Providence (Joyce/Shepherd Book)

He was more light years from home than he could count. There was more space between himself and the familiar than could be measured in time or distance. This place was dead, crumbling dust in the cosmos, the legendary Earth-That-Was. And yet here he stood in the sunshine of humanity’s first home, hundreds of years before its wastage, looking at her and feeling his heart ache to know that where he was supposed to be, she was so long dead there was nothing left of her but molecules.

Fingers played at the stiffened collar around his throat, a symbol of his responsibility and his vows. He could stay, Shepherd to a flock of his heart’s choosing. These sweet children who fought to save the world for no other reason but that it was the right thing to do. He could help them through the danger, guide them through the loss, buoy their spirits when the toll of their life became too heavy. Perhaps once again Providence had sent him where he was needed most.

Then he saw Joyce smile, her warm eyes glowing, her cheek so invitingly soft... and temptation came, whispering gently in his mind of other possibilities, another life, another kind of vow and worship.

She was beautiful.

And, where he was from, she was dead.

The dilemma tore at him. Little Willow was working herself to exhaustion trying to find him a way home. Giles was at her side, nose buried in texts more ancient than Book could imagine. Though their enthusiasm for the research was lackluster at best Buffy and Xander still pitched in where they could, ‘surfing’ through their version of the cortex, clumsy as it was. Some very large part of him wanted nothing more than to tell them it was all right, to let it go.

Was it giving up, to blame this bizarre circumstance on the grace of God and just let things lie?

He was a man out of place. This world of his heritage was more alien to him than the vast black ‘verse and all the wide unknown. But he could belong here. With their help, he could carve himself a niche in history.

Where did his responsibility lie? To the life he came from or the life he could have?

Shepherd Book returned Joyce’s smile and wished he had an answer.






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