Buffy Part 1: A Punting We Will Go
Starring Sarah Michelle Gellar as Buffy Summers
Written by GeeJay
Written by GeeJay
Buffy Summers lay on her back in the punt eyes closed feeling the warmth of the late afternoon sun. Looking down on her from his standing position as he did the punting Xander Harris thought how he hadn't seen her looking so... damn good for quite a time. And damn good she looked in her white slacks and white t-shirt with the legend "Light Blues Row It Faster" emblazoned across the chest. It was a statement that left Xander puzzled, but many things about England left Xander puzzled - especially the way it could rain out of seemingly cloudless blue skies.
Yep, it had a good idea of Giles's for the Scoobies to get away from Sunnydale and come over to England. OK, so leaving Spike and the Buffybot as demon-bashing cover was a calculated risk, but hey, even a Slayer needs a holiday. His regret was that Anya wasn't around. No way was she shutting the Magic Shop for a whole week. Think of the profits lost - it was un-American.
Xander looked across to the bank of the river where the old university buildings stood with steeples pointing and history oozing. He wondered if these buildings had been here before his own country had even been discovered. He knew Willow and Tara were in their element here, positively lapping up the history of the place. He himself tended to look at the buildings from a construction point of view and saw a lot of work that needed doing. History and tradition are fine until the roof starts falling in. Maybe he could give the Dons a quote.
"Dime for your thoughts," Buffy said.
"Remember where you are, Buff. It's a penny for my thoughts here."
"Question still stands whatever the currency." She opened her eyes.
"I was thinking firstly that this punting is hard work and then I was thinking what was that cricket stuff all about?"
Buffy thought back to the previous day they had spent at a cricket match.
"Some of the players looked pretty cool in their white uniforms," she said. "The sweaters were kind of neat. I'd like to see sweaters in baseball. Very civilising, you know?"
"Ye Gods. So civilised they don't run half the time when they hit the ball. What was the point of it?"
"Giles explained that. And I think it rather quaint how they take lunch and tea. Very British."
Xander rolled his eyes. "What sort of game is it that you play so long that you have to take lunch and tea? I mean, we were there from eleven to gone six. And that was just to see part of the game. There were another three days to go for heavens sake. You could play the World Series in the time it takes these Brits to finish one game of cricket."
"And even then after all that you don't always get a clear winner. Call me Mr Spoilsport, but I think that's taking fair play to the extreme. I'm just relieved you left Mr Pointy at home because by 4 o'clock I was ready to stake myself to end my suffering."
"I thought it nice how they didn't spit or chew tobacco or grab at their crotches trying to look macho. Mind, I did notice how the bowlers tended to rub the ball on their crotch."
"And what was that all about?"
"Something to do with shine and swing and seam...or so Giles said."
"She speaks like an expert. Is nothing beyond the Slayer?"
"Will and Tara enjoyed it."
"Correction. Will and Tara enjoyed each other. Trust me they didn't see much cricket."
"And how did you notice that?" A mischievous grin played on Buffy's lips.
"It was notice that or notice the way the batter kept hitting the ball and not going for a run. I mean, that was when he did hit the ball and not just let it go sailing past his bat. And woe betide you if you walked in front of that sightscreen thing. Did you hear what they called me when I did it? Sure as hell wasn't classical English."
"It wasn't that bad."
"You slept through most of it."
"When I was awake I saw plenty of other spectators sleeping. I thought it was obligatory. When in England do as the English."
"Weren't even any cheerleaders to keep a red blooded male interested."
"Cheerleaders? For a game that lasts all day? They'd need to train harder than I do for slaying!"
Xander shook his head. He noticed how they were now coming up to a bridge. Sat on it with their legs dangling over the side was a group of three teenage girls. They were dressed identically in white t-shirts bearing the same legend as Buffy's and jeans. Xander couldn't help but notice their long tanned legs (which kind of surprised him as he assumed all English girls would have white, dumpy legs) and smiles. The blonde one of the group gave him a little wave. Xander suddenly found the strength to punt a little faster and desperately tried to look cool while doing it.
Noticing Xander's idiot grin and stare Buffy sat up and following Xander's gaze she turned to see the three girls. She also saw the looks on their faces and recognised them for what they were...
"Xander, stop this thing they're going to jump and..."
For once the Slayer was too late. The consequences weren't going to be fatal, but they were going to be uncomfortable. Xander suddenly lost his cool stance as the three girls simultaneously jumped off the bridge. He simply stared open mouthed, as they seemed to fly towards him. And then there were three big splashes as the girls hit the river in a way guaranteed to throw up as much water as possible.
