So, at long last the writers of the remixredux08 are revealed.

My submission this year was Walking Higher (The Childhood's End Remix), which was a remix of Winter Garden by kivrin.

Before sending you off to read the story, I'd like to get in a little blather about how this particular remix came together, in large part because of how fundamentally different my process was this year versus previous years.

For a start, the choice of story to remix, not to mention the form my remix would take, came very easily to me. However, there were a bunch of smaller pieces that were actually a lot harder.

The hardest thing of all for me this year? Coming up with a title for the story, which was changed mere hours before the archive went live.

Before we go under the cut, I would like to start my little bit of meta on this year's remix by blaming Homicide: Life on the Street as the inspiration for my remix story. And in particular, I'd like to blame the Season 4 episode, The Damage Done.

Cut for those who don't care.

( Meta: What was I thinking? The trials and tribulations of a remixer. )

Sorry for the tl;dr discussion, but I'm really excited about this remix and, I feel I should add, that I couldn't have asked for better source material for my remix. I do urge you to go read Winter Garden by kivrin, a short, dream-like story of excellent quality about Giles and Xander finding each other in Washington DC 14 months after the events of "Chosen."

If you're curious, you can hear Heather Nova's "Walking Higher" in its entirety on LastFM. You can also hear "Walk This World" in its entirety on Last FM.

Now, on to the story...

Title:

Walking Higher (The Childhood's End Remix)
Author: Lizbeth Marcs (liz_marcs)
Summary: There’s only one person who’d ask you to give up heaven, and there are four people for whom you’d do it.
Genre: Future fic, ghost story, angst
Rating: PG-13ish

Fandom:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel the Series
Characters: Xander, Dawn, Buffy, Giles, Willow, Cordelia
Pairings: Primarily gen; Buffy/Xander UST; light Giles/Xander slash

Title, Author, and URL of the original Story: Winter Garden by kivrin

Warning:

Disturbing imagery and violence. Vague spoilers for all of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel.

Author’s notes:

Takes place a year-and-a-half after ‘Chosen.’ All related comics are cheerfully and willfully ignored. Additional writing credits at the end of the story. Additional writing credits at the end.

Disclaimer: Xander Harris, Dawn Summers, Buffy Summers, Rupert Giles, Willow Rosenberg, Cordelia Chase, Connor, and all associated characters and organizations are the property of FOX and Mutant Enemy. Any mention of real life events and real people is not meant to imply that the people or incidents in question as they are used in the story have any relationship to reality. All original characters and the plot are mine. No payment was asked for or received in the writing of this story and no profit was earned. No copyright infringement on FOX or Mutant Enemy is intended.

(Follow the Fake Cut to Walking Higher)

Title:

Walking Higher (The Childhood's End Remix) — Part 5/5
Author: Lizbeth Marcs (liz_marcs)
Summary: There’s only one person who’d ask you to give up heaven, and there are four people for whom you’d do it.
Rating: PG-13ish

Fandom:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel the Series
Characters: Xander, Dawn, Buffy, Giles, Willow, Cordelia
Pairings: Primarily gen; Buffy/Xander UST; light Giles/Xander slash

Title, Author, and URL of the original Story: Winter Garden by kivrin

Warning:

Disturbing imagery and violence. Vague spoilers for all of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel.

Author’s notes:

Author's notes in the first part.

( v) but it is good, at the eve of such a day... )

Title:

Walking Higher (The Childhood's End Remix) — Part 4/5
Author: Lizbeth Marcs (liz_marcs)
Summary: There’s only one person who’d ask you to give up heaven, and there are four people for whom you’d do it.
Rating: PG-13ish

Fandom:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel the Series
Characters: Xander, Dawn, Buffy, Giles, Willow, Cordelia
Pairings: Primarily gen; Buffy/Xander UST; light Giles/Xander slash

Title, Author, and URL of the original Story: Winter Garden by kivrin

Warning:

Disturbing imagery and violence. Vague spoilers for all of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel.

Author’s notes:

All author's notes are in the first part.


