Fanfiction: A Tale Of Slayers : Part 9-15

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

With sunset less than an hour away, Angel had more freedom to move around the library, with the deepening of the shadows, and for the past two hours they had been hard at work gathering as much information as they could. Giles was sure that Oranstine would make her move once night fell, to take full advantage of her vampire ranks, and they were still no closer to finding a sure way of killing the Slayer Vampire. So far, the only plan they could come up with was they would have to kill Oranstine first. And with the chance that the demon’s demise could possibly mean Faith’s death, they were deep in their research to find a way to sever her hold on the younger Slayer.

They had not found anything yet.

He remembered what Giles had said this morning about not going after the demon, especially with Buffy not up to full strength, but with the new development with Faith and her bond with Oran he was convinced that they couldn’t afford to wait for her to make the first move. They needed to take the fight to her.

Angel was on the upper level, standing in the shadows between the bookshelves, as he looked through the endless volumes there. It was also a way to guard the doors leading into the Stacks, which was the larger area of the library. He glanced down toward the book cage where Faith was busy preparing the weapons they would need for tonight, lining them atop the table. She was definitely not one well suited for doing research, he reflected, considering the pressure she must be feeling right now. True, they were all under pressure, but she was at the heart of it, and Angel had to admit she was certainly up to the challenge to face it. Her weakness would be her impulsiveness, leaping into action without first thinking of the consequences. Faith was fortunate to have Giles as her Watcher, and the vampire had been very impressed how the man was able to calm his Slayer down. Lord knew he’d had plenty of practice with Buffy over the past two years.

His eyes fell on the blonde Slayer. She was sitting at the table below him, looking through another old book, Xander right across from her. What area of the surface that was not occupied with weapons was cluttered with volumes of dusty tomes. Buffy was slowly rotating her neck as she read, wincing slightly from her still soar muscles. Nearly all the bruises had faded completely, but the cut above her right brow was still there. Willow had checked her stitches and had found they had been pulled, during the fight with the demons at her house, but the wound in her side had already closed, so she removed them.

Angel still felt it was a bad idea for her to face the Slayer Vampire again. Even with hers and Faith’s combined strengths, it would be extremely dangerous for them both. Angel had insisted that he should be with them. Three to one odds would be better, but the Slayers also had Oranstine to contend with, if they were to even have a chance of defeating the indestructible vampire. And they could not do that with its minions around to protect it. Faith and Buffy would try to take out as many lesser demons as they could, but it was agreed that their focus would be Oran and the Slayer Vampire. So Giles, Xander, and Willow had to keep the others occupied, and the only hope they had of doing that without dying was with his help.

“Aha!” Willow declared. She was behind the counter working on the computer. Everyone turned their attention to her. Giles stepped out of his office. “I think I found one of Buffy’s attackers.”

“I believe they are my victims, thank you very much,” Buffy said as she walked over to the counter.

“What did you find?” asked Giles.

“According to the police files there was a man, identified only as `John Smith,’ who was arrested this morning and booked for possession of concealed weapons.” The teenager looked up. “He’s still there awaiting bail.”

“Good show, Willow.” Giles pulled a fresh tweed jacket from the hanger rack. “You and I should go down there immediately. We don’t want him to leave before we get there.”

Everyone was gathered around the counter again. “Are you sure it’s safe for you two to go after this guy by yourself?” Buffy asked.

“We should be safe enough,” Giles reassured her. “If all goes according to plan, he won’t even see us. And I want the rest of you to leave the library as soon as the sun goes down.”

“You think they’ll attack us here?”

“It’s best not to take that chance.” He came out from behind the counter, followed by Willow and set his leather bag on the table to choose a couple of weapons. “With any luck, this chap will lead us to the exact location of their hideout.”

“You don’t think they’ll stay in their cave hideout?” asked Faith.

Xander spoke up. “If you knew that two pissed-off Slayers had your address wouldn’t you feel the need to move?”