The punt rocked crazily and Xander, despite his best efforts, lost the battle against motion and fell backwards into the river. Buffy found herself being soaked by the splashing water. She gasped as the cool river water washed over her, soaking through her t-shirt and plastering it to her chest. Her white slacks fared no better and the front of them got soaked turning them, like the t-shirt, slightly transparent.
The three girls surfaced. Two were away from the punt, but the blonde haired one surfaced right beside it. Seizing her chance, Buffy reached out, grabbed a handful of blonde hair and pulled the girl out of the water as far as the waist. The girls t-shirt had gone quite transparent and Buffy was somewhat surprised to see the girl wore no bra or bathing top underneath. Her small breasts were quite plainly on show through the clinging transparent cotton as it was stretched taut over her body.
Unfortunately for the Slayer she spent a fraction too long being surprised by the girls lack of underwear because she failed to notice the other two girls swim to the punt and with a heave push it. Buffy lost her balance and having to let go of the girls hair she ended up joining Xander in the cool embrace of the river.
Buffy surfaced gasping and spitting out water. She felt the pull of her sodden clothes as she trod water trying to get focussed on the girls. They were swimming away from the punt. Buffy set out after them, aware that Xander was yelling something at her, but choosing to ignore him.
Gradually the gap between Buffy and her attackers closed, but she was finding it hard going swimming in her clothes. The t-shirt was tight around her breasts and arms and the trousers were literally a real drag. The attackers were similarly handicapped and they were wearing jeans which Buffy assumed would be even harder to swim in than her lighter trousers.
Xander had clambered back aboard the punt and gasped as the water ran off his sodden jeans and red shirt. However he had no time to wallow in the discomfort, as he had to try and stop Buffy from getting her hands on the three girls. Much as he would like to have seen them get a good hiding he didn't want Buffy dong something she might regret.
The girls had now reached the bank and were clambering out of the water. Their white t-shirts were plastered to their lithe bodies. While the blonde was braless the other two did have bras on and they showed quite clearly through the clinging transparent material. Their jeans clung and gleamed with the wet as the water poured out of and down the material when they stood.
All three looked back to the river to see Buffy powering towards them. It gave them quite a surprise to see one of their victims actually giving chase. The whole fun of jumping off the bridges and soaking punters was that they were rarely able to give any meaningful pursuit. This girl was different though and the blonde could vouch for that because her head was hurting like hell from where Buffy had nearly pulled her hair out by the roots.
In fact that hurt to body and ego meant the blonde stayed on the riverbank while her mates fled into the cover of the trees. She wasn't going to let the bitch get away with doing that to her. No, siree.
As Buffy neared the bank the river shallowed out enough for her to be able to stand. She found herself waist deep in the water, her feet sinking up to her ankles into the soft mud of the riverbed. She was aware of her clinging clothes and also of the way water ran down her body sending little shivers through her and it wasn't due to the chill of the water.
She saw that the blonde was waiting for her. Fine. She looked a well-built specimen, her clinging wet t-shirt emphasising her body and breasts and the gleaming wet denims clinging to obviously powerful legs. Not one to be taken lightly, Buffy realised.
Buffy was out of the water to her knees when the blonde launched her attack. She executed a flying drop kick aimed at Buffy's chest. The Slayer realised this girl was serious here. Avoiding it was no trouble, but in doing so Buffy ended up falling back into the river disturbing the mud that swirled around her. The blonde also landed in the river and it was a race as to which of them would recover the fastest.
Buffy hauled herself upright gasping again as the water poured down her body flowing off the bottom of the t-shirt. Every movement met with a squelch and the material of t-shirt and trousers seemed to cling to parts of her body she didn't think it was possible for material to cling to.
She waded to where the blonde was still getting herself sorted. Buffy grabbed the girl's hair again and pulled her head back. Pain was etched on the girls face and her hands frantically tried to pull Buffy's grip off her, but to no avail. Mercilessly Buffy thrust the girls head under the water and held it there for thirty seconds until Xander's voice penetrated her anger.
"Buff. Leave it!"
Buffy looked to her companion who was approaching on the punt looking as bedraggled as she.
"Just going to teach the little limey bitch some manners."
"This isn't Sunnydale. We really don't want the local cops giving us a hard time. I know they wouldn't shoot at us or anything, but jails are kind of restrictive the whole world over. And just think how it'd embarrass poor Giles to have to stand bail. Hell, we may be sentenced to watching a whole cricket match and they don't have the death penalty here as a merciful alternative."
