of demons holding energy spears stand in front of a giant green ball of energy. One demon says "the spells that bind it have weakened." The monster inside breaks out and kills all of them. It has trouble with words, even in thought.

After leaving the coffee shop, Buffy tries to remember what happened the previous night, and we get a flashback of her and Andrew playing in the pool.

Flashback to the previous night: Buffy and Riley walk down the street to his surveillance van (which he has only been using for human terrorists). While Buffy checks out the inside of the van, Riley tells her she did the right thing by shattering the seed because it was the only way to stop what was happening. Buffy then tells him that his van "needs a woman's touch."

The present: Buffy lowers her head in shame, realizing she made a pass at a married man. Later, her roommates tell her how much they liked her friends, and warn her that they can't have any more wild parties like that or they'll get in trouble with the neighbors.

Elsewhere, the renegade slayer Simone Doffler drives a van toward San Francisco with machine guns and grenades in the back of it. She is planning "something big... That changes things... That shows them we're still here."

Flashback to the previous night at the party: Buffy shows Xander her bedroom. Something is bothering Xander. Buffy asks if he wants to talk about it. He says he doesn't. She places her hand on his arm. Xander says that Dawn "never has to know" and the scene abruptly ends.

Later, the police show up at the front door, but they join the party and dance with everyone else.

The present: It is the following evening. Buffy patrols with Willow and they are joined by Spike. Willow says she wanted to talk to Buffy alone but Spike insists that he stays. Willow tries to warn Buffy of the consequences of ending magic and tells her that by destroying the seed, Buffy "took the spark of creation out of the world." She says that Buffy can't see it the way she does and hopes it won't be too late when she (Buffy) finally does.

The demon given Buffy's picture earlier then emerges from the shadows and says "It is too late. Buffy Summers, it is time for you to pay... Your student loan!" Willow and Spike laugh at the absurdity of the situation while Buffy is annoyed.

Individuals

 * Buffy Summers
 * Xander Harris
 * Dawn Summers
 * Anaheed
 * Tumble
 * Willow Rosenberg
 * Aura
 * Robert Dowling
 * Miranda Cheung
 * Riley Finn
 * Spike
 * Andrew Wells
 * Eldre Koh
 * Simone Doffler

Species

 * Vampire
 * Loan Demon
 * Unspecified Deamon - Eldre Koh

Deaths

 * Several Unspecified Demons

Collections

 * Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 9 Volume 1: Freefall

Quotes
"God…What have I done? Also, why did I do whatever it was I’ve done? Also, where am I?"

- Buffy Summers

"Willow? Am I – did we – did we make a naughty?"

- Buffy Summers

"I taste like face."

- Buffy Summers

"Buffy Summers, it is time for you to pay…YOUR STUDENT LOAN!"

- Loan Demon