“And I’d rather not go puttering around searching blindly where they’re likely to see us coming before we find them. We’ll call if we find anything.”

“But we’re going to have to be by a phone where you can reach us,” Buffy said. “I don’t think our usual places will be ideal choices. And we have to assume Oran knows where everyone lives.”

“How `bout the Bronze?” Xander suggested. “I know the Order of Taraka don’t shy away from public assassinations, but they may think twice about trying to kidnap two Slayers at the same time in a very crowded place.”

“The Bronze, on a Saturday night?” Willow said. “We’re talking long waiting line. What if you can’t get in?”

“I don’t think that’ll be a problem.” Buffy turned to Angel. “Right, Angel?”

He nodded. “I can sneak in and let everyone in through the back.”

“Don’t they have a large bouncer guarding the back?” Xander asked.

The vampire, Faith, and Buffy looked at him and said, “What’s your point?”

Xander looked at them for a moment. “Oh. Well, adding assault and battery to Willow’s hacking offense shouldn’t really make too much of a difference on our arrest warrants.”

“Not to worry,” Buffy told him. “They’ll be no batteries included.” She looked at Angel.

“He won’t even have a bruise when he wakes up,” he promised her.

Willow was sitting in the passenger seat of the Citroen, fidgeting with a handheld cross. She also had a couple of wooden stakes in the pockets of her overalls, but she thought it wouldn’t be a good idea to play with those, considering where she was. The Sunnydale Police Station was pretty small compared to most city precincts; at least the ones she saw on TV, but it still marveled the redhead how all the vampires and demons can go unnoticed for so long in such a small town.

The sun had gone down just before their arrival and it had been almost twenty minutes since Giles had entered the station. Willow figured she would give the librarian a couple of more minutes before she started to worry. After all, she thought, what could possibly happen to him in a police station?

Willow decided to forego the two minutes.

Giles may be just the Watcher, but he was more capable than she and the others gave him credit for sometimes. She had seen him slay a few vampires during his time as Buffy’s Watcher and she wondered if he had faced any vampires prior to coming to the Hellmouth? From what little she heard him say about Watchers, they usually tend to stay away from vampires and other monsters, except in extreme emergencies. Such as when Noriko’s Watcher, Wallace, had saved her. They still did not know what happened to that Watcher. Surely he would not have stood by and allowed his charge to be taken. And if the Order of Taraka had done the kidnapping, more than likely Wallace was dead.

For ten years he had been Noriko’s Watcher, and she had never been activated as a Slayer under his care. He must have developed some type of bond with the young girl during all that time. Willow knew that Giles cared about Buffy, not just as his Slayer, but as the girl who was, in many ways, the daughter he never had. His reaction to Buffy’s running away last year had been similar to Mrs. Summers’, although without being as emotionally expressive about it. She and Xander had to watch as he would often rush off to catch a plane, after receiving a possible sighting on Buffy, seeing the hope in his eyes as he left. Then to see the helplessness in them when he returned. But he remained strong, at least that’s the appearance he showed them. She remembered that night when they had gone to his apartment and he had opened his door to find Buffy standing in front of him. It must’ve taken him every drop of self-control to keep from throwing his arms around her, and thoroughly embarrassing her in front of her friends, but Willow had seen the light return to his eyes that had been missing for those months.

And then there was Faith. She was sure that Giles cared for Faith also, but not with the love he felt for Buffy. Not yet, anyway. But that was just because he had not known Faith as long, and the brunette was more closed off to everybody. Given time Giles would surely come to love the other Slayer as he did Buffy, unless a new Watcher was assigned to her and she was moved from Sunnydale.

Giles was like a single parent with two teenage daughters to look after, she thought. Fate can have a weird sense of humor at times.

Willow was brought out of her thoughts when she saw Giles walk out of the police station. “How did it go?” she asked when he got back behind the wheel.

“I believe it went rather well,” he said.

“You don’t think he’ll be curious about who bailed him out?”