The red mist began to clear and Buffy pulled the girl out of the watery embrace. She coughed and gasped. Buffy brought her face down level to the girls.
"Word of warning. Never do that to me or anyone else again. Do you understand?"
The girl nodded as best she could given the vice like grip on her hair.
"Now we won't complain about you if you don't complain about us. Agreed?"
Another nod.
Buffy let the girl's hair go. The vanquished girl waded out of the water and when she felt she was safe enough she turned and through teary eyes told Buffy in no uncertain terms what she and every other American could go and do to themselves. Then she squelched off into the cover of the trees no doubt to tell her two mates how she kicked American ass.
Xander jumped out of the punt and waded to the sodden Buffy.
"So I guess that job in the Diplomatic Corps is a no no," he said with a wry grin.
Buffy rolled her eyes and pulled at the wet white transparent cotton of the t-shirt.
Unless my trusty eyes were deceiving me, and I don't think they were, but was she not wearing..."
"She most definitely was not wearing," Buffy confirmed.
"Wow. There's a lot of stuff about English girls that I've been misled about. They're really not all that repressed and demure are they? I mean that English rose had serious thorns."
Buffy tried to wring out her t-shirt, but her efforts barely made a difference. She was mildly intrigued at the way the soaking material clung to every curve of her well-toned body. She was also slightly startled at the way her bra was very clearly on display through the shirt.
Even more startling was the way her panties were on display through the wet material of the trousers. In fact, her clothing was so see through with the wet that she may not have been wearing it! She felt cold, clammy, uncomfortable, seriously exposed, embarrassed, in fact a thesaurus couldn't do justice to all she was feeling at this moment in time. Then she looked up and saw Xander staring at her again.
"It's the wet t-shirt, isn't it?" Buffy said.
"Uh...it's kind of the wet everything, Buff."
"I mean, what is it with men and wet t-shirts?"
"Hey, it's not our fault. It's the whole evolution thing here. Wet t-shirt on attractive female body equals men staring. It's genetic. Like night follows day, ying follows yang..."
"Genetic?" Buffy stared pointedly at Xanders sodden denims. "Sure you don't mean genital?"
Only then did Xander become uncomfortably aware of how his own clinging wet jeans emphasised certain parts of his anatomy.
"I'm, eh, thinking of Anya," he mumbled turning so his embarrassment wouldn't be too obvious.
"In a wet t-shirt?" Buffy asked acidly.
"You know something weird?" Xander said, desperate to change the subject, "At this moment in time I really wish I was being bored rigid at the cricket...."
And immediately regretted his use of the word rigid....
Yep, it had a good idea of Giles's for the Scoobies to get away from Sunnydale and come over to England. OK, so leaving Spike and the Buffybot as demon-bashing cover was a calculated risk, but hey, even a Slayer needs a holiday. His regret was that Anya wasn't around. No way was she shutting the Magic Shop for a whole week. Think of the profits lost - it was un-American.
Xander looked across to the bank of the river where the old university buildings stood with steeples pointing and history oozing. He wondered if these buildings had been here before his own country had even been discovered. He knew Willow and Tara were in their element here, positively lapping up the history of the place. He himself tended to look at the buildings from a construction point of view and saw a lot of work that needed doing. History and tradition are fine until the roof starts falling in. Maybe he could give the Dons a quote.
"Dime for your thoughts," Buffy said.
"Remember where you are, Buff. It's a penny for my thoughts here."
"Question still stands whatever the currency." She opened her eyes.
"I was thinking firstly that this punting is hard work and then I was thinking what was that cricket stuff all about?"
Buffy thought back to the previous day they had spent at a cricket match.
"Some of the players looked pretty cool in their white uniforms," she said. "The sweaters were kind of neat. I'd like to see sweaters in baseball. Very civilising, you know?"
"Ye Gods. So civilised they don't run half the time when they hit the ball. What was the point of it?"
"Giles explained that. And I think it rather quaint how they take lunch and tea. Very British."
Xander rolled his eyes. "What sort of game is it that you play so long that you have to take lunch and tea? I mean, we were there from eleven to gone six. And that was just to see part of the game. There were another three days to go for heavens sake. You could play the World Series in the time it takes these Brits to finish one game of cricket."
"And even then after all that you don't always get a clear winner. Call me Mr Spoilsport, but I think that's taking fair play to the extreme. I'm just relieved you left Mr Pointy at home because by 4 o'clock I was ready to stake myself to end my suffering."
"I thought it nice how they didn't spit or chew tobacco or grab at their crotches trying to look macho. Mind, I did notice how the bowlers tended to rub the ball on their crotch."