( iv) i have long desired to connect your name with some book of mine... )

Title:

Walking Higher (The Childhood's End Remix) — Part 3/5
Author: Lizbeth Marcs (liz_marcs)
Summary: There’s only one person who’d ask you to give up heaven, and there are four people for whom you’d do it.
Rating: PG-13ish

Fandom:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel the Series
Characters: Xander, Dawn, Buffy, Giles, Willow, Cordelia
Pairings: Primarily gen; Buffy/Xander UST; light Giles/Xander slash

Title, Author, and URL of the original Story: Winter Garden by kivrin

Warning:

Disturbing imagery and violence. Vague spoilers for all of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel.

Author’s notes:

All author's notes are in the first part.

( iii) let good men push and elbow one another as they may during their earthly march... )

Title:

Walking Higher (The Childhood's End Remix) — Part 2/5
Author: Lizbeth Marcs (liz_marcs)
Summary: There’s only one person who’d ask you to give up heaven, and there are four people for whom you’d do it.
Rating: PG-13ish

Fandom:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel the Series
Characters: Xander, Dawn, Buffy, Giles, Willow, Cordelia
Pairings: Primarily gen; Buffy/Xander UST; light Giles/Xander slash

Title, Author, and URL of the original Story: Winter Garden by kivrin

Warning:

Disturbing imagery and violence. Vague spoilers for all of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel.

Author’s notes:

All author's notes are in the first part.


( ii) in those strange old times, when fantastic dreams and madmen's reveries... )

Title:

Walking Higher (The Childhood's End Remix) — Part 1/5
Author: Lizbeth Marcs (liz_marcs)
Summary: There’s only one person who’d ask you to give up heaven, and there are four people for whom you’d do it.
Genre: Future fic, ghost story, angst
Rating: PG-13ish

Fandom:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel the Series
Characters: Xander, Dawn, Buffy, Giles, Willow, Cordelia
Pairings: Primarily gen; Buffy/Xander UST; light Giles/Xander slash

Title, Author, and URL of the original Story: Winter Garden by kivrin

Warning:

Disturbing imagery and violence. Vague spoilers for all of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel.

Author’s notes:

Takes place a year-and-a-half after ‘Chosen.’ All related comics are cheerfully and willfully ignored. Additional writing credits at the end of the story. Additional writing credits at the end.

Disclaimer: Xander Harris, Dawn Summers, Buffy Summers, Rupert Giles, Willow Rosenberg, Cordelia Chase, Connor, and all associated characters and organizations are the property of FOX and Mutant Enemy. Any mention of real life events and real people is not meant to imply that the people or incidents in question as they are used in the story have any relationship to reality. All original characters and the plot are mine. No payment was asked for or received in the writing of this story and no profit was earned. No copyright infringement on FOX or Mutant Enemy is intended.


( i) there is no remoteness of life and thought, no hermetically sealed seclusion... )

Today was MarcsMom's Unbirthday (yesterday being her Birthday), so I ended up hanging around the ol' homestead for a bit. By the time I scraped the thin ice off my car, dodged people driving either at 90 mph or 15 mph on the highways, and made it home, I was mentally exhausted and not up for another round of playing dodge-'em with people who've forgotten how to drive when it's cold and raining.

This is a unique New England thing, I think. People tend to "forget" how to drive in snow and ice in between winters. While the roads aren't icey (yet), people were driving in crazy ways. Thanks to the unseasonably warm winter weather, I don't think anyone has their winter "driving legs," hence the chaos I encountered at several points on- and off- the highways.

So, there went my plans for the day. (Note to self: Email apologies.)

I come home to comments on the part of this story I posted Friday night. Some people want to see Kennedy.

*looks around shifty eyed*

What?

*hangs head*

I am weak like veal.

Written for the Dark Xander Fic-A-Thon.
All previous parts here.
Continued from Part 3.

Meet my New Year's resolution: finishing some WiPs. To that end, I'm posting at least one part to at least one WiP a week. I was hoping to have the next part of Facing the Heart in Darkness ready to go, but it's still a mess. Instead, I give you the next part of Nobody Never Gets to Heaven.