“I suspect, well I hope, he won’t want to stay around long enough to ask any questions. Hopefully, he’ll just assume one of his colleges bailed him out and just didn’t want to wait for him in a police station.”

“How much did the bail cost?”

Giles tilted his head. “More than a month’s worth of my librarian salary.”

“Gosh. I doubt this guy is going to stick around for his court appointment. How can you afford it?”

“Simple. I can’t.” He looked at the worried expression from the teenager. “Not to worry, I have a receipt. The Council does reimburse for expenses generated during the cause.”

“Really?” Willow sounded surprised.

“Oh, yes. Did you think I was left with the responsibility of caring for my Slayers without assistance?”

“Uh, actually, yeah.”

Giles smiled. “The Council does provide me with some resources other than books. A slush fund, if you will. Who do you think pays for Faith’s motel room? Or all the weapons Buffy has gone through over the years?”

“At least you don’t have to pay for all of Buffy’s clothes,” Willow said, jokingly.

“Not for Buffy. But I leave Faith to do her own shopping.”

“Really? You pay for Faith’s clothes?”

“Remember, Faith does not have a real home here, and no means of income. She is, after all, a Slayer, so the Council should at least make sure she has everything she needs. Granted, the Watcher’s Council isn’t exactly swimming in wealth, but nobody said protecting the world was easy.”

“I never thought of it that way.”

“Hello,” Giles said, and Willow looked to where his gaze was. “There’s our chap.”

Willow saw a tall man in dark fatigues. She hadn’t noticed the taxi that pulled up in front of the station. “Are you sure? You said they were wearing ski masks.”

“Yes, that’s right. But he’s still wearing the same clothes from last night.” They watched as the man got into the back of the taxi and Giles turned on the engine as it pulled away from the station. “Here we go.”

The line of people waiting to get inside the Bronze was very long, so they had to go with Angel’s plan. They only waited at the backdoor for just a few minutes before the vampire opened it to allow them in. True to his word, the bouncer on duty there was sleeping soundly without a mark on him. But, still feeling bad for the guy, Buffy insisted they leave their cover charge with him, stuffed in one of his pockets. Not too surprisingly, Faith had volunteered for the stuffing.

Now, after nearly an hour, she, Xander, and Faith had finally snagged a table close to the bar, upgrading from the many sofas away from the dance floor. Angel had taken position on the second floor where he can keep an overhead view of them and everyone around them. He was sure he would be able to spot any demon or vampire long before they reached them; not that the demon in question would survive its encounter with the two Slayers sitting at the table. The three teens were making small talk, trying to blend in, but they were warily scanning the gyrating crowd on the dance floor and the dozens of people milling throughout the rest of the club.

“So, Buffy,” Xander said, picking a new subject, “what do you want for your birthday?”

“Birthday?” Buffy said. “Wow. With all that’s been going on lately, I nearly forgot it was coming.”

“When is your birthday, B?” Faith asked.

“In two weeks.”

“She’s gonna be the big one-eight,” Xander smiled. “It’s gonna be all down hill from there.”

“Speaking from experience?” she asked, with mock scorn.

“Absolutely.”

“When did you turn eighteen?” Faith asked Xander.

“Just last week. Of course the surprise party they threw for me was nothing compared to the monster bashes we try to have for the Buffster, here.”

“Don’t even go there,” Buffy warned with a slight grin.

“A party? Where was I?” Faith said, with a tint of accusation.

“Well, uh, I—I did try to call you,” Buffy said. “I even went by your place earlier that day before the party.”

“I must’ve been out.” Faith said, impassively. Despite the thrum of rock coming from the sound system, silence fell at the table. The brunette made a show of scanning the club again, looking for any would be demons. So far there was still just Angel, looking down on them. Finally, she said, “So, what’s your biggest thrill of turning eighteen, Xand?”

“My biggest thrill, hmmm,” Xander put a hand to his chin.

“Legalizing his Playboy collection?” Buffy suggested.