"And what was that all about?"
"Something to do with shine and swing and seam...or so Giles said."
"She speaks like an expert. Is nothing beyond the Slayer?"
"Will and Tara enjoyed it."
"Correction. Will and Tara enjoyed each other. Trust me they didn't see much cricket."
"And how did you notice that?" A mischievous grin played on Buffy's lips.
"It was notice that or notice the way the batter kept hitting the ball and not going for a run. I mean, that was when he did hit the ball and not just let it go sailing past his bat. And woe betide you if you walked in front of that sightscreen thing. Did you hear what they called me when I did it? Sure as hell wasn't classical English."
"It wasn't that bad."
"You slept through most of it."
"When I was awake I saw plenty of other spectators sleeping. I thought it was obligatory. When in England do as the English."
"Weren't even any cheerleaders to keep a red blooded male interested."
"Cheerleaders? For a game that lasts all day? They'd need to train harder than I do for slaying!"
Xander shook his head. He noticed how they were now coming up to a bridge. Sat on it with their legs dangling over the side was a group of three teenage girls. They were dressed identically in white t-shirts bearing the same legend as Buffy's and jeans. Xander couldn't help but notice their long tanned legs (which kind of surprised him as he assumed all English girls would have white, dumpy legs) and smiles. The blonde one of the group gave him a little wave. Xander suddenly found the strength to punt a little faster and desperately tried to look cool while doing it.
Noticing Xander's idiot grin and stare Buffy sat up and following Xander's gaze she turned to see the three girls. She also saw the looks on their faces and recognised them for what they were...
"Xander, stop this thing they're going to jump and..."
For once the Slayer was too late. The consequences weren't going to be fatal, but they were going to be uncomfortable. Xander suddenly lost his cool stance as the three girls simultaneously jumped off the bridge. He simply stared open mouthed, as they seemed to fly towards him. And then there were three big splashes as the girls hit the river in a way guaranteed to throw up as much water as possible.
The punt rocked crazily and Xander, despite his best efforts, lost the battle against motion and fell backwards into the river. Buffy found herself being soaked by the splashing water. She gasped as the cool river water washed over her, soaking through her t-shirt and plastering it to her chest. Her white slacks fared no better and the front of them got soaked turning them, like the t-shirt, slightly transparent.
The three girls surfaced. Two were away from the punt, but the blonde haired one surfaced right beside it. Seizing her chance, Buffy reached out, grabbed a handful of blonde hair and pulled the girl out of the water as far as the waist. The girls t-shirt had gone quite transparent and Buffy was somewhat surprised to see the girl wore no bra or bathing top underneath. Her small breasts were quite plainly on show through the clinging transparent cotton as it was stretched taut over her body.
Unfortunately for the Slayer she spent a fraction too long being surprised by the girls lack of underwear because she failed to notice the other two girls swim to the punt and with a heave push it. Buffy lost her balance and having to let go of the girls hair she ended up joining Xander in the cool embrace of the river.
Buffy surfaced gasping and spitting out water. She felt the pull of her sodden clothes as she trod water trying to get focussed on the girls. They were swimming away from the punt. Buffy set out after them, aware that Xander was yelling something at her, but choosing to ignore him.
Gradually the gap between Buffy and her attackers closed, but she was finding it hard going swimming in her clothes. The t-shirt was tight around her breasts and arms and the trousers were literally a real drag. The attackers were similarly handicapped and they were wearing jeans which Buffy assumed would be even harder to swim in than her lighter trousers.
Xander had clambered back aboard the punt and gasped as the water ran off his sodden jeans and red shirt. However he had no time to wallow in the discomfort, as he had to try and stop Buffy from getting her hands on the three girls. Much as he would like to have seen them get a good hiding he didn't want Buffy dong something she might regret.
The girls had now reached the bank and were clambering out of the water. Their white t-shirts were plastered to their lithe bodies. While the blonde was braless the other two did have bras on and they showed quite clearly through the clinging transparent material. Their jeans clung and gleamed with the wet as the water poured out of and down the material when they stood.
All three looked back to the river to see Buffy powering towards them. It gave them quite a surprise to see one of their victims actually giving chase. The whole fun of jumping off the bridges and soaking punters was that they were rarely able to give any meaningful pursuit. This girl was different though and the blonde could vouch for that because her head was hurting like hell from where Buffy had nearly pulled her hair out by the roots.
In fact that hurt to body and ego meant the blonde stayed on the riverbank while her mates fled into the cover of the trees. She wasn't going to let the bitch get away with doing that to her. No, siree.