Written for the Dark Xander Fic-A-Thon.
All previous parts here.
Continued from Part 2.

Holy cow!

I didn't realize that I never transfered this particular fic to LJ. This is another one that was put up on the Pit of Voles a few months before Buffy went off the air.

( A Little Intro for Into the Desert )

For some reason, don't ask me why, but the original title for this story was The Intramural Street Hockey League and Goomba Society.

Don't ask me. I have no clue what it means, either.

I'm sure it made sense at the time.

Because of the story's thorough Jossing, at some point I changed the description from "spec" to AU, complete with a one-sentence description on why the world of Into the Desert was different from canon.


Title: Into the Desert
Author: Lizbeth Marcs liz_marcs
Rating: PG-13 for language, some sexual situations.

Pairings: B/OC; W/X. References to B/A, B/S, X/An, W/T. Hints of B/W/X.
Genre: Future fic, mystery, ghost story, character angst
Warnings: Character death(s). Spoilers for S7, up to “Dirty Girls.” Beyond that, it’s AU for the end of BtVS.

Summary: Buffy begins the task of starting her life over and rebuilding the Watchers Council without her two best friends at her side. (AU)
AU Element: What if Angel only brought himself and not the amulet to the final battle against the First Evil in “Chosen?”

Disclaimer: Xander Harris, Spike, Buffy Summers, Willow Rosenberg, Rupert Giles, and all associated characters and organizations are the property of FOX and Mutant Enemy. Any mention of real life events and real people are done to serve the story and are not meant to imply that the incidents in question have any relationship to reality. All original characters and the plot are mine. No payment was asked for or received in the writing of this story and no profit was earned. No copyright infringement on FOX or Mutant Enemy is intended.

( Into the Desert, Part 1 )

Didn't get a chance to work on Facing the Heart in Darkness, but since nwhepcat asked to see what happens when Spike, Faith, and Xander hit Vegas, I had to kind of comply. I mean, it's actually done and everything.

Yes, I'm blaming nwhepcat. Shut up.

Written for the Dark Xander Fic-A-Thon.
All previous parts here.
Continued from Part 1.

Title:  Nobody Never Gets to Heaven
Author:  Lizbeth Marcs
Rating: R

Het/Slash/Gen:  Mention of and some onscreen M/M/F threesome. One brief instance of M/M noncon. Past mention of M/F and F/F relationships.
Pairing(s):  Xander/Faith/Spike. One brief instance of Xander/OC noncon. Past mention of Xander/Kennedy, Willow/Kennedy, Buffy/Spike, Faith/Robin.

Genre:  Adventure, dark fic, character angst, future fic, monster hunt, political intrigue
Story Warnings:  Mention of off-screen past torture, serial murder, and serial rape. One brief onscreen scene of noncon. Character death(s). Vengeance. Attempted suicide by Slayer. Warnings for all of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel the Series.

Summary:  The world's most dangerous vampire has been lured to the glittering playground of Las Vegas. While the hunt is on through the casinos on the Strip, Buffy and Willow engage in a deadly battle of poker to determine the vampire's ultimate fate. It's up to Xander, Spike, and Faith to decide who should have the winning hand.

Accompanying Media:  Worksafe. Quattro (Live) by Calexico. (Click on song title for download.)

Special Thanks To: entrenous88, rainkatt, othercat, nwhepcat, midnightfae, sunnyd_lite, mandylancast. Thank you for all your support and FB. Please note that any and all mistakes are completely mine.

Author's Note:  Written for the Dark Xander Fic-A-Thon.

Disclaimer: Xander Harris, Spike, Faith Lehane, Buffy Summers, Willow Rosenberg, Kennedy, and all associated characters and organizations are the property of FOX and Mutant Enemy. Any mention of real life events and real people are done to serve the story and are not meant to imply that the incidents in question have any relationship to reality. All original characters and the plot are mine. No payment was asked for or received in the writing of this story and no profit was earned. No copyright infringement on FOX or Mutant Enemy is intended.
 

 

 

Yes. I am lame. I put a downpayment on my fic-a-thon. But I want to finish Facing the Heart in Darkness first.