Xander gave her an offended look. “Buffy! Such thoughts! And coming from a minor!”

“Hey, you! Keep all verbal assaults above the belt!” Then, after thinking about what she just said, and seeing Faith’s and Xander’s expressions, she said, “I mean— I wasn’t— just that… .” She let her shoulder’s slump. “Oooh. Just when I thought I got over the ability to embarrass myself, I make a come back.”

“Hey guys.”

Buffy whirled at the sound of the voice behind her but relaxed when she recognized the eighteen year old. “Oz! Been standing there long?”

“What?” he asked, his eyebrows narrowing slightly.

“Nothing,” she quickly said. “I didn’t know you were playing tonight.”

“Yeah. Neither did I. Devon got a call for an impromptu gig, at the last minute. We’ll be on in about twenty minutes.”

“Join us,” Buffy said.

The guitarist of the local band known as `Dingoes Ate My Baby’ was about as tall as Buffy, if you didn’t count his spiked hair style; which was a current shade of red this week. “Thanks.”

He slid on the stool next to the blonde Slayer nodding in turn to Faith and Xander, though the exchange between the two young men was a little tense, with Xander averting his eyes quickly. Even though Oz and Willow had made up just a few weeks ago, the `incident’ which led to the break up was still fresh to all those involved. With Oz and Cordelia walking in on Xander and Willow in full smoochie mode, while trying to rescue them where they were being held hostage by Spike, no less.

To Buffy, it seemed as if things were calming down a bit. Well, Cordelia still made an effort to avoid them, but she really couldn’t blame her for that. But was it her imagination or was Cordelia actually starting to be just a little less mean to them? It was hard to tell.

“Is Willow here with you guys?” asked Oz.

“No. `Fraid not.” Buffy noticed Oz was staring at her, finally getting a better look at her.

“Buffy, what happened?” Even though the tone of his voice hardly changed, Buffy picked up on his concern.

“Oh, it’s a long stor—” She stopped and glanced at Faith and Xander, then said, “I got my ass kicked.”

Oz raised his eyebrows. “That was going to be my first guess. But that’s something that happens, like, every once in a … never.”

“Believe me, it’s something I do not want to make a common occurrence of.”

“So did you bag the demon that did this to you?”

“Not yet,” Buffy said, looking down at the table.

“But we’re going to get her tonight,” Faith spoke up.

“Do you guys think she’ll show up here?”

“No. We’re waiting for Willow and Giles to give us a call. They’re trying to find out where this demon’s hideout is.”

“They are? Is it dangerous?”

“No,” Buffy said, quickly. Oz’s concern for Willow was apparent in his usually calm demeanor. “Well, no more than what she has done in the past.”

“Do you guys need any help?” he asked.

“What about your gig?” Buffy asked.

“If Willow’s in danger, then the band can wait.”

Buffy looked to Xander for help, but it seemed as if he wasn’t comfortable enough to say anything, and Faith really didn’t know Oz very well, so she was more than likely to invite him along to join the slayage. “Oz, Willow wouldn’t appreciate it if we dragged you away from your band, she knows how important it is to you.”

“If Willow is caught up in something dangerous, I should be with her,” Oz said, sternly.

“Oz,” Buffy began. It seemed his loyalty to his girlfriend knew no bounds and she respected him for that, and she wasn’t intimidated to say that their love for each other could easily rival that of hers and Angel’s. Or, at least, the way it used to be. “I promise you, Faith and I are the ones who are going to be handling the really dangerous stuff. If everything goes according to plan the most Willow will have to do is watch us slay alot of demons. And besides, you do have obligations to the guys in the band. They’re not the Dingoes without their lead guitarist.”

Oz didn’t look entirely convinced. “But it can never hurt to have an extra pair of hands to hold stakes. Granted I haven’t been in the slaying business as long as you guys, but I still have contributed in the past.”