As Buffy neared the bank the river shallowed out enough for her to be able to stand. She found herself waist deep in the water, her feet sinking up to her ankles into the soft mud of the riverbed. She was aware of her clinging clothes and also of the way water ran down her body sending little shivers through her and it wasn't due to the chill of the water.
She saw that the blonde was waiting for her. Fine. She looked a well-built specimen, her clinging wet t-shirt emphasising her body and breasts and the gleaming wet denims clinging to obviously powerful legs. Not one to be taken lightly, Buffy realised.
Buffy was out of the water to her knees when the blonde launched her attack. She executed a flying drop kick aimed at Buffy's chest. The Slayer realised this girl was serious here. Avoiding it was no trouble, but in doing so Buffy ended up falling back into the river disturbing the mud that swirled around her. The blonde also landed in the river and it was a race as to which of them would recover the fastest.
Buffy hauled herself upright gasping again as the water poured down her body flowing off the bottom of the t-shirt. Every movement met with a squelch and the material of t-shirt and trousers seemed to cling to parts of her body she didn't think it was possible for material to cling to.
She waded to where the blonde was still getting herself sorted. Buffy grabbed the girl's hair again and pulled her head back. Pain was etched on the girls face and her hands frantically tried to pull Buffy's grip off her, but to no avail. Mercilessly Buffy thrust the girls head under the water and held it there for thirty seconds until Xander's voice penetrated her anger.
"Buff. Leave it!"
Buffy looked to her companion who was approaching on the punt looking as bedraggled as she.
"Just going to teach the little limey bitch some manners."
"This isn't Sunnydale. We really don't want the local cops giving us a hard time. I know they wouldn't shoot at us or anything, but jails are kind of restrictive the whole world over. And just think how it'd embarrass poor Giles to have to stand bail. Hell, we may be sentenced to watching a whole cricket match and they don't have the death penalty here as a merciful alternative."
The red mist began to clear and Buffy pulled the girl out of the watery embrace. She coughed and gasped. Buffy brought her face down level to the girls.
"Word of warning. Never do that to me or anyone else again. Do you understand?"
The girl nodded as best she could given the vice like grip on her hair.
"Now we won't complain about you if you don't complain about us. Agreed?"
Another nod.
Buffy let the girl's hair go. The vanquished girl waded out of the water and when she felt she was safe enough she turned and through teary eyes told Buffy in no uncertain terms what she and every other American could go and do to themselves. Then she squelched off into the cover of the trees no doubt to tell her two mates how she kicked American ass.
Xander jumped out of the punt and waded to the sodden Buffy.
"So I guess that job in the Diplomatic Corps is a no no," he said with a wry grin.
Buffy rolled her eyes and pulled at the wet white transparent cotton of the t-shirt.
Unless my trusty eyes were deceiving me, and I don't think they were, but was she not wearing..."
"She most definitely was not wearing," Buffy confirmed.
"Wow. There's a lot of stuff about English girls that I've been misled about. They're really not all that repressed and demure are they? I mean that English rose had serious thorns."
Buffy tried to wring out her t-shirt, but her efforts barely made a difference. She was mildly intrigued at the way the soaking material clung to every curve of her well-toned body. She was also slightly startled at the way her bra was very clearly on display through the shirt.
Even more startling was the way her panties were on display through the wet material of the trousers. In fact, her clothing was so see through with the wet that she may not have been wearing it! She felt cold, clammy, uncomfortable, seriously exposed, embarrassed, in fact a thesaurus couldn't do justice to all she was feeling at this moment in time. Then she looked up and saw Xander staring at her again.
"It's the wet t-shirt, isn't it?" Buffy said.
"Uh...it's kind of the wet everything, Buff."
"I mean, what is it with men and wet t-shirts?"
"Hey, it's not our fault. It's the whole evolution thing here. Wet t-shirt on attractive female body equals men staring. It's genetic. Like night follows day, ying follows yang..."
"Genetic?" Buffy stared pointedly at Xanders sodden denims. "Sure you don't mean genital?"
Only then did Xander become uncomfortably aware of how his own clinging wet jeans emphasised certain parts of his anatomy.
"I'm, eh, thinking of Anya," he mumbled turning so his embarrassment wouldn't be too obvious.
"In a wet t-shirt?" Buffy asked acidly.
"You know something weird?" Xander said, desperate to change the subject, "At this moment in time I really wish I was being bored rigid at the cricket...."
And immediately regretted his use of the word rigid....
In Part 2...
Willow and Tara discover that when the Weatherman in England says it's not going to rain it doesn't mean you actually believe him. And Willow gets her Gadzooks out.