“But you shouldn’t have to let vampires interfere with your life. Believe me, I know how important keeping some semblance of a normal life can be.”

Oz seemed to consider this. Torn between his concern for Willow and his duty to the band, which was really the only ambition the laid back teen had in life. Other than spending as much time with a certain redhead that was legally possible. And there have been many times where he had missed out on similar adventures.

Oz’s attention was drawn away from the table and Buffy looked over her shoulder to see the lead singer of Dingoes waving him over, where the band had begun to set up for tonight’s gig. Oz gave the tall young man a nod and indicated he would be right there. He turned his attention back to Buffy.

“Look, I’ll make you a deal,” she said. “I will give you my personal guarantee; and this is a Slayer-approved, money-back guarantee, that Willow will be perfectly fine after tonight’s slayage. And I’ll even have her give you a call as soon as this is all over.” She paused, hoping that didn’t sound as lame as she thought it did. “Deal?”

Oz regarded her for a moment. Then said, “You have it in writing?”

“In triplicate,” she nodded.

Even though it seemed she sold him on the idea, Buffy was not sure if he really would agree to stay. She knew that if someone she cared for was doing something dangerous she wouldn’t be able to just sit back. Then why was she doing her best to keep Oz here? she thought. Simple —well, okay, maybe not so simple— but Oz was a friend and the fact that Willow loved him so much made it imperative for her to do what she could to make sure he didn’t ruin things with his struggling band. He was already forced to take three days off away from the band due to his little curse of becoming a werewolf on the nights of the full moon every single month, which already put a strain on them. It wouldn’t do him any good to abandon them just minutes before an act to go out and fight vampires. Sure, Buffy often had to run off for that exact reason, but that was the package deal of being the Chosen One, or One of the Two, she thought.

But before Oz could reply, Xander spoke up. “Buff.” He pointed toward the bar where one of the bartenders was holding a phone, covering the mouthpiece with his hand.

“I have a phone call for an Anne,” he said in a raised voice that was barely audible over the music.

“Oh, that’s us,” she said. “Be right back.” She hurried to the bar to take the phone.

“Who’s Anne?” Oz asked Faith and Xander.

“Uh, that’s Buffy’s middle name,” Xander explained. “We’re using it as sort of a code.”

Oz nodded, in understanding, then narrowed his eyebrows in question. But before he could say anything, Faith said, “I think, B wants you.”

Oz saw Buffy waving for him to come over. She was still holding the phone and she said something they couldn’t hear, but they were able to read her lips as she mouthed “Willow.” Oz hopped off the stool and took the phone from her. Buffy returned to the table, picking up her jacket where she had laid it and put it on.

“What’s the word?” Faith asked her.

“Eureka. They followed the goon back to their hideout. They’re still at the harbor, but it seems they moved their HQ to a freighter on the docks.”

“Are they okay?” Xander asked as they stood.

“Yeah, they’re fine.” Buffy waved toward the second floor and motioned to Angel that they were leaving. “As soon as they found out where they were they backed off to a safe distance.”

“So, is Oz staying?”

“Yeah. If anyone can get Oz to stay, Willow can.” She waved to the guitarist as they started for the door and he returned it, slight traces of a smile on his face as he spoke into the phone.

After meeting up with Angel at the door, they piled into her mom’s car and drove off into the night.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Willow finally hung up the payphone and returned to the booth she and Giles had been sitting at in the road side diner. He was nursing a cup of tea with his spoon, his danish barely touched. They were the only customers in the place at the moment. There was a smile on the redhead’s face as she sat down across from him.

“Everything was fine?” he asked.

“Huh?” she said, coming out of her almost dream-like state. “Oh, yeah. They left about ten minutes ago. I was talking to Oz.”

“Oh?” Giles still marveled at how these kids were able to deal with their normal daily lives in between all the run-ins with monsters and demons. His admiration for their courage would never falter.

“Yeah. His band has a gig at the Bronze tonight. He wanted to leave to help us. But it seemed like Buffy was able to talk him out of it. And I told him that it would be best if he did stay there. I mean we have all the help we really need, don’t we?” She looked at him.

“Oh, yes. No, Oz being here wouldn’t change the odds very much. I mean, he is a nice lad and can certainly hold his own, in such situations, but I understand the band is important to him.”

“Yeah.” Willow stared at her own danish, which was half gone. During all the excitement of the day she and the rest of the gang barely took time to eat much. “And it’s good that one of us can be apart from the monsters, at least for one night. Have, what we laughingly refer to here on the Hellmouth as, a normal Saturday.”

Giles smiled at this and sipped his tea. Willow tore a small piece of her danish and popped it into her mouth. “They should be here in a few minutes then,” he commented.

She nodded. “With Buffy driving… If they can avoid being pulled over for reckless driving.” They chuckled knowingly. “Who would have thought that Buffy would be able to give Cordelia a run for her money as the worst driver on the road. OK, maybe she’s not half as bad as Cordelia, considering that Cordy’s been driving for a couple of years now, and Buffy has hardly been behind the wheel of the car.”

“Yes. I think it would be a good idea to take her out for lessons sometime. What with her Slayer duties and school she rarely does have time to focus on such things, such as learning how to drive.”

“Do you think her mother would approve?” Willow said. “Buffy told me that her mom was really wiggy about allowing her to drive. She’s still a little afraid that Buffy will, y’know, run away again.”

“I believe Buffy has gotten past that phase of her life. Perhaps I should talk to her.” Giles suddenly seemed a little uncomfortable. He cleared his throat and straightened his tie. Willow wondered why.

Buffy had been reluctant to discuss the time when nearly all the adults of Sunnydale had been under the influence of the cursed band candy, a few months ago, that had caused them to revert to their teenage personas. She was guessing that maybe something had happened during that time that Buffy did not want to think about. Something involving Giles? And the way he was acting just mentioning Mrs. Summers.

Willow came to the conclusion that she had more information than she needed. Now she understood why her friend did not want to talk about it. But then again, would it be so bad if Giles and Mrs. Summers did get together? she thought. It had been almost a year already since Ms. Calendar had died, and there had been no one in the Watcher’s life since then.

Looking through Buffy’s eyes, Willow knew the life of a Slayer was a lonely one, but since she moved to Sunnydale, Buffy’s had her and Xander by her side, as well as Angel. And now Oz and Faith, a fellow Slayer. Sure, they were all there for Giles, too, but, even though the Watcher was fond of them all, he surely needed to socialize with people in his own age bracket. There was only so much time he could spend hanging around teenagers. His life had to be even more lonely. And his dedication to his Slayers seemed certain to keep it that way.

“Willow?” Giles asked.

“Huh?”

“You all right?”

She gave him a smile. “Yeah. Just too many thoughts right now.”

“Worried about tonight?”

“No. Well, yeah, but that’s not what I was thinking about.” Willow saw him looking at her expectantly. He wasn’t pressing her, letting it be her choice whether to share with him, and she appreciated that. “I was just wondering what was going to happen when we all graduate.”

“I would imagine we will all go on with our lives,” he said, gently.

“I guess. Going away to college and everything.” She paused, then looked up. “What will Buffy do?”

Giles considered his answer for a moment. “With her SAT scores I’m sure she’ll be accepted to a very fine school.”

“And she’ll move away?”

“More than likely.” He raised his cup to his lips.

Tentatively, she asked, “And what will you do?”

He set his cup down again. “I shall remain here. Where the action is, I suppose. It would also give me a chance to focus more on Faith’s training, which she has been lacking since being without a Watcher of her own .”

“It doesn’t seem that Faith is lacking in the `killing demons’ area.”

“No. She’s practically a natural in slaying demons, but her study habits are somewhat atrocious.”

Willow grinned. “I think there’s something about her religion that states schooling is a deadly sin.”

“Well, I hope to break her of that habit.”

“You think you can get her to go back to school?” she asked.

“Oh, heavens. I admit I’ve acquired some experience in dealing with teenagers over the past couple of years, but I’ve not let that disillusion me to thinking I can create miracles. No, Faith and I will have to take things a little differently. Buffy has had her mother to look after her while I could not. Although I’m not complaining about being posted as Faith’s `temporary’ Watcher, I think the Council may have been wrong in doing so. Faith would surely benefit more by having a full-time Watcher.”

“But you’re doing a great job! I mean, the way you handled the situation at the library. Not letting Faith go off by herself and getting killed. Personally, I didn’t think you could have stopped her—” She stopped. “Uh, I meant, sure, you could have, but Faith can sometimes be— well you know how she can get… . Good show, Giles!” she said and stuffed the rest of her danish into her mouth, filling her cheeks.

Giles lifted his cup again. “Thank you, Willow.” He took a sip. Willow tried to say something to him around the danish in her mouth. “Willow, you really shouldn’t talk with your mouth full.”

Willow waved her hands frantically and pointed over his shoulder. Frowning, he looked to where she was pointing and, through the large pane glass windows, saw a group of people walking toward the diner. They were all wearing similar clothes and dark jackets. Just like the vampires he saw Angel fighting this morning.

The man in the lead was tall and carried with him an air of authority as he pushed open the door with the chime of the customer bell and plucked the “OPEN” sign from behind it. He held it up to his comrades.

“C’mon in, we’re all invited,” he said, holding the door for the others as they filed into the diner.

The waitress came out from behind the counter and approached the new arrivals. “Hello, how may I—”

Giles shot to his feet. “No! Stay away from them!” he shouted.

A stout vampire now in front of the group shoved the women away with one hand and sent her flying back over the long lunch counter where she tumbled to the floor in a heap, knocking over various items. The swinging door leading from the kitchen opened and the cook stepped out and saw the waitress on the floor.

“Sherri, what happened?” he said.

Then something dark green shot out from the kitchen behind him and wrapped itself around his neck. He gagged and clawed at it with his hands, fighting for air. Giles saw a tall rugged looking man wearing a trench coat step out of the door, the long appendage of his arm reeling into his sleeve as he moved closer to the cook.

“Hank!” Sherri exclaimed, as she pulled herself back to her feet.

The man with the tentacle arm leered close to Hank’s face, which was turning blue from lack of oxygen. The demon smiled. “Say good-bye to Sherri, Hank.”

With that, it pulled its tentacle the way a child would pull a wind-up string to release a spinning top, but in this case, effectively twisting the man’s neck with a snap that reverberated through the diner. The demon let Hank’s lifeless body drop to the floor.

“NO!” Willow screamed.

They were both on their feet now, and Giles stepped in front of the teenager, blocking her from the creatures with his body, but she still looked out around him. Then he glanced to their booth again and saw his weapon bag still in his seat where it was doing him absolutely no good whatsoever. “Bloody well done, Giles,” he hissed to himself.

He could probably make a dive for it but that would only entice the creatures to move on them more quickly. And he really wouldn’t be able to hold them all off for long. Best to bide their time for now.

He figured most of them were vampires from the way they acted as they entered, but some of them were probably different kinds of monsters. Especially the chap who just killed the cook. He counted eight, plus the demon from the kitchen. Nine in all. If Faith was right, it seemed like Oranstine’s entire force was here. He even saw the human he and Willow had trailed to the docks. He must have noticed being followed, he thought.

But where was Oranstine? he wondered.

The demon entourage was walking slowly toward them, there rank filling the width of the diner. Sherri, the waitress, had backed away from them along the counter, until it ended, so she scrambled over the top, dropping napkin dispensers and salt and pepper shakers. One of the men in front of the group vamped out, his fangs flashing and tensed to spring at the woman.

“No, wait!” Giles shouted.

He succeeded in getting the creature’s attention and it shot the Watcher a look. The vampire growled at him and was about to pounce anyway.

“Hold!” a voice shouted from behind the creatures. The tall man, who was now wearing his vampire face, walked out in front of the group once more, obviously in charge of this little party.

The waitress reached them and Giles pulled her behind him and Willow as they slowly back away to the other end of the diner. Looking over his shoulder, he saw there was no way out on that side. Even the bathrooms were on the opposite side, behind the creatures.

“Please don’t get pulled over, Buffy,” Willow whispered behind him.

The creatures had now stopped their advance and the lead vamp stepped two paces from the rest. He regarded the humans with a sadistic smile. “My, you have been a busy Watcher. Imagine our surprise when we arrived at the High School and found the library empty.”

“Good call, Giles,” Willow whispered to him.

The vamp continued. “And when we learned about the failure at the Slayer’s home…”

The trench-coat demon with the tentacle arm, who was behind the counter now, interrupted by saying, “We were not informed about the second Slayer’s escape!”

The lead vamp shot his gaze at the demon. “Hold you tongue! And be glad the Master allowed you to keep it! The failure is still yours!” He turned his attention back to the cornered humans. “Fortunately, not everyone in our employ is a complete idiot.”

The human in the group of demons spoke up. “I did lead them directly into your laps, didn’t I?”

“Which is the only thing that saved your life,” the vamp hissed at him. “Unlike your partner.”

The human turned his attention to Giles. “I hope you’re a better Watcher than you are a field agent.”

Willow suddenly shouted, “He’s good enough to have his Slayers hand you Tarakans your asses back to you wrapped in fruit baskets!” The redhead quickly slapped a hand over her mouth and ducked back behind Giles. She looked as surprised as he was by her outburst.

This actually brought a chuckle to the tall lead vamp, as well as some of the others, who were obviously not a part of the Taraka Order. “This is true,” the vamp said. “The Slayers are most extraordinary. They will make very powerful vampires when we turn them.”

“After your master creates more of these Slayer Vampires?” Giles said.

The vamp raised a grotesque eyebrow. “You have been busy, indeed. I’m impressed.”

Good, Giles thought. As long as they were impressed they weren’t draining them of their blood from the necks. Now if only Buffy and the others would show up, right now. Of course, `right now,’ came and went and they were still here with a diner full of demons. Need to keep stalling.

“We also know your master is Oranstine.” He met the human’s gaze. “Does that name sound familiar to the Order of Taraka?”

But it was the trench-coat demon who answered. “Oranstine is dead. We killed that demon two hundred years ago.”

“Yes,” Giles said, “You took its head, but it did not die.”

“Enough of this!” roared the lead vamp. “You’re just stalling for time. No doubt the Slayers are already on they’re way. And with you, we’ll have hostages to play against them.”

It seemed as if their time was up, and the creatures started to move forward again. Thinking quickly, Giles shouted, “You can have me! I won’t resist. I’ll be your hostage! But you must let the women go!”

“No!” Willow shouted at him. “I’m not gonna leave you!”

Before Giles could argue with her, the vamp said, “That’s most certainly true. It is well known that you Watchers have a nasty character trait of being so self-sacrificing. Especially when it comes to your Slayers, you wouldn’t hesitate to give up your life.” The creature’s eyes seemed to intensify as he glared at Giles. “In the end, however, it did not save young Noriko from her fate.”

There was a new tint in the Watcher’s eyes. One of anger. “So, Wallace is dead.” He made it a statement.

“That surprises you?”

“No, not at all,” Giles said, in almost a casual tone.

“Giles,” Willow said. He looked down to see her looking at him in shock. “You were planning on killing yourself?”

Giles opened his mouth to say something, but he was suddenly speechless. But Willow saw the truth in his eyes.

Before anyone else could say anything, all the lights in the diner went out. There was a silent moment of confusion from all occupants in the building….

The lead vamp shouted, “Take them now!”

Of course, after that all fucking hell broke loose.

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